Both of them walked the length of the train, looking in each compartment. Ethan saw that Hermione was becoming increasingly anxious with each car they checked without success.

  "I don't understand," she finally said. "Where could they be?"

  Ethan noticed the genuine concern in her voice, and it was no wonder given everything they had lived through in their first year at Hogwarts.

  "Don't worry, I'm sure her brothers know where they are... We just have to find their compartments..."

  Ethan spotted the unmistakable red hair at the end of the corridor. The Weasley twins were standing like sentries in front of a compartment, occasionally leaning in to peek inside. Their posture revealed a mix of fraternal vigince and a desire not to seem too protective.

  "Over there are Fred and George," Ethan pointed out, lightly touching Hermione's shoulder.

  She quickened her pace, with Ethan close behind. As they got closer, she could see through the compartment window a red-haired girl talking animatedly with other first-years. Ginny Weasley was gesturing enthusiastically as she spoke, though she occasionally gnced at her brothers as if checking that they were still there.

  "Fred! George!" Hermione called, her voice mixing relief and urgency. "Have you seen Ron and Harry?"

  The twins exchanged a look before Fred (or was it George?) replied:

  "Not since we arrived at the station."

  "We thought they would be with you," added the other twin, raising an eyebrow.

  Ethan saw Hermione's face tense even more. "We haven't seen them anywhere on the train. They didn't appear in our compartment and we've looked everywhere."

  "Maybe they found better friends," George suggested with a teasing smile that faded as he saw Hermione's expression.

  Fred leaned towards the compartment. "We're watching over Ginny. It's her first year and you know how it is..."

  "Completely capable of taking care of herself," George finished, "but Mum would kill us if we didn't watch over her a little."

  Ethan could sense the twins' concern, which came from their love for their family. That was why, since he arrived, it had been impossible for him to believe he was inside a book, but in a real world, with living people.

  "Aren't you worried that your brother isn't on the train?" Hermione asked, crossing her arms.

  "Ron always shows up," Fred replied with a shrug that didn't quite hide his uneasiness.

  "Please," Hermione insisted, "when we get to Hogwarts, we should tell a professor. I don't want them to do something stupid that ends with them expelled."

  The twins exchanged another knowing look that Ethan interpreted as "we've already done that."

  "Rex, Hermione," George said, "surely they have a perfectly reasonable expnation."

  "Or perfectly outndish," Ethan said before Fred could say something simir, earning a look of approval from the twins and an exasperated sigh from Hermione.

  Fred tilted his head, looking at Ethan with curiosity.

  "By the way, Hermione, who is your new friend?" he asked, pointing at Ethan with a gesture.

  "I don't remember seeing you before," George added, narrowing his eyes with interest.

  Hermione opened her mouth to answer, but Ethan got ahead of her naturally, as if he already knew what was going to happen and had to say it.

  "My name is Ethan Rhylen, I'm a first-year," he said with an enthusiastic smile as he extended his hand. "The truth is, I'm a big fan of Harry Potter, and when I saw Hermione, I approached her to ask her about him. Everyone knows they are friends, along with Ron."

  Ethan noticed how Hermione abruptly turned her head to look at him, with a look of total bewilderment. Her eyes narrowed, clearly confused by the lie he had just told.

  "An admirer of Harry?" Fred shook his hand with a pyful smile. "Wow, another one for the fan club."

  "Ginny will be delighted to have some competition," George joked, giving him an equally firm handshake.

  What really worried Ethan was the natural way the twins accepted his lie. There wasn't a hint of recognition in their faces. To them, he was just a new student, a complete stranger.

  Hermione stared at him, her expression shifting between confusion and something like arm. Ethan could clearly read the question in her eyes: 'Why are you lying? And why do they believe you?'

  "Well, I hope you find your hero soon," Fred said, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

  Ethan forced another smile, feeling Hermione's gaze trying to bore a hole in the back of his head.

  On the other hand, since it was almost confirmed that other students didn't remember him, there was no need to stay there any longer, and Hermione seemed to feel the same.

  "We should keep looking," Hermione murmured, grabbing Ethan's sleeve of his robe and pulling him firmly.

  Ethan felt the tug on his sleeve as Hermione dragged him down the train corridor, away from the Weasley twins. She paused briefly to wave to Ginny through the gss before continuing her determined march. When they finally found a quiet corner between two carriages, she turned to him with her arms crossed.

  "Why did you lie to them?" she demanded, her eyes gleaming with a mix of confusion and suspicion. "You told them you were a first-year, but you told me you were in second year, in Gryffindor."

  Ethan ran a hand through his hair, as if he were about to tell her something. He wanted to seem a little embarrassed, although everything had been calcuted beforehand.

  "Because, as you noticed, they don't remember me either," he replied in a low voice. "Just like you. Nobody seems to remember me, even though I remember them... And the Weasley twins... They are the second worst option to find out what's happening to me, leaving aside anyone from Slytherin."

  Hermione's expression changed from irritation to concern.

  "Are you saying that...?"

  "That whatever is happening," Ethan continued. "I don't think it's a good idea for the Weasley twins to find out. If not, when we get to Hogwarts, the whole castle will know that there's a student that no one remembers."

  Hermione bit her lower lip, thoughtful. "We should talk to Professor McGonagall as soon as we arrive."

  "I agree," Ethan nodded. "I'd rather have the professors handle this. If necessary, they will know what to say or what excuse to give."

  "But Harry and Ron..." Hermione murmured, her mind clearly divided between both worries.

  "We'll let them know too," he reassured her. "In fact, if we find a prefect, we could send a message ahead of time."

  Hermione looked at him with a mixture of gratitude and suspicion. "It's strange to hear you talk as if you knew me, as if you knew everyone. When you mention things about what happened on Halloween that only Ron, Harry and I knew... I..."

  "I understand," Ethan said sincerely. "At least now I can be a little more honest with you than I was st year... A chance to start over."

  Ethan decided to raise his hand in a clear sign of wanting to shake Hermione's hand.

  "Once again, I'm Ethan Rhylen, this year I'm going to be in my second year of Gryffindor, and I'd like to be the friend of the smartest and prettiest girl in second year.”

  This time, a bit of Ethan's real personality was showing when talking to someone. That's why he decided to tease Hermione, as he was almost sure she would blush.

  In fact, he would have also liked to look at Ginny in front of her brothers and call them "brothers-in-w" just to see their reactions. Unfortunately, this year he had too many things on his pte to add the revenge of the twins to his book.

  Ethan watched as Hermione's face went through several emotions in quick succession. First, her eyes widened in surprise at his direct decration. Then, her cheeks flushed a soft pink as she processed the compliment. Finally, an expression of caution settled on her face, as if she were evaluating whether she could trust him or not.

  "I... thank you, I suppose," she murmured, clearly unaccustomed to receiving such direct compliments. Her eyes briefly avoided Ethan's before looking back at him with renewed determination. "But I still think there is something very strange going on here."

  Despite her reluctance, she extended her hand and shook Ethan's firmly.

  "Hermione Granger," she said formally, as if they were truly introducing themselves for the first time. "And I'm going to find out what's going on with you, Ethan Rhylen."

  It didn't sound like a threat, but rather a promise, and Ethan couldn't help but smile at her determination.

  "That's what I feared... As long as you don't do anything dangerous, I have no objections..." Ethan said as they tacitly decided to return to their compartment.

  Of course, once settled, Hermione wasted no time.

  "Tell me about you," she asked, leaning forward slightly. "Your family, where you live... anything that can help me understand this situation."

  Ethan leaned back in his seat, considering where to begin. Hermione's attentive gaze reminded him of a scientist studying a particurly interesting specimen.

  "My parents are Muggles," Ethan started. "My mother, Catherine, is a literature teacher at a secondary school. And my father, Alexander, works in computer science, at a company called Pipex."

  "Pipex?" Hermione asked, leaning slightly forward. "Are they reted to the Internet?"

  Ethan smiled, surprised by her knowledge. "Exactly. My father works on the development of Internet infrastructure in the United Kingdom."

  "I've read something about that," Hermione said, her face lighting up with genuine interest. "Although I don't quite understand how it works."

  "Imagine a library," Ethan expined, seeing her eyes light up at the comparison. "But an infinite library, where anyone can publish information and anyone can access it from their home. The World Wide Web is about to open to the public, and when it does... it will change everything."

  Ethan watched as Hermione processed the information, her eyebrows furrowing in a concentrating expression that was already familiar to him.

  "Do you mean that all the information will be... avaible to anyone?" she asked, with a mix of wonder and skepticism.

  "Eventually," Ethan nodded. "Imagine being able to search for any piece of data, in seconds, without having to browse shelves or consult indexes. Entire encyclopedias, books, scientific research..."

  "But... what about the books?" Hermione interrupted, with a note of concern in her voice. "The feel of the paper, the smell of the pages..."

  Ethan smiled at her predictable reaction. "Libraries will still exist, Hermione. But think about it: you could access the Library of Congress in Washington from your room at home, if you had the right technology. As for doing it at Hogwarts, I think it would take a few more years to design a computer that works in a pce with so much concentration of magic."

  As he spoke, Ethan noticed how Hermione's expression oscilted between fascination and disbelief. He continued expining about advances in mobile phone technology and the new GSM technology, simplifying technical concepts so she could understand them.

  "It will be much better than previous technology, even being able to use the same cell phone in other countries without doing anything extra," he expined, making a gesture with his hand. "After a few years, cell phones will be smaller and will be able to do more things. My father says that eventually they could even send images."

  Time flew by as they talked. Finally, when the ndscape outside the window began to darken, they decided to look for a prefect to inform them about Harry and Ron's absence.

  SpoilerNakusyer

  [colpse]