Chapter 42: The Traits of Slytherin

Since Dumbledore had not yet found a suitable house, Lived and Tom were forced to stay in Hogsmeade until school began.

Both Lived and Tom possessed sufficient patience regarding this arrangement. This was especially true after they received dozens of books sent by Dumbledore that morning. However, unlike Tom’s excitement, Lived appeared much calmer. Having already inherited a vast collection of Dark Arts literature, Lived found that while the books Dumbledore sent were quite good, they were no longer enough to trigger any emotional fluctuation within him.

Yet, Tom, who was unaware of this, looked at the composed Lived and then at his own exuberant reaction, suddenly feeling a sense of shame. He felt that he should also maintain this state of imperturbability at all times. Otherwise, if he were always so easily excitable, how would he be any different from the other ordinary fools?

"I, Tom, no matter where I am or who I am among, even if I am always overshadowed by Lived, must become the most extraordinary person beneath him!"

Tom looked at the newly unwrapped books and initially wanted to snatch a few, but after glancing at Lived, he pulled his hand back.

"Tom, what’s wrong? Haven’t you been longing for these books for a long time?" Lived asked, finding Tom’s behavior strange.

"You choose first," Tom said calmly.

Lived was slightly surprised. "That’s rare. You’re being so polite today."

"I’m not being polite; it’s just... you are stronger than me, so when there are good things, you rightfully deserve the right to choose first," Tom said with a calm face. "If one day I become stronger than you, I won’t be so courteous!"

Lived could see that Tom was speaking the truth this time. It could only be said... Tom was truly a Slytherin. Though arrogant, he possessed the core trait of his house: an admiration for power. They considered themselves strong, and therefore, they also admired those who were stronger than themselves. Even Tom, who would one day become the notorious Voldemort, could not alter this psychological trait of admiring the strong once he discovered someone superior to him.

After realizing this, Lived did not decline. He reached into the pile of books and selected *Outsmarting the Dark Arts*.

"Then I’ll read this one first. There, I’m done. You take yours."

Only after hearing Lived’s words did Tom carefully select several books that interested him most from the pile. Lived glanced at them and found that the books he had chosen were: *Ordinary Spells and Counter-Curses*, *A Collection of Self-Defense Spells*, and *Practical Defensive Magic and Its Countermeasures Against the Dark Arts*...

Almost all of them were books on Defense Against the Dark Arts recommended by Dumbledore. Without a doubt, what Tom truly cared about was how to become stronger as quickly as possible.

Suddenly, Lived placed his *Outsmarting the Dark Arts* in front of Tom.

"What is it?"

"I suddenly remembered I have something to do today. You can read this book first; return it to me when I get back," Lived said.

"Where are you going?" Tom was slightly taken aback.

"I’m going to Diagon Alley with Toby to buy some things."

"What are you buying? Haven’t we already bought everything we need?" Tom was puzzled.

Logically, anything that needed to be bought had already been acquired, and if they had forgotten anything, most of it could be found in Hogsmeade. Even if it weren't available in Hogsmeade, Lived could have simply sent Toby to fetch it, without needing to go himself. Why waste time that could be spent studying?

"I intend to buy a few second-hand wands. I need to be there in person to pick the ones that suit me best," Lived said, not hiding his intentions.

"Don't we already have wands? Did you lose yours?" Tom looked at Lived in surprise.

"Of course not... In fact, I recently discovered a spell called 'Priori Incantatem,' which can reveal the most recent spells a wand has cast..." Lived looked at Tom quietly, his black pupils deepening. "And I don't particularly want others to know what magic I’ve been practicing through my wand."

Tom understood perfectly by then. In fact, he agreed with this sentiment!

Tom immediately put down the books he was holding and said, "I’m coming too... I also need an extra wand as a backup. I’ve heard that new students' wands have a piece of magic called the Trace..."

"It’s used by the Ministry of Magic to monitor students' spellcasting outside of school, because we aren't allowed to use wands during the holidays."

"What a foolish policy! I certainly don’t want to just sit there and fret while staring at my wand during the break."

Lived nodded. "In that case, let’s go together."

...

It should have been effortless for Toby to Apparate with two young wizards. However, Lived’s magical strength was no different from that of an adult wizard, so Toby had to take them to Diagon Alley in two separate trips.

"The junk shop," Toby said, "you can buy almost anything second-hand there. Although most of it is trash, sometimes people are lucky enough to find some good things."

He was very familiar with the junk shop. Back in the day, his former master had frequented it often.

Without lingering elsewhere, the two of them, along with the house-elf leading the way, arrived at the entrance of the shop in just a few minutes.

"Alright, Toby, I have a list here. Help me buy everything on it, then wait for us where we first appeared."

Lived took out a piece of paper and a bag of Galleons and handed them to Toby.

"As you command, Master Lived!" Toby took them respectfully and vanished on the spot.

"Tell me... when will we be able to learn that kind of... 'pop' and vanish magic?" Tom looked at the spot where Toby had disappeared with a hint of envy.

"That magic is called Apparition, I believe. However, a house-elf’s Apparition is different from a wizard’s. At our current age, we shouldn't be able to learn it yet."

Though Lived said this, he was just as tempted as Tom. Tom was still young, and his magical power was only at the level of an underage wizard, so it was indeed not yet the time for him to learn Apparition.

Lived, however, was different. He already possessed the magical power of an adult wizard, and after practice, he could cast many advanced spells. This meant he could technically learn Apparition at any time.

However, learning Apparition carried very high risks; a moment’s carelessness could easily lead to "splinching." Typically, when a wizard first learns this spell, they need an experienced teacher to watch over them. In case of a splinching incident, the teacher would be there to reattach the separated body parts.

Lived calculated silently, wondering who he could ask to "guard" him if he were to learn Apparition. Practicing alone was absolutely out of the question. He certainly didn’t want his head in one place and his body in another.