Harry Potter and the Hidden Treasure (Volume 3)

Chapter 436 Encounter With The Dursleys

Evan and Hermione simply ascended to the first floor and witnessed Dudley, resembling a pig, hastily retreating to his room, covering his rear, screaming.

The door slammed shut with a resounding bang.

"Wasn't he Harry's cousin?" Hermione inquired uncertainly, "Why did he run upon seeing us?"

"I believe, out of fear probably," Evan responded. He was aware that every interaction between Dudley and a wizard ended unfavorably.

The first time was with Hagrid, who left Dudley with a pig's tail peeking out from the seat of his trousers.

The Dursleys had to foot the bill for its removal at a private hospital in London.

While still recovering from the shock, he encountered Dobby, the house-elf.

The enraged Dobby caused Dudley to sprout a pig's tail for speaking ill of Harry in Evan's presence.

Ultimately, Evan's parents had to pay a hefty sum to the Dursleys to pacify them.

The unfortunate Dudley had to revisit the hospital for this private and confidential service and have the pig's tail removed!

It was absolutely dreadful. No wonder he shouted upon seeing Evan and Hermione after such encounters with wizards.

To him, all wizards were the same; a group of monsters who would make a pig's tail sprout on him.

He had no inkling that underage wizards couldn't perform magic outside of school.

Every wand bore a mark, and the Ministry of Magic could detect magical fluctuations they caused within a certain radius.

Naturally, they couldn't do anything for those who used magic far away from Britain, like Evan had when he went to France or Albania.

Now, the terrified Dudley cowered in his room, trembling, and covering his rear.

He was afraid of once again becoming the target of Evan and Hermione, terrified at the thought of the previous tragedy recurring!

Evan ignored Dudley and led Hermione to Harry's room at the end of the hallway.

Pushing the door, Harry was packing his belongings inside.

The school trunk lay open in the middle of the room, and Harry was perspiring from how busy he was.

Beside him was the Invisibility Cloak he inherited from his father, the broom he received from Sirius, various textbooks, and other daily necessities and magical items.

Upon noticing the door had opened, he looked up, startled, and immediately flashed a happy smile.

"Evan, Hermione, here you are!" Harry exclaimed with a smile.

He rushed towards them to give each a hug, exuding sheer happiness!

"Pleased to meet you, Harry!" Evan surveyed the room. "You look quite disheveled!"

"It's time to leave. Why haven't you packed your luggage yet?!" Hermione interjected sharply, furrowing her brow.

"Forget about it, my uncle and aunt have been bothering me all morning, I haven't had time to pack anything." Harry waved it off. "Don't worry about me, Evan, where were you and Sirius during the holidays? Why were you so injured? Has your spell been broken? And why must I practice Occlumency?"

It was evident that Harry had numerous inquiries.

He bombarded him with inquiries all at once, and Evan could only address them one at a time.

While explaining, he followed Hermione in aiding Harry with his packing.

They unearthed all the food Harry had stashed under the loose floorboard; there was still plenty of food inside.

Then, Harry meticulously checked every nook of his room for forgotten spell books or quills.

Once everything was in order, he brought down the countdown sign from the wall, marking the days until the first of September, when he enjoyed crossing off the remaining days until his return to Hogwarts.

Harry had many belongings, and the three spent a considerable amount of time packing.

As they descended the stairs, Evan's father had already departed, having matters awaiting him at work.

Now, within Number 4, Privet Drive, the atmosphere was exceedingly tense.

They called Dudley, and the six of them sat at the table on opposite sides.

They silently sipped tea, unsure of what to discuss.

The impending arrival of a group of wizards to their home had the Dursleys on edge, making them anxious and irritable.

"Come on, boy!" immediately grumbled Mr. Dursley, startling everyone. "I hope you've told them to dress appropriately, for the people who are about to come. I've seen the kind of clothes you lot wear. You'd better have the decency to put on normal attire, that's it!"

Evan and Hermione were clad in Muggle attire, leaving the Dursleys speechless.

However, Evan had never seen Mr. Weasley, his wife, or any of their children in Muggle clothing.

They typically wore long robes in various states of wear.

In fact, Harry was completely indifferent to his uncle's outburst.

He was only slightly anxious at the thought of the Dursleys being rude to the Weasleys if they showed up looking like their worst idea of wizards.

"Will they be coming by car, of course?" Mr. Dursley asked bluntly.

"Um!" Harry nodded. "Most likely!"

Upon hearing Harry's response, Evan unconsciously rubbed his forehead.

Mr. Weasley used to have a classic Ford Anglia, but for now, it was uncontrollable in the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts.

Due to this flying car, Evan had become a celebrity at school from day one.

Since the founding of Hogwarts, there had never been a report of a young wizard in a flying car.

Needless to say, Evan also missed the sorting ceremony.

Of course, over two years' experience had shown this to be just a trivial part of Evan's legendary feats. The flying car was nothing compared to what would happen next.

After posing this question, Mr. Dursley snorted loudly, his rough breath misting over his mustache.

He would have normally asked what car Mr. Weasley drove...

He always tended to judge other men by how big and expensive their cars were. However, he still had some sense left and refrained from asking Harry this question.

Mr. Dursley shot Evan and Hermione a disdainful look before his tiny black eyes slowly moved elsewhere.

There was another uncomfortable silence, with Harry's Aunt Petunia rising to peer through the curtains.

It was as if there were warnings of a rhinoceros escaping from the zoo.

She kept rearranging the cushions as if suffering from obsessive-compulsive psychosis.

Beside Evan, Hermione lightly touched his arm, and the two exchanged glances.

Hermione had never encountered such a dreadful person, and if given a choice, she would rather be back in Harry's room than sitting here with the Dursleys.