18 Meeting the Golden Trio

"Meeting the Golden Trio"

Stephen arrived at King's Cross from the Muggle side, realizing that he had never actually entered Platform 9 ¾ the proper way. So, he was waiting for the Weasley family in front of the barrier.

He wanted to ask Arthur a question since, ever since the release of the Magicphone, a product of Magitech, the Ministry had started bothering him. It was probably Fudge or the pure-blood families who saw the device's potential and wanted a piece of the pie—something Stephen was not willing to allow. The only reason they were bothering him was because they believed he was a wizard without backing, as he had been using his alias, Steve Rogers, since founding the company.

"Hey, Stephen."

"Hey, guys. Be careful when you come out on the other side."

As he waited, a few people greeted him, to which he responded with a smile.

Speaking of the Magicphone, it was far more advanced than Muggle cell phones—similar to a smartphone, though it still lacked a magical version of the internet. It had all the standard features: calls, messaging, photos, and video recording. Making it compact was a bit tricky, but nothing that modified expansion magic and Eldritch illusion spells couldn't solve.

Stephen had also adapted other spells from Strange's arsenal for this world, including astral and summoning magic. However, the Ministry began imposing restrictions and penalties, even forcing Stephen to create a sensor for portal magic. He reluctantly agreed, knowing that if he refused, they would outright ban its use. At one point, he had considered storming into the Ministry and handing out beatings, but he held back.

While watching a video on his Magicphone—where Ron opened his birthday gift, only for a clown to pop out and scare him into fainting—the Weasleys arrived.

"Hello, dear Stephen. Why haven't you boarded the Express yet?" asked Mrs. Weasley upon seeing him still waiting.

"Hello, Mrs. Weasley. I was waiting for Mr. Arthur, but it seems he didn't come," Stephen said, glancing behind the family.

"You can call me Molly. Arthur had an issue at the Ministry and had to go back," Molly explained as she guided the children forward.

"Hey, boss! Did you get the video of Ronnie?" "Jajajaja, it was hilarious!" the twins chimed in as they approached.

Seeing Ron's annoyed expression, Stephen held back his laughter as he replied, "Yes, I'm glad you all get along so well."

"We don't get along," Ron muttered under his breath, loud enough for only Stephen to hear.

"Ever since they got that Magicphone, they haven't stopped pulling pranks and recording them. Maybe I should confiscate it and lock it away," said Molly, clearly exasperated.

The twins were the only ones in the family with a Magicphone. Stephen had wanted to gift one to the entire Weasley family, but they had strongly refused. The only reason they allowed the twins to have one was because they had helped Stephen develop new devices. However, even then, they had to share a single Magicphone.

When Molly mentioned the Magicphone, a lost-looking boy nearby approached. He was thin, though not malnourished, with glasses and oversized clothing. This boy was none other than the famous Harry Potter.

The moment Stephen saw him, he focused his gaze on his forehead—not because of the scar, but because of the corrupt magic he could sense there.

"Excuse me, did you say Magicphone? Also, do you know how to get to Platform 9 ¾? Hagrid, my friend, sent me a message explaining how to enter, but I don't quite understand it," Harry said, showing his Magicphone. It seemed that Hagrid had advised him to buy one.

By the way, Hagrid had a customized Magicphone gifted by Stephen. All the professors had one—even Snape, who, despite looking disgusted when he received it, accepted it because the headmaster had said it would be useful for quick communication among the staff.

"Sure, let the kids go first and show you. Fred, you go ahead," said Molly, motioning to one of the twins.

"I'm George, he's Fred. Really, Mother, and you call yourself our mother?" While their mother apologized, Fred added, "Just kidding, I am Fred," before stepping through the barrier, followed by George.

"Do you want to go next, Stephen?" Molly asked, turning to see him with Ginny, who was stuffing her face with sweets.

"Sure. See you on the other side." He strolled through the barrier without a care.

On the other side, the twins had already gone to store their trunks while Stephen watched Harry and Ron come through. He barely resisted the urge to place a clown in their path—but it wasn't the right time.

After Molly and Ginny crossed, he bid them farewell and went to find an empty compartment. Fortunately, he had asked Jordan beforehand to save a spot for them.

When the twins arrived, they spent their time eating sweets and discussing pranks, as usual.

A knock at the door caught their attention.

"Excuse me, have you seen a toad? It belongs to Neville, and he lost it," asked a pretty girl with bushy hair and large front teeth. Behind her stood a short, nervous-looking boy.

"No, but I can help with that," Stephen said as he stood up.

He walked over to Neville and plucked a strand of his hair, earning a small yelp from the boy.

"Ow!"

"What are you doing?" the girl asked, annoyed, but she fell silent as rings of light appeared around Stephen's hand while he worked with the hair.

"Done. It's two compartments away, second door," Stephen said with a smile as he sat back down.

"Was that Eldritch magic? I bought the book even though Hogwarts doesn't require it. The shopkeeper recommended it. Will we be learning that at Hogwarts?" Hermione asked eagerly.

"No, and I don't think there's a professor capable of teaching it yet. Right, Fred?"

"Correct. Unless the boss becomes a professor, I doubt anyone will be able to teach it properly," the twins responded.

The Eldritch Magic book sold extremely well, but the problem was that without proper instruction, many wizards and witches struggled to learn from it.

"And to think Eldritch magic is technically the basics. I can't imagine the rest," Stephen said with a smirk.

"Boss, are you saying you've created spells even more powerful and complex than Eldritch magic?" Jordan asked, already adopting the twins' habit of calling Stephen boss.

"Yes and no. There's even magic that allows summoning creatures from other dimensions, but most of it requires a massive amount of mana, so I can't use it. (And I probably never will, because I doubt I'll ever reach the same mana level as the Vishanti)."

"You… you created that magic?! You're Stephen Strange!" Hermione exclaimed, shocked.

"Yes, I'm Stephen, but Strange is just a fake surname I use as a pseudonym," Stephen replied casually before glancing out the window.

"Alright, enough chatter. It's time to change. We're about to arrive. And please inform the compartments near you to prepare," Stephen instructed Hermione.

"Oh, right! I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Hermione Granger, nice to meet you," she said before leaving with Neville trailing behind.

Once they were gone, the boys put on their robes and got ready to disembark.

When they arrived at the station and stepped off the train, they saw the first-years crowding around Hagrid, who was calling them over. They waved at Hagrid before heading toward the carriages.

Everything was going smoothly on the ride to the castle. After a while, the carriages stopped, and everyone got off, seemingly happy to be back at Hogwarts.

As Stephen was about to pass through the great doors, he suddenly realized that everything had gone eerily silent. Looking around, it seemed as if time itself had frozen.

At that moment, Stephen understood what was happening.

"Shit…"

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