Chapter 83: Harry and I Have Known Each Other for Over a Century

After Poppy finished eating the food Harry had brought, the group sat down on the grass and began to chat casually. Poppy lay curled up on the ground, motioning for Harry to lean against her. The others weren’t as fortunate; the four of them could only sit across from Harry, looking on enviously at how the unicorn showed Harry such affection. “If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I’d have thought unicorns only warmed up to the purest-hearted young maidens,” Hermione said wistfully. “But then again, it makes sense since Harry saved Miss Poppy’s life...” “That’s not right, Hermione,” Poppy corrected her. “It’s not because Harry saved me; it’s because Harry and I are old friends.” “Old friends?!” The group exclaimed in unison. They all knew Harry had grown up in his aunt and uncle’s house with little to no contact with the wizarding world. How could he possibly be old friends with a unicorn? Harry tilted his head and asked, “Do I really have to explain, Poppy?” “Of course! Harry and I have known each other for over a hundred years,” Poppy said, flicking Harry’s face lightly with her tail. “To be precise, it’s been 105 years!” “One hundred and five years?!” Hermione quickly did the math. 1992 minus 105… “That’s impossible! A hundred and five years ago was 1887,” Hermione said, her face full of disbelief. “Harry is only twelve years old, and you…” “Unicorns live for a very long time,” Poppy said with a cheerful laugh. “That’s still impossible unless Harry traveled through time, went back a hundred years, and returned!” Hermione said firmly. “But that’s impossible. Time travel only exists in science fiction, not reality!” “Well, believe what you want,” Poppy said with a knowing smile. It wasn’t the first time she’d been doubted. “I did visit the Forbidden Forest once before,” Harry said, skirting around the details of a century ago. “That’s when I met Poppy, and we became friends.” This explanation satisfied the group. They accepted it as the truth. “Looks like Miss Poppy has mistaken you for that Harry from a hundred years ago,” Ron said, hugging his knees. “You mean that Harry? Oh, I knew him too,” Poppy said brightly. “What?!” The four gasped in shock. They couldn’t believe the unicorn before them actually knew the Harry Potter from a century ago. “Yes, the Harry Potter from a hundred years ago was quite the figure at this school,” Poppy said with a radiant smile. “Take this Forbidden Forest, for instance. What do you think of it?” “What do we think? It’s terrifying, of course!” Seamus exclaimed eagerly. “The forest is full of all sorts of creatures—werewolves, trolls, and I’ve even heard there are spiders as big as cars...” Hearing the phrase “spiders as big as cars,” Ron turned pale. For the first time in his life, he cursed his vivid imagination. Just one sentence, and he’d already conjured a horrifying image of the spiders in his mind. “Exactly,” Poppy said meaningfully, glancing at Harry. “But, Harry… every time he entered the Forbidden Forest, it was like he was coming home.” “Really?” the four asked in unison. “Of course,” Poppy said, her voice full of nostalgia. “Things are very different now compared to a hundred years ago. Back then, Hogwarts was surrounded by dangers—dark wizards roamed outside the school gates, and the Forbidden Forest was full of poachers. They even had a Poachers’ Guild, and their black market auctions featured dragons.” “It was a perilous time for students. Danger lurked everywhere outside Hogwarts, and stories of students being harmed—or even killed—by dark wizards were far too common...” “So what happened to them? Why did they disappear?” Hermione asked, puzzled. “Poaching in the Forbidden Forest must have been highly lucrative. I can’t believe such a large organization would simply vanish...” “They’re all dead, of course,” Poppy said, lifting her head with a human-like smile. “The most feared group of them all, Ashwinder Gang, who even the Ministry of Magic hesitated to provoke, was utterly wiped out by that Harry Potter and his companions. Any dark wizard who dared resist met their end under a curse. After that, the name Ashwinder Gang faded into history.” “Wow…” The four were in awe. To them, Poppy was a living witness to history. Her words had to be true. What’s more, that Harry Potter shared the same name as their Harry Potter. This naturally made them feel a strong connection to the Harry from a century ago. “Could you tell us more about that Harry and his friends?” Hermione, ever the scholar, was especially intrigued by this hidden history. She looked at Poppy expectantly, eager for answers. Poppy shifted into a more comfortable position and began her story. “Yes, Harry had several good friends. There was Gareth Weasley from Gryffindor…” She glanced at Ron. “Your ancestor, Ron.” “Yes! My great-grandfather!” Ron said proudly, thumping his chest. He was thrilled that his ancestor had been friends with such a great Harry Potter. “There was also Amit Thakkar from Ravenclaw, Poppy Sweeting from Hufflepuff,” Poppy continued, “and from Slytherin, Ominis Gaunt and Sebastian Sallow.” “Additionally, there were two girls deeply connected to Harry—Cassandra Malfoy and Veratia Grindelwald.” As she said this, Poppy cast a sly glance at Harry but saw no reaction from him. “Grindelwald?!” Seamus frowned. “That surname… why does it sound so familiar?” “From the Chocolate Frog cards, of course,” Ron said over his shoulder. “The dark wizard Dumbledore defeated in 1945—his name was Grindelwald.” “Oh, right,” Seamus said, realization dawning. He then turned to Poppy. “Miss Poppy, was that Grindelwald girl related to the dark wizard Grindelwald?” “As far as I know, Veratia Grindelwald was Gellert Grindelwald’s sister,” Poppy recalled. “Unbelievable, huh?” Ron said, turning to his friends. “Two siblings from the same parents—one who fought dark wizards, and the other who became one. I wonder what that missing Grindelwald sister would think if she knew her brother became a dark wizard...” S~eaʀᴄh the Novelƒire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. “You’d better not let either Grindelwald hear you say that,” Poppy said sympathetically, glancing at Ron. For some reason, she felt Ron might someday cross paths with Gellert. Hermione, however, had honed in on something important. She turned to Poppy. “Miss Poppy, you mentioned a Hufflepuff named Poppy Sweeting earlier. Is your name related to hers?” --- you can read more advance chapter & Fast update on my patreon