The sunlight slowly filtered into the room, and Harry's lamp light didn't seem as bright under the glow of the rising sun. Harry had finished writing the letter to Tom and spread the parchment on the table. He read it from beginning to end to make sure there were no issues and then rolled up the parchment. He would send it to Tom as soon as Hedwig returned.
He checked the clock on the wall and realized that the Dursley family must already be awake. So he quickly dressed and went downstairs for breakfast.
Since Dudley had accidentally bumped into his father at the fast-food restaurant last time, Dudley's pocket money had been confiscated. As a result, Dudley threw his video game from the second floor, but that didn't solve anything. The Dursleys had resolved to stick to their diet to the end, and Aunt Petunia also regained control of Uncle Vernon's money.
But all of that had nothing to do with Harry. Every day, he hid in his room and enjoyed canned meals. Occasionally, he could even afford to go to the fast-food restaurant. It seemed like he had gained a little weight in recent days.
When Harry arrived in the kitchen, the Dursleys were already seated at the table. Today's breakfast was dreadful: grapefruits. They were really unpleasant, but fortunately, Aunt Petunia had reduced Harry's portion, easing his suffering.
While Harry quickly devoured the grapefruits on his plate, an unusual letter arrived at the Dursley household.
The letter came from the Weasley family, and the envelope was covered in stamps.
The letter brought good news: tomorrow at five in the afternoon, the Weasleys would come to Privet Drive to take Harry to the Burrow for a few days. And then they would go together to the World Cup stadium! Due to that letter, Uncle Vernon was furious, but there was nothing he could do once the wizards had made a decision. Besides, it wasn't so bad to get rid of Harry ahead of time.
With permission granted, Harry contained his internal joy and returned to his room.
Hedwig had returned from outside at that moment, carrying Ron's letter with her. Harry quickly wrote his response and sent it off with the owls, including the letter to Tom. He watched as the two owls flew away, one large and one small, and deep in his heart, Harry felt like they were carrying his worries away.
In London, Tom was having breakfast with the Granger family. The food on the table was much more plentiful than at the Dursleys': roasted sausages, fried bacon, half-cooked fried eggs, crispy toast, and fruit cereals. Calorie-rich but able to start a wonderful and happy day.
After living with the Grangers for a long time, Tom had adapted quite well, and he could even tell English jokes at the table now. However, he was still determined to buy a house of his own in the future, as his new home. He didn't want to keep living with the Grangers forever.
"We should understand that this is an era of reconciliation; we must seek consensus and acknowledge the positive aspects of our opponents instead of criticizing them endlessly. Everyone has their strengths," Mr. Granger said as he shared his opinion on international politics.
"Except for the French," Tom skewered his sausage on the plate.
The words made Mr. Granger laugh, and he struggled to contain his laughter before saying seriously, "No, even the French are included."
The table was filled with joy.
At that moment, a gray owl flew in. It was a response from the official World Cup ticket agency. Tom had sent them the ticket purchase information two days ago and was now receiving confirmation. Since the magical world relied entirely on manual service and considering there were hundreds of thousands of spectators at the World Cup, the efficiency was already quite high.
"Dear Mr. Tom Yodel, we have received and processed your request. Enclosed in the attached envelope are two doses of a magical potion that removes the effect of the Muggle-Repelling Charm. The potion's effectiveness lasts for 48 hours and should be reapplied after that period.
Furthermore, in accordance with the Ministry of Magic's 'Confidentiality Agreement during the World Cup Final,' you must proceed to a designated location and use the Portkey to access the competition venue. The location and schedule for key distribution are provided in the attached appendix."
Tom took out two small bottles of the magical potion and a long list from the envelope, which contained the locations of the two hundred Portkeys, spread throughout the United Kingdom.
"It's a letter about the World Cup..." Tom briefly said, explaining the contents of the letter. Mr. Granger took the list and examined it, checking the mentioned locations.
"The most suitable for us would be at the Leaky Cauldron in London... Portkey? What are they exactly?" he asked.
"They are magical objects that, once activated, can transport you to a pre-set location," Tom explained.
"There will be a lot of people at the Leaky Cauldron," Hermione frowned, as everyone knew it was the most convenient location. "Who knows how many people will go to the Leaky Cauldron to use the keys?" Besides, to maintain confidentiality, most Portkeys were located in remote areas, avoiding large cities like London. The Leaky Cauldron was the only location within the city of London where Portkeys were placed.
After all, in other locations, it was difficult to ensure that you wouldn't be seen by Muggles while transporting.
There was some dispute about where to use the keys. After all, once they left London, the destination didn't matter much. Everyone had to drive to remote areas and then find a place, like a farm, to leave their car and walk to where the Portkey would be placed.
However, their discussion was interrupted by the arrival of two owls: one large and one small, one gray and the other white. They were Hedwig, Harry's owl, and Pigwidgeon, Ron's owl.
Tom was surprised. He received the letters from the talons of the two owls. He first opened Ron's letter, the contents of which excited him.
"Mr. Granger, I think we can go to the Portkey point near the Burrow Hill," Tom said, stopping the discussion with his wife and searching for the location of "Ottery St. Catchpole" in the attached list.
"The hill to the northwest of the village of Ottery St. Catchpole in Devon?" Mr. Granger looked confused. "Why?"
"Because my classmate, Ron, from Gryffindor, has sent us an invitation to join him in witnessing the World Cup final together," Tom handed Ron's letter to Mr. Granger. "His father asked us, mentioning that the 'Confidentiality Agreement' might be uncomfortable for us... By the way, Harry Potter is going with them."
While Mr. Granger read Ron's letter, Tom opened the letter sent by Harry.