A/N: Here's a longer one for you- I hope you like it. Thanks for your comments, however I'm sorry if you want more romance, because I'm putting in just the amount that I think is appropriate given that Harry hasn't admitted to himself that he likes Hermione as `more than a friend' yet. If you feel the need to flame me, go ahead- I'll just laugh at you. On the other hand, if you have any constructive criticism or any suggestions/requests, I'd be happy to take them.
Chapter 11- A Trip to Diagon Alley
The next morning Harry awoke to the sound of a loud knocking on the door and Mrs. Weasley calling. "Come on now, you two. Wake up."
Harry groaned as he rolled over and grabbed his glasses off the bedside table, sitting up as he put them on. To the left of him, Ron continued to snore loudly. Harry yawned and stretched before leisurely getting to his feet, shuffling his heavy feet over to the dresser drawer his clothes were in. After he pulled a t-shirt over his head and pulled on some jeans, he fed Hedwig a treat he retrieved from the bottom of his cluttered trunk and then walked over to Ron's bed.
"Wake up, Ron," he yawned, shaking him slightly. Ron groaned and rolled over, pulling his pillow defiantly down over his ears. Harry sighed and yanked the pillow from Ron's grasp, pulling the sheets off of him so that Ron sat up, shivering. "Get dressed," Harry said, as Ron sat hunched over on his bed, eyelids drooping.
"Why do we have to get around so early?" Ron yawned, as he and Harry trudged down the stairs a few minutes later.
"Probably want to beat the crowd," Harry said, tousling his messy hair. He and Ron scuffled their feet down the stairs, both too tired to use up any of the precious energy it took to talk.
They entered the kitchen and flopped down onto two chairs. Grabbing a box of cereal and a jug of milk, Harry prepared his breakfast in a zombie-like fashion; he had not woken up this early in over a month. As he spooned mouthfuls of cereal into his mouth, Hermione and Ginny entered the kitchen, sitting beside him and Ron. Unlike him and Ron, they were both rather pleasant and cheery.
"Did you have a good night sleep?" Hermione asked conversationally, pouring herself a bowl of cereal.
Ron just grunted and continued to nibble at his cereal, leaning on the table so that his nose was practically touching his breakfast.
"Yeah, it was fine," Harry said.
"I can't wait to purchase all of the new school books; I want to get a head-start reading them," said Hermione earnestly. "You guys should too," she added to Ron and Harry.
"And I can't wait to pick out a pet," Ginny said enthusiastically. "Mum said I could get one this year."
"What kind of pet are you going to get," Harry asked, spooning a bite of cereal into his mouth.
"Oh, I'm hoping to get a cat. They're so nice and cuddly; besides, I love Crookshanks so I'm hoping that my cat is as sweet."
"That cat, sweet?" Ron asked, looking up from his cereal.
Hermione glared at him coldly as Ginny said, "Yes, Ron, sweet."
Ron shrugged and buried his face back in his cereal again; apparently he had decided it was too early to argue.
A little while later Neville entered the room, along with his Gran and Mrs. Figg. Neville took a seat next to Ginny while she told him all about wanting to get a cat. When Mrs. Figg heard this, she said, "Great choice! Cats are wonderful creatures, really. I don't see why anyone would want anything other than a cat. Just a piece of advice: go for a white one; they're always the sweetest of cats and you'll find they will be incredibly faithful."
Ginny looked at her uneasily but smiled just the same. "Thanks," she said.
"Are you coming with us, Mrs. Figg?" Harry asked.
"Me? Oh, no. I'm heading back home, where I should be."
Once everyone finished their breakfasts, the Advance Guard arrived to escort them to Diagon Alley. The group was comprised of a large amount of Order members, all of whom Harry had met before. Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody headed up the group, hobbling up to Harry on his wooden leg, bowler hat titled over his electric blue, magical eye and hip flask swishing.
"Potter," he growled, shaking his hand.
"How are you, Professor Moody?" he asked.
"How many times do I have to tell you? I'm not a professor, I never was. Please, just call me Moody." Moody had been his Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher in his fourth year at Hogwarts; or at least everyone had believed him to be. As it turned out, the Moody teaching them had been an imposture the entire time. Still, in his day Moody had been an excellent Auror, and now that he was in retirement, he had plenty of time to help out the Order.
"I take it your summer was a bit more pleasant than usual with that bunch, and that Uncle of yours," Moody said.
"Yeah, it was, thanks," said Harry. "They pretty much left me on my own, which was the way I preferred it."
"Good to hear it," said Moody. Then he looked over Harry's shoulder at everyone standing behind him, ready to go. "Everyone's ready I see. Good. We're going to have to walk a ways again, but the weather is nicer than last time. I want everyone to spilt into two groups that will walk on either side of the road. You three," he growled, pointing a knotty finger at Harry, Ron and Hermione, "Will take the left-hand side. And the rest of you, take the right."
As he talked, Harry glanced over his shoulder at the group standing behind him. Kingsley Shacklebolt, Tonks, a squirmy man named Dedalus Diggle, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Lupin, and a pleasant yet reserved woman named Emmeline Vance all stood waiting. Each was wearing their finest versions of muggle clothes, and all-in-all, Harry thought they did a pretty good job. None of them were wearing cloaks or wizard's hats; in fact the only conspicuous part about them was Tonk's now purple hair. Emmeline Vance waved at Harry, who smiled back, while Dedalus Diggle bounced around Moody and shook Harry's hand.
"Hello, again, Mr. Potter," he said excitedly. "Do you remember me? I was-"
"In the Advance Guard last year as well as in the pub leading into Diagon Alley in my first year," Harry said, smiling at the jovial little man. "Yes, I do."
Diggle blushed slightly at the recognition and released Harry's hand, retreating back into the group, grinning.
When they reached the street and the house that they had just exited shrunk back into invisibility, they found the weather was quite nice indeed. Although the early morning air was still crisp, the sun was rising over the houses, casting a bit of warmth onto their faces. Since he had spent his entire summer outdoors, Harry was more than happy to get out of the dark house and get a bit of fresh air and sunlight. They all split up into two groups accordingly; Moody, Tonks, Dedalus, and Lupin took up their places around Harry, Ron and Hermione, completely surrounding them. The entire time they were walking, each of the Advance Guard members kept their eyes peeled for anything unusual or any sign of danger; the way they glanced all around them constantly made Harry feel a little nervous.
When they reached the muggle train station, Harry and Hermione paid for everyone, since they knew how to count muggle money. The train was packed full of sleepy business men and women, all on their way to work. Harry stood, holding onto a pole as the train jerked around, looking out the window as the dark tunnel passed by. Several people seemed to be sleeping, but whenever the train would shudder to a halt and the doors squeaked open, they would miraculously open their eyes and get off as if they had been awake the entire time. After what felt like an hour of stopping and going on the train, they reached their stop as the train squeaked to a halt and the doors jerked open.
Moody growled, leading them all off the train, "This is our stop." Several of the remaining passengers gawked slightly at their strange group as they filed off the train, into the dark station. When they climbed the stairs that led out of the station and up into the road above, Harry squinted and blinked his eyes against the bright sun.
"It's not too far from here," Moody said, limping off down the street.
"Should we split up again once we're at Diagon Alley?" Mrs. Weasley asked as they all followed Moody down the bustling sidewalk.
"I think it's safe enough to split up a bit, as long as no one wanders off alone," Mr. Weasley said.
"Right," Lupin said. "I'll take Harry and anyone else who wants to head to Gringotts first."
Tonks said, "And I'll go with you."
"Alright," said Lupin, as they squeezed their way through the crowd of hurrying customers and business men. "Alastor, why don't you, Emmeline, Dedalus, and Molly all take Ron, Ginny and Neville around to any shops that interest them while you're waiting for us; we'll all purchase the school books and other necessities together."
"Sounds good," Moody said, as they reached the tiny pub that served as the entrance way to Diagon Alley. Harry looked around as all of the muggles passed it by, completely oblivious to its presence. As he looked up at the swaying sign above the door, the emblem "The Leaky Cauldron" suddenly appeared.
"Come on, Harry," said Lupin, as he led him through the door, followed closely by everyone else.
Inside, the pub was much cheerier than outside. As they all shuffled in, Tom, the innkeeper, looked up from behind the bar where he was cleaning a glass with a dishrag. Grinning a toothless grin, he put the glass down and scurried around to the front of the bar, in order to greet them.
"Hello, hello. Pleasure to see ye all again. What can I do for ye?"
"We're just heading through to Diagon Alley today, Tom. No time to stop for drinks," said Lupin.
"Ah," said Tom, as he glanced around at the group. When his eyes fell onto Harry, he came up to him and said, "Good to see you again, Mr. Potter. Fine summer?"
"I've been fine, thanks." Harry said. Tom had taken care of all of his needs when he had stayed here in the summer before his third year, and Harry remembered his kindness. "And yours?"
"Couldn't have been better," Tom said. Then he leaned closer to Harry and lowered his voice, "Although, them Death Eaters escaping hasn't favored me business; everyone's `fraid to go about much."
Moody put a hand on Tom's shoulder, pulling him back away from Harry. "Sorry to hear that, Tom. We'll be sure to stop by later for a round of drinks."
Tom looked furtively at Moody for a moment before mumbling, "Yes, right. I'd best be getting back to me job, now. Good day to ye." He turned and scuffled back over to the bar, as Moody gently pushed Harry towards the back door, guiding him through the pub. Once outside, Mr. Weasley tapped the bricks that triggered the entire wall to shift and allow them to pass through. Diagon Alley, usually a crowded street full of witches and wizards, seemed completely deserted. The occasional passerby walked on, with their head down, but for the most part, the atmosphere was heavy and dreary. Hermione seemed to notice this because she leaned close to Harry and murmured, "This place is kind of spooky today. It's just like when they escaped back in our fourth year."
Harry nodded his head, as they moved on close to one another. The group split up as they had previously determined it would, and Lupin, Tonks, Harry and Hermione headed off towards the end of the street where the great, tall, marble bank towered over the other humble shops. The others headed off the other way, in order to wander around until they met up again at Flourish and Blotts. However, Harry noticed that Mr. Weasley and Kingsley wandered off in their own directions, eyes scanning every alley way they passed. He shivered in the warm air as the four of them climbed the large stone steps into the bank.
Inside, the wizarding bank was just as Harry remembered it; the goblins that ran it were all either hobbling about the hall on their short legs, or updating the books. Lupin walked in front of Harry and Hermione, Tonks bringing up the rear, as they walked all the way to the back wall, where a head goblin sat recording data in an enormous leather-bound book. When they reached the desk, the goblin looked up at them and said, "Yes?"
Lupin said, "We're here to exchange some muggle money as well as officiate a certain transaction."
"You may exchange the money at the desk to your left, as the sign says," the goblin said coldly. "However, I can help you with the transaction. Who does it regard?"
Harry stepped forward and said, "Me."
The goblin sneered down at him, glancing at his forehead. "Why, Mr. Potter. Back again, I see. Yes, I know all about the transaction of which you speak- most uncommon for such a large amount of money to be just handed over to another wizard."
"We aren't discussing this," Lupin said, angrily, "Just give him the document to sign and we'll be on our way to his vault."
The goblin stared coldly at Lupin but obeyed his will, withdrawing from behind his desk a piece of parchment for Harry to sign. Harry grabbed a quill, skimmed through the document, which basically stated what he was receiving, and signed off at the bottom of the page.
As soon as he was done, the goblin snatched the letter back from him and yelled, "Griphook!"
Another goblin came scurrying out from amidst the throng and skidded to a halt in front of the tall desk.
"Yes?" he asked, and as he spoke Harry looked down at him; he thought the name sounded familiar; Griphook was the goblin who showed him to his vault for the very first time, in his first year with Hagrid.
"Please escort these people to Mr. Harry Potter's vault." He then turned to Harry and said, "You will find that the transaction has already been made; you will find all of your new possessions in your own vault."
The goblin then busied himself back in his paperwork as Griphook grunted, "Follow me," and waddled off down a side hall to where the carts were waiting.
They all crawled onto the cart as Griphook said, "Hold on," and they took off with a sudden swoosh. Harry's hair was blown back from his head, and the fast air made his eyes water, but he looked around as best as he could at all of the enormous vault doors whooshing past him on either side. He felt Hermione grab his arm next to him, and he turned to see her looking rather pale with her eyes closed tight. When they arrived at the vault, Harry practically had to pry Hermione's hand off of his arm, as he helped her off the cart.
"It's ok, Hermione," he said, smiling slightly at her fretful state, "You can let go now. The cart has stopped."
Hermione slowly released his arm, opening her eyes and sighing. "Sorry," she said.
Harry smiled at her as they walked up to his vault. Griphook said, "Key," and Lupin withdrew Harry's small golden key that Harry had given him earlier for safe-keeping. Griphook took it in his long fingers and wobbled up to the door, inserting it as the clink-clunking of a hundred internal locks unlocking rang through the air. Then Griphook stepped back as the vault door swung slowly open, green smoke billowing out of it. When all of the smoke cleared, Harry's jaw dropped as Hermione gasped beside him. His vault, previously containing neat piles of gold Galleons, silver Sickles, and bronze Knuts, had magically expanded to double the previous size. The room was full, floor-to-ceiling of mounds upon mounds of gold. Harry stepped forward cautiously, staring in awe at his fortune, pinching his arm to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Lupin stepped up next to him and stared with him.
"Wow," said Lupin. "Even I wasn't expecting quite this much."
Harry's mind suddenly snapped back into actuality, as the reality of it all hit him and he had to restrain himself from dashing straight into the vault and diving into the piles of money.
Instead, he stepped forward, filling his entire money bag with gold Galleons, and walked calmly back out again.
"Ready to head back?" he asked, walking past the three of them, who were still staring awe-struck, and hopped back into the cart again.
Once everyone else came back to their senses and hopped back into the cart, Griphook closed the vault door and sped the cart off again. This time, Harry grabbed Hermione's hand to keep her from digging her nails into his arm again, and she smiled weakly at him as they careened up the steep railway. Back in the lobby, Hermione exchanged the money her parents had given her for the year and they headed back outside, Harry's pants sagging from the weight of his money bag. They met up with the others inside Flourish and Blotts, although Mr. Weasley and Kingsley were still wandering outside. Even this store only had a few people, perusing the shelves stacked high with books.
Just as they walked towards the back of the shop, however, Harry pulled Hermione off to the side.
"Don't tell Ron about my vault, alright?" he said.
Hermione nodded and said, "Okay."
"Thanks," Harry said, as they both began walking through the shelves, scanning the books. "I've just wondered," Harry said, "How are we even going to know what books to purchase? School lists don't arrive for another month or so."
Hermione looked thoughtful and said, "I suppose Dumbledore informed Lupin or somebody which books to buy; he probably already knows."
They wound their way through the isles, heading towards the back of the shop to meet up with everyone else. When they walked up, Harry saw Ron look at them suspiciously, but he ignored him.
Meanwhile, just as Hermione predicted, Lupin withdrew a letter from within his pocket and read aloud all of the books they needed. The store clerk looked momentarily surprised that they were already purchasing school books, when he had only received the orders two days prior. However, he must have pushed the oddity aside as he scurried around the room, collecting all of their books in his arms, walking back with piles stacked precariously in his arms, teetering as if about to fall. Harry, who began to feel even guiltier of his newly acquired wealth, decided right as the store clerk read the total aloud that he wasn't going to allow his friends to pay for everything themselves; today, no matter how much they protested, he was going to buy each of them a gift.
As Neville dug into his pant pockets for enough Galleons, Harry came up to Lupin and muttered, "Here- pay for Neville's books, will you? Say that it's money his Gran left him." He then slipped Lupin a handful of Galleons while Lupin began to open his mouth, and Harry turned and walked away. Out of the corner of his eye he caught Lupin smiling proudly at him, before he turned to Neville and handed him the money; Harry felt his spirits soar as Neville, who had apparently forgotten to bring enough money as it was, smiled gratefully at Lupin and paid the store clerk.
A few minutes later they headed out of the store, cloth bags full of books. Although it was already 10:00 in the morning, Diagon Alley was still basically deserted, and Harry felt the hairs on the back of his neck tingle slightly.
"Where to next?" Tonks asked.
"We still need to restock our potion supplies," Ron said.
"And I still need to pick out a cat," Ginny said.
"And I still want to take a look at Quality Quidditch Supplies," said Harry, staring longingly down the street at the shop window.
"Alright," Lupin said. "Let's head to buy the potions supplies first, then we can go around looking at the other shops you would all like."
The group traveled down the street, re-stocking their potion sets in the apothecary. Once that was complete, they moved on to Quality Quidditch Supplies, the store Harry was most looking forward to entering. In the store window, a new broom sat on display, lights illuminating it. Harry had never seen a more amazing broom in his entire life; even his Firebolt didn't match this. It's sleek, rich mahogany handle, perfectly stream-lined, led to a tail so perfectly trimmed it was unbelievable. Not only was every twig hand-cut to produce the finest angles possible, it had a sealant charm placed over it that gave it the ability to slice through the air like a swift sword. Ron came and pressed his hands and face against the glass, staring at the broom in longing awe, while Harry read the label aloud.
"The finest broom ever made- the Flash makes even the Firebolt seem outdated. With precision balance and turning, the rider could be zooming straight towards the ground, at over 100 mph, get within an inch of crashing, and halt in one tenth of a second. A concealment charm on the tail, which acts as an impermeable coat, adds super aerodynamic and speed capabilities. Out-fly all of your opponents, with an acceleration speed of 175 mph in under 8 seconds. This broom comes with a built-in navigational system as well; just speak your destination and the broom will point you in the right direction, and alert you when you arrive. Price On Request."
It was just like with his Firebolt: price on request. Harry did not even want to think about how much money that cost. Besides, his Firebolt was more than excellent as it was, and Sirius got him that broom; whether he was willing to admit it or not, the broom was sentimental to him. Not to mention the fact that he did not want to run out of money, in only his 6th year at Hogwarts….wait, that wasn't a problem anymore; it never would be. He glanced to his side, where Ron was still goggling at the broom, and made up his mind.
"I'm just curious how much it costs," he said, swinging open the door. "You guys can stay out here; I'll be right back out."
A bell on the door rattled as Harry shut the door behind him, and the store salesman came bustling out from behind the back room.
"Yes," he asked, glasses perched on the end on his nose as he approached Harry. "How may I help you, young man?"
"How much is that broom?" Harry asked, pointing towards the shop window.
"Why, I'm afraid it's a tad bit out of your price range, lad. The Flash broom is the best to ever hit the market; there are only 50 in existence, since it takes so long to make them and such."
Harry gulped as he imagined how much money that meant, but all the same reached his hand into his pocket and pulled out his money bag, dumping most of its contents onto the store counter. The store clerk's eyes shot open, as he looked astounded from the money up to Harry and said, "Right, then. That would be 515 Galleons."
Wow. Harry considered changing his mind; that was an awful lot of money. The most expensive thing Harry had ever purchased for Ron or Hermione was 10 Galleons, and he had said that the Omnoculars served as 4 years worth of Christmas and Birthday gifts. He was just backing down from his decision, when he glanced outside the window again, where Ron was still staring longingly at the broom, eyes drinking in every inch of it. At that moment, Harry made up his mind; Ron was his best friend, and he more than deserved every penny spent on this broom.
"I'll take it!" he exclaimed, shoving the pile of Galleons towards the store clerk, as the man beamed with joy.
Harry purchased the broom, paying an extra Galleon to have Ron's name engraved in gold filigree on the handle. He then had the store clerk wrap it up in gift wrap and headed back outside, as the man showed him to the door.
"Have a good day, Mr. Potter, sir!" he exclaimed, bowing as Harry turned and waved at him.
Hermione was the first one to see him exit, and she came running up to him while the others stood around, looking in nearby shop windows and talking.
"Harry!" she called out. Then she saw the package he was carrying. "Oh, my. Is that what I think it is?"
"If you're thinking a broom, then yes," Harry said.
"But you hardly need another broom," she said.
"I know. It's not for me. It's a gift for Ron," he said, moving around her and walking up to where Ron still stood, idolizing the Flash.
As he walked up to him, Harry called out, "Hey! Ron!"
Ron refused to tear his eyes off the broom on display in the window.
"Yes?" he asked, never glancing at Harry.
"What are you doing goggling at that broom?" Harry asked.
"What do you mean, what am I doing? Didn't you see it Harry? It's the best broom ever! I'm sorry mate, but this thing even outdoes yours."
"Wouldn't you rather hold it?" Harry asked, as Ron continued to stare in the window.
"Well, of course I would. But are you completely mad Harry? I can barely afford to look at this thing."
Harry walked around behind Ron, so his reflection showed in the window.
"What if I told you that you not only could afford it, but you owned it?"
Ron said, "Then I'd say you'd gone completely mental-" He caught sight of its reflection in the window and he turned around abruptly on his heel. "Bloody hell!" he said, as Harry handed the broom over to him, grinning.
Ron ripped the paper off of it, holding it out in front of him, as carefully as if he was holding a baby. He examined every inch of it, until his eyes fell across his name engraved in the handle and he said, "You mean this is really mine?"
"No, sorry, it's my other best friend Ron Weasley's," Harry joked.
"I- I don't deserve this Harry," Ron said, looking up from the broom towards Harry, as Hermione came slowly walking over.
"Of course you do," Harry said. "And don't try to argue about it, or try to change my mind, because I've already made it up, and it's yours. It's about time you let me give you something nicer than a bag of Bertie Bott's Beans."
Ron closed his mouth silently, then burst into a great grin and pulled Harry into a one-armed hug, holding the broom out in his other hand.
"Thanks, Harry mate!" he said.
"Don't mention it," Harry said, grinning, as Ron turned to show it to Hermione.
The next 10 minutes were spent by everyone from Ginny to Dedalus examining Ron's new broom, while he explained its features over and over again. However, Harry noticed that since Hermione had already seen it, she had wandered off down the street a ways, glancing in another shop's window. The sign above the door read "Jasper's Jewelry." Harry found this a bit odd since Hermione usually wasn't into that kind of stuff; at least not that he knew. Maybe she had changed a bit since he last saw her; she was, after all, almost 16. Harry left Ron and the rest of the broom's admirers, and strolled casually down the street, hands in his pockets.
When he came up to Hermione she looked up from the window, apparently startled to find him so close.
"Oh, Harry," she said, "You scared me a bit."
"Sorry," he said. Then he looked in the window to see what she had been looking at. Placed all along the display shelf were velvety boxes containing earrings, rings, and necklaces. Each piece of jewelry was comprised of either silver or gold, as far as Harry could tell, and some precious gem.
"What were you looking at?" Harry asked, nonchalantly.
"Oh, nothing," Hermione said, turning away from the window and beginning to wander across the street. "I was just looking for something to possibly send home to my mum."
Harry found this statement rather odd, but he went along with it; he could tell Hermione was interested in some of the jewelry, but apparently she didn't want to tell him which piece.
He caught up with her until they were walking side-by-side, back down the street towards the Advance Guard.
"How long did you spend at your home this summer?" Harry asked, kicking a stone with his foot.
"Only about a month; I wasn't at Grimmauld Place for more than a week before you arrived. Neville and Ms. Longbottom came at about the same time I did as well."
"Do you ever miss them?" Harry asked.
"Who? My parents? No, not really. I see them over break and stuff, and they understand that I have to focus on school and the only way I can study magic is by leaving them every year." She looked up at Harry inquisitively. "Why do you ask?"
"I'm just curious," Harry said, which was the truth. "You hardly ever talk about your parents. I'd like to know more about them, and what you do when you're back with the muggles."
They met up with the other group and Hermione said, "That would be nice," before Lupin spoke.
"Let's move on, shall we? Only the Magical Menagerie left to go."
Ginny began bouncing on her toes with excitement, as they all made their way towards the store. On the way, they passed the jewelry store again, and Harry looked in the window before squeezing his way through the group to talk to Lupin quietly.
"What's up?" Lupin asked, after Harry fell into step next to him.
"I was just wondering… if you could possibly help me with something?"
"Sure, anything," Lupin said. "Why, what is it?"
Harry whispered something in his ear, as they continued to walk.
"Ah, I see," Lupin said. Harry handed him a couple of Galleons left in his money bag and Lupin passed them over to Tonks, telling her quietly to spend them on Ginny's cat. Then, when everyone began filing into the pet store, Lupin said, "Harry and I will wait out here."
No one paid them much mind; they were all too busy pointing out all of the pets Ginny could buy.
Lupin nodded at Harry and they turned, heading back down the street.
"You're going to buy her jewelry?" Lupin asked, as they walked back towards the jewelry store.
"I know it sounds odd," Harry began, awkwardly, "But, I saw her looking in the window at something, and I can't think of anything else to get her that's good enough. After all, I got Ron that broom; the least I could do is get Hermione something she wants as well; she's one of my best friends. The thing is she wouldn't tell me what she was looking at."
"Well, she probably didn't want to seem like she was giving you any hints," Lupin said thoughtfully. "Hermione doesn't seem like the type of girl who will just come out and say she wants you to buy her something, especially something like this."
"See, that's where she's wrong," Harry said, as they entered the shop. "Giving hints about these sorts of things is exactly the kind of help I need."
Lupin laughed as they looked around the room. Display cases were erected all over the floor, exhibiting wonderful jewels of all shapes, colors, and sizes. A short, elderly lady stood hunched over behind the main counter, an examining glass to her eye as she bent over some type of stone. When Harry and Lupin came in she yelled, "One moment please!" Lupin began wandering around the store, glancing at all of the pieces of jewelry scattered around the store. However, Harry ignored every display case except for the one in the window; he was sure that he would find something there that Hermione would like. Once the lady put her mini-magnifying glass down, she walked up to Harry.
"Hello, my name is Kathy Jasper. Nice to meet you," she said, holding out her hand for Harry to shake. "And you are?"
"Harry Potter," he said, shaking the woman's hand. When he told her his name, he saw her eyes dart up to his forehead, glancing at his scar. He didn't really like people gawking at his scar all the time, so he turned and walked over to the display case in the window.
"I'm interested in a piece of jewelry in here," he said, pointing at the case.
"And may I ask who you are purchasing this jewelry for?" Kathy asked. "It helps me to help my clients pick out the perfect piece."
"I'm buying it for my best friend," Harry said. He scanned all of the jewelry inside, trying to determine which Hermione would like best. Then he saw it. Lying in the center of the case, on a blue velvet blanket, was the most beautiful necklace he had ever seen. It had a silver chain with sparkling diamonds that shone in every color gathered in two rows of three, around the center jewel. At the center, a tear-shaped emerald hung, glinting in the light. He thought it was perfect; he was pretty sure that it wasn't too fancy, since there were about six small, circular diamonds and only one larger gem. For some reason, he thought that this was the piece she had been looking at; he wasn't sure what made him think about it, but as soon as he saw it he somehow knew.
"I'll take that one," Harry said happily, pointing at the necklace.
The lady waddled up beside him and said, "Oh, my. That, Mr. Potter, is Esmeralda. It is one of the most precious pieces I own. Perhaps, your friend would prefer something a little less expensive…" She began to move over to another case.
"No," Harry said. "I want this one."
Kathy looked hesitant for a moment, as if not sure that Harry knew how much it would cost, or how exquisite it truly was. But then, looking at Harry standing defiantly, she smiled sweetly and said, "Great choice. Whoever she is, she'll love it."
Lupin came over to see what he chose, and put a hand on Harry's shoulder.
"That's a really beautiful necklace, Harry. I'm sure she'll love it."
"I hope so," Harry said.
Kathy wrapped it up nicely in a blue velvet case, before turning it over to Harry. He paid her 203 Galleons for it, which even he thought was a rather steep price for jewelry. Then she showed them to the door, saying, "Make sure she takes care of Esmeralda, Mr. Potter!"
"I will, thanks," he said, as he pocketed the case. He determined that it would be best to give it to her later, when everyone else wasn't around. For some reason, he was slightly nervous to give it to her; he wasn't quite sure how she would react. After all, he had never bought anything like this for a girl, whether she was his friend or not.
When he and Lupin came up to the Magical Menagerie, they found Ginny and everyone else just exiting it.
"Look, Harry!" she said, coming up to him. In her arms sat a white, fluffy cat, with pale blue eyes. Unlike Crookshanks, this cat seemed rather mellow. When it turned its head towards Harry, he had the strange feeling that he had seen this cat before, but he couldn't put his finger on where.
"Neat, Ginny," he said, smiling as she pet the purring cat happily. "What's its name?"
"It's a boy, and his name is Snowbell. I named him. The name seemed to fit, since he's pure white. And apparently, he likes it. Don't you, Snowbell?"
The cat purred as it continued to gaze with those pale blue eyes towards Harry. Harry shivered slightly; it was almost as if the cat was analyzing him.
Mrs. Weasley said, starting off again, "Well, there's nothing more to do here. Let's head off home."
Everyone followed her, back to the Leaky Cauldron entrance. There, Kingsley and Mr. Weasley met up with them. As Moody had promised they all took a lunch break and stopped for some drinks and sandwiches. Tom waited on them happily, telling anyone who would listen all about the drinks he was trying to invent. When everyone had their fill, the group took off again, back into muggle London. Even though their group was quite large, Harry noticed that all of the muggles just kept walking past them, as if they hadn't seen them come out of the seemingly abandoned building. The entire train ride home, Harry sat in silence, jerking about with the train, with his hand in his pocket, fiddling with the jewelry case. Hermione and Ginny spent their time doting over Snowbell, who Harry avoided; every time he glanced over at the cat, he swore that it was staring back at him, like it was always watching. Once off the train, the Advance Guard members seemed anxious to get back to Headquarters, so they took a brisk pace down the winding streets back. When they reached the spot that should have housed the mansion, Harry, along with everyone else standing with him, closed his eyes and imagined the house there, thinking of the phrase that made it appear. Harry opened his eyes, and watched as the house magically expanded from a simple door to a huge mansion, shoving the houses on either side of it out of the way.
"Come on, then," Lupin said, leading the way inside. "Hurry up."
* * *
That afternoon, Ron, Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville all sat in Harry and Ron's bedroom, lazily. Harry loaned Ron the Broom Maintenance Kit that Hermione had previously bought him, so that Ron could dote over his new broom. Ginny and Neville sat playing with Crookshanks, who Hermione brought over from her room so that he could meet Snowbell, and Ginny's new cat. Hermione, meanwhile, lay on Harry's bed, reading over the beginning of one of their new school books, "Practical Defense: A Guide to Every Defensive Spell in Existence," by Harold Taylor. After a while of looking over Ron's Flash, Harry grew tired of it. He felt like he just needed to be alone, to escape and think through some things for a bit; last night he had had the same terrible nightmare that never ceased to haunt him his entire summer. He woke up shaking and sweating, Bellatrix Lestrange's cackling face engraved on his eyeballs. It had taken him an hour to get back to sleep, and before he finally managed to calm himself back down, he had to get up and talk to Hedwig, perched in her cage on top of the wardrobe.
Presently, Harry stood and strolled towards the door. Before he managed to escape, Ron noticed him leaving. "Where are you going?" Ron asked curiously.
"I'm just going to wander around the house for a bit," Harry replied, slipping out the door. He wandered down the hall, and began to head downstairs. However, then he heard Mrs. Weasley and Tonks talking, and since he wanted to be alone, changed direction and headed upstairs instead. On the top floor, the hallway was even darker than the rest of the house, and Harry had to pull out his wand in order to see a few inches in front of him.
"Lumos," he whispered, as light flared out of his wand's tip. All along the hall, the walls were lined with dead house-elves heads, hanging on plaques. Harry had forgotten all about the creepy things; Mrs. Weasley must have moved them up here somehow. He crept down the hall, holding his wand out in front of him as he grimaced at all of the unpleasant faces Sirius' great-grandmother had begun hanging. Then, as he reached the end of the hall, what he saw almost made him drop his wand. A burst of anger shot through him, accompanied with certain malice. Kreacher's head hung, chopped of, up on a plaque of its own. His ugly face was twisted into a dropping smile, his eyelids closed over his hideous eyes. Harry hadn't even thought about Kreacher since he arrived; he had been too busy thinking about other things. Yet, here, the dead house elf hung. As Harry stared at the disgusting little thing, that insulted him and Sirius, that lied to him and who contributed to Sirius's death, he suddenly felt a cruel satisfaction. At least Kreacher would never serve as a problem to the Order again.
Tearing himself away from the Kreacher's dead face, he went through the door at the end of the hall. Inside, Harry looked disgusted at the floor. All around him, dead rat and bird skeletons lay, flesh torn off of them. White sheets covered the small amounts of furniture in the room. Harry crept around, taking care not to crunch any of the skeletons, and lit two of the oil lamps he found. "Incendio," he said, pointing his wand at the lamps, causing them both to light. Once lit, the lamps provided just enough dim light for him to see properly around the room without his wand. A rustling noise alerted him, and he whipped around on his heels in order to face the big mass that was moving towards him. Harry kept eye contact with the beast, bowing, before the Hippogriff bowed back.
Harry smiled as he slowly approached Buckbeak. "Hey, Buckbeak," he said soothingly, stroking its neck. "It's been a while."
Buckbeak nuzzled Harry's hand. For a while Harry just stood, petting Buckbeak, thinking through some things. Then the filthy condition of the room got to him.
Harry looked disgusted at the floor. "Let's clean this place up a bit," he said.
He gathered a garbage bag from a room down the hall and summoned all of the skeletons and bits of animal remains into the bag. He then cleaned the entire floor, so that the putrid stench of rotted flesh vanished. After he was finished, he sat back against the wall, Buckbeak lying down beside him. Just as he was beginning to doze off, there was a soft knock at the door, as it creaked slowly open, and Hermione crept in.
"Harry?" she asked, closing the door softly behind her. "I've been looking all over for you. What are you doing up here?"
Harry looked up at her, as she stood with the lamp light flickering gently across her face. "Nothing," he said, "Just tending to Buckbeak."
She came and sat right next to him. "You've missed dinner."
"That's alright," he sighed, "I'm not really hungry."
"Well, I've saved you something, just in case," she said sweetly, pulling a warm roll wrapped in a cloth napkin out of her sweater pocket.
Harry smiled at her; he was a little hungry. "Thanks," he said, taking the roll. "Want to split it?" he added, ripping it in half.
"Sure," said Hermione, taking a bite out of her half.
For a while they just sat silently in the dim room, eating their rolls. Harry always liked that about Hermione- how he could just sit quietly with her and feel completely comfortable. Most of the time, he didn't even have to say anything in order for her to understand what he was feeling. He was still worrying about the trial he had later on, and what the outcome of it would be; he had been almost the entire time he had been sitting there alone with Buckbeak.
Almost as if she read his mind, Hermione suddenly said, consolingly, "I know you're worried about your trial this Monday, Harry- don't be. You'll do fine; everything will turn out alright.
Harry smiled softly towards the ground, then raised his head and looked at Hermione, who was looking comfortingly at him. "Thanks," he said.
He put his hand in his pocket, pulling out the jewelry box. Keeping it hidden by his side, he sat up on his knees, facing Hermione. She looked at him questioningly.
Then, he pulled it out from behind him, handing it over to her. She took it in her hand as she looked at it surprised and asked, "What is this?"
"It's just a gift for you," Harry said, slightly nervously. "I saw you looking at the jewelry earlier, in Diagon Alley, and when I saw this, I don't know- I just thought it was perfect for you."
Hermione snapped open the box and gasped. "Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed gently. She held it out in front of her, so that the jewels shimmered in the light. "Harry," she stammered, "It-it's gorgeous!"
Harry smiled at her joyous expression, relaxing a bit. "You like it then?"
She looked at him as if he was crazy. "Of course I do!" she cried. "It's beautiful! I can't believe you got this for me."
She lifted it out of its case, pulling back her hair so that she could put it on. He saw her struggle slightly and offered, "Here, let me help." She held her hair off to the side, leaning her head forward so that Harry could fasten it behind her. "There," he said, as she dropped her curls again and he came back in front of her in order to see how it looked on her. Harry felt a sudden lump rise in his throat as he looked at her, astounded. Esmeralda looked absolutely stunning on her.
Harry suddenly found himself sweating a bit again, tripping over his tongue as he stared at her. "You- I mean it- it looks great, Hermione," he stammered.
She beamed at him and then leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. He found himself thinking how she smelled like fresh sheets and sweet flowers, as he hugged her back.
"Thanks, Harry," she whispered. "I love it."
* * *
Harry and Hermione stayed up talking late into the night. By and by, Harry's eyelids began to feel like there were weights set upon them and Hermione's head began to droop, so they put out the lights and headed back downstairs. Tiptoeing down the hall, careful not to disturb anyone, they both went their separate ways into their bedrooms, across the hall from one another.
"Goodnight," Hermione whispered, creaking open her bedroom door silently so as to avoid waking Ginny up.
"Goodnight," he whispered back, as he watched her disappear behind the closed door. In his own room, Harry found Ron already snoring, drooling on his pillow as he lay sprawled messily on his stomach. He sat down on the edge of his bed, pulling off his shoes and shirt, and placing his glasses on the bedside table. Harry then crawled under the covers and lay on his back, staring up at the dark bed canopy above him. Although his tired body longed to fall asleep, his mind was still churning. For an hour he lay there, in a befuddled state. His thoughts kept bringing him back to Hermione; he couldn't get her face or voice out of his head. No matter what he attempted to distract his mind with, he always found himself thinking about how amazing she looked, with the necklace on; how nice she was to bring him dinner; how comforting and understanding she was while he worried about the trial. Eventually, those uncommon thoughts lulled him to sleep.
That night, Harry finally managed to fall asleep, after much reflection. He had determined that it was best just to ignore it; he forced himself to believe it was all a trick-of-the-mind- that he was too tired to think straight. However, the next morning, when he went down to breakfast and found Hermione already there, talking to Neville and Bill, he felt light butterflies in his stomach and felt momentarily weightless.
"Stop being so stupid," he thought, frustrated, to himself as he joined them for breakfast.
Only substantiating his decision even more, Ron trudged in a few minutes later and as soon as he sat down asked, scowling, "Where were you two last night? I waited up until 12 o'clock, but you never came back." He glared suspiciously at Harry and Hermione.
Hermione said, rolling her eyes, "We were just talking upstairs, Ron."
Harry added, "Yeah, we were. Sorry that you waited up."
Ron, who had still been frowning at them distrustfully, relaxed and said, "Alright," and began eating his breakfast as if nothing happened.
* * *
The entire day, all Harry could think about was the trial, which momentarily pushed Hermione out of his mind's eye. He dreaded facing Percy and what his ultimate decision would be. Of course, Lupin and Mr. Weasley would be there too, as they had indeed attacked ministry officials. Harry wished that Percy was not in such a biased position. As the day came and went, and the sun disappeared down below the horizon, Harry began to feel steadily more and more nervous, almost as if something very large was in his stomach and was fighting to get out.
That night, during dinner, Bill suddenly came bursting into the room, waving a muggle newspaper in one hand and the Daily Prophet in the other.
"You won't believe this!" he exclaimed, throwing the papers down onto the dining table as Harry and Mr. Weasley deftly snatched their plates out of the way. Bill began by spreading the muggle newspaper out, bending over it as Lupin and Kingsley sprang abruptly from their chairs and scooted around the table to look over Bill's shoulder. "Look," he said, pointing fervently at the front page heading.
Harry read the title out loud, growing more alarmed with every word he spoke. "Train Explosion- Kills 30, Injures 42 Others."
He scanned the article quickly, completely mortified. Bill announced ardently, "It says the mysterious explosion took place yesterday afternoon, on the 1:15 train heading out of London. The authorities haven't been able to determine the exact cause."
Mr. Weasley looked up from the article, alarmed. "This happened on the train right after ours. Remember? We just managed to catch the 1:00 train on our way back here!"
"Exactly," Bill said, pulling out the Daily Prophet and laying it crookedly over the other paper. "And it gets worse."
Harry looked shocked at the article before him. On the front page of the Daily Prophet, complete with a moving picture of people cleaning up the area where the train exploded, was the bold title: "Muggle Train Attack- Believed to be the Work of the Recently-Escaped Death Eaters."
"You mean…" Harry began, completely dumbfounded by the article.
"They probably meant to attack us," Lupin said, "But then we managed to get on the other train and they somehow never knew."
Harry felt like he was going to be sick. All of those innocent people- dead. Not to mention the fact that the Death Eaters were still hot on his trail; since they had escaped they seemed to have stalked him relentlessly. He buried his face in his hands, shaking his head slowly back and forth. "This can't be happening," he moaned.
Nobody said anything. There were no words of comfort strong enough to obscure the horror of it all. Harry excused himself from dinner as everyone sat around the table in meaningful reflection. He stumbled upstairs and after closing his bedroom door behind him, slumped to the floor in front of it. Knocking his head back against the door, Harry sat hugging his legs tight up against him. As bad as things were already going this year, he knew they were only going to get worse. Without warning, someone pushed at the door from the other side, trying to push it open, but Harry dug his feet into the ground and pushed back against it so that it wouldn't open.
He heard someone's muffled voice coming from the other side of the door as the handle rattled. "Come on, Harry," Hermione pleaded, "Stop being stupid and let me in."
He sighed and reluctantly rolled over to the side as she came in. She watched him lie pitifully on the ground and strode over, grabbing his arm and hoisting him to his feet. Harry collapsed onto Ron's bed behind him and said, depressed, "It's all my fault."
She kneeled in front of him, hands on his knees and looked straight into his eyes.
"You know perfectly well it's not," she said disapprovingly. He turned his cheek to her, avoiding her eye contact but she huffed, "Look at me." He swung his head back around to face her. "The last thing you need is to begin blaming yourself for everything that happens. It isn't your fault in the slightest what those horrid Death Eaters do. Listen, I know just as well as you do that this is going to be a rough year, but that's all the more reason not to allow these things to get to you."
"I know," he said dimly. She smiled at him and said, "Now that's better," as she rose. "Now get some sleep, and stop worrying so much. I probably won't see you tomorrow morning, so good luck with the trial."
Harry watched her head out of the room, and just as she was closing the door said, "Hermione- thanks."
She smiled at him again before closing the door.
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