The sun shone down brightly on the neck of 15 year old Harry Potter. He was grateful to have survived the summer at his relatives, the Dursleys. He was sure, of course, there were worse people in the world, having encountered one of them only last June. Voldemort, the most powerful Dark Wizard in a century had risen that night. Harry still remembered it like it was yesterday. The fiery pain of the Cruciatus Curse igniting every nerve in his body. The terrible figures of summoned Death Eaters. And worst of all, the intense green light stealing the life out of the body of Cedric Diggory.
He shuddered slightly for a moment, chills running down his neck despite the heat from the midday sun burning in the cobalt blue sky. He had seen terrors which no kid his age should have to see in a lifetime. Still, he had to go on with his life. If he didn't, they won. And he wasn't about to let that happen. He stepped up to the door of the Leaky Cauldron, checking around him quickly, before moving inside.
There was the usual hustle and bustle inside the pub. Most of the tables seemed occupied, but fortunately, no one seemed to have noticed him as of yet. He quickly made his way through the crowd, even managing to avoid being fixed by the gaze of Tom, who ran the establishment, which was no mean feat, he knew. He exited through the back door.
Approaching the brick wall which lay behind the bar, he took out his wand and tapped a sequence of bricks. As he stood back, the wall reformed itself to reveal the secret entrance to Diagon Alley. Harry stepped through the portal, sucking in the air. Somehow it tasted differently than the air from Charing Cross Road. He felt… At home here.
Harry stepped forward into the crowd, angling for Gringotts, the Wizard Bank. Once there, he could access the money which his parents had left him. It had always somewhat shamed him to have so much money when one of his best friends, Ron Weasley, had almost none, especially since Harry had not earned any of his money.
As he was approaching the door, Harry heard a voice behind him.
"Harry? Oh, Harry is that you?"
He spun around. Moving towards him through the crowd was a slender girl with bushy brown hair. It was Hermione Granger. She rushed up to him and seized him around the neck.
"It's so good to see you!" she exclaimed, squeezing him quickly and letting go.
Harry thankfully had not lost his balance when she had hugged him. He held her at arms length for a moment, eyes flickering over her a moment. "It's great to see you, too, Hermione. Wow, you look, er, great." He blushed slightly.
Hermione grinned at him and did a quick twirl, giggling. "Really, now Harry? I must say you don't look bad yourself."
Harry felt his cheeks heating even more, and was sure Hermione could tell. "Er, shall we go in? Where are your parents?"
She stepped beside him as they moved through the doors. "Oh, they're off someplace else today. They decided I needed to get out on my own a bit, so they have me money to exchange myself." She grinned broadly at him.
"Hey you two!" They looked up at one of the tall tables around the room. Standing there was Ron Weasley and his family. Smiling, Harry and Hermione strode over to them.
Hermione smiled and pulled Ron into a hug, though not as fierce as hers was for him, Harry noted. Ron looked a bit apprehensive, but nonetheless patted her on the back before she drew away. Harry then found himself engulfed by Mrs. Weasley, a plump, kindly woman who was almost like a second mother to Harry. He noted that tall, balding Mr. Weasley was not present. He spotted Ginny Weasley standing near Ron. She smiled shyly at him and gave a small wave. He grinned back at her, silently thanking the powers that be that she seemed to be over her crush. Fred and George, Ron's older twins, smiled amiably and clapped Harry on the shoulders, almost knocking him over. They took Harry aside quickly for a moment, lowering their voices.
"Listen, Harry we've taken care of those dress robes like you asked. No worries, mate." Fred grinned. Then Harry was back listening to Ron.
"I already got some money out of our vault, so I'll keep Hermione company while you head down, OK Harry?"
Harry nodded, smiling, though he couldn't help but feel a bit jealous that Ron would get to talk to Hermione now and he wouldn't. He shrugged to himself. He wasn't sure why it was a problem, so he headed down to the Gringotts caverns. He always loved the cart rides, though he recalled how sick they had made Hagrid, a source of amusement to Harry as Hagrid seemed able to withstand anything. Harry collected a sum of wizard gold which should easily cover his expenses for school items this year and headed back out, emerging about 20 minutes after descending into the murky gloom.
He spotted Ron and Hermione leaning casually against one of the rows of registers. "Hey you two. Ready to head off?" They nodded, and waving to the rest of the Weasleys they made their way back into Diagon Alley. Harry was bursting with excitement, doing their shopping completely alone this year. They wandered slowly down the street, chattering contentedly to each other about various goings on over their summers. Harry sighed, thinking about the week remaining until start of term. It was only August 24th, after all.
Their first stop was Madame Malkin's Robes. They all needed some new robes for the upcoming term. Harry and Ron were both still growing, and while Hermione was still shorter and had never actually grown the same amount as them in the same year, she too was taller than before. After getting their new robes packaged away, they strode out, stopping for a moment in front of Quality Quidditch Supplies.
Harry and Ron stared in at the brooms and various knick-knacks while Hermione tutted. Ron pointed out the new shipment of Firebolts on display.
"I so wish I could have one of those, Harry. You know I'm trying out for Keeper this year. Been working hard all summer long."
Harry grinned. Ron had told him in practically every letter he had sent to Harry. From the way Ron told it, he had spent every single waking moment on a broomstick this summer. Harry felt a little guilty that all Ron could use was an older Cleansweep like his brothers, while Harry had been given the best racing broom in the world. It just wasn't right.
"If you two are quite done?" Hermione said tartly, "We still have quite a bit of shopping to do. I suspect neither of you have noticed, but we haven't got any of our course books yet."
Ron grinned, throwing an arm around Hermione's shoulder. "Don't worry, we have plenty of time."
She rolled her eyes, swatting his arm away. "Yes, we have time, but we also have a lot to do. In case you two have forgotten, we have O.W.L.s coming this year, and neither of you are even close to being ready. Honestly, I would have expected a bit more responsibility from even you two!" With that she pounded off for Flourish and Blotts.
Harry stared after her, and Ron looked slightly bewildered. Harry took off behind her, catching her quickly. "Hermione, come on, we're only screwing around, we know this year's important. Come on, now." She looked up at him, trying to maintain her stern look, but failing. Her face melted into a warm smile.
"Oh, I know, Harry. Come along then."
Together the three walked to Flourish and Blotts. As they approached, they noticed it was somewhat more crowded than usual. Hermione stood on her tiptoes, peering inside. "That's funny, they all look older, not new students. Who could they all be?"
She pushed the door open, and the voices coming from one circle of people wafted over to them.
"You have got to be kidding me."
"No, seriously, my homey, I'm not playing wit choo man!"
Hermione's eyes widened. The last to speak had been a red-haired girl Caucasian girl. She had never heard that before.
Another boy laughed. "Fo' schizzle my nizzle!"
Some of the nine people in that group laughed, the others simply sighed.
"Please, no more gangsta, OK? I know you like it Ds, Jill, but honestly."
They all laughed.
Ron was looking at them in wonderment. "Americans. What are they doing here?"
Harry was pretty confused too. "Er… Maybe some kind of exchange program? I mean, Dumbledore did say that anyone from anywhere was welcome, didn't he?" He studied the Americans a bit more. His initial count was correct, there were nine of them. They all seemed to know each other, although there were 7 girls and only 2 guys, both of whom were tall and athletic.
Miss laughed. "Yes, Ds, if you're going to be a silly boy at least use something better than gangsta talk."
Ds smiled at her mischievously. "Oh really now?" He sighed exaggeratedly. "Well, I suppose I could always pull something out of the bag of tricks for my fans."
Sammie smacked him on the arm. "Hush, you. There is such an idea as being quiet, you know."
Max grinned. "I don't think Ds knows how to shut up. Kind of annoying really."
Batgirl smiled too. "Yeah, always words to say, pieces of advice, jokes. Does your mouth ever stop?"
Ds rolled his eyes. "I never get respect around here."
Miss only laughed more. "Oh, poor Ds. I respect you. I respect you so much." A mischievous grin lighted her face.
Cat cleared her throat very audibly at that moment, trying to bring them back under control. "OK, now, we still need to get all those course books. So let's split up and get moving now."
Ds grabbed Nicole's hand and led her off to get her course books. "Hey, big brother, I am capable of shopping for myself, you know," she said, although without rancor.
"I know, but I promised Mom and Dad to look after you, you know. Plus I have all our money." He smiled. "Don't worry, I'll try not to be too motherly."
In another part of the store, Bri and Max were trying to tear Joyce away from some unneeded, in their opinion, books.
"No, I'll need these! And I want to know more about British wizarding history, they never teach us that!"
Max grimaced as he tugged on Joyce's arm. "Maybe that's cause it's not important?" Bri was actually just standing off to one side, laughing at Max and Joyce as they continued their strange tug of war, until Max simply picked up Joyce and carried her off.
"Max! Put me down this instant!" She beat her fists on his back.
Miss and Cat were standing off in one corner, amusing themselves with joke books. They seemed in no hurry to buy what they actually needed, despite the fact that Cat had been the one to order the others to do so. Miss especially seemed unconcerned at the amount of people glaring at her while she giggled up a storm.
However, the two of them were interrupted by Batgirl and Sammie, who had located some other books all the girls were interested in. They stood in a tight circle, giggling madly. They stopped at the sudden appearance of Ds.
He had one eyebrow arched. Nic was standing a ways off, looking at some DADA books. "You know, some of us are actually interested in getting what we came for." His easy, sardonic grin appeared. "Of course, I for one, am not one of those people, but I'm sure you can find a comfortable medium between Joyce," and he gestured to the girl who had now escaped Max and was piling up books, "and total procrastination."
Sammie just laughed at Ds. "And what would you know about finding that happy medium? You're almost as bad as I am!"
Ds feigned exasperation. "I give up!"
Ron was looking at some new DADA books when he ran into someone. "Oh, sorry," he mumbled, looking up. Standing before him was a pretty girl, shorter than him, with blue glasses. He started. "Oh, er, hi."
She looked up at him. "Oh, hello. Sorry about that." She started to edge around him, when he noted something.
"Hey, you're American!"
She smiled. "Well, yes, there's a few of us from Olympus Mons coming over this year. Exchange program sort of thing."
Ron smiled. "That's cool. I mean, I met some Bulgarians and French students last year…"
"Oh, yes, for the Triwizard Tournament."
"Yeah, you heard about that?"
A voice dripping with sarcasm and snobbiness broke in. "Well, well, look at that. The Weasel has got himself an American friend. How nice." Ron's face grew red, and he spun to face his antagonist.
"Sod off, Malfoy. Nobody asked you for anything."
"Pity. You clearly need some help from someone like me in the financial department."
Nicole frowned. "That's not a very nice thing to say."
Malfoy glared at her. "Did anybody ask you? Why don't you just shut your mouth!"
"Ahem."
Malfoy and his accompanying cronies turned, to find themselves face to face with Max and Ds. Both boys were far larger than even Crabbe and Goyle, and the looks on their faces were nothing short of menacing.
Max stepped forward. "You better watch your mouth. Didn't your mama ever teach you about manners?"
Crabbe and Goyle hesitated, and looked to Malfoy for instructions. Malfoy had flushed at being met by such resistance in this situation. "Come on, let's go," he said sulkily, and swaggered off.
Ron turned back to Nicole. "Sorry bout him. He's a real jerk, that one is." He paused. "My name's Ron, by the way, Ron Weasley."
She smiled. "Nicole. Most people just call me Nic." There was a slight cough, and Nic turned to Ds, who pointed at his watch. "Oh, I'm sorry, Ron, but I've got to get moving. Lots of stuff to do." She hurried out, turning back to wave to Ron before exiting the building behind the other Americans.
Ron saw Harry come stand next to him out of his periphery. "Well, you were right, Harry. They are exchange students."
Harry looked at Ron. "You talked to some of them?"
"Well, just one. She seemed nice enough. They all seem to know each other pretty well, I guess." Ron was still thinking about that girl. She was kind of cute, in a way he couldn't quite put his finger on. He must have had a far off look in his eyes, because Hermione was inspecting him the next thing he knew.
"Ron? We need to get a move on here." Her words seemed normal enough, but there was a slight glint of suspicion there. Ron quickly recovered.
"Oh, of course. Lead the way."
The Americans were all congregated in the Quality Quidditch Supplies at Diagon Alley. They had their own Quidditch team, and so, were comparing the style of the game in Britain with that in America.
"Hmmm… According to this, most Brits use Cleansweeps, Nimbuses or even Firebolts," commented Max, who played Seeker. "Hey, Sammie, Batgirl, don't you have Firebolts?"
"They have Firebolt Z4s. Those are the modified American version. They're not quite as fast, but have a little better stability," commented Ds.
Batgirl rolled her eyes. "You are far too obsessed with sports. And you also know way too much about us." She softened her words with a grin.
Nicole giggled. "He can't help it that you all hang out together, and happen to be on the same Quidditch team."
Sammie laughed. "And what's wrong with being obsessed with sports? You play."
Batgirl harrumphed. "I play, but I'm not maniacal about it."
Miss poked Ds in the ribs. "Well, we all know how anal our idge is. But really, why spend extra on Z4s when my and Cat's Jetstream800s work almost as good?"
Sammie shrugged. "Only the best for Daddy's little girl."
Nicole was inspecting some high sheen finish when she noticed two boys and a girl walking in. The two boys were extremely excited, but the girl was rather sullen. She started. "Joyce, who are these two people?" The girl turned to her.
"Excuse me?"
Nicole gasped. It wasn't Joyce, but a girl who looked quite a bit like her. She turned. Joyce, Max, and Ds seemed to be discussing some subject which intrigued them to no end. "Oh, I'm sorry. You just look a lot like my friend Joyce."
The girl smiled. "That's quite alright. I'm Hermione Granger. You're one of the American exchange students, I see?"
Nicole smiled, and reached her hand out. "Yes, my name's Nicole, people call me Nic." Hermione grasped her hand warmly. She really did look a lot like Joyce, it was strange.
One of the boys walked up to Nicole and Hermione. Nicole gasped a second time. It was the boy from the book shop. "Can't seem to get away from you can I, Nicole was it?" He smiled affably.
Nicole grinned back. "It does appear that way. Ron, right? So what are you doing in here?"
"Oh, I'm trying out for Keeper of the Gryffindor team. Harry over there," and he pointed at a spindly, raven-haired boy, "is the Seeker already."
"Oh, well I guess we'll be in competition then. I'm one of our Chasers. Max is our Seeker." She pointed out the tall athletic Canadian currently still laughing about something with Joyce and Ds.
"Really? Well, Harry here was the youngest Seeker in a century at Hogwarts. Your friend will have his work cut out for him." Ron smiled, half in jest, half in challenge. Harry smiled uneasily, never sure in meeting new people.
"Oh, you boys and your sports. There are other things in life," grumbled Hermione.
Harry grinned at her. "We know, Hermione. You've told us a thousand times before." He stepped up and addressed Nicole. "So, how is your team, anyways? I haven't heard much about American Quidditch."
Nicole smiled. "Well, Cat and Miss may seem nice, but they can be brutal as Beaters. Max is pretty good at Seeker, he just got a Zvesda 9 broomstick. One of the best in the world. Maybe even better than a Firebolt." She grinned at the two boys.
Ron gave her another quick once-over while she looked at Harry momentarily. She was only carrying one bag, and it had books in it. "So, what kind of broom do you use then?"
Nicole smiled. "You probably haven't heard of it, it's only been released in the US so far. I have a Starfire 2006. Built for outright maneuverability and stability, along with some nifty speed."
Just then, the rest of the Americans approached. "Hey, Nic, you got everything you need? I'll buy you some ice cream, then we can go see the sights, OK?" Nicole turned to the tall American who had just spoke.
"Be right there." She turned back to the Britons. "I guess I'll see you all later?" She smiled and walked out with her friends.
Ron watched her leave, and she stood right next to the boy who had said he would buy her ice cream. And they laughed as they walked. Suddenly, he noticed Hermione and Harry flanking him.
"Interesting girl, isn't she, Ron?" Hermione asked, with a raised eyebrow. Ron started and looked at her.
"I, er, don't know what you mean." His ears began to redden, and it was all too obvious he did.
Harry smiled at Ron. "Oh, come on, Ron, she seems nice enough. She's not bad looking, either. And I mean, she'll be at Hogwarts this year. So you'll get a chance to know her."
Ron stammered. "Oh, I don't know. I mean, what about that guy she was with? I mean, he protected her from Malfoy, is buying her ice cream, seems to look out for her and whatnot. What if they're together?"
Harry shrugged, as if this had not occurred to him. Hermione rolled her eyes in exasperation. But Ron barely noticed. His mind was still on that girl.