Disclaimer: I do not own anything 'Harry Potter,' nor any of the bits of lyrics that I use. Just the plot, and it's probably been already done a hundred times, so I may not even own that.
A/N: Boy, time is sure moving slowly at this point in the story, I thought I'd have Grimmauld place set up and the ministry meeting taken care of in this chapter, along with a quick driving lesson for Harry. None of that takes place, they're still in Diagon Alley, and for good reason. There are more surprises from Kotone in this chappie, so read on, and let me know what you think!
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Chapter 16: Hidden in Plain Sight
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I know what I'm facing and what I'm facing don't know me
and I'll wait, and I'll tell you once again,
if you only gave the guidelines, I'd be better off knowing when…
I'd be better off knowing when.
burning the candle is all I can handle.
We'll save energy if we stick together.
Taking you over a shy Casanova,
we'll save energy if we stick together, Now stick together now
I've seen what I'm doing, and what I'm doing is the best for me,
and it's all gotta go before we're done.
It's the only kind of opinion that I could give to anyone.
Excerpt from the song, "Stick Together" by the band 'The Superjesus.'
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Kotone sat in the seat next to Ron, who seemed a bit less nervous around her since she had her fangs covered, while Harry slid in next to Hermione. Tom quickly laid the food on the table and retreated to the bar, greeting another pair of customers as they descended the stairway leading from the guest rooms.
Ron placed an overflowing plate in front of him, and was about to tuck in when Kotone scooted closer to him and quietly wiped the wetness from her eyes. He felt sorry for the little girl, and didn't seem to mind too much when she leaned her head against him and her white hair wrapped itself around his arm. When he felt something cold and snake-like slither around his calf and gently squeezed, he dropped his fork and jumped up from his seat in alarm, yelling, "Bloody Hell, it's a snake or something!" rattling the table and showering Harry and Hermione, as well as himself, with bits of the food that bounced from all of the plates.
Kotone's teary eyes widened in fright at the outburst, and quickly withdrew her hair from his arm and tail from around his leg, which made him jump up onto the bench seat and frantically slap at his leg.
Seeing the look on Kotone's face Harry understood what happened, "Ron, relax, it's just her tail," he said casually, seemingly finding nothing amiss about a little girl having a tail.
A brief look of horror flashed in Ron's eyes, but he just calmly sat back down and began putting his plate back in order while carefully avoiding looking at Kotone.
Harry almost laughed at Ron's reaction while resetting his own plate. He tried to eat, but stopped after a few bites, still feeling a little queasy about Kotone's breakfast. He then noticed from the corner of his eye how Hermione and Ron were exchanging curious glances with each other. If he felt a pit open in his stomach, assuming that their 'chat' had went in Ron's favor. After all, he gave no indication to Hermione that he had feelings for her, and he had a girl waiting for him, anyway. This is what he wanted, right?
Harry dropped his fork on the table and stood up, earning questioning looks from his two friends. "I'm just going to go back to the orphanage and collect Kotone's things. They should have the place cleaned up by now," he said quietly, not looking at either of them, but watched as Kotone rose from her seat, hurried beside him and took his hand in hers, indicating that she wanted to accompany him.
"Do you think it's wise to go back there?" asked Hermione, with no small concern in her voice, "What if there are more Death Eaters?"
Harry didn't look concerned, "The aurors are probably still there, and I'll only be gone a few minutes." He looked down to Kotone, "Are you sure you want to come along?"
Kotone just nodded and held her arms out to him, clearly wanting him to carry her. He didn't mind carrying her. Being unusually light for her size, he found that she was hardly a burden at all. He hefted her up in one arm and felt her hair softly wrap itself around his neck as her tail coiled firmly around his arm.
Harry walked slowly and quietly towards the seedier end of Diagon Alley with his small cargo, wondering why he was so angry, so… so jealous. Hermione had just professed her love for him, and now she just takes up with Ron the next day?
'What about Ginny?' asked the little voice in his head that sounded very much like Hermione. He suddenly realized that he hadn't thought much about Ginny at all. He was concerned over her reaction to him during her visit to St. Mungo's. Why was she acting so… so awkward? So mendacious? Why did her visit feel so disingenuous? He knew she was hiding something from him. He found he had a knack for telling when people were being misleading, except for the time at the Department of Mysteries… with what happened to Sirius, what Dolohov did to Hermione, and what happened with all his friends that accompanied him there, he swore he'd never let that happen again. He could tell that Ginny was up to something, just as he could tell that Hermione and Ron were keeping something from him back at The Leaky Cauldron. The thought of Ron snogging with Hermione flashed unbidden in his minds eye, and another, more powerful wave of anger and jealousy crashed over him.
The anger that was building in him as he walked was driven away when he felt wetness on his shoulder where Kotone's silently crying face was hidden. He ran his hand softly over the back of her head, and when she lifted her face from his shoulder, he looked into her spilling eyes. He stopped walking as time slowed and the alley disappeared around them, leaving only her despairing, violet eyes in focus.
'Shishi-kun, what will happen to me? I am alone. Parent are dead. Barny-kun is dead. I have nothing. Nobody want ugly animal as me. Where will I go?"
Harry could actually feel her anguish and desperation through the link until she broke the connection by burying her face back into his shoulder. When his surroundings reappeared, he thought for a moment that he had lost his glasses, until he realized that the blurriness was caused by the tears that welled in his own eyes. He recalled his wretched life with the Dursleys, and it both astounded and appalled him at how closely their lives paralleled.
"A very clever witch once told me that I have this 'saving people thing,' he said to Kotone in a surprisingly even voice, "and since I'm destined to save the Wizarding world, I believe I can work one beautiful little witch into my schedule. You promised to protect me, so I now promise to protect you."
He felt her arms and tail tighten around him as her face lifted to meet his. She still had tears running from her eyes, but they also looked considerably happier.
As he expected, there were still aurors milling around in the building when Harry entered. When he reached the second floor, he felt Kotone tense against him as she once again buried her face in his shoulder. He saw a team of wizards Scourgefying the blood from the floors and walls, while aurors were counting and mapping out where hexes had landed near the staircase. He hurried down to Kotone's room and set her gently on her rickety cot.
At first, she didn't seem to want to let go of him, her hair and tail tightened around him and he felt her give a nervous shudder. He just smiled at her comfortingly and eased her off him. He found a small, battered trunk in a corner of the room, and quickly packed the new school clothes, which he correctly assumed that his money bought, along with the sparse few of her possessions. He retrieved the tattered teddy bear from the floor of the closet and handed it to Kotone, who took it appreciatively and held it close.
He picked up her white, porcelain mask from the top of her broken dresser and looked at it sadly. Admittedly, his scar was far less noticeable than Kotone's frightening appearance, but he knew all the same what it was like for a physical attribute to draw so much unwanted attention. He absently ran one hand over the hair covering his scar as he carefully placed the mask in the trunk between a pair of her robes.
"Is this all?" asked Harry.
Kotone nodded. Harry looked sadly down at the young girl's meager possessions, the robes and uniforms, purchased with the money that he gave to the orphanage's administrator, two very old and tattered gray robes, an equally ratty, gray hooded cloak, a dirty and faded black witch's hat, three old books that were written in Japanese, and a photograph that rested under three wands.
He picked up the old, dog-eared photograph from the corner of the trunk. At first, he thought it was a muggle photograph, until he saw the smallest figure tuck herself shyly behind another. It showed a pleasant looking Asian woman, dressed in a traditional kimono, standing next to a thin, wiry gentleman dressed in a classic set of fine, red wizarding robes which were adorned with golden dragons around the hem and front seams. From behind the woman, a much younger Kotone, with her lower face covered, peeked out. She was wearing an elegant, richly coloured kimono, similar to the one her mother wore. The older lady had her long, black hair set into a large bun near the top of her head, held in place by a jewel-encrusted pair of crossed golden needles. Kotone and her parents stood in a serene garden behind a very large, expensive looking pagoda-style house.
"Kotone, these are your parents?" asked Harry carefully, to which Kotone nodded in response. He glanced back into her trunk, then to the picture again, "It looks as if your family was well off… How did you end up here?"
Kotone took a deep breath, and then let out a sad sigh that sounded more like an angry growl, but Harry felt he was getting quite adept at telling the difference, "Father very successful maker of wand. Oota very wealthy family of old. Family wealth taken by *hakubo," Kotone seemed to struggle for the English words, "Father's sister. When parent die, hakubo Motoko frighten of me, refuse me to take, could not go home and no other family."
Harry carefully placed the photograph in her trunk and picked up the three wands, "One of these is yours?"
Kotone placed her bear beside her, reached out and took one of the wands. Harry saw strange engravings all along the shaft that looked like human faces that were twisted in agony, "*Jinmenju wood with dragon heartstring. Father make for me, very rare." She pulled a second wand from his hand, long and smooth with a deep red finish, and said, "Cherry wood with unicorn hair, belong to mother."
She picked the final wand from his hand. He watched her run her fingers over the shiny, black-lacquered wood. She clutched the wands to her chest as a small sob escaped her, "Camphor wood with dragon heartstring, belong to father. Very strong."
Harry took her parents' wands from her and carefully placed them in her trunk, saying, "I want you to keep your wand with you at all times. I don't know how much magic you know, but it's best that you have it handy."
Harry secured the lid to her trunk, lifted it up in one hand and then extended his free arm to Kotone, who rose from the cot and allowed him to lift her from the floor. Harry looked compassionately into her sad, frightened eyes and said, "Believe it or not, little one, I know exactly how you feel."
The sun was lifting over the horizon as they walked back to The Leaky Cauldron. On the way, they passed the boarded-up Ollivander's Wand Shop. Harry suddenly recalled one of the memories that Kotone had shown him. The Harry in the memory was peering through the boards at something. Curiosity got the better of him and he walked up to the obscured front window.
Peering into the shop through the boards, he saw the window display of a single, dusty wand resting on a very old, tasseled pillow, the same wand he remembered being there when he bought his own wand years before. After looking around him, he stuck the tip of his wand between the boards and whispered, "Lumos Minimus." He strained his eyes in the dim light, trying to make out any details on the wand resting on the pillow. Even though it was still dark inside of the shop, he could just make out the engravings of some sort of birds along the shaft. His eyes widened as he made out a single, capital letter 'R' faintly etched at the base.
'Ravenclaw,' he thought to himself, 'Something of Gryffindor's or Ravenclaw's… The best place to hide something is in plain sight!'
He looked around the alley again. There were very few people milling about in the early morning, and nobody seemed to be paying him any attention. He thought for a moment, and then sighed to himself. Before, he would have thought nothing of forcing his way into the shop and snatching it from the pillow, but he remembered that his rash actions had gotten him into serious trouble, and had gotten the people he cared about hurt. He knew that if it were one of Voldemort's horcruxes, it would have some sort of protections on it. Since he was still underage, he realized that it would be best to get Hermione's opinion before he tried to break into the shop.
He turned on his heel and quickly strode back to The Leaky Cauldron.
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As soon as the door closed, Hermione pulled the page from her pocket and scanned it intently.
Ron, who was busy wolfing down Harry's unfinished plate, but still wore a concerned look as he chewed, asked through a mouthful of sausage, "When are we going to tell him? What are we going to tell him?"
"Well, I can't tell him anything about this," said Hermione rather shortly, "Just yesterday, he accused me of being jealous of Ginny, and a few hours later I told him that I'm in love with him. What do you think he would think if I accused her of… of this?" She emphasized her point by waving the torn page in front of her, "He'd think I was trying to steal him away or something. He's not going to take very well to anything I tell him, being under its influence."
Ron thought about it as he shoved another fork full of eggs into his mouth. He sullenly nodded in agreement. It was up to him to tell Harry.
Hermione stood from the booth and handed the page to Ron, saying, "It's time I met my father, he's getting up right about now. I'll be back as soon as I can, but it will probably be sometime after nine when the banks open. Let Harry know." With that, she walked out of the door to the alley behind The Leaky Cauldron and apparated to St. Osyth.
Ron quickly finished his meal, and then asked Tom to use the floo so he could let his family know what happened and that they were okay. He had just made it back to the booth when Harry and Kotone entered the back door and hurried to the table.
Harry looked around and asked, "Where's Hermione?"
Ron took a sip of his tea and simply replied, "Gone."
A pang of panic flashed in his chest, "Gone! Where?"
Ron looked up into Harry's face, surprised by the intensity in his voice, "Relax, she went to talk to her father, like she said she was going to. She said she'll be back as soon as possible."
Harry visibly relaxed as he sat opposite from Ron. He tried not to look disturbed as Kotone once again pointed towards the back room. With a nod from Harry, she climbed off from him and scurried away. Once she was gone, Harry leaned forward and whispered to Ron, "I think I've found one."
"One what?"
"A horcrux."
Ron paled, "At the orphanage? I thought… you know who… went to a muggle orphanage."
Harry shook his head, and then glanced around at the slowly filling inn, "We'll talk about it after Hermione gets back."
A half hour passed before Kotone emerged from the storeroom, walking slowly with her head bowed. When she reached the table, she sat next to Harry, and immediately latched onto his arm, resting her head against him.
"How many this time?" Harry asked, hoping that he sounded calm. He knew he would have to get used to the little girl's disturbing dietary needs. When Kotone held up two fingers, he asked her "Is that enough?" to which she simply nodded.
Ron was about to ask what they were talking about when Kotone let out a dainty little burp, which, of course, sounded similar to one of Hagrid's best on a 'Three Broomsticks' night, and a small bone, that still had a bit of meat and sinew clinging to it, bounced across the table and landed in front of Ron. Ron just looked at it curiously while Harry turned green once more and quickly brushed it from the table.
Hermione stepped into the inn and walked up to the table carrying a large black briefcase. She sat down next to Ron and set the briefcase on the table.
"He agreed to let me take half of the trust out." She said with a hint of excitement, "The other half will be available to me on my birthday in September, when I turn eighteen."
Ron eyed the case and asked quietly, "So, how much is in there?"
"One hundred fifty," she said smiling, "that should tide us over nicely."
"One hundred and fifty Pounds?" asked Ron, "That doesn't sound like much."
Hermione rolled her eyes and whispered, "One hundred and fifty thousand Pounds, Ronald." She then looked to Harry, "Do you think Gringotts is open yet? We have to get some of this converted into Galleons and get to the bookstore and apothecary. We can leave the balance in your vault until we need it."
"Let's go," said Harry as he hefted Kotone into his arm, "We have something to tell you, too, but we need to find a more private place."
Ron helpfully carried Kotone's trunk as they made their way to Gringotts. After a short conversation, they decided to keep fifty thousand in muggle currency and exchange the rest into Galleons.
As soon as they walked through the doors at Gringotts, all of the goblins, who were busily preparing their stations for the newly started business day, suddenly fell silent. Ron and Hermione glanced at Harry, who now wore a very aggravated look. He stepped towards one of the tellers, who quickly closed his station, scrambled out of his booth, and rushed through a large door on the far side of the lobby while every other goblin sat silently and stared at him. Harry let out an irritated sigh and started towards the next teller station that housed a seemingly agitated goblin. Before he reached the teller, he saw the first goblin reappear through the doorway, following closely behind the manager that he had spoken to during his last ill-fated visit to the bank.
Harry stopped as the elder goblin hurriedly approached him. The manager halted a few paces away and nervously said, "Good morning, Mr. Potter, please accompany me to an office where we can discuss your business. He led them towards the door to the same office where the goblin had told him about Vernon's little 'withdrawal' from his vault.
Once inside, Harry tried to place Kotone into a chair, but she refused to release him, burying her face deeper into his shoulder. A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he admitted defeat and sat with her in one of the comfortable chairs by the table. Ron set Kotone's trunk on the floor and stood to Harry's left while Hermione, still clutching her briefcase, stood beside him on his right.
"Mr. Potter," the goblin began, "about what happened…"
"Look," interrupted Harry, "It doesn't matter what happened before, it wasn't your bank's fault. I'll deal with it on my own." He took the briefcase from Hermione's hands, set it on the table and opened it, "We'd like to exchange one hundred thousand muggle Pounds into Galleons."
Harry then thought that both Hermione and Ron should have access to the vault. He reached into his shirt, and then felt around his neck for a frantic moment. He looked up at Hermione, who was smiling at him while dangling the chain that held his key from her finger.
"You left it in your trunk. I thought you might need it."
Harry caught himself staring at her smiling lips. He recognized it as the exact same, impishly amused smile that she wore in the 'clamshell' dream, which caused his eyes to glass-over for a few moments before he realized what he was doing.
He hastily took the chain from her finger and addressed the goblin, "I'd like two copies of this made for my two friends here, if it's possible."
The manager gestured to the door with his finger, and a moment later, a goblin appeared. He nervously approached the table, retrieved the key and the briefcase, and then quickly retreated from the room.
They waited quietly for the goblin to return. Harry felt Kotone let out a growl of a yawn against his shoulder, which caused the manager to uncomfortably shift in his seat.
Noticing this, Hermione's eyes narrowed and she asked the manager, "Is there a problem with this girl being in your bank?"
The goblin seemed to tense up and he answered a little too quickly, "No, of course not! An elder is always welcome at Gringotts!"
Harry was about to ask what he meant about Kotone being an elder, but was distracted by the return of the goblin teller. He cautiously placed the briefcase on the table, along with the vault key and the two copies, all the while keeping his eyes on the little girl in Harry's arms. The manager opened the briefcase and made a mental accounting of the contents.
He closed the case, slid it across the table and said, "Here is the remainder, exactly fifty thousand muggle Pounds, the rest has been converted and has already been transferred to your vault. Of course, the usual five percent conversion fee has been waved, compliments of Gringotts."
"Oh, Merlin!" exclaimed Harry, realizing that his uncle still had access to that vault, "Is there any way to ensure that only the three of us can withdraw from that vault?"
If a goblin could pale, the manager sitting before him would have looked sheet white, judging from the expression on his face, "I'm afraid that your legal guardian still has rights to that vault, but only until you turn of age, when…"
"Hermione, do you have a vault here?" asked Harry, ignoring the manager who was obviously telling him what he already knew.
"Well, no, I've never needed one. My parents always came here to exchange muggle money for Galleons to buy my school supplies."
"Ron?" he asked, although he already knew the answer.
"Are you kidding, mate?" replied Ron with a slightly bitter laugh, "Me? A vault?"
He turned to the manager, "Are there any vaults available?"
"Yes, a few small ones," he answered cautiously, "there's a one hundred Galleon a year fee, and an adult would have to rent it." He then addressed Hermione, "Would you care to rent one?"
"Yes, in the name of Hermione Granger," Hermione answered, "with 2 duplicate keys, please."
"And transfer the gold from my vault to hers, as soon as you can," Harry immediately added, "and we would like to visit that vault now, if you please," Harry stated politely, causing the old goblin to leap from his seat and rush to the door, bidding them to follow.
When they emerged into the lobby, every goblin in the room seemed to tense up and stare at Harry, or more accurately, at who was in his arms. The few wizards that were conducting business there turned to see what all of the goblins were looking at.
A few rude comments directed at Harry were heard in the silence, the words 'coward' and 'gutless' prominent among them. As Harry crossed the lobby towards the entrance to the carts, one of the heckling wizards cast a tripping jinx at him, causing both Kotone and him to fall forward.
Before Harry hit the floor, no less than ten goblin guards, all armed with vicious-looking halberds, moved so quickly that they almost seemed to apparate around the offending wizard. Two very large ogres, dressed in full red armor and carrying huge silver scimitars came bursting from a pair of concealed alcoves on either side of the front door.
Harry picked himself up from the floor along with Kotone. By the time he was standing again, the wizard who cast the jinx was nowhere to be seen, and two menacing goblin guards stood beside each visibly discomfited wizard that remained in the lobby.
The trembling manager was stammering out apologies to the group, assuring them that the one who cast the spell would be dealt with severely. The manager suddenly went still and the room became eerily silent once again, save for a set of footsteps echoing throughout the lobby. Harry looked over to see a richly dressed, ancient-looking goblin approaching, being escorted by two of the largest goblin guards he had ever seen. He felt Kotone's hair and tail unwrap from his body and she loosened her arms from around him, indicating that she wanted to be set down.
As Harry lowered the little witch to the floor, he noticed the old goblin pause for a heartbeat before approaching the group and stopping a respectful distance away. "Mr. Potter, my name is Ragnok. On behalf of Gringotts Wizarding Bank, I would like to apologize to you and your friends for this most unfortunate incident. The offending wizard's assets have been seized, and the Ministry's Magical Law Enforcement Division has been notified that we will be taking punitive action against said wizard."
Harry looked at the old goblin incredulously, "You seized his assets over a tripping jinx?"
"Any spell is illegal inside of these walls," Ragnok stated simply, but Harry could tell that he wasn't getting the entire story.
"Aren't you going to turn him over to the Ministry?" asked Harry, concerned that the goblins might get into trouble for taking this very minor breach of the law into their own hands.
"The inside of this building falls under the goblin domain, the ministry has no power here. The wizard, a Mr. Farnsworth, will be tried under goblin law," answered Ragnok as he glanced at the large clock over the main doorway, then added, "The trial should be over right about now."
The old goblin turned to Kotone, and much to Harry's surprise, bowed deeply to her, something that he'd never heard of before. When she politely returned the bow, Ragnok spoke to her in an uncharacteristically respectful tone, "What is your name?"
Kotone unbuttoned her collar and folded it down away from her mouth, revealing her face and causing a collective gasp from the wizards and witches who were watching the interaction with interest.
"Oota Kotone, Ragnok-san," she replied with another polite bow. Her deep, gravelly voice echoed around the marble walls, causing another round of gasps from the stunned humans.
"Are you hurt, Mistress Kotone?"
Kotone shook her head, "No, Ragnok-san, I am fine."
Ragnok nodded approvingly and turned back to Harry, gave him a long, appraising look before he said, "Mr. Potter, I would like to make an appointment to speak with you sometime near the end of next week, after your birthday, concerning your account with us, and a few other matters."
Harry wasn't sure how to respond, because, while he certainly had an account, it was currently quite empty. Thinking that maybe he wanted to discuss the rent that was due for his empty vault, or maybe an offer to help him retrieve the money that was removed by his uncle, he agreed to owl the bank with a date.
Ragnok apologized again, and gave Kotone another polite bow, which she respectfully returned, before walking away with his two bodyguards.
Harry, seeing Kotone raise her arms to him again, smiled and lifted her from the floor. Once she settled into her familiar, comfortable position against his side, he started walking towards the entrance to the carts. After a few steps, he noticed that Ron hadn't moved. Looking back, he called, "Ron, are you coming?"
Ron was staring at Harry with his mouth agape. It took Hermione pulling him by the elbow to get him moving.
One harrowing cart ride later, which Kotone enjoyed immensely, they found themselves standing in front of Hermione's new vault. After the vault door was opened, Harry kindly asked the manager who escorted them for some privacy, which he readily agreed to as he handed each of them a key, stepped into the cart and said that he would be back in fifteen minutes.
Once the cart disappeared down the tracks, Harry turned to Hermione and excitedly said, "I think I've found a horcrux here in Diagon Alley, but I need you to look at it to be sure." When he saw her look to Kotone in alarm, he said, "She already knows. She heard you and Ron mention them at the inn. She has excellent hearing."
When Harry turned to Ron, he was just standing, his eyes moving between him and Kotone, "Ron, what's wrong?"
"Bloody Hell, Harry! Do you know who you were just talking to?" he said with a choked squeak in his voice.
"Well, yes… Hermione. She's standing right here."
"No, in the lobby! That was Ragnok!"
"Yes, I did catch his name," said Harry, wondering what he was getting at, "He's the bank's director, or something like that… What's the problem?"
Ron just stared at Harry incredulously while Hermione answered for him, "Ragnok is the leader of the largest goblin clan in the world. His clan controls all the Gringotts branches in Europe, and a good portion of Eurasia and North Africa. They are the single most powerful clan in the world, and Ragnok is the single most powerful goblin in that clan. Not even Ministers Fudge or Scrimgeour have been able to get an appointment to see him, and he just asked you for an appointment! I can't imagine why, though… He's sort of 'on the outs' with the wizard government right now, because he hasn't made a stand on which side of the war his clan will take."
Harry only heard half of what she was saying, having lost his train of thought by making the mistake of watching her lips as she spoke. Only when they stopped moving, except for a slight pull at the corners of her mouth, did he realize that he was staring at her. He quickly dropped his gaze and stammered, "Yes, well, I'll… I'll see him next week, but we still have to find out about this horcrux."
As soon as Harry looked away from her face, a knowing smile briefly crossed her lips before she asked, "What is it and what makes you think it's a horcrux?"
"Dumbledore told me that Voldemort would likely use places that represented important events in his life to hide his horcruxes. He used his mother's family home to hide the ring, the cave where he figured out that he was 'special' when he tortured the other orphans that he led there hid the locket, the fake locket. So I thought about how he would have felt when he found out that he was a wizard, and finally got his hands on his wand."
"That would certainly qualify as a major event in his life," said Hermione as she thought about what he was saying.
Harry continued, "Earlier today, Kotone showed me her memory of a 'vision,' I'd guess you'd call it, that I had when she was protecting me, although I don't remember having this 'vision' at all."
Hermione was listening intently, while Ron just looked a bit confused.
"In her memory, I was looking in Ollivander's shop through the boards, so when I was on my way back to the Cauldron from Haversham's, I looked in and I saw that wand Ollivander always kept in the front display window. It's been there as long as I've known about the place. When I looked closely at it, I noticed that it had birds engraved along the shaft, and near the handle, I thought I saw the letter 'R' etched there."
Hermione's eyes widened, "You don't think that's Ravenclaw's wand, do you?"
"That's why I wanted to talk with you. If it is, and if it really is a horcrux, it probably has some pretty nasty wards on it, and we'd have to break into the shop, which I'm sure is pretty well protected in the first place."
The sound of the returning cart put an end to the conversation for the time being. Hermione scooped several thousand Galleons into her enchanted moneybag, and then pulled out a few thousand Pounds from the case before stowing in the vault. She allowed the goblin manager to secure the vault before they made their way back to the surface in silence.
Once outside the bank, the group stopped in front of Ollivander's, where Hermione carefully studied the wand, but was reluctant to confirm that it was, in fact, the wand owned by Rowena Ravenclaw without a closer examination. The few detection spells she cast never even penetrated the window, but it might have been due to the security that Ollivander put on his shop and not the wards that Voldemort would place to guard a horcrux. They decided to just leave it there for the time being. If it actually was one of his horcruxes, it had been there all these years and probably wasn't being moved any time soon. At least they knew where it was.
The group spent the next hour, and over three thousand Galleons, collecting the books and supplies needed for Hermione to perform the Fidelis charm on Grimmauld Place. Of course, Harry was receiving disparaging looks from most of the people they encountered, so he decided just to browse separately while Ron and Hermione picked out and paid for the supplies.
Once everything was collected, Harry told Ron and Hermione apparate to Grimmauld Place with the supplies and Kotone's trunk before meeting him at the Ministry, while Harry would bring Kotone with him to the Ministry building, which was within a reasonable walking distance from The Leaky Cauldron. Naturally, Hermione immediately refused to leave Harry, who was still underage and would be for another week, without either Ron or herself accompanying him. After much convincing and repeated assurances that he would be careful, she reluctantly acquiesced.
Harry had been keeping an eye on Hermione all morning. Since the incident at Haversham's, a fire seemed to have been burning behind her eyes, a spark of something that he hadn't seen in her in years. She actually seemed driven, focused on something other than schoolwork, and unusually excited about what they were doing. She seemed truly… happy, happier than he'd seen her since their fifth year.
Harry left The Leaky Cauldron onto in Muggle London and westward along Charing Cross Road, with Kotone planted firmly on his side. They walked along quietly, but after about ten minutes, Kotone lifted her head from his shoulder and her ears, which were concealed within her hair until that time, perked up and swiveled behind them.
"Keep your ears hidden, little one," Harry whispered to her, "we're around the muggles."
"Shishi-kun, your Washi-chan follows." She whispered into his ear.
Harry smiled as he kept walking and whispered back to her, "I know."
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A/N: Translations and descriptions:
Jinmenju = These are mythical trees that are said to grow in deep, remote forests in Japan. The fruit that hangs from the tree appear to be human heads. The tree lures humans to it by making a mournful cry. When a person gets close to investigate, the tree steals its soul and the face of the person grows on one of the fruit.
Hakubo = Aunt, Older sister of a parent, in this case, Kotone's father's older sister.
Motoko is just a name, pronounced 'Motto-Ko.' (Actually, it's my sister's name, she wanted me to use it as Kotone's mother, but I'm just mean, so I made her the evil aunt. ^_^;)