Categories > Books > Harry Potter > The Roaring Snake
Shopping in Diagon Alley
0 reviewsHarry's shopping experience in Diagon Alley, and he runs into McGonagall, and a few other people.
1Ambiance
The Roaring Snake – 1
(Author's Note: I am taking a bit of artistic licence with regard to the wand cores – I seem to recollect JKR saying that it is only dragon heartstring, unicorn tail hair and phoenix feather that are used in Ollivander-made wands. Well, I am throwing that bit of canon out of the window. I am not going to make Harry's wand any different though – it is special enough as it is, and does not need to be any more special.
The chapter is more of a filler before the next chapter can be introduced. I needed to set the pieces in places.
As usual, all criticism is welcome.)
Shopping in Diagon Alley
(The story begins with Harry and Hagrid arriving in the Leaky Caludron.)
“Welcome back, Mr. Potter”, came another voice, echoing the same words the umpteenth time. Harry, who had never had a decent welcome in his living memory, was completely dumbfounded as he was mobbed by the hordes of wizards and witches in the pub. For a moment, Harry looked in serious danger of being stampeded by a herd of out-of-control people. However, a tall, stern looking witch had pushed her way through the crowd towards Harry, and raising her wand, set off a few bangs. Everyone backed away from Harry, and the witch spoke in her best classroom voice, “Mr. Potter is just back in the magical world. I hope you will not overwhelm the poor boy.” This had the desired effect, and most people backed away, although many were looking jealously at the professor who had Harry's undivided attention now. The tall witch seemed completely indifferent to the glares of the hoi-polloi – she placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and guided him deftly through the crowd. Once they were clear of milling crowd, she spoke, “Mr. Potter, I am Professor McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts. I will be helping you get your supplies today.”
“Professor McGonagall! I didn' know you'd be comin' today”, broke in a surprised Hagrid.
“I am bringing the muggle-borns shopping in Diagon Alley”, she returned in her clipped tones.”
“She's yer transfiguration teacher, Harry”, added Hagrid.
Harry bowed shyly, “Nice to meet you, ma'am.”
McGonagall surveyed Harry from behind her square glasses and was shocked by what she saw. Harry looked badly undernourished and weak, a few inches shorter than he should be. He certainly did not look his age. Minerva wondered if the muggles had even been feeding him properly. No – Harry's life with the muggles had definitely not been easy, Minerva concluded. She cursed herself for having allowed Dumbledore to put Harry with the muggles against her better judgement. Harry had suffered many privations and if she had any doubts, his clothes confirmed it. McGonagall had taken a quick look at Harry and had been astonished by the assortment of clothes Harry was wearing. His clothes had definitely not been designed for him. His jeans were patched in a couple of places and were three sizes too large for him, and his over-large shirt had faded from the original blue to an indeterminate hue somewhere between the lees of wine, and a heavenly azure. Deciding to confirm her suspicions, she spoke in her cool, grave voice, “Mr. Potter, surely you could have made yourself a little more presentable? Certainly Hagrid told you that you are a celebrity in our world?”
Harry flushed scarlet, while Hagrid broke in, “Those damned muggles kept him like this, Professor.”
Minerva's lips had gone white, and her grip on Harry's shoulder tightened. “We will have to remedy that, but for now ..”. She drew her wand and waved it casually. Harry's shirt, suddenly fit him, had returned to its former glory and his jeans looked brand new. Harry's mouth fell open as he noticed that his shoes too were now immaculate, and eyeing Harry critically, Minerva smiled, “That is better.”
She turned and gestured to a few other kids and, from the looks of it, their parents, to follow her. Once out of the Leaky Cauldron, she began the introductions, “Mr. Potter, this is Ms. Abbott”, she nodded to a blond girl with pig-tails, who smiled at Harry, as Minerva continued, “and Mrs. Abbott.” A plump middle-aged woman nodded amiably. “This is Mr. Finch-Fletchley.” The tall, curly-haired boy greeted Harry quietly. “Mrs. Finch-Fletchley.” The aristocratic woman bowed. “This is Ms. Brocklehurst”, the shy brown-haired girl looked up at Harry tentatively. “Finally, this is Mr. Brocklehurst”, introduced Professor McGonagall as the tall man spoke, “Nice to meet you Mr. Potter.”
“Good morning, Mr. Potter”, came a quiet, halting voice from behind. All the present spun backward as a tall and nervous looking young man appeared, “Quirinius”, said Minerva sharply, “I was not aware you would be in the Diagon Alley today.”
“I h-had t-to pick up some st-stuff”, he stuttered. He walked up to Prof. McGonagall, and whispered, “Don't you think it is best if we all hang together today, Minerva? You saw what happened when Harry got swamped by that crowd. No telling when another bunch will do it again.”
Minerva was not exactly pleased with the appearance of Quirrel, but his words made sense. No sense neglecting precautions for Harry. She agreed, and spoke, “Everyone, this is Prof. Quirrel – your Defence Against Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts.” There were many mumbled greetings at this, and Minerva continued, addressing the gathering, “I think we should first go to Gringotts and change your money into wizarding currency.” At Harry's questioning look, she answered, “Mr. Potter, your parents have set up a trust fund for you, so you need not worry about converting money. Let us go.”
It was a short walk of a few minutes to Gringotts, and they all followed Hagrid, Professors Quirrel and McGonagall to the bank. Harry had fallen back to speak with Finch-Fletchley, while the two girls were jabbering together.
The curly haired boy offered his hand, “Justin Finch-Fletchley”, He smiled at Harry rather impishly, “Quite a reception you got there.”
Harry looked bemused, “I wish I knew what they're all so excited about”, he muttered.
“You don't know why they mobbed you?”
“Well, I know what it's supposed to be, but I've really done nothing to deserve that.”
“What d'you mean?”
Harry gave an abbreviated version of his own history. Harry told him how he had grown up in the muggle world, and how precious little he knew of the magical world. Justin nodded sympathetically, “I understand. I'm muggle born myself – my mum's a professor of Physics, and dad's got his own wood-cutting factory. No one in my family is magic and I was actually set to go to Eton. Mum and dad were pleased to see that I had magical talent.”
Harry nodded, “Good. We can learn together, then”, he remarked, slightly mollified that he would not be the only one starting at scratch at Hogwarts.
The two boys got along very well, and soon they were swapping details of their life, when they reached Gringotts. Before they knew it, they were in the wizarding bank and being led by goblins. While Minerva was arranging for the muggles to convert their money, Hagrid and Professor Quirrel were talking together.
Hagrid spoke about taking Harry down to his vaults and also a task for Dumbledore. Quirrel interrupted haltingly, “Hagrid, why don't you go on and complete the task Dumbledore gave you? I will take Mr. Potter down to his vaults.”
“Suits me, Professor”, returned Hagrid.
Accompanied by a Gringotts goblin, Harry and Quirrel went down to his vaults. On the way, Quirrel questioned Harry about his relatives. Harry did not want to answer much – it was too embarrassing, but he did give out that his relatives did not like magic and had not told him anything about the magical world. It was not like he could have concealed that bit of knowledge – Harry's complete ignorance about the wizarding world gave away that. Then the talk turned to Professor Quirrel's subject. Quirrel smiled grimly, “Yes, Mr. Potter, I teach Defence Against the Dark Arts.” He looked at Harry contemplatively, and smiled, “You, in particular, will need it. You will do well to pay attention to the subject. Your very life depends on it.”
“What do you mean, Professor?”
Quirrel looked sharply at Harry, “Potter, do you remember nothing of the night the Dark Lord attacked your parents and you?”
Harry shook his head in mute ignorance, as Quirrel continued, “Mr. Potter, the Dark Lord chose to target you. You survived, while the Dark Lord was broken. This means you are a celebrity in our world. Celebrities usually have a lot of enemies.”
“But who would have a grudge against me?”
Quirrel looked as though he was debating whether to answer that question. He finally replied carefully, “Mr. Potter, while the Dark Lord may be gone, there are a number of his followers who were never caught and are still free today. Plenty of them were displeased with the disappearance of the Dark Lord – the will never forgive you what you did to the Dark Lord. Further, you are the famed vanquisher of the Dark Lord. This makes you a tempting target for every potential dark wizard. Defeating you – which is, by extension, killing you – would give your murderer a great deal of notoriety, which is what the dark wizards seek. But there are a whole lot of other people who would just love to show you up and prove you are unworthy of your fame. You will find things none too easy, I am afraid,”
Harry gulped, “So I am in danger in the wizarding world?”
Quirrel nodded grimly, “That would be a classic understatement. It would be a cruel deception to pretend otherwise.”
“Professor, is there anything I can start doing?”
Quirrel nodded thoughtfully, “You should begin preparing your defences against Dark Arts as soon as possible. You should have begun by now, but it is too late to change the past. I suggest you start with a few books on the theory of curses in particular and magical theory in general. I can suggest titles – get hold of them at Flourish and Blotts and start reading and preparing. Don't try casting any of the spells until you come to Hogwarts. The Ministry keeps an eye on underage practitioners of magic and you will be in trouble if you start practising spells in a muggle area.”
Harry nodded his thanks, but Quirrel waved them away. Harry reached his vault, and with Professor Quirrel's help, grabbed enough to last him a couple of terms. The two then rode the cart back with the Gringotts goblin to the surface.
When Harry reached the surface, Professor McGonagall was with the other muggles and the muggle-borns, along with Hagrid. However, there were six other people – or more accurately, three children of roughly Harry's own age and three adults – who were waiting,
Prof. McGonagall introduced the newcomers swiftly. A tall distinguished looking man dressed in expensive black trimmed silver robes was introduced as Emmanuel Goldstein1 – an enchanter of note, and his son – a middle sized, dark haired boy with a thoughtful expression – was introduced as Anthony Goldstein. The square jawed witch with greying hair and a monocle was introduced as Amelia Bones – the head of Magical Law Enforcement. Her niece, a small, round faced girl, was called Susan Bones. Finally, a small and slender lady with flashing blue eyes was introduced as Priscilla Greengrass – one of the top healers at St. Mungo. Her daughter, a slim girl with the same eyes, was Daphne Greengrass.
Harry had been completely thrown by the interest in him by the high and the mighty in the wizarding world and more than a little uncomfortable with the attention directed at him. The adults soon saw his discomfiture and let him be, but not so the children. Both Susan Bones and Anthony Goldstein had pounced on him – figuratively, that is – immediately. Poor Harry would have retreated completely into his shell, but the others would not let him. Harry was being bombarded with questions by both Anthony Goldstein and Susan Bones – after all, they had all grown up with the legend of the Boy-Who-Lived and now that the original was available in person, they were more than a little curious. Justin Finch-Fletchley had faded into the background now that the others had monopolised Harry's attention. Mandy Brocklehurst and Hannah Abbott were conversing quietly between themselves – they too were not very comfortable around the greatest of the wizarding world. Only Daphne Greengrass, however, held herself cool and aloof. She had greeted Harry with quiet courtesy, but from that time, she listened to the others question Harry, but had said little herself. The interrogation of Harry would have continued, but for the fact that they had arrived at the apothecary and needed to buy potion ingredients. The apothecary was interesting enough – the horrible smell was more than made up for by the variety of potion ingredients.
Harry spoke in an undertone to Anthony and Susan, “You must know a lot of magic already.”
Anthony shook his head, “Not really – I have read books, of course, but not performed much magic. Never had a wand before to do it.”
Harry looked at the boy in surprise, as Susan explained, “Harry, did you never wonder why we are not trained in magic earlier?” At Harry's negative gesture, she continued, “We are not old enough to control the magic before eleven. We can seriously injure ourselves if we try to do magic when we are too young.”
'Yes, that made sense', thought Harry. Harry was very interested in the magical world, and his curiosity overcame his reticence. But he remembered Justin had not known anything about the magical world either, being muggle-born. Harry had suffered enough through neglect of others and complete ignorance – he would make sure that others did not suffer the same fatal flaw if he could help it. By quietly involving Justin as well in the conversation, Harry had sent out the unspoken signal to the others that he would not leave the muggle-born boy to hang. That accomplished, he began sating his curiosity about the magical world. For a moment, he thought he found a look of approval in Daphne Greengrass's eyes – however, the next moment, the girl was her usual calm and reserved self. Even discounting Daphne's silence, both Anthony and Susan were more than happy to tell Harry and Justin about the magical world, and the four would converse together the entire morning.
In quick succession, the group bought the uniform robes, brass scales, telescope and cauldron, before going for the schoolbooks at Flourish and Blotts. Harry quietly asked Prof. McGonagall and Prof. Quirrel if any other books would be useful apart from the prescribed ones. He got an approving smile and a list of titles from the stern Transfiguration professor. Prof. Quirrel, however, disappeared and returned with three books. He gave them to Harry and told him that the books would be his birthday present. Poor Harry, who had never had a decent birthday before, was stammering his thanks incoherently before the pale professor had finished. After buying the books, they decided to go for their wands at Ollivander's. Everyone was excited as they entered the tiny shop. Harry wondered how so many people would be able to fit into the small place, but his concerns were unfounded. The walls of the shop shimmered for a moment, before enlarging into a much larger space which could easily accommodate the sixteen visitors. The eerie looking, misty eyed, old man had decided to allow the ladies first.
Susan Bones got a ten and a half inch wand of cedar and unicorn tail hair – one great for counter-curses, from the description of Ollivander. This apparently pleased Amelia Bones since she was looking particularly proud of her niece. Daphne Greengrass got a nine inch wand of maple and chimaera fur, with a propensity for healing spells. Mandy Brocklehurst got an eight and three quarter inch springy wand of birch and thunderbird feather – good all round with few weaknesses, Mr. Ollivander had described the wand as. Hannah Abbott, after some difficulty in finding a wand, got a well-balanced whippy eleven and a half inch wand of oak and phoenix feather, and Finch-Fletchley got a supple, yet powerful thirteen inch ironwood wand with a cockatrice feather for the core, while Anthony Goldstein got a swishy twelve inch wand of teak and griffin feather – specialised for enchantments, according to Ollivander. Harry who was the last to try, had to try a large number of wands and finally ended up with a wand of holly and phoenix feather – the brother wand of the Dark Lord, which drew a large number of gasps, especially from the adult wizards and witches. Lady Greengrass and Madam Bones were both looking in genuine astonishment at Harry for the first time – gone was the distant, professional look they had been sporting during the shopping.
By this time, it was mid afternoon, and Prof. McGonagall interjected, “Let us all have lunch. We can complete the shopping afterwards.”
Everyone agreed and they walked to Florean Fortescue's Parlour. Just as they were about to enter, a cold, drawling voice broke in over them, “Welcome back to the wizarding world, Mr. Potter”. Minerva spun round to check the source of the interruption, and barely bit back the curse that had automatically sprung to the tip of her tongue – for in the pale, sneering figure that had greeted Harry, she recognised the despised face of Lucius Malfoy.
---(End of the Chapter)---
(Author's Note: I am taking a bit of artistic licence with regard to the wand cores – I seem to recollect JKR saying that it is only dragon heartstring, unicorn tail hair and phoenix feather that are used in Ollivander-made wands. Well, I am throwing that bit of canon out of the window. I am not going to make Harry's wand any different though – it is special enough as it is, and does not need to be any more special.
The chapter is more of a filler before the next chapter can be introduced. I needed to set the pieces in places.
As usual, all criticism is welcome.)
Shopping in Diagon Alley
(The story begins with Harry and Hagrid arriving in the Leaky Caludron.)
“Welcome back, Mr. Potter”, came another voice, echoing the same words the umpteenth time. Harry, who had never had a decent welcome in his living memory, was completely dumbfounded as he was mobbed by the hordes of wizards and witches in the pub. For a moment, Harry looked in serious danger of being stampeded by a herd of out-of-control people. However, a tall, stern looking witch had pushed her way through the crowd towards Harry, and raising her wand, set off a few bangs. Everyone backed away from Harry, and the witch spoke in her best classroom voice, “Mr. Potter is just back in the magical world. I hope you will not overwhelm the poor boy.” This had the desired effect, and most people backed away, although many were looking jealously at the professor who had Harry's undivided attention now. The tall witch seemed completely indifferent to the glares of the hoi-polloi – she placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and guided him deftly through the crowd. Once they were clear of milling crowd, she spoke, “Mr. Potter, I am Professor McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts. I will be helping you get your supplies today.”
“Professor McGonagall! I didn' know you'd be comin' today”, broke in a surprised Hagrid.
“I am bringing the muggle-borns shopping in Diagon Alley”, she returned in her clipped tones.”
“She's yer transfiguration teacher, Harry”, added Hagrid.
Harry bowed shyly, “Nice to meet you, ma'am.”
McGonagall surveyed Harry from behind her square glasses and was shocked by what she saw. Harry looked badly undernourished and weak, a few inches shorter than he should be. He certainly did not look his age. Minerva wondered if the muggles had even been feeding him properly. No – Harry's life with the muggles had definitely not been easy, Minerva concluded. She cursed herself for having allowed Dumbledore to put Harry with the muggles against her better judgement. Harry had suffered many privations and if she had any doubts, his clothes confirmed it. McGonagall had taken a quick look at Harry and had been astonished by the assortment of clothes Harry was wearing. His clothes had definitely not been designed for him. His jeans were patched in a couple of places and were three sizes too large for him, and his over-large shirt had faded from the original blue to an indeterminate hue somewhere between the lees of wine, and a heavenly azure. Deciding to confirm her suspicions, she spoke in her cool, grave voice, “Mr. Potter, surely you could have made yourself a little more presentable? Certainly Hagrid told you that you are a celebrity in our world?”
Harry flushed scarlet, while Hagrid broke in, “Those damned muggles kept him like this, Professor.”
Minerva's lips had gone white, and her grip on Harry's shoulder tightened. “We will have to remedy that, but for now ..”. She drew her wand and waved it casually. Harry's shirt, suddenly fit him, had returned to its former glory and his jeans looked brand new. Harry's mouth fell open as he noticed that his shoes too were now immaculate, and eyeing Harry critically, Minerva smiled, “That is better.”
She turned and gestured to a few other kids and, from the looks of it, their parents, to follow her. Once out of the Leaky Cauldron, she began the introductions, “Mr. Potter, this is Ms. Abbott”, she nodded to a blond girl with pig-tails, who smiled at Harry, as Minerva continued, “and Mrs. Abbott.” A plump middle-aged woman nodded amiably. “This is Mr. Finch-Fletchley.” The tall, curly-haired boy greeted Harry quietly. “Mrs. Finch-Fletchley.” The aristocratic woman bowed. “This is Ms. Brocklehurst”, the shy brown-haired girl looked up at Harry tentatively. “Finally, this is Mr. Brocklehurst”, introduced Professor McGonagall as the tall man spoke, “Nice to meet you Mr. Potter.”
“Good morning, Mr. Potter”, came a quiet, halting voice from behind. All the present spun backward as a tall and nervous looking young man appeared, “Quirinius”, said Minerva sharply, “I was not aware you would be in the Diagon Alley today.”
“I h-had t-to pick up some st-stuff”, he stuttered. He walked up to Prof. McGonagall, and whispered, “Don't you think it is best if we all hang together today, Minerva? You saw what happened when Harry got swamped by that crowd. No telling when another bunch will do it again.”
Minerva was not exactly pleased with the appearance of Quirrel, but his words made sense. No sense neglecting precautions for Harry. She agreed, and spoke, “Everyone, this is Prof. Quirrel – your Defence Against Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts.” There were many mumbled greetings at this, and Minerva continued, addressing the gathering, “I think we should first go to Gringotts and change your money into wizarding currency.” At Harry's questioning look, she answered, “Mr. Potter, your parents have set up a trust fund for you, so you need not worry about converting money. Let us go.”
It was a short walk of a few minutes to Gringotts, and they all followed Hagrid, Professors Quirrel and McGonagall to the bank. Harry had fallen back to speak with Finch-Fletchley, while the two girls were jabbering together.
The curly haired boy offered his hand, “Justin Finch-Fletchley”, He smiled at Harry rather impishly, “Quite a reception you got there.”
Harry looked bemused, “I wish I knew what they're all so excited about”, he muttered.
“You don't know why they mobbed you?”
“Well, I know what it's supposed to be, but I've really done nothing to deserve that.”
“What d'you mean?”
Harry gave an abbreviated version of his own history. Harry told him how he had grown up in the muggle world, and how precious little he knew of the magical world. Justin nodded sympathetically, “I understand. I'm muggle born myself – my mum's a professor of Physics, and dad's got his own wood-cutting factory. No one in my family is magic and I was actually set to go to Eton. Mum and dad were pleased to see that I had magical talent.”
Harry nodded, “Good. We can learn together, then”, he remarked, slightly mollified that he would not be the only one starting at scratch at Hogwarts.
The two boys got along very well, and soon they were swapping details of their life, when they reached Gringotts. Before they knew it, they were in the wizarding bank and being led by goblins. While Minerva was arranging for the muggles to convert their money, Hagrid and Professor Quirrel were talking together.
Hagrid spoke about taking Harry down to his vaults and also a task for Dumbledore. Quirrel interrupted haltingly, “Hagrid, why don't you go on and complete the task Dumbledore gave you? I will take Mr. Potter down to his vaults.”
“Suits me, Professor”, returned Hagrid.
Accompanied by a Gringotts goblin, Harry and Quirrel went down to his vaults. On the way, Quirrel questioned Harry about his relatives. Harry did not want to answer much – it was too embarrassing, but he did give out that his relatives did not like magic and had not told him anything about the magical world. It was not like he could have concealed that bit of knowledge – Harry's complete ignorance about the wizarding world gave away that. Then the talk turned to Professor Quirrel's subject. Quirrel smiled grimly, “Yes, Mr. Potter, I teach Defence Against the Dark Arts.” He looked at Harry contemplatively, and smiled, “You, in particular, will need it. You will do well to pay attention to the subject. Your very life depends on it.”
“What do you mean, Professor?”
Quirrel looked sharply at Harry, “Potter, do you remember nothing of the night the Dark Lord attacked your parents and you?”
Harry shook his head in mute ignorance, as Quirrel continued, “Mr. Potter, the Dark Lord chose to target you. You survived, while the Dark Lord was broken. This means you are a celebrity in our world. Celebrities usually have a lot of enemies.”
“But who would have a grudge against me?”
Quirrel looked as though he was debating whether to answer that question. He finally replied carefully, “Mr. Potter, while the Dark Lord may be gone, there are a number of his followers who were never caught and are still free today. Plenty of them were displeased with the disappearance of the Dark Lord – the will never forgive you what you did to the Dark Lord. Further, you are the famed vanquisher of the Dark Lord. This makes you a tempting target for every potential dark wizard. Defeating you – which is, by extension, killing you – would give your murderer a great deal of notoriety, which is what the dark wizards seek. But there are a whole lot of other people who would just love to show you up and prove you are unworthy of your fame. You will find things none too easy, I am afraid,”
Harry gulped, “So I am in danger in the wizarding world?”
Quirrel nodded grimly, “That would be a classic understatement. It would be a cruel deception to pretend otherwise.”
“Professor, is there anything I can start doing?”
Quirrel nodded thoughtfully, “You should begin preparing your defences against Dark Arts as soon as possible. You should have begun by now, but it is too late to change the past. I suggest you start with a few books on the theory of curses in particular and magical theory in general. I can suggest titles – get hold of them at Flourish and Blotts and start reading and preparing. Don't try casting any of the spells until you come to Hogwarts. The Ministry keeps an eye on underage practitioners of magic and you will be in trouble if you start practising spells in a muggle area.”
Harry nodded his thanks, but Quirrel waved them away. Harry reached his vault, and with Professor Quirrel's help, grabbed enough to last him a couple of terms. The two then rode the cart back with the Gringotts goblin to the surface.
When Harry reached the surface, Professor McGonagall was with the other muggles and the muggle-borns, along with Hagrid. However, there were six other people – or more accurately, three children of roughly Harry's own age and three adults – who were waiting,
Prof. McGonagall introduced the newcomers swiftly. A tall distinguished looking man dressed in expensive black trimmed silver robes was introduced as Emmanuel Goldstein1 – an enchanter of note, and his son – a middle sized, dark haired boy with a thoughtful expression – was introduced as Anthony Goldstein. The square jawed witch with greying hair and a monocle was introduced as Amelia Bones – the head of Magical Law Enforcement. Her niece, a small, round faced girl, was called Susan Bones. Finally, a small and slender lady with flashing blue eyes was introduced as Priscilla Greengrass – one of the top healers at St. Mungo. Her daughter, a slim girl with the same eyes, was Daphne Greengrass.
Harry had been completely thrown by the interest in him by the high and the mighty in the wizarding world and more than a little uncomfortable with the attention directed at him. The adults soon saw his discomfiture and let him be, but not so the children. Both Susan Bones and Anthony Goldstein had pounced on him – figuratively, that is – immediately. Poor Harry would have retreated completely into his shell, but the others would not let him. Harry was being bombarded with questions by both Anthony Goldstein and Susan Bones – after all, they had all grown up with the legend of the Boy-Who-Lived and now that the original was available in person, they were more than a little curious. Justin Finch-Fletchley had faded into the background now that the others had monopolised Harry's attention. Mandy Brocklehurst and Hannah Abbott were conversing quietly between themselves – they too were not very comfortable around the greatest of the wizarding world. Only Daphne Greengrass, however, held herself cool and aloof. She had greeted Harry with quiet courtesy, but from that time, she listened to the others question Harry, but had said little herself. The interrogation of Harry would have continued, but for the fact that they had arrived at the apothecary and needed to buy potion ingredients. The apothecary was interesting enough – the horrible smell was more than made up for by the variety of potion ingredients.
Harry spoke in an undertone to Anthony and Susan, “You must know a lot of magic already.”
Anthony shook his head, “Not really – I have read books, of course, but not performed much magic. Never had a wand before to do it.”
Harry looked at the boy in surprise, as Susan explained, “Harry, did you never wonder why we are not trained in magic earlier?” At Harry's negative gesture, she continued, “We are not old enough to control the magic before eleven. We can seriously injure ourselves if we try to do magic when we are too young.”
'Yes, that made sense', thought Harry. Harry was very interested in the magical world, and his curiosity overcame his reticence. But he remembered Justin had not known anything about the magical world either, being muggle-born. Harry had suffered enough through neglect of others and complete ignorance – he would make sure that others did not suffer the same fatal flaw if he could help it. By quietly involving Justin as well in the conversation, Harry had sent out the unspoken signal to the others that he would not leave the muggle-born boy to hang. That accomplished, he began sating his curiosity about the magical world. For a moment, he thought he found a look of approval in Daphne Greengrass's eyes – however, the next moment, the girl was her usual calm and reserved self. Even discounting Daphne's silence, both Anthony and Susan were more than happy to tell Harry and Justin about the magical world, and the four would converse together the entire morning.
In quick succession, the group bought the uniform robes, brass scales, telescope and cauldron, before going for the schoolbooks at Flourish and Blotts. Harry quietly asked Prof. McGonagall and Prof. Quirrel if any other books would be useful apart from the prescribed ones. He got an approving smile and a list of titles from the stern Transfiguration professor. Prof. Quirrel, however, disappeared and returned with three books. He gave them to Harry and told him that the books would be his birthday present. Poor Harry, who had never had a decent birthday before, was stammering his thanks incoherently before the pale professor had finished. After buying the books, they decided to go for their wands at Ollivander's. Everyone was excited as they entered the tiny shop. Harry wondered how so many people would be able to fit into the small place, but his concerns were unfounded. The walls of the shop shimmered for a moment, before enlarging into a much larger space which could easily accommodate the sixteen visitors. The eerie looking, misty eyed, old man had decided to allow the ladies first.
Susan Bones got a ten and a half inch wand of cedar and unicorn tail hair – one great for counter-curses, from the description of Ollivander. This apparently pleased Amelia Bones since she was looking particularly proud of her niece. Daphne Greengrass got a nine inch wand of maple and chimaera fur, with a propensity for healing spells. Mandy Brocklehurst got an eight and three quarter inch springy wand of birch and thunderbird feather – good all round with few weaknesses, Mr. Ollivander had described the wand as. Hannah Abbott, after some difficulty in finding a wand, got a well-balanced whippy eleven and a half inch wand of oak and phoenix feather, and Finch-Fletchley got a supple, yet powerful thirteen inch ironwood wand with a cockatrice feather for the core, while Anthony Goldstein got a swishy twelve inch wand of teak and griffin feather – specialised for enchantments, according to Ollivander. Harry who was the last to try, had to try a large number of wands and finally ended up with a wand of holly and phoenix feather – the brother wand of the Dark Lord, which drew a large number of gasps, especially from the adult wizards and witches. Lady Greengrass and Madam Bones were both looking in genuine astonishment at Harry for the first time – gone was the distant, professional look they had been sporting during the shopping.
By this time, it was mid afternoon, and Prof. McGonagall interjected, “Let us all have lunch. We can complete the shopping afterwards.”
Everyone agreed and they walked to Florean Fortescue's Parlour. Just as they were about to enter, a cold, drawling voice broke in over them, “Welcome back to the wizarding world, Mr. Potter”. Minerva spun round to check the source of the interruption, and barely bit back the curse that had automatically sprung to the tip of her tongue – for in the pale, sneering figure that had greeted Harry, she recognised the despised face of Lucius Malfoy.
---(End of the Chapter)---
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