Harry! Ron! I want you ready and down here in five minutes!" Molly shouted from the bottom of the stairs, "We don't want to be late to meet Sirius!"
A loud rumble of movement from above her made Molly smile as she turned and made her way back to the kitchen where Jaya was busy cleaning up from that morning's breakfast,
"Are you sure you wouldn't like to come along, Jaya?" Molly asked; truth be told, Molly made a habit of always asking the little elf if she would like to join the Weasleys on their outings, but like always, Jaya declined.
"No, thank you, Miss Wheezy," Jay said with a smile as she turned away from the plate she had been washing to face Molly, "Someone has to keep watch in case the bad elf returns!"
Molly frowned at that; it had been a month since Harry and Ron had told them about Dobby's visit, and Molly had immediately flooed Sirius and Dumbledore to inform them that someone had managed to get through the wards that had been set up to specifically keep that from happening.
Sirius had at once decided to find out who the elf's owner was after questioning Harry and Ron about everything that Dobby had said; Dumbledore, however, had been more pragmatic and decided that the elf could hardly be dangerous as Dobby had risked his own safety to warn Harry about the supposed danger that was coming to Hogwarts this year.
A few days later, Dumbledore's view shifted when Sirius informed him and Molly that the only elf named Dobby that was registered belonged to Lucius Malfoy; Sirius had nearly marched on Malfoy Manor intending to beat Lucius to a bloody pulp until the Pureblood git told him what he had planned for his godson, only Dumbledore's reminder that such action would land Sirius back in Azkaban had stopped him from going through with his plan.
Instead, Dumbledore had decided that Hogwarts would need to be watched far more carefully than usual this year to ensure that whatever Lucius had planned would not be allowed to come to pass; Sirius, while not happy that they were basically adopting a 'wait and see' approach had acquiesced in the end, after a great deal of grumbling.
The sound of running feet coming down the stairs brought Molly back to the present, and she turned with a smile to see her children all dressed and ready to go do their school shopping; Harry had decided to take on a different look today and was therefore stunningly bright blue eyes and sporting vivid purple hair that was tied in a braid and hung down almost to his waist, which made Molly shake her head in exasperation.
"Harry dear, are you sure you want to go out like that? It seems quite…..bright."
"Aw, mum," Harry said with a grin, "That's the point! I think it looks good on me!"
"If you say so, dear," Molly replied as she glanced at the rest of her children to ensure they weren't forgetting anything.
"Aw, leave the boy alone, Molly dear," Arthur said with a smile as he finished reading the Daily Prophet and placed it on the table before rising to his feet, "Harry's always been a bit eccentric. You would be, too, if you could change your appearance at will!"
"I suppose," Molly grumbled, "Though I think he gets it from Dora more than anything else."
"Is she coming too?" Harry asked excitedly, almost bouncing in place at the thought of seeing his big sister; it had been nearly three months since he had actually seen her last, and Harry missed her a great deal.
"Unfortunately not," Molly said sadly, "I flooed Andromeda to ask, but she said that Dora and all the other trainees are on a training mission all week with Alastor Moody."
"Poor girl," Arthur said grimly before draining the last of his coffee.
"Oh, okay then…." Harry replied softly, his purple hair slowly retracting and turning a light blue as he stared at the floor,
"Now, none of that!" Molly replied quickly, kneeling so she could look at Harry directly, "You know how badly she wants to be an Auror and how hard it is to become one! I know you miss her, and I'm sure she misses you just as much, but right now, she has to focus on her training to achieve her dream. But I'm sure that once she's done, she'll be here in a flash to see her favorite little brother, so no sad faces, okay?"
"Okay, mum!" Harry replied with a bright smile, his hair returning to its original length and color and making Molly shake her head again as she rose back to her feet.
"Now, we have a lot of ground to cover if we're going to get everything that everyone needs for school, especially with it being Ginny's first year, so I want everyone on their best behavior, understand?" Molly finished her words with a glare aimed directly at Fred and George, who had the courtesy to look suitably wary of their mother's temper and quickly nodded that they understood.
After one last check to make sure that no one had forgotten anything, Molly handed each of her children a handful of Floo powder,
"Diagon Alley!" Ron shouted as he stepped into the fireplace; a moment later, he was gone in a brilliant burst of green flames.
"Harry dear, you next!" Molly said warmly as she gave a gentle shove to her son; Harry had Flooed enough times to not be worried and eagerly stepped forward into the fireplace, but as he threw the Floo powder to the ground, ash suddenly seemed to fall from the wall and hit him in the face making him cough and sputter.
D-dia-Diagon Al-alley!" Harry coughed before disappearing into a flash of green flame; the last thing Harry saw was his parents worried faces before they disappeared.
Instantly, Harry began to spin very fast; the roaring in his ears was deafening; he tried very hard to keep his eyes open, but whenever he traveled by Floo, the spinning green flames made him feel sick, and he quickly shut them to keep himself from puking while spinning, and causing some poor witch or wizard to have throw-up come barreling out of their fireplace and hit them by mistake.
Something smacked into his elbow very hard, causing him to yelp with pain and immediately tuck them into his sides as he kept spinning faster and faster; now it felt as though cold hands were slapping his face, and he opened his eyes just a tiny bit to squint and see what was happening.
Squinting through his glasses, he saw a blurred stream of fireplaces and snatched glimpses of the rooms beyond; his breakfast began to make itself known, and Harry was sure that soon if the spinning didn't stop, he would be emptying his stomach of it.
He closed his eyes again, wishing it would stop, and then he immediately fell face first onto cold stone and felt the bridge of his glasses snap; dizzy and bruised, covered in soot, Harry got gingerly to his feet while holding his broken glasses up to his eyes.
"Aw man, mum's gonna kill me!" Harry thought grimly as he took off his glasses for a moment and looked at them; they were broken in half, and he didn't know the spell to fix them, so with a huff, he put them back on his face and held them there with his hands as he took in his surroundings.
He was quite alone, but where he was, he had no idea; all he could tell was that he standing in the stone fireplace of what looked like a dimly lit wizard's shop, but nothing in here was ever likely to be on the Hogwarts school list.
A glass case nearby held a withered hand on a cushion, a blood-stained pack of playing cards, and a staring glass eye. Evil-looking masks stared down at him from the walls, and an assortment of human bones lay on the counter while rusty and blood-stained spiked instruments hung from the ceiling. Even worse, the dark, narrow street Harry could see through the dusty shop window was definitely not Diagon Alley.
"Mum is DEFINITELY going to kill me!" Harry thought as fear began to worm itself into him; he had always been taught that if he got lost, to stay put until someone found him, but the thought of staying in this horrid place was too bad to even consider. Yet, Harry had no idea what to do and shifted nervously.
The sooner he got out of here, the better. Nose still stinging where it had hit the hearth, Harry made his way swiftly and silently toward the door, but before he'd got halfway toward it, three people appeared on the other side of the glass—and one of them was the very last person Harry wanted to meet when he was lost, covered in soot, and wearing broken glasses: Lucius Malfoy.
Harry looked quickly around and spotted a large black cabinet to his left; he shot inside it and pulled the doors closed, leaving a small crack to peer through. Seconds later, a bell clanged, and Malfoy stepped into the shop.
Lucius crossed the shop, looking lazily at the items on display, rang a bell on the counter and was silent for several seconds while Harry watched from where he was hiding.
"Touch nothing," Lucius said in a cold voice as he turned to his children, "The last thing I need today is to be forced to take the two of you to St. Mungo's due to your own carelessness and then be forced to answer questions that I'd rather not."
"Yes, can't have that," Rhea sneered, "People might actually think that you cared about your children more than the Malfoy name. That'd be awful."
Lucius' lip curled at his daughter's comment, and he opened his mouth to respond when Draco cut him off, no doubt saving his sister from a lecture on manners.
"Why are we even here? I thought you said you would get me a present!"
Rhea rolled her eyes at her little brother's open greed and turned away to examine something as Lucius replied,
"I said that I would buy you a racing broom," Lucius replied in a bored voice as he drummed his fingers on the counter.
"What is the good in that if I'm not even on the house team?" Draco retorted, looking sulky and bad-tempered as he examined a shelf full of skulls.
"Perhaps you can try out for the team this year," Rhea replied, "Then you and Harry can play against one another."
"Harry?" Lucius asked with a sneer, seeing the naked hope in Draco's eyes as he looked at his sister, "I thought I told you both that you were to have no further association with Potter."
"Yes, you did say that," Rhea replied dismissively from where she was examining two blood-stained meat hooks, "I'll take it under advisement."
"Why can neither of you see how dangerous that boy is!" Lucius hissed with barely contained anger, "He's been filling both of your heads with things that no self-respecting Pureblood should even be considering! As the heirs of House Malfoy, I would have thought you'd both have more common sense regarding who you should consort with."
"That's your opinion!" Rhea retorted as she turned to face her father with a look of utter loathing on her face, "Mother and I are of a different opinion regarding Harry, and that is that Harry is a perfect gentleman, and if it were not for him, then the honor of House Malfoy would have been irreversibly when I was nearly defiled last year! If you cared at all about the honor of our house, then you would not be trying to keep me from consorting, as you put it, with the one who saved mine!"
Harry couldn't help but smile as he felt a blush run across his face at Rhea's words; Lucius, however, looked like he was barely controlling his temper at his daughter's continued defiance and opened his mouth to retort when a stooping man appeared behind the counter, smoothing his greasy black hair back from his face.
"Mr. Malfoy, what a pleasure to see you again," said Mr. Borgin in a voice as oily as his hair. "Delighted—and young Mistress and Master Malfoy, too—charmed. How may I be of assistance? I must show you, just in today, and very reasonably priced—"
"I'm not buying today, Mr. Borgin, but selling," Lucius said curtly, his lip curling with obvious disdain.
"Selling?" The smile faded slightly from Mr. Borgin's face.
"You have heard, of course, that the Ministry is conducting more raids," said Mr. Malfoy, taking a roll of parchment from his inside pocket and unraveling it for Mr. Borgin to read. "I have a few—ah—items at home that might embarrass me if the Ministry were to call…."
Mr. Borgin fixed a pair of pince-nez to his nose and looked down the list while Rhea rolled her eyes in derision at her father before going back to looking about the store.
"The Ministry wouldn't presume to trouble you, sir, surely?" Mr. Borgin asked in the same oily sycophantic voice as before.
Lucius' lip curled in distaste for a moment before he replied in a voice as cold as ice,
"I have yet to be visited. The name Malfoy still commands a certain respect, yet the Ministry grows ever more meddlesome. There are rumors about a new Muggle Protection Act—no doubt that flea-bitten, Muggle-loving fool Arthur Weasley is behind it—"
Harry felt a surge of anger run through him at Lucius' insult to Harry's father, and it was only through sheer strength of will that kept him from leaping from his hiding place and hexing the Malfoy Patriarch.
"Can I have that?" Draco interrupted, pointing at the withered hand on its cushion.
"Ah! The Hand of Glory!" Mr. Borgin said with a grin as he abandoned Lucius' list and scurried over to Draco, "Insert a candle, and it gives light only to the holder! Best friend of thieves and plunderers! Your son has fine taste, sir."
"I would hope my son will amount to more than a thief or plunderer, Mr. Borgin," Lucius replied coldly as Mr. Borgin began to profusely apologize,
"No offense meant, sir!"
"Though if his grades do not pick up," Lucius continued in an even colder voice, "That may indeed be all he is fit for…."
"I don't know how you can say that!" Rhea retorted coldly, "Draco was fifth in his year!"
"Yes," Lucius sneered, "Behind mudbloods and half-bloods. As heir to House Malfoy, I would have thought my son would prove himself to be better than such filth."
Harry felt another wave of anger shoot through him as Rhea glared at her father while Draco turned away and looked as though he were about to start crying; Rhea finally turned away from her father and placed a comforting arm around her brother before whispering something in his ear.
"It's the same all over," Mr. Borgin said as he made his way back behind the counter, "Wizard blood is counting for less everywhere."
"Not with me!" Lucius retorted angrily,
"Nor with me, sir," Mr. Borgin replied with a deep bow,
"In that case, perhaps we could return to my list," Lucius replied, "I am in something of a hurry, Mr. Borgin; I have other pressing matters to attend to today.
They started to haggle. Harry watched nervously as Rhea drew nearer and nearer to his hiding place, examining the objects for sale. Draco paused to examine a long coil of hangman's rope and to read the card propped on a magnificent necklace of opals, Caution: Do Not Touch. Cursed—Has Claimed the Lives of Nineteen Muggle Owners to Date.
So focused was he on Lucius and Mr. Borgin that Harry failed to notice Rhea stop directly in front of the cabinet that he was hiding in; as Rhea pulled open the door, she gasped in surprise as the light showed on Harry, who looked at her with fear.
"What happened?" Lucius demanded as he looked over at his daughter, who was thankfully blocking Harry from view.
"Nothing," Rhea replied as she stared down at Harry, "I stubbed my toe on something, is all,"
"Well, be more careful!" Lucius growled back,
"Indeed, Mistress Malfoy," Mr. Borgin added, "Some of my wares are incredibly valuable, and should you damage anything, I'm afraid your father will have to reimburse me."
Lucius sniffed contemptuously at the shop owner for a moment before the two returned to the list as Rhea continued to stare at Harry in surprise.
"What are you doing here?" Rhea whispered, a faint blush spreading across her face as she realized that Harry had heard what she said earlier regarding him,
"I got lost in the Floo and ended up here!" Harry whispered back, "Wherever here is!"
"You're in Knockturn Alley," Rhea whispered, "In Borgin and Burkes shop. Not a very nice place, as you can probably tell."
If Harry hadn't been so afraid, he'd have been overjoyed at finally gaining entrance to Knockturn Alley; he and the twins had been trying to sneak off here for years but always ended up getting caught before they managed to.
"How do I get back to Diagon Alley?" Harry asked in desperation, "Please help me!"
Rhea quickly turned back to her father, who seemed to be settling her business with Mr. Borgin,
"When we leave, wait a few moments and then exit the shop," Rhea said softly, "I'll be waiting for you outside, okay?"
"Okay," Harry replied gratefully before Rhea shut the door to the cabinet and moved on to examine something else.
"Done," Lucius said at the counter before turning to his children, "Come, Rhea, Draco, we're leaving."
As Draco and Rhea left the shop, Lucius turned back to the store owner one last time,
"Good day to you, Mr. Borgin. I'll expect you at the Manor tomorrow to pick up the goods."
With a final sniff of contempt, Lucius exited the shop, closing the door behind him; the moment the door had closed, Mr. Borgin dropped his oily manner and spoke in a voice that was riddled with contempt and anger.
"Good day yourself, Mr. Malfoy, and if the stories are true, you haven't sold me half of what's hidden in your manor…."
Muttering darkly, Mr. Borgin disappeared into a back room; Harry waited a minute or two as Rhea had told him to; in case Mr. Borgin decided to come back, he quietly slipped out of the cabinet, past the glass cases, and out of the shop.
Clutching his broken glasses to his face, Harry stared around. He had emerged into a dingy alleyway that seemed to be made up entirely of shops devoted to the Dark Arts. The one he'd just left, Borgin and Burkes, looked like the largest, but opposite was a nasty window display of shrunken heads, and two doors down, a large cage was alive with gigantic black spiders. Two shabby-looking wizards were watching him from the shadow of a doorway, muttering to each other. Feeling jumpy, Harry set off, trying to hold his glasses on straight and hoping against hope he'd be able to find a way out of here. Where was Rhea? Had she left him here?
"Not lost, are you, my dear?" A voice said in his ear, making him jump and spin quickly around, his hair turning white instantly.
"An aged witch stood in front of him, holding a tray of what looked horribly like whole human fingernails; as she watched his hair change color, she leered at him, showing mossy teeth as Harry backed away.
"No, I'm fine!" Harry replied quickly,
"A metamorphmagus, them's rare…." A cold voice said from behind Harry, making him spin around again, only to see that a dark-skinned wizard had closed off Harry's means of escape,
"Rare and valuable…." The dark-skinned wizard added, licking his lips in a way that made Harry instantly afraid.
"He's fine, thank you very much!" Rhea shouted as she strode down the alley towards Harry, making the witch and wizard both jump in sudden fright; the tray of fingernails cascaded to the ground causing the witch to begin muttering darkly as Rhea grabbed Harry's hand and began to pull him away.
"Now, hold on just a moment," the dark-skinned wizard replied angrily, "We found him! He belongs to us!"
"He belongs to me!" Rhea retorted angrily, causing Harry to flush in embarrassment, "Unless you'd like to explain to my father, Lucius Malfoy, that you tried to steal something that belongs to House Malfoy!"
Instantly, the witch and wizard shared a scared look at one another before the witch turned and fled down the alley and out of sight,
"My apologies, Mistress Malfoy," the wizard said in an oily voice, "Perhaps you had better keep your pet on a tighter leash. After all, you don't want something bad to happen to it."
Before Rhea could respond, the wizard turned and stalked away, muttering under his breath as Rhea stared after him contemptuously.
"Come on, let's get you out of here," Rhea said softly as she began pulling Harry down the alley,
"Thank you, Rhea," Harry said quickly, "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up."
"I do," Rhea replied darkly, "And believe me, you don't want to find out…."
"Um….Rhea?" Harry asked meekly, "What did you mean when you said that I belonged to you?"
Rhea instantly turned crimson, and it was a moment before she responded,
"Metamorphmagus are viewed as little better than animals by some people," Rhea said softly, "They're incredibly valuable and are highly prized as…..as courtesans in some circles. If I hadn't claimed you, it might have been far more difficult for us to safely get out of there. But you needn't worry; I meant nothing by it, I was just trying to keep the others from trying to steal you from me, and the Malfoy name carries a lot of weight in Knockturn Alley."
"Oh….well, thank you," Harry replied with a smile that seemed to make Rhea blush more, "So, what's a courtesan?"
If there was any color left in Rhea's face, it instantly turned red, and Harry nearly ran into her as she suddenly stopped and took a deep breath to regain control of herself.
"I sometimes forget how young you are, Harry," Rhea said simply as she shook her head, "You should ask your parents that question when you are older, much older."
"Okay," Harry replied with a grin as Rhea began to pull him again; after a few more minutes, the darkness of Knockturn Alley began to lift, and Harry smiled happily as he saw they had exited the alley and were standing in front of Gringotts Bank.
"Were you traveling with your family?" Rhea asked, finally letting go of Harry's hand and turning to face him,
"Yeah, though I don't know where they are," Harry replied, looking around as though hoping they would appear.
"Well, let's go find them then, shall we?"
"You don't have to," Harry mumbled, "You've already done so much for me, already…."
"Nonsense!" Rhea said with a smile, "It would not do to leave you here all alone after all the work I've already done to keep you safe. Come alone, then. Let's go find your family."
As they strolled down the street, Rhea and Harry began to discuss how their summers had gone; when Harry mentioned Dobby, Rhea's eyebrows seemed to shoot into her hairline, and she was silent in thought for several moments.
"Dobby has always been a strange elf, but to think he would disobey my father to come and warn you…."
"You won't hurt him, will you?" Harry asked, suddenly nervous that he might have said too much.
"Of course not!" Rhea replied, "While I may share my father's name, I am not him, understand?"
"Yeah, thank you," Harry replied as relief swept through him,
"Though I am curious as to what my father has planned," Rhea said softly, "I will ask Dobby personally when I return home."
Before Harry could say anything more, a voice calling his name suddenly caught his attention,
"HARRY! HARRY! OVER HERE!"
Harry looked up and saw Hermione racing toward him, her bushy brown hair flying behind her as she ran to him. A moment later, Harry's ribs were crushed as Hermione hugged her friend for all she was worth while Rhea watched with a strange expression.
"We've been looking EVERYWHERE for you!" Hermione said when she finally released Harry,
"We?" Harry asked in confusion; before Hermione could respond, another voice called out his name, causing Harry and Hermione to spin around.
Ron, Fred, George, Percy, and Mr. Weasley were sprinting up the street.
"Harry," Arthur panted as he hugged his son tight, "We hoped you'd only gone one grate too far! Molly's frantic! She's coming now!"
"Where did you come out?" Ron asked,
"Knockturn Alley," Harry said grimly,
"Excellent!" Fred and George said together, "What was it like?"
"Dangerous…" Harry replied simply, causing the Weasleys to look at one another for a moment.
Molly came galloping into view, her handbag swinging wildly in one hand, Ginny's hand clasped in the other.
"Oh, Harry!" Molly cried as she wrapped him in her embrace, "Oh, my dear! You could have been anywhere! Sirius almost went mad when we told him we lost you!"
"Where is Sirius?" Harry asked when Molly let him go,
"Right here, pup!" Sirius replied as he suddenly appeared behind the group, making them collectively jump, "Where the bloody hell were you!"
"Sirius! Language!" Molly scolded as she began to clean Harry of the soot that had coated his clothes.
"I landed in Knockturn Alley and got lost," Harry said softly, "Rhea found me and helped me back to Diagon Alley."
"And just what was SHE doing there?" Sirius asked as he turned to Rhea, as though just noticing that she was there; as Harry opened his mouth to respond, Rhea cut him off."
"SHE can answer for herself, Harry. And as to what I was doing there, my father dragged me with him and my little brother to Borgin and Burkes."
"Did Lucius buy anything?" Arthur asked, turning to Harry,
"I don't know," Harry lied, casting a glimpse at Rhea, who shot him a grateful look, "I was hiding when they came in. Rhea found me and told me to wait until her father left, and then she would take me back to Diagon Alley."
"Hmm," Arthur said softly, "Pity, I'd love to get something on Lucius Malfoy!"
"Arthur!" Molly scolded, nodding her head at Rhea, who was staring at Arthur with a raised eyebrow.
"My apologies, Ms. Malfoy," Arthur said as he turned red with embarrassment while Molly took out her wand and fixed Harry's glasses.
"No need, Mr. Weasley," Rhea replied, "I am not overly fond of my father. As you may imagine, he is not the best quality when it comes to fathers."
"Thank you so much for keeping my boy safe!" Molly said as she gave Rhea a hug in gratitude; Rhea's eyes widened in shock, and her face turned red with embarrassment.
When Molly finally let the poor girl go, Rhea was bright red and seemed unable to find her voice for a few moments.
"That's….um…. you're welcome, ma'am." Rhea stuttered, "Um…if you'll excuse me, I have to go. I told my family that I would meet them after I was done with my own business."
"Bye, Rhea," Harry said with a smile as he gave Rhea another quick hug, "See you at Hogwarts!"
"Yes…. Hogwarts…." Rhea stuttered, blushing again for some reason that Harry couldn't understand, "Good day, Harry."
Without another word, Rhea spun on her heel and strode toward Gringotts Bank, disappearing inside a moment later.
"Man, she's got it bad," Sirius said with a smile,
"Got what bad?" Harry asked, "Is she sick?"
"You could say that," Sirius said, causing Arthur, Fred, George, and Percy to share a laugh as though they were in on some inside joke.
"Someone want to tell me just what the heck you're all talking about?" Harry asked, which caused the group to laugh harder, all except Molly, who watched with distaste,
"You'll find out when you're older," Molly said simply, "You're far too young to learn about such things."
"Yeah, ickle Harrykins," Fred said as he pinched Harry's cheek, laughing as Harry swatted at his hand, "You'll learn all about that when you're older and wiser."
"Like your big brothers," George added with a wink,
"You two? Wise?" Harry snorted, "Since when?"
"He's got you there," Percy said with a grin,
"Shut up, Percy!" Fred growled, which caused the group to laugh again.
"Come along, then," Sirius said with a smile, "We need to head to Gringotts first and get some gold before we go shopping.
"I'd still love to get Lucius on something, anything!" Arthur said with a wolfish grin,
"You be careful, Arthur," said Mrs. Weasley sharply as they were bowed into the bank by a goblin at the door. "That family's trouble. Don't go biting off more than you can chew—"
"They're not all trouble, mum," Harry retorted, "Draco and Rhea aren't nearly as bad as their dad!"
Ron snorted at that, causing Harry to glare at him for a moment as Molly and Arthur continued arguing.
"So you don't think I'm a match for Lucius Malfoy?" said Arthur indignantly, but he was distracted almost at once by the sight of Hermione's parents, who were standing nervously at the counter that ran all along the great marble hall, waiting for Hermione to introduce them.
"But you're Muggles!" said Arthur in delight. "We must have a drink! What's that you've got there? Oh, you're changing Muggle money. Molly, look!" He pointed excitedly at the ten-pound notes in Mr. Granger's hand.
"Meet you back here," Ron said to Hermione as the Weasleys and Harry were led off to their underground vaults by another Gringotts goblin.
The vaults were reached by means of small, goblin-driven carts that sped along miniature train tracks through the bank's underground tunnels. Harry enjoyed the breakneck journey down to the Weasleys' vault far more than Molly, who seemed to turn green when they finally stopped.
Thanks to the stipend that the Weasleys had received over the years, as well as the generous donations that Sirius had made to their vault over the years, the Weasleys had a generous amount of gold in their vault, though not nearly as much as Harry did in his, which made him feel guilty as he quickly tried to shove the money into his pouch.
Back outside on the marble steps, they all separated. Percy muttered vaguely about needing a new quill. Fred and George had spotted their friend from Hogwarts, Lee Jordan. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were going to the nearby robe shop. Mr. Weasley insisted on taking the Grangers off to the Leaky Cauldron for a drink, and Sirius asked if he could join them.
"We'll all meet at Flourish and Blotts in an hour to buy your schoolbooks," said Mrs. Weasley, setting off with Ginny. "And not one step down Knockturn Alley!" she shouted at the twins' retreating backs.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione strolled off along the winding, cobbled street. The bag of gold, silver, and bronze jangling cheerfully in Harry's pocket was clamoring to be spent, so he bought three large strawberry-and-peanut-butter ice creams, which they slurped happily as they wandered up the alley, examining the fascinating shop windows. Ron gazed longingly at a complete set of Chudley Cannon robes in the windows of Quality Quidditch Supplies until Hermione dragged them off to buy ink and parchment next door. In Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop, they met Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, who were stocking up on Dr. Filibuster's Fabulous Wet-Start, No-Heat Fireworks, and in a tiny junk shop full of broken wands, lopsided brass scales, and old cloaks covered in potion stains they found Percy, deeply immersed in a small and deeply boring book called Prefects Who Gained Power.
"A study of Hogwarts prefects and their later careers," Ron read aloud off the back cover. "That sounds fascinating…."
"Go away," Percy snapped,
"Must you always be so mean to him?" Hermione asked as they wound their way through the shop,
"Course," Ron said with a grin, "Can't let him get TOO big of a head, after all."
"He's very ambitious," Harry said with a grin, "Been that way since he was a kid,"
"He's got it all planned out," Ron added as they exited the shop, "Wants to be Minister of Magic someday."
An hour later, they headed for Flourish and Blotts. They were by no means the only ones making their way to the bookshop. As they approached it, they saw, to their surprise, a large crowd jostling outside the doors, trying to get in. The reason for this was proclaimed by a large banner stretched across the upper windows:
GILDEROY LOCKHEART
Will be signing copies of his autobiography
"Magical Me"
Today from 12:30-4:30.
"We can actually meet him!" Hermione squealed, "I mean, he's written the whole booklist!"
The crowd was made up mostly of witches around Mrs. Weasley's age. A harassed-looking wizard stood at the door, saying, "Calmly, please, ladies… Don't push, there… mind the books, now…"
Harry, Ron, and Hermione squeezed inside. A long line wound right to the back of the shop, where Gilderoy Lockhart was signing his books. They each grabbed a copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2, and sneaked up the line to where the rest of the Weasleys were standing with Mr. and Mrs. Granger.
"Oh, there you are, good," said Molly. She sounded breathless and kept patting her hair. "We'll be able to see him in a minute…."
Gilderoy Lockhart came slowly into view, seated at a table surrounded by large pictures of his own face, all winking and flashing dazzlingly white teeth at the crowd. The real Lockhart was wearing robes of forget-me-not blue that exactly matched his eyes; his pointed wizard's hat was set at a jaunty angle on his wavy hair.
"What a git," Sirius sneered, causing a few nearby witches to glare at him, which seemed to amuse Sirius more.
A short, irritable-looking man was dancing around, taking photographs with a large black camera that emitted puffs of purple smoke with every blinding flash.
"Out of the way, there," he snarled at Ron, moving back to get a better shot. "This is for the Daily Prophet,"
"Big deal!" Ron growled as he rubbed his foot where the photographer had stepped on it.
Gilderoy Lockhart heard him. He looked up. He saw Ron, and then he saw Harry. He stared. Then he leaped to his feet and positively shouted, "It can't be Harry Potter?"
"Weasley!" Harry shouted on instinct before he realized it; years of correcting people had made it almost natural for Harry at this point.
The crowd parted, whispering excitedly; Lockhart dived forward, seized Harry's arm, and pulled him to the front. The crowd burst into applause. Harry's face burned as Lockhart shook his hand for the photographer, who was clicking away madly, wafting thick smoke over the Weasleys.
"Nice big smile, Harry," said Lockhart through his own gleaming teeth. "Together, you and I are worth the front page."
"Nope! Not happening!" Sirius yelled as he barreled past people until he stood in front of Harry and Lockheart, "Let my godson go. Now!"
Immediately, Lockheart released his hold on Harry and backed away as Sirius turned to the photographer,
"And you! If I see so much as a single photo of Harry in the Daily Prophet, I'll sue you into oblivion! Are we clear!"
"But…. surely you wouldn't object to Harry getting a little exposure. He's already used to it, after all, being the Boy-Who-Lived," Lockheart said as he flashed his damnable smile at Sirius, who glared back while the photographer paled significantly.
"He is a child!" Sirius growled back, "And unlike some jackasses, Harry doesn't flaunt his fame since the only reason he's famous is that he survived while his parents are dead!"
The crowd seemed to go dead silent at that, and Sirius grabbed Harry's arm and roughly pushed people aside as they extricated themselves from the throng who were still in line to meet Lockhart.
"Thanks, Sirius," Harry said softly once they had escaped the mob and were standing at the back of the store; a moment later, the rest of the Weasleys joined them as Sirius shook his head in annoyance.
"You don't need to thank me, Harry," Sirius growled back, "That jackass had no right to pull that! He's lucky I didn't curse his ponce arse!"
"Language!" Molly said as she swatted Sirius' shoulder, "There are children present!"
Sirius' lip curled, and he opened his mouth to reply when a cold voice behind him cut him off.
"It would seem that one cannot even go into a bookstore without the smell of poverty and filth afflicting them. Pity, Diagon Alley used to be such a pleasant place."
Spinning around, Sirius felt his temper rise when he came face to face with Lucius Malfoy, who stood in the doorway sneering at Sirius and his group.
"I thought I caught the whiff of arrogance and an excessive amount of hair gel," Sirius said with a grin, which seemed to grow as Lucius turned crimson with anger, "How you doing, Lucy?"
"DON'T call me that!" Lucius growled, which only seemed to make Sirius' smile grow,
"What's the matter, Lucy?" Sirius asked, "You used to love that nickname when we were kids, don't you remember?"
Rather than reply, Lucius turned his attention to Sirius' group, his lip curling as he took in the number of red-heads that stood before him.
"Well, well, well, Arthur Weasley," Lucius sneered,
"Lucius," Arthur said, nodding coldly,
"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," Lucius said, "All those extra raids….. I hope they're paying you overtime?"
As Lucius' gaze swept over the cheap-looking clothes that the Weasleys were wearing, his lip curled in distaste,
"Obviously not, apparently," Lucius sneered, "Dear me, what's the point of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you for it?"
The Weasleys seemed to all flush dark red with anger as one collective unit, and the twins took a step forward, only to stop as Arthur raised his hand at them.
"We have a very different opinion of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy," Arthur retorted angrily.
"Clearly…" Lucius sneered back as his pale eyes strayed to Mr. and Mrs. Granger, who were watching apprehensively, "The company you keep, Weasley…. And I thought your family could sink no lower!"
There was a thud of metal as Ginny's cauldron went flying; Arthur had thrown himself at Lucius, knocking him backward into a bookshelf. Dozens of heavy spell books came thundering down on all their heads; there was a yell of, "Get him, Dad!" from Fred or George; Molly was shrieking, "No, Arthur, no!" The crowd stampeded backward, knocking more shelves over; "Gentlemen, please, please!" cried the assistant.
Then, louder than anyone else came Sirius' voice,
"Break it up! Break it up, there!"
In an instant, Sirius had pulled Lucius and Arthur apart while trying not to laugh simultaneously; Arthur had a busted lip, while Lucius had a black eye from being hit in the face with an Encyclopedia of Toadstools. As Lucius pulled himself from Sirius' grip, he bent down and picked up one of the books that had fallen from Ginny's cauldron before thrusting it back at her with malice.
"Here, girl, take the book! It is the best your father can give you, after all!"
Without another word, Lucius turned on his heel and swept from the store, his robes billowing behind him.
"Not saying he didn't deserve it, Arthur," Sirius said with a smile as he smacked Arthur on the back, "But you should have ignored him. It's just hot air from a buffoon."
"He insulted my family!" Arthur retorted, "He's lucky I didn't hex him!"
"Come on," Sirius laughed, "Let's get out of here before we cause any more trouble,"
The assistant looked as though he wanted to stop them from leaving, but Sirius gave one of his patented glares, and the assistant seemed to think better of it. They hurried up the street, the Grangers shaking with fright and Molly beside herself with fury.
"A fine example to set for your children! Brawling in public like some common thug! What Gilderoy Lockheart must've thought, I can only imagine!"
"He was pleased," said Fred. "Didn't you hear him as we were leaving? He was asking that bloke from the Daily Prophet if he'd be able to work the fight into his report, said it was all publicity."
But it was a subdued group that headed back to the fireside in the Leaky Cauldron, where Harry, the Weasleys, Sirius, and all their shopping would be traveling back to the Burrow using Floo powder. They said goodbye to the Grangers, who were leaving the pub for the Muggle street on the other side; Arthur started to ask them how bus stops worked but stopped quickly at the look on Molly's face.
"Try not to get lost this time, pup," Sirius said with a laugh as he rubbed Harry's hair gently, causing Harry to stick his tongue out at him as he pushed Sirius' hand away.
"Let's just get this over with," Harry said grimly as he stepped into the fireplace.