Thank you everyone who has read my humble story. For review shoutouts:
Corwalch: thanks for being the first review! The chapters will get longer, I'm just going through some stuff that gives me much less time to write.
DZ2: interesting concept. No one seems to ever pay attention to him, so you're right, no one knows what he knows. Harry might learn from him, but it would never be as serious as a mentor/apprentice relationship thing. J
Gandalfgris: don't worry, I'm not a huge slash fan either. Might put a poll up for pairings, though no harryxginny. It's been beaten to death long enough.
Once again, any criticism, good and bad, should be sent in as a review or to my inbox.
I do not own Harry or and other character created by J.K. Rowling, only my own humble creations belong to me.
And on that note, it's SHOWTIME!
In the early morning hours of August 1st, a lone figure could be seen walking away from a house on Privet Drive. If someone was looking, they might have seen a trunk rolling behind him, a cloak covering his form, and what looked like a stick in his right hand. Then again, who would be looking for someone on the street at nearly 3 in the morning?
Harry was not just taking a stroll for fun. He had to actually break out of his room, pick the lock to the closet to get his stuff, and then get out of the house, all without being heard. Not an easy task for most people, even with magic. Thankfully, Harry had learned much from Fred and George over the years, and sneaking around was one of them. Now the only problem was that he had no idea where he should go. Grimmauld Place was out, Dumbledore knew where that was. The Burrow wasn't an option either, as Mrs. Weasley would definitely alert Dumbledore. That left only one place where he could go, and that was the Leaky Cauldron. There was a chance he'd be recognized, but he could always pay people off.
Living quarters decided, Harry stopped near an alleyway near Magnolia Crescent and gathered his stuff together. Then, nice and slow, he stuck his wand out from the side of his body, into the street.
BOOM! Out of nowhere, a large purple triple-decker bus shot forward, killing its breaks in an effort to stop. Harry could see the various beds inside sliding forward and crashing into each other, some throwing their passengers forward into other beds. As the grumbling of the passengers quieted, a very tall lady walked to the entrance.
"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transportation for the witch or wizard on the go. My name is Samantha, and I'll be you're conductor this evening…Would you like some help?" Samantha asked, as Harry had been struggling with his trunk the entire time.
"Yes, please." said Harry, now exhausted by the effort. "I need to get to the Leaky Cauldron, as fast as possible. If you can do it in 10 minutes, I might be persuaded to throw in a nice tip" he said to the now hurrying witch, who hadn't had a tip in over a week.
"ERNIE, LEAKY CAULDRON, AND STEP ON IT!" Samantha hollered from the back of the bus. Ernie, obviously waiting to start driving again, stepped on the gas as the bus shot forward into the late night London traffic. Harry, having forgotten his last ride on the night bus, now remembered how much he had hated it. However, until he learned to apparate, he slowly realized that this might be his main form of transportation. As this horrific thought struck his mind, the bus once again ground to a halt, launching Harry right into the rather sizeable breasts of Samantha, sending them both to the floor.
Harry rather thought that, if he wasn't on a public bus, this would be almost enjoyable. However, he quickly made to move off of her, as he could tell it would not bode well for him if he pressed his luck. Samantha quickly stood up and brushed herself off, looking quite flustered at what had just happened. In a rather weak voice, she called out "The Leaky Cauldron, in just under ten minutes. Personal best for Ernie." She smiled weakly. Samantha then moved rather quickly to get the young customer's luggage off the bus, since he didn't appear to register the thought.
Once Harry had given her a (quite generous) tip, the bus sped off, going faster than normal to get away from the now embarrassed teenager. Shaking his head, so as to remove himself from his stupor, Harry entered the nearly empty bar.
He couldn't explain it, but he had a good feeling about tonight.
The years had not been kind to the Leaky Cauldron. Most of the bar was made of splintering wood, with the building's frame not faring much better. Harry observed minute holes in the wood, indicating that termites might be a problem here. Add that to the rotting stairwell and the state of the food, and one could easily see how far the once great bar had fallen. Harry felt bad that what was obviously once been an outstanding establishment had fallen into such a sorry state.
Tom, the barman and current owner, was nearly asleep at the bar, mindlessly polishing a glass. Upon hearing his door chime, however, he quickly roused himself. Whoever he expected, however, it was certainly not the great Harry Potter.
"Mr. Potter, what a pleasant surprise. I have not seen you in here in some time. Crossing through tonight are we?" asked the humbled barkeep.
Harry looked at the solitary barman. "Tom, what happened here? The last time i came through here, this place was fantastic! Now it looks almost like no one has stayed here in weeks."
"That is because n one HAS stayed here in weeks, Mr. Potter." Tom said, looking as if he'd rather not dwell on it. "Ever since You-Know-Who came back into the open once again, no one has wanted to be in here longer that they have to. i haven't sold a room in a long time, let alone drinks."
As he said this, he gestured to the bar. Harry was surprised to see a layer of dust on many of the bottles, and the tables surrounding it weren't much better. Harry supposed Tom had just lost the will to take care of the place, what with no one being around.
"Tom, i'm so sorry. i wish there was something i could do to help..."
At this, Tom actually blushed. "No need Mr. Potter, I couldn't possibly trouble you. Now, did you need something tonight, or should i open the Alley for you?"
He smiled. "Actually Tom, I was wondering whether you had any rooms available. I recently had a fight with my relatives, and it would seem that I need a temporary place of residence. Normally, I'd be staying with my godfather, but I need somewhere… private. So, do I have any luck tonight Tom?" Harry said with a wink.
Tom actually felt like he might have a heart attack. A celebrity actually WANTED to stay at his bar. Not just any celebrity, but Harry Potter himself! He couldn't believe his luck. "I'm sure I can find one for you Mr. Potter, just give me a moment." Tom quickly made a show of looking through his room list, making a show of looking for empty rooms, at which Harry smiled. "Well, there doesn't appear to be... Ah, here we are. Room one, the luxury suite, just became open. Now, now, Mr. Potter," Tom reprimanded as he saw Harry go to argue. "I will have nothing but the best for a favored customer. At no cost, of course."
Harry looked upon Tom, and he knew he would trust Tom for a long time to come. "Thank you Tom, although you know i will find a way to pay you back eventually. I will need to talk to you more tomorrow too, as I have much to do before school starts again. Oh, and by the way, please call me Harry."
"Of course, Mist….Harry. Just get yourself settled in for now. Have a good evening." replied Tom. He knew that having Harry as an ally might be a good thing, despite the rumors about him. He would wait until he knew more before he rendered judgement on the boy, but already he had a good feeling.
Albus Dumbledore was a man who was easily panicked. He had faced Grindelwald years ago with a confident demeanor. He had stood in Lord Voldemort's face with a smile. He had dealt with a school full of hormonal teenagers for many long years. It would take something quite important happening to even get Dumbledore to be mildly worried.
However, this night, Albus Dumbledore was in complete panic mode. At around three in the morning, several alarms had gone off in the headmaster's office. Having realized what the alarms were immediately, he rushed out of bed with little more on than his nightgown. Upon arriving in his office, the alarms were at fever pitch. These could mean only one thing, but he did not want to believe it. If these alarms were going off, that would mean that…
"MINERVA! SNAPE!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. Almost instantly, they were there, having come to see what was going on anyway. "Both of you, assemble the Order. I fear Harry might have been abducted. Snape, go to Voldemort, see if he has done this. Minerva, all members should be out looking for him anywhere that these people might take him." As they nodded their consent and left, Albus popped a lemon drop into his mouth, laced with a calming draught. He would find out what happened to Harry. After all, he needed him to influence others, and without him, his plans would be set back years. If he failed, then countless lives would have been wasted, and many more would be lost. His plans absolutely could not be allowed to fail
Yet, even through his calming draught, Albus Dumbledore had a bad feeling.
So, Harry appears to be causing quite a panic, doesn't he? At least he managed to find a place for awhile. :) don't forget to R&R, i'm always looking for good ideas!
