Here is the second chapter already, just because I had the time to write. I hope to soon get into Hogwarts where there will be more action. Thank you for the reviews from the first chapter.


DIAGON ALLEY.

The arrival of the Hogwarts letter had put Harry in a good mood, which seemed to make the Dursley's a little confused.
For the past week Harry had been given a few strange looks by his aunt, which he'd been answering with innocent eyes. He could almost guess at the thought that must be going through her mind, was Harry perhaps not a wizard after all.

It was two days left before his birthday and Harry was sneaking out of the Dursley's house early in the morning, hopefully for the last time this year.
He'd left a nice little note explaining where he was going and what he'd do if they told anyone that he'd left without their permission. How he wished he could be there when they found it, the threat of telling the neighbours what a freak he really was, was sure to be incentive enough for them to keep quiet.
He'd managed to scrape together enough money for a London trip by making small trips into his aunts and uncles wallets during the week, as to not arouse suspicion.
Keeping a good lookout for any more interfering adults this time, he was happy to note that none seemed present this early on a Sunday morning. He managed to travel the whole way into London without too many inquiring glances his way.

Harry had decided to wear his school shorts as they actually fit and one of his smallest Dudley's castoff t-shirts. No point in attracting more attention to himself by wearing the hideous clothes he usually wore.
He pulled his light blue school cap down, as much as he could, took a deep breath and then entered the Leaky Cauldron.
Blinking his eyes, to adjust to the dimness of the pub, he wasn't too surprised at finding the room all but empty. It was a Sunday after all and not even nine in the morning.
"Morning there young lad, what can I do for you?" Tom asked, after wiping one of the tables clean.

"Good morning sir, I was wondering if you could open the passageway into Diagon Alley for me please." Harry asked, getting a smile in reply.

"Sure can laddie, are you shopping on your own today then?" Tom asked, making Harry roll his eyes under the cap.

"Yes sir, my aunt said that I was old enough for it now." Harry answered cheerfully, as the barkeeper led the way to the small courtyard in the back.

"How exciting for you, well just come and ask for help from old Tom should you need it." Tom said as the archway to Diagon Alley opened, Harry nodded and rushed of towards Gringotts after thanking the man.
There were some early people bustling about on the street, no doubt waiting for the shops to open. Harry guessed it was others, hoping to miss out on the school rush by being early, like himself.
He slipped into Gringotts without anyone stopping him and breathed out a sigh of relief at having managed to escape the Potter hysteria, for the moment at least.

"Hello sir, I'd like to pick up my account key and make a withdrawal please." Harry said, walking up to one of the many free goblins.

"Name." It demanded, giving Harry a pointed glare.

"Harry Potter sir." Harry said, lifting his cap knowing that a peek at the scar might help.

"Hm, one moment please master Potter." It said, stalking off rather rudely.
It came back a moment later and motioned silently for Harry to accompany another Goblin hopefully in possession of his account key, which had been sent by McGonagall.
Harry couldn't help but remember the last time he'd been to the bank and the destruction he'd caused, he was more than happy about the goblins having no memory of that he thought.
After filling a money pouch, he escaped the bank and its creepy keepers, and headed straight for Ollivander's as he couldn't bear to go without his wand for a second longer.
Pushing the door open at the wand shop, he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, finally he was getting his wand back.
"Well now, who do we have here then?" A voice asked, making Harry turn.

"Hello sir, I'm Harry Potter and I'd like to buy my wand please." Harry said, not quite able to hide his very real excitement, making Ollivander mouth twitch slightly. The man's silvery eyes stared at him until he couldn't help but fidget.

"Ah yes I thought that I might be seeing you soon Mr Potter, well step forwards don't be shy." The man ordered, pulling out his trusty tape measure. He gave Harry another speculating stare before turning towards the counter.
"Which is your wand arm Mr Potter?" He asked, making Harry hold his right arm out. He was waiting for the whole spiel about his parents wands and the story of Voldemort and knew it was coming when the man opened his mouth.
"Are you here alone today?" Mr Ollivander asked, making Harry shake his head slowly.

"No sir, my aunt is here with me, but she's looking at my books in the bookshop. She said I could get my wand on my own." Harry said, having thought out what to say in case someone asked.
Mr Ollivander nodded, seemingly happy with that answer, and clapped his hands at the tape measure which curled up on its own.

"Let's see now then. Your mother's wand was ten and a quarter inches long, swishy and made of Willow. Very nice wand for charm work. Your father's wand was eleven inches, Pliable and Mahogany, more powerful and made for transfiguration." Ollivander said absentmindedly, rooting around among the wand boxes.
"We'll see which wand it is that will choose you." He mumbled, placing several of the thin boxes on the counter before Harry. And thus started the hunt for his wand.
Harry didn't think that pointing out that he knew where his own one was, would be a good idea, so he suffered through hundreds of wands in silence whilst Mr Ollivander got more and more excited.
"Not to worry Mr Potter, it will be here somewhere." The man said cheerfully, glancing at Harry's cap covered head thoughtfully.
"I wonder…" He muttered under his breath, making Harry look up expectantly.
"Yes, why not." Mr Ollivander continued, as he disappeared into the depth of the shop. He came back a moment later and handed Harry a wand with steady hands.
Harry brought the wand closer and smiled at the little shiver that ran up his back.
"Holly and Phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple. Give it a little wave then." Harry followed the man's instructions and let his magic out in a sparkling shower of gold.
"Bravo, Mr Potter, but how curious that you should fit so well with that wand." Mr Ollivander said, watching as Harry lovingly slipped the wand into his pocket.

"Why is it curious, sir?" Harry asked, knowing it was expected of him.

Mr Ollivander eyed him a moment in silence and Harry wondered if the man was going to tell him about the wand or not.
"It is curious that you should get that wand, when its brother caused us all such pain." The man said, tidying away the wand boxes from the counter.
"Yes, for you to have the brother wand to He-who-must–not-be-named is curious indeed. But the wand chooses the wizard Mr Potter, I think we can expect great things from you." He added, turning back to Harry.
"That will be seven Galleons for the wand." He said quietly, prompting Harry to dig out the coins from his money pouch before exciting the shop.
He was very happy to have that sorted, Harry thought as he walked down the street.
Ollivander had always had the ability to slightly freak him out, he was sure that the man was a Legilimens and although Harry was sure that he now knew how to Occlude his mind he didn't feel too comfortable with the old man.

Digging in his pocket for his what-to-do-today list, Harry eyed his first task thoughtfully and hoped that it would work. He pulled out the letter he'd penned at home and took it to the post office, along with a small bag of Galleons, and a post owl soon took flight continuing his plan.
Once that was done, Harry continued down the street feeling rather happy with himself. It was good to be back in the wizarding world and even more comforting to have his wand back again.

Harry entered Flourish and Blotts, after having bought a trunk, and looked around at the multitude of books with a keen eye. He quickly gathered together his first year books and then leisurely perused the rest of the assortment on offer.
Going back for his first year again was going to be dead boring, so he'd decided to continue with his French studies and pick up either Arithmancy or Ancient runes, as self-studies during the upcoming year. It was leaning towards him doing the runes as they seemed more useful in the long run.
He ended up buying more books today, than he'd ever read before all together, and they were all for a bit of light reading as Hermione might have put it.

Deciding to get his clothing sorted next, he set sights on Madam Malkin's where he bought the required clothes from his school list.
He really had been hoping to get a normal wardrobe too, as he was tired of wearing Dudley's old castoffs, but had opted out in the end. Madam Malkin's did have a small selection of trousers and shirts but it seemed she catered mostly in robes, besides Harry refused to wear the wizard version of muggle clothes that she did have on offer.
Spotting another clothing shop, further up the road, Harry walked over and sneaked a peek through the window.
It looked rather posh and upscale, more like the kind of shop Malfoy would shop in, but Harry really did want new clothes, so he entered rather cautiously.

He left the shop a while later, wearing a new set of trousers and a smart shirt, feeling better than ever before.
Although he was feeling a little apprehensive about the haircut he'd impulsively gotten, he thought as he rubbed his head before stuffing a new black cap on his head firmly.
It was worth it, he hoped.
The shorter hair took away that instant James Potter likeness he had, it also showed of his scar rather blatantly but people were going to stare at it whether he hid it under messy hair or not.
He would be sending Dudley his old clothes back with a note of thanks, when he had the time, Christmas might be the right moment he thought with a smirk. Imagining the look on Dudley's face, should Harry wrap them in nice paper first, made him smile rather evilly.

Pulling the cap even lower on his head, if possible, he took a firm grip on his trunk and joined the growing crowd in the street as he headed for the Apothecary for his potions supplies.
He had a lot to buy there, his wand would be monitored during the summer after all, but his potion making wouldn't be.
Harry figured that it might be odd if he started shooting out advanced spells with his new wand all of a sudden. He would need to start slowly and then gradually build up his spell repertoire so as not to cause suspicion.
If he knew the wizarding world right, they'd accuse him of being Voldemort reincarnate if he showed off too much, too soon.

The old man behind the counter, in the potions shop, barely gave him a glance as he entered and Harry shrugged before collecting a basked for his shopping. He filled the basket with all sorts of jars and bags, he also invested in some of the books on offer thinking it wouldn't hurt to read more.
He may not like Snape, at all, but the man was right about everyone needing to learn potions as it meant that he could do magic undetected.

Harry doubted he'd be able to charm his way into getting his trace removed by the ministry, even if they actually liked him at the moment. He could just see Rita Skeeter's article on how the boy-who-lived got special treatment and the outrage it would cause. No, it was best to keep his head down and out of the limelight as much as possible, he thought grimly.

Having bought all his bits and bobs for the upcoming year, a tired Harry returned to the Leaky Cauldron, he was in dire need of a cup of tea and something to eat.
"Ah, there you are laddie, did your shopping go as planned?" Tom asked appearing at Harry's side as soon as he entered the pub, it was almost as if the man had been waiting for him.

"Yes it went fine thank you, just a lot to get. I think I have time for a snack before my aunt arrives for me." Harry said with a tired smile. Tom led him into a small booth close to the kitchen and then sat down on the other side of it.

"I received a letter from your aunt earlier Mr Potter." Tom said quietly, leaning forwards with a look of barely contained excitement as he peered under Harry's cap.

Harry looked up feigning surprise and a little apprehension.
"How did you know who I was? My aunt told me not to tell people because they would be acting all weird." Harry whispered, leaning forwards too. Tom seemed to make a supreme effort to rein himself in before pulling out a letter from his pocket.

"She told me what you looked like, besides you're the only lonely child that's come in all day." Tom said, eyeing Harry with a fond look from across the table.

"What did she write in her letter?" Harry asked, when it became clear that Tom was happy to just sit there and stare at him. The man blushed and handed Harry a small note, before saying that he'd bring Harry something to eat.
Harry pretended to read the letter intently, he knew exactly what it said of course having written it himself. Tom soon returned with a sandwich, some chips and a glass of butterbeer, which he put in front of Harry.

"I have a room set up for you and unless your aunt writes differently you're to stay here until school starts, I'll even take you to the station myself if the need be." Tom said with a reassuring smile.
"I'm sure you'll like it here Mr Potter and I'll make sure you're not bothered by anyone." He added, eyeing Harry kindly.

"I'm supposed to stay here as my other aunt got sick." Harry said, biting his lip before giving Tom an even look, he couldn't believe it was working.

The man nodded and slipped a room key across the table.
"Here's your key. The room is on the first floor, not far from my personal quarters, you can come and get me for anything at all Mr Potter." He said, giving Harry another reassuring smile, clearly taking his responsibility seriously.

"My aunt says that I'll be safe here and that I should behave." Harry added, glancing at the letter, whilst trying to keep a straight face.

Tom shrugged and stood from the seat.
"What trouble could a small thing like you get into?" He said, before walking towards the bar where a queue was forming.

Harry grinned hidden under his cap, if the man only knew, he thought popping a potato chip in his mouth.


So, what do you think? Elerosse