Warning: Minor Fred x George hinting… very minor, but 'warning' worthy anyway… And also minor Ginny Bashing...
Year 6: Harry Potter and the Secret Letters
Chapter Three: Draco's First Little SecretThe group was now on their way to the much-anticipated Weasley Wizard Wheezes. When Hermione had joined Harry, Ron, and Ginny after her fitting, she gazed at her scarred friend expectantly, but neither said a word. After visiting Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, the Weasleys led them to the apothecary and Eelops, which amused Harry greatly considering that he had been nearby the owlporium earlier that day, unbeknownst to the rest of the party.
The arrival at Fred and George's shop was, to say the least, hard to miss. While all of the other stores in Diagon Alley had boarded up windows and purple ministry posters, Wizard Wheezes' were displaying loads of Whizzing Witches' Hats, Pigmy Puffs, remodeled Dung Bombs, Popping Poppers, Skiving Snack Boxes, and a reusable hangman.
Mrs. Weasley stared at the shop in disbelief. Wizard Wheezes stuck out like a sore thumb against the other stores. "They're going to die…" she murmured, recognizing this as an easy target for Lord Voldemort to hit.
"No, they're not," exclaimed Ron. "This is brilliant!" He raced towards the door, leading the three other anxious teens into the twins' store. The adults lingered momentarily and then decided it best to follow.
When Ron's round, red head peeked through the door, all he could see were the bright colors of the walls and merchandise, and the grays and blacks of the customers' robes. Harry opened the door the rest of the way and they all squeezed inside. The twins seemed to have more business than Honeydukes and Zonko's combined. Their shop had three rooms, one of which was the back storage room. However, within the two rooms that one was allowed into, there were jokes, tricks, bobbles, and things that Harry could only assume one was supposed to digest, as far as the eye can see (which happened to be only about two feet ahead of you due to the large amount of people).
Ginny was immediately drawn to the Pigmy Puffs in the window, and Mrs. Weasley went straight to the front desk to ask the slightly timid girl if she may please see her sons. Hermione was eyeing a barrel of what looked like a 'Daydream-in-a-Box,' while Harry and Ron were strongly contemplating purchasing a Self-Inking, Spell-Checking, or Smart-Answer quill.
"Mr. And Mr. Weasley? You're family is here to see you," the shy clerk called into the back room.
Soon, two bumbling redheads bounded up to their mother joyously. "I swear, whenever she calls us like that, it sounds like we're married," Fred said with a chuckle.
Hermione looked at them curiously. "It doesn't seem like the idea bothers you much," she noted, earning a synchronized shrug from the two. "What are these," she asked, indicating the boxes.
"Patented Daydream Charms. A thirty-minute, highly realistic daydream in one simple incantation," beamed George.
The girl blinked in slight awe. "You know, that really is extraordinary magic!"
"For that, Hermione, you can have one for free," Fred offered with a grin.
Behind them, Harry was still fingering a Self-Inking quill. "These could really be handy for writing to Judas," he whispered to himself.
"Who's Judas?" asked Ron casually, having been close enough to Harry to hear the comment. At the sound of the secret admirer's name, the ginger-haired witch turned to them and frowned slightly.
"I'll tell you once we're back at the Burrow," he whispered to his best friend, and Ron understood that it was another secret that he would be trusted with. The redhead nodded as George approached them.
"Come on, Harry. I want to show you what we're creating in the back." He said, motioning for the scarred boy to follow.
"What? Only Harry? Why can't I come? I'm your brother, aren't I?" whined Ron pathetically. At this, Fred appeared at his twin's side.
"Now, that's a very good question, Ron," remarked Fred.
"You look like us," added George, pointing out the sixth year's red hair.
"But you're certainly not as clever," they said. Hermione scoffed, smiled, and chuckled to herself at the boys.
"What are you laughing at?" asked Ron irritably.
"Nothing, nothing," she reassured before laughing again. "It's just… they have a point, Ronald."
Harry tried to hide his grin, to no avail. The look on Ron's face was absolutely priceless! It was as if everyone he knew had just backstabbed him. "Aren't you supposed to be my girlfriend, or something? How can you agree with them?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yes, Ronald. I am your girlfriend, 'or something.' But that doesn't mean that I am always going to stand up for you. You know, more often then not, You're wrong… about practically everything…"
Fred and George laughed merrily at their brother's expense. It was almost more amusing to watch someone else tease the Gryffindor Keeper… almost…
Harry finally chose a quill with silver ink. It was strange to write in black when Judas' letters were so elaborate. It took him quite some time to choose a color, but he was reminded of Aristotle's odd eyes. Silver would have to do until further knowledge of Judas was acquired. "Hey, George! About how long do these quills last?"
"Just about 500,000 words."
"Brilliant…" he whispered to himself, as Fred, George, Ron, and Hermione continued to bicker.
The same woman from behind the counter approached the twins and mentioned something about a customer who was looking for a joke cauldron. Fred left to go assist the lost first-year, while George made his way over to Ginny to discuss what sounded like boyfriends.
The Gryffindor Trio, finally left alone, drew aside near the door to the back room and began to speak in low voices.
"Guess who we met in the robe shop," Harry said to Ron.
"Who?"
"Malfoy and his mother," responded Hermione. The two alternated in retelling the incidents from earlier that day.
"What happened after he left?" asked the redhead, thoroughly disappointed that he missed such an unlikely event.
Hermione glanced at Harry with a slight frown on her face. "I don't know. Harry went after him, but…"
Harry shook his head lightly. "I lost him I was too far behind at the start to catch up. Not to mention, I got a little distracted. Judas sent me another letter."
Ron looked pained. "Bloody Hell! Will someone please tell me who this Judas person is!"
"Judas is Harry's Secret Admirer," stated Hermione bitterly.
"Fan mail?" Ron asked.
"No," came a frustrated response from the scarred boy. "This is different… I think… Here, look!" Handing Hermione the new scroll, which had been folded in his pocket, and waited for them to finish reading. It was quite easy to tell when they reached the end because Ron was trying to hold back laughter and the girl was wearing a face of disbelief.
"That goon! Minister of Magic!" The boy finally allowed a small chuckle to escape his lips before covering them with his hands to prevent it from happening a second time.
"The magical world would collapse…" mumbled the ginger-haired teen.
"We'd go to the dogs," assured Harry, grinning cockily. "See? He's a great guy and I think that he—"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait just one second here! Judas is a guy!" questioned the redhead.
"I didn't think it was either, at first. But look at the way he speaks. It's not like any of the other letters!"
Ron glanced over the parchment for a second time and shrugged. "Okay, so it's a guy… You don't find it even the least bit creepy that you have a male admirer? I mean, you're not gay," stated the boy. He paused for a second, and then sent Harry a scurrilous glance. "Are you!"
"No," came yet another frustrated response. "But as a friend, Judas seems—" Harry cut off his own sentence as something caught his eye. He had glanced over at George and Ginny to make sure that that no one had been listening in on their conversation, and instead saw Draco Malfoy passing the window. The blonde checked behind him before scurrying out of sight. Harry grabbed his friends and pulled them into the back room. Taking the invisibility cloak out of his bag, he motions for his friends to get under it
"Oh, Harry… I don't know—" started Hermione, thinking about the nervousness of everyone about the Dark Lord's return. Suddenly going missing certainly would not help anything.
"Come on," encouraged Ron as he pulled the girl beneath the cloth alongside him. Harry assumed that the redhead was only truly anxious to go because he missed out earlier. The Gryffindor Seeker didn't care much however, just as long as they made their way after Malfoy. Leading them through the back door and around to the main street, Harry pointed to the right. "He was heading in that direction," he said, and led them onwards.
As they hurried along, the girl asked, "Harry, didn't you go after him earlier? I mean, what are expecting to find that has you so interested?"
"Didn't you notice?" panted the other as he peeked into store windows as they passed them. "He favored his left arm. When Madame Malkin tried to raise his sleeve, he slapped her away, saying that her pin had pricked him. But her pin was in her other hand. It hadn't even gone near him!"
"What's your point?" added Ron.
"He means the Dark Mark, Ronald."
"Exactly! With a Death-Eater's son, especially one like Malfoy, one would only assume that they would turn to the Dark Side, as well. Why else would he hide his left arm like that?"
"But don't you think that's jumping to conclusions?" asked the girl.
No," answered Ron for his friend. "I see Harry's point. That is pretty suspicious."
"You're just agreeing with him because I agreed with your brothers about your dimwittedness," remarked Hermione dryly.
"I am not!"
"Look," called the girl, pointing ahead of them. "Isn't that Malfoy? Turning left?"
"Big surprise," responded her boyfriend. Draco had just turned into Diagon Alley.
"Quick, or we'll lose him," said Harry, speeding up. His friends exchanged an uncertain glance, but kept up with the other, trying desperately to avoid their feet being seen.
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Draco made his way down the street, not pausing to look at the interesting artifacts that lingered in the window displays. He went directly to the familiar Dark Arts store, Borgin and Burkes. Upon entrance, he calmed down slightly, having escaped from plain sight and general discovery. He did not need his mother finding him here of all places. Gazing curiously at the merchandise, he found the black cabinet that signified the entire reason that he had come. He heard a creaking sound behind him and whipped around to discover Borgin standing at the counter.
"You're Malfoy's son, aren't you?" he asked, angry features printed across his face.
"That's right," agreed Draco grimly. "My father says that you will be able to assist me."
"Assist you how?"
"I have a transport object that needs repair. I believe that you have its second, as well."
"Hn," groaned the other. "Your father says that I'll know how to help?"
"He says that you better. He's not someone who takes no for an answer," he replied, taking a piece of parchment out of his pocket. "But I'm sure that you already knew that, didn't you, Borgin?"
The oily-haired man looked slightly unnerved at the thought of Lucius Malfoy and all of his Death-Eater friends inside of his shop. "What exactly is the item, Master Malfoy?"
Draco smirked at the new name in order to hide his grimace. That title reminded him of his father, and he sure as hell was not his father! "It's a form of transport cabinet," explained Draco, pointing to the black cabinet behind him. "I'm not sure exactly what it is…"
"Hn," replied the other once again. Unbeknownst to the both of them, three Extendable Ears were being slid under the door by an invisible Gryffindor Trio.
"So you know how to fix it, then?"
"Possibly," said Borgin, quite unwilling to commit himself. "I'll need to see it, though. Why don't you bring it to the shop?"
"I can't. It's got to stay put," argued Draco frustratingly. It was bad enough that he didn't like being in Knockturn Alley; he certainly didn't want to stay any longer than he had to. Not to mention that Lucius had said that Borgin would listen if the Death-Eater's name was referred to, and so far that hadn't worked. Luckily, he had brought something as back up. "I just need you to tell me how to fix it," insisted Draco for the last time.
"Well, without seeing it, I must say that it will be a difficult job. I couldn't guarantee anything."
"No?" sneered Draco. "Perhaps this will make you more confident." He moved towards Borgin, handing him the letter that was in his left hand. Unfortunately, Draco had stepped behind the cabinet in question and was blocked from the Gryffindors' view. They couldn't see the letter, just the movement of Draco's arm and the look of mild terror on Borgin's face. This only served as a clue in Harry's mind to prove that Malfoy truly was branded with the Dark Mark. Such things could not add up to anything else in the Seeker's head.
When Lucius had given the parchment to Draco, it had already been sealed so he was not able to read it. Lucius had told his son to give it to the store owner if there were any… doubts. Whatever was on the letter, it was working. "Tell anyone," warned Draco, indicating the cabinet that his father had brought in some time ago, "and the will be retribution. YOU know Fenrir Greyback? He's a family friend. He'll be dropping by from time to time to make sure that you are giving the problem your full attention."
"There will be no need for—"
"I will decide that," barked the blonde. Lesson One of the Malfoy Household: Malfoy's are always in charge. "Well, I'd better be off. And don't forget to keep that one safe. I'll need it," he said, specifying the item's pair yet again.
"Perhaps you'd like to take it now?"
"No, of course I wouldn't, you stupid little man. How would I look carrying that down the street? Just don't sell it," remarked Draco, rolling his eyes at the idea of strolling down Diagon Alley with the cabinet under his arm. He was sure his mother would just love the idea.
"Of course not… sir," mumbled Borgin, bowing deeply. Obviously, Lucius had written something that made Borgin think twice about respecting the blonde.
"Not a word to anyone, Borgin. And that includes my mother, understood?"
"Naturally, naturally," he murmured again, bowing.
Draco scowled at the fact that a stooped, oily-haired man was bowing to him. It reminded him way too much like the Dark Lord. He turned on his heel and exited the shop, smiling faintly with relief to be out of that horrid place and on his way out of the back alley.
Now… only one more stop before he could go locate his mother. There was a certain… gift… that he had been meaning to buy.
XXXXXXXXXX
Thoroughly confused and without any idea of what they had just witnessed, Harry, Ron, and Hermione headed back to the Weasley Wizard Wheezes. Molly was already becoming frantic with her searching for them. They made their way to the storage room through the back door, hid the invisibility cloak in Harry's bag, and exited into the main shop. When Mrs. Weasley inquired on their whereabouts, they insisted that they had been in the back room the entire time and that the woman simply hadn't looked properly.
TBC…
AN/ Sorry that this was so late! I had quite a few typing issues. I've had this chapter finished for a little over a week, but the opportunity for me to type it up has been practically zero. I realize that it is short, but I have already started Chapter four and it seems promising.
Coming up in Chapter Four: Ron and Hermione's date has finally arrived, Harry will respond to Judas' letter, and Harry's birthday is right around the corner! Read and enjoy! I love you all!
