A/N: I don't own Harry Potter
Chapter 7: A Day With Mum
Harry sat down at the breakfast table and patiently waited for his mother to come downstairs. Since his dad was called into to work early, and with the twins and Daniel spending the day at their friends' houses, today's Diagon alley trip would just be the two of them.
When Harry learned his dad wouldn't be able to make it today, he was more than ready to postpone the trip till another day. Unfortunately his mum refused to be reasonable. She insisted they could no longer wait to get Harry some new clothes. Plus, she was adamant that if they waited to go on a later day, the alley would be packed with people and shopping for his Hogwarts supplies would take hours longer than necessary.
The sound of his mother's shoes echoing across the kitchen floor, pulled Harry from his musings, and he turned around and said, "Good morning, mum. Your breakfast is already on the table."
Lily smiled at her wonderful and helpful son. "Thank you, sweetheart. That was very nice of you."
Harry answered with a shrug. "No worries, mum. It was nothing."
Once his mother started eating her breakfast, Harry patiently waited for her to take several bites, and then casually tried a last ditch effort to avoid shopping. "Are you sure we can't go on another day, mum? I wouldn't want dad to miss out on seeing me get my first wand."
Lily rolled her eyes at her son's pathetic excuse to get out of shopping. "We've already talked about this, Harry. You've been stalling for weeks now, and since your Hogwarts letter has been here for three days, you can't hold off going any longer."
"But what about, dad?"
"Your dad loves you very much, sweetie, but if he can avoid shopping he won't really care too much."
"Lucky," Harry mumbled softly to himself.
Unfortunately for him, his mum's hearing was better than he thought. "Oh quit complaining, sweetie. It won't be that bad. The hardest part will be picking out some new robes for you to wear. Once that's done, we'll be back before you know it."
Harry snorted quietly at the thought. Between Madam Malkins and Flourish and Blotts, it would take his mother half the day to finish her shopping. In the end, he chose to try a different tactic to avoid the pain of shopping that women seemed to love. "What if she's in the alley today? You know our last conversation didn't turn out too well."
Lily raised an eyebrow at her son's poor attempt to get out of shopping. After dealing with the Marauders for so many years, she was well aware of the diversionary tactics the trio used to escape from doing things they didn't want to do. It seemed her son had picked up the same trait from his father.
Deciding to have some fun with him, she said, "Now Harry, is that really how you should act with your betrothed? Besides, the meeting didn't go that badly."
"Didn't go badly? She tried to kill me with her mind, mum. If you and dad had kept talking any no longer with the Greengrasses, I'm pretty sure she might have succeeded. There was nothing but hate in those cold blue eyes, mum."
Lily rolled her eyes at how dramatic her son was being. While the Greengrass girl was fairly quiet throughout the whole meeting, she never once did or said anything that would be construed as rude. It was nowhere near as bad as the reaction Alex had to learning the news.
"At least it wasn't as bad as the small disagreement you had with Alex."
Harry mock glared at his mother's lousy attempt at humor. "Has anyone ever told you that you're the Queen of understatements. Alex and I didn't have a small disagreement. I apologized for putting her in such an awkward position, and her response was to deck me in the face. I'm pretty sure that qualifies as more than just a disagreement."
"Fine. You win. Both the women you're betrothed to, hate you. Happy now?"
"Of course I'm not happy," Harry answered, his voice laced in outrage. "Why in Merlin's name would I want to marry someone that hates me?"
When she realized how upset her son was becoming, Lily knew her joke had gone too far.
"All of you are still really young, sweetheart," Lily replied soothingly. "You will have plenty of time to show them what a nice and caring boy you are. In a few years, I have no doubt that both those girls will thank their lucky stars that they are marrying you."
Harry's frustration failed to lessen even after hearing his mother's calming words. He didn't want to be married by a contract either, but he couldn't see a way for any of them to get out of it.
"I never once imagined that my idea to pick up some extra votes for dad in the Wizengamot, would stick me in the middle of two marriage contracts," Harry explained to his mum. "If I knew about them before hand, I swear I would have found us another way to get more votes. I'm nowhere near ready to get married, mum, but I also don't want Alex and Daphne to hate me for something that I didn't know about. I know you don't believe me, but they really do hate me. It's just frustrating that l am being blamed for everything. Before the contracts, I really felt like Alex was finally starting to hate me less, but now things have only gotten worse. If that wasn't bad enough, I've never even spoken to Daphne, and now she doesn't want anything to do with me. She wouldn't even respond to the questions I asked her while we were visiting at Greengrass Manor. The only time she spoke in front of me, was when her parents, you or dad spoke to her first. The whole situation just makes me so angry."
Lily could feel the pain and frustration her eldest son was feeling, and it tore at her heart. At first she had been angry with the contracts, but after going through them thoroughly, she knew there was no way to get him out of them. Since her son was stuck marrying the girls that were named on the parchment, she was at least happy with the girls that were chosen. She just wished the three of them could find a way to get along with one another.
As she thought of how she could help her son, Lily suddenly realized what she could say to give him some hope."You know I hated your father in the beginning. The first time we met, your father and Sirius played a prank on me, and I was furious enough to hex the pair of them into oblivion. For the next six years the Marauders made life hell for everyone at the school. Despite how often your father attempted to ask me out, at that time, I never once imagined I could love someone like James Potter."
"What made you change your mind, mum?", Harry asked curiously.
"He grew up, sweetie. Once I saw the strong, proud and caring man that was hidden behind his juvenile behavior, I could finally see someone I could spend the rest of my life with."
When she looked into her son's eyes, and saw his green orbs staring intently at her, almost begging her to help him, she continued, "I won't pretend you haven't made any mistakes in your past, Harry. But you're just eleven years old. At that age, you're supposed to make mistakes. You need to understand that these contracts are not your fault. No one could have guessed that they even existed. I know both Alex and Daphne are hurt right now, but in a way they have a right to be. Every girl dreams of the day they will get married to their Prince Charming. It's not your fault, but the contracts took away that choice from them. I know it's not fair for you, but right now they need a person to blame for this mess, and unfortunately that person is you."
Lily paused when she saw her son's shoulders slump in dejection, and shook her head when she saw him lower his head in defeat. She knew he still needed to hear the rest of what she had to say, so she reached out her hand and gently tilted her son's head back up.
"I'm not done yet, Harry," Lily said softly, her eyes boring into her son's, almost daring him to look away. "Today they might hate you, but in time that will change. Just like you, they both are young and allowed to make some mistakes. Once they take some time to really think about what happened, I know both of them will realize what their doing is wrong. You are not at fault for any of this. Besides, if I can fall in love with your father after years of wanting to kill him, there is no reason the same can't happen for you. You just have to do what your father did, kiddo. Show them the strong, proud and caring man I already know that you are."
When he felt his mother's arms suddenly wrap around him and gently pull him into a tender embrace, Harry tried to stop it, but he failed to prevent the tears from falling down his face. Even though he had people who truly loved him back in his old world, none of them had ever made him feel as safe and loved as he felt now. Just knowing that his mother was there for him, made all his anger and frustrations with the contracts melt away.
After a few minutes, Harry pulled back from the hug and used his sleeve to wipe the tears from his face. "Thanks, mum. I really needed that. You may be the Queen of understatements, but I also dub you the Empress of Amazing hugs."
Lily laughed at her son's joke, and suddenly she knew everything was going to be fine. "Now enough with the serious stuff. This is supposed to be a mother son day, and as both Queen and Empress, I demand we have some fun. So let's finish up breakfast and head to the alley."
All the animosity Harry felt at having to go shopping, disappeared at the thought of spending some time with his mum. He may be nineteen in his head, but after having missed out on a childhood filled with a mother's love, he fully intended to take advantage of this moment.
"Sure thing, mum," Harry replied with a shy smile. "I can't wait to have a mother son day with you."
Mother and son quickly finished their meals and then took their dishes to the kitchen, so the house elves could wash them later. The duo was heading upstairs to change before going to the alley, when Lily suddenly had a brilliant idea.
"You know, sweetie, since you'll need a trunk, I would be more than happy to give you my old one. It's the one I picked up when I was in my sixth year, so I splurged a little and got a three compartment one. It's already charmed to always be the same weight, and because of the Marauders, the security on it is pretty decent for a Hogwarts trunk."
At the sound of his mother's suggestion, Harry felt like a deer caught in the headlights. Not only did he have his own seven compartment apartment trunk from his old world, but his counterpart also had a beautiful three compartment apartment trunk. Since his own trunk was so full, Harry planned on using his counterpart's at Hogwarts. If he ever wanted to practice his Shadow Mage skills, or learn higher levels of magic, he would need a place that would give him the privacy to do so.
The trunk was perfect for his needs. Besides, the little bastard had really gone all out with it. Harry's own trunk was a standard apartment trunk that he picked up off the wrack. His counterpart on the other hand had actually had his custom made. The damn thing really was gorgeous.
Unsure what he should say to his mum, Harry decided the safest thing to do would be to tell the truth. "Ah, mum. I kinda, sorta, already have a trunk."
"What?", Lily asked in surprise. "When did you get a trunk, sweetie?"
Harry didn't want to ruin the happy moment that they just shared, but he couldn't think of anything but the truth to tell his mother. "Well, it was sort of supposed to be my runaway trunk."
Lily was hurt by the reminder that her son was once planning on running away. Not wanting to ruin the moment, she quickly schooled her expression and asked, "May I see it?"
Harry hesitantly pulled out a matchbox size object from his pocket, and tapped the top to enlarge the trunk. At the sound of his mother's gasp, he knew he was about to get yelled at. Unlike most trunks, the custom trunk his counterpart paid for, was made from gorgeous Mahogany wood. Thanks to the permanent polish charm placed on it, the reddish-brown color glistened off all of its surfaces. Instead of having a standard house patch attached to it, the Potter emblem was engraved by hand upon the top of the lid. All in all, the damn thing screamed money, and that's before you even got to the apartment on the inside.
"HARRY JAMES POTTER," Lily screamed in outrage. "What the hell are you doing spending this type of money? What reason could you possibly have for a custom trunk like this one?"
Harry gulped in fear at his mother's anger. In his old world, Sirius told him stories about the Legend of Lily Potter's wrath, and now seeing it first hand, he was scared out of his mind.
"I was running away, mum," he explained, trying to defend his counterpart's outrageous purchase. "I wasn't sure what type of apartment I could get in the muggle world. I am a kid after all. I guess I was kind of worried what type of places would rent to a kid, and I just wanted to live somewhere nice. The apartment really is beautiful, mum. It's got a living room, a master bedroom, two spare rooms, a library, a potions room, a workout room, a dueling room, and a full kitchen. It also came fully furnished."
"How much was it, Harry?", Lily asked, trying her hardest to control her anger.
"Twenty three thousand galleons," Harry replied with a grimace.
"WHAT?", Lily screamed again. "Of all the irresponsible and stupid things to do. I can't believe you would throw money away like this."
"I wasn't throwing it away, mum. It was a sound purchase. In case I couldn't find a decent place to live in the muggle world, at least I knew I would be safe inside of my trunk apartment. The security on it is state of the art, and since it was made from the best materials, I could easily pass it on to future generations. Besides, I thought I was leaving the magical world behind, mum. Not only was the trunk a safe place for me to live, but it also allowed me a chance to take some magic with me."
Once she was able to reign in her temper, Lily tried to logically think through her son's explanation. It did make sense to have an apartment on the go, especially if he was going to live in the muggle world. From her own time living in that world, she knew there were a lot of places that weren't exactly safe for kids his age.
Unfortunately, if he was trying to find a place to live as a kid, those areas were more likely to allow him a room for rent, or even an apartment. She didn't like the fact that he spent so much money on a trunk, but she could at least understand his reasoning.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you, sweetie," Lily replied calmly. "I understand why you bought the trunk, but I hope you realize why I was upset with you. Just because you're a well off young man, doesn't mean you should spend your money so carelessly."
Harry breathed a small sigh of relief, at his mother's change of heart. "I promise I won't throw money around, mum."
Lily nodded her head and asked, "Have you made any other large purchases I should know about."
Harry gulped and briefly thought about lying, but after looking into Lily's icy green eyes, he thought better of it. "Just one more purchase, mum. And before you yell, it really was a necessity."
Lily sighed when she heard Harry try to rationalize his purchase, and she just knew it was going to be something big. "Just spit it out, Harry," she said, with only a hint of annoyance in her voice. "What did you buy?"
"I might have bought a Phoenix egg."
When she heard her son's answer, Lily decided he was going to be the death of her. She had no idea what would possess him to buy the egg, but now she was going to find out. The trunk was an excusable purchase, but her son could not have any possible reason to buy a Phoenix egg. It was most definitely a frivolous purchase, since it was useless to anyone that hadn't bonded with it.
"Why exactly did you decide buy a Phoenix egg, Harry?"
Harry was surprised by his mother's question. He thought the answer would be obvious. "I bought it because I bonded to the Phoenix that was inside it, mum."
Whatever her son was going to say, Lily was not prepared to hear him admit to bonding with a Phoenix. Not only was it impossible for a child to form a familiar bond, but Phoenixes only bonded with incredibly powerful Witches and Wizards. The only person in Europe with a bonded Phoenix was Albus Dumbledore.
"How is that possible, Harry?," Lily asked her son in awe.
"I don't know, mum. I walked into Diagon alley and I immediately felt a pull on my magic. I just followed the pull to the Magical Menagerie and found the Phoenix egg. When I touched it, I heard her speak to me in my mind."
Lily knew her son wasn't a liar, but even she had a hard time believing the story he was telling her. "Could I meet her?", she asked hesitantly.
Harry grinned at the request and eagerly nodded his head in agreement. "Sure, mum. Let me just call her. Hedwig."
Lily couldn't stop her jaw from dropping, at the site of the beautiful bird that appeared in a blaze of blue fire. She watched as it flew to her son's shoulder, and shook her head in wonder, once it began to nibble on his ear affectionately.
"This is truly remarkable, sweetheart. It's unheard of for children to be able to form a familiar bond. But to form one with a Phoenix at your age, I just don't know what to say."
Despite all the knowledge he possessed from his old world, Harry was still clueless when it came to knowing about the finer points of the Magical community. It never occurred to him that children couldn't form bonds with a familiar. He was always really close with the Owl version of Hedwig, and no one really thought that was weird. He just assumed bonds were part of a normal Witch and Wizard's magic.
When he thought about his mother's reaction to Hedwig, for the first time Harry realized how many problems bonding with a Phoenix would cause for him with Dumbledore and the rest of the magical community. "I guess this really isn't normal. Right mum?"
At the sound of her son's question, Lily was still struck dumb by the whole situation. By the time she realized what he said, she couldn't stop herself from laughing.
"No it isn't, Harry," she replied with a smile. "But I guess things with you just aren't going to be normal."
Harry sighed in relief, at his mother's accepting tone. "Would you like to meet her, mum?", he asked shyly.
Lily could only nod her head eagerly. She'd seen Dumbledore's Phoenix a few times during the war at Order meetings, but she had never gotten the chance to actually interact with one.
"Mum, this beautiful creature is my familiar, Hedwig. Hedwig, the beautiful and brilliant woman in front of you, is my amazing mother, Lily Potter."
Lily blushed a little at hearing her son's praise, and her eyes widened in surprise when Hedwig flew through the air and landed on her shoulder. As she took in the bird's snow white color, she marveled how the blue in the plumage seemed to meld so perfectly with the rest of the body. By the time she reached Hedwig's piercing blue eyes, she was amazed at how stunning a creature her son had as a familiar.
"She really is gorgeous, Harry," Lily spoke without thinking. "You'll have a heck of a time explaining her to the professors at Hogwarts."
Harry grimaced at the thought of having to answer a ridiculous amount of questions from Dumbledore, and he knew the moment the old man learned of Hedwig, the headbastard would keep a very close eye on him at Hogwarts.
"Damn Hedwig," Harry mock complained to his familiar. "I wish we had a way to hide you. You're just too beautiful for your own good."
Harry was stunned when he heard Hedwig's reply echo in his mind. "~If you need me to go unnoticed, hatchling, all you had to do was ask.~"
Before he could ask his familiar what she was talking about, his jaw dropped as Phoenix Hedwig suddenly turned into her old Owl self.
"~How did you do that, girl?~"
"~I am a Phoenix, hatchling. Part of our magic allows us to be able to create an illusion over our true selves. It wouldn't be good if we were easily recognized by poachers, now would it?~"
Harry couldn't stop himself from laughing at her response. Now he wouldn't have to worry about taking his girl to Hogwarts with him. When he saw the stunned expression still plastered on his mother's face, he realized she couldn't hear his conversation with Hedwig, and quickly explained what just happened.
"Sorry about that, mum. I just told Hedwig that I wished she wasn't so recognizable, because hiding her was going to be a big pain in the arse. Apparently she wasn't too worried about it. According to her, Phoenixes have the ability to hide their true selves with an illusion. I won't have to worry about taking her to Hogwarts with me, because she is going to masquerade as a Snowy Owl."
Lily tried to wrap her head around everything that just happened, and decided it was just too much for her to handle at the moment. What she needed was some normal time with her son. Shopping for clothes, books and a wand, was exactly what she needed to clear her mind.
"That's great, sweetie. I'm glad you and Hedwig have a way to be together at Hogwarts. But if you don't have any more earth shattering news to share with me, how about we head off to Diagon alley. I could really use some shopping to clear my head right about now."
"Sure, mum," Harry replied with a smile. "Let's go to shopping."
As soon as they walked into Diagon alley, mother and son decided to leave the robes and books until the end of their trip. Working in perfect harmony, the pair quickly picked up the other items on the Hogwart's list.
Their first stop was at Amanuensis' Quills. Here the pair perused through the shop until they eventually they decided upon two dozen quills, a bottle each of blue and black ink, and enough parchment to last Harry until the end of term. After explaining to his mother the muggle notebooks and pens he was also planning to take with him for notes, they both agreed their current purchase was more than enough for now.
The next stop on their list was Slug and Jigger's Apothecary. Thanks to his time in the old world, Harry knew the Apothecary had a special Snape approved Slytherin package for all future snakes. So when he entered the store with his mother, he immediately asked for the Slytherin package, before Lily could ask for the standard ingredients.
When he saw Lily look at him with a cocked eyebrow, he shrugged his shoulders and said, "I know he was your friend, mum, but after hearing some of dad and padfoot's stories, I figured the guy might be biased towards his own House. Looks like I was right."
Lily could hardly refute the claim, since the clerk was busy preparing the package her son had just ordered. When the clerk finished with the ingredients, and his mother moved forward to pay the bill, Harry quickly palmed an Owl order form and placed it in his pocket. After his time in the Chamber, Harry loved working on potions, but he didn't want to give his mother a heart attack with any more surprises. He figured it would just be easier for him to special order the ingredients he needed once he got to Hogwarts.
After the apothecary, the pair gradually made their way to Portage's Cauldron Shop and picked up three standard sized pewter Cauldrons. Once again, before they left, Harry palmed another Owl order form. While pewter sets were just fine for potions work in Snape's class, Harry would need more expensive sets to work on his numerous projects.
Lily intended to buy the telescope next, but Harry begged her not to. From his own personal experience, he knew muggle telescopes were significantly better than their magical counterparts. At first Lily was hesitant to break Hogwarts rules, but Harry won the day when he pointed out the letter said to buy a telescope. Nothing there said it had to come from a magical store.
With the majority of their shopping now complete, the pair decided it was time to head to Ollivander's Wands. Harry was a little nervous about making the trip. In his entire life, he had only ever used the Deathstick and his Holly wand. With the Deathstick now back in Death's possession, and the Holly wand sure to go to Neville in this world, Harry was uncertain what he would end up with. The last time he was in Ollivander's the only wand in the entire store that chose him, was his old 13in Holly.
Apparently his concern radiated through the link he shared with Hedwig, and he heard her voice soothingly speak into his mind. "~Do not worry so much, hatchling. You will have a new wand by the end of the day. Of this I am sure.~"
Reassured by his familiar's confidence, Harry entered Ollivander's with his mother.
"Ah, Mr. Potter. I was wondering when you would arrive. It's good to see you Lady Potter. 10 3/4 Willow with a Unicorn hair. Swishy and good for Charms. I trust it has been keeping you well?"
"It's good to see you too, Mr. Ollivander," Lily replied. "And yes, my wand is working perfectly. Thank you for asking."
When Harry noticed Ollivander's attention return back to him, he politely bowed his head and said, "It's good to meet you, sir. I look forward to getting my wand today."
"The wand chooses the Wizard, Mr. Potter, but you are correct. Let's get you a new wand. Now, which arm is your wand hand?"
Harry smiled and replied, "I'm ambidextrous, sir."
When Lily heard of yet another talent her son possessed, she just shook her head slowly in wonder. No matter how often she thought she had finally learned all about her eldest son, a new piece of information was just pop up and ruin all of her plans.
While this piece was nothing compared to his earlier revelations, it was still something new that she learned about him.
Wand after wand passed through Harry's hand, and with each failure, it only made Ollivander more excited. After an hour and a half of testing everything in his store, the old man finally admitted defeat.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Potter, but it seems I do not have any wands that can match your capabilities."
As soon as she heard her son wouldn't receive a wand, Lily refused to admit defeat. "There has to something here that can match with my son's magic. Don't you have anymore wands in the back room, Mr. Ollivander?"
Ollivander gently raised his hand and said, "Peace Lady Potter. The fact that none of my wands have chosen your son, only means I will have to craft one specifically for him. If you will please wait right here, I will need your son to come into the back room with me."
When he learned he would get a wand crafted just for him, Harry could barely contain his new found glee. He was just about to follow Ollivander to the back room, when he realized his mum had already been waiting here for so long.
Not wanting her to just sit there all alone, he turned back to her and said, "How about I meet you at Madam Malkin's, mum? I'm not sure how long this will take, and it will give you a head start on picking out some new clothes for me."
Lily was more than happy to agree with her son's proposal. The thought of being alone in the store wasn't something she was looking forward to and she gladly replied, "Okay sweetie. That sounds like a good plan. As soon as you're done just head over to Madam Malkins."
Once his mum had made her way out of the store, Harry turned around and followed Ollivander into the back room. He was surprised when the old man brought out a large box and placed it on a wooden table.
After opening it, Ollivander waived Harry forward and said, "Close your eyes, Mr. Potter and place your hand next to each item. Tell me which one calls to your magic."
Harry closed his eyes and followed the Wand crafter's instructions. After two attempts, he once again failed to feel any of the cores call out to him. By this time his anxiety was slowly building inside of him, and he was beginning to feel worried about getting a wand today.
That's when he heard Hedwig speak in his mind, "~Do not worry, my youngling. I am here, and I have brought you the items you will need for your wand.~"
Just then his beautiful familiar flamed into the room, and he saw her carrying a vial in her talon. Harry gently pulled the vial away from her, and as soon as his fingers touched the glass, he could feel whatever was inside pulling strongly at his magic.
"~What is this Hedwig?~", he asked his familiar curiously.
"~It was part of snake faces belongings, hatchling," she replied knowingly. "~I believe it is a Basilik fang dipped in its venom. I am almost positive it once belonged to the serpent you defeated in the old world.~"
Harry was momentarily stunned by the Basilik fang in his hand. Since the large serpent looked upon Riddle as its master, he could understand why Snake face had taken a fang for his own use. He was just surprised the man never used it to make a new wand."~Thank you for this, girl.~"
"~You are welcome, young one. But that is not all that I have for you.~"
With that the majestic bird leaped into the air and shook a single feather on to the table. Harry could feel the same pull from the feather as he did from the Basilik fang, and he knew he had the cores for his new wand.
"~Be safe, hatchling. I will see you once you are done for the day.~"
Harry watched the Phoenix disappear in a flash of blue fire and when he turned around, he saw the shocked look upon the old man's face.
"I guess you're kind of wondering what that was about? Ah, that was my familiar and she dropped off what you will need to make my wand. If you don't mind sir, I'd like to keep her a secret for now."
Ollivander finally snapped out of his shocked trance and nodded his head in agreement. "Of course, Mr. Potter. Your secret is safe with me."
Harry then watched the old man replace the box with wand cores with another box. As soon as he opened it, Harry could see dozens of different types of woods neatly arranged inside. Knowing what he needed to do, he closed his eyes and gently moved his hand over each one.
After a minute he felt something tug at his magic, and he stopped and pulled out the wood his hand was hovering over. When he opened his eyes, Harry was surprised the wood wasn't the Holly that he was used to. This one was as black as the midnight sky, but somehow managed to still glow when the light hit it just the right way.
Ollivander looked upon the young boy with amazement. The fact he was bonded to a Phoenix familiar, paled in comparison to the wand this boy was about to receive. Individually each of the cores he possessed were incredibly powerful, but together they would make one of the most powerful wands he had ever seen. When he saw the boy pull out the black Deathwood, he thought it was a fitting compliment to the cores he was going to use.
"Very surprising, Mr. Potter. The Deathwood is said to be a tree that holds power over life and death. Combined with your Phoenix feather and Basilik fang, it's a fitting component to your new wand. But the contrasting elements of your two wand cores will require a binding agent, so I will need a vial of your blood for the process."
Unsure what to do, Harry just nodded his head and handed the piece of wood to Ollivander. He then held his hand out and let the old man cut his finger with a conjured blade. Once the wand crafter had enough blood for the binding, he quickly healed the cut on Harry's finger.
"Is that all, sir?", he asked politely.
"Yes, Mr. Potter. Come back in two hours. Your wand will be ready then."
As soon as the old man turned around, Harry quickly made his way out of the store. He was about to head straight to Madam Malkins and join his mother, when he suddenly noticed the sign for Tom's Trunk Emporium out of the corner of his eye.
Even though he already had his trunk, Harry really had an addition that he wanted to make to it, and since his mum wasn't around, he decided now was the best time to take care of it. He ran over to the store, and quickly walked in. As soon as he did, he saw Tom stacking several Hogwarts trunks in the corner of the room.
"I'm sorry to bother you, sir, but I was hoping you could help me make an addition to my trunk."
Tom turned around at the sound of a young boy's voice, and smiled when he saw the soon to be Hogwarts student. "Sure kid," he replied happily. "What can I help you with?"
Harry pulled out his sketch pad from the Mole-skin bag at his waist, and quickly flipped through it, trying to find the picture he was looking for. Drawing was an art he picked up from Voldemort's memories, and it was one of the few things he was thankful for after the download. When he finally found the picture in question, he showed it to Tom.
"Do you think you can add this to the front of my trunk?"
Tom looked at the drawing and nodded his head in agreement. "Sure kid. That'll be easy. Do you want it in color or black and white?"
Harry thought about it for a second and then decided color would be best. "I'd like for it to be in color please."
With his decision firmly made, Harry pulled out the matchbox from his pocket and enlarged it for Tom to do his magic. He watched as the man took his trunk into the backroom of the store, and ten minutes later he grinned at the site of Tom returning with it.
When Harry finally saw the front of the trunk, he couldn't believe how well everything turned out. He was already in love with the trunk before this moment, but after seeing how incredible the new picture looked on it, he could truly say his trunk was absolutely perfect now.
The top of the trunk still had the hand carved engraving of the Potter emblem, but the face of the trunk now bore the picture of a beautiful stag, and within its antlers rested a large bright red Lily. On the top left side of the stag, there was a black grim, and on the top right there was a silver wolf. All in all, Harry considered the picture one of his favorite drawings.
Once he was done admiring Tom's handiwork, he paid the 15 galleons he needed to for the man's services, and once again shrank and replaced the matchbox sized trunk into his pocket.
By the time Harry actually made it to the store, he walked into Madam Malkins, and immediately noticed his mother standing in front of a small mountain of clothes. He silently groaned over how painful this experience was going to be, and reluctantly made his way over to join his mother.
The next two hours were the worst of Harry's short time in his new world. When it finally ended, he wanted to jump up and scream with joy to the heavens. Along with the three sets of standard Hogwarts black robes, his mum also got, five extra Acromantula silk dress robes. One in emerald green with black trimming, two in midnight blue with silver trimming, one in silver with black trimming, and the final one in Gryffindor red with gold trimming. The standard wrinkle free, dirt free and auto-size charms had been put on all of them.
When Harry questioned his mother on why they were splurging with the Acromantula silk, she reminded him that he was now the Lord of not one, but two Most Ancient and Noble Houses. He would need to dress the part. She adamantly refused to let him be seen as anything less than the young Lord that he was.
Though he didn't have any proof, secretly Harry believed his mother was using the Lord thing as an excuse to dress him they way she always wanted. He knew his counterpart had seen her attempt the same thing with their father a few years ago.
The rest of the shopping spree finished with three pairs of dragon hide gloves, two pairs of dragon hide boots, a black winter coat, and a brand new muggle wardrobe. Complete with three pairs of jeans, seven new button down shirts, twelve pairs of t-shirts, a black leather jacket, and a dozen pair of underwear. Harry took the liberty of adding three muggle track suits and a pair of muggle running shoes, so he could train more easily while at school.
In total the final bill came out to 1235 galleons, but after seeing the happy look on his mother's face, Harry didn't say a single word about it. The pair eventually made their way to Flourish and Blotts and spent a lovely hour perusing through their new wares.
While his mother occupied her herself by looking for new books to add to her library, Harry took the time to do the same thing for his own personal collection. Once he picked up the books for all seven years at Hogwarts, Harry was quick to add Goshawk's Guide to Herbology, Charms of Defence and Deterrence, Practical Defensive Magic and the Dark Arts, Defensive Magic Theory, Theories of Transubstantial Transfigurations, Alchemy The Ancient Art of Science, and Advanced Potion Making, to his shopping cart.
By the time his mum was ready to make her own purchases, Harry had already bought and packed his books safely inside his trunk.
When mother and son finally made their return to Ollivander's shop, Harry was really looking forward to getting his new wand. As soon as they walked in, Ollivander was ready to greet them.
"Ah, welcome back, Mr. Potter and Lady Potter. I have been eagerly waiting for your return. Your wand is finished, and if I do say so myself, it was one of my finest creations."
With that, Ollivander pulled out a long red wand box and flipped the lid open to show the item that was inside. Harry was stunned by the sight of his new wand. The black wood was polished to glisten under the torch light and it was elegantly decorated with gold and silver trimmings. Unlike normal wands that were a single color, the black, gold and silver blended perfectly to give the wand a truly majestic look.
When he reached out and picked it up, Harry felt a sudden surge of power run through him, the likes of which he'd never felt before. Both the Deathstick and his Holly, paled in comparison to what he could feel from his new 12 1/2 in Deathwood wand.
While his magic continued to bind with the power from the two cores perfectly, the two people in the room that were watching him intently, could now see Harry literally glowing from the release of his magic.
Ollivander was awestruck by the most powerful wand binding he had ever seen in his life. He had already met the Boy Who Lived, and while he didn't doubt the boy would one day grow to be a powerful Wizard, he didn't think anyone he knew could compare to the power the boy in front of him was exuding.
If the child was this powerful now, he could one day grow up to become the most powerful person this world had seen in centuries. If not for the Phoenix that was currently bound as his familiar, Ollivander would have broken his promise to keep his client's secrets confidential, and he would have contacted Albus in regards to the boy.
"Incredible, Mr. Potter," Ollivander exclaimed. "I have never seen a wand bind so completely with anyone else. I hope you realize how powerful the wand you hold in your hand really is. Much like the Deathwood that gives it life, your wand's cores are a perfect balance between life and death. Supple but firm, this wand will be excellent for Transfiguration, Dueling, DADA and the Dark Arts. Unlike other wands that are Dark or Light centric, your wand is a true Grey. I expect to see many great things from you, Mr. Potter. With a wand like that, you have a chance to change the world."
When he walked out of Ollivander's with his mum, Harry finally felt complete. Ever since his arrival into this new world, he had been missing the feeling of having a wand in his possession. Now that he finally had one again, Harry was more than ready to do what Ollivander suggested. He was ready to change the world. First stop...Hogwarts.
