Chapter 7: Diagon Alley, Marriage, and being Elders
It's the summer of '91 and Harry Potter turns eleven years old. He wakes up on the morning of his birthday very excited because they are going to the amusement park today as part of the celebration. As he is sitting down at the breakfast table there is heard a tapping at the window. They all look up and see three owls hovering on the window sill with letters attached to their legs. Harry opens the window and lets the owls in where they all alight on the kitchen counter and stick a leg out each. There are two brown barn owls and one proud eagle owl with a Gringotts medallion around its neck. Harry takes the letters from the owls and they all fly off.
"Hermione, one of these is for you but, look at the name on it." Harry says while handing her a letter.
"Those should be our Hogwarts letters Harry." Hermione says.
Taking the letter from Harry, Hermione looks at the address and squeaks, "Oh my."
"What is it honey?" Mrs. Granger asks.
"They put me down as Mrs. Potter. I'm guessing this is why I didn't get a letter last year on my birthday. I didn't know anyone knew we were married," Hermione says. "They waited until Harry turned eleven to send our letters."
Mrs. Granger smiles and says," Well, you are soul mates after all. I guess the magical world recognizes your bond."
"I suppose; are you okay with them knowing Harry?" Hermione asks timidly.
"Of course I'm okay with it. I love you with every fiber of my being." Harry states forcefully.
Hermione flings herself into Harry's arms crying, with all her insecurities gone, and kisses him, putting all of her love into the kiss.
"You know just the right thing to say to make me happy Harry." Hermione gushes.
"What's does the other letter say, Harry?" Mr. Granger asks smiling at their antics.
"It's from Gringotts. Let's have a look." Harry says while picking the letter up after dropping it when Hermione tackled him.
Harry breaks the seal on the tube and pulls out a piece of rolled parchment. He unrolls the parchment and begins to read.
To Mr. and Mrs. Potter,
This letter is to inform you that you are eligible to claim your inheritance as Lord Potter since you are the last remaining Potter and have reached the age of eleven. If you wish to do this, please come to the main branch of Gringotts in Diagon Alley at your earliest convenience. You can gain access to the alley through the Leaky Cauldron at 720 Charring Cross Rd. Ask someone inside to open the gateway for you and look for the tall white building at the end of the alley. We await your pleasure.
Sharptooth,
Inheritance dept.
"Wow, I didn't know I was a Lord." Harry says in awe. "I guess that makes you Lady Potter then."
Hermione smiles at Harry sweetly, and then they each open their other letters, reading the invitation to attend school and what books and supplies they will need.
"I wonder how we are going to answer these letters Harry. It says to owl your reply by August fifteenth." Hermione wonders.
Just as she says this, another owl flies in the window and lands on the table and sticks out its leg.
"What a smart bird you are. Hold on a minute." Hermione coos at the owl, who puffs out its chest proudly at the praise.
She runs to the sitting room to get a pen and some stationary and writes:
Dear Professor McGonagall,
Harry and I will be delighted to attend Hogwarts School this fall. We are looking forward to being taught by you and the other professors.
Sincerely,
Harry and Hermione Potter
She rolls up the letter and attaches it to the owl's leg which then takes off, flying north. Shortly after the owl flies out the window, there is a knock on the front door. Hermione goes to answer it and finds a strangely dressed woman standing on the front porch. She is dressed all in black and has a pointed witch's hat on her head.
"Is this the Granger residence?" She asks while looking at her note, "I'm Professor McGonagall from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I'm looking for Hermione Granger and.."
She looks at the note again but can't make out the second name and continues," There is a second name on here but I can't seem to read it. Maybe you can, since they are supposed to live here too."
She hands Hermione the note.
"Yes, this is the Granger residence," She takes the note from Mrs. McGonagall and reads it.
Chuckling, she says," I can see why you can't read this and the other person is here. Won't you come in?"
Hermione shows Professor McGonagall through the entrance way into the sitting room and invites her to sit down.
The professor asks," Miss Granger, are your parents here? I will need to speak with them and this other person as well."
"Yes they are home, along with the other person on your list. I haven't been Miss Granger since I was eight years old and the other person is my husband, Harry James Potter. My correct name is Mrs. Hermione Jane Potter."
Professor McGonagall gasps," Harry Potter has been missing for three years and no one can find him."
"He's been living here since we picked him up from the Dursley's three years ago. They haven't had any memory of Harry since our bond initialized and he has been safe here ever since. Let me get him and our parents and introduce you." Hermione says.
As she gets up to go get her parents and Harry they walk into the sitting room wondering who was at the front door. Harry walks over to stand next to Hermione and takes her hand while their parents each take a seat to await an introduction to the stranger sitting in their sitting room.
Hermione looks at her parents and says," This is Professor McGonagall from Hogwarts. She has come to explain our letters and why mine says Hermione Potter on it instead of Granger when we haven't told anybody about our marriage."
Professor McGonagall looks at Hermione and her parents and says," Thank you. As Mrs. Potter points out, my name is Professor McGonagall and yes I am from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The letters are addressed magically and I never see them. The Headmasters signature, on the bottom of the letter, is also done magically. I get my lists from professor Dumbledore and apparently magic kept him from seeing your real name for some reason. I am here to introduce you to the magical world and take you shopping for your supplies if you need me to."
Hermione responds, "Pleasure to meet you. We sent our acceptance reply by owl just before you knocked. We already know we are magical and were just waiting for someone to contact us. If you don't mind a stop at Gringotts first, we would be happy to let you take us there but we would prefer to go by car so our parents can come too."
"That will be fine." Professor McGonagall says," You are my only stop for today."
They all get in the car and make their way to 720 Charring Cross Rd. where they find a parking space nearby. (Just pretend there actually are spaces available)
Mr. Granger says," I can see a fuzzy outline of something where 720 should be."
Professor McGonagall looks at him oddly and says." There is a muggle 'notice me not' charm on 720. The fact that you can see anything tells me you have magical ancestry, even if you are not magical yourself. If each of you will hold one of Harry or Hermione's hands you will be able to see it more clearly. It keeps non magical people from accidentally wandering into the magical world."
They hold hands and cross the street to go inside. Once inside, one of the patrons sees Harry's scar and shouts: "My word. It's Harry Potter."
Everyone crowds around to shake his hand, honored to meet him.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Potter. Thank you for what you did for us." says a Mr. Diggle, shaking his hand vigorously while speaking for everyone, "A pleasure indeed."
Professor McGonagall notices a man wearing a turban standing off to the side and brings Harry and Hermione over to meet him.
"Good to see you professor." She says, and then turns to Harry," This is Professor Quirrell, your Defense against the Dark Arts teacher."
"N n n nice t t to m meet you Mr. P P Potter." He stutters, not wanting to touch Harry for some reason.
"It's very nice to meet you as well. Hermione and I look forward to being in your class." Harry replies.
They proceed through the back door and stop in front of a brick wall at an apparent dead end. With Harry and Hermione paying close attention to her actions, Professor McGonagall pulls out her wand and taps a sequence of bricks on the wall, ("Three up...two across..."), causing the bricks to roll back to each side forming an arch.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley!" the professor exclaims.
Harry and Hermione are awed at the sight. The alley is crowded with witches and wizards doing their shopping, crisscrossing the alley every which way, making it hard to navigate. There are things like pumpkins for sale, bats in windows, and a broom hanging from a display in front of one of the shops. They also spot a trunk shop, a robe store with school robes displayed in the window and soon to be Hermione's favorite place, Flourish and Blotts, Fine and Rare Books, as they make their way through the crowd and up the stairs to the bank entrance. As soon as the door guards see Harry and Hermione, they immediately get down on one knee and bow.
One of the guards says, "Wait here please."
Harry and Hermione look at each other and shrug their shoulders.
The guard goes into the bank to inform his boss the Potters have arrived.
"The bank is now closed for the next hour." The bank manager says coming out of his office.
He then shoves everyone out the door while he beckons the group in and closes the doors with a loud bang. As soon as they are inside, the manager drops to one knee and bows.
He says, "I am Ragnok, the leader of the Goblin peoples, welcome to the Magical World, Elders. We, The Goblin Nation, are humbled by your presence."
Harry and Hermione's nano-probes quickly update them on the situation and their official status on this planet.
"Please arise, sir goblin. You are among equals. We see no difference in status in our peoples. We were sent here to clean up this planet and get it ready to join the intergalactic community. This will obviously take a while, as we are just getting started. We came to claim the Potter lordship and get some gold for school supplies. May your gold flow freely and your enemies be crushed under your feet." Harry proclaims in perfect gobbledygook.
Professor McGonagall and the Grangers are astonished by what they just witnessed, while not understanding a word Harry said.
"I'll just sit over here while you complete your business," Professor McGonagall says.
Ragnok stands up and leads Harry, Hermione and the Grangers through a series of tunnels and walkways to his office where he is going to handle all Potter business himself.
He sets two bowls on the table, hands each of them an ornate dagger, and says," I am honored you spoke to us in our language Elder. I just need a drop of blood from each of you to establish your true identities which will get you set up in the magical world for anything you need."
Harry and Hermione look at each other before saying to Ragnok, "The daggers won't work as our skin is impervious, but we have a way to give you a drop for your purpose."
They each hold a finger over a bowel and the nano-probes push one drop of blood from each of them into the bowls. As the blood hits each bowl a loud sizzling sound is heard and smoke rises from each bowl. Six ring boxes appear on the table, three in front of Hermione and three in front of Harry, along with seven keys. Ragnok looks astonished and then starts grinning with a feral look on his face. "This is going to put one over on those uppity purebloods." He says gleefully.
"Pardon?" Harry asks.
"Some purebloods, like the Malfoys, strut around like they own the place. Mr. Malfoy is not even a Lord; the Malfoy family is just a minor family that has made some gold, mostly through thievery and cheating. The majority of their gold comes from the dowry paid by the Black family for the marriage of Narcissa Black to Lucius Malfoy. He is nothing more than a death eater that bought his way out of prison all those years ago. He doesn't have an honest bone in his body, yet he thinks because he is a so called 'pureblood' he is superior to all others. Unfortunately, he is teaching his philosophy to his son Draco. It's very disgraceful. The Potters on the other hand have been around since before Merlin. This makes you the Lord of a most ancient and most noble house where you are higher ranked than them. Being Elders puts you both at the very top; even above Dumbledore."
"Thanks for the information. I'm sure I can find a use for it in the future." Harry says," we're not ready to lead the world yet. We will need to acquire experience and wisdom before then."
They all look at the ring boxes and keys and Harry has a questioning look on his face.
Ragnok says, "This is going to be a shock to the wizarding world when they find out, but I was hoping this would be the case. Those are the rings for all four Founders and the Potter rings. The keys are for your vaults. The Potters have three vaults, your main family vault, an heirloom vault and your trust vault. Each of the Founders vaults has mostly books and heirlooms in them along with a fair amount of gold. This makes you the richest wizard and witch in the world. You own Hogwarts and the Village of Hogsmeade. The Potters own several muggle and magical businesses including Microsoft, Grunnings Drills, where your uncle works, and the Daily Prophet. You will definitely have the funding needed to accomplish all of yours goals elders."
He takes a minute to order refreshments and take a short break. They enjoy their tea and biscuits for a bit and then Ragnok continues:
"A little history is in order for you to understand why there are two rings for each of you. Hogwarts was officially founded by four friends around Nine Eighty AD, you know their names. All four founders had husbands and wives of their own that pitched in and helped turn the castle they were given into a school. Despite what wizard legend says, Salazar Slytherin did not have a parting of ways with the other founders. He left the school, yes, but it was on another scouting mission for more magical children to bring to the school. He was killed in a riding accident while on his mission. His horse had found a fox den entrance and lost its footing, falling over and crushing Salazar in the process. His body was returned by the goblins of the time and he is buried on the grounds of Hogwarts along with the other three founders. History is always written by the victors and when the Normans came in ten sixty six the invading wizards of the time tried to take control of Hogwarts and failed. When the goblins brought Salazar's body back, the Normans claimed they had killed him because he was a dark lord and was evil as payback for not being able to take the castle. The label stuck and that is why Slytherin house is thought to be evil. I hope you can get the truth out there to help end the bitter rivalry between houses. This record is in our archives if the wizards ever want to know the truth. The Founders families had children and grandchildren like everyone else, with offspring intermarrying within the four families. Eventually, according to your bloodline Lord Potter, you are descended from Godric Gryffindor through your father and Helga Hufflepuff through your mother's side of the family. This is why you seem to be brave and bold while being very loyal to your family and friends. Lady Potter, believe it or not both of your parents have magical bloodlines despite not having magic themselves. Your father is descended from Salazar Slytherin through his father and your mother is descended from Rowena Ravenclaw through her mother. So you are not really a true muggle born witch just like Harry's mother was not really muggle born either. Magic just skipped a generation or two. This is why you are studious and smart with the cunning it takes to see your plans through. With Lord Potter by your side, there is nothing you cannot accomplish."
The Grangers eyes get real big when they hear what Ragnok says. They were disappointed magic skipped them, but glad Hermione is magical and happy Harry has come into their lives. After another short break for refreshments, Ragnok looks at Harry and says:
Put the Potter ring on your right index finger and it should shrink to fit. Then put the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff rings on the same finger and they will merge with the Potter ring. Lady Potter, the box on the left is for the lady of the house. It goes on the right ring finger. The same goes for the Slytherin and Ravenclaw rings which will also merge."
After the rings are put on, a glow surrounds the couple as the rings accept the heirs and then another two boxes appear.
"Those would be the Potter ancestral wedding rings Lord Potter." Ragnok says with awe," They haven't been seen in generations."
Harry looks at Hermione and says," May I?"
She nods and he slips the wedding band, then the engagement ring onto her ring finger, while she does the same for the men's ring.
Their eyes glaze over once again as they chant, "Our minds….our bodys…..two souls merge…..our lives immortal….together forever and ever unto eternity."
As they kiss, they start glowing, getting brighter and brighter until the room is filled with light and heavenly music is being played when a white Phoenix flames in and settles on both their shoulders confirming the bond is now complete. She introduces herself to Harry and Hermione, saying her name is Hedwig and that she will be their companion and guardian from now on.
"Hello Hedwig, aren't you a beautiful bird." Harry says," Can you go to the Grangers and wait for us? We don't want to attract too much attention just yet." She trills in agreement and flashes away.
Ragnok is awed beyond measure to witness a full soul bond completing and seeing a white phoenix. This is the ultimate proof in his mind that these two are the new leaders of the light. He gets down on his knees and bows with his forehead to floor very respectfully.
"Ragnok, please get up and face us." Harry commands.
Ragnok stands up and faces Harry and Hermione. They reach out and place a glowing hand on each of Ragnok's shoulders and declare: "We are partners in arms and we are partners in life. May there always be gold in our coffers and may our enemies cower before us." Then softer, as a friend would speak," Please, just call us Harry and Hermione; we will be relying on the Goblin Nation as advisors towards finance and to learn about other magical peoples. We are all friends here and just have one last very mundane item of business. Do you have a way to pay for things without needing to come to the bank for gold?" Harry asks.
"We have a Gringotts debit card that will work in the muggle world. For most magical businesses you just need to press your signet ring into the wax pad each business has to effect payment."
"Thank you Ragnok, it's been a pleasure doing business with you." Harry states after receiving and activating the cards with a drop of blood each for the pair.
Mr. Granger sighs and says," I guess it is official now. You two are definitely married. Just don't give us any grandchildren any time soon."
"Daaad!" Hermione says embarrassed, "We're too young to be thinking about that. We just sleep together with nothing else happening."
Harry says," You have nothing to worry about Mr. Granger. We won't have any children until after we get married in the muggle world. Even then, we want to establish our careers first."
Mr. and Mrs. Granger are relieved to hear that and just smile and hug them. They walk to the lobby to pick up Professor McGonagall and go out into the alley to get their shopping done.
"Professor McGonagall," Harry says," I need you to keep the fact we are elders a secret. Also, Hermione and I just found out we own Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. We don't plan on taking advantage of this unless necessary and will consult with you first on any decisions we make. We trust you, but under no circumstances is the headmaster to know about this unless we say. He is the reason I was sent to the Dursley's and eight years of hell. He is a manipulative man that thinks he has to be in control of everything. He will not be able to find our address, though he will try in order to control us. Only you can see that and tracking charms won't work on us. You can head back to Hogwarts if you want and we can do our shopping on our own."
"Thank you for your trust. I thought elders were just a legend and didn't really exist. You will have my complete cooperation." Professor McGonagall says with a smile.
Hermione adds," We just want to be treated like any other student and don't want any special attention. Harry and I are coming to school to learn magic like everyone else and are looking forward to being in your class."
"Very well, I will see you at the sorting on September first." She says. She then turns on the spot and disappears with a small pop.
"That was cool," Harry exclaims, "I wish we could do that."
"We already can dear; our way is more like phasing than disapparation. Just consult with your probes to get the method. We can try it out when we get home."
They decide to start out with getting their robes from Madame Malkin's Robes for all Occasions. As they enter the shop, Madame Malkin herself comes out to meet them and asks," Hogwarts dears?"
"Yes, we both need school robes and formal robes with the Potter crest on them." Harry says showing his ring, "The best material you have. Cost is not an issue."
"Very good sir, just step up on the platform and we will get your measurements." She says.
They step up onto the platform and notice a blond boy getting measured as well. The boy looks over at them and sneers. "They let anyone go to Hogwarts these days. Half-bloods and mud-bloods don't belong."
"You must be one of those uppity purebloods that Ragnok was telling us about. You do know that blood status has nothing to do with how much magical power you have, don't you." Harry states. "My wife here probably has more power in her little finger than you do in your whole body. By the way, she is not a muggleborn, like you seem to think."
"My father says only purebloods are worthy of learning magic." The blond boy says.
"You will find out eventually that your father is just an opinionated bigot that doesn't know what he is talking about. You need to look around with an open mind and form your own opinions about things and not believe every word he says. He will just lead you down a path to destruction." Harry replies.
"There's you done," Madame Malkin says to the blond boy.
The boy steps down and sniffs and walks out of the shop with his nose pointed in the air.
"You think he can see where he is going?" Hermione snickers.
"He made it out the door okay. Maybe that's just the way he walks." Harry shrugs.
While they are talking to the blond kid a magical ruler is taking measurements of Harry and Hermione causing her to giggle occasionally while Harry laughs at what is going on.
"That was fun," Hermione says.
"Yea, it was," Harry agrees.
"You two are done now dears. You can pick up your robes in a week." Madame Malkin says a few minutes later.
"Thanks, we will be back to pick them up in a week then." Hermione says.
They go to Ollivander's, next to get their wands. As they walk into the store a bell rings to announce their presence and Mr. Ollivander comes out from the back to greet them.
"I was wondering when I would see you Mr. Potter and who is this lovely young lady with you?" He asks.
"This is my wife Lady Hermione Potter." Harry states proudly.
"It's nice to make your acquaintance. Now let's see if we can find you each a wand." He says.
He starts pulling out boxes and gives Harry a wand and says to give it a wave. Harry gives it a wave and vase in the counter explodes. Harry tries several more wands that don't work and Mr. Ollivander gets excited. Tough customer he thinks.
"I wonder." He says with his finger on his chin deep in thought. He goes to the back of the store and pulls out a dusty box and brings it out to the front. The box contains a holly with phoenix feather wand. He hands the wand to Harry and Harry immediately feels warmth flow down his arm and sparks shoot out the end lighting up the whole store.
"Curious," he says, "I remember every wand I have ever sold Mr. Potter. It's curious that you matched this wand when its brother gave you that scar. You are destined for great things Mr. Potter. After all, 'He-Who-Must-Not-be-Named' did great things with his wand, terrible, but great."
"Now young lady, let's see what we can find for you." He says while looking at her.
After trying several wands she finds a vine wood with a dragon heartstring to be a match for her. Harry pays for their wands and they leave the store. The next stop is Eeylops Owl Emporium to get a perch for Hedwig and then on to the apothecary for potion supplies. After getting their trunks they head over to the book store for their school books. While browsing through the books Hermione suggests several other books that could be useful. Harry agrees as he likes reading as much as Hermione and thinks the extra books will be needed to advance their studies. They still have a month before school starts and this will give them the chance to get ahead. After making their purchase they go home.
As soon as they get home Harry sets up the perch for Hedwig and says to her," Here you go girl, you deserve only the best. May we have a long and fruitful life together?"
Hedwig trills happily and flies over to the perch and gets comfortable.
Harry and Hermione spend the whole month of August going through their books and practicing the spells in them. Unknown to either of them, the first time they try a spell they burn out their wand cores due to the power they have. They are doing wandless magic without realizing it. Hermione is reading one of the advanced books one day when she comes across a statement that catches her attention and she goes to Harry to show him.
"Look here Harry, this book says magic is all about intent. You tell you're magic what you want it to do and just make it do it. Why do we need all these wand movements when they are not necessary? Let's see if we can we can do this."
"That makes sense Hermione. I agree, let's give it a try." Harry responds.
"The book says to concentrate and try to reach down inside you to your magical core and feel the magic. Once you have found that, it will get easier with practice." Hermione reads out loud.
Harry and Hermione sit there with their eyes closed and meditate while reaching down inside themselves trying to feel for their magical core.
"I feel something Harry." Hermione exclaims excitedly," It's a tingly feeling; only it is all over my body, not just inside. Oh this is so exciting."
"I feel it too," Harry says," now, we just have to make it work."
Now that they knew what to look for, it was just a matter of time before they could do all of the spells they had learned so far just by pointing their wand and thinking what they wanted to happen and it did.
"This is so much easier than trying to remember all those wand movements." Harry says.
"I agree," Hermione answers. "Let's try without our wands by just waving our hand or something."
"Ok, I don't think our wands are working anyway." Harry says.
Hermione looks at him with her head tilted a little to the left side and asks," Why do you say that Harry?"
"I've noticed I haven't felt anything from my wand since we got home after getting our supplies. I felt a surge when Mr. Ollivander put this wand in my hand, but I think the surge burned out the core while we were there in his shop." Harry explains.
"Now that you mention it, my wand feels dead as well. It's just a fancy, carved stick." Hermione says.
They both try performing magic without their wands and find it works just as well. After thinking about this for a while Hermione comes to a conclusion:
"Harry, I have a feeling that we are able to do this because we are elders. I don't think normal witches and wizards can do wandless magic because they were not taught how. In one of the history books I read, it says that when the ministry was established was when wands came into use. Before that, there were witches and wizards that could use wandless magic to do a few things, but they didn't understand that what they were doing was magic. To them, it was just a special skill they had and would use it to help out their community. When wands were discovered, they found out it was easier for them to do magic and they also figured out that certain wand movements matched with certain incantations allowed them to do a wider variety of magic. The ministry also discovered that with wands, they could control what was taught to the children allowing them to establish schools, making sure they only learned what the ministry decided was safe for them to learn. Even though their intentions were good, it held back the witches and wizards of the age and no one reached elder status. We should probably at least hold our wands while we do the lessons in school to keep up appearances."
"Yea, you're probably right, as usual. We will hold our wands while performing magic, but no wand movements. If anyone asks, we will tell our method to only those we trust. In the wrong hands this method could be dangerous. Can you imagine someone getting into an argument and thinking they want that person to be dead and they just are? It would be disastrous if terrorist could do that, nobody would be safe." Harry says after some thought, "The world is too fragmented and immature to trust with this method. We will have to wait a few years before this change can be implemented."
Hermione shudders and says," You're right Harry; I didn't think of that, so we have to be careful who we tell."
They keep practicing every day until it is time for them to go to school. On September first they pack their trunks and head off to Kings Cross Station to catch the train to school.
ooOOoo
