Ch 26
"How's it coming along?" Harry asked easily. Ginny gasped in surprise. She'd been so focused on trying to get her transformation that she'd not heard her best friend come up behind her.
"Almost, I can almost get it. I just wish I could do it once without getting angry or scared," she pouted.
"Keep working on it. I wouldn't be too concerned, yet. It took me a long time too," Harry smiled kindly. "Besides, the longer it takes you the longer you can stay out of the house. Your Mum was in a snit this morning," Harry shuddered.
"I know. It was so strange. She and Daddy were fine until they started looking through the mail and back copies of the Prophet and then all of a sudden Mum got all worried and Daddy had to head into work. There's something they're not telling us, Paws, and I aim to find out what it is."
"You could have gotten a copy of the paper," Harry suggested.
"No, Daddy took it with him when he left. It looked like the paper was a week old or so. I wonder what it could have been?"
Both kids pondered on this for a moment before the spark of inspiration struck Harry. "I can't believe we didn't think of it, Sebastian and Arabella would know. At the very least we could get the paper. Sebastian doesn't throw those out for months!"
Quickly agreeing on a course of action the two friends headed across the field, Harry on four legs and Ginny on two. An instant before they announced their presence, Harry held up his paw in clear warning. The argument from inside the house had finally begun wafting to outside.
"Molly, the boy has a right to know. Arthur told us what was going on as well. We're the boy's guardians and he's the closest thing I have to a son. I have to make the decision with logic, not emotion," the clear voice of Sebastian Prewett came sailing through the door.
"And I'm telling you he's too young. Uncle, I don't mean to patronize you, but you've no children of your own and I have seven. He's only thirteen for Merlin's sake. How's he going to handle something like that?" Molly's equally stern voice collided with their eardrums like a wrecking ball.
"The same way he dealt with a sixty foot long snake and an enchanted persona of Voldemort, Molly." Ginny cringed at the name. "The boy isn't a boy. He may be thirteen, but he's seen more than some Aurors I worked with. He deserves the truth and that's what he's going to get. If you want to try and shield your brood from the realities of life I won't stop you, but don't think for a minute it won't break through that protective bubble you've created over there. Dark wizards are out there and they always come knocking."
"Uncle, I never thought I'd tell you this, but Aunt Mary would be disappointed. She never let the evil out there haunt her like you do."
"I wasn't killed by dark wizards in front of her eyes, without being able to help. I couldn't stop it then, Molly, and I can't stop them trying now, but I'll be damned if I'm going to let that boy walk into school unprepared. I'd tell yours too, they'll find out soon enough. Dumbledore's gone to tell the Longbottoms. That should tell you something."
"Uncle, he's too young! You'll scare him," Molly pleaded.
"Molly, I know you have a talent for adopting the wandering strays, but trust me, this boy is anything but young."
"I think you're making a mistake, Uncle," Molly fumed.
"I know you do, but you'll have to live with it. I'm a grown adult, you know."
Harry and Ginny both flattened themselves against the wall as Molly stormed out of the house not noticing either of them in her fury.
As Ginny carefully opened the door, Harry slipped in and headed straight for Sebastian.
"Ah, I was wondering if you were out there. I do seem to have the worst timing, don't I?" Sebastian smiled as he sat in his chair. "Well, go on and change, boy. I do hate talking to you when you're only a mass of fur and claws. I can never tell if you're listening."
A moment later Harry was seated with Ginny on the couch and staring expectantly at the old man. "You know, I'm going to get a heaping helping of raging fury from your mother, don't you?" Sebastian asked Ginny.
"She stays. If it affects me, it affects her," Harry growled decisively.
"Dammit, Harry… Alright. I'm sure by now you've deduced that something is going on." Both nodded. "While you were gone, there were two break-outs of Azkaban." Sebastian paused to let the words sink in. Ginny looked puzzled, and Harry's expression remained blank.
"I thought that was supposed to be impossible," Ginny said softly.
"What is?" Harry asked. "Azkaban is just some Wizard prison, and what does that have to do with me?"
"Azkaban is the Wizarding top security prison, and it is significant because no one has ever broken out before," Sebastian patiently explained.
"Yeah, but no one ever turned into a Kneazle when they were three either," Harry replied. "Seems like nothing is impossible, just highly unlikely."
Sebastian sighed. "While your point is noted, Harry, do me a favour and shut up. Now what this has to do with you, Mr. Potter, is that of the two escapees, one of them is directly connected to you."
"How?" Ginny blurted out.
"He wants to kill you, Harry."
"Ah, I see," Harry replied evenly. "Any particular reason, or is it just because he doesn't like my charming personality and stunningly good hygiene?"
Ginny gave him a startled look. "What?" he asked defensively. "It's a reasonable question."
"No, I just realised you made a joke," Ginny shot back.
"Does happen from time to time," Harry grumbled.
"Children, would you please stop marvelling at Harry's comedic capabilities and focus?" Sebastian asked sharply. "Harry, the man in question, since you failed to ask, is named Sirius Black. He was a spy for Voldernuts and betrayed your parents to their deaths. He is, as the Americans would put it, a BAMF,"
"What does that stand for, Uncle S?" Ginny said, as she sat forward curiously.
"Very Nasty Individual, now more to the point, Harry, what are you going to do about it?" Sebastian locked eyes with our hero-in-fur.
"Kill him. It has seemed to work well for me so far," Harry said offhandedly as he forcibly refrained from taking a bath.
Sebastian merely sighed. "I was afraid of that. Now sit back and listen well, Harry. This Black isn't to be trifled with. You won your first year because of surprise and a little luck. You won a few months ago because of the same. Your courage allowed you to persevere, but you've never duelled a fully trained wizard before and I don't think starting on one trying to kill you would be wise. If you hunt him, like I know you can, you'll put the pride in danger. Kneazles don't hunt bears. Am I clear?"
"Crystal," Harry muttered. It was clear he understood the message, but not that he had to like it. "Who's the other one that slipped out? Am I allowed to hunt him?"
Sebastian chuckled darkly. "Not on your life, my boy. Rodolphus Lestrange was the other and while the Ministry is claiming they aren't related, I know better. Those two will be in the thick of it, I'm sure."
"Why were they going to tell Neville?" Ginny piped in.
Sebastian sighed and his eyes took on a dark and faraway look. Senior Aurors called it the 'Thousand Yard Stare'. Ginny felt like her Uncle was looking right through her. "He's connected in a similar way. That's all I'm saying for now. It's Longbottom's story to tell and if he doesn't want you to know, then let it be. Not everyone is fortunate enough to be adopted by parents like Harry."
"But..." Ginny began.
"Leave it be, Sparkplug. Neville has his secrets; we have ours," Harry shushed her gently.
Ginny pouted, but said nothing further.
Sebastian stood and stretched, making an exaggerated motion to examine the clock on the wall. "Merlin's underbelly, look at the time. You best go home, Ginny, before your Mum takes after me."
Both kids stood to leave, but Sebastian placed his hand on Harry's shoulder, shaking his head silently. "He'll be along in a bit, Ginevra. I won't keep your man, too long."
Ginny's face flushed scarlet at this and Harry merely growled and gave an accusatory glare at the elder Prewett. "Have a seat, Harry. I'll be back in a moment," Sebastian commanded, firmly. Harry sat with no further protest. The elder Prewett was using his 'don't sex with me' voice that Harry had come to respect. The man may not command the loyalty of the pride like Arabella did, but he did command their respect, and when he had something to say it was always worth listening to.
A few minutes later Sebastian strode back into the room holding something long and thin in his hand. Harry stopped his fidgeting to focus on the new object. Another moment of silence passed before Sebastian finally spoke.
"Harry, did you know I was an Auror once?" Harry shook his head. He had no idea. It would explain some of the eccentricities of the old man, though. "I was, and I'm also not so far gone to see where this mess with Black and Lestrange is going. The Ministry says they're unconnected because Black escaped a day after Lestrange, but I think they're in this together. A man I used to know had a saying, 'constant vigilance'. However, seeing the spell and not being able to do anything about it is almost as bad as not seeing it."
Harry puffed out his chest indignantly. "I can take care of myself."
"Harry," Sebastian sighed. "I thought we'd covered this. You've never duelled before. You've certainly never duelled one, let alone two dark wizards. I don't doubt your resourcefulness, nor your courage, merely your skill. You've never hunted prey like this."
Harry crossed his arms and looked at the floor angrily as Sebastian continued. "That's why I decided to give you an advantage they don't have." At this, Harry's head whipped up so fast he nearly had whiplash.
Sebastian chuckled. "It seems like you're getting in trouble more frequently these days and I wanted to give you something to get you out of it." As he spoke, the older man produced a knife covered in a buckskin sheath. The sheath was a light brown and adorned with intricate bead work and the protruding handle was a rough, white bone with a slight downward curve at the back end.
Harry marvelled as the old man removed metal from hide with the softest of sounds. The blade was maybe six or seven inches long and tapered at one end. The edge curved up slightly, while the back ran straight for most of the length and then dipped suddenly to a fine point at the end.
"It's a variation on the Bowie Knife," Sebastian explained. "A Yank invented it a couple hundred years ago, or so and this was made not long after that. It was a present from another Yank to me, and I want you to have it. It saved my life more than once and I'm hoping it will do the same for you. When you get up tomorrow, we'll begin practice with it. If you're half the fighter Minnie says you are, then you'll have no trouble picking this up."
"It looks different than knives we use in potions," Harry said, awestruck.
"Heh, it should. I guess it shouldn't surprise me that you've not seen goblin work before. This was made by one of the finest goblin smiths in the Americas, Tiffany."
"That doesn't sound very goblin-like," Harry snorted.
"No it doesn't, does it? I never did get around to asking them why, but it doesn't matter. This blade is goblin silver, and so won't dull or rust. Take good care of it and it will take good care of you." Sebastian smiled, fondly gazing at the blade before sliding it gently back into the sheath.
"Where did you get it?" Harry asked, still in wonder at the craftsmanship in his mind's eye.
"America. I was tracking one of Volderknob's supporters, who was trying to raise some support on that side of the pond. Luckily Dumbledore called in a favour or two and was able to secure me some help. In the end one of the Yanks said I was 'Damn useful for a Brit' and gave me this. Best present I've ever gotten. Yank even named this little beauty. Can't pronounce it, but he said it meant 'Cougar's Claw'. Thought all in all it might be appropriate for you. Now, most folk on this island still get itchy about someone carrying a 'weapon' around so openly, bloody hypocrites, carrying a wand that can kill just as easily. So I'll show you how to carry this with robes and without."
"What if I'm naked?" Harry queried.
Sebastian frowned, "Yes, that does seem to happen quite a bit. In that case just strap it to your thigh and beat cheeks. Under no circumstances are you to leave this. Am I understood?"
Harry nodded quickly and stood as Sebastian did. Twenty minutes later, Harry walked out of the Prewett house with his new tool strapped closely and unobtrusively down his leg, the handle barely protruding from the new rip in his jeans.
oOo
The morning of August thirty-first was a normal one in the Weasley household. It brought strife, whining, yelling and frequent motherly admonishments as Molly Weasley tried to whip her family into a cohesive shopping unit for their day trip to Diagon Alley. "BOYS! Get yourselves down here this instant! We've all five of you to shop for and I don't want to be hanging about all day. Arthur, would you please do something about those twins of yours, and Ginny, where is Harry? He's supposed to go with us." The last statement carried an involuntary frown with it.
It wasn't as though Molly wasn't grateful to the boy for saving her sons; she just didn't think he was a positive influence when there wasn't imminent danger. She certainly wasn't at all sure about her only daughter spending so much time alone with the boy. Molly remembered her first crush and while nothing remotely scandalous had come from it, well… children were growing up faster these days. Unfortunately, she couldn't come up with a decent enough reason for her children not to associate with young Mr. Potter, not to mention the familial strife from her Aunt and Uncle.
"Mum, he's not here. I'm going to go see if he's at Auntie's," Ginny yelled on her way out the door.
"Ginny, wait this moment!" Molly hollered after her wayward daughter, but looking out the front door she was already gone.
Harry was having a wonderful dream. He was prowling the dense jungles of Africa, stalking caribou, elephant, and a giant, sentient, pre-cooked ham. He was closing in on them… closer… closer, when the ham turned and gave him a giant sloppy lick.
Startled from his dream the slayer of snakes and charmer of women looked up to confront a giant lion's head.
"MEROWW!" Harry screeched, momentarily taken aback. This of course woke the rest of the pride up, who had quite similar reactions, until the offending head removed its self from the family sleeping den.
Father gave his son a look that clearly read, 'she's here for you, go take care of it.' So, Harry cautiously set foot outside the den and locked eyes with the monstrous lioness before him. Her red fur was shining brightly in the early morning sun and the playful brown eyes finally jogged Harry's memory enough for him to respond.
'Ginny!'
'Harry?'
'You can change! How, when? That is sexing incredible!'
Ginny blushed at the praise and let out a roar that shook houses in the centre of town. Inside, Arabella frantically put on her dressing gown and slippers to locate the source of the noise, while her brother, reading the paper, merely smiled.
"I was wondering when she'd get around to it. She's faster than I thought," he murmured.
Arabella, was outside a few moments later to find both kids dancing a ridiculous jig and laughing hysterically. "Children, what was that noise? I don't want you out here if something's escaped from the zoo."
They both rolled their eyes at the protective old woman. "Auntie, I bet it was just an invention of Fred and George's gone wrong, and there isn't a zoo for miles. We're fine I promise," Ginny reassured her. Looking at Harry she continued, "I was sent to come get you. We have to go to get our school things today."
Nodding, both cats in human form began the arduous two legged trek back to the burrow, which gave Harry the chance to interrogate his human on her rather unorthodox wake-up methods.
"Sparkplug, when did you make the change? That's fantastic. It took me months before I could change smoothly. Wow… you're fantastic you know that. You've only been practicing for a couple months yourself."
Ginny blushed at the compliment, but felt she needed to set the record straight. "I changed once last night, but it took me the rest of the night to change back, and this morning I didn't mean to. It just sort of happened."
Harry's smile faltered a little. "Oh… well, you still did it! We'll have you as a regular lioness in no time. Ohhh… Hogwarts Mum will be surprised! They'll be asking you for all sorts of help this year, I'm sure of it."
"That wouldn't be so bad. I'd like to help them, after last year," Ginny said sadly.
Harry's faltering smile turned into a full blown frown. "Yeah, so would I, but we can't change it. All we can do is keep helping them, but enough of this morose shite. I'm getting depressed and today is a happy day!"
"And why is that?" Ginny asked. She certainly couldn't remember a reason why today was any more special than the last.
"Because, today we get you your own wand," Harry smiled broadly.
Ginny blushed and sputtered again. "Paws, I told you I can make do with the one I have."
"Of course you can, but no human of mine is going to 'make do' when I've a large hole in the ground full of shiny things!" Harry proclaimed.
"'Your human' huh? I don't know if I like that or not. Just don't expect me to scratch by your tail if you've only two legs," Ginny muttered. Harry grinned. A grin that was quickly wiped off his face when the frantic voice of Molly Weasley, the greatest witch of all time, began to assault his delicate senses.
"Ginevra Molly Wesley! Where have you been? Took off right out the door, with no note and I'd no notion of where you'd gone off to. You could have been hurt or killed and I'd never known it. When we get to Diagon Alley, young lady, you aren't to move more than six feet from me!" Turning and making eye contact with Harry, the frazzled matriarch added as an obvious afterthought, "Oh, hello Harry dear. I'd hoped you'd turn up today. Arabella asked me to take you to buy your school things today. Now come along you lot, we've much to do and far less time to do it in."
Harry and Ginny exchanged confused looks. The woman had no volume control, it seemed. She was on or off. Harry thought briefly and nodded approvingly, this was very Kneazle-like.
oOo
Diagon Alley was crowded as usual, which made Harry highly uncomfortable, as usual. The crowd of red-heads plus one picked their way through shops, and street vendors on their mission to gather necessary supplies for the coming school year.
After leaving Gringotts, their first stop was Flourish and Blotts. "Hello, dears, is there anything I can help you with?" An overly sweet saleswitch asked. Harry gagged involuntarily on the stench of her perfume.
"Yes, we've gathered all the standard books here, but several of my children are going to need the 'Monster Book of Monsters', and I can't seem to find a copy anywhere," Molly said, looking carefully at the school book list.
The saleswitch's smile faltered slightly. "Errr… how many exactly do you need?"
"Just you and Harry, Ron?" Ron nodded fervently.
"Two then." The saleswitch paled further.
"Three, please!" A voice came through the crowd. In another moment a very ruffled Hermione appeared and solved the mystery of the source.
"Three?"
"Definitely three," Molly confirmed.
"Hermione!" Ron exclaimed, and then much more gruffly subdued, "Hello then. Had a good summer?" Harry noticed Ron never quite met her eyes.
"Oh yes! We had a wonderful time. My parents took me to France and we toured all over and stopped in Dijon and Paris…"
"You stepped in mustard?" Ron asked, shocked. "I wouldn't think you'd be too chuffed about that."
"Honestly, Ron, I stopped in Dijon. The city in France. Ughhh… sometimes boys can be so thick." Hermione stared imploringly at Ginny to understand. The other girl merely giggled.
"How was I to know? It's not like I've ever been to the bloody place, and with all this noise it's bloody hard to hear!"
Harry shook his head and grabbed Ginny's hand. He'd seen something moving in a cage by the wall and was curious to find out what it was. To his and Ginny's shock, it was a pile of books that said 'Monster Book of Monsters' on a sign above the cage. There were still quite a few of them and the saleswitch seemed to be struggling with one of them as it tried to bite her hand.
"Curse these things! School books or not, this is the last year I'll stock them. You mark my words," the manager shouted as another book he was trying to extract clamped solidly on his fingers.
Harry and Ginny watched for another minute as the sales staff continued to battle the ferocious texts with little success. The boy-Kneazle's face was screwed up into a deep concentrated scowl of thought. They were going about it all wrong. How could witches and wizards know so much about so much and still not understand the most basic concepts.
Striding boldly up to the manager, Harry asked in his most pleasant and helpful voice, "Pardon me sir, would you like some help with those?"
Taken momentarily aback, the manager grimaced as another book latched onto a digit he had failed to keep out of harm's way. "Boy, if you think you can do this any better, then I'd be delighted to see how." The man shook his head and removed all body parts out of the cage and away from further damage.
Harry gave a slight bow and then reached in to grab one of the angry books, only to pull out his hand a second later nursing a very sore middle finger. The raucous laughter of several men behind him did nothing to deter the fearsome purpose with which Harry now felt himself charged. "So that's how it's going to be, you little buggers?" he muttered.
Quick as a flash, Harry snatched a book from the cage and let go, the ferocious volume falling on the floor. Several people began to scream, but it was cut off by the barbarous and bloodthirsty roar that ripped from the young teen's throat as he slammed his hand on to the snapping pages. The book went still as our feral hero grabbed the spine in his teeth and shook it hard, emitting a long low growl. The book did not open again. One onlooker would later claim that he swore he saw the book… shudder.
Setting it gently in his shopping bag, Harry turned and stared brightly at the manager. "How much, for this one?"
The man could only stammer, "It's free if you leave with it now…"
Harry's smile brightened. Sometimes it was nice when people recognised a quality job when they saw it. Whistling a happy tune he led Ginny back through a crowd that parted like the Red Sea, as if even touching the teen could turn them into a beast of similar savagery. Harry seemed oblivious to the looks of shock and even fear that came his way, until he met back with the clan of his Human.
"What was that awful noise?" Molly asked
"Oh, that was me," Harry replied. "I was exerting dominance."
"What?" Arthur asked faintly, as he rubbed his hand blearily over his face. He was starting to think he should have bagged off and gone for a pint.
"I was exerting dominance, over the book."
"He really did, Daddy!" Ginny rushed out, and then proceeded to explain precisely why the books needed to be dominated.
"Oh dear… Arthur, would you take the children for ice cream? I'm going to finish up here and then maybe we can get new robes for Ginny and Percy."
Nodding silently, Arthur rushed his entire brood, plus two, out the doors and down the street to Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.
"Harry, did you really make that awful noise?" Hermione asked. Harry nodded and then proceeded to tune his friend completely out. He liked her, he really did, but she had no talent for understanding how the natural world worked.
Twenty minutes later, the entire group had just about finished up their late morning treat when Molly bustled over her face as red as her hair. "Harry, may I talk to you a moment?" Her voice was sweet, but had an undercurrent of ice to it. All the Weasley children recognised that tone, and shuddered involuntarily. Sensing an opportunity, Harry quickly ate the last bite of ice cream off Ginny's spoon and hopped off his chair, ignoring her sputtering protests.
Following Molly to an area that seemed slightly less crowded, Harry was confronted suddenly and without warning by the full force of Molly's anger.
"Harry, do you have any idea what you did in there? I've agreed to take you shopping for your things as a favour to Aunt Arabella, and she assured me you'd be on your best behaviour. Scaring half the book shop and causing a scene of that size is hardly what I would call even remotely decent behaviour. Now, what do you have to say for yourself?" She fixed him with her best mum intimidation glare and dared him to say the wrong thing. Luckily, Harry was a Gryffindor, so a lack of social tact and compensating amounts of bravery seemed to come standard issue.
"Mum Weasley, I handled the situation as I thought best. I have an acute understanding of these types of things and I don't need you to tell me off for making the book behave itself. I don't see Sebastian yelling at you when you discipline Ginny or the twins."
Molly sputtered and, if possible, turned redder. "YOUNG MAN! That is a completely different situation. What you did in there was…"
"No different than throwing a Kneazle off your window sill for eating pie crumbs. You did that, because you sensed the Kneazle was misbehaving. He wasn't, but these books were and I needed to show them you don't bite the hand that reads you." Harry glared back at the fuming matriarch. He wasn't going to be pushed around on this. He was right, dammit!
Molly stared down at the ward of her Aunt and Uncle. He was infuriating. She wondered idly how he hadn't managed to get himself thrown out of Hogwarts. He had to be taught a lesson, and he needed to learn respect. She was right, dammit!
Sensing they were at an impasse and unwilling to discipline a child not her own, she finally huffed and said, "Fine, but we're having words with Arabella and Sebastian when we get back."
"I hope we do," Harry replied grimly.
The Weasley clan seemed to be surprised at the relative speed with which the encounter was resolved, but Arthur couldn't help the feeling he'd still be sleeping on the couch tonight.
"We're going to get some new robes next. Come on you lot," Molly declared in a tone that would brook no argument.
"What did you say to her?" Ron asked in complete wonderment.
"Told her the books needed to be disciplined, and she took exception," Harry replied.
"You're mental, you know that right?" Ron said, shaking his head. "The bravest Gryffindor that may have ever lived, but completely mental."
Slinking next to Ginny as they headed to the second hand robe shop, Harry pointed at Ollivander's standing right next to it. It seemed like a sign from providence.
"Come on, Sparkplug. We won't get a better chance than this!"
"Paws, Mum will be furious. You can't just up and buy me a new wand," Ginny hissed back.
"Ginny, as your Kneazle protector, it is my job to make sure you can fend for yourself as well. You need a good wand for that. Now come on. She can't make you take it back and I've already got the money. Let's go!"
Grabbing Ginny by the hand, Harry rushed her into the dim interior of the wand maker's shop. "Hello, what may I do for you today?" The spindly body of old man Ollivander appeared from behind the counter, eying the two wayward teens.
"Ginny needs a wand. If you could find one for her," Harry asked as politely as he could manage.
"Ah, of course. The youngest Weasley… I was wondering when I'd be seeing you here. Now, what do we have to work with, hmmm?" Ten minutes and seven wands later, Ginny shot red and gold sparks from the tip of a very unusual wand.
"Curioser and curioser, what to make of this my dear."
"What? Is it something bad, sir?" Ginny asked timidly.
"No, a wand choosing the witch or wizard is never something to be concerned about. I am simply shocked at the match."
"What's so unusual about it?" Ginny said, more boldly this time.
"Well my dear, there are components to every wand and the Phoenix that gave the feather for this wand gave one other only. Terrible and great things were performed with that wand, it belongs to the darkest of wizards. He-who-must-not-be-named."
Ginny gasped and Harry's eyes took on a cold look. "This is the… sibling to Voldemort's wand?" Harry asked quietly. Ollivander nodded.
"Is it possible for me to get a different wand?" Ginny softly muttered, clearly not meaning to be overheard. Unfortunately, Ollivander's hearing was quite good, despite his age.
"No, my dear. I am quite afraid that once a wand chooses you another will not until you connection with that is broken. I would think you would be quite pleased. A perfect match such as that will provide you with superior magic. Most would be pleased, a powerful wand such as that destines the user for great things."
"I'd be doing a happy dance if my brand new wand wasn't cosmically connected to the most evil man of all time," Ginny muttered again.
"How much for the wand, sir?" Harry interrupted. He sensed their time before Molly discovered their absence was diminishing at a rapid rate.
"Seven Galleons."
Harry paid the money and hurried a still muttering Ginny out of the creepy store and back into the second hand robes next door, right into the baleful glare of one Molly Weasley. Today was shaping up to be one fantastic time, Ginny thought caustically.
"Where have you two been?" Molly shouted. "I turn around and you're nowhere to be seen, could have gone to lord knows where. I tell you to stay close and where do you go gallivanting off to?"
"Ollivanders!" Harry supplied, cheerfully. It felt nice to finally be able to answer a question right. He been spending the day up to that point receiving a thorough tongue lashing, and certainly not the beneficial kind that Mum would give.
"What on earth did you need to go to Ollivander's for?"
"Ginny needed a new wand, and I wanted my yearly case of dust poisoning. Luckily we were able kill two mice with one paw." Ginny giggled involuntarily at Harry's off-beat saying, earning her the baleful eye of her mother.
"And how may I ask, Ginevra, did you manage to afford such a thing?"
"I bought it," Harry interjected again. "So, perhaps you can add that on to the things you wish to have Arabella scold me about later and we can be on our way?" Harry gave his best disarming smile and motioned for Molly to lead the way into the interior of the shop.
An hour later, Molly's wrath had subsided slightly, when Hermione spoke up. "Ron, I've some pocket money left that my parents gave me, and I'd like to get a birthday present. Any ideas?"
"A book?" Ron offered.
"A can of Kneazle treats?" Harry supplied.
"An owl." Ginny proffered. At this, Hermione practically glowed.
"Great idea! An owl of my own. It would be quite useful."
"Magical Menagerie is right near here, you could just pop in and get one. Better hurry, I think Mum's getting a bit anxious," Ron finished.
"Would you like to come with me?" Hermione asked the group. Ron was agreeable, but Ginny and Harry declined.
"I think Mum would go spare if I did another disappearing act," Ginny regretfully informed them.
"Harry?"
]
"It's like touring a prison. I can't."
"Ok, mate, but don't say we didn't ask."
Twenty minutes later Harry could hear their exit before he spotted them. They were arguing about Hermione's choice of pet if Ron's ranting was anything to go by. "I can't believe you got that monster!" Ron ranted.
"He isn't a monster, are you, Crookshanks?" Hermione cooed.
A few seconds later, Harry was able to spot what all the fuss was about and he was shocked. It was a half-Kneazle with a bottle brush tail and the most fabulous orange coat. The cat radiated cool, confident and deadly. If this cat were human, Harry reflected, he'd be wearing all dragon skin leathers, aviator sunglasses, and driving a flying motorbike, either a Triumph or Harley-Davidson, if Mr. Weasley's posters were anything to go by.
"Are you his?" Harry asked in awe.
"He's my pet, Harry. His name is Crookshanks," Hermione said, a little confused.
"Hey, buddy. Don't worry, she just doesn't understand yet," Harry whispered to the orange ball of pure awesome residing in his friend's arms. Crookshanks gave him an appraising once-over and leaped from Hermione's startled arms delicately onto Harry's shoulder where he was rewarded with furious chin scratching.
"He likes you, Harry!"
"Senses a kindred spirit, more like," Ginny muttered.
Ron merely glared. "Can't believe you like him too. I figured someone might be on my side."
Harry merely ignored his friend; he was deep in conversation with the new Duke of Orange.
You pick her? You have good taste, Harry began. He was improving at speaking with the forest animals while in human form.
You can talk the talk, how? Crookshanks was so surprised he almost fell off his perch. Harry laughed a little.
I can also walk the walk cousin. Ask Isis, she made me. When you find out, let me know.
We're going to Hogwarts? Crookshanks asked carefully.
Yes, you'll love it. Forests filled with prey, giant Kneazle rending predators to avoid and burrows everywhere.
Sounds fantastic, I'll need to watch my Human.
They will allow for that. I am with her most of the time, so you can prowl with me.
Fantastic, cousin. I think I'll love it there.
We definitely need to get you a motorbike, though. Harry murmured.
What? What's that?
Oh… never mind, let's go, your human is starting to give us strange looks./i
"Harry, what are you doing?" Hermione finally asked perplexed. She rather felt like she was listening to one half of a conversation on the telephone.
"Bonding with the crown prince of mousers," Harry replied.
"Oh." And that was all Hermione or anyone else could think to say.
oOo
Harry sat on Sebastian's lap, enjoying the old man's gentle hands smoothing his fur and rubbing his ears as the colourful sounds of Molly Weasley and her Aunt's argument raged in the background. It was nice not being in there to bear the brunt of the Weasley matriarch's anger.
"He's the most ill-tempered, rude boy I've ever met. I don't know what you and Uncle are doing with him, but I won't stand for his ill behaviour to rub off on my children," Molly shouted.
"Molly, he's a wonderful boy. I don't know what you think he did, but…"
"What did he do?" Molly then proceeded to regale her Aunt with the stories of that day's infractions. At the end, Harry could hear his aged caretaker slump deeply into a chair.
"Thank, Merlin. For a moment I'd imagined he'd run naked through the town or tried to kill someone again. Really, Molly, in the grand scheme of things what did he do? He bought your daughter a wand, to which among most polite societies it is customary to say thank you, and he happened to embarrass you in a bookshop. Your pride was offended, niece, merely your sense of propriety. Harry has a strong will and he's used to doing things a certain way. Sebastian and I are too old to go chasing Kneazles anymore and as long as it isn't strictly illegal I see no reason for him to be punished. I know this doesn't agree with your sense of parenting, Molly, but he's had a bit of a different upbringing that your brood and I can't say that he should be handled the same way. The boy is loyal to you and your family and would protect that daughter of yours with more than his life. Merlin, this past year he fought a Basilisk to save two of your sons! I won't suggest you apologise, but I would say that in the future you should treat him more like a wandering spirit than a child of your womb," Arabella finished speaking and Harry could hear the fatigue in her voice. She didn't often get into arguments and they tended to wear her out.
Hopping off Sebastian's lap, he headed over to the Pride's caretaker and gave standard Kneazle emotional support. He ran a figure eight around her legs purring like a finely tuned Jaguar. Stealing a glance at the red-haired witch, Harry saw that she was put out with the telling off, but wouldn't say anything further for fear of upsetting her aunt.
"I'm still not happy about it, Auntie."
"Molly, I don't expect you to be. Sebastian and I are eternally grateful that you've been helping us keep an eye on the boy, but in the end he is our responsibility."
With the conversation over, Molly turned to leave only to be intercepted by her Uncle.
"One thing, if you will. Since today has been so trying on you, I'll take Harry to the station. No need for further aggravation," Sebastian smiled gently.
Molly appeared visibly relieved. "Thank you, Uncle. I am trying to like him, I am."
"He does make it rather difficult sometimes though, doesn't he?" Sebastian supplied. His niece merely nodded. "No worries, Molly. I'll have a talk with him about trying to keep the peace. In the meantime, I do believe it is almost supper time."
AN:
Here we are with Chapter 26 and several of my favourite scenes to write ever. Now, some people may be saying 'it is too soon for Ginny to be an Animagus' please remain calm. She doesn't have full control yet, and certainly not like Harry. She is also a very powerful witch. Hope this satisfies. Another 2 before 27 comes out, but I hope you'll bear with me. Leave beer and reviews, they keep me ever so motivated.