Chapter 6- We shopped 'til we dropped.
Daniel Granger decided that he really loved old Tom, barkeep of the Leaky Cauldron. There had to be some sort of magical ingredient that the man used in his cooking, because not even his dear grandmother's stew could soothe his soul the way that Tom's did. And after the last twenty-four hours that Dan had had, it would take a lot to calm him. The sensation of his mind rapidly moving through time had been jarring to say the least. He and Jean had been minding their own business, watching a real estate show set in Australia, when suddenly they were six years younger and looking into the face of their equally suddenly eleven year old daughter. He still had a migraine from the explanation that the archangel had given. And don't even get him started on the whole Gabriel thing. The time travel he could understand since Hermione had told him all about Time-Turners, but Gabriel had really thrown a spanner in his works. He was an atheist after all! When the first thing he did was tell Gabriel about that, the archangel just chuckled and said 'Same'. How the fuck was he supposed to react to that?
Shaking his head to clear away the strange memory, he focused on the scene in front of him. Harry and Hermione were laughing at stories from their original timeline. It bought a smile to his face to see his daughter so relatively care-free. During the last few years in the original timeline, he had watched his daughter turn from a bookish girl trying to prove her worth, into a battle hardened warrior that knew her strength. At least this situation might let her actually enjoy her childhood for just a bit longer. 'No,' Dan thought. 'She is already making plans on how to change things. Knowing Hermione, she won't stop planning until she has explored every variable. And now, with her knowledge of the future, there are nearly infinite paths. I wonder which ones she and Harry will take.'
Finding out that the boy in front of him was his daughter's Soul Mate didn't shock Dan as much as it probably should have. During her early years at Hogwarts, Harry was all his daughter could talk about. Her best and most loyal friend, Dan had accepted that Harry would always be in Hermione's life, whether as her constant friend or her partner in life. He had been shocked when the letters changed in Hermione's sixth year. Nearly all mention of Harry had disappeared, and his name had been replaced with Ronald Weasley. The Granger's had been very confused. Wasn't this Ron the one that treated their tenuous friendship as something that could be thrown away at a moments notice if he didn't like something that Hermione had said? Wasn't it the same Ron that had nearly killed her in her first year because he couldn't keep his cruel mouth shut? The very same boy that had thrown Harry to the dragon's because the boy was jealous that Harry had been put in another deadly situation against his will?
It hadn't made sense at all until Gabriel had told them about the Love potions that had been purged from Hermione's system. The way that Hermione had been acting during her last summer in the original timeline had suddenly made sense. For the first week, Hermione had done nothing but talk about how glad she was that Ron had broken up with Lavender. She was so lovesick that she hadn't even shed a tear that Dumbledore, a man whom she believed at the time was the epitome of good, had died. No, the tears began on the second week, when the Love potions had began to wear off.
Dan looked at Harry again and decided that he would do everything that he could to be a father to the boy. He had heard from Hermione that the boy was mistreated by his family, but had chosen to believe that maybe she was exaggerating a bit. He could see now that she obviously didn't even know the half of it. Daniel had seen better treated kids in the charity dentistry program that they participated in for mothers and children that had left an abusive household. Even under the glamours, Harry looked like he had been practically starved for most of his life, and as much as he was trying to hide it, bruised. No more, Dan decided. No longer.
Unaware of her father's thoughts, Hermione had began planning with Harry how they would tackle his shopping. Price was no longer an issue for either of them, and they decided to take full advantage of the fact. Both teens decided that a top of the line trunk was in order. The best trunks that money could buy were so well protected, that breaking into one was as hard as breaking into Gringotts. It would take days to disarm all of the charms and traps on the chest, and by that point the would-be-thief would be caught. Combined with a Sticking charm that was keyed to the owner of the trunk, and it wasn't going anywhere. There was at least one person in Gryffindor house that had sticky fingers, and they both believed that it was Ron.
The other advantage of the top of the line trunks was the Undetectable Extension charms. Both Hermione and Harry planned on buying many books to study, so the charm would get a good workout. Hermione decided that she wanted to buy every history book that she could get her hands on so that she could try and find more cases where Dumbledore had interfered with the truth. Harry wanted to buy books on Magical Law, so that he could try and get Sirius out of Azkaban as soon as possible, while incriminating Dumbledore as much as he could.
Before shopping for anything else though, they both decided unanimously that Harry should go and get his wand from Ollivanders first. They wanted to keep their Founder wands a secret for as long as they could, and they knew that Garrick Ollivander would undoubtedly alert Dumbledore if Harry never went to him for his wand. They decided it would be best for Harry to go in without Hermione, as her presence might attract questions that he wasn't prepared to answer.
"Shit. Hermione, there's a slight issue with our plan. I don't exactly look like myself at the moment, and there's just a one hundred percent chance that Ollivander will realise and tell Dumbledore." Harry told Hermione in a panic. As he did so however, a note floated down in front of him, seemingly appearing out of thin air. The handwriting was becoming very familiar to him as to belonging to Gabriel.
'Don't panic kiddo, I'm not stalking you. I've been listening in all day in case you needed me to drop the glamours. While I can't physically be there, there's no risk of ripping Reality if I influence your world from mine. A weird loophole, I know. But, it rather works in our favour. So, I can drop your glamour as you walk into the shop, and put it back up as you leave. As an added bonus, I've been working on a little… Something something. Garrick Ollivander will believe that you have arrived to get your wand on your birthday, and that you are being escorted by Hagrid, just as this event happened in your original timeline. I'm also implanting the memories of that day onto Rubeus Hagrid as well. As nice as that friendly giant is, there is no denying that he is loyal to Dumbledore to a fault. I had been planning on doing the same for Griphook, but it appears that the goblins got there before I did. So, feel free to shop until your legs feel like you have had a Jelly-legs jinx cast on you, and have fun,' The note read. Harry felt that weight lift off his his shoulders, and sent a silent thanks to his favourite archangel.
He handed the note to Hermione, and smiled at the way her face lit up. He could see her brain ticking at the possibilities, and he fell for her just that little bit more. Before he has started being drugged with love potions, Harry had been trying to work up the courage to ask her out. He had never told anyone, not even Ron, how he had felt about his female best friend. But, he realised, someone had known. He cast his mind back to his sixth year, when he had begun exploring Riddle's memories with Dumbledore. What a waste of time that had been. But, what struck Harry was a question that Dumbledore had asked about Hermione. About whether she was more than a friend to Harry. Dumbledore must have been testing if the Love potions keyed to Ginny had taken ahold of him yet. Harry sighed, thinking that they would need to try and compile a year by year list of Dumbledore's meddlings so that they could try and prevent them.
Deciding that there was no time like the present, the group departed the pub and went back into the Alley. It was a good thing that Hermione had already gotten her 'Ministry approved' wand, as she was able to open the brick doorway. Ollivanders was the furthest shop from the entrance, so they
decided that they would go straight there and work their way back towards the Leaky Cauldron. As usual, the Alley was quite busy with early school shoppers. Some families liked to get the school shopping out of the way as soon as possible so that the children could have the opportunity to study their textbooks. The Weasley's did no such thing, and left it all to the last minute, the same way that they always arrived at the Hogwarts express with barely moments to spare. And so Harry was surprised when he saw flash of Weasley red hair and the jarring voice of Molly Weasley.
It appeared that the group had just arrived, as Molly appeared to be giving the five children in front of her instructions. Harry decided to move a little bit closer, curious as to what she could be saying. She had never looked so serious about a Diagon Alley visit that he had ever seen in the original timeline, and he quickly discovered why.
"Now kids, you have a very special job today. With some luck, Ron will be meeting his new best friend, and Ginny will be meeting her future husband. Now, you all remember what Harry looks like yes? Professor Dumbledore said that you would all be rewarded if we did a good job. Now, chop chop. Ginny, you stay with me darling. " Molly Weasley said as she split her children up. Fred and George walked towards the Leaky Cauldron, Ron went towards Ollivanders, and Ginny and Molly went to Gringotts. If it weren't for his disguise, Harry would have been effectively penned in.
The group thought it was best to follow behind the youngest male Weasley, and see if they could sneak Harry into Ollivander's when the dimwit wasn't looking. It didn't take long though for them to realise that once again, Ron was half-assing his job. Instead of stopping at Ollivander's, Ron went a little further and across the street to a curious shop called Odds and Ends. The store sold well… Odds and Ends. There was nothing that the store wouldn't buy and attempt to sell. What had gotten Ron's attention was the semi functioning brooms currently on display. Using the opportunity, Harry slipped into the wand shop.
The wand shop was just as Harry remembered it. Creepy. It was curious how he had never seen another soul in the shop, yet it was where everyone in magical Britain bought their wand from. Then again, how often did people buy wands? Garrick Ollivander was guaranteed at least forty to sixty customers each year, depending on how many students were about to start their first year at Hogwarts. And even then, some students received a hand me down wand, like Ron or Neville.
Harry knew that somewhere amongst the rows and stacks of wands lay the Holly and Phoenix tail wand that he had used in the original timeline. He was eager to compare the feeling of the wand to that of the Founder's wands. Would it feel weak in comparison, or would it be suitable as a day to day wand? He knew that regardless of the outcome, he needed a wand that would be registered with the Ministry that wouldn't cause alarm. All of the wands that he had ever seen had been made of a single wood type and one core. The sight of a wand made of six different woods would attract questions that he and Hermione weren't ready to answer.
Ollivander arrived at the front of the store much as he had in the original timeline, without any deviance from his speech either. Perhaps it was the same spiel that he used for all of his customers.
As quickly as he had began, a wand was handed to Harry. Harry knew instantly that the wand was wrong; Where he felt his magic flow through his Founder's wand, it was as though this wand had no magic at all. At a shake of his head, Ollivander tried another.
It took a few tries before Ollivander got a distant look in his eyes, and began muttering to himself. Harry heard the words "I wonder," a few times before a very familiar wand was placed in front of him. He immediately knew that something was wrong however. The concealed Lordship ring began to vibrate ever so slightly. Using his magic to try and reach out towards the odd sensation, Harry was shocked when he heard a whisper. "Confundus charm," it seemed to say, followed by "Compulsion charm". It seemed that someone really wanted him to pick up and use the wand. What they didn't count on, was Harry having the knowledge that he did.
Channeling his magic in the same technique that he used while fighting off the Imperius Curse, Harry fought off the effects of the charms as he picked up the Holly wand. Holding his original wand once more, Harry was surprised to feel nothing for the wand. In that moment, Harry knew that the Holly wand would never be effective for him again. Even some of the previous wands that he had tried fit him better than the one from his original timeline. Harry had a moment of clarity; The Horcrux. A piece of Voldemort's soul that Dumbledore still believed was contained within Harry. Voldemort's wand contained a brother Phoenix feather to the wand in his hand. The tail feather in his original wand must have been resonating with the soul fragment. It was the only explanation that Harry could think of.
Ollivander seemed to hold his breath as Harry had looked at the wand, and released it when he believed that the charms were working correctly. When Harry shook his head, Ollivander was shocked. The boy needed to use that wand! The brother wands must meet once more! "Harry boy, are you quite sure? This wand has the most unique connection to you. See, the phoenix feather contained within this wand has a brother. Just one brother. It just so happens, that the brother wand was the one that gave you your scar," Ollivander tried to reason with the boy.
Harry simply shook his head. "Sorry Mister Ollivander, but I felt nothing for this wand. Some of the other wands made my magic tingle a little, but this one did nothing at all." At the defeated slump of Ollivander's shoulders, Harry knew that he had said the right thing. Once again, Ollivander disappeared into the rows of wands, coming back moments later with more wands.
Harry had tested two dozen wands before he found one that seemed to be a good enough fit. Ollivander seemed happy that he had finally matched this most difficult customers was a satisfactory wand. The wand itself was a curious one however. It was one of the few Acacia wood wands that Ollivander stocked, as it was a difficult wand wood to place. Even more curious was the core; A feather from a hippogriff named Buckbeak. Rubeus Hagrid, the gamekeeper of Hogwarts sometimes allowed Garrick to gather wand ingredients from the denizens of the Forbidden Forest. It was during one such expedition that he acquired the feather from the majestic hippogriff. He had combined the feather with the wood as an experiment really. Acacia wood was so hard to place with a wizard not only because of how loyal it was, but because it required an exceptionally gifted person to be able to use it at all. Combined with the feather, it was a wand that would work for one person, and one person alone. The wand wasn't just unyielding; it had now formed an unbreakable bond to the young wizard in front of him.
Curious. "It's not always clear why the wand chooses the wizard. I suppose that it why it was foolish of me to think that the Holly and Phoenix feather wand would suite you. However, one thing is clear from this wand Mr Potter. We can expect big things from you." Ollivander accepted seven galleons for the wand, and watched the boy leave the store. Dumbledore wouldn't be happy that Harry had picked the wrong wand, but there was nothing that could be done about it. Ollivander had a reputation to uphold after all.
Back outside of the shop, Hermione watched Ron move from Odd's and Ends and go straight to Gambol and Japes, the joke shop of the time. While she wasn't a huge fan of pranks, she couldn't deny that Fred and George would run a superior joke shop in the future. She was curious however to see where the loyalty of the boys would lie. Would they support their mother in her attempts to essentially enslave her and Harry? Or would they be the trusted supporters that she knew them to be? Only time would tell really.
Harry showed the group his new wand, and told them how his old wand had a Confundus and Compulsion charm on it. He heard Hermione mutter 'Dumbledore' under her breathe, and couldn't help but agree. It was too coincidental to actually be coincidental. He told her how the Lordship ring began to hum at the presence of the charms. Hermione was thrilled, and couldn't wait to study the rings in more detail. Something told the two that the rings would save them from a lot of trouble in the future.
The group decided that the next stop would be to Madam Primpernelle's Beautifying Potions to get a hefty batch of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion. While she sometimes found it bothersome to use on an everyday basis, Hermione decided that she wanted to do everything that she could in this timeline to limit any possible teasing about her looks. It was why one of the first things she had asked Gabriel to do when he returned her to her eleven year old body was to fix her teeth. To some it might seem vain, but she and Harry had more important things to worry about than teasing and the like. Once she had bought enough potions to last the year, the group started walking towards Twilfit and Tattings to buy robes. However, a flash of ginger in the corner of her eye caught Hermione's attention.
Sitting in the window of Magical Menagerie was the ugliest squash faced kitten that had ever graced the earth. Hermione squealed in delight. It was a baby Crookshanks! When she had first gotten her familiar in third year, the owner of the pet store had told her how the half kneazle had been in the shop for years, as no one wanted him. The owner felt sorry for the feline, and so they kept him around as like a store pet. Hermione was delighted; she thought she was going to have to wait for two more years before she was reunited with her beloved pet. Without even saying a word to the group, she simply grabbed at the two closest arms and began dragging them into the store. Jean and Harry got quite the shock from that until the both saw the kitten and immediately understood. Crookshanks was to Hermione as Hedwig was to Harry- a constant companion in the original timeline that never abandoned them, and in a way that only a familiar could, made everything better. Without a second thought, Hermione bought Crookshanks and all of the pet related things that she needed for her handsome boy. Hermione was still cooing over the pet carrier as the group left the store.
As they were about to pass Gringotts though, Hermione's cooing was replaced with a thoughtful look, until she eventually stopped dead in her tracks. At Harry's inquisitive look, she sighed, looking disappointed at herself for forgetting one of the most critical things that they were supposed to do at the bank.
"The blood wards Harry. We completely forgot about the bloody blood wards."
A/N I just wanted to thank all those that reviewed, it really means a lot to me. In particular, thank you to all those that mentioned the blood wards. I won't lie, I had forgotten about them in the Bank, and realised as I was writing this chapter. Thank you all for pointing out continuity errors if you find them. Sometimes after reading your own material so much, it becomes hard to pick up on things. I make sure that I do go back and correct the error once I'm alerted to it, so your contribution does matter and makes for a smoother piece for future readers.
And as to those wondering about the Horcrux in the cup, the answer is simple. They can't deal with it yet because the cup isn't in the Lestrange Vault right now. We never actually find out when in the stories that the cup is placed in the vault, but in this story we are going to go by the assumption that Voldemort gives the cup to Bellatrix to guard after she breaks out of Azkaban because of how loyal she had proven herself to be. Also, does anyone else find it weird how Voldemort was entrusting pieces of his soul to other people i.e. the diary with Lucius? If it were me, I'd drop them in the most obscure places in the world. Like the bottom of the ocean, or a pyramid in Egypt.
Random thought of the week; Exactly how sensitive is werewolf hearing I wonder? Enough to break through a weak enough silencing charm? If so, I wonder what sort of things Remus has heard over the years that he really wishes he hadn't? Maybe we will find out...