The Hogwarts letters had arrived at Black manor four days after they had come to live with Sirius. He had tried to convince Sirius to go to Diagon Alley right away so they could avoid the annoying crowds that were sure to crop up later in the summer, but Sirius was adamant that they would go on his birthday so he and Gaara could get him a birthday present while they were there. He wasn't happy that he needed to wait to start studying his school books so he could make a good impression on the teachers and his fellow students. He would also be spending his birthday shopping for school supplies. He huffed out a disgruntled sigh as he sat in the dining nook nursing his morning tea while he waited for the others to wake up.
Sirius had been very enthusiastic about having him around. The problem he had found was that Sirius seemed to expect him to behave in a certain way. It was like Sirius had decided before they ever met that he would be the exact opposite of himself. Sirius was trying very hard to see him as a young James Potter in order to reclaim his wrongfully convicted best friend. As a result he had felt the need to once again don the mask he had abandoned since the academy in order to keep Sirius happy, at least for the rest of the summer. It had been hard to keep up the act because he despised that mask completely for what it represented about the village and his childhood. But he felt that it was worth it to make his life easier for the time being.
Sirius had spent most of his week off trying to start a prank war while teaching them all about flying and the flying game Quidditch. He would gladly admit that he did love the freedom of flying. The feel of the wind rushing past him as he soared without any obstacles blocking his path. He even liked the idea of quidditch. It spoke to his competitive nature but he wasn't sure how much fun it would be competing without Sasuke there to be his rival. It felt weird to even consider that there might be someone to take Sasuke's place as his rival.
He had spent the last two weeks leaving his clones to try to read through all the books on magical culture, law, and government the Black Library possessed. He felt that he had managed to gather enough knowledge of the magical world to not seem ignorant when he went to Hogwarts. He knew the majority of the other students would be children who had spent their entire lives in the magical world. He was hoping to find an opportunity to test his ability to blend in while they were shopping. Once Sirius and Gaara were awake they would travel to Diagon Alley to get their school books and any other books he might find interesting. He fully intended to read ahead. It was important that he knew the theory ahead of time so he could focus on the practical aspects of magic more fully once at school. He also wanted to have time to gather information from the other students which could only be made easier by him being a helpful resource to struggling students who needed help.
He smiled to himself as the smell his breakfast cooking filled the kitchen. The elves were making all of his favourites for his Birthday. There would even be his first birthday cake for dessert which gave him a fluttery feeling in his stomach whenever he thought about it.
Gaara had taken advantage of their free time to become almost as lazy as Shikamaru. Now that he actually could sleep he was making up for lost time. On a normal day he would be lucky to see Gaara before the elves woke him for lunch. However, today was his birthday so he knew that Gaara had asked Loppy to wake him up for breakfast before he had gone to sleep the previous night. Sirius was also sleeping in because the weekends were the only days he didn't need to be up early for work. In contrast he had been up since midnight and would not be going to sleep until midnight that night. It was a lonely tradition he had made for himself years ago, because no one else would celebrate his birthday with him, he would celebrate every moment of it by staying awake for the full 24 hours.
He heard the sound of shuffling feet coming toward the kitchen. He glanced up to see a dishevelled Sirius wandering into the room with his hair tangled and unshaven face. Sirius threw himself into a chair as Tilly ran over with a cup of strong black coffee. He wrinkled his nose at the strong scent the coffee was giving off. It was ruining the smell of his delicious breakfast.
"Good morning," he said cheerfully sitting back up in his chair.
"It's too early to look so happy," Sirius grumped as he drank his coffee.
He rolled his eyes while the mug he was drinking his tea from blocked Sirius' view, "I'll be as happy as I want on my birthday."
Sirius snorted and reached over to ruffle his hair, "Happy Birthday, Prongslet."
He smiled outwardly at the nickname Sirius had decided on. Internally he was cringing at the nickname. It was just another way for Sirius to pretend he had his friend back. He wasn't sure that was consciously what Sirius intended but it didn't matter because that was what he was doing. They sat in silence while they sipped on their drinks content to be quiet in the morning.
A few minutes later Gaara came into the kitchen too just as plates of eggs, bacon, ham, toast, potatoes, and bowls of fruit were being placed on the table. His eye bags were completely gone but he still wore kohl around his eyes having grown up in a desert it was habit. Garra sat next to him attempting a smile. His smile still needed work but it was honestly the thought that counted. He hoped that being around the other students at Hogwarts would help his friend to become more comfortable around people. They both had an opportunity to live outside of the stigma associated with being jinchūrik it was only right that they take advantage of the situation as much as they could.
"Happy Birthday, Hadrian," Gaara told him, his voice was gravelly from disuse.
"Thank you," he genuinely meant it because these were the first two people to ever wish him a happy birthday.
This would be his first birthday surrounded by people who didn't curse his name or celebrate Kurama's defeat. In the Hidden Leaf this was the day he had to be most weary of attacks by the villagers. This time he would go out in public and be ignored while he got to open his trust vault for the first time since he had learnt of its existence. He honestly couldn't wait to buy things he wanted with his own money without the worry of bills he would need to pay.
He filled his plate with as much of his favourite breakfast foods as he could eat. Happy with the start of his first acknowledged birthday.
Two hours later they were all standing outside the gate to Black Manor preparing to apparate to Diagon Alley. He would be lying if he said his stomach hadn't already begun to rebel from the memory of the last time Sirius had apparated him and Gaara. It was unfortunate that they weren't able to just ride their brooms to the Alley. Regrettably, flying over populated muggle areas was against the law meaning appartation was the only option, as far as he knew, unpleasant as it was.
"Grab hold of my arms," Sirius told them with a mischievous smile.
Sirius was fully aware of how unhappy he was to be apparating again. He was taking enjoyment from his dread. Sometimes he wondered about Sirius's sense of humour. Usually it was all in good fun but other times he seemed to edge just a little bit into the realm of cruelty. He grabbed onto Sirius reluctantly trying his best to make his displeasure known. Once again he felt Sirius twist away followed by the sensation of being squeezed down a small airless black tube.
When the squeezing stopped he still felt nauseous but was surprised that it was a little better than last time. He had wondered how the magical population could stand apparating. How Sirius appeared fine afterwards while he had to fight with his stomach to keep everything inside. It would seem it was simply something he needed to adapt to. Like practising taijutsu until he had a muscle memory of the forms he was learning. If you had to think about each move during the fight you would be too slow and lose, with muscle memory you could move mostly by instinct while using you mind to strategize a way to exploit your opponents weakness which increased the chance for you to win by a large margin.
They had apparated to a special reserved area of Diagon Alley. The area was designated as an apparation point to avoid wizards and witches apparating on top of or into some innocent bystander doing their shopping. He hurriedly walked out of the zone with Sirius and Gaara. They stopped off to the side so Sirius could reach into a pocket of his robes and pull out their letters with a dramatic flourish. Sirius had taken the letters from the owl when they had been delivered. He had then promptly hidden them away so they would be able to have the 'proper' Diagon Alley experience as Sirius called it. Sirius handed each of them their letters bouncing in place as he watched them.
He took the parchment envelope from Sirius. It was addressed to him as:
Mr. H. Potter
Heir Suite
Black Manor
Location Unknown
"Why is the location unknown?" Gaara asked before he had the chance, he was also curious about the answer.
"The Manor is unplottable, so it is impossible for the self addressing quill to know its location," Sirius advised them, "The owls are still able to deliver the letters because they deliver to the person not the address. Most Witches and Wizards prefer their homes to be unplottable so only the people they want to visit can find their homes. It also helps to keep the muggles away from their land because they do not know it is there. Of course it is the muggle repelling wards that keep muggles from accidentally stumbling upon the homes of wizards."
He nodded to show he understood. It made sense if your home was in the wilderness somewhere like Black Manor was. It wouldn't have worked as well with his apartment in the Hidden Leaf because it was surrounded on all sides by other buildings and there were many other families living in the building. Someone would definitely have noticed if they couldn't add an apartment building on the map of the Hidden Leaf.
Next to him Sirius was growing impatient, "Open it up, Prongslet."
With a slight scowl he broke the wax seal on the letter and pulled out the first piece of parchment. It read:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Mr. Potter,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall,
Deputy Headmistress
The first letter didn't mean much to him because Sirius had already sent in their acceptance with the owl that delivered the letters. He unfolded the second piece of parchment as he pulled it from the envelope. As expected it was the list of school supplies they would need for the coming year. Sirius had already told them it would be the longest letter due to it being their first year. They would need equipment and textbooks while in future years they would likely just need textbooks. He read it over curious about what equipment a witch or wizard would need while in school.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)
2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear
3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)
4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)
Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
1. The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk
2. A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
3. Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
4. A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
5. One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore
6. Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger
7. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
8. The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble
OTHER EQUIPMENT
1 wand
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
1 set of glass or crystal phials
1 telescope set
1 brass scales
Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS
He was most excited about getting his wand. He had tried a few spells he had found in the books he had been reading but without a wand most of them only worked one time out of five attempts. That was either due to his lack of training or the difficulty of the spells he wasn't sure which. He was looking forward to practising the spells they would be learning during the year. He also wanted to supplement his textbooks with more supporting material to give him an edge over the other students. He especially wanted to be prepared for potions as he felt he could use potions the same way shinobi used soldier pills. Magical spells might stand out a bit too much to use on missions but potions would barely stand out at all. He had also learnt from Sirius that his childhood rival/prank victim would be the teacher which he could admit worried him slightly.
He smiled at Gaara who had already finished reading his letter. Gaara hadn't spent as much time studying as he had, mostly because he slept so late, but he had recommended the books that were most informative and knew Gaara had read them all. In fact Gaara was working harder than he was despite his sleeping in just so he could keep up.
"We'll go to Gingotts first so Harry can visit his trust vault and I can get you both an allowance for spending at Hogwarts," Sirius said leading them toward the tall white building at the end of Diagon Alley.
As they neared the bank his view was blocked by the largest man he had ever seen. The man was several heads taller than any of the other shoppers around him. Next to him, Sirius seemed to perk up even more at the sight of the giant man. He looked at the man with curiosity wondering what his connection to Sirius could be.
"Hagrid," Sirius called waving his arm over his head to draw attention.
He took a few steps away with Gaara to attempt to limit his connection to Sirius while he made a scene. Hagrid stopped and looked around confused for a moment before his eyes found Sirius. A wide smile spread across Hagrid's face as soon as he saw Sirius. He began moving back toward them through the sea of people who were more than happy to get out of his way or risk being crushed under the giant man's boots.
"Sirius, good ter see yeh," Hagrid boomed joyfully as he took them all in, "And who's this?"
Hagrid turned his friendly smile on him and Gaara. He frowned making a note to step further away next time Sirius made a scene because clearly they were still obviously together despite the space. He would need to see if there were any charms to escape notice once he had his textbooks.
"Gaara Sabaku," Gaara introduced himself neutrally.
"Hadrian Uzu-ah-Potter," he was still getting used to his new last name.
Surprisingly, Hagrid sniffled a little after he heard his name, "Yer mum was a great witch, brightest of her age. It was terrible what happened ter Lily."
So far the only person he had met that knew his parents was Sirius. Quite frankly, the only one Sirius ever really talked about was James. The few mentions he had made of Lily were all in relations to her being the woman James loved or was trying to impress, or was stalking, etc.
"Did you know my parents well?" he asked curious.
"O'course I'm the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts," Hagrid said standing a little straighter.
"You'll be seeing him around while your at Hogwarts. He lives in a hut on the grounds," Siruis explained before turning back to Hagrid, "make sure you look after my wards. Though I warn you they are a couple of Ravenclaws."
Hagrid chuckled at that. He honestly had no idea what house he would be in. One thing he had managed to pick up on over the last two weeks was that Magical Britain seemed to take their Hogwarts houses and the house traits they represented very seriously. He had spent some time speculating about what house would suite him best but ultimately decided to leave it up to whatever the schools method of sorting was, something Hogwarts: A History purposely left out. His biggest worry was the obvious hatred Sirius had for Slytherin. It was so bad he winced every time Harry wore one of his green robes despite the fact that he knew the reason he wore them was because they brought out his eyes. His only hope was that Gaara would end up in the same house as him. Gaara was still too socially inept to be fully on his own.
"O'course I'll look out for them, are yeh here ter get yer school things?" Hagrid considerately leaned down so he was nearer to their level.
"We were just on our way to Gringotts," Sirius proclaimed proudly.
He shared a glance with Gaara while the two men caught up. He thought Hagrid was nice which was good because he didn't want to imagine what a man that size would be like if he were evil. As the men talked he and Gaara were pretty much forgotten. They observed the other shoppers quietly as they waited to be remembered again.
In the end it was decided that they would go to gringotts with Hagrid who had also been on his way to the bank. Sirius and Hagrid were having a wonderful time reminiscing about Sirius' time at Hogwarts. He kept half an ear on the conversation while he trailed behind them with Gaara. He had already known Sirius was a prankster who was borderline cruel. The stories he was telling only made that more obvious and he had a sinking feeling that Snivellus was the potions teacher he had been warned about. The more stories he heard the less hope he had that he could win the man over or at least get the man to treat him fairly.
When they entered the bank he was once again impressed with the obvious flaunting of wealth that was present wherever he looked. There seemed to be even more piles of gold and jewels lying around then there had been on his last visit. There were also a lot more goblins on duty. They made their way up to a free goblin with Hagrid who was going to stay with them while they went to the vaults.
"Morning," Hagrid nodded to the goblin behind the counter.
Sirius took over, "We've come to take some money from the black vault as well as the potter trust vault.
"You have your keys?" the goblin asked
Sirius pulled the black vault key from his pocket which seemed like an unsafe place to keep something so important. The silver key was placed on the counter in front of the goblin who picked it up to examine it. The goblin handed the key back once he was sure it was real. Harry also pulled the chain he had been given from Garnok out from beneath his robes. He slid his vault key free from the chain. His key was also examined by the goblin before being returned to him. He placed it back on the chain before clasping it closed.
"That seems to be in order," the goblin advised them before turning its attention to Hagrid who had yet to state his business.
"An' I've also got a letter here from Professor Dumbledore," said Hagrid importantly, puffing up proudly, "It's about the You-Know-What in vault seven hundred and thirteen."
The goblin read the letter carefully. He felt his curiosity peaking as he watched the goblins face scrunch in disapproval of the letter's contents. Whatever the letter said it was insulting to either the goblins or the bank. Given Hagrid was planning to withdraw something it likely questioned the banks ability to guard against thieves which he knew from their previous encounter was very insulting to the goblins.
"Very well," the goblin said, handing it back to Hagrid, "I will have someone take you down to the vaults. Griphook!"
Griphook was the uniformed goblin who had assisted them while they were meeting with Garnok. He smiled to the goblin and inclined his head in greeting. Griphook seemed slightly surprised at being remembered and inclined his head as well. Griphook had a goblin smile on his face, which was really more of a sneer, as they followed him toward one of the doors leading off the hall.
"What's the You-Know-What in vault seven hundred and thirteen?" he asked Hagrid as innocently as he could.
"Can't tell yeh that," Hagrid told him mysteriously, "Very secret, Hogwarts business. Dumbledore's trusted me more'n my job's worth ter tell yeh the truth."
Griphook held the door open for them to pass into the area of the bank where the vaults were kept. He wasn't sure what he was expecting as they left the marble hall but it wouldn't have been the narrow stone passageway lit with flaming torches that he now found himself in. The walls were rough as though not a lot of care was taken as they were carved from the rock. The floor sloped down steeply toward little railway tracks suspended in the air. They were obviously held in place by magic as he could not see where they connected to the cavern's walls. On the other side of the tracks was open open space as the stone passage widened into a massive cavern that went down farther than he could see. Griphook whistled and a small cart came hurtling up the tracks toward them.
He felt some trepidation as they all piled into the cart behind Griphook. He decided to be safe he should use chakra to stick himself to the cart. It was the correct choice as the cart began hurtling down the tracks at a shockingly fast speed. He could see large iron doors spaced evenly in the walls but was moving too quickly to read the numbers on each of the vaults. One thing he was sure of was that the numbers were growing larger the deeper they went. The tracks turned sharply and sometimes he thought that they were upside down but that could have just been a trick due to the empty darkness around them. The only light in the caverns came from torches that looked like yellow streaks in the air as they flew past.
They had decided to stop at the vault that was farthest from the surface first. The Black vault was the first they went to deep in the cavern but still nowhere near the bottom. The cart shifted from tracks out in the middle of the air to tracks that bordered the narrow pathway that wound in front of the vaults.
"You wait here," Griphook told everyone but Sirius who was already climbing out of the cart.
Griphook took a ring of noisemakers that looked like a type of child's rattle. He began shaking it as he led Sirius into a dark cavern to the side of the path. He thought he saw the light grow brighter in the cavern just before they entered but felt it must have been a trick of his eyes. The noise didn't stop until Sirius and Griphook reemerged from the tunnel five minutes later. They climbed back into the cart with Sirius holding three velvet bags.
He turned to Sirius, "Why did you need to make so much noise?"
"The Black family can be paranoid. We have a dragon guarding our vaults. They are trained to back off when they hear the noise," Sirius explained.
"I see," he said slowly wondering if the dragon looked anything like the water dragon jutsu.
He decided he would look up dragons once he got to Hogwarts. One thing the Hidden Leaf had very little of was mythology apart from inspiration for a jutsu he had heard nothing about what a real dragon might be like. The Hidden Leaf was a village built by Shinobi for Shinobi, there was very little fiction available and most of what was available centred on stories about shinobi going on adventures while completing their missions. There were also porn fiction books like what Kakashi always read while he was supposed to be training them. One thing he was certain of was that no one in the elemental nations would believe that dragons were real.
The next vault they stopped at was his trust vault. He handed Griphook his key which he had to remove from the chain again. He realized why Sirius just kept his in his pocket, it was annoying to have to keep retrieving the key from the chain. Griphook used the little gold key to open door of his vault. Green smoke billowed out from inside the vault. As it cleared it revealed a massive trove of coins, mostly gold but there was also a few silver and bronze coins piled up in the corners. Sirius passed him a velvet bag that was already tinkling with various coins from the Black vault. Looking inside he was surprised by how much Sirius had given him. In a separate section of the bag he put a few gold, silver and bronze coins from his own vault. He also needed to remember to add the coins that he still had sitting in his pack at home at some point.
When they got back to the cart Hagrid turned to Griphook, "vault seven hundred and thirteen now, please, and can we go more slowly?"
"One speed only," said Griphook.
Hagrid groaned as the cart began moving again. Sirius handed Gaara a velvet bag as the cart moved then pulled out the third. Sirius handed him the third bag which was even heavier than the first one Sirius gave him.
Sirius lent forward so he could be heard over the wind from the cart, "I'm going to take Hagrid to the pub for a pint after we're done. He doesn't handle the carts very well."
He looked at Hagrid who seemed to be a moment away from expelling the contents of his stomach all over everyone in the cart. He met Sirius's eyes and nodded his understanding.
"This bag is for your school supplies. The other bags I gave you earlier is your spending money for Hogwarts. I don't know how long I will be but when you are shopping for your trunks, if you get that far, make sure you get trunks with feather light charms added," Sirius advised them.
"Okay," he agreed.
When they pulled up to vault seven hundred and thirteen he saw that it had no keyhole. He watched from the cart as Griphook and Hagrid approached the door. Griphook stroked the door gently with one of his long fingers. There was a small clunking noise from behind the door before it simply melted away.
"If anyone but a Gringotts goblin tried that, they'd be sucked through the door and trapped in there," Griphook said once he noticed their shocked faces.
"How often do you check to see if anyone's inside?" Harry asked with a grin.
"About once every ten years," said Griphook with a rather nasty grin back.
He leaned forward to see what was in the vault that was so important. He was disappointed that the only thing inside was a grubby little package wrapped up in brown paper lying on the floor. He had hoped he might see a skeleton or two but then realized how unlikely it would be for anyone to want a grubby little package like that. Hagrid picked it up and tucked it in the outside pocket of his his coat like an idiot. Harry really wanted to know what it was, but he knew better than to ask. He smiled as he decided to use the advantage his shinobi training afforded him to find out what was in that package. It was his birthday he should get to have whatever he wanted.
They rode the cart for a few more minutes heading back toward the surface. As they were exiting the bank he could see that Hargrid looked very green which was to his advantage as it meant Hagrid was slumping a bit. He subtly hid the hand signs for the multi shadow clone jutsu inside the long sleeves of his robes. He made six clones which all disguised themselves using the transformation jutsu as a family with two parents and four children of various ages. He commanded the clones disguised as small children to run into Hagrid who was not moving very quickly due to feeling sick. As they ran into him one of the clones pocketed the stone from Hagrid's pocket while the other replaced it with a stone that had been altered using the transformation jutsu. The clones pretending to be older children and the parents came to apologize and blocked the view of everyone but Gaara who saw the small child put the package into his own pocket.
Once the family of clones were finished apologizing they left to find a dark place to dispel. Hagrid and Sirius seemed to be confused by the entire encounter as they couldn't even be mad because the family was so excessive with their apologies. Sirius turned to them still keeping an eye on the disappearing family.
Sounding like he was still half distracted he said, "Why don't you two start by getting your trunks and then go to Madam Malkin's. I should be able to meet you there after we've had our drink."
"Alright, see you later," he told Sirius brightly.
Sirius and Hagrid began their walk back toward the entrance arch to the pub. As they left he and Gaara headed toward Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment to get their trunks. In the shop window he saw a small telescope on display. He figured they could probably get the telescope set required for Hogwarts there as well.
Before they went into the shop Gaara pulled him into the small space between Wiseacre's and a store called Gambol and Japes which seemed like a store Sirius might enjoy. He decided they would have to go there and spend at least a small portion of what Sirius had given them on pranks. He knew it would make Sirius happy which was the goal as long as Sirius had even a little bit of power over his life.
"Why did you take the package?" Gaara asked him keeping his voice low.
"I want to know what it is," he said pulling the grubby package from the pocket of his robes, "Don't you?"
Garra raised the skin above his eye where most people had eyebrows but Gaara didn't. Garra leaned in a little closer so he could help block the view of anyone passing by on the street. With a smile he opened the string then carefully peeled off the paper in a way that would allow him to put it back on exactly as it was before. He did intend to return it to Hagrid once he knew what it was. Inside the package was what looked like a large Ruby. However it was clearly not a Ruby as it had a small golden light glowing from within it. He studied it from every angle before wrapping it back up in the packaging. Aside from the glow in its centre there wasn't anything visibly special about it. Now that he knew what it looked like though he could try to research why it was so important. He slipped it back into his pocket.
"Any idea why it's glowing?" Gaara asked.
"Not one," he told him with a shrug.
They slipped out from the shadows between the shops. Without any indication of their illicit activities to be seen they entered the first shop normally. The stone forgotten until he could return it to Hagrid when he and Sirius got back from the Leaky Cauldron.
They ended up getting trunks that not only had feather light charms but also had the option of being shrunk to a more manageable size with the tap of a wand. They also splurged on undetectable expansion charms on the various compartments so they could fill the trunks with as many things as they wanted. He got a black lacquered trunk with silver fastenings and H. Potter engraved on a silver plaque on the side. He had chosen to pay a little extra for the option to set a password on his trunk once he got his wand. Gaara's trunk was a deep rust brown with bronze fastenings and a bronze name plate. He had decided against the password as he didn't have anything to hide, or so he said. They had both got the standard school issue telescopes that had been advertised in the shop window not finding them worth the expense to get a nicer version. The engraving with the help of magic only took the shop owner two minutes to finish. Their entire purchase came to 100 galleons and 15 sickles for the two of them.
Once they were done they brought their trunks with them to Madam Malkins. He was still not a very big fan of the Witch but he knew it was better not to let her know had learnt from Sirius that Madam Malkin was the only robe shop licenced to sell Hogwarts robes. He put on a happy smile as they entered the shop. Just like last time Madam Malkin came to the front of the store almost immediately to greet them. Her eyes lit up when she saw them having just seen them two weeks ago. She glanced around for Sirius but frowned when she didn't see him behind them.
"Back for your Hogwarts robes, dears?" she asked attempting to come off as motherly.
He smiled at her despite his dislike then said with a friendly tone, "We can wait until he is done, Sirius is going to meet us here once he finishes speaking with an acquaintance he met while at gringotts."
Madam Malkin's frown was replaced with a fond smile, "Not to worry, follow me, we'll get you fitted so he won't need to wait long for you."
He let his smile widen as they were led to the back of the store. The wall of mirrors had been expanded so that there were now five fitting stools instead of the two that had been there previously. It was clear Madam Malkin expected to be busy with the students beginning to do their school shopping. On the centre stool was the other boy Madam Malkin had mentioned being fitted. He had pale skin with a pointed face. His white blond hair was slicked back with some kind of hair product which emphasized the sharp lines of his face. He had an air of arrogance surrounding him, but he knew how to deal with those sorts. He was best friends as well as rivals with Sasuke after all.
He and Gaara removed the robes they were currently wearing. They stepped onto the nearest stools to them which were the stools to the boy's right and nearest to the wall they had placed their trunks against. There was no reason to risk letting their purchases out of their site if they didn't need to. He was a bit weary about the stone in the pocket of his robes falling out so he was very careful when slipping out of his robes. He took the stool that was next to the pale boy. Madam Malkin slid a set of plain black robes over his head. The robes for students were not nearly as fine in quality as the casual robes he had purchased last time. But the list had specified work robes so he imagined they were sturdier than his everyday robes. He knew with Madam Malkin's eye for wealthy clients that she would have given him the finest quality of work robe possible which would also be the most expensive. She began pinning up the hems of the robes.
"Hello," said the boy, "Hogwarts, too?"
"Yes," said Harry smiling.
He thought it should be obvious that they were students. Considering their age as well as the fact that they were also being fitted in black robes, which were not the normal choice for casual wear among the magical population. Still he understood in theory that small talk always began with simple questions that are seemingly self explanatory, like the weather. He wouldn't let the stupid question colour his opinion of the boy just yet.
"My father's next door buying my books and mother's up the street looking at wands," said the boy with a bored tone, "Then I'm going to drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don't see why first years can't have their own. I think I'll bully father into getting me one and I'll smuggle it in somehow."
"My Godfather thinks the same. He suggested shrinking the broom so it can be hidden in your trunk, then having one of the upper years enlarge it for you," he told the boy of Sirius's plan to get him to take a broom to school.
Personally, he felt it was a stupid plan. Not only would there be a security risk with the upper years knowing you were breaking the rules which could then later be used against you but the moment you went to fly it everyone would know you had brought a broom. Sure you could say you were borrowing it but then you would need to rely on your accomplice to lie for you. Depending on the punishment for breaking that particular rule, you would need to have a great deal of trust that they wouldn't sell you out. He had no intention of bringing a broom to Hogwarts for first year. Wizards did not share the same views of teamwork as shinobi did.
"Have you got your own broom?" the boy asked excitedly.
"No, but I suspect I will by the end of the day. It's my Birthday today," he clarified when he saw the boy's frown.
He shared a knowing glance with Gaara as they had already figured out what Sirius intended to get him for his birthday.
Speaking to the boy was providing him with excellent practise for when he got to Hogwarts. If he ended up in the same house as the boy then he would even have a connection beyond Gaara and Hagrid that he could use to make his introductions. He couldn't help the grin that spread across his face at so many advantages coming together. He fully intended to thrive here while he stayed for his education. He had not forgotten his desire to be Hokage but with his clones, why couldn't he have the best of both worlds? But seven years away was a longer time than he liked, he hoped magic might provide a solution. He would look into it more at Hogwarts.
"Happy Brithday," the boy smiled, "play Quidditch at all?"
"A little but it's mostly a modified version as there are only three of us at home," Harry told him, "But I love flying even when I'm not playing Quidditch."
"I do too. Father says it's a crime if I'm not picked to play for my house, and I must say, I agree. Know what house you'll be in yet?" he knew it was just a way to make conversation but it was the second question the boy asked that sound stupid.
"No one knows until they are sorted, though I have two I believe would suit me," he told the boy.
"That's true but I know I'll be in Slytherin, all our family have been. Imagine being in Hufflepuff, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" the boy drawled looking for common ground.
He tilted his head as if he was thinking, "I don't think so. I think it could only be an advantage to have ties to a house known for its honesty, strong friendships, and hard work. Those are very useful traits but I probably won't be one myself."
The boy fell silent looking like he was deep in thought. It was clear he had never considered the advantages of befriending other houses before. He let the boy think while he turned to Gaara who had been watching the exchange silently. He knew Gaara wanted desperately to make friends in the magical world but lacked a lot of the required social skills. He hoped that once they were sorted Gaara would begin to open up to his house mates. Once he had people trying to be friendly to him he would hopefully learn the social skills he needed before they decided to not be his friend.
"What do you think Gaara? Would you hate to be a Hufflepuff?" he brought Gaara into the conversation.
"No, I like the qualities they stand for," he said neutrally while his eyes expressed his gratitude toward him.
"Most people consider them to be useless," the boy said sounding more doubtful than he had earlier.
"How can a house known for its hard work be useless?" Gaara asked.
He completed Gaara's thought, "Where we are from hard work eventually translates into skill. The harder you work the more skilled you become."
"Where are you from?" the boy asked eyes lighting up.
He silently cursed himself for his mistake. He knew he couldn't speak about the Hidden Villages or the elemental nations. One thing he had discovered since his arrival in England was that the elemental nations were not on any maps or mentioned in any books published in the last 700 years. This was why a practise conversation was so valuable. He would remember in future not to bring up the place he was from.
"Abroad," he answered vaguely, "My parents were from here though. Sirius Black is my godfather and Gaara's guardian while we attend Hogwarts."
"He is my Mother's cousin so your parents were our kind, weren't they?" the boy asked.
"They were both from magical lineages according to the test performed at gringotts," he moved subtly so that the boy could see the Stygian and Peverell heir rings.
The boy's eyes widened as he noticed the two rings. He could see a silver ring with a pale green stone on the boy's finger which showed he was also an heir to a noble house.
"Draco Malfoy," the boy said reaching out his hand to shake.
He reached over and took Draco's hand, "Hadrian Potter, and this is my friend from home Gaara Sabaku. He is a halfblood."
Draco reached further to shake hands with Gaara as well. He turned from Draco to share his amusement with Gaara. Being from abroad meant that no one would be able to say either way if Gaara was muggleborn or not. They decided he would tell anyone who asked that he was a halfblood to avoid the stigmas attached to being either a pureblood or a muggleborn.
"But if you are a Potter than that would make you a halfblood too because everyone knows Lily Potter was a mu-ggleborn," Draco said though it was clear he had been about to use a different term before changing his mind.
"My mother was also originally from abroad. She was adopted into the muggle Evans family and was never tested at gringotts when she arrived with her adoptive parents to begin school. She was believed to be muggleborn but in fact was more accurately a halfblood," Harry advised him, "The gringotts test clearly showed a magical lineage from both of my parents."
Draco shrugged, "The goblins do have their own magic with these sorts of things."
He smiled at the boy but before they could continue their conversation the witch working on Draco's robes got his attention, "You're all done."
Draco hopped from the stool and pulled on a set of sage green robes that seemed to be too fancy for everyday wear.
"It was good to meet you both," Draco nodded to both him and Gaara.
They nodded back politely before Draco followed the witch to the front of the shop. He watched his first acquaintance in the magical world his own age walk past the shop window. His attention was caught by Sirius who was standing outside holding a cage containing a beautiful snowy white owl. He looked around Sirius but with a sinking feeling noticed that there was no Hagrid. He had inadvertently stolen a very important magical stone from the Headmaster of Hogwarts.
He saw Gaara smirk at him from the next stool.
"Not one word," he warned him.
For better or worse the stone, whatever it was belonged to him now.
After another ten minutes their robes were finally finished. Unlike the previous time they had ordered robes to be delivered the Hogwarts robes were made while they waited. Once they had their robes they stored them in their trunks. The robes were only 20 galleons each so he paid Madam Malkin 160 galleons from the bag Sirius said was for their school things. He headed straight for Sirius as they exited the shop.
"Where's Hagrid?" he asked as innocently as he could.
"He had to get the package to Dumbledore as soon as possible," Sirius told him, with a smile he held up the cage, "He got you a birthday present though."
Sirius handed him the owl which was absolutely beautiful. He smiled at the animal which regarded him wearily from within the cage. It likely could sense the nature of his chakra which tended to make most animals nervous around him. He stroked it through the cage cooing at it until he felt it relax and nip at his fingers. All he needed was a bit of effort to win it over. He would also need to get it used to Gaara who may want to send letters to Sirius or owl order something while at Hogwarts.
"It's beautiful," he said happily.
"She," Sirius corrected.
"She is beautiful, I'll have to thank him once we get to Hogwarts," he promised.
"Maybe you could send him a thank you note with her," Gaara suggested.
"Brilliant. I think I will," he said happily, "Where to next Sirius?"
"We'll get your cauldron and scales then your wand. I know you'll want to overspend on books with all the reading you two do so we'll go there last," Sirius chuckled.
"Sounds great," he told him.
They went to Potage's Cauldron Shop to get their size 2 Pewter cauldrons, then to Slug and Jiggers Apothecary for their scales and protective dragon hide gloves. While they were in Slug and Jiggers he also got a basic ingredient kit. Sirius had told them that the school provided ingredients to students for potions class, but he thought he might like to explore making potions on his own. It may be that self study would be the only way to truly learn potions. He and Gaara also were advised by Sirius to purchase their own set of knives as the ones the school provided weren't the best quality.
The next stop was for their wands. The sign above the door read Ollivander's: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. He followed Sirius into the shop with Gaara trailing behind him. Inside the shop was a small area with two waiting chairs and a counter. When the door opened he had heard a soft tinkling bell in the depths of the store. Behind the desk were rows of shelves with hundreds of wands stacked as high as they could fit.
"Good afternoon," said a soft voice.
The man it belonged to was very old. His eyes were wide and pale in his face reflecting the light from outside the window of the shop. He thought the man looked skeletal with how little flesh seemed to be on his bones but despite that the man gave off a feeling of power. His instincts wouldn't lead him astray. He instantly felt more weary of the man as well as the shop. Gaara too felt it tensing up behind him.
Sirius on the other hand seemed to enjoy being in the shop, "Mr. Ollivander, good to see you again."
"Ah yes, Sirius Black, twelve and a half inches dragon heartstring slightly springy made of spruce wood," Mr. Ollivander said, "and who is this?"
"My godson Hadrian Potter and my ward Gaara Sabaku," Sirius proclaimed.
"Ah, Mr. Potter, you look like your mother but have your father's hair. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work," Mr Ollivander said, "Your father, on the other hand, favoured a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power and excellent for transfiguration. Well, I say your father favoured it but it's really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course. A pity that they snapped it when he went to Azkaban."
He heard a hiss from behind him. He glanced at Sirius who seemed to be very angry. He knew anything to do with his father and Azkaban was a sore spot for Sirius who fully believed in his innocence. He felt he should send Sirius away before he did something stupid that could jeopardize his wand selection experience. A wand was important especially if he ever wanted to be able to use the truly powerful spells.
"Sirius, could we maybe get some ice cream before we go to Flourish and Blotts?" he asked quickly.
Sirius glanced at him before smiling, "Yeah, I'll go reserve us a table."
Sirius latched onto the excuse so he could leave the store. With a sigh he turned back to Mr. Ollivander who was watching him closely without blinking. He found it a little unsettling as Mr. Ollivander came closer. He pulled out a long tape measure with silver markings.
"We'll start with Mr. Potter. Which is your wand arm?" Ollivander asked.
He wasn't sure which arm was his wand arm as he had never gotten one before. He was also ambidextrous due to his training as a Shinobi however his dominant hand for writing was his right hand.
"I'm right handed," he told Ollivander.
"Hold out your arm. That's it," Mr. Ollivander said.
With a flick of his wand the measuring tape measured him from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit, around his head, and almost anywhere else it could measure while Ollivander began wandering the stacks of wands. He wasn't sure how the wandmaker could find anything in the shop with how many wands were there but after several minutes Mr. Ollivander returned with a small selection of boxes in his hands.
"That will do," he said to the tape measure which rolled itself up before returning to Ollivander's pocket, "right then, Mr. Potter. Try this one. Beechwood and dragon heartstring. Nine inches. Nice and flexible. just take it and give it a wave."
As soon as he took the wand Mr. Ollivander snatched it back from him, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance. We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstrings of dragons. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons, or phoenixes are quite the same. And of course, you will never get such good results with another wizard's wand. Maple and phoenix feather. Seven inches. Quite whippy."
He took the second wand but again he didn't get the chance to wave it around as it was taken back by Mr. Ollivander almost at once, "here, ebony and unicorn hair, eight and a half inches, springy."
He waved dozens of wands quickly becoming bored with the whole experience. He wondered if he could take a break. They could let Gaara have his turn at finding a wand then come back to him. He would maybe have better luck later than he was having right now. In opposition to his own feelings Mr. Ollivander seemed to be enjoying the challenge of finding him a wand. He seemed to brighten up a little more with every failed attempt.
"Tricky customer, eh? Not to worry, we'll find the perfect match here somewhere," Ollivander paused as an idea struck him. "I wonder, yes, why not. This wand is an unusual combination; holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple."
This time when he took the wand he felt the magic in him surge up to meet it. He waved the wand which produced a stream of sparks in the colours of fire. He felt happy to have found the wand that would allow him to use the magic within him easier. He could tell that the magic was sitting nearer to the surface ready to be channelled through the wand with barely any effort. He smiled in joy at finding his wand but also that he wouldn't have to keep trying any more wands.
"Oh, bravo! Yes, indeed, oh, very good. Well, well, well… how curious… how very curious…" Mr Ollivander muttered.
Feeling indulgent now that his own ordeal was over he asked, "What about my wand is curious?"
"I remember every wand I've ever sold, Mr. Potter. Every single wand. It just so happens that the phoenix whose tail feather resides in your wand, gave another feather, just one other," Mr. Ollivander paused for dramatic effect, "It is very curious indeed that you should be destined for this wand when its brother… why, its brother killed Lily Potter."
He stared at the man unsure what he should say or how to react. Sirius had found the time over the last two weeks to inform him that his family had been targeted due to a prophesy about him and the supposed dark lord. It all seemed a bit to melodramatic for his tastes but given the preexisting connection it didn't seem curious to him at all that he had gotten the wand he did.
"Yes, thirteen-and-a-half inches. Yew. Curious indeed how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard, remember… I think we must expect great things from you, Mr. Potter. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things, terrible, yes, but great," Mr. Ollivander finished.
He glanced up at the pale wide-eyed man deciding to channel Neji Hyuuga, "It is fate."
Beside him he heard Gaara snort. Neji was unfortunately famous for his insistence that everything was preordained and therefore unavoidable so much so that even Gaara, who was from a foreign village, knew about it. They shared a smile before turning back to Mr. Ollivander who seemed to be put out by his reaction. He supposed Ollivander had been going for fear or shock. But really it wasn't even much of a surprise. He blinked up at the man innocently.
With a sigh Mr. Ollivander turned to Gaara, "Which is your wand arm?"
Instead of answering verbally Gaara just held out his left arm. With a flick the tape measure popped from Ollivander's pocket and began to measure Gaara like it had him. Mr. Ollivander came back a little quicker than before. Unlike the small stack the wandmaker had brought for him, he only brought two wand boxes with him for Gaara.
"Fourteen inches, dragon heartstring rigid made from Blackthorn," Ollivander said as he passed the first wand over.
Gaara waved the wand but instead of sparks it broke a vase that was sitting on the counter. He wasn't sure if that was a good reaction or a bad one because sometimes destruction was the intention. It also seemed to him that Gaara would suit a wand that was made for combat.
"No, Nope, definitely not," Mr. Ollivander said in a strained voice handing over the second wand, "Ebony wood with a Phoenix feather core, ten and three quarter inches, Rigid."
When Gaara waved the wand black and gold sparks streamed from the end. He clapped politely, he thought the vase exploding was more impressive himself. He smiled at Gaara who was actually managing a pretty decent smile of his own. It was always good to see progress in his friend.
He turned to his trunk and tapped it with his wand. The automatic shrinking function activated and he was able to put it into his pocket. He picked up his owl's cage as well because he wasn't able to shrink it.
"That will be fourteen galleons for the wands," Mr. Ollivander told them.
He reached into the sack of coins he had from Sirius for school supplies and passed over fourteen galleons. They exited the shop and made their way to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. As they approached he could see Sirius standing outside with a broom in his hand. Sirius had a smug look on his face as he held the broom.
"Happy Birthday, Prongslet," Sirius said presenting the broom to him.
He took the broom with a strained smile. He loved flying but now he was going to have to smuggle the broom into Hogwarts or Sirius would never forgive him. It wasn't unexpected to recieve the broom but he had hoped he wouldn't get a broom until next year.
"Thank you," he said taking the broom from Sirius.
They all had a small bowl of ice cream before they made their way to Flourish and Blotts. Inside the store was filled from floor to ceiling with shelves of books on every magical subject imaginable. He recognized several from the Black Library that he had seen when he decided to tour the shelves instead of using the index. He gathered all of his textbooks first before going through the shelves for interest. He pulled out a few theory books on non verbal and wandless magic. He knew if he ever returned to the Hidden Leaf he wouldn't be able to wave his wand around if he wanted to cast spells outside his apartment. He also slipped a few books on magical stones and crystals into his basket hoping to discover what the stone he had taken from Hagrid was.
"Prongslet," Sirius called him over.
He went over to Sirius who was holding up a book while looking way too mischievous. The book he was holding was Curses and Countercurses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly-Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Much More) by Professor Vindictus Viridian. For once he wasn't disappointed by Sirius's prankster tendencies. With a smile he slipped the book into his basket. Then he made his way toward the checkout. Gaara met him there with his own basket of books. They paid for their school books first. Then they each purchased their own books with the allowance money they had gotten from Sirius.
Gaara handed him one of the books he had purchased as a Birthday Present. The book, Handbook of Do-It-Yourself Broom Care, was a companion to Sirius's gift. He smiled at Gaara as he thanked him for the book. He knew it was meant as a joke because Gaara had known he was hoping to avoid smuggling a broom into Hogwarts.
Once they had packed everything away in their trunks they left the store. With nothing left to do in Diagon Alley they headed toward the apparation point at the end. With less dread than he had felt that morning he grabbed Sirius's arm. One day he would apparate without feeling sick, believe it.