Harry Potter sighed happily as he rolled over in his bed.
He was having the time of his life. It was the 1st of July today, and the months of May and June had consisted of the best days Harry could ever remember having and hoped that the rest of the summer was just as good.
He'd started going back to his school the day after his breakdown. He avoided everyone and only answered- correctly this time- when he was called. He'd started doing much better than Dudley- not too much of an effort there- much to the surprise of the teachers. They frequently praised his 'improvement'.
If only they knew…
Doing better in classes was considerably more difficult than he thought. Not because he didn't know the answers, he attempted each one that was asked and got most of them right. No, the reason for his difficulty was because of the leftover effects from the Dursleys'... conditioning, he suppressed a shiver at the thought. Apparently, he hadn't been as impervious to it as he thought.
It got easier as time passed though.
Dudley had tried to get a hold of him on numerous occasions, but Harry had always been able to avoid him, he made sure to stick near the teachers at school, and used his Invisibility Cloak outside the school.
He caught sight of Vernon and Petunia twice, and that had an… interesting effect on him. He didn't feel a frisson of fear like he was expecting. Instead, he felt something akin to pity toward them. They both looked extremely haggard. His departure probably affected their little dynamic more than he thought it would.
Vernon's eyes had gone wide with fear, Petunia on the other hand gave him a scathing glare, filled with hate. Wanting to avoid a confrontation, he'd quickly slipped back into the school and hid for a good two hours before climbing the fence and bolting away to the park where he normally changed, and called the Knight Bus.
His exams had started the next month in June. He felt he'd done rather well for himself there after he'd finished.
He could not afford to be lazy. True, the exam and his overall grade wouldn't matter since he wasn't going to continue with a muggle education after this, but Harry saw it as more than just that.
He wasn't sitting these exams just to prove himself to his teachers and his 'family', even though that was a part of it. But the bigger reason was for him to break this hold his relatives had over him. To beat them- figuratively. He couldn't have his previous shortcomings impede his education in the Magical World.
He had to constantly remind himself that he was free. That he'd won. Vernon couldn't hurt him anymore if he performed well. On the last paper, Harry only had to remind himself of it once, something he was quite proud of.
Fast forwarding to the day of the results, he managed to make the top 10% of students in his grade, as he thought he would. He was also the fourth in his class. Everyone else was in various states of shock.
He ate three slightly larger than regular meals every day, due to which, he was gaining a lot of mass in his skinny form. He was, thankfully, tall for his age, so there wasn't much to do there.
He did push-ups and went for a jog every morning before his shower. He didn't want to end up like his cousin. Harry wasn't going to end up with abs or anything, but he would, at least, stay in shape.
Back on the Magical side, he hadn't been able to learn as many spells as he would have liked, but he did manage to fully learn silent magic three days ago. He'd been religiously practicing it since he'd learnt about it, and the results showed. He managed to pull off a verbal charm (Muffliato, a spell that caused your conversations to remain private within an area. Anyone trying to eavesdrop would only hear a faint buzzing) completely non-verbally. On his first try. That was how he knew he'd fully learnt it. He just needed to keep up with it. He suspected his wand had something to do with his success and made a mental note to visit Ollivander today.
He also learnt three other spells. Rictusempra, the tickling hex. Everte Statum, a hex that caused the target to be thrown bodily back, as though, hit by a truck. And lastly Oppugno, a hex that caused an object to attack your intended target.
Again, not as much as he'd like, but still, good enough.
He decided not to learn anything from his textbooks- he didn't want to get bored in class- and also decided to buy himself new spellbooks today. Though he would skim through them sometime soon.
Aberforth told him about The Trace before he left for The Hogs Head for the month of June. Apparently the Ministry of Magic (The Magical Government) could track the Magic produced around Underage (Under 17) humans. Thankfully, they ignored places like Diagon Alley and any other Magic-heavy areas, since there were a lot of children that frequented the place and they had no way of proving who actually cast the spells. This worked far too well in Harry's favor.
Aberforth also suggested that he make use of muggle make-up products to hide his scar. Aberforth applied a Concealment charm on him when he had to go out, but Aberforth had to leave, so he relented and bought some for himself. God, that had been embarrassing.
Harry had formed something like a friendship with Aberforth in May. He wouldn't call him a 'friend' per se, but he wasn't quite an acquaintance either. He supposed Aberforth was what an Uncle should be like. He was a lot like a ruder version of Hagrid. Or at least what little Harry knew of Hagrid. Harry was expecting Aberforth to be like his brother, but apparently they didn't talk much. Harry also knew that Aberforth was a bit of a softie on the inside- once you got past that rude facade- but he didn't dare tell him that.
He didn't just sit in his room and study now, though. With no Dursleys around, his curiosity of all things came back with a vengeance, so he made use of his free time (usually three to four hours in the afternoon) to learn a lot about Diagon Alley. He visited every sub-street and sub-alley in the Alley, except Knockturn Alley. He liked all of them.
He also formed a good relationship with the shopkeepers there, no one except Florean Fortescue- who also gave him free ice cream, despite Harry's protests- knew that he was Harry Potter. They all only knew him as a really nice kid, who didn't hesitate to buy anything if he liked it.
He learned quite a bit of history about the Alley itself. Apparently the Alley wasn't always so big. Mr. Fortescue had told him that it once used to be just an Alley. Hence the name. But then the Wizarding population started skyrocketing, what with everyone having three to five children, and the Alley couldn't hold that many people anymore. Of course, the population had dropped back down now, after The British Wizarding War (The one with Voldemort), but it used to be higher.
Sometime in the very early 1900s, a Wizarding construction company had taken on the job of making a new place for Witches and Wizards to gather at. Back then, villages like Hogsmeade were merely settlements with little to no shops. Everyone came to the Alley to buy things, and now, it was a tradition of sorts, to shop here with your children for their first year away from home. Of course, people came later on as well, seeing as many businesses chose this place to set up their main shops at.
The Alley itself was not located behind the hidden barrier anymore like it used to be. Instead, they were in a parallel dimension that was accessible through a portal (The Brick Archway). It was impossible to permanently close the doorway to a dimension when there were people from another dimension in there though, so Harry was put at ease on that front.
This new Alley was bigger and much more popular than the old one. People had a lot more space to just hang out, or you could go into a restaurant or tea shop for a date. Or you could shop/place an order for the top-of-the-line racing brooms. There was even an area that televised quidditch matches called 'The Quidditch Emporium'. It was a single-story building on the inside, with a ticket booth (one ticket cost 5 galleons for one match), nothing too fancy. At least not until you entered the elevator which took you underground, to a massive colosseum like area. It was semi-oval in shape and had a respectable distance between the seats and the screen.
Harry found that he loved Quidditch. He never thought of himself as a sports person but he also couldn't deny that the Magical World had changed in ways he hadn't expected.
He particularly liked the Chaser position, but he felt he'd be better as a Seeker. Oh well, he'd just have to try out at Hogwarts and hope for the best. After learning to fly of course.
It wasn't Quidditch season in the last two months, though. That would start on the 1st of September. With the World Cup in December this time, because of some issue with the management. The World Cup was held every 4 years- much like its football counterpart.
As for the past two months, The Quidditch Emporium was showing the past matches, with slow-motion replays, expert post-game analysis, and even interviews with individual players and the whole team. It was a recent development, and the Magical world- and Harry- was here for it.
His favorite teams, from everything he'd seen, were the Hollows Hippogriffs- the team of a fully magical town named Godric's Hollow- and the Holyhead Harpies.
There was also a match that he could catch this evening, Hollows Hippogripffs vs Montrose Magpies. But he needed to shop a little first. He needed books about the Magical World as a whole, he also felt he should know more about Hogwarts before going there, and he needed to talk to Ollivander and get some spellbooks to start practicing with.
He got out of bed and went about his usual morning routine before heading down for a jog.
The pub was empty when he got there. Aberforth was supposed to be back today, and Harry was hoping to greet the man. The other guy, Tom, while not unfriendly or unlikeable, wasn't the same as him. Aberforth tended the bar at the Hog's Head- a fancy Underworld bar in Hogsmeade- because many criminals traipsed through there. Aberforth would act as a spy for the Aurors- Magical Police- of the Ministry of Magic and report the ones he heard admitting to a crime. No one suspected him because he went under an alias and a disguise.
Shrugging, he decided to head out for his jog. Hopefully, Aberforth would be back by then.
Turns out Aberforth wasn't back. Apparently he'd gone underground, helping in the investigation of the recent robbery at Gringotts.
Well, it wasn't technically a robbery, since nothing was stolen from the bank. But the unknown culprit had managed to get into a Vault. Specifically Vault 711. He overheard theories that the culprit was a Dark Wizard, but there was no proof to any of them.
Harry felt that there was something he was missing. He knew that Vault from somewhere. He just couldn't put his finger on it. He couldn't ask the Goblins- specifically Griphook- either. Some shitty tabloid reporter named Rita Skeeter had written an article about the robbery and had thoroughly insulted the bank's security.
The Goblins had-understandably- taken offence and shut their bank down. He was thankful that he had their Infinite Money Bag and Chequebook. He was even more thankful that he decided to open his parents' trunk instead of waiting.
The pub had people in there now, so Harry discreetly put on his Invisibility Cloak- which he carried with him everywhere- as always, and made his way up to his room.
He had a quick shower and made his way downstairs for breakfast- after putting his clothes in the Laundry section. He ordered his usual breakfast- bacon and eggs- and made his way outside and started his walk toward Flourish and Blotts, his favorite bookstore out of the whole lot of them here at Diagon Alley.
He felt that he was missing something but he didn't know what. He did notice, however, that people were openly staring at him with their jaw dropped open for some reason. He didn't know what was different, he strolled down here everyday, no one seemed to notice him then. And, if someone did then, he just went to a nearby deserted alleyway and put on a his Invisibility Cloak.
Now, however that didn't seem to be possible. People had stopped their chores and were following him with their eyes as he went by. He didn't know what this was about now, the only thing they could possibly be looking at him for would be…
Fuck
His scar, His stupid, bloody, fuckong, thrice damned scar!! He forgot to cover it up today. God, he was an idiot sometimes
He looked back and saw at least half a dozen people with cameras running toward him.
Well, time to go
He knew a lot of shortcuts from his everyday retreats here, and there was one nearby, he could reach it in time without having to sprint and he could get out from there.
Decision made, he sped up his walk. Ignoring the gasps and gawking, he made his way over to the alleyway. Once he was out of sight of the people, he started sprinting.
He wasnt sure how long he ran, and he'd lost his way ages ago. Currently he was hiding behind a few barrels in a shop. The shop looked abandoned, and he was sure reasonably sure it was. The shop itself was in a dark and shabby looking area.
Harry was certain he was in Knockturn Alley. It made sense, and the area he was in did match the description of Knockturn Alley he'd been given by Aberforth.
It was quiet outside. He'd lost the reporters ages ago. It was almost noon now, and Harry was getting tired of hiding. So, he got up and slowly crept to the door.
Just as he reached it though, he heard faint footsteps. By the sound of it, there were five or six people running. Fast. One of them however didn't seem to be an adult.
Thinking that someone was in trouble, Harry made his way outside. He was about to turn the corner to where the sound was coming from, but he was hit by a red blur and he found himself falling to the ground.
He looked around and realized that it wasn't a blur that hit him, but a girl, who had landed a short distance away. She seemed to be his age, with brown eyes, freckles splattered over her face, and the most beautiful shade of red hair he'd ever seen.
"Get her!" He heard, and turned to the other direction. Four men came around the corner and rushed toward them.
He watched in confusion as one of them grabbed the girl by the collar of her robes and hauled her roughly to her feet, but his attention was diverted when another one of them grabbed his robes and said "Well, well, look at what we have here"
Harry suddenly recognized him from the wanted posters around the Alley and the Leaky. Aberforth had warned him to stay away from the Knockturn Alley because of him. This man- Phineas Rowle- was a known human trafficker, but no one was ever able to legally prove that he was.
Harry slammed his fist on the man's wrist, who grunted in pain and let go of him. Harry thrust his hand out, lashing out with his magic, and the man went flying back into the wall.
He heard a yell from behind him and turned to see that the man, who'd previously been holding the girl by her robes, down on the ground clutching his privates, face crumpled in pain.
Harry would've winced in sympathy, but these men were here to kidnap and probably sell the girl- and now him.
The girl looked over his shoulder, and her eyes went wide with surprise, but before he could say anything, she ran to him and pushed him to the ground, again.
He was confused at her behavior for all of one second because a spell passed by exactly where he was standing and started to melt the portion of the wall it hit.
Harry rolled to his feet, ready this time, and took out his wand. He aimed it at the man who fired the spell, knowing that talking to them would be a waste of time.
Harry waved his wand in a circle and suddenly slashed it up. Everte Statum
His silently cast spell surprised both the men, but the one he aimed it at wasn't able to do anything about it, as he was lifted off the ground and went spinning backwards, where he hit the wall and crumpled to the floor.
Harry used the other man's surprise against him. He held his arm out in the direction of a few nearby crates behind the man, squeezed his fist almost shut, and pulled back. The crates came flying at the man and he was hit with every single one. The crate broke into several pieces but Harry silently cast an Oppugno on them to make sure the man would be occupied.
He heard more footsteps, and he turned to the girl to tell her to run, but she was one step ahead of him. Grabbing his hand, she pulled along as she ran into a side-alley that was in the opposite direction to the people that were probably coming to help the one he and this girl had taken down.
They ran for what felt like hours, Harry firing Everte Statum and Oppugno at various intervals, to impede their pursuers' attempt at getting a hold of them.
Eventually, they came to a fork in the path. One that Harry recognized. The path on the right would lead them to an alley near Sioban's Magical Steaks. A fancy steakhouse that required a reservation at least a week prior, if you wanted any hope of getting a seat.
He tugged the girl's hand toward the right side and she followed him, seeming to trust his instinct. It was quite a distance, but they both made it to safety in one piece. He dragged her into the backroom of the steakhouse where he let go of her hand and closed the door.
He leaned against it and closed his eyes, his breathing heavy. Once he had his breathing under control, he opened his eyes and saw that the girl was curled up in a seated position on the floor, panting.
He decided to go join her and sat beside her, keeping a bit of distance between them. "You alright?" he asked.
The girl looked at him and said "Yeah, yeah I'm…" she trailed off when she caught sight of his scar, her eyes going wide and her mouth dropping open, seemingly of its own volition. "You're Harry Potter" she breathed.
Harry sighed. Stupid scar. "Yeah. I am. What's your name?" he asked politely.
She blushed a little at his question and looked away shyly. "I'm Ginny. Ginny Weasley" she said, when she turned back to look at him a moment later.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Ginny," he said, truly meaning it for some reason. Maybe because he knew she could take care of herself without help, or because she seemed like a genuinely nice person, he didn't know.
She blushed a little again, but it was much less noticeable this time. "But do you mind telling me what the hell that was back there?"
Now, she turned bright red, but this time he could see she was embarrassed about something. She looked at the floor and muttered. "The Floo spat me out of the wrong fireplace"
The Floo was a Magical method for traveling long distances. You throw floo powder in the fireplace and you say the name of your destination. If that place is connected to the Floo network, then you could travel between the two places via the fireplace. But it could take you to the wrong fireplace if you aren't focused enough on your destination. Which is what he assumed happened to Ginny.
"I landed in a store of some sort" she continued "It was filled with Dark artifacts, though. I could tell. There was this necklace too… I almost put it on" At this point Harry assumed she was talking just to take it all off her chest. Something he'd wanted to do in the past, several times.
"Then this guy came in and asked what I was doing, I told him what happened and he didn't believe me. I knew I was in Knockturn Alley though. So, I ran. I didn't know where to go, so I kept choosing random places. Then I bumped into you" She said looking back up at him "Thanks for that" she added with a small smile.
"You're welcome. But I think you had it yourself, actually"
She shook her head "Thanks, but I don't think so"
"Let's just agree to disagree then?"
She gave a small chuckle "Alright, fine"
They smiled at each other and stayed in a comfortable silence for a moment before Harry asked "Do you have any family with you?"
Ginny swallowed and nodded "I'll go looking for them. I just… need a minute"
Harry nodded in understanding. "Do you need any help looking for them?"
She looked at him with a conflicted expression before shaking her head "It's okay, I'll be fine. I don't want to be a bother"
"You won't be. No, really. You won't" He added at her disbelieving expression.
"Don't you have to get back to your family?" She asked.
"I don't"
"What?"
"They… well, let's just say that they hate Magic- and by extension- me" he decided to tell her the truth. He didn't know why he was asking to help her. All he knew was that he wanted to.
"Oh. I'm sorry" she said.
"Don't be. So, what do you say?" he asked.
She looked confused for a second before she gave him a smile. "Thank you" she said.
He smiled back and took out his concealer gel. He took some of the gel onto his fingers and started applying it on his scar and spreading it around so that it would cover his scar enough for it to go unnoticed if anyone wasn't looking for it.
"Is that make-up?" Ginny asked him.
This time it was Harry who turned red. "Yeah" he muttered shyly. "Concealer actually. Hides my scar. I forgot to apply it today which is how I ended up in Knockturn Alley"
"You ended up in Knockturn Alley because you forgot to apply concealer?" She asked him slowly, as though worried she misheard something.
"Well, there's a bit more to it than just that. I ended up getting reporters on my tail and ran away. I got lost somewhere though. And, then I hid in the back of the shop I met you outside of"
Ginny nodded "I wondered why you were there"
He went back to applying his concealer as Ginny watched him curiously. After he was done he turned to her and asked "Is it hidden?"
She nodded "You can see it if you really look for it, but otherwise you're fine"
"Good" He put the gel back in his pocket and wiped his fingers on the inside of his robe. "You ready to go?"
She nodded and stood up, he followed her lead, and they left the restaurant. They made their way through the street, sticking close together. Harry noticed Ginny seemed down, something he could sympathize with, though he couldn't understand.
"What do they look like?" He asked
"Hm?" She responded
"Your family. What do they look like?"
"Oh. Well, we're a whole bunch of redheads, you'll know when you see them. There's our Mum, then my brother Percy- he'll be the slightly nerdy looking guy with the glasses. Then there's the twins, Fred and George. The rest are busy apparently" Harry noticed her mood brighten a little, when she talked about her family. Harry couldn't help the feeling of envy that crept into him, but he shoved it out immediately.
"Do you go to Hogwarts?" he asked, not wanting to let her slip back into the gloomy state of mind she was in.
She shook her head "No. I do start in September though."
Harry was a little happy to hear that. Maybe he could have a friend there, after all. If she wanted him to be her friend, of course.
"That's nice. We'll be in the same year." He said.
"Really?" She turned her face to him now. Harry just realized they'd been talking without facing each other, and yet, this was the most comfortable he'd been while talking to someone else. There was a little awkwardness, but they barely even knew each other, so that was to be expected.
He nodded "Yeah. I start this year, too"
"B-but" She spluttered. "You already knew those spells"
"Yeah, I er… read ahead, so to speak"
It was obvious she didn't believe his lie. Really, it was rather flimsy. But he found that he didn't want to outright lie to Ginny. He wouldn't tell her the truth until he knew he could trust her, though.
"Can I ask you a question?" She asked.
"You already did" he quipped. Really, what was going on with him?
She glared at him, though he could tell she was pretending by the way her lips twitched upwards.
"Alright, alright. Go on. I can't promise I'll answer though." He warned.
She nodded. "What were those spells you were using?"
Harry didn't mind her question all that much, so he told her the names and effects.
"Huh. Cool. How did you get past the trace though?" She whispered to him.
He shook his head "Nuh uh. I can't go revealing all my secrets now, can I?
Her mouth dropped open, but a smile slowly blossomed on her face. She chuckled "You seem like the kind of guy I can be friends with, Potter" she seemed nervous all of a sudden. Harry knew why. She was waiting for him to say something.
"Well, then I guess you're in luck. I'd like us to be friends too"
She grinned at him and he grinned back. He had a feeling that he'd just made a choice that would be affecting his entire life.
They made their way back to the courtyard in comfortable silence. Both of them content with their new friendship. But they still hadn't found the rest of the Weasleys.
"Are you sure they're here?" Harry asked. He'd let Ginny lead their way. It was her family, as such, she would know best where to find them
"Yes. Mum said that if I get lost, I should make my way here"
"You were gone for a while…" he tried. "Maybe we should ask the Aurors?"
"What Aurors?" She asked.
There were Aurors undercover here. There always were. Aberforth had told him, and Harry started to try and detect one. He had his first success a week ago, and since then, he was able to pick them out if he looked close enough.
"See that woman?" He nodded toward one that wasn't looking at them.
"Yeah?"
"She's one"
"What? How do you know?" she asked. Her tone was curious and surprised. Not accusatory. Or disbelieving. And that meant a lot to Harry for some reason.
"Look at her. She's watching a lot of people. And she's a little stiff. Her hand is also hovering near her wand holster. You know, maybe I should get myself one of those"
Ginny was just staring at him open-mouthed. She looked at the woman and saw that, indeed, everything Harry said lined up.
"How did you do that?" She asked in wonder.
He shrugged "I'm observant"
She opened her mouth to say something else when they both heard a woman's voice. "Ginny?"
They turned to the voice, and Harry saw that Ginny's description of her family was quite accurate. The nerdy looking guy- Percy- was looking relieved to see his sister. The twins were smiling at her. But Ginny only had eyes for her mother, who came running towards her daughter, and grabbed her in a hug before Harry could even process what happened.
"Oh thank Merlin!" The woman cried "I was just going to call your father from work now, when I heard your voice" She released Ginny from the hug but caught her by the shoulders "You are never Flooing to Diagon Alley ever again, dear. Do you hear me? I'll side-apparate you to the Apparition Point myself."
Ginny nodded "Yes, mum"
Mrs. Weasley turned to him now, looking at him with a furrow in her brow. She then turned back to Ginny "Who's your friend, dear?"
"I'm Harry" He decided to introduce himself in a low, soft voice to stop anyone overhearing him. "Harry Potter"
He saw her face settle in an expression of realization. "I thought I recognized you," she said. "You look so much like your Father. You have your Mother's eyes, though.
Now, it was Harry's time to be surprised. "Wait, what? You knew my parents?
She had an apologetic look on her face. "Oh, no dear. I'm so sorry. I've only seen them in passing and in pictures. But the resemblance is strong"
"Can you two tell us what happened?" Percy asked him and Ginny. He noticed the others nod in agreement.
He looked at Ginny and shrugged, conveying that it was her story to tell. And she did. She told them about getting lost in the floo and getting chased through Knockturn Alley. She also mentioned that she punched a man "in the bits". Harry, who was having a sip of water, almost choked. He had a feeling she'd said that on purpose, as a joke, because her lips turned slightly upward when she said it. She also recounted their escape- during which Harry blushed furiously, much to the amusement of the twins- thankfully leaving out the part where he'd done magic, saying that he threw the empty barrels in the pursuers path. She finished by telling them how they ended up agreeing to search for her family.
"Wow," one of the twins muttered.
"That's quite the adventure" the other said
"How did you end up in Knockturn Alley?" Mrs. Weasley asked Harry. It wasn't in a suspicious tone, thank God.
"The press was chasing me. I ran, got lost, and hid in a shop. The shop turned out to be in Knockturn Alley. Then I heard footsteps, so I went out to check and bumped into Ginny"
Mrs. Weasley nodded at his explanation and asked "Thank you so much for helping Ginny. Is there anything we can do to repay you? We need to get Ginny a wand, so perhaps we can accompany you if you don't have one? You won't have to wait for long, we're going there first-"
"We don't want to go there!" One of the twins said, "It takes time! We want to go to Zonko's first. Lee's meeting us there. We could take Percy with us, and you can go with Ginny"
Percy's eyes widened, and he got a horror struck look on his face for some reason.
Ginny came to Harry's side while her mum was arguing with the twins. "I need your help. Follow my lead?" She asked him in a whisper.
He nodded, curious to see where this would go. He knew Ginny wouldn't ask anything that was considered wrong or too much.
"Mum! You can't seriously consider leaving them alone with poor Percy, can you?" Ginny asked Mrs. Weasley. "They'll eat him alive"
"Well- I-" she started.
"Harry, will you go with me? That way I won't be alone" she said.
Harry almost started laughing. God, her cunning was as good as his, if not better. Harry pretended to consider it, he did have to visit Ollivander's after all. After a suitable amount of time, he slowly nodded his head. "You know what, sure. I'm in. I need to visit him anyway. If that's okay with you Mrs. Weasley?" He asked politely.
"I can always show you the wand later, Mum" Ginny added "Plus this will save Percy from being traumatized" Percy shot her a thankful glance which she acknowledged with a smile.
"Well, if you're all sure?" Mrs. Weasley asked the kids. She received nods all around "Fine. Do take care, Ginny" She said, giving Ginny an extra hug.
"Remember kids" One of the twins said to Harry and Ginny.
"No kissing!" The other finished, both twins making kissy faces and noises
"Fred and George Weasley" Mrs. Weasley growled slowly, while Harry and Ginny blushed bright red. The twins were unrepentant, though, as they started laughing.
Mrs. Weasley dragged the rest of her kids away, leaving Ginny with Harry, after making them both promise they'd meet her here in an hour (She'd Come to Ollivander's if they weren't here, or if she and the rest finished early) "Are they always like this?" He asked her.
"Oh, you have no idea," she responded. "You don't have to come with me by the way. Unless you really you do have to visit Ollivander?"
"I do need to visit him, yes. Having you with me is just a bonus" Harry decided to add. He didn't know why. Just a gut feeling that he should say something… charming.
Ginny giggled. Apparently it was the right thing to say "Keep the flattery coming, Potter. I could get used to this"
Harry just laughed at her. "You better"
"- And that hit by Jones really impressed me. That's why they're my second favorite team. Still, The Hippogriffs are, as I said, my favorite team" Harry finished.
Harry and Ginny had been discussing Quidditch non-stop since they'd started walking, when Ginny asked if he liked Quidditch. He found that they both shared the same passion for the game.
Currently just as they were entering Ollivander's, Harry had finished his reasoning behind why the Hollows Hippogriffs were his favourite and the Holyhead Harpies took second place in his team list.
"That's actually a pretty good reason. Damn. I was hoping I could convert you" Ginny said.
Harry laughed "Sorry, Weasley. Maybe someday though"
"I'll hold you to that" she responded, just as Ollivander himself came out of his storeroom.
"Welcome back Mr. Potter and… Ms. Weasley, I presume?"
Ginny nodded "How did you know?"
Harry himself was about to ask him that. Really, it was a little weird how he did that.
"Red hair, freckles, and wearing robes? Who else could you be?"
"Oh" Ginny said, as though it explained everything.
"Am I missing something here?" Harry asked. How did that explain anything?
"The Weasleys are an old Pureblood family," Ginny explained. "We don't put much stock in blood purity though"
Harry was relieved to hear the last part of her sentence. She seemed so nice, he couldn't picture her as a traditional Blood Purist (People who thought Muggleborns were a disgrace, and that Purebloods were the only true type of Wizard) It also did explain Ollivander's statement.
"I assume you are here for a Wand, Ms. Weasley?" At Ginny's nod, he continued "I have to admit I'm at a loss for why you are here Mr. Potter" Ollivander said.
"I'm here to keep her company. I also have a few questions for you Mr. Ollivander. It's about my Wand" Harry explained.
"Is it not working appropriately?" Ollivander asked, whilst instructing Ginny to hold her arms out, and using the measuring tape device on her.
"Oh, no. Nothing like that. It's working too well actually"
"Oh?" Ollivander asked curiously
"Say, hypothetically, if I could do non-verbal spells after only two months of practice, would it be based on my skill? Or would my wand be helping me?" Harry asked, as Ginny was done being measured.
"Just a moment Mr. Potter, Ms. Weasley." Ollivander said and went back to his storeroom.
Ginny was looking at him curiously but Harry only gentured for her to wait a minute. He himself wasn't too sure about his theory, but it did have some merit. Rowan wands chose good duelists, or those in the making. And silent spells would be far too good an advantage in duels.
Ollivander came back with two dozen boxes which, just like last time, arranged themselves on the table. His hand hovered over a box before he shook his head and chose another. He handed the wand inside to Ginny and- without taking his eyes off her- said to him "Hypothetically speaking" he turned and smirked at him "I believe it would be your Phoenix feather that helped you achieve non-verbal magic so quickly. Unfortunately, I haven't a basis to prove this. Phoenix feather wands choose precious few people, and the creatures themselves are beyond rare, only born when two of them mate- which barely happens anymore- or when an avian familiar with an exceptionally powerful bond with its companion is killed before its time. The feathers, therefore, are rarer, still" As he was speaking, he didn't turn to look at Harry-except that one smirk- he simply had Ginny try more and more wands. Some he plucked out of her hand. Others, he simply was going to give to her, but pulled back at the last moment. The ones that did make it into her hand did not function well. The whole process was remarkably similar to his. She was getting redder and redder by the moment, because of anger or embarrassment, he didn't know.
"There is one Phoenix I have been able to study. His name is Fawkes. He's the one that gave the feathers that connect your wand with The Dark Lord's" Ginny's jaw dropped open at this.
"WHAT!?" She shrieked in surprise, horror, or confusion, he didn't know which. Of course, it could just be all of the above.
Harry sighed. Ollivander for his part shot him an apologetic grimace. "I just share a wand core with him. I had a similar reaction to yours when I found out, though mine was rather internal. It's a long winded story, I'll explain later" He turned to Ollivander. "Please, continue"
Ollivander gave Ginny another wand, she waved it and an expensive looking glass ornament on Ollivander's stand exploded. Harry jerked in surprise.
"Merlin's balls, I'm so sorry" she cried.
Harry and Ollivander both burst out laughing at her… interesting choice of words, as Ginny grimaced.
"It's all right, miss. Happens all the time" He jabbed his wand at the pieces and they started to repair themselves. " Now" He took the wand from Ginny and gave her another one, and so on. "From my studies, I have found out that Phoenixes are rather… detached. At least the ones that are born naturally. The ones that are born via the familiar bond die with their owner. Anyway, I found that whenever a Phoenix chooses someone, they choose the person with the sole purpose of guiding him or her. Again, I have no basis for proving this, but I believe that the feather of the bird might have the same characteristic. So the Phoenix feather might help you in the future as well"
"Oh. I thought it was the wood" Harry said lamely.
"A reasonable assumption," Ollivander said. "You wouldn't be the first one to have overlooked the importance of a magical core"
Harry just nodded and thanked Ollivander for his input. He spent the next ten minutes watching Ginny. She'd apologized to him, and told him it was okay to leave- something he waved off. Really, he was rather curious to see what type of wand would choose his new friend.
"I'm so sorry," she said again five minutes after her first apology "I have no idea what's wrong with me"
"There's nothing wrong with you," Harry immediately responded, turning fully to her "Mine took over an hour. I must've tried almost every wand Mr. Ollivander's made, right?" The last word was directed at Mr. Ollivander, but the man was nowhere to be seen. He almost thought the man had done a runner, but he came back just as the thought passed through his head. The box he had in his hand seemed familiar to him for some reason. Something about the box was calling to him too. Not asking him to choose it. Just… greeting a 'hello', in a way.
Ollivander opened the box and took out a dark brown colored wand and handed it to Ginny. Red and gold sparks flew from it. "YESS!!" Ginny cried, and pumped her fist in the air. Harry chuckled at her antics.
"When Mr. Potter reminded me about his choosing, it hit me" Ollivander said. "It was a gut feeling. But I knew it was right. The same one I had with Mr. Potter here. Might be Magical intervention, maybe not, but you and this wand were meant for each other. Much like Mr. Potter and his wand"
"What is it made of?" Ginny said in wonder, holding the wand reverently.
Ollivander smiled broadly, and for some reason Harry had a bad feeling about this. "It's 11 inches, unyielding- meaning it won't change allegiances- and it is made of Holly and Phoenix feather"
Harry's bad feeling turned out to be one of his worst fears. He had thought that something like this could happen. But he'd put it out of his mind. That feeling only got worse when Ollivander said "And you share a wand core with Mr. Potter"
"Really?" She suddenly turned to him excitedly. He must've been late in turning his frown into a smile, or she must've noticed that it didn't quite reach his eyes, because her face fell, seconds before horror and realization showed on her face. She must've connected the dots.
Harry jumped off his seat, remembering his own reaction to learning about that. Hers must be worse though. She'd probably heard stories of what kind of a monster Voldemort was for her entire life.
She was breathing heavily with her face down. He grabbed her shoulders and shook her gently. "Ginny?"
Nothing.
He shook her harder "Ginny?"
She looked up at him and then, she looked so sad and heartbroken that Harry did the only thing he could think of.
He pulled her in a hug.
He never had one, as such, he wasn't the best hugger. It was supposed to make people feel better. When Ginny's arms came around him, he could see why, but he had no idea how Ginny was feeling.
She seemed to melt into him. Burying her head in his shoulder, her own shoulders shaking. She wasn't crying, though she was breathing heavily very fast.
She pulled back a few seconds later, her face was flushed as she muttered an apology.
"Don't apologize. Are you feeling better?" He responded, still holding her by the shoulders.
She nodded. "Yeah, thanks"
"No need to thank me," he responded.
Ollivander who'd been looking away to give them privacy, turned to them "Forgive me, Miss Weasley-"
"It's ok," she said. "How much will it be?"
"Er… 7 galleons. Are you quite sure you're alright? I hadn't meant to let slip like that, but I noticed how close you two seem, and brother wands do have a special relationship, and I thought it might be a nice surprise so… yeah." he finished awkwardly, looking completely helpless, wringing his hands together.
"It's okay, Mr. Ollivander. Really" she added at his disbelieving expression. She took out her seven galleons and held her hand out to the man. He hesitantly took the money, probably knowing she wouldn't accept charity.
"Thank you" she said with a small smile. "Do you need to get anything, Harry?"
Now that she said it, he remembered that he did want a wand holster "Do you keep wand holsters?" He asked Ollivander.
He nodded "3 galleons a piece. Just strap them to your thigh over your pants, takes away the awkwardness of putting it in your pocket. It shrinks or grows to adjust to your size, no matter what size you are"
"I'll have one in black" He said.
"Same" Ginny responded, already taking out her money.
Ollivander went and picked out two, and made some adjustments to it, so that it would fit him. Harry took out his money bag and said the required amount. They both handed the required amount and took the holsters, putting their wands into them.
"That was… something, eh?" Harry said after they left Ollivander's.
"Yeah" She absently responded.
"That was a nice thing you did," He said. "Forgiving him like that"
"It wasn't his fault" She said, jumping to Ollivander's defense. "It was obvious he hadn't meant it like that"
"Relax. I know," He responded. "He just gets awkward sometimes and blurts out the most random stuff. It's bloody interesting most of the time, though."
"Yeah, I caught all of that," She said, and stopped him. "I'm sorry about my… outburst. I thought you were being mean. I've been bullied a lot by the girls in our town for hanging around with this odd girl that used to live close to us a while ago. Her name was Luna. We weren't friends, per se, but she was good company. Her mother died, though, and she left the country with her father. She's a bit like Ollivander actually."
Someone who won't stand for bullying. Yes, they could definitely be great friends
"It's okay," he responded. "I would've done that too" It wasn't the complete truth though. "I'm sorry about you getting bullied. I know how it feels"
"You do?"
Harry nodded. "I won't go into it too much. But my relatives don't like me very much. I think I've said that already?" She nodded and he continued "Well, long story short, my cousin kept harassing people who got too close to me at school so, eventually, I just gave up trying to make friends. Then, he and his buddies started bullying me. I actually ran away from home when I found out I was a wizard."
"Oh. Wow, that's… I'm so sorry, Harry" she said softly.
He shrugged, not used to someone caring for him. "It's okay. I survived, and I'm better for it"
She turned to him questioningly. He decided to tell her. He wasn't planning on hiding it. But he felt she deserved to know before the others. He went into a side alley, and she followed him.
He opened his hand and lit up the blue fire in it. She gasped in surprise, and took his hand in hers. He quickly extinguished the fire. She checked his hand over and ran her fingers over his palm, her mouth still open in shock. Her fingers were causing some tingles though. And not the magical kind. He also had some weird feeling in his stomach.
"How…?" She asked weakly, and let his hand go.
"Wandless Magic" he responded
"You used it back there too didn't you? In Knockturn Alley?"
He nodded.
"You're just full of surprises aren't you?"
"And don't you forget it" He said with a grin.
"I don't think I can," She chuckled.
"Hm… you know, you could've just asked me if you wanted to touch and hold my hand. I would've let you"
"Your hand was on fire!" She cried, turning bright red. "Forgive me for being concerned about my friend"
It was nice hearing that she was concerned about him, but that wasn't why he chose the fire. "Well, you can rest easy. This fire doesn't burn me. I don't think it would burn you either. But I'd rather not try"
She nodded "So… Wandless Magic, huh?" She asked weakly. "You do know you're like one of the handful of people that can do it, right?"
He nodded. "I read it in a book"
They started their walk back to the courtyard, when she asked him "Were you raised by muggles? You said that you had school and I don't know any Wizarding schools before Hogwarts."
"I was, yeah." He said. "You know, now that you mention it, no one seems to know that," he added.
She nodded. "Well, of course not. No one knows where the Ministry sent you"
They walked for a while in silence. Both, lost in their own thoughts. When suddenly Harry realized he hadn't said anything about them sharing a core.
"Are you upset?" He asked
"What? Why?"
"Your wand…" he said hesitantly.
She sighed. "I can deal with it"
"It doesn't matter, you know, you sharing one with him. I do too. Albus Dumbledore apparently once said that 'It's our choices that make us who we are. Not the cards we're dealt'. And, maybe... you can look at it like the two of us sharing one instead of you sharing one with him. Besides, he's dead now, isn't he?"
She nodded, relieved to hear that from him "Yeah. Yeah, he is dead. It's just the two of us that share one. You know thinking about it like this actually helps" she finished with a smile
Harry smiled back. "Can you tell me more about your family? They seem like an interesting lot," he asked. Genuinely curious.
She laughed and brightened "Oh, interesting is an understatement. I'll start with the ones you've met. Mum's lovely. She's a great cook and she loves cooking. I can't cook shit, but I do like helping however I can. She's a tad overprotective though"
"Then there's Percy. He's the one I'm closest to. He's helped me a lot and sends letters home from Hogwarts regularly. He loves studying, and he wants to work in the Ministry some day. He gets picked on by the twins a lot though"
"The twins are a pain in the arse, but still I love them for some reason. They're pranksters of the highest degree, and won't hesitate to prank strangers. The only reason they didn't mess with you was because Mum was there. Never eat anything the twins give you, by the way. There's a good chance it's been fucked with. They are good people, though"
"My Dad works at the Ministry. In the Misuse of Muggle artefacts department. Basically he catches people who use magic on Muggle objects to harm the Muggles. Like a toilet seat that will eat them or something. He's probably on a case right now. He loves muggles. Don't get me wrong, I like them a lot too, but Dad's just on a whole different level. He'll interrogate you for hours if he knew you went to a Muggle School. He doesn't make much though, so we're a little on the poorer side. My oldest brother, Bill, makes me special curse puzzles, though. They give me galleons if I solve them. I saved up about 170 something for my wand"
"170!?" He exclaimed in a whisper. That explained how she was able to lay for her wand and wand holster if she was poor. He didn't care if she was, but 170 galleons was no joke. "That's so cool. What are curse puzzles, though?"
She laughed "They're sort of like a Magical simulation of sorts. You enter the appropriate actions and if you're able to solve it, the puzzle opens. Maybe I'll show you one day He works at the Adventurers' Guild at Gringotts, by the way"
Harry's jaw dropped "No way! Do you know what they do there?"
She shrugged. "Not much. Just that there are curse-breakers, who travel the world and retrieve lost objects or treasures, and that there are Treasurers with them who research the curses and enchantments placed on the objects so that the Curse-Breakers can break through them. My brother Bill works in Egypt. He makes a lot and sends most of it home, since Gringotts pays for most of his expenses"
"Then there's Charlie. He worked at a Dragon reserve in Romania till the previous October. He missed being at home, and he came back. He tried for the Appleby Arrows and got a position as reserve seeker. He'll get promoted soon though. I'm sure of it. He's a damn good seeker"
"I hope he does," he replied. "Heyy, have you ever seen a Dragon?"
She nodded. "Held a baby Dragon once too" she told him excitedly "She was the cutest thing ever. Set my hair on fire though"
Harry chuckled, thankfully Ginny wasn't too offended. "I have a younger brother too. Ron. He's a year younger than I am, and he's a damn good chess player. I think he'd be a good strategist too. He loves Quidditch even more than I do. Though he does get under a lot of stress. Being the youngest and all. He's at Quidditch camp with Charlie now, though"
"Don't get me wrong, because I am so glad I met you, but why didn't you go with Charlie"
Ginny's face darkened "Because I'm a girl and it's not safe" she muttered. "At least that's what Mum said. We had a massive row. I let it go because I made her promise she wouldn't interfere if I made the Quidditch team at Hogwarts"
"Can you?"
"What?"
"Make the team at Hogwarts" he clarified.
"I hope so." She said, "Don't tell anyone but, I kinda taught myself to fly. I've been sneaking out at night to fly since I was six, since everyone refused to teach me."
Harry's eyebrows raised in surprise. "Really? What's it like?"
Ginny smiled "It's hard to describe, but it's amazing. It's like you leave everything back at the ground, when you're up there. You'll just have to try yourself"
"Yeah" he nodded. Before another thought occurred to him "Wait, your Mum says brooms are dangerous, but she let you hold a Dragon?"
"I know right!" She exclaimed "Charlie managed to convince her somehow that a baby wouldn't be as dangerous, though."
"But" he spluttered "It's a Dragon"
She only chuckled as they reached the entrance of the courtyard where they spotted the rest of them.
"Got your wand?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
Ginny nodded and patted her thigh, where her wand holster was strapped.
"Good" Mrs. Weasley said. "We must go home now, it's lunch time"
As though in response, Harry's stomach growled. All of them chuckled, even Harry, who said "Guess it is"
"Yeah, I'll just say goodbye to Harry, and come along," Ginny said.
Mrs. Weasley nodded and thanked Harry again. He simply looked at the ground and muttered "You're welcome". She praised him, saying how polite he was. Ginny covered up her chuckle with a cough.
"Well, guess this is Goodbye, for now" He said, after Mrs. Weasley and Percy drag Fred and George away before they could tease them much.
"It doesn't have to be," She responded.
"What? You gonna run away with me or something?" He returned cheekily with a grin.
She laughed "Keep dreaming, Potter. No. I was talking about the game tonight at the Quidditch Emporium. Dad was thinking about getting the family tickets. Maybe we could meet there?"
Harry nodded eagerly. Really he had enjoyed the day, and her presence despite the… odd circumstances, that led to their friendship. It was a surprise how comfortable he'd gotten with her. He also had a feeling that she had gotten over her shyness completely and wouldn't be as… hesitant as she was when he first met her.
She grinned at him "It was fun today. Despite everything that led to it" She said
He nodded. "You know. I was just thinking the same thing"
She drew him in for a quick hug, he stiffened a little but reciprocated anyway. "See you later" she said when she let him go.
"Yeah. See you" he said.
He watched her go with her mother toward the Public Floo. Mrs. Weasley sent her boys off first, before taking a hold off Ginny's arm. Ginny waved to him once before her and Mrs. Weasley disapparated.
He looked toward the alley where Flourish and Blotts was. Then back at the Leaky, and decided that food was far more important to him now than getting his books.
A/N: Thanks for reading this far. It's a long chapter, I know. Sorry for taking this long to upload. I was a little busy and it couldn't be put off.
Hope you liked my introduction of Ginny Weasley. Her and Harry's interactions are based on those between my childhood best friend and mine (No, we did not fight criminals together). We were both awkward at first, before getting comfortable in each other's presence and opening up. Hope she's doing well now. Wherever she is.
Obviously her character will grow and evolve and change into the mischievous and fiery one that we all know and love. That will be for the next chapter though.
If you think I had too much of her. I understand, nearly 4/5th of the chapter is interactions between her and Harry. But I'm okay with it. And I hope you will be too. There will be more characters later on too, but for now, this is what I've got.
Again, thanks for reading. And please leave a review. On this one especially.
What else, what else… Oh yes. If anyone has any title suggestions for this, please let me know. HP: A Re-Telling seems very generic. Maybe I'll stick with it. Maybe not. That'll be based on your suggestions.
I'm not looking for anything like 'Slytherin Harry' though. It doesn't need to be related to Harry Potter at all. It could be the most abstract thing that you think suits the story.
I'll credit you in the A/Ns whenever I see a title I like.
Thank you!
P.S: I know that Emporium means a fancy place that sells a lot of stuff. I just couldn't think of anything better for a name.