"We said in the last week of
hols we'd go," Ginny complained with her hands on her hips, "Hurry up!
Mother is probably already waiting for us."
"Get off it," Ron said, messing
up her hair, "Mum isn't going to care if we're a few minutes late."
Ginny threw some Floo Powder
into York's fireplace and stepped inside, "Diagon Alley!" she instantly
disappeared, still with a slight scowl on her face.
"She's been getting giddy about
following rules. Maybe she'll turn into another Percy," Ron said, reaching
into the Chinese pot with Shenlong painted on the side.
He casually threw it into the
fire. It once again turned to a neon green and Ron stepped inside, "Diagon
Alley!" he shouted, and he too instantly disappeared.
Harry flinched. He hadn't had
the best experiences with Floo Powder. Last time, he'd ended up in Knockturn
Alley, next to Diagon Alley, and it was filled with Dark Arts materials
and other illegal things.
He grabbed a bigger handful
then necessary and threw it into the flames. They shot up green and Harry
stepped inside with a small flinch, "Diagon Alley!" he yelled, making sure
he got it clear. With a tug, Harry felt himself fly into the air. The green
flames around him were warm and pleasant. He tucked his elbows in, and
began spinning faster and faster. When he opened his eyes, he was sitting
in the bottom of a fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron.
They headed into Diagon Alley
covered in soot and ash, and Mrs. Weasley ran up the them instantly, insisting
on hugging all three of them.
"Where's York?" she asked,
once they're sat down on a green painted bench.
"She had something to take
care of, apparently," Ginny said, tossing some hair over her shoulder.
"You had adult supervision,
of course?" Mrs. Weasley asked, leaning towards them slightly.
"Yes, Sirius was there the
whole time," Harry lied, hoping that he had convinced her.
"Well, that's nice," Mrs. Weasley
said, standing up and brushing off her robes, "We'll have to get a move
on, I want to get you all home before dark."
Mrs. Weasley hurried them over
to Gringotts. From there, they nearly had to run from shop to shop, restocking
their potion kits and buying new books.
Harry's robes were again getting
shorter, over the short months time on the highland Harry found himself
growing faster then he ever did at the Dursley's. Mrs. Weasley shoved him
into Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, while she scurried Ron and
Ginny away to look at more books.
Madam Malkin greeted him politely,
and walked him into the back. There was another girl standing on a stole
getting a set of emerald green robes fitted to her. She smiled at Harry
as he entered and said pleasantly, "Hallo," She had waist length brown
hair and sparkling emerald eyes that Harry recognized nearly instantly.
"York?" he questioned quietly,
while he stepped up onto another stole.
"York?" she asked in curiosity,
"Nein, my, name, is, Victoria." She seemed to have a trouble with English.
Her words came slowly to her. Harry noticed a rather large pendant hanging
around her neck in the shape of a black dog.
Harry was certain that Victoria
was really his Governess Yorkshire, but didn't say anything aloud while
Madam Malkin fitted him with another black robe. Besides, maybe it wasn't
her, after all York was famous in Harry's memory for having bright red
hair that continuously changed lengths when she was in good of bad moods.
And this girl was different. Her skin was extremely dark; but not African
American, more like a dark tan, her brown hair stood out strangely like
it was glowing. And her eyes were green, yes, but not Yorkshire's green.
And York talked with a different accent then that; Victoria sounded more
German that anything.
"Are, you, at, Hog-warts?"
Victoria asked, spinning around on the stool like she was wearing a fancy
gown.
"Yeah," Harry said solemnly,
"My fifth year."
"Auch Ja, me, too," she said,
jumping slightly, "Maybe, we'll, be, in the, same, Hause."
"I'm in Gryffindor," Harry
said holding his arms out while he was getting measured.
"I'm, going, to get, sorted,
with the, other first, years," she said slowly, looking in a cabinet for
a different colour of fabric, "This one, next, please."
She was holding a sunshine yellow
circle of cloth in her arms and smiling, "Could, this one, be more, like
a, dress?"
"Of course, dear," Madam Malkin
said, taking the fabric from her hands.
Harry looked out the window to see
Mrs. Weasley waving her arms for him to hurry up. Madam Malkin finished
quickly, Harry put his robes in his hands and dashed towards the door.
"Auf Wiedersehen!" she shouted,
watching Harry leave.
"Yeah, Good bye!" he yelled
back, dashing out the door. Mrs. Weasley yanked all three of them down
the street.
"Mum, slow down," Ginny said,
jumping over a pot-hole in the street.
"Can we stop somewhere," Ron
asked, jogging to keep up with his mother.
"Dears, we'll have a wonderful
meal when we get home. Now lets go!" she said, heading towards the exit
of Diagon Alley.
"But, Mrs. Weasley," Harry
said walking next to her, "I have to go back to the highland don't I?"
She stopped and looked around,
"Harry, the Minestry has been extra careful lately, apparently," she leaned
a little closer so she could whisper into Harry's ear, "the ministry sensed
a criminal around here yesterday, and we can't be to careful, it might
have been your godfather."
She reassumed standing position.
It was only then that Harry notice that everyone was acting rather shaky.
The entire time seemed to be going three hundred miles an hour, as people
darted from shop to shop, scampering around, getting everything they needed.
There was a tingle in Harry's
ear. It felt strangely relaxing at first, then a voice echoed inside his
head, "Don't worry, I'd never let anything happen to Sirius, go with Mrs.
Weasley. I'll see you on the train to Hogwarts." It was York's voice, Harry
began speaking to himself, and supposed that York must have heard him.
"I'll just come with you Mrs.
Weasley," Harry said, slowing down a bit, "If that's all right that is."
"Oh, of course, dear," she
said, opening her handbag. She took out a small and rather shaggy pouch,
and handed it to him, "Arthur said he'd make dinner tonight, then we'll
leave for King's Cross the day after tomorrow."
Harry opened the pouch and
his stomach churned. Floo Powder nearly filled it to it's brim. He sighed
as they walked into the Leaky Cauldron.
"Wait a minute! What about
his trunk, and Ron's, and Ginny's?" he suddenly asked himself. They hadn't
taken anything with them besides themselves.
"I'll see you on the train to Hogwarts."
York's message repeated in
his head. He nodded again, understanding that she'd be taking their things
to them. Harry took a handful of some Floo Powder and shouted, "The Burrow!"