Harry's birthday came a couple of days after his arrival at Mrs. Figg's. She even baked him a little cake, and although it didn't taste very good, he appreciated it a great deal. Despite the fact that he had never given Ron a proper list--or possibly because of it--Ron sent Harry his very own copy of Quidditch Through the Ages. Hermione sent a very nice padded carrying case for Harry's Firebolt, and Hagrid sent an assortment of miniature models of dragons--one model for each species. But the owl Harry was most anxious to receive came from Sirius.

Harry had heard nothing from Sirius since that night last term when he had left Harry in the hospital wing. He tore the envelope open eagerly. Sirius wrote:

Harry--

I'm sorry I haven't written before now, but I'm trying to lie low. I'm safe, so don't worry about me. I'm staying with someone, and I can't write too often. Everyone knows he was my friend, and I'm still a fugitive, so I can't be sending owls out very frequently or it will look suspicious. All the same, I wanted to wish you a happy birthday. I expect to see you very soon.

Sirius

P.S. RL sends his regards.

Tucked inside the note were ten galleons and a bar of chocolate wrapped in gold foil--Harry figured that must be from Professor Lupin. Harry pocketed the candy and galleons and folded the note. He was happy to know that Sirius was safe, but he wished that he could see him, or at least speak to him more often.

Harry and Mrs. Figg caught the early train to London on the morning of August 25. Excited as he was to see his friends and begin a new year at school, Harry was a bit sad to leave Mrs. Figg. She had taught him a great deal about wizard chess, and he had even shown her a thing or two about Exploding Snap. It had been nice to be able to do his schoolwork openly, and even ask questions about it, for a change.

As they walked through the passageway leading from the Leaky Cauldron into Diagon Alley, Mrs. Figg handed Harry a piece of parchment. "It wouldn't do to forget this, would it, dear?" she asked, smiling. She handed it to him, and he saw that it was his shopping list for school. "Arrived by owl a few days ago; I kept forgetting to give it to you. Good thing I kept it in my purse or we might not have had it to do your shopping with!"

They walked to Gringotts bank, where a Harry withdrew a bagful of Galleons from his vault. He looked at his list. "Guess we ought to get to Flourish and -- hang on," he glanced up at Mrs. Figg with a puzzled look. It says here that I'll need," he read from the list, "'One set of workout robes, grey; running shoes and socks.'" He looked back up at Mrs. Figg. "What's that about? We've never taken any kind of gym class before at Hogwarts!"

Mrs. Figg returned his bewildered look. "I'm sure I don't know," she said. A sudden thought hit her. "Harry--do you know who your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is this year?"

"No," he replied. "Why?"

"Hmmm, I wonder ... Well, I don't know either, but I'm guessing that's the teacher who put those items on your list." She peered over the top of the parchment in Harry's hand. "Come on, let's ask Madam Malkin if she can help us."

Madam Malkin's Robes For All Occasions was very busy. "Exercise clothes! Sneakers, for crying out loud! Is this a wizard clothing shop or a Muggle department store?!" a harried Madam Malkin exclaimed when they showed her Harry's list. "There," she said, and pointed them toward what appeared to be a regular cardboard box full of running shoes and socks.

"Not very helpful today, is she? That's alright, we can find them ourselves," Mrs. Figg said as she began digging through the pile. After fifteen minutes of rummaging through shoes and sorting through stacks of plain grey cotton robes, Harry and Mrs. Figg had found everything they needed. They paid a cashier and wandered over to Miniver Morris's Gift Shoppe next door.

"Percy and Penelope are registered here, you know," said Mrs. Figg. Harry turned toward her with a start; he needed to buy them a wedding gift! Mrs. Figg noticed his apprehension, and patted his hand. "Don't worry, dear, I'll help you."

In the end, Mr. Morris persuaded Mrs. Figg to buy a small but very expensive porcelain cauldron ("Self-stirring! Miss Clearwater has splendid taste"), and Harry purchased a very pretty vase that kept any plant it held alive indefinitely. They paid for their gifts, which Mr. Morris wrapped for them, and headed for Flourish and Blotts.

There they found Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Mrs. Weasley in the Transfiguration aisle. "Harry!," Ron exclaimed. He was grinning from ear to ear. "Listen," he whispered instantly, "Fred and George have gone off to Knockturn Alley and I owed them a favor, so I said I'd distract Mum for them," he whispered. "Don't say anything, okay?"

Harry barely had time to nod when Hermione turned around. "Harry!" she exclaimed as she hugged him. "How are you? Fred and George will be so ... Hey! Where are Fred and George?" Ron groaned and rolled his eyes. Mrs. Weasley looked up from the stack of books labeled A Standard Book of Spells, Grade Five.

"Good lord, where are they?" Mrs. Weasley cried. "Oh, hello Harry dear. Hello Arabella," she smiled distractedly. "I'm sorry, but I've got to find those two. If they've gone off to buy more Whizzing Fizzbies ..."

"Don't worry, Molly, I'll find them," Mrs. Figg reassured her. "If you'll just hold this parcel for me. Excuse me, children." She hurried out of the store. Mrs. Weasley looked relieved.

"So you know Mrs. Figg?" Harry asked.

"Arabella? Oh yes, for years. Rather well-known around the Ministry, of course. I reckon she's been an Auror for going on a hundred years now."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione busied themselves collecting their schoolbooks for the new year. As they left Flourish and Blotts, Mrs. Figg strode toward them with two identical boys in tow. She was grasping Fred by his right ear and George by his left, and they wore looks that exhibited a combination of embarrassment and pain.

"Molly, I'm sorry to have to tell you this," Mrs. Figg began. "But I caught them just as they were leaving Knockturn Alley. Managed to confiscate these from them."

She let go of their ears, reached into her pocket, and pulled out a handful of what looked like tiny, bright red balls.

"Salamander eyes!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.

"We wouldn't have gone there if we didn't have to, but we needed salamander eyes especially," George whined.

"What on earth for?" Mrs. Weasley queried threateningly.

"Special ... wedding surprise for Perce," Fred grinned.

"I'll give YOU a surprise!"

"Ow! Mum, stop!" She grabbed them both by their necks and steered them back toward the Leaky Cauldron. Mrs. Figg took Harry aside.

"It's time for you to go back with the Weasleys now. Have a good time, dear."

"Mrs. Figg ... I just want ... well, I wanted to ..." Harry stammered. "Thank you."

She smiled and gave him a hug. "You can thank me by being good for the Weasleys. Now, you've got your backpack. Tonight Arthur will come by my house and pick up your trunk. And I'll see you on the twenty-ninth. After that, don't you worry about the Dursleys; when they get back, I'll make sure they understand you've got off to school safely."

Harry was just about to explain that he didn't think his safety would be foremost on the Dursleys' minds when they returned, but Ron called to him.

"Oy! Harry! Are you coming or not?"

Harry waved at Mrs. Figg and said a quick goodbye.