In Surrey:
Isabella Riley had seen the posters of the missing boy yesterday. She, along with a few of her customers, had spoken about the child this very morning. On her way to the small café on Love Lane, she had bumped into Laura Carthwright and they had shared concerns for the boy they had often seen wandering alone in the streets of Little Whingeing. Only for the last few days now, not a soul had seen the young lad. When she had first seen the posters, Isabella had felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for not having raised her concerns about him many moons ago. Now, she thought, the child had likely been grabbed by some stranger, never to be seen again.
At Hogwarts:
Severus Snape strode down the seventh-floor hallway, black robes billowing behind him. Just fifteen minutes earlier, whilst in the middle of a highly complex potion, he had received an urgent summons from the Headmaster.
There were very few people Severus Snape would allow to interrupt his brewing, though Albus Dumbledore was certainly one of those few. So, when the headmasters head had appeared in his laboratory fireplace just fifteen minutes earlier, Severus Snape had promised to see to the man's summons as soon as practically possible.
"Hinkypuff" the man muttered in disdain, loathe to the ridiculous passwords the Headmaster insisted on using. Severus was sure the man used them with the sole purpose of causing his faculty embarrassment whenever visiting him.
"Severus" Albus Dumbledore greeted the man, as a friend "I must apologise for interrupting you at such a critical point" he added sincerely, extending a small tray of Lemon Drops to the man before him.
Shaking his head at the sickly sweets, "There is nothing to be done about it" the younger man replied, though with little malice. Despite his annoyance at being interrupted, he was aware the headmaster would not have done so unnecessarily. "What was it you wished to see me for?"
In Surrey:
It was 4 o'clock in the afternoon, it had been raining since 8 o'clock that morning and did not look to be easing up any time soon. The small café on Love Lane had been fairly quiet all day, and Isabella was not thankful for it. It had given her far too much time to think about the small boy, and the awful things that could have happened to him.
As Isabella looked out onto the rainy street, planning to close the café earlier than usual, she spied a small figure perched on one of her outdoor tables. In spite of the rain, Isabella had setup the outdoor tables in hopes that it would tempt the Sun to make an appearance, but it had not. Isabella quickly threw her sponge into the sink, abandoning her dishwashing for the moment. Something felt off in her gut as she turned to look at the small figure through the rain splattered glass. The figure was small, she thought, so small in fact that it could only be a child. Isabella stood for a few moments, noting that whoever it was, appeared to be entirely unfazed by the rain pouring down around them.
As she recalled the lost boy, who could only be about four or five, Isabella pushed herself away from the kitchen counter, preparing to approach the small figure.
At Hogwarts:
Albus Dumbledore was worried. Severus could see it written all over the mans face. He was an old man, but the countless creases on his face were ever more prominent this morning. As the younger man looked at him, it appeared as though the old man hadn't slept at all.
"I received notice yesterday morning, Severus" Dumbledore began diplomatically. "From Arabella Fig" he added and watched as the young man before him raised a lone eyebrow.
"Go on" Severus drawled, not hiding his annoyance at the headmaster's insistence on elongating the simplest of stories. He had taken a seat, not long after arriving, as he realised the headmaster was about to spout one of his long, and cryptic, monologues.
"She was most concerned, Severus" the old man paused again, causing Severus to interrupt. As much as he admired the headmaster, he had little patience for the man. Too often, Dumbledore would take much too much joy in being aloof, and Severus much preferred a succinct conversation.
"What exactly is the problem, Albus?" he sighed, "I may be able to salvage this potion if you do not keep me here until the Christmas holidays"
Smiling, and with a noticeable twinkle in his eyes, "I do apologise" Dumbledore replied, "in my old age I have quite forgotten the joys of being young and impatient my boy".
In Surrey:
Harry Potter was sat, dripping wet and frozen to the bone, on a small chair on a street called Love Lane. He had proudly read it aloud as he walked past the little signpost. He had been walking all day and had been relieved at finding the little table and chair, immediately taking a seat.
Harry had only been there for a few minutes when a door suddenly opened behind him. The young boy turned so quickly it made him dizzy. He had not eaten yet that day and had been feeling nauseous for a while. Harry braced himself to make another quick dash down the street when a woman emerged through the door.
"Hi, my name's Isabella" she said softly "are you lost?". Harry was unsure what to say for a moment. A big part of him was desperately wanting to run, but at the same time he knew this had to come to an end at some point. He had seen the posters of himself, had even run away from an old woman that morning who had pointed at him from across the street and shouted, "it's him!". He didn't even want to think about that incident with the robed man! He knew people were looking for him, and it would only be a short while until one of them managed to get him back to his relatives.
At Hogwarts:
Severus Snape was fuming. How dare the little monster decide to run away. He had hoped for a peaceful day of brewing and now, 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the middle of a great day, the Potter brat had ruined it all entirely.
"Severus" Dumbledore interrupted his internal rant "I must insist you go to Surrey and find him" he added.
"Albus" the younger man breathed in exasperation "I have preparations to make for classes, I have essays to grade, I have potions to brew" he continued sharply "can't Minerva go looking for the boy?".
"I'm afraid she is otherwise indisposed" Dumbledore insisted, "I would not ask you if I didn't have to, but surely you understand how imperative it is that we find him first" he finished meaningfully.
In Surrey:
Isabella watched as the boy stared at her, now certain that the shocked little boy before her was the same as the boy on the missing child posters. Many emotions seemed to flash across the child's face. He looked ready to run at a moments notice whilst also looking resigned to a fate worse than death. As she stood there, she noticed the rain now gradually soaking through her own clothes, sticking the fabric to her skin.
"would you like to come and sit inside?" she asked him, not really sure what she would do, but knowing he was better indoors than out.
"I'm not s'ppossed to talk to strangers" he replied quietly, glancing up at the woman who had now sat down beside him. Isabella briefly pondered what had bought the child to her café. Where were his parents, and why had they left him alone for so long?
At Hogwarts:
Severus Snape stormed down the corridor once more, this time silently cursing the old man as well as the Potter brat he now had to tend to. The door to his quarters shot open with a flick of his wrist, never pausing in his strides as he went straight to his laboratory.
"Depulso" he muttered towards his now ruined potion, banishing the mess and making a mental note to restart the process tomorrow.
"Arabella Fig!" He stated clearly, grabbing a hand full of floo powder and throwing it into the flames. Severus Snape said a silent prayer to himself, imploring the God's to prevent Mrs Fig from her nattering about her cats.
"Severus, is that you?" The old woman called from another room, accompanied by the sound of a cat hissing. "I'll be with you in a moment, I've just got to give Marvin his medicine" she continued, as Snape rolled his eyes skyward and stood rigidly by the fire. "Dumbledore said you'd be coming through" the woman carried on, bustling her way through to the parlour, followed by a very decrepit looking cat.
"Yes" he replied nonchalantly "pray tell, Mrs Fig, when did you last see the boy?" Severus continued, hoping to cut the pleasantries short and get on with his task at hand.
In Surrey:
"So, what brings you to my café Harry?" The pretty woman asked as she bought him over a mug of hot chocolate. She had even put whipped cream on top, and Harry had never had whipped cream on top before! He had relented to following the woman inside the small café after she had suggested he dry his drenched coat on her radiator.
"I like it cos its yellow" he replied in a whisper, crossing his fingers under the table, his small legs swinging gently beneath his chair. He did like the colour yellow, but it wasn't why he had chosen the little café, in fact he had chosen it due to the conveniently placed chairs outside. Harry also knew that the quirky little café was somewhere his Aunt Petunia wouldn't be caught dead near. Harry felt quite happy in the little café, with the nice Isabella lady, especially after the tiring day he had had.
"Mr Potter" sneered the tall robed man he had seen less than an hour earlier. How had the man managed to find him?! He had run until his legs were tired and then some! Suddenly he felt as if his heart would beat straight out of his chest.
"Who are you?" Isabella asked the peculiar looking man, glancing at the young boy as she did. She had never seen anyone dressed in such a way before. She had also noticed the fear in the little boy on recognising the man before them, instinctively moving closer as if to protect the child.
