Wednesday, 16th August.
"This is the first time ever that the kids are ready ahead of the appointed time," Mrs. Weasley beamed. "All thanks to you."
"No prob," Fenix replied with a smile. On Ginny's insistence and the excuse that they will have at least a fifty-percent chance that they will bump with the Malfoys, the girls had forced Fenix to swear that she would wear something black on the day they make a trip down to Diagon Alley. Indeed, she was wearing her black Hunter garb, with Sirius's gift of a cloak.
"Why do you let them bully you around?" Remus whispered roguishly in her ear.
"It really doesn't matter. They're fun!" Fenix smiled and shrugged slightly. "How are you feeling?"
"Better…but must I drink a lot of water before going to bed?" he grumbled a little.
"Yes, you do. It actually helps to flush away those unwanted substances. Drinking adequate amount of water keeps you healthy anyway, so don't complain," Fenix looked at him, her eyes twinkling merrily.
: You're looking good, : Sirius said in greeting as he joined all of them in front of the fireplace.
"Ron, you go first," Mrs. Weasley said.
For the past two days, ever since the students had received their booklists, they had not been talking about anything else except what Fenix could expect from Diagon Alley. When Mrs. Weasley informed her that they would go down by Floo Powder, Harry had pulled Fenix to one side and stressed on the do's and don'ts when traveling by the Floo Powder. The wolves offered to stay and guard The Burrow, along with the Elementals. They had assured Fenix that they would shield themselves with illusions while the rest of the household goes to get the students' their school materials.
Mrs. Weasley called Fenix and the plump woman encouraged her to take a fistful of the powder. I hope I do it correctly…As soon as she uttered the name of the place and threw the powder, she felt herself consumed by the Fire. The crackling of fire around her was so loud that her ears turned numb after a while. As if she had been playing on a slide, she slid off on smooth marble floor.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley, Assistant Professor!" Ron said spiritedly as he helped her up to her feet. Fenix wiped her face with a damp handkerchief tucked in her pocket and looked around cautiously. The fireplace belonged to a pub, and she paid careful attention to her surroundings. A couple of customers were nudging each other and soon, every pair of eyes turned to survey the newcomers.
"There you are! Right on time too!" Mr. Weasley waved from the entrance of the pub. Murmurs of conversation died suddenly when Sirius emerged, stood up and then walked towards Fenix with the gracefulness of a noble.
: Are they still afraid of him? : Fenix said softly in Remus's mind.
: Probably. :
"She's got damn silver eyes!" a feminine voice shrieked out suddenly and her companions made shushing noises, making the woman flush with embarrassment.
: Is this the first time you've ever been here? : Fenix asked Hermione's father.
: Nope. But it is the first time we've ever used the Floo Powder, : the Fire Mage replied.
Mr. Weasley led them off to a very crowded street.
: I hate crowds. : Fenix looked about her with resignation.
"Our first stop then, the Bank," Mr. Weasley announced and led them off to the direction of Gringotts, where their eldest son was currently working, with Sirius, Remus and Fenix taking the rear, watching people around them warily.
Sirius ushered her in, and Fenix scrutinized the interior of the bank and looked impassively at the goblins. She followed Sirius as he went to a counter to first change Fenix's Muggle notes before leading her off to a counter where the rest were queuing. He tucked the bag of exchanged Galleons, Silvers and Knuts safely in his breast pocket. Remus tagged himself to Harry as Sirius presented his key to the goblin.
"Welcome back, Mr. Black. One would have thought that the line of the Blacks have been considered extinct…"
"Hmmm…might as well consider the name gone then…" Sirius shrugged.
: How quaint, : Fenix remarked.
: I actually am considering to change my name… :
: Forget it, brother. Once a Black, you'll forever be a Black. But what kind of Black you choose to be is up to you. :
Their second stop was the bookstore where the students were to get their schoolbooks. Fenix loitered at the back with Remus, scanning through the titles of the various books that were on display.
"Now what?" Mr. Granger asked around.
"Visit the twins?" Fenix suggested.
"Let's go then!" Mr. Weasley said with aplomb.
"Dear Lord!"
Fenix swerved her head to see a stocky boy hurrying towards them, ignoring the shouts of an elderly witch.
"Neville!" the four other Gryffindor students exclaimed happily and hurried towards the boy.
: Friend of theirs? :
: I think so. :
"He's really alive…" Neville whispered as he looked at Sirius with awe. "Good for you, Harry."
"How's summer so far?" Hermione said softly.
"Weird," Neville shrugged then looked apologetically at his fellow students. "I have to go before she starts to nag at anyone."
"All right. You take care and we'll see you at the station on the First!"
"Yeah!" Neville waved and quickly tailed the elderly woman.
"They made it!" Fred looked cheerfully at them, moving off from the counter and excitedly invited them all in.
"So? How do you find our shop?" George asked pointedly at his mother.
"Oh, boys…" their mother said affectionately, still looking about their shop.
Harry gleefully bought some of their inventions and whispered to Fred, "All in all, it's a good investment right?"
"You bet!" Fred laughed and looked slyly at Fenix. "Not buying anything?"
"Did you expect me to?" she asked lightly, examining a box of what looked like sweets curiously.
"Fenix, you're disappointing me," Fred replied mournfully. The Fire Master chuckled softly under her breath.
"Personally, I wouldn't recommend that," Fred said as he steered her away and led her to another cubicle, "although the rest of the stuff are real jokes, this is something you would never expect to find here."
"You sell cookies too?" Ron was incredulous as he
inspected every label, having followed his older brother. "I'm not sure
if I would buy any of that if I were you," Ron advised and Fred snorted.
"This are real deserts?"
"Yes they are," Fred answered with dignity.
"Who baked them?"
"Us, of course…" Fred looked quizzically at her.
"Well, I'd like to try number seventeen and…twenty-two…" Fenix decided. Fred briskly scooped some of the cookies into separate bags before putting them together in a larger bag.
"My money's with Sirius," she informed the twin. As Fred led her and Ron back to the main cubicle of the joke shop, there were a few other customers beside themselves. Not surprisingly, most of them were students or friends, but not one of them seemed to be a Slytherin.
"They're boycotting the shop," Fred interpreted her look on the students accurately.
"I see."
Sirius spoke aloud. "I want to go to the Quality Quidditch Supplies. I know the shopkeeper wants to meet Fenix."
The group nodded their agreement and left the twins joke shop. They walked through the crowded street again and even in this shocking crowd, Fenix knew that they were being followed and watched.
: Sirius, Remus…don't act so startled but someone's
following us, : Fenix gave a silent warning.
: It's a group of Slytherin students, Lady, :
Krill answered to the three of them.
: Is there any chance I get to meet your cousin, bro? :
: Probably… Here we are… :
"Mr. Black! Welcome…welcome…have you brought the person with you?" the shopkeeper asked excitedly and at Sirius's nod, the man laughed gleefully. "The one who made the broom wishes to meet this person whom you've gifted the Ice Dagger."
An elderly man walked slowly towards them and his half-blind eyes sought out Fenix's instantly. He gave a smile as he stopped a few feet away from her.
"Yes…you are exactly the right person…take care of him now. Don't let him get on his own way far too often…"
"Good day then, Master."
"And a good day to you. May Phoebus watch out for you always…"
"And may the Lady-Night bless you every day," Fenix said, smiling gently as she watched the man head out of the shop.
: Lady! :
: What is it? What has gotten you to be alarmed? :
: Those Slytherin students! They had cast several multiple spells on the street directly in front of the shop. :
"What's wrong?" Remus asked, his eyes instantly alert when Fenix frowned at the entrance.
"The rest of you, stand back from the window. Mages, to me." Fenix said firmly. She silently communed with Hermione's parents and the three walked out casually, stopping a centimeter away from the trap-spells.
Fenix scanned the crowd and watched coolly. There were several disdainful snickers coming from a group of Slytherin students (although she wondered how she was able to tell they were Slytherins) and two women among them watched, far away from the mingling crowd, their faces grinning maliciously. Fenix exchanged a glance with the two Mages. Their faces remained impassive as they held out their right hands and made a hooking movement, catching the spells in their hands and tugged at it, but not hard enough to break it. After a moment, the trap-spells began to glow faintly and the passing crowd stepped away from them.
"Who did that?" one witch who was in the shop asked, reaching out for her wand to help.
"Leave it to them," the maker of the Ice Dagger advised.
The trap-spells were dissipating, much to the horror to the spell-casters.
Fenix stared coldly at the culprits, and imprinted their faces in her memory. The three Mages stood their ground and the evildoers, finally realizing their precarious situation, quickly dispersed into the crowd.
: It's safe. You could come out now, : Fenix said to Sirius and Remus.
"Guess what? Your friend with the lily-hair tried to say hi, just now," Fenix said casually to the four of the Gryffindor students.
"Oh, really?" Harry looked around to get a glimpse of Malfoy. "There he is…" he jerked his chin towards a boy in green.
"Harry, dear, let's just leave," Mrs. Molly began uneasily.
"Of course," Harry agreed. Remus and Mr. Weasley took the lead with the Grangers, Ron and Ginny in the middle. Harry was shielding Fenix carefully from the edge of the crowd.
: Harry, what are you doing? : She whispered in exasperation.
: What? : Harry gave her an innocent look.
: Never mind. : Fenix gave up, keeping an eye on Harry.
: How disappointing, : Harry sighed as he watched Draco Malfoy, and his mother went to Knockturn Alley, the one place Mrs. Weasley had forbidden her children to go, including the twins by saying 'Don't over-abuse you're freedom or you boys are going to get it from me.'. : I was rather wishing to shock her with you and Fenix. : Harry told his godfather.
: Something had just occurred to me, : Fenix began, and Harry gave her a puzzled look. : I'm going to Hogwarts later, but what about Sirius? :
Remus stopped dead in his tracks, looked back at Fenix, and gave her a tender smile before resuming his walk.
: Why feeling insecure all of a sudden? : Sirius asked lamely.
: Sirius, I'm serious, : Fenix looked back at him, her silver eyes gleaming brightly.
: Don't worry, Dumbledore's given me a position in School too, : her oathbrother gave a very flashy smile, catching the attention of several girls.
: Yes, Sirius's going to help Professor McGonagall with some of the classes. : Harry added.
: After yesterday, I feel a little uneasy without your presence but I know I shouldn't be worried about anything because of our bond, : Sirius admitted suddenly.
"Oh, Fenix," Mrs. Weasley called up and Fenix smiled gently at the woman. "This is the shop where Sirius bought your clothes. Do you want to step in?"
: Well? : Fenix asked archly at Sirius.
: Go on then, : her oathbrother answered with a slight shake of his head.
"Welcome to the Evening Sky, how may I help you?" a witch with a very hooked nose welcomed them and her eyes lit when she saw Sirius.
"It's you? Coming here to buy something for your lover again?"
Ron choked a laugh while the girls giggled. Fenix's mouth quirked up in a smile. "Lover, Sirius?"
"It's her own conclusion so don't look at me like that."
"I apologize for that," the woman smiled generously. "Now I see why he had chose the black dragon suit," the dressmaker eyed her. "Perfect body shape…not too feminine…seriously, there aren't enough men who knows how to please a lady…"
: Take note, Moony, : Sirius spoke to his friend in a patronizing tone.
: Keep your mind shut, Padfoot. :
"My name is Aerona Aisley, the owner and tailor of this shop. There is a selection that you might want to look at," the woman said, guiding Fenix to a lane where there was a whole range of suits. The rest of the women folk went separately to the different lanes, Ginny dragging Sirius along, and Harry followed Fenix curiously. A crimson red sleeve caught his eye and he pulled the suit out.
"You don't have a bad taste yourself," Aerona said, looking very pleased.
Fenix inspected the suit and was pleased to find the bottom pair was not a skirt. She inspected the sleeves, it was big enough to flow about her arms but not long enough that it would hinder her movements when speed and skill will be essential.
"Do you think I would fit in these?" Fenix asked the tailor.
"They will fit anything that puts them on! I created that spell. I don't really attract a lot of customers because my door usually blocks out a lot of people. It doesn't like snobs to enter the shop."
"Fascinating!" Harry gave the woman a devilish grin.
"Of course; I used to be in Gryffindor not a long time ago," Aerona whispered conspiratorially. Fenix laughed at the subtle hint as she picked out a zircon-colored sorceress robe.
"Are you buying then?" Aerona asked with a pleased smile.
"Yes, I am," Fenix answered dreamily tracing the intricate designs on the sleeves dreamily.
"Are you a Scot?"
"No, I am not…but my parents brought me to live in Scotland. Never thought of going back to live my life in Australia. I rather like the highlands."
"I see…well…being a new customer and all…I would give matching cloaks for free."
"Do I have to wear the cumbersome material?" Fenix sighed.
"It's up to you," Harry shrugged, "but it's free anyway, isn't it?"
"You're right," Fenix smiled and turned back to the tailor. "Do you have blouses and pants?"
"Ah…you want mix-and-match clothes?"
"Yes…and I'll see if the girls want anything," Fenix said.
"Hey, what about Ron and me?"
"Ask your godfather," she answered impudently.
Harry shook his head in feigned disappointment and sauntered to the other end where the males had gathered.
"Oh…don't worry about it, Ginny…we have more than enough to spare," Mrs. Weasley assured her daughter.
"Save it, Molly," Fenix said to her, "I'm spending my money anyway. You can save that for emergencies."
"You shouldn't!"
"Don't argue with her," Mrs. Granger advised. "She'll probably slip you a few wizard money back in your pouch."
"You're giving away secrets," Fenix accused. She turned to Ginny and Hermione. "Anything caught your eyes?"
The two girls quickly grabbed the blouses and showed it to her. "Not bad," she complimented. "Sirius chose for you?"
"Not really, he just rattled off what colors will suit us."
Fenix spent several more minutes in picking up more blouses and several pairs of pants. She handed all of them to the tailor. "You could just pile all the girls stuff together. I'll be paying for them."
"All right. If you don't mind, I'll handle their items first," Aerona said with a smile.
They left the shop with cheerful faces when the tailor called them again. Since Fenix and Sirius was the last to leave, Aerona reached them first.
"What's your name? Anyway this is my business card should you need more clothes."
"Name's Fenix. Fenix Maxwell," she answered, pocketing the card in her back pocket.
"I see," Aerona's eyes narrowed shrewdly. "Welcome to the Wizarding World."
Fenix chuckled under her breath and waved goodbye as Sirius whisked her away to the Leaky Cauldron where they would go back to The Burrow via the fireplace, with a handful of bags and considerably lighter purses.
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