Chapter Nine: Shopping
(Heero and Draco POV)
Heero and Draco headed away from the group toward Diagon Alley's Apothecary. Heero said nothing, but Draco filled the silence with drawling anecdotes about the person he found most important in the world. Himself.
"--so it was painfully obvious that he was wrong and I was, of course, right. Malfoys are always right, you know. It comes with the job description of being rich and superior to everyone else. Anyway, the ruddy bint still insisted he was right, when it was me that was--" Draco drawled, going on and on about himself. Beside him, Heero was about ready to pull his hair out. He decided to break his usual habits and speak.
"Malfoy?" he interrupted. Draco shot Heero a questioning look. "Shut up." That silenced the Slytherin Ice Prince. No one had ever told Draco Malfoy to shut up aside from Harry Potter, and Draco believed that to be a very special case.
Before Draco could regain his footing and answer, they arrived at the Apothecary. Draco went in first and headed to the counter while Heero pulled out the list of ingredients Duo and Quatre had told them they would need. Heero didn't really want to know what Duo needed dragon's blood for. Heero smoothed out the list and looked over it.
3 bushels of mandrake root 5 mandrake leaves 1 aconite branch 1 bicorn horn 3 teaspoons of beetle eyes 19 belladonna petals 3 foxglove plants 4 dried blackberries (seedless) 1 cup of dragon saliva 3 strips of yarrow root 7 1/2 teaspoons of octopus powder 1 bezoar stone 1 pint of lacewings 2 seasoned unicorn hairs (cut at midnight under a full moon) 1 medium sized nettle plant
"You do realize that you have the ingredients for a fairly strong magic amplifier potion listed here, right?" Draco said from beside Heero, pointing from the mandrake root down to the dragon saliva. "And a reasonably effective healing potion here?" he continued, dragging a long, manicured finger from the yarrow root to the nettle plant. Heero said nothing. "Well, hurry up and collect them while I collect our more tame school supplies. Don't want to be late, I'm sure."
"Hn," Heero said, moving off deeper into the store. He reached a shelf labeled dragon parts and reached for a vial filled with approximately one cup of dragon saliva, when someone cleared their throat. Heero spun quickly, dropped the vial and reached for the gun that Dumbledore had confiscated for the time being. He cursed fluently in Japanese, then looked down in mild surprise at the sizzling floor, wondering idly why Duo would need such a dangerous substance. Back when they used to hop from high school to high school, Duo was always banned from the Chemistry labs, hazardous liquids being one of the various reasons.
"That happens when you drop that much dragon saliva," said a female voice. The girl who had cleared her throat earlier stepped into more certain light. She was tall, with long brown hair and hard looking eyes. Her hair was currently pulled into two severe pigtails. "Anne Vingt, assistant potions helper here at the Apothecary. Need any help?"
Heero did answer right away. Something about the girl nagged at him. She reminded him of someone. Someone...he had it! She looked an awful lot like Lady Une, Commander Treize Khushrenada's right hand woman. There was something about this world that didn't strike Heero as right. "I do not require any help," he said coldly, turning away to grab another vial of dragon's saliva.
"In that case, you'll have to pay for the vial you dropped," Anne said waspishly. She didn't like being dismissed.
"Ryoukai." Heero continued down the shelves, measuring out beetles eyes and lacewings, grabbing dried blackberries and unicorn hairs. Soon his whole list was filled and he headed to the front of the shop where Draco waited, his arms as full as Heero's. Anne followed.
"Finished, Yuy?" Draco asked, eyeing the large pile of various ingredients in the Asian boy's grasp. Seemingly satisfied, he turned to the owner of the Apothecary. "We'll have this and that," he said haughtily. The man, recognizing a Malfoy, immediately began taking ingredients from each boy's arms and wrapping them, then putting them in a small bag that expanded on the inside, not the outside.
"That will be 15 galleons for the five Advanced Potions Kits, and 28 galleons and 2 sickles for the rest, Master Malfoy," the owner said, handing Heero the small, surprisingly light bag.
"He owes us for spilling an entire vial of dragon's saliva," Anne piped up. The owner looked up, uncomfortable. Heero looked impassive.
Draco looked at Heero. "You spilled a vial of dragon's saliva?" he asked.
"Hn. She startled me," Heero said, in a tone that could only mean she-would- be-dead-now-if-Dumbledore-hadn't-taken-my-gun.
"Well then, no harm no foul," the owner said hurriedly, eyeing Draco and his companion fearfully. Draco looked to Heero, who nodded.
"We'll pay for the extra vial. How much?" he asked.
"Don't worry about it, Master Malfoy," the man began.
"How much?" Draco demanded.
"Three galleons," he squeaked. Heero handed over a total of 46 galleons and 2 sickles. "Thank you, sirs. Have a magical day." Draco nodded and strode out of the store. Heero followed soon after, looking back once at the girl who was glaring venomously.
"How do you know Anne Vingt?" Draco asked, when they moved out into the bustling street.
"I don't. She says she works there," said Heero, his usual monotone more pronounced.
"You refused her help, didn't you," Draco stated. "That girl is more spoiled than any Malfoy. She always gets what she wants, even if it is just to help out a customer. If you told her a simple 'I'm fine' she'd vow revenge forever. A bit loony, if you ask me." Heero nodded once, then began to walk faster. "What's the hurry, Yuy?"
"You have to get fitted for your robes," Heero said decisively.
"Don't you mean we have to be fitted?" Draco asked.
"Iie. Duo knows the exact measurements of all of us. Our robes should be done. The rest of you will need the dress robes hinted about in the letter," Heero answered. He quieted, realizing he'd passed his word quota for the day. "Hn."
"Right, then," Draco said. They entered Madam Malkin's in time to see Duo and Harry leaving, Duo with a bag and a black robe trimmed with silver over his arm. Harry had a scarlet robe lightly trimmed with gold over his arm.
"Hiya, Hee-chan!" Duo cried, giving Heero a one-armed hug. "I got all the necessaries for all five of us in this bag. Madam Malkin says it expands inside. Pretty cool, ne? Anyway, all you have to do is tell her what trim you want and she'll finish your robe for you. She doesn't have to fit you, Draco, since she said you specially order from her. Also, everyone else has already been here to get their dress robes, so don't worry about that. It cost about 113 galleons, so would you mind giving Madam M the extra money? Thanks! Well, me and Harry have to go pick up the books, ok, Heero? I'll grab yours too, okay? Gotta run. See ya soon. Caio!" And in a whirlwind of color and energy, Duo was gone, Harry staring where the braided boy had stood.
"You have to run after him before he gets too far," Heero suggested quietly. Nodding quickly, Harry took off. Shrugging, Draco entered Madam Malkin's, followed by Heero.
*** (Harry and Duo POV)
"Duo, wait!" Harry cried, panting. Duo froze in mid-dash and spun around to grin at Harry. "Merlin, you're fast!"
"Thanks! Everyone always tell me I'm a whirlwind of terror, but I think they're joking," Duo said, backing up abit to stroll alongside Harry. I don't, thought Harry. "Anyway, back to what we were talking about."
When Harry and Duo had left the group, they were fitted by Malkin, then Duo gave the woman and her assistant the other pilots' measurements and the other required clothes. While they waited for the robes and things to be completed, Duo struck up a conversation about Quidditch, which took a turn to House rivalries, which predictably headed for Draco Malfoy. When Harry had blushed at the mention of the blond Slytherin, Duo's interest was peaked.
"So, what's the deal with Prince Sexiness?" the braided boy asked, walking slowly so the two teens would have more time to talk. Harry blushed again. "Oh, I get it! You like him!" Harry's blush deepened. "Two points for detective Maxwell!!!"
"Duo, please, not so loud," Harry pleaded, conscious of the other witches and wizards watching them curiously.
"Alright, Harry. Let's slip into Quality Quidditch Supplies to talk," Duo said, knowing the store contained bean bag chairs for when actual Quidditch players came to visit. He idly wondered if Harry counted as the 'one of us' Quatre had talked of. "It's 12:25 now, so we have about 15 minutes to talk before we should get our books."
"Less than that, actually, but let's go," Harry answered. When they entered the store, the clerk immediately recognized Harry and led him and his companion to a secluded corner with comfortable chairs.
"You're handy to have around, Harry," Duo joked, grinning. Harry just nodded and settled back in his chair. "So, what's the deal with Malfoy. You like him?"
"Yeah," Harry mumbled. "He might still be an arse but you have to admit, he's sexy as all hell."
Duo laughed. "You got that right. Malfoy has a body that could almost rival Hee-chan's. 'Course, almost being the key word," he said.
"You like Yuy?" Harry asked, curious.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm always throwing myself at him, sitting in his lap, hugging him, sometimes I even dare to give him a kiss. I'm in love, dude, and I can admit it," Duo said nonchalantly. Then his blue eyes took on a dreamy quality. "Those beautiful eyes...that toned body...that perfect ass..."
"Doesn't he realize you're in love with him?" Harry asked.
"Doubt it," Duo answered. "You see, Hee-chan is perfect in every way. That also counts perfectly oblivious. Unless I go up to him and say, 'Heero Yuy, I like you in a let's-get-naked-and-have-wild-monkey-sex kinda way', he'll never know."
"Wow. That is dense." Harry looked down. "Do you think I'm transparent to Draco?"
"Now that is easy. No," Duo said. "You act like you always do in front of Draco. Yeah, sometimes you blush, but you gotta admit, sexy-as-hell does that to you sometimes. Even Hermione said Malfoy has got it going on."
"I guess you're right. I don't think there's any chance for me, though," Harry said forlornly.
"Believe me, Harry-man, there is always a chance. Now let's get the hell out of here and go get our books. Hermione's gonna fry my ass if we're late," said Duo.
"Don't you mean our?" Harry asked.
"Nope. Mine. Hermione would never hurt Gryffindor's Golden Boy. Come on, let's go." Duo and Harry stood, thanked the proprietor of Quality Quidditch Supplies, and left. But not before Duo saw the Lightning prototype in the window.
*** (Hermione and Wufei POV)
Chang Wufei and Hermione Granger entered Flourish and Blotts five minutes after noon. And didn't leave until ten minutes before one. They'd already placed and paid for the orders of all the books, which came up to about 89 galleons and 25 knuts. Quatre had already come in with Ginny to retrieve their books, and so had Trowa and Blaise, which only left Harry, Heero, Duo and Draco.
"That establishment is wonderful. I have never seen so many pieces of actually good literature in years. Back on my colony I never had much time to read, but my family did have many tomes that told of the past, and magic. I'm still wondering about that book you claim is new. I could've sworn I saw it in my library back home, written by a great grandparent something or other," Wufei said in one breath, almost as excited by books as Hermione. He was referring to the new book, Myths Proven True In Ancient Chinese Lore by Chang Ling Chow. He distinctly remembered the name as one of his ancestors, and when he'd looked through the book, found several of the same passages.
"What do you mean by colony? Only ants colonize," Hermione said, as they strolled slowly toward Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. They'd already received their dress robes (Wufei's in blue trimmed with white, Hermione's in gold trimmed with scarlet) and had met everyone but Heero and Draco at Madam Malkin's. It seemed they'd all had the same idea to get their robes before they did anything else.
"I lived on a colony. You are a Muggle. You should know what a colony is," Wufei said. At Hermione's blank look he searched his memory for something in her time to convince her. "Oh! The International Space Station," he said.
Understanding dawned, then Hermione snorted. "That? Please, that's just some stupid story the scientists make up to get governmental backing. The station will never be finished."
"You are correct. The ISS was never completed, because the scientists discovered a stronger, more pliable metal to build the initial station out of. The scientist in charge, one Arthur Lagrange, worked hard for twenty years until a fully functional colony was built. He named it Lagrange 1, or L1, as we call it," Wufei said. "L1-X34002 is where Heero was born."
Hermione looked astonished. "So what you're saying is that ISS was unsuccessful like most people believed, but that one colony does go up?"
"More than that. In my time, we have what are called colony clusters. L1- X34002 is part of the first Lagrange Colony Cluster. There is also the L2, L3, L4 through L7 clusters. Quatre was born on L4, Trowa was born on Earth, I was born on L5 and Duo was born on L2. We all have a bit of colony in us. It is easy to tell because all of us are a bit paler than normal, except for Heero, who was trained on Earth since he was eight years old." Wufei shifted a light bag filled with his books and continued. "So most likely, your great great granddaughter will be born in space."
Hermione looked bowled over yet intrigued, all signs of a good scholar. "Well, you'll have to tell me more over ice cream," she said, slipping into a Fortescue's chair. After they'd both ordered, Wufei a chocolate/vanilla sundae, Hermione a banana split with chopped nuts and caramel topping, they settled in to talk and wait for the others.
***
(Quatre and Ginny POV)
"Those dress robes look very nice on you, Miss Virginia," Quatre said, smiling at the young girl dressed in gold robes with red trim. Ginny blushed.
"Just call me Ginny, Quatre," she said. "And you don't look too shabby yourself." It was Quatre's turn to blush. He was wearing robes that were a soft pink, something you could get away with in Hufflepuff, since no one could quite remember the exact colors.
"Thanks, Miss Ginny," he said. "Let's hurry up and by these extra things so we can get to the ice cream parlour. Knowing Hermione and Wufei, they are already there." Ginny nodded and they entered the Cauldron Shoppe. A large poster advertised it a bit different from last year except for the words: Cauldrons - All Sizes - Copper, Brass, Pewter, Silver - Self-Stirring - Collapsible.
"Let's split up. You get the cauldrons and the phials and I'll get the scales and the telescopes," Ginny said. Quatre nodded and they went their separate ways. Ginny picked up five sets of silver scales and five top of the line telescopes, assuming money wasn't a big deal, and Quatre grabbed five sets of crystal phials, knowing money was no object, and five standard size 6 silver cauldrons. They brought their loads to the register, where the shop owner rang them up.
"That'll be 45 galleons, please," she said. Quatre handed over the money, and they left the shop and headed for Fortescue's. Grinning because he couldn't wait to see his lover, he hurried to the ice cream parlour. Spotting Hermione and Wufei, he and Ginny sat beside them and ordered two chocolate sundaes, then began to talk about their twisted wizarding government while waiting for the others.
(A/N: I know the Q, Ginny part was short, but I find Ginny to be boring.)
***
(Trowa and Blaise POV)
Blaise led Trowa around Eeylop's Owl Emporium, shifting the bag of Trowa's books he'd offered to carry. Trowa himself carried his brown Hufflepuff dress robes that had dark brown trim, and the European teen examined each owl carefully before moving on to another. They went from Barn and Brown to Tawny, Snowy and Screech. Finally, Trowa stopped much longer in front of a Tawny owl that was deep black with streaks of brown around it's eyes and a white feathered stomach. It's eyes were a weird shade of yellow green.
"I'll take this one," Trowa said decisively to Eeylop himself. Eeylop stepped forward and began shaking his head.
"I'm sorry, laddy, but that owl cannae be sold. She's a temperamental one, she is. She'll more 'an likely bite yer ear off 'en carry a letter for ye," explained the Scottish store owner.
"I still want her," Trowa said. "How much?"
"53 galleons, lad. But I doubt ye be affordin' that," Eeylop began. Trowa dumped the correct amount of galleons into the store owners hands. Eeylop suddenly turned jolly. "Here ye go, laddy. Rare breed she is. Half tawny, half snowy, quarter eagle owl, she is. Her name be Myrla, means fierce in Nordic, I'm thinkin'. Enjoy!" And he pushed the two out of his shop.
"Got what you wanted?" Blaise asked, wondering about the large amount of money Trowa had just paid so nonchalantly. Were the foreign students rich?
"Yes." Trowa turned away and exited the shop, the cage containing Myrla held under his arm. "Let's go." Trowa left the Emporium and headed for Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, Blaise behind him. Both were itching for jello parfaits and their companions.
***
(Harry and Duo POV again)
Leaving Flourish and Blotts with another one of those nifty expanding bags, Harry and Duo finally headed for Fortescue's. They spotted Heero and Draco coming out of Madam Malkin's, so they hurried up to them.
"Hee-chan!" Duo said, giving Heero a hug similar to earlier. "How's it going? Lemme see your robes?"
Heero shrugged and pulled a scarlet robe with dark gold trim out of one of his bags. He handed it to Duo, who examined it from collar to hem.
"Nice," he said.
"Let me guess, Malfoy. Green with silver trim?" Harry said. Draco smirked.
"Actually, silver with green trim. I'm going for a new look this year," he answered.
There was nothing wrong with the old one, Harry was tempted to say. Draco's smirk widened imperceptibly. Not a damn thing.
"So, ready to head to Fortescue's?" asked Duo. The other three nodded, so they traipsed down to the ice cream parlour and saw all six of the others already there, happily eating ice cream. Quatre saw them and waved. They slipped into seats next to their friends.
"I took the liberty of ordering for you," Quatre said. "Harry, Hermione said you like strawberry with nuts and cherries. Duo, I know you like double chocolate fudge. Heero, I got you your usual banana medley, and Draco, chocolate parfait?"
"All great, Kit Kat! Astute as always, I see," Duo said.
"I didn't even know you knew that word, Duo," Wufei joked. Duo just grinned at him.
"Pilots," Heero said quietly. Everyone quieted. "Please put the galleons you haven't spent on the table." Heero himself put down 43 galleons and 15 sickles. Duo didn't put down anything, which was expected. Wufei dropped 10 galleons, 16 sickles and 4 knuts. Quatre threw in 55, and Trowa added 47 galleons. Heero mentally counted in his head. "We have 155 galleons and 4 knuts left over from 500 galleons. We spent approximately $1730 and some cents today."
Duo, Harry and Hermione whistled. Quatre and Wufei looked sheepish. Trowa looked impassive and Heero watched them all. "That is our limit for today, I believe. The remaining galleons will be split accordingly, and you may have free reign of Diagon Alley for half an hour, in which time we will retrieve Professor Snape and return to Hogwarts. Understood?" Heero continued.
"Sir!" the remaining pilots said, saluting. Heero handed each pilot exactly 31 galleons, and left the four knuts on the table to pay for their ice cream. Draco, Hermione, Blaise, Ginny and Harry each added their own knuts, then the group stood.
"Meet here at 1:30pm," Heero said. The pilots saluted again, then split up and took off with out their escorts.
"Will they be back?" Hermione asked Heero anxiously.
"Eventually," Heero answered, before he too melted into the afternoon crowd.
Hermione sighed in exasperation. Those boys...
***Tsuzuku or TBC***
(Heero and Draco POV)
Heero and Draco headed away from the group toward Diagon Alley's Apothecary. Heero said nothing, but Draco filled the silence with drawling anecdotes about the person he found most important in the world. Himself.
"--so it was painfully obvious that he was wrong and I was, of course, right. Malfoys are always right, you know. It comes with the job description of being rich and superior to everyone else. Anyway, the ruddy bint still insisted he was right, when it was me that was--" Draco drawled, going on and on about himself. Beside him, Heero was about ready to pull his hair out. He decided to break his usual habits and speak.
"Malfoy?" he interrupted. Draco shot Heero a questioning look. "Shut up." That silenced the Slytherin Ice Prince. No one had ever told Draco Malfoy to shut up aside from Harry Potter, and Draco believed that to be a very special case.
Before Draco could regain his footing and answer, they arrived at the Apothecary. Draco went in first and headed to the counter while Heero pulled out the list of ingredients Duo and Quatre had told them they would need. Heero didn't really want to know what Duo needed dragon's blood for. Heero smoothed out the list and looked over it.
3 bushels of mandrake root 5 mandrake leaves 1 aconite branch 1 bicorn horn 3 teaspoons of beetle eyes 19 belladonna petals 3 foxglove plants 4 dried blackberries (seedless) 1 cup of dragon saliva 3 strips of yarrow root 7 1/2 teaspoons of octopus powder 1 bezoar stone 1 pint of lacewings 2 seasoned unicorn hairs (cut at midnight under a full moon) 1 medium sized nettle plant
"You do realize that you have the ingredients for a fairly strong magic amplifier potion listed here, right?" Draco said from beside Heero, pointing from the mandrake root down to the dragon saliva. "And a reasonably effective healing potion here?" he continued, dragging a long, manicured finger from the yarrow root to the nettle plant. Heero said nothing. "Well, hurry up and collect them while I collect our more tame school supplies. Don't want to be late, I'm sure."
"Hn," Heero said, moving off deeper into the store. He reached a shelf labeled dragon parts and reached for a vial filled with approximately one cup of dragon saliva, when someone cleared their throat. Heero spun quickly, dropped the vial and reached for the gun that Dumbledore had confiscated for the time being. He cursed fluently in Japanese, then looked down in mild surprise at the sizzling floor, wondering idly why Duo would need such a dangerous substance. Back when they used to hop from high school to high school, Duo was always banned from the Chemistry labs, hazardous liquids being one of the various reasons.
"That happens when you drop that much dragon saliva," said a female voice. The girl who had cleared her throat earlier stepped into more certain light. She was tall, with long brown hair and hard looking eyes. Her hair was currently pulled into two severe pigtails. "Anne Vingt, assistant potions helper here at the Apothecary. Need any help?"
Heero did answer right away. Something about the girl nagged at him. She reminded him of someone. Someone...he had it! She looked an awful lot like Lady Une, Commander Treize Khushrenada's right hand woman. There was something about this world that didn't strike Heero as right. "I do not require any help," he said coldly, turning away to grab another vial of dragon's saliva.
"In that case, you'll have to pay for the vial you dropped," Anne said waspishly. She didn't like being dismissed.
"Ryoukai." Heero continued down the shelves, measuring out beetles eyes and lacewings, grabbing dried blackberries and unicorn hairs. Soon his whole list was filled and he headed to the front of the shop where Draco waited, his arms as full as Heero's. Anne followed.
"Finished, Yuy?" Draco asked, eyeing the large pile of various ingredients in the Asian boy's grasp. Seemingly satisfied, he turned to the owner of the Apothecary. "We'll have this and that," he said haughtily. The man, recognizing a Malfoy, immediately began taking ingredients from each boy's arms and wrapping them, then putting them in a small bag that expanded on the inside, not the outside.
"That will be 15 galleons for the five Advanced Potions Kits, and 28 galleons and 2 sickles for the rest, Master Malfoy," the owner said, handing Heero the small, surprisingly light bag.
"He owes us for spilling an entire vial of dragon's saliva," Anne piped up. The owner looked up, uncomfortable. Heero looked impassive.
Draco looked at Heero. "You spilled a vial of dragon's saliva?" he asked.
"Hn. She startled me," Heero said, in a tone that could only mean she-would- be-dead-now-if-Dumbledore-hadn't-taken-my-gun.
"Well then, no harm no foul," the owner said hurriedly, eyeing Draco and his companion fearfully. Draco looked to Heero, who nodded.
"We'll pay for the extra vial. How much?" he asked.
"Don't worry about it, Master Malfoy," the man began.
"How much?" Draco demanded.
"Three galleons," he squeaked. Heero handed over a total of 46 galleons and 2 sickles. "Thank you, sirs. Have a magical day." Draco nodded and strode out of the store. Heero followed soon after, looking back once at the girl who was glaring venomously.
"How do you know Anne Vingt?" Draco asked, when they moved out into the bustling street.
"I don't. She says she works there," said Heero, his usual monotone more pronounced.
"You refused her help, didn't you," Draco stated. "That girl is more spoiled than any Malfoy. She always gets what she wants, even if it is just to help out a customer. If you told her a simple 'I'm fine' she'd vow revenge forever. A bit loony, if you ask me." Heero nodded once, then began to walk faster. "What's the hurry, Yuy?"
"You have to get fitted for your robes," Heero said decisively.
"Don't you mean we have to be fitted?" Draco asked.
"Iie. Duo knows the exact measurements of all of us. Our robes should be done. The rest of you will need the dress robes hinted about in the letter," Heero answered. He quieted, realizing he'd passed his word quota for the day. "Hn."
"Right, then," Draco said. They entered Madam Malkin's in time to see Duo and Harry leaving, Duo with a bag and a black robe trimmed with silver over his arm. Harry had a scarlet robe lightly trimmed with gold over his arm.
"Hiya, Hee-chan!" Duo cried, giving Heero a one-armed hug. "I got all the necessaries for all five of us in this bag. Madam Malkin says it expands inside. Pretty cool, ne? Anyway, all you have to do is tell her what trim you want and she'll finish your robe for you. She doesn't have to fit you, Draco, since she said you specially order from her. Also, everyone else has already been here to get their dress robes, so don't worry about that. It cost about 113 galleons, so would you mind giving Madam M the extra money? Thanks! Well, me and Harry have to go pick up the books, ok, Heero? I'll grab yours too, okay? Gotta run. See ya soon. Caio!" And in a whirlwind of color and energy, Duo was gone, Harry staring where the braided boy had stood.
"You have to run after him before he gets too far," Heero suggested quietly. Nodding quickly, Harry took off. Shrugging, Draco entered Madam Malkin's, followed by Heero.
*** (Harry and Duo POV)
"Duo, wait!" Harry cried, panting. Duo froze in mid-dash and spun around to grin at Harry. "Merlin, you're fast!"
"Thanks! Everyone always tell me I'm a whirlwind of terror, but I think they're joking," Duo said, backing up abit to stroll alongside Harry. I don't, thought Harry. "Anyway, back to what we were talking about."
When Harry and Duo had left the group, they were fitted by Malkin, then Duo gave the woman and her assistant the other pilots' measurements and the other required clothes. While they waited for the robes and things to be completed, Duo struck up a conversation about Quidditch, which took a turn to House rivalries, which predictably headed for Draco Malfoy. When Harry had blushed at the mention of the blond Slytherin, Duo's interest was peaked.
"So, what's the deal with Prince Sexiness?" the braided boy asked, walking slowly so the two teens would have more time to talk. Harry blushed again. "Oh, I get it! You like him!" Harry's blush deepened. "Two points for detective Maxwell!!!"
"Duo, please, not so loud," Harry pleaded, conscious of the other witches and wizards watching them curiously.
"Alright, Harry. Let's slip into Quality Quidditch Supplies to talk," Duo said, knowing the store contained bean bag chairs for when actual Quidditch players came to visit. He idly wondered if Harry counted as the 'one of us' Quatre had talked of. "It's 12:25 now, so we have about 15 minutes to talk before we should get our books."
"Less than that, actually, but let's go," Harry answered. When they entered the store, the clerk immediately recognized Harry and led him and his companion to a secluded corner with comfortable chairs.
"You're handy to have around, Harry," Duo joked, grinning. Harry just nodded and settled back in his chair. "So, what's the deal with Malfoy. You like him?"
"Yeah," Harry mumbled. "He might still be an arse but you have to admit, he's sexy as all hell."
Duo laughed. "You got that right. Malfoy has a body that could almost rival Hee-chan's. 'Course, almost being the key word," he said.
"You like Yuy?" Harry asked, curious.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm always throwing myself at him, sitting in his lap, hugging him, sometimes I even dare to give him a kiss. I'm in love, dude, and I can admit it," Duo said nonchalantly. Then his blue eyes took on a dreamy quality. "Those beautiful eyes...that toned body...that perfect ass..."
"Doesn't he realize you're in love with him?" Harry asked.
"Doubt it," Duo answered. "You see, Hee-chan is perfect in every way. That also counts perfectly oblivious. Unless I go up to him and say, 'Heero Yuy, I like you in a let's-get-naked-and-have-wild-monkey-sex kinda way', he'll never know."
"Wow. That is dense." Harry looked down. "Do you think I'm transparent to Draco?"
"Now that is easy. No," Duo said. "You act like you always do in front of Draco. Yeah, sometimes you blush, but you gotta admit, sexy-as-hell does that to you sometimes. Even Hermione said Malfoy has got it going on."
"I guess you're right. I don't think there's any chance for me, though," Harry said forlornly.
"Believe me, Harry-man, there is always a chance. Now let's get the hell out of here and go get our books. Hermione's gonna fry my ass if we're late," said Duo.
"Don't you mean our?" Harry asked.
"Nope. Mine. Hermione would never hurt Gryffindor's Golden Boy. Come on, let's go." Duo and Harry stood, thanked the proprietor of Quality Quidditch Supplies, and left. But not before Duo saw the Lightning prototype in the window.
*** (Hermione and Wufei POV)
Chang Wufei and Hermione Granger entered Flourish and Blotts five minutes after noon. And didn't leave until ten minutes before one. They'd already placed and paid for the orders of all the books, which came up to about 89 galleons and 25 knuts. Quatre had already come in with Ginny to retrieve their books, and so had Trowa and Blaise, which only left Harry, Heero, Duo and Draco.
"That establishment is wonderful. I have never seen so many pieces of actually good literature in years. Back on my colony I never had much time to read, but my family did have many tomes that told of the past, and magic. I'm still wondering about that book you claim is new. I could've sworn I saw it in my library back home, written by a great grandparent something or other," Wufei said in one breath, almost as excited by books as Hermione. He was referring to the new book, Myths Proven True In Ancient Chinese Lore by Chang Ling Chow. He distinctly remembered the name as one of his ancestors, and when he'd looked through the book, found several of the same passages.
"What do you mean by colony? Only ants colonize," Hermione said, as they strolled slowly toward Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. They'd already received their dress robes (Wufei's in blue trimmed with white, Hermione's in gold trimmed with scarlet) and had met everyone but Heero and Draco at Madam Malkin's. It seemed they'd all had the same idea to get their robes before they did anything else.
"I lived on a colony. You are a Muggle. You should know what a colony is," Wufei said. At Hermione's blank look he searched his memory for something in her time to convince her. "Oh! The International Space Station," he said.
Understanding dawned, then Hermione snorted. "That? Please, that's just some stupid story the scientists make up to get governmental backing. The station will never be finished."
"You are correct. The ISS was never completed, because the scientists discovered a stronger, more pliable metal to build the initial station out of. The scientist in charge, one Arthur Lagrange, worked hard for twenty years until a fully functional colony was built. He named it Lagrange 1, or L1, as we call it," Wufei said. "L1-X34002 is where Heero was born."
Hermione looked astonished. "So what you're saying is that ISS was unsuccessful like most people believed, but that one colony does go up?"
"More than that. In my time, we have what are called colony clusters. L1- X34002 is part of the first Lagrange Colony Cluster. There is also the L2, L3, L4 through L7 clusters. Quatre was born on L4, Trowa was born on Earth, I was born on L5 and Duo was born on L2. We all have a bit of colony in us. It is easy to tell because all of us are a bit paler than normal, except for Heero, who was trained on Earth since he was eight years old." Wufei shifted a light bag filled with his books and continued. "So most likely, your great great granddaughter will be born in space."
Hermione looked bowled over yet intrigued, all signs of a good scholar. "Well, you'll have to tell me more over ice cream," she said, slipping into a Fortescue's chair. After they'd both ordered, Wufei a chocolate/vanilla sundae, Hermione a banana split with chopped nuts and caramel topping, they settled in to talk and wait for the others.
***
(Quatre and Ginny POV)
"Those dress robes look very nice on you, Miss Virginia," Quatre said, smiling at the young girl dressed in gold robes with red trim. Ginny blushed.
"Just call me Ginny, Quatre," she said. "And you don't look too shabby yourself." It was Quatre's turn to blush. He was wearing robes that were a soft pink, something you could get away with in Hufflepuff, since no one could quite remember the exact colors.
"Thanks, Miss Ginny," he said. "Let's hurry up and by these extra things so we can get to the ice cream parlour. Knowing Hermione and Wufei, they are already there." Ginny nodded and they entered the Cauldron Shoppe. A large poster advertised it a bit different from last year except for the words: Cauldrons - All Sizes - Copper, Brass, Pewter, Silver - Self-Stirring - Collapsible.
"Let's split up. You get the cauldrons and the phials and I'll get the scales and the telescopes," Ginny said. Quatre nodded and they went their separate ways. Ginny picked up five sets of silver scales and five top of the line telescopes, assuming money wasn't a big deal, and Quatre grabbed five sets of crystal phials, knowing money was no object, and five standard size 6 silver cauldrons. They brought their loads to the register, where the shop owner rang them up.
"That'll be 45 galleons, please," she said. Quatre handed over the money, and they left the shop and headed for Fortescue's. Grinning because he couldn't wait to see his lover, he hurried to the ice cream parlour. Spotting Hermione and Wufei, he and Ginny sat beside them and ordered two chocolate sundaes, then began to talk about their twisted wizarding government while waiting for the others.
(A/N: I know the Q, Ginny part was short, but I find Ginny to be boring.)
***
(Trowa and Blaise POV)
Blaise led Trowa around Eeylop's Owl Emporium, shifting the bag of Trowa's books he'd offered to carry. Trowa himself carried his brown Hufflepuff dress robes that had dark brown trim, and the European teen examined each owl carefully before moving on to another. They went from Barn and Brown to Tawny, Snowy and Screech. Finally, Trowa stopped much longer in front of a Tawny owl that was deep black with streaks of brown around it's eyes and a white feathered stomach. It's eyes were a weird shade of yellow green.
"I'll take this one," Trowa said decisively to Eeylop himself. Eeylop stepped forward and began shaking his head.
"I'm sorry, laddy, but that owl cannae be sold. She's a temperamental one, she is. She'll more 'an likely bite yer ear off 'en carry a letter for ye," explained the Scottish store owner.
"I still want her," Trowa said. "How much?"
"53 galleons, lad. But I doubt ye be affordin' that," Eeylop began. Trowa dumped the correct amount of galleons into the store owners hands. Eeylop suddenly turned jolly. "Here ye go, laddy. Rare breed she is. Half tawny, half snowy, quarter eagle owl, she is. Her name be Myrla, means fierce in Nordic, I'm thinkin'. Enjoy!" And he pushed the two out of his shop.
"Got what you wanted?" Blaise asked, wondering about the large amount of money Trowa had just paid so nonchalantly. Were the foreign students rich?
"Yes." Trowa turned away and exited the shop, the cage containing Myrla held under his arm. "Let's go." Trowa left the Emporium and headed for Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, Blaise behind him. Both were itching for jello parfaits and their companions.
***
(Harry and Duo POV again)
Leaving Flourish and Blotts with another one of those nifty expanding bags, Harry and Duo finally headed for Fortescue's. They spotted Heero and Draco coming out of Madam Malkin's, so they hurried up to them.
"Hee-chan!" Duo said, giving Heero a hug similar to earlier. "How's it going? Lemme see your robes?"
Heero shrugged and pulled a scarlet robe with dark gold trim out of one of his bags. He handed it to Duo, who examined it from collar to hem.
"Nice," he said.
"Let me guess, Malfoy. Green with silver trim?" Harry said. Draco smirked.
"Actually, silver with green trim. I'm going for a new look this year," he answered.
There was nothing wrong with the old one, Harry was tempted to say. Draco's smirk widened imperceptibly. Not a damn thing.
"So, ready to head to Fortescue's?" asked Duo. The other three nodded, so they traipsed down to the ice cream parlour and saw all six of the others already there, happily eating ice cream. Quatre saw them and waved. They slipped into seats next to their friends.
"I took the liberty of ordering for you," Quatre said. "Harry, Hermione said you like strawberry with nuts and cherries. Duo, I know you like double chocolate fudge. Heero, I got you your usual banana medley, and Draco, chocolate parfait?"
"All great, Kit Kat! Astute as always, I see," Duo said.
"I didn't even know you knew that word, Duo," Wufei joked. Duo just grinned at him.
"Pilots," Heero said quietly. Everyone quieted. "Please put the galleons you haven't spent on the table." Heero himself put down 43 galleons and 15 sickles. Duo didn't put down anything, which was expected. Wufei dropped 10 galleons, 16 sickles and 4 knuts. Quatre threw in 55, and Trowa added 47 galleons. Heero mentally counted in his head. "We have 155 galleons and 4 knuts left over from 500 galleons. We spent approximately $1730 and some cents today."
Duo, Harry and Hermione whistled. Quatre and Wufei looked sheepish. Trowa looked impassive and Heero watched them all. "That is our limit for today, I believe. The remaining galleons will be split accordingly, and you may have free reign of Diagon Alley for half an hour, in which time we will retrieve Professor Snape and return to Hogwarts. Understood?" Heero continued.
"Sir!" the remaining pilots said, saluting. Heero handed each pilot exactly 31 galleons, and left the four knuts on the table to pay for their ice cream. Draco, Hermione, Blaise, Ginny and Harry each added their own knuts, then the group stood.
"Meet here at 1:30pm," Heero said. The pilots saluted again, then split up and took off with out their escorts.
"Will they be back?" Hermione asked Heero anxiously.
"Eventually," Heero answered, before he too melted into the afternoon crowd.
Hermione sighed in exasperation. Those boys...
***Tsuzuku or TBC***