Daniel, Carter, and Teal'c tried to be as inconspicuous as possible as they searched around the street searching for the entrance to what Daniel was sure was the Leaky Cauldron. To the unsuspecting person, they simply looked lost, and several people had in fact offered to give them directions somewhere. They had politely declined and continued to search the area with little luck.
"This is insane! Are you sure this is the place, Daniel?" Carter asked as she brought her hand up to wipe the seat off her forehead.
"I'm positive, Sam. Jack said that it was concealed somehow so that non-magic people wouldn't notice it. We just have to keep trying. There has to be a way for us to get in."
Carter started to respond, but Daniel had already turned back to his search and she sighed in frustration. It had taken two hours to find this spot, and they had searched the area for nearly an hour and a hald already, and they didn't seem any closer to figuring out how to get inside. Reluctantly she looked around the area once again, and her eyes caught sight of a familiar figure walking in their direction.
"Guys, we should probably get moving."
"Why Sam? We haven't found the entrance yet." Daniel looked over his shoulder at Carter and shook his head. Teal'c look in her direction with a raised eyebrow, but said nothing.
"Because the Colonel is coming towards us." All three looked in the direction that Carter was pointing and taking advantage of the semi-crowded street they ducked into the nearest alley.
Daniel waited a moment until he was sure Jack would have gone by, and popped his head out of the alley and to his surprise his chin smacked Jack in the shoulder.
"What the heck are you three doing here?!"
"You know you could use our help, and we're here to make sure you get it." Jack rolled his eyes at Daniel and then looked past him to Teal'c and Carter.
"Is that what you two think too?"
"Sir, you have to admit that we can at least be of some help to you."
Rolling his eyes Jack shook his head. "I don't have to admit anything, Carter. I don't need to be looking after you three right now. I can handle this on my own."
"It would be advantageous for you to partake of our assistance. Surely you know this to be true?" Teal'c cocked his head in Jack's direction, and Jack was almost foaming at the mouth.
"I want you three on the first plane back to the states. There's no compromise here. I need to do this alone."
"We're not leaving, Jack. We're a team and we stick together. You can either let us help you, or we'll find a way to help you anyway." Daniel's arms were crossed over his chest and Jack sighed.
"Fine. Just keep in mind I'm not babysitting any of you."
"Why would one sit on an infant?" Daniel and Carter both stifled a laugh at the the Jaffa's attempt at levity, while Teal'c's stoic expression stayed firmly in place as Jack turned to give a glare that would have shattered any normal man.
A moment later Jack turned around and went back out of the alley and back to where Daniel and the others had been searching. Carefully he brought his hand up to touch the doorknob and opened the door. "What were you guys doing standing out here anyway? Why didn't you just go inside?"
Daniel lowered his head and shuffled past his friend without a word. They stepped inside the Leaky Cauldron and moved past all the patrons to the back of the room. The bartender waved in Jack's direction and he smiled back as he made his way to the back door. He motioned for the other three to go through the door, and they did so quickly. Once outside they surveyed the area and looked back at their team leader somewhat confused.
"What are we doing out here, sir?"
"Patience, Carter." Jack pulled out his wand and tapped the third brick from the left on the wall in front of them and smiled when his friends jumped back at the sight of the wall opening before them.
They all stepped through and into the street before them and Jack motioned for them to go to the left.
"What did you say this place was called?"
"Diagon Alley. Probably one of the most popular places in London for wizards. Best place to get supplies."
It was hard to miss the smile on Jack's face as he walked through the bustling street with his team beside him. As they walked Daniel caught sight of a women with a hump on her back and what looked like a cane in her hand. She reached a bony hand out and poked at Jack's shirt sleeve.
"Why you young folks haf to wear these bloody muggle clothes I'll never know." She shook her head and moved past the group, muttering to herself she did so.
"What exactly was she?" Daniel asked once he was sure she was out of hearing distance.
"That was a hag. They tend to take offence to all things muggle, and...well they take offence to everything actually. Muggles seem to bother them most though."
"Weird." Daniel shook his head and cast a quick glance back in the direction the hag had walked and then turned back to follow Jack.
It was clear to everyone that Jack seemed at home in this environment. He hadn't said much, but his face was brighter than they'd seen it before. As they stepped up to a shop window where several young children were staring with eyes glazed over and fingers and noses pressed to the glass, the team saw a smile that had rarely crossed Jack's face.
The children were mesmerized, but Jack was entranced by the broom in the window. Daniel stared at it in disbelief and gently tapped Jack on the shoulder. "People actually ride those things?"
"Hell yeah! It's only one of the single greatest feelings in the entire world. Flying a broom is truly amazing."
The look in Jack's eyes almost made Daniel look away. For a moment he saw a glimpse of what Jack must have been like as a child and it he realized that Jack really fit here in this strange little world.
"What is that guy on the poster doing?" Carter's voice broke Jack from his trance-like state in front of the window and he turned around to look at his 2IC.
"He's playing quidditch."
"What's is this quid itch?" Teal'c asked as he watched the little figure whirling around on the poster by the window.
"Quidditch, it's the best game ever invented."
"I thought that was hockey?"
"Nope. Hockey pales in comparison to quidditch. You fly around on a broom..." Jack started in on the rules and an such of the game and all three were taken in by their leader's enthusiasm. They began walking further down the street, and suddenly Jack stopped in his tracks. "Sorry, didn't mean to bore you guys."
The others smiled and shook their heads. Daniel laughed softly, as Jack turned his head away. "Sounds like a rather fascinating game, Jack."
"Heck Yeah! It's absolutely amazing! There's nothing like it."
"Maybe you'll get to show us one day."
"Sure." Jack's smile faded at Daniel's words and he turned around and continued to walk before stopping a few blocks ahead.
He stopped in front of Ollivander's Wand Shop and motioned for the others to go inside ahead of him. He followed him inside and shut the door behind them. A few young witches were taking the shopkeeper about a replacement wand but upon seeing the strange looking group enter, the girls hurried their search and quickly paid for their wand and left.
Ollivander looked quite displeased at Jack as he looked over the rim of his glasses at the three muggles currently standing in his shop. "What are you doing bringing them here?"
"Calm down. There friends. Besides, I didn't invite them, they just showed up." Jack cast a backward glance at his three companions and they scowled back at him.
Bustling past the group, the gray-haired Ollivander went to the door and flipped the sign in front of the window over so that it read 'closed,' and then motioned for Jack to move towards the back of the store.
"So what did you find out?" Jack asked as soon as they were in the back of the store.
"It was Lucius. He has it in his head that getting rid of the boy will bring you-know-who back. Like a number of his lot, is certain that you were the one that something more happened in that house the night you-know-who was destroyed."
With a sigh Jack leaned back against he wall. "Yeah, hence the reason I ran all those years ago."
"Look, Lucius doesn't know you're here, but if you stay in London much longer he will. You should go back wherever it is you've been hiding yourself. This is not the safest place for you."
Rolling his eyes Jack smirked at Ollivander. "Trust me, I'm no safer where I was. Me being kidnapped proved that."
"Jack, do you think there's any truth to what Lucius believes?"
"That killing Harry will..." Jack paused at looked at Ollivander who was already nodding. "No, they're linked just like the prophecy said they were, but killing the boy won't bring Voldemort back."
Ollivander cringed and shook his head furiously at Jack. "Must you say his name?!"
"I don't fear him, old friend. I never have, and I never will. He may have had power, but he never had it over me. The fools that followed him were weak enough to believe he was unstoppable, but I've always known he wasn't."
"You're sight tell you that?" Jack laughed softly at Ollivander's mention of his 'gift' as so many had put it.
"You might say that."
"It occurs to me that had we listened to you, this may have been avoided."
Jack shook his head sorrowfully. "Don't go there. We had no way of knowing that I was right. I didn't believe in the sight back then. I thought I was losing my mind."
"But still, you were correct."
"Even so, most thought I was as batty as that loon Trelawney."
"And she ended up being right as well."
Jack smiled and nodded. "Not that she remembers it. She was a crackpot then and she still is from what I hear."
"How can you deny your gift now?"
"It's limited at best, Ollivander. Trelawney is a testament to that. My sight may be stronger than hers, but it's still an imperfect. I have no control over it."
Ollivander shook his head and brought his left hand up to stroke his chin. "Perhaps you're right, but you do have an amazing gift."
With his discomfort visible, Jack nodded. "Look, I appreciate what you found out for me, but I think my friends and I should go."
Ollivander looked over at the trio that had remained amazingly silent during his and Jack's conversation and sighed heavily.
"Very well. If I may offer you a final word of warning..." Jack raised an eyebrow at the wizard and waited for him to continue. "Black was sighted at Hogwart's last night; stay clear of him. He probably wants you dead more than anyone else. If he or Lucius finds out you're here, you'll be no safer than young Harry."
Jack nodded in thanks and then motioned for his team to go back towards the front of the shop. He was just behind them with Ollivander by his side. Pushing past his team, Jack opened the door and waved them outside. He cast a single glance at the old wizard before he walked out and led his team back to the Leaky Cauldron.
As he watched them leave, Ollivander sighed and reached his right hand up with wand ready and tapped the small sign. The letters silently changed to read 'open,' and Ollivander stepped away from the door. It seemed to him a bad sign that Black was on the loose and for Jack to be back in London, it only made it all seem worse. Walking back to his place behind the counter he rested his chin on the palm of his hand and silently hoped that what he feared was a bad omen would only turn out to be an old wizard's foolish thinking.