Chapter 5
The sound of shuffling footsteps and shallow breathing echoed in Madam Malkin's empty shop as everyone quickly backed away from the vacant fireplace. Harry didn't move; he stood and stared into the fireplace, as if expecting to wake up from a nightmare, or waiting for someone to laugh and say, 'wasn't that a great joke?' As the people drained from the shop, whispering animatedly to the other witches and wizards standing outside, Ron approached Harry and stood next to him.
"Did that really happen?" Harry asked. Ron nodded and grasped Harry's upper arm, trying to steer him away from the fireplace. Cornelius Fudge was the last one to leave the room besides Harry and Ron. Harry could hear Fudge shouting over the crowd: "Stay calm! Everyone stay calm!"
Harry began to walk out into the crowd ahead of Ron, but Ron stopped him. "Harry! We've got to talk. Just stay in here for a minute, alright?" Harry glanced suspiciously at the fireplace, then nodded. Ron shut the door and began to pace nervously. Harry was still too shocked to begin any sort of conversation.
"It was him…" Ron said, "You-Know-Who stole all the gold and he's going to... Harry, what are we going to do?" An odd choking sensation rose to Harry's throat.
"I don't know, Ron… I won't be able to go anywhere anymore. This is awful!"
"No, no, it's okay, Harry!" Ron said, "You heard what everyone was saying just now, no one is going to kill you. You're the Boy Who Lived!"
"I'll be the Boy Who Died if there's that big of a price on my head."
Ron stopped pacing, and stared at his friend. "Don't say that, Harry. You're not going to die." Harry saw the determination in Ron's eyes, and felt a little bit better.
Harry sighed and said, "Well, we're going to have to tell Hermione and Sirius. Come on, I brought Hedwig with me, but she's still delivering a note to Sirius. We'll have to use one of the free owls from the Leaky Cauldron." Harry walked toward the exit.
"No!" Ron blocked the door from Harry. "Let me get the owl, it'll be a lot safer for you if you just stay put. I'll be back in a few minutes." Ron said this all very quickly and then ran out the door. To make sure that nobody could look in the windows and see him, Harry ducked into a dark corner and sat on the dusty ground. Although he was pretty sure no one would kill him just then, he wanted to be safe.
As he sat, Harry heard a muffled conversation, taking place in the shop on the other side of the wall. Trying to remember which shop was next door to Madam Malkin's, Harry pressed an ear to the cold wall. Two men were conversing.
"… unbelievable, I tell you. And I saw it with my own two eyes."
"So, are you sure that's what he said… a million galleons to whoever kills him first?"
"No you've got it wrong! It's a million to EVERYBODY even if just one person kills him."
There was a long pause.
"That means… if one person does all the work, then I'll get all my money back."
"All your gold back, plus a hefty sum more."
"Hey, then I won't even have to do anything wrong to get it…"
The door to the robe shop slammed shut and Harry gasped, standing up quickly. "It's okay, Harry. Just me." Ron came in with a medium-sized, brown, barn owl on his arm and his other arm full of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink. The barn owl flew off Ron's arm and onto the windowsill while Ron spread a piece of parchment on the floor.
"Okay," said Harry. "Here I go…" and with that he wrote two very hasty but urgent letters for Sirius and Hermione. "This owl should be fine," Harry said, tying both notes to the owl's claw. "He might be slower than Hedwig, but that doesn't really matter… as long as they find out from me before anyone else."
Ron opened the door and let the barn owl soar into the sky. "It's really going to be okay, Harry," Ron said, coming back inside. "I was listening to people on the street, and they've all been saying how they'll never kill anyone for money, no matter how much money it is." Harry decided not to tell Ron about the conversation he had heard on the other side of the wall. It was too strange to think about or talk about being murdered… 'Although,' Harry wondered, 'I guess I wouldn't HAVE to be murdered… I could just die by accident…'
"What's wrong, Harry?" Ron must have noticed the horrified look on Harry's face.
Harry let out a strained laugh, "What's wrong? Ron, what do you think is wrong!? I'm going to die and everyone is going to get rich because of it! It doesn't matter who does it to me as long as somehow I'm dead…"
"But Harry," Ron said desperately, "I heard everyone myself! They're going to protect you! Don't worry, Sirius is on his way, too just to make sure." Ron took a deep breath, and continued more slowly. "Listen, there may be some bad people out there, but there are enough good people to keep you from the ones who are out to get you."
Harry looked out the dusty window behind Ron's head, where a crowd was talking and pointing into Madam Malkin's shop where Harry stood. He shook his head.
"Are there really enough, Ron?"
The sound of shuffling footsteps and shallow breathing echoed in Madam Malkin's empty shop as everyone quickly backed away from the vacant fireplace. Harry didn't move; he stood and stared into the fireplace, as if expecting to wake up from a nightmare, or waiting for someone to laugh and say, 'wasn't that a great joke?' As the people drained from the shop, whispering animatedly to the other witches and wizards standing outside, Ron approached Harry and stood next to him.
"Did that really happen?" Harry asked. Ron nodded and grasped Harry's upper arm, trying to steer him away from the fireplace. Cornelius Fudge was the last one to leave the room besides Harry and Ron. Harry could hear Fudge shouting over the crowd: "Stay calm! Everyone stay calm!"
Harry began to walk out into the crowd ahead of Ron, but Ron stopped him. "Harry! We've got to talk. Just stay in here for a minute, alright?" Harry glanced suspiciously at the fireplace, then nodded. Ron shut the door and began to pace nervously. Harry was still too shocked to begin any sort of conversation.
"It was him…" Ron said, "You-Know-Who stole all the gold and he's going to... Harry, what are we going to do?" An odd choking sensation rose to Harry's throat.
"I don't know, Ron… I won't be able to go anywhere anymore. This is awful!"
"No, no, it's okay, Harry!" Ron said, "You heard what everyone was saying just now, no one is going to kill you. You're the Boy Who Lived!"
"I'll be the Boy Who Died if there's that big of a price on my head."
Ron stopped pacing, and stared at his friend. "Don't say that, Harry. You're not going to die." Harry saw the determination in Ron's eyes, and felt a little bit better.
Harry sighed and said, "Well, we're going to have to tell Hermione and Sirius. Come on, I brought Hedwig with me, but she's still delivering a note to Sirius. We'll have to use one of the free owls from the Leaky Cauldron." Harry walked toward the exit.
"No!" Ron blocked the door from Harry. "Let me get the owl, it'll be a lot safer for you if you just stay put. I'll be back in a few minutes." Ron said this all very quickly and then ran out the door. To make sure that nobody could look in the windows and see him, Harry ducked into a dark corner and sat on the dusty ground. Although he was pretty sure no one would kill him just then, he wanted to be safe.
As he sat, Harry heard a muffled conversation, taking place in the shop on the other side of the wall. Trying to remember which shop was next door to Madam Malkin's, Harry pressed an ear to the cold wall. Two men were conversing.
"… unbelievable, I tell you. And I saw it with my own two eyes."
"So, are you sure that's what he said… a million galleons to whoever kills him first?"
"No you've got it wrong! It's a million to EVERYBODY even if just one person kills him."
There was a long pause.
"That means… if one person does all the work, then I'll get all my money back."
"All your gold back, plus a hefty sum more."
"Hey, then I won't even have to do anything wrong to get it…"
The door to the robe shop slammed shut and Harry gasped, standing up quickly. "It's okay, Harry. Just me." Ron came in with a medium-sized, brown, barn owl on his arm and his other arm full of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink. The barn owl flew off Ron's arm and onto the windowsill while Ron spread a piece of parchment on the floor.
"Okay," said Harry. "Here I go…" and with that he wrote two very hasty but urgent letters for Sirius and Hermione. "This owl should be fine," Harry said, tying both notes to the owl's claw. "He might be slower than Hedwig, but that doesn't really matter… as long as they find out from me before anyone else."
Ron opened the door and let the barn owl soar into the sky. "It's really going to be okay, Harry," Ron said, coming back inside. "I was listening to people on the street, and they've all been saying how they'll never kill anyone for money, no matter how much money it is." Harry decided not to tell Ron about the conversation he had heard on the other side of the wall. It was too strange to think about or talk about being murdered… 'Although,' Harry wondered, 'I guess I wouldn't HAVE to be murdered… I could just die by accident…'
"What's wrong, Harry?" Ron must have noticed the horrified look on Harry's face.
Harry let out a strained laugh, "What's wrong? Ron, what do you think is wrong!? I'm going to die and everyone is going to get rich because of it! It doesn't matter who does it to me as long as somehow I'm dead…"
"But Harry," Ron said desperately, "I heard everyone myself! They're going to protect you! Don't worry, Sirius is on his way, too just to make sure." Ron took a deep breath, and continued more slowly. "Listen, there may be some bad people out there, but there are enough good people to keep you from the ones who are out to get you."
Harry looked out the dusty window behind Ron's head, where a crowd was talking and pointing into Madam Malkin's shop where Harry stood. He shook his head.
"Are there really enough, Ron?"