"Dad I don't see why I can't just go shopping with you. I barely know the Malfoys anyway." I couldn't help the slightly childish pout I gave him as I crossed my arms. He'd decided my school shopping was going to be with the Malfoys this year, and I really didn't want to. I'd met them once, at their son's seventh birthday when my father was invited due to some old connection they had. "I'd even go with Pucey's family, at least I know them."
He shook his head at me "I have something I must take care of at Hogwarts, and no, I cannot tell you. Now hurry and get dressed, they'll be here in the hour."
"But dad - "
"No, Vanessa. I'll not have any arguing."
I huffed at him before stomping off to my room to get changed. I could argue all I like, it wouldn't change anything. So I begrudgingly changed into the nicest casual robes I have. One problem with the Malfoys – they were rich. Extremely so. My dad's income, however, was not enough to afford the most luxurious of things. It wasn't like we were struggling to get by, but I usually took no shame in buying secondhand books, robes, and other supplies for school. They were cheaper, and it left me with more money for extra reading books and lots of potions ingredients. I was quickly on my way to following in my father's footsteps. I rushed to finish when I heard the flames of the floo in the living room. One quick check in the mirror and I decided I was presentable, I grabbed my wand and stuck it up my sleeve before heading out to greet the Malfoys.
I smiled politely, even in the face of the little gremlin's sneer "Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy, hello."
Mrs. Malfoy gave me a courteous smile in return "Hello dear, I hope you're ready for Diagon Alley."
I nodded my assent, even as my father pulled me aside "Now, behave. I don't want to hear of any nonsense, understand?"
I rolled my eyes, a small, amused smile playing at my lips "Yes dad. I promise I won't give them any trouble."
He stared at me warily. The tricks I've played over the years taught him better than to believe me when I promised him anything. Whatever he saw, he seemed satisfied, or he wouldn't have placed a pouch in my hand "There's money for books, two new shirts for school, plenty of potions ingredients. Make sure to get -"
"Lacewing flies, moondew, fluxweed, hellebore, and nettles. Anything else we've run out of?"
He shook his head "Not unless you've brewed another four batches of your potion this morning."
"No, I've still got some stored, although that does remind me. How angry would you be if I picked up some henbane?"
He stopped short of turning around, staring at me. It was then I realized the Malfoys were also staring at me, but they weren't what made me shrink into myself "Henbane?" The tone in my father's voice made me feel like I was six years old again "As in the highly toxic plant, henbane?"
A sheepish grin came to my face "That would be the one." Before he could say no I went straight into the puppy eyes. They almost always worked on him "Please? I can't make my potion any more potent than it is so I need to start making a new one. I've got an idea but I need henbane for it. I know it's toxic but that's why I'm mapping out the potion before I make it. And the map I've made with the henbane makes it -"
"Alright, just stop." The look on his face was sour "You can get the henbane but only enough for one batch of the potion. If it works then you can get more. And Mr. Malfoy must accompany you."
I squealed a bit and hugged him tightly "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
The sour look on his face didn't leave for even a second before we left for Diagon Alley. The first place we went was Ollivander's, for Draco's wand. I had a feeling the Malfoys were trying to avoid the apothecary until the end, since I was likely to spend hours in it. I couldn't blame them if they were. Of course, nothing could really prepare me for Mrs. Malfoy's discussion with me while we waited for Ollivander to finish with the customer before us.
"Your father lets you experiment with potions?" Her face seemed hesitant, like she wasn't sure if she was crossing a line.
I merely shrugged in response "He's been teaching me for half my life. I picked it up easily enough." She seemed wary, so I continued "I started adding notes when I was eight. Just little things that could make a potion better, or brew it faster. He let me start practicing those adjustments after six months."
Ollivander called out to Draco, so we stood just a little ways away from him as she responded "But is that safe? You seem a little young to be acting like a potions master."
I gave her a small smile "I understand your concern. My father looks over all of my plans for a potion before I start brewing. Sometimes he'll make adjustments, if none of the ingredients in a potion are expensive and a mistake won't result in utter disaster he'll let me make it with the mistake so I can learn. I'm by no means a master, and I don't pretend to be."
She seemed to want to say something more, but a stern look from Mr. Malfoy stopped her. I'm not sure I would have been too upset if she had asked, it's not like my potion brewing is a secret. Once we left the shop, however, we stopped to decide where to go next "Draco, why don't we go to Madame Malkin's to get you fitted for your robes while your father takes Vanessa to Slug and Jiggers. Vanessa could I have the list for your books? I can pick them up for you while Draco get fitted."
I nodded in assent, making note to repay her for them when we meet up again "Here, I'll probably catch up in Madam Malkin's when I go to get my new shirts. I shouldn't take too long to get the henbane."
Mr. Malfoy raised an eyebrow "Why not get the rest of the ingredients you need at the same time?"
I flushed before tugging at my ear nervously "The apothecary that sells henbane is different than the one my dad and I normally shop at. I figured I'd wait to get the rest after I've bought everything else."
The look on his face told me he knew exactly what that meant, and explained why my father wanted him with me when I went there. I just ducked my head and followed as he started in the direction of Knockturn Alley "Very well, let's not waste time."
The shopkeep was a little disturbing, to say the least. He had a slimy grin, and when I told him what I needed he only grinned even more. Even Mr. Malfoy couldn't help but sneer at the man, and I didn't blame him. When he handed me the measured henbane I opened the bag to inspect it before giving him what I owed. The frown was impossible to hide "Are you trying to get me killed?" The shop keep reeled back as if he were punched by a muggle "I asked for henbane, not a mix of henbane and belladonna." I tossed the bag on the counter "Honestly, as if I could ever use that." He moved to go and fill another bag as I shouted to his back "And don't give me the stuff that's half rotten either, I want it fresh."
A few moments later he came back and slammed the little bag onto the counter under his hand "That'll be four galleons deary."
I couldn't help but roll my eyes and stare him down. Of course, I looked down when he suddenly looked terrified – my eyes had to have changed again. This bag of henbane was at least acceptable, even if the price was a little steep. I handed him his galleons and followed Mr. Malfoy out of the store. He escorted me back to Diagon Alley and parted from me as I headed to Madame Malkin's. He likely meant to join Mrs. Malfoy, and it wasn't as if I didn't know my way around. When I entered the shop Draco was still getting fitted, and a small boy entered behind me on his own. He looked like he was drowning in his clothes, but all that meant was that he likely came from a family with little money.
"Hogwarts, you two?"
At his nod I smiled down at him "Why don't you go first? Draco should be finished soon and I can take his place when he's done."
The boy smiled at me nervously "Thank you."
Draco, apparently, couldn't resist the smug overtone in his voice as he took his turn to speak to the boy "Are you a first year too?" All the boy could get in was a nod before Draco continued "I've never seen you before. Are you a pureblood?"
I rolled my eyes, but had to hide the snicker at the boy's answer "My mum and dad were a witch and a wizard if that's what you mean."
Unfortunately, I didn't hide the snicker well enough because Draco gave me a foul look. It only prompted me to speak "What's your name?"
The kid looked hesitant "Harry. I'm Harry."
I raised an eyebrow at the lack of a last name "Well, Harry, I'm Vanessa Snape. Blondie over there is Draco Malfoy." A witch came out from the back, prompting me to move over by a measuring stand. I raised my arms as the spelled measuring tape went around my torso, taking note of the awed expression on his face. There's no way the kid was raised in a magical home "Are your parents at Flourish and Blotts while you're here?"
Harry's expression dropped from awe to grief in a flash "My parents are dead. I'm here with Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts."
I frowned, before the realization set in. Dead parents, no way did he know what magic was, and those glasses were vaguely familiar. I couldn't help but ask "Would your last name happen to be Potter, Harry?"
He flinched at Draco's yell "Potter? You're Harry Potter?"
"I didn't -"
"Sorry, that's my fault." Even Madame Malkin seemed shaken by my outing him for who he was, I had to apologize. He didn't seem too happy about my being there anymore "I should have thought before I asked. I'm sure you've already seen the absolute ruckus people make at your name."
He nodded "I think everyone in the Leaky Cauldron shook my hand before I got through. Some more than once."
I winced at how long that must have taken "Yeah, I shouldn't have said anything." The witch who'd taken my measurements handed me my two shirts as I gave her the money I owed, just in time for Draco to finish up his own transaction. I took another look at my little brother, embedding his face in my memory. I couldn't tell him, but I could at least leave a good impression "We'll be heading out now. I can't speak for Draco but if you ever need anything at Hogwarts, Harry, just find me. I'll do what I can to help." I turned to the door, placing a hand on Draco's shoulder to steer him out "Come on, time to find your mum and dad."
Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy were fairly easy to find. I attempted to pay them back for my books, but they wouldn't accept it from me. I couldn't tell if it was genuine generosity or if it was because they pitied me. I had a feeling it was the latter. We went to Slug and Jiggers together, with Draco looking a bit like a lost kneazle and Mrs. Malfoy watching me show him around. I knew my way around apothecaries like the back of my hand, so of course I knew the best ingredients and how to handle them. Draco simply followed my lead, even if I wasn't rich or a pureblood or anything of the sort he would associate with. I wasn't sure how to feel about the way they treated me, but I found that I didn't hate it.
I indulged myself with a few of the rarer sort of ingredients. The Malfoys buying my books for me freed up some more galleons, and I was happy to use them. They went to Florean Fortescue's as I branched off into a smaller book shop to find some interesting reads. I was content to simply browse when a very old book caught my eye. It was clearly poorly taken care of, or it was just ancient. The binding was starting to come off, and there was no title on the spine. I pulled it from the shelf, wiping the dust off of it to see if there was a title. In small, golden lettering on the front was the title Beginner's Spells for the Blossoming Dragon. My brow furrowed, there was no chance the title was referring to what I thought it was. A small flip through the book revealed very little, just spells and the theory behind them. Just like any Charms book. A quick read through the first few pages told me absolutely nothing either, but none of the spells in this book were familiar. Most spells were in Latin, and ones that weren't in Latin had a very obvious root language. But the language these spells were rooted in was unfamiliar. It certainly didn't exist today anymore, but neither did Latin. At the very least, my curiosity was peaked. So I bought it, along with two other historical books revolving around the era that Dragonians existed. Pucey and I were going to find out whatever we could.
Once I caught up with the Malfoys they brought me home. I was alone for about an hour or so before my dad got back, where I got to tell him about my brother. I couldn't tell how he felt about it, but I don't think he was happy to hear me talk about Harry so much. I'm not sure I was really all that overjoyed to have met him. It just brought me closer to the day that Dumbledore would force me to leave my father behind, because I was meant to take up my old name again one day. I resented that thought. Harry Potter might be my brother, but I was raised and loved by Severus Snape since I was three years old. I didn't want to give that up. Not ever. I went to bed that night wondering if blood relation really mattered at all when considering family.
I had another nightmare that night. I woke up sweating, the memories already slipping away from me. But I knew what it was. It was the night the Dark Lord attacked the Potter household. The night I can barely remember save for a scream that surely wasn't mine and two flashes of light, one green and one purple. One day I might actually remember it, but for now I had to deal with the fact that I couldn't. I also had to get back to sleep. My hand dug through the bottom drawer of my nightstand. I was shaky, but that was only to be expected. Once I found the phial I was looking for I popped it open, taking a small dose of the potion. I closed it quickly, checking how much was left before I'd have to brew another and putting it back. It took a little while to fall back to sleep, but once I did there wasn't a nightmare in sight.
