The morning dawned, bright and early, with birdsong, puffy white clouds, and sunshine streaming in the windows. It was already warm outside, and would likely end up quite hot. Thank goodness for cooling charms, Narcissa thought when she was up and looking out the window before starting her day.
"Tink," she called, ready to begin getting ready. Tink popped in and bowed.
"I'd like my mint white summer dress, please, the one that has that wonderful floral embroidery on the hem, the mint green organza robe, and my white wedge sandals, the silver studded ones. Oh, and would you please pick some earrings for me, Tink? I'm not sure what I'm in the mood for this morning," Narcissa gave her orders in a pleasant tone, and remembered to say please.
"Yes, Mistress," Tink replied, somewhat in awe of this new, kinder treatment.
While Narcissa was getting ready in her wing of the house, two excitable boys were also preparing for their day.
"Tansy!" Draco called, and spoke again as soon as she popped in. "We're going shopping today, so I need light clothes with cooling charms. Oh, and find something for Harry as well and give it to his elf."
"Yes, Master Draco," Tansy replied, feeling a bit sorry for herself after both Tink and Dobby talked about how kind the masters had been yesterday.
She popped and snapped her way around the room, cleaning up, making the bed, stoking the fire, and selecting clothes as she went. She placed a pair of navy linen trousers on the bed with a white button down shirt and a lightweight cotton robe in light blue with silver embroidery at the cuffs and hems. The robe had silver buttons with more of the embroidered patterns down the front opening. She selected a pair of brown dress shoes, charmed for fit and comfort to go with it.
As Master Harry did not yet have his own clothing, Tansy then popped away to the storage closet where young Master Draco's old things were kept. She'd have to find something for Master Harry there. Tansy sent a pulse through the house elf bond requesting that Dobby attend her so he could assist in the selection, and to ensure the clothing would fit. As luck would have it, Dobby popped in immediately as his friend Master Harry was in the bath.
Together they looked through the closet, selecting options and discarding. They decided on black silk trousers, an Emerald green button down shirt which Dobby was certain would match Master Harry's eyes, and a silvery grey over robe in acromantula silk that had a slight sheen, but no other adornment than its silver buttons. Dobby snapped his fingers for the black dress shoes young Master Harry had worn the previous day, and popped away with the clothing in hand.
Harry was just exiting the bath when Dobby popped in and began to lay out his clothes.
"Thank you, Dobby," Harry said smiling, "Those look wonderful!"
"You is being welcome, Master Harry," Dobby replied. "All pieces is being lights and cools and bes staying that way all day."
"That sounds great, Dobby!" Harry responded, eagerly beginning to dress.
Dobby snapped his fingers and the bottle of hair tonic flew in. "Three drops, Master Harry," he reminded the raven haired boy.
Harry applied the tonic to tame his hair and deemed himself ready.
Dobby nodded, bowed, and popped out just as there was a knock on Harry's door. He dashed over to open it, and found Draco, looking very cool in his blue and white ensemble.
Draco looked over Harry's appearance and said, "That was one of my favorites, but the green just didn't work on me. I'm glad you can wear it."
"Me, too!" Harry responded excitedly. "Good morning, by the way."
"Good morning," Draco responded. "Are you ready for shopping?" Harry nodded, nearly bouncing on his feet with the excitement of getting to buy things for himself for the first time.
"Mother can shop all day, so we'd best get to breakfast. I don't want to shop on an empty stomach," Draco stated emphatically.
"Let's go, then," Harry responded playfully, grabbing Draco's hand and both of them dashing off down the stairs, much to the disapproval of the Malfoy portraits in the hall.
When they arrived in the dining room, they found both the Lord and Lady of the house already seated and sipping cups of tea.
"Good morning father, mother," Draco said somewhat breathlessly as they entered the room.
"Good morning Lucius, Cissa," Harry echoed.
"Good morning, boys," they responded.
Narcissa continued, "Now boys, we need to discuss the plan for our day. The main point being that Harry Potter cannot be seen with the Lady and Heir Malfoy."
Lucius nodded. "You are not supposed to be away from your Aunt and Uncle, Harry, so I pulled this from the family safe last night after you went to bed." He handed Harry a woven silver ring. "This ring holds a fixed glamour. It will pull a very small amount of your magic to keep the glamour charms set into the metal powered. The charms cannot be cancelled or lifted so long as the ring is in contact with your skin. You should wear it on the middle finger of your right hand, it should resize to fit."
Harry slid the ring on his finger, and a shudder went through him as the ring resized, latching on to a trickle of his magic, and forced the physical glamour charms on his slight body. Lucius helpfully conjured a mirror so Harry could see his new appearance. His black hair lightened to a honey highlighted brown though it kept it's unruly mien; his skin tone lightened, but only a little; his lips became just a touch more full, and definitely more red; and his eyes shifted from emerald to a silver flecked jade. All in all, he looked rather cute, but not memorable
Narcissa clapped her hands, "Oh, that's just perfect! You've Aunt Dorea's hair, she's your grandmother darling, and a bit of the Black's silver eyes showing through your green. Your skin must be from your mother's family as I don't recall any Potter or Black having skin like that. We should be able to pass you as a Black cousin from France. Hmm… you'll need a name...We can't call you Harry, that would be too odd when you disappear in time for Hogwarts and Harry Potter shows up," Narcissa was thinking out loud.
"Rigel," Lucius suggested. "It fits the Black family naming convention, and the diminutive is Reggie if Harry prefers."
"Rigel is fine," Harry replied. "Rigel, Rigel, Rigel… just need to get used to it."
"We will all call you that starting now and while we are out. No need to be too concerned if you forget to answer while we're in public today, we can always brush it off as the excitement over your first trip to England, Rigel," Narcissa concluded. "And you may find you respond more naturally to Reggie, as it's a similar sound to Harry."
"Cousin Rigel?" Draco asked.
"Yes, Draco?" Harry responded with an arched brow.
"Nothing, just practicing," Draco smirked back.
"Well, now that's settled, eat your breakfast boys, lots to be getting on with you know," Narcissa interrupted any further discussion.
Once the boys were finished with their breakfast, they bid goodbye to the Malfoy patriarch, and went with Narcissa to the receiving room to floo to the Leaky Cauldron. Narcissa threw a handful of the sparkling green powder into the flames, grasped both boys' hands tightly, while they pressed against her sides, said, "Diagon Alley," and they whooshed away. Harry stumbled a bit as they exited, but managed to keep his feet. Narcissa swished her wand to banish the soot from their hair and clothes, and guided the boys through the pub and into the alleyway that housed the entrance to Diagon Alley. She tapped the bricks in a specific order, and Harry watched, fascinated, as the bricks began to rotate, creating an arched entryway to the shopping street behind.
Harry gasped as they walked through, and tried to take in everything at once. He was certain he looked like a gawking imbecile, but he couldn't help himself. It was all so new and different...and...and magical! Narcissa let him stare for a few moments before grasping his hand, along with Draco's, and leading them off to their first stop of the day, Twilfitt and Tatting's. She wanted to get there before the rush and hoped the two gifted tailors would be able to have at least part of Harry's wardrobe ready before they left the alley, likely later this evening. And if she could secure her young charge an apprenticeship, so much the better.
A manikin sitting inside the display window turned to open the door for them as they approached, and returned to its position as they entered. A rather short, balding man in impeccable black robes stepped forward to greet Narcissa as they entered.
"The Lady Malfoy, and Heir Malfoy," the gentleman said with an obsequious bow. "But who is this?"
"Blessed be, Mr. Twilfitt," Narcissa greeted the man. "This is my young cousin, come to visit, Master Rigel Black."
"Mr. Black," the man now known as Mr. Twilfitt nodded to Harry. He nodded back, unsure of the appropriate comment to make.
"Reggie would like to partake in your fine fashions, Mr. Twilfitt, as I have quite raved about the quality. He indicated his desire for a complete wardrobe, as he has grown more than the growth charms on the clothes he brought with him allowed. Reggie will be staying with us, likely for a year or two at least, so if he is pleased, I'm certain his family will allow him to make additional purchases from your fine establishment," Narcissa continued.
"Yes, yes, I'm certain we can accommodate him," Mr. Twilfitt responded, galleon signs dancing in his eyes. "Please step onto the pedestal, Mr. Black, and remove your outer robe."
Harry jumped up on the block as Mr. Twilfitt threw a tape measure at him that began wrapping itself around various parts of his body, taking his measurements entirely on its own. Narcissa began an in depth discussion of the wardrobe requirements including fabrics (Oh, he simply must have acromantula silk, and those fabulous blend trousers, you know, the ones Lucius favors?), colors (Green, did you see his eyes, blue, silver, black, naturally), and styles (oh, he simply needs everything, Mr. Twilfitt, dress robes, casual wear, play clothing, sleepwear and the like). Draco sat in a chair near the platform Harry was standing on, and he and Harry locked eyes in the mirror. Harry huffed out a breath as if to say "HELP!" and Draco rolled his eyes saying, "sorry, cousin," and a little bit, "I told you so."
Mr. Twilfitt called Mr. Tatting to assist him as he held up fabric after fabric in a plethora of colors next to Harry. Narcissa would nod or shake her head to approve or reject items, occasionally stepping forward to touch a fabric, or suggest a color modification. It went on for what felt like hours to the two youngsters, but was really only a little over an hour, before Narcissa was satisfied he would have everything he needed (and as Lucius and Severus had indicated the previous evening, likely some he didn't need as well). As Harry was stepping off the platform, Narcissa brought up the topic Harry was most interested in.
"Mr. Twilfitt, Mr. Tatting, while we are here, I was wondering if I might beg for a moment of your time to discuss a proposition?" Narcissa led into the conversation.
The two tailors nodded. "Please, speak freely, my dear Lady Malfoy," Mr. Tatting responded.
"Well, you see," she started hesitantly, though Harry and Draco could both tell she was anything but, "my dear cousin Rigel here has expressed an interest in making clothes. His tutor is unable to teach such arts, and my very first thought was that you two are so skilled and your clothing the first stare, he couldn't possibly get better teachers than you!" she finished with a tinkling laugh.
"I see," said Mr. Twilfitt. Mr. Tatting nodded.
"And since you two are so skilled, my dear Lucius and I were wondering if we could impose upon you to take my dear little Rigel under your skilled wings for a small apprenticeship this school year. He is not completely unskilled, Rigel, darling, come and tell them," Narcissa pulled Harry into the conversation.
"Oh, yes, I mean, I'm not terribly good, but I did mend my clothing when it was needed," Harry offered. Narcissa nodded, and made a little 'go on' gesture.
"I don't know if it matters, but the things I worked on tended to last longer than the things I didn't…" Harry trailed off uncertainly. Narcissa gave him an approving smile and a quick wink.
"Lasted longer, you say," Mr. Tatting said, scratching his chin.
"Interesting…" Mr. Twilfitt said, staring at Harry, who blushed a bit, and ducked his head.
"We will think on your proposal, Lady Malfoy, to apprentice your young cousin," Mr. Twilfitt stated.
"And we'll get back to you in a few days," Mr. Tatting finished.
"That would be simply marvelous," Narcissa said gaily as she turned to go. "Oh, silly me, when should we return for Rigel's things?" she asked, spinning back towards the men gracefully, her outer robe fluttering gently.
"We can provide his underclothes, sleepwear, and a partial selection of his casual wear by 4 pm this afternoon," Mr. Twilfitt started.
"The remainder of his casual clothing and all of the formal clothing we will send via owl by the end of next week," Mr. Tatting concluded.
"That sounds delightful, gentlemen, we'll see you after 4 pm," Narcissa said, gently ushering the boys out of the shop.
"There now, that wasn't so bad," Narcissa said once they were clear of the door. "And you'll have your own new clothing this afternoon, dear," she said with a fond smile at Harry. He nodded while Narcissa's eyes were on him, and shared a commiserating sigh with Draco, when she turned to lead them to the next stop.
"Well, we should get all the required things done first, and then this afternoon we can do fun things, like toys, the menagerie, and brooms," Narcissa decided.
And with that, she steered them off towards Slug and Jiggers apothecary for their potions kits. That stop was a brief one. As soon as she mentioned personal students of Severus Prince, the shopkeeper had stepped out from behind his counter, and bustled away coming back with two pewter cauldrons ("Size Two, you know") filled with a stirrer and ladle set which included stirring rods of Pewter, Silver, Gold, and glass, and a steel ladle. Two silver wrapped boxes were floating along behind the cauldrons. He noticed the boys eyeing them curiously and said, "Ingredients, personally selected by Potions Master Prince." The boys nodded. Narcissa paid for their purchases and they were on their way.
They made their way quickly through a number of shops - Brown's Cosmetics, Scribbulus, Tomes and Scrolls, Wiseacres Wizarding Equipment, Flourish and Blotts, and an eye healer, where Harry got a prescription for a potion which would heal his eyes for Severus to make. They stopped for lunch at a small, out of the way tea shop on an alley just off of Diagon, before making their way to the pet shops, toy shop, and Quality Quidditch Supplies in the afternoon.
Their foray into the Magical Menagerie was far more entertaining to the boys than their previous stops had been. They enjoyed meandering through the shop, pointing out this owl, or that kneazle. It offered Draco a chance to hold whispered conversations with "Rigel" about the various magical creatures they were looking at. Harry wanted to speak to the snakes, but when they approached the tanks, he could hear them chattering amongst themselves about the mice they were fed, the rocks they were coiled on, and the poor temperatures in the tanks. Not finding that very interesting or stimulating, they merely looked for a few moments and continued on. Neither found an animal of particular interest, and so they left without making a purchase.
Next was Eeylops Owl Emporium next door. This shop was very interesting to Harry, never having seen an owl before in anything other than pictures, and knowing they were a nocturnal creature, was surprised to see them all awake. Narcissa explained that they were magical owls, intended to form a relationship or slight bond to their owner and deliver mail for them. As they did often create a very minor form of the familiar bond spontaneously, they were prized as mail carriers for being able to follow that bond and get through wards to deliver their owner's mail anywhere. Draco had been gifted a sooty black great horned owl (his name was Nox) on his 7th birthday, and so they purchased some owl treats for him. Harry had hoped to find a pet or an owl in the two shops, but nothing sparked his fancy and so he left empty handed.
At the toy story, Harry wandered around in awe. He had never been to a muggle toy story, and so the wizarding version was astounding. Of course it had things he had expected to see, stuffed animals, dolls, and figures, though many were enchanted to move or sing or dance. But it also included things he had never seen before, like reusable hangman, wizard's chess, and fanged frisbees. The Malfoys let Harry wander to his heart's content, stopping and inspecting anything that caught his eye. Narcissa had picked up a charmed basket and whenever Harry spent a longer time looking at something, it discreetly made its way into the basket floating along behind her.
When they were finished, Draco had found some new figures he wanted to add to his collection (mostly quidditch players), and Harry was the proud owner of his own set of gobstones, exploding snap cards, a beginners wizarding chess set, a reusable hangman, a bubble and light wand, and three stuffed animals - a stag, a grim, and a wolf. He wasn't sure why he was drawn to those three in particular, but they were soft and cuddly, and for a boy who had never experienced such things, that he could remember, it was too pleasant to pass up. He was extremely grateful to the Malfoys for purchasing all these things for him, and thanked Narcissa profusely once they had exited the story. Seeing his somewhat disgruntled expression when she went to shrink their bags, she instead handed over the bag containing his plushes, and was rewarded with a pleased smile as he held the bag and surreptitiously stroked the animals inside.
But their last stop before returning to Twilfitt and Tatting's and heading home was the most exciting to the two boys. Draco had grabbed Harry's hand and nearly pulled his arm out of socket as he tugged and pulled the smaller boy towards the shop at a dead run. Narcissa calmly called him back to order, and rescued "poor Rigel" with a pat on his head, and a firm grasp of his hand. They then made their way, in a slightly more dignified fashion, into the shop.
Quality Quidditch Supplies! This was the store they had been waiting for all day! Draco was telling his dear cousin Rigel all about the rules of the game, the players, and the balls. They drooled over the replica uniforms for Draco's favorite teams (the Falmouth Falcons and Puddlemere United), laughed at the ones Draco said were the worst (That disaster in orange of the Chudley Cannons, haven't won the league in nearly a hundred years!), and ogled the sets of balls, gloves, and other equipment presented in the store.
But the back wall was where they were truly headed. The brooms. All the shiny new brooms! Harry could only look at the names with confusion and awe… Comet 360, Shooting Star, CleanSweep, Silver Arrow, and a Nimbus 1700. Harry and Draco both nearly lost their composure at the Nimbus. So sleek, twigs so perfectly in order and shaped for aerodynamic precision. Draco's practice Comet 360 could never measure up. Though they knew Harry would likely also wind up with Comet, they couldn't help looking over, touching, and discussing the Nimbus while they were selecting their other items. While they boys were lost to their shopping, Narcissa crooked a finger to call a store clerk to assist her. She made her surprise purchase, and requested it be owled to her at Malfoy Manor that evening before the boys noticed she wasn't following them.
Again, Narcissa took a charmed basket to follow them as they made their final selections. Harry had decided on a practice snitch because it just looked so fun. Draco had gotten a new set of chaser's gloves. They both selected a set of quidditch robes and protective gear, a pleasant medium blue with grey pads and helmet for Draco, and a set in emerald green and grey for Harry. Narcissa instructed them to select an official set of balls with which to practice, and they found a very nice set in a wood chest which included the quaffle, snitch, and two bludgers, as well as the 2 beater bats.
They were stepping up to the counter to pay when Draco suddenly exclaimed, "Mother, we forgot Rigel's broom!"
"I haven't forgotten his broom, Draco, I purchased it while you were looking around and had it owled home. I had no wish to carry a broom when they cannot be shrunk," Narcissa responded somewhat quellingly.
"Oh," Draco deflated.
"Thank you, Cousin Cissa," Harry said respectfully.
"It is no problem at all, Rigel," Narcissa returned with a smile.
They completed their purchases, and made their way back to Twilfitt and Tatting's to pick up part of Harry's new wardrobe. Once their last stop was complete, they headed home.
Same Day, GringottsWhile his lovely wife was taking his son and their new ward, Harry Potter, shopping, Lucius took advantage of his friendly status with the goblins, and his account manager in particular, to place a floo call to Gornuk requesting a meeting. The meeting was granted, and Lucius stepped through the fire and into his account manager's office.
"To what do I owe this visit, Lord Malfoy?" Gornuk asked once Lucius was seated.
"May your gold ever grow, Gornuk. I have come with good news," Lucius responded.
"And your enemies suffer, Lord Malfoy. Tell me what has occured," Gornuk prompted his client.
"Lord Prince and I were successful in retrieving the young Potter Heir on Monday," Lucius began.
"You were!?" Gornuk interrupted, all propriety forgotten.
Lucius's eye lit with a nearly unholy gleam of satisfaction. "Indeed we did, my friend."
Without speaking, or asking permission, Gornuk pressed the clear cube on his desk, and barked out rapid-fire Gobbledegook.
In very short order, his office door slammed open, and Griphook, the Potter Account Manager goblin, had rushed into the office, nearly forgetting to close the door in his haste.
"You have him?" Griphook questioned the moment he could breathe.
"I have," Lucius responded smugly.
"I was not certain the plan would work," Griphook continued. "Children are so often taught to be wary of strangers, I had not truly hoped he would come with you. You did retrieve him willingly I trust?" he finished a little subdued.
"Of course, Griphook. We would not have taken him otherwise," Lucius stated. "Indeed, he seemed very willing to accompany us, even falling asleep in Severus' arms prior to our departure. The transfer of magic to the doll was rather taxing on him. If he had not been controlling his accidental magic for so long, I am not certain he would have managed the power needed so successfully."
"Controlling his accidental magic, you say?" Gornuk asked curiously.
"Oh yes," Lucius replied, that gleam of satisfaction growing even brighter. "It seems he's been unconsciously and consciously controlling his magic since he was three. He mentioned being able to turn on a light no one else could turn on at the age of three at least. We'll have to wait for his inheritance test to see if we will have grounds for a full magical scan and diagnostic to see if we can pinpoint when it started."
"I'm certain there will be plenty of grounds for a full scan, Lord Malfoy," Griphook responded, returning to decorum. "I appreciate you bringing this news. Do you wish to perform the ritual to bring the keys for young Heir Potter's vaults back into service?"
"I'm unsure, my friends," Lucius replied. "I certainly don't want to prevent him from accessing them, but as he's not yet 10 and can't perform the full inheritance test, he wouldn't be able to access them anyway. Conversely, if we reactivate the keys, his magical guardian would then be able to use them, and who knows what he would do to them, not to mention knowing that somehow Harry was in the magical world when he's supposed to know nothing about it."
"I agree with your assessment, Lord Malfoy," Gornuk put in. "It could be dangerous to the young heir if anyone were to find out he is back in our world too soon."
"It can of course be hidden once he is 10 and will have the Heir power to prevent the key from activating, but until then, it is probably best to leave things as they are," Griphook concluded. "I am certain we will be having meetings with you regularly. We will be able to meet Heir Potter and discuss his options then."
They ended their meeting and Lucius floo'ed home, and returned to his office and work to wait for his family to return.