The trio stood in Snape's quarters, ready to go. It was hard to explain to the others why they wouldn't spend Christmas at Hogwarts, but somehow they did. Harry felt something move in the pocket of his warm robes. Kai also had to take with him. They could not leave him, besides, he promised to behave well.

Now they were heading to Diagon Alley, Snape had some business to complete, the kids didn't really care. Once again, Harry would have to travel through the fireplace, which sucks.

"Who is first?"

"I'd rather be me, Professor." Ron stepped forward. "Harry came out of the wrong fireplace last time." And Hermione... I'm not sure... Have you ever used Floo powder?" he turned to his friend.

"Only in theory," the girl sighed.

"Then you go first, Mr. Weasley," Ron nodded. He took a handful of gunpowder and went into the fireplace.

"Diagon Alley!" In the same second, Ron was engulfed in green flames.

"You're next, Mr. Potter," the boy gulped. He didn't like traveling this way at all. "Don't forget to keep your elbows in and close your eyes." Harry dipped his hand into the pot and did the same as Ron.

"Diagon Alley!"

He immediately twirled, he closed his eyes, pressed his elbows to his body and took a deep breath and tried not to make the same mistakes as last time. This time everything went much easier.

Potter felt a jolt and was thrown out of the fireplace. He was about to hit the floor, but instead he slammed into something soft.

"Are you okay, friend?" Ron caught him just as he flew out of the fireplace. "This time is much better, right?"

"Yes," Harry nodded, "better this time."

They were in The Leaky Cauldron. The clinking of glasses and the laughter of motley companies could be heard.

The boys moved a little way from the fireplace when the fire flared up again and Hermione tumbled out. The boys easily grabbed her by the arms.

"Hard landing," the girl smiled faintly.

"Much better than I did the first time. I hit straight Knockturn Alley. At least you didn't miss the fireplace."

Snape followed Hermione out of the fireplace. Graceful as a cat, he landed firmly on his feet.

"Come on," the man waved his hand. The children followed the professor. Passing through the archway, they again found themselves on Diagon Alley. There were fewer people than before the start of the school year, but still enough to crowd the narrow streets. Harry suspected it was because of the approaching holidays.

They approached Slug & Jiggers Apothecary and Mr. Mulpepper's Apothecary. Here the man stopped and looked at the students.

"Here," he handed Harry a bag of money, "you have forty-five minutes or so until I finish my business. See you right here. Don't step into Knockturn Alley. And one more thing," Hermione was handed a small pocket watch, "This is a magic timer, it will remind you of the time," the trinity stared at the professor in surprise, "Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all," the children smiled. Snape still knows how to surprise, "Thank you, Professor," the children waved goodbye and ran to explore Diagon Alley. Severus snorted.

"And don't eat too many sweets!" children shouted something similar to "Good." And they ran away. They had become more familiar with Snape lately. It both irritated and amused him, "How energetic. Hopefully by the middle of the day they'll be at least a little tired."

"Well, where first?" Ron put his hands behind his head.

"Hmm..." Harry quickly counted the money in the bag and smirked. "I didn't know Snape was so generous. There's enough for the three of us."

"Shall we go get some butterbeer?" Ron suggested, but seeing the misunderstanding on the faces of his friends, he got even more fired up with this idea, "Are you serious?"

"Don't forget, Ron, you're the only one of us who was born and raised in a mage family," Granger reminded him.

"Then let's go quickly," Weasley pulled his friends towards a small shop, "Three bottles of butterbeer, please."

"Three butterbeers, it will be done," a man of about thirty smiled at the children, "six sickle," Harry handed the seller the required amount and they began to wait at the high table.

"Here is your order, have a nice day."

"Thanks." The trio picked up the bottles and continued down Diagon Alley. The children quickly opened the bottles. It was the first time Harry had tried something like this. The drink was pleasantly creamy sweet and tender. The bottles quickly emptied and went to the nearest trash can.

"Where to go?"

"Let's go to the candy store," Harry suggested, and his friends agreed. The shelves were littered with all sorts of things. Chocolate bars, cakes, muffins, gingerbread, lollipops, chewing gum, marmalade and caramel. The kids got all their favorite sweets and came out happy with a few big bags.

"How much time do we have, Hermione?" The girl looked at the magic watch Snape had given her.

"Another twenty minutes."

"Then we need..."

"I want goodies too," Harry heard a hiss from his pocket.

"We need the Magical Menagerie. Kai also wants something tasty, I think we will find something there," the children nodded and headed towards the nondescript building. Potter walked a little ahead, brewing around the corner, he felt a push.

"Oh," he squeaked, rubbing his nose. A tall old man with full bags was also looking at him in surprise, "Excuse me, sir."

"Forgive me, I think I'm thinking," the old man smiled good-naturedly, "I myself have a grandson, a little older than you, but still just as energetic. Are you a Hogwarts student?"

"Yes," the children nodded at the same time.

"My name is Harry."

"I'm Ron."

"And I'm Hermione."

"Amazing, I would never have thought that I would meet Harry Potter himself and his friends. Professor Dumbledore has said a lot about you."

"Do you know Headmaster Dumbledore?"

"Uh-huh, he taught me a lot. I forgot that he is now the director," for a second the old man plunged into education, but then he seemed to be struck by an electric shock, "What an interesting pet you have," Potter looked where the man was pointing.

"Damn," Harry cursed to himself, "Kai, what are you doing?" he whispered as quietly as he could. A small snake emerged from behind his collar and looked at the man with curiosity.

"It seems that your friend is a very curious kid," the old man carefully extended his hand to the reptile and Kai immediately jumped into his open palm, "Where did you find him?"

"My friend found it in the Forbidden Forest. Then Kai followed me and did not want to leave."

"Apparently he really liked you. Really, kid?" Kai began nodding his head and leaning into the old man's touch, "No wonder you're so affectionate. You are a half-breed."

"What does it mean?" Harry asked, watching the man's actions in surprise.

"He was born from an egg, an ordinary snake and Kurori. This is a large white snake that brings good luck. The same noble creature as unicorns. But they are very rare creatures; I have only seen them once or twice. They are simply amazing," a twinkle of admiration burned in the blue eyes of the old man.

"Are you Newt Scamander? A well-known Magizoologist?"

"Heh… Sorry, I got too carried away," the man smiled carelessly, like a child, "Are you going to the Magical Menagerie? To buy food for this kid? Can I do research? I wonder what eating habits he inherited from his parents, what do you think?"

"Um… I think everything will be fine, right?" Harry turned to his friends to gain confidence. They thought for a second and nodded.

"Then let's go quickly," the man seemed to know what he was doing, so the children agreed. The Scamander immediately went to the seller and pointed to several types of food. He even paid for everything himself, despite the protests of the sophomores.

They entered a small deserted alley. Harry pulled Kai out of his pocket, which also seemed flustered and impatient.

"I can't wait to try it." The reptile writhed and wagged its tail.

Rats, he liked it, and bits of pork, chicken, and beef. Also milk, honey and vegetables. He did not like frogs, lizards and insects; he did not even eat them.

"What a mess." Kai shook his scaly head when Newt offered them to him.

"Milk, honey and vegetables, and chicken is Kurori's diet. Rats and the rest, eating habits of common snakes," the Magizoologist muttered as he wrote down his observations in a notebook.

Suddenly, the clock in Hermione's pocket chimed, warning her that there were five minutes left before her meeting with Snape.

"I'm sorry, sir..."

"It's just, Newt, I don't like being spoken to so formally," the man gently interrupted the child. Harry nodded and continued.

"We have to go, Newt."

"Well, if you need anything, contact me through my grandson. His name is Rolf."

"Good!" The trio ran down the street to the potion shops. Potter tucked the sleepy Kai back into his pocket.

"He's not there yet." The children stopped a few meters from the pharmacy, breathing heavily. Opposite was Ollivanders shop.

"Eh..." Ron sighed softly, looking at the display case, "I hope my brother still keeps his promise soon."

"What are you talking about?"

"We went to Ollivanders when I was in my freshman year. There was not enough money, but my brother promised me to buy it when he could save up enough money. Ollivanders put it aside, but..."

"I'm done," a familiar low voice came from behind, the guys turned around. Snape stood in front of them, he assessed the heavy packages and sighed "did you buy everything you wanted?" the children nodded, "then we need to do something else."

The trio looked at each other and followed the teacher. What surprised the sophomores was that they stopped in front of the candy store.

"Draco loves pumpkin pie and Cauldron Cake." The man pushed Ron, Harry and Hermione towards the entrance. The room smelled of cinnamon, vanilla and citrus.

"Severus? It's good to see you," a woman, a little over fifty, greeted the professor with a gentle smile.

"Hello, Alice."

"Who are your young companions? Is this the same..."

"Yes, Alice, this is Harry Potter and his friends. And now I ask you to give me everything as usual with you and..." the potion master looked at the children who stood at the counter, looking at a variety of desserts, "And what these three will ask for. We will eat here."

"Of course," the woman smiled even wider, "What do you prefer?" she turned to the children.

"Molasses pie, please."

"Lemon pie, please."

"A raspberry for me, please."

"How polite and sweet. Well, just angels." Severus snorted and shook his head.

"They only look like that, but in fact they are real devils," Harry, Ron and Hermione lowered their heads in embarrassment.

"Do not say that. Will you do something?"

"Coffee and three teas, lemon, plain black and mint. Right?" The trio nodded haughtily, the professor still remembering what they usually drink. It seemed surreal, but the sophomores loved it, very much so.

They took a table in the far corner and waited for their order. The boys were arguing about different flavors of sweet pies, and Snape, in turn, pulled out a fresh issue of The Practical Potioneer. Occasionally, he would rebuke them when he thought they were getting too noisy. Other petitioners involuntarily smiled. From the outside, one might think that the usual, as far as possible in the world of magic, the family came to have a bite to eat in a cafe, after long shopping trips.

"Your order, bon appetite." Alice came up with a large tray of food and placed the plates in front of the children.

"Thank you," the guys smiled sweetly at the woman.

"You're welcome."

"Don't be in a hurry, Mr. Weasley," the professor chided the boy.

"I'm sorry sir, I'm hungry." The boy blushed slightly, but slowed down.

"You're always hungry," Potter snorted.

"Shut up, Harry," Hermione and Harry chuckled, and Snape just rolled his eyes behind his coffee cup.

Several more magicians entered the cafe, but when they saw the boy who survived, they immediately froze and began to stare at him. The child felt uncomfortable, as if he were some bizarre animal in the zoo. One of them approached the table and was about to say something, but Severus beat him to it.

"Did you want something?" the man raised an eyebrow effectively and coldly looked at the man.

"I... I just wanted to..." the man stuttered. Harry could understand him, Snape was called the horror of the dungeon for a reason, and few people could stand that look.

"Please don't disturb the boy. He is a child, not some kind of attraction," the magician nodded his head convulsively and hurried to retreat.

"Thank you Professor," Potter smiled weakly.

"Eat, Potter." We don't have much time left.

"Harry..."

"Sorry?" The potion master looked at the boy in confusion.

"Just Harry."

"Good..."

"Thanks for everything, Alice." Snape left a handful of coins on the counter.

"You're welcome, Severus," she handed him a paper bag filled with sweets for Draco. "Have a nice day, kids."

"Thank you for everything, Miss Alice." They waved goodbye.

"Ou. It's just Alice, I don't like being treated too formally."

"We've heard that somewhere before," Ron whispered to his friends, and they nodded.

"Then, thanks for everything, Alice!"

They left the cafe. And went to The Leaky Cauldron. They again needed a fireplace to move. They were heading for Malfoy Manor. Harry felt an uncomfortable flutter in his stomach. In fact, he was afraid of this trip. After paying a few coins, the Potions Master led them to the fireplace.

"Say Malfoy Manor. I don't like breaking into a Malfoy's house like this, so we'll skip the one closest to theirs."

The children nodded, they went in the same order. Ron, Harry, Hermione, then Snape. Potter noticed that the third flight through the fireplace was much better than the previous two. True, he almost fell again, so the younger Weasley had to catch him again.

They were in a small magic shop of all sorts of things. Severus didn't give them much time to look around and led them outside. A small magical village was located near Malfoy Manor.

"It's about fifteen minutes' walk from here," Severus told them.

As the older man had said, they reached the huge gate of the Malfoy mansion in fifteen minutes. Harry's insides twisted. I wanted to return to Hogwarts as soon as possible, but it was already too late. Snape rang the bell.