Ch3 Life with Flamel's
Life in France was good, excellent, and fantastic. Harry did not have many words to describe it. When Professor Dumbledore told him about the change in guardianship, he could not help to be worried a little. But Dumbledore was not going to change his mind.
He was also told not to tell about this to his friends. Flamels valued their privacy and this was one of their conditions to take in Harry. After journey to King's Cross Station from Hogwarts Harry took a cab to London. And after promise to write and keeping touch friends departed. Perenelle Flamel picked him from Charing Cross Road right outside the Leaky Cauldron.
Perenelle Flamel was beautiful woman, tall with long blonde hairs. When Harry first saw her she was waiting outside Leaky Cauldron wearing a red dress, a muggle dress he might add which would fit nicely in aunt Petunia's fashion magazine and a brown overcoat. Like most magical he ever met this was a person that would not stand out in non-magical world.
After they greeted each other Perenelle told him that they were going to France by portkey and produced a handkerchief from her pocket and told him to hold the garment tight and never let go under any circumstances. That was Harry's first portkey experience. As soon as Harry held the portkey it was activated and he found himself spinning faster and faster. After spinning for couple of minutes he was deposited unceremoniously on the ground.
Harry found himself in front of a two storied beach house painted in white. Behind him was beach and sea. House was painted in white with brown wooden fence and a garden. There was a vegetable patch at one side of the garden and other side had wooden seats and table with an umbrella and Harry found himself inhaling beautiful evening air.
"Come on young man. Let me show your room."
He heard Perenelle and followed her inside the house.
-XXX-
"Again."
Came sharp voice of Perenelle Flamel and with that three stinging charms on his way. He once again raised the shield charm, this time almost with instinct.
"Well look at that. It was done almost instinctively.", said Perenelle Flamel.
"I still don't get why I have to do this."
They were doing shielding practice according to Perenelle and according to Harry it was target practice, target being Harry.
"We are doing this because of you, élève. Albus has told me what kind of situation you have gotten yourself over the years in your school. Now I would like nothing better than to break you out of that habit but I know how you young people think. So I am settling to make you skilled enough that you will survive these kind of situations. I would also like to know what were you thinking when you decided to enter the lair of the basilisk."
"Any how that will be enough for today. Go get changed and meet me in the library for your French lessons."
-XXX-
After living with Flamels for nearly two weeks Harry could not make anything out of them, they certainly were not how he imagined the immortal couple.
When Perenelle found out two days later when he arrived France to live with them that he did not have any other clothes that Dudley's cast offs and the school clothes, she frowned and then the next day Harry found himself in the Paris shopping for clothes with Perenell as she told him to address her in the non magical section of the city. But after trying the tenth shirt with pink flowers he decided that enough was enough and he told her in polite words that he was not going to wear the shirts she was picking up for him.
"It's about time you stood up for yourself." Perenelle replied and patted him on his head and moved towards the pant's section. When Harry looked to the shopping basket to remove those hideous shirts he found shirts with colors like white, blue, black with checkered patterns and some plains without any designs.
The one thing he learned that shopping with Perenelle Flamel was exhausting and she liked her food very much. They spent whole day shopping, they had their breakfast in a small café in the Paris, lunch at a restaurant in the heart of the city and had dinner at Huitrerie Regis. There were also some small stops where Perenelle introduced him to what was becoming his favorite city in the world.
After shopping for clothes that would last him for another century they returned to Flamel beach house that he was quickly considering as his home. His only consolation was that the clothes Perenelle had bought for herself ware at least twice the amount she got him. She also refused to accept the money for the clothes. Must be very nice to create your own gold he concluded.
"I am your guardian now child so I will buy you the clothes that I think necessary for a young man for like yourself."
Harry went to sleep feeling good about himself. The next day torture started.
-XXX-
The Etiquette lessons, how to dress, how to dance, how to insult without sounding insulting & how to look and act like a refined socialite in the morning. The afternoons were dedicated to magic, revising what he learned in last two years at the school and what he failed to learn at the school and calligraphy lessons. And then three day of the week he learned how to defend himself with magic. He learned lots of things during these lessons and found how ignorant he is about the world his parents belonged to, the world he belonged to.
The history of the magical world was rich, the real history of the magical world, not the his tory Binns taught at the Hogwarts. It is important to know certain things. For example, wands, why they were necessary, what was the importance of them and so many other things. Harry was mad at himself that he let Hermione and Ron to dictate how he thought. There were many things that were probably never written down and were common knowledge and Ron himself was ignorant about many things because Mr. & Mrs. Weasley never told their son about them.
What was more fun than to learn history from the person who saw the events occurring! Then there were language lessons where he was learning French and German.
His interaction with Nicolas Flamel was quite limited during first two weeks. His first meeting with legendary alchemist was two days later after he arrived at Flamel house or "Maison Blanche" as they called it in French. After the shopping Perenelle was excited to show her husband the new clothes she bought. The first thing he thought when he saw Nicolas Flamal was he looked absent minded like he was physically with them but mentally whatever work he was doing before his wife forced him out of his study which was conveniently located in the basement.
Nicolas Flamel was man of average height, slender body, brown hairs and brown eyes. At first there was nothing remarkable about him that would connect him to immortality. He looked in his late thirties but his eyes showed that under this persona there was one of the most powerful man on the planet. The eyes shined knowledge & wisdom that comes after you have lived a very long life, have seen things that no one had seen.
The Nicolas Flamel was not six hundred and sixty five years old, he was much older. He had lived around eight centuries. The book that Hermione found her information was published in 1844 and was never updated.
When he looked at Harry, he was surprised, "You are here already."
"When did he arrive?" This question was directed at Perenelle.
To which she replied," He arrived two day ago. You would have noticed that if you had joined us for meals instead of holing yourself in your lab. What is it you are working on that is so important that you can not even meet your guest? You were in there for five days"
"If your must know, I am very close to isolate the magical component in the dragons blood that makes them physically durable. This is very exciting, soon there will be no need for armor made from dragon skin. Hello, young man how are you?"
"I am fine Mr. Flamel. Thank you very much for letting me stay here."
"You don't need to thank me. Beside we are your guardians now. I know Perenelle has already told you to call us Nicolas and Perenelle."
Turing to Perenelle he said, "I suppose I can take a break. Research can wait until tomorrow morning."
"Tell me something about yourself, young man."
-XXX-