Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling does. I do however, own this story!
Chapter 13
Bonding Weekend Part II
~Previously in Attachments~
Contrary to most belief, the only thing that sustained Sirius, the only thing that kept him going was the knowledge that Lucius had still loved him. The blond Slytherin had loved Sirius even when Sirius had told him the news – the news that separated them before they had graduated, the news that had changed their entire relationship. Sirius played and replayed those happy memories of Lucius and himself as he was kept behind the walls of Azkaban. With all those happy memories, it was able to sustain him, to keep the Dementors away and to keep his sanity from slipping like the prisoners in the cells far far below him.
"I'm sorry." Sirius choked out, tightening his arms around the blonde's figure.
Lucius could only shake his head, not wanting the animagus to go any further. He tentatively maneuvered his arms around Sirius's body before gripping the cloth he wore. This small action, this willing notion proved to Sirius that Lucius still had feelings for him, still cared for him and more importantly, had still loved him all these years.
"I'm sorry." The animagus repeated over and over softly, within the ears of his beloved.
. . . . . . . . . . .
"Harry. Harry!" Draco tried to rouse the sleeping teen from his dreams. Looking down at Harry, who had taken to cuddling with his pillow once he left had left the bed, he really didn't want to wake him up. However, it was morning and breakfast was going to be served soon. Not to mention the fact that the group had much to do – things that they had to do without Dumbledore's knowledge. And, it was pretty difficult to do so when they had a large group that had turned from twenty-four people to twenty-six now.
"Harry, Harry! Wake up little lion." Draco tried once more, giving his boyfriend several pats on the cheek. The teen only wrinkled his nose cutely before burying his face into Draco's pillow.
"If you don't wake up and stop looking so cute, I can't promise that I'll hold back from doing what I'm currently thinking." The blond whispered into the brunet's ear. After a shiver, Harry opened his eyes with a dazed look before turning his head to look up at Draco.
"Morning Draco." He whispered, eyes looking up at the blond all dazed, with a sleepy grin on his face.
Draco groaned trying to refrain from drowning the cute Gryffindor in kisses. Quickly pecking Harry on the lips, Draco got up from the bed before telling Harry that breakfast will be ready in fifteen minutes.
"So hurry up! I doubt everyone will like waiting for us for too long." Draco called out, heading into his walk in closet.
"I'm up. I'm up." Harry replied, he shuffled from the bed and closed the bathroom door behind him. The shower turned on several seconds later, alerting Draco that his boyfriend had begun his day.
Ten minutes later, Harry walked into the room with a towel around his waist. His skin was flushed red from the warm water and steam accumulated with the bathroom. Draco banged his head against the doors to his closet when Harry walked by to pick out his clothes.
"I've laid the clothes out on the bed." The blonde croaked, closing his eyes to prevent the picture of enticement Harry had created.
"Thank you." Harry walked by, turned Draco around to face him and gave him a quick peck before walking away to change.
Have to resist. Must resist. Resist… the… temptation… Draco feverishly thought to himself as he heard Harry's footsteps padding towards the bed.
"What temptation?" Harry asked as he sidled up to Draco, having already changed.
"Nothing." Draco cleared his throat before turning to look at Harry. "We better go then. They must be waiting for us."
"Okay!"
The two walked side by side, with Harry swinging their linked hands back and forth, grinning from ear to ear.
"Finally!" Ron cried exasperatedly.
"Ronald!" Hermione scolded.
"We thought,"
"You would,"
"Never come down." The twins chorused.
"Oh, but we did. So no complaining." Draco replied, leading Harry to his seat, which coincidentally was the one besides Blaise's seat. Draco quickly pulled the chair next to the empty one beside Blaise, but Harry wasn't having any of it and took the seat beside Blaise. Draco frowned at this.
What is your problem with Blaise?
It's nothing. It's just something silly.
Well it can't be silly if the both of you seem to be at each other's throats whenever I'm around.
Sorry.
Apologizing won't save your skin.
Harry turned to look at Blaise. "Good morning." He greeted.
"Good morning Harry." Blaise grinned, before shooting Draco a sly grin.
Draco rolled his eyes before greeting the rest of the family; Harry did the same. Others greeted the couple in return before house elves popped into the dining room.
"Would Masters like to have their breakfast now?"
"Dobby! What are you doing here?" Hermione exclaimed.
"Masters Draco and Harry have bonded Dobby to them! Dobby is being their house elf now!" the house elf squeaked in happiness.
Hermione turned and narrowed her eyes at Harry.
"Hey, don't look at me like that."
The brunette opened her mouth to scold her best friend.
"Hermione, save it. We've set up six conditions for Dobby and Winky's servitude. The first one was that they would be paid. So they aren't doing this for free. Trust me on this. I think we've given them great conditions compared to the other house elves." Draco explained.
"Plus, have you seen his uniform?" Harry added, trying to save face.
Hermione turned back to look at Dobby under scrutiny and sighed. "I suppose this is better or the best that it will get."
"Thank you." Harry replied, heaving out a relieved sigh.
"But that doesn't mean I'll like it." She included.
"Yes, of course." Draco said, rolling his eyes.
"Will the family be having breakfast now sirs?" Dobby repeated.
"Yes, that would be great." Lucius interrupted, eyeing the house elf with distaste. He still wasn't over the fact that his own house elf had used its magic against him back during the end of Harry's second year at Hogwarts. It was an embarrassing moment that he wished had not happen, and one that he did not wish to repeat.
Dobby turned to the elder blond who had interrupted his conversation with his master. He scowled in Lucius's direction before disappearing with a pop.
"I'm guessing Dobby doesn't really like you Mister Malfoy." Neville chuckled.
"No, and I him." Lucius scowled at the empty space which Dobby had occupied just seconds before.
The dining table was soon filled with copious amounts of food. Pancakes, sausages, fruits, dairy, and more littered the table in large amounts. Breakfast was quickly piled upon empty plates and cutlery was put to use.
"So Harry, what are we going to be doing today?" Blaise asked as he cut his sausage into pieces.
"I was thinking we could head to Diagon Alley to get Petunia's and Dudley's materials."
"How do you know they'll even be able to finish all five years in just a couple of weeks?" Pansy asked.
"School starts September 1st. That is only five weeks away." Theo mentioned.
"Ah yes, that is true. However, time is on our side." Harry said.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Goyle asked.
"I don't think we need riddles at a time like this Harry." Crabbe replied.
Harry sighed before looking pointedly at Neville to explain.
"Harry mentioned Hermione swiped,"
"Borrowed! I'm telling you I borrowed them!" The Gryffindor hissed.
"Alright, borrowed." Neville said, air-quoting the word 'borrowed'. "She borrowed some time-turners. So we'll be able to go back in time, that way, we can get as much studying and review done within the next five weeks."
"But isn't time travelling dangerous?" Crystal asked.
"Yes it is. If our past selves happen to come across our present selves, which would be their future selves, who knows what will happen." Hermione clarified.
"So, after we waste the first day away, we'll go back in time. A week per day." Harry said.
"Harry, that can be quite dangerous. Even I don't know what will happen if we spin the time turner further than a couple of hours." Hermione fretted.
"Oh come on Hermione. We've gone back a couple of hours by three turns. I think we can manage a week."
"Granger's actually correct Harry." Blaise said, looking concerned.
"Oh, not you too." Harry frowned. "Are you all against my idea?" Harry turned to look at everyone who returned his frown with weary looks.
"No no. Hear me out Harry." Blaise replied. "If we mess up with the time turner, or it gets broken. What's to say we don't return far past the time we want? Or, we might get into trouble with the past. Time travelling is a tricky situation Harry. It's not something you want to mess around with."
"Blaise is right Harry." Hermione continued. "Even Professor McGonagall told me to keep the time turner a secret. It's already enough I told you about it third year. Now, there are twenty-six of us that knows about the device. And quite frankly, time travelling with such a large group isn't a good idea. We might end up changing the future once we return to the past."
"Do not fret." Luna giggled. "I can be in charge of that."
Egidio turned his head so fast, his neck almost cricked in the process. "But – "
Luna silenced him with a look. Egidio turned back to his meal, silent and frowning.
Harry raised an eyebrow at the strange situation before turning to look at Luna who now had a dreamy look on her face.
"Well, Luna said she would be taking care of it. I think we should trust her." Sirius stated.
That's when Harry and the others realized how close Lucius and Sirius were sitting together, and the blond wasn't even fighting off Sirius's advances at all! No! It looked like he was bashfully enjoying the attention freely given by the animagus!
"Uh, father. Is there something you would like to tell us?" Draco asked tentatively.
Lucius turned to look at Draco, then to Sirius and back to Draco before realizing all attention was towards the trio. The elder blonde looked anxiously at Sirius before Sirius nodded his head.
"I have decided to forgive Sirius for his past actions. We are now colleagues of some sort." He stated. The grin on Sirius's face was wiped clean when the animagus realized the blond had not said what Sirius had thought he would say.
"Lucius, may I speak with you for a moment?" Sirius whispered, standing from his seat. "Please excuse us." He then tugged the blonde from his seat before leading them from the dining room and into the hallway.
"Lucius! What was all that about?" he exclaimed in a whispered tone.
"Do not think that I would forgive you so easily. It is true that I forgive you, but that does not mean we have returned to where we left off. There are so many gap years in between – it would be too quick to jump right in." Lucius merely explained.
"I have never forgotten you. Not a single moment. Not even in Azkaban where the Dementors lived. Did you know? They strayed from me? They strayed from my cell because all I ever had were thoughts about you. I wondered how you'd grown, wondered how you'd change. Of course, there were times where I thought about my godson who was living in Merlin knows where, cared for by Merlin knows who! You were always on my mind, day and night. And I thought yesterday, you understood. Yet, here we are with you proclaiming that we're merely … colleagues?"
"Sirius you must understand. I love you dearly, even when we were over. Even when I was with your cousin, even during our wedding vows I imagined it to be you standing up there beside me, by the Altar. Yet it was inevitable that you wouldn't be there. I had not known that you were sent to Azkaban until a few years after. Even then you were still on my mind. No one will love you more than I, but please," Lucius implored. "Please understand that it will take time for me to be used to our new relationship."
"The strongest emotion besides hate is love." Sirius responded.
"Indeed that is true."
"Very well then. I, Sirius Orion Black, ask that you, Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, will give your permission and accept my wish to court you." Sirius said, bowing from the waist.
Lucius was stunned to say the least. Those had been the exact same words Sirius had said to him when they had first realized they had liked one another. Sirius had courted him for an entire two weeks – sending him gifts, chocolates, anything that Sirius deemed would prove to Lucius how much he wanted to be in a serious relationship with the blonde heir. And now, hearing those words from Sirius's lips opened a floodgate of nostalgia and emotion.
"Of course." Lucius whispered, too happy to even scream out loud – not that a Malfoy would do such a thing anyway.
"I shall abide by the traditional courting rules. Please deem me worthy of you within two weeks time."
"Of course." Lucius repeated, before the two returned to the dining room, bubbling with hidden joy, on Lucius's part anyway.
Draco could see the happiness radiating from both his father and Harry's godfather. He wasn't at all against the idea of his father dating another man. He just wasn't used to it. Then again, seeing his father standing beside his carrier was a bit strange as well, even though the couple had made an imposing picture with their presence.
It seems that they will have a happy ever after. Are you all right with that? Draco thought.
I'm fine. I wouldn't want any other person to be with Sirius. I can already feel the happiness overflowing from them.
Draco nodded his head before looking bewildered at Neville.
"I'm sorry. Could you repeat that again?"
"I was wondering how we would be going about today? I assume Harry had told you something?" Neville repeated.
"Oh no. He hasn't told me anything." Draco confirmed.
"We'll go shopping for Petunia's and Dudley's wand. We'll also go for Tom's school attire as well as Dudley's school attire. I know for certain the both of them will be accepted into Hogwarts as transfer students from Durmstrang."
"How would you even get Karkaroff to write the transfer letters?" Remus asked.
Harry turned to look at Tom who smirked with those blood red eyes.
"I think Tom has a good hand on that." And Tom nodded his head.
"Also, I was thinking for the time spent in the past with the use of the time turners, we'd go to different estates. That way, we won't run into our old selves. We'll time it so we'll know when we leave and when to appear at what time. However, we have to reach the estates before turning back time. After all, we've already been here for a week now."
"How about this." Draco said. "We'll finish up dinner. Have about an hour afterwards to do whatever we wish. Then we meet back up at the foyer, head to the estates and then start the time turner. That way we'll leave around nine in the evening after each week is done."
"I think that's a brilliant idea. Smart schedule to keep." Hermione nodded.
"Then it's settled." Blaise said, clapping his hands.
Everyone nodded their heads in agreement before finishing their breakfast. They had a lot to do.
.
.
.
.
.
"Alright Tom, we'll meet you at Madam Malkin's in about two hours or so, for your wardrobe fitting. You best head off to Durmstrang." Harry ordered.
Although Tom's eyes flashed red in annoyance at the order, he harrumphed before turning to Lucius.
"Come, we shall be having a little chat with Karkaroff."
Luna turned to look at Tesia who nodded her head before sidling up to the two wizards.
"What are you doing?" Tom asked.
"I am to guard you." She merely stated, flipping her ponytail behind her. Tom resisted a growl and instead settled for a frown.
"Just think of where this Durmstrang school is and I shall take you there to this Karkaroff's office without his noticing us." Tesia huffed.
"Fine." Tom grumbled, before he saw white mist appearing below their feet. He thought long and hard before the mist whisked them away towards Durmstrang.
"Now that they've left. We should separate into small groups so it won't be so suspicious." Harry stated. "Now, hurry and pair up."
Blaise and Draco automatically stepped up besides Harry. Dudley followed in suit along with Ron, Severus, Sirius and Egidio. Pansy paired up with Hermione, Crystal, Ginny, Luna, Petunia and Macaire. Remus, Crabbe, Goyle, Theo, Neville, Fred and George paired up together with Alandair.
"I said small groups guys. This does not equate to being small groups." Harry sighed.
"It is best if you had someone who can apparate and a guardian within the group." Severus informed them. "So it does not matter whether or not the group is large or small."
"But Petunia cannot apparate. She's only just gotten Dumbledore's block released. Plus, she did not even go to school to learn magic. She hasn't got a clue." Harry began.
"Do not worry. In dire situations, or any situation, Macaire has my full trust to protect the group." Egidio promised.
"If you say so. Let's split up then." Harry announced.
"No." was the adults' immediate reply.
"Splitting up never works." Remus said.
"Only split up if we are leaving Diagon Alley. Our strength comes from our numbers."
"Fine, but if we get into any duel, I want Petunia and Dudley to be out of harm's way." Harry argued.
"Deal."
"Then let's head to Diagon Alley."
Draco led the group into Malfoy Manor's floo system. When they stopped in front of the fireplace, Petunia and Dudley looked at them confused.
"How are we going to Diagon Alley?" Dudley asked.
"Through here." Harry said, gesturing to the fireplace.
"We're going… to walk through… a fireplace…" Dudley said, looking at them not amused. "Come on. Quit pulling my leg. How are we heading there?"
Petunia only looked on in silence.
"Watch." Draco said. He walked up to the pot sitting atop the stand beside the fireplace. He grasped the pot and walked towards them.
"Demonstration anyone?"
"We'll do it."
"It's best to get some people on the other side just in case." The twins said.
"You just grab a handful of floo powder and said in a loud and clear voice 'Diagon Alley'. Not Diagonally." One of the twins said, turning to look at Harry whom had blushed darkly in embarrassment.
One by one the twins went through the floo shouting, "Diagon Alley" before they were whisked away into the roaring green flames.
"It doesn't hurt." Harry reassured them when Petunia and Dudley looked at the flames in horror. "It's just merely transportation."
"Just don't stumble when you leave the fireplace and don't mess up the destination or else who knows where you'll end up." Sirius said, grinning slyly before flooing away.
Hermione soon went, followed by Ginny, Ron, Crabbe and Goyle. Harry turned to the two of them.
"Would you like to go now? It'll be quick."
Petunia gulped before reaching for a handful of floo powder. She stepped into the fireplace, looked at them all fearfully, closed her eyes tight and shouted, "Diagon Alley!" With a burst of green flames, the witch was whisked away, leaving bare traces of ashes fluttering around.
"She did pretty well for her first try." Harry commented.
Macaire followed their steps and soon he too was whisked away with a huge grin on his face. Draco offered the floo powder to Dudley who swallowed before grabbing a handful.
"Diagon Alley!" he shouted and he too was gone.
Soon everyone flooed through the system and arrived at Diagon Alley's floo network. Everyone had the mind to not cluster in front of the fireplace so no one was truly hurt when others tumbled out after them. Harry almost landed face first but with Draco and Blaise's quick reflexes, they were able to catch him before he could kiss the ground.
"You need to work on your landing." Blaise chuckled before he brushed off the dust littered all over Harry's clothes. Draco sent him a glare, one that demanded to know why Blaise had his hands all over his boyfriend.
"Thanks Blaise. I'll take that advice to heart." Harry said sarcastically.
"Right, so we have about an hour before Tom, Lucius and Tesia meets up with us. Shall we get to shopping?"
With nods of agreements, the group headed to Flourish and Blotts as their first destination for their sixth year books.
When Petunia voiced her concern about not buying their own first through fifth year books, Harry just waved them off saying, "We have those. You can take a look through ours. No use spending more money than necessary."
However, Hermione seemed to disagree with his logic stating, "It is best for each and every one of us to have our own copy." And with a scowl from being scolded, Harry filled four more baskets with two copies each of first through fifth year books. He thrust the baskets towards the three guardians and walked towards the register with his own books.
His anger spiked when the girl at the register gave both Draco and Blaise flirty looks. Though, Harry believed he was feeling angry at the girl because it was Draco he cared about. Oh how wrong he was. When the girl turned to blink flirtatiously at Blaise, Harry snapped at her saying, "You should go rinse out your eyes if there's a problem with them. If there isn't, please ring up these books. I don't want to spend my time wasted on the likes of you."
The girl jumped at the tone before glaring at Harry until she noticed the lightning bolt scar underneath his fringe. Her eyes widened before darting to the rest of the group who seemed to have appeared behind the trio, glaring daggers in her direction. The owner arrived just in time, and apologized profusely for his assistant's behavior before ordering her to help Harry with his books. The counter girl quickly rang up all the books and said hastily, "Three hundred fifty galleons, ten sickles and twenty knuts."
Harry opened his sack of coins and counted three hundred fifty one galleons before placing them loudly onto the counter, putting a feather-light charm and shrinking them to fit into his pocket.
Afterwards they headed over to Amanuensis Quills, where Draco grabbed two quills of each type. Blaise settled for a set of Pheasant quills whilst Harry bought a set of each quill, Pheasant, Eagle and Phoenix. He, however, did not buy Peacock quills because it reminded him of the time where he had to answer fan mail for Lockhart back in second year. Once bought, he handed a fourth of the quills to Dudley and another fourth to Petunia.
At Scribbulus Writing Instruments, Harry bought a year's supply of parchment and ink before distributing them to Dudley and Petunia, leaving some for himself. Then he bought the two a Pewter, Brass, and Copper Cauldron at Potage's Cauldron Shop.
Next at Slug & Jiggers Apothecary, Harry walked in with the group, leaving the Guardians to stand watch outside the store along with Sirius and Remus. Snape joined the group in buying several potions ingredients. The pale and queasy look on Petunia and Dudley's face were enough to send the group into fits of laughter. As if they hadn't seen frog brains or horned slugs before.
Entering Eeylops Owl Emporium, Dudley's eyes widened at the sight of owls perched within cages. There were Barn Owls, Brown Owls, Screech Owls, Snowy Owls and Tawny Owls. Dudley didn't know which to choose; they all seemed to be great. Ron had mentioned he bought an Athene noctua named Pigwidgeon, or Pig for short. Harry told Dudley he had received a Snowy Owl named Hedwig from Hagrid, the half giant groundskeeper of Hogwarts. Hermione stated she hadn't needed an owl since Hogwarts had its own Owlery, and so had bought a Kneazle named Crookshanks instead.
Harry told Dudley that he did not need to choose an owl, that there was nother store that sold pets. But Dudley declined and so he settled for a Tawny owl and named it Iris, while Petunia settled for a Barn Owl and named it Odin. Soon they arrived at Wiseascre's Wizarding Equipment and Harry bought the Evans two of each product.
Finally, the group reached Ollivanders. As usual, it was filled with loud or boisterous noises, instead it was quiet, calming with a bit of a mysterious aura lingering around.
"How may I help you? Ah, Mister Potter. I was wondering when I would see you again."
"Good morning Mr. Ollivander. I would like to purchase a wand for my cousin and my aunt."
"Ah yes, Petunia and Dudley Evans, or should I refer to Dursley as your last names?"
"Evans would be fine." Petunia smiled.
"Very well. I'll be back."
The group watched the shop owner rummaged through shelves before pulling out two thin and long boxes. He blew the dust off the lids before revealing the wands to them.
"Here we are. Eleven inch stiff red oak wood with dragon heartstring for Mister Evans. And a ten and a half inch swishy birch wood with unicorn tail hair for Missus Evans."
They both picked up their assigned wands before a wash of warmth emitted from the wand, through their hands and into their bodies. They didn't notice smiles appearing on their faces until Mr. Ollivander clapped in delight.
"Wonderful, wonderful. Now please remember. The wands choose the wizard or witch – never the other way around."
"How much will it be Mr. Ollivander?"
"Fourteen galleons will do Mr. Potter."
Harry paid for the wands and they left the small shop with a wave to the shop owner.
"Now here's where the fun begins." Harry said, clapping his hands excitedly.
"To –"
"To Quality Quidditch Supplies!" The boys roared before making a dash towards the mentioned store.
Harry laughed and watched as the crowd made way for the boys that rushed by.
"I'll get a wand holster for the both of you so you don't have to keep holding onto your wands."
They rest of the group finally made their way into Quality Quidditch Supplies and laughed when they saw everyone hovering around the latest model.
"Boys, the model hasn't changed yet. It's still the Galaxy 01." Pansy sighed tiredly.
"They say it'll be out soon! But we don't know when." The twins groaned, looking wistfully at the model.
"Actually, I think I could get a couple of them for us before they put it out." Harry stated.
The male teens blinked large wide eyes at Harry.
"I'm sort of investing in the shop remember?" Harry reminded them.
Soon Harry was crowded with pleas of getting them each a new broomstick. Laughing it off, Harry told them he will see what they could do. And he left them to the model to talk to the shop owner.
"Hi, I'd like to speak with Cyprien Derrick."
"This is he. Whom may I ask am I speaking with?"
"Harry, Harry Potter. It's nice to meet you." Harry said, putting a hand out for a handshake.
The owner kept from blubbering like a little fan girl before shaking Harry's hand.
"Hello Mister Potter. What can I help you with?"
"You see, I've invested stocks for this shop under the Honorable Black Family Name, and I was wondering when you can give me an update on the Galaxy 01 model."
Derrick excused himself before walking into the storage room, coming out a few minutes later with several parchment paper in hand.
"I see you've invested fifty thousand galleons in the shop Mister Potter. What would you like to know about the Galaxy 01?"
"I would like to know when it be coming out, the model's manufacturing company, its capabilities, the quality and comfort of the model as well as the charms and features on it."
"Of course. It says here as you can see," he lays out the parchment paper before Harry before continuing, "the Galaxy 01 will be in stores around New Years. The manufacturing company, Ellerby and Spudmore, the one that created your Firebolt, is now testing out the broom. It is made from reed wood with Chestnut and Holly twigs, made specifically on All Hallow's Eve night of the full moon, or what the muggles call Halloween's full moon night. Like the Firebolt, it has an unbreakable braking charm, superb balance and precision, hovers at a reasonable mounting height when the rider lets go, and includes goblin-made ironwood that provides power, stability and a non-slip foot grip. However, though rumors state it's as fast as the Firebolt, it is actually slower than the Firebolt by about fifteen miles, making its speed at least one hundred and thirty five miles per hour. There is a slight cushioning charm included. Because the Galaxy 01 is named after being one of the best for its maximum range in height and not speed, the price is less than the Firebolt's maximum price of twelve hundred galleons. I'd say the Galaxy 01 is around a thousand galleons, give or take a couple galleons."
Harry was not impressed. He'd rather buy everyone a Firebolt than have a Galaxy 01, which seemed to be a knockoff of the Firebolt.
"Thank you for your time." He said, before returning to the group.
"Well Harry? What did the owner say?"
"It's a cheap knockoff from the Firebolt." Harry said deadpanned. "It's practically the same thing as the Firebolt, except it climbs higher and it's fifteen miles slower."
The teenagers wore downfallen expressions when they realized they'd gone gaga over the newest model for no good reason.
"I'll be back in a second." Harry promised them, before returning to the owner.
"Is there anything else I can help you with Mister Potter?" Derrick asked.
"Yes, do you see those boys and girls?" He asked, turning to look at his group of friends.
"Yes, what do you need me to do?"
"I want a Firebolt for each of them as a Christmas present, add an extra one for a boy that isn't here with us today. I want it nicely wrapped, eight wrapped with green and silver bows and wrappings and six wrapped with red and gold bows and wrappings, one wrapped with blue and bronze bows and wrappings respectively and you can choose the appropriate duo colored combination for the last broom for my male cousin. Add extra protection charms on them, the highest protection charms you can find – ones that disable curses aimed. I also want cushioning charms added to them, and these charms and protections had better work or I'm walking away from my investment." Harry said, seriously.
Derrick was quickly nodding and jotting down Harry's order. It would not help his store if the Boy Who Lived had anything bad to say about it, even if it was the only Quidditch Supply store in Diagon Alley.
"It will cost extra for the extra protection charms Mister Potter." Derrick informed him.
"I will pay the price." Harry said.
"Next, I want four sets of Nimbus 2001s, make it ten brooms for each set. Same procedure, but the wrappings must be done in blue and bronze, red and gold, green and silver, and yellow and black - cleanly and nicely. Understood?"
"Yes Mister Potter." Derrick replied, as he scribbled down the last of the order. Oh boy, were the companies going to be happy with such a large order!
"Follow that up with eight sets of Quidditch gear, of the best quality, and two more sets of Quidditch equipment. Include sixteen more Quidditch gear for the sixteen brooms I've decided to send as presents. I don't want anything less than the best. I also want to include sixteen broomstick servicing kits for the Firebolts and two broomstick servicing kits each for the four sets."
"Now, how much will that cost?"
Derrick quickly went to calculate the total before turning to Harry with the receipt.
"Your order is the following: twenty-four thousand galleons for your Firebolts, included with extra protection charms, forty-five thousand three hundred and twenty galleons for forty Nimbus 2001, forty-eight hundred galleons for twenty-four Quidditch gears, same for cost for twenty-four broomstick servicing kits, and four hundred galleons for the Quidditch equipment. Correct?"
Harry nodded to confirm his order.
"Well, the total will be…. seventy-nine thousand three hundred and twenty galleons Mister Potter. Would you like to pay now or put it on your tab?" Derrick asked, showing the cost to the teenager.
"I have a tab?" Harry looked surprised.
"Of course. Putting your purchases on your tab requires your signature to remove the cost directly from your bank in Gringotts. Of course, it would have to be willingly signed by you because the receipt and quill are all spelled for that." Derrick explained.
"I'll do that. I don't want to bother counting out all those galleons." Harry laughed.
"Very well Mister Potter." Derrick took out several parchments and spelled the receipt to attach to them.
"I will sign as the sales manager, you will sign here as the sales person and would your friend agree to sign as a third party witness?" Derrick asked, mentioning the person standing directly behind Harry.
The teen whipped around thinking he was caught, his hand to his chest, above his rapid heart beat, his eyes wide with a tint of fear and surprise before he calmed down.
"Oh, it's you Egidio."
"Yes, do you have to spend this much?" Egidio looked cross.
"Yes I do. You don't understand how much they mean to me now. Besides I think Hogwarts needs new Quidditch equipment and broomsticks. If you saw them back in first year, you'd understand why. That's why I'm donating it to them." Harry smiled.
"I understand, but was there a need to do so for Hogwarts especially? For all the houses? I thought you disliked anything Dumbledore related now."
"Yes, I hate that man very much." Harry hissed. "But, that doesn't mean the school and houses will get punished from my bias against him."
"Very well. I will sign as a third party witness." The guardian said, putting his signature onto the parchment paper. The document glowed a golden yellow before it rolled itself off and was wrapped neatly in a bow.
"I want the Nimbus 2001's, including the eight sets of Quidditch gear, two set of Quidditch equipment and eight sets of broomstick servicing kits sent to Hogwarts no later than September 1st. You have one month."
"Yes, of course."
"And you have until Christmas Eve to send the rest of the order to Malfoy Manor, spelled to not open unless I am the one that opens it."
"Yes, of course."
"Could I write something on a card for the order to Hogwarts?"
"Yes, here's a card for you." Derrick said, already having whipped out one. He knew Harry would do something like this with such a large order.
Harry scribbled something down before handing it over to Derrick. "I want that included with the Hogwarts order. Thank you so much Derrick."
"It was my pleasure Mister Potter."
"Oh, and before I forget." Harry reached into his pouch and whispered to it before he pulled out six hundred and eighty galleons and placing them onto the counter. "This is a tip, for helping me with such a large order and for being truthful about the merchandise. As well as not notifying anyone that my friends and I were not here."
Derrick smiled even wider. "Of course Mister Potter. Have a nice day."
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Harry left Quality Quidditch Supplies with a large smile on his face; he was practically radiating happiness all by himself with that large grin.
"What happened in there Harry?" Draco asked.
"Yeah, you were taking quite a long time." Blaise said.
"Did it have something to do with the shop owner?" Hermione looked at her best friend.
"You did seem to take a long time talking to him." Pansy mentioned.
"Was he flirting with you? Because I saw him grinning!" Ron blabbed.
Draco and Blaise stiffened before clenching their jaws. It was like their anger had taken hold of them and caused them to act in unison.
"No, no. I was just asking him more questions about the Galaxy 01." Harry said, letting the lie slip easily between his lips.
"Oh alright then."
Draco and Blaise were seen relaxing considerably after that comment.
"Now where should we go next?" Crystal asked.
"They need some wizarding clothes." Pansy sniffed. "Those muggle clothing would not fit here."
"I see Twilfitt and Tattings right over there." Goyle pointed.
"We better hurry then. We only have about half an hour left until we head to Madam Malkin's to meet up with Tom and the others." Remus reminded.
"Let's go then!" Harry grabbed Draco's hand and then Blaise's before tugging them along with him to the clothing store.
The group reached the shop in five minutes, through the frequent whispers and gossiping crowd. The chatter still hadn't let up even after the group entered the shop.
"Hello there! How can I help you?"
Two assistants stood by the door while the other two were helping other customers with their tailoring.
"We'd like a set of wizarding robes, clothes and shoes for him." Sirius replied, tugging Dudley into the front of the group.
"Of course! We'll get right to it!" One of them chirped before dragging Dudley further away into the store.
The other one turned back to the group and repeated the question once more.
"My aunt needs to have her own set of wizarding robes, clothes and shoes as well. " Harry added.
"Of course. This way please ma'am." The assistant led Petunia further in, leaving the rest of the group to do as they pleased.
"Don't you think you guys should get some as well? To blend in?" Hermione asked, looking at the guardians.
"It is fine, young one. We change our clothing the same way we change our appearances." Egidio said.
"Though the clothes are actually real unlike the glamour." Macaire stated.
"Then why do you keep dressing like that?" Theo asked.
The guardians looked at one another before ducking behind a column within the store. From the group's left to right, the Guardians' clothes changed into Wizarding robes.
"Is that better now?" Alandair asked, huffing that he had to change into meager humans' clothing.
"That draws less attention now." Pansy exclaimed.
Petunia and Dudley walked back to them five minutes later.
"All done?"
"Yes, magic makes everything a lot quicker. All they had to do was measure us, and they weren't even measuring us themselves." Petunia said in awe.
"They just walked around us hmming and nodding." Dudley added.
"Yeah, they do that." Draco said, as an afterthought.
"Well, at least they have your sizes. It makes choosing clothes a lot easier. They'll just show you clothes that they think would suit you. While they were walking around you, they were looking at your complexion, your build, your height and many more other factors that would contribute to whether or not a color would suit you." Blaise informed them.
Five minutes of waiting around and the assistants came back with clothes pilled up within their arms and in a large bundle floating behind them. The clothes lined up in front of them, one by one, waiting to be chosen or rejected.
Everyone started given their opinions and soon the group left the store ten minutes later with several bags filled with Petunia and Dudley's clothes.
"We have five minutes to make it to Madam Malkin's." Crystal said, as they waited for Harry to shrink the bags and put them into Dudley's pockets.
"How far are we away?" Dudley asked, surprised that the clothes felt weightless.
"About five minutes away. Don't worry about it." Goyle waved his question away.
"More walking, less talking." Severus quipped as he strode through Diagon Alley with his robes billowing widely behind him.
"How does he –"
"No one knows." Theo said, answering Dudley's unanswered question.
They walked and as soon as they opened the door, they saw Tom waiting them, with his arms crossed leaning against the wall. Lucius and Tesia stood next to him, Tesia erect with attention, occasionally skimming the crowd and Lucius, because Malfoys do not lean on walls or slouch their backs.
Tom scoffed once he caught sight of the large group, "Took you long enough."
"We arrived on time." Harry argued.
"You're the only person that would dare argue with him." Blaise commented, shaking his head as the group moved away from the entrance.
"Come on Tom, Dudley, Aunt Petunia. I'll take you guys to get your measurements." Harry said and he left the group with the two trailing new wizard and witch.
"Wait here." He said, leaving them to stand on the pedestal.
"Madam Malkin? Are you there?" Harry called out.
"Yes dear? How may I help you?" The shop owner left the storage room and arrived at the front desk.
"Could you help my friend and my cousin with a set of Hogwarts robes and shoes? My aunt would also like a set of Wizarding dress robes."
"Come, follow me." Madam Malkin headed over to Harry's relatives after he asked for assistance.
"Repeat your order once more Mister Potter."
"Tom and Dudley both need a week's worth of Hogwarts robes, including the cloak, the uniform, self-ironing robes and self-repairing robes. They will also need two sets of Charmed leather gloves and Dragon-hide gloves. My aunt will just need a week's worth of self-ironing robes and self-repairing robes."
"Of course." Madam Malkin got busy with the measurements, shooing Harry away.
"They should be done about ten minutes." The Gryffindor stated, when he joined the rest of his friends.
"If you guys need your robes refitted, you better do it now. I refuse to come back here once more. It'll take too long when we're busy." He warned.
Quickly as if they had been all lit on fire, all the boys left the vicinity, leaving Harry alone. The girls automatically burst out laughing.
"So you haven't grown?" Crystal asked.
"I have! Just not as much as I would have liked." Harry grumbled.
"So, how much did you grow?" Pansy smirked.
"Only two inches." He mumbled.
"It's alright pup." Sirius said, draping his arm over Harry's shoulder. "There's no need to feel inferior. You might be shorter than us in height, but your core is much more powerful than all of ours combined."
Remus cuffed Sirius on the head. "That's not a good way to encourage or make him feel better." The werewolf glared at the animagus before turning to look at Harry. "It's alright cub, we all grow at our own rate. Who knows, you might get taller on your birthday. Remember it's your magical inheritance day."
A smile bloomed on Harry's face. "You're right! I could get taller on my birthday! Thanks Remus!"
The werewolf was enveloped with a hug before Harry was tugged away by Sirius and given a brief, but affectionate pat on the back.
"We're back."
"You're done already?" Ginny looked surprise.
"We're done. We'll wait for fifteen minutes for our clothes to be given to us."
"Where should we go to have lunch then?"
"We have to eat up so we can get started on our training."
"Which estate shall we be heading to first?"
"We'll go to the Malfoy estate in France for the first week. Then we'll go to the Malfoy estate in Florence, Italy for the second week." Lucius said.
"Are we even going to be able to fit five years of school work in just thirty-six days?" Crabbe asked.
"Thirty-six weeks." Harry amended.
"Actually Harry, it's forty weeks and two days." Ginny said.
"Why two days? And why forty weeks?"
"Hello! Harry! Your birthday is on July 31st! We're not going to be training on that day! You have to have a great birthday! So that will be the day we'll be taking a rest."
"August has thirty-one days Harry. That equates to four weeks and three days. We subtract one day to celebrate your birthday, so it's forty weeks and two days." Neville said, having calculated the time frame.
"Won't that mess up my inheritance? I'll be going through the day twice." Harry looked worried, and he should. He heard from others that going through a magical inheritance was painful. He did not want to go through pain twice.
"You can only go through a magical inheritance once." Luna said. "You cannot go through it twice. So don't worry about it."
"Fine, but I don't want my birthday to be celebrated the second time around." Harry frowned.
"Deal." The girls chimed, before smiling.
"Here you are Mister Potter. Your friend's, cousin's and aunt's clothing are done. The rest of your friends' clothes will be done in five minutes. So if you all will follow me to have them checked out." Madam Malkin cut in.
Soon all the clothes were paid for. Petunia and Dudley kept thanking Harry profusely for spending his money on them. Harry waved away their gratitude.
"Don't worry about it. We may not be blood relatives, but you've been there for me when I was a child. This is the least I can do." Harry smiled.
"It's the only thing he will do for you lot." Tom growled.
"Come now Tom. The same could be said for you." Harry smirked.
"My six to their every day for your first eleven years." Tom snapped back.
Petunia and Dudley paled at the memories of treating Harry harshly whenever they had been in the presence of Vernon. Harry frowned at their discoloration before scolding Tom.
"Hey now! I gave you a chance. I gave them a chance. I believe you can do the same. Is that clear? I want a fresh new start. I don't want people I care about to hate each other. That is not going to fly in this family."
Tom turned away before muttering an apology to the Evans.
"Now, let's head to Gringotts to get started on the plan to get rid of Dursley." Tom said, his eyes flashing red with delight.
Harry sighed. "You'll get to do with him whatever you wish and however you want. However, you should not be so impatient. Patience is a virtue."
Tom scoffed before walking towards Gringotts.
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"This is the Durmstrang School you mentioned?" Tesia asked, looking around in wonder.
"Yes, now let's head to Karkaroff's office before he senses our… unwanted presence." Lucius sniffed before walking down the hall.
Tesia continued to look to and fro, waving hello and saying greetings to the portraits as they pass by. "Magic really is a strange thing." She smiled. "Strange, but wonderful – interesting even."
Lucius knocked on the door twice before shuffling was heard.
"Malfoy, what are you doing here?" came a gruff voice.
"I came to inspect your school of course. What else?" was the reply.
"You do not have reign over Durmstrang, only Hogwarts." Igor spat.
"Ah, so I do not. However, someone has wanted to visit you for a long, long time." The silky voice drawled, amusement easily heard.
Lucius stepped back to allow Tom to be seen. Karkaroff's eyes widened in fright.
"M-My Lord." He stuttered, quickly bowing. He stood still as Tom brushed by him to enter his office. Only when the small group had entered did Karkaroff move. He stuck his head out looked from side to side before closing the door behind him. He turned to face the trio, Tom sitting in his seat, Lucius and Tesia standing beside him, who seemed to exude power, darkness and an air of respect.
Lucius waved his wand, casting a silencing charm in the room. Tesia stepped from beside Tom and walked around the room, touching anything and everything, all the while murmuring to herself.
Karkaroff could not keep his eyes off of Tom, even though he knew nothing about the female stranger who wore strange clothing.
"Why have you not come to me Karkaroff?"
"M-My Lord. The Ministry of Magic has kept a watch out for me. They've been monitoring my movements. I was restricted to limitations."
"Oh? Your limitations have been set for the past fifteen years?"
"Yes, My Lord. Please forgive me." Karkaroff quickly bowed once more.
"I think your delusions of having the Ministry breathing down your neck is nothing but just delusions." Tom began, his voice soft.
Tesia snickered from the bookshelf before turning to browse the books. Lucius subtly took a step back, awaiting Tom's great explosion of anger and terror.
"However, two years ago when I had rebirthed into my form, you were not there. Where were you? Where has your loyalty gone?"
"My Lord. I was not aware that you called for us."
"Not aware?"
Karkaroff nodded his head before bowing even lower.
"Not aware?!" Tom shouted, pushing the seat backwards.
Durmstrang's headmaster shrank back in fright.
Tom walked up to Karkaroff before lifting his chin up with a finger and making eye contact.
"I have called for all of my most loyal followers, Igor Karkaroff."
He let the man's head drop back down before circling him like a lion would a prey.
"Lucius was there, Goyle, Crabbe, Parkinson. You claim you were my most loyal follower, yet you were absent in my resurrection. What say you now?" He hissed, almost in parseltongue.
"Please forgive me My Lord. My loyalty only lies with you." Karkaroff whimpered.
Tesia flashed before him before bending down to look into his eyes.
"Scared are we?" she giggled before patting his head.
"Oh I'd love to hear your screams and shouts. I haven't seen any action in such a long time." She whispered with a smile on her face.
Karkaroff's eyes widened even more in fright. Who was this person? How did they appear so fast? And without any sounds?!
"I think you should be focusing on how to get your Dark Lord to forgive you instead of worrying about me young one." She said before standing up and continuing her peruse of the room.
"My Lord, my apologies. Please forgive me."
"Oh no no no Karkaroff. Groveling will not do you any good." Tom laughed. "I should punish you Karkaroff. However, I am feeling in a good mood today. So I shall not."
"Thank you My Lord. Thank you." Karkaroff chanted, kissing the shoes Tom wore.
"Uh, uh uh. I said I wouldn't punish you. I never said my acquaintance cannot. Think of it as a small mercy."
Tesia's eyes flashed a golden yellow before she increased the gravity around Karkaroff, plummeting his body against his marble floor. The marble cracked with each passing second with the added pressure before Igor's body was forced down even more. Tesia released her hold on the Death Eater, and the floor ceased to crack. However, there was an imprint of Karkaroff's body beneath him.
Blood pooled around his body from the marble edges. The wizard groaned before he coughed up a dribble of blood. Wiping it away, he forced his body into a bowing position when he realized this was his only punishment.
"Thank you My Lord. Thank you." He croaked, his throat feeling the urge to cough up more blood.
"Now Karkaroff, before we leave. I need your assistance. I need you to write up two transfer letters to Hogwarts, stating that Dudley Evans and I are to be a part of Hogwarts for the rest of our education. You are to have my name given as Athos Eldrid. We will be entering as sixth years. Understood?"
"Y-Yes My Lord." The wizard choked out around the blood pooling in his mouth.
"I want a letter of acceptance in no less than three days Karkaroff. Get to it."
Tesia walked up to the wizard as he tried to get up from the ground.
"Be still." She commanded before waving her hand all around his body. The blood disappeared from the floor and from within his mouth. The wounds on his body closed up and the marble floor fixed itself.
"Now, I think you have a job to do."
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"How about Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour?"
"You'll be full on ice cream?"
"Dobby and Winky will be setting up tea for us at three." Harry said.
"So we don't have to eat too much." Draco added.
"But we need something that will fill us up. We're supposed to be training soon."
"Fine. How about we head to France and see which restaurants to eat at."
"I quite liked eating at L'Argent Cygne." Harry said, remembering all those mouth-watering dishes.
"Why don't we go somewhere else?" Severus suggested. "And make it quick Harry, we're blocking the road."
"I think they're doing most of the blocking, seeing as how they're stopping WHENEVER THEY SEE ME." Harry shouted, causing the crowd to scurry away. He let out a huff of irritation before Draco and Blaise calmed him down.
"Blaise, can I speak with you?" Harry asked, grabbing the olive-skinned boy's arm before dragging him away, much to Draco's protests.
"Why are you acting all touchy feely with me? You know I'm with Draco."
"I believe comfort comes in most forms." Was the vague answer.
"I'm slightly irritated right now, so I'd appreciate it if you gave me a straight answer instead of beating around the bush."
Harry watched with surprise as a flush darken the Slytherin's cheek.
"I- I actually… I like y-you." The Slytherin said, clearing his throat.
"Harry..? Harry!"
The Gryffindor looked at him with surprise.
"You," Harry licked his lips, "You do know I'm with Draco now don't you?"
"Yes I do. I was planning on asking for your permission to court you when we meet at Hogwarts at the start of semester. However, I did not think Draco would reach you before I did – and a good two months earlier at that." He confessed.
"Draco!" Harry shouted.
The blond rushed towards his boyfriend's side before glaring at Blaise. "What did you do? If you did something –" he threatened.
"No, stop. I only called you over to ask you a couple of questions."
"Which would be?"
"Don't be smart with me. Okay, one. Did you know Blaise had a crush on me?"
"No, I had no clue until this summer."
"And with good reason. The past three years were all about hearing you talk badly about Harry and his friends and the Gryffindors. You did not even think of Harry in a romantic sense until fourth year began. But I knew you couldn't understand why Harry got under your skin like he did. And no, it was not because he brushed off your offer of friendship Draco. When I mentioned his name, you would get all up in my face with a sneer. So I couldn't mention anything about Harry to you."
Harry's face was screwed up in silence and thought.
"Blaise, I like Draco." Draco puffed up at the confession. "But," then the blonde deflated. "I don't know why, but something about you draws me to you. You know what I mean?"
"Yes I feel the same way."
"Then how is it I feel the same way to both you and Draco?" Harry asked, looking confused.
"I don't want to cheat on Draco, but I know I have something for Blaise." He looked at the Slytherins, blinking back tears.
"Why am I so emotional all of a sudden?" He wailed. "I'm acting like such a girl."
"No, Harry you aren't." Draco wrapped Harry in his arms, cooing.
"You're just stressed about everything, first the news about you and Snape, the truth about Dumbledore, now the Dursleys and finally coming up with plans to overtake Hogwarts from underneath Dumbledore's thumb. I'm surprised you've held up so long." Blaise smiled, running his hands through Harry's unruly hair.
"Stop." Draco hissed, "You're going to mess it up even more."
"What should I do?" Harry asked.
"Whatever you want, I'll understand Harry." Blaise said.
Harry turned to look at Draco who nodded his head in agreement.
Harry took a deep breath and closed his eyes, hoping his magic will give him an answer.
He reached deep down to his magical core and released a sliver of magic. He felt his surroundings' magic; there was about three people by the store just several feet away from the trio, people were continuously looking around, but not before stopping for a few seconds to window shop. He directed his magic towards Blaise and Draco and felt them shudder – their magical auras wavered at the magic that draped over them.
Reaching just slightly within their core's area, Harry let his magic do the work. His magic reached out to Blaise's and Draco's core, drawing out a strand of their own magic. He felt them react to one another before coiling together to check compatibility. After a few seconds, the trio felt as if their entire body had exploded with fireworks. All three shuddered before Harry's magic dispersed.
"W-What was that?" Harry whispered, his knees buckling and head feeling as light as a cloud.
"I think your magic accepted both of us as your… um… "
"Your magic reacted with theirs and accepted them as being compatible." Macaire replied, when he felt the magic around the environment change noticeably.
"So, I'd have to date the both of them?"
"You can say that, but you don't have to force yourself to choose." Macaire reassured him.
"Easy for you to say. You don't know how I'm feeling right now." Harry said, blushing when the Slytherins eyed him with a worried look. "It's nothing."
"Draco, I will also accept Blaise as a part of this relationship. Do you have any disagreements?"
"No, I love you very much my little lion. I shall learn to love Blaise too."
"Thank you Harry, but I'm a bit, if not, old fashioned. So I would like to ask your permission to allow me to court you."
Harry nodded his head with a smile. "Alright. I accept Blaise."
"I shall do the same. My father would be most displeased that I had not followed tradition at all. Harry, would you allow me to court you?"
"Yes, I accept Draco."
Draco moved away after he said those words.
"What's wrong?"
"We're not allowed to touch you during these two weeks of courting." Blaise informed him.
"What?" Harry cried out aghast. "No touching?"
"No touching, kissing or anything of intimate gestures." Draco said. "We are however, allowed to send you presents to show you that we have stability for the relationship."
"It's a bit like courting before the male asks for the female's hand in marriage." Blaise said. "Except, it's not that serious for us when it comes down to dating."
Harry nodded his head before frowning, "No kissing for two weeks."
The boys laughed. "Is that what you're upset about?"
"Of course!" Harry cried out indignantly. "Wouldn't you miss being with me for the next two weeks? And with our plans, will that end up as fourteen weeks of no touching?!"
"No Harry. Just two weeks, meaning the two days we'll be using the time turners to go back in time. So those count as well."
"Fine. Let's get back to the others for lunch then. I think we've have them waiting too long already."
"Agreed." The Slytherins chorused.
"I suggest we go for Olýmpou, I hear the food's quite good there." Remus smiled.
"Any objections?" No one voiced their disapproval.
"Well alright then. Where is Olýmpou?"
"Hah, we actually walked by it on the way to L'Argent Cygne." Remus chuckled.
"Oh, is that the restaurant with the Greek architecture?" Lucius asked.
"Yes, that's the one. The food is almost as well cooked as the food in L'Argent Cygne, so I don't think there will be a problem with ordering. The staff can communicate in any language, so it will be easier for the children to order for themselves. However, they are also very famous, very big on celebrities and is a five star restaurant. So, it might be a bit difficult to have a table for such a large group." Remus winced.
"We'll see. If they don't allow us in, we'll go somewhere else."
The group headed over into an alleyway before dissipating away and into the streets of France.
"There. Right there." Remus said, pointing out the restaurant.
Olýmpou 's exterior design was that of a Greek temple. In the center of the pyramid shaped roof was the sign Ολύμπου. Large white columns held the roof high up above all other buildings. Instead of large open spaces between the columns there were, between the columns, glass walls, which allowed people to look in and diners to look out.
The group walked up to the entrance before standing in front of the maître d'.
"May I help you?"
"Hi, I was wondering if you have three to four large tables available today." Lucius spoke up.
"I'm sorry, but here at Olýmpou, you need to reserve six months in advance to be able to dine here."
"Oh alright. I suppose I'll be taking Harry Potter away to dine at L'Argent Cygne. He did mention he preferred it before I gave the option to dine at Olýmpou." Lucius stated, inwardly smirking when the maître d's eyes widened in surprise.
"Come Harry, let's leave this establishment."
"Yes Lucius!"
The maître d' turned and spotted the lightning bolt scar when the Gryffindor turned to exit the restaurant.
"Wait, Monsieur Malfoy. Perhaps I can squeeze you and your group in on the second floor, where the VIP and celebrities are allowed. After all, not many celebrities fill the second or third floor during midday. I'll check for you. Please wait a moment." And the maître d' rushed off.
"Very Slytherin of you." Harry laughed.
"Of course. Did you not remember that I come from a long line of Slytherins?"
"But did you have to use my name? Wouldn't yours suffice?"
"Yes. It is true the Malfoy name is French. However, the name Harry Potter will always live on in history."
"Malfoy's right mate." Fred said, ruffling Harry's hair.
"When it comes down to choosing between the two of you –"
"People will always choose you. No offense Mister Malfoy." George said.
"Think nothing of it. I should get used to having the famous Boy Who Live as an acquaintance now, and perhaps even more?" he said, looking towards his son whom had blushed under his gaze.
"Monsieur Malfoy. The second floor is open for you and your group. I hope you and Mister Potter will have a great dining experience. Ariadnê," he motioned for the hostess to come over. "Please take our guests to the second floor."
The hostess wore a tight, form fitting deep ocean blue, plunged v-neck dress with a black vest over it, though it hardly covered her assets at all. Her outfit included a pair of three inch sapphire heels, a small diamond necklace, pearl earrings and a silver bracelet. Although she wore light make up, her lipstick was the only thing that seemed to be glaring red at them. Her teal eyes had widened before glistening in what seemed to be excitement when she heard she was to be taking the group to the second floor.
"Please, come this way." She purred before sashaying up to the second floor.
The group already had a bad feeling about her once they'd seen that gleam in her eyes, but they reluctantly followed her up the stairs rather than calling for another hostess to escort them there.
"Here are you tables and here are the menus. Can I suggest something light to start off your meal?" She smiled, hands brushing up against Blaise's when she withdrew them from placing the menus on the table. Harry shot a glare in her direction, which had not gone unseen by his table mates.
"I think we'll have your Hummus III served with both the pita and fresh vegetables. Please follow it up with Spanakopita II, some Garlic Feta Dip and your Chef's special Stuffed Grape Leaves." Blaise said, subtly moving away from her as she got closer to him.
"Anything you would like to drink?" she purred.
"Please give us some Mint and Chamomile Tea?" Draco said, interrupting her 'moment' with his best friend.
The hostess turned to glare at him but her eyes widened when she met the gaze of the pale Adonis.
"Of course dear. Might I recommend the Citrus Sangria? Non-alcoholic of course. Personally it's my favorite." She smiled as she walked over to Draco, leaning over to point at the drink listed on the menu.
Draco deftly turned his head in the opposite direction, catching Blaise's slightly relieved, slightly amused look and Harry's glare of death.
"No, just what I ordered please."
She grimaced before fixing it over with a smile. "Of course. Your order will be here shortly."
"I hate that woman." Harry growled, as soon as she left the vicinity.
"Did you know there's a bar here?" Ron blurted, trying to deter Harry's angry rant.
"You will not have anything alcoholic on my account." Remus's voice drifted over from four seats down the table.
"Yes Remus." Ron replied.
A few minutes later, the hostess returned with several servers and waited for the servers to serve everyone before she grabbed the remaining two dishes and placed them in front of Blaise and Draco herself.
"Enjoy." She said, "subtly" running her hand over Draco's.
Draco quickly snatched his hand away before rubbing it along the tablecloth once she walked away.
"Merlin, she gives me the shivers."
"Let me disinfect it for you." Harry said, reaching over.
"You can't Harry, not for two weeks." Draco said, wishing he hadn't asked to formally court his boyfriend. Yet, he did not want to go against tradition and have his father find out he had not dutifully courted his boyfriend.
"Why not for two weeks?" Pansy asked.
"Blaise and I have Harry's approval to court him for the next two weeks." Draco informed them.
Coughing was heard from the tables beside them.
"Formally court?" Hermione squeaked from the third seat to their right.
"Both Blaise and Draco?" Theo questioned from the second seat to their left.
Sirius moved in what seem to be a disapproval gesture, but Remus held him down and hurriedly whispered into his ear. His actions drew jealousy from Lucius, but Sirius sent a smile to the blond which the blond seemed to approve.
"If Harry wants to date them both, then they have my permission. All we can do is be there to support him." Remus said, frowning at his friend's immediate reaction to hearing those words from Draco's lips.
"At least they're formally courting him." Sirius said, trying to be optimistic.
"Yes, I heard it all." Macaire replied. "Harry had his magic check for compatibility and they both passed! So they were able to ask for his permission to court him."
Sirius settled down even more. If his godson's magic accepted the two Slytherins, who was he to say he could not date both boys?
Dudley turned to look at his mother. "Is homosexuality a norm for the Wizarding World?"
Petunia shrugged her shoulders before Severus cut in to answer. "It is, however it is not widely shown in public. Mostly because purebloods want their line to have an heir."
Dudley nodded with the information before turning to look at Neville who had nervously looked around all over when they had breached the topic of 'dating' and 'courting'.
"Are you shy Neville?" he teased. "Never had a crush before have you?"
"Shut it you." Neville glared, pink cheeks flushing. "And I have had a crush before. I was just too nervous to do anything about it. Now, I don't have anyone I fancy, so you shut it."
Dudley grinned in amusement. Maybe getting to know Neville would be interesting.
"What would you like to order as your main dish?" Ariadnê asked, as she stood directly behind Harry, completely ignoring the fact that the teen was glaring daggers at her and wishing to damage that fake nose of hers.
"We'd like to have the Greek Chicken Pasta, Spinach and Feta Pita Bake, Greek Penne and Chicken, the Moussaka, and Grecian Pork Tenderloin." Draco began.
"Include the Greek Style Garlic Chicken Breast, Grilled Salmon with Avocado Dip, Garithes Yiouvetsi, Spinach Casserole, and the Greek Couscous." Blaise continued.
"Please add steamed mussels with fennel, tomatoes, ouzo, and cream, Souvlaki, Greek Orzo Salad, and your Greek Pasta Salad." Harry quickly finished, shoving the menus at the hostess.
Ariadnê looked affronted at the action before holding her anger in and walking away with a brief nod.
"I think you've upset her." Ginny giggled, Luna soon joining in when her eyes had returned to normal from their swirling, misty white.
"Harry, have you noticed the interior design of this restaurant?" Hermione gushed.
Of course the only thing Hermione would find most interesting is books, information and the like. But, once looking around, Harry could see what had captured Hermione's interest.
In the middle of the floor was a large fountain with a female statue sitting on the ground holding a large vase as water poured from it. Above her were baby statues with wings holding their own vases, yet water did not pour from those. Aside from the female statue, a statue of an oak tree where several spouts of water poured into the air, raining down on the fountain to create mini waterfalls.
The walls were lined with plants, and hanging plant pots filled with trailing vines. The windows hung thin silky drapes that fluttered whenever the wind blew. In the corner, the group could tell, was an open space for live musical entertainment. A harp, grand piano was set up. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling and wind chimes hung on the doorways leading to the second floor balcony.
Overall, the interior design was impressive.
"Look Harry. Do you see those symbols lining the walls?"
Looking around, Harry finally noticed what Hermione talked about. There was a lightning bolt, a triton, a skull, a pair of wings, and many more symbols. On the opposite side of the wall were animal symbols engraved.
"Do you know what they stand for?" Hermione asked.
"No."
Hermione looked at him with a scandalized expression. "That symbolizes Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hermes, Hera, Aphrodite…."
Harry zoned out when Hermione began to list out all the names of the Greek Gods and Goddesses and what they symbolized.
"Honestly Harry, pay attention." She said, snapping her fingers loudly in his direction.
"They're really into the whole Greek theme huh?"
Hermione looked at Harry. "You've seen such an amazing place yet that's the only comment you can think of?"
"Well, if it wasn't for that hostess, I'd have a better appreciation of this place. Besides, isn't a hostess supposed to show the guests to their tables and then leaving?"
"Yes, they are." Crabbe grumbled when he caught sight of Ariadnê returning, followed by their servers.
Once the food was placed in front of them, the servers left, only one remained however and he had to stand there in order to refill their drinks.
"Could you refill my tea?" Draco asked, motioning for the server to come. Harry had turned too to hand the server his tea cup so the man didn't have to lean over their seats to pour their drinks.
"I'll do it!" The hostess gushed, excited to be able to do something for the pale and blonde Adonis figure.
In her hurry to serve Draco, she pushed the other teapot over, spilling its contents. Harry gasped before instinctively blocking his face with his hands from the scalding liquid. A collective gasp was heard before laughing ensued.
Instead of Harry being burned from the hot tea, his magic had somehow deflected the contents and had it pouring towards Ariadnê. The hostess shrieked before dashing off in tears to change her outfit.
The server was muttering apologies here and there and was still even when the maître d' showed up from all the commotion.
"What is going on here?" he asked angrily, looking sternly at the server.
"It wasn't his fault!" Harry defended. "The hostess almost poured hot tea all over me, but my magic had it deflected back to her."
"My apologies Mister Potter. I will have a talk with Ariadnê, this I promise you."
"Aren't hostesses or hosts supposed to leave their guests and not hover around shamelessly flirting with their customers' lovers?" Draco and Blaise glared to emphasis the annoyance they felt. Since they had to act like proper purebloods in front of the woman, now they decided to become the proper purebloods they were when they were dissatisfied with an establishment's services.
"Yes, I am so very sorry about this. I will have her removed from the premises if you wish. This meal shall be free of cost. I am so very sorry Monsieur's and Mademoiselles."
"I don't take kindly to having others flirt with my lovers. However, we will be paying for the meal, since there was no harm done." Harry announced.
"Thank you very much for your kind words sir. I will personally be speaking with Ariadnê and I will have her fired. Such behavior from a staff member at a five star restaurant is deplorable." The maître d' promised.
"Very well. You are dismissed. We'll call for you if we need some assistance." Lucius said, ending the conversation.
They watched as the servers and maître d' left the floor before bursting into conversation.
"Lovers Harry?"
"I didn't know you had it in you!"
"You handled it splendidly Harry. The both of you too Draco, and Blaise."
"Why did it seem like we were just there as an afterthought?" Blaise whispered behind Harry's back.
"I think it's because we were." Draco whispered in return.
The group settled into their meal, finished, received the check, paid for it and left the building.
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"Come now, we must return home and start packing for a week's worth of clothing and necessities. I doubt you would like to stay in the same clothes for a week." Lucius stated before they all dissipated to Malfoy Manor.
"Tea's at three! So meet in the sun room!" Harry called after them before heading towards Draco's bedroom with the blonde.
In about an hour, everyone had had their things packed and ready to go. They sat in the sun room sipping tea and talking over what the plan would be.
They would be blocking all floo network access. No one would be able to enter or leave the manor, so it was literally boot camp all the way through. They would spend the entire time brushing up on all the years' workload before moving on. However they all agreed that if they were able to finish through all five years earlier than the allotted time, they would get a head start on the sixth year workload. And it should be easy considering they have several people who had already gone through the work when they were students.
"Doesn't how many times you turn the time turner corresponding with every hour?" Neville suddenly asked.
"Yes, it does." Hermione reply.
"You want us to turn the time turner a hundred and sixty eight times?" Crabbe said, unable to comprehend how they'll be able to keep count.
"Do not worry. Just turn it three times and I will do the rest." Luna calmed the group.
After planning for several more hours, dinner was served and soon everyone was running around making sure they had everything they could even need.
"Is everyone ready?" Lucius asked.
"Yes." they chorused.
"Very well. Let's head over to the manor then. Time's a wasting."
One by one, dragging their luggage into the fireplace, they shouted, "Malfoy Manor, France!" before whisked away into the green flames.
Once everyone had arrived, Hermione distributed the time turners. "Four people per time turner everyone, just throw the chain around your necks and keep a hold of your belongings."
"Egidio, Alandair, Macaire, Tesia. Formations please." Luna chirped before standing outside of the group without a time turner on her.
"Luna, you should get in here." Harry reminded.
"Oh no Harry. Remember? I promised I would make sure we'd all get through time safe and sound. Don't worry. They're here to protect us remember?" she said, motioning towards the guardians whom had form the rest of the pentagon around the group.
Harry bit his lips, worried but he knew if what Luna was true, he would believe her. There was no doubt in his mind that Luna wasn't lying and so he nodded his head and threw the chain around himself.
"One minute until ten." Hermione announced.
Luna looked at the guardians who nodded their affirmation to begin the process. In unison, the five spread their arms out, took a deep breath and began chanting quickly.
The group of witches and wizards were only able to catch a couple of words from their chants."
"Prostatév̱o̱ … pollaplásios chromos … evdomáda… asfalí̱s … omáda … mageía … frourá … dýnami̱ … gnó̱si̱ …"
Hermione ordered them give the time turner three turns once the clock had struck ten in the evening, before watching the past speed before them. But because there was no one that lived in the Malfoy Manor in France, all they saw the rise and setting of the sun seven times and the moon eight times before everything stopped.
Removing the chains, Hermione quickly checked the date before confirming that they had indeed gone back in time, a week back.
"Now, I've included an extra eight hours." Luna replied, as Egidio walked over to keep her steady on her feet. "You had best use this time to settle down and rest for the night because tomorrow is when we start working hard."
She nodded for Egidio to take her to her room and the rest of the guardians followed behind, Alandair bringing up the rear with the rest of Luna's baggage.
"Luna's right." Ginny said, "I'll see you all tomorrow morning."
Silence ensued before everyone dispersed to find their own rooms.
Tomorrow would be a long day.
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: Thank you for your comment! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.
lovingsiri: Thank you for your continual responses and support! It means a lot to me.
Kigen Dawn: Haha! I hope others felt the same way you did. It's very sweet of you to feel what you did, with my writing being the cause of your emotions. I actually took a long time to think of how to get those two together. But, I'm glad I wrote it out like that. I think I'll be including details of what happened to them, but more gradually within the next few chapters of course! Keep reading! Enjoy!
Magic Freak: Thank you so much! I hope you keep reading (:
AnnaKuznetsova01: Thank you! I hope you liked my Thanksgiving special! :D Even though the chapter had nothing to do with Thanksgiving! Haha.
Hey all! First off, Happy Thanksgiving! Hope you're with your friends and family, safely at home. I'd like to give thanks to everyone who's been reading my story and has kept me writing for such a long time. Thank you all very much! I would also like to give thanks to my family and friends; of course I'll be doing that tonight for dinner. Hahaha!
Anyway, wow, I almost freaked when I thought I wasn't going to be able to upload Chapter 12 two days ago. I was actually going to have it uploaded Monday morning, but the site wouldn't render correctly, and so I had to upload it the next day! I hope you guys enjoy the Thanksgiving special! It took me only two days to write this chapter! You can say I was on a roll! Or not. Whichever it is! :D I'm just glad I finished writing about their 'Bonding Weekend'. Took too long to finish writing about two days, but hey! A lot of things happened, so I'm glad I'm done with it.
So, I was thinking I might speed through their training process because writing about their entire studying regime would be too much of a hassle, and might confuse you guys, unless you guys could keep up, But I'll make sure to include some details whenever I mention it in the next chapter!
So please review, comment, whatever you want! :D Don't be shy, I hope you guys enjoyed it!