Title: I Devise My Own Demise
Author: Kyra aka Demon-childe619
Disclaimer: I own nothing, so please don't sue! The song used in chapter 1 is 'I Devise My Own Demise' by Papa Roach.
Summary: Harry's tired of everyone expecting him and him alone to save the world, or die trying.
Spoilers: Through Book 5, takes place the following summer.
Warnings: Slight slash, nothing hardcore though, mostly just hints of it for now.
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Chapter 5: Shopping In Diagon
Remus and Tonks caught up to the three teens outside of Gringotts. All five of them entered the bank, talking about how much they would need to withdraw to cover their shopping. "Well, we need enough for your school supplies, as well as Ron and Hermione's and however much you want for shopping in Muggle London," Remus stated as the made their way to the counter and an available goblin.
Ginny looked down a bit, her now blonde hair falling to curtain her face, "I'll just get enough for me an Ron's school stuff and window shop in London," She said.
"You know," Draco started, "It's actually a really good thing my father's in Azkaban, otherwise I probably wouldn't be able to access my vaults anymore."
Harry looked at Draco curiously, "How do you know your mother hasn't had you banned from using the vault?" He asked.
"Because, Ha- Hunter, my mother never wanted me to be a Death Eater. I highly doubt she'd block me from the vaults for refusing to join." The currently brunette boy explained.
Harry nodded but didn't reply as they had reached the counter. Remus quickly stepped up and spoke to the goblin. "We need to make a few withdraws. Each from different vaults." He said.
The goblin looked at the group of them closely. "Alright, Sir, do you have the keys? Also, what would you like for me to refer to you as? I'm assuming that since all of you, except for the elder miss, are wearing glamours that you don't want anyone to realize who you are?" The goblin questioned, though it was more of a statement.
"Uh, yes, you would be correct in that assumption. Please, just call me Ash. And this is Hunter and his younger sister Taryn," He said gesturing to Harry and Ginny, "And Apollo and his older sister Artemis." He motioned to Draco and Tonks.
The goblin nodded, "Of course, Mr. Ash. Now, the keys?"
Remus reached into his pocket and pulled out three keys, "These are the keys for my own vault, Taryn's vault and for that of Hermione Granger."
Tonks stepped up and handed the goblin her key, "Most of what I withdraw will be exchanged for Muggle currency, though." She told the goblin who nodded his understanding.
"That won't be a problem, Miss Artemis." He stated.
Draco handed over his key, "I'm assuming that I still have access to my vaults?" He questioned.
"Yes, sir. In fact your mother has set up a separate vault for your use as well. Though she has stated that you are to you the family vaults unless you are unable to get access."
Draco nodded and looked to Harry, waiting for him to hand over his key.
The currently blonde boy looked at Remus curiously, "Re- Ash, I don't have my key. The headmaster had it before I started at Hogwarts, Hagrid had it my first year, and I'm assuming that Mrs. Weasley has had it every year since then as she's the one who's bought my things for me nearly every year. I've never been given my key. Hell, I don't think I've ever even touched the damn thing!" He said.
Tonks stared at Harry for a moment, "Nobody's ever given you your key? Any of your keys?" She asked, shocked.
Harry looked even more confused, "What do you mean 'any' of my keys? There's only just the one, isn't there?" He asked, looking back and forth between Remus, Tonks and the Goblin.
The goblin's eyes widen. "You can't be serious, Mr. Po- er, Hunter. Your parents left you quite a bit of gold. Your family is one of the richest in our world. You have multiple vaults, of that I can assure you, especially when you take into consideration what was left to you by your Godfather." He stated.
"What? I thought I only had one! Nobody's ever told me that I had more than one." Harry stated.
"Right then, one moment please." The goblin said before disappearing behind the counter and down a hall. A few moments later he returned, another goblin following him. The first goblin gestured to the second, "This is Ragnok, he is a Gringotts manager. Ragnok, the young Master here," He gestured to Harry, "Was under the impression that he has only one vault and has never been in possession of the key to the vault he was aware of."
Ragnok looked Harry over, his gaze pausing on the scar he could see through the glamour. "Really? Well, now, that is unacceptable. We have a couple of options for what we can do. First, we can head back to my office and I can have someone bring me your account records and we can go over them. Or I can get you keys to each of your vaults and we can sit down at a later time. Which would you like to do?" He asked.
Harry thought for a moment before looking at Ragnok curiously. "If the Headmaster had a key to the vault I've been using, then he probably has a key to the others, right?" He asked. At Ragnok's nod he continued, "Would it be possible then, for me to have the locks on all of my vaults changed and get a set of the new keys for myself so that I will be the only person with access to them? I would like to go over my account at some point, just not today; we have quite a bit of shopping planned."
Ragnok nodded. "Of course, young Master. We can have that done at once. If you and your companions would like to go ahead and make your withdraws and exchange whatever you need to, we should have your new keys for you by the time you are done. If that is okay?"
Harry glanced at the others before replying, "Yes, that sounds good. When should I come back to go over my account?"
"If you are available, I can schedule a meeting with you for 11 a.m. a week from today. That would give us enough time to get all of your records together and in order. Does that work for you?"
Harry shrugged, "That should be fine. I will be sure to be here."
"Alright. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day and your keys will be waiting for you when you are done with your business." Ragnok nodded to Harry and then once to the others as a group and headed back the way he came.
"If you'll follow me." The first goblin said as it lead them off to the rail carts that lead to the vaults.
Six stops and thirty minutes later the group staggered back into the main room of the bank and back to the counter to pick up Harry's keys and exchange some of their money for Muggle currency.
"Alright, here are your keys, Mr. Hunter. And how much would all of you like to convert to Muggle currency?" The goblin asked, handing Harry a ring of keys with nearly twenty keys on it.
Draco's eyes widened at the sight, "Great Merlin, Hunter! There must be nearly twenty keys on there! My family only has maybe half that many vaults!" The blonde-turned-brunette exclaimed.
"I believe that the reason there are so many is that those are the keys to not only his family's vaults but to the ones that were left to him by his Godfather," Remus said, looking at the goblin for confirmation.
"That is correct. Now, how much of this do you want converted?" The goblin asked.
Tonks quickly spoke up, "I want all but ten galleons converted."
"About twenty galleons for me," Remus said, handing over his pouch of money.
"None for me," Ginny said, once again letting her temporarily blonde hair curtain her face.
Draco shrugged, "About 100 galleons, I guess."
"200 galleons, please." Harry said.
The goblin nodded and removed the proper amounts of money from the pouches and replacing it with Muggle currency.
Once their business was finished they left, Harry making a mental note to be back in one week to go over his accounts with Ragnok.
All five blinked rapidly as they stepped outside of the bank into the bright mid-morning sun.
"Where to first?" Tonks asked, looking at the teens.
"I need to get some treats for Hedwig, so why don't we start at the Magical Menagerie?" Harry suggested, "Its right next door."
There were murmurs of agreement from the others so they headed next door. Harry and Draco both headed right for the owl treats while Ginny, Remus and Tonks browsed around the shop. After paying for the treats the two boys headed over to join the others. Ginny and Tonks were currently cooing at a tiny kitten in a cage. It was a light beige color with black spots, large paws and ears, and a short tail. Ginny looked up as the boys approached. "Aw, Hunter, isn't she adorable?" She questioned, flashing a grin at them.
Harry leaned closer to the cage to get a better look, "She really is, Taryn. I wonder what she is. She doesn't look like a normal cat, but she doesn't quite look like a Kneazle either."
Draco nodded, "I agree. I'm not sure what she is."
As the others focused their attention on the kitten once more Harry quietly slipped away and back to the front of the store. "Excuse me," He said, catching the attention of the woman behind the counter and gesturing towards his friends and the kitten they were looking at, "But I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of kitten that is and how much she costs."
The woman glanced toward the group then back at Harry. "She's part Kneazle, part Lynx, mostly Lynx though. I can give her to ya for ten galleons." She said.
Harry nodded and pulled out his money pouch. "What kind of stuff does she eat? And is there anything else we'll need for her?" He asked.
"Well, right now she's still young enough that she's drinking formula, but she'll be able to eat solids here in about a week. At that point she'll eat normal Kneazle food and small animals such as rabbits, foxes and rodents. She'll get to be about 3 feet long and around two feet tall at the shoulder and weigh around forty pounds when she's full grown. You'll probably want to get a food a water dish, some Kneazle food for later, some formula for now, a kennel for her to travel in and possibly sleep in, and a litter box for until she's big enough to go outside." The woman told him.
"Okay, my friends and I have a lot of shopping left to do today, some of it in Muggle London; is there anyway that I can go ahead and pay and then pick everything up later this evening?" Harry questioned.
The woman smiled, "Sure thing, it just cost an extra five knuts for us to hold her here for ya. If you wanna do that then it'll come out to twenty-two galleons, eight sickles and seven knuts."
Harry quickly counted out the money and handed it over. "We'll be back to pick her and the stuff up later. Oh, and this is kind of a surprise for my sister, so could you maybe gather the stuff for me and not mention anything to her?"
"That's so sweet," The woman grinned, "No problem, hun. You just come and pick her up before you head home tonight and I'll have all of the supplies shrunk and in a bag for you as well."
Harry nodded at her, "Thanks, I really appreciate it." And with a quick smile he turned and headed back over to his friends. "Well, are you guys ready? We still have to get our supplies and go to Muggle London." He said looking at them.
Remus nodded, "Of course, we should get going."
They all left the shop, Ginny and Tonks both quite reluctantly.
"So, why don't you kids go to Madam Malkin's and get fitted for your robes and Remus and I will go get your books? We can all meet up at Florean's for ice cream when we're done then stop at the Apothecary on our way back to the Leaky Cauldron then head on to Muggle London. Sound good?" Tonks asked.
Draco and Ginny nodded.
"Sounds good," Harry said, "But could you guys get me some books on Occlumency, Potions and Advanced DADA while you're in there?"
"Sure thing, Hunter," Remus replied with a smile, "We'll see you kids in a bit."
With that the group split up, Harry, Draco, and Ginny going into Madam Malkin's and Remus and Tonks continuing on to Flourish and Blott's next door.
Once in the robe shop Draco insisted that Harry and Ginny both get fitted properly for their robes instead of trying on the robes on the racks. Ginny protested, saying that she couldn't afford new, custom fit robes. Draco simply waved her protests away saying that he'd pay the difference as a thank you for siding with him and Harry that morning. After Ginny had been fitted for robes and her order placed, Harry stepped up to get measured while Ginny went to pick out robes for Ron and Hermione from the racks. A short while later Harry and Draco had finished being fitted and ordering their robes. Ginny placed the robes for Ron and Hermione on the counter and Madam Malkin rang them all up. They quickly paid arranged to pick up their new robes later that evening before heading home then headed across the street to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor to meet Remus and Tonks.
They were the first to arrive and quickly grabbed a table out on the patio in the shade. They sat there talking about their day so far for a few minutes before the sound of Draco's name being spoken a few tables over made them stop talking to listen.
"Did you hear what Draco did?" Came a high pitched nasally voice.
The three teens turned to look in the direction of the voice and saw Pansy Parkinson, Blaise Zabini, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle sitting together at a table nearby. The speaker had been Pansy.
Zabini looked completely bored as he replied, "No, Pansy, what did he do?" The Italian boy asked, looking like he couldn't really care less.
"Well, I heard that he refused to take the Dark Mark! I mean, I have no clue why he would, but I heard this straight from Theo Nott and he was there! He said that our Lord had Snape bring Draco to him and gave Draco the opportunity to take the Mark, but Draco turned him down!" Pansy shrilled.
Blaise sat up a bit straighter at that.
Crabbe blinked slowly a couple times before asking, "Well, why'd he say no?"
Goyle nodded, showing that he wanted to know too. Blaise didn't say anything, just focused his intense violet gaze on the girl, showing that she had his attention.
"Theo said that Draco said he'd never bow to anyone, especially not some 'insane, obsessive, hypocritical, half-blood megalomaniac'. Draco's words, not mine or Theo's. He said that he was his own man and that he didn't want some 'nut-job's ugly-ass tattoo' marring his flesh! Can you believe that?" Pansy exclaimed.
Blaise's eyes widened in shock, "What did they do to him for that? Is he dead?" He asked, fearing the answer.
Pansy shook her head, "No, he's still alive. Apparently, he had an emergency port-key on him. Took him a bit to get to it, according to Theo though. They got him with the Cruciatus a few times and a bunch of cutting hexes. Theo said he was bleeding pretty good when he port keyed out. So he might actually be dead, he may have bled to death after port keying." She said with a shrug.
"What about Draco's mum? Does she know where he is?" Blaise questioned, pushing his midnight black hair out of his eyes, then added, "And how can you be so nonchalant about him possibly being dead? I thought you liked him."
The brunette girl shook her head, "Mrs. Malfoy has no clue where he is. Our Lord even had her questioned with Veritaserum. Though, she might know now. About half an hour ago, before I left the manor, I over heard my father tell my mother that Mrs. Malfoy had disappeared. She wasn't taken or anything. He said that her stuff was gone, clothes and pictures of her and Draco are all gone, stuff like that. As for why I can be so nonchalant. Well, yes, I did like him. But that was when he was actually sane, before he became a Blood Traitor by turning his back on our Lord!" She exclaimed, her nasally voice shrilling painfully during the last sentence.
Blaise narrowed his eyes at the girl sitting opposite him and the large, stupid boys to either side of him who were nodding their heads dumbly, agreeing with what Pansy had said. "You," He stated calmly, "Are an idiot. Draco was right. The Dark Lord is an insane, obsessive, hypocritical, half-blood megalomaniac. And that Mark of his really is pretty damn ugly. I'm really glad that my family is neutral for the most part and that I don't have any crazy parents who are going to try and force me to take that damn Mark. And I'm glad Draco's mum had disappeared. She obviously left of her own accord, which means that the Dark Lord and his minions can't use her to hurt Draco. And don't even think about trying anything on Draco when we get back to school. You may be a moron who will turn on a friend at the drop of a hat, but I'm not. You screw with Draco, you screw with me, remember that, Parkinson." That said, Blaise stood up and turned to leave but paused as he heard Pansy's voice once more.
"What?!" She shrieked, "You're agreeing with what he did? I never took you for a Blood Traitor, Blaise. Next thing you know, you'll being hanging about with Potter, his Mudblood and those Weasleys!"
Blaise turned and smirked at Pansy, "Well, Pans, that's not a bad idea. I mean, Potter would make one hell of an ally. The boy is powerful and it couldn't hurt to have him as a friend, especially since I don't want to get that ugly-ass tattoo on my arm. Though you definitely won't see me willingly hanging about Granger or the male Weasel, they're far too annoying; I don't know how Potter can stand them. As for the Weaslette," Blaise's smirk widened into a grin, "Well, she's a little spit-fire. She's quick, intelligent and vicious when provoked. Gorgeous, too. Looking at her is far better than looking at you, Pug-face. No, I definitely wouldn't mind spending time in her company." Blaise quickly turned back around and made his way into the bustling crowd, chuckling quietly at Pansy's outraged shrieks, not noticing as he passed a table with three shell-shocked teens.
Ginny, Draco, and Harry stared at Blaise's retreating back until they could no longer see him. Then the three turned and stared at each other, still in shock. Ginny blinked a couple of times before breaking the silence, "Did Blaise Zabini just call me gorgeous?" She asked, still not quite believing her ears. Draco and Harry just nodded, not quite trusting their voices just yet.
A few minutes later they were still staring at each other in shock when Remus and Tonks approached the table and sat down. The two adults looked between the three teens in curiosity. "Um, did we miss something?" Tonks asked, "Is there a reason you three look like you were just hit upside the heads with bludgers?"
All three teens turned and looked at her and merely blinked. Ginny was the one to finally answer her. "Blaise Zabini just called me gorgeous. And not me, Taryn-Me, Ginny-Me. He didn't even know we were here." She said softly, still in a bit of a daze, though she was slowly coming out of her shock.
"He also defended me to Parkinson, Crabbe and Goyle." Draco added.
Harry spoke up to add in his bit, "He also said he doesn't want to be a Death Eater. And that he wouldn't mind being friends with me."
Remus blinked a couple times in surprise, "Well, it sounds to me like you kids have something to think about before school starts, huh? For now, why don't we just order our ice cream then head up to the Apothecary and on to Muggle London?"
The others nodded quickly, not really wanting to think about the things they had just learned about Blaise Zabini at the moment.
All five, quickly ordered their ice cream. As they waited for their orders Remus told Harry that he had gotten him the books he wanted. After that the ice cream arrived and they ate mostly in silence.
Once they were finished eating they all headed to the Apothecary by the entrance to the Alley and stocked up on Potions ingredients, even Harry, though he didn't get into Snape's NEWT Potions class.
"Hunter? Why are you buying potions stuff? I thought Snape only accepted students who got O's into his NEWT class. Didn't you get an E?" Ginny asked.
Harry nodded, "Yeah, I did. And he does. But, I was kinda hoping that maybe I could talk someone into tutoring. I mean think about it, Taryn, it would probably make a huge difference if the person teaching me didn't absolutely despise me, ya know?"
Ginny nodded, "Yeah, you have a point there."
Draco glanced at Harry, "Ya know, Hunter, I could tutor you in Potions if you want." He offered.
Harry looked at him, a smile on his face. "Really, Apollo? I'd like that. Thanks!" He replied.
As soon as they paid for their potion supplies, Harry quickly started bouncing again and his eyes lit up, "Time to go to Muggle London! Come on, come on!" He exclaimed as he grabbed Tonks and Draco by their hands and started pulling them back to the Leaky Cauldron, "Come on, Artemis, Apollo! There's more shopping to be done and clothes to be bought! Especially clothes to be bought!"
Ginny and Remus watched Harry bounce away, Draco and Tonks being pulled along for a moment before they joined in Harry's bouncing and excitement.
Ginny grinned at the werewolf next to her as the followed after the three ahead of them, "Ya know, Ash, maybe we shouldn't have given Hunter that ice cream. I really don't think he needed the sugar."
"You may be right, Taryn, you may be right." Remus replied, then glanced at the others before turning back to Ginny, a mischievous twinkle in his eye, "Ten knuts says they bounce into a wall by the end of the day." He stated.
Ginny's grin widened, "You're on!" Moments later she was gone, running after the others and jumping on Harry's back as she caught up with them. All four of them laughed as Harry stumbled a couple steps from the unexpected impact before dropping Draco and Tonks's hands and reaching back to grab Ginny's legs so he wouldn't drop her. Remus laughed as Tonks launched herself at her 'brother,' quickly jumping on Draco's back, demanding a piggy-back ride as well. Draco just laughed as he grabbed her legs so she wouldn't fall.
'Yes,' Remus thought, 'I think we all needed today. They already seem so much more relaxed and happy.' The Lycan smiled to himself as he watched the two sets of 'siblings' disappeared into the Leaky Cauldron as he followed at a more sedate pace.
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Finally! Another chapter! Sorry I took so long. Writer's Block really sucks, plus I don't have paper copies of this story so I keep having to go back and forth between word and one of the sites this is posted on so that I remember what's going and what has happened.
Anyway, funny story. So, I decided that I was gonna update this tonight, no matter what. So, I go online to one of the sites I've posted this on and reread it so that I remember what's happened so far. I get to the end of the last chapter and almost hit the 'review' button to leave a review and tell the author to hurry up and update – I wanna know what happens next! Then I remember, well, fuck, I'm the author! I felt so stupid! LMAO!
So, is anyone else looking forward to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? I know I am! I reserved a copy and am going to a midnight event on Friday night to pick it up. I also have Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday off work so that I can sit and read books 1-7 straight through. Anybody think I can get through them all in 4 days? Anybody think I'm crazy?
I also have a bit of a challenge for anyone who wants to try it. Read books 1-7. Straight through, like I am. Try and get through them in as few sittings as possible. Time yourself. If anyone finishes before me or faster than me (going by time), or in less sittings than me then they get a prize. I'm not sure what, but there will be a prize! No cheating though! You have to actually read the books, not just skim them! Depending on how many people beat me will determine just how many people get prizes, if there's a ton of people then only like the first two or three will, but if like five or less beat me, everyone will. Though, that's only if anyone actually takes me up on my challenge! So let me know if you plan on trying!
Okay and for anyone who cares, this chapter was written in one six-hour sitting and is ten pages long and 3,972 words long! It's my longest chapter yet for this story, it beat out chapter four by like 1,321 words! Woohoo!!! does a happy dance
Let me know what you think! Please review!
Until Next Time,
Kyra