DISCLAIMER! I only own Dani and the Smiths.
Anything in bold and underlined at the same time is stuff from the book, showing that I don't own it.
Chapter Three: Gringotts
My two weeks at Hogwarts were the best weeks I could ever remember. I might have had some when my real parents were alive, but that was ten years ago. I still kind of find it hard to wrap my mind around the fact that I'm really Harry Potter's twin sister. Sometimes, I wasn't even sure that I was a Potter. Then I would happen upon a mirror and trace my crescent moon shaped scar with a finger.
I did meet a lot of the teachers. Exploring the colossal castle was my main occupation during the day. Nearly Headless Nick helped me out whenever I took a wrong turn, or when the castle changed itself.
Professor McGonagall was really nice to me in the days leading up to my birthday. If I was reading, and I had trouble with a word or meaning of a phrase, she would always help me. We would always read together for half an hour before bed each night. In the mornings, we would go to the kitchens and eat together. We talked about everything and nothing. Every now and then, she would remind me that she would always be there for me. I had utter respect for her.
On my birthday, when I woke up, I expected to get only a small something, but there was a small pile on the end of my bed! I opened them. The first one was a journal with a blue cover, purple butterflies, and green flowers. The next one was Hogwarts: A History. The third one had all sorts of sweets I recognized from the books: Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Chocolate Frogs, Fizzing Whizbies, and Sugar Quills.
Except, I always reminded myself, I was in the books.
After a quick shower and breakfast, I walked down to the Entrance Hall to meet Professor Snape. He was going to help me with the Floo. I was going meet Harry and Hagrid at the Leaky Cauldron, the entrance to Diagon Alley.
Snape walked out of the dungeons right as I walked down the marble staircase. I walked to him, and we started for the dungeons. I shivered and rubbed my arms. It was getting chilly. As we entered the Potions professor's office, I took notice of the shelves and their contents: jars with slimy things. I felt my stomach churn at the sight of them.
Snape didn't explain the whole Flooing thing because I already knew how to do it. I grabbed some Floo powder, and I stepped into the emerald fire, which felt like a warm breeze, even in the past. I shouted, "The Leaky Cauldron!" The journey was the same from when I first went to Hogwarts. Then I slid out of the fireplace and into the Leaky Cauldron.
"An' there's Dani!" a booming voice shouted excitedly.
"Hi, Hagrid!" I said. Hagrid came up with that name, kind of.
"Harry's already waitin' at the entrance."
I could feel my heart hammering. This was actually happening! I had been preparing myself for this for two weeks. Okay, no fan-girl squealing or anything like that. I took a deep breath and followed Hagrid through the tavern and finally out to the tiny courtyard.
Standing in the middle was a boy just my height. His black hair was very messy, and his bangs fell into his bright green eyes. His sight was unobscured by glasses. I looked more at his eyes. He didn't wear glasses! The edge of a pink scar peeked from behind his bangs.
The boy looked at me, curiosity in his eyes. He stepped toward me.
"Hi," he said, holding out his hand. "I'm Harry."
"I'm Danielle," I said," but you can call me Dani." I took Harry's hand and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. He hugged me back just as fiercely. It felt oddly strange, but I felt complete then, like I had been missing something very important over the last decade. I almost hadn't even noticed it. But now, I felt complete, and I was sure Harry was as well.
We broke apart, and I felt tears of joy welling up in my eyes.
Then I heard Hagrid muttering. "Three up… two across… right. Stand back, you two." He tapped the wall three times with the tip of his pink umbrella. The bricks quivered, then a small hole appeared in the middle. Within seconds, it grew big enough for a man like Hagrid to fit through it.
"Welcome, Harry and Dani, to Diagon Alley," Hagrid said. It was absolutely beautiful! There were stores everywhere I looked, each of them with brightly colored signs. Shoppers were walking along cheerfully. I could hear people laughing and joking and just talking. One woman was complaining about prices of stuff like dragon livers. Signs were everywhere: store signs, billboard signs, and display signs.
"We'll need to get yer money at Gringotts, the wizard bank," Hagrid said; pointing up at a giant, white stone building. We walked into a large marble room with the poem written in Sorcerer's Stone:
Enter, stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed,
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief you have been warned, beware
Of finding more than treasure there.
As we entered the main room, I took my time to glance around at everything. Creatures about four feet tall were managing the place, each of them with wrinkled skin, long fingers, and pointed teeth and ears.
There were Goblins behind desks writing with quills on parchment and weighing coins on brass scales. We walked to the end of the long, marble hall where there was a very old Goblin that was the only one free.
"Mornin'" Hagrid said, "we're here ter take some money outta the Potters' vault."
"Do you have the key?"
"O' course I do," he dug around in his pockets for a couple of minutes, and then he pulled out the small, golden key.
"That seems to be in order."
"An' there's also a letter here from Professor Dumbledore," Hagrid said, throwing out his chest. He lowered his voice and leaned in closer. "It's about the You-Know-What in vault 713."
"Okay, then," said the Goblin after reading the letter. "Griphook!" Yet another Goblin came up. "He will take you down to the two vaults."
Once Hagrid crammed everything back into his pockets, we followed Griphook through one of the many doors into a long, stone hallway. Harry, Hagrid and I stepped into a cart that Griphook called up, and sped off, underground.
The trip ended after what felt like a very short time. I was having a very good time, like it was a roller coaster. Once Hagrid got out, he had to lean on the wall. He looked very green and sick.
Griphook unlocked the vault door. Once it opened, Harry and I gasped at the dame time. There were about, I don't know, 1,000 Galleons, even more Sickles, and about 50,000 Knuts. I couldn't believe all that money was ours.
"17 Sickles got inter a Galleon and 29 Knuts to a Sickle," Hagrid said after Harry and I stuffed some money into a bag. "Vault 713 now, please, and can we go a little more slowly?"
"One speed only," Griphook said.
We got deeper into the tunnels and. It started to get colder. We finally got down to vault 713, which had no keyhole.
"Stand back," Griphook said importantly. He stroked the door with a finger, and the door melted away instantly. "Only a Gringotts Goblin can do that. If anyone else tries it, they'll be sucked inside."
"How often do you check the vault, Master Griphook?" I asked politely.
"About once every ten years," Griphook said with a nasty grin. Even after reading about that part about a billion times, it still did sound cruel.
I looked at Harry who was trying to see what was in the vault. Hagrid leaned forward and picked up a grubby little sack. He put it in one of his many pockets. I looked back at Harry who had a longing look on his face. It felt weird to know that Harry really wanted to see what was inside the bag. Then I realized I would be feeling even more moments like those. I would feel like that for the next seven years!
"Okay, let's go now," Hagrid said. "Don't talk to me on the way back, it's best if I keep me mouth shut."
About half an hour later, we stood in front of Gringotts, trying to get used to the sudden sunlight.
"Might as well go get yer uniforms over at Madam Malkin's," Hagrid said. "Listen, I'm goin' to the Leaky Cauldron fer a pick-me-up."
I nodded as Harry turned and headed for the sign proclaiming the seamstress' name. I hurried after him.