AN: Here we go with Chapter Eight of Unexpected Family. I hope you have enjoyed reading so far.
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing or Harry Potter. This is merely fanfiction, and no financial gain is made by writing this story.
Heero, Duo, and Harry had followed their plan for the day. Shopping was a humorous affair with the long-haired teen acting as a counterpoint to Heero's stoic nature. Several pairs of jeans, a couple pairs of shorts, some khaki pants, and a variety of colored shirts were approved by both former pilots. Then socks, underwear, and hygiene products were acquired. Duo had cajoled Harry into trying on some clothes just for laughs, such as a neon green teeshirt with a printed skateboard graphic (both Harry and Heero thought it too bright and flashy).
After shopping, the trio returned to the flat for an early lunch. Simple sandwiches and hot tea were consumed before the boys turned to Harry's school books. Duo picked up the first year potions book while Heero pursued a herbology text. Harry, meanwhile, reread the last couple chapters in his Transfiguration book.
Soon enough they prepared to head towards the next property on the list: Potter Clubhouse. Zechs had notated next to the property name "portkey, apparition, Floo". With that in mind, the three teens loaded into the sedan and were on their way to the Leaky Cauldron. Tom the barman was as pleasantly helpful as ever, leading the trio to the Floo-connected fireplace. All three took a moment to dust themselves of cold ash after each experienced an inelegant landing.
The cabin's fireplace mantle had its own pot of Floo powder, as well as a few framed photos of the Potters plus Sirius Black and two other young men that the teens did not recognize. Near the large fireplace, a comfortable-looking couch and chairs faced the mantle, end tables between the other furniture. Further into the room, another set of couch and chairs faced a rather large coffee table. A hall led off from the main room, presumably to the sleeping quarters. The kitchen and dining area were a humble affair, with antique stove range and open shelving.
Once the smell of ash left the teenagers, the scent of cedar registered instead. Duo glanced up and whistled at the cedar beams that made up the ceiling, which rose some six feet above his head. Of course, that drew the attention of the half-brothers as well. The trio meandered throughout the cabin, always within earshot of each other by unspoken rule. They found canned goods in the shelving to be near their exoneration dates, various dry beans sealed in glass jars, and quite a few jars of pickles. Also, the second couch set's coffee table had built-in storage, already filled with blankets and pillows.
Soon enough, the boys were moving along the hallway. The first door was to a basic half-bath; the toilet and sink were of simple white ceramic. The second door connected to a coat closet that still had a couple winter coat s and a pair of snow boots. The next door led to a tiled sauna with bamboo benches. Wide stairs stood behind the next told, one set going up and another down.
The boys went down. Lights turned themselves on as the teens continued. Yet another door met them at the foot of the stairs. An expansive recreation room greeted them. Or as one might say, a man-cave.
Two billiard tables, a dartboard, and even a pinball machine stood in the open. One corner of the room appeared to be a miniature bar complete with stools. In fact, the walls were lined with a continuous countertop at about elbow height with mismatched stools spread throughout.
Harry and Duo shared a grin as Heero moved to investigate the minibar. A stack of cork coasters, a low liquor cabinet, and a variety of different styled glasses were located. A chest, presumably for ice, sat next to the liquor cabinet. Shards from broken glasses still littered a plastic waste basket.
Two more doors led off from the RecRoom. One connected to a wine cellar, the shelves mostly full of sealed bottles. The other door blocked a stone passage that opened into a holding cell of sorts.
The walls were stone, the floor was stone, and the ceiling was stone. Despite the unforgiving nature of stone, deep gauges littered the grey floor and walls. Tattered blankets occupied a corner. A cast-iron grate was set in the middle of the floor. Oddly enough, scratching post as wide as a punching bag stood opposite the blankets. At the side furthest from their entry, a wrought-iron gate blocked a seemingly natural tunnel.
"Er," Harry nervously began, "Alfred did say that my dad had a werewolf friend."
"Makes sense," Heero replied.
Duo shuddered. "Can we get outta here now? It's starting to creep me out."
They returned to the wide stairway to ascent to the ground look, then continued onward to the next
Even. Opening the door at the top of the stairs, the trio stepped into a parlor. A couple couches and a few chairs were spread around the cozy room. Four doors were set into the recesses of the walls. Heero, Harry, and Duo found four bedrooms, each with an animal theme.
The master bedroom was decorated with all things deer, minus pelts and taxidermied specimen. The drawer pull were bits of antler. A woven tapestry depicted a stag, a doe, a d a fawn hung on the wall. Above the headboard, a wreath of interlocked antlers hung on the wall. The footboard sported a magnificent carving of two stags struggling for dominance. Every visible cloth furnishings continued the deer theme, from curtains to pillowcases.
The next room was decked out with squirrels and acorns. Drawer pulls, the ends of the curtain rod, the both sides of the door knobs,and even the tops of the four poster bed were all acorn-shaped. A piece of wall art was of carved squirrels going up and down a square of woven sticks and twigs. Again, everything with fabric boasted the room's chosen animal.
The other two rooms were similar in their own animal of choice, wolves and bears respectively. Unlike the fireplace mantle, the bedrooms lacked personal touches. Even the attached bathrooms held nothing of from their previous occupants. The closets were empty of garments, as were the dressers.
With nothing else holding their interest, the boys returned to the ground floor to explore outside the mansion of a cabin. Heero found one door to outside near the kitchen, while Duo found another on the opposite side of the great room. Harry followed Heero onto a wrap-around porch. Wooden rocking chairs were spaced along the side of the building, as well as driftwood end tables close to the rockers.
Beyond the porch, trees were sparcely spread out, their boughs wider than Heero's shoulders. Sunlight filtered through the foliage to speckle the ground. A forest sat a short distance away; roughly hewn logs served as seating. Logs and twigs were already piled in the pit, ready to burn.
The trio meandered around the side of the cabin. Worn footpaths created trails branching off from around the cabin. One path led to a seemingly basic shed a short distance away, a little further than the fire pit. Another path encircled a lovely gazebo. A third path wove between trees, going deeper into the forest.
Harry went to the gazebo and sat on the built-in bench along the interior. Duo and Heero, meanwhile, investigated the shed.
As the green-eyed wizard regarded the rolled mesh above the open walls of the gazebo, the agents easily removed the unlatched lock from the shed's double doors. Within the wooden walls, they found basic tools neatly organized. Hammers, hatchets, crowbars, saws, and even a petrol-fueled weed eater. Also, along the back wall, a scratched and beaten door was padlocked shut. Not that a padlock could stop either teens. Duo pulled his lockpick tools from his braid and made quick work of the hindrance. They eased down the stone stairs after they found and switched on their flashlights. Soon the descending stairway curved back toward the cabin. Heero retreated back towards the door in case Harry shouted while Duo crept onward. Moments later, the braided teen returned with a smirk and reported that the underground tunnel connected to the dungeon in the basement. Harry met them at the shed's double doors, and the trio followed the third trail.
The footpath was a curved thing, bending around and between trees, avoiding unpleasant underbrush. They passes a tire swing strung up with a fraying rope and a picnic table on the opposite side. The trio continued through the trees until the footpath widened before the trees opened to reveal a pristine creek and a wooden dock.
Heero motioned for the other two boys to stay on the shore while he examined the dock. Duo and Harry took to walking along the creek. The long-haired teen casually gathered a handful of pebbles, then flicked the small stones either into the woods on one side or the creek on the other. To Harry, the pebble-flicking seemed a means to relieve boredom. He was mistaken, as Duo was testing for traps.
The Japanese teen checked the dock for structural integrity. He tested each support post with his full weight. He stomped on each plank, marking any week spots with, oddly enough, hot pink lipstick. The bench was thoroughly examined for rust and whatnot, but it managed to avoid the lipstick.
The trio of teens met at the foot of the dock. Duo spied the bright pink marks on the aged wood and snorted. Harry followed the other boy's gaze and snickered.
"So, Hee-man," Duo chuckled, "where's you get the lipstick?"
"Relena left it at my apartment at headquarters." An unconcerned shrug proceeded, "I had intended to return it, but I'll buy her a new one. I doubt she would want this one back." Heero held up the jagged tube of the lipstick, causing the other two boys to laugh outright.
Upon returning to the flat, Hedwig swooped to land on Harry's shoulder and promptly nibbled his ear in greeting. Duo snickered lightly then headed for the kitchen to start dinner. Heero reclined on the couch to observe the younger boy and bird.
The bespectacled wizard settled into a chair with the owl still on his shoulder. Hedwig hopped down to the boy's lap and settled herself as if in a nest. Harry gently stroked his familiar's feathers, and she butted her head against his chest at any pause.
In seemingly no time at all, Duo announced dinner ready. Harry carried Hedwig to his room, giving her some owl treats and getting her fresh water. Heero layed out the place settings at the small dining table. The Boy Who Lived returned to the communal space and found the braided teen setting bowls of stew at each place while the other cut a long roll of bread into thick slices.
Duo and Harry maintained light conversation during dinner. Heero listened attentatively as they trades humorous stories. The youngest of the trio regaled them with the telling of the Mirror of Erised. Duo described a particular prank involving crazy glue and Howard of the Sweepers group. Harry followed up with Lockheart and the Cornish Pixies incident. The long-haired teen countered with s story of attacking an OZ base and suddenly hearing 'Constant Vigilence!' shouted over the OZ radio frequency, followed by unexplained explosions across the base.
Dinner concluded, dishes were washed, and leftovers were stowed away before Harry returned to his room. The young wizard retrieved his potion text to review before starting the written assignment. Even though he greatly disliked the Potions Master, Harry was determined to improve the quality of his summer homework. Unlike the previous year, he had access to his supplies earlier on. Also, unlike the previous summer, Harry's location was away from the Dursleys and was supportive of time applied to this schoolwork. He could admit that as much as he enjoyed visiting the Weasley family, the Burrow was a bit too active to concentrate on studies.
The next day found Heero and Duo taking care of Preventor business. That left Harry to either hang around the flat or help Hilde's renovation crew. Harry chose to help where he could. He proved a worthwhile helper, able to follow directions and observe with seemingly boundless curiosity. After all, he didn't want to rely on magic for everything, especially before he finished Hogwarts.
As the Boy Who Lived spent more time with his halfbrother, Harry found himself wondering if the magical world as he knew it was all that great. The nearly thirteen-year-old had both positive and negative experiences in his first and second years, and he truly had no idea what to expect during the third...aside from Professor Snape hating him for some reason. Besides, Heero's and Duo's reactions to some of his stories clued him that certain instances were more problematic than Harry had considered. Especially that the trials to reach the Sorceror's stone were thwarted by three first year students. And the highly incompetent Gilderoy Lockheart. And why no one thought to question Moaning Myrtle about her death previously, as in when she died, to find out clues.
So yes, Harry Potter was considering the wisdom in staying in the Wizarding World, more so the British magical community. After all, Zechs was a wizard, Heero and Duo were untrained wizards, and the Preventors had magical people working for them. Truly, tradition and the lack of regular education were the only things holding back the U.K.'s magical school system. A muggle-born or muggle-raised child's nonmagical schooling ended at age eleven, when Hogwarts sent letters.
Another thing that had Harry's sudden attention, as Heero had pointed out after hearing the tale of the owl bombardment, was that all the letters were addressed with the cupboard under the stairs. If anyone at Hogwarts knew Harry was made to sleep in a tiny cupboard instead of an actual bedroom, why in Merlin's name didn't it occur to them that the boy was in a bad home? And how could the ministry detect magic used by a House Elf but not realize it wasn't Harry?
Spending time with the former Gundam pilots was truly an eye-opening experience. Harry tried to consider all this during lunch break. He had retreated to Heero's flat for a sandwich, a glass of juice, and an apple. Perhaps, sending letters of inquiry to other magical schools would be wise, Harry pondered. Maybe only Hogwarts left out nonmagical subjects. He made a note to ask Zechs at their next meeting.
In seemingly no time at all, Harry cleaned up after himself and returned to the renovation crew. He helped by holding certain tools steady for accurate markings; fetching hammers, nails, screwdrivers, and ladders; carried wood planks and other supplies light enough for him to manage. He found helping the crew felt much more rewarding than attending the countless chores of Number Four Privet Drive. Actually receiving praise and thanks might have had something to do with it, not to mention that the people were much more pleasant than his aunt's family.
The end of the workday caught Harry by surprise. Hilde herself came to collect him from the flat in progress, and workers commented on the boy's performance to Hilde as they departed. By the time the last worker left, the wizard practically glowed with the all the positive words. The young woman heartily laughed as she took him the beaming smile.
They walked to Heero's flat, the boy chattering about all he learned while helping. The pair found the flat unoccupied, as even Hedwig had apparently gone out to fly. Harry asked where Zechs and Noin's quarters were, as he had some questions for the man. With a shrug, Hilde led the boy through the halls and down a flight of stairs, her hand on his shoulder to ensure he kept by her side. They arrived just as the Preventor agents were unlocking their door, and friendly greetings were exchanged. The group settled in the living room, getting comfortable in plush chairs. Harry dove right into his questions for Zechs, if the Wizarding schools regularly ignored non-magical subjects. The Sanc prince answered as best he could, citing that he had not had the usual schooling. The blond suggested sending inquiries to the schools for a more accurate view.
Noin entertained the visitors with tails of a wizard she had escorted to be registered in the FRA. Apparently Mr. Arthur Weasley was incredibly curious about the non-magical world, enough so that the clinic staff had asked Noin to sit in to field his numerous questions. Harry grinned, green eyes practically dancing in mirth, and mentioned being asked the purpose of the rubber ducky the first time he'd met Mr. Weasley. Noin laughed, saying that he had asked her as well.
Zechs had remained in the waiting area with Mr. Weasly's family. At least the family that still lived at home with their parents. The twins had suckered the prince into trying one of their joke products, which had resulted in an immediate need for a waste bin and quite the scolding from Mrs. Molly Weasley. The youngest child, a girl called Ginny, had been kind enough to hold back his lengthy hair as he was violently ill. After the vomiting reduced to dry heaves, the twins ashamedly admitted that they had yet to figure out how to administer the counter, as it was made into an edible form. Ginny was allowed to braid the blonde hair as Zechs recovered with the counter taffy under his tongue. The oldest of the Weasley children had been taken to an exam room shortly after the father had, while the youngest of the boys tried to keep out of pinching distance of his mother.
Harry's smile was so bright, he nearly beamed. The young wizard regaled them with stories of shenanigans at the Burrow, the Weasley's home. Hilde laughed hard enough have a stitch in her side and need to wipe away a few tears by the end. Zechs had a rare open smile, glad to see the boy so happy. Noin had buried her face in a pillow to smother her laughter.
All good things must come to an end, and Hilde escorted Harry back to Heero's flat.
"Did you notice," the boy asked as they approached the correct door, "that Zechs's hair still has braids?"
Duo opened the door to investigate the uproar of laughter that came from Hilde Schbeiker. Harry succinctly explained, "A twelve-year-old braided Zechs's hair after her brothers pranked him."
The following day found Harry Potter tagging along with Preventor agents Heero Yui-Potter and Duo Maxwell. The trio entered the Ministry of Magic through the visitors's entrance via the red telephone booth. They quickly checked their wands at the desk and hurried to the lift.
The reason for their visit to the Ministry was to go over the records of Azkaban prisoners. Duo had stumbled across information on Sirius Black and was eager to find out more. Heero went along with it, as the newspapers had said that Black had killed non-magical people as well as betray the Potters. The agents brought Harry along as an educational experience.
An experience was one way to put it. When the boys were allowed access to the records, they found files haphazardly shoved into towering filing cabinets. Worse yet, the cases weren't sorted in any recognizable system. Worst still, pages were scattered, as if someone had dropped an armload of files without bothering to reorganize them. The older the reports, the more desperate the mess. Harry, Duo, and Heero struggled for two hours, trying to organize the mess by date as they went.
At last Duo lost any semblance of patience, resorting to a wandless Accio Files on Sirius Black. Sheets of parchment sprung from deep within a more distant cabinet, displacing even more pages in the process; yet only five parchment pages fluttered to Duo's outstretched hand. A quick pursuant revealed that three sheets were Aurors's reports on capturing Black and the other two were related to investigating his escape. No court transcripts pertaining to a trial. No log of evidence. No sign that the man had even received a trial at all. Just to be sure, Duo repeated the wandless command, only for the same five pages to flutter back into his hand.
Heero quickly adopted his Perfect Soldier expression, as Duo had dubbed it, and pronounced that they would ask Madame Bones for clarification. The three young men were soon enclosed in a lift and on their way to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. They didn't have the lift to themselves, so they refrained from talking for the moment. Heero led the way to Madame Bones's office, as he had been there before.
A craggily man halted the trio before they could reach their target. With a wooden leg, a chunk missing from his nose, and scars aplenty, the man had long since seen better days. His dark brown eye scanned them suspiciously while the electric blue eye in an artificial socket zoomed seemingly at random.
Duo arched his eyebrows at the imposing man. "We had a couple questions for Madame Bones, regarding Sirius Black," he offered as an explanation before attempting to maneuver around.
The craggily man harrumphed at them as he blocked the boys again. "What do you need to know about Black? He was sent to Azkaban twelve years ago and somehow escaped this summer."
"There were no records of him receiving a trial before his incarceration," Heero bluntly threw out. "Madame Bones gave us permission to search the records."
Harry nodded and held out the five pages that they brought with them from the records room. "These were all we could find on Black. We were wondering if other pages were borrowed by those on Black's escape case."
The offered pages were testily snatched from the youngest boy's grasp, and the older man's brown eye pursued the documents. A frown tugged his crooked mouth further downward. He turned to face the crowd of desks. "Oi! Any of you lot got records for Sirius Black at your desks?!"
More than a few Aurors jumped, or at least twitched, at the unexpected shout. A return shout came as, "Watcher, Moody! We're working here!" A few chuckles came from around the woman with bubble gum-pink hair, who had given the reply.
As it so happened, only two Aurors had anything related to Black, and those were reports of his escape from prison. With that, the three visitors frowned. Moody, the heavily scarred man frowned right along with them, which wasn't a pretty sight. The man limped to Madame Bones's door and knocked briskly in a certain pattern. Amelia called for them to enter, and her employee opened the door for the teenagers.
Heero entered first, then Harry, and Duo brought up the rear. Moody positioned himself against the jam of the closed door. The former Gundam pilots explained the lack of documentation in their search for information on Black. Madame Bones was appropriately concerned, steepled fingers supporting her chin.
AN: Sorry for the long wait, everyone! I hope this chapter isn't too much of a let down after so long without update. I am honored that so many people have Followed, Favorited, and Reviewed for this story! e-Hugs!
