AN – I do not own Harry Potter, JK Rowling does (If I did, he wouldn't have married Ginny at all lol)
The girls walked trough the Leakey's courtyard, into Diagon Alley and Bella felt her breath took away as fiction came alive. Everything screamed for her attention, the shops, the people, the clothes. Her own, that seemed slightly odd in Harry's kitchen, were almost plain compared to some of the splendour she faced. Tall pointed hats and cloaks of every colour imaginable were wherever she looked. Shoppers called greetings to one another as the owls hung outside Eeylops cried their displeasure at being awoken so early. A chorus of whizzes and bangs could be heard further down the street by a store that made all others pale in comparison. It had been painted bright orange and clearly stated 'Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes'. Following Bella's gaze Hermione smiled.
"That's Georges' shop. He has one in Hogsmeade now too. It's doing really well so I've been told." Hermione let out a little squeak as the tallest man Bella had ever seen started cutting his way through the crowd toward them. "Hagrid is on his way over, don't tell him anything. I love him dearly but he cannot keep a secret." She made a zipped lip gesture to Bella to enforce her words before turning towards the approaching half-giant.
"Aft'noon Hermione, Luna. I'm mighty glad t'see you. Who's this?" His eyes darted to Bella under his huge eyebrows.
"Oh, I'm Bella. It's a pleasure to meet you Hagrid" Bella said extending a hand toward him.
"Bella, ey? Did you go t'Hogwarts? Can't say I remember you." He said, wrapping his massive shovel sized hand around hers.
"I'm afraid I studied at Beuxbatons instead. Madame Maxine was full of praise about you though. I feel I know you already." She smiled and flexed her hand, both wondering if she had and broken bones and also hoping Hagrid and her supposed former Headmistress hadn't broken up since the last book. Both fears were unjustified though as she had full function of her hand and Hagrid had developed a deep blush while rubbing the back of his neck.
"Talked about me she did?"
"Oh yes. We we're forever hearing about your wonderful merits. Your skill at being the Magical Creatures Professor and how you would call her your..."
"N-no need to be sharing that now" he interrupted. "I never though she mentioned me to her students. How about that? I best be off, need to see a man in the pub about a... well about something anyway. Nice to meet you Bella."
"You too Hagrid, it's nice to put a face to the person I heard so much about. Say bonjour to Madame Maxine for me?"
"O' course. See you later Hermione, Luna. Tell Harry I could use a hand at that castle if he gets a chance will you?" Hagrid asked still blushing.
"I will. Take care Hagrid and please don't be getting another Norbet." Hermione pleaded
"I wouldn't do that." He smiled and he made his back through the shoppers. As soon as he was out of earshot Hermione turned to Bella grinning.
"Bella, that was amazing but what will happen when he goes home and she never said anything or doesn't know you?"
"Hermione she's French. There is more chance of Harry marrying Draco than her being able to stay quiet and Hagrid only knows my first name, she's got to have taught a Bella at some point."
Hermione laughed "Genius!"
"From you that is high praise but I'm worried at how easy all this is. I mean I just lied to Hagrid's face." Bella winced
"It's all in a good cause. If you look at it this way, you've probably made Hagrid realise he loves her even more." Luna soothed
"She's right. Now come on, we need to get you some robes if you're to pull this off." Hermione said, grabbing her hand and dragging her down the alley. Bella followed obediently but unconvinced and the girls made their way into the store.
Contrary to what Bella expected, the afternoon was immensely fun, if slightly embarrassing. She had still to shake the dreamlike quality to everything that happened but it didn't diminish anything, if nothing else, it made her appreciate it all the more, just in case her fears were founded and it did turn out to be nothing more than a very vivid dream. Madam Malkin had declared her beautiful on her entry and had refused to dress her in anything but shades of green, her reasoning being that Bella had 'found' her colour and it would be madness to wear anything else. Bella tried on everything from shirts to dresses to robes and by the time they had finished, she felt like a good humoured clothes horse. Hermione and Luna felt like immediate best friends, screaming their approval at things that worked and vetoing anything that as Luna put it 'looked like two wrackspurts fighting under a blanket'.
The girls left the shop in high spirits and laden down with packages. Bella now had an outfit for every occasion and almost all of it was green. She also possessed more shoes than was decent. With a total of fourteen outfits, seven more to be delivered to Luna's after being altered, ten pairs of shoes, two heavy travelling cloaks in forest green and black, three medium weight cloaks and two lighter ones to go with the one Hermione insisted she keep, Bella felt extremely well shod. She could only guess how much it had cost Harry, she had asked Hermione but she's said not to worry, Harry wouldn't miss it.
"Not to mention it's worth it" said Hermione, "I've not had that much fun in years and you could wear most of that stuff normally too." Bella had to agree the clothes, if worn right, could easily pass for Muggle attire but they screamed quality and class, a far cry from the jeans and t-shirts she normally wore.
Bella was about to suggest they head back to the pub when Hermione grabbed her arm like a vice and pulled her to a stop.
"Ginny's here!" She hissed at Luna under her breath and Bella looked around till she saw said redhead walking down the alley in their direction, it didn't seem as though they had been spotted yet though but the street was only narrow and it wouldn't be long. "We can't let her see Bella yet, she's not ready. The Weasley's will put her under the microscope. Oh sweet ghost of Merlin, what are we going to do?" Luna surprised everyone then by calmly opening the door of the store behind Bella and gently pushing her inside. Pulling the door closed once more, she turned her back on it and smiled at Hermione.
"She shouldn't meet who?" She asked completely deadpan and taking Hermione's arm, she led her toward Ginny through the crowd of shoppers.
Bella watched through the doors window for a moment and it was clear from what she saw of Ginny's excited greeting, that she suspected nothing. Bella sighed in relief, it was not of her things to so list that she meet Harry's ex wife today, if ever. Seeing the crisis had most definitely passed, Bella decided to take a look around the shop to see if it held anything of interest and was amazed to discover she was in Olivander's Wand shop. She stood enraptured between the towering shelves of boxes, each one containing a wand very similar to but completely different from the wand currently in the pocket of her cloak. Bella was so busy reading the minute labels on the boxes, 11" Holly and Unicorn hair, that a gentle cough from behind her made her jump and almost knock the boxes from their shelves.
"Good afternoon miss. May I help you? Want repair maybe, or a spare?" Bella looked into the face of the old man and felt the bile rise in her throat at the though of lying again but smiled anyway.
"Oh no, thank you. I just came in to avoid someone. I hope you don't mind."
"Not at all, although it is normally best to confront life's hurdles rather than drag your feet and ultimately stumble before them." Olivander smiled, reminding Bella of her grandfather, he was smart as a whip too. "Now I remember every person that has every bought a wand from me but you are a mystery. May I ask, where did you buy yours and could I trouble you to see it? I do so like seeing the work of my peers." Bella was stuck, she didn't want to seem rude but what if her wand had been made by him? What would she say? There was the chance that it had been made by another wand maker but the chances were slim. Bella could see no choice, she had to lie but just a little."
"Of course." She said pulling the wand from her cloak "I've been given it's loan while mine is repaired in France." Olivander took the wand an gently examined it, holding the gem at the base close to his eyes.
"Interesting... Very interesting. You are not the original owner of this wand but It's accepted you as well as it did it's first. I remember selling this want to a young girl that gave her life for something that mattered greatly." He said clearly intrigued.
"Harry's Mother. How is it interesting and how could the wand accept me when it's last master was killed by his own magic?" Bella asked perplexed both to how Lily's wand ended up at Grimauld Place and how since Voldemort was killed by his own hand it could accept her. Not even getting on to the fact she was a Muggle.
"I see you know a little of wand lore and you know Mr Potter too?" When Bella blushed he nodded and examined the wand a little more closely. "Wands and magic are strange things. Indeed Voldemort died by his own hand but a lot happened in the years between Harry's mother's death and Voldemort's. If my guess is correct, by wand lore it belongs to Harry but the circumstance of his mother's death has left a great impact on this wand and I believe that is what has led it to accepting you so readily." He said handing it back to Bella.
"But... but..." Bella was dying to ask the the question that was now plaguing her but to do so would shatter the charade and it was too much of a risk.
"But why would a wand accept a Muggle?" Bella stared open mouthed in shock. The old man was clearly sharper than she gave him credit for. "As I said my dear, magic is a strange thing and the magic that has touched this wand is the most powerful of all." He said cryptically. Bella wanted to ask more but Hermione and Luna chose that moment to enter the shop.
"Bella?" Bella quickly put her wand back in her cloak before turning to face the girls.
"Hi, I've just been talking to Mr Olivander. How did it go out there?" Bella asked, hoping they wouldn't ask how things had gone in the store.
"Like nothing was amiss." Hermione answered "Shall we get back to the boys?" Bella threw an anxious look at Olivander but me merely nodded and took her hand.
"It was a pleasure to meet you. Please remember to stop by again. Good to see you again, Luna, Hermione."
"You too Mr Olivander. It's a shame we can't stay." said Luna
"Quite alright. I'm sure I'll see you when you have more time." He pulled his hand back from Bella's and she felt something left in her palm. As the girls pushed her out ahead of them she quickly looked and discovered it was folded parchment. Checking behind her to make sure Hermione and Luna wouldn't see, she unfolded it to see it was a note.
Your secret is safe.
Bella counted her blessings and put the note in her pocket.
"So, what do you think? Should we shrink the packages or just lighten them and wait to see the look on Harry's face?" Hermione asked grinning like a Cheshire cat. Bella and Luna laughed while Hermione cast the charm to lighten the bags and boxes.
As they walked back into the bar, their wishes were fulfilled. Harry's jaw almost hit the table and he looked as though they had walked in with half of Madam Malkin's and, as Bella mused with a smile, they probably had.
Harry heard female voices and looked up in time to see the girls enter the pub. It must have gone well he thought, since they were laughing and smiling in a way that only girls can after a successful shopping trip, not to mention the amount of boxes they were holding. Bella was glowing and Harry felt his jaw drop at the sight of her. To anyone else she was just a witch enjoying a shopping trip with friends but to him she was the most amazing woman he had every met. She had taken to his world like she was born to it and had never once in the last two days, shown any sign she was jealous of it or the huge part of his life Hermione held. Women in the past had considered her a threat and never been able to understand that she was family. Harry knew his motives fro keeping Bella in his life weren't purely for friendship, as he told Hermione but he was afraid of being burnt or driving her away and he's happily stay just her friend for the rest of his life if it meant she could stay in it.
AN - That 's the last of the existing chapters. I just need to find my notes now. Expect newness in a couple of weeks, then weekly once I've got back into the writing habit :)
Reviews please, as ever :D