Author's Note: The information mentioned about Azkaban in this chapter is taken from Pottermore. Beware of spoilers.
The large group returned home from Egypt, having had a great holiday. Neville, Alex, Beth, Ginny, and Percy all had their birthdays occur during the trip (Percy's had been on the day before they were due to leave), and they'd celebrated them all. Alex's owl, Hedwig, had even flown to Hermione twice (and not during the three times to simply deliver letters between the Gryffindor quintet) and returned with presents from her. The first time, Hedwig had returned on Neville's birthday, with three books, one on French plants for Neville, one on French culture for Beth, and the third on famous French Quidditch players for Alex. Accompanying the package were three birthday cards and a long letter about had happened so far in Hermione's French holiday. As expected, she had gotten a good deal of local information about French magical history, which she had incorporated into the History of Magic essay that had been assigned.
The second time, Hedwig returned on the day of Ginny's birthday, with a small box of various nail polishes that flashed in different colors for Ginny and a book on Transfiguration for Percy. The two had written a nice thank-you note to Hermione in return.
On August 31st was the trip to Diagon Alley for school supplies. Hagrid had sent Neville, Alex, and Beth each a copy of Monster Book of Monsters as their birthday presents, saying that they would find it useful for the upcoming year. He had then sent Ron and Hermione copies as well, with it being an early birthday present for Hermione and a welcome-back-to-Hogwarts present for Ron. The Gryffindor quintet had exchanged looks at this, until they looked at their booklist and saw that it was the required book for Care of Magical Creatures, which was one of the electives they had signed up for. At least the clerk at Flourish and Blotts had been happy at not having to grab copies for them, since the books, which were held in a cage, were attacking each other. He had been even happier when Ana told him the way to calm down the books was to stroke the spines (she had written to Hagrid, asking how to keep the books from biting).
At Quality Quidditch Supplies, there was a crowd of school children gazing at the new broom, a Firebolt, featured in the windows. Alex and Ron joined them, staring at the Firebolt in longing. Sirius came over to see what they were looking at. "If I'd known that the Firebolt was out, I'd have gotten you and Beth one for your birthdays, Alex. Well, there's always Christmas."
"You don't need to get us Firebolts, Sirius!" Alex protested. "We already have Nimbus Two Thousand Ones that our aunts and uncles gave us. And you already spent a whole lot of money last year when you bought those Nimbuses for the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff Quidditch teams."
"I suppose," Sirius acknowledged reluctantly. "Though what I spent one twenty-one Nimbus Two Thousand Ones didn't make much of a dent in my money, since it's composed of my vault, which is mostly the money that Uncle Alphard left me, and the Black family vault, which still has lots of gold in it."
"That still doesn't mean you have to spend all that money on Firebolts," Alex said. A thought occurred to him and he added, "If anything happens to my broom, you can get me a Firebolt then, Sirius. Or you can get me one as a graduation present, whichever comes first."
"Okay then," said Sirius. "It's a deal."
Beth, who had heard the part about the deal, quickly added, "But you can't steal our brooms and break them just so you can buy us Firebolts earlier, Sirius. Whatever happens to our brooms has to happen without your interference."
"Damn," Sirius muttered, who had been planning to exploit the loophole until Beth closed it.
Alex and Beth giggled at Sirius's distraught expression, and the former said jokingly, "Hey, maybe I'll purposely crash into the Whomping Willow at a Quidditch practice this year just so you'll have the excuse to buy me a Firebolt."
"As long as it's just your broom that ends up totaled and not you, Alex," Sirius said. "Remus and I have told you how dangerous that tree is when it's not immoblized."
After all the necessary school supplies had been bought, everyone went to the Leaky Cauldron for dinner. They were all going to spend the night in the rooms over the pub, including Hermione, whose parents had dropped her off after the shopping trip. Aunt Maria and Uncle Tobias updated everyone on the whole situation regarding the mass escape from Azkaban, which hadn't changed much. The Aurors had gone to Wiltshire, where Malfoy Manor was located, but because of the Fidelius Charm, they couldn't remember the exact location or see the Manor at all during their search. In addition, there had been no sightings of any of the escapees, which suggested that they were lying low. However, it was quite possible that Wormtail could go out in his Animagus form, which considering that it was of a rat, made it rather difficult for him to be spotted. It wasn't as if the Auror Department could go hunting after every rat in Britain just to see if it was Wormtail in disguise.
However, Minister Fudge had decreed that Dementors were to be stationed at Hogwarts until further notice, and some would also be combing through Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, Knockturn Alley, and the other wizarding streets after dark, just in case the escapees turned up there. In the wake of the mass outbreak, Mr. Ollivander reported that his shop broken into and a dozen wands stolen, no doubt to replace the ones confiscated from the prisoners. That Dawlish's wand had been left behind was seen as further proof of this.
"I don't like the idea of Dementors being stationed at Hogwarts," Aunt Sarah said. "How does Fudge know that they can properly be controlled? I mean, what if a Dementor tried to attack one of the students or something? It's not like Dementors can distinguish between the innocent or guilty."
"Professor Dumbledore and most of the teachers don't like it, either," Aunt Maria said. "But the Minister overruled him, and most of the school governors agreed that having Dementors at Hogwarts would be safer. If only Minister Eldritch Diggory hadn't died of dragon pox in 1747. He'd been planning to set up an alternative to Azkaban, or at least eradicating it of Dementors. But the committee he set up hadn't come up with anything before his death."
"The Ministry shouldn't have set up Azkaban in the first place," Uncle Tobias snapped. "When the least frightening part of a fortress that once belonged to a Dark wizard is the Dementors inhabiting it, it would have been better to just leave it alone. Besides, what about those that commit some crime worthy of a prison sentence, but not along the lines of murder, torture, or some other horrible thing? Or someone like you, Sirius, who was innocent? They don't deserve to be locked up in a place where all happiness is sucked out of you and many die of despair."
Sirius nodded in agreement. "At least after what happened to me, the Ministry is being more careful about making sure that everyone has a trial and trying to ensure that no more innocent people get sent to Azkaban."
"Why they couldn't have done that in the first place is beyond me," Granny Ilsa grumbled. "Then you could have explained everything and avoided being sent to Azkaban. Of course, you could have also avoided that by going to Professor Dumbledore first and explained things, instead of just haring after Wormtail, but it's understandable that grief over what happened to your best friends would cause you not to think straight."
Mrs. Weasley then changed the subject, and the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw quintets, plus Jonas and Esther, tuned the adults out. The latter two were excited to be finally starting Hogwarts, and speculated over what house they would be Sorted in. Adam and Leah were excited over their upcoming bar and bat mitzvah ceremonies, which would take place on the first Saturday of October (they had gotten permission from Professors Flitwick and Dumbledore to take a Portkey home for it). Normally girls had their Bat Mitzvah at age twelve, but the Rosenbergs were part of Reform Judaism, which had at it thirteen like the boys, partly so the twins didn't have to have separate ceremonies, as they normally did things together.
Vera and Ivan then began reminiscing over their bat and bar mitzvah ceremonies, and gave Adam and Leah some advice. After dinner, Granny Ilsa and Grandpa Vladek returned to their rooms over the potions shop, and Grandmum Lise left for her shift at St. Mungo's. The teens and pre-teens went upstairs to the rooms they were staying in to finish packing and then go to bed.