A/N: I think I'll be able to stick to at least to an every other day upload schedule.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Please don't sue me.
Chapter Four: St. Mungo's and The Cauldron
"Kid. I think we need to get you to St. Mungo's for a checkup? I take it you've never seen a magical healer?" Remus asked me.
"I haven't seen a doctor or a magical healer, ever," I said, checking Harry's memories. Remus cringed.
"Let's get that rectified. Andromeda, we'll see you tomorrow?" Remus asked her.
"Of course, Remus. I'll send an owl in the morning since you're staying at the Excalibur. I live in Carkitt Market, so it's a quick flight." Andromeda said to us.
Remus took my hand, I took Pobby's, and we exited into the main hall. There were floos in the two entrance corners of the large main hall. Looking down, the floor design was beautiful green and white marble intersecting in graceful patterns only magic could produce.
Inscribed on the marble fireplaces:
Floo powder provided for paying customers with a 1 sickle fee extracted from their vaults.
I told Remus, "I've never flooed before." with a bit of nerves, not wanting to end up in the wrong place.
"It's really quite simple. You step in, throw the powder, and say the destination you want to go to. In our case, say St. Mungo's Hospital. It's not far so it will be a short trip."
We waited until someone else left through the floos to give me an example of how to do it. Interestingly, it was a tall red-haired young man, with hair down to his shoulders, who I assume might be Bill Weasley, who stepped into the fireplace and yelled, "The Burrow" and disappeared in a puff of green smoke.
I dipped my hand into the pot and trapped some powder in between my fingers, walked into the fire, and then threw it beneath me, calling out "St. Mungo's Hospital".
Then, the world turned. It felt like being dropped into a box and then thrown through a chute. At first, it was easy to see other fireplaces and scenes behind them. The other one at Gringotts. A shop in Diagon Alley. Madam Malkins. A home with a cat on a couch. Then they started going faster, so fast I couldn't recognize what I was seeing other than a flurry of fire. Then, everything started to slow down instead of speeding up, and that shift happened suddenly. The grates in the fireplaces became more clear and then suddenly I felt like I was falling out of a chute when I stumbled into a large white brick fireplace, tripping over myself and falling onto the ground onto a tile floor. Well, I was in the right place. The sign above me said St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Suddenly, Remus stepped out of the fireplace a lot more gracefully than I had.
"You alright there, kid?" He asked me, reaching down with one hand to pick me up. Then, Pobby popped into the room, not even using the floo. From my view on the floor, I could see rickety chairs and feet all around. Witches and wizards in lime green with clipboards were assisting all sorts of people with "Magical Maladies" sitting and standing all over. One guy had three heads, a young girl looked like she was twice her normal size, and an old woman was a sickly purple.
"Pobby? You're telling me I didn't have to get in the floo to get here?!" I asked, jokingly angry.
"Pobby is very sorry sir. Pobby will forewarn you next time." He said, knowing I was joking.
"Huh. A house elf with humor." Remus said, pulling me up.
"How fast do those things go?" I asked.
"Well, you accelerate at the speed of gravity, which is why you feel like you're falling and then start decelerating halfway through," Remus replied.
At that moment a young witch with a clipboard came up and asked, "What can I do for you? Do we have an emergency?"
"No." Remus said, "Just need to get him a checkup. Maybe some vaccines. Most likely has a few problems since he hasn't seen a healer in years."
"Oh, alright, I can make an appointment." She said.
"Can we possibly do it now?" I asked, going up to her, attempting to look cute and flashing my scar and pearly white smile. I couldn't stand the speed of bureaucracy.
"Ah! Oh my god! Harry Potter! Oh, um of course! I'll see who is available." She stuttered and stammered while starstruck. "Can I get your autograph?" She asked and then paused for a second and added, "For my niece, um. Amanda?". She took out a piece of hospital embossed paper and a black feathered quill and handed it out for me to take.
I realized I had never practiced writing with a quill or writing the name Harry Potter and would need to do both of those things before attempting to sign anything for anyone. "We're in a bit of a rush today. How about you give me your name and I'll send you an owl with my autograph another day?" I asked her.
"Send me… me? An owl? Harry Potter? That's just great!" she said while walking off to fetch a healer. She flicked her lime green closed robe as she went down a hallway off the entrance lobby.
After just twenty seconds she came back with an older man, likely over 100, who was dressed in the same exact style of robes with a crossed bone and wand emblem. The robes were mostly lime green except with a dark green trim.
"Come with me, we'll take you to a free room to get checked out, Mr. Potter. You may call me Healer Dabbleton and I work in childcare here." The older man said, bringing me and Remus back through the halls and into a small room with a chair.
I took the chair when he motioned for me to sit and realized he'd probably need to heal me in my natural form, so I shrunk my height back down to its natural state (which was pretty short, even for an almost eleven-year-old) and changed my hair and appearance back to the normal, just Harry, body. When I did that, Remus drew his wand and pointed it at me, with a very skittish reaction. Healer Dabbleton just chuckled and said, "A metamorphmagus? It's been only a few years since I've treated one, and there's not much different medically. I do have to advise you not to try to change your internal organs." When Remus heard that, he sighed and put his wand away.
"Sorry, kid. I just lived through the last war and sometimes people said they were who they weren't. It was a big problem for us. I haven't actually seen a metamorphmagus in action, only read about them. Why didn't you tell me?"
"Well, we just met 15 minutes ago and it didn't seem relevant. Also, I guess I just wasn't sure it was such a big deal? I've never been very special." I responded.
"Well, it's about one in a thousand people in Britain who have that ability. You are a very special boy, whether you want to be or not." Healer Dabbleton revealed to me. "So, have you seen a healer since you were a one year old? My records say you haven't. September 13th, 1981 was the last time you saw a healer here at St. Mungo's."
"No, sir." I said. I felt like Pobby, saying 'Sir', because that wasn't a normal mannerism of mine. On that thought, I just noticed I had Harry's British accent and not my own. That's funny. I guess his vocal cords and brain chemistry were hardwired to speak like this. Pobby was patiently waiting in the corner of the room, being basically unnoticeable throughout our move to this room. I guess he would only speak if spoken to. It was a house elf's nature to stay unseen.
"Well, if you don't mind I'd like to cast some diagnostic charms on you?" the Healer said, pulling his wand out of a top pocket in his robe.
"Of course, sir," I said. He then started moving the wand in various shapes, but he cast silently and most of the spells made some sort of light or sound reaction. He cast for about 40 seconds before saying, "Well, there's good news and not as good news. The good news is that it seems you've been vaccinated for all magical diseases and run the full courses by the time of your last checkup as a baby. The not so good news is that you've got a bit of malnutrition, which we can treat with a simple course of potions and some larger portions at meals. It is my job as a healer to ask questions and I must ask, where have you been raised? Not with Mr. Lupin, I assume, since he brought you in today?"
"No. With some muggles. They were not very good caretakers." I said.
"But you're now staying with Mr. Lupin?" He asked.
"For the time being, yes," Remus responded.
"Well, that's good. Everything is in order then and I'll just have you wait here and get Amanda, the witch who helped you before, to bring you the potions I prescribe. I can't wait to see you in the future Mr. Potter. Also, it might be in your interest to get in contact with another metamorphmagus just so you don't make any bad mistakes. Have a good day!" Healer Dabbleton said as he left the room, obviously rushing to fit us into his otherwise scheduled day.
"Wasn't Amanda who she said her niece was?" I asked Remus, and we both chuckled.
Remus and I sat there and chatted about my day in the alley and a bit about him and my parents during their school years at Hogwarts before the witch from before brought us some potions and rung us up for 6 galleons. She slipped me her full name to send the owl to, Amanda Cantwell, being embarrassed after we said we knew she was Amanda and not her niece.
Then we flooed back to the Alley. We had about twenty minutes before we needed to get to the Leaky Cauldron for dinner, so I let Remus know I needed to visit Madam Malkins' to pick up another set of clothes to wear tomorrow. It was going to be a big day with Sirius's trial and would be the first impression I made on many people. Making our way through the cobblestone streets to her shop, I asked Remus to let Pobby bring Remus's things from his cottage to the suite that he would need for the night. Pobby popped off, and we entered the shop. It was a very simple pickup of a dark blue robe, a white collared shirt, dark blue trousers, and a pair of light blue socks. She let me know I could come by tomorrow or any day after that to pick up my full wardrobe.
Stuffing that into my bag, we flooed from her shop to the Leaky Cauldron. The floo there was on the opposite wall of the brick wall entrance to Diagon Alley, and you had to round the corner to the left to get to the main bar area. Tim, the barkeep and proprietor of the Cauldron, was at the long dark wood bar. Tom was who we would need to book a private room with. The bar wasn't too busy yet, being a bit before five in the evening. Remus walked up to the bar and asked, "Can we get a table in a private room?"
"How many?" Tom asked.
"8." I replied. Remus looked at me quizzically, "Who's the eighth?"
"Pobby. Of course?" I said. Remus just nodded at that and shook his head like he hadn't thought of that but it made sense to him after a second thought. I guess people didn't eat with their elves. Well, Pobby wouldn't be treated like vermin around me.
Tom proceeded to lead us around the bar to a door near the Muggle entrance of the pub. Going in, a table that could fit 8 was stuffed into the room by itself. He sat us down and used his wand to summon a full set of dining ware and menus from the main hall of the bar. That bit of magic was showy and interesting as the table made itself.
It wasn't too long of a wait looking at the menu before the Fenwick-Hitchins arrived.
Leaky Cauldron Menu
-Breakfast-
Traditional Breakfast (scrambled eggs, sausage links, bacon, potatoes, baked beans, tomato, mushrooms, croissant, and black pudding): 5 Sickles
Pancake Breakfast (pancakes, sausage links, bacon, and croissant): 5 Sickles
Apple Oatmeal Flan with Yogurt and Fruit: 5 Sickles
Egg, Leek, and Mushroom Pasty (pasty, breakfast potatoes, and fresh fruit): 5 Sickles
Scrambled Eggs: 1 Sickle
Scotch Eggs: 1 Sickle
Sausage Links: 1 Sickle
Bacon (3): 1 Sickle
Croissant: 1 Sickle
Black Pudding: 1 Sickle
Pancakes (2): 2 Sickles
Scone: 1 Sickle
-Lunch and Dinner-
Soup and Salad: 3 Sickles
Toad in the Hole: 3 Sickles
Banger Pub Style Sandwich (with wedge fries): 4 Sickles
Specialty Chicken Sandwich (with wedge fries): 4 Sickles
Fish & Chips: 3 Sickles
Bangers & Mash: 3 Sickles
Beef, Lamb & Guinness Stew: 4 Sickles
Cottage Pie: 4 Sickles
Fisherman's Pie: 4 Sickles
Mini Pie Combination: 4 Sickles
Ploughman's Platter (scotch egg, cheese, bread, cornichon pickles, apple beet salad): 6 Sickles
Sunday Roast: 6 Sickles
Steak and Ale Pie: 4 Sickles
Eton Mess: 3 Sickles
Welsh Cawl: 3 Sickles
Shepherd's Pie: 3 Sickles
Yorkshire Pudding: 2 Sickles
-Beverages (to see alcoholic beverages, see separate menu)-
Gillywater: 8 Knuts
Hot Chocolate: 12 Knuts
Butterbeer: 13 Knuts
Frozen Butterbeer: 13 Knuts
Hot Butterbeer: 13 Knuts
Pumpkin Juice: 10 Knuts
Pumpkin Fizz: 12 Knuts
Fizzing Lemonade: 13 Knuts
Exploding Lemonade: 15 Knuts
Bubble Juice: 13 Knuts
Otter's Fizzy Orange Juice: 10 Knuts
Peachtree Fizzing Tea: 13 Knuts
Tongue Tying Lemon Squash: 10 Knuts
Dragon Milk: 17 Knuts
Fishy Green Ale: 14 Knuts
-Dessert-
Apple Crumble Loaf Cake: 2 Sickles
Sticky Toffee Pudding: 2 Sickles
Cranachan: 2 Sickles
Butterbeer Potted Cream: 2 Sickles
Spotted Dick: 2 Sickles
Chocolate Sponge with Custard: 2 Sickles
Roly Poly with Custard: 2 Sickles
When they did arrive, Remus stood up and hugged Madeline, and Marcus ran over to me and showed me his beginner's rune carving kit. He hadn't unpackaged it, and couldn't while still in the Alley, but it contained slate, wooden blocks, and carving tools. He was really excited about Ancient Runes and got me really excited too, as they were really the basis of all enchantments and wards. Remus overheard our conversation about Runes and said, "I'm actually certified to teach Runes, honestly more so than anything else, and it was something I was very good at in school. If you boys would like to get ahead, and I'm sure you bunch of soon-to-be Ravenclaws would, I can teach you over the summer the whole first-year curriculum and you can go into the second-year class."
"It's not like I have anything else to do. Why don't you teach us both the first and second-year curriculum and we can skip right into the third?"
"There's no reason why I couldn't. It might take 6 hours of tutoring a day almost every day before you leave on the Express to accomplish that, though."
"That's how long a school day is anyway. Sign me up!" I said.
"Yes! I want to too!" Marcus said, eager to learn as much magic as possible.
"If that's alright with you Madeline?" Remus asked.
"Won't you have students to tutor?" Madeline asked Remus back.
"Well, I only tutor a small number of students, and I think Harry needs to be my priority right now. Most of my students are muggles. I have a few wizarding students, and I may offer to them the option to join our sessions, Harry, if that's alright? I think Lily Moon and Oliver Rivers may be interested. They're incoming first years I have tutored in maths to get them ready for second-year Arithmancy and they are always eager to do as much as possible. "
"That sounds great," I said. "New wizard friends!"
At that moment, the Grangers arrived. Just after them, Pobby did, having finished bringing Remus's things to the suite. He quietly walked over to me and asked what he would like me to have him do now, if he wanted for me to have him wait in the suite, or if there was something else he could do for me. I asked him "Would you feel comfortable eating with us? I would like you to."
"Elves do not eat at the table with their masters, sir, that is rare indeed. If you would like it, I can, of course." Pobby replied.
I then introduced the Grangers to Remus, and when Mrs. Granger noticed Pobby she yelped and asked, "What is that?!"
"I am Pobby, Madam." He responded.
"A house elf. They're magical beings, and they serve magical households and families. I employed Pobby today." I explained.
"So, they're domestic servants?" Hermione asked.
"Practically all well-off families have them," Remus replied. "They're often mistaken as slaves by muggle born families. While it is the case they do not get paid monetarily, house elves are unable to generate their own magic without being bonded to a witch or wizard. They'd die within months if not serving a witch or wizard."
"House elves live to serve. I've never met an elf who wanted to be free." Pobby told them.
"But But But.. they're slaves… Isn't that wrong?" Hermione asked the room.
"Well, I took in Pobby because he had been freed. He's one hundred and ninety and if I hadn't adopted him and no one else did, he would have died within a few short months. Because I adopted him, he's now going to live for another two hundred years. I'm going to ensure he's treated well. Tonight, I'm going to have Pobby eat with us, even though that's extremely rare for elves to do. This is the beginning of change." I stated.
The Grangers seemed to calm down to the idea quite a bit, though I could tell Hermione still had an inkling of desire to figure out a way to free them. That's when Tom came around and took our orders. I got the fizzing lemonade and the chicken sandwich, not knowing much about British or Wizarding food and not wanting to be adventurous.
"Pobby. Elves can live to be three hundred and ninety years old?" Mrs. Granger asked him.
"Yes, Madam. If we have powerful masters we can live to a great number of years." He responded.
"That must be a lonely life if all the humans around you die once they reach seventy or eighty." She replied.
"Well, most wizards live to 100, and some much longer," I said. She gasped.
"No one told us that! Hermione could live so long? They should really start with that when they explain magic to us." Mr. Granger said.
"Would you like to know what her natural life expectancy is? Pobby is able to tell quite easily." I asked.
"Oh. um. I don't know. Knowing when you're going to die is a little freaky." Mrs. Granger said.
"Most witches and wizards find out at some point or another. Magical power is somewhat important in the wizarding world and life expectancy and magical power directly correlate." Remus added.
"I'd like to know, Pobby," Hermione said on her own.
"Mrs. Hermione can expect to have a long and fruitful life of one hundred and twenty-five years," Pobby replied without giving the Granger parents a chance to tell him not to.
"Wow," Hermione said. "Is that good?"
"It's above average for a witch or wizard. You're more powerful than most, within the top fifth." Pobby replied.
"Well, Hermione, that's very exciting news." Her parents said, a bit sadly, knowing they wouldn't be there to see most of her life. The conversation about magical power or the advanced age of magical beings didn't continue. Marcus began to tell Hermione about his rune carving kit and the lessons Remus had just agreed to give us. Hermione became enamored by that instead of the forgotten topic of house elf freedom.
"You're a certified tutor, Mr. Lupin?" She asked. He nodded. "Oh, Mummy! Marcus and Harry were just telling me that they were taking classes this next month to get ahead in the Ancient Runes class before Hogwarts."
"Runes?" Emma Granger asked. "What are they used for?"
Remus answered, "They are used to build magical objects. Inscribed in wood, they can hold magic and give objects magical properties. That is how brooms fly, or wands don't break. They are also used as wards, to protect homes and Hogwarts." Remus looked at me for a sort of permission to invite her, and I gave it excitedly. "Hermione, you are welcome to join our lessons."
"Oh, we couldn't possibly." Mr. Granger said.
"Mum! Dad! You have to! He's a certified tutor giving me private lessons in Magic! You know I'll be at a disadvantage not growing up around it and I just want to be good like the other boys and girls!" Hermione said, knowingly guilting her parents into agreeing.
"Hermione. We'll talk about this after dinner with Mr. Lupin privately and let you know then."
"If you do consider it, I have references. I have worked with the Moon and Rivers family recently, preparing their children in maths to accelerate in Arithmancy. See, the first year of Arithmancy covers Pre-Algebra and Algebra topics, the second covers more Algebra and Geometry, and the third covers Trigonometry and Pre-Calculus topics. Students don't really start much non-math related content until their fourth year of classes. Arithmancy is used for spellcrafting, I think I should mention. Wizarding children don't get the best maths preparation anymore as compared to their muggle counterparts, so they often need private tutoring." Remus explained.
"Those references could be helpful." Mr. Granger said.
"So, if you had already covered all those math topics from muggle sources, then you could skip right into fourth year Arithmancy?" I asked Remus.
"Yes. That would be highly irregular though. Not many eleven-year-olds have reached Pre-Calculus." He chuckled. I had in my old life, though, as a high school student. I was no national champion math genius, but I got an A in Honors Pre-Calculus. I think I could handle it. Now, how could I explain that? They probably wouldn't check my class schedule from Harry's classes at his Surrey primary school, but in the event that they did, I would have to come up with a different reason other than having learned advanced math in school.
"I snuck out maths books from the school library. It was all I kept in my cupboard because they could fit in the nooks of the wooden boards. I think you should see where I could be placed, Remus." I said cheerfully.
"Alright. We can do that soon." He said.
"Cupboard?" The Grangers asked. I decided to pull out the envelope of my Hogwarts letter.
Mr. H Potter
The Cupboard under the Stairs
4, Privet Drive,
Little Whinging,
Surrey
I slid the letter around the table. "That's where I lived," I said. "My relatives, the Dursleys, weren't nice people. They stuck me in there instead of my cousin's second bedroom or the guest bedroom. I'm staying with Remus now, though, and we visited St. Mungo's, the magical hospital, so everything's going to be so much better for me now." I said, with a hopeful cheery smile, trying to steer the conversation away, yet still get attention. Man, Harry never wanted attention, but me… If I'm a celebrity, I might as well milk it for what it's worth. There's no point to trying to be normal when you can't be.
"That's just despicable. You should call Children's Protective Services." Mrs. Granger said.
"They treated Dudley like he walked on water. He'll be fine. They're just cruel and wicked people who hate magic. I'm thinking of writing a book about my childhood there."
"A book?" Hermione said, with a twinge of excitement.
Remus then said, "I'm not sure you'd want to make that public. It might create some sentiment against muggles."
"Most muggles are wonderful. The Dursleys were the worst of the worst people, though. Since everyone probably thinks I'm coming from a privileged background being secretly raised by Dumbledore, I'd rather everyone know the actual truth." I said.
"Why would people think the headmaster of Hogwarts raised you? Why would anyone read your book? You're acting like Harry is some big celebrity." Mr. Granger asked.
"You don't know?" Madeline replied.
"Know what?" Mrs. Granger said.
"He was the one. Well, everyone says he did, when he was a baby… he stopped You-Know-Who?" Madeline replied.
"I don't know who." Mrs. Granger said, confused.
"Mum! The bad wizard who started the last war that ended a decade ago," Hermione exclaimed. "That Professor McGonagall told us about!"
"You… you really are a celebrity?" Mr. Granger asked me.
"As far as I know. As I've said, I lived in a cupboard, not the streets of Diagon Alley. I hadn't met any wizards before today." I replied.
"Harry, you really must stop being so nonchalant about the cupboard. What they did was cruel, not a joke." Remus scolded me.
"Laughter heals all, young grasshopper," I said, reciting it like some ancient Chinese proverb. I got a few chuckles, which was nice.
"So, What teachers will we have at Hogwarts?" I asked the table, changing the subject from my fame and childhood with the Dursleys.
"I'm not sure," Remus said. "It's been a while since we've been. Some teachers are the same, I'm sure, but they've definitely had some new ones come in. The application cycles for the next year aren't even done yet. They're looking for a new runes teacher, a defense professor, and multiple others. I was thinking about applying for one of them, but I didn't have much reason to be at Hogwarts."
"You should teach there! It would be nice to have you there." I said. Confused when he said an Ancient Runes position was open, I asked, "How many teachers are at Hogwarts?"
"Maybe I will apply. I believe there are a few hundred, Harry." Remus responded.
"A few hundred!" I exclaimed. "How many students are there?" I asked.
"When we were there, about 4,000. It's probably a bit less now because of the effect the war had on births." Madeline said.
"Professor McGonagall told us that the class size of Hermione's year was likely only going to be around 280 students, with 80 of those students being international to fill the class." Mrs. Granger said. "She said the older years were close to the regular size of 570 students per year." In my head, I realized that made sense with a wizarding population of more than 60,000 that lived to be 100 on average.
The conversation stayed light from then on, continuing from there. We talked and laughed and Madeline and Remus shared funny stories from their time at Hogwarts, many of which they had a different perspective on (with Madeline being the one getting pranked). The Grangers seemed to really enjoy us, and Marcus, Hermione, and I got along swimmingly. Before it was time to go, the Grangers let everyone know they'd be happy to have Hermione join us in our Ancient Runes lessons. Remus could just send them an owl of when and where, and I could have Pobby come and collect her. The Fenwick-Hitchins lived in London, so we made plans to visit with them soon. Then Remus, Pobby, and I all held hands and walked home through the dark cobblestone streets, lit up by soft magical lights from shop windows all the way to the "Excalibur Hotel". This world was magical, wonderful, and so much more than I expected. It was richer than Bill Gates, more enjoyable than Disney World, and more detailed than a snowflake. Sirius's trial the next day weighed on my mind as I fell asleep in one of the large beds in the suite of the hotel. I hoped Sirius was okay. My thoughts and worries for the next day only lingered for a few moments before I quickly passed out of exhaustion. Damn, walking up and down those streets from dawn till dusk was tiring.