July 10, 2011…

Diagon Alley…

"Interesting place," I said, actually taking the time to look around the alley. Last time I was here, no one was out and about, but now? Well, now people were milling around, kids were laughing, and peddlers were peddling the strangest things in broad daylight. "Is it always this crowded?"

"Usually," James smirked as we walked down the street. "What's first on the list, John?"

"Three sets of plain work robes, in black," John recited from the list in his hands that he was holding like the holy grail. "Are we going to Twilfitt and Tatting?"

"No, son, you don't need dress robes for Hogwarts. Madam Malkin fitted me for Hogwarts when I was your age and she'll fit you two as well."

"Where are we going to keep all this, James?" I asked, not really comfortable calling him dad. Thankfully the man understood why but still, I could see it hurt him at least a little.

"I brought my pack, Harry. It's bottomless so I'll be able to carry everything with ease."

"Ah, alright then." I said, looking over John's shoulder to read the list. "Do we really need pointed hats? I mean the winter cloak makes sense, but a pointed hat? Is that necessary?"

"It's tradition," James sighed. "So, yes, son, you need the pointed hats."

"Ah, wonderful," I huffed, rolling my eyes. "Will we get the gloves from Malkin, too?"

"Madam Malkin has pretty good dragonhide but they're not the best. There's an armorer near Gringotts that serves the Aurors and Hitwizard corps. I'm still in his good books so I think I can swing you two something a bit better than Malkin's." James winked at the two of us, getting a smirk from me and a laugh from John.

"Sounds like a plan," I said as James nodded. "So where's Malkin's place, anyway?"

"Right about… There." James said, gesturing to a shop across the street. Sure enough, that was Malkin's. "John, how about you give me the list and I'll go get your telescopes, phials, cauldrons, potions ingredients, all that good stuff while you two get fitted?"

"Sounds good, dad!" John smiled, handing the list to James, who patted John's shoulder and handed him a small pouch I could hear clinking gently from the coins within. I felt my eyebrows shoot into my hairline as James leaned down to John's ear and started whispering. If I were anyone else, the conversation would have been lost in the white noise of the crowd around us, but Sol had already zeroed in and filtered everything else out.

"There're a hundred galleons in here, John. Use it to pay for yours and Harry's robes if you get done and I'm not back, then take him over to Fortescue's. I'll meet you two there and we can get your wands, trunks, and gloves. Keep a close eye on it, okay? I'm trusting you, son. This is a lot of money." John nodded, his eyes wide as dinner plates as he stared at the small pouch. "Whatever you don't use, keep in case you or your brother need some emergency money at Hogwarts. I'll try and get you enough quills, ink, and parchment to last you both the year but you never know."

"Yes, dad." John said quietly, throwing his arms around the man who hugged the boy back.

"Alright, you two get going now. I'll find you again when I get done or meet you at Malkin's if I finish first," James said. I nodded, starting across the street with John hot on my heels. He didn't say a word, but I opened the door when we got to the shop, letting him in first and then following close behind. Then I ran into his back because the idiot kid decided to stop in the doorway.

"John! Move, dammit!" I grunted. The boy looked over his shoulder with wide, almost pleading eyes. I raised an eyebrow and he grudgingly stepped in, letting me in the shop too.

"Well, well, Potter. Who's this?" I turned from John to see a platinum-blonde girl standing on one of the two podiums in the middle of the shop – the other occupied by a brunette who looked utterly bored. "Well?"

"G-Greengrass." John stammered as I examined the girl a bit closer. So was this the obscure Daphne or infamous Astoria? "This is… This is my brother, Harry." Greengrass lifted a delicate eyebrow in the mirror before her facade cracked. She tilted her head back and laughed merrily.

"Oh, Potter, you've got to come up with something better than that. The Prophet said your brother disappeared years ago." Greengrass said after she finally calmed down enough to talk.

"Hm. Believe what you want," I shrugged as I took a seat and crossed my legs over one another lazily, "but I am Harry Potter."

"Please, you don't even have an English accent." The brunette on the opposite podium sniffed.

"First of all, it'd be Welsh. Right, John?"

"Right…" John, who had a slight Welsh brogue, said.

"See? But I wasn't raised in Wales, now was I? I just had a dick of an uncle who gave me away."

"Language, Mr. Potter!" The lady adjusting Greengrass' robe squawked. I shrugged.

"Well, why did I live with my uncle, you ask? That was courtesy of Voldemort." I rolled my eyes as everyone in the shop either gasped or winced. "For Christ's sake, it's a name! And not even a good one at that." I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest as I sat down in one of the chairs by the window to stretch out my legs. "Yeah, where was I? Oh, yeah, Uncle Vernon," I spat. "Thanks to old Moldyshorts, my magic was unstable. His death caused one Hell of a backlash, apparently." I said, going with the official story for now.

"Unstable magic? Hah! As if."

"It's in my medical records." I shrugged. "Believe me, don't believe me, I really don't give a–" I froze as Daphne and I finally locked eyes for the first time, the girl actually deigning to look at me face to face instead of through the mirror. Her icy blue eyes widened and flashed blue-white. I wasn't imagining it, either. Sol and Radin both roared as power flooded my body. "No. No, no, no." I got to my feet, snarling as I let more of Sol and Radin's power pulse through my eyes while her's pulsed with power. "You too?"

"I… When did you find out?" Daphne asked in a small voice.

"Last full moon." I shook my head, pushing my hand through my hair – releasing the power as John looked at me strangely.

"Harry?"

"Not now, John." I said quietly. I heard a slight click as his jaw snapped shut and turned as I felt the air around us cool. I looked at Daphne, whose bloody hair was starting to gather hoarfrost like she was Elsa after she'd stepped out of her Ice Castle. I rolled my eyes and glared at her. "And you! Calm down."

"Why? Why should I?" Daphne hissed, sneering at me now.

"Because if you don't, things are going to get very messy, very quickly." I growled as the girl's glowing white eyes returned to their icy blue. "We'll talk later. Madam Malkin, I apologize for that. Are you still willing to fit my brother and I?"

"Oh, er… Of course, deary," The woman said with a tight smile. "I was just finishing up with Miss Greengrass and Miss Davis. My assistant will start fitting you while I ring up the girls."

"Thank you." I said, still not breaking eye contact with Daphne. She sniffed, turning back to the mirror as she broke eye contact as John sat down beside me.

"What was that!?" He hissed in my ear while I glanced between the two.

"Not here…" I muttered, clapping a hand to his shoulder while I turned to him. His hazel eyes were wide as they looked into mine. "I'll tell you but not here, there're too many ears around us."

"I… I'll hold you to that, Harry," John whispered. I nodded. The two of us fell silent until Malkin and her assistant finished with the girls. The assistant waved John over to her podium as I stared at the girls passing money to the shopkeep at the till. Then Radin roared like a cannon shot.

Daphne jumped straight up in the air and squeaked like a field mouse that looked up and saw an eagle swooping down on it. I just grinned viciously. She whirled around, staring at me with wide eyes until her friend shook her. I smirked as the two walked out of the shop, the blonde still glaring holes in me even as she walked by the window. Then she was gone.

'A mind reader, huh?' I thought as Madam Malkin called me over. I did so, slipping off my dragon-leather coat before I stood on the podium in my jeans and T-shirt.

"Could you please remove your boots as well, Mr. Potter?" She asked. I nodded, kicking them off, but before I could lean down and toss them over to my seat, she flicked her wand and sent them floating over herself. I gave her a nod before she set to work.

'Indeed… It is odd to find a true telepath in a place like this.'

"She's the Wyvern's host, of course she's a telepath."

'Truly? I thought she was the Hydra's host.'

"The Hydra was never a telepath. She was a shield in mind and body, the ultimate shield. But she was always a coward."

'Indeed. Though the Wyvern was always the most devious of us all.'

"Aye. The Hydra may be the Shield to the Quetzal's Sword, but the Wyvern? Always the dagger."

'What are you two rambling on about?' I grumbled as Malkin pinned up the robes around me until they fit less like a box and more like actual robes.

"The Frost Wyvern, the guardian within that girl, could not grant her host abilities like the rest of the Seven could, other than she could shield her host from the cold and summon the cold around her."

'You never told me what the rest could do.'

"In this modern day, you musn't anger the Geoursa."

'The Earth Bear?'

'Its name is Arta, fledgling.'

"That is unimportant, Chronicle. The Geoursa controls Earth and Iron."

'Iron? Just iron or metal in general?'

'Ferrous metals. If it is magnetic the Bear can control it with a touch.'

'Well, that's sufficiently terrifying.' I shuddered as I felt the two guardians agree with me on that.

"If it was unleashed on any city in this day, it would be able to tear down a skyscraper with but a thought."

'That's worse… That's somehow freaking worse…' I thought as Madam Malkin circled me with a hawk's eye for detail.

'Aye, but we were speaking of the Wyvern.'

"Aye. Typically, the Wyvern's host was the greatest warrior of the Seven. Their bodies were harder and they could create armor by freezing the water in the air and manipulating the ice."

'Many blades of Iron and Bronze shattered upon their armor, shattered upon the Wyvern's hide.'

'How big is the Wyvern, anyway?'

'Larger than the Quetzalcoatl.'

'Wait, weren't those hundreds of feet long?'

"Aye."

'Could you take it, Radin?' The Lion remained silent. I was about to say something else when Madam Malkin interrupted.

"Alright, Mr. Potter, there's your robes. Your cloak will be at the counter with your hat and gloves."

"Thank you, ma'am." I nodded, stepping down from the podium as I slipped the fitted robes off of my shoulders as I sat back down, tugging my boots and coat back on as she turned to John to finish his fitting.

'Right, so you can't physically take on the Wyvern because it's just a big fucking ice dragon, that about right?'

"Aye."

'And the more powerful the guardian is physically, the less powerful the abilities it can grant to its host?'

'Generally, that is correct.'

'And would you say I have the most abilities out of the Guardian hosts? Even if one of you were in a different body?'

"Aye…"

'Aye.'

'So you're telling me you're the weakest of the Seven?'

"..."

'It is not that black and white, fledgling, but it would be a fair assumption.'

'But I'm the fastest? By teleporting or just straight up flying.'

'Aye, you are the only one of the Seven who are able to do both.' My eyes narrowed at that. Great, someone else could either fly or teleport.

'And my skin can't be pierced, right? Not that it really matters with my healing factor.'

'Correct again.'

"What is the point in this, boy?"

'I'm saying we might be the physically weakest but we have a thing or two the rest of them don't. If we have to fight any of the other Guardians, I think we'll give them a few nasty surprises.'

"Aye, I believe we will, boy." Radin rumbled as John stepped down from his podium. I stood up, tossing my robe over my shoulder as John handed Madam Malkin a handful of galleons. He glanced at me worriedly as I shook my head again, taking the shrunken bundle madam Malkin pushed forward on the counter in my direction as she handed John the other with his change.

"Thank you, dears. I'll see you next summer."

"No, thank you, ma'am." I nodded as John smiled weakly.

"We'll see you next year, Madam Malkin. Thanks for your help."

"Oh, it was my pleasure!" She said just in time for the doorbell to chime again as an older man entered.

"Agatha! It's wonderful to see you again, my dear. I seem to be in need of dress robes, do you think you could fit me in?"

"Eugene! Merlin it's been so long! How're the…" Madam Malkin smiled as she made her way around the counter, chattering on as I took that as our cue to make an escape. John and I locked eyes and nodded, making our way out of the store while he took the lead again.

"Where to now, John?"

"Florean's. Dad said he'd meet us there… Will you–"

"When we get home, John." I said, cutting off that line of questioning with all the authority and suddenness of a falling guillotine. He sighed but nodded as he turned back around, leading us through the packed streets in a beeline toward the ice cream parlor. The place was pretty empty but there were still a good amount of people there, including someone who recognized John.

"John!? Hey! Over here!" John's eyes snapped over to a girl whose face still had a healthy amount of baby fat. She was waving at him with a bright smile across her face, so there was no doubt she had called out. I thought she looked familiar even if I couldn't put my finger on it, even when John returned her greeting.

"Sue? Hey!" He grinned as he walked over, leaving me standing behind him shaking my head. I moseyed on over as the two finished their greetings.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were with a friend." Sue told John with a slight blush lighting up her cheeks before she turned to me. "Hi! I'm Susan Bones, it's nice to any friend of John's!"

"Hah, well, we're not quite friends yet, more like stuck with each other." I smiled as I took her hand and shook it. She looked confused until I cleared it up. "But it's nice to meet you too. I'm Harry. Harry Potter." Her eyes widened, her eyes snapping up to meet mine for the first time. She'd been avoiding eye contact and I could see why she might want to do that. Her eyes were a unique shade of amber that seemed almost gold in the right light. But that's not what really grabbed my attention, no, that would have been the fact that they flashed a dark yellowish-brown that wasn't quite golden… It was more Earthen than anything but they definitely glowed… Just like mine. Oh. Shit.

For the second time that day, power flooded through my body as I felt my own eyes flash.

"Another one!?" Radin roared in protest but this time I ignored him.

"I know, I know." I smiled at her but I knew it was a bit more tense than before, "I'm supposed to be dead, right?"

"R-right…" She trailed off, still looking into my eyes but I could see John looking at us curiously.

"Harry?"

"Yeah, John?" I asked, looking away from Susan while releasing her hand. I caught her blush brighten while John glanced between the two of us. "John?"

"Yeah?"

"What?"

"Oh." John blinked, blushing too as I gestured for him to get on with it. "Uh, you want some ice cream?"

"No, thank you." I shook my head. "You?"

"Yeah, I uh… I'll be right back. You sure you don't want any? It's really good."

"I'm sure, John. Thanks. You get your ice cream and I'll get us a table."

"You can sit with me!" Susan said a bit too quickly. I wanted to sigh, I really did but refrained.

'Subtlety does not seem to be her strong suit, does it?'

'No, not at all.' I deadpanned as Sol chuckled. 'But she's an eleven year old kid, they're notoriously oblivious.'

"No, no, I'm sure you have someone else about to come back. John and I are expecting James to get back soon anyway. We'll find somewhere else to sit." I said, catching John rolling his eyes as I faced Susan. He shook his head and started walking away as Susan said:

"No! I insist! There's plenty of room here, please, sit down."

"Well, if you insist." I smirked as Susan blushed again. "You're going to have to get that nasty little habit under control, miss Bones. Who are you hosting?" I asked, gesturing at the empty chairs but letting Radin's power trickle into my eyes.

"Arta." She said, Radin hissed while I nodded. "You?"

"The bear. Be wary, boy…"

"Radin. And Sol. Someone screwed up." I muttered as Susan's eyes bugged out in surprise. "John doesn't know. I'll have to tell him at some point but I don't know if he can keep a secret."

"And you'll keep mine?"

"Maybe." I sighed, pulling a hand down my face. "I've already met another one of us just a few minutes ago."

"Who?"

"The host or Guardian?"

"Both, I suppose."

"Greengrass, the one going to Hogwarts with us."

"Daphne? Really?"

"Really." I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. "She's the Wyvern."

"Could be worse…" Susan muttered. "She's always been a bit… Er…"

"Stuck up? Cold? Arrogant?"

"All of the above."

"Right. Be careful around her, she's a natural telepath."

"Really?"

"Yeah, she tried to read my mind but my guard cat scared her off." Susan gained a bit of color back as she giggled. "She didn't try it again."

"What'd she want to know?"

"I'm not sure. What do you want to know?"

"Where you were."

"Canada." I grinned as she stopped short, looking at me for any sign of deceit.

"Really?"

"Yep. Don't ask why, that's a story for another day."

"Alright… How'd you get back?"

"James, Remus, and Dumbledore found me wandering the streets of Edinburgh and brought me back to Potter manor." While it was a simplified version of the truth, it was the truth.

"Ah. Do you like living with James and John?"

"Sometimes, other times it can be a bit… Stifling."

"How so?"

"They want me to be the way they've pictured me in their minds. John's had all his life to come up with this picture of who he's wanted me to be and James? Well, James has just felt guilty about what happened to me."

"He should have, he lost you, Harry!"

"No, he knew where I was at first. His only mistake was thinking family would take care of each other." Susan's eyes went wide as she opened her mouth but was interrupted by:

"I'm back!" John said as he sat down with an absurdly large bowl of ice cream. "What'd I miss?"

"Jimmy! How long's it been, my friend?" The armorer grinned as he embraced James.

"Too long, Gerold, too long indeed. The boys need dragonhide gloves. Malkin gave them her usual crap-"

"An' they need better." Gerold, a musclebound, bearlike Scot grinned as he walked around his display case and plucked eight different pairs of gloves from the shelf behind him. "Try 'em on, boys." The man smiled before it faltered as he blinked. "Boys? Jimmy, you found Harry!?" Gerold boomed as he moved out from around the counter and took my chin between his fingers. "He's Lily's eyes, Merciful Merlin, does he…"

"And we found him in Scotland, Gerold." James smiled as the man released me.

"Hah! Alba Gu Brath, laddy!" He grinned, slapping my shoulder as he returned behind the counter. "Try these, I made 'em meself." The Scot grinned as he pushed two pairs of jet black gloves over the counter. John and I nodded, pulling on the gloves. I frowned and shook my head while John smiled.

"I like these."

"Aye, boyo, but I don't think your brother thinks the same?"

"They're a bit too tight across my hands." The man nodded, grinning as he took the gloves back from me.

"Let me see 'em, lad. Yer hands, let me see 'em. Mayhaps we can get ye a better fit." I put my hands on the counter and he took my left hand in his, feeling it over with a craftsman's precision. He frowned, taking measurements in his head as he examined my hands right up until his finger brushed against my sleeve. He froze before letting go of my hand and feeling up the sleeve. "Where'd you get tha' coat, boyo?" He asked quietly, his eyes sharp as he examined the leather.

"A nomaj thrift shop." I lied smoothly as I could. "Why?"

"Take it off, would ye? If that's what I think it is…" The man said, his eyes searching up and down as I hesitated.

"Can I ask what you think it is?"

"It's dragonhide, that much I know for sure, but the scales are too fine to be visible… There was only one dragon like that in the world and there's only one family who was said to claim such a beast to make their hides inta armor."

"You don't mean–"

"I do, James. If that coat's what I think it is, then yer son has the best armor I've ever had the pleasure to lay eyes on."

"Go ahead, Harry. Gerold'll give it back, won't you?"

"So I swear." Gerold said, still eyeing my coat. I sighed and took it off, placing it on the counter as John watched this all play out without knowing what the Hell was going on. But to be fair, I was almost as lost as he was. Gerold picked up the coat from the counter, checking it over deftly as his fingers danced over the leather. Obviously, he found something that confirmed his suspicion. "Merlin… It is… This is a genuine Noir piece…"

"How can you tell?" I asked, trying not to panic. "And what's a Noir?"

"The Noirs were a family, boyo, dragon masters they called 'emselves. They made the best dragon leather ye could find, and ye paid a premium for it. Aurors wanted them because spells bounced right off, high society wanted them because to say you had a genuine Noir piece? Well, boyo, let's just say these were status symbols as much as they were armor. The Noirs typically used Ironbellies, Welsh Greens, and Pyrenees Kingsprides though they were known to use Horntails and Fireballs on occasion. Though this coat here? This coat was made from a Sandscale's hide."

"What's so special about that?"

"There ain't no Sandscales anymore, lad. The Mexicans killed 'em when they had to while they still held the Mojave but the Americans? Ye ever heard of the buffalo, lad?"

"I have."

"They did the same thing to the Sandscales and drove 'em right past the brink. Nature did t'a rest and they never recovered from that. The Noirs took two before the Americans took the rest as bloody trophies. Those trophies are just skulls now. The Noirs though… The Noirs figured out how to preserve the hides, perfectly. They made Sandscale coats up until they – the family – were killed in the wars against Grindelwald."

"Oh… So how much would this be worth now?"

"Well over a hundred thousand galleons, lad."

"Merlin!" James gasped as he stared down at the coat on the counter. "And you found it in a… A thrift store?"

"Yeah, paid a few bucks for it… But I'm still keeping it." I said as James shook his head.

"Harry, a hundred thousand galleons is a lot of money. We could do a lot of good with it."

"Maybe, but I'm keeping it." I said as I took my coat off the counter and shrugged it back onto my shoulders.

"Harry…" John said quietly. "Maybe… Maybe you should sell it."

"No, John. It's mine. Gerold said it himself, it's the best armor he's ever laid eyes on."

"And why do you need armor?"

"You tell me, oh Boy-Who-Lived." John winced. "Exactly."

"Harry…"

"I know, I know, Voldemort's dead." And I knew that for sure, thank you resurrection stone. Though talking to seven different Voldemorts was a very weird experience even if it was only for a few seconds. "But I'd still rather be safe than sorry if someone wants to shoot me in the back. So, do you have a set of gloves you think will work for me or will I have to find a pair in another thrift store?"

As it turns out, I would have to find a pair in another thrift store because I wasn't getting anything here. James dragged me out of the store and into an alley and tried to set me straight for talking to the poor man that way. I admit, I was in the wrong and did apologize to him but not because James tried to discipline me. Gerold accepted the apology and said he understood, he wouldn't want to be told he should sell a coat like mine either. The man would have sold me gloves but the problem was he just didn't have a pair that worked with my hands. Apparently, the claws made them a bit wider than they should have been normally – and my forearms were in the same boat.

Looks like I'd have to check out my vault at some point to see if there were a pair in there but Malkin's gloves would have to work for now.

But right now I had something else to focus on.

Ollivander.

It was time for John and I to get our wands.

Together, the three of us strode down the street until we came to the infamous, iconic shop that everyone who loved Harry Potter knew of all too well. And here I was with James Potter holding the door for the two of us to go in.

Oh my inner nerd was freaking out more than a little right about now.

"Control yourself, boy. You cannot afford to be distracted lest you run into another one of us."

'Right, sorry.' I thought absently, scanning the dusty shop as Radin turned on his heat vision. My eyebrow flickered up as I watched Ollivander slip around us while James and John were completely oblivious while they gawked around the shop. I acted like I hadn't noticed him as Radin dropped our heat vision, losing sight of the invisible man as he snuck around behind us.

"James Potter… Mahogany, eleven inches long yet still pliable. Hm, a little more power than usual yet excellent for transfiguration. Oh yes, my boy, your wand has served you well." James and John almost jumped through the ceiling when Garrick spoke, finally visible for the first time. "John Potter, yes, I thought I'd be seeing you soon but you, Harry Potter, I never thought you would darken my doors. It does this old man good to see you returned." The man never blinked, trying to burn holes in me with those silvery eyes of his.

"Thanks, I think?"

"You are welcome, dear boy. Ah, I fear you three did not come to listen to the ramblings of an old man, did you? No, no. Now, John, which is your wand arm?"

"My left." John said quietly as tape measures flew around us. Ollivander hummed thoughtfully as he checked the tapes.

"Very good. Now, John, I'm sure your father has told you all about wands, yes?"

"Yes sir, he has."

"Excellent." He nodded. "But you, Harry, you are less well versed in the craft?"

"I know you have three wand cores but there are hundreds of magical creatures."

"Ahah, yes, I prefer to only work with three cores, 'tis true, but that is only the culmination of a misadventurous youth. You see, in these very isles I can find a single phoenix who only gave two feathers, a unicorn herd, a herd of wild Welsh Greens, and a large group of the ever solitary Hebridian Blacks. For other materials, I fear I must go slightly further afield. When I was a lad, I sojourned to many, many far away lands to find materials. Now that I am an old man, I loathe to leave my shop for long periods. And I fear I am the only master here now." Ollivander smiled sadly as he took a pair of boxes from the shelves. "My father, grandfather, and their fathers before them have lived in this shop since this city was a collection of mud huts dubbed Londinium, Mr. Potter, but my family has been creating focuses for centuries even before that. What you see in this shop is the culmination and collection of two thousand years of creation, of creativity." He pressed a white wand into my hands. He hummed and plucked it from my fingers before I could even get a feel for it. "Tricky, very tricky… Perhaps you will get to see those wands." He smiled then turned to John, pressing the same wand he had given to me into the boy's hands. His eyes widened marginally before he chuckled. "It seems neither of you are suited to a phoenix, boys. Perhaps…"

I stopped paying attention as the man took the length of white wood away, tucking it back into its box. Wait… Was that…? Did neither of us bond to the Holly on Phoenix wand? Well… Maybe that thing really was tied to Voldemort. A terrible man but a great wizard indeed. I was torn out of my musings as Ollivander pushed another wand into my hands.

"Go ahead," he said fervently, "give it a wave. Mahogany on Dragon, a powerful wand, yes, quite powerful indeed." I nodded but as soon as I held the wand up I frowned and shook my head.

"No, not this one."

"Truly? You do not wish to try it?"

"It… It doesn't feel right." I said, turning the wand around and offering it to the wandcrafter hilt first. He smiled tightly as he turned to John.

"It seems I have misjudged your brother, John, but have I done the same for you?" His silver eyes seemed to glow in the dim room as John squirmed uncomfortably. "Yes, yes, you may be your father's son. But your mother…" Ollivander paused as he dug back into the stacks, "Ahah! Yes, Willow, swishy, ten and a quarter inches, good for charms work and those quick of wit, for those strong of heart, that was your mother's wand. Try this, Mr. Potter." Ollivander said, passing John a wisp of a wand. John took it with wide eyes. He waved it through the air, setting white and blue sparks dazzling in the dim shop. "Oh very good! Yes, yes, I should have expected that. Willow on Dragon, flexible… It should serve you well in whichever field you choose. Now, Harry, your brother has found his partner, let's find your perfect match."

And so, with James and John watching curiously, Ollivander handed me wand after wand. Ebony on Unicorn, Maple on Phoenix, Beech on Dragon, English Oak on Unicorn, Yew on Dragon, Pear on Dragon, Rowan on Unicorn. Nothing seemed to work for me and Ollivander was ecstatic.

"Worry not, Harry, your match is here somewhere. Now… I wonder… Hm… Odd. Yes, very odd. But could it work?" Ollivander turned around and examined me from head to foot before a grin lit up his face. "Yes, yes indeed. Come, Mr. Potter, I believe it is… Ah! Here! Yes, here it is!" The man said, plucking a blood red wand from one of the stacks. I paused as he pressed the wand into my hand. I wasn't expecting anything but when fire ran up my arm, I turned the wand to the ceiling and watched as lightning arced from the wand into the poor rafter with a deafening crack of thunder. I thought I heard a hawk's cry but wasn't sure if I heard it, if it was Sol, or if I was hallucinating.

"What was that!?" James cried, his wand in his hand as he looked between the wand in my hand and at Ollivander.

"That was the wand that chose your son, Mr. Potter. Red Oak on Thunderbird. A wand created by my great, great, great grandfather in the days of exploration… Inflexible, twelve inches exactly, this is as much a duelist's wand as a learner's. I dare say we should expect great things from you. From both of you." Ollivander said, meeting my eyes before turning to John with the same look. John looked nervous, twitching from foot to foot while James' face was hard.

"Thank you, Garrick." James said, putting his hand on John's shoulder as the boy looked down at his wand. "How much do I owe you?"

"Fourteen galleons, James. Would you like a pair of wand cleaning kits to bring the total to fifteen?"

"Yes, of course." James nodded, following Ollivander over to the counter while I joined John.

"So willow on dragon, huh?"

"Yeah… Not as cool as oak on thunderbird, though."

"Hey, it doesn't have to be cool." I said, flicking his forehead lightly. He looked surprised and a bit indignant though I interrupted any comments he could make. "It has to be yours and that's all it has to be. You can make it cool or it can just be functional. Your wand will be whatever you choose to make it."

"I- Thanks, Harry." John said. "Do you think it'll be good enough?"

"I think your wand is an extension of you, John. Quick witted, strong of heart, that's what Ollivander said right?"

"Right."

"What did he say about mine?"

"That it's a duelist's wand." John muttered darkly.

"It's inflexible." John looked at me flatly, questioningly. "Yours is flexible, mine isn't. You're flexible, I'm not. Just think about what you did to me Yesterday, do you really think I'd have broken that out in the middle of a fight?" He snorted as I shook my head, rubbing my temple where he kicked me just for a bit of emphasis.

"Hah, not with that punch you got me with."

"That sucker punch? If you had any boxing training, you'd have seen it coming."

"Yeah, but I don't."

"And I don't have ninja training." John grinned as I rolled my eyes. "Go ahead, rub it in."

"I won't." John chirped brightly, I just shoved him aside.

"Yeah, sure you won't." I smirked as John shoved me back, grinning as broadly as I had ever seen before.

"Alright, boys, are you ready to head home?"

"We haven't gotten our books yet."

"Ravenclaw." John quipped.

"Shut up, John."

"Nope! You're sooo going to be a Ravenclaw!"

"Yeah, and you're definitely going to be a Gryffindor. But we still need to get our books."

"He's right, John." James laughed, cutting his son off before he could protest. "Harry may be a Ravenclaw but you both are going to Hogwarts to study, you know what I expect your grades to be like."

"Yes, dad," John sighed, "but you can't let Harry buy the whole store."

"I didn't plan on it, son." James and John laughed but I had an idea. Maybe I could-

"Harry? You in there?" John asked, still smirking as he tapped my forehead.

"What?"

"Yep, there you are." James grinned as he ruffled my hair.

"Books, now." I grunted. "Thank you, Mr. Ollivander." I said as I pushed open the door.

"And thank you, Misters Potter, it has been quite the experience."

"You can say that again." I said, twirling my wand between my fingers absently. "See ya."

"Harry!" James hissed. "Be polite!"

"Never learned." James blinked before his shoulders slumped.

"Right… Sorry, Garrick, Harry wasn't brought up like I'd have liked him to be." James said as I propped the door open with my foot while standing on the street.

"It is perfectly understandable, James. But you do understand you will have to speak to the Prophet about this before the evening edition, yes?"

"Bloody Hell, it'll be bad enough if the Prophet learns Harry's back but if the TVs do? It'll be a nightmare." James shuddered as he and John finally walked out of the shop. "Thank you once again, Garrick. Good day."

"And a good day to you as well, James." Garrick waved as I pulled my foot away from the door, letting it shut with a thud.

"Alright, let's get our books and get out of here," I said, already stalking toward Flourish and Blotts. I'd seen it on the way in and was bound and determined to get there already.