Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket.
A twist at the end of Harry's first trip to Diagon Alley with Hagrid.
Chapter 4: Spinner's End.
I don't own the Harry Potter verse. Just playing.
Summary: A twist at the end of Harry's first trip to Diagon Alley with Hagrid. As they approach the Leaky Cauldron to leave Diagon Alley, Hagrid decides to present Harry with his gold ticket to the Hogwarts Express, while Harry was really expecting to go directly to Hogwarts with Hagrid now. Harry asks a different question.
And that changes everything. HHr NLLL T for Characters deaths.
31/12/21 Beta by alix33. Thank you.
- Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket. -
The next morning Aunt Petunia and Harry traveled around historical Cokeworth as she pointed out her parents' old home, and the ancient graveyard that was the last resting place of Harry's grandparents going back three generations to the grave of an ancestor with the unusual name of Felix Gaunt. She told the sad story of how her parents died in a terrible mysterious car crash that was caused by Death Eaters hunting Lily. She told Harry that he should be proud of his grandfather as he loved flying and flew Spitfires and de Havilland Mosquitoes in the RAF.
Aunt Petunia reminisces. "But your grandmother, Harry. She was a beautiful redhead and a surprising dark horse. I always thought she was this sweet stay at home mum who kept the home fires burning. Until after she passed and Lily and I went through her things. We found her flight jacket and logbook. She was a pilot in the Air Transport Auxiliary and flew in Spitfires, Mustangs, Typhoons, Wellingtons and Mosquitoes. The ATA ferried aircraft from factories to airfields. That was how she met your grandfather. Lily inherited her fiery red hair and nature. It sucks to discover that your parents were way cooler than you."
Harry was amazed at his hidden heritage and always wanted to fly away. It was in his blood.
Aunt Petunia showed him, the old schools Lily and she attended, and all the places by the river where they loved to play and where she met Vernon and his new car. He was going places, and was her way out of Cokeworth.
Harry asked a question he had since that night when Hagrid first showed up at the Hut of the Rock. "Did you resent my mother for having magic?"
Aunt Petunia reflected for a moment as she thought back over what she had said that night. "It wasn't just magic, Harry. Being the older sister and expected to care for a younger sister, we were the best of sisters until Lily started school and met a young boy from the wrong side of town. He knew that she was a witch and they were doing magic straight away. I tried to scare him off but Lily protected her friend. So I was now on the outside and it only got worse when our parents found out that she was a witch. Lily had always been beautiful and full of life, and was so easy to love. Our parents loved us both but it only takes a little bit of being resentful to make it so hard to feel loved. Then all those damn letters from that interfering old fool just added to my bitterness against magic and that was focused on you. I am sorry. I blamed your father and the old fool for getting Lily murdered."
Harry gently touched her arm. "You lost so much."
Aunt Petunia nodded sadly and then brightens up as she remembered.
"But there were so many good times when Lily shared her magic with me and we had so much fun together. She changed my hair colour to red to match hers and touched up our clothes to the latest chic fashions and the glorious shoes she could transfigure." She waved her hand around as if she was transfiguring shoes like a Fairy Godmother with a star wand. "They were exquisite and would have cost a fortune if we had to buy them, and the cushioning charms made them so comfortable to wear. She helped me to catch Vernon's eye. He had big plans but all that was put on hold when that old fool dumped you on our doorstep."
Harry nodded sadly.
"Yes, I gather that. That wasn't fair to you and put you and your family in danger." Harry said gently. "But. Now, you have the opportunity to plan your own future. We both get what we wanted."
"That's what Lily said." Aunt Petunia looked at her nephew and wondered how old he was to act so mature. "But then the old fool, Voldemort and the Death Eaters happened, and Lily was..."
Harry just listened to her quietly.
"Without those ugly glasses, I can see her looking at me through your eyes, Harry, and that has reminded me of how much she loved me and how much I miss her. I am ashamed of how I treated you. And you forgiving me has helped the bitterness to pass, leaving only the love."
The two of them walked in silence as they resolved to not waste that love.
- Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket. -
Around noon they ended up near a dirty river that wound between overgrown, rubbish-strewn banks. An immense chimney, relic of a disused mill, reared up, shadowy and ominous. It looked abandoned as there was no sound apart from the whisper of the black water and no sign of life.
Aunt Petunia led Harry along where a line of old railings separated the river from a narrow, cobbled street. Side by side they stood looking across the road at the rows and rows of dilapidated brick houses, their windows dull and blind in the darkness. They darted through an alley between the houses into a second, almost identical street. Some of the streetlamps were broken and even at noon the streets were dark as if in permanent shadow. They moved deeper into the deserted labyrinth of brick houses. At last, they hurried up a street named Spinner's End, over which the towering mill chimney seemed to hover like a giant admonitory finger. Their footsteps echoed on the cobbles as they passed boarded and broken windows, until they reached the very last house, where a dim light glimmered through the curtains in a downstairs room. She knocked on the door and waited.
After a long while, they heard movement behind the door and it opened a crack. A sliver of a man could be seen looking out at them, a man with long black hair parted in curtains around a sallow face and blood shot black eyes. (Mood image from HBP.)
"Petunia?" said the man sarcastically, opening the door a little wider, to get a better look. "What a pleasant surprise!"
"Severus," Aunt Petunia said in a strained whisper. "You look like er, terrible."
They stood there staring at each other.
"May I speak to you? It's urgent."
Severus turned to the side and whispered. "Princess, we have guests!"
Harry heard a faint pop inside the door, then snap, snap, snap, and a glass of bubbling smoking orange liquid appeared in Severus's hand and a final pop. He watched as the wizard drank the glass in one go and orange steam came out of his ears as the appearance of intoxication dissipated. While Aunt Petunia just showed her distaste a little as she still needed the wizard's help.
Severus stood back to allow her to pass him into the very recently cleaned house. Then he sneered at the boy standing behind her.
"Is this your evil spawn…"
But then he noticed those unmistakable emerald green eyes.
"Sweet Merlin! You're Harry!"
A surprised Severus stated the obvious.
"But! But I saw you yesterday in Diagon Alley with that great oaf Hagrid! You were the mirror image of your despicable father! How?"
"Magic!" Petunia said bitterly as she stood in front of Harry. "Some manipulative interfering know-it-all stupid old goat, charmed Harry to look exactly like his father, but he is his mother's son."
"Oh?"
"Harry was practicing the general counterspell and managed to remove the magic that the old fool had done. I stopped feeling the need to punish him for doing magic, and I gather from your reaction, you have been bewitched to respond to his father's appearance." Aunt Petunia explained as she guided Harry inside.
Severus closed the door with a snap behind them and sat down as he was still recovering from his hangover from yesterday and the hangover potion was still working its magic. He had tried to drown his sorrows at the horrible thought of teaching the evil spawn of James Potter for the next seven years. The headmaster seem to enjoy reminding him that Harry Potter was coming to Hogwarts this year and he was the exact image of his father. Adding to his bitterness of the headmaster for his callous failure to save Lily.
And now he knew why!
"Evil Manipulative Old Goat!" He whispered to himself with his head in his hands as he realised what his reaction to the evil spawn of James Potter would be, and it was all the headmaster's scheming manipulations. Oh, how he hated being manipulated. The shock cleared his head as his mind was racing with questions and scenarios.
Petunia directed Harry to the kitchen. "Have a look in there and see what you can cook up. It doesn't look like he has eaten today."
Harry walked into the kitchen but didn't notice the large sad eyes that watched him from a dark corner. He checked the cupboards, bench and the old fridge.
"Mmm, we have eggs, butter, and bacon. If we had English Muffins we could do Eggs Benedict." He said to himself.
Then he heard a snap and he closed the old fridge door and found a bag of English Muffins on the bench that he knew wasn't there a moment ago.
"Excellent." He said as wondered how a Magical Kitchen worked and if he asked for an ingredient, would it magically appear?
Harry started with the Hollandaise sauce, gently melting the butter in a pan on the spotless ancient gas stove, and then whisked the egg yolks in a bowl until they fluffed up and got a little paler. Slowly he added in the melted butter while continuing to whisk the bowl of egg yolk.
He tried his luck and asked for. "Lemon juice, please?"
Snap. A small bowl of lemon juice appeared on the bench next to him.
"Thank you." Harry smiled as he added that with some salt.
"Cayenne pepper, please?"
Snap. The empty small bowl vanished and a shaker of Cayenne pepper appeared next to him.
"Thank you." Harry smiled as he added that and whisked the sauce until creamy.
Then Harry poached the eggs. He half-fill a large shallow frying pan with water; and brought it to the boil. He broke an egg into a cup, and then used a spoon to spin the water into a whirlpool as he slid the egg into the center of the vortex. The swirling maelstrom caused the egg white to wrap around the yolk. He repeated for the second egg. Until perfectly cooked poached eggs with a soft yolk. He placed the poached eggs on dry bread to drain.
He seared the bacon and toasted the muffin until golden brown. Then set the muffin on a plate, added the bacon, poached eggs and ran a generous serving of Hollandaise sauce.
"Oh, I need some finely chopped parsley, chives and rosemary, please?"
Snap. A bowl of finely chopped parsley, chives and rosemary, appeared.
"Thank you." Harry smiled as he carefully sprinkled some parsley, chives and rosemary over it all.
"A steak knife and fork, please?"
Snap. A steak knife and fork appeared.
Thank you." Harry smiled as he gathered the plate of Eggs Benedict and knife and fork, turned to walk out of the kitchen. He would return later to clean up.
Snap!
Harry turned back to see the used bowls and pans washing themselves up and then flying back to their starting places as the kitchen cleaned itself spotless.
"Oh, I love this kitchen." Harry chuckled as went back into the living room.
While the large once sad eyes that watched him from a dark corner, were now smiling. Such a nice young wizard. Just like his mother.
- Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket. -
Meanwhile in the living room, Severus wanted answers.
"Why is Harry with you? Dumbledore assured me he was safe and, loved." He stressed the last word and Petunia blushed.
"Yes, well? Dumbledore lied! Didn't he! The old fool dumped Harry on our doorstep in the middle of the night. I found him in the morning with a letter that said Lily was dead and that Harry was our problem now. How on earth could we keep him safe from those evil wizards? The old fool wrote that we would be somehow protected if we kept him. We didn't know what had happened, who was left alive or how to contact them. No one visited. No one came to checked up on him. And we couldn't find that disgusting pub in London. The only wizard I knew how to find was you. But you were on the wrong side. So there was no one to return him to."
Strangely, Severus understood her frustration. That sounded like typical Dumbledore 101, How to be in total control with zero responsibilities, while everyone else is totally blocked and absolutely frustrated.
"Oh? Why are you here now?"
"Voldemort attacked us in our home yesterday and Harry saved our lives."
"Voldemort?" Severus rubbed his left arm. He noticed something was different with his dark mark. He gave it a quick glance to see that it had faded more. The Dark Lord had been severely weakened but was still on the wrong side of dead.
"Yes, Voldemort! Black mist in a sort of human shape with evil red eyes." Petunia spat out and then imitated that evil high-pitched voice. "Harry Potter! We meet again!"
Severus blanched. He never wanted to hear that voice again.
"That evil monster tried to Avada Kedavra me! He didn't hesitate to cast the Killing Curse first and didn't bother to ask questions. But Harry stopped him!"
"Oh? How?"
"Harry jumped on the evil black mist monster and it screamed! And exploded in a shower of sparks!" Aunt Petunia smirked. She was kind of proud of her little monster slayer.
"Really?" Severus could see she wasn't lying and turned to looked at Harry busy preparing something and noticed Princess watching him in Her kitchen. He wondered if Harry really did have the power to vanquish dark lords.
"Dumbledore promised us protection, and he lied! That monster attacked us inside our own home! So we are leaving! We can't take Harry with us or that old fool will hound us to the end of the earth. Then I remembered you. It has been ten years and you were far too cunning to get yourself killed in that war, and you were Lily's best friend, once!"
"Oh?" Severus said as his heart clenched at the last statement. He loved Lily and still did. But he knew how far Dumbledore would go to maintain his absolute control over the Boy.
"Will you take over the guardianship of Harry for Lily's sake?"
"Oh? Let me think." A rarely surprised Severus said while he quickly thought out the options. What would he do for Lily's sake this time now?
Harry walked into the living room with a deliciously smelling plate of Eggs Benedict and gave it to Severus with a knife and fork.
"Love your kitchen." Harry said as he turned to his aunt. "You ought to see it, Aunt Petunia. It has cooking assist, just ask nicely and it appears, and it has automatic cleaning when you are done. No more hours of washing up."
Aunt Petunia smiled as she remembered happier times with Lily cooking and cleaning with magic.
Severus chuckled. It was a good sign if Princess liked Harry. He slowly took at the plate as he looked closely at the new look Harry, and didn't feel the animosity that drove him to find oblivion at the bottom of a bottle of Firewhisky. That confirmed it as he cursed the Evil Manipulative Old Fool under his breath in Parseltongue. (All Slytherins were taught to curse in Parseltongue. It was tradition!) He smiled at the boy and decided to go all in for Lily and give Her Harry a chance, as his Slytherin side plotted sweet revenge against the manipulative headmaster. While Harry hid his surprise at what the wizard had hissed about Dumbledore. He wondered if magic could really do that and it would be very painful.
"Eggs Benedict? I haven't had Eggs Benedict since your mother cooked…" Severus hesitated as he glanced into those emerald green eyes and something magical broke in the back of his mind as he found that he could talk about Lily. "Your mother cooked Eggs Benedict for me while we were at school."
The scent of the Eggs Benedict was the same. Severus didn't survive the war by being careless. After Dumbledore, he didn't trust anyone. He cut a piece and slowly brought it up to his mouth.
Then he froze as he tasted the Eggs Benedict and almost dropped the plate as his mind was instantly transported back to those happier times when Lily Evans was his best friend and the world was bright and beautiful, and full of hope. A tear formed in his eye as he ate another portion and made an uncharacteristically effusion.
"Sweet Merlin! This is exactly how your mother cooked Eggs Benedict, Harry. Thank you."
"Yes, he inherited Lily's gift for cooking and so he should be brilliant at potions with the right teacher." Petunia added. "So, will you take him?"
Severus made his mind up and he wouldn't fail Lily again and he wouldn't involved the headmaster, this time. He just ruins everything.
Severus got serious. "I would, but I am under the headmaster's thumb. However, I know someone who would love to care for Harry and teach him his magical family heritage, and she hates the headmaster far more than you do. She might even allow me to act in loco parentis for Harry while he is at Hogwarts, and I can keep an eye on him."
"Oh? Who do I assign Harry's guardianship to?"
"Madam Augusta Longbottom."
"The name sounds familiar." Petunia wondered. "Was she the old battleaxe who broke Dumbledore's nose at Lily's wedding?"
Severus nodded as he smiled at the bitter sweet memory of Lily's wedding. He hadn't been invited but he managed to sneak in using his Animagus form of a large Greater mouse-eared bat.
"She will be perfect." Petunia said as she wrote out the change of guardianship and transferred it to Augusta, she appointed Severus to act in loco parentis for Harry while he is at Hogwarts, and signed it with Severus and Harry as witnesses. She then gave a whistle and there was the sound of ruffled feathers as Hedwig and Louis managed to squeeze Harry's trunk through the crack under the front door of Severus' home.
Severus smiled. "Lily's Horatio would do that for her."
Harry explained. "Horatio is Hedwig's grandfather and Louis' great-grandfather."
"I thought they looked familiar. They will serve you well, Harry." Severus replied.
"Would you know who killed Horatio?" Harry asked.
Severus nodded sadly. "Peter Pettigrew."
"The rat?" Petunia confirmed.
"The rat again?" Harry asked.
"I don't know how he was ever one of your father's friends. He always gave me the creeps as he could transform into a fat rat." Aunt Petunia explained and then she turned to give Harry his first hug.
"It is time for me to go, Harry. I may never see you again. Thank you for saving my family yesterday. After the way we treated you, we certainly didn't deserve you to risk your life for us. Thank you for forgiving me and for giving my sister back to me. I will try my best to follow your example and be a better person."
Severus watched the exchange with interest to witness how much Petunia had changed, when she turned to him and looked him directly in the eye.
"I forgive you, Severus, for all the nasty horrible things you said about me and the magic you cast against me that Lily punished you for. I am sorry for what I said and did to you. I hope that one day you can forgive me."
Severus was struck speechless for the second time, and just nodded slowly in shock. This was not the Petunia he remembered.
She turned back to Harry.
"This is goodbye, Harry. Take care."
Harry saw a tear in her eye. "Goodbye, Aunt Petunia. Take good care of uncle Vernon and big D."
"I will." She turned to her former childhood frenemy.
"Goodbye Severus. Take good care of Harry. A word to the wise, I saw what he did to that evil monster. It turns out that it was not Harry that needed protection."
Severus nodded slowly as he understood the missing words, The Dark Lords were toast. He looked at Harry and he had the same innocent smile that Lily had before she dealt with some idiot. Usually James Potter. Slowly he spoke.
"Goodbye Petunia. I shall endeavour to give you a week's head start before the headmaster comes looking for you."
"Thank you. Hopefully we shall be on the other side of the planet by then."
And she turned and left.
Severus watched her go and then looked at Harry. "You really are Lily's son."
Harry nodded a thank you as Hedwig barked.
"Good idea, Hedwig. Off you go but be gentle."
Hedwig and Louis left together as he turned to Severus.
"Hedwig doesn't think Aunt Petunia will be able to find her way out of this labyrinth and offered to give her a lift back to her car."
They chuckled when they heard Aunt Petunia's vocalization of joy as she flew above the dilapidated ruins of the old mill town with two Magical Mail Owls.
- Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket. -
Hedwig was of course, right.
Aunt Petunia was a little tearful as she was taking her first steps in a new phase of her life as she left Harry and magic behind. Having Harry forgive her after everything she had done, had rocked her world. It was such a Lily thing to do after saving her family from that evil monster.
Thinking how she could change to follow Harry's example and be a better caring loving person. She was a little distracted and missed the turns on the path out of the Labyrinth, and was soon hopelessly lost.
Aunt Petunia turned around to try and find the correct path when she smiled as she saw the two beautiful snowy owls charging to her rescue.
Hedwig and Louis gently landed on her shoulders, and Aunt Petunia felt weightless as the two Magical Mail Owls effortlessly lifted her up and over the derelict buildings of the Labyrinth. She saw a new perspective of her childhood town and it looked magical with all the green trees that had reclaimed the abandoned buildings and open space.
"WOO WHOO!"
She whooped with joy as she soared above the Labyrinth, and flew twice around the immense towering chimney and over the disused mill. Giving her a panoramic view of the beautiful land of her childhood.
It was the most magical thing she had ever done.
Sadly it was also the only magical thing she had ever done without her sister, but she loved every moment as she remembered to point her toes as she gracefully flew.
All too soon her magical flight was over as Hedwig and Louis carefully landed next to her car, and flew off leaving behind a thankful Aunty as she waved goodbye.
A little girl with bright red hair was standing near the car and saw the flying lady land, and watched the two owls fly away.
"Wow, you flew! Are you Mary Poppins?"
Aunt Petunia turned to the little girl and smiled. She reminded her of someone.
The little girl asked. "How did you do that?"
"Magic!"
Aunt Petunia smiled as she got in her car. Since she was a little girl and discovered Lily had magic, she had always wanted to fly on a broom, but now she thought that flying with two owls was way more cooler, far more comfortable and so such more Mary Poppinsish.
Petunia Dursleys nee Evans waved to the little girl as she drove off and then whispered with a tear in her eye. "Thank you, Harry. You have really truly forgiven me. Such a Lily thing to do. I will never forget this."
The little girl waved goodbye.
Natalie McDonald will have to wait until 1994 before she would see another Magical Mail Owl with her own personal Hogwarts Acceptance Letter to a new Magical World. The brave courageous little girl would certainly be sorted into Gryffindor.
- Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket. -
Thank you for reading.
- Harry Potter and the Unwanted Ticket. -