A couple of days later, Grover and Annabeth swung by to pick Harry and Percy up. Together, the four of them returned back to Camp Half-Blood, and all of them received a heroes' welcome. During the feast, they wore laurel wreaths and led a procession down to the camp bonfire.

Apparently they were the first questors to return alive since Luke, a few years ago. Since no one could guarantee anyone's safety, there were burial shrouds built, just in case. The Athena campers created a beautiful grey silk shroud decorated with embroidered owls. Meanwhile, the Apollo cabin handled Harry's, a silvery silk shroud with a large crescent moon and an arrow crossing it.

The Ares cabin took the responsibility of creating Percy's and intimidated everyone else into backing off. His shroud was a plain bed sheet with painted smiley faces with crossed out eyes, and the word 'LOSER' in big bold words. So, the three demigods had plenty of fun burning the shrouds.

As for Grover, the Council of Cloven Elders were so impressed with his performance that they granted him a shiny new searcher's license. The only ones who were pretty sour about the whole ordeal were Clarisse and her siblings.

Soon, everything fell into a routine once again, with Harry and Percy training hard, because the fight was never over. However, Harry also managed to sit down with Mackenzie and brought her up to speed with the basics of magic. At the same time, he managed to get his summer homework done, two birds with one stone.

Back in Manhattan, Sally Jackson sold her first life-size concrete sculpture, titled The Poker Player. The winning bid came from Sirius, who wanted it, just to annoy his dear old mother. The cheque he filled out, was enough to see her buy a new apartment and have some left over to pay for first-term tuition at NYU.

On the Fourth of July, everyone gathered to watch the firework show, courtesy the Hephaestus cabin. That night, as Harry, Percy, Annabeth and Mackenzie set up their picnic blanket, Grover came trotting up. He bashfully drew circles with his hoof, "Hey guys, I thought I'd let you know that I'm heading off now. Need to get started on my quest to find Pan."

Annabeth and Mackenzie hugged him, while Harry and Percy gave him high-fives. Percy tried to wheedle out the location of his first destination, but Grover denied him. Annabeth immediately began fussing over him, "You got enough tin cans for the trip? Remembered your reed pipes? Do you-"

He grumbled, "Jeez! Enough already! You're starting to sound like an old mama goat."

Soon enough, with a walking stick and backpack, he was off and away. Soon, the light show began, depicting various scenes which looked almost animated. Herakles killing the Nemean Lion, Artemis chasing a large boar, George Washington, son of Athena, crossing the Delaware.

In the thick of July, everyone got really busy training. However, Harry couldn't help noticing that something was bothering Percy. Eventually, he thought nothing of it and left him alone. On the last day of the summer session, the campers all received their annual bead. This year's bead was pitch black with a sea green trident in the middle.

In the days that followed, the Hermes cabin became embroiled in a massive prank war. Of course, Harry could not resist, and unleashed his inner Marauder. Back when he was in the Underworld, James had told him about the Marauders and made him promise to get their map back. So, Harry found himself under his Invisibility Cloak, meandering around.

Just then, he spotted Luke and Percy heading to the woods nearby and decided to follow them. Harry spotted a six-pack of Coca-Cola in Luke's hand and was surprised to see the older boy flouting the camp rules so blatantly. As he inched closer, he heard them talking, though it was mostly Luke. Then Luke did a surprisingly uncharacteristic move. After finishing the can, he crumpled it and lazily tossed it into the creek.

Then Harry got within hearing range, "-heck with laurel wreaths. I'm not going to end up like those dusty trophies in the Big House attic."

Percy replied, "You make it sound like you're leaving."

Luke shot him a twisted smile, "Oh I'm leaving alright, Percy. I brought you down here to say goodbye."

With a snap of his fingers, a small fire burned a hole in the ground by Percy's feet. Harry's eyes nearly bugged out when he spotted a hand-sized pitch black scorpion. Percy made to go for his pen, but Luke stopped him, "I wouldn't do that. Pit scorpions can jump up to five metres. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."

Under his Cloak, Harry was in shock. Percy stammered, "Luke, what-".

Then, realisation struck both of them, but only Percy voiced it, "You…"

Luke shrugged and got up, "I saw a lot out there in the world, Percy. Didn't you feel it? The darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? Didn't you realise how useless it all is? All the heroics – being pawns of the gods. They should have been overthrown thousands of years ago. But they've hung on, thanks to us half-bloods."

Percy tried to reason with him, "Luke, those are our parents you're talking about!"

He laughed, "That's supposed to make me love them? Their precious 'Western civilisation' is a disease, Percy. It's killing the world. The only way to stop it is to burn it to the ground and start over with something more honest."

"You're as crazy as Ares!"

Luke snapped, "Ares is a fool! He never realised the true master he was serving. I wish I could explain, but I'm afraid you won't live that long."

All the while, the scorpion kept climbing up Percy's leg. The son of Poseidon snarled, "Kronos… That's who you serve. He got you to steal the master bolt and the helmet. He spoke to you in your dreams."

Luke nodded, "You should be careful. Names have power, but you're right. When Hades went to speak with Potter, that was my chance and I took it. Kronos told me that my talents were being wasted. Do you want to know what happened in my quest? Hermes wanted me to steal a golden apple from the Garden of the Hesperides and return it to Olympus. I mean, was that seriously the best he could think up?"

"Herakles did it!"

"Exactly! Where's the glory in repeating what others have done? All that the gods know how to do is relive their past exploits. The guardian dragon gave me this scar, and when I returned, all I got was pity! From then on, I wanted to tear down Olympus, stone by stone, but I bided my time. That was when I began to dream of Kronos and he convinced me to steal something worthwhile. Something that no hero had the guts to take. The Olympians are so arrogant, they never dreamed that someone would dare steal from them."

Percy goaded him on, "So what stopped you from going directly to Kronos?"

His triumphant grin was wiped off and he scowled, "I got overconfident. Zeus sent out everyone, but it was Ares who caught me. He beat me, but then Kronos came to my aid. He helped me plant the idea in Ares' head, of a great war between the gods. All that he had to do was hide the items and watch the other gods fight. That's when I knew I had him, hook, line and sinker."

Luke also revealed that he was the one who summoned the hellhound. He also revealed that the flying shoes were meant to drag Percy to Tartarus and Kronos' clutches. At this point, both Percy and Harry were fuming, and the former growled, "Thalia gave her life to save you. And this is how you repay her? You're being used, both you and Ares."

Luke's mask broke, "Don't you dare speak about her! The gods let her die, and they will all pay for it! Kronos will rise. You've only delayed his plans to cast the Olympians into Tartarus and drive humanity back to their caves!"

"Call off the bug, fight me yourself!"

He sneered, "Nice try, Percy, But I'm not as gullible as Ares, so you can't bait me. I have to go now."

He was about to leave when Harry made his move. He pointed his wand through his cloak and concentrated on all of Luke's memories of magic, "Obliviate!"

Luke's face blanked for a few seconds, before he took out his sword and swung it, and in a ripple of darkness, he disappeared. Meanwhile, Harry quickly put away his wand and nocked an arrow. The scorpion lunged for Percy, but Harry let loose, nailing it before it could sting the boy. He then removed his cloak and hurried over to Percy, "You alright Jackson?"

Percy was pale, "Y-yeah. I can't believe he-"

Harry's own face twisted with rage, "Same here… I can't believe he would do this. He was like a brother to us, to me! Bloody traitorous scum! He's no better than Pettigrew. Come on, let's go to the Big House. Chiron needs to know about this. I'll go get Beth, and I'm really not looking forward to that conversation. This is going to break her heart."

"By the way, what did you do to him?"

"Took away all his memories of magic. Can't have him taking that sort of intel to the enemy, can I?"

Ten minutes later, the four were gathered in the Big House, and there was an array of emotions. Chiron looked grave as he digested the information, Annabeth looked angry for a brief moment before her expression turned sad.

"I-I can believe that he would do this. May the gods curse him. He was never the same after his quest. I'm just glad Harry was there to save you from getting stung."

Then Harry got up, "I'm going to go get some last minute training before I head back to England with Mackenzie. Next time I see Luke, I'm turning him into a bloody pin cushion, and I don't mean transfiguring him into one."

He stalked out with a murderous expression on his face. Annabeth bit her lip before something clicked in her mind. She hurried out of the Big House and back to her cabin. Taking a couple of pieces of paper, she began to write,

"Dear Ron and Hermione,

This is Annabeth. We met on during the Winter Solstice. I'm writing to you because I'm really worried about Harry. I think you two may be aware of this, but Zeus' lightning bolt was stolen. So, myself, Harry and two of our friends went on a quest to find the thief. To cut a long story short, we found the bolt and returned it. However, we later found out that the thief was none other than one of our good friends, Luke Castellan.

Yes Ron, the 'bloke with the wicked-looking scar on his face'. Luke betrayed us and is working with an ancient enemy who is rising. I'm upset because I loved Luke like a brother. Harry on the other hand, took the betrayal much harder than me though. I know about his godfather Sirius' situation, so I could guess why Harry was furious. That's what I wanted to talk about today. For us demigods, we have certain mental or physical weaknesses called Fatal Flaws. All human beings have it, but it is even more dangerous for demigods.

I strongly suspect that Harry's Fatal Flaw is holding grudges against traitors. Considering that one of his father's best friends got him and his wife killed, as well as another friend falsely imprisoned for a decade, the signs were there. So I want both of you to promise me something. No matter what happens, please don't betray Harry's trust. I'm not saying that you should not argue with him, because all friends do that. However, when the going gets really tough, I want both of you to be there for him. Harry doesn't forgive easily, so do not screw it up.

Regards, Annabeth Chase"

Around mid-July, Harry and Mackenzie went to the Hunter's camp. They had set up camp somewhere in Michigan and they stayed there for a few weeks and even celebrated Harry's twelfth birthday. During his stay, he ramped up his training and even taught Mackenzie to defend herself with hand-to-hand combat. In the middle of August, he got a letter from Ron, inviting him and Hermione to his home for the last two weeks before school began. For that, Zoe volunteered to take Harry and Mackenzie to England. Katie was also heading there, so she decided to tag along.

Percy and Annabeth also wanted to come, though Zoe was a little wary with the arrangement. Annabeth had promised Percy earlier, that she would try and repair her relationship with her father and stepmother. Unfortunately, that didn't last very long and she was only too happy to get away. On the other hand, Percy was glad to have a distraction from brooding about Luke. Sirius had taken Percy via Portkey and would meet them at Heathrow Airport. The boy was definitely taking Zeus' threat to blast him out of the sky, seriously.

All through the trip, Harry seemed very moody, and even Mackenzie and Katie were silent. The younger girl had heard about Luke's betrayal and promised herself to be there for her big brother.

When they touched down that afternoon, Remus, Sirius and Percy were there to pick them up from Heathrow Airport. They also had a new addition with them in the minivan, a spiky pink-haired girl who looked like she was in her early 20s. She grinned and warned, "Hey there squirts! The name's Tonks, just Tonks. My first name is classified and you will not call me by my first name if you value your life!"

Sirius snorted, "Come on Nymphadora-"

He suddenly yelped when she shot a Stinging Jinx at his testicles. Of course, she had to be sneaky because they were still in public, despite being in the car. Remus chuckled as he drove, "Sirius wanted to be the one to pick you up, but after his Vegas shenanigans, I didn't trust him to be on his own. Tonks here, is a junior Auror. Officially speaking, she's a bodyguard, but unofficially, she's his youngest cousin. Also, as you can tell, she hates her first name."

Harry asked, "Does she know?"

Sirius nodded, "Yes, but we swore her into secrecy. Anyway, we're off to your friend Ron's house. If I'm not mistaken, your other friend, Hermione arrived there just yesterday."

Tonks quipped from the shotgun seat, "Yeah, honestly, I'm still wrapping my head around that. You three are the children of literal gods?!"

She gestured towards Zoe and Katie, "And these two are part of Harry's mum's all-girl immortal group?! Wow!"

Annabeth chipped in, "Percy's actually the most powerful of us three. Especially since he is the son of Poseidon."

Harry asked, "Hey Sirius, how are Bianca and Nico?"

"They're settling in well. I've been trying to convince Nico that Exploding Snap and collecting Chocolate Frog cards is better than collecting Mythomagic figurines."

By evening, the minivan entered the quaint little village of Ottery St. Catchpole. It wasn't long before the minivan pulled into the driveway of a cottage that largely resembled a pigpen with extra rooms. The house was a couple of stories high and was assembled very haphazardly. Annabeth moaned about the house being a crime against architecture, prompting Percy and Harry to laugh.

Suddenly, Remus slammed the brakes, as he almost rammed into the back of a Ford Anglia, that was backing out. He stopped the car and got out, ready to scold Arthur Weasley for not using his mirrors, when he froze in his tracks. In the front seat and riding shotgun, were a pair of familiar redhead twins. Ron was also there, out of the car and trying desperately to get them to stop.

An indignant Remus scolded, "Hey! What are you kids up to? Does your father know that you two are taking his car for a joyride?"

One of the twins got out, "Hey mister! We had heard from Dad that Ron's mate, Harry was coming, so we thought we'd give him a welcome party. According to Dad, he lived at Number 4 Privet Drive, so we wanted to pick him up."

Harry poked his head out of the minivan, "Oi Fred! George! Your intel is a mite off! I actually live across the pond in America!"

Ron hollered back, "That was what I've been trying to tell these two numbskulls! But they told me that they were older and knew better!"

Next to Harry, Katie was pinching the bridge of her nose as she got out of the van. She groaned, "Oh for the love of the gods! I should have known they would try something stupid."

The twins finally noticed her, "Kay-Kay? What are you doing here with Harrykins?"

She snapped, "I wrote to both of you, as well as Oliver, Angelina and Alicia, that I was living with Harry! Don't tell me that you two twits forgot? And don't call me Kay-Kay!"

Inside the house, a woman's voice screeched, "FREDERICK GIDEON! GEORGE FABIAN! RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY! WHERE ARE YOU!? THOSE GNOMES HAVE BETTER BE GONE! IF I FIND THAT YOU THREE HAVE BEEN UP TO SOME MISCHIEF, THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY!"

The adults groaned as well, and Sirius sighed, "Well… We might as well head in and smooth things over with Molly before she blows a gasket."

He knocked on the door and a short, plump woman with a round face opened the door. Her initial scowl morphed into a smile, "Sirius Black! Come in! Come in! Oh I see that you're brought company and several new faces! Come in and make yourselves comfortable."

Harry and the others calmly walked in, Ron also walked in like normal. Meanwhile, Fred and George tried to sneak inside the house, but Molly Weasley cornered the three of them, "And just where were you three!?"

Sirius chipped in, "It seems that the twins tried to get a head-start in fetching Harry. The problem was that I think Arthur's information was a touch outdated. Harry isn't living with Lily's sister, thank goodness for that. He's been living in the United States all this time. I do wonder how these two would have carried out their little scheme, by going all the way across the Atlantic. Ron over here, was trying to convince them that it was a bad idea."

Her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed, "I see… Ronald, you are off the hook for now, but if you step one toe out of line…"

He gulped and nodded fearfully. She then gestured to the others, "Could you get our guests settled in? I need to deal with these two ruffians! It's a miracle that Sirius and Remus turned up when they did! Or else your father would have been in big trouble! Honestly! We've never had trouble like this from Bill or Charlie or Percy!"

Percy looked up, but Harry muttered, "Not you, Jackson."

Eventually, she finished her tirade and turned to the group, all smiles. She said, "Shall we retire to the living room? We can have our introductions there! Ronald! Fetch your brothers and sister! And get Hermione as well"

Before long, the entire Weasley clan and Hermione had gathered, with the patriarch flooing in from the Ministry a few minutes after the group arrived. Harry introduced the group to Annabeth, Percy, who decided to go by Perseus, the entire time, and Mackenzie.

When Harry mentioned that Mackenzie was his cousin and starting her first year, a small red-headed girl perked up. However, when he glanced at her, her cheeks turned crimson and bolted.

Harry looked at the rest of the Weasley clan and weakly muttered, "I didn't say anything wrong, did I?"

The oldest of the Weasley children, Bill chuckled jovially, "Nah, don't worry about it Harry. Ginny's just a mite starstruck to meet The Harry Potter, Hero of the Wizarding World. She pretty much worships you, and I think she even built a shrine to you once."

Percy Jackson snorted, but Annabeth elbowed him sharply. Soon Molly Weasley began shepherding them around. She ordered, "Annabeth, Zoe, Katie, Mackenzie dear, you four will be sharing Ginny's room with Hermione. Harry, Perseus, you two are with Ronald."

Everyone shrugged and decided to turn in for the night, as they were all exhausted. The next morning, the Weasley children split up to do their chores. Harry ignored Molly's protests and volunteered to help Ron with de-gnoming the garden. As they flung the gnomes, Ron grunted, "Hey Harry, will you help train me to fight the way you do?"

Harry glanced at him, "You're serious about it, right?"

"I am. So is Hermione. I think last year with that Cy… Cy…"

"Cyclops"

"Yeah, him… That was a bit of a wake-up call. I mean, since we fought off those giant ants, I was thinking about it. But the Cyclops attack kind of sealed the deal."

Harry nodded, "I get it… I really do. I was actually thinking of asking you if you knew any private place in the property to train. Myself, Zoe, Katie, Annabeth and Jackson will be training. You and Hermione are welcome to join. I have to ask though, what do you think you'll be more comfortable with? There are different weapons to use. Katie, Zoe and I have our bows and arrows. Annabeth and I also have daggers and hunting knives. Jackson has a sword. I also managed to get hold of a couple of spears and javelins."

"What's the difference?"

"Javelins are light and can be thrown, while spears are heavier and can be used for mid-range combat. I called in a few favours from the Hephaestus Cabin and got two of each weapon."

Meanwhile in the house, Ginny Weasley was watching both boys from the window of her bedroom. To be precise, she was gazing at Harry as he talked to Ron. Admittedly, she couldn't hear what they were saying, but she didn't care. Suddenly a voice spoke up behind her, "Thou art Ginevra, right?"

Ginny nearly shrieked in fright, but jumped to see Zoe standing at the door of her bedroom. She stammered, "Y-yes. But you can call me Ginny. W-was there something you wanted? Come in."

Zoe accepted the invitation and entered, "Thou hast a, what you call it… a crush on Harry, right? No need to deny it, I can see it written all over your face."

Ginny's face reddened, "W-well what's not to like about him? He's a hero in the Wizarding World. Harry is the Boy-Who-Lived! Every girl dreams of being with the Boy-Who-Lived! And-"

Zoe interrupted, "And Harry despises his fame. I want thou to understand this. The way I see it, You are obsessed with the idea of the Boy-Who-Lived. Harry hates that title because it is a constant reminder that he lost his parents to a mad man. Let me ask you this, if Harry was not the Boy-Who-Lived, would you still like him?"

Ginny opened her mouth, then paused and thought about it. She slowly digested Zoe's words and then she finally nodded, "Y-yes. I would. I mean, he seems like a nice bloke."

Zoe smiled, "Then maybe you should get to know him better. But get to know him as Harry Potter, not the Boy-Who-Lived. If there is one thing I've learned in my entire life, fame is very fleeting. Just as quickly as people can worship someone, they can tear them down just as easily. The real question is, would you stand by him when the world is against him?"

Ginny nodded firmly, "I would."

"That's what I'd like to hear. Someone who is in love with the idea of the Boy-Who-Lived, would leave him at the smallest sign of trouble. So my advice is, to just treat him like any other person. Be his friend first, then if thou truly fancy him, you have my permission."

Later on at lunch time, Ginny was acting far less bashful, but did have an occasional light blush whenever Harry spoke to her. Over the course of their stay, Harry, Ron and Hermione would sneak off to a far corner of the Weasley property to train.

Ron was steadily becoming more adept at using a spear and a shield. Hermione was also improving and she had a preference for knives and daggers. However, they did struggle with archery initially. Ron's main issue was that his posture was all wrong and he tended to slouch. Harry corrected that by pressing his knee to the base of Ron's spine and gently pushing his body straight.

On the other hand, Hermione did not put enough power in her shots. Harry had observed that she often pulled the drawstring halfway before letting loose. That also meant that she missed the target a few times. He and Katie then informed her that she had to pull it all the way back until the fletching was next to her cheek. Harry then pointed out that this allowed her to see down the arrow and aim better. Once she corrected herself, she improved drastically.

Sadly, Jackson and Annabeth had to leave. This was because the two of them had to start school as well. Remus and Sirius took the two back with an International Portkey, but Zoe elected to stay with Harry until he left for Hogwarts.

Soon, all of the Hogwarts-bound students received letters. Each of them left instructions to head to King's Cross station, as well as their respective year's book list. Harry idly noted that it was much longer than last time, and the primary culprit was DADA. There were several of them written by Gilderoy Lockhart.

Harry's eyebrow raised when he saw the title of one particular book, 'Giggling with Gorgons'. Having just dealt with Medusa herself, he idly opened the book and skimmed through it. However, he froze halfway through it and a weird expression crossed his face. Harry didn't know whether to laugh or be angry, because whatever methods Lockhart had used would have been useless. When he finally struggled through to the end of the book, the biggest conclusion that Harry could come up with, was that Lockhart was an absolute idiot.

One fine day, it was time for them to get their books. Arthur Weasley took Harry aside to try and explain the Floo network to him, but Harry told him that Sirius already taught him about it. So one-by-one, they Flooed to Diagon Alley. Unfortunately, Zoe happened to get separated from the group. According to Molly Weasley who Flooed after her, she had messed up the pronunciation.

After a harrowing few minutes, a soot-covered Zoe re-joined them, along with Hagrid. He had just about managed to drive off some drunken wizards who were crowding her. Following a clean-up from Molly, she sidled up to Harry and murmured, "I would have been fine. I was just disappointed that I did not get to shoot those lecherous perverts. I ended up in a shop called Borgin And Burke's. I also happened to notice one of your classmates. That boy Malfoy you wrote us about? He was there with his father."

Arthur overheard her and sharply asked, "Did Malfoy Sr buy anything?"

"I'm afraid not. He was selling something, I know not what. I was unable to see from my vantage point."

Arthur Weasley had an evil grin, "So he's worried. Oh how I would love to get Lucius Malfoy for something."

Eventually, they dropped the subject and headed to Flourish and Blotts. Unfortunately, there was a massive crowd gathering. Most of the people were middle-aged women or people around the age of Mrs. Weasley. That was when they noticed a sign, saying that Lockhart was signing copies of his autobiography.

An excited Mrs Weasley began to shepherd everyone in, but Zoe skilfully dodged her, taking Harry with her. The immortal girl told her, "I sincerely apologize, but it is far too crowded and given my charge's own status, we do not wish to be mobbed."

Molly sighed, "I understand, my dear. Not to worry, I shall buy Harry's books for you."

So, as the rest of their group squeezed inside, Harry decided to get a head-start to his other supplies. He and Zoe popped into the apothecary for his Potions supplies. Inside, he noticed the familiar blonde princess curls of Cassandra Vole. She noticed him as well and cordially greeted, "Potter…"

"Vole… I take it you wished to avoid the crowd."

"I did. Also, I'm not a big fan of Lockhart. His books read more like story books instead of text books."

"I agree."

"I'll see you at Hogwarts, Potter."

"You as well, Vole."

Finally, Harry and Zoe met up with the Weasleys, Hermione, Katie and Mackenzie. However, there were mixed emotions. Most of the women seemed thrilled, with the exception of Katie. The male contingent were a bit grumpy though. Hermione beamed, "You won't believe this, Harry! Gilderoy Lockhart is going to be our new DADA professor!"

Ron grumbled, "Speak for yourself. I got bumped out of the crowd and then dragged into a bunch of pictures with Lockhart. Bloody hell mate! I can see why you hate being famous."

Then, a familiar smarmy voice sounded behind them, "What's the matter? Wish you were there, Potter? Famous Harry Potter makes the front page in the Daily Prophet."

A fuming Ginny stepped up, ready to give him a piece of her mind. However, Mackenzie beat her to the punch, "Leave Harry alone, you jerk!"

Malfoy took one look at her, "Well, well, well Potter. Have you got yourself a little girlfriend?"

Harry replied back coolly, "Sorry to burst your bubble, Malfoy, but I'm not into incest. Mackenzie is my cousin. You hurt one hair on her head and I will squash you like a Myrmeke."

He had a brief moment of confusion, "I have no idea what you are blathering about, Potter. But when-"

He was cut off by a hand on his shoulder, it was the very man he was about to mention. Lucius Malfoy sneered at them and locked eyes with a frowning Mr. Weasley, "Well, well, well – Arthur Weasley."

"Lucius."

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear. All those raids… I hope they're paying you overtime."

He reached into one of the kids' cauldrons and extracted a battered Transfiguration book. He flicked through it and lazily tossed it back in one of the cauldrons, not caring whose it was. Harry also could have sworn that he slipped something in the book.

Lucius continued, "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizardry, if they don't pay you well for it."

His eyes flipped towards Zoe and Hermione's family, who had also joined their group. Malfoy Sr drawled, "The company you keep. And here I thought your family could not sink any lower-"

Mr. Weasley socked the man in the face, and Zoe's hands twitched. However, Harry caught it and shook his head frantically. Eventually, Hagrid waded into the fray and separated the two brawling men. The older Malfoy wrenched himself from Hagrid's grip and flounced away with his son.

Then Hagrid began scolding Mr. Weasley, "You should've ignored him, Arthur. Rotten to the core, the whole family, everyone knows that. Come on, let's get out of here."

After Hagrid lumbered away, Mrs Weasley laid into her husband, "A fine example to set for your children! Brawling in public! What Gilderoy Lockhart must've thought-"

Fred Weasley helpfully quipped that he asked a Daily Prophet photographer to work the fight into his report for 'good publicity.'

Eventually, the group went to Ollivanders for Ginny and Mackenzie's wands. With all of their purchases, all parties exited Diagon Alley and parted ways. As they left, Zoe told Harry and Mackenzie, "There is something off about Mr. Malfoy. It's best if you keep an eye on him and his son."

"I will, big sister."