Chapter 19

Trip to London

Harry had nearly made it to Ernie's house when he pulled the cloak off and shoved it in his bag. He had shifted his appearance before he had left the room this morning. He once again looked like a young Sirius. He decided this was a good plan just in case Ernie's parents were still home. It was nearly nine and the walk had taken him longer then he had expected.

Harry knocked on the front door and waited. When no one answered, after nearly five minutes he headed around the side of the house. His nose wrinkled at a strong smell as he made his way closer to the back garden.

He heard laughter and was reassured that his classmates were in the back. He followed the sound of the voices and the smell to the little area they had talked when he was here last time.

When he could see them, he was a little surprised. All three were in there pajamas. The smell finally registered, and Harry realized they must be smoking weed. Harry remembered catching Dudley and Piers smoking last summer. Dudley had beat him nearly unconscious the next day. He seemed worried that Harry would tell his parents. As if Aunt Petunia or Uncle Vernon would believe him. Even if they did, they would no doubt find a way to blame Harry like they did with everything.

Hannah, Justin, and Ernie looked like they were having a fun time.

Harry cleared his throat and three sets of blood-shot eyes shot to him. Justin started laughing first.

"Heya Harry." Justin said with a lazy wave.

"Hi." Harry said to the group.

"You wanna join?" Ernie asked, holding out what looked like a cigarette.

Harry shook his head. He needed a clear head to go to London. He was already nervous and didn't need something to dull his senses. He'd never smoked weed before and was sure now wasn't the time.

"No, I've got stuff I need to do. Maybe another time." Harry said.

"Right. Right. You need the floo." Ernie said standing and walking toward Harry.

Harry followed Ernie into the house.

"My Parents are in Paris. They'll probably be gone until late so if you are coming back this way don't worry. Um…are you going to look like this?" Ernie asked. He looked Harry over and seemed to finally notice Harry's face.

"Geez man, what happened to your face?" Ernie asked.

"I fell." Harry said blandly. It wasn't a lie. He had fallen.

Harry shifted so that his hair was dirty blond. His eyes changed to a pale blue and he rounded out some of his facial features. He just wanted to look plain. He didn't want to stand out.

"And yes, I think I will look like this but if I need to change then I'll let you know it's me. What's the floo address here? so I know how to get back." Harry asked.

"McMillian Manor." Ernie replied, taking in Harry's new face.

"Alright." Harry said with a nod.

"Stay safe." Ernie said as he held the pot of floo powder out to Harry.

Harry nodded and took some floo powder.

"The Leaky Cauldron." Harry said, throwing the powder into the grate.

Harry stepped in and felt the sickening spin of the floo.

He was spat out of the fireplace on the other side. Thankfully, the Leaky cauldron was mostly empty this early. He headed to the back and with a quick tap of his wand he was in the alley.

The atmosphere felt oppressive. A few of the shops were boarded up. There were fliers for a list of wanted Death Eaters. And posters reminding people of safety measures to take at home and when they are out. Harry rolled his eyes. If Voldemort was after you, he was going to find you. The list of recommendations was nearly useless. It was just a way for the Ministry to look like they were doing something.

There were very few people in the alley. They all hurried along, and no one seemed to be lingering anywhere they didn't need to be. This worked in Harry's favor as he hastily made his way down the alley to Gringotts.

He saw the twins' shop as he was walking and stopped. It was quite impressive. He was once again thankful he had given them his winnings. He'd love to look around the shop, but it appeared closed. He got closer and saw that there was a sign on the door. It said that they would be closed for the week.

Harry thought about what day it was. Then remembered that they must all be in Romania visiting Charlie. Ron Had been talking about it a lot. He hoped they had an enjoyable time. The twins had been saving up from there sales at school to take the whole family after they got the shop going.

Harry sighed in relief, that was a few less people he had to worry about running into. As he made his way up the steps of Gringotts he bowed to the goblins on guard at the front doors. They bowed back and Harry entered.

Harry had done a lot of research on different beings in the wizarding world. He wanted to understand them better. Hermione's bull in a China shop approach to freeing the house elves had actually piqued his interest. He felt Dobby had given Hermione the wrong impression of House elves in general. Many of them felt like part of the family they worked for. They were treated well and enjoyed the work they did. There magic was somewhat symbiotic with the witch or wizard or family they were tied to. They had their own honor system and although there were obviously some questionable people who had house elves, they were mostly happy.

Harry had personally studied and talked to the house elves at Hogwarts and felt like he understood them. Books, at least the ones he could find, were vague at best about House Elves.

Goblins, however, he had learned a lot about from books. A bow was an informal but respectful way to greet goblins.

As Harry made it into the main lobby his palms began to sweat, and he felt a little shaky. He knew what to do, he was just worried someone would notice him. The bank like the alley was pretty empty. There were a few people being helped but no one he recognized.

Harry dropped the disillusionment charm on his rings and wand holster. He then shifted back to his boy-who-lived look. He pulled his glasses from his pocket and pushed them on his face. It felt very strange to be wearing them after nearly three weeks without them. He allowed the magic he pushed into his eyes to relax and let the glasses help. Things were immediately very blurry. He tried to push the magic again, but it didn't seem to be working right. He sighed. Something to address later. As he walked further his eyes seemed to adjust and he realized he probably couldn't see through the glasses because they were filthy and apparently broken. Something he hadn't really noticed the night he had left Privet Drive.

Wixen doing magic inside Gringotts wasn't against any rule or law, but it was frowned upon, so Harry opted to just wait to fix his glasses later. He pulled them off and wiped the lenses on his shirt. He wasn't wearing one of Sirius band shirts today. He had decided on one of his own. It was blue and had the least number of stains or holes. He also wore a black hooded sweatshirt over the top. None of it looked good but it was the best he had without wearing his school uniform.

Harry made his way to a teller and waited for the Goblin to acknowledge him. He had learned in his readings about Gringotts that the Goblin tellers usually had second jobs that they did while waiting. The polite thing to do was to wait for them to speak first.

"What can Gringotts do for you today?" The goblin said.

Harry bowed to the goblin. The goblin gave him a slightly impressed look and bowed back.

"I would like to speak with the Potter account manager." Harry said softly. He did not want to be overheard and the goblin seemed to understand.

"One moment please." The goblin said and walked off to talk with another slightly taller and younger goblin who wore the crest to indicate he was a guard.

"This way please." The younger goblin said and began to walk past Harry.

Harry turned back to the goblin who he had originally talked to and bowed again.

"May your enemies fall and your gold multiply." Harry said.

"And yours Heir Potter." The goblin responded.

Harry walked quickly to follow the guard. They walked through many long halls. Harry had only been this way once. When he came last summer to get his Potter Heir ring.

They stopped in front of a door and the guard knocked twice. A moment later the door opened, and Harry entered while the guard stood next to the door.

Harry bowed to the goblin inside.

"Pleasant to see you again Sharpfang."

"Heir Potter what can I do for you." Sharpfang said.

"I've come to make a request for a curse breaker." Harry said as he took a seat across from Sharpfang's desk.

"I see. We employ quite a few. Could you tell me more about what your needs are." Sharpfang asked. He folded his hands on top of his desk and looked at Harry with an unblinking stare.

"I have a few items I'd like to have looked at. I need someone who is discrete. I'm willing to pay Gringotts as well as the Curse breaker for this being kept quiet." Harry said.

"Very well. This may take a moment all our curse breakers are out on assignment at the moment. I will need to send a message to one to have them return so that we may draw up a contract." Sharpfang said.

Harry only nodded.

Sharpfang left the room and Harry sat and waited patiently as he could. Time seemed to drag out in the small office. He was starting to feel claustrophobic when the door finally opened, and his heart stopped.

"Harry?"

Bill Weasley had just sat down with his whole family for the first time in what felt like an exceedingly long time. Even Percy had finally pulled his head out of the Minister's ass and made up with the family.

He was enjoying listening to everyone talk. Mum had dragged along a couple of strays even. Ron's girlfriend Hermione and Ginny's boyfriend Dean. Both had been staying at the Burrow and had been allowed to come with them on the trip to Romania to see Charlie.

Bill felt the familiar tingle in his pocket and groaned. It was a charmed rock that the curse breakers carried so that the goblins could call them back to Gringotts. He hadn't officially taken time off, but he had hoped he'd at least get to spend the day with everyone.

Everyone had been incredibly stressed and worried about finding Harry. He had kept his eye out at the bank, but he'd never shown up. The twins seemed even more on edge. And he was certain that if Dumbledore himself hadn't expressly told Ron, Hermione, and Ginny to stay at the Burrow they would have already run off to find him.

He sighed again as he stood. He walked over and stood next to his parents.

"I'm sorry, I've been called back to work. Hopefully, it's something that can be addressed quickly. I'll return as soon as I can." Bill said.

He gave his father a pat on the back and kissed his mother's cheek. Then headed for the door.

"Stay safe." His dad called.

"Running away already big brother?" Charlie said running over to him.

"Yeah, I need to go back to the bank for a bit." Bill explained.

Charlie nodded his understanding.

"Alright well, come back soon. I know the twins think they invented pranks, but I think it's time for the original troublemakers to get them back." Charlie joked.

Bill cracked a smile and nodded.

"Sounds good."

Bill walked down the halls of Gringotts. He really did hope this was a quick job and that he wasn't being sent out on a long assignment. Gringotts had been fairly lenient with his request to help the Order. However, this was still his job.

Sharpfang met him at the end of the hall where they stepped into a private office near the lobby.

"I have a young Heir here who is looking for a discreet curse breaker. He's willing to pay well to keep the matter quiet." Sharpfang informed him.

"The bank puts confidentiality clauses in all of their contracts." Bill said confused.

Sharpfang gave him a wicked smile.

"Yes, we do." Sharpfang replied.

Bill rolled his eyes. Great! Some pure-blood rich kid, who doesn't know anything. Probably brought in something a classmate cursed. Bill thought annoyedly.

Hopefully, he'd be able to get it taken care of quickly and back to his family.

"Very well." Bill said with a wave of his hand towards the door. The motion was a little rude, but he wasn't in the best mood.

They walked back to Sharpfang's office. When Sharpfang opened the door, Bill's mind froze for half a moment.

Sitting in the chair opposite the desk was a familiar boy fiddling with the sleeves of an oversized sweatshirt.

"Harry?" Bill said as he stepped into the room.

Harry's head shot up and his eyes went wide. Clearly, he hadn't expected this.

The boy's face was bruised and scratched. Bill hoped he hadn't been attacked by someone or something.

"I…I need to leave." Harry said, standing quickly from the chair.

Sharpfang gave the boy a look and then turned his attention to Bill.

"If you've had poor dealings with this curse breaker, we can find another." Sharpfang said. Trying not to miss out on the promised gold.

"N-No…. Bill would be fine…I…I Just can't do this right now." Harry stuttered out.

Bill was concerned with the deep scratches on Harry's face and the wild look in his eyes. The boy was going into a full-on panic.

"Harry, you need to come with me. Everyone's been very worried." Bill said in his calmest tone.

Bill watched as Harry seemed to break before his eyes. His shoulders dropped and then his head. He nodded softly.

Bill went to reach out and put a hand on his shoulder, but Harry ducked away from it.

Bill frowned at that.

"I'm sorry Sharpfang. Albus and the Order have been looking for Heir Potter for a while. I need to take him." Bill said in a quick hushed voice.

Sharpfang gave him a glare and then nodded.

Bill walked next to Harry out of the bank and then reached out and took his arm. Harry flinched a little at the contact and Bill raised an eyebrow. Harry seemed more skittish then he'd ever noticed him being.

"We're going to apparate. Are you ready?" Bill asked.

Harry did not look up, he just nodded slightly.

Bill kept a tight hold on Harry and apparated them back to Hogwarts.

Harry stumbled and fell when they landed. Bill held out his hand to help him up, but Harry did not take it. He stood on his own. He looked defeated with his shoulders hunched and his hands deep in his pockets.

"Come on." Bill said as he walked up the long path to the front doors of the school.

Harry felt sick. He shouldn't have come. He should have just stayed where he was. He was safe and truly starting to feel happy. Now he was going to be sent back to the Dursley's. He hadn't even gotten the money out of his account to pay Mary back. Not that he'd be allowed to go back now anyway.

He trudged behind Bill. Bill, how could he not have thought of that. He assumed Bill was with the rest of the Weasley's in Romania.

When they reached the gargoyle, Bill gave the password and they rode the stairs up to the headmaster's office. Bill knocked on the door and they waited.

Harry felt like crying, he just wanted to start the day over and not worry about the stupid Voldemort bits he had in his trunk. What did it matter now? He'd be returned to the Dursleys, and Merlin only knew what Vernon would do to him.

Harry felt his body begin to shake.

"Enter." The Headmasters voice called from inside.

Harry heard other voices coming from inside the office. He felt like he was going to throw up. He didn't want to face a group when he was so close to crying. He considered putting the stone wall back up in his mind.

He stepped into the office behind Bill and kept his head down.

"I found him." Bill said as he walked towards the group.

Harry heard gasps and movement.

"Oh god Harry, pup, are you alright?" Sirius said.

Harry's head snapped up at the sound of his godfather's voice. This wasn't possible. The wall went up before he could even consider it. He couldn't handle this right now.

Harry felt Sirius grab him and pull him into a hug. He was talking but Harry couldn't understand what he was saying over the ringing in his ears. When Sirius pulled away he gently took Harry's chin and turned it to look at his face. Harry stared blankly into Sirius grey eyes. Eyes that had haunted him for weeks.

Sirius was speaking again and pulling Harry by the arm until he was sitting on a small couch on the side of the headmaster's office. Sirius sat next to him and kept talking. Harry wished he could speak. To tell Sirius how sorry he was. To try to explain what had happened. But he couldn't seem to say anything.

Sirius gave him another hug and then stood and walked back over to the group. His mind felt fuzzy, he only seemed to be taking in a few words of the conversation happening around him. Boy, home, family, Ministry, Occlumency, Grimmauld, Snape, safety. The conversation seemed to last forever.

He felt Sirius and Remus sit on opposite sides of him and try to talk to him. He just didn't understand. Thoughts floated through the fog that was his mind at the moment. How could he be so stupid? How had he ended up here? How was Sirius here?

He was vaguely aware of Sirius and Remus giving his hands a squeeze and standing up from the couch. Then he was being dragged down the stairs from the headmaster's office. Snape he realized. Snape had a hold on his arm so hard he was sure it would bruise. Yet somehow that didn't matter. Harry became aware that he was outside again when he felt the cool breeze hit his face. Snape continued his punishing pace and Harry did his best to keep up as he was dragged to the front gates.

Harry had the brief thought of escape. He could twist away from Snape and just apparate back to Ernie's, but he had no strength nor motivation. He was being sent back to the Dursleys. Vernon would do whatever he wanted and then probably kill him. Harry didn't care anymore. He didn't want to fight. He just hoped Vernon would make it quick.

Harry felt the squeezing sensation of apparition and closed his eyes. This was it.

When Harry opened his eyes, he scrunched up his eyebrows and grimaced. He was back in Cokeworth. He wasn't in Little Whinging.

Snape said something and then dragged Harry down a sidewalk. Then all but threw him inside when they reached the door. Harry stumbled but kept his feet under him.

Harry didn't know why he was here. Surely someone had told him. If his mind was working, he would know. He thought that whatever the reason, being back in Cokeworth without actually being there might almost be more cruel then being sent back to Privet Drive.

Severus rubbed at his temples as he sat in the headmaster's office. The five of them had been at it since seven and it was now nearly ten.

Black had been chattering non-stop about other places they could check. Severus was sure none of the places would bear fruit. Black seemed to think that Potter was some kind of book worm and that he was highly intelligent and inquisitive. In five years, he had never seen anything to suggest any of that. If Black and Lupin wanted to go chase their tails looking for Potter that was there business. Severus was about to excuse himself when there was a knock at the office door.

"Enter." Albus called. They all turned and watched as the Eldest Weasley child walked in followed by the boy.

The boy couldn't even face them. He had his shoulders hunched and he was staring at the floor. No doubt upset he'd been caught, and his little vacation had to end.

Black jumped out of his seat and ran to the boy.

"Oh god Harry, Pup, Are you alright?" Black said as he pulled the boy in.

Severus looked the boy over. He was dressed in the same baggy muggle clothes he always wore. He'd never understood the fashion of the youth. The boy had a bag over his shoulder that looked nearly empty. He wondered if the boy had left everything with his relatives. He'd be hard pressed to get it back now that the house sat empty.

When black pulled away Severus noticed the fading bruise around the boy's eye and the scratches all over the side of his face. Merlin only knew what kind of trouble the brat had managed.

"Harry what happened? Where have you been?" Black said as he looked over the boys' face.

Severus caught sight of the boys' eyes and noticed they had the same blank expression he had seen at the train station. He wasn't even crying as he had expected. Perhaps Blacks miraculous reappearance didn't really matter to the boy.

Severus sneered at the selfish child and turned away as Black led him to a seat.

"May I ask where you found Mr. Potter?" Albus asked Bill.

"He came into Gringotts. He was requesting a curse breaker." Bill explained.

Severus raised an eyebrow at that. What could the boy possibly need with a curse breaker?

"What services was he asking for?" Albus asked.

Bill shrugged.

"We never got there. Once I saw him, I told him he needed to come with me. At first, I thought he was going to bolt but then he just kind of gave up. I brought him straight here." Bill said looking over his shoulder at Potter and Black.

"How?" Bill said gesturing at Black.

"It's a bit of a story. I'm sure it will all be discussed soon. For now, I'd appreciate you not telling anyone. Will have an Order meeting soon. Friday, I think. I was under the impression you were in Romania with your family." Albus answered calmly.

"I was. I got called in. I'm headed back unless there's anything else Headmaster." Bill replied.

Albus shook his head.

"Inform your family that Mr. Potter has been located and is safe." Albus answered.

Bill nodded and headed to the door.

Black left the boy on the couch and walked back over to their seating area.

"Something's wrong with him." Black said looking at Lupin but speaking to the group.

"The boy's just pouting now that his adventure is over." Severus sneered.

Black shook his head.

"Please Albus, let us take Harry home. We're his family. His relatives have left the country." Black said checking on the boy over his shoulder.

Albus raised a placating hand.

"I understand Sirius. I know you want to take him but if we are to pursue your freedom, we will likely be taking many trips to and from the Ministry. I'm not sure how safe that will be. Death Eater raids are becoming increasingly frequent. The Ministry is crawling with informants. It's going to be dangerous enough for you to be going there. I will not stand in your way of taking the boy when you clear your name, and I will do what I can to help you. However, I think something else should be arranged in the meantime." Albus said.

Black shook his head with frustration.

"The Boy still needs to learn Occlumency. For the time being he is a risk to anyone we allow him to stay with." Albus said.

Severus felt his gut twist at that. He knew the old man was not planning on taking on Potter as a ward or a student.

"I'd like to send Harry with Severus and have him continue occlumency lessons."

Severus felt his eye twitch. The old man had finally lost the plot if he thought he was going to bring the Potter brat into his home.

"Absolutely not Albus." Severus growled.

"The boy made no notable progress in our previous lessons. He invaded my privacy and then managed to nearly get me killed. I will not be babysitting the boy. Send him to Grimmauld." Severus snarled.

"I have no intention of keeping anyone at Grimmauld. I've learned my lesson about forcing anyone to stay in that house." Albus said giving Black an apologetic look.

"Albus you can't seriously be considering sending Harry off with Snape!" Black snapped.

"Siri, I don't know if the cabin is safe enough to have Harry there, yet." Lupin said softly.

Severus groaned. He wished the boy had just stayed lost. If he'd known this was how his recovery was going to work out.

"The boy's safety is the most important matter. We cannot let our emotions rule our decision here." Albus said.

"Albus, surely the boy could just stay here? Remus and Sirius could come and see him, Severus could come and give him lessons." Minerva finally decided to step in with little worried glances at the boy.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible. It is against school policy to allow students to reside over the summer. I don't want to give the board or the Ministry any reason to interfere at the school this year." Albus said solemnly.

Severus was watching as his summer fell apart before his eyes. Albus wasn't going to back down. Best to set the terms himself, he decided.

"I will take the boy as my ward under the condition that there will be no unexpected guests showing up." Severus said shooting Lupin and Black a harsh glare.

"I will also not be told how I am to handle the boy while he lives under my roof. Albus we've already talked about this. The boy needs to learn a lesson. He needs to be punished for this stunt. This is the second time in less than a month the boy has run off without any consideration for the consequences." Severus said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Severus would not let this matter drop.

"He's a kid! He's made mistakes!" Black tried to defend.

"Lupin, we talked about this too. You know I'm right." Severus said.

Lupin dropped his head and stared at the floor. Severus figured he would take Blacks side but was surprised when he turned to Black and spoke.

"I know he's a kid. I know that he made mistakes. But Sirius, his mistakes have consequences. Real life consequences. His friends all got injured in his misguided trip to the ministry. I think Severus might be right." Remus said quietly.

Black just shook his head. His jaw was clenched as he looked back at the boy.

Severus let his eyes wander over. The brat wasn't even paying attention. He just sat there staring at his hands.

"Once you get your name cleared and the cabin wards can be checked, the boy can be moved. Until then I think the safest option is for Harry to go with Severus." Albus said.

He saw Blacks shoulders sag.

Severus was going to enjoy putting the boy to work. He would learn that he wasn't going to just get away with any behavior. He loathed the idea of having the boy in his house, but he would make it work.

"Well, I think that will be all then." Albus said clasping his hands together.

Severus watched as Lupin and Black sat next to the boy and talked in hushed tones. They both reached out and squeezed his hands. Then they stood.

"Come along Potter." Severus barked from near the door.

The boy did not move. He didn't even look up.

"This pouting isn't going to change the headmaster's mind. Come now!" Severus commanded.

Still the boy didn't move.

Severus growled a little.

He marched over and took the boy by the arm. He hauled him to his feet and began walking him to the door.

Severus was surprised by the lack of resistance. The boy wasn't trying to pull away, he wasn't shouting about the injustice, or begging to go with his godfather. He was just pouting like a toddler.

"Make sure you address the scratches on his face, Severus." Lupin called as they descended the stairs.

Severus just grumbled. The boy wasn't actually a toddler. Surely if he needed wounds addressed, he would tell him.

When they reached the gate Severus stopped. He didn't know if the boy had ever apparated before and hoped he wouldn't get sick.

With a twist they were pulled away.

When they landed the boy stumbled but he didn't look sick.

He watched the boy take in his surroundings. The boys' brows furrowed, and he had a grimace on his face. Cokeworth wasn't the most pleasant looking place, but he wouldn't let Potter bad mouth it either.

"I know it's not what you're used to Potter, but Cokeworth is a decent place. I won't have you talking poorly of the town or my home. You hardly have a leg to stand on. It might not be as nice as your relatives but surely it beats living on the streets." Severus growled.

Still the boy did not respond.

Severus led the boy up the walk and to the door.

"Get in the house." Severus snarled and gave the boy a push through the door.