Heyah! Silver here, another chapter for y'all, hope you like it!
If you have questions, please ask!
I do not own Harry Potter and/or any of it's characters.
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Shopping with McGonagall was a happy affair for Harry. The magic world was incredible, full of differently dressed people and a street full of stores selling different magical objects that the little wizard was more than curious to get to know. When he first entered the Leaky Cauldron, the closest entrance being the Diagon Alley, he was somewhat scared of the silly-dressed people, and he hid himself behind a professor. She assured him that it was all fine, and after exchanging words with the bartender called Tom, they quickly accessed the entrance to the Magic World. Harry was in pure awe of the strange but beautiful place that was Diagon Alley, full of magic and things he could only imagine seeing in a dream.
Their first stop was a massive white building made of polished marble, that was guarded by strange creatures that he had never seen before, which the professor quickly explained were Goblins, proud creatures that owned the banks in The Wizarding World. Entering the bank, he could see that it was full of wizards and witches trying to talk to the goblins, and the tellers trying to make the wizards form a line. Professor McGonagall ignored the bustling around her and quickly reached a free teller, politely calling for his attention.
"Good day, Master Teller. I would like to retrieve money from Vault Potter" she said in a polite and calm tone, ignoring all the surrounding chaos, while Harry was still holding her hand, a little frightened about the whole ordeal.
"Good day, professor, key?" the old Goblin asked. The Scottish woman quickly took a small gold key out of her robes and handed it to the teller, who quickly examined it and called another Goblin to accompany both teacher and student to the vault.
"Professor, do I have a vault?" Harry asked, confused, to which McGonagall responded:
"I will explain it later, Harry, so please for now be patient" the stern woman replied, getting in the cart that would lead them to the vault.
The cart ride was a novel experience for Harry, since he had never been on a roller coaster. He could only imagine that what he was feeling right now was the same. Reaching the vault the Goblin quickly hopped out of the mine cart and put the gold key in a small hole in the wall. Harry could hear the stone grinding against the ground. The massive door made of pure stone moved slowly, revealing piles and piles of gold, silver, and bronze coins, his eyes widening with shock at the reveal that, not only he had a vault, he had money in it. He only stopped gawking when the professor gave him a nudge and told him to gather a bag full of the gold coins. After that, they went back to the cart, Harry's head filled with questions. Professor McGonagall knew that the little wizard would have a lot of questions, so she guided him to a small Pub where they could sit and eat. Harry was eager to know more about everything around him, but one question came from his lips the second that they finished ordering.
"Did you know my parents' professor?" The young wizard had been deeply curious about it since the earlier confrontation with his aunt.
"Yes Harry. James and Lily were two of my favorite students and two of the people that I was honored to consider friends" the Scottish woman said with obvious emotion in her voice "The two of them were great people, and they loved you so much" She said, sighing deeply with remorse.
"My Aunt said that they were-" Harry was quickly interrupted by the irate professor.
"Don't believe anything that your Aunt says" McGonagall says sternly but kindly "Your Aunt is a despicable woman that was incredibly jealous of your mother." She then looks at Harry and says "You know you look just like your father, but with your mother's eyes." The professor was happy that Harry smiled at the information, but his expression became somber.
"If they love me, why am I not with them?" Harry's voice was full of emotion.
"They died protecting you, Harry; a dark wizard targeted them." She sighs. "No one knows exactly why he attacked that night, but..." She stopped, thinking for a bit. "I think you need a bit more context before we talk about it." Two bottles of a tasty cold drink were put in front of them, Harry drinking his to mask his nervousness. "10 years ago, we were at War, a terrorist group named the Death Eaters, led by a Dark Lord, started attacking what they perceived as blood traitors, or any Muggles." She had explained to Harry before the name that magical people gave to non-magical ones, but blood traitors was a new concept, and Harry's confusion was obvious in his face. "Blood traitors are any wizarding families that are less traditional and don't mistreat muggleborns" She said, knowing it was a simplistic explanation, but it would do for now. "Your parents were two of the people that opposed them; they were part of a group called the Order of the Phoenix led by Albus Dumbledore." She sighed, remembering her old mentor and friend, but knowing she needed to proceed with the story. "After your parents interfered one too many times with the plans of the group, the dark lord himself went to attack them. You were only one year old at the time, when the Dark Lord entered your home and dueled both of your parents." Harry was paying rapt attention to every detail, entranced by the story "Your parents, Harry, were incredibly skilled, but they couldn't match that monster" McGonagall stops and breathes, as if trying to shake the memories. Harry, seeing the struggle in the professor's face, held her hand firmly, as if trying to pass comfort with his touch, to which the older woman just smiled sadly. "When Albus arrived, your parents were already dead, and the monster was in front of your crib, ready to take you too. Albus protected you and fought him off, both perishing in the battle." The Scottish woman quickly wiped the tears off her eyes and smiled sadly. "So you see, Harry, your parents died, but they never stopped loving you; they tried their hardest to make sure you led a happy life." Harry looked conflicted, knowing his parents died protecting him and knowing they loved him so much they would sacrifice themselves. It hurt even more knowing that he could never meet them.
"What was the Dark Lord's name?" Harry asked quietly, still holding the professor's hand, offering support to the woman.
"He was known as Voldemort. But most people can't say his name because of the fear he installed on them, so most people refer to him as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named or You-Know-Who." She said, composing herself.
"That's silly." Harry said simply, looking a lot more like the eleven-year-old he was than the mature young man she felt holding her hand before. She could not help but laugh.
"Yes, yes, it is" McGonagall then smiled, seeing the boy's eye spark with happiness when the food arrived. They ate quietly, with Harry asking curiously about the wizarding world. The older woman was a professor through and through, and she started giving him lectures about everything. First explaining why the goblins ran the bank system, then talking about the classes he would attend, Hogwarts itself, and every other magical topical that the little wizard could talk about. When they finished eating, Harry was more than eager to begin his purchases, hoping to buy books to learn more.
The afternoon passed quickly; most purchases were easy enough, but the professor was adamant that he bought new clothes. Harry didn't want to, thinking it was wasteful, but since he did not want the stern woman mad at him, he just went along with it. When he came to the book store, Harry almost splurged all his money there. There were so many topics and so many new things to learn. But again, McGonagall told him to take it easy and choose one topic outside the normal curriculum. He quickly selected some books about healing, something he found fascinating. Even his wand was a quick affair—an applewood and phoenix feather core. Ollivander, the wand-maker, told him that this particular phoenix was good at giving feathers since it produced 3 wands from it. He wanted to tell Harry about whom the two other people were, but McGonagall hurried the boy along since there were still purchases to make. A trunk and potion ingredients later, Harry was finished with his Hogwarts list.
"Professor?" Harry asked hesitantly, making the older woman stop to hear him. "W-where will I go now?" He said this, knowing his aunt and uncle would never want to see his face again.
"Don't worry Harry, you will be staying with me until Hogwarts starts. After that... Well, we'll see" She said kindly, and Harry smiled, trying not to cry happy tears. For Harry Potter, life was just now truly beginning...
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Hoped you liked it!
Kissus, Silver.