Another upload that isn't 3 months later? What a surprise! I'm currently back into this story again thankfully so why not keep the momentum going. Thanks to all who reviewed the last chapter, they're always greatly appreciated and I love hearing what you guys think.
After a brief celebration of everybody's O.W.L results with a small party where both Ron and Ginny flooed over for the afternoon, life at Number 12 Grimmauld Place settled into a relatively boring pattern. Other than one manic day where Mary had been determined to rid the two Gryffindor boys of their hair, something which neither appreciated but only Harry seemed to emerge from his room the next day with the same mop he had started the previous day with… Leo still wasn't sure how he managed to regrow about 4 inches of hair overnight… the three soon to be sixth years staying in the London Townhouse would spend most of their time either in the Black Library reading or in the drawing room playing some kind of games, trying to take their mind off of the almost constant news of a new murder or disappearance. The murder of Emmeline Vance was the one to hit Sirius the hardest, whilst Leo's biggest shock had been that of Amelia Bones before the new election for Minister for Magic after Fudge had been sacked, given that she had been the overwhelming favourite for the job before her murder by Voldemort himself.
As was the case whenever a larger group of the Order gathered in one place, Harry's birthday at the end of July was one where news about the wider world almost flowed freely. Despite the majority of in attendance Weasley's being understandably subdued despite the occasion, rumours of the more recent events in Wizarding Britain were everywhere. Leo hadn't been in the kitchen for more than 5 minutes when he overheard Fred and George talking to Bill and Remus Lupin about the disappearances of Florean Fortescue and Ollivander, the latter of which scared Leo more than he would admit given the quality of the man's work. He also found out through his mother that Slughorn was the old Potions master, something which didn't sit right with Leo at all.
Thankfully Sirius brought the mood back up with a literal bang, causing a semi explosion in the drawing room once everyone had moved upstairs for the gifts as 100 tubs of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion appeared in a puff of lilac smoke stacked up in the corner of the room, much to everyone's amusement given the recent haircut debacle.
Sirius was the first to pick up the top tub and throw it towards Harry. "Your Grandad Monty would never go a day without slathering some of this on his head." He explained fondly. "Most of your money is down to him selling the company." He then looked at the Weasley gathering across a couple of sofas. "Though I'd steer clear if you're red headed… he never could work out why it affected you guys so badly… poor Lily cursed James so badly in our fifth year when she found out he knew it would affect her poorly that she cursed him bald for a week."
Harry looked surprised, though his eyes sparkled in joy at the story of his parents. "My Grandfather created Sleekeazy's?" He asked, eager to hear more about his family history.
Sirius nodded, though he looked surprised. "Did you not know that?" Harry shook his head and Sirius genuinely looked outraged. "You don't know anything about your Grandparents or your family history?"
"Nothing." Harry shrugged.
Shaking his head, Sirius stated. "Tomorrow I'll tell you everything I know." He stated bluntly, unhappy at his godson's lack of education on his own family. "You've got a mental but brilliant family line. Your Father and Grandfather told me a lot of crazy stories…"
The biggest eyebrow raiser between Leo and Hermione however was when Ginny quietly handed Harry a neatly wrapped parcel. Harry carefully unwrapped it, and quickly showed everyone with a grin that it was a picture taken from one of the DA lessons of Harry helping Ginny with her Patronus. Leo felt a nudge at his side from his position sat on the arm of a sofa and turned to see Hermione looking at the birthday boy with a knowing look on her face. Leo simply grinned, happy that through everything Harry and Ginny were finding something together.
The doom and gloom of most of Harry's birthday made way to excitement the next day however, as August 1st brought the letters and booklists from Hogwarts. Leo's was the standard list of required supplies, whilst Harry had received an extra surprise in his letter as he emptied out his envelope to see a silver badge drop to the table.
"Quidditch Captain?" Hermione gasped excitedly. "That's great news Harry! You can use the Prefect Bathroom now too now that you're on an equal standing with Ron and I!"
Leo let Sirius and Hermione gush over the badge as he made his way to his Mother, handing her his list. There were three magical law specific books on there, along with the regular list for his other subjects. Mary sighed. "I'll speak to Alastor next time I see him, but we'll need to go to Diagon Alley soon for all these." She looked Leo up and down. "And new school robes too, you've grown half an inch since you've been back!"
"I'll buy your things for you." Sirius' voice sounded louder than expected, and Leo realised that he had moved over to join the two MacDonald's. "I've missed enough of your life, it's the least I can do…"
"You don't need to be waving your money around to feel like a Father, Sirius." Mary rolled her eyes. "I can handle it."
Sirius shook his head. "There's… something else I want to do in Diagon Alley, something for just us." He said to Leo, unusually solemn before turning back to Leo's Mother. "Please, Mary. Just let me."
Mary stared at Sirius oddly, and unusually for the pair of them she simply nodded without an argument. "Aye, fine." She looked at the list again. "Maybe I'll get you an owl this year with the money I'll save on your books… Merlin knows it will be easier to talk to you when you're not reliant on the school ones."
Leo grinned, nodding his head. "That would be great. Thanks mum." He kissed her on the cheek before re-joining the table as Hermione was only halfway through her explanation in what perks Harry would be getting as the new Quidditch Captain.
In the end it was the Ministry of Magic that arranged a trip to Diagon Alley on the Saturday after their letters had arrived, sending a pair of their cars to The Burrow. Already annoyed that his mother had been dragged into work it was a grumbling Leo that flooed over to the Weasley house before driving the hours back into London when the Leaky Cauldron was a half hour walk away from Grimmauld Place, but it seemed like Mad-Eye Moody would glare at him every time he went to complain, so in the end he simply didn't say a word and tried to enjoy the ride.
He was surprised to see Professor Hagrid waiting outside the Leaky Cauldron for them, though his surprise was more muted than Harry's as they stepped out the car as Hagrid called his name and enveloped The Boy-Who-Lived in a bone crushing hug before escorting the group in through the door, and for the first time ever Leo noticed that it was empty save for Tom the barman, who looked glum when he realised that the large group were only popping through and not sticking around for a drink and a meal.
Even the alley looked different. Ministry of Magic posters covered the once colourful window displays, either displaying advice or wanted posters of known Death Eaters. Leo heard Sirius growl as they passed the Apothecary and turned to see the cackling face of Bellatrix Lestrange. Another new addition to Diagon Alley was the emergence of pop-up stalls. The one nearest Flourish and Blotts had trinkets to ward against magical creatures, and the stall owner quickly tried to hassle Ginny before shrinking away at a growl from Mad-Eye.
Ron hadn't taken that well, grumbling. "If Dad were here and saw those…" He muttered, fixing his face in a scowl as the rest of the group fell silent, still missing the Weasley patriarch dearly.
Bill Weasley cleared his throat from the front of the group. "Sirius, do you still want to go to Gringotts?" He asked, clearly eager to switch the conversation away from Arthur.
Sirius nodded. "I do." He said before turning to Leo. "I need you to come with me too, I've something to show you."
"Ron, Ginny. You stick with Alastor for the moment. I won't be too long." Bill told them, being the Weasley in charge. "Hermione, Harry. Hagrid will take care of you two. We'll meet inside the twin's shop once we're all done with our shopping."
The group split then, with the two youngest Weasley's going for their books first whilst Harry and Hermione popped into Madam Malkin's. Wondering what he was being dragged along for, Leo walked to the large marble bank with Sirius and Bill. Six Goblin guards stood outside the bank looking out at the street menacingly.
"Hold on a moment." Bill muttered darkly as they reached the security checks. The Weasley then stepped forwards and began speaking to the lead Goblin in what Leo presumed was Gobbledegook, the language of the Goblins. After a couple of minutes of back and forth, Bill returned to them. "We're being pushed through screening quickly, thankfully." He explained. "Just don't complain, or they'll make this worse."
Twenty minutes later having been poked and prodded in places that Leo never wanted to be poked or prodded in again, and they were inside the bank. They were led to the very end of the banking hall to an elderly looking goblin writing something into a ledger.
"Good Morning, Bogrod." Bill stated firmly. "I believe you are expecting us?"
The Goblin barely even looked up. "Mr Weasley." He greeted. "Mr Black."
"Bogrod, it's been a long time." Sirius replied calmly.
Bogrod finished his writing and then closed his book before pulling out a piece of parchment. "You wish to allow a new person access to Vault 711." The Goblin stated.
"I do, Leo David MacDonald." Sirius stated. "My son."
Bogrod took one look at Leo, and the 16-year-old didn't like the way the Goblin's black eyes were looking him over. "I see. One moment please." The goblin said before he pushed himself off his chair to go and talk to one of his colleagues.
"What's Vault 711?" Leo asked.
Sirius grimaced. "My vault… well, my family's." He explained. "When I was struck off I was reliant on the Potters for a year, but my Uncle Alphard died just before my seventh year at Hogwarts and left me a decent amount of gold and a nice cottage to go with it. He got blasted off the tapestry for that." Sirius muttered bitterly. "Anyway, I haven't touched the Black vault since I ran away, though I restricted access to just myself and my cousin Andromeda, Tonks' mum, the day I was cleared. Thankfully Bellatrix couldn't get into it in Azkaban and Narcissa had the Malfoy vault to sort her out without taking too much of the Black gold."
Leo nodded in understanding as he felt relieved that Sirius' money hadn't been pilfered too much by Malfoy, though one question remained. "But why am I here? I already have a vault of my own left to me from Grandad."
Sirius sighed. "I barely touch the Black vault because of things that happened before you were born and Andy has her own money now with her husband and little incentive to revisit her past by coming here, but the amount of gold in my family vault shouldn't be sat there gathering dust and you don't have the hang ups that we do. You'll have a limited access until you turn 17 in a few months, after which you'll have free access to do what you wish with it."
Leo didn't get a chance to respond to that as Bogrod had returned. "Sign here, here and here." He explained, and Sirius quickly scratched his signature onto the parchment. "You have your key, Mr Black."
Sirius held up a key with 711 imprinted in the head, before holding up another one with 482. "And I'd like to visit my personal vault."
Bogrod clenched his jaw but nodded all the same. "As you wish. Follow me please."
Bill left them to it as the father and son duo followed the Goblin into the underground cart. Firstly they stopped at Sirius' vault where he filled up his coin pouch from a pile larger than anything Leo had ever seen. That fact held true until they stopped at Vault 711 however, where a mixture of the key and a goblin's palm opened up the heavy metal door and once that had swung open Leo stepped inside what could only be described as a deep cavern of gold and silver. Dozens of trophies lined the cabinets along the walls along with all sorts of paintings and rich artifacts of the like that Leo had never seen before. The floor of the large room however was covered in gold heaps, likely twenty times more than Sirius had had in his own vault, whilst Leo's own vault didn't even scratch the first mound. "How much is in here?" Leo gasped.
Sirius shrugged. "Millions of galleons, the Blacks have had their fingers in all sorts of dirty pies since the Middle Ages." He looked unhappy as he looked around the room explaining it all to Leo. "That's partly why I want you to have it. I know you're not called Black anymore and I'd never ask you to change your name given how good a job Magnus and Mary have done in raising you. But you've my blood in your veins, which makes this your inheritance just as much as it is mine." Sirius shrugged. "Just… do some good with it, yeah? Maybe our name can mean something more than dark and pureblood in the future."
Leo nodded, and he went to move forwards, examining some of the trophies and awards that spanned from as far back as the 15th century, and there were more that looked even older that Leo couldn't reach from his position in the entranceway to the Vault. "I could spend hours in here…" He whispered. "All this history inside four walls…"
"You've got ten minutes." Sirius smirked, grinning at Leo's frown. "Grab some gold for the year and let's go, the shop owners don't hang around anymore after closing and old Mad-Eye might just kill me himself if I suggest coming back another day." He moved towards Leo with a fancy looking money pouch. "Present number one of many that I owe you for your childhood, that's a family heirloom that I did keep. There's an undetectable extension charm and a featherweight charm on it so while you can't empty this place, you can grab a few handfuls of galleons and barely even notice the weight." He then gave Leo the key, handing over control of the Black treasure. "Your mum says you can be trusted with this. Whatever you do, don't give it to the Malfoy boy…"
Their trip was rushed after leaving Gringotts with Leo having been the only one going to Gringotts and being behind everybody else when it came to purchasing his things for the year. He methodically made his way down Diagon Alley as he started by rushing through Scribbulus getting his writing equipment, before completely ignoring the apothecary with a smile as he remembered that he didn't need to take Potions this year. Quickly after that Leo managed to grab most of his books in Flourish and Blotts before realising that some of the Wizarding Law books weren't inside, and so they crossed over to Whizz Hard Books for those. Penultimately came the robe fittings at a sour looking Madam Malkin before Leo and Sirius finished off buying the present from Mary, and Leo chose a Tawny Owl called Cosmo.
Once all his school supplies had been bought, Leo and Sirius finally had a chance to check out the twins' new shop… and even from the outside it looked brilliant. It was the only shop on the street that actually looked alive, with bright colours and a giant model of one of the twins above the door making a rabbit disappear into a hat. On one of the windows was a giant purple poster, with yellow letters flashing.
WHY ARE YOU WORRYING ABOUT YOU-KNOW-WHO?
WHEN YOU SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT U-NO-POO
THE CONSTIPATION SENSATION THAT'S GRIPPING THE NATION!
"Ha!" Sirius barked out a laugh. "Those two have nerves of steel." Leo was grinning too as he entered the shop, and once again in contrast to the rest of the street, the shop was rammed. There was barely any space as customers were everywhere. Sirius stopped off to look at the few remaining Skiving Snackboxes as Leo tried to force his way through the crowd to get further in, where he only saw Ginny sat on the counter chatting away to her twin brothers. Poking his head up to try and spot the other three, Leo was suddenly yanked to one side as Sirius dragged him towards the counter.
"Well if it isn't the master to our apprentice." Fred smirked as he bowed to Sirius. Leo simply presumed that Sirius had helped them out after leaving school a few months earlier and so he moved to one side to look at something called a Pygmy Puff, not noticing that Ginny had joined him until she picked one up.
"They've disappeared. Mad-Eye's gone to chase them." Ginny told him solemnly. "I don't know where to. Despite everything this summer they'll always be the golden trio I guess."
Leo didn't react to that, instead simply thanking Ginny for telling him before returning to the shelves so that he could buy a couple of the muggle magic tricks, noticing a plaque on top of the section with a dedication to Arthur Weasley, the elder Weasley's portrait looking down at Ginny with a warm smile on his face, a touch that Leo thought was a lovely addition from Fred and George.
Soon however it was time to leave, and the students somehow managed to get the adults to agree to sharing one of the cars to themselves once Harry, Ron and Hermione had reappeared. Harry made sure to have the screen between driver and passengers up before whispering harshly. "He was happy!"
"He'd just managed to get rid of his miserable mother, of course he was." Ron grumbled, as Leo and Ginny looked at one another, bemused at whatever was going on between the three.
Hermione simply tutted. "There are hundreds of explanations as to why Malfoy was happy." He explained. "A good sale, a good purchase, a job…"
"You think Malfoy's got a job?" Ron snorted in amusement. "That pampered prick…"
Hermione scowled. "That's the thing Ronald, we don't know anything. And jumping to conclusions so quickly whilst knowing none of the facts is dangerous, Harry." She looked at Harry pointedly, and an awkward silence fell over the group.
"I know what I saw." Harry muttered. "And heard. He wants something fixed, and Borgin has a spare in his shop."
"You went to Knockturn Alley alone?" Ginny asked incredulously, frowning at Harry. "Are you completely daft?"
Harry shrugged, unfazed by the youngest Weasley's outburst. "We had the cloak, and Malfoy is up to something I just know it. His Father's in Azkaban, maybe he's trying to get a plan together to get back at us…" He trailed off, realisation kicking in as his mouth made an O. "His arm Hermione."
"What?" The witch asked.
Harry however leant forwards, almost excitedly. "His arm in Madam Malkins. He flinched and wouldn't let her touch his left arm. He's replaced Lucius as a Death Eater."
"He's sixteen." Leo contributed. "Isn't that a bit… young?"
Harry shook his head. "Voldemort had already murdered before sixteen. It wouldn't be too young to him if he needed something. Malfoy showed something to Borgin that terrified the man… what if it was the Dark Mark?"
Ron's face turned into a scowl, while Hermione just shook her head, an amused smile on her face. "Draco Malfoy is many things, but a Death Eater?"
"If he is I'll kill him." Ron muttered darkly. "But sixteen…"
"Is old enough." Ginny stated plainly. "I'm fifteen and was there at the Ministry at 14. Age is nothing if you're good enough. You-Know-Who knows that." She looked at Harry. "Are you sure?"
He nodded. "I know what I saw." He repeated. Ginny then simply nodded her agreement, folding her arms defiantly.
Leo wasn't convinced either however. "It still seems a bit strange that You-Know-Who would be relying on a schoolboy…" He trailed, shaking his head. "I can't see it, not until he's of age. What's the point of joining if he can't actually perform magic out of school yet?"
"Fear." Harry explained. "With Malfoy in the Death Eater ranks Voldemort has the whole family in his grasp. They'd have to do anything for him out of fear of his life."
Hermione sighed. "That's a big leap Harry."
Harry groaned, audibly frustrated. "Fine, don't believe me. But when it's clear that I'm right…"
"If." Hermione corrected.
"When." Harry countered. "You'll wish you believed me here and we could actually do something about it together."
The rest of the trip was taken in silence, and it wasn't until they had said goodbye to the Weasley's and flooed back to Grimmauld Place when Hermione let her frustrations out as she stood in Leo's room as he packed his new books and robes away into his school trunk. She began explaining exactly what he had missed, the incident in Madam Malkins, the argument with Narcissa Malfoy who had had some rather mean things to say about Sirius, and following Malfoy down into Knockturn Alley as well as the overheard conversation. When she was finally done, she asked. "You don't believe it, do you?" Hermione asked.
Leo shook his head. "No, despite what Harry says sixteen seems too young even for You-Know-Who." He admitted. "Though I'll admit it is suspicious."
"Of course it's suspicious, Borgin and Burke's is a dark shop and Malfoy is no doubt up to no good." Hermione huffed. "But to be a Death Eater? There's no way." She shook her head before sighing. "Harry won't let this go… do you realise that? And Ron won't help much if he thinks that Malfoy's become one of the group that murdered his Father."
Leo didn't know them as well, but the determined nature once Harry set his mind to something wasn't a secret, nor was Ron Weasley's ability to hold on to a grudge. "We'll keep an eye on them both." He told her.
Hermione looked happier with that, until she continued her tirade. "And Ginny as well? I thought she was more sensible than that."
While Leo didn't know all of Hermione's secrets, the time they had spent together that summer had given him quite a bit of additional information on their school days that he hadn't known before, including the full truth behind Second Year. "Perhaps the Chamber incident is in her mind when thinking about it. The memory was 16 years old, wasn't he? She'll know what that was capable of more than anybody." Though in his head he knew that there was a big difference between Draco Malfoy and You-Know-Who.
Hermione nodded, sighing dramatically as her anger deflated. "I guess. I'll speak to her when I see her next." She shook her head quickly. "But enough of that… can I read Magical Moral Perspective?" She put on a hopeful smile.
Leo laughed, spotting one of his new subject's books in the school pile. Picking it up and handing it to her, he said. "Fancy a career in law?" He asked teasingly.
Hermione shrugged with a grin. "Perhaps, or perhaps I've just not read this one before." She turned away from him and began walking out of the room, stopping in the doorway. "Thanks Leo." She said before moving again, and Leo could tell from her voice that she was holding in a laugh. Falling on the bed he sighed dramatically as he looked up at the ceiling, realising once and for all that he definitely fancied Hermione Granger.
Reviews:
PuCMagnet: I really don't know how to take that review but it sounds like you probably enjoyed the chapter…
Lightningscar: That's definitely the vibe of the story I feel, Leo is a normal kid with normal friendships but given his parentage he is going to get dragged into the war more and more as the story goes on.
Dante687: That's my thoughts too!
SkepticPrinceArthur: Harry/Luna is a fun one for sure! I'm definitely more of either a Harry/Hermione or Harry/Ginny guy myself but I can appreciate well written other pairings. Thank you, Sirius in 6th year and being free feels like a clean slate so I'm excited to delve more into him as and when I can. Outlining is probably the part I enjoy the most so I hope you have fun with your own story, I'm definitely interested in it!