Chapter 4: Decisions, Decisions.
Thanks for reading and reviewing. I knew this one wouldn't get much traffic. Not enough drama. Oh well, it is a blast to write.
You get two in one morning. Yay! If my muse strikes me hard, you might get three. Pending on my hands. While these are dictated, for the most part, there is still a lot of typing involved.
Hphphp
After explaining to Dobby what frugal was, Harry went about figuring out how much money he had left for the rest of the month. Since it was the end of the month, he had just enough for groceries and other things. He hoped he could budget better for next month, but he wouldn't have to pay so much for Sally Withers, first and last month's rent and utility deposits, so he should be okay.
"Okay, Dobby, we have about 20 galleons for groceries. I have a bit more than that, but I want to keep some for emergencies," Harry said, rubbing his eyes from going over the numbers.
Dobby's eyes got wide; he was flabbergasted. "Is that being all, Harry Potter, sir? I am not sure I can feed you on that," he said, rubbing his hands together. He was used to spending much more than that a week on groceries.
"That's only for about two weeks. How can you not feed me on that?" Harry asked, looking at the elf like he had lost his mind. That was quite a bit of money for two weeks of groceries. Then again, they still needed quite a few things for the flat too, he noted as he looked at the bare cupboards.
"What is you being eating, sir?" the elf asked, thinking of things like duck, pheasant, and peahens.
"Well, I'm a simple person. Things like fish and chips, shepherd's pie, chicken, hamburgers, you know, simple stuff," Harry said, with a shrug.
Dobby's brow furrowed and he got a confused look on his face. "Oh, I am not sure I know hows to cook that," he said, fretting his hands again.
Harry went up to the elf and put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. He said in a comforting tone, "You know how to read. We'll get you a cookbook." That seemed a simple solution to him.
"That is being a very good idea, Harry Potter," the excitable house elf said, beaming at his hero.
"Just one more expense, I guess. We're going to have to get pots and pans and utensils and such. I'm going to need toiletries and other items. That's going to have to go into the budget. I didn't budget for that. But I think I have enough. Good thing taxes aren't due until September," Harry said with a shake of his head. He really needed to put aside some money for that.
"What is being taxes?" Dobby asked, tilting his head.
"Don't you worry about that. I don't even know what they are. All I know is the goblins say that I must pay them. I'll let them take care of that," Harry said, rubbing his forehead at just the thought of them.
"If you is being saying so, sir," the elf said, thinking it was just one more thing making his human upset.
"Anyway, I'm knackered, I'm going to bed. Where are you going to sleep?" Harry asked, getting his nightclothes out of his trunk and heading to the bathroom. He didn't open the door yet, just stood and waited for Dobby to answer.
"I is going to be sleeping in the closet," Dobby said, pointing to the only closet in the whole flat. It was a combination coat/utility closet.
Harry stared at the elf in shock. "In the closet? Are you crazy?" he asked in a loud tone. He couldn't fathom anyone willingly wanting to sleep in a closet.
"That is where all house elves being sleeping," Dobby informed him, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Are you going to be comfortable there?" the young wizard asked dubiously.
"Oh yes sir, that is where house elves likes to be sleeping. It is nice an warms there," Dobby said, nodding his head emphatically.
"As long as you're comfortable there. I know I'm never sleeping in a closet again if I can help it," Harry stated, putting his hand on the doorknob to the loo and then stopped in horror. "Oh no Dobby, we forgot to clean the loo." His imagination went wild. He could just see the mold growing in his mind.
"No, Dobby cleaned it whilst yous was gone, sir," Dobby said with a wide grin. He loved what he had done with the bathroom.
"Oh, thank Merlin. If the flat was bad when we got here, I'd hate to think what the loo looked like," the teen said, dreaming up some nasty visions. There were giant spiders flashing in his mind and not the magical kind.
"It was being bad, sir, but Dobby got it really cleaned," the elf promised.
"Thank Merlin," Harry said again, turning the knob and opening the door. He went to the loo and looked inside and closed his eyes and counted to ten. "Dobby, you can't make the loo look like this. This is a muggle flat."
Inside the loo was good enough for royalty. It was glistening, clean and the toilet was gold plated. The shower was so shiny that it sparkled like crystal. The floor looked like it was made of marble. And the faucet was plated in silver. There was a chandelier on the ceiling for Merlin's sake.
"No one will be seeing it, Harry Potter, sir," Dobby was whinging. He really wanted one room to be nice for his master.
"Dobby, you're a good bloke, but we can't do this," Harry said, looking at his little friend, trying not to break his heart, but he couldn't let him do this.
"Yes, sir," the elf said sadly and with a snap of his fingers, he turned it into a normal muggle bathroom. It was still nice; it just wasn't extravagant.
"Thank you, Dobby. This is very nice." Harry took his shower, put on his pajamas and went to bed. He had a good night's sleep with only one nightmare about Cedric, but Dobby woke him up, and he went back to sleep with no more disturbances.
The next morning Dobby and Harry went to Diagon Alley to get groceries where it was much cheaper than it would be in the muggle world. Dobby took Harry to the grocery store that Harry didn't know about. It was closer to Verity Alley, which Harry never explored. There, he spent 20 galleons. He got to get his toiletries and pots, pans and utensils. He also needed plates, glasses and silverware. He also got Dobby his cookbook. So, he wound up spending the 10 galleons he also took out from the bank.
"If I keep this up, I'm going to be flat broke before the end of the month," Harry groused as he went over what he had set aside for emergencies. It was only 100 galleons. That would not stretch far if this kept up.
"But Harry Potter, sir, is rich," Dobby exclaimed, not understanding why Harry had a budget. He knew his master had money in the bank.
"But I have a budget, Dobby. I am limited to 500 galleons a month, the bank won't give me any more than that per month," Harry tried to explain it again.
"Dobby is not being understanding this budget. It is being your money," the elf said, shaking his head.
"It's something you're going to have to learn being my house elf," Harry said, giving him a sad smile. Dobby was just too used to spending a lot of money.
"Dobby is thinking this is going to be something very hard," the elf said, wilting.
"Yeah, I think it's going to be hard for me too. Let's get this stuff back to the flat and get some breakfast. I'm starved," the teen said as his tummy rumbled. They had left early and gone to get food so that Harry could eat.
"Yes, sir, Harry Potter, sir."
With that, the two of them made their way back to the flat and Dobby cooked up a simple breakfast of eggs and soldiers, with some tea and milk. Harry ate his breakfast with gusto.
They fiddled around the flat and got things where they wanted them to be. Harry messed around with his budget some more to see if he could make his galleon stretch further. He didn't see where he could buy some clothes this month. He was going to have to wear his old robes next year, if he wasn't careful with his money next month. He still couldn't find Ron and Hermione, he had had Dobby look again after breakfast, so he decided to write a letter to Sirius.
But then he remembered he didn't have Hedwig, so he trudged back to Diagon Alley and used the post office there to mail it off. It cost him two knuts, which he grumbled about. By this time, it was time for him to go see Ms. Withers, so he took himself to her office.
The male receptionist was very much more pleased to see him this time. "Hello, Harry Potter. Take a seat right there. Ms. Withers will be with you in a minute." The man said, indicating a seat on the wall. His nameplate said his name was Mr. Daniels.
"Thank you, sir," said Harry as he took the seat. He picked up a magazine that was sitting there, but it was geared towards adults, so he put it back down and kicked his feet back and forth and waited.
Sally came out a few minutes later and gestured Harry into her office. "It's good to see you, Harry," she said taking her seat behind her desk.
"Thank you, Ms. Withers. Thank you so much for spending so much time with me yesterday. How much is it going to cost me?" he said with a cringe. He wasn't looking forward to the bill. He knew she spent far too much time with him yesterday. He was thankful for it, but…
"Well, since you're a new client, I'm going to give you a discount. It usually costs 25 galleons an hour. We spent about three hours together, so I'm going to charge you for two hours, so it'll cost you 50 galleons," she said, handing him over an invoice.
"I think I can afford that," said Harry, taking the invoice and reading it over. That sounded more than fair to him. She was cutting him quite the deal. "I still need to get to the bank and get you your money from the deposit and rent. I'll do that tomorrow and I'll get this payment then too. Do you need a vow for that?" he asked, hoping she didn't.
"No, I trust you. Just give it to Mr. Daniels in the morning. Now since we got your financials all situated yesterday, I need the memory from Peter Pettigrew from you today," she said, smiling at him in a predatory way. She was more than willing to take on the Black case. If it was going to go the way she thought it was, then she could see Black suing the Ministry. That would put her firm on the map.
Harry liked the look in her eyes. It meant that she was willing to go all out. "Not a problem. How do I do that?" he asked, leaning forward a bit.
"I'm going to put my wand to your head. You're going to think about what you want me to see, and I'm going to pull the memory from your head," she explained, coming around to his side of the desk and leaning against it.
"Will I still remember it?" he wondered, not wanting to forget the memory, even if it wasn't a particularly good one.
Sally nodded her head and said, "Yes, you'll still remember it, it just won't be as vivid." She readied her wand.
"Oh," said Harry. He nodded that he was ready.
Sally put her wand to his head and Harry thought of the memory and she pulled it out. She put it in a pensieve and viewed it. In it she saw that Peter did indeed confess that he was the killer and that he set Sirius up. When she came out, she had a wicked smile on her face. "Oh, yes, this will work just fine," she said, going back to her side of her desk and scribbling some notes on a piece of parchment.
"So, do you think you can get my godfather freed?" Harry asked eagerly. He really wanted Sirius freed, even if he was free from the Dursleys and didn't need to live with him anymore.
"Oh, I think I can get your godfather set free no problem," she practically purred. She could see heads roll for this fuck up.
"Can you get the Kiss on Sight order stopped?" Harry asked, wanting that gone today.
"If they kiss him, I'll sue them for everything they're worth," Sally stated, in a voice that meant business. She was writing up a stay of orders now. She needed to get to the Ministry as soon as she was done here. She could talk to Fudge and get him to stop his silly campaign against Sirius Black.
Harry suddenly thought of something. "I don't think he had a trial," he said, thoughtfully. It was just something that Sirius said in passing.
"Are you sure?" she asked, her head whipping up so fast it must have hurt.
"Not 100%, but I think Sirius mentioned that he didn't have one," Harry said, tapping his chin in thought.
"I'll have to check the records, but if he didn't have a trial then I can definitely get him exonerated even without this piece of information," she said, waving to the pensieve. No trial means that even if Sirius was guilty of his crimes, he walked free. They were only allowed to hold him for thirty days. Tops. That was wizarding law. They broke it, and she was going to make sure that Black knew he could sue.
"That would be great," said Harry, smiling sincerely.
"Now, are you sure you want to pay for this? Because I can charge your godfather for this. This is technically his case," she asked, knowing the boy had a budget, even if it wasn't a tight one. Well, this month it was. And he might have a hard time playing catchup.
"Maybe we should just split the bill," Harry said pensively.
"I think that would probably be best, what with your budget and all," she said, giving him a winning smile.
"I'll write to my godfather and let him know," Harry said, smiling back.
"You are in contact with him?" she questioned, wondering if the boy would tell him about her and the case. That would make things easier.
"I don't think I should answer that," Harry said, suddenly wary. Wasn't it against the law to be in contact with a criminal? He didn't want to go to jail for writing to Sirius.
"I'm your solicitor, you can tell me anything," Sally assured him gently. "Nothing you say leaves this office."
"Then, yes, I'm in contact with him."
"Then, yes, write to your godfather and let him know that you're going to be splitting the bill for my fee. Tell him about the case and have him contact me with his memories, even though I probably won't need them," she said, giving him a card with her floo address and phone number on it.
"Thank you very much, Ms. Withers," Harry said, taking the card and slipping it into his jeans pocket. He didn't wear any robes today.
"If that's going to be all for you today, Harry, that's only a half an hour, so I'll only charge you half the fee," she said, smiling at him brightly. Usually she'd charge the full hour, but she was going to stay in the boy's good graces.
"Again, thank you very much, Ms. Withers." With that, Harry left the office before she could charge him anymore. He decided to get the bill out of the way now and went to Gringotts. He got the money he owed her and then went back and gave it to Mr. Daniels, who gave him a receipt. He went back to his flat and got a late lunch of ham and cheese sandwich with some crisps. Dobby had made the crisps fresh. And they tasted good, much better than the bagged stuff.
"These are really good, Dobby, you're a really good cook," the young teen said, complimenting his smaller friend. The elf really was a great chef.
"Thank you very much, Harry Potter, sir," Dobby said beaming at him. He was taking more crisps out of the grease and putting them on a paper towel. He was having a grand old time.
"I'm glad you enjoyed that cookbook, it was money well spent," Harry stated, eating more crisps and drinking one of the pumpkin juices they had gotten that day. They came in single sized servings.
"I is being very much enjoying it," the elf said, turning off the stove and putting the pans in the sink where all the other dishes were already being washed by magic.
"I hope you didn't waste too much food experimenting," Harry said, in a leery tone. Not that he didn't want Dobby to have fun, but this month was tight.
"Oh no, sir, Dobby is being frugal," the elf said, smiling at Harry that he could use the new word correctly.
"Good on you, Dobby," Harry stated, finishing up his lunch.
Suddenly there was some scratching at the door, and a bark. Harry took out his wand and went to the door. He opened it and in came a huge black dog. It jumped on Harry and knocked him down. It licked him all over his face.
"Get off me, you mutt," Harry said, laughing and shoving the overgrown canine off him.
"Come now, Snuffles, leave Harry alone," Remus Lupin said from the doorway. He pulled on the leash that was attached to the dog.
Snuffles cuffed and moved off Harry and sniffed around the room. Remus dropped the leash and let the dog do what it will.
"How did you find me?" Harry asked, looking at the werewolf warily.
"Snuffles followed your scent from the Leaky," Remus stated, coming into the flat and taking a seat on the couch. He assumed he was welcomed, since Harry hadn't told them to leave.
"Why are you here?" the teen asked, not sure if he wanted to go with them or not. He was getting used to the idea of the whole adult thing, and he had just spent a lot of money setting up here. He didn't want that to go to waste.
"That all depends on what you say in the next five minutes," Remus said, closing the door with his wand. He had seen the lady in the bookstore, and he didn't want her to hear the conversation. So he put up a silencing charm and a muggle repellent ward.
"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked, sitting in the chair by the door. "I mean, why are you here?" he asked again.
"You wrote to Sirius that you have rented a flat, and that you're an emancipated minor. Do you want to stay here, or do you want to come and live with Sirius?" Remus asked, lifting an eyebrow.
Harry thought long and hard on that. On the one hand, he just spent a good amount of money setting up here. On the other hand, he would be around his godfather. Decisions, decisions.