Chapter Nine
Danica stood, staring in the dirty windows, taking several deep breaths.
"Are you ready to go in?" Severus asked, a hand wrapped around his daughter's shoulder.
Danica didn't know what to say.
"I remember staring in the window." Harry grinned, "Although I was so excited to get my wand, I think I basically blew the door off!"
Lily laughed, "I remember you blowing up half the shop… now, let's hurry up and get you inside so we can go for ice cream afterwards and you can have a look at the pets."
Danica smirked, Sirius had told her that he was sorting out her pet for school, although she wasn't to tell her parents about the surprise.
"I'm ready." she said softly, and reached out to open the door.
Harry was surprised at how little the shop had changed. It still only had the one, spindly chair and rows and rows of shelves, covered in boxes. It even had the same dusty purple cushion in the window sill. The only thing that had really changed was the boxes were far less dusty than they had been the last time Harry was there.
"Good day." the familiar voice of Ollivander called from the back of the shop, "Just one moment… Ah… I was wondering when I would be seeing you."
Danica stepped forward and smiled, feeling rather uncomfortable at the way Ollivander was staring at her, "I've come to get my wand… to start school. Sir."
Ollivander nodded, "I see… of course. I'm not sure how easy it will be to find a match. Forgive me if I sound, indelicate, but you are not entirely human, are you child?"
Danica looked back up at him with her clear green eyes, "No sir. But then, neither are you. Are you sir?"
Ollivander grinned and laughed slightly. He turned from Danica and pulled out the first wand box from under the counter, adding a few more to it from the shelves before proceeding to take his tape measure and write down several measurements of Danica's arm length, hand size and many more.
"I don't remember you having to write things down before." Lily said with a gentle smile.
Ollivander smiled back, "Quite right you are, Miss Evans. I am afraid that my time under Miss Black and her husband's rule has left me slightly more infirm than I was a few years ago. No worries though, I have not lost my touch when it comes to helping wands find their owners."
Harry watched as his sister went through several dozen wands, blowing up four candles, a shelf of mugs that crashed in the kitchen, and scaring Ollivander's pet peacock.
Finally after nearly an hour and a half, Danica felt every hair stand on end and her breath freeze in the air around her.
"Well, I think we've found our wand haven't we, Miss Snape?" Ollivander said happily, "Allow me to place it in its box."
Danica nodded, but was rather reluctant to let go of the wand, even knowing that she would be getting it right back.
"Seven Galleons please." Ollivander said, tapping a few keys on a very old till and handing over the wand box, wrapped in a yellow bow.
Danica took it gratefully and put it in the bag with her parchment and quills. Lily handed over the money and thanked Ollivander again before they left the shop.
"How do you feel?" Harry asked, giving his little sister a shoulder bump.
Danica grinned, "Wonderful… it's… it's far more real somehow! I'm getting to go to school!"
Harry hugged her tightly, "Yes you are! And I'm sure you will be a proud Slytherin, just like the best of us!"
"Excuse me!" Lily laughed, "I'm standing right here."
"We allow the odd member from other houses to talk to us, the exceptional ones." Harry said, in an exaggerated whisper.
"You're grounded." Lily laughed.
"I don't live at home any more!" Harry pointed out, laughing back.
"Oh don't remind me." Lily said, pulling him into a hug.
Danica grinned, wondering what house she would be in. She didn't really feel like she was only one house at all.
"What's on your mind?" Harry asked her.
"I was just thinking about what pet to get." Danica said, asking her brother about which house she was likely to be in seemed rather frivolous. Especially as his mind was filled with important, grown up things like redecorating his house.
"We could go and have a look at owls if you wanted?" Harry grinned, "Then maybe go and see your new house?"
Danica grinned back and nodded.
It wasn't much later that they were standing in the hallway of Danica's new home, looking around the white washed or freshly painted walls and piles of boxes.
"You know, your big house must be just over that cluster of trees." Danica said, thinking of the lay out of the estate while staring out side her window, "We could make a path, so it would be easy to get there! And here of course… paths tend to work both ways…"
Harry smiled, "I was going to tell you… I'm not going to be moving into the big house."
"Why?" Danica cried, "I thought it was wonderful and amazing!"
Harry sat down on one of the boxes and patted the box next to him, gesturing for Danica to join him. She sat down and looked calmly at him, fidgeting with her fingers to stop herself from saying anything until Harry had had a chance to explain.
"It is amazing, and wonderful." Harry agreed, "And I… it's almost as grand as Malfoy Manor. Well maybe not, and it's rather run down but it's not been touched for years and years. I was going through the rooms, thinking of what I was going to do to improve it and redecorate and which rooms I was even going to be able to use… and then I started thinking about if Cho would want to come and live with me, or not. Is it too soon? My head started to spin and… and I realised that not one bit of the house felt like a home. It felt like a museum. So I got some local historians in who said that most of it hadn't been touched since Queen Victoria was on the throne."
Danica nodded, "I think I get it."
"I just couldn't try and force it to be a home when… when it's got so much history." Harry said, "I'll be going into the Ministry, talk to Mr Weasley and make sure there's nothing dangerous in there, magically speaking, then we'll look at getting it opened to the public."
"It's sad." Danica said, "I mean, your grandparents lived there."
"Great grandparents." Harry corrected her, "And they approved as much of mum as Rodolphus Lestrange would have."
Danica snorted a laugh, "So where are you, and maybe maybe not Cho going to live?"
Harry poked out his tongue at her, wondering if it was worth the glare he would get from his mother if he pushed Danica off the box, "I'm not sure. There are a few small houses sitting empty on the estate. I think I'll take one of those. Just a one or two bedroom for now… and I'm not about to ask Cho to move in with me just yet."
"I think she'll say yes." Danica said, running the toe of her shoe across the fluffy new carpet, "for what it's worth."
Harry pulled his sister into a hug, "You're the best little sister ever, I hope you know that."
Danica hugged him back, "Thanks Harry."
"I like it." Cho said with a grin, just over a week later, looking around Harry's new house.
It was certainly far smaller than he'd been used to, and he could fit the whole house in the ball room of Potter Hall.
It had a kitchen, with a small dinning room table at one end. Two bedrooms, although one was so small it would struggle to fit in more than a single bed and chest of drawers. There was also a sitting room and a bathroom with the shower of the bath tub.
"Really?" Harry grinned, "You wouldn't rather be lady of Potter Hall, swanning around in silk dresses?"
"Never really been one to 'swan'." She smiled, "I did like the Yule Ball though, so maybe you're right. I shall leave you and run off to marry rich and titled with a big house!
"You could marry Malfoy or Longbottom." Harry said haughtily, "Or Daphne or Pansy I suppose."
Cho looked disgusted, "I don't think so! If I'm giving up a viscount I'm not about to marry the child of a lowly Barron."
"I'm going to tell Pansy you said that." Harry laughed, pulling her into a hug, "You're sure you don't mind?"
"I never would have lived in that big house by choice." Cho told him honestly, "For you, yes, but it's not my idea of a dream home."
"Marry me." Harry said, without thinking.
Cho froze, pulling away slightly, "Harry… are… are you sure you meant to say that?"
Harry blinked a few times, "I… yes." he laughed, "Yes, I didn't think but yes. I want to marry you I want to live the rest of my life with you. You're wonderful and amazing and would live in that big, empty house for me… Please, Miss Cho Chang, do me the honour of becoming my wife."
Cho blinked away tears and nodded.
"Yes."
Harry kissed her deeply, sobbing slightly himself, "Let's not tell anyone until after Pansy and William get married, ok? I mean, tell our parents and stuff but not publicly."
Cho nodded, "Yes, of course… it's not long until their big day and I wouldn't want to take away any of the attention. We shouldn't tell anyone, not even our family. Danica wouldn't be able to keep it a secret!"
"Good point. We're getting married." Harry grinned, pressing his forehead to hers.
"Yes we are." Cho whispered back, feeling as though she was going to burst from happiness.
