Leaky Cauldron (Day)

Hagrid was no stranger to the mannerisms of young children. Living on the grounds of Hogwarts naturally came with being around the first years, even if they had been dwindling in number the past few years. But this was nearly enough to bring him to insanity.

"Oh, there once was a ship that went to sea! The name of the ship was the Billy-O-Tea!" Russo sang, oblivious to how he and Harry were being watched in the bar.

"How many verses has it been now?" Hagrid asked, tired.

"I think 152." Harry said. This wasn't the first time Russo had sung someone's ears off, figuratively or literally. "So, how are we going to find everything on this list in here?" Attached to his admissions letter was a list of essential items required for him to attend Hogwarts.

"Out back, there's a passage to Diagon Alley. That's where you'll find your stuff." Hagrid explained, guiding the two boys past several prying eyes.

"Well, th-this is a surpr-prise." a man in a purple turban said, stopping Russo's singing as the blonde analyzed the stranger. "Harry P-potter. It's an honor to meet you."

"Ah, this is Professor Quirell. He's the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts." Hagrid introduced.

"Defense? Should be an interesting class." Russo said with a grin. "I look forward to your classes."

After meeting Professor Quirell, Hagrid led the boys to a back exit from the bar, opening to a small space blocked off by a brick wall. However, by poking his umbrella on certain bricks in a certain order, Hagrid was able to open a gateway to a bustling shopping district, overflowing with magical activity.

"Oh ho, I love this!" Russo said, grinning madly as he watched in awe as several acts of magic were performed in front of him.

Harry was similarly lost in how ordinarily mundane things were made extraordinary through magic but was preoccupied with a far more concerning issue. "But Hagrid, how am I supposed to pay for all this? I don't have any money."

"Well, there's your money, lad! Gringotts Bank, safest place on Earth." Hagrid said, pointing to a lavish white building at the end of the alley.

As the trio walked towards the bank, Russo couldn't help but feel as though he was being threatened by the structure itself. When they got close enough to read the inscription on the doors, the reason became clear.

"Enter, stranger, but take heed of what awaits the sin of greed. For those who take, but do not earn, must pay dearly for their turn. So, if you seek beneath our floors, a treasure that was never yours, thief, you have been warned, beware of finding more than treasure there."

A warning like this usually wouldn't faze the blonde, but the magical nature of the situation worried him. What if him entering was the catalyst for a curse of some sort? What if his past deeds marked him as a target for said curse? And what if there really was something in the bank's vaults that tempted him enough to steal?

"Russo, are you coming?" Harry asked from just beyond the doors, having already entered with Hagrid.

Weighing his options, Russo made his choice. "Yeah, sorry. Just thinking about that poem." he said, laughing it off as he cautiously entered the building. As he and Harry followed Hagrid, they quickly noticed several angry looking creatures writing various things down on sheets of paper.

"What are they?" Harry quietly asked, not wanting to make the creatures any angrier.

"Goblins. Crafty sort they are. Careful not to wrong one." Hagrid said. "It'll be the last mistake you made."

"Gotcha." Russo said, masking his fear with a smile.

Eventually, Hagrid stopped before a goblin with an air of authority. "Mr. Harry Potter would like to make a withdrawal." the man said, prompting the goblin to slowly look up from his paper.

"And does Mr. Potter have his key?" the goblin asked.

Hagrid rummaged through his pockets for a bit before producing the key. "And there's this too, from Professor Dumbledore." The man handed an envelope to the goblin. "It's about you-know-what in vault you-know-which." he whispered, garnering a reaction from the goblin.

"Follow me, please." the goblin said, leaving his desk.

The goblin led the trio to a minecart-esque mechanism. After boarding it, the cart sped down a set of rails, reaching blinding speeds before stopping deep in a cave with several circular doors lined in a row.

"Well, hated that." Harry said, trying not to vomit.

"Speak for yourself. That was awesome!" Russo exclaimed, laughing.

"Vault 687." the goblin said, exiting the cart. Using the key he was given, the goblin unlocked the vault door. As the metal door creaked open, Harry was shown what his parents left him. Piles upon piles upon piles of gold coins.

"Holy hell." Russo said, entranced by the glistening light of the gold. "Looks like you've officially become richer than me, Harry."

After transferring the contents of the vault to Harry, the group's next stop was Vault 713. "Why are we stopping here, Hagrid?"

"Can't tell you. Hogwarts business, very secret." the man cryptically explained.

"Stand back." the goblin said, to which the group obeyed. He traced a clawed finger over engraved runes on the door, slowly unlocking it.

As Harry, Hagrid, and the goblin were focused on the door. Russo's attention wandered to a vault adjacent to 713. This vault's door was slightly ajar, not enough to be noticed, but enough for someone to potentially open it without use of a key. The warning on the door rang in his head, but his curiosity compelled him to investigate.

When the goblin's rune tracing was finished, Vault 713 opened. Inside was a small burlap sack, which Hagrid picked up and pocketed. Turning around to face Harry and Russo, he simply made a shh-ing motion with his finger.

Diagon Alley (Day)

"So, what now?" Russo asked, glad to be out of the bank.

"What else? You two need wands!" Hagrid said, guiding the two to a shop called Ollivander's. "You just head in there and wait for me. I won't be long."

Upon entering the store, both children were immediately met with a cloud of dust in their faces. "Ugh, well, that happened." Russo said, wiping the dust off his face.

"Oh, I have been waiting for this day." an elderly voice said as it moved towards the children. A man with scruffy white hair popped up from behind a desk in front of them. "A pleasure to meet you, Harry Potter. It seems only yesterday I met your mother and father and gave them their first wands."

"You knew my parents?" Harry asked.

"Ah, yes. Your father had a talent for transfiguration. Your mother on the other hand was quite adept with charms." Ollivander said, recalling the exact wands he gave them all those years ago. He pulled a wand from its box, then handed it to Harry. "Go on, give it a wave." he encouraged.

Harry did as he was told, unintentionally causing several wand boxes to fly out of their shelves.

"Might want to try another." Russo joked.

Agreeing with that idea, Ollivander took the wand and gave Harry another in its place. This time, even the slightest movement Harry's wrist made resulted in a glass vase exploding.

"Strike two." the blonde said, eager to see what the next wand would cause.

"Don't mind him, you're doing fine." Harry said, trying to keep the old man's spirits up.

"Hmm, I wonder..." Ollivander said, going to a shelf far in the back of his store and retrieving the wand inside. Upon handing it to Harry, a bright golden light and a warm burst of air emanated from the boy's body. "Curious, very curious."

"I'm sorry, but what's curious?" Harry asked.

"The phoenix that gave the feather that now lies in your wand gave another. Just. One. Other." Ollivander said, a grim tone in his voice. "What's curious is the fact that you should be given this wand when its brother gave you that scar."

"You mean, the one who killed my parents?" Harry asked.

"I believe you will do great things with that wand, Mr. Potter." Ollivander said ominously. "After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things. Terrible, yes. But great."

A memory of a woman with vibrant pink hair rose to the front of Russo's mind when he heard that line.

"Ah, you." Ollivander said, taking a closer look at the blonde. "For you, I have just the thing." The man went to his shelves, returning with a white wand that looked almost curved. "Five inches, a fossilized tooth with sungazer blood as its core."

Russo took the wand into his hand, waving it around slowly. Red sparks came from the tip, harmlessly fizzling out when they hit the ground. "Hmm, I think I like this one." the boy said, grinning. He was brought out of his thoughts when a loud crash was audible from outside.

Without any warning, the door burst open and a housecat with an orange and black fur pattern entered, meowing frantically as it ran about the confined area, scratching many surfaces in the process. After two minutes of pure chaos, the cat somehow found its way onto Russo's face, trying to claw into his skin.

"Is anyone hurt!?" Hagrid asked, carrying a birdcage with a white owl inside.

"Nah, we're fine." Russo said, either unaware or uncaring of the fact that there were twenty claws digging into him. "So, who's this furball?"

"Well, I was going to surprise you with familiars after you were done buying wands, but that one ran out as soon as it could." Hagrid explained. "They warned me he was a bit erratic, but I didn't think this would happen."

"Heh, sounds like my kind of cat. He's a little spitfire." Russo said, pulling the now calm animal from his face. Somehow, the claws left no marks on him. "I think I'll call you...Guerra." The cat didn't react to the name in any way, positive or negative. However, since it did nothing, Russo took that as it accepting the name.