Work Text
The Streets of London
When Harry had finally alighted from the train in London he was struck by how familiar it all was to Pittsburgh. The accents were different and the pollution was worse but it certainly didn't look like he had travelled halfway across the world, although it definitely felt like it. His Uncle Vernon had only paid for the cheapest transatlantic ferry for him and it had been a cramped journey in the bowels of the ship, cramped and hot. It had been a godsend to finally step foot on land again in Liverpool. Unfortunately from there Harry had been on his own. It had seemed like a grand adventure all those years ago when Uncle Vernon had been offered a job heading up a subsidiary of U.S. Steel, making components for various tools. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia had been particularly excited at the thought, having become somewhat disenfranchised in England. The class system was still going strong at the end of the 19th century despite the Industrial revolution and, regardless of how high in industry you may rise or how much money you might make, there had still been many doors that remained closed. America was different however, with the captains of industry leading the social scene and anyone was able to make a name for themselves if they just worked hard enough, or so the saying went anyway. Harry had felt as if he worked as hard as he could and had still never been able to be noticed. It didn't help that his aunt and uncle had continued to keep him locked away, especially when they had parties; Harry had stayed so quiet all the time he doubted many of their friends knew he even existed. School hadn't been much better either. Dudley had still travelled to go to Smeltings when he was old enough which had meant that he was almost entirely out of Harry's hair since he remained in Pittsburgh attending a school on the other side of the city. Unfortunately that limited Harry a lot, especially as he always had to be back home by a certain time or risk going without dinner, and Harry soon found himself on the sidelines of his friendship groups when he was continually left out of things. At least the lack of friends freed up some time for Harry and he was able to pick up a paper round to earn a bit of money for himself. That had definitely come in handy when Harry had received his first ever birthday present on his 18th birthday: train ticket to New York and a one-way boat ticket to England. Uncle Vernon made it clear that he would never allow Harry to try to make anything of himself in America so his best bet was to hop across the pond to England where Uncle Vernon could be sure Harry was out of their hair for good, mostly because he doubted Harry would ever have enough money to return. Aunt Petunia had suggested Harry try to make his way to London to find the Leaky Cauldron pub just off the Charing Cross Road; apparently it was somewhere his mother used to hang out when she was alive. It was one of the few times in Harry's life when his aunt had ever mentioned her sister which is why Harry was so determined to get to the place. It hadn't been as easy to get from Liverpool to London as Harry might have thought, nor was it any simple feat to try to navigate London's streets. He was used to the grid pattern layout of Pittsburgh where distances could be easily described in blocks, even with two rivers converging in it and you could always keep moving on no matter which road you took. London only had the one river running through it and still the roads were a complete rabbit warren, with streets jutting out at different angles and the number of them that ended in a dead end or ran in a small loop was truly mind boggling to Harry. It was ridiculously annoying as well as he kept getting turned around and had to keep asking people for directions again, something that a lot of people almost seemed to take offence to. Several times he considered hailing one of the many cabs he saw drive past but he persevered. The train ride down to London had burned quite a hole in his savings and he wasn't sure how or when he would be able to earn any more. Experience had taught him the necessity of food and it would be stupid to waste money on transport when he still had two perfectly good legs. He managed to find the place eventually, a dingy little hole in the wall place which everyone who walked by seemed to give a wide berth. That gave Harry hope as it likely meant the place was cheap and, by this point he was starving. There was a strange looking clientèle in the establishment when Harry opened the door and they all eyed Harry curiously as he made his way to the bar. "Excuse me sir, could I see a menu?" Harry asked the man standing behind the bar. The man laughed. "There's no menu lad, you eat what I've got or you don't, it's up to you. Today's offering is Steak and Kidney pie." Harry thought he must have gone a bit green at the sound of it as the man laughed again. He wasn't really in a position to be fussy though and it must be edible if it was the only thing on offer as there were several groups of people eating and none of them were complaining. "How much is that?" he asked, fishing his coin bag out and wondering if he had enough to justify getting something to drink as well." "1 sickle," the bartender replied. "Did you say 1 shilling?" Harry exclaimed, frantically checking his coins and thinking that that sounded like an awful lot of money. "Not shillings!" the bartender scoffed. "I got no use for that muggle money here. Is that all you got?" "It's what I was able to exchange when I arrived at Liverpool," Harry said. "Wasn't it right?" He suddenly had a feeling that he'd been swindled somehow. The bank had seemed legitimate but there was always the potential that things were very different here in England. "You're from abroad are you?" the bartender asked. "Pennsylvania," Harry replied. "America," he added upon seeing the bartender's confused look. "Ah right, well in that case you'd better get yourself to Gringotts if you want to get some proper money," the man grinned. "Come on, I'll show you the way. I'm Tom by the way, did you need a place to stay while you're here?" "That would be good, although I think finding employment might be a better idea first," Harry sighed, feeling the lightness of his purse. "Well, to be fair, I could use an extra pair of hands around here as it's just been me running the place since my old mum passed away," Tom admitted. "I haven't been able to afford to pay someone before now but if you're willing to accept room and board for helping me out a bit I would be glad to be able to take a bit of a break." "That sounds perfect," Harry grinned, "and I suppose I can always keep an eye out for other opportunities as well." "Well aren't you an enterprising young lad," Tom chuckled, leading Harry out the back of the pub. He pulled out a slim stick and tapped a series of bricks. Suddenly the whole wall began to move and revealed a bustling street where Harry thought there had been a building. He couldn't help gaping at what truly seemed like another world. "Interesting place ain't it," Tom smirked. "Well now, you just walk straight down this road and you'll come across the bank, Gringotts. You can't miss it, place is huge. Anyway, you go and get your coins exchanged and I'll have a good slice of pie and a nice pint waiting for you when you get back." "Thank you Tom, that's very kind of you," Harry smiled. "I'm Harry by the way, Harry Potter." With that Harry turned and stepped into the magical new street, completely missing the look of shock and awe on Tom's face at his announcement. It had been difficult not to get distracted by all of the weird and wonderful things Harry saw as he walked down the street and he couldn't wait to get the chance to explore everything; England really seemed like a magical other world. Unfortunately it was rapidly approaching evening and Harry's stomach was loudly reminding him that he hadn't had anything to eat since his early breakfast before boarding the train. As wonderful as some of the shops seemed it was nothing compared to the thought of the hot meal Tom had waiting for him and Harry found his feet walking quickly past the various displays. Thankfully Tom hadn't been lying about the bank being hard to miss and Harry soon found himself walking through an ornate marble interior that reminded Harry a little bit of Union Station. It was clearly a bank, however, with what appeared to be rows of tellers along the walls. The tellers themselves seemed a little strange to Harry. He had heard Americans joke about British people having bad teeth but he'd never heard anything about hooked noses or pointed ears. It was with some trepidation that Harry walked up to one of them. "Excuse me, I would like to exchange some money." "What money are you exchanging and why?" the strange creature asked. "I've just arrived from America and I would like to get some English money," Harry explained. "Tom, the bartender at the Leaky Cauldron, told me to come here." "Did your branch manager in America not explain that we can simply access any funds from here?" the man scowled, somehow making his face seem more menacing. "I don't have a bank account over there," Harry admitted. "Then we will have to set one up here for you," the man huffed. "If you do go back to America please inform us of where you are returning to. We can set up a link to the local branch there but we need a rough location to do so. America is a very big country." "I realise that," Harry grinned. "You should have seen how shocked I was when I found out that I had apparently crossed halfway across this country in less than a day. You can't even cross half my state in that. Well, not my state anymore, I don't see me going back any time soon." "That will definitely make my job easier Mr?" "Potter, Harry Potter." The man's eyebrows rose slightly. "Mr Potter you say. Well then, if you follow me Mr Potter, I just need you to fill in a bit of paperwork and we can have an account open for you." He got down from his booth and Harry was surprised to notice how small he was. He led Harry into a little side room with warm wood panelled walls and a very imposing desk that the man perched himself behind. He asked Harry for his full name and date of birth and scratched them onto a bit of parchment. "Do you have a current address here in England?" he asked. "Tom has offered me a room at the Leaky Cauldron," Harry said. "That will do," the man nodded. "A temporary residence is better than no residence and we can always change it at a later date. Now, we are nearly done Mr Potter, all I need you to do is sign here and the bottom with this quill. Have you used one before?" The man handed Harry a strange looking black quill and Harry shook his head. "I don't believe so, no sir." "It's called a blood quill and, as you sign your name you will feel a little scratch," the man explained. "Do not be alarmed, it is only tying your blood to your account, a handy method of verifying your identity should you accidentally lose your vault key. It is also a way of finding out any other accounts you may have access to. The Ministry accused us of hoarding old accounts in the past so we came up with this method for determining any recipients, should a person die without a will or any obvious descendants. I should warn you however, Mr Potter, that just because an account comes up under your name that doesn't mean that you have instant access to it. The number in brackets after the account indicates the number of other people who potentially have rights to the accounts and you must then petition the Ministry to determine if and how the account should be split. Of course we here at Gringotts will keep a hold of all assets while they are in contention." Harry nodded, only vaguely understanding what was being said and dutifully signed the parchment. He was aware that it was coming but the scratch still made him wince, like a long paper cut, all the more painful for its shallowness. It was strange that he felt the scratch on the back of his hand though and he rubbed it in an effort to relieve the sting, almost a little surprised that it wasn't bleeding. The other man took the paper without really thinking but then dropped it in shock. Harry was shocked as well as he saw writing appearing at the bottom of the page as if by magic. "Well well Mr Potter, it seems you have a few accounts with us already," the man said, flashing a shark-like grin. "Do I!" Harry exclaimed. "How?" "Through inheritance sir," the man explained. "Your family has had accounts with us since the time of this bank's inception, near enough, from what I can tell, and it seems you are the last surviving heir. I'm sure you'll be happy to learn there is a house as well as shares in Sleekeazy, a product invented by your grandfather. There is also a vault with various artifacts acquired by your family over the years as well as the bank account itself. You will be able to take possession of it as soon as you agree to the payment of a 15% inheritance tax." Harry gaped. "15%! That sounds like quite a lot." He couldn't remember much about percentages from his school days but he remembered it was a fairly sizable amount. "Be grateful that the trust account your parents set up in your name isn't included in the amount," the man sighed. "If it was, you would be breaking the 20% limit. You see the wizarding world has very limited resources when it comes to taxation which is why it maximises it where it can." "It still feels a bit unfair," Harry huffed. "I never even knew I had this money and now some government that I've never been a part of before today is planning on taking a huge chunk of it." "Everyone I've spoken to in a similar position to you says a similar thing," the man sighed, "often even those in the lower bracket. Unfortunately that is the law." "I assume that I won't have to sell the house," Harry said, questioningly. "No, the cash valve should suffice," the man explained. "Personally I would advise against selling the shares, mostly as they bring in a steady income but you may want to look at selling some of the items over pure cash. You may not get as much value for them with a quick sale but you will keep more of your ready income which will likely come in handy if you are keeping the house. I fear years of neglect will have left it in a state of disrepair, especially as it was apparently where your parents made their last stand." Harry frowned. "What do you mean 'their last stand?" As far as Harry was aware his parents had died in a drunken brawl. "Your parents were war heroes," the man said, frowning slightly in return. "I suppose you might not have heard anything if you've been living in America. It might be a good idea to buy some books on recent history if you are planning on staying in England." Harry nodded in agreement. "I do, especially now I have a house. I'll admit that I had been a little worried about my long term plans in that regard and it's a relief to know I don't have to." "I would wait until you've had a chance to assess the condition of the property," the man laughed. "So long as there is at least one serviceable room I'm sure I'll be able to work something out," Harry grinned. "Although I would like to get any paperwork sorted if I can, as quickly as possible. It has been some time since I've eaten and I've been reliably informed that I have a hot meal waiting for me at the Leaky Cauldron." "Then I shall endeavour to acquiesce to your request," the man grinned. "It would be a shame for you to perish after just receiving your inheritance, least of all because we know from this that you have no descendants so your entire estate would fall into the hands of the Ministry. May I suggest making a will as soon as possible, just in case the worst should happen." Harry gulped and nodded. There was something almost knowing about the strange man's grin and Harry couldn't help but wonder exactly what he had gotten himself into by coming here.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
You're a Wizard Harry It took a little time for Harry to go through all of the items in the vaults and work out which ones would be better being sold and which ones would be better being kept. Harry felt a little strange selling things he had never even seen before, especially as he had had so few possession throughout his life, but the man, who's name was apparently Griphook, assured Harry that he would get the best price for them and that any money left over from the sale of the items would be safely returned to his vault, allowing Harry to purchasing things of his own choosing. That was certainly a novel idea for Harry and one that made this initial unease seem worth it in the long run. Unfortunately Harry's stomach was now protesting very loudly about being forced to wait for food and Harry was in such a rush to get back to the Leaky Cauldron that he barrelled right into an old man. "Oh God, I'm so sorry!" Harry gasped, giving the old man a once over to make sure that there hadn't been any permanent damage. "That's alright Harry, my boy, no harm done," the old man reassured him with a calm and gentle smile. Harry frowned. "How do you know my name?" "Tom flooed me after he left you and I came to see you right away," the man explained. "Why?" Harry asked. "Why do you think?" replied a red-headed young man who was standing next to the older one. Harry paused in thought. "Is it something to do with my family? Griphook mentioned that they were famous in some way." "Trust goblins to make that understatement," the redhead scoffed, earning him a slightly disapproving look from the older man making Harry wonder if they were somehow related. They certainly seemed to know each other well. "Ron here is right Harry, even if his choice of words could use some improvement," the old man smiled. "You see when you were a baby there was a terrible dark wizard named Voldemort whose actions threatened the wizarding world as we know it. Your parents were part of a group that stood up to Voldemort and his followers. One night your family was attacked in their home, the night that Voldemort disappeared. At first you were credited with his death but, when you failed to arrive at Hogwarts 7 years ago it was assumed by the general population that you must have been a squib, which is why Voldemort ignored you, and that your parents were actually the ones to take Voldemort out." "Well that would make more sense," Harry admitted. "I mean if I was only a baby I sincerely doubt I could have taken anyone out. What do you mean by the term wizard though?" The old man looked at Harry blinkingly. "Are you trying to tell me that your family never told you about magic?" Harry laughed. "You're joking right! That was essentially a curse word in that house." The redhead, Ron, looked thoughtful. "Perhaps they didn't know themselves sir, they are only muggles after all." The old man shook his head. "No, Petunia definitely knew. She wrote to me when her sister got accepted into Hogwarts and asked if she could join her. I had to tell her politely, but in no uncertain terms, that that was not possible." "Whyever not?" Harry asked, still very confused. "Because Hogwarts is a school where magic is taught which is why we don't accept squibs, let alone muggles," the old man said and Harry just shook his head. "You keep saying these words but they mean nothing to me. You seem to have known my parents which is nice and I'd certainly like to chat at some stage but honestly, right now I'm starving, I haven't eaten since breakfast, and I would just like to get some food in me." That seemed to bring the old man up short. "Oh! Of course my boy," he said with a smile before turning to one of the strange, short men who worked at the bank and saying something to him in a strange language. The bank worker seemed to scowl at the man and then at Harry a bit before leading them down a short hallway to another panelled room. "Tea and sandwiches should be brought by shortly," the old man smiled, taking the seat behind the ornate desk in the room and leaving the two young men to take the chairs in front of it. "I'll start from the beginning. My name is Albus Dumbledore, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the school that your parents attended and that you should have attended once you turned 11." "You'd have been in the same year as me," Ron grinned, but Harry frowned. "Why didn't I?" "Well, contrary to what some people think it wasn't because you were a squib," Dumbledore huffed. "I know my Deputy, Minerva McGonagall, checked the book before your first birthday and your name was already on there and the Book of Admissions only allows names to be added once a certain level of accidental magic has been achieved and it's rare for that to happen in one so young." "Accidental magic?" Harry queried and Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, what we call the uncontrollable little burst of magic that sometimes happen, especially in children. Things may have happened to you growing up Harry, things you couldn't explain. Can you think of any instances?" "Well there was this thing with my hair, whenever my aunt cut it it would always grown straight back to how it was before, even that time she took a cutthroat razor to it. And there were a couple of times when I could have sworn I left school books or homework at home but, when I got to school it was already in my locker, even when I knew I had been working on it the night before," Harry said. Dumbledore nodded sagely. "Anything else my boy?" Harry frowned in thought. "Well there was this one time I was being chased by a rabid dog and I suddenly found myself on the roof of a building. I have absolutely no memory of getting up there but the police officer who helped me get down said it wasn't uncommon for people to achieve feats of great strength when they were scared and it was possible I just didn't remember it because my mind couldn't make sense of it." "Muggles do come up with some funny explanations for things," Dumbledore chuckled. "A muggle is what we call a non-magical person," he then explained, having seen Harry's blank expression. "A squib is someone who is born into the magical world who can't do magic but you, Harry, you are a wizard." "You mean I can do magic!" Harry exclaimed. "Like making a rabbit appear out of a hat!" "You can make a rabbit appear from anywhere," Dumbledore chuckled, pulling a slim stick out, similar to the one Tom had and pointing it at one of the quills on the desk. "Lapifors!" Suddenly the quill changed into a white rabbit that went hopping over the desk. Harry was astounded. "I've never done anything like that before!" At that moment one of the strange bank workers came in with the requested sandwiches and tea and made a loud exclamation in that strange language. Dumbledore said something in reply and the bank worker continued to frown, putting the tea things on the desk with some force and saying a word that Harry was sure must be a cuss word from the venom behind it, even though he had no idea what it was. Dumbledore seemed to pay the bank workers behaviour no mind however, making up a cup of tea and a plate of sandwiches for Harry and handing them to him. Ron didn't wait to be served and just dived in, helping himself. "That's because you didn't get a proper education," Dumbledore explained, almost looking a little sad as he got back onto the previous topic of conversation. "It seems you have fallen into a previously unknown crack in the system. As I mentioned before, your parents were killed by a Dark Wizard shortly after you were born so you were left with your aunt, your mother's sister and last remaining relative. I tried to keep tabs on you and, when I learned your uncle had moved you all to America I tried to find you but unfortunately America is a very vast country making it very difficult to search. Unfortunately Hogwarts only accepts witches and wizards in Great Britain and Ireland which I assume is why you were removed from the books despite clearly having good magical potential. I had hoped that you would have shown up at Ilvermorny, the American magical school, since you were an American citizen." Harry frowned. "But I'm not an American citizen though sir. My uncle has a visa to work there but we are still all classed as British citizens. Uncle Vernon wanted it that way, he said being British opened more doors for you than being American, whatever that means." A light seemed to turn on in Dumbledore's mind. "That must be it. I know that names appear in the Hogwarts Book of Admissions after a person has been living in the country for over a year but the Ilvermorny school may well be different, they do have a significantly larger population to deal with. Whatever the reason, you have clearly missed out on a much deserved magical education and for that I apologise and I would like to do something about it. Did you take any money out before?" Harry nodded. "That's good. I'm afraid I'm a little busy myself, I have many hats to wear, but Ron here will be more than happy to show you around some of the wizarding world and help you get some of the things you will need to become a proper wizard. Do you have a place to stay?" Harry nodded. "Tom has offered me a room at the Leaky Cauldron for now and I'm hoping that I can get into my parent's house sometime soon although the man that worked here, Griphook, suggested it might need a lot of work to make it livable." "Goblin," Dumbledore corrected. "The creatures that work here are called Goblins, a very proud race who won't take too kindly to being called humans I can assure you. But it's good that you have somewhere to stay. Now I would like to arrange for some of the teachers from Hogwarts to come and tutor you, if it's alright with you of course, to see if we can't get you to an appropriate level to be a functional wizard in society. Who knows, we may even get you to the level of being able to get your N.E.W.Ts and then you can become an Auror like Ron here." Harry was sure he saw a slight grimace flash across Ron's face but it was gone so quickly it was hard to tell. "That would be great sir," Harry smiled. The thought of being able to do magic like this Dumbledore guy seemed amazing to him and Harry couldn't wait to have a go at it. "Excellent my boy, excellent," Dumbledore beamed. "Now I'm afraid I must be off, things to do I'm afraid, but I will see when the teachers at Hogwarts are free to come and see you. I shall leave you in Ron's capable hands, however, I'm sure the two of you will get on just fine." With that Dumbledore got up and breezed out the room, leaving the two young men to their own devices. "I'm Harry by the way, Harry Potter," Harry said, turning to Ron and holding his hand out in greeting. "I know that mate," Ron grinned. "Ron Weasley, nice to finally meet you. Can't say how miffed I was when you didn't turn up at Hogwarts with me." "What do you mean?" Harry asked. "Well, like Dumbledore said, you were quite famous when we were growing up, some people were even suggesting that it was you as a baby who was responsible for getting rid of You-know-who." Harry frowned. "No I don't." "The dark wizard who killed your parents," Ron huffed. "Oh, you mean that Voldemort guy that Dumbledore was talking about." "Yes!" "Why don't you just say his name?" Harry queried. "Because I was taught not to," Ron sassed. "There was a rumour when I was growing up that if you said his name then you could summon him, even from beyond the grave, which is why I never did." "Kind of like a demon then," Harry pondered. "I suppose," Ron shrugged. "Anyway, you were quite famous in the wizarding world for a long time, still are to an extent, although most people now believe it was your parents who ended You-know-who and not you." "That makes more sense I suppose," Harry chuckled. "I mean how is a baby who can barely talk supposed to be able to defeat a great dark wizard." "I suppose," Ron grinned. "Anyway, should we get going. If we hurry we should be able to make it to Ollivander's before he shuts, that way you can get your wand and then you can actually start doing spells and stuff." "Sounds great!" Harry grinned. "What about the rabbit though, are we just going to leave it?" "Why not?" Ron shrugged. "The goblins will probably just kill it and eat it." "You can do that!" Harry exclaimed. "Eat the rabbit even though it used to be a quill!" Ron nodded. "Oh yeah, of course how good it tastes depends on the caster's ability. There are loads of stories of transfigurations that didn't quite hit the mark, trust me. Transfigurations can be quite a tricky subject." "Still, it means you don't ever have to really worry about going hungry," Harry smiled, "even if it does taste a little off." "Huh! Never thought about it that way before," Ron mused, leading Harry out the door. "Anyway, let's get your shopping done and then maybe we can head to the Leaky for a pint." "Sounds good," Harry smiled. The sandwiches may have taken the edge off but they hadn't been enough to really quell his hunger. The thought of the steak and kidney pie was becoming more appealing by the second which is why Harry could only agree with Ron's sentiment, even though the thought of being able to go out and buy himself some things for the first time in his life seemed quite appealing.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
To New Friends
They managed to make it to Ollivander's just as the man was locking the door. The owner seemed a bit perturbed about opening up for them and seemed on the verge of telling them to go away when Ron mentioned Harry's name and the man's visage completely changed. All of a sudden Harry found himself hurried into the shop, handed a wand and told to wave it about. He was astounded by the destruction of the shop caused by that simple movement and apologised profusely but Mr Ollivander just waved it off and told him not to worry about it.
"That's what magic's for after all," Ron chuckled.
"Did a similar thing happen to you when you got your wand?" Harry asked but Ron pulled a bit of a face.
"I didn't get one, I just got my brother Charlie's one."
"There is nothing wrong with using a family wand," Mr Ollivander chimed in, bringing Harry another wand to try, "in fact sometimes you can find a real gem among them which is why it's quite often done in older families, although it doesn't always work out brilliantly. Wands can sometimes stop working for us though, especially if there has been a sudden change in circumstances."
Ollivander nodded to Harry to indicate for him to try waving it again, this time producing even more chaos. Harry looked a little sheepish but Ollivander only smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"Perhaps your old wand doesn't like your new job, Mr Weasley," Ollivander suggested. "You could always pop in one day and check. I'm sure an Aurors salary will stretch to a handful of galleons if you do need one."
"I suppose," Ron said as Ollivander went into the back once more and brought out a couple more wands for Harry to try, although Harry didn't think Ron looked overly convinced.
It took several attempts but eventually Harry found a wand: Holly wood with a phoenix tail feather core. Ollivander said something about Harry potentially doing great things, since the other person who had a similar wand had apparently done great things, but Harry shrugged the comments off. He had never been anyone special before and, despite apparently being a wizard, he didn't seem to be special now. He didn't even know any spells, unlike Ron, and Harry couldn't help wondering if it was simply some sort of sales pitch Ollivander gave to everyone. Harry didn't care. The wand had given off a warm glow instead of destroying anything and Harry could only believe it was a good thing. They had also been in the shop for a while and the few sandwiches he'd had at the bank had long worn off. He was once again getting really desperate for some hot and filling food and definitely didn't see the point in pushing things further. He just smiled and happily paid the man, happily accepting the new tool that would apparently help make his life a lot easier in the future, when he learned to use it properly that was.
"Did you want to look round any of the other places today?" Ron asked after they left. "There might be some that are open now." He looked over to one shop that still seemed to have lights on, apparently a book shop, and pulled a bit of a face.
"I can always just come in on my own tomorrow right? Honestly, I just want to get back to the Leaky Cauldron and get something to eat," Harry smiled.
"Now you're speaking my language!" Ron grinned. "There's just somewhere I want to show you first. They're not open but we can look in the window."
He dragged Harry over to a store that was clearly closed but had a brightly lit display in the window although Harry was a little surprised to see a broom being displayed. "That, my friend, is called the Moontrimmer! Isn't it a thing of beauty!"
Harry shrugged. "It just looks like a fancy broom to me."
"Just a fancy broom!" Ron gasped. "This thing can fly higher than any other broom and still maintain control. It's rumoured that some people have gotten high enough to touch the moon itself and said it was made of cheese but I never saw any proof of it."
Harry gaped. "Wait, you mean you actually fly on brooms!"
"Of course we do," Ron scoffed. "What else would we fly on?"
"I don't know, magic carpets?"
"You mean fly carpets?" Ron smirked. "Yeah we got those although there's a rumour the government is trying to ban them which my mum says will be a shame since it's the only way she had to transport all of us around, not most of us need transporting around anymore. Even Ginny is going to be able to get her apparating license soon."
"What's apparating?" Harry queried.
"Oh, um, well it's a spell that wizards can do to sort of appear places," Ron explained. "You have to get a license to be able to use it though, to try to make sure you don't splinch yourself, although it sometimes still happens."
"That sounds a bit dangerous."
Ron shrugged. "No more so than most methods and, to be fair, magic can heal most injuries without a problem."
"Really!" Harry exclaimed. "Like even growing a new arm or something."
"Oh yeah!" Ron grinned. "The only exception is if it has been blown off by a curse, or certain animal attacks."
"That's kind of amazing," Harry grinned. "I'm surprised you don't use your magic to help normal people out a bit though." Harry couldn't help thinking of all the people in his class who died of things like flu and tuberculosis each year, or their family members. It had been awful when he had come back one Christmas and asked his classmate Jessica how her new baby sister had enjoyed her first Christmas, only to be met with floods of tears and later learn that the baby had died at the start of the holidays, tainting the season for the whole family.
"My dad says that if we did that muggles, that's what we call non-magical people here, would be after us for things all the time," Ron said. "Plus the Statute of Secrecy prevents us from interfering in muggle things. It was brought in after the witch trials and is meant to protect us, or so they say. The Ministry can be quite strict about these things although I'm never quite sure why, especially as the muggles were apparently unable to actually capture many of us. We were too smart for them for that."
Harry smiled and nodded. He had read a bit about the Salem Witch trials in a book in the school library, one of the few available at his school. He had been a little surprised to learn that the whole thing had been over in less than a year and that, despite hundreds being accused, only 19 were actually executed; a very high number for the time but still much lower than some liked to make out. It wouldn't surprise Harry at all if there were few actual witches who were caught, let alone actually hanged.
The pair headed to the Leaky Cauldron, passing numerous shops along the way with Ron explaining what was sold in each and pointing out which ones Harry might want to come back and check out the next day. The apothecary was not on the list, a place that was apparently of no use unless you were brewing potions and Harry had no idea when he'd be in a position to do that, especially if his house was in as bad a state as Griphook made out. The shop with the owls in was one that Harry definitely planned on coming back to however. As he walked past he saw a beautiful white owl staring at him out of the window. Even Ron had been somewhat impressed with it.
"I've never seen an owl like that before, it must not be a native breed."
"Have you seen many owls?" Harry asked.
"Quite a few," Ron chuckled. "Wizards use them for sending letters and parcels and things. Saying that, it might be a good idea if you have your own, that way you won't have to faff about at the post office if you want to message someone."
"That sounds handy. I'll pop back and get her tomorrow," Harry smiled. "I say 'her' but I don't actually know. How do you tell if an owl is male or female?"
Ron shrugged. "Don't ask me. I have an O.W.L in Care of Magical Creatures and I can tell you the difference between a Flobberworm and a Hippogryph but don't ask me more than that. It's been years since I thought about that subject and I'm pretty sure studying for my N.E.W.Ts knocked most of that information right out of my head."
"I have no idea what half those words are," Harry chuckled.
"O.W.Ls and N.E.W.Ts are just different exams we take while at school," Ron explained. "You need to get certain grades in different subjects in order to be able to take different jobs."
"Sounds complicated. In America you just get one certificate to say that you'd been to school," Harry laughed but Ron frowned.
"How do you know if you did well enough in a subject then?"
"Well we were checked through our time there, sometimes with tests or essays and things, but no formal exams," Harry admitted. "The education system in America at the moment isn't all that great. There is a reason my aunt agreed on sending my cousin back to England to learn, even though it meant him being away most of the year."
Ron gaped at Harry. "You mean you didn't have to go away to attend school!"
"I had to travel a couple of hours across the city each day but I didn't board there or anything. There aren't many schools in America that do as far as I'm aware."
Ron shook his head. "That's so weird."
"It's more weird to me that, as a wizard, you have access to instantaneous travel and you do board," Harry laughed. "The only reason my cousin only came back in the summer was because it took him a week just to travel across the Atlantic."
"I can't imagine travelling for a whole week," Ron admitted. "Don't know why we stay at Hogwarts though, that's just how it's always been done."
"If living in America has taught me anything it's that just because something has always been done a certain way doesn't mean that is the only way it can be done," Harry said, opening the door to the pub and almost being deafened by the din. It had certainly become a lot busier than it was earlier. Tom still managed to spot them though, despite the crowds, and beckoned Harry over.
"I've set aside one of the private rooms for you," he informed them, leading Harry and Ron through a door to the side of the pub.
"You didn't have to go to any trouble Tom," Harry said.
"Thought you might like to have your food in peace. News of your return is already starting to spread and I didn't think you'd appreciate being stared at while you're trying to eat."
"That's very thoughtful of you Tom, thank you," Harry smiled and Tom returned it.
"Happy to help. Now, I'd best be getting back to my customers before there's a riot, most of them are desperate for a post work pint. I'll send some food and drink in for you boys shortly and I'll leave your room key for you, Mr Potter. It's room 3, just go up whenever you're ready."
"Thank you Tom, just let me know when you want me to help out."
"Oh don't worry about that Mr Potter, I'm happy to help you out." With that he ducked out the room leaving Harry gaping.
Ron whistled. "So that's what it's like to be famous. No wonder all those people try so hard to get noticed."
"But I'm not famous," Harry protested.
"I already told you you were, not my fault you didn't believe me," Ron chuckled, taking a seat at the table, waiting for the food to arrive.
"Well you can't expect me to just get used to it," Harry huffed, taking a seat opposite him. "I mean what would you do if you walked into the, what did you call it, muggle world, and suddenly found out you were famous."
"Probably milk it for all it's worth," Ron smirked. "I actually wanted to be a professional quidditch player at one point but unfortunately I was never good enough, even for the Canons."
"And quidditch is?"
"Only the best sport. You fly about on a broom and have to get the quaffle into the goal while dodging bludgers and the game keeps going until the snitch is caught. I've known games that go on for days!"
"That sounds a bit extreme," Harry said, not sounding overly convinced. Suddenly a plate of food and a mug of drink appeared in front of him. Harry wondered if he would ever get used to magic.
"Trust me you'll love quidditch when you see it," Ron assured him, heartily tucking into his food. "If you buy a broom I'll teach you how to fly on my next day off."
Harry smiled. "That will be handy. I was hoping to be able to go and see my property tomorrow but I have no idea how I'm going to get there."
"The house at Godric's Hollow?" Ron asked and Harry nodded.
"I believe that's what Griphook said."
"Just floo to my place then," Ron said with a grin. "I'll probably be at work but I'll let my mum know to expect you."
"You sure she won't mind?"
"Course not," Ron chuckled. "In fact the only thing you probably need to worry about is her offering you food and holding you up. Just talk to Tom when you're ready and I'm sure he'll be happy to show you how to use the floo. My house is called the Burrow, it's in a village called Ottery St Catchpole which is only a few miles down the road from Godric's Hollow. I would say floo to the village itself but I'm not sure of where the nearest public floo would be."
"I don't mind walking a few miles," Harry said, "especially if I can have a good breakfast, although you're right, being able to fly would definitely make things easier."
"Well if you want I can teach you on my next day off," Ron offered.
"You sure you don't mind?" Harry questioned.
"'Course not! What are friends for," Ron grinned again and Harry found himself smiling as well. It had been a while since he had had a good friend, one that he could actually spend time with anyway, and Ron seemed like he would be a great person to hang out with.
"Yeah, you're right. To friends," he said, lifting up his drink in a toast.
"To friends," Ron echoed, clinking their mugs together and taking a long swig. Harry copied him and ended up choking on the slightly strange, malty taste.
"You alright there mate?"
"Yes," Harry gasped. "It's just a bit different to anything I've had before."
"You've never drank beer before!" Ron exclaimed.
Harry shook his head. "No, never. For starters the drinking age in America is 21 and I also got told that my parents died in a drunken brawl so I've always been a bit wary about drinking the stuff."
"That's bollocks!" Ron scoffed. "Your parents are heroes. Plus you're in England now where the drinking age is thankfully 18 so you're perfectly fine. Personally I love a good pint after a long day at work, although I'm sure Tom will happily get you something else if you don't like it."
"No, no, it's fine," Harry insisted, taking another smaller drink and trying not to make a face. It wasn't a truly horrible taste, he was sure he could get used to it, especially if Ron said he liked to drink the stuff. He liked Ron and hoped to be able to hang out with the other man more and if learning to like this strange drink was what it took then he was sure he could manage it. He had a bite of the pie, which actually tasted surprisingly good, and then took another tentative sip of his beverage. He was sure it was getting better every time and desperately hoped it wasn't wishful thinking.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The End That Wasn't An End
Harry woke up the next morning with a bit of a sore head. He had genuinely started to enjoy the beer by the second pint, or at least he thought he did. He had to admit, at least to himself, that things had become a little hazy towards the end of the evening and he wasn't entirely sure how many he'd had. Still, he had enjoyed himself, at least from what he could remember. He had talked to Ron about his job as an Auror. Harry had been intrigued by what an Auror actually did and Ron had explained that they were law enforcement officers who specialised in arresting dark wizards, the elite of the elite, or so Ron had been led to believe. Apparently there hadn't been much call for dark wizard hunters after the end of the last war, with most of the dark wizards that had been around either already arrested or else deep in hiding. Ron said they got a call to the odd crackpot who was a little free and easy with certain spells but otherwise it was mostly just paperwork which always bored Ron senseless. Apparently the only reason Ron was sticking with the job was that Dumbledore had hinted that the dark wizards who managed to escape prosecution at the end of the last war might soon come into the open again and Ron was determined not to miss it, hoping to get his name up among the greats, like Alastor Moody and Theseus Scamander, whoever they were.
Ron had also ended up telling Harry about his girlfriend, although Harry couldn't remember her name, it was something a little unusual but that was all that came to mind. Apparently she worked at the Ministry, the British magical government, as well, in the Department of Magical Creatures, or something like that. It was some long name but Harry remembered it was about creatures. Ron had mentioned that they were currently looking at saving up for somewhere to live, it seemed like his girlfriend lived some way away, or so Harry thought, but it sounded as if getting a new place in the British magical world was a little difficult, with few new houses being built. Harry had asked where the magical builders were and Ron had said that there weren't many. Apparently there weren't enough workers to really fill the workforce as it was and it meant that people could be fussy about which jobs they took, with the Ministry making a big push to fill their positions first.
It did make Harry extra grateful that he had apparently inherited an entire house though, albeit one that needed a lot of work. Harry was now really looking forward to going to see it, although he wanted to deal with the ache in his head first. Tom helped with that quickly, thankfully. He took one look at Harry when he brought his breakfast and darted back out as soon as he placed the tray. He returned a moment later with a vial of something that he instructed Harry to drink. Harry did so, gagging on the taste of it, but he was amazed when the dull ache in his head and his roiling stomach eased instantly.
"If you're going to be drinking regularly it might be good to have some hangover cure on hand for afterwards," Tom suggested with a grin. "If you want I can order a supply for you, good stuff from a reputable supplier that I usually keep on hand for guests."
"That would be great, thank you Tom," Harry smiled. "Just let me know how much I'll owe you."
Tom looked a little awkward. "I'll just put it on your bill from last night."
"Perfect," Harry assured the man. Apparently he and Ron had drunk enough to run up a tab, not that Harry minded. He wouldn't want Tom to be out of pocket because of him, especially with how helpful he had been yesterday, and Harry had had fun with Ron, from what he could remember, and he didn't mind paying for that. Ron had a house to save for after all.
Harry happily ate his breakfast and then went out into the street he'd heard Ron refer to as Diagon Alley. His first stop was to the bank, to draw out some more money and get the details on his property. Apparently it was called Peveril Cottage and was at the end of a lane in the village of Godric's Hollow. Harry was looking forward to seeing what he could make of an old English cottage. On the way out of the bank he stopped at the shop with the owls, apparently called Eeylops Owl Emporium, to buy the beautiful white owl he had seen the night before. It was a she, according to the owner, a snowy owl usually found within the arctic circle. She was also meant to be quite peculiar with who came near her, pecking the fingers of anyone who got too close, which was why the owner was most surprised when she let Harry walk right up to her cage and even stroke her. Harry took that as a sign and was happy to pay any price the owner would have asked, although thankfully that wasn't overly high thanks to her temperament.
Harry loved the idea of a feisty bird and chose to name her after St Hedwig of Silesia, the patron saint of orphans, someone he remembered the local bishop talking about when he came to visit Harry's school. She was said to be very headstrong as well and also unafraid to fight for what she believed was right, despite only being a woman in medieval times and Harry had a feeling his Hedwig would achieve many things despite only being a bird. He bought a cage, as well as a host of owl treats for her, wanting to make sure he looked after her properly. He was surprised to learn that, unlike what he'd heard about owls before, her species was actually awake during the day, and Harry then worried about what to do with her when he went to visit his property. The man behind the counter assured Harry that it wouldn't be an issue however, that Hedwig was a very intelligent bird and would be more than capable of finding Harry if she needed to, or, if she didn't, would likely amuse herself with hunting.
Reassured that his new friend wouldn't feel like he was abandoning her at the first opportunity, he returned to the Leaky Cauldron. Tom was more than happy to show Harry how to use the floo, a system that somehow used fireplaces to transport people to various locations. Tom also emphasised the importance of saying your destination correctly, to ensure you got to where you were meant to go and helped Harry travel to the Burrow, Ron's family home. The journey was stomach churning to say the least, as bad as the worst days on the high seas in Harry's opinion, and he was happy to be able to finally tumble out at the end. A larger, older looking woman with red hair came bustling in.
"You must be Harry, Ron said you would be coming through although I certainly didn't expect you so early. I have to prise Ron out of his beds most mornings and that's only because he has work. On his days off I'm sure the only reason he comes down is to eat. Merlin knows what he'd be like if I hadn't always insisted on all food being eaten at the table, unless we're having a picnic of course."
"That sounds like a good rule Mrs Weasley," Harry said, thinking back to his cousin Dudley and how he might have benefited from a rule like that. "It's lovely to meet you but I don't want to intrude on you at all."
"Oh you're not intruding," Mrs Weasley assured him, "and feel free to call me Molly. I'm more than happy to have you here Harry and I only wish that my daughter Ginny was here to meet you as well. S? he will be most upset to hear that she missed you."
"Perhaps I can pop by another day then," Harry suggested. "Ron said Godric's Hollow was only a few miles down the road."
"A few miles indeed," Mrs Weasley scoffed. "I swear that boy has no concept of distance. Godric's Hollow is about 40 miles away from here, over hills as well. My children used to pop down there on their brooms sometimes, especially over the summer, which is probably why he mistakenly thinks it's closer than it is."
Harry's face fell. "There's no way I can walk that!"
"Merlin no dear, but don't worry, there are other ways. If you can fly it will only take you a few minutes and there's an old broom you can borrow out back."
Harry shook his head forlornly, wondering how long he would have to wait for Ron's day off.
"Don't fret Harry dear, there's always the Knight Bus, if you don't mind paying. It's handy as all you have to do is hold your wand out and it comes. I never used it much myself, not with the cost and having to try to wrangle all those children on board. There's always the floo as well."
Harry frowned in confusion. "Ron said there wasn't a floo in Godric's Hollow."
Mrs Weasley just laughed. "Course he would think that. Honestly, listening to my son you would think that the only wizarding communities in the country are Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley. He's always off to the Leaky Cauldron for a pint, I don't think he realises there's a perfectly good magical pub down the road."
"Is there a pub in Godric's Hollow?" Harry asked.
"'Course there is," Mrs Weasley smiled. "It's called the Niffler's Snout. The floo is in the back room just in case they have any muggles walk in since Godric's is a mixed village like this one. It's been a while since I've been but I remember there was a cozy snug that only wizards could see that was lovely to sit in in the winter."
Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good to know. Would you mind if I borrowed some of that powder and used your floo. I'll replace it as soon as I can."
"Oh don't worry about that dear, I'm sure Ron will be using yours plenty enough once you get it connected. Now go and check out that house of yours and you're welcome to come back for dinner since I doubt you will have the facilities to cook at that place yet."
"Oh I couldn't impose like that!" Harry exclaimed. "And anyway, I already ordered food with Tom this evening, I would hate for him to go to a wasted effort."
"Well in that case I insist that you come round for Sunday dinner," Mrs Weasley said. "All my children make an effort to come round then so feeding one extra mouth definitely won't be an imposition."
"Alright then," Harry smiled, liking the idea of getting to see Ron again. He'd never had the chance to have a proper family dinner before, the Dursleys always excluding him whenever Dudley was at home and not bothering with them when he wasn't. Those had always seemed very dry, boring occasions but, from what he'd seen of Mrs Weasley and Ron, he had a feeling this one would be anything but Harry thanked Mrs Weasley again for her kindness once more and activated the floo for the Niffler's Snout.
He still was unused to the fast paced travel of the floo and Harry was more than happy to tumble out at the end. The room he appeared in was just that, a room with a fireplace, likely designed to allow for quiet travel for wizards. There was apparently even a door to the outside which Harry assumed was there to allow wizards to come and go at all hours without disturbing the landlord. Harry didn't leave straight away though, not wanting to appear rude as he'd never been to this place before, plus his natural curiosity was definitely pushing him to see how this place compared to the Leaky Cauldron. He found what he assumed was the wizard's snug next door and Harry could definitely agree that it looked cozy. With plush seating and space for a roaring fire, he could definitely see himself enjoying evenings there in the winter. There was also a little bar with a bell that Harry assumed you could ring for service. There were some stairs in the hallway that Harry assumed led to some rooms upstairs, as well as some that likely led to the cellar. The last door led to what seemed to be the main bar which was a little more run down than the snug; still cozy but in a much more careworn way. There was a woman working behind the bar who reminded Harry a little of Mrs Weasley but with light brown hair pulled back into a tight bun.
"Good morning sir, don't think I've seen you round these parts before?"
Harry smiled. "Not likely, I've recently come from America but I've just learned that I've inherited a property near here, Peveril Cottage, and I've come to check it out."
"Peveril Cottage you say?" Harry nodded. "Well no need to ask your name then, not given your age anyway, plus you being in America explains some things. I'm Clarissa Hopkirk, although I'm an Abbot by birth. Branch line mind you, which is why I'm in charge of this place. My great-great grandfather bought this pub to allow the family to earn a living in our hometown but rumour has it that it was a branch of the Potter family that opened it originally, although that's true it was centuries ago now."
"Still, that sounds fascinating. I don't know anything about my family," Harry admitted and Clarissa beamed at him.
"Well if you ever want to hear more stories just give me a shout. Like I said, I've lived in these parts all my life and my family has been here for longer. I know many stories and am more than happy to talk your ear off whenever you like. Now you go off and see that place of yours and feel free to pop back for lunch, I'm told I do a mean ploughman's." She gave Harry directions for how to find his house, at the end of a lane on the far side of the village and Harry thanked her for her kindness and looked forward to being able to introduce Ron to a new drinking establishment.
Godric's Hollow was a very quaint, old fashioned little village, unlike anything Harry had ever seen before, the half wooden buildings being a far cry from the modern stone townhouses of Pittsburgh, built to house the rapidly expanding population. There was an old stone church as well, set back from the main thoroughfare, and Harry thought it might be nice to visit it one day. He had only been to church once in his life when the local bishop had tried to cajole the school children to attend regularly, as a way of trying to increase his flock. The church had been fairly modern though, at least in comparison to this little church, and Harry was quite curious what a proper old English church would be like.
It didn't take Harry long to get to the other side of the village and he easily found the lane, winding away further into the hillside. There were only a few houses at the start of it and Harry distinctly remembered being told Peveril Cottage was at the end of it and continued his exploration. His heart fell when he finally saw the house though, or what was left of it at any rate. It looked as if half of the top floor had been blown away and Harry wondered how he would ever begin to repair it although, after reading the sign outside the cottage, he wondered if he wanted to. This was apparently the place where his parents had lost their lives and it had been left as a monument to them as it was and the thought of rebuilding it felt somewhat morbid.
Still, Harry walked up the footpath, a little curious. According to the sign he had apparently lived in this house at some stage and he wondered if he still retained some memories somewhere, even if he had only been young at the time. As he approached the front door Harry noticed something gleaming on the wall, mostly obscured by the ivy and only really visible thanks to the bright morning sun. Moving the leaves aside he saw that it was a small brass plaque that had originally said 'Porter's Lodge' but someone had almost crudely used some ink to change the first 'r' into a 't' so it now read 'Potter's Lodge'. Very apt, Harry thought as he tried the door and it failed to budge. He thought it was strange but then he hadn't been given a key. Harry wondered if perhaps there was a spell that people used to open doors which negated the need for keys which is why no one had thought to give him one.
Unfortunately that didn't help him now and, after trying the door once more, Harry walked around the property to see if he could see another door or window through which he might be able to gain entrance. There wasn't one, but there was a dilapidated old lean-to that looked like it might have once housed brooms. The only one left had been broken in two; no use to Harry even if he did know how to fly it but he did wonder if he might be able to use the structure to get to the little window above it. Harry was almost surprised when he hauled himself up and the structure held. Unfortunately the little window was also sealed shut and, apparently the years of neglect had had some effect, or else the structure hadn't been sound to begin with, as Harry's movement as he tried to force the window jarred the lean-to too much and it collapsed under him.
Harry's quick reflexes allowed him to grab hold of the window sill and he looked around as best he could to see if there was something to try to break his fall a bit. He couldn't see anything nearby but he did notice something peculiar at the end of the garden. When he had first arrived at the house he had noticed that the house seemed strangely off to one side as opposed to in the centre of the plot. There had been two trees in the land but what looked to have been beds in between, beds which had long since grown over, but Harry had assumed that the strange layout of the property had been to make space for crops. The strange thing was though that when Harry looked out over the hedge at the back of the garden, the two trees that were there in the garden of the lodge lined up with others behind, ones that seemed to line a path that wound away into the hills. Then it hit Harry. Of course, the house he had inherited was Peveril Cottage not Porter Lodge. This couldn't be it, even if this was where his parents died. His grip suddenly failed him and Harry fell to the ground with a crash, sending splinters of wood flying into the air. The remains of the wooden structure helped break his fall a bit although he did end up twisting his ankle a bit. Harry barely registered the pain however, he was far too excited to see what was at the end of that road.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Peveril Cottage It took Harry some effort to push through the overgrown hedge and he was scratched to hell by the end of it but he was through and, in his mind, that was all that mattered. The path was mostly overgrown but still faintly visible, likely due to the shade provided by the trees on each side, shade that Harry was now quite grateful for. It had been some time since he had initially set off and the sun was steadily rising, beating down out of a clear blue sky and, honestly, giving him as bad a head as he had had when he first woke up. The branches of the trees offered ample shade on the path however, especially with how much they had grown, and Harry was glad to be able to enjoy his walk down it. There was a slight curve at one point and Harry realised that the height of the trees completely obstructed his view which is why it was quite a shock when he did finally get to the end of what he realised was actually a sweeping drive and saw what he assumed was Peveril Cottage, although it didn't really look like any sort of cottage Harry had ever seen before. Sure it was only technically two stories, with a similar half wooden style as the other houses in the village, although this house had roof tiles instead of thatch. It looked about five times as wide as the ruined house where Harry's parents had apparently died though, and who knew how far it stretched behind. There was a break in the path that Harry was on which swept round to the right and Harry thought that he could see some greenhouses through the branches but he could explore the grounds later; first he wanted to see the house. Harry could well understand what the Goblins had meant about the house being in a state of disrepair. There were panes missing from the windows and the ivy on the front of it seemed to have crept in through the gaps in the tiles. The ivy had seemed to have caused a few cracks in the walls as well, or were filling cracks. Either way it made Harry worry about the stability of the exterior wall which meant that there was a good chance the interior was shot to pieces as well. It was with some trepidation that Harry crossed the driveway and placed his hand on the front door to test it. He felt a shiver of something pass through him then the door opened without him even having to turn the handle. The inside of what Harry assumed was the vestibule was dank and musty, with little light coming through the grimey windows despite the bright sunshine outside. Harry heard something scurrying about and turned his head, wondering if it was a rat, or possibly a magical alternative to the things. Harry shivered at the thought and walked through the room with some care. He could see a large window through an archway, heading towards it to see what he could see beyond. He got to a sort of hallway with a grand looking, sweeping staircase and paused to look up it. He turned and was about to move further on through the house when he bumped into a strange creature, a little like the men, no Goblins, at the bank, only this one was smaller but with bigger ears which made it look a little ridiculous, especially as it didn't seem to have the slightly menacing demeanour of the Goblins. If anything Harry would say that this creature was incredibly forlorn. "Who are yous?" the creature demanded with a sniff. "I'm Harry, Harry Potter. I'm sorry, I came here thinking this was my house but I appear to be mistaken." "Yous only mistaken if yous think that you master of this house," the creature sniffed. "Master is gone and Mimby is all alone, left to stay in this house until it falls." "What do you mean?" Harry asked. The creature, Mimby, looked at Harry curiously. "I's a house elf sir and I be bound to this house, have been for hundreds of years, as my mother was before me." "Alright, but I don't understand why that means that you're bound to the house until it falls," Harry said, which only caused Mimby to look at him in even more confusion. "All house elves be bound to a house sir, we's has to. Our magic be too wild sir, it be fine for short time but it start to lash out after a while and it be said that an unbound elf go mad. It's why an elf must bind to a building and we's do what we can to keep the building strong, to keep us safe," Mimby explained. "If you're bound to this house, why not keep it safe then?" Harry queried, gesturing round to the dilapidated state of it. "Why would I when they's all gone!" Mimby wailed, bursting into tears. "Who are gone? You mean the family that used to live here?" "Yes!" Mimby sobbed. "Mimby loved them, they were such good wizzies and Master George was so kind. It was such a shame for him to die in that accident, such a shame. Mimby was supposed to go to Master James then but Mimby couldn't find him then Mimby learns that he was in the Porter's Lodge all along only Master James had been killed as well and Master Harry had been taken leaving Mimby all alone with no one to release her!" "Oh Mimby I'm sorry," Harry gasped. "I can release you now, if that's what you want. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it." Mimby shook her head. "Only a master or mistress can release a house elf or people will be freeing house elves everywhere." "But don't you see, if what you said is true I am your master," Harry implored. "I am the son of James Potter. I was taken from this world but I'm back now. The Goblins at the bank told me that this is my house, Peveril Cottage right?" Mimby nodded. "Is that true, are you really master?" "Yes," Harry smiled, "and I want to help. I'll admit that it would be nice if you could help me get this house into a livable state again since I have no idea where to start but I understand if it's too difficult for you." Mimby gaped at him. "You really plan on staying here?" "Well I don't exactly have anywhere else," Harry chuckled, "and I'm quite enjoying what I'm seeing of the wizarding world so far and I'd like to be a part of it if I can." "Of course you can!" Mimby huffed, suddenly straightening herself up. "Yous a Potter. There has been a Potter at the head of this village since the middle ages, even when other families came in and tried to change it, and with any luck that will continue for many years to come." "That sounds like a plan," Harry laughed, "although I will definitely need your help with it. I may have a wand but I have absolutely no idea how to use it" "Master Harry had best go to the Library to do some studying then," Mimby instructed. "Library is on the other side of the Parlour, through that door in front of the stairs. If Master Harry wishes to practice any spells then there is a dueling area in the basement, the stairs to which is through that passage, just under these stairs. Might be best to wait a bit for that first though. Mimby will have to make the house safe for Master to live in which will take time. I's thought there never be a master again so's I not bother to look after the place. I's bad house elf, very bad indeed." Mimby went to bash her head against a wall. "What are you doing!" Harry gasped. "Mimby is punishing herself sir. Master Harry cannot punish Mimby, that not allowed, there are laws meant to protect us. That's why house elves have to punish themselves, in a manner they see fit, so master doesn't get in trouble." "Well please don't," Harry begged. "You didn't do anything wrong. For all you knew I was dead and then you would have every right to let the house fall to ruin, especially if that was the only way you could escape. And you're going to help me put things right now aren't you?" Mimby nodded. "Then you have absolutely nothing to punish yourself for." Mimby blinked at Harry a little owlishly then tilted her head in thought. "I suppose Master Harry's correct. Alright, Mimby won't punish herself so long as Master Harry doesn't get hurt. If Master Harry gets hurt it means Mimby has been a bad elf." There was a hard glint in Mimby's eye and Harry knew there would be no arguing with her so he just nodded and made his way to the Library as carefully as he could. Somehow Mimby was already there. She waved her hand at a settee and a cloud of dust erupted from it. When it settled though, the piece of furniture looked like new and Harry didn't hesitate to sit down on it and happily accepted the book that was floated to him. "Standard Book of Spells, grade 1," Harry read. "That is first book of spells all Potters learn from," Mimby informed him. "I suppose there's nothing in there that will get me in too much trouble then," Harry pondered, looking over the table of contents. Mimby read it over his shoulder. "Maybe save fire-making spell for when I's here, just in case, and practice the locking and unlocking charm on this," she suggested, levitating over a small wooden box. "That way if you get something wrong you not accidentally locked in somewhere." "You sound as if you're speaking from experience," Harry chuckled. "You's will be fourth generation of Potters I helped learn magic," Mimby informed him and Harry's eyebrows raised in shock. "I shall definitely be listening to your advice then," he said and Mimby nodded her head with a smile. "By the way, speaking of fire, do you know how to link this house to the floo system, it's just it would make my life a lot easier if I didn't have to walk all the way back into town every time I wanted to go anywhere." "It already connected," Mimby said, sounding a little surprised. "Well nobody disconnected it so it should be, although it may be locked. To unlock it just point your wand at it, no spell needed. It's the fire in the room just off the main hall that you want, the floo powder is in the silver box on the mantelpiece. Yous may want to go into town for your food though. There's nothing in the pantry and I's not have time to go shopping if I's got to get this house safe for you." "That's fine, I had arranged to have my dinner at the Leaky Cauldron anyway," Harry smiled. "If you don't mind I might just stay there overnight, give you a bit more time to work on this place without me being under foot. That way I can also pack my things and square my bill with Tom. I can also pick up anything from the bank vault or from Diagon Alley that you think we might need." "I's think we fine for now," Mimby said. "I's need to look up what is fashionable now anyways, I's very behind the times." "Oh I'm not worried about all that," Harry assured her but Mimby just looked offended. "You's might not be worried but I's am! Potters been important family in these parts for centuries. Important family means important events and I's will not have wizzies thinking I's don't know how to keep a house." "But I only know a few people," Harry argued. "Exactly what sort of events are you talking about?" "You's only know a few people so far," Mimby pointed out, "but you's soon no more and then there will be parties and balls and Mimby will not let the family down again." Harry was worried that Mimby was about to hurt herself again, having been reminded of some sort of slight against the family that Harry didn't really understand, and he ended up agreeing to let Mimby decorate the house however she saw fit. Harry only hoped that he hadn't made some sort of huge mistake. He let her get on with whatever it was she was planning on doing while he tried to concentrate on learning some spells. He made a point of reading all of the sections of the book, including the foreword and the introduction and felt as if he was making good progress as a clock chimed somewhere in the house and Harry realised he was hungry. The sun was just starting to come down through the side window and Harry realised that he must have been sitting practicing magic for several hours. He had been a bit worried about casting the wand-lighting charm after reading the warning about potential setting his wand alight but, thankfully, he had managed both the charm and the counter-charm, Nox, and now felt quite proficient in them. He had also attempted the locking and unlocking charms a few times but, when his last attempt to get into the box resulted in it smashing to pieces, Harry felt that it was time to call things a day. He could always practice the mending charm tomorrow. Harry said goodbye to Mimby who seemed a little surprised at the thought but smiled at Harry anyway and wished him a good night. She had apparently already cleaned the room with the floo access and Harry was a little surprised to see a roaring fire despite the time of year. Mimby must have put some sort of magic on it as the room wasn't overly warm, even standing right in front of it, as Harry had to in order to properly point his wand at it. There was an audible clicking sound, like a key being turned in a lock, and when Harry threw the floo powder in the flames turned their tell-tale green. It was a relief to be able to transport directly into the Leaky Cauldron instead of having to walk anywhere but he still didn't like the motion when flooing and Harry hoped that he wouldn't have to do it too much in the future. Tom was happy to see Harry again though and led Harry over to a quiet table with a smile. Harry realised he would actually miss the man's friendly greetings when he moved into Peveril Cottage and he vowed to come back as often as he could manage. When he got back to his room Harry noticed a strange owl waiting for him, carrying a letter. Remembering Ron had said that wizards used owls for deliveries Harry quickly relieved it of its cargo but the owl just continued to sit there. Hedwig had sat quietly and watched the whole affair which led Harry to assume that meant she considered that perfectly normal behaviour so Harry didn't give it another thought and happily opened his letter. It was someone called Pomona Sprout who apparently taught a subject called Herbology at Dumbledore's school. She was writing to let Harry know that she was free the next day and would be willing to start tutoring him in that subject, if he was also free. Harry ripped off the bottom and wrote a quick reply letting her know he was, and that he would be grateful if she could meet him at Peveril Cottage anytime after 9. He rolled the reply up and the strange owl hooted as if it were waiting for a reply and, given how quickly it went after Harry handed over his note it probably was. With that sorted and his few meagre belongings packed, Harry settled himself down for the night wondering what exciting things the next day might bring.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Houses, House Elves and Herbology Harry woke up the next morning and stretched, a huge smile plastered on his face. He couldn't help it, he was just too happy. He had spent his whole life living on the fringes of things, never quite feeling that he belonged anywhere and now he knew why. He didn't belong there, he belonged here. He finally had a home, one that he had a feeling would very soon become livable, Mimby had been quite determined about that, and he also had friends. There was Ron of course, and his mother who seemed very welcoming, and even Tom the barkeep who told Harry not to be a stranger and that he was welcome back any time. Harry had never been welcomed like that before and it almost made him a little sad that he had had to wait so long to find it. Still, he had it now and it was with a happy heart that he jumped through the floo back to Peveril Cottage. He was in a slightly worse mood when he came out the other end though; Harry wondered if he would ever get the hang of flooing. It didn't help that he had all his stuff with him, few possessions though there were, but Hedwig's birdcage certainly made things awkward. Harry didn't think that Hedwig liked flooing either and she squawked and flapped until Harry let her out. She wasted no time in swooping out the room as soon as Harry opened her cage and Harry just hoped that Mimby had left a window open somewhere so that she could get out and explore the grounds. Not that Harry had had much chance to do that himself as he was too worried about accidentally injuring himself in the dark, musty, run down old place. The floo fireplace was in a little room that opened to the Library on one side and, on the other, there was an arch that seemed to open up into a very large room with large windows looking out over the back of the property. Harry almost didn't realise that the large windows he was looking through now were the same ones that Harry had spied the other day, it was only because he recognised the carvings on this side of the main archway that he realised the room on the other side was where the main staircase had been. "What does Master Harry think?" Mimby asked, suddenly appearing at Harry's side, making him jump. "You've done a wonderful job," Harry enthused and the little elf beamed. "I's still has a lot of work to do in the house, I's would keep out of the basement for a bit if I's were you, as well as the Orangery," she pointed to the glass and wood building Harry could see out of the large glass doors. Even from there Harry could see broken beams and smashed panes, some having fallen in and others having been pushed out by various plants, and he couldn't help agreeing with Mimby's assessment. "I's not done much more in the library either I's afraid, a lot of the books infested or gone feral, so I's concentrated on yours apartments upstairs. There is a spare room off yours main room that has been used as a nursery in the past but since yous seem to be a bachelor," Harry nodded, "I's turned that into your study and put some of the books that are safe for you's to use up there." "Thank you Mimby, that was very thoughtful of you." Mimby beamed as she led Harry up the stairs. Harry wondered briefly if Mimby hadn't done more than she let on. Gone was the general feeling of mustiness and decay in the air, each lungful of breath Harry took felt clean and fresh. He wondered if the elf had been somehow cleaning the air as she went around, or possibly the house was simply reflecting the elf's mood. The other option was that the house was somehow happy to be inhabited again but that denoted a sentience to the building that Harry was not yet ready to contemplate. Harry couldn't help marvel at all of the little details that he could now see in the building as he went through. It was definitely one of the most beautiful places that he had ever been before, let alone lived, and he couldn't believe that he now owned it. The master suite seemed like pure decadence to him, far better than the room he'd stayed in at the Leaky Cauldron and miles better than the cupboard the Dursleys used to make him sleep in. There was a little corridor off the main hall that connected a large bathroom and an actual walk in closet. Harry looked down at the little bag of clothes in his hand. "I don't think I'll be filling that any time soon," He chuckled but Mimby tutted. "We's have to sort that. Can't have the Master of Peveril Cottage looking like a beggar." A part of Harry liked the sound of that, having never had clothes of his own before, although he also felt a little daunted at the prospect, remembering just how many clothes his cousin used to have, many of which he barely wore. "I'll get a new wardrobe if you let me get one for you as well," Harry said, indicating the rag that Mimby was currently wearing. Mimby's face fell. "Oh no, please don't do's that!" "Whyever not?" "A master giving an elf clothes only happens when we leaves his service. It is a sign that master no longer needs Mimby any more." "Oh I certainly need you!" Harry assured the poor creature who gave a sigh of relief. "At least let me know how much I need to pay you, perhaps I can add a bit extra so you can get yourself something nice." "Oh you don't need to do that," Mimby chuckled. Harry frowned. "Why not?" "Because its strange, that's why." "But you have to get paid for the work you do, as well as days off. Everyone needs that. To not do so is just wrong!" "That owl you's have, does she pay you to look after her?" "Her name is Hedwig and of course not, she's my pet. It's my duty to care for her." "It's no different for house elves," Mimby announced. "Of course it is!" Harry exclaimed. "I'm not your pet. For starters you didn't choose me." "If Mistress Hedwig has eggs, will you not care for her babies?" Mimby queried. "Well of course," Harry huffed. "I may have just got her but I already love Hedwig so of course I would want to look after any babies she might have." "It no different for house elves," Mimby said triumphantly. Harry frowned. "I still don't know, I'm not sure how comfortable I feel with the idea of being seen as your pet." "I doubt Mistress Hedwig likes being seen as your pet either but I doubt that makes things different in your mind," Mimby pointed out. Harry sighed. "I suppose you have a point but I'm still not completely comfortable with it. Please let me know if there is anything you want or need." Mimby just smiled. "House elves are perfectly capable of providing for themselves Master Harry, it is wizzies who needs the help." "That I will definitely agree with," Harry chucked, "although that doesn't explain why you're wearing a rag." "I is wearing a rag because I is a bad elf!" Mimby huffed. "I did not have the house in a suitable condition for you and you's may get hurt because of my neglect. I wills wear better clothes when I is good elf again." "Fine, but don't push yourself too hard," Harry said. "I know you want to get the house up together as soon as possible but I don't want you injuring yourself in the process. I honestly don't know what I'd have done if you weren't here." "I shalls take care Master Harry," Mimby said reassuringly but then suddenly stood up straight, almost as if she'd received a shock. "I believe Master has a guest, was yous expecting anyone." "Yes I was actually, a Mrs Sprout, the Herbology teacher from the school. Gosh, is it 9 o'clock already!" Harry dumped his stuff and raced down the stairs. He went into the floo entrance looking for Mrs Sprout when he heard a curse from the Library. "Bloody bastard buggering hell!" "Is everything alright?" Harry asked, coming in just in time to see who Harry assumed was Mrs Sprout casting a spell on a book that looked like it was trying to eat her fingers. "I'll be fine," smiled Mrs Sprout, "thankfully even books on carnivorous plants rarely develop fangs. I can't say the same about your book though I'm afraid." Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "That's fine, books can be replaced but fingers can't." Mrs Sprout laughed. "You must have grown up in the muggle world then as it's much easier to replace fingers than books sometimes. Trust me I have several tomes which I would insist be allowed to devour your entire bloody arm before you consider damaging them due to their rarity." "I'll try to bear that in mind for the future," Harry said, not sure how he really felt about that idea. Health care was seeing big improvements in the muggle world but it still seemed a little barbaric to him that an object would have higher regard than a part of a person. "No need to look like I've just blasted your favourite bloody toy," Mrs Sprout chuckled. "If we're truly starting from scratch with things then I doubt you'll be borrowing any of my rarer books any time soon. I know your great-great-grandfather was a renowned Herbologist." "Was he?" Harry exclaimed, somewhat incredulously. He really needed to check out his family history. "Oh yes, Horatio Potter loved experimenting with different cultivars, I actually apprenticed under the old bastard here for a bit, it's part of why I was so happy to come back although, from the looks of things it seems as if a lot of his hard work may have gone out the bloody window. I'm not overly surprised, though. Fleamont was the only one other than Horatio who I remember having any interest in Herbology and his was more from a Potioneer's perspective than anything else." "I have no idea who any of those people are," Harry chuckled. "Well I suggest you look them up," Mrs Sprout suggested. "I get that your father was classed as a war hero but that doesn't mean people can forget about everyone else." "I completely agree, Mrs Sprout." "Mrs Sprout!" the woman exclaimed. "I haven't been called that in some time, not since my dear husband passed away, the old bugger." "Oh! What do people normally call you?" Harry queried. "Well at Hogwarts they call the teachers professor, don't ask me why, bloody stupid really since we often don't have any more qualifications than anyone other bastard. I do apologise by the way," she added, seeing Harry's slightly shocked expression. "My husband and I always used to swear like sailors, I like to think it's now my only vice. Unfortunately I can't really do it around the children so I tend to let my mouth run a bit when I'm only in adult company. I'll try to hold myself back if it offends you though." "No, ahead," Harry smiled. "My Uncle used to swear a lot as well so it's nothing new to me. If anything, it's a taste of my homelife." "Thank you Mr Potter, for being so understanding. It's more than I can say for my bloody colleagues. Did you know those bastards actually put a swear jar in the staff room. Little shits they knew it was one of my few safe havens at the school. Perhaps if I can run my mouth a bit here though, I won't be so bloody inclined back at the school, then those bastards will have to dip into their own bloody pockets if they want the good booze at Christmas." She laughed and Harry found himself joining in. He quite liked this warm, somewhat eccentric woman. "Right then, Mr Potter," Mrs Sprout said, clapping her hands in readiness. "What is it exactly that you want to achieve here? I mean I could go over the whole bloody standard curriculum so you can get an O.W.L in Herbology at a later date but I don't know if that will necessarily be to either of our benefit, unless you plan on taking up a career as an Auror or a Healer." "Honestly, at this point, I'd just like to get this place up and running," Harry admitted. "Well that is definitely something I can help you with," Mrs Sprout smiled. "We'll concentrate on getting you started with things that you will find useful and that you can comfortably look after in this place then. That will give you a good foundation as well, that way if you decide you want to get a qualification at a later date you hopefully won't have much more to learn. Now, let's go and see what we can salvage from the greenhouses." Harry had no idea which way to go and he was almost glad that Mrs Sprout seemed to know the way. They left via doors in the main hall that led out to the terrace, walking through what looked to have once been quite a pretty ornamental garden with the remains of a fountain at the centre. Mrs Sprout poked a few things as they went past and made some notes on a piece of parchment. "I'm just making a record of what's here, it's nothing dangerous from what I can tell so you should be able to look up how to salvage them on your own if you want to keep them, or rip them up if you don't." "I don't think I'd have any idea what to replace them with if I did," Harry admitted. "Well, if you want some advice I can pass on your details to a former student of mine who lives nearby. I don't think he is doing anything at the moment so he'll probably have more chances to come by to help you than I will." "That will be wonderful, thank you Mrs Sprout." "No need to thank me, Mr Potter," Mrs Sprout smiled. "Neville Longbottom is a dear and it would be good to get him out from under the thumb of his grandmother more, she can be a right bitch at times. Minnie says she means well but I do wonder, especially as she isn't really one to talk. I know she has a lot to deal with being a teacher, head of house and the deputy headmistress but I do wish she would spend a bit of bloody time actually talking to her charges and dealing with their needs. I would have loved to have Neville in the Puffs with me, I think he would have flourished there. Unfortunately the bugger is noble through and through which means he was always going to end up a sodding lion." She sighed and Harry nodded in what he hoped was an understanding manner even though he had no idea what she was actually going on about. Mrs Sprout had a bit of a look over the Orangery and said that it looked like the orange and olive trees had initially gone a bit wild but had died back once they were open to the elements and Harry would probably have to get new plants when it was mended. She made a note for Mimby to simply vanish anything that was in there to be safe as the likelihood was that anything that was salvageable probably wasn't supposed to be there in the first place. She pointed out a courtyard garden to Harry, a little way behind the Orangery. The door to it wouldn't open though and Mrs Sprout ended up having to blast it to pieces to see in. The reason for their issue turned out to be a plant called a Venomous Tentacula that had gone wild and its vines had densely covered the entrance. It apparently hadn't been very happy about some of its tentacles getting blasted off and Harry found himself swearing as some of the remaining vines lashed out through the hole and scratched his arm. He had hoped that Mrs Sprout would say that that needed to be vanished as well but she only laughed and said it was a bloody magnificent specimen and that she would be glad to get some cuttings at a later date. At least she repaired the door and locked it back into place and Harry had the feeling that he would be giving that area a wide berth until it was gone. They finally got to the greenhouses which were unfortunately in almost as bad a state as the Orangery, although their metal frame had seemed to weather a bit better than the Orangery's wooden one. This meant that they could actually walk around in the space, so long as they were careful of any broken glass, or any hidden terrors as Harry found out when a bit of a plant called Devil's Snare grabbed his ankle. Thankfully Mrs Sprout reacted very quickly to his shout and blasted it with fire, sending the vine shrivelling back. Harry was a little shaken after that but Mrs Sprout simply laughed and said it was all in a day's work, again leaving the plant in situ and simply pulling back some of its cover, saying the sun would be more than enough to keep the thing at bay. Apparently there were a great number of things in the greenhouses and Harry saw Mrs Sprout taking copious notes. Eventually Mimby popped in, just as Harry was getting light headed from the sun beating down on them, and suggested that they have some lunch on the terrace. "I advise that you keep away from any of the areas that contain magical plants," Mrs Sprout explained, handing over her notes to Harry, "and I'd include the pond in that as well, those things breed all sorts if left unchecked." "I didn't even know there was a pond," Harry admitted. "Oh yes, north-east of here, just before you get to the orchard, in front of the field of grape vines although there probably won't be much left of those buggers if no one was maintaining the warming charms. This land used to have quite the variety of produce in its day." "It would be nice to get back to that I think." "Well in that case Mr Potter, I advise you to take a look at the local market that runs on a Friday here in the village. I know Mr Longbottom sells some of the plants he grows from time to time and he's said he's seen some real wonders there. There are some muggle stalls of course, and the wizarding ones have to have numerous muggle repelling charms on them just in case, but it might be a good way to see what's available. You can always start building up the gardens around the terrace here. Things like Lavender and Fluxweed should be easy enough for you to start growing and will look pretty as well. If you're feeling a bit adventurous there are always Moly and Flutterby bushes as well. Nothing remotely dangerous, don't worry, but they're more naturally magical so will require a bit more care." Harry thanked Mrs Sprout for her help as they finished their lunch. She sent Harry back inside to look up possible plants he could use in the terrace garden, and to see which ones he could tell he had already had, marking them out on a plan of the terrace garden she'd drawn. While Harry was doing this she went to try and see how much of the greenhouse she could repair, in the hopes of trying to deter some of the more dangerous species, as well as giving better protection to some of the good plants that remained. "You have a lovely Shivelfig there," she announced when she returned. "I couldn't prune the bastard this late the the season but I was able to enlarge the greenhouse around it with Mimby's help so it's got a bit of a dome now, I hope you don't mind." "Not at all. Thank you so much for your help," Harry said, handing over the plan. "Oh this will do nicely," Mrs Sprout said, looking it over. "It will smell lovely when everything is in bloom as well. You will need to check when the best time to prune and plant things is. Be careful with the lavender as well, it doesn't always like it when you prune it back too far into the wood so you might find you need to replace it." "I'll take that into consideration," Harry smiled, taking back his plan and feeling a sense of accomplishment at the thought of getting something sorted for his house on his own steam. "You're a fine bastard Harry Potter. I have a feeling you will do wonderful things here and I'm glad that I've had the chance to guide you, if only a little bit." "You've been a big help Mrs Sprout and I hope you'll be able to come back here soon, although I wouldn't want to make any demands on your time." "Oh I will, don't worry, if only to take some cuttings of the Venomous Tentacula in the courtyard," Mrs Sprout chuckled. "That's a bloody fine specimen you've got there, never seen the likes myself, it's why I don't want to destroy the bugger until I know I've got a good number of cuttings going. It will be a shame to lose it but you'll never get that bugger under control and leaving it is too much of a risk long term. I've promised to visit my sister-in-law next week but I'll message you and arrange some time to come by after." Harry said that sounded brilliant and he genuinely looked forward to spending some time with this woman again. He was curious about this former student of hers and he thought that it could only be good to meet more of his peers, especially ones that got such a glowing reputation. Before then, however, he planned to go down and check out the local market, especially as it was Friday tomorrow. Harry was genuinely curious about what weird and wonderful things he would find there.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
To Market, To Market
Harry woke up in his huge plush bed and smiled as he looked out of his bedroom window, even though his view included the ruined Orangery and the courtyard garden where the vicious Tentacula lived. He was in his own house, in his own bed, and it really was a monster of a bed as well. Harry could fully lie across the width of it and he'd practically had to jump to get on it because the mattress was so deep. To say he'd had a glorious night's sleep was an understatement and it was probably part of the reason he was in such a good mood this morning. That and he had finally spent the night in his own property. There was something about that idea that warmed his soul and he took a deep breath as he looked back out of the window to a wooded area in the distance, wondering just how far the boundary of his land stretched. He suddenly saw something on the horizon and it seemed to be coming towards the house at some pace. Harry watched in horrified fascination as the thing almost came hurtling towards him and splatted into the window with a thud. Mimby appeared and opened the window and the poor thing, an old owl by the looks of it, dazedly hobbled in.
"Is it alright?" Harry asked worriedly.
"It be fine I'm sure," Mimby sighed, clicking her fingers to make a breakfast tray appear across Harry's lap. "Owl looks like it's used to it." That definitely seemed true although Harry couldn't help worrying about the poor thing as it seemed determined to walk to Harry, although it seemed to walk backwards as much as forwards. Mimby appeared to take pity on it as well and relieved it of the letter attached to its leg before giving the owl a treat and lifting onto Hedwig's perch. Harry's owl diligently shuffled up to make room for the newcomer and Harry felt his heart bloom with pride to see.
"That is how house elves feel when our charges do well," Mimby said.
"I get it, I get it, I'm your pet," Harry chuckled. "Does that mean I get pampered?"
"Not always," Mimby smirked, "although yous will get breakfast in bed as is proper. I's will expect yous to go out and get some proper clothes today though."
"Yes ma'am," Harry grinned as he read the note while drinking his perfectly brewed cup of tea. He could honestly get used to this. In America he had been the one to bring his aunt and uncle breakfast in the morning. The Dursleys had hired a cook but hadn't seen the point of hiring a scullery maid when they had Harry there. It had meant that Harry was truly the lowest ranking person in the house and had been ordered about by everyone. It was strange getting to be his own person with all this free time and it was almost nice to have Mimby boss him around, especially as he knew her commands were coming from a place of care. It also gave him an idea of something to do as Harry didn't particularly relish the thought of sitting down with a bunch of books again and the thought of doing literally nothing was enough to bore him to tears.
He would need some new clothes anyway. The letter had been from Ron inviting Harry for a drink that evening in the Leaky to 'celebrate the weekend' as he apparently hadn't been rotored in to work this Saturday. Harry wondered if that meant that Ron would be coming round tomorrow to teach Harry to fly although nothing was mentioned in the note. He could always ask Ron later. He did feel like he ought to get something decent to wear though. Sure Ron and Tom, the landlord of the Leaky Cauldron, had both seen Harry in his threadbare hand-me-downs but he thought he ought to have at least one decent set of clothes to wear out in public. He had never really had the chance to care about clothes but he thought he had best make some sort of effort now, lest Mimby threaten to bar him from leaving for fear of bringing down the Potter name.
With that in mind Harry quickly finished his breakfast and wrote a reply to Ron confirming his presence. He sent the note with Hedwig, informing Ron that his owl was sleeping and that Harry was sure he would head back in time. Mimby shook her head at Harry as he made his way to the floo and Harry assured her that he would have adequate clothing as soon as he could. He flooed to the Leaky where Tom greeted him warmly.
"Morning Tom, you don't happen to know where I can get any new clothes do you?"
"Those ones don't seem to have weathered the crossing very well do they," Tom chuckled. "Well here in Diagon we have Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. That's where most people go for their robes round these parts, nothing fancy in there, mind, she makes copies of a lot of the same styles; it's why she deals with the school clothes so much. If you want something a bit more up market there's also Twilfitt and Tattings, they're further up on the south side, past the bank. They don't sell stuff off the shelf though so you will likely have to wait for it to be made. There's also the second hand robe shop but I have a feeling you won't be needing to go there."
"Thanks Tom, you don't know if there's anything in Godric's Hollow do you?"
Tom laughed. "Godric's Hollow! I ain't managed to get up there in decades. There might be but I have no idea."
"Ok, thanks for the help."
"No problem Mr Potter. Don't be a stranger though, now you have that fancy house of yours."
"I won't be, don't worry. I'll be in later with my friend Ron for a pint."
"I'll make sure to save you a good table then," Tom smiled and waved at Harry as he left.
It was still quite early as Harry made his second foray into Diagon Alley and a lot of the shops had yet to open up. It had a different feel from before, there was an energy about the place, like a coiled spring waiting to burst into action as soon as the patron began to arrive. Harry made a point of walking past Madam Malkin's and looking in the window. Harry could see what Tom was saying about this being a store of 'generic' wizarding clothes as he saw row after row of garments and considered coming back later to pick up a few things once it opened. He did pop his head in the window of Twilfitt and Tattings but the store looked very bare and the snooty man who appeared to be working there came and shooed Harry away when he saw him, cementing in Harry's mind that this would certainly not be coming back. Unfortunately Madam Malkin's was still closed by the time Harry had finished up at the bank, getting some money in both wizarding and muggle currency, just in case. The sign said that they didn't open until 10:30 on a Friday which was annoying but he figured that he could always go and check out the market at Godric's Hollow first. Mimby was a little annoyed that he had come back empty handed but was mollified when Harry promised to return after lunch, when the shop was open, if he didn't find anything in Godric's Hollow.
It was nice walking into the village again. There was a nice breeze keeping the air cool, not that it mattered too much as he walked along the tree lined path, wych elm as Mimby had informed him. There were a few clouds in the sky but they were not dark enough to threaten rain. On the whole it looked to be another pleasant day and it helped keep Harry in high spirits. Harry was a little surprised to see a gate in the hedgerow, just next to the point in the hedge where he had pushed through a few days ago. He wasn't sure if it was something Mimby had put in or that it was something that he could only see now that he had been to the house although he liked the thought that the entrance to his property might not be visible to everyone. The gate did make leaving the property easier though and Harry was definitely grateful for it as he wasn't sure how well his clothes would hold up if he had to squeeze through the hedge again.
The road to the village square was considerably busier than when Harry had walked it the other day, with several carts loaded up cantering past him. One cart in particular seemed to be in a particular hurry and came careening past another in an effort to overtake and Harry found himself having to literally dive out of the way. When he righted himself he realised that he was standing in front of a statue of a man, woman and child. He was sure that there had been a different statue here before, a memorial to those who fought in the Napoleonic Wars he had believed. It was strange that, on closer inspection, it appeared to be something else. He assumed there must be some sort of spell on it which only made him more curious as to why. The statue was of a man who seemed to have very messy hair, a bit like Harry's, and glasses as well. The woman had a pretty, kind face and seemed to be holding a baby.
"Have you never seen it up close before?" a voice asked from behind Harry. He turned to see who it was and was struck by the sight of a very pretty young woman, seemingly of Asian descent, although she spoke with a slight Scottish accent. She wore a puffy sleeved blouse of some lovely, soft looking material and a flowing deep purple skirt underneath, short enough to show off the tops of her boots, something that Aunt Petunia would have found highly offensive. Her dark hair was puffing out from under a hat that was the same shade as her skirt and was adorned with some huge roses that appeared to be frozen in full bloom. It was her smile that really caught Harry's attention though and he found himself staring, almost transfixed. "I always think it's a bit of a shame. I mean I understand why it would be put here, since this is where it happened, but the fact that it is a mixed village means that it also has to be covered up which means that sometimes even witches and wizards forget that it's there or miss it entirely."
"I'll admit that I don't even know what it's for," Harry said, feeling a little sheepish.
"How can you not know what it's for?" the girl exclaimed.
"Well I was living in America until recently," Harry replied. "Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to be precise."
The woman laughed. "Honestly that means nothing to me. I know of New York and that's about it. It does explain why you might not have heard of this family though. It's depicting the Potters, as they were last known anyway. The father and mother, James and Lily, stood up to a dark wizard who came to attack them. They managed to defeat him, although they lost their lives in the process. Their baby was supposed to have survived although no one had heard anything about him for 17 years so many people began believing he was dead. I have heard a rumour that he's surfaced again but I don't know how credible it is."
"Very credible I can assure you," Harry grinned and held out his hand. "I'm Harry Potter, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
The girl just gaped at him. "You're kidding me right! Is this some sort of practical joke by Tony?"
"I have no idea who Tony is but I can assure you it isn't a practical joke. I'll admit I had no idea about my heritage when I landed in England but the Goblins confirmed it. I'm currently living at Peveril Cottage at the edge of the village," informed her, feeling a little awkward standing there with his arm still extended.
"Oh Merlin!" the woman gasped. "It is true isn't it. No one is going to believe me though. It's such a shame that the season is over, you would have caused quite the stir."
"The season?" Harry queried, finally putting his hand away, feeling like an idiot.
"The social season!" the woman exclaimed, somehow more surprised that Harry didn't know about that than the fact that the statue was depicting him and his parents. "It is the time when all the big parties happen in London, coinciding with when the Wizengamot sits. It's over now though, with everyone moving to the country for shooting and the Glorious Twelfth, that's the day the shooting season starts for grouse."
"I've never been shooting before," Harry admitted.
"Oh you should, everyone does, you know. At least anyone who's anyone and, if you're Harry Potter you are definitely someone. I'm Cho by the way, Cho Chang but please, just call me Cho. I can't abide by any of that uptight 'Miss' business. By the way, are you in the village for any particular reason?"
"Well I'd been told about the market and thought I'd come to see what it is about. I was also going to see if there was anywhere I can get some new clothes as I'm starting to get a bit desperate."
"Oh you are, aren't you!" Cho exclaimed, apparently noticing Harry's shabby ensemble for the first time. "Did you lose your luggage on the voyage over here? You poor thing. Well luck must be on your side as I'm actually a fashion designer myself, specialising in all the latest trends straight from the muggle world."
"That sounds good, I actually grew up in the muggle world."
Cho squealed. "Perfect! Come with me and I'll take your measurements and see what I have in stock."
She grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him down the street to where a load of different stalls were setting up and a man waved her over.
"Thank you for setting up for me Frank, you're a darling. I honestly don't know what I'd do without you." The man, Frank, blushed a bit and said it was nothing before moving away to set up what Harry assumed was his own stall. "He's a real gem, that one, I don't know what I'd do without him. I can never drag myself out of bed early enough to get a prime spot. I was complaining about that one week and Frank was good enough to give his spot up to me, taking the worse one for himself, and now he just does it every time I come down here which isn't every week of course, especially when the season's in full swing. The kindness of some people really surprises me though." Harry nodded although he could well understand why Frank did what he did. There was a brightness about Cho that seemed to draw people in. Harry had a feeling Frank wasn't the only person who went out of the way for her and he had a sneaking suspicion that he may fall into that number.
Cho hung a charm up on the awning and then started pulling things out of the large bag she was carrying. Harry thought they were small ornaments at first but then she got her wand out and started enlarging them, as well as the space they were in, and Harry was once again amazed at what magic could achieve. There was a vast array of different garments for both men and women, with an emphasis on colour and some interesting cuts that Harry assumed must be high fashion as he could never imagine Aunt Petunia wearing anything like them. Once the bag was empty Cho began arranging things about the space in some way that was completely beyond Harry's comprehension but he had to admit that it was very eye-catching. When she had finished she pulled out a tape measure.
"Let's get you measured up then, before the masses descend, then we can finally find you something that screams 'Harry Potter'." Harry wasn't sure if he wanted to 'scream Harry Potter' but he went along with it anyway, partly because he did need some new clothes and partly because Cho had such a nice smile and Harry didn't want to be the reason for it disappearing.
"A little smaller than standard," she said, putting her tape measure away when she had finished, "but you're smaller across the board so I think I can work with it without too much issue." Harry felt a little offended at that comment although he could kind of understand now that he was standing next to Cho. They were basically nose to nose, if anything Cho was a little taller than him, although Harry justified that in his mind by reminding himself she had a heel on her boots. He still said nothing however and Cho busied herself rifling through her various items and moving certain ones into a separate pile. Harry was a little surprised to see some of the colours coming out.
"Muggles are so boring when it comes to men's colour palettes in my opinion," Cho said on catching Harry's eye and Harry wondered if his shock had been showing on his face. "You look like the adventurous sort though and everyone did assume you would have been in Gryffindor so I imagine you won't want the usual drab colours. Trust me though, I won't pick anything that won't suit you. I want you to look good so, when people ask where you got your fabulous clothes from, you can send them back here."
"Alright," Harry said, although he really wasn't sure about the bright yellow suit, even when Cho told him it wasn't yellow it was goldenrod. After she had accumulated a small mountain of items she sent Harry back behind a screen to try them on. Why he had to try on every single one when they all seemed basically the same to him, Harry didn't think he would ever know. Cho insisted that she wanted to judge what the right number of buttons for him was, although Harry had no idea if it would really make that much difference regardless of how much Cho insisted that he ought to opt for a double breasted style to make the most of his slim figure.
Harry was glad that the clothes were roomy though, he didn't think he would enjoy an overly fitted style, not with how much he'd been in Dudley's oversized cast off growing up. He wasn't sure about the padded shoulders on the suit but Cho said they were essential for the silhouette, whatever that meant. It was quite a lot of fabric when it was all put together, especially with the waistcoat, and Harry was quite tired by the time he'd tried the 10th one on, not helped by the fact that Cho had loudly exclaimed how perfect each and everyone was, sometimes even cajoling one of her patrons to agree if someone happened to be there when Harry stepped out. By the time Harry got to the last suit, blessedly a lightish brown one that Cho referred to as 'tan', he was more than ready to call it a day.
"I'll take this one," Harry announced, stepping out from behind the screen for what he hoped was the last time.
"Really? But the colour's so boring. I really think the burgundy tweed was better, don't you agree Joyce?" The woman looking through shawls nodded absently.
"No really, I like this one best," Harry insisted.
"Why don't you get the burgundy one as well then, and maybe the goldenrod one, that fabric has a bit of cotton blended which will make it better for summer."
"Just the one for now I think," Harry smiled. "I'm probably not going to wear it much this next week as I'll mostly be spending time sorting out the house and I wouldn't want to risk ruining it. I can always pop back next week to get more."
"But I might not be here next week," Cho whined. "Shooting parties pop up all the time."
"Well perhaps I can owl you then," Harry suggested. "I tried on quite a few things here so I have a good idea of what I like and you have my measurements so you can always send me anything right?"
"I suppose," Cho huffed. "But if you don't like any adjustments I make to your requests on your head be it." Harry nodded his head in agreement. He could see several bright colours being added if he did things this way but it seemed a small price to pay for not having to spend hours trying on clothes again and he was sure there must be a spell out there to change the colour of his clothes anyway. Cho still managed to get more out of him however, pushing him to buy the matching waistcoat, essential especially in winter apparently, as well as a couple of shirts, including one with dark pink stripes. Cho also insisted on him having what she referred to as club collars which she said help square the look of his jaw. A red bow tie, red leather braces and a red trimmed straw boater apparently finished the 'ensemble' and Harry found himself desperately edging to the street.
"Now before you go back to your house I really must insist you visit the shoe maker around the corner. He had a wizarding section with anti muggle charms on it and he does the absolute most comfortable boots with built-in cushioning charms. They're made of Kelpie leather so are completely waterproof and he even does higher heels on men's shoes on request."
"Thanks," Harry said, waving as he walked away and trying not to get offended about the comment again. A new pair of shoes did sound good though. Mimby had repaired his old ones but they had never fit him properly anyway and they did look a little out of place with his new suit. Thankfully the shoe maker required much less attention. He took a measurement of Harry's foot, suggested the brown leather to go with his suit and adjusted a pair to fit Harry's feet perfectly. Cho was right, they were amazingly comfortable, better than anything Harry had ever felt before, and his feelings towards the woman turned once more for the better.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A Friendly Pint
Mimby was surprisingly satisfied with Harry's purchases but she did insist on sending Harry out to get a robe to wear over the top "as proper for wizzies". Harry was surprised, on hearing this, that Cho hadn't had any in stock but accepted the advice from the house elf. She had had far more experience of the wizarding world than Harry had. At least she allowed him to have a bit of a rest from shopping as well, giving Harry a hearty lunch of cold meat and baked potatoes, along with a wonderful cheese that Mimby said was a local speciality. After she had eaten she even suggested that he do a bit of reading, to let it settle, as he could easily do some shopping in Diagon Alley before he had to meet his friend. It sounded like a brilliant idea, especially as it meant that he was around for afternoon tea. His aunt and uncle had sometimes let him have the dregs from the pot so he had developed a bit of a taste for the stuff over the years, although the tea Mimby made was far superior and Harry found himself quite enjoying a more citrusy blend Mimby called Earl Grey, although he insisted on having it with lemon not milk, the latter was utterly vile in his opinion. He didn't mind the cucumber sandwiches either, that was a bit of a revelation but nothing topped the delicious Victoria Sponge cake and he was most disappointed when Mimby refused to allow him seconds. Eventually the afternoon drew on and Harry felt that he ought to be heading off if he wanted to keep in Mimby's good books and get some proper wizarding robes to wear. He also didn't want to look too out of place when he walked into the Leaky Cauldron. The pub was already starting to fill when he arrived so he didn't bother saying hello to Tom, knowing that he would be back later on anyway, and headed straight out the back. Thankfully he already knew that Madam Malkin was open, and had been for hours at this point, so Harry headed straight there and was almost grateful when the woman simply pointed him to a rack when he said he was looking for robes. They really were all very much the same, mostly full or cutaway styles, and Harry happily picked out a dark grey one that he thought would go with his suit, or any others that he might pick up. He wasn't sure how often he would end up wearing it, he supposed it depended on how often he was out in wizarding society, so it made sense to him to have one that would cover multiple occasions. If the pub was busy when he arrived then it was positively teeming now and Harry briefly wondered how long he had been gone. He checked, it hadn't been long, but that probably meant that it had been knocking off time somewhere which also probably meant that Ron was already about. He hailed Tom at the bar who had to do a double take, not instantly recognising Harry in his new clothes. "Interesting new look you got there," Tom grinned, bringing Harry his pint. "Your friends are here already, in the back corner, by the stairs. I'd have given you one of the private rooms but they were all booked up already." "That's alright Tom, no need to go to any trouble." "Course there isn't," Tom laughed as Harry walked away to find Ron, slightly confused at Tom's last comment. There had also been the mention of friends, multiple, but Harry had assumed that that had just been a slip of the tongue which is why he was a little shocked to see a second person sitting with Ron already, a woman with bushy brown hair and a slightly haughty air about her. Ron looked up as Harry approached and gaped. "What in Merlin's name are you wearing mate!" Harry frowned slightly. "It's just a suit, no different from what other people wear." "But it is though," Ron insisted, gesturing for Harry to take a look around where he saw that Ron, along with the rest of the clientele, were all wearing frock coats that Harry remembered people favouring when he was a child. "It's only strange in the wizarding world," the woman huffed, "and if he grew up in the muggle world like you said then I can assure you that that is perfectly normal attire." "I didn't realise it was strange for the wizarding world," Harry admitted. "I just trusted Cho when she said it was in fashion." "Cho?" the woman frowned, her demeanour suddenly shifting a bit. "Do you mean Cho Chang?" Harry nodded. "When on earth did you meet her?" "This morning at the market in Godric's Hollow," Harry replied, feeling a little confused at the woman's slightly accusatory tone. "I needed to buy some new clothes and she happened to have a stall selling them, what's wrong with that?" "Ignore Hermione," Ron chuckled. "She never particularly liked Cho, or any of that lot, even when we were at school." "You were at school together?" Harry queried. "Well not together per se," Ron replied. "Cho was a few years ahead, same as my brothers, but she was quite a well known figure around school, especially after she wound up dating the TriWizard Champion although at least she used the fame she gained from that for some good." "And just what good did she do exactly?" the woman, apparently called Hermione, hissed. "She was all over the wizarding society pages, from what I heard anyway, but does she use that to champion any sort of cause? Oh no! Instead she uses it to open a clothes stall, promoting beauty and fashion and generally encouraging young girls to be just as vapid and air-headed as she is." "She's not completely air-headed," Ron argued. "She was a decent Quidditch player and she was in Ravenclaw." "She was hardly a decent quidditch player," Hermione scoffed. "She won a few games at best, despite being the seeker for years and just because she was in Ravenclaw that doesn't automatically make her smart. Ravenclaw's are also perfectionists, Cho just unfortunately tries to seek perfection in her appearance instead of her mind." "Well I know Ginny likes reading her articles in Witch Weekly and she isn't an air-head," Ron huffed. "Ginny has a good head on her shoulders most of the time but she is inclined to the odd moments of silliness," Hermione sighed. "Like her desire to have a season. Honestly I don't know why she doesn't just get a job at the Ministry and be done with it. She could work in the Department of Magical Games and Sports, it's not like the Ministry isn't basically calling out for good workers." "In Ginny's defence it's mostly my mum pushing for the whole season thing," Ron said. "Plus I don't think Ginny is really a desk job sort of person. We can't all be paperwork aficionados like you." "She might be if she gave it a chance," Hermione huffed, clearly mollified. "You didn't like essays at schools but you're learning to appreciate paperwork now though." "Yeah," Ron said in an entirely unconvincing manner which caused Harry to snicker and Hermione to turn and scowl at him. "I'm Harry by the way," Harry said, thrusting his hand out and hoping that distraction was a good tactic as he wasn't sure he would like it when this woman got irate. Thankfully it did work. "Oh yes, of course, Ron did say but you're right, how rude of me. Hermione Granger, just call me Hermione though as I'm sure we'll be hanging out plenty in the future." She took Harry's hand and shook it then turned and punched Ron in the arm. "You should have been the one to introduce us properly. Honestly I despair at your manners sometimes." "I was going to introduce you, honest," Ron insisted, rubbing his arm a bit. "You got into a rant about Cho though and I didn't really get a chance." "Too busy defending her," Hermione huffed. "No, never!" Ron declared. "You know I have never cared about Cho even slightly." "Not Cho, no," Hermione grouced. "The only person I have ever cared about in that way is you," Ron stated. "So we're ignoring that blip back in 6th year where you were courting Lavender?" Hermione challenged. "That was only because I did think you liked me in that way. I spent the whole time wishing I could be with you, Mione. You're the one I proposed to right?" "So you have no problem going to look at properties with me tomorrow then?" Hermione smiled. "Really!" Ron exclaimed. "But we're not even married yet. You know my mum would have a fit if we moved in before that." "Yes, but you know how rare it is for good properties to come up in this world which is why I want to start looking early so we can move in together as soon as we're married. I don't want to spend our first year of married life living apart or worse, living at your parents house." "What's wrong with living with my parents!" Ron griped. "Nothing, not at the moment, they are excellent chaperones," Hermione reasoned. "Unfortunately, once we're married, a chaperone is going to be the least of what we want." Ron's eyes widened as a light seemed to go on in his mind. "You're right, you're very right." "So house hunting then," Hermione smiled. "But I told Harry I was going to teach him how to fly on my next day off and I'm down to work next Saturday so it would be two weeks if I don't do it today," Ron whined. "Which means that it will be two weeks until you can go house hunting with me as well," Hermione pointed out angrily. "Which is more important to you Ron!" "Can't you just pick one you like?" Ron suggested. "I'm sure I'd like it too." "It's supposed to be a joint decision," Hermione hissed. "This is where we are going to be spending the rest of our lives, it needs to be something you have a say in as well. Can't you just teach Harry to fly when he comes to your parent's house on Sunday?" "That sounds good to me," Harry offered. "And if you need somewhere to stay when you're married you can always come to my house. I have plenty of rooms so you'll have privacy and I'm pretty sure I would make a terrible chaperone." "Now that sounds like a plan!" Ron grinned. "That doesn't get you out of looking at properties with me tomorrow Ronald Weasley," Hermione announced and Ron sighed and nodded. Harry mouthed 'tried, sorry' to him and Ron shrugged as if to say 'what can you do'. "So you two are engaged then," Harry said, hoping to try to segue to a less volatile subject. "Yep," Ron grinned. "We were courting in our final year and I asked her to marry the day we left." "He proposed in my favourite studying spot outside," Hermione sighed. "It was actually quite romantic." "I would have proposed in the library but I think Madam Pince would have skinned me," Ron grinned. "I'm glad you didn't!" Hermione scowled. "The Library is not the place for that kind of thing!" "I don't know, that was where you and Krum met wasn't it," Ron countered. "That's besides the point," Hermione huffed. "It's not like me and him were serious or anything." "You were courting for nearly a year!" Ron roared. "Not really," Hermione argued. "He was busy with the TriWizard Tournament for most of the year and then we were only able to write as he had to go back to Bulgaria. Arguably you were with Lavender far longer than I was with Viktor and at least you never had to witness us kissing." "You kissed someone you were only courting!" Harry exclaimed, not really wanting to get in the middle of their argument but too amazed to stay quiet. "It's not that big a deal!" Ron whined and Hermione rolled her eyes before turning to Harry. "Apparently witches and wizards have had contraceptives for some time and, thanks to the lack of interference from the church and other religious groups they have been a bit more free to use them. They aren't 100% effective however which is why it is still generally frowned upon to have sex before marriage and having a child out of wedlock is still a big no-no." "'Course it is! A child needs two parents! "Ron huffed. "I'm pretty sure there are war widows who would argue with you on that point," Hermione smiled. "And no, that doesn't mean we get to fool about before we officially get married. You know your mother would kill you if you tried." Ron audibly gulped and Harry mentally sent his sympathies to the man. He'd met Mrs Weasley and she seemed nice enough, but it was also a bit like the way Aunt Petunia was nice to Dudley's friends and he knew from experience that that woman could blow if pushed and he could only imagine Mrs Weasley was the same. The trio had a couple more pints as they got to know each other and Harry found himself enjoying their company. It seemed as if Ron and Hermione hadn't been at odds a bit in their third year when Hermione's cat had kept attacking Ron's rat. Ron had apparently first seen Hermione in a different light when she attended the Yule Ball in their fourth year but hadn't done anything as she was courting Viktor, whom, Harry learned, was actually an international quidditch star. They had apparently buried the hatchet in their fifth year as they bonded over their hatred of their Defense Against the Dark Art teacher that year, one Dolores Umbridge, a Ministry official who left under a cloud when rumours surfaced about her more unorthodox methods of punishment. Hermione had apparently been impressed with Ron after that and had helped him get on the house quidditch team but Ron had been completely unaware of her feelings and had ended up courting a girl called Lavender Brown, something that Hermione seemed to be very upset about. Ron had broken up with Lavender at the end of the year though and Ron and Hermione had finally confessed their feelings for each other, getting together the summer before their seventh year and staying together ever since. Harry thought it was sweet really and hoped that he could find someone he cared about like that to build a future with. Harry learned that Hermione also worked at the Ministry of Magic, the body that governed the magical world. It turned out that she worked in the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, a bit of a mouthful in Harry's opinion and a name that they definitely ought to change as it didn't even make a good anagram. She was apparently a fervent employee, however, strongly believing in trying to work for equal rights for all magical creatures, or most at least. "It's ridiculous that wizards think they're so much better than other creatures and can just come in and start dictating how they can live without any involvement from them whatsoever." Harry fully agreed with her in principle, which gave him a significant push in her estimation, but he wasn't sure she fully understood where some of the other creatures were coming from, especially when she got on about her pet project which involved fighting for house elf rights and saving them from an apparent live of slavery. Harry had a feeling that Hermione had never actually spoken to a house elf about how they felt about things. He didn't feel confident enough to bring up what he'd learned from Mimby but he did think it might be an idea to introduce them to each other in the near future. Harry still managed to enjoy himself however and was surprised when Tom called time at the bar and he realised how long they had been there. Thankfully they had ordered food while they were there, Ron's stomach wouldn't allow for anything else, and Harry was grateful, especially when he realised how much he had actually ended up drinking. There was a definite wobble in his steps as he said goodbye to the others and flooed back to his house. He genuinely couldn't tell if the journey back was more or less stomach churning than usual but the fact that he blacked out as soon as he landed probably didn't help.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Potions With Professor Snape
Harry woke up with the worst headache he had ever had, not helped in the slightest when Mimby came in and opened the curtains.
"Master Harry will need to learn how to brew potions if he is going to keep ending up like that," she huffed, thrusting a vial in his face. "Thankfully there be some post drunk potion left from when Master George was alive and I's think they still ok."
Harry downed the vial and this time he couldn't keep the contents of his stomach down, thankfully managing to jerk forward and spew on the floor. His headache had alleviated slightly, but not in the same way that it had after the stuff Tom had given him and Harry wasn't sure if that was due to the potion being bad or if it was just because he had drank far more than he had the previous time.
Mimby clicked her fingers and cleaned the mess up before making Harry's breakfast tray appear. Toast and porridge had never looked so appealing to him and Harry thanked the elf but Mimby just shook her head, a deep scowl on her face.
"You's need to be careful about hows much you's drink. I's don't care about you's having a few drinks with friends but it not good to be that bad."
Harry frowned as he looked at the elf. "I scared you, didn't I?"
Mimby looked at Harry with big, watery eyes. "When I's saw you lying on the floor like that I's thought yous gone the same way as Master George. Mimby came in to find him on the floor after coming home from a party only he not breathing."
"Oh Mimby I'm sorry, I didn't realise."
"Ah least you breathing," Mimby sobbed, "but I's stayed up all night to make sure."
"Thank you Mimby but I'm sorry that I put you in that position. I'm alright now though, as you can see, so get a rest and I'll try to be more careful in the future. I don't like the thought of upsetting you. I'm still getting used to drinking though and other people somehow seem much better at it than me."
"Just remember you's don't have to keep up with them," Mimby advised. "You's can drink more slowly or have something else in between, especially if yous start to feel the effects of it."
"I'll try to bear that in mind for the future," Harry smiled. "Now go rest. I imagine I'll be able to survive eating breakfast and getting dressed myself."
"I suppose," Mimby said with a slight smirk. "And don't forget to read the letter, it came first thing this morning." She disappeared and Harry tucked into his breakfast, feeling better with every mouthful, and contemplating a nice bath to wash off the feeling of griminess left from the night before. He picked up the letter.
Mr Potter,
It has been requested in the strongest terms that I teach you the delicate art of potions since you apparently find yourself lacking in that particular skill despite having finished school.
I have managed to find a slot in my schedule and will be at your house at 11 o'clock sharp. Be prepared with your cauldron, your book and the appropriate supplies for a first year student. I am a busy man and can only squeeze a small amount of time into my schedule for teaching dunderheads who can't learn subjects the first time round.
It was signed Professor Snape and Harry could only wonder at the person's insistence on using the moniker that Mrs Sprout had thought ridiculous. Harry looked over at the clock on the mantelpiece and spat his tea out as he realised it was gone 10 already and he didn't have any of the things this Professor Snape had stated. He considered calling Mimby for help but then remembered that he had sent her to sleep after staying up with him and he didn't want to disturb her, realising now how worried she'd been. He quickly wolfed down his food, leaving the tray on the bed, pulling on his suit from the night before and diving through the floo.
Tim wasn't around at the bar when he arrived in the Leaky Cauldron and Harry didn't feel like he had time to find the man so simply dashed out to Diagon Alley itself. Thankfully Potage's Cauldron Shop was fairly self explanatory and, while Madam Potage gave Harry a strange look when he inquired what items a first year student would require, she supplied him with an appropriate cauldron as well as writing him a list of potions ingredients and pointing him in the direction of the apothecary, forgot which Harry was very grateful. The apothecary blessedly assumed that Harry was getting the ingredients early for some younger sibling, ready for school and he was so full of praise that Harry didn't have the heart to correct him, although he did pick up a couple of hangover cures while he was there. He figured it was better to be prepared after all, especially as he no longer trusted the old supply in the house. He picked up a few other helpful sounding potions like the burn salve and something called Pepper-up that advertised that it was good for colds although Harry was quite surprised when the lot cost him several galleons and he found himself having to dart back into the bank to get some more money out before heading to the book shop where he had a hell of a time trying to find a potions book for first years with the person behind the desk being no help as they were apparently too busy stacking shelves. As it was, Harry ended up tumbling through the floo very late for his lesson and not in the best of moods himself.
"You're late," a man's voice stated and Harry dusted himself off as he looked up at the imposing figure of the person who could only be Professor Snape.
"I'm sorry sir but I didn't want to disturb my house elf to get the items you said I would need so I had to go to Diagon Alley to get them."
"That's one mark in your favour at least," Snape drawled. "But I know for a fact the requisite shops are open at 9 in the morning and I find it hard to believe that it took you over 2 hours to solely get a few items."
"Well it didn't," Harry admitted, "but I got up late so it was gone 10 by the time I even got your letter."
"Gone 10! Well aren't you lucky to be able to while the morning hours so," Snape sneered. "Pray tell, Mr Potter, what was the reason you needed to languish around in bed so long this morning? We're you, by chance, burning the midnight oil studying up on subjects you should already know?"
"Well no, I had gone out for a drink with Ron and Hermione," Harry scowled, wondering what right this man had to judge his actions. He was a free man after all and it wasn't like he'd asked for these lessons.
Snape snorted. "Oh to be young and rich, without a care in the world. It must be lovely to be able to do what you want whenever you feel like it while the rest of us poor working souls toil away all the daylight hours and more."
"I have been doing some studying," Harry huffed. "Mrs Sprout."
"Professor Sprout," Snape interrupted.
"Actually she gave me leave to call her Mrs," Harry sassed.
"Well aren't you the favoured pupil," Snape sneered. "So you've been studying Herbology, let's see then, from what plant would I harvest Stinksap?"
"I don't know, I haven't gotten that far," Harry grouced.
"Fine then, something basic. What is the difference between Aconite, Monkshood and Wolfsbane?"
"I don't know sir."
"Don't tell me you haven't gotten as far as Aconite in the Herbology book?" Snape scoffed.
"I've been concentrating on plants that I'm going to be growing in the garden," Harry replied. "I know that I need to start pruning back my Lavender now that the flowering season has passed but that I should be aware that it might not shoot well from the wooded stems so I might need to get some new plants in the early summer."
"Well done Mr Potter, you have gotten one question correct out of three. Unfortunately 33% will still only earn you a T grade."
"T?" Harry queried.
"Yes. T for Troll, as in you have the intelligence of a," Snape smirked and Harry scowled.
"Well I have only been studying for a few days."
"Then I hope to see vast improvements over the months to come," Snape smirked. "Although if I am giving up my free time to teach you I hope that you give it a bit more dedication than you've shown so far."
"It's not like I asked for these lessons," Harry grouced.
"That's good to know," Snape mused. "I will happily let Headmaster Dumbledore know that you are refusing to learn even the basics and I will happily watch as you fritter away your fortune on worthless shop bought potions that will either produce no better effect than a placebo, or will outright harm you."
Harry sighed. He knew already that the man was right from experience, both the stored potions at the house and the overpriced ones in his pocket. If he could learn to brew his own, even some basics, especially using his own ingredients, then he would likely be in a much better position. He grit his teeth.
"I am deeply sorry for being late Professor Snape and I would greatly appreciate it if you could spare a little time to teach me how to brew potions." Snape looked triumphant and there was a part of Harry that longed to smack that smug look off his face. Snape seemed to think very little of him although Harry didn't know why. Harry would show him though. Snape thought that he was a lazy, good-for-nothing brat. He could live up to that image sure, but Harry wasn't a child anymore. He knew the best way to make Snape eat his words was to prove him wrong and be the best damn student he could be. Unfortunately that plan didn't get off to the best start when he informed Snape that not only did he not know where the potions lab was but that even if he did the place would likely be unusable as Mimby wouldn't have gotten to it yet.
"And why are you relying on your house elf to do all the spell work to fix things? Are you that incompetent?"
"I don't know many spells yet sir," Harry hissed. "As I said I've only been studying magic for a few days and Mimby specifically didn't want me practicing anything that she deemed dangerous. I have got lumos and nox down, as well as colloportus and alohomora. My mending charm still needs some work and I wouldn't want to get it wrong and risk causing more work for Mimby."
Snape looked a little shocked at that statement. "What do you mean you have only been studying magic for a few days? What were you doing before that?"
"I went to a muggle school sir," Harry said, quite incredulously. "I didn't know anything about magic until I landed in England and went to a pub my aunt told me about. She said that apparently my mother used to hang out quite a bit at the Leaky Cauldron."
"Did she," Snape seethed, although, for the first time he had met the man Harry felt that the man's anger wasn't actually aimed at him. He was silent for a little while as if calculating something then he turned to Harry.
"I suppose we had better start from the very basics then," Snape announced. "Unfortunately we will be very limited on time due to my unfortunately cramped schedule although if we can set up a proper potions space I may be able to brew some things whilst supervising you; I would rather you not try anything on your own to begin with, I wouldn't want you to accidentally blow yourself up."
Harry gulped. "Is that really a possibility?"
"Oh yes," Snape smirked. "Quite likely in fact, if one is not careful that is. Dissolving yourself is also a distinct possibility."
"Well in that case I can't see me trying anything on my own for some time," Harry assured him and Snape actually chuckled.
"Spoken like someone raised in the muggle world." Harry was a little shocked at the sound but didn't have much time to contemplate it as Snape was soon striding out into the main hall. He looked around, frowning a bit, then went through the glass doors to the terrace, looking around and nodding.
"This will do. It hasn't been repaired yet so it won't matter too much if you make a mess. Now, since I am sure there must be a potions area here somewhere, let's try
accio potions table
." He waved his wand and waited, seeming to concentrate on the still open doors, likely why he didn't see the thing flying towards him from across the grounds.
"Look out!" Harry cried allowing Snape to jump out of the way in time but only thanks to some impressive agility. The table that arrived could hardly be called a table any more, having only one leg remaining, although some of the damage looked recent, as if it had just smashed through somewhere. Snape didn't seem concerned about that though, he was more interested in the slimy green substance covering it.
"It's interesting that the potions lab is away from the main house and I would definitely be interested in examining at some point but I certainly won't be calling any ingredients from there. Thankfully I brought a healthy supply just in case.
Scroufigy! Reparo!
"
In the blink of an eye the table cleaned and repaired itself and Harry was once again astounded by the power he now theoretically wielded.
"For the record those are the spells you need to learn if you want to stop relying on your house elf so much," Snape smirked and Harry made a mental note to practice them. "Now, since you have no knowledge of potions we shall start at the beginning. Normally the first potion that I get my students to brew is a cure for boils but I have a feeling that you won't have a need for that like they do."
"Not for a few years now," Harry grinned.
"In that case we will brew something that will be of use to you. It's a little more advanced but, since this is a one on one lesson I shall be able to keep a closer eye on things to make sure you don't make any major mistakes. We will be brewing the Herbicide Potion which will be very effective at killing any unwanted plant life that you have around the property but you should be very careful where you use it, especially near non-magical plants, as this stuff is very potent and has been known to clear entire fields." Harry did briefly consider using it on the Venomous Tentacula in the courtyard but he didn't want to risk upsetting Mrs Sprout, especially before she was able to get her cuttings.
While Harry was lost in thought Snape had opened up the bag he had brought with him and was sorting through various boxes. He picked out a set of scales and a pestle and mortar, things that Harry had forgotten to pick up, and passed them over after enlarging them. Harry noticed a cauldron in there as well and was a little offended that Snape had apparently had so little faith in him, as well as annoyed that he had apparently gone through all that trouble for no reason. What really surprised Harry, however, is that Snape never once told him to look at his book, reciting the recipe for Harry entirely from memory. Harry had found it difficult to remember facts before, especially things like dates in History, so the fact that Snape could remember an entire recipe so well was actually slightly impressive.
Snape showed Harry the spell to create water, a spell Harry thought could be very useful, and got Harry to fill his cauldron to an appropriate level. He then told Harry to start the fire underneath but Harry hesitated.
"Is there an issue Mr Potter?"
"Well, I had promised Mimby that I wouldn't try that spell," Harry admitted. "She's a little worried that it would accidentally get out of control."
"I can assure you, Mr Potter, I am perfectly capable of controlling a simple incendio cast by you." It sounded like an insult, as if Snape didn't see Harry as much of a wizard but Harry almost thought he could detect a slight note of teasing in the man's smile so he chose not to rise to the bait, taking a deep breath before casting the spell and marvelling at the small burst of flames that ignited beneath his cauldron.
The rest of the lesson didn't exactly go smoothly either. Snape was clearly a perfectionist with numerous ejaculations of things like "I said roughly ground Potter, not finely! Do it again." It was a little annoying, especially as he basically had to grind the lionfish spines twice, once on their own and once with the standard potions ingredient and it took him a while to realise that he basically had to undergrind the spines first, to ensure he didn't overgrind them after. Eventually he got the mixture to a state that Snape deemed acceptable and Harry was able to put it on to boil. That led to a bit of a strained silence and Snape ended up telling Harry to read his potions book while he waited. Harry felt a little awkward. It was lunchtime and manners taught him that he should be offering the man some sort of refreshments, especially as he was giving up his time to teach Harry, and teach him something useful at that. Unfortunately Mimby had made Harry promise not to go in the kitchen yet and it had only been a few hours since she went to sleep so Harry definitely didn't want to disturb her yet.
Snape had told Harry how to set an alarm on his wand to alert him of timings and, after 45 minutes, Snape had him check it. It was still quite a watery consistency and was quite dark but, when Snape stirred it Harry noticed patches where it was still light.
"You can leave it for a bit longer and possibly give it a stir but be careful not to let it get too thick."
Harry frowned, wondering what exactly was 'too thick'. Hoping to err on the side of caution he gave the mixture a few quick stirs and the colour seemed to even out.
"When you are satisfied, add two measures of horklump juice and heat on medium for ten seconds," Snape instructed. "That is casting incendio on the fire again. You then need to add two blobs of flobberworm mucus to your cauldron while still heating and stir clockwise 4 times. To finish your potion, wave your wand over your cauldron and then decant it into a vial."
Harry followed the instructions exactly, or so he thought, but when he handed his vial of finished potion to the man examined it with a frown on his face.
"Acceptable," Snape announced and Harry found himself bristling.
"Acceptable? What do you mean acceptable?"
"In the wizarding world an Acceptable grade, or A, is a pass," Snape explained. "Above that is E, or EE, for Exceeding Expectations, and O for Outstanding."
"May I ask why I only get a pass?" Harry ground out. "I followed the instructions."
"Instructions aren't everything," Snape smirked. "Potions is as much an art as a science and slight variations can have a large effect on the outcome. You need to learn how to spot these and how to counter them."
"Alright, then may I ask
why
my potion only got an A?"
Snape smiled. "Of course you may. While the colour is even it is a little dark and the consistency is a little on the thick side. To preempt your next question: the evenness tells you how effective it will be, even small areas without colour will do nothing; the darkness tells you how strong it is and the thickness tells you how well it will spread through the plant's system. Your potion has an even colour meaning that it will be an effective herbicide but the increased strength teamed with the thicker consistency means that it will likely not spread to the heart of the plant before it dies. You will find that it is effective enough to kill common weeds but if you use it on any of the hardier or more pervasive weeds you will almost certainly find them coming back."
"Alright," Harry sighed. "How could I improve it for next time?"
Snape smiled. "There are a couple of little tricks. For example you can give the mixture a quick stir when you first add the ground mixture to the cauldron, this will help it to react more evenly and negate you having to heat it longer since the heating controls the darkness of the potion. You also could have reduced the length of time heating after the horklump juice or have added slightly less of the flobberworm mucus to prevent it becoming too thick. An over dark potion of the right consistency would have earned you an E. By the way, congratulations on thinking of asking me for advice. I am always surprised at the number of students who just accept the grade without thinking to try to improve it, least of all by asking me, their teacher."
"Wouldn't it be a good idea to offer them advice yourself," Harry suggested. "That way they could all improve."
"That wouldn't necessarily mean they all improve," Snape pointed out. "I learned early on that some students are happy to simply skate by so I learned not to waste my breath unless I knew they would actually listen to my advice and the easiest way I found of determining that was when students actively sought out help. I don't worry too much though. I purposely mark more stringently in class than they do in exams to make sure even the laziest students are forced to pull their socks up. It also almost ensures that all students are pleasantly surprised at their results instead of being disappointed."
Harry gave Snape a curious look. He had a feeling that the man may not be as mean or hard hearted as he liked to make out. Any potential softness, however, was thickly layered under a purposely prickly exterior which led Harry to believe that it might not be entirely wise to point out the man's slightly softer side. He was certainly intrigued however and found himself inviting Snape to the pub.
"Do you not know how to cook for yourself?" Snape queried, raising an eyebrow.
"Well I do, although I usually only did that when the cook was ill or on vacation. I was more of a scullery maid there. Uncle Vernon used to say that he didn't see the point in hiring two members of staff when I was there, costing them money already," Harry laughed, although it had a slightly self-deprecating quality. "I always felt that they hired a cook instead of me as they didn't like the idea of someone being lower than me that I could boss about."
Snape growled a bit but, for the second time, Harry didn't think the man's anger was aimed at him.
"Anyway," Harry continued. "I would sort some lunch out myself but Mimby said she hadn't made the kitchen safe yet so asked me not to go down there. That's why I was going to go to the local pub instead, so as not to disturb her or upset her."
"A commendable notion Mr Potter," Snape said. His face remained blank but Harry felt a small flutter of pride bloom in his chest. "Unfortunately I will have to decline. I have stayed here longer than I planned already and I have work to catch up on. I shall message you when I find another free space in my schedule for a lesson and I shall endeavour to give you a little more notice next time although I make no promises. If you can ask your elf, Mimby was it, to arrange for a specific brewing spot that would be most appreciated. Brewing outside has its issue, not least with the weather."
Harry nodded and bid goodbye to the man, feeling strangely disappointed that he was leaving. Snape was certainly an intriguing, multi-faceted person and Harry was a little curious to know more about him.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A Very Weasley Lunch
Harry had had an enjoyable lunch at the Niffler's Snout, despite dining alone. The bar had been pretty bare with more people apparently heading to the other wizarding shopping districts on the weekend, so Clarissa had been able to talk to Harry more about the neighbourhood, talking about some of the families in the area, like the Longbottoms and the Abbotts, as well as some of the history of the Potters. She mentioned that Harry's great-great-grandfather, Horatio Potter, had actually taught Mimby how to make wine and Mimby had become quite proficient, to the point it had become the pub's speciality. Harry said that he would definitely have to look at starting up production again once the house and grounds were up together. Apparently the Potter estate had once been a big supplier of potions ingredients in the neighbourhood and Harry had the idea that it might be nice to get back to that. Clarissa said that Neville Longbottom had been filling the void a bit but Harry thought that there might be enough room for both of them in the world, especially with some of the prices of things he had seen in the apothecary. If he could get his Lavender plants sorted he should be able to make a fortune from that alone if each sprig went for a galleon each.
When he had got back Mimby had been there and seemed to be in a much better mood after her sleep. She had been very impressed with Harry's first attempt at brewing and had even said that she would happily supervise him again if he wanted to brew more, saying that using the herbicide was easier and more effective than banishing the worst of the weeds and overgrowth. Harry thought it would definitely be a good idea to practice the techniques and, while he didn't have the right ingredients to make more straight away, he did make a point of writing down the advice that Professor Snape had given him to make sure he didn't forget it for when he did get the chance to brew again.
While he was making his notes Harry was surprised to see an owl arrive bearing a parcel and a note. It turned out to be from Cho. It seemed as if she had managed to get him an invite to a party at one of her friend's houses the next day. Apparently they always got together for drinks on the 11th so that they would be ready to go out at first light on the 12th.
I know that you don't have anything appropriate to wear so I have taken the liberty of sending you a formal suit as well as hunting attire as well as my account details so you can transfer the payment. The party starts at 8 but I hope I don't need to remind you that it's bad manners to actually arrive at 8, although if you arrive after 9 Marrietta will have your hide.
Harry had never been to a party before and he was beyond curious to attend, as well as being extremely grateful to Cho for going to the effort of securing him an invite. He was also grateful for the reminder about polite arriving times; he remembered Aunt Petunia mentioning something about that once but only thanks to the prompt. It also made things a little easier for him as it meant that he wouldn't have to rush back from lunch at the Weasleys to get ready.
He was a little curious about the dress suit though. It was a dark blue and he was sure Uncle Vernon's had all be black, although those had been tuxedos. The waistcoat was also in black velvet, not something Harry had ever seen before, he thought they were usually in a plainer material, although his knowledge of fashion was limited to what he could remember of his family's wardrobe and those could well be muggle or American quirks. What he found truly shocking, however, were the patent shoes Cho sent. She had apparently gone to the shoe makers and gotten a pair in his size. Harry was a little humiliated to see that they had quite the heel on them, a little over 2 inches, in a shiny, patent leather, open on the top with a bow on the front! He was sure he couldn't bring himself to wear them but he also knew how important wearing the right thing was to these things and he assumed that Cho wouldn't have sent them if they were wrong. Same when it came to the lack of a top hat, although he assumed that had something to do with how wizards travelled as well. He couldn't imagine a top hat lasting long in a floo.
There was the shooting outfit as well but Harry left looking at that for the time being. He knew he had to get the payment to Cho sorted as soon as possible; he could hardly show up to the party in a suit he hadn't paid for and he didn't want to risk the bank not being open on a Sunday at least before lunch anyway. It might be the wizarding world but he figured even they would adhere to that rule, if only to blend in with the muggles. It was surprisingly easy to sort out the payment. Thankfully, he only had to give one of the tellers who even informed Harry that Cho would now be classed as an approved recipient on his account and that he would be able to simply owl in future payments, or send his house elf. Harry smiled, that would make his life easier in the future and he wondered if there were other services that he could get that way.
On his way back Harry stopped in at the apothecary and picked up some supplies paying what felt like an eye watering amount for things. He was grateful that the listed price wasn't per unit, he got 16 lionfish spines for his 3 galleons, but it still felt like a big expenditure and he wondered how hard it might be to breed his own. It was getting late by the time he got back however, too late to think about brewing anything that day, so Harry opted to do a bit of studying instead, until it was time to turn in.
He woke up wonderfully refreshed again the next morning and was actually looking forward to his packed day with relish. It was strange to him, to actually have things planned that didn't involve washing Uncle Vernon's dirty socks and making sure the laundry was ironed to perfection. He took his time over breakfast and spent a leisurely couple of hours in his study reading up on various potion ingredients. Snape had mentioned that he could have used less flobberworm mucus to make his potion less thick implying it was a thickening ingredient, like cornflour, and Harry was a little curious if he could find reference to the purpose of the other ingredients. He couldn't, much to his frustration, at least not in the few books Mimby had made safe for him to peruse. It was something that was bugging him now that he had thought about it, to the extent that he actually wrote to Professor Snape asking if he could let him know of any specific titles that might help him. He could have asked Snape for the answers but he seemed the sort of person who thought that you should work things out for yourself instead of being hand fed the knowledge which is why Harry hoped that asking for a book title would put him in better stead.
With that done he gave himself a good wash and shave, knowing that he may not have vast amounts of time later, and set out his clothes and things for when he got back that night. It was only 11 when he flooed to the Burrow for the second time and he hoped that Mrs Weasley wouldn't mind him arriving early; he figured he could always spend some time with Ron while they waited. He didn't have to worry though as he was apparently the last to arrive.
"Ah, there you are Harry, I was beginning to wonder that you weren't coming!" Mrs Weasley gushed as Harry tumbled through the floo. "Well now we're all here I can start getting the food on the table."
"Am I late?" Harry whispered to Ron as the other man came up to greet him.
"Nah, we just like to get here early," Ron explained. "She always makes a fuss over the last one to arrive even if they're here at 9."
"You could have warned me," Harry grouced.
"Don't worry, it wouldn't have made any difference, she'd have fussed over you regardless," joked a redheaded young man who looked a little older than Ron. "I'm Fred by the way, the better looking of Ron's twin brothers."
"You wish," his twin chuckled. "I'm George and I'm clearly the better looking one. I am the one with a girlfriend."
"That's because only one woman will settle for you," Fred smirked. "I have far too many admirers to choose from."
"It's nice to meet you," Harry smiled. "I didn't realise Ron had such fun brothers."
"Oh we're the only fun ones, the others are all absolutely boring, especially Percy," Fred said, practically spitting the name.
"Fred!" a young, redheaded woman hissed. "We promised not to mention his name today."
Harry looked at Ron. "Is this something I need to know?"
Ron just shook his head. "No, Percy just got a new promotion so can't make it today even though we made a promise to always keep Sundays aside for mum."
"She says she's fine with it but you can tell she's upset which is why we're trying to steer clear of the subject," Fred explained.
Harry nodded. "Got it, any other subjects I need to avoid?"
"Not likely," a young black woman chuckled and Harry felt his eyebrows raise as she linked arms with George. She looked at Harry a little worriedly. "Is everything alright?"
"Yes, sorry," Harry stammered. "Please don't take this the wrong way but I've never seen a mixed race couple before. Black people and white people just don't mix in America."
"Don't worry Harry, it's not all that common in muggle British either," Hermione admitted, "although we don't have segregation to the degree America does, or rather we don't advertise it. You'll still see a marked lack of interaction between communities though. That's not the case in the wizarding world but I'll admit I did have a similar reaction to you when I saw it at school."
"It just seems weird to me," Ron frowned. "I mean what difference does the colour of a person's skin make? We're all still human right?"
"Oh people come up with all sorts of justifications," Harry chuckled. "This coming from someone who grew up in a country where people fought a war over the right to keep slaves."
"Lunch is ready!" Mrs Weasley announced.
"Don't worry, I didn't take offence," the black woman said as they began to move to the kitchen. "I'm Angelina by the way, Angelina Johnson."
"Harry Potter, call me Harry."
"So long as you offer me the same courtesy," Angelina smiled.
"I didn't know you wanted to be called Harry Angelina, you should have said!" Fred exclaimed and Angelina rolled her eyes.
"I suppose that is going to be the joke of the day," she muttered.
"You have to admit you walked into that one," the redheaded woman laughed. "I'm Ginny by the way, Ron's sister."
"It's nice to meet you," Harry said, smiling as she indicated for him to sit next to her. Ron sat next to him with Hermione on his other side. Fred, George and Angelina were sitting on the opposite side, in that order, and Harry couldn't help noticing that there were two empty places. One, he assumed, was for Ron's father which suggested that the other was for the erstwhile Percy.
"We tried to change it to a round table so it wouldn't be so obvious but mum turned it back," Ginny whispered. "She is adamant that he will turn up when he gets hungry even though he already told dad several times that he wouldn't be here."
"Stop gossiping Ginny, it's unbecoming," Molly hissed.
"You say that Mrs Weasley but the reality is that gossip is the primary trade of the society set," Hermione remarked. "If Ginny has a season in the new year she will soon find that out."
"There is a difference between gossiping and sharing information," Mrs Weasley rebuked.
"If there is, I've rarely seen the difference," Hermione muttered.
"How are the preparations for Ginny's season coming?" Angelina asked, after a slight nudge from George.
"Oh quite well," Mrs Weasley beamed. "I found a lovely dress the other day, it's a little threadbare in places but nothing that a good mending charm can't fix, and I was looking in the loft and found a couple of dresses I wore for my season that are still in excellent condition, they just need a little altering."
"Didn't those used to have crinoline in!" Ginny exclaimed, pulling a face. "I need something more fashionable than that if I'm going to be going to parties mum!"
"And you will," Mrs Weasley assured her, "but we need to have some back up garments just in case. There are a lot of events on the calendar after all and that's not even including the parties."
"But I still need to be fashionable to some degree," Ginny huffed. "You agree, right Harry?"
"Oh I don't know anything about this sort of thing I'm afraid," Harry said, holding his hands up.
"You could have fooled me in that suit," Angelina smirked.
"I just chose it from a selection Cho gave me," Harry admitted.
"You knew enough to go to Cho in the first place," Ginny smiled. "That's more than any of this lot." Angelina let out an offended exclamation. "With the exception of Angelina of course."
"Good afternoon," an older redheaded man said, walking through the door. "What's everyone talking about then?"
"They're discussing fashion," Hermione said, rolling her eyes.
The man's face fell. "Oh dear, I don't know how much more of that I can take. I'm suddenly understanding why the Weasleys never wanted any girls in the past. It's all a lot of fuss, not to mention very expensive
I hope you all only have boys." He sat down, ignoring his wife's exclamation of "Arthur!" Looking up, he noticed Harry for the first time. "Hello, who are you then?"
"This is Ron's friend Harry Potter," Mrs Weasley announced, saving Harry from having to introduce himself again and making Harry smile as he realised even Ron's family considered them friends.
"Mr Potter eh," Mr Weasley grinned and stretched his hand across the table. "Arthur Weasley. It's nice to meet you son."
"Nice to meet you too sir. Thank you for inviting me into your home."
"Oh that's all Molly, nothing to do with me," Mr Weasley chuckled. "I leave everything to do with entertaining to her but we're nearly always happy to have guests round."
"Precisely," Mrs Weasley agreed. "Now eat up everyone, there's plenty there."
There really was and Harry briefly wondered how they were going to possibly eat it all. It really was only a brief thought however as the men around the table started piling their plates so high Harry was slightly surprised that they didn't topple over. He had to admit that he was a little shocked but he seemed to be the only one, with everyone else acting as if this behaviour was perfectly normal. The only one who seemed even mildly perturbed was Hermione and all she did was roll her eyes a bit at her fiancé.
"Have a bit more dear," Mrs Weasley said, noticing Harry's comparatively empty plate and adding some more food. "There's no need to stand on ceremony here and there's plenty to go around."
"I'm not so sure about that," Fred grinned between mouthfuls.
"Thank you Mrs Weasley but I've never been that big an eater and I wouldn't want to risk wasting anything," Harry insisted, or at least tried to, but Mrs Weasley seemed to take any notice.
"By the way, I was thinking we could do some flying after dinner," Ron suggested. "We can go all evening unless you've got any plans."
"Oh, actually I kind of do," Harry said, suddenly feeling a little guilty.
"Oh, what are they?" Hermione asked, sounding genuinely surprised and Harry wasn't entirely sure how to take that.
"Cho has invited me to a pre-hunting party," Harry informed her and was subject to numerous "oohs".
"I didn't realise you were close enough with Cho to get invited to parties," Ginny said, a slight frown on her face.
"I'm not really," Harry admitted. "I only met her the other day but I mentioned that I hadn't been to a party and she got me an invite to one a friend of hers is having."
"I've never been to one of those parties," Ron huffed. "Do you think I could get an invite as well?" The twins snickered.
"I don't know why you want to?" Hermione huffed. "I think it's awful that people make sport out of killing innocent animals."
"You have to kill animals for food though, why not make a sport out of it?" Ron queried.
"It's cruel," Hermione snapped. "You're making light of a poor animal's death."
"It's still just killing an animal," Ron argued. "No different from the chicken you're eating now. Mum killed it with her bare hands just yesterday." Hermione seemed to go a little green and surreptitiously pushed the meat that she had previously been enjoying to the side of her plate.
"Enjoy the taste but don't like to think where it came from," Fred jibed.
"I was considering becoming a vegetarian," Hermione announced.
"Not in this house," Mrs Weasley huffed. "You can eat the same as everyone else and I don't want you starving my Ron when you're married."
Hermione gaped at the woman.
"I'm not sure that Hermione will necessarily be the one to be doing the cooking," Angelina pointed out. "Hermione will probably be too busy with her career."
"At least that's a good excuse for them not getting married yet but I don't know why you two are dragging your feet," Mrs Weasley huffed. "When your father and I were your age we were already married and had Bill by your age."
"I know mum but we want to make sure the business is in a sound position before we consider getting married and starting a family," George reasoned.
"Well at least you have someone," Mrs Weasley sighed. "Although I still say that you wouldn't have to worry about all that if you'd taken a good Ministry job."
"I don't know, I'm actually very proud of George for taking a leap and following his dreams," Angelina smiled and George beamed at her.
"And I've yet to find a woman who can keep up with me," Fred grinned.
"Put up with you more like," George joked and the whole table laughed, including Harry.
"It's always like this around here," Ginny whispered to him.
"That's good to know," Harry smiled, and he genuinely meant it. He had never known a more happy bunch of people. It was a stark contrast, in his mind, to the silent dinners at the Dursleys house. This is what he thought families should be like.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The Fashionable Set
Lunch was an enjoyable affair full of laughs and good food as well as Molly's well meaning fussing. Ginny kept smiling at him and Harry wasn't entirely sure why but he returned them anyway. By the time the remains of the food was cleared away Harry was fit to burst and he had no idea how the others were able to jump up from the table so quickly and suggest quidditch. He had tried to hold back a bit but Mrs Weasley had kept adding more to his plate and Harry had long learned not to waste food. Ron was determined to teach Harry to fly before he had to set off again though so Harry reluctantly peeled himself out of his chair to join them outside.
He was glad he did though. Ron was delighted at how little effort it took to get Harry up in the air and Harry buzzed when the twins called him a natural flier. Harry soon found himself whizzing through the air, pulling off stunts that he had never considered before just because it was so fun to be up in the air. Even Angelina was grumbling at that point, complaining that they could have used someone like him on the quidditch team in the early years. Apparently Ginny had become the seeker, whatever that was, in later years but it had taken her a while to pluck up the courage to try out for the team. That, along with other things apparently meant that Ginny had only been playing since her fourth year, about the same time that Ron started. Harry didn't really understand all their talk about beaters and quaffles even though they tried to explain and Hermione ended up recommending a book called Quidditch Through The Ages that apparently helped her a lot. Harry thanked her and planned to pick a copy up as soon as he could, along with a broom of his own. It wouldn't take him too long to cover 45 miles on a broom and he definitely preferred the thought of flying to go see Ron as opposed to using the floo.
There was a call to tea in the mid afternoon with Ron somehow complaining that he was ravenous, although Harry didn't know how. He was still very full from the big lunch and made sure to keep a bit of pork pie in his hand at all times so nobody tried to give him more than he could handle. He did a bit more flying afterwards but Hermione, who remained on the ground the whole time, informed him that it was 6 o'clock. Normally Harry would have protested against the thought of getting ready so early but he realised he had built up quite a sweat while flying, not to mention the dirt from the few tumbles he had when he hadn't quite managed to pull out of a dive in time. As it was, Harry realised that he would definitely need another bath before he went out. He was just glad that his hair didn't grow that quickly and he wouldn't need another shave. It was such a pain and he was glad he wasn't one of those people who started to develop a shadow of stubble before evening.
Mimby had a bath ready for him when he returned, filled with a lovely scent. She claimed it was a mixture of bergamot and lavender, herbs that were growing in abundance in the garden, and Harry found it both relaxing and invigorating. When he came out she was waiting with a jar of pomade that she insisted on using to tame his hair. It was apparently an invention of his grandfather's specifically designed to combat the Potter's famously unruly hair. Harry hadn't realised that it was a family trait and it almost made him happy for what he had previously considered a bane, especially now that he was actually able to get it to lie flat. His hair had got him in a lot of trouble in the muggle world where it had been considered unsightly, regardless of how much Harry had explained that it wouldn't lie flat, and Harry would have hated to have made an equally bad impression in the wizarding world.
He still felt very weird when he was fully dressed, feeling like he looked strangely bright for a dinner party. The shoes didn't help. They were comfortable enough but every time he looked down he could see the little bows pointing out, matt against the sheen of the rest of the shoe, and he couldn't help feeling that it wasn't really him. Cho had gone to the trouble of getting them for him though and the Weasleys had agreed that she was at the forefront of fashion, something that Harry could never claim to be himself, so he decided to simply defer to her judgment.
It was only as he walked to the floo that Harry realised just how nervous he was but it was too late to back out now. That was one thing he remembered from his time with the Dursleys. Aunt Petunia had held a party and somebody had had the audacity to beg off the morning of due to having developed a cold and she ranted about it for days. She only stopped when the 'cold' had turned out to be pneumonia and the person had passed away 2 days after the party at which point all was forgiven. It transpired that the only excuse for giving less than 24 hours notice of absence to an event was being on the point of death.
Harry rolled through the floo of Marietta's residence and silently breathed a sigh of relief as Cho greeted him warmly.
"There you are Harry, perfect timing. Just the right side of fashionably late," she beamed while lifting her wand and cleaning the soot off of Harry's suit. "That suit looks even better on you than I expected."
"Thank you," Harry sighed, referring to the compliment and the help cleaning him up.
"You're welcome," Cho grinned. "Now come with me, everyone is dying to meet you."
"So this is the famous Harry Potter. Michael Corner, nice to meet you," the boy smiled. "We would have been in the same year as each other at Hogwarts."
"Mike here has got a job working as a junior mixer at Madame Pimpernelle's," Cho said. "We're all hoping he can learn some of her secret recipes while we make the most of his staff discount."
"I'm hoping to be able to expand on what I learn and then set up a business of my own," Michael added. "Hogwarts doesn't teach you much by way of the beauty industry but there's a huge market for it just waiting to be capitalised on."
"It's what we all try to do, find gaps in the market that we can exploit. I'm Anthony Goldstien and I have to say I love your accent. I have family in the states although they're more New York way."
"That's a long way from Pittsburgh," Harry laughed. "I had to travel to New York to catch the boat and it took me nearly a whole day."
"Still, I wonder if you've got the American entrepreneurial spirit," Antony wondered. "That's what they're always accusing me of anyway."
"What do you mean?" Harry queried.
"Oh it's just the British wizarding society," Anthony explained. "They like to think they're progressive but you come in and find that all the upper echelons are full of purebloods, no offence Diggory."
"None taken, Tony," a handsome young man replied, presumably called Diggory.
"Diggory here is the one pureblood heir amongst us, other than you now."
"I'm mostly here because I agree with them," Diggory laughed.
"In what way?" Harry asked.
"Just that society deals a poor hand to those who are blessed to be first in line of a family," a slim, blond haired boy said. "The main line and subsequent heirs get the name, the prestige, the lands. Anyone else gets dregs at that. I mean my family is descended from Helga Hufflepuff for Merlin's sake but because I'm from a branch several generations back nobody cares."
Harry looked at him blankly. "Who's Helga Hufflepuff?" The blond boy blinked at Harry owlishly while the rest of the party burst into raucous laughter.
"That showed you Smith," another boy laughed.
"Oh shut it Boot," the blond boy, Smith, hissed, turning bright red.
"Don't mind Harry Zac, he just doesn't know about Hogwarts because he grew up in muggle America," Cho said, soothing the way. "By the way Harry, have a drink."
"What is it?" Harry asked, looking at the glass skeptically. He knew a champagne saucer when he saw one, he'd had to wash them at the Dursleys often enough, and he assumed that the fizzy liquid inside was champagne, but he wasn't sure what the bright pink sparkly stuff in it was.
"It's a cocktail we invented called Joy," Cho smiled. "It's just Gigglewater that Marietta's father imports from America and a little sprinkle of a product called Happiness that we get from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. It's advertised as happiness in a bottle and adds a lovely pink sparkle to the drink don't you think."
"It's all the rage on the scene," a blonde haired girl giggled as she walked past, "and from what you're wearing you're definitely part of it."
"Oh this is just what Cho chose for me," Harry corrected. "I know nothing about fashion."
"You know enough to listen to me," Cho laughed, clinking Harry's glass to encourage him to drink.
"I see you've found someone new to act as a model as you still can't persuade Cedric to ditch his boring tux," a dark haired girl of asian descent simpered. She wore a bright, gold coloured dress but Harry wasn't able to notice much more as he was distracted by her large chest.
"There is nothing wrong with a classic suit Sue, as our dear Minister of Magic shows us every season," Cho replied although Harry noticed her smile was tight and didn't really reach her eyes. The other girl, Sue, smiled serenely then moved to talk to someone else. "Ignore her," Cho whispered to Harry when she was out of ear shot. "She is only really invited to these things as she is the Minister of Magic's current mistress. If he finds someone new next season she'll be dropped from the set quicker than you can blink, unless she finds herself a new beau. I assume that's why her chest has increased again."
"What do you mean?" Harry asked.
"Oh her breasts aren't naturally that big," Cho tittered, laying a hand gently on Harry's arm. It felt nice and Harry found himself warming to Cho. It also felt a bit awkward so he found himself taking another sip in the hopes of hiding his blush. Cho seemed oblivious however and continued to gossip. "No, Sue used to be as flat chested as they come but, clever thing that she is, she realised that she could dilute swelling solution down and just apply it intermittently so it looked like she was developing naturally and just a late bloomer. I only realised when because I was making clothes for her and the bust measurement kept getting bigger despite the fact that she is past puberty. Mum's the word though. You may not realise it but it's seen as a huge faux pas to use potions for any major modifications to your looks in the magical world. Remove a wart, fine; change your hair colour, no problem, but actually use a beautifying potion, uh-uh. Those are reserved for hags in our society and, if you take one, its assumed that you must have looked like one to begin with, or worse, have hag blood in you and nobody wants that in their line."
"You don't need a beauty potion though, you're pretty enough already," Harry said.
Cho gave Harry a bright smile. "Aren't you sweet!" She put her hand on Harry's arm again only this time she gave a little squeeze and Harry downed the rest of his drink as he felt his cheeks flame. Cho really was so pretty and so nice.
Noticing that Harry had already finished his drink she handed him another. "See, I knew you would enjoy it. Now, I'm afraid I have to go mingle with everyone else, I need to keep them sweet if I want to keep their business after all. Don't be a wallflower yourself though, go and say hello. Everyone here is lovely."
Harry nodded as Cho waved goodbye and he took another sip to fortify himself. Cho was right though, everyone here did seem nice, it would be a shame to do nothing. He was just looking around to see which group of people seemed like the least scary, no, easiest to approach when the dinner gong rang and they all made their way into the dining room. Harry found himself between an Indian girl called Parvati Patil and the giggling blonde girl from earlier who's name was apparently Lavender Brown. Both girls smiled at him warmly and Harry felt an instant liking for them. Once everyone was sitting, a different blonde haired young woman at the head of the table stood up.
"Thank you all for coming to my little soirée. Let us toast to the end of summer as we finish the delicacies of the harvest and look forward to a successful hunt."
"To a successful hunt," the group toasted and Harry found himself having another drink of the cocktail that he was finding increasingly enjoyable.
Dinner was a true wonder. It started with some grey stuff apparently called caviar that had to be eaten with a special shell spoon. Harry had been bemused at first but Parvati and Lavender had quickly stepped in, breezing through instructions with such ease that Harry didn't have a chance to get embarrassed, especially when Diggory admitted that he had been confused by all the cutlery at first as well. After the hors d'oeuvres, as Harry discovered they were called, a soup was called out, oxtail he was informed, and everyone's cocktails were topped up. There were also olives and anchovies available on the table and Harry wondered if he should have held back more at lunch.
"My friend Ron would love this," Harry chuckled. "Apparently he's never been to a dinner party like this either."
"There are reasons for that," Parvati chuckled.
"Admittedly his manners aren't as bad as some people who attend these things," Lavender huffed and Harry found himself warming to the girl more for defending his friend, for a split second anyway.
"You're only saying that because you used to date him," Sue Li said in a somewhat condescending tone. "I sometimes wonder how quickly you would take him back if he dumped Granger."
"I'm over Ron," Lavender insisted. "Just because I found most of the men last season bores doesn't mean that I'm not."
"They were a bad batch," Parvati admitted. "I'm hoping the good ones were all hiding somewhere."
"Do we not count as good?" Anthony exclaimed with a smile.
"Not in the slightest Tony," Parvati laughed.
"If it's not his manners then may I ask why Ron doesn't get invited?" Harry queried.
"It's not anything Weasley did but his grandparents," another young man replied. "Cedrella Black was due to marry Tristan Weasley but days before they were due to wed she eloped with his younger brother Septimus and gave birth to Arthur a week later."
"I think it's romantic," Lavender sighed. "Apparently they fell in love during her meetings with Tristan and she decided she couldn't be married to one brother when her heart belonged to another."
"That may be Brown," the other boy huffed. "The problem for the couple was that Tristan was a beloved member of wizarding society and the scandal caused him to quit magical Britain."
"Rumour was he was madly in love with Cedrella as well," Cho added.
"Be that as it may," Smith ground out, "when the scandal happened the wizarding world lost a beloved member of society and Tristan which ruffled a lot of feathers but Tristan also has no heir himself so, as it stands, Mr Arthur Weasley is set to inherit everything and that really doesn't sit well with some."
"So Ron is getting punished for his grandmother's apparent mistakes?" Harry asked incredulously.
"Wizards have long lives meaning mistakes can cast long shadows," Michael said.
"It still seems unfair if you ask me," Harry huffed.
"Little in this world is fair," Sue Li chuckled.
"That I know," Harry admitted. "I just hope this doesn't affect Ginny's season. She seems to be looking forward to it."
"The first born female Weasley?" the blonde at the top of the table exclaimed. "There will be plenty of attention on her for sure. Whether she'll enjoy it or not will have to be seen however."
The conversation seemed to come to an end as the entrée came out, little warm, cream filled pastries, apparently called vol-au-vents, with a strange assortment of mushrooms. They were delicious and surprisingly moreish and Harry almost wished there were more. He didn't have long to mourn however, as a dish of poached salmon and boiled potatoes with a parsley sauce. It was very light in comparison to the rich vol-au-vents, almost a palette cleanser, especially when paired with the white wine that Lavender said was a Chablis. After that there was roast beef with green beans, teamed with a red wine that Harry missed the name of. He had never tried red wine before and it gave him quite a heady feeling so he made sure to sip it. He continued sipping it still as a vegetable dish, apparently artichoke and peppers, was brought before him.
A cold pie came out after that, rabbit Harry believed, served with a slightly different red wine, although Harry only noticed that because they brought in different glasses. Harry tried to hold off on the wine and was glad he did when the next dish, the entremets, came out: something called a cheese soufflés. There was a small glass of something with it called Port and Harry mistakenly downed quite a bit of it, not realising that a smaller glass often denoted a stronger beverage until it was too late. Finally there was some dessert, raspberry tarts, teamed with the cocktail again for which Harry was glad, not only because it marked the end to all the food that was now sitting quite heavily in his stomach, but also to get away from the heavier tasting alcohol. The cocktail was much lighter in comparison and it gave Harry a warm, tingly feeling when he did. Harry looked over at Cho and smiled in thanks. He was thoroughly enjoying himself and he was grateful that Cho had invited him. They seemed like a wonderful group of people, Harry felt a strong bond with them already, and he looked forward to spending more time with them. Cho returned Harry's smile and raised her glass to him, prompting Harry to take another drink. Yes, it was definitely shaping up to be a wonderful night.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Rash Decisions
After dinner had been music and dancing as well as a parade of people called "models" who were apparently showing off various fashions that Cho had come up with. The clothes were too bright in Harry's opinion and the clashing colours were actually making him feel a little ill, although the high quantity of alcohol he'd imbibed certainly didn't help either. Feeling a little light headed he asked if there was somewhere he could go where he could get some fresh air. Cho initially volunteered to take Harry but Diggory said he needed some air as well so said he would take Harry and led him out onto the balcony. Harry wasn't sure if the fresh air was better for him or not as he felt his head begin to swim as soon as he stepped onto the terrace and he had to wobble to one of the balustrades for support.
"You know, people have said I should watch out for you," Diggory said. Harry whipped around at the sound of the voice, surprised as he'd briefly forgotten that he wasn't alone. The sudden movement wasn't a good idea however as Harry's head felt like it continued to spin even after his body stopped and he had to grab a hold of the balustrade to steady himself.
"What do you mean?" he gasped, taking a deep breath to try to steady his stomach.
"You and Cho," Diggory stated. "You like her."
"Of course," Harry frowned. "She's a wonderful person and has been so kind to me."
Diggory chuckled. "No, I mean you're attracted to her."
Harry's frown deepened. "I think she's very pretty and has a nice smile."
Diggory sighed. "Look, I know that things round here are a bit free and easy but, all the same, it would be awfully nice if I didn't have to worry about you making a play for her as well. I already have Corner to worry about. She says there's nothing to worry about, she's just keeping him sweet for the potions, which is why I don't say anything but a man's bound to worry, especially when she says that she doesn't want to put labels on us."
"You're courting Cho!" Harry exclaimed.
"So she didn't say anything," Diggory muttered. "Of course she didn't. It's funny really, when I left school as the TriWizard champion she was all for telling people we were an item but now that her names topping the bill, so to speak, all of a sudden she's calling me her 'Beau', claiming the other words are too passe. My only worry is that people don't understand what Beau means."
"Well I do now and don't worry I wouldn't, I mean people don't right?"
Diggory laughed mirthlessly. "Oh they really do. It's not talked about, that is generally considered uncouth, although the papers do get wind of things from time to time. Still it's nice to think that I won't have to worry about you making advances on my girl. You're a good kid Harry." Diggory walked over and clapped a hand on Harry's shoulder. He flashed Harry a winning smile and Harry felt his heart beat falter slightly. Diggory really was unfairly handsome and Harry could well understand why Cho wanted to be with him. Harry felt an immediate affection for the man and was glad when Diggory didn't move his hand from Harry's shoulder. "You know Harry, I admire you. No matter how much Cho asked, I never had the balls to wear something as daring as that."
"I don't think I would have either if I had another option," Harry laughed, "although I do find it very difficult to say no to her."
"There is definitely something about her," Diggory chuckled.
"It's her smile I think," Harry sighed. "It's so nice and I don't want to be the reason for it to disappear."
Diggory's smile softened a bit and somehow became even better. "You really are a good egg, you know that Potter. I look forward to being able to class you as a friend."
Harry smiled. "Only if you call me Harry."
"Cedric," the other man agreed and Harry felt a warmth bloom in his chest as their eyes met.
"And here I thought it was you who had to worry about me and Harry," Cho said, coming out onto the terrace. Cedric balked and dropped his hand from Harry's shoulder as if it had been burned.
"It was nothing like that, Cho, honest," he insisted. "You know I've never been interested in that."
"Shame," Cho sighed. "I think the pair of you would look quite delicious together."
"What!" Cedric exclaimed, his eyes bugging out of his head. Harry just looked between them blinkinly, completely unsure of what they were talking about.
Cho just smiled. "You heard me darling. I think it would be absolutely thrilling to watch you and Harry kiss. I know you said it is not something you would ever consider but you looked like you and Harry were having a moment here. Why not take it that step further, after all how will you know you don't like it if you never try?"
Harry and Cedric both stared at Cho flabbergasted but the young woman didn't seem deterred as she continued to saunter towards them, sliding a hand up Cedric's arm when she got in reaching distance.
"Please, Cedric. Just one kiss, for me."
"You're assuming that Harry wouldn't object," Cedric pointed out. Unfortunately for him, if he was looking for an out this was likely the wrong thing to say as Cho turned her best smile on Harry, caressing his upper arm as she did.
"You're willing to try aren't you Harry?"
"Is this another one of those things that happens sometimes but no one talks about?" Harry queried. "It's like that in the muggle world. Technically it's illegal but it still happens, at least my uncle used to make out that it did."
Cho let out a tinkling laugh. "Oh it's not illegal here at all. It's even possible for same sex couples to marry, or for people to have multiple partners. Monogamy became a thing to fit in with the muggles and is now the norm but it wasn't always that way. It's why no one really bats an eye at people taking lovers."
Cedric scowled at this comment and Harry felt a pang of sympathy for the man. He put a reassuring hand on Cedric's arm, unconsciously mirroring Cho's actions on him.
"I'm game to try if you are. I've never kissed anyone before so it's completely new for me too."
There was a bit of a hard glint in Cedric's eyes as he nodded his head and leaned forward, lifting the arm that Cho had been caressing to cup Harry's jaw, holding Harry's head steady as he gently pressed their lips together. Harry sighed as he felt his whole body leaning into the sensation; a tingle ran through his whole being and he found himself gripping Cedric's arm more tightly. Cedric pulled back and Harry found himself chasing the other man a bit, wanting more of that wonderful sensation.
"I think Harry enjoyed that a lot," Cho laughed and Harry nodded without thinking about it which made Cho smile. "Well if you said you've never kissed anyone before, I wonder how kissing me will compare." She didn't give Harry much time to think, quickly swooping in and pressing a firm kiss against her lips, a stark contrast to the softness of her lips. It was the hand that had wound its way into Harry's hair, giving a slight tug that made him moan though. Cho pulled back looking quite satisfied. Cedric definitely didn't though and he pulled Cho in for a deep hard kiss that had Cho moaning into his mouth. Harry could almost understand what Cho was saying before, watching the two of them kiss did send a thrill through him although a part of Harry wondered if he could get Cedric to give him a kiss like that.
"For the record Harry, that is how you kiss someone properly," Cho said, panting slightly. There was a bit of a glassy look in her eyes as she eyed Cedric. Harry wondered if he was going to become a third wheel to things when Cho suddenly looked back at him. "Should I show you?"
"I'll show him," Cedric stated and again Harry didn't have time to properly process what was going on when Cedric suddenly kissed him hard, pressing in so Harry was forced to lean back slightly. Harry didn't mind, it was the perfect excuse to cling to the other man, even as Cedric's own arms wrapped around him.
"Open your mouth a bit," Cedric whispered against his lips and Harry complied, letting out a shocked moan as he felt Cedric's tongue slip inside. It was strange to think about but actually felt wonderful and Harry slid his own tongue into Cedric's mouth, hoping it felt just as good for him.
Harry was panting for breath when Cedric righted him and his pants felt awkwardly tight. Harry blushed in embarrassment at his predicament but Cho just smiled.
"I think it's time we moved this somewhere a little more comfortable," she suggested.
Cedric frowned. "Must we?"
"Well it would be rude to leave Harry in his current predicament, especially as I was the one who invited him to this party," Cho reasoned. "Plus I don't think you were as adverse to all that as you're trying to make out." She stretched out a hand to cup Cedric's crotch and Harry was slightly scandalised, as well as intrigued, but also happy to note that there was indeed a slight bulge there. It wasn't anywhere near as bad as Harry's but it was definitely something.
"Let me put it this way darling. I'm going to go help Harry out with his little problem, whilst making what I assume is his first time memorable, and you can either join us or go back to everyone else."
Cho grabbed Harry's hand and started pulling him back to the house and Harry turned back to look at Cedric feeling a little helpless. He had just been saying he wouldn't do this yet here he was going along with Cho purely because he didn't know how to say no to her. Something of Harry's plight must have shown in his face as Cedric's own face softened.
"Do you mind having your first time with a man and a woman be on the same night Harry?" Cedric asked, looking at Harry seriously.
"I have no objections," Harry said. He honestly didn't know if he would be able to find the words anyway. It didn't help that his head was still spinning a bit but there was this lovely warm feeling inside him as well, like he had a connection with these people, so surely that meant that this was a good thing right? Cedric just nodded his head and began following them and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He wouldn't be going back on his word if Cedric was there as well.
Cho led them to a bedroom, pulling out her wand to light the lamps and fire, leaving no shadow in which to hide and making Harry suddenly feel quite exposed despite still wearing all his clothes. That didn't last long however as Cho began sliding his jacket off his shoulders.
"I'll help Harry undress," Cedric announced. "Why don't you worry about your own clothes." He had waved his wand and undone the buttons at the back of Cho's dress causing the girl to smile as she slid it off her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. Harry was a little shocked to see a woman in her undergarments but he didn't have time to look long as Cedric pulled him into another hard kiss, undoing the buttons on his waistcoat as he did. Harry was almost amazed at the man's dexterity and attempted to do the same back. He had seen himself naked before but he couldn't help wondering how Cedric would stack up in comparison.
It was a bit of a mess, with Harry and Cedric's fingers frequently colliding and brushing as they tried to divest each other of their clothes. Harry actually found himself giggling and smiling into the kiss and he was pleased to feel Cedric do the same. Eventually they were down to their pants and Harry was a little upset when Cedric pulled back. His mind was distracted by the sight of Cho in just a corset and the woman breezily inserted herself between them as she asked Cedric for a hand. Cedric growled low in his throat and began kissing Cho's neck as his fingers fumbled with the laces at the back. Cho moaned even as she held Harry's eyes, smiling as she brought Harry's hands up to cup her breasts. Cedric let out an audible growl again and seemed to actually bite down on Cho's neck although, if he did, it shockingly made her gasp.
That made Harry think. This might be his first time but he wanted these people to feel as good as they were making him feel. The breast in his hands felt strange, all wobbly, almost like a gelatin dessert but firmer. As he moved them around he felt the hard nubs of Cho's nipples and brushed them. Cho sighed and Harry took that as a sign, rolling them between his fingers and pulling them. Cho moaned and figured he was doing something right and he continued until Cedric had finished loosening the ties on the corset and slipped it off Cho's shoulders. Flashing Harry a coy smile Cho slinked backwards, lying down on the bed and pulling Harry between her spread thighs. She pulled one of Harry's hands to cup one of her breasts while she slid the other to press into her folds. They were hot and slick and Harry felt a little strange as his fingers slipped into her hole but Cho moaned so he figured he must be doing something right.
After Cho had helped Harry find a rhythm she liked with his fingers she scooped up some of her slick on her own fingers and slid them behind Harry's back to start brushing at his anus. It felt strange but not unpleasant and Harry was too buzzed to feel awkward at this point.
"Don't just stand there Cedric, join in," Cho cooed and Harry felt Cedric's hard body press against his back as another set of fingers joined Cho's at his anus and Harry felt his cock jolt and he moaned. Cho continued to use her own slick to help stretch Harry's hole as he continued to play with her own. The fingers inside him were immensely distracting, especially when they brushed against a certain place deep inside, and he found his own rhythm faltering, much to Cho's consternation.
"Surely Harry must be ready now," Cho whined.
"It might be a bit tight still. Are you sure you want this Harry?"
"Yes," Harry gasped. If he were honest with himself he wasn't entirely sure what 'it' was but he had come this far and he didn't want to seem like he was chickening out now plus there were parts of this that felt really good. It was why Harry moaned when the fingers in his backside were removed although he didn't mind as much when Cho pulled his hand away from her. He gasped when she grasped hold of his cock and then used her legs to pull Harry closer, guiding him inside her. The heat felt nice around his cock as he easily slid in, although he thought that it was almost too slick, almost sloppy. He was distracted from that thought, however, when Cedric placed a hand in the centre of his back and pushed him forward as well as deeper into Cho. He felt a pressure at his own hole and winced he felt Cedric pushing into him. He cried out in pain as his internal muscles were forcibly stretched and Cho shushed him, peppering his face with kisses.
"Do you want me to stop Harry?" Cedric grunted, pausing in his progress and Harry keened.
"No, don't stop, please!" Harry begged. Stopping was worse. The pressure of Cedric pushing forward felt strange, both painful and good at the same time. Stopping the movement only highlighted the pain and Harry didn't want this to stop. Cedric complied and felt his pelvis pressing against his ass. The whole thing had not been the highlight of his life and Harry noticed that his cock had softened slightly, much to Cho's consternation and she had started using her own fingers to play with her folds. Harry shifted his weight a bit to join her, feeling bad that she wasn't enjoying things as much because of him and thinking she would probably be having more fun if it was just her and Cedric.
Harry, on the other hand, didn't have any complaints, at least not when Cedric moved. Something must have changed when he shifted his position as, when Cedric pressed into him now, it hit that place inside that had Harry crying out. It also caused his cock to harden again and Cho moaned.
"Yes! More! Harder!"
Harry wasn't sure if she was talking to him or Cedric, especially as her eyes were closed and her head was thrown back. Cedric seemed to take it as a command for him however and Harry soon found himself basically holding on for the ride as Cedric pounded into him with abandon, forcing Harry's own hips to thrust in and out of Cho. Harry wasn't complaining though, it felt glorious and he shifted his hips a bit again to make sure that Cedric kept hitting that special spot inside him. Cho continued to make garbled, pleased sounds but her eyes were now open and she seemed to be looking over Harry's shoulder, likely at Cedric, not that Harry could blame her. Harry tried to change his position again so that he could try to play with Cho a bit, not wanting her to feel left out, but when he tried to move it also moved Cedric's alignment inside him and Harry soon found himself shifting back, chasing the delicious pleasure that coursed through him with every hit of that spot.
It was truly wonderful, better than anything that Harry had ever felt before and Harry soon found his climax suddenly rushing over. He had never had an orgasm so immense, his entire body seemed to spasm causing Cedric to call out as well with a mix of surprise and pleasure. Cho seemed to have scooted back a bit as soon as Harry started shooting his load, meaning most of it ended on the bed, directly beneath where Harry collapsed. Cedric pulled out of Harry's hole quite quickly, causing Harry to gasp, and he turned around to see if there was an issue. There didn't seem to be, at least not one that was obvious to Harry anyway. Cedric simply hadn't finished and, with Harry out of the game, had moved to begin thrusting into Cho instead, much to Cho's apparent delight. The two of them seemed to be in a little world of their own almost so Harry shifted out of the way, moving to the top of the bed, slipping under the covers to try to counter his rapidly cooling skin. He watched the other pair for a bit. There was a grace in Cedric's movements that really made him a sight to behold and Harry could well understand why Cho was enjoying herself much more now that he had taken over. Perhaps Harry should have been surprised that he wasn't jealous but the pair seemed to fit together, at least from where he was sitting, and he contented himself with watching the beautiful display they put on, barely noticing when he dozed off to sleep.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A Scandal Breaks
Harry woke up the next morning with yet another splitting headache and thought that he really needed to start taking Mimby's advice and lay off the drink. At least his stomach wasn't churning this time but the sun was hurting his eyes and his mouth felt like sandpaper. He realised that he was alone in a strange room in a strange house and the sun had long since risen meaning that the others had all almost certainly left him to go shooting. He wasn't sure at exactly what point he had fallen asleep although he remembered Cho and Cedric still being there at the time. He wasn't sure if they had stayed with him through the night or left when they had finished themselves although Harry had to admit that he was glad they weren't currently there. The memory of the night before left Harry feeling a little awkward. He wasn't sure what had compelled him to go along with that idea in the first place. He had never done anything like that before and couldn't imagine doing it again. Not that he hadn't found it enjoyable, at least parts of it anyway, and even the ache in his ass didn't feel too bad although it was definitely enough to make the idea of traipsing through the countryside sound immensely unfavourable. He had said that he would go shooting however and felt somewhat compelled to do it, if only to be polite. That idea vanished however when he saw what Cho had made for him to wear. She had left a box along with a note telling Harry that they hadn't been able to wake him but that he could call Shlep, the house elf, when he was ready and that the elf would take him there. Unfortunately for Cho, Harry had taken one look at the contents of the box and decided to simply put on what he had worn the night before and go home. He had heard the comments the night before about what he'd been wearing, the nicest ones saying that it was cutting edge fashion and the worst ones calling him a dandy, or even Cho's clothes horse. Harry wasn't used to attention and he couldn't say he particularly liked it which was why the sporting gear that Cho had left for him made him balk so. Cedric had called him brave for wearing what he had the night before and, while Harry had basked in the compliment then, even he couldn't say he was that brave. He had expected something in tweed but instead he got tartan, and not just any tartan as well. Bright yellow and black tartan. It reminded Harry a bit of a bee! He didn't know how he could possibly go out anywhere in that monstrosity, let alone shooting. He'd be seen from a mile away! It certainly wouldn't help that he would be turning up late as well meaning that everyone would be passing comments. He shuddered just thinking about it. For the first time that morning he was actually grateful to be alone. If Cho had been there Harry would have felt almost obliged to go along with things. With her gone however, that pressure was off and Harry almost felt relieved as he got dressed in last night's clothes, calling Schlep and asking him to convey Harry's apologies to the hostess but that he had to go home as he had suddenly taken ill. He did feel awful still so it wasn't a complete lie. He asked for directions to the floo and took the clothes with him, not wanting anyone to find them and think they were actually his choice! He figured he could hide them at the back of his wardrobe somewhere and try to find a way to get a more acceptable set, should he happen to be invited to go shooting some other time. As soon as he got back to his own house he went straight upstairs and shoved the offensive clothing into the back of his wardrobe and then went into the bathroom to grab the expensive hangover cure he'd bought from the apothecary. It wasn't as good as the one Tom had given him but it was still better than the old ones from the Potter store. Figuring that a wash would help relieve any residual effects, Harry stripped himself down as he called Mimby to ask for breakfast. "I's wasn't expecting yous back till much later," Mimby exclaimed. "But don't yous think it a little late for breakfast?" "Perhaps," Harry admitted, "but I'm starving although I don't think a big heavy meal will sit well so perhaps just a bit of porridge then something fairly simple for lunch. To be honest I don't know if I've entirely finished digesting all the food from yesterday." "Or all the wine?" Mimby suggested in a mildly accusatory manner that Harry assumed was from a position of caring. "I tried to be good, honest," Harry insisted. "I stopped drinking after we had eaten but I think by that point it was already too late. I still tried to sober up by going to get some fresh air though." "At least you is learning," Mimby sighed. "And dinner parties can be quite bad for these things, especially if yous not used to it." "That was definitely something," Harry chuckled. "I might actually consider organising one just so that Ron gets to experience that." Mimby balked. "Let me get the house up to an acceptable standard first!" "Of course," Harry laughed. "Maybe some time in the next season. I don't know if there is anything to hunt here to justify one in the hunting season." "Oh there is," Mimby said. "There's a woodland on the far side of the property that's been there since the time of Ignotius Peverell, the first owner of these lands." "Really!" Harry exclaimed. "That's interesting, although I'm now curious about what sort of things I actually have on my land here." "Well there be about 20 acres of land Master Harry," Mimby replied. "Yous already know the greenhouses and the potions lab is between that and the woodland. Next to that is the pastures and enclosures, although there not be any beasties in them now." Harry balked. "Did they die?" Thankfully Mimby shook her head. "Nos, I's let them out when I realise there no master to care for them." "I'm glad to hear that," Harry said, breathing a sigh of relief. Mimby beamed, apparently liking the idea that, even in the depths of her despair she had managed to do something good. "Clarissa at the Niffler's Snout mentioned something about you having formerly made some wine before as well," Harry said and he almost laughed as Mimby's already large eyes somehow widened even more. "I's not made wine in years!" Mimby exclaimed. "I don't even know if the grape vines are still good." "They're next to the pond if I remember correctly," Harry murmured, trying to remember what Mrs Sprout had said, and Mimby nodded. "I might try and take a look out there later today." Mimby gasped. "Please don't Master HarryThere might be all sorts of nasties out there and Mimby not have time to check it, especially if yous still want me to clear the potions lab." "Oh no, please concentrate on that," Harry assured her. "I was thinking of popping to Diagon Alley anyway, I wanted to get a broom since Ron taught me the basics of flying yesterday. I was thinking I could just fly over the grounds, to check everything out. That way I shouldn't disturb too many creatures, or plants." Harry shuddered a bit, remembering his close shaves when he was with Mrs Sprout the other day. "At least if I'm on my broom I can make a quick get away." Mimby nodded in agreement and went to fix Harry some food and Harry got dressed into fresh clothes and went to his study to eat. It felt very relaxing to be sitting drinking tea in the comfort of his own house and he was now glad that he had made the decision to forgo the shooting party. Perhaps Hermione was right and the social scene really wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. The meal had been delicious though, so Harry wondered if perhaps it was more the company that had left something to be desired. Leaving that thought to continue pondering at a later date, Harry threw on his robe over his suit and flooed to the Leaky Cauldron. Tom was at the bar again and happily greeted Harry. "You've got excellent timing, young man," Tom chuckled. "I was just wondering whether I should owl you when you turned up. That order of hangover cure I had ordered for you has arrived. He apologised for the delay but he said he'd had some recent addition to his schedule that couldn't be postponed. I took the liberty of ordering a box of 15 but if you only want a few then I'll keep the rest for myself." Harry could have slapped himself. He had completely forgotten that he'd asked Tom to get him some from his supplier. He had been contemplating getting a couple more from the apothecary to have on hand just in case as he had already learned that hangovers weren't fun, even with the fact that he had only suffered from them briefly. The fact that he now had access to the really good ones was just brilliant in his book. Tom had seemed a little worried when he had first told Harry the price of them and Harry had to admit that a 50% markup compared to the apothecary could seem like a lot to some people but Harry knew from experience that they were at least twice as good so he was more than happy to pay the difference and actually asked Tom if his supplier offered any other potions as he feared it would be some time before his own skills were anywhere near that level, if ever. Tom said he generally only got the hangover cures but that he would get in contact with the man and find out. Promising Tom he'd get the money for the lot and pick them up on his way back, Harry stepped into Diagon Alley in high spirits. The streets were busy but not overly crowded meaning that it didn't take too long for Harry to finish his business at the bank and then head to Quality Quidditch Supplies. His good mood might explain why he ended up buying the expensive Firebolt broom in the store. The clerk had even said that the Nimbus range would likely be better if he wasn't planning on flying professionally but Harry had enjoyed flying so much, the freedom and the speed had been exhilarating, and the thought of how much better it would be on a top quality broom made him positively giddy. He was in such a good mood that he even stopped by Madam Malkin's afterwards, figuring that he did actually need more than one set of clothes. Unfortunately that seemed to be where his luck started to turn. He was happy to pick up a few more sets of robes in a couple of different colours but the only suits on offer were the old fashioned frock coat variety. Harry tried one on but he found he much preferred the looser, more modern style he got from Cho's. Thanking Madam Malkin for her help, Harry paid for the robes and made a note to write to Cho when he got back and ask for her to make him a couple more suits. He was a little worried about what colours he might end up with but he was sure there would be some way to alter that, even if he ended up having to look to the muggle world to do it. He had a late lunch with Tom on his way back, happily paying for his potions, and he flooed home quite over encumbered but otherwise generally satisfied with his day's work. He had never considered that he could be a man of leisure before and, while Harry was conscious that his money was currently only flowing one way, he hoped that he could find a way of bringing money in in the future that preferably didn't involve long days sitting behind a desk. He liked his freedom, the ability to do what he wanted on a whim and didn't see him giving that up any time soon unless necessary. He wrote to Cho and then took his new broom out to survey his lands. It was definitely far zippier than the one he had used at Ron's but Harry found he much preferred it. He was actually quite glad of the increased speed though as he hadn't realised just how big 20 acres was. He looped down over the various areas, trying to get a mental picture of them in his head so that he could try to make a note of everything when he got back which would hopefully help him work out how to get the lands back up to working order. From what he could gather the house had been able to make a tidy profit in the past and he liked the idea of making money off his land. It wasn't all formerly working land, there were what looked to be ornamental gardens just past the terrace, next to the courtyard, an area that Harry gave a wide berth. Past the ornamental gardens was a building which, from the activity Harry could see going on there, he assumed was where the potions lab was. The building was bigger than he had pictured and he could well understand why it was taking Mimby so long to sort. To the right of the courtyard and potions lab were the greenhouses and Harry was happy to see the one Mrs Sprout had been able to fix was still looking strong. Behind the greenhouses and the potions lab was the wooded area and Harry was pleased to see it stretching back quite far and almost wondered if he might have some of his own game in that area; it might help to cut down on food costs in the future. On the left the woods tapered out to reveal what looked like a small cottage next to pastures and fallow fields, with a building that looked to have been the old animal enclosures and a possible barn over near the potions lab. In front of that was a large pond that seemed to be teeming with life after so many years being undisturbed but Harry remembered Mrs Sprout's warning and made sure to keep clear. On the other side of that was what looked to be the old grape vines although they definitely didn't look to be growing any more. Finally, in front of them and slightly to the left of the main house, was what looked like another building. Harry landed next to it and peeked inside to see the remains of some carriages and stables as well as some equipment of some kind in a back room. There was a path from the stables that seemed to go down the side of the house and Harry assumed that it led to the pastures at the back, to allow the horses, or whatever magical people used, to get some exercise if they were needed to pull the carriages. He was happy to note that he did seem to have everything for a proper working farm though and he hoped that it wouldn't take too much effort to get it up to standard again. He spent the evening looking things over and doing some research where he could, trying to find out areas where he could start making improvements where he could actually start bringing some money in. He thought getting the greenhouses up and running would be a good way. If he had some ingredients, even a few, of good quality, then he might be able to look at selling them down the market. He knew Professor Sprout was busy but he remembered that she said something about having a former student living nearby and Harry penned a note off to him, hoping he wasn't being too impertinent and asking if the young man wanted to visit to see how things were. Harry also penned a note to Dumbledore. He knew the man was busy but he had also managed to garner from various conversations that Dumbledore was quite an important person in the wizarding world which is why Harry figured he might know someone he could put Harry in touch with to get some magical creatures. It would be a while before the enclosures were fixed which is why Harry wasn't worried about the idea of Dumbledore taking a while to reply but he thought it was better to get the ball rolling early and have to pause, than end up having to rush around later on. He went to bed in an excellent mood, feeling that he had truly accomplished something, even if it only was on paper. He slept well and woke up in an equally good mood, that was until he read the headline in the Daily Prophet, the wizarding news publication.
The Rake Who Lived
Read a first hand account of how our fallen hero used a love potion to seduce both members of a couple and subject them to a night of debauchery!
Harry was astounded. That wasn't what had happened! How did they even get stuff like this? He read on growing more and more horrified with every word. He couldn't believe their first hand source was Cho and that she was actually sharing intimate details of their night together, only twisting them to make it seem like Harry was the one calling all the shots. She claimed that she and Cedric had been unwilling victims in the whole affair, suggesting Harry had spiked their drink with some sort of lust potion to make them more susceptible to suggestions. If that wasn't bad enough the article, written by someone called Rita Skeeter, went on to label Harry a pervert, a monster and a predator; someone who shouldn't be given a place in wizarding society as they posed far too much of a threat. They even printed a picture of him although he had no idea how they got it. Harry just couldn't believe it though. He had just started to feel that he had found a place here and he was looking forward to building on that only now that seemed to have gone completely out of the window and he had no idea what to do. Feeling that he needed some advice he penned another note to Dumbledore, this one a little more urgent, and then jumped out of bed. Harry felt a little bad for abandoning his breakfast, hating the idea of wasting food but also the effort Mimby had gone too. He was too upset to even consider eating however and he quickly got dressed to go see if he could catch Ron before he went to work. He was sure that if he could just set the record straight then everything would be fine. He hopped on his new broom and headed in the direction of the other wizarding village. It was a bit difficult to spot from the air at first and Harry ended up flying over it a couple of times before he realised what he was looking at and dived down to land in one of the fields. It took him a little while to get his bearings and he ended up walking around a little bit. He came across a tall tower-like house that Harry thought looked a bit like a chess piece, although he couldn't remember the name having never actually played the game himself. Je noticed a pretty girl with pale blonde hair and a dreamy look on her face. She seemed in a world of her own at first but, as Harry approached her she turned and smiled at him. "Hello," Harry smiled. "I was wondering if you could help me?" "The Weasley's house is just down the road," replied, returning Harry's smile and making the young man frown. "How did you know that?" "I think one of your wrackspurts escaped and I picked it up from them. You have a lot infesting your mind at the moment. You should try to think happier thoughts to dispel them. Things really aren't as bad as they seem." "I wish you were right about that," Harry sighed. "Anyway, thank you for your help." "You're welcome. I'm Luna by the way and you're happy to come by any time." Harry thanked her again, still a little confused but definitely grateful for her help. He passed another house as he went down the road. Harry briefly wondered if that was the Burrow but the man standing out the front definitely wasn't Mr Weasley. He gave Harry a fierce scowl as he passed so Harry decided to give the place a wide berth. Eventually he found a higgledy-piggledy house that he realised must be the Burrow, based on Ron's rants about the family having to make do without any builders around. Harry smiled as he knocked on the door but that smile fell as Mrs Weasley opened the door but then mostly shut it on seeing Harry there. "I'm sorry Harry but I'm afraid you can't come in. The boys are just about to leave for work so it will just be me and Ginny in the property and I can't do anything to jeopardise her reputation. I hope you understand." She looked at something over Harry's shoulder and Harry turned to see the scowling man again, still watching him. "I understand Mrs Weasley," Harry sighed. "Will you do me a favour and ask Ron to get in contact with me please. I don't mind if it's only by post but I just need some advice about this whole thing." "I don't know," Mrs Weasley said, looking torn. Harry understood, she had to protect her family, it was just difficult for him as he had so few places to turn. Suddenly he heard Ron's voice from somewhere behind his mother. "Is that Harry? Tell him I'm going to talk to Tom about getting a private room somewhere at the Leaky for tonight and I'll let him know the details as soon as possible." "He heard you," Mrs Weasley hissed, although Harry thought that he could detect a slight smile playing around the corners of her lips. "I'll leave you be then," Harry said, a smile forming on his lips once more. Checking that it was alright first Harry hopped on his broom and sped back to his house. It wasn't much but at least he had a hope of getting things sorted later and he was somehow sure that between Ron and Hermione they could work out a way to sort this mess out or at least set the record straight.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The Fallout
Harry was still a bit shaken when he got back home and it didn't help that, as soon as he stepped through the door Mimby handed him a letter. It was from Professor Snape informing Harry that he would be by at 11 o'clock again. Harry swore. The last thing he needed right now was having to deal with Snape's abrasive personality. At least there was some good news in that Mimby informed him that she had cleared the main part of the potions lab so they could use that for the lesson. She was still apparently still making her way through the store though, apparently some of the old ingredients were being a bit tricky, whatever that meant. Harry did, however, get her to prepare some refreshments ready for when they had finished so that Harry could try to act like a half-decent host.
Harry also insisted on being the one to take the potions things they already had over to the lab; he still might not be anywhere near proficient enough to help with the actual clean up but the least he could do was that. When she realised that Harry didn't know how to levitate things with magic, however, Mimby still took the table but allowed Harry to run the jars of ingredients up, even if it did end up being one at a time. He was still done in plenty of time and was happily waiting by the floo when Professor Snape arrived at precisely 11.
"Good morning Professor Snape," Harry greeted.
"Good morning Mr Potter, it's nice for you to be punctual this time. Did you buy a timepiece perchance?"
"Not anything that I didn't have before," Harry said, sighing a bit as he tried not to rise to the challenge. "Thankfully I didn't have any pressing engagements this morning which is why I was able to be ready for your sudden arrival."
"Well I have to admit I'm pleasantly surprised," Snape drawled. "I had assumed that you would be busy this morning entertaining some new paramour, or paramours as the case may be."
"It's not like that!" Harry insisted. "What that article said wasn't true!"
"Isn't it?" Snape queried. "So you're saying that you didn't spend the night with both Miss Chang and Mr Diggory?"
Harry felt himself blushing furiously.
"I see," Snape drawled. "So, Mr Potter, out of curiosity, just what bit of the article isn't true."
"I didn't give anyone a love potion!" Harry fumed. "I don't even know what one is, let alone where you would get one from and I certainly wouldn't know how to make one."
"I can definitely attest to that last part," Snape scoffed. "But I have to admit that I am curious. What exactly possessed you to do something like that?"
"I don't know," Harry sighed. "I'd never done anything like that before, heck I'd never even kissed anyone before yesterday."
"Did you eat or drink anything unusual?" Snape suddenly asked, looking at Harry quizzically.
Harry frowned in thought. "Well I tried new things, but nothing that anyone else wasn't eating or drinking."
"And did you get your food or drink yourself or did someone give it to you?" Snape pressed.
"Well the food and drink at dinner just seemed to materialise in front of us but I assumed that was probably the work of house elves. And the cocktails before dinner were on trays around the room. Cho handed me my first one, maybe my second, but I'm not sure after that. I think we went to sit down for dinner after that."
Snape frowned. "And at any point did you feel strange? As if you were having intrusive thoughts that didn't belong to you? Any headaches?"
"Only when I drank the port too quickly," Harry chuckled. "Why? What are you getting at?"
"I am trying to ascertain if you were in fact dosed with a love potion at some point Mr Potter," Snape hissed. "If you were then someone may be making a concerted effort against, although from the sounds of things it was nothing more than you getting drunk, again I might add, and making stupid decisions."
"Would alcohol make me do something I wouldn't normally do?" Harry asked.
"Contrary to popular belief Mr Potter, no," Snape huffed. "Alcohol lowers your inhibitions making you more likely to do things you normally wouldn't but it doesn't make you do anything that you wouldn't already have the inclination to do at some level which indicates that the paper is right and you do have perverted tendencies."
"I do not!" Harry roared. "There must have been something somewhere."
"You don't seem to have taken anything specifically so the only alternative is that everyone was drugged somehow," Snape said. "You mentioned a cocktail that everyone was drinking, do you know what was in it?"
"Cho said it was called Joy. It looked a bit like champagne, although Cho called it Gigglewater, with a pink sparkly substance in it that she said came from the Weasleys," Harry explained. "It can't be that though surely. I mean I can't see the Weasleys selling something dangerous, they're nice people."
"You might be surprised," Snape scoffed. "The Weasleys sell quite a few love potions at their store although if it's the one I think you're talking about then it isn't one of them. Do you remember feeling anything strange at all, anything different from the other times you've been drunk?"
"I don't get drunk!" Harry insisted, but Snape just raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "Fine, but not often enough to really tell."
"Think Mr Potter!" Snape sneered, clearly becoming exasperated. "If you want my help you need to engage that little used organ between your ears that is usually where a brain is supposed to be!"
"I am," Harry hissed, not appreciating the man's insults. "There wasn't anything different though, not really. I remember feeling happy and included, like I was around a lovely group of people."
Snape scoffed. "Knowing who was likely there I find that hard to believe!"
"It's true though," Harry insisted. "It was like I felt a connection to them all. I can't explain it any other way."
"Then it seems that people are right to worry," Snape said, giving Harry a cruel smile.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, confused. His aunt had always said that people needed to be wary of him, that he was trouble, but he'd never really believed it.
"When I said that I was coming to give you another potions lesson my colleague, Charity Burbage, became worried for my virtue. I tell her it was needless however, that you would have to be a true deviant to try to make a play for me." He gave a slight chuckle at that comment but Harry looked at him with a frown. It was strange to hear someone talk down about themselves like that, people just didn't do that in America, although he did have to admit that Snape wouldn't be winning any beauty pageant any time soon. The man was far from what you would call classically handsome. His nose was too big and his lips were too thin. There was a sallowness about his complexion and a meanness in his smile, not to mention his crooked yellow teeth. He reminded Harry a little of the Goblins at Gringotts.
Snape looked at Harry with a frown. "What is it?" he snarled.
Harry balked, realising he had been staring. "Nothing sir."
"I suggest you say what's on your mind, Potter," Snape sneered. "I have ways of extracting the information from you if you refuse and I guarantee if I do that I will learn all of your darkest secrets."
Harry sighed. "I was just thinking that you reminded me a lot of the Goblins at Gringotts and was wondering if you were somehow related to them."
"How dare you!" Snape roared. "I expected that, as an adult, you would be above such petty insults but I see you are more like your father than I thought."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Harry asked, feeling genuinely confused. He hadn't meant to insult the man and he had basically forced Harry's hand.
"I went to school with your dear father Potter and he used to enjoy throwing petty insults around at people," Snape sneered.
"I apologise sir, I didn't mean to insult you, I was just genuinely curious. Is it a bad thing to compare someone to Goblins?"
Something of Harry's genuine confusion must have shown in his face as Snape demeanour softened slightly. "Yes Mr Potter, it is generally considered the highest insult to imply that a wizard is anything less than completely human. Some people wear their mixed race as a badge of honour but you should always wait for someone to say first before passing comment, unless, of course, your intention is to insult them."
"I would never do that!" Harry exclaimed.
"So it would seem," Snape murmured, "which is why I will forgive you this one time but make sure that it doesn't happen again."
Harry nodded his head. "Of course, and I'm sorry again sir."
"Let us mention no more of it," Snape sighed. "Now, we have tarried long enough. Let us get on with your brewing or I fear I shall end up running late again."
Harry smiled and apologised for keeping Snape, an action that the man just waved off, and he led Snape to the potions lab. Snape actually seemed a little impressed when he walked in and took a few minutes to examine all the equipment that Mimby had apparently managed to repair and clean.
"Right Mr Potter," Snape said, standing at the front of the room as if he were teaching a class. "Today you are going to learn how to brew the Antidote for common poisons. This is a handy brew to have around the house just in case you happen to make any enemies in the future."
Harry balked. "Do you think that's likely?"
"Given recent events Mr Potter I would bet on it," Snape smirked. "Anyway, this antidote will cure most basic to intermediate poisons however it will not touch any of the stronger ones. If you do think that you have been poisoned but are unsure what it is your best bet is to use a bezoar as it will cure almost all poisons except the most potent such as Basilisk venom."
Harry frowned. "If the bezoar is so good, why bother with the antidotes?"
"Because bezoars are unfortunately not very common, especially in England thanks to our preference for sheep and cow farming instead of goats, as bezoars are found in goat's stomachs. The antidote you will be making uses a bezoar but will make a whole batch of potions whereas a single bezoar on its only will only cure you once. Bezoars are also most useful at curing poisons immediately upon ingestion and tend not to do so well if it has been some time, or if the poisoning has been gradual. The antidote, on the other hand, will work at any stage prior to death."
Harry nodded, a little shocked at the implications, but also, admittedly, a little impressed that Snape could retain so much knowledge without having to look anything up. Snape himself was a little surprised when he called out ingredients and they suddenly appeared on the table. Harry had to explain that Mimby was cleaning out the potion store and must have sent them, allowing Snape to breathe a sigh of relief. Apparently even in the magical world it was worrying for things to just happen without a reason.
Harry paid close attention to his brewing this time, taking care to make sure the bezoar was indeed ground very finely. This recipe, however, stated no colour or consistency changes so he made sure to keep an eye on it, assuming any change from the initial green was a bad sign. When he finished Snape still only said acceptable, but there was a slight smile on his face as he said it. When questioned he said that Harry's potion was lacking sheen indicating that his pinch of powdered unicorn horn had been a little on the scant side. Apparently his potion would have no issues curing weaker poisons but would struggle with the more mid level ones. When pushed, Snape explained that the powdered unicorn horn was the magical kick in the potion and that it was actually difficult to add too much so the best bet was to err on the side of more instead of less. Harry thanked him for his time and was actually happy to offer the man refreshments. Snape hesitated but still eventually declined saying he had some preparations to do for the upcoming school year.
"I have a message for you before I go, however, my colleague Professor Flitwick, the charms Professor at Hogwarts, sends his apologies about being able to come sooner but he was at a Dueling tournament in Greece. He has requested that you owl him with your availability for the next couple of weeks and he will try to schedule a few lessons in that suit."
"Oh, I don't really have any plans other than later," Harry admitted.
"Then message him to say that," Snape sighed, rolling his eyes. Harry sighed as well wondering if he would ever understand that man. He said goodbye to him as pleasantly as he could however and tidied up his workstation before sitting outside to enjoy the refreshments in the sun. As he was enjoying his lunch he received a message from Ron via the other man's somewhat erratic owl. It seemed as if he had been unable to book one of the private rooms at the Leaky Cauldron but that Hermione had had the genius idea of booking one of the rooms upstairs for the night. That way Harry could arrive at almost any time without having to worry too much and they could talk without risking anyone overhearing them. Harry agreed that it sounded like a great idea and sent a message to Ron that he would meet him there at 7.
Harry spent the afternoon in his study, writing to Professor Flitwick and practicing some spells in preparation for his lesson. It took him a while to get the pronunciation of
wingardium leviosa
right and, when he did, he had a bit of trouble controlling it and ended up making a few dents in the walls a ceiling, even smashing a window pane; at least that ended up helping him practice his
reparo
. When the time neared Harry flooed to the Leaky Cauldron, trying to act as circumspect as possible. Thankfully the patrons seemed too busy enjoying their pints to notice another person coming through the floo. Harry made his way quickly and carefully upstairs and was happy to see Ron waiting outside on the landing. Ron caught Harry's eye and smiled at him before turning and heading into one of the rooms. Harry didn't need any more of an invitation to follow.
"Harry, what on earth happened the other day!" Hermione exclaimed the second that Harry walked into the room.
"Hello again Hermione, how are you?" Harry chuckled.
"Now is not the time for jokes Harry, this is serious!" Hermione huffed. "What were you thinking?"
"I wasn't Hermione," Harry whined. "That's basically the point."
"But a love potion Harry! Surely you could have found some other way to do things? I can't believe that you were that desperate."
"I wasn't!" Harry yelled. "I didn't use a love potion! If anything, one was used on me!"
Hermione seemed to perk up a bit at that idea. "Really, that is interesting, although I'm a bit curious as to how you got to that situation?"
"It was Professor Snape who suggested it," Harry replied.
"What's that slimy git got to do with anything," Ron sneered.
"He comes by the house sometimes to teach me potions," Harry explained. "It's why he was curious as to how I might have gotten a love potion when I know nothing about them."
"Are you suggesting Cho might have drugged you somehow?" Ron exclaimed. "I find that hard to believe."
"I don't," Hermione scoffed and Ron looked at her curiously. "The only reason you don't think Cho would use a love potion Ron is that you think she's too pretty to need to."
"Well she is," Ron insisted.
Hermione scowled. "That is not the sort of thing you should admit in front of your girlfriend."
"It's just a statement of fact Hermione," Ron huffed. "Why would Cho Chang need to dose someone with love potion?"
"Well Professor Snape was thinking it might have been something given to everyone," Harry admitted. "I do remember some pink powder put in a cocktail that Cho said they got from your brothers."
"Do you mean Happiness?" Ron asked, pulling out a vial of sparkly pink powder. "This is one of the best sellers in my brother's shop. 'When you're feeling down just sprinkle on a little Happiness'. They specifically made it into a powder to make it easier to use."
"Do you know what's in it?" Harry asked.
Ron shrugged. "Does it matter, it works. Plus finding out what's actually in potions can be immensely off putting. I mean who wants to eat anything with flobberworm mucus."
"I suppose," Harry sighed, still feeling a little curious though.
"It definitely wasn't this stuff anyway," Ron insisted. "I mean I use it all the time and I've never felt the desire to sleep with multiple people at once."
"No, but Professor Snape might still be right," Hermione said and Ron pulled a face. "Don't you see Ron, if we can get it out that Harry wasn't the one giving people love potions then the paper might start investigating into which party goer did and they'll stop writing about Harry."
"And what, it will just stop the stories?" Harry asked.
"It won't reverse them, people will still know what happened," Hermione explained. "If we can move the news cycle on, however, they will stop thinking about it and you should be able to move on with your life. It will also make you seem like less of a predator."
"That will be a good thing," Harry admitted.
Hermione smiled. "I knew it was a ridiculous idea anyway. But we are still going to have to work out what the love potion was."
"It wasn't my brother's product," Ron insisted. "They wouldn't do something like that."
"Really?" Harry queried. "Professor Snape said that they sell love potions?"
"He would know," Ron scoffed. "Now there's a man that needs to use love potions. But they're nothing bad anyway, just a bit of fun, and the result is always temporary."
"I still have reservations," Hermione said, "but now is not the time for that argument. You said that this isn't a love potion but I wonder if someone could have added a potion to it, so that someone thought they were only using Happiness but it ended up being more."
"Why would someone do that?" Harry asked.
"As a trial run?" Ron suggested. "Perhaps they were looking for a way they could possibly add something stronger. I mean then they could poison you without it being traced back to them."
"That's actually quite a scary thought," Harry admitted.
"Which is why it's imperative that we find out who did," Hermione stated.
Harry stayed for some time going over the events of the previous night in as much detail as possible, with Hermione taking notes. Harry skipped over the part with Cedric and Cho, too embarrassed to go into details with his friends. Ron understood but Hermione complained a bit saying she would need all the details if she was going to sort this issue out and clear Harry's name. It was very late as Harry and Ron made their way back to the floo, with Hermione deciding to make use of the room for the night. Harry was a little surprised Ron didn't stay but the redhead insisted his mum would kill him if he did. Harry smiled in understanding, even if he didn't really, and returned to his own home feeling like there might be a light at the end of the tunnel. They might not have any answers yet but it felt like they were moving in the right direction and that things might get better soon.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
From Bad To Worse
Harry woke up the next morning with a tentatively good feeling about the day which was crushed when he saw the headline in the paper.
Devilish Rake Strikes Again!
There was a picture of Harry and Ron leaving the bedroom at the Leaky Cauldron the night before along with mention that Hermione had taken the room although the author, Rita Skeeter again, claimed she wasn't sure if Hermione had actually been there as well. The article went on to say that, while a relationship between two men was perfectly acceptable, it was still considered scandalous to have relations outside of marriage, especially as Ron was known to be engaged to Hermione. It led the author to actually question whether Ron and Hermione were still together! Harry was mortified. How could he have been so stupid as to not consider what the implications of them sitting in a bedroom might be! He rushed into his study to quickly pen letters to Ron and Hermione to apologise for dragging them into this position and suggest that they spend a bit of time apart to try to let the rumours die down, it wasn't like they could glean anything more from meeting anyway.
Mimby sent his breakfast into his study, pausing to shake her head at Harry.
"I's was looking forward to the Potter name becoming known again but I's didn't think it would be like this."
"I'm sorry Mimby, I'll try to fix it," Harry pleaded, feeling awful as he started to realise the larger implications of his actions.
"Wasn't that what you's were doing yesterday?" Mimby pointed out. "Perhaps yous should just concentrate on your studies instead of trying to fix things again. I's would not like yous to accidentally make this even worse, although I's not sure that entirely possible at the moment."
Harry's heart fell and he nodded. Mimby was right and at least if he stayed in the house he couldn't cause any more trouble and it wasn't as if there wasn't a lot to do. Harry had actually wanted to take a look at the coach house today. He had managed to look up some old plans of the estate and had learned that there was actually a small dwelling above the coach store where the old coachman used to live, ready to take the old families out when they required Harry didn't think that he would necessarily be taking any coaches out any time soon so he didn't see the point in having an actual coach man but he thought that it might have worked as a potential home for Ron and Hermione. He had liked the idea of having his friends close but had thought they would want their own space which is why the coach house had seemed perfect in his mind, although he hadn't wanted to say anything to his friends before he checked it out to make sure that it had the potential to be suitable.
There was also the old game keeper's house out near the wood which might work, or might have anyway. Harry didn't think it would be a good idea for the couple to consider either while there was so much rumour about them abound. That didn't stop Harry getting them ready just in case though and Harry was planning on doing just that when a couple of owls arrived. The first was from Ron agreeing that they should keep some distance between them for the time being and that it would probably be a good idea if Harry stayed away from the Burrow for a bit as well. Apparently Mrs Weasley had been irate at seeing the headline that morning and had been on the verge of sending Harry a howler, whatever that was, when Ron had let slip that booking the room had been Hermione's idea leading Mrs Weasley to send it to her instead. Harry was a little sad that he would miss Sunday lunch with the Weasleys but Ron had assured him that Harry would be able to resume them as soon as things blew over.
The thought of an improvement to his current situation had improved Harry's mood considerably, unfortunately it only lasted until he opened the next delivery. Harry was a little curious about the small parcel but the letter soon explained everything. It was from Cho. At first Harry thought that it might be an apology for the interview in the press, something that Harry was under the impression was a taboo in their circle. It wasn't though. If anything it was the complete opposite. She did apologise but only for the slight delay in the delivery. It turned out that she had apparently been rammed with orders and was currently in talks of opening up a permanent shop and was only trying to work out where the best place would be: Godric's Hollow, Diagon Alley or some place called Hogsmeade. Harry almost hoped it wasn't the former until Cho mentioned hiring staff to run it and Harry realised that she wouldn't be here regardless. She explained that the parcel contained a large supply of suits as she was sure that he would be immensely popular in society, especially if he continued to lean into his new reputation.
Harry couldn't honestly think of anything worse so it was with some trepidation that he called for Mimby to come and see if she could get into the package. Apparently it had only been shrunk to aid delivery and Harry almost wished that he hadn't bothered as every suit in the box, of which there were indeed many, was done in seemingly increasingly bright colours. There was a variety of day and evening wear, as well as attire for various sporting events but Harry was sure if he would wear any of them. He was half inclined to send them back until he saw the receipt and realised that Cho had been 'kind' enough to give Harry a large discount. Harry thought it was the least she could do but Harry was also aware that, with no money actually coming in at the moment, he couldn't really turn it down, especially as it was a very large discount.
"Any chance we can change the colours?" Harry asked Mimby who also seemed to be eyeing the garments dubiously.
She clicked her fingers and shook her head. "They's be resisting magical methods but I's can try the muggle method if yous like. It mights not hold too well but it would most definitely be's better than this. Who's think this be's appropriate?"
"Cho, the woman who sold the story to the paper," Harry explained.
"Well if she's ever come to this house I's be turning all her clothes black." This made Harry laugh.
"Careful Mimby. I was considering issuing a lifelong ban on her presence but I may reconsider if that will be the case."
Mimby smiled, although Harry wasn't entirely sure why. She was prevented from saying anything however but the arrival of yet another owl. Harry was very curious but also a little worried as he opened it.
Dear Harry,
I am most disappointed to have been reading about your exploits in the paper in recent days. I am sorry to say that the wizarding world is one that has a large fascination with scandal and even a hint of impropriety sends the reporters a flutter. I apologise for not mentioning it before but I was under the belief that you would not be making any waves in this world. It turns out that you are a little more adventurous than I had believed.
If you do wish to change these ways then I would suggest keeping a lower profile in the future, especially as anything that goes against the norm is considered revolutionary in this world. I shall try to help you where I can but unfortunately my position means my hands are tied in many subjects.
As for you current predicament I would advise keeping a low profile for the time being and avoiding private parties in the future, unless they are hosted by people you can trust (if in doubt feel free to ask me before replying). It would also be a good idea to find yourself a wife from a good family as soon as possible as it will help protect you from most rumours, unless you were to do something very overt.
I hope this has been of some help. I know that I have been able to guide you through your younger years but I hope to be able to help you navigate the wizarding world in the future.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore.
P.S. I heard through the grapevine that you are looking at rearing animals on your property in the future. I know that you have some work to do first but, if you like, I can get the Hogwarts groundskeeper and current Care of Magical Creatures Professor to look into acquiring some for you. Rubeus Hagrid is an old and dear friend of mine and someone with an excellent eye for animals. He also helped rescue you as a baby and I know that he is very keen to make your acquaintance once more.
Harry wasn't sure about the advice but he was grateful for the new contract for animals and sent a reply with his thanks to the headmaster. It was all the more reason for him to roll his sleeves up and get on with helping repair the property and get it back to good working order. With renewed ambition, Harry sent Mimby to Gringotts to finalise his purchase to Cho and then Harry put on his old clothes and went to go and work on the old barn and animal enclosures, figuring that there shouldn't be anything too dangerous if Mimby had freed all of the animals many years ago. Hopefully it should be nothing more than practice for his mending and cleaning charms, hopefully something Professor Flitwick would appreciate. He was right, the work wasn't too taxing, at least not as far as spell work was concerned, although there were probably a few places that Mimby would have to correct.
Harry did feel his stamina draining after a while though and he found himself having to take increasingly prolonged breaks. It did give him a new appreciation for all Mimby's work so far however, as well as an understanding as to how and why the house fell into disrepair in the first place. Still, at the end of the day, Harry was proud of the work he had done, happy to have a visible indicator of his effort that day, and he was actually looking forward to doing it again the next day, although not as much as he was looking forward to a hot soothing bath that night. He hadn't thought that casting spells would make his muscles ache but somehow it did.
Harry woke up looking forward to the coming day but became wary when another letter had arrived. He had honestly never been this popular before and he almost wished that he could go back to those blissful days of ignorance. Thankfully it was just Professor Flitwick, suggesting that he come by for a lesson the next day, and also a postscript from Mrs Sprout that she could come by with her former student in the afternoon as well. Harry was happy to confirm both appointments and, instead of going back to the enclosures, Harry decided to work on the terrace garden, something he hadn't thought about since Mrs Sprout's last visit.
Mimby had apparently managed to finish sorting out the ingredient store and was happy to announce that she had managed to salvage some of the rarer ingredients thanks to the stronger protection spells on them. The only thing that was left to do at the potions lab was to renovate the old living quarters, used to house on site potions masters when there weren't any in the family, but since that area likely wouldn't be needed any time soon, she decided to switch her attention to repairing the Orangery. She said it might help with Harry's Herbology lessons while the greenhouses were still a bit dangerous but Harry had a sneaking suspicion that it was to keep an eye on him. Mimby had looked over the barn when he was having a bath and Harry had a feeling the elf had had to correct more than he'd initially hoped.
Still, he wasn't upset about having a bit of company while he worked and he had to admit that it was definitely beneficial to have Mimby on hand to ask advice as it came up as opposed to waiting, especially when he was worried about disturbing her at a critical moment. Harry thought Mimby appreciated it as well as she actually offered to go out and purchase some plants for Harry while he was having his lunch. Harry was immensely grateful for the suggestion, realising that the garden was looking very bare now that he had pulled out all of the plants that were beyond salvageable but he also didn't want to risk going out himself and causing more of a spectacle. Harry had managed to stay off the front page of the paper this morning but there was a story further in that had questioned if his absence was to do with damaging his friend's engagement and bringing the Weasleys into more disrepute. Harry hoped that his continued absence would only cause him to move further down in newsworthiness but that wouldn't happen if he was seen shopping, even if it was only for plants. It's not like the paper seemed to be particularly concerned with the truth.
Harry was quite impressed with what she was able to bring back with the money that he had left in his wallet but apparently buying magical plants wasn't very 'in vogue', something Harry could understand a bit if it really was rare for wizards to be able to get properties. He definitely wasn't complaining though as Mimby had managed to get several of the plants that Mrs Sprout had confirmed as good options. He spent the afternoon planting them and watering them in. He was very dirty by the end of the day and just as tired as the day before but once again happy with his achievements that day and hopeful that Mrs Sprout would be as happy when she saw it.
Harry was awake bright and early the next morning and had Mimby set up an area in the main hall that he could use for lessons. Professor Flitwick arrived promptly at 10 and was pleased to see Harry ready and raring to go. Harry took an instant liking to the diminutive instructor who was quick to both smile and praise, especially regarding Harry's practice of his charms. It was strange though as Harry thought Professor Flitwick looked even more like the Goblins at Gringotts than Professor Snape although his attitude was vastly different from either. There was one area in which Professor Flitwick was similar to Professor Snape however as neither of them gave Harry any specific direction unless asked. It was only when Harry mentioned that he was concerned about his
reparo
charm, that it wasn't quite fixing things properly and he asked Professor Flitwick for some pointers on it did the man actually take the time to correct Harry's wand movement and pronunciation, despite having seen Harry cast it a few times already and calling the results excellent.
Harry was amazed at how well the charms worked afterwards, as well as how much easier it seemed when he had gotten everything right, and he questioned Professor Flitwick about it. Flitwick actually smiled at Harry and explained that the wand movements and incantations were there to assist in getting the spell across but that the magic came from the person themselves. Apparently a lot of people didn't have the raw power to be able to express their desire without the correct spell and he was surprised that Harry was able to get such good results despite being wildly off, something that Harry wasn't sure whether to find insulting or to take as a compliment. Flitwick was particularly impressed when Harry explained just how much he had done the day before and explained the ache Harry had felt was actually magic fatigue and that it was a good thing that Harry had had a magic light day afterwards to recover or he might have done serious damage to himself. It was apparently one of the reasons young children were discouraged from casting too much, especially unsupervised, as there was a chance it could cause permanent damage to their magical cores.
Harry had nodded vaguely at that, not really understanding what was being said but realising what the consequences might mean. He made a mental note not to push himself too hard in the future but he also got Professor Flitwick to write down how to pronounce each of the spells phonetically, as well as giving diagrams of the wand movements so Harry had a proper reference for the future meaning he hopefully wouldn't have to bother the Professor too much in the future. Flitwick seemed to be impressed with Harry's initiative and explained that most people seem to be dismissive of his advice when he'd given it in the past, often believing that they knew better because they were getting results, not understanding that their results could be better. Harry was happy to be an exception in this case and was glad when it got to lunchtime and Professor Flitwick agreed to stay and join him. He spent the time regaling Harry of his various duels in the previous competition and Harry was fascinated and even asked if he could go watch one one day.
"There is a big competition in Upper Flagley in Yorkshire," Flitwick smiled. "It's one of the principal wizarding communities, like Godric's Hollow. It tends to take place in May, around Beltane, and I'm always a little annoyed that I can't attend due to my job at Hogwarts but then, we can't have everything can we?"
"It's still a shame sir," Harry said, "I would definitely be interested in watching you duel."
"Well there is a smaller duel in Germany in Easter that I sometimes attend but I always attend any that happen in the summer," Flitwick informed him.
Harry grinned. "Then I shall have to keep an eye out."
Harry was interrupted from saying anything more by a sound in the Floo room and, shortly afterwards, Mrs Sprout came in with a rather timid looking boy trailing behind her. He was introduced as Neville Longbottom and he seemed a little worried about being here due to Harry's new reputation and he stuck very close to Mrs Sprout. That changed, however, when Mrs Sprout led the way out to the courtyard garden, praising Mimby and Harry's work as she passed. Neville was amazed by the Venomous Tentacula that lashed out as soon as the door was opened and seemed to transform into a completely different person as he stepped towards the flying tentacles seemingly without a care.
"It's amazing!" Neville exclaimed. "Those blooms! And that scent! How do you think it happened, Professor Sprout?"
"From what I can gather the Tentacula has somehow absorbed the roses that were growing in the courtyard, thus the variety of coloured blooms," Mrs Sprout explained.
"I suppose there are similarities between a Tentacular and a rose," Neville mused. "It is almost a shame to get rid of it."
"It is definitely an interesting specimen," Flitwick said, admiringly. "Even I think it is a bit of a shame to just get rid of it."
"To be honest I'm in no rush to get the courtyard back yet," Harry admitted. "There is so much else to do around here so I don't mind putting it off for a bit although I wouldn't be able to do anything about the plant."
"Oh I don't mind," Neville exclaimed, then caught himself as he turned around and saw Harry.
"Just to let you know, most of what the papers said is rubbish," Harry chuckled. "I promise I won't jeopardise your virtue and, if it helps, you can always message me ahead of time and I'll make sure to keep well out of the way, that way you won't have to worry."
"Oh, um, you don't need to do that," Neville stammered. "I wouldn't want to kick you out of your own home or anything."
"You wouldn't be doing that," Harry assured him. "I would just stick to my suite while you're here. There's even an apartment above the potion lab so, once we've sorted it, you wouldn't even have to come near the main house while you're here. There's even separate access to the greenhouses from the main path up if you wanted to use the main entrance instead of the Floo."
"Really! That's very kind of you," Neville gasped happily but then his face fell. "The only problem is that my Gran would never agree to it."
"Oh, don't worry about that Neville dear," Mrs Sprout smirked. "Just leave it to me."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Discoveries
Professor Sprout and Neville had taken a few samples from the Tentacula and sealed the courtyard up again. Mrs Sprout then suggested they move on to the greenhouses as she had asked Neville to bring some plants for Harry to pot up. Professor Flitwick had agreed to stick around as well, saying he would lend a hand to help get Harry's house up to scratch, something Harry greatly appreciated. He and Mrs Sprout went to work on the second greenhouse, the one she hadn't been able to make safe before and Harry and Neville stayed in the one that had been made at least relatively safe, although both Professors reminded them to keep an eye out. Neville was still a little nervous about being left alone with Harry, although the fact that Harry seemed to have his Professors' approval apparently helped. Harry still made sure to keep a bit of distance which seemed to help reassure him a bit but it was when he got lost in talking about plants that Neville had really seemed to come into himself. It was heartening for Harry to see and he found himself thoroughly enjoying his afternoon while he learned a lot about how to care for the plants that Mrs Sprout.
"You know, you would make an excellent teacher," Harry said as Neville patiently explained how to harvest the Shivelfigs from his tree.
"Oh I don't know about that," Neville sighed. "My gran was hoping that I would get into Auror training but I missed out on my Defence Against the Dark Arts N.E.W.T so didn't qualify. She's not very happy about it and still has hopes that I'll be able to get on the course somehow so I don't think she'll be too happy to hear me going into teaching. Not that there are many positions available anyway. Hogwarts only has the one position and Professor Sprout isn't retiring any time soon I don't think."
Harry frowned a bit. "That's a shame. Is there nowhere else you could go?"
"Well there is always the potential for tutoring," Neville admitted, "but I don't know how comfortable I would feel going to some strange house, especially as most of the families who could afford a tutor aren't exactly on friendly terms with mine. It's why I content myself to potter around at home although my greenhouse isn't anywhere near as impressive as this. My Gran never saw the benefit of growing plants so our garden is mostly just lawns."
"Well you're welcome to come round and use my greenhouses whenever you want," Harry offered. "There is so much to get sorted around here, what with the fields and animal enclosures as well, so if you can take over here you'll actually be doing me a big favour. I can even get on with sorting out the apartment over the potions lab so you can stay here overnight."
Neville looked at Harry, shocked, and Harry realised how what he said could be taken.
"Oh no! Not like that, I didn't mean it like that. That wouldn't happen, not that it couldn't, just that I'm not interested in you. Not that I don't think that anyone would be interested in you, you're a handsome guy and," Harry sighed. "I'm not helping myself here, am I."
Neville laughed. "Not particularly, although I think I got the gist of that. Out of curiosity, what actually happened at that party. I'm not normally one for gossip but I thought, if I am going to be coming around here from time to time, it would be a good idea if I knew the truth."
Harry sighed again. "To be honest the paper was quite accurate regarding the details of the actual event. The main difference was that I wasn't the instigator and I certainly didn't dose anyone with love potion; I didn't even know they existed before that night. It's possible that there might have been something though, I certainly wasn't in my right mind. I'd never even kissed anyone before that night. Professor Snape thinks there might have been something affecting everyone. What is it?" Harry asked, seeing Neville going a little pale.
"Nothing, just bad memories," Neville admitted sheepishly. "He's a brilliant potioneer but he's not the most patient teacher and I've got a little bit of a nervous disposition which doesn't mix very well with potion making."
Harry nodded sagely. "Yeah, I can see that. He's bitten my head off a few times already."
"At least I'm not the only one," Neville chuckled. "But he does know what he's talking about from what I've seen so I'm sure he'll figure it out if there is something to find."
Harry felt reassured and was happy to invite Neville and the Professors to stay for afternoon tea which they took on the newly renovated terrace.
"It really is quite lovely out here," Professor Flitwick commented while enjoying some scones. "Not too hot even at the height of day."
"The joys of a north facing garden," Mrs Sprout chuckled. "Not so great in the winter but then people are usually away for the season. In the summer though, the increased shade means it doesn't get too hot. The Potters definitely put a lot of thought into things when they put the gardens together. Like putting the Orangery on the east side to catch the morning warmth without becoming a sun trap making it the perfect place to escape in the evening. That and the courtyard, although that's not really an option at the moment. I hope you don't mind if we leave the Tentacula for a bit, Mr Potter. It's just such an unusual specimen and I want to see if the cuttings keep the same properties before we remove the primary one."
"That's fine with me, Mrs Sprout," Harry smiled. "I think I have a lot left to do before I need to worry about the courtyard. I haven't even finished the terrace here."
"Don't worry Mr Potter, you are well on your way," Mrs Sprout assured him. "The planting here is almost done I'd say, you just need to get those Flutterby bushes you were after."
"I'm keeping an eye out but no luck yet," Harry sighed.
"Really!" Neville exclaimed. "I have a couple of cultivars I was breeding to experiment with different colours. They're at the stage where they should be planted out but my Gran is refusing saying they would clash with the rest of her flowers."
"Bring them over here if you want," Harry smiled. "I'll admit I haven't even considered anything like a colour scheme, I just wanted some pretty flowers."
"Too right Mr Potter," Mrs Sprout cried. "In my opinion people are too bloody concerned with how a flower bed looks these days, and miss what's truly important: the plants themselves."
"I'll try to remember that," Harry smiled.
"Have you considered Fanged Geraniums?" Neville asked. "They can be quite beautiful and they only really bite you if you're not looking after them properly."
"That might be a way to get me off my ass and out in the garden," Harry laughed. "Although it also might be fun to surprise a few unsuspecting visitors."
"Ah, so there is some of your father in you," Flitwick chuckled and Harry frowned.
"What do you mean sir?"
"Oh just that your father and his friend liked the odd prank, although they did get carried away a bit from time to time."
"That's an understatement," Mrs Sprout muttered and Harry was reminded of Professor Snape informing him that his father was a bully and he couldn't help wondering if Professor Flitwick was being diplomatic.
"Did you know my parents then?" Harry asked, deciding not to press the subject of pranking.
"Oh yes," Flitwick smiled. "Pomona and I both taught them. Your mother had an excellent head for charms and was very quick on the draw. I always used to try and persuade her to join the dueling circuit but, alas, she was never interested. The war made things difficult though."
"I don't know, I don't think her ambitions ever went further than marrying well, that's why I always knew she would end up with James," Mrs Sprout huffed. "I always think young people today are too worried about getting married and settling down as opposed to enjoying life."
"Didn't you marry young?" Flitwick asked with a laugh.
"I did," Mrs Sprout smiled, "but I knew Bertie was the one from the first moment we met. Few are so lucky though and I always worry that people settle because they think that's what they ought to do, as opposed to trying to find the right match."
"There is often a lot of pressure from families to settle down though," Neville admitted.
"Then in a way I'm glad I don't have to deal with that," Harry sighed. "I can definitely say that I'm not in a rush to settle down."
"More Potters would be nice though," Mimby muttered as she came to clear away their things.
Neville grinned. "Looks like you might not be as immune as you think." Everyone laughed at that and Harry felt a bubble of warmth settle in his chest as he was reminded that, despite a bit of turbulence, he had indeed found his home. The group stayed chatting outside until the sun began to set and the air began to grow a little colder. Harry invited them all to stay for dinner but they declined. Flitwick complained that he had a lot of planning to catch up on for the new school year and Mrs Sprout informed Harry that she would be accompanying Neville back with the idea of informing his grandmother that she had a friend who needed Neville to come help with their garden. Apparently Augusta Longbottom might object to her grandson spending time with the currently infamous Harry Potter, but she would not object to a personal friend of Pomona Sprout. Harry was glad and he hoped that he would be able to spend more time with Neville in the future, feeling a slight kinship with the often timid boy.
The next week passed with little incident, at least nothing involving Harry at any rate. There was a brief moment when Ron and Hermione had been spotted attending a Quidditch match and the article written about it questioned whether the couple were trying to get back on track after Harry had come and rocked the metaphorical boat. The picture accompanying the article showed Ron and Hermione as happy as ever though and nothing more seemed to come of it. Harry had even had an invitation to rejoin the Weasleys for dinner that Sunday and he was looking forward to the possibility of being able to go out without risking facing scorn or ridicule when the paper arrived on Saturday throwing everything into turmoil again.
The headline read 'Weasley's Home of Narcotics' and contained an interview with a man called Lucius Malfoy who had apparently learned that the popular Happiness dust that was a top seller at the twins shop was actually a potent narcotic, containing ground up seeds from the opium poppy as well as a hormone called Oxytocin that was apparently produced during childbirth and was known to promote bonding between mother and child. Mr Malfoy said that the apparently mundane ingredients had been mixed with crushed moonstone and pixie dust creating a potent and fairly addictive concoction on its own but, when mixed with alcohol, the properties of the drug increased exponentially. He was calling for the stuff to be banned and for an investigation into all of the other products sold at the store.
Harry was astounded. He had always been wary of any sort of drugs, his aunt and uncle had railed against them often enough, and the thought that he had been taking one unknowingly was quite disturbing to him. Harry spent the entire day in quiet contemplation, wondering just who knew what about the drug and what that might actually mean for what had happened to him. He felt a little strange about the events of that night but had generally accepted them up till now, but the thought that he had been drugged when he made that decision suggested that someone might well have taken advantage of him. He was still feeling a bit unsure about things as he flew to the Burrow and was a little shocked to hear a lot of banging from the kitchen after Ron let him through the front door.
"Sorry about that," Ron winced. "Mum's been on one since the paper arrived this morning."
"Is it really that bad?" Harry whispered.
"You're joking right!" Ron exclaimed, "I don't think I've ever seen it this bad! Normally Mum's screaming and shouting when stuff happens with Dad being the calming influence but now Dad is the one getting irate, I mean he actually swore when he read the article. I have only ever heard my Dad swear once before and that was when my brothers almost made me swear an unbreakable vow. As for Mum, she hasn't said a single word, she's just been walking around all tense and silent, banging anything that she touches."
"How are the twins then?" Harry asked.
"Oh Fred's been ranting and raving all morning, like he's channelling Mum or something," Ron replied, huffing an uncomfortable laugh. "I'm pretty sure he's called Malfoy by every name under the sun. George is quieter and you might think that he's taking it well but I can see that it's killing him."
"Is there anything I can do?" Harry asked, feeling a little awkward. He had been looking forward to getting out of the house, he hadn't realised that he would essentially be entering a war zone.
"You could do an interview with the Prophet telling them that Happiness doesn't have any adverse effects," Fred suggested, muscling in on their conversation. "That should put an end to Lucius Malfoy's schemes."
Harry frowned. "I don't know if I can do that though. I'm pretty sure I did suffer some effects from the drug."
"It's not a drug!" Fred whined.
"What my brother is trying to say, Harry, is that you didn't suffer any effects other than feeling happy," George explained.
Harry was about to reiterate his point when Hermione stepped in.
"You used opium in the concoction, of course there was more to it than just feeling a bit happy!"
"That is a muggle drug," Fred insisted. "It doesn't affect magicals in the same way."
"It's how we know Malfoy is talking rubbish," George added. "It can't possibly be anything like he's suggesting."
"But how do you know?" Hermione pushed. "It's not like all of the ingredients listed are mundane." Ron was glaring daggers at Hermione but she seemed to be ignoring it.
"Of course they're not," Fred huffed. "It wouldn't be a magical potion otherwise."
"We did do testing," George insisted, "even on ourselves. There was nothing as dangerous as Malfoy is suggesting."
"Malfoy is just pissed off that some Weasleys are doing well, and in business at that," Fred spat. "He's just trying to destroy us to make sure no one in this family is able to make a name for themselves in society."
"It's because of Ginny as well, I'm sure of it," Mrs Weasley argued, joining in the conversation, the children having apparently come across a subject that she cared about. "I know that Ginny was already garnering talk about her season. Malfoy is purposely trying to ruin her entry into society to make sure she can't make a good match."
"He really is an underhanded bastard!" Mr Weasley growled. Harry noticed that Ginny had darted out of the backdoor however and he followed her, wanting to make sure she was ok. Ginny just smiled at him when Harry approached.
"You know, the funny thing is I'm not even entirely sure that I want a season," she admitted as Harry approached.
Harry frowned. "Really? From how you were talking last time I would have assumed you were all for it."
"Oh, don't get me wrong, I love the idea of the parties and getting dressed up, I can like clothes and sports you know. I'm not overly fussed about the pressure that will be on me though. Mum remembers her season fondly and wants me to experience the same but she forgets that she had already found Dad by that point so her season was just a formality. She never had to worry about making a good match, " Ginny sighed.
" Is that what you really want?" Harry queried. "To make a good match."
"Honestly, what I really want is to play Quidditch," Ginny admitted. "Unfortunately places on major teams are scarce and it would take a lot of training to get to that level and the problem is that I want to eventually have a family as well but if I wait to do Quidditch first then all of the good men will be gone. It's why I'm choosing to have a season first now, to try to maximise my chances of finding a good man who I'm attracted to who will also let me pursue a Quidditch career."
"Not too much to ask then," Harry chuckled.
"It is my future we're talking about, why shouldn't I be a little selfish," Ginny smiled. "And I don't expect you to fully understand. You're a man, you can basically do what you like. As a woman I may be able to work in the wizarding world but it is still essentially expected that I will end my career to look after any children I have meaning any Quidditch career I do manage to get has a time limit on it as to whenever I get pregnant. Hopefully that is something I have a large say in but I have heard some horror stories."
"I can see that being a scary thought," Harry sighed. "It's a shame you feel like you can't make a choice but I hope for the best for you in the New Year. You deserve to be able to have a career and a family."
"Thank you Harry," Ginny beamed, "that's just given me a lot of hope."
"No problem," Harry smiled. "Now should we get back inside and see if lunch is ready. I don't know about you but I'm starving and I don't want to arrive late to the table only to realise everything has gone."
"Don't worry, Mum would never let you go hungry," Ginny assured him, but she got up and made her way towards the house anyway. She seemed in a better mood at least and Harry was glad. She seemed like a nice girl, plus she was Ron's sister, and Harry didn't like seeing her upset. He genuinely wanted the best for the Weasleys although, at the moment, things didn't look so great.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The Essence of Ingredients
Lunch at the Weasleys was an incredibly tense affair and Harry made a hasty exit afterwards, not helped by Fred's continued pleas for Harry to step forward and say that it wasn't a dangerous drug and the way Ginny kept sending him strange looks and touching him. Nothing major, just the odd brush against his fingers or arm. It was innocuous enough at first but it had happened frequently enough for Harry to become aware of it and feel uncomfortable. He felt a bit bad lying and saying he had to get back for a lesson with Professor Snape. Hermione had looked at him a little strangely at first, likely noticing that Harry hadn't mentioned it prior to that. Thankfully she had been prevented from saying anything by Fred suddenly going on a tirade against their former Potions Master. Even Mr Weasley had joined in, adding that Snape and Malfoy had long been friends.
While they were ranting Harry had yelled a quick goodbye and dived out the door. The only problem was that it was still quite early in the afternoon and Harry didn't actually have anything to do for the rest of the day so, instead of heading straight back home he decided to go for a bit of a walk around Ron's village. He didn't come across the scowling man again but he did come across the blonde haired girl he had spoken to before. He smiled at her and waved but she only looked at Harry with a slight frown marring her forehead.
"Hello again, it's Luna right? Is something the matter?" Harry asked.
"I had thought that the Wrackspurts might have left you alone by now but they seem to be buzzing about you even more than before," she sighed.
Harry frowned in thought. "I think I might be starting to understand what you mean by Wrackspurts, and, if I'm right, I had started to get better but then something's happening that's hurting my friends and I'm worried."
"You shouldn't worry about things that you can't control," Luna said, looking surprisingly sage for a moment. "That is especially true when it comes to other people. It can be hard enough when it comes to our own lives, trying to dictate other people's is just impossible. I always find it better to just accept that other people will act in whatever way they see fit and we just have to accept that."
"What if someone acts in a way you don't like?" Harry asked, feeling quite confused.
"Well my advice would be to stay away from them," Luna replied. "Obviously if they are doing something legally wrong then you should alert the authorities but if they are merely behaving in a way that offends you then you should just walk away and try to minimise your involvement with them. Sometimes that can be a bit difficult, as I found at school. When you spend most of your life in a dorm with people then it is very difficult to keep your distance."
"Why is it up to me to change!" Harry huffed. "Why shouldn't they be the ones to?"
"Have you ever tried to get someone to change by becoming confrontational?" Harry nodded. "And, did it work?" Harry thought for a moment and then gaped when she realised it hadn't. Luna just smiled. "I would bet that it tended to make things worse as well. That's why walking away is often best. I've found that people like that tend to want the attention of the confrontation and doing the opposite usually makes them bored and move on. Of course there are always exceptions though."
"I suppose," Harry smiled. "I'll admit I'd never thought about it that way. I always felt as if I had to
do
something, if you know what I mean."
Luna tilted her head. "I can't actually say I have. It's always been obvious to me that you can't change people.".
Harry laughed. "I suppose that's true. I have to say you're an interesting person to talk to Luna."
"I agree," Luna smiled. "I feel it's always interesting to talk to people who have a different perspective to you."
"I can definitely see that," Harry grinned. "Perhaps you should come round for tea one day."
"That sounds lovely," Luna beamed. "But please don't give the usual 4 to 6 week notice. I really can't stand that much anticipation, especially if it is only for an informal affair."
"So one to two weeks then," Harry chuckled, "although it will depend on what my house elf says. She still has me banned from the kitchens and basement."
Luna nodded with approval. "You should listen to house elves, they are usually very wise."
"I suppose there are some exceptions," Harry joked.
"There always are," Luna laughed. "Until next time Mr Potter."
"I shall send an owl shortly, Miss?"
"Lovegood, Luna Lovegood, and I look forward to it, especially if you have some Dirigible plum scones."
Harry set off in higher spirits than he had been all day and a part of him wondered if a friendship with Luna might be good for him. She had a very different perspective from anyone he had met before and that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Unfortunately his good mood didn't last though, as the next day brought a message from Professor Snape that Harry would have yet another lesson with him. Harry wasn't entirely sure why he had so many potions lessons compared to the others, although Flitwick had been away at the beginning so it was possible that the other teachers were busy with their lives outside of the school. Harry had a feeling Snape didn't really have a life outside of work and potions which might explain why he was more able to give up a few hours to tutor Harry.
Harry spent the morning discussing the arrangements for an afternoon tea with Mimby. She had turned her nose up at the idea of Dirigible plum scones but she said she had an idea that might suit everyone. Harry had been a bit worried about the idea of giving the elf more work but she seemed to be really enjoying coming up with menu options and Harry figured the change from cleaning and repairing things was probably a much appreciated break. Either that or she actually enjoyed planning events, an idea Harry got after Mimby sat him down to write the invitations after they had decided on the menu, even supplying a template for Harry to follow. Even still it took Harry several attempts to get it right; he hadn't realised how hard it was to write with a quill, especially if he had to make things neat as well. He had invited Luna but Mimby insisted that him just inviting her was inappropriate and he would need more people. Harry's first thought was to Ron and Hermione then, almost as an afterthought, he penned one to Neville as well. He wasn't sure if Neville's gran would even let him accept the invitation but he hoped the thought would be appreciated regardless. He had just finished the last one when he heard the Floo chime announcing the Professor's arrival.
"I apologise that I wasn't here to greet you," Harry said as he rushed down the stairs. "I had some letters to write."
"That is perfectly alright Mr Potter, I do not expect you to stand around waiting for me, I am not some imbecile," Snape huffed. "I am perfectly capable of making my own way over to the potions lab. In fact that might be preferable in the future so that I am able to set up without being interrupted or stared at."
Harry chuckled as he shook his head as he began leading the way to the lab. "I'll try to remember that for the future. Speaking of interruptions though, can I ask you a question about potions ingredients?"
"I'm almost certain you can," Snape smirked, "whether you
may
or not is yet to be seen?" Harry looked at Snape quizzically and the man just rolled his eyes. "Can refers to your ability to do something, if you
couldn't
ask a question it would suggest you had suddenly lost your ability to communicate. If you are asking whether you're allowed to ask a question or not, the word to use is 'may'."
"Alright," Harry said, trying to process the information. "In that case Professor, may I ask you a question about potion ingredients?"
"I suppose, especially as you'll probably ask whether I give you permission or not" Snape sighed. Harry thought there was a ghost of a smile around his lips but the expression was gone so quickly he thought he might have imagined it.
"Go on then Potter, spit it out!" Snape hissed when Harry had gotten lost in thought momentarily.
Harry just rolled his eyes, remembering Luna's words about not being able to change who people were. "Well sir, it's just that someone said to me the other day that some things don't affect wizards the same as muggles so I was wondering what that would mean for potions? I mean some of the ingredients we've used haven't been magical."
"Indeed Potter, that is a surprisingly good question. I will use the magical fertiliser potion to explain, not the one we are making today but perhaps one we can work on next time, especially as I heard you are making good headway on your planting," Snape said, as the pair walked into the potions lab. Snape used his wand to create a blackboard and wrote out the ingredients on it.
Dried Kelp
Bones
Plimpy Eyes
Dragon dung
"Dragon dung!" Harry exclaimed.
"Indeed," Snape smirked. "Used due to the sheer quantity of it available in the dragon sanctuaries. There are some people who believe this recipe works best with manure from a magical creature but I've found the recipe works with any manure although, in the magical world, magical creature excrement is usually easier to come by. This is what acts as the base of the potion and the bone and kelp add extra nutrients. There is nothing particularly special about these ingredients and a muggle could get them and mix them together to make a decent fertiliser for their plants but it wouldn't be magical. In order for that to occur the brewer has to add a spark of their own magic, by waving their wand, part of the reason why Squibs struggle with brewing."
"What's a squib?" Harry asked.
"Someone born into the magical world with a very low magical ability, or sometimes no magical ability whatsoever."
"That's sad," Harry sighed. "By the way, you didn't mention the Plimpy eyes."
"Well spotted Mr Potter and I'm glad to see you're paying attention," Snape smirked. "The Plimpy eyes are the other way magic is added to a potion. If you look over the potions in your book you will find that most of them contain the majority mundane ingredients, with one, or maybe two magical ones. Let's see if you can spot which ones are which in today's potion."
Snape tapped the blackboard with his wand and the words instantly changed from Magical Fertiliser to Forgetfulness Potion.
Two drops Lethe River water
Two Valerian sprigs
Two measures Standard Ingredient
Four Mistletoe berries
Harry looked at the board for a minute before saying "Is the Standard Ingredient the magical one?"
"Why do you say that?" Snape questioned, his face remaining blank.
"Well I know Valerian is a common herb, Neville and I were planting some the other day and I know mistletoe is used by muggles at Christmas. I also remember seeing the river Lethe on a map of Alaska."
"Alaska!" Snape exclaimed and Harry smiled.
"Alaska is a fairly newly acquired territory. There are apparently a bunch of people looking to explore the resources there and were looking for people to move up there to oversee. I think my uncle was quite tempted by how much money they were offering until he found out that not only would they be in the wilderness but also in the cold. The man had left the map he had brought of the area, in the hopes that my uncle might change his mind. He didn't, but that meant that I could study it as much as I wanted and I remember there was a river named Lethe."
Snape stood blinking for a few moments and Harry felt a bit smug realising he had just taught this man something he didn't know.
"That is interesting but also wrong. I can understand your confusion but this water comes from one of the fable rivers of the Underworld from Greek mythology, namely the river of unmindfulness, the one that is said to border Elysium, the resting place of the virtuous, according to Statius anyway."
Harry was astounded. "Are you saying that this ingredient has actually come from the underworld, from hell!"
"Of course not!" Snape scoffed. "The river is also said to run through the cave of Hypnos and its murmuring is said to induce sleep, or so Ovid said. There is a cave under Mount Olympus in Greece that is hidden from muggles that seems to have these properties and has been called the Lethe. It is this water that is used."
"So what is the point of the Standard Ingredient then?" Harry asked. "If the river water is the magical one."
"Standard Ingredient which is a blend of various herbs and is frequently used as a base for potions," Snape explained. "Herbologists have determined the blend but the manufacturers argue that the reason their ingredient works so well is that they use specifically selected herbs, with intrinsic magical properties, as opposed to any regular herbs. Others, myself included, think they are just able to choose plants with naturally higher levels of the active ingredients."
"There are active ingredients!" Harry exclaimed.
"Of course Potter," Snape huffed, "or else how would one plant have a different effect from another. Because they are natural, though, the level of those ingredients can vary, the same way apples from the same tree can vary in sweetness from year to year. Growing conditions can vary the quality of an ingredient and a good potioneer will be able to tell this and adjust a potion accordingly.
"Now, getting back to the ingredients themselves: Standard Ingredient provides the base for the potion, Valerian is used for cleansing and mistletoe berries can be used for protection in some potions but, in this case, are used to repel negativity. Muggles could blend these ingredients and may experience a mild cleansing effect but it is a wizard's magic and the river water that truly make it a Forgetfulness potion. Now, enough of the lecture, let's see how well you can brew it."
Harry got to work and he had to admit that things made a lot more sense now that he understood why the different ingredients were used and what they did. He supposed some people could simply follow a recipe, like making a cake, and produce adequate results but Harry had always needed to understand the importance of each stage to be able to truly grasp something. For example, knowing that the river water was the magical ingredient, Harry was very careful with adding the two drops as well as heating it, assuming that the fact that it needed a gentle heat meant that it was easily distorted. He also assumed that, since the mistletoe berries were meant to repel negativity, and the standard ingredient didn't add too much, that he could be quite generous with the two pinches of the ground ingredients. When he was done Snape actually looked a little impressed.
"Well done Mr Potter, it seems you can be taught."
"Thank you sir," Harry smiled. "It's easier for me to understand the steps when I know why they're happening."
"Is it now," Snape murmured. "Well in that case, for your next lesson I want you to research a recipe and source the ingredients for a magical fertiliser. I won't give you a date for that lesson so I suggest you don't procrastinate too much."
"Ok, would you like to stay for lunch sir," Harry asked, more out of habit than anything although he was finding he wasn't minding the man's brusque nature as much as usual and wondered if that was because he was accepting it as opposed to fighting against it. Not that it mattered, Snape declined again, blaming his schedule once more although Harry had a feeling that it was more an excuse. Snape had hesitated for a little longer this time but had looked a little uncomfortable as he contemplated the idea. Harry couldn't say he minded though, he wasn't entirely sure what he would talk to the man about other than potions and Harry's knowledge of that subject was not at a level where he could hold an actual conversation about it.
"By the by," Snape said, just as he was about to go. "Forgetfulness potion has limited uses, especially as its effects tend to be random. It has been noted however that pervasive memories are almost always removed, especially if those memories are disturbing your sleep. Its effects are only temporary but it does not have the addictive nature of other potions such as Dreamless sleep." With that he walked out the door and Harry was left wondering just what that was all about.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Conflicting Requests
Harry was in the library the next day trying to see if there was anything that might be helpful to him for his homework when there was a knock at the door. This he found incredibly strange as he couldn't remember giving anyone his address, except those he'd invited to tea, but he didn't think any of them would just turn up unannounced. Wondering if it might be Ron, feeling like he could return Harry's visit as Harry had been to his house a few times now, Harry opened the door and was shocked to see a very big, very hairy man standing there.
"Is that you Harry? You ain't half changed since I last saw you although you were only a wee babe back then."
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Harry asked.
"Oh, course, how silly of me. I'm Rubeus Hagrid, keeper of the keys and grounds at Hogwarts. Oh, and I'm also the Care of Magical Creatures Professor, I keep forgetting that one."
"That sounds like a lot of responsibilities," Harry smiled.
"Oh it is," the man, Hagrid, chuckled. "I don't mind being busy though."
"That's nice and all," Harry said, "but can I ask what that's got to do with me."
"Oh nothing really," Hagrid laughed, "except that Professor Dumbledore mentioned to me that you were looking out for some creatures to rear at your house here and I came across a couple of Mooncalves that I thought you might be interested in looking after. I found these two young 'uns abandoned, parents were probably killed somewhere, they were so weak they didn't even bother to hide themselves when I came by. I would look after them myself but I got a few other creatures taking my time and these little fellas are going to need quite a lot of attention for a while. I was talking to Professor Dumbledore about it when he mentioned you and said that you might be interested."
"Oh, that sounds great," Harry grinned, an expression that only got bigger as Hagrid led him over to a motorbike where there were two small creatures strapped into the sidecar. They seemed quite small and scared and Harry's heart immediately went out to them. They looked quite strange, with their squat bodies and elongated necks but there was something about their big, blue-green eyes that tugged at Harry's heartstrings and made him want to protect them. He got Hagrid to drive the bike around the side of the house and down the path to where the enclosures were, picking out one of the better ones although it still needed some work. Harry was a little surprised though when he realised that, despite being a teacher, Hagrid wasn't actually able to do magic.
"I got into a bit of trouble when I was at Hogwarts and got myself expelled before I could take my O.W.Ls," Hagrid explained. "It weren't actually my fault though which is why Dumbledore took pity on me, getting me this job. He also gave me the ability to do a bit of magic but I have to be careful about that, don't want him getting into trouble for bending the rules a bit."
Harry agreed, causing Hagrid to smile. He was glad that he'd been practicing his charms a bit and he was able to fix up the place without needing to call Mimby. Hagrid helped him get the Mooncalves settled, giving Harry some food and hay for them. He helped them settle in, explaining to Harry that they normally made burrows in the ground and hid away, when Harry started to get a bit worried about their behaviour. For some reason Hagrid looked a little surprised when Harry thanked him for bringing them and bid him farewell but he perked up when Harry asked him to bring by any other creatures that needed a new home. Realising that he would need to get some knowledge on animal rearing, Harry headed over to Diagon Alley to see what he could find in the book shop.
He knew he had a library at the house but many of them were old. As far as he was aware farming and animal rearing was an ever changing field which meant that there was a chance that any books in the house were very out of date. He was a little surprised to note that there was actually only one book really available. He had asked the clerk, who was actually available today, and he said that they had also stocked another one, called The Monster Book of Monsters but that there had been one too many incidents where the book had gotten loose and eaten part of their stock so they had had to remove their stock of them. It sounded ridiculous to Harry, a book eating other books, but the clerk seemed quite serious about it so Harry could only assume it was true, and that that probably wasn't the book for him. He bought a copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them though, especially as it had such a glowing recommendation from Dumbledore inside.
He got home, determined to learn all that he could about Mooncalves when he was distracted by a very majestic looking owl waiting for him. Mimby had said that the owl had refused to let her take the letter it was carrying, even going so far as to bite her when she tried to take it. Harry had been shocked to hear that, only breathing a sigh of relief when Mimby showed him that she had already healed it. He approached the bird with caution which the owl almost seemed to find amusing, shaking its head before thrusting its leg out to the timid boy. Harry was just removing the letter when the owl suddenly threw its head down as if it were going to bite him and Harry jumped back with a shriek. The owl seemed to find it hilarious and screeched with laughter before taking off, leaving Harry to try to calm his rapidly beating heart. The letter turned out to be from Lucius Malfoy, the man from the article in the Prophet the other day.
Dear Mr Potter,
I am writing to invite you to a special sitting of Wizengamot next Monday, to give you a chance to talk to the members about your experience with the drug known as Happiness. As someone who had their name smeared in the papers not so long ago I thought this would be the ideal opportunity for you to get your side of things across.
As I said the meeting is on Monday, at 10 o'clock in Meeting Room 3. Of course you are welcome to make your own way there but I thought it might be nice for us to meet sometime before that to discuss the process and maybe go over your story so that you have the facts clear in your head.
I look forward to hearing from you soon,
Yours faithfully,
Lucius Malfoy
Harry stared at the letter in shock. He couldn't believe that he was being asked to go to this meeting by a man he had never met before. Well, when he really thought about it he supposed he could. Mr Malfoy was right when he said that Harry's name had been slandered in the press because of this drug so it was quite logical that Harry might, in fact,
want
to clear his name and restore his reputation. The problem for Malfoy, however, was two fold. Firstly Harry didn't particularly care about his reputation. He wanted to be able to walk down the street without risking getting jeered at but, beyond that, he didn't particularly care. Mimby would probably like him to have a better standing in society, she had been hinting at Harry holding a dinner party if his afternoon tea went well, but Harry wasn't sure if he'd ever have a big enough acquaintance for that, or if he wanted one.
The second problem for Mr Malfoy was the Weasleys. Harry felt a great appreciation for that family, for the way they just accepted him, and, while he might not feel comfortable doing what Fred asked and saying he suffered no ill effects from taking their concoction, that didn't mean he felt comfortable making things worse for them either. When he'd visited the other day it had been clear that they had been worried about the consequences of Mr Malfoy's campaign. From what Harry could gather the twins had built up their business from scratch, a very admirable feat in his view, and he certainly didn't want to do anything to risk ruining that. Thankfully he had a perfect excuse for not attending as it was the same day as his tea party. Admittedly the tea party was several hours after the start of the meeting but Harry didn't know how long the meeting would last plus, as host, he would need to be around to make sure everything was set up. Feeling happy about the way things had worked out Harry quickly penned a reply to Mr Malfoy.
Dear Mr Malfoy,
Thank you for your invitation but I'm afraid that I have a prior engagement that day so I won't be able to attend the meeting.
Sincerely yours,
Harry Potter
Harry spent the afternoon reading up on his Mooncalves. There wasn't huge amounts of information but he was surprised to learn that their manure was specifically stated to help plants grow but only when harvested on a full moon. Harry hadn't paid attention to the moon cycles since he had arrived but he made a point to start and contemplated starting a journal, to try to make note of any changes in his animals as well. He was just contemplating popping over to Diagon Alley to get some supplies when his Floo chimed and he looked to see Ron strolling out.
"Sorry to drop by unannounced like this but I could really use a drink. I have a feeling the Leaky is going to be insufferable today and I thought I remembered you saying there was a pub round here."
Harry smiled. "Yes, the Niffler's Snout, in the village, I'd been meaning to check it out actually."
"Good," Ron grinned. "Let's go."
Harry bid goodbye to Mimby and let her know that he would probably get some dinner down at the pub and headed out with Ron. Ron was quite impressed with the house as they walked out, having yet to actually see it, and, for a while, the pair of them talked about the repairs that Harry, and mostly Mimby, had been making. That talk got a little derailed when Harry mentioned sorting out the potions lab and Ron shuddered, remembering his potions lessons from the past, a subject that Ron had detested but that Harry was slowly finding intriguing. The mention of potions however brought up the Potions Master, Snape, and Ron ended up spending the whole walk to the village on a massive tirade against the man. Apparently he was a good friend of Lucius Malfoy and Ron was convinced that Malfoy had gotten Snape to falsify the information against the twins' product.
Harry nodded along, wanting to agree with Ron but something about that theory just didn't quite sit right. Snape was definitely a brusque, gruff individual who had little patience for anyone, especially people who didn't seem to try but, for some reason. It's not like Harry knew the man, certainly not as well as Ron who had apparently had him as a teacher for 7 years, and he didn't know anything about this Lucius Malfoy character other than his name, so logic said that he ought to defer to Ron's opinion on the matter. Still, something about the idea didn't quite sit right with Harry and he couldn't help remembering that Snape questioned him about that night at the party long before anyone even mentioned narcotics.
Ron seemed happy to rant though so Harry just let him let off steam as they walked through the village streets, simply making vague sounds of agreement as they walked along. The problem was that Harry was so worried about the conversation, trying to pay enough attention to make the correct sounds, that he forgot to pay attention to where they were walking and ended up on the other side of the village. Harry was wondering which was the best way to go when a couple of farmers came walking down the road.
"Excuse me, you don't happen to know how to get to the Niffler's Snout, I seem to have gotten a bit lost," Harry admitted a little sheepishly.
"Lucky for you we're heading that way ourselves," one of the men said. "Just tag along with us."
"Thank you very much," Harry sighed.
"You new to the area then?" the second man asked.
"Fairly new," Harry chuckled. "I just inherited a house on the other side of town. I'm Harry by the way, and this is my friend Ron."
"Nice to meet you Harry. I'm Jimmy," the first man, Jimmy, said, "and this here is Nate. We got some land about halfway between this village and the next one and we tend to split our time between the two."
"Except market day," the second man, Nate, pointed out. "That is always Godric's Hollow."
"That's good to know," Harry smiled. "If you're farmers though, do you mind if I ask you a question. It's just the land around my house has been left for too long but I wanted to get it to the stage where it was producing crops again, only really for me, mind, but I was wondering if you had any tips." It wasn't a complete lie, he definitely would need a way to get the fallow fields up to quality again and he couldn't exactly talk to people he assumed were muggles about potions. The fact that he wouldn't have to mention his lessons or Snape around Ron was just an added bonus.
"Well good old fashioned manure is your best bet," Jimmy replied. "It's got a bit of everything your plants need. If you can work it through the soil nicely then you'll find your crops will come through well. If you haven't got any animals around though you can always start a compost heap. It's a good way to get rid of kitchen waste and get good crops."
"There are other things you can do at different times though," Nate added. "Bone meal is good at planting time and can be mixed into water throughout the growing season as well, especially if you have a small patch. Fish bones are good as well, if you have your own pond. You can even use the pond water to water the plants sometimes."
"Gotta be careful with how much of that you use though," Jimmy warned. "My mum used to use Comfrey water on ours. She would stick the stems in vats of stored water for at least a week and then use that over the crops. She had to be careful not to use one of the vats my dad used for pee though."
"Your dad stored pee!" Ron exclaimed.
"Oh yes," Jimmy chuckled. "He used to swear by it and he was a 5 time winner of the marrow growing competition at the summer fair so he must have been doing something right though. He said it was best to leave it though, the longer the better. Mum hated the idea of eating plants that my dad had basically weed on though which is why she used the Comfrey tea, as she called it."
"Is wee that much worse than animal poop?" Harry queried.
"That's what my dad used to argue," Jimmy laughed. "Anyway, here we are." Harry breathed a sigh of relief at having found the place but was now at a loss for how to not end up having to sit with the two men all evening. They seemed nice enough but Ron clearly needed to talk about things that couldn't be mentioned in front of non-magical people. Thankfully Harry noticed a stationary store across the road that was still open and told the two men to go in without them, diving into the store as quickly as he could before it shut. Ron didn't seem too impressed at coming to the shop but he understood when they were done and Harry led him to the back entrance to the pub. Ron was quite impressed by the little snug, helped by the fact that they were the only ones there which made a nice change from the busy Leaky Cauldron.
"Hello again Harry, I was wondering if you were ever going to show up again," Clarissa said after Harry called for service.
"Hello again Clarissa, and sorry about that it was just, with everything that was in the papers I thought I had best keep a low profile until things eased off."
"I was just joking," Clarissa laughed. "If anything, your absence was a good thing. I had that Skeeter woman come in after the article first broke, wondering if you came into the pub at all and I was able to answer quite honestly that I had seen you once when you'd flooed into town but hadn't seen hide nor hair of you since. She hung about for a bit, as if to check my word, and hasn't been back since."
"That's good to know, in that case can we have two pints please."
"Is that beer or cider?" Clarissa asked.
"I assume you mean hard cider," Harry queried and Clarissa laughed again.
"Not sure what you mean by 'hard' but it's definitely alcoholic. There's some sweeter stuff which the women sometimes prefer but I always keep a couple of casks of scrumpy for the farmers. That stuff'll put hairs on your chest."
Harry glanced over to Ron who was pulling a face at the idea. "I think we'll just stick to beer for now."
"Coming right up then chaps." Clarissa poured them their drinks and then left them to it, much to Ron's seeming relief.
"You have no idea how good it is to get away from all that nonsense," he sighed.
"Is it really that bad?" Harry asked and Ron scoffed.
"It's worse mate. There's a call for an investigation into my dad as they think he's smuggling muggle stuff to the twins and I've actually had people questioning whether I'm fit to do my job because I'm related to Dark wizards. They're calling my brothers Dark wizards, Harry, like they're death eaters or something."
"What's a death eater?" Harry queried.
"They were you-know-who's followers," Ron replied. "Malfoy was a death eater, although he was never convicted but everyone knows it. Snape was a death eater as well, that's how they knew each other. That's why I know it's a conspiracy. The twins did nothing wrong but now their shop is being boycotted and people are saying they're poisoning people."
"That's horrible!" Harry exclaimed. "I mean they test their products before selling them right?"
"Of course they do!" Ron yelled. "There's a whole process to make sure that things work and they always say how much to take. Even that Happiness stuff says only to use a sprinkle."
"But they didn't test what happens when you mix it with alcohol though, right?"
"Why would they! It said to put a sprinkle on your food if you were feeling down. Why would anyone read that and think that it should be mixed with alcohol!"
"But they did though," Harry pointed out.
"Yeah and they're still fine right," Ron huffed. "I mean you didn't suffer any adverse effects. Maybe Fred is right. If you do an interview in the paper, or talk at that Wizengamot meeting then you can prove that Malfoy is talking a load of bollocks."
"But that's the thing Ron, I'm not sure I didn't."
"You're not going to blame my brothers for your bad decisions are you?" Ron sneered.
"Of course not, they didn't make me do it but I definitely wasn't in my right mind when I agreed," Harry argued.
Ron looked aghast. "You're not going to say that at the Wizengamot are you?"
"Of course not," Harry hissed. "I couldn't do that to you or your family. Mr Malfoy wrote to me and asked but I turned him down."
Ron's face brightened. "So you are going to speak up for Fred and George then!"
"No Ron! I said I'm not going to do that because I can't say that that potion didn't affect me for sure. It certainly felt different from other times when I've been drunk. Plus I only took it that one day, I don't know if other people had had worse effects if they've taken it more regularly. Me on my own might not make any difference anyway. You said the twins did testing beyond what the government asked, right?" Ron nodded. "Can they not point that out and put some better labelling on there or something, maybe even change the formula a bit?"
"And admit that Malfoy was right? Fat chance!" Ron snarled. "That will be the end of their business."
"You don't know that," Harry sighed. "America brought in new labelling laws and Coca-Cola had to change their formula because it turned out that their original recipe actually used cocaine and people didn't realise. They're still going strong though."
"That's America though. Trust me when I say wizarding Britain isn't that forgiving. My mum used to sell some potions out of the kitchen to make a bit more money for the family but even people who have been buying off her for years are cancelling orders and even sending stuff back and the twins have got it far worse. That's why we need you to try to fight for this! Dumbledore's doing what he can but he never took it. You did so you can say that it made you happy, just like advertised, and nothing else, that it's not dangerous."
"But I can't Ron!" Harry insisted.
"Really!" Ron scoffed. "And here I was thinking you were my friend. My family welcomed you into their home, fed you and helped you when you needed it but now that we need some help you conveniently find an excuse not to!"
"It's not an excuse!" Harry pleaded.
"Not denying it's convenient though!" Ron jeered and he quickly downed his pint. "I had hoped that you would be a decent bloke but I can see I was wrong and I really don't think that you're the sort of person I want to be hanging around with. And, if it wasn't clear, I won't be coming to your little tea party next week. I would give you the courtesy of a written reply but I can't be arsed, I'm too busy trying to help my family."
With that he stormed out of the pub leaving Harry on his own to wonder what exactly he'd done wrong.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Trials and Transfigurations
Mimby was quite surprised when Harry came home in the evening having expected him to be out until closing. Harry had felt a bit awkward though, sitting in the snug on his own so he had finished his pint and gone round to the front, apologising to Jimmy and Nate for his delay and explaining he had just had a blazing row with his friend. The two men had offered him commiserations and hoped that things would work out for Harry eventually, buying him a pint of the scrumpy Clarissa had told him about. Harry could definitely understand why they drank it, he found it very refreshing, and the two farmers had to keep telling Harry to slow down if he wasn't used to the stuff.
He had felt grateful to them and, since he had already told Mimby he would be staying out for dinner he offered to pay for the two farmers as well. Jimmy had laughed saying they never turned down free food and the trio had enjoyed a hearty plate of Shepherd's pie, and another drink bought by the farmers. Harry had felt himself getting a little light headed by the end of the second and the farmers said they had to be up early the next day to check on the harvest so they called it a night. Mimby was glad that Harry had had the sense when to call it time on his drinking and had set him up with a drink and some bread and jam in his study while he wrote down what he'd learned from the farmers about fertilisers.
Harry was surprised himself when he woke up the next day without a hangover and he felt he could truly see the benefits in moderation when it came to drinking: a little was fun, especially in a social situation, but too much frequently led to trouble. He would definitely try to keep an eye out for his limit in future as it was nice to wake up and not have to deal with the aftereffects of too heavy a night out. He was thoroughly enjoying his breakfast as he thought this when a couple of owls arrived. One was from Neville, accepting his invitation to tea. It turned out that this news about the Weasleys really had put a different spin on the events of that night and his gran now saw him as an innocent victim who needed help navigating the dangerous world that was British wizarding society. Harry wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that but at least it meant that there was one person coming.
Unfortunately he wondered if it really would only be one as the second owl came from Hermione who said that she would be too busy with the emergency Wizengamot hearing to be able to come. Harry was sure it was an excuse, especially as the party would be a good 5 hours after the meeting. She was Ron's fiancée though so Harry wasn't overly surprised at the refusal after his blow up with Ron and at least she had tried to come up with a reason. After all there was a chance that she might have some work to do after the meeting was over although Harry wasn't sure how the Weasley situation was supposed to affect the Department for Magical Creatures, or whatever that ridiculously long name was. At least he was fairly sure Luna would be replying in the affirmative so he didn't need to risk having to cancel.
He did get another owl in the afternoon, but it was from Professor McGonagall, not Luna. She was apparently the Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts as well as the Transfigurations teacher and she was letting Harry know that she would be in the area the next day and could come by for a lesson. Harry agreed saying he would be around the house all day so to come round whenever she was free. He spent the day discussing his potential fertiliser with Mimby. The elf had also been a little dubious about using urine but had agreed to try. Harry didn't know if there would be enough time for it though, Jimmy had said that leaving it longer was better and Snape would likely be there in less than a week. Thankfully Mimby knew where some Comfrey was and Harry put some into water vats, keeping some more aside for the potion.
The traditional formula called for Kelp but Harry thought that the Comfrey might be a good alternative, especially if it was something he had to hand. He had the Mooncalves as well and Mimby informed him that it would be a full moon on the Monday and, since Snape would almost certainly be busy with the trial, Harry felt he had a good chance of being able to get the really good stuff for his potion. He had the thought of using Plimpy bones instead of eyes as he'd been told that fish bones were good for helping plants as well, and he had just realised that Plimpies were fish thanks to his Fantastic Beasts book. Mimby had pointed out that those weren't normally sold as potions ingredients but that they could try them and she went to the pond in the grounds to see if she could find any. The final ingredient Harry thought to use was potash and Mimby said that was very easy to come by.
The next day Harry was surprised to receive a very pretty letter that Mimby said had been hand delivered by Luna early that morning and Harry was a little sad that he'd missed her. He was quite surprised to see the reply written on paper as opposed to parchment but he thought the blossom petals that were embedded in it were a wonderful touch. He was happy to see that he was right and she was definitely coming on Monday but he did have to laugh that she had once again issued a plea for Dirigible plum scones and even supplied a recipe. Harry found it funny but Mimby pulled a face. It wasn't until Harry pointed out that he was more likely to get Luna coming back that she relented and said she would whip a
small
batch, if only to ensure Harry got a reputation as a good host.
Professor McGonagall arrived while Harry was in the middle of eating lunch on the terrace, having spent the morning checking out the orchard that he had formerly considered part of the woods. Mimby had informed him that there should be some Dirigible Plum trees there, among a few other fruit trees. He had been quite surprised to see the things growing upside-down although at least there was a fair number of them. There had also been a fair few plums ready which Harry collected, much to Mimby's delight. Harry offered the professor some food but she said she had already eaten and would set up the classroom. The woman gave off a very no-nonsense aura and Harry found himself speeding through his lunch to make sure she wasn't waiting too long.
He had never done transfigurations before so was quite curious about the subject and found himself taking notes as Professor McGonagall explained about the principles of transfigurations. She then had Harry practice changing a match into a needle, something Harry found quite tricky, only managing either a metal match or a wooden needle. Harry asked the professor for guidance and McGonagall simply pointed Harry to the transfigurations equation and told him to make firmer wand movements, visualising the change. It took Harry over half an hour to achieve a proper needle, although it was still fairly match sized, and Professor McGonagall called it a day, advising Harry to practice on his own. Harry understood in theory but he couldn't help wondering what the point was since, as a wizard, he theoretically had use for neither a match or a needle.
After the lesson Professor McGonagall suggested that they sit down for a chess match, something Harry readily agreed to. He had been growing a bit bored recently without any company. He loved Mimby but she was usually very busy trying to sort out the house so Harry didn't want to disturb her and he did think he would be welcome round the Weasleys any time soon. The idea of Wizard's Chess definitely intrigued him at first and it was quite fun watching the pieces get smashed although he was so engrossed in that he wasn't really paying attention to how he was playing which was why he was immensely shocked when he realised that he had destroyed quite a lot of his professor's pieces when McGonagall finally called "checkmate". Professor McGonagall seemed a little impressed as well, asking Harry what made him use such unorthodox moves. Unfortunately she seemed somewhat less impressed when Harry said he was just moving pieces in a way that was most likely to see them smashed. It caused her to set up the blackboard again and give Harry a lecture on how chess was supposed to be played, trying to work out what your opponent would and plan accordingly. It was fine in theory but Harry just couldn't really grasp the concept himself and quickly reverted to reacting as opposed to planning. They called it a day after their second game, which Harry had lost resoundingly despite the hints McGonagall dropped through the game, and Harry couldn't help feeling that she was both exasperated and a little disappointed when she left.
Despite finding chess incredibly boring Harry would still have happily welcomed McGonagall back, or even Snape by the time Saturday rolled around so, when Mimby popped up to inform him that Neville had arrived in the greenhouses and Harry bolted outside as quickly as he could. Neville took one look at him as he burst through the door and burst out laughing.
"You're lucky I grew up in a boarding school or I might think you actually were trying to seduce me."
Harry looked down at himself, realising he was still in his pyjamas.
Harry blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, sorry, I just got really excited when Mimby said you were here." Neville gaped at Harry. "Not like that! I really need to think about what I say before I say it."
"That might be a good idea," Neville chuckled.
"Thanks for the support," Harry smirked sardonically. "But seriously, I've been so bored around here recently, when Mimby said you were here I didn't see the point in waiting."
"I'll take that as a compliment I guess," Neville laughed, "although I have to admit that I'm slightly surprised you're still in your pyjamas at 10 o'clock."
Harry shrugged a little sheepishly. "Well it's just me here and it's not like I have anything to do so, after Mimby gives me my breakfast I have a tendency to lounge about a bit in bed, reading the papers or a book or something."
"I'm kind of jealous," Neville chuckled. "My Gran would never let me do that. Even when I'm sick she makes me get up and dress, believing that lounging about will only make you worse."
"I suppose that does make a weird sort of sense," Harry mused. "Still, I'd better go get changed if I'm going to help you in here, if you don't mind that is."
Neville said he didn't so Harry smiled his thanks and rushed back into the house to get changed. Mimby was waiting for him when he arrived and gave Harry a very disapproving shake of her head. He muttered a quick apology as he got dressed and headed back out to the greenhouses. He spent the morning hanging out with Neville, learning how to tend to some more of the flowers in the greenhouses and Harry was glad that he was able to collect some ingredients to start building his potions stores, if only so that he didn't have to fork out ridiculous amounts next time he needed to brew something. Neville had also brought the flutterby bushes and fanged geraniums he had promised and Harry was happy to help plant them into the beds around the terrace especially as, when he was done, he felt as if that area was finally finished, an area he had, mostly, done himself.
Harry was a little surprised to see that Neville wasn't in a particular hurry to leave after they had had lunch and Harry was actually happy to learn that the other man was also fairly on his own and was as glad of the company as Harry was. Realising that his new friend wouldn't be disappearing any time soon, Harry decided to show Neville his new Mooncalves, although he felt a little ridiculous when they got to the enclosure and the Mooncalves were nowhere to be seen.
"Didn't you realise that they only come out at night," Neville chuckled. "I always thought the name was a bit of a give away."
"They were awake when Hagrid brought them here," Harry grouced.
"There may have been a reason for that, especially if they were in transit," Neville pointed out. "They burrow down in the day to stay out of the sun and they might not have been able to then."
"Yeah, not really," Harry chuckled.
Neville sighed. "I really do worry about Hagrid sometimes. It was the same at school; he would often set up demonstrations and things but not really think about the big picture, about what the animal might need, especially if having to face a group of fairly clueless students. He cares for the animals and thinks that is enough, he doesn't seem to realise that even minor discomforts can have a big effect."
"At least I'm not the only one who doesn't think about these things," Harry sighed.
"That's good at least," Neville smiled. "Speaking of planning, if you harvest this dung before the sun rises it makes a great fertiliser, especially on a full moon."
"I had read that," Harry grinned. "I was planning on getting some to make magically fertiliser for my potion lesson with Snape."
Neville balked a bit at hearing that name but then looked confused. "I don't remember that potion needing Mooncalf dung, although I might be wrong. Potions really wasn't my best subject."
"It doesn't," Harry assured him. "At least the original recipe doesn't. Snape set me some homework. I have to come up with my own version, sourcing the ingredients myself."
Neville's eyebrows rose to his hairline. "Wow, I don't remember him ever trusting a student with something like that. He must be really impressed with you."
Harry gaped. "I really don't think that's the case. He's always really harsh with me."
"He's harsh with everyone," Neville chuckled. "That man is basically the opposite of warm and cuddly, although Professor Sprout always spoke highly of him. He used to seriously scare me as a child though."
"I suppose he can be fairly intimidating," Harry admitted, "although I appreciated that he takes the time to explain stuff to me. That's how the homework came about. I had asked him how muggle ingredients work in a potion."
"Because of what's going on with the twins!" Neville exclaimed and Harry nodded.
"Precisely. He then broke down what the different ingredients in magical fertiliser did and, to basically prove that I was paying attention, he got me to create my own recipe. I think he might be impressed. I managed to chat to some local farmers and they gave me some hints for stuff. I was lucky when Hagrid brought round the Mooncalves as they should be perfect for switching with the Dragon dung. I've also got some dried comfrey and nettles instead of kelp."
Neville looked thoughtful. "That could work, and it will be much easier to source than kelp since you have so much growing around here."
Harry smiled. "That's what I was going for. I wanted something that I could make from stuff that was readily available around the grounds, cutting costs and hopefully making it even better. With any luck I can really get this place producing soon."
"That's really admirable Harry."
Harry blushed a bit. "Thanks. Anyway, back to my recipe, Mimby is sorting me out some potash, I'm using that principally instead of the bone, but I still wanted bone in there so I figured I could use Plimpy bones instead of eyes as the magical catalyst." At this Neville frowned.
"Is that a potion ingredient? I think I remember Plimpy eyes."
"Mimby said they weren't, no, but fish and bones are meant to be good fertilisers so it made sense to me."
"I still don't know, my Gran always says things are done for a reason which is why it's best not to to mess with them. I don't know if you've noticed it but the wizarding world doesn't really do 'new'?"
Harry frowned. "I suppose, although I can't say I get it. America is all about innovation and improving on stuff that came before. I mean there are always tweaks that can be made here and there on things to improve them, a bit like with this house."
"I suppose," Neville frowned, "and I do understand where you're coming from to some degree but Plimpy bones seem like a step too far to me."
Harry just shrugged and let that subject drop, determined that the bones would work. Neville did, however, point out that the Mooncalf dung could also be used to grow Sopophorous beans and the pair spent the afternoon starting to create a gloomy marshland environment behind the greenhouses so the plants could grow.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Time For Tea
It turned out that Neville had been right about the bones in a way, although Harry suspected he didn't know there was a reason they weren't used. It turned out that the bones in the main body of a Plimpy were very soft, necessary to give it its round shape, as well as acting as a sort of defence, absorbing most impacts. It meant that it had been nigh on impossible for Mimby to remove the ones from the body. Thankfully though, Plimpies had stronger leg bones, although they were apparently still quite flexible which, Harry assumed, was how merfolk could tie them in knots. The flexibility meant that removing the skin was also tricky so, after slicing his fingers a few times, Harry decided to just use the whole legs. He didn't think the bit of skin would be an issue and it definitely made collecting the ingredients a damn sight easier and he made sure to put a load of them into a jar ready for Mimby to preserve. She said she had gotten the fish out of the pond and Harry was surprised by the amount that she had managed to get and had wanted to go and see just how big this pond was but Mimby advised against it. There were apparently some vicious creatures living there and Mimby didn't want Harry to risk getting attacked, especially as he didn't yet know how to defend himself.
Still, it kept him busy, especially with having to get up early to harvest the Mooncalf dung before sunrise, ready to fertilise the new marsh area Neville had created for him, and Harry found his weekend passing quite quickly so, before he knew it, Monday had dawned. It was the day of his tea party, his first ever time entertaining friends, and Harry had to admit he was a little nervous. Thankfully the weather was nice again and, after a somewhat hurried breakfast, Harry went down to help Mimby get things ready. She still refused to let him anywhere near the kitchen, even though Harry was sure that it was safe now. Still, it freed Harry up to set things up outside, trying to find the optimum spot to place the table so that they could enjoy the views from the terrace without sitting under the baking sun.
It was strange to be doing something that he had often mentally derided his aunt for doing. He had often laughed, silently of course, when he saw her move a vase of flowers to several spots around a room before ending up in the spot she had originally had it yet Harry doing exactly the same with the table. He was almost glad that the flowers were stuck in the beds as they couldn't be moved. He was also somewhat glad that he didn't know where things like tableware and crockery were kept yet which meant that side was left up to Mimby and Harry just went around making sure the terrace was clean and the flowerbeds were tidy. Once he'd finished outside he went in to wash and change, busying himself making sure everything was neat and tidy there as well. He was sure Mimby had already done that, she was determined to make a good impression, but Harry found himself too nervous to sit down for more than a second. He had visions of Neville and Luna just not turning up.
The rational part of his brain told him that was ridiculous, that Neville and Luna weren't like that and nothing short of a major disaster would stop them at this late hour, but that seemed to be drowned out by everything else. It was why Harry found himself waiting impatiently by the Floo as the hour of arrival approached, and why he nearly jumped out of his skin when the doorbell rang instead of the Floo chime. It seemed that, since he was local, Neville had taken to walking over to Harry's instead of Flooing, enjoying the exercise. Luna had apparently decided to use the public Floo at the Niffler's Snout and enjoy a stroll down to Harry's as well, since she had apparently never been to Godric's Hollow before. The pair of them had met up by the old Porter's Lodge by fluke and had had a nice walk down the tree lined avenue together.
Harry had been surprised to learn that, despite attending the same school together for 6 years, and living in nearby villages, the pair had never actually met before and had spent the walk comparing their relative experiences at the school. Harry felt a bit left out, not really understanding enough to be part of that conversation, but at least it helped in that it prevented Harry from having to do any awkward introductions, especially as he realised that he didn't really know a lot about either of these two. He was able to give the pair a tour of the house however, and Harry was glad that he had never thought to give Neville one before. Not that he could have. Mimby had apparently been working flat out over the last few days and all of the rooms on the first floor were fully repaired and gleaming.
"You mean ground floor," Neville said.
Harry frowned. "What's a ground floor?"
"The floor that is on the same level as the ground," Neville explained.
"You mean the first floor you step onto, as in the first floor," Harry countered.
"In Britain the first floor is at the first elevation," Luna said. "No one seems to know why. Personally I think it goes back to when people only used to put rushes and things on the ground so an actual floor would have been quite an achievement,
even more so when there were multiple."
Harry just gaped. "There was a time when people didn't even have stone or wood for floors!"
"Of course," Luna smiled. "I'll admit we're talking about the Dark Ages here, the 1st century. Admittedly the Romans had proper floors before that, at least in some buildings, but they took a lot of their technology when they left."
Harry just shook his head. "I couldn't imagine learning that amount of history. We only went back to Columbus in school and that was enough."
Regardless of what people called it, Harry took the time showing off his property although it was as much a revelation for him as it was for his friends, especially the likes of the drawing room which he had never set foot in before today. Harry wasn't sure if the furniture was already there or if Mimby had got some pieces from somewhere else. He had to admit he quite liked it. He was sure Aunt Petunia would have called it 'old fashioned' although Harry didn't mind, finding a lot of things his aunt liked to feminine and floral for his tastes. He had to admit that he liked the smooth lines and the red coloured wood with golden metal details. Everything looked sturdy and well made, not as if it would break the moment you sat in it. Neville seemed particularly impressed with it and suggested that Harry should arrange a dinner party himself once the season started up again.
"I don't think my acquaintance is big enough to justify that," Harry chuckled as they moved to the terrace for tea. "There is every chance it would just be the three of us again."
"Then people really would think you were trying to set up another ménage à trois," Luna giggled and Neville looked between the three of them, slightly aghast.
"Oh heck! Mimby! I think you need to join us for tea," Harry yelled.
The elf appeared looking slightly irate. "I knows yous is not used to the wizzies world Master Harry but I's should inform you that it's not proper for an elf to join wizzies for a meal."
"Harry is just a little worried about starting the rumours up again," Luna laughed at which point Mimby paled.
"In which case I will happily act as chaperone but I's will not eat!" Mimby declared giving Harry a look that said 'you will become a proper member of wizarding society if it's the last thing I do'. Harry felt inordinately guilty for giving Mimby more to do thanks to his uncouth manners and lack of thought and he was determined not to bring the Potter name into disrepute again, if only for the sake of his elf. He had never had a mother before, at least not that he could remember, but he liked to think that, if he did, she would be a lot like Mimby.
"It would probably be a good idea to introduce yourself to a bit more of wizarding society though Harry," Neville said, calming down again now that Mimby was here to ensure propriety was upheld.
"That's great in theory but I don't know how," Harry chuckled. "Plus I've apparently managed to alienate most of the people I have met. Cho's set is a complete no-go and the Weasleys have made me persona non grata, although that may have been alleviated if the results of the Wizengamot meeting went well."
Luna sighed. "I wouldn't bet on renewing things with them any time soon I'm afraid. I was out in the garden when they arrived back and I heard Mrs Weasley screeching all the way at my house. From what I could gather the twins' product was banned which would mean there would have to be a recall."
Harry's face fell. "Oh dear. I don't know if Ron will ever forgive me now."
"I suppose that's why my Gran always told me to keep out of other people's issues," Neville mused.
"I suggested Harry do the same," Luna smiled.
"I know," Harry chuckled, "although I fear keeping out of things is only going to land me in more trouble this time. The other day Ron asked me personally if I could stand up in front of the Wizengamot and say that I wasn't affected by that Happiness stuff but I refused. I'm not sure if I was or wasn't affected by that stuff so I opted to stay out of the proceedings entirely but I just know Ron is going to blame me for the product getting banned. He was so desperate for me to speak up for it, like he was sure that it would somehow magically swing things in their favour."
"Well the name Harry Potter was synonymous with everything good and right for many years," Neville pointed out, "although your reputation did take a bit of a hit when you didn't show up to Hogwarts and I don't think those articles helped much."
"Even then it might not have helped," Luna argued. "The truth has an uncanny way of making itself known, even when it's only hiding behind a half-truth. If Harry tried to pretend he was more confident in things than he was, there is a chance he could have made things worse."
"I hadn't considered that possibility," Harry pondered.
"Unfortunately I wouldn't imagine Ron would consider it for a while," Neville sighed. "He might be good at strategy but he can be incredibly pig headed sometimes."
"That's unfortunate," Harry groaned.
"Sorry," Neville shrugged. "I don't know how else to help. Neither my uncle nor my Gran are particularly big on the social scene and I was never very popular at school so I'm not sure if I can really help you there either. I might even say you were better off with Cho in that way."
Harry pulled a face. "I don't know about that. The party was fun in a way but I didn't feel completely comfortable there and I don't think I could handle parties like that all the time. They're a nice diversion but I don't know if I'd want to go to them all of the time."
"I know what you mean," Neville grinned, "although there are things other than just parties when the season gets into full swing, like concerts, Granian racing and Gnolf."
"What's Nolf?" Harry asked, looking extremely perplexed.
"Oh it's brilliant!" Luna exclaimed. "I've only played it once before when my mother took me as a child but it was a lot of fun, especially now that they use artificial Gnome heads. I'm not sure I'd like it as much if they were still really."
"Real Gnome heads!" Harry exclaimed.
"Yeah," Neville chuckled. "The story is that it originated when a group of Wizards were knocking gnomes off their lawn and they decided to have a competition to see who could knock them the furthest and it evolved from there. There is a big course down on Fowey Moor, or so I've heard with several courses, each with various traps in it, and you have to try to get from the lawn to the perimeter in as few swings as possible. The have a big competition every year during the social season but it's because of that that the real Gnomes changed to artificial Gnome heads as the live gnomes had a tendency to wander away from where they initially landed which caused quite a bit of controversy."
"I have to say it does sound interesting," Harry admitted. "I wouldn't mind trying it out one day, if anyone can go, that is."
"Oh anyone can go," Luna assured him. "I've been before but it's not the same on your own and my father is usually too busy either with research or his paper."
"Your dad has a paper?" Harry asked, realising that he didn't really know much about these people.
"Yes, it's called the Quibbler," Luna smiled. "My father mostly uses it to publish his research on various creatures but we do have some other features sometimes as well and we absolutely refuse to publish any story unless it's been authenticated. Mother always insisted on that when she was here, she wanted to make sure we would never be sued."
"Sounds intriguing," Harry murmured. "I might have to subscribe to it to see."
"Really! My father will be so happy to hear that," Luna beamed. "Do you want me to send you a copy as well Neville?"
"Oh, um, yeah, sure," Neville stammered, although Harry got the distinct impression that he didn't really. He wondered if Luna had noticed as well. Harry wasn't the most observant person in the world but Luna also had a habit of drifting into her own world. He did sometimes wonder just how little she noticed when she was there though as Luna had moments where she seemed very astute.
The group continued to chat together well into the afternoon as they made their way through the fare that Mimby had produced for them. As promised, she had made Dirigible Plum scones for Luna. Harry really wasn't sure about the sour, almost bitter flavour they had and had no idea how Luna could eat them with jelly, or jam as the others called it, and cream. Neville didn't seem overly impressed either. When Luna asked he said they had a "very unique flavour" but Harry noticed there was an inordinate amount of crumbs under his chair. Harry was a little surprised though when Mimby brought out a Dirigible Plum Chutney. Harry had never had a Chutney before and was definitely intrigued. It was a bit like a jelly but savoury, with chunks in it. It seemed a strange concept but he had to admit that it went very well with the cheese scones Mimby had also made. The elf beamed when Harry told her, especially when Neville agreed, apparently demolishing his own ones. Even Luna agreed it was good, although she said she still preferred the Diriplum scones as they had more of the true Dirigible Plum flavour. Harry wasn't entirely sure why someone would want that but, he supposed, each to their own.
After they had eaten they went for a walk around the grounds and Neville ended up taking over the tour, telling Luna all about the various plants they were growing there. Luna seemed vaguely interested but she definitely perked up more when she saw the woodland.
"Personally I think there is nothing more interesting than an overgrown area that is rarely walked through," she admitted. "You never know what you might find. It's part of the reason I can never practice Gnolf on my own as I end up getting distracted and exploring the overgrown areas instead of actually playing the game. I don't think people would mind too much except that I don't always pay attention to what's going on around me and I have a tendency to accidentally walk into other people's games and mess up their shots. It actually got to the stage where the club has said I can't play if I'm on my own."
"That doesn't seem fair," Harry huffed.
"Well they said it was for my own safety," Luna assured him. "They were worried about me getting hit on the head I think. I just need some to tap me on the shoulder if I start wandering too much that's all. It doesn't help that there aren't too many place where I can go exploring around here, it almost makes me miss being at Hogwarts."
"Well you can come and explore these woods whenever you want," Harry suggested. "I mean Neville comes round to use my greenhouses so why can't you come here to explore the woods."
"Thank you Harry," Luna beamed, clasping Harry's hand warmly. "That should tide my curiosity over nicely and I can practice my tracking techniques before I go to Norway with my father in November."
"Just let me know if you come across anything interesting," Harry said. "And I'll see if I can arrange a gnolf game for us before you go as well, preferably when the weather is still good. I assume you can play in the rain, I know muggles play their version in the rain sometimes as well, but it doesn't seem quite as enjoyable to me that way."
"Especially if you're not very good at charming yourself," Neville agreed with a slight shudder.
The explored the woods a little bit and Harry was intrigued to find a wild Hippogriff there, mesmerised as he watch Luna interact with it and he felt honoured when Luna showed him how to gain the creature's respect as well. Neville kept his distance however, regardless of how much Luna cajoled him to, claiming he'd been too scarred after seeing one attack a classmate when they were at school, especially as he was sure he'd end up making a mistake. Luna informed Harry that there also appeared to be unicorns in his little wood as well, although it was getting a little late to try to track them that day. The sun was starting to set as they left the wood and Harry took them via the Mooncalf enclosure to see of the creatures were up and Neville kindly reminded him to be up early that morning to be able to harvest the dung and to keep it in the dark, out of sunlight, or it would be ruined.
When they got back to the main house Harry was surprised to see that Mimby had set up dinner for them in the Orangery, much to Luna and Neville's delight. It wasn't quite the feast that Harry had had at Cho's, or rather Marrietta's, party but there were still four wonderful courses: mulligatawny soup, smoked Haddock with a local Cheddar sauce, Roast Grouse and something called a trifle for dessert which had been decorated with actual flowers. Harry was a little surprised but Neville assured him that they were all edible. It was all delicious of course, not that it came as much of a surprise to Harry but he was glad that his new friends enjoyed themselves and he looked forward to being able to invite them around again. Mimby seemed impressed with him as well. When his guests had left she gave Harry a proud smile.
"That was very well done Master Harry. Now we just need to increase the size of your acquaintance."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The Fowey Club
Harry was amazed at how good he felt the next day. He knew that things with Ron and, by extension, Hermione, would likely be strained for some time going forward and, while he mourned the possible loss of that friendship he wasn't wallowing in self pity thanks to Neville and Luna. Sure Neville was a lot more timid than Ron and Luna was definitely quirkier than Hermione but Harry found himself greatly appreciating spending time with both of them. There was a gentle understanding to Neville that ensured Harry never felt stupid about not knowing things that were probably very obvious to the others and Luna's tendency to be so unashamedly herself regardless of what others might think or say, allowed Harry to feel more comfortable in himself as opposed to feeling as if he had to somehow meet others' expectations. He was sure Ron and Hermione didn't mean to but Harry had already noticed that they both had a habit of letting him know if they didn't agree with something he said or did.
Harry was once again enjoying breakfast on bed, just a simple porridge that morning to counter the richness of last night's dinner when another owl came in. He recognised the bird at once; a few months ago he would have thought it strange to call a simple animal haughty but he could think of no better word to describe this owl. It didn't help that the owl seemed to remember Harry as well and he could have sworn there was a hint of amusement in its eyes as he edged towards the window it had flown through. It let out an almighty squark the second Harry had retrieved the letter causing Harry to literally jump back in fright, stumbling and landing on his ass. He was probably cracking up but the owl definitely laughed as it took off, not bothering to wait for a reply. That was probably a good thing though, if the death glare Hedwig was giving as the other bird flew out the window was anything to go by. He didn't particularly want to see those two birds fight especially as he had a feeling Hedwig was scrappier than she appeared. Breathing a sigh of relief Harry sat back to read his letter.
Dear Mr Potter,
I am writing to inform you, in case you haven't heard from other sectors, of the results of the Wizengamot hearing. While you didn't attend yourself, several others from the party you attended did give evidence, people who had been imbibing the cocktail far longer than you had and possibly in higher doses. Their evidence was highly compelling and it took the court very little time to determine that the Happiness compound was too dangerous to remain in the public domain and has been recalled with immediate effect, with the product to be sent to the Ministry to be destroyed.
I'll admit that I was a little curious as to why you weren't planning on testifying at first but I gathered, from the other testimony, that your consumption of the drug was more of a one off so it was possible that you may have had less of an effect from it. I am genuinely curious how you feel about things however.
During the hearing Messers Weasley did point out that they had tested above and beyond the current minimum set forth by the Ministry. I saw that there was a flaw in the system and I am planning on getting together a group of people to try to work out some appropriate new guidelines and I was wondering if the time you spent in America could help you give a new perspective. If you are interested I am holding a shooting party at my Scottish hunting lodge on Friday 16th of September. If you are interested in joining us please reply in the affirmative by the 14th.
I hope you will seriously consider my offer.
Yours faithfully,
Lucius Malfoy.
Harry frowned. It felt strange to be receiving another letter from Mr Malfoy. The invitation to give evidence had made a certain amount of sense, especially given the fact that the Daily Prophet had plastered Harry's actions all over their front page. Just looking at that Harry figured he would seem like a prime candidate to give evidence, not that he thought he ever could speak out against the Weasleys. He wasn't entirely about this latest missive. He was grateful for the information about the hearing, it made him feel as if there wasn't anything he could have done to change the result, regardless of what anyone might try to claim. He also thought that implementing more stringent guidelines would be a good idea, heck he'd said as much to Ron last time they met, and a part of him was thrilled to get an invite to an event like this but a part of him was still contemplating turning the man down.
Mimby suddenly appeared to clear up Harry's breakfast things. "Who's writing to you this time?" she asked, a little worriedly.
"Oh nothing bad," Harry smiled reassuringly. "It's just an invite to a gathering of some sort although I was contemplating turning it down."
Mimby frowned. "But I's thought you were wanting to go to more events?"
"I was," Harry admitted, "but I think this one would cause more trouble for me if I did."
"It's not that Cho woman is it?" Mimby hissed and Harry laughed.
"I don't think so. I wouldn't even contemplate entertaining that, don't worry. It's actually from a Mr Lucius Malfoy."
"Malfoy!" Mimby squeaked. "Yous can't turn down an invitation from a Malfoy!"
"Whyever not?" Harry queried.
"Malfoys bees one of the oldest and most influential families in the wizzies world!" Mimby exclaimed.
Harry rolled his eyes. "I don't care about anything like that. My aunt and uncle were social climbers and I have no desire to be like them. I want to revive the Potter name as that seems important to you but I'm not about to bend over backwards to cater to the whims of some unknown individual just because of their name. Not to mention that there seems to be some serious issues between the Malfoys and the Weasleys. I know Ron and his family aren't overly happy with me at the moment but I'm not going to do something that might jeopardise that relationship more."
Mimby looked at Harry shrewdly. "Why's you only contemplating turning it down then? If Master Harry finds the invitation so distasteful, why not immediately turn it down?"
Harry frowned. "Well Mr Malfoy said that he was getting a group of people together to discuss new testing guidelines for the wizarding world which I thought was interesting and something that was probably overdue. I thought it might help the twins, but you're right, I should probably turn the invite down. The Weasleys might get the wrong idea if I do go."
"Except you can't!" Mimby exclaimed and Harry looked at her in askance. "If Mr Malfoy dislikes Weezies as much as you say they dislike him then he is going to come up with rules that will make it harder for them, especially if he has as much influence as previous Malfoys. You need to go to make sure any rules are fair."
Harry frowned again. "I suppose you're right. I think I'll write to Ron though, let him know what's going on, that way it won't come as a shock for him. By the way Mimby, do you know anything about a Gnolf course?"
"Of course!" Mimby huffed. "Potters are one of the founding members of the Fowey Country Club and Master George would frequently Floo there."
Harry grimaced. "It's probably not a good idea if I Floo there then. I still haven't gotten the hang of that form of travel and I would hate to look like a fool the first time I arrive, especially if the Potters are important there."
"Well I suppose yous could fly," Mimby pondered. "I's found an old broom compass while tidying that yous could use to direct you. There bees a map of the area in the library, it shows all the wizzy areas in South West England. Yous could probably fly there but it would take a while."
"That's fine," Harry smiled. "I haven't got any plans for the rest of today and the exercise would do me some good."
At Mimby's insistance, Harry wrote an affirmative reply to Mr Malfoy and got himself dressed in one of his suits. Mimby cast an
impervious
charm on him saying that it looked like there would be rain. Harry looked over the map and was glad to note that the Country Club seemed to be in the north east end of the moor, near to another wizarding village called Tinworth, and set off on his flight. It was a bit strange flying in cloudy weather instead of sunshine but they did offer good cover, especially as he didn't have to worry too much about checking where he was going thanks to the compass. The low lying cloud allowed him to get right up into them which was a strange experience in itself, made all the stranger as he saw the moisture from the clouds begin to bead on his hands yet they didn't feel even remotely wet.
Harry had calculated that it was about 120 miles from his house and, when he thought he was nearing it, he dropped down below cloud level to see where he was. He must have been travelling faster than he realised as he was now nearing the coast. He slowed down a bit to get a better look and saw that the village was quite similar to Godric's Hollow, with few cars on the road and seemingly no major road in or out of it making seem quite isolated. He assumed this was Tinworth, especially as Harry thought he could see the moor stretching out behind it, a rough, scraggy grassland dotted with craggy outcrops. There was a particularly large one a little way behind the village and Harry dropped down a bit more and was surprised when the visage of the craggy hill melted away to reveal an imposing stone building that Harry realised must be the Country Club. Intrigued, Harry rapidly descended through the drizzle that had started and entered the building, shaking off the water from himself in the foyer.
"Can I help you Mr, I say, you're Harry Potter!" exclaimed a very stiff looking man with slicked back grey hair and wire-rimmed glasses.
"I am," Harry blinked, a little taken aback at this stranger seeming to know him.
"My apologies Mr Potter," the man said, catching himself. "My name is Rufus Bigglewick, the manager of the Fowey Club. When I saw that a descendant of one of our founding members had surfaced the other day I made a point of doing some research on you, on the off chance that you should show up here."
"Alright," Harry said, a slight frown marring his face.
"It is a great honour to meet you sir," Bigglewick gushed, reaching out to shake Harry's hand. "There are so few family members left of the founding three."
"The founding three?" Harry queried.
"Vincent Bones, Hadrian Potter and Percival Weasley," Bigglewick explained. "The principal families of the three main nearest wizarding villages. The story is that it was those three who invented the game of Gnolf in the first place and built this structure on the site of an old Roman bath house so they would have somewhere they could meet up to play as well as relax afterwards. This place built up over the years and we now host a bar and restaurant as well as the bathing rooms and massage facilities."
"That definitely sounds interesting," Harry said.
Bigglewick beamed and took Harry on a whirlwind tour of the facilities, not even bothering to ask for permission. Harry was quite glad he did though, the place was huge, with three sets of baths for men and women as well as a larger mixed set. There were rooms off to the side where house elves were on hand to apply oil and use something called a strigil. There was also a terrace area with lounge chairs where refreshments were served. The whole area was full of ornately carved marble and Harry couldn't help but feel impressed, especially as his ancestor had had a hand in making it. The tour culminated in the restaurant and Harry was more than grateful, the flight over having taken more out of him than he realised. The food was delicious although a little pretentious, more like the stuff he had at Cho's party than the stuff he usually ate and Harry wasn't sure if he would come here too often and possibly look to a local pub instead, although he would be equally as conscious of drink there as here, not wanting to risk making a scene in a place like that.
Bigglewick approached Harry as he finished his meal. "Were you wanting to have a round on the course today? We haven't got any instructors in but I can probably make some calls to see if anyone is available."
"Oh no need to go to any trouble," Harry insisted. "I was more interested in booking a slot for me and some friends at some point in the future."
"That will be no problem at all, Mr Potter," Bigglewick beamed. "I'm sure we can accommodate any sized party, any day or time, this is our low season after all."
"That's brilliant," Harry grinned. "I was thinking the Wednesday after next, after lunch perhaps, that way we can hopefully stop in for tea."
"Or come early and have lunch as well," Bigglewick suggested. "I can have our best table set up, on the veranda perhaps, if the weather is still good. We have excellent warming charms so it's comfortable even in the winter." Harry nodded mutely, feeling as if he was getting some sort of sales pitch.
"Do I need to be a member or something?" he queried, wondering if he were just about to get stung for something major.
"Oh no," Bigglewick assured him. "All of the founding families have one permanent membership and reduced rates for all other family members. As the last of the Potters you are a member by default and we can just use the account details we had for Mr George Potter to cover any extra expenses."
Harry thanked him although he couldn't help thinking that he would prefer it if he could actually see the price of things so that he knew how much was going out of his account. Then a thought came into his head. "I wonder if Ron has a membership. Ron Weasley," Harry clarified at Bigglewick's inquisitive look.
"Not as far as I'm aware," Bigglewick informed him, a little tightly. "The family membership is still under Mr Tristan Weasley's name and, as far as I'm aware, the only Weasleys that are members are some more elderly relatives who mostly only come for major events. I will say that, as a legacy member you have automatic entry to all of those events and you will get a vote at the annual general meeting regarding the running of the club, including a say on new members."
"Is there some sort of criteria then?" Harry asked, suddenly feeling a bit awkward. He was aware that his Aunt and Uncle had tried to get into clubs before so he knew that they could be very elitist and he wasn't sure if he wanted to be a part of something like that.
"Oh, nothing too pretentious," Bigglewick assured him, "more an assurance that the individuals won't cause trouble for the club which it's usually enough for another member to vouch for them, after being checked that they weren't under any sort of outside influence of course. There have been some controversies in the past and there is a rumour that Cantankerous Nott published his Sacred 28, a list of the wizarding ultimate elite, in an effort to undermine Henry Potter's decision not to add him to the list, one of the suspected reasons that your family weren't included. Admittedly it was never confirmed that Nott even created the list and there is also a suggestion that it was produced by Francis Fawley as a way of elevating his own family since he had apparently gotten himself into some debt at the time thanks to some big losses at the races and had been struggling to get credit. By the by, may I ask who it is that you are planning to bring with you. Typically we only allow members to bring one guest but I'm sure an exception can be made this one time."
"Mr Neville Longbottom and Miss Luna Lovegood," Harry replied.
"I don't believe Mr Neville Longbottom is a member although I think I remember his uncle is. Miss Lovegood is a member however so that will be no issue and a Wednesday afternoon should be more than quiet enough if she gets a little distracted from the game," Bigglewick smirked. Harry bristled a bit, wanting to come to the defence of his friend but it was a bit difficult when he didn't know Luna all that well and she had already admitted herself that she had issues concentrating on the game at times. Instead he simply begged his leave, letting Bigglewick know that he would write to confirm the date once he had checked with his friends. With that he left the impressive building and took to the sky, thankful that it was dry despite still being cloudy as he had a feeling Mimby's
impervious
charm had worn off. It was why he kept away from the coast a bit, where the sky was a little lighter. It didn't take long for Harry to realise that he was nearing Ottery St Catchpole and he thought that it might be an idea to pop in to see Luna on the way home, to save him having to send Hedwig out and wait for a reply. He touched down on the outskirts of town and was making his way towards the strange tower-like house where Luna lived when he noticed a familiar figure walking in the opposite direction.
"Harry!" Ginny exclaimed, running towards him. "What are you doing here? If you've come to see Ron I'd probably leave it a bit longer, he's still quite mad about what happened with the twins. Not that it was your fault of course, and I'm sure he'll realise that when he calms down, he just needs a bit of time."
"I figured as much," Harry chuckled. "I'm actually on my way to see Luna."
Ginny gaped at him. "Since when are you friends with Looney Luna?"
Harry scowled. "That's not a nice thing to call her."
Ginny's face fell. "Well, yes, I suppose, but you have to admit that she has some very strange views."
"She just has a different way of looking at the world," Harry shrugged. "Personally I think its quite brave of her to continue doing what she feels is right for her even though it doesn't fit in with societies view. I admire her for it."
"You do!"
Harry nodded. "I think the world would be a better place if more people were like Luna. Anyway, I won't keep you, I was just going to let Luna know that I'd managed to arrange a Gnolf game for us. Anyway, I hope to see you around Ginny, with any luck this stuff with the twins will blow over soon." He waved at her and Ginny just nodded mutely as Harry made his way up the road. Luna was happy to see him and invited Harry in for tea where Harry met her father for the first time. Xenophilius Lovegood was definitely one of the strangest characters Harry had ever met before and he could definitely see where Luna got his quirks from. At least the man seemed to have no problem with Luna spending time with Harry and Neville, encouraging it even, and he invited Harry to come for a visit whenever he was in the area. Harry had only intended a quick visit but he found himself staying late into the night as Xenophilius talked to Harry in great detail about his attempt to recreate Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem, not helped when Harry admitted he knew about neither the diadem nor its creator. Mimby was still happy with his efforts when he returned and, after penning off a quick letter to Neville, Harry went to bed looking forward to his next afternoon with his new friends.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Meeting Mr Malfoy
The only problem for Harry was that before he could enjoy an afternoon of Gnolf with his friends he had to get through a shooting weekend with the apparently notorious Mr Malfoy, at least according to the Weasleys anyway. Mimby hadn't heard anything particularly wrong about them although she had also been out of the loop for over 18 years so it was entirely possible she had missed something. Unfortunately for Harry, with the Weasleys not being on speaking terms with him for the time being, Harry had no reason not to go and meet the man, especially as it might allow him to help the Weasleys in the long term.
Something called a portkey had been delivered to Harry on Thursday, by the same haughty looking owl as before, with instructions that it would activate at precisely midday on Friday. Harry had no idea what a portkey was, although it looked considerably like one of the pawns from a wizard's chess set, but Mimby made sure he was holding it and his luggage from 11:55. Harry felt like a bit of an idiot just standing there and he was on the verge of asking Mimby if she was ridiculing him when he felt a sharp tug behind his navel and the feeling of getting pulled through the air. He landed in a heap on a strange marble floor and did his best to stop his stomach from relieving him of his breakfast.
"Was that your first portkey travel," an aristocratic voice queried and Harry nodded. "My apologies, I should have warned you that it is nothing like anything in the muggle world, or so I'm told. Having never set foot in the muggle world I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to pass comment myself. I'm Lucius Malfoy by the way, welcome to my home."
Harry pushed himself off and stood up on somewhat shaky legs. "A pleasure to meet you Mr Malfoy, it's nice to be able to put a face to the name." He looked around. "This is a lovely house you have here."
"Thank you," Malfoy smiled, "but this is just the hunting lodge, much less ostentatious than the main property I can assure you."
Harry felt his eyebrows rise at that comment. This place put his own property to shame so he couldn't imagine what the main property must be like. Mr Malfoy seemed to catch Harry's reaction and looked more than a little smug.
"If you would be so kind as to follow my house elf, they will show you to your room for the weekend. I would talk more but the next guest is due imminently."
Harry jumped, realising that the next person was likely about to land exactly where he was standing and he quickly scurried out of the way. He paused at the door looking back, curious as to who else would be arriving for this weekend.
"I'm not sure why you're being nosey, it's not like you're going to recognise anyone."
Harry jumped and spun around, blushing at getting caught doing something so uncouth. "Sorry," he said, looking at a young man with white blond hair and silver eyes. He had an aristocratic smirk on his face very similar to Lucius Malfoy and Harry assumed that they were related in some way.
"No need to apologise," the man smiled. "I was doing the same after all. I'm Draco Malfoy and I'll be happy to help you navigate this party, as the son of the host I'm in the ideal position to make the appropriate introduction for you."
"Thanks. I'm Harry Potter, although I'm assuming you already knew that."
"Of course," Draco smirked. "It's my job to know about all of the guests that my father has invited to this event and help ensure that they are comfortable. Come on, let me help get you settled." Draco flashed him a smile and Harry breathed a sigh of relief, glad that he had found someone that he could apparently rely on to help him navigate this strange new world. Harry followed Draco up the stairs to an extremely opulent room that would apparently be his for the weekend.
"Just leave your bag on the bed, the house elves will put your things away. Dinner will be served at 7 in the main dining room, full dress of course, but is there anything you would like to do before then? Wizard's chess perhaps?"
Harry pulled a face. "No thanks, I'm kind of rubbish at that. I prefer flying."
Draco looked apologetic. "No can do I'm afraid, father has put an embargo on flying lest we scare off any animals nearby. We do have a putting green on the other side of the property if you're interested in Gnolf."
That caused Harry to perk up a bit. "Actually that might be fun. I've not played it before but I have a game booked for next week and it might be good to try it out before then."
"Gnolf it is," Draco grinned. "Give me a minute to change into something a bit more suitable and I'll take you down." Harry bid him farewell and took a moment to look about the place. The room was surprisingly similar to his one at home, even though it was merely a guest room, and Harry had to wonder just how lavish the master suites might be in a place like this. He was glad that he'd put on one of his nicer suits, although given that Draco hadn't suggested he change Harry wondered if there was something wrong with it. He also had no clue what the term 'full dress' meant and he was contemplating calling Mimby when there was a knock at the door. It was Draco, not looking much different to how he looked before in Harry's opinion, much to his relief, although it did make Harry wonder what the issue had been. He didn't feel he had the right to say anything though, it's not like he really knew anything about any clothes, especially wizarding ones.
On their way out Draco introduced Harry to another young man by the name of Evan Rosier, the only other younger person attending the weekend, who decided to join them.
"These things are usually a bit more fun," Draco explained, "but father has an ulterior motive for this event so things are a little more exclusive."
"I suppose I should feel privileged then," Harry supposed.
"Not necessarily," Evan chuckled. "I tried to get out of it but my grandfather is insisting I take more of an active role in Wizengamot dealings as he is talking about stepping down soon."
"Hasn't he been saying that for at least the last 5 years?" Draco queried.
"Only in public," Evan laughed. "He's been telling me privately for at least 10. To be honest I didn't have anything else on this weekend so I figured I may as well come."
Draco rolled his eyes. "I am so glad that my family's functions feature so highly on your calendar."
"Well certain functions do," Evan assured him, "but I'm only here for the sport on this one. A dry discussion on possible potion testing guidelines is not what I would normally call a good time."
"I don't know, I think it could be interesting," Harry argued. "It's definitely something that needs to happen."
That caused Evan to raise his eyebrows. "I had wondered why you were here, although I'm now wondering what you have on old Lucius to get you on the list."
"Now Rosier, you should know that dirt on my father doesn't exist because he always acts properly," Draco insisted. "My father specifically invited Potter here because of his recent experiences with poorly tested potions as well as his ability to bring in ideas from other sectors, having not grown up in the British wizarding world as we have."
Evan frowned a bit. "I suppose that makes sense. At least it makes a change from fathers of potential brides, right Malfoy." Evan laughed at the end and slapped Draco on the back quite hard.
"It can be a curse, yes," Draco admitted before turning to Harry. "Be grateful that you don't have that side of things to deal with."
"I don't know, Mimby will probably start harassing me soon, she's quite adamant about me upholding the Potter name as it is," Harry admitted.
"Who's Mimby?" Evan asked.
"The Potter family house elf," Harry replied with a smile which fell when he saw the somewhat shocked looks on the other men's faces.
"I didn't even know house elves cared about those things," Evan mused. "Heck I'm not even sure if I know the names of our house elves."
"Oh!" Harry exclaimed. "Perhaps it's because I'm new to this whole thing. I don't know how I would have handled things without Mimby though. I didn't know anything about magic when I arrived in England."
That caused the other two men to look at Harry in shock.
"Are you even allowed a wand?" Draco gasped. "Usually if you haven't gotten at least O.W.Ls then you are forbidden from using one."
Harry frowned. "Apparently I am. I bought one with Ron on my first day in the wizarding world. Albus Dumbledore came to meet me after I had a meeting with the Goblins at Gringotts."
"That explains things," Draco muttered.
"I am getting some lessons though," Harry admitted, worrying that something was wrong. "I've had several Potions and Herbology lessons already, as well as Charms and Transfigurations. I imagine there would have been more but I think the Hogwarts teachers have been busy."
"That's probably why it's been allowed," Draco smiled, although Harry noticed the action didn't quite meet his eyes. "If you ever want some extra tuition though I am more than happy to offer my services. I received N.E.W.Ts in all the core subjects."
"Thank you," Harry said, feeling a little awkward. He had no idea what a N.E.W.T was but it was nice to think he had another option for learning about magic without feeling guilty about using up the teacher's precious free time. It would definitely be handy for Harry to have someone else to rely on for things as he had a feeling there was still a lot for him to learn.
"It's a good job we're going to be muggle hunting," Evan chuckled.
"What's muggle hunting?" Harry queried.
"Muggle style hunting," Draco replied with a chuckle. "We use guns. Apparently there was a time when we used to use magic to kill the creatures but the Ministry blacklisted the spells that were used and no one has come up with an alternative yet. We tried severing charms but they aren't very good, too difficult to get a kill shot and if you do get multiple shots in they tend to leave a lot of mess. Not much left of the carcass when you are done which makes the whole thing a bit pointless. The shot from the guns can be a bit of a pain but a good accio usually does the job."
"I don't think I know that spell," Harry sighed.
"I'll help if you do get a kill then," Draco smiled.
"To be fair I've never fired a gun either," Harry chuckled.
"Then we best have you at the front of the group then," Draco laughed but Harry balked.
"Surely I would be better at the back!"
"Oh Merlin no!" Draco exclaimed. "If you're at the back you'll probably shoot someone by accident."
"Oh god, don't say that!" Harry gasped, turning pale.
"Don't worry," Draco reassured Harry, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We'll stick to the side of the group and I'll stay with you so you don't need to worry."
"Thank you," Harry sighed, feeling immensely grateful to the other man.
"Don't mention it," Draco replied. "Now, let's get on with Gnolf to take your mind off things."
Harry nodded in agreement, sighing in relief. He was a little amazed when he learned that the Malfoys had a 3 hole gnolf course on their property, about half the size of a standard course but Harry was still amazed that they could fit it on their property. Draco looked a little smug but he verbally dismissed Harry's praise saying it was amazing what you could achieve with Wizard's space, not that Harry knew what that was. Draco handed him a club that looked like a cross between a golf club and an actual club. It was very heavy and Harry was a little confused as to how to swing it. Draco gave him some directions, standing side on the 'head' and keeping his back straight but it felt very unnatural and stiff but Harry couldn't quite get it. After a few minutes however Draco seemed to get a little frustrated, especially as Harry seemed to be doing nothing except make an ever increasing hole in the lawn, and he decided to demonstrate.
"I said swing smoothly Potter," Draco bit out, causing Harry to worry a bit where the friendly host had disappeared and he wondered if Draco had a bit of a short temper. The blond huffed and came up behind Harry, pushing Harry's spine straight before stepping up behind him. He bent over Harry's back to place his hands over Harry's own. The problem was that Draco wasn't much taller than Harry so in order for him to place his hands over Harry's he had to plaster his chest tightly to Harry's back. The move was fairly innocuous in itself but it brought back some very vivid memories from his night with Cedric and Cho. He didn't think he would associate that night with anything like a good memory but apparently he was wrong as he felt a flush flash over his whole body and his hips press back almost unconsciously. He felt mortified at himself and waited for Draco to jump away and was a little surprised when he didn't, not pressing forward but not moving away either. Harry wasn't sure what that meant although he assumed that the lack of running for the hill was a good thing.
"Relax Harry," Draco whispered, and Harry thought he heard a smile in his voice. Harry took a deep breath and tried to stop worrying about things although it admittedly it was a little difficult to concentrate on more than the warm, hard chest pressed tightly against him.
"That's it," Draco breathed. "And swing." Draco twisted his body and Harry was helpless to do anything except move with him. He heard a thunk and the little ball went flying through the air and disappeared somewhere in the bushes emitting a little shower of green sparks.
"Excellent," Draco grinned, "now try to do that again." The other man stepped away from Harry's back and Harry tried not to miss his presence there. A part of him contemplated fluffing the shot up to see if he could get some more of Draco's hands on coaching but apparently, with his mind no longer over thinking what his body was doing, his body naturally flowed through the movements and he once again hit the ball with a resounding thunk and sent the thing flying even further than before.
"I think you might be a bit of a natural at this," Draco smiled and Harry found himself blushing a bit as he muttered his thanks. They continued playing and Harry found it increasingly easy to sink into the flow of the game and found himself enjoying it quite a bit as he chatted away with Draco about his time at Hogwarts, fascinated by the idea of a boarding school, having always been a little jealous that his cousin got to experience that. He almost wished he'd been able to attend it himself, the place sounded fascinating and he wondered if he would ever get the chance to visit the place one day.
Harry may have gotten better at the game but the pair of them still took their time, enjoying the camaraderie the game encouraged between them. Evan caught up to them about halfway through the second course having finished the short course and stuck around to join in the conversation. Harry enjoyed hearing the other boy's stories as well, slightly different as he had apparently finished at the school before Draco had even started, but Harry couldn't help missing the chance to spend a little one on one time with Draco although he didn't quite understand why. A drizzle set in as they got to the third course and it only seemed to get harder so the boys called it a day a little early to go back to the hunting lodge for some tea. Harry was a little surprised at how much of an appetite he had built up simply from doing a bit of walking and hitting a few balls but he had definitely enjoyed his afternoon and he was glad that Draco had suggested a practice before he went to a public course. He was now really looking forward to his game with Neville and Luna the following week although he was also secretly looking forward to what the rest of the weekend would bring and wondering if he might get to spend a bit more time with the friendly blond who kept flashing smiles Harry's way.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After Dinner Discussion
Harry stared in the mirror and fidgeted. Mimby had apparently remembered to pack his formal attire but it was the suit that Cho had made for him and Harry wasn't sure how it would sit with this more conservative set, especially the shoes. He had tried putting his regular boots on but they were far too worn, especially after the gnolf game, and they looked very strange alongside the smart, blue suit. Harry shook his head; he would have to make do with the strange shoes Cho had picked; he just made a mental note to get himself some normal dress shoes when he got back to Godric's Hollow. He pulled in his black robe over the top just as there was a knock on the door. It was Draco, come to collect him ready for dinner. Harry was a little grateful for the attention, as well as the opportunity to spend a little more time with the other man, but he couldn't help worrying when he saw Draco's face fall.
"Oh that will not do!" Draco exclaimed. "Come on, if we're quick we have enough time to get to my rooms before the dinner gong sounds."
Harry nodded mutely as he let himself get dragged through the corridors. He knew that his outfit was all wrong for this place and he was glad that Draco was helping him so that he didn't make a complete ass of himself in front of what he knew to be some very important people in the wizarding world. He had yet to actually meet them but Draco and Evan had talked about some of the characters who were attending this weekend so Harry knew that he couldn't risk messing up. He wasn't really paying much attention as he zipped through the corridors with Draco but the blond was soon pushing a door open and dragging Harry into the middle of a room. Harry was a little dazzled by the opulence and found himself looking around at the gilt wood and ornate, dark wood carvings with his mouth agape. Draco didn't seem to notice his uncouth behaviour however as his head was too deeply buried in the wardrobe.
"Ah-ha!" he exclaimed after a minute of rummaging. "This should do. I haven't worn it in ages so I doubt anyone will remember it's mine. It means it's a little out of fashion but I'm sure people here won't expect you to be on the cutting edge."
He stood up out of the wardrobe brandishing a robe, a bit similar to the one Harry was wearing in cut, except this one was a dark grey and clearly made of a much finer material than his one. There was also silver thread woven through it in some sort of intricate pattern but done in such a way that Harry could only see flashes of it when it caught the light.
"Quick, get that old thing off," Draco demanded.
"Just the robe?" Harry clarified.
"Of course," Draco scoffed. "Its the only part that any pureblood wizard cares about."
"Oh!" Harry exclaimed as he changed into the robe Draco handed to him and made a mental note to look at getting some good quality robes himself, if only for the odd occasion like this. Draco looked at him and gave him a nod just as a loud gong was heard throughout the house signalling that it was time for the guest to come down for dinner. They spotted Evan as they came down the main staircase and the other man raised an eyebrow at Draco although Harry wasn't entirely sure what would cause the inquiry.
They made their way through to the lavishly decorated dining room that certainly put Harry's own to shame although he felt he preferred the smooth lines and warm red toned wood of his own furniture to the dark, intricately carved stuff the Malfoys had. It looked impressive but in Harry's mind it wasn't overly practical and he had a bit of trouble tucking his chair in behind him. Thankfully so did the woman sitting next to him, one Dolores Umbridge, so he didn't feel too bad. The woman had a simpering, sweet smile but Harry found it quite off putting himself although he wasn't entirely sure why. On his other side was a somewhat gruff looking character with a dark scowl called Walden Macnair and Harry had a feeling that he wouldn't be participating in very much conversation over food. Thankfully the food was quite exquisite, very rich but not as pretentious as the stuff served at the other party he had attended and Harry ended things feeling comfortably full.
After dinner the group retired to the sitting room for an after dinner drink where Lucius Malfoy started up the talk about potential new regulations for potion making. Macnair didn't seem particularly interested in the discussion, snagging himself the decanter and moving to the far side of the room. Umbridge made her way over to sit herself next to a man called Cornelius Fudge who was apparently the Minister of Magic, the magical equivalent of a president from what Harry could gather, which was probably why Fudge himself took prime position next to Lucius Malfoy. Draco was near his father and Evan was next to a fairly severe looking man that Harry could only assume was the man's grandfather. They all seemed to know each other quite well and Harry didn't have the confidence to just insert himself into the group so he hovered on the fringes, making sure he was in a position to hear the discussion as he was genuinely intrigued but staying far enough away to not seem like he was intruding.
"I don't really see why you are holding these discussions Lucius," Umbridge snickered after Lucius had opened discussions. "We all know that the potions we have are more than adequate for the job. Why do we even need to create new ones, especially when the results can be dangerous. We should just ban all new products, for the sake of the wizarding world of course." The Minister nodded along in agreement.
"That's a bit ridiculous," Harry scoffed.
"I beg your pardon!" Umbridge exclaimed. "On exactly what authority are you speaking from?"
Harry frowned. "The one that's obvious. You don't need any specific qualification to realise that the needs of a society change and grow over time. New discoveries are also made. Heck it wasn't that long ago that muggles thought that illnesses were caused by an imbalance in the body's humours and that various diseases could be cured simply by bleeding someone."
There was a round of snickering laughter from almost everyone in the room.
"Laugh if you want," Harry continued, "but it was what was always done and it is only thanks to the discoveries of modern science that we realised it was wrong. Muggles are now living significantly longer thanks to those advances. Would you really curtail any future developments like that?"
"Wizards are a lot smarter than muggles," Evans's grandfather laughed.
"Perhaps," Harry accepted, although he didn't truly believe it. "But do you really know everything there is to know? For example, how does a hangover cure work?"
"That's easy," Umbridge giggled. "By magic." Many in the room laughed at her joke including the Minister, much to her delight.
"But what exactly does the magic do to relieve it?" Harry pushed. "How does that magic work? If you don't know that how can you say that it is the best you can do. Are you saying we should just accept things because they are adequate? If muggles did that they would still only be using horses and carriages and we wouldn't have trains or cars." There were a few murmurs at the mention of cars that piqued Harry's curiosity but he realised that this wasn't the time. "I know full well that the potions generally available can be improved upon. Professor Snape actually challenged me to try to improve the magical fertiliser recipe."
Fudge laughed. "What does that fool have to do with anything? He is just a teacher at a school."
"Perhaps," Lucius murmured, although Harry thought his smile looked a little tight. "But Mr Potter was right, we can't ban all potions innovation, Belby never would have come up with the Wolfsbane potion and those creatures would still pose a serious issue."
"You raise a good point," Fudge mused. "We do need to innovate still." Harry thought of saying that it was he who had said that they still needed to innovate but he let that one slide.
"Well maybe we can leave it just to Ministry officials," Umbridge suggested.
"Do we have a potions department at the Ministry?" Evan queried and Fudge scowled.
"Well they do make some potions in the Department of Mysteries but I don't know if anyone knows exactly what goes on there."
"St Mungos is where you need the real innovation," Evan's grandfather said.
"St Mungos is all well and good for the healing side of things but they won't do anything for agriculture," another man said. "I must admit that I'm curious to see if Mr Potter has managed to come up with something better than the fertiliser recipe we currently have, it can be an absolute pain to get large quantities of kelp in the middle of Yorkshire."
"Are you still having trouble with your crops, Cloke?" another man asked and the first man, presumably Cloke.
"Aye," Cloke sighed. "The warm Spring we had meant the Glumbumbles didn't come out until late to pollinate the flowers then that wet spell we had at the beginning of June slowed a lot of growth. I had to use fertiliser to even make my pre-orders which always cuts into profit margins."
"Well I'm not sure if the recipe will work but I'll happily send you the recipe, Mr Cloke, if Professor Snape says it will work," Harry offered. "I am purposely trying to use items that are growing on my land to try to minimise the cost. Potion ingredients are extortionate."
"As I said, we have to recoup our costs somehow!" Mr Cloke huffed and Harry realised this man was probably one of the people producing them.
"Playing about with a bit of magical fertiliser for your own use is all well and good but that isn't about to risk the whole wizarding world like the Messers Weasley's potion did," Umbridge said, obviously trying to get the conversation back on track. "They were profiting off other people's pain."
"We could put in a rule that says that only tried and tested recipes can be sold in shops," Fudge suggested. "That way they can still run their business."
"And keep paying taxes to the benefit of the whole wizarding world," Draco smiled.
"But the twins did test their products," Harry insisted, feeling the need to defend his friends.
"Clearly not enough," Umbridge smirked.
"They went above what they needed to by law," Harry pointed out. "The fact that the law didn't require them to test their product when mixed with others is not on them."
"So you think there needs to be a provision to test a potions miscibility?" Lucius queried.
"Precisely," Harry nodded, "with a warning inside detailing dosing instructions, potential side effects of the product and what it can and can't be taken with. It might also be worth checking some of the other apparently safe potions as well."
"Why in Merlin's name would we need to do that!" Umbridge huffed.
"Do you know what happens if you mix Pepper-up potion with alcohol?" Harry asked.
"Nobody would be stupid enough to mix Pepper-up with alcohol!" Umbridge scoffed.
"The Weasleys didn't think anyone would mix Happiness with alcohol either yet people did," Harry smiled. "People do all sorts of strange things."
"That could cause a lot of issues," Fudge worried.
"Perhaps," Harry agreed, "but if you don't test them and something happens in the future people are going to demand answers. Surely it's better to do it now and that way you can show that you are at least making an effort. It will also stop the Weasleys from feeling like they are being discriminated against."
"Who cares if those fools feel like they're being discriminated against," Umbridge sneered.
"I imagine the Minister will if they choose to sue," Harry smirked.
"I'm afraid Mr Potter may have a point," Lucius agreed, although he looked a little as if he were sucking a lemon as he said it. "As distasteful as I may find the notion, if the Weasleys are the only people who have to test their products then they will have a fairly open and shut case if they decide to bring suit against the Ministry. You could possibly get around it by stating that potion recipes created prior to a certain date are exempt but that date would have to be reasonably far back in time."
"It wouldn't necessarily cover any potioneer that needed to tweak their brew," Draco added. "Adjusting for lower quality ingredients for example."
"What do you mean lower quality ingredients!" Cloke snapped.
"I mean those years when the weather hasn't been in your favour sir," Draco assured him. "You can try to do everything that you can as a farmer but there are a lot of factors that determine the quality of an ingredient, many of which are beyond your control."
"Ain't that the truth," Cloke huffed.
"It's why I know from my own brewing experience that a potioneer sometimes has to make minor adjustments," Draco continued. "Three sprigs of Fluxweed instead of two for example."
"I suppose that probably wouldn't make much difference to the recipe," Harry supposed. "Unless the ingredient is particularly potent then a small variation shouldn't affect things overall should it?"
"Probably not," Evan agreed and Draco nodded.
Lucius Malfoy smiled. "So we have all potion recipes that were created after, shall we say, the Statute of Secrecy was enacted; that should be far enough back to mean that the potions have been well tested by the public."
"There should be a caveat that people should report any unusual side effects to a Healer and the potion should then be investigated," Evan's Grandfather suggested. "As Mr Potter pointed out, people may have been sensible enough not to mix certain things up until this point but that doesn't mean they won't in the future, especially as each generation of new witches and wizards seems to be increasingly stupid."
"Excellent point Valery," Lucius smiled.
"I would suggest an allowance for a 50% difference in ingredients either way to still be counted as the same recipe," Draco suggested. "It sounds a lot but this is a first look guideline and it can always be adjusted at a later date."
"Precisely," Lucius agreed, giving his son a proud look. "We wouldn't want to cause the system to become overloaded too early."
"Who will do the testing?" Harry asked.
"I would imagine the Ministry," Evan's Grandfather, Valery, replied. "I would say St Mungos but they would likely struggle with the non-medical potions."
"I don't know about that!" Fudge huffed. "We don't currently have the Department for it and it takes time and money to get these things set up."
"Perhaps the Most Extraordinary Society for Potioneers can do the testing to begin with," Draco suggested. "They have the capabilities and I'm sure they would be glad for the good press. I believe they have been suffering from dwindling numbers as of late."
"Excellent idea!" Fudge boomed, apparently ecstatic that he wouldn't have to deal with worrying about the testing.
"So," Lucius said, drawing out a piece of parchment and writing down their proposed guidelines. "Potions recipes created after 1692 must be subject to testing, as well as older recipes that have been subject to 50% or more change. The testing is to include potential side effects, recommended dosage, issues that occur in the event of an overdose and how to treat it, as well as potential side effects from miscibility testing. All information to be included on packaging."
"That sounds fair enough," Harry agreed. "Although it should include all magical produced items which are ingestible, such as food and drink."
"I say, that's going a bit far isn't it?" another person exclaimed.
"Agreed," Lucius drawled, "although I understand where Mr Potter is coming from and it may be a sector that is worth keeping an eye on. As I said before, we don't want to overload the system too early plus there is some testing within these guidelines that might not be necessary for food and drink, such as dosing instructions, but it might be something that comes up at a later date."
"Definitely," Valery agreed. "We don't want a bunch of potioneers changing their potions into sweets to find a work around."
Fudge paled. "Perhaps we had best include that then."
Lucius shook his head however. "Incremental change is better than sweeping change in these cases. If we push for too much the Wizengamot is more likely to push back plus we are more likely to miss something and get the whole thing overturned. If we make a note of concerns, however, then they are on the record and it will allow us to come back to them at a later date." Fudge acquiesced to Lucius's wisdom and the older blond rolled up parchment, seemingly drawing an end to the discussions. Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He was glad that he had managed to manoeuvre things so that the Weasleys weren't going to be seen as villains in all this, that it wasn't about their products but changes that needed to be made in the wizarding world in general. There was a chance that they might not see it that way, possibly wanting Harry to get the new guidelines completely overturned. The problem with that was that Harry actually thought the guidelines were a good thing and would help the Weasleys in the long run, offering them more protection. He hoped they would eventually see that, he was just glad that he had other people he could spend time with until they did.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
An Indecent Proposal
Harry spent the rest of the party in relative solitude. After they had finalised their plans for the testing, and Lucius had penned off a letter to the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers, the group had seemed to relax a bit, leaning towards friendship groups not that 'shop' talk was over. Harry only really knew Draco and Evan and hadn't felt comfortable sidling up to either of them, especially with the way they seemed to be schmoozing, although a part of him wished he had when the Minister himself came up to him.
Harry had quite forgotten that he was somewhat of a celebrity in that world so it took him a while to realise what the Minister might want with him and even longer to get his head around the fact that the Minister simply wanted to be seen with Harry and to class him as an acquaintance. Umbridge had been ever at the Minister's side, not that the man seemed to pay her any notice. He had talked to Harry about the opening of the Wizengamot and had gotten Harry's assurance that he would be voting these guidelines through. Talk of the new legislative year however, brought Fudge onto the topic of the new social season and the man asked if Harry would be scouting for a new bride himself with the Minister suggesting that, given his position, he might be able to help facilitate any unions should Harry wish it.
At that point Harry remembered where he had previously heard about the Minister and was once again taken back to the night of the infamous party and a certain girl there by the name of Sue Li. Harry had strongly declined the Minister's help, saying that he had experience of the Minister's taste in women and wasn't sure he would be much help. The Minister and Umbridge had gasped in shock although Harry wasn't entirely sure why. He'd been about to say that it was only because he hadn't gotten on with Sue Li when Draco stepped in and started talking to the Minister quietly before quite loudly suggesting that he show Harry an old book documenting some wizarding history. When they had gone over to the bookshelves away from the rest of the group, Draco had frantically whispered to Harry, trying to remind him that it was not polite to talk about people's affairs.
"The majority of people in the wizarding world end up in political marriages," Draco explained, "so, once an heir is produced, it is often fully accepted that people look for their enjoyment elsewhere, so long as they are discreet about it. It's a bit difficult to do that if other people go around announcing it to everyone."
Draco had handed Harry a book and suggested he read it, all but pushing Harry into a chair. People had seemed to give Harry a bit of a wide berth after that, including Draco for which Harry was particularly sorry. He had soon gotten a little lost in the stories about the founders of Hogwarts and he didn't even realise how late it had gotten when he noticed that he was getting a little cold and saw that the fire had died down. All the other guests had apparently left already, either having forgotten about him or having consciously left him to his reading. Harry wasn't sure how to feel about it although at least being left to read had meant that he had been able to ignore the Firewhiskey he'd been given to drink. That stuff had a hell of a kick and it had taken all of Harry's effort not to choke on the first sip. The only issue he saw now was how to give the robes back to Draco. It wasn't as if he could just hand them over in the middle of the day; there must have been a reason why Draco had chosen ones people wouldn't associate with him after all.
Harry supposed he could just leave them at the end of the day but he didn't want to risk them getting accidentally packed with his own things. It would be a good reason for him to meet up with Draco again, which would definitely be a plus, but he didn't want to risk Draco thinking he was a thief. Having made up his mind to at least try to return the robes to Draco, Harry made his way back up the main staircase, carefully trying to retrace his steps back to the other man's rooms. It was a little confusing in the dark, especially as the panelled corridors all looked quite similar. He was starting to wonder if he should just turn around and try to find his own room, not that he could remember how to get there either, when he noticed a bright blue vase next to a door that he remembered as he had nearly knocked it over in his rush to get to dinner. Breathing a sigh of relief, Harry knocked gently on the door, wanting to alert Draco if he was awake but not disturb him if he was asleep.
The door suddenly burst open and Draco beamed at Harry. He peered out the door and looked up and down the corridor before yanking Harry inside and quickly closing the door.
"I was starting to think you weren't coming," Draco smiled.
"Oh, sorry," Harry said, a little sheepishly. "I didn't mean to be so long, I just got lost in the book."
"That's alright, you're here now," Draco smiled reassuringly, placing a comforting hand on Harry's arm.
Harry gulped, feeling guilty. He slipped off the robes and Draco smiled. "I'm really sorry, I didn't mean for you to think I was keeping them. I should have brought them back sooner." He handed the robes over to the blond only for Draco to look at him, clearly confused.
"What are you talking about?"
Harry gaped a bit. "I came to return your robes to you. I figured you were waiting for me."
"I was waiting for you, yes," Draco huffed, "but not because of the robes. I couldn't care less about them, I probably wouldn't even wear them again. You can keep them for all I care."
Harry frowned. "Why were you waiting for me then?"
"Because I thought you might be coming round to have a bit of fun!" Draco snapped before softening with a sigh and stepping a little closer to Harry. "Didn't you feel like there was a bit of a spark between us?"
He gently brushed his fingers over the back of Harry's hand and Harry gulped, nodding his head. Yes, he would definitely describe the feeling those fingers elicited as a 'spark'.
Draco flashed Harry a flirtatious smile. "I'm glad I wasn't the only one. I was hoping we could have a bit of fun together, at least over this weekend and maybe going into the future."
"You want a relationship!" Harry exclaimed.
"Merlin no!" Draco laughed. "It wouldn't be allowed anyway."
Harry frowned. "Whyever not?"
"Because we are both the last of our lines," Draco explained. "It is highly frowned upon for two major houses to join as it invariably means the loss of a line and that has happened too much in recent history to be accepted by society at large."
"Couldn't people just double-barrel their name?" Harry queried.
"In the eyes of the wizarding world that would be akin to creating a new line," Draco replied. "Perfectly acceptable for two branch lines to do but unacceptable for main lines, especially in two greatly respected houses such as ours."
"I didn't realise my family was that well respected," Harry admitted and Draco smiled.
"They may not have been labelled as one of the sacred twenty-eight although why is open to some debate especially as it's not completely clear who wrote the list. There have, however, been Potters in the wizarding world since the Middle Ages and your family has always held a high place in society, as has mine. If one side had possibly fallen into disrepute then that might be a different matter. Unfortunately our families were on opposite sides of the last war so I can't see it going down well if either of our families get lost."
"That's a shame," Harry sighed.
"I'm glad you feel that way," Draco chuckled. "While it stops us from being official though, it doesn't mean we can't have a bit of fun. We would just have to be a bit discreet about it."
Harry frowned. "I don't know. I'm not sure how I feel about sneaking about all the time."
"Do you plan on getting married any time soon?" Draco asked and Harry shook his head. "So do you plan on remaining celebate until you do?"
Harry thought for a moment. He had never really considered himself a person with needs before, his desire never having been triggered while he lived with the Dursleys. Things had changed since he had entered the wizarding world however, with feelings having already been triggered within him. He didn't try and think about
that night
too much, not with how hazy and murky everything was. He had to admit though that, from what he could remember, parts of it had been quite enjoyable, especially the parts with Cedric, and a part of him was curious to try again, to see how much of it was the drug and how much was actually him. His problem wasn't the idea of doing anything with Draco, his problem was the secrecy. He was aware that it seemed to be the done thing, to a certain extent anyway, but Harry wasn't sure if it was really him. Draco seemed to notice his indecision and leant forward to place a gentle kiss on Harry's lips. Harry had a thrill at the gentle touch and let out a sigh.
"Just a little something to think about while you consider my offer," Draco smiled. "And you can keep the robes, you'll probably need them for tomorrow night anyway. Do you want me to show you back to your rooms?"
Harry looked at Draco, dressed in his night clothes and robe and shook his head. The man looked good, the moonlight glinting off his pale hair and skin. He shook his head, now worrying what people might say if they saw them walking together as they were. Draco seemed to understand and gave Harry directions back, carefully checking the corridor as Harry left. As they said goodnight Harry was sorely tempted to give him another kiss but he held back, feeling that it wouldn't be fair to Draco while he was still unsure of what he wanted. Draco's offer was definitely tempting, especially as Harry didn't particularly have any other similar offers at the moment, nor was there anyone he might consider seeing himself. The only other person he'd felt any sort of attraction to was Cedric and there was far too much baggage there for him to truly consider that possibility, not to mention the fact that he wasn't even sure if that attraction was real or the result of the Happiness drug.
Harry had to admit he was a little surprised that he actually managed to make it back to his rooms that night. His mind was swirling with various possibilities but thankfully his feet seemed to be able to follow Draco's directions on their own. Not that it helped much. He found it difficult to get to sleep, his mind constantly going over the various possibilities and, when he did finally get off to sleep, he found his dreams plagued by images of white blond hair, pale moonlit skin and surprisingly soft lips. He felt very groggy when he did wake to a knock at the door and it didn't help to see a perfectly presented Draco standing at his door asking if he was going to be coming down for breakfast. Harry blushed a bit, knowing just what a state he must look, and shooed Draco downstairs saying he would follow momentarily. He got dressed as quickly as he could although he took a bit of time to try to straighten his hair. It was a lost cause but he couldn't shake the desire to make sure that he wouldn't look too ridiculous standing next to the perfectly coiffed Malfoy.
Thankfully most people seemed to have eaten breakfast and moved on by the time Harry eventually got down to the breakfast room and he found he only had time for a quick bowl of kedgeree before the call to assemble in the grounds came. Harry was nervous but Draco stuck by his side as they went out and Harry wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. In a way the blond's presence was reassuring but, at the same time Harry couldn't help but feel a bit pressured. Not that Draco was doing anything per se, he was actually keeping a very respectful distance, only coming close to instruct Harry on gun safety. Harry still felt his heart rate increase when he did. He felt as if his cheeks were flaming and he was pretty sure they were if the looks Evan was sending him were anything to go by.
The announcement was made that dinner that evening would be whatever they killed and the groups happily began to split off. Macnair went off with a few others at a fast pace and Lucius stuck with Umbridge, the Minister, Evan and his grandfather while Draco pulled Harry to a side. Harry was a little worried what it would mean until he remembered what he had said about keeping Harry away from the others due to the fact that he had never shot before.
"Is everything OK?" Draco asked, once they were out of earshot of everyone. "I realise that I might have freaked you out a bit with my proposition but, while I am definitely interested in you I don't want you to feel pressured into doing anything."
"It's not that I'm not interested at all," Harry admitted, "it's more that I'm not sure if that is something I want or need. The only time I've ever felt anything like desire was when I was with Cho and Cedric and there is a good chance that that was potion induced. I liked the kiss you gave me last night and I'm pretty sure I'm attracted to you but I don't know enough if I want to commit to even a casual relationship like that."
"You're only pretty sure you're attracted to me! I think I'm insulted!" Draco scoffed, but there was a hint of laughter in his eyes.
Harry laughed as well. "Well given that you are the only person I've been attracted to when sober it might just be that I'm ridiculously fussy."
"I suppose I can accept that," Draco smiled, "and don't feel like there is any pressure if you do want to do anything with me. I'm open to friends that sometimes make out, we don't have to go all the way. The only thing I can't offer is anything official."
Harry returned his smile. "I suppose I can get behind friends who make out and see where we go from there."
"Brilliant!" Draco beamed. "Let's get a couple of kills in and we can start right now."
Harry laughed but didn't complain as Draco talked him through how to fire a gun again, casting spells to muffle the sounds of their movements to allow them to creep up on animals. It was actually harder to get a shot in than he anticipated and Harry briefly wondered if they would end up having any time to make out that afternoon, surprising himself by how disappointed that thought made him, when a deer suddenly came bounding across his path. Harry barely thought about what he was doing as he pulled his rifle to his shoulder and fired, somehow amazingly getting the creature in the back of its head. As it crumpled to the ground an angry looking MacNair came out of the trees from the direction the deer came and yelled at Harry for taking his kill. Harry apologised and said that the man was welcome to it but apparently that wasn't the right thing to say.
"Do you think I need charity from a greenie like you!" MacNair spat. "You're a bloody liability out here! You didn't even check the area when you shot. You could have killed someone!"
Harry paled a bit when he realised the other man was right.
"That's my fault Walden, he is my responsibility," Draco said, trying to soothe the situation. "I think it best if I take Harry back to the lodge anyway."
"Now that he pinched my kill," MacNair muttered before stalking back off to the rest of his little group and heading off in the other direction. Draco collected the kill before putting an arm around Harry's shoulders and guiding him back to the lodge.
"I'm sorry got you in trouble," Harry whispered.
"Don't be," Draco grinned. "Your shot means that we have the perfect excuse to go back early."
"But you didn't shoot anything," Harry pointed out but Draco just shrugged.
"I don't need to kill something to prove myself and I hope that I've done enough to warrant sharing your venison."
"Of course!" Harry gaped. "I wouldn't have been able to even fire that shot without your tutoring and I'm sure you would have gotten something if you didn't have to babysit me."
"Then there is nothing to worry about," Draco smirked, "and, if you're interested, we can even make out in my room until the others get back."
Harry liked the sound of that idea a lot and picked up his pace. Suddenly the idea of having to finish his hunt early didn't sound bad at all.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A Secret Rendezvous
Harry and Draco had spent the rest of the afternoon making out in Draco's room. He vaguely wondered if they would stop when the hunting party returned and was consequently very surprised when he heard the gong alerting people that it was time to dress for dinner. At this point Draco had hurried Harry out of his room, saying he needed time to make himself presentable. Harry looked at Draco, the urge to say that the other man looked fine on the tip of his tongue, only for it to get stuck. For the first time in their admittedly short acquaintance Draco truly did look a state. His hair was well and truly messed up from where Harry had been running his hands through it and his lips were red and swollen from their extended kissing session. His clothes were also massively crumpled and Harry was a little curious as to whether Draco was suffering from the same problem as him although it was difficult to tell under robes. It was quite possibly the first time that Harry was grateful for wizarding attire as the masses of fabric kept his own erection nicely covered.
Harry had to admit that he had had a lot of fun that afternoon. He and Draco had started on the sofa, just kissing lightly, but things had quite quickly escalated as Harry found himself enjoying the feel of Draco's lips moving over his. Draco had quickly taken control of things and Harry had found himself sighing as Draco had begun pushing him backwards before settling himself on top of Harry. They had stayed in that position for some time but things eventually grew despite their slow start. At first it was just hands that had seemed to move all over each other's bodies. That had only seemed to fan the flames of desire and the pair of them had ended up writhing against each other to such an extent that they had ended up tumbling onto the floor. Draco had then led Harry to his bed, saying they would be more comfortable there. Harry was a little wary at first but hadn't wanted things to end, or to risk falling on the floor again, so he agreed. Draco had continued to hold himself back, seemingly for Harry's sake, only escalating things slowly, which is why they had only had a few buttons undone by the time the gong had rang and Harry had to admit, as he walked back to his room to get changed, that he was actually a little disappointed that they had had to stop.
Dinner was a very different affair that evening, at least as far as Harry was concerned. It helped that everyone seemed to be in very high spirits, all having gained something on the hunt and seemingly playing a game of one-upmanship as to who had gotten the best kill. Harry had been inclined to point out the stag that he had shot but Draco, who was sitting opposite him for some reason, had shaken his head, indicating that Harry should keep out of things. Harry supposed that did make sense as he didn't want to start MacNair ranting about him stealing a kill again, even if it hadn't been intentional on Harry's part. It didn't help that MacNair seemed to be fairly drunk at this point and, given how belligerent the man had been sober, Harry figured discretion was definitely the better part of valour this time.
That wasn't the only time Draco had caught his eye over the course of the meal though, and Harry hadn't been able to hide his smile any time the other man had flashed him a flirtatious smile. He was feeling quite giddy by the time dessert was served and he had barely drank any wine. It was like there was electricity in the air, a pressure almost, building between them, and the fact that nobody seemed to be any the wiser almost added to it. There was a certain thrill to carrying on something illicit under everyone's noses and Harry was beginning to understand why it appealed to some people. He had never been someone prone to keeping secrets before, having always been taught how bad it was. Now that he thought about it though, his family must have kept his magical heritage a secret from him all his life and if they could do that without seemingly caring about the consequences then why couldn't Harry have a little fun with someone, especially when they were both walking into the situation knowing what was going on.
When dinner broke up and they went into the lounge, Harry drew away from the main party and veered towards the bookshelves once more. MacNair had once again snagged a bottle of something for himself and seemed to have settled in one of the window seats and Lucius and some of the others seemed to be discussing something to do with a school and its teachers which Harry felt had nothing to do with him. He wasn't that into politics, he'd only put his two cents worth in to help the Weasleys. He would much rather spend the evening kissing Draco again but he wasn't entirely sure if that was possible. He was just casually looking over the books, wondering if he should walk up to Draco and try to draw him away somehow when someone tapped him on the shoulder.
"Are you looking for something in particular?" Draco queried and Harry beamed, thanking his luck.
"Nothing in particular, I just didn't feel I had a right to step into a discussion about a school I am never going to attend," Harry replied. "I was wondering if you had a book on wizarding customs as I still feel very out of the loop on that but I can't seem to see anything."
"You won't find anything like that. We Malfoys like to believe that that information is so ingrained in us that we are literally born with it so would never lower ourselves to having books on it," Draco smirked and Harry smiled, happy to see that Draco was joking with him. "The closest you'll find are history books. I was wondering, however, since we will be looking over the Granians tomorrow, how much do you know about magical creatures?"
"We're not hunting?" Harry queried.
"Alas no," Draco sighed. "Muggles in this country have banned hunting on a Sunday. Normally we would ignore such a law but it is difficult when you're using guns as the sound of the shot travels and it has previously caused issues with the muggle authorities and I already explained the issues with trying to hunt using magic."
"I can see why some people might get annoyed with that," Harry admitted. "It seems a shame, although I will say I'm curious about these Granian creatures. I have a couple of Mooncalves at my house but I was hoping to get some more creatures in."
"Well you should definitely look into training some Granians," Draco smiled. "There is racing up in Upper Flagley in the spring and they could always do with more horses. The books on that aren't in here though, they're in the Library, if you want to follow me."
Draco led Harry down the hall a bit before stepping through some double doors into a large room. It seemed to be filled with books but it was difficult to tell. The only light coming in was from the moon and Harry was a little curious as to why Draco hadn't already lit the candles when Harry found himself suddenly pushed back against the doors he had just walked through. He barely had time to blink before Draco's lips descended on his, not that Harry was complaining, and he actually whined a bit when Draco pulled back after what was far too short a time in his opinion.
"I've been wanting to do that all evening," Draco whispered.
"Happy to oblige," Harry sighed, "although I thought you were going to show me a book."
Draco laughed. "That was just for cover. I needed a legitimate excuse to pull you out of the room so people wouldn't suspect."
"Oh!" Harry exclaimed, feeling a bit stupid. "Does that mean we're going to spend the rest of the evening kissing?"
"I wish," Draco huffed. "Unfortunately it will be a little obvious if we both turn up in the lounge looking mussed and we'll be missed if we're gone too long anyway. I wanted to talk to you about tonight. I know that you are a little wary about all of this, which is why I wanted to find out for sure if you wanted to come to my room again tonight."
"Yes, of course!" Harry exclaimed, only to get shushed by Draco.
"I will warn you that if you come at night I don't know if I'll be happy to limit myself to just kissing," Draco warned. "It's one thing to stay fully clothed in the middle of the day when anyone might turn up but I would want to make the most of being undisturbed overnight."
That brought Harry up short. "I don't know how I would feel about that."
"I know," Draco smiled, "which is why I wanted to be upfront with you about things. I don't want you to feel pressured and that might have happened if you'd have shown up unawares. Don't worry, you don't have to answer now, I just wanted you to think about it. Here," he said, waving his wand to light the candles in the Library and then handing Harry a book from the shelf. "You can stay here for a bit and think about things. If you're interested, come and find me and tell me the book was really helpful. If not, say that it wasn't, then I'll know not to wait up for you. If you haven't come to me by 11 I'll assume it's a no. That's not meant to pressure you, just to point out that if you're that undecided it's probably better to err against it."
"Alright," Harry nodded, somewhat solemnly and Draco leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek.
"This isn't a now or never thing either," he chuckled. "No need to be so serious. You can always contact me at a later date if you want to hook up again, I just thought it might be nice to take advantage of the opportunity."
Harry sighed a bit in relief and smiled as Draco walked out the door. It was nice to know that there was no pressure on this decision. He looked down and huffed out a laugh when he saw that Draco had actually handed him a book on winged horses and a quick flip through showed that there was a whole section on Granians. Harry was momentarily distracted looking at the majestic creatures and had to shake himself to regain focus. He was supposed to be contemplating Draco's proposal not getting lost in a book again.
Harry had to admit that it was strange walking into this with his eyes open. It was nice that Draco was being so open with him and giving him the space as well. With Cedric and Cho he had definitely felt pressured and he couldn't honestly say that he'd have felt comfortable walking away if he hadn't been drugged, which admittedly was a part of the reason why he hadn't given evidence. This situation with Draco was almost the complete opposite although there was a part of Harry that almost wished he didn't have time to think about it. He had always been impulsive, making decisions on the fly and trusting his instincts. It was strange to actually be sitting here planning things and he found himself second guessing himself a bit. What if he wasn't ready? What if this wasn't really something he wanted? Would Draco be upset if Harry went there and ended up changing his mind? On the other hand though Draco had said there would be other opportunities but what if he was wrong and that Harry never got another chance with him again?
Harry felt like he was just going round in circles and getting nowhere. Shaking his head again he stopped thinking and decided to just go and see what his mind said when it was forced to make a decision. Leaving the library Harry walked back to the lounge, straight up to Draco and froze. Crap but this was a bad idea.
"Is something wrong Harry?" Draco asked. "Was the book not helpful?"
"No," Harry exclaimed before his brain seemed to kick in, "I mean no, nothings wrong but yes the book was helpful."
"Really!" Draco beamed and Harry returned his smile, almost sighing in relief now that the decision had been made and he realised that it did sit right in his stomach.
"Yes, very helpful. In fact I'd like to read it some more and was thinking of retiring to my room early so I can read in comfort."
"An excellent idea," Draco grinned. "In fact I'll probably have an early night myself. All that traipsing through the woods seems to have drained me. I'll probably head up in about half an hour."
Harry nodded and found himself almost chuckling at the fact that they were able to arrange a rendezvous under people's noses like this. He bid a quick goodnight to everyone and headed up the stairs. He was just about to turn towards his room when he stopped. Draco had said he would only be half an hour, was there really any point in going all the way to his room just to come back? And what if he got there and started second guessing himself? Harry couldn't imagine how disappointed Draco would be if Harry didn't end up turning up after all and what if there was someone else around later? It would still be early for the party to be breaking up in half an hour but you couldn't be sure. Someone might actually be feeling tired and decide to follow Draco out and how ridiculous would it look if they spotted Harry roaming the corridors after he had made such a big deal about going up early to read.
Harry knew it was a bit presumptuous of him but, given the emphasis Draco had put on secrecy, Harry thought it would be better to take advantage of the fact that no one was around and he turned instead, heading straight for Draco's room. It was strange being in there on his own but Harry knew he had made the right decision as he shut the door and his brain almost instantly started to second guess not only his decision to come to Draco's room but also with the decision to go through with this at all. Realising that that questioning voice came from a place of fear, Harry brutally stamped it down, almost ripping off his outer robes and jacket and sitting himself on Draco's bed. Each time he felt himself questioning his decision to be there Harry got himself a little more undressed, essentially making it harder for himself to just run and, by the time the door to the room opened Harry had lost his tie and had half his shirt buttons undone. It was hardly a surprise that Draco stood there gaping at him before catching himself and quickly shutting the door.
"I'm sorry for just letting myself in here but I thought it would be better to come when there was no one around," Harry said.
"No need to apologise," Draco smiled, slowly removing his robes. "I have to admit that I was planning on making myself a bit more appealing for when you did show up but I am certainly not complaining at having the tables turned."
Harry gulped. "I think you're appealing enough," he admitted as Draco slipped off his ascot and began undoing the buttons on his shirt. The moonlight glinted off his smooth, alabaster skin and Harry found himself unconsciously licking his lips.
"I'm glad to hear that," Draco smirked. "I can definitely say that I like what I can see of you as well."
"Really!" Harry exclaimed, having never thought of himself as particularly attractive before and Draco nodded.
"Oh yes, and I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of it as well."
Harry didn't need any more prompting as he jumped off the bed and fumbled with his belt buckle, too distracted by Draco's increasingly revealed body to undress with any sort of finesse. It was hardly surprising that Draco finished before him. He lay down on the bed and began to languidly stroke himself as he watched Harry causing Harry to stop his actions completely with his pants halfway down his legs and just stare. If he had been unsure of his sexuality before he wasn't anymore as he found himself unable to drag his eyes away from the sight of Draco's glorious cock.
"Do you need a hand?" Draco asked and Harry shook his head, dropping his underwear as well, quickly pulling off his shoes and socks before jumping onto the bed. His own cock was now standing proud out of its nest of dark curls and Draco actually moaned.
"I think you look even better than I imagined," he purred before diving on top of Harry and giving him a searing kiss. The movement caused his cock to rub against Harry's sending sparks of pleasure coursing through Harry's veins. He gasped and Draco took advantage, quickly deepening the kiss, thrusting his tongue into Harry's mouth as his hips began thrusting against Harry's. Harry moaned, feeling as if he could do little more than hold on through the onslaught and had to yank himself away when he felt his body cresting.
"Stop!" he yelled and Draco instantly jumped back as if burned.
"What's wrong? Have I pushed you too far? Have you changed your mind?"
"No," Harry smiled reassuringly. "It was just so good I was about to explode and I didn't want things to end too soon."
"Do you think you couldn't get up again if you did?" Draco queried and Harry frowned in thought.
"Well I probably could," Harry mused, thinking it was probably more than probably if Draco kept kissing like that again afterwards.
"Then I don't see the problem," Draco smirked. "I want to make sure you're nice and relaxed before I start opening you up." He brushed a finger over Harry's entrance and Harry found himself shivering with delight. This was definitely the right decision he thought and he nodded to Draco with a smile. The blond grinned and licked his hand, taking hold of both his and Harry's cocks together as he leaned back down for a deep kiss. Harry moaned and bucked up into Draco's grip, spreading his legs a little to allow the other man to properly settle between his thighs. It was strange to be actively chasing his release while with another man thrust against him but the thought of Draco doing this with his cock buried in Harry's arse was seeming more and more appealing and Harry was suddenly in a hurry to make it happen, moaning as he thrust back against Draco and finding his release not long after. He collapsed back on the bed and watched through half-lidded eyes as Draco finished himself off with a few more strokes, shootings his load all over Harry's stomach.
Harry shuddered but not from diagust.
"Did you like that?" Draco queried.
Harry nodded sheepishly. "Is that weird?"
"Not at all," Draco assured him. "We all have our little quirks." He dipped a finger into the pool of Harry's cum and brought it up to his mouth, sucking it down with a moan of pleasure and making Harry's mouth go dry.
He gulped hard. "I've only done this once before, I don't actually know what my quirks are."
"Then we shall have a lot of fun working them out together," Draco smiled, leaning down to lick some cum off Harry's chest before giving Harry a deep kiss. The cum tasted a bit weird although not completely unpleasant and Draco's kiss more than made up for things. The way the other man moved his tongue was certainly very distracting and Harry barely noticed his legs being pushed back. It was only when Draco pulled away that Harry's mind came back to what would actually be happening, cemented when Draco muttered a spell and Harry felt a tingling sensation in his ass.
"It was just a cleaning spell," Draco informed him before grabbing a jar of something from the bedside table. "I'm going to stretch you now. I'll go slowly but you will need to relax and it will help if you push back against me. Let me know if it gets too much and you need me to ease up."
Harry nodded and took a fortifying breath, feeling surprisingly at ease as Draco began to stroke a slick finger over his hole. He wanted this, he was sure of that now, and he smiled at Draco as he pulled his legs further apart, trying to give the other man better access. It definitely hurt less than Harry remembered, as fuzzy as those memories were, and he realised that Draco was right when he said about pushing back. It seemed so different now, so good, and Harry briefly wondered if this was what it would have been like if it had only been him and Cedric. He shook his head. Now was not the time for that. He had a gorgeous blond between his thighs making him feel absolutely wonderful. Harry cried out in delight as Draco found that little spot inside him and Harry found himself thrusting back on Draco's fingers, desperately seeking more and feeling that it wasn't quite enough yet.
Harry hissed out a "yes" as Draco switched his fingers for a cock and even the burn of the increased stretch felt good. Harry felt Draco push his legs back, lifting his hips a little. Harry was a little confused when Draco pushed a pillow underneath but a gentle thrust had Draco's cock brush against that sensitive spot inside and Harry saw stars. He was vaguely aware of Draco smirking before he began thrusting properly and all brain function in Harry seemed to cease as he moaned in delight, revelling in the pleasure the other man was bestowing on him. He had no idea how long they lasted, thrusting against each other, filling the room with moans and groans and grunts as they found pleasure in each other's bodies. There was something almost animalistic about it and Harry loved it, begging Draco for more, harder, as he took his renewed erection in hand, stroking himself in time with Draco's thrusts until he found himself cuming over his chest for the second time that night. Draco hissed as Harry's body tensed and he thrust into Harry a few more times before finally juddering to a stop and Harry felt something warm spurting inside his ass.
Draco collapsed forward, landing half on top of Harry but managing to, perhaps purposely, miss the mass of cum that had now accumulated on Harry's stomach.
"How are you feeling?" Draco panted, looking into Harry's eye.
Harry smiled and gave him a light kiss. "Good. I'm glad I came here tonight."
"Me too," Draco grinned before easing up and leaning over Harry to grab his wand. The movement unfortunately dislodged his cock from inside Harry, causing it to slide out and Harry let out a slight hiss as the action caused cum to dribble over his tender entrance.
"Are you feeling a bit tender?" Draco asked and Harry nodded. "I won't cast a cleansing spell on your hole then, I don't want to risk causing any more damage. If you check in the bathroom cabinet when you get back to your room though, you should find a healing salve that you can use that should help."
"Oh, right, thanks," Harry sighed, even as the spell Draco cast tickled across his stomach.
"Harry," Draco sighed. "I know it's not ideal but you do understand why you can't stay in my room tonight right."
"I know," Harry huffed, "but the idea of going to my room on my own feels wrong somehow."
"You're probably a cuddler," Draco smirked. "I can deal with that and I have no problem catering to your needs normally but there are too many people here just looking for a scandal and Sod's Law is that we will both fall asleep if we do and our little assignation will be on the front of every gossip rag on Monday."
Harry groaned at the thought. "You're right," he said as he pulled himself out of bed. He had just gotten over the last scandal and he would hate to think what Mimby would say if he wound up in another so soon.
"I usually am," Draco snickered, leaning back against the headboard, still gloriously nude, as Harry gathered up his things to get dressed again. It was strange doing it with Draco watching; slightly embarrassing but also a bit empowering as Draco's appreciative gaze continued to rove over his body. The attention was quite distracting though and it probably took Harry a bit more time than it normally would. He hesitated for a moment once he was dressed but then decided to throw caution to the wind and leaned over to give Draco a kiss, picking up the book on Granians as he did. He still had to get back to his room after all and, while it still wasn't too late, Harry wanted to have an excuse if anyone did happen to bump into him and getting lost seemed as good a one as any. He smiled to himself as he slipped out of Draco's room. Maybe he wasn't as bad at this sneaking around thing as he thought.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Flying Horses
It really wasn't that late by the time Harry had made it back to his room, partly due to how early Harry had 'retired for the night' and partly due to the fact that he and Draco hadn't exactly taken their time with each other. Harry didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, from what he could remember he hadn't spent all that much time with Cho and Cedric either. Admittedly Harry didn't exactly remember much of that time so he might be wrong although that was also arguably a secret assignation, or at least Harry assumed it was meant to be, so maybe that was the explanation. It wasn't like he really had anything to compare it to though, he just hoped Draco hadn't been disappointed as Harry had actually enjoyed himself a lot and quite liked the idea of getting to do that again.
Admittedly there were some things he wouldn't mind changing, the cum dripping out of his ass as he made his way back to his room wasn't exactly a highlight, nor was the slight burning in his hole, although Draco was right and the healing salve did help with that a lot. He wasn't feeling particularly tired though, the thrill of sneaking through the corridors having roused him from his post-coitus lethargy, so Harry decided to actually read the book about Granians in his bed. Admittedly it wasn't just Granians but all winged horses and Harry found himself quite enthralled by the concept of them and ended up drifting off to sleep with the book still open on his lap.
Draco had laughed when he found Harry like that in the morning. Harry had been a little annoyed at first as Draco had simply waltzed into his room, or so it had seemed. Draco insisted he had knocked but admitted that he hadn't bothered waiting for a reply which led Harry to question just how loudly he had knocked in the first place. Any annoyance went out the window though when Draco leaned in for a kiss. He pulled back almost straight away though and cast a breath freshening spell at Harry before leaning back in and Harry found he couldn't complain too much as even he had been able to taste his morning breath. He had almost been annoyed when he realised how early Draco had woken him but that only lasted until Draco suggested they kill the time before breakfast by giving each other blow jobs.
Harry had never had one before, let alone given one, but the thought of Draco's mouth was definitely tempting enough to give it a try. It was awkward to say the least, especially with how unskilled Harry was, and how easily he was distracted by Draco's very skilled mouth. They had tried getting each other off simultaneously, something Draco called a 69, initially side by side, but Harry kept losing concentration and Draco had eventually lost patience and rolled Harry onto his back, continuing to work on Harry's cock as his own thrust into Harry's mouth. Harry had gaged a bit at first, unused to having something pressing down his throat like that. He soon learned to use his hands to hold back Draco's hips however, as well as learning to breathe through his nose to help repress his gag reflex.
Unsurprisingly they were quite late getting down to breakfast but Harry truly couldn't bring himself to care: not when Draco blamed him entirely, claiming Harry slept like the dead, or when Evan seemed to look at them as if he knew exactly what they had been up to that morning. It probably didn't help that Harry and Draco both had matching grins on their faces, nor that they couldn't keep their eyes off each other. Harry figured he would probably have a hard time keeping his hands off Draco as well if they were anywhere near each other which may well have been the reason why Draco seemed to keep an entire table between them at all times. Harry thought it was probably a good thing that they weren't going shooting again today as Harry was sure he would be in trouble if he and Draco were allowed to wander off alone together. At least when they were looking at the Granians there would be plenty of people around so they would be very limited with what they could get away with.
That was the theory anyway and it did hold up for a while. The Granians had looked majestic in the books but that was nothing compared to seeing them in real life. They just looked so graceful walking around their paddocks with their wings extended. Their coats were various shades of grey, from pale dove, through steel, all the way to storm and, looking at them, Harry couldn't help but be briefly reminded of Draco's eyes and the way they would sometimes change colour with his mood.
Lucius was clearly very impressed with his animals but Harry couldn't help asking one question.
"Why Granians? I thought that Aethonan were the breed native to the UK and Ireland."
"It is," Lucius smiled, "but Granian are significantly faster which is why they are the preferred breed for racing."
"Indeed," Umbridge tittered. "Why in Merlin's name would anyone want to bother with anything that is second best."
"Aethonan have their place in wizarding society as well," Draco pointed out. "Chovgan would be a very different game if we played it on Granian instead of Aethonan." Titters of agreement erupted through the crowd.
"What's chow-gaan?" Harry whispered to Draco.
"It's a sport that is played while riding flying horses," Draco explained. "The goals are similar to the ones used in quidditch, although Chovgan used them originally, and you use little nets on the end of long sticks to pass around a ball and try to score a goal. Apparently the sport was invented around 2000 years ago in Persia."
"Wow! I can't even imagine something that old," Harry gaped and Draco chuckled.
"It's no quidditch though," MacNair gruffed before walking away from the animals and Draco rolled his eyes at the man.
"Uncultured arse!" Draco muttered. "I sometimes swear that man would murder every living creature if he had a chance."
Harry frowned. "Why does your father associate with him then?"
"Money and influence," Draco admitted. "The MacNairs have been growing in status over the years and are famous all over the world for their hunts. Father keeps on friendly terms with Walden but he is usually only invited to shooting weekends. Thankfully that's all he's interested in so it works out well."
"Perhaps you should show Potter how to ride an Aethonan," Evan sniggered.
"You can ride one?" Harry gasped.
"Of course," Draco preened. "I'm on the main Chovgan team. To be honest I should try to get a bit more practice in. I wasn't allowed to ride when I was at Hogwarts, apparently the sport was too elitist so they only allowed Quidditch to be played as that is 'open to everyone'." Draco rolled his eyes.
"To be honest I can't imagine anyone riding one of these beautiful creatures," Harry admitted.
Draco smirked. "Come with me then."
He led Harry over to another, smaller paddock where there were a few chestnut coloured winged horses. They didn't look quite as big or powerful as the Granian but Harry thought they were still impressive. Draco called out for Cinnamon to be saddled and soon a House Elf emerged with a horse. Unlike the Granian Harry couldn't really notice a difference in the colour although he assumed it would be obvious to the trained eye.
"This is Cinnamon," Draco said, taking the horse from the House Elf without a word. "I got her as a foal for Christmas last year and I've been training her up since the summer." He began removing his outer robes and Harry found he had a new appreciation for the older, more fitted style of clothing as it allowed him to remember just what Draco's body looked like underneath them. They also seemed to highlight Draco's graceful movements as he mounted the horse in one fluid move and Harry couldn't help being impressed. He also found himself surprisingly turned on although he wasn't entirely sure why and he tried to calm his raging libido as Draco took the horse for a ride around the paddock, although his efforts kept getting sidetracked by the sight of Draco's ass in his tight breeches.
Draco made a few laps of the paddock before coming to a smooth stop in front of Harry, seeming to be in complete control of the horse the whole time.
"Did you want to try riding her?" Draco asked.
"I wouldn't know where to start," Harry chuckled. "I've never been horseback riding before."
"Horse-
back
riding?" Draco queried and Harry frowned.
"Yes, that's what I said."
"So have you been horse-front riding then? Perhaps horse-side riding, although I can see that getting a bit tricky on the turns," Draco joked.
"Are you making fun of me," Harry groused.
"Not at all," Draco assured him, although he was smirking a lot as he said it. "Some of the things you come out with are very strange, that's all."
"Well I'm glad I can amuse you," Harry huffed.
"Oh don't worry, you amuse me greatly Harry dear," Draco leered. "In fact, we might be able to have some fun today but first I want to see how well you handle my animal although I have a feeling you will be more than competent though."
Harry wasn't so sure about that but he removed his outer robes like Draco had and walked over to where Draco had just dismounted from Cinnamon. Harry was a little trepadatious to be sure. The horse was taller than him and Harry could feel its power as he came closer and he was glad that Draco seemed to have a tight hold of Cinnamon's reins. Cinnamon snorted which caused Harry to jump back which seemed to amuse both the horse and the owner much to Harry's annoyance. Draco guided Harry on how to place his feet in the stirrups but, even with Cinnamon's wings fully retracted, Harry had a lot of difficulty getting into the saddle and had to reposition himself a few times which seemed to amuse Draco even more. He told Harry to grip with his thighs and hold onto Cinnamon's neck as he led them around the paddock at a slow pace.
"Did you want to try flying?" Draco asked after they had done a few laps and Harry had started to relax a bit.
Harry shook his head though. "My legs are killing me. I'm pretty sure I would fall off if I tried."
"Maybe you just need more practice," Draco smirked, "build up the strength in your thighs." Draco rubbed Harry's leg and Harry shuddered with desire, almost falling out of his seat in the process.
"I'm not sure how I feel about that," Harry admitted. "I don't know if flying is really for me, at least not on an animal anyway. I feel like I have more control on a broom."
"I think I can change your mind," Draco said suggestively as he deftly jumped up onto the horse behind Harry. He gave a command and Cinnamon unfurled her wings before cantering off and leaping into the air. Harry gasped and clung on tightly to the horse's neck, not even capable of enjoying the feeling of Draco plastered to his back.
"Relax," Draco cooed, running his hand up and down Harry's side and helping to ease him back into Draco's body. Harry breathed a sigh of relief as he did. "That's it, let me guide you. Just hold onto the saddle and let me do the work."
Draco eased Harry's hands off the horse's neck and placed them on the saddle, wrapping his hands around Harry's to make sure his grip was tight. After giving Harry's hand a slight squeeze he pulled back slightly but, as he did, brushed against Harry's crotch causing him to gasp.
"Fuck Draco!"
Draco laughed. "I know I'm good, Harry, but I think that may be even beyond my ability up here. There are some things I think we can do though."
He rubbed his hand over Harry's crotch again, more deliberately this time, and Harry moaned as he gripped the saddle as tightly as he could. A part of him was panicking at the thought of what could happen if Draco continued but a bigger part of him didn't want Draco to stop, especially when he pressed himself firmly against Harry's back. Draco began to suck kisses into Harry's neck and Harry whined, feeling himself give into the pleasure the other man was offering. The danger of the situation seemed to only heighten the sensations and Harry barely noticed when Draco undid his pants and pulled Harry's cock out.
"That's it Harry, show me how much you love having my hands on you," Draco growled and Harry whimpered, feeling completely wanton as he made small thrusts into Draco's fist, rubbing against the other man's own answering hardness. It was a ridiculous position to be in but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to care as he chased his release.
"I knew you would love this, Harry," Draco purred, "flying around in sight of people, your cock fully exposed. Just think what they would say if they could see you."
"They can't though, right?" Harry asked, suddenly worried about his position.
"No," Draco assured him, "but I think you might have a slight exhibitionist tendency. I can feel your cock throbbing in my fist."
"That's just because your hand feels so good," Harry insisted, although the words sounded somewhat hollow. He didn't know if it was the position he was in or if it wasn't because he wasn't as worried as he had been the night before but he definitely did feel a heightened sense of something although he also wondered briefly if there was a touch of desperation in what he was feeling. Whatever it was, Harry found himself jerking his hips forward and ultimately found completion, spilling his seed all over the bottom of his shirt, biting his lips in an effort not to shout. The effort left Harry shuddering as Draco shifted his grip slightly, letting go of Harry's cock as it quickly softened in the cool Scottish air. Draco wasn't finished however and Harry felt him working himself behind Harry until he grunted his own release.
That was apparently the cue for their ride to end and Draco soon brought them into land, ordering Cinnamon to keep her wings unfurled for a moment after they touched down to allow for the young men to make themselves look a bit more presentable.
"You don't look as if you enjoyed that ride all that much," Evan commented, coming over to chat with his contemporaries, albeit relatively so.
"Yeah, I think I'll stick to brooms thanks," Harry said. He had to admit he was feeling a little shaky, although how much was the ride and how much was the
ride
he wasn't sure. Either way he was glad to be back on firm ground.
"So you're not going to be putting any horses into the Grand Chase?" Evan queried. "That's a shame, we could do with some new blood in that. It's getting a bit boring seeing the same competitors year on year."
"Yes, it is quite a shame," Draco mused. "If you had some horses of your own then I could come over and help you train them since you obviously don't know the first thing about flying horses."
That brought Harry up short. "Oh really, well perhaps I could look into getting some then, as long as I wouldn't have to ride them." If Draco had a reasonable excuse for coming over then Harry might get to keep seeing him after this weekend and that certainly wouldn't be a bad thing as far as he was concerned.
"I don't know, I'm sure I could persuade you to do a bit of riding," Draco leered and that was all it took to seal the deal as far as Harry was concerned and he even wondered if he might be able to get Draco to spend the entire night so they weren't as rushed to cover everything up. Unfortunately he didn't have time to discuss this with Draco as they were soon called to luncheon. Harry was quite self conscious the entire time, not having had the chance to clean his shirt after his and Draco's little encounter. It didn't help that Draco seemed to find every opportunity that he could to press a hand into Harry's back right where he had cum over the back of Harry's shirt. It made Harry very self conscious but it seemed to arouse Draco quite a lot if the heated looks he kept flashing Harry were any sort of indication. It was probably the only reason why Harry hadn't excused himself and gone to clean up. He was a little self conscious, especially with the exasperated sighs Evan Rosier kept making.
Harry was sure the other young man knew exactly what was happening between them. He would probably be freaking out about that if not for the fact that not only did the other man seem to have no inclination to say anything to anybody but he also seemed to be a friend of Draco's so Harry assumed that meant he wouldn't do anything that would out Draco's reputation in jeopardy. He also didn't seem particularly surprised by what was happening between Harry and Draco and Harry could almost believe that meant that this wasn't the first time this sort of thing had happened with Draco. That didn't seem right in Harry's mind, however. Draco was the same age as him, 18, which meant he would have only just come of age so Harry wasn't entirely sure when these other instances could have occurred. Draco did seem a lot more experienced than him though so it was possible he had an early birthday or something. Harry didn't feel as if he were able to ask anything though, worried about risking the tenuous relationship they had.
That's not to say that Draco hadn't been very supportive and understanding up until now, but Harry didn't exactly have much experience when it came to relationships, even friendships, and he didn't exactly have the best record so far having already managed to mess up half of them so far. More if you included Cho and Cedric. Admittedly, as far as Cho was concerned, the distance was more from Harry's side of things but still. He felt as if he couldn't necessarily trust his instincts with these things which was why he was opting to err on the side of caution. It's not like he wouldn't have a chance to talk to Draco again in the future, especially if Hagrid managed to come through with some flying horses, which was why Harry wrote him a letter as soon as he returned and Harry began to mentally calculate the days until he might be able to see Draco again.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Animal Husbandry
The hunting party wrapped up that evening straight after dinner. Many of the guests had work the following day so they didn't even stay for after dinner drinks, much to Harry's annoyance as he had been honestly hoping to spend a little more time with Draco and at least sneak in a goodnight kiss. That wasn't to be the case however and Harry had to make do with a simple handshake. Draco did express a sincere hope to see Harry again soon although, with no concrete plans made, Harry had no idea when that might be.
The first thing he did, even before breakfast the following morning, was to write to Hagrid and ask the man if he knew anyone that might be looking to sell a Granian. He knew it was probably a long shot, especially if they were used for sport, but Harry couldn't help hoping his luck would kick in and something would turn up. He almost felt as if he wouldn't mind the cost. It seemed a strange idea, considering he was normally conscious of overspending his inheritance, but having an excuse for Draco to regularly come over was worth a lot in Harry's mind. He might have only just seen the young man the day before but the limbo of not knowing when they might meet again was killing him.
Harry spent the day preparing a paddock for some potential horses, much to Mimby's delight. Apparently the Potters had had several flying horses in previous years and, since owning some was a sign of rank and status, she actively encouraged Harry in his pursuit. The elf had been very busy over the weekend, apparently making the most of not having to look after Harry, and had almost completely finished fixing up the ‘ground’ floor of the house. She insisted Harry called it that, regardless of how little sense it made to Harry, to the point where Harry began to even correct his own thoughts.
Harry's efforts on the paddock weren't in vain, however, as Hagrid messaged him the next day informing Harry that he had actually come across a cross breed if he was interested. Harry hadn't realised that such an animal could exist and had to admit that he was immensely curious as to what it was like. The problem was he was a little worried. He had read one book about flying horses but that didn't actually have all that much information in it about raising them. Mimby explained that it was because horse rearing was a closely guarded secret in the wizarding world since a lot of money could be made off of them and that profit would go down if top quality horses were readily available. That had Harry a little worried until he realised that there probably wouldn't be that much difference between normal horses and flying ones so he decided to go down to the Niffler’s Snout to see if he could talk to any of the farmers.
He was happy to see Nate and Jimmy sitting down to a nice hearty lunch when he arrived and the two farmers waved Harry over to their table.
“Alright Harry,” Jimmy grinned. “Don't tell me they've had you cutting hedges as well?”
“Cutting hedges?” Harry asked.
“Aye,” Jimmy nodded. “The village council always asks local farmers to help cut the hedges over winter. Apparently they seem to think we all got nothing better to do at this time of year.”
“Townies never know what it's like on an actual working farm,” Nate sighed, shaking his head. “Unfortunately they know we need the roads clear as it's always our tractors and trailers that are the first affected by overgrown hedges. If we don't do it then no one will, which is why I'd rather get it done sooner rather than later. I don't mind drilling my wheat a bit later thanks to the milder winters round here but I'd hate to risk drilling too late and it affecting my crop.”
“By drilling do you mean sowing the wheat?” Harry queried, causing the farmers to roar with laughter.
“Aye,” Nate chuckled, “although no farmer would ever refer to it as such. You might want to work on your lingo if you wanna fit in around here.”
“That's fine,” Harry grinned. “I get my American phrases corrected all the time anyway so I may as well get mu, townie is it, phrases corrected as well.”
“So, you been planting any crops on your land?” Jimmy asked.
“Honestly, I hadn't thought about it before now,” Harry replied. “I'd mostly been trying to get the house sorted. It was in a bit of a state when I inherited it.”
“That is an important job,” Nate agreed, “and you still have plenty of time if you do decide you want to plant any cereals. We don't get a lot of snow in these parts and even then it isn't usually until January or February time. We get some hard frosts but if the land is well tilled it still should be workable.”
“I'll think about it,” Harry mused. “My main concern at the moment is working out how to look after a horse I'm getting from a friend.”
“So you're thinking of going more into animal husbandry than agriculture?” Jimmy asked. “If so, I might be able to help you there.”
“You have horses?” Harry asked, only for Jimmy to laugh again.
“I wish! I'm not that rich. I mostly have sheep and cattle but I did pick up a few things from the shows.”
“Well I'd be happy to hear anything you're willing to share,” Harry said. “I've got a paddock for her but, besides that, I haven't got the slightest clue.”
“Well you'll need a stable more at this time of year,” Jimmy warned. “We might not get snow but it still gets cold. There are some boarding facilities nearby if you don't have somewhere adequate although it might be costly, especially on short notice.”
“I do have a stable,” Harry informed him, “although I'll need to check it to make sure it's not fallen into disrepair.”
Jimmy nodded. “Yep. Make sure it's secure and clean. Clean water and good ventilation will help keep your horse healthy, they need about 10-12 gallons a day so make sure there's plenty to hand. You'll also want some hay for over the winter. Hay and grass make up the majority of their diet but grass doesn't grow much from November, even if it is warm enough for them to go into the fields, so they'll need hay to supplement.”
“It's why growing some of your own wheat might not be a bad idea,” Nate suggested. “Buying hay and straw can get expensive but having your own supply ready for next year can help mitigate some of that, especially if you can make some money off the wheat as well. Not that the mills don't end up taking their cut.”
“Yep,” Jimmy sighed. “Being at the bottom of the chain really limits your bargaining power, even though no one would make money if not for us.”
Nate nodded. “You'll find that out soon enough, Harry. That being said, you can feed some grain to your horse as well but should be careful not to give them too much.”
“And here I was thinking grain would make up a lot of horse feed,” Harry laughed, “so I'm already glad that I managed to talk to you guys.”
“Well I've got some hay that I can sell you as well,” Nate said. “If you want I can drop off a couple of bales later if you want.”
“If you're ok to drop them off here that would be ok,” Harry suggested, since he had no idea how to explain where his house was to muggles. “I can leave the money for you with Clarissa, that way you won't have to go out of your way too much as my place is on the other side of town.”
Harry and Nate negotiated a fair price and arranged a time for pick up with Clarissa, while Jimmy told Harry where to get some brushes so Harry could properly groom his new addition. Harry said that he'd pay for their meals as thanks for their advice, grateful that they had kept it simple and factual as opposed to trying to sell him a bunch of unnecessary stuff which is what probably would have happened if Harry had gone straight to a shop for advice. Once the muggles had left, Clarissa offered to drop the hay round to Harry later that evening.
“I'm just wondering if I have time to head over to Gringotts,” Harry sighed. “I don’t normally keep that much muggle currency on me.”
“How about we do an exchange ourselves,” Clarissa suggested. “I actually get more muggle customers here than I do wizarding ones and those Goblins can be right little misers when it comes to changing muggle money into wizarding coins. They see muggle money as worthless you see, especially as they can replicate the notes, not that they'll ever admit to doing that. They'll give me 5 pound notes for every Galleon but I need twice that if I want to go the other way.”
“Well I'm happy to take some of your muggle money off your hands,” Harry grinned. “Jimmy suggested some good local muggle shops for supplies and I have no idea where I would go in the wizarding world for the equivalent.”
“You wouldn't,” Clarissa sighed, shaking her head. “Farming is a bit of a niche business in the wizarding world, with many wizards feeling it is below them, not helped by the fact that a certain amount of it can be magically increased. The old families, like the Potters, used to sell stuff off their land, but that was almost seen as a hobby as opposed to a career, like with those two.”
“Perhaps that's why I couldn't really find much information on farming,” Harry mused. It made sense. It was rare for people to make products or publish books if they didn't think there was a market for these things. He assumed the information was usually passed down through the generations, which was probably all well and good unless people died before they had the chance to pass information on. At least he had some connections in the muggle world now and Hagrid seemed to at least have some knowledge on raising animals.
Harry made his purchases in the village and went back to the house, hoping to make a start on fixing the stable, only to find Professor Flitwick there with things already well in hand. Apparently flying horses required an invisibility charm placed on them so muggles don't accidentally spot them. Normally the owner would do it but Harry wasn't capable of that yet so the professor had kindly offered to come to cast it.
“Will I be able to see her after you cast it?” Harry asked, a little worried.
“I was a little concerned about that as well but Professor Babbling showed me a rune I can etch into the stable door that will mean the spell won't activate until she steps through,” Flitwick assured him. “So long as you keep the bridle on when you go out you should be fine. Hopefully I'll be able to find time to teach you the concealment spell as well. If you practice with Mimby then there shouldn't be an issue.”
Harry was surprised to hear that his professor had such faith in him although he was also a little worried at the idea. It was one thing to cast the spell on an inanimate object and it go wrong, it was another to do it on a horse. That feeling only increased when Hagrid led said horse in. He had been showing her around the property, to get her used to her new home, while Flitwick made sure she had somewhere safe and warm to sleep. The horse was beautiful; dapple grey with chestnut patches and a lovely black mane that faded to brown at the ends. Her wings, while furled, seemed to match her mane and Harry fell in love with her at first sight.
“Does she have a name?” Harry asked, approaching cautiously with his hand out, letting her get used to his presence.
“My friend, Olympe, suggested I should call her Epona,” Hagrid replied, “after the Gaulish goddess of horses.”
Harry smiled as she nuzzled his palm. “I think that's perfect.”
“I knew she'd like you,” Hagrid grinned. “Now, if Professor Flitwick has finished in here, I got some straw to put on the floor as well as some hay for her to eat. I can show you how to brush her down, to keep her coat in good condition as well as make sure she stays healthy.”
“Oh, I bought some brushes this afternoon,” Harry admitted.
Hagrid beamed. “I knew you would be great at looking after magical creatures. You're even more prepared than I thought you would be.”
Harry scratched his head, feeling a bit awkward. “It wasn’t much, I only asked some local muggle farmers about looking after horses. I didn't do anything special.”
“Nonsense Harry,” Flitwick smiled, clapping Harry on the arm in a friendly manner. “You thought ahead about what you might need and used the resources you had available to ensure you were properly prepared. I understand the desire to be humble but you should also take ownership of when you do well; it's as important as recognising when you have made a mistake.”
“Thank you sir,” Harry said, giving the diminutive professor a small smile. “I'll try to remember that in the future.”
It was strange for Harry to think of things that he had actually done well. For as long as he could remember his Aunt and Uncle had been putting him down and nothing he had ever done had ever been good enough, no matter how hard he had tried. To be praised for something he thought was the bare minimum of what he should have done was weird to say the least, although certainly not unpleasant. Harry had liked Professor Flitwick as soon as he had met him and the man had now risen even higher in Harry's estimation.
He only continued to rise as well. While Harry was learning how to brush Epona down he mentioned that he was considering growing some of his own wheat to help feed Epona in the future. Professor Flitwick, who had been carefully arranging the straw in Epona’s stall at that time, chimed in to say that he thought that was an excellent idea. Once Epona was settled in her new home he took Harry out to one of the better fields and, with Mimby's help, they coated the weeds that were growing there with the herbicide that Harry had previously made with Professor Snape.
“We’ll plough the ground which will help spread the herbicide to the roots and any seeds that haven't germinated yet,” Professor Flitwick explained. “You'll probably want to plough it a few more times before you plant, to make sure that you've got all of the weeds, and probably leave it for a few weeks to make sure the herbicide has dissipated, lest you accidentally kill your crop. A good rain shower might work as well although don't hold me on that one, I'll have to double check with Pomona first.”
Harry assured him that he wasn't in a rush to plant and that he'd been informed the milder weather in the area meant that he could plant the wheat as late as January and still have it grow. Flitwick seemed to breathe a small sigh of relief at that and proceeded to happily teach Harry how to summon and banish a plough, allowing him to easily work the land without help from a horse, or modern machinery. It took Harry a few tries to get the spells right, and more to get any sort of control. Even as the sun set his furrows were far from straight, and seemingly much too deep compared to Flitwick’s, but the charms Professor congratulated Harry anyway and Harry began to wonder if that was just the man's nature. It was a stark contrast to Professor Snape, for whom praise was as rare as an oasis in the desert. If he were honest though, Harry wasn't entirely sure if he preferred Flitwick’s approach. Sure Snape's general snark was annoying but at least Harry knew every word of praise was well deserved. Flitwick’s constant bolstering was nice, but there were times when his praise came off a little hollow and it didn't take Harry long before he began to wonder if the man really meant a word of what he said. Harry was sure he did, Flitwick didn't seem the sort to purposely mislead someone, but it still left Harry uneasy and he was almost glad when he and Hagrid returned to Hogwarts for dinner.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Gnolf Party
Wednesday dawned and Harry felt a different type of anxiety as he remembered this was the day that he had arranged to go and play Gnolf. He knew it was a little ridiculous to be worrying about it, he was only meeting Neville and Luna after all, but he couldn’t seem to quiet the anxious voices in his mind. What if they didn't show up? Rationally he knew the idea was ridiculous but that didn't seem to matter. What if they made fun of him for his inability to play? Again, equally ridiculous. This was Neville and Luna, they weren't like that, plus he had had lessons with Draco to help so he at least knew the basics. Thankfully thinking of Draco helped to derail Harry's spiraling thoughts a bit and, enough to stop him changing clothes for the 3rd time and messing up his hair for the hundredth. Eventually it was time to leave. Thankfully it was a pleasant day and Harry didn’t have to worry about cancelling at the last minute. He almost considered flying down until he remembered the looks he got at arriving that way before. He figured a slight stumble when he stepped out of the floo, that people might not even see, was better than being windswept and sweaty the whole time, especially as he had yet to learn the charms to straighten himself up. That would only risk highlighting how behind he was in this world; something Harry would rather not broadcast to the rest of the wizarding world. That had happened enough already and Harry didn’t particularly want to start that up again. He still knew that he would likely exit the floo with all the grace of a newborn deer so, in an effort to avoid humiliation, Harry opted to arrive early. Thankfully there was only Rufus Bigglewick in the lobby to see him stumble. “Good morning Mr Potter, how wonderful to see you again!” he gushed, rushing over to help Harry straighten and brush the soot off his clothes. “I must say though, I wasn’t expecting you so early as you aren’t set to tee off for over an hour yet. I do hope there isn’t a problem.” “Oh no,” Harry assured him. “I just thought that I would get here early and have some breakfast.” “Oh that is wonderful,” Bigglewick exclaimed, clapping his head together with joy. “I must admit, this is an auspicious occasion though. One of our other founders’ descendants is here as well. I was hoping you might meet on the gnolf course later but this is even better. Miss Bones is currently having breakfast herself.” “I’ll take myself to the restaurant then,” Harry offered, as Bigglewick became distracted by another patron arriving. There was only one other party in the restaurant there and Harry wondered if that was normal, or if it was just because of the time of day, or if this was normal for the club as there hadn’t been anyone here the last time he visited either. There were four people sitting at the table, two women and two men, so Harry figured one of them must be the person Bigglewick had been talking about. “Miss Bones?” he queried, walking up to the table. The two men and the blonde woman looked up at Harry in shock. The woman with the plait looked at Harry quizzically though. “Yes?” “Ah, good morning,” Harry said, holding out his hand for her to shake. “My name is Harry Potter. Bigglewick said there was another founders’ descendant in and I thought it would be nice to come over and introduce myself.” “Mr Potter!” Bigglewick called, hurrying over as Miss Bones’ friends looked a little horrified. “I meant that I would make the introduction myself.” “That’s alright, I didn’t want to disturb you since you were busy and I’ve seen my Uncle introduce himself to people loads of times before.” He suddenly noticed all of the slightly horrified looks on everyone’s faces and groaned. “Don’t tell me that I’ve messed up again.” “Typically one waits to be introduced by a mutual acquaintance,” one of the men sneered. “It helps ensure that one only meets the best people, something that is particularly important for someone in Susan’s position.” Harry frowned. “But surely that is assuming that your mutual acquaintance has your best interests at heart and isn’t looking to screw you over. I think I knew of at least as many people in the states that had bad investment advice from acquaintances as opposed to strangers.” “Ignore Zac,” the woman with the plait smiled as she took Harry’s hand. “Personally I think this idea of waiting for a mutual acquaintance to make an introduction is immensely stuffy. I’m Susan Bones by the way, it’s nice to meet you, Mr Potter.” “Call me Harry,” Harry beamed, shaking her hand warmly, “and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” “Oh, I assure you Harry, the pleasure is mine,” Susan laughed. “It will be nice to not be the only younger person attending the club’s boring AGMs for once.” “Those AGMs serve an important purpose,” Bigglewick insisted. “I know,” Susan sighed. “Which is why I have never shirked my duty. That doesn’t mean that it won’t be nice to have someone around who isn’t pushing 100. It might allow some new ideas to be introduced.” “Still pushing your ideas of reform,” a familiar blond smirked, and Harry couldn’t stop the bright smile that split across his face at the sight. “Draco! What are you doing here?” “Well I was hoping to book myself in for a round this morning but Bigglewick wasn’t at the front desk.” “My apologies Mr Malfoy but I’m afraid you are going to have to wait for a bit. I have just sent someone off in the first slot and the next two are booked by Miss Bones and Mr Potter.” “Well perhaps Harry here would let me join him,” Draco suggested and Harry winced a bit. “I would say yes, but it depends on what Luna and Neville say since I’m playing with them.” “The three of you are playing together!” Zac exclaimed. “You are going to take forever on each hole like that! I pity whoever goes after you. I can’t believe you were inconsiderate enough not to come with an even number of players!” “We all know these things sometimes happen Smith!” Draco sneered. “Harry had, of course, arranged for a fourth player but they had had to pull out at the last minute. Harry mentioned it to me last night and I thought I would offer my services to help even their numbers out. Personally, however, I think it’s very considerate that he doesn’t just presume that his friends would be alright with me joining them out of the blue, especially as I only know Mr Longbottom in passing and haven’t had the pleasure of being introduced to Miss Lovegood yet. I don’t know if your friends would be happy if you were to suddenly force them to play with someone they didn’t know.” “They would be fine with it,” Zac sniffed. “They trust my judgment in these things.” He sounded very sure but the silence of his friends, as well as their reluctance to make eye contact with him, suggested their actual feelings might be different. “I wasn’t aware that Potter was a close acquaintance of yours, Malfoy,” the other man in the party said. “You must be more out of the loop than I realised, Macmillan,” Draco smirked. “Harry joined my father and I for a hunting weekend quite recently and the two of us hit it off very well indeed.” Harry felt his cheeks heating in embarrassment at the way Draco emphasised ‘very’. “It’s quite impressive that you have managed to make such prestigious acquaintances so quickly,” the other blonde woman said. “Thank you, er,” Harry fumbled, suddenly realising that he didn’t actually know the names of the people sitting with Susan. “Allow me,” Draco smiled. “Sitting with Miss Susan Bones is Miss Hannah Abbot, Mr Zacharias Smith and Mr Ernie Macmillan, all part of well known and well respected wizarding families.” Harry heard the unspoken hint that these would be people he should be hanging out with and he made a mental note of their names, even though he was pretty sure that he would rather not spend more time with Zacharias Smith than he needed to. “Thank you for that, Draco,” Susan smiled. “I’m afraid that Harry’s sudden introduction threw me right off my game. As a way of apology, would you like to join us for breakfast.” Harry was about to accept; as much as Smith annoyed him the others seemed nice and he thought that it would be a good idea to get to know them all better. Unfortunately Draco jumped in and spoke for him. “Thank you Susan, that is very kind of you, but Harry and I wouldn’t wish to intrude, especially as you are all in the middle of your meal and you will be teeing off before us, I presume.” “True,” Susan agreed, “although it is a shame. Perhaps we can arrange a larger party next time.” “Definitely,” Hannah agreed. “It would be nice to play with some other people for a change, no offence boys.” “We shall see,” Draco smiled, although Harry didn’t think the impression was particularly sincere. “Anyway, enjoy your game and perhaps we shall see you on the course somewhere.” “Not likely,” Smith scoffed. “I’ll probably be done and in the bar before you lot even tee off.” The girls rolled their eyes at his boasting and Harry could only agree. Not that he thought they would likely meet them, especially with his lack of skills and Luna’s tendency to wander off. “Perhaps I should pair up with Luna,” Harry suggested as he and Draco found a table and began to peruse the menu. “That way you and Neville won’t have your game disrupted too much, if they’re alright with you joining us that is.” “Oh they will be fine with me joining, don’t worry about that,” Draco assured him. “As for pairing up, my plan was to team with you and I was actually hoping that our game would get very disrupted.” He ran his foot right up the inside of Harry’s leg to emphasise his point further and Harry squeaked. “Draco!” he hissed. “Not here!” “Why,” Draco smirked. “No one is watching and, if you don’t make a fuss like that, they will never know.” “It’s embarrassing!” Harry whined. “I know, and that blush you are currently sporting is delightful. Now you might want to be quiet so you don’t give the game away. Waiter!” Harry bit back a groan as he buried his face in the menu and hoped that no one would notice how red he had gone. He thought about reaching down and physically shoving Draco’s foot away. Unfortunately he worried that would only draw attention to his situation, especially as Draco’s foot was now pressed quite firmly against his crotch and his body was reacting quite strongly to the attention. The waiter came over and seemed to, thankfully, mostly ignore Harry as Draco put in an order for the both of them. Admittedly Harry wasn’t feeling particularly hungry at the moment; the embarrassment and lust warring in his gut and making his stomach roil. He had to bite back a groan as the waiter took the menu and Harry realised he had nothing to hide behind anymore, only to have to suppress a moan as Draco began to rub his foot in a small circle. “Relax, Harry,” he whispered. “You know you are enjoying this really. Let me make you cum in the middle of the restaurant.” “What!” Harry hissed, as quietly as he could. Draco just waved him off though. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure I clean you up afterwards. I just thought it would be a good way for you to relax a bit as you were so on edge earlier, plus it’s a better way of dealing with your problem here, unless you want to risk walking around with a raging hard on.” Harry groaned quietly: Draco had a point. There was no guarantee that he would be able to will his erection down, especially with Draco sitting across from him, and it was definitely easier to hide a potential wet patch than a raging hard-on. Accepting that this was the best course of action, despite it making him uncomfortable, Harry tried to relax and let things happen. It was embarrassing and he half wondered if he wouldn’t be able to reach completion because of how uncomfortable he felt, especially when the waiter placed their food in front of them. At that moment Draco adjusted his movements however, rubbing his foot up and down Harry’s length in firm strokes. It was a bit of a shock but felt ridiculously good and Harry felt his orgasm slam into him with surprising speed. His body spasmed and he let out a garbled noise as he felt a warm dampness spread in his trousers. “Are you alright sir?” the waiter asked, looking at Harry with concern, and Harry wished the ground would swallow him up that second. “It’s my fault,” Draco whispered. “I just accidentally kicked him under the table and, gentleman that he is, he’s trying to draw attention to my faux pas.” “My apologies, sir,” the waiter said before hurrying off, obviously embarrassed himself. Harry quietly whimpered as Draco surreptitiously dropped his wand into his hand and cast a spell to clean up what could have been a very telltale sign. “There we go, all sorted,” Draco grinned. “Now, eat your food, you’ll want to keep your energy up when we get out on the course. I promise you that a full round of gnolf can be surprisingly taxing.” Harry let out a quiet groan and began to pick at his breakfast. He had not got his appetite back yet, however, and mostly ended up picking at it and had barely eaten half of it when Neville and Luna arrived. “Has there been a change of plans, Harry?” Neville asked as he walked up to the table they were sitting at. “Has our game been cancelled?” “No, no,” Harry insisted, shifting a little uncomfortably in his chair. “I came here early, figuring I could grab some breakfast before we start. Draco came here but apparently there are no slots available any time soon so I suggested he join me. I was actually going to ask you guys if you would mind him joining us in our game, so we can work in two pairs, as opposed to a three.” Neville frowned. “Well I suppose it is the done thing, I have to admit that I was looking forward to spending time with you and Luna though.” “I know,” Harry sighed. “It was just a suggestion.” “Quite,” Draco smiled. “I’ll wait until after you guys start. Who knows, maybe I’ll meet up with you all at some point along the course.” “Oh I don’t think there’s much doubt of that happening,” Luna said with a dreamy smile on her face. “You have an amphisbaena linking you, much like there was rumoured to be between Troilus and Cressida. Meetings between the two of you are practically inevitable.” Harry looked to Neville. “Are those people I should know?” Neville shook his head but Draco laughed. “Only if you have extensively studied Greek Mythology. I will say, I have heard of numerous different mentions of amphisbaena but I have never heard mention of them related to lovers.” “They link life forces,” Luna explained. “It’s why pregnant women used to wear them around their necks, as a way of ensuring a safe pregnancy by linking the child’s life to their own. The amphisbaena had to make themselves invisible over 2000 years ago, though, as they were being hunted down and forced to link people who shouldn’t be linked. They now work independently, choosing who they should connect for themselves. It is usually a great blessing if you are chosen.” “Not so much for Troilus if they are connected,” Draco pointed out. “If the legend holds true, it is Cressida’s unfaithfulness that pushed Troilus to fight and, consequently, die.” “Something that, if legend holds true, was something that needed to happen in order for Troy to fall,” Luna countered with a smile. “You think that these amphisbaena were interested in helping Troy fall?” Draco questioned. “Perhaps,” Luna mused, “or perhaps it was any number of things. It might have been as a way of removing Diomedes as King of Argos, as it is said that it was him bringing Cressida back that caused his wife to take another lover and block his return. That might have been to ensure Diomedes moved on to Italy to help found cities there. It also could have been to ensure that he was not in Argos and that it was the death of Diomedes’ successor that allowed for Argos to be reunited into a single kingdom as opposed to three. This is the problem with trying to analyse the threads of time, Mr Malfoy; it is a complex web and any single event is set about by countless threads being woven together.” “I’m sorry but I didn’t follow any of that,” Harry sighed. “I can always come to your house and tutor you in Greek Mythology whenever you’re free,” Draco suggested, with a slightly leering tone. “I thought you were already going to come around to help me with my flying horses,” Harry frowned. “I can do both,” Draco shrugged. “I will never complain about getting to spend more time with you.” Neville sighed. “Fine Malfoy, you can join us for our game, but please try to keep things low key. I don’t think that it will help any of us if this outing ends up splashed over the society pages.” “Don’t worry, Longbottom,” Draco grinned. “I promise I will be discretion itself.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A Bit of Rough
Harry had never been on an actual golf course before but, if it was anything like the gnolf course at the Fowey Club then he could certainly understand why so many people spent so much time on them. It was genuinely breathtaking: from the rolling, lush green lawns, to the tree covered vistas and the beautiful ponds with fountains that somehow managed to spray water into all sorts of shapes. It was surprisingly distracting, for Harry at least, although not quite as distracting as Draco who seemed to want to brush up against Harry at every opportunity. It was as if he were purposely trying to put Harry off and, Harry had to admit, he was starting to get a bit annoyed.
Why he was annoyed exactly, Harry wasn’t entirely sure. He had always had a bit of a competitive streak, although it hadn’t always come out in his younger years, thanks to never being able to overtake his cousin in anything, lest he want to face some serious consequences. He had kind of assumed that he and Draco would be storming ahead in this game, especially with what Luna had said about frequently getting lost in the rough, and Harry was quite surprised that they were still neck and neck. That had its own issues as well, especially with the way Draco was constantly trying to wind Harry up, and Harry had a strong desire to get lost in the rough himself, to hopefully deal with some of his steadily increasing lust.
Unfortunately that didn’t seem like it would be possible any time soon. Harry wasn’t entirely sure, but he had a feeling that Neville knew what was going on between him and Draco and was purposely trying to stop anything from happening where he could. Whenever Harry fluffed a few shots, hoping to get left behind, Neville would conveniently fluff some as well, or he would get distracted, allowing Luna to wander off a bit. If Harry happened to be on his game, Neville was as well, and he would also miraculously be completely on top of keeping Luna’s attention on the game. It seemed as if the other pair would be following them for the entire game and, by the 9th hole, Harry was starting to feel immensely frustrated. He loved his friends dearly, he truly did, but this behaviour was enough to test the patience of a saint!
Harry wondered if, contrary to what he had learned growing up, that maybe witches and wizards did have a God as, on the very next hole, Luna’s shot somehow went sailing through the air, deep into the trees. The blonde woman instantly went off after it.
“We shouldn’t be long,” Neville called, as he ran off after her, clearly wanting to make sure she didn’t get too distracted.
“No rush, we’ll play on through,” Draco yelled, causing Neville to pause, clearly torn about what to do.
“You really don’t have to,” he insisted, giving Harry what almost looked like a pleading look.
“It’ll be fine,” Draco insisted, lining up his shot. “I’m sure you’ll catch up to us in no time.”
“You can count on it,” Neville agreed and Harry wasn’t completely sure if it was a promise, or a threat. Draco didn’t seem perturbed, however, taking his shot and managing to get the ball nicely along the fairway. Harry took his shot after, also managing to do well, likely because Draco wasn’t trying to distract him, standing a respectable distance away as Harry took his shot. They walked on afterwards, although Draco’s pace was a little quicker than normal. Harry was a little confused and was about to question Draco when he set up his shot, only to send his ball flying into the trees.
“Send your ball to the same place,” Draco instructed, as he flashed a look to where Neville had disappeared. “Quickly, before they come back.”
Draco hurried towards the trees and Harry took his shot, not entirely sure what Draco had planned but aware that, whatever it was, needed to be done before Neville saw. It felt exciting, like he was doing something against the rules, and Harry could already feel his blood racing through his veins. A quiet voice at the back of his mind wondered if he should really be hiding his relationship, or whatever it was, from his friends but, since Neville seemed to know already, or at least suspect, and didn’t approve, so Harry squashed that voice.
He enjoyed spending time with Draco after all and, while this was meant to be an outing with Luna and Neville, he wasn’t about to feel too guilty about doing something he enjoyed. He had had to give up what he liked in his life growing up with the Dursleys and, now that he had a new life, Harry wasn’t in a rush to start giving that up again. It’s why he had a smile on his face as he crossed the tree line and Draco almost instantly shoved him against a tree.
“Not that I’m complaining, but shouldn’t we at least find the balls first you know, in case Neville comes looking for them?” Harry suggested.
“That’s what summoning charms are for,” Draco chuckled, quickly leaning into Harry’s space. “Now be a good boy and be quiet while I ravish you, Harry: it has been far too long since we had the chance to do this.”
With that Draco descended, his lips locking with Harry’s, and Harry tried not to moan too loudly as Draco slipped his tongue between his lips. Harry melted into him, happy to let Draco press him against the tree. Harry’s hands slipped into Draco’s hair, securing his head to Harry’s as Draco began to fumble with Harry’s trousers. Harry was amazed at the thought of getting naked in public, of doing something so taboo, and the thought that someone might see them scared Harry a bit, even as it excited him, and Harry didn’t even think as Draco pulled away, flipping Harry around so he was facing the tree.
“I’m gonna need you to keep an eye out for your friends,” Draco whispered, his voice sounding rough with desire. “I don’t trust you not to make too much noise though, especially when I fill you with my cock, so I think I need to gag you.”
“Fuck!” Harry gasped, willingly opening his mouth as Draco tied his tie around Harry’s mouth, muffling any sounds he made. Harry gripped the rough bark of the tree as he peeked around the edge of it, wondering if Neville would come through the bushes any minute. He was so busy watching, he was barely aware of what Draco was doing until he felt he felt his arse cheeks being spread and two slicked up fingers being pressed against his hole. Harry whimpered around his gag, pushing back against the intrusion, and Draco groaned.
“That’s it Harry, push back against me, you know you are desperate for my cock.”
Harry nodded his head, silently begging for more, knowing that there was a good chance that they might be interrupted at any moment. Draco seemed to be aware of that as well, barely getting a third finger into Harry before he was lining his cock up and pushing into Harry. Harry moaned at the burn caused by the stretch, the rough bark of the tree acting as an interesting counterpoint so Harry didn’t know quite where to concentrate. All he had was sensation that seemed to skirt the border of pleasure and pain and Harry didn’t know whether to keep keeping an eye out or say fuck it and simply give over to everything Draco was doing.
Harry knew he was still tight from how slowly Draco had to rock in and he didn’t know whether to be grateful for the chance to adjust or to be annoyed that everything was taking so long when he just wanted to be
full
. He keened as he pushed back, encouraging Draco with his body, and soon Draco was fully sheathed, resting his head in the crook of Harry’s neck as he tried to catch his breath.
“Damn, you feel good Harry. I wish I could always be buried deep inside you like this, feeling the tight heat of your arse gripping me. Just being inside you isn’t enough though is it. I could stand here, letting your body warm my cock, but that wouldn’t be enough for you, would it? You want to be speared on my cock over and over, have it splitting you open, only to get filled to the brim with me cum. That’s what you really want, don’t you?”
Harry whimpered around the gag and nodded, silently begging for more, and he could have screamed in delight when Draco pulled out, only to slam back in, hard. The blond set up a fast pace, pounding into Harry hard and fast, and Harry glad that Draco hadn’t chosen anything too rough, like an oak, or he knew his legs and his cock would be ripped to shreds. It was bad enough as it was, and Harry wasn’t sure if he would actually be able to cum, even with Draco managing to hit his prostate with surprising precision. It was like Draco was learning his body more every time they were together and Harry both dreaded and dreamed of what their future would be like.
Harry wasn’t sure what was happening to him really. It’s like Draco was using him, playing Harry’s body for his own pleasure and Harry was loving every second of it. He felt Draco’s thrusts becoming more frantic and Harry knew he was getting close. Harry squeezed his muscles, trying to urge Draco on. It seemed to work, with Draco’s grip on Harry’s hips becoming bruising, as he bit down on Harry’s shoulder and shot his load deep inside of Harry.
Draco pulled out after, pulling out his pocket square to wipe his cock clean, only to shove it inside Harry’s arse.
“We don’t want you leaking in the middle of a game, do we,” Draco smirked, untying the gag and kissing the marks that had been left at the corners of Harry’s mouth. “It’s a good job that I thought to bring some healing salve or your marks would give away exactly what we’ve been up to.”
“I think my cock will do that anyway,” Harry admitted, turning around and showing his still hard cock that was covered in scratches.
“We will definitely have to do something about that,” Draco huffed. He tucked himself back into his trousers and picked up a jar of salve that seemed to have been discarded on the floor. It was apparently a healing salve and Harry briefly wondered if that was what Draco had used as lubricant; it would certainly explain why the pain in his arse was minimal. His mind was soon diverted, however, as Draco began working it into his thighs and cock. At first his strokes were gentle, making sure that the damage caused by the tree was well healed. Once the little cuts had closed up, however, his strokes became much surer and Harry soon found his orgasm rushing over him.
“That’s better, right?” Draco purred. “You know I always make it good for you. I can’t forget about healing your pretty mouth either; maybe you should lick my hand clean while it’s there.”
Draco brought his hand up to rub some salve on the corners of Harry’s mouth, his cum coated palm stretched over Harry’s mouth. Harry flicked his tongue out to lick up some of the viscous fluid, feeling quite reckless but loving the way his actions caused Draco’s pupils to dilate.
“That’s it Harry, you’re so good for me.”
Harry felt another thrill go through him at Draco’s whispered words and he didn’t stop licking until the blond’s hand was thoroughly clean. Being with Draco was just so exciting and fun and Harry was enjoying their relationship immensely. The only downside, as far as Harry could see, was the need to keep it secret, and that didn’t seem more apparent than when Harry and Draco joined back up with Neville and Luna on the course.
“Where have you two been?” Neville asked. “I thought you must have been ahead of us and we were trying to rush to catch up.”
“Ah, no,” Harry muttered, scratching his head somewhat awkwardly. “It, er, seems like we had some miss hits as well, and ended up in the rough. It, er, took us some time to find our ball.”
Draco smirked.
“Did you not think to try summoning them?” Neville queried, a slight frown on his face.
“Oh, well, honestly, I worried that might cause too many to come flying at me,” Draco lied, completely smoothly, “and I assume that Harry simply wouldn’t have thought of it.”
“Oh, uh, no,” Harry admitted, flashing a lopsided smile.
“Did you make a great discovery while you were searching?” Luna asked and Harry paused.
“Why do you say that?”
“Just that you and Mr Malfoy have a slight glow about you so I wondered if you had found anything exciting while you were in the rough.”
“I thought they may have gotten into a fight,” Neville huffed. “They are both looking a little rough around the edges in my opinion.”
“Oh, Harry and I are too close to fight,” Draco grinned, running a hand through his hair to smooth it out anyway.
“I just hope it stays that way,” Neville sighed.
They actually finished off the game quite quickly and Harry was almost disappointed when Luna and Neville didn’t stick around afterwards for a drink. Neville said that his Gran expected him and Luna said that she didn’t think it was appropriate. Why it was appropriate for her to play a game of gnolf with three men but not have a drink with two didn’t make much sense to Harry, but Luna wouldn’t be persuaded to stay and Harry couldn’t help feeling like maybe he should have prioritised his friends over his romantic partner. It left a bit of a bitter taste in his mouth as he and Draco had a drink.
“So, should we organise another gnolf game?” Draco asked. “We could do just the two of us, although having your friends here as well would be good cover.”
Harry had been sure his internal conflict had been showing on his face but figured he must be masking better than he thought.
“I’m not sure about involving them,” Harry admitted. “It doesn’t feel right lying to my friends like that.”
“My dear Harry,” Draco smiled, “it's not really lying to your friends, we are just being discreet. I am certain that both of them know exactly what is going on between us but are honouring our desire not to go public with things.”
“It would be nice if we could go public with it,” Harry sighed. “I’m not a big fan of sneaking around like this. I would much rather take my time, enjoying your company like we did at your house.”
“We can do that when you get a horse,” Draco pointed out. “Perhaps I can send you one of mine as a gift; that way I will have a genuine interest in coming round to yours, to make sure you are treating it well.”
“That would be preferable,” Harry agreed, “although I do still feel like we’re sneaking around a bit.”
“Now Harry, you knew how it would be when we got together. I have my family to continue so, as much as I care for you, we can’t have an official relationship. That’s unfortunately how our society works and we accept that as we try to work a way around it. Most marriages have affairs built in and it is an accepted part of the union. When I get married, my wife will know all about you and have to accept our relationship as a part of the arrangement, so long as you don’t get too demanding that is.”
“What’s too demanding?” Harry queried, wanting to get the ‘rules’ in place before he became too invested in this thing.
“Well, that would be something we would have to decide once I’m married,” Draco chuckled, “although I think Miss Fairbanks is a good example of what not to do. She was a Muggleborn who was having an affair with one of the Goyles. She found out the man’s wife was pregnant and flew into a bit of a rage, making the mistake of writing to the man to complain about it.”
“And that caused the end of their relationship?”
“It did when his wife intercepted them and had them published in the gossip rags!” Draco laughed. “Even if he had wanted to, there was no way that she could have shown her face in the wizarding world after that behaviour which is why I believe she slunk off to the muggle world in disgrace afterwards.”
Harry smiled as Draco laughed at his own story, but he didn’t exactly feel particularly happy. Yes, he agreed that the woman writing letters hadn’t been the best idea but, at the same time, he could understand how she felt. He enjoyed his time with Draco a lot but the thought of him starting a family with someone else and leaving them to come spend time with him just didn’t sit right. It wasn’t the sort of marriage that Harry wanted, even if it was quite common in society. He was determined that, when Draco married, he would give him up, even if that left Harry lonely again. The thought left a knot in Harry’s stomach but he pushed it down, determined to make the most of the time he and Draco had together, all the while hoping that there was some way that they could actually stay together.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Impressing Professor Snape
The next day Harry was tending to his animals but, when he got to Epona, the mixed breed flying horse Hagrid had brought him and had to pause. Hadn’t Draco said something about being able to come around when Harry had a flying horse? Why had he said that when he knew Harry already had one? Then it hit him! With everything that had been going on, Harry had never actually messaged the blond to let him know about his new acquisition. He felt like an idiot and, as soon as he had completed his chores, Harry rushed back to the main house to pen a letter to let him know.
Of course, Harry still dithered over what to say exactly: he didn’t want to explicitly say ‘I have a horse, come over’ but, at the same time, that is exactly what he wanted to say. He scribbled out numerous drafts before finally deciding on ‘Hagrid came through. Her name is Epona if you want to come and see her.’ and then he went downstairs, only to come face to face with an irate looking Snape.
“So good to finally see you, Mr Potter. Did you forget that we had a lesson planned today? I don’t have time to wait around all day for you.”
Harry frowned. “Sorry, sir, but I don’t remember arranging a lesson with you today?”
The Potions Master paused. “Professor Flitwick said that he would talk to you about it when he came by the other day since I had managed to get ahead on my winter brewing schedule. He mentioned that Hagrid would be bringing a flying horse for you and I thought that it would be an appropriate time for me to teach you how to brew some basic healing salves.”
“Professor Flitwick came by with Hagrid but I don’t remember him saying anything about any proposed lessons.”
“Or he did and you simply weren’t paying attention.”
“It is possible as I had a fair amount on my mind,” Harry admitted, with a scowl on his face, “but I don’t know why you assume that and don’t consider that perhaps Professor Flitwick may have forgotten to pass the information on.”
“It is because, Mr Potter, I have worked with Filius for many years now and have never known him to be the forgetful sort.”
Harry was about to argue that Snape didn’t know him at all but held his tongue. He knew from experience with his uncle that some people were too obstinate that nothing you said to them would change their mind and Harry didn’t want to risk ruining their potions lessons even further. The man was obviously in a bad mood from being made to wait. Harry could understand how that would make him upset, even if it wasn’t technically Harry’s fault, and, as much as it irked him, he decided to take the higher ground as they walked in silence to the Potions Lab.
“So,” Snape scowled, as he began setting up his equipment on the table. “What have you managed to come up with as your recipe for your magical fertiliser, bearing in mind that if you have only changed one ingredient you will be getting a T for effort alone.”
Harry scowled at the man but took a deep breath, trying to get his temper under control. He didn’t know what it was about Snape but the man had an infuriating knack for getting under Harry’s skin, in a way that no one else did. Sometimes it even felt like the man was purposely trying to wind him up and that was probably one of the main reasons Harry refused to rise to the bait: he didn’t want to give the man the satisfaction.
“Well,” Harry began, “I changed the dragon dung to mooncalf dung as I have a pair on the property, and I harvested it under a full moon before dawn as that was supposed to increase its properties.”
Snape nodded, and his scowl lessened slightly which gave Harry a bit of a boost since the man was apparently at least mildly impressed by the change.
“I also changed the Plimpy eyes to legs as I thought they would be significantly easier to use and I had learned from some local farmers that fish bones are used by muggles in their fertilisers.”
“An intriguing option,” Snape murmured, “although one that might cause you issues. The eyes, on top of being the magical component, also add some much needed moisture to the mixture. By changing them you will have a decent fertiliser but it will be very difficult to spread, especially over large areas, and you will almost certainly find that your plants aren't evenly affected. An A for effort, Mr Potter, especially for consulting with muggles, but I am afraid that you have failed to consider all the options and actually improve the recipe.”
“Actually, I have,” Harry interjected. “The farmers made some other suggestions as well, so, since I had the bones in with the Plimpy legs, I switched the bones in the recipe for potash and switched the dried kelp for Comfrey tea, since I have a bunch growing in my grounds. Since that is just for adding extra nutrients, the tea can be adjusted as required, allowing for someone to make the formula as thick or thin as they like.”
Snape blinked, somewhat owlishly. “So you adjusted all of the ingredients to things that you can readily get on your property. Would it be too much to assume that you have the ingredients ready to brew?”
“Of course,” Harry huffed. “I may not have known when you were coming exactly but I did know you would be coming back at some point and wanted to be prepared.”
Snape blinked again. “It is not often I say this, Mr Potter, but I am impressed. We shall brew your fertiliser as it is an easy process and I look forward to hearing Professor Sprout gushing about how well your plants are doing in the near future. After that I will teach you how to brew the Wiggenweld potion. It is a good potion for healing minor ailments but it is a complicated brew with multiple steps. I had worried about how well you would manage it but it seems I was mistaken and you can actually follow instructions.”
It was somewhat of a backhanded compliment but Harry had a feeling that was likely the most he could get from the man. The fact that Snape had said he was impressed left Harry feeling a little giddy but he fought the urge to get lost in the excitement as he was determined to make Snape say he was impressed again.
The fertiliser was definitely an easy brew and Harry felt confident that he would be able to make some more in the future, especially with how many ingredients he had. He and Snape actually worked on separate batches to maximise how much was prepared and Harry was quite impressed when Snape told him that it would cover a couple of fields. He said Harry would need to wait until after a heavy rain to start planting, however, to make sure the herbicide had washed away enough to not affect any new crops.
The Wiggenweld potion was definitely the most complicated thing Harry had seen so far and he couldn't believe it when Snape managed to squeeze 20 steps onto the blackboard. There were only 5 ingredients but so many colour changes that Harry almost felt dizzy looking at them.
“I can’t believe that you can keep so much information in your head,” Harry gaped as he once again realised that Snape hadn’t consulted the book once through the entire thing.
Snape looked at Harry, a little surprised. “I can’t believe you can’t. It definitely doesn’t fill me with hope for your ability to follow the recipe without messing it up.”
Harry gulped. “Yeah, me neither. Would you think less of me if I asked you to walk through it with me, to make sure that I don't mess up and waste ingredients, or worse.”
Snape paused in thought. “While the need for help doesn’t impress me, I am glad that you are aware of your limitations and, given the situation, I would rather give you the support as opposed to wasting ingredients and risking a disaster. I have to deal with that enough in lessons at the school, I’d rather not deal with it here as well.”
“I can see where giving one to one support could be tricky,” Harry agreed.
“I did try it once, when I had a student who was particularly prone to explosions,” Snape admitted. “Unfortunately some of the other students in the class took that as a sign that they could mess about and it only ended up causing more of an issue. I asked Albus for another set of eyes in the class, either to support those who need it or to monitor the students, but he says that the budget won’t stretch to that.”
“Then I’d definitely like to make the most of some one on one tuition,” Harry smiled and Snape sighed.
“I don’t know whether to be annoyed at you essentially getting special treatment or impressed that you are smart enough to make the most of this opportunity.”
“Can’t it be both?” Harry grinned and, he wasn’t sure, but he thought he saw the man crack a faint smile.
Harry ended up being grateful for Snape’s help as the man talked through the potion as they made it, letting Harry know what needed to be done, and Harry almost wished that he could record it as Snape said it. The man seemed to be a font of knowledge and Harry was actually impressed by his knowledge on even the smallest details. For example, Snape told him that the salamander blood wasn't heat sensitive which meant that you didn’t necessarily have to worry about that. A higher temperature sped up the reaction, however, and people sometimes missed the first change, meaning they overheated and ruined the potion.
Harry did his best to mimic Snape’s actions through all of the steps, making sure to wait for the right colour change as opposed to acting at the same time Snape did. His efforts seemed to pay off as, in the end, Snape called his potion, decent which, coming from Snape, was pretty high praise. Snape bottled up both cauldrons of potion and labelled them in his typical scrawl before going to his bag to pull out some more vials.
“What are those?” Harry asked.
“Some more Wiggenweld than I brewed previously, as well as some Skele-gro. Skele-gro is vastly beyond your capabilities to brew at the moment but I thought it would be a good idea to have some on hand, especially if you are going to be doing something reckless like galavanting off on a flying horse.”
“Oh, um, thanks for that. I think I bought some from the apothecary before though.”
Snape scowled. “If you think that swill will heal anything more than a hairline fracture then think again.” He pulled out a large jar of purple stuff and a small vial of clear fluid. “The jar is Murtlap Essence which will heal all cuts and abrasions. The small vial is of Essence of Dittany. It is a powerful healing potion that can heal almost all wounds if applied shortly afterwards but it isn't easy to brew so I suggest you use it sparingly.”
“Thank you sir,” Harry gaped. “It was very kind of you to do this.”
“It was at Dumbledore’s request,” Snape huffed, although Harry thought he saw an embarrassed blush tinting the man’s cheeks. Perhaps he wasn’t used to getting thanks for his work, and Harry could understand that, although it only made him want to thank the man more. He knew how frustrating it could be when you put effort in but nobody gave you any credit because they thought it was what you were expected to do. It sucked and it made Harry appreciate how much Snape, as well as the other teachers, were doing for him.
“Still, I’m grateful for the effort you put in, with this as well as my lessons, and I would be honoured if you would join me for lunch.”
Snape hesitated and cast a
tempus
charm. “I suppose lunch would be well underway by the time I get to the castle so I may as well stay for something.”
“That’s great,” Harry beamed. “I love Mimby but eating on my own each day can be a bit boring sometimes.”
“I’m not sure, I think I would prefer it to the ruckus of the great hall,” Snape mused.
“True,” Harry chuckled as he began to lead the way back to the house. “I can remember meal times when I was at school and it was always noisy as it was the one time the teachers didn't enforce silence. In a way I miss it though, or at least company of some description. I may not have gotten on well with my family but I always knew they were there. Being here with just Mimby can get a little lonely sometimes, especially as she is usually so busy. I don’t think I would necessarily want masses of people around me all of the time but a few wouldn’t be too bad.”
Snape frowned. “I thought you had been making some friends, or at least that was the impression I got from Filius. I also know that you and Draco Malfoy have been spending time together.”
“I have made a few friends,” Harry admitted, “although I’m not sure of the state of all of them. I do spend some time with Neville and Luna although they have their own families and lives so I don’t want to make too many demands on them.”
“And Mr Malfoy?”
“I don’t know if I would call Draco a friend, per se,” Harry said, even as he felt a dark blush heating his cheeks.
“I see,” Snape murmured, causing Harry to blush more as he was pretty sure the man did. They fell into a somewhat awkward silence, initially because of Harry’s embarrassment but then because he had no idea what to say to the man. Snape didn’t seem bothered, however. Harry remembered that Snape had said that he disliked loud noises while eating and Harry accepted that the silence might not be that bad as well.
Mimby was happy to have another person to cater for and Harry was glad that he didn’t seem to be putting him out at all. It was a fairly simple affair, or meat, potatoes and vegetables, but Snape seemed to eat it with relish, clearing his plate, and Harry felt a bubble of pride well up in him.
“Thank you for joining me,” Harry said, as Snape got ready to leave. “I hope you enjoyed it.”
“Indeed. Your House Elf is an excellent cook.”
“I’ll let Mimby know,” Harry smiled. “I’m sure it will make her day.”
Snape nodded his head and seemed to linger a moment.
“I don’t know when I will be able to give you your next lesson,” Snape said. “I fear that more of my free time will be taken up with detentions. As ever, there is a contingent of students who refuse to abide by the rules.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Harry commiserated. “It’s a shame you have to lose so much of your free time.”
“Thank you, Mr Potter. Teaching is certainly not a walk in the park, especially when I have brewing duties as well as Head of House duties. I am grateful for the opportunity, however. Albus is one of only a few who would give me an opportunity.”
“Really!” Harry exclaimed. “But you are so good at brewing.” Admittedly his knowledge was so limited but, in his mind, this man was a genius, even if his personality did leave a lot to be desired most of the time.
Snape winced at Harry’s words. “I have something of a checkered past, Mr Potter, something I am surprised that you haven’t hurt yet. Nonetheless I am happy that you appreciate my skills, even if you only have your own to compare them to.”
“That’s not exactly true,” Harry chuckled. “I have experienced the difference between your potions and shop bought ones myself. I would happily commission you to brew all of my potions if I wasn’t worried that you wouldn’t have time to do it.”
“And I might make time should one customer be enough to sustain me, but, alas, that is not the case, even if said customer were a regular one.”
“Maybe one day in the future that will be possible,” Harry smiled, only to clutch his stomach as it gurgled loudly.
Snape frowned. “Are you alright?”
“I’m sure it's nothing,” Harry insisted. “I just think my body is still getting used to British food.” It wasn’t a complete lie, mostly because he wasn’t sure exactly what was making him queasy, but Harry didn’t exactly want to let this man know that he suddenly wanted to spew his guts up.
“Regular rich food can cause gastric distress,” Snape said, looking at Harry assessingly. “I would advise peppermint or chamomile tea if it is indigestion and ginger if you are experiencing nausea. If the symptoms persist, let me know, and I can send you some potions to help.”
“Thank you for the offer but I'm sure it will pass.” Harry was genuinely grateful for Snape’s concern but he just wanted the man to leave so he could go and find a convenient place to be sick. Thankfully Snape seemed to understand his distress and quickly took his leave. As soon as he was through the floo, Harry turned his head to heave, his stomach repeatedly spasming as his body voided itself of all of the nice food he had just eaten. He felt awful for Mimby’s wasted effort but the House Elf simply waved away his concern as she vanished the sick and checked Harry over.
The weird thing was that as soon as Harry had cleared his stomach, he felt fine. Mimby wasn't convinced, however, forcing Harry to spend the rest of the day in bed to recover, with a ready supply of herbal tea, as Professor Snape had suggested. She refused to give Harry anything to eat until supper time though, insisting that he needed to make sure that whatever it was had left his system, and even then he was only allowed some toast. It was not enough to satisfy his hunger by any means and Harry was amazed at how much his body had adapted to life with Mimby. Even with losing his lunch, Harry had probably eaten as much as he would on a normal day in America and he had never felt hungry back then. He supposed that it wasn’t a bad thing but he certainly hoped that he could get back to his normal eating routine the next day. The one bright spot of the evening had been a letter from Draco saying that he would be by after lunch the next day to see Epona and Harry definitely didn’t want to have to cancel because he was sick.