- Leaky Cauldron -
Harry woke up slowly Monday morning. Laying in the large four-poster bed for the last time, he reflected on the many changes in his life since waking up in the cupboard under the stairs. From meeting Minerva and leaving the Dursleys, to becoming best friends with Cho and Marietta, and now here he was about to start the next chapter.
Today's the day he and Minerva were going to find a new place for him to live. Looking at the clock, Harry saw that he had about an hour before she was supposed to arrive at the Leaky Cauldron.
Jumping out of the bed, Harry walked into the bathroom to shower. Taking his time and enjoying the warm spray, he stepped out and began drying himself off.
Looking in the mirror, he was pleased to see how far his body had come from its scrawny, underdeveloped state.
Now, he stood an inch taller than Cho and Marietta, and his body had filled out nicely. His stomach had a slight outline of a 2-pack, and his chest, arms, and legs were becoming toned and muscular.
He was never going to be a massive bodybuilder, but he also wasn't going to have a skinny runner's body. If he continues his healthy diet and exercise, he'll most likely will end up with a muscular swimmer's body.
Done looking himself over, Harry quickly styled his short hair before stepping back into the room to get dressed. Putting on a white, long-sleeve button-up and black slacks, with a brown leather belt and shoes, he took a minute to look out of the window and see what the weather was like.
Spotting grey skies, Harry grabbed a Ravenclaw blue sweater (a gift from Cho last year for Christmas) and the blue-and-bronze scarf Marietta got him in First-year.
Finished, he grabbed his ebony and silver trunk. Moving to the window, he let Hedwig fly out and hunt for her breakfast while he stepped out of the room for the last time. Slowly making his way through the barely-lit hallway and down the stairs into the main pub, Harry moved over to sit down at the bar.
Without even having to say anything, Tom came by with his usual morning breakfast order. "'Here ya go, lad. Let me know if ya need anythin' else." Thanking him, Harry dug into his plate of eggs and fruit.
By the time he was done, it was only a few minutes until Minerva arrived.
Soon enough, the Floo came to life in a flash of green flames as Minerva stepped out. Casting a quick spell to clean off the soot from her dark grey robes, she made her way over to the bar.
"Good morning, Harry. Ready to go?"
Nodding, Harry said his goodbyes to Tom before grabbing his trunk and following her out the backdoor and into Diagon Alley.
- Diagon Alley -
Diagon Alley was mostly empty this early in the morning. Which gave them plenty of space to travel down the cobblestone road without bumping into anyone. Reaching one of the streets that lead off into a neighboring alley filled with homes, Minerva directed him towards a small apartment building a few minutes from Diagon Alley's main street.
Staring up at the building, Harry saw that it was well-maintained and fairly new. "This is where you'll be staying from now on. The Headmaster is an old friend of the owner, and he's agreed to allow you to stay here unsupervised. So long as you do not make too much noise." Minerva said.
Walking in the front door, she directed him to a metal elevator leading up to the third floor. "Your apartment is on the top floor, overlooking the main street."
Reaching the top floor, Harry spotted a total of four apartment doors. His was at the end of the hall, labeled with a gold '4C'. Minerva fished out a simple silver key from a hidden pocket in her robes before using it to unlock the door. Handing it over to him, she motioned him into the room.
- Harry's Apartment -
Inside, the apartment was fairly simple. There was a nice sized living room directly in front of the door, with large windows that looked out onto the street. A large doorway to the left opened up to the kitchen, with an island in the middle and a small four-person table to the right, sitting next to another window. To the right of the living room; a set of sliding doors opened to a single bedroom and an attached bathroom.
Looking around the room, Harry heard Minerva speak up. "This is your new residence. There are protective wards put in place that keep anyone from Apparating into the building, and if you wish to use the Floo, you will need to make your way over to the Leaky Cauldron. Anything else you'll need can be purchased from shops two alleys further down from this one."
"The Headmaster has already covered the payment for your first year here. After that, you will need to pay for it yourself. The rent is 5 Galleons a month, or 50 Galleons for the year." She said.
'If my wand was 7 Galleons…then it was either really expensive, or I'm getting a discount on the place.'
Thankfully, Harry had stopped off at Gringotts the day before to check on how much his vault had and to pick up some more money.
His parents had left him quite a bit it turned out, totally around: 32,000 Galleons; 18,000 Sickles; and 10,000 Knuts.
It seemed like a lot, but Hogwarts was an additional 50 Galleons a year. Plus the cost of his clothing, supplies, books, and food; he was looking at around 200 to 250 Galleons a year.
That still left him quite a bit, though he was worried about other expenses that would undoubtably creep up. But that was for the future. Right now, he was going to focus on the present.
Turning to Minerva, Harry replied. "Thank you, Minerva. And please, give my thanks to Headmaster Dumbledore as well."
"You've earned it, Harry. Now, before I take my leave, there is something I wish to give you." She said as she reached into a hidden pocket in her robes. Drawing her hand out, Harry saw that she was holding a journal.
"These are my personal notes on the Animagus transfiguration. Read through them carefully. Once you have, send me a letter and I shall come here and guide you through the steps to discovering your form." Handing over the journal, Harry held it in his hands for a moment before looking up at her. Even at his new height, Minerva was still taller than him.
"I…I don't know what to say. Just…thank you." Stepping up to the woman, Harry drew her into a hug; feeling her own arms wrap around him. When he was with her, the feeling he got wasn't that of a mother, but more of an aunt. It made him wish that she actually was his aunt, instead of Petunia.
Pulling back, Minerva smiled back at him. "I'll leave you to get settled."
Walking her to the door, Harry waved goodbye as she stepped into the elevator.
Closing the door, Harry spotted Hedwig waiting outside the kitchen window. Making his way into the kitchen, he quickly opened the window and let her in.
Hedwig flew over to the island and looked out imperiously at the apartment. Satisfied, she turned her head and gave a single bob, as if pleased with their new home.
Laughing, Harry moved back into the living room and grabbed his trunk.
For the next few hours, he went about organized his new home. Putting his clothes in the surprisingly large walk-in closet (and silently thanking the inventor of spatial expansion charms), and checking to see what furniture and other things he'll need for the apartment.
With a list of necessities in hand, Harry made out of the apartment; excited to begin this new phase of his life.
- Timeskip: A Week Later -
After purchasing everything he needed for his apartment, including tons of food and cookbooks, Harry sent Hedwig off with letters to Cho and Marietta inviting them over to his new place.
Their replies came immediately, expressing their excitement for him and confirming that they'll be there in a week.
Harry used that time to practice several of the recipes in the cookbooks, wanting to make lunch for them when they arrived. Several near disasters later, he figured out how to make some simple recipes.
Turns out that electronics worked in the magical world, so long as the area they were in wasn't saturated in magic like Hogwarts was. Meaning, he had a fully functioning stove, refrigerator, and other appliances.
After practicing his cooking, Harry began reading through Minerva's journal on becoming an Animagus.
One of the first steps mentioned to becoming an Animagus, was having at least rudimentary talent in Occlumency. Minerva's notes thankfully included the steps to learning the basics of the skill.
Recalling Snape's comments to 'Clear your mind!' in the storybooks, Harry noticed that it wasn't far off the mark.
Apparently, a Legilimens doesn't actually read your mind like a book, but attempts to force a particular memory to the forefront of your thoughts (like telling someone not to think of a pink elephant, causing them to think of that very thing) and can then view it.
What Occlumency does, is help clear the mind of relevant thoughts or memories, and even distract the Legilimens with pointless memories until you are able to break eye-contact with them.
Some Legilimens are able to do so subtly enough, that unless you have training with Occlumency, you won't even notice them doing it. But if the Legilimens is well practiced and discards subtly, they can force your memories to the surface, even with some training in Occlumency. The scariest thing, was that a Legilimens could force visions into the other's mind, making them experience things that would drive them to madness.
*Knock Knock*
Coming out of his thoughts, Harry got up off the new L-shaped couch he bought for the living room, and made his way over to the front door.
Opening the door, Cho and Marietta stood on the other side smiling at him. Cho was wearing a knee-length sundress, her straight hair let down her back. Marietta was in a Weird Sisters sweater and black jeans, her reddish-blonde hair in its usual single-braid.
"Hey Harry!" "Hi Harry!"
The three exchanged hugs and greetings before Harry ushered them inside.
As Cho began wandering around the apartment, Marietta stood next to him looking around. "Nice place you've got," lightly bumping shoulders with him, drawing a chuckle. "Thanks, Mary."
"This place is amazing! You're so lucky." Cho gushed, walking over to sit down on the couch. Marietta joined her as Harry went into the kitchen to put a kettle on, planning to make tea for everyone.
Walking back into the living room, Harry sat down in the single new chair he bought next to the couch. Getting comfortable, the three fell into comfortable conversation as they talked about their plans for the summer.
Marietta's family was going to travel to the United States and see some of the muggle and magical sights. Cho and her family were all massive fans of the Tutshill Tornados Quidditch team, and every summer went to several of the games they played in the British and Irish Quidditch League.
"Are you going to see Hermione in France this summer, Harry?" Cho asked.
Shaking his head, he replied. "Not this time, she sent a letter saying that her parents were taking her to check out some of the ancient magical ruins in Greece."
"That sucks. So what are you going to do?" Marietta questioned, hoping that he wasn't going to just stay inside in the apartment all summer like he did last year at the Leaky Cauldron.
Hearing the whistle of the tea kettle, Harry moved back into the kitchen as he spoke up. "I'm thinking of exploring the muggle side of London. See if I can find a gym close by that I can exercise at." Secretly, he was also planning on going for the Resurrection Stone. But finding a gym was also a priority, he didn't want to get lazy while he was away from Hogwarts and couldn't access the Room of Requirement.
Finished preparing the tea in cups, he waved his wand and floated them into the living room before setting them down on the coffee table in front of the couch.
"After that…I'm not sure. Maybe check out a Puddlemore United Quidditch Game." Harry shrugged, sipping on his tea.
Cho and Marietta looked at each other before sighing. "At least try and have some fun, Harry. That's what summer is for, you know." Cho pleaded.
Appreciating their concern, Harry replied. "I will, don't worry."
"Oh hey! Did you hear about the Weasleys?" Marietta asked. Harry shook his head negatively.
"My mom works at the Ministry, and she said that they won a raffle of 700 Galleons." She said.
"That's great! Maybe they'll be able to buy school supplies that aren't second hand, now." Cho delighted. Everyone knew about the Weasleys poverty, and while the more tradition pure-bloods looked down on them for it, most others felt sorry for them.
Sighed, Marietta shook her head as well. "Only, they didn't. Instead, they used all of the money to take a trip to Egypt for vacation. Their picture was posted on the front of this morning's Daily Prophet."
Exasperated, Cho replied, "Wha…How could they be so irresponsible?"
The conversation continued until they were all hungry, leading Harry to get up and make his way back into the kitchen to make their lunch. Cho and Marietta followed him before sitting down at a couple stools at the island, watching and commenting as he made a creamy chicken pasta.
Luckily, he had planned ahead and made the sauce earlier; so all he had to do was cook the pasta and chicken. They joked and laughed about school and classes before sitting down at the table to eat. One of the topics they discussed was Harry finally being able to go with them to Hogsmeade next year.
"You've got to check out the Three Broomsticks, the Butterbeers there are delicious." Marietta exclaimed between bites. Cho nodded along silently, continuing to dig into her plate.
He was relieved to find that they liked the simple dish, and Cho even asked for seconds after she finished hers rather quickly.
A couple hours later, the sun had already set by the time Cho and Marietta left his apartment. Waving goodbye as they made their way to the elevator.
Harry waved back as the elevator doors closed. Stepping into his apartment, he sighed at the mess in the kitchen before slowly trudging over to start cleaning up.
- Timeskip: Next Day -
After a nice, relaxing day with Cho and Marietta, Harry knew it was time to get back to work.
Checking that the Knight Bus would be making its way in the direction of Little Hangleton this week, he quickly grabbed the Invisibility Cloak.
During his free moments, he had found out through experimentation that he could turn on and off the invisibility of the Cloak, allowing him to wear it like any other cloak.
Pulling up the hood, Harry made his way through the Leaky Cauldron and onto the street. Looking around to make sure the muggles still were oblivious to the building and the street in front of it, he held his ebony wand out towards the road.
*BANG*
Like a gunshot, a triple-decker bus painted in a vibrant shade of purple appeared out of thin air. Stopping right in front of him, Harry saw written over the windshield, gold lettering spelling out the name of the bus.
The Knight Bus
As he read the name, a conductor in a purple uniform leapt out and began to speak loudly. "Welcome to the Knight Bus. My name is Stan Shunpike, and I will be your conductor for this evening." Up close, Harry found that he was only a few years older, eighteen or nineteen at most. His face had large, protruding ears, and quite a few pimples.
With his introduction finished, Stan seemed to drop all sense of professionalism and spoke plainly. "Woss your name?"
"James Evans." said Harry, using a blend of his parents' names to hide his identity. His hood covered his forehead enough that the scar was hidden from view, otherwise Stan would be able to see through his deception instantly.
"Right, where are you headed?"
"Little Hangleton." Harry replied.
Holding out a hand, Stan ordered. "That'll be 11 Sickles." Quickly, Harry pulled the required amount out of his pouch and handed them over.
Sickles in hand, Stan motioned Harry onto the bus.
There were no seats on the bus; instead, half a dozen brass beds stood beside the curtained windows. "You 'ave this one," Stan pointed towards the bed right behind the driver. "This is our driver, Ernie Prang. This is James Evans, Ern."
Ernie Prang, an elderly wizard wearing very thick glasses, nodded to Harry.
"Take 'er away, Ern." said Stan, sitting down in the armchair next to Ernie's as another *BANG* sounded.
Every bed in the bus shifted backwards as the Knight Bus flew down the street, Harry had to quickly steady himself or else he'd have toppled off the bed.
As the Knight Bus raced across England, Stan unfurled a copy of the Daily Prophet and began reading through it. On the front page, a large photograph of a sunken-faced man with long, matted hair blinked slowly at Harry.
"Wait, isn't that Sirius Black?" Harry asked.
Stan looked up from his reading before turning the paper to look at the front page. "That's 'im alright. Story broke just this mornin'. Apparently, Black broke out of Azkaban las' night. Got the whole Ministry in a panic."
Seeing Harry's interest, Stan handed the Daily Prophet over to him.
SIRIUS BLACK AT LARGE
Sirius Black, possibly the most infamous prisoner ever to be held in Azkaban fortress, has broken out of the once-thought inescapable prison late last night.
"We are doing all we can to recapture Black." said the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, this morning, "and we beg the magical community to remain calm…"
Harry stared at the image of Sirius for a moment, noticing the shadowed eyes that seemed to be the only part alive of his sunken face.
'He must have seen the photo of the Weasleys. The real question is, do I let him go through with breaking into Hogwarts and try to kill Wormtail, or do I step in?'
As he pondered over his decision, the Knight Bus finally rolled to a stop in a small village nestled between two steep hills. "'Ere we are, Little Hangleton!" Stan called out.
Stepping off the Knight Bus, Harry heard Stan call from behind him. "We'll be in this area for another 'our. If you don't call for us by that point, we'll be back round this way tomorrow."
Nodding, Harry quickly made his way through the streets. The town was fairly quiet, only a handful of people walked about. The church and graveyard were the most obvious buildings to see, and stood out very clearly from nearly every spot in the town.
Pulling out the diary, Harry followed the directions written in it away from the town. Heading into the woods, he quickly activated the invisibility of the Cloak before making his way farther in.
It took several minutes before Harry was able to discern the shack, half-hidden amongst the tangle of tree trunks. Creeping closer, it was difficult to make out the details of the building with the trees surrounding it; blocking all light and leaving the view dark and secluded.
Reaching the door, Harry could make out the faint outline of wards surrounding the place. Once again thankful for the Cloak's abilities, he stepped past them without incident and opened the front door.
- Gaunt Shack -
The shack was small, dilapidated, and littered with a mass of filth, rusty pots, and moldy food. The floor was splintered and broken, and underneath one of the floorboards Harry spotted a gleam of gold.
Reaching the floorboard, Harry levitated it out of the way. Underneath, a golden box laid in the ground with an unnatural magical glow emanating off its surface.
Not willing to chance it, Harry levitated the box out of the shack and over to a safe spot away from the area. Whatever spell was on the box would most likely be well beyond his skills.
Deciding to play it safe, he called out to Death instead.
"Death…"
A familiar tear of black energy split open to become a portal. Death's black robes and wide hood faded into view, her pale feet peeking out from underneath the hem as she walked barefoot on the grass towards him.
"Quite the location you've chosen to call out to me, Hero." Death observed, looking around at the forest before turning to the golden box on the ground. "I see…" Kneeling down in front of the box, she opened it without pause.
Whatever curses and enchantments may have been placed on it proved useless against a being such as Death. Harry wasn't even sure if she noticed them, her attention fixed solely on the small ring resting innocently inside the box.
Picking the ring up, Death left the golden box behind as she looked over the horcrux in the sunlight. It was a gold ring inset with a black stone. Engraved on the stone was the symbol of the Deathly Hallows, also referred to as the Peverell Coat of Arms.
"A soul fragment, and one of the Hallows, all in one. How…fortunate." The smile that spread across her black painted lips was terrifying.
Coating the ring in a mass of chilling black energy, it seemed to disappear from her pale hand instantly. Satisfied, she turned back to look at Harry from underneath her hood. "This calls for quite the reward." Pausing, she spared another glance at their surroundings. "But not here, and not now."
Stepping up to him, she placed her hand on his chest. "Wait until the night of your birthday. Call out to me then, and you shall have your reward." Sliding her hand over his chest, she seemed to restrain herself as she pulled back. Smiling at him, she said. "See you soon, Hero."
In an instant, she disappeared through the portal. Her quick exit momentarily stunned him.
Blinking, Harry just shook his head before looking at the golden box. It seemed that whatever magic was on it had dispelled at Death's touch. 'This could be useful.'
Pulling out his wand, Harry cast Reducio on the box, shrinking the golden metal down to the size of a matchbox before putting it in his pocket. Gringotts would likely pay a decent amount for it. It might even pay off the next few years of rent.
With less than twenty minutes to reach Little Hangleton in time to call the Knight Bus, Harry quickly hurried back to the town.
- Timeskip: Harry's Birthday -
It turned out that the golden box was worth quite a bit to the goblins. The box was solid gold, and after looking it over, they offered him 1,000 Galleons for it. Enough to cover his apartment and Hogwarts expenses for the next four years easily.
After receiving the gold, Harry returned to his apartment and continued practicing the basics of Occlumency. Minerva had come by to check on his progress, and remarked that he would soon be ready to begin training in his Animagus form.
Before long, his birthday had arrived.
Waking up in his bedroom, Harry slowly got out of bed and padded across the living room into the kitchen. As he made himself some tea, he spotted Hedwig sitting at the table next to a small pile of presents.
Cho and Marietta were still travelling, so they wouldn't be there to celebrate the day with him, but had sent their presents in time to be delivered the night before. Minerva was coming over for dinner to take him to a small restaurant in Diagon Alley as her gift.
Going through his presents, he received an advanced book on speaking French from Hermione, along with a long letter detailing her experiences in Greece. She finished the note saying that she hoped he would be able to join her in France the next summer. She added that her friends at Beauxbatons wanted to meet him, after admitting that she had shared some information about him with them.
Cho and Marietta had both pitched in to get him a gift. It was a large stack of photos that they had gotten made from their memories at a magical photography store. Flipping through each photo, they included pictures of the three of them hanging out in the common room, sitting together on the Express, and laughing together in the Great Hall.
The photos were amazing, and Harry couldn't help the soft smile on his face as he looked through them. Once he finished, he added them to the photo album Minerva gave him with the pictures of his parents.
Having a quiet lunch, Harry went back to practicing his Transfiguration as he waited for Minerva to arrive. The amount of time he had free to practice, meant that he was already into the Fourth-Year spells and texts on most of the core classes, having blown through the Third-Year curriculum fairly easily.
It was his hope that he could convince Minerva to test him, and see if he could be moved up a year to join Cho and Marietta. Not that the others in his year weren't nice, but he felt more of a connection with his two best friends and wanted to join them.
*Knock knock*
Breaking from his thoughts, Harry went over to see who it is.
Standing on the other side, Minerva smiled at him before speaking, "Happy Birthday, Harry."
Pulling him into a hug, Harry blushed at the feeling of her body pressing against his. A new occurrence that Harry was learning to deal with.
Over the last few weeks, he found himself paying more attention to women's bodies. It wasn't until he woke up one morning from a rather graphic dream about Cho and Marietta to a feeling of stiffness in his pants, that he realized what was happening.
He was finally going through puberty…again. Yay.
Harry hadn't thought it was going to be a big deal. After all, he had already gone through it once before.
But he was woefully unprepared for how distracted he would get every time an attractive woman walked past him. His eyes would quickly become drawn to their curves, and his thoughts would fill with images of sexual situation involving each of them.
Thankfully, his Occlumency had improved enough that he could calm himself down and not look like a blushing mess.
The first time he tried speaking to a rather attractive girl at one of the shops in Diagon Alley, he stuttered so badly that he had to quickly end the conversation and leave the shop to not look like a complete fool.
Once he figured out how to use Occlumency to stop that from happening, Harry had quickly gotten a handle on it, and was now able to speak normally to women.
Feeling Minerva's rather firm breasts press into his chin, Harry had to keep a blush from rising to his cheeks.
While he was still growing, Minerva's impressive height meant that his face was barely above her chest. Had he been a little bit shorter, he would have been smothered in her embrace. 'Not that it's a bad way to go…'
Even with her plain robes and stern features, Minerva was an attractive older witch.
Her black hair kept perfectly maintained in a tight bun, her impressively sized chest was still fairly firm, and her slightly wide hips that were barely noticeable beneath her robes, made for an alluring sight.
Had he not already thought of her as an Aunt, he might have worried that he'd develop an attraction to her.
Shaking off those thoughts, Harry quickly moved to grab his things before follow her out of the building. He had decided to go with a white dress shirt, black trousers and tie, black leather belt and shoes, and Ravenclaw blue waistcoat.
The waistcoat was a newer addition to his clothing. He didn't feel old enough yet to be able to pull off a full three-piece suit, but he was at least muscular and tall enough to add the waistcoat without looking like a child playing dress up.
Minerva seemed to approve of it, after looking over his appearance with a pleased nod she stepped out onto the street and began leading him to Diagon Alley's main street.
Shortly after, Minerva directed him to a small, fancy looking restaurant that catered to smaller parties.
After giving her name, the waiter directed them to a small two-person table a little farther from the other guests.
Placing their orders, Minerva spoke up. "I'm sure you've read by now that Sirius Black has broken out of Azkaban and is now on the loose…" Waiting for his nod, she continued. "What you may not know, is that the man is also your godfather."
"The Minister wanted us to keep this fact a secret. But I, and the Headmaster, believe otherwise. We believe you to be mature enough to handle this knowledge without panicking."
Knowing that Fudge wanted to keep it a secret wasn't a surprise. The man simply couldn't accept a world in which something might go wrong while he's Minister. Harry would need to be careful about what he says if he ever meets the man. The last thing he wants is for the Minister to go through with the smear campaign like he did in the storybooks.
"You should also know, that starting this upcoming school term, Hogwarts will be playing host to the guards of Azkaban. Foul creatures known as Dementors." Minerva's face seemed revolted at the thought of them.
Shaking it off, she apologized. "I'm sorry to darken your birthday with such knowledge, Harry. But I felt it best to let you know as soon as possible, so that you can adequately prepare yourself."
"It's alright, Minerva. Like you said, I'd rather learn about it know, then find out about it later." Harry replied, bringing a grateful smile to her face.
With the unpleasant conversation over, things went back to how they were before the topic, and they settled in to a nice dinner together.
- Timeskip: That Night -
After saying his goodbyes to Minerva, Harry made his way back to his apartment.
Stepping inside, he sat down on the couch for a few minutes to relax.
Deciding it was time, Harry called out to Death, curious what his reward could be.
"Death..."