The next morning, Dumbledore slowly made his way down to the Great Hall, it took some doing to get Madam Pomfrey to even allow him out of the hospital wing. She said something about that the books were more trouble than they were worth. She would've escorted Dumbledore down to breakfast, but she had to gather potions together, just in case someone else had need of them. Though Dumbledore highly doubted she meant to use them on anyone else.

After he saw the Great Hall swirl in front of his eyes, he couldn't recollect anything after that. He now knew just how frustrated Harry must feel, not being able to remember what had happened after a certain part. He could, however, remember what had sent him sprawling to the floor. He clutched his heart in remembrance of the pain, learning the awful truth in that fashion, with those words, how could Harry even stand it? Then Madam Pomfrey's words came screaming through his mind. He reached into his cloak and took a sip of a Calming Draught. This was the condition he had to agree to, in order to leave the Healer's care. He had to take several vials of the potion with him everywhere, until the books were done.

He entered the Great Hall and smiled as he strode forward into his favorite part of the castle. So many happy memories and so far, only two bad recollections associated with this great room. People were sitting in the random chairs once more, and enjoying their breakfasts. When they looked up and saw Dumbledore, who was looking just as well as he normally did, they all smiled and gave a loud cheer.

Harry was walking back towards the bowl with a large plate of food stopped and stared at the Headmaster who had just walked in. Harry grinned broadly. "Good morning, sir! Want some breakfast?" said Harry holding out his own plate without hesitation.

Dumbledore was taken aback by this, not because Harry was offering him his food, if it had had been his friend Ron though, it would gave him another heart attack. It was the manner in which he acted, Minerva had told him last night when he awoke that Harry had saved his life and the manner in which he did it. Any normal person would be bragging to the rooftops, or looking superior to the man in which he saved. Harry was carrying on, as if nothing were different between them. Just a student and a teacher, a grandson to his grandfather. It took Dumbledore a while to send Harry a smile in return, he walked towards Harry and embraced him.

"Thank you, Harry. Thank you, for saving this evil old man." said Dumbledore sadly when they broke apart. Harry looked at him shocked.

"You're not evil, sir! Why do you say that?"

"I placed you in a home, though I had no notion at the time just how bad, that in no way could be labeled habitable for you. I kept you there, despite all the signs of unhappiness, and obvious malnutrition, I kept you there. I ignored your needs and wants for a loving family, I choose to keep you protected from dark wizards, but left you to fend for yourself, defenseless, to deal with human monsters devoid of magic.

"I've placed challenges in your path, while you were here, in order to prepare you for the troubles ahead, and almost killing you in every one of those. I promise to you Harry, I will do that no more. You will never see the Dursleys again, unless you wish to travel to their hearing. You will not be forced into a dangerous situation, without me there to protect you. I will train you personally, the way I should have done to start with. Oh, Harry, I do believe that I myself am the cruelest person you could possibly ever, know!" Dumbledore lamented.

Harry smiled sadly. "Sir, you're not evil, and you aren't the cruelest person I know. I didn't let anyone know about what the Dursleys did to me, not even Ron and Hermione.."

"Harry, I am an expert Legimens, I could see into your mind, I didn't even look!" cried Dumbledore, wringing his hands. This was a side of Dumbledore no one had ever seen. Harry reached into Dumbledore's cloak and handed him the vial of Calming Draught. Dumbledore stared at Harry, how did he know that was there? Harry saw his bewildered look and smiled.

"Who do you think gave Madam Pomfrey the idea to keep those with you? Now, to get back on track, I let you see what I want you to see in my mind, the same goes for Professor Snape. I don't know occlumency, but I do know how to arrange my thoughts so that I lay down the cards I want down. The unhappiness I can deal with on my own, it just makes Hogwarts more of a special place for me. Malnutrition, well, I'm still alive, and I get my fill here every day. I put on enough weight and keep it on to keep me safe during the summer.

"I can handle muggles no problem without magic, my knapsack sees to that." he said bringing the small bag out for Dumbledore to see. "I went headlong into those challenges on my own. I could've thrown up my hands and said 'Screw it, I can't do this, I won't do this' but I chose to follow the path you laid. Me almost getting killed a time or two was my own fault, not yours. And I won't have anyone, ANYONE," said Harry, looking at Mrs. Weasley sternly. "say otherwise." said Harry, quite plainly. Dumbledore stood in shock. Harry had to nudge the vial towards Dumbledore's lips, and waited till he finished sipping it.

"You must be getting better, Harry! You haven't talked like that for a while." said Ron with a grin. Harry thought a moment, and then smiled once more.

"I must be getting better, my mind is back on track like it should be. Still can't remember what happened though, it'll come I think, in time and my back still hurts like a son of a banshee. Though I think, with my actions yesterday, I think the secret of my mentality are out. I'm happy though, the books were being real nice about not showing what was going on in my head as well as the 'watered-down' thoughts. Hope it keeps it up."

"so I guess, we can't treat you like a kid anymore, huh?" said Sirius, trying very hard to hide his cheerlessness.

"I was actually going to ask you to keep it up, I missed out on your affection, and I fear you'll start going batty if I didn't let you 'vent' some of that paternal instinct you're trying to utilize, that way, you don't smother me during the summer break." Harry smiled. Both Sirius and Remus could hardly contain their joy.

It was true, they wanted to show Harry that the both of them could be excellent guardians and wanted to make up for lost time, even if it means treating him like a child. What made it even better, was that Harry was giving them the go ahead to continue treating him like a juvenile. Harry would never tell them that by having them act in an overly-paternal way, instead of having them treat him like the young adult he was, they wouldn't feel the guilt that they missed out on so much. Also, Harry liked this attention. It was nice, made him feel loved, and protected.

After breakfast and everyone huddled into their chairs, Harry transfigured a foot rest for Dumbledore and took another flask of the Draught and laid it beside him on a small cherry-table. "Take it when you need it, don't make me come over here and pour it down your throat. Cause I will." he said, wincing slightly as he slowly sat down. Sirius dragged him softy back over to him and Remus brought his legs up so they laid acrossed his lap once again.

"Who wants ter read?" asked Hagrid, who picked up the book that laid beside his giant chair.

"May I, sir?" asked Hermione, looking towards Dumbledore. Umbridge sat up in her pink, kitten patterned chair and hissed towards her.

"This is an official reading! Miss Granger, we've already enough time with everyone commenting and yesterday afternoons...occurrence." she glared over to Dumbledore and Harry. Dumbledore smiled over to her and Harry waved innocently.

"Just let her read, Delores, what harm is there?" asked Madam Bones.

"She could skip over something important! Or alter it." said Umbridge angrily

"Not possible, the books are protected against someone skipping ahead, or failing to read something. Also one cannot add words or phrases, unless it were to get to a greater sense of truth. Harry's brilliance may or may not be labeled here. We won't know, till we read. Go ahead Miss Granger." said Dumbledore kindly.

Hermione ran over to Hagrid and accepted the book.

Diagon Alley

"This should be good." said Sirius pulling Harry tighter. Harry smiled, this WAS going to be a good one.

Harry woke early the next morning. Although he could tell it was daylight, he kept his eyes shut tight.

"Wakey, wakey, Harry!" said both of the twins.

"It was a dream," he told himself firmly. "I dreamed a giant called Hagrid came to tell me I was going to a school for wizards.

"Quite an elaborate dream, Potter." sneered Snape.

When I open my eyes I'll be home in my cupboard."

"Nope, you're on a rock in the middle of the bloody ocean!" said Bill, trying to hide a smile.

"WILLIAM!" scolded Mrs. Weasley

There was suddenly a loud tapping noise.

And there's Aunt Petunia knocking on the door, Harry thought,

"What a depressing thought." said Ron.

his heart sinking. But he still didn't open his eyes. It had been such a good dream.

.Tap.

"All right," Harry mumbled, "I'm getting up."

He sat up and Hagrid's heavy coat fell off him. The hut was full of sunlight, the storm was over, Hagrid himself was asleep on the collapsed sofa, and there was an owl rapping its claw on the window, a newspaper held in its beak.

"Still think it's a dream, Potter?" called Draco.

"If it do, longest one I've ever had." said Harry with a smile.

Harry scrambled to his feet, so happy he felt as though a large balloon was swelling inside him. He went straight to the window and jerked it open. The owl swooped in and dropped the newspaper on top of Hagrid, who didn't wake up. The owl then fluttered onto the floor and began to attack Hagrid's coat.

"I swear, those owls can smell money." said Lupin

"Don't do that."

Harry tried to wave the owl out of the way, but it snapped its beak fiercely at him and carried on the savaging the coat.

"Vicious little feather dusters aren't they?" said Sirius looking at Harry.

"Hagird!" said Harry loudly. "There's an owl-"

"Pay him," Hagrid grunted into the sofa.

"What?"

"He wants payin' fer deliverin' the paper. Look in the pockets." Hagrid's coat seemed to be made of nothing but pockets-bunches of keys, slug pellets, balls of string, peppermint humbugs, teabags...finally, Harry pulled out a handful of strange-looking coins.

"Reminded me of my knapsack, I have stuff that doesn't look useful to anybody, but to me, they are handy to have when you really need them."

"Give him five Knuts." said Hagrid sleepily.

"Knuts?"

"Hagrid, Harry wouldn't know what Knuts are, he just found out he was a wizard the night before!" admonished McGonagall.

"Hagrid was giving me a hands on lesson, he was teaching me what the money was." said Harry defensively. Hagrid mouthed 'Thank you.' towards him.

"The little bronze ones."

Harry counted out five little bronze coins, and the owl held out his leg so Harry could put the money into a small leather pouch tied to it. Then he flew off through the open window.

Hagrid yawned loudly, sat up and stretched.

"Best be off, Harry, lots ter do today, gotta get up ter London an' buy all yer stuff fer school."

Harry was turning over the wizard coins and looking at them. He had just thought of something that made him feel as though the happy balloon inside him had got a puncture.

"OH, NO! MORE DEPRESSING THOUGHTS!" howled the twins, putting arms up to foreheads in a dramatic pose.

"Um-Hagrid?"

"Mm?" said Hagrid, who was pulling on his huge boots.

"I haven't got any money-and you heard Uncle Vernon last night...He won't pay for me to go and learn magic."

"Hell, it doesn't sound like he spent any money on you? Clothes, food, nothing." said Lupin.

"He paid my hospital bills." said Harry stretching slightly.

"Tell me they were check-ups." pleaded Sirius. Harry closed his eyes, refusing to answer. Sirius groaned and buried his face in his cub's hair.

"Don't worry about that," said Hagrid, standing up and scratching his head. "D'yeh think yer parents didn't leave yeh anything?"

"But if their house was destroyed-"

"What made you think that their money was in the house?" asked Ron.

"The Dursleys have a second financial ledger hidden away in the room I sleep in. I stumbled on it one day as I was fixing some of Dudley's old, broken toys. It labeled a whole bunch of money they were getting from someone, and in it, was a number for a bank account. I saw how much money they were hoarding away. Taking the current exchange, in galleons it would be..." it took a Harry a moment of looking up at the sky. "Three hundred and fifty-eight thousand, eight hundred and twenty-one galleons and two sickles and that was when I was thirteen."

People whistled around the hall, that was a lot of money. Even Draco had his eyebrows raised and mouth hanging open.

Professor Vector's eyebrows raised in admiration and shock, how can this child do math that fast? Miss Granger still had to write down her figures to find out the solution. And this boy can do this in his head? He was highly impressed.

"Albus." said McGonagall, she came over and whispered viciously into his ear. "Isn't that the total amount of galleons you sent to those Muggles to care for the boy?"

Dumbledore quickly did the math in his head as well, he had sent the Dursleys child support in the form of Muggle money, easier for them to use, and his face fell. Harry's figure was dead on. That was the money Vernon was supposed to use for Harry. What was he doing, saving it like that?

"Without that account number, they wouldn't be able to get to it. Uncle Vernon came in my room one time, during my school year, and saw that I forgot to place the crease back in the book cover it was hiding in. I haven't seen the book since." said Harry, not really caring what the money was supposed to be for.

"They didn' keep their gold in the house, boy! Nah, first stop fer us is Gringotts. Wizards' bank. Have a sausage, they're not bad cold-an' I wouldn't say no the a bit o' yer birthday cake neither."

"Wizards have banks?"

"Just the one, Gringotts. Run by goblins."

Harry dropped the bit of sausage he was holding.

"Goblins?"

"Yeah-so yeh'd be mad ter try an' rob it, I'll tell yeh that. Never mess with goblins, Harry. Gringotts is the safest place in the world fer anything yeh want ter keep safe-'cept maybe Hogwarts.

"Don't know about that." said Harry whispered mysteriously.

"Don't know about what?" whispered back Sirius, Lupin leaned in to hear.

"I've come up with about twenty-two different ways of breaking into Gringotts."

"Don't...even...try...it..." growled Sirius, though a small smile played acrossed his face.

"Why would you come up with ideas like that?" asked Remus stunned.

"Was the only exercise my brain got." said Harry with a shrug.

As a matter o' fact, I gotta visit Gringotts anyway. Fer Dumbledore. Hogwarts business." Hagrid drew himself up proudly. "He usually gets me ter do important stuff fer him. Fetchin' you-gettin' things from Gringotts-knows he can trust me, see.

"I wouldn't trust you to take out the garbage." spat Umbridge. Hagrid didn't look hurt, he knew, whatever she said, most of the school disagreed with her. And he was right. Growls and yells could be heard quite clearly.

"That is where you differ from me and the rest of the staff here at Hogwarts. And I fear, that isn't the only difference." said Dumbledore with a cryptic smile.

"Got everythin'? Come on, then."

Harry followed Hagrid out onto the rock. The sky was quite clear now and the sea gleamed in the sunlight. The boat Uncle Vernon had hired was still there, with a lot of water in the bottom after the storm.

"How did you get here?" Harry asked, looking around for another boat.

"Flew," said Hagrid.

"Flew?"

"Yeah-but we'll go back in this. Not s'pposed ter use magic now I've got yeh."

They settled down in the boat, Harry still staring at Hagrid, trying to imagine him flying.

"How did you do it, Hagrid?" squeaked a small Hufflepuff girl.

"Was it my bike again Hagrid?" said Sirius with a cunning smile.

"Yep, it was. Once I got ter 'arry I sent it back." said Hagrid with smile.

"Seems a shame ter row, though," said Hagrid, giving Harry another one of his sideways looks. "If I was ter-er-speed things up an bit, would yeh mind not mentionin' it at Hogwarts?"

"Whatever you did, he certainly didn't tell us." said Hermione, glaring at Harry.

"I keep my word, I never go back on it. Promises are very important to me." said Harry defensively.

Hermione's face fell in guilt she herself broke some promises, not to Harry and Ron though, Dumbledore's, Lupin's and Sirius's faces however, all lit up. He was very much like his mother, however, she would bend her promises sometimes.

"Of course not," said Harry, eager to see more magic. Hagrid pulled out the pink umbrella again, tapped it twice on the side of the boat, and they sped off toward land.

"You weren't supposed to use magic! You were expelled!" screeched Umbridge gleefully.

"Delores, he was found innocent years ago! Try to keep up with the times, for heaven's sake!" groaned Madam Bones.

"Why would you be mad to try and rob Gringotts?" Harry asked.

"Spells-enchantments," said Hagrid, unfolding his newspaper as he spoke. "They say there's dragons guardin' the high-security vaults.

"There'd better not be, Bill." growled Charlie towards his older brother.

Bill raised his hands, "Hey I don't have anything to do with that aspect of the bank. Take it up with the goblins."

They all waited till Charlie and a few Care of Magical Creature enthusiasts finished ranting and planning a revolt on behalf of the dragons, so they could continue.

And then yeh gotta find yer way-Gringotts is hundreds of miles under London, see. Deep under the Underground. Yeh'd die of hunger tryin' ter get out, even if yeh did manage ter get yer hands on summat."

Harry sat and thought about this while Hagrid read his newspaper,

"How many ways did you plan out to rob the bank then?" asked Lupin quietly.

"Two, and even after I visited the bank and learned the geography, they both would work."

Lupin groaned.

the Daily Prophet. Harry had learned from Uncle Vernon that people liked to be left alone while they did this, but it was very difficult, he'd never had so many questions in his life.

"Ya could've asked anythin yer liked 'arry I wouldn't ta minded." said Hagrid, a little ashamed that he ignored Harry.

"Ministry o' Magic messin' things up as usual," Hagrid muttered, turning the page.

"WE DON'T MESS THINGS UP!" bellowed Umbridge and Fudge.

"You've got two people here, who are testimony to the fact that the ministry screwed up royally!" yelled Harry right back. He pointed to Sirius and Hagrid.

"There's a Ministry of Magic?" Harry asked, before he could stop himself.

"'Course," said Hagrid. "They wanted Dumbledore fer Minister, o' course, but he'd never leave Hogwarts, so old Cornelius Fudge got the job. Bungler if ever there was one.

"I'M NOT A BUNGLER!" yelled Fudge, not nearly as loud as before.

"HE MOST CERTAINLY IS NOT!" screeched Umbridge.

"Delores, Cornelius, I think that it goes without saying that we, the Ministry made some very weighty mistakes. Drop it." said Madam Bones.

So he pelts Dumbledore with owls every morning, askin' fer advice. "

"Now, Hagrid, it's not every morning." chided George playfully.

"It's every quarter hour." finished Fred.

The Minister and his Senior Undersecretary scowled at them. I'll get them, once I'm done with Potter, I'll get them. thought Umbridge savagely.

"But what does a Ministry of Magic do?"

"Nothing much." piped up a fifth year Ravenclaw. Fudge and Umbridge glared at her. Madam Bones had had enough.

"Honestly, you two are worse than children, getting angry at every little thing. Merlin, Potter has had insults thrown to him, and he slings them right back, or he simply accepts them. He's more mature then the both of you put together."

Umbridge scowled at Head of Law Enforcement. While Fudge looked slightly ashamed.

"Well, their main job is to keep it from the Muggles that there's still witches an' wizards up an' down the country."

"Why?"

"Why? Blimey, Harry everyone'd be wantin' magic solutions to their problems. Nah, we're best left alone."

"Muggles are so greedy." sneered Umbridge. Some of the students, who were purebloods, nodded in agreement, they were remembering the Dursleys and the money they were hoarding.

"Wizards are just as greedy as Muggles, sometimes more so." stated Harry. "While the justice system in the wizarding world isn't always perfect, at least they, for the most part, don't have criminals make a large donation to the hospital to get off."

"WHO HAS DONE THAT MR. POTTER?" bellowed Madam Bones incredulously.

"You want a list? Give me a minute or two and I can give you a head start into an audit of some people's bank accounts." said Harry whipping out his small black book from his knapsack a spare roll of and a quill.

"There is no need Mr. Potter." simpered Umbridge. "The Minister knows all about them."

"And yet, they aren't in jail, and money for freedom is still used as a bartering tool. Right now, you didn't shed your Minister in a good light." said Harry with a raised eyebrow, still writing down names and dates, not even looking at the parchment. He turned towards Madam Bones, "I'll have the list for you...right...now." He rolled up the list and handed it to Sirius, who passed it to Madam Bones.

She unrolled it, her eyes getting larger as the list grew longer. Once she was done, she glared over to the Minister and Umbridge. Fudge shifted guiltily in his seat, however Umbridge was still snarling at Harry, who was ignoring her.

At this moment the boat bumped gently into the harbor wall. Hagrid folded up his newspaper, and they clambered up the stone steps onto the street.

"How did the Dursleys get back to land Harry?" asked Lee.

"Before we left the town, I stopped at the Police Station and told them that there was a family stranded out on the rock. They went and picked them up, right after Hagrid and I left. Uncle Vernon wasn't happy that I sicced the cops on them, but I didn't want to think of another plan to get them off that rock."

"You didn't want to?" repeated Sirius.

"Wasn't worth my time to come up with a less conspicuous escape for them."

"That's my boy!" said Sirius ruffling Harry's hair. Lupin smiled.

Passersby stared a lot at Hagrid as they walked through the little town to the station. Harry couldn't blame them. Not only was Hagrid twice as tall as anyone else, he kept pointing at perfectly ordinary things like parking meters and saying loudly, "See that, Harry? Things these Muggles dream up, eh?"

"Hagrid." said Snape tiredly, rubbing the bridge of his hooked nose with his forefinger and thumb.

"Hagrid," said Harry, panting a bit as he ran to keep up, "did you say there were dragons at Gringotts?"

"Was that out of curiosity or were you still planning your heist?" whispered Lupin.

"Planning a third way." said Harry with an evil grin.

"Merlin, help me." Lupin moaned, massaging his temple.

"Well, so they say," said Hagrid. "Crikey, I'd like a dragon."

"Only Hagrid." said Sirius fondly. Harry, Hermione and Ron shared a small smile.

"You'd like one?"

"Wanted one ever since I was a kid-here we go."

They had reached the station. There was a train to London in five minutes' time. Hagrid, who didn't understand "Muggle money," as he called it, gave the bills to Harry so he could buy their tickets.

"I don't see how people can have problems with Muggle money, the denominations are right there!" said Hermione exasperatedly.

People stared more than ever on the train. Hagrid took up two seats and sat knitting what looked like a canary-yellow circus tent.

"What was that for Hagrid." asked Harry.

"A blanket for Fluffy, he was gettin' the sniffles." said Hagrid.

"Who's Fluffy?" asked Charlie.

"You'll find out later." said Ron.

"Still got yer letter, Harry?" he asked as he counted stitches. Harry took the parchment envelope out of his pocket.

"Good," said Hagrid. "There's a list of everything yeh need."

Harry unfolded a second piece of paper he hadn't noticed the night before, and read:

HOGWARTS SCHOOL

of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)

"Simple yet stylish, at least compared to the Smelting's uniform." said the fashionistas of the school.

2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear

"I can only remember wearing it the first week." said Harry

3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)

They all looked at Charlie warily, he wasn't happy, but he wasn't furious.

"They harvest the dragon hide from the elderly that pass away. Their hides are considered the toughest."

4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)

"Harry had to order another one, to go underneath the one he already had, he kept almost freezing to death going between classes and going outside. CRAP! Sorry Harry," said Ron. Dumbledore, Mrs. Weasley, and Madam Pomfrey quickly looked towards the raven haired youth, who slapped a hand across his eyes. Sirius and Remus summoned all the blankets from yesterday. back and laid them on top of their cub. "I didn't mean say that out loud." he said meekly.

Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags

"I remember Fred and George kept switching their name tags around in our first year." smiled Alicia.

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)

by Miranda Goshawk

"Actually quite handy to have on you." said Ron. Hermione's eyebrows raised in shock.

A History of Magic

by Bathilda Bagshot

"Ah, Harry, Ms. Bagshot would like to have a word with you soon. You and your parents used to live right next door to her. I would like to say, she would love to catch up with you, however, these books are doing it for you." said Dumbledore his eyes twinkling again.

Magical Theory

by Adalbert Waffling

"I disproved every theory in that damn book in my first year." muttered Harry. Lupin and Sirius looked at him in amazement.

A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration

by Emeric Switch

"Awesome book! Awesome class!" shouted Lee.

"No use trying to butter me up Mr. Lee." said McGonagall sternly, she however couldn't stop the sides of her mouth from twitching.

One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi

by Phyllida Spore

"That is actually one of my favorite books." said Harry. Snape stared at him.

Magical Drafts and Potions

by Arsenius Jigger

"That is one of my other ones." continued Harry, Snape's jaw fell open.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them

by Newt Scamander

The N.E.W.T.S Care of Magical Creature students all cheered.

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self Protection

by Quentin Trimble

Umbridge was the only one to applaud the book. Everyone else booed.

A thought had just struck Harry, "Wow, that is some kind of weird and twisted fate."

"What is?" asked Hermione.

"Look at some of the names of the authors. Sir, are all names, those people's real names? The names they were born with?" asked Harry, looking at Dumbledore. He nodded.

"Well, the magical theory book: author's last name is Waffling. And that book is the biggest load of bull I've ever read, It says everything so pretty and flowing that you can hardly understand it. The word "waffle" when used as a verb, is to speak or write with uncertain significance. Kinda like your speeches, Umbridge." said Harry.

People were frowning at this, but then their eyebrows were rising slowly.

"The transfiguration book: last name of that author is Switch, in that class, you learn to transfigure. The synonym for the word 'transfigure' is 'switch'!"

Dumbledore sat there, staring at the young man, he was right!

"The herbology book: Phyllida Spore. Phyllidae is a noun that means leaf, insects, and the word spore? The reproductive cell of a fungus. Instead of seeds, they have spores.

"The potions book: Arsenius, arsenious means containing arsenic in the trivalent state. Arsenic is arsenic trioxide a white, tasteless water-soluble, poison. The word Jigger can mean several things, but one meaning is to manipulate or alter, mostly for illegal purposes. A potioneer manipulates and alters the ingredients of a potion and forming it into something completely different, a solid to a liquid. Early potions were used only for illegal purposes.

"The Magical Beast book: Newt Scamander. A newt is a salamander, Scamander is the an old name for a river that flows into the Aegean Sea, which derived its name from Greek myth, which holds tales of Pegasus, and other magical beasts. Or you can manipulate the name and have it besalamander.

"The Defense book: Trimble, well if you switch out the 'i' for an 'e' you get the word tremble. Which is something you really shouldn't be doing when you're trying to defend yourself, but he was always known to be a coward." said Harry thoughtfully.

Dumbledore was sitting in shock during this narration. He knew now that Harry was a highly intelligent individual, but he never knew he was thisstaggeringly brilliant.

"This is some twisted kind of fate. For all those people to write books, and their names to be that, naturally. Boggles my flipping mind"

Sirius and Remus stared at him, then each other. Where the hell did Harry learn all this stuff? And just how much is he holding back?

"Can we buy all this in London?" Harry wondered aloud.

"If yeh know where to go, " said Hagrid.

Harry had never been to London before.

"Really? You've never been to London, before this?" asked Neville.

"Nope, every time the Dursley's would go to London, I would be left behind at Mrs. Figgs." said Harry with a smile. "But since then, I had been to London several times."

Although Hagrid seemed to know where he was going, he was obviously not used to getting there in an ordinary way. He got stuck in the ticket barrier on the Underground, and complained loudly that the seats were too small and the trains too slow.

"I don't know how the Muggles manage without magic," he said as they climbed a broken-down escalator that led up to a bustling road lined with shops.

Hagrid was so huge that he parted the crowd easily; all Harry had to do was keep close behind him. They passed book shops and music stores, hamburger restaurants and cinemas, but nowhere that looked as if it could sell you a magic wand. This was just an ordinary street full of ordinary people. Could there really be piles of wizard gold buried miles beneath them? Were there really shops that sold spell books and broomsticks?

"I couldn't believe it either, Harry." said Hermione

Might this not all be some huge joke that the Dursleys had cooked up?

"Hell, not even we would pull that kind of a prank." said George, shocked.

"We may be nutters, but we have standards." said Fred with dignity.

If Harry hadn't known that the Dursleys had no sense of humor, he might have thought so; yet somehow, even though everything Hagrid had told him so far was unbelievable, Harry couldn't help trusting him.

Hagrid seemed to inflate with pride. Harry had trusted Hagrid, despite almost all the adults in his life letting him down. Harry chose to trust him!

"This is it," said Hagrid, coming to a halt, "the Leaky Cauldron. It's a famous place."

It was a tiny, grubby-looking pub. If Hagrid hadn't pointed it out, Harry wouldn't have noticed it was there. The people hurrying by didn't glance at it. Their eyes slid from the big book shop on one side to the record shop on the other as if they couldn't see the Leaky Cauldron at all. In fact, Harry had the most peculiar feeling that only he and Hagrid could see it.

"You had a feeling, Potter?" asked Moody gruffly.

Harry nodded and Dumbledore and Moody exchange a significant glance.

Before he could mention this, Hagrid steered him inside.

For a famous place, it was very dark and shabby. A few old women were sitting in a corner, drinking tiny glasses of sherry.

"Harry, how did you know that was sherry?" asked Mrs. Weasley.

"Not only am I the cook at the Dursleys', I'm also the waiter. I know what drink goes best with what" he said simply.

"That would imply that you've taken a drink of something a little stronger than butterbeer a time or two." said Remus warningly.

"Shh! Don't tell Uncle Vernon, he couldn't figure out who took a sip of his wine two years ago." said Harry with a mischievous smile.

"HAROLD JAMES POTTER! YOU ARE TOO YOUNG TO DRINK!" reproached Madam Pomfrey.

Harry just gave a sheepish grin. "I know I am, I only took a sip. Of each."

"How many were there?" said Lupin in the same tone as before.

"Thirty-nine, NOT ALL IN ONE DAY! IT WAS OVER THE COURSE OF A FEW MONTHS!" said Harry defensively when he saw the look on Mrs. Weasley's face. "The last time I screwed up on the wine choice, they didn't let me cook for three weeks; I wanted to make sure that, that mistake never happened again!"

One of them was smoking a long pipe. A little man in a top hat was talking to the old bartender, who was quite bald and looked like a toothless walnut. The low buzz of chatter stopped when they walked in. Everyone seemed to know Hagrid; they waved and smiled at him, and the bartender reached for a glass, saying, "The usual Hagrid?"

"You'd better not drink in front of him, though he's already had quite a few." growled Mrs. Weasley. Her tone changed when he saw the hurt and insulted look on Harry's face. "Sorry dear, I didn't mean..." Harry turned his head away from her quickly. He covered his face up with the phoenix quilt and motioned to Hermione to continue.

Hermione sent Mrs. Weasley a furious look, as did most of the adults in the room, before she continued.

"Can't, Tom, I'm on Hogwarts business," said Hagrid, clapping his great hand on Harry's shoulder and making Harry's knees buckle.

"Sorry 'arry." mumbled Hagrid.

"Good Lord, " said the bartender, peering at Harry, "is this-can this be-?"

The Leaky Cauldron had suddenly gone completely still and silent.

"That has never happened before, that I can remember." said Lupin with his eyebrows raised.

"Bless my soul," whispered the old bartender, "Harry Potter...what an honor."

He hurried out from behind the bar, rushed toward Harry and seized his hand, tears in his eyes.

"Welcome back, Mr. Potter, welcome back, welcome back."

Harry didn't know what to say. Everyone was looking at him. The old woman with the pipe was puffing on it without realizing it had gone out. Hagrid was beaming.

Then there was a great scraping of chairs and the next moment, Harry found himself shaking hands with everyone in the Leaky Cauldron.

"Bet you just loved that, didn't you Potter?" smirked Umbridge.

"Actually, he hates it. He'd rather go unnoticed." said Draco absently.

All the students, as well as all the teachers turned to look at him, with widened eyes.

"What?"

"You accuse him of liking attention every day!" said Cho.

"I was bullying him! I know he hates it!" said Draco waving his hand.

"I do, I really do hate it." muttered Harry from under the blankets, "The bullying I'm used to, I used to just sit an' take it, now I fight back. Lot of fun actually." said Harry looking over the blankets and smirking over to Draco.

"Doris Crockford, Mr. Potter, can't believe I'm meeting you at last."

"So proud, Mr. Potter, I'm just so proud."

"Always wanted to shake your hand-I'm all of a flutter."

"Delighted, Mr. Potter, just can't tell you, Diggle's the name, Dedalus Diggle."

Dedalus sat up straighter in his chair. A part of him felt ashamed that he was fawning over Harry, now that he knew he didn't like being stared at, but he couldn't help but feel a small twinge of pride.

"I've seen you before!" said Harry, as Dedalus Diggle's top hat fell off in his excitement. "You bowed to me once in a shop."

"He remembers!" cried Dedalus Diggle, looking around at everyone. "Did you hear that? He remembers me!"

Harry shook hands again and again-Doris Crockford kept coming back for more.

A pale young man made his way forward, very nervously. One of his eyes were twitching.

Harry and Ron muttered something, "Watch your language, boys." said Lupin.

"Professor Quirrell" said Hagrid. "Harry, Professor Quirrell will be one of your teachers at Hogwarts."

"He was the best teacher this school had, till I came around." said Umbridge, leaning back in her pink chair.

"Yeah, best of the worst." said Harry loudly. Students tried to hide their laughter, but for the most part were unsuccessful. Umbridge had a permanent scowl on her face.

"P-P-Potter." stammered Professor Quirrell, grasping Harry's hand, "c-can't t-tell you how p-pleased I am to meet you."

"I'll just bet you are." muttered Harry darkly.

What sort of magic do you teach, Professor Quirrell?"

"D-Defense Against the D-D-Dark Arts," muttered Professor Quirrell, as though he'd rather not think about it. "N-not that you n-need it, eh, P-P-Potter?" He laughed nervously. "You'll be g-getting all your equipment, I suppose? I've g-got to p-pick up a new b-book on vampires, m-myself." He looked terrified at the very thought.

"Ruddy coward." growled Moody.

But the others wouldn't let Professor Quirrell keep Harry to himself. It took almost ten minutes to get away from them all. At last, Hagrid managed to make himself heard over the babble.

"Must get on-lots ter buy. Come on, Harry."

"If anyone else had been there, I don't think they would have stopped. Hagrid could have just swung his arm and knock them all out." said Tonks with a cheery smile.

Doris Crockford shook Harry's hand one last time, and Hagrid led them through the bar and out into a small, walled courtyard, where there was nothing but a trash can and a few weeds.

Hagrid grinned at Harry.

"Told yeh, didn't I? Told yeh you was famous. Even Professor Quirrell was tremblin' ter meet yeh-mind you, he's usually tremblin'."

"Perfect for the Defense Against the Dark Arts teaching position then." said Kingsley rolling his eyes.

"Is he always that nervous?"

"Oh, yeah. Poor bloke. Brilliant mind. He was fine while he was studyin' outta books but then he took a year off ter get some firsthand experience...They say he met vampires in the Black Forest,

"Wasn't a vampire." snarled Ron.

and there was a nasty bit o' trouble with a hag-never been the same since. Scared of the students, scared of his own subject-now, where's me umbrella?"

Vampires? Hags? Harry's head was swimming, Hagrid, meanwhile, was counting bricks in the wall above the trash can.

"Wasn't too sure I wanted to become a wizard after that. I didn't really want to meet up with one of them right then and there." said Harry with a laugh.

"Can you imagine if Harry had not come to school?" muttered Hermione.

"Be a living hell." said Ron shaking his head.

"We'd be dead." said Neville.

"Three up...two across..." he muttered. "Right, stand back Harry."

He tapped the wall three times with the point of his umbrella.

The brick he had touched quivered-it wriggled-in the middle, a small hole appeared-it grew wider and wider-a second later they were facing an archway large enough even for Hagrid, an archway onto a cobbled street that twisted and turned out of sight.

"Welcome," said Hagrid, "to Diagon Alley."

He grinned at Harry's amazement.

"The look on yer face was priceless." said Hagrid.

They stepped through the archway. Harry looked quickly over his shoulder and saw the archway shrink instantly back into solid wall.

The sun shone brightly on a stack of cauldrons outside the nearest shop. Cauldrons-All Sizes-Copper, Brass, Pewter, Silver-Self-Stirring

"I remember one time when we were our first year, James jinxed one of the self-stirring cauldrons in the potions classroom, Sirius took a hold of it and was spun around and around like a top. Went crashing into the wall. Funniest thing I have ever seen in my life!" said Lupin fondly.

"Glad I could amuse you." Sirius rubbed his ribs, thinking about the prank.

-Collapsible, said a sign hanging over them.

"Yeah, you'll be needin' one, " said Hagrid, "but we gotta get yer money first.'

Harry wished he had about eight more eyes. He turned his head in every direction as they walked up the street, trying to look at everything at once: the shops, the things outside them, the people doing their shopping. A plump woman outside an Apothecary was shaking her head as they passed, saying. "Dragon liver, seventeen Sickles an ounce, they're mad..."

"Not really, we petitioned laws so that they couldn't take too many livers from too many dragons. They get a set amount every year. We're fighting to have it lowered even more." said Charlie with a pleased tone.

A low, soft hooting came from a dark shop with a sign saying Eeylops Owl Emporium-Tawny, Screech, Barn, Brown, and Snowy.

Out of the blue, came the rush of wings and a snowy owl landed on Harry's stomach.

"Hey Hedwig," said Harry, stroking her feathers. Several girls sighed and cooed.

"Your owl is the most beautiful owl here." said Lavender longingly. Hedwig puffed out her feathered chest proudly.

"No, in the whole world." said Harry fondly.

Sirius stroked her feathers as well. "Smart as a whip, too."

Several boys of about Harry's age had their noses pressed against a window with broomsticks in it. "Look," Harry heard one of them say, "the new Nimbus Two Thousand-fastest ever-"

Harry let his mind wander, his first broom. He gave a great sigh, and smiled. Remembering the rushing of air underneath his knees and through his hair. God, he missed flying. He was going to have to get his Firebolt back somehow.

There were shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes and strange silver instrumentals Harry had never seen before, windows stacked with barrels of bat spleens and eels' eyes, tottering piles of spell books, quills, and rolls of parchment, potion bottles, globes of the moon...

"Gringotts," said Hagrid.

They had reached a snowy white building that towered over the other little shops. Standing beside its burnished bronze doors, wearing a uniform of scarlet and gold, was-

"Yeah, that's a goblin," said Hagrid quietly as they walked up the white stone steps toward him. The goblin was about a head shorter than Harry. He had a swarthy, clever face, a pointed beard and, inside. Now they were facing a second pair of doors, silver this time, with words engraved upon them:

Enter, stranger, but take heed,

Of what awaits the sin of greed,

For those who take, but do not earn,

Must pay most dearly in their turn.

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned, beware

Of finding more than treasure there.

"Like I said, yeh'd be mad ter try an' rob it," said Hagrid.

"Take the hint." whispered Lupin, tugging on Harry's pants leg.

A pair of goblins bowed them through the silver doors and they were in a vast marble hall. About a hundred more goblins were sitting on high stools behind a long counter, scribbling in a large ledgers, weighing coins in brass scales, examining precious stones through eyeglasses. There were too many doors to count leading off the hall, and yet more goblins were showing people in and out of these. Hagrid and Harry made for the counter.

"Morning," said Hagrid to a free goblin. "We've come ter take some money outta Mr. Harry Potter's safe."

"You have his key, sir?"

"Got it here somewhere," said Hagrid,

"How did Hagrid get ahold of Harry's key?" asked Sirius.

"The key was in my possession for safe keeping. I couldn't possibly give it to the Dursleys to hold onto for safe keeping. When Harry was to go to London, I gave the key to Hagrid, and then the key was to be given to Harry, as it was his property." said Dumbledore.

and he started emptying his pockets onto the counter, scattering a handful of moldy dog biscuits over the goblin's book of numbers.

"Oooh, bad move, they will not be very happy with that. They like to keep things tidy, goblins." winced Bill.

The goblin wrinkled his nose. Harry watched the goblin on their right weighing a pile of rubies as big as glowing coals.

"Got it," said Hagrid at last, holding up a tiny golden key.

The goblin looked at it closely.

"That seems to be in order."

"An' I've also got a letter here from Professor Dumbledore," said Hagrid importantly, throwing out his chest. "It's all about the You-Know-What in vault seven hundred and thirteen."

"You had to say that in front the most inquisitive boy Hogwarts will ever know?" said McGonagall with a small smile.

The goblin read the letter carefully.

"Very well," he said, handing it back to Hagrid, "I will have someone take you down to both vaults. Griphook!"

Griphook was yet another goblin. Once Hagrid had crammed all the dog biscuits back inside his pockets, he and Harry followed Griphook toward one of the doors leading off the hall.

"What's the You-Know-What in vault seven hundred and thirteen?" Harry asked.

"And so it begins." said Harry, Hermione and Ron all together. Nobody except for a Majority of the staff and the some of the fifth years and up knew what they were talking about.

"Can't tell yeh that," said Hagrid mysteriously. "Very secret. Hogwarts business. Dumbledore's trusted me. More'n my job's worth ter tell yeh that."

Griphook held the door open for them. Harry, who had expected more marble, was surprised. They were in a narrow stone passageway lit with flaming torches. It sloped steeply downward and there were little railway tracks on the floor. Griphook whistled and a small cart came hurtling up the tracks towards them. They climbed in-Hagrid with some difficulty-and were off.

"Those carts are awesome!" yelled Harry and a few Quidditch players.

"Why in the heck do you say that?" asked Ernie with a shocked look on his face.

"It's a speed flying thing." said Harry with a shrug.

"You're a nutter." said Sirius shaking his head and tugging his hair lightly.

At first they just hurtled through a maze of twisting passages. Harry tried to remember, left, right, right, left, middle fork, right, left, but it was impossible.

"Left, right, right, left, middle fork, right left, right fork, left, right, middle fork, down spiral, straight fork, right, right, left and left." said Harry quietly.

The hall went quiet.

"Memorized it on the way out." said Harry shrugging.

The rattling cart seemed to know its own way, because Griphook wasn't steering.

"That was a little unnerving." said Harry.

Harry's eyes stung as the cold air rushed past them, but he kept them wide open. Once, he thought he saw a burst of fire at the end of a passage and twisted around to see if it was a dragon,

"Bill..." growled Charlie.

"BRO, I DON"T KNOW!" yelled Bill.

but too late-they plunged even deeper, passing an underground lake where huge stalactites and stalagmites grew from the ceiling and floor.

"I never know," Harry called to Hagrid over the noise of the cart, "what's the difference between a stalagmite and a stalactite?"

"Didn't you know at the time?" asked Hermione.

"Making conversation. Hagrid was real quiet." said Harry.

"Stalagmite's got an 'm' in it," said Hagrid. "An' don' ask me questions just now, I think I'm gonna be sick."

"If I had noticed that, I never would have bothered you Hagrid, sorry." called Harry to Hagrid.

He did look very green, and when the cart stopped at last beside a small door in the passage wall, Hagrid got out and had to lean against the wall to stop his knees from trembling.

"I offered him some gingerbread that I had baked from my knapsack. It was the last thing I baked at the Dursley's."

"Harry, he was about to be sick!" said Lupin with a stunned look.

"Ginger settles your stomach and makes it so you don't throw up." stated Harry.

Lupin thought a moment, looked to Madam Pomfrey, who appeared impressed and said "Oh."

"Wish I took it, especially if ya made it." said Hagrid sheepishly.

"It was alright." said Harry grinning.

Griphook unlocked the door. A lot of green smoke came billowing out, and as it cleared, Harry gasped. Inside were mounds of gold coins. Columns of silver. Heaps of little bronze Knuts.

"All yours," smiled Hagrid.

All Harry's- it was incredible. The Dursleys couldn't have known about this or they'd have had it from him faster blinking.

People snarled at the memory of the Dursleys.

How often had they complained how much Harry cost them to keep?

"There was nothing that they paid for!" yelled Hermione looking up from the book.

And all the time there had been a small fortune belonging to him, buried deep under London.

"That's just your school fund. Your complete vault is way down below that one. Your dad was the richest man in the world, now you are." whispered Sirius. Harry's eyes opened wide in shock.

Hagrid helped Harry pile some of it into a bag.

"The gold ones are Galleons," he explained. "Seventeen silver Sickles to a Galleon and twenty-nine Knuts to a Sickle, it's easy enough. Right, that should be enough fer a couple o' terms, we'll keep the rest safe for yeh." He turned to Griphook. "Vault seven hundred and thirteen now, please, and can we go more slowly?"

"One speed only," said Griphook.

"Right on!" said Harry, the school players all cheered loudly. Others looked at them and shook their heads. Athletes are insane.

They were going even deeper now and gathering speed. The air became colder and colder as they hurtled round tight corners. They went rattling over an underground ravine, and Harry leaned over the side to try to see what was down at the dark bottom, but Hagrid groaned and pulled him back by the scruff of his neck.

"Thanks Hagird." said Lupin as Sirius absent-mindedly rubbed the Harry's neck.

Vault seven hundred and thirteen had no keyhole.

"Stand back," said Griphook importantly. He stroked the door gently with one of his long fingers and it simply melted away.

"Can't get in there to rob it now can you?" said Sirius into Harry's ear.

"Actually..."

"Never mind."

"If anyone but a Gringotts goblin tried that, they'd be sucked through the door and trapped in there," said Griphook.

"How often do you check to see if anyone's inside?" Harry asked.

"About once every ten years," said Griphook with a rather nasty grin.

"How come I feel that you are asking this, so you know what could happen if you touch the door?" said Lupin warningly but his mouth twitched when Harry sent a cheeky grin towards the werewolf.

Something really extraordinary had to be inside this top security vault, Harry was sure, and he leaned forward eagerly, expecting to see fabulous jewels at the very least-

As did the most of the students in the Hall.

but at first he thought it was empty. Then he noticed a grubby little package wrapped up in brown paper lying on the floor.

"Well, that was a huge letdown." said Bill.

Hagrid picked it up and tucked it deep inside his coat. Harry longed to know what it was, but knew better than to ask.

"Only restraint Potter has ever shown." sneered Snape.

"Come on, back in this infernal cart, and don't talk to me on the way back, it's best if I keep me mouth shut," said Hagrid.

One wild cart ride later they stood blinking in the sunlight outside Gringotts. Harry didn't know where to run first now that he had a bag full of money. He didn't have to know how many Galleons there were to a pound to know that he was holding more money than he'd had in his whole life-more money than even Dudley had ever had.

"Might as well get yer uniform," said Hagrid, nodding toward Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. "Listen, Harry, would yeh mind if I slipped off fer a pick-me-up in the Leaky Cauldron? I hate them Gringotts carts." He did still look a bit sick,

"Hagrid couldn't it of waited." admonished Mrs. Weasley.

"Leave him alone!" yelled Harry. Mrs. Weasley looked shocked, as did the rest of the Weasley children.

Sirius pulled Harry closer to him. "Molly I remember those carts, I would want a stiff drink too. Leave Hagrid alone." he said sternly.

Mrs. Weasley looked down, a little hurt.

so Harry entered Madam Malkin's shop alone, feeling nervous.

Madam Malkin was a squat, smiling witch dressed all in mauve.

"What the hell is mauve?" asked Charlie.

"A light blue-purple mix." said Harry.

"How do you know what mauve is?" said Ron eyebrows raised far into his hairline.

"Aunt Petunia and her fashion conscious lifestyle." muttered Harry darkly.

"Hogwarts, dear?" she said, when Harry started to speak. "Got the lot here-another young man being fitted up just now, in fact."

In the back of the shop, a boy with a pale, pointed face was standing on a footstool while a second witch pinned up his long black robes.

Draco paled, oh shit! he thought.

Madam Malkin stood Harry on a stool next to him, slipped a long robe over his head, and began to pin it to the right length.

"Hello," said the boy, "Hogwarts, too?"

"Yes," said Harry.

"My father's next door buying my books and mother's up the street looking at wands," said the boy. He had a bored, drawling voice. "Then I'm going to drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don't see why first years can't have their own. I think I'll bully father into getting me one and I'll smuggle it in somehow."

Draco slowly sank into the chair he was sitting.

Harry was strongly reminded of Dudley.

"OOOHHH!" said the twins. "BURN!"

"Have you got your own broom?" the boy went on.

"No," said Harry.

"Play Quidditch at all?"

"No," Harry said again, wondering what on earth Quidditch could be.

The Gryffindor team couldn't help but smile. Harry was such a natural that he became a Quidditch star the first game.

"I do-Father says it's a crime if I'm not picked to play for my House, and I must say, I agree. Know what House you'll be in yet?"

"No," said Harry, feeling more stupid by the minute.

"Well no one really knows until they get there, do they, but I know I'll be in Slytherin, all our family have been-imagine being in Hufflepuff, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?"

The Hufflepuffs in the Hall, including Tonks, Professor Sprout and Madam Bones turned and looked at Malfoy severely.

"Sorry..." said Malfoy quietly.

"Mmm," said Harry, wishing he could say something a bit more interesting.

"I say, look at that man!" said the boy suddenly, nodding toward the front window. Hagrid was standing there, grinning at Harry and pointing at two large ice creams to show he couldn't come in.

"That was very kind of you Hagrid." said Dumbledore with his eyes twinkling.

Hagrid blushed, "He didn't have much breakfast."

"That's Hagrid," said Harry, pleased to know something the boy didn't. "He works at Hogwarts."

"Oh," said the boy, "I've heard of him. He's a sort of servant, isn't he?"

Growls rippled through three of the four houses.

"He's the gamekeeper," said Harry. He was liking the boy less and less every second.

"Yes, exactly. I heard he's a sort of savage-lives in a hut on the school grounds and every now and then he gets drunk, tries to do magic, and ends up setting fire to his bed."

"I think an apology would be appropriate right now, Draco." said Snape from his serpentine chair.

"I concur." said Dumbledore, the twinkle absent from his eyes.

"I'm sorry." said Draco, looking down and meaning it.

"I think he's brilliant," said Harry coldly.

"Do you?" said the boy, with a slight sneer. "Why is he with you? Where are your parents?"

"They're dead," said Harry shortly. He didn't feel much like going into the matter with this boy.

"Oh, sorry," said the other, not sounding sorry at all.

Sirius and Remus snarled a little bit.

"Wasn't then, am now." said Draco quietly.

"But they were our kind, weren't they?"

"They were a witch and wizard, if that's what you mean."

"I really don't think they should let the other sort in, do you? They're just not the same, they've never been brought up to know our ways. Some of them have never even heard of Hogwarts until they get the letter, imagine. I think they should keep it in the old wizarding families.

The Muggleborns in the Hall sent an angry look towards Draco.

"I agree with Mr. Malfoy, this school should only be kept in the family of purebloods." said Umbridge nastily. The whole school stared at her in shock. Even the Minister sat with his mouth agape at her. Dumbledore sent her a rare scowl.

"You remove the Muggleborns, the magic will be stripped from this place." said Harry calmly.

"You don't know what you are talking about Mr. Potter." simpered the toad like Professor.

Harry sighed and took his little notebook out quickly, flipping to a single page. "The magic that we use doesn't come from our magical heritage or our wands, but the spiritual core that all living things have. There are two cores in a living being, the spiritual core and the essence core. For some reason, Healers refer to this as a magical core, which is completely incorrect. It could mean both of them, but Healers only notice the spiritual core. A person is labeled a witch or wizard when their spiritual core is stronger than normal. A strong core can be passed down in the line of a family, but that doesn't always guarantee that a person will possess the necessary power to wield it.

"The essence core is the core that alerts us to different types of magic, and the power to absorb and contain spare power. This school is pure magic, and it gives off a strong pulse of magic. Purebloods, due to excessive inbreeding, have inadvertently narrowed the path that the magic flows through. The school would choke itself off, in other words, die. When the school dies, so does the magic that holds the school together. Paintings will cease to move, the staircases will freeze, ghosts will be forced to fade, wands and potions will be useless and the forest will die. With muggleborns and half-bloods, the school has a healthy supply of containers to receive and store their magic. The purebloods here have had their essence cores choked off so bad that they don't take any magic into themselves at all. Sad really." said Harry slowly closing his notebook.

The school stared at him and then turned slowly towards the Unspeakables that were present. They were staring at him as well.

"He's right, he's absolutely right. Boy ever thought of being an Unspeakable?"

Harry chuckled and shook his head, no.

What's your surname, anyways?"

"What's it to you?" said a second year Gryffindor, recovering from the shock of Harry's release of information.

But before Harry could answer, Madam Malkin said, "That's you done, my dear," and Harry, not sorry for an excuse to stop talking to the boy, hopped down from the footstool.

"Well, I'll see you at Hogwarts, I suppose, " said the drawling boy.

Harry was rather quiet as he ate the ice cream Hagrid had bought him (chocolate and raspberry with chopped nuts).

"That's your favorite." said Hermione. Hagrid looked surprised, then his face broke into a smile.

"I get it every chance I can." said Harry with a dreamy smile.

"What's up" said Hagrid.

"Nothing," Harry lied. They stopped to buy parchment and quills. Harry cheered up a bit when he found a bottle of ink that changed color as you wrote.

"You've never used that in class." said Hermione.

"I save it for this." he said holding up the little black book. Umbridge stared at it. She wanted that book.

When they had left the shop, he said, "Hagrid, what's Quidditch?"

"Blimey, Harry, I keep forgettin' how little yeh know-not knowin' about Quidditch!"

"Don't make me feel worse," said Harry. He told Hagrid about the pale boy in Madam Malkin's.

"-and he said people from Muggle families shouldn't even be allowed in-"

"Yer not from a Muggle family. If he'd known who yeh were-he's grown up knowin' yer name if his parents are wizardin' folk. You saw what everyone in the Leaky Cauldron was like when they saw yeh. Anyway, what does he know about it, some o' the best I ever saw were the only ones with magic in 'em in a long line o' Muggles-look at yer mum! Look what she had fer a sister!"

"An' look at 'ermione!" said Hagrid happily. Hermione blushed and continued on.

"So what is Quidditch?"

"It's our sports. Wizard sport. It's like-like soccer in the Muggle world-everyone follows Quidditch-played up in the air on broomsticks and there's four balls-sorta hard ter explain the rules."

"And what are Slytherin and Hufflepuff?"

"School Houses. There's four. Everyone says Hufflepuff are a lot o' duffers, but-"

Tonks looked insulted. Hagrid looked unashamed. "I wasn' finished. I was gonna say 'but they're a good lot.'"

Tonks smiled in approval.

"I bet I'm in Hufflepuff," said Harry gloomily.

"Nothing wrong with that and we would have been glad to have you." said Madam Bones

"Better Hufflepuff than Slytherin." said Hagrid darkly. "There's not a single witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin.

"I know two off the bat that weren't in Slytherin, but you didn't know that at the time, Hagrid." said Harry kindly.

You-Know-Who was one."

"Vol-, sorry-You-Know-Who was at Hogwarts?"

"Years an' years ago," said Hagrid.

They bought Harry's school books in a shop called Flourish and Blotts where the shelves were stacked to the ceiling with books as large as paving stones bound in leather; books the size of a postage stamps in covers of silk; books full of peculiar symbols and a few books with nothing in them at all. Even Dudley, who never read anything, would have been wild to get his hands on some of these. Hagrid almost had to drag Harry away from Curses and Counter-curses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly-Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Much More) by Professor Vindictus Viridian.

"He didn't 'almost drag' me," said Harry defensively "He had to pick me up, toss me over his shoulder and carry me away from the book." The school laughed at the mental image.

"I was trying to find out how to curse Dudley."

"WE'LL HELP!" yelled the students.

"I'm not sayin' that's not a good idea, but yer not ter use magic in the Muggle world except in very special circumstances," said Hagrid.

"And if you need to save your life, the Ministry will try to expel you." said Hermione viciously.

"An' anyway, yeh couldn' work any of them curses yet, yeh'll need a lot more study before yeh get ter that level."

Hagrid wouldn't let Harry buy a solid gold cauldron, either ("It says pewter on yer list"),

"I bought it two years later." said Harry with a slick smile.

but they got a nice set of scales for weighing potion ingredients and a collapsible brass telescope. Then they visited the Apothecary, which was fascinating enough to make up for it's horrible smell, a mixture of bad eggs and rotted cabbages. Barrels of slimy stuff stood on the floor; jars of herbs, dried roots and bright powders lined the walls; bundles of feathers, strings of fangs, and snarled claws hung from the ceiling. While Hagrid asked the man behind the counter for a supply of some basic potion ingredients for Harry, Harry himself examined silver unicorn horns at twenty-one Galleons each and minuscule, glittery-black beetle eyes (five Knuts a scoop).

Snape stirred guiltily in his chair, Potter was interested in Potions.Damn, sorry Lily.

Outside the Apothecary, Hagrid checked Harry's list again.

"Just yer wand left-oh yeah, an' I still haven't got yeh a birthday present."

"You're so nice Hagrid." said Luna dreamily. Hagrid blushed.

Harry felt himself go red.

"You don't have to-"

"You deserve it, what did he get you anyway?" said Lupin curiously.

"You'll find out soon." said Harry, stoking Hedwig's feathers, who was now on a perch in front of the bowl.

"I know I don't have to. Tell yeh what, I'll get yer animal. Not a toad, toads went outta fashion years ago, yeh'd be laughed at-

"Sorry Neville." said Hagrid shamefully.

Neville just smiled. "It's okay."

an' I don' like cats, they make me sneeze.

Hermione blushed, all the times she brought Crookshanks, "Sorry Hagrid, I didn't know Crookshanks made you sneeze."

"It's alright" Hagrid smiled down to her. "He don't shed much."

I'll get yer an owl. All the kids want owls, they're dead useful, carry yer mail an' everythin'."

Twenty minutes later, they left Eeylops Owl Emporium, which had been dark and full of rustling and flickering, jewel bright eyes. Harry now carried a large cage that held a beautiful snowy owl, fast asleep with her head under her wing. He couldn't stop stammering his thanks, sounding just like Professor Quirrell.

"Aww! You're so sweet Harry." said twins mockingly.

"What made you choose her?" asked Parvati. Hermione and Ron sat forward in their chairs. Hagrid would always tell them this story, it was their favorite.

Harry sat up a little bit and focused most of his weight on Sirius' side. "Well, we went inside to pick out an owl when a middle-aged man brushed us aside. Mostly me, Hagrid can't be brushed by anyone. Hagrid had to catch me from falling into a box of owl pellets beside the door."

People flinched.

"Well, he was carrying a birdcage, with the most beautiful bird I'd ever seen. She was hooting and fluttering angrily, she wasn't happy, and neither was the man. He said that she was acting up and he didn't want to deal with her. The man behind the counter sighed and took the owl and gestured towards the man to pick something else. The man wanted his money back, but the shopkeeper wouldn't give it to him. Big sign said behind him 'no returns, exchanges only'. The man threw a flipping fit, he whipped out his wand and things around the store started to explode. Owls were zooming around, trying to peck at anything they could. The shopkeeper tried to repair the damage as the man continued to rant and rave. There was a black cage, tucked away in the back and the man magicked that open. The shopkeeper screamed that, that particular owl was a something like an attack dog. If anything else in that room was living, it was going to be owl food. The man laughed and left the store, before the owl could reach him."

"Hagrid tried to drag me out of the store, but I was trying to get to the Snowy owl, that the man had returned, out of the store. Cause that black owl decided that she was easy pickings and tried to get to her through the wooden bars. I looked towards the man, but his hands were busy trying to get all the other owls back into their cages. So I picked up a broom and smacked the black owl away from the Snowy, right into the wall."

The school cheered, Harry had to wait to for them to finish.

"I picked up her cage and ran to Hagrid. I was afraid that the owl would get up, and start trying to peck her again. The man finally settled down his owls and stuffed them into their cages. The man came behind the counter and threw a wicker basket down on the owl. In order to keep the basket down on the owl, he had to sit on it. He looked up to us, and did his best to make his voice sound normal, didn't work. He asked what we needed, I looked at the owl in the cage, I said this owl. He paled a little bit, told me that, she might not be the best owl for me, she was stubborn and too proud to deliver much of anything. I told him I didn't care, I wanted her. He sighed, shook his head and rang her up, with a significant discount for trying to help and getting caught up in all that, and that's how I got her." Harry said fondly.

"So you saved her?" said Dennis quickly.

"In a way, we've saved each other." said Harry quietly. Hedwig nipped his finger affectionately and rubbed her head into his hand.

"Don' mention it," said Hagrid gruffly. "Don' expect you've had a lotta presents from them Dursleys. Just Ollivanders left now-only place fer wands, Ollivanders, and yeh gotta have the best wand."

A magic wand...this was what Harry had been really looking forward to.

"As does everyone." said Professor Flitwick.

The last shop was narrow and shabby. Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. A single wand lay on a faded purple cushion in the dusty window.

"Whose wand is that?" said Hermione interestingly.

"It was the first wand the Mr. Ollivander ever crafted." said Dumbledore.

A tinkling bell rang somewhere in the depths of the shop as they stepped inside. It was a tiny place, empty except for a single, spindly chair that Hagrid sat on to wait. Harry felt strangely as though he had entered a very strict library; he swallowed a lot of new questions that had just occurred to him to him and looked instead at the thousands of narrow boxes piled neatly right up to the ceiling. For some reason, the back of his neck prickled. The very dust and silence in here seemed to tingle with some secret magic.

Albus and Alastor looked at each other again, he could sense this? Dumbledore would have to ask Harry to take a sensing test.

"Good afternoon," said a soft voice. Harry jumped. Hagrid must have jumped, too, because there was a loud crunching noise and he got quickly off the spindly chair.

"I must have gotten there after you left, Harry, because the chair was broken when we arrived." said Seamus.

An old man was standing before them, his wide, pale eyes shining like moons through the gloom of the shop.

"Hello," said Harry awkwardly.

"Ah, yes," said the man. "Yes, yes. I thought I'd be seeing you soon. Harry Potter." It wasn't a question. "You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work."

"First wand?" asked Harry. Sirius looked down at him,

"Your mom had a bit of an accident in her third year. A Slytherin girl tried to get the best of her in a duel, your mom beat her hands down, but that little twit ran up to your mom and ripped the wand out of her hands and stamped on it."

"Sore loser." said Harry bemusedly.

"Yeah, Bellatrix always was a sore loser." said Lupin coldly.

"Bellatrix Lestrange?" said both Harry and Neville.

"Yeah, she was always jealous of your mom, your mom was prettier, more popular, better at potions, better duelist, everything. Always pissed her off." said Sirius fondly.

"When Sirius found out in our third year that Lily always managed to whip Bella in everything that had to deal with magic, he ran up to her and kissed her full on the lips."

"Bet she loved that." said Harry with a grin.

"Slapped me so hard that I flew backwards and landed on top of James." said Sirius rubbing his right cheek and chin. "I still can't smile right." The girls in the room started to giggle.

Mr. Ollivander moved closer to Harry. Harry wished he would blink. Those silvery eyes were a bit creepy.

"Your father, on the other, favored a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power and excellent for transfiguration. Well, I say your father favored it-it's really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course."

Mr. Ollivander had come so close that he and Harry were almost nose to nose. Harry could see himself reflected in those misty eyes.

"But they were our kind, weren't they?"

"They were a witch and wizard, if that's what you mean."

"I really don't think they should let the other sort in, do you? They're just not the same, they've never been brought up to know our ways. Some of them have never even heard of Hogwarts until they get the letter, imagine. I think they should keep it in the old wizarding families.

The Muggleborns in the Hall sent an angry look towards Draco.

"I agree with Mr. Malfoy, this school should only be kept in the family of purebloods." said Umbridge nastily. The whole school stared at her in shock. Even the Minister sat with his mouth agape at her. Dumbledore sent her a rare scowl.

"You remove the Muggleborns, the magic will be stripped from this place." said Harry calmly.

"You don't know what you are talking about Mr. Potter." simpered the toad like Professor.

Harry sighed and took his little notebook out quickly, flipping to a single page. "The magic that we use doesn't come from our magical heritage or our wands, but the spiritual core that all living things have. There are two cores in a living being, the spiritual core and the essence core. For some reason, Healers refer to this as a magical core, which is completely incorrect. It could mean both of them, but Healers only notice the spiritual core. A person is labeled a witch or wizard when their spiritual core is stronger than normal. A strong core can be passed down in the line of a family, but that doesn't always guarantee that a person will possess the necessary power to wield it.

"The essence core is the core that alerts us to different types of magic, and the power to absorb and contain spare power. This school is pure magic, and it gives off a strong pulse of magic. Purebloods, due to excessive inbreeding, have inadvertently narrowed the path that the magic flows through. The school would choke itself off, in other words, die. When the school dies, so does the magic that holds the school together. Paintings will cease to move, the staircases will freeze, ghosts will be forced to fade, wands and potions will be useless and the forest will die. With muggleborns and half-bloods, the school has a healthy supply of containers to receive and store their magic. The purebloods here have had their essence cores choked off so bad that they don't take any magic into themselves at all. Sad really." said Harry slowly closing his notebook.

The school stared at him and then turned slowly towards the Unspeakables that were present. They were staring at him as well.

"He's right, he's absolutely right. Boy ever thought of being an Unspeakable?"

Harry chuckled and shook his head, no.

What's your surname, anyways?"

"What's it to you?" said a second year Gryffindor, recovering from the shock of Harry's release of information.

But before Harry could answer, Madam Malkin said, "That's you done, my dear," and Harry, not sorry for an excuse to stop talking to the boy, hopped down from the footstool.

"Well, I'll see you at Hogwarts, I suppose, " said the drawling boy.

Harry was rather quiet as he ate the ice cream Hagrid had bought him (chocolate and raspberry with chopped nuts).

"That's your favorite." said Hermione. Hagrid looked surprised, then his face broke into a smile.

"I get it every chance I can." said Harry with a dreamy smile.

"What's up" said Hagrid.

"Nothing," Harry lied. They stopped to buy parchment and quills. Harry cheered up a bit when he found a bottle of ink that changed color as you wrote.

"You've never used that in class." said Hermione.

"I save it for this." he said holding up the little black book. Umbridge stared at it. She wanted that book.

When they had left the shop, he said, "Hagrid, what's Quidditch?"

"Blimey, Harry, I keep forgettin' how little yeh know-not knowin' about Quidditch!"

"Don't make me feel worse," said Harry. He told Hagrid about the pale boy in Madam Malkin's.

"-and he said people from Muggle families shouldn't even be allowed in-"

"Yer not from a Muggle family. If he'd known who yeh were-he's grown up knowin' yer name if his parents are wizardin' folk. You saw what everyone in the Leaky Cauldron was like when they saw yeh. Anyway, what does he know about it, some o' the best I ever saw were the only ones with magic in 'em in a long line o' Muggles-look at yer mum! Look what she had fer a sister!"

"An' look at 'ermione!" said Hagrid happily. Hermione blushed and continued on.

"So what is Quidditch?"

"It's our sports. Wizard sport. It's like-like soccer in the Muggle world-everyone follows Quidditch-played up in the air on broomsticks and there's four balls-sorta hard ter explain the rules."

"And what are Slytherin and Hufflepuff?"

"School Houses. There's four. Everyone says Hufflepuff are a lot o' duffers, but-"

Tonks looked insulted. Hagrid looked unashamed. "I wasn' finished. I was gonna say 'but they're a good lot.'"

Tonks smiled in approval.

"I bet I'm in Hufflepuff," said Harry gloomily.

"Nothing wrong with that and we would have been glad to have you." said Madam Bones

"Better Hufflepuff than Slytherin." said Hagrid darkly. "There's not a single witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin.

"I know two off the bat that weren't in Slytherin, but you didn't know that at the time, Hagrid." said Harry kindly.

You-Know-Who was one."

"Vol-, sorry-You-Know-Who was at Hogwarts?"

"Years an' years ago," said Hagrid.

They bought Harry's school books in a shop called Flourish and Blotts where the shelves were stacked to the ceiling with books as large as paving stones bound in leather; books the size of a postage stamps in covers of silk; books full of peculiar symbols and a few books with nothing in them at all. Even Dudley, who never read anything, would have been wild to get his hands on some of these. Hagrid almost had to drag Harry away from Curses and Counter-curses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly-Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Much More) by Professor Vindictus Viridian.

"He didn't 'almost drag' me," said Harry defensively "He had to pick me up, toss me over his shoulder and carry me away from the book." The school laughed at the mental image.

"I was trying to find out how to curse Dudley."

"WE'LL HELP!" yelled the students.

"I'm not sayin' that's not a good idea, but yer not ter use magic in the Muggle world except in very special circumstances," said Hagrid.

"And if you need to save your life, the Ministry will try to expel you." said Hermione viciously.

"An' anyway, yeh couldn' work any of them curses yet, yeh'll need a lot more study before yeh get ter that level."

Hagrid wouldn't let Harry buy a solid gold cauldron, either ("It says pewter on yer list"),

"I bought it two years later." said Harry with a slick smile.

but they got a nice set of scales for weighing potion ingredients and a collapsible brass telescope. Then they visited the Apothecary, which was fascinating enough to make up for it's horrible smell, a mixture of bad eggs and rotted cabbages. Barrels of slimy stuff stood on the floor; jars of herbs, dried roots and bright powders lined the walls; bundles of feathers, strings of fangs, and snarled claws hung from the ceiling. While Hagrid asked the man behind the counter for a supply of some basic potion ingredients for Harry, Harry himself examined silver unicorn horns at twenty-one Galleons each and minuscule, glittery-black beetle eyes (five Knuts a scoop).

Snape stirred guiltily in his chair, Potter was interested in Potions.Damn, sorry Lily.

Outside the Apothecary, Hagrid checked Harry's list again.

"Just yer wand left-oh yeah, an' I still haven't got yeh a birthday present."

"You're so nice Hagrid." said Luna dreamily. Hagrid blushed.

Harry felt himself go red.

"You don't have to-"

"You deserve it, what did he get you anyway?" said Lupin curiously.

"You'll find out soon." said Harry, stoking Hedwig's feathers, who was now on a perch in front of the bowl.

"I know I don't have to. Tell yeh what, I'll get yer animal. Not a toad, toads went outta fashion years ago, yeh'd be laughed at-

"Sorry Neville." said Hagrid shamefully.

Neville just smiled. "It's okay."

an' I don' like cats, they make me sneeze.

Hermione blushed, all the times she brought Crookshanks, "Sorry Hagrid, I didn't know Crookshanks made you sneeze."

"It's alright" Hagrid smiled down to her. "He don't shed much."

I'll get yer an owl. All the kids want owls, they're dead useful, carry yer mail an' everythin'."

Twenty minutes later, they left Eeylops Owl Emporium, which had been dark and full of rustling and flickering, jewel bright eyes. Harry now carried a large cage that held a beautiful snowy owl, fast asleep with her head under her wing. He couldn't stop stammering his thanks, sounding just like Professor Quirrell.

"Aww! You're so sweet Harry." said twins mockingly.

"What made you choose her?" asked Parvati. Hermione and Ron sat forward in their chairs. Hagrid would always tell them this story, it was their favorite.

Harry sat up a little bit and focused most of his weight on Sirius' side. "Well, we went inside to pick out an owl when a middle-aged man brushed us aside. Mostly me, Hagrid can't be brushed by anyone. Hagrid had to catch me from falling into a box of owl pellets beside the door."

People flinched.

"Well, he was carrying a birdcage, with the most beautiful bird I'd ever seen. She was hooting and fluttering angrily, she wasn't happy, and neither was the man. He said that she was acting up and he didn't want to deal with her. The man behind the counter sighed and took the owl and gestured towards the man to pick something else. The man wanted his money back, but the shopkeeper wouldn't give it to him. Big sign said behind him 'no returns, exchanges only'. The man threw a flipping fit, he whipped out his wand and things around the store started to explode. Owls were zooming around, trying to peck at anything they could. The shopkeeper tried to repair the damage as the man continued to rant and rave. There was a black cage, tucked away in the back and the man magicked that open. The shopkeeper screamed that, that particular owl was a something like an attack dog. If anything else in that room was living, it was going to be owl food. The man laughed and left the store, before the owl could reach him."

"Hagrid tried to drag me out of the store, but I was trying to get to the Snowy owl, that the man had returned, out of the store. Cause that black owl decided that she was easy pickings and tried to get to her through the wooden bars. I looked towards the man, but his hands were busy trying to get all the other owls back into their cages. So I picked up a broom and smacked the black owl away from the Snowy, right into the wall."

The school cheered, Harry had to wait to for them to finish.

"I picked up her cage and ran to Hagrid. I was afraid that the owl would get up, and start trying to peck her again. The man finally settled down his owls and stuffed them into their cages. The man came behind the counter and threw a wicker basket down on the owl. In order to keep the basket down on the owl, he had to sit on it. He looked up to us, and did his best to make his voice sound normal, didn't work. He asked what we needed, I looked at the owl in the cage, I said this owl. He paled a little bit, told me that, she might not be the best owl for me, she was stubborn and too proud to deliver much of anything. I told him I didn't care, I wanted her. He sighed, shook his head and rang her up, with a significant discount for trying to help and getting caught up in all that, and that's how I got her." Harry said fondly.

"So you saved her?" said Dennis quickly.

"In a way, we've saved each other." said Harry quietly. Hedwig nipped his finger affectionately and rubbed her head into his hand.

"Don' mention it," said Hagrid gruffly. "Don' expect you've had a lotta presents from them Dursleys. Just Ollivanders left now-only place fer wands, Ollivanders, and yeh gotta have the best wand."

A magic wand...this was what Harry had been really looking forward to.

"As does everyone." said Professor Flitwick.

The last shop was narrow and shabby. Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. A single wand lay on a faded purple cushion in the dusty window.

"Whose wand is that?" said Hermione interestingly.

"It was the first wand the Mr. Ollivander ever crafted." said Dumbledore.

A tinkling bell rang somewhere in the depths of the shop as they stepped inside. It was a tiny place, empty except for a single, spindly chair that Hagrid sat on to wait. Harry felt strangely as though he had entered a very strict library; he swallowed a lot of new questions that had just occurred to him to him and looked instead at the thousands of narrow boxes piled neatly right up to the ceiling. For some reason, the back of his neck prickled. The very dust and silence in here seemed to tingle with some secret magic.

Albus and Alastor looked at each other again, he could sense this? Dumbledore would have to ask Harry to take a sensing test.

"Good afternoon," said a soft voice. Harry jumped. Hagrid must have jumped, too, because there was a loud crunching noise and he got quickly off the spindly chair.

"I must have gotten there after you left, Harry, because the chair was broken when we arrived." said Seamus.

An old man was standing before them, his wide, pale eyes shining like moons through the gloom of the shop.

"Hello," said Harry awkwardly.

"Ah, yes," said the man. "Yes, yes. I thought I'd be seeing you soon. Harry Potter." It wasn't a question. "You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work."

"First wand?" asked Harry. Sirius looked down at him,

"Your mom had a bit of an accident in her third year. A Slytherin girl tried to get the best of her in a duel, your mom beat her hands down, but that little twit ran up to your mom and ripped the wand out of her hands and stamped on it."

"Sore loser." said Harry bemusedly.

"Yeah, Bellatrix always was a sore loser." said Lupin coldly.

"Bellatrix Lestrange?" said both Harry and Neville.

"Yeah, she was always jealous of your mom, your mom was prettier, more popular, better at potions, better duelist, everything. Always pissed her off." said Sirius fondly.

"When Sirius found out in our third year that Lily always managed to whip Bella in everything that had to deal with magic, he ran up to her and kissed her full on the lips."

"Bet she loved that." said Harry with a grin.

"Slapped me so hard that I flew backwards and landed on top of James." said Sirius rubbing his right cheek and chin. "I still can't smile right." The girls in the room started to giggle.

Mr. Ollivander moved closer to Harry. Harry wished he would blink. Those silvery eyes were a bit creepy.

"Your father, on the other, favored a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power and excellent for transfiguration. Well, I say your father favored it-it's really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course."

Mr. Ollivander had come so close that he and Harry were almost nose to nose. Harry could see himself reflected in those misty eyes.

"That man likes to invade personal space doesn't he?" said Ron.

"And that's where..."

Mr. Ollivander touched the lightning scar on Harry's forehead with a long, white finger.

"I'm sorry to say I sold the wand that did it," he said softly. "Thirteen-and-a-half inches. Yew. Powerful wand, very powerful, and in the wrong hands...well, if I'd known what that wand was going out into the world to do..."

He shook his head and then, to Harry's relief, spotted Hagrid.

"Rubeus! Rubeus Hagrid! How nice to see you again...Oak, sixteen inches, rather bendy, wasn't it?"

"Sixteen inches? That is one big wand!" said Colin.

"Hagrid's bigger than other people, he would need a bigger wand than most people." said Hermione.

"It was, sir, yes," said Hagrid.

"Good wand, that one. But I suppose they snapped it in half when you got expelled?" said Mr. Ollivander, suddenly stern.

"He hates it when one of his wands gets snapped." said Dumbledore.

"Er-yes, they did, yes," said Hagrid, shuffling his feet. "I've still got the pieces, though," he added brightly.

"But you don't use them?" said Mr. Ollivander sharply.

"Oh, no, sir," said Hagrid quickly. Harry noticed he gripped his pink umbrella very tightly as he spoke.

"Hmmm," said Mr. Ollivander, giving Hagrid a piercing look. "Well, now-Mr. Potter. Let me see." He pulled a long tape measure with silver markings out of his pocket. "Which is your wand arm?"

"Er-well, I'm right-handed," said Harry.

"Hold out your arm. That's it." He measured Harry from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit and round his head.

"What is the point of measuring you, when you just wave a wand or two?" said Draco.

"The measuring lets Ollivander narrow down the list of possible wand combinations. How it does is beyond my scope of knowledge. What do you think?" said Dumbledore and directing the question towards Harry.

People looked at him, what was his take on it?

"I'm not too sure, but I think he's measuring the aura and the pulsating of power from the spiritual core."

As he measured, he said, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance, Mr. Potter, We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstrings of dragons. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons, or phoenixes are quite the same. And of course, you will never get such a good results with another wizard's wand."

Neville looked nervously down at his father's wand, he didn't want a new wand, but if this was why spells weren't working for him, then maybe he should give a new wand a chance.

Harry suddenly realized that the tape measure, which was measuring between his nostrils,

"That made me rethink the whole core theory I had." said Harry with a smile.

was doing this on its own. Mr. Ollivander was flitting around the shelves, taking down boxes.

"That will do," he said, and the tape measure crumpled into a heap on the floor. "Right then, Mr. Potter. Try this one. Beechwood and dragon heartstring. Nine inches. Nice and flexible.

"Oi! That's mine!" cheered Colin excitedly. He was thrilled that his hero had tried his wand.

Just take it and give it a wave."

Harry took the wand and (feeling foolish) waved it around a bit, but Mr. Ollivander snatched it out of his hand almost at once.

"Maple and phoenix feather. Seven inches. Quite whippy. Try-"

Harry tried-but he had hardly raised the wand when it, too, was snatched back by Mr. Ollivander.

"No, no-here, ebony and unicorn hair, eight and a half inches, springy.

"That one is mine!" said Blaise with his eyebrows raised.

Go on, go on, try it out."

Harry tried. And tried. He had no idea what Mr. Ollivander was waiting for. The pile of tried wands was mounting higher and higher on the spindly chair,

"How many wands did you try?" asked Bill

"Fifty-six." said Harry.

Dumbledore whistled, "That is a lot of wands, You must have been very difficult to find one to be compatible with your core."

but the more wands Mr. Ollivander pulled from the shelves, the happier he seemed to become.

"Tricky customer, eh? Not to worry, we'll find the perfect match here somewhere-I wonder, now-yes, why not-unusual combination-holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches nice and supple.

Harry smiled and caressed his wand, in his cloak, and then the smile faded. Twin cores, shit! They're gonna find out. Don't know if that is good or not.

Harry took the wand. He felt a sudden warmth in his fingers. He raised the wand above his head, brought it swishing down through the dusty air and a stream of red and gold sparks shot from the end like a firework,

"Gryffindor colors!" hollered Dean.

"Phoenix colors." corrected Dumbledore. "The wand, when first wielded, will throw colors that symbolizes the core. Unicorn's are silver and white and Dragon's are red and green."

throwing dancing spots of light on to the walls. Hagrid whooped and clapped and Mr. Ollivander cried, "Oh, bravo! Yes, indeed, oh, very good. Well, well, well...how curious...how very curious..."

He put Harry's wand back into its box and wrapped it in brown paper, still muttering, "Curious...curious..."

"Sorry," said Harry, "but what's curious?"

Mr. Ollivander fixed Harry with his pale stare.

"I remember every wand I've ever sold, Mr. Potter. Every single wand. It so happens that the phoenix whose tail feather is in your wand, gave another feather-just one other. It is very curious indeed that you should be destined for this wand when its brother-why, its brother gave you that scar."

Harry swallowed.

So did people in the Hall, Sirius and Remus looked between the two of them and then the teen that was stretched a crossed the both of them. Harry merely kept his eyes closed, ignoring them.

"Yes, thirteen-and-a-half. Yew. Curious indeed how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard, remember...I think we must expect great things from you, Mr. Potter...After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things-terrible, yes, but great."

Harry shivered. He wasn't sure he liked Mr. Ollivander too much. He paid seven gold Galleons for his wand,

"Why was his wand so expensive?" asked Hermione. She and Ron only paid twelve Sickles for their wands.

"Mr. Ollivander sets the price by how rare the wood is, how long it took to make the wand and how difficult it was obtaining the core." said Dumbledore. He then leaned over to Harry, beckoning him forward. He whispered in Harry's ear. "It took Ollivander thirty years to convince Fawkes and I to give him a feather. He was amazed that Fawkes gave him two."

Harry laughed.

and Mr. Ollivander bowed them from his shop.

The late afternoon sun hung low in the sky as Harry and Hagrid made their way back down Diagon Alley, back through the wall, back through the Leaky Cauldron, now empty. Harry didn't speak at all as they walked down the road; he didn't even notice how much people were gawking at them on the Underground, laden as they were with all their funny-shaped packages, with the snowy owl asleep in its cage on Harry's lap. Up another escalator, out into Paddington station;

"One of the people from the Underground ran up behind me and ripped Hedwig's cage out of my arms. Yelling something about animal cruelty and some bird society. Then he flung the cage door open. Hedwig wasn't happy, she started pecking him and scratching him. It was real funny, actually." laughed Harry. "Surprised the hell out of him when she came and landed on my shoulder."

People around the school laughed as well, they knew that you didn't come between her and Harry. Hedwig was very possessive of her owner.

Harry only realized where they were when Hagrid tapped him on the shoulder.

"Got time fer a bite to eat before yer train leaves." he said.

He bought Harry a hamburger and they sat down on plastic seats to eat them. Harry kept looking around. Everything looked so strange, somehow.

"I can imagine." said Lupin.

"You all right, Harry? Yer very quiet," said Hagrid.

Harry wasn't sure he could explain. He'd just had the best birthday of his life-and yet-he chewed his hamburger, trying to find the words.

"Everyone thinks I'm special," he said at last.

"You are special, Harry, very special." said Lupin, rubbing Harry on the head.

"All those people in the Leaky Cauldron, Professor Quirrell, Mr. Ollivander...but I don't know anything about magic at all. How can they expect great things? I'm famous and I can't even remember what I'm famous for. I don't know what happened when Vol-, sorry-I mean, the night my parents died."

Hagrid leaned across the table. Behind the wild beard and eyebrows he wore a very kind smile.

"Don' worry, Harry. You'll learn fast enough. Everyone starts at the beginning at Hogwarts, you'll be just fine. Just be yerself. I know it's hard. Yeh've been singled out, an' that's always hard. But yeh'll have a great time at Hogwarts-I did-still do, 'smatter of fact."

Hagrid helped Harry on to the train that would take him back to the Dursleys, then handed him an envelope.

"Yer ticket fer Hogwarts," he said. "First o' September-King's Cross-it's all on yer ticket. Any problems with the Dursley, send me a letter with yer owl, she'll know where to find me...See yeh soon, Harry."

"I know, I know, I fergot ter tell him how to get on the train. Train he was on was leavin'"

The train pulled out of the station. Harry wanted to watch Hagrid until he was out of sight; he rose in his seat and pressed his nose against the window, but he blinked and Hagrid was gone.

"Aww, Harry, you're so cute!" squealed Katie.

Then a bright flash of light came from the book in Hermione's hands. A scroll appeared, once again from the book.

"What the hell is that?" said Harry, he was staring at the scroll.

"It's a Recollection Scroll, Harry. This is how we knew about that time you landed in the hospital. I hope to God that this one is a good one." said Sirius.

The hall was smothered in a blanket of light.

"This didn't happen last time!" yelled Fred. The whole room whited out.