That morning, everyone gathered in front of the fireplace, ready to use the Floo Network to go shopping in Diagon Alley. George seemed especially excited today. At last, his parents no longer had to worry about paying for their schoolbooks.
"Harry, you go first." Mrs. Weasley came over with a flowerpot full of glittering powder.
"Huh? Me?" Harry had only just heard about the Floo Network.
"Oh! I forgot—Harry's never used Floo Powder before," Ron said suddenly.
"Neither have we~" Bing Huan said listlessly, resting her head on Hermione's shoulder. Hermione had spent all of last night enthusiastically recommending Lockhart's autobiography.
His greatest achievements, it turned out, were a Troll, a Werewolf, and a vampire. Bing Huan had taken down the last one when she was ten, and Hermione had even gone up and kicked the first one a few times last year. Why worship someone like that?
"You've never used it?" Mr. Weasley asked. "Then how did you get to Diagon Alley to buy things before?"
"By car."
"By subway."
"On a flying sword."
Mrs. Weasley seemed worried about the children's safety, so she cut off her husband's curiosity.
"They'll be fine." Fred grabbed a handful of Floo Powder and walked up to the fireplace. "Watch closely, everyone. Diagon Alley." He tossed the powder into the flames. The fire turned emerald green, and Fred disappeared in a blink.
Mrs. Weasley continued giving the three of them instructions, focusing mostly on the rather nervous Harry. Don't step into the wrong fireplace, pay attention to the type of fire, pronounce the destination clearly~
"He'll be fine, Molly. Don't worry." Mr. Weasley patted his wife's shoulder reassuringly.
"But, dear, if Harry gets lost, how will we explain it to his aunt and uncle?"
"You're worrying too much. They'd thank you for it!" Bing Huan said with some distaste, apparently recalling Dursley's face, which seemed big enough for two people.
"...All right, Harry. Make sure you pronounce it clearly. Fred and the others will be waiting for you there."
Harry nodded furiously, took some Floo Powder, and tossed it into the fire. Just as he was about to speak, he choked on the soot.
"*#￥%**"
Hermione: "What did he just say?"
Bing Huan: "Ennmm, first of all, it wasn't Diagon Alley."
Bing Huan took out a map. "Even if he goes to the wrong place, he shouldn't end up too far away. Most of the fireplaces are close together, except for these few over in Knockturn Alley."
Bing Huan took out a communicator, too. She had given one to each member of the five-person team before summer vacation.
"Draco, Draco, please respond."
After a while, Draco's voice came through. "What do you want with me?"
"You and your dad are going to Knockturn Alley today, right?"
"Yep."
"Oh, Harry just used Floo Powder for the first time and got the words wrong. He might end up there, so keep an eye out."
"What?! How come Potter's always involved whenever something happens? Fine, I'll keep an eye out."
Meanwhile, Harry, awaiting rescue, was spinning through a dizzying whirl. Dizzy—nothing but dizzy. Now Harry knew exactly how it felt to be the poor soul who got carsick more than anyone else in the world.
Before Harry could take any more, the Floo Network decided to let him go. Harry landed successfully on the cold stone floor—with his face. He adjusted his broken glasses. The last time he'd been this miserable was a year ago, when he'd first entered the Wizarding World.
He looked around. It was a dim shop, and it seemed... ennmm, illegal. Though he'd already guessed where he was from the surroundings, Harry only accepted that he'd gone to the wrong place after confirming that George and Fred weren't there.
Afraid someone would mistake him for a thief, Harry was about to slip outside when he heard two sets of footsteps approaching. He quickly ducked through an unlocked door.
A blond father and son entered: Lucius and Draco. Lucius tugged the bell, then turned to remind his son, "Don't touch anything, Draco. The further we stay away from this stuff in the future, the better."
Draco reluctantly pulled his hand back. "I thought you were going to buy me a present."
"I did say I'd buy you a broomstick for the matches." Lucius placed the box he'd brought on the counter and waited for the shopkeeper.
Harry had meant to go out when he saw Draco, but then he remembered how Draco had acted at first and figured his father might not be a good person either. It was risky to show himself now, and on top of that, he was a complete mess. If that guy saw him like this...
He'd tease him for the whole term, no doubt!
Draco stepped closer. "I'm obviously better than those guys when it comes to skill, but I don't have the advantage of size. I'm at a disadvantage in a physical contest. By the way, Father, you said we should stay away from that filthy stuff, so why are we here?"
Lucius patted the box. "To get rid of the filthy things we have at home, of course. A rubbish dump is the best place to dispose of rubbish. As for Quidditch, why not try a more agile position?"
Draco looked at his father in confusion. "Didn't you tell me to avoid picking fights with Potter?"
Lucius raised an eyebrow. "But you're friends now, aren't you? That's another benefit of joining the good side. They never object to friendly competition among their own. Ah, Mr. Borgin."
A hunched man emerged from behind the counter. "It's an honor to see you, Mr. Malfoy. Ah! And young Mr. Malfoy, too. What can I do for you?"
"I'm sure you've heard that the Ministry has stepped up its inspections lately." Lucius had deliberately made up an excuse, considering he might need to gather information from the Dark Wizard community later. "You know how much trouble these things can cause me at home."
"Even you've been hassled, then."
Lucius pursed his lips, putting on an aggrieved expression. "The Malfoy name still carries some weight. But the Ministry's become more and more meddlesome. It must be that damned Arthur Weasley."
What followed was a long bout of haggling. Once the shopkeeper and the Malfoys had left, Harry crept out. The sign by the entrance told him he was in Knockturn Alley, a place he knew absolutely nothing about.
"Lost, dear?" an elderly woman's voice asked beside him. She was an old witch with moss growing on her teeth.
"I'm fine! Thank you!" The commotion quickly attracted the attention of others, and several immediately crowded around. Before long, though, a cane stopped them. "I'd ask you all to keep your distance from my Malfoy family's guest."
Draco appeared behind them, too. "Hey, Potter!...Did you roll around in the ashes?"
Lucius led him into a winding alley. "This should be our first proper meeting, Mr. Potter. Lucius Malfoy, Draco's father." He casually used magic to clean the ash off Harry and repair his glasses.
"Hello. Thank you."
"Potter, how could you even get Diagon Alley wrong? Good thing I was here today, or you might've been kidnapped." Draco put an arm around Harry, looking like he was his savior.
"Draco~ Be polite to your friends. It's easy to make a mistake the first time you try. Didn't you fall three times before you learned to fly?"
All along the way, Lucius acted like a kind, understanding elder, telling Harry amusing stories about the Wizarding World. But remembering what Lucius had said in the shop, Harry couldn't help asking, "Back at the shop..."
"You saw that?" Lucius didn't seem to mind the subject. "As I said before Mr. Borgin came in, the Malfoy family will keep well away from that sort of thing from now on. But I suppose you're concerned about what I said about Arthur. If I told you I said it on purpose, you might not believe me... Hmm, here comes a witness."
Before they knew it, the three of them had reached Gringotts. The Weasley family had just come out, and Bing Huan and Hermione had brought the Granger Couple over, too.
"Lucius? Harry?" Mrs. Weasley could hardly imagine those three together.
After they explained what had happened, Mr. Weasley was still puzzled by Lucius's change of heart, but he nodded. "It's true. Lucius has provided information on several illegal operations lately. But why were you in Knockturn Alley?"
Lucius gave a wry smile and spread his hands. "Arthur, earning the chance to leave my past behind through my actions—that's what the Ministry promised me."
"Leave your past behind?" Hermione still didn't like this roundabout way of communicating.
"It means he's going straight. He turns in the bad guys and gets rid of the contraband he has. Basically, 'You beat him up, so you can't beat me up anymore.'"
Harry tugged at Mr. Weasley's sleeve, too. "He really was there to sell things. I'm sorry, sir. I misunderstood you earlier."
Lucius waved a hand. After all, this was the boss's buddy. "It's all right, child. If you could misunderstand me, my acting must be pretty good."
Arthur had never seen Lucius so cheerful. The kids had all gathered again after most of the summer apart. The Deathly Hallows gleamed on the points hourglass: Hogwarts' most troublemaking five-person team.
Draco watched Lucius chatting happily. "It's a good thing, but my father feels like a stranger now."
Ron: "After the Galleon problem was solved, Mum started feeling like a stranger on her way to becoming a fan, too."
Bing Huan: "Your house is probably going to be full of Lockhart books from now on. Signed ones, too."
Harry: "Was Lockhart really that famous?"
Hermione: "Of course! Harry, let me tell you..."
Bing Huan: "Sigh~"
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