Hermione arrived close on Su Er's heels, not long after he reached the Leaky Cauldron.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Tom." Su Er greeted the landlord behind the counter. "We're here to see Harry. Is he in his room?"
Old Tom, who had only a few hairs on his head, was wiping the counter with a gray-black rag. He looked up at the sound of his voice. "And you are?"
He narrowed his cloudy eyes and studied Su Er for a while, as though trying to remember something.
"Mr. Bones, I remember you." Old Tom revealed a mouth missing more than half its teeth.
"Mr. Potter? He went out at noon. You can wait for him here. Would you like a Butterbeer?"
"Of course." Su Er nodded. "But we'd like to stay here for the night. Do you have any vacant rooms?"
Old Tom looked at Su Er, then glanced at Hermione beside him.
"Oh, of course we have rooms. Would you like one room, or...? We have rooms with twin beds, as well as beds big enough for two."
"Two rooms will do, Mr. Tom."
Old Tom seemed a little surprised and gave Su Er an inscrutable look, but he quickly nodded and took two keys from beneath the counter.
"As it happens, there are two vacant rooms next to Mr. Potter's, but one of them has twin beds. Is that all right?"
Seeing Su Er nod, Old Tom came out from behind the counter. "Come along, Mr. Bones, and you too, miss. Please follow me."
The accommodations at the Leaky Cauldron were worlds apart from those at the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade, where Su Er had stayed, and contrasted even more sharply with the dirty, untidy surroundings downstairs.
Though far from luxurious, and with very small rooms, they were exceptionally