4. Diagon Alley shopping
Lyra stuck tightly to her brother's side as the pair moved through Diagon Alley, she felt relief in her stomach about being able to leave.
“I’m glad we’ve been able to get new keys,” Lyra muttered, rubbing at her face. “I almost forgot all about it, but at least we’re the only ones able to access our vaults now.” Lyra hummed out, Harry just grunted in agreement.
“They’re going to do audits to see what's being taken out, like direct deposits and stuff. At least that's what I’ve gathered. Griphook wrote me a list of books for us both to read so that should help with all…this,” Harry sighed out, rubbing at his face for a moment. “I feel like an idiot for not even thinking about my vaults before this. Like, I was actively spending the money I took out first year and that's the only time I ever go near my vault? I should have realised I needed to go in and speak to someone sooner-”
“To be fair, the only time either of us have been in Diagon was under the supervision of a massive group. I don’t think we’d have made it to Gringotts if we tried.” Lyra hummed out, gently fiddling with the coin pouch in her hand. It would directly connect to both her Peverell vault and Potter inheritance vault, all she had to do was think about which vault she wanted and how much gold she needed and it would remove that amount. Harry had one too, he’d chosen a deep burgundy red one and she had chosen a night dark blue one. “Can I put this in your bag? My pockets aren’t very big and I keep feeling like I’m going to lose it.” she asked Harry, who hummed a little and opened his satchel to her. Lyra was quick to drop the pouch into the bag.
“Not like it’d matter if you did. No one but you can access it and it was only ten galleons, you can afford to replace it easily enough,” Harry reminded softly as they moved through the street. “Anyways. What should we do first?” He asked her.
“...Urm…” Lyra paused mid-step before nearly bumping into someone, Harry winced and pulled her to the side so they could plan. “I need a wand, obviously. And Robes, I don’t think the ministry actually realised I was a first year not a second ‘cause there were none in the room. We need to go to the book store too and then get supplies for the year and speak to the people that the Goblins recommended..” Just listing it off made Lyra feel tired.
“And we don’t know if after today we’re going to be able to sneak off out of the Leaky without being followed. Because I doubt they’re going to be too happy about us leaving, thankfully the excuse of getting you a wand and robes should be enough to tide them over as it's a necessity.” Harry hummed out.
“So, we split this up. We get my wand, then we get the robes and maybe some clothes for each of us. From there we’ll go to the book store and collect what we need there and-” Lyra started to list but Harry suddenly smacked his head and muttered to himself.
“We’re idiots. Merlin, I can’t believe it,” Harry bemoaned and at Lyra’s curious look, Harry just grinned. “We don’t have to actively shop for the supplies and books. Owl orders a thing. We can pop in quickly to both shops, grab their catalogue and then write down what we wish to purchase with a check written for the total amount attached to the owl’s leg. I completely forgot about it.” Harry explained.
“That’s so cool!” Lyra gushed a little. “Ok, so wand, robes and Clothes, grab the catalogues then speak to the house people? Once we’re settled there we can order from the catalogues and get what we need once we’re safe.” Lyra bounced on her toes a little in excitement. “I can’t believe you actually thought of that. Look at you, using that brain~” Lyra teased her brother a little and faked a gasp as he shot her the bird.
“Brat,” Harry chuckled, tilting his head. “Come on, Olivanders is this way. He’s a little out there but he’s harmless. Though, if you start struggling to find a wand he might get a little excited. I don’t know what it is, but apparently it's a thing?” Harry hummed out, then shrugged. “Well, anyways. This way.” The older Potter started to lead her back through Diagon, Lyra followed happily enough - both unaware of the grey eyes following their every move.
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Lyra looked around the wand maker's shop as Harry held the door open for her, the little bell dinging away as he did so. Her green eyes bounced from shelf to shelf as she felt Harry beckon her further in before closing the door behind her. It was quiet for a moment and Harry seemed to be watching her, almost looking nostalgic. Though, Lyra doesn’t know how a thirteen year old could be nostalgic.
“It’s very quiet,” Lyra mumbled to her brother, only to jump back in surprise as a man came gliding into view on a ladder. She could hear Harry snicker behind her, apparently expecting it. The git. “Urm…hello.” Lyra greeted the older man, who smiled gently at her.
“I did wonder when I’d be seeing you, Miss Potter. Or is it Heiress Peverell by that ring?” The older man asked, climbing down the ladder slowly. Lyra paused for a moment, thrown by the title before briefly remembering that yes, that was the correct title she was supposed to be addressed with until she was seventeen. It still threw her.
“I’m fine with either sir, though I prefer Lyra if that’s quite alright. Hearing Miss Potter makes me feel like I’ve somehow gotten in trouble.” Lyra offered, glancing back to her brother, who’s taken to leaning against the wall beside the door, watching everything with an encouraging smile.
“Ah, I see. The female Potters are certainly noted to be rather friendly. Though, there hasn’t been one born into the family in several centuries that’s like you,” Olivander hummed, pausing and shaking his head. “It seems only yesterday that your mother and father were in here buying their first wands, and then your brother too. Goodness…”
“Wait what did you mean ‘like me-’” Lyra tried to ask but Ollivander continued on like she hadn’t spoken, a magical tape measure flying across her body at different angles.
“Wand arm?” The man asked and Lyra quietly lifted her right hand. He turned his eyes to Harry for a moment. “How is your wand treating you, Heir Potter? Holly and Phoenix feather, eleven inches, correct?” The man asked, looking over the boxes now with a hum.
“That’s correct, Mr Ollivander-” Harry started and Ollivander scoffed.
“Mr Ollivander. Please, call me Garrick. You’ll be best to remember that.” The older man smiled a little and Harry chuckled a little.
“Harry, then. Call me Harry.” Harry offered up, before Ollivander, or Garrick, focused back on Lyra.
“Ah, here. Try this one.” The man handed her a long pale wand, looking at her expectantly.
“Wave it, Ly. He’s gotta see if it’ll work for you or not.” Harry encouraged her gently, making Lyra make a small ‘oh’ sound before gently flicking the wand. In an instant the little bell on Ollivander’s desk burst into flames, making the man jump a little, moving a book away from the flame and using his own wand to put out the fire. Harry snorted in the background as Lyra gently set the wand down, before turning to glare at her snickering brother.
“Ah, do not fret. Your brother disorganised many receipts when he waved his first wand. One moment.” The man vanished from her view then, leaving Harry and Lyra alone.
“You could not laugh?” Lyra asked her brother with a pout, who simply shrugged at her and smiled unperturbed.
“Trust me, I have to. It’s only fair. I think you’d have laughed at me when I got my wand. I broke a glass vase-” Harry explained just as Garrick returned.
“Try this one,” The man held out a darker-wooded wand to her now, letting her flick it once more. Only for the window beside Harry to shatter. “No, no. Definitely not. No matter.” once more the older man waves his wand and the window repairs itself. Lyra watches fascinated, though her face heats a little as she notices people starting to look in.
“...Right, bugger. You’ll have to deal with some onlookers Ly, the price of being famous in the wizarding world.” Harry offered once he noticed the onlookers. Lyra frowned a little more.
“Please tell me my title is better than ‘The Boy Who Lived?’ It’s not as pretentious is it?” Lyra asked him, she’d never really looked into it and Harry hadn’t actually brought it up. The only time she’d even been referenced was by that fraud of an author last year in the book shop as ‘His sister’.
“You’re just Lyra in the books. You didn’t survive a killing curse so I guess they decided you don’t get a fancy title.” Harry stuck his tongue out at her and Lyra scoffed a little.
“I can live with that,” Lyra rolled her eyes a little and nearly jumped again as Garrick appeared beside her with several boxes. “Oh, that’s a lot-” Lyra started to say.
“We shall keep going till we find which wand works for you.” Garrick assured her, giving her another gentle smile, Lyra found herself slowly returning it.
Several broken objects later and a much larger crowed outside peering in through the windows, Garrick hummed to himself in thought.
“That’s all the common woods…hmm, I wonder.” the man vanished once more into the back of the store and Lyra found herself feeling a little self conscious.
“It didn’t take this long to find yours, right?” Lyra asked her brother softly, Harry just shrugged.
“Not really, but apparently Hermiones took nearly an hour. Her’s is a special type of wood or something,” Harry shrugged. “I think it’s vine? But yeah, she and I think Dean in my year took forever to get theres. Apparently, Dean’s got a special core in his? I dunno. I don’t pay much mind to him, honestly.” Harry shrugged helplessly once more and Lyra sighed.
“Not helpful, Harry.” Lyra chimed and nearly laughed at the annoyed look on his face.
“Don’t start. Those books are horrible-” Harry started to say but stopped as Garrick returned.
“They weren’t the best written, I’ll admit. But my grand-nieces and nephews enjoyed them thoroughly as children,” Garrick commented with a wink. “‘ Helpful Harry helps little Lyra brush her teeth ’ was Guniveres' favourite for the longest time.” The old wand-maker hummed out before handing Lyra a single wand.
The moment Lyra touched it, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she felt warmth pool from her hand into her stomach as she held the wand, her eyes huge as she took in the detailing on it.
A pale wood wand that was completely straight, little wisps seemed to be carved into the wand itself until you got the base where familiar looking dogs sat on the very bottom. She gave it a little flick and it was as if the wand sang to her.
“Grims?” Lyra asked softly, eyeing the dogs that almost seemed to stare back at her.
“Ok, so, you’re being bullied by a breed of dog-” Harry muttered under his breath, but he had made his way over to look at the wand curiously.
“Indeed. Cypress wand, ten inches. Its core is a Grim tooth wrapped in a single Thestral hair,” Olivander muttered gently, looking her over with that same smile. “Cypress is associated with nobility. It’s not often I sell a cypress wand…the Thestral and Grim tooth combo was an experiment to help stabilise the hair. They’re thought to be rather tricky…I think…that you’ll do wonderful and great things with that wand, Heiress Peverell.” Garrick hummed, Lyra just found herself nodding softly.
“That…wow, ok. Yeah. Yep. I see what Harry meant by you just know…” Lyra whispered softly.
“The wand chooses its wizard and this one has most certainly chosen you.” Garrick hummed out, leading them both over to the desk. “I shall have you pay and then I shall allow you leave through the back door, it’ll let you out right by the apothecary.” Garrick explained softly, leaving both children nodding their heads.
Within minutes, the two Potter’s leave Ollivanders with a new wand and two new wrist wand holsters. Harry had apparently been eyeing them up whilst Lyra checked out the other wands. Her fingers gently fiddled with the holster quietly.
“...Grims…why is everything around me about Grims all of a sudden?” Lyra muttered, Harry shrugged helplessly.
“You said that Sharpknife mentioned ancestors getting their urm…familiars at your age. Maybe its your gift calling for them?” Harry offered, making Lyra pause.
“Oh…maybe? Do you think?” Lyra asked, titling her head as they slipped into the apothecary and picked up two separate catalogues.
“Maybe, or maybe-” Harry began to say as they approached the till only to freeze as a hand landed on both their shoulders.
“Potter and…Potter?” A voice drawled lazily and Lyra’s sure her brother swore under his breath as he turned his head to look at the man touching them both. Lyra tried to shrug the hand off but it just tightens.
“Professor-”
“Please let go, I’m not a fan of being touched.” Lyra stated turning her gaze to the tall, pale man behind them. He had a large, long nose, pale skin and long and slightly greasy hair. His dark eyes did not look pleased at all by her comment.
“Miss Potter-” he began to say, his grip tightening ever so slightly, it made Lyra speak a little louder.
“Sir, I am asking you to let go. I don’t know you and I am uncomfortable. Please respect that boundary-”
“Lyra-” Harry started to whisper in a hushed voice, but froze when the man actually obliged and let go of both of them. He continued to stare them down for a moment.
“You may not know me, Miss Potter, but you will this coming term. You would do best to keep your tone respectful and avoid interrupting me in the future.” the man stated calmly, all but sneering. It didn’t stop Lyra from narrowing her eyes at him.
“With all due respect sir, at what point have I been disrespectful? I asked you kindly to remove your hand and then, when you failed to do so, I told you to. At no point did I raise my voice, swear or scream at you to do so. If you found that disrespectful then you and I have different understandings of-” Lyra had more to say but Harry had covered her mouth to hush her.
“ Lyra ,” Harry’s tone was both urgent and scolding. “You need to stop.” he told her a little sternly, making Lyra glare at him instead. The man, an apparent professor, looked at them both sternly for a moment before sighing like he was physically pained to be speaking to them.
“Mr Potter. To my understanding, you and your sister are supposed to be staying inside the Leaky Cauldron. Did you find something lacking or not up to your… taste. ” The man sneered and oh, Lyra didn’t like that and turned her attention back to him with a fierce glare.
“The Leaky was fine sir. But Lyra didn’t have a wand, or any robes for school nor any supplies for the coming year. We planned to grab the wand and robes then mail order the other things we needed to avoid being out for too long.” Harry explained quickly, Lyra noted he spoke to him like he spoke to Uncle Vernon. Clipped and to the point. She quietly pulled at his hand.
“You didn’t think to ask the Auror’s stationed at the site to go and collect the robes and supplies? Or to escort you?” The professor asked, Lyra finally managed to get Harry’s hand from her mouth.
“To be fair, no one told us there was Auror’s stationed there,” Lyra offered and at the withering look she continued, Harry seemed to give up and just let her go. “Well, its true. We arrived, spoke to the minister and he just went ‘heres some books, stay here. Goodbye.’ no one explained anything to us sir, it was all rather-” Lyra stopped mid-sentence and stepped back as her world started to fuzz.
“Lyra-” Harry’s voice sounded so far away but Lyra couldn’t focus on him.
In a blink, Lyra wasn’t in the apothecary but in a classroom full of cobblestones and cauldrons. The professor who stood in front of her was talking to an older woman who looked quite stern.
“ Insufferable old fool. Allowing the ministry to have those creatures here, around children-” the Professor fumed, the stern looking woman nodded her head.
“Miss Potter, come back to us.”
“ He argued against it, but it was either dementors or hundreds of Aurors and the ministry doesn’t have the manpower to provide- ” Lyra found she liked the Scottish accent, it made her sound somewhat soothing.
“ You know damn well all he had to do was let the goblins come and add a ward to stop Sirius Black from entering. He could easily have done it, but no. He has to let soul-sucking monsters into the school- ” The Professor stated.
“Do not argue with me, Potter. I am moving her away from possible onlookers.”
“ Don’t be daft Severus, they won’t be in the school. They’ll be around it. And as much as I agree with you, he’s in charge of the school. I cannot argue with him. ” The woman muttered.
“ And when a child is kissed whilst outside the building for getting too close? Or if they grow too hungry and attack? How many of us can cast a patronus to protect the children? What will we tell parents when we return the husks of a child? ” The professor asked scathingly.
“ We’ll ensure they’re safe, Filius and Pomona are ensuring the others know the spell and we’ll be teaching it to our sixth and seventh years- ” The Scottish woman started again and the man scoffed.
“ Let the children protect themselves, again. Seems to be the new way at this school. Potter’s done it twice now, lets see if the other dunderheads can- ”
The classroom faded and Lyra found herself on the floor in the back of the apothecary, with Harry mumbling something to her. She couldn’t fully make out his words though, but she noticed the professor looking at her silently. She blinked her eyes a few times, getting the remnants of the vision out of her mind before attempting to sit up, but the professor stopped her.
“Do mot nove tsuj yet. You era shaking.” He ordered, voice rather soft. Harry looked taken aback for a moment, before he started to fuss over her again.
“I-what-” Lyra tried to process the words for a moment, it took a second before it clicked as she looked at her hands. “Oh…oh, bugger. ” Lyra muttered in annoyance as she rubbed at her face.
“Back?” Harry asked her, looking concerned, his glasses crooked on her face. With a shaky hand, Lyra fixed them and nodded.
“Mm. Think so. I…I had one this morning, don’t usually get so many…” Lyra muttered, always a bit loose with her words after a vision.
“You’re due to turn twelve this October, correct?” The Professor asked, Lyra turned and focused her attention on him and nodded a little. “That’ll be why. Your core is maturing and it can trigger more…things,” He trailed off, keeping his voice low. “May I ask…” he started then stopped and Lyra shrugged a little.
“I saw you…speaking to this woman, she was urm…Scottish? I think. You guys were in a stony room full of cauldrons, discussing something called Dementors and patronus and you weren’t happy about it. Or well, you weren’t happy about someone's actions?” Lyra offered, rubbing once more at her face. “I don’t..I’m sorry, it's a little fuzzy-” Lyra tried to explain but the professor shook his head.
“No, you’ve given enough information,” Dark eyes looked at her for a moment before he begrudgingly reached into his pocket and passed over a chocolate bar. ‘Sparking Chocolate’ it read on the top. “Eat that, it’ll help calm you. Mr Potter, I suggest you go pay for those catalogues. I’ll stay here.”
“...Right…right, ok professor.” Harry looked unsure before vanishing off into the isles.
“...Sorry if that gave you a scare, Professor..?” Lyra offered and the man sighed, looking up briefly to the ceiling like he was regretting his life choices. She broke off a piece of the chocolate and took a bite, jolting at the little shock it gave her mouth.
“Snape. I’ll be your potions professor at Hogwarts,” he said, almost begrudgingly, looking back in the direction that Harry went off in. “You’d do well to remember that. And you did not scare me, miss Potter. You simply caught me off guard. It is not everyday you meet someone with your…” he looked for the word.
“Condition?” Lyra offered, the man snapped his eyes to her like she’d just insulted him and found herself quickly backpedalling. “Well, what else was I supposed to call it? I didn’t know and my relatives called them seizures so we thought I had epilepsy or something till Harry’s first year when he figured it out. It’s not my fault no one told me-”
“Stop.Talking.” Snape grit out, closing his eyes and once more looking up to the ceiling like Lyra had caused him some unseen pain. Lyra listened, finishing off the chocolate, before biting her lip.
“How much was the chocolate, Professor? I can pay you back for it-” She tried to offer but the man just sent her a withering look.
“Potter. Accept the kindness I am giving you, you will rarely see it after today.” The man drawled and Lyra just awkwardly crossed her arms, frowning a little.
“Right, I’m back.” Harry puffed out, looking like he’d all but ran back to her and Snape.
“Good. I’m leaving,” The professor stood up properly, turning to do just that before pausing. “Be quick to get what you need done, the Auror’s are probably up in arms that you are not were you’re supposed to be.” The man stated, before leaving them alone.
“...Ok, then. Let's get up and grab what we can quickly before we’re tracked down.” Harry said, helping Lyra up. She couldn’t help but agree.
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Flourish and Blotts was thankfully close to the apothecary so two more catalogues had been grabbed before the pair had quickly walked into Madam Malkin’s, Harry had warned her of the living tape measure this time.
“Goodness, Mr Potter. You certainly have grown a couple inches since I last saw you,” Madam Malkin had hummed out as she compared his notes from the year before. “Three whole inches in fact, I dare say you’re out of the four feet range now. Five foot one now, hmm..” she hummed out, checking over a few notes.
“I thought I grew a bit,” Harry joked a little as he rubbed his neck. “Other than our uniform, we’re hoping to pick up some casual clothes and robes, y’know? Is there any way to order them and have our owl come collect them when they're ready?” Harry asked whilst Lyra looked at some of the scarfs available.
“Oh, absolutely. We can add a sizing rune into the stitching so that they grow with you - as long as you don’t grow 10 inches out of nowhere it should be fine,” the older woman tapped her chin before nodding. “Feel free to peruse the catalogue at the front here whilst I get your sister sorted. She can look afterwards.” She assured Harry, Lyra glanced over and quickly moved to stand by her brother.
“Alright,” Harry nodded to Lyra as he tapped the page. “I’ll add anything I think you’ll like. Nothing frilly right?” he asked with a knowing look.
“Yeah, nothing frilly or pink.” Lyra hummed out before following Madam Malkin into the back of the store and onto a stool.
“Not a fan of pink, dearie?” The woman asked as she spelled a plain girls school-robe over her head. She had an amused look on her face.
“It's not my favourite colour, I always look sick when I wear it.” Lyra admitted, staying as still as she can whilst Malkin started to pin the robes.
“Ah, that makes sense. Someone with your skin tone does better with blues and greens, it tends to suit girls like you. I’d suggest the same with your brother,” Malkin hummed for a moment, looking over her work. “You’re rather small for an eleven year old dear, but not to worry. Your brother was much the same first time I pinned him. Goodness, I thought they’d brought me an eight year old at the time.” She shook her head fondly. Lyra gave an awkward smile.
“We tend to run small-” Lyra tried to lie but Malkin scoffed.
“No, Potters have always been tall. I remember doing your fathers robes his first year. He was head and shoulders above the other boys I’d dressed. Finished growing at around six foot something in the end. His father was nearly six foot five…but your mother was only five foot five…” she hummed out to herself, fiddling with the hem before nodding. “Alright, I think you’re done love. Jump on down and go look at those clothes. I’m sure you’ll find something you’ll enjoy wearing.” She ushered Lyra out whilst she cleaned up.
“You done?” Harry asked when she came out from the curtains, Lyra just nodded quietly. “Brill. I’ve earmarked some stuff you might like, come peak.” He tilted his head to the catalogue and helped her page through it.
Twenty minutes later and at least two weeks worth of clothes picked out and paid for, a little number stub was stored in Harry’s very full bag that he’d have to send Hedwig with when the clothes and uniforms were all ready for collection.
“Final stop…housing. Yay~” Lyra offered in an attempted cheerful voice, but both she and Harry were reaching their limit at this point and it was just barely past noon.
“We don’t know if we’ll be able to leave again any time soon, Ly. I know we’re both shattered but I’d rather get this done and sorted then spending the next few weeks locked away like some-”
“Princess?” Lyra offered, then grinned a little at her own joke. “Princess Potter has a nice ring to it. I think it’d be a wonderful nickname for you.” Lyra teased her brother as they walked, not even denying she felt exhausted.
“You’d be Princess Potter actually-” Harry began but cut himself off with a shake of his head. “Not the point. We need to figure out what exactly we’re looking for housing wise. Obviously two rooms minimum, right? And a garden?” Harry asked unsure, Lyra nodded her head a little.
“Maybe close to a village or something? Like, not somewhere majorly trafficked but somewhere quiet that we can still easily access shops and stuff?” Lyra suggested, making Harry hum in agreement.
“Decent sized kitchen too. The idea of bumping into each other when cooking or whatever isn’t appealing. Don’t really need a dining room for now as this is going to technically be temporary, but it’d be nice to have somewhere to stay in case either of our properties aren’t ready by Summer. We will not be going back to them next year.” Harry assured her, his tone half dripping in venom at the idea of going back to them in any way, Lyra simply nodded.
The pair soon fell into a comfortable silence as they slipped through the streets of Diagon alley, they got a few looks but no one really stopped them. It took no time for them to get to their destination, ‘ Rolling Rowle Real Estate ’ was scrawled across the front of a small cottage that stood just out-side of the opening to another alley - knockturn as Harry had pointed out to Lyra.
“You don’t go down there, alright? Last time I did, I’m pretty sure I was about to be killed by fifty people.” Harry told her firmly, making Lyra nod her head in understanding.
“Gotcha.” Lyra hummed out, following her brother into the stand-alone cottage, quietly wondering why this building was one of the few that wasn’t sandwiched in between others. The bell above them chimed gently and Lyra briefly noted that the inside was much bigger inside than it was outside.
“Hello?” Harry called out, looking around the inside and nearly jumping when two young men popped out from one of the lower floor rooms, they glanced at each other than to Harry and Lyra before approaching.
“Welcome to Rolling Rowle Real Estate, I’m Rowan Rowle, please call me Mr Rowle. I’m the owner of this fine establishment.” The first man introduced, he was tall with pale skin and brown hair with dark eyes to match. He looked friendly enough in Lyra’s opinion.
“And I’m Sebastan McNair, please call me Mr McNair. I’m an apprentice here.” The other man, who was probably around eighteen to nineteen years old, introduced. He had fluffy blonde hair and grey eyes, he had a lot of freckles on his pale skin too. Lyra felt he looked a little nervous.
“Nice to meet you both. I’m Harry Potter and this is my sister Lyra. You may call us Mr and Miss Potter for now,” Harry introduced, Lyra briefly wondered why they didn’t mention their heirships but then thought better of it. The paperwork with the Ministry probably hadn’t gone through about them claiming them just yet, so it was probably best to hide it. “We were told you could be discreet about purchases. I can explain our reasoning in a more private setting if that's at all possible.” Harry told the pair diplomatically. Lyra felt a little proud of how grown-up her brother sounded, compared to earlier before his cleansing when he couldn’t form a nice proper sentence without getting frustrated at things going too slowly.
“Of course, right this way. Mr McNair will go grab some tea for us whilst I set the room up for privacy.” Mr Rowle stated and led them quickly to the room he’d left previously. Lyra quietly looked around the office in quiet appreciation of the minimalist decoration. Most of the pictures were that of different properties that they might be selling or handling rent for.
It took a couple of minutes for them all to settle in the room, four cups of tea served and the two men looking at them both expectantly. Lyra looked to her brother to let him speak first.
“We’re looking to find a property that can be moved into today. We’re looking for privacy as we have an…adult in our life that we’d rather not know our whereabouts.” Harry explained calmly, Lyra quietly nodded her head a little.
“Ah, I see,” Mr Rowle hummed easily, sipping his tea for a moment before answering. “We have a few unplottable properties that are readily available for instances like this. I can assume the Sirius Black fellow is the reason for this speedy relocation?” The man asked and Harry nodded easily enough.
“We’ve been temporarily moved into an…establishment that is frequented by the public often,” Lyra offered up gently. “And are under the supposed constant watch of Auror’s for our apparent safety. That came with an order not to leave said building we had been placed in, despite being deprived of many of our necessary supplies for school.” Lyra finished up as Harry sipped his tea, she could see his leg bouncing in apprehension.
“It’s already the talk of Diagon that you two have been placed in the Leaky Cauldron without a guardian to watch over you. There’s been a bit of back-lash for the minister of such a idiotic placement.” McNair sneered, Lyra scoffed whilst Harry frowned a little.
“It was a last minute placement, I’m not surprised that-” Harry began but Lyra cut him off.
“It’s a crappy situation to be frank. Look, we just want somewhere we’re going to be safe where we can decide who can and can’t enter and have some modicum of privacy,” Lyra stated, leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed. “Is that something you can provide, with discretion?” Lyra asked, staring the two men down. McNair’s lip twitched a little as he looked between Rowle and her before his boss nodded.
“I’ll be quite surprised if that attitude doesn’t land you in Slytherin, Miss Potter. But yes, it is something we are happy to provide, especially for two such public figures such as yourselves.” Rowle commented. “Now, tell me what type of property you’re looking for? Do you want house elves? Location? Garden?” The man asked, McNair pulled out a small piece of parchment and a quill, looking ready to write. Lyra and Harry shared a look before nodding.
“Two bedrooms at least,” Harry started, leaning back in his chair. “Decent sized kitchen with a pantry if possible. A front room and perhaps an attic or annex?” Harry hummed out.
“A garden would be nice, somewhere to grow herbs and such, nothing too big but not too small either,” Lyra offered up, thinking over her words carefully. “Perhaps somewhere potion brewing might take place in the future?” Lyra asked, glancing at her brother who rolled his eyes at her. “Hey, don’t roll your eyes at me. It’s a subject that interests me and hiring a tutor in the subject for you is always an option in the future.” Lyra recalled, which at least intrigued the older boy.
“Yeah, alright. That’s fair. We’d also like it somewhere close to a village, magical or muggle is fine. House-elves…I guess one or two wouldn’t be too bad? I mean, we’re pretty independent but it’d be nice not to have to worry about breakfast or dinner throughout the day and not having to tend too much to the cleaning…” Harry hummed out, “They’d be able to be moved to other properties in the future right?” Harry questioned the two men, Rowle nodded.
“Yes, once bonded to the Potter family the house elves can be moved too and from whichever home you so deem it,” The man explained. McNair cast a quiet spell on the parchment and in minutes three separate folders appeared on the desk. “These are the three unplottable properties we have available at this time that can be moved into immediately.” Rowle stated, opening the first folder.
The picture showcased a small two bedroom cottage located somewhere in Cornwall, apparently 10 minutes from a small wizard settlement. It’s kitchen looked to be a decent size but the appliances were clearly old and well used, the front room however was tiny , lacking any fire place for floo travel and the annex in the back was all but dilapidated. The garden left much to be desired as well as it looked overgrown. The property was noted to house a single house-elf.
The second folder held more promise, this was also a cottage but held three bedrooms and a small library on the bottom floor, it was located somewhere in a place called Cokeworth, near a muggle town. The kitchen was a decent size, along with the pantry. The front room was also a decent size and it held an actual fireplace for floo travel, unlike the previous property. Lyra also excitedly noted the fact it had both an attic, annex and a sun room. The garden was a decent size and at the back of the property stood a potions lab. It was noted to have two house-elves.
“Oh, I like this one.” Lyra hummed, showing Harry the second folder whilst he passed her the third.
“Yeah? The third one is ok but it needs major work in two of the bedrooms.” Harry explained, now looking at the folder Lyra had been looking at.
He wasn’t wrong though, the third property wasn’t really a cottage and was more modern in design for a four bedroom house, it somewhat reminded her of the Duserlys, which made her dislike it instantly. Like Harry had said, two of the bedrooms needed work as they clearly had some sort of mould situation going on but not enough that it discounted the house from being sold apparently. The kitchen was massive and the front room left little to be desired. However, the floo looked dilapidated as well and was located in Surrey. Lyra didn’t bother reading any further.
“Right, so, number 2?” Lyra asked her brother, who nodded his head easily. Rowle hummed softly, taking the other two folders from them.
“Number 8 Cokeworth creek. It’s just outside the main town of Cokeworth and is relatively isolated from most magicals. It’s located close to multiple muggle stores and such. It’s our best kept property for immediate move-ins. The other two are currently up for sale but admittedly could use some work,” Rowle hummed and grabbed a contract out. “Read through this and sign, once Gringotts confirms you have the funds for the house we’ll give you the Floo address and owl you once we’ve keyed your signatures into the wards. It should take three hours at most.” The man assured.
“Brilliant.” Harry said honestly, picking up the contract to read. It took a little less than ten minutes to get through it all and for both of them to sign before they started making their way back to the Leaky Cauldron.
The two managed to get into their room without being seen, only for Harry to freeze and pull Lyra behind her as he spotted something on her bed.
“Lyra, not to freak you out. But there’s a fuck off dog on your bed.” Harry stated calmly, Lyra perked up instantly. Perhaps this Grim caller thing would be easier than she thought, she’d still grab the books Sharpknife recommended though.
For now, she’d have to figure out what this poor skinny Grim on her bed wanted from her.