Chapter 4
Teddy swung his legs as he sat at the edge of Tom's bare bed, ready to assist him in getting ready for their trip and answering any questions he might have. It was already the next day, and Tom seemed more at ease with the place, and perhaps even with himself. He and Tom were getting along just fine, better than anticipated. Right now, Tom was finishing getting ready to leave, wearing a plain white button-up and some wide-legged black pants, comfy and casual.
The two heard a knock on the door before it opened, revealing Mr. Peverell with a small smile. "Are you ready to go?"
Both Tom and Teddy nodded, and they followed Mr. Peverell out of the door and down the stairs. Instead of heading towards the front door, they went to the main living area. "Tom, first things first, I need to teach you how to travel through the Floo," he said, picking up some sand from the bowl resting on the fireplace. "Floo travel?" Tom looked at the sand questionably, and Mr. Peverell nodded.
"That was horrific!" Tom exclaimed (definitely not whining) as Mr. Peverell helped dust his back off. Teddy and he just chuckled, leading him out of the store they came through.
"Oh, and Tom, you don't have to keep calling me Mr. Peverell; it sounds too formal. We are family now. You can call me Hadrian if you want." Tom looked up at him, and Hadrian had a gentle smile on his face. Tom nodded, looking away (definitely not because he felt shy).
Teddy came to his rescue, dragging him over to a store called 'Finest Fashion Frénésie', with Hadrian trailing behind them with a fond smile.
Tom looked around in awe. Everything was nice and tidy, and everything he saw screamed expensive.
"Mr. Pev- er, Hadrian, where are we?" Tom asked, turning to look up at him. "This is Plaće Cachée, the Wizarding shopping place in Montmartre, Paris, France. Even I have to admit it's better buying here than in Diagon Alley in London," he replied, keeping his eye on Teddy, who was wandering around.
Tom nodded and looked around, but he stayed close to Hadrian. After a few minutes of Teddy calling from around the store, Hadrian ruffled Tom's hair and gave him a gentle nudge forward. "Go look around, Tom. We are here to shop for you. Don't look at the price tags; just bring me what catches your eye." Tom hesitated before (not running; Tom didn't run, definitely not) walking around the store.
As Tom walked around, he saw all different sorts of fabrics: mulberry silk, baby cashmere, pashmina, Guanacaste wool, cervelat, and a lot more.
By the time they left the store, they had many shrunken bags filled with his new clothes such as turtlenecks, button-ups, sweaters, blazers, trousers, coats, shoes, pajamas, robes, and that was only the ones he could remember.
Hadrian took them to a café called 'Café Abringer' where they had a quick meal before they were off again. This time, they headed to a place called 'décor de Chambre' where they got all the things he needed and wanted for his room.
By the time they were paying, Teddy and Tom were exhausted. They waited for Hadrian, who went to pay for everything on one of the display beds. Not long into their wait, the two fell asleep on the bed. Hadrian, who had been keeping an eye on them, shook his head fondly and handed the money to the cashier.
He shrunk everything down and placed it in the one bag that carried all the other bags before picking up the two boys as carefully as possible.
When they got back, Hadrian placed them in their beds and left them to rest. He left the bags of Tom's new belongings by Tom's bed before closing his door.
"Who knew the dark lord was such an adorable child?" Hadrian muttered as he walked away from his room.