Secrets and Consequences

I saw a bird walk down the walk,

He did not know I saw,

He bit an angel worm in halves,

And ate the fellow raw.

Emily Dickinson

Diagon Alley, an Unpleasant Encounter, and Petunia's Surprise.

Harry had a headache. No, Harry had a splitting migraine. Petunia was screeching at Professor Lupin's choice of honor guard without pausing for breath and had been doing so for the last hour. Poor Lupin couldn't seem to get it through Petunia's head that it was for her own protection. Vernon, on the other hand, had taken one look at the assemblage of wizards and witches, grunted, and returned to the exile of their private rooms, refusing to become involved with any of them. Petunia, however, didn't have that luxury, as she needed to provide clothing to her family and refused to wear anymore of Molly's hand me downs. Harry, of course, didn't blame her for that, as Mrs. Weasley was a much shorter and wider person than his aunt. It was actually kind of funny to see Petunia struggling not to give into embarrassment over the tent like fabric that hung loosely to her knees. A full-length dress, one that hung to her knees. Harry couldn't help the snort that slipped out though, earning him a furious glare. Still, his head throbbed and he could feel the pressure behind his eyes building by the moment. Petunia screeched, Mrs. Black screamed, Lupin cringed. The heads on the wall glared at him, and he could hear Sirius singing God Rest Ye Merry Hippogriffs at the top of his lungs over the din. An echo of a memory tearing at his soul.

Finally the inevitable occurred and Harry snapped. "SHUT UP! Shut up, everyone!" Oddly enough, everyone did. Harry stared at them incredulously. "You all..." He stuttered, tears burning behind his eyes. "God, just stop. I can't take this right now." He ran to his room, fighting back the urge to cry. Inside his room, Ron sat replacing his items in an overnight bag. "Ron..." Harry's voice was thick with emotion. Memories flashed through his mind. Being chased by giant spiders, cringing as rocks and debris fell upon them, and watching as brain-like matter attacked his best friend. His best friend, whom always seemed to be endangered by him. "My fault..." Harry choked quietly. "Its all my fault. You, Hermione, Sirius." His eyes glazed over. "Sirius..." he whispered. He sat down heavily on his bed, his head falling into shaking hands as he fought against his emotions. "I killed him. I killed him and I almost killed you." His words were interrupted by his heavy breathing.

"Harry?" Ron walked to his best friend's side. "It wasn't your fault. We all made choices. You’re our friend and we'll follow you where you go." He sat down beside him. "You’re the brother I wish I had."

Harry rolled bleary eyes at his best friend. "Ron, you already have five brothers. You hardly need another."

Ron chuckled. "That's it exactly, Harry. I was born into that family. I had no choice over my brothers. You, I choose as a brother. That, in my opinion, makes it all the more better."

Harry laughed at Ron's backward logic. "You think you've won for now. Just ‘cause you made me laugh doesn't mean anything." He was grim once more. "You all could have died there. And it would have been my fault."

"Mate..." Ron looked uncomfortable. "Don't obsess over it. I'm fine. Hermione is... getting better. It's not your fault. You don't force us to do anything. That's why we're friends."

"Ron..." Harry gazed intently at the cracked and peeling wallpaper. "He's gone, Ron. He's not coming back."

"No, mate. He's not." Ron sighed. "I'm sorry, Harry."

"It's not your fault, Ron." Harry smiled weakly at his best friend. Its mine. "It's just fate, I guess."

"Harry?" Ron’s worried eyes searched his friend. "You okay now?"

"No, Ron." He couldn't lie. "I'm not okay at all. But I will be."

"You ready to go?" Ron smiled weakly. "Mum's gonna take you as far as The Leaky Cauldron before we split up. You could use a day out anyway. "

"Yeah Ron, I'm ready." Someday I will be, too.

Lupin was relieved to watch Harry come down the stairs with the gangly redhead in tow. He knew Harry was taking it really hard and couldn't think of a thing to do to make it easier on the teen. Lupin himself was grieving for Sirius. What he had said to Harry that night at Private Drive was true. He was the last marauder. He couldn't help but feel a little responsible for the child of his dearest friends, as he was the last one left who truly knew his parents. "Ready to go Harry? We have a lot to do today. I'm sure you'd like to get some new clothes that don't hang on you like those ones do." Lupin grinned at Harry when Petunia sniffed haughtily at the remark.

"Yeah, I'm ready." Harry smiled weakly. "Um... How are we getting there?"

"I'm driving." Lupin's grin widened.

Petunia's eyes widened in dismay. "Can you drive? Do you have a license? Maybe I should drive. I..." She trailed off when everyone in the room looked at her oddly. "What!" She snapped. "I have no desire to die in a car crash."

"Don't worry, Mrs. Dursley. I am a good driver." Lupin smiled wryly. "Now we just have to fit everyone into the minivan."

Surprisingly, they did manage to make a tight squeeze into the vehicle. Harry had been surprised to see the small carport attached to the house when they went to get into the auto. Harry was firmly sandwiched between Ron and Mad-Eye Moody. He was more than a little amused to see his Aunt Petunia between Molly Weasley and Tonks. Shacklebot was sitting next to Lupin in the front seat. The drive was sedate at least; nobody seemed comfortable enough to start a conversation. This may have been because of Petunia's presence or just because of the reason behind the little outing. Either way, Harry was excited. It had been a long time since he'd been able to go into Diagon Alley. Even if he were only going to Gringott's now, it was nice to be able to see the Wizarding shopping area. Petunia's face seemed to grow tighter and tighter as the ride progressed. Lupin, on the other hand seemed to be having the time of his life. He had turned on the vehicle's radio and was humming along merrily to the tunes playing. Mad-Eye kept sending suspicious glances at the singing professor, as though he was unsure that Lupin was himself.

The Leaky Cauldron's entrance was just as disreputable as Harry remembered it. The curiously subdued party clambered out of the parked minivan and began heading for the entrance with a very confused and vocal Petunia in tow.

Diagon alley was just how Harry remembered it. The interesting characters that filled the Wizarding world were present and in abundance. Harry couldn't help the grin that fell over his face as the street opened before him.

"We have to get going now." Ron said from behind him. "Mum just wanted to make sure that you got here safely. We're going to Floo to St. Mungo's now." Ron shifted uncomfortably. "Take care of yourself, Harry."

Harry grinned at Ron. "You bet. See you soon?"

Ron smiled as he turned to leave. "As soon as possible." He walked back into the pub.

Harry watched his retreating figure for a moment before turning towards Remus. "Ready?" He asked. "I need to go to the bank."

Lupin nodded and started toward the large building that dominated the end of the alleyway, Aurors, Muggle, and boy-who-lived following at a short distance.

The bank seemed busy today. Harry had a hard time finding an available Goblin to take him to his vault. He was glad that Mrs. Weasley still had his key or else he really would have been in a bind. Moody and the others had taken up tactical positions around the banks entrances that Hary would be traveling through. Lupin was trying to calm down Petunia's hysteria that seemed to have erupted when she had seen the short, vicious looking goblins that ran the prestigious bank. Harry was hoping he'd be able to get to the teller's window soon. He hated standing in line. Twenty minutes passed and Harry was finally only about the third person in line it seemed, however; that the line wasn't going to move any further. There seemed to be a bit of a commotion at the front of the line. Harry wanted to scream in frustration.

"You will have to step aside so that the next customer can be helped." The goblin behind the desk said to the woman standing in front of him. "Your assets are frozen, per court's request. I cannot help you."

"This isn't the end of this." The threat was stated in a formal icy tone, almost as if politely asking of the weather. The woman had turned and started pushing her way through the throng of people, politely shoving people to the side in an attempt to get through the crowd excusing her rudeness as she passed. Until she got to Harry.

She wore a light blue satin cloak that swept the floor. The hood pulled up to hide her face from prying eyes. Pale strands of hair peaked out around the edges of the cloaks hood so pale that it was almost white , like spider silk floating on the breeze. Her hand was extended as though she was going to push right by him, until she looked up and saw whom she was about to touch. Silver eyes widened in shock before narrowing in anger. Her glare was ice and steel. "Mr. Potter. Such a surprise to see you here." Her gaze took in his appearance. "You look quite well." One perfectly formed slender brow raised in derision.

"Mrs. Malfoy. How is your day going?" Harry stated as calmly as possible, trying to maintain an impersonal manner.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "My day could be better." She sniffed delicately. Her eyes seemed to speak volumes as they flashed in accusation. "After all, my husband is imprisoned, my funds have been frozen, and my son has been cursed. Tell me Mr. Potter, how do you think my day is going?"

Harry seemed to withdraw into himself at that icy gaze, but refused to give in to the pressure she exerted. "I am sorry about the funds. I know how important money is to your family." His reply was calm and even, and managed to imply that he didn't care one way or the other about the suffering of her family. It was a cold reply to a cold woman, and Harry almost regretted sinking down to her level.

The slight narrowing of her eyes was the only indication that his verbal jab had gotten to her. Across the room, Lupin had looked up and noticed who exactly it was that Harry was talking to. With a curt gesture he left Petunia's side and began winding his way through the crowd to Harry's side. Narcissa looked up and noticed the werewolf's change of direction. "It was a pleasure speaking to you, Mr. Potter. I can see why Draco holds you in such high regard."

Harry smiled sadly at the cool blond. "Is this really what you want for your child?" He shook his head in sorrow. "Do you really want him bowing before and kissing the hem of some madman's robe for the rest of his life?"

Narcissa hissed quietly in anger. "You presume too much, Mr. Potter."

"Do I?" Harry whispered below his breath. He turned away from the seething woman as the line finally began to move forward. "It was a pleasure talking to you, Mrs. Malfoy. We should speak more often."

She opened her mouth to say something scathing but was interrupted by the arrival of the werewolf. "Yes, Mr. Potter. I do believe we shall speak again." She turned and moved gracefully through the crowd, powder blue silk flowing about her elegantly.

The rest of the bank visit was rather anticlimactic after that unpleasant encounter. Harry was able to get into his vault and transfer some of his galleons into pounds so that he could purchase some clothing in Muggle London. He was almost excited at the prospect of going clothes shopping. He'd never actually bought new clothes in the Muggle world before. It was only as they were preparing to leave the bank that Harry thought of one other thing that he wanted to attend to while he was here in Diagon Alley.

"Remus?" Harry stopped the forward progress of the man with that quietly spoken word. "I would like to go to Ollivander's for a moment."

Lupin searched the eyes of his young charge. "Okay." He smiled grimly. So sad that such a young man should have to think about wars and strategy. "Let me inform the others."

By this point Petunia's patience had run very thin. "I don't want to go anywhere else in this abnormal place. I want to leave, finish my errands, and get back to my family. If you hadn't noticed, it is starting to get late in the day."

Harry looked sideways at his aunt. He could see how nervous she was in this place. At the same time though, he couldn't help but notice that she wasn't shocked. He had thought the appearance of all the different Wizarding cultures would have had his 'completely normal' aunt in hysterics by now. Harry was deeply confused.

They continued their walk to Ollivander's despite Petunia's protest. The store was just as Harry remembered it - musty with the ageless scent of dust and old wood. Dingy light filtered through the storefront windows casting eerie shadows around the front room. It was a quiet space, the only sound being the harsh breathing of Petunia behind Harry and Lupin. Tonks stood, abnormally quiet, behind Petunia bringing up the rear. The others had elected to wait outside to secure the perimeter. As they waited for the aged shopkeeper, Harry studied the fearful look on his aunt's face. She stood straight, and stiff clutching at her thin link bracelet on her wrist almost spasmodically. Her breathing almost whistled in the confined space. Harry's perusal of his aunt was interrupted by the arrival of Mr. Ollivander from the back store room.

"Ah, Mr. Potter. I didn't expect to see you in here so soon." He gazed at Harry over smudged spectacles. "Your wand is in good order, isn't it?"

"Of course, sir." Harry responded. "I was wondering if I might speak to you about a sensitive subject."

"You need a new wand, don't you." Ollivander sighed, remembering how difficult matching this particular client had been to begin with. "Its quite illegal for me to sell you a second wand you know."

"I had suspected." Harry admitted ruefully. "However, due to certain extenuating circumstances, I have found that there is something that my current wand jut can't do."

"Priori Incantatum." Ollivander sighed. "Why don't you follow me into the back room and we'll discuss this." He looked up at Lupin and sighed. "Bring your escort with you if you need to." His gaze wandered past Lupin and over Tonks and Aunt Petunia. "Well, there's a surprise." The wizened old man walked past Lupin to the two ladies by the entryway. "I never thought to see you in here again."

Tonks looked at the old man curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Sorry, m'dear. Not you." Mr. Ollivander smiled. "Maple, 7 1/2 inches, unicorn hair. Wasn't it my dear?"

Harry turned to watch Mr. Ollivander progress through the store. At first it didn't register what he was saying to the two ladies. After all, it couldn't be. It was impossible.

"Fancy bit of transfiguration, that." Ollivander nodded towards Petunia's bracelet. "But I recognize one of my wands no matter what shape it takes. Who did that marvelous bit of magic? I must know. It looks as though it is still in good working order, despite the shape."

"My sister." Petunia sighed in defeat. "And yes, it still works. Though I haven't used it in a very long time."

Harry's eyes widened in horror. "Aunt Petunia..." He gulped down the hysteria that bubbled within him at the realization. "You’re a witch?"