F O U R
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It was on a pleasant, Sunday afternoon that Mrs. Weasley suggested a trip to Diagon Alley. In just mere weeks, the school term was due to commence and it was 'high time' -as Mrs. Weasley had put it- that they collected their school supplies.

Much to Ron's distaste, they had embarked, early in the morning, leaving minimal amount of time for sleeping.

Choosing apparition as their method of transportation, the five of them entered Diagon Alley in the early hour of the morning, hoping to avoid the crowds.

Naturally, Hermione had provided suitable disguises for each of them using polyjuice potion. As the potion would alter their sizes, none of them would be quite the same size as their regular selves, therefore they chose to be fitted for their robes first prior to downing the foul tasting liquid.

Although it was Summer, each of them donned a cloak, with the intention of masking their faces as even in the earliest hours of the morning, the crowds still lingered. Not to mention it was still quite chilly so they were not the only ones dressed in winter attire.

Much to their disbelief, the five of them were able to pass through unnoticed and only when they arrived at Madame Malkin's Robe's For All Occasions, did they dare lower their hoods.

Quite the opposite to the streets outside, Madame Malkin's was empty. Almost.

A young girl, who looked to be around thirteen, sat patiently in a chair, as she was fitted. She didn't even flinch as she observed the newcomers, on the contrary, she barely payed the group a second glance.

Harry was almost certain he had never seen her before, yet her robes bore the Hogwarts crest.

"I'll be just a moment," Madame Malkin called from her position across the room as another witch took over the task of fitting the young girl.

A few seconds later, Madame Malkin hurried over to the front of the shop, dressed in olive green robes. "Hogwarts, I presume?"

The five of them nodded and Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny followed the plump witch towards the back of the shop.

"It's just Lydia and I this morning, you'll each have to wait your turn," she said, pushing Ron forward who clumsily clambered up onto the stool.

Madame Malkin grabbed a long robe from what appeared to be out of thin air, and slipped it over his head. "You lot can take a seat over there, if you want," she motioned towards a cluster of wooden stools which had been placed neatly in the corner.

Hermione, Harry and Ginny made their way to the uncomfortable looking chairs where Mrs. Weasley was already seated.

"They don't bite," Mrs. Weasley said, noticing their hesitation.

The three of them gingerly sat down, perching awkwardly on the edge of the seats.

Harry watched as the dark haired girl beside Ron, hopped off the stool and collected her freshly made garment. The other witch, who Harry presumed was Lydia, led her back to the other side of the shop and returned alone, a few minutes later.

"Well, don't just sit there," she huffed, glaring at the trio. "I haven't got all day."

***

A short while afterwards, they exited the shop, taking on the forms of seemingly random muggles, each of them cringing as they consumed their potions.

Hardly an hour had passed, yet during their time inside Madame Malkin's, the streets had become crowded, proving it difficult to navigate.
Mrs. Weasley suggested they split up. Ron and Harry would collect their school books, Ginny and Hermione would head to Magical Menagerie, and Mrs. Weasley would pass by Gringotts, the wizard bank, which was still undergoing repair from their last visit.

Fortunately for Ron and Harry, Flourish and Blotts was right next to Madame Malkin's, so they needn't walk far.

Pushing through the crowd, they soon left behind the others who were heading in the opposite direction.

"Have you got the booklist?" Ron asked as they reached the store.

Harry pulled out four crumpled pieces of parchment from his pocket, and handed it to his friend.

"Hermione was right," he muttered. "I can't remember any of these being on the lists last year."

"Since when do you pay attention to what's on the book lists?" Harry laughed.

"Since a bloody book tried to eat me!" he exclaimed, pushing against the door as it opened to reveal the interior.

Harry's eyes widened. The store was overflowed to the brim. The population bustled about, making conversation with one another and the staff rushed about frantically, trying to accommodate each customers needs.

"Oi, you're blocking the doorway, move it kid."

A burly looking boy shoved past them as he exited the shop.

"Why are there so many people?" Harry asked, bewildered, as he and Ron moved away from the entrance. Ron shrugged, casting a glance towards the manager who looked to be on the verge of a breakdown.

"Guess, we'll have to find the books ourselves," Harry said, observing the occupied staff. He turned towards Ron. "What do we need?"

The red head glanced towards the crumpled list and squinted. "Uh, Standard Book Of Spells, Grade 7, Miranda Goshawk," he paused. "And, Grade 6 for Ginny."

"Where would that be?"

"I've got absolutely no idea."

"Wonderful."

"What do we do now?

"Try a summoning spell?" Harry suggested.

Ron shrugged and pulled out his wand. "Accio, uh.. Standard Book Of Spells, Grade 7.."

A book flew off a shelf from across the room and whacked him in the stomach, sending him flying into a wall. Ron groaned in pain from his position on the floor.

"Huh, it actually worked," Harry said, slightly surprised.

"Does it look like it worked?" Ron grumbled, standing up.

Harry picked up the book and turned it over. "Summoning Charms Gone Awry," he read.

"You're bloody kidding me," Ron groaned.

"Can't you read? There's a sign on the door that clearly says Summoning Charms Not Permitted!"

Harry turned around to find a very agitated looking man before him. He had met the manager of Flourish and Blotts in his fourth year and was surprised to find that he looked very much the same. The only difference to his apparel was that he was now sporting a shiny name tag over his navy robes which read 'Dominic Gibbons - Flourish and Blotts.'

"I suppose you two are also attending Hogwarts!" he exclaimed, clearly frustrated. "That Hagrid's gone and requested another completely berserk book! And if I have to chase another shapeshifting book around the store, I'm going to to go into early retireme-"

"We're not participating in Care Of Magical Creatures," Harty interjected.

The manager sighed in relief. "In that case, how can I help you?"

"Here," Ron said, passing over the four crinkled pieces of parchment.

Mr. Gibbons skimmed over McGonagall's neat cursive, and nodded unenthusiastically. "Right this way."

He took off towards the back of the store, where the tallest shelves were located. Harry and Ron trailed in his wake.

"We've moved most of the required Hogwarts textbooks over here. Makes things a whole lot easier, considering it's now the most popular school in Scotland. Most of the things you need should be here-"

"What are those?" Ron interrupted, pointing to a rectangular shaped cage hanging from the ceiling above. Strange creatures hobbled about, occasionally screeching, some flying or attacking others. A man, with a sack, stood on a very tall ladder, trying to keep his balance as he fumbled with a key as he attempted to open the cage door.

Mr. Gibbons looked upwards and scowled. "The Walking Guide To Magical Creatures," he replied with a sullen edge to his voice. "The shapeshifting books."

On closer inspection, Harry and Ron discerned the changing forms of the creatures. A leprechaun transformed into a menacing bird with claws. A flobberworm became a small erumpent.

Harry watched with awe as the man on the ladder successfully opened the cage door. The noise in the cage ceased. For a second there was a blissful silence, until a beady eyed imp launched itself at the door, sensing and opportunity for escape. The man on the ladder thwacked it on its head with his wand and the imp doubled over, dazed.

It stumbled out of the cage like a drunk, and plummeted towards the ground.

The cage door was slammed shut, as the remainder of the books, snapped out of their stupor and attacked the previously open escape route.

The manager hurried over to where the imp had landed. A dark brown book, had taken its place. It trembled and began to shake. Wasting no time, Mr. Gibbons produced his wand from his robes and uttered an incantation. A sickly fluorescent, green substance drenched the book, rendering it unable to move, and preventing it from transforming.

The man on the ladder, climbed down, and thanked the manager. He picked up the slimy object with distaste and shoved it into his sack.

Ron stared after the man, dumbfounded, as he was lost from sight behind another row of bookshelves.

"Those books are a menace! Just yesterday, a bunch of them escaped and flew about, terrorising the customers! It's bad for business. They're worse than those hardbacks that controlled the weather! The amount of thunderstorms we had that year-"

"Mr. Gibbons?" Harry broke in.

"Right, I'm going off track. As I was saying prior to that ah, interruption, most of the books you need, will be here," he motioned towards the two isles on their left. "All the necessities for the core subjects, are usually on the bottom shelves and anything else would be above, depending on the year level."

They followed him into the first isle. Mr. Gibbons bent down and plucked a book off the bottom shelf. "Miranda Goshawks, Standard Book Of Spells, Grade 6, I believe was needed."

He muttered something quietly to himself and pulled out three more paperbacks.

"Three copies of Edition 7," he said passing them to Ron.

Mr. Gibbons moved along the shelves, occasionally checking for clarification from Ron and Harry, and collecting each and every one of their required textbooks.

No less than forty five minutes later, they payed for their schoolbooks and made their way toward Magical Menagerie, where they had decided to meet.

Harry now carried a small knapsack in which their purchases resided, courtesy of an extra five galleons. The knapsack was larger on the inside than on the outside, similarly to the purse Hermione had carried during their time on the run. Harry having not yet perfected the undetectable extension charm, chose to pay, rather than use magic on it himself.

As the entrance of Magical Menagerie came into view, the forms of Ginny and Hermione could be seen, seated at the steps leading to the doorway.

"Did you get the books?" Hermione asked.

In response, Harry dropped the bag at her feet. Hermione grabbed the knapsack and opened it, nodding in approval as she emptied her goods into the opening. She passed it to Ginny who did the same.

"Nice job with the charm, Harry," Ginny said as she closed the bag. Her praise caused Ron to snicker. "Harry didn't do that. He bought it off the manager at Flourish and Blotts."

Hermione shook her head in exasperation. "A waste of money," she said. "Could have just asked me to do it."

"Too much effort for the two of them to carry everything over here," Ginny said.

"Where's mum?" Ron interrupted.

"Gone to Potage's to pick up a cauldron for me. Said she'd meet us outside Quality Quidditch Supplies. I think Harry wanted to get a new broom..?"

Harry nodded. His Firebolt had never been recovered and although he hated to have to replace it, he needed a new one since he was on the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.

"Are you sure you don't want to get another owl?" Hermione asked, picking herself up off the stairs, and dusting herself off, with Ginny following suit.

Harry shook his head. "I can't replace Hedwig."

Ginny nodded in understanding and gave his shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. "Quality Quidditch Supplies is just down the street, we should hurry, before it gets crowded."

She picked up Harrys's knapsack and the four of them advanced along the cobblestone street, heading once again into the throng.

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