Chapter Text
Benefits & Finds
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Date: Summer Before Third Year, Late June
As the Dursleys and Harry were returning to Privet Drive after picking up the latter from the station Dudley says, "I'm hungry, can we go to a restaurant."
"Of course sweetums," says Petunia without even a pause to ask Vernon, who simply nods.
Vernon then says, "you okay with Potter coming or did you want us to drop him home first?"
"It's fine. The restaurant I want to go too is on our way home, its stupid to go home and come back," Dudley says with a slight nod towards his cousin.
Though Harry nodded at Dudley, he didn't say anything, since he didn't want to jinx what was going on.
Which led to the four going to the restaurant and having what was, in Harry's experience, an actual nice dining experience with the Dursleys. In fact, so pleasant was it that when Petunia stepped away to go to the ladies room Harry actually slipped some muggle bank notes to Vernon while softly saying, "thanks."
This got a simple nod back.
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As the Dursleys and Harry were driving back to Privet Drive they were not expecting tons of police and fire trucks to be littering the street. Pulling off to the side of the road near to the roadblock made by the official vehicles they got out and headed to an officer.
"What is going on here," Vernon says with his normal bluster.
"Pardon sir but the street is closed, a fire broke out at the end of Privet Drive and we are working to contain it." A pause then, "you need to be on your way."
"We can't our house is there," Petunia says with a gasp of shock. "We live at number 4 Privet Drive."
"No worries mam," the officer says, "your house is fine, nowhere near the blaze."
"What happened," Vernon says which leads the officer explaining that a fire broke out, as he said already, at 10 Privet Drive but seemed to have naturally contained itself. The problem was that it just wouldn't go out, hence the block.
While Vernon and Petunia talked to the officer Harry moved to the side and began looking around. As he did so he thought about what would contain such a blaze, and then he hit upon it, wards. Number 4 Privet Drive would have had all sort of wards on it, some of which would have activated as soon as they detected the heat, smoke, and fire going on at the end of the street.
As he was thinking about it he felt it, the plop of apparation. Then, from back behind a fire truck, came four people who to his senses gave off magic. With a grin, for he recognized one of them, Harry slowly made his way over to them.
He was more than halfway there when one of them, the women he knew was Madam Amelia Bones, turn slightly so that she was directly looking towards where he was coming from. Eyes widening at the realization of who she was looking at, she the said something to the others while gesturing for Harry to come close.
"Hello Madam Bones," Harry said with a smile as he got close to where she was.
"Lord Potter hello," she says with a nod, "what an unexpected surprise."
Harry grins at that, "honestly this whole situation is an unexpected surprise." A pause then, "I live at Number 4 Privet Drive while the fire started at 10 Privet Drive. From what the officer said something unknown stopped it before it could get closer than 6 Privet Drive."
"Does your home have wards Lord Potter," says the second wizard. He then stops, bows slightly and says, "Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt at your service."
"Hello Auror Shacklebolt," Harry says with a smile. "As for your question, yes it does. From what I know blood wards based on my mum's sacrifice plus many of the other standard magic wards." A pause, "though my Uncle is a muggle my Aunt and Cousin are squibs, though they do not know it." Another pause, "nor would they want to know it."
"Understood Lord Potter," Madam Bones says with a nod. She then moves her wand in a complicated fashion in order to figure out what is going on. "As you would suspect Lord Potter, -"
At which point Harry gently interrupts and says, "you may just call me Harry."
Giving him a nod she continues, "well as you would assume Harry it seems that the wards on your home are interacting with a number of other local wards, and doing weird things."
"Other wards?" Harry asks curiously.
An affirmative nod at that. "Yes two, one located at the residence of Arabella Figg, a squib, and the other which wraps around the whole street before stopping at the nearby park."
"Mrs Figg is a squib," Harry says shocked at that bit of news.
Though the wizards nod it is Shacklebolt who says, "she is also an acquaintance of the Headmaster, Harry. So you needn't worry about her presence here."
Harry snorts at that before blushing, "sorry, but it just means that the Headmaster put her here to spy on me but didn't tell me that he did so." A wave of dismissal, "anyway, so what happens next. Now that we know its a magical situation."
Madam Bones smiles and says, "its quite simple Harry, nothing to worry about. We have a series of spells we use which will shrink the wards in such a way that the fire gets stopped but their defenses do not weaken." Then comes a nod towards the officers, "we then aid them in putting out the fire."
"Do you need to change memories?" Harry asks curiously.
"Not in this case no," Madam Bones says matter of factly.
While Shacklebolt explains further, "thanks to all the new muggle chemicals this could have been completely natural."
Harry nods, "well then, I won't bother you anymore. Thank you for explaining what happened to me. I appreciate that."
"Not a problem Lord Potter, not a problem at all." Madam Bones says.
Harry gives a smile, nods once, and then makes way back to the Dursleys who are sitting in the car waiting.
"What is going on Potter?" Vernon asks once Harry got back to him, curious despite himself.
"They had to figure out what chemicals were put into the fire, but now that they have they can actively put it out. It should only take a few hours before everything is back to normal." A pause, "Privet 4 is fine, untouched."
"Why can't we go there?" Dudley asks, not whines, simply asks.
"They said its in the path their trucks are using so they evacuated both this street and the two bordering ones as well," Harry explains.
"They told you all this," Petunia says with a sniff in a manner that makes it more a comment and less an actual question.
A nod, "I recognized someone working to put the fire out. They were more than helpful." A pause then, "so unless you wanted to just sit here waiting it would make sense to go to the mall or something."
"Yes," Dudley says with a nod, "lets go to the mall."
"Should we drop Potter off at the park dear," Vernon says.
"With so many officers present that would probably not look good," Petunia says.
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Harry's last expectation, after separating from the Dursley's, was to get a tingle of magic as he passed by a wall. Blinking at the feeling he decided to check out the feeling, only to discover moments later that an entire hallway existed in the mall with purely magical shops.
Laughing in delight, but wishing he had found this earlier, Harry began checking them out. With a growing smile Harry found a book shop with attached cafe, stationary store, pet supply shop, clothing boutique, and a games seller. But that wasn't what caused him to stop in shock, which was the magical cinema that lay at the end of the hallway.
For all that he had studied the magical world in his pursuit of knowing all he could know, he did not even realize that such a place existed. Which was why, as he gazed at the movie lists, he said "oh, this is where I am going on my birthday."
Then with a chuckle he turned around and began visiting the various stores that were present. Including, for most of the time available, the book store with its small cafe. It was within there that he made a point to look for a book explaining the nature of the present magical mall. He would discover, much to his amusement, that it was due to the actions of a rich and noble pureblood who married the muggleborn daughter of the founder of the mall. In order to get his new father-in-law to like him he put quite a bit of money into its design, building, and operation. In order to edge Ministry law he included a magical part to it, just because he could. What brought a smile to Harry’s face was when he read that the mall was still doing quite well magically, with a clientele of families from all around England.
It was three hours later that he made his way to the point the Dursleys had designated the meet up point. What amused him greatly was that he was the second to get there, besides Vernon that is. This fact made it all the more humorous when thirty minutes later Petunia appeared with a cart filled with a number of shopping bags.
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Hours later, tired, but in good humor at his find Harry was sitting in his wizarding tent relaxing with a good book. As he was resting he jumped slightly when he felt the magic of the tent shift which was followed by the gateway chamber going to secured mode for a second.
Not long afterward Remus comes into the living room with a big smile on his face, "well that worked."
Harry laughed as he got up to hug the man that he hadn't physically seen for the whole school year. Soon afterward Remus sat down across from Harry which led him to say, "Hey Remus, hows it going?"
Then, once the initial greetings were done, the two began talking and sharing all the stories they both had been saving up for a live meeting.
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