Chapter 4 : Getting Started

The next week at the Burrow was too busy for everyone. Even Fred and George were busy with some work. Tonks and Lupin were not there. They had left. Harry and Hermione were made to do nothing, as they were their guests. Bill and Charlie were repeatedly absent from home. Mr.Weasley was however busy with his work. Mrs.Weasley went frequently to Diagon Alley to buy some stuff for the wedding ceremony. Fleur and Gabrielle made some decorations for the home. They both sometimes sing at night to entertain the people at home. Ginny clapped along with others that Harry thought she did unwillingly.
“How did I sing Haary?” asked Gabrielle.
“Yes, very good” Harry replied and smiled.
Gabrielle’s went red and so did Ginny almost matching her hair.
“His name is not Haary. It is Harry”
“I am sorry” replied Gabrielle with her innocent expression.
“She will correct herself” Fleur came for defense.
“Whatever” Ginny said and left the hall.
For the entire week Ginny had trouble with Gabrielle. Once in an occasion, she slipped her teacup thus spoiling her clothes. Once she tripped her with her feet. But she had a ready-made answer for it “I am sorry”
“Has Ginny gone mad?” asked Ron as they met at Harry’s room.
“I don’t know” replied Harry as he was wondering about something else.
“No she is not Harry” said Hermione “I guess its because of Gabrielle”
“Gabrielle?”
“Yes, Gabrielle. I think you need to spend more time with Ginny”
“Yes I am. How long do you suppose me to stay with Ginny? I am with her almost all the time”
“Yes you are” said Ron and he left the room as Mrs.Weasley called him.
“Yes you are, Harry. Try to praise Ginny”
“Dumb things girls want” said Harry angrily.
At the dining table, Harry made no attempts to look at Ginny or Gabrielle as both were looking at him at times. There was complete silence. Harry thought the hall was silent because Fred and George weren’t there. They had gone for duty, which Mrs.Weasley proudly said. However Mr.Weasley broke the silence,
“How about apparation tests tomorrow boys?”
“Yes that is great dad” said Ron
“How about you Harry?”
“Brilliant Mr.Weasley”
The next morning, Harry and Ron got ready for the apparation test. It was too early. They got ready at 6. All the three were in muggle clothes. Mr.Weasley made no delay. Mrs.Weasley cooked them some quick breakfast. Harry quickly ate his share of bacon and eggs. Gabrielle woke up early and wished Harry. Harry thanked her that made her blush.
They walked up to the underground station and boarded an underground train that rattled them off towards the center of London. Ron was staring amazingly at the train and the way the stile swallowed their tickets.
They walked again till they reached a place that contained shabby looking offices, a pub and an overflowing skip.
Mr.Weasley opened the telephone-box door and led them both inside. They were completely jam packed inside. Mr.Weasley picked up the receiver and dialed six… two.. Four.. Four.. Two. As the dial swirled back into place, a female voice( which made Ron jump) sounded inside the telephone box.
“Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business”
“Arthur Weasley, Head of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects, here to escort and Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley who have come to attend the apparation test”
“Thank you visitors” said the female voice “Please take your badges and attach it to the front of your robes”
Harry and Ron picked up the badges that came out of the metal chute and pinned it to their shirts.
“Visitors to the Ministry, you are required to submit a search and present your wand for the registration at the security desk, which is located at the far end of the Atrium”
The telephone box made its way down through the earth.
“The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant day” said the woman’s voice again.
“I wish the woman speaks to us directly face-to-face. Her voice is cool. I bet she will be cool as her voice.” whispered Ron.
Harry giggled and they passed the group of golden statues and then handed over their wands to a security named Eric and they entered the lift. The lift ascended slowly and the lift stopped somewhere and the same female voice spoke
"Level Seven, Department of Magical Games and Sports, incorporating the British and
Irish Quidditch League Headquarters, Official Gobstones Club and Ludicrous Patents
Office."
Several wizards made their way out and some entered. The lift ascended again and this time they stopped at their destination.
"Level Six, Department of Magical Transportation, incorporating the Floo Network
Authority, Broom Regulatory Control, Portkey Office and Apparation Test Centre."
Mr.Weasley, Ron and Harry made their way out of the lift and reached a place where the board said ‘Apparation Test Centre’
“Go on Harry and Ron. All the best to both of you” said Mr.Weasley and gestured a thumbs-up at both of them.
They entered the test hall. It was quite big and huge and Wilkie Tycross was there inspecting some students and some wizards and witches. Seamus Finnigan was also there. “Hi Harry and Ron” beamed Seamus
“Hi” said both and made no more speech.
Harry passed the apparation at an instant. He wondered whether Ron could make through the test. But Ron made it successfully. Wilkie congratulated them and asked them to collect their certificates from a shabby looking wizard. They both collected their certificates and headed outside. Mr.Weasley was waiting for them and he was talking to Rufus Scrimgeour.
“Mr.Potter it is indeed a pleasure in meeting you again” said Rufus Scrimgeour
“Thanks. Mr.Weasley shall we leave?” Harry said not taking those words from Scrimgeour
All the three left the Ministry and immediately went to the burrow. Gabrielle was once again the first to congratulate Harry. She gave hands to Harry that made him swirl inside. All this happened in front of Ginny and she stared at Harry as if she could read his inner reactions to Gabrielle.
“I knew you could make it” said Ginny.
“Hey is there no one to wish me?” Ron said who was observing all this with a sigh.
“Congrats Ron” said Gabrielle in a French accent that Harry thought he found out just now.
“Thanks” said Ron with a wide smile giving his hands expecting her to do the same. But Gabrielle backed off not noticing what he did.
Mrs.Weasley prepared them a good lunch for their achievement that she considered it so. Bill and Fleur congratulated him, as did Fred and George. Harry decided the thing that he was thinking for the past few days should be done the next day.
“Fred, may I come to your shop tomorrow to help you?” asked Harry with a grin.
“No Harry we can manage it” said Fred.
“Please”
“Mom won’t allow you” said George.
“I will ask her”
He somehow persuaded Mrs.Weasley with the condition that Fred and George were to accompany him all the time.
“No, not you Ron” said Mrs.Weasley when he made a hand gesture that he too wanted to join Harry.
Hermione and Ginny were talking with Gabrielle, which seemed odd to Harry.
The next day Harry, Fred and George went together to Diagon Alley through the Floo Network. For good reasons, Harry had taken his invisibility cloak along with him. Harry was not too good at the Floo network. The first time he used it to go to Diagon Alley, he ended up at Knockturn Alley. But this time he pronounced it correctly and he ended up at Diagon Alley right at Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. Harry found himself dirty just half-an-hour after bath.
“Enjoy yourself here, Harry” said Fred
“Take this badge” said George and handed him a staff badge.
“Accesso momentum” said George pointing his wand at the door and the door opened. The streets were empty as it was too early for customers to arrive. All the three had a face wash and just then the two staffs arrived. One was the girl whom he had seen last year. Another was a pretty Asian girl whom he assumed was an Indian.
After two or three busy hours, the lunch hour came and the customers were not to be seen much. Just then Harry thought the time has come for him and he asked Fred to accompany him outside.
“What do you want to do outside?” asked Fred suspiciously
“Nothing. I just want to buy some stuffs” replied Harry which came out of his mouth as he was not sure what he should reply.
“Ok I will come with you” said Fred and then pointing his hands towards George said “Take care of the shop George. I will be right back”
Harry put the invisibility cloak around himself when none were seeing.
“What is that for?” asked Fred
“I want no one to see me” replied Harry.
“You better stay close with me or we will lose each other” said George as they were heading down the streets.
“Where are we going?” asked Fred.
“Flourish & Blott’s”
They entered the shop that was too empty with just a single customer. Fred stared around making gestures of a customer.
“Ha Mr.Weasley. Welcome“
“Yes thank you”.
“What book do you want?” Fred added to Harry.
“The best ever book of defensive spells” Harry whispered.
“What? Why do you want that book?”
“A stuff I might need”
Fred told the shopkeeper that he needed a defensive book, the best of its kind. The shopkeeper looked at Fred suspiciously but did not make any more questions and got him two books both equally heavy
“Do you want both?” asked the shopkeeper. Fred nodded.
“That would cost six galleons”
Fred then said that he needed another book for Magical Injuries. As the shopkeeper went to get the book, Harry immediately handed over six galleons from his pocket to Fred and they got the book and paid only for the defense books and headed outside.
“Alright then, we shall go to our shop now, shall we?” asked Fred
“No, not so soon” Harry replied and took Fred towards the Gringotts bank and took some money from his account.
“Who is the author of the book?” asked Harry after they headed out of Gringotts.
Fred looked at the book and read “The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Tremble”
“What about the other book?”
“Defense Academy by Scrimgeour”
Harry was shocked to hear that. But he didn’t make any other word.
“Where are we going now?”
“Knockturn Alley”
“What?” Fred was amused “Are you crazy? Even I have never gone there before”
“I have gone there twice. This time I will guide you”
Fred did not make any word and there was complete silence as they entered the Knockturn Alley. The street was narrow and Harry found a shop that would suit his needs. It was “Lisy’s Dark Needs”.
“Here we enter. This is a book shop” said Harry.
“You seem to know much of Knockturn Alley” beamed Fred.
They entered the shop that was too lonely with no customers and there was a lady aged around thirty. The furniture of the shop was too old but they have been newly painted. The lady whom Harry assumed to be Lisy had a sharp pointed nose and was quite slim with dark hair and walked as if she had a limp on her right leg.
“May I help you sir?” she told Fred, as she could not see Harry. Her voice was too girlish much like Dolores Umbridge.
“I am just looking around” replied Fred.
“Harry, what do you want this time?” whispered Fred.
“Book of Dark Spells and Jinxes, the best of its kind”
“What?” shouted Fred, this time forgetting that he should have whispered.
“Yes. Maintain silence please” said Lisy. “What book do you want?”
“Book of Dark Spells and Jinxes, the best of its kind” George said imitating Harry.
“May I know your reasons why you need that book?” Lisy enquired suspiciously.
Fred thought of an answer quickly and said, “I own a shop at Diagon Alley” and showed Lisy his card “I may need it to make some of my joke items”
“Ok I will get it for you” still having a suspicious look at Fred “That would be eight galleons” and she went inside.
Harry quickly passed on eight galleons into Fred’s pocket.
“This is the only book left of the once best selling edition” said Lisy and handed over a dusty book.
They paid for the book and rushed out of Knockturn Alley fearing that anyone would see Fred.
Harry removed his cloak once he got inside the shop that this time had begin to flood with customers.
“Harry what you want that book for?” asked Fred now George listening to them “People will think you are mad if they see you having those books”
“I don’t want anyone to see them”
The night time arrived and they returned to the Burrow hiding the books away from Mrs.Weasley. Harry quickly went to his room and hid the books. They had a quiet dinner and Harry gestured Ron and Hermione to come to his room. Ginny gave a questioned look at Harry. Harry replied with a smile wondering how to react.
All the three entered the room and closed the door and Harry immediately revealed the books to Ron and Hermione.
“Brilliant! How did you get those?” asked Ron with his usual surprising stare.
“Fred helped me get them”
“Harry, you are not supposed to have those books. Those are dangerous” Hermione dripped into the conversation.
Harry cast her a look that made her change her words.
“Harry, listen. What are you going to do with these books?” said Hermione
“These might be useful for dueling with Voldemort and his cronies”
Ron hiccoughed at the name of Voldemort and laughed at those final words from Harry.
“But Harry, why do you need the Book of Dark Spells?”
“To block a dark spell, we need to know its effect and its power. So I thought this book would be useful too”
“But Harry, did you look at the author?”
Harry quickly read the name of the author “Severus Snape”. Harry’s stomach made a flipper upside down as he read the name. It was once a best selling book. It was too old. Harry opened and looked at the year of publishing, the book had been written twenty years before. Snape had a long time fascination for Dark Spells. But he had never thought he would have written a book for it. Indeed he was the one who had written all the dark spells in the Potions Book, which he had last year.
“This may find to be useful too when I am dueling with him”
“And who are these two authors?” asked Ron
“Quentin Trimble, a very good author and…” paused Hermione
“Scrimgeour” Harry said breaking the pause “Do you think that is Rufus Scrimgeour?”
“No idea” replied Hermione.
“How are you going to find the horcruxes Harry?”
“I have no idea. I will think about it later”
“Be careful Harry. You may lose your life” Hermione said with a hemione-ish look.
“Yes I will. I will fight even if it costs my life”
“Then I will fight too” came a voice from nowhere.
The door opened and someone was standing in the doorway. Harry was shocked to see the person who had overheard the conversation, and who had extendable ears in her hands. It was Ginny Weasley.