Harry looked out the window as his father amused himself with his younger brother. This time, Brian wanted to fly for a while and play Quidditch, which was quite usual in their family – Harry's family, though it seemed no one could remember him. He sighed despondently; his brother had done it again, taking advantage of Harry's birthday to monopolise all their parents' attention and ensure they wouldn't remember him.
He should be used to it; after all, his parents had never remembered his birthday. He only knew it was his birthday because Remus had always celebrated it and given him a book. If anyone asked him, Remus was the only person who actually cared about him.
Thinking of Remus, who would be arriving soon – he always came around ten in the morning, and it was almost ten now – Harry was sure Remus would arrive via the Floo network very soon, so it was best to wait for him in the drawing-room to save time. He was about to leave the room when a knock on the windowpane made him turn around. There, waiting for him to let it in, was a brown owl carrying a letter.
Believing it was safest to let it in for one of his parents, he allowed it to enter. He was very surprised when it landed on his desk and held out its leg so he could untie the letter.
"For me?"
At the bird's affirmative hoot, the boy approached and detached the missive. It was indeed addressed to him in emerald green ink; after all, only he answered to H.J. Potter. When he turned the letter to see who the sender was, he gasped. That sealing wax was known to any child of English wizards: it was the seal of Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! And it was for him! He was so excited. His parents and his brother had always told him that he couldn't go, that he would never be accepted. Although Remus had repeated millions of times that they would accept him, he had always been left with the uncertainty that his parents might be right, and he would never go to learn magic.
With trembling hands, he slowly opened the letter and unfolded both parchments. The second was the list of materials he would need, and the other was a letter inviting him to attend!
"Harry? Are you in your room?"
"Uncle Remus!" the boy exclaimed, rushing to him. "Uncle Remus, look!"
The man took the letter with a smile and began to read it happily, at the same time as he hugged Harry.
"Your admission letter... 'Very well, Harry,' the cheerful werewolf said. 'I told you there would be no problem with your admission. Remember?'"
"Yes, I know... but Dad and Mum said..."
"Your parents said that based on erroneous information; that way they couldn't say anything more than that... I already warned them they were wrong... They don't know you the way I do."
Remus hugged him lightly and then reached into one of his pockets, pulling out a small package wrapped in rough brown paper. With a slight wave of his wand, he shrunk it to the size of a book.
"I hope you like it..." He chuckled. "It's getting harder and harder to give you interesting books..."
Harry smiled happily before taking the package and, with his usual slow and careful pace, began to unwrap it, already knowing its contents, partly because it was what Remus usually gave him and partly because Remus himself had confirmed it. With a slight feeling of anticipation, he finished pushing aside the wrapper, revealing the title of the book: "Occlumency, the Art of Protection."
"Oh, Uncle Remus! It's fantastic! Thank you very much!" the boy exclaimed excitedly.
"I'm glad you like it," the man chuckled. "Do you think we should go find your parents to tell them about your letter and send a response?" When asked, the child's expression turned sad.
"They won't let me go."
"Why not?"
"'Cause Brian won't want me to go, and Dad and Mum will do anything Brian wants."
"Ah, but this time, Brian won't be able to say anything about it," Remus chuckled. "Your parents must let you go... they are required by law. So... Shall we?"
"Okay."
They both left the room and crossed the silent house until they exited it. Once outside, they observed the scene unfolding before them. Lily Potter remained on the ground, her eyes hardly leaving her husband and son, while she herself enjoyed the picnic arrangements. For his part, James Potter was enjoying his favourite hobby after his varied jokes: he was flying, and the best thing was doing it together with his son. From his point of view, there was no better way to spend his free time. They were all so engrossed in their own ideal world that none of them noticed the presence of the other two until Remus spoke.
"Hello, Lily."
"Oh, Remus! Oh, and Harry... Remus, what are you doing here?"
"What you are not capable of doing, you see," the man said with anger. "Celebrating your child's birthday."
"But... Brian's birthday isn't for another two weeks."
"From your other son."
"My other son?" The woman looked genuinely confused. "Oh, Harry! But today isn't Harry's birthday. Remus, Harry's birthday is..."
"Today," Remus cut in. "But that doesn't matter; you haven't celebrated his birthday for ten years, so I don't think it makes much difference now."
The man was very angry. He had always had friction with his friends because of the way they treated their eldest son. He had always been very fond of the boy, even though Sirius was the latter's godfather. It had been like this since Harry was eight years old, when he discovered that the fourth in their group, Peter, was a Death Eater and was preparing to harm Harry. Since then, and after realising that his parents didn't care in the least that their son was in potential danger, he had grown fond of the sweet child.
"Well, that wasn't what I meant." Remus cut off the topic. "Look."
The man handed the letter to his friend's wife, and watched as her face filled with surprise while reading its content, alternating between the parchment and her eldest son. Once she was finished, she looked up and shouted.
"James! Come here!"
Her husband looked at her with surprise, and when he saw his eldest son and his friend, he adopted an angry expression. He quickly came down and threw Remus an angry look before softening his expression and turning to his wife and friend.
"Yes, Lily? What have you done now, Harry?"
"Nothing, James," Remus cut him off. "I don't understand why you always think the worst of him and never doubt Brian's word."
"Brian never...!"
"It doesn't matter, we haven't come to that."
"Then?"
"Look what just arrived," his wife replied, handing him the letter so that he could read it.
The man read the letter and cast a stupefied glance at his eldest son. You could tell that this was not what he had been expecting. The letter from Hogwarts was the last thing that had crossed his mind.
"Go on... and I always thought he was nothing more than a Squib," murmured the surprised man. "Life is full of surprises. Have you replied yet?"
"No, not yet," the boy murmured shyly. "Without your permission."
"Well..." his father began to say, but Brian, who had been listening, grew angrier and angrier.
"NO! I don't want him to go to Hogwarts! I'll go to Hogwarts!"
His parents looked at him with helplessness. They had always given Brian everything he wanted; they had done anything that made him happy, as he was a special child, after all, who less than give him everything... but now he was asking for something that couldn't be.
"Brian, love... Harry must go to Hogwarts," his mother began to tell him. "He is a wizard and must learn to use his power... besides, every magical child must go to school by law."
"But..."
"Just because Harry goes to Hogwarts doesn't mean you can't go. You understand, don't you?"
The child adopted an expression of anger before turning around and entering the house, slamming the door. The others looked at the boy, a mix of astonishment and indifference on their faces. His parents were stupefied by their son's behaviour, while Remus and Harry showed no signs of surprise. Of course, they both knew Brian much better than James and Lily Potter. Not two seconds later, his mother ran to comfort him, while James remained outside looking at his eldest son with displeasure.
"Not bad... Since you haven't replied yet, do so. I'll arrange for you to get your things," James said, about to turn around and go back inside his house.
"I had thought about taking him myself, James," Remus said.
"You'd do me a favour. Just tell me when you can take him."
"I had thought about taking him today."
James stood up and turned to look at his surprised friend, not understanding why he would want to spend that day with Harry, a boy who had never shown any signs of having anything of interest... compared to his younger brother, he was less than a zero.
"Why?"
"Because I already intended to take him today, James. The arrival of his letter only means we can not only have fun but also do useful things."
"Well, if it's no nuisance... Come on, I'll leave you the key to Gringotts so you can get some money and buy his materials."
Harry looked at his father and his uncle, before smiling, happy with how things had developed. He knew that when he came back later, his brother would make his life impossible, but for now, he would enjoy the moment.
Without leaving his uncle's side, he followed his father into the house and entered the study, a place that had been forbidden to him – only Brian and his mother were allowed in. Despite having imagined it countless times, he found it didn't resemble his mental image at all. This seemed more like a quiet place where one could relax, rather than a serious workplace. His father reached into a drawer and pulled out a small key, which Harry recognised from all the times his parents had used it to buy things for his younger brother.
"Here, Remus. I hope you'll keep him in check and not indulge his whims... You'll go for his school supplies and nothing else," the serious man said.
The other adult threw James an angry look before nodding unwillingly and turning to leave, followed very closely by the child.
"Well, Harry, do you want to get anything before we go?" the man asked.
"No, Uncle Remus."
"Well, let's go."
The two of them went to the fireplace, where after throwing the Floo powder, they both disappeared from the Potter house to reappear in The Leaky Cauldron.
"You know, Uncle Remus? It's my first time using the Floo network."
"Really?"
"Yes... Dad and Mum don't usually take me anywhere."
"So, you've never been to Diagon Alley either, have you?"
"Never... when they go with Brian, they leave me at home."
Remus did not reply, but the boy clearly saw his uncle clench his hands angrily. Then, putting his hand on Harry's shoulder, he guided him to the entrance to the Alley, which was at the back of the premises, down a small, dead-end street. The boy looked on in amazement as Remus took out his wand and tapped on certain bricks, just before an entrance opened to the street that screamed "Magic!" everywhere. For a few moments, the child felt an urge to run out and see everything, but he knew well that he would then get lost and that it would be very difficult to find Remus again, so he remained by his side. However, he moved his head from side to side and wished he had eight more eyes to see it all. A laugh behind him made him turn around, startled, where he saw Remus laughing at him.
"I'm sorry, Harry, but your reaction was very funny," the man said. "Do you like it?"
"A lot!"
"I imagined it. Shall we go to Gringotts to get your money?"
"Yes, let's go."
As they passed through the shops, Harry wished he could be in several places at once so he could see everything. Of all the stores, it was the bookshop that made him exert the most willpower not to run off, because obviously, being surrounded by so many books was truly tempting. Still, he did not stray from Remus.
"Is that Gringotts, Uncle Remus?" Harry asked when he saw a grand building constructed of white marble.
"Yes, watch out for goblins... they can become really dangerous."
"Why?"
"Wizards, they don't like us... and if they feel cheated, they won't hesitate to act against us. You can count on the fingers of one hand the people they respect and treat with respect," Remus explained as they entered and headed towards a counter. "Now, be silent for a moment while I talk to them..." Then, turning to an unoccupied goblin, he said, "Excuse me, I would like to make a withdrawal from the Potter vault."
"Key, please?" said the goblin.
"Here."
The goblin picked it up and looked penetratingly at both Remus and Harry, before looking fixedly at the key. After a few minutes, the goblin seemed pleased and looked at Remus again.
"Everything is in order. Do you wish to go down to the vault, or would you prefer that we provide you with the desired amount here?" said the goblin.
"Better give it to us right here," Remus said. "We need about thirty Galleons... no, better forty."
"Very well."
They waited for a few moments while the goblin withdrew the money and placed it in a leather bag, handing it to the werewolf, who did not hesitate before taking it and depositing it in one of his inner pockets. After saying goodbye to the goblin who had attended them, they left the bank, ready to begin their school purchases.
First of all, they went to buy his robes, and for that, Remus guided Harry to a shop with a sign that read in big red letters: "Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions." The boy found it a fascinating place. There, as soon as you entered, you could see robes everywhere, and as the sign indicated, of all kinds possible.
"Good morning," said a kind-looking witch. "How can I help you?"
"We need a set of school robes for him," Remus replied as he looked at the boy, smiling.
"Hogwarts?"
"Exactly."
"Very well... dear, if you come this way," said the witch with kindness, while leading him to some footstools. "Let's see..."
While the witch worked, Harry did not take his eyes off her, observing everything with great attention; almost as if he himself wanted to learn that very craft. From his point of view, any kind of magic was magnificent and deserved to be studied carefully.
"Ready, dear," the witch chuckled while smiling at him. "You can step down now."
The witch picked up the robe she had arranged to fit the child, and after a few wand movements, four more robes appeared beside it, wrapping themselves into a small, triangular package. After that, they paid and made their way to the potion supply shop.
Once they entered the shop, Harry felt more excited about the things he was looking around. Potions was one of the subjects he had read most about, and at Hogwarts, he could experiment without anyone bothering him. He was about to ask Remus if he could investigate a little, when a low and silky voice cut him off.
"Well, well... Lupin. I didn't imagine finding you in an apothecary of your own free will."
"Hello, Severus. I suppose I can't say I'm surprised to see you in a shop like this," Remus said calmly. "I'm accompanying Harry to buy his supplies... he'll be your student next term."
"A Potter, right?"
"Yes, the eldest. Harry, this is Professor Severus Snape; he's the Potions Master at Hogwarts."
"Nice to meet him," said the boy, and seizing the opportunity, he asked his initial question. "Uncle Remus, can I look at the ingredients while we get the necessary ones for school?"
"Of course, Harry. I'll be over here."
"Thank you."
The boy walked away from the adults and began to observe each and every one of the ingredients there, imagining all the potions he could make with them. Timidly, he took some of them – not the most expensive ones, but only some of those not required for school – and took them to where Remus was waiting. Without a word, Remus picked up the ingredients and, with a smile, deposited them along with the others.
"Do you like Potions, Mr. Potter?" asked Professor Snape.
"Yes, sir, I am fascinated by them."
"I see that he has collected fairy dust... could you tell me what are its qualities?"
"They have euphoric qualities, sir. They are usually used to make antidepressant potions and also for aesthetic potions... although they are also used by a few for potions of great strength, and mixed with quartz powder, they can produce a strong sleeping draught," the boy explained.
"Very well, Mr. Potter," the man said, surprised. "For a change, I will look forward to having you in my class. You will be a very welcome change. Until September, Mr. Potter."
After that, they both watched as the Potions Master walked away from them and out of the shop, while they waited for the clerk to finish attending to them and be paid, in order to buy the rest of their school supplies.
After their stop at the apothecary and buying a cauldron, they decided to go get his wand a little before his books. Harry didn't know why, but the act of acquiring his wand made him nervous; he had the feeling that something out of the ordinary was about to happen. The shop was nothing out of this world either, but the whole place screamed "MAGIC!" everywhere to a trained eye like his. There were thousands of wands in their respective boxes placed all over the shelves, and the boy felt drawn to a section of shelves at the back. A slight movement behind him and a buzz of magic made him aware of the presence of an elderly man in the shop, who had been slightly hidden and was now approaching them.
"Good afternoon," said a low and soft voice. "I'm glad to see you, Mr. Potter; I was expecting you... I remember when your parents came to buy their first wands... by the way, where are they? I thought they would accompany you."
"They were busy, and I have come in their place," Remus said.
"Remus Lupin! Walnut and dragon heartstring... Good for Defence Against the Dark Arts, twenty-two centimetres. Am I wrong?"
"No, you are not wrong."
"Not bad... Let's see if we can find the perfect partner for Mr. Potter. Let's see... Wand hand?"
"Right."
A tape measure appeared out of nowhere and began to measure every imaginable part of the child's body, then fell to the ground, lifeless.
"Okay, try this one. Maple and phoenix feather..." Before Harry could say anything, Ollivander snatched it from his hands. "No, no... that won't do. Oak and unicorn hair... Neither... Walnut and unicorn wood... Oh, no..."
Mr. Ollivander, the owner of the shop, was giving him wand after wand to try, but it seemed that none of them were compatible with the child. But instead of getting angry, sulking, or frustrated, the man grew happier and more excited. With every wand Ollivander put in his hands, his enthusiasm increased until finally, he practically bounced.
"Good, good, good... What a difficult client! I wonder if... Wait a minute." The man disappeared into the back room to come back with a wand that he placed uncertainly in Harry's hands. "Holly and phoenix feather... Try it." Nothing happened. "Curious... I was convinced that this would be his wand... well, we'll keep trying. Right, Mr. Potter?"
The boy nodded, and while the shopkeeper returned the wand to the same place from where it had been taken, Harry headed to where he had felt drawn before; a place where there was also a wand, though somewhat isolated. Tremulously, he took it, and before Remus could stop him, he gave it a shake, causing a sea of white sparks to erupt from the wand. Behind him, the sound of several boxes falling to the ground made the child turn around in surprise. There, the shop owner was watching him as if Harry had transformed into Voldemort himself.
"Incredible... truly incredible. Mr. Potter, would you be so kind as to wave your wand again?" Harry did as he was asked, and again, a sea of white sparks appeared. "I never thought I would see the day that wand would find a partner..." Then he smiled. "You must be very proud, Mr. Potter. That wand has been in this shop since the day my first ancestor opened it... It is a very powerful wand, one that many would kill for... The Unmentionable included."
"What is its core?" asked the boy, who had always been drawn to anything magical.
"It is made with wood from a century-old cherry tree... That was already old in its day; now it will be a millennium old... Nineteen and a half centimetres... its core is the feather of a very special phoenix..."
"How special?"
"It is a mythological phoenix... very little has been seen of it, and it is believed to be extinct by the most credulous; others think it never existed... It is the feather of a white phoenix, Mr. Potter... the only feather that has ever been obtained throughout history." There was a gasp just behind Harry, where Remus stood, and after a stunned look, he asked.
"A white phoenix?"
"Yes, white," Ollivander said.
"Mr. Ollivander," the werewolf said after a few moments of silence. "I would appreciate it if the core of the wand remained secret... No one except the three of us should know exactly what the core is." Then, after a hard look, he added, "When you write to Dumbledore, you must tell him that it is any phoenix feather... It is very important that no one else knows."
"I do not quite understand your motives, Mr. Lupin, but I see that it is something truly important. All right, anyone who asks me, I will say that it has a phoenix feather, not what kind... After all, only Dumbledore would ever get me to believe otherwise."