Harry sat in the backyard of the house, taking care of his and Petunia's plants. This was one chore Harry gladly did. He liked gardening and he grew his own vegetables for his meals here. Vernon and Dudley mocked him constantly for eating rabbit food, but he liked it. And it was something Dudley would never steal from him. Dudley detested vegetables. So Harry made sure to always have enough vegetables for him to eat. As he was mostly the one to shop, another chore he accepted to do, Dudley couldn't be bothered to do it after all and he would only buy sweets and chips when he was going once, completely forgetting what he should buy, he could get the vegetables he liked when he couldn't get them from his small vegetable patch. Mostly during winter time. He also knew which ones Petunia preferred so getting a good diet wasn't that hard.
He was just finished watering all the plants when he heard a loud crack like noise from the front of the house. He carefully went around the house and saw a woman clothed in a very old fashioned costume standing there, looking at the front door.
"May I help you?" Harry asked cautiously.
The woman looked at him and he thought he saw some sign of recognition in her eyes. But he had never seen her before. He was sure of it. Well, okay, no time he could remember. It could be he had seen her when he was a small child.
"Yes, I think so; you are Harry Potter, right?" She asked.
"Yes, I am, Madam?" He asked.
"Oh sorry, my name is Professor McGonagall. I am from Hogwarts to respond to your letter." She said.
"Ah, I see. I didn't expect for someone to come here to give me some information. I was expecting something like a pamphlet about the school and the culture in general being sent to me." Harry admitted.
Professor McGonagall looked at the boy. He looked healthy but very guarded. This shouldn't be the case. James and Lily's son shouldn't look like this. When he was a baby he was such a lovable and trusting child. What had happened to make him so guarded? She knew it had been a bad idea to let him grow up with those muggles.
"Well, we normally introduce children that grew up in the muggle world, the non-magical world that means, in person to answer upcoming questions immediately. I am the one who shows the muggleborns, children with non-magical parents, their way around when they first enter the wizarding world." She explained.
"Okay, that makes sense. I would offer you to come inside, Professor, but Petunia is there and I am pretty sure she will throw a fit if a witch would come into her house. Witch is the correct term, is it? Or are female magicals called sorceresses?" Harry asked.
"No, witch is the correct term and males are called wizards. Sorcerers and Sorceresses are a classification of how powerful a witch or wizard is." She explained wondering why he called his aunt only by her first name.
"I have an idea how to give you a better impression of the wizarding world so you can make your decision easier, Mr Potter. There is a shopping district in London; it's called Diagon Alley. We could go there now, I will explain the things you are wondering about and get you some material to read." She suggested.
"How would I pay for that? You can be sure the Dursleys will never pay for anything like that. And how would we get there, Professor?" He asked suspicious.
"Well, there is a travelling method called apparition that is taught to witches and wizards shortly before they become of age, which means seventeen years old. For younger witches and wizards there are two methods. One is travelling by floo network, a system of connected fireplaces where you state your destination and use floo powder to activate the transport. The other is the Knight Bus. It can be called to every place as long as it is on land in England or Scotland. To call it you just have to hold out your wand hand. For long distance travel, like when you wanted to go to another country, you would have to get a portkey. They are charmed objects that are set on a specific destination and when they activate they will take you there instantly.
"Regarding your question of how to pay for this, well, you inherited the Potter estate from your parents. It will be held in trust until you come of age. For your school needs there is a trust fund in your name at Gringotts, the wizarding bank." Professor McGonagall explained.
"Wait a moment, Professor McGonagall. The Potter estate? My parents were well to do? How come the Dursleys always complained then about me costing too much of their hard earned money?" Harry interrupted her.
"Of course they were. The Potters are one of the oldest wizarding families in England. And you would have to ask your account manager at Gringotts if there had been transitions to your relatives for your care." Professor McGonagall answered.
Harry contemplated the information he got so far. It seemed like his family had some influence in the wizarding society. He needed to find out more and especially how much money he exactly had at his disposal. He would also have to look into how his estate had been managed over the past ten years since his parents had died. And he wanted to know how they had died. A drunken car crash seemed more improbable than ever.
"Okay, just let me clean my hands, then I will come." Harry said.
"Allow me, Mr Potter." Professor McGonagall said and pointed at his hands.
"Scourgify." She said and the dirt disappeared.
"That's a neat trick, Professor." Harry said.
"Thank you, Mr Potter. Now, we will take the Knight Bus, as it is the method of travelling you will most likely use more often than the others as your home is not connected to the floo network." She explained.
"That place is not my home. My seat of residence perhaps, but it has never been my home." Harry declared icily.
Professor McGonagall looked at him wondering, then she raised her wand and another loud crack sounded. A purple triple-decker was stopping in front of them.
"Hello, welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency …" A young man with pimples started saying.
"Stop it, Mr Shunpike, we don't have much time." Professor McGonagall said.
"Ah, hello Pr'fessor McGonagall. Escorting another muggleborn to Diagon again?" The young man asked.
"Yes. Twice to Diagon Alley please." Professor McGonagall said.
"One galleon and five sickles Pr'fessor." He said.
Professor McGonagall handed over one gold coin and five silver coins.