//------------------------------//
// Chapter 6:  Diagon Alley 
// Story: A Hogwarts Harmony 
// by computerneek 
//------------------------------//

It didn’t take long before Voldemort found out what Dumbledore was doing.  Unusually, it wasn’t the third of her that learned about it; rather, it was the first of her, the muggleborn, that found out.
It was kinda hard to miss the forty or so funny-haired first-year students getting their Hogwarts shopping done at the same time as her.
It was also hard for her to miss, as a highly magically-attuned being (thanks to some of the rituals she’d had to cast to make the resurrection rituals possible), that their magical wellsprings were hundreds or thousands of times stronger than anyone else’s.  However, it didn’t seem like they could use that power, merely spill it into their surroundings.
She could only think of one explanation that would make sense:  They had to come from another universe.  And she knew she’d keyed that resurrection ritual to capture and use an interestingly powerful form of magic that had been floating through an interdimensional portal somewhere in Kent!  Obviously, there were now people coming through that portal too…  and going to Hogwarts?  Were they unable to use magic or something…?
Unless, perhaps they were adapted to manipulate ambient magic rather than direct from their wellsprings as humans were?  Their wellspring would still be able to talk to their wand, enabling them to use it, but without being able to feed it power directly from their wellsprings, they’d probably be on the weak side.
Perhaps she should change that?
She blinked as she waited for the goblins to finish exchanging money with her parents, then turned to look back towards the entrance.  That feeling- That signature- it felt like another of herself was entering the bank, but she wasn’t!
She wasn’t, but Harry Potter was…  and when she squinted her eyes, she recognized the magic patterns of a horcrux.
Damn!
It would be an easy fix, though.  The Killing Curse had a little-known fatal flaw:  It only worked once.  That was to say, if one managed to survive it the first time (which was a rather impressive feat, she had to admit, even though both she and Harry had done it), they would be completely immune to it forevermore.
The same did not apply to objects…  such as Horcruxes.
Which meant that, if she hit Harry with the Killing Curse…  it would knock the Horcrux clean off of him, but leave him unscathed and perfectly alive.
She needed a wand…  and a lack of witnesses.  Including Harry himself, preferably.
She smiled at him and waved, before remembering that this one of her was supposed to have no idea how to be friendly, blushing furiously, and burying her face in her mother’s side.  Then she peeked back up at him, only now noticing that he was accompanied not by one of the Dursleys or even school staff, but by an auror with galleon-gold hair.
Metamorphmagus.  Yes, the auror had that detail in her magical signature.  Was she trying to be funny?





As it was, Auror Tonks was trying to be funny.  When Harry had agreed that they had to ‘get gold’ before they could shop, she’d turned her hair gold, and he’d laughed.
It felt…  weird, somehow, to be a boy.  He was too used to being Hailey!
He had planned the morning out with Petunia the night before, so Petunia had gotten an early breakfast and retreated to her room before Harry emerged, got breakfast, and met Tonks on the front porch.  He had one of Hailey’s outfits- one of the ones with skirts, he preferred those to the ones with pants- in his backpack; he’d be returning as Hailey, armed with full sets of Hogwarts robes for both sexes.  He knew Petunia was expecting a morning similar to this morning for when he went to Hogwarts, so he could board the train as Harry…  but he also wanted to be ready in case he couldn’t sleep that night.
Visiting Gringotts was…  strange.  It wasn’t strange because of the weird-looking goblins, or the way he’d had to follow one to a back room to do some fancy stuff with a key, a piece of parchment, a quill, and a hat rack in order to reclaim his Vault…  Vaults.  His account, now finally passed down to him from his parents, which included so many vaults and so much gold.  It wasn’t strange because he had to descend into the Earth to withdraw money from the bank.  It wasn’t strange because the cart felt like a race car, or because he didn’t actually need his key to open the Vault they went to.  It wasn’t even strange because Tonks gave him a leather bag that fit way more coins than it should have and called it a ‘wallet’!
It was strange because a random girl with bushy brown hair waved at him in the lobby, before blushing furiously and hiding her face, as if she’d only just realized what she was doing.
He’d never had anyone react that way to realizing they were waving at him.  Usually they closed their waving hand and made a punch to his face, or perhaps threw something at him.  He always dodged it easily in either case; he did it all the time.
The girl hadn’t been there when they got back up to the lobby and, while Harry was mildly disappointed by that- he was curious to learn more about her- they moved on.
He would perform the whole shopping trip as Harry- as Famous Harry Potter, he was beginning to realize- then girlify for a second round.  He wouldn’t be getting nearly as much in that second round- just clothes, really- but even as they walked away from the bank, he found himself looking forward to it.
They had already been ambushed by eager wizards twice.





Eventually, Harry found a moment of respite in the final male stop of the day, having skipped Ollivanders’ Wands, which he’d visit later as Hailey:  Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions.  Unlike so many of the other shop owners, who all looked like they were living both the best days of their lives and their worst nightmares both at once, even before they spotted him, Madam Malkin was unperturbed.  She stayed calm and professional despite the interesting financial woes he heard so many talking about- and when she saw him, and probably recognized him…  she didn’t show any sign that she knew who he was, even when she had to.
“Hogwarts, dear?” she asked kindly.
“Ah- Yes,” Harry informed her.
“Got the lot today,” she observed, picking a robe from a shelf and leading him to the back of the shop where another girl was being fitted for her robes- though she looked a lot older.  Perhaps she had outgrown her robes?  Her hair was, like about half of the people in Diagon Alley, interestingly colored, with dark and medium blue stripes…  flickering their way to her waist, giving the impression that she had a waterfall pouring out the back of her head.  “They weren’t kidding when they said they expected a lot of students this year.”  She sighed.  “I just hope they can teach them all.”
The blue-haired girl smiled.  “That’s what the Student Instructor Program is for,” she informed them- and, when both Harry and Madam Malkin turned inquisitive gazes on her, continued.  “Dumbledore wasn’t able to find additional Professors in time, though I rather suspect he forgot to look, so they’re starting a Student Instructor Program of some sort to make us teach them all.  Seems lazy at first glance, but perhaps he just wears too many hats?”
“Perhaps,” Harry agreed, despite not understanding much of what she’d said.  “How bad will it be?”
She shrugged.  “Well, I got the letter that explained the whole thing just last night…  and apparently I’m also going to be the Student Instructor Program Management Team Lead.  Who knew?”
“That’s a mouthful,” Harry agreed.
“Not as much as some of the titles I’ve heard.”
He snorted.  “Not as much as Her Majesty’s titles,” he agreed.
She seemed amused.  “Yes, Her Majesty the Queen Vanessa does have a rather lengthy title, doesn’t she?  Aside from that, I’m Aqua Fall, a lowly Commoner of Equestria.”
“Harry Potter,” Harry answered softly.  “An average boy that got attacked by a serial killer.”
She raised an eyebrow.  “A serial killer?  The Dark Lord Voldemort was a hell of a lot more than that, I’m pretty sure.”
“Terrorist?” Harry offered.  “Doesn’t really matter to me.  Famous because someone wanted to kill me.  What’s the point?”
“The point…?”  She paused.  “Hmm…   Good question.”





Aqua Fall seemed a pleasant person, but she was all too obviously aware of his fame and perhaps wary of it, causing her to be more than a little stiff.  Fortunately, she eventually left the shop with her new robes- and Madam Malkin, who either didn’t care about it or, unlike Aqua Fall, could tell that he didn’t really care about it, offered pleasant conversation.  For the most part, they talked about the weather- up until he decided to drop the bomb.
“Never liked the rain,” he agreed.  “Bit too wet for my tastes.  Snow on the other hand, that’s fun.  Cold, but it stays on the surface, so I don’t get as cold.  Anyways, um, on an unrelated topic…”  He glanced sideways at Tonks- whose hair promptly turned bronze, indicating that there was nobody else in the shop; Malkin’s assistant had gone out for lunch earlier.  “Um, do you know what happens when I sneeze?”
Malkin didn’t even blink.  “You turn into a girl, right?”
He blinked.  “Wha-?  How’d you guess?”
“Because everyone says that,” Malkin sighed, doing her magic on his boy’s robes.
He let out a sigh as well.  “Well, I mean it literally.”
“And I’ve heard that one too.”
He scowled, glanced at Tonks- her hair turned bronze again- and sneezed.
Madam Malkin paused, then turned to look back at her.
Nobody moved for about three seconds.
“That’d be the first time anyone’s actually proven their claim,” Malkin finally observed, still surprisingly calm.  “I assume you’ve brought an outfit in that backpack?”
Hailey nodded silently.
“And you’d like to get an extra female robe?”
“Ah- a second full set, actually.”  She rubbed her hair.  “The only way I’ve found to turn back involves sleeping, and if I don’t sleep well enough…  I don’t turn back.”
“...  Ahh.  Make sure you claim the Lord’s Quarters when you get to Hogwarts- you won’t want to be caught sleeping in either public dormitory as the opposite sex.  Just remember to ask the Hat for it.”  She paused.  “You’ll probably also want to inform the school matron, under healer-patient privilege, so excuses can be generated if you miss classes because of it…  but none of the other staff should need to be alerted.”
He blinked.  “You know-?”
“About the Grand Royal and Most Ancient House of Potter?  Yes, very few are unaware of the single most powerful magical family currently in existence.”





Hardly half an hour later, as she was walking down Diagon Alley with a thoroughly disguised Auror Tonks, Hailey had to decide that her transforming in Malkin’s had been a stroke of genius.  Why hadn’t she thought to shop for the clothing related items as Harry, transform, then do all of the rest of the shopping as Hailey?  She felt so free without people begging for her attention left and right, wanting to shake hands just to greet her, because they so wanted the ability to brag about having met the Boy who Lived!
And possibly, if Malkin was correct, to start a relationship with a House that was apparently on par with the Queen of England…  if not more powerful.
Both were titles she wished she didn’t have.
She even ran into Aqua Fall again- and this time, the older girl was much friendlier, and actually gave off a motherly air instead of the coldly logical one she’d displayed in Madam Malkin’s.  She even smiled!  Perhaps she’d been afraid of her titles?
After a couple more friendly conversations that she started, she raced Tonks to Ollivanders’ Wands, reveling in the feeling of freedom that being just another face in the crowd gave her.
Finally, she stepped into the shop with Tonks right behind her…  and could somehow sense the man trying to sneak up behind her.  So, while Tonks was tensing up, her brown hair getting darker and darker as she evidently expected a surprise, she turned to face him.  “Good afternoon,” she greeted.
Tonks looked, and blinked, her hair turning yellowish.
There was about two seconds of silence.
“Good afternoon,” the old man answered calmly.  “I do believe that’s the first time anyone’s been able to spot me through the wards in…”  He paused.  “Fifty years?  Sixty?”  He shook his head.  “No matter.  Now then, I expect you’re here for your first wand, miss…?”
“Hailey,” she provided.  “And yes, I am.”  She looked up at the shelves, idly curious how she was supposed to pick one.  It felt like there was one somewhere near the back, calling out to her somehow.
Ollivander seemed to have a plan.  “Alright,” he acknowledged.  “Which is your wand arm?”
“My…  I’m right-handed,” she informed him.
“Alright,” he said again, and drew a measuring tape from his pocket.  “Hold out your arm, then- that’s it.”  He set the tape to work- and while his hands followed it for the first two, she could somehow feel that the tape was actually doing it itself, and reporting back directly to him through some kind of telepathic link.
Were these kinds of strange feelings normal for wizards?  It was kinda funny, she hadn’t felt them at all as Harry…  but had noticed when Madam Malkin had begun doing her magic with her girl’s robes- especially when said magic had poked her, looking for the name it should put on her nameplates.
She’d told it to just make the nameplates disappear- and it had done that.  Malkin had seemed amused by it, informing her that very few girls were so against the nameplate positioning on the point of the breast that they’d disappear completely when she bound them, but apparently she wasn’t the only one.
Ollivander spoke as he tele-kineti-pathically measured her and plucked boxes off the shelves.  “Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance.  We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstrings of dragons.  No two wands are the same- just as no two unicorns, dragons, or phoenixes are quite the same.  And of course, you will never get such good results with another wizard’s wand.  After all, it’s the Wand that chooses the Wizard.”  He paused to open a wand box and remove the wand- which felt…  indifferent, she decided.  Like it didn’t care about her.  “Alright, try this one.  Beechwood and dragon heartstring; nine inches, nice and flexible.  Just give it a wave.”
She took it, wrinkled her nose at the begrudging feeling she got from it, and waved it around a bit.
Ollivander seemed to notice after a second, and took it back, returned it to its box, and opened the next one.
This happened again, and again, with various degrees of reluctance from the wands.  The pile mounted higher and higher- until eventually, Ollivander returned from another dig through the shelves with a fresh set of wands…  which contained one which felt eager.
It was the second one he handed her.  “Unusual combination,” he informed her.  “Holly and phoenix feather.  Eleven inches, nice and supple.”
As she touched it, she felt a sudden warmth in her fingers- and she got an almost desperately eager feeling from it.
Yes, this was the wand for her.  If it was that eager to serve her, she would oblige.
She gave it a wave- and the wand let out a burst of energy to inform Ollivander that she’d found her match.  A shower of sparks shot from the end like a firework, throwing dancing spots of light across the walls.
“Oh, Bravo!” Ollivander told her.
Her new wand wasn’t satisfied, though- it had only told Ollivander who its master was, it hadn’t actually served her yet.
So she let it.  She gave it a little flick and just…  let it.  At the same time, a strange word crossed her mind- ‘Orchideous’.  But what did it mean…?
She didn’t have long to contemplate that, as a moment later, with a loud bang, an entire aisle of Ollivander’s shop was blocked by a giant bouquet of flowers.  At the same time, her wand felt both excited…  and satisfied.
She smiled, looking up at the enormous bouquet.  Yes, she decided, she was satisfied too.
Then she noticed that Tonks’ hair was pure white, and looked around at Ollivander as well.  “What?” she asked.
They stared at her for a few more seconds.
“That was a fourth-year spell,” Tonks finally whispered.  “And a sixth-year technique, the Silent Incantation.”
She looked down at her wand, then back up.  “I flicked it.”