Molly picked up a flowerpot from the mantelpiece.
"Harry, Wayne – you've used Floo Powder before, yes?"
Wayne nodded while Harry looked utterly bewildered. "What's Floo Powder?"
"How do you normally get to Diagon Alley then, by car?" Mr Weasley asked with keen interest.
Harry stammered, "I-I've only been once with Hagrid. If I went again, I suppose I'd take the Underground..."
Mr Weasley wanted to inquire further, but Molly stopped him.
"Arthur, this isn't the time for indulging your peculiar hobbies. Harry, don't worry – just watch us demonstrate first. It's very simple. George, you first."
Fred stepped forward at the call, grabbing a handful of powder from the flowerpot and tossing it into the fireplace. The flames turned emerald green.
"Diagon Alley!" Fred shouted before vanishing into the flames.
"See, dear? It's quite simple," Molly reassured a nervous Harry. "Just speak clearly, stay close to the fireplace, and don't stick your head out."
"Alright," Harry gulped.
One by one, the Weasley children disappeared, followed by Cedric and Wayne.
...
The Leaky Cauldron.
Emerging from the fireplace, Wayne noticed the place was far busier than before, with every table occupied. No doubt due to the start of term, with parents accompanying their children for shopping.
Soon after, Mr Weasley appeared from the flames, scanning the room anxiously. "Children, have you seen Harry?"
Ron shook his head. "No, has Harry come through already?"
"Oh Merlin," Mr Weasley began sweating profusely.
"He went into the fireplace before me. I—I've lost Harry Potter!"
Shortly after, Mrs Weasley arrived and paled upon hearing Harry was missing.
"Don't panic," Wayne reassured them. "Let's check the nearest connected fireplaces. The Floo Network is quite easy to trace."
"Right," Mr Weasley forced himself to calm down.
"The nearest connection point is... Knockturn Alley." His expression darkened at the mention of it.
Without another word, Molly—forgetting she was still holding Ginny's hand—marched towards the courtyard.
"Percy, take everyone to wait for us outside Gringotts," Mr Weasley instructed hastily before rushing off.
...
Knockturn Alley.
Harry face-planted onto cold stone, his glasses shattered.
He had no idea where he'd ended up—apparently inside the fireplace of a spacious, dimly lit wizarding shop.
As his eyes adjusted to the eerie objects surrounding him, a sense of dread settled in his stomach. He tried to leave immediately, but before he'd made it halfway, two figures appeared at the door. One of them was his least favourite person: Draco Malfoy.
Without thinking, Harry ducked into a nearby cupboard, leaving only a crack to peer through.
"Don't touch anything, Draco," Lucius Malfoy warned his son.
"I thought you were buying me a present?" Draco complained. "Why are we here instead of Quality Quidditch Supplies?"
"Blame that wretched Arthur Weasley," Lucius said coldly, his cane striking the ground sharply at the mention of Arthur's name, clearly furious.
"If it weren't for his ridiculous raids on Dark Artefacts, I wouldn't be here."
"Ah, Mr Malfoy!"
As he spoke, a hunched old man emerged from the back room.
"What a pleasure to see you. And this must be young Master Malfoy?"
"Mr Borgin," Lucius adopted a polite tone, masking his usual disdain. Despite the man's unremarkable appearance, he was head of the pureblood Borgin family—one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight—and notoriously cunning, with countless Dark Artefacts at his disposal.
"What might you be purchasing today?" Borgin inquired.
"Selling, actually," Lucius corrected.
Borgin's smile faded slightly, though he maintained his courteous demeanour. He took the parchment handed to him by Lucius and glanced at the list as the two began haggling over prices.
Bored, Draco started looking around the shop.
Harry's heart leapt into his throat, afraid he might be discovered.
"Huh?" Malfoy's eyes fell on a necklace displayed on a stand.
"Ah, you've got excellent taste!" Borgin exclaimed, hurrying over to Draco. "The Ironclad Necklace—a fine piece for added protection. It's a recent acquisition, truly exquisite."
"I know," Draco said, surprised. "Isn't this Lawrence's work?" His sharp eyes caught the family crest engraved on one of the gemstones.
"You know Mr. Lawrence?" Borgin was equally taken aback before recalling something. "Ah, of course—you're both Hogwarts students. It's no surprise you're acquainted."
Now it was Harry's turn to be puzzled.
'Lawrence—he must mean Wayne. '
"Did he sell this to you?" Draco asked.
"Indeed, and it cost me quite a bit," Borgin sighed, shaking his head. "That Mr. Lawrence isn't just an outstanding wizard—he's a shrewd businessman too. Nearly bled me dry, he did."
"You speak so highly of a Muggle?" Lucius sounded incredulous.
The Borgins, after all, were as staunchly blood-purist as the Malfoys. As for why he hadn't used the term 'Mudblood,' well, that was entirely thanks to his rebellious son. Every time Lawrence came up, the boy would prattle on about noble decorum and the importance of minding his manners.
Utterly insufferable.
"Whether Muggle or pure-blood, there's always a chance for someone truly exceptional to emerge," Borgin said meaningfully. "Mr. Malfoy, if your son is on good terms with Mr. Lawrence, I'd call that fortunate indeed."
"You may not know this, but Knockturn Alley has been unusually quiet lately—all thanks to that Mr. Lawrence."
By the end, a flicker of wariness crossed Borgin's face. Clearly, Wayne had left quite the impression.
"Anyone who's crossed him has met a rather… poor fate."
At Borgin's words, Lucius fell silent.
After that, the topic was dropped. Once the price was settled and a collection time agreed upon, Lucius led Draco out of the shop.
Seizing the moment when Borgin retreated to the back, Harry slipped out unnoticed.
Along the way, he ran into a few ill-intentioned wizards, but thankfully, Hagrid arrived just in time to rescue him.
After navigating a maze of twisting alleys, the two reached the entrance of Gringotts.
"Merlin's beard, Harry!" The Weasleys rushed over. "You gave us a right fright! Where on earth have you been?"
"Knockturn Alley," Hagrid said sternly.
"So cool," Ron muttered. "I've always wanted to go there, but Mum and Dad would break my legs."
"An' they'd be righ' ter," Hagrid scolded, overhearing him. "Tha's no place fer young wizards."
Then his expression softened. "Wayne! Long time, no see. Cheers fer them potions yeh sent me."
"Good to see you too, Hagrid. How've you been?" Wayne replied with a smile, holding Hermione's hand.
Before heading to the Weasleys', he had already helped Cho buy all her school supplies. Today was entirely Hermione's.
"Excellent, near'ly all them carnivorous slugs're gone."
After exchanging a few words, Hagrid strode off—he still needed to buy some weed killer, as the weeds in his vegetable patch were growing faster than the cabbages.
"Guess who I ran into in Knockturn Alley?" As they entered Gringotts, Harry muttered, "Malfoy and his father. Both equally vile."
"Was Lucius there to buy something?" Mr Weasley suddenly perked up. His relationship with Lucius Malfoy was rather like Harry's with Draco.
Harry shook his head. "No, he was there to sell something."
Mr Weasley looked disappointed but quickly brightened. "Seems Lucius is scared. Tomorrow, I'll raid Malfoy Manor—bound to find evidence."
"Be careful, Arthur," Molly warned. "That family's rotten to the core."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
...
Inside Gringotts, after accompanying Hermione to withdraw money, Wayne was about to leave when Harry stopped him.
"Wayne, have you been to Borgin and Burkes too?"
"Huh?" Wayne looked up at him. "How did you know?"
"Malfoy and Burke were just talking about you. You sold him some protective jewellery, didn't you?" Harry whispered, careful not to be overheard.
"Oh, that." Wayne nodded in understanding. "Yeah, that old bloke has a lot of good stuff, but he only accepts bartering. I had no choice but to sell him a few pieces."
"What did you buy?" Harry asked curiously.
Wayne smiled. "A dead man's skull."
"Eek!" Hermione, who had been silently listening, gasped and tightened her grip on the boy's hand.
"Why would you buy that?!"
"Just teasing you." Wayne shrugged. The young witch pinched him twice in annoyance, but couldn't bring herself to do it hard.
"I bought quite a few things—all sorts of odd bits and bobs to study."
Wayne waved his hand. "Alright, hurry up and follow Mrs Weasley to the vault. We're off shopping."
With that, he led Hermione out of Gringotts.
Their first stop was Madam Malkin's Robes, where Wayne helped Hermione pick out a few well-fitting robes.
The young witch was growing quickly—she'd shot up a fair bit over the year, her petite frame showing slight curves, and she was nearly five-foot-three now.
"By the way, I won't be going to King's Cross on the first of September," Wayne suddenly said as they walked towards the Quidditch boutique.
"Where are you going?" Hermione asked, puzzled.
"Professor Dumbledore asked me to help treat someone. I'll just have Ho-Oh Apparate me straight back to school. Want to come along?"
"Better not." Hermione shook her head. "Cho and I will take the train. The professor didn't ask us."
"What's the big deal?" Wayne said dismissively. "Sitting on the train for hours is a waste of time. Might as well go back early and read."
"Well… can Ho-Oh carry that many people at once?" Hermione was tempted, but she knew Apparating such a long distance alone was already difficult, let alone with three people.
"Don't worry. Ho-Oh's already a year old now. It could easily take a few more people."
Wayne spoke with absolute confidence. Though Ho-Oh wasn't yet at full strength, it had certainly moved past its newborn stage, and its abilities had improved significantly.
"Alright then. Have you told Cho yet?"
"Not yet. I'll write to her later."
They entered the Quidditch boutique, where the Nimbus 2000, once prominently displayed, had now been replaced by the 2001. The design looked sleeker, the wood polished to a shine, but the core mechanics hadn't changed much.
Cedric was inside too, clutching his newly bought broom like a lovesick fool—no different from those gaming geeks drooling over a 4090 graphics card in Wayne's past life.
"...What are you doing here?" Cedric, still grinning like an idiot, spotted Wayne and asked in surprise.
"I'm here to buy a broom too."
"But you already have a Nimbus 2000," Cedric frowned. "Buying a 2001 would be a waste. It's not that much faster."
"It's fine. Consider it a collector's item." Wayne shook his head and called over a shop assistant. "How much does the Nimbus 2000 sell for now?"
The shop assistant enthusiastically introduced, "The Nimbus 2000 is on promotion now, only 420 Galleons."
"What if I buy five? Any bigger discount?"
Cedric was startled. "What do you need so many for? Eating them?"
Wayne shrugged. "Just taking advantage of the discount to donate a few to the house."
The shop assistant also looked at him in surprise. "Quite the generous gesture! Which house are you from?"
"We're both Hufflepuffs," Wayne said, patting Cedric on the shoulder.
Instantly, the shop assistant's gaze warmed. "I'm a Hufflepuff graduate too! By the way, didn't the Daily Prophet recently report that a Hufflepuff first-year was awarded the Order of Merlin? Do you know him?"
Hermione and Cedric simultaneously gave Wayne a strange sidelong glance.
"Of course, we know him," Wayne said matter-of-factly. "He's a genius little wizard, almost as handsome as me. Everyone in the school knows him."
"As handsome as you?" The shop assistant looked at him in surprise, then nodded in agreement. "Then he must be a very good-looking young wizard indeed."
"Since we're from the same house, let me check with the manager for the best discount I can give you."
With that, the shop assistant headed to the back door.
"You're shameless," Cedric muttered, rolling his eyes. "Who praises themselves like that?"
"Exactly," Hermione added, equally stunned by Wayne's audacity.
"Was I not stating facts?" Wayne pulled the young witch a little closer, his starry eyes locking onto hers.
Hermione's cheeks flushed crimson, and she lowered her head without a word. From another angle, it almost looked like she was burying her face in the boy's chest.
Burp!
Cedric let out a loud belch.
Soon, the shop assistant returned, beaming. "350 Galleons—that's the lowest price possible."
Compared to the original price, this was a 30% discount. Even Cedric, who had just bought a new broom, felt tempted.
Wayne didn't haggle further and paid without hesitation.
Since the shop didn't have enough stock, he arranged for the brooms to be delivered to the school after the term started.
"If I'd known you were buying brooms to donate to the house, I wouldn't have bought the Nimbus 2001," Cedric grumbled. "Free stuff is great, isn't it?"
Now he felt like a fool, burdened with a 300-Galleon debt and having spent all his savings just to buy one Nimbus 2001, while everyone else would get a Nimbus 2000 for free.
Wayne was really something!
Hermione pouted. "This is cheating. How is Gryffindor supposed to win now?"
"You've got a genius Seeker," Wayne reassured her. "Our Seeker is no match for yours."
"Who says?!" Cedric's face darkened. "Last time, I beat Potter!"
The trio bickered all the way to Flourish and Blotts.
Although they already owned Lockhart's previous books, the man had released a new one this year—Magical Me—so Wayne and Hermione had to make another trip.
When they arrived, however, the entrance was completely blocked by an excited crowd, chanting loudly.
"Go on! Go on!"
"What's going on?" Hermione asked, puzzled.
Wayne used his magical power to force open a path, squeezing through with two others in tow.
Mr Weasley and Lucius Malfoy were each being held up by Hagrid's massive hands, both looking thoroughly dishevelled. Mr Weasley's lip was split, while Lucius had a swollen eye, still clutching Ginny's Transfiguration textbook in his hand.
"Here, girl, take your book. It's the best your father can afford," Lucius wrenched himself free from Hagrid's grip and shoved the book into the cauldron before striding off with his son in tow.
Wayne's sharp eyes noticed the slight bulge in the middle of the thick Transfiguration tome.
The boy allowed himself a faint smile.
Hello again, Tom Riddle.