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Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author Notes-
Chapter 19: Leaky Cauldron
Harry walked inside the tavern and found that it was a lot less gloomy inside, compared to what the exterior might suggest.
Given the early hours of the day, he was not too surprised to find it almost empty, except for a single person who was currently organising the chairs and cleaning the tables.
It was a large man with long sideburns and a bald head. The moment Harry walked past the door, he turned his attention to him. "Oh, welcome! We are still getting ready for breakfast, but I can prepare a table for you."
Harry looked around. The feeling of magic was very tangible in here, so he had definitely come to the right place. And even if he didn't look like it, the person in front of him was most definitely some sort of magical user.
"Excuse me, but I am looking for something," said Harry as he approached the man.
"Well, you will certainly find it in the alley," the man responded.
"The alley?" Harry asked.
"First time here? I was talking about Diagon Alley, of course. It's the magical shopping district in London, and one of the largest in all of Britain!"
"A magical shopping district…" If something like that existed, it would be the ideal place to find the items he required, as well as to learn more about the current state of affairs.
Harry was particularly curious about the reason for so much secrecy. It was obvious that magical users were hiding themselves from the rest of the population.
"Indeed!" the man said with enthusiasm while pointing to a door on the left side. "You can access the alley through this tavern. I can open it for you. But I should tell you that the shops won't open for two more hours. Are you sure you don't want to get something to eat? It won't take that long."
"No, thank you for the offer, but I'm not feeling hungry." In truth, he was a bit hungry, but he didn't want to use the little money he had on food, as he didn't know how much he would need later.
"That's okay. If you want to go now and wait there, I will open the passage for you." The man placed down the rag he had been using to clean the table. "I am Tom, by the way. What is your name?"
"Harry."
"Nice to meet you, Harry. Ehm…" Tom stared at him for a long moment. "Are you sure this is your first time visiting? You seem somewhat familiar…"
"Yes, I am sure," Harry responded. "So, will I find many magical users in this alley? I am looking for some sorcerers… there are some things I want to ask them."
Tom raised an eyebrow. "Sorcerers? I don't know about that, but if you want to see wizards and witches, there are plenty of those in there."
"Oh." Harry recalled a detail from his short conversation with the man called Dumbledore. He had mentioned that they no longer used the term 'sorcerer'.
"Sorry, yes, I meant wizards."
"Are you perhaps a Muggle-born?" Tom asked.
"Mmm?" Harry sounded confused, as he had never heard that word before.
"No judgment, to be clear. Nothing wrong with that!" Tom hurried to say. "But usually Muggle-borns come accompanied by someone from Hogwarts on their first visit."
Harry wasn't sure what this person was talking about, but he didn't want to appear too out of place. "Is it not okay for me to go by myself?"
Tom shrugged. "If you want to, that is fine. Everyone is welcome in Diagon Alley. The professor is just there to guide you for a bit."
"I see."
"Anyway, follow me." Tom guided him to a different room and stopped in front of a brick wall.
Harry saw the man taking out a small stick and using it to tap some of the bricks a few times.
A moment later, the bricks moved apart, revealing a long street.
Harry made sure to memorise the sequence Tom had used, in case he needed to open it himself next time.
He wondered for a moment about the stick, but after thinking about it, Harry concluded that it must be a variant of a magical focus, just like his old staff.
'Maybe these modern wizards prefer smaller foci for practicality,' he concluded.
Small magical foci already existed during his era, but they came with downsides, and he had always preferred the much greater amplification offered by magical staffs.
"Good luck, Harry." Tom pointed ahead. "If you follow that road, you will eventually come across a place called Gringotts. That is the goblin bank. If you came here with Muggle money, you will need to go there first and exchange it for wizarding currency. Otherwise, you won't be able to buy anything."
Tom explained this because he believed Harry was simply a young Muggle-born on his first visit to a wizarding alley.
Which was not too far from the truth.
"Thank you, Tom. I'm glad to have found a kind soul among the depravity of this modern city." After saying that, Harry walked into Diagon Alley, leaving a confused Tom behind.
"Depravity…?" Tom muttered. "And why did that boy look so familiar? I'm sure I have seen him somewhere."
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