Chapter 128: Diagon Alley with the Aconites

"Let's see this…why do you have teeth marks on your horn?" Newt asked that he was performing a checkup on Elise.

"Ehh... that..." I, who was not far away, heard him and replied a bit embarrassed, "... Even though we still don't do certain things, it doesn't mean we don't seek to experiment with... Just stay out of this! It's our privacy...! ... and stay away from certain parts of Elise, those belong to me... Capisci?" I threatened.

After that talk and exposing ourselves as a couple to the Scamander couple, our relationship changed a bit, for the better. They took to us more seriously and were more open about specific topics, I was able to ask Newt without problems about his research in the area of mating magical creatures and that was somewhat revealing, there are many curiosities in this world.

Tina also talked to Elise about human sex, for a long, long time. Elise was new to it and her knowledge was somewhat superficial, mixed with her perspective of her mating, so Tina had to explain a lot to her, multiple times, over several days.

It was productive, we learned things, we had someone to talk to about topics we wouldn't usually touch on, and Newt was able to give us answers to various questions. Everything was going well for us at this time, at least here in the camp.

...

Time had passed and both Lily and Snape had already received their letters to Hogwarts. They were excited, knew the magical world, and couldn't wait to get to know it more closely.

Lily was visited by a teacher, since her parents were Muggles, in order to explain the existence of the magical world. He was surprised that they accepted the discovery of magic so normally and inquired about it, but luckily they didn't sell me and attributed that knowledge to Snape as we had agreed.

The professor explained the necessary things to them and guided them to Diagon Alley as usual. Once he gave them a brief tour, he took them to Gringotts for the currency exchange and then left them on their own.

When the Evans family left the bank and began their shopping trip alone, without the professor, both Snape and I joined them. We were secretly waiting in the ice cream shop for the moment to arrive, we had organized this day a long time ago.

Knowing the place from the times we came before, we were able to be good guides and get everything necessary for the start of classes. Added to that, we were good hagglers in some shops, maybe because of me [Trader Essence] that I gained from my multiple trades with Merk.

[Merchant Essence] was a good skill, it hadn't been obtained before due to the need for relationship skills. This ability increased the sale price or reduced the purchase price based on charisma and/or relationship to the individual or faction being traded with, eventually being able to purchase goods at their minimum base price if a certain level is reached. Too bad, it has little or no effect on Merk.

We got a lot of second-hand books with various annotations, as well as some notebooks with old projects from alumni in some stores. I had my experience in my first year, so I was able to recommend exactly what things could save them a lot of work.

Along the way, you could see how Petunia withered. Thanks to me, she understood what she was missing and would lose, she was very depressed, but I secretly approached her and without being seen I took her hand.

I was releasing small doses of my power, but not much, enough to make her smile, although it seemed to me that she smiled instantly even though I hadn't used my power yet and I only took her hand... besides the blush.

Much of the trip was spent holding Petunia's hand and whispering things in her ear, like jokes about Lily and Snape, not offensive enough that if those two found out about it would be very angry with me. No one noticed, which was difficult to not notice how she tried to contain her expressions or her laughter at times.

After finishing shopping, we went back to the ice cream parlor and enjoyed a frozen treat with Lily and Petunia's parents. While we were there we talked a bit, Mr and Mrs Evans had stepped back a bit to give us our space, so we didn't hold back.

"The ice cream is good" (Lily)

"I don't know if that good"(Snape)

"That's why we already ate one waiting for them"(Red)

"Do we have a lot of things to bring? Looks like we're going to move" Lily said looking at the various boxes and bags.

"Do you remember that Hogwarts is a boarding school and that you're going to move in a way?" I said while under the table I caress Petunia's leg, very purely, but it made her turn red and shudder.

"Yes, I mean, but there are many things, I don't think I can take it all there by myself" Lily explained, not knowing that her sister was in an embarrassing situation.

"Hmmm... I hadn't thought of that" I said, realizing that I usually solve problems like this with my inventory "Then with Sev we are going to buy some bags with an expansion spell so you can carry things with great comfort"

"I told you not to call me that" Snape got annoyed, he only let Lily call him 'Sev' and every time Petunia or I did it he got angry.

"Okay, sorry... then I'll go to this bitch..." I said, causing Severus to choke on his ice cream, and the girls had to hold back their laughter and embarrassment.

"What did you call me?!" he exclaimed angrily

"Calm down little princess" I kept making fun of him a bit, it wasn't like I started it, this started a long time ago with his attitude and way of talking about me or despising me, but this was just rivalries-friendships of children.

"I'm going to kill you" He said, raising his fist clumsily because, with his skillful hand, he had his ice cream.

"I wait for you, but no one will accompany you tonight if you make it" (Red)

"..." Snape had to swallow his words, knowing that he needed my help later.

"Where are you going to go tonight?" Lily asked curiously, ignoring the fight, it happened regularly and she even enjoyed it sometimes.

"Secret," Snape and I said firmly in unison.

"Come on, tell us!" Lily demanded now with even more curiosity, rarely were we so firm and in agreement on something at the same time.

"Yes, you can't keep it just to yourselves, we tell you all our secrets" Petunia said with suspicion and frustration, knowing that she had told me many personal things and I was hiding something from her, she had even told me about the embarrassment she had with her first period in school.

"...it's okay if you want to know..." I said, bringing my face closer to the center of the table and covering the side of my mouth with my hand as if to tell a secret.

"Red, you said..." Snape uttered with confusion, remembering that I forbade him to talk about it with the girls.

"Tonight Sev and I are going to see scantily clad ladies"(Red)

"What?!"x3

"That we are going to see scantily clad witches" I repeated.

"Wait, that's not..." Snape was about to deny, but I silenced him with my hand, then he understood that it was a misleading lie as I did a few other times and he didn't continue, although he didn't like it either.

"Hmm, if you don't want to tell us that much, at least don't tell lies like that" Lily complained in frustration, not believing what I said, showing no shame, unlike her sister, who almost fell off her chair when listening to me.

"I'm not lying, it's a boy thing, and maybe some girls... don't get involved, there are things about girls that Severus and I will never understand and there are things about boys that you won't understand"(Red)

"Keep lying, keep going, as if I were going to believe something like that" Lily was upset, she wanted to know what secrets we were keeping, but if I didn't want to tell her something, she knew couldn't get it out of my mind, so she vented, wanting to show her indifference knowing that she mattered to us.

"You don't believe me or you don't want to accept it? Ohh... Or are you afraid that we will find a girl without clothes sexier than you and then compare you?" I made fun of her.

"You would not do that!" She now showed indignation at the thought of the possibility that every time we see her we compare her and she lost the image that she was trying to show us.

"Wasn't it that you didn't believe me?" I smiled victoriously.

"Of course, I don't believe you" She pretended to be serious again, not wanting to admit defeat against me "I know how you like to deceive us... and I'm very clear that Sev wouldn't go with you for something like... that..." Still she did not want to lose, but she could not recover the former solemnity and she was indignant.

"Don't believe, he's a complete degenerate, there are even moments where he not only sees scantily clad girls but also scantily clad boys...*frosty noise*"

I said, but Snape couldn't take it anymore and stabbed me in the eye with his ice cream

...

When the ice cream was finished, we walked the girls and their parents out, and then Snape and I headed back to Diagon Alley.

"I guess it's time"(Red)

"Yeah, let's go" (Snape)

"Remember not to tell them anything about this, I'm serious, this is not a world they should be getting into right now... and neither are you, but I do accept your hobby to a certain extent"(Red)

"I know, you've already said it several times, and you really had to tell them that? You're not really going to do it? True?" he questioned.

"I improvised on the go... and I thought it was fun, although it might not be a bad idea for me to take you to meet some witches, maybe that way the bitterness will go away" (Red)

"Fuck you" (Snape)

"You too, come on bitch" (Red)

"If you call me that again...!"(Snape)

We both headed to the dark side of the wizarding world, knockturn Alley. We had been here before, but right now we would go shopping instead of just watching from afar. This date was agreed upon a long time ago, Snape was interested in the dark arts and I wanted to see if I could replenish the merchant's Stock of black magic items.

It's not like we haven't had problems the other times we've come here, it was certainly a dark and dangerous place, but I managed to get us out of every jam and that's why Snape knew he needed me if he wanted to get what he wanted.

Breaking the wrist and smashing the face of a witch against the wall who was trying to kidnap us, dodging silent spells and throwing knives, escaping from thugs... we did it all and at this point, we knew well what roles each of us fulfilled and how to react to each situation. It was not an outing through the park, but we managed with some fluidity.

Snape had learned that I wasn't just a strange boy, I was also someone who could kill in cold blood. He saw me cut a witch's throat once and was shocked, but he pulled himself together quickly and kept this side of me a secret from Lily and Petunia. These things were a buddy secret.

He understood that if he wanted to be safe in a place like this, someone like me was the best company and he accepted things like this with relative ease, he adapted to the dark wizarding world after the dark muggle world. Actually, this demonstration of my skills made him respect me a little more and improve our friendship.

We arrived at 'Borgin and Burkes' in our particular robes for these situations, the ones we could wear to cover ourselves completely. We entered and there was the owner of the place behind the counter, who took a look at us when we entered, noticing that we were a couple of children because of our height and build.

"Welcome, honorable gentlemen, how can I help you?" He greeted with a big fake smile as we approached him.

"You'd better put your wand down, if you don't want those flesh-eating tongs to eat your face" I yelled as I grabbed a pair of tongs that looked like something out of a horror movie and tossed it at him without hesitation.

Mr. Borgin was startled when he saw what I threw at him and with the wand he had secretly taken he defended himself instantly, but before he had time to do anything else I had the tip of my sword pointed at his neck. He had activated quite a bit of rage earlier since we came to this side of the alley, so my physical attributes were boosted.

"How can I help you, dear customers?" He smiled again, only ruefully, with his hands raised. He was afraid of the sword that was poking his neck, but he didn't stop thinking of ways to subdue us.

"Wand on the counter" I demanded.

Borgin was slowly lowering his wand, but when I saw that he was making a strange movement, I stabbed the sword a little into his neck letting the blood flow and he stopped any intention of doing anything by noticing how close he was to not counting it, he simply placed his wand in the desk.

"The other" I demanded again.

"I..." he was about to deny and ask what I was talking about, but before he continued I pressed my sword and he pulled out another wand that he kept in his clothing very slowly.

"And the ones under the counter, then the hands on the table and the legs apart" (Red)

These words already left him very tense and sweating cold, he noticed how I knew each of the tricks that he always had prepared for similar situations that not even his co-owner knew. He was thinking which business opponent caused this, but he couldn't think of anyone currently, or maybe there were too many.

I forget his initial idea, of kidnapping and selling us or other shady things that were done around here, and only cooperate waiting for time to pass until the shift change or another client comes in that gives him a chance to escape.

"Well..." I pushed all the wands on the counter much further with my hand and then lowered my sword a bit, but without putting it away, to the point that it was very easy for me to react and cut off his head at any eventuality "Business time "

I knew the place and its methods well for the same reason I did well in Knockturn Alley, my temporary job as an auror. Had come to this place several times, I saw records (another benefit of coming from the future) and I also heard stories and reports from other aurors. This was pretty simple, though I still didn't let my guard down.