Chapter 90 - A trip to Diagon Alley(2)

"Done," Mr. Malfoy, said at the counter. "Come, Draco, we have a lot of things to do and little time to waste. Thomas, it was a pleasure meeting you and I hope to continue our conversation tomorrow."

Mr. Malfoy then turns towards the shopkeeper. "Good day to you, Mr. Borgin. I'll expect you at the manor tomorrow to pick up the goods."

The moment the door had closed, Mr. Borgin dropped his oily manner.

"Good day yourself, Mister Malfoy, and if the stories are true, you haven't sold me half of what's hidden in your manor…" The man then turned towards Thomas giving him a smile before asking this young customer what caught his eye.

"Mr. Grayson, what can I do for you today?"

Thomas looked at Mr. Borgin before answering the man. "I want to buy the Vanishing Cabinet," he said pointing at the cabinet. "I've been searching for one for a long time, and I won't let this opportunity slip away."

Mr. Borgin rubbed his chin, contemplating the request. He knew the value of the Vanishing Cabinet, and he also understood that Thomas was not an ordinary customer. The young wizard had been a regular at Borgin and Burkes, and his polite demeanor had left a good impression on the shopkeeper, not to mention that every time the boy came here he will always spend no less than 50 galleons on some hard-to-get ingredients that Borgin could get his hands on.

After a few seconds of silence, Mr. Borgin sighed and shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't sell you the Vanishing Cabinet, Mr.Grayson," he said truthfully. "Not because I don't want to, but because I simply don't know where the sister cabinet is located."

Thomas felt a pang of disappointment, but he appreciated Mr. Borgin's honesty. "You don't know?" he asked, hoping there might be a way to find out. Maybe the greedy man wanted more gallons for this information.

"I'm afraid not," Mr. Borgin replied, looking genuinely apologetic. "The previous owner of the cabinet didn't share that information with me. It's one of those rare items that are hard to come by, and its twin cabinet's location has been a mystery to me as well."

Thomas nodded, understanding the situation. He knew that Vanishing Cabinets were not common items and that finding a pair was a rare feat. However, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of frustration at the missed opportunity.

"If I had more information, I would gladly sell it to you," Mr. Borgin said, sympathetically. "But without knowing where the sister cabinet is, it wouldn't be wise to separate them. It could be dangerous."

Thomas appreciated Mr. Borgin's concern for his safety. "Thank you for being honest with me," he said, giving the shopkeeper a small smile. "I understand, and I appreciate your consideration. Maybe one day, I'll stumble upon the other cabinet."

Mr. Borgin smiled back. "I'm sure you will, Thomas. You're a resourceful young wizard, and you've got a bright future ahead of you."

With a nod of gratitude, Thomas bid farewell to Mr. Borgin and left the shop. While he hadn't acquired the Vanishing Cabinet he desired, at least he now got a new side quest to search for that sister cabinet.

Meanwhile, as soon as Thomas left and Mr. Borgin disappeared into a back room something moved inside the cabinet. Inside the cabinet, a boy with a scar waited for a minute in case the shopkeeper came back, then, quietly as he could, slipped out of the cabinet, past the glass cases, and out of the shop door.

Clutching his broken glasses to his face, Harry stared around. He had emerged into a dingy alleyway that seemed to be made up entirely of shops devoted to the Dark Arts. The one he'd just left, Borgin and Burkes, looked like the largest, but opposite was a nasty window display of shrunken heads and, two doors down, a large cage was alive with gigantic black spiders. Two shabby-looking wizards were watching him from the shadow of a doorway, muttering to each other. Feeling jumpy, Harry set off, trying to hold his glasses on straight and hoping against hope he'd be able to find a way out of there.

An old wooden street sign hanging over a shop selling poisonous candles told him he was in Knockturn Alley. This didn't help, as Harry had never heard of such a place. He supposed he hadn't spoken clearly enough through his mouthful of ashes back in the Weasleys' fire. Trying to stay calm, he wondered what to do. Should he aimlessly walk towards the bank? Or towards the bookshop? Maybe he should wait for the Weasleys to find him. Harry didn't know, but just as he was about to walk away he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Not lost are you, my dear boy?" said a voice in his ear, making him jump.

An aged witch stood in front of him, holding a tray of what looked horribly like whole human fingernails. She leered at him, showing her mossy teeth in what Harry could only describe as the most disgusting-looking smile he had ever seen in his short life, making the boy back as far away from that "creature" as he could.

"I'm fine, thanks. I'm just …" But before he could continue speaking, a new voice, one that was familiar to Harry interrupted him.

"HARRY! What d'yeh think yer doin' down there?"

Harry's heart leaped, and so did the witch as her merchandise flew and a load of fingernails cascaded down over her feet making the ugly witch curse at the boy and then at the man who scared her, but she stopped when she saw the massive form of Hagrid, the Hogwarts gamekeeper, striding toward them, beetle-black eyes flashing over his great bristling beard.

"Hagrid!" Harry croaked in relief. "I was lost … Floo powder …"

Hagrid seized Harry by the scruff of the neck and pulled him away from the witch, knocking the tray right out of her hands and what little nails she still had on it. Her shrieks followed them all the way along the twisting alleyway out into bright sunlight. Harry saw a familiar, snow-white marble building in the distance, The Gringotts Bank as Hagrid had steered him right into Diagon Alley.

"Yer a mess!" said Hagrid gruffly, brushing soot off Harry so forcefully he nearly knocked him into a barrel of dragon dung outside an apothecary. "Skulkin' around Knockturn Alley, I dunno, dodgy place, Harry, don' want no one ter see yeh down there ."

"I realized that," said Harry, ducking as Hagrid made to brush him off again. "I told you, I was lost … what were you doing down there, anyway?"

"I was lookin' fer a Flesh-Eatin' Slug Repellent," growled Hagrid. "They're ruinin' the school cabbages. Yer not on yer own?"

"I'm staying with the Weasleys but we got separated," Harry explained. "I've got to go and find them… I've also seen Thomas back at Borgin's place."

Hagrid's bushy eyebrows furrowed at the mention of Thomas. "Thomas, huh?" he rumbled, his voice heavy with thought. "Yeah, I've seen him around Knockturn Alley a fair bit. Reckon he comes here more often than anyone else I've seen. But no one dares to mess with him, yeh know why?"

Harry shook his head, curious about what Thomas could have possible done to be left alone by those that live in this place.

"He's got some powerful friends, Harry," Hagrid said with a knowing glint in his eye. "I've heard stories, and they say he's got connections with the devils themselves. People don't dare to cross him 'cause they know what might happen if they do."

"Of course he does." Harry said, remembering all the stories Thomas told them about his training with his friend, Latia.

"Aye, devils," Hagrid confirmed. "Now don't go thinkin' they're the evil creatures the stories tell you. Thomas has made friends with 'em, and he's got their respect. You see, he's been helpin' 'em with potions and such, and in return, they've been watchin' out for him. There was this one wizard who tried to attack him once, and the next day when someone saw him , the man he lost his right hand and both of his legs. No one messes with Thomas after that."

Harry was genuinely surprised to hear that his friend started making a living for himself with the devils nevertheless, then again there were quite a few potion masters in the United Kingdom so maybe that was for the best. But he was broken out of his thoughts by Hagrid's question.

"How come yeh never wrote back ter me?" said Hagrid as Harry jogged alongside him (he had to take three steps to every stride of Hagrid's enormous boots). Harry explained all about Dobby and the Dursleys.

"Lousy Muggles," growled Hagrid. "If I'd've known ,I would have…"

"Harry! Harry! Over here!"

Harry looked up and saw Hermione and Thomas standing at the top of the white flight of steps to Gringotts. She ran down to meet them, her bushy brown hair flying behind her while Thomas walked towards them with a smile on his face.

"What happened to your glasses? "As soon as I've found the Weasleys," said Harry.

"Hey, Harry, Hagrid! Good to see you again," Thomas greeted with a friendly grin as Hermione came down to join them. "

Hagrid beamed back at Thomas, giving him a hearty pat on the back. "Same 'ere,lad."

"What happened to your glasses, Harry? Hello, Hagrid. Oh, it's wonderful to see you two again. Are you coming into Gringotts, Harry?"

Harry reached up to touch the bridge of his nose where his glasses should have been. "Oh … they fell off, yes they fell."

Thomas chuckled, shaking his head. "Maybe you shouldn't have delve in the Knockturn Alley, Harry. It's not exactly the friendliest place in Diagon Alley."

"I realized that," Harry replied with a wry smile. "But it's good to see you two. Hermione, have you seen Ron and the others?"

Hermione shook her head. "No, we didn't saw them, but I think they should be around."

"Thanks for the help Hagrid." Harry said, feeling relieved that at least he found his friends. "I'll stay with Hermione and Thomas until we find the Weasleys."

"You do you, Harry."

Before they could continue their conversation, Harry's curiosity got the better of him. He turned to Thomas and asked, "Hey, Thomas, I saw you earlier with Mr. Malfoy and Draco in Borgin's shop. What were you doing there?"

"Well, it was a bit of a coincidence, to be honest. I was in Borgin's shop looking for some potion ingredients, and I happened to stumble upon Mr. Malfoy and Draco there."

Harry raised an eyebrow, sensing there was more to the story. "Coincidence, huh? What were they doing in there?"

Thomas hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Mr. Malfoy recognized me from the incident with that woman and her summoned creatures. He asked when I was going to visit him at the manor, you know, for saving Draco's life."

"Oh, you said that you were not so keen on going there for a visit." Hermione remembered what Thomas told her a few months ago.

Suddently all four of them heard someone shouting for Harry and as soon as they look to their left they saw, sprinting up the crowded street were Ron, Fred, George, Percy, and Mr. Weasley.

"Harry," Mr. Weasley panted. "We hoped you'd only gone one grate too far…" He mopped his glistening bald patch. "Molly's frantic ,she's coming now ."

"Where did you come out?" Ron asked.

"Knockturn Alley," said Hagrid grimly.

"Excellent!" said Fred and George together.

"We've never been allowed in," said Ron enviously.

"I should ruddy well think not," growled Hagrid.

Mrs. Weasley now came galloping into view, her handbag swinging wildly in one hand, Ginny just clinging onto the other.

"Oh, Harry , oh, my dear , you could have been anywhere …"

Gasping for breath, she pulled a large clothes brush out of her bag and began sweeping off the soot Hagrid hadn't managed to beat away. Mr. Weasley took Harry's glasses, gave them a tap of his wand, and returned them, good as new.

"Well, gotta be off," said Hagrid, who was having his hand wrung by Mrs. Weasley "See yer at Hogwarts!" And he strode away, head and shoulders taller than anyone else in the packed street.

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