Never Again

The next few days passed by quickly within the confines of the Burrow with Harry continuing with his training early every morning. He spent the rest of the day with his friends mucking about in the orchard playing two-a-side Quidditch, occasionally going for a swim in the pond nearby and his evenings having triple helpings of whatever Mrs. Weasley put in front of him.

On his sixteenth birthday, Harry had privately made plans to go somewhere for the night in order to have a proper celebration. He was feeling restless and cooped up from being forced to stay within the boundary walls of the Weasley property. The stories of unexplained disappearances, odd accidents and even deaths that appeared almost every day in the Prophet had also put a damper in what should have been a happy and peaceful holiday. Sometimes, they would get news from Mr. Weasley and Bill even before it hit the papers.

His decision was further cemented on the day of his birthday when Remus Lupin, much to Mrs. Weasley's displeasure, brought home some grisly news.

'There has been another spate of Dementor attacks,' he announced as he accepted a slice of birthday cake from Mrs. Weasley. 'They have also found Igor Karkaroff's body in a shack up north with the Dark Mark hovering over it. Frankly I'm surprised he lasted this long. From what I heard, Sirius' brother Regulus only lasted a couple of days before they caught up to him.'

That night after everybody had retired for the night, Harry snuck out of his room. Moving stealthily, he stole out of the house and made his way to the edge of the wards. From some experimentation over the past few days, Harry had reached the conclusion that the wards did not extend to the orchard. A potential weak spot should the Death Eaters come calling. After asking Bill some subtle questions about the wards, Harry found out that the orchard had a Detection Charm placed that would detect the presence of any person not keyed into the wards. This made sneaking in and out rather easy as Harry had already been keyed into the wards. In short, the Burrow had wards meant to keep people out, not in. Thus, allowing free movement of the persons residing within its walls.

Armed with this information, Harry made his way to the Orchard where he then silently Disapparated to London to begin his birthday celebrations.

He returned at around two in the morning leaving behind a sleeping brunette whose name he had already forgotten, who would no doubt be pitching a fit when she found herself alone in the morning. Early on, Harry had found that it took a lot of alcohol to get him even close to tipsy. He supposed that it was due to the magic he possessed that neutralised the effects of alcohol. Either that or his current size was the reason (he still was having difficulties in thinking of himself as tall or "big" as some people put it). While the obvious advantage of this was that he could probably win any drinking contest, Harry was still disappointed as he really wanted to know what it was to become utterly pissed and hadn't yet managed that despite having chased his drinks. Hopefully Wizarding liquor would be potent enough to get him drunk.

As he managed to successfully sneak back into his room silently congratulating himself on his conquest, he spied a parcel on his bed with a letter on top of it. Harry opened the letter first;

Dear Mr. Potter, it read

I am eternally grateful to you for your timely warning about the impeding attack upon my person and business. I shudder to think what would have transpired had you not been able to warn me. I most likely would have been a guest of the Dark Lord's.

As it is, it is definitely fortunate you had managed to warn me of the attack. I had enough time to employ the counter measures my ancestors had placed in order to repel Dark Wizards.

In thanks I send to you this copy of the Tales of Beedle the Bard. It is a one of a kind copy which had been given to me a long time back. While most would call the stories held within fanciful tales for children, there are yet others that claim that these tales are actual documentations of real events that have happened over time. I leave the decision up to you. Make what you will out of the exquisite work of art that this book is as you enjoy the many tales within.

Wishing you a merry birthday, I remain,

Yours,

Ollivander

Opening the parcel, Harry gasped as he laid eyes upon the book within. The book was a hardback, the cover made of cherry and gold leaf. The art work on it was inlaid with precious stones. Opening the gilded pages revealed the exquisite calligraphy with the historiated initials done in painstaking detail. The ink used actually shimmered and seemed to be lit from within.

The book was in short so beautiful that it would incite even the most reluctant of readers to start reading.

Carefully putting the book back into the silk slip it had come in, Harry placed it in his trunk before turning in for the night.

Their Hogwarts letters came in the very next day. Harry's had a surprise for him. He had been made the Quidditch captain.

'Brilliant mate, this puts you on an equal footing to us prefects!' said Ron. 'You can use the prefects' bathroom and everything! I guess I should call you my captain now ... that is if you'll let me in the team.'

Harry examined the scarlet badge with a golden "C" superimposed over the Gryffindor lion and smiled. He was happy that he had made Quidditch Captain over Katie who had more experience than him. Looking up at Ron he said teasingly, 'Well, you'll have to practise more now if you want that spot Weasley.'

Remembering at the last moment about the request he wanted to make to Professor McGonagall he quickly wrote a small note asking her about the Runes and Arithmancy classes and attached it to the school owl. The owl gave him a dirty look for having called it back just as it was about to take off before winging its way back to Hogwarts.

He turned back to the conversation that was taking place between Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ron and Hermione just as they had managed to convince Mrs. Weasley to go shopping in Diagon Alley the next day for school supplies.

They all left the next morning after Mrs. Weasley gave Ron a tongue lashing over making jokes about the security measures that she was discussing with them. As the Floo was potentially more risky, they left for the Alley in cars provided by the Ministry. Harry sat between Hermione and Ron and across from Ginny. As Ron wasn't exactly conversation material since he was still sulking and Hermione was trying to calm him down, Harry found himself making idle conversation with Ginny.

Upon reaching the Leaky Cauldron they found out that their security detail was Hagrid who greeted them at the entrance to the pub. Harry knew that the security was more for him than because Mr. Weasley had been promoted, as Mrs. Weasley claimed, but did not say anything, even though the thought of being treated like an ignorant child did chafe at him a bit.

As the portal opened at the back of the pub, Harry was greeted by the sight of a much changed Diagon Alley. In the intervening couple of days between his last visit to the Alley and now, a lot of small shabby makeshift stalls had sprung up out of the woodwork selling all sorts of protective charms and potions. Their presence gave the Alley an air of gloom. The boarded up storefronts of some of the shops (the most prominent of them being Fortescue's) and the furtive and tense looks of the shoppers in the abnormally quiet Alley did not help matters any.

They walked forward in a tense silence with Mr. Weasley sending the stall vendors dirty looks and muttering darkly to himself while Mrs. Weasley warned him nervously in a hushed voice not to do anything rash.

Their first stop was Flourish and Blotts (which was, mercifully, still open) where they got the books on their list. Harry slipped in a copy of the third and fourth year Ancient Runes and Arithmancy textbooks. As they stepped out of the bookstore, Mr. Weasley turned to his wife and said, 'Why don't we split up? These three can go with Hagrid and get their robes while the two of us and Ginny can go to the Apothecary and restock Hermione and Ginny's Potions kit. This way we can get things over with faster. We can meet them at Fred and George's place.'

Mrs. Weasley still looked undecided, so Hermione pointed out that Ron and Harry definitely needed new robes and that nobody would be foolish enough to mess with Hagrid. Finally convinced, Mrs. Weasley agreed to split off and moved with her husband and a visibly disappointed Ginny.

Entering Madame Malkin's shop, they ran into Draco Malfoy who was wearing pinned up dress robes. Harry hung back as he watched Malfoy start insulting Hermione and Ron. He did not draw his wand like Ron had done the minute he had laid eyes on the blonde, but he was still alert nonetheless as he discreetly placed himself a bit behind Malfoy pretending to peruse the selection of dress robes while keeping an eye on the boy, ready for action should Malfoy think of doing anything funny. Knowing that Malfoy was right handed, Harry made sure to stay on his left. That way, the other boy would have to put in more effort to bring his wand to bear.

'So where's Potter? Was he too afraid to show his face around here?' said Malfoy sneering after finishing with Hermione.

'Draco old chap!' said Harry with false cheer, startling the other boy. 'How are you doing these days? I trust you are in good health? How's the family?' he asked with an innocent expression on his face that fooled nobody.

Malfoy turned a faint pink as his eyes flashed in anger at that subtle barb made against his father. 'Just you wait Potter, The Dark Lord-'

'-will one day find me and capture me which will culminate in my long, drawn out and painful death. After which, he will take over the world, ridding it of the "impure,"' Harry cut Malfoy off mid-rant with a bored voice, rolling his eyes. 'Haven't you come up with any new material to taunt me with yet? I suggest you do so, because frankly the old stuff's getting a bit boring,' he said conversationally.

Not expecting such a reaction Malfoy sputtered as he thought of a suitable response. However, before he could say anything, Narcissa Malfoy came out from where she was talking to Madame Malkin about a new wardrobe for her son. She was unpleasantly surprised to see her son standing off against two other people.

Mentally, she sighed, couldn't he for one moment in his life think twice? Schooling her features, Narcissa gave a contemptuous look to the youngest spawn of those blood-traitor Weasleys. Noting the drawn wand, she said coldly, 'Put that away right now, boy. If you attack my son again I will ensure that it is the last thing you ever do!' Casting her eyes at the Mudblood, she sneered with obvious disdain before looking away from the two with a sniff and obvious dismissal; they really were not worth her time whatsoever. What surprised her was the absence of their ringleader and the only reason why people even gave the blood-traitor and Mudblood any attention, Harry Potter.

At that moment, she laid eyes on a handsome aristocratic young man watching the scene in front of him almost casually. Her eyes narrowed as she took in his features. The boy had the patrician nose and high cheekbones of a Black. In fact, from a certain angle, she could almost mistake him for her estranged and late cousin Sirius.

As she picked out the scar on the boy's forehead, she inhaled through her nose with a sharp hiss. That's Potter. But how did he end up looking like my cousin Sirius? This bore looking into...

Ronald Weasley eyed Mrs. Malfoy suspiciously as she stared at his best mate. He did not know why she was looking at him so calculatingly but he did not like it one bit. She's up to something,

he thought darkly.

Madame Malkin did not know what to do in the rising tension in her shop. She really did not want a fight to break out. Especially when it involved a high paying regular, especially now given the state of things. She already had to make do without two of her employees as they had elected to flee the country. So she decided that if she acted as if nothing was happening, hopefully the situation would resolve itself peacefully. With that in mind, she reached for the sleeve of the dress robes that young Master Malfoy was wearing. It was one of her finest creations. 'I think that the left sleeve needs some adjusting,' she said.

Draco Malfoy yelped at the sudden contact as Malkin's hand brushed his arm. His Lord had recently Marked him and the skin there was still tender even though it no longer was inflamed. This had the side effect of focussing everybody's attention on him. Thinking quickly, he covered his actions by loudly insulting Madame Malkin and making a production of it, left the shop followed by his mother, confident that neither Potter nor that Mudblood know-it-all had seen the Mark. He wasn't too worried about the Weasel. He was too dumb to figure anything out.

Narcissa watched as her son tried to cover his actions by loudly blaming the woman who had been measuring him and many others for more than three decades with some irritation and a little hint of fear; it was still some time left for the healing period to be completed, and the Mark was still visible till that time. Only after the healing period would the Mark become hidden, visible only to their brethren. Only showing when their Lord called. Draco could not afford for the Mark to be seen on his flesh, especially by Potter and his ilk. Hopefully, they hadn't seen it.

She had even warned him not to go out in public till the skin had healed and the Mark had concealed itself. But no, he wouldn't listen! Sighing in resignation, Narcissa gave a look to Madame Malkin that the other woman acknowledged as an apology. The Blacks as well as the Malfoys along with many other pureblood families had a long standing relationship with the establishment and she was not about to let that be jeopardised by her son. She would be coming over later to collect the rest of the order and soothe Madame Malkin's ruffled feathers. If Draco ended up with ill fitting robes, it was not her fault. Not that she expected that issue to crop up. Madame Malkin was rather gifted.

In her somewhat distracted state of mind, Narcissa did not notice Ron's eyes as they widened imperceptibly as he caught a fleeting glimpse of black against the pale skin of Malfoy's arm when the sleeve was raised for that one small instant in time.

Ron waited till an irritated Madame Malkin started measuring Harry. When he saw that they were suitably occupied, he pulled Hermione aside and in hushed tones told her about his discovery.

'But he's only sixteen! Surely Voldemort wouldn't think of recruiting a sixteen year old into his ranks?' said Hermione in a hushed voice, ignoring as always the small flinch Ron gave as she uttered the forbidden name.

'Hermione, who knows what You-Know-Who thinks and why he does what he does,' Ron replied. He checked to see if Harry was still occupied, 'for all we know, this could be a clever ploy by You-Know-Who to take over Hogwarts!'

Hermione seemed to consider this before asking hesitantly, 'You're sure you saw the Dark Mark on his arm right?'

Ron just nodded in response. Hermione bit her lower lip as she thought of this. 'We should tell Harry about this,' she decided.

Ron immediately interrupted her before she could further that thought. 'Actually I don't think we should. No, listen,' he hastily continued as Hermione was about to protest, 'Harry already has a lot on his plate. He already has You-Know-Who to worry about, those classes with Dumbledore won't be much of a picnic, and he has also just lost his godfather he does not need to deal with this. Besides, Dumbledore told us to take care of him. We can do this without having to worry him. You and I can easily find out what he is up to and we don't need to worry Harry. Let him have a nice normal year for once.'

Ron watched Hermione's lower lip as she worried it with her teeth. She really is beautiful when she does that he thought. He immediately shook himself from that line of thinking as she opened her mouth to speak.

'Yeah, you're right Ron. Let Harry have this one year without having to worry about what Voldemort and his minions are planning. Though, I don't know if we will be able to figure this out on our own. Perhaps we should tell Dumbledore?'

'Nah, the man's busy enough as it is. Besides, Malfoy won't have a chance! Not with the smartest witch in Hogwarts on his case!'

Hermione blushed at this compliment and swatted his arm in response, trying and failing to show how much it had affected her. Not to be fooled by this, Ron's smile grew even more at that.

Just then a throat was cleared, causing them to realise just how close to each other they were. Jumping apart and blushing deeply, they turned around to find a Madame Malkin and Harry Potter staring at them. Seeing the knowing smirk on their friend's face only caused them to blush even more as they avoided eye contact with each other.

Madame Malkin didn't seem to be as irritated as before, though she still looked a bit unhappy with them. She disappeared in the back of the store along with Harry leaving both Ron and Hermione at the tender mercies of two young and inexperienced employees who proceeded to actually do the one thing Draco Malfoy had accused her of in abundance.

Five minutes later, they were ushered out of the shop by Madame Malkin who had the air of being glad of seeing their backs. Harry, however, got a warm goodbye, seeing as he had just commissioned a new wardrobe to be delivered later on by owl post.

They met up with the rest of their party at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, a garishly decorated building that unlike the rest of the stores in Diagon Alley was pretty busy with customers coming into the shop in droves. A fact that Harry was sure wasn't earning them any charitable thoughts from the other shop owners as he looked at the different products that where banging, flashing, popping and whirling in fascination. He had to turn away after a while as it was beginning to hurt his eyes.

Snickering at the U-No-Poo poster, Harry led the way into the shop followed by Ron who was assuring Mrs. Weasley that her twin sons won't be "murdered in their beds" as she put it.

The shop was packed with customers; Harry could not reach the shelves. He looked at the different boxes stacked up to the ceiling full of different things the twins had invented. He had noticed that their Skiving Snackboxes were quite popular, with Nosebleed Nougat being a favourite, judging by the one battered box still left in an otherwise empty shelf.

Hermione pushed through the crowd towards Harry reading off a box of Daydream Charms. '"One simple incantation, and you will enter a highly realistic thirty minute daydream, easy to fit into the average school lesson and virtually undetectable (side effects include a vacant expression and mild drooling) not for sale to under sixteens." That is impressive magic!' she said.

'For that Hermione,' said a beaming Fred as he sidled up to them wearing magenta robes that clashed magnificently with his hair. 'You can have one for free.'

He shook hands with Harry. 'Hey, Harry, looking good there! I see you've managed to lose the glasses, though I have been told not to ask you how.' Looking at Hermione again he asked her about the black eye she was sporting. Leaving her with the bruise salve that he and George used frequently he set off with Harry giving him a tour of the establishment, showing him the range of products he and George and managed to create. They met George near the display full of Muggle tricks ('for freaks like dad,') where they took Harry to a less crowded room at the back. The products of this room had a more subdued packaging.

'This is where we make most of our money,' said Fred waving a hand at the shelves. 'Initially we had started making Shield Hats as a joke. You know, challenge your mate to jinx you wearing the hat and then watch his face as it bounces back. But the Ministry soon ordered a large amount for their support staff! And we're still getting massive orders!'

'So we started our defence line,' continued George. 'Not only did we expand to Shield Cloaks and Gloves, which, while they won't be much use against the Unforgiveables will help deflect minor jinxes and curses. We also have Instant Darkness Powder that we are importing from Peru. Handy if you want to make a quick escape.'

'Look at these, Decoy Detonators. Just drop them surreptitiously and they run off and make a lot of noise somewhere nicely hidden, handy for creating diversions,' said Fred, showing Harry a couple of weird looking black hooter-type objects trying to scurry out of sight.

'Impressive,' said Harry.

'Here, have a few,' said Fred as he put a handful of the Darkness Powder and some of the Detonators into two bags which he handed to Harry.

'Now, none of that!' said George suddenly with a frown, 'We haven't forgotten what you have done for us, and for that, whatever you take is free. Just be sure to tell people where you got it from.' In response to that, Harry withdrew his hand from his pocket where he was about to get his money-bag out without putting up much of a fuss.

'Mr. Weasley, a customer is out at the front wanting to buy a fake cauldron,' a voice from the entrance to the back room said. Turning around, Harry saw a young blonde woman dressed in magenta robes addressing the twins.

'Right you are, Verity, I'm coming,' said George following her out.

'She looks a lot like Rita Skeeter,' Harry told Fred, suddenly figuring the resemblance as they made their way out to the front of the store.

'Does she now?' Fred squinted at Verity, 'I think you're right, she does look a lot like Rita. I never figured that. Poor girl,' he winced in sympathy.

'It's pretty ironic though ... when you think of her name and all,' Fred mused as he moved towards a customer.

Harry wandered around the store before making his way towards the girls where he noticed that Fred and Ginny were having a rather heated argument if the way Ginny was glaring at her older brother (so reminiscent of Mrs. Weasley, that Harry was surprised Fred didn't recoil in horror) was to go by.

Catching the end of the conversation, Harry figured that it had something to do with the display of Love Potions that was nearby. Glancing at the gaggle of giggling girls surrounding the display, occasionally eyeing him and the other boys in the shop, Harry had a feeling that he would need to learn potion detection spells and fast. And probably research on antidotes as well. If Ginny was planning on buying a love potion ... Harry shuddered to think what other girls would do.

He joined them just in time to find out that Fred and George's generosity only extended to him and not to their little brother, even though they did give Ron a Knut's worth discount. Shaking his head and not understanding the dynamics of a sibling relationship, Harry bent to examine the little balls of fluff that the girls were making noises at. He personally didn't see what was so exciting about them. But he supposed that if the girls liked them and since they seemed to be in high demand according to Fred, they could be useful gift material.

After his mother had finished threatening to hex his fingers together, Ron chanced a glance out of the window to see Malfoy looking surreptitiously around him before ducking out of sight. Instantly suspicious he nudged Hermione and in hushed whispers explained what he had seen. He noticed that Harry hadn't seen Malfoy and, making a split decision, acted.

Harry watched with amusement as Ginny bought a purple Pygmy Puff and promptly named it Arnold.

'Arnold?' he asked her in amusement. 'I have to admit it's certainly an improvement over Pigwidgeon.'

Ginny looked around her, and seeing her brother occupied with Hermione leaned in and whispered, 'There is a reason I named Ron's owl that.'

Intrigued, Harry asked, 'And what reason is that Miss Weasley?'

'Oh to understand, you will have to look "Pigwidgeon" up in a dictionary.' She smirked as she saw his raised eyebrows, 'Trust me, it'll be more fun if you do it that way.'

Wrapped up in his conversation with Ginny, Harry was thus unaware of his surroundings, so he did not feel Ron's hand snake into his pocket where he had kept his Invisibility Cloak.

After talking to Ginny, he had taken a few steps forward to another of Fred and George's display when he felt the lightness in his left trouser pocket. Face suddenly white and heart thumping wildly, Harry felt for his Cloak only to find it gone. Suddenly feeling very cold, he searched frantically around the floor of the shop hoping that it had just fallen out of his pocket, his hands in his pockets feeling for the cloak that wasn't there.

Finally, just as he was beginning to think that he had lost the Cloak that was in his family for so many generations for good, Mrs. Weasley, who, along with the rest of the Weasleys was helping him search for the Cloak, noticed Ron and Hermione's absence. After that it was only a matter of seconds for everybody to come to the same conclusion.

And so when Ron appeared with Hermione at the shop a few minutes later, he found himself facing his mother in full sabre-toothed tiger mode with Ginny standing right next to her looking so much like her mother it wasn't funny. Gulping, Ron braced himself for a full blast of his mother's ire as Molly Weasley asked in a dangerous voice, 'Where. Were. You?'

Immediately Ron's hands tightened around Harry's cloak that he had behind his back while he thought of a suitable excuse.

'Erm, ah, I-I was at the back. W-with Hermione! We were looking at Fred and George's stuff. Didn't you see us?'

Instead of cooling down as he had hoped, the expression on his mother's face darkened even more till she was sporting a look that would have a normal sabre-toothed tiger running for the hills as she positively vibrated with rage. Ron watched with morbid fascination and a lot of dread as his mother seemed to inflate as she took a deep breath to unleash her wrath on her youngest son. He was only saved at the last minute when a hand belonging to his father landed on her shoulder. 'Not here Molly,' he whispered quietly into her ear while looking around at the people in the shop.

His mum exhaled loudly before nodding to his dad and Ron sighed in relief at the potential social disaster that was averted. He was sure that he wouldn't be able to live it down if his mother berated him in public. Then again, as he noticed the serious look on his father's face, he was definitely dead when he got home.

The extent of his fate was fully realised when Harry then came forward. Ron was used to being able to tell what his friend was feeling or thinking just by looking at his friend's expression or seeing the emotion expressed in his eyes. However, this time, Harry's face was completely void of emotion and his eyes, normally warm with expression were a pair of cold emeralds. 'Cloak,' was the only word he had said with his arm outstretched and his tone frigid, and Ron knew just then that the whole game was up. What was worse was that he had just been caught in a lie by his mother.

Gulping Ron quietly handed Harry his cloak back, not meeting his eyes. Thunderous expression still in place, Mrs. Weasley shepherded the group towards the front of the shop. On the way out Ron took a moment to notice that both his elder twin brothers had an alien expression of seriousness on their normally happy and mischievous faces.

They made their way towards the Leaky Cauldron with Hagrid bringing up the rear keeping a close eye on both Ron and Hermione.

The drive back was quiet but filled with a tension so thick that it had the Ministry driver looking for potential threats. Harry was carefully looking out of the window with a neutral expression. The only indicator of his feelings was the tenseness in his neck muscles and his stiff posture.

When they had reached the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley had immediately lit into Ron as well as Hermione, though Ron got the worst of it. After spending fifteen minutes yelling till she was hoarse at their irresponsible actions, the questions came; what was Ron doing that was so important with Hermione, and where had he gone?

After a lot of stammering on Ron's part, the full story had come out. Apparently Ron had decided that somebody (he won't say who) was up to something and had decided to follow him into Knockturn Alley.

'So you mean to tell me that you followed a person who may or may not have been a Death Eater, into Knockturn Alley, the same Knockturn Alley that is reputed for selling all sorts of Dark items mind you, just because this mystery person was looking shifty?' said Mrs. Weasley with a tone of disbelief.

'How did you come to possess Harry's cloak?' Mr. Weasley suddenly asked Ron.

'Erm,' said Ron looking shiftier at that question as he cast around for a plausible story to explain just how he had that cloak.

'You took it from my pocket didn't you?' said Harry quietly. His soft voice cut through the room like a knife.

'Well, not exactly-'

'Then what exactly is it Ron?' cut in Mr. Weasley sternly. 'Because judging by Harry's reaction to finding his cloak missing and the way he was searching for it and then by you having it, I don't think I would be wrong in thinking that you took it without asking Harry's permission.' Seeing that he had guessed correctly he continued, 'Taking something from someone without asking them about it is stealing Ron! I cannot believe that you would do such a thing, much less from someone who is supposed to be your best mate!' He took a deep breath, pinching his nose under his glasses and closing his eyes.

'Right,' said Mr. Weasley opening his eyes and looking up at Ron steadily. 'You are grounded for the rest of the holiday. No flying on your broom and you will have to help your mother with the chores till then.' He waited for Ron's nod then addressing Hermione said, 'You too will be helping out as well. Unless you'd rather that we speak to your parents?' Seeing Hermione agree he turned back to his youngest son, 'Now that we have answered the matter of your disappearing into Knockturn Alley despite being strictly told not to, there is still the matter of you stealing as well as lying to your mother.' Mr. Weasley took a deep breath as if steeling himself for what was about to come before speaking, 'Go to your room, I will be there to deal with that soon.'

At that statement, Ron blanched while Mrs. Weasley inhaled sharply. The last time that her husband had said that to any of their sons was when Fred and George had tried to make Ron swear an Unbreakable Vow.

Sensing that things were over, Harry quietly retreated to his room. Setting down his purchases a bit harder than was warranted, he sunk down on the bed putting his head in his hands. Ron only had to ask for the Cloak and Harry would have gladly lent it to him. Growing up, Harry never had many possessions truly his own and he had come to cherish what he had, much like one of those mythical Dragons with their hoards of gold that he had read about a long time back (unknown to his friends, he still had a piece of his old Nimbus broom with him). The feeling was exacerbated thanks to his fat cousin. When they were younger, Dudley and his friends would relish in depriving Harry of his possessions. Often hiding them or putting them in hard to reach places.

While Harry had no problems in sharing things with his friends (since he never had that novelty of friends, much less the novelty of sharing things) he absolutely hated it when people tried to take his things away from him without his permission. It was partly the reason for him pursuing Umbridge the way he had.

But at least with Umbridge he knew what to expect, seeing as he knew where he stood with her. But for Ron, his best mate, to do such a thing? It stung deeply.

Never again he thought savagely. What Ron had done only strove to drive home a point that Harry had learnt the hard way growing up (and to his chagrin, forgotten in the last few years). People cannot be trusted, and it was up to Harry to ensure that they couldn't take advantage of him again. Dumbledore had done the same thing to Harry too (interestingly it involved the Cloak as well) and now in lieu of Ron doing the same thing, Harry came to a decision; It would not happen again.

Thinking thus, Harry dove into his trunk and retrieved a book on wards he had taken from the Potter Family vault. Judging by some of the wards he had seen in the book earlier, Harry had come to two conclusions; firstly, the Potters were an intensely private family, and secondly, they really liked using some really obscure wards that, if the book was right, were only known to members of the family.

Looking through some of the wards detailed there, Harry cast a few basic ones on his trunk. He would only be able to do the more complicated ones after some classes in Arithmancy and Runes. What little he could cast was based off his self taught knowledge on the subjects.

His wards set, he sent a note to Madame Malkin if she could include those extra charms on his robes that she was talking about which would prevent pickpockets taking advantage of him. He would set about the difficult task of enchanting his current wardrobe against thievery on his own. The process was rather tiresome since it required a lot of magic, and would last till September. He would research other more permanent ways to ward his clothes at Hogwarts. If Madame Malkin can do it, so can he!

Arthur Weasley didn't like to punish his children, and as a result had left most of the disciplining up to Molly. However, Ron's actions had made his involvement necessary. Arthur hated thievery of any sort, and what Ron had done had angered him in more ways than he could imagine. Arthur had always tried to be honourable in his dealings and as honest as possible. It was his work ethic and the reputation that his family had won for being as open and honest as possible (despite being called Blood-Traitors) that was a matter of pride for him. He sighed as he got into bed next to his wife. He hoped that he never had to do such a thing again.

The next few days had Harry being rather distant with his friends. He would've forgiven them readily had they not been rather tight lipped about what it was they were doing when they had made off with his cloak. Ron had initially given him an explanation saying that he had followed Malfoy into Knockturn Alley since he was sure that Malfoy was a Death Eater.

Harry snorted at that; Malfoy wasn't of much significance. He was only an arrogant ponce who used his daddy's name and depended on the teachers (more specifically Snape) and his thuggish bodyguards Crabbe and Goyle to get things done. Voldemort would be really desperate to recruit him! Also, with the possible exception of the seventh years, making a Hogwarts student a Death Eater was too much of a risk with little benefits. He already had Snape in the school, he didn't need another spy. Placing another spy would suggest that Voldemort no longer trusted Snape. And when Voldemort has doubts about a person, that person does not last long. And Voldemort makes sure that the whole world knows of that fact. Since there hadn't been any reports of the mutilated body of a greasy Hogwarts professor being found, Harry knew Snape was still trusted. Other than spying on the school and its headmaster, Harry couldn't think of any use in having a Death Eater in the school. And a student Death Eater especially wouldn't be of much use. He or she would be under constant scrutiny by the teachers, Filch, Dumbledore, Mrs. Norris, Filch, the Portraits, Filch, the ghosts, and Filch to get anything done.

Besides, if it really was Malfoy they had gone after, then why not include Harry in the whole escapade also? No, there was a reason that Ron had decided to take Harry's cloak like that.

Eventually in a week's time, Harry had gotten around to forgiving them. It was partly because that he felt that Ron had gotten punished well enough, if the fact that he preferred to stand the next few days was any indication. He no longer cared for what Ron and Hermione had done together under his cloak anymore. After all, it wasn't as if he didn't have any secrets of his own.

At the same time, that did not mean that he would stop his efforts to protect his possessions from people willing to steal them. For Harry trust was an issue and once broken, it took a lot to regain that trust.

As she was washing the dishes, Hermione did some thinking. Some of Mr. Weasley's words to Ron had really hit home. It got her thinking about the meeting she and Ron had with Professor Dumbledore, when he had offered them money for looking out for Harry. At first the idea seemed brilliant. Here she was getting paid for the one thing she would be doing anyway for free. And while Hermione's parents were well off, she couldn't help but think that the amount of books she bought along with her education was putting a strain on her parents' finances. The fact of the matter was that her parents were earning in Pounds but she was spending in Galleons, a stronger currency. This way, she felt that she would be able to reduce the stress put upon her parents' finances by pulling her weight. So it was quite easy for Hermione to ignore the imagined disappointment she had seen in Professor Dumbledore's eyes when she and Ron had said yes.

It was now that Hermione realised what a mistake she had made. She was basically getting paid to be Harry's friend. Shouldn't looking out for her best friend be something she should be willing to do without the need for recompense?

After all, Harry had literally risked life and limb many times for his friends (herself included) without expecting anything in return. So why should she and Ron accept money or any other incentive for looking out for their friend? Didn't friends look out for each other voluntarily?

Hermione felt ashamed at her actions. While it was true that Professor Dumbledore had offered her the money and that he was technically the adult in the situation, she still should have known better. Well, she decided, that won't happen ever again. The first thing she would do when term started would be to meet Professor Dumbledore and give back that money.

She also resolved to talk to Ron about it as well. Thinking on it now, she figured that Professor Dumbledore was testing her. It truly upset her to know that she had failed the first time.

It was a small consolation that she hadn't fully failed the headmaster or her friend.

Never again, she thought. She would never fail her friend like that again. It was a good thing that Harry didn't know about this. She was sure that the knowledge would probably end their relationship.

Ron didn't regret his decision to take Harry's cloak in Diagon Alley. It was after all for a noble cause. The chance to get to know what Malfoy was up to was even worth the punishment afterwards, though he did not wish to face his father's wrath again. Fred certainly wasn't exaggerating when he said that his left buttock never felt the same. It really was too bad that he hadn't found out exactly what Malfoy was after.

Oh well, the next day they were going to be heading to Hogwarts. Malfoy would be there in the school, right where Ron can keep an eye on him. He refused to let You-Know-Who get his way this time, or (if Ron had a say in it) ever again till the day Harry managed to complete the prophecy and finish Him off.