Chapter One: Burrow of Red Bunnies
One fine summer day found four boys outside running around. Harish Blake and Draco Malfoy were spending the rest of the summer vacation at Fred and George Weasley's house for the remaining two weeks. This was going to be the first year Draco was going off to Hogwarts along with his life-long friend, Harish. He had turned eleven early that year, only a month before the twins turned thirteen. It had taken a lot of pleading and scheming to manage to get Lucius Malfoy let Draco stay at the Weasleys and vice versa, so they were enjoying being together very much.
"Harish!" Draco whined as the older boy grabbed his legs to pull him down.
"Wait up!" rang out the voices of the twins.
"I'm gonna win!" Harish cackled.
He slid to a stop, rolling down a grassy and sunlit hill, and held up an orange and now completely battered poster. The four boys had stolen a belonging of the twins' brother Ron's and were racing to see who could get over the hill the quickest.
The other three skidded to a halt beside him after another second, just as some annoyed shouts rang through the old house.
"Where's my Chudley Cannons poster?" Ron shouted.
"Hurry," Draco said as the three older boys pulled out their wands and began turning the poster green.
They heard a bang and a red head was just visible over the hill. Then another head, this one brown, followed.
"Come on guys! I know you have it! Give it back or I'll—"
"Distract him," Harish said, turning to block the poster out of view. Draco nodded and climbed back up the hill.
"I'll—" the immature eleven-year-old repeated.
"You'll what, Weasley? Stutter at me?" Draco drawled, his hands clasped behind his back.
"Where's my poster?" Ron asked forcefully.
Draco flicked a piece of dust off of his robes, keeping one hand behind his back. "Honestly," he sneered. "Didn't you ever learn manners? Or were just too stupid to be capable?" Ron's ears turned pink. The twins shot each other a grin as I continued on, "Why would you think I have your filthy poster?"
"Because you're here and it's not."
The blonde boy brought his other hand out from behind his back and showed them both to the other boy. The three thirteen-year-old wizards behind them finished up their work, shrunk the poster, and Harish slipped it into his pocket. Then they ran up to Draco.
"There you are, Draco," Harish said, panting.
"What held you up?"
"Oh, nothing," Draco replied before smirking at Ron and following them into the house.
"C'mon," Ron mumbled to his friend, Neville. "Let's just go back."
Neville nodded and they went back into the Burrow and climbed up to the very top were Ron's room was located. Then, Ron threw open his door and plopped himself on his bed.
"I don't believe it," Neville heard him say just as he walked into the room.
"What?" Neville asked.
Ron pointed up and Neville followed his gaze. Plastered to the ceiling was a green poster that said, "Slytherin Rules" at the top where it used to say, "Chudley Cannons". At the bottom it also read, "Chudley Cannons stink".
"Those slimy gits," Ron said angrily. "I know they did this."
Neville nodded.
BE-ANGRY-AND—ACCUSE-NOT-OF-OTHERS
"My lord," one of the Death Eaters said to Voldemort in a meeting one day. "We have learned of an object in which you would be interested in."
"Yes? What is this 'object'?"
"In grants eternal life…" and the wizard told the Dark Lord all about it. When he was finished, Voldemort nodded approvingly.
"Get me that stone."
OOOH—WHAT-STONE-IS-THIS-YOU-SPEAK-OF?
The next morning they were all gathered around the table eating breakfast. Ginny ran downstairs looking for her hair brush, spotted Harish, squeaked, and ran back upstairs. The twins snickered and Draco looked really confused. While they were finishing up their breakfast, something flew into the window with a loud bang.
Ron sighed and said, "I'll get him." Then he walked over, opened the window, and carried in their decrepit owl, Errol. After a second two more owls flew up, one was Augustus, Voldemort's owl, and the other one was bearing four letters with the Hogwarts crest on them. One dropped on Percy's lap and the other three dropped into the trio's laps.
Harish opened the envelope from his father and pulled out a letter and some sort of form. On the letter it simply said, Enclosed is a slip of paper giving you permission to Hogsmeade. Do not misuse this allowance, or you will not be allowed to go next year. Then on the form it said, I, Anata Thomas Blake give Harish Blake my full permission to visit the village Hogsmeade.
Harish then moved onto his letter from Hogwarts. The first piece of parchment read:
Dear Mr Blake,
Please note that the new school year will begin on September first.. The Hogwarts Express will leave from King's Cross Station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock.
Third years are permitted to visit the village Hogsmeade on certain weekends. A permission from was sent to your parents and you must have it signed to enter the village.
A list of books for next year is enclosed.
Yours sincerely,
Professor McGonagall
Harish looked up to see the others holding their own list of school books. Mrs. Weasley leaned over Percy's shoulder to read it and then finally said, "I think it's about time to pay a visit to Diagon Alley. I think Ron can have Bill's old robes and Charlie's wand, but I still need to buy him books."
Mr. Weasley replied, "That's fine. I have to go into work though. The ministry's been in an uproar ever since the break-in, what with Rita Skeeter running around."
"Skeeter?" Fred asked.
"What's she saying now?" George finished.
"Saying that the Ministry doesn't have a tight enough security. It caused an uproar. All kinds of people sent in Howlers for a couple months afterwards."
The twins shot Harish a look and Draco shoved food into his mouth quickly. Harish started. He hadn't realized that the Ministry was still having to deal with the repercussions of the prophesy being stolen. He wondered if they knew that it was missing. Then he realized something else.
"Wait, you work in the Ministry of Magic?" he asked Mr. Weasley.
"Yup," the twins answered for him.
"He works in the Misuse—"
"Of Muggle Artefacts office."
Percy was in the process of pulling out a purple badge with a 'P' on it when Mrs. Weasley threw herself on him. Everyone at the table turned to look on curiously.
"You're a Prefect?" she squealed. Percy's ears were now turning bright red. "Oh, I'm so proud of you! This deserves a reward! Do you want an owl? Ron's in need of a pet; he can have Scabbers."
Percy nodded before throwing out his chest proudly. The twins and Harish gagged while the rest of the table snickered.
So after breakfast Mrs. Weasley, Percy, Fred, George, Harish, Draco, Ron, and Neville all gathered around the fireplace and they all flooed over to Diagon Alley to buy their school supplies. Mrs. Weasley, who already had money out of the bank, split money between her three eldest sons and went with Ron to buy his things. Neville had his allowance and followed Ron, but Harish was in need of money.
Harish, Draco, and the twins agreed to meet outside the bank and Harish went in to get money. The boy received rather odd looks from goblin and people alike when he said that he wanted to draw money from the Potter account, but he paid it no mind. After he gathered his money, he met the twins where they had agreed, but soon the three of them stopped short.
"Is that the gamekeeper?" Draco drawled suddenly.
"I say—"
"It is!" the twins exclaimed.
"I wonder what he's doing here," Harish said, craning his neck to look at him.
The thirteen-year-old pulled out his invisibility cloak and pulled it around the four of them. They crept closer and Harish strained to hear the giant's conversation with a shopkeeper.
"Ah, Hagrid! Would you like the new stock of fertilizer we've had shipped from Peru?"
"No, I can' I'm 'fraid that I'm here on urgent business."
"Who for?"
The four boys moved so close that if Hagrid stepped to the side slightly Draco would have been trampled as the giant's voice reduced to a harsh whisper.
"P'fesser Dumbledore. But I can' tell ye no more. It's top secret, it is."
And the gamekeeper strode off towards the bank.
Harish pulled off the cloak and the three boys stepped into Madam Malkin's. "What was that all about?" the twins asked.
"I have no idea," Draco replied quietly as he smoothed down his hair.
"It seems as though our dear Professor Dumbledore is having something taken to Hogwarts," Harish said.
"How do you know that?"
"Well, he's here on Dumbledore's orders heading to Gringotts. I don't know what else you could deduce from those facts."
"But what is he—"
Harish suddenly elbowed Fred in the ribs as he realized that Ron and Neville were in the shop waiting to be fitted as well. Ron had just shot them a weird look and seemed to be eavesdropping on them. They stood there in silence for a minute until Madam Malkin came bustling out of the back room.
"Are you all being fitted for Hogwarts robes?"
Harish nodded. "Those three are first years."—he gestured towards Ron, Neville, and Draco—"They can go first."
"You first dear?" she asked, taking Ron's arm ready to steer him over to a stool.
"Oh, no," his ears turned bright red. "I'm going to be wearing my brother's. I'm just here with Neville."
She nodded and dragged Neville over to a stool instead. She started fixing him up and her assistant did Draco. When Neville was done, he and Ron hurried out of the shop and Harish was dragged over to be fitted for new robes. When all four were done (for Harish insisted on buying new robes for the twins as he had way too much money stored away) they went and bought all of the rest of their school supplies.
Then, they left and returned back to the Burrow. They only had a week left until school started, each day the four boys eagerly checking another day off of their calendars.