A/N: Hey Guys! I didn't end up writing Diagon alley in this chapter because the gringotts scene ended up being too long, but it will definitely be in the next chapter! Thank you so much for all of your reviews, follows and favourites. If you have any questions/ideas please let me know in a review!
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Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K Rowling, no copyright infringement is intended.
Chapter 2.
Harry awoke early the next morning to bright sunlight streaming in through the open window, he instantly rolled over and covered his eyes. His head was pounding and his stomach rolled, if this was a hangover, he never wanted to drink again. Cautiously, he opened his eyes and glanced up at Dudley. He was just beginning to wake up, with a groan he opened his eyes and looked over at Harry before shutting his eyes tightly again.
"Urgh, could you close the curtains mate, even my eyes are hurting" he groaned out.
Harry slowly stood up and wobbled as a wave of vertigo hit him, he grabbed the wall and waited for it to pass before he slowly stepped over to the window and shut the dark blue curtains, blocking out the bright sunlight.
"Thanks mate, guess I'd better get up then since we've got so much to do today" Dudley lazily grinned at him before slowly getting out of bed and grabbing some clothes.
"Sleep and chocolate definitely helps the effects of those dementor things, I really hope I don't come across another one of them". Harry laughed as he picked his things up from the night before.
"So do I, but I can't see it being likely, I'm going to get dressed and then I'll start making some breakfast, I'll meet you downstairs in 10" Harry said before making his way to his bedroom.
10 minutes later found both Harry and Dudley in the kitchen starting a big breakfast. They'd both decided on a fry up because they thought the grease would help their hangovers.
"What's the plan for today then Harry" Dudley asked as he tried to fry some bacon in the pan.
"Well, once we've eaten breakfast, I suggest we pack some bags, I'm not sure if we should come back to this house, your mum and dad could return at any time".
"That's fair enough, it will be a lot easier to get things done without them in the way" Dudley agreed thoughtfully.
"Once we've packed our bags, I'll call the knight bus, I told you about that right? And then we'll head to diagon alley and get everything we need". Harry said whilst frying their eggs and sausages.
"I never thought I'd be this excited about magic, I know you've told me a lot about what it can do but, I can't wait to hear more" Dudley exclaimed.
"Can we still find somewhere to test me for magic Harry"?
"Im going to take us to gringotts first and speak to the goblins, they might know somewhere for us to get the test done, I'm hoping they can also tell me some more about my vaults, Dumbledore hasn't told me much about my inheritance, and apparently my parents were rich so, I need to learn more".
"Did your mum and dad not leave a will? Surely that would tell you about your inheritance".
Harry frowned at this, a will was something he hadn't thought of before, but it definitely made sense.
"I'll ask the goblins about that too, thanks for the suggestion Dud" he said and smiled over at his cousin.
Once they'd finished eating, they headed upstairs to pack their things. Harry headed into his room and instantly went to his loose floorboards. From within he pulled out his school trunk, containing his school uniform, books, the photo album Hagrid gave him in his first year, containing pictures of his parents, some sweets and chocolate left over from his last visit to honeydukes and some assorted knick knacks. He also pulled out his firebolt from inside the loose floor boards and carefully put it into his trunk.
His school trunk was starting to fall apart since he'd now had it since he was eleven years, old, he was going to have to purchase a new one, he was hoping for one like Moody's that had seven compartments, one of which was a little flat. That would useful to store books and any other things he'd acquired. He was going to need to gain as much knowledge as possible if he wanted to defeat Voldemort. It was going to be difficult alone, but he had the will power to pull through.
He grabbed some of the clothes the Dursleys had given him, and his emergency bag of galleons, he hoped he'd have enough for the knight bus in there. He let Hedwig out of her cage and told her to head towards diagon alley, he left her cage in the room and decided to buy her a new one, it would be too difficult to take with him. He put his money bag into his pocket and put a coat on before grabbing his trunk and heading downstairs, he didn't have to wait long for Dudley to heave his suitcase down the stairs.
"What have you got in that thing, an elephant?" he remarked.
"Ha ha, very funny. No I don't, I've got all of my clothes, my boxing things, a couple of martial arts and exercise books I thought we could both use to get more fit, and some pictures and things. I'm glad this thing has wheels or we wouldn't be going anywhere" Dudley exclaimed. Harry rolled his eyes at his cousin and opened the front door pulling his trunk out behind him, once Dudley was outside, he locked the door and the two walked up the road to the park. Once there, Harry looked around to make sure no one was around before pulling out his wand and calling the knight bus. A moment later, a bright purple triple decker bus pulled to a screeching halt in front of them, almost knocking an unsuspecting Dudley on his arse. Dudley gaped at the bus in shock and stared wide eyed as Stan shunpike climbed down the stairs.
"Welcome to the knight bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard, my name is Stan shunpike and I will be your conductor this evening". After giving his speech, Stan finally looked up at the two passengers before shouting back to Ernie the driver.
"Hey Ern, guess who's back. It's Neville longbottom".
Harry awkwardly shuffled his feet as he glanced at Dudley.
"Actually Stan, I lied to you when I told you my name was Neville, now can you let us get on and buy our tickets? We're going to the leaky cauldron".
Stan stared at him for a minute before jumping off and grabbing Harry's trunk.
"Whatchoo waiting for then? Come on, get on" Harry quickly got on board the bus with Dudley following and found the two of them seats near the front of the bus away from the other passengers, Stan deposited their luggage in front of them and got out his ticket machine.
"So, if you ain't Neville, who are ya?" He asked.
"Sorry Stan but I don't feel comfortable telling you that, now how much do I owe you?"
Stan gave him a disappointed look before pulling their tickets off and handing a ticket to each boy.
"That'll be 3 galleons and 6 sickles each".
Harry handed over the required amount of money and off the went.
"Take 'er away Ern" Stan said as he took a seat at the front, and off the bus went with a loud crack.
"You okay there Dudley"? Harry asked his cousin. He wasn't sure how Dudley would react to certain things in the magical world, and the knight bus certain was an interesting first experience
"I'm okay" Dudley gulped.
"This is weird though, but I kinda like it. That Stan bloke seems a bit strange".
"Most wizards and witches are a bit strange" Harry laughed.
Several stops later and they got off the knight bus outside the leaky cauldron. Harry and Dudley made their way inside and went straight up to the bar.
"Hey Tom, I'm in Diagon alley for a bit doing some shopping but I need a favour if that's okay?" Harry asked Tom the barman nervously.
Tom looked up at Harry and gasped, Harry had to gently shush the man to stop him from announcing his appearance in the pub.
"Is there anywhere we could speak in private?" Harry questioned him a whisper.
Tom nodded and then gestured for them to follow him to the back.
"What can I help you with today then Mr Potter"? Tom asked.
"First of all Tom, this my cousin Dudley" Harry introduced his cousin to the bartender and the two shook hands.
"Secondly, if at all possible could you set us up with a room? If you have one, a room with two beds would great. We're going to get some things done in Diagon and we'll need somewhere to put our luggage".
"Not at all Mr Potter, if you leave your things with me, I'll have a room all sorted for you, for when you get back!" Harry smiled at the man, exceptionally grateful for his help, it was nice to know that some people would still be willing to offer him some assistance.
"I was also wondering if you could possibly put a glamour on me? I would rather people not know that I'm in Diagon alley. Something bad happened yesterday that I'm sure will make it into the prophet and I don't want to be seen". Tom nodded his head in agreement and pulled his wand out. Of course Mr Potter, would you also like a glamour?" he asked looking at Dudley.
Dudley gave a questioning look at Harry whilst he thought the offer over. It would probably be good for him to look different in case they were seen together later.
"Yes, please give Dudley a glamour as well. Could you make us look older if possible, and darker features?" Harry suggested.
Tom nodded before he waved his wand over each of them one at a time. When he was finished they looked remarkable similar. They both had dark brown eyes and hair, Harry's jaw and cheek bones become quite sharp whilst Dudley's face retained some of its pudge.
"That's the best I can do boys, I hope it helps".
"Wow, thank you! You look completely different Harry" Dudley exclaimed. Harry laughed at him,
"That's the point Dudley".
They said their goodbyes to Tom and made their way to the entrance to Diagon alley, Harry grabbed his wand out of his pocket and tapped the correct bricks to get into alley.
"I hope you're ready for this Dud, it's a pretty amazing sight" Harry gushed.
As the bricks parted, Dudley caught his first glance of Diagon alley and gasped. A massive grin spread across his face and his eyes lit up as he took in the shops in all of their glory.
"Wow, this is insane!". They shared a quick grin before Harry dragged him down the alley towards gringotts.
"Now, Gringotts bank is owned by goblins, they're very proud creatures so whatever you do, don't offend them, and don't stare at them too much" Harry suggested as they walked towards the large white building.
When they made their way inside, Harry walked up to the first available teller and cleared his throat. The goblin grunted and carried on filing some paperwork.
"Excuse me, but I was wondering if I could access my vault? I was also wondering if there was anyone available that I could talk to about my account?" Harry questioned politely.
"Key" The goblin said in a bored tone.
"I don't have a key, Dumbledore was holding it for me, and I'm unable to get it back off him" Harry murmured sadly.
"If you have a lost or stolen key, you will have to go through a verification process and will have to pay 5 sickles to procure a new key. What is your name" The goblin asked as he continued with his paper work.
"Harry potter" the goblin stilled when he heard this and looked up at Harry.
"Mr Potter, gringotts bank has been sending you letters about your account for many years now, you have been sent several summons to come and speak with your accounts manager, why did you not come before now?" the goblin growled.
"I haven't received any letters from gringotts sir, I didn't even know I had an accounts manager" Harry stated in confusion.
The Goblin frowned at him for a minute before getting out of his seat and waddling past the two boys.
"Follow me Mr potter, I'm going to see if your account manager is available".
Harry and Dudley followed the goblin through gringotts down a hallway where many offices were located. The goblin stopped outside one of the doors and told the boys to wait before knocking and entering. He came back out several minutes later and told the boys to enter.
Inside the room was a large desk with bits of paperwork piled haphazardly over it, some weapons were mounted across the wall, and a large bookshelf took up space in a back corner.
"Ah Mr Potter, it's nice that you have finally shown up at Gringotts, and you've bought a friend I see". Said the goblin who was sat behind the desk.
"Yes, sir, this is my cousin Dudley, he's come to diagon alley with me because we were hoping to get him tested to see if he has any magic blocks in place". The goblin nodded at this and the offered them each a seat before pulling a file from one of the many stacks on his desk.
"Now Mr Potter, My name is Sharpaxe and I am your accounts manager, I have been informed that you have not been receiving any mail from Gringotts, is that correct?" He asked. Harry nodded in agreement and Sharpaxe frowned.
"That is very troubling news, we will find out who has been directing your mail, but I believe I know who the person may be, and it relates to the problem I was hoping to discuss with you". Sharpaxe rifles through the folder and passed over several sheets of parchment, these are the statements for the savings account that your parents left for you, and these" he paused as he pulled some parchment out of a different file, "are statements for your family vault".
"What family vault?" Harry questioned in confusion.
"The Potter family has a large vault that contains gold, jewellery, books and other items that your parents left to you when they died, you will gain access to the vault when you come of age on your seventeenth birthday, has no one informed you of this Mr Potter"? Harry sat back in his chair in shock, he had another vault? Why hadn't Dumbledore told him of this?
"No, Sharpaxe, no one's told me about this, a lot of information I should know has been kept from me" Harry muttered. Dudley patted his shoulder in comfort and gave him a small smile,
"Don't worry Harry, everything will be sorted out and you'll be fine" Dudley said encouragingly.
"Your cousin is indeed correct, now, if you'll take a look at each of the bank statements, you'll see several withdrawals have been made, none of them have been authorized, and I believe I may know who has been withdrawing this money".
Harry scanned each piece of parchment carefully noticing that 15,000 galleons had been taken out of his family vault every year since November 1981.
"Who do you think has been taking this much money from my vaults? Harry questioned, his foot started tapping and his began to beat faster, he was starting to get irritated, someone was stealing from him and he needed to know who it was.
"Albus Dumbledore was authorised to take money out of your savings account every year for your school supplies, I believe he was the one who was making withdrawals from your family account, he has named himself your magical guardian, but as your magical guardian he should have no access to your family vault, unless he bribed someone within gringotts". Sharpaxe snarled.
"I have a magical guardian"? Harry was shocked, something else the old coot had kept from him, Dudley was definitely into something when he said Dumbledore was suspicious.
"Yes, a magical guardian is someone your parents put in place to look after you in case they pass away, as s your parents will was sealed, Albus Dumbledore named himself as your magical guardian". Harry sat up a bit straighter at this.
"Do you know where Harry can get a copy of the will? Dudley asked eagerly.
"I believe a copy was left in your family vault before your parents died, that will be the only copy of the will that is not sealed, I will send a goblin to retrieve it for you".
Sharpaxe left the room briefly and spoke with a goblin outside before entering the room again.
"Now, as you are no longer in possession of your key, we will have to do an identity check, we goblins can tell that you are in fact Harry potter, but we do these checks as a formality, this check will tell us your heritage and any other families you may be descended from" Sharpaxe began to pull some parchment and a large ornate box out of a draw and placed them on a section of his desk that wasn't covered in paperwork. Out of the box he pulled a golden knife, embossed with rubies.
"Mr potter, take this knife and cut your finger, let three drops of blood fall onto the parchment if you please" Sharpaxe ordered.
Harry did as he was told and let three drops of his blood fall onto the parchment. Both Harry and Dudley gasped as red lines began to dart all across the parchment. When it stopped, Sharpaxe turned the parchment around and looked over it, a shocked look coming to his face.
"Mr potter it seems you are descended from several families that are believed to have died out, on your father side, you are descended from the Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Peverell and Gage families. And, on your mother's side, you are descended from the, Beaufort, Volant, and Temblay families".
"But my mother was a Muggle born" Harry Protested.
"Evidently not, your mother was probably descended from a squib".
Harry and Dudley shared a look before they both looked back at Sharpaxe.
"Sir, my mother is Harry's aunt, Harry's mother's sister, does that mean I am also descended from these families?" Dudley queried.
Sharpaxe took more parchment from the draw and placed it on the table,
"Please repeat the process" Sharpaxe ordered.
Dudley cut his finger and let three drops of blood fall onto the parchment.
Sharpaxe once again took the parchment and looked it over.
"This is interesting Mr Dursley, you are also descended from the same families on your mother's side, but you are also a direct descendant of Helga Hufflepuff, she did not have any heirs so I wonder how that happened" Sharpaxe peered at Dudley over the rim of glasses before setting the parchment down in front of him.
"Wow, between us we're descended from three founders" Harry said in awe.
"I guess my dad must be descended from Hufflepuff, that's pretty funny" Dudley snickered
"Does this mean I also have vaults? Dudley asked Sharpaxe.
The goblin gave a brief nod before once again leaving the room, he summoned another goblin and requested the folders of a further eight families".
"I will receive the folders for the families you are both descended from and you can look through the contents, Mr Dursley, if you would like I can set you up a family vault or, you can make one of your existing accounts your main account" Sharpaxe suggested.
"Does that mean I would have to change my name"? He questioned."
"Not necessarily Mr Dursley, if you wanted to change your name you would be welcome to, but we will discuss that when we get the relevant files back, now, are there any questions you would like to ask me Mr Potter?"
"Is there anywhere we can get Dudley's magic tested? Since he's descended from Hufflepuff he will have some magic, won't he?"
"We can give him a full magical evaluation here at Gringotts that will verify if he has any magic, if there is a magical block, we can also remove the block, for a fee of course" Sharpaxe smiled grimly. Harry and Dudley nodded their consent to this before Harry asked his next question.
"I was expelled from Hogwarts yesterday and I'm going to need access to all of my vaults is there any way I can become emancipated?" Sharpaxe steepled his fingers as his stared at Harry for a moment,
"The easiest way for you to become emancipated is to complete your owls through self-study, once you have completed your owls I will do the emancipation paperwork for you and if we can get it put through quietly, you will be emancipated within the week".
"How can I complete my Owls?" Harry questioned.
"I will set up a meeting with the examination board for say, two months from now? They will give you the exams for whatever owls you would like to complete".
"That would be amazing, Also, I'm looking for a trunk that has several compartments, preferably one that can fit a small apartment in. I'm also looking for some other items that may be a little more... Difficult to come by, one of them is a time turner" Harry said hesitantly.
"I would suggest going to Borgin and Burke's in Diagon Alley he should have what you require and if not, he will be able to acquire it for you".
"The last question I have is, how can I self-study for my owls if I cannot use magic? My wand still has the trace on it".
"If you purchase the trunk you want, Borgin will be able put some enchantments on it that will allow you to use magic in there without the ministry detecting it". Harry let out a breath he wasn't even aware he was holding and sank back into his seat. He finally felt as if he was making some progress and hope blossomed, in his chest. Just then, a knock sounded at the door and another goblin entered the room, he briefly spoke to Sharpaxe in gobbledygook before handing over several folders before leaving the room.
"Harry, we will begin with you, here is the copy of your parents will, and here are the folders containing the summaries of your vaults" Sharpaxe stated as he handed over the folders.
Harry quickly opened the envelope containing the will and read its contents. He instantly began shaking and his hands balled up into fists crumpling the parchment in his hand.
"Harry calm down, what does it say?" Dudley enquired.
"Apparently, if my parents died I was supposed to go to the Longbottoms, if they were unavailable for whatever reason, Sirius black my godfather was supposed to take care of me, and if he wasn't available, Minerva McGonagall was supposed to take me in, as she was a close friend to my grandparents and was my father's honorary aunt. It says under no circumstances was I supposed to go the Dursleys, and it also says that Dumbledore was a witness to the will and that he was the one he sealed the will" Harry seethed. He felt himself beginning to lose control of his magic and drew in some short sharp breaths, Sharpaxe pressed a cold glass of water into his hand and he took a small sip.
"Are you in control of yourself now Mr Potter?" Sharpaxe questioned. Harry gave a brief nod before going through his other folders. His accumulated wealth made him a billionaire and he owned houses all around the world, after going through the folders he was left in a state of shock.
"Are you sure these are real? These say that I'm a billionaire" Harry said in awe.
"I'm certain that they are real Mr Potter" Sharpaxe said with a chuckle.
"Mr Dursley, here are the summaries of your vaults". Dudley grabbed the files and looked through them.
"Wow, I own property? I thought it would just be money in the vaults" Dudley asked in confusion.
"All of the possessions the families you are descended from are now yours, that includes properties".
"There's a lot of money in these as well" Dudley said shakily.
"Now Mr Dursley, will you be wanting to change your name?". Dudley thought it over for a few moments and then nodded.
"I would like to become Dudley Beaufort if that's okay with you Harry?".
"Of course, it is Dud, I was hoping to just leave all of the accounts from your mum's side of the family to you since I already have several vaults". Harry stated.
"I'll do the paperwork for that as well Mr Beaufort if you'd like that?" Sharpaxe said.
"Wow Harry, that's really generous of you, and it's going to take a while to get used to being called Dudley Beaufort" He said with a weak chuckle.
"Sharpaxe, could I possibly change my name to Hadrian Peverell? I'll just use Harry as nickname". Sharpaxe nodded and got out the required paperwork for everything they had spoken about and the two boys signed everything.
"Now that, that's sorted, I'll escort you both through to our medical rooms, Mr Beaufort you will have a magical examination, and If you are found to have magical blocks, you shall have them removed. Mr Peverell, I will advise you to have a magical scan, and a health assessment as well, to check for any potions or blocks, just on the safe side". Harry agreed and together they went through to the assessment room.
Dudley went first and spent almost a full hour with the goblin healer, when he came out, he was grinning ear to ear.
"Harry, I'm fully magical! I had a magical block on my magic and couldn't access any of it! I feel completely different now, like a part of me has been missing!" Dudley almost shouted in joy.
Harry laughed and gave his cousin a brief hug.
"I'm so happy for you Dudley! I'll be able to teach you magic now!" Harry exclaimed.
"Mr Peverell, it is time for your examination, please follow me through to the examination room". The healer said gruffly.
"Good look Har" Dudley whispered and Harry gave him a tight smile in response before following after the healer.
Once in the room, Harry was told to lie down on the bed, the goblin started with a full health examination.
"Almost everything looks good here Mr Peverell, the only problems I see are that you have a loyalty potion keyed to you from one Albus Dumbledore, it is rather weak now as it was placed on you almost a year ago, but I will be able to get the rest of the potion out of your system. The other problem I see is that you have some malnutrition that is affecting your height, it is also affecting your magic and your muscle growth. I can correct this through a series of potions but it will cost you. If you choose to take the potions, I will set up a payment plan where I will send you the potions every week and the money will go straight out of your vaults. When you have the taken the full course of potions, I will send you a letter notifying you and the money will no longer be taken from your account, is that agreeable to you Mr Peverell?"
"That would be great, thank you!" Harry exclaimed.
"I will now begin the magical examination Mr Peverell, please lie back".
After the magical exam the healer gave Harry his results,
"It seems you have a 30% block on your magic, I can remove it for you but it will cost you a fee".
"Remove it please" Harry said quietly.
The block removal took a further twenty minutes, but when it was done Harry felt like a new person.
Harry left the exam room and went to join Dudley and Sharpaxe.
"How did the exam go then? Dudley asked.
"It went really well, I had a block on 30% of my magic that has been removed, and I'm going to be put on malnutrition potions, the main problem is that I had a loyalty potion keyed to me that's been taken out of my system. I feel different now as well though!" Harry said happily.
"Now, if you are going to get Dudley a wand, I wouldn't suggest going to Ollivanders because the Wands he produces will have the trace on them. There is a shop in knockturn alley that sells wands, it's across the street from Borgin and Burke's I would suggest going there.
I have also sent through an application for Mr Beaufort to do some exams on the same day as you Harry, the results will determine when Dudley will be able to complete his owls, this means you will not have to attend Hogwarts" Barkaxe informed them.
"Thank you Barkaxe, that's fantastic. If possible, could we both remove some money from our vaults? Also, are there any bags we could purchase that can hold a lot money"? Harry questioned.
"We have some bags that are weightless and that can also carry as much gold as you need, they are bigger on the inside. They are 11 sickles per bag". Harry and Dudley both purchased a bag and then went to get some money out of their vaults before leaving gringotts.
A/N: Next chapter is Diagon Alley, please leave a review and tell me what you think! : )