Harry Potter and the Way of Things

Chapter 7 Part Four

AN - hellow! just the basic review and respond note. 

Original Author's Note: One more chapter to go before the shopping will be completed! As always a wonderful round of applause for my brilliant Beta, AbnormalAnony! A new addition to my author's note shall be to compliment and thank my second lovely, absolutely wonderful, and extremally helpful Beta... Flashlan!

Flourish and Blotts was chaos; filled to the brims with books of every shape, size, color, and subject. Every few books were at various angles on the shelves. Some books stood in columns, small stacks, and piles, scattered over every available surface. There were signs hanging on, above, or below different shelves, but still Harry could find no order. He thought that the store was magnificent. He looked around cataloging which selves held what type of books, based on their signs. The shop was mildly populated, about six people catered through-out the store. Most were browsing the shelves in front of them, one even had a book open to the first few pages - obviously reading the table of content.

After a moment longer of simple staring in analytical delight, Harry was on the hunt. He had eight required reading texts, The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1), A History of Magic, Magical Theory, A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration, One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi, Magical Drafts and Potions, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and lastly, The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection He planned on getting a few more, at least enough to last him until the holidays.

Harry also got a variety of personal reading material. There were texts on spell casting, such as Defensive Magical Theory, Self Defensive Spellwork and Practical Household Magic. Harry was dying to get to practice the spells in them before going to Hogwarts, and while his own wand could only bemuse in the wizarding world, his father's wand had shown promise in being a working secondary wand, one that didn't hold "the Trace".

Other books were selected to compliment his first year classes, like Beginners Guide to Transfiguration, A Humble Guide to Potion Brewing You Can't Live Without, and Hogwarts - a History. He hoped these would help him get a better understanding of their particular subjects.

A few of the tomes he had where to fit in better and to gather information about his peers, their parents, and the wizarding world in general. Such books included Magical Moral Perspective, Nature's Nobility- a Wizard Genealogy, and Pureblood Directory.

Others still were for learning the laws; Laws of Conduct When Dealing With Muggles, as well as Legal Loopholes and Leprechauns. While there were a few that had simply caught his eye, like Understanding Magic, You and Your Familiar, Ancient Runes Made Easy, An Appraisal of Magical Education in Europe. Powers You Never Knew You Had - What to Do with them Now You've Wised Up and The Muggle Conspiracy

He wanted to read them all at once, but knew that would only serve to confuse him. He decided to start with a few chapters of "Laws of Conduct When Dealing With Muggles", as that would give him an idea about the Dursley, and how to deal with them. He wanted to at least get through the first half of each of his course books.

Here I am, planning which order I'm going to read the books I haven't even bought yet. Harry chided himself. Best to focus on purchasing the books first.

The shop that advertised potioniering supplies (as one might expect) smelled awful, a mixture of bad eggs and rotted cabbages. Barrels of slimy stuff stood on the floor; jars of herbs, dried roots, and bright powders lined the walls; bundles of feathers, strings of fangs, and snarled claws hung from the ceiling. Cauldrons sat along the walls on the grounds, shelves held a variety of tools.

Harry walked into the shop and began to browse as he waited for the shopkeeper to finish his latest transaction. One shelf held sets of scales used to measure ingredients, made of all different materials and sizes. On another were sets of blades, kept in a case, some see through, others opaque. Behind that was a shelf for stirrers, metal, wooden, even gold. Ingredients were sold individually, and in sets. Phials came in all shapes and sizes.

When the customer left, he approached the counter, and said, "Hello Sir, I was wondering if you had sets of equipment and ingredients for each year group at Hogwarts?"

"Well of course I put kits together! Can't hardly expect the average 11-year-old to know their stuff in potions, now can I?" The shopkeeper had a small, reassuring smile on his face

"No sir, I don't suppose that you can. How much do the first two years cost and what do they include, if I may ask?"

"Certainly, my boy! The first year kit includes a standard size 2 pewter cauldron, a set of glass, and a set of crystal phials, a set of brass scales, and a set of potioniering tools, including knives, wooden and metal stirrers.

"First year ingredients also come with the kit. Infusion of Wormwood, Flobberworm Mucus, Aconite, Asphodel, Dittany, Dragon blood, Moly, Wiggentree bark, Moondew, Salamander blood, Sloth brain mucus, Spine of Lionfish, Fanged Geranium, Snake fangs, Bones, Flitterby Moth, Bouncing Bulb, and Foxglove are all included in differing quantities". By the time he had made it down the list, Harry figured the shopkeeper must be having a laugh.

But the shopkeeper continued on as nothing unusual had happened. "Second year kit is about the same, except for the ingredients. Most kids have melted their cauldrons and stirrers, or lost them by the time second year rolls around. Do you need the second year ingredient list too?"

Harry having recovered from the odd list, answered immediately, "No thank you sir. I'll take two first year kits and a second year kit."

"Ah, interested in potions are ya? Good thing too. You need at least your OWLs in potions for a lot of jobs nowadays. Gimme a minute to get your kits together. There's a seat over there" he said as he vaguely gestured towards the back of the store.

Harry sat and watched as the shopkeeper grabbed several sets of ingredients, stirrers, a few sets of blades, vials, and three cauldrons. It wasn't a long process, the store was not large, and he seemed to know exactly where to find his wares.

After collecting everything that Harry had requested, he walked back up to the counter, with Harry in tow. Harry wondered to himself if he was expected to make "small talk" but decided against it, in favor of what he viewed as a comfortable silence.

The shopkeeper took tally of all the items, making sure there were three complete sets of supplies. Then he added up the prices and gave Harry the grand total. Harry paid for his supplies, shrunk them, as he had most of his other supplies, thanked the shopkeeper and left the shop behind.

Lunch was a pleasant affair. Harry, after the debacle in the pub the first time around, had bought a good quality robe, and lightly used, resizing, dragonhide boots, from the second hand store before entering again. The robe was simple, black and had a large hood to cover his face and scar.

The second time around, Harry fit in much better, blending into the crowd of patrons as he strolled up to the bar counter. The pub was still rather busy, so Harry had to wait a few moments before Tom got to his order. Harry spent a few moments looking at the menu. A few of the things on here, he had never heard of before, like butterbeer, but most of the food he recognized... as being fatty and heavy meals, high in cholesterol.

Eventually Harry decided upon a fruit platter, consisting of apples, grapes, and strawberries, a vegetable stew, and a side of toast, with water. It didn't take long for a young woman to bring his food out, set it in front of him, and leave after being thanked. Harry ate his food with all the grace his book on Pureblood culture and etiquette dictated. When he was done eating, he stood, just as gracefully, thanked Tom for the food, and paid with a generous tip.

P.S.  - I bolded parts of the OAN (Original Authors Note) for a reason. PM me if you want to know