Monachopsis • Harry Potter • Book II

.3.

Freedom was awesome, Keziah had decided, and running away from the Dursleys was the best decision she'd made all summer. It just about rivalled the previous summer at Daphne's. because although she had her brother's company, she was absent from her best friends'.

Still, she could go anywhere she liked in Diagon Alley. It was frustrating, watching Muggle London go by and knowing she couldn't explore it, but the wizarding market was bursting with new things that Keziah quickly forgot about her discomfort.

She'd written letters to both Theo and Blaise about what had happened and received three letters back. Two were their replies, chortling about the old cow's fate, but the third was a surprising note from Draco Malfoy demanding to know why she wasn't expelled after blowing up her muggle aunt. She didn't respond to it, but the letter did make excellent tinder that evening.

Breakfast at the Leaky Cauldron was the perfect opportunity to go people-watching. All sorts turned up at the inn: funny little witches gearing for a day of shopping, wizened wizards jabbering at each other over the latest issue of Transfiguration Today; shady sorcerers; raucous dwarfs; and once, what looked like a hag, who ordered raw Jarvey liver from behind a balaclava.

No matter what, though, Keziah made sure to avoid eye contact with the posters of Sirius Black plastered everywhere. It was difficult but she managed. His face haunted her nightmares almost every night: a darkened maw threw open in insane laughter, pale fingers grappling a card with old runes.

After breakfast, they would go out into the backyard and take turns to tap the third brick from the left of the rubbish bin and watch as a simple wall turned into an ornamental archway into Diagon Alley.

They spent sunny days, walking along every inch of the place, finding out what every shop was. It was fun, acting as each other's impulse controls, though for opposite reasons. Harry wanted to buy anything expensive, including a solid gold gobstones set because the boy was built different, Keziah supposed.

However, they'd both salivated over a perfect moving model of the galaxy in a huge glass ball. It was perfect for Astronomy and was just so aesthetic in general. She had no clue how they walked away from it.

She'd also discovered that day that she was a sucker for illegal things. Harry had to talk her out of:

a) sneaking into the wizarding tattoo parlour to see if she get flowers all down her arm.

b) trying to persuade Wispus, the owner of a tavern in Diagon who'd assisted her the previous summer, to sell her Daisyroot Drought.

c) buying pixie dust from a seller near Knockturn Alley.

"I just want to see if they'll sell to me," she argued over a huge raspberry sorbet outside Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlour. Their homework was spread over the table, the ink drying in the sun. Gone were the days of struggling through passages under the cover of night, replaced with basking in the warmth while Mr Florean Fortescue himself gave them the occasional help with a twinkle in his eye and another round of desserts on the house.

Today, Diagon Alley was especially busy. People rushed past them, whispering excitedly. Keziah licked her spoon, sucking up the dregs of her ice cream. "I'm going to get some more," she told Harry, patting him on the shoulder before walking back into the shop.

Florean was currently leaning against the counter, wiping a sundae glass. He grinned as soon as he saw her.

"Keziah," he said. "You looking for more ice cream? Your teeth are gonna start rotting if you keep eating like this."

"You're the one who keeps giving us this for free," she replied easily. "It's an awful business strategy."

Florean smiled gently and his eyes flickered to a faded picture pinned to the board behind him. "Well... I have a soft heart for kids like you."