Better Potter

Candlelight

Last Time:

That's where Sirius waited with his teeth bared and ready to kill ...

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Ron wasn't even listening when he got back home with his family. It wasn't until his father sat him down on a cushion did he start paying attention. To his surprise he was in the basement and his entire family was sitting with him in a circle.

"I don't want to do a boring ritual." An exasperated Ron grumbled, feeling too tired to put up with this.

Percy frowned when he saw his brother get up, "I told you there was a reason we don't trust Harry. Don't you want to know?" As expected they saw Ron pause and sit back down after thinking it over.

Yes, Ron's acting skills still suck. However, now that Harry was caught lying to Ron so it wouldn't be considered strange if Ron starts putting distance between them now. This was their chance to safely explain everything and not have Harry get suspicious.

What followed were some minds connecting and seeing some painful moments. Tears were included and a few hours went into mental training. Finally, Ron understood how much his family had to do to protect him. Even more so, he saw Harry in a very different light.

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"I informed the ministry that you spotted an odd rat that somehow got into the store." Mr. Borgin explained once Adrian returned.

Adrian nodded, "I thought I saw the rat again, but lost it in Diagon Alley." He explained as he set the charms down.

Despite the chaos he did manage to pass out a few charms. With everything settling down he went back to work. However, once he had a second alone he quickly did a couple things.

When Mr. Borgin took a moment to get some tea, Adrian put the diary in the bag with his medical orb. Technically, Lucius didn't simply donate or sell it so he didn't want to get the old wizards in trouble by giving it to them. At least, he knew how to store and handle dark items so he just decided to take it home. In the worst case he can give it to Gringotts.

With the diary tucked away he went onto the second thing he wanted done. Quick gloved hands flipped through the store's inventory ledger. Almost immediately he zeroed in on the entry for the vase that the rat was hiding in.

Shop policy is no animal forms in the shop. Some cursed items just react oddly to certain creatures. If that was Pettigrew then he had to sneak in via the vase so it's possible he's hiding there.

"Mr. Borgin?" Adrian asked and pointed out the entry when the old wizard returned. "This is the entry for the vase I found the rat in. The person sent the vase with other items to sell a few times in the past few months. There's the address where you sent their cut when you sold a couple of their items before." Adrian said and he saw that the old wizard knew what that implied.

Mr. Borgin clapped Adrian's back, "Very good! Willing or not, this person definitely brought the rat on. I'll report it." Mr. Borgin said and as he walked towards the back he glanced at the clock. "Since it's nearly the end of your shift you should head home. This day has been crazy enough."

Adrian glanced at the clock and saw that it was a couple hours early, but he chuckled and nodded anyway, "Yes, sir. I can take this chance to buy some groceries." He commented, realizing that he will need his own gloves just to get the diary out of his bag. "If the ministry needs to speak to me-"

"They will be instructed to go through Gringotts. Don't let any of them talk to you alone." Mr. Borgin said firmly. The old wizards knew full well what downsides Adrian's curse had. "Now, off with you."