MTL NOVEL Chapter 42: "Encounters and Rivalries in Diagon Alley"
"Encounters and Rivalries in Diagon Alley"
"So, where are we going first?" Stephen asked as he walked with the Weasley family.
"Let's get the robes, the cauldrons, and then go to the bookstore last," Percy said, calculating the time each stop would take.
"No! Let's go to the bookstore first," Mrs. Weasley quickly interrupted her son, leaving everyone puzzled by her behavior.
"Is there something at the bookstore, Mom?" Ron asked quickly.
"Yes! The fantastic Mr. Gilderoy Lockhart will be signing autographs there today," Mrs. Weasley said excitedly.
"So that's why we waited until today to go shopping…"
"Of course, after all, our mother adores him," the twins told Stephen, who immediately understood what was going on as he recalled who Lockhart was.
"Right. That idiot is going to be our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this year," Stephen muttered, careful not to let Mrs. Weasley hear him. Given the passion she was displaying, if she overheard, he would surely get a scolding.
"Who is this Gilderoy Lockhart guy?" Harry asked his friend Ron, who was making a face of pure dislike at the name.
"Some guy who writes books. Mom is a fan," Ron said flatly.
"Ronald Weasley, he's not just some guy who writes books! He writes about his adventures—he even has an Order of Merlin!" Mrs. Weasley quickly scolded her youngest son for letting his emotions get the better of him.
"Mrs. Weasley, why don't you go ahead to the bookstore while we buy everything else and meet you there? After all, there's probably already a long line," Stephen suggested smoothly, hoping to convince her.
"You're right. Ginny, sweetheart, do you want to come with me, or will you stay with your brothers to shop?" Mrs. Weasley accepted the idea easily and turned to Ginny.
"I'll stay with the boys, Mom," Ginny quickly replied.
"Alright, sweetheart. You lot, take good care of your sister, understood?" Mrs. Weasley addressed Percy and the twins.
"Don't worry, Mrs. Weasley, I'll take care of Ginny. Go on without concern," Stephen reassured her.
"Thank you, dear Stephen. And please, don't let the twins spend too much," Mrs. Weasley said before hurrying off to the bookstore.
"Sometimes it feels like you're more her son than we are."
"Exactly," the twins said as they watched their mother leave.
"Alright, everyone, as the eldest, I'm responsible for leading you. Follow me," Percy said, signaling for them to follow. No one paid him any attention, though—they all wandered off on their own, leaving him talking to himself.
"Hey! Don't split up!" came a shout that everyone ignored.
"Alright, kids, what flavor ice cream do you want?" Stephen asked with a grin, leading Ginny and the others to the ice cream shop. Meanwhile, the twins had already disappeared to stock up on supplies for their pranks.
"We're in second year now, we're not kids," Ron said defensively, while Harry nodded but wisely chose not to say anything.
"Oh, yes. So tall and sophisticated. Now, what flavor do you want?" Stephen teased, completely ignoring Ron's complaints.
"Chocolate chip," Ron grumbled.
"Ha! See? You are a kid," Stephen quipped, handing Ron his ice cream, earning laughter from everyone around them.
Ron quickly grabbed his ice cream and walked off in embarrassment, while Harry took his and hurried after his friend.
"Come on, Ginny, let's get you some nice clothes and a cauldron," Stephen said, ruffling her hair as he led her to the shop.
"Mom said not to spend too much, so we'll have to get second-hand things," Ginny said, looking a bit downcast.
"That's fine. I'll buy them for you as an early birthday present," Stephen said as he guided her. Overjoyed, Ginny ran after him.
After ordering the clothes and some materials to be delivered later, Ginny followed Stephen, carrying a small cauldron, to meet up with the others in front of the bookstore, where the twins were already waiting.
It seemed the Golden Trio had reunited after separating from Stephen.
"Hello, Stephen! Long time no see!" Hermione greeted Stephen when she saw him, while introducing her parents, who were currently stuck in a conversation with Mr. Weasley, who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
"Hey, shorty. How was your vacation in France?"
"It was amazing! I went to the places you recommended, and I really had a great time," Hermione responded happily.
"That's good. You guys go ahead, I'm going to greet someone I know," Stephen said as he separated from the group and headed toward a corner where two Aurors were watching over the people in line.
When the Aurors saw Stephen, they quickly saluted him.
"Greetings, Instructor Stephen!" they said immediately.
"Cut it out. I'm off duty until the next break. What are you guys doing here?" Stephen asked, intrigued to see two Aurors present.
"We're here on behalf of the Ministry. Lockhart requested elite Aurors for his security," one of them answered, looking a bit embarrassed. After all, every Auror trained by Stephen was part of the elite, and being assigned to protect Lockhart was hardly something to be proud of.
"Hahaha, two of the best from the group? Did you lose a bet?" Stephen teased. These two were part of the main attack squad and among the strongest, only surpassed by their captain, John, and Stephen himself.
"Captain John punished us… We got a little carried away after yesterday's break," the other Auror replied, scratching his face in embarrassment.
Just as Stephen was about to ask for details, a loud commotion erupted near the bookstore entrance. Stephen and the Aurors immediately moved to see what was happening.
What they found was Mr. Weasley in a fistfight with Lucius Malfoy, while the twins cheered their father on from the background.
"Hit him, Dad!"
"Get him, Dad!"
Meanwhile, some store clerks were scrambling to find help and trying to separate them.
"Hahaha, Mr. Weasley is quite a fighter. I wonder if the twins taught him a few moves," Stephen commented, amused as he watched Arthur Weasley land solid punches on Lucius.
"Sir, should we intervene?" one of the Aurors asked Stephen, unsure since this wasn't exactly their job.
"Don't worry, help is on the way," Stephen said, spotting Hagrid quickly approaching and pulling the two men apart.
Mr. Weasley only had a split lip, while Lucius was bruised all over and barely managing to stand.
As he got up, he turned to Ginny, who had dropped all her books, and mockingly attempted to slip a book into her cauldron.
"If you want to lose your hand, go ahead and try," Lucius suddenly heard, feeling a chill run down his spine and a deep instinctual fear. He quickly turned to find Stephen staring at him with serious eyes.
"Well, well, look at this. The boy who thinks he's an Auror," Lucius sneered at Stephen, ignoring his body's warning signs. "Shouldn't you be off handing out toy fines to broomsticks flying by?"
"No. Today I'm busy bothering disgusting, inbred pieces of trash who think they're noble," Stephen shot back with a smirk.
"Watch your mouth, boy," Lucius snapped, his rage barely contained, his hand twitching as if about to draw his wand.
"Oh, please. Give me an excuse. Just one. So I can wipe out a disgusting so-called 'pure-blood' family," Stephen said, smiling malevolently at Lucius.
"The boss is getting more and more villainous."
"Yeah, we need to tell Ricky—he'd make an amazing final boss for his next movie," the twins whispered, loud enough for everyone to hear, but everyone chose to ignore them as the tension thickened.
Lucius glanced around, quickly suppressing his anger, then turned and barked at his son: "Draco, we're leaving!"
"Coward," Stephen muttered under his breath, but everyone heard it—including Lucius, who clenched his fists in fury but walked away.
"The boss is way too cool."
"There's a reason they call him the Dark Prince," the twins chimed in as they approached Stephen.
"I have to admit, that was pretty awesome," Ron said, momentarily forgetting he was supposed to be mad at Stephen.
"No, the real badass was Mr. Arthur. What a right hook!" Stephen laughed, his usual smile returning.
"Sigh Thanks for that, but you should be careful. Lucius is on the Hogwarts board—he might try something," Arthur warned, realizing the potential trouble.
"Don't worry. I'm actually hoping for it. Otherwise, this year would be boring," Stephen replied, uninterested in whatever Lucius might attempt.
"Alright, let's grab another ice cream and head home," Stephen said cheerfully, hurrying the group along, just as Lockhart was attempting to step outside and make a spectacle of himself.
"We'll continue our work. See you later, Instructor," the two Aurors said as they noticed Stephen was deliberately avoiding Lockhart and decided to stall him.
And so, the Weasley family had to go back and buy everything for Ron and Harry, as they had spent the whole day wandering around instead of shopping—earning Ron a scolding from Molly.
After finishing their shopping, everyone returned home, while Harry stayed with the Weasleys, as he would be heading to the station with them.
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