Sirius's son

diagon alley and Slug club

"Didn't he join the death eaters before his graduation?' Rigel couldn't help but ask.

"Yep," Remus nodded. "Sirius told me when we graduated so kid must be around sixteen."

"Come off!" Harry said. "Voldemort actually recruited a sixteen-year-old?!"

"Anything can happen Harry" Remus shrugged. "You-know-who needed the best and Regulus believe it or not was a talented wizard."

"Yes, well," said Mrs. Weasley, frowning, "perhaps we should talk about something diff —"

"Did you hear about Florean Fortescue Remus?" asked Bill, who was being plied with wine by Fleur. "The man who ran—"

"— the ice-cream place in Diagon Alley?" Harry interrupted. "He used to give Eliza and me free ice creams. What happened to him?"

"Dragged off, by the look of his place."

"Why?" asked Ron, while Mrs. Weasley pointedly glared still.

"Who knows? He must've upset them somehow. He was a good man, Florean."

"Talking of Diagon Alley," said Mr. Weasley, "looks like Ollivander's gone too."

"The wandmaker?" said Ginny, looking startled. "That's the one. Shop's empty. No sign of a struggle. No one knows whether he left voluntarily or was kidnapped."

"But wands — what'll people do for wands?"

"They'll make do with other makers," said Remus. "But Ollivander was the best, and if the other side has got him it's not so good for us."

The day after this rather gloomy birthday tea, their letters and booklists arrived from Hogwarts. Rigel had sent a letter after his fifth year that he did not want to be prefect anymore so they transferred it to Ron who grinned as the badge landed on his palm. Harry also had another surprise: He had been made Quidditch Captain.

"That gives you equal status with prefects!" cried Hermione happily. "You can use our special now and now and everything!"

"Wow, I remember when Charlie wore one of these," said Ron, examining the badge with glee. "Harry, this is so cool, you're my Captain — if you let me back on the team, I suppose, haha. . . ."

"Well, I don't suppose we can put off a trip to Diagon Alley much longer now you've got these," sighed Mrs. Weasley, looking down Ron's booklist. "We'll go on Saturday as long as your father doesn't have to go to work again. I'm not going there without him."

"Mum, d'you honestly think You-Know-Who's going to be hiding behind a bookshelf in Flourish and Blotts?" sniggered Ron.

"Fortescue and Ollivander went on holiday, did they?" said Mrs. Weasley, firing up at once. "If you think security's a laughing matter you can stay behind and I'll get your things myself —"

"No, I wanna come, I want to see Fred and George's shop!" said Ron hastily.

"Then you just buck up your ideas, young man, before I decide you're too immature to come with us!" said Mrs. Weasley angrily, snatching up her clock, all nine hands of which were still pointing at "mortal peril," and balancing it on top of a pile of just-laundered towels. "And that goes for returning to Hogwarts as well!"

Ron turned to stare incredulously at Harry as his mother hoisted the laundry basket and the teetering clock into her arms and stormed out of the room. "Blimey . . . you can't even make a joke around here anymore. . . ."

After breakfast, the group dressed quickly and met up again in the kitchen where Mr. Weasley went over the security procedures with them.

"Dad we get it, don't do anything stupid! Can we go now, I don't think you realize how long it's going to take us to get the girls out of the bookshop!"