It was odd for Harry to go out with the Malfoys, He wasn't fully recovered yet, meaning Draco was frustrated this trip was even happening, but it was only a week until the start of Hogwarts, and Harry needed a wand, something that can only be done in person. Harry still wasn't happy with them,. After they tried to suggest that he, Harry James Potter, who was orphaned by Voldemort, whose own last name and face were just reminders of the possible future that was lost.
Voldemort will let Harry and Draco be free if he agrees to join? Harry had been fighting Voldemort since he was 11, and Voldemort was clearly not someone forgiving. Besides, they were just telling Harry to get chummy with the people who murdered those Harry cared about more than his own life. Since that night Harry had researched the Unbreakable Vow, they could go against it, though they would die. How was their request any different from what they could do to Draco?
But at the same time, Harry hated those thoughts; he and Draco were mates, and he didn't need his elven side to tell him that wishing such suffering on the person he would spend the rest of his life with, between which there should be love, was wrong.
"Potter," Lucius called out to the boy for a second time, Harry only now starting to pay attention.
"Sorry, what?" Harry shook his head, trying to shake the thoughts out of his head, though, like usual, it didn't work.
"We're getting a custom wand for you, your input is required." Lucius' tone had no bite, but Harry's nerves didn't need there to be any to be on edge.
"Mr Potter, please have a look at these designs, they won't have much to do with the magical capability of the wand, but the design of your wand should be one you like." The wandmaker, not Olivander for some reason Harry presumed the Malfoys had mentioned while he wasn't talking.
Harry walked over to look at the book which contained many different designs. Some were almost perfectly straight and smooth, and others looked like a twig just pulled from a tree. There were two that Harry felt close to, one which had a flowering vine twisting along the length, the flowers having small blue stones in the centre. The other one had a snake flowing from the end of the wand to the handle, hooking just underneath the base, the snake having a slight green hue.
"You look like you're dithering, what's up?" Draco asked from just behind Harry's shoulder, making him jump.
"There are two designs that I like, I'm just trying to decide." Harry's head was spinning slightly with Draco being so close. They still weren't talking, and Harry's creature was trying to forcibly take control to do what Draco and his parents asked. Draco being close made it harder for Harry to fight that.
"Hey," Draco turned to the wandmaker. "You can fuse designs, right?"
"Provided they're designs in the book. I can't give you a picture of what it will look like either, so it will be a little more risky for you." The wandmaker nodded, rubbing their hands with an old piece of cloth.
"Could I have a fusion of these two designs?" Harry's voice was quiet as he pointed at the two that he liked.
"Sure, I will need you to infuse the blue stones with magic before I start to make it easier to use them in the future. Now it's time for you to choose the wood. Well, I say you choose it, your magic will do all the deciding." The wandmaker took the book and led Harry to the back of the shop. "Close your eyes and release your magic, I'll know what the right wood for you is."
Harry did as he was told, it was easier to control the elven side of him when Draco was standing further away, at the door to the back, just close enough to keep an eye on the situation. As Harry let his magic out, it almost felt like there was a buzzing coming from somewhere to his left. The sound seemed to be filling his nose with the scent of the Burrow and the blue flowers from the space he could speak to his creature.
"Okay, well, with that chosen, usually this would be time for the core, but I heard you already have one." The wandmaker's voice made Harry open his eyes, they were looking at Lucius expectantly.
"Yes, it's here." Lucius raised a bag. "Why don't you three go looking for clothes, I have something I want to ask about.
Living a life like Harry's you get a pretty good sense of when people are talking about you, and this was one of those times. He didn't have any proof the conversation had anything to do with him, though.; Besides, he was staying in their house, being treated by them, and not paying back. Though he couldn't pretend any other answer was possible, he had still rejected their only request.
"What did you want to talk about?" The wandmaker and Lucius' voices faded quickly as they walked away.
-----
For all that Draco didn't think Harry was ready to leave the house yet, not being healed enough, he sure took his time dressing Harry up. Not that Harry wanted it to be, but it was actually quite nice having Narcissa and Draco fussing around him. The clothes they chose were all soft, feeling like a gentle, loving touch or hug. Besides, it was easier to keep his creature in check by going along with it.
By the time Draco and Narcissa seemed satisfied the pile of clothes they had accepted was taller than Harry, and the pile of rejected clothes were about twice as tall.
"How much is all this?" Harry tried to look at the prices, before Narcissa gently took the price tag from his hands.
There was no force in her action, and yet Harry wasn't able to stop her soft gesture from moving him. Were they sure she wasn't a veela too?
"The price is nothing for you to worry about. It's our gift for you, think of it as an apology for our request." Narcissa's eyes were closed and she smiled gently.
Harry wanted to refuse, but there was something about the way that Narcissa said it that made him unable to.
"Harry, choose whichever is your favourite and put it on. These are all yours now." Draco gently pushed Harry back into the changing room.
-----
Harry may be wearing the most comfortable clothes he had ever worn, a mix of lemon green and a deep, bloodlike red, but he was distinctly uncomfortable. On this trip he had been completely walked over by Draco and Narcissa, what if they did that about something important.
Why does that matter? It will make you perfect.
Harry wasn't sure the potion Hermione found really worked.
Harry snapped out of hearing his elven side as he heard a rather loud dog bark. He was already tensing, waiting for the panic to kick in, when he saw the dog bolt out from around a corner.
It was a black, scraggly dog, with thick fur that was wet and looked rather matted. It looked uncannily like a grim. He was smaller than Harry remembered, but from the lack of terror pulsing through his veins that only happened with one dog, Harry knew it had to be-
"Sirius?" Harry's question was hardly more than a gasp. How was it possible for Sirius to be dead if he was clearly in front of him? But how was it possible for Sirius to be in front of him if he's dead?
The dog barked happily at Harry, tail wagging, as in in response to Harry's question. He was definitely smaller than last time Harry saw him, but why did that matter right now?
"... Harry?" Draco knelt down next to Harry, who had been knocked down by the dog, his voice concerned as his hand hovered just above Harry's shoulder. "Sirius Black is dead."
"I thought so too, but this is definitely Sirius." Harry was incredulous, he had watched Sirius fall into the veil and die, and Dumbledore had just sat and watched as he destroyed the headmaster's office, and yet here Sirius was.
Draco and Narcissa met eyes above Harry, they knew he had been hurt by his godfather's death, how could he not be, but they hadn't realised it was this bad. Sirius Black was a man, not a dog, but here, in the middle of Diagon Alley, was not the time to tell Harry that.
"Okay Harry, well we still need to collect Lucius and your wand." Narcissa tried to change the topic of conversation. "Why don't we take, ah, Sirius, back home with us?"
Harry didn't seem to pick up on the fact that neither she nor Draco believed him, he was just happy to have his godfather back.
"We really need to book him in with a mind healer." Draco whispered to his mother, Harry in front of them, the dog keeping perfect pace with him, almost as though he was trained to.
"I sent you off to get clothes, why do you have a dog with you?" Lucius sneered down at the dog, who kept itself between Harry and Lucius in a protective stance.
"We'll talk about it when we get home." Narcissa deflected the conversation before it could even start, already about halfway through a mental list of mind healers to decide which would be best to request for Harry. "His wand is ready, right?"
"Yes, it's right here. I don't know if you'll like the design, but I think it's one of my best." The wandmaker handed Harry the wand, that immediately felt warm to the touch, and though it was new it somehow felt more familiar than his previous one had. "I would recommend coming back about once a year to have it checked over, wands and creature magic can sometimes interact oddly, even with custom wands."
"Thank you." Harry nodded, leaning down slightly to scratch Sirius behind his ears, trying to get his godfather to calm down.
His godfather murdering his mate's parents would be a bad start to the relationship.
Then again, his mate's parents being in the organisation they all thought killed his godfather, and was actively trying to kill him was also a bad start.
"Let's just go home now." Draco grabbed Harry's arm, somewhat firmly, Narcissa immediately agreeing.
Lucius immediately knew it was something serious if both his wife and son wanted to get home as soon as possible, there was always one of them trying to stay out for longer. They could find almost any reason, and it didn't take a genius to figure out it was about the dog.