"Petunia, go in with them. I'll come after I find a spot to park the car." Vernon said as he stopped in front of the pub. Harry too got out of the car as he opened the door for Filch who seemed to be struggling with it.
Cat in hand, the man got of the car thankless. "Through this door, Potter. I don't see why I'm here. Not my circus, not my monkeys." He went in as Harry and Petunia followed, they could catch little of his mutterings.
Once inside, everyone turned to look at Filch and then looked down, squibs weren't really a liked lot in the wizarding world.
"Come on, Potter." He scowled as they moved through through the pub.
As he said this, the pub fell immediately silent and all the people crowded around Petunia and the boy shaking his hands. There was Dedalus Diggle who Harry recognized as a person who bowed to him in a shop without any reason. Then there was Doris Crockford who kept shaking his hands, exclaiming how proud he was of him. There was also a stuttering teacher of Hogwarts in a turban. Harry wasn't too overwhelmed by it all, he knew how famous he was (and honestly he liked it) but when it had been about five minutes he said: "Thank you all, but I need to get going."
Surprisingly, no one seemed to care. What was originally a crowd now seemed like a mob who wouldn't get away from Harry no matter what, that is when an imposing figure came in through the door.
As he neared Harry and Petunia, the crowd distanced to make way for him. Reaching them, Vernon said: "Well what are we waiting for? Let's go." He made sure the crowd had heard him.
The four of them moved out through the back door of the pub and there was now a dead end.
"Why-" Harry was about to object when a glare from Filch shut him up.
Filch touched some random bricks in the wall and it slowly opened into a dreamy archway to Harry's dream world.
"There's your Diagon Alley and I'm out of here." He muttered and was about to go back but his cat launched out of his hands onto the pavement of the magical street: "No! Come back, Mrs Norris!"
He was forced to follow it as Harry and the others stepped onto the cobblestone. In front of them were crooked buildings that defied gravity along with windows that blinked. Both Harry and Vernon were closely scrutinizing each element.
"Err- Mr. Filch, where do we use this key?" Petunia asked the running caretaker who pointed towards the most crooked building of them all - Gringotts.
If we asked Vernon what his view of the wizarding bank was, his words would most certainly be: "The cold white stone building rose like a temple, but not to any god I recognized. Its architecture defied not the laws of physics, but those of civility. This was not a place that invited your wealth. It took it and challenged you to ask for it back."
Harry stills remember his first time seeing a goblin at Gringotts: "The goblin at the front desk scanned me like he was a dentist and me, an extra tooth."
Petunia Dursley was horrified of (and perhaps somewhat enjoyed) the journey to Harry's vault. And before they opened it, she stopped him and said, "Harry dear, as far as we know - your parents lived a humble life."
Vernon chimed in: "And so I want you to be ready for anything. This vault could be empty for all we know and even if it is, just know that you are now our son and we will happily bear all your expenses."
Harry smiled: "You da man, Uncle!" He saluted as Griphook opened the door of the vault.
"Woah." Harry's jaw dropped at the heaps and mound of galleons.
"Woah, indeed." Vernon added.
-
"Do you believe wands truly have a soul?" Harry asked Vernon as they walked out of the wandmaker's shop.
"Do you remember the news about artificial intelligence and how it won't be another 10 years till we get something practical out of it?" He looked down on him as Harry nodded: "If each wand has a soul of its own and selects its user by itself then I believe it is an example of artificial intelligence fairly superior to what non mags have made by programming."
"But this goes against every logic or reason we know, does this mean the world is irrational?" Harry asked.
"No. Harry. It just means the world is governed by many more laws than the ones we know. It means the world as we now know it is... supra-rational." They got into Flourish and Blotts.
-
Mr Dursley was amusedly thumbing through a book at his pace as Petunia helped Harry find the books on the list.
"Interesting, isn't it?" A girl with bushy brown hair peeked over the big book. Vernon put it down on the table as he replied: "Yes, especially the time when the International Statute of Secrecy was enforced."
She didn't understand. What was so special about: "1692?"
"Yes-" He leaned in conspiratorially: "It's the same year witches were being persecuted and burnt alive in Salem. Explains why the global magical community decided to go into hiding." He shook his head in disappointment.
She was surprised. Because she had never thought of the logic behind things and just memorized stuff: "Thank you, sir." He didn't know why she was thanking him: "Are you a historian?"
He scoffed at this. He had been called a philosopher among other things but never a historian.
"Unfortunately, no. I am a Director at a muggle firm in Surrey."
Just then, Harry came up to him: "Uncle, I can't seem to find the last book."
Vernon handed him the book in front of him: "Is it this one?"
Harry's eyes lit up: "Yes. Hogwarts: A History of Magic. This is the one."
"Here, Harry. I suppose she is your year mate at the school." Harry turned to look at her.
"Hermione Granger." She gave Harry a hand: "Harry. Harry Potter."
"You are kidding." Hermione laughed nervously but then she noticed the scar: "Wait are you really?"
Harry smiled. He was getting used to the fame: "No, I am not kidding. Nice to meet you Miss Granger. These are my uncle and aunt."
Hermione nodded to Petunia who smiled back at her.
Just then, an ordinary couple approached them as Hermione started: "Likewise, Harry Potter. Those are my parents."
-
As Hermione headed back home that day, she thought hard about how Uncle Vernon viewed things. She figured Harry Potter might take a page or two from his book and if he did, she would be left far behind. And so, Hermione decided to read all the books before the school year. She wasn't going to cram them. Rather, she would think critically about each and everything.
-
It was a Sunday so everyone was sitting in the living room, each to their own antics. Dudley covered his face with a comic book. Vernon, who had just completed his PhD, was putting up his doctorate degree on one of the walls. Petunia was skimming through one of her gardening manuals while Harry was reading his textbook of Magical Theory.
Something came to Dudley's mind as he paused, "Harry, are there magical superheroes too?"
Harry thought hard: "Not superheroes but there are Aurors, who use magic to catch dark wizards. I also suppose there are some old wizards who can use unthinkable magic but don't publicly display it."
Vernon arched up an eyebrow: "What makes you say that?" He came and took a seat opposite him.
"Many things. First, Gellert Grindelwald. Keeper of some of the deadliest magic and chooses not to disclose it. But here's the catch; who did he learn it from?"
Vernon buried his head in the comic as the conversation turned boring.
"I see. And how is the progress of your Magical Science Theory?" Vernon asked.
Harry stood up to explain: "Uncle Vernon, I'll be honest. I thought hard about what you said to me. 'How is it that magic seems to alter the state of things without any energy input?' was your question."
Harry started to move around as he spoke: "I think you know the answer but I'll say it nonetheless. There is an energy input, albeit invisible to the naked eye. My hypothesis is that magic stems from the usage of an invisible energy. Its nature is different from all kinds that we know and thus its applications are also new to us. What I do know is that it can only be invoked by speaking certain words, that is, incantations."
Vernon smiled as he asked him another question: "If that was true, why did you suffer from accidental magic as a child? How was Voldemort capable of wandless magic? How do wizards perform non verbal spells?"
Harry was distraught. All of that thinking for nothing, he thought. "I don't know."
Vernon ruffled through his hair: "You don't know right now. In time you will… Only if you keep asking yourself questions. Doubt yourself, Harry."
He nodded solemnly.
As he looked down at his book, he found Petunia's face glued to it: "What happened, Aunt Pet?"
She sighed as she stood back up: "I thought that was calligraphy." She pointed to an illustration of wandwork.