Building Doors by JAWorley
Summary: [COMPLETE] After Harry blows up Aunt Marge and catches the Knight Bus to Diagonalley, he decides to take charge of his life when he learns he’s being sent back to Four Privet Drive. Harry spends the summer turning life in Diagonalley on its head, trying not to worry about the murderer Sirius Black, and attempting to avoid Severus Snape. In the midst of this he finds himself embroiled in an intense legal battle against Albus Dumbledore to decide his future. For the first time his fate rests solely in his own hands, and depend on the decisions he finds himself being forced to make. Harry wishes he could just be a thirteen year old boy, and begins to wonder if he’ll ever have the childhood he desires the most. Some of the warnings listed just as a precaution for things mentioned or alluded to.
Categories: Healer Snape, Teacher Snape > Trusted Mentor Snape, Teacher Snape > Professor Snape, Parental Snape > Guardian Snape, Fic Fests > Fic Fest 2018 Main Characters: .Snape and Harry (required), Dumbledore, Original Character, Other, Sirius
Snape Flavour: Snape is Angry, Snape's a Bully, Canon Snape, Snape Comforts, Snape is Kind, Snape is Mean, Snape is Secretive, Snape is Stern
Genres: Angst, Canon, Drama, Family, General, Hurt/Comfort
Media Type: None
Tags: Adoption, Azkaban Character, Incognito!Harry, Injured!Harry, Runaway, Spying on Harry! Snape
Takes Place: 3rd summer, 3rd Year
Warnings: Abusive Dursleys, Bullying, Neglect, Physical Punishment Non-Spanking, Suicide Themes, Violence
Challenges: None
Series: Building Doors
Chapters: 25 Completed: Yes Word count: 159491 Read: 141174 Published: 17 Aug 2018 Updated: 10 Aug 2021
Interim by JAWorley
Someone was knocking on his door. It wouldn't be Tom, Harry thought, because he'd already brought dinner up. Harry wondered further when the dog gave a whimper and climbed under the bed. Harry glanced back at the bed as he moved for the door, but his mind left the dog's odd behavior when he found Dumbledore staring down at him from the other side.

"Harry," he said quietly.

Harry stepped aside and the Headmaster came into the room. As the man's eyes scanned the furniture and floor, Harry was glad he'd cleaned up that morning when he'd first woken up and put all of his belongings back in his trunk. He hadn't been certain upon waking that the initial hearing would go in his favor, and if it hadn't he knew he'd be leaving the Leaky Cauldron directly afterward. Harry closed the door and offered the desk chair to Dumbledore, who took it with another disheartened smile and sat down.

"Why did you ask me to lunch today dear boy?" Dumbledore asked.

"Sir?" He didn't sound like he was scheming. His smile looked too sad and his face too tired for that.

"While I appreciate being included, I would like to know why. Clearly lunch with the Minister was planned, and both Mr. Podmore and Mr. Silver looked surprised by your invitation."

Harry wasn't sure what he should say, or if he was allowed to say anything at all. Podmore had been irritated that he'd done it, but Silver had thought it had worked in their favor. If Harry told the truth, they may not be able to use what he'd done as they wanted. Feeling like the whole ordeal had been unfair in the first place, Harry decided on the truth, whether his barrister's liked it or not.

"Professor Snape snorted at me."

Dumbledore looked confused for a moment, and then surprised. "Professor Snape?"

"Podmore and Silver wanted to have the Minister for lunch and they wanted me to pay. And when he invited himself to lunch, Snape snorted at me in the corridor. Like he thought I was just having a big head associating with the Minister and like it wasn't playing fair. I don't like that this has to be political, or that I have to try to get the Minister on my side just so I can have a safe place to live."

"You invited me to make things fair?" Dumbledore asked for clarity. Maybe that was a part of it, but Harry hadn't thought of it that way hours before when telling Podmore and Silver about his last minute decision.

"No, I invited you to see the look on Snape's face as I walked away with the Minister and the Headmaster."

"Was it a good look?" Dumbledore asked, smile looking genuine again and mirth in his eyes.

"Yes," Harry said, suddenly feeling childish for his behavior even though he hadn't earlier. Dumbledore put his hand up over his mouth to cover his smile for a moment and it made Harry feel even more childish.

"You never disappoint dear boy."

"I didn't mean to be childish," he said.

"You deserve to be childish in what remains of your youth, for youth is fleeting."

Dumbledore stood as though he was going to leave, and Harry reached out to stop him, pulling his hand back before he made contact. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.

"Why can't I live at Hogwarts if I need to be kept safe from Death Eaters? Or with you?"

"I never imagined you would want to live with an old man Harry. Years are not guaranteed and old age slips away even faster than youth."

"You don't know what it's like to not have anyone at all," Harry said quietly. "You can put charms up to make them stop hitting me and breaking my bones, but that's not gonna stop them." Harry thought that words were just as effective as breaking bones, though he didn't say so.

"I'm afraid Harry, that I cannot protect you from hurtful words. I cannot protect you from everything. I must however do what I can to protect you from death and torture."

Harry sat down on the edge of his bed and stared at the floor. It wasn't fair. Ron, Hermione, Justin, even Draco. They were allowed to live with people who cared. That was all he wanted.

"I am sorry Harry," he said. He opened the door, but paused before leaving the room. "Was there anything else?"

Harry shook his head and still staring at the floor said glumly, "Not unless you know where 17 orphans and two women can stay the night Monday."

"Hogwarts has room I believe."

Harry looked up. "They can go to Hogwarts?"

"I believe something can be arranged. An overnight tour perhaps."

Harry visibly relaxed and felt like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

"I believe you to be fair," Dumbledore said before exiting the room, and shutting the door quietly behind him.

Harry frowned, trying to work out what they'd talked about regarding fairness, before remembering the snort in the Ministry corridor. The dog came out from under the bed between Harry's feet and jumped up to lay next to him. It laid it's head on Harry's lap, as if sensing his sadness.

"At least the orphans have a place to go," Harry told the dog. "Now I just gotta find a good place for me."

* * *

"Are you ever gonna name that mutt?" Justin asked Harry the next morning. He'd been waiting outside the Leaky Cauldron for him. The dog barked at Justin's question.

"He has a name," Harry said, "I just don't know what it is yet."

"Well make one up."

"Like what, Spot?"

"Whoa," Justin said, "I swear the mutt just glared at me."

Harry looked at the dog who stared back at him with the same expression he always wore. "I don't like Spot anyway. He doesn't have spots on him."

"Nah, name him something fierce. He looks like a scrapper."

It was true, Harry thought, the dog did have several scars on his back, sides, and chest.

"What's a fierce name though?" Voldemort flashed to mind, but Harry didn't think anyone would appreciate him calling the dog that.

"Eh... Grindewald?"

Harry frowned.

"C'mon, he's the evil wizard before You-Know-Who."

"No thanks."

"Ok, a fierce animal name then."

"You want me to name the dog after another animal? Come here little hippopotamus," Harry joked. The dog turned and glared at him though, causing Harry to stand up straight and raise his brows.

"Told you," Justin laughed. "He's got to be magic, right? ‘Cause regular dogs don't glare?"

"I don't think they do," Harry agreed. He was surprised the dog could even contort his face to remotely look like a glare. Harry would even have classified the look as ‘not amused' if it had been a person. He'd seen Snape wear the same look on a regular basis.

"Hippo's out," Justin said. "That's not a fierce animal anyway."

"Sirius Black," Harry said suddenly, spotting one of the many wanted posters along Diagon Alley. The dog immediately barked, stopped walking, and sat staring up at Harry. Harry hadn't really been suggesting the name, only thinking out loud. Knowing now that the man had been responsible for his parent's deaths, and that he was probably out looking for Harry, Harry's mind frequently floated to Black because of the wanted posters he was constantly surrounded with.

"Sirius Black?" Justin said, and the dog barked twice more, causing the Saturday shoppers to turn and stare. "How mad d'you think people will be about Sirius Black roaming Diagon?"

Harry shrugged. "Er... Maybe I'll just call him Sirius. That's not too rare a name is it?" He noted the dog's tail was wagging. "C'mon then." They walked up and down the alley for almost an hour before Justin went back to the orphanage for lunch and Harry took Sirius back up to the room.

"Siri maybe?" Harry asked the dog as he gave him scraps from lunch. "Calling you the other name is a little weird," Harry said. "Cause that other guy sold my parents out and all. If he comes to kill me in my sleep, and the newspapers get hold of the fact that we were calling a dog that slept with me Sirius Black, it could get confusing."

The dog stared at Harry and whined, but Harry wasn't sure why. He often did that or barked or acted as though he was conversing with Harry, but Harry wasn't certain that it wasn't normal behavior for a dog, aside from the frowning.

* * *

"Harry Potter?"

Harry paused at the steps leading up to the second floor of the Leaky Cauldron. He'd just been getting ready to take his dinner upstairs, but both of the people from the Wizarding Welfare Office that had been at the trial were standing there.

"Yes?" he asked, his stomach choosing that exact moment to give a particularly loud growl.

"Dane Conner," the man said, holding out his hand for Harry to shake. "We met yesterday. I'm your Case Supervisor. May we talk in private?"

Harry nodded and invited them up to his room. He wasn't looking forward to this ‘investigation,' but knew he had to cooperate. Podmore had told Harry to tell the investigators what he'd told him about life at the Dursleys.

Inside his room, Harry shut his door and set his tray of food on the bed. Mr. Conner conjured a chair, and the woman with him, Iris, sat in Harry's desk chair.

"Go ahead and eat," Dane told Harry. "We have a lot of things to go over with you. We'll try to be brief but it's likely this will continue tomorrow and possibly even on Monday. Do you remember Iris Cooke from court as well? She's the assigned case investigator."

Harry held out his hand to shake Iris' hand and then sat on his bed and took a bite of his green beans. When he swallowed he asked, "What's a case supervisor do?"

Dane smiled. "It's my decision on what the final recommendation to the court will be after the investigation is complete."

"What happens in the investigation?"

Iris spoke up and said, "We have a list of questions for you about living with your family, about school, about what you've been doing since you've been here, and just about you in general. We'll also be speaking to Albus Dumbledore about the decisions he's made about you in the past, especially regarding your living situation. At some point this week we'll also have questions for the Dursley's. We also may end up speaking to your teachers and other people you interact with."

"Do you have to tell everybody why you're asking questions?" Harry asked.

"No, and in fact Albus has asked us not to," Dane said, and Harry nodded.

"So how are you doing Harry?" Iris asked after Harry swallowed a large bite of mashed potatoes and gravy.

He shrugged. "Ok. I mean, better here than at home, but I don't fancy living on Diagonalley forever."

"Why not?" Iris asked.

"It's ok here," Harry repeated, "there's things to do to keep me busy, and I have a friend that lives over at the orphanage that I hang around with, but I'd rather live in a home. It'd be nice to be able to go outside and lay in the grass in the shade or take a walk without there being dozens of people around."

Dane made notes as Iris asked questions, but by this point Harry was so used to the barristers making notes about him that he hardly noticed.

They dove into questions about the Dursleys fairly quickly and Harry described as much as he could, with as much detail. He told them to look for the cupboard under the stairs with his old broken toys and the broken down cot. He told them to look for the cat flap in his upstairs room door and for the bars on the windows. They asked a lot about his punishments, but seemed to pay special attention to the kinds of things the Dursleys said to him, the kinds of chores that were required of him, and what they fed Harry and how often.

"Thank you for telling us Harry," Iris said, looking at her watch. Harry looked at his as well. It was nearing eight o'clock.

"Do you keep a bedtime here?" Dane asked.

"We can keep going if you want," Harry said.

"We're going to pick up tomorrow morning," Iris said, trying to give Harry a reassuring smile.

"Ok."

"What time do you normally go to sleep here Harry?" Dane asked again.

He shrugged. "I come back to my room at dinner and I stay up here after that. I have books I have to get through and notes and stuff to work on. I can't stay up too late because I have work three mornings a week. I get in bed probably around nine, but I don't always fall asleep right away, and it's hard to sleep through the night."

"Why can't you fall asleep?" Dane asked.

"I can't shut my mind off sometimes. I just lay in the dark and think about things. It's worse if I'm stressed out or something, like about the hearing."

"What about sleeping through the night?"

Harry bit his lip. He had nightmares, but it felt childish to admit that he did.

"Harry?"

"Yeah? Oh... well I have nightmares sometimes. I try to go back to sleep but sometimes I wake really early around three or four and I can't go back to sleep even when I try."

"What are the nightmares about?"

"Home," Harry said. "It's worse if I'm hungry, because it's hard to feel anything good when you're hungry. That's not really a problem here though." He'd already told them about frequently being punished with not being fed.

"Can you give us something specific you have nightmares about, or are there no specific things you dream about?"

"About being locked up, and being hungry, or about Dudley hunting me through the neighborhood or being locked in the cupboard and having to get out to use the loo." He dreamed about a lot more than that, but he still felt foolish for having been so afraid of his nightmares that he couldn't sleep.

"Thank you for taking the time to talk with us Harry," Iris said as she and Dane got up. "We'll be back in the morning. Will you be here?"

"I might be out on the alley, but I could be here at a certain time."

"How about we come out on the alley with you?" Dane asked.

Harry nodded. "I usually go out around six thirty before all the shoppers turn up."

"We'll meet you behind the Leaky Cauldron at six thirty then."

They bade him goodbye, and Harry pulled out one of his books to take notes in his shared journal, and then he laid in bed for what seemed like hours before falling asleep. He had strange dreams of being locked up at Ron's house in the hot, sticky attic while Dane and Iris sat on brooms outside the window talking to him through bars, asking him why he couldn't sleep or hadn't been fed.

Harry had designs on going to the orphanage in the morning to see what progress had been made on Friday. He hadn't gotten to see it at all beyond passing it on his way to Podmore's office, and he hadn't gone down Knockturn on Saturday.

As promised, Dane and Iris were waiting for him out back. "So where do you like to go when you go out?" Iris asked.

Harry shrugged. "Well I have work three days a week at Flourish and Blotts and one day a week at Tantalizing Sweets. I visit the orphanage, and I end up at Podmore's and Silver's a lot. Sometimes I go to other shops to talk to the shop owners." He was fond of eating lunch at Fortescue's and listening to the man talk about mundane things going on in his life, such as his garden at home, his grandchildren who were almost old enough to attend Hogwarts, and the treehouse he was building for them in his back garden. He was glad to see they weren't carrying around clipboards or paper and parchment to take notes today, and instead seemed content to just ask questions as they walked.

"What do you do at Flourish and Blotts?" Dane asked. Harry described volunteering there for the experience and the things the brothers were teaching him, and about how he read at night and then asked his questions in the morning. He also talked about Justin and what the two of them did with Tilly, learning about ledgers and trends in sales.

"You have an interest in business?" Dane asked.

He shrugged. "It's something to do. No one told me that my family owned anything until I turned up here this summer. Mr. Silver says if I'm to take things over someday it would be better if I knew about business so I don't mess things up."

"But to learn at such a young age is remarkable," Iris said. "Wouldn't you rather be spending your summer doing other things?"

"Yes," Harry said. "This is fun too, but it'd be nice to have time off of school."

Harry waved to Fortescue and greeted him as he passed by, and then when they came out in the plaza in front of Gringotts, Harry turned and headed straight for Knocturn Alley.

"Harry," Iris said.

"Yeah?"

"You're going down Knockturn?"

"The orphanage is there, and so is Podmore's office and the sweet shop where I work once a week."

"It's dangerous," Dane said.

Harry frowned up at him. It wasn't nearly as dangerous as he had previously been led to believe. Dane definitely seemed uncomfortable with Harry's choice of route.

"No it's not," Harry said. "The orphanage kids live here. They're back and forth down the alley all day."

"Do you associate with the business owners on Knockturn like you do with the ones on Diagon?"

"Not really," Harry said. "Just Tilly at the sweet shop and Mr. Podmore." He told them about initially trying to find a barrister at Silver's office and being turned away, and having no other choice but to try down Knocturn Alley. He also told them about getting Justin a job at the sweet shop, and buying his clothes at Double Lane at the far end of Knockturn.

"So you haven't been into any of the other shops?"

"Some of them are dark," Harry commented. "Why would I go into them?"

"Do you ever have encounters with some of the... ah... questionable people on Knockturn?"

Harry shook his head. "People seem creepy until you realize they seem afraid of you and never come away from their shop doors. Tilly was like that at first too."

They came up to the orphanage, and Harry was pleased to see that the bricks and cracks had been patched, and that the front had a new coat of dark, muted blue paint. It was dark enough that at first glance you might think it was black, but once you really looked it was an eye catching blue. Harry admired it. Already the orphanage looked like the nicest building on Knockturn. It also looked like the crew had built all the new window boxes and hung them under the windows, though they didn't yet have dirt in them to plant flowers or other vegetation. Harry was really hoping they were going to plant things like carrots and lettuce.

"I didn't realize the orphanage was so well kept," Iris said, eyebrows raised. She was startled at Harry's sudden laughter then.

"What?" Dane asked.

"It's in terrible shape," Harry said, and described to them how it looked before, finding out that he owned it, hiring a company to make repairs, and about how the orphanage was going to empty out early Monday morning and how it's residents would stay at Hogwarts, not to return until late Tuesday afternoon so the third floor could be torn off and rebuilt. Harry couldn't wait until lunch hour on Monday when he'd have time to come watch them take the third floor off.

"You did this?" Iris asked.

"Yeah, well I mean, I didn't choose the paint colors or anything. I told them to repair everything, paint it, and otherwise listen to Mrs. Ginger. She runs the place."

"Yes," Iris said. "She's frequently present at decision hearings at the Ministry."

Justin came out of the courtyard from the outside corridor and spotted Harry. He made a beeline for him and Harry greeted him with a wave.

"This is Justin," Harry said.

"Nice to meet you," Dane said, holding out his hand.

Justin took it, but looked uncomfortable. "The notes you made last night didn't make any sense."

"We can go over it later if you want."

Justin nodded. "I'm all packed and ready to go. The Headmaster is putting us up in Hufflepuff and Miss Ava said we're allowed to use school brooms while we're there. They said something about a tour for the younger kids, but I think I'll skip it."

"Wish I could come," Harry said. "It would be nice to get out and fly."

"I already told Tilly I wouldn't be in Monday," Justin said. "Too bad I'll lose out on the seven sickles."

"Maybe she'll let you make it up by selling in the afternoon and the morning one day next week."

"Maybe."

Justin gave another uncomfortable look at the two adults with Harry and ended up bidding him goodbye to go back into the orphanage.

"We won't keep you all day Harry," Dane said. "Would it be ok if we came back in the morning to see you work at Flourish and Blotts?"

"If it's ok with Basil and Bennet," Harry told them.

They nodded and said they'd stop in for a while tomorrow morning to just watch, and said they would keep questions to a minimum until Harry was done with work for the day. They seemed uncomfortable leaving Harry alone on Knockturn, but Harry assured them he was going into the orphanage to spend time with Justin, so they left. As soon as they did, Podmore's office door opened and he beckoned Harry to come in. Harry was surprised he was there on a Sunday.

"Well?" Podmore asked. Harry gave him a run down of the types of things he'd been asked and said they were coming back the next day.

"We need to go over all of the things you've spent money on so far," Podmore said. "They said during the hearing they intended to prove you were irresponsible with your money."

Harry tried to think of every single thing he'd spent money on, but couldn't remember it all. Podmore said he'd get an accounting from Silver on Monday of the big expenditures and the new accounts Harry had opened, and then released Harry so he could get some lunch, which he ended up doing at the orphanage.

"I'm glad you ditched them," Justin said as he and Harry sat in the courtyard and ate oranges and sandwiches.

"Why?"

"I don't like that lady... Iris Cooke. She's the one responsible for my sister and I ending up here."

"What do you mean?"

"After my dad died and it was just us the Ministry sent us to Wizarding Welfare. She investigated. We had a grandmother who wanted to take us but that woman said she wasn't capable of looking after us because she was too old. So we ended up here instead." Justin looked angry. He balled and unballed his fist and ended up punching his leg. "Grandma's fine. She lives in a huge house out in the country and has two house elves that take care of her. There was no reason we couldn't have gone there."

"Do you get to see her?" Harry asked.

"Not really. She sends us each a gift at Christmas and tries to send some money sometimes so we can buy shoes and stuff, but that's it. She doesn't have a lot of money."

"I'm sorry," Harry said. The more he got to know Justin, the more he understood why he was so bitter about certain things.

"Just watch out," he cautioned Harry. "They're gonna act like they're on your side, but they're not."

* * *

Iris and Dane had stopped by for an hour Monday morning to watch Harry work. They listened to the questions Harry was asking Bennet and watched him taking notes, and then watched for a few minutes as Basil had Harry fill out an order for 6th year Potions textbooks they wanted in by next week. They didn't ask Harry any questions, and left before the end of his shift.

Harry bought a sandwich on Diagonalley and then took it to Knockturn to watch the reconstruction efforts at the orphanage. Half of the third floor was off by the time he got there, and Harry was disappointed to find that the men seemed to be on their own lunch break and weren't doing anything interesting at all.

"Enjoy your lunch Potter?" Snape's voice sneered. Harry turned and found Snape standing next to him. He was staring up at the third floor as the construction crew was starting to get back to work.

"Yes sir," Harry said with a smile. He knew Snape wasn't referring to the sandwich he just ate.

"You are more Slytherin than one would have imagined."

"Because of the Minister?" Harry asked.

Snape grunted in response.

"That wasn't my idea. Dumbledore was my idea."

Snape turned to give him a disgusted look, and then turned back to the building.

"Why are you doing this?" he motioned to the orphanage. "I have yet to see your name in the papers claiming credit for being the-savior-of-the-poor-orphans."

"You always think I have a hidden agenda," Harry said.

"You are a Gryffindor and a Potter. You do nothing unless it benefits you. You are selfish and-"

"Yeah, that's me," Harry cut in, earning a dirty look from the man for interrupting his tirade. "Selfish Harry who always wants something."

"Attention," Snape sneered. "Your over inflated ego has grown so used to the attention that with every action you seek it out."

"Eating a sandwich?" Harry challenged him. He couldn't see how he was asking for attention by eating a sandwich on his lunch break.

Snape's lip curled in a particularly unpleasant way. "Hiring a barrister, dragging the Headmaster to court, giving Ministry officials a sob story about how poorly The-Boy-Who-Lived has been treated, holding court with the Minister and Headmaster while you leave the commoners behind staring after you-"

Harry shook his head and started to walk away so he wouldn't be late to work at the sweet shop. "I'm just a kid," Harry said. Harry thought that it was ironic that he was accused of having a hidden agenda because he was a Gryffindor, when he had always thought the same about Slytherins.

Shaking himself mentally as he entered the sweet shop so he wouldn't accidentally start snapping at Tilly, Harry looked around the darkened room and tried to let his eyes adjust until he saw her.

"Justin is gone," Tilly said.

"I know, he'll be back tomorrow afternoon."

"We're missing sales," she said.

"You want me to sell today?" Harry asked. He wasn't particularly good at selling things to people, but he knew Tilly needed the money.

"I've already got things packaged for you. 4 Knuts per jelly slug, 3 Sickles for the glacial flakes, and 3 Sickles for the roaring cupcakes."

"What do roaring cupcakes do?" Harry asked.

"It's a new product. Here, take a bite of one." She brought out an extra from behind the counter and when Harry took a bite he felt an uncontrollable urge to let loose a fierce roar. He sounded like a lion. It only lasted for a moment, and then it was over. Harry laughed despite himself.

"Good?" she asked.

"I bet you could sell a lot of these to Gryffindors," Harry said.

She gave him a sack full of coins so he could make change for people and Harry left the sweet shop with the large bag of sweets.

"Have you spent your entire vault on sugar?" Snape asked with a disgusted look. Harry wasn't sure if the man had been waiting outside for Harry to come out, or if he was still there to watch the construction.

"Yup," Harry said, still irritated with the earlier encounter he'd had with him. Harry passed him by and when his back was to him he stuffed the remainder of the roaring cupcake into his mouth and let out a mighty roar. He giggled the rest of the way down Knockturn and to the front steps of Gringotts.

"Candy made by the angels of heaven!" Harry began shouting. "Amazing cooling sensation!" He really disliked selling like this, but figured he could give the coins to Justin when he got back.

"Jelly Slugs in ten flavors! Gryffindor cupcakes that make you roar like a lion!"

Harry was involved exchanging money for several items with children and adults, and didn't see Snape leaning against a wall with his arms crossed at the start of Knockturn Alley, watching him from the shadows. He kept shouting about candy and accepting money from people coming in and out of the bank and was surprised with how fast the time flew by. It had been barely an hour and he had sold out of candy.

Trying to count sales in his head, Harry still didn't notice Snape leaning against the shadowed wall he passed, and startled when the man said something.

"Does the sweet shop owner know you are buying her wares and re-selling them at a higher price on Diagonalley?"

Harry wanted to say something just to make the man angry but figured he'd better not. He didn't want to risk Snape taking his money and dragging him down Knocturn to the sweet shop.

"I work for her," Harry said.

"The rich and famous Boy-Who-Lived?" Snape spat, giving a harsh laugh. "Peddling goods on the steps of Gringotts like a commoner?"

"You'd rather think I was cheating someone than working?" Harry was surprised though he felt he shouldn't be.

Snape looked like he was about to say something nasty, but Harry hurried down Knockturn before he could. He went back to the sweet shop and determined himself not to leave until dinner, or possibly even later. He didn't want to run into Snape yet again and hoped he could wait him out.

"You're sweeping too?" Tilly asked when Harry had not yet left after his allotted time.

"Justin sweeps," Harry said.

"He does," she agreed, and didn't question him more about it.

When Harry was done sweeping he also washed the inside of the front windows without being asked, and then the outside of the candy display cases. When he was done, Tilly held out her hand with seven sickles, but Harry didn't take it.

"Give it to Justin," he said as he went to put his cleaning supplies away.

"You're the one who worked today."

"I was just filling in."

She came over to him, took his hand, and put the coins in it. "Take the money Harry. I've never owed money to anyone and I'm not going to start now."

Harry took the coins and put them in his pocket. He felt uncomfortable being paid for just a couple hours of easy cleaning and selling. Tilly smiled at him though and told him to have a good evening, and Harry left not feeling sure if he should be happy to have some pocket money or uneasy about taking money from someone who clearly needed it. He had thousands and thousands of galleons and didn't need a few sickles, even if he couldn't access all of his money just then.

Harry watched as the construction crew cleaned up their tools so they could go home for the night. The foreman came over to Harry when he saw him watching, and asked what he thought of the progress.

"Got the third floor all framed in," he said. "It's gonna be the new school rooms and library."

"A library," Harry said. He quite liked the idea of them having a library, and wondered how many books they had. He'd seen several mismatched bookcases around the orphanage in different rooms overflowing with children's books and old Hogwarts textbooks. Certainly not enough to fill a library.

"We're on track to finish by Friday," the foreman said. "Unless there's anything else that needs added to the to-do list."

Harry frowned. There wasn't anything he could think of. He turned and looked at Tilly's shop behind him though and at the faded paint around the door and window, and on the sign.

"Do you have any paint I can use?" Harry asked.

"There's a few cans," the foreman said. "Just leftovers. We have to buy more to finish up."

"Can I have the leftovers? Is there a way to change the paint colors?"

The foreman led Harry into the orphanage courtyard where all of their tools and things like paint were stored and pulled out four cans, two of which were only half full. "Here's a couple brushes and a dropcloth," he said, but then scratched his head and asked, "What are you gonna do with it all though? We're already taking care of the painting so you don't need to worry about it."

"I want to paint across the street."

"Show me."

He and Harry each carried two cans across the alley and set them in front of Tilly's shop. The light was off inside now and Harry wondered if she had floo'd home.

"Paint's peeling and dirty," the foreman said. "You can't just paint over it or it won't adhere. You gotta sand it down first and then clean it off. If you're gonna paint the sign you need a smaller brush for the detail work."

"Do you have one?"

"I might."

He spent several minutes explaining to Harry how to sand the old paint smooth and clean it and about mixing the paint in the cans thoroughly, and also how to change colors with a charm.

"We can just add this to the work order," the foreman said after he'd gotten out sandpaper and a few other supplies for Harry.

"That's ok," Harry said, "I got it." If Tilly was going to pay him, he might as well do something to earn that pay. He was invested in her business emotionally now as well and wanted to see it do well. If she started getting more business, maybe Justin would also get a raise. Part of getting the business to do better would be to make it look more approachable. Not everyone knew Tilly and would be willing to go into her shop as it looked now, even with the newly cleaned windows.

"All right," the foreman said. "Just don't forget to do a second coat and then go back and touch up for a third."

Harry had painted the shed in the back garden for uncle Vernon several times before however and felt confident he could paint some trim around Tilly's door and large window. He thanked the foreman and set to work, wanting to get as much done as he could before it got dark in a few hours.

Several people watched Harry from the shadows as he painted. Harry was aware they were there, like they always were, but he'd gotten used to them now and didn't mind.

Harry painted the trim the same dark blue as the orphanage, and then changed the color of one of the half-empty cans of dark blue to light blue and painted wide diagonal stripes on all the trim to make it pop. He had to do several coats of the light blue before it looked good, but it was warm out and the paint dried quickly between coats. He suspected the paint had some kind of charm in it to help with drying time though.

When he was done it was eight o'clock and he set to work on the large sign. Harry carefully painted around the fading letters with the dark blue and then used the light blue to paint over the letters. The words really popped with the light blue on top of the dark blue sign. In the fading light, Harry looked back and forth between the sweet shop and the orphanage and thought that together they made this particular spot on the alley look very well-kept and approachable. If only the other shops all looked as good.

When he was done he dragged the ladder and supplies back across the alley and into the orphanage courtyard. On his way back out of the alley, he looked over and made eye contact with one of the shadowed figures, who for once held his gaze instead of retreating further into the shadows. Harry stood straight as he made his way back to the Leaky Cauldron, satisfied that he had finally earned those seven Sickles.

The End.


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