This is the fourth story I've written about Albus and his friends. They're all related and I recommend reading the previous ones if you find you are having difficulty following along with this one. They are all listed on my profile.

1) Albus Potter and the Muggled Holiday

2)Albus Potter and the Lyandelor Portal

3)Albus Potter and the Spellbinder

Many original characters in this story are introduced in previous stories, so I apologize if you don't know who you are reading about. Hopefully the story will be interesting despite this. I enjoy getting reviews and many reviewers have helped me by catching problems with my story. Please don't hesitate to tell me if something doesn't make sense.

Thanks,

Allegratree

Most of the muggles didn't even notice the Potter's car as it made its way down the freeway toward London. A few of them looked around curiously as they heard a strange grinding sound passing them, but when they couldn't identify the source of the sound, they shrugged their shoulders and chalked it up to some fellow's idling engine failing in the stopped traffic. If they could have seen the car, they wouldn't have believed their eyes. It wasn't an unusual make and model or obnoxious paint job that made the car stand out, nor was it covered with outrageous bumper stickers. The appearance of the car was, in fact, quite normal. What would have made the muggle's eyeballs fall clear out of their skulls was the way in which the car and its occupants nimbly shifted shape so as to squeeze in-between and past the numerous other vehicles idling on the pavement.

As it was, they couldn't see the car, nor its driver, nor the teenage boy sitting in the front passenger seat, completely absorbed in the new magical joke and prank book he'd received for Christmas. Occasionally, the later would break out in mischievous laughter and the voice of his younger brother would rise up from where he was sprawled out on the back seat.

"What's so funny, James?"

The older boy smirked and without turning around assured him that he would soon find out.

Albus Potter rolled his eyes and tried to focus on something still. The sensation of being constantly condensed and expanded left him a little queasy.

"Oh, go on!" their father muttered to the traffic under his breath. Albus glanced up at the back of his father's head curiously. Harry Potter was not generally given to moodiness, but in the days following Christmas, he'd been called into his job with the Department of Aurors twice to handle emergencies. The previous night, he'd had to leave just as the family was sitting down to dinner and hadn't returned until well past midnight. It seemed to Albus that the extra work was taking its toll on him and he knew that his father regretted the loss of the precious time he had with his sons when they were home from school on holiday. Their mother had noticed as well, and so when the owl arrived before daybreak, requesting that her husband return to work two hours before his time, she packed up a basket of pumpkin pastries and a thermos of coffee. Then she roused her two boys out of bed, suggesting that they accompany their father to London and take him out to lunch. Despite the unreasonably early hour, the boys were only too happy to go to London with their father. They enjoyed the time with him, but they also intended to enjoy a free afternoon in Diagon Alley.

They had both received generous monetary gifts for Christmas and Albus' share was burning a hole in his pocket. Albus smiled to himself as he counted out the many ways he could spend his gold in the various magical shops of Diagon Alley. His uncle's world famous joke emporium was first on his list of destinations. His brother was merely accompanying him in an advisory capacity. His Christmas gold had already been deposited in the vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank for James had one ambition in his heart; to obtain a new Quidditch broomstick. He'd spent the holiday hounding everyone they knew for odd-jobs he could do in exchange for some money. He'd pestered their Aunt Linda so much when she and their three cousins had come over for lunch, that she'd offered him two galleons just to leave her alone! Between what he'd earned and his Christmas gold, he'd already managed to save about half the money he needed to upgrade his model, provided he could fetch a reasonable trade-in on his old broom. Though he wasn't planning on buying anything, he was looking forward to checking out the newest models and perhaps getting an estimated trade-in value on his current broomstick.

Suddenly, another car shot into the lane in from of them and their father had to throw on the breaks so fast that Albus slid from the seat and onto the floor. James emitted a howl of laughter as Albus groaned and rubbed his throbbing funny bone. Harry Potter grumbled in frustration at the driver who couldn't see them.

"Albus, for pity's sake! Sit in your seat properly and put on your safety belt!" he complained as he steered the car with one arm and used his wand hand to vanish away the coffee he'd spilt on his trousers. Albus got back into his seat clumsily and glanced at James in the rear-view mirror. He too, seemed puzzled by their father's uncharacteristic crossness.

"Sorry, Dad," Albus responded as he fastened his safety belt and looked out the window as the morning commuters flashed by.

A short time later, the Potters pulled into a narrow alley between the rears of two large buildings and Harry parked the car awkwardly in a miniscule space between two dumpsters.

"Alright. Everybody out!" he commanded tersely and the boys quickly obeyed. Their father held out the key fob and gave it a click. The Potters car deflated with a sharp squeal and was instantly sucked into the key fob, which he placed in his pocket.

"Dad, wait!" James cried, "My broomstick's still in the trunk!" Their father sighed in frustration and reproduced the vehicle so his son could fetch his broomstick, and was then obliged to repack the car in his Portable Car Park. At last, the family emerged from the alley into the side street, and their father guided them toward the Leaky Cauldron. They were two blocks from a main business section of London and every time they crossed the street, they could see a hoard of muggles in business and service industry attire, scuttling to and fro on the bright and noisy thoroughfare. The boys craned their necks to stare at them in the distance so that their father had to urge them to watch where they were going. If the muggles had ever glanced down the side streets they were passing, they might have noticed some strange things indeed, such as; teenagers strolling along with broomsticks strapped on their backs, men and women hustling about in long, colorful robes, a large cart being maneuvered through the street that was covered with cages full of owls, bats, ravens, and other magical companions, and a dubious-looking fellow in a long coat discretely handing out business cards that promised all manner of unattainable magical objects at a fair price. (The later of which quickly departed to the other side of the street at the sight of the approaching Potters.) As it was, the muggles didn't seem interested in what was going on in the adjoining neighborhood and never even glanced in their direction.

"Hey, maybe we could go in the park over there!" James suggested when the next intersection revealed a flash of green amongst the stone and steel.

"I would prefer it if you boys stayed in Diagon Alley while I'm working," their father told him, "I don't want you wandering around the city alone." James rolled his eyes.

"Dad! I'm going to be fourteen years old! Merlin's Beard! Don't you think I'm old enough to walk in a park by myself?"

"James…" their father warned.

"What's there to do in a muggle park, anyway?" Albus pointed out in a strategic way. He could tell his father was already irritable and he didn't want the day to be spoiled by James picking a fight.

"I don't know," he retorted, crossing his arms in a rather childish manner, "And I guess I'll never find out." Their father gave him a tired and stern look. He clearly wasn't in a mood to be wheedled by his son. James sighed and didn't push the issue. It wasn't that there was anything in particular that he wanted to do in the park. He merely yearned for a chance to explore something new.

Finally, the family arrived at the Leaky Cauldron, a small tavern hidden away down a back street, ignored by the muggles. The dining room was deserted and all the chairs were set upside down on the table. The tavern wasn't open for meals yet, but witches and wizards were free to enter and use the portal into Diagon Alley.

"Alright my dears," their father began, fatigue all over his face, "You know the rules. Stay together and be good to each other. Keep your wands put away. You both know you're not allowed to use magic outside of school accept in extreme emergencies." James began to ask for a clarification but his father cut him off. "A life-threatening emergency! I'll meet you back here at noon and we'll have something to eat." The boys nodded their agreement and said good-bye.

A moment later, they were standing at the end of Diagon Alley observing as the British Wizarding World got off to a sleepy start. A few individuals could be seen hurrying to work and preparing to begin the day. The only business that seemed to be already in operation was a café cart situated strategically in front of the Wizarding Bank. The bank itself hadn't opened yet and milling around the cart were several goblins who were sipping from pewter mugs filled with a thick, steamy, and greenish substance.

"That looks like it'd get anyone running in the morning," James commented sarcastically.

"Running away, maybe," Albus agreed, wrinkling up his nose in disgust as they approached the cart. The goblin's morning beverage smelled like bad breath.

"Do you want a 'Cocoa-loco Cauldron'?" Albus asked his brother, "My treat…" James smiled his agreement and Albus ordered the drink, causing the cart attendant the irritation of changing out a full galleon for one beverage. Then they took their drink clear away from the cart so they could enjoy it without being effected by the de-appetizing smell of the goblin goo.

"Where do you want to go first?" Albus asked him as they sat down on the curb.

"I dunno," James said gloomily as he kicked a piece of rubbish stuck between the cobble stones, "Nothing's even open yet."

"Oh, don't whine about it," Albus said, "Look, the broomstick shop will be opening in just a little while. By the time we finish our drink it'll almost be time. Then after that we can go to Uncle George's shop, and then to the candy kitchen, and then maybe…"

"The same old stuff…" James muttered, "We've seen it all already, at least a hundred times!"

Suddenly, James had to put his complaining on hold as they were approached by a teenage boy with straight black hair and slate grey eyes.

"What an wicked broomstick!" the boy exclaimed, eyeing James's broomstick enviously, "That's almost professional grade! How'd you get so lucky?" James was a little taken aback by the older boy's sudden attention, but he answered politely.

"Thanks. My dad got it for me," he explained but was careful to add, "He made me work to earn it though!"

"That's brilliant!" he exclaimed, "I bet that beauty really flies! My parents could never afford one, no matter how much work I did!" James looked down sheepishly. The boy before him was dressed in clean, formal robes of good quality. It was evident that his parents were not, by any means, paupers. James was uncomfortably humbled at the reminder of how privileged he was, particularly in light of the fact that his mission in Diagon Alley that day was to unload the very broom their new acquaintance was salivating over in favor of one that would leave Scorpius Malfoy's in the dust.

"He's looking to sell or trade it," Albus informed the boy whose eyes widened.

"Why?" he asked incredulously.

"Well…" James hesitated, "It doesn't really fit me right, I guess…and, I'm on my house's Quidditch team at school…"

"Oh. Hogwarts?" the boy asked them and both James and Albus nodded proudly. The boy gave them a knowing look as if their status as Hogwarts students betrayed their entire life stories.

"Then you'll know Rath, there," the boy said, gesturing behind him toward another boy who was just coming out of a parchment mill on the other side of the street, "My fiancé's brother." Albus and James looked at the approaching Rath. Albus recognized him as a Slytherin 7th year, though he hadn't known his name before.

"He's in my house," Albus agreed.

"Slytherin," the boy confirmed with an approving nod. He seemed to think that if someone had to attend Hogwart's the very least he could do was have the decency to be in Slytherin. James stared at him awkwardly, not really knowing what to say. He didn't know Rath from Adam.

"How much as you asking for it?" the boy asked and James started.

"Well…" James said hesitatingly, "I was going to have it appraised at the Quidditch Supply shop today…It won't open for a while yet though."

"Maybe, I can make you a better offer," the boy suggested, "I just got a job working at Mr. Rath's new pawn shop. We're getting it ready for its grand opening." He took out a small card from a pocket within his robes, turned it over, and wrote down his name.

"That's me and that's the address of the pawn shop," he told James, "If you're interested, come by I'll see if I can beat whatever they offer you. I'd kill to have a quality broom like that, even second-hand!"

"Cesar Sutherland," James read aloud from the card and Albus' eyes widened in surprise.

"You know me, then," he stated, immediately noticing Albus' reaction, "How?" Albus glanced at James nervously.

"Er…I believe you're family is friends with the Malfoys," he explained finally. Cesar Sutherland's response was matter-of-fact.

"Actually, we have very little use for the Malfoys at all."

"Well, there we have something in common," James muttered and the boy looked at him curiously, but said nothing.

"Scorpius Malfoy mentioned to me that he knows you, is all," Albus explained further. The boy nodded his agreement, then added, "I haven't seen Scorpius in quite some time. He's really closer to my sister's age. My mother is good friends with the Blanchette family. One of their daughters is Scorpius' mother." Albus and James nodded and said nothing.

"Well, now I'm at a disadvantage," Sutherland continued, "You know me, but I don't know with whom I'm speaking."

"That, my dear Cesar, is because you are a moron!" Rath contributed laughingly. Sutherland looked at him confusedly and Rath elaborated, "It so happens that you are speaking to the world famous sons of the great Harry Potter!" Sutherland seemed to be surprised and perhaps a little embarrassed by this revelation.

"Merlin's Beard! I had no idea!" he stated, offering James his hand, "Are you James Potter?" James nodded solemnly.

"Then you must be Albus Potter," he concluded and Albus was obliged to shake his hand as well. He did his best not to look disgusted, though he had a tremendous urge to wipe his hand off as soon as possible. Roth rolled his eyes at his companion's ignorance.

"If you're done drooling over the celebrities, Cesar, we do need to get back to work."

"Yes, sir, Mr. Roth, sir!" Sutherland responded in an attitude of mock deference.

"Let me know if you're still interested in selling that broom," Sutherland told James and with that, they were gone.

"That was weird," James commented.

"Yes, it was," Albus agreed.

"Do you think he knows that our dad put his dad in prison?" James asked.

"If he does, he sure went out of his way to be polite. I expect he doesn't realize…or maybe he just really, really wants your broomstick!"

James chuckled as he watched the pair of older boys disappear in the direction of Knock-turn Alley.