Led into the shop by Madam Malkin, Vera gave the place a quick glance.
It was more spacious than she had expected. Robes of every style hung from several racks, and in one corner stood an enormous three-way mirror.
What surprised her was that there was already another customer inside—a pale blond boy standing on a footstool while an enchanted tape measure darted around him, taking his measurements.
"It'll only take a moment, young man," one of the witches told him.
The boy turned around, and the moment he noticed Vera's wheelchair, a flash of surprise crossed his gray eyes.
Lifting his chin, he asked in a tone full of obvious superiority, "Are you starting at Hogwarts this year too?"
Vera met his gaze calmly. "Yes."
"I'm Draco Malfoy," the boy announced proudly, though his eyes remained fixed on her wheelchair. "What happened to your legs?"
Vera narrowed her eyes slightly. After a moment's thought, she gave a brief reply. "Complications from a car accident."
Draco seemed dissatisfied by how coldly she responded. He hopped down from the stool and walked over to her.
"Do you know the Malfoys? My father is one of the school governors."
"Of course I know them." Vera looked up at him, a trace of amusement flickering in her dark eyes. "One of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. The Malfoys and the Blacks are connected by several marriage lines."
Draco's eyes widened. "You're from the Black family?"
His attitude shifted at once in a subtle but unmistakable way.
"My mother was a Black! Narcissa Malfoy—you must know her!"
"Of course." Vera nodded. "By relation, she's my aunt."
"So we're cousins?" Draco said excitedly, having completely forgotten his earlier arrogance. "Then you'll be in Slytherin, right? All pure-bloods go to Slytherin."
"Perhaps." Vera did not commit herself and simply wheeled over to the footstool.
With Madam Malkin's help, she transferred smoothly from her wheelchair onto the stool, and the enchanted tape measure at once sprang into action.
Draco stood nearby, watching it flit around her, then lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "You've heard, haven't you? Hogwarts is getting that Savior this year."
Vera said nothing, merely waiting quietly for the measuring to finish. Madam Malkin thoughtfully chose a standard set of school robes for her, and even took Vera's wheelchair use into account by making special adjustments to the hem.
Seeing that Vera had no reaction, Draco, having failed to get the response he wanted, said bluntly, "My father says we ought to make friends with Potter."
Vera glanced at him and found that, compared with the Savior she had just met, the boy before her was really rather dull.
"But—" Draco abruptly changed tack, casting a disdainful look at Vera's wheelchair. "With you like this, never mind making friends—can you really even go to Hogwarts? I've heard the place is full of stairs."
Vera's fingers tightened slightly, but her expression remained calm. "Thank you for your concern. But I imagine Hogwarts has some way of dealing with that."
"Hmph. Let's hope so." Draco shrugged. "I'd hate to see you fall down the stairs on your first day."
He made no effort to lower his voice, and several students and parents in the shop turned to look.
A trace of coldness flashed through Vera's eyes.
She raised her head and said quietly by his side, "Cousin Draco, did you know? In the Muggle world, there's an illness whose symptoms include constantly sticking your nose into other people's affairs."
Draco's face turned bright red. "You—"
"I'd recommend a visit to St. Mungo's," Vera continued in the same calm tone. "After all, it's only right to care about a cousin's health, isn't it?"
Draco's face went from red to white, anger flickering in his gray-blue eyes. "How dare you speak to me like that! You cripple who can't even walk—"
Before he could finish, the shop door was suddenly thrown open, and a small figure came storming in with unexpected force.
"Apologize to her!" Harri snapped furiously, planting herself in front of Vera. "What you just said was way out of line!"
Vera looked up, startled, at Harri standing protectively before her.
That slight frame was strung tight as a bowstring, fists clenched so hard her knuckles had gone white, green eyes blazing behind her glasses with naked fury.
She was clearly shorter than Draco, yet stubbornly stood in front of the wheelchair without yielding an inch.
Like a puffed-up little cat.
Vera had no idea where that comparison came from, but since the Savior had already stepped in on her behalf, she quietly withdrew the wand she had already been readying inside her sleeve.
Draco clearly hadn't expected anyone to burst in and call him out. He took a step back, eyes going round.
"Who are you? What right do you have to interfere?"
"I'm Harri Potter." Harri straightened her back and glared at him indignantly. "And what you just said was incredibly rude."
"Potter?" Draco's expression instantly turned spectacularly complicated. He looked Harri up and down, his gaze pausing on the scar on her forehead. "You're Potter? The one who defeated You-Know-Who? My father told me—"
"I don't care what your father told you," Harri cut in with a frown. "All I know is that you just insulted my friend!"
Vera sat quietly in her wheelchair, and hearing herself called a friend by a girl she had known for less than ten minutes left her feeling… complicated.
This Savior was a bit too familiar too quickly.
An awkward flush rose to Draco's pale face. He looked at Harri, then at Vera in the wheelchair, and finally gritted his teeth.
"I—I was only stating facts! If she goes to Hogwarts like that, people are going to laugh at her!"
Harri's fists clenched even tighter. She even raised one slightly, looking as though she might pounce and punch him at any moment.
Faced with a Savior who clearly had no intention of reasoning with him, Draco lost his nerve and turned to leave. But as he passed Harri, he deliberately rammed into her shoulder.
Harri stumbled, nearly falling.
Vera reacted at once, catching her by the wrist and steadying her.
"Thanks," Harri said softly, her cheeks a little red.
Vera let go and shook her head lightly. "You didn't need to pick a fight with him over me."
"But the way he talked about you—" Harri frowned. "He was awful!"
Looking at Harri's earnest expression, Vera suddenly found it a little funny. The Savior of this world seemed more impulsive than in the original story—and also more… pure.
"…What is it?" Harri asked, growing a little self-conscious under her gaze. "Did I say something wrong?"
Vera withdrew her eyes and gently shook her head. "I just didn't expect you to come after me."
"It wasn't coming after you, it was running into you again!" Harri insisted at once. Under Vera's steady gaze, however, her voice gradually lost confidence. "I'm just glad I ran into you again."
Vera looked at the faint blush creeping over Harri's ears, and the corner of her mouth curved into a slight smile.
"Thank you," she said softly.
-------
My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
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