While Harry wanted to collect his wand first, Renata pointed out that they would be passing Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, so it was best to stop there first. Harry wasn't the only one who shared in a groan as Ilaria and Monte were just as curious and impatient as their older brother to see what his wand experience was going to be like. And while Uncle Sirius had made the offer to send Harry to Hogwarts with some of the finest and unique robes, James and Renata pointed out that the supply list called for plain black robes.

But when the time came that Harry needed fancy robes, Sirius would be the first they called upon.

For the time being, Harry agreed to enter the shop with his mother. James agreed to wait outside with the little ones, knowing very well that more than two Potters in one area could very well lead to trouble. Harry wished his mother could have just collected his measurements and gone in without him, but Renata wrapped her arm around his shoulders and led him inside.

"It shouldn't take long," she told him, " don't worry, Ollivander's won't close before you get there. I spoke with him while you and your father were in Gringotts. He was getting some breakfast to go, I told him that you were coming to see him today. He's very excited to see you come in."

"Really?" Harry said, although, he had to admit that he wasn't really that surprised. From the time he was little, people approached him and his family, always trying to steal an up-close look at his scar.  Some of them had even gone so far as to shake his hand and thank him, but Harry never understood why they felt the need to.

Yes, he was The Boy Who Lived, he knew that. Both of his parents had taken the time to explain "his fame" to him. It involved him defeating You-Know-Who when he was just a baby, but Harry didn't understand how he had managed such a thing. He had been only a year old at the time, and since then, he didn't think he showed any sort of extraordinary magic.

He was just...Harry.

But he wasn't the only Potter that was famously known, it had started with his grandfather, Fleamont, who had been a famed inventor and potioneer. It passed down to James, who was known extremely well in the Quidditch world, and his mother had been granted her own fame as many had taken interest in the history of her family's story. Although, Harry knew she didn't talk about it very much.

Now it just seemed to pass onto him with his own little title, he wondered what Ilaria and Monte were going to be known for with their Potter fame.

As he theorised, Harry was led into the shop by Renata, and the two of them were greeted by the squatted witch, dressed in mauve as they entered.

"Hogwarts, dear?" she asked. "Got the lot here—another young man being fitted up just now, in fact."

"Are you too busy?" Renata asked. "We can always come back later-"

"Nonsense, please, come in, it'll just be a moment. Feel free to look around, I'll save your spot."

Harry wasn't really interested in looking around at the robes, but it didn't stop Renata from being polite and taking a look around at the selection. He wandered around though, making his way to the back of the shop. He was just about to ask his mother if he could wait outside with James, Ilaria, and Monte, but he came to a full stop when he spotted another boy being fitted for robes by a second witch.

The boy had bright blond hair that was bordering on platinum, pale in the face, and appeared rather short, making Harry believe they were around the same age. Since he was being fitted in black robes, Harry could safely bet that he was another future Hogwarts student. And while that was all fine and dandy, Harry couldn't help but feel a sense of familiarity when it came to the boy, although he couldn't remember a time of meeting him before.

But after staring long enough, he was caught as the boy sensed eyes on him and turned to look over his shoulder.

As soon as he spotted Harry, he quickly averted his gaze and slouched his shoulders as if he was trying to hide away.

"Hello," Harry called out to him, " are you going to Hogwarts too?"

It seemed like a silly question to ask, but Harry didn't know a better way to start a conversation besides introducing himself right away. For a moment, it was like the boy wasn't going to answer Harry's question, but he finally mustered up the ability to speak.

"Yes."

"That's great!" Harry smiled in relief. " I'm going to be a first year! My mum and I are here getting my robes and then after this, we're going to go get my wand. Have you gotten your wand already?"

"No."

"Oh, well, are you going to go to Ollivander's for your wand?"

"Maybe."

Harry didn't know how to continue the conversation, considering the other boy didn't seem very interested. It was somewhat of a new concept because every person that Harry had ever met had always seemed interested, at least, enough to respond with decent answers. He shuffled awkwardly in place, thinking it was probably best to just return to Renata's side until it was his turn. However, as he turned to leave, a woman had entered the shop and made her way over to where they were.

There was obviously some relationship between the two, the matching blonde hair, although hers was much longer. She was tall and slim, but perhaps too thin as her cheekbones appeared quite prominent, giving her face a rather skeletal look. She would have been beautiful to Harry if it wasn't for the dark circles that collected under her eyes and the stressed appearance as she made her way over.

Her eyes scanned over Harry right away and for a second or so, she stopped in front of him. Harry remained in place, glancing up at her, but something seemed to click in her mind, especially after her gaze travelled over his scar and she immediately turned to the other boy.

"Draco, are you finished yet? We need to get going."

The tailoring witch claimed that she needed just another minute to finish things up. However, Harry didn't pay any mind to that as he replayed the other boy's name in his head. It sounded way too familiar to be a coincidence.

DRAKE-O!

"Wait a second," Harry called out to them, " I remember you. I remember..Draco, we've met before, right?"

Draco gave him a puzzled look, ready to shake his head until they were all interrupted by Renata coming over with Madam Malkin.

"Narcissa?"

Renata was not all that familiar with the majority of the Black family, only knowing Sirius and Andromeda, who had done everything to escape their family's prejudice ways. It had led to them facing plenty of hardships over the years, but they managed to make it through with the support of each other and their friends. Renata had heard stories of members of the family, Narcissa included, although technically, she had become a Malfoy after her marriage to Lucius Malfoy.

Her husband was serving a lengthy sentence in Azkaban and had been there since Harry was just a baby after his arrest. And while neither one of them had met Lucius before, they had met Narcissa and Draco once. It was back when Harry was quite young and the two had ventured to the park, only to stumble upon Narcissa and Draco. At the time, the boys got along splendidly, quickly becoming friends. But as soon as Narcissa realised just who Harry and Renata were, she took her son and ran off.

That was years ago and since then, they hadn't seen the two, but they had heard about what they were doing with updates from Andromeda. With Lucius out of the picture, Andromeda had decided to put the past behind them and be the bigger person by reaching out to her little sister. The relationship between the sisters was quite strained, especially since their oldest sister Bellatrix was also in Azkaban serving a life sentence with Lucius.

At first, Narcissa wanted nothing to do with anyone, hiding away most of the time in the Malfoy manor with her son. But at some point, Andromeda managed to make a breakthrough and was slowly trying to heal the relationship, not only between the two of them but Sirius as well. However, Sirius was a lot harder to convince and he was much blunter when it came to his feelings and the anger he held onto over the years.

But Andromeda confided it wasn't just about forgiving Narcissa, but it was also for the sake of saving Draco. He was already suffering without having his father in his life, dealing with a mother that was dealing with her own inner demons at the time. She was trying to get Narcissa to come around and bring Draco with her so he could interact with his family and possibly make friends. What Harry had with his friends was beautiful and any child would have been lucky to have it.

Seeing Narcissa out and about, she could definitely see the toll that her stress took on her over the years. She looked tired, she looked paranoid, she looked to be at the end of her rope. And Renata remembered how Narcissa had snatched Draco up that day and ran, and she didn't want that to happen again.

"Narcissa, wait," she spoke in a calm voice, despite being overwhelmed with Narcissa's flight or fight response kicking in, washing over her with anxiety. "It's alright."

Harry watched his mother talk to the other woman as if she were a frightened child, but he was surprised when he was brought forward to stand before her.

"Harry, this is Narcissa and Draco Malfoy. You met them very briefly when you were younger, but they are related to your Zio Sirius. Draco is the same age as you and-"

"Yeah, and he's starting up at Hogwarts too!" Harry interjected.

"What's a zio?" Draco asked quietly, but still loud enough for Harry to hear and answer promptly.

"It means 'uncle' in Italian."

"You speak Italian?"

Nodding his head, Harry grinned, slightly puffing his chest with pride. "Yes, I speak Italian and English. Can you speak another language besides English?"

Draco looked at his mother through the corner of his eye before looking back at Harry. "I know a little bit of French."

Renata couldn't help the smile that formed on her lips as the two boys interacted which each other. Every second that went by, Draco seemed to relax, allowing the conversation to flow a lot smoother than it had earlier. Narcissa still appeared unsure, but she didn't interrupt.

"It's my birthday," Harry eventually informed Draco, "I'm having a party at my house with my family and my friends. Do you want to come? We're going to have cake and my dad likes to host quidditch tournaments. It'll be a lot of fun!"

Rather than Draco rejecting the idea, he looked to Narcissa for confirmation that he could attend. "Can I go, Mother?"

"No, not today," Narcissa responded quickly, "we have other plans. Now, we need to finish up here and get moving."

There was an apologetic flicker that flashed across Draco's face before his head hung low in disappointment. Once he was finished with his robes, Narcissa directed him to the front of the shop and then it was Harry's turn to be fitted, keeping them in place.

"Bye, Draco!" Harry called after him with a small wave. "I'll see you at Hogwarts!"

Draco went to wave but his mother continued to urge him forward, leaving the goodbye to fall short. Renata sighed heavily before taking an empty seat as Harry was guided to stand on a footstool for his fitting.

"That was a very nice thing you did, Harry," she told him, " inviting Draco to your party. It was sweet. I'm sure he appreciated it."

"Well, I'll get to see him at Hogwarts," Harry said, " I wonder if he collects chocolate frogs. Maybe he'll have some good ones to trade with the rest of us when we get there!"

A/N: Goodness, I don't think you guys realise how long I've been waiting to write this chapter. Coming all the way back when I was writing Halcyon and I introduced Draco for the first time. I was waiting for this moment because I'm so excited to write this universe's Draco. If he does seem out of character in this series, well, that's because he is. After all, this is Draco being raised by Narcissa alone while Lucius is in Azkaban. I firmly believe that Draco was highly influenced by his father because that was who he looked up to the most in his life. And so, he will be different without his active father figure.

Maybe different enough to be friends with Harry.

Maybe not.

We shall see :)