Time Flies

The next morning, Danny woke up and got back to his usual routine of meditation. But this time, the results were different. He could clearly feel that he had made a lot of progress as compared to before and it was only a matter of time that the existence of magic inside his body would no longer remain illusory to him. Instead, it would be something he could control via his own will.

Although it wasn't as effective as last night's session, he understood that it was only a one-off event and couldn't be repeated every time he practiced.

So he kept his cool and continued practicing with a single-minded devotion.

Time flew by slowly and before he knew it, he has been practicing for eight years.

A lot has changed in these eight years. Danny has grown up physically and was no longer helpless like before. He looked a little taller compared to an average nine-year-old, but the biggest visible difference was his eyes.

With constant meditation and on top of his already strong soul, his eyes had gained an almost magnetic feel to them. Whoever saw him couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

The most important change that happened was the growth of his magic power or mana.

He could feel the flow inside his body and was now able to control it to a certain extent.

While he was practicing his control, he discovered that magic also affected his health and physique. This is why in the original story, there were very few instances where magicians got sick or suffered from 'muggle' diseases. Saint Mungo's mostly received cases of failed experiments or accidents while performing magic rather than normal diseases.

Even the ones that were there, happened primarily due to bugs or other factors. That's why not many grown-ups suffered from common cold or viral fever.

The reason being the mana flowing inside their bodies. The mana makes it very difficult for the normal microorganisms to exist and the only way for them to survive would be to mutate into some kind of magical organism. But through the years most of them have been identified and cured already. So the more mana you had, the less likely it was for you to fall sick.

When he discovered this phenomenon, he thought of something crazy.

He thought what if the reverse was also true, i.e., could he have more mana if he had a stronger body.

This prompted him to take up martial arts as it would serve a dual purpose of making him stronger and also sharpening his fighting instinct.

He started going to the martial arts club around two years ago, after his seventh birthday and now, two years later, he could clearly feel the effects his training had on him.

His body had grown a lot stronger than before and the increase in mana inside his body was almost to a noticeable level ever since he started his physical training. He pictured his body as a container, so the stronger the container, the easier it would be to store magic inside. Which is why his magic was a lot denser than normal and it was easier to control it too.

The other change was the attitude of the Dursleys towards him. They didn't treat him like shit as they did to Harry in the original story. Instead, they treated him like air in the beginning and later like an expensive vase, which they had to take care of for the next few years.

It wasn't all that bad since he got to keep his privacy and was able to have a stable home. He never expected them to treat him like a family but he also didn't want to be treated like a slave.

Danny had to work extra hard in order to get into the good books of his uncle and aunt. His aunt had grown fond of him from the beginning due to his good attitude. As he grew up he became the ideal child any parents could ask for. He would help out his aunt in her household chores and help his uncle with some simple tricks that helped him out at his work.

He also pretended to have some kind of prophetic visions and asked his uncle to make some investments according to the memories of his past. Some of these investments gave immediate returns while others would take a few years but they would get their money's worth eventually. They were able to earn a lot because of him and as such his status improved significantly inside the house. He was now like the goose that laid the golden eggs.

While he 'advised' his uncle over his investments, he asked him to create a separate account for him since he was a minor and couldn't do it himself. This account was solely under Danny's control.

He got a cut from his uncle over his earnings in his personal account and then used that money to invest again. This way he made a pretty good fortune over the years and could use this money to initiate the next phase of his plans, buying magical supplies.

He thought about this for a long time and decided it was finally time to get in touch with the magical world.

In order to do that, he would need to get to Diagon Alley. This would not be much of a problem as he already knew a way to get in.

The next day, he went out of the house and took a taxi to Charing Cross Road. After getting there, he looked around for a bit. And there it was, nestled between a bookstore and a record house, the gateway between the muggle and magical world, the Leaky Cauldron.

It looked like a shabby place with an old broken down front. But Danny knew that it was a piece of history in the world of wizardry. Prior to the implementation of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy in 1692, it used to be open to the muggles just as it was to wizards. Although the muggles were not so thrilled with the prospects of having a drink with people dressed in weird robes and witch hats, it was still a flourishing place that connected the two worlds.

Before he entered the pub, he took a look at himself in the glass window of the nearby bookstore. He had to make sure he couldn't be recognized or it would create a whole new mess for him. So he wore a long black robe with his shoes having a bit of a heel to make him look taller. Also, he wore a scarf over his head that completely covered his lightning scar and further covered his face with a hood built in his robe. He also wore a pair of gloves as his young skin could give away his age.

He also decided to cover his mouth while talking so as to mask his original voice.

He knew it was a bit of an overkill, but it's better to be prepared than regret later.

After rechecking his disguise and adjusting his voice he entered the pub with confident strides.

There was a slight musty smell in the air inside the pub. It was mid-morning so there were not many customers inside. There was a couple seated in a corner and chatting amongst themselves, a big guy in a Lincoln style hat sitting opposite their table reading the Daily Prophet, a middle-aged witch sitting at the bar talking to her cat and behind the counter stood the owner of the pub, Tom.

He looked almost similar to what was described in the book. But he had a few more teeth and didn't look like a 'gummy walnut' as Harry had remarked in the story. Maybe he would lose his teeth in the coming years.

He didn't bother greeting anyone inside the pub and went directly to the rear courtyard. He entered the Diagon Alley from there. Although he was quite curious about the Knockturn Alley, he decided to go there after he was able to protect himself from other mages.