Chapter 263: The Heartless Dumbledore
The next morning, Kyle arrived at The Burrow early and used the fireplace to travel to Diagon Alley. As he'd expected, anything related to dragons came at a premium—dragon blood included. A small vial set him back twelve Galleons, a price that made him wince. So much for a "free" talking book, he thought ruefully. Bad review!
After picking up the dragon blood, Kyle decided to swing by the Junk Shop, where he ran into Percy, who was just exiting the shop, clutching a book with a mixture of pride and pain.
Mrs. Weasley hadn't been comfortable with Kyle going to Diagon Alley alone, so she had asked Percy to join him. It just so happened that Percy had been meaning to buy the book he'd seen a few days earlier: Prefects Who Gained Power.
Ever since he'd come across it, Percy had felt as though the book contained his future path. Every time he closed his eyes, the "words of wisdom" within it seemed to echo in his mind, each reading revealing some new insight. Unable to shake the feeling that he might miss something crucial, he had decided to buy it—even if it meant spending every bit of his allowance.
Kyle glanced at Percy, who was holding the book as if it were a priceless treasure. Curious, he asked, "How much did you spend?"
"Nine Galleons—all the pocket money I'll have for the next two years!" Percy replied, with a mix of pride and resignation. "It was supposed to be eighteen Galleons, but the shopkeeper gave me a great discount when he saw I didn't have enough."
Kyle raised his eyebrows. In a second-hand shop, books usually went for half the price of those at Flourish and Blotts. Meaning, the original price of Prefects Who Gained Power was thirty-six Galleons—a shockingly high price.
By Merlin's beard, that's more than seven of Lockhart's books combined! Kyle mused, thinking back to Lockhart's titles, which had seemed steep at five Galleons each. Looks like Lockhart's prices aren't so bad after all.
But Kyle kept his thoughts to himself. After all, it wasn't his money.
This time, they didn't run into any acquaintances on their way back and returned to The Burrow via the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron.
Mrs. Weasley had just finished preparing breakfast: corned beef sandwiches and fried potatoes.