The Philosopher's Stone: Diagon Alley (Ch. 2)

As promised, the twins were awake early and ready to go to Diagon Alley by nine o’clock. Zane approved their appearance before they all made their way to the kitchen.
“Father, might we Apparate with you to Diagon Alley?” Emberlyn asked.
“I have told you before, there is no reason that you should Apparate before you can – legally,” he replied sternly. She sighed heavily, but her father ignored it. “Cassiopeia?” he called. “Is the portkey ready?” It was quite a ways to London from Bristol, and there were few ways for the wizarding family to get there quickly. Their only options were to Apparate (which three of them could not do), travel by Floo powder (a means which Zane despised), travel by portkey, or go by Muggle means. So portkey it was.
“I’m just getting the saucer down,” Cassiopeia replied. As they entered the kitchen, Lincoln bid them good morning. Alec replied in kind, but Emberlyn watched her mother retrieve a plate from a topmost shelf with the wave of her wand. Soon, she would be doing the very same with a wand of her own. Levitating the plate in the air, she asked, “Are we all ready?” All of her children nodded. “Good.” She lowered the plate. “Now everyone, grab on!” Five hands reached to grab the plate as it fell.
Emberlyn enjoyed the familiar exhilarating sensation as they zoomed out of the open skylight in the roof of the kitchen. Before she knew it, they were touching down in an abandoned corner of Diagon Alley.
Brushing himself off, Zane ordered, “Come children.” And so he led them into Flourish and Blott’s – a building that he rented out. Zane Leere was landlord to over half of the much-enjoyed shops in Diagon Alley, including the broomstick shop, Ollivander’s wand shop, and the ice cream shop. Their first stop was a book shop.
“Father, you had my books set aside?” asked Lincoln as they entered. “You know I no longer enjoy running around -”
“Yes, Lincoln,” his father replied. “Bindi has your books at the front desk.”
“Thank you, sir.” Lincoln strode off, waving hello to one of his friends.
“Go on and ask Bindi where you can find your books,” Cassiopeia encouraged Emberlyn and Alec. They set off together to the front of the busy store.
“Which one do you suppose is Bindi?” whispered Alec.
“The one at the front desk, of course,” Emberlyn replied, walking confidently up to the desk. “Excuse me,” she asked, “are you Bindi?” A short, thin woman peeked through large glasses at them.
“Ah, you must be Mr. Leere’s kiddies, aren’tcha?” They nodded. “Yes, Bindi’s me name. Follow me, pups, and I’ll get your books.” Alec looked alarmingly at Emberlyn as she meandered off.
“Pups?” he mouthed. She shrugged and set off to find the eccentric woman.
“Where’d she run off to?” asked Emberlyn after looking around. Alec stopped suddenly and pointed.
“Look, she’s up there!” Emberlyn looked up to see Bindi on the top rung of a tall ladder that stretched up at least ten rows of books.
“What on earth are you doing up there?!” exclaimed Emberlyn. Bindi looked down and waved.
“Don’t worry about me, ducky,” she called. “I had to hide your books so you’d still have ‘em if we got sold out.” She frowned. “I had Davie put ‘em up here for me, but he’s a might bit taller than me, an’ he put ‘em up too high!”
“Bindi, please come down,” Alec pleaded. “Let me get them for you.” Even at eleven, both Alec and Emberlyn were a good few inches taller than her.
“And have you risk your neck?” She looked aghast. “Absolutely not!”
“Bindi, please,” he begged. She shook her head resolutely.
Exasperated, Emberlyn shouted, “At least use your wand!” Bindi froze, her mouth half open. She contemplated that for a second, then grinned widely.
“You are you daddy’s kids, aren’t you?” She giggled and pulled out her wand.. “Clever as they come!” Emberlyn rolled her eyes.
“Like it takes a Ravenclaw to know to use your bloody wand,” she muttered. She watched Bindi pull out a wand and give it a wave.
“Accio books!” she shouted. The twins watched in horror as more than twenty books flew off the shelves and went flying at Bindi, knocking her off the ladder. She let out a high scream as she fell toward the floor.
“Spongify!” As soon as Bindi hit the ground, it caved, cushioning her fall. Being a very resilient woman, she popped back onto her feet, hair wild, looking dazed, her glasses nowhere to be seen. Emberlyn stifled a laugh at her ridiculous state. Then, Lincoln came into view, holding his wand.
“Are you all right, Bindi?” he asked worriedly. She smiled and patted his cheek.
“Peachy, lad, just peachy! Is it you that cast that spell to break my fall?” He nodded. “Ah!” she exclaimed “Breaking the law just to keep me from getting hurt! You are the sweetest young man! Just like your father, you are, bless his soul.” Lowering her voice to a whisper, she leaned in close to Lincoln and said, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell the Ministry!” Lincoln’s mouth curled up into an amused smile.
“Thank you, Bindi,” he said.
As they left with their books, Emberlyn whispered to her brothers, “She’s positively loony!”
“Completely bonkers,” Alec agreed. Lincoln tried to protest, but soon Alec had him laughing along at his reenactments. It earned both boys a smack on the back of the head by their father, who they hadn’t heard come up behind them.
“Have a little tact, will you?” he hissed. “If you’re going to slander someone, at least do it in private!” Lincoln flushed and Alec rubbed the back of his head. Emberlyn started to smirk at their punishment, but her father caught her eye and glared at her, which was just as bad as if he had hit her too. “I ought to send you all home right now,” he continued. “If you didn’t need to be present to get your wands, know right now that you wouldn’t be.” As it happened, none of them had noticed that they were indeed on their way to Ollivander’s.
“Father, may I -” Lincoln began.
“Be gone!” Zane waved him away. Lincoln dropped back and vanished into a small scarcely bookshop, just the kind of secluded place he loved.
Into Ollivander’s shop they went. It was a dark, musty place that was currently unpopulated.
“Ollivander,” Zane called.
“Yes, yes, I’ll be with you in a moment,” a voice called. It sounded strangely far away. About a minute later, an older man came hobbling into view. “Ah, Mr. Leere. Come to have your children fitted?”
“Indeed,” he replied. “I hope they won’t be as difficult as Lincoln was.”
“Twelfth time’s the charm, as they say,” said Ollivander with a wink. “Alright, who’s older?”
“I am,” said Emberlyn, raising her hand a little. Ollivander pointed at Alec.
“Then you, come with me, please. Yes, step right here… Perfect. Let me see…” With a wave of his hand, Ollivander produced a measuring tape that went about measuring every inch of Alec: his full length, between his shoulders, his legs, his arms and forearms, and even the circumference of his head. Ollivander squinted at Alec, sizing him up.
Finally, he stopped the measuring tape and read the measurements that appeared on the side of it.
“Five feet and three sixteenths of an inch tall,” he murmured, “forearm eight inches long, currently one hundred and three pounds… Hmm… Are you right or left handed, boy?”
“I’m right-handed, sir,” Alec replied. Ollivander narrowed his eyes.
“Very well. Wait here. I’ll be back in a jiff.” He went off into the depths of his store and returned shortly with a box. “Here, lad,” he said, handing over the box. “Try this one.”  Alec removed the wand from the box and held it.
“I don’t think-”
“The wizard doesn’t choose the wand, Mr. Leere,” Ollivander interrupted. “The wand chooses the wizard. Give it a wave. Go on, then.” Alec stifled a sigh and flicked his wrist. A piece of the floor flew up and crashed into the ceiling.
“Merlin’s beard, Alec!” Emberlyn exclaimed. “Don’t whip it around like that! You’ll poke someone’s eye out.”
“Or worse, with that wand,” said Ollivander, hastily replacing the wand in the box. He thought for a moment. “Boy, what is your favourite colour?” Alec furrowed his brow.
“My favourite colour? I don’t see why that’s -”
“Answer him, Alec,” ordered Zane.
Shrugging, Alec replied, “My favourite colour is silver.” Ollivander’s eyes lit up.
“Silver!” he exclaimed. Alec and Emberlyn exchanged a bemused look. Ollivander disappeared again and came back with another wand. He took it out of the box and held it out toward Alec. He took the wand and gave it a wave, taking Emberlyn’s warning into consideration. Observing the effect, Ollivander frowned.
“No, no, that won’t do.” He retrieved the wand and disappeared again, muttering to himself. He came back and left several times as Alec tried wand after wand, each seemingly worse than the last. Ollivander kept asking random questions about favourite foods, activities, and childhood memories. Once he left again, Alec turned to his family.
“I don’t know what’s wrong,” he murmured. “Maybe I’m not meant to be a wizard…”
“How dare you say such a thing!” said Zane hotly. Cassiopeia placed a restraining hand on his chest before looking at Alec.
“Don’t fret, my dear,” she said soothingly. “It took Lincoln a while to find his wand, too.”
“But I’ve already tried three more than him!” he despaired.
“It’s different for everyone, love. You’ll find the right one.” She smiled reassuringly. “I promise.” Just then, Ollivander came back with another box. He thrust it at Alec eagerly. Alec took the wand and was about to wave it when without warning, Ollivander ripped the wand from his hand and returned it to the box. He looked up at Alec.
“There’s one more I can try,” he said.
“Only one more?” asked Alec, his voice wavering as he stifled panic.
“Well…no,” admitted Ollivander. “But I think this one will do the trick. ‘Course, I have to go all the way to the back… It’s odd. Usually the new ones are eager to choose, but sometimes, the older ones firmly stake their claim. I’ll be back.” The Leere family stood in silence until Ollivander returned. He opened the box and handed it to Alec, but he wouldn’t take it.
“It’s rancid!” he protested, holding his sleeve against his nose. Even Emberlyn, several paces away, wrinkled her nose in disgust. Ollivander took the wand out impatiently and put it in his hand.
“Now go on, do something with it,” he commanded. After adjusting his grip, something in Alec’s eyes changed. He looked down at the wand, then at the wall. Pointing it at a book, he lifted it and twirled it about the room, dropping it and catching it before it hit the floor, before finally resting it back in its proper place on Ollivander’s counter.
“That’s it,” said Ollivander with a smug smile. “You know, that wand’s been around here since before me. Eleven inches, bends under some pressure, birch, and, would you believe it? – core of a unicorn’s horn.”
“A unicorn horn?” asked Alec, paling. He could only imagine what someone had had to do to acquire the horn of a unicorn.
“That’s what I said, lad. My father told me the tale when I was just a boy. His great-great grandfather was out looking for unicorns to pluck a hair or two from, when he came across a dead one lying right in the middle of a stream. The story goes that he asked the unicorn if he could have its horn to use in a special wand, and he swore he heard a whinny. He took that, obviously, as a yes. So he cut of the horn, shaved it down, and stuck it into a wand he fashioned out of a birch tree he saw nearby. As beautiful a wand as it is, nobody was quite right for it, so it sat in the back collecting dust.” He smiled at Alec. “I’m glad it’s finally found someone.” Alec looked down at the white wood in his hand. As wary as he was of its origins, he felt so…right with this wand.
“I am too,” he murmured. Smiling grandly, Ollivander turned to face the rest of them.
“Alright, who’s next?” he asked.
“That’d be me, sir,” said Emberlyn, stepping forward. Ollivander rolled his eyes.
“’Course it’s you, girly. Come on, then.” Alec scarcely noticed where he was going – he couldn’t take his eyes off his wand. Emberlyn was excited. She was so excited, in fact, that she didn’t even mind when the enchanted measuring tape started measuring her buttocks, glabella, and even her front teeth when Ollivander stopped paying attention. Shortly thereafter, though, he needed her measurements, and he grabbed the measuring tape. After a scrutinizing glance at her eyes, Ollivander wandered off without a word. Coming back, he still said nothing, only handing her a box and watching what happened when she waved the wand.
Replacing the chair that he had needed to use as a shield, Ollivander hastily took the wand away and vanished. He returned again with a little more hope in his eyes, but that hope was soon defeated with another disastrous result. It was then that he began asking similar questions that he had to Alec. He wanted to know her favourite colour (“I like real dark blue…like the midnight sky.”), her favourite childhood toy (“That’d be my water dragon figurine.”), and other seemingly irrelevant things.
Even after all of this new information, Emberlyn’s trial was beginning to look a lot like Alec’s had been. After eleven failed wands, she began to grow worried and disappointed.
“Why haven’t I gotten one yet?” she asked when Ollivander left.
“You’ve seen how it is, Emberlyn,” said Cassiopeia. “These things take time.” When Ollivander returned, Emberlyn apologized for taking so long.
“Nonsense, child!” he objected. “Do you know how dreadfully boring it is when someone gets their wand on the second or third try?” He paused, obviously expecting an answer.
“I don’t,” answered Emberlyn, clearly satisfying him.
“It’s so very boring. What have I got to do all day but sit around waiting for customers? The sooner they leave, the sooner I’ve got nothing to do. Rushing around like this, it’s like a treasure hunt, and I love it.” He winked and handed her another wand. “Try this one.” It turned out to be another dud. Suddenly, Ollivander gasped. “Oh! Could it be?” He looked Emberlyn up and down and mentally went over all of the other wands. “I think it might. But… after so long…?” He shrugged. “Well, we can never know unless we try, right?” Looking expectantly at her again, Emberlyn nodded her agreement. She was confused, but he obviously seemed excited, so she didn’t say anything when he waddled off.
When he returned, he brought not a box, but a case. Muttering an incantation and waving his hand over the top, she heard something unlatch. He opened the box gently and took out a wand that he handled with the utmost care.
“Here,” he said softly. “Try this one.” Taking it, Emberlyn felt a surge of power course through her. She didn’t even have to wave it. This was it. This was her wand.
“This is the one,” she murmured. Ollivander nodded.
“A most peculiar day, this has been,” he said. “That is a very, very old wand. Some historians think it’s a myth, and it is only known to exist by a very few…if any but me anymore. It’s only known to have one previous master, and his journal resides with the wand to this day.” Emberlyn reluctantly looked up from the wand.
“A journal?” she asked. Ollivander nodded and brought the case to her. Popping the bottom out, it revealed another compartment that housed an obviously very old journal. Ollivander took it out and handed it to her.
“It’s yours now, Ms. Leere.” She looked at the journal, then at him.
“What does it say inside?” He shrugged and gestured to the silver clasp locking the book shut.
“I haven’t been able to open it. I suspect it is enchanted to only open with a spell from that wand. Wands are tricky things when it comes to using one that’s not your own. I tried once…” He chuckled. “It nearly singed my eyebrows off. I suspect that wand will only respond for you, now.”
“What is it?” she asked.
“Thirteen inches,” Ollivander recited, “perfectly rigid, but very strong. Made of ebony with a dragon heartstring core.” He appeared to tear up a little, but he turned away before she could be sure. After taking a deep breath, he turned back.
“Thank you, Ollivander,” said Zane. He reached into his pocket to withdrawn a few Galleons, but Ollivander waved them away.
“No, to see these wands finally belong to someone is payment enough. You have a good day, now, children.” Ollivander replaced the journal in the case and rested the wand back on the cushion. Then he closed it and locked it. “A simple unlocking charm will do the trick,” he told Emberlyn.
“Alohomora?” she asked. He winked.
“That’ll do it. Be off, now.”  Emberlyn smiled at the old man before turning to follow her family out of the now destroyed shop. Zane offered to carry her wand case, but she refused to relinquish her hold on it.
The next stop was the Owl Emporium. Despite their name, the shop sold more than owls. They sold cats, toads, and rats as well, though owls were easily the most popular among new students.
When they entered the shop, they were greeted by a free employee.
“Ah, Mr. Leere. Is this an inspection?” he asked.
“Not today, Vincent,” Zane replied. “Today, I need to see your finest selection of owls.”
“Right away, sir,” said Vincent. “If you’ll just follow me to the back.” Zane set off to follow Vincent with Alec tailing him, but turned when Emberlyn called.
“Father, may I look at the cats?” she asked.
“Do as you please,” he responded. Emberlyn meandered over to the Cat Corner, looking at the large enclosure filled with cats playing, sleeping, and eating. She summoned an employee to let her into the enclosure.
Stepping inside, she was greeted by several meows. A grin played at her lips as three friendly cats brushed against her legs, tails held high. They froze, however, when a tall black cat approached. It let out a low hiss, sending the other cats scrambling. Emberlyn watched the cat warily, and it stared at her, bright green eyes unblinking, mouth slightly ajar.
“Oy! Careful with that one, miss,” said the employee, Verna. “He’s unusually territorial. I should have warned you about him before I let you in there.” Verna looked exceptionally nervous. “Why don’t you just back up slowly now so he sees you’re not a threat.” Emberlyn began to take a step backward when the cat lashed its tail. She froze.
“Is he going to attack me?” she asked.
“H-he might,” Verna replied hesitantly. “But I don’t think so.” Suddenly, the black cat leaped onto a nearby cat tree, and from there, onto Emberlyn’s shoulders. Emberlyn was frozen with fear, trembling violently. She only relaxed when she heard the unmistakable sound of a purr in her ear and felt the motorized thrumming against her neck. The cat rubbed his cheek against Emberlyn’s, bringing a smile to her face. Verna let out a very audible sigh of relief.
“He likes you,” she breathed. Leading Emberlyn and her new companion out of the enclosure, she went on to explain, “We’ve had him for quite some time. He’s a Savannah, bred down from some African cats. They’ve all got long necks, ears, legs, and tails. Most of them are gold spotted black, like a cheetah or a leopard, but there are a few solid black ones like this fellow. They’re usually really nice cats, but personalities do vary. I don’t know why we’ve kept him around for so long, given his temperament, but I’m sure glad he’s found someone now.” He wrapped his tail around Emberlyn’s neck.
“You’re a beautiful boy,” she whispered. He purred louder. “Does he have a name?” she asked Verna. She shook her head.
“We’re not allowed to give them names. The boss doesn’t want us getting attached.” Lowering her voice to a whisper, she added, “But I secretly called him Sinister.” Emberlyn furrowed her brow.
“Sinister? That’s a terrible name.” Verna shrugged.
“You saw what he was like. Ah, look, there’s your father. Oh! It looks like your brother got the Northern Hawk Owl. Pretty owls, they are.” Emberlyn and Alec approached each other, each eyeing the other’s quarry while Zane paid for their creatures.
“That bird’s a right sore sight,” teased Emberlyn.
“You’re one to talk,” retorted Alec. “That cat looks like a black camel, with a neck like that!”
“Alec, Emberlyn, come!” Zane called. “We’re leaving.” At the front, someone offered Emberlyn a carrying case for the cat. She was going to refuse, but her father accepted it on her behalf. She grudgingly lowered the cat off her shoulders and into the case, and he meowed in protest.
“Sorry, boy,” she murmured.
“I’ve arranged to have someone Apparate with them to the manor,” her father explained. “It will be easier on both him and the animals if they’re in carrying cages.” Emberlyn sighed. She knew he meant well, but she hated seeing the big cat locked in a crate. “He’ll be home before we are,” he added. “Now, come. We’ve got to get you fitted for your school robes.”