Afternoon in the alley(part2)

Took a bit longer than i expected, caught a fever and had to sit in bed. next one probably on Tuesday. maybe Monday if I feel better. 

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"I...Im...Impossible!" The old man finally exclaimed, tears forming at the edges of his eyes.

Ted stood there, flabbergasted, his eyes widening as he blinked rapidly. The old man's actions caught him by surprise, making him lose his composure for a few moments.

"Is everything alright, sir?" he finally asked quietly after a few seconds of stupor. The old man was still staring at him, and his tears seemed to turn into a slight whimper.

"Y... You, it... it can't... it can't be..." The old man seemed to ignore Ted as he looked as if he was contemplating something with himself, the disbelief never leaving his voice.

"Excuse me, sir, but what can't be?" Ted questioned yet again, much louder this time, as he tried to attract the old man's attention. It seemed to have worked; the old man's eyes appeared to have cleared a bit.

"I... I'm sorry... ('whimper') young man," The old man's voice seemed to break slightly with every word that left his mouth. "Can you... ('whimper') Does the name Elara... (snivel) mean anything to you?"

Ted looked blankly at the old man, stunned. He answered on instinct, "You... you know my mom?"

The old man wiped his tears in response but didn't speak for a few moments. His moist, reddened eyes never left Ted as they scanned him from top to bottom, as if evaluating him.

"Sir," Ted was about to speak again, but the old man cut him off. "Elara is m... my niece. I have raised her since s... she was li... little." He finally mastered, although only barely, as he was mumbling. Fortunately, Ted was close to the man and heard him clearly.

The old man rubbed his eyes yet again, drying the tears that rolled down his slightly crumpled skin. "She was a cute child," he continued, this time talking a lot more clearly. "Very energetic, always running around causing problems with the wands." He chuckled slightly but sighed sadly almost immediately. "Those Death Eaters! I will never forget this!"

Ted looked at the old man, confused. He wasn't sure what to say or if he should say anything at all. The old man was clearly close to Ted's mother, but Ted didn't even have a clue who he was.

"To think that you gave birth, my dear Ela-" the old man continued his narration, ignoring Ted's confused expression. Ted, in turn, chose to interrupt him once more.

"Excuse me, sir, but who are you?" he inquired in a more demanding tone than before. He was really lost at what was happening, and the sudden encounter was very hard for him to process, especially when the old man was rumbling half sentences.

Hearing Ted, the old man suddenly turned quiet and lowered his head. Ted could hear the deep breaths leaving his mouth until he let out a long, deep sigh...

"The name is Garrick Ollivander. Elara, your mother, was my late sister's daughter who I had raised in her stead." Garrick finally calmed down a little and spoke with a clear voice. "May I know your name, young man?"

"Ted, Ted Blake."

Ted, finally able to make sense of the man's words, answered courteously. He decided there was no reason to lie, as the old man clearly knew his mother. Not to mention that the wizarding community was aware of muggle affairs, making his background totally unknown to them.

"Ted, probably short for Theodor, a nice name. Elara always was quite sentimental," the old man contemplated quietly to himself, reminiscing over something, though Ted had no idea over what.

An awkward silence followed as Garrick Ollivander seemed to be lost in his thoughts, and Ted wasn't really sure what to say to the old man. Until just now, his father was his only living relative, and the two weren't exactly close. Family was a vague term to him.

Realizing that the conversation hit a dead-end, Ted focused again on the feeling he got when he first entered the small shop. Even though he could still feel it, it wasn't nearly as strong as before.

It wasn't overwhelming, nor did it prick his skin; it was merely there, like another substance that was present around him, like the air. Though this substance was slightly tangible, resembling more a liquid than a gas.

Ted could feel it stirring ever so slightly with every move of his muscles and every breath he took. Looking around again, he could 'see' this substance all around him. In Garrick, who was with his eyes stuck on the ceiling, seemingly lost in thought, in the air all around him, in the boxes that piled near the walls, and even in the old-looking chair that was placed near the entrance.

Though he wasn't really 'seeing' any of it. It was more like a feeling, something that is tangible yet intangible at the same time. He knew that it was there, yet he couldn't actually sense it with his 'basic' senses. But at that, Ted didn't feel confused; he felt enlightened. This feeling was very familiar to Ted.

'It's the same feeling!' he thought, recalling his past yet again reevaluating some things.

All those times that he had that tug in his stomach, making him feel like he was missing something yet he didn't know what, his 'passive mechanism of defense' was actually the same. Connecting the dots, Ted felt like he had added another piece to the puzzle of his past, yet he had no idea how many more he was still missing.

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By the time Ted left Ollivanders, the sky was already turning darker as purplish and red colors were spread over the horizon. The sun was no longer visible in the narrow alley, which was surrounded by buildings.

Moving on with hurried steps, Ted wandered into the next shop. He was limited on time, and he wasn't sure when he would be able to visit the magical alley again.

Unfortunately, Ted had to give up on buying a wand or even continuing the conversation. Garrick Ollivander seemed way too disoriented by their encounter, and any communication with the old man was cut off. He seemed to be deeply lost in his own thoughts, not even looking at Ted again.

Passing from shop to shop, Ted bought several things that caught his eyes. A chessboard that could be played with voice commands, a few candies with weird descriptions, and even a broomstick that caught his eyes. All those were quite expensive, totaling at 34 Galleons and 1 Sickle, most of it, 30 Galleons and 8 Sickles, to be exact, went for the broomstick, which was actually only an old model.

Now, at a shop named 'Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions,' standing over a footstool, Ted was being measured for a robe. A smiling witch dressed in all purple was showing him designs as a magical floating tape took his sizes.

He had no special feelings for those, but a few people looked at him with wonder as he was moving up the alley, making him realize that if he wanted to fit in and not stand out, he had to dress and act like them, 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do.' Unbeknownst to him, the reason they were staring was that he was alone, making them wonder who were his crazy parents.

'Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions' had three main options, each with various designs: Dress robes, Traveling cloaks, and Uniforms. The robes, except for the Uniforms, could be enchanted with a variety of spells, including but not limited to:

Dust repelling (10 Sickles)

Color-changing (3 Galleons)

Size fitting (8 Galleons)

Improved scent (10 Sickles)

There were also protective spells and self-repairing spells, but the prices weren't mentioned. Ted figured there were either many different options or the prices were negotiable.

They were all pretty useful for Ted, considering he would grow in the future and would not be able to hand them over for the maids to wash... well, maybe on Halloween... but unfortunately, he only had 5 Galleons and 7 Sickles left. The robe itself cost 3 Galleons, and Ted decided to add the dust-repelling and improved scent charms so he could avoid needing to explain washing them. It cost him a total of 4 Galleons and 3 Sickles, leaving him with 1 Galleon and 4 Sickles.

Ted chose a neat black design robe with no other details and was waiting for the once-smiling witch who was now looking from the fabrics to him and then back to the fabrics as she mumbled something Ted couldn't hear.

Just then, Ted could hear the footsteps behind him. As he turned his head, he saw the other witch who was working at the shop leading in a young red-headed man, a bright smile stretched on his face, looking as if it was the best day of his life.

"Here, boy, stand on the stool," the witch instructed, leading him towards another small wooden stool right next to Ted. The witch took a ready-made long black robe and hung it on the young redhead, then she started pinning it to the right length.

Ted, who recognized the symbol on the new robe, looked at the man with glittering eyes, almost failing to keep his calm expression. It was very hard on him, this game of 'I'm emotionless,' but that's what life taught him to be the best route, especially to keep himself from being hurt.

The redhead looked at Ted as well, seeing his young age; he was quite confused about him being alone.

"Hi, my name is Charlie, Charlie Weasley, what's yours?" he spoke to Ted slowly, like he was speaking to a small child. He stretched his hand for a handshake.

Ted found his attitude quite insulting, and yet he shook his hand lightly. "Theodor, Theodor Blake."

"Don't move, boy!" the witch called at Charlie, who in turn clenched his lips, stopping himself from laughing.

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At the same time in Ollivanders, Garrick Ollivander had just woken up from his deep trance and looked around, only to find that Ted was gone.

Looking outside at the now-dark alley, a question floated in his head, one that he had missed before.

"What in Merlin's beard was he even doing here?!?!" Garrick knew who Elara married, and with her being dead, how could the young kid be here while this young. A series of questions ran in his head, none of which he had the answer to.

He hadn't seen Elara since her wedding, and he didn't even know that she was pregnant. If not for Ted's eyes, he would never have believed him to be her son.