8 Shopping with Nature

After Sirius and Harry made out of Gringotts. Sirius took Harry on a shopping spree. Sirius bought everything that Harry showed even the slightest attention to. He spoiled him to the point where Harry had to keep a poker face at anything he saw, afraid that Sirius would buy it. When the reached Ollivanders, Sirius asked if Harry had his own wand. Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382b.c. A single wand lay on a faded purple cushion in the dusty window.

"Well I don't feel the need of it since I can already do all the spells and things wandless. But let's just go in and check it. I have actually never been there"

"Sure Harry, let's check it out"

A tinkling bell rang somewhere in the depths of the shop as they stepped inside. It was a tiny place, empty except for a single, spindly chair that Sirius sat on to wait. Harry felt a strange vibe to the shop as if he had entered a strict library rather than a wand shop. There were stacks of thousand of narrow boxes piled up to the ceiling.

"Good afternoon," said a soft voice. Harry jumped. He didn't feel it. He couldn't sense the man even when he had spread his magic sense across the shop. An old man was standing before them, his wide, pale eyes shining like moons through the gloom of the shop. 

"Hello", Harry replied curious as to how he couldn't sense the wandmaker. "Ah yes," said the man. "Yes, yes. I was almost afraid I wouldn't be seeing you, Mr. Potter"

"You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work."

Mr. Ollivander moved closer to Harry. Harry wished he would blink. Those silvery eyes were a bit creepy. "Your father, on the other hand, favored a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power and excellent for transfiguration. Well, I say your father favored it — it's really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course." 

"Interesting, so you mean the wands somehow have their own sense which they use to choose their masters?"

"You could indeed say that in a way Mr. Potter"

"Interesting". Harry couldn't stop himself from smiling. This was an interesting thing, he had almost forgot this since he was more focused on wandless magic. Mr. Ollivander smirked to see Harry smile.

"I thought you would find it interesting, Mr. Potter. After all from what I see, your magic is greater than Dumbledore himself", Mr. Ollivander peered into Harry's eyes. Harry smirked at the comment, as he knew it was true and he was hiding it. But this person had been able to see right through him. Very interesting eyes. Sirius who had been listening to their exchange almost slipped out of his chair. His godson was even more powerful than the greatest wizard of all time? He has to stop getting shocked at everything but he couldn't help it. 

Mr. Ollivander had come so close that he and Harry were almost nose to nose. Harry could see himself reflected in those misty eyes.

"And that's where . . ."

Mr. Ollivander touched the lightning scar on Harry's forehead with a long, white finger. 

"I'm sorry to say I sold the wand that did it," he said softly.

"Thirteen-and-a-half inches. Yew. Powerful wand, very powerful, and in the wrong hands . . . well, if I'd known what that wand was going out into the world to do. . . ."

"That's fine Mr. Ollivander, after all no one is truly capable of predicting the future to the dot", Harry replied. 

"Ah yes"

"Sirius! Sirius Black! How nice to see you again.... Ebony 15 inches pliant wasn't it?" Ollivander spotted him sitting in the chair.

"Yes sir. It is" Sirius replied with a smile. 

"Mind if I take a look at it?"

"Not at all" Sirius said while handing his wand to Mr. Ollivander. 

"Ahh yes... Ebony with a Manticore heart...pliant 15 inches...good wand rather unusual combination but nonetheless a good wand." Extending Sirius's wand back to him.

Sirius smiled and took his wand. He then clapped Harry on his back, 

"I believe he will be one of your toughest customer's Mr. Ollivander. After all he is a prodigy, as he has mastered wandless magic"

"Ah yes, I'm afraid, I don't have any wands for Mr. Potter here right this moment"

Sirius and Harry gawked. 

"No wands? Mr. Ollivander you must be joking. You might have one laying around that you must have forgotten about"

"I am afraid not Sirius. Prior to meeting Mr. Potter I did believe in having some wand for him. But as he stepped into my shop, all the wands felt fear, fear of being inadequate. It seems nature itself is preparing his wand at this very moment, which if I am not wrong will arrive here in exactly 5 minutes."

"I am sorry Mr. Ollivander. I do not understand. You said that no wand is adequate for me. Then said that nature is preparing my wand? How can nature prepare a wand? Isn't that what wandmakers do?"

"To explain in lenient terms Mr. Potter. No wandmaker in this world is skilled enough to make your wand, as your magic from what I have seen so far transcends everything. This has never happened in the history of Magic, that wands who are so prideful and selective of their masters be so afraid of you. However this fear is not threatening, as the wands do not feel threatened. They merely do not want to hamper your abilities, any wand in here respects you so much that they would not be able to present themselves to you as they do not feel worthy to serve you."

"As such, nature itself has taken upon this job of making a suitable wand for you. And when I say suitable it means that it would be the only wand in existence that could serve you as it's master. Any other person trying to wield your wand will find themselves at death's door. We wand makers make wands in natures teachings. But nature is the ultimate creator of wand"

Sirius didn't know what to say. He wasn't even sure what he heard. Ollivander who is thought to be the greatest wandmaker of all time, actually confessed that he is not skilled enough to make Harry's wand? Is his godson that powerful? He hasn't even started Hogwarts. How was he already at that level? It was understandable that Harry instinctively got magic from what Harry had said. But this was almost scary. 

Harry on the other hand was more intrigued by Ollivander's comment on wand makers following nature's teachings. Did they communicate with nature in some way? He so badly wanted to know these things. 

While they were deliberating on these things, Mr. Ollivander's eyes never left Harry. As if he was the most interesting specimen he had ever seen(which mind you, he was). How could a child be this good? He suddenly remembered giving Dumbledore his first wand, he had seen in Dumbledore's eyes that he would someday he the greatest of all time. Even Dumbledore was a tricky customer, Mr. Ollivander had almost emptied his entire shop before a wand chose him. Elder, threstal hair core, 12 and a half inches. Perhaps one of the most powerful wand he had ever sold. 

But now here is a child barely starting his Hogwarts journey, he was incapable of providing a wand to, much to his own disappointment. For the first time in years, Ollivander felt his skill to be inferior. Secretly, he had prided himself in providing the most suitable wands for all. But now he feels like he has so much left to learn. 

In exact five minutes, a wand appeared in front of the three along with a scroll. The wand seemed to relish an unnatural yet warm glow. Mr. Ollivander extended his arm to take the wand to present it to Harry, but the wand floated away from his outstretched hand and directly floated towards Harry, who extended his arm to catch it. 

The moment Harry caught the wand he felt his magical energy rejoicing inside him. The wand seemed to be greeting him as a master. He could feel the wand's happiness as Harry gripped it, as if the wand was sentient. The wand let out an energy pulse, a soft warming energy pulse that resonated throughout the entire world, muggle and magic alike.

Mr. Ollivander grabber the scroll that was still hanging in mid-air. He opened to read it and almost fainted.