Chapter - 22 : Wands, Weasleys, and Wizarding Wares

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"It sounds like a rash," I added absently.

"Blimey, I keep forgettin' how much yeh don' know!" Hagrid exclaimed. "Not knowin' about Quidditch!"

"You're not helping," I pointed out. Harry explained to him about the pale boy from Madam Malkin's and all that he'd said, ending with his opinion on kids from Muggle families.

"Yeh're not from a Muggle family," Hagrid corrected. "If he'd known who yeh were – he'll have grown up hearin' yer name if his parents are wizardin' folk. Look at how people were like in the Leaky Cauldron. Anyway, what does he know? Some o' the best witches and wizards came from Muggle families. Look at yer mom and what she had fer a sister."

Harry nodded, looking a little happier. I was privately smirking to myself, reveling once again in the look on the pale boy's face when I told him who we were. Oh yes, he knew who we were.

"So what is Quidditch?" Harry asked again.

"It's our sport, played on brooms up in the air. It's like soccer, ev'ryone follows it."

"And what are Slytherin and Hufflepuff?" Harry pressed.

"Sounds like mouthwash and a toy company," I said, sharing my thoughts from earlier. Harry snorted into his ice cream and Hagrid smiled.

"School houses," he explained. "There's four. Ev'ryone says Hufflepuff's are a bunch o' duffers-"

"Bet I'm a Hufflepuff," Harry said glumly.

"Now, we will be in the most awesome house," I said, licking my ice cream and looking down my nose in mock superiority. "Our presence will make it so."

Harry gave me a look and I snickered into my ice cream, breaking the act.

"Better a Hufflepuff than a Slytherin," Hagrid said darkly. "Not a witch or wizard who went bad who wasn' in Slytherin. You-Know-Who was one."

"Vol- sorry, You-Know-Who was at Hogwarts?" Harry corrected himself quickly.

"Years ago, yeah."

After we finished their ice cream, we headed into a shop called Flourish & Blotts. I gaped. I loved to read, but I never got to unless I got books from the school library, and Dudley's gang usually stole them before I got to finish them. I'd learned to read very fast if I wanted to get through them. Like a kid in a candy store, I stared at the different books bound in exotic silks and colored leathers, some with runes or gems embedded in the covers.

Harry and I ventured through the shelves and around other students shopping, collecting their textbooks. I stared down at the titles happily. I supplemented it with a few titles I saw that looked interesting. Things like Beginner's Magizoology, How Not to Kill Yourself with Herbs, Wand Care and Maintenance, Seers Through History, Basic Mediwizardry for the Accident-Prone, and Wandlore for the Curious were added to my pile, despite the fact that I could barely support the large stack of books. It was definitely more than I should have spent, but could I really be blamed for wanting to read up on things that looked interesting?

"I was trying to figure out how to curse Dudley."

I looked up from a copy of Hogwarts: A History and found Hagrid escorting Harry down the aisle.

"I'm no' sayin' tha's not a good idea, but yer not allowed ter do magic in the Muggle world except in very special circumstances," Hagrid warned. "'sides, it'll be a while before yer ready for spells like that."

Harry looked a little disappointed, and then his eyes landed on me and my pile of books. By this point, it was about half as tall as I was.

"Are you buying the whole shop?" he demanded pointedly. I glared, smacking the book in my hand down on top of the pile pointedly.

"I wanted to do some background reading," I said loftily.

"Can you even pick all of those up?" Harry asked skeptically.

"Uhh…" I frowned and bent down. After some awkward maneuvering, I managed to worm my fingers under the bottom of the stack and pick it up. My arms trembled and I had to tuck the top under my chin, but I was holding it. Over the top of my pile, I stuck out my tongue.

"So take that, brother dear."

Next we went to the north side of Diagon Alley. At Potage's Cauldron Shop Harry and I picked up our pewter standard size 2's, despite Harry's interest in a golden cauldron. We got scales and a telescope each from Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment. I had looked around that shop with interest, examining different Astronomy equipment that I had no idea how you might use.

We passed a place called Madam Primpernelle's Beautifying Potions. A few small cauldrons bubbled merrily in the display, signs advertising them as skin-clearing, wart-removing, and pimple-popping. There was also a display of Impervious Lipstick – It Never Wears Off ! – and some Color-Change Eye shadow – Matches Your Outfit! I shook my head. Maybe in a few years, but not now.

Hagrid took us into Amanuensis Quills to get our writing equipment. Harry and I gaped outright at the idea of writing with quills and parchment, but at the same time, I was eager to try it. We wandered around, staring at the different feathered quills and the various colors of ink. I admired some gold-leafed parchment while Harry examined a peacock-feather quill. I snorted at the size of it. I couldn't help but think that would be kind of obnoxious to write with. I did splurge on some ink that changed color depending on the writer's mood. I imagined watching the color get steadily redder as I wrote a particularly difficult essay for some class and couldn't resist.

I was fascinated by Slug & Jiggers Apothecary. Harry was too. We ran around, holding our breath as much as possible to block out the horrid smell, peering into barrels of slimy things and examining the labels on jars of herbs. We got basic potions kits, which came with phials, utensils, and starter ingredients in a hard case to protect them.

Once we left the apothecary, things were starting to get tricky with all of our packages. I was starting to regret getting so many books. I was also cursing whoever required us to have a pewter cauldron and that damned potions kit. Those things were heavy.

Hagrid consulted our supplies lists again thoughtfully. "Jus' yer wands left – and I need ter get yeh a birthday present."

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(P).(A).(T).(R).(E).(O).(N)

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Join us on Patreon and unlock the full adventure today!

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