The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition- Season 2 Round 3
Team: Falmouth Falcons
Author: MaryRoyale
Position: Beater #2
Assigned History: An anthropogenic (man-made) disaster
Prompts Used: family, bold, decision
Title: Calcination
Official Disclaimer: The original characters of this story are the property of the J.K. Rowling. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. It is my contention that this work of fan fiction is fair use under copyright law. No monies were received for receipt of this work.
Pairing: None
Rating: T
Word Count: approx. 1500
A/N: Ah, History. Round 3 was about using an actual historical event and tying in the HP world. Beater #2 was given man-made disasters. Since it *was* the Harry Potter world I tried to think of man-made disasters that had affected the UK in the past. Almost immediately, I thought of the Great London Fire of 1666.
There are several things I feel I ought to explain and they are as follows:
The Great London Fire of 1666- It took place in the City of London, which is roughly one square mile and surrounded by the old Medieval city walls. It began on the 2nd of September and raged for several days before they were able to bring it under control. At the time, there were rampant rumors about the fire being set by "foreigners", which had the unhappy side effect of gangs of Londoners who had been dispossessed and burned out of their homes looking for someone to blame.
Interestingly enough, this same period is supposed one of the worst in wizarding history for Muggle-Wizard relations. The Statute of Secrecy is drafted and ratified about 20 years later.
The City of London- The Romans founded Londinium in 50 AD. It grew and flourished and became London as we know it today.
Diagon Alley and Ollivanders- JKR makes it a point to tell us, in the Philosopher's Stone, that Ollivander's has been a maker of fine wands since 382 BC. The Harry Potter Wiki notes that the shop might have been in Diagon Alley that entire time. While I am not disputing the length of time that Ollivander's has been a maker of fine wands, simple history makes it impossible for Ollivander's to have been in London for that entire time (since it did not yet exist). For the first 400 plus years of business they must have been making wands elsewhere. It seems likely that Diagon Alley, like several other wizarding communities, sprang up around the time of the Statute of Secrecy. Not at the exact same instant, but perhaps as a way to protect the magical people who were coming under attack.
In addition, there is one ancestor listed for the Ollivander family, a Medieval wizard named Geraint. Unfortunately, that was a little too early for the Great Fire of London so I had to make a couple OCs.
/\/\/\/\
London Bridge
2nd of September, 1666
The distant sounds of shouting woke Geralt Ollivander from a sound sleep. Probably just a fight. He rolled over and pulled his pillow over his head to block out the noise.
"Geralt!" The door to Geralt's room was thrown open and his father Gorlois stood in the door. "The bridge is on fire!"
Geralt jerked awake and stared at his father. "On fire?" Fear snaked through his belly.
Gorlois huffed in irritation. "Yes, on fire. Come on boy, move!"
"Yes sir." Geralt slipped out of bed and pulled on his breeches. He hurried downstairs to find his father frantically packing wands.
"Do those shelves over there," Gorlois commanded with a jerk of his head toward the back shelves.
"Yes sir." Fumbling he pulled out his wand and began murmuring the packing spell.
"I've got this lot packed," Gorlois told his son. "I'm going to Apparate to your Aunt Glynnis' house and then come back here. Once you've got yours packed you do the same."
"I understand sir," Geralt replied.
The loud crack of Apparition signaled his father's departure and Geralt turned his attention to back to packing wands. The shouting outside was growing louder and Geralt could swear that he could now hear the crackle of the fire. Fear raced through his veins and made his charm slightly faulty. The wands that had been packing themselves neatly now scattered about the shop. Geralt cursed under his breath. He took several deep breaths to calm himself and cast the charm again.
The night wore on and Geralt and Gorlois took turns packing and transporting their wand stock. The crackle of the fire grew louder and louder and eventually smoke began to seep into the shop.
"Bubble-head Charm," Gorlois bellowed above the sound of the fire.
Geralt nodded and turned his wand on himself. The Bubble-head Charm allowed them to breathe easily and continue to work despite the thick smoke that was rapidly filling their shop.
Many wizarding shop-keepers had cast fire-proofing charms and enchantments, but Gorlois refused to do any such thing to their shop. The current relationship between wizards and Muggles was at an all-time low according to Gorlois, and if they stood out in any way then they would only attract Muggle attention. Their shop not burning down when all of the buildings around them were piles of ash would definitely stand out. Geralt shook his head. The very last thing he needed to worry about now was the current standing of Muggle-Wizarding relations.
A loud groaning, followed by a cracking sound startled Geralt; he whirled about, but he was too late. A supporting beam had caught fire and had buckled, crashing to the floor of the shop.
"Father!" Geralt cried out. He hurried to his father's side to see that he had been knocked to the ground and his leg pinned beneath the support beam. Panic flooded him. Gorlois might be surly and gruff, but he was the only family Geralt had, aside from his Aunt Glynnis. "Father!"
"Geralt," his father rasped out.
Quickly, Geralt used Wingardium Leviosa to move the beam and rushed to help his father stand. Gorlois grunted in pain and clung to Geralt's narrow shoulders. A cursory exam helped them determine that Gorlois had managed to break his ankle. His father let loose with a string of curses that surprised Geralt.
"You'll have to Side-Along me to Glynnis' house," Gorlois managed to grit out between clenched teeth.
"Yes sir," Geralt whispered. He'd just graduated from Hogwarts the year before and he'd never done a Side-Along Apparition. Still, they had to move quickly or they'd lose more stock.
With a shaking hand, Geralt Apparated himself and his father to his Aunt Glynnis' house focusing intensely so that his father wouldn't be splinched. She helped him get his father to a chair and fussed over him.
As Geralt turned to leave his father grabbed his wrist.
"Save the wands," his father muttered gruffly.
Geralt nodded silently and turned on the spot.
/\/\/\/\
London Bridge
7th September, 1666
Ash and blackened, cracked beams were all that was left of Ollivander's. A sense of disbelief filled Geralt. Even if they hadn't done the fire-proofing charms it seemed impossible for Ollivander's to be gone. The building had stood on London Bridge since his ancestor Geraint Ollivander had had it built. There was nothing left except the wands that they had saved and stored at Aunt Glynnis' house. Father said that it was a good thing that it was after September 1st and all of the Hogwarts children had their wands for this school year. Geralt couldn't help but agree with him.
"Did you manage to save your stock?"
Surprise made Geralt turn quickly; behind him stood Horatio Blott. He grinned and moved forward to shake Horatio's hand. "Yes sir, we did. Thank you for asking. I'll be sure to tell Father."
Horatio frowned. "Gorlois wasn't hurt by a mob was he?"
All of London was in an uproar over the fire. The rumor mills had been churning at full speed and many in Muggle London were pointing fingers at a possible 'foreign' cause for the fire. Geralt had narrowly avoided several lynch mobs already, and he had begged his father to consider relocating in one of the wizarding communities, but Gorlois was adamant that their place was in London.
"No, thank Merlin." Geralt rushed to assure him. "Father was injured while we were trying to rescue our stock."
Horatio's face grew pensive. "A group of us is thinking of starting a magical shopping district here in London. It would be easy for us to hide and if there were no Muggles about we could cast fireproofing charms without fear of retribution."
"A magical shopping district?" Geralt blinked in surprise. Something that was right here in London... Father might agree to that.
"Yes, my brother-in-law Hereward Flourish and I are thinking of going into business together, but he's worried about Muggle interference. They're getting worse and worse," Horatio explained earnestly. He grimaced slightly. "A mob of them murdered a young witch in Westminster. They believed she was possessed by the devil."
Geralt blanched. "I'll speak to Father." His father might think him rude and bold for speaking out of turn, but Geralt couldn't stand by while his father made a decision that would affect the both of them.
"I would appreciate it." Horatio bowed politely and shook Geralt's hand before taking his leave.
/\/\/\/\
Glynnis' Cottage, Godric's Hollow
15th September 1666
"Father, what if we don't rebuild on the Bridge?" Geralt asked cautiously. His father turned to frown at him, and Geralt licked his lips nervously. "What if we build a shop in this new magical shopping district that Horatio told me about?"
Gorlois grunted. "I suppose." He looked out the window of his sister's cottage and frowned. He wasn't stupid-he knew what everyone was saying. A person couldn't go into a wizarding pub without hearing about the latest Muggle attacks. There had been several wizards who had been attacked after the fire because they 'appeared to be foreign' and were suspected in starting the fire. He turned back to look at his son's hopeful expression. Gorlois sighed in defeat. "Very well. We'll buy land in this new magical shopping district."
"Oh Father!" Geralt was smiling so widely that his cheeks hurt.
There were several proposed streets for the small shopping district and the Ollivanders looked all of them over carefully. If they were going to uproot their store and move it then Gorlois wanted the best possible spot with the most foot traffic. He scowled at all of the available lots that Geralt showed him. Geralt's shoulders slumped in defeat. He should have known that convincing his father to move wouldn't be easy.
"What about this one?" Geralt asked with a weak wave of his hand at the lot.
"What's this street supposed to be called again?" Gorlois demanded.
Geralt suppressed a heavy sigh. "Diagon Alley, Father."
Gorlois eyed the lot suspiciously. "Isn't Diagon Alley supposed to be the main thoroughfare for this magical shopping district?"
"Yes sir." Geralt held his breath. His father usually didn't ask any questions. He just barked out a dismissive 'No'.
"Hmph." Gorlois turned about to look up and down the street. He frowned at the wizards that were carefully laying the cobblestone with a masonry charm. Then he turned to look at his son. "This one."
"This one?" Geralt couldn't believe his ears.
"Yes, this one." Gorlois nodded to himself.
"Wonderful," Geralt exclaimed. "Come on Father. Gringott's is just down the street. We can draw up the paperwork today."
"Gringott's has moved here?" Gorlois perked up at that and bestowed a slight half-smile on his son.
Geralt grinned all the way to the bank.