Mid-August | Selwyn House
By the time the first rays of sunlight crept into her room, Amersa was out of her bed and into her robes. Blasting music from her iPhone, she danced around the kitchen as she grabbed an assortment of items from the cabinets. Since she was still underage and could not use magic, her parents had indulged her in the typical kitchen appliances found in Muggle homes. She hated the idea of house elves so she compromised with her parents on having just one. The girl grew frantic as the toaster oven beeped, her eggs began smoking in an unusual way, and the bacon on the stove began to sizzle and pop. Choosing the toast, she yanked them out and tossed them on a plate. At the same time, her foot tugged at the refrigerator handle and she dropped the toast just in time to whip out the butter and jam. She rushed to her eggs and bacon, letting out a sigh of relief as she flipped them just in time.
Amersa balanced the two trays on either hand and gently nudged bedroom door open to reveal her two sleeping parents. She smiled to herself as she shouted, "Rise and shine sleepyheads!" and pulled back the curtains. Her parents groaned and simultaneously flopped their pillows over their heads. Amersa picked up a piece of bacon and jumped on the bed waving it in front of their noses. Half an hour later and they were standing in the midst of Diagon Alley and Amersa was inhaling Florean's java chip ice cream. Today was the day her parents had promised her they could shop for what she needed to start school at Hogwarts.
"Dad, can we get my wand first?" Amersa turned to her mom, "I want a pretty one like yours!" Mr. and Mrs. Sewlyn smiled at each other and shook their heads - their daughter had not stopped talking about the wand she would get since she had gotten her letter.
"Okay darling but remember—"
"The wand chooses the wizard, I know," Amersa sighed impatiently, still secretly hoping she would get a say in it anyways.
She was starry-eyed as she wandered the shelves of Ollivander's, oblivious to the racket on the other side of the shop. Her hands drifted over the rectangle shaped boxes, landing on an unambiguous one which she proceeded to open. The crackling sound that emitted from the ebony wand caused her to hastily put it back in its place. A few aisles down, her eyes settled on another box, but before she could open it, her she heard a yelp. She turned towards the sound to see a boy her age sitting on the floor.
"What'cha doing there?" she tilted her head questioningly.
He gestured his splayed body with his free hand. "I fell, genius."
Her mouth formed a small o but as she stepped forward to help him up, she heard her mother's voice calling her name.
"It's my turn!" she whisper-yelled at him and ran off, leaving him staring in disbelief at her back.
Delmare MontagueMid-August | Diagon Alley
Floo powder made Delmare's nose itchy — it always had — but she held back the sneeze as she stepped into the fireplace with a fistful of the gray-green dust. "Diagon Alley!" she shouted, casting the powder towards the floor of the chimney. In a flash, she landed in the main Floo entrances at the most famous wizarding hubbub in Britain.
"'Scuze me," a man said, rushing past Delmare and pushing her out of the way in order to get at the Floo exit, grabbing a handful of said powder from his pocket and throwing it down before disappearing in a flash.
"Delmare!" Lorraine Montague's voice called, breaking Delmare out of her daze. Sure she'd used Floo before, as had she explored the bustling sidewalks of Diagon Alley, but this time it was slightly different. This time, she was here to buy supplies for herself — for her first year at Hogwarts.
Six days ago, Early August | The Montague Mansion
Breakfast was going as usual, and the owls were arriving promptly as the family house elves poured tea. "Thank you, Lenny," Delmare told the elf who was filling her teacup. Lenitas nodded respectfully, a smile flashing across her features before she retreated into the kitchen with the other house elves. Another round of wingbeats called Delmare's attention to the space above the large dining table where the owls made their rounds, depositing their charges in semi-tidy piles around the seated trio.
No way, a new Bertie Bott's flavor? Delmare thought, eyes wide as she skimmed through one of the articles in the Daily Prophet. The new flavor was nicknamed "electric lemon" and was "sure give you a sour shock." Flipping through the other pages of the paper, Delmare almost didn't notice the tawny owl depositing a red-stamped envelope in front of her.
"Delmare, honey," her mother called from her left, "you've received a letter."
Delmare's head snapped to her measly letter pile in surprise. As Delmare didn't have much contact with kids her age, she had never really received letters other than the odd "will you be my friend" or "come celebrate my birthday", so she was definitely surprised to receive any letter. Especially one with such an official-looking seal, Delmare thought, picking it out of her pile and feeling its weight in her hands. Rather light, she thought, frowning. Her parents set down their papers, recognizing the emblem as their daughter lifted the seal. It came off with a 'pop' that was followed by a very uncharacteristic squeal from the eleven-year-old.
Present day, Mid-August | The Montague Mansion
The list had been laid out on the letter, and the list they would follow — with the exception of the last item on the list, the wand. Easily the most important item on the list, the wand was more of a necessity than a mere piece of "equipment," as it had been labelled, and so Delmare soon found herself walking the narrow aisles to the back of Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands Since 328 BC. Boxes upon boxes were stacked on the shelves, some sleek and others large and bulky in size despite what they contained inside. In front of Delmare the white-haired man known as Garrick Ollivander was muttering to himself, picking seemingly random boxes from the shelves and carrying them with him.
"Ash with Unicorn hair," the man said, unboxing a wand and offering it out to Delmare. Taking the thin wooden piece into her hands, Delmare gave the wand an experimental flick and promptly sent out a burst of magic that bounced off the wall and fizzled out on the floor. "Alright," Ollivander said, snatching the wand in Delmare's hand and replacing it with another. "Cypress with Dragon Heartstring."
Sparks flew out and clattered against shelves, shaking them into a clatter as the wandmaker against replaced the wand in Delmare's hand.
"Elm with Phoenix Feather."
A brief red fizzle.
"Pine with Dragon Heartstring."
A stream of delicate yellow bubbles flew out, popping simultaneously as the wand was again replaced.
"Walnut with Dragon Heartstring," Ollivander said, a tinge of finality in his voice this time. Delmare took the wand uncertainly, afraid of what might come out of it this time, but a calm silence followed. Sitting calmly in her hands, the wand was content to brood in the dim lamplight as the girl holding it stared at the slim wood in amazement. "Well," Ollivander said, dusting off his hands and closing the box from which he retrieved the wand, "I do believe we've found a match. How funny — I just received that wand yesterday. Shipped over from a famous wandmaker in Asia."
"Seven galleons it is then," Delmare's mother said, handing the golden coins to Ollivander. "Wonderful work as always, Garrick. Thank you."
"My pleasure," the wandmaker said just as another mother-daughter pair emerged from the rows of boxes. "Madam Sewlyn," Ollivander said, recognizing the woman.
"Natalia?" Lorraine asked, recognizing the woman as well.