Finding the Right Fit
Author's Note: Harry Potter is among one of my top interests. Pretty much, this is about Ginny taking her daughter (and Harry's daughter, of course) Lily to buy her first wand. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I (sadly) do not own Harry Potter.
On with the story!
"Mummy," said Lilly Potter, tugging on her mother's hand. "Why isn't Daddy coming with us?"
"Lilly, I know you really wanted him to be here, but since he's such an important Auror, the Ministry is always calling him away unexpectedly."
Lily sighed, and then perked up. "Oh! Look! It's Aunt Hermione!"
Ginny Potter saw her sister-in-law weaving through the crowds of wizards and witches towards them. "I asked her to meet us here, Lil. Since Uncle Ron has Hugo, Rose, James and Al for the day, I thought she could come to Ollivander's with us."
"Aunt Hermione!" squealed Lily, as she nearly jumped on her aunt.
"Hello to you too." Chuckled Hermione Weasley, returning her niece's hug. "I tell you, Ginny. I've never seen Diagon Alley so busy!"
"I don't know… Do you remember the time when-"
"With the dr-"
"Exactly!"
The two women chuckled with each other, lost in fond memories.
Lily tugged on Ginny's hand, and prodded her aunt in the thigh. "Can we go to Ollivander's now?"
The sisters broke from their reverie, and Ginny answered: "Of course, Dearest."
Lily positioned herself in between her mother and aunt. She grabbed both their hands, and the trio set off down the alley.
…..
A few minutes of walking later, they reached the famed wand shop. Every witch or wizard in Britain had gotten their wand at this shop, and Lily was no exception. She was almost off to her first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and she couldn't have been more excited.
"Ready?" Ginny asked her youngest child.
Lily squeezed her mother's hand in response.
Hermione pushed the shop door open, and the little bell dinged! to signal their arrival. Instantly, Lily wrinkled her nose. The smell of musty, dusty boxes crashed over her like a wave. Peering through the dust into the dimly lit shop, she took in shelves upon shelves of hundreds of boxes all crammed together in the tight little space. Waved on by her mother and aunt, Lily shuffled nervously up to the front desk.
"Erm… Hello?" she called quietly. At the very back of the shop, Lily could just make out two figures, although the swirling motes of dust made them fuzzy. "Hello?" she said again, a little louder this time.
The figures began to make their way forward. As they got closer, Lily could see that one was much taller than the other. Finally, the two people stepped into full view. The short, hunched-over old man was clearly Mr. Ollivander. But the other was…
"Daddy?" exclaimed Lily in surprise.
Her father edged around the counter and scooped up his daughter in a hug. "You didn't think that I could miss my little Lily going to get her first wand, did you?"
"But why did you leave early this morning?" asked his wife.
"Only so I could clear some things up at the office. Actually, starting today, I'm on holiday."
Lily and Ginny beamed, glad that he would finally be spending some time with them. Hermione piped up. "Then you're all coming to dinner tonight. To celebrate your vacation. And Lily getting her wand, of course!"
"Speaking of which," said Lily, placing her hands on her hips.
Mr. Ollivander spoke for the first time. "Ah, yes. This way, if you please, Miss Potter." He said, gesturing down the row of shelves.
The adults followed Lily and Mr. Ollivander as they wove their way around boxes full of other boxes. "I remember every wand I ever sold. When your father came to get his wand, he was just as nervous as you. Possibly even more so." At this, the old wand maker gave a small chuckle, recalling the look on Harry's face when he first set foot in the shop.
Finally, the pair came to a halt somewhere deep inside the maze of shelves. The old man's trained eyes swept over the shelf, looking for the exact right box. "Ah. Here we are." His knobby fingers pulled out a cylindrical, blue silk box (very dusty, of course). Ollivander undid the clasp, and then gently lifted the wand out of the box. It was beautiful-a rich mahogany with a delicate cherry wood inlay.
"10 inches, Unicorn Hair core." Said Mr. Ollivander.
Lily took the wand gingerly in her hand, as if any movement could upset it. Almost instantly, she felt a buzzing sensation in her fingertips, and a warm feeling spread throughout her body.
"What do I do?" she asked quietly.
"Give it a wave." The old man smiled, remembering how the girl's father was just as lost.
Lily gave the wand a tentative flick, and the effect was instant. A shower of empty boxes cascaded down onto the young girl and the wandmaker.
"I don't think so." Said Ollivander, as he lifted the wand from Lily's fingers.
Her family laughed at the astonished look on her face. Ginny laid a comforting hand on her daughter's shoulder before the group continued on through the shop.
"Have you ever thought about organizing your this place?" asked Hermione in typical Hermione fashion. "How do you know where everything is?"
Mr. Ollivander shook his head. "I've had this store for as long as I can remember. I know every nook and cranny, every box and wand. I know every piece of dust and dirt. This is organized, my dear."
Hermione sighed. "I suppose."
Harry and Ginny smiled, thinking the same thing. 'Ah, Hermione. You never changed.'
The group stopped once again, and Mr. Ollivander hunched over even more to the lower down shelves.
"Let's see, now…" he murmured, running his fingers over the boxes. "Hmm."
Lily waited with baited breath to see the next wand that Mr. Ollivander would choose.
He slid a long, thin box out of the shelf. It was plain, yet elegant and it had a neat gold trim. Lily could sense the promise it held.
This time, she had some idea of what to do when Mr. Ollivander placed the 9 inch holly and dragon heartstring wand in her small hand. The buzzing sensation reappeared in her fingers, and the warm feeling enveloped her body again.
She gave the wand a gentle wave, but the only thing that happened was the two lamps nearest the group went out with a whoosh!
A look of defeat settled on Lily's face as she handed the wand back to Mr. Ollivander. "Don't worry, my dear." Said Ginny. " It took me two tries before I found the right wand. And it took your father three!"
That renewed Lily's spirit slightly. She nodded, and then followed Ollivander as he made his way to the other side of the shop.
This time it was Harry who broke the silence. "How are Molly and Arthur doing?"
"Oh. They're good. We just went to visit them last week, actually. Arthur was fiddling with his muggle gadgets as usual."
The five assorted witches and wizards continued on quietly for a few minutes. Ollivander came to a stop once again. He pulled a small step ladder out from behind a (who would have guessed it?) box. He climbed up to the top step, and reached up to the top shelf. His finger groped around, searching for the right box.
The old wandmaker gave an 'aha!' of triumph as he pulled out the most plain and unremarkable box Lily had seen in the shop that day. It was long, thin and flat. There was a dull sheen to it, but other than that, the only feature on it was a small sliver panel with the number 394* on it.
Lily's hopes were crushed. Surely this box couldn't hold her wand.
But, as soon as Mr. Ollivander lifted the lid Lily's jaw dropped. Inside this awfully boring box was the most beautiful wand she had ever seen. The willow wood was almost a pearly white colour, and it seemed to have a faint glow to it. There was a swirling pattern carved around the handle, which was the perfect size for Lily's hand.
"Eleven inches, with a phoenix feather core." Announced Mr. Ollivander, placing it in Lily's outstretched hand.
As soon as the wand made contact with her skin, Lily felt the buzzing feeling, but ten times stronger. The warmth burst through her body.
She didn't even have to wave the wand. Even though they were inside, a warm wind blew through the group, and the five people were bathed in a golden light, which seemed to be emanating from Lily.
"That's it!" exclaimed Mr. Ollivander.
Lily was so excited to finally have found her wand that sparks of every colour burst forth from the tip of her wand.
Ginny, Harry and Hermione were all smiling and clapping. "Congratulations, Lil."
Lily ran up ahead to Mr. Ollivander, who was waiting at the till. "Thank you." She said.
He gave her a conspiratorial wink. "I think we can expect great things from you, Miss Potter.