You Have To Be Joking!
Chapter One
Disclaimer:I obviously own nothing related to Harry Potter, so you can have faith in me.
"What the hell!" I yelled. Well, you would too if you had just stepped on a patch of blue scum that made your feet stick directly to the ground. I had just decided to take a walk through Diagon Alley on a warm summer afternoon when I thought a visit to the new joke shop would be interesting. Obviously, it was interesting.
I could see a group of teens laughing and pointing at me as I struggled to unstick my feet, which made me even more upset about the whole thing.
Just then, a red haired boy came cantering down the short flight of stairs with the look of amusement on his face. I shot a glaring look at him.
"Sorry miss, let me get you out of there." said the boy as he took out his wand, and after a wave, was able to unstick me from the messy patch. "Great joke, huh? It's the new 'Sticky Mess' for any quick distraction."
"Sorry, but it isn't great when your the one stuck." I said, sweeping my long bangs out of my face. "And you are..."
"George, George Weasley. I own the shop." he said, putting out his hand. "And you?"
"Laurie. Laurie Enders" I said, before taking his hand. "So this is your shop I'm guessing." I said, letting go and looking at the building. You could say it popped out like a sore thumb amid the old and worn shops surrounding it. With brightly lit signs and the many people milling about outside it, it would be amazing if no one would notice it while passing by.
"Yep. Me and my brother just opened it last year after leaving school" he said.
"My brother and I..." I mumbled under my breath.
"Come again?"
"Oh, nothing"
"Well," he said, rubbing the back of his neck "I have to go back in. But come visit anytime."
"I will!" I said as he ran back up the stairs, tripping on the top one. I laughed. He was a funny one. And a cutie at that.
It was nice spending my summer holiday in Diagon Alley. My family was originally living in Surrey, but I was able to convince them to let me live at my Auntie Deb's flat for the summer. She was one of those 'cool adults' as you would call it. Only being 29, she always bought me nice clothes at Christmas time and my birthday.
And it wasn't like she didn't have the room for me. The bedroom was small, but it had a window that looked right out into the street and the people milling below. So I always woke at a reasonable time, like my parent's wanted me too.
It was a relief from my parents, if anything. I loved them of course, but they would just get a little too worried about me. One time I didn't come home for dinner on time, and they had a crew of muggle police wandering the streets looking for me. And whenever I would get something as simple as a splinter as a child, they would fuss for hours on end, wanting me to get shots just in case it was infected.
Waking up that morning, I could smell my Aunties perfume waft into my room as she brought some tea in for me to drink.
"Morning sweetie!" she sang to me, setting the tea on my bedside table. "I won't be able to take you to outside London today, I have a meeting. Will you be okay on your own?"
Sitting up in bed, I squinted at the morning sunshine streaming through my room.
"Of course." I said, taking my cup of tea. "When will you be back?" I asked.
"To be honest, I don't know!" she said. "They said I may even be out for afew days. But seeing that you're 17, I think you'll be fine, don't you?"
I was shocked, excited, and surprised. Was she serious? Leaving me alone in Diagon Alley for more than a few days? This meant party. Well, not real parties. I never really liked them. The last one I experienced was about two years ago and lets just say I drank about a bottle of bubbly before passing out in my friend Allie's bed.
"Sure."
To be honest, I didn't leave the house until the next day.
After throwing on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, and putting my wavy brown hair into a ponytail, I walked out of the building into the overcast day. Looking up, the sky was an awful gray, but I didn't mind as I headed down the street.
After window shopping at Madame Makins Robes and taking a browse through Purity Candies, I decided to take a look at Weasley Wizard Wheezes. The sign said 'closed' but I decided it would be okay to peer in the windows of the shop. It seemed to be filled to the brim with various bottles and jars and cases and boxes of tricks and teasers. All the way in the back was a long counter with a register, where the red haired boy from the other day seemed to be counting up profits. He looked up from his papers to spot me peeking through the window. Getting up from the counter, he came to the door and unlocked the latch.
"So Laurie, decided to come back?" he asked, opening the door and inviting me in.
"Sorry for interrupting you. I was just looking through the window." I said, looking at all the shelves filled with stuff. Surprisingly, it was all organized.
"No problem, I was wondering when you were coming back." he said. "I've seen you walk by a lot, do your parents just leave you here to spend your days wandering aimlessly?"
I laughed. "No, I'm living at my auntie's house over the summer. My parent's would never let me out every day."
"Really strict?"
I nodded. "I'm not surprised they put me in a plastic bubble."
He laughed.
"Well, would you like a look around?" he asked.
"Why not."
I could tell why he opened a joke shop, for it was impossible for me to keep a straight face he had me laughing so much. He showed me around hours ago, and it was getting dark outside as the shoppers began to end their day.
I looked at my watch.
"I'm sorry, but I do have to go." I said.
"Oh, well I'll see you some other time then?" he asked me.
"Of course." I said, walking towards the door. "Bye!"
"Adios!"
I decided to make this out of a whim. I hoped you liked it though and that the first chapter wasn't too boring. Please review and tell me what you think!