Let's begin with yet another character introduction, hmm?
Alice Wellington is the pure-blood niece of Professor Peter Wellington. An eccentric, athletic, and usually happy girl who loves Quidditch. Alice has an annoying younger brother who won't appear in this chapter (sucks for him). She is clever for her age, but a lot of people don't think so. Okay, now let's move on to her physical traits. Alice has dirty blonde hair just like her uncle, and the same green eyes. She wears glasses, just like Cordelia. Oh, and she owns seven pretty blue dresses that are exactly the same, one for each week. Think of it like Mr Bean.
Now to the story!
~Every Potterhead's Dream~
~#2: A Girl Named Alice~
As Professor Peter Wellington promised, he appeared on Cordelia's doorstep on Monday, late afternoon. With his niece.
"Cordelia, I'd like you to meet my niece, Alice." he told her. "Alice, say hello to Cordelia. And please don't make it awkward like last time." Alice seemed to have misheard her uncle, because she was shaking Cordelia's hand vigorously with both her hands while throwing words at her.
"HiCordelia!MynameisAlice,andmyuncleistheHeadofRavencl awandD.A. !It'smyfirstyeartooandI'msoexcited!DoyoulikeQuidditch?ILOVEQuidditch!I'mthinkingaboutjoiningtheteam nextyear!Howaboutyou,Cordelia?Howaboutyou?Doyouhaveanyplans?"
Professor Wellington facepalmed. "I told her not to make this awkward," Cordelia heard him mutter under his breath.
"Well, we better get going," he said. "The two of you, grab my arm."
"Oh!" said Cordelia. "Is this going to be like that meme where a person grabs another person's something and they fly over a rainbow?"
Professor Wellington raised his eyebrows at Cordelia. "I have no idea what you are talking about, although it sounds interesting." he said. "But no, we're going to apparate."
"Aw, no!" complained Alice. "We already apparated here, and I feel kinda sick! Besides, it'd be better for Cordelia if we could go through the passage in the Leaky Cauldron, right?"
"I guess you're right, Alice," said her uncle. "Leaky Cauldron it is, then."
"Yay!"
"So this is Diagon Alley..."
Cordelia was awestruck. In front of her eyes was Diagon Alley, the wizarding shopping area in London. It's real. It's all real. All those bullies were wrong, and Cordelia is correct. The Potterverse was real.
"Well, it's not all real." said Alice, who was suddenly at her side, as if she was reading her thoughts.
"What do you mean?" asked Cordelia. "Oh, no, this all isn't a dream, isn't it?"
"No, it's all very true!" Alice said. "Hogwarts, this, Quidditch, magic... but most of the events and characters in those silly Harry Potterbooks are false. Well, most of them."
"I don't understand."
"It's very simple," said the Professor's niece. "In ourworld, Harry Potteris classified as realistic fiction. It didn't happen, but it could. Although, in your world, the muggle world, it's simply classified as fantasy, because of course most muggles don't believe that wizards and witches really exist. Do you get it?"
Cordelia was still confused. "...Sort of, I guess."
"Ladies, please come over here!" said the voice of Professor Wellington. "I've found a place to get your cauldrons at a reasonable price!"
"We better get over there," Alice told Cordelia. "Coming, uncle!" she called out as she walked towards the professor, Cordelia trailing behind her.
The next few hours went smoothly. Cordelia and Alice got all their school supplies, all except one thing:
Their wands.
Well, this is certainly is going to be the most exciting part of the day.
As if the whole day wasn't exciting enough already.
Anyway.
The three entered the Ollivanders Wand Shop, which was run by a young Mr Ollivander. Cordelia tried to guess his age. Twenty? Twenty-five? It's hard to be sure.
"Oh, hello, Peter!" he told the professor. "Come to get a new wand?"
"Actually, I'm here on Hogwarts business. I'm accompanying my niece, Alice, and a muggle-born first year."
"Oh, I see." he examined the two young girls. "So, which one goes first?"
Cordelia looked at Alice. "Rock-Paper-Scissors?" she suggested.
Alice looked at her with a confused look. "What in the name of Merlin is that?"
"...Nevermind."
"Well, as a lady, why don't you let Cordelia go first, Alice?" said Professor Wellington.
"Isn't that a gentleman thing?"
"I don't have all day, you know." said Mr Ollivander.
"May I go first?" asked Cordelia politely.
"Of course, lass," Mr Ollivander said. He went to the storage room and came back with a small, wooden box. "Here, try this." he gave the wooden box to Cordelia to try. She opened it and held the wand inside, and gave it a flick. Her hand burned a bit.
"Ow!" she cried, dropping the wand. Gingerly, she picked it up and put it back in the box.
"It doesn't seem to like you," said the wandmaker. He produced another box from the storage room. "How about this?"
Cordelia tried the new wand. A banshee's screech cried throughout the whole store. Everyone covered their ears. "Certainly not that one!" said Mr Ollivander, and snatched the wand from her hands.
She tried yet another wand. It sent out thumbnails in the air, spelling the words "I DON'T LIKE YOU".
Cordelia decided to not give up. There must be a wand here that fits here, she just has to keep trying until she finds it.
And then it happened.
On her sixth try, Cordelia finally found the blasted wand that likes her.
"Walnut and dragon heartstring, nine inches... I believe you have found your match, Ms Cordelia, and now it is Ms Alice's turn.
"Oh, Mr Ollivander," said Alice. "My gut tells me that my wand is the first on your left, in the third row in your storage room."
"Oh, is that right?" said Mr Ollivander. "Very well, let's try it out..." he went into the storage room once more and came back with a box.
"Try it out, dear."
Alice gave the wand a flick, and red sparks came out of it.
"My, girl, you were right!" Mr Ollivander said with amusement. "Chestnut and unicorn hair, eleven inches..." He looked at Professor Wellington. "That would be fourteen Galleons, please."