It seemed as if Bryt's face was frozen in a wide-eyed expression of wonder as she turned constantly, trying to take in everything she could of Diagon Alley. Several times, she had stopped to stare in windows at stores selling everything from all different sizes of cauldrons, potion ingredients, spell books and quills, and even a store that sold broomsticks. Each time, Sprout had to return and grab Bryt by the arm to lead her back down the street, only for Bryt to stop again at the next shop.
One Bryt was really reluctant to move from was one called Eeylops Owl Emporium where Bryt took instantly to a beautiful barn owl sitting in a cage in view of the window. Bryt, as she was being pulled away from the store, promised herself that if she had any money left, she would buy herself that barn owl.
"Here we are—Gringotts," Sprout said.
Bryt bent her head back to look up at the three-story white building that stood taller than the other shops in Diagon Alley. She slowly lowered her head again to the bronze doors, then to the strange creature by the door. Not much shorter than Bryt, the creature had a clever-looking face, a pointed beard, and long hands and feet. It was dressed in a uniform of scarlet and gold and bowed Sprout and Bryt in through the doors where they were met by another set of doors, these silver and holding an engraving:
Enter stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed,
For those to take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief, you have been warned, beware
Of finding more than treasure there.
Two more of the strange creatures bowed Bryt and Sprout in through the silver doors and Bryt saw hundreds more of the creatures all around, most behind a long counter weighing different types of stones and gems.
"What are they?" Bryt asked, looking around in awe.
"Goblins," Sprout said, "Never mess with them, Miss Watkins. Anyway, let's get your money exchanged, shall we?"
Several minutes later, Bryt left the bank with Sprout, carrying a pouch full of bronze, silver, and gold coins. Sprout was just explaining the wizard currency.
"The bronze ones are knuts," Sprout said, "Silver are sickles and the gold are galleons. Twenty-nine knuts to a sickle, seventeen sickles to a galleon. Do you understand that?"
"Twenty-nine bronze knuts to a sickle, seventeen silver sickles to a gold galleon. Got it," Bryt nodded, "Where are we goin' first?"
"It's your school list, so I thought you should decide," Sprout grinned.
Bryt shoved her hand in her pocket and pulled out her list, skimming over it.
"Wand first," she said happily.
"Then off to Ollivander's," Sprout said, starting along with Bryt right behind, once again staring at everything around her.
They reached the end of the alley where Bryt found themselves in front of a narrow, shabby shop with peeling golden letters reading "Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C." across the top. In the window of the shop was a wand resting on a purple cushion.
"All right, in we go," Sprout said, leading Bryt inside.
Bryt suddenly felt as if she had walked into a library as the soft tinkling of a bell rang over her head. She looked around the narrow room at the walls of slim boxes that Bryt guessed to hold wands. Sprout took a seat in the only chair and Bryt felt more questions rising, but she couldn't get herself to speak, as if she would get in trouble if she did.
"Good afternoon."
Bryt jumped with a small yelp and spun around to see an old man watching her with wide, pale eyes that stood out in the pale shop. Bryt guessed this was Mr. Ollivander.
"Hi," Bryt spoke up, pulling nervously at the end of her sleeve.
"First year at Hogwarts, I take it," Mr. Ollivander said it as a statement, not a question, "Well, we should begin. Which is your wand arm?"
"Um..." Bryt blinked, then guessed he wanted to know what hand she wrote with, "Left."
"All right, hold out your arm. Yes, like that," Mr. Ollivander pulled out a measuring tape, starting to take measurements of strange areas on Bryt's body, like from her knee to armpit and around her head.
"Each wand has a core of a powerful magical substance, Miss..."
"Watkins," Bryt spoke up, realizing Mr. Ollivander was getting wands now and the tape measure was moving on its own, "Bryt Watkins."
"Right, Miss Watkins. We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstrings of dragons. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons, or phoenixes are quite the same. And, of course, you will never get such good results with another wizard's wand. The wand chooses the wizard, or witch in this case."
Bryt started shifting uncomfortably as the measuring tape started going from her ear to chest when Mr. Ollivander gave a 'that's enough' and the measuring tape fell.
"Let's try this one, Miss Watkins," Mr. Ollivander handed Bryt a wand, "Hawthorn and unicorn hair. Seven inches. Give it a wave now."
Bryt, feeling like an idiot, waved the wand around and nothing happened. Her face grew red as Mr. Ollivander snatched it from her and shoved another in her hand.
"Birch, phoenix tail feather, nine inches."
Again, Bryt waved the wand, just to have it replaced again.
"Hazel and unicorn hair. Ten inches."
Bryt tried again, and again the wand was snatched from her hand. It felt like Bryt had gone through at least twenty wands by now.
"Stubborn customer, aren't you?" Mr. Ollivander commented, picking up another wand, "Well, let's try this. Willow, dragon heartstring. Eight inches. Go on, then."
As soon as the wand was in Bryt's hand, she knew it was different. It sent a warm sensation up Bryt's arm and when she gave it a wave, it set off a shower of fiery orange sparks. Bryt started grinning brightly. This had to be her wand.
"Bravo! Bravo, Miss Watkins!" Mr. Ollivander said and Sprout applauded from her chair.
Bryt grinned and paid for her wand, leaving the shop with it still in the box, pushed down into a pocket of Bryt's pants. Bryt decided to get her cauldron next, seeming fascinated with the different types they had, but finally got what was specified on her list. In the Apothecary shop, which smelled horribly of rotten eggs, Bryt couldn't seem to pull herself from the different ingredients all around. Herbs, dried roots, and bright powders packed in jars were all over the shop. Bryt was finally had to be almost pulled from the shop after she got her scales, phials, and a kit of basic potions ingredients, which she was carrying in her cauldron now.
Bryt spent even more time in a small shop to get her parchment and quill. She bought herself a wild turkey feather quill and two bottles of ink, one black and one a fiery orange color.
"Just your robes and school books left," Sprout commented as they finally left the shop.
"Robes next, then," Bryt said, following the Herbology professor towards a shop called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.
Bryt went inside with Sprout and they were greeted by a small, smiling witch in long robes.
"Hogwarts, I take it?" she asked kindly, "I have another young girl already being fitted in the back, follow me."
Bryt put down her things and went to the back of the shop where she saw a girl around her age standing on a stool, seeming to have no trouble keeping still as a second witch pinned up black robes on her. The girl had a head of long, bushy brown hair that matched her brown eyes.
"Right over here, miss," Madam Malkin led Bryt over to the second stool and Bryt stood on it so she could start to be fitted.
"Hello, are you going to Hogwarts, too?" the bushy-haired girl had an almost bossy-sounding voice and rather large front teeth.
"Yeah," Bryt nodded, having trouble keeping still. Madam Malkin kept fussing at her, "All of this is really hard to believe, though. I didn' know anythin' about magic this mornin'."
"I think all of it's fascinating," the girl grinned, "I'm like you, I didn't know anything about it before I got my letter. I was thinking about buying a few extra books, to learn all I can before school starts. It seems only natural, don't you think? Oh, I'm Hermione Granger, by the way."
Bryt giggled lightly. Hermione was starting to remind her of her old friend Julio.
"I'm Bryt Watkins," she said, "My school books're actually all I have left to get after my robes."
"Your accent, are you from the States?" Hermione asked.
"Charleston, South Carolina, USA," Bryt grinned, "How 'bout we go to the bookstore together? We'll both be heading the same way, anyway."0
Hermione gave a short nod. "So you're a Muggleborn, too?" she asked, "You said you didn't know about magic before this morning."
"Is Muggleborn what it's called?" Bryt asked, "Makes sense, and yeah, I am. I didn' wanna believe this at first, but I'm glad I finally did."
"It took me a moment to fully take it in," Hermione agreed, "But I think it's all terribly exciting. I can't wait for the school year to start."
"There we go, you're done," Madam Malkin said.
"See ya outside," Bryt grinned, hopping down from the stool and heading back to the front of the shop. She noticed for the first time that a tall woman was there. She looked strict and stern, her black hair tied into a tight not at the base of her head.
"Oh, Miss Watkins," Sprout grinned, "This is Minerva McGonagall, she will be your Transfiguration teacher."
"Hello, ma'am," Bryt grinned as Hermione came out of the back.
It turned out McGonagall was escorting Hermione through Diagon Alley, so the four went to a bookshop called Flourish and Blotts together. The shop was amazing, shelves going from floor to ceiling, all packed with books. After getting her school books, Bryt found herself drawn to several books on magical creatures. While Hermione bought several extra books on the history of the wizarding world, Bryt bought a second book on creatures, after she made sure she'd have enough money for her owl.
Outside the shop, Bryt and Hermione said goodbye, with a promise to look for each other on the Hogwarts Express, and Bryt followed Sprout towards Eeylops Owl Emporium. When they reached the store, Bryt noticed the same barn owl was still there and she wasted no time buying it. She immediately named him Joey as she headed towards the Leaky Cauldron with her things.
It was a long trip back to her house, but she was had enjoyed every minute of it. Once home, Bryt barely got her things inside when her three-year-younger twin brothers, Drew and Mike, appeared in her doorway.
The two boys were identical in every way from their brown hair and eyes to their thick-framed glasses and curious expressions on their faces.
"Mom said you were goin' to a school for magic," Drew said.
"And that you were a witch," Mike continued.
"She was right," Bryt grinned, sitting on the end of her bed and pulling out her wand, "See? This is my wand, it'll be how I cast magic."
"Cast somethin' now!" the boys chorused.
"Mike, Drew, leave her alone," Gregory Watkins, Bryt's father, appeared in the doorway. Bryt favored her father in appearance, though her hair was blonde instead of brown.
"It's fine, Dad," Bryt grinned, "I don' know any spells to do anyway, that's what I'll be learnin' at Hogwarts."
Mr. Watkins grinned just as Bryt's mother called that dinner was done. Bryt tucked her wand back in her pocket and headed to the kitchen with her brothers and father, the entire dinner being spent with the three constantly asking Bryt questions about Diagon Alley. Mrs. Watkins kept quiet, watching her husband and sons in amusement as Bryt answered all the questions she could.