It didn't take long for me to wholly forgive my aunt and uncle for keeping my being a witch a secret from me. I knew that they really had wanted to tell me, so I didn't hold it against them. It had been about a month since I found out about Hogwarts and I had been filling my free time with my friends. I had barely been home and any thoughts of Hogwarts were far in the back of my mind. I walked into the kitchen one morning for breakfast, and the presence of my aunt and uncle momentarily surprised me until I remembered today was Saturday.
"Willow, we were thinking of getting your school supplies today," Aunt Rachel said. I looked at her questionably. Every other year they went out and bought me everything that I needed, I would simply come home one day to find it all in my room. They never really told me before hand that they would get it.
"You were planning on going to Hogwarts, were you not?" She asked, noticing my confused expression.
"Oh, right," I said. "Be right back." Leaving them in the kitchen, I rushed upstairs to my room. I remembered that Professor McGonagall said my supplies list was in the envelope with my letter and ticket. I grabbed the letter off my desk and turned to go back to the kitchen. I skimmed over the letter as I walked. It mentioned how I had been accepted and that I would need to send an owl no later than July 31. That must have been how they meant for me to tell them whether or not I would be coming. I was looking over the supplies I needed as I walked back into the kitchen. I was sure I wouldn't be able to find any bookstore in London that sold the books I needed, and where on earth was I going to get a wand?
"Where am I going to get all of this?" I asked. "Surely not in London."
"Oh, you'd be surprised," said Uncle Jack.
I ate my breakfast in silence, not really listening to Uncle Jack tell stories about visiting a place called Diagon Alley with my mum. After I finished eating I went back upstairs to get ready. I put on a black long-sleeved shirt and Capri length jeans, it was a little chilly that morning. I went back down to find my aunt and uncle already dressed and waiting. They smiled at me.
"Ready to go." I nodded quickly, I was actually a little nervous. I didn't know what to expect from the wizarding world, but the meeting with Professor McGonagall was enough to tell me it would defiantly be different from what I was used to.
We drove through London, and parked on the side of the road across from a record store. I looked around for any sign of magic but saw nothing. Next to the record store was a dingy pub that no one seemed to be going into and next to that was a bookstore. Did they sell the books I needed? Something told me they didn't.
"Alright then, let's go. If I remember correctly this is where it supposed to be." Uncle Jack looked around a little bit seeming confused.
"We have to go through a small pub called the Leaky Cauldron. I don't think I'll be able to see it though, I never could before," he trailed off and turned to me. "See it anywhere?" he asked.
I looked around again and focused in on the pub across the road. Sure enough, there was a sign that said 'The Leaky Cauldron'. I pointed to the spot between the record store and bookstore.
"It's right there." My uncle smiled triumphantly and led the way across the road. I followed closely behind, Aunt Rachel at my side. She placed her hand on my shoulder reassuringly, sensing my anxiety.
Uncle Jack walked straight up to the door of the pub and paused. I stepped in front of him and opened the door, realizing he probably was having trouble finding it. He walked inside, followed by Aunt Rachel and then myself. The pub was full of people, all dressed similarly to Professor McGonagall, and they were, for the most part, silent. They were staring at the two obviously not magical people, who had just walked in, but they seemed to relax when they saw me, probably realizing I was a student. A bald man behind the bar motioned for us to go through a door on the other side of the room and then followed.
"My name is Tom, pub keeper of the Leaky Cauldron. I assume you are going to Diagon alley to purchase your Hogwarts supplies," he said. I nodded quietly. He made a motion and tapped a few of the bricks on the wall ahead of us. They began to shift and open, forming an archway to reveal a bustling road full people.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley, enjoy yourselves." Tom gave us a toothless grin before turning on his heel and walking back through the door into the pub.
I stepped through the archway, my mouth hanging open; there were so many colors and people. The archway behind us closed and we began walking up the street. I gawked at all the shops, noticing the unusual items sitting in the windows, and I was beginning to feel less nervous and more excited by the minute. This really was a magical place.
I saw a great, marble building at the end of the street and as we got closer I realized it was a bank. We walked up the stairs and through the entrance, which had a poem warning thieves about the dangers of trying to rob it. We walked into the lobby of the bank; it was as grand as the outside, complete with high ceilings and intricate marble floors.
"Just need to get some wizard money before we buy everything," Uncle Jack said to Aunt Rachel. "I pretty certain that Sofia and Michael's vault still has money in it." I focused back on Uncle Jack at the mention of my parents.
"My mum and dad have money here?" I asked. Aunt Rachel smiled at me.
"Of course, love. Most wizarding families do. We're not sure how much they have saved up though. Do you have the key?" she asked, turning back to my uncle. He held up a tiny key as a small, grumpy looking creature walked over to us briskly.
"Can I help you," he asked shortly.
"Um, yes. We are here to make a withdrawal," Uncle Jack replied nervously. "From Michael and Sofia L-latton's vault." He gave the creature the key. He inspected it quickly and turned around.
"Very well, follow me." We did so. He led us through a pair of heavy double doors and to a small cart that sat upon what looked like miniature railroad tracks. We clambered in just as he called out, "Vault 523".
The cart lurched forward and began to speed downwards into the depth of the bank. I clung to Aunt Rachel's arm tightly, fearing I would fly out of the cart at every bend. Finally, after what seemed like an hour, the cart began to slow and came to a halt in front of a vault labeled 523. The creature, which I came to realize was a goblin, climbed out of the cart and promptly unlocked the door to the vault. It swung open as we scrambled onto the walkway next to us. I looked inside and felt my eyes widen. There was a generous pile of gold and silver coins and smaller piles of bronze ones scattered around it, all of it seemed to glow. The goblin climbed in and began putting some of the coins into a bag.
"First year I presume, he said." I nodded and walked closer to the entrance of the vault and picked up one of the large gold coins, turning it over in my hands. Uncle Jack came up behind me.
"This one is a Galleon, the silver ones are Sickles, and the bronze ones are Knuts," he explained. The goblin came out of the vault and handed Uncle Jack the bag of money.
"This is enough for her," he nodded in my direction, "Hogwarts supplies. I added a little extra for whatever else she may want." He closed the vault and it locked loudly. As we walked back to the cart he explained the different values of the three coins. Twenty-nine Knuts were worth one Sickle and seventeen Sickles were worth one Galleon. I thought the changes were odd but it was nice to know there were only three coins to remember. The cart sped back towards the surface and we all sat quietly.
"Why don't you wait for us outside, love? We'll be along in a minute, we just need to check something." I nodded as Aunt Rachel spoke and did as she asked. I walked outside and waited for them at the top of the stairs, enjoying the sun that was peeking from behind the clouds.
"Like I said, yeh'd be mad ter try an' rob it." I looked over at the very large man with wild hair who was talking to a young boy. The boy looked about my age, he was rather skinny, wore glasses and had messy black hair. I smiled at him as they passed by. I read the poem that was on the front of the doors. It mentioned finding trouble when searching for treasure that wasn't yours and the immorality in doing so. Not incredibly threatening, but it was very clearly a warning.
"Ready to go?" I jump severely as Aunt Rachel spoke, Uncle jack followed closely behind. I smiled and nodded. The led the way down the street and I looked at my list.
"Flourish and Blotts," my uncle said as we came to a bookstore. Inside I could see shelves that went to the ceiling completely filled with a variety of books, piles of books that looked like they would fall over if anyone bumped into them or took one out, and a lot of people hustling and bustling about looking for what they needed.
"How about I go in there," said Uncle Jack acknowledging the bookstore, "and you two run along to Madam Malkin's to get your robes." I handed Uncle Jack my book list and then hurried after Aunt Rachel who was already walking off towards Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions. We walked into the store and were greeted by a petite witch with a warm smile.
"Hello, dear. Hogwarts?" she asked me.
"Yes," I said simply. I smiled at her as she steered me over to a pedestal that stood in front of a mirror.
"I'm afraid this is the smallest size left," she said as she had me slip into a robe that was much too large. "I'll just make some adjustments to it, maybe if I…" she trailed off she worked on the robe to get it to fit better.
As she worked I remained silent. Aunt Rachel sifted through the racks of robes on either side of the shop. She walked back over to me.
"I think I'm going to go make sure your uncle is finding everything alright," she said. I watched her walk out the door, the bell chiming lightly as it opened and closed. I stood in silence for a few moments, and then heard the bell chime again as someone walked in. At first I expected it to be Aunt Rachel but I realized it wasn't when I heard a drawling voice tell Madam Malkin's they needed Hogwarts robes.
A boy with white-blonde hair, a pointed face, and icy grey eyes walked in and stood on the pedestal next to mine.
"Are you starting at Hogwarts this year too?" I asked him. He gave me a curt nod. I smiled sweetly at him. Maybe I could have a friend before I even started school.
"I'm Willow Latton," I continued, offering him my hand.
"Draco Malfoy," he said smugly, taking my hand and shaking it briefly before turning back to the mirror.
"Do you know what house you'll be in?" He asked me. I shook my head, not really understanding what he was talking about.
"I really don't know that much about Hogwarts, so I've never heard of these… houses," I confessed. "I live with my aunt and uncle, they're muggles, and I didn't know about Hogwarts until a few weeks ago." His brow furrowed at this information, though I didn't really understand why.
"Well," he said coolly, "I know I'll be in Slytherin, the whole of my family has been."
"Are a lot of people put into the same house as their parents?" He nodded stiffly. "I wonder what houses my parents were in…" I said this more to myself than to him, but he heard and gave me a questioning look.
"I thought you said they were muggles-"
"No, my aunt and uncle are, but both my parents went to Hogwarts." He seemed to relax after I said this. We were silent for the next few minutes. He opened his mouth a couple times, like he wanted to say something but quickly closed it when I would look over.
"There you are dear," Madam Malkin said with a smile, "All finished, that'll be fourteen galleons." I gave her the money and tucked the package containing my new robes under my arm.
"Goodbye, Draco. See you at school." I gave him a final smile and waved as I left, he made to wave as well but I had already left the shop. I hurried next door to Flourish and Blotts, finding my aunt and uncle at the front counter with a large stack of books.
After we finished paying for my schoolbooks we continued down the street. We bought a cauldron and other potions tools at an equipment shop and then went next door to the apothecary for my ingredients. After stopping to buy quills and parchment the only thing I needed was a wand. We walked up the street until we came across a small store, with only a wand on a dusty cushion in the window and a sign above that said 'Ollivanders, makers of fine wands since 382 B.C.'. Uncle Jack steered me through the door. The shop looked just as dusty inside as it did outside. There were shelves piled high with thin rectangular boxes and a small counter with an ancient looking chair next to it.
"We'll meet you back here in a few minutes," Uncle Jack whispered in my ear. I watched them as they hurried out the door and turned back to see a rather old man standing behind the counter, smiling sleepily at me.
"Good afternoon," he spoke in a quiet, slightly raspy voice. His hair was disheveled and he had stubble on his face. His dusty robes match his shop and his watery eyes bore into mine. "You look very much like your mother. Ash and unicorn hair, ten and three-quarter inches as I recall." It took me a moment to realize he was talking about her wand. I nodded warily.
"Let us see what we can find for you," he continued. He ambled towards the back of the shop, came back to the front, a box in hand, and handed me a wand. He watched me expectantly but before I had a chance to do anything with it, snatched it back, muttering something about not being right. He rummaged some more, occasionally picking up a box momentarily before thrusting it back onto the shelf. I waited patiently, gazing around the room. I felt my eyes linger on one box every time I they passed over it, I didn't really know why but something about that particular box seemed to call out to me.
"Mr. Ollivander, what about this one?" I asked, walking up to the box. I felt him reach for it from behind me and take it down.
"A lovely choice Miss Latton," he commended. "Willow and unicorn hair, eleven and a quarter-inch. Very Swishy." He handed me the wand and watched me expectantly. I held it gently, focusing on the warmth radiating from the handle where I touched it. It felt wonderful, like I'd found a small part of myself in this wand.
"Odd," Ollivander whispered. I looked at him curiously. "How did you know?" He asked in the same whisper. Thinking about it, I realized I had no idea. My mind had been blank and I simply picked a box that felt… right.
"I don't know." But how had I known? Mr. Ollivander was right, it was odd that I was able to find my wand and I was sure that few others were able to do so.
"No matter," he interjected, "You have your wand, and again I must say it is a lovely choice." He gave me a wary smile, still baffled by my ability to find my wand. He shuffled to his spot behind the counter.
"Seven Galleons and three Sickles." I counted out the amount and handed the money to him over the counter.
"Found your wand already?" I turned to see Aunt Rachel and Uncle Jack walking through the door. I smiled at them and nodded, noticing an ash colored, furry mass in my aunt's arms. The cat looked up at me, its amber eyes twinkling, even in the dim lighting of the shop.
"She's. So. Sweet." I gasped, rushing over to scratch her behind the ears. She purred happily.
"We're glad you like her, she's yours." Uncle Jack said. This fact had already clicked but I was, nonetheless, speechless. I hugged them both and nuzzled my new cat.
"Thank you," I whispered in their ears. I turned back to Mr. Ollivander and muttered my thanks and left with my aunt, uncle and supplies in tow.
The rest of the week was comfortable and quiet; Uncle Jack and Aunt Rachel took the week off work so we could spend some time together before I left for school. I spoke with my friends at one point and told them I was going to a boarding school in northern Britain, but that was all I told them. The night before my departure my aunt, uncle, and I went out for dinner and saw a musical in London. I lay in my bed with Bay, my new cat, content. I thought about tomorrow, when I would be getting on the train for Hogwarts, and I felt my stomach flutter with excitement. I drifted off to sleep, and dreamt of magic spells, strange occurrences and a cat with ice grey eyes.