4: The Leaky Cauldron
Rosie nervously paced around the house on the following Wednesday morning. She was very prepared for the day ahead; she wore her green cargo pants, a faded pink t-shirt shirt with a pocket on the front, and yellow high-tops. Her hair was gathered up in a bun and wrapped in an orange ribbon. Her red canvas backpack was stocked with The Very Old Book and The Moving Picture and her plastic botany lunchbox, just in case.
"Rosie, please stop pacing around," Grandmother said exasperatedly, "Renny won't be here for another hour, why don't you go play in the park while you wait."
Rosie was shooed out of the kitchen door and set into the woods. She decided to visit the chipmunk she had been feeding. She dutifully set the timer on her digital watch so she would be back on time. The chipmunk was getting used to her, Rosie thought, he would come within a few feet of her to get the sunflower seeds she brought for him. Soon, he might eat right out of her hand. Mom would be irritated, she always said that you must leave wild animals alone.
Her watched beeped and Rosie jumped up and ran back to the house. Renny was already there, waiting for her.
"Ready to go little cousin?" He asked, eyes twinkling. He was wearing yet another yellow shirt, but with a pattern of darker yellow flowers.
Rosie nodded eagerly and bid her grandparents goodbye. The two of them set off to the train station, a ten minute walk away. Rosie looked out the window all the way to London, watching the farms and villages slowly turn into suburbs, until they were in the heart of the city. A tube ride later, the cousins emerged on Charing Cross Road.
The usually busy road was in the midst of the post-lunch lull and Rosie quickly spotted the Cafe Paris.
"It's there Renny!" She pointed, "Let's go!" Rosie set off towards the cafe quickly, nearly leaving Renny behind until he grabbed her hand and looked at her sternly.
"No solo adventures today Rosie," he said, "you must stay close to me, this is a very big city for a girl, no matter how competent you are."
She assented and held his hand as they manoeuvred down the street together. His presence was comforting, London was a much bigger city than Victoria.
The cafe was small and drab, with hotel-style artwork and metal tables and chairs. It was completely empty except for the barista behind the counter, a young woman with a bored look. Rosie found a table to sit at in the back corner and Renny ordered drinks and croissants.
Rosie had just started digging into her chocolate pastry and bottle of orange Fanta when a bizarre looking man entered.
'This must be Mr. Wallington,' she thought. He was very tall and thin, his bright blonde hair balding in the back and was wearing a white suit with a purple cravat and a matching purple briefcase. Rosie stood up and gestured over. Mr. Wallington looked at her and smiled as he walked over.
"Miss Shepherd, I presume?" He said.
"Yes, Mr. Wallington," she offered her hand, "it is very nice to meet you sir."
"Splendid, splendid, splendid," he said. He sat down after shaking Renny's hand. Renny passed him a cappuccino he had already ordered and Mr. Wallington took it with a gracious smile.
"Now, Miss Shepherd," he began, "why don't you tell me all about this book of yours."
Rosie undid the buckle on her backpack and pulled out The Very Old Book. Both Renny and Mr. Wallington looked at it with palpable curiosity.
Rosie explained, "I found it in my mom's old room. I know it's really old and probably rare." She glanced at her cousin, "Renny couldn't find any other copies and he's a Librarian." She opened the book to the first page.
"The title is in English, but the rest of the book is written in these strange symbols. I want to know what the book is about. I think it's a fairy tale."
"May I?" Mr. Wallington gestured towards the book, Rosie nodded. Mr. Wallington picked it up carefully and ran his fingers on the cover and slowly flipped through the pages.
"Extraordinary!" He exclaimed, "this must be one of the oldest editions!" He continued to carefully look through it. "You have a real treasure on your hands here." He looked at her with delight. "However, I can't tell you anything about it," he finally said, "I wish I could."
"What do you mean?" enquired Rosie in a huff, trying to keep her tone polite, "if you know, sir, why can't you say?"
Mr. Wallington adjusted his gold, wire rimmed glasses and said, "How old are you Miss Shepherd?"
"Ten," Rosie said, wondering what that had to do with anything.
"I want you to go outside and cross the street, look for a restaurant called The Leaky Cauldron. The owner there might be able to tell you something about the book. Her name is Mrs. Longbottom." Mr. Wallington said, "But, if you can't find the restaurant, and you still haven't figured out the book on your next birthday, then I think you should find a new project." He added with a wink, "some things are meant to stay a mystery, you know."
Rosie felt cheated and frustrated. She had come all this way, only to be told what her mother always said, 'some things are unknowable Rosie-girl,' she could hear Mom telling her. Thinking of something else that might intrigue Mr. Wallington and maybe loosen his tongue, Rosie decided to reveal her other secret about Mom. She knew there had be a connection between The Moving Picture and The Very Old Book. Rosie reached back into her bag and opened a zipped pocket inside and pulled out The Moving Picture.
"I have something else," she began slowly and revealed The Moving Picture to the two men. Renny gasped, "Rosie," he said, "what in the world?"
Mr. Wallington took the picture of Mom and Redboy and looked at it for a few moments. He then looked at Rosie for a long time, closely observing her features, her small nose and lips, freckled skin and large hazel eyes. "Is this your mother, Miss Shepherd?" He finally asked.
"Yes," Rosie replied promptly, "but I don't know who that boy is. It looks like he was her boyfriend or something."
"Indeed," Mr. Wallington said slowly, "I'm afraid I can't help you." He stood up suddenly, "I would keep that picture to yourself young lady. Best not show it to anyone else," his tone suddenly brusque. "I must go," he said, standing up and looking directly at her, "find the Leaky Cauldron, and don't forget what I said about that photograph."
Before Rosie knew it, he was out the door and gone.
"Well, well, little cousin. You certainly are full of secrets aren't you?" Renny said as the door swung shut behind Mr. Wallington.
"What do you think this picture is Renny? I've never seen anything like it." Rosie said with a plea. "It doesn't make any sense, does it?"
"No, it does not." Renny said, "I'm afraid I can't help you at all Rosie, it is exceedingly curious." He looked closely at the picture. "It's almost like magic, isn't it?"
Rosie nodded her agreement, that's what she thought too, Magic had been on her mind for weeks. "I thought magic was just in stories," she said, "it's not real."
Renny put his arm around the girl, "the world is a very strange place, Rosie." Renny said, "there are all kinds of things that we will never understand. Perhaps magic is real."
Rosie thought about Mom, gone forever, and the shimmering white flowers in the woods.
Rosie and Renny left the cafe and walked onto the street. Rosie saw it immediately; directly across the street, looking like it had no business being there at all, was a dingy restaurant. The sign over the door had a black cauldron painted on it.
"The Leaky Cauldron!" Rosie exclaimed. She assumed Mr. Wallington was talking nonsense, as he had been incredibly unhelpful. It was there though, tucked between two much nicer buildings. "Renny! It's there! I thought Mr. Wallington was full-of-it. But it's there!" She quickly said.
"Rosie, slow down. What's there?" Renny looked at where she was pointing with confusion.
Rosie looked at Renny, "you don't see it?" She pointed again, "look, there," she said, "The Leaky Cauldron. It's real!"
Renny scanned his eyes across the street, not resting his gaze on anything. "I don't see it Rosie," he said, he looked a bit concerned now. The day's mysteries were getting a bit heavy at this point. "Perhaps we should continue on to the book fair," he suggested.
"No! It's there. I promise." And she ran across the street into the restaurant.
Renny watched his cousin dart away from his grasp and across the street. Before he could retrieve her, she was gone. He frantically looked around, calling her name.
"Rosie! Rosie! Where are you?" He yelled over and over.
People on the streets started looking at him, a crowd began to form. A tall man with a long coat approached him.
"Sir, please calm down. You are making a scene." He firmly stated.
"No, you don't understand!" Renny exclaimed, "my cousin, a little girl, disappeared."
"Where did you last see her?" The tall man asked.
"Here, right here. She was going on about the Leaky Cauldron and ran across the street. Then she was gone."
"Okay, follow me." The tall man grabbed Renny's arm and pulled him through a doorway. Renny yelped. That door was not there a minute ago. He assessed his surroundings, he was in a restaurant. Rosie was sitting at the bar, listening intently to the server, she was fine. He let out a huge breath of relief. There were a pair of men sitting in lounge chairs by a small fireplace. They both wore the strangest clothes; huge black dresses and pointed hats. Renny had a feeling deep in his stomach that he was not supposed to be here. After thanking the man, he walked over to Rosie.
"Rosie! You scared me half to death," he lectured, "you can't just disappear like that!"
Rosie looked properly chastised, "I'm sorry!" She exclaimed, "I'm really sorry, I thought you were right behind me!"
"I clearly was not! You have been gone for nearly ten minutes, didn't you notice I wasn't here?"
Rosie looked down shamefacedly, "I'm really sorry, I won't do it again," she promised, "I got really distracted, Hannah was telling me all about The Hopping Pot!"
"Let's get going now," Renny said firmly, interrupting her. He wanted to get out of that strange place as soon as he could.
"Can we still go to the book fair?" Rosie asked hopefully.
They went back down to the tube to get to the book fair. Renny relented and decided to continue with the day's agenda, but sat silently, contemplating the strangeness of the afternoon. Rosie sat grumpily, like a child who knew she had misbehaved. Rosie tentatively tried to bring up what she had discovered at the Leaky Cauldron as they got off the escalators.
"Renny, I talked to this lady called Hannah at the Leaky Cauldron, she knew all about Beetle the Bard," she began. Just then a man bumped directly into them, causing Renny to drop his leather briefcase. All his papers fell everywhere.
"Oh dear, I'm very sorry about that chap," the clumsy man said. He was wearing an impeccable suit and Rosie saw that he carried a strange stick that he had partially hidden in his suit jacket.
Renny muttered, "not a problem," as he bent over on his hands and knees to collect all his documents.
Rosie bent over to pick up a piece of paper, when she saw it. The clumsy man pointed that strange stick directly at Renny. The clumsy man then looked at her and said seriously, "You'll be keeping all this quiet then, won't ya?"
Rosie frowned at the man as he walked away, and continued to help Renny pick up his things. "Renny, did you see the stick that man had? What do you think that was all about?" Her cousin stood up with a glazed look in his eyes. He looked around confusedly for several minutes.
"Renny?" Rosie said softly, "are you okay?"
"Rosie!" He exclaimed, as if seeing her for the first time that day, "Let's continue on, shall we? Book fairs wait for no man!" He cheerfully stated. Rosie stared at him.
"Or woman," he added cheekily. His smile dropped as he saw the panic in Rosie's eyes.
"Rosie, what's wrong?" he asked, bending down to be on her level.
She tried again, "that man, the one who bumped into you, did you see the stick he had?"
"A stick?" He said, "Perhaps it was a cane to help him walk?" She shook her head. No, it was not that kind of stick.
"I think he followed us," Rosie said, "from the Leaky Cauldron. I'm pretty sure I saw him there."
"The Leaky Cauldron? What a fantastic name!" Renny said, and jokingly added, "What kind of establishment is that? A broken toilet store?"
"Don't you remember?" Rosie asked, fear creeping into her voice, "we went there after we met with Mr. Wallington?"
"Rosie, I really don't know what you are talking about." Renny said, concerned for the girl in his care. "Perhaps you are a bit confused."
Rosie shook her head and took his hand, opting to be silent as she tried to understand everything that had happened. They walked to the book fair where Renny tried his best to make her laugh and allowed her to pick out twenty new books to stock in the library. Rosie picked them out half-heartedly and was relieved when Renny dropped her off at home a few hours later.
Grandfather came to tuck her in that night, "Rosie," he said, "I just got off the phone with Renny. He said that you were upset today. Would you like to talk about it?"
Rosie sat up in her bed and thought about telling Grandfather everything: The Moving Picture, The Very Old Book, Mr. Wallington, The Leaky Cauldron and Renny's memory loss. She didn't say anything, if that man could take Renny's memory so easily, what could he do to Grandfather? Rosie didn't know what else that stick could do. That man warned her to stay quiet, so she would.
"No," Rosie said, "It's nothing." Grandfather stroked her hair and climbed onto her bed, holding her for awhile.
"Grandfather?" Rosie said, "Did Mom ever tell you about the Hopping Pot?" Maybe Grandfather already knew, she thought hopefully.
"The Hopping Pot?" He said, "No I'm afraid she never did, what is it?"
Rosie sighed, "nothing, just a story I found. It doesn't matter."
"Alright darling," Grandfather tucked her tightly into bed, "have a good sleep."
He left the room and clicked off the light. Rosie lay awake, her head spinning and spinning and spinning. She suddenly felt angry with Mom. She knew all about this! She knew about the Hopping Pot and the Moving Picture and never told Rosie anything! Rosie turned over onto her other side fretfully, Mom knew about Magic.
Rosie didn't fall asleep for a very long time.
Unknown to Rosie, Grandfather, and Grandmother, a wizard called Harry Potter sat in the garden that night underneath the pear tree, crying softly late into the night.