I AM A WIZARD
Cedric pushed open the doors of The Leaky Cauldron and stepped through before holding the doors open for his wife and children. Liam and Chloe Diggory's eyes glowed with fascination as they made their way through the dodgy little pub and out the back entrance.
Cedric took his wand out of his dark blue robes and with a flick of his wrist, the bricks in the brick wall standing before the Diggory family gave way to form a passageway that was already bustling with Wizarding families searching for school supplies.
As the twins' eyes widened, Cedric said to them, "Welcome to Diagon Alley, guys. This is the only place in London where you're going to find everything you need for your years at Hogwarts."
Cedric wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders as the twins led the way into Diagon Alley. Their first stop was the cauldron shop where they quickly purchased two pewter, standard size 2 cauldrons as the supplies list mentioned. The twins scurried next door to Eeylops Owl Emporium for one of the most exciting things that they got to buy on their trip. Liam searched through the cages at the assortment of owls hooting softly at him as he walked by.
"Can I pick any one of them, Dad?" Liam asked Cedric, turning to look at his father.
Cedric nodded. "Your grandmum and granddad let me pick out the owl I wanted from here when I first went to Hogwarts, so of course you can do the same."
"Mummy, I want a kitty like Crookshanks!" Chloe told her mum excitedly after searching through the owls briefly and not finding one that suited her.
"Very well, dear. We'll make a stop at the Magical Menagerie later," Hermione told her daughter, smiling at her. Chloe had always been fond of Crookshanks since she was a very small girl and it didn't surprise Hermione at all that she would rather have a cat than an owl.
Liam finally settled on a grey and white Hawk Owl. A small, but fast bird that would work well for the young boy and Cedric paid the shopkeeper before the family moved on to the magical instruments shop next door. There, the twins purchased their telescopes, crystal phials, and brass scales that were necessary for their trip to Hogwarts. As Cedric paid, Liam went to stand next to his father.
"Dad?"
Cedric looked down at his son and ruffled his messy dirty blonde locks that looked just like Cedric's own.
"What is it, Liam?" he asked, smiling.
"How about Aristides?"
"Aristides? What's that?" Cedric asked him, a look of confusion sweeping across his face.
"My owl. Aristides. Mum says he was a hero in Muggle Greek mythology that was respected everywhere for his fairness and leadership."
"That's very intellectual of you, Liam," Cedric told him. "Sound like your mum already, son."
Liam smiled proudly. "I'm alright with that, Dad."
Cedric noticed Liam had a bit more of a bounce in his step after he had paid the child the compliment. The next shop they passed was Quality Quidditch Supplies. There, Cedric stopped to look at all the new equipment out in the window and was surprised to see Chloe do the same.
"Daddy, do you think one day I could play Quidditch?" she asked him as they both looked in the window.
"I would be so proud of you if you did, Clo," Cedric said before he bent down and said in a mock whisper, "Let's just hope you're more like your old Dad on a broom than your Mummy."
He smiled as Chloe giggled and Hermione slapped him playfully on the arm before trudging on to the stationery shop.
After they had gotten enough quills, ink, and parchment to last a lifetime, the Diggorys stepped into the doorway of Flourish and Blotts. The bookstore was bustling with activity. It seemed that every Wizarding family in Britain was in the bookshop at that very moment and it wasn't long before they ran into Neville and Nathan Longbottom.
"Well, if it isn't the Diggorys," Neville said pleasantly in greeting.
Hermione gave Neville and Nathan a hug as Cedric shook Neville's hand and the twins greeted Nathan excitedly.
"Just getting stuff for the first trip to Hogwarts, then?" Hermione asked Nathan. The young boy who reminded Hermione of Neville the first time she had met him nodded vigorously, clearly excited.
"Us, too," Liam cut in. It wasn't long before the three children were wrapped up in their own conversation and the adults in theirs.
"Where is Ginny?" Hermione asked Neville.
"Down at the shop with the twins. Nate and I are meeting her there later and then she's going to go with us to pick up the important things: a wand, an animal, and Nate's first Hogwarts robes. Exciting day, isn't it?" Neville said, looking as if he were about to explode from excitement himself.
"Absolutely," Cedric agreed as he paid for the books that the twins needed. "It was nice seeing you Neville, but we'd best be going. Got two children to shop for, you know?"
Neville nodded in understanding as the twins said goodbye and the four Diggorys headed out the door.
"Daddy? Can we go see Uncle Fred and Uncle George?" Chloe asked him.
"At the shop?" Hermione asked, shooting a sceptical look at Cedric. Cedric knew how his wife felt about the Weasley twins' joke shop and was afraid that saying yes might get him in trouble.
He thought about his answer before answering with, "We'll see."
The twins, however, seemed satisfied with the answer and continued to traipse through Diagon Alley to the next shop: Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occassions. With the help of their parents, the twins selected a few sets of plain black robes and the pointed hats to match and they were soon ready to head to The Magical Menagerie. Chloe was already antsy and Hermione knew that she wanted her own pet as Liam had gotten earlier.
Chloe searched among the cages of cats while Cedric picked out their dragonhides gloves that they would need at school. Hermione went to catch up to her daughter.
"Did you find something, love?" she asked her, pushing her daughter's wavy dirty blonde hair out of her face.
Chloe stopped in front of a cage that contained a kitten whose body was almost entirely black except for its underside and paws which were snow white.
"I like this one, Mummy," Chloe told her mother, looking up at her.
"This is a fine cat, dear," the shopkeeper, a small but round woman, told her. "She's just come in the other day."
The little girl giggled as the woman put the kitten in her arms and it purred softly.
"Bit different from Crookshanks, eh, Chloe?" Cedric said with a laugh from the check out counter.
"Daddy, can I have her?" Chloe asked her father expectantly.
Cedric nodded as the woman rung up his total and he paid and Liam helped Chloe place the kitten in a carrier.
"What're you going to name her, Clo?" Liam asked his sister.
"I dunno, yet, Liam. I've just gotten her. Give me a bit. I'll think of something great," she told him matter-of-factly.
Liam laughed as he hoisted the carrier off the counter and carried the kitten's cage for his sister as they continued down the road. Liam and Chloe both looked at their parents pleadingly as they passed Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.
"We'll go back after we've gotten your wands at Ollivander's," Cedric reasoned with his children and they seemed satisfied with this idea as they followed their parents to Ollivander's. They were greeted by a man who introduced himself as Vaughn Ollivander, the grandson of the Mr. Ollivander that Cedric and Hermione had purchased their wands from.
"So you two are going to be starting at Hogwarts, eh?" Vaughn asked conversationally as he began to search through the many wands around the shop. The twins said they were.
"Twins, I expect?" Vaughn asked them.
"Yes, we are," Liam spoke up.
"The children of two very important people in the Wizarding World. Did you know that?" he asked them. The twins shook their heads.
"Your father, Cedric Andrew Diggory was one of the champions of the last Triwizard Tournament, right before the Dark Lord returned and the Second Wizarding War began," Vaughn told them, still rifling around the store, but glancing back at the twins' awed expressions occasionally. He continued, "And your mum, Hermione Jane Granger, she was one of the trio who fought in the Final Battle against the Dark Lord. Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and the great Harry Potter."
"Uncle Harry works at Hogwarts now," Chloe supplied.
Vaughn laughed softly and nodded at the little girl as he finally settled on a wand and brought it over to her.
"Yes, he does. Harry Potter has been famous since he was born, dear. And your mum and Ron Weasley are now famous with him. Not many people could bring down the Dark Lord after Dumbledore died, but without your mum and Mr. Weasley, who knows what would have become of the legendary Harry Potter?"
The twins were fascinated by Vaughn's story as he bent down and handed the girl a wand.
"Try this one, Miss Diggory. Maple, nine and one half inches, and a core of a unicorn hair."
Chloe took the wand in her hand waved it tentatively. Things began to pop out of boxes and around corners, but the wand glowed eerily in her hand. Vaughn looked around and laughed before saying, "Well, Miss Diggory, strangely enough, it seems to be the right wand for you, but it seems that it'll get you into a fair amount of mischief."
Chloe giggled happily and said, "Just like Uncle Fred and Uncle George!"
"Oh lovely," Hermione said under her breath as Cedric laughed.
"And now, Mr. Diggory, we must find one for you," Vaughn said as he turned back to the wand racks and Chloe tucked the wand behind her ear, a trait that reminded Hermione of Luna Lovegood.
Vaughn searched through the boxes rather quickly and pulled one out.
"Try this one, Mr. Diggory. Oak, eleven and one half inches, and a core of a phoenix feather."
Liam waved it boldly and things began to fly about the shop as the wand fell to the ground. The Diggorys and Vaughn recovered from the unexpected result as Vaughn said, "No, no, that's definitely not it."
He went back the rows of wands and pulled out another. Handing it to the boy, he said, "Alright Mr. Diggory, give this one a try. Cherry wood, ten and one quarter inch, and a core of a dragon's heartstring."
Liam took the wand and it glowed in his hand as a few pages in a book nearby began to flip rapidly. Liam handed the wand back to the shopkeeper.
"This one can't be it. Nothing happened like when Chloe held hers," he said sadly to Vaughn.
"No, no, Mr. Diggory. Not everyone has to have things fly about when the right wand is placed in their hand. Didn't you see? Something did happen. That book right there began flipping its pages. I certainly didn't do that. That, Mr. Diggory, was you. This is your wand, young man."
Liam smiled as he accepted this fact and thanked the shopkeeper before sticking his wand into the inside pocket of his jacket. After they had paid for the wands, the Diggorys made their way to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. Chloe grabbed her mother's hand as she spoke to Hermione.
"Mummy, I think I know a name for my cat."
"What's that, love?" Hermione asked her.
"Morgana. She was the first Chocolate Frog card I ever got and it's a pretty name, don't you think?" Chloe asked her mother, looking up at her.
Hermione thought about it. Morgana was the half-sister of King Arthur and had possessed great skills as a Healer. Hermione found this name to be an acceptable one and told her daughter so as Chloe smiled happily before running to her brother and telling him the name she had chosen as Cedric pushed open the door to the shop and Hermione hustled the twins inside.
"Well, if it isn't our favourite customers," Fred Weasley shouted jovially at the twins. George and Ginny both looked up from what they were doing to smile at the Diggorys as they made their way over to the front counter. Fred slapped his godson with a high-five as Ginny gave him a hug and George hugged his goddaughter.
"What can we do for you guys today?" George asked the twins.
"No, no, George. None of your crazy products are going to find their way into my children's hands quite yet," Hermione scolded him, putting a hand on each of her kids' shoulders.
Cedric laughed as he said to his wife, "You know they're going to be purchasing this stuff on their own pretty soon."
"Well, as long as I have control still, I'm not letting the Weasleys influence my children," Hermione told them. The twins whined in protest and the Weasleys behind the counter laughed.
"When you're older, you can buy all the crazy products that your Uncles and Aunt Ginny sells. Just don't tell me about it," Hermione laughed.
The twins smiled at each other before smiling at the Weasleys. They continued a friendly conversation until dusk began to fall and the Diggorys said their goodbyes, insisting that they had to get home.
As the Diggorys trudged into their house after a short dinner, there weren't even any protests as the twins climbed the stairs and sleepily got into their pyjamas and climbed into bed. Cedric and Hermione tucked the twins in and kissed them both on the head before turning out the lights in each of their rooms and shutting the door.
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In the blink of an eye, it was September first, and the Diggory twins were about to board the Hogwarts Express for their first trip to Hogwarts. Hermione knelt down and buttoned up Chloe's coat, giving her daughter a kiss on the cheek.
"Have a lovely time, dear," Hermione told her. "I'll see you in a couple days."
Chloe nodded and hugged her mother around her neck before Hermione moved on and said the same thing to her son. Chloe, who had always been a bit more of a daddy's girl ran into her father's arms and kissed him on the cheek.
"I'm going to miss you, Daddy!" Chloe said, a tear rolling down her cheek.
"Don't worry, love. You'll be home for your birthday and I'll see you then. And I'm sure I'll see you when I come visit Mummy, okay?"
Chloe nodded sadly and it tore Cedric apart inside to have to set her back onto her feet and let her board the train.
Hermione was speaking to her son, telling him to take care of his sister if he could and stay out of trouble before she stood back up and it was Cedric's turn to say goodbye. Cedric gave his son an affectionate hug and ruffled his hair before giving him a high five.
"Stay out of trouble, Liam," Cedric warned, "but don't be too good, eh?"
Liam giggled and nodded as he took his and Chloe's trunk before allowing her to board the train ahead of him. Chloe carefully held Aristides' cage in one hand and Morgana's in the other as Liam followed her inside the train. They hung out the window and waved goodbye to Cedric and Hermione as the train steamed away.
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"C'mon, Chloe, we can get an empty compartment further down, I reckon," Liam said, gesturing down the hall with his head. Chloe led the way until she stopped and saw Nathan Longbottom in a compartment and he was waving at the twins before he opened the door and said, "You guys can sit with me!"
Chloe stepped inside and sat down as Liam and Nathan hoisted the trunks onto the racks overhead. Just as the twins were getting settled in their seats and Morgana had curled herself up in Chloe's lap, the compartment door opened again and a girl with long red hair reminiscent of Ginny Weasley's poked her head in. Olivia Weasley's hair was done up in a high ponytail and she carried her trunk and her brown barn owl as came through the door.
"Mind if a few of us join you?" she asked.
"Not at all," Nate said cheerily. Olivia smiled and placed her things on the racks before she waved her friends in. Jamie Wood, a girl with shoulder-length light brown hair entered with her owl and trunk and sat down next to Olivia.
"Hey, Bridge said she was coming as soon as she checked in with the other Prefects," Jamie told Olivia. Olivia nodded and gestured towards the other kids in the compartment.
"Jamie, this is Nate Longbottom, Chloe Diggory, and Liam Diggory. They're all first years," she explained.
"Oh, hi! Sorry, you must think me terribly rude for not having introduced myself. I'm Jamie Wood, Gryffindor fourth year like Olivia, here."
"Wood?" Nate asked, "You mean, like Oliver Wood?"
"Yeah, that's my dad. He plays for Puddlemere United now. My mum though, she's flying instructor and Quidditch ref at Hogwarts."
"Do you play Quidditch?" Chloe asked excitedly.
Jamie nodded and said, "I play Keeper, Olivia plays Beater. Both her dad and my dad played Keeper and Beater together when they were at school, actually."
Chloe was fascinated with the older girls as they talked about the House Quidditch teams and all the exciting games that they had been in as the boys played Exploding Snap and other games and the Hogwarts Express steamed toward Scotland. They were interrupted again when a tall, pretty girl with strawberry blonde hair came into the compartment. Bridgette Weasley was already wearing her Hufflepuff school robes with her shiny Prefects badge attached to it.
"Hey, girls," she greeted Olivia and Jamie, "It took me forever to find you guys."
She greeted the other kids, remembering them from when they had played together as children and told them to put on their robes as they were coming up on Hogsmeade Station.
Before long, the train came to a stop and there was a great amount of activity as Chloe placed Morgana back in her carrier and the older girls grabbed their trunks. As the younger children went to reach for theirs as well, Bridgette said to them, "Oh, don't worry about it. You'll get them later. You need to meet Hagrid outside for the boat ride."
Liam took Chloe's hand protectively as the three of them made their way outside and toward the huge figure that was Rubeus Hagrid.
"First years this way!" he bellowed kindly as the many new children gathered around him. Hagrid led the way to the small boats on the Black Lake and Nate, Chloe, and Liam climbed into the first one with Hagrid.
"Well, hullo there, kids. I know you all," he said to the three of them happily. "Bet you didn't know that, did you?" Hagrid winked at them.
"You," he said, pointing at Nate, "Are Neville and Ginny's son, aren't you?"
Nate nodded and smiled before Hagrid turned to Chloe and Liam and said, "And you two…you two are the twins of Cedric and Hermione aren't you?"
Liam and Chloe nodded, laughing because Hagrid seemed very pleased with his accuracy.
"Hope you two don't cause a stir like those Weasley twins. Though I must admit, they were very fun to watch in action," Hagrid told them.
This conversation had taken them all the way to the other side of the lake and Hagrid helped the children out of the boats one by one as they made their way up to Hogwarts Castle for the very first time.
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Hagrid knocked on the door to the castle three times with his meaty fist and the door opened to reveal a stern-looking woman in emerald green robes.
"The first years are here, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said to her with a smile.
"Thank you, Hagrid," she said to the giant before she turned to the students and said, "Follow me please."
The first years followed her nervously and Liam whispered to Chloe, "That's Mum's boss."
Chloe nodded as she looked at the famous old witch in awe and they made their way to a pair of huge doors. Professor McGonagall stopped and turned toward the group of students as she spoke, "Welcome to Hogwarts. The Welcome Feast will be starting shortly, but before you join your classmates in the Great Hall behind me, you must be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because your house will be like your family while you are at Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitories, and spend free time in your house common room.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each of these houses has their own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you points for your house, while any rule-breaking will cause you to lose points for your house. At the end of the year, the house with the most points will be awarded the house cup, which is a great honour.
"The Sorting Ceremony will begin shortly in front of the rest of the school."
With that, Professor McGonagall disappeared inside the Great Hall and the first years began to buzz with excitement.
"I read all about the different houses from some of Mum's old books, you know," Liam told his sister. "I hope we get into the same one."
"I hope so too," Chloe said with a smile as she ran her fingers through her wavy hair and straightened her robes.
Just as they were fixing themselves up a bit, the doors opened again and Professor McGonagall appeared again. She looked at the new students pointedly before saying with a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, "We're ready for you."
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