Hey! So, second fanfic on this site for me, exciting! I know I haven't finished the Wanderer quite yet, but don't worry! It's my first priority! This story is a collaboration with my friend who is unfortunately not on this site, so I volunteered to post it for both of us. This is, obviously, a Hogwarts fanfiction. The chapters switch POV throughout the story, but I'll put who's talking so you don't get confused.
Neither I nor my friend owns the rights to Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling owns all familiar characters. Kiera (My OC), Blyana (Friend's OC), their parents, and a few other characters belong to me and my friend.
Please do enjoy and review!
KIERA
I was not brooding the afternoon I received my Hogwarts letter; I was simply deep in thought whilst angry with my guardian. Said guardian was in the basement, probably concocting some poison for whatever reason. It was probably wise to remain well away from me due to my abrupt early awakening. I've been told I'm a complete monster when awoken early. It was probably true.
Before I could angrily stare at the old fashioned stove any more, a pecking of glass alerted me to the brown owl at the window seal. Used to the arrival of such creatures, I opened the window for the bird and it swooped in. I noticed a letter tightly clenched in its beak, so once it had settled on the counter, I took the letter and gave the feathered animal a treat as a reward.
Upon the letter were my name and my exact address. Turning it over, I found the Hogwarts seal. I couldn't help but smile. It was finally here. My acceptance letter to Hogwarts and my ticket to magical learning.
I clambered from my chair with a lack of grace that would have earned me scolding from my guardian, but I didn't care; I was far too excited to do so. The owl, surprised by my sudden movement, squawked annoyingly, then flew off through the window.
"What was that?" My guardian called up from the basement where his lab was located. I didn't hear his footsteps up the stairs, so it clearly wasn't important enough to stop his brewing.
"Letter to Hogwarts came," I yelled back at him. I waited, but he didn't come into the kitchen, despite my exciting announcement. Obviously not important enough for him.
I quickly ripped the letter open and eagerly read the words contained within. I skipped over the introduction and looked at the date school began. September 1st. That was soon. I would have to hurry with getting supplies and whatnot. But I was thrilled nonetheless.\
The very next day, I decided to take my trip to Diagon Alley, the shopping district of the wizard or witch of England. My guardian couldn't come with me; we weren't allowed to be seen together in public due to some, uh… unfortunate circumstances. But it was fine by me; I definitely didn't need him leering over my shoulder at every shop.
Taking some floo powder we kept next to the fireplace in the sitting room, I threw it into the fire and stepped into the flames as they turned green. "Diagon Alley," I said forcefully, pronouncing every syllable to avoid ending up in the wrong fireplace. With a flash of green light and a tug, I landed in the Leaky Cauldron. I stepped out of the fireplace in a daze, the many fireplaces that flashed by while traveling by floo always made me quite dizzy.
Once the dizziness faded, I took a look at the old pub while dusting the ash off my royal purple robes. It was dark, much like my own home, but much filthier. Multiple tables riddled the room and a bar with a man cleaning glasses behind the bar was what decorated the main room. Stairs led upstairs, but that was not my destination today. I briskly walked past the few people that sat at the tables and made my way to the bar. Due to the fact I did not yet have a wand, I would have to have the landlord open up the entrance to the alley for me.
"Excuse me," I said politely, though slightly annoyed as the bartender still ignored me to talk to one of the men at the bar. "Excuse me." This time I was louder and caught the bartender, Tom's, attention.
"Ahh, what can I do for you, little miss?" He leaned over the bar and looked at me as though I didn't stand higher than the stools. I wasn't that short.
"I need you to open the entrance to Diagon Alley for me," I told him rather shortly.
"Don't ya have an adult or something to do it for you?" He asked suspiciously.
"No, he couldn't make it. Now, entrance, please." My tone was ruder before and that seemed to spur the landlord into action. He leads me to the back door, into a courtyard surrounded by stone. He took his wand out with an unnecessary flourish and began to tap the stones in a practiced manner. The tapping seemed random, but I had been to the alley enough times to know it was a pattern and very important to get your shopping done.
When the landlord finished his tapping, the bricks on the wall moved out of the way to reveal a long cobblestone alley. Shops lined the road with signs brightly displaying what lay inside, witches and wizards walked, or in some cases ran, up and down the road. I was glad to see it wasn't as crowded as it would have been closer to the beginning of September. Needless to say, I wasn't too thrilled to be around people, but I suppose I would have to get used to it once at Hogwarts.
I nodded curtly to Tom the landlord and quickly walked into the hustle and bustle of Diagon Alley. My first thought was to go to Ollivanders, but I had to go to Gringotts to extract money from the family vault. Unfortunately, it was at the very end of the walk and I would have to push through the large crowd to access the magical bank. I sincerely hoped I wouldn't run into anyone that knew me.
My less than average size made it difficult to rush past the eager shoppers, but I finally managed to climb the steps up to the marble building run by goblins. The smooth marble glistened in the afternoon sun, but I did not stay to admire the grandness of it. The goblin at the door grinned evilly at me as he opened the large doors. I ignored him and continued, though I found his grin quite creepy. Another set of doors opened and I was faced with the grand hall of the building with its many stalls for goblins to do business with you.
I walked up to the nearest available goblin and quietly coughed to get his attention. He looked up with a sneer on his face, unappreciative of the interruption.
"I would like to make a withdrawal from the Prince vault," I told him evenly, meeting the glare he had leveled at me.
"Do you have the key?" He growled. I nodded and took out said key from my robes.
"Grognok," the goblin at the counter said sharply. A smaller and less menacing goblin appeared in front of the counter and held out his hand for the key. I gave it to him without question, then he scampered off to lead me down into the deep vaults. Following swiftly, I was led into the dark caverns in which thousands of wizard vaults were located. I tried to gracefully jump into the cart that Grognok already sat in, but I managed to trip over the ledge and land headfirst into the carriage. I heard the goblin snort. Just my luck, getting laughed at by a goblin because of my clumsiness.
Luckily, my guardian did not risk waking me early today, otherwise, I may have snapped at the goblin. I settled into a seating position as Grognok pulled a lever and the cart began to race off down the rail. Despite myself, I gripped onto the sides of the cart as we descended lower and lower underground. As suddenly as the cart moved, it stopped and I jolted forward, barely stopping myself from smacking into the goblin.
Still a little shaky from the ride, I stumbled out of the cart and onto the solid rock in front of the family vault. Thankfully, the vault was old enough to be one of the first vaults ever given to wizards, so it was near the top of the deep cavern.
I straightened myself and watched as Grognok opened the vault. He placed the key in the keyhole and the door swung open after much creaking and groaning of magic. Inside was just as I expected. Several large piles of gold towered over the just as impressive towers of silver and bronze coins. My guardian kept the vault well stocked in case of emergency, though I don't know what emergency could arise that would require that much gold.
I took out a mokeskin pouch and began to scoop up as much coins that could fit in it, which was quite a lot due to the charm placed on it.
"I do believe that should be enough for this year and more," I muttered to myself. Despite adding so much to my own pouch, I barely made a dent in the piles and piles of money. I stood up and nimbly walked back outside the vault. The goblin closed, clambered into the cart, and we left, much to my relief. I didn't enjoy going underground all that much, but where else could you hide so many rooms full of money?
After reaching the surface and taking my key back from Grognok, I maneuvered my way through the streets to Ollivander's, the best wand shop in all of Britain. The grin on my face was clearly evident as I entered the old shop. I handed waited all my life to wield a wand, sure I had taken my guardians for a quick wave or two before, but it was nothing like owning your own wand. As I had heard and read many times in my life, the wand chooses the wizard.
Inside the shop, it was dark and stacks of black boxes littered the room. A few particular towers looked in danger of toppling over, so I avoided going near those as I walked in. A small counter and a few chairs was the only furniture. It was crowded and dusty, and I had to fight the urge to sneeze. On the counter was a small bell and as I looked around the shop, I couldn't see Ollivander amongst the tall towers of what I guessed to be wand boxes.
I decided it would be best to ring the bell and as soon as I did so, an old man popped up from the counter, making me jump. His frizzy, curly hair was stark white with age and it stuck up in every direction.
"Ahhh… you look to be a Prince, though I do see some Coltivire in you. Yes, yes. Rather odd combination, not to be expected though. I remember your mother. Quite a woman she was, maple wood, unicorn hair core, 12 inches, quite inflexible," the man rambled and I just stared at him. How could he remember my mother, she had received her wand years ago, and she was dead. "Never met your father though, rather hoped I would. Unfortunate squib, he was, but I suppose it would have been that muggle father of his."
"Wh-what?" I stammered, finally coming to my senses.
"Ah, yes! Kiera Snape, I believe?" He asked, seeming to forget everything he just said.
"Yeah, that's me, but you were talking about my parents?" I asked hopefully. I never heard anything about my parents, it might have been too painful for my guardian to discuss, or maybe too embarrassing.
"I was? Oh dear, rambling again, I suppose. Nothing to worry about, you're here to get a wand!" This man, Ollivander I think he was, was very confusing. Perhaps spending so much time alone making wands could do that to you. "Let me see, let me see. Measurements."
He took out his wand and flicked it at a tape measure that was on the counter. It sprung to life, unwound itself and began to measure my height, pinky size, forearm length, and so much more that seemed kind of useless to me. Ollivander watched the process, muttering to himself the whole time. I was quite sure he was a bit off his rocker.
"Right, right, that's enough of that. Don't get too eager," Ollivander shouted at the tape, which was currently measuring how long my hair was. It suddenly fell limp to the ground, lifeless.
"Hmmm… perhaps maple, like your mother. And maybe dragon heartstring…" the wizard trailed off, then disappeared into the back of the store. I felt awkward, standing alone in the dark store, but Ollivander came back soon with a black box.
"Try this, maple wood, dragon heartstring, 11 inches, swishy." He took a wand out of the box and gave it to me. "Give it a wave." I did so, and a bright burst of fire erupted from the tip of the wand, nearly setting Ollivander's hair on fire. He patted his head thoughtfully, putting out the fire, and took the wand back from me. "No, no. Much too temperamental."
He disappeared again, and when he came back a small jingling from the shops door rang through the shop. I didn't turn to see who had entered, I was too interested in this next wand Ollivander handed me. He didn't tell me what kind it was, so I picked it up. The wand suddenly grew red hot as it began to glow dangerously, and I dropped it with a yelp before it could burn me.
"Looks like that's not the right one either, let me look one more time." The old man shuffled behind the piles of boxes. "Now try this one." He gave me the next one. I cautiously picked up the wand, afraid it would burn me again.
The tip of the wand began to glow, as though I had just cast Lumos. My eyes grew wide as the wand started to vibrate slightly, but not in an uncomfortable way.
"This one is glowing, does that mean anything?" I asked excitedly. Perhaps this is the one, my wand.
"Indeed, indeed, an odd combination, just like you, my dear. Hawthorn wood, phoenix feather core, 13 inches and unyielding flexibility. Yes, yes, it fits you well. Quite well in fact. Seven galleons will be all," Ollivander jibbered. I reached into my pouch to grab the needed amount while Ollivander took my wand and put it into a box. I gave him the money and took the box from him, the excitement I had sent shivers down my spine and the small smile on my face expressed what words couldn't.
While I exited the shop I saw the person who had entered while I was trying out wands. She had the whitest hair, like freshly fallen snow, and I found it peculiar. I brushed it from my mind as I walked out into the open air; it wasn't anything all that important.
I breathed in a mouthful of fresh air, glad to be out of the dusty shop; I doubted Ollivander cleaned all that much, not that he would have much time I suppose. Before I ran off into the next shop, I took out the letter with the shopping list to see what else I needed. Three Sets of Plain Work Robes (Black), I read from the letter. I knew Madam Malkin's sold robes, so I hurried down the street to find the shop.
For July 31st, Diagon Alley was surprisingly busy, and it was a fact that I did not appreciate. I just sincerely hope I wouldn't have to talk to anyone I knew, not that there were many people who fit in that category, but they were all pains in the behind.
Finally, I made it to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, and just my luck, a pale boy with blond hair stepped out right as I was about to step in. I barely had enough time to put on an indifferent expression before the boy turned his eyes on me.
He recognized me almost immediately and his eyes narrowed. "Snape, what are you doing here?" The pale boy had a habit to call everyone by their last name, much like my dearest guardian.
"I'm simply shopping for school supplies, Malfoy," I answered him coldly, biting back a smart remark, one that would surely earn me a smack on the back of the head by my exasperated guardian.
"Then you shall be going to Hogwarts, I suppose," he sneered and I could tell he was having the same problem as I. Due to rather unfortunate circumstances, we weren't allowed to be rude to each other in front of adults. With one last menacing look at each other, Malfoy stalked off, his pointed nose held high. What I would give to punch that stupidly cute, no, not cute, smirk off his face.
I took a deep breath to calm my anger, then stepped into the robe shop. A boy, obviously in his first year as well from his short stature, stood on a pedestal as Madam Malkin took his measurements. She turned when I opened the door, then smiled when she saw who it was. I had often come to Madam Malkin's before, seeing how I had to purchase all my clothes by myself since it would look suspicious if my guardian bought them.
"Miss Snape, you'll be starting your first year, won't you?" Madam Malkin, a small witch in purple robes with gray hair, said happily at my entrance.
"Yes, madam. I'll be needing some robes, if it's not too much trouble," I told her politely. I always liked Madam Malkin, even though she was easily flustered with too much action.
"Not at all, dear. Just let me finish with this young man here and I'll be right with you," she said cheerily. I nodded and settled myself in one of the waiting chairs. Since I would have to wait, I decided to use this time to study the boy Madam Malkin was measuring. His messy black hair and glasses blocked the top half of his head, but I could clearly see the small frown on his face, obviously from his small encounter with Malfoy.
Madam Malkin finished quickly and the boy gladly stepped down from the stool. With a quick glance in my direction, the boy hurried out of the shop with a bundle of robes in his arms. After he left, I stepped onto the stool he had previously occupied. Madam Malkin made quick work of my measurements, magically made the robes, and sent me on my way with a small plate of my favorite cookies, oatmeal raisin, she had snuck into my arms along with my uniform and other things needed for my schooling.
I checked my list once more, then hurried to Flourish and Blotts for my books. I didn't wish to remain any longer in Diagon Alley, in fear of running into Draco Malfoy, or worse, his parents. After Flourish and Blotts, I gathered the other equipment needed, skipping over a cauldron since I already owned one. I was able to finish the rest of my shopping fast, and headed back to the Leaky Cauldron to return home.