"Where are we going Auntie?" Tom asked, his hand tightly held in Zia's, skipping along next to her. The air was chilly that day, and both of them wore coats and gloves. Zia was scanning buildings, looking from place to place, searching.

"Shopping, if I can find the place," she replied. "If you see a little pub called 'The Leaky Cauldron' that's where we need to go."

"Why?" he asked. She smiled down at him as they walked. Tom had started reading out loud to her a month before. She knew that it was going to happen before other children, and she really hadn't been surprised when he sat on her lap one evening and began reading to her about snakes shedding their skin. Then he began to ask her about everything. He wanted to know why the moon changed shapes, why Honovi didn't eat bread, why Zia didn't behave like other women sometimes, and he wanted to know about magic. The questions about magic were the kind Zia couldn't answer when he asked them, but she was determined to find him answers.

"Because if we go there, we can get some books that they don't sell in the bookshops we are used to," she answered.

"What kinds of books?" Zia squeezed his hand gently.

"Books about magic." His eyes lit up immediately, and she watched with amusement as his eyes darted from place to place, looking for the place where the promised books would be. He was always excited to learn more about magic, and she couldn't blame him. The world of Harry Potter had fascinated her since she was a child, and here she was, walking through London with little Tom Riddle clinging to her hand, looking for The Leaky Cauldron. It was strange to her in many ways, but in other ways it was as if she fit in perfectly, like she was supposed to be there. They turned the corner, and both she and Tom let out a soft gasp.

"There it is auntie," Tom whispered, pointing covertly to the shabby looking pub. He tugged her hand a little, impatient to get there. She allowed him to gently pull her along the street, and pressed her lips together over a smile at his intense determination to get there as fast as possible. They reached the door and she bent down and picked him up, balancing him against one hip as she opened the door.

The room was dimly lit, and there were wizards and witches scattered across the room, sitting at various tables. A few hushed conversations were punctuated by a couple loud ones, but nobody paid any attention to the two newcomers. She walked up to the counter.

"May I speak to Tom?" she asked. Little Tom turned his head questioningly to her, then to the man who approached them. He looked like he still had all his teeth, but his hair was certainly thinning.

"That's me," he said holding out his hand for her to shake. Zia took it and shook hands with him, noticing the brief look of irritation on her Tom's face. "What can I do for you?"

"We need to get into Diagon Alley, but I don't have a wand. Also, if there is a place where I can change Muggle money, could you give me directions?" she asked, realizing that she wasn't quite sure how this was done. The barman nodded and took them through to the back and then into the alleyway. Pulling out his own wand, he tapped the brick and the wall melted away to reveal a bright street crammed with shops.

"You can exchange Muggle money in that building there," he said, pointing to the imposing marble building that she was sure was Gringotts. "And…after you do that you may want to get yourself a new wand. Did yours break?"

"I was never fortunate enough to get one," she responded firmly, but politely. He looked confused, but didn't press the issue. "Thank you very much for your help," she said, smiling. He smiled back at her, and then went back to the Leaky Cauldron. "Alright, let's go get some money," she said to the child whose fingers were fisted around parts of her dress. She noted that they looked out of place walking along the street in their Muggle clothes while the other people passing them wore robes of various colors.

"Muggles are the people who don't have magic, right?" Tom asked, waiting for Zia to verify this.

"Yes they are," she confirmed. They reached the building and she saw the goblins standing on either side of the door.

"Enter, stranger, but take heed…of what awaits the sin of greed…for those who 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." Tom read the words quietly from the poem engraved into the doors, speaking into Zia's ear. She felt her skin prickle as the goblins scrutinized them with shrewd eyes, never looking away until they were inside the bank. She held Tom closer to her protectively, and walked over to one of the desks, looking warily at the goblin behind it.

"I'm here to exchange Muggle money," she stated, pulling out a purse full of money she had been saving up. The goblin nodded and took the purse, counting out the coins and bills, then replaced the contents with some coins. It was a quick transaction, and she was glad for that because the bank made her feel uneasy. They left quickly and moved back into the light of the street. She looked down at Tom, who was staring back at the goblins guarding the door in a similar way to how they were staring at him. "Are you ready to explore?" she asked him. He pulled his eyes away from the goblins and looked up at her instead.

"Yep! Where first?" he asked, and she could see the deep interest and enthusiasm apparent on his face. He was looking from place to place so fast she wondered if he would get whiplash.

"Flourish and Blotts, it's the bookstore."

"There!" he pointed, identifying it. Zia smiled and walked to the bookshop with him. It was a cozy shop, with various intriguing displays (Wizard Wars of the 18th Century, and Spells for the Stressed, among others) and a little table featuring quills of all kinds, various colors of ink, and parchment. She walked to the front desk, and rang the little bell for the bookkeeper.

"May I help you?" a smartly dressed witch in deep purple robes appeared from behind a set of bookshelves asked.

"I'm looking for a simple book about magical theory, one about magical creatures, and a basic spell book." Zia told her. "If there are any stories for children that would be wonderful too." The witch nodded and disappeared for a few seconds, then returned with a small stack of books.

"I recommend these," she said, holding out the stack. Zia looked through them and smiled at some of the titles she recognized. She looked up at the witch and nodded.

"These are perfect, I'll buy them. Thank you very much for your help, you knew exactly where to go," she told her. The witch beamed at the praise, and bustled off behind the counter with the books, added up the prices, and Zia paid for them. The witch waved at them as they left and Tom, to Zia's mild surprise, waved back at her. Zia and Tom proceeded to visit any shop that looked interesting, and Zia bought a couple different kinds of wizard candy for them to try back home. Tom looked as if he had gone to a theme park. "I think it's time we left for home," she said after a few hours of wandering from shop to shop. Tom frowned.

"No auntie, you still need to get one thing. Did you forget?"

"And what thing would that be Tom? We've got a lot of things to get home with us already," she told him. He sighed exasperatedly, as if she was missing the most crucial part of the entire trip.

"You heard what the barkeeper man said, right?"

"Which part?"

"Auntie. You still need a wand."