American Witch
A\N: Hi! Here's the third chapter! By the way, I noticed in the last chapter that I made a lot of mistakes with the point of view stuff. Sorry, I've always written in third-person until now, and it's kind of weird for me to adjust to saying "I" all the time. Oh, and about my ficI was on a bout of craziness at the time. I hadn't even had that much sugar! However, please don't inform a psychiatrist, because they annoy me, and then YOU will annoy meand so on, blah blah blah. ^_^ Anyway, I'm rambling, so let's get on with this chapter!
-Hermione2
Disclaimer: I own the Knight Bus' other-country route (I say it AGAIN, since it's in this chapter)Miss Silverthorn and her shop, The Owl Shop, the owlJorge Bustamente, the first names of some of the authors on the book list, and the name of Amanda's house. Amanda, Kara, and Kara's mom own themselves, because they're based on people I know. J.K. Rowling owns herself too, and she also owns everything else in this chapter and Chapter 2.
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Chapter 3: Diagon Alley
5-28-02
Hi! I told my dad that I was a witch yesterday night, and it was pretty much the same as with my mom. That's natural, of course. I can still hardly believe it myself. Me, a witch! And going to Hogwarts! I never thought of myself as that special. Sure, I can see Amanda as one, but me? I can't even picture it.
Right now, it's about 11 AM. I just got up and got dressed. I'm really lazy whenever I get out of school.
Well, my mom's calling me to eat lunch so we won't be late to Amanda's house.
You know, it's strange that Amanda even went to my school before now, because they live about an hour away from us. I don't see how they could live in the boundary lines of my school. Maybe she transferred.
Oh well, I need food. I'm going for lunch. Not going to write any more just now.
4:30 PM
Diagon Alley was awesome! It was even better than the description in the Harry Potter books!
But first I'll tell you about the Knight Bus.
We got to Amanda's house at about 1:40 (never thought we'd get to be early, I'm always late for stuff), and Amanda and I just talked about stuff at Hogwarts for about fifteen minutes, until it was time for the Knight Bus to come through the United States.
Then, we went outside. Amanda just lifted her right hand out in the air, and the Knight Bus came. We were the first ones on, so we had pretty much a straight trip to Diagon Alley, except when a few witches from Wichita got on. Ha ha. WITCHita. Maybe that's why they picked that town.
Diagon Alley looked really great. There were all sorts of magic shops, and Amanda and I couldn't wait to check them out. First, we went to Gringotts for my mom to change her muggle money and for Amanda's dad to get some money out of their vault. Personally, I don't think the goblins were that great. Not very friendly.
I went with Amanda and her dad to open their family vault. They had piles of money. It was unbelievable. I wondered why they hadn't used it as muggle money. They could have been rich.
Actually, I discovered the reason for that when I came back and saw how much wizard money my mom had. $20 dollars gave you about 100 galleons. She had about 200 galleons, 60 sickles, and 10 knuts. That money might last for another year! She's keeping the leftover money in the bottom of one of her drawers right now.
After we got out of Gringotts and we all got used to the sunlight, which was obviously brighter than Gringotts, my mom and Amanda's dad went with our lists to go get our Potions stuff, and Amanda and I started went to the wand shop: Silverthorn Wands.
Apparently, Mr. Ollivander got too old to run a shop or something, and was replaced by Miss Silverthorn and her shop. Shame, really. They'd been making wands since sometime-BC, and I would have liked to see the shop.
Miss Silverthorn's shop was small and happy, somehow. Just being there made you feel good. The shelves were all crammed with the boxes for the wands. As soon as we came in Miss Silverthorn came over.
"Hello," she said. "You came here for your wands?"
We both nodded.
"Alright, then. Let me see what I can find."
Apparently, she didn't need to measure us or anything like Mr. Ollivander because she just turned to the shelves to choose boxes. Maybe the tape measure was just for show.
"Hmm" She suddenly turned to me. "You like reading, correct?"
"Umyes. How did you know that?"
"I'm a Seer, dear. I'm just a small one, not very powerful, but I can tell people's personalities."
"And you, Amandaa half-bloodyou're very friendly, right? Unlike Kara here.muggle-born. Tends to keep to herself, but nice when you keep at it."
We both nodded again.
"Right, then" she said. "Think I've got a good wand for you, Kara. Cherry wood and unicorn hair, very bendable, almost like a contortionist, that wand, and 12 inches."
I took the wand and waved it in a circle. Sparks all the colors of the rainbow came out and whirled around the tiny shop. I jumped in happiness and smiled. Holding that wand gave me a strange feeling, like something warm going through me. I decided something then and there. I would learn as much magic as I could, just to use this wand.
"That's the prettiest display we've had in a while!" Miss Silverthorn said. "Now, a wand for you, Amanda
"Think I've got something. Made of willow, eleven inches, bendy, not like a contortionist though, sorry, and with a phoenix feather."
Amanda waved it, and soon songbirds were flying out of the non-existent windows. Miss Silverthorn waved her wand, and the windows came back. She left the songbirds.
"Didn't know you liked birds quite that much," Miss Silverthorn laughed.
We paid 1 galleon and 1 sickle for my wand, and 1 galleon, 1 sickle, and 5 knuts for Amanda's wand, said goodbye and left the shop, already planning about where we could look up spells.
We met our parents outside the Apothecary (where the Potions supplies were) and went to Flourish and Blotts for our books. Once we got inside, I nearly gasped with delight at all the books in there. Amanda laughed at me, and I told her with what Amanda described as a "very, VERY, very, very happy" face to be quiet and let me look at the books.
There were all kinds of books! Some were as thick as both of my hands together, and others were about 10 pages. Some were bound in silk, some in leather, and so on. Some were black, and some were tie-dye. Very big contrasts.
I asked my mom for my list and read the part for books. I think I'll copy it here.
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the folllowing:
The 2000 Edition of the Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)-Marjorie Goshawk A History of Magic- Hilda Bagshot Magical Theory-Albert Waffling A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration-Eric Switch One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi-Lydia Spore Magical Drafts and Potions-Arsenius Jigger Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them-Newt Scamander The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Defense-Kent Trimble So, first I had to get my school booksthen I could have some funBWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Umsorry about that. You've just had an introduction sample of my crazy side. Believe me, you'll see more later
Anyway, on with my journal, which oddly I started writing in just in time for thisOh well.
When I set off in search of my books, they really weren't that hard to find. It was just like in a library. All I had to do was find the author. It made it kind of boring, really.
The Standard Book of Spells looked okay when I skimmed through it. Good spells.
A History of Magic was, of course, all about the history of magic. From what I could see, it started off with the beginnings of witches and wizards, then the beginnings of the magical community, thenblah, blah, blah. I think you get it. All beginnings. Not quite as many endings.
Magical Theoryugh. BO-RING!!!!!!!!!!! Well, of course, I'd never liked theory of any kind, especially not piano theory, so maybe somebody else might like it. Although I couldn't help thinking at the time that only a person recently escaped from a mental hospital would like a book that boring.
I took a brief skim through A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration and saw what looked like some pretty hard spells. Why? It's so much easier not to be challenged
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi was kind of boring in my point of view. I never really understood the point of those books where it's just a list of stuff. It had some information about the Herbs and Fungi, of course, but I'm also not really into botany. I've never really studied it or anything.
Magical Drafts and Potions has a really creepy writing style, but otherwise it's okay But seriously, the writing style is creepy. Quote: "If you do not put the shredded daisy in this potion, you will poison every living thing the potion touches" I mean, don't you agree that it's a pretty creepy writing style? I mean, he could have said "Be sure to put in the shredded daisy" and been done with it. But NO.he just had to make it creepy and mention poison to every living thing.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them looked very interesting. I haven't had a chance to read it yet (I'm planning to read all of my books. They look interesting.). However, it's probably going to be the first thing I read.
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Defense looked okay. I don't really have much of an opinion about it.
Anyway, when we were done buying our school books, I got Hogwarts, A History and I also got a book on Quidditch. I want to know some more about Quidditch before I go to Hogwarts, or I'll be completely lost.
Then, we went over to Madam Malkin's and got two cauldrons, two telescopes, two trunks, an owl, and a cat. I got a snowy owl, and Amanda got this really sweet white cat. I also got a set of wizard chess.
Madam Malkin looked kind of old, but nice. She had Amanda and I stand on stools and measured us. Then she magicked some robes and gave them to us to buy.
Then, we were done. It was around 3:00, so we had to go to the Leaky Cauldron and ask for some Floo Powder. Dreaded Floo Powder. I was not happy about this. I didn't much like the sound of traveling by fire.
Amanda told me to yell "Sparrow's Perch" when I stepped in the fire, which was the name of their house. It was a good name. I'd seen a lot of sparrows over there when we went over earlier.
Amanda then stepped in, yelled "Sparrow's Perch!", and disappeared.
Then, my mother cautiously went over to the fire and put a foot in. She seemed relieved about something. Then she stepped completely in, yelled the same thing, and disappeared. I couldn't believe she'd just done that. She's my mother! She's not supposed to be worry about fire less than me.
I didn't want to be outdone by my mother, so I stepped straight in. Surprisingly, the fire didn't burn at all. It just went around me. I yelled "Sparrow's Perch!" with a relieved mind.
I felt myself whirling around, and I tried not to scream in case I passed a fireplace and someone heard me. Then, I landed on my feet (thankfully) in Amanda's house. Then, I kind of rocked back and forth and had to be held upright and pulled out of the fireplace by my mother. Good thing I'd eaten about two hours ago, or I probably would have vomited.
Then, Amanda's dad crashed into the fireplace as soon as I got out of it. Surprisingly, he hadn't broken any bones at all, like you would expect from that crash.
My mom and I said goodbye, and we thanked the Bustamentes for coming with us and left.
Now, I'm back at home. I'm planning to read my books now. I DON'T LIKE FLOO POWDER.
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Hi! So, did you like this chapter? I hope you did. Kara and Amanda liked it. They had a good timePlease review! Even flame, but if you have to criticize it, say Soliqua (my crazy muse) is bad. She's the one who thinks of these things. She's obviously the one that causes my insanity. Who but a crazy muse would have the name Soliqua? And it's weird...these chapters just keep getting longer. Maybe that's a good sign. First one was 8 KB. Second one: 10 KB. This one was 16 KB. The chapters just keep on getting longer...Never thought I'd say that about my own writing...I usually write short things. AnywayI say it again, I hope you like this chapter, and REVIEW!!!!! I am insane. ^_^
-Hermione2