Chapter Two

Diagon Alley

The pub looked old and run down, an absolute dump, in Lily's opinion. Mrs. Evans went in. Lily followed her mother still looking at the old building.

It was smoky inside, but packed. Everyone was doing something and the noise made it near impossible to hear anything.

"Rose?" a voice asked. Mrs. Evans groaned. "Rose Brown!" the voice called again. A short woman with long brown hair, wearing a cloak, of all things, walked up them. "Rose, I was right! Where have you been Rose?" the woman asked.

"Hello Ellen, how are you? I've been aboard, studying. I've got two daughters now. This is Lily, or youngest, she's about to start Hogwarts." Mrs. Evans said, dragging Lily forward. "Lily, this is Ellen Finnegan, she's one of my friends."

"Hello." Lily said.

"Hello Lily." Ellen turned back to her mother. "Your youngest you say, where's your oldest?"

"Petunia—" Mrs. Evans paused. "Petunia isn't a witch." Ellen looked surprised.

"She's a—"

"I married a muggle." Lily blinked at the word, wondering what was going on. "But Ellen, please, I don't want to come back into this life, I'm just bring Lily here to get her things. It's up to her, and she wants to go." The din in the pub reached a crescendo and Lily couldn't hear anything her mother was saying.

Finally, Mrs. Evans beckoned Lily towards the back of the shop. "Hurry up Lily." She said, shoving her through a door. They were in a small alley way with some trash cans and a brick wall. "Mum, what's a muggle?" Lily asked.

"Someone who doesn't have magic." Mrs. Evans replied, counting bricks. "If I suddenly duck down, it's because I don't want to be seen, okay dear?" Mrs. Evans counted some bricks, then tapped.

The brick wall folded it's self away into an archway. Through the arch, Lily looked upon the most amazing street she had ever seen.

"Lily-" Mrs. Evans said, "Welcome to Diagon Alley."

The shop was small, tiny in fact, and looked almost to thin to be allowed. Lily stared at the withered old sign that said that the store was called Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.

Lily glanced at the dusty window, where a faded purple pillow with a single stick, or so it appeared to Lily, of wood. She looked at her mother and sighed as they entered the dusty old shop.

A bell tinkled off in the distant places in the back rooms of the shop. Lily looked around, her skin had Goosebumps on it, and the air was charged with something.

"Good afternoon," said a soft voice. Lily jumped and Mrs. Evans looked slightly surprised as well.

A middle aged man was standing before them, his wide pale eyes shinning like moons through the gloom of the shop.

"Hello." Lily said awkwardly.

"Ah yes," the man said, "Rose Brown, I thought I might be seeing you around sometime. You probably need a new wand. I remember your first, 13 and a half inches, oak, unicorn hair, rather bendy, perfect for—"

Mrs. Evans smiled and stopped him, "Mr. Ollivander, I'm here for my daughter." Mr. Ollivander's eyes went wide and he turned to look at Lily.

Lily was abashed. "Lily I suppose?" Mr. Ollivander ventured.

"Yes." Mrs. Evans said. She pulled out her own wand, a little bit of something white was poking out of the top, but otherwise it was almost perfect. "I still have my wand." She said.

"And rightly so Mrs.—"

"Evans." Mrs. Evans supplied. Mr. Ollivander's eyes went wider still.

"Ah well, maybe we should get started." Mr. Ollivander said composing himself. "Which hand is your wand hand?"

"I'm left handed." Lily offered.

"Hold out your left arm then." he measured Lily from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit and around her head. Lilly tried to follow the quick flicks, but soon became dizzy. As Mr. Ollivander measured he said, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance. Actually, every wand does, but we use unicorn hairs, dragon heart strings and phoenix tail feathers. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons or phoenixes are quite the same. And of course, you never get such good results with another wizard's, or witch's wand."

Lily saw Mr. Ollivander flitting around, and realized that the tape measure, which was measuring the distance between her eyes, was doing it all by its self.

"That will do!" he said and the tape measure crumpled on the ground, then rolled it's self up and hopped onto the counter.  "Right then, Miss Evans, try this, Maple and phoenix feather. Seven inches. Quite whippy." Lily looked confused. "Just wave it about." Mr. Ollivander insisted, and handed her the wand. She waved it slightly, but it was grabbed out of her hand.

"Thirteen and a half inches. Yew. Phoenix feather. Pliable."

Lily took the wand- but it was grabbed again as she waved it half heartedly.

"No, eh? Well try this, an unusual combination, holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple."

Lily took the wand and frowned. There was something about this wand. She waved it, but nothing happened.

"Huh, thought we had it there. Well try this one, ten and a quarter inches, swishy, made of willow with dragon heart string."

Lily took the wand. She felt a sudden warmth in her fingers. She raised the wand above her head and brought it down, doing a swish and flick movement. A jet of red and gold lights danced from the end of the wand, making the shop seem to light up slightly.

Mr. Ollivander clapped and cried "Oh wonderful! Very good!" he wrapped up the wand in it's box and Mrs. Evans paid for it. "There you go." He said kindly.

"Thank you." Lily murmured.

"But Lily Evans, we expect great things from you. Great things." Mr. Ollivander warned as Lily stepped out of the door.

Out of all the shops Lily had seen, she loved Flourish and Blotts the best. The rows and rows of books gleamed and she was dying to get her hands on some of them. Her mother would only get her the required list though.

"First year for Hogwarts." She told the assistant. The assistant squeaked and hurried off to gather the books as Lily looked around.

Quiditch through the Ages caught Lily's eye and she asked her mother about it.

"What's Quid-itch?" she asked.

"Quiditch?" her mother asked, then her face brightened. "Oh Quiditch, it's wizard sport. Played on broomsticks. Why don't I buy you a copy of that. And also, The Houses of Hogwarts?" Mrs. Evans picked up the two books and added it to the pile that the assistant had dumped into Lily's arms.

"Thanks mum." Lily said as they paid for the books.

"It's only a few thing you need to know." Mrs. Evans glanced at the list and then at the pile. "Before you ring us up, let me just grab Hogwarts, A History." Mrs. Evans said and the cashier nodded.

"You going to Hogwarts this year?" he asked kindly.

"Yep."

"Are you muggle born?"

Lily didn't know what to say. She knew her mother didn't want anyone to know about her being a witch, but she also didn't want to lie unless she absolutely had to. Luckily her mother returned with a think book and added it to the pile.

Mrs. Evans nodded to a shop that looked like a pet shop. "Early birthday present." She said. Lily stared.

"What?" she gasped.

"You're going to need an owl, I certainly can't keep one." Mrs. Evan's said.

They entered the store and Lily looked around. it was dark and rather gloomy. There were soft hoots and a wizened old man stepped to the front of the room. "May I help you dear ladies?" he asked courteously.

"I'm looking for an owl for my daughter." Mrs. Evans said. "She's going to Hogwarts this year."

"Ah yes, the little dear. Now, what do you want the owl to do?"

"Long distance, quickly." Mrs. Evans said. "and if it's possible, able to carry heavy things."

"I've got the perfect owl for you my dear." The man said and reached behind, picking up a snowy owl. "She'll be perfect for your every need."