Chapter Three:

Diagon Alley

After waiting for Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Katts, Suzie, Ginny, George and Ron to come out of the fireplace they headed out the back of the Leaky Cauldron. Mr. Weasley went over to the trashcan and started counting bricks in the wall above.
"Three up.two across." he muttered. "Right, you all better stand back."
He tapped the wall three times with the point of his wand.
The brick he tapped started to quiver ---- it started to wriggle ---- in the middle of the brick a small hole appeared ---- it grew wider and wider ---- the next second it had become an archway large enough for them to walk through.
"Diagon Alley!" Mr. Weasley said
They all walked through the archway. Suzie looked back at the archway and saw it shrink back into a solid brick wall.
She looked up and saw a sign hanging over them, it said, Cauldrons ---- All Sizes --- Copper, Brass, Pewter, Silver ---- Self-Stirring ---- Collapsible, Suzie looked down and saw a stack of cauldrons sitting outside the shop, the sun shining off them.
"You'll be needing one of those," Lara said to Suzie, "but we need to get some money first."
Suzie looked around at the shops while they were walking; She looked in the windows at an Apothecary and saw some bottles of Dragon Liver. Suzie heard a low, soft hoot and saw it was coming from a dark shop with a sign above it saying, Eeylops Owl Emporium ---- Tawny, Screech, Barn, Brown and Snowy. A little farther down she saw some broomsticks in a window "That's the Firebolt, it came out only last year!" she heard a boy about her age say. There were other shops selling robes, telescopes and strange silver instruments Suzie had never seen before, windows stacked with barrels of bat spleens and eels' eyes, tottering piles of spell books, quills, and rolls of parchment, potion bottles, globes of the moon..
"Suzie, this is Gringotts," Lara said
They had arrived at a snowy white building that towered over the other shops. Standing beside its burnished bronze doors, wearing a uniform of scarlet and gold, was ----
"Is that what I think it is?" Suzie asked Lara. "Yes, Suzie, that's a goblin." Lara said at the look on her sister's face. They walked up the white stone steps toward him. The goblin was about a head shorter than Suzie. He had a swarthy, clever face, a pointed beard and, Suzie noticed, very long fingers and feet. He bowed as they walked inside. Now they were facing a second pair of doors, this time they were silver, with words engraved upon them:

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.

A pair of goblins bowed them through the sliver doors and they were in a vast marble hall. About a hundred more goblins were sitting on high stools behind a long counter, scribbling in large ledgers, weighing coins in brass scales, examining precious stones though eyeglasses. There where too many doors to count leading off the hall, and yet more goblins were showing people in and out of these. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Mrs. Katts and all the kids made their way for an empty counter.
"Morning," Mr. Weasley said to a free goblin. "We've come to take money out of our safe." "And," said Mrs. Katts stepping forward, "I would like to exchange some Muggle money, please."

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

After they got their money and left the bank, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley gave some gold to each of their children and Mrs. Katts gave some gold to Lara. Ginny and Suzie headed to Madam Malkin's to get Suzie's robes. Ron went to look for his best friends, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. Lara and the twins headed for the joke shop and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Katts went and walked around Diagon Alley till they were all to meet in one hour at Flourish and Blotts Bookstore.
After visiting the joke shop where Fred and George got some Fake wands and Filibuster fireworks they went to the next shop and got quills, parchment and ink bottles. Then it was off to the Apothecary so Lara could replenish her potion supply.
"Honestly, Lara, I don't know why your still taking Potions." George said as they left the Apothecary.
"Yeah, didn't you get the memo? You can drop Potions class now." Fred added.
"Yes, I know I can drop Potions class. But I happen to like making them." Lara said, "Besides," she added quickly, "What if you guys make a mistake in one of your candies? Like get boils or something? I can make a potion to cure you two and add a little bit of the potion into the candy."
"Good point." George said
"But you know that will never happen." Fred said and Lara couldn't help but smile at him.
Next they went to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor where Lara bought them each an ice cream. Then they went and looked in Quality Quidditch Supplies before they had to go to Flourish and Blotts Bookstore.
Upon entering Flourish and Blotts where the shelves where stacked to the ceiling with books of all shapes and sizes, some as small as postage stamps and some as big as a door, there were also books with weird symbols in them and a few books with nothing in them at all. Soon they found their parents and siblings, Suzie had here robes, parchment, inkbottles, quills, cauldron, potion ingredients, scales and a collapsible brass telescope.
"There you three are." Mrs. Weasley said when she saw them, "Well, don't just stand there, go and get your books."
All three of them picked up a copy of Advanced Transfiguration By Emric Switch, The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 7 By Miranda Goshawk and Dark Forces: An Advanced Guide to Self-Protection By Quentin Trimble then Lara picked up her copy of Advanced Magical Drafts and Potions By Arsenius Jigger. Then she saw a book she had been wanting since her first year called, Curses and Counter-curses (Bewitch Your Friends and Befuddle Your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair Loss, Jelly-Legs, Tongue-Tying and Much, Muck More) by Professor Vindictus Viridian. She picked up a copy of this book too. After they had paid for all their books Lara, Suzie and Mrs. Katts went to Ollivanders Wand Shop as the Weasleys went to the Leaky Cauldron to wait for them.
As they approached Ollivanders, Suzie looked and the narrow and shabby shop with peeling gold letters over the door that read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. Then Suzie looked in the dusty window and saw a single wand lying on a faded purple cushion.
A bell rang as they stepped inside. Suzie looked at the tiny place and saw thousands of narrow little boxes piled neatly right up to the ceiling.
"Good afternoon," a soft voice said, making Lara jump and Suzie let out a small scream.
A very old man was standing in front of them, his wide, pale eyes shining at them like orbs.
"Hello, Mr. Ollivander." Lara said shaking the old mans hand.
"Hello, Ms. Katts, if I remember correctly, and I always do, your wand is beech-wood and dragon heartstring, nine inches, nice and flexible."
"Yes, Mr. Ollivander, that's my wand!" Lara said smiling.
"How did you do that? How did you remember her wand like that? She got her wand seven years ago!" Suzie said in awe.
"I remember every wand I've ever sold, for instant, Rubeus Hagrid," Mr. Ollivander said
"He bought his wand over fifty years ago." Lara whispered to Suzie
"His wand was oak, sixteen inches and rather bendy. And Tom Riddle,"
Lara looked extremely shocked at the minion of Tom Riddle's name, she never told her mum or Suzie what had happened in her fourth year when Tom Riddle a.k.a. Voldermort, possessed Ginny Weasley and made her open the Chamber of secrets.
"His wand was thirteen-and-a-half inches, yew, phoenix feather, very powerful wand. Now lets see what kind of wand works best with you." He said pulling a long tape measure with silver markings out of his pocket, "Which is your wand arm."
"He means which arm you write with." Lara said at the confused look on her sister's face.
"Oh. My right arm Mr. Ollivander."
"Hold out your arm." He measured Suzie from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor knee to armpit and round his head. As he measured, he said, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance, Ms. Katts. We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstring of dragons. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons, or phoenixes are quite the same. And of course, you will never get such good results with another wizard's wand."
Lara smiled remembering when he had said the exacted same thing to her seven years ago.
Suzie's eyes got wide as she suddenly that the tape measure, which was measuring the space between her ear and nose, was doing this on it's own. Mr. Ollivander was down one of the rows of wands on a stool, taking down boxes.
"That will do," he said, and the tape measure fell to the floor. Right then, Ms. Katts. Try this one. Maple and phoenix feather. Seven inches. Quite whippy. Just take it and give it a wave."
Suzie took the wand and waved it, she had barely done this when Mr. Ollivander grabbed the wand back.
"Willow and unicorn hair. Ten and a quarter inches. Swishy. Try-"
Suzie tried, but had it to, snatched back by Mr. Ollivander.
"Mahogany and dragon heartstring. Eleven inches. Pliable. Go on."
Suzie took that wand and waved it around, but Mr. Ollivander just took away the wand again.
"Ebony and unicorn hair. Eight and a half inches. Springy."
Suzie took the wand. She felt a sudden warmth go to her fingers. She raised the wand and swished it through the dusty air and a stream of pink and purple swirled together until it looked like the room was painted tye- die. Mrs. Katts and Lara started to cheer and clap their hands and Mr. Ollivander cried, "Oh, bravo! Yes, indeed, oh, very good!"
Mr. Ollivander put Suzie's wand back in the box and wrapped it in brown paper. Mrs. Katts paid seven gold Galleons for Suzie's wand and Mr. Ollivander bowed them from his shop.
When they got to the Leaky Cauldron, the Weasleys were all there, talking and laughing. Harry Potter and Hermione Granger were also there. They all sat down and had diner before heading back to the Burrow.