Chapter Nine
Harry seemed like a nice kid. He smiled at me shyly, and ran a hand through his messy hair as we walked, as if trying to straighten it. It was a lost cause. His legs were much longer than mine, and soon I was trotting to keep up with him.
"I don't know why Professor Dumbledore wanted you to escort me," I told him apologetically. "Everything's on one street. It's not like I'm going to get lost or anything." I paused briefly in front of a shop called the "Magical Menagerie," and gazed longingly in the front window at a fluffy, purple kitten. I again felt a flash of irritation that I couldn't just shop alone.
"He's kind of old fashioned like that, I guess." Harry shrugged. "It's okay, Ron's way more into the Cannons than I am. You know, Miriel, for some reason your surname sounds really familiar. Hang on." Harry paused and dug a hand into his jeans pocket. He pulled out a little stack of what looked like cards with photographs on them. He searched through them, found one and handed it to me. "They're like trading cards," he said. "They come in chocolate frogs. I save them for Ginny- that's Ron's little sister."
Smiling and waving up at me was a tiny picture of a friendly looking man in a silver robe, with a short, gray beard. He actually reminded me of a much younger looking Professor Dumbledore. Under it, I read:
Sebastian Silverthorn
Considered to be the greatest Mirror-Mage of modern times. Silverthorn is particularly famous for creating the Mirror of Erised, and for his controversial experiments using mirrors to transcend space and time. Was known to be close friends with Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore and Alchemist Nicolas Flamel. Tragically disappeared into one of his mirrors in1976 and was never seen again.
"My bathroom mirror mentioned him," I told Harry. "He was my grandfather." I couldn't help but feel a little sad looking at the card. I missed having relatives while I grew up, especially Grandparents.
"Oh." Harry looked thoughtful for a moment. "I've seen his mirror, the Mirror of Erised, during my first year at Hogwarts. You wouldn't happen to know why he made it, would you?"
I shook my head. "No, I never even heard of him until I came here."
"It's just that, when people look into the mirror, they see what they most desire. Professor Dumbledore told me that some people are just so enchanted by what they see, that they'll just waste away in front of it. I've always thought it was rather an odd thing to make. It doesn't seem, well, very useful."
I wanted to ask him more about what he had seen in the mirror, but from the solemn, far-away look on his face, I thought it might be too personal.
Finally, we stopped in front of Ollivander's wand shop, and I caught my breath with excitement. Harry turned to me. "Um, Mr. Ollivander can be a little creepy. I don't think he means to be." As the boy pushed open the door of the shop, I heard him mutter under his breath, "At least I don't think so."
I stepped inside, and was immediately struck by the dinginess of the place. The room was narrow and shabby, and I was surrounded by piles of small boxes that reached the ceiling. I was still blinking in an effort to adjust my eyesight to the darkness when a voice from one of the shop's corners made me jump.
"As I live and breathe... Harry Potter. I haven't seen you since the weighing of the wands at the Triwizard tournament. How is your wand holding up, Mr. Potter? Is it behaving properly? You haven't outgrown it, have you?"
"It's fine, Mr. Ollivander," Harry told him. "I was just showing Miriel to your shop. This is, um, Miriel Silverthorn. She's new here."
A thin man stepped forward into what little light there was. The wild mop of his hair was even messier than Harry's. His pale eyes seemed to glow, and his thin lips stretched into a smile. "I haven't heard of a member of the Silverthorn family since Miranda disappeared so many years ago. Can you possibly be...her daughter? But you resemble someone else... a Malfoy, I believe?"
"Gaius Malfoy was my father," I said, nodding. The man must have an excellent memory.
Next to me, Harry looked at me in surprise, and I thought, dismay.
"Well, this is certainly a surprise. It's not often that I get someone like you in my shop." Mr. Ollivander fawned over me like I was a celebrity, which only made him creepier. "I remember both of your parents in my shop, buying their first wands. But how is it that I have not made your acquaintance before now, Miss Silverthorn?"
"It's really a long story," I told him. "My uncle found me in the States. I didn't know I was a witch." I didn't really want to elaborate.
"Yes," Understanding dawned on the old man's face. "I'm not one for gossip, but Borgin told me that yesterday young Master Malfoy bought a special gift for a mysterious, young lady. It's all over the alleys. You'd think that in his line of business, Borgin would have learned some discretion." Mr. Ollivander rubbed his hands together briskly. "But down to business. It's always an exciting thing, buying your first wand. Let me see..." After taking quite a few measurements that seemed to center around my right arm and my head, he disappeared among the enormous shelves in the rear of the shop.
He carried a short stack of slim boxes, setting them carefully upon the counter. He then favored us with another of those eerie smiles. "Since there haven't been any Mirror-Magi in Britain for quite some time," He said. "I usually send these wands to customers outside the country."
"I don't mean to interrupt," Harry said, "But I noticed that each of these boxes is stamped with a Unicorn."
"Yes, Mr. Potter. The unicorn is a common symbol for the Mirror-Mage. You see, the silver reflection behind the glass of a magical mirror- and I don't mean a silly bathroom mirror or a Muggle mirror that has been enchanted, but a true mirror of power- is not silver nitrate, tin or mercury. It comes from unicorn's blood. "
"Unicorn..." I murmured. There really were such creatures?
"But I thought that killing a unicorn made the blood cursed," Harry said. He grimaced, as though he recalled a horrible memory.
"Ah... and this is very important." Mr. Ollivander paused dramatically. "The blood must be freely given. If the unicorn is killed or harmed in any way, the mirror immediately becomes a product of dark magic. Magic is then poured into the mirrors by means of powerful potions. That is why the art of potion making and creating mirrors are interconnected, and the process can be quite complex. It demands huge amounts of magic and highly developed skills."
"Freely given?" Harry asked. "Well, how do you go about that? Why would a unicorn give you its blood?"
"I don't know any more than that," Mr. Ollivander replied. "Mirror-Magi have always been very secretive and mysterious about their craft. Information and training are passed down through one's family, and they guard their secrets carefully." He glanced at me with a mixture of thoughtfulness and pity.
I realized that I had no family to pass anything like that along to me.
The shopkeeper selected a box, drawing forth a small, slender wand and offered it to me. "Silverwood, ten and a half inches, with a core of Unicorn's tail."
"What do I do?" I asked.
Mr. Ollivander chuckled. "How silly of me, of course you wouldn't know. Simply give it a good wave and we'll see what happens, hmmm?"
I gave the wand a wave. Unfortunately, it didn't do much of anything. A flickering stream of weak light sputtered from the tip of the wand, but that was all. Mr. Ollivander quickly took it from me. "No, no, that won't work at all. Try this one..." He handed me another. "Willow, twelve inches, Moondragon's heartstring." I only succeeded in shooting a book across the room, which unfortunately hit Harry in the head. I blushed furiously, but Mr. Ollivander merely waved away my apology and handed me another wand, and then another. Finally, the stack he had brought to the counter was gone.
Mr. Ollivander frowned. "I confess that I am puzzled, Miss Silverthorn. I do have another wand in the back, but I admit that I never thought to actually have a customer that would suit it." A flare of interest entered the wandmaker's eyes. After staring at me for a moment and muttering something under his breath, the old man disappeared through a doorway at the back of the shop.
"You can go back to the Quidditch shop," I told Harry, "You don't have to stay here and babysit me."
"Are you kidding? I'm really getting curious, now." Harry said.
When the wandmaker returned, I was somewhat surprised to see that the wand case he carried was quite different from the others. A bit dusty, it was nonetheless beautiful, formed from a silvery, glistening wood. After Mr. Ollivander wiped the dust off, I could see that the box was carved with a galloping unicorn.
Looking at me silently, Mr. Ollivander opened the case, and Harry and I both gasped simultaneously. Inside, on a bed of white satin, laid a strikingly beautiful wand. I heard Harry give a little choke of surprise.
The outer surface of the wand was polished and clear like glass, but inside, it was silver and brilliantly faceted. As Mr. Ollivander shifted the box, the wand caught the dim light, magnified it and broke it into a thousand shards of color.
"It looks like a diamond," Harry murmured. "Or like there are a lot of tiny mirrors inside of it."
"Adamant is a very rare and very magical substance," Mr. Ollivander told us, his eyes shining and dancing with the light shining off the wand. "It is a conduit for massive amounts of wizarding power, which may incinerate a wooden wand. It is unbreakable, as well."
My hand hovered over the wand, and I was afraid to touch it. It was too beautiful, like something out of a fairy tale.
"Go on," The wandmaker urged. "Give it a try."
As my fingers closed around it, a bolt of pure energy seemed to flare throughout my body, and I gasped. The wand felt natural, as though it was an extension of my hand. The tip of the wand blazed with strange silver light. The light pulsed like an exploding star, and a delicate sound like distant chimes filled the air.
"Well, there's no doubt that is your wand, is there?" Mr. Ollivander gazed at me with wonder. "This wand was meant for only the most powerful sort of Mirror-Mage, my dear, such as your grandfather. Yes, I believe you are destined for great things."
Harry looked sharply at the wandmaker, but it seemed to be difficult for him to take his eyes off the dazzling wand. He tilted his head to look at it more closely, pressing against me, and I felt his hand grazing the small of my back.
I carefully placed the wand back in the box. I brought out my little bag of Galleons. "I hope that Mr. Malfoy gave me enough money," I said, a little nervously. Certainly a wand like this would have to be expensive.
Mr. Ollivander's pale eyes met mine as he began wrapping the wand case in a protective layer of brown paper. His expression revealed complete satisfaction. "I can't tell you the joy it brings me to help a wand choose the right witch," He said. "Please, Miss Silverthorn, I would be honored if you would accept this wand as a gift. A betrothal gift, if you like." He smiled at me until he was positively leering, and I could tell that he was hoping for more information."
"Betrothal?" Said Harry.
"I hope that you and young Master Malfoy will be very happy together." Mr. Ollivander added.
A look of absolute horror covered Harry's face. His hand fell away from my back, and he took a step away from me. His green eyes widened, and his mouth fell open. "You're marrying Draco Malfoy?"
I would have laughed at the shocked look on the boy's face, if I hadn't been somewhat stunned, myself. "Oh, Mr. Ollivander," I stammered and gasped for words. "I don't know what to say! I don't know if I could accept-"
Just then the bell on the shop's front door jingled. Mr. Ollivander peered towards the front of the shop and said, "Ah, speak of the wizard. Good day to you, young Master Malfoy."
Draco stood behind us, his eyes blinking in the gloom, his silhouette dark against the shop windows. "Miriel, is that you?" He studied me intently. "Wow, you look really..."
The moment he saw Harry beside me, his face stiffened with anger. I was shocked by the intensity of the loathing and hatred reflected in both of the boys' faces as they glared at each other. Each one looked like they could kill the other.
"What the fuck are you doing here Potter?" Draco spat out the words. Jealousy flashed in his eyes as his look shifted between me and Harry, and he definitely had that alpha male "She's mine" look on his face.
"I don't want any trouble, Malfoy." Harry shifted uneasily.
"Harry just showed me where the shop was," I told Draco.
"You're already calling him by his first name?" Draco muttered. As he approached, he moved with a feral grace, and I was suddenly reminded of a predator.
Harry's jaw tightened and his hands clenched into fists.
I hastily stepped back away from them both.
"Boys, I think you had better take this outside," Mr. Ollivander warned.
"Think to associate with your betters, now, do you?" Draco snarled at Harry, and for a moment, he looked, once again, amazingly like his father. "That filthy Mudblood whore, Granger, isn't good enough for you anymore? Not getting enough?"
Harry's face flushed with anger. "Shut your mouth, Malfoy."
Almost too quickly for me to see, wands appeared in both the boys' hands.
Draco sneered. "Don't ever talk to my cousin again, Potter. You're not even good enough to look at her."
I remembered what Draco's parents had told me about their son being a powerful wizard. Harry must have been powerful, as well, because energy crackled in the air between the boys like miniature lighting. I could actually feel currents of magical power gathering itself around them, and the air seemed to thicken and grow heavy. I touched the counter next to me to steady myself, and with the contact, shocked my fingers.
"Accio wands."
Both wands flew into Mr. Ollivander's hands. His face was stern and his eyes were narrowed. "I must insist that you both leave at once," he said. "You are underaged wizards, and I'm sure you realize that dueling is strictly prohibited. Not to mention the damage you could do to my shop."
Harry relaxed a bit, and he nodded to Mr. Ollivander. "Sorry-"
Draco rammed his fist into Harry's stomach.
Mr. Ollivander muttered something, and the boys disappeared and reappeared outside the wand shop. Through the dingy shop windows, I could see Draco punching Harry viciously in the face. I ran to the door and stuck my head out. People began to clump together on the street, watching as well. A few boys rushed forward and yelled, "Get him, Harry!"
"What luck! Pardon me!" A man with a huge camera pushed his way between the spectators. "This is for the Daily Prophet." A flash of light caught Harry and Draco rolling around on the ground, trying to break each other's hold. Harry's build was a little heavier than his opponent, but he lacked Draco's speed and ruthlessness.
"Oh my," Mr. Ollivander said at the window. "I haven't seen a good Muggle fight in ages."
"Do something!" I gasped. "He's going to kill Harry!"
"Boys will be boys," Mr. Ollivander told me, still holding the wands in his hand. "Especially when it comes to fighting over a pretty young lady." He smiled and winked at me. "Some things never change."
Eventually, when it became obvious that the fight wasn't an even match, some men broke the boys apart, pulling Draco off of Harry. Harry was a mess. His nose was bleeding, his lip was split, and he was certain to have a black eye or two.
Draco just arranged his clothing, brushed the dust off of them, and walked back into Mr. Ollivander's shop. The only part of him that was bleeding was his knuckles. His platinum hair was tousled, and he had dirt on his face, but other than that, he was fine. "Why were you with that stupid git?" He snarled in my face. "Why were you even talking to him?"
"He just showed me the way to the shop," I told him. "You didn't have to beat poor Harry up!"
That was definitely the wrong thing to say. "Poor Harry?" Draco turned on me like a viper. "Poor Harry Potter who has crowds of sniveling fans who kiss his arse because he happens to have a stupid scar on his forehead? Everybody loves Harry bloody Potter! I have been telling you how much I hate him, and the first thing you do when you're alone is go sucking up to him!" Draco's face twisted with fury. He kept stepping closer to me, forcing me to back up. I felt like running behind Mr. Ollivander.
"Oh!" I said shocked. "I didn't realize that was him! Professor Dumbledore just asked him to- Oh! I just ran into him at the bookstore. I mean-"
"Bloody hell. My father is going to kill me," Draco moaned. "I should never have left you alone!" After he had retrieved his wand from the shopkeeper, Draco grabbed me by my upper arm and began dragging me towards the door. With one hand he opened the door, and with the other, he struggled to keep his grip on me. Unfortunately, I was too small and light to break away from him. "We're going back to the Manor," he told me. "Now."
"I'm not going anywhere!" I tried to slap his hand away. "I'm not through shopping yet. I still want to go to the pet store. Let go of me!" I was quickly losing my temper, and soon I was shrieking a few obscenities at the top of my voice. The people outside the shop looked up in surprise.
"Stop making a scene!" Draco said, and slammed the door shut again. I could see that the crowd had not completely dispersed. Ron was there, talking to Harry and glaring hatefully in Draco's direction, and the man with the camera was still out there interviewing people.
"I'm making a scene?" My mouth dropped open at the unfairness of it all.
"Mr. Ollivander," Draco asked. "Could we please use your fireplace to floo home?"
"Certainly," Mr. Ollivander said. "It's in the back."
"I'm not going home," I said through my teeth, trying to break Draco's hold on me. My shoes slid on the floor as he half-dragged me, half-carried me toward the fireplace. "Help!" I said to Mr. Ollivander. "I'm being kidnapped. Aren't you going to do anything? Call the wizard police or something!" The man was really irritating me. He was probably waiting for us to leave so he could owl his friend Borgin and tell him every detail.
Mr. Ollivander just watched us with an amused smile on his face, as though we were the most entertaining thing he'd seen in a long while. "Oh, my dear, don't forget." He held up my shopping bag. "Your packages."
When we stepped out of the green fire into the Malfoy's receiving room, I tried to run directly to my room, but Draco grabbed me and pushed me down on the Malfoy's huge, velvet covered sofa. "You have humiliated me," He said, towering over me. "In public."
"Ha! You have some serious issues with Harry Potter," I told him. "No wonder he has so many friends and you don't. What are you, afraid that I'm going to like him more than you? Afraid that I think he's cuter than you are? I wasn't the one acting like a stupid, jealous-"I stopped.
The look on Draco's face was terrible. It was vulnerable and full of pain, and then it changed to one of utter rage. I had obviously hit upon a sore spot with him. His wand was pointed directly at me. I heard him snarl some words in Latin, and then a bright, red light shot out from his wand and exploded into my chest.
Many thanks to my wonderful reviewers!
Thank you, Chocoliciouz and Oberon!
Escaped: Wow- thank you for all your compliments? What would I do without you to inspire me? :-) Actually, when I was going to college in Fresno, CA., I had a boyfriend who had moved there from London. He was very wealthy, and he had to break up with me because his family expected him to marry a cousin. All of our friends were like "ewwww...gross." But I guess it's just a centuries- old and powerful tradition for some people in other countries. So, anyway, I'm not sure if I'm terribly insightful, or just have weird luck with men! HA! I guess that's where I kind of got this idea for my story.
Slate-One: Thank you for reading my story. This is my first one! You must have good taste, because I liked LadyRhiyana's stories too. I love the Malfoys, as well. I was hesitant about writing about an original character, but I really liked the Mirror of Erised, and I knew that SOMEBODY had to make it.
Rycca Wolfbane: Thank you, too! Hmmm... Maybe you think I should just have a foursome between Sev, Miriel, Draco and Harry, so everybody will be included! HAHAHA! Of course, Sev will be in the story, but isn't Miriel a little young for him? I am wondering now if I should include "all those buttons" on Sev's clothes just to torture you...
