Chapter 3

Shopping in Diagon Alley

As Tom walked through London with the professor, he was exploding with questions. Were his parents a witch and wizard? What was Hogwarts like? What sort of things were taught there? He couldn't learn the answers to some of his questions so he started with some simple ones.

"You mentioned that you taught muggle studies, professor," he said, trying to keep up with him. "What is that subject about?"

"In muggle studies, you learn how muggles live and work without magic," replied the professor. "This helps you if you need to spend any amount of time in the muggle world."

Tom continued with this type of question and answer round for quite some time while they were walking. The professor said that he knew little about his parents aside from the inheritance.

Soon they arrived at a small, dank looking pub called 'The Leaky Cauldron'. Tom followed the professor inside. Inside was as gloomy as the outside and Tom fought the urge to cough as he inhaled the strange smelling smoke that was pouring out of more than one pipe.

"David. Don't see you here often. 'Nother Hogwarts tour guide are you?" called the man behind the bar.

"Just the one today, Harold," called back the professor. "Just young Tommy here."

Tom remained silent as he was led out to the back of the pub to a dirty courtyard with only a rubbish bin been the only thing there.

Professor Mondain pulled out his wand again and began counting the bricks. Once he found whatever he was looking for he tapped a brick three times.

The brick moved to reveal a hole. The hole widened. The bricks seemed to melt back to reveal an archway and beyond the archway was a street, bathed in the blazing sunlight. They set off towards a large white building at the end of the street but Tom's feet were on autopilot. His head was spinning. Seeing all these things, the people, the weird smells. In the orphanage he was just another face in the crowd, usually a bruised face with a bust lip. For the first time in his life he felt that he was something special.

He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the small grey creature outside the Gringotts bank. He was ushered inside and he presented his key to one of the goblins inside.

"This seems to be in order," said the goblin, scrutinising the key closely. "Trundle."

Another goblin came scurrying up and after a few whispered words with his superior, led Tom and his escort down a corridor to a small, rusty cart. They climbed in and the cart took off at a terrific pace. Just as Tom thought he was about to loose his pathetic excuse for a breakfast, the cart lurched to a halt.

"Vault 412," the goblin informed them. He inserted Tom's key into the lock. There were several loud clicks and the door opened.

Tom had never had any money in his life, so he was dumbstruck by the vault. There was a tiny pile of bronze coins, a reasonable pile of silver ones and a pile of about a hundred gold coins. He asked the goblin if there was anyway he could find out exactly how much there was in the vault.

"There is an enchanted parchment at the far wall of this vault," Trundle replied. "It changes itself every time money is withdrawn or deposited."

Tom stepped over the coins to the far wall to see the parchment, while listening to the goblins explanation to the money.

"There are twenty-nine bronze Knuts to a silver Sickle and seventeen Sickles to a gold Galleon. First year Hogwarts students spend an average of forty Galleons. Generally each year becomes more expensive for new books, potion refills and the like."

Finally reaching the enchanted parchment, Tom saw that in this vault he had one hundred and sixty seven Galleons, fourteen Sickles and nine Knuts. Thinking about what the goblin said, he decided to take sixty Galleons. He may see something that may be helpful that his school list didn't cover.

The cart trip back was just as gut-wrenching as the first time. Fortunately, Tom's breakfast stayed inside his stomach. As he was going outside and breathing in cool fresh air, he had a thought that made him feel worse than ten rides in the Gringotts cart would have made him feel.

"Professor," he gulped fearing the answer. "The goblin said that I'd need about forty Galleons per year. I don't have that much. Does that mean I'll have to leave Hogwarts before my fifth year?"

"No. There are a few options open to you," the professor replied. By the sound of it he had been asked this question before. "Hogwarts pays for basic school supplies if students are unable to afford them. You must declare everything that you buy to Hogwarts, however. The other option is you could take a loan out of Gringotts once your own money dries up. You may do what you wish with this money, not like you can with Hogwarts payment. However, you will need to pay back the loan, with interest, once you reach employment age with a Gringotts loan."

Tom felt a little better hearing this. While he didn't want to feel like a charity case, it was nice to know he would be able to survive through school. He would decide which would be better when the time came. He pulled out his school list and began to read.

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

Three sets of plain work robes (black)
2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear
3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon's hide or similar)
4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags

SET BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 by Miranda Goshawk

A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot

Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling

A Beginners' guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch

One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore

Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger

A First Years Guide to Magical Creatures by Quin Taped

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble

OTHER EQUIPMENT

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set glass or crystal phials

1 set brass scales

1 telescope

Students may also bring an owl or a cat or a toad.

PARENTS SHOULD REMEMBER THAT FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS.

Tom decided to get the robes out of the way first. He went into Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. The shop was empty except for a few assistants. He had a time in the robe shop. As he was much taller than the average first year, he was fitted with third year robes, which he immediately discovered were far too baggy.

"That's no problem, dear," said the assistant good-naturedly. She tapped the hem of the robes with her wand, and they were immediately a perfect fit. Then he had to have his Dragon hide gloves enchanted so that they were long enough to accommodate his lanky hands and long thin fingers. He paid for his purchases and hurried out of the store, laden with bags. He met up with the professor, who had bought him his potion ingredients and his cauldron. Together they went to the bookstore, Flourish and Blotts. Tom decided to start to be economical with his money as early as possible. He was able to find most of his book list on the second hand book shelf. This left him with enough to browse for other books. He decided on an encyclopaedia of curses and hexes, a book on a wizards rights and laws, one or two on duelling and a few more on the basics of his subjects. From what the professor had told him, there were both purebloods, who had grown up with magic and muggle born who, like him had only just found out about magic. These books were the basic dos and don'ts of magic, what not to mix with what potions, wand safety and the like. The last thing he wanted was to look like an idiot in front of his new friends and professors.

The last shop for school equipment was Ollivander's Wandshop. Professor Mondain told him that he would wait for him in the bar, to walk him home. That meant he would be able to buy a wand, have a look at the Magical Menagerie and a knick-knack store that Tom had seen earlier.

Ollivander's was dusty and dimly lit inside, its walls lined with hundreds of boxes. The only furnishings were a desk and a chair, and the light was coming from an open door near the back of the room. The shopkeeper was nowhere to be seen, so Tom sat down in the rickety chair and waited.

Tom did not have to wait for very long. A man with greying hair and silver eyes emerged from the back room and placed a box in one of the empty shelf spaces. Tom stood up to greet him.

"Are you Mr. Ollivander?" he asked.

The silver-eyed man turned around and noticed Tom for the first time.

"Yes," he responded after a long silence. "Ah, you are starting at Hogwarts." He swept forward and looked into Tom's face. Mr. Ollivander's eyes narrowed suddenly, and he examined Tom more closely. "Are you Katherine Serpens' son?" he inquired.

"I'm Tom Riddle. I don't know who my parents were," Tom stated, stared into Mr. Ollivander's eyes. Something about them felt like they were X-ray machines. They made him uncomfortable. Then again, he thought, his own eyes were not particularly normal themselves.

Mr. Ollivander's face broke into a smile.

"I sold your mother her wand," Mr. Ollivander proclaimed. "Ten-and-a-quarter inches long, cherry and unicorn hair, rather supple. An excellent wand for transfiguration, that was. Now we shall see which wand suits you the best." Mr. Ollivander removed a stack of boxes from a shelf. "Which is your wand hand, Tom Riddle?"

"I'm left-handed," Tom stated. Immediately, a tape measure sprang up and started to measure Tom in odd ways; his whole left arm, elbow to index finger, height, and then it fell down when Mr. Ollivander said to it "that will do", just as it was measuring his nostrils.

"Let's see…" Mr. Ollivander reached into the first box. "We'll try this first. Willow and unicorn hair, nine inches, whippy. Take it in your hand and give it a good wave." Tom obeyed, but to no avail. The wand showed no sign of life. "How about this. Holly and dragon heartstring, twelve-and-a-quarter inches, bendy. Try."

This wand was unsuccessful as well. Tom went through seven stacks of boxes over the next hour, and none of the wands worked. By the bottom of the seventh stack, Tom's shoulder was killing him from all the waving, and he felt so exasperated that he wanted to jump up and down and scream. Mr. Ollivander was getting hoarse from talking so much.

"Troublesome customer, aren't we?" he grinned, coughing. "Your mother found her match in just ten minutes! Oh well, your powers must be choosy. Here, try this one. Yew-wood and phoenix feather, thirteen-and-a-half inches, very solid. Unusual combination too…" Tom reached into the box and closed his fingers around the wand. Instantly, he felt a surge of hot energy shoot down his arm. He lifted the wand over his head and brought it down through the air.

A blast of silver sparks and green light zoomed out of the wand and swirled all around the shop, bringing with it a gust of wind. Several boxes fell off their shelves, and the entire store was illuminated. Tom gasped and stared down at the wand in his hands. It felt warm under his fingers, and was still emitting tiny sparks. Mr. Ollivander clapped his hands with glee.

"That'll be the one, Tom Riddle," he cried. "You have in your hands one of the most powerful wands I have ever come across. This one came from a healthy yew-tree and an exceptionally clever phoenix. We shall expect many great things from you, Tom Riddle."

Tom, his face flushed with relief, let his arm fall, still clutching the wand tightly. He paid for the wand and left. He had a quick look in the knick-knack store and he was instantly grateful that he had been economical with this books or he never would have had enough money. He bought a new trunk, that was charmed to be light as a feather no matter what was put in it. It would be great for his purchases today; his arms were killing him. He left the store and decided to check the Magical Menagerie quickly. The professor had been telling him how useful owls were as pets. As soon as he was inside it became painfully obvious he couldn't have an owl. The cheapest one cost seventy five Galleons. With his limited funds, he couldn't afford it. He was about to leave when a tank at the back of the shop caught his eye. As he got closer he could see that the occupant of the tank was a grey snake with red eyes. As he drew near, it reared up. It looked like an albino king cobra. Tom made sure that there was no one near and began to hiss at the snake.

"Can you hear me," he hissed. "Can you understand me?"

"Yes, I can," the snake replied. "Are you going to buy me?"

"Maybe. If I did, would you harm me?" Tom had to ask the question.

"My teeth are sharp and venomous, but I will not harm you," the snake hissed. "As my master, I would not harm anyone unless ordered to."

Tom called over the assistant and said that he wanted to buy the snake. The assistant looked dubious, but eventually agreed to so long as Tom agreed to take a supply of anti-venom potion. Tom also bought a wicker basket that was charmed to give off heat, keeping the snake warm. He stowed the snake in his trunk and set off to meet the professor. On the way back to the orphanage, the professor told him how to catch the Hogwarts express on September the first. He couldn't believe he had to walk through a barrier between two platforms, but after today he would accept it. They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.

As far as I know, this method of funding is unique to fanfics, but it makes sense. In the days of old, muggleborns would most likely be peasants so couldn't afford much. And we know from cannon that Riddle is 'poor, but so brave'. I've read a lot of fics where he inherited a fortune, just like Harry, but this seems a little clichéd.