Author's Notes: Ok, here it is, chapter two. Lalalalalala.what else can I
say.lalalalalalala. Anyway. Here we go.
Disclaimer: Yet again, I do not, unfortunately, own anything related to Harry Potter.
Chapter two: My new look
It took forever to finally ditch Ron, since we had the hardest time finding Hermione. I'm so glad he has a girlfriend, because while we were wandering around looking for a brown, bushy head, he kept very close watch on me. If he lost sight of me for all of about thirty seconds, he would stop and look around until he found me again. I was usually walking right behind him, and so would bump into him every time we stopped. If Hermione hadn't shown up when she had, I swear, I probably would have had to trip Ron, just to teach him not to stop right in front of where people are walking.
Anyway, we finally found Hermione, and she and Ron immediately began to walk together, off in their own little dreamland, totally ignoring me. Normally this is really annoying, but today it worked out perfectly. I walked along with them, picking up all the school supplies only available in the wizarding world. When it came time to buy our robes, I told the two lovebirds that I wanted to check out a new display in the bookstore and would only be a minute. I had absolutely no intention of going to the bookstore, and so, after waiting until Ron and Hermione were once again ignoring the rest of the world, I turned around and walked to Gringotts.
I wasn't exactly sure just how to go about changing my galleons into muggle money, never having done anything of the sort before, so I just sort of wandered around trying to find something that looked promising. I finally noticed a tiny, decrepit, booth in a little corner at the back of the bank. Above, hung what appeared to be a sign reading, Currency Exchange. I headed up to the counter and dumped my bag of carefully saved Galleons onto it. The goblin seated there looked at me over the tops of his spectacles. Wordlessly, he swept my money onto a scale and looked at the measurement. He turned towards me questioningly, and I nodded to show my acceptance of the sum. He then proceeded to pull out a very large wad of muggle currency. I was very surprised to see such a huge pile of money, and expressed my concerns at his miscalculations. He merely looked at me skeptically and said, "There has been no miscalculation, Ms.."
"Weasley." I replied, "and are you sure, beca-"
"Of course I am sure, Ms. Weasley, you may not have been aware, but the exchange rate changed drastically in the wizard's favor about. half an hour ago."
I simply replied that I did not know this, and quickly gathered up my money before heading straight for the exit. I didn't have much time, and I wasn't about to waste it arguing with a goblin about his inability to count. I walked towards the Leaky Cauldron, trying to look as innocent as possible. The last thing I needed was one of my mum's friends noticing that I was wandering around Diagon Alley, looking about in a guilty manner.
I walked through the pub with my head down, hoping that none of my dad's drinking mates were in here at this time of day, to recognize me. Upon reaching the streets of London, I breathed a sigh of relief at having gotten through the hardest part of my plan safely.
Noticing that I was blocking traffic, just standing in the middle of the sidewalk, I began to walk in the direction that most of the crowd seemed to be moving. Wandering aimlessly, I looked at all of the shops we were passing, until I noticed one that seemed to have displays of clothing outside, and a herd of teenagers heading inside. I pushed my way through the sea of people, until I reached the doors. I took a deep breath and stepped inside.
I instantly felt as if I had stepped into an alternate universe. Everything seemed to be black, with little splashes of red and silver, here and there. I moved towards one of the nearest racks and started to look at the unidentifiable accessories hanging there. The main theme seemed to involve a lot of chains and spikes, which was a little disturbing, especially since I appeared to be looking at an underwear display.
I hurriedly turned to look at another rack and finally discovered something that I might actually be able to wear. The entire display was of different sorts of tops, and a sign above it read 50% OFF ALL SHIRTS. I looked through the assortment and pulled out a few things that looked encouraging. I saw a room marked CHANGING ROOMS so I found an empty one and began trying on everything I'd brought in with me.
By the time I was finished I had about 5 really cute tops that fit perfectly. I slung them over my shoulder, and continued looking about the store. It was about this time that I noticed all the strange looks I was being given. The people behind the cash register, and the shoppers kept shooting me odd glances. It took me a moment to figure out what they were staring at, but then it finally came to me.
I looked totally out of place with my long red hair, pink top, blue jeans, and unpierced face. Everyone else in the store had black clothes, dyed hair, and multiple piercings. Noticing this, I was totally embarrassed, but since I didn't know any of them, and I really needed these new clothes, I just stared back at them and went about my business.
By the time I left the store I had bought three tops, two pairs of pants, and a really cool pair of black boots. I could have bought a ton more, but I realized that it might be a good idea to space out my money, and buy some clothes from a store that didn't scare me quite so badly.
Wandering around with my bag of new clothes, I looked for another store crowded with people my age, preferably more normal looking this time. Suddenly I turned a corner and stopped dead. In front of me was a huge building absolutely swarming with people of all ages and descriptions. After a minute I recognized it as a mall, or a big building filled with all sorts of different shops. Nearly skipping in my joy at having found the perfect shopping spot, I entered and stared around me in amazement. The place was huge and packed with everything under the sun. I finally had to shake myself and remember why I was here. I found a giant map and tried to figure out where I was. I eventually just gave up, and decided to wander and see if I spotted something interesting.
And I certainly did. An hour later, I was laden down with all sorts of different packages, and bordering on the edge of exhaustion. I found a bench and simply collapsed, letting all my purchases spill around me. Looking over what I had bought, I thought about the new me. Although I had bought all new clothes, I didn't feel as if that was enough. Letting my gaze drift over the different boutiques near me, I stared at one in particular before realizing that I had the answer right in front of me.
I would get my hair cut! I'd had the exact same style basically my entire life, and now was the perfect time for a change. Gathering up all my new things, I rushed inside the salon and asked how long the wait was. The woman behind the reception desk told me that it wasn't any longer than ten minutes, so I decided to wait.
I had no idea what I wanted my hair to look like; I just knew that I wanted it to look like something else. I idly picked up a hairstyling magazine and began to study the pictures. None of them were what I wanted, and I was just about to throw the magazine down when I saw the perfect haircut.
It was still quite long, but cut in layers up to the chin, and the front was tapered up into bangs. It was the perfect cut for my hair, since it would leave the length, but make the rest more interesting. When I was led to my chair, after being assured that my packages were quite safe, I showed the stylist the picture and told her to cut my hair exactly like it. She nodded, and began to pace in a circle around me. I was beginning to wonder if she was a witch, and was going to just cut all my hair off with one wave of her wand, but she finally nodded her head again and began to cut away. I shut my eyes, afraid that I had made a terrible mistake. It was too late to stop and I was terrified.
She finally finished, and told me I could open my eyes. My head felt strangely light, and as soon as I could see clearly, I knew why. There was so much less hair, and yet it looked so much fuller. That was because, with all the heavy top stuff off, my hair had begun to curl, just at the ends, making this beautiful mass that fell down to just above my waist. The bangs framed my face perfectly, and made it look completely different. I barely recognized myself, which made me incredibly happy; since that was the effect I was aiming for.
I hopped out of my chair, thanking the stylist profusely, and strolled up to the front of the shop, I paid for my haircut, collected my bags and boxes, and walked out of the store with a new spring in my step.
A minute later, I had another brilliant idea. I was passing a jewelry shop, and noticed a giant sign reading FREE EAR PIERCING with purchase of earrings. I'd always dreamed of having pierced ears, but was too chicken to get it done. But the confidence, my new, gorgeous hairstyle had given me led me into the store and before I knew it, I was asking the woman behind the register if she could direct me to the ear piercer. "Why, that's me," she said, "Are you here to get yours done?" I answered yes, and she immediately pulled out a tray of tiny earrings with incredibly sharp points. She explained to me the whole process of piercing, and ear care. I knew exactly what she was going to do, since my friends and I had pierced each other's ears quite frequently (although never mine, obviously).
In spite of this, I was horribly nervous as she led me over to a stool and began to clean what looked like a torture device, but was merely the earring gun. As she loaded in the first of the small crystal studs I had chosen, I closed my eyes again, steeling myself against the pain. When it came, I nearly fainted, but instead bit my lip and forced myself to stay conscious. Before I knew what was happening, the lady had loaded the gun with the other earring and punched it into my ear. My stomach dropped out this time, and I had to grip the sides of the stool to stay upright.
When I cautiously opened my eyes, all the other customers began to clap, and give me sympathetic looks. I ducked my head and (being a redhead) blushed. My torturer, also known as the ear piercing lady, asked my if I would like to buy some other earrings, so I didn't have to wear the sharp ones forever. She led me over to an entire wall covered in earrings, bracelets, necklaces, rings, and all sorts of other sparkly things.
When I finally left the shop I had yet another bag filled with all sorts of jewelry. I decided that I couldn't possibly carry any more, and that it was time to head home. I amazingly found my way back to the Leaky Cauldron without too much trouble, and once inside I shrank all my new things small enough to put them all in the one bag that held my actual school supplies.
I hurried back into Diagon Alley, and quickly bought some new robes from Madam Malkin's using the small amount of money my mum had given me for school. I then wandered around, looking for Ron so we could go home, and I could sleep. I finally found him and Hermione, sharing a chocolate shake outside of Flortescan Fortesque's ice cream parlor. Walking up I said, "Hi guys, I'm dead, can we go home?"
Ron and Hermione stared at me for a second, before registering what I'd said. Ron told me to wait until they finished and then he would take me home. I told him that I wasn't going to wait, and he could just follow after me. I took the Floo inside the ice cream shop home and upon reaching the house, stumbled upstairs, to collapse on my bed. I'd never realized that shopping could be so exhausting, but I was out before my head hit the pillow. My last conscious thought was of what everyone at Hogwarts would think when they saw the new me.
Author's Notes: So, how was this chapter? I'm only going to continue writing this fic, if I get positive responses. Or maybe, I'll continue writing it, but never post. Hahaha wouldn't that be evil. So tell me what you think!
Disclaimer: Yet again, I do not, unfortunately, own anything related to Harry Potter.
Chapter two: My new look
It took forever to finally ditch Ron, since we had the hardest time finding Hermione. I'm so glad he has a girlfriend, because while we were wandering around looking for a brown, bushy head, he kept very close watch on me. If he lost sight of me for all of about thirty seconds, he would stop and look around until he found me again. I was usually walking right behind him, and so would bump into him every time we stopped. If Hermione hadn't shown up when she had, I swear, I probably would have had to trip Ron, just to teach him not to stop right in front of where people are walking.
Anyway, we finally found Hermione, and she and Ron immediately began to walk together, off in their own little dreamland, totally ignoring me. Normally this is really annoying, but today it worked out perfectly. I walked along with them, picking up all the school supplies only available in the wizarding world. When it came time to buy our robes, I told the two lovebirds that I wanted to check out a new display in the bookstore and would only be a minute. I had absolutely no intention of going to the bookstore, and so, after waiting until Ron and Hermione were once again ignoring the rest of the world, I turned around and walked to Gringotts.
I wasn't exactly sure just how to go about changing my galleons into muggle money, never having done anything of the sort before, so I just sort of wandered around trying to find something that looked promising. I finally noticed a tiny, decrepit, booth in a little corner at the back of the bank. Above, hung what appeared to be a sign reading, Currency Exchange. I headed up to the counter and dumped my bag of carefully saved Galleons onto it. The goblin seated there looked at me over the tops of his spectacles. Wordlessly, he swept my money onto a scale and looked at the measurement. He turned towards me questioningly, and I nodded to show my acceptance of the sum. He then proceeded to pull out a very large wad of muggle currency. I was very surprised to see such a huge pile of money, and expressed my concerns at his miscalculations. He merely looked at me skeptically and said, "There has been no miscalculation, Ms.."
"Weasley." I replied, "and are you sure, beca-"
"Of course I am sure, Ms. Weasley, you may not have been aware, but the exchange rate changed drastically in the wizard's favor about. half an hour ago."
I simply replied that I did not know this, and quickly gathered up my money before heading straight for the exit. I didn't have much time, and I wasn't about to waste it arguing with a goblin about his inability to count. I walked towards the Leaky Cauldron, trying to look as innocent as possible. The last thing I needed was one of my mum's friends noticing that I was wandering around Diagon Alley, looking about in a guilty manner.
I walked through the pub with my head down, hoping that none of my dad's drinking mates were in here at this time of day, to recognize me. Upon reaching the streets of London, I breathed a sigh of relief at having gotten through the hardest part of my plan safely.
Noticing that I was blocking traffic, just standing in the middle of the sidewalk, I began to walk in the direction that most of the crowd seemed to be moving. Wandering aimlessly, I looked at all of the shops we were passing, until I noticed one that seemed to have displays of clothing outside, and a herd of teenagers heading inside. I pushed my way through the sea of people, until I reached the doors. I took a deep breath and stepped inside.
I instantly felt as if I had stepped into an alternate universe. Everything seemed to be black, with little splashes of red and silver, here and there. I moved towards one of the nearest racks and started to look at the unidentifiable accessories hanging there. The main theme seemed to involve a lot of chains and spikes, which was a little disturbing, especially since I appeared to be looking at an underwear display.
I hurriedly turned to look at another rack and finally discovered something that I might actually be able to wear. The entire display was of different sorts of tops, and a sign above it read 50% OFF ALL SHIRTS. I looked through the assortment and pulled out a few things that looked encouraging. I saw a room marked CHANGING ROOMS so I found an empty one and began trying on everything I'd brought in with me.
By the time I was finished I had about 5 really cute tops that fit perfectly. I slung them over my shoulder, and continued looking about the store. It was about this time that I noticed all the strange looks I was being given. The people behind the cash register, and the shoppers kept shooting me odd glances. It took me a moment to figure out what they were staring at, but then it finally came to me.
I looked totally out of place with my long red hair, pink top, blue jeans, and unpierced face. Everyone else in the store had black clothes, dyed hair, and multiple piercings. Noticing this, I was totally embarrassed, but since I didn't know any of them, and I really needed these new clothes, I just stared back at them and went about my business.
By the time I left the store I had bought three tops, two pairs of pants, and a really cool pair of black boots. I could have bought a ton more, but I realized that it might be a good idea to space out my money, and buy some clothes from a store that didn't scare me quite so badly.
Wandering around with my bag of new clothes, I looked for another store crowded with people my age, preferably more normal looking this time. Suddenly I turned a corner and stopped dead. In front of me was a huge building absolutely swarming with people of all ages and descriptions. After a minute I recognized it as a mall, or a big building filled with all sorts of different shops. Nearly skipping in my joy at having found the perfect shopping spot, I entered and stared around me in amazement. The place was huge and packed with everything under the sun. I finally had to shake myself and remember why I was here. I found a giant map and tried to figure out where I was. I eventually just gave up, and decided to wander and see if I spotted something interesting.
And I certainly did. An hour later, I was laden down with all sorts of different packages, and bordering on the edge of exhaustion. I found a bench and simply collapsed, letting all my purchases spill around me. Looking over what I had bought, I thought about the new me. Although I had bought all new clothes, I didn't feel as if that was enough. Letting my gaze drift over the different boutiques near me, I stared at one in particular before realizing that I had the answer right in front of me.
I would get my hair cut! I'd had the exact same style basically my entire life, and now was the perfect time for a change. Gathering up all my new things, I rushed inside the salon and asked how long the wait was. The woman behind the reception desk told me that it wasn't any longer than ten minutes, so I decided to wait.
I had no idea what I wanted my hair to look like; I just knew that I wanted it to look like something else. I idly picked up a hairstyling magazine and began to study the pictures. None of them were what I wanted, and I was just about to throw the magazine down when I saw the perfect haircut.
It was still quite long, but cut in layers up to the chin, and the front was tapered up into bangs. It was the perfect cut for my hair, since it would leave the length, but make the rest more interesting. When I was led to my chair, after being assured that my packages were quite safe, I showed the stylist the picture and told her to cut my hair exactly like it. She nodded, and began to pace in a circle around me. I was beginning to wonder if she was a witch, and was going to just cut all my hair off with one wave of her wand, but she finally nodded her head again and began to cut away. I shut my eyes, afraid that I had made a terrible mistake. It was too late to stop and I was terrified.
She finally finished, and told me I could open my eyes. My head felt strangely light, and as soon as I could see clearly, I knew why. There was so much less hair, and yet it looked so much fuller. That was because, with all the heavy top stuff off, my hair had begun to curl, just at the ends, making this beautiful mass that fell down to just above my waist. The bangs framed my face perfectly, and made it look completely different. I barely recognized myself, which made me incredibly happy; since that was the effect I was aiming for.
I hopped out of my chair, thanking the stylist profusely, and strolled up to the front of the shop, I paid for my haircut, collected my bags and boxes, and walked out of the store with a new spring in my step.
A minute later, I had another brilliant idea. I was passing a jewelry shop, and noticed a giant sign reading FREE EAR PIERCING with purchase of earrings. I'd always dreamed of having pierced ears, but was too chicken to get it done. But the confidence, my new, gorgeous hairstyle had given me led me into the store and before I knew it, I was asking the woman behind the register if she could direct me to the ear piercer. "Why, that's me," she said, "Are you here to get yours done?" I answered yes, and she immediately pulled out a tray of tiny earrings with incredibly sharp points. She explained to me the whole process of piercing, and ear care. I knew exactly what she was going to do, since my friends and I had pierced each other's ears quite frequently (although never mine, obviously).
In spite of this, I was horribly nervous as she led me over to a stool and began to clean what looked like a torture device, but was merely the earring gun. As she loaded in the first of the small crystal studs I had chosen, I closed my eyes again, steeling myself against the pain. When it came, I nearly fainted, but instead bit my lip and forced myself to stay conscious. Before I knew what was happening, the lady had loaded the gun with the other earring and punched it into my ear. My stomach dropped out this time, and I had to grip the sides of the stool to stay upright.
When I cautiously opened my eyes, all the other customers began to clap, and give me sympathetic looks. I ducked my head and (being a redhead) blushed. My torturer, also known as the ear piercing lady, asked my if I would like to buy some other earrings, so I didn't have to wear the sharp ones forever. She led me over to an entire wall covered in earrings, bracelets, necklaces, rings, and all sorts of other sparkly things.
When I finally left the shop I had yet another bag filled with all sorts of jewelry. I decided that I couldn't possibly carry any more, and that it was time to head home. I amazingly found my way back to the Leaky Cauldron without too much trouble, and once inside I shrank all my new things small enough to put them all in the one bag that held my actual school supplies.
I hurried back into Diagon Alley, and quickly bought some new robes from Madam Malkin's using the small amount of money my mum had given me for school. I then wandered around, looking for Ron so we could go home, and I could sleep. I finally found him and Hermione, sharing a chocolate shake outside of Flortescan Fortesque's ice cream parlor. Walking up I said, "Hi guys, I'm dead, can we go home?"
Ron and Hermione stared at me for a second, before registering what I'd said. Ron told me to wait until they finished and then he would take me home. I told him that I wasn't going to wait, and he could just follow after me. I took the Floo inside the ice cream shop home and upon reaching the house, stumbled upstairs, to collapse on my bed. I'd never realized that shopping could be so exhausting, but I was out before my head hit the pillow. My last conscious thought was of what everyone at Hogwarts would think when they saw the new me.
Author's Notes: So, how was this chapter? I'm only going to continue writing this fic, if I get positive responses. Or maybe, I'll continue writing it, but never post. Hahaha wouldn't that be evil. So tell me what you think!