Diagon Alley, oh goody!(Part 2)

Artemis had to admit, Butler's brochure had turned out quite helpful. It had contained detailed instructions on how to enter Diagon Alley. He mulled over the information Butler had given him earlier. Butler had beseeched him not to go robbing the wizard bank, due to the fact that he knew next to nothing about this world, apart from what he had been told. Artemis had assured Butler that he wouldn't dream of robbing a wizarding bank , at least, not yet...

Diagon Alley was not quite what he expected. It was a busy street with strangely dressed people bustling from one shop to another. He was surprised, to say the least. He had been expecting something reminiscent of a shopping mall, not a village market. He trailed after Butler as he made his way to a majestic white building.

"Gringotts", whispered Butler. "Artemis, please don't try anything. See that warning?"

Artemis looked at the pair of silver doors in front of 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."

Artemis wasn't impressed. "Perhaps, but no bank is impenetrable."

********** I'm a line************

Artemis was getting sick of being surprised. He usually made sure that he was at least one step ahead of everyone else. But the Internet hadn't been able to provide much accurate information about wizards. Unlike fairies, who left faint trails that he could follow, the wizards had nothing that could be traced back to them. And he was starting to see why.

Wizards used absolutely no technology! If the shops he had passed on their way to Gringotts were anything to go by, wizards were archaic enough to use quills! If he wanted to learn more about this world, he would have to do it the old fashioned way, with books. He turned his attention back to Butler. He was handing over a key to a small wrinkled creature .

"Well Butler, care to shed some light on the situation?"

Butler nodded and took a brochure out of his pocket. He cleared his throat and began to read.

"Gringotts is run by goblins, highly intelligent humanoid creatures who are well-known for their craftsmanship. Gringotts bank was founded by a respectable goblin named Gringott. The bank is used by wizards to store valuables in vaults deep underground."

Artemis nodded. He followed the goblin into a small cart.

The goblin gave him a mischievous grin.

"Full speed ahead!"

*************Line break**************

"Butler, remind me to find a way to enable online banking in Gringotts."

Artemis groaned. Gathering information about Gringotts' security would be a lot harder if they were zooming by too fast for him to observe their surroundings.

"Vault 444"

Artemis examined his vault with interest. As he had expected, the vault was full of gold. He had expected nothing less, after all, his family's motto was Aurum est Potestas for a reason. He accepted the pouch Butler gave him and filled it with coins. He made a mental note to learn what each of the coins were called.

"Alright, I believe our business here is complete."

**************Line break again**************

Now that he had some money, Artemis was ready to explore the various stores in Diagon Alley. He sent Butler to purchase his equipment. There was one thing he had been hoping to do ever since he was told that wizards exist. He smiled one of his famous vampire grins. Look out world, Artemis Fowl was getting a wand.

Artemis stepped into the rickety wand shop... and promptly got hit on the head by a wand case.

"Ow! Is this a regular occurrence around here?"

He noticed that the shop was already occupied by two other boys around his age. Both of the boys were skinny, shorter than average and had black hair.

'How curious', he thought, 'three boys of the same age with similar features in the same place.'

One of the boys was glaring at him with eyes as black as onyx.

"I'm terribly sorry for not checking whether it was raining wands before you invited yourself in!"

Artemis decided to play along, "Well I'm sorry that I didn't know better than to walk into a shop that was open for business! I'll make sure to stand outside and ring the doorbell next time. Oh right, there isn't one.

The boy scowled, "Yeah well, I- "

"That will be quite enough!", interrupted an old man, who he assumed was Mr. Ollivander. "Now, Mr. di Angelo, let's see if we can find a wand that works for you."

Di Angelo scowled, "We've already tried 27 wands, maybe I'm just too ...odd."

Mr. Ollivander tutted, "Chin up, lad! I have a feeling this wand will work for you. Maple wood and phoenix feather. Give it a wave."

Di Angelo sighed, but waved the wand nonetheless. Suddenly, the wand seemed to glow with black light and the shadows lengthened. Di Angelo grinned, "I think this is the one for me"

Mr. Ollivander nodded, "Yes, quite an interesting combination. Now, come forward Mr...?"

"Fowl", he said, suddenly feeling rather nervous. He sighed, he was being ridiculous. He stepped closer to the eccentric old man.

"Wand arm?"

"I'm ambidextrous. But I prefer my left hand."

Mr. Ollivander nodded. "Very well, let's see what I can do."

********** 15 wands later **********

Artemis was starting to worry. He turned to see di Angelo and another green-eyed boy staring at him.

"Don't you two have better things to do?"

Di Angelo smirked, "I'd much rather stay here and watch you fail epically."

His companion shot him a pointed look, "What my friend here meant to say was that we have to wait for our guide."

Artemis nodded, he turned his attention back to Ollivander, who was reaching for a particularly high up wand. Something caught his eye, a wand was lying on Ollivander's desk and he could tell that he hadn't tried it yet. He hesitated, he could feeling something special about that wand. Should he give it a wave? Casting a quick glance at Mr Ollivander who was still trying to reach a wand box. He sighed, it was worth a try.

All of a sudden, a bright blue light filled the room. Mr. Ollivander hurried over to him.

"Interesting, Beech wood and dragon heartstrings."

Artemis smiled, he had a feeling that this was going to be fun.

*********** Time skip***********

Artemis was hoping that he'd never have to see di Angelo again. Something about that boy made his blood boil, and he didn't like it. So naturally, he had to run into him at the pet store too.

Artemis had been debating whether or not to buy an owl. He had ultimately decided to purchase one, apparently, the wizards used them to send messages. He still found it difficult to wrap his head around the fact that wizards didn't use technology.

He noticed a small gray owl that had been staring at him in a most unnerving way. He grinned, this bird was one after his own heart.

"I think I'll call you Athena."

He was on his way out of the shop when he bumped (quite literally) into di Angelo.

"You again? What are you doing here?"

Artemis smirked, " Why, to buy a pet! Just like everyone else. What about you?"

He scowled. "Animals don't really like me", he muttered.

Artemis could see why. Di Angelo radiated death. He wasn't quite sure how one could radiate death, but it was the only way he could describe the power surrounding him.

"Anyway, what's your name? I don't want to keep calling you 'Fowl the Foul' in my head."

"It's Artemis, Artemis Fowl. And you are?"

The boy scowled, "Really dude? Artemis? Couldn't your parents have named you literally anything else? That stupid goddess plagues me wherever I go." The last part was muttered, but he heard it anyway.

With that, di Angelo stormed out of the store. Plants died at his feet. Artemis watched him storm off. Whatever-his-name-was di Angelo was a strange person. It would be difficult to learn more about him. Artemis let a vampire grin spread across his face. Artemis Fowl never backed down from a challenge.

A.N :

Hey peeps! I'm back with a new chapter, as promised. I'm really looking forward to writing the next few chapters. If Artemis is acting a bit OOC , it's just because I think he would act a bit more childishly at 10 than he does in the books. Also, don't forget to review, favourite or whatever else it is you can do on this website!