Sort of insomnia induced, this was more along the lines of two days of bad sleep so Lily actually had a say in this one thankfully. Anywho, please read and review, and as always, enjoy!
SIDE NOTE: I have NO(!) idea why it is being made a big deal of a year after the fact, but yes Dancia's name is unique and I already had a subplot planned for later down the line were she admits that it was supposed to be Danica but well... Her mum was on a lot of pain killers after her birth, it'll be explained later.
The premier shopping distract of magical France, the Rue de Rêves was thankfully not accessed from the back alley of a seedy dive of an inn like with Diagon Alley. Rather one simply had to approach a rather tacky looking billboard peppered with muggle repelling charms sitting between two copper unicorn statues, both long tarnished green with age, and will the way to open with the tap of their wand.
A fast and efficient method that didn't require dealing with the stench of ripe bodies, stale ale, and tobacco smoke, something Harry approved of fully.
As the way opened up at Dany's behest Harry was thinking along the same lines as Hermione and her parents, this looked nothing like what he had seen in Magical Britain. Everything was modern, everything was clean, and while not looking quite like a shopping centre, it certainly bordered on the line.
Deciding to comment on this, Harry was surprised when a young man passing by carrying a cup of coffee laughed and slowed down to address their group.
"British yeah?" He asked in accented English, the group nodded while Hermione replied in his native French.
"Yes sir, we've been on holiday here for the past few weeks," the man nodded at this as he sipped his coffee.
"Then I hope your stay in France has been enjoyable young lady. As for why everything seems to be so modern here compared to your home country, well... you can thank Grindelwald for that."
His statement while light still carried a hint of bitterness that Dancia easily caught, "How so?" She asked with a tone of curiosity.
He scoffed lightly, finished his coffee, and tossed it into the air vanishing it with a flick of his wand before replying.
"Well it's fairly easy to implement full modernization when your entire society and infrastructure has been burnt down to the ground by a madman, now isn't it? If you have got to rebuild, why not do it with some style? Regardless enjoy the rest of your stay in my favorite city! Oh and if you're sticking around for dinner try Raphaël's off of Rue des échos! Have to go, ta!"
With that he stuck his hands in his pockets and walked away.
With that rather interesting revelation in mind, the group eventually made their way to a storefront leading to France's most renowned wand crafter.
Madame Espérer as it turned out was absolutely nothing like Mister Ollivander; rather than being creepy as hell while lecturing Harry on wand lore, having him play with hundreds of pre-made wands that didn't match, she instead had him stick his hand over muggle made totes full of wooden rods.
Following her laconic instructions to simply 'Push out with your magic until something takes its fancy,' Harry did so for about five minutes before one rod flew into his hand so hard it nearly bruised it.
Adjusting her glasses slightly, the middle aged witch took the rod from Harry and examined it with a critical eye.
"Beech, a tricky wood in that it'll only choose those who are open minded, and in your case wise beyond your years. A bit inclined to artistry and it prefers subtlety over brute force, a sneaky one are we not?"
This was said in a teasing tone that Harry only shrugged at, "Who is to say? I would certainly never admit to such implications."
Dany and Mia both scoffed in amusement at this, earning a mock glare from Harry that they only grinned at in response.
The amused wand crafter was now excited enough at her new project to let out an enthused, "Right then, now for the core!"
This took a bit longer than the wood, but the end reaction was much more surprising.
As Harry hovered his hand over one of the many totes, a thin strip of something resembling ivory shot out and once meeting his hand sent a pulse of magic out that knocked over nearly every container in the room.
Glancing back and forth in annoyance Madame Espérer flicked her wand a few times and returned everything to its proper place with but a thought. Sighing she snapped the bit of ivory from the still flummoxed Harry's hand and took a look at it.
"Shaving of a Horned River Serpent's horn, interesting. You a parselmouth kid?"
Harry, still reeling form the accidental damage he'd caused didn't respond, so Mia and Dany rolled their eyes before turning back to the wand maker.
"He is," Dany began.
"Yet he really hasn't explored what he can do with it," Mia finished.
Snapping back to reality Harry lightly drawled out, "I can talk to snakes, I say hello, they greet me in turn, then they ask if I have a mouse about me they could have. A very useful and terrifying skill that I should expand on for sure."
"It is if you have a vendetta against mice I suppose," Dan mused while Emma rolled her eyes at the byplay.
"Unless you are trying to circumvent them acquiring the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe, and Everything, I really don't see the point in that regardless," his wife stated in an amused tone.
Hermione smiled at that, while Dancia quietly muttered, "It's 42...by the way..."
Coughing to get the groups attention back on her, the wand crafter quickly stated, "Well...congratulations kid, your wand materials have been chosen, or rather have chosen you. Anyway, I need some of your blood to bond this wand to you, shall we continue?"
"Right!" Harry stammered, as he stepped past the girls and offered his hand out to Madame Espérer. The process didn't take long thankfully, thrust of a needle on his thumb, a few drops of blood on the core, a few onto the shaped beech wood, and that was that.
"Alrighty, you kids can wait around for about two hours, or go off and do your own thing, either way don't bother me while I'm crafting."
At this the Granger party shrugged as one, and left.
What followed was what was to be expected when three hyper intelligent women were given free reign to shop for any book they desired, thankfully Harry and Dan were quite used to this sort of thing so it really didn't scar them much. Just...bored them, while reminding both males why they let the women in their lives do what they wanted. It was just...safer that way.
Eventually after the girls had spent quite a bit of Lord Malfoy's money acquiring unregulated knowledge, something Bellatrix Black would likely find quite amusing, it was time for Harry to claim his wand. Returning to Madame Espérer's shop, Harry met the grinning woman's gaze evenly as she handed him the handsome wand made solely for him. Grasping it he felt elation, trepidation, and...power, so much power. Golden sparks flew from its tip and he couldn't hold back his elated smile as he twirled his wand between his fingers.
Eventually Dany and Mia stood at his sides, both smiling lightly as they observed his awestruck visage.
Words were not needed, nor were they offered. Both witches had bonded to their wands instantly and knew full well the euphoria Harry must be feeling now that he'd found his magical partner in crime. Exchanging glances the girls could only grin at each other, the next six years were going to be...interesting.
A few days later their holiday was over with and they returned home. Harry spent time with the rest of their expanded family, Hermione did much of the same with her parents, and Dancia decided to spend time with Dora before she was absorbed with her Auror training.
On a whim the older witch decided they were going thrift store shopping, this sounded amusing to Dany so they did just that. After a bit of a shopping spree Dora ended up in a pair of torn up blue denim jeans, a Ramones T-shirt, an old black denim jacket festooned with patches and button pins, along with her usual combat boots. Couple this with her now spiked bubblegum pink hair and the teen could easily fit into a punk concert anywhere in the hemisphere.
Dancia for her part wore a rather archaic ensemble consisting of a white jacket with a pink lining covering a black corset, brown pants, black gloves, and black high heeled boots with white leather spats going from ankle to knee. She finished this off with a white lace parasol.
Dora said she looked 'Classy as Fuck,' so that was probably a win for her. They also bought a pair of golf clubs and a bucket of golf balls, and hit a sandwich shop before finding themselves on a pier over the Thames, teeing off at the surrounding seagulls and pigeons.
"FORE!" Dora called out as she swung her club, sending a golf ball flying and fist pumped when it nailed a seagull, sending the dazed bird down into the water bellow.
"Damn, ok that is 4-3 now, nice shot by the way. So...worried about joining the Auror Corps?" Dancia asked this as she took Dora's place at the end of the pier, dropping her own ball into place while she practice swung her club a few times.
"Eh, not...really? I mean I've known what to expect since I was a brat and fully intend on doing things by the book, but I'm also aware I have an unfair advantage. I mean the two highest ranking members in the department are my aunt and uncle, I've had my mum and the aunts training me since forever, and you taught me how to wandlessly summon things already sooo..."
"FORE!" Dany cried out. before grimacing, "FUCK! Missed the little shit. Eh, I'm just glad you picked up on it quickly enough, I mean if you're going to learn one spell to perform wandlessly, it should be one that will help you acquire a wand. What the instructors always told us anyway."
Pushing the now pouting Dancia aside, Dora dropped a ball in place and shook her hips a bit, "Gotta stop aiming for the pigeons, the gulls are bigger. Anyway why don't you do more things wandlessly? I mean you're powerful enough for it and all. Not that I'm not grateful for your coaching or anything, a wandless incantationless accio is bound to turn some heads after all, I just don't get why you don't do more with it. FORE!"
Her ball did not hit a bird, it in fact continued on and hit a fisherman on the head sending him to the deck of his boat in a befuddled heap. Dora covered her mouth in horror, while Dany laughed for a time before replying.
"Hot damn, nice one cousin nice. As for the not doing wandless magic, it's the same reasoning as to why witches such as ourselves cannot use potions to regulate our periods until we are older. Puberty is a bitch. Screwing around with chaotic powers while you are still becoming an adult can have some...really...really negative side effects."
Dora blinked at that, "Such as?"
Dancia scowled as she dropped a golf ball, yelled "FORE!" and swung her club, braining a seagull and sending it to its death before replying with, "Sterility for starters. Maybe even a heredity curse if you really screwed up, not to mention squibbing yourself. I hadn't realized how...horrific this was until a week ago actually, thank Circe for Midol... Also we're 4-4"
Her cousin paused mid-swing as she quickly turned around, "Wait you're menstruating?"
Dany rolled her eyes at that, "Yes, I am. Which means puberty is hitting me earlier than even Susan had to deal with in my last life. I am already annoyed about this, please don't make a big deal out of it."
"Err...right...FORE!"
There was an uncomfortable pause in the conversation for a few minutes before Dora asked, "Umm... I don't need to give you the talk do I?"
Dancia glared at her a moment, then deflated as she let out an exasperated sigh, "No, you don't, thankfully mum already had a rather... shall we say bare bones talk with me about it? I think she was more embarrassed about the entire situation then I was, so that is at least out of the way. Though I feel terrible for Harry at the moment. Apparently Lord Black is using my...becoming a woman, as an excuse to give Harry 'The Talk.'"
Dora froze up, met Dany's gaze, then both witches broke out laughing.
Harry stared at his Dogfather in abject horror as he processed what he had just been told, after a minute of uncomfortable silence he squawked out "BABIES COME FROM WHERE?!" Sirius for his part ran a hand down his face, while Amelia did her best not to break out laughing. Ah, the joys of children growing up and basking in their suffering.
Tonks and Dancia would find that amusing wouldn't they? Oh and Dancia's outfit was modeled after Neo's from the web series RWBY. Hope you enjoyed!