Title: The Cousin Of Ipswich
Author: Kyra
Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it! If I did, I probably wouldn't be writing fanfiction.
Summary: After refusing the Dark Mark the summer after 5th year, Draco Malfoy runs to his cousin Reid Garwin in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
Pairing: I know what they're going to be, but I'm not spoiling it yet. You'll just have to wait to find out! I should probably let you all know that all of the pairings in this will be Slash though. I forgot to put that in before, sorry.
Spoilers: HP – Starts the summer after 5th year, so everything up through OotP. Covenant – Starts the summer after the movie, so almost a year later. Chase is dead and all four Sons have just graduated and they've all Ascended.
Warnings: Eventual Slash. Not quite yet, though…Maybe if you squint really hard. Though there's one spot in this chapter that you really only have to squint a little…
A/N: This did not turn out the way I had planned! It's much longer, and covers much less than what I had intended. But oh well, it is the way it is. I hope you all like it!
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Chapter 6: Salem Shopping
"Woah!" Tyler breathed, staring around him with wide eyes.
Caleb looked around, trying to take everything in, "Wow!"
Pogue just nodded his agreement, also looking around with wide eyes.
Reid was hyperly bouncing in place, a huge grin on his face. "This is so cool!" He exclaimed.
Drake laughed as he watched his cousin and his new friends drinking in the sight of Salem's Wizarding district. Witches and Wizards were bustling everywhere; some in plain robes, some in bright robes, some in animated robes and a few wandered around in Muggle wear. Shops lined both sides of the street advertising their wares, selling everything from robes to cauldrons to owls to wands and so much more. Three of the four Sons of Ipswich were staring around them in awe while the fourth was bouncing with excitement.
Caleb finally blinked and managed to drag his eyes back to Drake, only to see the younger boy grinning at them. He cleared his throat slightly. "So, uh, where to first?" He asked, causing Tyler and Pogue to break their staring as well and turn to face Drake. Reid stopped bouncing and turned to look at his cousin as well, finally regaining a bit of control.
"C'mon," Drake said as he started heading down the street. "First stop is Gringotts, the Wizarding bank; we'll need to exchange some money so that we'll actually be able to pay for things. Then probably the wand shop, since I'm not sure how long that will take. And after that, it doesn't really matter, we can just wander and I'll get what I need as we go."
The five boys made their way down the street to the large bank at the end and went inside. Caleb, Reid, Pogue and Tyler's eyes all went wide as they caught site of the creatures behind the counter.
"What…" Tyler started as he stared curiously at the tellers.
Drake glanced at them as they headed to an open teller. "They're goblins," He said, answering the other boy's unasked question.
"Weird," Pogue muttered quietly and the other three Sons nodded.
They watched as Drake conversed quietly with the goblin behind the counter for a moment. After a few minutes he turned to look at them.
"Hey, Reid, how much are we allowed to spend?" Drake asked.
Reid shrugged. "However much you want. Mom gave me her check card," He replied.
Drake rolled his eyes. "That doesn't really help me. I need to know how much I can tell them to convert. And I'm not familiar with British Muggle money, much less American Muggle money."
Reid shrugged again, "How am I supposed to know how much you need to convert? I don't know how expensive the stuff you'll need is."
Before the two could start arguing, the goblin helping Drake spoke up, "If I may, Sirs, we have a new money sack available that you can buy that would help you out tremendously if you frequently travel between the Wizarding community and the Muggle community. It automatically converts your money for you. With a simple tap of your wand it switches between a Muggle wallet that holds all of your Muggle money to a money sack that will hold all of your Wizarding currency. Any money that is in it when you tap it is automatically converted." As he explained the goblin pulled out a soft black leather money pouch and showed it to them. With a tap of the goblin's finger it changed into a black leather wallet. "What do you gentlemen think?"
Drake glanced at the others before looking back at the goblin and nodding. "That will work," He replied, "We'll take one."
The goblin nodded and set the wallet on the counter. "That will be fifty U.S. dollars," He told them.
Reid reached into his back pocket and pulled out his own wallet, "Um, you don't happen to take check cards, do you?" He asked.
The goblin shook his head and pointed over to one side of the room, "No, but we do have Muggle ATM machines over there."
Reid nodded and quickly headed over to the ATMs and pulled out some cash before rejoining the others and handing over the fifty dollars.
The goblin thanked them for their business and Drake grabbed his new wallet, putting the cash Reid gave him in it and they headed out of the bank.
The boys blinked as the stepped back out into the bright sun and paused to let their eyes adjust once more.
"You said we needed to get your wand next, right?" Tyler asked, looking over at the younger boy.
Drake nodded as he looked around for a moment until he finally spotted the wand shop then headed off in that direction. "Yeah. Especially since I'll need it to be able to change the wallet into a money sack so that we can pay for things," He replied.
Pogue looked curious as he followed the other boy. "Why do you need a wand?" He questioned, "I mean, what's the difference between what you do and what we do?"
The blonde shrugged a little. "I don't really know what the difference is. Aside from the fact that my magic won't hurt me if I use it too much, my eyes don't turn black and I use a wand. But, I think you meant the difference between the power that is accessed when we do magic, right?" Drake glanced over and saw Pogue nod before he continued. "I'm not really sure how to explain it because I'm not really sure of the answer myself. I think that part of it is that yours is like a family gift, passed down from generation to generation, or you could even compare it to your family name since its tied to the first-born son; while ours isn't really wholly dependent on our parents. And your magic, your Power, is tied to your life force, whereas ours isn't, its still a part of us, but it's a separate part. Does that make any sense at all? Because I'm not sure. I really don't know the difference."
"I think it makes about as much sense as its going to," Caleb said and Reid, Pogue and Tyler all nodded.
"Mom couldn't ever explain the difference either. Said she doesn't know," Reid added.
"So what about the wand?" Tyler added, "Why do you need to use a wand."
By this point the boys had made it to the wand shop and they went inside. The first thing Drake noticed was just how different it was from Ollivander's; where Ollivander's was dark, dusty and messy, this one was bright, tidy and clean.
A woman who looked to be in her late thirties came out of the back room as the bell over the door chimed. "Well, hello there," She greeted cheerfully. "What can I do for you boys today? Five wands? Just one? Somewhere in between?"
"Just one," Drake told her, "For me."
The woman nodded. "I'm Tiana, by the way," She told them as she approached Drake, a measuring tape in hand. "Wand arm?" She asked and Drake held out his right arm for her. She quickly started taking his measurements, doing it all herself, another contrast to Ollivander's. "And may I ask just why it is that you need a wand, Hun? Cos, you surely aren't eleven."
Drake smiled at her, she was quite cheerful and Drake couldn't help but like the woman…Plus, she wasn't nearly as creepy as Ollivander. "My old one was broken because of a fight," He replied, thinking to himself that it wasn't really a lie since his mother had probably broken it when he left after refusing the Mark."
Tiana made a soft tutting noise. "What kind of wand did you have before?" She asked.
"Hawthorne and Unicorn hair," Drake replied, "Ten inches."
Tiana studied him intently for a moment and then her eyes went slightly unfocused as though she were looking at the air around Drake rather than at him. She made that soft tutting noise again as she headed to the back room. "No, no, that won't do at all. Hardly a good match. Acceptable, but nowhere near a perfect match."
Drake watched her go with a raised eyebrow and an amused expression before turning back to the others. "You were asking about why we need wands, right?"
The others nodded and Drake opened his mouth to reply but before he could say anything, Tiana came back into the front room, her arms loaded down with boxes and a few more floating behind her. She had obviously heard what they said as she was the one to answer.
"The wand acts as a focus for your magic," She told them as she put the boxes down on the counter. She turned and looked the four boys standing off to the side a bit. She stared hard at them for a moment before her eyes once more went slightly out of focus. A moment later she blinked and focused on them once more, her head cocking slightly to the side. "Though not your magic," She said, "Yours is something completely different. I'm not sure I've ever seen anything like it. Very interesting…" She shook her head slightly before going back to her explanation. "Anyway, like I said, the wand focuses a Wizard or Witch's magic; makes the magic easier to access. Now they can learn how to do magic without the aid of a wand, but most don't bother as it can take a while learn and the learning takes a lot of concentration and control. Most Wizards find it easier to just use the wand. Some, however, are lucky enough to be naturals. That's not to say that it wouldn't take a lot of hard work to learn, but it would come a lot easier. For instance, your friend here would be a natural if he ever decided he wanted to learn; he has quite a talent for it."
All five boys looked curious. "How do you know Drake would be a natural?" Tyler asked.
Tiana looked slightly distracted as she handed Drake a wand, watching closely as he flicked it, and even though it emitted a shower of sparks, she shook her head and plucked the wand away from him, putting it back in the box and grabbing another, handing it over to the blonde. "Hmm? Oh, it's all in his aura, Dear. He has quite a talent for Wandless. As well as Potions, Charms and defensive magics," She replied, once more taking the wand away and handing Drake another. "But, I'm getting off topic; you asked about the need for a wand. Now, some will tell you that the wand chooses the Wizard, but that's not true. It's all a matter of compatibility. Mostly between the Wizard's magic and the innate magic that the wand is infused with. But even if the magics are compatible, there is still more than one wand that will work. For example, while Drake, did you say? Drake's old wand was compatible with his magic, it was more suited to someone who was more magically inclined toward Transfiguration and Divination."
"Really?" Drake asked looking surprised. "I didn't know that."
Tianan nodded and handed Drake another wand. "Oh yes, but a lot of wand makers won't tell you that; it takes more time and patience to find a perfect fit. Most will just let you leave with a wand that is an acceptable fit. Hmm," She plucked the wand from Drake's hand and looking thoughtful turned and handed it to Reid. "Here, wave this," She told him.
Reid looked surprised but hesitantly reached out to take the wand, looking at it a bit apprehensively.
"Well? Go on, wave it," Tiana told him.
Reid glanced at the others for a second and say them all shrug before he shrugged as well and gently waved the wand like he'd seen Drake do. A soft, warm breeze blew through the room and it got just the slightest bit brighter, like they were out in the sun instead of under the artificial light in the shop. The faintest scent of sandalwood filled the shop along with a scent that Reid found very familiar, yet couldn't place no matter how hard he tried. His eyes went wide and he stared at the wand in completely shock. Slowly his eyes raised up to look at Tiana and she had a huge grin on her face. Reid opened his mouth to question, but the words wouldn't come out.
"Just as I thought!" Tiana exclaimed happily. "How wonderful!"
"Um, what the hell just happened?" Pogue asked as he and the others looked back and forth between Reid and the wand in his hand.
"You're friend here has a bit of Wizarding magic in him. Nowhere near as much as Drake, but enough that he can use a wand. He'll have a talent with charms and some of the defensive magics; but his strong suit will definitely be the Charms," She told them.
"Will it pull from his other magic? The kind that the others have?" Drake asked, inwardly wondering if channeling it through a wand would reduce the addictive affect that the Power had on his cousin.
Tianna shook her head, "Oh no, Hun. They're two completely different things. He has the magic like the others, but there's also Wizarding magic in him; it's completely separate. I don't think one will affect the other at all."
"But…How?" Reid asked. "Neither of my parents could do Wizarding magic…"
"No, but your mother is a Squib," Drake pointed out. "It could have skipped a generation."
"Huh," Reid said as he looked at the wand in a bit of wonder. He glanced up at the wand maker, "Any idea how I'd be at working this magic without the wand?"
"Not too shabby," She replied, "It won't come as easily to you as it will to Drake and you probably won't be able to do as much. And you'd have to learn how to tell the difference between which magic you're attempting to use."
"Doing this magic wandlessly, would I still have to say the spells or think the spells or…How would it work?" Reid asked as an idea formed in his head.
Tiana moved back to Drake and handed him another wand as she answered. "At first you'd probably need to say the spells, then think them, but eventually you should be able to just will what you want to happen. What you'll be doing is accessing your magic and getting it to do your will. With the wand, the wand acts as a focus while the wand movements and incantations express the intent. It will take a whole lot of hard work to get there, but I think you should be able to do it," Tiana explained.
"Cool," Reid replied with a grin.
Caleb opened his mouth to say something to Reid but was cut off as a gentle breeze and sunlight once more filled the room. This time the scent of vanilla and rain accompanied it.
"And we have a winner," Tiana said with a smile. "I'll give you boys a two-for-one special, just for being the most interesting customers I've had in a while!"
She told Drake the total and he pulled out his new wallet, tapped it with his new wand and reached in pulling out the correct amount, handing it to Tiana with a smile.
"You boys have a nice day," She said, waving cheerily as they exited the shop.
"Well, that was informative," Drake said as the started down the street. "I never knew all of that. I suddenly feel very cheated."
Caleb nodded, "I bet."
"I can't believe that they'd give you a half-assed wand, just because it would take longer to find the right one," Pogue said, shaking his head.
Drake snorted, "Yeah and the really horrible thing is, it took me longer to find my first wand than it did this one. Tiana really knew her stuff. Or maybe Ollivander is just getting lazy in his old age…"
"Dude, you have so got to teach me how to use this thing!" Reid exclaimed, throwing his arm around his cousin's shoulder as they entered the apothecary two stores down, completely passing the robe shop since Drake would be spending most, if not all, of his time in the Muggle world and therefore wouldn't need robes.
"Reid…" Caleb started but Reid cut him off.
"Don't lecture me, Caleb. I can do this kind of magic, no consequences. That will cut back on how much I Use the Power. We all know I abuse the Power, maybe this will help. I've gotten better since I Ascended, but you still get onto me about abusing and I know I have a bit of an addiction. This could help, Caleb, give me an alternative, ya know?"
"He does have a point, Caleb," Tyler said and Caleb sighed before nodding.
"Alright, I guess anything better than having to watch you die of old age before you turn forty," Caleb conceded.
Reid turned his attention back to Drake, "So, you'll teach me how to use it, right?"
Drake nodded as he started gathering a full stock of potion supplies, grabbing a bit of everything he thought he might possibly need. "Sure," He replied. "I'll have to check the laws here, though, see how old I have to be to use magic outside of school. You have to be seventeen in England."
"Well, that sucks," The older blonde said. "Where's the fun in that?"
Yeah, well, you have to remember that I was at school for nine months out of the year," Drake reminded him.
"Dude, eye of newt?" Tyler asked as he looked at some of the ingredients on the shelves. "Are you serious? Is the some toe of frog around here, too? Adder's fork? Blind worm's sting? Maybe some wool of bat or tongue of dog?"
Caleb, Pogue and Reid all snickered while Drake looked confused.
"What?" He asked, certain that there was a joke in there that he didn't get.
"It's from a play," Pogue told him as he stopped snickering.
Tyler nodded. "Yeah, Shakespeare's Macbeth. There's this scene where these three witches are making this potion over a huge cauldron and all of those things go onto it.," He explained.
Drake confusion cleared. "Oh. Well, there's definitely no potion that I know of that calls for tongue of dog. I've used frog toes before, but none of the other stuff," He laughed.
They quickly finished up in the Apothecary and paid before heading back out onto the street. They were heading toward the book store when Pogue stopped short causing Caleb to run into his back and Tyler to stumble into Drake as he tried to step around the two and tripped.
Tyler stumbled into Drake and would have ended upon the ground if it weren't for the blonde's quick reflexes. He quickly wrapped his arms around Tyler to keep him from tumbling to the concrete beneath them; his arms going around the other boy's waist tightly. Tyler had braced himself for the impact of hitting the ground, his eyes closing tightly, but his eyes flew open in shock as he felt himself pulled tightly against a hard body, surprised blue meeting silver-grey. He quickly got his feet back under him and blushed slightly as he stepped away from the blonde, Drake's arms slowly falling from around his waist.
"Thanks," Tyler said softly as he looked down for a moment before turning to glare at Pogue.
"What the hell, Pogue?" Caleb asked as he barely managed to keep himself from falling on his ass.
Reid stood on the other side of Drake nearly bent double as he laughed at the other four.
Pogue didn't answer Caleb's question, instead just pointing at the window to a shop across the street before looking at Drake in disbelief. "You guys actually fly on brooms?" He asked incredulously causing Tyler, Reid and Caleb to snap their gazes around in the direction the long-haired boy was pointing.
"No way!" Tyler exclaimed.
"You have got to be kidding me!" Caleb muttered as he took in the shop window advertising all kinds of brooms.
Reid didn't say anything, just started laughing again, harder than before. He had to grab onto his cousin to keep from falling over, he was laughing so hard.
Drake just shook his head at the other four boys. "Yes, we actually fly on brooms, Pogue," He replied before grinning, "We even have a sport played entirely in the air on brooms."
That shut Reid up. He straightened up and all four boys stared at Drake in shock, trying to tell if he was joking.
"No way," Tyler said again.
Drake nodded. "You guys wanna go look around? They probably have some Quidditch magazines in there; I can show what the game is like."
The four boys exchanged a look and turned back to Drake and nodded and all five headed across the street.
They walked in and the four Sons looked around in complete disbelief. They slowly wandered up and down the aisles looking at different things. In addition to brooms, the store also had all sorts of Quidditch supplies, from robes to practice balls to gloves to books and magazines.
Drake grinned as he found the magazines and picked one up. "Hey, Pogue," He called and when the older boy looked up, he tossed him the magazine, "Take a look."
Pogue glanced down at the magazine in his hand and his eyes went wide again. "The pictures are movng!"
Tyler and Caleb crowded around him, Reid moving a bit slower since he had already known about the moving pictures. Drake joined them a moment later as the boys started flipping through the magazine.
"This is pretty cool," Caleb said as they looked through it. "Do you play, Drake?"
Drake nodded and reached out, taking the magazine from Pogue. He flipped forward a few pages until he reached the cover story which was on Seekers. He handed the magazine back and tapped on the page. "I was the Seeker for my House team at school," He told them.
The Sons read through the article and watched the pictures for a few minutes before looking up at the newest member to their group. "Cool," Tyler said, pretty much summing up what the others had been thinking. "Are you going to get a broom, then?" He asked.
The blonde shook his head. "No, I'd like to, but I wouldn't have anyone to fly with. Maybe Reid, but the thought of Reid on a broom scares me," He replied.
Reid sent his cousin a look of mock-indignation, "Hey!" He couldn't hold the look for long though and started laughing, the other four quickly joining in.
Pogue put the magazine back on the rack. "C'mon, guys. Let's go get Drake's books. We still need to go to Boston and get him all of his non-magical shit, too," He said as he headed for the door, the others right behind him.
They didn't stay long in the book store; just long enough for Drake to grab a few books for each of the subjects he'd need to learn over the next year, as well as a few books on Quidditch for the others and the basic books needed for years one through five so that he could try and teach Reid how to use his wand.
As they checked out, Drake asked the clerk what the legal age to practice magic outside school was and both he and Reid were happy to hear that it was fifteen in the States.
The five boys headed back out of the Wizarding district and into Muggle Salem, quickly making their way to Tyler's SUV and loading the bags into the back. They piled into the SUV again, Reid still in the Driver's seat and Tyler still in the back with Drake and Pogue. They headed out of Salem and toward Boston to buy Drake everything else he would need living with the Garwins; the five of them talking about everything that they had seen in the Wizarding district as they went.
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Ta Da! Another chapter done! And it was way longer than I had planned…And the sad thing is that this chapter was supposed to be all of Drake's shopping, both Wizarding and Muggle….But then they got to the wand shop and I got the idea to give Reid a wand, but that wouldn't have taken too long; it was the explanation that took forever, so I really hope that it actually made sense…It did in my head, at least…Sort of. I honestly have no idea how the whole thing with the 'acceptable' and 'perfect' matches for the wand come about. I was writing the scene and that's just what happened. Oh well, I think I'm pretty happy with it overall, so it's all good, I guess.
Anyway, I hope you all liked it! Leave me a review and let me know what you think! And if the whole wand scene made any sense!
Kyra