Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, J.K Rowling does.
Jonas remembered all the times he had gone out of his house; after all, they weren't many. Before his mother had disappeared, she would have taken him out to a park not very far away. It had a children's playground, and a nice ice cream parlor nearby. On the hot summer days, his mother would take him there for a chocolate ice cream. He had tried to make friends on the playground, but failed, so instead, he just played around by himself. Those days were long gone, though.
His aunt never allowed him to go outside, and neither did she take him. One time, when she had run out of the house on an emergency, Jonas had found a way to unlock the back door. He sneaked out, happy to get some fresh air, and just stayed there until he heard the sound of his aunt's footsteps. She had never found out about that incident, but Jonas thought that she suspected something.
So now, he was getting his traveling cloak and with a grin on his face. He could not simply believe that he was going to Diagon Alley. He had thought that his aunt would be getting all of his stuff, with the exception of his wand. But he had not even considered the possibility of him going along too. It was just too good to believe.
"Aunt Moritura," he called from his bedroom door.
"What is it?" She answered from the only other bedroom.
"Why are you taking me to Diagon Alley?" Jonas asked.
She came out of her room, looking a little bit healthier than she had done the night before. Or healthier than she had looked for years, really. She was standing taller and looking stronger; her wand was firmly in her hand, and her face looked younger. While Jonas admired her physical change, she moved close to him.
"Because it's your birthday, of course," she said softly.
"But you've never taken me out for my birthday," said Jonas.
"It's your eleventh birthday," she said with a mysterious smile. Jonas wanted to ask more, but she spoke first. "Jonas, that's all I'm saying for now."
"But-"
"No," Aunt Moritura said in a way that pointed the conversation was over. "Now, have you got all your stuff?"
Jonas nodded enthusiastically. He followed his aunt out of the door, and stepped into the warm air of the first of June. He admired the slightly yellow grass and the oak trees and pines next to his house. There were some bees flying near the grass; the sun was half way to its highest point; a slight breeze made the leaves of the trees move in a slow rhythm.
"I'm afraid we are going to have to take the Knight Bus," Aunt Moritura said.
What the Knight Bus was, Jonas could only deduce. He followed his aunt, who was now walking to the edge of the forest. She entered it without hesitation and merely glanced back to see if Jonas was still behind her. The trees were very close to each other, which made it difficult to walk. Jonas could feel something strange about the forest. It didn't smell like he thought it would. It smelled like spices, no, honey, only a little bit sweeter, like chocolate, but much more like perfume. He continued to smell deeper; it felt like he was trying to remember something.
Jonas was so distracted that he didn't even notice the trees beginning to clear out. It was only when his aunt nudged on the back of his head that he noticed he was standing in front of a dull, grey road. With the forest now forgotten, Jonas looked expectantly at his aunt.
"Okay, so, if a witch or wizard is in need of transport and hasn't got a broom, floo connection, or can't Apparate, you can always call the night bus. It's really just like a typical muggle bus, but it's triple-decker and goes incredibly fast.
"To call the Knight Bus, you have to raise your wand hand. Here, I'll let you try it," Aunt Moritura said.
Jonas raised his right hand, and not five seconds later and with BANG, a magnificent, purple three-decker bus was standing in front of them. A young guy dressed in a purple uniform hopped out of the bus and started talking loudly.
"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard just stick out your wand hand, step on board, and we can take you anywhere you want to go. My name is Stan Shunpike, and I will be your conductor this morning. Where would you like to go?"
"Leaky Cauldron, please," Aunt Moritura said while taking out some money from the purse she had brought along.
"That'll be a galleon and five sickles," Stan said.
Aunt Moritura gave him the money and ushered Jonas in. The Knight Bus was crammed with mismatching chairs grouped haphazardly around the windows. They were not bolted down, Jonas noticed, for some of the chairs were lying on the ground. It seemed like the abrupt stop had thrown people out of their chairs, and here and there, some of them were still getting up. Jonas saw two free sits nearby and went to sit there, making sure to save a place for his aunt. While he was doing this, Aunt Moritura had gone to talk to Stan. A few moments later she joined Jonas.
"I just gave Stan a few extra coins so that he could take us next," she whispered to Jonas.
With another BANG, the Knight Bus was suddenly moving again. Jonas looked out of the window and saw a blur of colors rapidly moving. With every sharp turn the bus made, Jonas nearly fell of his chair. If it had not been for Aunt Moritura, he was sure he would have ended up on the floor for at least ten times. The different shades of greens were quickly passed, and now, Jonas was seeing the blurs of London city. Soon enough, the Knight Bus stopped once again (not without getting a few passengers out of their sits).
"Leaky Cauldron," Stan said.
Jonas and Aunt Moriture stood up and got off the bus. In front of them was a shabby-looking pub. As they entered the Leaky Cauldron, Jonas noticed that the muggles didn't seem to be able to see the pub. He made a mental note to ask his aunt about it later. The Leaky Cauldron was much bigger on the inside than what it looked like from the outside. There were several tables with many seats, and a lot of them were occupied. Aunt Moritura led him across the room to a door localized on the back.
"Anything I can help you with, ma'am?" The innkeeper asked her as they passed him.
"No thank you, just shopping for school supplies," Aunt Moritura replied without stopping. The innkeeper nodded and turned his attention to some costumers.
Aunt Moritura opened the back door and let Jonas pass before closing it behind her. They stood in a small, walled courtyard with nothing for the exception of a trash can and some weeds. Aunt Moritura got her wand from her pocket and tapped some bricks above the trash can. A small hole appeared and it grew wider until it became a large archway. Now, Jonas could see a magnificent street that twisted and turned out of sight.
"Wow," he said with admiration. His aunt smiled at him.
"Just the right word," said Aunt Moritura.
They started walking down the alley, Jonas turning his head at most of the shops. There were so many places that he could visit, and he didn't know where to start from. He got his list out and decided to get his things in the order they were. First, his uniform. He spotted a store with the name "Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions" in it and turned to look at his aunt.
"Aunt Moritura, can we go get my robes first?" Jonas asked.
"Sure," she said.
They entered the shop, and a little, smiling witch welcomed them.
"What can I help you with, dears?" She asked kindly.
"A Hogwarts uniform pack," Aunt Moritura said simply.
Madame Malkin nodded and led them to the fitting room. She slipped a robe on him and began working. A few minutes later, she removed the robe and went to get his uniform. After that, they paid and left the shop.
"What's next?" Aunt Moritura asked. Jonas looked at his list again.
"The books," he answered.
The rest of the shopping trip went without any complications, although Jonas did decide to get his wand at last. About two hours later, he and Aunt Moritura entered a shop called Ollivanders. Jonas heard the tinkling sound of a bell from somewhere in the depths of the store. There were dusty boxes neatly piled on shelves that went all the way to the shop. There was some kind of magic that made Jonas feel as though he was in some very special place.
"Good morning," said a soft voice.
Jonas looked at an old man that was walking towards him. He had some slightly protuberant eyes, and white puffy hair.
"Mr. Riddle, why, you look exactly like your father," Mr. Ollivander said.
"You knew my father?" Jonas asked.
He had never been told anything about his father. He remembered asking his mother once about it, but she had told him that he was too young to know who he was. A few years later, he had asked his aunt who his father was, but all he got in return was that he needed to clean his room. So obviously, Jonas was pretty interested to hear what Mr. Ollivander knew about him.
"Of course my dear boy," Mr. Ollivander said. He looked at Aunt Moritura, who, unknown to Jonas, was shaking her head really fast. Mr. Ollivander got the message and changed the theme quickly. "But that's not what you are here about, is it?"
He got out a measuring tape and asked, "What's your wand hand, Mr. Riddle?"
"My right one, sir," Jonas said.
"Hold your arm up, that's right, good." Mr. Ollivander started measuring various places, and then, leaving the tape to its own account, he moved towards the shelves and started looking for wands. Right when the magical tape was measuring his nostrils, Mr. Ollivender came back with an old box.
"That'll be enough," he said, and the tape rolled itself and fell to the floor. Mr. Ollivander picked it up and opened the box he was carrying. "Try this one, Mr. Riddle, twelve and a half inches, English Oak, dragon heartstrings."
Jonas picked the wand and gave it a wave. Nothing happened.
"Hmm, don't worry, don't worry," Mr. Ollivander said, and went to look for another wand, leaving the previous one on the counter. He came back moments later with another one. "Okay, this one is twelve inches, Alder, and its core, one again, came from a dragon."
Jonas did the same thing with this wand, and nothing came out of it.
"Well, I was sure that one would work, but that's fine," Ollivander said with a smile, "I like tricky costumers."
About half an hour later, Jonas's stomach was grumbling, and he still did not have a wand. He was tired and felt as though he had tried every single wand in the shop. He was about to ask his aunt if they could come back later, when Mr. Ollivander came back with a look of triumph on his face.
"Mr. Riddle, I think you ought to try this one," he said. "Twelve and a half inches, Hazel wood, dragon heartstrings, and unyielding."
Jonas took the wand, and instantly felt a surge of warmth and power spread over his fingers. He waved the wand and a huge ball of fire emitted from it. It exploded and a shower of sparks fells over the three people. Aunt Moritura clapped and Mr. Ollivander grinned while praising him.
"I think it is sure for us to say, that you will be a very powerful wizard someday, Mr. Riddle," Ollivander said with a lot of seriousness.
Aunt Moritura paid twelve galleons for the wand and took Jonas for an ice cream. After that, Jonas thought they were leaving, but his aunt actually entered a shop called Eeylops Owl Emporium. After making sure that Jonas had followed her in, she turned to him and said with a smile:
"Listen Jonas, I want to keep in contact with you, and I would prefer if you used your own owl than the school's, so, this is my birthday present."
"You're buying me an owl?" Jonas asked shocked.
"Yes, so get looking, 'cause we've still got to go home and eat."
Jonas did as he was told and started to look around the shop. There were so many owls; some where so little that Jonas was sure he could hold them in his hand with his fist close; others were as huge as an eagle. In the end, Jonas walked out of the shop with a grey owl with black spots.
Jonas and Aunt Moritura took the Knight Bus home, and, after some rough walking, finally got home. They had unpacked all the things and decided to organize them the next day. When Jonas was ready to go to sleep, Aunt Moritura wished him a happy birthday for the last time that day and gave him a kiss on his cheek. His aunt's strange behaving had been one of the things he last had on his mind. For, right before he shut his eyes, the only thought on his mind was that this had been his best birthday ever.