~Chapter Four: Apothecaries, Cauldrons and Wands-Oh My!~
A/N: Do excuse me for the cheese-tastic title. This chapter was so much fun to write. Just saying. ;) Oh, and just to warn y'all, this is a VERY long chapter, MUCH longer than Chapter Three-at least double the length. That's why it took me so long to update (or, at least, that's my excuse). :D Happy Reading!
all things Harry Potter (c) J.K. Rowling
all things Fullmetal Alchemist (c) Hiromu Arakawa
Dawn was breaking by the time Professor Dumbledore arrived back at Hogwarts after his successful trip to Resembool, and he could see a cool, silver mist rising from the emerald grass in front of the castle. As he strode down the path towards the front doors, he caught sight of his headmistress also making her way towards the school's entrance. Dumbledore smiled as he lifted his hand to greet her.
"What brings you out here so early, Professor McGonagall?" Dumbledore inquired as he approached her. She looked up from the papers she was reading from.
"A few owls brought more acceptance replies and I wished to fetch them before I got busy doing other preparation tasks," McGonagall informed the headmaster. "And how was your trip, sir?"
"It went very well; I managed to convince Mr. Elric to join us at Hogwarts this year." Dumbledore paused to extract his wand as the two of them found themselves alee the giant entrance of the castle. After a quick flick of his wand, the gargantuan doors began to creak open for the two Professors. "...Unfortunately, I was not able to reconnect with Van Hohenheim, though, for he had apparently left Resembool several years ago."
McGonagall raised her eyebrows at the headmaster:
"You mean he left his son and wife alone in Resembool?"
"No, he left his two sons alone in Resembool. They're mother didn't last much longer after Hohenheim left her and the boys."
Professor McGonagall's eyes widened, her usually severe-looking face softened with sorrow for the Elrics. "That's awful! Those poor, poor boys..."
"I wholeheartedly agree."
Dumbledore looked around the hall for a moment, checking to make sure that nobody was unintentionally eavesdropping upon their conversation. Turning back to McGonagall, he spoke, his volume lowered a bit:
"If you have a moment I would like to discuss this further upstairs in my office. There is much more to Edward Elric's situation than I had anticipated and I find myself in a predicament in which I must have your help in persuading the Ministry to overlook a bit of the boy's past."
Professor McGonagall nodded in agreement immediately, her heartbeat pitching suddenly. What kind of past did Edward have that required Dumbledore to involve the Ministry of Magic in?
~~*e.s.*~~
It was not that he had not dreamed of this before, but simply of how altered the dream became. Rather than coming forth in the form of a nightmare, it presented itself like a future blessing, a promise for redemption. A promise that his journey into the world of magic will be fruitful...a promise that he and Al will regain their bodies...But just as Edward's dream form reached out a non-metal hand out to his brother, he awoke instead, basking in the sneering moonlight of the real world.
Edward sighed, slumping back down onto the pillow, frustrated at himself from awakening from such a good dream. As he laid back and tried to go back to sleep, he found himself thinking hopefully about his future at Hogwarts. He wondered what it would be like there, whether it would be one big cliche, just as the supplies list lead him to belive, or if it would be just like a regular school. He figured that he would unfortunately still have homework and exams and all of the tiresome traits of student work. But he wondered about his classes; how and what would he be taught? Would they be logical or are they going to be full of ridiculous superstitions? What if he was no good at anything because of his scientific mind? Ed laughed to himself; who would have ever thought that having great knowledge of science would one day be a hindrance to him? He closed his eyes tiredly, breathing slowly, feeling a mixture of excitement and anticipation for what awaits him in the near future...
His peaceful thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the feeling of sharp talons landing upon his stomach. With an annoyed 'OOF!,' Edward lifted his head to see the round, precious eyes of his owl, Nova looking back at him.
Hi there! she blinked, hopping onto his chest softly as if purposely trying not to hurt her master again.
"...Hey, Nova," Ed muttered to his new pet, gently ruffling her feathers. "Are you excited about going to Hogwarts, too?"
Nova blinked again, cocking her head slightly as if saying what kind of dumb question is that? Ed chuckled at her expression, resting his automail upon his chest, allowing the enthralled owl to peck at it.
Though he was not about to admit it to Alphonse or Winry, he was beginning to develop a sort of soft spot for the little owl. It was just barely developing, but he did not despise the thing nearly as much as before, and she truly was proving to be much more smart and useful
to him than he would've ever expected from her. And she certainly was attached to Edward, that much was true (though Ed fervently claimed that it was only because she was attracted to his shiny automail).
Suddenly, Nova leapt off of Edward onto the bedspread and flew out of the open window, leaving Ed confusedly looking out the window after her. After a short moment or so, though, Nova swiftly returned, bearing a dead mouse within her talons this time. She dropped it into Ed's lap, setting herself down onto the bedspread in front of him. Ed scrunched his face up in disgust:
"Gee...thanks, Nova."
He could've sworn that the owl was laughing at him as she soared once more out the window into the night.
~~*e.s.*~~
"...Human transmutation?" McGonagall said in disbelief. "But...how? How were two boys able to do such a thing?"
"They posses unbelievable alchemic skills, Professor," Dumbledore said gravely. "Though they were too ashamed of their past actions to brag or demonstrate their alchemy to me, I believe it is safe to assume that they have truly lived up to the name of Hohenheim in their studies. And they are mostly self-taught at that."
"So they learned all this alchemy in order to try and resurect their mother," McGonagall clarified. Dumbledore nodded once:
"They were alone and scared. They've been alone since the day she died; they only wanted their mother's love again. That is all."
"Then I cannot see why the Ministry of Magic would persecute them for that. They're so young, they did not understand the consequences, and on top of that they were so sure it would work that they did not think ahead..." McGonagall suddenly frowned slightly:
"You said that the elder brother, Edward now has two automail limbs? Will he be well enough to attend Hogwarts at all?"
Dumbledore nodded, the memory of the boy's strength shining like a thin mist within his eyes.
"Edward has recovered quickly from his surgery. Though his rehabilitation process is not yet complete, I do not see how that could keep him from attending school. I will need to talk it through with Madam Pomfrey, she knows much more about such things than the both of us."
"Yes," McGonagall said. "And as long as he does not try for Quidditch this year, Edward shouldn't be under any sort of taxing situation while here. Perhaps we can work it out with Madam Pomfrey to check-up on his automail once every month?"
"Yes, that is a very good idea. Though we'll have to conceal said check-ups; I do not wish for the other students to know of the Elric's alchemic disaster."
Professor McGonagall nodded in agreement. Just then, a loud, booming knock was heard upon the doors to the headmaster's office.
"Come in, Hagrid!" Professor Dumbledore called out. The gamekeeper entered quickly so as to not keep Dumbledore waiting on him, hitting his head upon the door frame in the process.
"...M-mornin' Professor McGonagall, Professor Dumbledore, sir. Ye called, sir?"
"Yes, I did," Dumbledore said, standing up from his desk. "I wanted to inquire upon how your shopping trip with Harry Potter went?"
"Oh, it went very well, sir! He got all o' his supplies, and I gave him his ticket. Got him a pretty snowy owl as a birthday present, too," he said, his eyes shining as bright as his smile. Dumbledore looked pleased:
"Wonderful! Thank you again for doing that for me, Hagrid."
"Anytime, Professor. An' how did yer meeting with that one student-what was his name again?-go, sir?"
"Ah, yes; Edward has decided to attend Hogwarts this year after all."
"That's great, sir!" Hagrid said happily. The headmaster nodded in agreement as he continued:
"And now, I'm afraid I must ask you to go on one last mission for me, before the school year starts. If you could in a fortnight take Mr. Elric to get his supplies in Diagon Alley, Hagrid, I would be truly appreciative."
The gamekeeper regained his professional composure as he nodded in agreement.
"Of course, sir. Where should I pick him up?"
Dumbledore paused for a moment, stroking his beard thoughtfully. It would be easy to send Hagrid off to the Rockbell Prosthetic Limb Outfitters to pick Edward up and take him to London, but then Dumbledore remembered Alphonse. He would like for the younger Elric to be able to visit Diagon Alley as well so that he could become somewhat familiar with the wizarding world before he himself is to become a part of it. Also, he felt that the two Elric brothers weren't the type of siblings to easily separate.
"...I think I will simply have you meet the Elrics at the Leaky Cauldron, Hagrid. And then from there you can take Edward to do his shopping. I may send Pinako Rockbell with them, too, seeing as that she has played the part of their guardian since the day their mother died."
Hagrid nodded vigorously:
"You have my word that Mr. Elric will get all o' his supplies and will get back home safely from Diagon Alley, sir."
"I trust that he will, Hagrid. I've not a worry in my mind," Dumbledore said, smiling once more at Hagrid before the gamekeeper exited the headmaster's office. McGonagall shook her head, causing Dumbledore to raise a confused eyebrow at the headmistress:
"Something is bothering you, Professor?"
"Nothing sir," she said, amusedly glancing back at the doors in which the gamekeeper had just retreated through only moments ago. "Nothing at all."
Dumbledore chuckled, his eyes shimmering over his half-moon glasses as if he had just heard the headmistress tell an especially humorous joke.
~~*e.s.*~~
{approximately two weeks later}
Edward yawned hugely as Winry tinkered with his automail arm that morning. Still in his nightclothes, he was begrudgingly lounging upon the couch instead of partaking in the consumption of Granny Pinako's delicious-smelling breakfast. The heavenly scent of frying bacon wafting into his bedroom is what woke him up that morning in the first place, but he was unfortunate enough to be bulldozed into the living room by Winry before he could make a run for the kitchen table.
"...You haven't been wiping your arm and leg off properly after showering, Ed," the mechanic scolded as she polished the automail. "I can tell."
"I have so," Ed said defensively. "Maybe not every time...but I do when I remember to."
"Hmph," Winry said, shaking her head. Ed rolled his eyes at her; just because she saw the automail as a beautiful piece of machinery that should be doted upon hourly doesn't mean that everyone else should!
At last she removed her polishing cloth from the prosthetic, standing up and allowing Ed to leave the sofa.
"Your poor automail is going to suffer majorly once you get away from me and go off to Hogwarts. I just know it."
"Aw, come on, Winry!" Ed said, grinning at her statement of unfaithfulness in Ed's automail matenance. "I swear I'll take care of it."
"You better take care of it!" she said, wagging a threatening wrench in his face. He pushed it away as he hurried into the kitchen for breakfast, his crazy mechanic following close behind.
"Hey Al," he greeted as he took his place at the kitchen table next to where Al was already seated.
"Morning, brother."
"Smells good, Granny!" Ed said, turning to face the old woman as she scooped scrambled eggs from the frying pan onto a large plate. After setting said plate down onto the table, she smirked, walking back over to the fridge and extracted three small, glass bottles of milk. Edward pointedly ignored her as she made her way back to the table, sitting across from him and setting a bottle of milk next to his and Winry's plates. Al stifled a laugh as his older brother commenced in staring down the white liquid. It glared back at him, too, its invisible eyes relentless in its glower of hatred...
"...Hey Ed, it's been about two weeks, now, hasn't it?" Winry piped up suddenly. Ed broke contact with the milk and looked at the girl questionably. "Two weeks since Dumbledore visited," she clarified. Ed tapped a finger to his chin thoughtfully.
"...Huh, you're right. I should get an owl from him sometime today, I suppose."
"Can I go with you to get your school supplies?" Al asked eagerly. Ed smiled and nodded at his brother:
"Of course, I was gonna bring you with me whether or not you wanted to anyway."
Al didn't know whether to feel flattered by such a statement or threatened.
"Do you have the key I gave you?" Granny Pinako asked. "The one to Hohenheim's vault? You'll need that when you go to Diagon Alley."
Ed frowned:
"I've decided that I'm not going to use any of that bastard's money for school supplies; I don't want anything to do with his vault. I set the key back into its proper drawer, Granny, don't worry."
"Ed, you really don't have a choice. You either use Hohenheim's money or you don't go to Hogwarts," Pinako said firmly, immediately shooting down Ed's childish arguing. Ed visibly disapproved though he begrudgingly knew she was right. Who knew how much all of the weird supplies he needed was going to cost, and truth be told the Rockbells did not have any to loan to him. They barely had enough to sustain his beastly appetite, after all.
"Now drink your milk," the old lady ordered. Just as Ed opened his big mouth wide to screech in outlandish protest, however, there came a clamorous BANG! All four of their heads turned towards where the sound came from; the partially opened kitchen window located over the sink. There, in front of the sink, sat a large owl with pointed feathers sticking out from each corner of his head, an envelope secured beneath it's long talons, its dark reddish-brown feathers shining in the morning sun streaming through the window. What caused the noise, Edward saw, was his own little barn owl, who had clumsily rammed into the closed half of the window as she hurriedly followed the unknown owl to her master's location. The bigger owl turned its head to look scornfully upon klutzy little Nova, who was currently returning the screech owl's expression with her own piercing gaze of pure menace.
"Ohh! Poor Nova!" Winry exclaimed, walking over to the window to check on the poor thing.
"Eh, she'll be fine," Ed said, waving an unconcerned automail hand at his pet. Nova did not take too kindly to this; she aggressively shoved the bigger owl out of her way, hopping into the house and soaring across the room towards her master. After initially pecking his extended automail, she then landed atop his head, irritatingly picking at his bangs. Ed swatted at Nova with no avail, eventually giving up after receiving an irritated peck to the forehead in return of his swatting.
"Why must you be so mean to your owl, brother?" Al asked exasperatedly.
"Hey, she started it!" Ed said, huffingly crossing his arms. Winry raised an eyebrow at Ed as she swiped the envelope away from the screech owl, observing its parchment envelope. Sure enough, the letter was addressed to a Mister E. Elric, and the letter was sealed tight with the Hogwarts crest upon dark purple wax. Upon opening it, she found a hand-written letter signed Professor Dumbledore.
Pinako walked over to Winry and, after setting the pile of dirty plates in her hands into the sink behind her granddaughter, read the letter over her shoulder, nodding in approvement. The large owl that had delivered the letter to them pecked Pinako on her shoulder just then; she turned and face it, a questioning look upon her elderly face. The screech owl stuck out his foot, motioning for the old lady to remove the parcel that was tied tightly to its leg. Pinako blinked, then obliged the owl, taking the emerald-colored drawstring bag from the messenger.
"ACK-stop it, Nova! Hey guys, can I see my letter now?" Edward screeched impatiently, crossing the room with some difficulty due to the enraged owl still messing with his hair. Al started to move to help his brother but decided against it at the last minute. Nova was his owl to deal with, and after all, Ed's antics with her were very entertaining to watch. Once he arrived in front of Winry, he snatched the parchment from her hands, huffily reading what Dumbledore wrote:
Dearest Edward,
Hope you and your brother are well. As promised I have made arrangements for you to go to London and purchase your necessities for the school year. Enclosed with this letter is a bag of Floo Powder-a glittering powder used by wizards to travel and communicate using fireplaces.
To use this method of transportation, you simply need to step into your unlit fireplace, grab a small handful of powder and say the name of the place that you wish to travel to. It's very fast and convenient, and I've enclosed enough powder to send you and two others to and from London safely. Once in London, a representative from Hogwarts shall meet up with you all and then escort you to Diagon Alley. Do not worry, for he is very familiarized with the area and will assist you in every which way you may need assistance, and it is at that time that you will also receive your train ticket for the September first Hogwarts Express.
He will meet you in a pub just outside of Diagon Alley called 'The Leaky Cauldron,' therefore you must say the title of said pub instead of London when you use the Floo Powder-otherwise you may very well end up in some other random place in this totally foreign city and become lost forever.
Hope you find your wizarding shopping experience to be both an interesting and enjoyable one. I shall see you at the beginning of term, Mr. Elric!
Sincerely, Professor Dumbledore
Edward looked up at Granny (who still had the parcel in her hand) and Winry:
"...There's only enough Floo Powder to take two people with me. Al has to go, so which one of you two wants to go more?"
Pinako and Winry looked at each other undecidedly:
"I've already been to the Leaky Cauldron before a couple of times in my life. Why don't you go with them, Winry?"
"I'd love to, but I think it would be best for me to stay and you go with them, Granny. I've got some stuff I need to work on here at home today, and you are already somewhat familiar with everything there. You'd be of more use than me."
Pinako gave Winry an are you sure? look; Winry smiled with certainty in return. Pinako sighed:
"Alright then, we'll leave in fifteen minutes, boys. Ed, you need to go get ready-and don't forget to get that key out from the cabinet."
Nova momentarily stopped picking at Ed's hair long enough to shoot Granny a curious, questioning look; key? As in, shiny?
~~*e.s.*~~
"Hey Al, have you seen my other boot? I can't find it..."
Ed got up from the floor, looking back at his brother. Alphonse glanced around his brother's room, getting a decent bird's-eye of the area due to his massive height. After a moment of scanning the room, Al lifted up his large hand and pointed towards a corner of the room:
"There," he said, and Ed hurried over to where he was pointing, a satisfied look flitting across his face as he spotted his boot.
"Thanks Al," Ed said as he hastily shoved his foot into the shoe, for the both of them could already hear Granny calling them from the living room. Edward stood, grabbing his red coat from the bed and looking up at his brother. He sighed, then offered up a small smile:
"Ready to get this over with?"
"Aw, come on, brother. I'm more excited than you are!"
"Yeah, yeah...I hope they have a good bookstore in that alley..."
They ran into the living room, Edward twisting his hair into a braid as he thought over what Dumbledore had said in his letter about travelling by Floo Powder. You simply need to step into your unlit fireplace, grab a small handful of powder and say the name of the place that you wish to travel to.
"Ok...where are we to meet that guy at again?"
"The Leaky Cauldron in London. Just clearly say 'Leaky Cauldron' and you should get to the right place," Granny said, tossing him the bag of powder. "You go first, Ed."
"M-me? Why me?"
"You're the man," Pinako said simply, drawing an entertained laugh out of Winry, who was working at the workbench to the far right of the three of them. "You can show us how it's all done. Don't worry, we'll follow."
Ed shot his mechanic a quick glare, then took a deep breath, looking into the fireplace nervously.
"I'm gonna feel really stupid if this doesn't work..." he muttered to himself, opening the bag and looking warily inside. The powder looked very similar to gun powder, the only difference being the overall green glittery-ness. After grabbing a small handful of the stuff in his left hand, he handed the parcel to Al, then warily stepped into the fireplace, turning to face them. Here goes nothing he thought to himself as he raised his fist full of Floo Powder up above his head...
"The Leaky Cauldron!"
Edward felt as though he was being sucked down a giant drain. He seemed to be spinning very fast - the roaring in his ears was deafening-he tried to keep his eyes open but the whirl of green flames made him feel sick-now it felt as though cold hands were slapping his face. Ed saw a blurred stream of fireplaces and snatched glimpses of the rooms beyond. He closed his eyes again, wishing it would stop, and then he finally fell, face forward, flat onto a cold stone floor. He scrambled onto his feet, feeling extremely dizzy as he brushed the gray ashes off of his clothing.
The inside of the Leaky Cauldron looked like any other grubby little pub. Ed figured from the looks of things that the outside looked just like the inside and figured that it's the type of place that he wouldn't think to look twice upon if he were just wandering down the street. It was very dark and shabby, and there weren't too many customers at the moment. A couple of older women were smoking in one corner, a small group of people were eating and drinking at a table in the center of the pub, and two guys were drinking at the bar. Nothing too special about the place, really; at least, nothing Ed could see...
"Edward Elric, I presume?"
Ed looked up in surprise; the person who spoke his name was the bartender, a man with a large nose, graying hair with large sideburns, and dark brown eyes. He was polishing as glass as he observed Ed, who eventually snapped out of his dizziness and nodded once in answer to the bartender's question. Tom smiled in a friendly manner:
"Oh good; I was told you were going to be here today-"
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH-!"
THUD.
"Al!" Ed yelled, running over to the fireplace where his little brother was shakily emerging from, his armor shaking apprehensively.
"That was...so weird!" he remarked, clamoring up from the floor and looking down at his brother. "Did you make it ok? You're covered with soot..."
"Yeah, I'm fine."
Just then, one more set of bright green flames erupted from the fireplace, and Pinako Rockbell emerged shakily, only slightly worse for wear.
"...Well. I've never traveled by Floo before, but I must say it's very fast, even if a bit messy." She looked down at her dress and wrinkled her nose in annoyance, setting to work at dusting herself off best she could.
"Why it isn't..."
Pinako looked up at the voice which spoke; Ed and Al followed suite curiously. Tom, the bartender, peered over the bar, his face erupting into a large smile:
"Pinako Rockbell! I certainly haven't seen you around here in many years!"
Granny Pinako smiled in recognition, walking up to the bar and firmly shaking the bartender's hand:
"Good to see you, Tom."
Ed and Al glanced at each other in confusion, then shrugged, both deciding at the same time that they'd rather not know.
"Come, sit down!" the bartender said, gesturing to a barstool. "What can I get you, the usual? Or not so usual anymore, I suppose. It's been awhile, hasn't it?"
"Hah, that's the truth. I'm not really here to drink anything today, though. I've got to assist Ed here in getting his school supplies. Maybe some other time, yes?"
"Most certainly, Pinako! And bring Hohenheim with ya next time, you hear?"
Pinako laughed without humor:
"I will if I can find him, Tom! Talk to you later, then."
"Yes, you must keep in touch! And as for Edward...Hagrid!" the bartender called out into the crowd. A busy-haired man looked up from his table, then quickly stood up and walked over to the bar. "Edward Elric is here. Edward, this man is the man to be your escort today."
Ed looked up and froze on the spot; the man standing in front of him and his brother was absolutely gargantuan! His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy mane of hair and a wild, tangled beard, but you could just make out his eyes, glinting like black beetles under all that hair. Edward angrily felt himself internally become the shrimp that everyone made him out to be as he tilted his head way up to look into the giant's face.
"Rubeus Hagrid, keeper of keys and grounds at Hogwarts. Pleasure to meet you, Edward!"
The hand that Hagrid extended out to Edward was even bigger than the palms of Al's armor; Ed felt as if his fist was going to be eaten alive by the sheer enormity of the handshake. He did not feel threatened, however, for the gamekeeper's friendly smile was as genuine as Tom the bartenders-possibly even more so, actually.
"Ah, and this must be young Alphonse! Dumbledore told me you'd be arriving in full armor, though he did not tell me why...ah, no matter," Hagrid blabbered as he shook Alphonse's hand.
"N-nice to meet you, sir," Al said, feeling a bit caught off-guard about the giant's commentary about his armor. Upon glance, he could see that Ed was concerned about that too.
"We need to quickly come up with an excuse for your armor, Al," Ed hissed as Hagrid introduced himself to Pinako. "Something that you can have prepared to tell people who ask."
"Right," Al said, trying to think of something quickly. "How about 'it's a hobby?'"
"What kind of hobby is that?"
"It's not like you came up with anything better!" Alphonse protested, then immediately shut up as Hagrid turned back towards the two of them.
"Alrighty then, best be off now. Lots to buy."
Hagrid led the group out of the pub and into a small, walled courtyard, empty of anything but a trashcan and a few weeds. While he was counting the bricks above the trashcan, Hagrid asked Pinako:
"You said that ye've been to the Leaky Cauldron before. How a Diagon Alley?"
"No, none of us have been there," Pinako replied, observing as Hagrid tapped the wall three times with the tip of the umbrella in his hands. The brick he had touched quivered and wriggled, and in the middle a small hole appeared. It grew wider and wider, and Edward's eyes grew with it, his expression one of disbelief. What...what's going on? Where's the transmutation circle?
A second later they were facing an archway large enough even for Hagrid, an archway onto a cobbled street that twisted and turned out of sight. Pinako nodded in approvement:
"Impressive," she remarked. Hagrid grinned at her and the boys:
"You all haven't seen anything yet. Welcome to Diagon Alley, Edward, Alphonse."
He grinned satisfyingly at the boy's amazement; they eagerly stepped through the archway, they're unblinking eyes taking in everything around them. No one in the group noticed when the archway shrank instantly back into the wall.
Edward cranned his neck to see over the people passing by; several large signs hanging over each of the shops bore names like Slug & Jigger's Apothecary, Poltage's Cauldron Shop, Madam Malkin's Robes For All Occasions and Twilfitt and Tatting's. Some shops had outdoor windows showing off broomsticks, others had an assortment of cauldrons, all sizes, made of many different types of metal. The short blonde's eyes bugged out as he watched a small, black cauldron stirring itself.
"Yeah, you'll be needing one o' them," Hagrid said, nodding towards the cauldron shop. "But we gotta go get yer money first."
"Right," Ed said, snapping out of his oblivion. "Where's the bank?"
"Straight down," Hagrid said, pointing towards a large white building at the end of the alley. "Gringotts Wizarding Bank. Run by goblins."
"Goblins?" Ed and Al said in disbelieving unison, gaping up at the giant. Hagrid nodded matter-of-factly:
"Yeah, that's right. Ye'd be mad to rob it."
The Elric brothers looked at each other, then commenced in continuing on with their gaping at every shop they saw. Edward got a kick out of the people he saw as he walked down the alleyway; a plump woman outside the Apothecary was shaking her head as they passed, saying, "Dragon liver, seventeen Sickles an ounce, they're mad..."
There were shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes, and shops selling several strange items that neither Ed nor Al had ever seen before. Ed heard his little brother say "wow..." at the sight of the owl emporium; a soft hooting could be heard from inside, and several different colors of beady owl eyes could be seen glowing at them as they passed.
Finally they made it to the bank; the snowy white building towered over all of the other little shops in the alley. As they walked up to the large, burnished bronze doors, Ed saw a short creature with a swarthy, clever face, a pointed beard and very long fingers and feet standing beside the doorway. He bowed as they walked inside.
"Was that one of the goblins?" Alphonse asked Hagrid.
"Yeah, that's one of them. You'll see many more once we're inside."
Sure enough, just as Hagrid said, the boys could see about at least a hundred more goblins seated upon high stools as they entered a long, grand hallway. The two Elrics made a point to keep their heads down as they followed Hagrid straight back to where a goblin wearing small, round spectacles was seated behind an immense desk that towered over even Hagrid. The gamekeeper cleared his throat, causing the goblin to look down questionably:
"...How can I help you, sir?"
"We've come ter take some money out of Mr. Edward Elric's safe."
The goblin peered over the desk at Ed, Al and Pinako.
"Is he the one in the armor?"
"No, the other one," Hagrid clarified.
"The short one?"
"HEY!" Ed screeched before Alphonse or Pinako could stop him:
"Who do you think you're calling a shorty that has to be looked through a magnifying glass to actually be seen?"
"Brother, he didn't say any of that!" Alphonse exclaimed, trying to shut his enraged brother up.
"Yeah? Well, still, the NERVE of him-he pissed me off!"
Pinako smacked herself in the face; Alphonse apologetically looked up at the goblin and made a move to speak, but quickly decided against it once seeing the golbin's extremely displeased expression. Al quickly clamped a hand over his brother's mouth, preventing him from ranting anymore.
"...hurm," the goblin tutted disapprovingly.
"Sorry, sir," Hagrid said. "Won't happen again."
"Be sure to see to that. And does Mister Elric have his key?"
Ed wedged himself out of Al's grasp, then extracted the small golden key from within his coat. The goblin nodded, turning to hail another goblin. He then turned back to his papers and looked up Edward's name in the files.
"I do not see the surname 'Elric' in my files anywhere, Mister Elric."
"Try Hohenheim," Ed suggested. The goblin blinked in surprise:
"You're the son of Van Hohenheim?"
"Yeah," Ed said impatiently. "He has a vault, right?"
"Yes, he does," the goblin said, frowning at Ed's impudence. "I will see to it that you are taken to it."
Ed nodded impolitely while Hagrid, Alphonse and Pinako thanked the goblin for his assistance. As they followed the second goblin through a doorway, Hagrid looked down at Edward disapprovingly:
"Why'd ye go off on him back there?"
Ed glowered; Alphonse was the one to explain that Edward doesn't react well to the short word. Hagrid couldn't hold back the laugh he felt bubbling inside of him, earning him a piece of Edward's furious expression. The second goblin opened a second door for them to walk through, leading them into a narrow stone passageway lit with flaming torches. It slopped steeply downward and a small cart came hurtling up the tracks on the floor. The goblin whistled and a small cart came hurtling up the tracks toward them. Edward frowned:
"Excuse me, but this isn't gonna be big enough for all of us."
The goblin counted the four of them, the pressed a button located next to the controls, causing the cart to grow out to twice its original size, providing plenty of room for the entire party. They all climbed in-Hagrid and Alphonse with some difficulty-and were off.
They just hurtled through a maze of passages, the cold air stinging Edward's eyes as the cart plunged deeper and deeper into the cave, the torches flitting past with innumerable speed. Edward held on tight, looking back over his shoulder to make sure his brother was surely in the cart. Upon looking back he could see Hagrid's face becoming a bit green-looking, and when the cart finally stopped, he hastily got out and had to lean against the wall to stop his knees from trembling.
After handing the goblin the golden key, Edward stood back with Alphonse and Pinako and watched as the door opened slowly, emerald-colored smoke billowing into their faces. As it cleared, Edward and Alphonse gasped in shock.
"No way-Hohenheim's rich?" Edward roared in utter disbelief, running into the vault to see for himself, Alphonse right beside him. Sure enough, the enormous, two-storied vault was filled to the brim with valuables. The entire first floor was nothing but money; mountains of gold coins, columns of silver, and huge heaps of bronze. Edward didn't recognize the currency, but thankfully Hagrid explained:
"The golden ones are called Galleons, the silver Sickles, and the bronze ones Knuts. There are seventeen Sickles to a Galleon and twenty-nine Knuts to a Sickle. Easy enough to remember, right?"
"...sure," Ed said, curiously following his younger brother up the stairs to explore the second story as Pinako loaded up a bag with some money. There was no more money on the top floor; instead, there were numerous treasures and collectibles loaded up in an organized manner.
"Look at all of this stuff dad has," Alphonse said, examining a golden bust a bit more closely.
"Yeah," Ed said, fingering a shining silver locket. "Makes you wonder where it all came from."
"He must travel alot," Al remarked, looking curiously upon a map with golden markings nailed upon one of the stone walls. "These must be all of the different places dad has been." He pointed at the gold-colored dots littering the map. Ed walked up behind him, locket still at hand, frowning slightly as he too observed the map.
"I don't see Amestris anywhere on here..."
"There's another map on the opposite wall, Ed. That one may have Amestris on it."
Sure enough upon turning around Edward spotted the map; larger than the one on the wall behind him, this one centered mainly upon Amestris and its bordering countries. He approached the golden map in wonder, placing a hand upon the dot labeled "Resembool." Suddenly more golden shot out from from beneath Ed's fingers, expanding further across the wall, revealing a broader map that covered more countries and a larger area of land overall. The physical landscapes across the map popped out-literally-the peak of Briggs Mountain nearly touching Ed with its enormity.
"Amazing!" Ed breathed, removing his hand from "Resembool," which had now taken on a rather grass-like texture, the enchanted paper flowing in an invisible breeze, just like the vast prairie in Edward's hometown does.
Pinako walked over to where Ed stood and handed him his heavy sack of money, looking curiously upon the map once he took it. She also touched a hand upon "Resembool" just as Ed had done only a moment before, nodding in approvement at the accurate display.
"Magic can certainly do impressive things; makes me almost wish I were a witch as well," the old lady spoke. Ed looked at her questionably:
"If you're not related to withes or wizards and you're not one of them yourself, Granny, then how did you know so much about this world?"
Granny smiled:
"I'm older than I seem, Ed. Hohenheim's not the only wizard I've drank with in the past."
Ed raised his eyebrows up at Pinako, decidedly choosing not to comment upon her statement. Pinako looked back at the elder Elric and said something completely random and surprising: "that locket you are holding belonged to Trisha."
Edward blinked in shock, not even realizing until that moment that he was still holding the necklace. Alphonse's ears perked up at the sounds of his mother's name as well, and he walked over to his brother's side to listen to what Pinako was saying:
"Hohenheim himself gave it to her, back before they were married. I remember it well because he had showed it to me, asking my opinion, making sure that it was good enough for Trisha. Of course I consented that it was; just look at the gorgeous craftsmanship. And that's pure, goblin-manufactured silver in its shell."
Edward lifted the locket up to look it over; its metal shell certainly looked magical, its glorious shine easily beating his automail's steely sheen. The oval-shaped locket's surface bore an elegant engraved design, damask in nature, the outer rim outlined with a lace-like border that bore miniscule, nearly-invisible amber diamonds sparkling in the firelight. Upon opening it, he saw a small, beautiful black-and-white photograph of Trisha and Hohenheim kissing-not a nasty, nauseating to look at kiss, though. No, it was a stunning, romantic kiss that looked liked a scene from a fairy tale. Edward looked heart-breakingly upon the happy, peaceful face of his mother, biting back the tears that he felt beginning to burn the backs of his eyelids. He sighed, a shaky hand passing the locket over to Alphonse, who took it carefully into his hands. Al remained silent as he gazed upon the kind face of his mommy, his inhuman body unable to produce the tears he wanted to cry. He closed the lid, looking at the inscription upon the back of the locket; the words My Immortal Beloved were engraved into the silver in looping cursive, the letters a light, gentle gold in color.
A gruff huffing was heard from the stairs as Hagrid emerged atop the second floor, looking around impressedly before turning towards Edward:
"Yeh ready?"
"Yeah, let's get going," Ed said, looking up at Hagrid, the sheer weight of all his money suddenly making him eager to hurry up and spend it. Alphonse set the locket down upon a small, antique mahogany table next to the map of Amestris and company before following Hagrid and Pinako down the stars. Edward also made a move to follow, then paused; in a last-minute decision, he turned and grabbed his mother's locket off of the table, dropping it into his coat pocket as he exited down the stairs with his brother.
"Alright then, boys, Pinako. Try not to talk much to met on the way back up; best I don't open me mouth while riding these infernal carts..."
~~*e.s.*~~
One wild cart ride later and the group was outside of Gringotts, the sunlight burning extra-bright after all the time they had all spent underground in Hohenheim's vault. Ed and Al couldn't decide which shop to run to first now that they had a bag full of money to burn.
"Might as well get yer uniform while we're here-" Hagrid began, then yelled at the boys in surprise as they bolted away from him and Pinako. The adults looked at each other in confusion, then frantically took off after the Elrics, yelling at them to slow down or else they'll get lost. When the two of them caught up with Ed and Al, they looked up at the sign above the shop, which was a bit larger than some of the others: Flourish and Blotts Booksource.
"A bookstore!" the boys shrieked in excitement as they excitedly entered the store. Hagrid looked at Pinako in confusion as they followed the Elrics in; Pinako laughed at the gamekeeper's expression:
"Edward and Alphonse have always loved reading, more than a boy should love it."
"Most boys their age would've run straight into the Quidditch pro shop, not a bookstore."
"Well, Hagrid," Pinako said solemnly as she watched the Elrics dive into the first books they could get ahold of. "You will find that the Elric brothers aren't like most other boys."
Edward placed the book on magical creatures that he had pulled out back onto its shelf, extracting his book list from his pocket, walking throughout the store to grab them first before he explored. Alphonse helped him, and before they knew it the required shopping was completed. While Al went off to another section of interest on his own, Ed's eyes spotted a sign labeled 'Alchemy' hovering over a large group of shelves. Immediately he ran over to the section and was lost there in a world of alchemic wonder.
The boys stayed in the library as long as they could, but after an hour of browsing, Hagrid finally urged them to hurry up and check out. "There's still lots to buy, y'know."
Ed and Al sighed in unison:
"We'll have to see if we can come back sometime, brother. We'll be coming back next year for my school stuff, anyhow."
"Yeah, that's right..." Ed raised an eyebrow at a dark brown, leather-bound book that bore a Flamel cross similar to the one he wore upon his coat on its spine. He pulled it out, weighing its thickness, flipping through the index quickly. Alchemy: a history and instructional philosophy the cover read, bearing yet another Flamel cross in its lower right-hand corner, this one red in color. After being urged once more by Hagrid and Pinako to hurry it up, Ed decided to purchase the alchemy book along with his required school books (plus one or two novels that Alphonse took a liking to).
"That place is awesome!" Al said happily. "I can't wait to go back. Maybe next time we'll have more time to look around. Where to next, brother?"
They went into Madam Malkin's first to get Ed's robes, Ed leaving the shop feeling a bit depressed afterwards due to the fact that Malkin had to switch to a taller stool to set him upon due to his short stature. Still, though, he was beginning to get a bit excited about the school after seeing how cool the uniform looked.
"She mentioned something about Houses while she was measuring me," Ed spoke, placing his robes back into their bag. "What did she mean by that?"
"Ah, the Houses; yeh see, at Hogwarts they have school houses to separate the students up into. There's four: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin."
Ed chortled:
"Nice names. How do they decide which House to put you in?"
"Well, you see, each of the Houses are known to posses students with specific traits. Everyone says Hufflepuff are a lot o' duffers, but better Hufflepuff than Slytherin. There's not a single witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin. Ravenclaw is full of book-worms and scholars, and then Gryffindor has all of the brave, strong people innit."
"I see," Edward said, immediately which House he would be sorted into. After a small amount of internal debate, however, he decided that he really wasn't going to be picky about it; wherever they put him he'll go. House names meant nothing to him; the only thing he wanted to focus on was becoming good enough to fix everything.
Hagrid wouldn't let Ed buy a solid gold cauldron at the cauldron shop, but Al managed to pick out a really nice set of scales, whilst Pinako examined the telescopes for the best pick. After those items were purchased they visited the Apothecary, which smelled just a weird as its products looked. Alphonse suddenly found his nose-less armor to be a plus as he laughed at Ed's scrunched-up expression as he plugged his nostrils. This only made laugh even harder, though, for once they left the shop and Ed relinquished his nose, the places where his automail thumb and middle finger had clamped on had turned bright red in color.
Edward's fuming expression softened a bit as they explored the various types and colors of quills across the walls of the next shop. Why don't they just use fountain pens? Ed wondered, though he did not complain after finding a large, black-feathered pen that he took a liking to.
"Ok," Hagrid said, he, Alphonse and Pinako looking over Edward's shoulder at the supplies list. "Looks like we've gotten just about everything. All that's left is yer wand."
"First I think I should go to the owl shop to get a cage and stuff for Nova," Ed said, glancing over towards Eeylops. Alphonse nodded in agreement, obviously wanting to go see to see all the owls.
They entered the dark shop filled with the rustling of feathers and the flickering, jewel-bright eyes. There were numerous owls of varying species at the front of the shop-snowy, hoot, screech, tawny, brown, you name it-in an assortment of different cages. Along the back wall past the check-out desk was a large assortment of various owl food and treats; Ed walked past everything else and headed straight for that wall as Alphonse and Pinako looked at all the different cages.
"Be sure ye get 'er some of Eeylop's Premium Owl Treats," Hagrid said to Ed over his shoulder as he examined the wall of food. "The owls at Hogwarts love them."
"Got it," Ed muttered, reaching up to grab them but finding that he was too short to reach. He frustratingly continued to try for the bag of treats, refusing to ask for assistance...though he was getting nowhere with his efforts.
"Here, let me help," a red-headed boy about an inch or so taller than Ed said, reaching up above the fuming blonde's head and grabbing two bags of the treats, handing one of the bags to Ed, who momentarily pooled over whether or not to go off on the taller kid. Deciding against it, he huffed, offering the stranger a small, friendly smile to mask his own height-loathing.
"Thanks for that."
"No problem. Just a suggestion, though, while Eeylop's treats aren't half bad, our owl back at home goes nuts over the freeze-dried mice," he said, nodding towards a package located to the lower right of the Eeylop's treats. Ed picked up a bag and shook it, wrinkling his nose at the weight of the dead mice within.
"They seriously eat these?"
"Yeah, I know, right? Can't stand the sight of them, but Errol would happily inhale the entire bag at once if we let him," the ginger said, chortling slightly at the thought of his family's owl doing such a thing. He extended an owl out to Ed:
"Ron Weasley. I'm going to be a first year at Hogwarts this year."
Ed blinked at the familiar name of the school, then grasped Ron's right hand carefully with his automail:
"I'm Edward Elric. Same here on the Hogwarts thing. It'll be my first year, too."
Ron suddenly looked relieved:
"So glad we met; it'll be nice to know somebody, you know?"
Ed grinned:
"I know what you mean."
"And maybe we can sit together on the train...?" Ron asked hopefully. Ed nodded in agreement, glad that Ron had reminded him to get his ticket from Hagrid before they parted later on. Ron grinned widely at him, his freckles stretching across his face:
"So, you getting an owl for a pet?"
"I already got one; she's at home. I'm just here to get some food and supplies for her."
"What kind of owl is she?" Ron inquired. Ed thought for a moment, honestly not sure. He glanced around the shop, then pointed at an owl sitting atopt the check out desk that looked like a larger version of Nova.
"She's whatever kind that one is."
"Ah, a barn owl," Ron said. "Those are really nice. Errol's a grey owl-and a big one at that."
"Yeah, Nova's really small compared to alot of these owls here," Ed said, laughing slightly. "But she'll peck your head off if you say so in front of her!"
"That's her name, Nova?"
"Yeah, I named her."
"Nice," Ron said in approvement, boosting Ed's ego.
"So, is Errol your owl?"
"No, he's the family owl," Ron said, his ears pinking slightly. "He's getting old. He's really useless. We're here to get my older brother Percy a new owl since he became a Gryffindor Prefect."
"Ah. I see," Edward said, even though he honestly had no clue what exactly a Prefect was.
"Hey Ed, how about this cage?" Alphonse called from across the shop, holding up a petite, silver cage in his hands. Ron and Ed both looked over at him, Ron's jaw dropping at the sight of the armor. "Whoa..."
Ed tapped upon his chin:
"...Can we possibly get one like that in black?"
Al looked back at where he got the cage, then turned back to face his brother and shrugged:
"Granny's gone to ask someone."
"Ok, cool," Ed said, turning back towards Ron, who was still gaping at Alphonse.
"Who is that?" Ron asked.
"Who?" Ed asked confusedly. Ron gaped at him:
"The guy in the armor, duh."
"Oh," Ed said, mentally smacking himself in the face. Since he had finally become desensitized to Al's armor, he sometimes forgot about how most people would react to Al's hugeness. "He's my little brother."
Ron blinked in surprise: "little?"
Another mental face-smack; nice choice of words, smartass! "Yeah, I'm a year older than him. He'll be going to Hogwarts next year."
"How'd he get so tall? I mean..." Ron began in wonder, but then stopped as Ed's eyes narrowed threateningly, daring Ron to continue. Ron blinked, grinning apologetically, his ears pinking even more.
"Ron! Come on, dear, we've got to get going!" a plump, red-headed woman called from the check-out desk. Ron glanced back at her, then turned back towards Edward:
"That's my mum; I guess I'll be seeing you on the first, then."
"Yeah, definitely!" Ed said. "See you then-Ron, right?"
"Yep! And you're name was Edward, right?"
"Yeah, but you can just called me 'Ed' if you'd like," Ed said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. Ron nodded in agreement to his proposal; his mom called for him once more, so he hurried over to her, waving:
"See ya, Ed!"
"See ya!" Ed called to his new friend, watching as he left the shop with his mother and brother, feeling a slight pang of jealousy towards the fact that he still had a mother to shop with. Said jealousy evaporated immediately, however, when his brother walked over to him, a black cage at hand. Ed smiled up at Al, thanking him as he took the cage and bags of treats up to the front desk to be purchased.
"Alrighty then," Hagrid spoke upon exiting the shop. "Last but certainly not least, we need to get yer wand. And you want Ollivander's for that; only place fer wands, Ollivander's..."
The giant pointed them towards the famous shop; Edward sighed and looked at Alphonse, the skepticism he had felt before coming back. Al saw evidence of its return sweeping upon his face.
"I still don't understand how a fancy little stick can help us," he muttered out of earshot of Hagrid and Pinako. Alphonse shrugged:
"If the school requires you to have one, then they obviously work, brother."
"Yeah?" they stopped in front of the narrow, shabby shop. Alphonse sighed:
"Try to have an open mind while you look at the wands, Ed."
Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. The elder brother sighed:
"Alright then; let's get this over with."
~~*e.s.*~~
Edward led the way into the wand shop, his brother following close behind him, Alphonse's curiosity obvious. The front of the shop look normal enough, the window display a simple one, containing only a single wand upon a faded dark purple pillow, and a large front desk proudly greeted them as they walked in, cloaking shelves beyond shelves of small, thin boxes of various colors and lengths. The elderly man sitting behind the desk hastily got off his chair and came around to the front to greet everyone.
"Rubeus Hagrid! Good to see you again!" Ollivander greeted the half-giant with open arms. "I see you've brought more prospective students with you today."
"Hello to you too, sir," Hagrid greeted the wandmaker as he carefully sat down upon the same spindly chair he had just recently sat upon when he brought Harry to Ollivander's. He gestured to Edward: "this here is Edward Elric. He'll be a first year at Hogwarts this year."
"Pleasure to meet you, sir," Edward said politely as he shook Ollivander's hand.
"The pleasure's mine, Mr. Elric. And you too, Madam...?"
"Pinako Rockbell. I'm a family friend of the boy's," Pinako said as she stepped forward to shake Ollivander's hand.
"Family friend, eh? Hmm..." the old wandmaker hummed thoughtfully. "Now, I can't seem to place your sir name, Mr. Elric, though you do look like someone I've sold to in the past."
"Oh, my father-" Edward began, but was silenced by Ollivander's palm.
"No wait, I've a good memory, I'll figure you out...Ah ha! It's in your eyes. You are the son of the one called Hohenheim, correct?"
"Yes," Edward nodded, impressed at the elderly man's keen memory.
"Van Hohenheim! Cypress, fourteen inches-a good, broad wand, that one, and with an especially powerful core." Ollivander seemed to be speaking to no one in particular now as his pale, shining eyes recalled the past. "Yes, I remember every single wand I've fashioned and sold, Mr. Elric. For instance, Hagrid here favored a wand of oak. Sixteen inches, and rather bendy as well, wasn't it?"
"It was, sir, yes," Hagrid nodded. "Good wand, that one."
"Yes, it certainly was," Ollivander agreed, eyeing the gamekeeper's umbrella sternly.
"Was?" Alphonse questioned. "What happened to it?"
"I was expelled during my time at Hogwarts, unfortunately," Hagrid said solemnly. "They snap yer wand in half upon expulsion, you see."
"Why were you expelled?" Edward asked nosily.
"That's a long story fer another time, alright?"
Ed blinked, nodding reluctantly as he turned back towards the wandmaker. Ollivander was not looking at Edward anymore, though, and was instead fixated upon his younger brother.
"My dear boy, why do you wear that armor?"
Al froze.
"Uh, uhm, well, you see sir, it's a-a hobby of mine. Yeah! A hobby, to wear armor..."
"I see," Ollivander said, raising an eyebrow at his nervousness as he turned back to Ed. "Is he your brother?"
"Yeah, that's my younger brother, Alphonse. He'll be going to Hogwarts next year."
"Ah, good! I shall look forward to fitting you for a wand next year, then, Mr. Elric."
"I'm looking forward to it, too, sir," Alphonse said, relieved to be out of the wandmaker's analytical gaze. He and Ed exchanged a quick glance as Ollivander pulled out a long tape measure with silver markings from behind the front desk.
"Now, Edward, which arm is your wand arm?"
"Uhm, my left...?"
"Hold it out for me."
Edward obliged and Ollivander stood back and watched as the tape measure measured him from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit and round his head, all on it's own. As Edward gaped dumbfoundedly at it, the wandmaker said, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful substance, Mr. Elric. We use things such as unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstrings of dragons. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons or phoenixes are the same. And of course, you will never get as good results with another wizard's wand than with your own, for it's truly the wand that chooses the wizard rather than the other way around."
Ollivander then abruptly caught the tape measure and tossed it back behind the front desk, and then began flitting around the numerous shelves, taking down boxes.
"...Ok then, here's a good place to start. Mahogany and phoenix feather. Ten inches, light and wispy. Just take it in your left hand and wave it around a bit, Edward."
"Alright," Edward said as he grasped the dark red handle of the wand. After stealing a quick glance back at his brother, he flicked his wrist and dropped the wand as a lamp on the wall shattered into a million bits.
"I'm sorry, I didn't-"
"Not to worry, not to worry," Ollivander said as he picked up the discarded wand. "That is easily fixable, my boy. Here's the next one; ebony and unicorn hair, eight and a half inches. Springy. Go on, have at it, and do not worry yourself about breaking things."
"Ok, if you're sure," Edward said as he gingerly grasped the second wand, being careful not to aim at anything breakable as he gently flicked it. Unfortunately for him, though, he ended up aiming at some shelves and caused dozens of boxes of wands to come flying off of them. Ah hell!
"Nope, definitely not," Ollivander said as he snatched the dark colored wand out of Ed's hand.
"Next up: chestnut and dragon heartstring, ten inches, stiff."
As Ed continued on his pursuit to find the perfect wand, Ollivander's shop became more and more messy, the pile of discarded wands piling higher and higher atopt the front desk. To everyone's surprise (except Hagrid, who knew of the wandmakers quirks), however, the more wands Mr. Ollivander pulled out for Ed to try, the more giddy he seemed to become.
"You're a bit of a tricky customer, aren't you? Like like Harry Potter, this one is, Hagrid-or perhaps even more so, possibly. Not to worry, Mr. Elric, there is a wand in this shop for you somewhere..."
Ollivander ducked as Ed waved a twelve-inch wand of beechwood and unicorn hair about, disrupting the wind and tossing about several boxes from the discard pile onto the floor. Ed ran a hand through his bangs as he hastily relinquished the failed wand to Ollivander, feeling about ready to just give it up and leave the shop. Just then, though, Ollivander's pallid eyes illuminated.
"...I wonder, now-yes, why not. It could work."
"What could work?" Ed asked, a slight bit of desperation tucked into his impatient tone. The wandmaker held up a finger to him:
"One moment, if you will please. I shall return."
And with that he retreated to the far back shadows of the wand shop, leaving the rest of the party wondering what he could be fetching. Edward turned toward Al, a slightly confused look on his face.
"What's wrong, brother?" Al asked.
"Those wands...I wasn't using alchemy when I was holding any of them. How did I make all of that stuff happen without using alchemy?"
"Magic, duh," Hagird said, crossing his arms. "Yeh cannot honestly say you're still skeptical after all o' that, now can you?"
"Well-" Ed began his conterargument just as Ollivander re-entered the room, a single slender, long box being carried carefully in his hands.
"...I made this wand quite some time ago, back when I was experimenting with different materials. This wand is simply one of quite a few like it that have by this time been sold already, but this one still remained after its bretheren left the shop. It is made of wood from an elm tree, and within its core lies a thestral heartstring."
Edward looked at the box with the utmost curiosity as he asked:
"What exactly is a thestral?"
"A dark, magical creature with the skeletal body of a winged horse. It cannot be seen by all who look upon it; only those who have seen death can see a thestral. Dark, powerful creatures, thestrals are; that's one of the main reasons why I no longer use thestral-based cores in my wands.
"An' horridly misunderstood..." Hagrid muttered bitterly under his breath. Ollivander continued on, seemingly unhearing of Hagrid's commentary:
"They've become too devious and too powerful for people to accept them like before. That and the fact that breeding thestrals is now illegalized are the reasons that this is the last Ollivander's wand with a thestral-based core."
Ollivander then opened the box, revealing the long black wand within. It's handle was a simple one, elongated and curved slightly in its midsection and carved into with many differentiating marks and symbols. The hypnotic grooves of the elm wood shone slightly throughout the entire length of the wand, and it all shimmered slightly in the light with a golden-like sheen.
"It's a beautifully made wand, and the strength of the core is what causes it to shine like it is."
And with one last sigh of admiration, Ollivander lifted the shimmering wand out of its box and held it out for Edward to take. Ed's eyes widened at the old man:
"W-what, me? You want me to try out this wand?"
"But of course, that's why I got it out," Ollivander said, raising an eyebrow at the boy.
"But I would think that you'd want to sell a wand like this to some world-renowned wizard, or somebody with more experience at the least!"
"My dear naiive boy! It is like I had said before: the wand chooses the wizard, and so far every other wand I've set out for you has not been the best fit. It matters not to me whether this wand it more special than the others. What matters to me is that you walk out of my store with the perfect wand for you."
Ed blinked, then looked back at the dark wand hesitantly. Ollivander smiled down at him as he spoke firmly:
"Mr. Elric; I insist."
Edward nodded once as he lifted his hand up and wrapped his fingers around the mysterious wand's handle, gripping it gingerly as if the power within would break through the wood if gripped too tight. The effect was immediate; the wand's golden sheen glowed twice as bright as before, the symbols upon the handle revealing a circular formation underneath his palm that looked curiously similar to a transmutation circle in Edward's eyes. With the warmth of the wand at hand, Ed flicked his wrist and sent the golden sparkles up into the air above him. They swarmed above his head for a moment, hyperactively taking the shape of a snake-like creature, and then with a great gust of wind they dove back down towards the wand, shrinking in size and wrapping themselves around Edward's hand. Everyone watched as they disappeared within his skin, then re-materialized across the wand's handle in the form of an embossed snake.
Edward looked up at Ollivander in shock as Hagrid, Pinako and Alphonse applauded the scene:
"...Did I do that?"
"Yes, Edward. You are, after all, a wizard. And I most certainly believe that this is your perfect wand," he said, his silver eyes shining brightly. "It's been a few years since I've seen quite a display; it was as if it was made for you."
He took it from Edward gingerly, and the sheen upon the wood dimmed significantly. Ollivander closely observed the addition to the design, the snake-like emboss that wrapped around the length of the handle of the wand.
"...how very...curious."
"What's curious?"
Ollivander looked back at the boy:
"Oh, nothing much, nothing much. I was simply wondering why, of all animals, the wand decided to take on the form of a snake. It's all very curious-oh well! Will wonders never cease! And it does add a bit of something to the design anyhow..."
Ed turned back towards Al and Hagrid, eyebrow raised in confusion. They both shrugged, equally confused. Ed frowned slightly but nonetheless followed the wandmaker to the front desk where he paid ten gold Galleons for his new wand. Mr. Ollivander smiled brightly at everyone as he bowed them grandly from his shop.
"And I will be looking forward to seeing you next year, Alphonse Elric!"
"Of course, see you next year, sir!" Alphonse cheerfully called after the wandmaker as he and his brother made their way back down Diagon Alley.
"Alright, boys, looks like that's about it; how about I treat you two to some ice cream?" Hagrid said cheerfully. Ed immediately perked up at the sound of the tasty dessert, then remembered that poor Alphonse wouldn't be able to partake in such a delicious substance. Deciding upon being fair, Edward smiled sadly at Hagrid:
"That's really nice of you to offer, but unfortunately Al and I are lactose-intolerant."
Hagrid's face was a huge question-mark. Pinako laughed at his expression and explained:
"The boys can't be eating too much milk-based substances."
"Oh," Hagrid said, scratching his head. He shrugged:
"Alrighty then, suit yerselves. Oh, before we head back to the Leaky Cauldron, though, here..." after rummaging a bit through his deep coat pockets, Hagrid finally extracted a gold-rimmed ticket to the Hogwarts Express and a bag very similar to the bag of Floo Powder Ed still had in his coat pocket. "Yer ticket, and here's enough Floo Powder to get you all to King's Cross the morning of September first to see Edward off."
Edward took the items from the gamekeeper, then looked up into his hairy face:
"Well then, I guess I'll be seeing you."
"Indeed you shall!" Hagrid said, cheerfully shaking Ed's hand once more. "It was a pleasure to meet you all today, and I'll look forward to seeing you at Hogwarts, Edward!"
Ed nodded in agreement, then followed Granny Pinako and Alphonse back through the arch into the Leaky Cauldron.
"Well," Alphonse said as they made their way back to the fireplace in which the day's journey had begun. "That was fun, wasn't it?"
Ed nodded in agreement:
"The wizarding world is an interesting place, that's for sure. But it'll be nice to return to normalcy-at least for a while until I leave for Hogwarts," Ed said, slipping his left hand into his pocket for the Floo Powder. His hand brushed against Trisha's locket, and Ed froze for a moment as he remembered the photograph inside, remembered the entire contents of Van Hohenheim's vault, the map especially...
"Ed?"
Ed looked back at Alphonse and quickly put a smile on his face to hide his sorrow:
"...Come on Al, Granny. Let's go home."
~~*e.s.*~~
A/Endnote: WHEW! That's alot of words...I swear this chapter alone could stand as a one-shot entitled "Edward's Magical Shopping Spree." :P
Anywho, just a quicky leetle announcement for you to read-I know y'all are probably exhausted after reading that brutally long chapter. But I just wanted to let you know that I've posted a link to my DeviantArt on my profile b/c I've created an album of "Entwined Sorcery" illustrations for y'all to see! Now just a warning, I'm not an outstanding artist, so no promises on the quality of work, but I am going to try to post a scene from each chapter at the least, plus any other *e.s.* doodles I may doodle. ^_^ Hope you all will check it out!
Thanks again for reading, y'all! :D