Visiting Diagon

Chapter 2: James Potter

Hooray for my one review. I love you tradreader!!!!! Hopefully I will get some more for this chapter? I usually get more for the funnier stories. This will be funny too, but I guess it seems kinda serious (SIRIUS!... HA). Anyway... I just had to do James next! I hope you enjoy reading about his adventures in Diagon Alley!

-GG xo

"Hurry up mother!" James Potter cried, jumping up and down waving his arms, flu powder in hand, eager to leave the house.

"I'm coming James, I'm coming!" Mrs. Potter laughed at the antics of her only son. Her son, who would in a few weeks time be off to learn magic for the first time at the school her and the rest of his ancestors had attended since its founding year.

She could remember the day he had preformed his first act of accidental magic like it was yesterday. James had been five and the family was on the way to Mrs. Potter's mothers fifth (or was it sixth) wedding. James was to be the ring bearer, and as a result, his grandmother was the one to have picked out his dress robes. The robes, in accordance with the spring theme the elderly couple had chosen were a vibrant pink with light green trim and purple ruffles. James was utterly mortified, but no matter how much he whined, his Grandmother would not given in. She stayed true to her choice of the hideous robe and held fast.

Seconds before walking down the isle; James had somehow managed to transfigure the colour of his robes to bright neon orange. The orange had been even more hideous than the previous colours, and clashed loudly with the colour scheme, but James had not even noticed the change. He had done it completely accidentally out of fear of his embarrassment.

As James walked slowly down the isle, every eye in the crowd was upon him, eyebrows raised in confusion. His grandmother looked as if she was about to have a heart attack right then and there. Mr Potter who had shared James's contempt for the robes merely smirked at his only son, chuckling to himself as he gave James two thumbs up.

"Mum! We're going to be late!" James whined. He was overjoyed at the prospect of getting all of his Hogwarts supplies. James was obsessed with Hogwarts. As a child, Mrs. Potter had had to tell him stories of her years in the castle before bed.

"OK," replied Mrs. Potter, still smiling from the memory. "Let's go. Remember to tuck in your elbows and say Diagon Alley clearly. You wouldn't want to end up some where horrid, like Knockturn!"

James laughed, stepping into their large fireplace. "I'm not stupid mum. Everyone knows how to use the floo!"

"You'd be surprised," His mother chuckled as she watched her son disappear with the ashes.

James landed with a thump in the fireplace at The Leaky Cauldron. He was at Diagon Alley, about to purchase the things he would need when he began Hogwarts in the fall. James was beyond excited; he was ecstatic. He had spent the past few days whining about whether it was time to go yet, and moping around the Potter family's backyard quidditch pitch at the fact that first years weren't allowed to bring brooms, when he had been flying for years. There at last, James surveyed the scene. Hogwarts students and parents were all crammed into the small space that was The Leaky, with excited expressions perpetually painted to their faces.

Unfortunately it was at this point that his mother came crashing down on top of him still standing in the fireplace, causing James to be thrown across the dusty wooden floor and land in a heap. Mrs. Potter clicked her tongue with both amusement and annoyance at the foolish behavior of her son. Didn't most children learn to exit a fireplace immediately after flooing before their fifth birthday? Anyone could have landed on top of James! Mrs. Potter shook her head, her son was a not most children.

"Let's go mum!" James hurried his mother along, who had still been gazing fondly at him while he dusted himself off.

They set out at a stroll towards the brick wall. Mrs. Potter took out her wand and tapped to brick three times.

"Later today, I'll finally be able to be the one to do that with my wand." Muttered James with more jealousy that what one might think would have been needed.

His mother merely smiled and responded, "Soon enough."

James and his mother, being Potters, knew virtually everyone in the wizarding world. This made their trips easy and quick. They had already gotten James's cauldron and books, as well as having checked the inventory at Quality Quidditch Supplies numerous times before Mrs. Potter decided it was time for her son to purchase his wand.

James stood beneath Ollivanders looming sign proclaiming his quality and family's experience in awe. He was getting a wand. His own magic wand. Of course James had seen other wizards use their wands, he had even made a teacup levitate with his father's, but James had never had his own.

Upon James and Mrs. Potter's entrance to the store, they each took a seat, as Mr Ollivander was in the process for finding a wand for another, rather plum young boy. The boy took the wand he was offered apprehensively, and pointed it towards the shelves across the room. At once, the shelves collapsed, leaving at least a hundred wands scattered across the floor. The boys than panicked, pointing it away, but towards the chandelier directly above him on the ceiling. Promptly, the chandelier blow up. Pieces were scattered everywhere across the store and it was a wonder no one was hurt.

Shaking his head Ollivander said to the boy, "No, Peter. I do not think that's the one."

Eventually the boy, who James now knew was named Peter found a wand he was able to wave around without causing damage. It was quite the relief.

Finally, it was James's turn. "Dorea Black. Now Potter I presume?" James's mother nodded in response to the wand maker's question. "I remember your first wand. Ebony, eight inches and a half. Especially good for defense, if I remember correctly?"

"You do, Mr Ollivander." Mrs. Potter replied with a smile.

Nodding to his mother, Ollivander then, focused on the eleven year old. "I assume that you, young man are here to purchase your first wand?" he said, focusing on the eleven year old.

"I should hope so," James replied cheekily, earning himself a stern look from his mother while Mr Ollivander went to find James a wand he thought would do its job.

Ollivander returned moments later, box in hand. "Pick it up," he said opening the box's lid to reveal a wand. "Give it a twirl."

James reached out to touch the wand, and instantly felt in warm at his fingertips. James lifted the wand determinedly and swung it around in a circle above his head. Colourful sparks erupted from its end. His mother smiled, and James knew he had found his wand.

Smiling, Ollivander said breathily, "mahogany, eleven inches. Pliable. Excellent for transfiguration."

James beamed. He knew that his first act of accidental magic had been transfiguration. This wand had chosen him well. James placed the wand back in its box for his mother to pay, but not before giving it another good twirl.

"James, I'm so proud of you," proclaimed Mrs. Potter as they stepped out of the store.

Grinning madly, James hugged his mother, taking her by surprise.

"How about we get you an ice cream to celebrate?" She asked wiggling her eyebrows.

"Yes!" James shouted in response, and began running towards the store, attracting the attention of the other shoppers around them. Mrs. Potter laughed. Her son was eleven years old, but when it came to ice cream, the little maturity he had was severely compromised.

Inside the shop, there where two young boys, one holding a cone of vanilla ice cream, and the other was still deciding on what to order. Vanilla? James though. Could you get more boring?

"Hurry up Rom, mom and dad are waiting," the older, vanilla ice cream eating boy exclaimed impatiently. I was obvious that his brother had been attempting to come to a decision for a while now.

"But Remy! I don't know what to pick!" The younger whined.

"Romulus! It's not that hard. Just pick three flavors."

James was growing impatient. How long would this take? Deciding to take matters into his own hands, James walked over to the boys.

"Er, hi," he said, interrupting. "Do you think you could get a move on?"

The older boy looked at James, "I wish. But my brother can't seem to come to a decision." He said through gritted teeth.

"Well, what are you deciding between?" James asked, bending down slightly to be on level with the younger boy.

In a small voice the boy answered, "I want to get either black pepper imp, coconut chocolate frog, acid mint, lemon-lime pucker, chocolate ice mice, caramel treacle tart, vanilla jelly slug, strawberry fizzing whizzbee or that new, multi-coloured flavor that tastes like a five chorus meal as you lick, but Remus said I can only get three." he glowered at his brother.

"I didn't say that, mum did." Remus said defensively, still licking his boring old vanilla.

James pondered the choices before answering, "You should definitely go for the black pepper imp. It's awesome! Last time I had it, I was breathing fire for days! My dad was delighted, because he didn't have to waste matches." He smiled remembering. "Oh, and my personally favorite is caramel treacle tart." He paused to scratch his ear thoughtfully before continuing, "And you should probably give that new one a try."

The young boy smiled up as James. "Thanks," he said before turning to the man behind the counter and repeating exactly what James had suggested.

Tapping James on the shoulder, the other boy expressed his gratitude, "Thanks for helping with my brother. Romulus can be quite difficult sometimes. I'm impressed." Then offering his hand he continued, "I'm Remus Lupin. I'm going in to my first year of Hogwarts."

"I'm James. James Potter, and I'm going into my first year as well." Replied James, smiling and taking Remus's hand.

By then Romulus had gotten his ice cream, and was ready to go.

"I guess I'll see you on September 1st then?" Remus asked as his remarkably strong younger brother tugged him out of the store.

"For sure." James replied. "See you on the train."

Remus nodded before giving in to his brother's wish to leave, and James surveyed his ice cream choices, deciding on caramel treacle tart, black pepper imp, lemon pucker levitation sherbet, vanilla jelly slug and the new flavor he had suggested Remus's brother try.

Happily licking his ice cream, James separated from his mother who was going to pick up his books, to get his robes fitted at Madam Malkims. James entered the robe store happily and plumped himself down on a chair, unaware of anyone else in the room; he was excited to be getting his robes at last and to see Madam Malkim, who was an old friend of his family.

While raising his feet on to the low table in front of the chair, exactly the way his mother had told him not too, James noticed the small girl in front of the mirror across the room. She was quite pretty with flaming read hair and sparkling green eyes, and was wearing a Hogwarts robe pinned in numerous places along its bottom.

"Hi there," the James said to the girl. "Is Madam Malkim here? I need to get my robes fitted. Starting Hogwarts this year."

"Yes, she's in her room at the back." The girl replied, hesitantly in a soft, tinkling voice. She seemed nervous.

"Good. I'll just go see her then." Getting out of his chair James proceeded to the back of the store, deciding that he like this girl. He would have to remember to ask for her name later.

As he opened the door to her storage room, he saw Madam Malkim's arms draped around a young man. James's first instinct was to close the door quietly and pretend he had seen nothing. Unfortunately, as he began to do so, the door let out a loud creek, attracting the attention of the couple. Madam Malkim turned a bright shad of red.

"You should know better than to venture into my private room, stupid boy! Out! Get out of my sight." She cried pointing to the door and leading him towards it.

Unfortunately he turned to run, James collided with the redhead, his ice cream going straight into the front of her robes, staining them a multi-coloured mess.

The girl burst out into tears. "James Potter, you will be punished for this!" Madam Malkim growled and began to tidy the girl up.

James decided to leave the store immediately, as he knew that if he didn't his head would have been chewed off by one of the two vicious women. Maybe he had been wrong about the redhead. She seemed a bit too high tempered for his liking.

Meeting up with his mother, she was disappointed at his story, but agreed to take him back for robes the next day.

On their way back to the floo in The Leaky Cauldron, James and Mrs. Potter passed a tall, dark haired man.

"Potter." The man acknowledged, nodding.

"Black." James's mother nodded back. "Good to see you cousin." She added.

"Do not call me that. You have not been my cousin since you married the blood traitor, Potter and took his name. I assume this is your son?"

She drew James closer to her side. "Yes, this is James." She replied. "And this is yours Orion? Sirius, isn't it?"

"Yes Ma'am." The boy named Sirius responded, not the least bit shy.

"Well, it was… nice you see you Dorea." Hissed his father.

"As always Orion," Mrs. Potter smiled fakley as she and James continued on to The Leaky and flooed back home after a full and exciting day.

So there you have it! Please leave a review letting me know what you think! PLEASE :D

I'll give you all virtual cookies! YUMMY 3

Sirius is up next... (MY FAVORITE MARAUDER! *SQUEALS*)

-GG xo