DIAGON ALLEY

I had read over my list of equipment and books I needed and some of the things on it were actually laughable. Apparently witches and wizards used cauldrons! I could just imagine green skinned witches with warts sitting over a cauldron stirring it slowly while cackling madly. Next they were gonna tell me they flew on broomsticks. They already had the pointy hats and all, I smirked to myself.

The next we woke up early and set off to London to get all my school stuff. I hopped out of the taxi excitedly, thanking the man. My mom paid the taxi driver before I grabbed her hand and pulled her out after me, skipping down the street happily. I stopped and pulled out the sheet of paper that Professor Longbottom, at least I think that was his name, I know it's a weird name right? It said we had to go to the Leaky Cauldron, which was between number 17 and number 18. I walked down the street to number 17 and right next to it was an old pub with a sign above it claiming it to be the Leaky Cauldron.

"Ebony," my mom interrupted my thoughts "the Creaky Cauldron isn't there." I laughed "mom it's the Leaky Cauldron and its right there," I said pointing to it. I watched as my mom looked at it but her eyes skipped right over it and onto the next shop. I looked around confusedly and noticed that everyone else's eyes just skipped right over the pub. I was thoroughly confused, I looked down at the note from Professor Longbottom and noticed small writhing at the bottom that I hadn't before. It said "p.s. muggles, non-wizarding folk-can't see the Leaky Cauldron unless you're holding their hand." Well that sorted that, I grabbed my moms and she gasped audibly as I pulled her forward. "W-where did that c-come fr-from?" she spluttered. "It's always there but you just can't see it," I explained to her as I pulled her forward and through the crowd in the pub. Everyone in the pub was wearing robes like the ones Professor Longbottom had been wearing when he came to visit.

We finally emerged into the little back area of the pub. It was a small square, with brick walls and there were bins lining one side. Professor Longbottom had told me to tap the brick that was three up and two across. I did this and the bricks began to recede to form an archway. My jaw dropped and I stood there gaping in awe at the scene laid out before me. The street was packed full of people wearing robes, and all the shops along the side of the street were selling things that I was unfamiliar with. "Wow," I heard my mom whisper to herself beside me and I couldn't have put it better myself. I started heading down the street my mom following me. There was a sign telling me that this street was called Diagon Alley. As we walked down the street I peered curiously into the shops around me, there was a shop that sold owls, and another one had a barrel outside of it selling "3 scoops of newt eyes for a galleon." Newt eyes? That's gross! And what's a galleon. There were so many questions running through my head at an alarmingly fast pace that it was making me dizzy.

We finally reached the bank, "Grinngotts Wizarding Bank," it was a huge stone building. We walked through the doors and there were rows of desk with small little creatures perched on top of high chairs. We approached one of the desks where an old wizened creatue? sat. "Name?" he asked without looking up from the parchment he was scribbling away furiously on. "Eh…Ebony Woodgrove?" I said but it came out as more of a question than an answer. "Vault number?" he asked. "Um.. I don't have a vault sir," I replied wondering what I was supposed to do. "Muggleborn?" he asked and I was for Professor Longbottom's explanation earlier, I nodded. "Alright, I'm Ragnook, the goblin, would you like to exchange money or would you like to open a vault?" he asked finally looking up from his paper.

Ten minutes later I emerged from the building feeling queasy. We had exchanged money and then my mom had opened a vault for me. We had to down to the vault in a little cart that rocked from side to side and jumped up and down t odd intervals, hence the sickness. "Come on," my mom said "we've got lots to buy."

First we went to get all the equipment I needed, cauldron, brass scales and telescope. Then I had to get my robes so we went to a shop called "Madam Malkin's robes for every occasion." She measured me for my robes and soon we were on to the next shop. I got my quills, ink, parchment and potion ingredients. Next we went to the bookshop, I'm not a bookworm, but I do like to snuggle up with a good book by the fire every now and again and I'm not gonna lie this shop really interested me. The shop was crammed full of books about things I had never heard of, I would've loved to stay there all day, but we were running out of time and we still had to get my pet and wand. I quickly read through my list and went to find all my spell book I was just trying to get my last book. it was on the top shelf and me being only 5"2 couldn't reach it. I stretched up to my full extent on my tiptoes and tried to grab it but I could only stroke the edges of the book. I huffed and fell backwards onto my heels. Ugh I hated being small! Just then a tall boy with unruly dark auburn coloured hair that stuck out in all directions and hazel eyes loped over to me gracefully, leaned over me and plucked the book off the shelf. "Here you go," he said, handing me the book. "Thanks," I said smiling up at him, he looked to be about a year older than me and was really good looking. "No problem shortie," he smirked as I blushed furiously and scowled at him. "See you around, " he said still smirking as he turned around and walked out of the shop.

I paid for my books and we left the shop to head for "Ollivanders" the wand shop, I was so excited. As we headed down the street towards the shop we passed a shop called "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes." "Mom," I begged "can we please go into that shop?" The shop was full of children running around excitedly and it was selling an array of prank and joke products. "Alright," she conceded "I'll meet you in Ollivanders in 20 minutes, I want to go to that beauty shop I saw down the road." "Okay," I agreed quickly, smiling "see you in 20."

I quickly ran into the shop and began to look at all the products. I saw a boy with dark unruly hair that was just like the boy in the bookshop's, they had to be related, he also had mesmerising green eyes and glasses and looked my age. I watched as he pulled a product off of a shelf and had to stifle my laughter when it exploded, sending confetti over the shocked looking boy.

15 minutes later I was paying for my items when a dark skinned boy with dark red hair came up to look at what I was carrying, I had a pimple vanisher, some skiving snack boxes, a few dung bombs and a couple of extendable ears. "I see you're a prankster, a girl after my own heart," he said flirtatiously winking at me. I quickly paid for my things and went to meet my mom.

The wand shop was a small dusty looking shop that had a sort of rundown look about it. we entered the shop and it was tiny, there was no furniture except for a spindly chair in the middle and there were boxes piled up to the ceiling. "Ag, hello," said a voice coming from the shadows, I jumped. "You'll be looking for a wand, yes?" asked an old wizened wizard as he emerged from behind a stack of wands. "Um yes sir," I replied uncertainly, he had a sort of creepy air that freaked me out. "I'm Ollivander," he said before he retreated back behind a shelf. A measuring tape came forward and started measuring me. It measure Around my head, the length of my toes, the distance between my toes and many other place that I couldn't figure out how they would help me pick a wand..

Finally Ollivander remerged from behind the stack with some wands. He handed me one "here try this," he told me handing me a wand. I took and felt extremely silly waving a stick around the air but I did it anyway. The wand let off dangerous sparks and he snatched it away quickly. "No, no that won't work he muttered to himself," and handed me another wand telling me it was "beech tree, 8 inches, immobile with unicorn hair." I took it in my hand, swirled it around and there was a mini explosion at the end of my wand. Again Ollivander snatched the wand from me before handing me another one to try. It seemed like I had tried all the wands in the shop and none of them had worked, the pile of useless wands beside was growing bigger and bigger. Ollivander was muttering to himself something that sounded like "the wand chooses the wizard" and "I wonder, I wonder."

"Dear," he finally said turning to me "will you please put out your wand hand." I willingly obliged, anything that would get me out of here faster, halfway through I had begun to wonder if I wasn't actually a witch, what if I couldn't do magic? my mom had fallen asleep in the chair and was snoring soundly. I stuck my hand out as he told me to. "Now," he said "I would like you to imagine your wand flying into your hand." I tried to imagine a wand floating out from the stack of wands and into my hand, but that didn't happen, instead the wand came from behind me, in the window display. I had noticed it earlier when we were coming in, there was one wand lying on a cushion in the display, and I remembered thinking it was beautiful. Unlike most wands it was not brown and dull, the wood had a faint rosy-pink colour to it with dark green pieces of wood wrapping around it like vines. The wand flew into my and I Immediately felt warmth spreading through my body. A golden arc shot from the end of the wand forming a rainbow before bursting and gold sparkles floated down all around me.

I started smiling immediately and looked over to Ollivander and my mom, who had woken up and was staring at me in awe. "Interesting," Ollivander said "that wand is made from a rose bush, I don't often make wands out of bushes, they tend to do very unsteady magic. This is the only wand I ever made from a bush because there was so much magic in that bush, I mixed it with cedar to make it more reliable," he explained "Cedar infused with rose bush, 10 ¼ inches, pliable with dragon heartstring and phoenix feather. very powerful wand for a very powerful wizard," he said before retreating into the back of the shop.

I left feeling very confused. But I soon pushed all my questions aside as we headed towards Eyelops Owl Emporium. I walked in the door and was overwhelmed by the amount of owls in the shop. "Hi welcome to Eyelops Owl Emporium," the man at the counter said, he had fiery red hair and was sturdily built " how can I help you?" he asked. "I'm looking for an owl," I told him. "Sure thing darling, look around and come back to me if you need anything," he said " oh and by the way I'm Charlie." "Thanks, I'm Ebony," I said smiling.

I walked through the shop looking at all the owls. I was just about to ask my mom to help me choose when I spotted an owl perched on a shelf to my right. His feathers were a bright, fiery orange, unlike any of the owls I had seen so far, he had one blue eye and one green eye and his head was turned to the side while he stared at me. He had a kind of cheeky, mischievous look about him and I liked him immediately. I picked him up and put him on my shoulder. I walked back over to where my mom and Charlie were talking "I want this one," I told them. "Oh, he's a cheeky little bugger," Charlie told me "that'll be 17 sickles. I handed over the money and left the shop.

by the time we got home I was exhausted and promptly fell asleep.