Till Death Do Us Part
Chapter 2 / Diagon Alley
It was a sunny morning, mid-August, and the summer holidays still had that magical feeling even though there wasn't much of them left. Bonnie was in her room, scribbling away in her journal. She had spent the morning contemplating the issue of magic, but knew that sooner or later she ought to go downstairs and have breakfast or else her parents would worry.
And though she was annoyed with them for lying to her about who, no what, she was, they were still her parents. So with a slightly reluctant heart, Bonnie made her way down.
Elaine glanced up from her toast, a kind of odd and hopeful smile on her face. "Morning, honey."
"Good morning, mum, dad," said Bonnie cheerfully. She took her breakfast quietly and kept her eyes focused on her food. She was too scared to look up.
"What are you planning on doing today?" asked Lucian from behind his book.
Bonnie paused, her spoon halfway to her mouth. She pondered this for a moment before finally replying with, "Well, I think I'll just spend some time in the woods, if that's alright."
"Of course, dear," replied Lucian fondly. "Have fun and remember: be careful. Elaine, maybe we should pack her some snacks. Will you have any friends there?"
"Um, no," admitted Bonnie quietly. She finished up, and then, once she was changed, took a bag filled with biscuits, small sandwiches and juice for later on. She knew the way to the woods almost off by heart, she'd been so many times. Her feet practically led her there.
The trees grew denser, the light falling on the soft green leaves. Bonnie's feet crossed the soil and fallen twigs, leading her further and further into the woods. She felt at home, the familiar sound of the running river nearby, the birds chirping their beautiful tunes.
She settled down on a fallen tree, and felt a pang of sadness in her heart at the thought of the life that had once lived in this tree but was now gone. She thought suddenly of what she was: a witch. Surely, then, she could help the tree? She got up, dusted off her hands and concentrated. What did she want? To see the tree upright, healthy, alive.
She stuck out her hands, thought about the tree being happy, and waited. She opened her eyes. It was unbelievable, incredible. There the tree was, standing upright, as though it had always been that way. Bonnie stared at her hands in disbelief; she really had magic. But it made no sense, because magic wasn't real. It shouldn't be possible, yet it had happened.
Bonnie packed up her things, suddenly in a more positive and lively mood, and began to make her way back home. She wasn't sure if she was more excited or scared by her newfound power, but it felt like it was something good. It made her feel important, like there was a reason for her being who she was, that she wasn't just 'that weird girl who nobody liked'. It made her feel like she was a part of something bigger, something more than just the life she knew.
OoOoO
"You've reconsidered." Terrence raised an eyebrow but allowed Bonnie to enter the mansion. Bonnie gave him a little smile and followed through to a different room, a kitchen it seemed. There were plates washing themselves, a fire that roared, potatoes being peeled without anyone there. Doreen strode in, caught sight of Bonnie, and blinked.
"Bonnie," she greeted. "How nice of you to come back after out last encounter."
"Yes, about that, I'm really very sorry," said Bonnie, a feeling of guilt hitting her. "I didn't mean to be so rude to you. It's just that it was quite hard to believe that I was, you know, a witch."
"That's quite understandable," mused Terrence, seating himself, Doreen and Bonnie following. "But it's nice to see you back here."
"I thought it would be nice to talk to you," said Bonnie. She accepted the warm drink offered to her by Doreen. "I wanted to know more about the magical world."
"Oh, really?" asked Doreen in surprise. She looked happy, though. "Well, tell us anything you'd like to know and we'll try to answer as much as we can."
Bonnie felt something stir inside her. "Alright. I'd like to know why my parents kept all this a secret from me."
"That's a good question," said Doreen, but she seemed slightly reserved. "Of course, we don't know everything about your parents, but we can assume that they just wanted to keep you safe."
Bonnie felt her face flush. "Yeah, I know that. But from what?"
A heavy silence filled the air, and it was finally broken by Terrence shuffling to boil some tea.
"You know, Bonnie, that the world isn't always good," began Terrence, fiddling around with a copper kettle, the one object that seemed out of place in the house.
"Yes," said Bonnie, thinking back to the boy who had broken her chalks and bullied her since.
"Well, some evil is very strong, and there was a man who was the worst of the worst," explained Terrence, pouring tea into china teacups. "He hurt many, his name was—"
A loud bell sounded, stopping Terrence mid-sentence. He sighed, shuffling out of the kitchen. Bonnie frowned, was that a doorbell? When the old man came back in he held a newspaper in his hands, scanning the titles. He made a disapproving sort of grunt.
"What's the news today, Terrence?" questioned Doreen.
Terrence sighed heavily. "Humphrey Underwood, head of the Auror Office, has suddenly disappeared without a trace. No warnings, nothing at all to show where he might've gone."
"Oh," muttered Doreen, shifting awkwardly in her seat. "You don't think that it's because of, you know, do you?"
"No," said Terrence, a little too quickly. He paused. "No, no, it can't be. I am most sure it isn't." At this point, he seemed to remember that Bonnie was still in the room. "Bonnie, dear, thank you ever so much for coming to us but I'm afraid that we must finish now."
"But you didn't tell me anything," said Bonnie. She felt annoyed; these people, who she'd decided to trust, were just kicking her out after a few minutes with them?
Doreen took Bonnie's hand. "I'm sorry," she said, sincerely. "But you can always come back, whenever you'd like, it's just that there is an important issue that we need to handle."
Bonnie, slightly annoyed and hurt, left, thanking Terrence and Doreen all the same since she still had her manners.
OoOoO
"Hey, darling," chirped Elaine from the sofa, where she was knitting a deep purple scarf.
"Hi, mum," said Bonnie. She tried to make her deflated tone more enthusiastic. "Thanks for the snacks, they were really nice. But I'm tired now, so I'll be heading to my room if that's all right."
"Of course darling." Her mum had already gone back to knitting away, the TV on in the background. Bonnie hesitated, her interest suddenly grasped. The news channel was on, and they were mentioning something about a disturbance in London, that there appeared to be many oddly-dressed people about. Terrorists, they assumed, but there was no solid evidence. Bonnie shivered. How creepy. Did it have anything to do with the man Terrence mentioned, Humphrey Underwood? Was this what was causing the commotion? And who were the cloaked people?
OoOoO
Bonnie knew that sooner or later she'd have to bring up the whole magic discussion, for her letter had to be sent back shortly. She waited at the top of the stairs, the letter folded neatly in her pocket. Maybe she didn't have to go, maybe she could pretend that none of it ever happened, that she imagined the tree, that she was normal and that was that.
But another part of Bonnie wanted to go, to see this new and magical world that she'd been kept hidden from for so long. With her mind set, Bonnie confronted her parents. She produced the letter, and Lucian closed his eyes momentarily.
"I want to go." Bonnie's voice sounded more frail and wobbly out loud than it did in her head.
"We figured as much," said Lucian, smiling, but not concealing his sad eyes. "In that case, I'll write your letter back, confirming it. Your mother will take you to Diagon Alley tomorrow to get your things."
"Diagon Alley?" echoed Bonnie. "Where on earth is that? I've never heard of such a strange name."
"It's in London," explained Elaine carefully. She had out her knitting aside, the TV muted. "It's where all the best magical shops are. There we'll find everything you need."
Bonnie felt a flutter of excitement in her belly: this was it! It was happening! Perhaps she'd finally fit in somewhere, perhaps she'd make beautiful and powerful magic.
"Thank you, mum," gushed Bonnie, who felt as though she couldn't be happier. "And dad. Thank you both so much. I can't wait."
OoOoO
The following day was a day filled with excitement for Bonnie. She had woken up very early, too nervous and anxious to sleep properly. When her mum was up and ready, they headed off to the train station, where they took a train down to London.
The bustling city felt alive and intriguing: there were people selling newspapers on street corners, business officials walking around talking on their phones, groups of friends laughing as they carted their shopping bags about, mums taking care of their little children.
"Wow," said Bonnie in awe and wonder. She tried to take it all in as much as possible, before being dragged down a shopping street by her mum. They entered a dimly-lit pub. Bonnie wanted to stop. It looked menacing. But she followed her mum anyway, and they found themselves amidst a group of people, dressed in strange clothes and drinking from silver goblets. It felt so...magical.
"Mum, where are we?" whispered Bonnie, not wanting to draw any attention to herself.
Elaine took her daughter's hand. "The Leaky Cauldron. It's a wizard pub. No, we're not drinking anything, but this is how we get through to Diagon Alley."
Bonnie nodded, still a little nervous, but feeling more at home in the dingy place then she ever had at school or at home. This place felt more real, like she was a part of it somehow.
"'Ey Elaine!" a bar tender was shouting over the noise. "What is you doin' up 'ere now? Where's little Stephen, eh? 'As he gone back to 'ogwarts?"
"He's doing just fine, thank you," snapped Elaine. She held her daughter close. "Sorry, Merton, but we really have to go now." And with that, Elaine hurried out, pulling her daughter with her. They left through a back door and found themselves in a small, outdoor garden-like place. Elaine pulled out a long, thin stick, that Bonnie was surprised to realize must be a wand. Elaine tapped the bricks on a brick wall, creating a pattern. Suddenly, the bricks began to tremble and turn, folding out until there was a large gaping hole, big enough to walk through.
And there, through it, was a busy street filled with the most unusual shops Bonnie had ever seen. Hairdressers with flying golden scissors, magically styling hair in seconds; pet shops filled with fluffy owls and slimy toads; shops filled with odd sweets, thousands and thousands stacked on top of each other; clothes shops where people were being measured by enchanted tapes.
"It's incredible," whispered Bonnie, her eyes trying to look at everything all in one go.
"Right, do you have your list?" asked Elaine, getting straight to the point.
Bonnie nodded, handing over the sheet. Her mum looked over it, made a few notes, then slipped it into her bag for safe keeping.
"First off, I'll go get your books if you can go and get your robes sorted. Here's your money." Elaine handed over some coins to Bonnie, who held the unknown currency delicately in her palms. The two split up, and Bonnie found herself in a robe shop, where a woman came up to her, all eager eyes and wild hair, and told Bonnie to stand there, yes, maybe a little left, and then went to fetch some basic black robes. Bonnie waited patiently, examining the shop.
"It's nice, isn't it?" A girl peeked out from her hood, who Bonnie hadn't noticed, and grinned. Her bright pink hair was stuck out at funny angles because of the cloak.
"Yeah, it's incredible," replied Bonnie. "I'm Bonnie, who are you?"
"Ellen," replied the girl, sticking out her hand. Bonnie shook it, and then the girls lapsed into a silence. "Anyway," continued Ellen, "I am so excited to go to Hogwarts, aren't you? I've dreamt of this moment for years...sure, my mum wasn't too happy, what with being a Muggle and all, but my dad thought it was great! He's trying to convince mum it's a good thing, but she just doesn't listen sometimes, you know?"
Bonnie nodded along as Ellen rambled on, only mildly aware that tape measures were flying around her, nudging her when she had to move. Once she was done, she said goodbye to Ellen, and met her mum outside the shop. They continued to find everything on the list, until all that was left was to find a pet and her wand.
As soon as they entered the pet store, their ears were met with squeaking, meowing and squealing children. At once Bonnie was drawn to the cats in the farthest corner. In the very back was a small, black cat with intense emerald green eyes, much like Bonnie's. She pointed at it, and her mum nodded.
They came across a brightly painted shop, inside which were thousands of stacks of long and slender boxes. When they opened the door a chime sounded, alerting the bright-eyed man behind the counter.
"Hello!" he said happily. "I'm Ollivander. More precisely, Ollivander JR, and welcome to my wand shop! How may I help you?"
"I'm looking for a wand," explained Bonnie, whose eyes were still examining the shop.
"Oh yes, of course." The man scurried away, and then reappeared a few moments later with a dozen or so wands in his arms. "Here, try this, thirteen inches, willow wood, unicorn hair core."
Bonnie, feeling a little silly, swished the wand. Nothing happened.
"Okay," murmured Ollivander. "Here, try this. Cherry wood, eleven and a half inches, Phoenix feather core." Bonnie took this one, swished it and a blinding light flashed from it, knocking a few things over.
"It is, that's the one!" cried Ollivander in excitement. "Such a rare choice, that is. No doubt you are a very talented and special young girl."
Elaine paid for the wand, and Bonnie held it in her hands. It felt strange, the fact that she didn't choose the wand but it seemed more that the wand chose her.
On the way back home, Bonnie held the cat in her arms, staring at her with loving eyes. Suddenly she looked up, distracting her mum from the book she was reading.
"I have to name her," said Bonnie slowly.
Elaine nodded. "Yes, that would be a good idea. Do you have any ideas?"
Bonnie thought it over. What should she name her cat? Something that was interesting, obviously, but maybe unusual. Or elegant. The cat's green eyes stared up at Bonnie, almost tauntingly, as if to say, well, aren't you going to help me out here? I could use a name right about now.
"I know!" exclaimed Bonnie. Elaine raised an eyebrow. "Artemis. She'll be called Artemis."
Artemis meowed softly, burrowing her face into Bonnie's chest. Bonnie smiled; the name was perfect. It was the right name, she knew it. Artemis. They would make an excellent team.