Chapter2
"Are you ready, Adam?", asked his mother while grabbing his fathers' hand.
"Yes, mother. But do we really have to go to Diagon for my shopping? We could probably buy everything in the Dryads Haven."
At his words the features of his parents turned into frowns and Adam, knowing they were displeased, let out an internal sigh and took his fathers' other hand.
A short, and uncomfortable, moment later they found themselves in a private room inside Gringotts. Stepping outside the room you could see the Cromwell family crest adorned on the door, making it clear who reserved this room.
Getting a private apparition room inside Gringotts was only affordable by the wealthy, so it wasn't all that shocking to see similar doors with different crests down the corridor.
"Let's get out of here. I still have to attend Lucius' gathering this evening." His Father, William, said in a somewhat annoyed tone. And Adam was sure that annoyance wasn't directed at him this time.
His mother, Leanora, seemed to agree and took the lead with a fast tempo, needing Adam to catch up quickly and even jog a little. His mother was tall after all. Where his father stood at an impressive 2,10m his mother was just a little shorter at around 1,90m. And even though Adam was tall for his age, he was still just 11 years old and didn't have long enough legs to keep up effortlessly.
It didn't take long for them to reach the atrium and, not wanting to risk Adam striking up a conversation with some Goblins, his parents quickly walked out the doors into Diagon Alley.
It was a weekday and still early, so the Alley was still quite empty. And in recent years more and more marketplaces opened up across the country, making it even less crowded then before the war.
"We will get your books last. You will probably want to take your time, so I will leave you there with your mother. Shopping the first time for Hogwarts is a unique experience and I won't ruin it for my son." William smiled down at his son, even though it seemed stiff. Probably from not being used to smiling, Adam thought to himself and gave his father a brilliant smile of his own.
After that it was easy to decide the order in which to shop.
Their first stop was Twilfitt and Tattings, where Adam quickly got fitted for a wide variety of clothes, including his school robes. Which, after a donation from his mother, would be made out of acromantula silk and enchanted to the highest degree.
Being told they'll have to wait for a while, they walked along the Alley towards Scribbulus Writing Instruments, purchasing on the way some necessary utensils from the apothecary. Ingredients would be easier to buy at Dryads Haven and his family, having many Potion-Businesses and Ingredient-Farms, had enough in store.
After purchasing some beautiful Quills, just purely for their aesthetically pleasing looks, and some useful Quills, like self-inking and self-spelling quills, they made their way through the livelier alley and did some shopping on the way towards their next goal.
Adam, getting a bit bored from the stuff he has already seen so many times, keeps an eye out for interesting shops and keeping their locations in mind for a later visit, already planning his escape.
After some more shopping, only stopping for a quick meal, they arrived at Ollivanders causing Adam to become slightly nervous. Which brought a smile to his parents faces and Adam was 90% sure it was sadistic joy.
"We'll wait outside, son. It can take a long time, so you can find us in the Café across the street. And don't forget to buy a wand holster." His father told him, before putting some coins in his hands and leaving with his mother.
Adam, the brave guy that he is, took a few more minutes to compose himself and only entered the shop after schooling his features like he was taught. Only to lose his composure just a moment later, when a voice came from behind him.
"Welcome, young man.", Mr. Ollivander greeted him with a jovial voice and walked past him towards the shelfs full of wands.
Adam, trying to calm his racing heart, only then noticed the measure tape travelling across his body and taking his measurements.
"Your dominant hand, young Mister…?"
"Cromwell. Adam Cromwell, Sir. And I'm ambidextrous.", Adam answered with a polite smile, finally calming fully down and looking around with curiosity.
Wands are an area he has next to no knowledge of, since magical creatures do not use wands and the process of crafting wands is a closely guarded secret by all wand crafters.
His family library did have some books about the craft, but Adam didn't really understand most of it, so he put them back after skimming them.
"Oh, the young Cromwell Lord is already old enough to attend Hogwarts? And that is quite the gift you have." Mr. Ollivander genuinely seemed happy to hear his name, but Adam wasn't really sure since he could only see the older mans back. "We Ollivanders frequent the Dryads Haven quite regularly, getting some of our best materials from there. I'm glad my ancestors had the foresight to get access even for later generations, since it's become quite expensive for wizards to visit."
Of course, Adam knew what the man was talking about. It was in one of his lessons about the management of Dryads Rest, that he learned why wizards aren't allowed to visit Dryads Haven. Not even guests to Dryads Rest are allowed to enter Dryads Haven unless invited by a family member.
And people trying to enter without an invite wouldn't even find it, since the whole Dryads Forest, where the Castle and market are located, was under a variation of the Fidelius spell, that only worked against wizards and witches, with the exception of the Cromwell family. Even guests who were invited couldn't enter again without an invite, so impressive is that magic.
Adam had tried researching the magic, since the earliest records had no mention of his Ancestors ever casting such magic, but the only thing he ever found was the mention of a Dryads corpse that emitted powerful magic even after death. It was the reason for the names given to the places in its vicinity.
He didn't find further mentions on the topic, but learned that some wizards and witches, or whole family lines, could be granted regular entry through contracts. It was one of the most desired contracts in the whole world, making one of those contracts cost a literal ton.
The Ollivanders were one of the families that got a contract before Dryads Haven was a popular place, earning themselves quite the fortune through that since it's one of the most popular spots in the whole world for magical creatures.
While Adam was lost in thought, Mr. Ollivander had already brought a small hill of wands in front of him and opened the first case, taking out a beautiful redwood wand.
"Try this one, Mr. Cromwell."
Adam took it and swung it expectantly but nothing happened. He couldn't even show his disappointment before he already had the next wand in hand. This one caused in small fire, making Adam happy, but Mr. Ollivander just shook his head and gave him the next one.
It took a while and he felt like he tested every wand in the store, but finally he found the right one. The moment he took the wand in his hand, he knew that this was the one. A connection he couldn't really describe, like a part of him that has always been missing and was now filled, was formed and a beautiful shower of different colors shot out of his wand.
He only came out of his trance when he heard Mr. Ollivanders jubilant congratulations and clapping.
"You've got quite the character, Mr. Cromwell." At Adams questioning gaze Mr. Ollivander explained: "Maple wood with a unicorn core 14 ½" and slightly springy flexibility. It's an interesting combination, since Maple Wood is also called the ambitious wood or travelers wood, since their owners have ambition in spades and a love for adventure. Unicorn hair is known for its consistency. While maple wood is desired by many and especially good looking if you're of noble descent, Unicorn hair doesn't produce powerful magic unless coupled with powerful wood and, of course, the right owner. Considering the length and flexibility, I can only expect to hear a lot about you in the future, Mr. Cromwell."
Listening to Mr. Ollivanders explanation about his wand, Adam couldn't be happier about his wand. And, as if sensing his emotions, his wand became slightly warmer in his hand. Adam already knew about the semi-sentiency of wands, so he wasn't surprised over that.
Thanking the wandmaker and paying for his wand and a dragonhide wand holster, Adam left the shop only to realize that he hadn't spent as much time searching for his wand as he had thought.
After finding his parents and showing them his wand, making both of them happy because of the wood, they spend a little more time together before his father left them at Flourish&Blotts.
Adam didn't spend as much time as expected looking for interesting books, so his mother allowed him to wander the street alone for one hour, probably expecting him to join the other kids at some broom shop. But Adam had other goals.
He traced back their path and quickly found the shops that he considered interesting but definitely beneath his parents. Which were mostly secondhand shops.
Entering one selling old books, Adam quickly purchased some old school books from seniors that left interesting notes. Since he had no real knowledge of the school curriculum, he just compared different books and took the ones with the best notes and advice.
Shortly after that he found himself in the Junk Shop, which was literally full of useless junk. But he found some hidden gems like a mirror with a defect enchantment that always made it seem like there was a dirty spot somewhere on your face. Another interesting find was a notebook with seemingly endless pages. Adam knew how that enchantment really worked, but still bought it, since it normally cost quite a lot unless you made the enchantment yourself. But enchanting wasn't really big here.
Shortly after his purchase he had to meet up with his mother again and his shopping trip ended.