Chapter 6 – Diagon Alley

Harry's first thought upon arrival, after he collapsed through the fireplace in spectacular fashion, was that wizards are insane. While he could give floo travel credit for being fast, evidenced by the fact he could now hear the sounds of London, in almost all other respects he found it lacking. Chief among his complaints was comfort; he and Ginny had essentially been flung out of the fireplace. Harry had landed on his butt and rolled forward, before he came to a rest on his stomach. Ginny had a somewhat softer landing; she landed on top of Harry's back, which caused him to wince as white-hot stabs of pain erupted where she landed.

Both children quickly stood and found Professor Dumbledore, who looked entirely unruffled and unsurprised at their dramatic entrance. "It does take a bit of getting used to, Mr. Potter. Follow me children, and do try to stay close."

Professor Dumbledore turned and gave a small wave to the bartender, for Harry could now see that The Leaky Cauldron was indeed a bar. He did not have much time to look around much; he followed Professor Dumbledore out the back door and into a small, brick enclosed garden. Professor Dumbledore tapped his wand on the brick wall in some kind of a pattern, and then right before Harry's eyes the wall seemed to peel itself away, revealing an archway. Professor Dumbledore turned to look at the two children, gave a small smile at the expression of disbelief on Harry's face, and then turned and stepped through the arch. Harry and Ginny hurried along behind him, not wanting to be left behind.

It took Harry a few minutes just to get his bearings. He found himself following behind Professor Dumbledore, with Ginny attached to his hand, but he couldn't help but stare all around him at an entire new world. He was surrounded by people milling about, all dressed in wildly colorful clothes, much more like Professor Dumbledore's than Harry's. Everyone was popping in and out of a multitude of shops with fantastic names like Gambol and Japes and Dervish and Banges, and the shop windows were full of merchandise unlike any Harry had ever seen before.

Harry wandered along behind Professor Dumbledore, trying to take it all in, when they entered into a shop called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Immediately upon entering, Professor Dumbledore was greeted by a short witch dressed in bright green robes. Professor Dumbledore introduced her as the Madam Malkin, before informing her that Harry would need a full set of robes for Hogwarts. "Come along, dear" Madam Malkin said as she led Harry to the back of the shop.

With Malkin and Harry in the back of the shop, Ginny found herself alone with Professor Dumbledore, simply waiting. Professor Dumbledore was idly inspecting an outrageously orange hat on a nearby shelf, when Ginny began to fidget somewhat; she wanted to talk to the professor about Harry's clothes, but she was nervous and didn't quite know where to begin. She must have worn her worry on her face, as Professor Dumbledore spoke.

"Miss Weasley, if I am not mistaken, you look like you have something to say."

"Yes, sir. Sorry." Ginny looked down at her feet, before proceeding. "I just… I wonder if maybe Harry should get more than just robes?"

Unnoticed by Ginny, who was still performing an in-depth study of her own feet, Professor Dumbledore's gaze sharpened as he looked directly at her. "Why is that, Miss Weasley?"

Ginny did not look up, but forced herself to answer. "I, uh… I looked into his bag, sir. All of his clothes… they are all… they are all too big, and most of them are full of holes, like the shirt he was wearing. And I'm not sure he has any underwear sir."

Dumbledore stared at Ginny for a moment, before turning his gaze to look through the shop, where he could still occasionally catch glimpses of Harry in profile. He took in Harry's appearance, and then turned back to Ginny. "Miss Weasley," he said, drawing Ginny to lift her face and look at him. "Shoes too, I should think" he said, and Ginny smiled and nodded.

When Madam Malkin bustled by, Professor Dumbledore grabbed her attention and instructed her to add pants, shirts, socks, underwear, and a pair of shoes to the order. "Anything else, Miss Weasley?" he asked, causing Ginny to blush and look back down at her feet. "Um… pajamas?"

"Ah yes, I knew I was forgetting something. Pajamas as well. Thank you" he said as Madam Malkin left to fulfill her now much larger order.

After most of an hour had passed, a nervous looking Harry Potter emerged from the back of Madam Malkin's. He was dressed in black robes, similar to other Hogwarts students, and Ginny could see that he was wearing new shoes as well. Ginny gave him a big thumbs up, which caused Harry to blush as he shuffled in place. Trailing behind Harry was Madam Malkin herself, who was holding several bags full of additional clothing. The two of them met Professor Dumbledore at the front of the shop, where Madam Malkin began tallying all the purchases up at what looked to Harry like an old-fashioned cash register.

"Professor Dumbledore, these clothes, and especially the shoes, they're great. But… how will I pay for all of this?"

Professor Dumbledore smiled at Harry before replying. "Mr. Potter, I imagine that by the end of the day you will find yourself utterly inundated with new things, ideas, and experiences. Perhaps it is best to avoid adding anything more to that pile for the day. Suffice it to say that, for today at least, you need not worry about money; we will cover the intricacies of wizard finances another day."

Harry looked to Ginny for help interpreting that enigmatic reply, but she looked just as confused as him. Regardless, Madam Malkin came to a total that Harry did not understand at all, which Professor Dumbledore promptly paid while Ginny just watched with a shocked expression. Then, the headmaster pulled out his wand and waved it in the direction of the shopping bags, which vanished with a small pop. "Those seemed a bit bulky to carry around, and we have several more items to obtain. You will find them at Hogwarts when we return. Come along now children, there is more to buy. Thank you again, Madam." Dumbledore tipped his hat towards Madam Malkin, and swiftly exited the shop, while both Harry and Ginny scrambled to follow behind him.

And so it went for the rest of the morning. Harry lost track of all the purchases that were made. They picked up his books for his classes, a multitude of potions supplies, writing supplies, and more. Ginny helped Harry make some of his selections; she pointed out her favorite types of quills, bookmarks, and other small preferences. There were plenty of shops that they did not visit as well, but that did not stop Harry and Ginny from staring through the displays as they went by. As they walked past Eeylops Owl Emprorium both Harry and Ginny stood, momentarily transfixed, by a beautiful white owl in the window, before moving onward. Professor Dumbledore even insisted that Harry purchase a small selection of sweets, "so that you will have some to share with your friends" he said.

After several hours had passed, they stepped into Ollivander's Wand Shop. Harry had somewhat relaxed over the course of the shopping trip; the number of people he had to dodge made him nervous, but Ginny had been a steady source of comfort at his side the whole morning. Upon stepping into the wand shop, though, Harry felt the return of his nerves. If he was going to be a wizard, then the wand would be important.

"Garrick" Dumbledore said by way of greeting the elderly man who was manning the counter. "Albus" replied the old man, and then he turned his attention to Harry and Ginny. "And hello to you both, Mr. Potter and Miss Weasley."

Harry froze, and he could feel Ginny do the same. This man already knew both of their names. "Wands for just one of you, or both? You would be a bit early I should think Miss Weasley."

"Just Harry today, Garrick. Mr. Potter, this is Garrick Ollivander, a fine wandsmith. He will help you pick a wand."

Ollivander chuckled, "Ah, but the wand chooses, does it not? Come on then, step forward Mr. Potter. Let's see here…"

Harry stepped forward, but almost jumped right back when a tape measure began wrapping itself around Harry's arm, and then his leg, and then measuring various distances on his body. While that was happening, Mr. Ollivander had disappeared into rows and rows of shelving in the back of his shop. When he returned, he was holding a long, slender box. Nestled in the box was a sandy-colored wand, which Mr. Ollivander gestured towards Harry. "Go on then, try it out."

Harry had no clue what to do, but was saved from any trouble because the moment he reached for the wand Mr. Ollivander snatched it away and began muttering "No… no…" to himself. Harry turned to look at both Ginny and Professor Dumbledore. Ginny looked just as confused as Harry, and Professor Dumbledore seemed to be occupying himself by inspecting the inside of his own hat. Harry turned back to Mr. Ollivander, only to find another wand box being proffered towards him.

This time Harry managed to touch the handle of the dark colored wand before it was snatched away. This pattern repeated several times, until finally Mr. Ollivander offered Harry a reddish-brown colored wand with what looked like a bark handle. Harry, having grown slightly frustrated during this whole process, quickly snatched the wand out of the box. Harry immediately felt a pleasant, warm sensation spread from his hand and down his entire arm. When Harry pulled the wand closer so that he could inspect it, a fount of brightly colored sparks trailed behind it.

"Very good, Mr. Potter. Holly and phoenix feather. Very curious, yes, very curious…" Harry started to inquire as to what was curious, when suddenly Professor Dumbledore intervened. "Perhaps a story for another day, Mr. Potter." Dumbledore paid for the wand and quickly exited the shop, and both Harry and Ginny followed behind, slightly confused at the quick exit from the shop.

Unlike the rest of the shopping, Professor Dumbledore did not send Harry's wand along ahead to Hogwarts. Instead, Harry found himself carefully sliding the wand into an inside pocket of his robes, and then once again quickly trailed behind Professor Dumbledore as he navigated the alley. The professor led the small party back through the archway into The Leaky Cauldron, where he settled at a table near the back. Harry and Ginny sat down opposite him, and then Professor Dumbledore waved to the bartender to bring over some menus.

Despite the day of shopping, Harry had still not grasped how wizard money worked. Once the menu was in his hand, he looked over all the options, before drawing Ginny's attention and whispering "Ginny, uh… what's the cheapest thing on here?"

Ginny began to answer when Dumbledore spoke up. "You may order anything you like, Mr. Potter."

Harry looked slightly bewildered, both from being told he could order whatever he wanted and from the obvious fact that Professor Dumbledore had heard his whispered question. Thinking back, Harry had asked several questions of Ginny throughout the day, not wanting to seem stupid, and now Harry was fairly certain that Professor Dumbledore had heard at least some of them. Harry blinked, and then resumed searching the menu and making his selection.

After a few minutes, their food was delivered and everyone dug in. Harry didn't normally eat this much, but it had been a very active morning for him, and it seemed like the more he ate, the more his stomach seemed to want larger quantities of food. He ate his entire sandwich and then was slightly embarrassed to note that Professor Dumbledore and Ginny weren't nearly done with their meals yet. Ginny noticed and commented "You eat almost as fast as my brother." Harry didn't know how to respond to that, so he focused instead on eating the chips on his plate.

Once they had all eaten, Professor Dumbledore spoke. "I believe that completes our shopping trip. I want to thank you again for accompanying us, Miss Weasley, but now I promised your parents I would return you home."

Ginny nodded, still not quite sure why she had been invited to come on the trip in the first place, but she was very happy to have been allowed. She had a great time with Harry, and looking in all the shops was always a favorite of hers. Professor Dumbledore had even bought her some candy at the sweet shop.

"We will, once again, be traveling by floo. I trust you know the way, Miss Weasley?"

Ginny nodded in response, and then reached out her hand to take her pinch of floo powder from the small bag held out by Professor Dumbledore. Harry did the same, and then Professor Dumbledore took his own, tossed it in the fire, and said "The Burrow," before he stepped into the flames.

Ginny turned to Harry and linked hands again. "My home is called The Burrow, so that's where we are going. Are you ready?" Harry nodded, and away they went.