She nods.

And, after: there's some places to buy muggle clothes nearby enough (Professor Reynolds can make any packages less of an effort to carry, if Ellie wants to leave her trunk in her room at the Leaky Cauldron?).

Oh, good idea.

You get used to working around magic, eventually...

(Hopefully shopping won't take too long, at least.)

Clothes that fit and aren't too eye-searing. She's not that picky beyond that.

Minimal pickiness is good for speed, at least, especially since Ellie can just get multiple colors from the same brand of most things.

(Technically there's no uniform for what you wear under your Hogwarts robe, which is only required during class. However, button ups and slacks stand out a bit less - most wizards, even muggle borns, don't make a habit of wearing graphic t-shirts and jeans.)

That's fine by her.

After, as they're putting Ellie's purchases away in her trunk: "Do you want to head to my apartment now?"

"If that's okay...?"

"It is."

"I live in muggle London, actually, so we can take the metro - but I do have an active floo connection if you want to go straight there."

"Whichever you prefer."

"Floo's easier to use to get around... And it's good for you to know how to use it."

"Floo, then."

She nods. "Going through can be a bit awkward - especially the first time. I'd prefer if you go through first, so I can tell if something goes wrong, and also I'd prefer to be the one carrying your trunk..."

"Okay. What do I do?"

She explains the process - you need a fireplace hooked up to the network, for one, and then to grab a handful of floo powder (usually stored near the fireplace) and throw it into an active fire. It'll turn green, at which point you wait for the ash to settle, then call out your destination (making sure to speak clearly) and step into the fire. It'll feel like you're spinning, for a bit, and then you'll be in your target fireplace and can step out.

Fireplaces receive one or more unique identifiers when they're hooked up, though a few fireplaces are hooked to a central node with a single designation - if you floo to the Ministry of Magic, you'll be let out into a randomly selected fireplace from among those not being used in their atrium. Some destinations have gates on them such that only authorized source fireplaces or users can access them. It's easier to give a specific fireplace a bypass than to give a specific user a bypass, though.

"Seems simple enough."

She nods. "It usually is. But people do ever sometimes get sent to the wrong destination - usually when the language parser can't understand their accent, or they misspeak... And if you think you misspoke, you should ask someone to nullify the floo connection for you, rather than trying to correct yourself."

Nod nod.

And a last pass to collect their things, then down to the Cauldron's main room, where Professor Reynolds thanks the proprietor for the stay, tips, and then pays to use the inn's floo (mostly a small formality to cover the floo powder).

The inn keeps a fire blazing, so all Ellie needs to do is throw in some powder. "My floo's address is 'Fay Reynolds flat.'"

Pinch of powder, wait for the dust to settle, "Fay Reynolds flat," clearly enunciated.

The fire turns green with no problems. "Looks good," Professor Reynolds says.

Into the flames, then.

She spins! It's a bit dizzying, actually, and then she jerks to a stop -

In another room entirely. It looks pretty simple, white walls, a bit long, windows on one side of the room with light blue curtains pulled over them. The decorations would all look normal to muggle eyes, albeit more than a bit eclectic - indicative of an artist, maybe, or someone prone to traveling to very foreign countries and bringing back souvenirs. Cozy armchairs with fluffy pillows and blankets draped over them, an assortment of artwork on the walls, little side tables with mosaic tops, a small dining set on the other side of the room - two chairs flanking a circular table, with two more chairs pulled into the corners. Lots of tiger art, including a toy tiger sitting in one of the dining room chairs. There's also a framed set of armed forces service medals on one wall.

She stumbles out of the fireplace to make room for the professor to follow.

...Nice place. Tasteful.

And Professor Reynolds follows her through after a few beats. She's a lot steadier on her feet coming out. "Come through okay?" she asks.