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Dear Miss Mason,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
Emma's parents are thrilled. Such a good school, so well respected, and those alumni- just look at the battle against the Dark Lord! All that talent!- they're beyond proud. Emma's pleased on their behalf, of course. She wants to make her parents proud. She doesn't ask how badly the school was damaged in the war; she doesn't inquire how many teachers are missing or dead; she doesn't mention wishing she could stay home for a year. Maybe until things are just a little more rebuilt.
(She thinks it, though.)
She smiles and hugs her parents and agrees yes, of course it's wonderful, helping to rebuild the wizarding world is important. She'll start school in the fall, become a better witch.
And, as her mother points out excitedly- now they need to go shopping.
Emma's hardly unfamiliar with Diagon Alley. It's the place to be seen, as far as her parents are concerned, so that's where they've always shopped. But it feels different, somehow, to be shopping for Hogwarts. Her mother is showing every shopkeeper the list, fingers underlining the Hogwarts letterhead. Her father is stopping every friend he sees, talking loudly about "here to shop for Emma's first year, at Hogwarts you know".
Emma wants to scrunch up and hide from the attention, but her parents are so happy. It's only just the once she starts school, she supposes. She plasters on a smile and follows after her mother. Almost done now; all she needs is a wand.
And as everyone knows, there's only one place to get those.
parental_guidance
chanuphis
"Mr. Ollivander," says Miss Swan, "if you won't sell me a second wand, can you tell me who will?"
"The highest-quality wands are in this very shop, Miss Swan."
"I came here first. I'd buy my second from you if you'd let me. I'm not insulting your quality. Please tell me where I can find another wand shop for a spare."
Ollivander hems and haws and gives her an address that "may have something secondhand".
Miss Swan nods, thanks him, curls her mass of braids into a bun at the nape of her neck and sticks her new wand through it, and marches out.
"The highest-quality wands are in this very shop, Miss Swan."
"I came here first. I'd buy my second from you if you'd let me. I'm not insulting your quality. Please tell me where I can find another wand shop for a spare."
Ollivander hems and haws and gives her an address that "may have something secondhand".
Miss Swan nods, thanks him, curls her mass of braids into a bun at the nape of her neck and sticks her new wand through it, and marches out.
parental_guidance
Emma's mother looks disapprovingly after Miss Swan- what is impressive to Emma is just "inappropriate behavior" to her mother- and drags Emma outside in search of her father. Fortunately he hasn't gone far, and is still chatting with a couple Emma only vaguely recognizes. Emma's mother trills with delight and greets them both fondly, while Emma squirms uncomfortably. She doesn't know these people and they don't seem inclined to include her in the conversation at all. After a couple minutes, she finds a convenient break to tug on her mother's arm.
"Mum? Can I wander around a bit?"
"Well," her mother says doubtfully, but the other woman says something that draws her attention. "Don't go far, all right? And meet us right back here. Oh! I almost forgot." She hands Emma a couple coins. "We're low on nettle tea. Grab a box, please."
"I will," Emma agrees, and wanders off. She'll get the tea, of course- but first, there's an address she wants to investigate.
"Mum? Can I wander around a bit?"
"Well," her mother says doubtfully, but the other woman says something that draws her attention. "Don't go far, all right? And meet us right back here. Oh! I almost forgot." She hands Emma a couple coins. "We're low on nettle tea. Grab a box, please."
"I will," Emma agrees, and wanders off. She'll get the tea, of course- but first, there's an address she wants to investigate.
chanuphis
The address is a pawn shop. It is not principally devoted to wands, but the proprietor has produced about thirty of them for Miss Swan to try, and she's working her way through the lot diligently.
"Oh, hello again," she says to Emma.
"Oh, hello again," she says to Emma.
chanuphis
"Not yet, but it's worth a try." Miranda picks up another wand; nothing. "Do you want a second one too?"
parental_guidance
"I think I'm okay, but thanks." My parents would be so confused, and probably annoyed. "It's a cool idea though?" She adds with a tentative smile. She doesn't want to imply she's against the idea. It made sense, when Miranda said it. Just... probably not worth it. Not for her.
She looks around; it's still just Miranda. "Um, did-" how to ask? Is anything not rude here? She briefly wishes she was better at talking to people, "-you come by yourself?"
She looks around; it's still just Miranda. "Um, did-" how to ask? Is anything not rude here? She briefly wishes she was better at talking to people, "-you come by yourself?"
chanuphis
"My mum is unpacking the new apartment," Miranda says. "She said I could get my things myself if I liked, so I did."
parental_guidance
"You're allowed to come here by yourself?" Emma asks enviously. Eleven is, in her parents' opinion, definitely not old enough for solo excursions. "Alone but we're nearby" is, obviously, fine; "entirely alone on a shopping trip" is out, no question.
chanuphis
"The new apartment is just down Plur Alley, I can run home if I need her," says Miranda. "But I don't see why I would. I know not to go into Knockturn and I know how much my things are supposed to cost and we moved back in the first place because You-Know-Who is properly gone again so it should be pretty safe."
parental_guidance
Emma does not live that close, but she does not expect that would make a whit of difference. "Yeah, I mean, my parents- um, I think- well, eleven's not old enough, for them," she sighs. "You're lucky."
Also for having been gone recently. Very lucky. She does not bring that up; she doesn't like thinking about it.
"Welcome back though? Do you like being back?"
Also for having been gone recently. Very lucky. She does not bring that up; she doesn't like thinking about it.
"Welcome back though? Do you like being back?"
chanuphis
"It's okay. My mum is very excited that I'm going to Hogwarts instead of the Owly." Miranda tries another wand; nope.
parental_guidance
Emma nods in understanding. She has heard the Owly called the 'Hogwarts of Australia,' and the fact that Miranda got into both confirms her opinion of the other girl as Extremely Impressive. On the other hand, she has spent two weeks being cooed over incessantly; parents who prefer Hogwarts are no mystery to her. "Well, you know. Hogwarts. Obviously we're just that cool?" she jokes. Then flushes. She doesn't actually know this girl that well. "And, uh, Australia, wow, that's cool, how was it?"
chanuphis
"Mum went to Hogwarts so she prefers it but I would have been fine staying in Australia, too. Except it's very far from my dad. Also it gets beastly hot in summertime."
parental_guidance
"Okay, so maybe not actually cool," Emma says with a (mostly) straight face. "What about your dad, was he Hogwarts too?"
chanuphis
Miranda shakes her head and goes through the last five wands briskly. Nothing.
"Excuse me, do you have any more?" she calls to the proprietress.
"Not in the standard varieties, dear - I mean, we have some curiosity pieces. I could let you try them if you insist, I suppose it would be all right since you have a perfectly good wand already..."
"What makes them curiosity pieces, please?"
"Nonstandard materials, mostly. I'll get them." She scoops up the ordinary wands and bustles away with them.
"Excuse me, do you have any more?" she calls to the proprietress.
"Not in the standard varieties, dear - I mean, we have some curiosity pieces. I could let you try them if you insist, I suppose it would be all right since you have a perfectly good wand already..."
"What makes them curiosity pieces, please?"
"Nonstandard materials, mostly. I'll get them." She scoops up the ordinary wands and bustles away with them.
parental_guidance
Emma sneaks closer to watch. One of her parents' French friends has a Veela hair in their wand, but other than that she's only ever seen Ollivander's standard dragon, unicorn and phoenix wands.
chanuphis
The new wands are odd shapes and lengths and colors. Miranda gamely tries them. In one case she has to be corrected about which end is the handle. The proprietress watches curiously.
When she picks up a relatively normal-looking hazel-wand from its dusty old box, a globe of light sprouts at its tip and engulfs a diameter of six feet inside of two seconds before it goes out just as abruptly.
"Whoa," says Miranda. "What's in this one?"
"Hazel and - well, the person who pawned it said chimaera hair, but it's hard to be sure unless we wanted to take it apart," says the proprietress with interest. "Whatever it is clearly is both magical and friendly to you, though! Do you want that one?"
"It's not hideously expensive for having chimaera hair, is it?" Miranda asks.
"Oh, no, dear, it's not even as much as a new Ollivander, five galleons," the proprietress says.
"Oh, good," says Miranda, and she hands over the requisite gold and stick the wand in her hair.
When she picks up a relatively normal-looking hazel-wand from its dusty old box, a globe of light sprouts at its tip and engulfs a diameter of six feet inside of two seconds before it goes out just as abruptly.
"Whoa," says Miranda. "What's in this one?"
"Hazel and - well, the person who pawned it said chimaera hair, but it's hard to be sure unless we wanted to take it apart," says the proprietress with interest. "Whatever it is clearly is both magical and friendly to you, though! Do you want that one?"
"It's not hideously expensive for having chimaera hair, is it?" Miranda asks.
"Oh, no, dear, it's not even as much as a new Ollivander, five galleons," the proprietress says.
"Oh, good," says Miranda, and she hands over the requisite gold and stick the wand in her hair.
parental_guidance
"Wow, cool" Emma says, staring. "That's-"
The time, it should be looked at. Ideally right about now.
"Um, sorry, I'm running late," she sighs. "I told my mum I'd pick up nettle tea, too." She waves a hand at the wand. "That's still really cool though. Congrats! I'll, um, I guess I might see you on the train? Maybe?"
The time, it should be looked at. Ideally right about now.
"Um, sorry, I'm running late," she sighs. "I told my mum I'd pick up nettle tea, too." She waves a hand at the wand. "That's still really cool though. Congrats! I'll, um, I guess I might see you on the train? Maybe?"
metamorphmaga
September arrives, as it tends to do. King's Cross is busy this time of year, with students both Muggle and magical, and Jenny is just one more girl in an enormous crowd. This is not helping her, not at all; she knows her train leaves from platform 9¾, but that doesn't tell her where that platform is. She hasn't even seen anyone obviously 'wizardly' enough to ask yet, though she's been looking. They couldn't put up signs, or something? "Impossibly Numbered Platform This Way", that would work.
Her hair is starting to curl and darken in frustration. Hopefully, no one will notice.
Her hair is starting to curl and darken in frustration. Hopefully, no one will notice.
chanuphis
Does the girl with two wands crossed in her hair, leading a trunk on wheels by a sort of leash, and accompanied by her mother and a caged owl, look wizardy?
metamorphmaga
That certainly seems wizardly to Jenny!
"Excuse me? Hi? Sorry, don't mean to bother you, I just- I think we're maybe possibly going to the same place? I'm... sorta lost. A little bit."
"Excuse me? Hi? Sorry, don't mean to bother you, I just- I think we're maybe possibly going to the same place? I'm... sorta lost. A little bit."