New Friends and Kursed Kittens
After standing in line for what felt like hours, Lily left the bank, her change purse full of golden galleons, sickles, and knuts. There was a ruckus back towards the Quidditch store so she decided to keep going down the street and locate other shops. The redhead passed the Magical Menagerie, it looked interesting, and Gambol & Japes, a joke shop. She stopped here and peered through the window. Several kids would push past her and go in excited. This must be the place. She decided to come back after she finished her necessary shopping. Towards the end of the road Lily saw Ollivander's, Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. She walked in, the door chiming delicately as she entered.
The walls were made of deep brown wooded shelves, stacked with smaller boxes from the floor to the ceiling. It was shabby and dusty with no real color. She managed to walk up to the tall counter, the tip of her nose barely reaching the top. Lily peered over the desk and was surprisingly met by another pair of eyes peering back.
She jumped back with a small yelp and the other person stood straight up. He was an old man with white hair and small spectacles on the tip of his nose.
"Ah, Miss Evans. It's so nice to finally meet you," he began. "What startling green eyes…" he trailed off, marveled.
"Um, thank you. I'm here to…"
"Yes, a wand for our beautiful heiress," he said and went searching in the back among walls of boxes. Heiress? This guy was loony.
"Which is your wand arm, dearie?" he called from the back. She hesitated…
"Are you right or left handed?" he asked, reading her mind.
"Oh, right," she answered.
A silvery tape measure shot out from behind the desk and began to measure her arm, her height, even the distance between her ear and shoulder, all on its own accord. She stood still and waited for it to finish and laughed as it measured from the tip of her nose to her kneecap. What could this possibly be helping? She thought, amused.
"That's enough," Mr. Ollivander muttered, waving his hand irritatingly. The tape measure fluttered away. He set four boxes onto the counter as the chiming bell sounded, alerting that someone had just entered the store.
Lily turned and saw a young boy about her age enter the store. He was thin with round spectacles framing his smug looking eyes. The boy nodded his head in her direction, politely acknowledged her and looked for a seat. At least he has manners.
"Why Mr. James Potter! How are you my dear boy? It's been ages!" Mr. Ollivander said.
"I'm doing well, sir," James stood and made his way to the counter beside Lily.
"Not getting into any trouble, I assume?" the old man asked suspiciously. James just blushed.
"Mm-hmm," Mr. Ollivander murmured, smiling secretively.
James looked at the redheaded girl. She was a Muggle-born, that much he could tell just by her clothes. She stood taller than him, and her eyes…
"Mr. Potter, this here is another Hogwarts first year" Mr. Ollivander said, interrupting James' thoughts.
"I'm Lily," she introduced herself.
"James Potter," he replied, looking up at her and nodding his head again. She felt a bit uncomfortable. This boy was familiar to her. His eyes were such an intense hazel color that she had seen somewhere before. They were strong and compassionate. Could it be? She caught herself staring and quickly looked away, embarrassed when she saw his questioning expression.
"Remarkable," Mr. Ollivander started, "Remarkable that you two have managed to meet here today. As if fate is getting an early start," he cried and quickly walked to the back again, leaving James and Lily with identical puzzled faces.
"So, you're Muggle-born?" he asked.
"Mr. Potter, which is your wand arm?" Mr. Ollivander interrupted.
"Right, sir," James answered. The silver tape measure shot out from behind the desk, eager to do its job properly and efficiently.
"Is it that obvious?" she grinned.
"Well… yeah," he said shyly. She grinned and looked down, blushing. The tape measure was taking the length from his ear to his nose.
"Here we are Miss Evans," Mr. Ollivander interrupted, handing her a wand. "Beech wood and unicorn tail, nine and a half inches. Take off!" The instrument coiled up and returned behind the counter.
She held the wand for a bit, feeling foolish, because she had no clue what to do with it.
"Well, swish it around," he said.
Lily stared hesitantly at the wand in her hand and glanced nervously at James. He gave her a reassuring look and she bravely waved it about. Nothing happened.
"Nope. This is not the one," the old man said and took the wand from her hand. He began shuffling through the boxes once again.
"My mum says it took her twelve tries to find her wand," James said, noticing Lily's shamed face. It was a sweet gesture, trying to make her feel more adequate.
"I hope it doesn't take me that long, I'd be here all day!" she said, smiling. That was corny, Lily.
"Here, try this one," Mr. Ollivander returned, handing her another wand, this one a rich burgundy color. She took it as he gave James a wand also. "Mr. Potter, 10 and three quarters inches, cedar with dragon heartstring, good and flexible," he said, "and Miss Evans, 11 inches, holly and phoenix feather. It's quite supple."
Lily and James took the wands in their right hands and stood facing each other. They both smiled and shipped the wands towards the window. Nothing, again. James' face fell and Lily shrugged. Mr. Ollivander quickly grabbed the wands from their hands and went to find more.
"Is this your first year at Hogwarts?" James asked, shoving his hands in the pockets of his black pants. He suddenly felt self-conscience after realizing that Mr.Ollivander already told him the answer to that, not to mention the fact that she was just now getting a wand. Really, James, could you be smoother?
"Yeah. Actually it's my first time around anything magical," she said, noticing the blunder, but politely ignoring it.
He gave a quick surprised look then turned back to check on what the old shopkeeper was doing. He couldn't imagine a life without magic. It was all he had ever known. Mr. Ollivander returned.
"Miss Evans, I believe I've found it. 10 and a quarter inches, willow and dragon heartstring. Nice and swishy, perfect for charms work," he said, passing the light colored wand to her. She held it momentarily, about to flick it, when a warmth spread through her body. The tip emitted a soft, silver shimmer and lit up the dark room. Almost as quickly as it happened, it ended. The air went back to normal. Ollivander was clapping his hands together and James was whooping with joy. She smiled.
"Excellent, my dear. You have been chosen," he said, taking the wand and wrapping it up in brown paper.
"I hope I find mine as fast," James said.
"Wow. That was incredible. It felt like all this magic in me was just waiting to be let out," she said. James smiled back at the redhead.
"And Mr. Potter, how about we try this one," the old man suggested, handing James a dark, black wand. "Ebony and unicorn hair, Mr. Potter. 12 and three quarters inches, glides easily."
James took the next wand in his hand. It was heavier than the previous one with a more course texture. He was sure this wasn't the wand for him, but he'd give it a try anyhow. James raised the black wand and flicked it towards the door. The door promptly opened, the bell chiming. He was startled at first, as were Lily and Mr. Ollivander.
But no, it was only another customer entering the store.
"Bugger," James muttered. Lily gave him a friendly pat on the back.
"Relax, James, it won't take that long," she said. "I suppose I will see you on the train to school?" she asked expectantly.
"Absolutely," he replied, grinning.
"Great! Thank you Mr. Ollivander. It was a pleasure to meet you," she said politely.
"Likewise, my child," the old man said, smiling warmly towards Lily. "You will do great things, Miss Evans, that I am sure of."
Lily thanked the shopkeeper once more, waved goodbye to James, and headed out the door. James turned back around, his hands on his hips, and a gleeful smile on his face.
"She sure was nice, huh?" he commented.
"That she was, Mr. Potter, that she was," Ollivander said, knowingly. "Let's get this done, shall we?"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Half an hour later, James Potter walked out of Ollivander's Wand Shoppe, his new shiny mahogany wand tucked safely in his pocket. Remus was right. That old man was a quack. His incoherent babble about `realizing you destiny' and `learning beyond your years' was beginning to annoy the eleven-year-old boy who wanted nothing more than to hex the first person he saw.
However, this was a big day for James. When a boy first gets his wand, it's kind of like a step into manhood. James walked taller now, with more confidence. Granted he didn't know how to use his wand really was irrelevant. Just the fact that he had a wand to call his very own was all he needed.
A smug look plastered on his face, James entered Gambol & Japes. This shop, full of jokes, pranks, and gags, was easily his favorite store in Diagon Alley. James jingled the knuts and few galleons he had in his pocket as he browsed the isles, looking for new Exploding Snap cards to take to Hogwarts. Just as he reached on the shelf to grab a deck, another hand bumped his, reaching for the same deck.
It was Sirius Black. James pulled his hand back the same time Sirius did. The two boys stood there for a moment, at a loss of what to say. Sirius flipped his black hair out of his eyes and took a step back.
"Sorry `bout that," Sirius said. He gestured towards the cards, offering the top of the stack to James. Not once did Sirius' eyes meet James'. The almost shameful look in his gray eyes made James uneasy. Why was he so forgiving? James at first thought it was a façade and began to scoff at the other boy. But Sirius really was submitting.
James took the deck off the top, having to reach a little to get to the higher shelf. He pushed his glasses back up his nose and was going to walk away when a thought occurred to him.
"Er, thanks for sticking up for Remus at the Supply store," he said. Sirius finally looked James in the eye, a small surprise evident in his expression.
"Well, Lestrange shouldn't be such a twit," he said, smirking.
James laughed, looked down at the ground and shuffled his feet a bit, not knowing what to say now. Sirius didn't seem like such a pompous arse, as his father would say. Sirius finally reached up and took a deck.
"I needed a new deck for school," he commented, shrugging to himself.
"So, you got your wand already?" James asked.
"Yeah, it's Ebony and dragon heartstring. That old crack, Ollivander, says it's good for transfiguration," Sirius said, pulling the 12 inch wand out to show James.
"That's brilliant, mate, Ollivander says mine's best for transfiguration, too!" James pulled his out, rivalries forgotten. The boys looked at each other's wands for a bit, admiring the woodwork and rambling about learning new spells. Then, noticing the irony of holding each other's wands, the two quickly exchanged and put them away. James ran a hand through his hair and pushed his glasses up again.
"I just wanted to say that I'm not like the rest of my family, Potter. You should know that you, or your friends Lupin and Pettigrew, won't have to worry about me. I don't believe it's right, the rift between pure- and half-bloods and muggleborns. A wizard is a wizard in my book," Sirius said quickly, as if getting something heavy off his chest.
James stared for a moment at Sirius, trying to decide whether he was being truthful or not. Then he grinned and stuck out his hand, inviting a friendly handshake. The boys shook on it, agreeing to not be enemies.
"I better be off," Sirius said, flipping his hair away from his face again. James shook his head in agreement and Sirius began to take off the other direction.
"Wait, Sirius!" Sirius stopped and turned around.
"If you're not busy later, I'm meeting Remus at Florean's in about twenty minutes. Want to come?" James asked bravely. This was a step. No… a giant leap towards friendship. James was not only risking his and Sirius' current reputation, but the reputation of Remus and Peter. Sirius thought hard.
"Yeah, I'll be there," he answered, smiling. He turned back around and walked towards the counter of the joke shop. Sirius paid for his cards and headed back out to the cobblestone street. He stepped through the door and stood there for a moment, reliving what had just happened. This dark life he thought would never change, never give him a chance to be who he wanted to be, was beginning to look a little brighter. Taking a deep breath, Sirius moved on to the next store, the Magical Menagerie.
From the outside window, Sirius watched the multi colored kittens play skittishly amongst themselves. He was particularly fond of a shorthaired, aqua blue tinted feline, which kept to itself in the back corner of the pen. It was then that he noticed the girl reaching her hand into the box to either pick up or pet one of the kittens. Sirius ran for it, inside the door and around the corner, and roughly grabbed her by the shoulder to stop her.
"Don't!" he cried out. Just as she pulled her hand back, a feisty orange cat jumped at her hand with multiple rows of razor sharp teeth, his claws out, and his eyes a glowering red. The redheaded girl yelped with surprise.
"Those aren't normal kittens," Sirius said matter-of-factly.
"I'd bloody well say so," she said shrilly.
Sirius laughed and pulled her aside, taking in her appearance. She was definitely a muggleborn. The dramatic clothing she wore was an eyesore and her naivety towards the
Kursed Kittens was laughable, but somehow Sirius was drawn to her. The girl looked at him kindly now, calming down from the near catastrophe. Sirius chuckled to himself at his own pun.
"I'm sorry, I should be more grateful. Thank you for doing that. I appreciate it," she said, smoothing out her shirt and reaching up to tidy her ponytail. She stopped primping and looked up into his eyes, for he was a good couple of inches taller than her. Their smoky hue caught her off guard. They were so deep, so intense, as if hiding a secret.
"I'm Sirius Black," he said, offering his hand.
"I'm Lily. Lily Evans."
A/N: Thank you so much for reviewing!!
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