Grindelwald Skin, Dumbledore Bones

Isaac's "Prophet's Three-Piece Set" worked wonders not only on Dumbledore, but also on old wizards like Ollivander.

The moment Ollivander saw Isaac, he immediately thought of the man who had once ravaged the European continent.

Why did Ollivander think of Grindelwald?

Mainly because Isaac was following Dumbledore.

At this point, some might ask:

Hadn't anyone in the other shops in Diagon Alley recognized Isaac's three-piece set?

First of all, the gift of prophecy in Isaac's Prophet's Three-Piece Set was not an outwardly visible trait.

All others could see was his platinum-blond short hair and his rare heterochromatic eyes.

Besides, when Grindelwald had ravaged Europe, both he and Dumbledore had still been young.

In the Wizarding World, powerful wizards could live longer than ordinary people, but not every wizard was powerful.

Those with that kind of ability and standing generally would not come shopping in Diagon Alley when they had nothing better to do.

Take Dumbledore, for instance. How long had it been since he had last set foot in Diagon Alley?

And then there were those earlier shops.

Bookshops, cauldron supply stores, potion shops... the businesses behind them were certainly controlled by pure-blood families.

But pure-blood wizards would not personally run the shops.

They operated their businesses by hiring managers and clerks.

Just like the Potters' shampoo business. The Potters had been dead for over a decade, yet no one had heard that the Wizarding World had run out of shampoo.

These managers and clerks were all "young people." Although they were surprised that Dumbledore was willing to pay Isaac's bills, they would not associate him with Grindelwald.

At most, they would think Isaac and Dumbledore were somehow related.

(Or simply assume he was Dumbledore's illegitimate son.)

Most importantly, although Grindelwald had led people in ravaging the European continent, Britain had been a "safe island."

Because Dumbledore had been in Britain.

The British Wizarding World of that era had actually benefited from Dumbledore's protection. They had never truly witnessed Grindelwald's terror.

So even if they saw Isaac's two visible traits, they would not think much of them.

Garrick Ollivander was clearly different.

As Britain's only "wandmaker," he was a powerful wizard himself, and power meant a long life.

He had happened to live through Grindelwald's rampage.

Second, Grindelwald had been the previous master of the Elder Wand, so Ollivander had naturally paid particular attention to him.

Most importantly was the ambiguous, impossible-to-explain relationship between Dumbledore and Grindelwald.

How could Ollivander not be curious about gossip of that magnitude?

Originally, Ollivander had thought that even after he died, he might never figure out what exactly had gone on between Dumbledore and Grindelwald.

But today, Dumbledore—who had not personally "guided" a new student into school for decades—had brought a child into his wand shop himself.

And this child possessed the same traits as Grindelwald.

The good news: the gossip he had followed years ago seemed about to reveal its truth today.

The bad news: he was no match for Dumbledore at all.

"Cough, cough. Garrick, are you all right?" Dumbledore's gentle concern instantly jolted Ollivander awake.

He hurriedly arranged his expression, trying to make himself look more serious and professional.

"Of course. I was merely considering what wand materials would suit this gentleman," Ollivander answered solemnly.

Then, with a wave of his wand, the measuring tape on the table floated up gently and began measuring Isaac's physical dimensions.

At the same time, he asked, "And what should this gentleman be called?"

"Isaac Waldore. Good evening, Mr. Ollivander."

"Very well, Mr. Waldore. Then which hand do you favor?" Ollivander's movements paused slightly when he heard the name Waldore.

He had thought the child would have the surname Grindelwald.

Or, failing that, Dumbledore.

But on second thought, using either of those surnames so directly would have been somewhat inappropriate.

Powerful old wizards lived long lives. Either surname, paired with the child's traits, would bring him trouble.

Waldore was good. That surname was truly excellent.

"My left hand." Isaac was left-handed. If he could choose which hand to use a wand with, he naturally preferred his left.

After the measurements were complete, Ollivander stared at Isaac's face for a long while before finally seeming to make up his mind.

"Please wait a moment, Mr. Waldore." Ollivander turned around and began searching through the mountain of wands for the wand he had in mind.

At last, near the middle of the massive pile of wands, he found the box containing it.

"Try this. Black Locust Wood, phoenix feather, thirteen inches." Ollivander opened the wand box as he spoke.

Amid swirling dust, he drew out a black wand.

"Rare, tricky, capable of the broadest range of magic, and equally selective about its master.

"Once it chooses a master, however, it is exceptionally loyal..."

Ollivander did not mention that the feather in this wand came from Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes.

Upon hearing Black Locust Wood, Dumbledore pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose.

A ray of sunset shone through the display window into the wand shop, causing two white gleams to reflect off Dumbledore's glasses.

Isaac took the wand from Ollivander's hand. In that instant, it felt as though he had grasped an extra organ that had appeared out of nowhere.

An urge surged within him.

Dumbledore was standing right beside him, filling Isaac with confidence. He followed that impulse and waved the wand in his hand.

The next second, all the dust in the wand shop began to stir, then burst out through every crack and crevice in the shop at once.

It finally dispersed into the air over Diagon Alley, while the wand shop itself was left looking completely renewed.

The decor still carried the weight of years, but it looked far cleaner than before.

Seeing this, Dumbledore said cheerfully, "Aha, Garrick. You've saved yourself the time of a thorough cleaning."

Ollivander rolled his eyes at Dumbledore. For him, that too was simply a matter of magic.

He had never heard that Dumbledore was the sort to spoil children like this!

"Very well. To thank Mr. Waldore, I'll include a wand maintenance set free of charge.

"It seems my eye remains as discerning as ever.

"That will be seven Galleons."

Dumbledore still paid for the wand. After Dumbledore and Isaac left the wand shop, Ollivander remained staring blankly at their departing backs.

For a "wandmaker" like Ollivander, wands allowed him to understand people better.

What he had not said was that a thirteen-inch Black Locust Wood wand had been the size and material of Grindelwald's wand before he wielded the Elder Wand.

And as for the phoenix feather from Fawkes... Fawkes and Dumbledore were one and the same. How different could it really be from Dumbledore himself?

There were still some differences, of course. For example, Garrick Ollivander used only three types of materials as wand cores.

Dumbledore's beard was definitely not among those three types.

Clearly, this was a wand with a certain wicked sense of humor.

And today, it had found the master best suited to it. Think about it. Really think about it.