Diagon Alley

But the next day, Ron had pulled himself together again.

Instead of sleeping in as usual, he had washed up before dawn and curled up on the living room sofa with Scabbers in his arms, giving Molly quite a fright when she came downstairs.

"Merlin's socks, Ron, what are you hiding here for?"

Ron stammered his way through a vague excuse until the twins came out early to clear the garden and told their mother the truth.

"Ron's sucking up to Vaughn!"

"That's right. We overheard yesterday that Vaughn said he'd give him a new wand early as this year's Christmas present."

"Yes, George, an excellent retelling. Seems our silly little brother isn't completely stupid—he knows he should show respect to the person footing the bill."

"But he's still not sincere enough, Fred. He didn't even dare tell Mum!"

"Yes, George. Our silly little brother's useless pride."

The twins took turns teasing him, laughing so hard that Ron was furious enough to smoke from all seven orifices. Then they skipped merrily out of the house.

Vaughn was awakened by their cheers.

By the time he got up, sunlight had already climbed over Stoat Mountain, streaming through the window in dappled stripes. Ginny was still curled up in his arms, sleeping soundly.

The night before, she had come to him clutching a storybook. Vaughn had read her fairy tales for at least an hour before finally coaxing her to sleep.

That was one of the reasons the siblings were so close. Bill and Charlie had left home early to work, Percy never had patience for anything outside his studies, and Fred and George bounced around all day like monkeys.

Only Ron and Vaughn were willing to tell Ginny stories. Of course, Ron only told stories he was interested in, so Ginny had long since stopped paying attention to him!

After getting dressed, Vaughn pushed open the window and saw old Errol flapping his aged wings as he hopped through the weeds and bushes in the garden, driving out gnomes that stood only a foot tall, with yellowish-brown bodies, oversized heads, and thin limbs, looking like potatoes that had grown legs.

Meanwhile, the twins each rode a flying broom, swooping back and forth overhead. They grabbed the gnomes Errol had driven out, gave them a vigorous shake and spin, then hurled them far into the wilderness.

All that remained were their increasingly distant screams from midair and the twins' delighted laughter.

"Those two can find fun in anything!"

Vaughn shook his head with a laugh, then went back to the bed and picked Ginny up.

The little girl woke with a start, rubbed her sleepy eyes, and yawned. "Vaughn?"

"I'm going to Diagon Alley, Ginny. You need to go back to your own room and sleep."

"Oh..." Ginny buried her head in his shoulder and mumbled drowsily, "I want... Chocolate Frogs..."

"Okay, I'll bring some back for you!"

As he carried Ginny downstairs, he ran into their mother, who had been about to come up and call them.

"Oh—look at my two little darlings, my sweethearts." Molly's broad frame was large enough to hug both children at once. She wiped at the corner of her eye. "Mum's so happy that you siblings love each other so much. Vaughn, you're always so sensible. You take care of Ginny, and you're even buying Ron a new wand... Honestly, I think his old one is good enough!"

Downstairs, Ron had hurried over as soon as he heard the commotion. His fingers clenched so hard that he nearly squeezed Scabbers to death.

He was terrified that his bad-tempered brother would go back on his word just because of what their mother had said.

Fortunately, Vaughn merely glanced at him. "It's fine, Mum. It's only seven Galleons. Besides, using a wand that doesn't belong to him could very well affect his studies."

Seven... seven Galleons, and that was only?

Ron felt as though someone had stuffed him into a barrel of lemon juice. He was sour to the core.

Knowing that her son had plenty of money, Molly said no more. Vaughn and Ron were both her sons, and she loved them both. Though she did not want Ron spending Vaughn's money for the sake of teaching him proper values, Vaughn was willing to give his younger brother a gift, so she would not object.

Her youngest son having to use his brothers' old things had already made her feel deeply guilty. Besides, Vaughn was right—using a wand that did not belong to him really could have an effect. So she stopped trying to prevent it.

Molly carried Ginny back to her room.

After washing up, Vaughn ate breakfast with Ron. Seeing that it was getting late, Molly took a flowerpot filled with ash-gray, sparkling powder down from the mantel and said to Vaughn and Ron, "Vaughn, you've used Floo Powder before, so you know what to do. But Ron, you haven't. Watch your brother's demonstration carefully. You have to pronounce it clearly and forcefully—Diagon Alley! Diagon Alley! Understand?"

"Got it, Mum!" Ron said excitedly, the tips of his ears turning bright red.

Molly held the flowerpot out to Vaughn. He pursed his lips. He had never liked the stuff much; it got his clothes and hair dirty.

But he had not learned Apparition yet, so he could only travel this way.

Vaughn grabbed a handful of Floo Powder, stepped into the fireplace, and threw it down hard at his feet as he shouted, "Diagon Alley!"

With a bang.

Green flames surged up before his eyes. Vaughn felt as though he had climbed into a washing machine, his entire body stretched into a long strip as he spun rapidly around a single point. All around him were equally distorted and bizarre sights.

A few seconds later, he stumbled to a stop. Shaking his head to drive away the lingering dizziness, he brushed the soot from himself in disgust and looked around.

It was an enclosed alley. Several fireplaces had been neatly set into the dark brick walls, green flames flaring up one after another as witches and wizards emerged from them. Some were accompanied by children, probably people who had also received Hogwarts letters and had brought their children to buy books and supplies.

Vaughn did not look around any further. He waited where he was for a moment, and green flames rose behind him. The next instant, Ron came tumbling out, covered in soot, and landed face-first at Vaughn's feet.

"Ron, what a grand greeting!"

Vaughn grinned as he pulled him up.

Ron's eyes were swimming, and he did not hear a word Vaughn said. It was not until Molly arrived as well, brushed the soot off him, and led the brothers out of the enclosed alley into the bustling Diagon Alley itself that Ron finally came fully to his senses.

It was a long street that stretched as far as the eye could see. Several meters wide, its cobblestone road was packed with men and women wearing pointed wizard hats.

All along both sides of the street stood every kind of shop, each with square display windows divided into panes of glass. Sunlight streamed down from above the alley, making the windows and the goods inside gleam brilliantly.

The door of the shop nearest the entrance opened, and a wizard and witch led out a boy. His mouth was chewing constantly, and his hair kept changing color with every chew.

Ron's eyes went wide—he had seen the shop's sign: Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop, Fred and George's favorite store, one they had talked about endlessly in his ear.

It was the place he visited most often in his dreams!

In his daze, he heard Vaughn say to him, "Ron, welcome to Diagon Alley!"

At the same time, someone behind him was saying:

"Welcome to Diagon Alley!"