Diagon Alley

"Are you all right, son?" Sandrine patted Xiwen on the back with concern. "Remember to hold your breath when you come out next time!"

"I know, Mom." Xiwen smiled wryly.

"Ah, the esteemed Mrs. Rozier and young Master Rozier. Your arrival truly brings honor to this humble place!" At that moment, a somewhat scruffy middle-aged man standing behind the counter spotted the mother and son and greeted them eagerly.

When facing outsiders, Sandrine always carried herself with the cool reserve of a pure-blood family. She merely nodded at the man.

Xiwen had never cared much about things like blood status. After all, he had come from another world. Influenced by the Sanctums' philosophy of protecting the entire Earth, he had always regarded all humanity as one whole—whether wizards or ordinary people.

He waved at the man. "Hello, Mr. Tom."

Tom, the owner of the tavern, bowed to the mother and son with a broad smile. "Would you two like anything?"

Seeing that Sandrine had no intention of responding, Xiwen said to spare Tom any embarrassment, "We're going to Diagon Alley to buy a wand today. I can't wait, so we'll be going first."

Tom also noticed that Mrs. Rozier had no interest in talking further. Tactfully, he did not ask any more questions. He waved them off and wished them a pleasant journey.

The mother and son headed straight for the empty courtyard behind the tavern, where the entrance to Diagon Alley was located.

Once they reached the courtyard, Sandrine drew her wand. Starting from the trash bin beside them, she counted three bricks up and two across, then tapped the brick three times. Countless bricks began to shift. A small hole appeared first, then slowly widened into a broad archway.

Beyond the archway lay the famous Diagon Alley!

The two stepped through the archway, and a bustling shopping street came into view. Looking up, they saw Potage's Cauldron Shop and the apothecary standing on opposite sides nearest the Leaky Cauldron.

"Want to look around?" Sandrine asked Xiwen with a smile.

Xiwen thought about it, then decided to go straight to Ollivanders Wand Shop. "Let's buy the wand first. I can't wait any longer!"

Ollivanders Wand Shop was located fairly deep within Diagon Alley. Fortunately, the alley itself was not very large, and they reached their destination within a few minutes.

The shop looked small and shabby. The gold lettering on the sign above the door had begun to peel, but it still read: "Ollivander: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 BC."

"Good morning, Mr. Ollivander." Sandrine greeted him as soon as she entered the shop, and Xiwen followed with a polite greeting.

The shop itself was tiny. Other than a bench in the corner, there was nothing else. Thousands upon thousands of narrow wand boxes were neatly stacked from floor to ceiling.

The owner, Garrick Ollivander, was an elderly man with gray-white hair and thick-lensed glasses. He looked meticulous, with the air of a scholar about him. He raised his head from the two piles of ledgers before him, looked at Xiwen and his mother, and smiled.

"Mrs. Rozier, it has been a long time. Ah, I know this young Master Rozier. It seems Hogwarts will be welcoming an excellent new student."

"Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Ollivander." Xiwen gave an elegant bow. "I came today to purchase a wand."

"Of course, dear young Master Rozier. At Ollivander's, you will find the wand that suits you best!" Mr. Ollivander said confidently.

Mr. Ollivander tapped the table, and a measuring tape flew down on its own to take Xiwen's shoulder width, arm span, and various other measurements. Beside it, a quill and a sheet of parchment hovered in the air, automatically taking notes.

"Which hand do you normally use, left or right?"

"Right, sir."

"Is this your first wand?"

"Mm... if you mean one that truly belongs to me, then yes." Xiwen silently excluded the old wands he had tried at home.

"Good. Try this one. Walnut wood, dragon heartstring core, twelve and three-quarter inches. Very suitable for innovators and inventors of magic." Mr. Ollivander took a wand from a long narrow box and handed it to Xiwen.

Xiwen gave it a casual wave. It did not feel like a perfect fit, but the amplification was still powerful. He could only silently marvel that a wand's enhancement of a wizard's magic and control was simply beyond even a Sling Ring.

"Clearly, this is not the wand for you." Mr. Ollivander snatched the wand from Xiwen's hand and replaced it with another. "Try this instead. Yew wood, Thestral tail hair, thirteen and a half inches. Better suited to those born extraordinary."

Xiwen waved the wand. A soft glow appeared at its tip, and he felt that this one would work quite well.

Yet Mr. Ollivander still seemed dissatisfied. He brought out another wand. "The compatibility is not bad, but it is still not good enough. Try this one. Fir wood, phoenix feather, exactly twelve inches. It favors owners who are focused, strong-willed, and, on occasion, forceful in their actions."

Xiwen tried it again. This one seemed pretty good too...

"Ah, what a picky customer." Mr. Ollivander was not satisfied with that result either. He continued selecting more wands for Xiwen, while Xiwen cooperatively tested each one.

Both of them were absorbed in the process. Xiwen was studying the properties of wands made from different materials and the degree of assistance they offered during spellcasting, while Mr. Ollivander was simply thrilled to have encountered such a discerning customer.

"Ahem, Mr. Ollivander, hasn't Xiwen's wand been chosen yet?" Sandrine seemed a little anxious that Xiwen had yet to find a satisfactory wand.

Only then did Xiwen realize the time. He took out the pocket watch hanging around his neck and glanced at it, discovering that lunchtime had already passed.

"Oh, what an exceedingly picky customer." Mr. Ollivander clicked his tongue reluctantly and climbed the wooden stairs at the back of the shop. Soon, he came back down carrying a dusty long narrow box.

"I believe this wand will certainly suit you, Mr. Rozier. Pine wood, fourteen inches. It usually chooses solitary, interesting, mysterious, and unconventional people as its masters, and it is especially sensitive to nonverbal magic. Its core is extremely rare—the nerve at the tip of a Unicorn horn from one that died by accident, which I acquired at great expense. Stable, sensitive, and spiritual. This is one of my finest creations." He handed the wand to Xiwen with obvious reluctance.

Xiwen took the wand and immediately sensed the difference the moment it touched his hand. It seemed completely unresistant to any method of spellcasting. Unable to resist, he gave it a light tap, and a golden ring covered in intricate patterns appeared before the wand—Rings of Raggadorr, one of Kamar-Taj's most common spells and the opening move for many advanced spells.

"Perfect! This wand could not be more suitable for you. Though that spell is quite novel—I have never seen any kind of magic like it." Mr. Ollivander stared curiously at the Rings of Raggadorr before Xiwen's wand.

Xiwen waved his hand and dispelled the spell, replying with a smile, "Just a few little ideas from my usual practice. Nothing worth mentioning."

Ollivander clicked his tongue. "That is no little idea. To be able to create your own spell and cast nonverbal magic before even enrolling, I have seen fewer than three such cases in all my years."

Seeing her son being praised, Sandrine happily ruffled Xiwen's hair. "This child has loved researching magic by himself since he was little. He never goes out to play with children his own age, and even now, I have hardly seen him make any good friends."

Although her tone sounded complaining, anyone could hear the pride in it.

"Geniuses are always solitary," Mr. Ollivander said with a smile. Then his expression suddenly turned awkward. "Ahem, Mrs. Rozier, you know... this is no ordinary wand. A bag of Unicorn tail hair alone costs ten Galleons, not to mention a Unicorn horn that is so rare and contains such powerful magic."

According to Ollivander, every Unicorn horn circulating outside represented the death of a Unicorn. Most Unicorn-horn products on the market were counterfeit and inferior goods. The magic within a Unicorn horn from a natural death would disperse along with the Unicorn, meaning only the horn of a Unicorn that died accidentally had the potential to be made into a wand. This was also why Unicorn tail hair was commonly used as a wand core rather than Unicorn horn.

"Name your price, Mr. Ollivander," Sandrine said.

"As you know, I paid a great deal for this Unicorn horn and even called in favors with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures to obtain it. This is an unprecedented masterpiece, and I originally had no intention of selling it..." Ollivander rambled on for quite a while. Only when he saw Sandrine's expression growing impatient did he hesitantly name a price. "...How about one hundred and fifty Galleons, as a friendship price?"

Mrs. Rozier was in an excellent mood because Xiwen had found such a good wand. She did not haggle and simply took out one hundred and fifty gleaming gold coins from the pocket of her clothes, which had been enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm, and handed them to Mr. Ollivander. Then she directly took Xiwen by the hand and headed outside.

Mr. Ollivander waved goodbye behind them.

"Thank you for your patronage, Mrs. Rozier. I wish young Master Rozier a happy life at Hogwarts!"

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