Diagon Alley

Allen turned and bowed to Edward. "Please remain seated, Your Majesty, and wait for my return."

Their eyes met. Edward understood what Allen meant: if something went wrong in the Wizarding World, they could not afford to lose both the king and the crown prince.

Edward chuckled. He rose, stepped around the table and chairs, and stroked Allen's head. "It's all right. Britain has plenty of nobles."

...Someone would always be there to inherit the throne.

I cannot let my child face those risks alone.

The meaning behind those words made Dumbledore glance at him. For once, the old man's gaze went distant, his thoughts unreadable.

The king's eyes darkened slightly, but he smiled. "I've never visited the magical world either. Surely I ought to take a look."

He patted Allen's back and turned to Dumbledore. "Headmaster Dumbledore, sorry for the trouble."

Allen thought that perhaps no one in the world was luckier than he was-to have a father like this.

Dumbledore gently wiped his eyes and sighed. "Truly enviable. Few people in this world are so fortunate."

The old man held out his hand and nodded to them both. "Please hold tightly to my arm."

Just as both of them secured their grips, a soft crack sounded, like a burst of flame.

Allen felt as though he had been stuffed into a long, narrow tube, then swept into a hurricane that churned his stomach.

The moment his feet touched the ground, he nearly fell. One hand clutched Edward's arm while the other covered his mouth, keeping him from disgracefully throwing up in this unfamiliar place.

Edward patted his back, letting him recover at his own pace, while discreetly surveying their surroundings.

He had never expected that there really was a wizarding pub he could not see.

It took Allen a while to recover. He released Edward's arm and, seeing his father as composed as ever, felt a little embarrassed.

Dumbledore stood smiling to one side, chatting with the landlord.

"Oh, Allen! Your first Apparition can be unpleasant. You'll be fine once you get used to it," Dumbledore said with a smile.

"Would you like a drink, lad?" the rather scruffy landlord asked Allen warmly.

"Thank you very much, sir, but no. I'd like to buy my school supplies as soon as possible." Allen smiled and declined the man's kind offer.

He casually glanced around, keeping his expression unchanged, though inwardly he hardly knew what to say. Were all wizards this poor?

They didn't even have a decent entrance!

"Well then, let's be off! Goodbye, Tom!"

Dumbledore led father and son into the courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron and stopped before a brick wall.

The old man drew his wand and tapped several different bricks in a curious rhythm. The bricks moved as though alive, opening a narrow passage for the three of them.

Dumbledore spread his arms and said playfully, "Your Majesty, Allen, welcome to Diagon Alley!"

"Our first stop is Gringotts-a bank run by goblins, just up ahead-

"Gentlemen, you'll need to exchange your money for wizarding currency at Gringotts before you can buy anything!"

They walked between the shops, weaving around the crowds, dazzled by the variety of goods on either side.

Dumbledore seemed to enjoy being their guide. He enthusiastically explained the different goods in the shops to Edward and Allen, sharing their histories and stories.

Allen listened with keen interest, unable to keep a little wonder from his face, and occasionally asked questions from unusual angles.

His questions kept making Dumbledore laugh, but the old man still answered each one seriously.

Edward had firmly held the lead in their earlier conversation, yet after entering Diagon Alley, he had fallen silent.

Allen understood that this was a test-a test of whether he could venture into the Wizarding World on his own.

So he took the initiative and assumed the task of dealing with Dumbledore.

All right, he certainly hadn't let the novelty of the Wizarding World distract him!

He stole a glance at his father and found the man looking calm and unruffled.

Had he not known his father was an entirely ordinary man, he really might have been fooled by that composure.

The three arrived at Gringotts together. Edward was clearly very interested in how the wizarding bank operated.

The first entrance was a gleaming bronze door. Goblin guards in scarlet-and-gold uniforms stood outside, bowing to them.

Allen did his best not to stare at the goblin.

The second door was silver, with the following words engraved upon it:

Enter, stranger, but beware the fate that awaits insatiable greed; those who only take and never earn shall suffer the harshest punishment.

If you seek to take from our underground vaults a fortune that was never yours, thief, you have been warned: beware lest you find not treasure, but retribution.

Edward nodded appreciatively. "Sound principles." A goblin gave him a look of haughty approval.

They passed side by side through the second set of silver doors into a spacious marble hall, where around a hundred goblins sat behind a long counter, scribbling entries into large ledgers.

Some weighed coins on scales, while others examined gemstones through eyepieces.

Dumbledore explained, "The goblins' vaults are the safest place in the world-apart from Hogwarts. They have a dragon guarding the underground vaults.

"At the raised counter in the very center, you can exchange Muggle currency for wizarding money. You can even open a vault here."

They approached the raised counter opposite them. Before Edward needed to prompt him, Allen stepped forward and addressed the goblin. "Hello, sir. I'd like to exchange some money for wizarding currency, and I'd also like a vault at Gringotts."

"Professor Dumbledore!" The goblin put down his quill, glanced at them, and greeted Dumbledore.

With practiced ease, he introduced the wizarding currency system, then asked, "Opening a vault costs eighty Galleons. The deeper the vault, the more expensive it is. How much would you like to exchange?"

Allen put on a perfect smile. "May I ask how many gold Galleons Gringotts currently holds in reserve, excluding its customers' deposits?"

The goblin straightened in his seat and looked at him. Realizing that he was a Muggle-born, he settled back down and answered slowly,

"Five hundred thousand gold Galleons, worth roughly twenty-six million pounds sterling. However! A Muggle may exchange no more than one hundred Galleons per year."

Allen slowly furrowed his brow. "May I ask how many Galleons a first-year student at Hogwarts needs per year?"

The goblin found his question strange, then remembered that this was merely a Muggle. "By ordinary standards, one hundred Galleons is more than enough. Pure-blood families may spend upwards of five hundred Galleons a year."

Allen narrowed his eyes. At that moment, he looked remarkably like Edward when he had negotiated with Dumbledore.

He smiled faintly, courteous and gentlemanly. "Then, if the customer were a School Governor, how many gold Galleons could he exchange pounds sterling for?"

The goblin gave him a searching look. "There is no precedent for that. I have never heard of any School Governor in the Wizarding World having ties to Muggles."

Allen sighed and nodded. "All right, I understand. Then please exchange one hundred Galleons for me first."