5 The Diagon Alley

We eventually arrived in a shabby-looking pub. Although I described it as shabby, lots of people actually go there. The noise and murmurs are enough to say that the place is crowded. Maybe because the start of the term is approaching.

I thought someone will interrupt our walk as we walked towards a wall, but Snape's brooding mood is rather obvious that no one dared to block his way. Even Tom decided to stay silent and just nodded at Professor Snape.

When we reached the brick wall, Professor tapped the familiar pattern on the wall. A moment later, the wall separated and transformed into an entrance. What greeted me was a very magnificent sight.

Diagon Alley was a very magical place. Every building was built using the style from the middle ages. The place was surely crowded too. Typical and wizards were dressed in robes and pointy hats with wands in their hands, everyone was busy buying their needs. However interesting the stores may be, it seems we have a different destination we need to go. So I walked beside Professor Snape to not get lost.

Along the way, I saw a bunch of ginger in front of Ollivander's. A middle-aged man, beside him, is a woman with red hair with a small girl hugging her waist, a pair of red-headed boys that looks identically to each other, and another red-haired teenager which seems to be older than the twins.

'Ah, the Weasleys. I've wondered when will I ever meet them. But I never thought it would be this early.'

I think my world is based on the movie seeing that the familiar characters I've seen so far look so similar to their movie counterparts.

Obviously, Professor Snape has noticed them as he took a distance, enough for the red-haired family to not notice us. He was never a conversation type of person, so our trip to Gringott's was quiet.

We haven't finished our trip, but I already saw the building we're looking for. The Gringott's bank looked like it was built using white marbles, with a bunch of goblins guarding the entrance in their armor. They looked quite intimidating, so I stayed close with Professor Snape inside the bank.

I can't help myself from being amazed at anything magical I see. The building may look majestic because of the materials used for the building, but the inside is very beautiful. I never thought a bank could be so beautiful. Documents that fly across the hall, the goblins that are busy weighing gallons and every kind of money, and the smooth floor that is so clean I can see my own reflection. The amount of wealth in the bank can make any kleptomaniac drool.

But what I was looking for is the big Door that is engraved in golden letters that I can recognize. Learning the art of enchantment is quite useful in deciphering the runes and enchantments applied to the door. In the center of the door is the famous warning for all the thieves that dares to steal from their vaults:

Enter, stranger, but take heed

Of what awaits the sin of greed,

For those who take, but do not earn,

Must pay most dearly in their turn,

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned, beware

Of finding more than treasure there.

But the door is not what we came for. Professor Snape went to the bank teller and states his appointment.

"I'll make a withdrawal from the Hogwarts Scholarship fund." Wow, Snape is straight as a bullet. Well, it makes sense though. Goblins don't like people who kept beating around the bush as it only wastes their time. Being straightforward is preferred when dealing with them.

The bank teller removed his eyeglasses and stared at me. He raised an eyebrow when he saw my peculiar hair and eyes. He must be scanning me. Then, he smirked.

'Seriously, does everyone know my secret?'

I just shook my head internally at my dilemma.

"Very well."

After a few moments, Snape was handed a pouch with a bunch of galleons inside. The pouch comes with a fee of course.

Then we immediately stepped outside of the bank and went straight to Malkin's Robes for every Occasion. There, I was bought a second-hand robe. Fortunately, my size was average so I easily bought a robe for my size.

"Go to Ollivander's and get your wand. I have some business to attend to." Snape said and walked away. Seriously, can that man ever smile? There's no reason for you to keep brooding you know?

After the sudden abandonment, I went my way to the wand store. When I was near there, I observed the state of the building before going inside. I don't want to believe it, but my mind is still in disbelief.

'For a family that has been selling wands for a long time, their store sure is shabby.' I grumbled inside my head.

But I was still excited though. I will still get my wand. Don't be mistaken though, wandless and chantless magic is awesome. But getting my own wand is my life-long dream as a Potterhead. So my excitement in getting a wand buried my disappointment in a matter of seconds.

I stepped inside the shabby store and my nose was met with the smell of wood. I mean, all of their wands are made of wood, except those rich people that prefer customized wands. Even their store is made of wood. I can only wish they have fire-resistant wards and runes in their store.

'Well, not my problem.'

While I'm busy observing the store, the ladder leaning on a big shelf suddenly moved and an old man slid down the ladder. I was met with blue eyes. Then, one of his eyebrows rose.

"Ah, a very peculiar person. I haven't seen you nor any of your family. My boy, can you tell me your name?" Ollivander said. Well, he's not the creepy old man the books and the fanfictions described, but he is very sage-like.

"I'm Frederick, sir. An orphan." I answered.

"Hmm, it makes sense. You must be a muggleborn then. But it's very odd even for a muggleborn to have that color of hair. Are you a metamorphmagus?" He asked again.

"A meta-what?" I returned a question, pretending to not know.

"A metamorphmagus. A person who can change any part of their body to imitate another's appearance. Though it is only limited to a person. Never an animal nor a magical creature." He explained.

"Oh, then I must disappoint you, sir. I am not a metamorphmagus. But I'm quite interested in the topic." I said with a smile. The only metamorphmagus I know is Tonks. Of course, I would be curious.

"Enough of that. Which is your wand hand?" Ollivander asked.

"I'm a right-handed person," I answered while stretching out my right hand.

Then Ollivander started to do his magic. His magical tape measure measured my arms, hands, waist, legs. Even the size of my head was measured.

"Ah, I think I found it. 11 inches, Acacia wood, Dragon heartstring core. Good for casting powerful spells but not temperamental. Give it a wave." Ollivander smiled.

Before I even waved my wand, Garrick already snatched it and gave another one.

"No, no. Not that one."

When I was handed an Applewood wand, the wand broke in half. I immediately apologized to Garrick. But he said it was fine.

Ollivander kept giving me wands, but they all rejected me. Some were snatched, and some broke when I held them. I remembered reading the wiki pages before that some wand woods are not compatible with wizards who practiced dark magic. I can only sigh at my predicament.

After countless wands I was given, I felt something comfortable when Garrick brought a black wand.

"Here, 13 and a half inches, Elder Wood, and Thestral Hair core. This wand was found by my great grandfather in one of his journeys. It's not the Elder Wand since it was not created by death, but they were very similar. We could not only sell it because of the people's fear of the Elder wood. Now my boy, give it a wave." Garrick said. I don't know how but I can tell he's very excited about what would happen the moment I touch the wand.

The first moment my finger laid on the wand, I felt cold. The same feeling when I died, but this time the cold did not make me shiver. Like someone cold caressed my soul, except the cold was comforting and offered care.

"Curious, very curious indeed," Garrick said with his eyes closed.

"What's curious Mr. Ollivander?" I asked.

"You see my boy, wands crafted using elder wood are the trickiest to master. It takes a great wizard to even hold the wand, but only the most powerful can master it. Every wizard and witch that wielded wands from elder wood was marked out for a special destiny. While the thestral hair prefers to bond with people who are strongly connected with death. It is only curious that this wand, similar to the one created by death itself somehow chose a wizard like you. How are you connected to death? We probably won't know. We expect great things from you Mr. Frederick. 10 Galleons for the wand. Thank you." Garrick explained and smiled in the end. Damn, this man's mood swings are worse than a girl in her period.

But wands aside, maybe my reincarnation was the thing that connected me to death? Grandfather would probably be impressed that I have a second-rate elder wand in hand.

As soon as I stepped out of the store, I found Professor Snape. With him is my trunk, with probably the required materials inside.

"What took you so long?" Professor Snape half asked and half demanded. The demand half came from his tone.

"Mr. Ollivander took so long finding a wand, it seems every wand I held rejected me. But I found one in the end." I explained while showing my wand. Now that I saw it, the wand appearance is similar to Elder Wand, except that it was shorter since the Elder wand is 15 inches long, I think?

As Professor Snape scanned my wand, I can tell he looked I interested on the wood in my hand.

"Did he tell you what wand it was?" Professor asked, genuinely curious.

" He said it's 13 and a half inches long, Elder wood, and Thestral hair core. He told me it was quite similar to Elder wand." I shrugged.

"Hm? Interesting." He sounds impressed.

"I assume you know how to get back?" Snape asked and I nodded. Well, it's easy to commute from here, and Sister Anna gave me pocket money, although it's not that much. But it will be enough to go back to the orphanage.

"Very well, I'll see you at school." Professor Snape said as he walked away. But he halted for a moment and turned to me.

"I expect great things from you. Mr.Grindelwald." Professor Snape smirked before disappearing in the crowd.

'Why does everyone expect something from me?'