The Magic Lake (HPxPJO crossover)

Chapter 2 part 2 Diagon Alley

So I put it into 2 parts because it was long AF

(Grace's POV)

After a long restless night, my owl shaped alarm went on and off (again). Before I got my letter, it seemed as if my mornings were the same. I wake up, brush my teeth, change and sit around all day. Repeat. But today was different. I changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and brushed my teeth. I walked down stairs taking the steps two at a time to find my parents yet again sitting there eating breakfast. At least I didn't sleep in this time. I shoved some spoonfuls of cereal into my mouth as my heart pounded. I was so excited to go to Diagon Alley. Being a half-blood I have heard many stories about my parent's experience but I have never been able to go there myself. Now that I'm school-age I can finally experience what it's like.

Since I can't apparate just yet, my mom and I took the train to London instead. My mom is a muggle born so getting on the train wasn't that hard. Unlike my dad who takes half an hour to learn how to swipe a credit card or how buttons work on an elevator. The two hour ride seemed more like two minutes. After we got to our stop my mom pulled me aside behind a building called "The Leaky Cauldron" and pulled out her wand. She then tapped a brick on the wall and it slowly opened. I was amazed at how it could do that. But then I thought "It's magical. It can do anything" I walked in, looking around trying to take in everything. My mom and I walked into one of the alleys. There was an ice cream shop in one alleyway called "Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour" and right across the ice cream shop was a pet shop called "The Magical Menagerie". "Can I get a pet mom? Please?" I asked. "Maybe. You still have some unspent galleons left from your birthday. Maybe you could use those to pay for an owl." she replied.

We soon found ourselves standing in front of a shop called "Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions". As we walked in, a short plump woman walked around looking stressed at how many first years were coming in. As I looked around some more I saw a girl with black hair standing there with a woman that looked like her. Besides her, the shop was empty but seeing as there were multiple pieces of wool, silk, and string lying in random spots on the floor, it seemed as if she hadn't had much time to clean them up. But when the plump woman spotted my mom standing there she said,

"Ah, Elliana dear. Been a while". My mom said, "Yes Madam Malkin. This is my daughter Grace. She's about to start her first year." Madam Malkin gave me a quick look from head to toe then said, "Thought so. Well then, get up here." She gestured toward a mirror. She hustled over to get a measuring tape and started measuring every inch of me. Then she started getting pieces of wool and needles. She waved her wand in a swift motion and the needle started weaving itself in between the pieces of wool. She then started hemming the sleeves of my robes. It took about thirty minutes for her to finish. I later walked out of Madam Malkin's with a fresh pair of robes.

Next stop was Ollivander's. I've heard many stories about this place so naturally I was most excited to visit here. It didn't take long for Mr. Ollivander to find me a wand. Apple wood with a unicorn hair core, 13 ¾" and supple flexibility.

Then we went to Flourish and Blotts, a bookselling shop on the left hand side of Diagon Alley. My mom told me that most students get their books from there. After I got all my books that were required my mom made up her mind and said I could get a pet. As we walked into The Magical Menagerie, the smell slowly turned more and more putred. There were racks and racks of cages filled with animals. Some animals were majestic and beautiful whereas some animals were plain ugly.

As I walked among the shelves of pets, a beautiful white cat jumped up onto the counter. She had a shiny coat and light blue eyes. I knew immediately that I wanted her. I pointed her out to my mom and told her I wanted her. My mom then called over a staff member of the store and paid. Although she couldn't deliver mail like an owl she could still keep me company. I decided to name her Shadow which was a bit ironic considering she was all white head to toe but she followed me everywhere like my shadow. As my mom and I walked our cat in hand, we decided to go to the apothecary last. Before we could walk off, the girl at Madam Malkin's went into The Magical Menagerie. At first I didn't think anything about it until she came out of the pet shop with the exact same cat. It was a childish action but I looked down into my arms to see if Shadow was still there and somehow didn't magically teleport back into the shop. I was relieved to see that Shadow was still there but still extremely confused. I gathered up my courage and went over to talk to the girl. Here goes nothing. "Um, sorry to bother you but is it me or do our cats look exactly the same?"

"So you're the person who got the twin." Twin? She must've seen my expression because she started to explain. "When my mom and I walked in we saw the exact same cat in the shop that you just bought. They came from the same kindle so that explains why they look alike."

"Oh. Well that explains a lot. Um, see you at Hogwarts." I started to leave but the girl quickly said, "I never got your name" Did I mention I also hate human interaction and questions like this? "Grace'' I fumbled.

"Well, nice to meet you. I'm Elena. See you at Kings Cross.'' Wow. That wasn't even half as bad as I thought it would be I thought as my mom and I walked away towards the apothecary. Later, Elena introduced me to Evelyn and Serenity. 

Word Count: 1067