Core Four Fun | Location : Earth | TMC |

[20] girl's day out in diagon alley

"That dragon is adorable. Don't even try to fight me on that," Dix declared, admiring the purple-scaled plushie with a smile.

"I like my Niffler," Alex shrugged indifferently, and tapped her bracelet against the machine. The cashier handed Alex a bag and a warm smile. "Lunch at the Leaky Cauldron? The boys are supposed to meet us there in fifteen minutes."

"Sounds good!" Dix and Alex hooked arms as they exited the Magical Menagerie and turned down the road for the Leaky Cauldron. That morning, the gang had decided to take a girls and boys day, with only lunch as a meet up. Dix and Alex had already gone on another run of the Gringotts ride, browsed a few shops and obviously got caught up in the Menagerie.

With unicorns, owls, and magical creatures left and right how could they just ignore it? There was even a pink Pygmy Puff Alex had bought for Kaiden. It was a burst of colour and life everywhere in the store, every spare shelf, cupboard, and perch filled with animals. The showcasing windows outside had drawn Dix in initially because of the fire-red dragon; she'd settled on purple because it didn't look so much like her hair. The boar heads (at least Alex thought they were boar heads) on either side of the door gave way to a storm of chaos inside.

There was even a moving snake in the lower window display that hissed and sneered at anyone who went nearby. Even though the line outside the Leaky Cauldron was long, Alex and Dix received messages from the boys at the same time.

op-boy: we got a table already! Just tell the lady at the front that you're with Kaiden

You: how did you guys get there before us???

op-boy: jordan ate something before we went on the gringotts ride

You: understandable, see you soon <3

op-boy: <3

"Ow," Alex winced as someone barged past her up front. Getting to the front was no trouble for Dix, who gave the hostess Kaiden's name. She led them to their table where the other four were bickering over what to order (if it had been anything else, Alex would have been worried).

"He wants to order mac and cheese! That's like, for little kids."

Alex swiped a menu and sat down in a free seat with an exhausted sigh. Taking a moment to gaze around the restaurant, Alex was surprised at how accurate it was to the film's version of the iconic pub, and how accurate it was to her imagined version. Rustic was the best word to describe it, with clean, earth-worn stone walls, bars of wood ran overhead the high ceiling.

The walls were decorated with pictures, paintings, and photos in a higgedly-piggedly design. Workers in funny wizard hats ducked in and out of arches in the stone walls, trays piled high with food and dinks. Large windows let in light from outside and practically every table was full of chattering families and friends.

"You guys haven't really tried English food yet, and I can't say that America is the best place to start off, but..." Alex quickly ran her finger down the menu, "We could all share a bangers & mash for an entree. There's stew, fish and chips, toad in the hole, pies, eggs, salads—"

"—Toad in the Hole?" Jordan interrupted, flabbergasted. "Like actual toads?"

"No!" Alex bit down on her laugh and tried her best to explain the English dish to him, "It's a savoury pudding with gravy and vegetables and a sausage in the middle."

"Okay, uh, I'll give that a go," Jordan still looked a bit suspicious but moved onto dessert.

"I'll take the fish and chips," Dix decided.