The Other Lupin

Diagon Alley

After a long broom ride here with a prefect, her name was Victoire Weasley, I think.

I walk up to the bar in the Leaky Cauldron with my suitcases, a bit nervous but excited. It smelt like alcohol and desperation, an odd smell for such a "magical" place.

"Excuse me," I say to the elderly man behind the bar, "Where can I get to Diagon Alley?" I ask him, but looks at me funny as if he can't understand me, and then I realize that I'm probably speaking in my native tongue, Greek. I switch to my rocky English, which sounds like I'm choking with a few words. "D-Diagon Alley?" I ask again,

He nods after chuckling, understanding me finally and says in a thick British accent that catches me off guard, considering the fact I forgot where I was, "Follow me dear."

He walks towards the back of the pub and out to the back yard. He taps the brick wall with his wand in an interesting pattern I didn't catch, and it opens, revealing a street with lots and lots of shops and more people.

I looked out into the crowd of people in awe. A giant man wades through the crowd holding a box labeled, Flobberworm Eggs, and a large group of redheaded people walk out of a shop called Flourish and Blotts.

"Hagrid" the bartender says, referring to the large man with the box of eggs, "Could you escort this young lady to get her school things? And maybe introduce her to the Weasleys?" he adds, gesturing to the large group of red-heads.

The giant man named Hagrid nods.
"And I'll take your bags and take them up to your room, free of charge the first 2 nights." The bartender says smiling, I note that he's lost a few teeth, something common with older wizards.

"Thank you sir and I'm Dani" I tell him, using a bit better English, and he walks back into the pub with my bags.

"Alrigh' Dani come with me and I'll take you t' meet the Weasley's. They're lively bunch, hope yer not a bi' shy" he said smiling, he seemed like a kind man, and I hoped to get to know him and see him more often.

He leads me over to the redheaded bunch of people standing by Quality Quidditch Supplies.

"Molly," Hagrid says to an older, but still very redheaded woman, "This 'ere is Dani, she's Greek and transferring to Hogwarts by the looks of it. She'll be staying at the Leaky Cauldron for the next 3 days but might need some help with getting her things. I've got t' go help Professor McGonagall with something so I must be going."

Molly nods,"Of course dearie, we'll help you around, do you need to transfer your Greek money to British money?" she asks, a motherly look of concern on her face, making me feel at home, "Um, I think so" I tell her nervously, "All I have are Drachmas." I get a few confused looks from some of the younger children, but I shrug it off.

She nods and pulls one of her sons over, "This is Ron, he'll take you to Gringotts and help you out with your money."

Ron, who looks to be middle aged but not old, turns to a brunette woman standing with two redhead children, "Hermione c'mon we're going to Gringotts, and I might need your brains"

Hermione, who must be his wife was introduced, left the children with a dark haired man and followed us to a big white columned building at the center of Diagon Alley.

Inside are tons of goblins, which we don't have in Delphi, but I have heard about them in my textbooks. They are stamping things, and rolling carts, and leading people through doors, and glaring at other goblins. Ron walks up to a goblin, "Gornuk, I need to do a money transfer."

The goblin, Gornuk, looks up from the book he is reading, "What country?"

Ron looks at me and I pile a bunch of gold, silver, and bronze Drachmas on his counter. He takes them and gives me a leather satchel filled with tons of gold, silver, and bronze coins, varying in size from small to very large.

"Thanks" Ron says and he and Hermione lead me out.

They then take me to buy robes, books, potion things, Astronomy things, and then ask me, "Do you want a pet?"

Even though I have a pet I answer yes and they take me into the Magical Menagerie.

"Ron, do you remember in our third year when I bought Crookshanks even after he jumped on your head? And you though he was a beast because he tried to eat your rat" Hermione reminisces, Ron nods and grimaces at the thought of this Crookshanks. My gaze wanders over everything and I see nothing.

"Nothing sparks my interest" I say, what about that orange store with the man popping up and down?" I ask.

"Oh, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes" Ron says, "run by my brother George, yeah Mum said to meet her and the others there so we thought we would go there last."

Inside Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, I run straight into a kid with bright blue hair as I come in because I was distracted I was so in awe and wonder of the store was so amazing. It was a prank shop, with mortal pranks, and something called Skiving Snackboxes, and thousands of other cool things.

"Oops, sorry" I mumbled, embarrassed. The boy looks about 16, my age, with dark brown eyes like mine and very blue hair, "I'm just so taken by this store, it's amazing, I've never been here before so I really wasn't looking where I was going, sorry" I continued, starting to ramble.

He looked at me strangely, "Oops again," I say in English this time, "I'm Greek and I haven't really gotten the hang of talking in English yet."

He smiles and sticks out his hand, "Teddy", he says, introducing himself. "Dani" I respond and take his hand.

He pulls me up off of the floor and winks at me as he walks off, then I see them, in a cage by a sign that says Wonder Witch, little fluffy balls of pink and purple fur with little tiny faces and feet. I run over to the cage, and ask the man in the orange suit standing a few feet away, "Excuse me sir, but how much are these little things?" he laughs and says, "Yes, I'm George Weasley, owner of this store, and they cost 2 Galleons, and 3 Sickles, would you like one?" he asks and I nod.

He pulls a purple one out of the cage as I hand him the money.

"Thank you Mr. Weasley" I thank him and he tips his orange hat.

"Ron" I say loudly, "Ron look at this!"

I show him my little pet, "Ahh," he says, "You got a Pygmy Puff, those are very easy to take care of, they eat fruit you know," he informs me and I thank him for the information, laughing a bit because I wasn't expecting it.

"C'mon, I'll take you back to you pub its almost suppertime." He says, and with that it's off to the pub.