It's OK To Not Be Ok...Right?

14. I Knew You Were Trouble

Sloane and Mr Olivander came back to the counter, just as Harry and Hermione approached. "I was wondering where you had snuck off to," Hermione smiled. 

"Sorry, Mr Olivander just needed a closer look at my wand. Looks like I am going to need a new one," Sloane gave a sorrowful sigh. "I love my wand." 

"No need to worry Miss Sloane. I will use elements of your old wand to make your new one." Mr Olivander smiled. "I do love to see someone so attached to their wand. Makes the whole job worthwhile."

"You can do that?" Sloane asked as Mr Olivander nodded. 

"Now your last wand was made with?"

"Holly wood," Sloane answered.

"Yes, I know. A sensitive wand. Good for a master who is in touch with their emotions. A devoted wand I must say. It was a great wand, but you require something with more spark. More power to reflect the power you yourself have. Now I have a wood in mind. It is very rare, indeed the rarest wand wood of all, and reputed to be deeply unlucky but -"

"What? No way!" Sloane gasped.

"What?" Hermione asked. 

"You can't mean the -"

"Elder wood yes." Mr Olivander smirked. "The elder wand is trickier to master than any other. It contains powerful magic, but scorns to remain with any owner who is not the superior of his or her company; it takes a remarkable wizard to keep an elder wand for any length of time. The old superstition, 'wand of elder, never prosper,' has its basis in this fear of the wand, but in fact, the superstition is baseless, and those foolish wand makers who refuse to work with elder do so more because they doubt they will be able to sell their products than from fear of working with this wood. The truth is that only a highly unusual person will find their perfect match in elder, and on the rare occasion when such a pairing occurs, I take it as certain that the witch or wizard in question is marked out for a special destiny. An additional fact that I have unearthed during my long years of study is that the owners of elder wands almost always feel a powerful affinity with those chosen by rowan."

"So the wood Sloane needs for her wand is Elder wood?" Harry asked a bit confused. "I thought there was only one wand made with Elder wood? The Elder wand."

"A common misconception. That is not to say that it is popular as it is not. In fact there have only been a few in my days—one being your mother Sloane."

"My mother's wand was elder wood too?"

"It was, as was your brother's. Now I think an amethyst crystal is the best option for you. It promotes healing, protection as well as inspiration. Now for the core, I believe a Phoenix feather with Phoenix tears and perhaps a unicorn hair as well. Now for something very rare and very special..."

Mr Olivander moved around to cloak his view. Whatever it was he was putting in the wand, it was obviously secretive.

"Father?" The young girl warned. "Why are you at that drawer?"

"You always say never to open that drawer, even if the world is coming to an end and -" the son started but his father interrupted him. 

"I know what I said for I was the one to say it. But needs must so hush and let me concentrate." He tinkered for a few more minutes, now having gathered a small crowd. It was an amazing thing to watch a wandmaker work. Usually, it was done in private but sometimes it was done for public display and it was always a real treat.

He turned to face Sloane. "Give this a wave and see how it works." Mr Olivander then handed the most beautiful wand to Sloane. She had never seen anything like it. The amethyst crystal sat at the end with a few purple flowers and greenery. A swirl of wood, which was from her old wand sat on the outside of the new one looped around in a decorative fashion.