The Third Orphan

Chapter 2

With a great whooshing, whirling, and spinning, Briella emerged from one of the many busy fireplaces lining Diagon Alley. She waited impatiently with her father for the arrival of her mother, brother, and sister. Hopping from one foot to the other, she watched them appear one by one in the bright green flames. Brushing the soot off their clothes, they set off to buy school books at Flourish and Blotts.

Alyssa and Brenden quickly grew bored in the room full of books. Brenden was going into his fourth year and had soon found the few books he needed. Leaving them with his parents, he dashed off with a few school friends to look at racing brooms. Briella, however, was completely entranced by the books. She had pulled an ancient looking tome from the shelf and was now reading it quickly, trying to absorb as much information as possible before she was forced to leave.

Alyssa shook Briella's shoulder roughly. "Let's go, it's boring here!" she exclaimed. "Mum and Dad can find the rest of our books."

"No, I don't want to," Briella replied, trying to refocus on the book before her.

Alyssa looked around, and seeing that her parents were nowhere in sight whispered, "Please Bree?" Bree was Briella's special nickname, used only between the two of them. Their mother had long ago forbidden the name, saying that Ella was a much more appropriate nickname, if Briella must have one. The mysteriousness of this rule had only increased the twins' desire to break it, however, and Bree had become Briella's name whenever they were alone.

Briella looked up from her book and into her twin's pleading blue eyes, so different from her own murky brown ones. "Okay," she sighed, regretfully shutting the book and replacing it on the shelf. Holding hands, hey carefully set out across the cluttered shop and were almost to the door when their mother's voice stopped them.

"Alyssa! Briella! Where do you think you're going?"

"We're just going to explore Diagon Alley!" Alyssa replied brightly.

"Not without your father or I you aren't," said Elizabeth firmly, her eyes roaming across their crestfallen faces and lingering just a second longer on Briella's.

"But Mum!" they protested in unison.

They quickly glanced at each other and Briella, their usual spokesperson, spoke up. "You let Brenden go," she whined.

"Brenden's three years older than you," Elizabeth countered briskly.

Both girls opened their mouths to protest again, but Elizabeth cut them off.

"No more buts or you two won't be getting your pets."

With mutinous looks on their faces, the two girls followed their mother back into the heart of the store in search for the rest of their school books.

Alyssa and Briella tagged along behind their mother as they continued shopping. It was difficult to remain sulky for long, however, in the wondrous Diagon Alley. Briella submerged herself in another book for the remainder of the time at Flourish and Blots, while Alyssa looked at books of hexes they might later be able to use on their brother.Soon they were wandering in and out of shops, searching for the best deals on robes and cauldrons. Finally there were only two stops left: Olivander's and the Magical Menagerie.

The two girls ran ahead of their mother and into Olivander's with great excitement. They were met by Olivander, now incredibly old and frail, and his nephew, to whom he was teaching wandlore and preparing for the day he would take over the family business.

Olivander hobbled over to them, leaning heavily on a cane. "Ahh, Alyssa and Briella Duncan," he said in a low, wheezing voice. "I was hoping I would see you soon." He moved very close, staring intensely into the eyes of Alyssa, and then Briella. Startled by his piercing gaze, Briella backed up a step.

"Don't scare them, Uncle," said Olivander's nephew, showing his crooked teeth in a quick smile.

"Yes," said Olivander, but his eyes remained locked with Briella's a moment longer before he turned. "Which of you would like to go first?" he asked.

Briella pushed Alyssa forward, who seemed eager to begin to find her wand and not at all put off by Olivander's intensity. Briella, however, wanted to avoid further contact with Olivander for as long as possible. She did not like those bright grey eyes.

Within five minutes Alyssa had found her wand: cherry with dragon heartstring, 9 1/4 inches, whippy. Flushed with pleasure, she showed it to her proud mother and settled back to watch Briella find her wand. Briella tried wand after wand, but none reacted to her touch. After about the twentieth she grew worried. Was there any wand here that was meant for her?

Wildly she waved each one, but Olivander yanked each from her hand within seconds. However, the more worried Briellla became the more gleeful Olivander grew. With each unsuccessful try his eyes flashed brighter and he muttered, "Tricky, tricky," to himself. Soon Briella was sure that she had tried every wand in the shop.

In a lull between wand waving she watched Olivander wander between shelves, his cane forgotten and a spring in his step. His nephew gazed at him bemusedly. Finally Olivander pulled a dusty box from he back of a shelf.

"This," he said, "is one of my favorite wands. Made of elder woo, phoenix feather core, 12 inches precisely, and very bendy. I have had it for 13 long years and have never found a wizard or witch whom it liked. But you, my dear, a a most unusual customer..." His voice trailed off as he blew dust off the lid and tenderly opened it.

Briella reached out to pick it up but immediately dropped it again- it felt as if she had touched a hot coal! She felt Olivander's watchful eyes upon her, but her attention was traped by the wand. Feeling an unexplainable attraction, she reached for it again. This time instead of burning her she felt the fire of the wand spread throughout her whole body, warming and empowering her.

Feeling invincible, she pointed her wand at the discarded ones and watched in amazement as they flew from the floor, back into their boxes, and returned to their places on the shelves wile a rainbow of sparks flew from the end of her wand, casting a warm glow over the room.

Feeling as happy as she had ever felt in her life, Briella turned to her mother, whose face held a worried look that she so quickly remolded into a smile that Briella almost missed it. Olivander looked completely awestruck.

"Such a strong attraction I have never seen," he whispered in a reverent voice. "I think we can expect great things from you, young lady." His grey eyes once again pierced Briella with unnatural intensity, causing her to drop her gaze to the ground.

Elizabeth paid for the wands and the three left the shop, chatting happily. Still, Briella felt that her moment had been somewhat ruined by the power of Olivander's grey eyes, which had gazed at her as if saying, 'I know something which you do not.'