The Whitney Plaza Hotel was very glamourous. Everything was in shades of gold, and the people talking in the lobby did so in a very pompous manner. While many made their way busily across the floor, others leered conceitedly at their peers as they prepared the gossip they would no doubt be telling others later. Everyone was dressed in very high-class clothing, and seemed to "humph" in every other sentence. Sadie and her family continued following the Yates, and made their way into the restaurant and bar connected to the lobby, which was equally luxurious. In fact, the room contained even more "humphing" people who conversed snootily over lunch.
The Yates and Murrays proceeded to the bar, where a portly old man with a thick gray mustache, bald head, and glasses stood cleaning a glass. Mr. Yates flashed the barman the parking ticket with the O and said, "Juniper berries."
"Oh yes, yes, of course. I'm sure you know the entrance, farthest stall from the door..." The barman continued wiping the glass.
Mrs. Yates laughed to herself, and then knocked on the bar. "Hello Arnold."
"Mrs. Yates! I didn't even realize it was you. Especially with this gaggle of guests you have with you! And you must be Mr. Yates."
The barman and Mr. Yates exchanged a handshake. "That would be me. This is all interesting, really, Mr. Longview. This is the first time I've taken the front door to Orthogon Avenue. But as you mentioned, we have guests," Mr. Yates conferred as he motioned to Sadie.
"It's their first time," explained Mrs. Yates. She patted Sadie on the shoulder as she spoke. "Our daughter's friend just got accepted to Salem."
"Oh, very good! Congratulations," said Mr. Longview with a broad smile. "And Kelsey Yates! You've grown so much since I last saw you. You and your brother ready for the school year?"
"Definitely, Mr. Longview!" Kelsey cheered.
"It's so exciting," Mrs. Yates continued. " Our daughter's first year, and we just learned that Tristan will be captain of the Steda Quodpot team this year."
"Oh my! High honor to have, son," Mr. Longview said praisingly. Tristan beamed as Mr. Longview continued. "I was fortunate to be named captain in my fifth year too. Don't be too hard on Horribilis in the games, or you'll be hearing from me," laughed Mr. Longview.
"Can't promise that, Mr. Longview. But the team to beat for the last four years since I started going to Salem has been Lupa. They've held the school cup for the last eight years running."
"Oh my, that will never do. Be sure to take that title away from them for me."
The Yates said their goodbyes to Mr. Longview before proceeding to an adjacent hallway. It was extremely cramped in the small space with both Sadie and Kelsey's family squeezing through, not to mention the hotel patrons attempting to file through as well. At the end of the hallway was a men's and women's restroom.
"Alright, you heard Mr. Longview," Mr. Yates instructed. "Farthest stall from the door, one tap on the toilet, two taps on the door, and then flush. Mr. Murray, if you wouldn't mind following me."
Mr. Yates, Sadie's father, and Tristan made their way into the restroom, while Sadie followed Mrs. Yates, Kelsey, Jayne, Leah, and her mother into the women's restroom. Sophisticated women were primping themselves in the mirrors as everyone filed past to the restroom stall farthest from the door. Mrs. Yates signaled to the girls that they should wait for the people still in the room to leave before they continued. After a few more desperate attempts at powdering their noses, the women made their way out of the restroom huffily.
Mrs. Yates opened the door to the stall farthest from the door. It was a very average looking toilet stall, as far as toilet stalls went, though things like the flusher and toilet paper dispenser were plated gold. Mrs. Yates pulled out her wand, tapped the toilet once, tapped the door twice, and then flushed the toilet. The toilet water slowly went down as it should. Then, without warning, the solid wall to the right of the toilet moved in on itself, opening like a doorway.
"Come now. Can't linger about here, can we?" Mrs. Yates said, and the group passed through.
Everyone filed through the newly opened hole in the wall into another restroom, which looked completely identical to the original. They came out of the stall and proceeded through the exit. The hallway they entered was as it appeared in the hotel before, and they rejoined the men, who exited their own restroom. After a short walk down the hallway, they came into a very large, spacious room.
The room was the lobby of a hotel, and was ornately decorated in the same way that the previous hotel was. But the people were entirely different. Everyone wore long flowing robes, and many wore tall, pointy hats. Sadie felt very out of place in her jeans and t-shirt, but saw several others were dressed the same way, especially those around her age and in their teens. They passed through the lobby, which bustled with busy families until they made their way out the front door.
Sadie could hardly believe her eyes. They were standing out on an enormous street that stretched to a large building that towered above the rest ahead of them, about ten stories high. The smaller buildings that lined the street like walls, with no gaps in between, were each about five stories tall and were each made of completely different styles of brick. They resembled miniature replicas of the skyscrapers of Manhattan. In fact, the street where she stood seemed to be something of an over-sized alley in between the buildings of New York City. Sadie could see the tips of the city's skyscrapers stretching upward all around this street and its small, cramped buildings.
The street itself, which was bustling with people, was also made of brick, and the sound of the clacking could be heard from everyone's shoes as they trotted along. There were trees in a neat line through middle of the street where Sadie could see people resting and talking around park benches.
"Welcome," Mr. Yates announced, "to Orthogon Avenue."
This place put Sadie's wildest dreams to shame. There were shops everywhere, selling everything one could imagine. There was a shop that sold all sorts of telescopes. Another shop had a sign above the doorway that said Perry's Potions and Apothecary - Serving New England for 400 Years. Two young boys tipped over a giant metal cauldron in front of a store, and would have gotten away if they hadn't tripped over their robes, and were now being berated by a plump woman who had grabbed them by the ears.
"This is unbelievable," Sadie's father mumbled.
"Now," Mr. Yates began in a very matter-of-fact manner, "first, Sadie, you will need to open up a bank account at Gringotts Bank. We need to go there anyway to pick up some money for all the supplies. Your parents will need to come, as they'll need to convert your Muggle money into wizard money."
"Wizard money?" asked Sadie's mother angrily, warily eying a nearby pet shop, where a large lizard in a cage outside was hissing at her.
"Yes," Mrs. Yates explained. "We have a different monetary system than Muggles. Muggles have dollars and cents, and we have Knuts, Sickles, and Galleons. It's somewhere around ten dollars for one galleon, I believe, but I heard that the value of the dollar is going down, so you might want to convert as much as you can now."
Sadie made her way with her and Kelsey's family down the bustling street until they came to a triangular area where the street they were on, High Street, met with another street, Low Street. The roads did in fact form a large T here, as Low Street ran perpendicular to High Street. At the end of Low Street was a large white building with large letters in gold that Sadie could read from where she stood, Gringotts Bank. The party continued to shift their way through the throng of people toward this building.
Sadie's neck was on a swivel, looking from left to right as fast as she could to take everything in. They passed a shop with brooms in the window display, and a girl with her mother who had just exited the shop who was begging her mother to fly it. Another shop had women posing in the window display in robes that were low cut on top and short at the bottom, coming to above the knees of the model, and looked very reminiscent of low cut tops and short skirts in the Muggle world. Sadie saw a runway inside where women were modeling different robes that were very similar to those in the window, as many young girls flocked around the runway admiring them.
"How obscene!" said several older witches gathered around the outside of the shop. "These robes are so revealing, we might as well not dress our children at all, and send them into public naked."
A shop named Filk!, to Sadie's right, sold vinyl records and what appeared to be phonographs. Two teen boys argued in front of the shop. "C'mon, The Weird Sisters and Romilda and the Chocolate Cauldrons are bands you have to listen to!" bragged the first.
The other replied, "Yeah, if you're into that British stuff. You're the one who has to catch up on Oliver Boyd with the Remembralls and Harry with the Potters." Back on the left side of the street was a crowded restaurant called The Cloud Pine which was serving delicious looking meals that flooded the street with a beautiful aroma.
Eventually they neared the end of Low Street when Sadie noticed a particularly large alleyway that led behind several buildings to the right. "What's over there?"
"Oh, best not worry about that," Mr. Yates said unhappily. "That leads to Walpurgis Circle. Not a very nice place to be."
"Only the nastiest wizards start up shops there," Tristan mentioned.
"Now, I'm not going to say that anyone in Walpurgis Circle is bad, Tristan. It's just a... refined taste, I suppose."
"If you say so, dad," Kelsey mumbled. "You didn't get lost there when you were a kid. I still remember when that man tried to give me that cursed necklace."
Mrs. Yates ignored Kelsey's memory and said, "This is odd. I've never seen a line outside of Gringotts before."
Before them was a line of fifteen people waiting to enter, each being checked by someone near the front entrance who was dressed in a very official robe. He waved around some sort of tool near the peoples' bodies before letting them pass. Sadie and Kelsey's family queued up and waited for their turn.
When they got closer, Mr. Yates recognized the person who was scanning people. "Mr. Verbinsky! Hello!" The man waved in return and motioned that they would talk when they reached the front of the line.
"Arthur Verbinsky," Mr. Yates fondly greeted, giving the man a firm handshake after a few minutes. "Haven't seen you in ages. How've you been?"
Mr. Verbinsky looked quite tired, but happy. "Been good. Can't complain, right?"
"Why is there such a line at Gringotts of all places?" Mrs. Yates asked after giving Mr. Verbinsky a hug.
"Nasty business, Lindsay," he said as he continued to scan their entire group. "Someone was attacked right on the steps of Gringotts last night." This sent a shudder of fear into the whole group, and Sadie's mom looked more ruffled than ever. "No accident either. As far as we can tell someone used the killing curse."
"Good lord! People casting the killing curse right on Low Street?" Mr. Yates proclaimed.
"Yep, very disturbing stuff," Mr. Verbinsky continued as he waved the strange silver rectangle in his hand around Sadie. "The Administration hasn't identified the victim yet, but they think it was petty robbery gone awry. Rumors say the victim and the assailant had a scuffle when the man was being mugged, and the victim resisted, naturally. And well, you can guess the rest."
"But to use the killing curse. It's a wonder they haven't caught the fiend already, especially in such a busy area."
"They aren't reporting it in the Morning Magus at all," the tired guard said, finishing his scan of Tristan and turning to face them. "They don't want to start worrying everybody now that people are coming for their school supplies; it would be bad for business."
"Too true," Mr. Yates concurred.
"Well, despite this terrible circumstance, I do hope to see you around sometime," Mrs. Yates petitioned to Mr. Verbinsky. "If your not to busy at the Administration sometime soon, feel free to drop by for dinner."
"Will do Mrs. Yates. You all have a nice day, and stay safe."
The Murrays and Yates entered Gringotts Bank. It was one large room with a ring-around desk, people bustling from wall to wall of the room. And there were...
"What on EARTH is that?!" Sadie's mother cried.
She was speaking about a short person, about three feet tall, that hobbled past her. It had straggly hair, long fingers, long feet with dress shoes, a small, tailored suit, and a pointy, crooked nose. It growled angrily at her and shuffled on its way.
"Calm down, Mrs. Murray, just a goblin," Mr. Yates explained. "Best bankers and craftsmen you'll ever meet. You'll be wanting that desk over there," he said, pointing to a big boned goblin who was weighing dollar bills on a scale with a large bar of gold. "Lindsay, do you mind making sure things go smoothly for them while I take out some money for the kids?"
The room stretched at least ten stories high, and the floor was made of a beautiful marble. There were large statues of apparently famous goblins circling the walls near the ceilings. Everything seemed to gleam and shine as they walked across the floor to the desk. The goblin that helped them seemed grumpier than the one that Sadie's mother had hollered at, so it was decided Mr. Murray should handle the money conversions and open the bank account while Mrs. Murray waited outside.
Leah was wholly fascinated with everything that was taking place, and while waiting for the money to be processed into wizard money, struck up a conversation with a woman goblin who was as tall as she was. Jayne wasn't completely repulsed by the goblins, but she didn't enjoy them much either. She ended up staying very close to Kelsey and Sadie, waiting hopelessly to get a signal on her cell phone, which seemed to not be working. If a goblin came too close, she would grab onto Sadie's arm for protection.
Sadie's father contributed a large amount of money to her new bank account. Once this was sorted, newly converted wizard money was taken back out of the account for shopping. Sadie now carried a large bag full of gold, silver, and copper coins.
Everyone proceeded back outside to the sunlight of Orthogon Avenue. Mrs. Yates attempted to orchestrate. "Alright everyone, I believe we should get your books first, then uniforms, since they're on the other side of High Street, and..."
Mr. Yates chimed in, "Lindsay, why don't the kids do their shopping at their leisure?"
"Because they're kids! And..."
"And they know what supplies they need, and know that their school things are more important than other desires," he focused a stern look on Tristan who had been trying to eye the store filled with brooms. "It'll teach them a lesson in responsibility, because if they're thrifty, they'll have some money to spend for themselves."
"But what about Kelsey? She's only eleven. And Sadie? She's just a Muggle - no offense, dear - but she's never been here before."
"You've escorted Kelsey around every year for the past five years, Lindsay. I'm pretty sure she has the hang of things. And considering how quickly these two are becoming friends, I doubt Sadie would dare separate from Kelsey." Sadie beamed at the vote of confidence, and Kelsey put her arm around Sadie in hopes of looking more convincingly independent.
"Oh, alright!" Mrs. Yates finally agreed, "But only if I get to decide on this evening's plans. Everyone is to meet up at The Cloud Pine at 5:15 for dinner. No later!"
"In the mean time," Mr. Yates directed to Sadie's mother and father, "how about you and your daughters come with us back at Whitney Inn? We can have a nice lunch and chat there."
"Mommy! I want to go with Sadie!" Leah said, almost shouting. This was something Sadie had almost expected. The entire day, Leah had been happy and respectful to her, instead of rude and bratty like normal. Leah was clearly enjoying the wizarding world. Her mother looked blank, possibly from the rush of things she had been learning about throughout the day.
Sadie's father spoke in her stead, "As long as Sadie is alright with it."
Leah quickly hopped back and forth on her toes saying please as many times as she could fit in one breath to Sadie. Sadie asked Kelsey if it was alright, to which Kelsey said yes. No sooner had Sadie allowed Leah to follow them, Leah latched her hand to Sadie's. With a few goodbyes, the family and the kids parted ways.
"Finally, a chance not to have to follow mom around shopping all day," remarked Kelsey. "Where are you off to, Tristan?"
"Over to Windsurfing Nation. If I have any hopes of being a decent Quodpot captain, I'll desperately need to have a good broom. I'm hoping one of the older Nimbus models isn't too pricey anymore." He rushed along.
"So where should we go first?" Sadie asked Kelsey, "You're the expert on this."
"Well I say uniforms first. Always takes awhile, and I'll be happy to get it out of the way."
"Oh, so are we going to that store I saw with the runway?"
"You mean Haute Couture?" Kelsey said longingly. "I wish. They're really expensive, but they carry the most fashionable robes around. Beautiful designs and colors, not to mention the length. It's like wearing a skirt and is so comfortable. But that's not 'uniform regulation.' In fact, they forbid it at Salem. 'Too revealing.' I swear, adult wizards need to get a life and a fashion sense. Haven't you read your list of rules and supplies yet?"
"No, I've been busy all morning! I completely forgot," Sadie said, pulling out her letter, which had been in her backpack.
The Salem Institute
Of Magical Learning
_________________________________
Supplies and Dress code
School Uniform - All students are required to have minimum of:
Three button-up white collared shirts for boys; blouses for girls.
Two sweaters (blue).
Three khaki pants for boys; khaki skirts for girls.
Two Omnicolour ties for both boys and girls.
Two Omnicolour scarves
---Please say "whipper snapper" to clothing store proprietor when purchasing for ties and scarves.
Three pairs of white socks.
Three plain work robes (blue).
One (blue) wizard hat for day wear.
One winter cloak (blue with gold fastening).
---Note: Additional Omnicolour robes/hats/cloaks are allowed as long as they comply with the dress code.
Course Books
First year students require:
The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk
American Dream: Magic In the United States by William Plymouth Rock
The Night Starts Here by Madryn Star
Transfiguration for Beginners by Minerva McGonagall
Down and Dirty: Beginner's Herbology by Anthony Plant
Remedial Remedies by Sean Serum
Magical Defense and Application by Hu Deni
Other Materials:
1 Administration Approved Wand
1 Cauldron (size 2) - Recommended style: pewter.
1 First year potions kit
1 Telescope
1 Scale
Students may bring one pet: owl/raven/cat.
For other pets, please send a letter to the school with a description of the animal for permission.
Dress Code:
A) Students are required to wear school robes during school days until the end of classes.
B) Students are required to wear basic uniform Monday - Friday.
C) Clothes must be tucked in, neat, respectable, and maintained.
D) Girls: Skirts are to be KNEE LENGTH.
---Please note: All Haute Cotoure clothing is strictly prohibited.
E) Hats are required for special occasions, but optional for daily wear.
F) Saturday and Sunday, free dress is appropriate.
G) When wearing a robe, all students MUST WEAR SOMETHING UNDERNEATH.
"What strange books," Sadie said, rereading the list over once more.
"You think that's something, wait 'til we get to Noble Books. But first, we go in here."
They entered a shop called The New Black, which was filled with all sorts of robes for men, women, and children. They weren't as short and scandalous as the other robes, but were robes all the same. Several tailors were taking measurements and fitting robes for children in a mirrored area.
"Welcome, welcome!" said a woman who strutted up to them. She looked overtly confident, and her head kept wandering to the mirrors as if she needed to check her outfit. She looked somewhat self-consciously down at herself as if there were something wrong with the way she looked, but was obviously trying very hard not to do so. "My name is Ms. Mandell, and this is my shop. And I suppose you're here for your uniforms?"
"Yes ma'am," Kelsey affirmed politely. "Oh, and whipper snappers, for the both of us."
"Well, thank heavens someone has read the deal Salem is giving."
"Why do we have to say that?" asked Sadie.
"Those dumb ol' Omnicolour ties and scarves," Ms. Mandell complained quite derisively, scowling at a scarf on a nearby rack. "The only people that those mass-produced Omnicolour Clothes haven't put out of business is us, and that's only because Salem requires normal uniforms. We've even been getting students from Champlain Conservatory this year..."
Sadie felt particularly confused, and Ms. Mandell seemed to notice, because she walked straight to a rack of uniforms, and picked up an almost black looking robe, and an almost black and almost white looking scarf. It was hard to say why they were almost black, but they were distinctly not black, nor gray. "Salem, Noctowl," Ms. Mandell said aloud to the articles of clothing. No sooner did she utter these words, the robe instantly changed to a emerald green, while the striped scarf turned gold and green.
"That's amazing!" Sadie exclaimed.
"I grant, inventing a special color-change charm to put on their clothes for visual appeal is quite ingenious, but I must speak for myself. We only get ten percent of the profits from Omnicolour brands we sell in the shop. Salem pays us full price to sell you the Omnicolour accessories because it would be all you kids get anyway.
"Alas, I digress. Let's get you two fitted," Ms. Mandell said finally, leading them to the back of the shop.
The store remained bustling with customers as Kelsey and Sadie got measured while Leah hid behind racks of robes, scaring any unfortunate browsing customer. Kelsey bought the required clothing, along with an Omnicolour robe, advising Sadie to do the same.
"Tristan says that the house pride at school is a big deal, and wearing our colors on our robes is like waving a flag, so everyone gets at least one."
After they were finished purchasing all their clothes, they took their numerous filled bags full of uniforms and robes, and proceeded awkwardly to Coney Island Cauldrons, which sold cauldrons made of all sorts of materials. Some cauldrons were stacked so high atop each other they were in danger of falling like a giant tree.
Neither Sadie nor Kelsey knew the difference between styles, except that the copper, silver, and gold cauldrons were obscenely priced. The store clerk said that it was all for the better potion, but they decided they would manage with basic pewter cauldrons. They were chased out of the store soon after when Leah dove into a large cauldron with a spell that made it stir itself, which quickly attempted to cook Leah. It was a relief to get the the cauldrons; though they were quite heavy, they no longer had to carry their big bags full of clothes, and tossed them in the cauldrons.
Next was Noble Books, which turned out to be near large building Sadie had first seen from the other side of High Street. The inside of the store was tremendous inside, as the interior ran upwards with nearly thirty thick wooden bookshelves, which stretched upward toward the roof.
All the books Sadie and Kelsey would need were set up right next to the front desk, which made buying them significantly easier. But instead of rushing along, they meandered around the shop, looking at all the different books on the shelves, which were stacked tightly together and up the entire ten stories of the building. The only way to see what other books on display on the shelf was to go upstairs. Sadie found The Magical Sketchbook, which she knew she wouldn't regret buying, along with The Splendid History of Salem Institute, which she thought might be useful, and added them to her other school books, quills (because wizards didn't use pens or pencils), and bottles of ink.
Next was the shop Sadie, Kelsey, and Leah visited was Etc. Etc., a shop completely full of stuff. Stuff was the most explanatory word one would contrive from entering the store; Etc. Etc. didn't seem to market in anything in particular, but in fact sold just about everything imaginable in heaping piles which were scattered throughout the store. Sadie and Kelsey found their potion kits, scales, and telescopes, all for reasonable prices, though it took them nearly 45 minutes to sift through all the random curiosities all throughout the store. Leah took to playing hide-and-seek, which didn't make matters easier.
Back on the street, Kelsey nearly had a fit when she forgot that Sadie didn't have a pet. "You've got to have one! I have Gatsby, of course, and I share an owl with Tristan. But you, you need an owl, for sure."
"What would I want an owl for though?"
"They're really useful! It's how wizards communicate - we send owls back and forth with messages." This explained to Sadie why Kelsey's grandmother was always seen with owls flying by her house.
Kelsey continued, "You can't hope to send a message from school, cause it's not exactly like the Muggle postman is going to drop by and take your mail. That and they're so cute!" Kelsey finished, pointing at a kitten that was pawing the glass in the Playful Pet Adoption Shoppe.
The room inside the shop was bright yellow with comfortable looking cages, containing all sorts of animals, such as kittens, puppies, lizards, owls, birds, and some strange creatures Sadie had never seen before. Leah charged instantly to a strange pink puff-like creature, and began cuddling with it, while Kelsey pet the cats.
Sadie was busy browsing the owls, which were lined in their cages on the wall, when she noticed one in the corner of the store. While the other owls hooted happily as if talking to each other, this one sat quietly in the corner. Sadie called over the clerk, "What's with the owl in the corner over there?"
"Oh, a strange, and sadly unfortunate mistake," the kind woman said somewhat sadly. "It's a tawny owl. Usually they're only found overseas, and you see next to none here in the United States. It somehow got sent here with a shipment of other animals. Nobody knows where it came from originally, and it's been passed around for quite some time now."
Sadie got a closer look at the quiet owl. It was a light brown color, and somewhat stocky, but considerably smaller than any of the other owls. It leered at her curiously, but then started scratching its wing, apparently bored.
"It's not very sociable," the clerk commented. "In fact, it's bitten a few customers. I think it had a poor owner previously, and I'm sure all the moving around didn't help. It's also a runt." Sadie cringed when she heard the clerk say this. "Young for sure, but it's smaller than most any owl at its age. I suppose since nobody seems to want it, and I don't like the concept of passing it around the world, we'll just put it down. You'd probably like the other ones more, dear."
But Sadie took the cage with both hands. The tawny owl flapped its wings and hooted angrily and loudly, attracting a lot of attention. As customers began looking at Sadie and the owl, it stopped having a fit, almost as if it were embarrassed. "I like it," Sadie said.
"Are you sure, dear? The others are much more... friendly," the clerk said as the tawny owl took a strong bite into Sadie's finger.
Sadie stuck her finger in her mouth and spoke again, "I'm sure. I like him, and I think I'll name him Timber."
"If you say so. That'll be 6 Galleons and 12 Sickles... and I'll give you some bandages too," the clerk said as the owl gave Sadie another nasty bite. Timber wasn't happy after Sadie moved his cage from its spot on the shelf, and was flapping madly, but calmed down once they reached the busy street.
"Wow, I didn't realize it had taken so long," Kelsey mentioned, looking at a large clock that stood at the intersection of High and Low Street. "It's almost five already. Just enough time for you to get your wand."
"Right," Sadie affirmed, "and where do we go for that?"
"The only place to get a wand is Warren's Wizard Wands, at least, the only place that's decent here. There's one shop in Walpurgis Circle..." Kelsey seemed to dwell on a memory before shaking her head. "But yeah, Mr. Warren is the best wandsmith in the United States, or at least that's what everyone seems to think." They approached one of the buildings directly on the corner of the intersection of Low and High Street with a tattered, old sign hanging above the door.
They entered the dirty shop, which was in severe need of being aired out. It was quite dark except for what light filtered in through the dirty front windows. There was just as much dust on the floor except for a long cleaned streak where previous wizards had passed, wiping the dirt that was there away like a broom with their robes. The walls were lined high with shelves to the ceilings, all filled with hundreds of stacks of small boxes. The front desk had several pictures showing a family waving, because as Kelsey explained earlier, all wizard pictures move. Next to the picture was a nameplate that said, Mr. William Weartherby Warren - Wandsmith.
Besides the picture and the fact that the door to the shop was unlocked, Sadie assumed the shop was closed and in dire need or repair. But before Sadie could look around further, there came a loud bang accompanied by a great white flash of light down a hallway that also contained many more boxes. The bang was followed quickly by a heavy thud and a moan.
"Well, I said be patient, didn't I?" said the voice of an elderly man.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Warren. He's just really excited is all," said a second man from somewhere down the hallway.
"Not to worry, Mr. Shaw. I remember you were very much the same when you were getting your first wand. I should have expected as much," laughed the old man. "Come back to the sitting room and you can have a rest before we try again, calmer I do hope."
A man and woman who seemed to be the same age as Sadie's parents, and stocky boy about Kelsey and Sadie's age, came out of the hallway from behind the desk. They proceeded to a large couch covered in dust near the front window. The boy had a large lump on the back of his head, and his mother was fussing with him that he needed to learn to be more patient, much against the boys pleas.
"Honest, ma'. If I knew it was gonna explode, I wouldn't have touched the crazy thing."
An old man came from the same hallway in a wheelchair. He had very light, white hair that was very untidy, coke bottle glasses, and a charming face. "Well, well, Ms. Yates. Twelve-inch pine with dragon heartstring. Nice, thick, and powerful. Hasn't been giving you trouble now, has it?"
"No sir, Mr. Warren," Kelsey said, pulling her wand out of her pocket. "I'm just here with my friend who's getting her first wand."
"I do say though, Ms. Yates, do be careful," said Mr. Warren. "I always thought that one was a bit rebellious. But a friend! New opportunities! What is your name, young lady?" Sadie told him. as Leah clung to her arm as if she were worried. "Ms. Murray, yes, yes... Muggle, correct?"
"Yes!" Sadie replied, almost alarmed, "How did you know?"
"One of the true skills in being a wandsmith is being a people person," Mr. Warren said, driving his wheelchair around the front desk to Sadie and Kelsey. And when you've seen as many people, and made as many wands, as I have, you get a knack for prediction.
"The wand makes the wizard, or witch, Ms. Murray. Wands are very powerful magical tools that you'll no doubt find more about at Salem. But I can assure you somewhere in this shop is a wand that has been waiting for you since before you were born." Mr. Warren rolled directly in front of Sadie and pulled some measuring tape out of his robe. "Please extend your wand arm - oh yes, Muggle - almost forgot - your writing hand."
Sadie did as she was told, and Mr. Warren set himself to measuring her. Length of the whole arm, length of the upper and lower, individual finger size, distance between chest and arm, along with a long series of further measurements that seemed somewhat irrelevant, like forehead width and foot length. After the long series of awkward measurements that she felt she already received at the tailors, he directed them back to one of the hallways, which had wands in their boxes to every corner of the shop. Mr. Warren took his own wand out, flicked it, and made box poke out farther than its companions on the third tall shelf up. "If you wouldn't mind climbing up there and testing that wand out."
Sadie climbed the ladder, removed the box which was labeled Ebony, 13 1/2", brittle, phoenix feather.
"Now, please give the wand a flick," Mr. Warren asked.
She flicked the wand, but nothing at all happened. "No, no, then please put it away and come back down. Another, another. This one here, on the first level," Mr. Warren directed, handing her a box; Yew, 14 3/4", bendy, unicorn hair. Sadie gave it a flick, to which the wand suddenly erupted with a violent stream of water. The force of the water was so strong that the wand sailed out of her hand and banged into a stack of wand boxes, throwing them everywhere.
"Definitely not! More to choose from though," Mr. Warren said calmly.
It seemed that after 30 minutes they were still trying out wands. Most did nothing when Sadie flicked them, though some began to glow, but quickly died back down to normal. She was directed to what seemed like endless amounts of wands, all different combinations of lengths, woods, and items within the wand, that when Sadie asked, were called the wand cores. "The wands aren't magical in themselves. They're just sticks. But combining special wood with magical items give the wands their magical power," Mr. Warren explained.
Sadie didn't know what to think of this, though she was getting worried that finding a wand might take all day. One wand issued a huge beam of light which caused an explosion that sent wands in every direction, and Sadie clinging for her life to the ladder. The boy in the front of the shop, who was watching eagerly said, "See, Ma'! It's not just me!"
Another wand began to produce billowing black smoke, "My dear... you really should put that one away," Mr. Warren advised, though Sadie didn't need to be told twice.
She found the next wand far up near the roof of the shop. Cherry, 10 3/4", two unicorn hairs. Frustrated that she had to climb the ladder so high to reach this spot, she took the wand reluctantly. But she felt an odd, warm, soothing sensation flow through her entire body from her hand, like curling up in a warm blanket on a cold night. She gave the wand a wave, and it began to issue tiny bright gold sparks like a firework. "Wow..." she said to herself, mesmerized by the lights coming from the wand.
"Yes! Very well done! Didn't take long at all. Do come down."
When she reached the floor, Mr. Warren took her wrist with the wand still in hand and studied the wand up close. "I see, I see... Interesting."
"What is interesting, sir?" Sadie asked.
"Many wands correspond to different magical cores. This wand chose two hairs of a single unicorn rather than just one hair. It was very unorthodox to create, but you can't deny fate. This is a very unique wand, and very trustworthy as well." He continued to mumble to himself before he eventually had Sadie pay eleven Galleons for the wand.
After Sadie had her wand, she, Kelsey, and Leah made their way down to the Whitney Inn, the wizard version of the same Muggle hotel, at the end of High Street. They asked the hotel attendant if their parents had gotten rooms, and were directed to a room with two beds in Sadie and Kelsey's names. They deposited their things, and Sadie fed Timber a mouse, which he adamantly refused to eat. After briefly organizing their things, they made their way back down Low Street to the crowded Cloud Pine restaurant, where the Yates, Sadie's parents, and Jayne were waiting. All but Tristan sat at a table, talking and waiting.
"He wanted to go back to look at Quodpot things," Mrs. Yates sighed, shaking her head. "This is exactly why I prefer to come here only once a year with you kids." Tristan eventually returned with his pride and joy, a beautiful looking broom, which he propped up against the chair so everyone could admire it.
They were given menus with a large assortment of meals. Sadie received her first chance to use her wand. Because there were no waiters, the wizard ordering the meal had to touch the wand to what sort of food he or she wanted on the menu. The meal then without delay appeared cooked to perfection in front of them on the table. Sadie had to order for her whole family, which her mother was especially unhappy about.
Sadie's family was very quiet throughout dinner. Only her father was speaking, as he asked all sorts of questions to Mr. Yates, if he was fortunate enough to squeeze them in-between Sadie's infinite firing of different questions.
"So where is the Salem Institute?" Sadie's dad asked.
"It's hard to say exactly, because they use a lot of different charms on the school. Nobody knows exactly where it is. But by the name, you could guess it's somewhere near Salem, Massachusetts."
"How does someone not know where a place is if they're going there?" Sadie asked.
Mrs. Yates chimed in, "Well, this is getting into magic, which I know you won't understand very well, but I'll try and explain. There is something called an Unplottable Charm. It makes anything that has the charm impossible to be marked on a map. So you could never show someone how to get there exactly. They also have all sorts of different Muggle-repellant Charms."
"What do those do?"
"Depends on the particular charm. Most of them just hide things from Muggles in the open. Muggles tend to be somewhat dumb when it comes to magic - no offense intended," she added courteously after a grunt from Sadie's mother, who was slowly learning vocabulary words.
"But say there were a wizard shop in a Muggle town," Mrs. Yates continued. "To a wizard, it would appear as it is, because we comprehend magic and its true nature. Muggles would see a run down shop that needs to be bought up but isn't for sale. They don't notice because they aren't looking properly.
"The school also has more complex spells as well," she admitted. "For instance, I know for a fact that the grounds at Salem have a memory lapse Muggle repelling charm. If a Muggle found themselves strolling up the road to the school, once they enter the range of the charm, they would come to a sudden realization that they're supposed to be doing something else."
"You know," Sadie's dad mentioned, "there is this place deep in the park near our home where I have the strange feeling I've always left my keys in the front door."
"Good example, Mr. Murray. There is a Whomping Willow in that part of the park," Mr. Yates said.
"What is a Whomping Willow?" Sadie's father asked.
"They are a type of big willow tree that - well - whomps anything getting too close. Very territorial and dangerous. So we put a Muggle-repelling charm in that area."
"Who do you mean by we?" Sadie asked. She was very enthralled and curious in everything she was being told.
"I work for the United Sorcerer's Administration - wizard government in the US, ma'am," Mr. Yates mentioned as Sadie's mother gave him a puzzled look. "I work for the House of Magical Environment; Junior Representative of the Botany Division, though I'm hoping to get promoted soon."
"You will with all the good work you've been doing lately," mentioned Mrs. Yates. "You're in a good position for promotion."
"My wife used to work in the Administration before she had Kelsey. Afterwards, she decided to devote her time being full-time mother instead." Mr. and Mrs. Yates looked at each other smiling. "She used to be Junior Undersecretary, which is a very renowned position, and was quite the philanthropist, when she worked in the House of Magical Creatures. She was able to get better laws passed for goblins and centaur so they would have more representation in the magical community." Jayne struggled to contain a cough after hearing the word goblin again.
"How come I've never heard about all this government business?" Sadie's mom asked.
"Well you're a Muggle, of course." Mr. Yates said, winking, which made Sadie laugh.
"Well I think this magic business is ignorant, and I still don't think Sadie should be running away to a school full of kids to study nothing. And I'm not about to be involved in any of this." Inside, this made Sadie mad, but her mother knew nothing. Not even her mom being rude and self-absorbed could mess up a day this good. Sadie's father was about to console her mother before Mr. Yates spoke again.
"You say that now, but you'll change your mind in a year, I assure you. And if you really don't want involvement, it'll be no problem if we took Sadie with us to Union Station when that time comes around for the girls to leave for school. For now, since we're finished with dinner, let's head back to the Whitney Inn, shall we?"
Sadie's family and the Yates paid for their meals, and made their way back down both Low and High Streets to Whitney Inn. Sadie convinced her mother that it would be okay to share a room Kelsey, and that they weren't going to summon demons using their witchcraft, which her mother had incessantly tried to insist they would. Her mother may not understand how the wizarding world worked, but Sadie did.
Sadie could never have imagined something so perfect. Everything was interesting, and everything seemed to have some sort of unknown meaning behind it. The thoughts and dreams of attending the Salem Institute of Magical Learning and what it would be like to learn more was enough to drift her silently and quickly to sleep that night.
Sadie Murray and the Enigma Scroll by star_sailor
Chapter Notes: What is this strange place called Orthogon Avenue? And why have the Yates taken Sadie to The Whitney Plaza Hotel in New York City?
Chapter Endnotes: All characters whom obviously belong to J.K. Rowling and not myself... well... obviously, belong to J.K. Rowling, and not myself.