Chapter 2:
Friend and Foe
: On August 31st, the day before the alleged �Hogwarts� term started, Lily, her father, spiritually skeptical mother, and pond scum sister were attempting to enter Diagon Alley.
: "Frank! The letter says to picture this area as a clock and to first tap the brick where the 7 would be! That's this one!" Chloe scolded. She couldn�t believe she had convinced her conscience to let her go. Not only was this all a big joke to begin with, but now her husband had to complicate things.
: "No dear! That brick is some where between the eight and nine! It's this one!" Lily's father pointed to a different brick.
: "I�m telling you, it's not! That's the seven!" Chloe tapped the brick and mumbled, �Now which one next?�
: Frank slapped his forehead and moaned. He couldn�t believe he was going along with this.
: Lily, by far the most logically advanced person in the family, tore the piece of parchment from her mother's grasp. "Let me do it!"
: She was getting very frustrated, especially since Petunia was just standing there grumbling about how much of a 'loser' school this must be, even if it were real. Lily chuckled. Petunia never really had a liking to people with a brain. This complex pattern of bricks required some skills way out of her league.
: "You really need to take some art classes," Lily encouraged her parents. "� To enhance the two-dimensional part of your brain. All you have to do is visualize a clock and follow the directions!" She tapped a series of six bricks with her, thanks to volleyball, almost-nonexistent fingernails.
: To all of their amazement, including Petunia's, the brick wall began to magically shift, creating an arch for them to walk through.
: "This is too cool!�
: �I�ve never seen anything like it! I�m bring my business here!�
: �Our father, who art in heaven...�
: �Great, our demon child is introduced to her demon city.�
: The reactions from the Evans family are proof that there�s absolutely nothing to compare with seeing Diagon Alley for the very first time. Everything about it was remarkable: the crooked alley, the endless files of architecturally-flawed, yet adorable little shops, the wizards of all ages enjoying themselves in their exotic robes, the display broomstick flying above shoppers� heads, and the hooting of the emporium owls. No matter a person�s outlook on magic, good or bad, it was still remarkable.
: Lily was speechless. She had never seen anything so unbelievable in her life. She inhaled deeply, taking in Diagon Alley�s distinct aroma, and snapped a permanent mental picture. �Wow.�
: Lily reluctantly quit stuttering when Petunia �nudged� her in the side. In Lily's point of view, it was better described as an �aggressive, vehement blow in the ribs�.
: "OUCH!!" Lily glared at Petunia and then whispered so only her sister could hear. "Better watch your step Petunia. Do that again and you'll look worse than James when he went flying through the air."
: Petunia immediately got the picture. She couldn't underestimate these weirdos, not matter how dense they looked.
: "Ok! First stop, Ollivanders Wand Shop!" Frank announced, surprising the family for taking the lead. Astonishment took over the him as soon as he entered the shop. "I could really get used to the wizarding world! Look at this place!�
: Unannounced, an old man appeared out of nowhere, resulting in the Evans family jumping in surprise. "Hello and Good Morning! First years are we? Hold out your wand arm miss." He motioned towards Petunia.
: "Excuse me, but I'm the only one that's a witch. My sister isn't." Lily spoke up, holding in her laughter from seeing Petunia's expression of disgust.
: ~~~~~~
: Mr. Ollivander had just about emptied every shelf of wands in the entire shop, and they had all basically given up hope, when Lily found her match. She was sold as soon as a brilliant light gleamed around her and sparks flew from the wand. Lily happened to notice that most of these sparks protruded from her hand, not the wand, but she decided to keep it to herself.
: "Congratulations Miss Evans! I think this wand has finally found its owner. I never thought I'd sell this one.� Mr. Ollivander paused dramatically. �It was the first that I ever made: a very strange wand indeed. It created itself more than I created it."
: The Evans were struck with curiosity.
: "Yes, it may be hard to believe, but this wand practically has a mind of its own. I had set the pieces I was going to make it from on the table to begin putting it together, but every time I tried to put the hippogriff hair in it, the piece of wood zapped me! I continually tried to put it together, but it continued to shock me. I decided to give it up for the night, and as I was walking away from the table, a boa constrictor came slithering from out of nowhere! I of course jumped away from it, but it didn't advance towards me. Instead, it continued to glide up the side of the table and then it did the inconceivable: it laid itself right in the middle of the wand and became instantly petrified! I stayed very still and in a few seconds, the wood enclosed itself around the snake and a gold and scarlet glow flooded the room. I have pondered over and over why and how this happened, but I haven't come up with a reasonable solution. All I can say is that you were destined for this wand and it created itself just for you. Mark my words, this wand has a mind of its own."
: For most people, this type of news would have petrified them or at least made them gasp, but then again, Lily was not the same as everyone else. She wasn't included in the group labeled �most people� or �ordinary witches�. She was in that group labeled �Other�. Instead of the expected reaction, her eyes got wide with anticipation, and she just marveled her wand like it was more dear to her than anything else in the world. For the first time in her life, she was speechless.
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