Diagon Alley Part 1
After lunch was over, you and Hagrid left the orphanage. Infront of the gates lay a carriage in wait, the driver and the horses patiently waiting.
"You came in a carriage?" You asked curiously.
"Aye. Too big for a car or bus. Ever been in one?" Said Hagrid.
You shook your head as the two of you approached the carriage. The driver tipped his hat to Hagrid. You walked over to the two horses, reaching out a hand to pet one of them.
"Yeh like them horses?" Asked Hagrid.
You looked back at him with a smile.
"I like lots of animals. like them better than most people." You said honestly, as you used a hand to pet each horse.
"Aye, that they can be. I have a fair love for them myself. Bigger the beast the better." Agreed Hagrid.
Your smile got a bit bigger. Hagrid climbed into the carriage, and sat at the edge to make room for you.
"Up you get now. Long day ahead of us." Said Hagrid, waving you over with one of his large hands.
You nodded, and left the horses. You climbed into the carriage, and took a seat next to Hagrid. It was rather squished, but you'd manage.
"Where too?" Asked the driver.
"Charing Cross Road." Said Hagrid.
The driver nodded, before lifting the reins. The horses began moving, carrying the carriage down the London roads. The carriage ride was peaceful, and you enjoyed the scenery as your travelled deeper into the heart of London. Eventually Hagrid called the driver to stop at the corner of Charing Cross Road and Tottenham Court Road. With the carriage stopped, you and Hagrid disembarked. Hagrid made sure to pay the driver, and the driver then departed.
"This way." Said Hagrid.
You followed Hagrid down the sidewalk, and soon came across a pub nestled between a record shop and a bookstore. It was called the Leakey Cauldron, with a sign underneath saying 'Pub and Lodging'.
"Here we are. The Leaky Cauldron. Famous place it is, lots of wizards inside." Said Hagrid.
"But what if someone who's not a wizard walks in? Shouldn't it be more hidden?" You pointed out.
"Oh, it is. Hidden by magic, so muggles can't see it. They just see some forgettable rundown store." Explained Hagrid.
"Muggle?" You questioned the new word.
"Aye. Non magic folk. And you'd be Muggleborn, wizard born from muggles." Hagrid clarified.
You nodded in understanding, repeating the new words to yourself. Hagrid opened the door to the Leaky Cauldron and went inside, you following behind him. Inside the pub, were many men and woman in in robes, cloaks, and other strange clothes. There was laughter, drinking, and some kind of card game in the corner. There were also other strange creatures there, some short, some tall, some with pointy ears. It was then that you really felt like you properly stepped into the world of magic.
As you walked through the tavern following after Hagrid, many called out greetings to Hagrid.
"Hagrid!"
"Hagrid! Came to join us for some drinks?"
"Hagrid! Come join our game, you old lout!"
"Not Today, lads. Got business to do." Said Hagrid, waving them off.
"Whose the girl?"
"Care for a drink, girlie?"
A drunk man held out a drink for you, but you backed up shaking your head.
"I'm too young to drink. Besides it's smells gross." You said.
The man laughed.
"That it dose! Tastes like shit too!" He drunkenly proclaimed.
Hagrid game over and shoved him away from you.
"Aye, leave her alone. Dumbledore himself put me in charge of her, so I won't be letting you get er drunk." Declared Hagrid.
He then looked back to you.
"Let's be on our way lass." Said Hagrid.
You followed Hagrid out the back of the pub, and Into a small walled off courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron. There was only a rubbish bin and a large wall.
"There's nothing here... Did we get lost?" You asked confused.
Hagrid scratched his head.
"No, no... This is the place. Just gotta remember... Let's see..." Spoke Hagrid.
He raised an umbrella he always seemed to carry with him, taping the wall with the tip.
"from the rubbish bin, three up and two across..." Muttered Hagrid to himself, taping said stones as he went.
You watched as the stones began to move, and fold away. A small hole at first, soon opened up into a large archway. Through the archway you saw a cobblestone alley filled with shops, stalls, restaurants and more. The alley was filled with witches and wizards, young and old.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley!" Announced Hagrid.
Your face became one of awe, as your eyes drank in this new wondrous place. Before you could stop it, you found yourself excitedly running down the alley. Hagrid swore to himself as he chased after you. You bobed and weaved through the crowd, stop only briefly to look inside the window of each shop. One place did give you real pause though. A dark twisting alley that seemed completely out of place from the magical Diagon Alley you had been running through. You began to walk down it curiously, when a large hand grabbed your arm to stop you. Looking back, you saw Hagrid, who had finally caught up to you.
"Not down there, you don't." Advised Hagrid.
"Why not?" You asked curiously.
"That's Knockturn Alley. Real dodgey place, with even dodger people. No place a little lass like yourself." Warned Hagrid.
"Oh. Okay then." You said.
Hagrid sighed and let you go.
"No more running off now. We got a lot of shopping to do, and not a lot of light left in the day." He said.
You nodded, and followed him as he made his way through Diagon Alley.
"Did you bring your letter?" He asked.
"No, but I memorized it. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore. Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer-" you began to recite your letter, but Hagrid held out a hand to stop you.
"Aye, no need to hear it all. Just want to make sure I know what we're getting. That memory will sever you good in school though." Said Hagrid.
"I hope so." You replied.
"First up though, we got to go to Gringotts. Dumbledore put yer scholarship money in your very own valut he opened for you." Said Hagrid.
You walked by Hagrid's side, and he guided you to Gringotts Wizarding Bank. An imposing snow-white multistoried marble building, that seemed to be leaning and bending in odd ways. It towered high over the other ships. Hagrid lead you up a set of white stairs, to a set of burnished bronze doors. The doors were flanked on each side by what you assumed were goblins, in uniforms of scarlet and gold. You reached out a hand to curiously touch one, but Hagrid was quick to grab your arm to stop you.
"Never mess with goblins, (Y/n). Gringotts is the safest place in the world fer anything yeh want ter keep safe — 'cept maybe Hogwarts." Said Hagrid.
You apologized with a sheepish smile, and Hagrid let you go. You both entered the building, finding yourself in a small entrance hall. There was another set of doors, being silver this time. There was a message engraved onto the silver doors.
'Enter, stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief, you have been warned, beware
Of finding more than treasure there.'
This message definitely confirmed what Hagrid said about not messing with Goblins...
Through the silver doors lay a vast marble hall. Long counters stretched along its length, with doors leading off to the vault passageways. Around a hundred goblins sat at the counters. More Goblin guards stood posted by each door. Hagrid lead you through the cue, and eventually to one of the counters. The Goblin at the counter peered down at the two of you apatheticly.
"Ah, Here to access the vault Dumbledore set up for (Y/n) (L/n)." Said Hagrid.
The Goblin looked over to you.
"And dose Ms.(L/n) have her key?" Questioned the Goblin, with a raised eyebrow.
Hagrid held up a finger.
"Oh, Right! I have it here somewhere. Just one moment..." Said Hagrid as he dug through his coat.
"Aha!" He exclaimed, pulling out a small bronze key.
He handed it to the Goblin, who took it in his long clawed fingers. The Goblin looked it over, before nodding.
"Follow me..." He grumbled unenthusiasticly.
The Goblin disappeared, only to reappear around the counter a few moments later. He lead the two of you through one of the large doors in the hall. Through the doors was a dimmly lit passage, that lead into a wide cavern. The Goblin went over to grab a lantern off a shelf, and gestured to what looked like a mining cart.
"I thought dwarfs were the ones that liked underground caves..." You commented.
The Goblin gave you an unimpressed glare. You shrunk back, not wanting to earn the strange creatures ire. The Goblin stepped into the Mining cart, through a door on the side of it.
"Keep all hands and feet inside the cart during the ride. Gringotts dose not offer reimbursement for loss limbs." Warned the Goblin nonchalantly.
You looked nervously over to Hagrid, but he seemed calm as ever as he entered the mine cart. You follows him into the cart, and the Goblin closed and locked the door. It was a tight fit, mostly due to Hagrid's large size. You let out a panicked shriek, when the cart suddenly started moving down the rails at staggering speeds. Hagrid and the Goblin seemed unfazed, while you desperately grabbed a hold of the cart so you wouldn't fly out. The cart shot down the tracks, deeper into the cavern. The tracks did sharp turns, steep dips, and even a few loop de loops, that left you unbearably nauseous. The cavern was dimly lit by the occasional toach, and the sounds a beasts echoed throughout the vast space. Eventually the cart came to a sudden hault, making you almost throw up. You leaned over the side of the cart wheezing, and trying to not look you lunch. Hagrid patted you on the back, with a small chuckle.
"It takes some getting used too. If you loose your lunch, just make sure not to get it in the cart. The Goblins don't like that." He said light heartedly.
You gave him a weak nod, unable to speak at the moment. The Goblin oped the cart door and exited, Hagrid following after him. You managed to find enough strength to follow them, but you legs wobbled as you walked. Before you lay a small bronze vault, that matched your key. The Goblin used your key to unlock the vault, the large doors opening. Inside was a small mountain of gold, silver, and copper coins. They didn't look like any kind of money you've ever seen, and you certainly didn't expect so much to be in your vault. Even Hagrid seemed a bit surprised, as his eyes widened in shock.
"Oh! Dumbledore sure was generous. This is much more then Hogwarts usually provides for scholarship. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, really. Dumbledore's always been good to those he likes." Said Hagrid with a smile, ducking a bit to enter the small vault.
You wore a confused frown at Hagrid's words, as he bent down to put some of the money into a coin pouch.
"But why would you think he likes me? I only met him once." You pointed out.
Hagrid stood back up straight, pulling a rope to close the pouch, before putting the coin pouch back in his coat. He gave an amused chuckle at your question.
"No one can really tell what gose on in a great mind like his most the time. But he's an important and busy man. The headmaster of Hogwarts doesn't just personally deliver every Hogwarts Acceptance Letter. He must have his reasons for liking you enough to put in special effort. Course, you'll have to ask him yourself if you want answers." Said Hagrid pointedly.
Your mind couldn't help but drift back to the strange goodbye Dumbledore left you with. And you couldn't understand what about you had garnered special interest from him. Only time will tell.