Castle of Glass

Third Year

A 14-year-old girl stood looking into a store window. The people passing in the streets paused to glance at her, but she always stood out in a crowd. Her short curly red hair was eye-catching, and her gray acid washed jeans, along with her ratty band tee and flannel tied around her waist looked very out of place on the cobblestone street. Add to that heavily pierced ears and combat boots she was turning heads for all of the wrong reasons. Violet didn't mind, she was used to being looked at. Her father was a world-renowned surgeon, her mother a model. Violet was also a witch. She looked over her shoulder and pulled open the door, walking into the shop. She was greeted immediately by an old wizard. Violet smiled at him.

"Getting your first wand?" He asked gently.

Violet shook her head. "A replacement actually. Mine was broken. It wasn't my fault." She added quickly when he looked at her. "I was attacked. His spell broke my wand." Violet removed the two pieces from her leather bag. The white river monster spine was snapped clean in half. "The wandmakers in America said it couldn't be repaired, but I figured I'd try one more shop before getting a new one."

Ollivander nodded and took it from her. "White River Monster Spine? That's unique in these parts. I'm sorry dear there's no fixing that." Violet nodded. "Try this one. 11 inches, Dragon Heartstring, Ashwood, inflexible."

"Lumos" the light flickered and then went out, Violet set it back into the box shaking her head.

The wizard hummed and reached for another "10 inches, Dragon Heartstring core, Applewood. Inflexible" Violet took it carefully.

"Wingardium Leviosa" the box she tried to levitate didn't move at all. "I'm sorry sir, my last wand was very springy.

Ollivander considered her carefully and then handed her another wand. "12 and three quarters, Dragon Heartstring core, Walnut wood, Supple."

Violet took the wand and instantly felt a connection. "Reparo" She pointed it at a broken vase on the floor. The vase instantly returned to its prior state. "Wingardium Leviosa" The vase floated neatly onto the table and settled there.

She smiled up at the wandmaker and paid for her wand. Then went to join her father for lunch across the street.

Violet's father took her into a shop where he surprised her with a new potions kit. The apothecarist had packed a new cauldron, scales, and an abundance of ingredients into an apothecary chest her father had bought at a muggle yard sale. The store owner did an expanding charm on it for free, so that everything would fit neatly despite the chest being too shallow for the cauldron. Violet's father left with the new kit, bringing that and her other school supplies to their home in London, but Violet wanted to explore the village a bit more.

She wandered off down a road to the right and passed a store labelled Borgin & Burkes, Violet was drawn in when she saw a tall blonde boy step in with his father. She placed her wand into her purse and walked around, hands behind her back looking closely at a variety of peculiar items. In a glass case was a shriveled hand, clutching a pocket watch with a strange symbol on it. She could hear the boy's father speaking in hushed tones with the shopkeeper. She locked eyes with the boy through a glass case. Violet felt her heart flutter looking at the sharp features against soft grey eyes. His father, tall with long stringy blonde hair spoke to the boy harshly and the boy turned away. Violet left the shop quickly and went down to another apothecary down the street. Violet peered around and noticed she was the only woman present. "You! Girl what are you doing here!" A scarred up man with a spinning fake eye was yelling from across the shop. Violet reached into her purse for her wand as she stepped back out of the shop and into the street shaking and hoping he didn't follow