First Wand Has The Charm

[Gifford Ollivander]

Early August 1887

Hogwarts' letters were officially out which meant a flood of business for Gif's shop. In fairness, many magical families didn't wait for the letters to be sent out to get their children's first wands. If they knew for a fact that they had magic and that they would be going to Hogwarts in the autumn, why wait?

It was morning. The shop had been open for hours but Gif himself had only just arrived. He'd brought along ten new boxes of wands - one he'd finished the evening before and the rest had been sitting in his house's storage area. The shop could never have new product, especially during the summer season. Gifford always felt like there wouldn't be enough wands for the future firsties.

"Coming!" Gif called from the back of the shop, where he had been sorting out wands depending on their wood. He walked to the front, where he was greeted by a young brunette and her chaperone.

"Let me guess," he started with a friendly smile to the child. "You're here to get your first wand."

@'Eliza Tremlett' @'Imogen MacFusty'

  

[Eliza Tremlett]

Finally - Eliza was shopping for her school supplies! Since she'd gotten her letter, things just seemed to continuously pop up to prevent them from going - her great-aunt had been called away on a mission to scout out a potential lead on a young muggleborn the muggle town over, Georgia hardly had a free moment between pre-studying for her NEWTs and interning under one of Aunt Josie's Herbologist friends, and of course, this was Edythe's least favorite time of the year so Eliza wouldn't have dreamed of asking her to take her shopping, not when it would only cause her pain! - but luckily for the incoming first year, the end of the first week of August saw Eliza finally put out of her misery, and taken into Hogsmeade.

School books acquired, robes and other equipment bought - including a surprise detour to the Beautiful Beast Boutique where Eliza had been allowed to select her very own pet, a toad whose name she was still contemplating (much to her great-aunt's displeasure who had been expecting her young charge to choose a less icky companion, such as an owl or a cat) - their last stop now was the wand shop. And if Eliza had been excited about getting a pet, it was nothing compared to getting her very first wand. With it, she would finally be considered a real witch - it would no longer just be something that she was simply told about, her wand would be proof that she really was magical, just like her great-aunt and Georgia!

With a little bounce in her step, Eliza and her great-aunt made their way into the little shop, a tingling bell overhead announcing their arrival. There was a particular feeling in the air, a strange sensation that seemed to envelop Eliza as they stepped over the threshold, as if there was actual magic in the very air - and there were just so many boxes! She had learned somewhere that the wand usually chooses the wizard, but Eliza couldn't imagine how when there were more options than there was time to go through them all. Did they just intuitively know which one was the perfect fit? Was magic an aid in this process? Well, only time would tell, she supposed!

No sooner had they been inside when a man had appeared from what she assumed was the back of the shop, his friendly smile causing her to give one of her own. "Yes!," she stated cheerfully, stepping a bit closer to the counter. "Will you be helping me?"

  

[Gifford Ollivander]

"Yes, young Miss!" Gifford confirmed with a smile. "I'm Gifford Ollivander." It gave some parents (and children) a reassurance to know that an Ollivander would be helping out in the selection. They were the experts and all. All Gif did was direct his customers to the right wands!

The young brunette was giving him a certain vibe. He couldn't see her with anything but unicorn tail hairs for the core. As for the wood, he had some ideas. Hazel, maybe, she struck him as the emotional sort. Or maybe maple, she felt like a traveller about to set off on a journey.

"Ah!" Gifford made and walked to the back. He found a particular box and then returned to the girl. "Let's begin with this one. Pliant, ten inches, maple - the traveller's wand. And it's got a quirk, it'll shine the more it stays with an owner. Oh, and it has two unicorn tail hairs at its core." He handed it to the girl. "Come on then, give it a wave!"

  

[Eliza Tremlett]

"Pleased to meet you!," she gave, remembering her good manners (her great-aunt was a stickler for such things), though Mr. Ollivander wasted no time in assisting them, and before Eliza knew it, he'd gone to the back - making a sound as if he'd had an epiphany of sorts; so perhaps it was uncanny intuition? a special gift that only a few possessed? she wanted to study this further! - and returned with a rectangular box, opening it to reveal a handsome maple wand. To a Muggle, it would simply look like an oddly-carved stick, but to Eliza it symbolized an official initiation into the world she had, up until this point, only read and heard so much about rather than experienced for herself first-hand.

With a sort of giddy - but cautious - excitement, Eliza reached out to accept the wand, her right hand curled gingerly around its wooden handle. She wasn't sure what to expect once it was in her grasp, but when she gave a little wave as instructed, a burst of white sparks flew out from the tip, and Eliza's breath hitched a little in both surprise and fascination. Was that supposed to happen?

"Is that a good sign?," she asked curiously, once she'd gotten over the initial surprise, the wand still in her grasp.

  

[Gifford Ollivander]

"It's better than nothing," Gifford informed. It wasn't a terrible match, but they could do better. When a wand chose a wizard, it usually emitted gold sparks and the wizard didn't have to do anything to produce them.

They were close. Gifford had had customers who'd go through myriads of wands that did nothing in their hand before finding the one.

Going with the unicorn tail hair vein, Gifford procured another box. "Reasonably supple, nine inches, alder and unicorn tail hair."