• Shopping Trip

  Dumbledore stopped Willow as she returned to her rooms after breakfast. "Hagrid's travelling into Diagon Alley in twenty minutes Willow, if you want to go with him. You should be back in time for your first class."
  
  Willow frowned at him in surprise. Her first class of the day was at one, and she wasn't sure how they were going to travel to London and back in time.
  
  "You'll be using the Floo network," said Dumbledore, as though that explained everything. "Get whatever you want from your rooms, and come to my study." He smiled at her and ambled off in the opposite direction, leaving Willow stood in the corridor.
  
  "The Floo network. Of course." She made her way back to her rooms and tried to decide what kind of outfit would be the least conspicuous in Diagon Alley. A long brown skirt she tried on flowed around her ankles in a robe-like way, and she pulled on a plain white tee-shirt and her knee-length brown coat.
  
  *I suppose that 'flowy' is the closest I can get to robes for now. Anyway, I'll be walking with a half-giant, I doubt I'll be getting the strangest looks.*
  
  She made it to Dumbledore's office with time to spare as the staircases had all been in the right position. *I may be grasping at straws but I'm going to take this as a good sign,* she thought as she neared the top of the final flight.
  
  Hagrid was at the bottom of the stairs leading to Dumbledore's office and he smiled as she walked up. "Nice to see you again Professor Rosenberg," he said as the gargoyle moved aside and they walked up the stairs. They'd exchanges smiles briefly over the staff table in the Great Hall, and he'd looked impressive sitting down. Standing behind her on the staircase he still towered over Willow, and she wondered whether a full-blooded giant would even fit in the stairway.
  
  Dumbledore's door was open, and he was standing by the fire which was burning merrily in his already stuffy office. He turned and waved them in, and handed a small pouch to Hagrid.
  
  "We'll be back by about midday, I reckon," said Hagrid, taking a pinch of glittery powder out of the pouch. "Can't see us taking any longer than that anyway."
  
  Dumbledore turned to Willow. "This is the Floo network," he gestured at the fire, and the powder Hagrid was holding. "You take a pinch of the powder, say where you want to go and throw the powder into the fire, and then step in. Watch Hagrid."
  
  The half-giant said, "Diagon Alley," and threw his powder down as he stepped into the flames. They leapt up around him and burned bright green for a second, and then he was gone and they calmed down again.
  
  "Make sure you speak clearly and distinctly. Young Harry ended up in Knockturn Alley once, a most unpleasant place to find yourself," Dumbledore warned.
  
  Willow's fingers felt slightly unsteady as she took a pinch of the gritty powder. "Did I mention the nearly being burned at the stake thing?" she said rhetorically. "Kinda puts a witch off fire."
  
  "I believe that is a story you have yet to share with me," Dumbledore grinned. "Try to keep your elbows tucked in."
  
  "Yeah, well, so long as you know," she muttered, and stepped up to the fireplace. "Diagon Alley," she called out as she threw the powder into the fire, and then stepped in, keeping her elbows tight against her sides.
  
  The green flames licked up and over her, but there was no heat in them, and before she could take in what was happening she found herself falling out of a fire place into Hagrid's arms.
  
  "Careful there," Hagrid said, steadying her as she found her balance. "I think we'll head to Gringott's first, if that's alright with you."
  
  "Suits me," said Willow, brushing the dirt and ash from her clothes. "I need to take money out anyway." Dumbledore had insisted on paying her two months wages in advance, with the excuse that as a new member of staff she would obviously need funding for supplies. Given that Snape had told her that funding for any teaching supplies could be drawn from Hogwarts' own Gringott's account after filling in a request form, she was fairly confident that Dumbledore was trying to win her over by letting her roam the world's most fascinating shopping street with a bank balance to indulge her whims.
  
  It was working.
  
  As they walked towards Gringott's Willow was already calculating how many of the things she was eyeing up she'd be able to carry home. Especially through the Floo. She gave Hagrid a hopeful glance. He might have a hand free for carrying shopping, depending on what he needed to buy.
  
  When they walked into Gringott's Willow couldn't help staring. The only similarity between Gringott's and a muggle bank was the queues. Hagrid steered her towards the tail end of a medium size queue and told her he'd meet her outside before heading off in the direction of a shorter queue at the back of the bank. Looking around the bank Willow watched the gobins at the counters for a while, before switching to examining the people in the nearby queues. A short wizard in pale green robes that made him look slightly seasick was struggling with a long form. He was trying to unroll the bottom of the scroll, and roll up the top in such a way that he had a manageable size chunk of the form to deal with at any one time. The top of the scroll slipped out of his grip, hit the floor and kept on unrolling until it hit the shoes of a witch in a nearby queue. Willow noticed guiltily that her queue had moved on, and the witch behind her was sighing loudly in the manner of people the world over who desperately want to say something rude, but don't quite have the audacity.
  
  Willow moved up the queue and looked at the witch in front of her. She was small, and hunched, and grey; not just her hair, but a general all over grey. Her robes were a worn grey, her shoes were dirty grey, her bag was grey patches on a grey background, her skin was an alarmingly sallow grey. The queue moved up again and the grey witch found herself next to be served. She turned and leaned her bag on the post ruling where the queues should begin. Willow moved forwards automatically, and then recoiled as she caught sight of the witch's face. She looked like she'd stepped out of a fairy tale; the only thing that screamed "witch" louder than her hooked nose was her boils. Her boils had boils. And those boils had hair. It would have been comedic if it were not for her eyes; eyes that Willow had last seen staring back at her out of a mirror a year ago.
  
  The queue moved up, and the grey witch turned away and stepped up to the counter.
  
  Willow felt shaken. *Is she a Dark witch?* She knew that Voldemort's supporters were still able to walk around in public. The Order might know who they were, and what they did in their spare time, but without the support of the Ministry there was nothing that could be done. Of course, without the support of the Ministry it was going to be difficult to get the proof that would convince the Ministry to do something. A tricky situation, and in the meantime it was still unnerving to see Evil looking out of human eyes. *Never thought I'd look back fondly on the demons in Sunnydale.* The queue moved up and it was Willow's turn to approach the tall counter. The goblin stared down at her.
  
  *Overcompensating any?* she thought as she looked up at the small creature. "I'd like to make a withdrawal from vault 31103 please," she said, handing over the small key that Dumbledore had presented her with.
  
  "Hogwarts," the goblin murmured, and nodded to itself. "Follow me," it snapped, and slowly clambered down from its platform. It led the way through the bank to a small cart set on rails. "Keep all limbs inside the carriage," it said as it hopped into the front and looked at her impatiently.
  
  Willow cautiously stepped into the cart, and sat down, tucking her hands around her elbows. The goblin pressed a few buttons and pulled a lever and the cart started off along the track heading into a large cavern. It picked up speed and rattled quickly past big doors, small doors, doors with one lock, doors with chains and bolts and padlocks, iron doors, and wooden doors until it slowed to a stop outside a door roughly the same size as a typical front door on a terraced house. It was made of a metal of some kind, and was protected by two bolts and a keyhole that the goblin slid her key into.
  
  "Stand back please."
  
  The goblin drew back the bolts, turned the key in the lock and then placed a hand over the handle and whispered a few quiet words. A clunk came from within the door, and it swung outwards, revealing a small room with a table at the back. Willow climbed carefully out of the cart, taking care not to look down. The cart had gone up and down as well as side to side, but Willow had noticed that there had been a lot more down than up, and she'd never seen the bottom of the cavern. Better not to look down.
  
  On the table in her vault were three heaps of coins. She'd already learned the magical monetary system of galleons, sickles and knuts. She glanced over the piles, thinking, *How cool would it be to walk into a bank in L.A. and ask to see all your money laid out in front of you. They could show you its value in gold! Okay, not so cool if you don't have much money... I wonder how much this is exactly in dollars.* Dumbledore had explained how to convert between magical currency and American dollars, but, she realised with a sudden certaincy, he'd deliberately avoided discussing what her pay would be. It had never been important enough for her to ask about given that her living costs would be minimal and that she had savings in her bank in L.A. Plus parents who found it easier to give her money than time. The three generous piles in front of her confirmed her suspicions that Dumbledore thought a shopping spree would appeal to her.
  
  *And he's right. Still, I'll have to pay him back for some of this at least, I'll just have to keep track of how much I spend.*
  
  She counted out some coins from each pile and put them in her bag, then climbed back into the cart and waited for the goblin to lock the vault up again before heading back up into the bank. After the goblin returned her key she walked outside and leaned against the uneven brickwork. A man with bright red hair walked out of Gringott's doors and turned to walk past her.
  
  "Hi Bill," said Willow shyly.
  
  Bill turned round. "Willow!" he exclaimed, "I didn't think we'd be meeting again so soon. How are you?"
  
  "I'm good, thanks. Just come down to Diagon Alley with Hagrid for the morning. He needs to do... something. I'm not quite sure what. And I need to shop. Very boring. Just school supplies." Willow tried to keep a straight face.
  
  "And I thought all women loved shopping. Or is that just my sister?"
  
  "No," Willow grinned, "not really. To tell you the truth I'm really excited. I mean, I've never been in a place like this before. Except for, you know, that one time when I arrived. And now not only do I get to be here, and look at all these really interesting things, I've got the ability to purchase them as well."
  
  She patted the bag she was carrying and was rewarded with a satisfying clinking sound.
  
  "You're not going to have enough hands!"
  
  Hagrid pushed open the doors to their right, and looked around for Willow.
  
  Willow looked and Hagrid, and then glanced at Bill.
  
  "And he'd be the unfornate man to go shopping with you?" Bill winked at her.
  
  Willow smiled sweetly up at Hagrid as he arrived next to her. "All done?"
  
  "Hey Bill, nice to see you. Yep, that's Gringotts done, I've just got one more thing I've got to pick up."
  
  "I've got to be getting back to work," said Bill, stretching and strolling back to the doorway, "but it was nice to see you both."
  
  "You too," Willow smiled at him before turning back to Hagrid. "How about you point me in the direction of a shop that sells robes I could wear around Hogwarts, while you get the thing you gotta get? I figure getting robes fitted will take the longest time."
  
  Hagrid nodded. "I don't much go in for robes myself, seeing as you pay by the foot, but I know where Hermione shops, they do nice robes, and not just for the kids. Just down here it is."
  
  He led Willow past Gringott's and a few more intriguing shops before pointing out a shop to her left with Hogwarts school robes floating as though on invisible bodies in the window.
  
  "I'll meet you round about here when I'm done, okay?"
  
  "Okay, thanks Hagrid." Willow walked up to the shop, and after watching the uniforms in the window bob slightly, pushed open the door and walked in.
  
  "You must be Professor Rosenberg," a smiling witch in an impeccably cut robe said as she gestured Willow to come further in. "Minerva mentioned you were starting this term, and I did wonder if she'd recommend me."
  
  "Um," Willow didn't quite like to say that the shop had been recommended by a half-giant who might quite easily wear a tent stitched together if it was durable, warm and let his armpits breathe.
  
  "Anyway," continued the shop witch, "it's lovely to see you my dear, I'm Sonique, now what can I do for you?"
  
  "I don't own any robes," said Willow, and instantly felt stupid as the other witch looked her up and down.
  
  "So you'll be in need of a complete wardrobe then?" the shop witch smiled.
  
  "Not to begin with," Willow said. "Just three or four robes that I can wear around the school."
  
  "And for formal and informal functions?"
  
  "Not now." Willow said firmly, more to curb her own spending spree than to squash the other witch's hope for an expensive sale.
  
  "Alright dearie, if you'd like to stand up, I'll just take some measurments."
  
  The shop witch quickly recorded her measurements as Willow looked at the different robes on display in the shop.
  
  "You see anything you like, you let me know now, won't you?" the hopefullness was back in Sonique's voice. "We can do any style you want, any of the patterns you see."
  
  "I like the colour of the green one, over there by the window."
  
  "For formal wear, is it?"
  
  "Well no, I was thinking for teaching in. Maybe one green, and the rest black?"
  
  "Of course, of course," Sonique nodded her head excitedly, waving the piece of parchment with Willow's details on it in the air. "One in 'Emerald Green', three in black." She turned to shout to an assistant in a back room, "'Emerald Green'. Back of the storeroom, up the stairs, on the right!" There were muffled footsteps heading upstairs followed by a crack, a crash and a voice that would probably be swearing it if wasn't filtered through a large pile of material.
  
  Sonique smiled wider at Willow, and chanced a look at the ceiling. No body parts were sticking through it, which was probably a good thing. She threw a last smile in Willow's direction and stormed through the doorway into the back room.
  
  "On the right, I said! The right! A squib would be more use than you!" The shop was silent for a moment, and then Sonique sashayed through from the back room.
  
  "There we are then dearie, we'll have them delivered to Hogwarts for you, and charged to your account, yes?" she asked in the tone of voice that implies that's what's going to happen whether you like it or not.
  
  "My... "
  
  "Account," Sonique smiled encouragingly. "All the Hogwarts staff have the option to take an account with us. You can settle your balance at the end of each term." She presented Willow with a piece of parchment entitled, "Order Form", with details of the robes Willow had asked for and the price marked as due for payment by December.
  
  *Better than spending Dumbledore's money now I guess.*
  
  "Thank you, that would be fine," Willow returned the smile, took the order form and started thinking about what else she needed to buy. As she walked towards the door it opened suddenly to admit a strikingly pale woman, with long blonde hair. She was wearing the kind of dress that had a name, and quite possibly a picture in an art gallery somwhere.
  
  "Narcissa!" Sonique welcomed the older lady with a kiss to the air at either side of her cheeks. Willow was left forgotten by the doorway as the two women went straight to the counter and started to discuss charms that could be woven in with clothing as it was made. It was a time consuimg and expensive process, but if you could afford it then you could own clothing that would make you beautiful, or charming, or enigmatic; any charm that affected the way people perceived you could be woven into an outfit as it was created. Willow shrugged to herself and made her way outside to where Hagrid was waiting.
  
  He was clutching a brown parcel in his left hand, and waved to her with his right. "Done a bit earlier than I thought I'd be. Where did you want to go now?"
  
  Memories of a small black kitten sprang to Willow's mind.
  
  "Well, first..."
  
  

  ---

  
  
  Hagrid had put the parcels he was carrying down and was waiting to catch Willow as she tumbled out of the fire place in Dumbledore's office.
  
  "Still haven't quite got the hang of that," she said smiling at him. "And thank you for carrying my shopping for me. You really didn't have to carry it all you know."
  
  "Ever the gentleman," said Dumbledore. "I trust you've had a productive time this morning?"
  
  "Shopping a plenty," said Willow gesturing at the bags Hagrid had placed on the floor. "I did want to have a word with you..."
  
  She'd been cradling a cat basket as she fell out of the fireplace, and set it down by her feet where it 'Meep'ed indignantly.
  
  Dumbledore smiled, nodded and turned to Hagrid. "You got what you went for?"
  
  "Yep, got it at the third place I tried." Hagrid picked up brown parcel he'd been carrying and walked to the door. "I'd best be putting this some place safe."
  
  As Hagrid's footsteps disappeared down the stairs Willow glared at Dumbledore.
  
  "Are you trying to bribe me or buy me?"
  
  Before Dumbledore could reply, she continued, "I mean, not that I haven't had a great shopping trip, but I'm paying you back. For most of it anyway. We'll work out a proper salary, and I'll pay for the rest."
  
  Dumbledore gave her a knowing smile. "Of course, Professor Rosenberg, I must have made a mistake in my mathematics. Usually I only have to worry about pounds."
  
  Willow paused with her finger pointed at him, ready to make a counter-argument.
  
  "Oh. Yes." Willow agreed slowly, and started gathering up her purchases. She had a puzzled expression on her face, and managed to drop two bags from her right hand while trying to tuck a fourth parcel under her left arm.
  
  "The house elves can take them all to your rooms, if you want them to."
  
  Willow dropped the few bags she still had hold of and looked at Dumbledore intently. "Was this some kind of test?"
  
  "Well done Professor Rosenberg," Dumbledore smiled at her.
  
  *I knew it,* Willow thought triumphantly. *Some kind of character evaluation thing. I guess it means I'm not the sort of person that'll take money without asking questions. Or is it that I wouldn't take advantage of him not knowing how much to pay me? Either way, I guess I passed the test. Unless it was to do with trusting him not to be the kind of person who'd bribe me. You're reading way too much into this,* she finally decided. *It just would have felt wrong to accept all that money, nothing more complicated than that.*
  
  "Although the elves can still take them if you wish."
  
  "What? No, I meant the shopping... money... test..." Willow trailed off. "That would be nice, thank you."
  
  "Not at all."
  
  
  -: Chapter 7 -:- Chapter 9 :-
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