Chapter 26. Shopping
When Harry was fiddling with the birthday present Adrian Wesson had given him, Adrian had already arrived at Diagon Alley.
His destination this time was the Magical Menagerie on the south side.
As the name suggested, the shop sold ordinary magical creatures—pets like owls, Fire Crabs, and Puffskeins.
Most Hogwarts first-years bought their pets here.
It was also the most popular pet shop in Britain, with branches in many places.
"Welcome."
No sooner had Adrian stepped inside than a witch came up to greet him; she was a shop assistant here.
"Do you need a pet?" she asked warmly. "We've just had a new shipment of owls in today."
Adrian shook his head slightly and replied politely, "Thank you, I'm not here to buy a pet. Is the proprietor in?"
At this, the assistant looked a little troubled.
"Sir," she paused, "just tell me what you need and I'll handle it. If you really must see the proprietor, I can pass along a message."
Before Adrian could answer, the assistant seemed to think of something.
She peered at him and said, "Ah—are you Mr Wesson?"
Adrian nodded.
Once she had confirmation, her expression brightened at once.
She offered an apologetic smile. "You should have told me you had an appointment, Mr Wesson. The proprietor is waiting for you in the back room."
"Thank you."
Following her lead, Adrian walked down a short corridor to a wooden door.
"Ms Roskin? Mr Wesson has arrived," the assistant said, knocking.
"Please come in," came a crisp voice from inside.
The assistant pushed the door open, and Adrian went in.
The furnishings were very simple: a table, two chairs, and a few animal paintings on the wall—Adrian noticed a Graphorn walking in one of them.
Ms Roskin sat at the table. The desktop was piled with books and papers; it looked rather messy—clearly, she had just been working through them.
She had black, slightly wavy hair and wore an elegant grey robe. She seemed about the same age as Adrian.
Adrian was a little surprised; the proprietor was much younger than he had imagined.
So young, and already running such a successful shop—he couldn't help but think more highly of her.
"Mr Wesson, hello." She stood and offered her hand with a smile.
After Adrian shook it, he didn't waste time on pleasantries but got straight to the point—after all, he was here to buy things.
The deposit had already cost him quite a bit.
"Ms Roskin, it's a pleasure to meet you. Did you receive my order?" Adrian asked without preamble.
"Of course."
Roskin searched through the stack of papers for a while and finally pulled out a crumpled sheet of parchment.
"Ah, here it is." She looked a touch embarrassed. After smoothing the parchment and glancing over it, she looked up. "To be honest, when I first saw the order you sent, I thought you were joking, and I nearly threw it away."
"Can't you procure these?" Adrian said, a little disappointed.
Roskin let out a low chuckle, as though she'd heard an excellent joke.
"You'd better look at what you wrote on this order, sir," she said. "Murtlap rats, short-pig monsters, hagbirds—ah, those are still normal enough. But! What's the meaning of the Erumpent and the Horned Serpent at the end? Are you trying to get me sent to Azkaban?!"
Adrian nodded inwardly at the expected response. He hadn't really hoped to buy the last items here.
Even if Roskin could get them, he couldn't afford them.
And even if he could afford them, he wouldn't dare show them in front of Hogwarts students.
Yes—he was buying magical creatures this time to prepare for Care of Magical Creatures lessons at Hogwarts; many of the animals needed for class would have to be provided by him.
"If you can keep it from the Ministry of Magic…" Roskin suddenly winked. "It's not as if they're impossible to obtain."
Now it was Adrian's turn to be surprised. "Really?"
"Kidding," Roskin said with a shrug.
Even so, Adrian had the feeling she wasn't entirely joking.
"All right, ma'am," Adrian waved a hand, "let's leave the joking there. Aside from those last ones, can you supply the rest?"
Roskin read down the list carefully and showed a confident smile.
"Mm, the others won't be a problem," she said. "Mr Wesson, are you sure you want everything on the list? That's a hefty number of Galleons."
"All of it," Adrian said with satisfaction. "Oh—and send the bill to Hogwarts."
At that very moment, far away at Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore let out a tremendous sneeze.
…
After completing a satisfying transaction, Adrian decided to pop into the Leaky Cauldron for a celebratory drink.
Luckily, he ran into several acquaintances there.
"Good morning, Hagrid."
Adrian spotted Hagrid sitting in a corner, happily drinking a tankard of mead.
Hearing someone call his name, Hagrid looked up.
When he saw Adrian, he broke into a broad smile, put down his tankard, and patted the seat beside him. "Ah, Professor Wesson—come sit! Fancy a drink?"
After Adrian sat, he ordered a mead as well.
"Do you come here a lot, Hagrid?" Adrian asked casually.
A pleased expression flickered across Hagrid's face, and he lowered his voice. "I often come here, or go to the Three Broomsticks for a drink. You know, during the holidays Hogwarts gets quiet as the grave."
He paused, then added, "And the drink here isn't half bad."
Adrian nodded, and they chatted idly for a while.
Soon the topic turned to Harry.
"Harry's a good lad," Hagrid said, rubbing at his eyes. "When we came to Diagon Alley yesterday, he even bought you a present."
"He bought something for me?" Adrian looked genuinely surprised; he hadn't expected that. "What did he get me?"
"Looks like you haven't received it yet," Hagrid said with a grin. "Best keep a bit of surprise, I reckon."
…
During their chat, Hagrid suddenly pointed to someone on the other side of the pub.
"That's our new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor this year," Hagrid said in a low voice.
Adrian looked where Hagrid was pointing. A man with a thick turban wrapped around his head was sitting on the other side of the Leaky Cauldron, his back to them.
The new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor? That would be Quirrell, Adrian thought.
"Eldra," Adrian took a moment to contact the Tree of Wisdom.
[Name: Quirinus Quirrell]
[Occupation: Wizard]
…
[Name: Tom Riddle]
[Occupation: Wizard]
The Tree of Wisdom had given him information on two people at once.
It seemed that Quirrell had already become a host for Lord Voldemort.
"Lord Voldemort, is it?" Adrian murmured.
For Voldemort, he felt nothing but hatred.
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