The Order Of The Phoenix Games

Chapter One: Diagon Alley

The motorcycle bumps down onto a road that we follow until I spot a familiar street. "I see Charing Cross Road Hagrid!" I call out. He grumbles a 'well done' under his breath but he seems a bit disappointed. Every year we have a competition to see who can spot that road first. Hagrid turns down the alley-way and pulls up in front of a quaint little pub called 'The Leaky Cauldron' Apparently muggles can't see the bar and walk past it on a regular basis. But if you are aware of the secret lurking behind its walls, you are most likely be-known to the magical world.

On this particular day, the business was booming as all of the parents of kids doing school shopping were in there having a pint. Hagrid looks at me and I nod, signalling to him that I will be OK on my own this year and he can have a drink with Tom- the Bartender.

No time to look around, my first stop is Gringots Bank to grab some coins. Even though I am an orphan, a small fortune was still found in my bank account the first time I came here.
With my key in hand, I walk up to a goblin and place the piece of metal onto the counter. "Lilly Wallnut. Vault number 306." I say. The goblin, whose name is Faron, leads me to a cart and I hop in. There are no seatbelts in the cart but that doesn't faze me. The trundling trolley slowly picks up pace as I prepare my face for the force of 100 winds. Then..... WHOOSH the cart goes down one drop, two! I am loving it and feel rather upset when the ride stops in front of my vault.

"Key please" Faron says in a raspy voice. I hand it over and he clicks open the lock. A shimmer of gold, silver and bronze light dazzles my eyes as I walk into the chamber. Stacks of  metal pieces form mountains of money. It takes me a moment to register my surroundings but I get over it, as always. From my pocket I retrieve a small leather pouch and count out the money I will need for this year at Hogwarts. The letter this year said to bring approximately 20 golden Galleons, 40 silver sickles and 30 bronze knuts. I count out the coins, plus some extra for pleasure uses, and we get back into the cart after the goblin re-locks the vault.

I expect us to head back to the surface but instead we go even deeper into the tunnels. My stomach churns as we plummet into the depths. Just as I think there can't be any more track for us to follow, we jolt to a stop in front of Vault 1,478. "What are we doing here?" I ask. Faron ignores me and runs his finger down the huge granite door. I ask again, "Why have you brought me here Faron?" This time he beckons me over with a long, bony finger and I oblige.

"This is the last and oldest vault in Gringots. It holds a secret unknown to anyone other than the goblins of this building... and now you." I shudder. What is going on? Then a creak cuts off my train of thought. The stone panel covering the secret cracks open and a green light blinds me.
Looking away, I see Faron reach into the small alcove in the wall and pull out a tiny satchel. Once the light dies down, I glance over and realise that the goblin is grinning at me in a menacing fashion. "Here Lilly," he cackles, "Take this and don't loose it." He hands me the bag and I carefully put it into my rucksack.

He then gets into the mine cart and I follow suit. Almost exactly 20 seconds later, the journey is over and we are back at the Gringots entrance. I thank Faron for his services and then head out into the blinding sun of Diagon Alley. I decide to make my first order of business ice cream. Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlour is my go-to every time I come for back-to-school prep. It's is a pretty little shop and the owner of it (Florean Fortescue himself) is a lovely man who is never shy to talk.