Star of Gryffindor - Book 1

Chapter 2 - Diagon Alley

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I woke up to see sunlight drifting through a window. At first, I couldn't remember where I was. The room was small, with the one bed I was in, and a mirror across the room, sitting over a dresser.

"Was that...was that all real?" I whispered, as the events of last night slowly came back to me.

To my great surprise, my reflection answered, a bit snarkily, "I expect so. I mean, you're sitting here."

A little bit freaked out, I tiptoed out of my room and down the hall. I peeked out into the main room of the pub, which was already busy and bustling. I spied Ms. Potter talking to a group of people, a lot of whom seemed to have flaming red hair like hers. When she saw me, though, she waved me over.

"Have a good rest?" she asked amiably.

I nodded. "Where are we?" I asked as she led me to a secluded table near the back. Most of the group she had been talking to left, but a man, probably her husband Stan had mentioned earlier, and three children stayed behind, sitting a few tables away, obviously waiting for us. I think they were trying to make this all less confusing, but I can't see how it helped.

"This is the Leaky Cauldron."

A waitress brought by a plate with bacon and eggs on it and placed it in front of me. I quickly started eating. I was starving.

"Very famous place," Ms, well, Mrs. Potter continued. "And the entrance to Diagon Alley."

"Diagon Alley?"

"Oh, you'll see in a few minutes. After breakfast, we need to go find your supplies for school. Need to get Albus's too..."

"So...there are wizards everywhere?" I asked after a pause.

Mrs. Potter nodded. "Everywhere there are muggles, anyway. And Hogwarts is one of the finest schools for training young wizards and witches."

"Why haven't I seen any before?"

"I expect you have, only you didn't know it."

While I was eating, I remembered the bag that Mum—Mrs. Lewis—thrust at me. I felt around my pockets, and saw that it was still there. Quickly, I brought it up to the table and emptied it next to my plate.

There was one certificate that seemed to have something to do with my being a foster child, and my strange birth certificate. It only had my first name, and the time and date of my birth. No last name, or parents' names, or even just a middle name. Mrs. Potter didn't know what to think about that either. Along with the papers, there was only a tiny gold key.

"What could this be for?" I wondered out loud.

Mrs. Potter looked incredibly interested. "Astra, I believe that that is a key to a vault in Gringott's... May I see?" I quickly handed it over. What the heck was Gringott's?

She turned it over a few times, then look at a little number engraved on it. "1612," she muttered. A second later, she said, "Perhaps you won't need to use the school fund after all. This was your parents?" I nodded, then shrugged. I guess it was... "Maybe they've left you something. In any case, we'll check it out before we buy your supplies."

I was too excited to eat anything else, so after a few minutes, Mrs. Potter led me out to the back yard. All the plants looked dead, and I didn't see an alley anywhere. "Where are—"

I got my answer before I'd finished the question. Mrs. Potter tapped a brick, and suddenly a small hole appeared in the wall. It grew wider and wider until we were facing a large archway, which Mrs. Potter promptly stepped through.