"Highly recommended! For only five sickles, you can make your wand unique!!"
At a corner in Diagon Alley, a girl with light blonde hair stared at the eye-catching colorful sign in front of her. A flicker of curiosity sparkled in her silver-grey eyes. She tugged gently at the sleeve of the man beside her.
"Daddy, I want to go take a look," her voice floated like a breeze.
"Of course, my dear," Xenophilius Lovegood said warmly. "We have to buy a wand anyway."
As they turned into the adjacent alley, Xenophilius came to a sudden halt.
Before them stretched a long queue, winding from the shop entrance and nearly reaching the main street.
"My dear, did we accidentally walk to Flourish and Blotts?" He removed his glasses, wiped them thoroughly with his robe, and replaced them.
Flourish and Blotts had been drawing crowds since the day before due to a popular wizard holding a book signing event. The scene before them mirrored that bustle.
"No, Daddy, look. Doesn't that say Ollivander's Wand Shop?" Luna Lovegood pointed to the small sign visible on the shop's door in the distance.
"Ah, I see it now…" Mr. Lovegood blinked. "But since when do wand shops have queues?"
He couldn't make sense of it, but Luna wanted to go inside, and queuing a bit was no trouble.
People were steadily exiting the shop, allowing the line to inch forward. Mr. Lovegood soon noticed something odd: not all of them were first-years. Most were older students—third years and up—and even some adult wizards.
More curious was what happened next. Each person exiting the shop pulled out their wand and examined it in the light, their faces radiant with joy, as though seeing a wand for the very first time.
But clearly, wizards that age weren't buying their first wands. Were they replacing them? It would be understandable if just a few did, but this many? Had wands suddenly become disposable?
Full of questions, the father and daughter finally reached the front, pushed open the door, and stepped into the small shop.
Ding-ding...
The doorbell gave a clear chime.
Inside, the counter was divided in two. On the left stood the familiar Mr. Garrick Ollivander. On the right stood a young wizard, slightly older than Luna, unfamiliar to either of them.
"Oh, finally! A first-year!" Garrick Ollivander beamed as he saw them.
So excited was he that he momentarily forgot to list Mr. Lovegood's wand details—a habit of his. He only remembered as he began measuring Luna's arm and quickly added the information.
"Mr. Ollivander, has something happened recently?" Mr. Lovegood asked curiously.
"What do you mean by 'something'?"
"Well… something that would explain why so many people are buying new wands," Mr. Lovegood said.
"Ah, no, the wizarding world is as peaceful as ever," Ollivander replied. "However, I think I understand what you're referring to."
"Robert, why don't you explain?"
"No problem," said Robert, turning to the father and daughter as he deftly took out several items.
"We've recently introduced wand decorations—stickers and dyeing sprays. They're affordable and very popular right now."
Mr. Lovegood eyed the colorful stickers and spray bottles on the table. "So the people queuing were buying these?"
"Exactly," Robert nodded. "First-years get a 50% discount on their first purchase. Would you like to pick one?"
"How much do they cost?"
"With the discount, stickers are one sickle each. Dyeing sprays are five galleons."
"One sickle certainly isn't expensive," Mr. Lovegood said thoughtfully.
"And the dyeing spray is five galleons," Robert repeated, but Mr. Lovegood seemed lost in thought.
"Do you have Crumple-Horned Snorkack stickers?" Luna asked suddenly.
"What?" Robert turned, now giving the girl his full attention.
Light blonde hair, slightly protruding grey eyes, wearing exaggerated carrot earrings—definitely a first-year.
"Crumple-Horned Snorkack," she repeated. "The sign outside says you can customize stickers of magical creatures."
"For those, we need a reference photo," Robert said after a moment's thought. "I've never seen a Crumple-Horned Snorkack, so I can't just create one from imagination."
"I haven't seen one either," Luna said. "My daddy and I have been searching for it."
"That's right," Mr. Lovegood chimed in proudly. "It's a pity Luna's going to Hogwarts soon. Otherwise, we might have gone to the forests of Sweden to look for clues."
"Then I hope you find the Crumple-Horned Snorkack soon," Robert said with a kind smile.
"You've seen one too, haven't you?" Luna stepped closer, unconcerned about the measuring tape still draped over her shoulder. "Besides me and Daddy, you're the third person who's seen it…"
"No, I haven't seen a Crumple-Horned Snorkack," Robert said, shaking his head. "I already said that."
"Then why didn't you say we were wrong?" Luna asked. "Most people say the Snorkack doesn't exist."
"Because someone once said that magic holds all possibilities," Robert answered. "Why not write to Mr. Newt Scamander? He's the best expert on magical creatures. Maybe he's explored those forests."
"That's a good idea," Luna nodded. "But I don't know Mr. Scamander's address. Do you?"
"No, I don't," Robert admitted. "But maybe the owl will find him anyway."
Luna considered that for a moment, then nodded vigorously.
"Okay."
"Daddy, I want to buy an owl."
...
In the end, Mr. Lovegood paid seven galleons and one sickle and left the wand shop. Luna had chosen a unicorn sticker.
As the door closed behind them, Mr. Lovegood couldn't help glancing back at the two behind the counter—particularly Robert.
Something about that young man felt unusual. His thinking wasn't quite... ordinary.
Sending a letter without knowing the address? How could that possibly be delivered?
Still, Luna had been kind not to expose him.
And the idea of buying an owl wasn't bad—it would be useful for communicating with his daughter at Hogwarts. The school had messenger services, of course, but nothing matched the convenience of having your own owl.
...
Inside the shop, after the pair had gone, Garrick turned to Robert.
"Robert, that Crumple-Horned Snorkack they mentioned… What is it?"
Despite his decades of experience with magical creatures, the elder wandmaker hadn't understood a word of that conversation.
"Who knows?" Robert shrugged. "Maybe it's a relative of the Erumpent."
"Oh, I thought you knew."
"Just trying to give the customer a good shopping experience," Robert replied, picking up the silver coin left on the table.
Earning money wasn't easy. Sometimes, it meant humoring curious little girls.
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