When the owl came again, it was already three days later, and it was July 31st.
Compared to Aurora, it was much easier to accept because of the advance science popularization of Cirith and Remus, and Vox was not so lucky. In these three days, his mood experienced the biggest fluctuation in his eleven years of life, and he also learned the biggest secret about their family:
Vox's mother is a witch who graduated from Gryffindor House at Hogwarts. Shortly after giving birth to Vox, he has been missing ever since. At home now, there are only some photos of her from a long time ago.
After seeing Vox's admission letter, his father was silent for a long time, and finally returned to the room without saying anything. However, according to Vaux's description, when he made breakfast the next day and went to call his father, he found him huddled drunk in the corner holding a picture of Vox's mother, unable to even stand.
"Then are you still going to school? Your dad didn't agree, did he? Aurora and Vaux asked, sitting side by side on the steps in front of Chevalier's house, holding a half-eaten piece of watermelon in their hands.
Because it was early in the morning, Aurora's long light blonde hair was loosely tied by an old sky-blue headband with polka-dots. When she tilted her head, a little hair jumped out of the untight confinement, hanging down from her forehead and pasting the corner of her mouth with juice stains, which was blown up by Aurora and lifted.
But he didn't refuse. I still don't know what he thinks. Vaux seemed a little unsure, his brows furrowed, his already messy brown hair was grabbed even fluffier by him, and finally he simply lay back against the door. The eleven-year-old boy was already as tall as the erect willow in the height of spring, slender and smooth, and his casually straightened legs could easily reach the ground.
And Aurora could barely reach the last rung.
He suddenly turned his head to look at the playmate beside him: "Aurora, you will definitely go, right?" "
"Yes." Aurora shrugged, her voice a little slurred because of the watermelon pulp in her mouth, "Otherwise, what can I do if I stay here?" "
Then, remembering the list of equipment attached to the admission notice, she pursed her lips that were soaked in watermelon juice and crimson, and said: "But not necessarily, you can also see, my living expenses are enough to barely live now, and there is not much left, there is no way to buy those things, not to mention tuition." "
"Too."
"That's it."
"But I still hope to go, because maybe I can meet my mother there." Vaux said, looking up, his golden brown eyes narrowed at the dim yellow light cast by the sky, "If only I could know about her past, my father would be very happy." "
Aurora's positivity is obviously not as high as Vox's, but a much more lukewarm attitude: "Let it be as it is, I want to go to the best, I can't go and there is nothing to lose." When Cirith first mentioned the wizarding world to her, she was as excited as Vox. But after he told herself that the wizarding world was about as complex as Muggle society and had many prohibitions, she was less envisioned.
It's not that she's a natural/freedom-loving person, but she feels that except for the magic that is as gorgeous as cellophane paper shining in the sun, the people of the two worlds are actually similar. A considerable number of Muggles think that wizards are monsters and always love to talk evil to suppress and bully. Similarly, many conservative wizards felt that Muggles were inherently inferior to them, and even wizards with Muggle blood were not qualified to study magic.
It's hard to say which world is necessarily better than the other.
However, whether she goes to Hogwarts or not, Aurora should think about her studies. If she doesn't want to go to school again, it will be difficult for her to support herself in the future.
"Aurora." Vaux suddenly patted her on the shoulder and said a little strangely, "Who is that guy at your door?" "
"Huh?"
Aurora looked up blankly and saw Remus standing in the doorway wrapped in a fray-trimmed light brown canvas cloak, as if waiting for someone inside to open the door. She jumped up at once, ran briskly across the courtyard across the road, and pulled the other's robe: "Remus, are you looking for me?" "
Remus looked back, and a gentle smile immediately stretched on his face: "I heard that you received an admission letter?" "I heard?" Aurora blinked, "Who did you listen to?" "
"Naturally, someone specially informed me." Remus rounded the question in a roundabout way, reaching out to touch her hair, "How's it going, did you reply?" "
"Not yet."
"Why?"
"I haven't decided whether to go or not."
"Aurora?" Remus was stunned for a moment, as if she hadn't thought she would have this idea, "Hogwarts is good, I promise you won't find a better school than it." Your father also graduated from there, you forgot? "
"Yes sir, I have not forgotten. But I really don't think I can go to school with my current financial situation, and it's still a magic school, and I have hardly seen anything on the equipment list, let alone where to buy it. Aurora thought for a moment and added, "Of course, I've seen a lot of owls and cats and toads. "
"What are you worried about?" Remus looked strangely relieved, then took Aurora's hand, "Go, I'll take you to buy these things now." When Aurora heard this, she quickly grabbed him and tried to withdraw her hand: "Remus, I have already thanked you and Siris for taking care of our family in the past few years, and I really can't let you buy these things for me anymore." "
"Not me, Aurora." Remus smiled and shook his head, "Haven't you ever wondered where the living expenses sent to you on time every month come from?" "
Aurora was stunned: "Who is it?" "
"Follow me to Diagon Alley and you'll know."
"Diagon Alley?"
At this time, Aurora suddenly remembered something, turned back to the boy who had been standing across the road and shouted: "Vox, shall we go together?" Then she turned to look at the person next to her, "Can you take him with you?" He has the same notice. "
"Hey little one, if you want to go, hurry up and follow up, the place we are going to is far from here."
"Wait for me!"
...
When I arrived in London, it was close to noon.
The magnificent sunlight is gradually blooming from behind the thick clouds, and the moment it breaks through the barrier, it is majestic and wanton to some dazzling, which is completely different from the perennial gloomy gray green of Plymouth. The weather here is much better, and even the sunlight seems to have a texture when it falls on the leaves, bright as a flame.
The wonderful weather made the street traffic a lot more at once, and the public lawn was full of people who came to soak up the sun.
Aurora and Vaux, led by Remus, found a restaurant for a simple lunch, and then arrived at the door of a bar that looked not only cramped, but also dilapidated and dirty. If it weren't for Remus leading the way, Aurora would never have noticed this place. In contrast, the cafes and video stores next to it are much more spacious and tidy, and much more attractive.
It's hard to imagine how it could have managed to operate in such a location, as it has no advantage over any of the shops on this street. But it does run well, even if it looks like its business is shaky and will go out of business at any moment.
Remus opened the door and let Aurora and Vaux go first.
As soon as she entered, Aurora's vision was almost blind, and it wasn't until soon after her eyes adjusted to the darkness that she couldn't see the scene inside. The only brighter source of light here is the top of the bar wall, near the ceiling of the hollow, the hazy yellow light falling to the ground, depicting the tiny soot flying in the air.
Remus didn't give them much time to look at the place, and led them to a small patio with four walls.
"Are we going to jump from here?" Vox glanced inside cautiously, not seeming to find it a pleasant idea. Aurora teased cheerfully, "Welcome to Fantasyland, Mr. Alice." This well is very deep, remember not to open your eyes. But if you bring replacement pants, enjoy the jump. "
The implication is that don't open your eyes, opening your eyes will scare you into peeing.
"Aurora!" Vaux shouted the other's name in annoyance, looking at the other person's bright and slightly rogue smile was simply depressed.
He and Aurora grew up together, and both know each other's personalities too well. Although Aurora is always gentle and casual and easy to get along with, occasionally some words can really make people cry and laugh, and she can't find the words to choke back.
"Don't worry, no need to jump in." Remus finished and knocked on a few bricks on one of the walls. The walls soon began to change, and with the automatic extraction and combination of bricks, a new and lively street appeared in front of you.
"Welcome to the treasure chest of the wizarding world, Diagon Alley."
The road is paved with cobbles and shimmers warmly in the gentle and bright sun. People who came and went wore strange mopping cloaks and pointy wizard hats. Aurora suddenly remembered that a few years ago, a man in similar clothes had knocked on his door, and he had lied about his postman.
In this way, perhaps he was not lying at the time. He is the postman, but the postman of the wizarding world.
Their clothes are very vintage, and the ladies' wide-brimmed sun hats are embroidered with ornate and intricate lace, and the delicate ribbons hang down to the back of the shoulders. Aurora watched it all incredulously, feeling like she had stepped into a medieval movie.
"Let's go, let's go to Gringotts first." Remus led the way, waving at the two children who had been completely distracted by the strange shops around them, "You'll soon know who's been sending money to your house." "
Gringotts is a wizarding bank made of white marble carvings staffed by strange goblins. Some of their ears are surprisingly sharp, while others have thin and long fingers, as if only a layer of dry wrinkled skin is wrapped around their hand bones, with no flesh and blood and no temperature in between.
Remus said something on the sidelines, and Aurora was no longer in the mood to listen, her attention was drawn to the strangely short-looking goblins here. She was curious about everything here, but she preferred to stay by Remus' side than to go farther away like Vox.
Remus took Aurora and Vaux to meet the goblins at the end of the corridor, and the other party mumbled slightly after checking the testamentary documents left by Aurora's father, as if he did not approve of such a transfer, but there was still nothing superfluous, just asked to show the token certificate. Aurora thought for a while and took out the pocket watch that she had been carrying with her for the past four years: "Is this okay?" "
The other party took it and looked at it against the document in his hand, and then turned his dark eyes to stare at Vox: "What about your keepsake, boy?" "
Vox was stunned for a moment, completely unable to react: "What token?" Remus reminded, "Your mother is a wizard, right?" Did she leave anything for you? Like, a key or something. "
"Keys?" Vaux thought for a moment, then hesitantly took out a golden key from his trouser pocket, "This was sent with my admission letter, but the letter didn't say what it was." "
The goblin's gaze stayed on the key in Vox's hand for a moment, and then stretched out his strangely long dry finger and gently ticked it: "This is it." Let me seeLet me see..."
He turned the heavy book in his hand loudly, like the waves undulating, and a gust of wind slapped on the faces of the two children, with a strange smell of old books and ink.
"Ah, found it. Claudia Townsend, this is her key. With that, he got up, "Follow me." "
After withdrawing the money, Remus handed Aurora the letter that the goblin had just handed to him: "Your father gave it to you, and the one who has been secretly watching over you." It's okay to go back, let's go to Ollivander first to see if there is a wand for you. "
Ollivander is probably the most inconspicuous shop on the street, but Aurora is curious about it at the moment. She found that wizards seemed to like to use shabby to hide their value, and the more dilapidated things were, the more likely they were to hide more surprises.
After pushing the door in, Aurora was stunned by the crowding. Although the store is small, it is filled with densely packed narrow boxes, from the dusty ground to the cobwebs hanging and creeping cracks. A lighted horse lantern is placed on the relatively large black wood tabletop, which is not too bright to supplement the weakness of the store's lack of sunlight due to its location, but it also pulls the shadows of everything here together, making her feel that this room will be squeezed by too many boxes.
"Hey guys, come and choose your wand?" A soft and fluttering voice sounded, coming softly and slowly like a feather. Ollivander leapt out of the hilly box, his curly white hair swaying with his movements, wrapping around his head like a weightless cloud.
Aurora noticed that the shopkeeper had even silver-white eyes, which made her shudder a little when she looked at him.
Remus nodded and pushed the two children forward: "Yes, please pick a suitable wand for each of them." They will soon go to Hogwarts. "
"Of course, of course, it's not a problem." Ollivander magically took out a tape measure from his pocket and pulled Aurora's arm with a skillful movement, "You use your right hand, right, I see that you have just been counting the wooden boxes here with this hand." What is your name? "
"Aurora." Aurora stood a little stiff in place, feeling the coolness of the place he had touched, as if kissed by the mountain breeze of early spring, which made her shudder a little.
"Well, it's an apt name, it must have been your hair color that made your father decide to choose this name for you, right?" Ollivander withdrew the tape measure, then said as he pulled out one of them from the pile of wooden boxes behind him, opened it, took out the wand inside and handed it to her, "Try it, a combination of applewood and unicorn hair." "
Aurora held it in her hand and didn't see it clearly, and was taken back by Mr. Ollivander: "No, no, no... Try this again, a combination of silver linden and phoenix feathers, ten and a quarter long. "
Still looking wrong, Mr. Ollivander took it away again.
"What about this one?" He opened another box, unlike the other wand boxes, and Aurora noticed that he took out the wand in a very formal and respectful gesture, "same as your friend who led the way. A combination of cypress wood and dragon heartstrings, twelve and three-quarters long, very nice, quite pliable."
Aurora took it in her hand, and a strange brilliance immediately swam from the tip of the wand to the palm of her hand the moment she touched the wand.
"That's it!" Ollivander clapped his hands happily, and then his emotions suddenly settled down again, his tone was no longer as elegant and light as before, but with a kind of solemnity and comfort, "Aurora, our family has been for generations. They all make wands and know the properties of each one. But of all the wand owners, it is our greatest honor to meet the owner of a cypress wand."
"Why?" Aurora stared at him with wide eyes, and then looked at Remus subconsciously, who gave her a soothing silent smile.
Ollivander explained slowly but firmly: "The cypress wand is associated with nobility and sacrifice, and every wizard chosen by it is willing to give without hesitation at the last moment for his beliefs, his love, and his friends. out of life."
"So I'm destined to die?" Aurora's sales pitch to the shopkeeper seemed very useless, she bet that in the Muggle world, the shop would not sell anything.
"I can't jump to conclusions." Ollivander finished, his voice became lively again, and it was as elusive as the thread in the wind just now, "Then let us pray together that you will not When you have to make a choice. Remember to use your wand well, the inner core of the dragon heartstring will give your wand a powerful force, but at the same time they are only loyal to the current owner. Protect it, don't be Others take it. Come here, lad, let me measure it for you and find out who your best partner is."
Vaux took a deep breath and took a step forward with a sense of righteousness. Ollivander was amused by his appearance: "Relax, little guy, you don't need to be so nervous."
Aurora turned the concise and slender wand in her hand, and the bright sunlight flickered on the wand. The clear and charming light and color almost merged with the pale yellow of the wand itself. It doesn't have any carvings, and even the necessary textures are very rare. It looks rather bland, but it is exactly what Aurora likes.
She looked at her wand, then at Remus: "Is what he said true? Those of us who have cypress wands will die in the end?"
"Everyone, anyone, Aurora," Remus said softly, with the softness of a father comforting his daughter, "but to me, why I die is the most important thing. "
As soon as he finished speaking, Ollivander's cheerful laughter came over again: "Haha, the combination of black walnut and dragon heartstrings is twelve and three-quarters long!"
"What's the point of this?" Vox frowned as he looked at the dark brown smooth wand in his hand.
"Never deceive yourself, young man. Your wand won't like a coward who doesn't even dare to face his own heart. It will punish you by minimizing your magic."
The sun fell on the tip of his wand, and he seemed to be picking on a crystal gem.