In any case, a wand had to be bought, so Kyle carefully pushed open the door and stepped inside.
Diana and Chris, however, did not follow him in. Perhaps they thought buying a wand would take too long, so upon hearing that Kyle was going to Ollivanders first, they decided to head toward Gringotts instead.
...
The shop was much better than it looked outside. Although it still seemed quite old, with the items arranged in a somewhat chaotic manner, at least it was much cleaner inside.
With the chime of a delicate wind bell, an elderly head with graying hair appeared behind the counter, seemingly having appeared out of nowhere.
"Good afternoon, young one."
Ollivander looked at Kyle and suddenly asked, "Did you come alone?"
"Yes," Kyle replied, confused. "Is there a problem?"
Ollivander shook his head. "No, of course not."
While speaking, Kyle could faintly see a trace of disappointment in his eyes.
Strange. Why would a customer's arrival make someone feel disappointed?
"Maybe I just misread it," Kyle muttered to himself, dismissing it.
"Alright, young wizard," Ollivander said, walking out from behind the counter. "So, can you tell me your name?"
"Kyle Jobar," Kyle quickly said.
"Jobar…" Ollivander paused for a moment. "Then Mr. Chris is…?"
"My father," Kyle replied.
"Oh, of course…" Ollivander instinctively glanced toward the door but quickly turned his gaze away, explaining, "I mean, the Jobar surname is not very common in the British magical world."
It was confirmed. The old man really was disappointed!
Kyle could tell clearly that as soon as he mentioned Chris was his father, Ollivander's disappointment was almost overflowing.
Not only that, Ollivander began muttering something under his breath, repeating words like "willow wood" or "ash wood"—the sound was too quiet for Kyle to catch, but he didn't pay much attention.
At this moment, Kyle's mind was entirely focused on finding his own wand, leaving no space to care about the trivial details.
After giving his name, Kyle proactively said, "Mr. Ollivander, I'm right-handed."
Then, he straightened his arms, ready for Ollivander to measure his height and arms.
He knew the procedure here all too well.
After the measurements, they would move on to selecting the wand. This was the most time-consuming part.
There were at least eight thousand wands in this shop, if not more. Even Ollivander, Kyle thought, would find it difficult to pick the perfect wand at first glance. He could only narrow it down to a range and try them one by one.
Kyle was prepared for this.
Besides, trying wands was one of the things he looked forward to doing.
However, Ollivander's next words left Kyle a bit baffled.
"Oh, child, if it's you, there's no need."
After that, there was no measuring of height, nor any further questions. Kyle simply watched Ollivander walk to the counter, swiftly pull out a box from the most prominent spot, open it, and push it toward Kyle.
The movement was seamless, without the slightest hesitation.
"What are you waiting for? Go ahead and try it!" Ollivander urged as he noticed Kyle's lack of movement.
"Huh? Oh, right." Kyle snapped back to reality, instinctively reaching for the wand inside the box.
It was a dark grey color, smooth in appearance, with no unnecessary patterns or adornments besides the essential handle.
It looked quite ordinary.
As soon as Kyle grasped the wand, without doing anything, a burst of white light shot out from the tip, quickly spreading throughout the room. The small, dim shop suddenly became much brighter, as if a skylight had been opened on the ceiling.
"Good, very good."
Ollivander looked extremely excited. Before Kyle could ask anything, he began to speak excitedly on his own, "Thirteen and a half inches, cedar wood, phoenix feather… I must say, this is a very magical combination."
"A magical combination?" Kyle asked, somewhat confused.
"Yes, magical," Ollivander said, looking at Kyle and patiently explaining. "Cedar wands are usually chosen by wizards who are wise and have keen insight. These wizards are naturally calm, and every decision they make is the result of careful thought. As my father once said, you can never deceive a person holding a cedar wand—I completely agree with that."
"Therefore, those who wield a cedar wand are more inclined toward the stable and loyal unicorn hair, whereas phoenix feather is a bit too bold."
"In fact, I have made and sold thirty-six cedar wands. Thirty of them have unicorn hair as the core, five have dragon heartstring, and the last one…"
Ollivander didn't finish his sentence. He merely smiled and pointed at Kyle.
Kyle was puzzled. "But sir, didn't you say these two materials aren't well-suited to be paired together? Why did you still make one?"
"Just because materials aren't a perfect match, does that mean we don't create them? No, no, that's the wrong way to think. Wands choose the wizard, my child. Every wand, from the moment it is born, chooses its destined owner, just like…"
Ollivander gestured to the small mountain of wand boxes behind him, laughing, "They're still here not because they're unsuitable, but because their time has not yet come. Their owners are still waiting for their owl from Hogwarts."
Ollivander paused for a moment before continuing, "Furthermore, wands with completely opposing cores and wand woods can still work perfectly for a wizard. That's the most fascinating thing about wand lore."
"Just like the wand in your hand, your father Chris once tried it, and so did your mother Diana, but both of them were just a bit off, just a little. So after hearing about your birth, I've been waiting for this day. It's perfect, isn't it?"
Uh... well.
Kyle instinctively nodded.
The feeling in his palm, the way the wand responded as if it were an extension of his arm, indeed made him somewhat captivated. He found it hard to let go of the wand.
Though the process didn't exactly match his expectations, the result was still satisfying. Kyle was very pleased with his wand.
"Well then, child, seven Galleons."
Ollivander looked even happier now.
"Alright." Kyle took out the seven Galleons he had prepared in advance and placed them on the counter.
The first wand for a new student usually costs seven Galleons, which was already a very reasonable price in the magical world. However, this discount only applied to young wizards just starting at Hogwarts.
After paying, Ollivander bowed slightly and saw Kyle out, before turning to look at the next young wizard who had entered the shop, accompanied by an adult.
"Oh, Mr. Thomas, we meet again. Eleven inches, hawthorn wood..."
(End of chapter)
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