Theo had grown up in Diagon Alley, and aside from places like Knockturn Alley, which his parents had forbidden him to visit, he was familiar with most of the shops.
Having been exposed to the environnt since childhood, even without paying special attention, he had a general sense of which shops offered good value and which shopkeepers were crafty and cunning.
"We all call this place Junk Alley because people say all they sell here is junk," Theo explained.
Diagon Alley was relatively clean and orderly, but this street resembled the rural markets Wade had once seen, with all kinds of things piled up even along the roadside.
At first glance, the variety seed dazzling, but upon closer inspection, most of it was stuff left lying around that no one would bother to pick up.
—Old, yellowed books, oddly shaped stones, roughly carved wooden items, bald quills, tattered carpets, and worn-out water jugs.
Thanks to these scattered items, the pathway through the middle had beco quite narrow.
Theo led Wade through the twists and turns while passing on the knowledge he'd learned from his elders:
"Uncle Jason once told that it's fine to co here during the day, but after six, stay away."
"After dark, thieves or werewolves often co here to offload stolen goods."
"And everything displayed outside is trash. Even if you pick it up for free, it's not worth the space it takes up. The real good stuff is kept inside by the shopkeepers."
"However, many shopkeepers here judge their custors. If it's your first ti, it's easy to get ripped off. In comparison, Boone Leslie is much better."
"He has fixed prices. He might charge a little more than others, but it's worth it. He won't trick you into spending a fortune on junk."
They finally reached the depths of the alley, and Wade looked up to see a wooden sign that read "Leslie's General Store."
Theo pushed the door open, and the bird-shaped wind chi hanging by the entrance imdiately chirped. In an instant, the entire shop lit up.
Dozens of magical candles ignited one by one from the entrance to the back of the store, illuminating the once dim and shabby little shop.
An old man in a wheelchair silently slid over.
His hair, a ssy mix of black and white, looked like a tangled steel wool ball, and his thick, bushy black eyebrows were particularly striking.
The green robe had been washed so much that it had faded, and there was a pilled checkered blanket draped over his knees. On the blanket sat a completely black cat, crouching quietly.
"Mr. Leslie," Theo said with a bright smile, "I brought a friend to buy sothing from you."
"Hmm."
Leslie smiled back, glancing at Wade. "Feel free to browse. The price on the tags is what they sell for."
"Alright."
Wade nodded and began walking into the store.
Behind him, Leslie continued chatting with Theo, "School's starting soon for you, right?"
"One more week."
"What brings you here today? Didn't that kid Mancini tell you not to wander around on your own?"
"I'm not alone! I'm with Mr. Werner! My brother and I almost got kidnapped by werewolves today, but Mr. Werner saved us..."
Theo didn't hold back from sharing the events of that morning.
Leslie's expression imdiately grew serious. "What happened? Tell in detail!"
Theo explained, "Well, it started this morning..."
...
The items in the general store were neatly arranged, just like a regular supermarket.
Rows of shelves stood tall, each product marked with a price tag, and so tags even had warnings like "Extrely dangerous, do not handle carelessly."
Prices were slightly higher than those in secondhand stores outside, but much cheaper than the shops in Diagon Alley.
Take wands, for example.
At Ollivanders, wands for new students could range from a few Galleons to over a dozen, and so adult wizards liked to have wands inlaid with gold or gems, which made them even more expensive.
In Leslie's store, most wands were priced around one or two Galleons, and there was a small area nearby for testing magic effects, with items like feathers, stones, and spiders available.
Though these wands were dusty and showed clear signs of use, at least they were still intact.
By contrast, the wands displayed outside secondhand shops often had obvious repair marks where they had been broken, and they only cost a few Sickles.
Wade thought to himself that using such a wand to cast spells might not even hit the enemy, but it could very well send the caster to St. Mungo's Hospital.
Wade's own wand was made of aspen wood with a unicorn hair core.
Poplar is a wood that is reliable, supportive, and possesses a consistently strong power, requiring its owner to have a clear moral compass.
Unicorn hair produces the most stable magic and is also the most loyal, though it is difficult to use for dark magic.
According to Michael --
"If a stranger heard about your wand materials, they'd probably think you're a loyal and upright Hufflepuff."
Wade had been frustrated at the ti, thinking, "If only the Sorting Hat had understood that."
To Wade, his wand was like an extension of himself. When casting spells, it felt perfectly natural, working harmoniously with him.
Though Wade had mastered so wandless magic, he always felt most comfortable when holding his own wand, and the magic it produced was stronger as well.
That is, as long as he was using traditional spells, not dark curses or hexes.
For minor hexes, his wand would cooperate, but for stronger curses, he could feel resistance.
Wade sensed that if he insisted on using his wand to learn spells like Fiendfyre or the Imperius Curse, the wand might "die."
Books on wands often ntion that unicorn tail hair can easily beco lancholy, which is its inherent weakness.
What can you do when your wand has too strong of a moral compass? Well, you have to find yourself a less scrupulous "enforcer."
After testing for a while, Wade selected three wands that seed to match him well.
One was made of walnut wood with a dragon heartstring core, symbolizing intelligence and wisdom.
Another was a rowan wood wand, also with a phoenix feather core, known for its excellent defensive properties.
The third was a pine wood wand with a thunderbird tail feather core, representing individuality and independence.
Since none of them were expensive, Wade bought all three, and while wandering around the store, he ca across so delightful surprises.
One was a magical mirror that gave fashion advice to its owner. Its previous owner must have had good taste because its recomndations were quite stylish, and its tone was sweet.
As Wade walked past the mirror, it shouted out:
"My goodness, I can hardly believe my eyes! Sir, you're wasting the beauty nature has blessed you with!"
"Listen to , put on that silver-gray robe over there, and pair it with the pocket watch to my left. If you've got so money to spare, top it off with the hat on the shelf. It'll highlight your brooding yet charming aura!"
Wade couldn't help but laugh.
He carefully examined the magical runes on the mirror and confird there were no curses or harmful spells attached to it. He decided to buy the mirror.
Fiona would absolutely love a mirror that could chat with her about fashion.
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