Chapter 3: The Giant and the Boy
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Facing Mr. Weasley's teasing, Ollivander merely offered a polite smile and said nothing.
Although the standard procedure hadn't been followed, he didn't pay it much mind. After all, he'd said the same things so many times already—one more time wouldn't make much difference.
"So you're here this time to buy a new wand for this Mr. Weasley, correct?" Ollivander said, looking toward the smallest boy in the crowd.
The Weasley family had many children and came by almost every year. In a sense, they could be considered long-standing customers.
"No, not exactly," Mrs. Weasley shook her head. "Actually, we want to buy a new wand for Charlie. He's about to leave for work at a dragon reserve."
Ollivander froze for a moment. His gaze swept over everyone present before finally settling on the smallest child—
—or more precisely, on the wand in the boy's hand.
That wand was in a dreadful state. Parts of it were peeling, and one end was even glowing faintly white.
Merlin's beard—that was unicorn hair!
Ollivander took a deep breath. He had never seen a wizard whose wand was already in such terrible condition right after graduation. It looked worse than most wands that had been used for twenty or thirty years.
Clearly, it had never been maintained even once, nor had its owner treated it with the slightest care.
Ollivander's expression darkened, and even his voice grew noticeably colder.
"Yes… dealing with dragons does indeed require a proper, new wand."
When he said "new wand," he emphasized the words heavily.
The Weasley couple understood perfectly well why Ollivander was upset. Both of them flushed slightly, yet they could only pretend not to notice.
Charlie was going to work with dragons, and a solid, reliable Ollivander wand was an absolute necessity.
Fortunately, Ollivander didn't press the issue. He merely gave them a cool, indifferent look.
"However, there is something I must remind you of," he said. "This Mr. Weasley is not a new student. There will be no discount on this wand purchase."
"We understand," Mrs. Weasley nodded hurriedly.
Ollivander gave a brief nod and said no more.
"How about letting me handle it this time?" Siron spoke up, noticing that Ollivander clearly didn't want to do business with Charlie. "I'll choose a new wand for this customer."
Under normal circumstances, Ollivander would never have allowed Siron to mess around like this.
To be blunt, Siron was only eleven years old—he simply wasn't qualified to choose a wand for a customer.
But this time, Ollivander hesitated only briefly before nodding in agreement.
"Then I'll leave it to you," Mrs. Weasley said, seemingly letting out a sigh of relief.
She knew Siron.
Unlike most families, who visited the wand shop only once every ten-odd years, the Weasleys were frequent visitors.
They had met Siron when Percy bought his wand, and he had also been present when the twins purchased theirs.
This was their third meeting—hardly close, but not strangers either.
Siron glanced at Charlie, then at Ron. A string of data immediately appeared before his eyes.
[Willow Wood, Unicorn Tail Hair, Fourteen Inches]
[Status: Damaged]
[Trait: Magic Attenuation (A damaged wand will weaken spell power. Replacement recommended.)]
A perfectly ordinary wand. Nothing special. No real reference value.
"I just heard that you're heading to a dragon reserve?" Siron asked.
"Yes. I'll be setting off in the next few days," Charlie nodded.
"Then how about oak?" Siron continued, thinking aloud. "Oak holds great strength and usually favors resolute, steadfast wizards. It feels like a good match for dealing with dragons."
"As for the core, Weasleys pair perfectly with unicorn tail hair. There's no need to consider anything else."
"And the length—around ten inches." Siron glanced again at the fourteen-inch willow wand. "Compared to comfort, a shorter wand is better for drawing it quickly."
Whatever Charlie himself was thinking, Ollivander's eyes grew brighter and brighter. The moment Siron finished speaking, Ollivander had already found the corresponding wand.
Oak wood, unicorn hair, ten and one-third inches—perfectly matching Siron's assessment.
Ollivander handed the wand to Charlie.
By now, he no longer cared about being angry. He just wanted to see the result as soon as possible. When Charlie didn't move, he even urged him on.
"What are you standing there for? Give it a try…"
"Huh?"
"Oh!" Charlie instinctively flicked the wand.
A cluster of blooming orchids burst into flower at the tip.
"Perfect!" Ollivander exclaimed involuntarily.
Even by his most professional standards, there was nothing to criticize. This wand fit Charlie flawlessly—perhaps even better than his old one.
Of course, there was one thing Ollivander had to acknowledge:
This wand had chosen Charlie, even if Charlie was a brute who had no idea how to cherish a wand.
"It's great—I really like it," Charlie said, equally enamored with his new wand.
Mrs. Weasley stood there, blinking in confusion.
That's it? So fast?
She was a regular customer herself, but this was the first time she had ever seen a new wand chosen with such efficiency.
Just a few glances—no measuring of arms or shoulders, no testing of multiple combinations—and it was decided?
And Charlie himself was clearly satisfied, stuffing the wand straight into his coat pocket on the spot.
Seeing this, Mrs. Weasley said nothing more and, with some pain, paid seventeen Galleons for the wand.
That was the true price of a wand.
Honestly speaking, selling wands to first-years for seven Galleons was really not much at all.
Take Charlie's wand, for instance—the unicorn tail hair alone cost nine Galleons. Add in the specially treated wood for the shaft, which ran about one Galleon, and that was already ten.
Fortunately, the Ministry of Magic provided a five-Galleon wand subsidy for first-years. Otherwise, it would have been hard not to lose money.
Ollivanders Wand Shop had been making wands since 382 BC, practically monopolizing the British wand market—but in reality, it didn't make much profit at all.
After all, most wizards wouldn't waste Galleons buying a second wand.
Over the next few days, Siron stayed in the shop helping out. During that time, he also met Hermione, who came with Professor McGonagall to buy her wand.
[Vine Wood, Dragon Heartstring, Ten and Three-Quarter Inches]
[Status: Perfect]
[Traits: None]
A very standard wand. In fact, ninety percent of new wands were like this.
Over time, as a wand was used, it would gradually change in response to its wielder.
Just like Professor McGonagall's wand.
[Fir Wood, Dragon Heartstring, Nine and One-Half Inches]
[Status: Good]
[Traits:
Transfiguration Mastery: −50% magic consumption when using Transfiguration (Minerva McGonagall only)
Transfiguration Adept: +30% casting speed for Transfiguration (Minerva McGonagall only)
Insight: High chance to directly shatter an opponent's Transfiguration (Minerva McGonagall only)]
Three traits—all related to Transfiguration, and all tied specifically to Professor McGonagall.
This was a case of a wizard influencing the wand. If someone else were to use it, these traits wouldn't necessarily vanish entirely, but they would be greatly diminished.
…
Soon, the calendar reached the final day of July.
Early that morning, Siron was already waiting in the shop. He was expecting a very special customer.
The entire morning passed without that person appearing, so Siron could only continue waiting patiently.
It wasn't until the afternoon, not long after lunch, that the shop door was pushed open once more.
Accompanied by the crisp jingle of the bell, a timid, skinny boy—looking like a frightened little chick—stepped inside.
Walking beside him was a massive figure, a hulking presence that stood a full eleven feet tall.
(End of Chapter)