"Chestnut, ten inches, unicorn hair core... right, Miss Tonks?"
As soon as Nymphadora Tonks led Goku into the shop, she heard the voice of the proprietor, Mr. Ollivander.
"I have to say, your memory is incredible!" Tonks remarked. She had bought her wand here eight years ago; she hadn't expected him to remember the exact wood and length.
Ollivander replied with quiet pride, "I remember every wand I've ever sold, Mr. Tonks. Each one is unique, after all."
"Well, can you help this little guy find a suitable match?" Tonks pushed Goku toward the counter.
Wands weren't chosen at random. A well-matched wand allowed a wizard to cast spells more quickly and with greater power. An ill-fitted one could be sluggish, or worse, cause the magic to backfire on the caster.
"The wand chooses the wizard, remember that," Ollivander muttered, though he still took out a long silver tape measure to begin his work.
He measured Goku from shoulder to finger-tip, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit, and even the circumference of his head. Finally, he measured the distance between Goku's nostrils.
"Right then. Try this one." Ollivander pulled a slender box from the shelf and handed the contents to Goku. "Vine wood and dragon heartstring, nine inches. Give it a wave."
Goku picked up the wand, looking a bit bewildered. Nymphadora had said they were coming here to buy his "weapon," but was it really just this stick? He didn't much like using weapons in a fight—the World Martial Arts Tournament even forbade them. If he *had* to use one, the Power Pole his Grandpa left him was much sturdier than this. He felt like if he used even a little bit of strength, this twig would snap in half.
"Not for you. It seems you are not one who chases knowledge for its own sake," Ollivander noted, sensing the lack of resonance. He swapped it for another. "Aspen, unicorn hair, eleven inches. Try again."
Goku took the second wand and gave it a flick. This time, Ollivander nodded in approval.
"This one suits you much better. It seems you are quite the duellist, young man."
Wands made of Aspen were famous for being particularly suited to martial magic and combat. In fact, the elite eighteenth-century duelling club, The Silver Spears, famously only admitted owners of aspen wands.
"He's definitely a fighter," Tonks agreed with a grin. She didn't know about his magic, but the kid certainly knew how to use his fists.
By the time they finished at the wand shop, it was nearly noon.
"Let's head to the Leaky Cauldron for lunch. My treat!" Tonks offered.
In the few hours she'd spent with him, she had grown quite fond of Goku. He was an incredibly simple, kind-hearted boy—though he was a bit of a glutton, stopping to stare at every food stall they passed. Knowing he was an orphan only made her feel more protective of him.
"Thank you!" Goku bowed politely, his hands pressed together. To him, anyone willing to feed him was a good person. "Is there anything I can help you with?"
In Goku's mind, if someone fed you, you helped them. It was the natural order of things. Little Chiaotzu had given him two rice balls, so he helped him defeat Gold and Silver; the King had given him a feast, so he went to the Demon Realm to save the Princess. If Nymphadora was buying lunch, he was ready to provide some muscle.
"Hahaha, what could I possibly need help with?" Tonks waved him off. "My biggest wish is to catch all those nasty Dark Wizards and throw them into Azkaban. But I'll handle that myself. You're just a kid; your job is to study hard at Hogwarts."
"Are all Dark Wizards bad guys?" Goku asked curiously.
Tonks nodded firmly. "They're the worst. They kill people for no reason and love to use Muggles for their cruel experiments. Very, very bad."
"Then if I meet any Dark Wizards, I'll catch them and bring them to you," Goku promised, tucking the thought away.
Tonks ruffled his hair. "I'll hold you to that! Maybe once you graduate, you can join the Aurors and help me out. By then, I'll definitely be the Head of the Office!"
They chatted as they walked back to the entrance of Diagon Alley and entered the Leaky Cauldron. Mostly, it was Tonks talking and Goku listening, though Goku didn't understand half of what she was saying.
"Tom! One flatbread, two steaks, and a mug of honey mead," Tonks called out to the toothless, shriveled landlord. Tom gave a grunt of acknowledgement and quickly brought the food over.
Tonks placed the flatbread and one steak in front of Goku, keeping the other steak and the mead for herself.
"I'll get you a room here for the night so you can rest. I'll pick you up first thing tomorrow morning to take you to King's Cross for the Hogwarts Express." She cut a small piece of steak and took a sip of her mead, then blinked in surprise. "Wait... where's your food?"
"Finished," Goku said, wiping his mouth.
The flatbread and steak had vanished in two bites.
"You eat fast!" Tonks marveled. "Are you full?"
Earlier that morning, Rufus had been so busy processing Alek's extradition that he'd forgotten to warn her about the boy's appetite.
"Nope," Goku replied honestly. He didn't know how to be "polite" about his hunger. Even though he hadn't trained that morning, a single steak wasn't going to cut it.
"Tom! Another flatbread and steak, please!" Tonks waved.
Not long after, the food arrived. Then it vanished. More was ordered. It vanished again.
Half an hour later, Tom stood by the table, looking a bit sheepish. "Er... sorry, Miss, but we're out of bread and steak. Would you like to try something else on the menu?"
In all his years of running the pub, he had never seen a wizard eat like this. Not even Hagrid could pack it away like this little guy.
"Are you... finally full?" Tonks asked, wiping sweat from her brow. She was starting to run dangerously low on gold.
"About seventy percent," Goku said, patting his stomach.
***
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