"This wand was not made by me. It was left behind by my grandfather, the result of a truly remarkable experiment."
Ollivander smiled mysteriously and took out an ancient-looking wand from the box. It appeared to be made of yew as well, but intricate patterns ran along its surface, lending it an especially enigmatic air.
"This is a special yew tree. It absorbed the blood and venom of a Nundu. Ordinary wand cores could not even be brought near it, so my grandfather made a bold attempt."
Ollivander gently stroked the wand as he spoke.
"Yew, Dementor nerve..."
Before he could finish, Professor McGonagall cut in.
"What? Ollivander, I cannot agree to your handing such a dangerous wand to a young wizard."
"Oh, do calm yourself, Minerva. It is not the wizard who chooses the wand, but the wand that chooses the wizard. This wand has lain dormant for more than a century. I think it has been waiting for today."
Ollivander held the wand out.
Looking at the wand before him, even Altair was surprised.
A wand made with Dementor nerve. Ollivander's grandfather really had been quite mad.
Come to think of it, did those creatures even have nerves?
And how exactly had he extracted it?
Altair reached out and took the wand.
A profound, mysterious tremor spread through his entire body. Wisps of white mist appeared out of nowhere, carrying a horrifying chill as they swept through Ollivander's wand shop. In the blink of an eye, frost covered nearly everything inside the store.
"A perfect combination! A truly perfect combination!"
"Yew, Dementor nerve, eleven inches. Child, this wand is yours."
Ollivander clapped his hands happily, then suddenly seemed to remember something and added,
"There is one thing you should know. This wand cannot cast the Patronus Charm. But there is no need to worry too much. The greatest use of the Patronus Charm is to defend against Dementors, and you will not need that, because this wand itself will protect you from being attacked by them."
"Ollivander."
Professor McGonagall stepped forward and asked sternly,
"I want to know whether this wand possesses any of a Dementor's traits, such as draining away people's happy emotions and causing them to sink into darkness."
"No, Minerva. The Ollivander family would never craft such an evil wand. On the contrary, because it possesses a Dementor's nerve, this wand will not only protect him from Dementors, but will also make him more sensitive to, and more yearning for, happiness and beautiful things."
"Those who live in darkness long for the light all the more, do they not?"
After hearing Ollivander's explanation, McGonagall let out a quiet breath of relief.
If things were truly as Ollivander said, then this wand would actually be of great benefit to Altair.
"I certainly hope so. In any case, thank you, Ollivander."
Professor McGonagall said this, then prepared to lead everyone away. Naturally, both Hermione and Altair paid for their wands, seven Galleons each.
The value of Altair's wand should have far exceeded seven Galleons, but Ollivander did not raise the price.
After leaving the wand shop, Professor McGonagall took them to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions to buy their school robes, then to Flourish and Blotts to purchase the required books for the new term. After that, they went to the neighboring shop to buy a cauldron for Potions and a brass scale for weighing ingredients.
Besides the required first-year textbooks, Hermione bought a great many extra books, which left her without enough money to buy a pet. Altair did not buy one either, because he thought it would be too troublesome.
By the time they had finally purchased everything they needed, it was already past four in the afternoon.
"All right, that is everything. Altair, Miss Granger, term begins on September 1. You must arrive at King's Cross Station before eleven o'clock that day to board the Hogwarts Express. Do remember to bring your tickets."
After finishing her instructions, Professor McGonagall escorted them back to the Leaky Cauldron. She still had other matters to attend to. It seemed something had happened at Gringotts while they had been shopping, and Professor McGonagall intended to go and take a look.
Once Professor McGonagall left, Mr. and Mrs. Granger looked at Altair, who was carrying a cauldron and a pile of other things, and asked,
"Altair, where do you live? Why don't we put your things in our car first and drive you home?"
"Thank you, Mr. Granger, but there's no need. My family should be waiting for me outside the pub by now."
Altair smiled in response to Mr. Granger's kindness. To be fair, Hermione's parents really were very good people, far better than Harry's aunt and uncle.
"That's good, then. We live in Manchester. I'm a dentist, and I run a private clinic there. If you ever have the time, you're welcome to visit our home."
Mr. Granger smiled, took out a business card, and slipped it into Altair's suit pocket.
"I will."
Altair nodded. Manchester lay to the northwest of both London and Birmingham, so it was not particularly far. Whether by car or by train, it was only a matter of two or three hours.
The four of them stepped out of the Leaky Cauldron. Altair glanced around, and sure enough, Jimmy and several Peaky Blinders enforcers were waiting at the street corner.
"Jimmy! Hey! Over here!"
Altair called out.
Jimmy, who had been smoking, heard his voice, turned his head, stubbed out his cigarette, and hurried over.
"Bloody hell, you actually bought this much."
The bodyguards behind Jimmy were quick to take the cauldron and books and carry them away. Jimmy muttered under his breath, then looked toward the Grangers.
Altair introduced them.
"They're Mr. and Mrs. Granger. And this is my classmate, Hermione Granger. She'll be going to Hogwarts too."
"Oh. Oh! She's a... I mean, a young witch?"
Jimmy's previously indifferent expression instantly turned serious.