Here Be a Wand

Nanna had hold of Lucie's arm as they came out of the bank and walked down the street. "Now where did that man say the wand shop was?" nanna asked. Lucie shrugged. She'd never been very good with directions and nanna was probably testing her anyway. "Here. Come along now Lucie. Stop looking like you might be eaten."

Lucie found herself nudged into a small shop she hadn't seen coming. She was too busy watching a man with a frog on his head. How was nanna looking so calm when there were so many strange things around here? How did nanna do that anywhere? There wasn't much more time to contemplate the strangeness or ability of other people to adjust as a stick of wood was shoved into her hand. "Is this supposed to do something?" she asked and the stick was soon taken out of her hand again and replaced with another. Lucie nearly dropped it when she felt a strange warmth and a light glow at the tip.

It was all confusion as the shopassistant looked gleeful and said something about how rare it was to have a wand chose you so soon. He handed over a box in which he'd placed the wand. "There you go. One ten inch cherrywood wand with a unicorn tail core." And then turned to nanna with the strangest of words. It took Lucie a while to register that it was money he was talking about. Of course. That strange bank with the odd creatures.

They were soon back out on Amethyst Alley with Lucie hugging the box containing the wand close to her chest. "I think that maybe I might like this magic idea after all. I just don't want to go to France to learn how to do it."

Nanna just nudged her shoulder and reminded her she was in France right now and hurry along. They were to go to the bookshop next.