Dark Come Soon

Diagon Alley was exactly as Alexandra had imagined it would be. The streets were deserted. There were only a handful of people within sight and none of them looked like they wanted to be there. They walked with their heads hung low, clutching onto their shopping bags for dear life. It was obvious that they didn’t want to be there and as she stood on the street corner, she began to wonder if it would be better to just go back to Hogwarts.

Andrés noticed the change in his daughter’s behavior so he proposed that they return another day. That proposal was met with opposition and after being reminded of the two Aurors that were accompanying them, Andrés reluctantly agreed to stay. He just hoped that everything would work out in their favor, because if anything were to happen to Alexandra, he would be absolutely devastated.

She was his life, the person that he loved most in the world. He worked so she would never have to go without and her safety was his upmost priority. Some people thought him strange for being so protective of her, but he was just doing what any single parent would do, because when a person doesn’t have a partner, they have be both mother and father to their child.

“What does Alexandra need?” Andrés asked Sybill.

“Her robes for Hogwarts.” Her eyes closed slightly as she rummaged through her mind. “Does she already have a cauldron?” Sybill then asked.

“Of course,” Alex answered her mother.

“Then just your robes.” Sybill smiled kindly.

“I’ll take her to Madam Malkin’s,” Ramona said cheerfully. “She’s the best.”

At that, Alexandra tensed. She had no intention on separating from her dad, especially not in some seedy looking street like Diagon Alley. She didn’t feel safe there and since she was only 16 years old, she didn’t feel capable of defending herself since magic under the age of 17 wasn’t permitted in the United Kingdom. With that in mind, she readied herself to protest what Ramona had proposed, but just as her teeth were seeing the light of day, Andrés spoke.

“Give me your list of books and I’ll get yours too.” He told Ramona.

Alexandra shot him a look that told him of her displeasure with his agreeing for them to slip up. The look was ignored by Andrés whom proceeded to pull out some money for Alexandra to buy her robes and art supplies.

“I promise this place used to be more alive,” Ramona told Alexandra on their way to Madam Malkin’s.

“I guess it has to do with you-know-who,” Alex commented.

“Voldemort,” she turned to look at Alex. “His name is Voldemort or better yet, Tom Riddle.”

“You know his real name?” Alex asked shocked, her voice barely audible.

“I do. It’s just a name and we shouldn’t fear it.” Her eyes shifted to a familiar figure making its way up the street. “Hey, it’s Hagrid!” Ramona ran up to the half giant and hugged him as best as she could.

Alexandra greeted him with a timid smile and a handshake.

“We came to get Alex’s robes for Hogwarts!” Ramona exclaimed. “And then we’re going to see Fred and George’s shop! Wait a minute . . . what are you doing here?”

“I'm here as protection for Harry, Ron and Hermione,” he said proudly. “Dumbledore wanted someone he truly trusted.” His eyes went to the Auror at their side. “You guys are in good hands to.”

“Oh this is perfect!” Ramona laughed and turned to Alexandra. “You get to meet my mates.”

That wasn’t part of the plan. Alexandra wasn’t supposed to meet anyone knew, she was just supposed to get her art and school supplies and get the fuck out so she could spend some time painting that afternoon. That was all she had wanted out of the trip. She didn’t want to be forced out of her comfort zone by being introduced to three new people.

Her displeasure was noticed by Ramona whom then tried to ease her.

“They’re great people.” She reassured. “You get to meet theHarry Potter. Ron and Hermione are a bonus,” Ramona giggled. “Trust me, Alex, you’ll love them and they’ll love you.”

Alexandra found that very hard to believe. She wasn’t a talkative person, which meant that most people either thought she was aloof, cold, or full of herself. She didn’t mind if people didn’t like her, it made being a recluse easier but for some reason, Alexandra didn’t want to disappoint Ramona by letting her down in front of her friends.

A nearby door was opened, causing a bell to jingle. From the door emerged to figures, a statuesque woman that possessed good looks that were laced with conceit and a tall young man with piercing grey eyes. Alexandra watched in silence as Ramona and the unknown by shared a look and when said boy was out of sight, she felt it alright to ask her friend just who he was.

“Who was he?” Alex asked as they turned to watch them leave.

“No one of importance,” she answered simply. “Let’s go meet the guys.”

“Shouldn’t we get my robes first? I mean, that way we can be with your friends without worrying about running out of time or something like that.”

“Good point.” Her eyes flickered in the direction of the store. “It’s not to far from here, just a few blocks up that way. Once we’re done we can head over to the joke shop. There’s an art store near there or at least there was, hopefully it’s still open. Does that sound alright?”

Alex nodded.

The teenagers were soon on their way to the dress shop. Hagrid walked beside Ramona, conversing animatedly with her while the Auror charged with protecting them, walked alongside Alexandra. He was a stern looking man that didn’t speak, she appreciated his silence.

“We’re here,” proclaimed Ramona when they reached the shop. “And it doesn’t look like there are many people inside. This is perfect! Come on Alex, let’s go in.”

Ramona ushered Alexandra inside and when the door closed behind them, she took hold of Alexandra’s arm and dragged her in the direction of the school robe section.

“Hello Madam Malkin!” Ramona greeted warmly.

“Hello dear, how are you?” the elderly woman spoke.

“I'm great! How are you?” Ramona inquired politely.

“Oh, I'm doing as well as anyone else, but who’s this? I haven’t seen her face around here before.” Madam Malkin stared at Alexandra with curious eyes.

“I'm Alexandra Ávila,” she introduced herself.

“American?” the elderly witch smiled brightly. “I haven’t had an American through this shop in years. Tell me, what brings you to Diagon Alley?”

“Hogwarts, I need to get my robes for Hogwarts.” Alexandra averted her gaze, finding that the floor was much more inviting that Madam Malkin’s face.

“My word,” murmured Malkin. “Why would any American transfer to Hogwarts right now? That makes absolutely no sense.”

“Do you always ask so many questions?” Alexandra blurted out; her cheeks flooding with color when she realized that she’d said it aloud.

There was no verbal response from Madam Malkin; she simply narrowed her eyes at Alexandra before redirecting her attention to Ramona.

“Will you need robes as well?” she asked curtly.

“No.” Ramona smiled softly, hoping to control the damage that her friend had done.

“Very well then, let me get my things, take her to the measuring area and have her take off that cardigan.”

Ramona waited until Malkin was out of earshot to scold Alexandra. “Why’d you say that?”

“It was an accident.”

“An accident?” she repeated, not believing the excuse.

Alexandra nodded. “I thought I just thought it to myself. I didn’t think I said it out loud but then I did and now she’s acting like she’s mad when she shouldn’t really be mad, she does ask a lot of questions.”

“She was just trying to be friendly.”

“She was being nosy,” Alexandra whispered as she took off her cardigan.

“Only you think that someone that’s trying to be nice is being nosy.” Ramona leant against the nearby wall. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Want me to look into the future? I'm sure I can find the answer.” Alexandra joked.

“That’d be nice,” Ramona giggled. “It’d save me the trouble of having to think.”

“I'm glad this thing can be good for something. Maybe I’ll use it to win the lottery back home that way I can do nothing but paint and smoke for the rest of my days.”

“And you can make the album art for my band!”

“I’ll make it the best album art that anyone’s ever seen!” Alexandra exclaimed, her voice sounding louder than the dreamy whisper she was accustomed to speaking in. “It’ll be worthy of a Jimi Hendrix album,” she added in her regular tone.

The fitting went by uneventfully and soon enough, they were heading towards the joke shop. There was a bounce in Ramona’s step. She was truly excited to see her friends after being separated for such a long time. Alexandra busied herself by staring at the deserted storefronts, her eyes scanning them over. They gave her a strange feeling; it was as if the walls were trying to communicate what they had seen to her, like they just wanted someone to truly understand.

There were several times during the course of their walk that she began to wander towards a storefront, she wanted to touch it, the curiosity was too much for her to ignore, but whenever she began to stray, the Auror that had been charged with protecting them, made sure to set her back on the right path, much like a parent would their toddler.

They soon reached the joke shop.

Alexandra’s eyes widening in delight when she saw the brightly colored storefront. It was outrageous, over the top, and it contrasted dramatically with the rest of the street, but it was absolutely perfect. It drew in the eyes, making people curious so they would go in. She appreciated the effort that had put into creating the design and was curious to meet the people that had brought life to it.

The inside of the store proved to be even more impressive than the front. The walls were painted in bold colors, the shelves varied in size and design and in the air – as ridiculous as it sounds – one could smell pure undeniable joy. It was that joy that caused Alexandra’s lips to hitch upwards into a small smile.

“Well, well, well, look who finally remembered her friends.” A fiery haired ginger spoke, his eyes twinkling mischievously.

“I think she came to the wrong store,” spoke another young man whom was identical to the first.

“Georgie boy, I think you’re right.”

The one called George smiled smugly. “I'm always right, Fred.”

“Now, now, don’t get so full of yourself you fathead.”

“Are you two going to stand there insulting each other or are you going to greet me properly?” Ramona interjected.

“We’ll get to you in a minute.” They said in unison.

“If you don’t get to me right now, I'm walking.” Ramona threatened playfully.

“Hey! You don’t get to threaten us, we –” Fred trailed off.

“Threaten you,” added George. “Especially since you haven’t visited this shop since it opened up.”

“Honestly, Mona! It’s been ages since this opened up and you’re barely visiting and . . . oh, hello poppet; I'm Fred, Fred Weasley. And what might your name be?”

“Alexandra Ávila,” she held out her hand to him.

He took his hand in hers, “Lovely meeting you Alexandra. This here’s my brother George. I think you can tell which of us got all the looks.”

“It’s a pity that I got all of them. Poor Fred looks like a beast that can’t be sold even on the black market.” George joked. “Nice meeting you, but I'm surprised we haven’t met sooner. I guess Ramona just wanted to keep you all to herself, she’s a sneaky little witch.”

“Don’t believe a word they say. These gingers are notorious liars.” Ramona pinched George’s arm.

“Ouch! What was that for?” George rubbed where he’d been pinched.

“For being such a prat,” Ramona stuck her nose out at home.

“The only prat here is you.” Fred stated.

“And why’s that?” Ramona placed a hand on her hip, cocking her brow as she did so.

“Because you’ve been hiding Alexandra from us and that –“

“– is unforgivable.” George completed the statement.

“You fatheads!” groaned Ramona. “Alexandra was in America up until a few weeks back.”

“America?” they jumped at her side, Fred on her right and George on her left.

Alexandra unknowingly took a step back, feeling uncomfortable by the lack of space. She didn’t like when people crowded her. It made her feel like she’d smack them in the face or kick them if she went into a trance.

The twins were about to comment on her movement when their brother, Ron, appeared.

“How much is this?” Ron asked.

They responded in unison. “Five galleons.”

“How much is it for me?” Ron pressed.

Again, they replied. “Five galleons.”

“But I'm your brother!” Ron was outraged by his brother’s behavior.

“Ten galleons.”

“Bloody gits,” Ron cursed.

“Now, now Ronniekins don’t talk like that in front of our friend.” George told him.

“Why the hell should I care about your friend?” Ron shot his brother a reproachful look.

“Because she’s my friend to,” interjected Ramona. “Ron this is Alexandra. Alexandra this is Ron. I’d like to say that he’s not usually this moody but that’d be a lie.” Ramona smirked.

Ron’s ears turned an alarming shade of red as he stared at the stranger. He thought her to be a rather pretty girl and whenever he’s around anyone he deems attractive, he can’t help but act a bit of a fool and at that moment, his acting like a fool meant that he was just going to stand there.

“Hello,” strangely enough, Alexandra broke the silence. “I'm Alexandra.”

“R-Ron,” he stuttered.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“Yeah,” he muttered. “I mean, it’s nice to meet you to, because I am me so it’s not like I could meet me . . .” Ron trailed off, embarrassed by his rambling.

“So what are you doing in England?” Fred was curios to know why an American had abandoned a stable country for a war ravaged one.

“My dad’s the new healer at Hogwarts.” Alexandra responded.

“Is he mad?” George blurted out. “No offense, but anyone that leaves America for England has to be mental.”

Fred nodded in agreement. “Absolutely bonkers,” he added.

“Everyone’s a little mad.” Alexandra replied.

“And you seem like you’re completely insane, so come on, we’ll give you the grand tour of our shop and since Ramona’s here, I guess we can give her one to, but it’s not like we want to,” he scrunched his nose at Ramona.

“I love you to Georgie.” Ramona stuck her nose out at him and linked arms with him.

Fred attempted to take Alexandra’s hand but she flinched away. He was about to ask her if something was wrong, before he could, Ramona shot him a look that told him to just forget about it so he just walked alongside her, pointing at the various objects that lined their shelves.