Chapter Three: Odin Alley
“Are you all ready then, Lottie?” Posy attempted, yet again, to run a brush through Lottie’s tangled hair.
“Yes, Mum!” Lottie snatched the brush out of her mother’s hands and picked at the huge mat in her hair. “I’ve got a bag and everything.” She gestured to a small burlap sack near the door. “Am--am I meeting them outside or--”
“They’re coming to get you,” Posy answered quickly. “The professor told us in private. He’s coming himself to pick you up, and you’ll all meet up and go to school, as to not draw attention to yourself.”
“Right.” Lottie dug the tip of her toe into the ground.
Posy held Lottie’s shoulder tightly. “Now, are you sure this is what you want to do?” she asked quietly, her face pale. “Because you don’t have to, if you don’t want to. We’ll just talk to him, and--”
“I want to do it,” Lottie said sternly. “I’ve wanted to do this for my entire life, you know that.”
There were three loud raps on the door. “That’ll be Maelioric,” said Posy, giving Lottie a pat on the back. Shakily, Lottie walked to the door and opened it. Maelioric wore the same fine robes as he had the day he visited her.
“Good afternoon.” Lottie didn’t return his warm smile. “Have you got any things gathered up?”
“Y--yeah.” Lottie’s throat was rather dry. She ran and grabbed her bag. “Bye Mum,” she said quietly, not pushing away from her mother’s hug.
“Try not to get in too much trouble, okay?” Posy said tearfully.
“Don’t worry I won’t.” She turned to Maelioric and followed him out of her flat. Not looking back for fear of tearing up as well, she called, “I’ll see you over the summer!”
Suddenly, Maelioric stopped. They were still in the hall of the building. Lottie looked up at him, but he didn’t flash her with his usual smile. “Lottie, I do have something serious to speak with you about.” Lottie gulped. Had she already gotten in trouble? “I know you told your friends about us,” he said in a hushed voice, trying not to let the occupants of the other rooms hear.
Lottie felt as though her heart had just stopped. How did he know? Had he been watching her? “Now, since they didn’t believe you, it isn’t going to be a problem, but…” He raised his eyebrows. “Just be careful next time, okay?”
Taking a relieved breath, Lottie said, “Okay.”
Lottie thought they were going to leave the building, but instead of heading to the door, Maelioric spun around and led her down a tight corridor that she had never known was there. “Now, I’m going to take us to where we’re meeting everybody else,” said Maelioric. “Just grab onto my arm tightly, and don’t let go.”
Lottie obeyed, feeling quite awkward, clinging onto the man’s arm. Before she was able to get a good look around the cramped hall, she heard a loud crack. It felt as though somebody was trying to push her, headfirst into a tube that was far too small for her. A moment later, she could breathe again. She stumbled, trying to catch herself, and fell onto the ground, dazed.
Maelioric’s laughter brought her back to reality. “Don’t worry. Nearly everybody falls their first time as well.” He held out his hand and helped her to standing. “Alright, I’m off to get another student. Wait here with everybody else for a few minutes.” With that, he disappeared again.
Lottie turned around. Kids, all her age, were sitting and waiting. She smiled at a boy. The boy looked down at his lap, and folded his hands. Nearly all of the to-be students were all dressed in old clothes like her. Nobody said anything. Joining in the silence, she sat down against one of the curved walls.
The room they were in was plain. All the walls and floors were grey. After further inspection, Lottie decided that they must have been some other color at one point, but faded and turned grey. There were a few benches, and a large oak door.
More adults appeared, with students clutching to their arms, and then vanished again. A girl who was unnervingly familiar arrived a few minutes after Lottie. She stood for a moment, and then sat down next to another girl and began talking. Lottie craned her neck to try and determine where she had seen that girl before. Her thin brown hair was messy, and she had blue eyes that were far too big for her face.
Lottie gasped when she realized who it was. She had often found that girl around the group of girls who rivaled her friends. Former friends, she corrected herself. That girl’s conversation had started a string of socialization that was spreading down the group of students. Not wanting to stand out on her first day, Lottie turned to the girl next to her. She had brown hair, brown eyes and a freckle-spotted button nose.
“Hi.”
The girl turned to her. “Oh. Hello.” She pushed the brown hair out of her face. Lottie noticed that her clothes were not nearly as torn as most of the students’. “My name is Alison--well Ally. Ally Overton.”
“I’m Lottie Rowe.” They nodded and smiled at each other for a few moments, neither of them knowing exactly what to say.
“Are you a Muggle-born?” Ally finally asked.
Lottie recognized that word. Maelioric had used it when he was explaining magic to her. “Erm… Yeah, I think I am. That means I have non-magic parents, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then yeah, I am.” There was a moment’s silence. “Oh, what about you?” Lottie added hurriedly.
Ally suddenly looked very excited. Lottie guessed that she had been waiting to tell her story. “No, I’m not,” she said proudly. Lottie’s stomach fell. Was being a Muggle-born a bad thing? “My dad’s a Muggle, but my mum was a witch.” She looked behind her and leaned in. “My mum was fighting against the Dark Lord, but she got killed by Death Eaters.” Lottie noticed that Ally sounded more proud than upset that her mother had died. “I grew up in a camp with other half-bloods, not with Muggles.”
“Well that must’ve been nice,” Lottie responded.
“It was okay. Probably not as bad as wherever you were, considering what you’re wearing.” Ally laughed. Lottie did too, though it wasn’t quite as genuine as Ally’s.
Lottie opened her mouth to say something, but before she could there was a loud crack and Maelioric appeared. One last student ran and sat down with the group. Lottie frowned when she saw him. He didn’t have tattered clothes like her; he didn’t even have clothes like Ally. He was in dark robes that reminded her of Maelioric’s.
“Well,” Maelioric said, clapping to get their attention. “I believe that we’re all here now.” He beamed at them. “Another year, and another batch of first year students. Let me be the first to welcome you all.” A murmur ran through the group of students. “Before we get to Alsemore, you all can clean up a bit. Everybody will get three sets of uniforms. We have other clothes in every size for weekends and holidays. Each person may have two extra outfits. Also, you may need to get glasses. We can provide you with them, if the Healers decide you need them.” Maelioric pulled out a stick, just like the Death Eaters’. “And I’m sure you all have been wondering about these.” Lottie leaned in, her gaze not moving from the thin piece of wood.
“Well, these are wands that wizards and witches use to control their magic.” He chortled. “In my experience, students are usually far too curious to find out what they are.”
Lottie couldn’t help but mutter, “So Melanie was wrong then…” Ally turned to her and shot her a stern glance.
“So--” he waved his wand, causing the doors to fly open “--first you’ll meet with a Healer, and get yourself cleaned up a bit.”
Everybody stood up and shuffled silently behind Maelioric. Nobody knew quite what to say. Lottie glanced around nervously, looking for anybody who knew what a Healer was. She thought that the large oak doors were heading to another corridor, but when she passed through them, she found herself in an alley.
The sun shone through the scattered clouds. Lottie wondered if wherever they were had experienced the same storms as London had for the past week. Maelioric led the students down the thin road. It looked as though they were heading towards a huge building. It was a plain grey color, with small barred windows. As the group shuffled towards it, Lottie started to feel a bit more apprehensive.
She wondered what the building held. Maybe they were going to get their clothes or their wands. Lottie’s fingers itched at the idea of having her own wand, like the Death Eaters. “Where do you think we’re going?” she asked Ally quietly.
Ally shrugged. “Maybe it’s where we’ll get our uniforms?”
Maelioric stopped walking. Standing on the steps that led up to the grey building, he turned to them. “Welcome to Odin Alley. It is one of a series of hidden locations we use to provide resources or training for the war. A group of merchants joined together to provide us with the proper materials for us.” Lottie turned to ask Ally how they were getting the materials in the first place, but again, Ally shot her a warning glance.
“So, this is our first stop. I just ask you all to be quiet when we enter, so we don’t disturb any of the patients.” A hush fell over the students as he led them inside the building. Lottie shivered when she entered. She decided that it would be a better idea not to ask Ally, considering her strict attention to the rules.
A group of adults in sterile white robes stood before them. Maelioric broke the students up into five groups, based on where they were standing and the white robed adult standing before them led them off. Lottie was happy to be in Ally’s group, though was annoyed to see the short, blue eyed girl from the camp was in the group as well.
“Right.” The man leading their group turned to them. He had a thick cockney accent and crooked teeth like a key. “So, I’m here to check to make sure you’re all okay and whatnot. I’m a Healer, so I can make sure you’re all okay. So… you-- ” He pointed at the blue eyed girl from the camp “--come here.” The girl obeyed. The Healer pointed her wand at her. He muttered something under his breath and handed her a small vial. “Drink. It will help that cough of yours.”
The girl drank and winced at the taste. “Now, you’re going to need glasses so you can see properly,” said the Healer curtly. He was to a cabinet and pulled out a pair of thickly rimmed glasses. They made the girl’s eyes look even bigger now -- far too big for her face. Lottie snickered along with the other kids. Blushing, the bug-eyed girl returned to the group, but made sure that she was far in the back, slightly detached from every else.
The task of making sure that everybody wasn’t seriously sick or hurt soon became a very tedious one. One boy needed a spell to fix a sprained wrist, and another girl had to take three potions to get rid of an infection, but mostly the only thing everybody needed was a spell or two to remove bruises.
Lottie shuffled over to the girl in the back and stood silently for a moment. The girl stared at her. “Let me see those for a second, okay?” she whispered, snatching the glasses off of the girl’s face.
“Hey!” The room went silent and everybody turned to them. “Sorry!” the girl breathed and turned back to Lottie. “Give those back,” she hissed.
“It’ll just be a second!” Lottie pushed the glasses onto her face. Right away, everything went blurry. The girl snatched them back and glared at Lottie. Lottie glared back. “Fine,” she said, rolling her eyes. She threw the girl’s glasses back at her and joined the group again.
The Healer pointed to Lottie and she stepped up, praying that she wouldn’t need glasses. Carelessly, he pointed his wand at her and sighed. “How’d you get these bruises?” he asked, pointing to her arm.
Lottie blushed. “I fell.” The Healer didn’t seem satisfied with the answer. “Well you didn’t ask anybody else!” she said, putting her hands on her hips. “Somebody threw a rock at me, and I fell, are you happy?”
The Healer ignored her and waved his wand. Lottie’s bruises began to shrink until they disappeared. “Alright you’re fine.” Lottie returned to her spot next to Ally. The Healer led them out the door of their little room and back into the main hall, where all of the other groups were waiting. A few of the other students had gotten glasses just like the big-eyed girl.
Maelioric appeared out of another room and took them out of what Lottie decided was a hospital and down the alley. The other students were all chattering happily, but whenever Lottie would turn to Ally, she would return the glance with a loud “Shh!”
He brought them to a shop -- or what looked like a shop. Once Lottie entered she realized that it was definitely not a shop. It was bigger than any single room she had ever seen before. Rows of clothes stretched back nearly to the end of the room.
“This is where you’re going to get your uniforms,” Maelioric informed them, giving one boy a pat on his back. “So each of you go down to the wall and line up.” Lottie followed another boy down one of the rows of clothes. There were dark cloaks that looked just like the ones the Death Eaters wore, long robes that looked like water and coats with far too many pockets.
She chose a spot next to Ally, who smiled at her. “Excited to get nicer clothes?” she asked.
“Er--yeah.” Lottie laughed nervously. “What about you?”
“I suppose. I wish we didn’t have a uniform, though.”
“Well, if they’re supplying us with everything, how wouldn’t we have one?”
Ally shrugged and looked down at her feet. A grumpy middle-aged man was walking down the line of students throwing what looked like a large duffle bag down at their feet, muttering something about the worst day of the year. Three women and the same man bustled importantly down the line. One boy gasped when the measuring tapes hovered in the air and began to measure without any help. The three witches and the wizard scribbled down the measurement with a quill on parchment.
Lottie was relieved when one of the friendly looking witches took her measurement, though Ally didn’t look very happy with the wizard who was scribbling down her measurements. The witch handed Lottie a small card with a purple check on it.
“Right, you lot,” the man said gruffly. “See that little check on the card you got? Go to the desk that has the same color check as your card. And don’t forget your bags.” The spun around, exchanged a glance with Maelioric and left to the desk with a green check.
“What color’ve you got?” Ally asked.
“Purple. You?”
“Orange.”
“Well, I guess I’ll see you in a few minutes then,” Lottie said, trying to sound optimistic. She really didn’t want to be separated with the only person she had met. Ally followed a boy to the desk with the orange check on the front and Lottie trotted to the purple desk, her new bag around her shoulder.
“Name?” Lottie looked up. A witch with a roll of parchment towered above her.
“Oh--er Lottie Rowe.”
The woman scanned down the line. “Mm… Charlotte, you mean?”
Lottie turned a delicate shade of pink, feeling the eyes of her classmates behind her. “Yeah, Charlotte,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Right, so go down over there.” The witch pointed to where another wizard was standing. “Get your uniforms from him, and then go through that door and get your two free wear outfits.”
Lottie slid down the line and stood in front of the man. He pointed at her bag. Carefully, she handed it to him, making sure that he wasn’t about to steal it. He piled three sets of uniforms into the large duffle and threw it back at her. She stumbled back with the new weight in her bag and ran into the room with the purple check over it.
The room was divided into two sections. On the left hand side, there was a rickety sign that read “Witches” and on the right, an equally as old sign read “Wizards.” She followed the other girls in front of her to the left side of the room, and started looking through the clothes. None of the clothes had patterns or writing on the front. Lottie picked a black and a red top, two pairs of faded jeans, and a green sweater. Everything looked as though it had been worn before.
“Okay, has everybody got everything?” The man who was giving everybody a uniform poked his head in the door. “Go and wait out in the front room, when you are.”
Lottie shouldered her duffle and walked to the front room. She spotted Ally immediately and waved. Ally looked thoroughly annoyed, but waved back away. “What’s up with you?” Lottie asked, laughing.
Ally didn’t laugh with her. “I got put with kids who are a lot taller than me.” She stomped her foot on the floor. “And now all of my clothes are way too big.”
“Well, they probably did that for a reason, don’t you think?” Ally didn’t seem satisfied with her answer. “Maybe they think you’ll grow really fast, or something. I don’t know.”
Ally went on to explain how she hadn’t realized that it was sorted by size until she saw that all of the clothes they were offering her were the same size, but that they were all too big for her. “And id you see how plain they were?” She sighed. “Most of the kids in my camp had at least a pattern on their clothes.”
“Is everybody here?” Maelioric’s voice rang through the large room. “Good,” he said as he left the room. He waved for all of the students to follow him back into the cobblestone alley. “Our next stop is the wand shop. You will get your books and other supplies at school,” he said importantly. “It would be too complicated to do it now, and considering everybody is getting the same thing, besides clothes and wands, we decided it wouldn’t hurt to let it wait.” He pointed to a tiny shop at the end of the street. Lottie wondered how everybody would fit in there.
Apparently, it was very possible to fit forty eleven-year-olds to fit in a tiny shop. Lottie didn’t understand how it was possible, and by everybody’s expression, neither did they. The inside of the room seemed to be far bigger than the outside, with enough room to provide a seat for each student. Lottie sat down in a squishy armchair and Ally chose a large pink pouffe next to her.
There was an old woman standing before them, staring at Maelioric. Once he nodded at her, she cleared her throat and spoke. “I am Miss Outterridge.” She raised her eyebrows, as though waiting for somebody to cry out of disbelief. “Getting a wand is not as simple as most of you might think. It is not--” she glared sharply at a boy in the front who had started snickering “--simply a matter of finding one that you like or that might look nice. As a great man once said ‘the wand chooses the wizard.’”
Maelioric pulled out a piece of parchment and handed it to Miss Outterridge, who unfolded it. “Right, so I know this is a bit tedious,” Maelioric said. “But it could be quite interesting if you try to notice a pattern.” He winked at them and left the tiny shop. This time several students really did shout out of disbelief. Lottie shared their feeling. She definitely did not want to be left in a room with this batty old woman.
“We will go in order of seating,” said Outterridge, pointing to the girl sitting in the front. Lottie suddenly regretted taking a seat in the last row. “Name?”
“D-Dorothea Melville.” Outterridge searched down the parchment and turned to a pile of boxes. She pulled one from the middle, and handed the wand inside to Dorothea. “Is this it?” asked Dorothea, smiling at the wand.
“Well I don’t know yet, do I?” Outterridge sighed over-dramatically. “Wave it!” Dorothea, blushing heavily, took the wand and waved it. Nothing happened. “Well, that’s not it, is it?” She pulled out another box and gave the girl another wand. Dorothea waved it, and purple sparks shot out of the end.
Several of the students gasped and clapped for Dorothea, who grinned. “That’s an interesting combination,” the old woman rasped. “Birch, nine inches, phoenix feather.” Outterridge gave Dorothea the box and let her take her seat.
Ten students later, Lottie realized that it wasn’t nearly as entertaining as she thought it would be. It took Outterridge a few tries to get everybody’s wand, but there was always that shower of sparks at the end. The big-eyed girl with the glasses stood up. When Outterridge asked her name, she said “Andrea Woolbright,” quietly.
It took Andrea over ten tries to get the right wand. Lottie had to fight the urge to yell at Outterridge.
Finally, when she had found the correct one, Lottie slouched back down in her seat. Ally was nearly sleeping also. Lottie tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She looked up and sighed. “Still at it?” she asked. Lottie nodded solemnly.
It must have been an hour later, when the boy sitting next to Lottie sat down. Filled with a sudden surge of energy, she ran up to the front, beaming. “Name?”
“Lottie--er--Charlotte Rowe.”
Outterridge checked her name off on the parchment and searched through the boxes. “Here, try this one… Ash, fourteen inches, phoenix feather.” Lottie waved it, but nothing happened. “I suppose not. How about this one? Hickory, eight inches, unicorn tail hair.” That wand didn’t seem to do the trick either. Lottie went through five more wands, until she pulled a fairly average sized one. “Sycamore and walnut, ten inches, dragon heart string.” Lottie waved it, and immediately green and gold sparks shot out of the tip of the wand. Her fingers tingled from the magic.
Outterridge gave her the box and Lottie sat back down. Ally was the first person that Outterridge found a wand for in one try. Lottie wondered if that meant her magic was stronger than most people’s.
Finally, the last boy got his wand, and Maelioric reappeared. Lottie understood why he had left now. He walked backwards as he led them back to the room where they had all met. “So did anybody get their wand on their first try?” he asked conversationally. Ally raised her hand. “Ah! Damn. I owe Ryan five Galleons, then. This is the first time Outterridge has done that in about … ten years.” Ally beamed proudly.
There must have been twenty teachers all standing in the room that they had been waiting in earlier. “Now, two students per teacher, please,” Maelioric called through the confusion. “We’re just going to Apparate to the school.”
Lottie and Ally ended up with a teacher who had thick brown hair, speckled with grey that was tied back tightly. “Hello,” she said stiffly. “I’m Professor Stainthorpe. Just grab onto my arm, and we’ll leave.” Lottie and Ally held onto the professor and waited for the unnerving sensation of traveling through a space without air.
They appeared in what felt like a dungeon. Lottie stumbled back and forth, and Ally had to hold onto her arm to stop from falling over. Without saying goodbye, Stainthorpe turned around and left quickly.
Once everybody had arrived, Maelioric stood before them. “Welcome,” he said, smiling at all of them, “to Alsemore Academy.”
Halfway to Infinity by Eponine
Chapter Notes: So sorry for the wait. Thanks a bajillion times over again to Deanine and TheBird!