Who: Ollivander and Dennis What: The Wandmaker and his Apprentice go out harvesting at night When: Saturday, November 9 - 6:30 pm Where: Ollivander's Wand Shop / The forest Rating: PG Status: Complete
The sun had just dipped past the horizon and the last remnants of daylight were casting purple and orange shadows on the clouds. Stars were already twinkling in the sky, though the time was only a few minutes past 5:30. When Dennis came by the shop, Ollivander was waiting for him by the door, already wearing his traveling hat and cloak and carrying a leather satchel over his shoulder.
"I know I told you we were going to work on carving today, but something else came up."
The truth was, when Ollivander had written to Dennis to ask him to come by the shop, he knew all along what he wanted to do, but didn't feel like the possibility of haggling with Colin about taking his brother out into the forest at night.
He stepped out of the shop and waited for Dennis to come by his side before locking up. "Tonight is a special night. Do you know what it is?" ______________________________________________________________________
Dennis had called out to Colin just before closing the door as he ran out of their house. He didn't want to give Colin the chance to say no to him. He didn't really think Colin would, especially since he was only going to Mr. Ollivander's shop, but they were so finicky together at times that Dennis didn't want to tempt fate. Besides, it wasn't even THAT late! When he got to the shop, Dennis frowned to see Mr. Ollivander waiting by the door, ready to leave. His frown deepened when he was told something else had come up.
"Do you want me to come back tomorrow then?" Dennis loved working with Mr. Ollivander. He'd been skeptical at first, thinking it would be boring or something, but that hadn't been the case. Mr. Ollivander was cooler then most people thought and that had been surprising to find out. Plus, he treated Dennis like an adult, or at least more mature than anyone else did.
He sulked by the door for a moment before he realized Ollivander was waiting for him. His smile returned brightly as he bounced to Mr. Ollivander's side. "Sunday? And Four more nights until my birthday! I'll be 15 soon!" He didn't know if Mr. Ollivander knew that or not. ____________________________________________________________________________
If Dennis hadn't figured out on his own that he was to accompany him, Ollivander was ready to reply to the question, but was very satisfied to see he'd figured it out on his own. A bright young lad, this one. He handed Dennis over the satchel for him to carry but paused for a long while to look at him, curiously. "Your birthday is on Wednesday? I didn't know that. But I'm glad you told me. Consider this an early birthday present."
He was about to turn to down the stairs and outside the office complex when he frowned at the door to his shop. "Blast it. I've forgotten my walking stick. Never mind. We won't be gone long."
Resuming his direction to leave the building, expecting Dennis to follow without needing to look. "Today is the first quarter of the New Moon. It's good to know these things. Some magical plants are best harvested at different moon phases for full potency. I'll draft you a time sheet so you can have it. The ancient Druids considered this a sanctified night and by their calender, reckoned it as the beginning of their month."
Outside in the chill of the blossoming evening, Ollivander pointed east to show Dennis. "There is it, the quarter moon." ________________________________________________________________________________
"Actually, it's Thursday, but there's 4 whole days between then and now." Gosh, that seemed like such a long time, especially when he was so excited to spend another birthday with his brother, that he wouldn't get to celebrate with him at home. Dennis took the satchel and draped it over his shoulder so that he could have his hands free.
Dennis paused when Mr. Ollivander mentioned forgetting his walking stick, but shrugged when he said they wouldn't be gone long. He was going to offer to return for it, but Mr. Ollivander had kept walking, so Dennis picked up his step instead to keep up.
"Oh," was all he could say in response. He really didn't know much about Astronomy, having not had the chance to take the class. He nodded though, interested in how the moon would play a part in whatever they were doing. There was always something new to learn when he was working with Mr. Ollivander, but he never felt stupid for not knowing things.
Dennis turned towards the East, where Mr. Ollivander had pointed his direction. "So what are we doing?" Mr. Ollivander had mentioned harvesting, so it wasn't hard to figure that much out. But they had harvested a lot when they went out the month before. It seemed like they had harvested something from all the magical trees they could find. _____________________________________________________________________________________
"We're apparating to the location," Ollivander said, answering Dennis' question as well as not answering. "It's a fairly good distance away, and you shouldn't be out too late for a school night." He paused and said to Dennis in a confidential tone, "You're not going to mention this to Colin, are you?" Ollivander asked in such a way that he knew Dennis' answer, but only wanted a conformation.
"I'll remember about Thursday," he announced, hoping that he actually would. Sometimes his memory slipped, but for this he would make a concerted effort into not forgetting. "Hold on to my arm, you've done side-long apparation before, haven't you?"
A few moments later they found themselves in the middle of a dense forest, so dark you almost couldn't see your hand in front of your face. "Lumos!" Ollivander held his wand aloft and the light from its tip shone to dissipate some of the darkness. The place they arrived had been visited by Ollivander twice before, just so he could be sure of its location tonight, the grass under their feet was purposely trampled flat. Turning in his spot, Ollivander stopped when he faced a rather huge oak. "Here," he indicated with a nod of his head. Around the trunk, Ollivander had tied a string to help them identify it more easily.
"Are you familiar with mistletoe?" Ollivander looked at Dennis then cast his glance upwards, motioning for Dennis to do the same. He directed the light of his wand up into the branches. Most of the oak's leaves had turned color and fallen, leaving it bare, but standing out amongst the branches was a large, twisted clump of green. ___________________________________________________________________________
"Mr. O, it's not a school night. It's Saturday." He shook his head and grinned. Dennis knew sometimes Mr. Ollivander forgot things, and that was part of why Dennis was around. He leaned in and said in the same tone as the older man, "I won't tell. You know I wont."
Dennis was sure he would have to remind Mr. Ollivander about Thursday, but he was sure he would also mention it several times in the up coming days. He was going to be fifteen after all, and that made him almost an adult. Dennis shook his head. Colin had died before learning to apparate and his parents were both muggles. Still, Dennis wasn't the type to turn down a new adventure! He'd see how apparating was and then make a decision.
When they were suddenly in the forest, Dennis shook his head again. He'd have to reevaluate how he felt about apparition. It was too quick to have made a real impact on him. Though when he went to take a step forward, his vision swam, making him laugh. That had been weird. When he got his bearings back, he followed Mr. Ollivander to the tree.
"Yeah, I know about mistletoe." He looked up when instructed before turning and looking at Mr. Ollivander strangely. "You didn't bring me out here to kiss you did you? Cause I'm sorry, Mr. O, I won't do it." ______________________________________________________________________________
"So it is, my lad, so it is." Ollivander was so excited about this evening's excursion that he'd plum forgot even what day of the week it was. But he laughed merrily at Dennis' kissing comment. "Yes, that's what mistletoe is most commonly known for, however!" He plucked the satchel from Dennis and set it on the ground to open. "Fertility, and so on. But there's more to it than that. The Druids didn't consider it their most sacred plant for nothing. It's very strong... the magical energy is extremely attracted to it. It's excellent for Healing Charms, Protection Charms and promoting peace in general, but in the right hands it can cast mighty offensive spells."
The inside of his satchel was charmed to hold much more than meets the eye: Ollivander pulled out two lanterns, which he lit with his wand providing extra light, and after that a large cloth, which he instructed, "Please help me to spread this flat beneath the tree. Remember, when mistletoe is harvested, it should never touch the ground."
As they spread the cloth Ollivander continued, "Their berries are a main ingredient for Restful sleep potions, and even when a spring placed beneath your pillow or hung at the headboard of your bed it promotes beautiful dreams. It's the ingredient to the antidote for most all poisons as well as the Forgefulness Potion, fibers of the plant is used in the weaving of invisibility cloaks and its said the spells cast from a mistletoe wand are the only kind that can counteract the ancient magic of Elves. There."
Ollivander looked up at the patch of mistletoe growing high above them, resting his hands smartly upon his hips. "The plant is naturally magical, like a Mandrake or a Bubotuber, but when it hosts upon a magical oak tree, as this one is, then its exceedingly potent. Being a vine, mistletoe does not usually grow sufficient enough to craft into a wands, but this specimen is exceptionally large. You can't see now, but there is a rather thick stalk, which I believe will be perfect for our use. And you're going to help me harvest it." _______________________________________________________________________________
Dennis looked at Mr. Ollivander even stranger as he mentioned fertility. Maybe it was because he was a 14 year old boy, or maybe because he looked at that magazine Lea sent him one too many times, but his mind was starting to get to that point where it only traveled to one place, almost all the time. And Mr. Ollivander was old and Dennis knew that only girls had to deal with fertility. Or something. He sighed a little when Mr. Ollivander kept on talking about the Druids. Hopefully it wasn't too noticeable, because his one track brain wasn't really something he thought Ollivander wanted to hear about anymore after his kissing comment.
Dennis helped to spread the blanket but paused for a second to look at Ollivander. "I thought we harvested trees, not the plants that grew on them?" Still, that didn't stop him from being excited. He'd helped a little with harvesting the wood for wands, but this seemed like it would be something different. Dennis definitely liked being challenged and pushed to try new things.
"You can make a wand out of mistletoe? Isn't it just leaves and berries?" He stopped talking long enough to listen to the things mistletoe could do and it's powers, but immediately jumped back into his incessant questioning. "You can make a wand out of a vine?" That seemed strange to him. Wands were made of wood, not vines.
"I'm gonna help?" His eyes widened as he looked up into the oak again. "What do I have to do?" He always liked this part, learning and then actually getting to put what he learned to use. _________________________________________________________________________
"There's a vine on which all those leaves and berries grow, but it's rare to find a specimen of mistletoe this large. And yes, wands may be made out of plants. Ivy, for example, has been used before. The organic, porous structure is what we're after, and as long as it's magical in nature and large enough to be shaped and to accept a core, then we're in business."
Ollivander appreciated Dennis' questions - they revealed his intelligence, enthusiasm and desire to learn. He would rather have to answer 100 questions a day than to deal with a person who had no interest in what they were doing.
"First thing's first, you're going to need to wear this." From the satchel, he brought out a set of robes, which he handed to Dennis; they were white with loose sleeves and only came down to his knees. "You can it on over your regular clothes. Ollivander had a set for himself that was longer, reaching all the way down to the ground, which he put on while telling Dennis, "Don't ask me why we have to wear these, but my father always had us do it when we were collecting mistletoe. Evidently, it's the traditional thing to wear. As far as I can tell, it doesn't affect the magic either positive or negative, but I rather like keeping with tradition.
"This, however, is very important." The next item Ollivander brought out of the satchel was kept in a drawstring purse. It was a small sickle, and Ollivander crouched so he could be at Dennis' level to show him by holding it up before Dennis' eyes. "The blade is made of gold and is charmed just like the whittling knife I gave you; it will cut wood and for our purposes, the vine, but not harm flesh. It's much keener than your knife, though... three times as sharp. It will slice through the vine like soft butter, and that's what we want. Mistletoe is strongest when harvested on Midsummer's night or under the moon of the First Quarter with a golden sickle.
"What I need you to do is to climb the tree and reach the branch where the mistletoe is growing." Ollivander waved his wand and one of the lanterns levitated toward them. "This lantern will follow you on your way up so you won't be doing this in utter darkness and will move wherever you direct it. Don't worry about falling, because I'll be here below, and will make sure you don't hurt yourself. In any case, I know you'll be able to do this - I trust you. When you reach the branch, you are to find the place where the mistletoe has attached itself to the trunk of the tree... that is where it will be the thickest. You are to slice the vine in one pass... no slicing or sawing. And please, try not to hurt the oak. Once the vine is sliced, carefully peel the vine away from the tree trunk, taking as much of it as possible, leaves, berries and all. We'll trim it later, at the shop. Do you understand the instructions?" _______________________________________________________________________
Dennis eyed the robe that was pulled out of the bag. He was going to look like a choir boy! Although, he wasn't going to argue. If Mr. Ollivander wanted him to put on the robe for sentimental reasons before letting him climb the tree, then that was alright. Dennis really liked these exciting bits like this. He slipped into the robe while Mr. Ollivander told him that they weren't completely necessary and not to ask questions about it. He had one on the tip of his tongue, but held back.
Dennis stared into the satchel, trying to see just how deep it was. He'd only spent a few years in the magical world before being chased out and there were still things that left him amazed. Such as a never ending bag, or magical creatures and plants. Before coming into the magical world, things just... were. A plant was a plant and a bag was one size and the kitchen floor needed to be mopped. Dennis' eyes widened at the sickle, it was really cool looking!
Not sure if he was ready for this kind of responsibility, but still thrilled that Ollivander would trust him with it, Dennis nodded, eyes wider then ever as he listened to the instructions. He worried for a second that he would mess up, but he also knew once he was up in the tree, it would make much more sense and it would go by without a hitch. He would just have to make his way up the tree first. "I understand."
Dennis moved to the tree, jumping to reach the thick branch a little above his head. Once he swung himself up there, it looked like it would be easier from there on out. It took a little maneuvering for Dennis to manage it, but once he did, he leaned over and grinned down at Mr. Ollivander before making his way up the rest of the tree. It took several minutes, but he was able to get to where the vine met the branch. He made quick work of slicing, carefully, and in one swift motion, where the vine met the branch. It seemed simple once he was actually looking at the specimen, which he had thought would happen. "Mr. O! I'm gonna float it down to you, so I don't drop it, is that okay?" ______________________________________________________________________
What boy doesn't know how to climb trees? That was Ollivander's reasoning when he set Dennis to task. But it was more than that. Ollivander was too old for climbing, but could've easily conceived of a way to harvest the mistletoe some other way by himself. However, he wanted to engage his apprentice the same way his father had taught him, by actively participating in all the steps it took to make a wand. Only then would one have a true appreciation for the work that went into them. It would also be an encouragement, to boost Dennis' confidence in himself and his abilities, by trusting in the lad and then rewarding him accordingly.
That did not mean Ollivander didn't have cushioning charms ready in case Dennis fell, or that he wasn't nervous when, from his vantage point, he watched Dennis position the sickle to make the cut. To hear Dennis offer to magically float the mistletoe down made Ollivander very happy; he was going to offer to do that himself, but to have Dennis make the suggestion showed that the lad was thinking intelligently for himself.
"Excellent idea!" Ollivander called up to Dennis. "I'm ready when you are!" ______________________________________________________________________________
Dennis beamed when Mr. Ollivander said his idea was a good one. Thankfully, despite his wand not favoring him, it still listened and did what Dennis needed it to. Which was definitely a good thing as this seemed to be delicate work, and Mr. Ollivander had said the mistletoe shouldn't touch the ground. He was sure Mr. Ollivander would grab it out of the air before that happened. Denny propped himself up in the tree so that he wouldn't fall while he worked his magic and lowered the mistletoe.
Once the vine was safe, Dennis tucked his wand away and made his way back down the tree. He only slipped once, catching himself before he could really fall. It took a moment after that for him to catch his breath and get his footing right again before he finished his way back down the tree.
"Did I do it right? Is the cut good?" He hadn't hacked and sawed at the vine, and the sickle had gone through just like butter, like Mr. Ollivander said, but what if had cut crooked or... something and botched their whole trip out here? _____________________________________________________________________________
Ollivander stretched out his arms to catch the gently floating mistletoe from the air as it descended, and quickly rested it upon the sheet to carefully wrap it up before returning his attention Dennis. He would've offered to help float Dennis down - he certainly had the magical strength to do so - but Dennis had already declared that he was going to climb down, so Ollivander decided to let him do it.
When Dennis' foot slipped, Ollivander started in fear for Dennis' safety, though in the dark Dennis might not have noticed. Ollivander had his wand out and was ready to protect Dennis had he fallen, but breathed easy once Dennis had recovered and continued.
Smiling at Dennis, Ollivander extinguished one of the lanterns and put it back into his satchel, along with the sickle, which he asked Dennis to return. He then pulled off his robes and indicated that Dennis should do the same, telling him, "We'll inspect it once we return to the shop. The light is not sufficient here."
The robes went into the satchel, which he then handed to Dennis along with the second lantern, still burning. Ollivander bent down to gather up the sheet and cradle it in his arms like a swaddled baby. "We're going to apparate again? Are you ready?"
In a flash, they were in front of the office building again. Brimming with excitement, Ollivander motioned with his head for Dennis to follow him into the building and up the stairs. He unlocked the door to his shop and once they were inside, he locked up again to make sure there could be no interruptions.
There were some papers left on the counter, which Ollivander disregarded by brushing them aside with a wave of his hand so that they fell haphazardly to the floor. He set the bundle down and carefully unwrapped it, as giddy as a child on Christmas morn. ___________________________________________________________________________
Dennis handed over the robe and the sickle when he was asked to do so. When the satchel came back into his possession, he peeked inside the opening, to see how far down he could see. It didn't look as deep as he knew it was. Fascinating magic! Holding onto the lantern as well, Dennis gave his hand to Mr. Ollivander so they could apparate again. Apparition was really weird and left him dizzy again when they made it to the front of the office building. Yet again, he didn't say anything but composed himself and followed Mr. Ollivander to the wand shop.
He sighed and rolled his eyes as Mr. Ollivander swiped all the papers off of the table. He was going to have to clean that up later, he knew. But it was alright, cause they were both really excited. Dennis was still interested to know if he had done a good job with getting the vine. Placing the lantern on the table for better lighting, Dennis moved into the table so that he could pay attention. ____________________________________________________________________________
Ollivander removed his hat and tossed it to the corner where it gravitated to the coat rack standing there and landed neatly upon one of the hooks. He beamed, pushing aside the leaves and smaller twigs to inspect the size and shape of the main branch. "Excellent! An excellent cut! I couldn't have done it better myself. The branch itself is healthy and in good condition. It's a little bendy, but we can work with that. I may be able to block it and straighten it out a bit."
From his waistcoat pocket he pulled out a pair of small scissors with an ornate handle and started clipping some of the twigs from the branch. "Please fetch a vase of water. You'll find vases in the left cabinet, below the sink." ______________________________________________________________________________
Dennis' smile returned as the cut he had made was applauded. He'd been worried he messed up somehow, especially since this was his first time cutting the mistletoe. "Aren't some wands bend though? Maybe this one should be bendy too?" He offered, trying to be helpful and sound smart at the same time.
His first thought at the scissors being pulled out of Mr. Ollivander's pocket was that people shouldn't run with scissors. He didn't think Mr. Ollivander would be doing much running, but he was sure the same principle applied with people who were as old as Mr. Ollivander. Didn't they start falling over and breaking hips and stuff eventually? Dennis didn't say any of this, but the thought did make him smile. ______________________________________________________________________________
"Some wands do, this is true," Ollivander replied, focused on clipping the twigs. "But won't know until you coax it. If it refused to straighten, then we'll understand the wand is meant to be shaped that way."
He then looked up from his work and rather crossly scolded Dennis, "Didn't I tell you to bring a vase of water? We don't want the branch to dry out, prematurely!" ______________________________________________________________________________
Dennis started when Mr. Ollivander scolded him. It took him another second of staring at Mr. Ollivander in shock at being yelled at before he went to actually get the vase and water. He ran to get the vase and water but brought it back slower so it wouldn't spill or he would drop the vase.
"Sorry," he said when he placed the vase down, not making eye contact. ______________________________________________________________________________ Ollivander only looked up once from his cutting to see what was taking Dennis so long, but was satisfied to see him being careful with the water. "Set it down on the counter, please." He waited until Dennis followed his instruction before saying in a calm but firm voice, "When I ask for something, I rely on you to follow through. You're my second set of hands, legs and eyes. I'm not angry at you, Dennis. Just do better, next time." He flashed a smile to show that he really wasn't upset.
Taking up his wand, he touched its tip upon the surface of the water inside the vase and instructed Dennis, "This spell vitalizes the water, giving the plant nutrients and helps it to stay fresh." He then recited the incantation: for a brief moment, the water glowed a deep green, then returned to its normal, ordinary appearance. While Dennis had been away, Ollivander had carefully trimmed the twigs away from the base where it had been cut, and Ollivander slipped this part into the water.
Giving the mistletoe a satisfied nod, he declared, "This is cause for celebration! Dennis, would you be so kind as to bring two drinking glasses from the sink?" ____________________________________________________________________________
Dennis was still frowning despite Mr. Ollivander saying he wasn't angry. He still sounded upset. As did Dennis when he spoke again. "You aren't supposed to have scissors in your pocket. It's not safe," it sounded sweeter then the grin it had previously caused. Even though Dennis knew the scissors probably had the charm that made them not cut flesh that Ollivander was so fond of.
Dennis wasted no time getting the drinking glasses when asked. He wasn't going to be allowed to slip into dream land while with Mr. Ollivander again. _____________________________________________________________________________
Ollivander was mildly amused by Dennis' reprimand and knew it was spoken only because he was feeling bad about being chastised. He looked at the scissors, still in his hands, and then said, "You're absolutely right. But when you get to be as old as I, then you too may carry them around in your pocket." As an act of defiance, he slipped the scissors back into the waistcoat pocket where he always kept them.
While Dennis retrieved the glasses, Ollivander went into his office and came back with a bottle of applejack hard cider. He motioned to Dennis to put the glasses upon the counter, beside the mistletoe and poured two measures, one smaller than the other. Ollivander lifted the fuller of the two glasses and looked expectantly at Dennis to do the same. "A toast!" ________________________________________________________________________________
Dennis glared at Ollivander for not listening to him. Adults never really took him seriously, both because he was young and because he was really small for his age. That didn't mean he had to like it though. He didn't even really mean the glare maliciously, Dennis was just upset he had been reprimanded.
"Mr. O! That's..." he lowered his voice like Colin was standing outside the door about to burst in. "That has alcohol in it." ________________________________________________________________________________
"So it does! And you're almost fifteen... that's practically an adult. Come now. I'm an adult and I give you permission this time. I know you won't take advantage of my celebratory mood and regularly sneak alcohol behind our backs. You're much more mature for that."
Ollivander held his glass aloft and wouldn't taste a drop until Dennis made up his mind. ______________________________________________________________________________
Dennis eyed Ollivander for a moment before hesitantly taking the glass with less cider. He didn't think this was a trick, but he wouldn't find out till afterwards. And he wanted to try the cider!
Dennis lifted te glass and held it up, imitating Ollivander. "I like that you think I'm mature!" _________________________________________________________________________________
"But you are. Very mature for your age. I would not trust this work with just anybody, you know? Had you been a less responsible apprentice, you'd be sticking to sweeping the floor and not helping me to harvest mistletoe. Sip slowly," he instructed, then declared, "Here's to cheating, stealing, fighting, and drinking. If you cheat, may you cheat death, if you steal, may you steal a woman's heart, if you fight, may you fight for a brother. and if you drink, may you drink with me." He clinked glasses with Dennis and sipped, finishing with a content, "Ah!" _______________________________________________________________________________
Dennis beamed with pride in himself, thanks to Mr. Ollivander's praise. It made him feel good about himself, a feeling he had been lacking since coming to the village. Before taking a drink, Dennis put his glass down and hugged Mr. Ollivander around the middle. "Thank you; Mr. O!" _______________________________________________________________________________
This was the second time Dennis had hugged him, at it warmed Ollivander's heart. He wrapped one arm around the lad to return the hug. "You're welcome, Dennis. I meant every word I said. Now drink up! You need to return home before Colin suspects that I'm leading you on the path of sin and degradation." He was teasing, and his tone of voice made that clear.
Once Dennis had stepped away, Ollivander looked to the mistletoe and happily said, "Do you know how many mistletoe wands I've made? One. In all my long career, I've only made one. As a youth, a few years younger than you, I recall my father making one... just one. That is how rare and precious this is." He took another sip from his glass and whimsically picked up a sprig of mistletoe that he'd cut from the main branch and tucked it behind his ear as an ornament, leaves, berries and all. "And it will be your wand, if you desire it." ___________________________________________________________________________________
Dennis turned back to the table and picked up his drink again. He didn't pause this time before taking a sip to taste it. The alcohol flavor hit first and he winced, but when the other flavors followed, Dennis realized It was actually good. He lifted the glass and drank the rest in one go. There really wasn't that much in there anyway as Ollivander had poured him only a small amount. "That was yummy." He licked his lips to emphasis that fact.
Dennis liked stories like this, knowing how rare things were. It was interesting to him. His eyes widened as he found out there was only two other mistletoe wands that Ollivander had been around to witness being made. "Does that mean there is only two of them in recent history that's been made?" Whoever got this one then would be really lucky.
He was going to be really lucky. "What?" His mouth dropped open and he sputtered over nothing for a moment. "Its for me?" He nodded emphatically. Of course he wanted it! ______________________________________________________________________________________
Dennis' reaction was without a doubt the most precious thing Ollivander had witnessed in quite some time. He grinned and told the lad, "An early birthday present. I'll oversee as you make your wand from start to finish. There are many steps involved, and I want you to be familiar with all of them before you begin carving it. I swear upon my wand, you'll be an accomplished wandmaker by the time you're through!" A bit of an exaggeration, but Ollivander was joyful and lifted his glass to Dennis before draining the remaining the rest of his drink. "We begin tomorrow, by blocking the branch to see if it will take to being straightened. If it doesn't then we'll begin the curing process." ______________________________________________________________________________
"How do we block it?" Now that it was going to be his, his interest level rose to a million. Dennis has a hundred questions before, and that was for something that wasn't even going to be his. "What time do I have to be back? Why can't we start now?" It was rather late and through the fake window that looked over Diagon Alley, he could see it was much darker then when he had first arrived. That didn't matter though. He could write to Colin and let him know he'd be late coming home and they could just start now. ______________________________________________________________________________
"Patience, patience my lad. The branch needs to sit in that magically infused water overnight, where is may become more flexible. Come tomorrow at nine, and we'll begin."
If Ollivander wasn't already familiar with Dennis' excitable nature, he might've thought that the introduction of alcohol in his system had made him act this way. "Go home and practice your carving. Here." He tucked a spring of mistletoe behind Dennis' ear "This is for you" and handed him another. "That's for Colin. Sleep with it beneath your pillow and it will produce nothing but pleasant dreams." ___________________________________________________________________________
Dennis sighed with exaggeration and threw his head down into his open palms on the wood table so he wouldn't actually hurt himself. "Tomorrow is so far!" And 9am was really early for a Sunday, when he would normally get to sleep in. Say goodbye to sleep, Dennis.
"Can I go home and sleep instead so it'll be morning quicker? And nine o'clock won't feel so early?" He was part asking for permission and partly just joking. "Besides, the oak still won't tell me what it wants to be and its been ages!" He was trying not to get frustrated with the oak wood Ollivander had him sitting with twice a day for nearly 2 weeks now. _______________________________________________________________________________
"What did I tell you about patience?" Ollivander thought Dennis reaction was just like a boy excited for Christmas morning, and this, he thought, was endearing. He poured himself another measure of applejack (but none for Dennis) and said, "Yes, you may go to bed, as you'd like. I'll do the tidying up around here. Just remember to sleep with the mistletoe spring under your pillow. Who knows what dreams will come to you while you sleep!" _________________________________________________________________________
"I can clean! That's my job!" Truth was, he was excited and unsure if he could actually sleep, as much as he very much wanted to. He was excited down to His bones, which seemed to be vibrating from it. With a new wand, he'd have his magic back properly and he'd be able to do the school work again and he wouldst feel so stupid. If the wand accepted him.