Trampoline (Veronica)

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

Aside from Squibs, most of whom had integrated themselves into the non-magical world in order to make their lives easier, being without a wand in the magical world posed something of a challenge. It was now Blair Lopez's second replacement wand that she would be purchasing at Ollivanders, since the one that she had just had stolen was a replacement for her wand from Ilvermorny. Yes, that meant that she had been in the exact same store about a year before in order to buy a wand, and she was back again.

Blair fully expected that she would be on the receiving end of a lecture for that, but it wasn't as though she had just misplaced it. Bobby had been generous enough to give her the money ahead of her next paycheck, since she couldn't exactly do without a wand, so she did have enough to pay for it, fortunately.

Standing around the small shop, she waited for one of the employees to notice her.

veronica giselle ollivander

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

AH SEPTEMBER. VERONICA'S FAVOURITE TIME of the year, a moment in which all the students would come flooding in before heading off to Hogwarts to start their new year as a new student or a returner. Regardless, July right through to September only meant Veronica would be seeing some new faces and the odd regulars. But she enjoyed it immensely. Although, since her sister left earlier in the year, pursuing a store of her own and coping well enough, it meant Veronica had to be on the front lines more often, hunched over a small work-desk of her own preparing wands with the different kinds of woods her father would have recommended via an owl. Experiments were fun and all but they were never handed over to a customer, only the select few that made the Ollivander name what it was today.

Standing at the back, while filling out the inventory stock the Ollivander had, cigarette in one hand and the book in another, the chime of the front door almost went unnoticed. Dropping the book in realisation, Veronica pressed the bud of the cigarette into her small ash tray she used magic to bring around the store with her and flicked away any wood chippings from her apron, Veronica made her way to the front, patting the head of her new intern lightly, nodding at him as a sign for him to continue his job. Her glasses sat at the bridge of her nose comfortably, standing nearby the counter as she observed the customer who had entered. "My, my." Veronica began, a small smile forming onto her lips. "Blair Lopez isn't it? 9⅚ inches, solid with a dragon heartstring core." She remembered most customers orders to their faces and hoped her lucky guess was correct.

@blair & here we go!

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

The immediacy with which Veronica Ollivander recalled her name shocked Blair, and even more so that the woman recalled the wand that she had been there to replace after it had been left at Ilvermorny with all the rest.

"Yeah, uh, that was my first wand…" Blair let her voice trail off, not really wanting to break it to the woman that she was now on her third wand before she was even nineteen years old. "I'm actually here about the replacement one I bought from you last year," she admitted. "The, uh… eleven-inch aspen one?" Of course, she hoped that the Aurors at the Ministry of Magic would be able to recover that one, but she still needed a wand regardless of whether or not they could find the wand. Hopefully, they'd find it with the guy who had mugged her, but Blair wasn't going to put that kind of faith in the Ministry.

She wanted to make it clear that it wasn't what it looked like; she really wasn't irresponsible with her wand(s). All of the Ilvermorny transfer students had had to get replacements for theirs, since they kept them at school, and she hadn't just set wand number two down and let it roll into a storm drain or something. "I got mugged, and my replacement wand got stolen, so I'm here for a replacement for the replacement," Blair clarified. Unless she were asked any questions, she guessed that she probably didn't need to mention that she was there with the money that her boss had given her in advance of her usual pay.

veronica giselle ollivander

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

A SMALL SMILE GREW ON Veronica's lips once the girl looked up to her, her voice quiet and trailing off as she replied. The Ollivander's hand rose once more, pushing up the glasses that slid down her slender nose. Merlin, she needed new ones. "Your first? Deary me, its safe to say my sister must have been in charge with your wands then. As I only recall the first." She nodded in understanding from the Lopez's request and ushered her to come closer to the counter.

"Dear Merlin, I'm rather glad you're...Alright my dear...Did you report this with any Aurors? The streets are getting worse for you children aren't they.." Which was precisely why the eldest Ollivander became such a protective mother over Gideon. Even though he was becoming of age and is a boy...It didn't matter to Veronica at all. "Are there any particular cores we stock that you have an edge of interest in? Or maybe the wood?"

@blair & here we go!

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

There really was something that was sort of uncomfortable for Blair in the manner in which Veronica Ollivander spoke to her. It reminded her of Bobby and the way that he had been so protective over her, even if he was just her boss. Obviously, the woman wasn't Bobby; the British accent she had made that clear enough, but it was strange to have such a relatively young woman calling her "dear" and to refer to her as "you children". It was maternal—almost grandmotherly, though, in a way—and entirely foreign to her.

Then again, Blair supposed as she moved closer to the counter, maybe she shouldn't have been so surprised that other people were worried about her safety and well-being; she wasn't exactly a stranger around Diagon Alley anymore, herself. Yet Blair knew that her own mother and father wouldn't have reacted so strongly. They wouldn't have gone out of their way to make sure that she was alright and that she had reported it to the authorities. It was one of the reasons why she didn't mind being away from them. She was of age and could get by without her parents. It sort of seemed as though she'd found surrogates for them—not that she'd asked—in her new home.

"Yes, um, I'm alright. Thanks. I've reported it," Blair assured Veronica, feeling awfully tempted to stick a "ma'am" at the end of each of her sentences as she nodded her head. It was definitely more of a Southern thing, though it wasn't something that she had ever done out of habit, herself. For Veronica's sake as well—because she was also a woman, for one, and looked to Blair to be more physically frail than she—she added, "I'd be careful, though, just in case." She hadn't been able to provide the authorities with much of a description of the guy who had attacked her, unfortunately, though he had clearly known what he was doing enough to fight back physically. Although she might not have been in the same shape as, say, a professional Quidditch player or something, Blair wouldn't have considered herself to be out of shape or weak, and she had taken some serious damage.

Blair hadn't come to the wand shop with the purpose of warning Ms. Ollivander about the thief who was still on the loose, however. She couldn't do much to protect herself without having a wand on her person. Veronica asked her if there were any particular cores or types of wood in which she was interested, which Blair supposed that she also appreciated, but she didn't think that it really mattered to her. Just as long as she ended up with a wand that was a good fit for her and that would allow her to do the things that she needed it to do, she didn't really care what it looked like or what might have been inside of it.

Trying to be polite about it, especially because the woman was so concerned about her, Blair did give her an answer. "No, no," she deferred to Veronica with a little smile. "I… don't have any preferences, really. Thank you, though." Maybe something that was similar to one of her previous two wands would be most likely to pick her for her third? She didn't really know, but that seemed like a good guess.

veronica giselle ollivander

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

NODDING IN UNDERSTANDING, VERONICA TRIED her best to give the girl a genuine smile - one different from the usual smiles she would provide her customers, to entice them in and make them feel welcome. To her, Blair was just a child, regardless of her age now and being a mother herself, Veronica took the strict parenting role fairly well. "That's a relief." She smiled, patting the girl's shoulder lightly. "Is this attacker attacking women regardless of age?" That detail didn't matter to Veronica as she knew she could and most certainly would fend for herself. Wandless and non-verbal magic had always been a large factor in Veronica's magic, so why not use it to her advantage when in danger?

"That's good! I'll present a variety of choices for you then. Just a moment." Veronica took off behind her counter once more, filling her hands with six different sized boxes composed of wands her sister had once made, two Gideon had made and even one of her own. A classic of course. Returning to the front, the elder Ollivander laid the boxes before Blair, and patted the counter as she smiled down at them. "Feel free to go through them all, hold them, see how you feel and how you think the wand responds back to you."

@blair & here we go!

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

Blair gave Veronica a little nod as the older woman patted her on the shoulder, a gesture that she knew was intended to make her feel more comfortable but that was a little bit unusual for her. She wasn't someone who gave physical affection very freely, and her parents also weren't the most physically affectionate towards her, not that they were even in the same country as she was. "Is this attacker attacking women regardless of age?" Veronica wondered, and Blair understood why she wanted to know.

Admittedly, though, Blair didn't have an answer for her. She didn't know what the thief's motive had been, aside from wanting to take her belongings and not caring what it took to get them. "I don't know. I think he just wanted my stuff, mostly," she answered Veronica, halfway shrugging. He had been pretty forceful about getting away with her backpack; he hadn't just demanded money alone. "I don't think he really gave a—" She stopped herself before cursing, realizing that it likely would be frowned upon. "I don't think it really mattered to him." It seemed like just an opportunistic sort of thing, luckily.

Veronica added that it was good that she didn't have any preferences, and she gathered up half a dozen boxes of wands, which she then set down upon the counter for her. "Feel free to go through them all, hold them, see how you feel and how you think the wand responds back to you," she encouraged her, inviting her to try out the wands that she had selected.

"Okay," Blair replied, carefully picking up the first wand on her left-hand side. It was significantly more flexible than either of the other two wands she'd owned, and it was also a bit longer than they had been. Immediately, she felt that it was maybe too bendy and sort of unwieldy. She couldn't really see herself using it without some effort, though she gave it a small wave just in case. It still didn't feel right—didn't click—and she shook her head. "Maybe… not this one?" she hesitated. The wand hadn't done anything catastrophic, but it wasn't the right match for her.

veronica giselle ollivander

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

FROM THE GIRL'S REPLY, VERONICA looked away in thought. She was mostly glad there were no young females in her family aside from Eleanor. But despite their age difference, she knew her younger sister would be smart enough to fend for herself if she were in any danger. Or at least she hoped. Snapping back into reality, her lips thinned out at the younger girl, especially as she came close to swearing. Veronica couldn't help but force a small smile then, recalling how the girl acted just like Gideon. Close to cursing and doing things he knows he wasn't meant to do at all. Maybe having another child wouldn't be too bad. "Well for what its worth...I'm glad you're okay Miss Lopez."

Veronica smiled then, leaning slightly away from the counter to allow the younger girl to come closer and view all the wands the Ollivander had pulled out. With careful eyes, the eldest Ollivander watched as Blair lifted the first on the left side, noting it was a wand her sister had made. There were times she regretted not having Eleanor by her side, but with her sister having a store of her own now...It didn't essentially matter. Nodding in response to the girl's comments, Veronica carefully took the wand out of the girl's grasp, returning it into the box it was once in and pushing it to the side. "You're not limited to these options. We have more, but I just believe you'll find an ideal match out of these- well..Five wands."

@blair & sorry for the delay!

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

Although it did make her feel sort of awkward, Blair was appreciative of Veronica Ollivander's concern for her. She was glad that the woman didn't belabor the whole thing, though, and that she had moved on to showing her a few different options for wands. Hopefully, of course, one of those would make for a suitable replacement for her previous wand, though Blair guessed that it probably wasn't so common for someone of her age to be on their third wand already.

The first one that she tried out definitely hadn't been the one, though Veronica reminded her that it wasn't the end of the world. She wasn't limited to that selection of wands, even though those had been the first ones she'd grabbed. Blair still had the others to try, so she figured that she would work her way through the rest of them until she found the right match.

With that first wand that she'd picked up safely back in its box, Blair moved over just slightly, to the second one down the line. "Okay," she began, taking up the second one in her hand. It didn't start smoking from its tip the second she touched it, so that was positive. Maybe that one would be better, she hoped, and she gave it a swish.

veronica giselle ollivander

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

EVERY CHILD OR YOUNGER BEING that came passing by in the Ollivander store, Veronica was glad to have minor conversations with each of them, and get to know them slightly better. But with the topic moving along and the young adult trying the first one with slight failure, the Ollivander kept her smile up, knowing that Ollivanders would never have a limit in the wands a young wizard would be seeking.

Watching as Blair lifted the second wand Veronica had originally presented, she smiled softly, watching as the girl gave the wand a slight swish, with only a minor reaction coming out from it. It didn't present a negative impact, meaning the wand seemed to be a great choice for the Lopez, but Veronica was eager to allow the girl to try others just in case. "How did that one feel?.."

@blair

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

Blair wasn't discouraged as she worked her way through the wands available to her. When she was just a kid and had gotten her first wand at Ilvermorny itself, it had been a little bit frustrating that she hadn't encountered her perfect match on her first try, but one wand purchase before her current outing meant that she was used to the process of it. She didn't want to waste Veronica's time, but the shop also had wands upon wands available. That was sort of the point.

Veronica asked her how the wand that she had just used had felt to her, but Blair wasn't sure if it was a perfect fit. It could have been worse; it could have been a lot worse, though she knew that it was perfectly normal not to have some huge revelation where the heavens would open up and a choir of angels would start to sing. No, it would probably work just fine.

"It felt pretty good," Blair nodded to her. They both would have seen if it had been a total disaster, after all, and it hadn't been that way. "Is it okay if I try one more, though?" she checked with her. "Just to make sure?"

veronica giselle ollivander

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

WHILE IT COULD'VE BEEN WORSE, Veronica knew that she had a wide variety of wands the young girl could choose from. Considering the lack of negative response from the wand Blair currently held, the Ollivander was confident in the core and even the wood of the wand. If absolutely necessary, Veronica could create Blair's own custom wand with a few modifications.

At Blair's request, the elder brunette agreed happily. "Of course. Try as many times as you wish. Would you like a plain wooden block? You can cast anything on it for practice of course."

@blair

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

September 14, 2025

Veronica assured her that she could try another wand if she wanted to, and she additionally offered her a wooden block on which to practice. That seemed like a good idea. It would be better that than trying out a spell on something random inside the store and hoping that it wouldn't be irreparably broken somehow, Blair felt, especially if the wand that she had just tried was really the right fit.

"Yeah," she replied, swapping the second wand out for the third wand in the row of wands that Veronica had set out for her to try. Trying not to seem impolite, Blair added, "If you don't mind, Ms. Ollivander—I mean, that would be great, so I'm not just, uh, casting stuff into thin air and hoping for the best, right?" It would probably make things easier on Veronica, too, not to have to clean up anything if she didn't have to. That was probably the one benefit of her being an adult in need of a wand, Blair thought, rather than some little kid. Even with the wrong wand in hand, she could control her magical abilities more and would be less likely to do anything totally stupid.

veronica giselle ollivander