When her mother had declared today to be a shopping day, Marcia had first been excited to finally get all her new stuff. Her brother and she had their letters containing their supply lists for weeks now, but their mother never had found the time to take them to Diagon Alley. They knew better than to ask their father, so they had to wait patiently. Kilian was old enough to go alone, which he wanted to do anyway, but their parents didn't trust him to be alone with Marcia. London was far away, too far for Marcia to go there without her mother and to be in only the care of her brother. Marcia wouldn't mind, but Kilian probably felt both, relieved to not to be forced to watch her, and disappointed that his parents wouldn't trust him.

Finally their mother was free to go, so they went up early in order to fetch the train. It would have been faster to travel with floo powder, but their mother got motion sick while traveling the chimneys, which is why they decided to use the much slower muggle version. Marcia noticed that her brother was very quiet, looking out of the window most of the time and not talking to their mother, which is why she tried to play some games. At first he had been reluctant, but he finally gave in.

They reached London by noon, and Marcia immediately felt the difference in the air. It was much hotter and the heat was pressing down on them, while they found their way through the city. 

"Mum," she said weakly, panting from the heat, "can I get some ice cream?"

"You'll get everything sticky," her brother answered instead of their mother and took her hand, since she was about to keep staring at the ice shop. She didn't just want some ice cream because of the heat: she was starving. It has been hours since she ate breakfast. Oh, what would she give for some scoop of citrus and raspberry.

Or some stew, she thought when they entered the Leaky Cauldron, only to pass it. Her mouth was watering when she saw the bowls filled with delicious stew, but was once again forced to move by her brother.

Or some crêpe! The wall was barely open, when her nose smelled more delicious food, all various kinds of goods which were sold here. "Muuuuum."

"Hush, first we need to buy your school supplies." Her mother quickly silenced her and joined the mob of busy witches and wizards in full shopping mode. Kilian noticed her disappointment and ruffled her hair.

"You little glutton."

Defeated, she followed them to Madam Malkin, where both of them got new clothes. Her old ones still fit, she didn't grow much during the year, but her mother insisted that she should get some new ones. Marcia knew they would get dirty just the same as the old ones, but stayed quiet.

The longer she had to be silent during the fitting, standing on the old stool, the wearier she got. She has been awake for hours, which she now felt in her legs. Shopping was supposed to be fun, she remembered how it was last year. Everything was so exciting! But now she wished to be somewhere else instead. While the woman was fitting her clothes, her thoughts drifted away. She wondered what her dorm mates were doing at the moment and considered asking if she was allowed to visit Alma, who was living somewhere in the Knockturn Alley, but since she was already shut down two times, she decided against it.

Their mother dragged them from one shop to another and Marcia couldn't believe that they needed so much stuff. Painfully slowly they went through the alley, until they finally reached Flourish & Blotts, which was almost at the end. She could see the white pillars of Gringotts glittering in the sun, but was too tired to enjoy it.

Once they entered Flourish & Blotts, Marcia already felt better. The shop was kept colder than others which is why she could finally breath more freely. Her blouse was sticking to her back and her short hair was tousled but she hoped they would stay for a while.

She smelled the dry dust and some hint of vanilla, when she turned the first corner. Immediately she was surrendered by shelves filled with books and smiled. Now where to begin?

"Marcia, don't go far!" she heard her mother shout and waved at her. She wouldn't need to go far, she was already where she wanted to be. The little plate at the beginning said Native Flora, exactly the topic she wanted to read. Without hesitating she grabbed one of the books at her hight and sat where she was. She couldn't stand any longer, so she crossed her legs, feeling the cold stone beneath her, and leant against the shelf. Her stomach was grumbling now and then, but her focus was fixed at the book in her hand. 

Alan was in Flourish and Blotts, after his godfather had brought him to Diagon Alley so that the young boy could go shopping for his new stuff that he would need for the next school year. He had enough money in a small bag to purchase everything that he would need and even a small extra to buy some sweets and a book for the train ride. So when he went through the rows of book shelves he did not notice the girl sitting in the middle of one of the rows with her nose stuck in a book.

Clearly if she had been sitting elsewhere; maybe in one of the reading areas, what was about to happen could have been avoided. But as it was now, Alan Blackburn ran right in her, or over her and in a matter of seconds he was tumbling to the stone floor, bruising his knees and his palms that catched his weight before his face could kiss the ground. "Ouch" he muttered and turned around to see what it was that he tripped over, or rather said who.
"Oh My! I'm so sorry! I hope you are all right?" He quickly apologized, shocked.

It's not that the book she was skimming through was boring, on the contrary. But her sitting on cold stone after hours of walking, no, strolling through the alley made her exhausted. Not to forget that she was up since before sunrise. Still, she forced herself to stay awake and to read another sentence and another page and maybe the other book which was waiting two sheelves above her. 

Still she couldn't surpress a yawn, pressing her eyes together and stretching her tense limbs, when she felt an heavy impact. It took her by surprise and she lost her balance, making her fall over and landing on her shoulder. "Ouch!"

She could lift her head a second before her forehead would have met the stone. Only a heartbeat later she felt a stinging pain in her shoulder and she cursed under her breath, laying now curlsed up on the floor: it was her bad shoulder. 

Since the Diffindo had hit her her arm and shoulder would work as before, causing her pain whenever she tried to take a swing with her Quidditch bat or if someone was pressing to hard on it. She almost had cried out when her father had hugged her the day at her arrival at home. It was fully healed, at least that's what the nurse had said, but it had been a curse and she still could feel it in moments like this. She rubbed her shoulder and she could feel thick scar through her blouse.

"Ouch," she said again a little weaker, but at least she was now looking up at to what had hit her, or better at whom. She frowned at the blond boy standing above her. "I know I'm small, but that's no reason to run over me like this!" 

The book she had been reading now lied some arm lenghts away. It must have been flown out of her hand. She really hoped it wasn't damaged. 

When she realised that she still was half laying half sitting on the ground, she held up her hand. "At least help me up, will you?"

Alan flinched slightly at her harsh tone and felt sorry, cause it really did look as if it really hurt for her. "I am so sorry!" He gasped as he huried closer to grab the hand she held out, demanding that he would help her up, which he of course would do. He bit his bottom lip worrying about what she thought about him now.

"Again I am really sorry. I did not see you sitting on the ground! I was actually on my way to buy my new school books and an additional book..." he rambled nervously, as his small hand wrapped around hers and he proceeded to help her up.

Was she going to Hogwarts as well? It would not surprise him, considering that she was doing shopping in the Diagon Alley. After having her standing on her feet, the young boy hurried over to where the book had fallen down onto the cold stone floor. He could not help but sneak a peak at the cover as he gently picked up the book, making sure it was not damaged. If it was he would have been in trouble. Alan scurried back to the girl and handing it to her.

"It seems your book survived without a scratch" he tried to lighten the mood, while still being a bit nervous.

She let herself dragged up till she stood on her feet again. Motionless she waited for her legs to stop aching and tingling while she listened to the apology. She averted her gaze that the boy wouldn't see her face twisted in pain, although he propably wouldn't have noticed anyway since he already went away to get her book. Well, no it wasn't her book, she didn't pay for it after all.

Slowley she started to move her toes which helped to ease the last stiffness from sitting on the ground for far too long. She tried to pull and stretch her shoulders as well although that didn't work too well. Damn it.

"It seems your book survived without a scratch."

Not convinced she took the book herself and turned it in her hands. Her eyebrows narrowed she examined every inch, controlled the back with her fingers for potential scratched and bumps, but she count find anything.

Relieved she turned away to put it back into the shelf and was surprised to still see the boy standing in the hallway.

He was about her age or at least only slightly older. She couldn't say if she had seen him before and he wore no clothes that reveiled his house. To her he didn't seem like a Ravenclaw, they would never run through a book store. So he had to be either a Hufflepuff or a Gryffindor. She noticed that he was looking at her with a distressed expression on his face. 

With her good hand on her hips and unsure what to do Marcia tilted her head. He gave the impression that he needed to hear from her that he was forgiven. Gryffindor, she thought with a faint smile. 

She waited a few seconds and considered to just walk away and leave him  but then she sighed and nodded. "It's OK. The book is fine and I'm as good as I will get. Why are you in a hurry anyway?" She stretched herself and looked down and up the hallway only to see the normal kind of customers. Nobody seemed to miss a blond Gryffindor. "Running and hiding away from someone? The Native Plants section might not be the best spot, try the Muggle History corner." She pointed with her finger at a spot above them at the second floor. 

-

Alan stared at her anxiously as she seemed to examine the book that he just picked up from the ground for her. He grew even more nervous by how serious the girl in front of him acted during her examination as if she would jump at him if the book had a single scratch. He really hoped that the book would be fine and that she would not be mad at him any longer.

He couldn't believe the weight that dropped from his shoulders when she turned her gaze towards him again and told him that both herself and the book was okay. Alan felt relief kick in as his eyes lit up with new found excitement. ”I am so glad!” he exclaimed as most of the tension left his body in an instant. He did not want to become known for hurting everyone in a result of clumsy behaviour.

“Ah…. No.” he replied to her question if he was running away from someone. That he was not so he felt a bit idiotic for making that impression in front of someone else. ”My aunt just allowed me to buy some other books in addition to the school books and I guess I got a bit excited” He would admit before scratching his neck lightly, a gestic known as nervous behavior.

”I am really sorry, again. My name is Alan” he introduced himself, extending his right hand for a handshake as he was taught from toddler age.

With an amused grin she watched as the boy infront of her fumbled with his fingers. Her anger slowly vanish and instead turned into symphathy for the nervous child. The book hadn't had a Scratch after all so there was no need to glare at him with fury.  

It surprised her to hear that he wasn't running from someone and rather was in search for some other books to buy like an exited toodler. Suddenly she wasn't so sure anymore that he belonged in the boldest of houses. Maybe Hufflepuff was the right one after all. She had to chuckle at the thought of him running around hallway after hallway in search for a particular book. 

"My Name is Alan," she heard him introduce himself and hesitated for a few seconds. The Name didn't ring any bell but that doesn't have to be necessarily bad. 

"Alan," she repeated with her head tilted to the left, "cute name." Having said that, she stopped and watched him from a distance. She was hesitant to tell him, an unfamiliar boy who fell over her in a hallway, her name; she even thought about giving a fake name just to avoid being awkward about it and to get the introduction over with. Instead she broke eye contact and looked at her right where other customers were roaming through the shelves. "This is the Native Plant section, as I said. I'm not sure this is what you are looking for. Or are you interested in the growth and care of some native herbs?" 

Marcia averted her gaze back at him and winked with one eye. She would be happy to help him find a book if he wasn't here in this area of Flourish & Blotts by accident. "Because," slowely she raised both her hands and presented the collections surrounding them, "in that case this is the right spot!"     

OOC: This is not awkward at all, the time is totally wrong I didn't wait to reply for months, Nono. No. 

He listened to her and nodded. So apparently this was only about plants here? He kinda knew already, that was why he was hurrying to get to the place he wanted to end up. But he felt sorry for knocking her over, he really did, so he smiled at her. "Thank you,...?", he drifted off when he noticed that he did not know her name, so he tilted his head in confusion. "May I know your name?", he asked in polite curiosity, something he was used to. He was a curious mind, but his mother would pull his ear if he caught sight of him being impolite.

"I am more interested in Creature Care, I am sure I will find it a few aisles from here! I usually recognize it by the color of the books and the arrangement of shelves!", he grinned brightly. He was one to see the world in colors more than facts, which maybe made him a bit messy sometimes, because he wasn't one who valued order more than efficeny. But that was him and he may be a chaot, but he knew his way around. "Sorry again for falling over you, maybe try to find a bench or armchair? They have some in the reading area...", he mumbled shyly.

Without giving any sound Marcia sighed when the boy, Alan, asked for her name again. It's not that she was paranoid but she had become wary of strangers, even as young as him. She would not be surprised again. She stated to bite her lip while she thought about what to do. Again she considered to give him a fake name. Especially considering how this smart-ass commented about her sitting in the hallway and not in the reading area.

For now she heard him out with her hands in her back. "Creatures? You won't find any of them here, besides something about greenflies, perhaps." She shifted her weight from one leg to another, looking around. Creatures weren't anything she was interested in and could not say, where books about them were sold. She expected they were separated into magical and non magical creatures anyway. Something he might even know of, since she didn't expect him to read a lot. Otherwise he wouldn't have asked why she was sitting here instead of the reading area. As if she was carrying 15 books she was interested in to witch-knows-where only to carry them back. 

She looked back at him with a faint smile. "You have a pet or why do you want to buy a book about Creature Care? Sorry if I'm nosy." Now that she thought about it her curiosity got the best of her. It didn't went unnoticed how ironically it is that she apologized about being too curious or nosy when she didn't reveal her own name so far. Another sigh escaped her, now followed with a defeated nod. She had done this to herself. 

"Oh, sorry how rude of me. It's Marcia," she said but not without a sting into her stomache. Her second sorry was less apologetic than the first. She didn't like to have given her name away and she felt her face stiffen after she had revealed it. Should have used a fake name. 

Alan thought about her words. Greenflies was not really what he was interested in learning about. Well he would, but he did not seem them interesting enough to actually read a book about them or at least that was what Alan was thinking. He still wondered whether they were just important for herbology and plants or if he would have to know about them at all. "No, I actually want to learn about other creatures and study about them!", he said with smile to answer what he believed had been somewhat a question.

"And while I want to get myself a pet, I did not decide on the pet yet and just am interested in studying about them... You know I will be in Second Year after this summer and want to learn for Third Year, 'cause I really want to choose Care of Magical Creatures as one of my electives! And no worries, you totally are not nosy at all!", the young boy started to ramble, something that easily happened when he talked a topic he genuinely liked.

When she introduced herself to the soon to be second year, the Gryffindor grinned brightly. "Nice to meet you then, Marcia!"