Leaving Flourish and Blotts, the throng of excited shoppers and noisy students faded into the general bustle of Diagon Alley. Harry clutched his pouch – containing his standard school books and, more importantly, [ITEM: Book - The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts], silently categorized and accounted for by the System, along with his rapidly shrinking mental tally of 100 Galleons. He walked beside Mistress Vance, subtly scanning faces, filtering whispers, processing the information about 'The Boy Who Lived' now constantly layering his perception of this world. It wasn't just external data anymore; it was part of his recognized identity within the System's user profile.
His most urgent immediate objective, quietly promoted by the System after leaving the bookshop, was [Primary Quest Step 4 Sub-objective: Read Acquired Historical Data on User Identity]. He needed to open that book, alone, away from curious eyes, and see what 'G. Vole' had to say about the events that made him famous and claimed the lives of his parents. But that would have to wait.
"Now," Mistress Vance said, turning a corner. The crowds seemed slightly less dense here, the shops a little more spaced out. She pointed to a narrow, peeling shop. Its sign read 'Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.'. A single dusty window displayed a single wand on a faded purple cushion.
🔔 [Location Confirmed: [Resource Node: Diagon Alley -> Specific Nexus: Ollivanders Wand Shop]. Function: Source of [Magical Implement - Wand]. Historical Marker Detected (Since 382 B.C.!). Primary Entity: Owner/Maker. System Categorizing.]
[Primary Quest Step 2 Objective: Acquire Supplies - Task: Obtain [Magical Implement - Wand] - STATUS: PENDING ACQUISITION.]
[Potential System Protocol Integration Detected: Wand Acquisition process likely requires User Compatibility verification.]
Ollivander's. The final, most critical piece of standard first-year supplies. The System noted its ancient history and the potential 'compatibility verification' protocol – a process his statistical capabilities, magical essence, and physical/mental traits (INT, WIS, DEX, Magical Trace) might be analyzed against. This was a test, but one measured not in EXP or skill use directly, but compatibility.
Mistress Vance opened the door. A single small bell tinkled. Inside was utter silence, and felt vastly larger than it appeared from the outside. Rows upon rows of narrow boxes, reaching right up to the ceiling. It smelled of dust and something else... something warm and slightly mystical. Behind a long, dusty counter stood a single old man with wide, pale eyes that seemed to see right through Harry. Mr. Ollivander.
🧍 [PERSON: Garrick Ollivander (Wandmaker. Shop Proprietor. Key Entity).]
Level: Undetermined (Estimated Very High due to age, experience, apparent insight).
Alignment: Appears Neutral (Specialist Function).
Abilities: [High Magical Energy (Specialized Function), High Insight (User Profiling?), Extensive Material Knowledge, Deep Understanding of Magic/Human Connection (via Wands).]
Threat Level: Very Low (Function specific, appears non-hostile).
Ollivander's pale eyes were fixed on Harry. He didn't look at Mistress Vance, just at Harry. "I wondered when I'd be seeing you, Mr. Potter," he said, his voice soft and dry like old paper. "It seems only yesterday your mother and father were in here buying their first wands... ten and a quarter inches long, ash and dragon heartstring for your mother, nice swishy one. And your father's, eleven inches, mahogany and phoenix feather, nice and flexible." He paused, his gaze intense. "Unique combination, phoenix feather."
He stepped back, picking a box from a high shelf as if guided by an unseen force. "Now, Mr. Potter. Try this one. Beechwood and dragon heartstring. Nine inches. Nice and flexible." He presented a wand.
Harry took it. It felt ordinary. Nothing happened. He gave it a tentative wave as suggested by Mistress Vance's silent mime behind Ollivander. A shelf of boxes nearby crashed to the floor with a loud clatter.
"Oh dear," said Ollivander, taking the wand back. "Certainly not."
This felt like a different kind of task than any the System had given him. There were no obvious skill meters, no calculated actions, no obvious stats being directly applied, yet the System was recording everything. Every wand attempt, every Ollivander observation, categorized as part of the [Obtain Wand] acquisition protocol. Was it analyzing his resonance? His internal state?
Ollivander presented wand after wand. Every single one resulted in a negative outcome. Explosions, sparks, entire shelves of boxes rocketing off walls, the shop descending into a cascade of falling debris and close calls. Harry used [Agile Evasion Lv. 7] and [Situational Awareness Lv. 7] purely out of instinct to avoid being buried in splintered wood or toppling boxes. Ollivander, however, remained entirely unfazed, his pale eyes gleaming. "Trouble... tricky customer, eh? Not to worry, the right wand is waiting..."
His MP count didn't decrease from these effects, reinforcing that the magic here was tied to the wand's interaction with him, not his own controlled internal magic (like Subtle Item Manipulation). The System logged each failed wand as [Item Interaction Outcome: No Compatibility Detected / Negative Response - Logged]. It felt less like Harry was doing things, and more like the wands were actively rejecting him.
After what felt like dozens of failures (System Log: Wand Attempts: 45+), and the shop a wreck, Ollivander retrieved a box he seemed reluctant to get. "Curious... very curious." He produced a long, thin wand. "Eleven inches, holly and phoenix feather. Nice and supple." He offered it to Harry.
The moment Harry's fingers closed around it, something changed. A wave of warmth, deep and significant, flowed through him. The System, silently monitoring his biological and energy signals, noted an immediate shift.
🔔 [USER ENERGY READINGS: SUDDEN HIGH AMPLIFICATION!]
[Unclassified Magical Energy within User surging! High compatibility resonance detected with [Magical Implement - Wand (Holly/Phoenix Feather)].]
[Wand Acquisition Protocol: COMPATIBILITY VERIFIED! Task Outcome: Success!]
A golden light, warm and strong, flared from the wand in Harry's hand, ignored entirely by the System's notification which focused on internal data. Harry felt... complete, in a way he never had before. The surge of power wasn't MP, or STAT, or Skill level. It was pure, potent energy that resonated deeply within him, aligning with the System's core [Unclassified Magical Energy] tag. This wand was a key to something fundamental within him.
Ollivander's voice was barely a whisper. "Oh, bravo! Yes, indeed. Very curious... very curious." He approached Harry slowly, his pale eyes wider than ever, fixed not on the wand, but on the lightning scar now visible on Harry's forehead. "That wand's brother, of course, gave you that scar."
Harry froze. System, processing the dialogue against his newly confirmed [User Identity: The Boy Who Lived] and the concept of [The Downfall of You-Know-Who] from the history book data, flagged a critical connection.
🔔 [Dialogue Processing: Information acquired connecting Wand Material (Phoenix Feather) to Historical Event (Scar, Downfall of You-Know-Who) via Specific Entity ([Unidentified Source Entity for User Scar Event - PROBABLE MATCH: YOU-KNOW-WHO!]) and Familial Link ([User Parents]).]
[Analysis: Wand materials reveal potential connection between User, User Scar Event Originator, and entities involved.]
[Hypothesis Generation: User Scar Event Originator used a wand containing a Phoenix Feather from the same source as User's wand's Phoenix Feather.]
[Knowledge gained dramatically accelerates progress on [Primary Quest Step 4 Sub-objective: Identify User Fame Context]!]
Ollivander continued, his voice hushed. "The phoenix whose tail feather resides in your wand, gave another feather. Just one other. It is only fitting that you should be rid of the man who gave you that scar." His voice dropped lower, profound with cosmic connection. "I think... it is our destiny to make wands for... those whose destiny they are, Harry Potter."
Harry stared at the wand in his hand. Its brother gave him his scar, linking it directly to his greatest injury, his parents' deaths, You-Know-Who. The same core power resided in their wands, the System's data implied. The magical world was folding in on itself, revealing impossible, fatal connections between himself, his history, and the entity that was apparently his destined adversary. It wasn't just a skill tree; it was fate mapped onto core ingredients.
"Holly and phoenix feather," Ollivander murmured. "Eleven inches. Nice and supple. Well, Mr. Potter... I think we can expect great things from you." His gaze felt knowing, expectant, perhaps seeing more than even the System could quantify about the potential held within the boy and his chosen wand.
Mistress Vance approached carefully, navigating the wand-scattered floor. "Got one, Harry? Excellent!" She glanced at Ollivander, seeming to sense the change in atmosphere without understanding the cause. "That will be seven Galleons, Mr. Ollivander."
Ollivander waved a dismissive hand. "No, no, seven Galleons. Quite extraordinary, a dual core."
Mistress Vance paused, eyebrows rising. "Dual core? Remarkable!" She made a note. This fact too, was logged by the System, adding a unique parameter to [Item: Magical Implement - Wand]. Ollivander was paid, not seven Galleons but something less standard and apparently very special. The receipt logged the materials and the cost: [Acquisition Completed: Wand Obtained. Materials: Holly, Phoenix Feather (Dual Core Type). Cost: Non-standard Unit/Exceptional Transaction Value - Logged.]
Acquiring the wand was not just a completion of a supply list item. It was a critical piece of narrative that integrated his core self ([Magical Essence]!), his history (The Scar, Parents, You-Know-Who), and the foundational tool of magical power in this world into a single, fate-laden object. It was the real turning point of PQ Step 2, completed in a way only someone like Harry, armed with the System's analytic power and pre-existing data on his fame/history, could immediately process.
Leaving Ollivander's quiet but internally buzzing, Mistress Vance next guided him towards the Apothecary for potions ingredients. But Harry's mind was already elsewhere. He had his books, his money, his wand. And a confirmation that the greatest mystery of his life wasn't just history in a book; it was woven into the very core of his magical being and his tool of power. The System now had immense data sets to process regarding Wands, Phoenix Feathers, Dual Cores, and their direct link to You-Know-Who and his own scar. He needed time to review everything, alone. His Grinding priorities shifted again: understand the information within the History Book and begin to process the true nature of his acquired wand, the conduit to the magic the System detected within him, a conduit now inextricably linked to his fate.