A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Hagrid wanted to buy the maintenance tools, naturally, for the wand hidden in his broken umbrella.

But Ollivander didn't know that.

Turning his head in confusion, Ollivander asked, "Hagrid, wasn't your wand destroyed?"

Hagrid scratched his chin and lied, "It's not for me. Young Harry will be attending Hogwarts next year, so I'm getting this as an early gift for him!"

"The boy's coming, is he?" At the mention of Harry Potter, Ollivander's attention shifted, just as Hagrid had hoped.

"Time flies. I can't believe it's been ten years since You-Know-Who's downfall."

"Yes, yes, time really does fly."

Hagrid took the wand maintenance kit from Cedric's hands and asked softly; 

"Cedric, could you accompany the boy to buy the rest of his supplies? It's getting late, and Roy and I have some matters to attend to. If we don't get to it now, we'll run out of time."

A few minutes earlier, Hagrid had noticed Tom's signal. 

He needed to head to the Leaky Cauldron to meet that Greek fellow. Roy also wanted to check out what a three-headed dog looked like, as well as sample some magical drinks with Hagrid.

Cedric glanced at Ollivander, looking slightly conflicted.

Having just sold a wand and two maintenance kits, the old man was in high spirits. 

"Of course, go ahead, child. You've been working hard all day, and I'm about to close up shop. Go have some fun."

"Thank you, Mr. Ollivander!" Cedric quickly took off his work robes, revealing casual clothes underneath.

Finally, Roy paid Ollivander 13 Galleons for the wand and maintenance tools, and Ollivander bowed as he saw them off.

At a street corner, the group parted ways, leaving just William and Cedric.

In no time at all, the two had become fast friends.

"Hey, William, when we're at Hogwarts, feel free to ask me for help maintaining your wand. I'm a professional," Cedric said with a grin.

"Then why didn't you mention that earlier? Now we've just wasted money on these tools!" William rolled his eyes.

Cedric winked and laughed, "Not wasted at all! I get a commission—ten Sickles for every kit I sell."

"…"

William suddenly had a strong suspicion that Hogwarts was getting a cut from Diagon Alley sales too!

"Alright," Cedric said, casually throwing an arm around William's shoulder. "Let's go grab some ice cream, then head over to Flourish and Blotts for your books."

Cedric bought two servings of nut-crunch ice cream, with chocolate shaped like Dumbledore. William wondered if the old headmaster was getting royalties for his likeness.

The two of them sat on a bench outside the shop, watching the crowds go by, enjoying the cool breeze.

Boba Tea sat next to William, contentedly eating a can of cat food.

"So, do you really like wands?" William asked.

"Of course!" Cedric said, flipping through his worn notebook even as he ate, filled with notes from Ollivander.

"After I graduate, I want to travel to Europe to study Gregorovitch's work."

Cedric's black eyes sparkled with excitement.

"If I can, I'll visit countries around the Mediterranean, where wand-making began. Ollivander's family came from there originally.

"Once I master the craft, I'll come back and open my own wand shop here in Diagon Alley. By then, Mr. Ollivander will have retired, and there won't be anyone left to compete with me."

William looked at Cedric and said earnestly, "If you open a wand shop, I'll definitely invest in it, and I'll make sure my children buy their wands from your shop!"

"Deal!"

William and Cedric shook hands.

Soon after, William's attention was caught by a bottle of Coca-Cola.

On the label, there was an image of a man riding a broomstick. If the picture hadn't been moving, William would've thought he was in one of those high-class McDonald's knockoffs that you find in China.

"Wait… the magical world has Coca-Cola?" William exclaimed in surprise.

Cedric took a bite of chocolate ice cream, biting off "Dumbledore's" head in the process.

"Well, of course," Cedric said, puzzled by William's reaction. "It's been around for hundreds of years. It was introduced to Muggles through wizards. Did you really think Muggles invented such a delicious drink?"

"Then you guys must know the secret recipe?" William asked excitedly.

The secret formula for Coca-Cola had always been one of the things he was curious about.

"Of course… we don't!" Cedric shrugged. "There's a potion component involved, and only the Candler family knows the full recipe. They're a family famous for their potion-making."

William took a sip and was disappointed to find that it tasted exactly the same as the Muggle version sold outside.

Cedric leaned in, speaking in a conspiratorial tone, "I'll tell you something. The Quibbler once reported that the Coca-Cola formula contains happiness potion. Who knows if it's true?"

William nodded seriously. "It's definitely true! This drink is called 'Happy Water' in the Far East."

"Oh!" Cedric drawled, nodding thoughtfully. It wasn't clear if he truly understood what William meant.

"What's The Quibbler?" William asked, intrigued. "It sounds pretty authoritative."

Cedric explained, "It's a magazine in the wizarding world that publishes all sorts of secret stories, like the mysteries of Mars' pyramids, ancient magical civilizations, and blood-spitting wizards…"

"My favorite recent issue described a wizard who went to sleep one night in his house and woke up in the middle of MACUSA—the American magical congress!

"And get this, he didn't even know how to Apparate and didn't use a Portkey either!"

William scratched his head. Wasn't this just the magical version of Unsolved Mysteries?

No, they should rename it to Unsolved Magic!

Cedric continued, "It's terrifying. Lately, I've been tying myself to the bed with ropes before I sleep, just in case."

"But my dad doesn't like the magazine much. He calls the editor, Xenophilius Lovegood, a raving lunatic, though I don't quite agree…"

William suddenly realized that while Cedric appeared to be humble and polite, he had a bit of a chatterbox personality.

After listening to him for a while, William decided to shift the conversation to something he had more control over.

"It's great that the magical world has Coca-Cola," William said, "but if only there were Lao Gan Ma and Wei Long spicy strips."

"Lao Gan Ma? Wei Long?" Cedric asked curiously. "What's that?"

William thought for a moment and gave a fitting description: "Lao Gan Ma is a condiment you spread on bread, kind of like butter or cheese![1]

"And Wei Long… those are spicy-flavored potato sticks."

"The way you eat them is simple. You just put the spicy strips in a sandwich, slather it with a thick layer of Lao Gan Ma, and wash it down with a sip of Coke… It's like heaven!"

"Heaven?"

"Oh, that's just what we call Merlin in the East."

As William described it in detail, Cedric's imagination ran wild.

Excited, Cedric said, "If that stuff is as good as you say, I'll have my dad get us some!"

William was surprised. "That's not easy to get, is it?"

Cedric glanced around before lowering his voice. "My dad works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. His position lets him get hold of rare things.

"This summer, he even got us tickets to the Quidditch World Cup.

"If you'd arrived earlier, you could've seen the match. It's only held once every four years."

To Cedric, getting Lao Gan Ma and Wei Long seemed no more difficult than acquiring butter and crisps. After all, they weren't contraband—how hard could it be?

[tl/n: Lao Gan Ma (Chinese: 老干妈; also called Laoganma) or Old Godmother is a brand of chili sauces made in China. The product is sold in China and over 30 other countries

Source: trust me bro! (google actually).]