The clouds shifted slightly, allowing a soft tendril of early morning light to squeeze through the thin curtains, dimly brightening a small, shabby room. Dust was layered on the peeling furniture, and the threadbare carpet barely hid the cold tiling underneath. A rickety bedframe held a thin mattress with minimal bedding.

The only remarkable thing about this room was the presence of a small, pure black owl sleeping in its cage, and a skinny girl laying in the bed, her dark red hair fanned out behind her, her emerald, almond-shaped eyes wide open.

Though the outdated clock on the windowsill read 5:00, Amber Lily Potter was awake, and had been all night. Excitement, anxiety, and sheer euphoria had kept her from catching any winks of sleep. After all, today she was escaping #4 Privet Drive, her prison for the past 11 years. Today, Amber was going to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

She was following in her beloved brothers footsteps; the famous Harry Potter had just finished his first of seven years at Hogwarts. The past year had been almost unbearable with just the Dursleys to keep her company. She had secretly corresponded with Harry (by owl post, of course) but she missed her loving, comforting big brother terribly. When he returned for the summer, he had lots of stories to share, some horrifying, but some were wonderful. She knew that she would be getting her acceptance letter soon, as she already had shown the remarkable ability to levitate things without touching them. When the yellowing parchment arrived in August, she literally sang with joy. After procuring all the necessary supplies in the magical Diagon Alley, the only thing left to do was wait patiently for September 1st. Unfortunately, patience was not one of Amber's strong skills.

Silently bounding across the narrow hallway, Amber poked her head into Harry's room before tiptoeing in. his black hair ruffled, and his mouth hanging open, she gently prodded her sleeping brother. He awakened with a start.

"What in Merlins's name are you doing?" shouted Harry.

She quickly replied, "Waking you up, obviously. Now shut up before Uncle Vernon hears you."

"But why are you up so early? Its five o'clock in the morning."

"Don't you know what day it is? Its September first! Its my first day of school!" she said.

Harry sat up with a groan. "There's something I haven't told you. I've been wanting to protect you, but people at school are going to ask questions, and I'd rather you hear it from me than from someone else. I think it's time you learned the truth about us."

"What? I already know why. You just stopped Voldemort from coming back and stealing the Sorcerer's Stone," I said, confused.

"Yes, but it's time you learned what happened to out parents."

"But I know that they died fighting Voldemort, and not in some rubbish car crash. What's more to know?" I asked.

"Our parents were being hunted down by Voldemort. I have no idea why. But he found them. He tried to kill us but mum and dad stood in his way. They were killed. For some reason, when he tried to kill us, the curse backfired and hit himself instead. The scar on my forehead is not from a fall down the stairs. It's from the man who murdered our parents."

After this chilling statement, there was a silence. At first, I was hurt that he hadn't told me sooner, but then I realized that he was just trying to protect me. I leaned my head onto his shoulder, wetting his shirt with my tears. We stayed like this, comforting each other for almost an hour, before starting to prepare for out exciting day ahead.

All of my spellbooks and robes fit into my trunk without a problem, but was probably because of the Undetectable Extension Charm that the woman in Diagon Alley placed on it. By the time we were downstairs eating toast with jam, Dudley was lumbering down the stairs, rubbing his beady little eyes with his pudgy fists. Vernon and Petunia shortly followed. They made no attempt at conversation. At 9:30, when Harry said that it was time to leave, our uncle merely grunted in reply.