(Only the beginning-it gets better!)
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter original characters or places. Rated T (just to be safe!)
The Late Night Spy
She would be eleven in two hours…two small hours. Of course, she couldn't wake up the entire family at four in the morning. She remembered four years earlier when surely her older sister was feeling the same exhilaration and anticipation that she felt now. Despite the fact that she wanted more than anything to sleep, the sandman's gentle sand never found its way into her eyes. So, wide awake she lay, with thoughts of her birthday sparkling in her eyes.
After another hour of insomnia, Arin slowly peeled off her blankets and swung her feet silently onto the carpet. She got up with a crack of her knees and ever so quietly padded across the hall. Luckily, her sister's door was wide open; saving her from pushing open the door on its creaky hinges. In the dark of the early morning, she walked over to her sister's desk where her most important papers hung strewn on the cork board. But Arin had eyes for one in particular, her sister's Hogwarts letter. And there it hung, still as perfect and undamaged as on the day it came. Genevieve Benteley was emblazoned across the top of the parchment in gold script. Arin read the letter with as much longing and admiration as any other time she had gazed at the letter. But in a matter of hours, she too would gaze at creamy white parchment with her name written boldly across the top, beckoning her to a place of wonder. At least that was the best she could hope for. She had always had secret fear that she would not turn out to be a witch, a squib. To her, getting her acceptance letter was the breaking point in her life, it was not a question; it had to happen. Relieved at looking at the letter unnoticed, Genevieve's cell phone broke the silence with a joyful ring just as Arin had turned to leave. And in the shattered silence, she saw a figure stir from underneath the blankets. Arin sucked in a sharp breath and out of shear panic, she darted under the desk. She couldn't let her sister know that she was staring (yet again) at her notorious papers. She had to look like she couldn't care less about getting her letter to save her dignity. Carefully peeking up at the bed, she could see Geneveive sitting upright and a pale hand reaching towards the bedside table. With a faint 'click' light spread across the room and Arin retreated farther into the shadows of the desk for fear of being seen. Sleepily, Geneveive groped around in the sudden light for her cell and her arm retreated back onto her bed with the phone clutched in her hand.
"Dang this stupid thing. Should've turned off the notifications…who could be texting me at three in the morning anyway?" Geneveive muttered grumpily. As a teenager, sleep was the next best thing besides boys and shopping sprees, at least for muggles. As for the Bentley children, sleep was the next best thing beside magic, Hogwarts and Quidditch.
"Oh it's only Danielle…what does she want?" Genevieve's fingers flew over the keyboard in an apparently nasty text, judging by the scowl on her face.
"Great, now I'm never getting out of here" thought Arin. She knew that even if she crawled across the floor, the bright light and yellow pajamas that she wore couldn't possibly conceal her from her agitated sister. Unfortunately, Platform Nine and Three-Quarters being only two weeks away couldn't help her sister's sudden moodiness. So a "James Bond style" getaway was out of the question.
"Man, I really could do with Harry Potter's invisibility cloak. But seeing as I'm not a Potter, that is a ridiculous idea." Arin grumbled as she chewed her nails, however to her surprise, there was nothing left to bite. Looking down at her raggedy finger nails, she immediately regretted chewing them to stubs. In a couple of weeks she would hopefully be on the Hogwarts express decked out in all new robes and supplies only to find that her nasty habit had rendered her nails torn and messy looking.
As she looked up at her sister, she couldn't help but be washed over in a wave of admiration. Geneveive was the oldest in the family and was perfect in every way. Her nails were always neatly cut with a bright nail color or French manicure shining on her hands. Her short auburn hair was layered in a sweet bob that looked both mature and dainty. Large sparkling hazel eyes were set perfectly apart on her flawless face and her lashes were long and dark. When she flashed a dazzling white smile, it lit up the whole room (thanks to two years of braces). Not to mention that she was tall and slim and had a gliding grace in the way she moved. Geneveive had a cute and flirty air about her that charmed everyone she met. Her fashion sense was impeccable and her subtle makeup gave her a dewy, radiant glow. Her wild side was spirited while she had a demure and well mannered etiquette to make her parents proud. Intelligent, creative, talented and amusing left her to be any parent's dream.
Sometimes, Arin felt she was everything her sister wasn't. Though tall she was, her figure was lanky and boyish. Her hair was a dark chestnut shade and fell in unruly, looping curls down her back that could never be tamed. Her fair skin contrasted greatly with her dark hair, making her feel like a vampire. Deep brown eyes were framed by short, barely-there lashes. Currently, her small lips encased a set of braces that only added to her imperfections. Alas, she was rather clumsy and was always running into things. She wasn't athletic at all and couldn't help the fact that she simply couldn't ever be a ballerina- due to her lack of grace. However, her kind nature left her to be shy and quiet. Before, her regular schools didn't help with her sociality; most kids tended to be nice to her but didn't really bother with becoming friends.
Though Arin didn't look like much on the outside, she had a big heart. She felt compassion for everyone, no matter who they were! She was never one to spread rumors or jeer at other kids. In fact, she was actually quite intelligent and received excellent marks at her grade school. She was silently clever and very independent which caused her to be at the top of her classes every year. Despite the fact that she often kept to herself, she expressed her feelings through beautiful poetry and writing. She aspired to be a famous author and read every chance she got. Kellen was Arin's closest muggle friend and deep down, it hurt her that she had to leave Kellen. But, because of the Statute of Secrecy among wizarding families, she wasn't able to tell Kellen where it was she was going. All poor Kellen knew was that Arin was switching to go to a distant boarding school and she wouldn't be seeing Arin in grade school anymore.
As it so happened, Arin's family was moving to a wizarding town much closer to Hogwarts school since by now, the Bentleys had the majority of their children attending Hogwarts. As soon as three out of their four children left for Hogwarts, the moving truck would come along and pack up their things while mum and dad would be helping to close the house. Then, by the time Christmas break rolled around, all three children would be coming home to their new house by which mum and dad will have already magically moved everything into. They knew that their fourth child wasn't far off from Hogwarts and moving into a wizarding community near the school would be safer and easier.
Arin embraced the new plan and she would feel less interrogated by the children at her muggle school. Though she would miss her kind teachers and her good friend Kellen, she knew that Hogwarts would be the best thing for her. Therefore, she wasn't too shaken up about it. Of course Genevieve had many more friends than Arin but she too understood that Hogwarts was a far better place for her. Besides, Genevieve claimed she had much closer friends who were witches and was excited to be moving closer within the rest of the wizarding world. Arin's older brother, Elias, was going into his second year at Hogwarts and he just wanted to be able to fly his broomstick where no neighbors would scream and run inside to call the police or tell to their mothers. And the youngest child in the Benteley family, Ophelia, was eight and she would be on her way in three years. But she was content with her bouts of uncontrolled magic and lived a still carefree childhood.
All this thinking about her very near future got Arin to letting her eyelids drop and she was just about to give way to sleep. Her sister had put her phone down ten minutes ago and it appeared as though she had fallen asleep too. Yet the light was still on and Genevieve's sleep mask was not strapped across her eyes. Out from beneath the desk, Arin slowly peeked out her head and strained her ears. She heard rhythmic breathing and so assuming that Geneveive had fallen asleep unexpectedly, Arin crawled out into the open floor. Not taking any chances, Arin cautiously edged across the floor and in a matter of moments she was back in her bed. After all that hiding, sleep had engulfed her in its hands and she was out like a light.
Happy Birthday Arin!
Tendrils of deliciously scented air wafted through the air and snaked itself into Arin's nose. Sunlight spilled through the gaps in the slats of her blinds and the muffled grind of the coffee maker awoke her from her sleep. It was seven-thirty in the morning when she lifted her head to look at her clock. Barely awake, she heard footsteps thundering up the stairs and down the hall to her bedroom and moments later her door opened with a bang and Ophelia came bouncing into the room. Ophelia had inherited their father's curls just like Arin and they bounced glossily around her ears.
"Happy Birthday Arin!" Ophelia shouted with delight as she sprang forward and grabbed Arin's hand.
"Wah…?" mumbled Arin as she stumbled out of bed at her sister's grasp. With a jolt Arin realized what day it was.
"I'm eleven! Yes, this day has finally come! Woo hoo!" She cried as she let go of Ophelia's hand and she flew down the stairs and bounded into the sunshine filled kitchen. She stopped in her tracks and took a deep breath. Bacon was sizzling on a frying pan while pancakes were being flipped by her mother's enchanted spatula. In the sink, the dishes were soaping themselves up while another enchanted dishcloth was drying them off. Her eyes were directed to the dinner table where it was spread with a lacy cloth. A huge banner that floated in the air had 'Happy Birthday Arin!" written on it in pulsating silver lettering. Balloon witches and wizards were zooming around on balloon brooms above the banner, smiling and waving down at her. Mr. and Mrs. Benteley were beaming at her over their coffee mugs. Genevieve rushed over to Arin's side and grasped her hands "Oh happy birthday Ar!" She bubbled. All traces of her former unhappy mood were swept away with the early morning's excitement. Elias too came over and gave her shoulder a squeeze.
"Happy eleventh Ar, make it a good one." He said as he walked over to his seat and sat down, evidently ready to eat.
"Happy Birthday sweetheart, it's the big one-one, eh?" Chuckled Mr. Benteley as he enveloped Arin in a bear hug.
"Yes, happy birthday Arin! Are you hungry for your birthday breakfast?" Chimed Mrs. Benteley as she motioned for the colorful birthday plates to zoom over to the table with the cutlery and drinking glasses following close behind. With a whiz the bacon, pancakes, syrup, eggs, muffins, toast, fruit and orange juice flew from the kitchen and over their heads onto the table. Their white serving platters and silver serving spoons sparkled in the morning sunshine.
"Dig in everyone! Help yourself," Announced Mr. Benteley as he helped himself to a heaping pile of eggs.
"Don't mind if I do!" Elias muffled as his plate was piled high already with pancakes. Genevieve was sitting across from Arin and she daintily cut her fruit up and arranged it onto her pancakes. Arin couldn't have been any happier. Sandwiched between her parents at the table, she gave a loving look at the people who surrounded this table, who all meant so much to her. In her gaze, she barely noticed a faint whistling noise. Thinking that it was just Elias, she broke from her stare and dug into her breakfast. Her mother was talking with Geneveive about going to Diagon Alley the next day to buy school supplies, while Elias was scanning his Quidditch magazine for any recent updates on his favorite team, the Chudley Cannons. Ophelia was swirling her fork in her syrup and Mr. Bentely was consumed by the news in the Daily Prophet. Assuming everything was normal, Arin continued to eat but before she could even manage to swallow a gulp of juice, another faint whistling sound interrupted the chinking of forks on plates. This time her whole family looked up quizzically at Elias who shot back a confused expression.
"It wasn't me! I heard it too…" Elias's protest was cut off by a distant click and the sound of a metal hatch opening and closing again. With a sudden realization of what was happening, Arin sprang from her seat and sprinted to the window overlooking her front yard. Just as she had suspected, there stood a screech owl on the top of their mailbox.
"Mum! Dad! It's here, my letter's arrived. I'm going to Hogwarts!" Arin wrenched open the front door and, nearly tripping over the front step; she raced across the lawn and came to a halt at the mailbox. From inside the house she could hear a pattering of footsteps as the rest of her family gathered around the front step to watch her open her long awaited letter. Stopping at the mailbox's little door, she glanced up at the owl perched on top of the box and it hooted at her with large, expectant eyes. With trembling fingers, she opened the black mailbox and inside sat a creamy white envelope with a large red wax seal on the back. Her heart leapt and her hand snatched up the envelope and once again, she clambered back up the porch steps to her family. Even Horace, the cat, was sitting at Elias's feet looking up at her with glimmering eyes. Her father shot her a curt nod as if to say "Open it, open it." Excitement coursed through her, causing her fingers to shake as the red wax seal was broken and the flap on the envelope broke from its bond. Ever so carefully, she slipped out the letter and sighed in relief to see the headmaster's signature at the bottom of the parchment, rendering it a true acceptance letter. The Benteley family watched in anticipation as Arin's eyes darted back and forth across the page. When she finished reading she looked up to see her family smiling and clapping their hands. A grin split her face and Arin rushed into her parents' arms while Elias patted her on the back and little Ophelia danced about. After all, everyone knew how important this was to Arin and she had come a long way waiting for this day.
The familiar script of the letter was emblazoned in her mind after reading it over and over throughout the day. As promised, Mrs. Bentely agreed to take all the children to Diagon Alley the following morning. All day she kept the letter in her pocket and all day she repeatedly checked her pocket to make sure it was still there. It seemed so surreal, as if it was merely a dream that she would wake up to at dawn. It being the most important day in a witches life, she made sure to savor every bit of it.
Author's Note: This is my first FANfic and I am very new to all this so I appreciate advice! And I would love for you guys to read and reveiw. Thanks!