Prologue
Luton. Dumbledore had confirmed it twice. The place in which Darling Kuryakin had been raised for the past ten years was none other than Luton. When Hagrid arrived he remained optimistic, perhaps his expectations were too overblown? Perchance the group home in which she was living in was not as dilapidated as anticipated?
Hagrid's assurance was demolished when he arrived on the premises of Monarch Hill Home to find a cluster of kids alongside the garage engrossed in a fist fight.
"Get him, Roach!" Hollered one child. "That's right! In the jaw!"
There was an almighty crack as one juvenile plummeted to the ground whilst the other was entitled the victor of the brawl. Hagrid was perplexed.
"Who's the big fella?" Queried the victor as she kneaded her bleeding fist.
"Rubeus Hagrid." Hagrid answered after a moment's silence. "I need to speak to whoever is in charge of this .. place."
"Derek's at Tesco, right now." The girl answered, she extended her unscathed hand for him to shake. "My name's Darling Kuryakin, but everyone calls me Roach. As far as anyone is concerned I call shots around here."
"Then you're who I came to inquire about."
The scrawny girl became rigid as she jerked back her arm and took a defensive stance. Hagrid burrowed his big hands into his coat pocket and emerged with a fancy letter addressed to Darling with cursive writing.
"You ain't some kind of kiddie toucher, are ye?" Roach jested as she politely took the letter and ripped it open. " 'Cause we all got our trusty shanks on us."
Curiosity transformed Hagrid's features. "Shanks?"
"Knives."
"Don't read it aloud." Hagrid advised and Roach's mouth snapped shut. "It's private."
"Where do suggest I read it, Mr Hagrid?"
"Perhaps we ought to wait for the arrival of your legal guardian.
"Well, you're lucky, Mr Hagrid. " said Roach as she motioned toward the car pulling up the drive way. "Here he comes now."
Derek Smith was a burly man, almost as burly as Hagrid himself, you had to be strong to have a job such as this. Derek emerged from the car with several Tesco carrier bags in each hand.
"Screwfix, Smirnoff and Poundland." Derek roared toward the cluster of children. "Come help me take in the shopping. Who is this man?"
Three boys sprinted towards the man and politely assisted in taking in and unpacking the shopping. Derek eyed Hagrid with suspicion.
"You're not grooming them, are you?" Derek inquired as he brashly marched towards Hagrid with a heated expression.
"No, nothing of the sort." Hagrid defended as he took a few steps back from the intimidating social worker. "I'm here to offer one of the children here a place at an elite boarding school."
"You're offering Roach a place at an elite boarding school." Snorted one filthy looking toddler. "She can barely read and write."
"Shut your mouth, ITV. Didn't I tell you to hoover the stairs before I left?" Said Derek as he looked pointedly at the toddler. Derek waited until the toddler had fled inside the building before responding to Hagrid. "No, seriously, Roach can't read."
"It's not that kind of school." Hagrid clarified.
"A special ED school?" Derek suggested. "I've had her checked for autism but-"
"Perhaps we ought to discuss this in your office."
"Sounds good." Derek agreed before turning his attention to Roach. "Oi, Roach, get your arse over here. This man is offering you a place at a school."
"Is it a special ED school, Derek?" Roach asked as she approached the pair of men. "I thought the doctors said I didn't have autism."
"Apparently not-" Derek narrowed his eyes as he registered the girl's scruffy appearance. His eyes lowered to her fist. "You've been fighting again! Out in the open!"
"Calm yourself, Derek." She responded remarkably steady. "I had to settle a dispute. Mentos reckons he's top dog when you're away and I had to set him straight."
"With your fist?"
"Would you have it any other way?"
After much deliberation Derek decided it was hopeless when bickering with Roach since she was persistent and relentless in her attempts to come out on top. With as much professionalism as Derek could muster he invited Hagrid into his office and gestured for the man to sit opposite him.
"So this elite boarding school." Derek began. "I don't think we'd be able to afford it, you see we're run by government. All the funding we get in a year wouldn't cover it."
"Oh no, the offer is a scholarship." Hagrid amended, both Roach and Derek's jaws fell open in synchronisation.
"Roach earned a scholarship?" Derek asked only half-convinced. "For what? Burping the alphabet?"
"He's right, Mr Hagrid." Roach nodded. "Kids like me, we don't get scholarships."
"On the contrary, Miss Kuryakin." Hagrid spoke gently. "Kids like you are very special."
Hagrid passed an additional copy of the letter to Derek who read over the document with suspicion.
"This has to be prank."
"I assure it isn't." Hagrid assured him. "I was told to inform you to check the first document in Roach's file."
Derek shrugged and flicked through the filing cabinet, grasping hold of the file entitled 'Darling Kuryakin'. Derek emptied the papers on the desk before finding an envelope stamped 'Top Secret'. With little regard Derek tore open the envelope.
"You delivered her here ten years ago."
"Wait, he's not my Dad." Roach interjected. "Is he?"
"Oh heavens no!" Hagrid assured her and Roach allowed a sigh to escape her. "Alas, you have to keep the wizarding world a secret from the rest of the muggle children."
"Wizarding world?" asked Roach who was entirely perplexed. "Are you both on ecstasy? Give me that."
Roach snatched the envelope from Derek and skimmed over it momentarily. She struggled to understand some of the longer and more difficult vocabulary; nonetheless, she was virtually clear on what the letter entailed.
"I'm going to Wizarding School in Scotland." Roach established in astonishment. "In Scotland? Why would I want to go to Scotland?"
Hagrid was only thankful that the difficult part had concluded and what was to come would be easier in the grand scheme of things. Nevertheless, Hagrid couldn't help but dread towing Roach around diagon ally.