A/N: Hello all! I'm so sorry for being away for so long, but I honestly just didn't want to write. I'm sorry. I currently don't know where my story Competition stands and whether or not I will finish it because I am feeling more encouraged doing this. I hope you can understand. I would like to note that as of the time I'm posting this, I do not know what sort of storyline I would like this to take. Simply put, it's a Hogwarts AU. I don't think I'm going to be incorporating much of a Ladybug/Chat Noir side to the story, so if you're looking for that, this might not be for you. However, I'm really excited about this and I hope you enjoy this work!

Chapter 1

There was far too much happening.

Marinette, already confused by the process she had to go through to get here, was simply mystified by what she was seeing. What might have been a simple London street, now appeared to be an extremely crowded cobblestone alley. Sparks were going off everywhere and people in strange robes were laughing and walking about. Marinette looked down at her jeans and jacket and felt that her clothing didn't fit in for the first time in her life. Fighting a flush in her cheeks at these thoughts she turned to her parents, cleared her throat and asked, "So, uh... what was on that list?"

"What dear?" her father asked, quickly turning back to her. Both of Marinette's parents had been looking around, utterly dazzled by what they were seeing. People were casting small spells, enjoying ice creams, bustling about with cauldrons and books, and carrying bags weighed down with new robes or boxes holding new wands. The whole thing made Marinette feel dizzy.

"The list," she said again, trying to calm her frazzled nerves, as well as trying to move her parents out of the way of some more robed people.

"Oh! Well let's see..." said mother as she pulled put a piece of parchment, the likes of which many people seemed to be carrying. Marinette's mother held the paper out for the whole family to see. It read:

Supply List for Incoming First Years

Uniform

- Three Sets of Plain Black Work Robes

- One Plain Pointed Black Hat for day wear

- One Pair of Protective Gloves (dragon hide or similar)

ƒ- One Winter Cloak (Black, silver fastenings)

- Please note that all student's clothes should carry name-tags at all times.

Books

- The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 by Miranda Goshawk

- A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot

- Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling

- A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch

- One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore

- Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger

- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander

- The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble

Other equipment

- 1 Wand

- 1 Cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

- 1 set of glass or crystal phials

- 1 telescope

- 1 set of brass scales

- Students may bring an Owl, a Cat, or a Toad.

She sighed after reading through it all. The family had consulted her grandmother after they had received the letter. She had been overjoyed at the news; there had not been a witch in the family since her time. She had explained in a very long and detailed phone call, in which Marinette's mother took notes, the things they needed to do as soon as they got to "Diagon Alley." He mother now started to pull out the notes she had taken, but Marinette pushed them back into her purse.

"We don't need them Mom. Don't worry about it. The first thing we do is go to the bank, right?" Marinette said, forcing a smile. She was so embarrassed and she felt like she stuck out like a sore thumb. She and her parents clearly didn't belong in this world where everything was backwards and nothing felt right. But at the same time, her parents seemed to be loving this, their eyes as wide as dinner plates with smiles as if they were kids at an amusement park.

"Well yes Marinette, but there's a certain procedure we have to follow to transfer the money and we have to know how to get there," her mother said, pulling the list back out again. Marinette let out a sigh, wishing that she didn't have to be here. She wished she could be back home, curled up with a good book and a croissant.

As they walked around looking for the building, Marinette thought about how... different she felt here. Yes, it was true, she hadn't exactly been the most popular at home, but she had never felt like this. She and her parents stuck out against the robed public and she couldn't get the image or the voice out of her head of the man they went through the brick wall with, saying "Oh, a Muggle-born girl. How... nice."

Marinette knew what a "Muggle" was from the call with her grandmother; however, she had failed to tell the Dupain-Chengs that being Muggle-born was apparently strange. Marinette had thought nothing of the fact that her parents weren't magical, she had been more concerned with the fact that she was. But the way the man had said it was burned into her mind, up until the moment they arrived at the bank.

It was large and marble, three stories high. Each story had crooked, white pillars supporting it. The building looked as though it would fall over, but people were walking in and out without a worry. Large, golden lettering declared the bank as "Gringotts." Marinette slowly trailed behind her overexcited parents.

The inside of the bank was beautiful. Large chandeliers hung down from the ceiling and there were desks taller than her father lining the walls. They went up to one and Marinette saw a goblin for the first time in her life. Her grandmother had mentioned that goblins ran Gringotts, but Marinette had not envisioned what she was currently seeing. The goblin had sharp, squinty eyes, a long and pointy nose, large ears that came to a point, and hands the size of Marinette's head with long, claw-like fingernails.

"Name?" he asked slowly, drawling as well as revealing his small, sharp and pointed teeth. Marinette's parents, looking slightly anxious, motioned Marinette forward.

"Um, Marinette Dupain-Cheng," she murmured. The goblin did not seem to recognize her name and continued frowning.

"For what purpose have you come here today?" he asked, still glaring down at the family. Marinette's father stepped forward.

"Marinette wishes to create an account," he said, smiling tentatively.

"I see. And where is the money you wish to put in it?" the goblin questioned.

Marinette's father pulled out a large bag containing many coins and notes and handed it over to the goblin. He peered inside and then asked, "Muggle-born?"

"Yes," said Marinette, thinking again of the man and the brick wall. The goblin had not said it like the other man, but as though he had dealt with this plenty of times and he was rather bored of it. The thought calmed the girl's mind a little.

"I see," the goblin drawled again and then he set about the task of converting all of the money into wizard currency. It was rather long process and Marinette stared at her feet for most of it. She felt rather embarrassed. They had been here longer than the other wizard families and if their clothing wasn't obvious, the tedious counting of money was. Finally, after it was all said and done, the goblin handed back the empty bag to Marinette's father.

"Where is the new money though?" Marinette's mother asked, eyebrows knitted together. Marinette's grandmother had not gone this far in their conversation.

"In the girl's vault. This is her key. Protect it with your life," the goblin said lazily, as though lives were not hard to protect at all. He handed Marinette's father a key, who placed it in the inside pocket of his jacket. "We shall travel there now," the goblin said, hopping down from his desk and guiding the family to a back room containing a simple elevator. The family went down it and reached what almost looked like a mining complex.

Of course the whole thing is underground. It would be abnormal for it to be a real bank, Marinette thought to herself.

The family and the goblin got in what appeared to be a rickety cart and suddenly everything flashed before Marinette. They were going so fast through the darkness that she thought she might fall off. Surprised and slightly scared, she was out of breath when they stopped at her vault, her hair very disheveled. "Vault three hundred and two," said the goblin. The family joined him, shaking as they got out of the cart. "Key," he said, holding out his hand as Marinette's father gave him it. The goblin unlocked the vault and to Marinette's surprise, she found a large stack of gold coins awaiting her. She was at an utter loss for words between realizing just how much money her parents had given her and wondering how exactly it had gotten down here.

"Take what you wish," said the goblin, motioning them in. Marinette's father took the bag they had brought and began to grab large amounts of coins, putting them into the bag as Marinette's mother helped. Marinette merely just stood there.

After the family had withdrawn how much they wanted Marinette to have, they went back in the cart, up to the ground floor, and left the bank. The goblin had not explained what each coin meant and how much they were worth, so Marinette's mother consulted her notes before the family continued on. She showed Marinette the difference between the galleons, sickles, and knuts and Marinette nodded.

"Okay. Why don't we go get your robes, honey?" Marinette's mother asked, pointing to a shop called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Marinette nodded again. The robe shop was quite nice. She got fitted and was easily given all of her uniform needs. It was a much more simple process than taking money out of Gringott's and the normality of being sized calmed her.

Next they went to a shop called Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment. They needed help from the owner himself to figure out the correct things to buy, but he also threw in a free moon chart and star chart after finding out that the family was completely new to all of it. The man seemed very kind and afterwards, they got her cauldron from Potage's Cauldron Shop. Marinette was slowly becoming more comfortable as the day progressed.

Next they went to a shop called Flourish and Blotts. Marinette found each of her books with some effort, but was able to place each one in her cauldron quite easily and finally she went up to the front with her parents to pay. However, this time Marinette's mother told her to try counting out the money herself and try as she might, Marinette had no clue what she was doing. A line was beginning to form behind her and her anxiety kept causing her to lose count. Tears began to form in her eyes as she heard someone whisper behind her, "What's going on? What's the hold-up?" The owner just stared at her with pity. Finally, after dropping the stack of coins she was holding, she pushed the bag into her mother's hands and said simply, "I can't do it."

She stormed out of the store, leaving her parents to pay, and walked very fast away from the bookstore. She was staring at her feet, furiously wiping away tears. How could she have thought she could be a witch? How could she have thought this world was right for her? If she didn't belong in the wizarding world and she didn't belong in Muggle world, what was she to do? Was there an underwater world she'd better belong at? Was there something else for her to try? No. She couldn't do this. She would go home and tell her parents she wasn't going and that-

"Ow!" Marinette whimpered as she felt a sharp pain in her head and then felt herself falling backwards. She looked up after her fall and found that a boy was lying on the ground across from her. It took her a few moments to realize that she had run into him. Immediately she stumbled to help him stand up. "I'm so sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going!" she exclaimed, holding out her hand.

"Oh it's okay. I wasn't looking either," he grabbed her hand and pulled himself up, then stooped down to pick up his books that had fallen to the ground in their spill. Marinette bent over to help.

"So what's your name?" she asked as they both stood up and she handed over the books that she had picked up. It was at this moment that she got a really good look at him. He was about her height, with hair the color of corn and bright green eyes that made her trip up a little. His smile was sweet and his front teeth stuck out the tiniest bit, something that made him look even kinder. He was wearing the same strange robes that all the wizarding people were wearing. The general air about him was innocent. Marinette was sure that the general air about her was anxious and she suddenly became more aware of the fact that her hair was still tangly from the Gringotts trip.

It wasn't that she liked him. She was only 11 and had only had one crush before and all she had wanted to do was hold hands. No, it was just simply that this boy was very cute and seemed very nice and Marinette wanted a very nice friend. The cute was just a plus.

"Adrien Agreste," he replied, repositioning the books in his arms so that he could shake her hand. "Who are you?"

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng," she said, smiling. "I see you've done plenty of shopping," she said, motioning to the books and bag of money in his hand.

"Yeah, and still more to go," he said. "Do you know where Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor is? I told my father I'd meet him there."

Marinette tried to think hard. She was sure she had seen the shop somewhere... "Oh yeah! Here, follow me." The two walked together down the cobbled streets and talked generally about their backgrounds. Adrien was from a very well-known pure-blood family. He had been around magic his whole life, and was thus very interested in Marinette's Muggle upbringing.

"So you all go to school too?" he asked, looking astonished.

"Well, yes, but at a much earlier age." She bit her tongue to stop herself from sassily saying that Muggles also needed to learn so they could earn money and get jobs.

"I see. That's so interesting. Oh, we're here!" Marinette looked up at the building Adrien was pointing too. Delicious smells were wafting from the shop and a crisp chill also came from it. "Do you want to buy some ice cream with me while I wait for my dad?" Adrien asked.

"Okay-" Marinette stopped herself. "Actually, I can't. I left my money with my parents," she said glumly.

"That's okay. I'll buy you a scoop," he said, lifting up his bag of money, which Marinette now noticed bulged quite a bit and looked rather full, especially considering it was a large bag.

"No thank you, that's okay. They're probably worried about me running off. I'll see you later," she waved as she left, slightly disappointed that she couldn't stay longer.

She found her parents walking around the streets anxiously, looking around every which way. She ran up to them, and helped lighten the load in their arms.

"Marinette, don't go running off like that! This is an entirely new place," her mother scolded.

"We had no idea where you were!" her father said, clearly exasperated.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I was just upset," she said.

"That's no reason to go running off," her mother said to her.

"But Mom, I made a friend," she said, smiling a little.

Her mother dropped all of the disdain from her tone. "Oh honey, that's wonderful! Who was it?"

And as they walked to Ollivanders to get Marinette a wand, she told her parents all about the wizard boy named Adrien. They looked very happy and excited for her and by the time the family reached the shop, Marinette had many less nerves than she had before.

The door above them chimed as they went in, although there did not appear to be a bell. "Coming," came a voice from the back of the shop. Marinette stared at what looked like bookcases or stacks filled with small boxes. Marinette was surprised with the sheer quantity of them, as the cases holding them teetered this way and that. The shop was old and slightly dusty, but felt very warm and very safe.

An old and fraying man came from the back of the shop to the desk at the front. "Hello. What can I do for you?" he asked kindly, staring down at Marinette.

"I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I'm looking for a wand," she said, smiling.

"I see." The man stayed quiet for a moment, looking at her closely. Marinette felt uncomfortable. Did he think she was not magical enough for a wand? After a few more silent moments, the man asked, "Can you hold out your arm dear?" Marinette held her arms out for him and he measured, nodding and muttering to himself.

"Yes...yes... I see... Alright!" He turned around, and picked a box near the top of the rightmost shelf. "Here. Blackthorn and unicorn hair. Eleven inches. Quite rigid. Give it a try," said the man.

Mairnette looked at the wand and swished it. All the lights in the room went out. She swished and they turned on again. "Well that seems alright!" said the man. "Let's ring you up and get you..." he trailed off and looked back down at Marinette again. "Hmm... hold on."

The man went to the back of the store again, pulled out another box and muttered, "Interesting..." He came back and held out the wand for Marinette to try. "Fir and phoenix feather. Ten and a half inches. Slightly bendy flexibility. Here." She held the wand and immediately felt a warm rush come over her. She stared down at the thing in her hand, a connection undeniable. She flicked it and the pages in the book at the front of the desk ruffled and a light seemed to emit everywhere.

"Yes, that seems to be the one," said the man. "How very interesting indeed."

"Why is it interesting?" asked Marinette.

"Well, you see, that core of phoenix feather has a brother, another feather taken from the same phoenix. One wand is the brother of your wand. I tried to sell the wand you are holding to the son of the man whose wand connects with yours, but it did not work. It is extremely peculiar this wand would connect with you. Fir wood is extremely rare and is rather a "surviving wood" if you will... but you needn't worry about that."

Marinette stayed quiet until they had left the shop. She eyed the box in her mother's arms and considered everything the man had said. Wands had brothers? Then whose wand had the same core as hers? Did it even mean anything? And what was meant by "surviving wood?"

Her train of thoughts was slowed to a halt as her parents stopped in front of her. "We just want you to know we're so proud of you Marinette," said her father.

"Yes, dear, this is quite an honor to have another witch in the family," her mother added, smiling. Her parents looked at each other.

"So we'd like to offer you to buy one more thing, as a gift," said her father.

"You could get a pet of some sort. Grandma said that the owls in the world deliver mail. You could get one of those and write to us!" her mother said excitedly.

"Or you could get a broomstick! You could learn to fly and play that Quid-whats-it game that Grandma talked about!" her father said.

Marinette mulled this over. After much thought, the family went to Eeylops Owl Emporium and Marinette picked out a Scops owl that seemed rather happy to be around her. It didn't screech like a barn owl, and instead hooted softly and nipped her fingers affectionately. She named her Tikki.

After a very long day, the Dupain-Chengs drove back home and Marinette read through her Hogwarts acceptance letter again, and for the first time ever, felt excited about the wizarding world.

The day had been so long and lonely.

Adrien had to run around and pick up his school things all alone while his father walked around, discussing Ministry work with a number of witches and wizards. After getting all of his books, his cauldron, and his wand, Adrien was making his way to Florean Fortescue's to meet his father. They had discussed meeting midday to go over what Adrien had bought and then they would split up again so he could finish his shopping.

Adrien stared at his feet as he walked on. He thought about the wand lying in his cauldron and the words Ollivander had said to him. "Willow and unicorn hair. Twelve inches. Quite unbending. You know, your mother's wand was quite like this one." Would his mother have followed him around as he made his purchases today? Would she have been proud that his wand was just like hers? Why did she have to-

"Ouch!" he cried out, hitting his head and falling backwards. He apologized to the girl he had just run into and quickly got to picking up his books. As she handed some back to him, he took notice of how pretty she was. Her black her with a slight blue tinge was gathered in two pigtails at the back of her head. She was pale with bright blue eyes and rosy cheeks. She seemed shy and timid and rather sorry for bumping into him. Adrien became automatically more aware of the fact that he hadn't brushed his hair today.

The two hit it off immediately and as they walked around, they talked about their childhoods, Adrien tenderly skipping around parts of his. This was the first person he had ever met that didn't know about his mother. This was the first person in the entire world to know know who his family was. And it was so freeing. Adrien loved hearing about Marinette's background and was rather disappointed when she said she had to leave.

He entered Florean Fortescue's alone, bought one scoop of butterbeer ice cream, and sat himself down at an empty table, waiting for his father. Adrien stared out of the window, watching families come and go. He watched young wizards who looked afraid and older ones who seemed to be up to something. He sat silently and when his ice cream was gone, he continued peering out of the window.

Thirty minutes later, his father walked briskly through the door and sat himself down in front of Adrien. "How has shopping gone?" he asked, not even bothering to look at Adrien, but instead looking at a roll of parchment in his hands.

"Pretty good. I still need to get a few things," he said, completely used to the way his father was treating him. It was fairly normal. He suddenly missed the girl with the pigtails and hoped he would bump into her again.

"I see. Well, here are a couple of galleons as a gift from me. Go buy yourself an owl," his father said, putting some coins on the table. "I'll meet you here again when you are finished."

His father got up and left, not mentioning any way of knowing when Adrien would be done. Adrien called after him, "Thank you Father!" and then got up, excited to buy himself a pet.

After purchasing new robes and all the equipment needed, there was just one thing left. He was on his way to Eeylops when suddenly he heard a crash behind him. Startled, he turned around and saw a witch running out of a shop, clambering to get to a cage that had just fallen over outside of the store marked "Magical Menagerie."

"Plagg, how many times do I have to tell you, stop getting out of that cage!" the witch said, scolding a black cat slinking around her feet. The cat sauntered over to Adrien and he knelt down to pet it. It was a gorgeous black cat with sleek fur and bright green eyes much like Adrien's himself. The cat purred in his hands and immediately took a liking to him.

The witch walked over to him and said "Y'know, cats make great pets. Sure, they can't deliver mail, but Hogwarts has school owls and a cat will always stick around with you. Tell you what, if you want this cat, I'll take off two galleons."

Ten minutes later, Adrien was walking back to Florean Fortescue's with a cat walking closely beside him and a nervous expression on his face.

To put it lightly, Adrien's father did not take his choice of purchase well. The two did not speak for the rest of the day and Adrien's father had even tried to say that the cat would not be able to come home with them. This was one of the few times Adrien put down his foot and told his father that he wouldn't do as he said. This resulted in an even deeper silence between the two. It was something that had been occurring since the incident with Adrien's mother. The two never fought, but merely gave each other the silent treatment. When Adrien was younger, it would leave him begging for his father's attention. Now, it simply made him more angry.

However, that night, as he got into bed, Plagg curled at the foot of it, he thought of Marinette and wondered if there would be other nice people like her at Hogwarts. He had high hopes that there would be.