Chapter 1 The Acceptance

"Now where were we?" said Grete flopping down on her bed.

Emily unfolded a piece of parchment and took out her quill, she dipped it in some ink and scribbled out some words that were written on the yellowish paper, "Now you, which aren't what we're looking for?" She said thrusting the parchment into her twin sister's hands.

Grete grabbed the quill and scribbled out a couple of names, "I told you I already checked all the potion books."

Emily's eyes narrowed, "You were supposed to do spells not potions!" she snapped.

Grete set the parchment and quill on the floor next between their beds, "I'm hungry." She said laying down and looking at the ceiling.

Emily glared at her, "We just ate lunch."

"So, your point is?" Grete said putting her hands behind her head.

Emily walked over to the closet and opened the door. She grabbed a silvery cloak and threw it onto her bed, "There are two of us Grete, dear." She said plopping down on her bed, "If we want to survive the first year of Hogwarts we have to have two invisibility cloaks."

Grete ignored her, "Don't call me dear." she mumbled and exited the room her black hair swishing behind her.

The call of their mother, Hermione, came from down the stairs, "Emily, Grete! George is here!"

Emily rushed down the stairs pushing past Grete on her way, "Hiya, George!" She said bounding across the living room to sit next to her godfather, but her younger brother, Max, saw her intentions and reached him first.

His small five year old arms wrapped around George, showing he was going nowhere. So Emily sat in the loveseat across the room.

She glowered at her brother, a look that said, "I'll deal with you later."

Grete finally entered, her wild black curls back in a bushy pony tail, "Hello, George." She said taking a seat next to Emily on the sofa.

"Hello, twins." Said George. Yes, this was George Weasley, one of the owners of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. He looked around, "Good all Potters here." He looked from one face to the other, "I have some things for you girls." He said pulling some brightly wrapped gifts from his pockets.

Their mother's eyes lit up, but she tried to act responsibly, "You know George, their thinking of becoming competition."

George gave a faked shocked looked, "Not after we went through all the work to buy out Zonko's?!" He stood up and gave a wink towards the two girls on the opposite sofa, "How dare you turn against Fred and I, we worked hard to get our position in society, and will not have the Potters taking us over!" He shouted with false anger.

Their father, Harry Potter, laughed, "What will Fred say when you tell him?" He said, playing along.

George's eyes widened in horror, "He'll probably blast me through the roof!" He said, terrified.

Max's eyes were as large as golf balls and his mouth hung open with fright, "I won't let him!" he shouted grabbing George around the legs.

George looked at Harry, "A little help here." He mouthed. The little auburn headed boy was finally yanked from George's legs, "There," he said, "now I can stand on my own, without having the circulation cut off." He smiled at Max.

George gave Emily and Grete their presents. A smile slowly spread across Grete's face as she held up a book, The Easy Guide to Duplication, read the cover in gold lettering, By Wilfred O'Reilly. Emily opened hers, a box filled with "class excuses" as her mother called them.

Her mouth dropped with amazement, "Oh, George Weasley! Thank you!"

Grete and Emily ran up and gave their godfather a large hug each, "we probably wouldn't get through school with out you!" Grete whispered in his ear.

George gathered them close, "Neither could a lot of kids." He said quietly, putting a finger to his lips, "what's a life if you don't get detention at least once?" he asked out loud.

Harry looked slyly at Hermione, "Nothing." He answered simply.

Grete and Emily looked at each other and laughed, then they ran up to their room, snickering all the way.

"Open your book to clothing, cloth, ect." Said Emily pointing at a title in the table of contents.

"Page one-fifty-three," Grete muttered to herself flipping the pages, then cleared her voice and said, "Alright, page one hundred-fifty-three. 'Duplication of Clothing, Cloth, Etc.' How're we going to do this, it's a spell."

Emily smiled horribly, "I nicked dad's wand." She said holding it up.

"Alright we've got to practice it first, just incase we mess up." Grete said snatching the wand from her sister, "Bring me that shirt I don't like." She waved the wand and said the spell, the shirt burnt up.

Emily grabbed the book and the wand, "You stupid your not supposed to flick the wand your supposed to hold it still." She pointed the wand at the charred remains of the shirt, "Replicana." She said, the shirt was identically copied and lay on top of the other.

Grete frowned, "Now I have two burnt shirts."

Emily shook her head and pointed the wand at the shirts, well, what was left of them, "Scourgify" she said, the shirts disappeared.

A call came from down stairs, "Emily!!!!!!!"

"We're not doing anything mom, especially be using dad's wand to do illegal things!" Emily called back.

"Emily, get down here, this instant!" Came the voice of her father.

Emily looked at Grete with a worried look, "Coming." She ran out of the room and slid down the railing, "What?"

"Give him the other end!" Shouted her mother.

Emily looked at her brother, he was barfing gallon by gallon, "Um...Max, you weren't supposed to eat the candy I gave you."

George was sitting on the couch laughing quietly to himself, Emily stuffed the purple end of the candy into Max's mouth before he could take a breath and start throwing up again.

Max gasped for breath, tears in his eyes, "Where is my wand?" said their father, "Hermione? Would you mind cleaning up this mess?"

Hermione nodded and with a swish of her wand the throw up was gone, "Check in Emily and Grete's room." She said sitting down and holding her son close to her. She looked at Emily, "Oh, I forgot. Some owls came with your school lists."

Emily grabbed the letters off the end table and rushed upstairs, "Grete, Grete, Grete! We got our acceptance letters."

Grete tore hers open, it read:

"Dear Miss Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1. We await your owl no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagal

Minerva McGonagal

Deputy Headmistress"

Emily lay the piece of parchment aside and looked at her supply list. UNIFORM First year uniform will require

Three sets of plain work robes (black)

One plain pointed hat (black) for everyday use

One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)

One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk

A History of Magic by Bathida Bagshot

Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling

A Beginners Guide to Transfiguration by Emerie 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 glass of crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set brass scales

Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS."

Grete had finished, "which house we're going to be in is what's bothering me." She said slouching.

Emily set down her letter and said, "Gryffindor, of course! Our whole family's been in Gryffindor since, well, forever!"

Grete stood up and called down the stairs, "Mum, when are we getting our stuff?"

"Tomorrow!" Came the answer.

Grete looked at her sister, "Our birthday's tomorrow! I can't wait to get presents." She squealed.

Emily twirled her finger in a black lock of hair, "I want a cat."

Grete frowned, "What about an owl?"

Emily laid down on her bed, "You get an owl and I get a cat, then." She said.

Grete relayed the message to her mother down the stairs and sat on her bed, "I can't wait."

Emily smiled, "We've waited all our lives for this, can't you wait another day?"

Grete shook her head, "No."

Emily sat up, "We need to get dad's wand again."

Grete was confused, "Why does it matter if we have dad's or mum's?"

Emily sighed, "Because Mum uses her wand for everything."

Grete's lips formed an "o" and she nodded. Emily threw the invisibility cloak of them.

"Ready?" Emily asked, as they reached the top of the stairs.

Grete nodded and they cautiously walked down the stairs. Emily saw her father and Grandpa conversing and her father's wand setting next to him on the end table.

Grete reached under the hem of the cloak and grabbed the wand and quickly pulled her hand back so it was invisible again.

Emily gave her sister a high five and they ran up stairs to perform the spell. When they reached their room they threw off the cloak and did the spell quickly. Finally two invisibility cloaks, Grete snuck down stairs to put the wand back.

The next day the family went to the Leaky Cauldron and got rooms. Hermione went with her daughters to buy supplies. First stop was Ollivander's for a wand. Emily looked at the ancient man in the chair behind the desk, he looked up at her and said quietly, "Ah, some mischief makers."

Hermione smiled, "We need two wands, Mr. Ollivander." She said her hands on her daughters' shoulders.

First was Grete, "Your wand hand." Said the old man. Grete held out her left hand.

The old man smiled, "Ah, a lefty." He measured her quickly and came back with a reddish wand, "Red wood, unicorn hair, twelve and a half inches." Before Grete even took it out of the box he snapped the case shut and said, "No, that's not it." He scrambled up a step ladder and grabbed another box, "Ebony, unicorn hair, eleven and a half inches." He said more confidently.

Grete took the wand and a feeling of peace ran through her, "Thank you sir." She said quietly.

Emily nervously held out her right hand to the old man, "Don't be shy." He said measuring her, "You are the daughter of a great Auror." Emily, still nervous, smiled, "Ah, yeas. Harry Potter, holly, phoenix feather, eleven inches." Said the man standing on his stool to reach another high wand box. "Try this." He said, "Maple, dragon heartstring, twelve inches."

Emily brushed her fingers across the shiny surface. "Thank you, sir." She squeaked.

They ran outside while their mother paid for the wands and walked over to the pet shop.

Hundreds of owls crowded the windows, cats prowled the floor. A man behind the counter said, without looking up, "Can I help you?"

His red hair showed he was somehow related to the Weasleys. He looked up, his brown eyes widening over the brim of his reading glasses, "Well, if it isn't my two favorite people, Double and Trouble." He said walking around the counter.

"Hi, Sam. We didn't know you worked here." Said Emily her eyes on a calico cat curled up in the corner of the room.

"Oh, this is just a summer job." He said scratching an owl's head through the cage, "Since I still have school and all."

Grete walked up to the owl Sam had just pet, "What kind is it?" She asked her large green eyes gazing back into the owl's orange ones.

Sam pointed at some feathers sticking out of the owl's head, "See those, how they look like horns. Their called Horned Owls."

Grete nodded, "They look like ears to me." She said squinting and taking a step closer.

Sam laughed, "How would you like to have an owl called an Eared Owl."

Grete bit her lip in thought, then said, "Good point."

By this time Emily had come over with a black kitten, it's big yellow yes widened with interest and mortification, "Do any of them have names?" she interrupted.

Sam's eye brows came together, "The kittens or all the animals in the store?"

"All the animals," said Grete, before Emily could open her mouth.

Sam looked at Emily, "The kittens don't have names, but their mother is Splotch. And that owl over there is Snowflake, and that toad is Delilah. I don't know anymore, we like our customers to name them. After they're bought of course."

Grete looked up at the horned owl, "Does he have a name?"

Sam laughed, "Luckless."

Grete frowned, "Why Luckless?" Grete asked sadly.

Sam laughed again, "He's the best owl in all of Britain. We just like to make fun of him."

The owl screeched and flapped it's wings, Emily raised an eye brow, "Uh, Sam, what's it doing?" She asked out of the corner of her mouth.

"He's laughing." said Sam.

Grete gave the same expression as Emily, "He doesn't look very amused."

Sam patted the cage, "How would you show expression if you were an owl? Your mouth is a beak so it's always in the same position. And all you can do is fly, eat, carry letters, and blink your eyes."

Emily scratched the kitten's ear, "Well, we're not owls, so we don't have to worry."

The door opened and Hermione entered, "Why, hello Sam." She said setting bags of books and supplies down on the floor.

"Hi, Hermione." He said, "Just been showing the girls around."

"Right," she said and nodded, "What year are you this year, Sam?"

He looked timidly down, "Seventh." He said simply.

Hermione nodded again and turned to her daughters, "Come on we've got to meet your father back at the Leaky Cauldron."

Emily squeezed the kitten tighter, "Mum, I want this kitten."

Hermione sighed, "Tell your father to get it for you before school starts." Emily set the small cat on the floor, "Yes, mum."

Grete patted her sister on the back, she picked up a bag and said, "Common, Em."

Emily looked down at the cat and back up at Sam, "You'll save him from me won't you?"

Sam gave an unsure nod and went back behind the counter.