Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter. OpenBookLina owns chapters 1-11 and Sara, David, Marcus, Kiera, and Izzy. Story originally by OpenBookLina.

Chapter One

"Papa! Papa, I got it!" yelled Sara enthusiastically, hopping off of her bed and sprinting out of her room, waving a piece of parchment in one hand and holding an envelope in the other. A wide smile was stretched across her face as she ran out into the hallway and down the wooden staircase, excitement swelling up in her stomach like a giant hot air balloon. She could barely contain her happiness as she took the steps two at a time, her mind and heart racing. Once Sara reached the bottom of the stairs, she made a sharp turn to the right and entered the front living room. She passed the creme colored walls and cherry wood shelves that held bountiful amounts of books and framed pictures. When she ran through this room, she started making her way across the dining room, past the glass display case filled with priceless china, heading towards the kitchen at the back of the house. As she entered, she found her father, Jon, sitting at the table reading the morning paper with a steaming cup of coffee at his side. Usually Sara left her father alone while doing this, but at the moment, she was way too excited to care.

"Papa, it's here!" Sara said, running over to Jon and holding the letter in front of him. Jon looked over from his paper and smiled at Sara's glowing face.

"What's here darling?" Jon said as he started folding the paper.

"The letter! It finally came this morning with the mail! I'm going to Hogwarts!"

"That's wonderful Sara," Jon said, his smile even wider, his eyes showing great joy at the news. "May I have a look at the letter a moment?"

Sara eagerly handed the letter over to Jon and watched him intently as he read it. She was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet, her smile refusing to leave her face. She felt as if she were going to burst from all the emotions. After a couple more minutes, Jon finished reading the letter and looked over at Sara, a look a deep pride overtaking his face. Without a word, he opened his arms out to her, and she responded by gladly running into his embrace. Jon held his daughter close to him, tenderly kissing the top of her head while she snuggled her face into his chest. After nearly squeezing the life out of him, Sara released her hold on Jon.

"Congratulations sweetheart," said Jon. "I'm so happy for you. My little witch is going to Hogwarts."

"I know, I can't wait!" Sara said. "Can we buy my supplies tomorrow? Pretty please?"

"No, not tomorrow hon," Jon chuckled. "How about I take you on your birthday? That way Nana can come with us."

"That's perfect!"

"Okay, we'll go right after breakfast than. Hmm, the letter says a representative from the Ministry of Magic will be here in a couple of days to give us some basic information. I suppose he or she will tell us where to get your books and other things. And what to expect when you get to school."

Jon's voice softened a little at his last sentence and his face fell, a small trace of sadness leaking onto it. Sara's smile faded and her heart quivered at her father's attempt to hide his sorrow and shame. Ever since Sara's mother had left them nearly five years ago, Jon has always felt so useless when trying to teach Sara about magic. Jon was a Muggle, or non-magic folk, and there wasn't much he could teach her without his ex-wife's support. When Jon was a very young man, he had married a witch named Cassandra, but she had walked out on them when Sara was just six years old. Sara didn't remember all of that night, she only recalled her parents screaming at each other, and Cassandra pulling her wand on Jon at one point. When she saw Sara standing on the staircase, she stared at her for a moment, and then walked out the front door without a word, never to be seen again.

Ever since then, Jon was alone, raising up a young witch on his own. All he could do was tell Sara everything Cassandra had told her about the Wizarding World which she was a part of. Of course he had the help of Sofia, Cassandra's mother, but there was only so much she could do, for she lived in Milan, Italy, and could only visit two or three times a year. Jon had always felt helpless watching Sara grow up without the full experience of being a witch. He didn't know very much about the magical world at all besides what Cassandra had told him while they were married. There were times when Sara would accidently use magic when she was younger, and he didn't know how to help her control it. He saw himself as a failure, and Sara hated that more than anything. She knew he couldn't tell her everything, and he worked so hard to provide a good life for her even though she was different. Sara gently cupped Jon's face and stared at him.

"Please Papa," she said quietly. "Don't do this to yourself. I don't care if you can't tell me everything I need to know before I go to school. I'll meet other witches and wizards like me and catch up in no time at all. You and Nana told me all you could, and I'll remember it when I leave for school. I love you so much Papa. And the only thing I care about is that I was taught well by you. When I come home I'll so many things I can tell you, you'll be sick of it and want me to be quiet."

Jon managed a chuckle at Sara's words. He stared directly into her face for a moment, then he reached out and once again took her into his arms, and Sara felt him smile against her hair.

"How did I ever get so lucky to have a daughter like you?" he said, rubbing Sara's back. "I love you too kiddo, more than you know. Now why don't you go upstairs and change. We're going out to breakfast to celebrate."

"Yes! Thanks Papa!" Sara said, giving Jon a swift kiss on the cheek. Then she turned around and quickly ran out of the kitchen, making her way back to the staircase. She dashed up the steps back to the second floor to her room. She jogged down the long, wide hallway until she came to a door at the very end on the right hand side. As she approached it, bright, golden colored letters suddenly appeared across the pearl white paint, criss crossing each other until the words Sara's Room was formed near the top in neat, French Script handwriting. Sara's Nana, Sofia, had put that charm on the door when she visited for Sara's third birthday. The words only appeared on the door when it was in the presence of a family member. Sara hastily threw open the door and went inside her room, closing it behind her.

Sara's room was fairly big, enough to fit two twin sized beds, maybe twenty or so people at best. The walls were painted a light Beige color, with golden brown carpet flooring. Sara loved the color brown, it was such a warm, comforting color, like hot chocolate or fresh baked cookies. There wasn't very much on her walls, just a few posters of famous kid bands, framed paintings, printed out pictures of foreign countries she had been dying to see, and framed photographs of her, Jon, Nana, and some of her friends. But these were no ordinary pictures. The ones taken of her, Jon and Nana actually moved. All photos taken in the wizarding world moved, and that's why Sara couldn't have friends up in her room unless she put the pictures away. There was one of her and Jon at the circus, and the Elephant in the picture was seen moving around in a circle, with the two of them laughing on its back.

Sitting in the top right hand corner of the room by the bay window was a ten row bookshelf, filled to the brink with books of all shapes and sizes. Directly across from her bed on the other side of the room was a TV stand with a few computer games and movies. On the left side of Sara's bed was a writer's desk, which held a lamp, alarm clock, and some more framed pictures. The desk itself was made of Maple wood, and had lovely flower designs carved into the edges and legs. On the right side of the bed was a three row, rectangular shelf that held more personal belongings, such as more pictures, photo albums, a jewelry box, a few little glass figurines, a few notebooks where she kept all her poetry, a camera, and some bead necklaces she got from a carnival in town. On the bottom right hand corner of the room was a six shelved dresser where she kept all of her clothes, also made of Maple wood, and right next to it sat a vanity with a large mirror. The only other magical thing in her room besides the pictures was the ceiling. At night, the ceiling will suddenly shine with stars, moons, and comets, but only Sara could see it. That charm was done by her mother.

Sara walked over to her desk and looked at the few pictures residing there. Among these pictures, there was only one of her mother and her together. They were playing together at the park, Sara must have been no older than three or four at the time. Cassandra was pushing Sara on the swing, laughing along with her as Sara kept telling her to go higher. Sara could still remember how beautiful her mother was. She had long, beautiful golden hair that fell gracefully down her back in a water fall of curls. She had fair, light olive skin, soft delicate hands, and the brightest eyes, like sparkling sapphires. The two of them were bundled up for the slight chill of the fall, with gold and fiery red leaves rustling underneath their feet. Although she was very small, Sara remembered how much her and Jon truly loved Cassandra. Jon would have gone to the ends of the earth for her. There was a photo of them together, standing in front of the house. Jon had his arm around her waist, smiling happily, his eyes filled with the outmost joy. Cassandra was smiling also, resting her head upon his shoulder. This was taken not too long before Sara's seventh birthday. The summer she left them…

Sara realized her eyes were starting to well with tears and she angrily wiped them away before they could spill. She shouldn't be crying over the woman who abandoned her husband and child. She will never see Sara grow up to be a witch, to see her develop through her years at school. She had Jon with her, and that's all Sara would ever need in her life. Cassandra Kanebridge was nothing more than a distant memory. Keeping that in mind, Sara turned away from the pictures and went over to her bed. Sitting cross-legged on the mattress, Sara took out the second piece of parchment from the envelope and looked at it. It was a complete list of everything she would need for her first year at Hogwarts. Her eyes widened in amazement as they scanned the list. A cauldron, wand, school robes, spell books, dragon leather gloves, and a choice of an owl, a cat, or a toad! This was so cool, she could hardly believe she was finally going. Sara had been dying to see the castle ever since Nana had started telling her about. Nana had gone to Hogwarts when she was a young girl also. That's where she met Sara's Pop-pop, and they had gotten married and moved to Italy not too long after they left Hogwarts. Cassandra had also gone to Hogwarts, for Nana believed there was no greater place for magical learning. Both woman had told Sara all about the wonders of Hogwarts, and the stories about their days there as students. Sara could only imagine the hundreds of moving paintings on the walls, the changing staircases, house elves in the kitchens, Quidditch games, feasts in the Great Hall, and all the classes she would be taking.

Sara smiled to herself as all of these thoughts came swarming into her mind. To her, Hogwarts seemed like a sacred, mythical place for unique children like her. Sara looked over at the calendar that was hanging on the wall by her bookcase. Its July 21st. Forty-two days left until Hogwarts.

ooooo00000OOOOO00000ooooo

Sara sat curled up on the sofa, reading her book while listening to some music on her radio that was underneath the coffee table. It was rather quiet in the house besides her music playing. Jon had just come home from work a little while ago, and he was now upstairs getting a shower. Outside, thick clouds coated the quickly darkening sky, promising lots of oncoming rain. Sara could hear the winds through the window, blowing fiercely, and she snuggled deeper into the corner of the sofa. She's always hated storms, even when she was a small child. They terrified her sometimes, especially when it was a very bad one. When she was a little girl, every time there was a storm going on, she would scurry into Jon's room and jump into bed with him. Nine times out of ten, he would let her stay with him. She's gotten more used to them over the years, but they still made her uncomfortable at times.

Sara was interrupted from her reading by the sound of sudden rain hitting the glass on the windows. It started out as a soft drizzle, but after a few minutes, it came down harder and faster. Trying to shake it off, Sara turned her attention back to her book and continued reading. However, barely two minutes later, she was once again interrupted, this time by a knock on the door.

"I got it Papa!" Sara yelled as she closed her book and stood up from the sofa. She went over to the front door and, after making sure the chin lock was in place, slowly cracked it open. Standing on the porch was a thin, balding man with flaming red hair and oddly shaped glasses. He wore a long, emerald green cloak that touched the ground, a tweed jacket over a brown vest and shirt, and matching pants, with black shoes. He also looked rather wet from the pouring rain. The man smiled upon seeing Sara through the crack in the door and gave her a friendly wave.

"Hello there dear," the man said kindly. "Is your father home by chance?"

"May I ask who you are sir?" Sara asked quietly.

"I'm Arthur Weasley, I work at the Ministry of Magic," he replied. "I have a meeting with Jon Kanebridge today."

"I'm sorry, but may I see some kind of card?" Sara asked, remembering what Jon had told her about letting people into the house.

"Of course," said Mr. Weasley, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out an old, worn looking wallet. "You are a very smart young lady."

Sara blushed a little at Mr. Weasley's statement as he held up his wallet to the door so she could see. In the clear pocket was a small card with Mr. Weasley's moving photograph and his place at the Ministry. After reading his card, Sara nodded her head and closed the door so she could undo the chain lock. She opened the door and invited Mr. Weasley in. He gave her his thanks and entered, his eyes widening in delight and interest as he stared around the front hall. Sara led him into the living room and offered him a seat and to take his cloak. Mr. Weasley once again thanked her, then he took off his cloak and handed it to Sara. She went to go put it on the coat hanger in the hall and came back to find Mr. Weasley sitting on the couch, still taking in his surroundings with interested eyes.

"Fascinating how Muggles live, just fascinating," he said to himself, smiling.

"Would you like anything to drink sir?" Sara asked.

"Oh, no thank you dear," said Mr. Weasley humbly. "Is your father home?"

"He's upstairs, I'll go and get him," Sara said.

"No need sweetheart, I'm here." Sara turned to see Jon coming down the stairs, pushing his damp hair out of his face. He walked over to Mr. Weasley, who had stood from the couch and held out his hand to Jon, a wide, excited smile on his face.

"Hello sir, my name's Arthur Weasley, I work in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts at the Ministry of Magic. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Same to you Mr. Weasley," said Jon as he shook Mr. Weasley's hand. "I'm Jon Kanebridge, and this is my daughter, Sara."

"Well, it's an extreme pleasure to meet you Sara," said Mr. Weasley, smiling in her direction. "You have a very polite and charming young daughter Mr. Kanebridge, she reminds me of my own."

"Thank you sir," Jon said, while Sara blushed again. The three of them took a seat in the living room, and Sara sat down next to Jon on the sofa, trying to keep her knees from bouncing up and down in excitement. She was sitting across from an actual Wizard! Someone besides Nana who could do real magic, someone who was like her, and part of the world she was about to go into. She scooted closer to her father and listened intently to everything Mr. Weasley was going to say.