Birthday Wishes

2 Months Ago...

It was a cold and murky day in the small town of Ackerley. The only sound seemed to be the echoing tap of young Eliza Blacks ballet shoes as she wandered home from her morning ballet class. She was very good, she truly was. She had won about 17 awards in the past year or so. But that wasn't what she dreamed of growing up doing. She dreamed of sitting high up in the Ministers chair above all those who look up to her. Not the minister you and I know no nothing like that. Eliza Black wanted to be the Minister of Magic. Yes, little Eliza Black was a witch and tomorrow she should be receiving her acceptance letter into Hogwarts. Soft tendrils of hair that have seemed to escape her tight bun flow in the wind as if they to, were dancing.

As she reached the front door of her large country home she noticed the lingering smell of rhubarb and apple pie, her favourite. Her mother had made a tradition of making a pie every year as an early birthday lunch; it was one of Eliza's favourite things about birthdays. Slipping off her dusty pink ballet shoes, she runs into the kitchen to surprise her mother Kassandra with a big hug to find that they are not alone. A somewhat uptight woman with spectacles and a funny hat sits at the far end of the dinner table with a steaming cup of tea in her left hand. She places her cup lightly on the mahogany table and opens her mouth as if to speak. "Good Morning Miss Black, I am Professor McGonagall. Now I have already discussed this with your mother but I feel the need to inform you of this myself." Eliza glanced over to her mother to see a worried expression stained onto her face. "As you know, you are due to arrive at Hogwarts in a few months. But you see the first few weeks or so may be a bit rough, you are very unfortunate to be carrying the last name of a murderer on your back and some of the other children may not be very accepted to you in this sort of situation." This confused Eliza, did she mean to say her time at Hogwarts would be miserable just because of her name, how awful. "Now I feel I have overstayed my welcome so I'll be off now, I'll see you in a few months Miss Black." And with that she stepped in to our fireplace and vanished in a cloud of smoke.

"Now don't worry about it too much darling, just enjoy your pie for now" Her mother cooed while kissing her head. But she just couldn't get that one thought out of her mind, would this affect her chances of one day becoming the Minister of Magic? Would they lock her in a cage and poke at her with sticks? Would this completely ruin her time at Hogwarts that she had been dreaming about for years? She certainly hoped not.

Nothing seemed to matter to her except figuring out a way to hide her last name from the public but nothing seemed to come to mind. Maybe the students there won't be so judgmental and will accept her as just an ordinary student. A wet tear slid down her smooth check as she imagined all the things that people could say to her face and even worse, behind her back. A few great friends is all she asks for at this point, and maybe later on people will realise that someone's last name does not define who they are as a person. Hopefully tomorrow will cheer her up, it being her birthday and all.

Smells of new parchment and mint leaves engulf her as she slowly dusts the sleep and lose hairs from her eyes. UNCLE REMUS! It was always such a lovely surprise to see him as he was quite often busy, but he always made special effort on her birthdays. His gifts are always some of her favourites as they have so much meaning; she still has the little stuffed dog that he gave to her when she was only five. She named him Padfoot and he has a special spot at the end of her bed. This year he had what looked like a very old book, it intrigued the young girl. "Uncle Remus, what IS that?" She asks with a lot of curiosity. "This dear, is a photo album. It was your fathers from when he was a student at Hogwarts." Right he was, it was filled with hundreds of moving pictures of him and his friends, quite a lot of Remus, and all of the mischief they got up to. Such fun it was to look through this with Remus as he told magical stories of their adventures. They stayed up there for about an hour before her mother called them down for breakfast. Raspberry pancakes and cream. Delicious.

Now it was time for her mother's presents, her mother definitely liked to go all out with her birthday presents as she is her only child. Firstly, a lovely thick black velvety cloak with a shiny silver clasp. She put it on right away, it felt so toasty warm. Secondly, a gorgeous brown leather diary with a brown and white speckled quill to record her own adventures at Hogwarts. Kassandra saved the best for last, a stunning rose gold heart shaped locket with a beautiful thin chain. It was perhaps the most enchanting piece of jewellery she had ever witnessed. "Its magic sweetie, only you can open it." Inside laid a photo on each side. One the right was a group photo of the three of them together, and on the left was a photo of her father, she could tell because Remus pointed him out in the photo album. All of this was a bit too much and she started to tear up. This was more than she could have ever asked for.

"Oh how could I have forgotten?" Kassandra sprinted back into the kitchen an returned seconds later with a rather large envelope with a red stamp. It was here, it was really here! This was a dream come true. She handed the envelope over to Eliza for her to open, she was extremely careful and gentle while going about this, as if she was afraid she would tear it. Eventually the papers slid out and Eliza swiftly lifted them up and began reading.

"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 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July."