Disclaimer – The original Harry Potter characters and the world of Harry Potter are not of my own invention and I do not claim ownership of them. KC
She had dreamt of castles, flying broomsticks and magical creatures every night since she had received her letter. That night had been no different. Waking with a sleepy smile, she felt for the thick piece of parchment on her bedside table. Written in emerald ink it said:
Dear Miss Jones,
We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a booklet of school information and a list of all necessary books and equipment. A ministry official from the Muggleborn Preparation Department will visit you at your home address on 30 July to assist you with your school preparations. Term begins on 1 September.
Yours Sincerely
Minerva McGonagall
Headmistress
She remembered seeing the yellowed envelope for the first time. It was sitting contrasted against the brilliant white of the other envelopes that also contained acceptance letters from many fancy secondary colleges around the country. She had picked it up in curiosity, not remembering applying to a school called 'Hogwarts', and broke the enchanting wax seal of a coat of arms with a lion, a snake, a badger and an eagle encircling a capital 'H'. She had read the letter twice, feeling very confused, before handing it to her parents. While they read the letter, she had unfolded a large booklet that had also been stuffed into the envelope and started to flick through the pages. The more she read, the more enchanted she had become.
She had read the booklet four more times over the next weeks and hardly talked about anything else. Her parents wished for her to choose one of the other schools that had accepted her whilst trying to convince her that this 'Hogwarts' was not real, just as wizards, witches and magic were also not real. But she had decided that she would secretly believe if until the wizard from the Muggleborn Preparation Department failed to show up.
Now, at last, the 30th had arrived and she was just finishing tying up her dark auburn hair into a ponytail when the shrill bells of the doorbell rang. Sprinting out of her bedroom and down the hallway, she reached the front door just before her father. Praying that it was the person she longed for it to be, she opened the door.
Before her stood a middle aged man with grey hair and a crooked smile. He might have been any man walking the streets if it wasn't for his maroon cloak and a slightly bent, black pointed hat.
"Miss Aubrey Jones I presume?" he asked her, receiving an excited nod from her in return.
"Then may I be the first to formally congratulate you on being invited to attend Hogwarts. It is a fantastic school and one of the best learning centres for magic in the world. I was lucky enough to attend there myself when I was a boy," he said and proceeded to remove his hat. "But where are my manners? My name is Mr Splint and I am from the MPD, Muggleborn Preparation Department that is. May I come in?"
Aubrey stepped aside to let the wizard enter the house and her parents met him in the hall, looking completely startled.
"Ah and you must be Darren and Caroline Jones, Aubrey's parents. It's a pleasure to meet you," he said, holding out his hand.
But her parents simply stared at him and his hand, not saying a word. However Mr Splint didn't seem at all perturbed by this and continued to walk into the family room at the end of the hallway.
Sitting down at the dining table he retrieved what looked like a small stick and waved it at the teapot. To the amazement of the Jones family, the teapot rose from the table and continued to pour the hot tea into one of Mrs Jones' delicate tea cups. Mr Splint sipped the tea unbeknownst to the reaction his display of magic had caused: Aubrey was smiling broadly with delight while her parents had both lost the colour from their faces.
"Today I propose that we go to Diagon Alley to purchase your school supplies and set up an account for you at Gringotts. I can answer your questions on the way there," he said, looking at his watch. "Now let's get going. No time like the present I say."
He directed the family onto a local bus heading towards the city, which was not a long ride from the Jones residence. Both Caroline and Darren were very self-conscious of how they were being perceived on the bus, being in the company of such a strange man. However Aubrey asked him as many questions as she could without their conversation being heard by the other commuters.
The group soon reached the inner city and Mr Splint led the way to an abandoned looking pub. He ushered them inside before following them in. The pub was quiet and rather gloomy and perhaps for the sake of Mr and Mrs Jones' nerves, Mr Splint wasted no time in ushering them back out through another door. Standing in a small courtyard, Mr Splint approached a brick wall and tapped several bricks with his wand. Mrs Jones squealed in horror as the bricks started to shift and move to create an archway.
"Diagon Alley!" Mr Splint announced proudly.
Aubrey had never seen anything more delightful in her entire life. The alley was packed with bustling people and the buildings, bright with colour, were decorated with all sorts of weird and wonderful items.
Mr Splint led the way through the crowds of people and Aubrey was able to look into all the store fronts. Robes and cloaks were exhibited in some while others displayed books, broomsticks and many objects that she had no idea of their use. She even saw a store selling cats, toads and hundreds of owls of all shapes and sizes.
"The alley was almost destroyed about five years ago. But many of the shop owners came back, rebuilt and have been selling their wares ever since," said Mr Splint, acting the part of a tour guide. "Diagon Alley has never looked better!"
Aubrey wanted to inquire as to why it was almost destroyed but at the rate Mr Splint was directing them around, she concluded that she probably wouldn't get the chance.
Passing a funny looking joke shop displaying a giant head of a man with a top hat, Aubrey was able to get her first glimpse of Gringotts, which Mr Splint told her was the wizard bank. They waited at the door for Mr and Mrs Jones to catch up, as her parents had stumbled and shuffled nervously all the way up Diagon Alley, before entering the bank. At once Aubrey looked in disbelief at the till menders.
"They're Goblins," whispered Mr Splint. "Fork over enough gold though and they'll be pleasant enough."
He approached the head goblin at the end of the long hall with the Jones family scuttling closely behind.
"Miss Aubrey Jones would like to set up an account," Mr Splint stated to the goblin.
"Another Muggle-born come to join us then," said the goblin, sneering at her. "Wait here!" he barked before disappearing behind the counter. When he returned he dropped a small gold key into Aubrey's hands.
"How much would you like to deposit?" he asked, opening a large gold book.
"Well that depends on you, Mr and Mrs Jones," said Mr Splint, turning around to face the Muggles.
Mr Jones pulled his wallet gingerly out of his pocket and proceeded to place about 100 pounds on the counter. The goblin raised his eyebrows in such a condescending way that Mr Jones nervously handed over another 200 pound before retreating back to his place next to his pale wife.
"I'll just go and convert this," said the head goblin before disappearing again.
This time when he returned he handed Aubrey a small bag that jingled when she accepted it. Looking inside she found many thick gold coins that shone brightly. 'Wizarding money was so much prettier than normal money' she thought.
Nodding at the goblin in thanks, they left the bank. Aubrey suddenly couldn't wait to purchase her new school gear just so she could hand over her gold coins proudly.
For the rest of the day Mr Splint led Aubrey into all the different shops along Diagon Alley in which she could buy her school supplies. Her parents followed too but they didn't say a word the entire time.
In Flourish and Blotts Aubrey purchased all her school books while in Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions she had her school uniform fitted. It was so different to the school uniforms she had previously worn but she decided she liked these better. Then they visited Wiseacres Wizarding Equipment where she bought a large trunk, glass phials, a telescope and a set of brass scales while at Potage's Cauldron Shop she bought a pewter cauldron.
Leaving the apothecary after buying a supply of basic potion ingredients, Aubrey spotted Eeylops Owl Emporium and Magical Menagerie. A small yet handsome young owl caught her eye at once and she approached its cage. Its feathers were almost the same auburn colour of her hair and it had white circles around its large green eyes. She poked her finger into the cage and the owl nipped at it playfully.
"A fine owl you've laid your eyes on there, Aubrey," said Mr Splint coming over to stand next to her at the cage. "He would be a fine one to carry your mail. You see, his legs are nice and strong."
"My mail?" She repeated, looking surprised.
"Oh yes. In the wizarding world owls carry our mail back and forth. It's the fastest and most reliable way we communicate with other witches and wizards. This fella would definitely come in handy."
Aubrey looked up at her parents expectantly, asking them wordlessly for permission.
"No, I don't like the sound of that idea." Mr Jones said, saying the first thing since they had arrived at Diagon Alley.
"Sir, an owl will be the best way for you to communicate with your daughter while she is at Hogwarts. We don't have, now what do you call them… telephones, in our world and the way you muggles send mail is about as fast as a snail!" Mr Splint reasoned.
Mr Jones nodded uncertainly and Aubrey took that as a sign to buy the owl before her father could change his mind. Handing over her money to the cashier she decided to name her owl Austen.
Outside the shop she met her parents and Mr Splint who took the caged owl from her.
"I'm going to take your parents back to the Leaky Cauldron, that's the pub we came through," he said to Aubrey.
"I think they need a drink," he then whispered to her out of earshot of her parents. "Meet us back there once you have finished at Ollivander's and don't forget to deposit your remaining money into your account at Gringotts. You won't need most of it whilst at Hogwarts this year. " Then he whisked her parents off in the direction of the Leaky Cauldron.
Aubrey found Ollivander's Wand Shop pretty easily and entered through the heavy front door. The old man behind the counter, who she guessed was Ollivander, was already helping another girl when she walked in so she sat down to wait patiently for him to finish.
The other girl was picking up and waving every wand Mr Ollivander handed to her but he continued to snatch them back from her almost as soon as she had picked them up. The girl had short mousy coloured hair and had a little jig thing going which prevented her from standing still.
Finally the girl bought a wand and caught Aubrey's eye as she almost bounced out of the shop.
"Good luck!" she said to Aubrey before jumping out the door.
Mr Ollivander called her over to the counter and stared at her intently. His stare made her feel a little uneasy and she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Suddenly the old man snapped his fingers and shuffled to the back of the shop. He returned with a long dusty green box which he opened and handed to her a wand.
"English Oak, 11 inches, reasonably supple with a Phoenix feather core," he said watching anxiously as she took the wand from him.
Almost as soon as she wrapped her fingers around the wand she felt warmth in her hand and the wand started to glow ever so slightly.
"Ah, very good!" Mr Ollivander exclaimed, his face relaxing almost immediately. "Thought I'd lost it for a second there. I've been having an ever so hard time finding the right wand for the wizard these days. Even though the wand chooses the wizard I still have to find it in this store, you see."
Questions of all sorts entered Aubrey's mind but she simply smiled and thanked Mr Ollivander, not wanting to intrude.
Finally she had all her school supplies and after quickly handing over her remaining money to a goblin in Gringotts, walked up Diagon Alley to meet her parents and Mr Splint in the Leaky Cauldron. However she didn't find her parents any more relaxed and they hadn't touched their drinks which Mr Splint called Butterbeer.
Mr Splint announced that they were done for the day, receiving relieved looks from Mr and Mrs Jones, and organised with Aubrey that he would meet them at Kings Cross Station at 10:30am in two days. Then waving goodbye from the door of the Leaky Cauldron, he let the Jones family head home.
Aubrey spent all of the next day packing her belongings into her new maroon trunk which she initialed in gold writing 'AJ'. It took her all day because at first she collected too much stuff to take and it didn't all fit. So she had to rethink and remove things one by one before she was able to finally close it.
Aubrey skipped around merrily that day, bubbling with excitement while her parents, who still hadn't recovered from their trip to Diagon Alley, stayed quiet and busy with jobs around the house. She had never seen the benches sparkle so brightly before or the hedges look so straight.
Aubrey didn't get any sleep on the night of the 31st, knowing that the next day she would be off to Hogwarts. Then the morning of the 1st of September she almost had to drag her parents to Kings Cross Station as they were not at all excited at the thought of seeing Mr Splint again, or any magical folk for that matter.
Mr Splint greeted them at the entrance to the station with his crooked smile.
"All ready?" he asked Aubrey who beamed and nodded with excitement.
Mr Splint led the Jones family to Platforms 9 and 10 and stopped at a large brick pillar. He dug Aubrey's ticket out of his pocket and handed it to her. She stared at it with a confused frown on her face.
"It says Platform Nine and Three Quarters," she stated.
"Yes and you get to it by walking right into that wall," said Mr Splint, pointing at the side of the brick pillar. "Look, watch as this wizard goes first."
A young man around the age of seventeen walked straight at the wall with his trunk and, to the Jones' amazement, completely disappeared.
Aubrey nodded nervously and started walking towards the wall. But a hand clapped onto her shoulder, holding her back.
"Your mother and I are going to go now. We, ah, have things to do," her father said, not meeting her eyes but instead looked nervously at where the man had disappeared.
Aubrey took the hint and hugged her parents, promising to write often. Then, without a backwards glance, she pushed her trolley towards the wall. She cringed, eyes closed, waiting for the impact. But it didn't come. She opened her eyes just in time to see Mr Splint arrive next to her.
A scarlet steam train was waiting at the platform which was crowded with people and marked by many signs saying 'Platform 9 ¾ '. Aubrey couldn't believe her eyes. Diagon Alley and now this; it was almost too good to be true.
"Well now all you have to do is take your trunk to the loading bay along with your owl. They will travel in one of the storage carriages. Then show your ticket as you get on the train," said Mr Splint. "I'd like to watch you go since your parents didn't come with us but I've got to get back to the Ministry. Paperwork to do, you see."
He then patted her on the back encouragingly and she thanked him profusely for his help.
"Don't worry about it, kid. It's my job after all!" Then tipping his hat he walked back through the wall.
Taking a deep breath, Aubrey made her way through the mass of parents and students saying their goodbyes and handed over her trunk and owl to two burly men packing the storage carriages. Then, slinging her satchel bag that she had packed with her uniform, wand, books and papers over one shoulder, she made her way to the nearest passenger carriage.
Climbing up onto the step of the carriage, the strap of her bag got caught on the handle of the door which threw her bag back onto the platform like a slingshot. She made a mad dash for her belongings which had been strewn all over the platform. But a few loose note pages got caught in the wind and flew up high in the air. She watched them lift higher and higher until they suddenly froze and shot back down towards the platform. They flew over her head and, spinning around, she watched as a boy with his wand outstretched caught them in his free hand. He walked over to her and handed her the notes with a smile.
"You might want to fasten your bag in the future," he said.
"Thank-you," she replied, trying to fathom how he had retrieved them from the sky.
The train conductor called that all were to get aboard and the boy waved his hand at the carriage, signalling for her to go first.
She climbed aboard the carriage and watched out the nearby window as the parents all along the platform waved at their children on the train. She suddenly wished her parents were amongst the crowd.
But when the train started to move the heavy feeling she felt inside vanished and was replaced with light anticipation. Even though she had no one to wave to she hung her head out the window and waved like a maniac.
Soon the station was out of sight and she beamed. She was going to Hogwarts!
CHAPTER 2 (YEAR 1) NOW AVAILABLE
As a first-time FanFiction writer, I would love a review or feedback from you on my writing. Just like Aubrey I am very excited to be setting out on a new journey and I can't wait to share more of my ideas with you.
KC