Chapter 1:

You know what's interesting? How every year, sometimes for many years, we pass anniversaries of dates that matter, but we don't realize it yet. This could be the date we get married, the date any children we may have are born, and the day we lose our loved ones. For me, I can now recall dates that have extreme significance for me that I wish I could have seen coming. I cannot imagine why you would be interested in my story, I do not find it brave or fantastical in any way, but there are dates that I look back on now and know they made me the woman I am today. Since you have kept reading so far, I hope I do not bore you and that you will find some meaning in your own life as I recount the most important dates in my life (as well as some minor moments I found may have contributed to those dates previously mentioned). Hopefully that disclaimer means it's not completely selfish of me to be sharing my story and with all that being said, I guess I will begin.

The First Date: July 10th, 2009

Hatch Warren, Basingstoke

I woke up to the smell of bangers and eggs as I realized my mother was making my favorite breakfast. I loved the summer, I could wake up any time I wanted and could have my favorite kinds of breakfast. My final term of the school year had just ended and my parents were planning a vacation for this summer holiday. I excitedly got out of my bed and went downstairs to the kitchen where I was greeted with a hug so tight I thought I might suffocate.

"Mum-can't breath." My mother stepped back and kissed the top of my curly head 12 times.

"Plus one for good luck!" She smiled and smoothed my hair back down and lead me to the breakfast bar. This was her normal routine when she wasn't frantically running around, always my age plus one amount of kisses. It was kind of silly, but I knew it made her very happy which always made me very happy. She was your typical 'only child stay at home mother', she was very involved in my schooling, always there to drive my friends and I home from school or events, and lovingly overbearing. "Your father had to go into work early today so he can be home by the time we go into London for tea and shopping!" The doorbell rang and I looked up curious as to who would be at our house, but saw my mother mirror my confusion as her eyebrows knit together. "Let me go get the door sweetheart, why don't you start eating your breakfast." My mother placed a plate down before me on the breakfast bar and left our kitchen to go to the front door.

After some time of my mother not returning I went out to our front door to see what was taking her so long. There was a woman standing next to my mother with some papers in her hand speaking very quietly just inside the door. This woman was shockingly tall and dressed in the oddest green dress I had ever seen. Her brown hair was pulled tightly behind her head and her face looked stern, which although seemed slightly intimidating, gave an air of extreme knowledge. My mother had her arms folded across her chest and was shaking her head "But we were never notified of this-" But, she stopped when she saw me standing by the entrance to the kitchen. "Sienna, please go back and finish your breakfast, mummy will be done soon-"

"I must tell you," The regal woman interrupted. I saw her look at me and her eyes widened and stayed on mine a moment too long. "That children who are not taught to correctly use their magical abilities may lose their lives because of it. This young witch has remarkable abilities, I am sure, after all-"

"Please!" I hadn't heard my mother this upset since my dog broke one of the gifts my parents received for their wedding. "This is my daughter ma'am and although I appreciate your candor, I must at least wait until my husband returns home so we may discuss this further." As if on cue, my front door opened to reveal my father.

"I got out of work even earlier than expected!" He cried before stopping to look at the scene before him. "Hello, I'm sorry, I'm Jack Davis it's a pleasure to meet you." He extended his hand to the woman who cautiously shook his hand.

"It's a pleasure, I have only just introduced myself to Mrs. Davis, I am Minerva McGonagall a headmistress at a very special school that we are extending an invitation to Sienna."

"Really?!" I squeaked excitedly stepping towards the woman, but my mother sidestepped in between us.

"I don't recall us applying for anything like this-" My father started.

"We didn't." My mother cut in. "Jack, it seems that Sienna was...born with these abilities we were just unaware."

My father looked between the three of us confused. "How could we be completely unaware..."

"Maybe you have noticed over time that things may move or disappear that you know you did not touch. Or lights flicker during a temper tantrum, these were the only kind of signs you could have received given the circumstances. Unless you know what you're looking for, most non-magic parents do not notice them. I beg of you to speak with me, to speak with her. This school is very important to her and I have no doubt she will do very well there."

My father nodded an walked over to my mother, but faced me, "Sienna, would you go to your room and get ready for our lunch? When we come get you we can talk about this school." I frowned, not wanting to leave, but knew that my father didn't break his promises so I went to my room to get dressed.

I was laying on my bed day dreaming of all the fantastic things I would be able to do now that I had magic when my mother opened the door. "Sienna?" She joined me on my bed and sighed looking into my eyes. "I'm sorry for making you leave the room before, it is a lot for me to understand, I'm sure you needed me to help you, but I was being remarkably selfish. I also do not feel I can adequately explain all of this to you and would like to know if you would like to speak to the Headmistress about all of this." My mother looked at me solemnly as I am quite sure she knew what I would say.

"Yes, I would like to speak with her." I stood up and went downstairs with my mother trailing behind me. I walked to the kitchen where the Headmistress was seated at our table with a cup of tea in front of her. My father was smiling, but I could see the confusion deep in his eyes.

"Good morning Sienna, how do you do?" The headmistress asked as she stood before me. I shook her hand and saw the corners of her mouth turn up in a slight smile before gesturing for me to sit down. "I am hoping to answer any questions you may have about your abilities."

"How did I get them? What can I even do with them?"

"Oh child, you can do more than your wildest dreams when you are properly trained. Magical abilities are usually inherited, but," She paused and smiled at my parents. "There are children who have non-magical parents, but still possess the magical abilities."

I nodded and looked to my parents, "Can I go to this school? I want to learn what I can do." My mother quickly placed a forced smile on her face and my father grabbed her hand.

"Of course you can sweetheart," he said. "If that's what you want we will spend the summer getting you ready to start at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

I turned back slightly embarrassed to the headmistress, "What is it like at this school? Will I be able to come home for Christmas and summer holidays? Can I call my parents?"

"Unfortunately, due to the large amount of magic around Hogwarts, mobile phones do not work, but our students frequently communicate with their parents using a letter and owl system. You will also be able to return home for Christmas and summer holidays yes, but you cannot use magic outside of Hogwarts until you are 17 in accordance with our laws. You will be expertly trained in the different areas of magic, including History of Magic, Charms, Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, and many others. Our school year begins on September 1st when you will take a train to Hogwarts from Platform 9 3/4s at Kings Cross Station. You will belong to a house which we will further explain when you arrive. They are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin and they all have specific qualities that the members tend to possess. First though, you must go to Diagon Alley to purchase your school supplies. I could arrange for someone to take you there today if you would like as it is in London."

"That sounds like a great plan to me." My mother said touching my shoulders. "That is, if this is what you really want to do Sienna." I nodded excitedly and stood up.

"I know this is right mum, I can feel it. I don't think I've ever been so excited." I said smiling at my parents. I couldn't help but notice the sad smiles they gave back as it seemed they could not participate in this world the way I could.

"Wonderful," the Headmistress stood up and smoothed her emerald dress. "If you would please meet one of my professors at one pm sharp outside a pub called the Leaky Cauldron, his name is Professor Neville Longbottom. If you don't mind, I have some things to attend to, would you lead my to your backyard?"

"Thank you," my parents both stood to shook her hand and followed her to the door. She quietly turned to my parents and said, "I see what I have long suspected to be the case is true." I turned my head quickly, but she was gone and my parents stood in the backyard whispering.

London

"The Leaky Cauldron? Have you ever heard for such an absurd name? What is this place going to even be like? Is it a pot and pan shop-oh dear lord Jack you don't think this is one of those new age stores with the...herbal substances do you?" My mother rapid fired questions as my father looked for a place to park near the address he had scribbled on a post-it note.

"Considering that she is from a school with children from ages 11 to 17 I would think not Helen." My father chuckled and winked at me using his rearview mirror. I rolled my eyes at them, they were being so classically themselves with my mother overly worrying and my dad just laughing the whole way through. We finally walked up to a rather dingy looking storefront with a hanging sign depicting an actual cauldron being our only clue we were in the right place. Well, that and the lanky man with dark hair reading a newspaper with what looked to be moving pictures out front. He noticed our hesitation and looked up and smiled at us.

"The Davis family I presume!" He happily cried and saw visible relief on our faces for finding him. "It is such a pleasure to meet you, I feel like it was just yesterday that I first came to get my school supplies in Diagon Alley, when actually it was quite some time ago now." He instinctively touched a scar that ran from his under the corner of his left eye towards his hairline. "I suppose I should take you inside and introduce myself shouldn't I?" After my parents shook his hand to greet him, we followed him inside and watched many men and women wave hello to our guide.

After sitting down at a table he put 3 wrapped square packages on the table and smiled. "So, as you may have heard I'm Professor Neville Longbottom, professor of Herbology and graduate of Hogwarts, Gryffindor house. I actually am just starting my position as professor at Hogwarts this year as I worked as an auror, or dark wizard catcher, and I will also be head of Gryffindor house. Did you bring the list Professor McGonagall brought you?" I nodded and put the list on our table. "Brilliant, Sienna, I know these items seem very strange, but trust me they are all essential. I will be showing you around, but we have one other family joining us, so if you excuse me I know they will be arriving any moment."

"Great-thank you so much Professor Longbottom." My father said with a smile and stood up to shake his hand as he went back through the door we just came in. "He seems very nice right, ladies?" I looked at my father and nodded looking around the pub at the men and women, they were dressed differently, some in what looked like muggle clothing, like Professor Longbottom, but others were in what looked like the dresses that Professor McGonagall was wearing earlier with clothes underneath...like bathrobes or something.

"I'm a little nervous..." I said looking up at my parents.

"That's completely understandable, do you want to go home sweetie?" My mum asked stroking my hair.

"No! Don't embarrass me mum..." I pulled away and saw some pain in my mother's eyes, but she smiled none the less.

"Here we all are now!" Professor Longbottom happily marched into the pub accompanied by twin girls and their parents. The girls looked identical with black wavy hair that wasn't exactly curly and stood at the same height, however the only noticeable difference was the one on the left had dark chocolate brown eyes while the one on the right had startlingly hazel eyes with many specks of green. "Jack and Helen Davis and their daughter Sienna and Will and Tracey Tang and their daughters Rachel and Isabelle." Hands were shaken and I gave a small wave to the sisters who smiled back at me nervously.

"A lot to take in right?" My dad said with a chuckle and Mr. and Mrs. Tang visibly relaxed.

"No, we are quite used to everything we thought about our children to change in a week when all we thought we had to worry about were bat mitzvah preparations in the coming few years." Mr. Tang countered while holding his wife's hand.

"It's all very exciting, trust me wait til you see what you're daughters will be able to do after attending Hogwarts-it's the very best. Before we go into Diagon Alley I wanted to give the girls a gift on behalf of myself and the other Hogwarts professors." He distributed the wrapped packages to us and gestured for us to unwrap them. Inside the wrapping was a fairly large book with the title Hogwarts: A History on the front. At the bottom it said in bold letters:

NEW!

Foreword by Hermione Granger
of the Golden Trio

I didn't understand what this meant and went to ask when Professor Longbottom began speaking again. "When I first started at Hogwarts, there was a first year in Gryffindor with me that read this book to learn all she could about the school, especially because she was also the daughter of muggles." I looked at him confused and he laughed and shook his head, "I'm sorry muggle means someone who does not have the ability to do magic. I hope you all find this book helpful, and if not you will always have many resources while at Hogwarts that I will get into greater detail with later. With all of that being said are you all ready to go? Oh-sorry here are bags for your school supplies, there is a charm on the bag extending it to be bigger than it seems."

We all nodded placed the books in the totes Professor Longbottom handed to us and walked deeper into the pub. We finally arrived at another door that he opened revealing a small alley with a large stone wall, he then reached into his cloak a pulled out a long wooden stick which he tapped on a few of the stones. I don't know what I was expecting to happen, but I certainly was not expecting for the wall to fold in on itself and behind it a colorful alleyway bustling with people. I was literally in awe as I took my first few steps into the shopping center before bumping directly into a tall man walking by me.

"Pardon me," I said looking at my shoes thoroughly embarassed for not watching where I was going. The man smiled down at me with very kind green eyes and dark black hair that mostly hid an oddly shaped scar on his forehead.

"It's not a problem, I distinctly remember seeing this for the first time. Awe-inspiring doesn't even cover it. Ah Professor Longbottom! You're leading this fine group of new Hogwarts students I presume." The man laughed and shook Professor Longbottom's hand.

Professor Longbottom now looked a bit embarrassed, "Please don't call me professor, Harry, I'm barely used to the title myself! But, yes these students are muggle-born witches. You've just-well-met Sienna Davis and her parents and this is Rachel and Isabelle Tang and their parents behind them." We all shook the man's hand, but I noticed something odd, when he met my eyes he stopped for a moment.

"Sienna, yes?" I nodded. "You have the most interesting eye color-quite a distinct shade of blue." Harry said smiling, but his eyebrows were furrowed slightly.

"What brings you to Diagon Alley, Harry?" Professor Longbottom asked interrupting the strange moment.

"Many reasons as always, but mostly for the same reason as you. I'm here with Teddy, he'll be starting Hogwarts this fall as well and he's a tad nervous. Here he comes now actually." A young lanky boy walked over from one of the stores accompanied by an older woman, presumably his grandmother unless the age difference between his father and his mother was slightly unconventional. He didn't really look like Harry, he features were long and skinny and his eyes were the most unusual shade of brown-truth be told they almost resembled gold and his hair was so blonde it was almost white.

"Teddy, I'd like for you to meet Sienna Davis, and Rachel and Isabelle Tang, they'll be at Hogwarts with you in the fall. Ladies, this is my godson Teddy Lupin." Ah, godson, not his actual son, I was very glad I didn't say anything embarrassing.

"I thought that was your son." The twin with hazel eyes, Isabelle I believed, blurted out with a slight chuckle. I smiled at her, I liked her already. Harry laughed slightly awkwardly and it seemed as though Teddy's hair was getting whiter if that was possible, maybe he was just getting paler.

"Harry's my godfather and this is my grandmother." Teddy said quietly so it was almost a whisper and we stood in a slightly awkward silence.

"So how's the new baby, Harry?" Professor Longbottom asked hoping to diffuse the tension a bit.

"She's wonderful we're thrilled to have a little girl. But, I think she'll have her mother's temper, especially when it concerns her older brothers." Harry laughed a bit and Teddy visibly relaxed. "We're actually just finishing up, we just have to run to Ollivander's. It was wonderful to meet you all, good luck and I'm sure I'll see you at Platform 9 3/4 in a little over a month, Neville good luck this term I'll see you at Christmas."

"See you at Christmas, Harry. Goodbye Andromeda, and see you at school Teddy." Professor Longbottom said his goodbyes and we all politely said goodbye before walking further into the alley.

"If you don't mind me asking Professor, was that your brother?" My father asked as we walked through the bookstore picking up items.

"No, a very good friend from school. We were in the same year at Gryffindor and at that time, well, we had trouble in the Wizarding World and Harry did a lot to end that. I helped when I could, but he's almost like a celebrity because of it."

I found this all to be very interesting and looked for books detailing this. I saw one titled "The Second Great Wizarding War, Why It Happened" and felt that was as good of a book as any so I bought that as well.

"Well, one final stop for the day-Ollivander's. This is the store where all British Wizards and Witches get their first wands, it's an important right of passage. Shall we?" Professor Longbottom held the door to the small shop open for all of us. "Good afternoon Mr. Ollivander, I have a few new witches in need of a wand."

"Yes of course," A very old man said with white hair that almost looked as though it was standing up on its own. "Come closer ladies, let me see you."

"I'm Isabelle Tang." She introduced herself with an outstretched hand and I had been right she had the hazel eyes.

"I'm Rachel, but I'm confused as to how these are supposed to work."

Mr. Ollivander laughed and nodded his head, "I supposed you will just have to trust in your magic, and you are?" He looked at me quizzically as he said the last bit.

"Sienna Davis." I replied and he cocked his head slightly to one side.

"Davis you say? Well...never the matter let's get you all your wands. Ms. Davis will you please try this wand? It's 11 inches, cherry wood, with a unicorn core." I picked up the wand and felt a feeling of rightness with the world. The flowers in the shop began to blossom in the most beautiful way and it was as though there was sunshine all around us.

"Wow." I whispered.

"Yes, wow indeed. That wand has chosen you Ms. Davis and I believe it was an excellent choice." Mr. Ollivander said as he wrapped up the box. At that moment all my fears about Hogwarts were gone because I was sure that this world was truly my home.

A/N: Hello! I really hope you enjoyed that chapter, I have a few others already written and will be publishing them periodically. I appreciate any feedback you have and thank you for taking the time to read this.