"Christina! Get down here!"

And there's the wake up call.

"Coming!" I yelled back.

I had slept in my clothes. There was no need to change. I knew David would wake me sometime around five. It was 4:30.

That night I had been reading the book my mother had left me. It was full of nonsense: wands, invisibility cloaks, and owls that deliver the post. At three I decided to put the book away.

I sprinted down the stairs. Same old, same old, I thought. No father in sight.

The day my mother died, dad left me at my grandpa's house. My grandfather was a grumpy man. He made me clean his entire house. Eventually he got a hold on me and now I am his 'personal servant.'

"Breakfast!" David demanded.

"Coming," I said as I rushed into the kitchen.

David lived alone so I didn't have to worry about the noise. He was half deaf anyway.

"I'm going back to sleep," he said. That was a first. Usually he was up for good in the mornings.

"I'll have it ready, sir," I said, a fake smile plastered over my face.

He stumbled back into his room. I didn't tell him that drool was dripping from his mouth. I smiled a secret smile.

David woke a few hours later, more grumpy that this morning. Breakfast was already on the table. I got the scraps.

"Go on then! Go to school!" David demanded.

"It's summer," I said, a little too matter-of-factly.

"Don't you use that tongue with me, young lady!" David yelled, "Get up to your room!"

The young lady card. Oldest trick in the book. I 'hung my head' and walked upstairs, proud I had irritated him this late in the morning.

As soon as David left for work, I threw on sneakers and dashed out of the house. I breathed in the fresh, California ocean air, and sighed. I wish mom could see me now.

I ran across the street to a quaint little house, it's body painted pink and it's trim painted yellow.

"Owen? Get out here!" I yelled into the house.

Owen, my best and only friend, lived with his grandmother. In the past, we'd joked about setting David and Bertha, his grandmother, on a blind date. Maybe then they'd be happier.

"Happy birthday, Chris!" he said.

"Thanks," I said with a small smile.

We walked down to the beach. That day, the waves were small. We enjoyed the beach for a few hours.

"I have to go," I said hurriedly. I had lost track of time and David would be home in fifteen minutes.

"Okay," Owen said.

I ran home. I was afraid David would be furious if I was late. But as I ran, and owl of all things flew out of the sky and dropped a letter in my hand. An. owl just like the one in mother's journal. I frowned curiously and furrowed my brow. I decided to open the letter later. I sprinted back to the house, eager to get to my room and open it.

"Where have you been?" David snapped as I walked inside.

I stood there like an idiot, frozen in place, terrified of a 63 year old. I didn't know how to answer him.

"I-i-it is my birthday, a-a-and I thought I could go down to the beach, and I never get to go down there-" I stuttered as I braced myself for impact.

"You listen to me-" he started.

"No! You listen to me! It's my birthday! I don't want to be your slave anymore!" I screamed at him as I stormed upstairs.

As I reached my room, he was on my heels. I slammed the door in his face. He locked it from the outside.

"Don't you dare go downstairs for two weeks! You hear?"

I said nothing and nodded, even though he couldn't see me.

I only knew it was safe to open the letter when I heard his footsteps disappear. I started with the outside of the envelope. It read:

Christina Valerenti

242 Bay View Dr.

The broom closet upstairs

Huntington, California

At first I was confused, but then amazed. How did the sender of this know where exactly to find me? I was kid of creeped out. The seal on the envelope was some kind of crest. That just made me even more confused. I took out the letter. This is what it said:

Dear Miss. Valerenti,

You have been accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry located in London,England. Attached to this letter is a Knight Bus ticket and a list of supplies you will have to buy from Diagon Alley. The Knight Bus will pick you up tonight at precisely 10:42 P.M. west coast time. Hogwarts is located in England, so your grandfather must be okay with you taking a "short vacation" for the duration of the year. We will provide new clothes, hospitality, and wizarding coins for you to buy your books in Diagon Alley. The Hogwarts gamekeeper, Rubeus Hagrid, will pick you up on the bus and explain everything. This is an incredible opportunity. Take it!

So long for now,

Minerva Mcgonagall

P.S. Snap your fingers to unlock the door.

Yes! An escape! And it sounded pretty cool. I had some sort of magic powers. But who was Hagrid and Professor Mcgonagall? I guess I would get the full explanation tonight.

The hours dragged on as I packed what little I had into my backpack. And stuffed in the broom closet, that wasn't easy. I checked my watch. Lucky for me I know his schedule, I thought. David would be sleeping in a few minutes.

My watch beeped signaling 10:40. I had to go. All of the lights were turned off downstairs. I could hear David snoring. I covered my mouth to stifle a laugh.

I had escaped the house lots of times. However, David always caught me. I got out to go be homeschooled for a year, but he found me eventually.

I quietly snapped my fingers. The door swung open without a sound. I crept down the creaky stairs and out the front door. My watch read 10:42.

Suddenly, a purple bus with loud music and lights pulled up in front of me. The doors swung open.

"Knight Bus, North American Route!" the driver yelled.

"What do you think you're doing? He's gonna wake up!" I said through gritted teeth.

"Relax, kid. Only wizards like us can hear and see this," he said. He had a thick New York accent.

He beckoned for me to come onboard. I hopped up the steps and ducked inside.

The bus seemed to stretch on for miles. There were beds lining the sides and places to safely store your bag. I laid down in one of the beds. I noticed that there were straps. I furrowed my brow.

All of the sudden, the bus driver hit the gas, and I was flung to the back of the bus. He immediately slowed down when he heard the thud of my body against the glass.

"Sorry. I forgot to ask if you were strapped in," he said, climbing out of his seat.

"Strap in where? And where is Hagrid?"

At that very moment, a large, bulky figure stepped out of the back of the bus. He had long, shaggy, unbrushed hair, and a thick, tangled beard.

"Strapped to the beds, of course!" he said heartily.

I laid down on one of the beds, and he pulled the straps over me, pulling the cinch tighter than I would have expected. I still felt gravity pull me to the back of the bus as we sped off into the night.

First Harry Potter book! Super excited about this one. I am a huge Harry Potter fan at heart! ENJOY!