Miranda walked up to the woman behind the desk.
"Your flight has been canceled," the woman said.
"What?" asked Miranda. "Why?"
"Too many ostriches," she said, a slight purple tint developing in her skin.
"Did you just say ostriches?"
"You're running out of milk."
"How do you even know that?!"
Miranda's eyes opened. It was just a dream. She sighed. As she grew older, her dreams were becoming less enjoyable, and more nonsensical. She was growing older, being over ten, and had over a decade's worth of wisdom and knowledge. But even so, her dad still treated her as if she was half her age. He refused to tell her exactly why her mother was in prison, and he wouldn't teach her how to perform any magic (he couldn't do magic himself, so this was understandable, but Miranda still found herself annoyed).
Miranda wasn't tall for her age, but wasn't short either. She had hazel-brown hair that went down past her shoulders, which her kitten often had fun clawing at. Her hair had a slight wave to it, and she had blue eyes that her father told her looked like galaxies.
The two of them lived on Crystal Lake Street in a small town in London. Their house wasn't big by any means, but it was a comfortable home for them and their kitten, Crookshanks, who had been named after the cat of the famous Hermione Granger. Miranda had only heard of Hermione and her friends Ron Weasley and Harry Potter (often nicknamed "The Golden Trio") a month before, when together they took down the infamous Lord Voldemort.
Miranda's dad didn't know much about the wizarding world, but he know heard about Voldemort (whose actual name was Tom Marvolo Riddle). He bought for Miranda the edition of the Daily Prophet that arrived the day after Voldemort's defeat, which was full of articles, question & answers, and overall excitement about the events (there was also an advertisement for quick-quotes quills, which explains how it all was written so fast). In the newspaper, it announced that just a week from then, there would be interviews in the Prophet of Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Hermione, Ron Weasley, George Weasley, and Harry Potter. The edition with the interviews sold more copies than any other print of that newspaper, Miranda's dad told her.
It explained how Voldemort returned after he failed to kill Harry the first time, and the lengthy process it took to defeat him. Harry explained to the Prophet, and in turn the whole wizarding world, how they destroyed Voldemort's Horcruxes, how Harry managed to come back to life after Voldemort again attempted to kill him (plus how Harry himself ended up being a Horcrux), and Hermione announced that she would be returning to Hogwarts, a secondary school for people with magic, in the upcoming year so she could finish her 7th term there and graduate. There were pages and pages full of never-before-seen-or-heard news, which took Miranda multiple days to read fully.
Miranda's dad had gotten her Crookshanks soon after Voldemort's defeat as a little celebration gift, for which she was grateful.
Reading the two prints of the wizards' newspaper was the first time in her life she really learned about anything magic-related, because her dad didn't know anything and so he couldn't tell her anything about it. Before, all she knew was that she was a witch, and so was her mom (her dad told her), but now she knew little pieces of fun information, like how Horcruxes worked and that pictures in the wizarding world actually moved.
She was also extremely excited, because her dad told her that she would most likely be attending the same school that the trio had, Hogwarts, and she would be able to meet Professor Minerva McGonagall, Rubeus Hagrid, and maybe even Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and Hermione Granger if she was really lucky. She was mostly just hoping that the school would be rebuilt in time for her first year there because according to the newspaper, it was mostly destroyed.
She stepped out of her small bedroom and walked down the wooden steps toward the kitchen, where her dad was cooking scrambled eggs. Her sister Abigail would be coming all the way from the United States where she was attending a school called Virginia Commonwealth University to spend a week and a half with Miranda and her dad. Miranda was coming with him to the airport to pick her up, which meant she had to be ready to leave before sunrise due to the plane landing being early in the day. Unlike Miranda, Abigail possessed no magical abilities.
On the walls of the kitchen hung varied pictures; one of Miranda's dad hugging her on her first day of first grade, one of her and her sister in front of a merry-go-round, and one of her Uncle Steven, who had passed away a few years after the photo was taken. Unlike those in the Daily Prophet, these photos were static and didn't move.
"Morning," said her dad.
"I'm good," replied Miranda, who was still half-asleep. Her dad laughed and slid the eggs off of the pan and onto a plate on the countertop next to the stove, where Miranda was sitting. Crookshanks was lying on the barstool next to her, and Miranda couldn't help but reach out to pet his soft, grey fur.
"Want some orange juice?" Her dad asked, already pouring a glass for her.
"I-" There was a sudden noise that sounded like a shriek of pain, similar to what you would expect a family of rats in a blender to sound like. Her dad put down the orange juice and bolted out the back door. Miranda was right behind him.
In the backyard, on the ground below the kitchen window, was a pearl white owl, on its side and holding an envelope in its beak. When it noticed them standing over it, the owl jumped to its feet and looked as if it was trying to appear elegant. It stepped over to Miranda and held its head high. Miranda slowly bent down, and the owl released the envelope into her hands. It then flapped its feathery wings a few times and took off, flying away.
Miranda looked at the letter, which had her full name on it, Miranda Ledra Manning, and her town name, in green ink.
"What- how-" she said. "That owl just gave me a letter!"
"Owls," her dad said, "are how witches and wizards communicate. They send messages back and forth, and they're really good at it."
"But how did it know where to find me? The letter doesn't have an address!"
"Owls don't need addresses," he replied simply. "Let's read that on the way to the airport, I think I know what that is."
Once Miranda had finished her breakfast, brushed her teeth, and put her shoes on, they were ready to go. Miranda hopped into the backseat and immediately started opening the envelope. Inside was a letter. On the back of the folded piece of paper was a silver H sticker. Miranda unfolded the letter and read it out loud:
Dear Ms, Manning,
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.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Headmistress
Miranda looked at the second page, where there was the list of books she had to buy, what she needed for her uniform, and other things, such as a wand and cauldron. Her heartbeat quickened. Her dad wasn't lying, she really would be going to Hogwarts! Questions immediately sprang into her mind:
"Where's Hogwarts?"
"How do we get there?
"What's dragonhide?"
"Why do I need robes?"
"What's magical theory?"
"What's transfiguration?"
"What's a fantastic beast and why would I want to find one?"
"What's the Dark Forces?"
"Why do I need a cauldron and telescope?"
"I can bring a pet? Can I bring Crookshanks?"
"Why aren't we allowed broomsticks?"
"What's the Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions?
"Whoa there," said her dad, laughing. "I don't know much more than you do."
"Where do we get all these books and things, anyway?" Miranda asked. "Do we order it by owl?"
"You can," he said, "but generally first-years go to a place called Diagon Alley."
"Diagonally?"
"No, Diagon Alley. There's a space. You can buy everything that's on the list there. It's kind of like a big shopping center."
"Dad, how did you know about the owls and Diagon Alley if you aren't a wizard?"
"I have a friend who's one, but we don't talk anymore,"
She was about to set the envelope that held the letter aside when she noticed something else in it, a small piece of paper. She took it out and examined it.
It was a train ticket for Hogwarts. Platform 9 ¾, set to leave at 11:00 am on the first of September.
Wait, Platform 9 ¾? That couldn't be right. She voiced her concern with her dad, who looked at the ticket at the next stop light.
"There is no Platform nine and three-quarters," he said.
"Then how will I get there?" Miranda questioned, her heart beating faster still, her smile turning into a look of worry.
"I reckon we'll figure it out when the time comes."
That didn't exactly reassure her.
Not too long later, they arrived at the airport. They drove around the side of the building until they saw Abigail standing outside.
Being 21, she was taller than Miranda, but they still had various similarities. Her hair color was almost identical, just having a slightly darker tint to it. Her eyes were also brown instead of bright-blue. Their faces were similar enough to tell that they were sisters, but they weren't as similar as those of twins. Abigail had her suitcase at her side, and she wore jeans and a short-sleeved purple shirt that exposed the bottom of her belly. She smiled when she saw them.
"Hey!" she greeted them once they got out of the car. She hugged their dad, then Miranda, before loading her suitcase into the back of the car.
"What's that piece of paper," she asked once they were all in the car.
"Um, a letter. From uh… my friend."
"Friend…?" she asked quietly, before quickly closing her mouth and acting as though she didn't say anything at all.
She was right to be skeptical, Miranda wasn't exactly the most popular person. She's had friends in the past, but they always seemed to drift away. Others made fun of her in school for not being as smart as them, and nobody ever stood up for her, even herself. Silently, she agreed with them; she didn't get high marks on homework and tests. Not because she didn't try, but because her brain just couldn't contain information that didn't highly interest her. She didn't consider herself the most attractive person ever either. She was catcalled while walking home from school once by a guy who must've been in his twenties, but she didn't exactly consider that a compliment.
Miranda read the letter once more before putting it back into the envelope and stared out the window as her dad and Abigail talked about her school back in America.
After they got home and Abigail went into their guest room to unpack her things, Miranda asked her dad when they would be going to Diagon Alley.
"Well, it's July 21st today," he said, "How about tomorrow? I don't think Wednesdays would be too busy"
"Sounds great!" said Miranda.
For the rest of the day she sat in her room, thinking and reading the Daily Prophet again. Getting her robes and books and everything was exciting and all, but what she was most anticipating was getting her wand. She'd finally be able to use magic herself! She wondered what kinds of spells the books would teach her, shooting fire? Making things fly?
She spent the remainder of the day pacing around her room impatiently, trying (and failing) to solve her Rubik's Cube.