Chapter One
Justin sat at his desk in his darkened room, head in his hands. By his left elbow, sat a recently opened letter, bearing the Hogwarts coat of arms; the green, loopy writing scrawled on the parchment, blurred from the un-shed tears of anger in his eyes. The letter has been sent to inform Justin that, unfortunately, he no longer meets the requirements to be accepted to Hogwarts, and therefore should seek a new place of enrollment. By his right, a wand, snapped in his anger, sat. The unicorn hair, white and radiant, curls from one end of the broken willow, and back into the other. He slammed his fist on his desk, upsetting the caged owl in the corner of his room. Upon hearing a disturbance upstairs, Mrs. Agatha Finch-Fletchley headed upstairs to see how her dear son was coping. She quietly ascended the staircase, and upon reaching his door, took a deep breath. It hurt her so much to see her son have the one thing he cared about taken away from him.
Mr. Finch-Fletchley had passed away not long before the first parchment, carried by a small, tawny owl. Justin and his father were close, and his death affected him more than anyone else. Justin became withdrawn, hardly leaving his room and almost never eating. His normally exuberant, outgoing self was replaced by a sullen, meaningless boy. His normally stocky body now gaunt and sickly. Agatha was beginning to feel that she had lost both her son and husband when, with a squawk, the mail fell through the slot. She hurried to the door, glad for the distraction, when she noticed the thick, yellowed parchment, bearing an odd coat of arms. This was curious, but even more curious, was the intended recipient: her Justin. Initially, Agatha was thrilled. Finally, something that might give Justin something to do! However, her heart dropped as she read the return address: 'Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry' who do they think they are, playing some kind of sick joke with her fragile son? She turned from his door, and sat at the kitchen table. To this day, Agatha can't tell you how long she sat and stared at that letter, holding a bread knife in her left hand. One, maybe two hours passed as she sat there, eyeing the envelope suspiciously. She couldn't take it anymore. Slipping her knife under the soft waxy seal, she opened the letter. It read:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
'Dear Mr. Finch- Fletchley,
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 September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall Deputy Headmistress
The second piece of parchment in the letter seemed to be a list of school supplies:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WHICHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
UNIFORM First-year students will require: sets of plain work robes (black) plain pointed hat (black) for day wear pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar) winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings) Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS All students should have a copy of each of the following:
The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk
A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore
Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble
OTHER EQUIPMENT
1 wand 1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2) 1 set glass or crystal phials 1 telescope 1 set brass scales
Students may also bring and owl OR a cat OR a toad.
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS'
She was absolutely flabbergasted. These people actually thought Justin- her Justin- was a wizard? She dismissed it as nonsense and locked the letter in a kitchen draw. This, however, didn't deter the sender. Everyday a new letter would arrive. Everyday, it was locked in the kitchen draw. After three weeks of this, Agatha couldn't even lock the draw, as it was so full of un-read letters. She decided enough was enough and penned a letter to the 'school':
To Whom It May Concern:
I believe there must be a mistake. My son, Justin never has and never will be enrolled in your 'school'; in fact, he in enrolled in Eton. I don't know who you are, or what you think you will gain from this prank, but please, we are going through a hard time at the moment, and would like to be left alone.
Yours truly,
Mrs. Agatha Finch- Fletchley.
Almost immediately after slotting the letter through the post box, a letter in reply was dropped in her bag by the same tawny owl. Shocked, she opened the letter.
'Mrs. Agatha Finch-Fletchley,
I fear we have had a misunderstanding. I hope to rectify this as soon as possible. A representative from the school will be arriving at your home in exactly twenty minutes to discuss this further. Thank you for your understanding.
Yours faithfully,
Professer Minerva McGonnagall.
Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry'
'Understanding! I don't understand any of this!' she gasped. She checked her watch; she only had fifteen minutes to return home before some stranger would turn up at her door and demand to be let in! Oh! Her poor boy will be all by him self when that happens! He is in no state for this excitement.
Ten minutes later, Agatha sat on the loveseat in the living room, a pile of letters in her lap. She was breathing deeply, trying to make up her mind. Should she let them in? Hear them out? Surely there was a misunderstanding: These people are obviously deranged, thinking they are wizards. In. Out. In. Out. 'Well', she thought 'stranger things have happened. You hear stories of aliens and monsters almost every week. Ghost stories were even more common. Why couldn't THIS be possible?' she reasoned. The more she thought about it, the more it seemed to fit. When Justin was just a young child- around one or two- she had left him to play quietly by himself in the living room while she visited the bathroom. The whole time, she kept hearing noises, like a bouncy ball hitting the ceiling. She hurried out to check on her son, only to find him bobbing around the ceiling fan! She remembered how she frantically tried, to no avail, to get him down with a broom. An hour later, he happily floated down by himself. There was also the time in kindergarten when they were growing seeds as a class. No one else's even sprouted, but at his touch, a flower blossomed out of the damp cotton balls, shocking his teacher. Odd things did happen every now and then to Justin, but that didn't mean he was a wizard…
Agatha's thoughts were interrupted by a loud 'Bang' at the front door, much like the sound of a car backfiring. There was a knock at the door, followed by a wheeze. Agatha took a deep breath, and went to answer the door.