When I woke up on the morning of the 8th of November that year it was pitch dark. I got out of bed carefully and crept downstairs. If the clock in the kitchen was right it was 5.09am. I always got up in the early hours of the morning, having fallen asleep not many hours earlier. There was no particular reason for this other than that my ways tended to lean more towards that of an insomniac's. I did, however, like to watch the sun rise. To do this I had a sepcial spot in a tree in our garden, and this was where I went. It was freezing outside and as I had forgotten about the existence of shoes I could feel the cold morning dew on the grass as I made my way round the house and down the garden to my tree.
In a few hours my mother would be awake. She would make me breakfast and no doubt make a fuss about my early rising and bare feet, as she did every other morning.
In a few hours my best friend, Melissa Evolt, would arrive with her parents and her younger twin brothers and together we would all celebrate my 11th birthday.
In a few hours I would recieve my Hogwarts acceptace letter.
I smiled to myself at the thought. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The place Lissa and I had heard so many stories about. The place we had been dreaming of going ever since we could remember. The place we would be that time next year. Until then though we still had to go to muggle school because our parents, although all magical, decided it would be good for us to learn how to read, write, etc., and learn how to mingle with other children at the same time. So, instead of the usual wizard upbringing of homeschooling, we were enrolled in a muggle primary school not too far from where I lived.
Tomorrow we would be doing this all over again, but for Lissa in Evolt Mansion, or, as we so lovingly called it, 'Evil Mansion'. Lissa was born the day after me and we have known each other ever since then. Growing up we were more like sisters than anything really. My father was sent to Azkaban prison when I was just a baby and my mother, well let's just say she didn't cope that welll seeing as her soon-to-be-husband was sent to prison for the murder of their mutual best friends. So Lissa's parents stepped in and helped her raise me.
The stars quickly left the sky to make way for the sun and I went inside just as my mother was coming down the stairs.
"Morning, birthday girl," my mother greeted. She ruffled my hair and pulled me in for a hug.
"Morning," I replied, pulling away from her.
"You're freezing Ricki, were you outside? Go put some slippers on and I'll make breakfast." I rolled my eyes and nodded.
"Pancakes?" I asked hopefully. My mother just smiled in response.
"Did you get it yet? Your letter!?" Lissa asked the sencond she stepped out of the fire. I held up an envelope of heavy yellow parchment. Lissa squealed. "Have you opened it yet?" I nodded my head and gave it to her. She stood still as she read it then squealed again when she was done.
"I can't wait 'til I get mine tomorrow!"
"It's gonna say exactly the same thing, you know."
"I know but still, yay! Happy Birthday by the way! Ooh that rhymed.."
"Ehm yeah, thanks.." I said, chuckling at how weird my best friend was.
"So girls, what house do you think you're going to be in?" asked Lissa's dad, Alex Pest. Lissa's parents, like mine, weren't married when they had her so Lissa took her mother's name, Evolt, instead.
"GRYFFINDOR!" Lissa and I shouted in unison. We laughed. Both of our mothers were Gryffindors and both went on to become Aurors for the Ministry. They were best friends at Hogwarts and were still just as close as Lissa and I. Lissa's dad was in Hufflepuff. He worked part-time in a little wizarding sports shop.
"That's my girl," said my mum, "now come on, who wants some birthday cake?"
Much of the same happened the next day. Lissa was ecstatic when she got her letter. Remus Lupin, an old family friend, turned up to wish us both happy birthday and congratulations. I stayed at Lissa's house that night but neither of us got much sleep. We were too hyped up talking about what our first year of Hogwarts was going to be like.
