Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything related to it. No profit is made by this story. I am grateful to J.K. Rowling and the world she created.

Author's Note: Update! So I was going back through earlier chapters of this story (because I'm procrastinating writing the sequel) and was editing a bit to make them make a bit more sense - especially this chapter since this was written years ago and then forgotten about and only just recently continued/finished the story when I shared it here. So now it makes a bit more sense in the greater context (Margo's character was supposed to be something else at first but when I came back to this I changed that wanting them to have some support here)... okay, that's all... and for those of you just now coming to this, just ignore this long update notice...


On the corner of Madrik Lane sat a nice little cottage where the Wallace family lived. The Wallace's were not the kind to leave others to themselves. They also weren't the people to associate themselves with strange or mysterious things, including people. The Wallace's viewed their lives as their world in which they needed to know what was going on. Their motto; everyone's business is our business.

Following that motto to the letter was Mrs. Margo Wallace's career in life. For this her long neck, eagle eyes, and dirty blonde hair— which wasn't very obvious if she had to hide quickly behind a bush—came in handy. Mrs. Wallace was quick to relate back anything she heard or observed but she never did so with cruel intentions. Busy-body was an understatement when describing Mrs. Wallace.

Mr. Burton Wallace was a very practical man, which meant that he didn't understand anything out of the normal and was therefore a little fearful of it. Mr. Wallace worked at one of the largest supply companies in Britain and was always prepared to discuss what had happened at work that day. While Mrs. Wallace kept up with the neighbors' lives, Mr. Wallace kept up with his co-workers'. His large nose was very handy for sniffing out secrets and his beefy neck provided a great base for his loud barks and grunts. Mr. Wallace's graying hair was the same color as the machines in the office, like the copying machine, which several times had provided a great hiding place for Mr. Wallace while eavesdropping on his co-workers.

As practically professional eavesdroppers, the Wallace's knew how easy it was for people to find out personal information. Subsequently they were rather skilled at keeping secrets, though Margo more so than her husband...

While Mrs. Wallace was tall, thin and blonde and Mr. Wallace was beefy, large and graying, their son Preston resembled a mix of the two. He was thicker than normal, with a large nose and blonde hair. Preston was a violent boy whose favorite past time was bullying and tormenting younger or smaller neighbor kids and schoolmates. Preston gave up on most activities after he got injured; therefore, his bicycle was rusting in the garage, his pogo stick had been sold to a family up the street, and his baseball was the neighbor dog's toy. Preston mainly played video games and watched TV (neither had injured him yet).

That was what Preston was doing, watching TV, when the doorbell rang. Mr. Wallace lumbered to the door and opened it. Mrs. Wallace tried to see who it was through the door frame leading into the foyer but Mr. Wallace's bulk was effectively blocking the visitor. His voice, however, carried through to them so they could hear what he was saying to the visitor.

"What?" Mr. Wallace asked, shocked. There was a pause in which the visitor answered. "We never signed up for anything like that!" indignant this time. There was another pause, longer than the first, then an explosive snort from Mr. Wallace that made both Margo and Preston jump. A few minutes later Mr. Wallace came into the living room followed by a woman in a pant suit.

Mrs. Wallace got out of her seat to greet the woman. Burton, face red, introduced them "Margo, this is," But the woman stepped forward, held out her hand and introduced herself.

"Charisse Charity, I'm with IMSE. We would like to inform you that you have been chosen to host an exchange student from the United States," Charisse Charity beamed as she shook Mrs. Wallace's hand firmly. Margo's hand was limp in Charisse Charity's grip. When Charity released it Margo's hand fell limply to her side, but she didn't notice. Her mouth was slightly open in dull shock. She looked to Burton whose face was steadily getting blotchy and his jaw was clenched to where it would be a surprise if he could ever move it again.

"I… I don't understand," Margo said faintly. She kept looking to Burton for answers but he looked like he would explode any moment now. Charisse Charity, however, explained what she could.

"At IMSE we have a raffle. Only people who have been applied and investigated are entered. When an exchange student needs a host family we pick a family from the raffle. Your family has been chosen to play host to the Connens. You were entered after a thorough background search two years ago. The Connens are absolutely lovely! You'll really love them," Charisse Charity assured them. The Wallace's looked at her in horror.

"We did not agree to this!" Burton shouted, his face slowly turning purple. Charisse Charity seemed exhausted and she sighed. "I don't even know what this MZC thing is!" Burton exclaimed indignantly.

"IMSE," Charisse Charity corrected but Burton ignored her.

"What the hell does that stand for?" Burton demanded. His face was definitely purple now and the vein in his forehead was pulsing. Charisse Charity wouldn't have been surprised to see steam coming out of his ears.

"IMSE, International Magical Student Exchange. We find young witches and wizards who would like to study magic abroad and we find homes for them to stay in during the end of summer and into the school year. Some return home in the summer, some stay with their host family. It really depends on their home life." Charisse Charity explained.

Burton stood flat-footed, his face slowly draining of all color and he mouthed wordlessly. He looked like a landed fish. Margo however, face drained of color, stared at Charisse Charity in horrified astonishment.

"D-did you say… magical?" Margo's voice broke on the last word. Burton grumbled deep in his chest. Charisse Charity sighed. She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and pulled a stick of wood out from her sleeve.

"What are you doing?" Burton demanded. His face was filled with fear and rage. Charisse Charity didn't respond. She flicked her wand and a clipboard appeared out of thin air and fell lightly into her hand. Charisse Charity flipped through papers clipped to the clipboard until she found the one she wanted. Burton and Margo stared at her in horror.

"Ah, here it is." Charisse Charity mumbled. She brought her wand back up and pointed it at Burton and Margo. They both gasped but Charisse Charity either didn't hear or she ignored it. She began to read. "Burton and Margo Wallace, you are hereby chosen to host Alice and Jason Connen, a witch and wizard of the age of ten. Towards the end of the summer of their eleventh year, the twins will be invited to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You are to welcome them into your home during the summer when they are not at school. During the school year they will stay at Hogwarts. The twins will be able to return to their home in the United States during the summer if their relatives can take them," Charisse Charity looked up at the Wallace's at this point. "The twins are orphans." She explained. Burton and Margo looked at each other. Margo's face softened, Burton glared at her sternly.

Charisse Charity looked back down at the clipboard and continued. "You are to follow all instructions given. Most will be explained. Your job is only to make certain the Connens are well cared for when in your care and that they arrive at Hogwarts every school year safely for the next seven years." Charisse Charity flipped the papers ahead of the paper she read from back in front and the clipboard disappeared back into thin air.

When Charisse Charity looked up she saw Burton clutching Margo in horror. Charity sighed and brought out her wand. Before Burton could finish his shout of horror, she flicked her wand in his direction and his face fell. The expression on his face was blank, almost as if he had been put on pause. Margo turned to Charity in shock.

"You didn't have to bewitch my husband," Margo accused, still a bit faint. She honestly hadn't expected any of this to come back into her life again.

"I'm quite surprised he doesn't know," Charity said with a pointed look at Margo.

"Well, don't you have that Secrecy Law or something?" Margo pointed out defensively. "And it's not like he was going to ever meet my brother..." Margo's voice faded off as her eyes grew teary. Charisse Charity's face fell and she looked away while Margo got a hold of herself.

"So, what is this? We'll be housing orphans going to Hogwarts? Is this a new program?" Margo asked, her voice stronger now.

"Ah yes, well, fairly recent... sort of a trial program, seeing how it goes..." Charity explained evasively. Margo raised a brow but didn't pry... for once. "Will you tell him?" Charity asked, nodding to the frozen Burton.

"I suppose I'll have to," Margo sighed.

Charisse Charity nodded, then cleared her throat and put her bright smile back on. She waved her wand at Mr. Wallace once more.

"Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Wallace for agreeing! The twins will be dropped off on the twenty-fourth of this month. You will absolutely love them!" Charisse Charity said to them cheerily.

"What?" Burton asked in confusion. "What are you talking about? We never signed up for anything!" he exclaimed. Margo put a gentle hand on her husband's arm.

"Burton, dear. I believe I signed up for it a couple years ago at that conference, don't you remember I told you about the presentation that charity did?" One would think Margo was a witch herself as her voice had a magical effect on her husband, calming him almost instantly, though he still looked rather perturbed.

"All instructions will be sent to you at the appropriate time but for now all you have to do is care for them like your own. A booklet will be delivered within the week explaining our procedures. Well, have a good day!" Charity said and after a nod from Margo, saw herself out.

Mr. Wallace looked sternly at his wife. Margo sighed.

"Dear, there's something I should've told you a long while ago."


June the twenty-fourth came quickly and the Wallace's prepared for the arrival of the twins in the only way they could; they cleaned.

Mrs. Wallace viciously scrubbed the floors and didn't stop until she could see her reflection in the tile and hardwood. Preston was set to work in the yard. He was mowing the lawn, pulling the few weeds that had popped up in the garden and sweeping the porch and sidewalk; grumbling all the while. Mr. Wallace was busy fixing anything that looked like it could break. Nothing in their house was broken, Mrs. Wallace made sure of that but Mr. Wallace was taking no chances. Before noon, the entire house, inside and out, was shining as though it had been polished, which the floors, tables and counters had been.

The Wallace's then went upstairs and got ready. Mrs. Wallace came back down in a nice pale blue dress with white flats. Mr. Wallace wore a nice button-down and his best tie. Preston was forced to dress up as well. He reluctantly came down an hour later wearing a bow tie, his dress shoes polished, and his hair plastered to his head with the part in the middle.

Preston sat down to watch TV and Mr. Wallace sat reading the newspaper, continually glancing at his watch every two seconds. Mrs. Wallace went into the kitchen to make tea and cookies. The twins were supposed to arrive at two and they had a little under an hour until that time. The whole house seemed to be shaking in anticipation. Mrs. Wallace came in the living room and sat by the window, continually glancing out it.

At two o'clock Mr. and Mrs. Wallace got anxious. Mr. Wallace continually got up, went to the door, opened it, and poked his head out, looking up and down the street. He would then come back in, sit down and grumble about common courtesy.

"No respect! We could be late for something!" Burton grumbled.

"Late for what Burton?" Margo asked absentmindedly as she watched out the window.

"Well, nothing. But we could've had something!" He replied indignantly. He pulled the newspaper back up in front of his face and no sooner had he started reading it then the doorbell rang. Burton and Margo looked at each other. Neither had heard a car pull up.

Burton and Margo got up and went to the door. Margo hurried back in the living room and pulled Preston out into the foyer. Margo lovingly smoothed Preston's hair back down and Burton straightened his tie. Burton opened the door.

Charisse Charity's finger was an inch away from the doorbell when the door opened. She smiled and pulled her hand back. Behind her stood two short figures. Both had dark brown hair and green eyes. The girl looked bored and the boy uncomfortable.

"Good day, Mr. Wallace!" Charisse Charity said brightly. Burton stood back to let the three into the house.

They walked in. The girl started looking around the house with that same bored expression while her brother shifted uncomfortably on the spot. Charisse Charity stepped forward and shook Mr. and Mrs. Wallace's hands. "Nice to see you again!" She said cheerfully. She looked around the foyer. "Wow, this place just sparkles! I'd have thought you used magic if I didn't know any better!" Charisse stated intending it as a compliment.

Mr. Wallace didn't seem to take it as such as he sucked in a breath, but didn't protest at a quick, sympathetic glance to his wife. Charisse Charity didn't notice.

"Mr. and Mrs. Wallace, this is Jason," Charisse indicated the boy who quickly looked at his feet. "And Alice," she then turned to her other side and indicated the girl who stopped looking around the room to look up at Mr. and Mrs. Wallace. The corner of her mouth sort of twitched as if she wasn't sure whether to smile or not.

Charisse Charity bit her lip uncomfortably. This was an awkward moment and no one seemed like they were about to talk. She swung her arms forward and went up on her toes and then as her arms swung back she went back down on her heels. She swung her arms up once more and brought her hands together in a clap. "So, shall we go into the sitting room?" she said politely indicating the room to her left. The Wallace's shook themselves out of a reverie and led the way into the sitting room.

Charisse and the twins sat on a couch while Mr. Wallace and Preston sat on the couch facing Charisse and the twins. Mrs. Wallace bustled into the kitchen and came out with a plate of tea and cookies. She offered it to Charisse and the twins then set it down on the coffee table before sitting in a chair beside Mr. Wallace.

"So, you're ten years old?" Mrs. Wallace kindly asked the twins. Alice was the one that answered.

"Yeah, we turn eleven in February." She answered. Her voice sounded strange to the Wallace's. Unlike them, she was American so her accent was alien to them. Alice noticed their looks.

"Sorry, it's just your accent is so strange." Mrs. Wallace explained.

"What are you talking about? I don't have an accent." Alice said, confused. The Wallace's were taken aback. They were about to say something but Charisse Charity shook her head. They let the matter drop and Alice continued to look curiously around the room, though she kept casting inquisitive glances at the Wallace's.

"So, Mr. and Mrs. Wallace," Charisse Charity began somewhat awkwardly. "You've read the pamphlet we delivered to your house if I'm not mistaken?" They nodded. "Wonderful! Well then you are aware of certain procedures. We will check once a month for the first year as to how the children are being treated. The twins know how to contact me if any of you need anything, have any questions. After the first year… well, we'll see how it goes and when we get there I'll explain more. Could I have a tour of the house? Procedure." She explained.

"Oh, of course!" Mrs. Wallace jumped out of her chair. "Follow me," she said as she walked through the archway out of the living room and into the dining room. Charisse Charity got up from the couch and followed Mr. Wallace who had gone along behind Mrs. Wallace. The twins remained on the couch and as they started to awkwardly get up, not sure if they should follow, Charisse Charity popped her head through the doorway.

"Come along you two!" she said, gesturing them along. Preston remained in the living room and as the twins exited out of the living room, they could hear the TV turn on. Alice and Jason followed meekly behind the adults. Alice didn't really pay any attention to anything they said other than, "This is the kitchen… the bathroom's in through here… These two bedrooms will be the twins, the two of you can choose who gets which…" and the rest went in one ear and out the other. Jason, however, absorbed every word they said so that he could've repeated the entire tour back to someone word for word.

After the tour was done, the adults started talking amongst themselves, completely forgetting the twins' presence. Alice nudged Jason and he followed as she quietly went back downstairs and into the living room.

Preston was sprawled on the couch, eating from a bag of chips as he watched TV. Alice tried not to look too disgusted. Jason was still glancing around nervously and followed Alice's lead as she sat on the opposite couch.

"So, what's your name again?" Alice asked, more out of curiosity than actually caring.

"Preston, what's yours?" Preston replied gruffly. Alice smiled to herself. Preston barked like his father but Preston's bark seemed more like a Chihuahua trying to be a Doberman.

"I'm Alice and this is Jason." Alice replied, jerking a thumb at Jason sitting next to her. Preston nodded and returned his attention to the television.

Alice was very bored, she had all this pent-up energy and she didn't feel comfortable letting it out. She drummed her fingers on her knees, Jason watching them. Alice kept drumming her fingers until she saw Jason staring at her active fingers and she quickly stopped. "Sorry," she said sullenly, crossing her arms across her stomach. Jason turned his head away and looked out of the window.

Alice looked around the sitting room, which was adjoined with the dining room. There were sliding glass doors leading out of the dining room into the back yard. Alice's gaze flicked past the glass doors but her eyes were violently brought back. Through the glass doors, Alice could've sworn she saw a man in a black cloak or robes or something like that. He had been sitting on the Wallace's fence. She searched the yard for the man in the cloak but he was nowhere to be found. Giving the glass doors a last, suspicious glare, Alice turned her attention to the television. The man must've been her imagination, which had a tendency to run wild.

"Alice," Jason whispered, nudging her with his elbow. Alice turned and looked out the window to where Jason was pointing. Across the street, in front of a neighbor's house, stood three people. They were arguing but that wasn't what was strange about them. All of the people were wearing cloaks. The woman was wearing a dark blue cloak, one of the men a purple, and the other a green cloak. The woman and the man in the green cloak were talking very animatedly. The woman kept pointing to the Wallace's house and saying something bad by the look on her face. The man in the green cloak responded just as angrily and shook his head. The man in the purple remained quiet most of the time. Alice slowly and quietly got up from the couch and motioned for Jason to follow her.

She crept to the window and knelt in front of it, just her eyes peeking over the sill. Jason knelt beside her and the two watched. The three cloaked people argued for a long time and seemed to be getting more furious as they argued. Suddenly the woman pulled out a smooth stick and pointed it at the man in the green threateningly. The man in the green retreated and the man in the purple jumped in between the man in the green and the woman's stick. He said something to her and pointed at the house, directly at the window that Alice and Jason were crouched in front of. The twins saw the woman turn her head to look at the house and the twins quickly ducked out of sight.

"Do you think she saw us?" Jason mouthed. Alice shrugged and slowly raised herself off the ground to look out the window. As soon as her eyes peered over the window ledge she saw the woman looking over at them. Alice's eyes widened and so did the woman's. Alice ducked back down as the woman pointed to the Wallace's window.

"What happened?" Jason whispered. Alice didn't respond so Jason cautiously peered over the window ledge. "Uh, Alice," he began slowly. Alice poked her head up just in time to see the three people turn on the spot and vanish with a loud CRACK! Alice turned to look at Jason, who turned to look at her. His face reflected her shock as he mouthed, "Whoa!"

Alice leapt to her feet, Jason doing the same, as she heard Mrs. Wallace's voice growing louder as the adults walked down the steps. Alice quickly sat on the couch and tried to slow her heartbeat while she acted as though they hadn't just witnessed anything unordinary. Mr. and Mrs. Wallace walked into the sitting room followed by Charisse Charity who was talking to Mrs. Wallace.

"Yes, I don't think you'll have any trouble with them," she finished. "Well," Charisse Charity said clapping her hands together. "I must be off! Good-bye Alice, Jason," she said business-like. Alice waved and Jason said "'Bye." Mr. and Mrs. Wallace walked with Charisse Charity to the door where they began another discussion. Alice strained her ears to hear what they were saying but they kept their voices low. She glanced over at Jason who shook his head. He hadn't heard anything either. They heard the door close and Mr. and Mrs. Wallace reentered the sitting room. Mrs. Wallace smiled cheerfully, Mr. Wallace grunted and sat down in his armchair.

"So, Alice, Jason," Mrs. Wallace began kindly. Alice raised an eyebrow in skeptical curiosity. "What do you two like to do?" Mrs. Wallace asked. Alice looked to Jason.

"Well, I like to read, and I play instruments," Jason said awkwardly.

"Oh, really! What kind of instruments do you play?" she asked excitedly.

"Well, I can play piano and guitar," he answered.

"How lovely! I play piano also, we have one in the dining room," she said pointing into the dining room where a mahogany piano was clearly visible. Jason returned Mrs. Wallace's smile. Mrs. Wallace turned to Alice. "And what about you dear?" She asked.

Alice shrugged. "I don't know, I like video games and sports," she said offhandedly. Mrs. Wallace's face fell.

"Oh, well, that's nice. Preston likes to play video games too," she said looking over at Preston. Preston grunted in reply. Alice didn't care to elaborate and Mrs. Wallace couldn't think of anything else to say on that subject. "So, Jason, how well do you play piano?" she asked Jason curiously.

"Well, I only know the basics. Our aunt can play piano really well and she's the one who taught me but we didn't get much farther than playing a couple of songs," Jason replied.

"Well, then why don't I teach you a little?" Mrs. Wallace asked. Jason looked to Alice who shrugged and he followed Mrs. Wallace into the dining room where she began to help Jason with playing the piano.

Alice sat on the couch and watched TV but she wasn't paying attention to it. This was the first time that she was really homesick. She didn't miss her old house, which was empty now, or her old room. She missed her dad.

She missed helping him cook dinner, playing basketball with him out in the driveway, and playing video games with him. She missed Fun Food Friday where her dad would always plan some great dinner that they could make together. She still remembered when they made homemade pizza and the three of them had gotten into a flour fight which resulted in the kitchen looking like it had been hit by a snowstorm, and her, Jason, and their dad all looking like they had gone prematurely grey.

Alice shook herself out of her memories, which were bittersweet, when Mrs. Wallace came back into the sitting room an hour later. Jason was playing a song that Mrs. Wallace had just taught him in the background.

"Alice, would you like to help me make supper?" Mrs. Wallace asked. Alice nodded and followed her into the kitchen. "There are some potatoes in the pantry, if you could get them out for me," Mrs. Wallace said. Alice opened the door to the pantry and grabbed the bag of potatoes. She started to close the pantry door but a scream interrupted her. She swung around to find the source but everyone was acting as though nothing had happened. Mrs. Wallace was cutting up vegetables, Preston and Mr. Wallace were still watching TV and Jason was playing another song.

"Did you hear that?" Alice asked.

Mrs. Wallace stopped slicing the vegetables and looked up. "Hear what dear?" she asked kindly.

"Never mind," Alice replied. She knew they'd think she was weird if she told them she was hearing screams. Alice walked over to the counter and put the bag of potatoes on the counter.

"Have you peeled potatoes before?" Mrs. Wallace asked, never missing a slice. Alice nodded. "Good, there's a knife in the drawer right there," Mrs. Wallace said indicating the drawer on her right. Alice grabbed a knife out of the drawer and set to work on the potatoes.

At six-thirty, the Wallace's and the Connen twins sat down for dinner. Preston's mouth watered at the aroma of boiled potatoes, steamed vegetables and pork chops. Well, his mouth didn't so much water at the vegetables, but everything else was amazing. Everyone piled their plates with food, but Alice lost her appetite halfway through the meal. Preston was happy to finish off her leftovers.

Preston was set the task of washing the dishes. Jason and Alice offered but Mrs. Wallace quickly shooed them out of the kitchen. "It's your first night here. You're our guests! You'll have plenty of other opportunities to wash the dishes. Now, go relax," she said as she hustled them into the sitting room. Jason and Alice sat on the couch and watched television and they were soon joined by the rest of the family.

"Okay, off to bed!" Mrs. Wallace said as she shuffled Preston, Jason and Alice up the stairs. Alice planned on a small scuffle with Jason over who got which room, but Jason was quick to let Alice have the bigger room. Alice, disheartened, told Jason to have it and went into the slightly smaller room. It was a nice room with a great window seat and a comfy looking bed. It even had a small walk-in closet, but Alice wasn't in the mood to fully show her excitement beyond a grin and a swooping feeling in her heart. She sat on the window seat and looked out on the little lights from the neighboring houses.

Alice sat in the window for about half an hour before getting up and going into Jason's room. She wasn't surprised to find him reading. She carefully closed the door so as not to wake anyone. "I knew you'd want to talk," Jason said closing his book. Alice jumped a little. She had been completely silent and Jason had been reading so she was surprised that he knew she was there.

Jason got out of the chair and put the book back on the shelf. Recovering from her shock, Alice sat down on Jason's bed just as he sat back down in his chair.

"So, what do you think about this place?" Alice asked hesitantly. Jason shrugged.

"I don't know. I don't dislike it," he answered. Alice hung her head. She had expected that.

"Do you like them? The Wallace's?" she asked.

"They're not horrible. Yeah, I guess I kind of like them," he replied.

"How can you say that?" Alice demanded. She shot to her feet and stood over him, glowering. "How can you like them? We should be with Aunt K!" Alice whispered harshly.

"Aunt K can't take care of us! She has a job that takes her around the world, and that's no place for children!" Jason whispered back, just as harshly.

"Oh, so instead they'll ship us halfway across the world to live with people who have no relation to us whatsoever!" Alice fumed. "They just dump us in some strange country with strange people and tell us 'This will be your family! Good luck! Oh, and I forgot to mention, they're British!'" Alice steadily got louder until she ended with a shout. She quickly covered her mouth, hoping no one heard.

"I know, Alice. I'm upset too, but shouting won't help anything," Jason said calmly. He sounded like he was trying to be her father.

"Don't you dare try to be Dad!" Alice whispered darkly. They both jumped as a book fell from the shelf with a thud. After a moment, Jason, instead of quelling like any other ten year old would, sighed and replied calmly.

"Alice, I'm not trying to be Dad. You just miss him so much that you're looking for him in anything."

Alice shook her head. This was why people rarely believed Jason was only ten years old. Alice was so used to his unusually profound, therapist-type answers that it was starting to frustrate her.

"Jason," she began, about to say something angry but just as she took a breath something hit against the window, cracking it. Startled, Jason commented on how he would need to tell the Wallace's about the window in the morning. Alice forgot what she had been about to say, which was probably a good thing. Instead, her shoulders slumped and she looked down at the ground. "I don't belong here," she mumbled.

"I don't belong here either but we have to make the best of it," Jason replied. He didn't seem to understand where she was coming from. To any stranger it would sound like he was being comforting but he wasn't. In fact, to Alice, he was being extremely insensitive.

"Jason! Just go back to your books and your music! Mrs. Wallace obviously loves you so you can stay with her here and I'll go back and travel the world with Aunt K!" Alice shouted in frustration. She stood up, marched over to the door and swung it open so hard that it hit the wall. Not even bothering to be quiet, Alice stomped through the doorway and slammed the door behind her. She stomped into her room, fuming and plopped onto the window seat. How could Jason be so insensitive? They had just lost their father and were taken away from their only remaining family but Jason was acting as though this was just a slight inconvenience. As if he wanted to eat a bowl of Coco Pebbles but all they had was Trix. Alice wasn't going to forget her life so soon. She had to leave so much behind when they got shipped off to Britain. She had to leave her best friends since preschool, her school where she knew everyone, the house she had been born in, the neighbors she caused trouble with. All of it was gone. Now she had to live in London where she didn't know anyone; go to a school with a foreign curriculum; and worst of all, not understand anyone because of their stupid accents!

Alice was so frustrated and upset that she just wanted to punch something but she knew that wouldn't help. Personal experience had proved it only left you still angry and with an aching hand. Alice jumped off the window seat and paced about the room. Her angry pacing let off some stress but also drained her of her energy. She sat back down onto the window seat (she was too resentful to actually sleep in the bed). She grabbed a pillow and clutched it tightly to her chest. The last thing Alice saw before she drifted into sleep, was a display of fireworks in the distance which put her in mind of July 4th, which they didn't celebrate here.


The day hadn't started out abnormal. By all means it seemed like a pretty normal, simple day; besides the fact that Alice and Jason were once again waking up in Dartford, Kent, Britain instead of Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.A., God Bless America.

Her first sensation was the feel of cold glass against her forehead. Alice groggily opened her eyes. The sky outside was a light, pretty blue occasionally marred by little, white, fluffy clouds. She saw Jason, in the backyard, sitting on a bench, reading. Preston was throwing a softball back and forth with one of his friends, Arnie. Mrs. Wallace came out with a tray of lemonade for the boys.

Alice pulled away from the window, her forehead had stuck to it so it pulled away slowly and more painfully. She rubbed her forehead, which was red, and got up from the window seat. It had been a year since they first came here and Alice had slept in her bed less than half of that time. She didn't intend to most of the time; she just fell asleep reading, or thinking, or watching the skies.

Alice was now eleven and when the school year started she would be going to Kelmers, a private school for girls and Mrs. Wallace's old middle school. Jason and Preston would be going to Mr. Wallace's old private school for boys, Alice couldn't remember the name. She was very unhappy about this for several reasons; she wouldn't be going to school with her brother, she would be alone with a bunch of British girls, and there would be no boys! Boys had always made up at least half of her friend group.

Alice got dressed and went downstairs. There was a plate set on the table for her, like always. She sat down and ate the chicken salad sandwich and by the time she was done, Mrs. Wallace came back into the kitchen.

"All done, dear?" she asked kindly. Alice nodded and Mrs. Wallace took her plate. She hummed while she washed the dishes and Alice went into the living room and distractedly watched TV.

There came a knock on the door. "Alice, dear, could you get that," Mrs. Wallace called from the kitchen. Alice hopped off the couch, glad for something to do. Alice reached the door and opened it. There, on the porch, stood a man, shorter than Alice- which was an anomaly in and of itself. He was a tiny little man in a dark blue suit with a shock of white hair.

"Good day!" he said in a squeaky sort of voice.

"Um, who are you?" Alice asked, thinking it would be mean to say 'what are you'.

"Oh, goodness me! I forgot to introduce myself! I am Filius Flitwick and I am a professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. May I come in?" he asked politely.

Alice stood aside to let him in. He walked in the door and started commenting immediately. "Wonderful! Lovely little house!"

"Mrs. Wallace!" Alice called as she led Professor Flitwick into the kitchen.

"Yes, Alice— oh!" Mrs. Wallace shouted in surprise. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" she apologized

"No, you are quite alright! I get that reaction a lot," Flitwick said. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Filius Flitwick a professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," he said, extending his hand. Mrs. Wallace shook it enthusiastically.

"Oh, yes! They told me you would be arriving sometime during the week!" Mrs. Wallace said excitedly. Alice looked in shock between tiny Professor Flitwick and Mrs. Wallace who were acting like old friends who ran into each other at the store.

"Now, now. I must get down to business! Miss Connen," Flitwick squeaked and beckoned her to sit as he sat down at the kitchen table. Alice suspiciously stepped over to the table and sat down across from Flitwick. Mrs. Wallace sat at the end of the table. "Where is your brother?" Flitwick asked Alice but Mrs. Wallace answered.

"Oh, he's outside," she explained and hurried over to the back door to call him in. She returned shortly with Jason behind her.

"Yes," Jason said.

"Sit down my dear boy!" Flitwick piped. Jason sat down next to Alice, giving her a questioning look but Alice could only shrug her shoulders. She had no idea what was going on!

"Now, Mr. and Ms. Connen. I have two letters for you, but first I must explain." Flitwick suddenly leaned over the table and became rather serious. "Have you two ever made any strange things happen? Maybe when you were mad, or extremely happy?" He asked.

Alice looked at Jason but his face did not reveal his thoughts. Alice felt invaded. How did this man know? In fact, just the other day Preston had been gloating because he scored a goal on Alice in soccer; one to her twenty-something goals. Alice was really annoyed and as soon as he started dancing, the soccer ball on the ground near him suddenly rolled of its own accord right under his foot. He stepped down as he was dancing, slipped on the ball, and landed flat on his back in the middle of the yard. Alice had died laughing and Preston was too embarrassed to tell anyone about finally scoring a goal on Alice.

"There is a reason for these mysterious things happening when you feel strong emotions. You, Jason, are a wizard! And you, Alice, are a witch!" Flitwick said dramatically.

The room instantly went silent. No one moved or even breathed for a moment as they all stared at each other.

Alice burst into laughter.

"You've got to be joking," she chuckled. This man must be crazy! There were no witches and wizards. Who did he think he was kidding!

Instead of replying, Flitwick pulled a stick of wood out of his coat pocket and waved it in the air. Two letters popped out of thin air and floated gently, guided by Professor Flitwick's wand, to lay on the table; one directly in front of Alice and the other in front of Jason. Alice stared. She then smiled and waved her hands in the air where the letters had popped out of nowhere, searching for strings.

"Nice trick, but I've seen that one before!" she smiled. She continued to search for the strings but she couldn't feel any. Flitwick just sat back in his chair, smiling contently. Alice finally gave up and sat back down defeated. She looked at the letter. In green ink writing the letter was addressed to her.

Miss A. Connen

The room overlooking the backyard

12 Madrik Lane

Dartford

Kent

Alice was shocked to see that her room was on there. "But then again," she thought, "he knows Mrs. Wallace. She probably told him to make me think it was magic." Alice looked over at Jason. He was staring down at his letter in amazement. Alice followed his gaze to his letter. It was addressed similarly only with his name and room.

Mr. J. Connen

The room over the garage

12 Madrik Lane

Dartford

Kent

Alice picked up her letter and inspected it. The envelope was sealed with a wax seal that had imprinted on it a coat of arms, or so it seemed. It was in the shape of a shield with a large and ornate capital "H" that was surrounded by a lion, badger, eagle, and snake.

"Open it," Flitwick smiled. Alice watched him suspiciously and picked up the envelope. She broke the wax seal and pulled out the letter.

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 Miss Connen,

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

Alice looked up at Flitwick and Mrs. Wallace who were both smiling encouragingly.

"You are a witch Alice. You can do magic! You are very talented too, the both of you!" Flitwick squeaked. Alice was silent and Flitwick took that for further disbelief. He raised his wand and pointed it at the dishes in the sink. He flicked his wand and they started washing themselves. Alice stared in open mouthed amazement.

She really wanted to believe what he was telling her. That there was a reason for why she was so strange and why strange things always happened to her and her brother. The problem was that every time she believed in something wonderful, it got taken away and she was left wanting. Jason on the other hand was already latching onto this wonderful idea of magic.

"So this school, it will teach us how to control our powers? And this headmaster, is he good, I mean he's obviously good if he is all these things the letter says but I mean, is he nice? Is he a good headmaster? And what about you? What do you do at Hogwarts?" Jason asked excitedly. Flitwick was only too happy to answer his questions.

"Yes, it will teach you how to use magic and control it. Dumbledore is an amazing headmaster! The greatest Hogwarts has ever had! I teach Charms at Hogwarts and I am Head of Ravenclaw House."

"And what does Charms involve?" Jason asked.

"Well, making things fly, moving objects, spells like Cheering Charms but those aren't until later on," Flitwick replied.

"And what about Minerva McGonagall? What does she do?"

"She teaches Transfiguration which is, essentially, turning one thing into something else. She is also, as the letter says, Deputy Headmistress meaning that should Dumbledore for any reason need to leave, she would act as headmaster. Or headmistress rather. She is also Head of Gryffindor House."

"What are these houses?" Jason asked.

"Hogwarts has four houses; Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. New students are sorted into a house and that becomes, basically like your family at Hogwarts. You have classes with your house, share dormitories and common rooms. You will learn more about the houses at Hogwarts."

By the time Jason was done asking questions it was dinner time and Flitwick had to leave. He walked to the edge of the sidewalk, turned on the spot, and disappeared with a small crack.

Jason couldn't stop talking about their newly discovered destiny and would not shut up about Hogwarts. He kept asking Alice about it, like she knew all about this mysterious place. By the time they went up to bed Jason was deeply rooted in this idea of a magical world. However, Alice went into her room skeptical. She would believe this wild story when she saw the school.


"Alice wake up!"

"No, go away," Alice moaned.

"Come on, Alice! Wake up!"

"No! Let me sleep," Alice groaned as she burrowed deeper under the blankets. The voice was quiet and Alice sighed thankfully. She pulled the blankets tighter around her and began to drift back into sweet sleep. Suddenly the whole bed started shaking. Alice's eyes flared open. She shot up and looked around frantically. "What are you doing?" Alice shouted. Jason stopped shaking the bed and went over to stand next to her.

"Alice, we discovered that we can do magic! You and me, we're wizards! Aren't you excited?" Jason asked.

"I'll be excited to finally get a good night's sleep that's not interrupted by a wizard shaking my bed!" Alice said grumpily.

"Well, come on down for breakfast!" Jason exclaimed, beaming from Alice calling him a wizard. He ran to the door but looked back. "Margo made pancakes! Only they call them something different over here," Jason said and ran downstairs.