I jumped of my horse and led him into the stable. In a few seconds, he was
back in his box and I was on my way up to the house. Mum stood in the door
and she had a phone in her left hand.
"Orlando! It's Jojjan on the line!" she called to her. I knew that Orlando was a very unusual name for a girl, but I'd got used to it and I loved it now. I took the phone and put it up to my ear.
"Orlando! You have no idea what I just got with the mail!" she screamed in to her end and I had to hold the phone an arm from my ear.
"Yeah, Orli, you got a letter with the mail. It looks pretty weird, I thought you should open it." Mum said and reached me an envelope made of what seemed like parchment.
"Jojjan, can you hold for a second. I've got a really weird letter here." I said and read my address from the back of it. It was written in green ink and smelled like an old cigar. I turned it over to see who it was from and saw the red mar with an H on it.
"Is this some kind of joke?" I asked and waved it in front of Mum. I was familiar with the Harry Potter books, and I had them all and that letter looked exactly like the one he got in the book. But Mum seemed to have no idea of what I was talking and looked as serious as always.
"No, it got here just a couple of minutes, but not with the regular mail." she said and folded her arms over her chest.
Now, when there was no one in the house who could been able to put it in the mail I got scared at first, then exited and ripped up the vanilla coloured paper. I took out the paper and dropped the envelope on the ground.
"Orlando Aveda. You have been accepted to Hogwarts' school of witchcraft and wizardry."
I dropped the letter on the floor and looked after a place to sit. I couldn't believe it! I just couldn't believe it! It was real! All the stuff I'd read about, it was real!
"Jojjan?" I said in the phone, which I was still holding in my left hand.
"Orlando, you are not going to believe it! You know the Harry Potter books? It does exist!" she screamed into her end and I felt all my blood rush down to my feet.
"Orlando? You look pale, honey!" Mum said worried and helped me down to a chair.
"Orli! I've been accepted to Hogwarts! And it is a real place!" Jojjan screamed.
"Me too." I said, my mind somewhere else.
"Wow! That's so great!" she screamed and hung up.
"Yeah." I said into the quiet phone and put it on the table next to me. But there was one thing I didn't get. If it now was real, and it was the same stuff as Harry Potter, why wasn't I notified earlier? I was 14 now! In the books, they were 11!
"Mum?" I asked Mum, who now sat down on the chair next to me. She had an even more serious face now.
"You know your father." she began. "He was a wizard," she said like she'd just told me that it was raining. "He was a what?!" I screamed and jumped up from the chair.
"Honey. Calm down, please!" she said, still not sounding like it was a big deal.
"But you? Are you a witch?" I asked and sat back down, trying to take a deep breath.
"No, I'm not. But you are. And your dad was a wizard. When you were five, he ran off and then he told me the truth in a letter.
"So you didn't know it? You didn't know anything?" I asked and picked up the letter and envelope from the ground.
"No, at first I thought he was a junkie or something." she said and shook her head.
"So you can't help me out here?" I asked helpless and began to read the letter again.
"You are going to be on the school train, the Hogwarts express, the 1st September. You are to be informed about which house you are going to be in and you are going to start in the 4th year. Your train ticket and list of supplies are included. We are very sorry that you haven't been contact until this age and we have no excuses whatsoever. We do hope you will accept our invitation. Yours sincerely Professor McGonagall, Deputy headmaster . I picked up the phone and called up Jojjan again.
"Jojjan! Are you serious?" I asked when she had told me everything again.
"Yeah! I'm telling you! Why did you think you weren't aloud in our house? Why did you think I never went to your school?" she said and I had to gasp for air. My best friend was a witch, and had been for three years and both her parents were a witch and wizard.
"But didn't you tell me that you too had been accepted to Hogwarts?" I asked.
"Cause I was told that you were going to be informed next year when we quit, and I weren't aloud to say anything 'till you got your letter! And because everybody get their letters the same day, I knew you also did get yours today!" she said in the same calm voice as Mum.
"But is it all true? I mean does it exist a Harry Potter and all that?" I asked, more exited.
"Yeah! He's in my year! But I'm Hufflepuff and he's, as you know, Gryffindor," she said like it was something you talked about every day.
"But how do I know which house I'm going to be in? I mean, I can't take the hat as the first years!" I said, now excepting this fact more.
"I don't really know. But I hope you're going to Hufflepuff!" she said and I could almost see her in front of me. Her long, blond hair, her blue eyes, pretty big lips and very thin and long body, all dressed in black robes. It wasn't something that was easy for me, but I succeeded pretty well. It was easier for me. I was always dressed in black, had black hair almost to my shoulders and was very pale. Mum was worried about my health she told me, but I didn't really get why.
"Orli, you know that it's only a week until the semester starts, right? I haven't got my stuff yet, we're going tomorrow! Can't you come too? Please, pretty please!" she begged over the line and I laughed.
"Sure, but I don't have any money." I said, just remembering the fact that I didn't have any money at all. Not muggle money, nor wizard money.
"I'm not sure about that." she said mysteriously. "I'll pick you up tomorrow at ten!" she said and hung up again.
I sat still without moving a muscle. I was trying to make sense of all my feelings. I wasn't angry, I wasn't surprised, I had always thought that it was a real place but just weren't there. I wasn't angry with Jojjan, cause I thought that they didn't know that I was a witch until now. The only feeling I was sure of was that I was happy. I'd finally got it all sorted out, I was a witch, and that was something I had been hoping for more then two years, and my favourite books were true! Slowly I looked at my watch. 22.30. I had been riding for almost five hours.
"Wait! If I'm going to Hogwarts, who's going to take care of Leo?!" I asked helplessly. He was all I had.
"I can take care of him. Don't you worry. I talked to Jojjan's parents a couple of days ago and we all thought it was best if you lived there for the next week and got familiar to witches and wizards," she said and I wasn't at all sad cause it sounded like she wanted me out of the house. I was rather a relief to get out of the house and be with my best friend instead.
"But what are we going to do with all my things that I'm going to bring?" I asked.
"What things are you going to bring? You have a bed and a desk and like ten books! You wont need any of that! You can buy everything you need in Diagon Ally," she said and got her serious face again.
"What now?" I asked bored out of my guts. I didn't want her to bring down my good mood.
"You didn't know this because. Well. Okay. I'm going to say it as quick and painless as it can be. Your father was. Rich," she said and I didn't really know why in the world that would be painful.
"Okay? But isn't that great?" I asked wondering if there was any strings attached.
"Well, yeah. I just thought you might be angry with me cause we have to live in this shitty house." she said and threw her arms out, knocking down a lamp and a vase, both smashed to the floor.
"No way! I love this house!" I said quickly. Maybe a bit too quickly cause I had to admit that the place was a dump.
"Okay, honey. You need to go and get some sleep now, they'll be here early in the morning.
"Orlando! It's Jojjan on the line!" she called to her. I knew that Orlando was a very unusual name for a girl, but I'd got used to it and I loved it now. I took the phone and put it up to my ear.
"Orlando! You have no idea what I just got with the mail!" she screamed in to her end and I had to hold the phone an arm from my ear.
"Yeah, Orli, you got a letter with the mail. It looks pretty weird, I thought you should open it." Mum said and reached me an envelope made of what seemed like parchment.
"Jojjan, can you hold for a second. I've got a really weird letter here." I said and read my address from the back of it. It was written in green ink and smelled like an old cigar. I turned it over to see who it was from and saw the red mar with an H on it.
"Is this some kind of joke?" I asked and waved it in front of Mum. I was familiar with the Harry Potter books, and I had them all and that letter looked exactly like the one he got in the book. But Mum seemed to have no idea of what I was talking and looked as serious as always.
"No, it got here just a couple of minutes, but not with the regular mail." she said and folded her arms over her chest.
Now, when there was no one in the house who could been able to put it in the mail I got scared at first, then exited and ripped up the vanilla coloured paper. I took out the paper and dropped the envelope on the ground.
"Orlando Aveda. You have been accepted to Hogwarts' school of witchcraft and wizardry."
I dropped the letter on the floor and looked after a place to sit. I couldn't believe it! I just couldn't believe it! It was real! All the stuff I'd read about, it was real!
"Jojjan?" I said in the phone, which I was still holding in my left hand.
"Orlando, you are not going to believe it! You know the Harry Potter books? It does exist!" she screamed into her end and I felt all my blood rush down to my feet.
"Orlando? You look pale, honey!" Mum said worried and helped me down to a chair.
"Orli! I've been accepted to Hogwarts! And it is a real place!" Jojjan screamed.
"Me too." I said, my mind somewhere else.
"Wow! That's so great!" she screamed and hung up.
"Yeah." I said into the quiet phone and put it on the table next to me. But there was one thing I didn't get. If it now was real, and it was the same stuff as Harry Potter, why wasn't I notified earlier? I was 14 now! In the books, they were 11!
"Mum?" I asked Mum, who now sat down on the chair next to me. She had an even more serious face now.
"You know your father." she began. "He was a wizard," she said like she'd just told me that it was raining. "He was a what?!" I screamed and jumped up from the chair.
"Honey. Calm down, please!" she said, still not sounding like it was a big deal.
"But you? Are you a witch?" I asked and sat back down, trying to take a deep breath.
"No, I'm not. But you are. And your dad was a wizard. When you were five, he ran off and then he told me the truth in a letter.
"So you didn't know it? You didn't know anything?" I asked and picked up the letter and envelope from the ground.
"No, at first I thought he was a junkie or something." she said and shook her head.
"So you can't help me out here?" I asked helpless and began to read the letter again.
"You are going to be on the school train, the Hogwarts express, the 1st September. You are to be informed about which house you are going to be in and you are going to start in the 4th year. Your train ticket and list of supplies are included. We are very sorry that you haven't been contact until this age and we have no excuses whatsoever. We do hope you will accept our invitation. Yours sincerely Professor McGonagall, Deputy headmaster . I picked up the phone and called up Jojjan again.
"Jojjan! Are you serious?" I asked when she had told me everything again.
"Yeah! I'm telling you! Why did you think you weren't aloud in our house? Why did you think I never went to your school?" she said and I had to gasp for air. My best friend was a witch, and had been for three years and both her parents were a witch and wizard.
"But didn't you tell me that you too had been accepted to Hogwarts?" I asked.
"Cause I was told that you were going to be informed next year when we quit, and I weren't aloud to say anything 'till you got your letter! And because everybody get their letters the same day, I knew you also did get yours today!" she said in the same calm voice as Mum.
"But is it all true? I mean does it exist a Harry Potter and all that?" I asked, more exited.
"Yeah! He's in my year! But I'm Hufflepuff and he's, as you know, Gryffindor," she said like it was something you talked about every day.
"But how do I know which house I'm going to be in? I mean, I can't take the hat as the first years!" I said, now excepting this fact more.
"I don't really know. But I hope you're going to Hufflepuff!" she said and I could almost see her in front of me. Her long, blond hair, her blue eyes, pretty big lips and very thin and long body, all dressed in black robes. It wasn't something that was easy for me, but I succeeded pretty well. It was easier for me. I was always dressed in black, had black hair almost to my shoulders and was very pale. Mum was worried about my health she told me, but I didn't really get why.
"Orli, you know that it's only a week until the semester starts, right? I haven't got my stuff yet, we're going tomorrow! Can't you come too? Please, pretty please!" she begged over the line and I laughed.
"Sure, but I don't have any money." I said, just remembering the fact that I didn't have any money at all. Not muggle money, nor wizard money.
"I'm not sure about that." she said mysteriously. "I'll pick you up tomorrow at ten!" she said and hung up again.
I sat still without moving a muscle. I was trying to make sense of all my feelings. I wasn't angry, I wasn't surprised, I had always thought that it was a real place but just weren't there. I wasn't angry with Jojjan, cause I thought that they didn't know that I was a witch until now. The only feeling I was sure of was that I was happy. I'd finally got it all sorted out, I was a witch, and that was something I had been hoping for more then two years, and my favourite books were true! Slowly I looked at my watch. 22.30. I had been riding for almost five hours.
"Wait! If I'm going to Hogwarts, who's going to take care of Leo?!" I asked helplessly. He was all I had.
"I can take care of him. Don't you worry. I talked to Jojjan's parents a couple of days ago and we all thought it was best if you lived there for the next week and got familiar to witches and wizards," she said and I wasn't at all sad cause it sounded like she wanted me out of the house. I was rather a relief to get out of the house and be with my best friend instead.
"But what are we going to do with all my things that I'm going to bring?" I asked.
"What things are you going to bring? You have a bed and a desk and like ten books! You wont need any of that! You can buy everything you need in Diagon Ally," she said and got her serious face again.
"What now?" I asked bored out of my guts. I didn't want her to bring down my good mood.
"You didn't know this because. Well. Okay. I'm going to say it as quick and painless as it can be. Your father was. Rich," she said and I didn't really know why in the world that would be painful.
"Okay? But isn't that great?" I asked wondering if there was any strings attached.
"Well, yeah. I just thought you might be angry with me cause we have to live in this shitty house." she said and threw her arms out, knocking down a lamp and a vase, both smashed to the floor.
"No way! I love this house!" I said quickly. Maybe a bit too quickly cause I had to admit that the place was a dump.
"Okay, honey. You need to go and get some sleep now, they'll be here early in the morning.