Esmeralda smiled and watched quietly as the other children ran around the field. I turned back to the dying embers in front of me. The orphanage had taken all of us to the forest as a field trip for good behaviour. I was entranced by the glow of the dampening flames. For some reason I was drawn to touch them. I reached my hand out and gasped as something happened. The flames seemed to dance on my palm as I watched. I saw the flames mysteriously make a shape. A heart.
My guardian shrieked in terror when she saw my hand, bathed in the glow of the flames in my hand. I immediantly shook away the fire from my hand and it vanished. It had happened again. For the past month, strange occurrences were happening to me. I was bewildered by what had happened. All of the children were afraid to come near me. Before I could question it more, an owl flew above me and dropped a letter at my feet. I picked it up as my caretaker stared at me in wonder and fear. The children had all retreated behind her, looking at me as if I were a beast, ready to hurt them.
I tore the letter open and read the page silently.
Dear Miss Esmeralda,
It is a pleasure to inform you that you will be attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,
Be ready to attend in two days,
We will be sending someone to help you get the supplies you need tomorrow,
I'm looking foreward to meeting you,
From, Headmaster Dumbledore.
I looked up from the paper, looking shocked. A magic school? There must be some mistake... I don't have magic. Her mind quickly corrected her.
"You do have magic! You just did magic!"
My caretaker took the paper gently and scimmed over the page. She dropped her hands to the side and stared at me blankly. The bus came to get us and she ushered us into it. I looked out the window, smiling excitedly. I was a wizard! Or witch, in proper terms. I gazed out the window, feeing anxious for tomorrow.
I waited outside the orphanage with my small suitcase, with Miss Windfield standing next to me. She was the head of the orphanage, so she wanted to be the one to send me off. We soon saw something flying towards us, hurtling towards the ground. The figure landing easily and I was amazed immediantly. The figure was a woman, in her later years as it seemed, wearing a pointy witch hat and green robes. I smiled politely at the woman.
"Hello"
She smiled back at me, looking tenderly into my eyes.
"Hello to you as well! And you must be Miss Esmeralda, correct?"
I nodded. Miss Windfield went up and talked quietly with the woman while I let my mind wander. I reached down to the only thing I had left of my parents. A necklace, with a silver chain and a golden heart locket at the center. I wasn't able to open the locket, something preventing me from doing so. The two women were done talking and Miss Windfield came over and hugged me goodbye.
"Esmeralda, I just wanted to tell you that, although I loved you being here, you won't be returning..."
I pulled back from her in shock and confusion.
"The nice people at Hogwarts agreed that they will let you stay there yearlong, so you won't technically be an orphan anymore"
I felt both happy and sad at the same time. I let a few tears fall before hugging her again. She held me tightly before passing me over to the older woman. I waved goodbye as Miss Windfield walked back inside, tears shining in her eyes. I looked up at the woman and watched her confusingly as she stopped a few feet away from where we once stood. She knelt down and grabbed my hand.
"Esmeralda, I need you to close your eyes."
I obeyed, trusting this woman immediantly for some unknown reason. I felt the scenery around us shift and I was begging to open my eyes, but remembered being told not to. After the shifting stopped, I felt slightly dizzy and leaned into the woman for support.
"It's ok, that always happens the first time you air travel."
I looked at the woman, but didn't question it. I took in my surroundings and smiled brightly at the place before me. We were in London. The streets were bustled with life. I realized I didn't ask the lady her name. If I was going with her, I would need to know her name.
"Um... Excuse me, miss, but what's your name?"
She looked down at me and grinned.
"My name is Professor Mcgonagall"
I smiled and held her hand tightly.
"That's a nice name"
Professor Mcgonagall smiled slightly and keep walking. We came to be in a bar that seemed to be ancient. I smiled at everyone who looked at us to be polite. Some smiled back while others simply nodded. Professor McGonagall took me to the back, only for us to be in front of a brick wall. She let go of my hand and tapped a few bricks with her wand. The bricks moved away to reveal a more bustled street, filled with witches and wizards alike. I walked with Professor McGonagall in awe. She took me to the bank, called Gringotts, and asked me to wait on the steps. I sat there quietly, thinking how happy I was to be here.
I heard something call to me from above and looked up. I saw a beautiful barn owl overhead. The bird looked down at me and started to float down towards me. It landed a few feet away from me, tilting its head. I looked at the bird more closely and realized it looked hungry. I reached into my bag and grabbed the sandwich I had packed for the trip. I took some of the crust off and held it out to the little owl. It came a step closer, but stopped in caution.
"Don't be scared, little one, its for you"
It seemed to relax and came to grab it gently from my hand. It ate it heartily and looked at me pleadingly. I smiled tenderly and put the whole sandwich at my feet. The owl didn't hesitate this time and grabbed the sandwich greedily. It was close enough now that I could pet it. I slowly reached my hand out to it. It looked up from its food, half eaten, and gazed at my hand. I waited patiently for a response. Instead of nudging my hand, it lightly flapped its wings and landed on my shoulder. I smiled and scratched it under her gizzard. I looked at her features and could tell it was a female. She seemed to be enjoying the attention immensely. I stroked her feathers gently and grinned. The birds features also showed that she hadn't eaten in days. I frowned at this. I smiled again as an idea came to mind.
"Little one, do you want to be my pet? I'll take care of you and feed you to your hearts content, and you won't be alone anymore."
The bird looked up and tilted her head again. She then nuzzled my neck, and I took that as a yes. I heard footsteps behind me and stood up, the bird still on my shoulder. I thought of a name for her immediately before Professor McGonagall came into view.
"I'll name you Sirena..."
Professor McGonagall came out and looked down at me with a shocked expression. I smiled and stroked Sirena's feathers.
"Professor, would it be alright if I kept Sirena? I fed the poor bird because she looked hungry and I would really love to keep her if that's alright with you?"
She seemed to consider this for a moment and sighed.
"Owls are fortunately something you can have at Hogwarts and its alright with me that you keep her."
I smiled and went to hug her but thought better of it.
"Thank you, Professor."
She took my hand again and walked towards the market.
We had gotten everything I needed, except for a wand. It was the only thing left, so we headed to the shop called "Olivanders Wands". When we got inside, no one seemed to be there. We soon heard racket coming from the hall, and soon an elderly man came out of hiding.
"Oh! Good afternoon to you, Professor McGonagall. To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you?"
She knelt down and held my shoulders. For some reason, I felt safe with her hands on me.
"I'm here to help Miss Esmeralda to get a wand, Olivander"
He smiled and looked gently at me.
"Well then, let's get started!"
He ran to a shelf and pushed aside the wand boxes. He pulled one from the back and wiped the dust and grime off of it. He smiled and gave me the box.
"Alright young miss, try this one"
I pulled the cover off and pulled out the 11' inch birch wand. I looked at them in confusion. Mr. Olivander made a waving motion with a hand and I understood. I waved the wand and it blew a hole into the side of a wooden shelf. I jumped back in fear.
"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry, Mr. Olivander! I-I-I didn't-"
He shushed me politely and chuckled at my reaction.
"It's alright, Miss Esmeralda, it happens all the time"
I looked up at him in shock. He mumbled to himself, contemplating which wand to try next.
"Maybe you'll do better with pegasus wing, rather then unicorn hair..."
He walked to the back of the shop and I began to look around. Professor Mcgonagall had taken a seat, waiting for Olivander to return. I walked down one of the halls and heard a pounding sound coming from my right. I turned to see a box slightly vibrating behind some jumbled ones. I pushed them aside and grabbed the box carefully. Curious as to what the pounding was, I opened it slowly. I saw a 10' inch willow wand, the wood finely polished and it looked beautiful. I walked back to the entrance, still looking at the beautiful wand in my hand. Professor McGonagall saw me and looked at the wand in my hand.
"Where did you find that, Esmeralda?"
Without looking at her, I stared at the wand curiously.
"I found it in that shelf, while it was pounding like a heartbeat in the box, but it stopped when I picked it up."
She smiled and held out her hand.
"May I?"
I gave her the wand and it started to pound again. She examined it closely and returned it after a few moments of gazing at it.
"Olivander!"
She called him politely and he came rushing in.
"Yes? What is, McGonagall?"
She proudly held my shoulders again as she spoke. The feeling of security again coming to me.
"She's found her wand"
He looked at me, grinning amusingly. He reached for the wand and I gave it to him, not wanting to be possessive of it. He looked at it far longer then McGonagall had, and smiled faintly when he had finished.
"A very good fit for you, Miss Esmeralda. This wand seems to acknowledge your promise for success!"
I smiled and accepted the wand back. Professor McGonagall and I said our goodbyes and headed to the inn, "The Leaky Cauldron". When we got inside, the place had only a few people in it, odd considering school was going to be tomorrow. Professor McGonagall asked the nice lady at the desk for a room and I realized we had to stay the night here.
When we got upstairs to our room, Professor McGonagall went to change into her night clothes. There were two beds in the room; one for me, one for her. I got changed into my nightgown and went to my bed to lie down. I sat up and gently pulled out my locket and was close to letting the tears fall, as I did every night when I looked at it, when I heard the door of the bathroom open. I put the treasured object back in my shirt and placed my hands in my lap. I looked down so she didn't see my eyes ready to bear tears. I felt her finger under my chin and resisted to lift my head at first but gave in after a minute. She looked worried for me. I let an enemy tear escape my eye and she wiped it away with a quick swipe of her gentle fingers.
"What's wrong, Esmeralda?"
I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, but sighed and looked at her, pain so evident in my eyes.
"I never knew my parents... It upsets me that they gave me up, and I never knew why."
I lifted the locket out and showed her. She gazed at it with a strange look in her eye.
"Miss Windfield said I had this around my neck when I was given to them by a woman, concealed in black"
Professor McGonagall still looked at the trinket in inner confusion. She looked up at me and gazed at me sadly. Before I knew it, she hugged me. I released all of my tears, staining her sleeping gown with my pain. It took me a few minutes to calm down, then Professor McGonagall let go and smiled, holding her hand on my shoulder.
"Get some sleep, Esmeralda. We have a big day tomorrow."
I nodded. Before she could leave my side, I hugged her neck in gratitude.
"Thank you. I'm glad I was able to tell somebody finally."
She smiled and returned the hug. She tucked me in and kissed my foreward before I drifted to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be very interesting, that much I knew, before I was claimed by the land of slumber...
