BEEEEEEEEEEEP! The last school bell rang. Alena Reyes jumped up and hurried out of the school building. Free at last!
She caught the bus home. It floated dreamily over the streets to her stop. She got off and skipped down the street to her house.
When she got home, she set her backpack down in its usual place in her room, sat down in her favorite chair and smiled contentedly. Then she turned her chair towards her computer and turned it on. She did this every day, but today, she knew she could stay up as late as she wanted, chatting with people, playing games or whatever.
"Hello, Alena," said the computer. "You have mail."
Alena nodded. "Show me."
There were three pieces of mail. The first was her report card; this she sent on to her mom at work. The second was an invitation from a friend to go to the mall on Saturday, which Alena accepted.
The third was very unusual. It was typed in emerald green - the color of Alena's eyes - on a yellowish-tan background.
Hogwarts Technical Institute
Headmaster - Edward Draconis
Dear Miss Reyes:
We are pleased to inform you that you
have been accepted at Hogwarts Technical Institute. Please find attached
a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins September 1. We await
your reply by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely,
Prof. E. McConnell
Deputy Headmistress
Alena was stunned. What an opportunity! One of the world's best tech schools had accepted her! But - geeky private school? Boarding school? When she had only turned 11 a month ago?
Suddenly, something flashed into existence on her computer screen. Her mom had initiated a chat.
MrsReyes474> Welcome home, Alena.
CatGirl> Hi, Mom. I just got an email.
It says I've been accepted to Hogwarts Technical Institute. At
that moment, Alena was still too stunned and confused to state her feelings
about this.
MrsReyes474> Surprise, honey! You have
been
accepted. We signed you up when you were very young.
CatGirl> ...like...wow....
MrsReyes474> You must have a lot of questions.
Go ahead, pick one.
CatGirl> Okay... Me? An 11-year-old girl going
to geeky private school that far away?
MrsReyes474> First of all, don't think of
it as geeky, think of it as an honor. You know about Hogwarts' reputation,
right?
CatGirl> I know it's a good school - just
about everyone who goes there ends up successful. And I know it's
big, and old, and creepy.
MrsReyes474> I agree with everything except
"creepy." It is certainly big and old - the castle it's in was built
over 1200 years ago, and they say it's really a wonderful, majestic sight
when you come to it. And it is the school where good people go to
become even better. I know you're good enough; so do your
teachers.
CatGirl> [flattered] Good enough? Really?
MrsReyes474> I'm looking at your report card
right now, dear, and it's hardly a surprise they accepted you. So,
do you want to go there now?
CatGirl> Yes. I'll go. Do I reply to the letter?
MrsReyes474> Let's reply together. You start
typing, and tell me what you're saying. I'll tell you what to put
in.
CatGirl> Okay. "Dear Hogwarts Technical Institute:
I accept. It would be an honor to attend your fine school."
MrsReyes474> Very good. Add, "My parents have
agreed to this."
CatGirl> "My parents have agreed to this.
I will see you on September 1st. Sincerely, Alena Reyes CatGirl@onlineworld.net>."
MrsReyes474> Very nice. Send it. And congratulations!
CatGirl> Thanks. xoxoxo
MrsReyes474> xoxoxo
The chat ended. Alena decided to look at the supply list.
Hogwarts Technical Institute
Uniform
First-year students will require:
1. Three sets of plain work jumpsuits
(black)
2. One plain tech-helmet (black) for day
wear
3. One pair of protective gloves (Naugahyde
or similar)
4. One winter coat
Please note that all students' clothes
should carry name tags
Textbooks
All students should have a non-electronic
copy
of each of the following:
The Standard Book of QUIRL, Grade 1
A History of Electronics
Astronomical Theory
A Beginner's Guide to Transinformation
1000 Digital Codes and Terms
Viruses: A Guide to Self-Protection
Fantastic Ways to Get Things Done
Other Equipment
1 datapad
1 microscope
1 brass telescope
Students may also bring a small pet,
either real or artificial
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN HOVERERS
That is a lot of textbooks, Alena thought. And why nonelectronic ones? Well, I can pick them up at the mall on Saturday, I hope . . . She started another chat to ask her friend, Nori Shishodo.
CatGirl> Hey, Nori, you on?
Butterfly43> Yeah. So we're on for Saturday?
CatGirl> Yes, that's what I wanted to talk
about. The most amazing thing just happened to me. I've been
accepted to Hogwarts Tech.
Butterfly43> WHOA! Seriously?
CatGirl> Yes! Here, I'm sending you
my acceptance letter . . .
Butterfly43> "We are pleased to inform you
. . ." That's wonderful, Alena! You are so lucky!
CatGirl> :-) And I have to buy a whole bunch
of textbooks and a uniform and stuff. I can get it all on Saturday,
right?
Butterfly43> Of course! Is 10:00 at
the fountain all right?
CatGirl> Sure. See you there!
*******
The mall was shaped something like a six-petaled flower, and the fountain was right in the center, in a glass-roofed plaza. Alena and Nori met there on Saturday, and hugged.
"Where to first?" asked Nori.
Alena considered. "Kinmo's."
Kinmo's was a clothing store specializing in work and sport clothes; Alena hadn't shopped there too often before. She went in and showed the attendants printouts of her Hogwarts acceptance letter and supply list. They congratulated her and started fitting her for the jumpsuits.
She stood on a stool to be fitted, and on the stool next to her was a sullen-looking blond boy.
"Hi," said the boy. "Hogwarts, too?"
"Yes," said Alena. "I'm Alena Reyes."
"Elric Cromley. Know what team you'll be on?"
"No." What did that mean?
"Well, you won't until you get there, of course, but I'll probably be on the Green team, like all my family - imagine being on the Yellow team, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?"
"Mmmmm."
"I don't suppose you've had anyone else in your family at Hogwarts?"
"No."
"Hmph."
"That's you done, dear," said one of the attendants to Alena. She gathered her purchases, paid, and left, glad to get away from Elric.
In the next half-hour or so, she bought her seven textbooks (finding nonelectronic ones took some effort), her microscope, and her telescope. She already had a pet at home, a cat named Zed. That left one thing - the datapad.
A bell rang somewhere in the back of the shop as Alena entered. A little old bald man with glasses appeared and came forward.
"May I help you?" he asked.
"I - I'm Alena Reyes," said Alena in a sudden inexplicable attack of shyness. "I need a datapad for Hogwarts Tech."
"You do? Congratulations!" he said. "I'm Mr. Saunders. Please, come over here. Are you right- or left-handed?"
"Right."
"All right, then..." He took a flat box down from a shelf. "The way this works is, you try out datapads until you find one you like. They come in all different colors and styles, but they all have the same capabilities. Here, try this one."
Alena opened the box, which had "Style: Driftwood" printed on the lid. Inside was a brown-and-tan datapad.
"No, not me," said Alena.
Mr. Saunders took the datapad and its box and placed them on a chair. "Here, maybe this one."
This one said "Style: Vanilla" on the box. The datapad inside was all white. "No, too boring."
Alena was immediately given another box: "Style: Midnight." This datapad was black with small silver spots. "No, too dark."
This went on for over ten minutes. As the stack of rejected datapads mounted higher, Mr. Saunders got more and more excited, and Nori, looking on, was not entirely bored.
"Tricky customer, eh?" said Mr. Saunders. "Well, here . . . this is an unusual one, you might like it . . ."
This style was called "Brave One." It was a beautiful red with shining metallic gold accents. Cool! "It's perfect," said Alena. "I want this one."
"Great!" said Mr. Saunders, leading her over to the cash register.
*******
That evening, Alena came home to find that her train ticket for Hogwarts had arrived by email. She printed them and showed them to her family at dinner.
"I got my train ticket!" Alena exclaimed happily as she sat down. "On September first," she read off the ticket, "I take the 11:00 train from . . . hmm, Hogwarts has its own station north of London . . ."
"You used to get on the train for Hogwarts from a platform at King's Cross," her mom explained, "but no one uses it anymore. Apparently, the gate's broken and you can't get in, or something . . . it's really rather mysterious."
"How odd," mused Alena.
"But how wonderful!" interjected Alena's father. "You've never been on a regular train before, have you?"
"Regular?"
"Meaning, on the ground. The Hogwarts one is, because the track was already there and in good condition, so why bother putting in a monorail track, huh?"
"Well, yes, it will be a new experience, but won't it take longer to get there that way?"
"Probably, but, that's no big deal. What you'll find at the end of the trip is well worth the wait."
"Right." She smiled.
*******
The rest of the summer passed in a joyful blur. Alena spent most of her time doing all the things she wouldn't be able to do at Hogwarts, like visiting her friends and going to the local amusement park. The night of August 31, she was up late packing her things, too excited to sleep.
The next morning, Alena's parents dropped her off at the station at 10:40. She had her suitcase, plus a carrier containing her cat, Zed. The station was very small, only semi-modern, and bustling with students and their families. There was only one platform, which you could only get to by way of an inconvenient, annoying weapons detector.
While in the crowd on the platform, Alena overheard:
"I can't believe it - my little girl -"
She looked in the direction of the voice. A woman was talking to her four children, who had red hair like hers. The woman was saying goodbye to all of them, but particularly to a girl who looked about Alena's age.
"My fourth and last child at Hogwarts," the mother continued. "Enjoy yourself, Miya. Study hard. Write. I'll miss you all."
"Bye, Mom," chorused the children. They, and Alena, joined the throng moving onto the train. Alena found a seat next to the girl who had been addressed as Miya.
"New to Hogwarts?" the girl asked Alena.
"Yes," Alena answered, "and I can hardly wait. I got my acceptance letter back in June - it was a complete surprise, but it was really cool."
"Lucky you. I'm the fourth in my family to go to Hogwarts - my three brothers go there, too. I sort of know what to expect, because I've heard it all from them. Want me to tell you, or do you want to wait to find out?"
"I want to wait. My name's Alena Reyes. What's yours?"
"Miyana Hease, but my family calls me Miya, so, whichever."
"And you're in your first year too?"
"That's right."
At that moment, the train began to move. Alena couldn't help smiling. They were on their way to Hogwarts! Their great journey was beginning!
To Be Continued . . .
Disclaimer: All characters in this part belong to me. Hogwarts
and anything else it is possible to recognize as coming from the Harry
Potter books belong to J.K. Rowling and the two publishing companies.
No copyright infringement is intended; I write because it's fun.
:-)