New school, new house, new everything. Why does this always happen to me? Sighing, Sera began the dull task of unpacking her few belongings and trying to settle into another new life. The girl had just turned fourteen.
"Six families and not one of them working out." The school marm from the orphanage was saying. "I'm afraid this may be her last stop." Nodding at the newly appointed foster parents, she minced properly to her car and began her journey back to the home and all of the other children she watched over. Hurrying from the stairs where she had been hiding so she could eavesdrop, the girl did her best to look as if she had not just been listening.
"I know you heard every word so stop pretending please." A voice said from behind her, a voice she recognized as being downstairs just a moment ago. "how did you get behind me?" she asked.
"Never mind all that. You know as well as I how I got here. You must have learned it sometime during your third year I think." Seeing her rather vacant look he decided to clarify. "I apparated, ring any bells yet?" still vacant. He was getting tired of this rather quickly. "are you not Sera Davis?"
"Yes." Came the muted reply. "then you must know by now that your foster mother and I are magic." He said grinning like he had just told the greatest news. "When are you leaving?" he asked.
"Leave? You want me to leave? Was this all a joke or something?"
"Of course not dear, we'd like you to stay as long as you wish. Now before I take this man off your hands I have just one question. Have you ever been to Hogwarts?" the woman asked entering into the conversation.
"Hog-what?" at the adults glanced at each other and left the room by the door this time. "do we have the wrong girl?" the man inquired of his wife. "No, I could sense that magic signature anywhere. "She's not lying. She had no idea what I was talking about."
"How could this have happened? Hogwarts has never missed a child. Dumbledor is not doing to be happy to hear this. Maybe it was all the moving around or maybe she had to be in a real home. Either way, we have got to her into that school right away."
"Sera?" the man called, "please come down here, there's somebody we'd like you to meet." Coming down the stairs the first thing the girl saw was an old man standing in the center of the room. His white beard nearly touched the carped where he stood.
"Sir, this is the girl we told you about We took her from the hostel so she could have a safe place to come and live on vacations and perhaps beyond, but it seems she has never been to hogwarts and she should be entering into her fourth year."
"You are correct." The old man said turning to smile at the girl. "What is your name child?"
"Sera, sir, why do you ask?""Sera, do you know what you are?""Um, a human sir?" "Do strange things ever happen around you? Like when you're mad?" "Only once, sir." "What happened? You can tell us."
"ikilledmybestfriend." She muttered. "could you maybe repeat that a little slower and perhaps a bit louder?" the man asked. "I killed my best friend." She said staring around herself like she was about to be punished. "How?" the old man asked, sinking into a chair. "Well, I was really mad at him and I was yelling and saying that I wouldn't be his friend any more and he was yelling back, you, the typical childish argument. Well I made this weird noise and the next thing I knew my friend was screaming. Turning, I ran to his side and said I was sorry for whatever I had done. He forgave me just before he died right there in my arms. Only when I laid him down did I see the bit marks and the huge snake laying by his feet. I don't know how, but I know I made that snake bite him. I know it's my fault he's dead. I promised myself I would never do anything like that again. The last thing I can remember from that day is a blinding flash of light."
"Thank you for telling me all of this. It may help me to find out why we did not find you before all this. I think you bound your magic that day and that is why we did not sense you until now. As to the snake, there is only one way to solve that riddle and that is at my school. My name is Dumbledor and I am the headmaster at a boarding school for children like yourself. If you had gotten your letter at the correct time you would be entering your fourth year there. I am sure we can work something out that can keep you with your age group. Handing her a letter with a seal that had the words Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry written on it, he promptly turned on the spot and disappeared with a pop. That was all the proof Sera needed.
"I'm really a witch?" "You sure are.." her foster parents replied in unison. "Why don't you look over that letter and we'll go shopping tomorrow." Tina, her new mother asked. "Ok." The girl shouted from the top of the stairs.
The next morning, Sera came down to breakfast with her eyes half closed. "Rough night?" Ben, her new father asked. "No, sir, just excited. But mother, I have no idea what half of this stuff is. Never mind where to find it." She said holding up her list of school supplies. "Don't worry about that dear. I'll be coming with you. You'll be amazed what you can buy where we're going."
Talk about an understatement. You could buy anything there. Tina wouldn't tell her how they were getting into a place ordinary people couldn't go. All she kept saying was. "you'll see." Sera had heard that enough this one morning to be driven mad. That is until she "saw". Talk about colorful. Most of the children wore black, but all the adults were wearing colorful robes and hats. The square where they entered was literally filled with people.
"Right, first let's get you some robes." Her mother said taking her hand and leading the way to the first store on the list. Madam Malkin was a kind, rotund lady with what seemed to be a permanent smile adorning her features.
"My daughter would like to purchase some school robes if you please." Tina stated as the lady came out from behind her counter. "Of course she would dear." The lady said in a surprisingly sweet voice. "If you'll just step up on this stool I'll have you done in a jiffy." Rolling up her sleeves the woman removed a measuring tape and some pins and set to work.
"Okay, two more left." Tina said as they left the potions store. As they entered Ollivander's wand shop, a little old man appeared from behind a shelf of small boxes. "How may I help you?" the man asked. "We're here for my daughter's first wand." "First" at this age?" "Yes, any more questions?" "No, mum, now lets get to work." He mumbled the last as he wove to the back of the store.
"Here, 12 inches hickory with unicorn tail and owl feather. Good for charms and divination." Taking it, the girl held it for a moment then promptly dropped it after hearing an explosion in the back room. "Okay, how about this one. 14 inches blood oak with poison from a basilisk's fang and a phoenix feather dipped in it's own blood freely given." Handing her the wand he stepped back quickly. This was a great risk. That wand had nearly destroyed his entire shop the last time it rejected someone, but something was telling him she was the one. So he dried it again.
As she held the handle of the blood-red wand, the end shot out black and silver sparks and she felt a slight warmth in her hand and through her entire body. She knew and the wand-maker knew, that this was the one for her.
"This wand is perfect for use in almost everything. Particularly dueling, transfiguration and the dark arts." As the woman and girl exited the shop the man sighed, "I hope that girl is all right. She must be very powerful to master a wand like that having had no prior magical experience." He thought.
"Last stop!" her mother said brightly as they stood in front of the magical creature and familiar shot. "I get to have a pet?" "Yes, but choose carefully. You may choose an owl and any other animal of your choice. Meet me back here with your choices in half an hour." Leaving her mother by the door, Sera looked around at all the animals and looked into all the cages. There was everything from squirrels to, well they had everything there.
Seeing all she had to choose from she went straight to the desk in the center of the shop. "Excuse me, but I would like help in finding which two animals I should buy today." "What are you looking for?" the clerk asked. "Well, an owl, that's for sure and I'm not sure what the other should be.
"Have you seen our selection? The clerk asked gesturing towards the front display. "Yeah, um, have you got anything a bit less cuddly?" "I'll show you. Why don't we look at the birds first?" Going into the back part of the store, Sera saw a lot of cool looking creatures in cages along the walls. Following the woman to the far end of the isle, she saw a ton of different birds. Pointing towards a large jet-black one she stepped back when the edges of its wing feathers seemed to sharpen into silver blades until it's wings could cut through anything. A moment later, a silver owl was sitting where she was pointing.
"That's a storm flyer. The black is when they are relaxed or calm and they can harden their wings at will until their edges can cut through anything. The silver is when they are mad or uncomfortable. That is when all of their feathers are like knife blades. Usually they will have their wing and tail edges sharp. They are very loyal and love and trust their owners, but rarely anyone else." "Is he for sale?" Sera asked hopefully. "yes." "I'll take him. Great, I hope he liked me." She added as an afterthought.
"Are there any other animals you'd like to see?" asked the clerk. "You have any snakes?" the girl asked on a whim. The clerk turned leading the way to a corner where cages of snakes were stacked one on top of the other. A bell rang in the front and the clerk had to go take care of a customer. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Feel free to look around just don't touch anything. Some of these snakes are really dangerous."
After the clerk left, Sera looked around herself. "Hello?" she asked. "Hello misstresss." Hissing voice replied. "Are you to be my familiar?" "Yess i amm." "Which cage are you in so I can tell the clerk?" "twenty three. Jusst tell her you want the black mamba misstresss. Sshe iss coming. Do not let her ssee you talking to me."
"How ya doing? Picked one out yet?" the clerk said coming up beside Sera. "Yes, I think I have. Could I please see the black mamba in cage 23?" "Sure. He's a magnificent creature. Would you like to hold him?" He's poisonous, but I think he likes you." Said snake had pressed itself against the side of its cage and was flicking it's tongue out one of the little holes. Once he was removed, he wove himself around her arm and up to her shoulder so it could speak into her ear. "Do not ssay anything, but lissten to me. I am your familiar, I and the flyer will alwayss protect you."
"Yes, he is beautiful. I'll take him and the storm flyer." The clerk put the snake back in his cage and handed him to Sera who left with the snake and flyer. "Will that be all?" the clerk asked after Tina had paid for the two beautiful animals. "Yes, and thank you for your help."
The next day they visited Dumbledor and came up with a plan. During the school year, Sera would have nightly meetings with the headmaster for a short time and he would teach her everything she would need to know up through her fourth year in the space of a week through implanting his own memories from when he was in school. She would be viewed as a transfer student and treated as all fourth years were treated. The only difference was that she was to be sorted at the start-of-term feast.