Chapter Two: The Letter with no Zip code
Disclaimer: This is a parody and nonprofit story based in the fictional universe of Harry Potter. All rights belong to Joanne K. Rowling.
Rebecca Nurse fumbled down the stairs, hers eyes squinted and bloated from the previous night's sleep. She stumbled ungracefully into the kitchen and nearly collided into her mother. Mrs. Nurse was a tall, muscular looking woman with the sharp eyes of the hawk and the disciplinary sense of General Patton. At six o'clock in the morning she appeared to be fully dressed in a tight blazer with her hair smoothed back into a black bun, and her makeup already applied, quite the contrast to her bleary eyed daughter who stood blinking in the kitchen lights.
"Are you making pancakes?" Rebecca attached herself to Mrs. Nurse's middle and did her best begging-dog impression. Mrs. Nurse grinned before detaching herself and pulling out a box of cereal from the nearby cabinet. Rebecca's face fell and she took the box grudgingly to her place at the plastic fold-out table, her nose wrinkled in distaste. The kitchen was directly connected to the entry way and living room, all of which were scarcely decorated. There were hardly any flowers or framed pictures in the Nurses' home, let alone expensive furniture or oriental rugs. It almost appeared to be barren and unlived in. The kitchen was only decorated with a plastic table and set of metal chairs, and the living room contained nothing but a worn couch and several homemade bookshelves. There was nothing pretentious or wealthy in the small cottage among mansions.
"I'm going to work at noon today, so you'd better start school now if you want to be finished before I leave," Mrs. Nurse called as she brought over a bowl, spoon, and carton of milk. Rebecca nodded and began to pour her cereal, her heart laden with terrifying thoughts of pre-algebra and botany. Rebecca was homeschooled despite the fact that her mother worked part time and her father full time. Mrs. Nurse spent her mornings schooling her daughter in grammar, literature, science, math, art, history, and a variety of extracurricular activities. Mrs. Nurse had been raised in a purely military family, hence her adherence to discipline and self-improvement; her daughter's education was no exception.
After the milk had been successfully drained and the cereal wolfed down, Rebecca dragged her history book off its shelf and started at "Chapter Twenty-Seven: Martin Luther and the Reformation." After about twenty minutes of reading and making notes Rebecca shut the book and pushed it towards the end of the table.
"Mom, I'm done."
"Done with what?" a masculine voice emanated from the hallway and was revealed to belong to a tall dark man in an impeccable business suit. Mr. Nurse walked into the kitchen and gave his wife a gentle good morning kiss before turning to his daughter.
"Reading my history. I'm learning about the Protestant Reformation," Rebecca piped. She was grinning from ear to ear, as she was inclined to do when she talked about anything that interested her.
"Good job sweetheart," Mr. Nurse patted his daughter's shoulder affectionately and then grabbed his coffee cup. Mr. Nurse was extremely proud of his daughter and had good reason to be; Rebecca had skipped two grades and was now in the advanced seventh grade. Her scores were far beyond the average and she had a love for learning that reminded Mr. Nurse strongly of himself. Mr. Nurse worked in a law firm in downtown Bamberg, taking on the image and burden of righteous law. A veritable Atticus Finch Mr. Nurse sought to free the innocent and imprison those he deemed threats to society; unfortunately this approach to a career as an attorney had proved to be highly unprofitable.
"Alright, are you ready for your quiz?" Mrs. Nurse pulled down a thin quiz booklet from the shelf and leafed through the white pages.
"I think so." Rebecca sat up in her seat, her face drawn in a child-like reverence, hands clasped in her lap. Mr. Nurse smirked as he downed his coffee.
A string of questions was asked and Rebecca answered to the best of her ability.
"Two wrong out of twenty-five," Mrs. Nurse said, taking a red pen and making marks in the book. "Not bad, but review where Martin Luther hid in his time of exile and when he was born."
Rebecca cursed under her breath as she drew her history book back towards her and reread the material. Every subject was taught and done like this; Rebecca read her chapter and was then quizzed on what she remembered. Essays and projects were due each Friday and her mother would sternly grade each assignment. Tests were usually every two weeks.
"And after you're done, go get dressed. You might be homeschooled but I do not appreciate my daughter walking around in Spiderman pajamas," Mrs. Nurse admonished as she sipped her coffee. Rebecca slid grumbling off her chair and raced up the stairs to shed her Spiderman pajamas. After she pulled on a pair of jeans and an X-Men t-shirt, Rebecca stood in front of her mirror which hung against her bedroom door. She sighed at her reflection, not even eleven years old and already entering into the female realm of physical self-deprecating. Large brown eyes were surrounded by tanned skin, on a face that still contained its baby like features. Her hair was indomitably flat and mouse-colored, with no curl or wave to be seen, and her teeth were in desperate need of braces. Rebecca returned to the kitchen thoroughly depressed and annoyed with her lot in life. Pre-algebra did not help the situation.
"Rebecca," Mr. Nurse called from the entry way. "You have a letter."
Rebecca excitedly pushed the book about X's and Y's away and rushed to her father. He stood precariously on the edge of leaving the house, briefcase in one hand and the brown envelope in the other.
Rebecca snatched the letter out of her father's hand and eagerly turned it over in her hands, happy for any excuse not to be doing math.
"Have a nice day sweetheart." Mr. Nurse stepped out into the morning air and shut the door behind him. Rebecca half murmured a response as she frowned at the envelope.
How did the mail deliver something addressed like this? She wondered, brow furrowed. What was even more disturbing was the return address. Lake Superior School of Sorcery was all that occupied the upper left corner of the envelope. There were no stamps and a wax seal held the letter together. Rebecca carefully opened the envelope and pulled out a thick set of papers.
"What's that?" her mother entered the hallway and raised her eyebrows at the strange assortment of papers in her daughter's possession.
"A letter from a school. It's addressed to me."
Mrs. Nurse sighed and did not attempt to take the papers away. Rebecca had been in regular school all the way till second grade; and that was when mysterious things had started to happen. Boys that had picked on her crooked teeth had ended up with no teeth the next day only to have them grow back; teachers who admonished her in front of the class were surprised to find tarantulas in their purses; girls who gossiped about her lost their voices for months on end. Each time Rebecca complained about an annoyance at school a supernatural event seemed to follow it. The Nurses were in no way superstitious, but even the most level headed scientist can see an improbable string of events forming an established trend of data.
"Just don't write them back and don't send them your personal information," Mrs. Nurse warned and retreated back to the kitchen. Rebecca nodded and turned to face the trash can, ready to throw away the piece of advertisement. Her hand lingered over the waste bucket, the papers still clutched between her small fingers. But something about the oddly shaped wax seal made Rebecca curious. She stuffed the letter into her pocket as surreptitiously as possible and made her way back to the kitchen.
The rest of the morning was passed among adjective clauses, Albrecht Dürer, the classification of plants, and Emily Dickinson.
At twelve o'clock sharp her mother pulled out of the driveway in the gray BMW. Rebecca stood with her nose almost pressed to the window, hands clutched behind her back in anxiety. As soon as the roar of the engine faded Rebecca pulled the crumpled paper out of her pocket. She settled on the faded couch and smoothed out the first letter.
Dear Miss Nurse,
We have reviewed your history and would be happy to accept you as a student at Lake Superior School of Sorcery beginning this fall. Enclosed is your itinerary, reading list, schedule, and guide information. As you are Muggle-born, a special ambassador from the school will come to assist you on your eleventh birthday. Please do not be alarmed, and we look forward to seeing you this school year.
Sincerely,
Vice Principal Robin
Rebecca turned the paper over and huffed when there was no more writing. She retrieved her dictionary from the rows of shelves and searched for 'Muggle-born.' No such word existed in the English language.
Frowning, Rebecca pulled the envelope out again and turned it upside down. To her surprise a large packet of paper fell onto the floor, one that most definitely was not there previously. She picked up the stack of papers and read the first page.
Student Books and Course Material
"Martial Magic for Beginners" by Mark Twain
"Aztec, Native American, and Voodoo vs. Hecatean: Primeval Magic vs. Classical Greek Theory" by Nathaniel Prynne
"Potions and Alchemy, year one" by Severus Snape
"Elementary Charms" by Felix Robin
"Basic Transfiguration" by Minerva McGonagall
"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by Newt Scamander
"That's funny. I didn't know Mark Twain wrote a book called Martial Magic," Rebecca murmured. The rest of the papers were filled with as much nonsense as the first two. She carried the papers to her room and tossed them unceremoniously onto her bed. Rebecca's room was just as undecorated as the rest of the house. A twin bed was pushed into one corner with an old school desk in the other and a bookshelf in the middle. One poster hung reverently on her wall, a map of C.S. Lewis's Narnia. Her small bookshelf was littered with such fantasy titles as The Lord of the Rings, Ender's Game, Inkheart, Discworld, and Grimm's Fairy Tales along with her Marvel comic books. This was the shelf of a girl who longed for fantasy and adventure in a world so unbearably void of them.
…
Or so she thought.
Notes: Rebecca in the story is homeschooled because I am homeschooled and I would be remiss if I attempted to create a culture I knew nothing about. The book title "Aztec, Native American, and Voodoo vs. Hecatean: Primeval Magic vs. Classical Greek Theory" requires some explaining. Hecate was the Greek goddess of magic and I assume everyone here knows what Voodoo is. I decided that Hecate should be the magic version of Euclid in that she might've been the first to establish an orthodox magic, while as Native American and Aztec tribes would have created their own offshoot of wild, unruly sorcery. Both would be taught at an American school JAtticus Finch is a lawyer in a classic book "To Kill a Mockingbird." I strongly recommend it.
Susan sebest: Thanks for your review! Hope you like this.
Okie98: I didn't know you had a account. :D
: Thanks for your criticism! I tried to make the sentences shorter and be a little more descriptive. I'll keep trying to improve my style.