'Harry, don't stare!' snapped Petunia, followed by a sudden shrill laugh when she realised she may have let her caring persona slip. 'It's not polite.' she added, trying to soften the initial impact of her words.

Harry let it slip, it wasn't the strangest behaviour he had seen from his aunt during the course of the day and he was fairly sure it wouldn't be the last. He had to admit that he was fascinated by this lady who had arrived in their house though. She was very imposing, but had a kind face.

'Hello, thank you for inviting me into your lovely home,' she began to speak with quite a strong Scottish lilt to her accent. 'My name is Minerva McGonagall and I am the Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.'

The silence in the room thickened as those words were uttered. Words Harry, at least, thought he would never hear under the roof of number 4 Privet Drive. Minerva McGonagall did not seem to notice, or if she did, she chose to ignore the atmosphere in the little entrance hall.

'Of course, that makes me Professor McGonagall to you two young bairns.' She said, glancing down at Harry and Dudley.

'M-May I take your erm…' Petunia looked around for help – what was the woman wearing? It could hardly be called a coat. Is 'wrap' the appropriate word she wondered?

'My cloak?' Professor McGonagall saved Aunt Petunia's embarrassment. 'Why, thank you.' She unclasped a gold buckle adorned with a lion which had a tiny ruby eye, from the neck of the emerald cloak and with a swish, took the cloak from around her shoulders. Underneath the cloak she wore robes in a slighter darker shade of green than the emerald of the cloak she was now handing to Aunt Petunia. She also removed her hat, and underneath her greying hair was pulled up tight into a bun on the top of her head. Aunt Petunia reached out to take the hat and hung it on a peg near the door along with the cloak.

Harry was sure no one dressed like this had ever stepped foot into this house, and, glancing at Uncle Vernon, wasn't sure they would ever again. Uncle Vernon's face was slowly turning red with incredulity at the cheek someone may have to dress in the way Professor McGonagall had dared to dress.

'Shall we?' Aunt Petunia gestured to the sitting room and every headed in there and took a seat. Professor McGonagall sat at one end of the sofa, Aunt Petunia, the opposite end, leaving plenty of space between them. Harry settled on the floor in his usual spot and Dudley tried to squeeze between his mother and Professor McGonagall.

'Dudley, sit next to Harry, there's a good lad.' His father told him, not wanting Dudley sitting quite so close to their new visitor. He was keeping station near the closed curtained window. It was still daylight outside but Uncle Vernon twitched the curtains, just to make sure they were fully closed.

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. 'I trust you read the letters this morning and therefore know why I am here?'

'Oh yes, we read those alright.' rumbled Uncle Vernon. 'So, what is all of this about? I can assure you that our Dudley is no wizard.' he spat out the final word of his statement.

'Oh but he is Mr Dursley, I assure you that much. As is young Mr Potter here. I visit the families of all muggle born wizards and witches to explain about our world. It is imperative these boys attend Hogwarts, as we at teach students to control magic which may not be controlled should they not attend. I'm sure I don't need to tell you that untrained magic could lead to disastrous consequences.'

Vernon Dursley did not like being told what was going to happen – if he reached the decision himself, fine. But he did not like being told at all.

'Well, I will decide who is going where, thank you very much.' was all he could think of to retort at that moment in time.

Professor McGonagall did not respond to that comment. She had to speak to many muggle families about their children attending Hogwarts, and she had had much worse responses before now.

'What's a muggle?' piped up Dudley from his position on the carpet next to Harry. Harry nodded in agreement to Dudley's question. He had wondered the same thing himself, but had been too shy to speak up in front of this slightly intimidating witch.

'A muggle is what we call non magical people. Dudley, you are muggle born, as neither of your parents are magical. Harry, you are not, as both your mother and father were magical.'

Harry's jaw dropped. His parents had been magical? Why didn't he know that? He looked questioningly up at his aunt. Dudley did the same, this was news to him!

Aunt Petunia shifted uncomfortably on the sofa. 'She is right Harry, my sister, your mother, was a witch. We never said anything as, we-we-' she looked up at Vernon for help, but he merely shrugged, 'we didn't want you to feel different.' she concluded, lamely. A poor excuse, but one they would have to stick to from now on.

Professor McGonagall looked around the room, slightly confused. 'Well,' she said, unsurely, 'you know now, both of you do.'

'How rude of me, I haven't offered you a refreshment!' Aunt Petunia leapt out of her seat. 'Tea? Coffee? Something a little stronger perhaps?' she asked the Professor.

'Tea would be wonderful please, black with one sugar.'

Aunt Petunia bustled to the kitchen, Uncle Vernon not far behind her.

The two boys sat on the floor, looking up at the Professor, a little nervously.

'Now don't be worrying lads, you will be fine. Hogwarts is a fantastic school, you will both be very happy there. I will tell you a bit more about it in a few moments, but for now would you like to have a look over the lists of what you need to take with you to Hogwarts?'

They both nodded eagerly – what do you take to a magical school? A top hat and a pair of doves?

From the front of her robe, she pulled out what looked like a branch from a tree. She waved it once and two pieces of parchment appeared in the air in front of her. She caught them deftly and handed them to Harry and Dudley who took a moment to respond and take them. They were both in awe of what she had just done. So that was magic! And that must be a magic wand, not like what you saw on the TV at all.

oOoOoOo

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Vernon and Petunia were talking hurriedly in hushed whispers.

'No Petunia, I won't have it.' Vernon was quietly fuming. 'Remember? Remember that morning you found him on the doorstep with nothing but a note? We said none of that funny business would be happening or he'd be gone. Gone to the orphanage, or workhouse or whatever it's called these days.

'And now this! He's obviously had some effect on our Dudley! This hasn't come from my side of the family Petunia.'

Petunia was throwing some tea bags into a china teapot Vernon's sister had given them for their wedding. Petunia never had liked it and only used it when Marge was visiting or for when she needed to impress someone like tonight. 'It was always a possibility Vernon, I can't believe I haven't considered it before, or even noticed that our Dudley is, well, different. Remember when he wanted to be the head of the donkey in the school play, but was cast as the back half?'

Vernon grimaced at the memory 'The poor lad who was the front half would only bray for weeks and Dudley got to be the head of the donkey.'

'And what about the time Harry took his little tractor from him? I know we had all that correspondence with the manufacturers, but I never did think it burst into flames all on its own.'

'Is this the untrained magic the woman in there is speaking of? If so, she is right, it is dangerous Vernon – Dudley needs to be taught what he's doing before more things like that happen.' Petunia hissed at Vernon, trying to be as quiet as possible. She could hear voices from the front room and wasn't overly happy about leaving the boys unattended with the witch.

'And what about Potter? I am not paying for him to go to some fancy school and laze about.'

'Maybe they have funding for orphaned children? We can ask her, I am sure there will be some support, we can't very well send Dudley and not Harry. I cannot see that woman in there leaving without a fuss Vernon. Anyway, just think, he'd be out of our hair for 9 months of the year.'

Vernon visibly brightened at the thought of this. 'Good think Petal.'

Petunia smiled briefly at his use of his pet name for her. 'So we are agreed? They can both go?'

'I want to hear a lot more about this place before I am sending Dudley off there to learn magic tricks. But assuming there is no danger, and our Dudley stands a good chance of coming out with good career prospects then I suppose it is fine with me.'

'What do wizards do for work anyway? Children's parties?'

Petunia pursed her lips at Vernon's joke. She loaded up the tray with the tea, cups and saucers, and a glass of orange juice for Dudley. Pausing for a moment, she poured a second glass of juice for Harry and added it to the tray. Picking the whole lot up, she headed back to the lounge, where Harry and Dudley were talking animatedly, and pointing at pieces of parchment they were holding onto. Well, that was a sight; she had never seen the boys like that before, talking to each other. It was quite a nice sight really, one she wished she had seen years before. But she knew it was hers and Vernon's fault that it never was before today.

'Mum!' Dudley exclaimed excitedly, 'We get to have a wand! Just like the Professor!' He was beaming, as was Harry. The Professor smiled kindly down at them.

Smiling at her son, Petunia placed the tray on the wooden coffee table and poured tea for the adults. Dudley grabbed his juice and Petunia had to pass the second glass of juice to a slightly bewildered looking Harry who took it somewhat warily, but said a polite 'thank you' all the same.

'So, if we may get down to business?' the Professor ventured, once Petunia had taken her seat again.

'As you have already gathered, there is a magical world, running alongside the 'normal' world which you live in. Now, Petunia, I knew your sister and I don't want to preach to the choir, so please tell me if I am telling you things you already know. ' Petunia nodded, not sure what to say. She did know a fair bit about the magical world, but she had supressed this knowledge for so many years she thought it may be useful to hear again, and for Vernon's sake as well as the boys.

'Well we are obviously hidden from the muggle world, and we don't like people to know about us, as I am sure you understand, the witch hunts of centuries past taught us non-magical beings do not respond well to knowing of our presence.

'Hogwarts is centuries old itself, having housed some of the finest and brightest wizards of every era. The school is split into four houses, each house valuing something different in their students. Whilst in school the boys will sleep in house dormitories, eat meals with their house mates, and study alongside them as well.'

'Your house at Hogwarts,' she directed to Harry and Dudley, 'will be like your family. If you behave well and study hard, you will earn points for your house, but if you misbehave, you will lose points. At the end of each year, the house with the most points wins the House Cup, which is a great honour for that particular house.'

Harry gulped – he was always getting into trouble at school, for things beyond his control usually. He hoped he wouldn't lose any points for his house.

'Will Harry and Dudley be in the same house?' Uncle Vernon asked, clinging to the hope that Dudley may barely see Harry once at school if they were to be in different houses.

'That remains to be seen,' the professor replied 'the students will be sorted into houses upon arrival at Hogwarts. The houses are; Gryffindor, who pride themselves on brave, daring and chivalrous house members; Ravenclaw, who value intelligence, knowledge and wit; Slytherin whose members are ambitious, cunning and resourceful and Hufflepuff who are hard workers, patient and loyal.'

The boys both thought for a moment. Dudley fancied himself as being brave and daring, and thought Gryffindor sounded like the house for him, whereas Harry thought Ravenclaw would be good, if he was given chance to study and fit in, or perhaps Hufflepuff as he was certainly a hard worker, and it would be nice to have friends who were loyal.

Vernon thought Slytherin would be a good house for Dudley, who wouldn't want their child to be ambitious? He wanted to Dudley to do the very best, and it sounds like this, Slytherin, would be the place to begin.

The Professor continued, 'We teach a wide range of subjects in the first year. Potions, Charms, Defence Against the Dark Arts, History of Magic, Flying and Transfiguration, my subject.'

Dudley and Harry's facing lit up when she mentioned flying, whereas Aunt Petunias face fell at the sound of Defence Against the Dark Arts.

'Dark Arts? Is this something we should be worried about?' She looked worriedly at Vernon.

'Not at all,' reassured Professor McGonagall, 'It is more tradition than anything else, but it is important that students learn how to defend themselves should they ever need to. Better to be prepared just in case.'

'I have papers here instructing you where to go to buy school materials, as they can't just be purchased at your supermarket of course,' she allowed herself a smile, and handed a sheet of parchment over to Petunia. 'You need to find the Leaky Cauldron on Charing Cross Road in London, the boys should be able to see it no problems. Ask for Tom the barman and tell them you have new Hogwarts students. He will let you on to the Alley where you can buy all you need. It should be quite an eye opener really! Did you never visit with your sister Petunia?'

'No, I never did, although I often wanted to.' Petunia breathed, taken back to a memory of lying on her bed crying after her father had left with Lily to buy her school things. She had sulked as she had never received a letter from Hogwarts herself and refused to go and see how happy Lily was.

'Well, now is your chance.' The Professor smiled. 'I suggest you go in the next week or so as it can get so busy in the build-up to the start of term.'

'Ahem.' Uncle Vernon cleared his throat. Harry jumped a little, he had almost forgotten he was there, standing behind Dudley and himself. 'How are we supposed to pay for all of this?' he asked the witch.

'Well, you can exchange money into wizarding currency at Gringotts the bank when you arrive, look for the large white building.' she informed him.

'No, I mean, we can afford to pay for Dudley, but what about Harry? I am sure you understand that we never planned on two children and this will get expensive paying for the both of them.'

Harry looked crushed – were they not going to pay for him to go? He had allowed himself to get so excited he had almost forgotten what life was like with the Dursley's. He should have known better.

'Oh, I see,' said the Witch, looking around uncomfortably. 'Well, we do have a school fund for underprivileged children, but I assure you the cost of these things is not astronomical. You appear to have a comfortable lifestyle here Mr. Dursley, I am sure you can manage. If you cannot, then I suggest you write to the school and request the appropriate paperwork.'

'Whilst on that subject, it may be worth picking up an owl whilst you are in the Alley. We use them for sending letters and post, and it would be an extremely useful way for you to keep in touch with the boys whilst they are at school, and to contact the school should you need.'

Vernon looked shocked – an owl? Not a bloody chance, not in his house! Imagine the mess!

The boys however, had looked between each other delightedly at the sound of this!

'The train for school leaves at 11am on the first of September from Kings Cross Station – platform nine and three quarters…' she was reading from a list now, ticking off things which she needed to have told the family.

'Which platform was that sorry?' Aunt Petunia asked her, not sure she had heard correctly. Had this woman really said platform nine and three quarters?

'Nine and three quarters' McGonagall repeated. 'Oh yes, of course, I must tell you how to get there! Run directly at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. If you get there by about 10:30 you will not doubt see other families travelling through as well.'

Now Petunia thought about it, it did ring a bell – Lily must have told her about it when they were children.

'Well, I think that is all you need to know for now. Was there anything you wanted to ask me in particular?' the Professor asked the boys.

There was so much more they wanted to know, but how do you ask when you don't know the question? So they both shook their heads.

'I suggest a few extra books for background reading, I have written them on the parchment I gave you. They will be of interest to you, and give you a lot more information about our world.

'But for now I think that is enough.' she rose from her place on the sofa; everyone else followed suit and stood as well. Harry had almost forgotten how strangely she was dressed until his aunt bought her cloak and hat and handed them back.

'Well, thank you for coming around,' Aunt Petunia said, gracious as ever. The Professor nodded her thanks as she stepped over the threshold and turned and said to the boys, 'I will see you on the first of September'.

She walked to the end of the garden, turned, and was gone.