Authors Note: Dedicated to my husband who has shown me nothing but love and friendship over the past ten years. I will always love you and support you no matter where in the world you are. You are my Yorkshire lad and I am your Lancashire lass. I will love you for all our time spent on this earth.

I do not own the characters you recognise. Thank you JKR for letting us all play in your world.

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'Well do you want to open your presents' Mary asked excitedly pushing forward a bright star encrusted bag 'they are all from me,' she said proudly beaming. Paige sat down at the dining room table and peeked in the bag. Several individually wrapped presents of various shapes and size lay in the bag.

'Now I know you have all your spell books because your father sent them yes I know,' Mary said noticing the startled look on Paige's face 'but you need a wand, and there is only one place we are going to get that now is there not?'

Paige trusted Mary but she also yearned to stay at home. She heard a peculiar loud clunk from upstairs and her eyes flashed past Mary fixed on the staircase.

'Oh is it that fecking cat again?' sighed Mary 'I swear itll be the next cremation if it breaks one more lamp'

Paige grabbed her bag of presents and said

'I will go put all this away and errrr yeah...'

Racing up the stairs Paige was not surprised to see her bedroom door hanging off its hinges and ta pearly white figure standing in the doorway, its face obscured by a veil and its feet were not visible. The figure tilted its head to one side and raised its limp arms upwards stretching outwards towards Paige's neck- extending its long nimble white fingers through the air. Paige chortled.

'Very funny Gem, nice try,'

The figure retreated into Paige's bedroom and started screeching.

'Not going to work,' Paige reiterated.

'Ohhh you are no fun,' said the figure

'I don't fall for that anymore, Gem. You will have to try harder to scare me.'

/

Running through the Leaky Cauldron San's excitement was palpable. Weaving through the crowds of wizards Jean watched her daughter excitedly weave around the legs of wizards like a bright red kneazle.

'San, San! Over here. Look at the size of that Kappa!' Ji-Hu had his face pressed against the glass window of a shop selling animals eagerly peering at the little slimy creature bobbing up and down in a water tank a sad smile on its face as it did little back flips for the small crowd now assembling outside of the shop.

'Oh do you think they eat humans?'

'Don't be stupid,' sneered a boy standing next to them 'that one is in captivity,'

'Why?' San asked curiously

'They only eat humans in the wild-'

'No, I mean why are they in captivity?' posed San. The boy rolled his eyes drolly at her and walked away. San pulled Ji-Hu away from the window but the kappa was still in her mind when they arrived at Flourish and Blotts.

''''''''''''''

The small ginnel turned a corner lead into a narrow twisting alleyway and Paige started to notice that the shops were less crammed together down this part of Diagon Alley and less wholesome too. Which for Paige was perfect. Not many witches and wizards her age would frequent this part and she pushed open the door to Borgin and Burkes where she found Mary in deep conversation with an older witch who wore her greying hair in a long ponytail down her back.

'I saw Molly last week- what a wreck she is- I'm very surprised they've had another one.'

'Oh I don't think Molly ever had a choice do you, Jean?' Mary commented her eyes then flashed to Paige and she said 'oh you didn't need to come looking for me, I was just finishing,'

'I got bored in the other alley,' admitted Paige 'too…. Peopley.'

Mary laughed at her niece.

'Oh dear,' Jean chipped in 'if you're going to Hogwarts you might just have to become peopley yourself my darling,' Paige weakly smiled and moved further into the shop her eyes taking in the wealth of dark materials littering the shelves.

'My granddaughter is off this time to Hogwarts, she's very looking forward to it. My son married a muggle and well, you know how those things can turn out Mary,' Jean said pointedly sighing her shoulders sinking forward. 'Is she your girl?' she asked nodding her head at Paige who was studying a dark painting in the window.

Mary shook her head

'No. Larry and Libby's,' Mary said quickly 'she's staying with me over summer, helping me with the business.' Paige's ears pricked up at the mention of her parents and wondered if their adventures in deepest Peru would end before she started school in September and they could see her off on the train, but Mary had informed Paige it was unlikely.

'Oh so business still good then? I presumed with the passing of your father you might consider you know,' said Jean nudging her head and lifting her eyes to the ceiling, her thin white skin stretching over her fierce bone structure. Mary's jaw tightened and she smiled attempting to brush off Jean's comment she replied

'Family business is just that; it continues as long as there is a Howlett to run it. I would never dream of letting my customers down, no business is on the up,'

'I wish I could say the same for my son, he's so busy these days but he very rarely accomplishes anything you know. The Ministry departments are a mess since Armando stepped down from being Minister. Not to mention a fair few unsavoury muggleborns got through last year, one is an Auror I am told!'

'Really?' Mary said feigning interest, unlike her peers Mary was more tolerant of muggleborns – they often had a stronger sentiment when it came to their pets and would pay Mary handsomely when it came to the funeral. Which meant more money in her Gringotts vault, something she would never complain about.

'Would your niece be interested in meeting my granddaughter; she does seem rather lonely. It might be good for her to become what did she say... peopley?'

/

/

'We've got 2 for 1 on roasted Dragon Nuts! All the way form darkest Peru,'

'Porcupine Quills- the finest you'll ever see!'

'I think it really is downright horrid,' San commented to her grandmother 'using animals like that for wizards pleasure,'

'My darling you must realise that wizards and witches have a certain requirement when it comes to certain things, for instance how would you write all your letters?'

'I wouldn't use a real porcupine quill,' replied San as they walked towards Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlour. Ji-Hu was preoccupied playing with his toy wand aiming it at unsuspecting shoppers. 'I would use a discarded owl feather,'

'And where would you get one?'

'The floor of a pet shop I'm sure they have loads!' explained San. Following her grandmother into the parlour she noticed it was already packed with Hogwarts students wearing their new robes. San had not bothered to put her robe on, she preferred the muggle attire to a stuffy collared robe and blouse.

'Ah there, head that way,' said Grandma Nowell peering over the crowded tables 'there is space on the other side, Ji-Hu you stay with me. San go and grab us that table,'

Loaded up with shopping bags San dragged them through the parlour and shuffled between the chairs and tables to an empty table the same second a girl with honey blonde brown hair promptly sat down.

'Oh, I'm saving this,' she said patting the table

'Well so am I,' pointed out san stubbornly sitting down opposite the girl with the shame or bashfulness. Seeing the girl was alone San softened slightly 'we could share it, doesn't seem a reason not too if we all fit. There isn't anywhere else to sit!'

'Are you a writer? That rhymes, I like it,' the girl smiled

'My name is San, do you have a name?'

'I do but I don't give it out to strangers,'

'I told you my name, thus dispelling the myth of my strangeness,' replied San smartly. The girl eyed her cautiously before shuffling in her seat and she adjusted her hair behind her ear.

'You are strange, but Mary told me I should try,'

'Try what?' San asked wondering who Mary was.

'To talk to the living,' said the girl 'I'm Paige,'

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