p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"My lack of sleep that night was a clear sign that things were starting to hit me. While I had spent the past few days reading about the wizarding community and witnessing some magic around the house, it was a completely different deal to prepare myself to visit one of the places my imagination had traveled to so many times./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"The Harry Potter books had been with me for the better part of my formative years. Like many others from my generation, it had arguably shaped my values and affected the way I was to this day./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I had been a very creative kid growing up, so the stories written by JK Rowling were right up my alley. I was the kind of child that got overly enthusiastic when thinking of imaginary worlds with spells and enchantments, magical creatures and talking objects, heroes, and enemies fighting for what they believed in. There was nothing I wanted more than jump into a fantasy book and join the characters' adventures./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Having to go to Diagon Alley now forced me to revisit that side of my personality and life now, and realized how much strength I had drawn from Harry's world. There were so many instances where I had escaped to Diagon Alley, Hogwarts or Hogsmeade with my mind when I was stressed out or facing a difficult situation. I believe my resilience in life stemmed from a mix between my rationality and the ability to create a safe mental landscape where I could keep my psyche in check. Needless to say, I was very possessive towards the Potter universe, but until then I had never realized just how much./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"In no time, the sun had risen and Dixie had come to wake me up. Walking down the magnificent staircase of Fawley Court in my dark purple dress, I fought to keep my eyes open./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"A yawn escaped my mouth as I entered the large dining area, shaped in a long rectangle. The eastern wall was covered in windows, while the southern housed a roaring fireplace. I had long realized that the general theme of this mansion was dark colored wallpapers, black wooden furniture, and paintings of natural sceneries. You could find the odd portrait of a family member here and there, but most of the art in the house were landscapes./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I approached my usual seat near the head of the table, close to the fireplace. Nana Connie was immersed in the Daily Prophet as every morning, and only after a bit, she looked my way./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Good morning emmon coeur/em" Nana scanned my face and frowned slightly./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""You didn't sleep a bit, did you?"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""No" I rubbed my face with my hands and sighed. I shook my head to wake myself up and went to grab some porridge with fruit./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Nana Connie poured me a cup of black tea and added milk and sugar just the way I liked it. Another thing Elizabeth and I had in common, as it appears./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Eat up then, we still have to go to Diagon Alley this morning. I'm afraid I won't be able to reschedule"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I nodded absentmindedly as I ate my breakfast. Nana was in charge of all the Fawley House business since my parents had passed away. I had learned through one of our conversations that my family was one of the main publishers of books in Wizarding Britain. That was plenty of work to keep anyone busy. It also explained the ginormous size of our library at home./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Eventually, we finished our meals and were standing in front of the fireplace of the adjacent room. It was a pleasant looking drawing room with large sofas and armchairs, in the usual black-grey-blue palette./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Nana grabbed a small porcelain container and handed it to me. Thankfully to my Potter knowledge, I had an idea of what to do. I tossed a generous amount of floo powder in the fireplace and walked confidently in it./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Diagon Alley!" I cried and the green flames engulfed me./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"In no time, I reappeared in another place. I had barely managed to remain up by gripping on the side of the fireplace while coughing the soot trapped in it. I walked in the small, dingy room that I'd arrived in, and scanned the area. It appeared to be a dimly lit pub with just a few customers speaking in hushed tones./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"emThis must be the Leaky Cauldron, /emI thought after a bit./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Not long after that, Nana appeared from behind me, emscourgifying/em both of our robes./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Right then, let's go", she said, hurrying towards the back door./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I followed her promptly, falling behind her as she walked. We reached a brick wall of a small courtyard./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Just as I imagined Harry witnessed only weeks ago, Nana Connie tapped a few bricks with her elegant wand. The wall started trembling slightly and after a few seconds, it opened an archway in front of us./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"My eyes grew to the size of saucers. Here it was, Diagon Alley./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"The cobblestone road was lined left and right with shops bustling with witches and wizards of any age. The place was positively humming with excited customers, most likely doing some last minute shopping before the term started. From where I was standing I could see a glimpse of the colorful displays of books, potions, brooms and magical creatures./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""emD'accord/em." Said Nana breaking me out of my trance. "What does your letter say again?"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I reached in my pocket and retrieved two yellow parchments. The first read:/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" Dear Ms. Fawley,/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" Yours sincerely,/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Minerva McGonagall"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I still couldn't believe this was all real. I went to retrieve the other piece of parchment that contained the list of school supplies. Nana looked over from my shoulder and read aloud./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Uniform, robes, books, equipment… Ok. Let's go to Madam Malkin's first to get your robes settled"./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"We made our way through the crowd and briskly walked towards our destination./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"The Harry Potter books had been with me for the better part of my formative years. Like many others from my generation, it had arguably shaped my values and affected the way I was to this day./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I had been a very creative kid growing up, so the stories written by JK Rowling were right up my alley. I was the kind of child that got overly enthusiastic when thinking of imaginary worlds with spells and enchantments, magical creatures and talking objects, heroes, and enemies fighting for what they believed in. There was nothing I wanted more than jump into a fantasy book and join the characters' adventures./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Having to go to Diagon Alley now forced me to revisit that side of my personality and life now, and realized how much strength I had drawn from Harry's world. There were so many instances where I had escaped to Diagon Alley, Hogwarts or Hogsmeade with my mind when I was stressed out or facing a difficult situation. I believe my resilience in life stemmed from a mix between my rationality and the ability to create a safe mental landscape where I could keep my psyche in check. Needless to say, I was very possessive towards the Potter universe, but until then I had never realized just how much./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"In no time, the sun had risen and Dixie had come to wake me up. Walking down the magnificent staircase of Fawley Court in my dark purple dress, I fought to keep my eyes open./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"A yawn escaped my mouth as I entered the large dining area, shaped in a long rectangle. The eastern wall was covered in windows, while the southern housed a roaring fireplace. I had long realized that the general theme of this mansion was dark colored wallpapers, black wooden furniture, and paintings of natural sceneries. You could find the odd portrait of a family member here and there, but most of the art in the house were landscapes./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I approached my usual seat near the head of the table, close to the fireplace. Nana Connie was immersed in the Daily Prophet as every morning, and only after a bit, she looked my way./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Good morning emmon coeur/em" Nana scanned my face and frowned slightly./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""You didn't sleep a bit, did you?"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""No" I rubbed my face with my hands and sighed. I shook my head to wake myself up and went to grab some porridge with fruit./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Nana Connie poured me a cup of black tea and added milk and sugar just the way I liked it. Another thing Elizabeth and I had in common, as it appears./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Eat up then, we still have to go to Diagon Alley this morning. I'm afraid I won't be able to reschedule"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I nodded absentmindedly as I ate my breakfast. Nana was in charge of all the Fawley House business since my parents had passed away. I had learned through one of our conversations that my family was one of the main publishers of books in Wizarding Britain. That was plenty of work to keep anyone busy. It also explained the ginormous size of our library at home./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Eventually, we finished our meals and were standing in front of the fireplace of the adjacent room. It was a pleasant looking drawing room with large sofas and armchairs, in the usual black-grey-blue palette./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Nana grabbed a small porcelain container and handed it to me. Thankfully to my Potter knowledge, I had an idea of what to do. I tossed a generous amount of floo powder in the fireplace and walked confidently in it./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Diagon Alley!" I cried and the green flames engulfed me./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"In no time, I reappeared in another place. I had barely managed to remain up by gripping on the side of the fireplace while coughing the soot trapped in it. I walked in the small, dingy room that I'd arrived in, and scanned the area. It appeared to be a dimly lit pub with just a few customers speaking in hushed tones./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"emThis must be the Leaky Cauldron, /emI thought after a bit./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Not long after that, Nana appeared from behind me, emscourgifying/em both of our robes./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Right then, let's go", she said, hurrying towards the back door./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I followed her promptly, falling behind her as she walked. We reached a brick wall of a small courtyard./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Just as I imagined Harry witnessed only weeks ago, Nana Connie tapped a few bricks with her elegant wand. The wall started trembling slightly and after a few seconds, it opened an archway in front of us./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"My eyes grew to the size of saucers. Here it was, Diagon Alley./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"The cobblestone road was lined left and right with shops bustling with witches and wizards of any age. The place was positively humming with excited customers, most likely doing some last minute shopping before the term started. From where I was standing I could see a glimpse of the colorful displays of books, potions, brooms and magical creatures./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""emD'accord/em." Said Nana breaking me out of my trance. "What does your letter say again?"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I reached in my pocket and retrieved two yellow parchments. The first read:/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" Dear Ms. Fawley,/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" Yours sincerely,/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"Minerva McGonagall"/p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"I still couldn't believe this was all real. I went to retrieve the other piece of parchment that contained the list of school supplies. Nana looked over from my shoulder and read aloud./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;""Uniform, robes, books, equipment… Ok. Let's go to Madam Malkin's first to get your robes settled"./p
p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"We made our way through the crowd and briskly walked towards our destination./p