Disclaimer: Own nothing, as always, and much to my dismay. Short chapter, but I'll post another in a couple days.


Laurie said the password to the Fat Lady a little vehemently when she came upon the portrait and quickly did a Bubble Head Charm in order to pass unscathed through the common room and into the girls' dormitories. Mumbling harsh curses under her breath and praying that Sirius Black would have his comeuppance soon, Laurie started to dig in her trunk at the foot of her bed looking for her knife. Her brother had given it to her for her last birthday. He had known Ashley to give Unopenable gifts and decided to help Laurie out in opening her gifts. The knife was supposed to break or open most locked, bespelled, or enchanted items including doors and packages.

Laurie finally found her knife buried between her copy of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and a pair of socks with a polka dotted pattern of pink and yellow a friend from the Academy gave her. She sat on the floor at the edge of her bed and leaned back against the trunk. She carefully slit the opening of the package and set the knife down before she opened the box fully and dumped the contents into her lap.

She looked down at the object in her lap and looked at it bemused. It was a box. Similar to the box that she just opened in size, though with a nicer outside, it was made of what looked like silver with an ornate design of a rose on the lid. She turned it around in her hands and looked at it from every angle possible looking at it as if it might tell her some secret. After thoroughly examining the façade, she slowly lifted the lid as a precaution. Inside lay a rolled up bit of parchment tied with a bit of red ribbon. The inside was laid with velvet and was quite rich looking. She wondered how her sister afforded such a box.

She picked up the parchment, untied it, and read the script so obviously in her sister's hand.

'Hello Laurie,

You're probably wondering why I'm sending you something now, but I thought this would help you a bit during your time at Hogwarts. This box is a new magic item that the store down the street sells It allows the owner to put something inside of it and it transfers that object to a matching box wherever it may be. I thought this would be more convenient than tiring Julian unduly. I hope you are enjoying your time over seas and you find a cute guy or two. Merlin knows the Academy is lacking such, besides Mike that is! Well, everyone sends their love and well wishes, even dad. I hope to hear from you soon.

Love Always,

Ashley'

Laurie looked at the silver box. It was Pandora's Box. Except with less catastrophe and apocalyptic effects, it was also more practical.

She quickly tore off a piece of her sister's letter, eager to try the box and see if it truly worked. She scribbled a quick note to her sister and placed it in the box, shutting the lid. Laurie waited for about a minute before she opened the box again. The note was gone.

"Awesome," Laurie whispered at the really remarkable gift.

She rose from her seat on the floor and placed the box on her bedside table. She wondered how she would know when she got a response to her note. She decided that she'd just check frequently. There was a five hour time difference, so it would be about eight o'clock at the Academy and she wasn't sure what her sister did in the evenings. She could very well be doing homework or spending time with her friends in one of the courtyards. There were many possibilities.

Laurie rolled onto her bed and looked at the box. She hoped her sister found her note. It was about five minutes later as she stared outside the window next to her bed, when she heard a faint sound of music. It was a familiar tune, though she couldn't place it and it seemed to be coming from the box. She sat up from her prone position and leaned over to look at the box. The rose on the lid of the box was now fully colored a deep scarlet color. The music she heard was getting slightly louder and more discernable. Laurie chuckled at her sister's choice of song. It played a faint, but no less wonderful, version of the Beatles' "Rocky Raccoon" and you could even hear the quartet's voices singing the lyrics.

She opened the lid and found a piece of blue paper folded up.

'Glad Julian made it alright. I wasn't sure if he could make it so far without getting hurt or something. Also glad you like my gift. I'll try to write you when I can. I've gotta go but I'll write soon. I'll give mom your love. Write to her in a few days. She'll like hearing from you.

Love always.'

Laurie smiled at her sister's quick note. She missed her. She was slightly homesick, but the adventure of being at Hogwarts still hadn't worn off.

There were noises in the stairway and soon her friends were pouring through the door, Casey looking a little worse for wear as she had to catch all of the quaffles aimed at her.

Laurie decided she tell them, or at least Amber, about the gift later. Now, she wanted to know what happened after she left the pitch.


Ever yours.