A/N: Just to clarify, the only character I own from this story is Charlene, the others Dresden, Harry and Hermione, belong to Jim Butcher, and J.K Rowling, respectively. I do not own the letter's that they get either, those are pulled directly from page 51 of Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone.

As I walked to the couch next to the fireplace, I remembered the letters. I heard what sounded like excited children talking and making an all around ruckus, which to be honest kinda pissed me off. So I went towards the noise, and peeked inside the room where I'd left Charlie sleeping. Harry and Hermione were running around the bed, Mister on their heels, yelling about something called Frog Warts.

Charlie gave me a look of hopelessness, so I cleared my throat loudly trying to get the children's attention. And it worked.

"CAN WE GO MR. DRESDEN! CAN WE! CAN WE! PLEASE!" Hermione was jumping up and down in front of me holding a piece of paper that was folded three times. On the paper was a formal almost business like letter:

Hogwarts School

of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock

Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Miss Granger,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

I looked at Charlie, then at the children, Harry had a letter exactly like the one I was now holding in my hand.

"Dresden? How come we never got letters to 'Hogwarts'?" Charlie asked me.

"I've never heard of it before either," looking back down at the letter, I said, "Alright kids, maybe, but I have to do some things first before I say yes or no, understand?"
"Yes Mr. Dresden." They said in unison. My day was only getting worse. I walked down into my lab and woke Bob.

"Bob! Have you ever heard of a school of Witchcraft and Wizardry?" I asked him.

"You mean the one in Europe? They only teach the wand wizards, but if you could disguise yourself as a wand wizard with the new spell I've been working on you could go and learn there."

"Bob I don't want to go learn there-"

"Well you sure as hell can't teach there!"

"Dammit Bob! Shut up! The Children got these letters today, addressed to where they sleep, accepting them to Hogwarts, a-"

"School for Witchcraft and Wizardry! I know Harry!"

"-and I want you to scan the letters."

"Why?"

"Because it says that the headmaster of this school is Albus Dumbledore," I answered.

"Albus? Isn't that what the old man trying to curse the children called himself?"

"Yes, and he attacked the house earlier today,"

"Fine, I'll scan the damn things," Bob was normally never bitter about coming out of his skull, so I stayed silent while he did his job. "Yeah, the old man, Albus put some type of charm on them."

"Can you tell what kind of charm it is?" I asked, more than a little concerned.

"Well if you would read the back, you would see what it was. Dammit Harry! Do I have to do everything my self?"

"Bob, what's wrong?" I asked turning over the letter. On the back there was a note in slanted handwriting

Kids this is a Portkey, a type of teleportation magic, it will activate when you say the words,

"Diagon Alley"

"Well, I've been cooped up in the skull for a long time now, and I haven't gotten any new romance novels in a long time, and I feel almost unappreciated," Bob explained as my mind frantically tried to work out what the hell was going on.

"Well I have a job for you Bob," I said distractedly, "I need you to look for any magical signatures other than the ones in this house, and tell me where they are, someone has been using magic to rip people's hearts out."

"You can count on me boss-man!" Bob said animatedly.

"No strip clubs Bob, I mean it. I give you permission to come out of your skull to complete the mission I've given you, nothing more."

"YES!" Bob exclaimed loudly.

"Oh, and Bob, if you get something usable I will buy you some new romance novels," I said to pique his interest more than it was on being let out. He let out a whooping noise and continued on his mission. I climbed the ladder up to the living room, and saw the kids sitting on the couches talking about "Hogwarts." With a smile I walked over and asked to see Harry's letter as well. Upon seeing the writing on the back both children wanted to see what it said, however I wasn't about to let the charmed paper teleport them to god knows where, so I explained the situation to them using the scariest, most likely situation I could come up with.

Both children, on completion of my story were wary of the letters that I now carried. I'd told them that the letters had come from the same old man, Albus, who was trying to hurt them, and it sounded like an elaborate hoax to fool them into his trap.

Even though I knew Hogwarts existed, I was still wary of sending these children there without proper protection from any mind magic that the old man might use on them. So, that night I committed myself to creating some type of shield to protect them from the old man's influence.

By the time the sun was rising, Bob was back, and everyone was waking up, I had finally completed my newest invention. It was a necklace, just like mine, with a sliver pentagram on a strip of leather. I'd used almost all of my energy to enchant both with spells that shielded the wearer from any type of mind altering magic or mind invasion, and a spell to make the necklace's magic undetectable.

I let Bob get some rest, while I took the newly made necklaces to the children. "Alright guys, I am going to let you go to Hogwarts," they squealed in delight, "on one condition, you have to wear these at all, and I mean ALL times." They nodded their heads in acceptance of the rule I'd just lain down.

"You aren't to tell anyone about them, okay? If you do people could use them to hurt you, understand?" They nodded again.

"Mr. Dresden?"

"Yes Hermione?"

"If people could use them to hurt us, why are we taking them? Couldn't they hurt other people?"

I smiled at her concern, she would make a good sorceress one day, "No, Hermione, they couldn't, but if people know about them they will try to take them from you. These necklaces protect you, and if they are gone, so is the protection."

"I see, almost like lucky charms-"

"No," I pulled my own necklace out, "I got this from my mother when she died, mine isn't like yours, mine is a charm. Yours is like this," I pulled up the sleeve on my right arm and showed them my shield bracelet (also inherited from my mother), "this is a shield bracelet, it protects me from physical harm, your necklaces have an enchantment on them that is almost exactly like the one on my bracelet, with a modification, it protects you from mental harm," I explained.

"Mental harm?" Harry asked.

"Magic, kids, isn't just using fire and power to throw spells around, it is life, it is without use of a better word, your life force. It comes from within you, not from without, you can use magic to do anything, but with magic there are consequences, its illegal to kill with magic, its illegal to control others, and its illegal to modify someone's mind, doing things like that, are what cause bad people with a power like ours, to become tyrants. Never, ever use your power to harm someone else; magic is for the betterment of others, not yourself, understand?" I explained to them the way I'd been taught.

"But what if bad people want to hurt us?" Again, I smiled, these kids were just the kind of apprentices I needed.

"There are situations like that where it may be self defense, and that is okay, but only if you need to." Smiling I put the necklaces on them, and hugged them, these kids were really growing on me.