A couple of days after Harry's eleventh birthday, he received a package in the post. This was not, in itself, altogether unusual. What was unusual was the fact that the package was moving.

"Sirius!" he called up the stairs.

"What is it?" came the voice of his godfather.

"Another birthday present!" he replied. In response, he heard Sirius' footsteps come racing down the stairs. Really, it was as if his godfather was more excited about his presents than he was.

He tore open the postcard first and read it aloud so Sirius could hear.

"Dear Harry, hope you have a wonderful birthday! Sorry this is going to be a bit late, but I hope once you open the present it'll be worth it. Don't be alarmed if it's moving- that means that it's still alive. Lots of love, from Auntie Evangeline."

He flipped the card over to see a photograph of the Eiffel Tower. Auntie Evangeline travelled a lot, and she liked to send him postcards from the different places she'd visited. She'd been a friend of his parents, apparently, although he only had very vague recollections of meeting her. He hadn't seen her for several years now, but a card and present arrived every year without fail around the time of his birthday.

With some caution, he carefully opened the parcel. To his surprise, a beautiful, blue-black serpent slithered out. How Auntie Evangeline had found out about his growing abilities as a Parselmouth was beyond him, but it was just like her to get him a thoughtful present like that. He grinned in delight as the little snake coiled around itself and proceeded to complain about being sealed in a package for far too long.

"Hello," he said quietly, peering at the serpent. Sirius shuddered slightly, as he did every time Harry spoke Parseltongue.

The snake reared its head and looked at him. "You'll do, I suppose," it said after a moment, and proceeded to slither off in the direction of the kitchen.

Sirius looked at the serpent with mild disbelief. Then he glanced at Harry, a slight smile on his lips. "Well then. What are you going to call it?"

"Hedwig," said Harry decisively.

"Lord help me," said the snake.

Sirius and Harry put off their impending trip to Diagon Alley for as long as possible. It wasn't that Harry didn't like shopping; he actually really enjoyed the pastime. What he didn't like were the near-constant gawks and stares he received every time he said his name or showed his scar in public. It was why he and Sirius lived a fairly secluded life, rarely venturing out into the wizarding world. In fact, Harry had spent most of his childhood in the muggle world in an attempt to avoid unwanted attention. This trip, however, could not be avoided indefinitely.

Probably the only part he was really looking forward to was seeing Neville again. They'd arranged to meet outside Quality Quidditch Supplies, for which Harry was grateful, as it meant that he might not stand out so much in the street if Neville was with him. He didn't get to see Neville very often, but he was one of the only other wizarding kids he knew, which sort of automatically made them friends. They'd both lost their parents, too- although in very different ways. Harry was just glad he could be assured of one friend when he arrived at Hogwarts.

The trip, to Harry's surprise, went fairly smoothly. Only about dozen people had tried to shake his hand in the Leaky Cauldron- including a man who said he was going to be the new Defence teacher at Hogwarts. Or at least that's what Harry thought he'd said, but the man had stuttered and twittered so much that he couldn't be sure. What had been his name again? Squirrel? Honestly, he wouldn't be surprised if the man's name was Squirrel. It wouldn't be the most bizarre name he'd heard in the wizarding world.

But the most unexpected encounter had come at Flourish and Blott's. He'd been struggling to carry a mountain of schoolbooks to the counter when a girl his age had practically materialised next to him.

"Need a hand?" she'd asked nonchalantly.

"Yes please," he'd replied.

She'd taken half his stack of books off him and carried them to the counter, setting them down.

"Thanks," he'd grunted out, placing his own pile down.

"Not at all," she'd said. "You're Harry Potter, aren't you?" she'd asked casually after a moment, looking at him out of the corner of her eye.

He'd sighed wearily. "Yeah."

"Cool," she'd replied offhandedly. That had thrown him a bit, and he found himself smiling slightly.

Then she'd turned to leave. "I guess I'll see you at Hogwarts then, Harry Potter," she'd said. It had been phrased indifferently, but she'd been smiling faintly.

"Wait," he'd called out. She'd looked back over her shoulder, smiling expectantly. "Who are you?"

"Zara Dubois," she'd replied, and breezed out though the door.