Unknown Secret
Chapter 1, The Letter
The letter said,
9, July
Dear Miss Auren,
I would like to speak with you about something very important. If you are wary of coming, as I'm sure you are (I would be too if I had received a letter from a complete stranger asking me to meet them) just be content for now that it has something to do involving your parents. I cannot say more disclosed in a letter for fear of it being intercepted. Meet me in London on July 14 at "The Leaky Cauldron" (I have enclosed instructions on where to find it) to hear more.
-Albus Dumbledore
Skyla stared at the opened letter and re-read it a couple more times before setting it down and staring at the clean, white, orphanage wall. What kind of a person would be sending her a letter, fully expecting her to meet them at a place called "The Leaky Cauldron"? It sounded like a bar where witches went to talk and drink. She laughed at the absurdity of that. My mind's running away with me again, there are no such things as witches.
She looked down at the letter again. She remembered something that the orphanage mistress who handed out letters to people had said in her funny French accent; "Zis was a funny letter meez, it was delivered by an owl". Now, who would send a letter by owl? Probably the same kind of person who would expect her to meet them just like that. She smiled. The kind of person whose name was 'Albus Dumbledore'. It sounded like something she had heard before, a very, very long time ago.
And what was this about her parents? Skyla had barely known them. They disappeared suddenly when she was only a year and a half old. In fact, she only remembered her mother's bright blond hair and laughter and her father's deep voice and smell of…well…she wasn't quite sure what the smell was. No one could seem to tell her exactly what had happened to her parents. Some said they just ran off, leaving her, and others had said they had probably died some way or another. Whoever this 'Albus Dumbledore' person was, he had struck her curiosity.
Now that Skyla had decided that she would go to this "The Leaky Cauldron", she wondered how she would get there. Then she remembered the letter; "…I have enclosed instructions on where to find it…". Looking back in the envelope, she saw another sheet of parchment. It had a map of London and, on a street, a red star labeled "The Leaky Cauldron".
Well, she knew how to find it. Now, how to get permission? The Headmistress of "The Little Ladies Orphanage" wasn't to keen on letting girls out of the building, only on 'Outing Weekends'. She checked the schedule. Yes! There was an 'Outing Weekend' on the fourteenth. They were going to visit a sewing factory, not far from "The Leaky Cauldron". There were so many girls, that she could slip away easily and rejoin them at the end of the tour, like she had done countless times already. Mistress Raiyne wouldn't notice, she never does.
Just then, Lyenna, the head of Skyla's dormitory walked in. She glanced at the unfolded letter on Skyla's bed. "Oooh, look, you finally got a letter, Skylark." She sneered, pulling Skyla's long, blond hair. "Who sent it, the Health Inspector, giving you an F- on cleanliness?"
Skyla scowled at her and quickly folded up the letter, stuffing it in her pocket. Of course, there was always the problem of Lyenna. She prided herself on tormenting Skyla about her parents. Lyenna was not really an orphan, her parents just sent her to live there for a few months at a time while they traveled around the world. They always sent her souvenirs from their trips, including tropical bed sheets, which she gave anyone caught touching them a suspension, which meant they were not permitted to leave the dormitories, except for meals. Being head of the dormitory, she was allowed to do that.
Skyla was the only one in her dormitory who did not know what happened to her parents. In fact no one really liked her. It could be the fact that her parents disappeared, but most likely it was that every time she had gone on an outing, the boys always stared at her. She was exceptionally pretty, though she did not think so. She was rather tall, and had bright, icy blue eyes. Her straight, silky, blonde hair reached her waist and she usually did not put it up.
Another reason that the girls didn't like her was her imagination. She would often think up daring stories where a princess was trapped, and a handsome knight would come and whisk her away. She also wished that the princess was her. She would sit, staring at the wall, annoying others who were trying to get her attention. Now that she thought of it maybe she will actually be whisked away. This 'Albus Dumbledore' could be her prince. Maybe he's a handsome spy, and has come to tell me that my parents were killed in a secret mission, where they were trying to save the world. *Or maybe,* said a voice in the back of her head, *he's a criminal, famous for kidnapping girls and he wants to get you*, but she pushed that thought away.
Just then, the bell rang for the evening meal, and she walked down the stairs, anxiously awaiting Saturday, July 14.
Chapter 1, The Letter
The letter said,
9, July
Dear Miss Auren,
I would like to speak with you about something very important. If you are wary of coming, as I'm sure you are (I would be too if I had received a letter from a complete stranger asking me to meet them) just be content for now that it has something to do involving your parents. I cannot say more disclosed in a letter for fear of it being intercepted. Meet me in London on July 14 at "The Leaky Cauldron" (I have enclosed instructions on where to find it) to hear more.
-Albus Dumbledore
Skyla stared at the opened letter and re-read it a couple more times before setting it down and staring at the clean, white, orphanage wall. What kind of a person would be sending her a letter, fully expecting her to meet them at a place called "The Leaky Cauldron"? It sounded like a bar where witches went to talk and drink. She laughed at the absurdity of that. My mind's running away with me again, there are no such things as witches.
She looked down at the letter again. She remembered something that the orphanage mistress who handed out letters to people had said in her funny French accent; "Zis was a funny letter meez, it was delivered by an owl". Now, who would send a letter by owl? Probably the same kind of person who would expect her to meet them just like that. She smiled. The kind of person whose name was 'Albus Dumbledore'. It sounded like something she had heard before, a very, very long time ago.
And what was this about her parents? Skyla had barely known them. They disappeared suddenly when she was only a year and a half old. In fact, she only remembered her mother's bright blond hair and laughter and her father's deep voice and smell of…well…she wasn't quite sure what the smell was. No one could seem to tell her exactly what had happened to her parents. Some said they just ran off, leaving her, and others had said they had probably died some way or another. Whoever this 'Albus Dumbledore' person was, he had struck her curiosity.
Now that Skyla had decided that she would go to this "The Leaky Cauldron", she wondered how she would get there. Then she remembered the letter; "…I have enclosed instructions on where to find it…". Looking back in the envelope, she saw another sheet of parchment. It had a map of London and, on a street, a red star labeled "The Leaky Cauldron".
Well, she knew how to find it. Now, how to get permission? The Headmistress of "The Little Ladies Orphanage" wasn't to keen on letting girls out of the building, only on 'Outing Weekends'. She checked the schedule. Yes! There was an 'Outing Weekend' on the fourteenth. They were going to visit a sewing factory, not far from "The Leaky Cauldron". There were so many girls, that she could slip away easily and rejoin them at the end of the tour, like she had done countless times already. Mistress Raiyne wouldn't notice, she never does.
Just then, Lyenna, the head of Skyla's dormitory walked in. She glanced at the unfolded letter on Skyla's bed. "Oooh, look, you finally got a letter, Skylark." She sneered, pulling Skyla's long, blond hair. "Who sent it, the Health Inspector, giving you an F- on cleanliness?"
Skyla scowled at her and quickly folded up the letter, stuffing it in her pocket. Of course, there was always the problem of Lyenna. She prided herself on tormenting Skyla about her parents. Lyenna was not really an orphan, her parents just sent her to live there for a few months at a time while they traveled around the world. They always sent her souvenirs from their trips, including tropical bed sheets, which she gave anyone caught touching them a suspension, which meant they were not permitted to leave the dormitories, except for meals. Being head of the dormitory, she was allowed to do that.
Skyla was the only one in her dormitory who did not know what happened to her parents. In fact no one really liked her. It could be the fact that her parents disappeared, but most likely it was that every time she had gone on an outing, the boys always stared at her. She was exceptionally pretty, though she did not think so. She was rather tall, and had bright, icy blue eyes. Her straight, silky, blonde hair reached her waist and she usually did not put it up.
Another reason that the girls didn't like her was her imagination. She would often think up daring stories where a princess was trapped, and a handsome knight would come and whisk her away. She also wished that the princess was her. She would sit, staring at the wall, annoying others who were trying to get her attention. Now that she thought of it maybe she will actually be whisked away. This 'Albus Dumbledore' could be her prince. Maybe he's a handsome spy, and has come to tell me that my parents were killed in a secret mission, where they were trying to save the world. *Or maybe,* said a voice in the back of her head, *he's a criminal, famous for kidnapping girls and he wants to get you*, but she pushed that thought away.
Just then, the bell rang for the evening meal, and she walked down the stairs, anxiously awaiting Saturday, July 14.