Still sorry if I've made more mistakes.
Chapter One
Kate sat in a chair in an administrative office. "Magic does exist, Kathryn, I should know, all of my family is magical. I, however, was not born with that gift. Because of who your parents are--"
Kate cut her off, "Are, as in still alive?"
The sister continued, ignoring Kate's interruption. "They could not acknowledge your existence, at the very least, all three of you would have most likely been killed. Your mother met me through a series of her contacts, she found out that I live here and asked if the sisters could shelter you."
"Why does some English school want me, though?"
Now Sister Angeline paused, "Your parents were British, they went to that school."
"If my parents were British, why did they abandon me in America?"
Sister Angeline seemed to be thinking about how to kindly phrase her response. "As I have said, you were in danger. Don't consider what your mother did abandonment, Kathryn. She did what she had to do to ensure your survival. As for the choice of country, well, who would think to look three thousand miles away? America was obvious in it's simplicity."
I was right all along, Kate thought, I really am a bastard.
Kate thought,"Now, you have a choice to make. Think about it." The sister stood up, "But don't think for to long."
Kate nodded and sat in the office for a few more minutes. A woman walked in, "Katie, what are you doing in here?"
It was Anne Bryant, a volunteer, "Sorry," said Kate, "I was talking to someone."
Anne smiled, "You know it's no problem." She paused, "Are you alright? You look a little pale."
"Oh, you know me, Anne," she plastered on a fake smile, "Just getting another lecture. I really didn't think Father Hanaday would be that mad." She laughed nervously and walked out of the office.
Kate walked back to her room muttering, "Decisions, decisions, decisions."
It took her four days to reach a decision. She tracked down Sister Angeline, "I want to do it," she said. "I want to go to the school in England."
The sister nodded. "All right. I'll contact my sister. She can help you with your supplies, and she'll send your notification to Hogwarts."
Kate nodded. "Am I doing the right thing?" she asked after a moment.
"Do you think it's right?"
Why did the sister have to be ambiguous. "I want to do it, but what about God? If I'm going to learn magic, how can I still be Catholic?"
"I have a somewhat different view on the subject of magic, given my background. Magic is not evil. Like so many other things, it can be used for evil, but it can also be used for good. As long as you think it's right, and your faith is strong, I don't see why God would have a problem." She started to walk away, "Although," she looked over her shoulder, "Perhaps we should keep this between us. Some of the other sisters aren't as open minded as I am."
Kate nodded and walked to her room. Anna, one of her roommates was laying down. She sat up when Kate walked in. "What's up?"
"You know how I told you about that boarding school in England?"
Anna thought for a moment, "Yeah, what about it?"
"I'm going there."
Anna's face lit up, she hugged Kate and laughed, "Awesome! You're going to get an accent and everything!"
"Uh, yeah, right. I hadn't really thought of that."
"That's so great. And, of course, more room here for the rest of us." Kate shoved her shoulder.
Two weeks passed. With each day, Kate grew more impatient. She was ready to go to this school, ready to leave the state of Ohio, not to mention the country, for the first time in her conscious memory. Finally, the day came when Carry Parker, Sister Angeline's sister, would take her shopping for her supplies.
"So your name is Kathryn?" Mrs. Parker said once they were alone on the street waiting for Mrs. Parker's car. Kate's suitcase was on the ground at her feet.
"Everyone calls me Kate."
"Kate, then, are you excited?" Her eyes lit up.
"A little, scared too. England's pretty far away." She shrugged.
"Oh, don't worry about that. Hogwarts is a wonderful place. My husband went there, and our son is a prefect this year."
"I thought you were an American."
Mrs. Parker laughed, "I was born here, but now I live in England with my husband and our three children." A limo pulled in front of them and stopped. "Ready?"
"When you said car, I thought you meant, well, car." Kate had never ridden in a limo before.
"This is just a little more spacious. Is there a problem?"
"No."
A chauffer came out of the car and opened the door for them. They got in the car and pulled away from the church. "How will I pay for everything I need?" Kate asked.
Mrs. Parker held up a slip of paper. "This is a vault number for a bank in England. I assume your parents left you some money."
"Do you know anything about my parents?" It was worth a shot to ask.
"No, honey, I'm sorry. I really don't."
Kate nodded, "You said this bank is in England?" Mrs. Parker nodded. "Do they have an office near here?"
"Not exactly." The limo stopped.
Kate looked out the window. "Where are we?"
Mrs. Parker said, "Come on, I'll show you." The limo driver opened the door and they stepped out, Kate with her bag in hand. There was a broken ATM in front of them. Mrs. Parker punched in the numbers 8247 and a door appeared. They stepped through it. "Welcome to Boulevard four and a half."
"What?"
"There are seven streets like this in the USA and Canada. These are…magical marketplaces. But first, we need to go to Gringotts."
"Gringotts?"
"The bank."
"I thought you said the bank was in England."
"Stop trying to think of the magical world like the Muggle, non-magic, world. Gringotts is an international bank. However, unlike in the Muggle world, all monetary transactions take place in person, not online. When a person opens an account at the bank, they put their money in a vault. This isn't like the American Federal Reserve system, you do know what that is?"
Kate thought for a moment, "Isn't it something about banks not needing to keep all of their customers money on hand at all times?"
"Yes, something like that. Anyway, your money is your money, it stays in a vault until you choose to retrieve it."
"But isn't this bank in England?"
"Yes, but it is also here. I don't really know how to explain it. Suffice to say, when you enter the doors in any country, you can access your vault. It's much more complicated than that, but I'm not sure you'd understand."
Kate was already confused, so she just smiled and nodded. They entered the bank, Kate tried to look outside, but the glass on the doors was white and she couldn't see through it. "Vault number?" The strange creature at the desk asked.
"1210," replied Mrs. Parker.
"And do you have the key to that vault?"
Mrs. Parker rolled her eyes, "Of course," she pulled it out of her pocket, "Here."
The creature led them to a trolley. They both sat down. "Keep your hands and feet on the inside of the trolley." He pulled a lever and they started careening down a dark tunnel.
Kate considered it her first roller coaster ride. A few minutes later, they screeched to a halt. "Vault 1210," the creature announced. He hopped off the trolley and opened the heavy looking door.
Kate walked inside and her mouth dropped open. "Oh. My. God." She turned to Mrs. Parker. "Is this all mine?" There were piles of gold and silver, three feet tall. Mrs. Parker nodded solemnly. "You're kidding? There's so much!"
"Perhaps your parents were very wealthy."
"Miss Singleton," the creature said, "I was told to give this to you upon your arrival." He handed her a letter.
"Thank you." He nodded.
"Quick, Kate, gather your money, we must be off." Mrs. Parker checked her watch.
Kate locked around the room again, "But I don't know how much to take."
Mrs. Parker gathered some coins and put them in a purse. "This will be enough for a year or three, trust me. Do you want anything else while we're down here?" Kate shook her head. "Good, let's be off."
Clutching her letter tightly, Kate sat down in the trolley. Once they were on the main floor again, she asked, "Can we grab some lunch, or something?"
"Are you hungry, or do you want to read your letter?"
Kate smiled sheepishly, "A little of both, actually."
"How about Starbucks?"
"There's a Starbucks on a hidden street in the magical world? You're joking!"
Mrs. Parker shook her head, "Sadly, no, we do have a Starbucks, it's pathetic, really, but this is the only franchise in the magical world, as far as I know. Are you up for it?"
Kate nodded and they headed off to buy three dollar coffees. Once they were seated, Kate opened her letter.
Dear Kathryn,
I know you have questions. At this point in time, they can't
be answered. You'll hate that, undoubtedly, but it is the
truth. I am so proud of you. Though you have never met me
know that I love you. I know that you will do great things,
best of luck this year, I will write again.
With love,
Your Mother
Kate dropped the letter on the table. "What is it?" asked Mrs. Parker.
Kate swallowed. "That letter. It was from my mother."
Reviews, they always help