Nearly 10 years had passed and Esme has transformed into a thin girl with long golden hair, a round face, emerald-colored eyes, and a small nose. Her usual outfit consisted of floral shirts, blue overalls, and her favorite nearly torn sneakers. She was walking on a trail in the nearby forest, one of her favorite places to be during the summertime. She found that being surrounded by trees and wild animals somehow put her at ease. She had been spending the morning of her birthday walking by the river, watching wild animals, and drawing pictures of the plants she had found on her walk and was now heading home to have some lunch. She had just gotten out of the forest when she noticed something interesting, a barn owl flew right above her, "That's funny, I thought owls were nocturnal…" The owl was flying towards her home, which again was extremely odd, and Esme decided she should investigate. She sprinted to her house, trying to stay off of the gardens of her neighbors and see if she could catch the owl flying over.

By the time she got home, she was out of breath and had made it just in time to see the owl swoop down from the skies and land on top of her family's mailbox, scaring a nearby badger that ran to hide in the forest. Esme was in awe of the owl's beauty, but she noticed that this owl was special, "Is it… holding a letter in its beak?" She cautiously walked over to take a look and to her surprise, the owl didn't fly away. The owl patiently waited for her to get close, then gently gave her the envelope. Esme looked down at the letter with curiosity, then back up at the owl, "Thank you angel of the skies…" The barn owl hooted appreciatively, then flew off. Esme watched it until she couldn't see it anymore, then looked down at the letter.

The handwriting on the envelope was very elegant, the black ink popping off the paper, "To The Brown Household, from..." Esme squinted as she read the name, "Morgan McNulty? That's an odd name… Never heard of them before…" She looked back towards the sky in the direction the owl had left in, "Who trains an owl to send a letter…?" She shrugged and went inside extremely curious about the letter, her mom smiled as she came in, "There you are Esme, I was looking for you," Mrs. Brown was a woman with Blonde hair and a motherly smile. Esme smiled apologetically, "Sorry ma, I lost track of time…" Mrs. Brown, chuckled, "You seem to do that a lot lately…" She then looked down at what Esme was holding, "Did the mail come already?" Esme looked at the letter and debated what to tell her mother, "Uh… In a way… Yes,"

Mrs. Brown held out her hand for the letter, "Who's it from, Esme?" Esme handed her the letter and shrugged, "A Morgan McNulty. Do you recognize the name ma?" Mrs. Brown shook her head as she opened the letter, "Not that I can recall…" She looked at the letter and read it out loud, "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Brown. It is my honor to announce that your daughter has been accepted into one of the most prestigious schools in the world, Hogwarts. If you are confused, do not be alarmed. I will be visiting tonight to explain everything, but I must warn you that I am going to be a tad bit late. The M.O.M. school board has been a bit busy lately and you never know how long the K. Bus ride is going to take. Either way, I hope your day is pleasant, Madam Morgan McNulty,"

Both Esme and Mrs. Brown looked at the letter curiously, "That is quite the odd letter," Mrs. Brown said as she set it down on the counter. Esme looked at the letter excitedly, 'The lady that trained an owl is coming here to visit? Maybe she went to the same school I have been accepted to!' Mrs. Brown smiled as she walked to the stove, "It isn't going to do us much good if we dwell on odd letters, help me set up the table Esme," Esme took one last look at the letter, then went to help her mother. The rest of the day was relatively calm, Mr. Brown drove into the driveway around 2 in the afternoon, where Esme came running out to greet him. He was a tall man with tan skin, dark black hair, and a beard. He was a man who loved to keep things tidy, share his experiences as a college professor, and enjoyed quizzing Esme on subjects like constellations, greek mythology, and science in general. To Esme, it was like a sort of game she could play with her slightly strict father, to Mr. Brown it was a great way to help Esme remember what he taught her.

By the time 8 o'clock had rolled around, Esme had sat on the porch waiting for the Mysterious Madame McNulty to arrive. Mr. Brown watched her from the doorway confused, Mrs. Brown chuckled and explained quietly, "She got a letter today from a… McNutty I believe… Said that she had been accepted to a prestigious school and that she was coming to visit," Mr. Brown raised an eyebrow curiously, "I didn't send an application to a school, did you?" Mrs. Brown shook her head, "No, I didn't. I am worried that this is a cruel prank from someone, but I don't know how to tell Esme…" They both looked at Esme worried, she was still looking towards the street expectantly, waiting for a bus of some sort to arrive.

Mrs. Brown quietly walked over to Esme and sat next to her, "...Esme, do you think that maybe… this woman isn't coming?" Esme continued to look down the street, "No, she sounds like the kind of woman who would keep their word. Besides, she said she was going to be late. I can wait a little longer…" Mrs. Brown looked at Esme sadly, placing her hand on her arm and patting her to try to break the news carefully. "Honey I don't think-" Before she could finish her sentence, a strange sight appeared before them. A giant, purple bus came to a screeching halt right in front of their house, then a tall, dark-skinned woman walked out of the bus, "Thanks for the ride, Ernest. Drive safely, alright?" The man she was talking to was a bit on the elderly side, with greying hair and thick glasses that reminded Esme a bit of an owl.

With a nod from Ernest, the doors shut and the bus sped off leaving the confused family and the strange woman together. The woman smiled and walked over to Esme, "It's so good to meet you, I'm Madam McNutly," She looked down at the letter Esme was holding, "I see you got my letter, I would have sent it with the regular post but I wanted you to receive it today…" Esme looked at the woman, eyes wide with fascination and curiosity, she knew the stranger was going to be unique but she didn't expect her to be very pretty as well. The woman had dark skin, long frizzy hair in a bun, a warm smile, and bright brown eyes that Esme swore changed with the lighting giving her the impression that she was a determined, and yet kind individual.

Esme stood up, "Hello Miss McNutly, you're beautiful-" McNutly laughed in amusement as Esme's face went pink with embarrassment, "I- I didn't mean to say that out loud, but it's true so…" Her mom stood up to hold the blushing Esme, "It is… Good to meet you, madam, I'm glad you're letter wasn't a hoax…" McNutly stood up proudly, "Well I should hope not, seeing the letter was delivered by owl," Mrs. Brown looked down at her daughter questionably, "By owl? You never mentioned that piece of information to me, dear," Esme smiled sheepishly, "I didn't know how to tell you, besides you wouldn't have believed me if I did…" Mrs. Brown sighed, "I suppose you're right," She turned to McNutly, "Why don't you come inside for some tea, I am rather interested in what you have to say," McNutly smiled, "That sounds quite pleasant, thank you,"

As Esme showed Madam McNutly to the kitchen, Mrs. Brown went to comfort her baffled husband, "Did you see that Lucy? The woman walked out of a giant purple bus! And then it disappeared! Like it never existed!" Lucy patted his shoulder gently, "I know Benjamin, I know…" He shook his head bewildered, "It was just like magic, Lucy…" Lucy smiled at him gently, "I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation for all of this, Benjamin… You have always said that magic is just a child's fairy tale. Great for telling stories but not fixed in reality," She smiled as she pulled him gently into the house to join Esme and Madam McNutly.