Daniel and Juliet Granger were two, perfectly normal people. Daniel Granger, the elder, was an intelligent man and proud to work as a surgeon at the local hospital in Cokeworth. His wife, Juliet, was much more fiery than her husband and worked as a lawyer at a firm in London. Both were hard hours and more often than not, did not see their only daughter very often.
Ophelia Granger was the near copy of Juliet Granger. She was a thin, tall girl with very bushy hair and warm chocolate brown eyes. Ophelia was quiet, intelligent and had a smart mouth, especially when it came to her teachers at school. Ophelia didn't have many friends (as most did not want to be seen with a bossy know-it-all), but she was friendly with vibrant red-haired girl in her grade, a girl named Lily Evans.
Lily and Ophelia had bonded quietly over the strange things that happened to them. Ophelia had a certain habit of making books and things fly when she became angry or sad. It was her own secret, one she didn't even let her parents know. Daniel and Juliet were normal, strict people and would not tolerate such nonsense. It wasn't Lily who had told Ophelia the secret but instead one of their classmates and Lily's very best friend, a greasy boy named Severus Snape.
Ophelia didn't mind Severus very much, in fact he seemed to be one of the few people that could keep up with her quick mind. She enjoyed spending time with Lily and Severus, often playing at the park and testing each other's minds and…well - magic - to the best of their knowledge. It was Severus who had snuck heavy books on Potions and spells and other magical things from his mother's private library, and it was Severus who had identified Ophelia's freakishness as magic itself. He'd warned Lily and Ophelia that letters from a magical school - Hogwarts - would probably arrive for the three of them come the summer.
And so it had.
Ophelia kicked her feet lightly, gripping the letter tightly. She had hardly read it, simply examined the book list and things she needed (included a bloody wand, of course), but her concern was on her parent's reaction.
Ophelia wasn't terribly concerned about her father; Daniel Granger was quite open-minded, especially when it came to his only daughter. It was Juliet that had Ophelia hesitant to reach out to her parents. Juliet Granger was strict, disciplined and, truthfully, never truly wanted children. It was only when Daniel had pleaded that she'd given in and gotten pregnant with Ophelia.
Ophelia would know. Her mother had told her this story multiple times.
Ophelia kicked her feet angrily and looked at the letter again. The green, ancient ink seemed to be mocking her. A second letter had come with the first, detailing that a professor would be along that very day to explain to her parents about her magic and Hogwarts. Ophelia sincerely hoped that the professor was ready for Juliet Granger.
Her eyes strayed to the street, frowning when she saw a strange looking cat staring at her. It sat on Mr. and Mrs. Fox's garden looking like a fearless avenger. Ophelia stared back just as fearless, gripping the letter in one hand. The cat blinked. Ophelia blinked. In a moment, the strange cat gracefully jumped behind the garden wall and from the wall, appeared a woman.
She was tall and stern-looking with cat-eyes glasses and pinned up hair, and she wore an emerald green dress - no, it was a robe. She swept from behind the wall and began striding up to Ophelia's front door like a woman on a mission.
"Ophelia Granger?" The woman asked as she neared Ophelia's tree.
"Yes, ma'am." Ophelia replied politely.
"My name is Professor Minevra Mcgonagall of Hogwarts." The woman said with a stern frown. "Are your parents home?"
Ophelia sighed deeply. "Yes, ma'am."
In a quick movement, Ophelia scrambled down her tree, brushing off dirt from her sky-blue dress and led the professor up her porch and into her home. The Granger home was stiff and colorless decorated in dull browns and greys. It was "modern" or so her mother claimed. Her father noticed them immediately and strode towards them from the kitchen.
"Phelly, who's this?" Dan Granger asked, pulling his daughter closer to him.
"Mr. Granger, my name is Minevra Mcgonagall." Professor Mcgonagall said calmly. "I represent a special school that your daughter has been accepted into."
At that moment, clacking was heard lightly and Juliet Granger appeared from her office. Unlike Dan, who was calm but still relaxed, Juliet looked stiff and unmoving, much like a stone statue.
"What school?" Juliet demanded.
Professor Mcgonagall observed her stiff stance and frowned deeply. "Perhaps we could sit down and talk about this like civilized folks." Juliet scowled as her husband agreed, leading the professor into the living room.
The Grangers faced the professor stiffly, all but Opehlia. She still held onto the letter tightly as Professor Mcgonagall observed them sternly.
"So, what exactly is Hogwarts?" Dan asked hesitantly, his eyes drawn to her older-style robe.
"A magic school." Ophelia replied without taking her eyes off of the professor.
"Excuse me?" Juliet asked incredulously. "There is no such thing as magic, Ophelia Jane." Ophelia winced at her mother's icy tone.
Professor Mcgonagall rose an eyebrow at Juliet's tone but instead cleared her throat and pulled a long stick from her robes. "On the contrary, Mrs. Granger, magic is quite real." With a tap of the stick, she turned their side table into a fat, squealing piglet. With another tap, she returned it to its former state.
"Oh, my," Dan said lightly.
"And you think my daughter is - magical?" Juliet asked in disbelief, blinking hard at the once-piglet table.
"Quite so," Professor Mcgonagall said calmly, conjuring a handkerchief and handing it to a sweaty and nervous-looking Dan.
"Thank you," He said, wiping his forehead. Mcgonagall politely refused the handkerchief back when offered. "What does this entail then? She's alright, correct?"
"Oh, yes, in fact I'm sure your daughter will be a fine witch once she's trained up a bit." Professor Mcgonagall said calmly. "Hogwarts starts on September the first and other than certain holidays, Ophelia will be required to stay at Hogwarts until June 1st."
Juliet scowled. "So you want to take my daughter and fill her head with this nonsense? Magic and potions and broomsticks and such? Daniel, are we actually listening to this hogwash?"
Dan stared at her incredulously, "She just turned our table into a bloody PIG, Juliet! I think we can safely say that magic is real." He turned back to the professor. "Please excuse my wife and I. We need to have a discussion." Without saying another word, he grabbed Juliet's arm tightly and yanked her away from the living room and away from the two witches.
Professor Mcgonagall pressed her lips into a tight line before turning to Ophelia gently, "Do you have any questions, young lady?"
Ophelia licked her lips nervously, "Um - well, what kind of magic can I learn?"
Mcgonagall smiled, eyes filled with amusement. "Many different kinds. Transfiguration, Charms, Potions and several others. In later years, you can take extra classes as well such as Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, Muggle Studies and others. We also have a school sport called Quidditch that's played on broomsticks."
Ophelia's eyes widened. "Really?" She asked excitedly.
"Yes," Mcgonagall said with a slight smile. "Hogwarts also boasts the largest library in the wizarding world. I doubt there is a family in England with a larger library." Ophelia grinned even bigger at that and was distracted at her parents coming into the living room, her father looking firm and her mother looking incredibly angry.
"We've decided we will send Phelly to your school, Professor," Dan said, settling next to his daughter and pressing his palm against her shoulder. Next to her, Juliet was stiff.
"Wonderful," Mcgonagall said brightly. "There are certain supplies that she'll need before she goes to school, supplies that can only be find in Diagon Alley in London. Unfortunately, non-magicals are not allowed in Diagon Alley. If it's alright to you two, I'll return tomorrow morning to take her to the Alley. There are two other magical children in this neighborhood in this neighborhood so she already has possibly friends for Hogwarts."
"Lily and Severus?" Ophelia asked eagerly. Professor Mcgonagall looked slightly surprised but covered that with a slight smile.
"Excuse me, who?" Juliet asked quietly. Ophelia winced at the tone, knowing very well that there was about to be a major blowup at any time. She watched her father squeeze her mother's hand warningly and Juliet's lips drew into a very tight line.
"Lily Evans and Severus Snape," Ophelia said, shrinking. "We go to school together. We're…friends."
"Did you know?" Juliet asked, pulling her hand away from Dan's. "About magic? Ophelia Jane Granger, tell me."
"Y-Yes." Ophelia said after a moment. She turned chocolate eyes to the professor. "Sometimes when I'm mad - or sad - I can make things come to me. Like books and stuff."
"I can't believe this." Juliet muttered, standing abruptly. "Well - Daniel - since you've already decided our daughter's future without my consent, I am going to get back to work." She shot a nasty look at Mcgonagall and Ophelia. "And I don't want to hear that word in my house." She snapped. With another haughty huff, Juliet stormed off.
The living room grew quiet with the matriarch's departure and when Ophelia peeked up to look at her father, he looked absolutely livid. The normally calm, laid-back man was nearly a purple color, eyebrows narrowed as he stared down at the floor. The purplish color was a strange contrast to his wheat-blonde hair and dark eyes.
"I'm very sorry, Professor - eh, Mcgonagall, was it?" Dan cleared his throat, smoothing out his normally slick-styled hair. "I'll speak with my wife tonight but we're very interested in sending our Phelly to Hogwarts. I assume Phelly will need money for tomorrow?"
"If you'd like to send some spending money for tomorrow," Mcgonagall said, glancing warily at the door where Juliet had disappeared. "That's perfectly alright, but through the Diana Potter Muggleborn Fund, all muggleborn school funds are paid for. That includes all books, potions supplies, robes and such, one wand and, due to Charlus Potter's interference, if your daughter intends to play on the Quidditch team, then the Diana Potter Fund will buy a broom of her choice."
"Oh," Dan said faintly. "That's very nice of - eh, Mrs. Potter?"
"Lady Potter started the fund after the death of a dear friend who happened to be a muggleborn." Professor Mcgonagall said solemnly. "She and Lord Potter's son will be joining Hogwarts this year as well." Ophelia reminded herself to remember that as she basically wiggled in excitement.
"My list also says I can have a pet?" Ophelia all but chirped, pushing the parchment into her father's face. Dan gave a little grumble at her excited insistence and quickly put his glasses on.
"An owl, cat or toad?" Dan asked warily.
"In my personal opinion, cats or owls are most useful." Mcgonagall offered. "Cats are very intelligent creatures and, in the magical world, we use owls to deliver messages and packages."
"An owl it is," Dan decided, eyeing the paper with a deep sigh. "Please make sure she chooses a good owl, Professor."
"Of course," Professor Mcgonagall said smoothly, eyeing Ophelia critically. "I will arrive at 8am tomorrow morning, Mr. Granger, and I will bring your daughter back at 5pm."
"I understand," Dan said solemnly. Both stood and shook hands. "I promise you that my wife will be on her best behavior."
"I sincerely hope so," Mcgonagall said coolly.
"Let me walk you to the door." Dan offered.
And so Ophelia Jane Granger, witch-in-training, watched in wonder as the strange witch walked down her little street and disappeared down another which she knew led to Lily Evans' home. She was going to Hogwarts, going to learn magic, and that was more important than anything else in her life.