Mr and Mrs. Devon, were wealthiest people around for miles. Living in a small town not many have heard of called birginton. They were proud to say that they are self-wealthy. Many thought this was rather odd. No matter what they did they always came across as strange, mysterious, always having some secret they were keeping.
Mr. Devon left the house quite often, but not to work. Mrs. Devon would tell the neighbors he was taking care of his elderly mother, who needed almost twenty-four seven. Mr. Devon was tall, slim, with a rather long neck. The middle aged man was attempting to grow a mustache, the blonde hair as a mustache was not the best look. Mr. Devon was the father of three children and wished they would have fourth, though it was uncommon for people like him to have more than one, having four would be off the chart.
Trying his hardest to give his children everything they wanted, Mr. Devon saw the value in teaching his children what hard work was like. He started his eldest and most privileged child Aiden a muggle job. Aiden was tall like his father, muscular and unlike his father had a normal sized neck. Aiden was known at school for his curly blonde hair, and his ocean blue eyes you couldn't resist. He worked at a small muggle ice cream shop over the summer and during the holidays when he was home.
Mr. and Mrs. Devon insisted and was convinced that they had to be normal if any muggle found out what they were they could be ruined. Birginton was a wizarding town and not on the map, however many muggles did live there. Just outside the town was little Hangleton where lots of muggles lived.
The morning of August ninth was a rainy day and rightly so. The clouds hung low in the sky, rain started to trickle down the windows of the quiet little home. Mr. Devon pulled is black dress coat over his white button down shirt. Straightening his tie he looked at himself in the mirror. A scramble came down the hall before there was a soft knock on the closed door Mr. Devon hid behind. A small voice followed, "We are all ready to go papa," The voice of a small girl brought a smile to his face, the voice of his youngest daughter Mary was the best thing he had heard all morning. Making his way toward the door and opening it, looking down he met the blue eyes of his youngest child Mary. Mary was about seven years old, she had dirty blonde hair that was pulled back into a neat short pony at the back of her head. She smiled up at him, she was always going to be his little princess.
"Are you ready?" He gave her a small smile, Mary nodded her head, "yes." Mr. Devon took a deep breath in and took the hand of his young daughter and made his way down the hall to the staircase. At the bottom of the staircase to welcome him was his two eldest, Aiden and Natalie. Aiden was dressed in a black suit and tie like he was, Natalie wore a short sleeved dress that went to her knees with black flat shoes. He smiled at the almost identical siblings, Natalie looked just like Aiden, her hair was long and curly neatly clipped out of her face, her eyes were bright blue but. They both stood with their hands folded together waiting for them.
The four of them made their way to the muggle automobile. The ride was silent to the small chapel in the center of town.
"Where is mama?" Mary asked, looking out the window.
"She will meet us there, my dear." Mr. Devon told her, As they pulled into the parking lot.
Outside the car were people in long black cloaks heading towards the chapel. The small white chapel had seemed to lose it's light and joy that usually filled the parking lot. The four of them got out and made their way into the building, taking a seat in the front row. Natalie looked around at her surroundings, she can't ever remember being in this chapel, but she felt like it was familiar. The walls were covered with beautiful wood carvings. The ceiling was arched with beautiful chandeliers hanging from it. She noticed the people sitting behind her were sobbing quietly. Just then a man in all black walked over two then, he stopped in front of Mr. Devon, the man had long blonde hair, grey cold eyes. He looked at her father and extended his long arm, shaking Mr. Devon's hand, he said. "Deepest condolences for you and…"He looked over at the three children and gave them a smug smile "your children, this is such a tragedy, I couldn't imagine how I would deal with the stress if my dear wife died." He finished. Mr. Devon just stared at him with a blank expression, "yes well, if it wasn't for your kind my children would still have a mother. Wouldn't they; Lucius?"
"What are you implying Nate?" Lucius raised an eyebrow and his smug smile faded.
"You know exactly what I speak of Malfoy," Mr. Devon gripped Malfoy's hand tightly as a warning. Malfoy smirked arrogantly, "I am afraid I do not know what you speak of." He ripped his hand away and looked at Natalie, who was sitting furrowing her eyebrows angrily. "Come Draco, we do not associate with the likes of these folk," Lucius walked away quickly, followed by a young boy who looked like a mini Lucius.
Mr. Devon sat down on the bench and leaned over to his daughter, 'They are trouble, The Malfoy's big trouble."
Black banners fell from the ceiling as a bell began ringing sofly. The bell ran four times and then stopped. A man stood up, he was old, his hair was white and he had a long beard that barely passed his waist. He was the only person wearing grey and white, He looked around at all the saddened faces. He looked over at the four sitting in the front row and then spoke.
"Nate, Aiden, Natalie, and little Mary. We are greatly and deeply saddened and hurt for you. The legacy your mother and wife has left you is great, she was truly a talented and gifted woman. Claire Devon was killed in an attack on the ministry last week by those who support He-who-must-not-be-named. Claire knew not to try and fight back; this wizard was stronger than any other wizard we have seen before; however, in an attempt to save the lives of others he lost her own…" The old man drowned on and on and Natalie zoned out of reality, when she returned to reality people were getting to their feet and leaving the hall.
"Nat darling, are you alright?" Her father asked, she nodded slowly and turned away. The eleven year old girl was going to feel this pain for the rest of her life, the feeling in the pit of her stomach was never going to leave, the feeling of hate and anger was stuck forever.
She looked at her father, his eyes were red and puffy. He had clearly cried. "We are going to the grave site now," He told her, realizing everything had just hit his daughter. "Can we see her?" she asked, her father nodded his head slowly. "Of course you can." He took his daughter's hand and took her up to the casket which sat closed. Natalie reached up slowly, her hands shaking as she lifted up the front part. Her mothers face was cold and lifeless, her skin was grey and ice cold. Natalie reached in and touched her mothers skin but pulled her hand back faster than lightning, "She's dead."
Once the funeral had ended everyone was leaving, apparating away, driving away. The old wizard approached the young girl, who was sitting on the bench next to her mothers grave as she stared down at the hole in the ground that was slowly being filled. "Ms. Devon?" He said, slowly taking a seat next to her. "I have something for you, and I thought I would deliver it in person," He looked over at the grave. She knew they wouldn't have properly buried her until she had gone but she insisted on watching her mother's grave get filled.
Natalie slowly looked at the old wizard, he held out a small envelope that had a 'H' on back. She slowly turned it over and saw her name written in green ink.
'To Ms. Natalie M. Devon' and that's all it said there was nothing else. She looked over at where the old man was sitting but he had vanished.
Natalie stood up from the bench and headed towards the car where her father had been saying goodbye to some older witch. She climbed into the back with Mary and buckled up, "What's that?" Aiden asked, pointing to the letter in her hand. "Oh nothing," She shook her hand and shoved the letter under her leg.
The four of them headed home back towards the small house that they had left earlier that day, the house seemed to be dark and lifeless the same way her mother had looked. Natalie looked into her lap at the letter she was now holding in her hand debating whether or not to open the letter. She knew what the letter held on the other side, and the truth was did she really want to go? Or would she rather go to a muggle school and continue living as a muggle and forget all about this wizarding world that had killed her mother, what if she ended up the same.
Returning home that afternoon the now family of four headed in their different ways, Aiden headed to his room locking the door behind him, Mary was put down for a nap, and Natalie sat in the living room with her father. She held a letter in her hand, "Well aren't you going to open it?" Her father asked. She looked up at him across the room and nodded slowly, "I don't know," She looked down at the letter.
Mr. Devon got to his feet and took a seat next to his daughter on the couch, taking the letter out of her hand he said, "here I will read it for you." He slowly opened the back of the letter and unfolded the neatly folded parchment.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
〜
Headmaster : Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc, Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Ms. Devon,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all books and necessary equipment.
Term begins September 1. We await your owl no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Mr. Devon smiled happily, "This is great, you've been accepted at Hogwarts like your brother." Natalie nodded her head, "yay!" She said dryly. Her father looked at her in a concerned way, all Natalie had talked about all summer was how excited she was to get her letter to Hogwarts. Everyday she would get the mail and check and everyday since her eleventh birthday on February 16th she would be disappointed to only find bills and letters to Aiden from his Hogwarts friends. "I won't be going, Dad." She said standing up.
"Well why not?" He questioned.
"Because it said we will wait for your owl no later than July 31, it's August ninth." She took the letter from her father, "you are going, I saw Dumbledore hand you this letter Personally, which means he would still like you to come." Natalie sighed slowly, "And what if I don't want to go?"
"Not go? Natalie, you have been talking about this since your birthday. How can you not want to go?"
"Because I don't want to, mum was excited for me and shared in my excitement and now she's not here to see me go so I won't go!" Natalie crossed her arms. Her father took a small deep breath and said, "honey, I will be there to see you go, I will be there to see you arrive home, I will respond to all the letters you send me. Yes you are right mum isn't here to see you go but we have to go on, and I know she would want you to still go, she wouldn't want you to stay here and never get the chances she got."
Natalie stood there arms still crossed determined not to go no matter what her father said. "I don't want to go," she stood her ground.
"You do not make that decision I do, however, Why don't we just go and see Diagon Alley, you have never been before and maybe once you see it you will want to go. Aiden has to get his books and he needs a new robe."
Natalie was still not convinced about it, she knew deep down it wasn't her decision to make and either way she was going to end up going to Hogwarts. She unfolded her arms and nodded her head in defeat, "fine, I will agree to go to Diagon Alley." Mr. Devon smiled happily and hugged her, "I know this is what she would want."
Natalie knew that she had to do this for her mother, she knew he was right and that her mum would want her to continue and go to Hogwarts and make friends, and get the chance to do things her mother never got to do. Natalie in her head wanted to please her mother, wanted her father to be proud of her too, but how was she going to go on? when her mother was dead, her father was alone, and the house was grey and sad.
Natalie headed up the stairs to her bedroom she shared with Mary, who was sound asleep. Sitting down on her bed she looked up at the picture of her and her mother, the picture slowly moved and they were laughing. She looked down at the old uneven wooden floor and an idea popped into her head. She got up from her bed and puled a small box out from under it, she removed the lid. Inside the box was a piece of parchment and a pencil. She sat down and began to write a letter to her muggle friend Annee with two E's.
Dear Anne,
Starting the first of September you will not see me, I am going off to a boarding school, I will write and I hope you write as well. Love you!
Nat
She went back down the old creaky steps and placed the letter in the mail box, before heading back up stairs and getting ready for bed. She needed a good night of sleep if she was going to be going to Diagon Alleythe very next day.
"It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends."
~ Albus Dumbledore
(Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone)
(Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character of J.K.Rowling, she owns everything)