In 15 minutes Isytha had finished the rest of her pancakes and had helped her mother load the dishwasher. She was then working towards calming her mum down, promising everything would be okay and that maybe someone was just playing a prank on them. Although she knew it wasn't a prank, she deep down felt a pit in her stomach where she thought it might be. What if the people came in, told her to display her magic, and when she did, they would be shocked because magic can't be real.
But it was, she reminded herself, the letters seemed genuine. As the clock ticked closer to 12 Izzy made her way to the door. Looking up at the clock every so often to check that it hadn't passed the set time yet. And just as the second hand ticked onto the 12, there was a sharp knock on the door. Izzy's heart was pounding so hard she thought that maybe she had imagined the knock, since she couldn't possibly hear over the racing blood in her ears. Then there was another sharp knock and she moved to open the door, peeking out at the strangers on her doorstep.
They were two men, in long billowing clothes. The older one, who had all white hair and looked older even than her grandfather, was wearing a bright fuchsia coloured material with lime green triangles all over them. The other one, who was much younger and standing slightly behind him with a sneer on his face, whether because he didn't want to be there or because Izzy hadn't invited them in yet, was wearing all black, his hair lying on either side of his face in a greasy sheet.
Izzy could immediately tell that the black-clad man was loyal to this old geezer, though he was extremely annoyed by it, he was loyal. His eyes fell on the small form of the girl and sneered even more, but the old man smiled kindly at her, his eyes twinkling.
She didn't like him.
She could see he was planning something, and that he was going to do anything to get it. Izzy didn't like people like that, they had to be crushed before they can get any plans done. However, she thought, at his age it would be too late to crush him, he would have to be charmed.
"Well you insufferable-" the young man was about to say when the Crazy Merlin put his hand up to stop his words. Oof, emotional that one.
"Now, Severus, be patient, this is a lot for one to take in," if it were possible, Izzy thought she saw this man's eyes twinkle even more.
"Are you Miss Isytha-Edette?"
He looked down at her and had his kindly smile on his face. But she noticed it never truly reached his eyes.
"It's Izzy."
"My apologies Miss Izzy. Do you mind if we came in? We don't exactly want people to overhear our conversations, do we?" His tone was lighthearted but questioning, peering over his half-moon spectacles at her.
Izzy nodded, moving over and allowing the two men pass through, the younger first. Izzy had half a mind to trip him as he crossed the threshold, but thought better of it. He could possibly be useful in the future. So she contained herself, and also refrained from hovering her mother's favorite vase over the man.
Izzy then led them to the family room, where her mother was waiting, pale and a slight sheen on her forehead. When she saw the men she stood, and after introductions went to get a kettle for tea and four cups.
The black-clad man, who Izzy just found out was called "Professor Snape" (if he was a teacher, then maybe Izzy really was a witch. No normal person would employ someone so rude), sat on one of the chairs and his black eyes bore into her. She immediately felt something different, like something was going through her mind. She had only felt that a few times in her life, and she bit it in the butt, shoving the presence from her mind. The professor blinked, as if he were surprised and then returned his face to the slight sneer that had held it before.
Izzy really didn't like when people tried to look at her thoughts. She would have to trust this man though, and this new old man ("Professor Dumbledore"). At least enough to seem like she liked them, until they would be loyal to her. Everyone is eventually loyal. When they realize they have no other choice. As Mrs. Wilson walked back in she snapped out of her reverie of the past few years at school.
"Well, I assume you got our letters, Mrs. and Miss Wilson," that stupid twinkle was back in those blue eyes. Damn.
"Yes, we did receive the letters," Mrs. Wilson responded with a try at being professional, but her hands shook just a little.
"Does this mean I'm really a witch?" Izzy burst out, not being able to contain herself any longer. Despite not liking her current company, she couldn't help but feel excited.
Dumbledore chuckled, "Yes, yes you are a witch. But let us explain something more."
After Dumbledore and Snape explained about what wizards and witches were and what muggles were and about the whole world (she had to say, Professor Snape's snark was growing on her) they started to tell about Hogwarts.
"So, Hogwarts, is then the school where witches and wizards go to learn how to use their powers," Dumbledore said. "And I think I will let Professor Snape fully take over from here."
Snape glared at the old man for a second before turning back to Izzy and her mum, "Hogwarts is like one of your Muggle Boarding schools. You live, sleep, and eat there during the school months, and during the summer and winter holiday's will return home. There are four houses, Slytherin," here Snape looked almost proud, "Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor."
Snape's face had turned up into more of a sneer as he nearly spat the last one out of his mouth. Seriously, Izzy thought, how is this man a teacher?
"How does she know which house she'll be in?" Mrs. Wilson spoke up for the first time since they had started talking.
"That will be decided when she gets there. However, she still needs to get her school things. She cannot show up with muggle contraptions."
"Well, where do I even get this stuff?" Izzy had picked up the third letter with her supply list.
"You will need to go to Diagon Alley. In London," Snape replied, clipping his words as if that should have been the obvious answers.
"I've never been to London. Oh mum, can we go right now?" Izzy was practically buzzing in her seat now with excitement.
Mrs. Wilson had a ghost of a smile pass her lips and her eyes cleared for a second, before taking a look at the list.
"Well, Diagon Alley isn't the easiest place to get to when you're a muggle, so we will have to escort you the first time," Dumbledore sent a warning look at Snape as if to say "if you don't behave yourself you won't get to come on these anymore." Although with the way he had been acting, this little excursion is his punishment.
"Mum. Mummy, please, please can we go right now?" At this point Izzy was bouncing up and down next to her mother.
"I suppose. Go brush your teeth and shoes."
After Izzy left the room she turned to the two men. "You'll take care of her won't you," she looked at them both in turn, tears starting to pool in her eyes, "She's my only child."
Upon receiving a promise from both men, she thanked them, and left to get her own shoes on. When she returned they were standing next to the fireplace, discussing something quietly.
"Now, we've temporarily hooked your fireplace up the Floo network, but after today, you'll have to get to London the muggle way. We'll go to the Leaky Cauldron and from there we will show you how to get to it from muggle London, and how to get to Diagon Alley from there," Dumbledore stated, as if it were the easiest thing in the world.
"W-what's a 'flew', sir?" Izzy asked, not liking that she thought she had just seen a fact in the embers of the fireplace.
"A Floo is," he paused to think, "It's a way to get around, through the fireplace, with a special powder that you throw in to get you to that place."
Mrs. Wilson's eyes widened. "We have to step into a fire?"
"I assure you, Mrs. Wilson, it is quite safe."
After a bit of convincing, she was finally in the Floo, and popped out in a dingy little pub, Professor Snape catching her before she could fall.
Next came Izzy, and finally Dumbledore. After they were shown how to get into the Leaky Cauldron from the outside, they went out back, and showed Izzy which bricks to tap.
"You'll have to go to Gringotts first before you get a wand, but make sure you do, otherwise you might not be able to get back in to get it later."
After opening the gateway for them, they left, Snape vaguely gesturing to where Gringotts was ("It's the wizards bank, you have to open an account.").
Making an account wasn't hard, Mrs. Wilson knew it wouldn't be, because it wasn't hard when she walked into the muggle bank to open a new account. But when they said that Izzy already had one, they were surprised, and followed the midget-man (goblins, Dumbledore had said) to the vault that had tons of gold in it. They had no idea how much any of it was worth, or how much a wand would be, but Mrs. Wilson grabbed a couple handfuls of the gold coins and a few of the copper and silver ones too, putting them into her purse.
After getting back out, both women being slightly dazed by the light and the bumpy ride back to the surface, they made their way down the street, first coming to a pet shop.
"Mum, they have owls! I'm allowed an owl at school, can I get one?" Izzy asked, pulling a bit on Mrs. Wilson's shirt.
"Maybe, why don't we get your wand first, pets are a lot to take care of," Mrs. Wilson chewed her lip, before spotting a little shop that had a sign on top of it: Ollivanders.
Mrs. Wilson's eyes cleared for a second with recognition before they became cloudy and troubled. She took Izzy's hand and stepped into the shop, somehow being more dinky and cluttered than the pub they had arrived in was.
An old gentleman came from the back and said, "Ah, you're looking for a wand, are you not? I am Mr. Ollivander, and you are?" He said, finally looking up at Izzy.
"Izzy Wilson," she responded.
The man's eyes sparked and he stood a little taller, a smile playing across his face.
"Good, good, can you step forward, I just need to take a few measurements."
Izzy nodded, letting her mother's hand go and taking a few steps towards the counter. Her palms had been sweating a bit since they stepped into the shop, but she couldn't place what made her so nervous. Mr. Ollivander dropped a tape measure next to her feet and after a second sprang up and started measuring Izzy (even her tongue!) and when it was finished fell back to the floor.
"Interesting, interesting," Ollivander looked over at Mrs. Wilson who was still standing back by the door. "Would you mind stepping out? This is rather a private experience."
Mrs. Wilson merely nodded, looking down at the list. As soon as she was out of sight, Ollivander locked the door, peeping out to the street to be sure no one was snooping.
"We don't need people walking in for this."
And with that he disappeared behind the counter into the thick shelves of boxes.