She was small. Everything around her was large and two faces loomed above her. Faces wearing bright shining grins that made her feel warm. Safe. Loved.
One face, "Daddy" a voice whispered, had a veritable mop of dark hair and glasses perched on the end of his nose.
The other, "Mama" said the same voice, had long flame-bright red hair and shining emerald eyes full of love.
"Astraia, we love you" cooed Mama as Daddy held up a long wooden stick and golden animals suddenly appeared and danced above her. A stag, a wolf, a dog, and a rat ran and played for her amusement.
"You like that, little flower?" Daddy grinned and reached down to tickle her.
The sound of her laughter was suddenly overcome by the sound of pounding.
Astraia's eyes snapped open. There was a banging on her bedroom door.
"Astraia! Astraia, get up! Time to help me make breakfast!" cried out Aunt Petunia.
"Ye-Yes, Aunt Petunia," croaked out Astraia, still in the process of waking up. Even as she spoke, her stomach was rumbling. She had been sent to bed without supper the night before.
The voice of her stomach's desire had reminded her of the previous day's events. It had been Dudley's birthday, which meant a special outing; in this case, the zoo. Except she wasn't exactly interested in spending time with Dudley and his foul friend Piers. She was content to stay quiet and spend her time with the animals. Of course, that hadn't been a problem until the reptile house. She had taken a particular liking to a boa constrictor. She felt a kinship with the snake for it had lived it's entire life in a cage on display. She had suddenly felt a fierce desire to see it free and then, in the next second, the glass had vanished and pandemonium had ensued. She was quite positive that the snake had actually thanked her for setting it free. Vernon had been rather… upset. Raving on about her "nonsense."
This has been going on for as long as she could remember. Both vehemently passionate rants against magic and her being punished whenever something odd, or something Vernon thought was odd, happened around her. She usually feigned an ignorance about what Vernon was punishing her for, but that wasn't always the case. There were times when strange things happened and she had no idea how they had occurred. However, there were other times. Times when she desperately desired something. In the past, she had wished Vernon's trousers to split when he bent over, they did, or to give him the uncomfortable sensation of having to urinate and delighted in watching him do that universal dance.
She had spent all night with her secret stash of books that she had smuggled into the house from the library. She had been passionate about magic for as long as she could remember and that had shown in her long hours spent in the library researching witchcraft and the history of magic.
Astraia brushed her long black hair, making sure her scar was covered (Aunt Petunia hated to see it), and that she looked presentable before she walked downstairs and entered the kitchen. As she did so, she heard Aunt Petunia order, "Crack those eggs, Astraia."
"Yes, Aunt Petunia," Astraia replied while she took the eggs from the counter and washed them before she cracked them in the bowl from the counter.
"Scrambled," Petunia ordered.
"Yes, Aunt Petunia," Astraia complied and proceeded to make scrambled eggs. By this point Vernon and Dudley had clambered into the kitchen and were waiting impatiently for food. After she finished making the eggs, she was ordered to set the table and then get the mail before she would be permitted to eat.
But, as she picked up the stack from below the mail slot, she noticed that the topmost letter was addressed to her.
Ms. A. Potter
The Second Bedroom
4 Privet Drive
Little Whinging
Surrey
The envelope was thick and heavy, made of yellowish parchment, and the address was written in emerald-green ink. There was no stamp.
Turning the envelope over, her hand trembling, Astraia saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake surrounding a large letter H.
"Well?!" Vernon demanded from the kitchen.
Astraia walked back towards the kitchen, staring at her letter. However, she knew that if the letter was seen by the Dursleys, it would be taken from her immediately and she would never know what it contained. So, she slipped the letter through the slats in the cupboard door, planning to come back for it later. When she finally got back to the kitchen, Vernon and Dudley were already devouring their meals.
"Remember to keep your elbows off the table," Aunt Petunia chided Astraia, all the while Dudley and Vernon lent heavily on their elbows as they ate.
"Yes, Aunt Petunia," Astraia agreed, making sure to keep her elbows elevated.
The rest of breakfast continued in the same vein. Finally, she found a minute of time to sneak away to the cupboard and retrieve her letter. She took a seat on one of the stairs and opened the strange letter.
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. Potter,
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 necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31. Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall,
Deputy Headmistress
She couldn't believe it. The only coherent thought running through her head was 'I was right! Magic is real!' As soon she could once again think clearly, she noticed that there was another piece of parchment inside the envelope. Before she could read it, Vernon walked past her, glancing towards her spot on the stairs. His eyes immediately narrowed in on the letter in her hands. As soon as he registered what it was that she was holding, he snatched it from her. He glanced at the letter, growing red as he did so.
"UP! GET UPSTAIRS!" Vernon bellowed at Astraia, pointing towards her room. Astraia hurried to comply, fearful of making Vernon angrier. "PETUNIA!" She hear him yell as she neared her room.
Vernon never went into work that day. Astraia was kept busy doing menial chores all day. Later that night, she snuck down the stairs and spied Vernon in front of the fireplace. The fireplace was rarely lit, only on special occasions. Tonight, while it was not a special occasion, the logs were aflame. He calmly fed her letter to the fire.
'Fantastic,' she thought. 'Now I'll never know how to respond.' She had been so astounded earlier that she barely registered anything the letter said except that magic was real.
However, whoever sent those letter seemed determined to get her another one. The letters just kept on finding her. They found her in the most unusual of ways too. For instance, once there had been a letter hidden in each of the dozen eggs inside the carton. Unfortunately, it drove Uncle Vernon crazy. Crazy enough to let them chase the entire Dursley family, Astraia included, all the way out the sea. All the way to a miserable little shack built upon a rock.
That night she slept on a small cot that had been in the corner of whatever passed as the living room in the shack. Dudley had been given the larger and presumably comfier couch and was snoring like a buzz saw. She could also hear the fierce storm that raged outside.
'This is definitely not going to end well,' she thought, 'a relatively small rock and a fierce sea?' She could hear the thunder outside. It sounded close. Very close, actually. In fact, she realized, those sounds weren't thunder. They were knocks.
Whoever it was knocked again. Dudley jerked awake. "Where's the cannon?" he said stupidly.
There was a crash behind them and Uncle Vernon came skidding into the room. He was holding a rifle in his hands.
"Who's there?" he shouted. "I warn you - I'm armed!"
There was a pause. Then -
SMASH!
The door was hit with such force that it swung clean off its hinges and with a deafening crash landed flat on the floor.
A giant of a man was standing in the doorway. The giant squeezed his way into the hut, stooping so that his head just brushed the ceiling. He bent down, picked up the door, and fitted it easily back into its frame. The noise of the storm outside dropped a little. He turned to look at them all.
"Sorry about that," the giant said, looking around and stopping near Vernon.
"I demand that you leave at once, sir!" he said. "You are breaking and entering!"
"Ah, dry up, Dursley, you great prune," said the giant, bending the muzzle of the rifle upwards. Vernon had a shell shocked expression on his face.
The giant turned towards where Astraia had tucked herself into a corner with a great smile on his face, "Astraia, there you are! I haven't seen you since you was a wee toddler. You look so much like your mum, especially the eyes. And your hair, that's your dad. Got something for you. I know it's a little early, but I couldn't help myself. Afraid I might have sat on it at some point but I imagine it'll taste fine just the same. Baked it myself, words and all." He handed her a white box that he pulled of the inner recesses of his coat. When she opened it, she saw the misspelled words of 'Hapee Birthdae!' written on a pink iced birthday cake.
"Thank you very much, sir. But who are you?" A bewildered Astraia asked.
The giant chuckled, "True, I haven't introduced meself. Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts." He held out an enormous hand and shook Astraia's whole arm. The giant, Hagrid, sat down on the dilapidated sofa, which sagged under his weight, in front of the cold fireplace. He pulled out a pink umbrella, pointed, and balls of fire came shooting out of the tip and lit the fireplace. What had once been cold and barren was now a roaring fire. It filled the whole damp hut with flickering light and she felt the warmth wash over her as though he'd sunk into a hot bath.
Astraia waited a few more minutes, waiting for him to elaborate please, but it never came. Finally she could no longer patiently wait and blurted out, "I'm sorry Mr Hagrid, but I still don't really understand. Who are you?"
"Call me Hagrid," he said, "everyone does. And like I told you, I'm Keeper of Keys at Hogwarts - you'll know all about Hogwarts, of course.
"No, actually." Astraia said. Hagrid looked shocked.
"Sorry," Astraia felt obligated to add.
"Sorry?" barked Hagrid, turning to stare at the Dursleys, who shrank back into the shadows. "It's them as should be sorry! I knew you weren't gettin' your letters but I never thought you wouldn't even know about Hogwarts, for cryin' out loud! Did you never wonder where your parents learned it all?"
"All what?" asked Astraia, though she had a sneaking suspicion, hope really.
"ALL WHAT?" Hagrid thundered. "Now wait just one second!" He had leapt to his feet. In his anger he seemed to fill the whole hut. The Dursleys were cowering against the wall.
"Do you mean to tell me," he growled at the Dursleys, "that this girl -this girl! - knows nothin' about - about ANYTHING?"
"Excuse me, but I did rather well in school, you know." said an affronted Astraia.
But Hagrid simply waved his hand and said, "About our world, I mean. Your world. My world. Your parents' world."
"What world?"
Hagrid looked as if he was about to explode.
"DURSLEY!" he boomed.
Uncle Vernon, who had gone very pale, whispered something that sounded like "Mimblewimble."
Hagrid stared wildly at Astraia.
"But you must know about your mom and dad," he said. "I mean, they're famous. You're famous."
"What? My - my mom and dad weren't famous, were they?"
"You don't know... you don't know..." Hagrid ran his fingers through his hair, fixing Astraia with a bewildered stare.
"You don't know what you are?" he said finally.
Uncle Vernon seemed to find his voice.
"Stop!" he commanded. "Stop right there, sit! I forbid you to tell her anything!"
A braver man than Vernon Dursley would have wilted under the furious look Hagrid now gave him; when Hagrid spoke, his every syllable trembled with rage.
"You never told her? Never told her what was in the letter Dumbledore left for her? I was there! I saw Dumbledore leave it, Dursley! And you've kept it from her all these years?"
"Kept what from me?" said Astraia eagerly, though she thought she already knew.
"STOP! I FORBID YOU!" yelled Uncle Vernon in panic.
Aunt Petunia gave a gasp of horror.
"Ah, go boil your heads, both of yeh," said Hagrid. "Astraia - you're a witch."
There was silence inside the hut. Only the sea and the whistling wind could be heard.
"Pardon?" asked a shocked Astraia. She'd always known there was something different about her, something other, but to actually hear it aloud.
"A witch," said Hagrid, sitting back down on the sofa, which groaned and sank even lower, "and a thumpin' good'un, I'd wager, once you've been trained up a little. With a mum and dad like yours, what else would you be? And I reckon it's about time you read your letter."
Astraia reached out to take the yellowish envelope, addressed in emerald green to Ms. A. Potter, The Cot, Hut-on-the-Rock, The Sea. She pulled out the letter and, finally in a state capable of retaining said letter, read:
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. Potter,
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 necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31. Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall,
Deputy Headmistress
Questions exploded inside Astraia's head like fireworks and they all kept coming so quickly that she couldn't decide which to ask first. After a few minutes she asked, "What does it mean, they await my owl?"
Before Hagrid could respond, Uncle Vernon, still ashen-faced but looking very angry, moved into the firelight.
"She will not be going! We swore when we took her in that we would put a stop to all of this rubbish!" Vernon proclaimed.
"You knew? You knew all along and you never told me?" Astraia had always known that her parents were magic, but the idea that Petunia and Vernon had known had never really occurred to her.
"Of course we knew. How could you not be? My perfect sister being who she was. Oh I remember the day she got her letter. My parents were so proud. We have a witch in the family. Isn't it wonderful? I was the only one who saw her for what she was… a freak. And then she met that Potter, and then she had you and I knew you would be the same just as strange just as abnormal. And then, if you please, she got herself blown up, and we got landed with you." Petunia ranted.
"Blown up?! You told me my parents died in a car crash!" Astraia was shocked and outraged. 'How dare they lie to her?! Especially about her parents?!' she thought.
"CAR CRASH!" roared Hagrid, jumping up so angrily that the Dursleys scuttled back to their corner. "How could a car crash kill Lily an' James Potter? It's an outrage! A scandal!"
"She will not be going." Vernon blustered.
"Oh and I suppose a great Muggle like yourself is gonna stop her." Hagrid mocked.
"Muggle?" Astraia asked. She had never heard this word before.
"Non-magic folk." Hagrid took a second to explain before he turned his attention back to Vernon. "This girl's had her name down since she were born. She's going to the finest school of witchcraft and wizardry in the world. And she'll be under the finest headmaster that Hogwarts has ever seen, Albus Dumbledore…"
"I will not pay to have some crackpot old fool teach him magic tricks!" Vernon continued to insist.
Hagrid went deathly silent and whipped out his umbrella to point it directly under Vernon's chin. Vernon himself went cross eyed looking at it without moving his head.
"Never insult Albus Dumbledore in front of me…" Hagrid threatened quietly before looking to the side at Dudley who had been eating from her birthday cake. Hagrid pointed his umbrella at Dudley and there was a flash of violet light, a sound like a firecracker, a sharp squeal, and the next second, Dudley was dancing on the spot with his hands clasped over his fat bottom, howling in pain. When he turned his back on them, Astraia saw a curly pig's tail poking through a hole in his trousers.
Uncle Vernon roared while Petunia and Dudley screamed. Pulling Aunt Petunia and Dudley into the other room, he cast one last terrified look at Hagrid and slammed the door behind them.
Hagrid looked down at his umbrella and stroked his beard.
"Shouldn'ta lost me temper," he said ruefully, "but it didn't work anyway. Meant to turn him into a pig, but I suppose he was so much like a pig anyway there wasn't much left to do. I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone at Hogwarts about that. Strictly speaking I'm not supposed to do magic."
Astraia smiled and nodded to signify that she would keep his secret.
"Well, it's rather late. Didn't quite anticipate all the ruckus. Suppose we'll have to kip here for the night." Hagrid said.
Astraia nodded before saying, "I'll sleep on my cot, but you're free to use the sofa."
Hagrid nodded and thanked her before laying down on the sofa. Not long after, there was the sound of great thundering snores.
Astraia lay with her eyes open for a while longer, thinking about all the great surprises that had happened today. She felt vindicated. Triumphant. 'I was right,' she thought. That night, Astraia fell asleep with a contented smile on her face.