We stood still, frozen in place by the brown box that sat innocently on the green carpet. Neither of us dared to move closer for what seemed like an aeon. Time stretched on until I plucked up the courage to investigate further. Mother was still stood stock-still, clutching the picture frame for dear life. As I lowered myself to the soft carpet, the box seemed to become more terrifying, like a danger looming just out of sight. Gingerly, I reached out to run my hands over the smooth brown paper that covered the box. Looking back to my mother, who had moved from the fireplace and set the photograph down, for reassurance, I noticed that she was watching me with the same critical eye that she had earlier when we were shopping in Diagon Alley. It was almost like she had a completely separate personality to the one that I grew up with, a dangerous side. She nodded at me to go ahead, resting her head in her hand as she watched from her seat by the window.
As I pulled the paper off of the box, I revealed a dark leather box with platinum fixtures. Opening the latch, I found it to be full of gowns with two sealed envelopes on top of the dresses. One with the Windsor family seal pressed into red wax and another with a crest pressed into green wax. Upon closer inspection, the green wax had four different animals on the crest, a lion, snake, badger and some sort of bird, an eagle maybe. Both envelopes were addressed to me and I decided to start with the pale envelope that was sealed in green. The letter went,
Dear Miss Windsor,
It has come to my attention that you wish to attend Hogwarts in the coming year. Whilst we do not usually allow for transfers, especially ones that have no formal magical education previously, I do believe that an exception can be made given the circumstances. You will be starting in 5th year, the year for O.W.L.S (Ordinary Wizarding Levels) which are similar to the exams that you took just last summer. You need not fear however, as we will ensure that you are caught up and given extra tuition if you should need it, but I feel that this will not be the case.
Please make your way to Kings Cross Station and onto Platform 93/4 where you will find the Hogwarts Express departing at 10am. Term starts on Friday the 1st of September. You need not worry about responding as your placement has been secured by your Grandmother.
I very much look forward to seeing you in our ancient halls this year.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
Headmaster
Looking inside of the envelope there was another piece of paper, a list of required equipment, books and uniform.
Whilst you are starting in 5th year, it is imperative that you have all of the equipment and books from the years that you have missed ~ AD
Uniform
Three Sets of Plain Work Robes (Black)
One Plain Pointed Hat (Black) for day wear
One Pair of Protective Gloves (dragonhide or similar)
One Winter Cloak (Black, silver fastenings)
Dress Robes
Please note that all student's clothes should carry name-tags at all times.
Other Equipment
1 Wand
1 Cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
1 set of glass or crystal phials
1 telescope
1 set of brass scales
Students may also bring an Owl, a Cat or a Toad
Broomsticks (optional)
Books
The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 by Miranda Goshawk
A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore
Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble
The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 by Miranda Goshawk
The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 3 by Miranda Goshawk
Unfogging the Future by Cassandra Vablatsky (if attending Divination)
Intermediate Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
The Monster Book of Monsters (if attending Care of Magical Creatures)
Numerology and Grammatica (if attending Arithmancy)
Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles by Wilhelm Wigworthy (if attending Muggle Studies)
Spellman's Syllabary (if attending Study of Ancient Runes)
The Essential Defence Against the Dark Arts by Arsenius Jigger
The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4 by Miranda Goshawk
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection
The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 5 by Miranda Goshawk
Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard
Placing the letter on top of the gowns, I turned to read the other letter, the one from my Grandmother. It was less of a letter and more of a note, telling me that the dresses were to be taken to Hogwarts in case of any balls or parties that should require a more formal attire.
It was already the 31st of August, meaning I had the rest of the day before leaving for Hogwarts. I had forgotten that my mother was still in the room until she cleared her throat.
"Oh, the box is full of dresses from the Queen and I have a letter from the Headmaster of Hogwarts about my attendance and a list of books that I need to bring. Nothing too extensive. It says that we travel from Platform 93/4 but I cannot think of a platform that isn't a whole number. It makes no sense."
At this my mother merely chuckled and tapped the side of her nose, telling me that I would soon figure it out. We spent the rest of the day packing before gathering any extras that we may need or want from the manor and taking the floo network back to Kensington Palace. My father didn't want me to talk about the wizarding world and my adventure to Diagon Alley around my brothers, he didn't want them to also leave to study magic I guess. It was late, once Harry and Wills were asleep, we were sat in the drawing room and my father finally addressed the elephant in the room.
"I can only assume that your journey into the wizarding world has fueled your desire to study magic and hasn't at all changed your mind."
It wasn't a question. He knew how similar to my mother I was. He knew that I didn't want a life ruling a country, but some sense of adventure. All things that I was prohibited from doing as a princess. Sighing, my father took a swig of the amber liquid that he had been nursing from a crystal glass for the past 10 minutes. It looked like the regular whiskey that was kept in a cabinet out of reach, but it shimmered and moved with swirls of gold and red. This was a magical drink and no matter how much my father insisted that he was unnerved by the wizarding world and that we were better off living as muggles, he could appreciate their firewhiskey at least.
"You know your mother was a Slytherin, her entire family was. Quite the scandal when she married the descendant of Godric Gryffindor I'll say. That school splits its students up into four. The brave Gryffindors, smart Ravenclaws, kind Hufflepuffs and sly Slytherins. Your mother was as sharp as a dual edged blade, ready to strike with her words that could cut you down to nothing. Of course she was raised in the elite society, where manners were taught and she could conceal how dangerous she really was from the public. I can only assume that she returns to the state that comes most naturally to her, the sharp dagger, when around her school mates. Don't feel pressured into one house more so than any other, it's up to that magical hat or whatever to decide for you."
He rarely spoke of the wizarding world so freely, so whatever is in the firewhiskey must be incredibly strong. Nodding and saying my goodbyes, I left my father to stare aimlessly into the fire as I walked up to my room. Hestia was asleep in her little nest in the corner. My bags were packed and ready to go, with a platinum cage ready for Hestia to travel in. I settled into my bed but couldn't shake the hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach. This move towards magic will most likely mean a separation from my family and royalty, something that I don't particularly want to do. I could see how it was affecting my family. We were splintering. My father wants nothing to do with magic and I want to leave for a magical school. Mama supports me fully, having been a student at Hogwarts herself. My brothers don't fully understand what is going on. I can feel the tectonic plates of this family drifting apart and slowly but surely, we will fall apart.
Sleep claimed me slowly and then all at once, wrapping my busy mind with dreams of castles and dragons. Princesses and knights in shining armor. Of course I knew that this was all fake, there were no knights in shining armor and the dragons were the demons that slowly broke apart my family. One dream bled into the next, again and again. Visions of far off lands, peculiar visions of a regular day and lands made by my imagination swirled in and out of focus and frame as each dream came and went. All of a sudden the walls pulsed and I was in a castle, or at least it looked like a castle. There was a door to my left which opened to reveal a large hall. Walking inside of the room I noticed that the ceiling was lit by candles, showcasing a myriad of stars dancing above my head. The hall was filled with four long tables, dressed in four different sashes. The furthest from me to the right was decked in a red sash edged in gold. A man sat at the end playing with a sword, sharpening it on a stone before examining it in the candlelight. He shifted in his seat as a large lion walked out from behind his chair and jumped onto the table, making its way slowly towards me. The table to the left of the red table was decked in a coarse yellow material with black stripes. This table was decked out in foods and items that I had lost over the years lay out proudly with a short woman stood above them looking down at the array of foods and random objects as she walked the length of the table. I could have sworn that I could see movement under the table, but I couldn't be certain. Next to her table was one layered in blues with silver clouds and stars moving as if they were in a river. A woman was stood on the table in a floor length navy blue dress, looking into the stars via a bronze telescope before making noted in a small bronze book that she placed on top of a pile of books and bronze equipment before a bronze eagle swooped down from the starry illusion and landed on it, fixing me with a piercing gaze. The final and leftmost table was dressed in green silk with silver edgings. A man sat at the head of the table with a small black book, he seemed content reading it, absentmindedly sipping from a silver goblet without a care for the snake that was wound around his neck and arm. No one seemed to notice my presence, only the animals. The snake was now slithering down the length of the table towards me, the lion prowling behind me slowly. None of this made sense until I remembered my conversation with my father before I turned in for the night. These were the founders of Hogwarts, meaning that the animals in front of me represented each house. The snake for Salazar Slytherin, the lion for Godric Gryffindor, the eagle for Rowena Ravenclaw and I was willing to bet that I had seen a badger under the table for Helga Hufflepuff. The badger was not interested in me at all but I had caught the eye of the other three. The lion was now stood at my right side, assessing the four founders as they went about their activities, growling when his eyes rested on Slytherin. Hearing this, the bearded man looked up from his book with a raised eyebrow. Turning his attention to me, a chair appeared next to him, along with a goblet of the same design as the one in his hand. The snake coiled itself around my left arm and slowly wound up and to my shoulder and around to my other side where it lay its head in the crook of my collar. As I sat by the man, the lion once again pounced onto the table and made himself comfy on the green silk, much to the distaste of Slytherin. He turned to face me and looked at me as though he was assessing me, like his eyes could see into my soul. Nothing was said, we merely sat and drank in each others company until it felt like the ground fell out from underneath me. The floor disappeared and the bench that I had been sat on was replaced with a wooden broom. I was falling, well technically I was flying, but that wasn't the worst part of it. Looking up I could see the founders looking through a hole in the floor of the floating Hogwarts, watching my reaction. All of a sudden, I was shaken out of my stupor as a jet of fire shot put in front of me. Realising that I was not alone in the sky, I set about folding over the broom as if I were racing point to point on my pony Pilot. Looking over my shoulder, I saw a beautiful dragon, white almost iridescent scales with eyes that shimmered like opals set in pearls. The dragon had large wings and a long tail to balance it during flight. I took evasive maneuvers the escape the next column of fire that was sent towards me. Twisting around the body of the dragon, I flew in between its wings, a blind spot that sheltered me from the fire. Just as my heart rate started to decrease I was once again falling, the broom had disappeared, leaving me to fall onto the dragon. I was getting closer and closer and then...
I woke up with a start. It was time to go to Hogwarts.