By the time they were allowed outside of their so-called rooms, the summer holidays had started, and Dudley had already broken a good chunk of his birthday presents. Their birthday was in the summer, and they knew they wouldn't be getting any such presents for theirs, no matter how carefully behaved they were, even if they hadn't sic'd a snake on their precious Dudders. The twins didn't dare discuss the escape of the Brazilian Boa Constrictor in front of their Aunt and Uncle. Instead, they took to walking the streets of the neighborhood until dark, or otherwise spoke with meaningful looks.

On one such walk, they discussed the event for the first time, with low voices and spirits.

" What do you suppose did happen with the vanishing glass?" Magnolia whispered unsurely. Harry was surprised she mentioned it, it had been so long.

" Dunno," he mumbled. For a moment he thought perhaps he and his relatives had all had a group hallucination. But then he remembered the zoo manager, and the screams of the people in the reptile house. What did happen with the glass?

Answering this was too complicated, so he moved on to, " What do you think happened with the snake?"

Magnolia breathed in a way that told Harry she wasn't impressed with his answer. " Well, he couldn't have made it to Brazil. It's a whole 'nother continent," she muttered.

" Right," Harry said. This depressed both of them more, and they didn't speak about the incident any longer.

An air of disappointment in having their questions unanswered lingered through the air into the next several days, into breakfast the next week.

" Get the post, Dudley," Uncle Vernon said behind his newspaper,

" Make Harry get it."

" Get the post, Harry."

" Make Dudley get it."

" Poke him with your Smelting stick, Dudley."

Harry dodged a hit from Dudley's Smelting stick, and went to get the mail, leaving Aunt Petunia and Magnolia practically alone for breakfast.

" I wish you would comb that hair," Aunt Petunia said in her usual way of giving an offhanded insult.

" I do comb it," Magnolia said defensively. " You just don't see me do it."

Uncle Vernon snorted behind his paper.

" The disrespect," he muttered. Magnolia glared at him, not that he could see. Aunt Petunia nodded minutely in agreement to her husband.

" It's a good thing you keep it so short," the thin older woman said. " Such a waste..."

She must have looked sour, because Aunt Petunia scoffed. Magnolia decided not to start a fight, even though she really wanted to. Aunt Petunia seemed to enjoy doing so, saying unfair things at seemingly random. She vaguely wondered why she would treat her neice with so little care when Uncle Vernon shouted, " Hurry up, boy!" Both she and Aunt Petunia winced at the suddenness.

Harry came in with soft steps. He handed Uncle Vernon two slips, and placed a letter in front of Magnolia. She looked at it incredulously.

Ms. M. Potter

The Linen Closet

4 Privet Drive

Little Whinging

Surrey

Her eyes were wide, and she looked at Harry, who was looking down and opening his own letter, in open view of the whole family. She quickly slid hers into her shirt while nobody was looking at her and took to staring at the refrigerator in silence.

" Marge's ill," Uncle Vernon said. " Ate a funny whelk."

" Dad!" Dudley shouted. " Dad, Harry's got something!"

Before Harry could take the long parchment out of it's thick envelope, both things were ripped out of his hands.

" Give that back, it's mine!" Harry shouted.

" Who'd be writing to you?" Sneered Uncle Vernon, opening up the envelope with the shake of his right hand. Within seconds, he went from red to white. " P-P-Petunia," he sputtered, his wife turning towards him with wide eyes. She clasped her hands over her mouth and shrieked smally. Magnolia tried to look interested and confused. Dudley tried to snatch the letter, but Uncle Vernon quickly was on his feet, holding the letter out of his sons reach.

Aunt Petunia grasped his shoulder with her clawed fingers. " Vernon - Goodness! Vernon!"

Magnolia tried very hard to look innocent. But it was unnecessary, Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon seemed to have forgotten that the children were in the room entirely, reading over the first paragraph of the writing in shock. Dudley prodded his father with his Smelting stick.

" I want to read that letter," he demanded.

" I want to read it," Harry argued. " As it's mine."

Magnolia thought quickly. It would be out of character to not jump at Harry's defense. She started, " We don't - "

But Uncle Vernon had turned bright red once again, and shouted over everyone. " Out! All of you! Out!"

Harry didn't move.

" I want my letter!" He shouted.

" Let me see it!" Dudley shouted.

" OUT!" Roared Uncle Vernon, and the two boys were dragged out of the kitchen by the scruff of their shirts, leaving Magnolia and Aunt Petunia there. Aunt Petunia was giving her an odd look, like she had never seen her before. Magnolia felt awkward under her gaze and rose her brows, looking from her to Uncle Vernon and back. With one last look at the letter in Uncle Vernon's hand, she glared at the two (though Uncle Vernon didn't notice, busying himself with pushing Dudley through the door), and turned on her heel, stomping out to follow Harry.

As soon as the door shut and locked behind them, Dudley and Harry were fighting to listen through the door. Dudley won, so Harry lay flat on his stomach, glasses dangling from one ear, listening through the crack over the floor. Magnolia could barely hear the pending, hushed conversation. The pair were whispering, but quite loudly, as though they didn't expect the children to rebel against their rules, as Dudley was perfect, and Harry and Magnolia weren't smart enough to listen through the door. She caught, in a shaky voice, Aunt Petunia say,

" What about the girl? She didn't get a letter."

" I'm telling you Petunia, if one has got it, the other is bound to," Uncle Vernon said, as though he were talking about a terrible disease.

Magnolia flushed - They must have known she'd hidden her own letter. She quickly ran upstairs, quiet on her toes, and looked for the smallest bedroom. She was there in seconds, and stashed the letter in the first drawer, underneath some board games, and practically flew down the stairs. She determinedly kept a straight look on her face as Harry and Dudley struggled away from the door. Harry was shaking in anger, and she held his hand where their scars met. Uncle Vernon came out of the kitchen, squinting suspiciously at all three of them.

" Boy - Your cupboard. Go." Harry glared at him, opening his mouth to retort, but caught his Uncle's shaking fist, and decided against it. With a look at Magnolia, he crouched down and entered his cupboard. " Dudley, go - just - just go. Girl, you and me need to have a talk."

As suspected, Uncle Vernon checked her person for a letter, patting her down rough enough for her to forget to argue against him. He then checked her closet, through the pockets of all of her clothes, even under the rug and in the vents, and in the vanity decorating the hallway where the kids had been standing. Magnolia bit her tongue - She needed him to not find out she had gotten a letter. She wasn't letting go of this welcome from the world outside of Privet Drive. She wondered dreamily of who may have written her and Harry. Maybe it didn't even come from Surrey. Maybe it was a scholarship to America as an exchange student - She and Harry had the marks for it.

But if it was some school writing them to come to live in America, she was sure the Dursleys would have no problem in letting them go, aside from the fact that the twins would enjoy themselves, which the Dursley's would revel in taking away from them.

" You didn't get a letter, did you?" Uncle Vernon demanded. She shook her head. " Haven't heard from anyone at all, have you?" She shook her head. " You expecting one?" She shook her head. He sized her up, face so purple, she'd wondered if he'd forgot to breathe.

Aunt Petunia asked her the same questions later that day. Magnolia lied to her as well, secretly hoping for night to come sooner so she could sneak back upstairs and read that lucky letter. Harry was still in his cupboard.

" Good," Aunt Petunia muttered. " That's... excellent."

Magnolia nodded as if she agreed.

She caught Dudley's eye at dinner. He glared at her. Harry and her were to be taking over his second bedroom - The smallest one, drowning in his old, mostly broken toys and television and such. She couldn't believe her luck at the time, but tried very hard to look downtrodden. Harry continued trying to meet her eye, but she ignored him - She couldn't have the Dursley's suspect anything.

It took several long, long hours, but they were soon in their new room.

" I'd rather be in my cupboard with my letter than up here without it," he confessed to her under his breath.

" You can have both, you know," Magnolia replied mysteriously. Harry furrowed his brow at her, and she walked over to the large drawer close to the door. His eyes widened as she pulled out a thick envelope, with a red stamping on it's middle, decorated with a crest of some sort.

Harry jumped to his feet.

" But - Uncle Vernon," he said, unable to help but beam at her.

" Didn't check up here, I suppose," Magnolia replied with a bright grin. " You should know better than to open up letters in full view of this lot." Harry nodded, so relieved he was still smiling. She sat down next to him on the smaller bed in the room, and ripping in a smooth motion the top of the envelope, taking out the large parchment that Harry had once had in his hand, and the pair began to read, eyes widening as they did.