[ three, letters from no one ]

Knowing what was next, Aemma buried her face in her hands and groaned quietly in exasperation, dreading her family's comments and looks.

She wasn't looking forward to her demons becoming someone else's, burrowing their claws into their skin like they often did with her and bringing the worst out of them. They were hungry little things, her demons, and she knew there would be no shielding the people inside this room.

[Cut back to the Dursley family's house. Aunt Petunia and a bundled up Dudley come in. Dudley is crying --because he is cold and wet-- and wrapped up in a towel.]

Petunia: [assuring a distressed Dudley] It's all right, sweetheart. Let's get you out of those terrible clothes.

[They walk in the living room. Aemma and Vernon enter. Vernon slams the door and shoves Aemma against a wall, grabbing her by the hair.]

Aemma: Ow!

Vernon: WHAT HAPPENED?!

Aemma: I swear, I don't know! [Vernon snarls] One minute, the glass was there and then it was gone! It was like magic!

[Vernon scoffs at this, shoves Aemma in the cupboard under the stairs and slams the door]

Vernon: There's no such thing as magic! [he blackens out the vent on the door]

It was as if the Gods themselves had unleashed unbridled chaos on the previously silent room; most people had long since abandoned any semblance of composure in favour of their wrath or sadness.

Rhaenyra was filled with rage and hatred that were slowly curling around her heart, a call for blood that demanded an answer and found an echo in the hearts of those who cared for Lucerys. "That man must pay for what he just did to my daughter!" She roared.

Daemon, more dragon than man, was barely trying to control his anger. Lips curled into an intimidating snarl, he stared at the man on the screen while compiling a mental list of all the ways he could make him suffer before he rid the world of him.

A sudden wave of nausea overtook Aegon, bile rising up his throat. His body slightly trembled as he watched a scene he knew very well. When he finally managed to think coherently again, he found himself wondering just how much he had in common with his niece in this new life of hers.

As threats, resentful, and pitiful comments became the new soundtrack of the moment, an overwhelmed Aemma focused on the support offered by her best friends and boyfriend. "Thank you," She whispered to them, her gratitude going beyond that day.

[An owl flies into view and lands itself on a TV aerial on one of the houses' roof]

[Aemma leaves the living room area into the hallway and picks up some letters, one of which had her name on it with her address of where she slept. Uncle Vernon and Dudley sit at the table while Aunt Petunia is busy dying Aemma's clothes. Aemma walks in with the mail and hands it to Uncle Vernon, then walks to her seat with her letter.]

Vernon: [after reading a postcard] Oh, Marge is ill! Ate a funny whelk.

[Dudley suddenly notices Aemma's letter and runs to grab it from her and give it to his father.]

Dudley: Dad! Look! Aemma's got a letter!

Aemma: Hey, give it back! It's mine!

Vernon: Yours? Who'd be writing to you?

[The family gathers to look at the address. There is a broken seal on the letter. The family looks up and Aemma gulps.]

"What's 'Hogwarts', and why did your family react like that to that letter?" Asked a curious Baela.

"Hogwarts is one of the many schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry in our world," Aemma replied. "That was my admission letter, so as you can imagine, it wasn't well-received." Well, that was to put it mildly. Petunia's mood had been particularly foul that day, and the list of chores she'd given her had been as long as Dudley's list of victims that week ( including each time he'd targeted Aemma ).

"And are you allowed to attend your lessons in the same standing as any man?" A large part of Rhaenys, the cynical one, used to Westerosi society and their treatment of women, was expecting a negative answer; therefore, she was taken aback by the twin nods she received from the witches instead.

Pride suddenly swelled within Rhaenys, and she looked at Otto Hightower with a smug smirk tugging at her lips and relishing his grimace and wary glances.

Her Laenor would have loved this, especially since he had fought so hard to ensure Lucerys could attend a few lessons with her brother.

A part of Rhaenyra was frightened to learn more about her son's new life; witnessing Aemma's had filled her with a sense of dread she just couldn't seem to shake, a tiny voice at the back of her mind telling her that her brave boy had been similarly struggling. Rhaenyra's heart already felt heavy under the weight of her daughter's suffering; however, as any good mother, she was willing to bear her son's as well if necessary. "Did you receive a letter around the same time?"

Neville let out a humourless chuckle. "Oh, I did, although for the longest time, nobody thought I would have gotten one." He said, his tone of voice uncharacteristically flat. It had taken him a long time to understand that his family's treatment of him as a child was wrong regardless of their intentions; they might have cared about him, but, back then, they'd certainly cared more about his magical prowess than his own feelings.

"What do you mean by that?" Asked Daemon. He'd noticed how his son's expression had hardened the moment they'd broached the subject, and he could already feel the anger brewing deep in his stomach. If he closed his eyes and focused, Daemon could almost hear Caraxes waiting for his signal outside the Red Keep walls.

Knowing he'd have to tell them sooner or later, Neville quickly pulled himself together, the slight dimness in his eyes the only tell-tale of his emotional turmoil ( a few years ago, he would have smiled and shrugged it off, now he knew better ). He clung to Aemma a little harder as she leaned onto him and smiled encouragingly, a silent 'I'm here and I'm not going anywhere'.

Slowly, memory after memory rippled in the front of Neville's mind, and he shared a story that had even Alicent Hightower silently cursing those who should have protected him. He told them about how, for the longest time, his family had thought he was a Squib, how they'd never noticed his little bursts of accidental magic and, therefore, had tried to force it out of him in several ways. He recalled how he'd almost drowned during one of their attempts to kick-start his magic; however, when even that didn't yield any result, many of his family members had started to lose hope. And finally, Neville shared how his great-uncle had accidentally dropped him from a window, and he saved himself from certain death.

When Neville finally finished, you could hear a pin drop and then it was bedlam.

If the Blacks had been out for blood before, there would have been no telling what they would have done if given the chance to cross the portal. That was a lie; one look at the adults, and one could easily assume the Longbottom family's days were numbered.

"What do you mean 'he dropped you from a window'?!" If Rhaenyra could have breathed fire, they'd all have had to take cover, the fury that settled inside her fighting against its bindings like a chained dragon. "I'm sure Syrax will be happy to meet them."

Viserys' heart shattered thinking about his grandchildren's childhood in this new universe. While he was glad they'd both received a second chance at life, neither deserved all this pain. They deserved to be happy and unburdened, but with a Prophecy looming above Aemma's head, he was afraid their struggles were just beginning.

[Much later, another owl flies by with a letter and drops it off. Inside, Vernon grabs a handful of letters and rips them up. In the closet, Aemma hears a whirring noise. She looks out at Vernon drilling wood over the letterbox opening.]

Vernon: No more mail through this letterbox.

[Aemma quietly closes the cupboard door. The next day, Vernon and Petunia are outside the door. Vernon is about to head off to work. Petunia kisses his cheek.]

Petunia: Have a lovely day at the office, dear.

[She stops, looks and sees a bunch of owls.]

Vernon: Shoo! Go on!

[She notices something and pats Vernon on the shoulder to get his attention, and what they see is more letters addressed to Aemma.]

[Later, Petunia is cracking an egg into a bowl, and what instead comes out is a folded-up letter. She cracks another one, but another letter comes out as well. She then cracks yet another one, but the same happens again. She stares at the letter, and then she hears the owls screeching. She draws her attention to the outside of the window, and what she sees is four owls sitting on some garden chairs. Petunia then screams and runs off.]

"This is just ridiculous." Hermione shook her head, her annoyance preventing her from enjoying what must have been McGonagall's clever use of magic. "You basically grew up like a muggleborn, so why didn't they send someone to introduce you to the Wizarding World? You know, as protocol dictates."

"Dumbledore, in his entitlement, must have believed that the Dursleys had followed the instructions he'd left them in that letter, that they'd told me about magic and my parents. Of course, none of this happened, and they were none the wiser since nobody ever really checked on me." There was a hint of bitterness to Aemma's tone as she spoke, and her disappointment towards most adults in her life was evident to all those present in the room.

[Much later, Vernon is tossing letters into the fireplace. Aemma comes around the corner. Vernon grins evilly and tosses more in. The scene fades to the next day, the family is sitting around, Aemma is serving cookies.]

Vernon: Fine day Sunday. In my opinion, best day of the week. Why is that, Dudley?

Aemma: [when Dudley shrugs and didn't answer, as Aemma hands a cookie to Vernon] Because there's no post on Sunday?

Vernon: Ah, right you are, Aemma. No post on Sunday. Ha! No blasted letters today. No, sir. Not one single bloody letter, not one. [Aemma sees a shadow outside the window. Outside, millions of owls are perched.] No, sir, not one blasted, miserable-

[As Vernon was talking, a letter shoots out of the fireplace and zips across Vernon's face, cutting him off. There is a rumbling and then millions of letters come shooting out of the fireplace. The family shrieks in horror as Aemma watches in amazement.]

There were a few chuckles, but overall, the muggles present seemed to share Aemma's wonder, and the scene slowly acted as a balm on their worried and upset souls.

"There's my sweet girl's smile," Rhaenyra murmured as her face softened. She then looked at her daughter with nothing but love in her eyes. "Still as bright and beautiful as ever."

While she still couldn't consider her family ( at least for now ), Rhaenyra's comment warmed Aemma's heart in a way she'd only experienced a few times before. Without hesitation, she immediately beamed at the Queen, causing the woman to smile back at her, teary-eyed.

Alicent witnessed the exchange between mother and daughter while trying to stamp down the jealousy rising to the surface. Even without any emotional memories, Aemma still had a better bond with Rhaenyra than Alicent had with her own children. How she wished Helaena would smile at her like that.

Dudley: AHH! Make it stop! Please make it stop! [He jumps on Petunia's lap as she and Vernon continue screaming] What is it? Please tell me what's happening!

[Aemma grabs a letter from the ground. The moment she gets one, she runs towards her cupboard. Vernon jumps up and rushes after her.]

Vernon: Go away! Ahh! Give me that! Give me that letter!

[He chases Aemma and grabs her before she gets into her cupboard.]

Aemma: Get off! Ahh!

[Vernon restrains Aemma as several letters begin to shoot everywhere around the house.]

"I swear, I'll sever those arms," Corlys almost growled, eyes seething with outrage and disgust.

"A fitting punishment; hopefully a slow one," commented a disgruntled Daeron, much to his grandfather's dismay.

In other circumstances, Daeron would have found Otto losing his mind because he wasn't as 'perfect and loyal' as he thought to be pretty amusing. Still, he was far too busy being pissed off at the Gods for having given his childhood closest friend a horrible family to care about his grandfather's panic.

Aemond hadn't uttered a word so far, yet he'd allowed his anger to build inside of him. He didn't even see Aemma's uncle anymore; all he saw was red, the same shade of the man's blood when Vhagar would eventually crush him and avenge his beautiful witch.

Vernon: Ahh!

Aemma: They're my letters! Let go of me!

[The wood plank nailed in front of the letterbox finally breaks from the excess pressure of the letters shooting through the letter.]

Vernon: That's it! We're going away! Far away! Where they can't find us!

Dudley: Daddy's gone mad, hasn't he?

[Petunia watches with a horrified look on her face, knowing that Dudley may be right.]

author's note.      Please, don't ask me to update or leave similar comments.

As some of you might have guessed, Neville is very 'Matilda coded' in this story. Sure, he loves his family, but he still holds them accountable for everything they've done.