Three years ago in a little village hidden by many, a miracle happened. A miracle that no one understands, but one can only guess. No one ever survived the killing curse dreaded by many, but that night on Halloween three years ago, someone survived. It was none other than a little child named Harry Potter.

Today, wizards and witches from all over the world celebrate the fall of the Dark Lord, Voldemort. Oh, but do not say his name, for his followers are still lurking in the shadows, waiting for their chance. However, most of them too, have been locked away in the wizard prison, Azkaban.

As the older wizards rejoice, the younger ones are told stories about what happened that night. About how the Dark Lord attempted to kill Harry, and the spell backfired. These magical children are destined to grow in their knowledge of magic and attend school when they come of age.

And now, three years after the fall of You-Know-Who, the summer comes to an end, signifying the start of another school year.

"Mummy, Gravy flew to the wrong house again!" A small skinny girl, only ten years old, takes the animal from her neighbor at the door, thanking him before he leaves. Her short, brown hair jumps by her face as she rushes to the kitchen with the animal on her arm. The animal is a small, dark grey screech owl with an apparent horrible sense of direction.

"Oh, thank you, Julia!" The little girl, Julia's, mother takes the owl off her arm and takes the three envelopes from its beak.

Julia's family is an all wizarding family, so they always receive mail via owls. Their neighbor, however, is a Muggle, a human of non magic. He questioned the small owl arriving at his house at first, but now has become immune to it so much over the years, that he couldn't care less.

One of Julia's little brothers, Ethan, walks in and takes the owl to put it back in its cage. Ethan is a tall boy for his age, destined to be taller than Julia sometime in the future. He has fluffy, thick brown hair and hazel eyes that shine different colors. Even though the rest of his family's skin is fair, Ethan's is tanner than the rest. Probably because he spends the most of his time outdoors. He is the middle child of the family, now aged at eight years old.

The third and last child of the family stumbles down the stairs as he rubs his eyes sleepily. The five year old waddles into the kitchen and takes a seat at the counter. Julia sits next to him. "Did you just get up, Andrew?"

The little boy nods. His light brown, neat hair sways just a bit at the motion. His green eyes scan the kitchen for the source of the sweet smell. "Can I have a bacon, Mummy?"

The children's mother gives both Andrew and Julia a piece at the request. "What do the letters say, Dave?"

Andrew and Julia turn around to look at their father in curiosity, the latter's heart of which starts beating rapidly in anticipation.

"Lets see here. Work payment to let me visit Australia, a postcard from your sister in North America, and-" Dave cuts himself off. A big grin forms on his face as he reads the address of the last letter.

"What is it?" Mimi, Julia's mother, flips over the scrambled eggs she is cooking, and takes her eyes off the pan to look at her husband. Dave stands up with the last card still in his hand and hands it to Julia.

"I think this is for you, sweetie." Dave gives his daughter the letter and Julia's bright blue eyes shine with happiness.

She's been waiting for a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the entire summer. Now that it's finally here, she can rest easy. "I can't believe it's here! It only took them till the end of July!"

Without needing to be told, Julia rips open the yellow tinted envelope to find the same colored piece of parchment folded inside. She unfolds it and reads,

"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. Copper,

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 no later than July 31.

Yours Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall."

"Darn. I thought you wouldn't get accepted." Ethan jokes with a playful smirk on his face. Julia concludes he must have snuck back in while she was reading the letter.

Julia sarcastically laughs. "Ha ha. I bet you won't."

"Alright, that's enough. Let me see your supply list." Dave holds out his hand and Julia gives him the other slip of paper. "Yep, this is standard first year gear. We will head off to Diagon Alley after Ethan's birthday."

"But we need to respond to Professor McGonagall! It's already July 20th, stupid owl." Julia folds up the letter and hands it to her dad for him to read over. "Gravy probably got lost and it was supposed to be here a week ago."

"She's young and she's learning." Julia's mother says as she gives Andrew his plate of eggs and bacon.

Julia sighs, another problem making its way back into the front of her mind. "What if I don't find any friends in my house? What if Hannah is put in Gryffindor while I'm stuck in stinky Slytherin?!"

Julia's dad laughs, rubbing his hand on his bald head to ease the brain tension. "You'll understand when you get there, Jules, that you don't have to be friends with the people in your house. I was in Gryffindor and your mother was a Hufflepuff, and we got along nicely."

"That's true." Julia recalls the many times she heard the stories of her mother and father attending school together. They were in the same year.

"Just don't get put in Slytherin or we will disown you." Ethan teases.

Julia makes a face at him. "Maybe I will just so I can annoy you!"

Julia's mother puts a plate of eggs and bacon in front of her and she starts to dig in. Ethan joins his siblings at the counter, waiting for his food as well. For the next two weeks, all Julia can think about is going to Diagon Alley and getting her school equipment.

~~~

A couple streets away, two fluffy white owls glide into a house. They drop a pile of letters and packages onto the kitchen table and fly away to their shared cage.

The stairs that connect the main floor to the second floor of the house creak as the father of the house lazily walks downstairs. When he gets to the kitchen, he finds his eldest two children playing a Muggle game on the computer.

"Dad, the owls are home." David, the younger of the eldest two siblings, says without looking up from the screen.

"They dropped some packages too. They are most likely for you." Katie, David's older sister, explains.

Their father makes his coffee and inspects the packages. There are three of them: one for Katie, one for David, and one for him. "Nope. There's packages for you two as well. They look like broomsticks from your uncle in North America."

"Uncle Matt? Why would he get us broomsticks?" Katie finally looks away from the screen to see if her father was right.

"He probably wants us to join the Quidditch team." David turns off the game and hops over to the table. Sure enough, two wrapped broomsticks lay there next to a third package and a bunch of letters.

"It won't happen though. I'm taking Alchemy this year along with Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes. I might also convince Professor Flitwick to let me take a fourth elective." Katie explains as she unwraps her clearly used broomstick.

David scoffs and tosses his broomstick from his left to right hand. "You Ravenclaws are no fun. All you do is fill every hour with schoolwork."

"At least we have brains." Katie rolls her eyes and starts shuffling through the pile of letters.

"Hey! At least we Gryffindors have fun!" David sees his name on one of the envelopes and snags it from Katie's hands. The older sibling doesn't seem to mind as she finds a letter addressed to her as well, which is next to yet another letter addressed to her younger sister.

"Hannah! Your Hogwarts letter is here!" Katie yells. In a flash, Hannah is down the stairs and in the kitchen. The ten year old girl rips open her letter and squeals in delight while reading the emerald green ink.

"Daddy, will I be able to ride the boats like you did your first year?!" Hannah's light brown eyes glisten with tears of joy as she turns to her dad. Her light brown hair falls over her right shoulder in its ponytail.

"Of course. Only first years ride the boats." Hannah's dad pats her head lovingly. Hannah giggles, but is cut off by her older two siblings arguing over which house is better. Hannah's father takes a deep breath before breaking up the fight. "Come on guys, cut it out. Every house has their strengths and weaknesses. Yes, Katie, I'm from Hufflepuff, but you don't see me taking sides here."

"Ugh why is everyone yelling?" The four younger kids of the household rub their eyes as the enter the kitchen. Stephen, the only boy in the group of youngsters, is the one who spoke. "Everyone knows Slytherin is the best anyway."

"You're joking." David chuckles as he jumps on top of the wide counter. "Slytherin is filled with nothing but bullies."

"David, you're just angry their team keeps beating you in Quidditch." Leah, the fifth oldest of the seven children, says as she grabs a biscuit off the rack.

"Yeah, well, once I'm on the team, we are sure to win!" David raises his broomstick in the air, almost jabbing the end into the ceiling. "Who would watch me?!"

"We would!" The two youngest, Sarah and Lily, yell at the same time.

The children's father laughs as he spreads butter and strawberry jam on a biscuit. "We can only attend the champion game. And who knows if David would even make the team."

"Hey! I'd be the best beater they have!" David makes a swinging motion with his arms, showing off how good of an aim he has. "Plus it's only my third year and Katie's fourth. I have time to make the team."

"Hannah, you've been quiet. What's up?" Stephen nudges his older sister in the side, gaining her attention.

"Oh, I just can't wait to get my school stuff. Are we going to Diagon Alley with our cousins, Daddy? With the Coppers?" Hannah asks, hoping she can see her cousin Julia at the shopping area.

"Sure. We can all go. I'll get you all something if you're good." After Hannah's dad's claim, the four younger children cheer. Hannah looks back out the window, her emotions a mixture of excitement and nervousness for the upcoming school year. Well, at least she has her two older siblings.

~~~

About twenty miles away in a big neighborhood, a family sleeps in peace. After all, it's 5:00 in the morning. However, their blissful sleep is cut off by two of their eight dogs barking crazily at something outside.

"Maria! Can you get the dogs?" The mother of the household groans and throws a pillow on her face. Her husband barely stirs next to her.

On the same floor of the house, an eleven year old girl stumbles out of her room. She yawns and scratches her long, messy, dirty blonde hair. The girl, Maria, carefully walks down the stairs. She walks through the kitchen and into the connecting living room. There, two Weimaraners sit on the couch by the widow, barking like mad.

"Sammy, Sherlock, get down from there!" Maria sighs angrily and rushes over to the two dogs. Suddenly, all of her other dogs wake up to observe the scene. "Come on, what are you even barking at?"

Maria grabs the younger one's collar to pull him off the couch, but something catches her eye out the window. The girl's blue eyes widen when she sees a dark brown owl slam against the glass. Surprised by the impact the owl made, Maria jumps and falls backward off the couch.

"Maria? Maria?!" The girl in question's mother rushes into the room to find her daughter laying down on the floor.

"Mummy, there's an owl outside! I think it's trying to come in!" Quickly, Maria stands up and jumps back on the couch to find the bird once more.

"An owl?" Maria's mother walks curiously over to the couch and peers out the window. Sure enough, the brown owl slams itself against their window once again. Maria's mom quickly opens the window before it could happen a third time.

The owl flies inside the house and lands on the arm rest of the second couch. The two Weimaraners bolt over to the owl, hoping to devour the poor bird. Maria sees this and grabs their two collars along with the help of her mother. Together, they put the dogs outside.

"Oh dear..." Maria's mother walks over to the owl and takes what seems to be a piece of parchment from its beak. Maria jumps up and down in curiosity, trying to get a good look at the parchment.

Maria's mother holds the yellow tinted envelope to her chest and turns to her daughter. "Maria, why don't you sit on the couch? I've got something to tell you about your father."

Maria's real father died when she was three, so she didn't know him that well. If her mother wants to tell her something, then it must be important. The two sit down on the couch, and Maria's mother tries to find the right words.

After a couple moments, the mother of the household finally figures out where to start. "Maria, there is something you need to know about the world. There are regular people, just how you know them, and then there are those with the power to perform magic."

Maria can't believe what she's hearing. Her mother, of all people, is telling her there's magic?! She doesn't question it however, and Maria's mother continues. "Normal people don't know there's magic because the people with magic hide themselves in plain sight. These people are called witches and wizards. Now, your father, was a wizard."

"H-he was?!" Maria is an imaginative human, but she never thought of magic actually being real.

"Yes," Maria's mother chuckles as she remembers when she started dating her first husband. "He offered to brew me a love potion to prove it, but I believed him. He later did show me some spells. His favorite was a spell called 'Bombartis' for some reason. He often told me about his school life, and being in a house called 'Ravenclaw'."

Maria wipes her eyes, grateful that she's learning more about her dad. "But, what does this have to do with me?"

Not really having an answer, Maria's mother hands her the envelope. Maria looks down at it for a second before taking it. She carefully tears the envelope open and reads the letter out loud:

"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. Brown,

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 no later than July 31.

Yours Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall."

"Do you understand now?" Maria's mother asks.

Maria rereads the letter three more times to make sure she's reading it correctly. "So, I'm a witch?!"

Maria's mother nods. "I'll take you to the wizard and witch shopping place for school supplies before the term starts. Sometime in mid August."

Now with a newfound happiness, Maria smiles. "Sounds like a plan!"

~~~

A bit North in a neighboring city, a short ten year old girl turns on the stove to start making some bacon. Her long, wavy blonde hair sways from side to side as she turns her head in all directions, looking for the tea packs. She knows her parents love coffee, but she can't have it. She makes her own tea before starting on her father's cup of coffee.

She hears footsteps coming down the stairs and her heart beats faster, knowing the coffee isn't ready yet. Anxious, she turns around. She sighs in relief when she finds her older brother standing there with the newspaper in hand.

"I'll help you, Gumdrop." The girl's brother, Ian, uses her nickname as he takes the pot off the coffee maker so it doesn't burn.

Ian's hair is neat but thick. It is classified as blonde, but is so dark that he goes by a light brunette. His bright green eyes scan the refrigerator for the milk. Finding none, his heart drops. However, he thinks of a solution.

"Alright, Lauren, are you ready to improvise?" Ian asks his little sister, making her nod. He continues, "I want you to go get the vanilla out of the cupboard over there."

Together, the two siblings work on making the coffee more sweet. They have had to do this before, but it's been awhile. Lauren sits in the counter next to the cup of coffee. Every second that ticks by, she becomes more nervous and on edge. "Can't you just use your wand, Ian? You already passed your first year of magic school."

"You know this, Gumdrop. I'm not allowed to use magic outside of school. Being a second year doesn't change the rules." Ian softly laughs, making Lauren sigh. "It'll be done before you know it."

"When will my letter come?" Lauren asks, looking down at her hands for any sign of magic. She hasn't seen any signs of producing such abilities, and is scared that she's not like her brother.

"They should come today. It's late July, after all." Just as Ian finishes his sentence, a small black owl flutters in the open window and drops two letters on the table.

Ian immediately stops what he's doing and takes out his premade response to the acceptance into school, along with Lauren's as well. As Ian ties the response to the leg of the owl, Lauren looks at the two letters.

"You're always right, Ian." Lauren hands her brother his letter and she gently opens her own. She's heard so many great things about Hogwarts, and was so excited to finally have the chance to go. Now her letter is here, proving she is indeed a witch. "Can I be in your house with you?"

Ian's eyes widen and he leans on the counter, looking at his sister. "You want to be a Ravenclaw?" Lauren nods with a smile in her face and Ian is left shocked. "The Sorting Hat will put you in your house, silly. There is a one in four chance."

"B-but..." Lauren sniffles and she wipes her eyes. "You're my best friend!"

Ian tries to think of something quickly. He hates it when his sister is sad. "I'll tell you what. If you are put in one of the other three houses, I'll talk to the headmaster."

Lauren squeals and hugs her brother. Ian hugs back, but both of them stiffen when they hear another pair of footsteps coming down the stairs. Ian holds Lauren's shoulders and looks into her green eyes. "Go get my wand. I'll finish this coffee."

With a confident smile, Lauren runs in the opposite direction of the noise and into another room. As she picks up the wand, she can't help but think of the day in about two weeks where she'll get her own tool to perform magic with.

~~~

Down in a small village, very similar to the one Hannah and Julia live in, a family of five sleeps. In one room, an eleven year old girl lays down on the bed with her curly brown hair completely engulfing her pillow. Suddenly, an owl with white tinted yellow colored feathers flies through her open window and lands on her head.

The girl, Agnes, lifts her head at the weird new weight and props herself up to sit on her knees. She looks around for anything suspicious, and scratches her head to feel what is so off about it. Instead of scratching her hair, her fingers brush against something fluffy.

Agnes yelps in surprise and jumps out of bed. The owl flies off her head and onto the pillow. Realizing it's just a bird, Agnes sighs. "That's what I get for leaving my window open. All I want is some fresh air!"

The girl attempts to grab the owl to throw it back outside, but notices something in its beak. Her light brown eyes scan the envelope with curiosity for a moment before taking it and ripping it open.

Agnes reads the letter over and over again for about ten minutes, not believing her eyes. Having no logical explanation come to her head, she gets out of bed and runs to her mother's room.

"Mum! There's a letter here that says I'm accepted to this school called Hogwarts!" Agnes knocks on the door loudly and it's opened by her sleepy mother.

"There's a school for warts? What?" Agnes' mother rubs her eyes and takes the parchment from her daughter. She becomes more awake as she reads it, and becomes greatly confused. "Jay, come here!"

Agnes' father yawns and joins the duo. He takes the letter that his wife hands him and also becomes confused. "It says her name and everything. This must be a prank."

"It's not. This came with it." Agnes hands her parents another piece of parchment that was in the envelope. This one explains what magic is and why children who have this ability need to learn how to control it.

"This makes no sense. Mary and Frank aren't magical. Heck, Mary never got this when she was eleven!" Agnes' dad scratches his head in thought.

"Maybe it skips generations?" Agnes theorizes, trying to find a logical explanation. Right after she asked that, there is a knock at their door.

The three head to the front door and Agnes' dad answers it. A tall woman stands there with a dark purple pointed hat on and the same color cloak. The attire catches the sleepy family off guard, but they are stunned even more when the woman steps into their home without an invitation.

"Sorry, I don't have a lot of time to talk. You're the forty-ninth family I have to explain this too." The woman takes off her hat and sits on their couch.

"Um, I believe you have the wrong-" Agnes' mother is cut off by the woman once again.

"Oh I believe this house is correct. It wasn't that hard to find. Now," The woman takes out a long wooden stick and stands up. She waves the stick and a scroll appears out of thin air. She reads from it. "Your daughter, Agnes Higgins, is a witch who has been accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Here are the directions to the shops to pick up her school supplies. When you get there, exchange your money for wizard coins, as that is our currency. If you have any questions, write to this address and we will send you an owl. Are there any questions you have for me at this moment?"

The rest of the night is spent with the family asking about the wizarding world. It takes a while, but they soon fully believe the witch that Agnes is indeed one of her kind. Agnes becomes excited to learn all she can about magic, and another thought pops into her head. Is this her friend, Julia's, big family secret? Is their family magical too?