Letters in the Manor
Nothing could be seen except for a black abyss, nothing but an unconscious black-haired figure plummeting. The young boy, unaware of his precarious situation seemed to have almost a blissful look on his face.
And then there was light, the bright sun and the blue sky suddenly popped into existence.
The sudden influx of light stirred the boy out of his slumber and the realization of his falling stole all thoughts of sleep from his mind.
His blissful expression changed into horror real quick as he plummeted towards the ground, screaming “Shit, Shit!”
The young boy even in his panic managed to orient his body so that his feet faced the ground, desperately hoping for his survival.
Oddly the boy did start to slow down but nowhere near enough to stop his descent. He hit the ground hard, breaking both of his legs and probably causing a plethora of internal injuries.
As the boy fell to the ground, in a display of impressive mental strength he forced himself to look around instead of just collapsing. To his surprise, he was met with a familiar view. He had landed in the immense garden preceding the giant Black Manor.
Filled with hope the boy started to slowly crawl towards the manor’s entrance, calling “Rosie, Rosie!”. Unfortunately for him, there was no response.
The boy desperately began shouting, “Rosie, Rosie!”, as he tried to force himself to move but he eventually succumbed to his wounds, slipping back into unconsciousness.
x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x
A familiar black-haired boy woke up with a gasp, jumping out of bed, looking startled. He just sat on the ground, taking in a few labored breaths as his alarm went off in the background.
The familiar surroundings of his bedroom, brought him some comfort as he shut off his alarm clock but there was still something, something poking him in the back of the head.
“Rosie, Rosie?” called out the boy, in a small, almost scared voice.
His face lit up with a smile of relief, as the familiar figure of his ever-loyal popped in, into his room.
“Master, callses Rosie?” asked the elf in her squeaky voice.
“Yes uhh, but it's nothing Rosie… you can get back to whatever you were doing” replied the boy as he sat back on his bed.
“Okay”, said Rosie, before asking “Will Master haveses breakfast at the usual time?”
“Yes” was all the boy said as a reply seeming lost in thought.
“Okay. Rosie leaveses now” said the elf as she popped out of the room.
x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x
The boy was sitting on a wooden chair, in what seemed to be a library. His heterochromatic eyes scanned the book on the desk in front of him. The book labeled Potions for Novices was one of his favorites but truthfully he could spend hours on anything related to potions, It was one of the only forms of magic he could perform without a wand.
Potions wasn’t his favorite subject or anything, it was just that his options were pretty limited. Sure he could practice Charms or Transfiguration with one of the old wands stored in the Manor but a child’s magic was quite unstable and hard to control even with a wand.
That is why they waited till at least eleven years of age before teaching someone magic. A child’s magic becomes more stable as they grow, something that the black-haired boy had in common with everybody else.
Despite his interest in the subject, the boy seemed distracted. Occasionally glancing towards the other side of the room, his eyes locked on to a dark brown door fixed into a wall.
He would stare at the door as if contemplating something, then turn around shaking his head. This went on for hours, with the boy desperately trying to focus on his book but ultimately gave up.
He rose from his seat and walked towards the door. He stood in front of his target still feeling unsure about his decision. Moving slowly, he grabbed the handle and opened his mouth as if to say something.
But before he could a familiar voice from behind him said, “Breakfast is ready, Master”. The boy slowly turned toward the house elf, his face showing both relief and disappointment.
“Good, I’ll be there in two minutes”, replied the boy. With a quick “Yes Master”, the elf popped out.
After one last look towards the door, the boy walked towards a seemingly random corner of the room. It was odd that he would do so as the door looked like the only exit to the room. But when he put his hand on the wall, it popped inwards and slid open, revealing an exit.
As the boy walked out the secret door closed behind him, leaving no trace of its existence except for a still painting of Knight in armor, riding a Bluish-Black Horse.
The library was in the highest tower of the Manor, while the dining hall was on the ground floor. After some grueling stairs, the boy reached a giant dining hall that could easily fit fifteen hundred people. It used to have a giant dining table but he had it replaced with a small circular table. He wasn’t planning on having any guests any time soon.
x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x
After enjoying a combination of eggs, salad, and toast, the boy said, “The food was great as always, Rosie”, as the house elf popped in to clear the table. The wrinkled old face of the house elf lit up with a smile, “Thank you, Master, does he wantses anything else?”, asked Rosie politely.
“Yes Rosie, please bring me the paper, some tea, and any mail I might have”, replied the boy. In less than a minute the requested items were on the table, taking a sip of his tea, the boy picked up the newspaper.
The Boy Who Lived receives his Hogwarts Letter!
Today is a memorable day, as we received the delightful news that our savior, Tommy Potter has received his…
The black-haired child threw the paper aside annoyed by the rubbish they kept printing in the Prophet.
He was surprised to see that he had a letter as he didn’t expect any except Gringotts Monthly Accounts.
Looking at the letter he realised that he had finally received the letter he had been hoping for so long:
Mr H. Potter Black
Unknown
Somewhere in the Atlantic
The iconic green ink looked fresh on the heavy parchment, turning it around the Hogwarts seal could be seen adorning it.
The boy smiled gleefully as he opened the letter and 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 Mr Potter Black,
We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Putting the letter aside, the boy shouted, “Rosie! Bring me some ink and parchment”. His excitement was evident in his manner.
Grabbing the supplies from the house elf's hands he began writing:
Respected
Deputy Headmistress,
I was quite delighted by the arrival of my Hogwarts letter and would love to join the esteemed school, but I have some concerns. As you know, good education is essential and it has been brought to my concern that the standards in Hogwarts have dropped significantly.
I hope we can arrange a meeting (preferably at the Leaky Cauldron) with a representative from Hogwarts, who would be willing to discuss these troubling things that I have heard and clear some of my doubts.
Yours Faithfully.
Hadrian Potter Black