Chapter 1 - Diagon Alley

The day was sunny and without any breeze to stir the flowers and trees lining the still empty walk up to the house. A girl on the inside of the house sighed. She had remained a sentinal at the large bay windows for days now, silently staring at the path until it had become too dark to see.
Clutch in her small, 11-year-old fist was a yellow piece of parchment. The girl's eyes, one brown and one blue, fixed on it and traced the letters for yet another time.



Dear Miss Short,
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 by no later than July 31.
Yours Sicerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deptuy Headmistress

Yes, Taylor Short was a witch. Or at the very leaset, a witch-to-be. A with in Training. It had been nearly 10 years since He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had visited her house, nearly 10 years since You-Know-Who had failed to get Taylor's father on his side, nearly 10 years since Taylor's mother had learned of the secreat world of magic, and nearly 10 years since a baby boy had managed to defeat the most powerful dark wizard of all time.
Taylor had been ecstatic when her letter had come. Her mother had been, too. Together they had sent the family owl to the school only minutes after the letter had been recieved.
"Still not here yet?" Asked a woman as she sauntered into the room. She was Angelica Short- Taylor's muggle mother. Taylor had inherited her mother's gender, wavy hair, and eye color in one eyes, but everything else of her's she had inherited from her dad.
"No." Taylor sighed agian, shaking her head a causing her chin-length red-brown hair to flare out.
"Don't worry, your father will be here."
"That's what you said yesterday, mum." said Taylro. After You-Know-ho had come to visit, Dumbledore had insisted that Archimedes explain he was a wizard to Angelica. Angelica had wanted to leave and take Taylor with her, but luckly Dumbledore had calmed her down. The very next day, You-Know-Who had been defeated and their house no longer needed a secret keeper. Taylor had been raised, for the most part, like any other wizard child.
"Your father has never let you down before." Angelica chuckled and sat on the window seat next to her daughter.
"But if he doesn't come today, what will I do? The trains leaves tomorrow."
Because there was another part of Taylor's letter: the supply list. Not being a witch, Taylor's mother could not take her daughter to get her school things and her father had been too busy with his job to take her.



UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)
2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear
3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)
4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)
Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
The Standard Book of Spells (Grade I)
by Miranda Goshawk
A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
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

OTHER EQUIPMENT
1 wand
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
1 set glass or crystal philes
1 telescope
1 set brass scales
Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS
ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS

It was a long list and Taylor did not know what she would do if her father came home late again.
Just as she was thinking this, a roaring sound came from the other end of the sitting room. Both girls turned around just in time to see the fireplace fill with emerald flames and a tall man step into the room.
"Daddy!" Taylor squealed, running at the man. Still in his aurur robes from work Archimedes looked tired but happy to see his family.
"There's my Tayby!" Archimedes said, snatching his daughter by the waist and depositing her on his shoulders.
"You can't call me Tayby anymore!" Taylor laughed, "I'm all grown up! I'm going to Hogwarts!"
"You will always be my Tayby, no matter how old you are, young lady." Arcimedes looked at his wife, "Shall I take our daughter to get her school things?"
"Have fun, you two." Angelica said. With Tay still perched on his shoulders, Archimedes ducked into the fireplace.
"Can I do the floo powder, dad? Can I?" Taylor asked as her mother took a jar full of green powder of the mantle.
"Be my guest." her father said. Angelica lifted the jar up to Taylor's level and Taylor dug her fingers into the powder. Then she threw it into the fire and shouted:
"Diagon Alley!"

All Taylor could see was a stream of endless fireplaces and even that stopped eventually. Then she was spinning quickly and her father stepped into Diagon Alley.
Even though she had been raised a witch, it was the first time Taylor had come to Diagon Alley. There were lots of wizard places she had never visited because, Taylor expected, her dad didn't want to hurt her mom's feelings.
The wizard market was alive with sound and color. People in bright robes were selling things on corners, kids were clinging to their parents' hands. Taylor clambered off her father's back and stood blinking at the sight in front of her.
"Got your list?" Her dad asked.
"Yep!" Taylor said. And they set out across the street. Taylor had never seen so many wizards in one place. Her senses were on overload.
First they went to Gringotts to withdraw money from the family account. Then they went to Madam Malkin's Wizard Robes for all Occasions and got Taylor's school uniform.
They visited Florish and Blotts, where Taylor got all of her school books. They bought parchment and quills at the shop next door and then went across the street to the apothecary to get a basic potion kit. Taylor marveled at the barrels and barrels of unicorn horns, beetle eyes, and toad spleens. They even went to Eeyelop's Owl Emporium, where Taylor's dad bought her a marvelous barn own she immediatly christened "Sebastian".
Then it was time to buy the most exciting thing on the list: Taylor's wand. The sunw as setting and Daigon Alley was quickly emptying when Taylor and her father set out fro Ollivander's. Taylor was bouncing up and down with excitement.
"Ah, hello, Archimedes."
"Oh, Professor Dumbledore!" Archimdes said, shaking the hand of an older gentleman with a long silver beard and half-moon glasses, "How are you?"
"Fine, fine." Dumbledore chuckled, "It seems I have some last minute school shopping to do."
There were two girls with Dumbledore who looked about the same age as Taylor. One had shockingly purple hair and eyes the exact same color. The other girl had violet eyes and brown hair that was underneath a large witch hat.
"Same here. I've been so busy at the Ministry that I haven't had time to take Taylor to get her things."
"Oh, so this is your daughter. You've grown a lot since I last saw you, Taylor."
"Have we met before, sir?" asked Taylor. She was standing in front of her father, who had his large hands on her shoulders.
"Just once, when you were a baby. This is my granddaughter, Katherine-"
"It's Kitty, grandpa." The purple haired girl said, tugging on her grandfather's sleeve.
"Excuse me. This is my granddaughter, Katherine, who, as you've seen, prefers to be called Kitty." Dumbledore laughed, "And this is her friend, Molli Hawk."
"It's nice to meet you." Taylor said politely.
"Well, we've got to get Taylor her wand." said Taylor's father.
"Yes, we should be getting along as well. I'll see you tomorrow, Taylor."
Taylor nodded and Dumbledore walked away down the street, Kitty and Molli right behind him.
"Professor Dumbledore is the headmaster of Hogwarts." Archimedes explained as he and his daughter set off again.
"I know," Taylor said, "It's on my letter."
"He's an amazing wizard, Taylor. He's the only person You-Know-Who was ever afraid of." Taylor listened to her fatehr wax poetic about Professor Dumbledore until they got to Ollivander's.
The sign above was peeling old, the window display blanketed in several years worth of dust. Taylor thought that a place that sold wands would at least look a little less...negelected.
A bell tinkled somewhere in the depths of the shop when the opened the door and stepped inside. There was no one to be seen in the front. There was just an antique desk and shelf upon shelf of dusty, rectangular boxes.
"Ah, Miss Short." Taylor squeeked and whirled around. There was a man a few steps away from her, stopped, pale eyes shining eerily in the dim store lights, "Here to get your wand, I assume?"
"Yes, sir." Taylor said.
"And here's your father." Mr. Ollivander said, turning to Archimedes, "Mahogony. 14 and a half inches, pheonix feather core, I believe?"
"Yes," Archimedes said with a grin, "Got me out of a lot of jams, it has."
"Good, good." Mr. Ollivander said vaguely. He looked at Taylor, "Which is your wand arm?"
"My right." Taylor answered. Mr. Ollivander closed the distance between then in an instant and started measuring Taylor's arm, head, and nose. Then he took out a ladder and withdrew several boxes from the top of the closest shelf.
"Now let's see which wand you favor. Of coure, the wand chooses the wizard. Give it a wave." He handed her the wand, "Holly, 10 inches- unicorn hair."
Taylor waved it- nothing. Mr. Ollivander handed her another.
"Ash, 16 inches- pheonix feather." Nothing. "Oak, 12 inches- unicorn hair." Nothing.
Four wands later and Taylor was beginning to worry that she wasn't a witch after all. Mr. Ollivander muttered to himself and then withdrew one from the very bottom of another shelf. He walked back to Taylor and gave her the wand.
"Willow. 13 inches- Dragon Heartstring."
Taylor grabbed it, heart beating. Almost instantly, she felt something connect, as if the wand had been waiting for her hand. She gave a quick movement and sparks exploded from the end.
"Very good, very good." Mr. Ollivander said.
They bought the wand and headed home.
Taylor was going to be a wtich!

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