𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨 | Marauders Era

𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄

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STARLING MANOR, The house on Lockwood Road

1971

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‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ As the browning leaves slowly fell from their branches, there lay a girl with light green eyes and long orange hair that was almost identical to the leaves that were now flying with the wind. Books stacked upon each other lay beside the little girl. Pages flip from left to right, and quills fall off their stands due to the wind.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ There lay under a tree, Elora Valerie Starling. Asleep, of course. The young, soon-to-be witch was already reading about topics regarding Care of Magical creatures despite not receiving her Hogwarts letter yet. Her mother had told her, "The Headmaster of Hogwarts will send your letter the day after your birthday, darling. There is no need to fret if he sends it late." Yet it had been months since her 11th birthday.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ The poor girl has been studying for days, asking her mother if she could talk to the headmaster herself. So there she lay asleep, waiting for an owl holding the letter she had been dying to receive to appear in front of her.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ The sound of leaves being crushed slowly grew louder and louder. Elora grumbled, slightly stirring awake. "Elora, darling, you can't sleep under a tree for the rest of the day." A soft voice spoke. The girl's eyes fluttered open to see her mother standing a few steps away in a pair of jeans and a jumper.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Besides," she continued in a whisper, stepping closer to her daughter, "there's a little something for you from the post today."

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "The post...? It's Sunday mum, they don't send in anything today," Elora said in a grumble, turning over to sleep again.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Her mother chuckled as she watched the girl turn to her side and freeze. Her small frame sat up towards her mother with sleepy yet wide eyes.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Is it... it?" She whispered.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "I mean... the red seal on the letter seemed a bit... familiar," the woman replied. She could see her father walking up to the tree where she and Elora sat. He wore a brownish suit with a pair of slacks. He had just come home from a visit from the ministry.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "We'll come on then!" Elora exclaimed. Standing up to grab her mother's hand and started to descend down the small hill. The girl met up with her father down the hill, her mother behind her barely catching a breath due to her daughter pulling her as if she were on a sled.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Come on dad! Let's go get the post! It might be too late if we don't go now!" The girl said as both her parents started chuckling,

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Elora, I don't think a letter has an expiry date," her father replied, trying to pull his daughter back to him as she was already pulling her mother away and into the house.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "And it's not needed for us to go back in." He finished with a smile, dug into the inside pocket of his blazer, and pulled out an envelope with a red seal. "The owl who delivered it had dropped it off on the roof of my muggle car right as I got home. I s'pose he couldn't find our mailbox." He chuckled, handing the letter to Elora.