Alohomora

1) Preparing For School

It was the 31st August, the day before I started Hogwarts for the first time. I had never been so excited in my whole life, except maybe the day I got my very own wand. 

A few days before my parents had taken me school shopping in Diagon Alley, but getting my wand is something I will never forget. From the outside Ollivanders looked abandoned. The windows were dusty, the paintwork peeling. A single wand in the window was the only display. I stepped inside cautiously, a bell rang. My parents followed me inside and I stared. The wooden floor creaked with every movement. A large counter was the only thing in the front of the shop. Behind this were shelves, stacked from floor to ceiling with hundred and hundreds of boxes containing wands. Mr Ollivander seemed to appear from nowhere. He walked slowly, over to the counter, his grey hair all over the place. "ah, another first year ey? i just need to take some measurements before i find you your wand" he said, his voice croaky. He came over and whipped out a tape measure and started to measure me. He didn't speak whilst he worked but i could hear him muttering under his breath. He made his way back behind the counter and walked along the second row of shelves, disappearing to the back of the shop. I turned to face my parents who gave me encoraging smiles. Mr Ollivander returned a few minutes later with a box in his hands. He put the box onto the counter and unwrapped the packaging. " Unicorn core, Willow wood, quite flexible, 9 inches"he said, handing me the wand. I took it in my right hand and gave it a small flick. A spark burst from the end and several of the closest wand boxes fell to the floor. "nope" said Mr Ollivander taking the wand back. He collected the pile of wands off the floor, looked at me, then back at a box. "try this" he said, handing me another wand. This time it felt different, it felt like this was the wand for me. I could feel the magic as it vibrated, the end dimly lit. My parents and Ollivander had huge smiles on their faces. "Perfect!  Dragon core, Laurel wood, slightly springy, 9 3/4 inches" he told me, as i handed the wand back over. He re packadged the box and exchanged it for 7 galleons. 

On our trip we also purchased my robes, books and my very own owl! A tawny owl which i named Petal. 

Tomorrow was the big day. My parents and their friends Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy decided to have a party to say goodbye and good luck to me and the Malfoys son Draco. Draco was one of my best friends and we had known each others forever. My father Parker and his father were both in Slytherin at school and were good friends. Our mothers Narcissa and Alessia were great friends too because of this. After a fantastic dinner cooked by the Malfoy Manor house elves (which I felt uncomfortable about) our parents went through to the drawing room for some firewhiskey leaving me and Draco sat in the garden outside. 

"i can't wait to finally get there, fathers told me all about the Slytherin common room and it sounds amazing, i know i'll be in Slytherin, i hope you will be too Rubes" smiled Draco. "i hope we are in the same house too, but my mum was in Ravenclaw, so i might be one" i replied. Draco looked thoughtful. "better that than Hufflepuff, i'd leave if i was put there, not that I ever would" . "Are you nervous?"i asked. "no way, theres nothing to be scared about, Ruby we are finally going off to Hogwarts together! we have been waiting for this moment for years and tomorrow its finally happening!"he replied excitedly. "i know, is it true about the forbidden forest? is there really giant spiders and is there really ghosts flying about?" Draco laughed. "yeah, you're not scared are you?" he asked. I didn't say anything. "don't worry about it, as long as we stick together it will be fine, i said Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy could sit with us on the train tomorrow, you don't mind do you?"he asked. I did mind really. Draco only liked Crabbe and Goyle because they did whatever he told them to do and Pansy was one of my friends, but she could be whiney sometimes. Draco had obviously read my mind. "sorry, but they begged me"he rolled his eyes. Just then we heard Narcissa call us back inside. I followed Draco through the large black front doors, through the hall way lined with the Malfoy family portraits,up the wide staircase and along the candlelit corridor to the drawing room. "so, we will meet you on the platform at 10.45? are you disapparating?" asked Lucius to my father who nodded. "yes, there is no way we would travel like the muggles, we will disapparte to the Leaky Cauldron then make our way from there" my father replied. Lucius nodded. "of course, who would travel like muggles?"he laughed. After we all finally had said goodbye, i stood inbetween my parents outside Malfoy Manor. My parents each took one of my arms and we disapparated with a loud crack breaking the silence.

As soon as I got home, i went straight to bed, i wanted to be up early to get ready in the morning. I had already packed my trunk, which was at the end of my bed. Petal was hopping about on a branch outside my window, making the most of her freedom before being put in her cage for the journey. My parents both wished me good night before leaving my room. 

That night i didn't get much sleep as i was too excited. It seemed like years before my mum came in to tell me it was time to get ready.

Finally, I was leaving for Hogwarts.