Astra

I - The Orphanage

LIFE AT THE ORPHANAGE could only be explained as dull. But Astra was a quiet girl. The other kids in the orphanage knew not to bother her, because of the one time that she set fire to another girl's dress. That was the only time she showed magic, however, because people otherwise left her alone. And she felt better that way. That's why she was surprised when on her birthday in January, her matron called her out of her room.

The matron was fine. She was not an angel in any way but she also wasn't evil. She was standing in the main entrance with an old lady wearing dark green robes and a strange hat.

"This lady wants to speak with you. She's offering you a place at her school." With that, the matron left her and the lady alone.

Astra had long, dark hair that fell in loose waves. She had pale skin and dark grey eyes. Eyes that looked as if they could see into your soul but could also seem friendly and welcoming. The lady handed Astra a letter, which made her even more confused. No words were spoken as she opened the letter and skimmed through it. Astra wanted to believe it. She wanted to believe that she was going to go and learn magic with witches and wizards at this place called Hogwarts. But it couldn't be real. It just couldn't.

"My name is Professor McGonagall and I have come from Hogwarts to give you this letter." The professor was stern and strict, but had a look in her eyes that was sad.

"I am a witch and so are you as well as your parents. I will take you to go shopping for your school supplies and then give you instructions on how you can come to Hogwarts on September 1st. I understand that you must have questions and I will be here to answer them, but for now, we must get going." She held out her arm, so Astra could only assume that she was supposed to grab it. As soon as she did, she felt like she was sucked into a tube of sorts where she could barely breathe and she couldn't see anything. As soon as the feeling came, it ended and she was now in front of an old, run-down pub called the Leaky Cauldron.

Professor McGonagall opened the door and Astra followed. The pub was filled with people talking and eating with pans and cups floating around everywhere. Astra's eyes widened but quickly followed Professor McGonagall into a small cupboard. She watched as the professor took out a brown stick and tapped a few of the bricks. The bricks moved aside, opening what looked like a new world. It was a street filled with people and shops that could only be described as magical.

"Wow."

Professor McGonagall gave a small trace of a smile, but Astra could tell that it was quite a bit for the stern lady.

"Indeed. Now, Miss Black, follow me. We are first making a trip to Gringotts to get money for your supplies and then we shall buy you everything you need for Hogwarts."

Professor McGonagall lead Astra to a large, white, marble building in the center of Diagon Alley that must have been what she called Gringotts. As far as Astra knew, she didn't have any money, but the professor must have thought otherwise. There were small, weird-looking creatures that McGonagall said were goblins. They went up to a desk where McGonagall gave the goblin a key and it took them to a cart that seemed to go underground. After the exhilarating ride that Astra thought was simply splendid, they walked out of the cart and went to where the goblin was opening a vault. Nothing could have prepared Astra for what she saw. Piles of gold, silver, and bronze were all around the chamber along with all sorts of jewelry and other valuable possessions.

"This is the Black family vault," said Professor McGonagall. "The House of Black is a wealthy and well-known pureblood family that dates back hundreds of centuries. Currently, you are the only heiress of the house of Black, seeing as everyone else is either dead, imprisoned, or disowned, so this all belongs to you." Astra gulped. Well, the first fact that she learned about her family was that they were all dead, imprisoned, or disowned. That's interesting. She was given a small bag in which she piled some of the gold.

After they got out of Gringotts, Astra took out her letter and they went off to a store called Flourish & Blotts to get her books. They then went to Madam Malkins to get her some robes and to Ollivanders where Astra got her wand. McGonagall asked whether Astra would want to get a pet, seeing as they were allowed an owl, cat, or toad. However, Astra thought that it wouldn't be necessary. She didn't see the need for a toad or a cat, seeing as they were just companions, and she was alright alone. An owl was useful for sending letters, but who would Astra even write to? She wasn't necessarily planning on making a whole lot of friends at school, and she wouldn't need to write the orphanage. So they went off to the Leaky Cauldron again.

Professor McGonagall took a seat at a table and Astra took the one opposite to her.

"Now, I think it is safe to say that you probably have some questions, so I am here to answer them. Then, I will apparate you back to the orphanage, where you will stay until September 1st. When you come to Hogwarts, we will see if your living arrangements can be fixed for the summer, only if you wish." She nodded, allowing Astra to speak.

So far, Professor McGonagall was quite surprised. She was not at all loud or boisterous as her father. Her mother was never loud, but also not as quiet as Astra. She seemed very lonely and the professor only hoped that she could care for the girls when she stayed at Hogwarts.

"You said my parents were magical. Did you teach them?"

"Yes, I taught both your mother and father. They were both quite talented. Your mother was of the Ravenclaw house, which is for the wise and witty. Your father was of Gryffindor house, though he came from a long line of Slytherins. I should say, there are four houses. Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Gryffindor, and Hufflepuff. Gryffindor is for the brave and Slytherin is for the ambitious. Hufflepuff is for the loyal and hard-working."

"What happened to them? I would assume that they're dead, but I don't really know that."

Professor McGonagall was once again surprised by the young girl. She was so blunt about the fact that her parents could be dead. She quickly got over her shock and answered Astra.

"No, they are not dead, or at least what I know of. Your father is imprisoned in Azkaban, the wizarding prison. There is no easy way to say this, but he was a murderer and was arrested for the murderer of thirteen muggles, or nonmagical people, and one wizard, Peter Pettigrew. Your mother, on the other hand. No one truly knows what happened to her. The day that your father was imprisoned, she put you in the orphanage and vanished. We don't know if she is dead or alive, but she definitely changed her life completely."

Astra slowly nodded, taking in the information. Great. Her father was a mass-murderer and her mother ran away.

"Thank you. I think that's all I wanted to know."

A third surprise. McGonagall was excepting the girl to ask her all about Hogwarts and the houses and the wizarding world. However, she nodded curtly and held out her hand for Astra to grab. They grabbed all of Astra's school supplies and apparated back to the orphanage.

"Now, here is your ticket for September 1st. Don't lose it. You will go to Kings Cross and run through the wall between Platforms 9 and 10. Do you understand?"

She nodded, and took her things, going back to her room. Her matron walked back into the door, seeing that Astra was done, and a thousand things were going through Astra's brain. She now thoroughly regretted not asking Professor McGonagall everything there was to learn about the wizarding world. Hopefully, the information would all be in the books. She had bought another book called Hogwarts: A History in hopes that it would explain everything to her.

As she made her way to the room, ignoring the stares from the other children in the orphanage, she could not have been prepared for what she was about to see.

On her small bed, was sitting a young man and woman, and on her chair was another man. The man sitting with the woman had short, black hair with glasses, and the woman had red hair and bright green eyes. The other man had a bit longer black hair with grey eyes that looked similar to her own. She just stared at the people. Did she have more visitors that she didn't know of? There were even more questions flowing through her brain, but only one seemed the most important.

"Who are you?"