Chapter - 4.3

"Sorry to intrude suddenly, but I am Minerva McGonagall, the deputy headmistress at Hogwarts. You can call me Professor McGonagall. I believe two letters were delivered to you." The lady was very calm and elegant with her speech. As she spoke, the lady slowly made her way to the only chair in the room and looked at Alex. She was asking for his permission.

Alex was also quick to nod, gesturing for her to sit. And as Professor McGonagall sat on the chair, Alex sat on the bed in front of her.

"Yes, we did receive the letters," Alex was the one to reply.

"Yeah, and we did not know what to make of them," Nicole was waiting for her brother to initiate. And after he did, Nicole decided to take on Professor McGonagall, "There was no mention of where the school was and where to buy the items mentioned in the list from? Do you know how confused we were for the past few days? There was not even a telephone number mentioned anywhere for us to look for any kind of assistance. We had given up on Hogwarts," Nicole shook her head helplessly.

"... And you guys have the galls to ask for a reply by 31st of July. Without mentioning any address for that. I don't know how you guys got away with this for all this while, but it's hilarious how this letter has everything but anything useful." Nicole was in no way polite with her criticism.

"Nicole..." Alex looked at his sister with glaring eyes.

"Please, don't," Professor McGonagall stopped Alex, "I guess we certainly look into things the little missy suggested. Even we need to upgrade ourselves with time."

"But is this alright for the Deputy Headmistress to come on her own to meet the students? Don't tell me you guys are short-staffed as well," Nicole was taking the Professor hard.

"It's because there were two students from the same place and, on top of that, you guys are siblings. This is quite rare, so it needed more attention." Despite the constant attacks deputy headmistress replied without losing her composure in the slightest.

"At least you guys are eager beavers when it comes to working," Nicole getting the support from Professor McGonagall herself, continued, "So, can you tell us more about the school? What's so great about it?" Nicole asked.

"Nicole." This was it for Alex. Standing in front was one of the most respected personalities in the wizarding world, and his sister's tone was anything but respectful. No matter how much he doted on her, he won't let her overstep the bounds. And this time, even Nicole knew that even if the Professor stepped in, it would be of no help. So it was the right thing to shut up.

Then turning towards the Professor, Alex slightly bowed his head and apologised, "I am sorry for my sister's conduct."

"It's alright. Students tend to ask such questions when we first meet them," Professor McGonagall was impressed by how the boy carried himself. Calm and respectful.

But Nicole was not happy. Neither with herself nor the witch acting high and mighty in front of her. The mere fact that her brother was apologising to someone because of her, twisted her internals. Nicole could not digest that, and her evil brain was running at full capacity, thinking of ways to get back at the Professor.

"Now about your questions, little miss. I am sure you must have noticed some abnormalities around you since childhood," Professor McGonagall said and paused. She was waiting for Nicole to provide an affirmation, but when she did not, the Professor continued, "There is also a possibility that the events were so small that they never got your attention, but they did happen."

"Certain things happen around you that you can't explain in words. And for the first few times, emotional distress like anger, sadness or fear are the things that trigger it. And the root cause of it all is magic. You subconsciously use magic. We at Hogwarts teach you to control it and use it effectively," The Professor explained, "Other than that, we are no different from any other school."

"Then would you mind showing us some tricks?" Not able to keep her mouth shut for long, Nicole presented another demand.

"They are not mere tricks, little miss, but real magic," listening to Nicole constantly try and rub her the wrong way, even the calm and composed Professor lost her cool. She had to establish her dominance over the girl in some way. And with that, the Professor pulled out her want and gave it a twirl.

"Wohh... Wohh... Put me down, old lady... Put me down right now," In an instant, Nicole was floating in mid-air upside down. And her head could not help but feel dizzy, "I am sorry... I am sorry, alright. Now put me... Ughhh..." Nicole was a couple of burps away from vomiting her breakfast.

"So, what do you think about getting admission to our school?" Ignoring the pleadings from Nicole, the Professor turned toward Alex for the answer.

"I don't think we can choose against it," Alex tried to test.

"Oh, you can," Professor McGonagall nodded, "but we will have to take a few measures then. I am sure you understand that our existence is not something known to many."

Alex nodded, "I do understand. But you must also understand, we are orphans..." Alex said to which the Professor nodded.

"... That means we don't have the means to support our education in a normal school, let alone in some, one in a world kind of school," Alex expressed his difficulties. He was trying to act as if it was all new to him.

"For one, we are not the only magic school in the world. But leaving that aside, you don't have to worry about your school fees throughout the seven years you and your sister are at Hogwarts. The school will take care of that. You just need enough money to buy your school books and equipment. And even for that, we have banks to provide you loans, just like you have among the muggles." Now Professor McGonagall really wanted the kid to be at Hogwarts. Unlike his super-hyper sister, the boy really thought before speaking. He was calm, respectful and addressed his genuine concerns without any unnecessary noise. The boy had the becoming of a great wizard someday.

"We will go... We will go..." Not waiting for her brother to reply, Nicole, who was still floating in the air, cried out loud.

Looking at his sister, Alex smiled. Then he turned towards Professor McGonagall and nodded, agreeing with his sister. It was not like Alex was going to say no to her. His primary motive to enter Hogwarts was to protect the great Harry Potter, which surely could not be accomplished from outside.

"Very well then," standing up from the chair, Professor McGonagall said, "We should get going now. We have to buy everything on that list."

"Wait... Wait... Don't leave me behind. I can't hold it in any longer. I am about to... Ughhh..." Nicole could not even complete herself and put her palms over her mouth, holding herself back from throwing up.

Finally, Professor McGonagall felt some pity for the young lady. She grabbed her wand once again and gave it a wave. And as if the gravity was back to normal, Nicole felt heavy again. But before she could feel relieved, she fell face down on the bed.

"Ouch..." Though the bed was soft, the impact from the fall almost left him with a concussion. Adjusting her hair, Nicole glared angrily at the deputy headmistress, only to receive a smirk from the latter.

'Don't worry, I will get even with you. Just you wait,' Pledging revenge on the Professor, Nicole grabbed her clothes and dashed into the bathroom to change.

"Let me grab some money. I am sure, with all the secrecy you talked about, there must be some other currency you have in circulation. So you must have some kind of currency exchange system for people like us," Alex said and went towards the cupboard, leaving an impressed Professor McGonagall behind.

Opening the cupboard, Alex secretly put three neatly packed bundles of notes in his jacket. He was not the richest of the rich but was pretty well off for someone his age. He just slid thirty thousand pounds into his jacket, hiding from the Professor's eyes.

Pretty soon, Nicole was out, and the trio left the orphanage.

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