Dear Ms Talpin Solo Closed

17th of July, 2021

It was a very hot Saturday. The windows in Eleanor's room were open and when she awoke on that summer morning, the first thing that hit her was how incredibly hot it was. She stayed in bed for a few more moments, wondering if she could go back to sleep, but she quickly realised there was no point. She was awake now, and she wouldn't be able to sleep. She opened her eyes and as she did, a fly landed on her nose. She shook her head, startled. She got up and went to close the windows. She could hear birds singing in the forest outside her windows and she longed to be out there, with the birds and the trees and the summer flowers. She shut both the windows and decided to find her mother. She knew a spell that could make rooms a comfortable temperature, but she didn't enter Eleanor's room unless asked.

Sure enough, as Eleanor opened her bedroom door she felt a much more pleasant temperature in the hallway. She was also hit by the distinct smell of breakfast coming from the kitchen downstairs. She made her way down the hallway and as she went down the stairs she could hear her mother humming. "Good morning, Ellie, did you sleep well?" her mother said as Eleanor entered the kitchen and slumped down in a chair. "Yeah, I did" said Eleanor, "but it's so hot in my room, mum, can you do that spell, please?" Her mother smiled and said "I can do it after breakfast, darling. Now, can I interest you in some eggs and bacon?" Eleanor nodded.

Eleanor's mother, Rosalina Talpin, looked very much like her daughter. She was a tall, slim witch. Her face was prematurely lined and her dark hair was greying, making her look older than she actually was. She was the kind of woman who saw something good and special in everyone, she was easily unnoticed, but not soon forgotten. Eleanor's grandfather, Theodore Talpin, also lived with them, but he was away. He had left for a weekend here and there before, but this time he would be away for months. Her mother took the rest of the summer off work to be with Eleanor before the school year began and they had been just the two of them for a week now. Eleanor didn't mind the change, but she missed her grandfather and it was difficult to think that she wouldn't see him until Christmas. He had, at least, promised to get her the best Christmas present ever.

Eleanor was looking out the window, her eyes were fixed on a point in the sky but her mind was somewhere else entirely. Her mother put a plate in front of her, and as she did, Eleanor saw two owls flying in the direction of their house. Two owls. "Mum!" Eleanor exclaimed, excited. "There are two owls! Do you think it'll be my letter?" Her mother leaned over the table and looked out the window for the two growing flecks of brown against the blue sky. She smiled. "Maybe," she said and went to load up a plate for herself. Eleanor watched the two owls with growing anticipation. She had been waiting for this owl for weeks. Two times she had thought she would be getting her letter but they had both been for her grandfather.

The owls finally swooped through the window and landed on the table as her mother poured her a glass of orange juice. One of the owls turned to her mother, carrying the Daily Prophet. The other turned to Eleanor and offered her a letter. Eleanor took the letter and opened it, as the two owls took flight. It contained two notes. She picked up the first one and read it quickly, and then she looked up at her mother who was already watching her expectantly. Eleanor nodded, wide-eyed and excited, and her mother burst into a grin. "Oh, congratulations!" she said, and Eleanor laughed. She picked up the second note which was a list of supplies she would need. At the bottom was a line that caught her eye, saying she could bring a pet.

After reading through the list she handed it to her mother, and asked "Mum, can I get an owl, please?" Her mother looked up from the list tentatively and said, slowly, "well, Ellie, owls are expensive. And all these other supplies will cost money too, you know. You can use the school owls for letters and maybe we can get you one... another year." She looked a bit sad and Eleanor knew she would have loved to give her an owl, but money had been tight since her grandparents died. Still, she couldn't help feeling a little disappointed. She fixed a smile on her face and said, "Yeah, okay. Another year!" and tried to look as excited as she had done before. Her mother looked a little less sad. "We'll have to take a little day trip to Diagon Alley then," her mother said and put down the list. "Yeah, we will!" said Eleanor, and she really was excited now. She loved visiting Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, looking at all the different stuff they sold, noting prices for when she would save up the money to buy them.

They discussed the upcoming trip and Hogwarts over breakfast. Eleanor pressed her mother for every detail about the castle, the sorting ceremony, the classes, and her mother tried her best to answer. They had discussed it many times before but never had it seemed so real to Eleanor as it did this morning. She was going to Hogwarts!