The bell rang as Alyssa and her mother, Sadie, walked into the beautiful emporium. Racks of robes lined the walls and mannequins dressed in fashionable cloaks and hats could be seen at every corner. Sadie sometimes brought Alyssa here to shop for new robes when she was growing up, so the store wasn't new to her. Still, a fresh excitement bubbled inside of Alyssa at the thought of purchasing the black school robes she had always seen Hogwarts students buy.

"Hello, Mrs. Trevelyan! You're right on time for your appointment," the store clerk greeted. "And hello to you as well, dearie. You must be excited for your first year at Hogwarts!" She led Alyssa to one of the fitting stands in front of the mirror and wasted no time getting to work on getting her measurements.

"I am," Alyssa replied with a wide grin she couldn't contain. "I can't believe I can finally learn magic and meet new people!"

"I remember when I first got fitted with my school robes too," the store clerk smiled. "I hadn't even known what magic was a few days ago, and there I was getting a tall, pointy hat I had only ever seen people wear on Halloween."

"That must've been a shock," Alyssa said. "I can't imagine how my cousin would react if he woke up to an owl at his window with a letter in its beak." Tom might spend the entire morning in disbelief, thinking he was dreaming, Alyssa thought. Or he might appear at my house and start bombarding my parents with endless questions about Hogwarts. Or perhaps both might happen. You could never tell with Tom.

"Ah, so you have muggle family!" the store clerk said, interrupting Alyssa's internal musing.

"I do. My father is a muggleborn, you see."

"He is? What about your mother? Any wizarding family?"

Before Alyssa could reply, Sadie was standing from her seat nearby with a copy of Witch Weekly in her hand. "Are her measurements all done?" she asked. "I'm afraid my husband is waiting for us at Flourish and Blotts," she smiled. "We still have her schoolbooks to pick up."

"Oh, yes, Mrs. Trevelyan. She's all done," the store clerk replied, gathering her pins with a swish of her wand. "Her robes will be delivered by owl, as requested."

With that, Alyssa and Sadie thanked the store clerk and headed off to the bookstore.