The raven with the lion's mane

1. Poodles and Pumpkins

"Oh where did the floo powder go?"

A lady says as she is rummaging through the kitchen cabinets. She has fairly straight light brown with strands of gray all throughout her hair, tied into a low bun. Some hairs curled around her reading glasses as she had put them on top of her head. Her eyes were a deep green, only brightened by the slight bags under her eyes.

"Mum, it's right here."

A little girl says, around the age of 11. She has wild curly dark hair, there was so much hair pointing almost every direction that it made her look at least a few inches taller than she actually was.

Her eyes were big and dark, almost matching the color of her hair. Her face is very round, but barely visible under her big hair. She takes a bag of floo powder from the desk in the living room.

The living room and kitchen were attached by a wide archway, so one could see the other standing in different rooms. The living room was somewhat messy. There was a fireplace in the middle of the room with all kinds of pots on top of it, all with different items in them. Two armchairs and a big purple couch covered in pillows, facing the fireplace. The walls were covered with drawers, desks, closets and bookshelves, all completely filled to the top. There were two average sized windows between all the cluttered furniture, looking out on the docks, where some sailing boats were docked.

"Oh my, I'm sorry sweetheart, I'm just so excited that my little girl is going to Hogwarts. You'll finally become a real witch just like me. It's too bad your dad had to miss your first time going to Hogwarts, but he will be back when Christmas arrives" The mother says with a big smile on her face. The face of a really, really proud parent.

"Annie, do you have your list of requirements with you? Don't want to forget anything when we're in Diagon Alley."

"Yes mum" The girl says, waving her Hogwarts letter around. On the letter it showed the requirements for the school. Under which were a few robes, a list of 8 books. Some potion brewing items, such as a cauldron. A telescope for Astrology lessons. And last but not least you were allowed to bring a reasonable animal, such as an owl, a cat or a toad.

"I'm ready to go."The daughter says.

The girl and her mother put on their robes and gather in front of the fireplace. The little girl steps forward into the fireplace, grabs a handful of floo powder and says "Diagon Alley" as she throws the powder on the ground. Green flames engulf her body and she is transported.

This story follows Ann-Marie Krovascu, a young witch with weird fascinations and strong opinions on... EVERYTHING. For example, how she once met a wizard with a shaven head and told him that bald people tend to look like toads. No matter what the man said, her mind was unchangeable. Also, even though she loves Quidditch, she thinks brooms were made with devilish intents. She had fallen off a broom from 20ft high, 2 Christmases ago, when her brother had made his house's Quidditch team and wanted to show off his new broom.

Ann-Marie and her family live in Southampton, UK. Where she lives with her mother, Kathryn Krovascu, a half-blood witch who works for the Ministry of Magic, department of International Magical Cooperation and has been doing so for 12 years. She used to go to Hogwarts back in the day and was a Ravenclaw Prefect.

Her mother is happily married to Ann's father, Andrei Krovascu, a Romanian pure-blood wizard, who works in the transportation business of magical creatures, thus isn't home very often, travelling a lot for his work. When he get's the opportunity he likes to spend time at the Dragon sanctuary in Romania, since it's close to his childhood home and used to spend a lot of time there in his childhood.

He met Ann's mom when a group of Hogwarts students was allowed an excursion to Bulgaria to see the magic culture of eastern Europe. Here they stayed at the Durmstrang Institute for as long as the excursion took. And Andrei is a Durmstrang student, became soon interested in the young Kathryn.