As dusk fell, the setting sun, slowly disappearing over the horizon, cast a faint golden glow over the large house at 6 King's Road, Little Whinging, Surrey. It was a classic English-style villa, spacious, bright, and imposing. Its three-storey high walls were covered in sprawling ivy, the roof adorned with beautiful brown tiles, and the lawn and flowerbeds in the garden were neatly trimmed. A luxurious Bentley was quietly parked outside the garage. It was a beautiful sunset scene, peaceful and serene.
However, on the top-floor balcony of the villa, a black-haired boy was staring at an owl, an indescribable strangeness between them that seemed out of place with the serene surroundings. Aiven Mason stared blankly at the owl, his eyes wide with curiosity. Owls were not common birds to see in ordinary residential areas, especially not one clutching a thick, parchment-like brown envelope in its talons. Aiven had a feeling the letter was for him. However, he wasn't sure how to retrieve it, as the owl seemed to be expecting some sort of reward before it would hand over the letter.
"Hello!" Aiven greeted, trying to communicate with it, even though he felt a bit silly doing so.
"Hoo~" The owl hooted softly, tilting its head to scrutinise the boy, its brown-yellow pupils filled with wariness.
"Don't be nervous, I mean no harm!" Aiven tried to make his voice sound gentle, slowly extending his right hand. "Is that letter in your talons for me? I think..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a loud shout from downstairs, "Darling, are you ready? We're leaving!" Immediately afterwards, he heard footsteps approaching upstairs.
"Oh no, it's Mum! I can't let her see you!" Aiven suddenly realised, not bothering to communicate further with the owl. He abruptly waved his right hand forward, trying to shoo it away.
"Hoo!" The offended owl quickly dodged to the side.
"Sorry, Mum's allergic to birds; she's terrified of all kinds, big and small," Aiven explained in a hurried tone, still waving his hand. "You have to leave here quickly!"
Aiven's rather rude actions seemed to finally convince the owl that this boy wouldn't be offering any food. A second later, it flapped its wings, flew up, pecked Aiven sharply, and dropped the letter at his feet.
"Ow!" Aiven cried out in pain, watching the owl fly off the balcony like a whirlwind and disappear from his sight.
Ignoring everything else, he quickly bent down and snatched up the envelope at his feet before his mother could enter. Written clearly on it in emerald green ink was: Mr. Aiven Mason, Third Floor Bedroom, 6 King's Road, Little Whinging, Surrey.
"This letter, and that owl just now..." Aiven narrowed his eyes. These undeniably bizarre occurrences gave him a strong sense of déjà vu.
"Aiven, we need to hurry. Your father is already waiting for us in the car," his mother walked in and said in a slightly serious tone. "It's very impolite to be late for a first visit to someone's house."
"Got it, Mum!" Aiven didn't have time to think. He quickly stuffed the envelope into his trousers pocket before she noticed.
They were attending a small family gathering that evening. The hosts were his father's business partners; to be precise, his father's construction company was about to purchase a large batch of drilling rigs from their firm. Aiven didn't originally need to attend this sort of dinner party. However, the other family happened to have a child a year older than him who also attended Smelting Secondary School.
Aiven was eleven years old this year, and in just over a month, he would be starting at Smelting Secondary School. His parents felt it was necessary for their son to get to know his future senior in advance.
"Mum, you still haven't told me what that senior's name is?" On the way there, Aiven felt he had to do something to divert his attention from the letter in his pocket. Before he knew the contents of the letter, he wasn't sure whether to tell his parents about it. Perhaps, it was just a bad joke someone had played, and there was no need to make his mother worry about it.
"Darling, I told you last week. The child's name is Dudley," Mrs. Mason replied cheerfully.
"Dudley Dursley, I bet you two will become good friends," Mr. Mason added, still driving.
"Dudley Dursley, that's really a good name!" Aiven lowered his head, lost in thought. In fact, he did know someone else with that name.
If he wasn't mistaken, Dudley Dursley was a character from the 'Harry Potter' series he had read before his transmigration. In the books, Dudley was an overbearing and spoiled child who made Harry's childhood miserable. Aiven had a deep impression of this character, though it was hardly a good one. However, that was a character from a novel, after all. Although he had been reborn into Britain in the 1980s or 90s, there was no evidence to suggest that this was the magical world of Harry Potter.
"Relax, it should just be a coincidence of names." Aiven tried to convince himself, but the thought of the owl he had just seen made him feel vaguely uneasy.
While his parents weren't paying attention, Aiven secretly took the letter out of his pocket. He quickly flipped the envelope over and saw a wax seal on the back: a shield crest with a capital 'H' surrounded by a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake.
Aiven's eyes widened abruptly, his hands gripping tightly as he tremblingly tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter to read:
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (President of the International Confederation of Wizards, Supreme Mugwump, Grand Sorcerer, First Class with Honours, Order of Merlin).
Dear Mr. Mason,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely, Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress.
"Oh my goodness, this was an acceptance letter from Hogwarts! He should have known. Besides that magical school, who else would send a letter with an owl?"
"Darling, you don't have to be so nervous." Noticing Aiven's unusual behaviour, Mrs. Mason turned around and comforted him softly, "I heard your dad say that the Dursleys are very friendly, and Dudley is a polite and good child. You'll definitely like your new friend."
"Yes, Mum!" Aiven answered subconsciously. "I'm not nervous, just a little excited."
For the past eleven years, he had been preparing for a future in what he thought was the familiar real world, but now he was suddenly told that this was a completely unfamiliar magical world. Wasn't this all some sort of joke? Fortunately, before Aiven's transmigration, he had been very fond of the Harry Potter novels and was quite familiar with their content. Even if he couldn't remember every detail, he could recall the major events more or less, which made him feel a little relieved.
The problem now was how to tell his parents about this. Also, if he wasn't mistaken, besides meeting Dudley Dursley, he was very likely to meet the famous Harry Potter very soon.
Just as Aiven was struggling with this, his father slowly stopped the car and said softly, "Darling, we've arrived, Number 4 Privet Drive!"