How would your Muggle parents reacted to an acceptance letter to Hogwarts?

Cafe Society
1

Not to beat a dead horse with Harry Potter topics, but I re-read the first one and it occured to me that if my mom had received a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry, she probably would have thought it was some bizarre scam and tossed it as junk mail.

And for that matter if Harry has had his name down since he was born, how do muggle-born wizards get in? I mean if the son of the headboy and headgirl has to enroll 10 years ahead of time, how does a muggle ever get in?:confused:

I swear this will be my one and only Harry Potter post:cool:

2

My parents would assume I had joined some mailing list online and I would probably get reamed out. Recieving hundreds more to see if I would reply would only prove their point, and I would probably be banned from the computer and lectured. I doubt they would be convinced if Dumbledore himself were to visit and explain.

Oh well, I suppose I’m destined to be a Muggle. ::sigh::

3

Do they all have to enroll that early ahead? I was under the impression that Harry was only enrolled since he was born cause he’s so important and impressive.

4

I believe it’s said that if you’re born with magic abilities (whether or not they’re immediately obvious), you are put in the Big Book O’ Magic Children that belongs to the school to which you’re nearest. (I think that’s somewhere in HPatSS/PS, when Hagrid’s explaining Harry’s background.)

You can turn the school down, though, I believe. Wasn’t Justin Finch-Fletchley up for Eaton, but he decided on Hogwarts? (Or was that Ernie MacMillan?) Either way, I’m pretty sure it was either implied or stated directly that the Hufflepuff had the option of either school, but he chose Hogwarts over Eaton.

I haven’t a clue what would happen if a child with wizarding potential went to a non-wizarding school, nor what the Ministry of Magic would do if there were any mishaps–assuming the child had any grasp of his or her power to cause mishaps.

5

Yeah, but it doesn’t come through the regular mail…it just, um, appears. (And keeps appearing until you answer it, lol.)

My mom would be proud. My dad would grunt and rustle his newspaper (until he found out there was no cost, then he would say “hey, way to go” and slug me in the arm.)

I assume that’s what would happen, although when I was in high school I sent away for one of those writing tests from the ad that said “We’re looking for people to write children’s books!” and I “passed” it (I’m sure they take anyone) and they offered to let me join their course. My mom wasn’t impressed and wouldn’t give me the money, but I thought she should’ve let me do it anyway. I always wonder how my life would’ve been different if I’d at least tried it.

6

But there would be some cost for all the books and wands and stuff. I couldn’t imagine they’d be cheap in any way. It’d be more expensive than free public school.

7

My parents wouldn’t let me go.

8

My mom would complain that they charge so much at the wizarding stores for school supplies. She’d think she was getting ripped off by the Muggle-to-Wizard exchange rate, and wish that she could just buy the cauldrons on sale at Meijer’s.

I’d get a howler if I got less than an A (or whatever their grades are, I can’t remember) in arithmancy, despite my repeated pleas of “but it’s hard and I’ll never use it in real life!”

She’d also tell me not to hang around any Slytherins (even if i was one myself, probably).

My dad would probably try to get a job teaching Spanish (his current) job at Hogwarts, then come home and complain about the long meetings Dumbledor holds after school and that he doesn’t at all care for that Professor Umbridge.

9

My parents would think it was cool I was a wizard…

…but they would be EXTREMELY opposed to sending me away to boarding school. Any kind of boarding school. And with good reason, IMHO.

10

My mom would be thrilled even though we couldn’t afford it. My dad and his wife would freak because it would mean I’m “not normal.” Not that I am now. This would just emphasize it.

11

I would not have been allowed to attend Hogwarts, that much is certain.

If I had demonstrated any magical talent before the letter arrived, I would most certainly been rushed to our church to have Pastor “R” do a laying on of hands.

12

Mine would want to go too. :wink:

13

And who DOES care for Professor Umbridge, shy guy??? :wink:

14

Here’s how I think it would’ve gone:

Mom: “I really don’t think so. I know you like it, but what’ll you do for a living with a degree in magic?”
Me: “I was thinking maybe Dark Arts-”
Mom: “No. NO. You are NOT graduating with a B.A. in Dark Arts. Not for 30,000 pounds a year.”
Me: “It’s the best Dark Arts program in the country!”
Mom: “If you can pay for Hogwarts yourself, fine. But I’m not shelling out that kind of money for a degree you’ll never use.”
Me: “What if I double-majored in Potions and Dark Arts?”
Mom: “Maybe. We’ll see what you think after you visit. But I’d still rather you went to Beauxbatons.”

15

My folks would have called the priest and had him perform an exorcism on me. Seriously.

16

I kind of had the impression that Percy Weasley was this close to proposing to her before she had her unfortunate encounter with the centaurs.

He’s probably backpedaling like mad this summer, though. :wink:

BTW, Buckleberry Ferry, Justin Finch-Fletchly was down for Eton (a Muggle public school of great renown in real life) when he got his Hogwarts letter. I’m guessing it had something to do with the fact that his father had gone there, rather than any geographical assignment he was given at birth. The Hogwarts letter simply knocked those plans into a cocked hat.

17

This is what happens when Marley23 does research for his posts by asking his local expert. The local expert makes her own post.

::clears throat and pulls out a soapbox::

Lily and James did not register Harry when he was born. One does not register for Hogwarts. One is recognised as having the prerequisite magic required to be allowed to attend. Think about Neville. They were afraid that he didn’t have magic at all until his Great Uncle Algie dropped him out of a window and he bounced. He was eight years old, pretty far along in his childhood when you compare it to a newborn, don’t you think?

So how’s it done? There is an answer. There is, according to the Great and All Knowing J.K. Rowling Herself, (insert mocking here, I’m being facetious with the title, folks), a magic quill that records the birth of all magical children in Britain. Each year, McGonagall takes a look at the book it’s written down in, and sends off letters to all the kids that are turning eleven. Odd system, but hey, it seems to have worked for quite a long time (possibly for as long as a thousand years), so don’t knock it. Well, don’t knock it too badly. I could poke holes in it a mile wide, so I wouldn’t blame you for doing the same.

How they get the Muggleborns to actually believe them is beyond me. How they further manage to get them settled into Diagon Alley enough to purchase all their stuff when it’s clearly all very expensive… who knows? Certainly my folks would never have let me go without substantial proof. Plus all the religious concerns. (“Is there going to be kosher food for her there, hmm?”)

Though I suppose that they are quite used to recalcitrant parents, and have some sort of proof prepared to be provided at an easy to accept level. Else no Muggleborn would ever show up at Hogwarts, and the rates of accidental magic would become uncontrollable for the Ministry. Plus the Wizarding world would die out when the influx of new genes into the breeding pool stopped.

Alright. Before I significantly frighten you all even more than I am certain that I already have, and yes, I know I think waaaay too much about this stuff, I’ll just end right here.

::puts soapbox away:: Until next time–

–Sara

18

My parents would have put up with anything, as long as it was a prestigious school. They would have been like Hermione Granger’s parents, following me around Diagon Alley sinking their hard-earned money into cauldrons and wands.

And I definitely would have gone for it, nothing could be worse than the school I was really at. (I had a Chemistry teacher that makes Snape sound like Mr. Chips).

19

I am not sure the school supplies are all that expensive. Harrys wand cost about 35 quid (muggle money), and considering that it was quite a rare style (phoenix feather, twinned with Voldys etc) that is probably at the high end for a wand. I am guessing the wand is probably the most expensive item of school equipment, so it shouldn’t be that financially painful to send a kid to Hogwarts. The reason it taxes the Weasleys is that there are so many of them so close together in age.

20

Mine might have been able to handle the wizarding thing, if it were put to them in a way that sounded believable, but they would definitely not have been cool with the idea of sending me to boarding school.

BTW, how is it that there are (apparently) no day pupils at Hogwarts, when Hogsmeade has a large population of magical folk and is clearly within commuting distance? Are there no children in the village?