These Dear, Unfinished Tasks

Chapter 1: First Day

August 17th, 2015

The letter came on her eleventh birthday.

Her foster family had not remembered but she had. Eleven and with her seventh family. She had thought it was a birthday card at first, she never got mail at these places. Who would even be writing to her it's not like she had any family.

But still, the letter had come.

Going to Ilvermorny, meant no more foster homes and no more public school. Her foster mother had tutted stating that God must be smiling at Daphne. To the older woman, only divine intervention seemed to make sense where this boarding school was concerned.

It wasn't that hard to convince her to let Daphne go.

She packed her suitcase and when the rest of her school supplies magically arrived at their front door no one questioned a thing. They put her on the next train to the upstate Massechutes countryside without so much as a backward glance.

Being whisked off to a school to learn magic. It still seemed crazy even now.

Daphne had grown up around No-Mags. She knew she was different from other kids when one of them caught her levitating a plate a few inches off the kitchen table. That sent the other kids into hysterics and send Daphne back to the adoption center.

She learned quickly to stop doing it.

Especially after family four and that encounter with the priest.

The journey seemed to fly by and before she knew it she was being ushered into a great hall with all the other first years. All of them stopped around four daunting statues. One was shaped like a huge bird, one a giant snake, the next a fierce cat, and finally a small warrior creature.

"We will call your name and you will be sorted into your house. There is the Horned Serpent, the Thunderbird, The Wampus, and the Pukwegie. The statues will see what is in your heart and decide which house is your best fit." The headmistress had explained. Headmistress Fyrewynd was a young woman, with a severe nose and sleek black hair pulled back away from her face.

Daphne watched as kid after kid went up, a brief pause and then one of the statues would move. Riotous cheering would then ensue from the balcony above as a way to welcome in their new housemate.

"Daphne LeBlanc." She gulped but remained call moving forward like she had seen the others do. Staring up at the statues the bird seemed the most appealing to her at the moment. She hoped that it would be the one to move.

Instead, they all did.

There was low murmuring in the crowd, a few students and teachers gasped. Daphne looked over to the headmistress with panic in her eyes. The witch returned her stare and nodded.

"In this case, my dear, you may choose whichever one you wish."

How could she choose? She knew nothing about what that houses meant. The bird had appealed to her but the longer she stood up here the cat looked more appealing. However, the serpent was mysterious it could...She was panicking now, she had spent too much time up here she had to choose now.

"Be not afraid child," a voice whispered into her mind.

Oddly it was familiar to her. Though, Daphne could not remember where she had heard it. Something from a half-forgotten dream. It took her another moment to realize the voice was speaking in another language.

All soft constants and rolled vowels. Yet, Daphne understood all of what it said.

"Choose us and come home. Choose us, choose us. Choose us and right wrongs, choose us and take what is yours."