Pureblood

The letter

"Dear ms. Turner,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry."
I read and re read the parchment in my hands over and over again. I had always known I was different than my siblings, from making pots of soup explode during tantrums, to making my sister's mouth disappear when she wouldn't stop calling me names. But I wasn't sure what it was, until this moment.
It's such a relief to know I'm not just the weird Turner girl, but I can be so much more. I grip the letter in my hands and make my way down the hall to my mothers door. I opened it slightly to see if she was inside, there she sat at her vanity. Pulling at her face, trying to make her wrinkles disappear, but I love the way they shape her face. They show that she's smiled and laughed so much, that she was angry at times (most likely at me.) They were proof that she lived life fully, much like how I wanted to live mine.
"Mum?" I said quietly from the doorway. "Oh Zara" she said startled. "You do have a knack for sneaking up on me, what do you need darling?" I stepped into her room, the walls a beautiful lilac color, and the smell of her perfume I loved so much. "I got this post." I said timidly as I slowly handed the parchment to her, unsure of what the reaction would be. As she read it I watched her eyes widen and slowly well up with tears. I could feel my stomach turn and my throat start to burn, I had finally pushed her too far, she'll think I'm just crazy, crazy enough to have made up some elaborate story just to leave her.

"I knew it." She said, but in a happier tone than I had anticipated. "Huh?" I couldn't help but let my confusion show on my face and in my voice. "Oh love, I had always hoped this day would come, I thought it would've been all of my children but the others simply didn't show any signs." I took a step back in astonishment, has she known all this time and just didn't think it right to tell me? "Mum what are you talking about? Are you..? Are we...?" I couldn't let the question that's been burning in my mind slip through my lips. I had always pushed it aside, as I knew I would've been deemed an outcast, even more than I already was.
"A witch." Mum said, her tears now falling down her cheeks, finding their path through the wrinkles beside her mouth. "I'm sorry I kept it from you, I just was doing what I thought was best for you, for all of you." I couldn't believe what she was telling me. "Well it was always less possible with your siblings, their father was a Muggle. But after he died I found myself visiting my old stomping grounds and finding joy in a butter beer, just like when I was a girl." The realization that my father was not my siblings father had made my mind start to wander. "Was my father a wizard then?" I interrupted her. "Well, yes... you're what we call a pureblood." I plop down on the bed next to her staring at the floor, trying to wrap my head around all of it. She continued to talk of how proud and excited she was, while the world I had known for so long started to fade away. What does this all mean? Who am I really? "We'll have to start packing right away." As she said it I snapped back to reality, I looked at her, and it seemed we both had an understanding that this changes everything.
That evening as I lay in my bed for the last time, I thought of what it will be like. Will I still be the strange Turner girl? Or is everyone just as odd as I? Who is my father, and who is he in the wizard world? I struggled to quiet my mind, with so many questions.

The next morning, I lugged my trunk down the stairs and saw my older sister and brother sitting on the couch playing some game. I never understood their fascination with it but I admired how tenacious they were. "Aw come on!" Elias shouted and he threw his controller onto the couch beside him. "Too bad E, guess you're not as good as you claimed to be." Alice said in her usual 'I know better than you' voice. Elias jumped up in a huff when he noticed me standing there. "Z! First day at that fancy prep school eh?" Prep school, huh? Guess mum thought it was best to keep the witch subject just between us. "Yeah I'm a bit worried." I said honestly. It was always hard to lie to him, he was the oldest and it seemed he had the most time to learn when people were genuine or not. "Oh please." Alice chirped from the couch. "I'm sure they'll accept you just fine, weird tendencies and all!" I scowled at her and Elias threw his hand over both our shoulders, pulling us in for a tight hug that neither of us wanted to be in. "Ugh Elias!" Alice said. I groaned along with her, but I was grateful for it. I would miss them both, even Alice's foul attitude and constant insults. "Alright that's enough you three. We've got a train to catch haven't we?" Mum said, raising her eyebrows at me.
"I'll see you over Christmas" I said to my brother and sister, I think Elias could see the pain in my eyes, but he just smiled his typical smile "see you over Christmas, hope you don't have too much fun without us!" He said with a wink. Alice just went back to the couch "have fun at your freak school." She said. I couldn't help but chuckle a bit. She had no idea. Mum shuffled us out the door and into the car, before I knew it we were at the train station, with mum holding me too tight to breath.
"Be sure to write, and stay away from every flavor beans. They mean it when they say every flavor." I laughed at how serious she seemed about the beans. " alright, alright!" I said. " one last thing love, you're already a 4th year so it might be a bit of a strange transition for you. I just want you to be yourself and hold your head high. You're a Gaunt after all." ?" I said in amazement. "Gaunt. Is that my fathers last name?" "Oh dear, let's get you through before the portal closes." She said. I could tell she had told too much. "I'll tell you more later, but for now just enjoy yourself, my years at Hogwarts were some of the most important in my life." She kissed me on my forehead and turned me toward the wall. I held my breath and pushed my cart towards it as fast as I could, looking back one last time as I began a brand new journey.