Welcome to Another Year

[Agilbert Fontaine]

The entrance hall was a grand circular room, capped by a vaulted glass dome and ringed with a large upper balcony, from which older students watched the sorting of First Years. The new students would enter between the marble statues of Isolt Sayre and James Steward, the original headmistress and headmaster of Ilvermorny. Once inside, the students would line up against the walls, taking their first look around. In the center of the room was a golden Gordian knot, where each of them would eventually stand. Across the room were four looming sculptures, looking ready to pounce.

There was a six legged panther, known as a wampus, which would rear it's head back and roar if it wanted a student for it's house. A large horned serpent with a jewel in it's forehead that would glow if it claimed a student. A goblin like creature known as a pukwudgie with a large bow and arrow, which it would raise to claim a student. And finally a thunderbird which would beat it's wings in approval of a student it liked.

Off to the left side wall was a large hallway that contained three tables, each with a selection of wands. Behind them were the three wandmakers, descendants of the famous wandmakers Shikoba Wolfe, Johannes Jonker and Violetta Beauvais. Upon approaching the tables, it would be easy to tell the wand styles apart. The Wolfe wands were intricately carved, not a simplistic one in the bunch and possessed thunderbird feather cores. The Jonker wands were delicately inlaid with mother of pearl and had wampus hair cores. The Beauvais wands were made from a dark, swamp wood and possessed the core of a rougarou hair (a dog like creature from the Louisiana swamps).

Seeming to appear out of nowhere (though likely from a hidden side room), the Headmaster stepped into the center of the room, a scroll in one hand and his wand in the other. The waiting crowd quieted down almost immediately and he gave a slight nod before pointing his wand toward his throat. "Welcome students to Ilvermorny, whether you are returning or new, it matters not," he said cheerfully. "We are quite simply glad you are here. Now, First Years." He paused, a slightly mischievous look crossed his face as he looked over their nervous forms. "When I call your name you will come forward and stand on the knot and be sorted. Once you have been chosen by your house, you will proceed over here," he pointed with his other hand toward the wand tables. "Where you will be chosen by a wand. Once you have your wand, you will join your house for the Welcome feast."

He locked eyes with each first year for a moment to make sure they understood before he finally turned his attention to the scroll in his hand, unrolling it and calling out the first name on the list.

[Dean Seagram]

With butterflies fluttering about his stomach, Dean went with the flow of excited First Years through the entrance. As he passed between the two marble statues, his gaze lingered on the face of James Steward, the No-Maj who helped build the school. He wondered about the man's reactions to magic and how different it likely was to his mother's reaction. With a slight shiver down his spine he looked around the large round room, his breath catching in the excitement. He saw older students gathered on the balcony above and he stood up a little straighter, giving a slight tug on his new school robes. 

His eyes traveled to the four statues on the other side of the room, and swallowed hard. His father had told him how the sort worked, of course, but he hadn't mentioned just how big the statues were. Dean wagered that he would barely come up to the paws of the wampus if he was on tip toe. His gaze switched from the statues that held the key to his future and payed attention to the man standing in the middle of the room. It must be the Headmaster, he thought as he listened carefully, looking over at the wand tables. 

He watched a few people get sorted and then it was his turn. He tugged on his robes one more time as he made his way into the center of the room and turned to face the house statues. All was quiet and for a brief moment, Dean thought none of them wanted to claim him. He fidgeted a bit until the Wampus reared it's head back and let out a roar. A matching roar came from some students above, clearly his new housemates, as he breathed a sigh of relief. He bowed his head slightly toward the six legged panther and made his way over to the hallway that contained the wand tables.

He tried out a variety of the wands, but found one that felt right off the Wolfe table. It was a reed wand, twelve inches and somewhat springy with a Thunderbird feather core. With a large smile on his face, he moved over to the group of First Years who were waiting for the sorting to conclude.

[Shelby Nightingale]

Shelby stood on the upper balcony with her housemates, but her thoughts were far from the house sorting ceremony taking place below. This summer had opened her eyes and introduced her to a hidden part of who she was. She wasn't sure she was ready to explore that new part of herself just yet. In fact, she was still getting used to admitting it to herself, that she was attracted to other girls instead of boys. She could only imagine what her mother would say, and that thought gave her a shiver down her spine. Her mom was already disappointed in her for quitting choir in order to take on a few new classes.

Her housemates around her cheered and she joined in absently as another student was chosen by the Thunderbird. She remembered her own sorting five years before. She had been chosen by both Thunderbird and the Horned Serpent but she had chosen Thunderbird on a whim over her mother's house. She didn't regret it, though she wasn't sure what had made her decide that way. Shelby looked down at all the excited First Years and wondered if she'd ever be that excited again.

[Hope Nightingale]

Hope was one of the few teachers taking in the sorting ceremony from the upper balcony. She enjoyed watching the faces of the young students as they were claimed and earned their first wands. She also liked to speculate which of the students would likely join the choir. Thinking about her class usually warmed her heart, but at the moment it brought her a pinch of disappointment. At the mid point of the summer, her daughter Shelby informed her that she would not be taking choir in favor of trying out other classes. While she was proud of her daughter for showing interest in other subjects, she was sad to lose Shelby's talented solos. There was nothing she could do about it now, she knew how stubborn her daughter was but she would hold out hope that she would change her mind later in the year.

She politely clapped as a child got sorted into Pukwudgie. She would clap just a little bit harder when a student went to Horned Serpent, which was the house she had been in during her time as a student. Once the sorting was over, the students would file into the dining hall and she would lead the remaining members of the choir in singing the school song. The thought of it brought excited flutters in her stomach. Another year of performances! she thought enthusiastically.

[Gideon Smith]

Gideon watched the first years with quiet amusement, remembering how nervous he had been at that moment. He remembered his father's words to stand up straight and keep his mind clear, and he would find his place. It only took a moment, but the jewel on the Horned Serpent's head began to glow brightly and a cheer went up overhead. He had been chosen! Afterwards he ran off down the hall to get his wand with the rest of the first years. It had all been such a rush, but one he was glad only happened once. Gideon didn't care much for spotlight when it came down to it. He was far more comfortable sitting back and observing people and doing his own thing. But alas! School had it's traditions and they had to be followed he supposed. 

His nonchalant appearance didn't betray his inner excitement about the year ahead. He had done well on his I.M.P.'s and looked forward to studying for his G.N.O.M.E.'s. Though he didn't quite know what he wanted to do with his adult life, he figured a job with MACUSA would probably be in the cards. But which department? He had no idea thus far, but he knew it would likely not be the Law Enforcement branch, even though he was skilled with dueling. He didn't want a hobby to become work. He absently pondered his future as the ceremony continued to it's conclusion, he would then follow the horde into the dining hall for dinner.

[Enzo Fortier]

Enzo hung back at the rear of the balcony, having very little interest in the sorting. As far as he was aware, he didn't know any new students. Since he wasn't watching, his only way of judging they'd gotten a new recruit was by how enthusiastically his housemates cheered. He half-heartedly clapped along with them.
Was the ceremony this boring when he first arrived? Not to him. It was terrifying. His sister had fed him a bunch of lies, like the one about the Horned Serpent biting the students it chose and the Wampus scratching its picks across the chest. "That's how they know what house you're in, by the scars," she had fibbed, pointing to her own "scars". Totally fake, now that he thought back on it, but real-looking enough to convince a 9-year-old. When the jewel on the serpent lit up, Enzo had almost pissed his pants, sure it was going to lunge for him. A shudder ran up his spine. He felt like such a fool that day.

[Darcy O'Connell]

Pressed up against the railing of the balcony, Darcy watched the newbs get sorted. She didn't cheer or clap, even when someone was chosen by the Thunderbird. The houses, the competition and rivalries, didn't make a difference to her. Being in a house didn't mean you instantly clicked with everyone in it. In fact, sometimes the inner-house rivalries were more intense than the inter-house ones. And some of her favorite friends weren't Thunderbirds, at all. What did matter to her was who the new students were. Did she know them? Were they siblings of her friends? Had she seen them in her dad's Apothecary? So far, no one looked familiar.
On her own sorting day, both the Wampus and the Thunderbird reacted. Darcy chose the Thunderbird because, for one, she liked the idea of flying better than the idea of prowling, and, for two, all of her cousins had been Wampuses. One kid down there looked like he might hurl. The pained expression on the random boy's face snapped her out of her retrospective. As cruel a thought as she knew it was, Darcy wished he would. It would at least makes things more interesting. Her mind wandered once more as she started mentally listing herbs that would settle stomachs... and those that would induce vomitting. She doubted the Herbology or potions professors kept those sorts of things in stock, but the nurse might. Of course, she could always go hunting for the sorts of plants one wouldn't find in a classroom. Why should this year be any different than last?

[Volker Graf]

Volker Graf stood off in the side hall by the wand tables, a few feet back in the shadows, watching. He had little interest in sorting ceremonies with no allegiance to any house. His own school of Durmstrang had not messed with such frivolous things as different houses. Instead the professor watched the wands.

This was also foreign to him, having gone to Gregorovitch's shop with his Uncle Lothar at the age of 11 to buy his wand before starting school. It was strange, doing the wand shopping at school, without the full breadth of shop inventories. What if someone missed their best wand match? He figured, though, Americans did it for a reason.

While not terribly familiar with wandlore, Volker did know that Thunderbird wand cores were well touted as being good for transfiguration. His subject. Thus, he stood back watching to see who would pick those Thunderbird cores so he could mark them for their potential.

[Gabriel Meridian]

Gabe stood on the upper balcony with his housemates, watching the sorting ceremony commence. He wasn't necessarily excited by it but he wasn't completely bored either. His house was notoriously picky and often had less students than the other three houses. This was something that he took pride in as he fiddled with the pin on his robes that was shaped like a pukwudgie. Even when Abel made fun of him for it, he still felt a sense of pride. Each of his brothers had been in different houses, so it's not like he were letting the family down somehow by being in Pukwudgie.

Noah, the oldest, had been a Horned Serpent and went on to work at the MACUSA in the Misinformation Office. Cain had been a Wampus and was now an Auror. He was also the brother that Gabe looked up to the most, though no one knew that. Abel, the hellion of the brothers was a Thunderbird and had no intention of job hunting in the MACUSA. He had actually been talking about taking a trip across the United States to see all of the magical creature refuges that the country had to offer. Gabe had no idea what he really wanted to do yet, but he knew he wasn't like any of his brothers, thus would be making his own path instead of following down one. 

[Winni]

Winni watched the sorting with half interest, her mind wandering back to her own sorting. She had been relieved that day to be put in the same house as her father--indeed, the same house as the meaning of her surname, Binesi: Thunderbird. She didn't know what made one person one tribe or the other, but she liked being the same as her father. She would have been fine with being Wampus like her mother, but this had been better.

She thought of her surprise when her two little sisters hadn't been sorted into her same house. Nor were they even sorted into each other's houses. But they were as much Benesis as she was. She shook her head slowly, pulling her mouth to one side. They knew nothing. People were who they were and grew in the ways that their own spirits and the Great Spirit directed. They made friends and enemies with who they wanted to. They learned what they felt inspired to learn. No label of a house made one bit of difference to all of that.

She looked up at the sorting. "Hurry and finish," she said loudly enough that only those sitting closest to her could hear, and that depended on if they were listening closely.

[Tisi]

Tisi watched the sorting with some interest. It always worked out that she made some new friends. Of course most of the newly sorted students would be eleven. A little too young for her social group, but she'd get the know the ones in her same house. That was always fun.

Her house was the most fun, no denying it. Well, some of the other houses denied it, but Tisi didn't care. SHE knew that it was fun. She looked over the table to Winni sitting with her friends. Yeah, she was bored to tears. In fact, the only two sortings she'd noticed her big sister showing some interest in  was for her own and Zee's. How old would she be when it was Biskane's turn? Sixteen.  Winni would be graduated.  That would be an interesting year.

Her own sorting--that had been interesting. She had naturally thought that since she was mother's favorite, she'd get Wampus. Nope. Then she wondered if she'd get Thunderbird, like Winni and Father--but no, she didn't. And as soon as she heard where she was going, it felt right. She needed to go where she would be her own person, find her own friends, her own path, and not always be tied to family traditions--not that she wasn't already. That's what it meant to be a Binesi. But at least in this, she would make her own way. She'd proudly sat down with the rest of her house that day and never looked back.

[Zee]

Zee watched, eager to learn who the new Horned Serpents would be, but not wanting to show her eagerness too much. She did her best to look cool, like Winni, and welcoming, like Tisi. She didn't quite succeed in either. It was so hard being the third sister. She sighed.

Her own sorting had not gone as planned. She wanted to be Wampus, like her mother, or Thunderbird like Father and Winni, or Pukwudgie like Tisi. Instead, she got none of the above--Horned Serpent was what was decided. She had pragmatically accepted it, even though she had pushed hard to be sorted into Wampus. But the more she thought of it, the more she liked being in her own house. It made Winni the copycat for once, not her.

She turned and looked at Winni, giving her a forced smile.

She took a long sip of her water.

[Eric Dobson]

Your own sorting was always interesting and the first couple years that Eric had watched the sorting ceremony, it had been somewhat entertaining, but it got more and more boring as the years went on. At this point, in his fifth year, he really did not care much for watching. The kids who came in always looked smaller and smaller with every year and more and more scared. He was always left whispering to whoever was next to him, trying to guess what houses the kids might get sorted into as it was the only way make things more entertaining. That, or hope for someone to get picked by more than one house and watch them agonize over the choice.

He really didn't know why the older students had to be involved. They could be back eating dinner or at least getting to catch up with friends after the summer break. It wasn't like he cared where the little ankle-biters ended up. He didn't have any younger siblings to watch and he wasn't going to remember any of their names. As if to agree with him, Eric's stomach let out a loud growl. "My stomach wants me to join Wampus," he said to no one in particular.

[Becca Miller]

Becca joined the other Wampuses, watching the new students file in and get sorted, one by one. It was always interesting to observe. All these young witches and wizards, so much potential, so much life ahead of them. The wonder and fear. The relief once it was over. These kids didn't know it, yet, but they were in for a wild ride. Becca really enjoyed her first few years, before she really came into her own. Before she became more interested in certain extra-curricular activities than studying. Like art and boy-chasing. But for her it was mostly about the thrill of the hunt. Catch and release. Until Phoenix. She shook the image of him from her mind, then cheered for a new housemate.

It seemed like so long ago that she stood down there, awaiting her fate. The Wampus cat chose her. She was elated. Becca adored kitties. She had a few adopted cats at home. Bonk, her favorite gray tux, came to school with her every year. He was big, fat, and lazy. A pushover. Not at all intimidating like a wampus. In any case, she hadn't really considered herself much of a warrior until she was a little older. She wasn't strong or big or what most people would consider brave. Becca realized standing up, speaking up, and fighting for the rights of others made her a warrior. A small smile touched her lips. The first in a long time. Yes, she was definitely a Wampus.

[Abel Meridian]

Abel leaned against the balcony with the rest of his house, not even paying attention to the sorting ceremony. He was too busy looking over all of the girls that surrounded the balcony. Too young, too picky, already dated, he thought to himself as he scanned the area. This continued for awhile before he grew bored. He yearned for something fun to do, but even he knew better than to act out during the sorting ceremony. Instead he settled for leaning his forearms against the banister and leaning against them.

As another youngster was sorted into his house, he said rather flatly, "Yay." He rolled his steely blue eyes and sighed loudly. He was a senior this year and was anxious to just get right to it. Whatever it happened to be. There were babes to check out, friends to catch up with, pranks to be pulled. Abel assumed he'd be a busy, busy student this year.