୨⎯ Dear Ava ⎯୧

It was almost the end of the summer.

When Ava had packed, she had to get creative with how she packed. In the end, she had to go through her mum’s old stuff to find more space for packing. It was strange to have gone through that stuff, when it seemed that her mum was a stranger to her. Of course, in Ava’s hectic packing she wouldn’t have noticed the stuff already in the trunks. Like the stack of letters, bundled together with twine and addressed to ‘Ava Winchect’ in loopy writing.

During camp, Ava’s trunks had been unpacked, and the stack of letters had been revealed to Ava. It wasn’t hard for Ava to realize that the letters were private, so she prayed no one would enter her lodgings while she was reading. There were activities she was skipping to read this. Summer camp was almost over, and she had enjoyed some good times, but the time for fun was over. Ava had to read the letters.

She sat on her mattress she had brought, her fingers tracing her name, too nervous to open it. 

She couldn’t help but notice that the date written was only 3 days before she had been born.

Dear Ava,

I’m not sure when you’ll find this. I’m not sure if you’ll ever find this. But I hope that when you do, you won’t blame me for my choices.

My name is Dawn. I’m your mother. Or, I was. I’m not sure whether I’ll survive this. The doctors have told me that the chances of me surviving this sickness are slim. They’ve told me so much…but I still have one last hope. 

I’m hoping that I survive this, so I can grow up with you. I’m hoping that whatever this is, it won’t somehow get passed on to you. Maybe with a little bit of hope and…magic, we can both make it out. Just in case I don’t, I’m writing. I hope that these letters will find you. Whenever that is. I hope I’m alive to give you them.

I’ve never met you, but from what I know, you’re feisty. You hid from the doctors in their first scan. I’ve never met you, but from what I know, there are big plans for you. Some that I know of, some that I don’t.

I love who I hope you’re going to grow up to be. I hope I’m there for it.

Love,
Your Mother.

It was just a letter, but Ava was fighting the tears in her eyes. This is what she had always wanted. Something to know her mother by. Her father never wanted to talk about Dawn— her mom. She shivered, rereading the words. Memorizing them. Cherishing them. Holding them in her heart.

There were 4 more letters yet to be opened, and based on the first letter, she couldn’t wait to read them. But truthfully, Ava had no idea what she was in for.

solo . August 09 . afternoon

୨⎯ Dear Ava ⎯୧
1

With shaking hands, Ava grabbed the second letter of the stack, barely pausing to examine the envelope before opening it. She was met by the same greeting as before: ‘Dear Ava’. This time, the letter was addressed a day before she was born.

Dear Ava,

As you know, my name is Dawn, and I am your mother. I don’t know what your father has told you about how we met, but I wanted to write it for you.

When I was younger, my younger sister was my best friend. Her name is Ashlyn. We had promised to travel the world together, as naïve as that was. After I graduated from school, I found work, and I waited for my sister to graduate, too. But before she could, I met your father. Henry was so charming, funny and charismatic. I had fallen for his charms, and we began dating. Then it was quite close to the end of the school year, but when he proposed, I said yes!

If only I had known how that single action would create a rift between me and my sister. Our friendship completely broke off, leaving me heartbroken. After that, she stopped responding to my owls, leaving me alone.

Along with Ashlyn, my parents didn’t approve of the marriage, so Henry and I moved to London to get away from them. Our wedding was small, a few friends of mine and family of his. But I loved him.

I was stupidly stubborn, waiting until the last moment to send them an owl, asking them for medicine. If I had told them about this earlier, maybe I would still survive with you.

I’m sorry.

Love,
Your Mother.

Ava's face was bright, a smile on her face as she absorbed her parents’ love story. This was something her father had never told her, not in detail like this. She reread the letter, her eyes faltering when she read the word ‘owl’. Owl’s weren’t too peculiar in some parts of the world, but in this letter…her muggle mother had used it in the wizard way.

Owl’s were how letters were sent in the magical world, making it fast and efficient. If her mother had been sending an owl…that meant her mother was magical. Dawn was a witch.

Ava’s eyes burned. There was so much that she didn’t know or understand about her mother, and these letters were telling her a lot. There was so much she had in common. Mother and daughter, so alike. She already knew that she looked much like her mother, that was something her father had told her a lot.

But more than looks…magic. They were both witches, it seemed. Ava wasn’t sure what that exactly meant, but it did mean one thing…

Ava had never been muggleborn. She was actually halfblood!

solo . August 09 . afternoon

୨⎯ Dear Ava ⎯୧
1 2

Ava grabbed the third letter of the stack, barely pausing before tearing it open. Her mother was a witch, and Ava planned to figure out what that meant. Before pulling the letter from the envelope, though, she scanned the tent, making sure she was still alone. Right now, she was feeling joy, but she had a feeling that by the end of the stack she wouldn’t be feeling the same way.

Ava had been enjoying a great summer, but some gut feeling told her that was about to change. Whatever was in this letter would be key to her future. This time, the letter was dated the day after she was born.

Dear Ava,

There is a lot about our family you do not know, and as every day passes, I become more sure that I will not be able to tell you. There are things about you that not even your father could tell you.

While I am not sure you will grow up to be a witch, writing this is a risk I am willing to take. I myself am a witch, but not just a witch, a witch from a line of strong witches and wizards. My parents didn’t approve of Henry because he was a muggle, and because they were pureblood elitists. I myself, am a pureblood.

Ava paused, unable to continue, or unwilling. Her mother wasn’t just a witch. Her mother wasn’t a wizard born. Her mother, Dawn Winchect, was a pureblood. For so long, 2 years, Ava had spent time scoffing at the purebloods she passed, as if they had done something to her. And in a way, they had. It hadn’t been just once that her…assumed heritage had been used offensively. Even she knew the term mudblood was not something used lightly. And yet how many times had it been used to describe her? More than once, which was more than enough.

The people she had just spent time criticizing were so much closer than she thought. She was only one parent away from being pureblood herself. If Dawn had been forced into some arranged marriage, would Ava be calling others mudblood?

There was so much to process. In seconds, she had gone from the targeted muggleborn girl to…something else. In seconds, she had gone from the prey to…the hunter?

With shaking hands, she gripped the letter and raised it again to continue reading.

They didn’t keep in touch after Ashlyn told them about Henry, but I hope that you, my sweet girl, will heal the pain in me and your grandparents. I don’t have much to give you, or any real clues to tell you how to find them, but I can tell you the family name. Stallard.

There is so much more I need to tell you, but my time dwindles by the day.

Love,
Your Mother.

As her mother had said, there really was little to go off of to find her grandparents. Stallard. In another world, she could have been Ava Stallard, a pureblood. She had longed for these words and guidance for so long, so why did it feel like there was a rift forming in her heart?

solo . August 09 . afternoon