2 Years Earlier
McGonagall led Francesca up the steps to place the hat on her head.
"Insightful...witty...laughing...caring...loving...ambitious...deeply sad...hmmm, do you know, I think you will do quite well in Gryffindor...or Ravenclaw...no, not Ravenclaw. You are smart enough my dear but they are vicious when they want to be...yes, I think Gryffindor...no wait...this is very interesting..."
Francesca could not tell if a person was talking to her...but she figured it was the hat.
"I think you should be on your own...the Uniter, as I call it. We need one of those. We haven't had one for a while. The professors will explain to you, but you are in every house now...as soon as I call it out. Ready? One...Two...Three."
Everyone heard it as the hat shouted it out, but Francesca heard it loudest.
"THIS GIRL IS THE UNITER!"
She heard everyone gasp and felt the hat being gently lifted off of her hat. She felt someone take her hand and lead her down the steps.
"Where would you like to sit, Francesca?" she heard the voice of Professor McGonagall ask gently.
"Do I have choices?" Francesca returned with a hopeful smile.
"Slytherin, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw," McGonagall answered. She sounded quite weary and excited at the same time. It would be amazing if anyone could make up a word for that.
"Gryffindor sounds nice," Francesca answered her new teacher.
"Very good choice, my dear. That is my house. Here you are," McGonagall sat her down at a table and left to walk back up to the Staff Table, all still surprised that they had a Uniter.
"What's your name?" a polite male voice to her right asked.
She looked toward the voice and replied, "Francesca, and you are?" and she held out her hand to shake.
"Ron. Ron Weasley," he took the proffered hand and kissed it, and then introduced his friends, "These are my mates, Hermione and Harry."
When she did not look to where he gestured he tilted his head slightly to the side, finding it awfully rude. Come to think of it, she had not even looked at him either.
She answered his unasked question, "You must excuse of immediately I do not respond. You see, I am blind."
Everyone within earshot quieted down immediately, and then Hermione cleared her throat and reached across the table to touch Francesca on the shoulder. "I am Hermione. Hermione Granger," she introduced herself politely, and Francesca looked in her direction and gave her a small smile in greeting.
Everyone else was silent throughout the meal and she had made very little progress making friends just then.
She was walked by Professor McGonagall to her room leading off the library and led around so that she would know where everything was. McGonagall left her and Francesca felt around the room to gather her clothes for a bath. She walked over carefully to her bathroom.
Later, when she tucked herself into bed, it was with a sense of foreboding of what was to happen to her the next day. She had no idea what a Uniter was, but she also knew most of her peers did not know, either. That was the last thing she needed: to be even more different than she already was.