Together (A Harry Potter love story) 3

31

MILLIES POV

I silently thanked myself for wearing trainers, picking my dress up so it that didn't scuff against the floor. I walked quickly, my feet carrying me, for some reason, all the way down to the black lake, where I knew Professor McGonagall would have no chance of finding me.

I sat down in front of a tree and leant my back on it, staring out at the silky water. Snow was still falling lightly from the sky, the white contrasting with my deep-red dress. I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered, taking a deep breath in and relaxing in the quiet. Only the smooth rush of the lake could be heard, mixed with the faint thumps of the music up at the castle.

A low bark disrupted me from my meditating session.

My eyes instantly met a pair of grey ones, and I tilted my head when I took in the fact that these belonged to a bear-like dog.

"Hey," I said, beckoning for it to come over. It quickly obliged, sitting down beside me, as though it could hear me or something. His grey eyes didn't leave my face as he looked up at me. "What're you doing here? I'm only here because of McGonagall, I'm hiding from her. I'm missing out on the party and it's all Snape's fault. He gave me three months of detention, you know! Stupid, stupid, Severus Snape."

The dog listened to my rant through wide eyes, it's long mouth extending into a smile-like expression - it almost looked impressed - no - proud.

I sighed. "It's not a good thing - Mum'll go crazy if she hears. Dad'll probably congratulate me, mind you. He hates Snape and they haven't even met! I'm Millie Donovan, by the way. What's your name?"

The dog let out a low whine at my last words, sitting up even straighter. If a dog had human emotions, this one would definitely be feeling sadness.

"How about Severus, you like that?" The dog let out a loud, unhappy growl, and I laughed. "I'm only joking, don't worry. Hmmm, how about-"

The dog continued grumbling and snuffling dramatically, and an idea came to my head.

"Because you won't stop snuffling, I'm going to call you Snuffles. Better?"

This time, it barked once, wagging its tail happily.

"I'm glad," I said, grinning. "Snuffles Black."

The dog jumped so suddenly that I flinched.

"What, you don't like the surname? I only did it because of the colour of your fur, I'm not that creative," I said quietly, before biting my lip. "Actually, I'm not going to call you Snuffles Black, it reminds me of-" I paused, leaning down closer to the animal, "-Sirius Black. Heard of him?"

The dog whined in response, laying his head on my shoulder.

"Yes, well, let's not talk about him," I mumbled, scratching Snuffles behind his ears. "He doesn't deserve to live, let alone be talked about. Wherever he is, I hope the dementors catch him soon. It makes me feel sick thinking about what he did. To Dad, to Harry's dad, to Uncle Lupin...I hate him."

The dog lifted his head from my shoulder and let out the most horrible howl I'd ever heard from an animal, almost as though he was in pain.

"I'm glad you agree, Snuffles, I-"

I froze suddenly, lifting my head as I heard a noise. Snuffles wasn't the only one snuffling now - quiet sobs were coming from behind a nearby tree.

"I need to go now, Snuffles," I whispered, pushing myself up and patting the dogs fur. He eagerly rubbed his head against my hand. "I won't tell Minnie you're here, mainly because right now I'm probably number one on her hit list."