Horsing Around (A Willis Story)

An interesting Neigh-Bor

Y/N POV:

The sound of our old car slogging along the bumpy road was never comforting to me. Familiar, yes, but never comforting. It was the third time we moved that year. Dad always seemed to be getting a new promotion or finding a new opportunity. And Mum never objected, she's the spitting image of the ideal housewife. She was a witch, but certainly acted like a muggle. Rarely paying attention to the wizarding world. Always smiling with kind words and a lack of an opinion. Thats what she was doing now. Sitting in the passenger seat with a toothy grin on her face. If you saw her you would think she just heard a hilarious joke, but that would be impossible considering none of us had spoken since we had passed the billboard excitedly proclaiming that we were in London.

 I was leaning my head against the rain stained car window. "Is this it Susan? Warwick Lane?" My dad breaks the silence, gesturing with his free hand to a rusting street sign. "Seems like it." My Mom responds, "Look for 3028." I spot the house near the end of the street. It was large, but certainly not well maintained. The light blue paint was peeling to reveal the rotting wood underneath. Through a broken window I could see a truly ugly floral patterned wall paper, stained with substances I'm not sure I would want to identify. I fiddled with my wand as my Dad began the elongated process of getting our 50 year old car to a stop. I opened my car door and stepped out, only to find my riding boots soaked in a muddy puddle. I sigh, and continue making my way around the back of the car, scouring the trunk for my luggage.

The inside of the house is anything but interesting. With 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, it's quite spacey, but with the lack of furniture it seems claustrophobic. "y/n, why dont you unpack in your room?" My mother shouts from the kitchen. I comply, making my way upstairs and down the hall to a small dark space with nothing but a queen bed and a vanity, stripes of light dancing from out a small window on one side of the room. "lumos maxima" I whisper under my breath, further lighting the room. Im only 16, but theres no harm in a little charm. I open my suitcase and pluck the only non-necessity I brought with me to London, a small statue of a stallion. Horse riding was the only thing that stayed consistent in my constantly moving life, it couldn't be taken away, it was all mine. Thats why the first thing I did after unpacking was hop on my bike and ride to the local communal stables, hoping to find someone to ask about a part-time job. 

As I departed from my driveway and began my journey through the London roads, I got time to study my surroundings. It clearly had been raining, I could tell by the smell of wet grass that filled the cold air and the reflective shine on the streets. It was nearing the end of summer, but in London it seemed like a constant Autumn. In only a week I would be starting my life at Hogwarts. For the past 5 years I had been attending Beauxbaton, school was always more of a chore than an enjoyment. I was never particularly good at it, and the only real thing I got from the experience was an extensive knowledge on french insults. Although I would never admit it, I was exited to be attending a new school. My Mom had attended Hogwarts, and it was one of the few things she seemed to be passionate about. A small spark in me even hoped to make some new friends, but I tried my best to put out that light.

I left my bike leaning against a tree and began strolling towards the wooden outline of the stables. To my disappointment It looked deserted, I considered walking away until I heard an animalistic grunt. I peered around a splintering barrier and my eyes met the dark pupils of a mare. She was quite large with dark brown fur and a black mane. To my surprise a few chunks of her hair had been delicately braided and decorated with small yellow daisies. I unconsciously approached her and picked up the braid, running my fingers over its pleats. "And what do you think you're doing?" 

The male voice surprises me and I immediately drop the horses mane, jumping back and swiveling around. I find myself facing the figure of a boy who looks to be around my own age, with dirty blond locks framing his face. His green eyes lock on mine. He has a shy smile on his face, but I swear I could see the remains of a hostile expression. He seems to be waiting for me to do something. "Oh!" I say, remembering he asked me a question. "I was just looking around, sorry, I'll be on my way." I speed walk past him but he grabs my hand before I could leave. "Wait!" He says, and I grind to a halt. "Was she friendly?" He asks, his expression hard to read. "What?" I respond, my focus preoccupied by our touching hands. "Carol, my, uhh, my horse." He clarifies. he notices my gaze and drops my hand. "You were, uh, really close to her and she didn't try to hurt you-" He continues when I don't respond, he looks embarrassed in an endearing way. "Yeah, I mean, she seems, like a pretty friendly mare to me" I get the words out, although at this point I am thoroughly confused and curious about this strange boy.  "Are you a tamer?" He asks. "A trainer, actually." I respond. "Thats why I'm here, Im looking for a job." A adorably exited expression spreads across his face. "Well, its your lucky day. Im looking for a trainer. What do you think?" His face is so hopeful I cant help but smile. "Depends, how much are you offering?" He makes eye contact with the brown creature and tilts his head, if i didn't know better, it would almost seem as if he was asking it for approval. "400 pounds for a week of training." My mouth falls open, that was the largest sum of cash I had ever been offered. I nod eagerly and he looks relived. "She'll only be here for a week, after that we're both staying in the countryside for a bit." Huh, what a coincidence. I will be off attending school in a week. It must have been fate. "When should I meet you?" I ask. "Tomorrow," He says, "At noon." I smile and as I walk out I swear I catch him whispering to the horse. What a strange boy. Before I leave he calls out. "Whats your name?" I pause and look back at his distant figure, standing next to Carol. "Y/N!" I shout back. "Nice to meet you Y/N! Im Willis." I salute a goodbye to Willis and make my way to my bike. This will be interesting.