Never Let Me Go ⚡︎ [ harry potter ]

⚡︎ • ❝ e i g h t e e n ❞ • ✴

Grace shivered, pulling her jumper closer to her as she continued reading. She was nearly finished with the book, only fifty or so pages left. She knew it was getting late, but she was nearly done and she couldn't pull herself away from the chilling pages. She held her wand closer to the pages, letting the blue light shine so the words were clear enough for her to read. There was rustling in the distance, most likely trees or the wind, so Grace didn't pay it any mind.

Bark! 

She jumped at the sound of a dog, and frowned, looking around her. She turned to the other side and stared wide eyed at a black dog. Her heart lurched into her throat as she stared fearfully at the dog, who made its way closer to her. Her mind instantly went to the Grim, and she felt as if ice ran through her veins, but when the dog grew closer, it barked again and started wagging its tail. She blinked and frowned, moving her wand to get a closer look. She felt herself relax, and her heart began to slow down. She shouldn't be reading horror books alone.

"Snuffles?!" she asked, surprised. The dog barked as he moved closer, his tail wagging; he rested his front paws on her lap and began licking her face. Grace laughed and started petting him. "Alright, alright, calm down!" she said, pushing him away gently. "What on earth are you doing up here? How did you even find me? How did you get here?" she asked as she stuck a worn piece of parchment into the yellowing pages of her book. She felt something fluffy rub against her other side and heard a soft purring sound. She turned and saw Crookshanks rub against her, she smiled and scratched the cat on his head. "Hello, Crookshanks... well you answer one of my questions..." she muttered, then turned back to the dog who looked at her with his mouth open, and panting. It was his smiling face.

"How did you even find Hogwarts," She whispered as she continued to pet Snuffles. She knew he was intelligent, extremely intelligent, but there was no way that he was able to find Hogwarts. Even if he was, that journey was long and exhausting, and she was surprised that the dog was even able to make that journey. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, I've thought about you a lot," she continued talking to the dog. "But..." her voice died as she continued to pet him. There was a gust of wind, and she shivered from the cold. Snuffles whined and moved closer to her, bumping his nose with her chin.

"Are you trying to keep me warm?" she asked softly, and Snuffles licked her chin, making her laugh. "You're such a sweet boy," she whispered. She wrapped an arm around Snuffles, who leaned against her, and she brought her knees up to lay her book against them. Crookshanks purred as he jumped onto Grace's stomach and curled into a ball. "Go right on a head, Crookshanks," she said dryly, then opened her book. Snuffles whined and pawed her book. "What?" She asked, and he rested his paw on the book again. "What am I reading?" she asked, and he nodded. "Oh...it's called The Haunting of Hill House, it's by an American muggle author. Remus lent it to me, I thought it was fitting since it's Halloween."

Snuffles whined softly, blinking his sad dog eyes at her and nudged her chin with his wet nose again. "It's pretty good, a little spooky but... I suppose that was the point," she shrugged, then pointed her wand over Snuffle's shoulder to her book.

She didn't know how long she was sitting there, but when she turned a page, nearing the end of the book, she heard Crookshanks growl and hiss. She frowned and looked down at the orange cat, who was staring off into the distance, hissing. Grace felt Snuffles tremble lightly in her arms, and he whined quietly, hiding his face under her chin; she shivered, feeling colder than before, and dread tugging inside her. She held her illuminated wand out and noticed Dementors at the flying toward the castle.

"What..." she whispered, putting her bookmark back in. She took hold of Crookshanks, holding the cat close to her chest, and stood up from the ground. She looked up to the sky as the dark clouds moved, revealing the full moon. "Oh no..." she whispered. Her face paled at the moon, and her heart and stomach fell in fear. She felt a tug on her jumper, she looked down and saw Snuffles tugging on the fabric, trying to pull her closer to the school. He looked up at her, whining, and it looked like he was scared for her.