The Hufflepuff in Gryffindor [Harry Potter]

Old Enough For School

"BRITTLE!" A young girl was shouting. She had long straight hair, past her shoulders and was a light ash-brown colour. It was all tangled though now, the wind had given her a new look and it wasn't very flattering. She shoved the hair out of her face and sighed in annoyance when two pieces of hair either side of her head had tangled together and caught her in the throat. "BRITTLE WHERE ARE YOU?" She shouted again for her dog. A Bernese mountain dog her mother had given her as a puppy 3 years back. But now he was fully grown and came up to her waist on all fours.

She had been out walking through the mountain range again to avoid her father who had been in a mood all week since the wind had broken the gate and it had rained almost every day so he couldn't garden or fix it without getting wet. Even though her father was a wizard they had a muggle neighbour not too far away who would see if any magic happened. She was only an old lady and was very sweet.

The mountains here weren't very big, there were bigger ones in America so this was considered tiny. But to an eleven year old witch it was still huge and dangerous if the weather changed quickly.

She was getting annoyed now, but also anxious. Hoping nothing had happened to her beloved canine she called his name again but was interrupted when a huge force jumped up at her and started licking her face. Instantly she was laughing and pushed the dog away and ushered it back home.

"You need to answer me quicker next time boy..." she said disapprovingly. "...And don't even think of scaring those horses again!" She grabbed the dog by the scruff of the neck as they walked past the wild horses who were minding their own business. The dog was strong but from years of taking care of him the young girl had worked up a lot of muscle.

After a 20 minute walk back down from where they had been they reached the small village where everyone nearby lived which was normally overpopulated at this time of year by tourists but was quiet this week as the weather had been bad. Brittle ran toward one cottage that was covered head to toe by a plant. The girl, who went by the name Lowri hadn't a clue what it was called but only knew that red leaves appeared upon it in summer and the garden was decorated with wisteria and honeysuckle. It was a beautiful cottage and Lowri always saw the irony of how such a beautiful cottage was home to such an ugly, horrible man.

Lowri and Brittle walked past the broken gate and both wiped their feet on the mat outside the door, Lowri had trained Brittle from being a puppy and was now completely house trained. They entered to cottage and the warmth hit them like a brick wall. Although it was mostly unpleasant to be there, it was their home and provided solitude and shelter. If it wasn't for the fact that they depended upon shelter to survive the two would've happily chosen to live outdoors.

Brittle trotted through into the first room where the fire was burning and slumped down onto a dog bed which was surprisingly bigger than himself. The room was decorated with a dark brown fabric couch along a wall under window. In the middle of the wall opposite the entrance stood a big open fire which was magically kept alive. Brittles dog bed was on the right of the fire, on the other side of the room from the couch and next to it was a smaller bed which looked fairly unused. Then in the last corner was a big leather arm chair which a knitted blanket draped over it, that was where a siamese cat was sitting.

Lowri walked over the the cat and sat down in the arm chair next to her gently, trying not to disturb her. Long day I bet. Sitting on your chair all day. Doing what you please. "Hello Mocha." She stroked the cat from its head all down its back and it lifted its tail and flicked it around her hand as though to say thank you for the pet.
"At least you have the decency to groom yourself." She then looked over towards the Brittle slumped over his bed, his hair was all over the place and the fur around his paws was covered with mud. She didn't blame him though. The wind had messed them both up and he had only been enjoying himself.