Huffily Puffily || Golden Trio

The Hufflepuff Experience || vi

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The older Hufflepuffs were more than welcoming when it came to meeting new people, but despite how surreal being at Hogwarts at last was, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that she was separated from her first real friends. Ron had unsurprisingly made it into Gryffindor despite his worries, and Lucy had made it into the house she'd been hoping for in the first place.

Lucy looked up as Headmaster Dumbledore rose to his feet and beamed at everyone. "Welcome! Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you."

She clapped loudly, feeling a little confused but not exactly surprised. He'd acted strange when she'd first met him, but he'd also been a little cautious for some unfathomable reason. Lucy couldn't dwell on it for much longer; in front of her eyes, the golden and silver platters were filled up with more food than she'd ever seen in her entire life.

And it was good food. Nothing was slimy or wet, or too dry and moldy. The Orphanage gave them food, but it was rare that anyone enjoyed it. Except for the holidays, they had porridge or oatmeal for breakfast, gruel or boiled meat for lunch, and for dinner, they had canned goods or more of lunch. It stopped tasting bad after a while.

"This is just like my dad's cooking," Megan Jones sighed happily as she scooped more scalloped potatoes onto her plate.

Hannah Abbott smiled from beside Susan Bones. "My mum says that if Hogwarts had a restaurant, we'd never make anything ourselves. I wouldn't mind either; Mum's a terrible cook."

Megan turned to face Lucy, who was busy gazing up at the floating candles in awe. "What about you?" She asked, wanting to include her. "Are your parents good or bad at cooking?"

She could feel her face heat up and she looked away from Megan. She directed her attention up to the bewitched ceiling trying not to let her face betray the sinking feeling in her chest. "They're amazing cooks," she replied, swallowing a lump in her throat as she imagined a blonde haired woman holding a batch of cupcakes. "I've never had anything better, not even here."

Though her stomach growled in protest, Lucy didn't touch her plate. She didn't feel that hungry anymore.

The boy she laughed at, Wayne, was the only one who looked suspicious that something was amiss, and he stared at Lucy with his head tilted curiously. She met his gaze, staring back with an unreadable expression. It was an older student who broke up their staring match with a loud groan.

"Funny that you lot are all talking about food instead of eating it yourselves!" He exclaimed. The elder boy had light brown hair sticking up messily, reminding Lucy of Harry's unruly style of his own. He squeezed himself between Lucy and Hannah and began piling food on to everyone's plate. "Where's your food then, blondie?" he asked Lucy.

Before she could respond, he grabbed a clean plate and started to load it up with a little of everything. "Far too skinny," he said, shaking his head at her. "I won't have any of my ducklings starving! Not on my watch!"

"Ducklings?" Lucy repeated trying not to laugh as she reluctantly bit off the top of a green bean.

"Yes, small ones. I am your leader; may you all grow up to be as strong and manly - or womanly in your case - as me —"