Slytherpuff Love

2

"I can't believe you said no to the Slytherins." Ernie MacMillan said to him in Hufflepuff common room that evening. 

"It wasn't a very tempting deal." Axel said dryly. 

Susan let out a quiet laugh. 

Ernie looked slightly confused. "I guess not," he said "But it was still pretty awesome." Hannah nodded in agreement.

Apparently news had spread pretty fast in Hufflepuff, and while Axel was putting his textbooks away in his dormitory, Hannah seemed to have been spreading news of his statement. 

"It really wasn't all that heroic." he'd insisted, but he knew the others needed something to talk about.

 It was the first week back, and the death a fellow Hufflepuff was still looming over their heads. Cedric Diggory had died at the end of last year in the Triwizard Tournament, and the loss of Cedric had been a hard blow, especially to Hufflepuffs. 

A second year whose name Axel did not know, approached them shyly.

"My friend says you punched the Slytherins." she said, wide-eyed. 

Axel looked to Hannah. "I didn't say anything about punches." she told him with a shrug. 

He smiled down at the young girl. "I didn't punch anyone." He said. "I just told them to leave me alone."

The girl nodded, a slightly disappointed look in her eyes. She glanced back at her friend, who was waiting on the other side of the common room. She giggled and turned back to Axel. "My friend want your autograph." she blurted suddenly, thrusting a piece of parchment and a quill into his hands. He looked at them, startled. 

Justin Finch-Fletchley nudged him. "Well, are you going to sign or not?" he whispered.

Axel signed the parchment with his usual messy flourish, and handed it awkwardly back to the girl. 
She rushed over to her friend, showing her the parchment excitedly. 

He looked at my friends. "Punches?" he asked. Ernie looked uncomfortable. "I didn't say punches exactly-"

He was cut off by the dinner bell, and the flow of Hufflepuffs making their way out of the common room. Axel paused by the door, uneasy about leaving the safety of his common room. "You'll be fine," Hannah reassured him. "But you might not be if you starve to death." she added with a wink. 

"He wouldn't starve to death, Hannah." Ernie pointed out. "It's just one meal."

"You should come," Susan said. "Besides, you've go the whole Hufflepuff gang with you now."

He nodded, still uncomfortable about leaving, but nervously left with his friends.

Maybe Draco would leave him alone now, after all.