home (reader at hogwarts)

twenty eight

"professor, i was just having a quick look around the castle." you say, looking up at the fairly tall and pale man.

"how c-c-curious. have you f-found anything you particularly l-l-like?" quirrel stutters. "i remember loving the g-g-greenhouses, in m-m-my time here."

"oh, i was just on my way there." you lie, skirting past him and walking down the corridor.

you hear his feet shift and can feel him watch you disappear behind a corner, as you skirt down a flight of stairs and huff as you get to a landing.

he was infuriating to be near. the way he put up the pretence of having a stutter, the way he himself couldn't help grimace at the foul smell coming from the back of his head, hidden under that indecipherably large turban he most likely bought from a shop, from a culture he never sought to educate himself on.

you though about the kids here that do wear turbans and how when they find out about quirrel- how afraid they might be to wear it again, afraid they might be compared to him.

still quirrel was a death eater and you didn't expect much cultural intelligence from him when his core belief was the importance and forced practice in the upkeep of blood purity.

you continue walking down the steps and spot a door on the ground floor, leading out to where you had last spotted professor sprout.

she takes your mind off of quirrel, whom you're sure you'll be thinking and frowning over for much of the coming year- but, you'd like to speak to her just a little before the first years arrive.

"professor?" you call, and she turns around from where she is crouched at the base of a tree.

"y/n! mini severus!" she smiles, widely. "come, come."

you grin as you walk toward her and look down at the small green things in her palms. you can now begin to see more clearly and see that they are some kind of creature, with long pale green limbs and a head that looked akin to a bud.

"what- what is that?" you ask quietly, slowly getting on your knees beside her to watch.

"bow truckles, y/n." she tells you, letting one wrap it's long skinny arm around her thumb and lean on it. "they've had to be moved because their tree has started to decay."

"that must be hard for them. such a big change." you say, looking down at how sad they all looked.

"absolutely. i feel terrible, but i try to offer up-" she lifts her palms and brings the bow truckles to her nose where they scramble to hug her. "as much moral support as i can."

you smile as you watch her gently lower them again and now she leaves her palm at the base of the tree, where she seems to have made a whole.

the hole is glowing, warm yellow light emitting from the hollow of the tree. perhaps, this is where the bow truckles will live from now on. as glamorous as it seems, as healthier as it will be from the last place they were- they will always remember their first home.

"you'll learn to love your new home." you say softly, to them. "i promise you will."

the bow truckles look at you, not quite understanding, but ultimately walking off of professor sprout's palms. the group of them glance back at you once before flooding into their new home.

pamona smiles at you. "you're good."

"thank you." you laugh nervously.

"you know, i have never seen severus so- happy before." pamona tells you, almost as an aside. it doesn't seem a small topic to you, and probably not to her, but it's the one she brings up as the two of you rise from your crouched position at the tree.

"really?" you ask, smiling.

"really. i mean i had no idea you existed, but seeing the way severus looked at you during dinner, the way the two of you laughed when we walked into the great hall- seeing the proud look on severus' face when he asked the house elf to take your stuff to his room, to your father's room- it was-"

she sighs. "he was a part of my first class you know- i knew he'd shine academically, but never like this-"

professor sprout looks at you, straight into your eyes. the two of you were about the same height and she pulled off a dirty glove before taking your hand in hers.

"shining with purpose is what we as humans desire most. some people mistake their calling to shine for something that they are good at or what they feel they they are responsible for- but often times, like with your father, a person's calling is what he needs the most. do you understand?"

you nod. merlin, she was right.

she smiles at you. "good. i hope to see you attempt to find your calling in herbology. i can't imagine your first experience with a bow truckle going any smoother."

"i'm definitely thinking about it. it seems like a good hobby for now." you agree, looking down at the new habitat.

"we should get back to the castle and you should get into your uniform, i think the first years might arrive in less than an hour."

the pair of you stroll back to the castle talking about herbology and the different greenhouses you'd be allowed to enter. you don't know professor sprout as well as you know minerva, albus, or your father- but the two of you converse well, and she makes you feel welcome in a world you feel you haven't always belonged to.

"y/n!" you hear severus' bassey voice, tumble down the corridor towards you.

he stands on the other side of the corridor, near the landing you just used to escape talking to quirrel.

you smile and run towards him. when you reach him, he puts an arm around your shoulders.

"come quick, you've got 40 minutes to get changed and ready."

you nod and severus leads you back to his living quarters, where you find your uniform, laid out on the chair. you grab it, and change in your fathers bedroom whilst he waits in the living room.

you step out, wearing a white button down shirt, a sleeveless black jumper with grey piping around the v-neckline, tucked into a pleated skirt over a pair of grey tights and shiny black shoes.

"your tie." severus says, holding up a peice of grey fabric. "come here."

you walk towards him and he brushes hair off of your shoulders, slowly doing the tie up for you. he lets you tuck it under your jumper yourself before stepping back and nodding at you.

"you look smart."

"thanks." you grin.

"are you ready?" he asks, and you look up at your father apprehensively.

he smiles and brings you closer. "you'll be fine. the other firsties are all idiots if they single you out for anything."

you smile.

"come on then, y/n. lets go get you fake sorted."