The Fool

Being woken up by a Hufflepuff was undoubtedly the worst possible way to wake up.

Especially when said Hufflepuff was an unapologetically overenthusiastic morning person.

"Good morning sunshine!" The sing-songy voice permeated the peaceful quiet of the morning, effectively putting an end to Wren's enjoyment of these early hours in the way they were meant to be enjoyed—in bed, asleep.

Godric, help me.

Calling on her house's founder had rarely, if ever, done any good in situations like this. This wasn't an issue of nerve; it was a matter of endurance. Because the thing about Hufflepuffs, and especially this Hufflepuff, was that they never gave up. Ever. Even when you practically begged them to. Even when you very clearly and explicitly begged them to.

"Time to get up!" The last word was sung with such obnoxious cheer that the sound shot straight through Wren's desperate plea to the universe, killing all hope of a few more tranquil minutes tucked away under the covers.

Wren made a muffled sound of disapproval and pulled the covers up higher, rolling away from her cousin's present attempt to shake her awake. "Geroff," she mumbled into her pillow. "I'm up."

"If you were up, your feet would be on the floor," Norah shot back the family rule. Apparently there had been one too many close calls with the Hogwarts Express (which, for the record, was only two), and her family had decided to institute criteria for whether or not Wren was, in fact, "up." Quite frankly, it was a load of dragon dung.

Wren shifted under the covers, allowing one leg to drop with a thud to the floor. "There. I'm half up."

"Not good enough," Nora prodded. "Breakfast is ready and we're waiting on you; come on."

Wren simply let out a grunt as a response.

"Alright then." The words came out too light and dispassionate to mean anything good. Brain still cloudy with sleep, Wren attempted to piece together Nora's next move when she felt her cousin take a firm grip of her leg.

"I'm up!" Wren shot up, her heart pounding against her chest from the near encounter with the floor. She should have known Nora would resort to drastic measures. Hufflepuff.

"Good!" Nora chirped, clasping her hands together in front of herself as Wren ran a hand over her face. The other girl allowed Wren the decency of a few moments to collect herself, even if she didn't move from her spot next to the bed. Slightly calmer, Wren turned to face her cousin who was already fully dressed.

"That's my jumper," Wren mumbled, punctuating the sentence with a small thump as her hand dropped into her lap.

"Is it?" Nora asked, innocently. "I suppose if you had woken up and gotten dressed an hour ago like you were supposed to, I wouldn't have had time to pinch it."

"I'm getting to it," Wren yawned.

"About as quickly as a flobberworm. Let's go," she clapped her hands, and Wren glowered, kicking the sheets off and pushing herself out of bed. Even Hufflepuffs weren't this Hufflepuff. No, this was specifically a Nora thing. "Now you're up," her cousin said, flashing a bright smile.

"Have I ever told you that you're completely insufferable in the mornings?" Wren grumbled, pushing past her cousin and walking over to the dresser.

"It's come up a few times over the years," Nora replied, her grin intensifying if anything. "Anyway, you get dressed, and I'll go down to try to save some bacon and let your Mum know that we won't need to waste a firecracker after all."