Elysia Riddle [A Harry Potter Fan Fiction]

Chapter Six ~ New Beginnings

Looking around my bare room, I tried to ignore the fact that in two days, I would leave this room forever. Snape would never be my 'Uncle' and I would never have to deal with his habits again. I would have to sleep in a dormitory with other girls, silence rather than sleep talking in the next room.

I would have a School Schedule rather than empty days spent exploring the many nooks and crannies of Hogwarts. I would dine with hundreds of other students, rather than by myself at the teacher’s bench. In a way, I was gaining my new identity in return for my easygoing life.

For years, I had yearned to bear the school uniform, and to proudly show my house to all those who could see. I would no longer be that brown haired girl who wandered the Hogwarts hallways, but I would also never again be Snape's niece, which could actually ensure some friends.

Thinking eagerly of spending more time with Neville, I folded my meagre supply of clothes into a leather trunk. Staring fondly down at my black quilt, a quilt that Snape had somehow procured from somewhere when I was an infant, I considered packing it as well.

Take it, I hardly think Snape will cuddle it at night.

"Oh, Leon. You're right..." I replied, smiling fondly down at my companion.

His red coat bristled happily under my praise, sending him to furrow his nose against my leg; a sign of affection. Looking around at my now empty room, I left one set of clothes at the foot of my bed, the clothes that I would use tomorrow on my train ride. 

"I suppose you're hungry, Leon?" I whispered, playfully yanking Leon's tail.

Mind reader.

Scooping the bundle of fur into my arms, I jogged out of the room, eager to leave behind the dreary bedroom. In the living room, I actually took the time to stare at my surroundings. The walls were thick stonewalls, emanating a cold air, sending chills down my spine.

Plush, crimson armchairs littered a thick black rug in the centre of the room, circling around a majestic fireplace. No portraits filled his walls, only a single Slytherin banner stretching across the wall above the fireplace. I considered briefly the possibility of being sorted into Syltherin house, where my Uncle had been placed.

Where Snape had been placed...

Leon's sharp teeth in my forearm returned me from my thickening thoughts, forcing my feet to direct us out of the living quarters. Taking the quickest route through the halls, one that I had devised weeks into the ownership of Leon, I soon found myself standing out of the Hogwarts kitchen.

"Wait here..." I muttered, poking his wet nose softly.

Walking inside, large, murky eyes shifted to watch me eagerly. Grinning at them, they quickly passed me my daily bowl of Stew. The humble elves bowed to me, somehow knowing that our tradition would soon end. My smile faltered, shifting in to a grimace as I thought of how my visits would be limited.

"Did I ever say thank-you?" I cried out, tyring to withhold my emotions.

"Yes, Miss, very often." replied a small elf, with particularly prominent ears.

"Well... I can't thank you guys enough... You're all brilliant." I sobbed, smiling at them through my tears.

"Oh, Miss, do not cry, we will always give Leon his stew at Hogwarts!" cried out a brown eyed elf standing behind a large pot.

"You... You knew?" I gaped, looking in surprise at the nodding heads.

"Of course!" they all cried out in unison, followed by merry laughing.