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✯❀𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐎𝐆 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐑❀✯
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Coco was a dog who didn't want to follow orders.
She was too scared for a start, and she certainly wasn't ready to start trusting people any time soon. So far, nobody had been able to touch her - except for the vet, but even she had to give her a jab.
What the vet had said was simple. She'd run some tests, look through files for a missing dog case, and if there was nothing, the Lupins could keep Coco.
Charlotte was excited to say the least. She didn't want Coco to go back to wherever she had come from, it seemed liked an awful place. She was also quite enjoying trying to teach Coco to relax. The dog slept on a new dog bed that Lyall had bought, she had been reluctant at first, too scared to even come near it but with a few treats and lots of bribing, she had managed to do it.
"Coco!" Lottie called softly, patting the sofa for Coco to join her.
One thing she had done right, was getting coco to learn her name. Her head snapped up, and she looked at Lottie in pure fear, her eyes looking too big for her her head as she tilted her head in Charlotte's direction.
"Come here! Good girl, come on!"
Coco wouldn't budge.
Charlotte sighed, the whole idea of taking time wasn't very fun.
She was home alone, although Harry was coming over any minute from now, as he was determined to get Coco to like him before she liked Lottie.
She sat on the floor next to Coco, her eyes on the dog. Coco had grown a little, which was progress for sure. The once unwell and unhygienic dog was on the road to being healthy, even it was going to be a slow journey.
A crash was heard, and Charlotte looked up to see an explosion of green in the fireplace, followed by a slightly dusty Harry.
"Hello!" He grinned, brushing the soot off of his clothes and stepping out of the fireplace.
"Hey Harold!" Lottie waved, gesturing for him to come over.
"So this is Coco?" He asked, kneeling down and our stretching an arm.
"Yup," Lottie nodded proudly, "she's still not used to people yet."
"She's cute," he sat cross legged opposite Charlotte, his eyes on the dog in front of her. "How old did the vet say she is?"
"Around eight months."
"Ah, a proper baby." He turned to Charlotte, taking in her appearance. If possible, she looked even better then usual, her hair falling easily down her back, her smile kind and her eyes soft. If anything, she looked the happiest he had seen her look since before the end of term. He had noticed the change in demeanour at the end of the year, however he hadn't wanted to question her on it and make her uncomfortable. He was just glad she seemed happier now, her smile meant a lot to him.
It was strange, Harry thought. Just a few years ago the girl sat in front of him would hex him for trying to talk to him, and he was more than grateful that she had let those barriers down and started to talk to him.
It was weird how they bonded, they were so alike and yet so different. They had completely different upbringings and yet there was small things hey had in common, like their love for quidditch or the same habit of sneaking down to the kitchens late at night for hot chocolates. He wished they had been friends for longer, perhaps they would have a bond like he and Hermione had, or he and Ron. Yet, another part of him thought it was just right. They became friends at an odd time, the end of their third year, and yet it seemed perfect nevertheless.
"What are you going to do with her when we go back to school?" Harry asked, patting the floor for Coco to come over, however she just looked at him nervously.
"I'm taking her," Charlotte said firmly. This was a subject that was brought up a lot in the Lupin household, and Hope and Lyall thought it was preposterous, you weren't supposed to bring dogs to Hogwarts, however Lottie wouldn't budge.
"What?" Harry laughed, "what are you going to do, pass her off as a cat?"
"I was thinking more a toad," she winked.
"Ah I see," he nodded, patting the ground again, however this time, Coco came over.
She was slow, and she sniffed his hand nervously. She stayed that way for a moment, just sniffing and learning his scent, but after a moment, she rested her head in his lap, laying down on her stomach.
Charlotte's jaw dropped.
"I think you're dog likes me more than you!" Laughed Harry as he gently stroked Coco.
"How did you do that?" She asked, her voice dripping with shock and jealousy. "No way did she just let you do that!"
"Yeah she did!" Harry beamed, the biggest of smiles on his face as he continued stroking Coco.
"This isn't fair!" Lottie shook her head.
"Yeah it is," Harry stuck his tongue out at her.
Around half an hour later, Harry got up, and Coco followed him to the sofa, jumping up onto his lap.
"Come sit with me," Harry said to Charlotte, who had just brought in cans of coca cola for them both. "She might let you stroke her."
Lottie nodded, sitting next to Harry on the sofa. She reached out slowly, and Coco turned to her. This time, instead of biting Lottie or growling, Coco stayed still, allowing Lottie to stroke her back.
"I can't believe she let me do that so easily with you here," she said.
"I guess I'm just the dog whisperer," he said with a cocky smile, leaning back on the sofa letting his arm rest behind Charlotte.
"I guess you are," her cheeks burnt pink as she felt Harry's hand twirl a strand of hair, and she tried hard to keep her eyes on Coco, and not at the boy who was silently admiring her.
He continued to play with her hair, his eyes scanning the room every now and then as they sat in a comfortable silence, Lottie's attention on Coco, who was nibbling Harry's t-shirt.
The three stayed like that for a while, all happy in their own little world as they enjoyed one another's company.
♧♧♧
The summer was going by quickly, and soon enough there was only three days left until the first of September.
Charlotte was excited to see Theo and Alex again, the full summer was too long to go without them. They originally had plans to meet up, but Theo ended up spending the summer with his grandparents in Wales, whilst Alex was forced to go to France with his family.
The two boys sent many letters though, they were both up to date with everything that had happened in Charlotte's summer, and vice versa. Lottie heard all of the interesting stories about the Rosier family, who apparently, spent most of their time together bickering over different pureblood events and family history.
Most of Theo's letters were about his hate for boats, the ocean, rivers, and his fathers love for boats.
Coco had improved tremendously. Harry was her favourite by a long shot, but she let Lottie stroke her, pick her up, and she even sat on her lap some days. She was still scared of everyone else, only doing things in small movements, but sure enough, she was getting better.
The vet had sent a letter, apparently Coco had been a stray, and her mother was most likely a stray who left her puppies to fend for themselves. The Lupins were now the rightful owners of Coco, they had even bought her a collar, however they hadn't tried to put it on her yet, not wanting to scare her or make her wary.
"You're 100% sure about this?" Lyall asked. He, Hope and Lottie were sat around the dinner table eating their food, and once again, the topic of Coco and Hogwarts had been brought up.
"I'll look after her properly, I'll take her on morning walks every day!" She promised.
"What about the time around the moon?" Asked Lyall.
"She can stay with Harry, she likes Harry!"
"You'll feed her every day and will make sure she's well kept?"
"I will."
"And you'll...hide her well?"
"I will."
"What about lesson time, though?"
"She could stay in the room of requirements? I don't know...maybe I could talk Hagrid into keeping her a secret." Lottie shrugged. "Please? She'll cause no trouble I promise."
"Fine," Lyall sighed, "you can take her with you."
"Yay! Thank you!"
A/N
Lmao I had no inspo for this whoops
Qotd: favourite takeaway?
Word count: 1483