“HUFFLEPUFF”

Hufflepuff? Tom didn’t know what that house was all about, but those kids wearing yellow were smiling and waving him over, so he shuffled over to their table and reluctantly sat next to a girl from his year. Anne Laurent was her name, if he remembered correctly.

As Tom began to space out watching the sorting, the girl sitting next to him suddenly turned and began speak. “Hi, my name’s Annie!” Her voice was bright and lively, a welcome break from the strict and angry tones of the matrons from back home.

Tom didn’t quite know how to respond, the kids back home didn’t really talk to him, except to mock or bully him. The closest thing to a friend that he ever had, was Matron Millie, who was slightly less strict than the others. So when a random nice girl tried to talk to him, the only thing he could say was, “It’s nice to meet you Annie, my name is Tom.”

“It’s nice to meet you too Tom. So Tom, class are you the most excited for? I can’t wait for herbology, I love plants!” The truth was, Tom hadn’t thought much about his classes. He’d agreed to come to this school only because it meant he didn’t have spend the winter in his cold little room back at his home. But he couldn’t say that to Annie, crushing her enthusiasm like that would put distance between her and him.

“I’m excited for herbology too, I just find plants some cool. Besides, I heard Hogwarts has some awesome magical plants. I can’t wait to see them in real life.” Whew, he successfully redirected the conversation. Then, Annie went off. She raved and ranted about different magical plants she’d read about, and all Tom needed to do was listen and say “yeah” or “mhm that’s so cool” every once and a while.

When the food came, Tom was overwhelmed, but that’s wasn’t new. Everything he had encountered since his first meeting with the mysterious wizard Dumbledore had been frankly fantastical. A whole world of magic, sitting just under his nose and in his bloodline. An explanation for all the anomalous chaos of his childhood. And now that he had begun hanging out in the social vicinity of Annie, as well as other members of Hufflepuff house, he found that he was not alone.

r/CookieJarOfChaos