Filch's First Day
"We did it, Tabitha."
He was here. He was finally here.
Argus turned from his cat and stared up at the large, grey stone walls, his pale blue eyes wide. He was afraid to blink, lest everything he saw vanished and he returned to his bleak bedroom devoid of all magic. It wasn't a dream, though; he really had been accepted to Hogwarts.
"Where do you think you're going, Mr Filch?" a sharp voice asked.
Gulping, he spun around. Of course, he had to jinx it. A tall, black-haired witch was standing on the front steps of the castle, peering down at him from behind wire glasses.
This was it; he was going to be turned away.
The woman's face softened and she pointed towards the side of the castle. He could just make out small, black silhouettes drifting across the large black lake, tiny circles of yellow the only light guiding them.
"The front entrance is usually reserved for the older students," the woman said. "We like our newcomers to receive the best view from the lake."
Argus' cheeks reddened, and he stared at his feet. He had heard something about that when he had pulled his trunk from the train, but most of the students were running towards horseless carriages and he hadn't wanted to be left behind.
"If you'll please follow me, I'll introduce you to the Headmaster," she said.
The woman paused for a moment and looked down at his feet. Argus followed her gaze, almost having forgotten his company. He braced himself to be told that he couldn't keep his tabby cat with him—even though his acceptance letter had explicitly stated he could bring an owl, cat or toad—but the woman simply winked at Tabitha.
The school was even more magnificent on the inside. When they entered a set of double-oak doors, he turned his eyes from the older students already sitting at the tables and gazed up at the ceiling, which looked just like the starry night sky.
"Ah, you must be Argus Filch. Welcome, I'm Albus Dumbledore."
As the tall witch left, Argus turned to the man before him, taking in the royal purple robes and long, white beard.
So, this was the man who was in charge? He was a little intimidating, but Argus could tell they would get along.
"Thank you," he said.
At that moment, the doors opened and a line of students began milling in, led by the black-haired witch. They looked just as nervous as he felt, but one boy, in particular, looked awful. He bent over and emptied the contents of his stomach, causing a few girls nearby to shriek.
Dumbledore turned to him and gave a small smile. "Would you? There's a broom cupboard just outside."
Argus beamed at him. Pushing his trunk against the wall, he ran out of the room, Tabitha at his heels.
He might not have been a student, but he was finally at Hogwarts, and that's all that mattered.
A/N: This story was written for The Houses Competition, Year 2, Round 2.
House: Gryffindor
Year/Position: Prefect 1 (Written by a third-year stand-in)
Category: Drabble
Prompt(s): 9. [Event] First Day of Work
Word count: 498 words (according to Google docs)
This story is dedicated to my wonderful Head of House (HoH), CK!
I'd like to thank my wonderful betas Alana (Divergent4Everdeen), CK (Theoreticaloptimist) and Shay (ipsa dixit), to Emma (public static void) and Victoria (extramundane epeolatry) for looking over them, and to Cara (Lenore483) for helping make the final decision. I hope my aim to show that he was a 'student' worked, but if not, that you enjoyed it anyway :)