It's Not So Bad Being A "Reject"
"It's not so bad being in Hufflepuff," the blond-haired boy next to me said.
'Of course it is,' I thought. But I wasn't going to tell him that. His mother was in Hufflepuff. He's in Hufflepuff. And now I'm in Hufflepuff. Why am I in Hufflepuff? I'm a Weasley for crying out loud! I belong in Gryffindor, not the reject house.
"There are millions of reasons why."
'Sure there are,' I thought. He's probably going to tell them all to me. All I want to do is eat my mashed potatoes in peace. Why can't he give me that? At least I know he won't be talking for long.
"Let's start with the obvious," he said. I rolled my eyes. I knew what he was starting with. He ignored my eye rolling. "First, to be a Hufflepuff, you need to be-"
"Loyal and hard-working, I know," I said. I did not want to be reminded of the fact that I'm not brave like my dad or my uncles.
"Not to mention non-judgmental and friendly," he added. "Those are great qualities to have. How many times have I gotten into an argument with James and you were there to tell us who had the best argument?" He looked at me with that all-knowing stare. He had a good point. As the oldest grandchild, I was entrusted by the parents to disperse an argument. But then again all first-born can do that...right?
"Plus that whole "taking the rejects" thing is a total myth," he added. "Do Madame Hooch and Professor Sprout look like rejects to you?" I turned in my seat to look at the teacher's table. I must admit, they don't seem all that bad.
"But what about what everyone says about Hufflepuffs being not very smart?" I asked. The boy's formally blond hair turned electric blue as he looked at me in mock hurt.
"I am hurt that you would call me dumb," he replied. "Me, Teddy Remus Lupin!" I gave him a look that told him to answer my question or he was going to get a punch in the gut. It was his turn to roll his eyes at me and his hair returned to its former blond.
"All houses have some dunderheads. Look at Slytherin. There's at least 6 idiots in that house and they're supposed to be cunning. Ravenclaw has at least 1 who is not nearly as smart as she should be, not naming any names," he added, holding up his hands. "Oh, and don't even get me started with Gryffindor." I smiled, the first time since sitting down at the reject table. Teddy smiled too, knowing he was getting somewhere.
"Okay, another reason why being Hufflepuff isn't so bad," he continued, "is that there are plenty of brave people in Hufflepuff."
"Your mother," I said. I don't think Teddy can go a minute without saying how brave his parents were. It's sweet but tiring at the same time.
"Well, yes, but that wasn't where I was going with this." I'm pretty sure I had a shocked look on my face. Teddy must not have noticed. "It turns out, Hufflepuff had the second biggest turnout for the Battle of Hogwarts." Okay, now I was definitely sure I looked shocked.
"What?" I asked. Surely Teddy was mistaken. I mean, their only competition was Ravenclaw and Slytherin. No way anyone could have beaten Gryffindor.
"You don't believe me?" he asked. I shook my head. "Well it's true. I read it in Hogwarts: A History Revised."
"You read Aunt Hermionie's book?" I asked. I didn't think anyone could read that book, not even little Rose, and she read the original Hogwarts: A History.
"Maybe," he said, looking at the chips on his plate. "I was bored once when Aunt Ginny put me in time-out in the library for making Lily's nose disappear. I mean, after having to stay in there for a week, you'd read that book too, just to keep your sanity."
"You wouldn't have been in there that long if you hadn't said she looked like Lord Voldemort." At that moment, a few kids looked at me weirdly. Teddy and I looked back at them. Honestly, people had to let that go.
"Anyway, in that book it said that there were more Hufflepuffs at the battle then the other two house." He smiled. "And once again, I'm not even going near Gryffindors."
"Let's see, what else? Oh yes, the common room is right near the kitchen. It will always be toasty warm."
'That sounds nice,' I thought. It will be perfect in the winter.
"Not to mention the common room has tunnels that take you to your dorm rooms," he added. "Pretty creative, huh, considering our animal is the badger."
"I guess," I answered. It does sound pretty cool.
"The last thing on my list is the real reason why Hufflepuff is pretty cool." Okay so now we've gone from "not so bad" to "pretty cool". Isn't it my job to say whether or not it is cool to be in Hufflepuff?
"Oh and what is that?" I finally asked.
"It's that not everyone can wear yellow," he replied. He smirked. His blue eyes twinkled with the laughter so close to leaving his mouth.
"What?" I asked. Was Teddy talking about fashion?
"Come on, you've been talking fashion since you could talk. You know that not everyone can pull off yellow." Um, have you lost your mind?
"Are you-" Then it hit me. That was why Teddy kept his hair blond and skin light whenever he was in uniform. I can't believe Teddy actually has a fashion sense.
"See, I told you," he said and smirked again. Why does he have to smirk? "You're part veela. Your skin tone and hair color are perfect for wearing yellow!" He looked excited. I cannot see why.
"Yeah but aren't we supposed to be learning that looking good isn't as important as what's on the inside?" Teddy rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, sure, keep thinking that," he replied. "But by wearing a color that is complements you, it makes you feel better." He pauses. "It's all part of the magic of colors."
"Colors have magic?" That sounds like something from a wizard's fashion magazine.
"I think Aunt Ginny put me in the library for torturous reasons." I laughed and Teddy smiled. He always knew how to make me feel better.
Maybe it won't be so bad being at the "reject" house.
Another Harry Potter story. I've had this in my head for a while. Ever since my mom said very few people could wear yellow. I'm one of those people but whatever. Anyway, sorry for any grammatical or spelling mistakes. I suck at it. Also, I put Victoire in Hufflepuff because, well, I felt she would be the only weasley who could pull of yellow. Anyway, review!
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