"Bye, Tess!" Rose called as she waved to her friend trundling off in the carriages toward Hogsmeade Station. "See you in a week! Enjoy break!"
It was winter break, and though Rose's parents were perfectly capable of having her home with Hugo, Rose had written that she would prefer to stay at Hogwarts with her cousins and friends. James, Albus, and Lily were staying at Hogwarts as well, because their father was off on Auror business and their mother was going with Grandma Weasley to visit Uncle Charlie.
"Want to get inside now, Rosie?" James asked, mock-politely. "I'm freezing."
"Ditto," added Albus.
"Me too!" put in Lily.
"I get it," Rose sighed. "I just wanted to say goodbye to my friends. Is that all right with you?"
"Girls," Albus sighed theatrically as he led the way up the sloping lawn. Rose shoved him, and he lost his balance, tumbling to the snowy lawn.
"You can go ahead. I'll be there soon."
James grinned, waved at Rose, and set off toward the castle, Albus and Lily in tow. With one final wave to Rose, Tess's carriage disappeared from view.
"Guess that's it," Rose murmured to herself. She turned around as was about to follow her cousins up to the castle when something caught her eye.
It was very pale, just like the snowflakes that had begun to fall thickly all around her, but wasn't snow. It was a sort of quivering lump, trembling and pulsating, with bits of dark stuff sticking on it.
Rose went closer.
A small dog with just the tiniest amount of blond in its white coat lay huddled on the ground, its fur matted with dirt and twigs and blood. Its eyes were half-closed, its scrawny little body shivering in the frigid air, its small paws scrabbling weakly in an attempt to right itself.
"Oh," Rose said softly, bending down beside it. "You poor thing!"
The dog panted for breath, its tail wagging weakly as Rose touched its soft nose, allowing it to smell her hand. "What happened to you?"
The dog didn't respond. Rose petted its head, looking into its eyes.
"You need food," she told it. "And to warm up. Only trouble is, the only pets we're allowed to have are cats and owls and toads. And you aren't a toad, are you?"
The dog wagged again, weaker than the first time. A flash of inspiration hit Rose.
"Hagrid!" she said loudly. The dog startled. "Sorry," she went on, in a softer voice. "But I've just thought of it. We can take you to Hagrid's. He can look after you."
The dog didn't seem to have a problem with this, so Rose removed her scarf, wrapped the dog in it, and lifted the whole bundle into her arms as she made her way down to Hagrid's cabin.