I don't own Harry Potter, nor do I make any profit from this. Am just playing in the sand box JK Rowling lets us play in.

A Dog That Should Never be Seen in Public

Chapter One

No matter how many times Daphne Greengrass walked down the cobbled street and into the Magical Menagerie, she never came out with one of its inhabitants. No matter how many times Daphne had gone in to find that the snake she'd been looking at the other day had been gobbled up by a smug looking horned owl or that the Augurey with the oddly bright feathers had been sold, she'd never found something that would allow her to take it home.

Anytime she approached the birds, they flew off to the rafters. Anytime she approached the snakes, they hissed disapprovingly at her. She could only imagine what would happen if she stuck her hand in their cage to try to coax them closer to her.

Quite frankly, she was about ready to curse every reptiles in the habitat when one of the reptiles reared up as if it was superior to her and gave her a saucy wink before seeming to bob its head in laughter. Thankfully, a surprised cry caused her to turn around before she could pull out her wand.

A raised eyebrow was the only thing she gave her little sister, Astoria, as the smaller girls laughter bubbled over the whole store. Sitting on Astoria's shoulder was a Northern White-Faced Owl, and it was quite busy preening the disheveled hair that only hyper-active 11 year olds could achieve.

Daphne couldn't find it in her heart to be sad that she may never be able to find a pet when her sisters eyes were sparking with so much happiness that they seemed to be made of diamonds. As Astoria ran over to their mother to show off the owl in the other room, Daphne turned back to the snakes to give the sassy one a withering glare.

At least, that was the plan before she nearly got bowled over by a large black dog that looked like it was clearly in need of a bath and a grooming.

"Ya damn mangy mutt, get back here! Sorry miss, he escaped as I was tryna put 'im in one of tha crates for tha larger animals," explained the shop keeper as he attempted to actually usher her out of the way so he could catch the mutt. She sniffed in disdain which proved to be a bad idea as the dog reeked of ocean and wherever else it'd been sleeping, but she still somehow managed a sneer while she desperately wanted to retch. The dog merely hid behind Daphne's legs and offered the shopkeeper a growl, then a low bark.

"'S about the worst behaved dog I've ever met, miss. Could you believe the man who caught 'im was trying to pass 'im off as a Grim? Wanted full price, too! I told 'im 'ya, sure he is, mate,' and he started…" rambled the shop keeper as he finally grabbed the dog by the scruff and tried to haul him away. The dog looked up at Daphne and gave her the biggest puppy dog eyes he could, clawing at the floor and seeming to win against the struggling shopkeeper in the fight to get back to Daphne and away from the cages.

At that moment, Daphne Greengrass decided she needed a dog. Not just any dog, either. She wanted the worst smelling, worst looking, massively big dog she could land her hands on.

"How much for him?"

Both the shopkeeper and the dog stilled, the latter collapsing on the ground with a loud 'Woof' as it he no longer had to struggle.

"Miss?" Inquired the shop keeper, as if he'd heard her wrong.

"How much for the dog? I want him." Repeated Daphne, who hated having to repeat herself.

"Oh no, Miss, you don't want this dog. Mischievous bastard, he is. We have plenty of other dogs, better suited for someone like you. Better trained, less messy, smarter dogs."

"Sir," Daphne stated, a cold edge developing in her voice. "I want this dog. How much for him?"

In the end, the shop keeper merely gave it up as a bad job and decided that the dog was worth too much trouble to keep and let Daphne go on her way with the mutt, albeit quite a few galleons lighter and a shrunken and lightened box of dog supplies heavier.

When her family, who had decided to go look through Diagon Alleys many store windows after having bought Astoria's owl, caught sight of her being hauled along by a large Grim in the reflection of one of the dimly lit windows as she was holding her witches hat to her head, her mother let out an exasperated sigh. The only reason Daphne was allowed to keep the dog, her mother would tell her years later, was because her father had thought it was one of the funniest things he had ever seen and she wouldn't have been able to scold Daphne and her father at the same time.

Now, imagine seeing one of the pureblood elite families sprinting after their daughter who was being pulled along by a dog on a neon pink leash that had its tongue flopping out of the side of its mouth as it decided to give its new owner a taste of what it was like to have a dog and I imagine you'll have a laugh just as the other shoppers in the alley did.

For Daphne, in time it would prove her fondest patronus memory. For now, she was pondering just how she was going to get back at the dog who decided to run her up and down the entirety of Diagon Alley after she had so thoughtfully rescued it from being in that pet shop for a day longer.

For Padfoot, this was just bided time until he could get a moment of free time so he could disappear for a while and go check on Harry. He looked back at Daphne as he ran and gave her his biggest doggy grin before speeding up, her shouts only spurring him faster.

(A/N) Hi! First story! Am excited!