A/N: Inspired by the character Mikey from The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness.


7| Corner, Michael

His name is called seventh. A prime number, but not an even one (those have always been the neatest, the tidiest). Still, it's interesting, and he's satisfied.

It takes him six seconds to reach the stool; he pauses a second to make it to another seven. His hands would start twitching otherwise, the way they do when he can't seem to wash them right, or when the books on his shelf sit slightly off-centre.

As the Hat thinks, he counts. When it puts him in Ravenclaw, he earns knowing looks for straightening the bench before he sits down. He doubts that they really understand, but that little piece of acceptance becomes a memory, indestructible and soothing.

When he looks back at it, it takes the form of a number seven.


[Word Count: 130]