"I'm going for a walk."
The group of people surrounding the fireplace looked up at Giselle as she wrapped herself up in her furry outerwear before she hastily attempted to leave the Common Room. It was the first night after the holidays and Giselle felt rather claustrophobic in the Tower where everyone was discussing the holiday's events. She needed the fresh air.
"Giselle, don't-," Lily began but Giselle smirked.
"I'll be fine, Mum. Besides... I'm a big girl – I can handle myself." Giselle ignored Sirius's humoured stare by strolling out of the Tower.
Giselle's strolls after curfew were frequent but lonesome yet it never seemed to stop her from continuing them. Lily scolded her often for her rule-breaking but Giselle knew she had to. It made her laugh because every time Lily brought it up; Lily knew Giselle would never stop. She kept in the shadows whenever she spotted a Prefect but within a few minutes – Giselle was out in the grounds.
Dirty slush covered the grass which held many slippery patches and she only slipped twice on her descent down to a hut she had missed dearly while attending Beauxbatons. The groundskeeper was a dear friend of hers ever since her first year.
"What are you doing here?" A sneering Slytherin with bright blonde hair snickered when he spotted Giselle. She gasped and froze as his gaze landed on her. He wasn't alone. Giselle was out near the Forbidden Forest looking for James Potter who was currently searching for his lucky snitch that his father had given him. She had last seen him disappearing beside Greenhouse number 2 but the path beside it led her to the Forest. "I-I'm sorry. I w-was looking for my friend." Giselle was sure that they wouldn't tell her if they had seen James themselves so she made her mind up to get away from them. They looked like trouble and her father warned her multiple times to stay away from danger. Giselle glanced at the Slytherin's faces but none were immediately recognizable. She could hardly tell them apart as they all wore the same disgusted expression. "You must be little Miss Crouch?" One of the girls with light hair assumed as she stepped forward with her arms crossed. Giselle looked up at her as her facial features seemed familiar but she felt threatened by these students so she kept silent with a simple nod. She had a couple of questions but she was fully-aware that she should keep them to herself. Giselle began to retreat but the blonde sixth year grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back. His nails dug deep causing her to gasp and fall into the grass. She looked up into their glaring faces before she took another attempt at retreating. She failed once more. "What did you hear from our conversation?" Giselle blinked and frowned, "Huh?" "I said," The blond boy spat, "What did you hear us talking about in our conversation? Were you spying?" Giselle gulped and shook her head frantically. "No! I told you I-I'm looking for m-my friend!" She tried not to show how frightened she felt. "Why you lying little-," "OI!" The group and Giselle looked over towards the Greenhouse and saw a gigantic man staring at them with a large sack dangling from his fist. He glared at the Slytherins because he knew exactly who they were and the young Gryffindor did not want to attract their attention. "C'mon." A gangly brunette with narrow eyes grabbed the blond boy and shoved him forward before following with the rest of the Snakes. Giselle watched them withdraw from the Forest's edge before letting out a large breath and she turned to continue looking for James but her gaze was met by a half-giant. She was mesmerized. "Are yeh ok?" The half-giant asked, bending down to met her natural eye-line and all Giselle did was gasp. "Wow! Are you half-giant?" The man frowned but his fresh face tinged red. Scratching the minimal beard that lined his jaw, he laughed. "Now that's a secre' between you an' me, eh?" Giselle was unsure whether that was sarcasm but she laughed nevertheless. "Thank you," she muttered and the man nodded whilst his grin shone beneath his dark hair. He patted her shoulder despite Giselle's buckling knees and nodded. "Be careful around certain folk, yeh? Them especially," He jerked his thumb over his shoulder indicating the Slytherin group, "'cus summits comin' and they'll be the first teh show everyone who they belong to." Giselle wasn't quite sure what the half-giant was inferring but she took the advice anyway. Nodding to show her understanding, she hugged his middle before heading off to find her friend. "I'll be careful, I promise. My name is Giselle Crouch, by the way." She half-shouted as she climbed the path higher and the half-giant smiled. She was young Adelaide Prewett's daughter. "Call me Hagrid." "Bye Mr Hagrid!" She called before disappearing round the 2nd Greenhouse.
Giselle cringed at the memory as she tapped smartly on Hagrid's front door. She heard a high-pitch bark echo from within a second before Hagrid opened the hut's door where his confusion switched to surprise in a blink.
"Giselle!" He cried, "C'mon in, in!" Giselle stepped into the warmth and removed her outerwear before hanging it on the hook near the fire. The pair sat down at the crooked table with bear-sized mugs and began to catch-up.
The minutes piled up and before Giselle could accept another steaming cup of tea – she had to go. Lily would yell if she was out past 1 again and Giselle hated upsetting Lily. Sure, Lily would be satisfied with the timings of Giselle's outings if she went along with her but Giselle preferred her walks to be solo.
"I need to go Hagrid; Lily would want my head on a plate if I'm out after 1 again." She sighed and Hagrid laughed, mouthing, "Again?"
"Ok bu' - tell me about Beauxbatons before yeh go."
Giselle wrinkled her nose and glanced out of the window. It may have been fatigue but she was sure she just saw something gallop past Hagrid's window. She froze halfway through her yawn before assuming that she had imagined the animal and turning back to tell Hagrid of her previous school.
"Bye Hagrid!" Giselle sighed as she exited the cabin. Hagrid stood in the doorway and watched as Giselle slowly trekked up the steep, sludgy paths that led Giselle to the Castle.
"Do yeh wan' me teh walk up there with yeh?" Hagrid asked, concern written on his face but Giselle shook her head and hugged her torso.
"I'm fine – I can take care of myself." She reassured him and Hagrid nodded. The hut grew fainter and fainter until all Giselle could see behind her was a minuscule orange square in the distance. Breathing in the cold air, Giselle continued on her walk but she felt something nearby. She could feel a pair of eyes bore into her and her breath hitched. Her hands stuffed themselves into her pockets while her eyes screwed up as she cursed softly. In that moment, she immediately regretted not taking up Hagrid's offer. She glanced behind her shoulder; could she make it down to his hut in time?
Giselle gripped her wand, turned to where she felt the eyes and pointed her ash wand towards it; she had to at least see her potential attacker. The wand's tip illuminated light and soon she saw what the pale eyes belonged to – a dog.
"Oh," Giselle merely squeaked and she tilted her head in confusion. The dog copied. She didn't know of anybody in the school who owned a dog, was it a stray from the Forest? Her eyes widened. Was it dangerous?
She slowly stepped backwards, trying to figure out a path around the dog and back to the castle, but the dog copied her movements and it began to pant with its tongue lolling from the side of its mouth. Giselle snorted and stopped retreating. The dog imitated her.
"You're not dangerous, are you?" She asked the dog and it barked softly. Giselle laughed and stepped back once more but her knees collapsed when she reached a steep stone step. The dog strolled over and sat directly in front of her, its pale eyes gazing right into hers. Giselle was enthralled by them but the sound of hooves hurtling behind her made Giselle dart up onto her feet again. She span around but never caught sight of the hoofed creature.
A distant cry of a wolf scared Giselle as she jumped at the mere sound and it brought her to her senses. She shouldn't be outside in the dark at 2 in the morning; she needed to go.
Giselle began to dash up the hill and towards the wooden bridge but the dog whined loudly. She stopped and glanced at the dog that had followed her to the bridge. Under the dim lantern light that swung above her, Giselle could see how sad the dog looked and it almost pained her.
"I need to go. Look... I'm sure you'll see me again." She murmured to the dog that suddenly perked up at her voice. The corner of her lips tugged at its enthusiasm but she was desperate to leave the grounds. Giselle quickly bent down and patted the dog's head before running off towards the Entrance Hall.
As she crept through the castle on her toes, Giselle thought back to the animal in the grounds and something at the back of her mind pinched. She knew it was crazy but she actually hoped she saw that dog again.
is it vain to love your own story? if it is - i'm vain ^.^
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