Author Note:

Day 4 of the Hufflepuff Writing group Hufflepuff fanfiction week!

This one was inspired by my Hufflepuffian sister whose sense of justice frequently leads to debates over the fair treatment of Slytherins.

I don't own anything.

Calvin, an outgoing third year Hufflepuffian, was reading his muggle animal studies book out loud.

"Badger behavior differs by family, but most live underground in burrows called setts, which can be quite extensive." he looked around our common room and smiled. "They make beds out of grass and leaves. Some are solitary, but most live in family units ranging in size from 2-15 members. These family clans are called Cetes"

A first year counted silently. "That means our sett has 4 cetes!"

"That it does!" Calvin replied. He continued reading, "Badgers are nocturnal, which means they stay awake all night and sleep during the day."

"Ha ha, Ravenclaw," A visiting Griffindorian snorted.

He got a thwump on the head from a visiting Ravenclaw.

A Slytherin laughed.

"Badgers are elusive, shy, and do not tolerate people. While all Badgers are protective of their young, the females are especially so."

The Hufflepuff prefect girl nicknamed "Mama badger" gave a mock glare towards all the Slytherins who were hanging out with us. She gave the "I'm watching you" sign.

The Gryffindorians and Ravenclaws laughed. The Slytherins pretended to laugh but I could tell they were upset. I guess it wasn't easy being in the house with the most bullies, especially when you weren't one.

The Slytherin animal is the snake, and just like snakes some of them are poisonous and some are not. Most aren't, but sometimes you have a friend who you think is nice, but really they're just trying to trick you. And sometimes you have a really great friend in Slytherin who hangs out with the wrong kind of people and becomes mean. The older Hufflepuffians always made a special effort to point out the Slytherins who used to be friends with them.

"Pretty much every Slytherin was nice once," they told us, "that's why you need to be the best friend you can while you still have a chance. Don't make our mistakes."

Personally, I found it hard to believe our prefects and seventh years were ever mean to anyone.

One of our house traits is promoting fair play. We want everyone to have the same chance to succeed, which is why I didn't understand the rule that said: "first year Hufflepuffians are not allowed to go anywhere alone with a Slytherin". How were we supposed to change their minds if we never hung out with them? I knew the rules were there for a reason and usually, I would never disobey a rule, but this one was just silly! First year Slytherins were harmless. Everyone knew that!

So, I broke a rule.

I scooted up to a Slytherin first year and whispered.

"Can I come with you when you visit the groundskeeper?"

He nodded excitedly and smiled.

I smiled back.

So, I hung out with his group of first year Slytherins. I was worried at first, but they turned out to be really nice. We played games while we waited for the groundskeeper.

"Woah, did you see that?" One of the girls asked. She ran to the edge of the forest. We followed.

"I thought I saw a unicorn!" She ran inside. The rest of them followed her in. I hesitated. Going into the Forbidden Forest was against the rules.

My friend called to me, "Hey, come on. We're not going in very deep. It's okay. We do this all the time. And don't worry about monsters. They only come out at night." He looked scared, but put on a smile anyway.

"But-" I started.

One of the girls scoffed, "Should'a brought a Gryffindor. They're not scared."

That decided it. I went in after them.

We kept going and going, deeper and deeper into the forest.

We came upon a mini cliff. I peered over the side. It was about as tall as a house. Thick vines trailed all the way to the bottom.

"Oh no! I dropped my broach!" The leader girl cried.

"I'll get it!" I offered, eager to prove my bravery. I got to the bottom and picked it up.

All of a sudden, my new friends started laughing. It was a mean kind of laugh. They were laughing at me.

"Should'a listened to your prefects." Their leader girl said in a sing-song voice. "Toodles!"

They ran away. My best friend mouthed "sorry" before running after them.

I climbed up as quickly as I could, but by the time I was at the top, they were gone.

I was alone, and I had no idea how to get home.

Author Note:

Writing prompt: "Are there any rules a Hufflepuff will break?"