Written for THC. Round 5, Slytherin, Divination, Standard.

Prompts: [Animal] Rabbit, [Colour] Blue.

Word count: 1671

Betas: Aya, Gecko

Notes: Pre-Hogwarts.

Lying down on the hard grassy ground, Hermione looked up at the large English oak tree towering above her. The green leaves provided adequate shade in this intense heat, and she liked to watch them sway in the light breeze. The bright blue sky poked through the gaps, making the light glisten.

Hermione had come out to collect pine cones for a school project, which she knew she would ace, but she had got distracted by the beauty of the tree and the shade it provided. It helped her avoid the intense heat that was beating down intensely.

This would be the perfect spot to read a good book. Closing her eyes, she listened to the sound of the wind whistling above her, the bushes rustling, and smelt the clean, fresh air.

She could get lost in this world, in the quiet, peaceful nature that it was.

Unfortunately, it never lasted. At school, the bullies would make comments or force her to go somewhere else. At home, her parents would encourage her to go out and play with friends she didn't have. Here… well, here… it was neither of them.

Hermione, being a curious eight-year-old, opened her eyes when a new sound alerted her to the presence of someone—well, something—a rabbit.

Her lips turned upwards. It didn't look hurt or lost, just content. Hermione shared that with the animal, that sense of freedom that wasn't always allowed.

As the rabbit hopped closer, Hermione slowly pushed herself up into a seated position. "Hello," she whispered gently.

A dark blue collar caught her attention. "Who do you belong to?" she asked softly, allowing the rabbit to jump onto her lap.

Smiling and stroking the bold animal, she checked out the label, which identified its name and where it lived.

"Right, Hope. I think I should take you back to your owner. If I lost you as a pet, I'd be devastated."

Hermione held Hope as securely and carefully as she could while she stood up and wandered in the opposite direction of her home. She recognised the street name and knew it wasn't far.

The grass had been freshly mowed, leaving clumps lying around the field. She started to avoid them, then began kicking them out of the way until she was on the road. She wasn't allowed to cross the road by herself, so she hoped that number 17 was on this side as she turned left down the path. Number 12. That didn't bode well. Perhaps Hope's owner was looking for her, and she wouldn't need to cross.

But no one was on the street.

Hermione looked left and right before continuing on her path until she was opposite number 17. The light blue door looked faded as she stared at it before leaning side to side to see if there was anyone in the windows. But luck was not in her favour.

She couldn't leave the poor rabbit here; it wasn't safe. She needed to return it.

She could do it.

Once again, she looked left and right. It was all clear. Hermione hated breaking rules, but this was for the greater good, wasn't it?

Looking left and right again, she quickly went for it and walked across the road to the other side. Then, without any further hesitation, marched up to the door and knocked.

A few long seconds passed as she examined the chipped blue paint. It seemed the door had been green before—she wondered why they had changed it but didn't have time to dwell on that when she heard movement in the house. She wasn't supposed to be here. Maybe she should put the rabbit down and go home before her parents knew she had gone this far from home.

The door swung open, revealing an older, tall, thin woman with beady eyes and a deep frown. "What?"

"Is this your rabbit? I found your address on its collar."

The woman eyed up the animal and sighed. "It's my sons. Michael!"

Hermione stepped back at her shout, having not expected it. Thankfully, the second a boy—probably two years older than herself—appeared, the woman went back inside.

"Hope! You found her!"

Michael grinned at her and took Hope out of her arms.

"Thank you! Where was she?" he asked with a bright smile.

Hermione pointed down the alleyway she had just come from. "The field behind those houses."

"Thank you for bringing her back! I've been so worried." He stroked Hope affectionately. "Did you want to come in? I can show you where she's supposed to be."

Hermione hesitated. She wasn't allowed to go into stranger's houses; that was also against the rules. "I'm not allowed…"

"Oh, of course. What if we went around the backway?"

It's like he knew what she was going to say. Nobody had before. "Sure," she agreed. "But I can't stay long."

Michael stepped out of the front door and closed it behind him before leading her around the side of the house and into a back garden. There, she saw a rabbit house with two more rabbits in it. They all had matching dark blue collars and looked well-fed.

"Did you choose the collars?" Hermione enquired as she looked at the three rabbits.

Michael nodded before replying, "Yes. I wanted sky blue, but these ones were cheaper. It's a really nice colour and stands out."

"It caught my eye in the field," Hermione admitted. "Do you like having animals?"

"Definitely! It's the best thing ever."

"How long have you had them?"

"That's Kyle; he was my first rabbit. I've had him for about two years. Then I got Hope shortly after, who you've already met," he said, putting Hope back into the cage. "And the white one is Fluffy; she's got a divider until they all get along. I've only had her a short while. Rabbits can be very territorial."

"I didn't know that," Hermione admitted.

Michael smiled. "Now you do! I love animals and have probably read every book about them."

Hermione immediately brightened up at his comment. "I love reading!"

"Me too!" Michael walked away from her but stopped and turned back. "Come on. Let's get some food for the rabbits. Hope's been missing since yesterday; I'm not sure how well she's eaten."

Oh no! Poor Hope. Hermione didn't hesitate to follow him and stood just outside the back door. That was keeping within the rules. Inside the house, everything was very beige. "There's not much colour in there."

Michael pulled out carrots, celery, and other fresh veg and began to cut them up. "My mums not bothered about colour. Says it's too much work to maintain. Each year, though, she lets me paint the front door."

"That's why it's blue? Because it's your favourite colour, right?"

Michael laughed and turned towards her. "Exactly. I like adding colour to the front of the house. What's your favourite colour?"

Hermione gave that a moment of thought. "Violet," she answered.

"Is that the same colour as your room?"

"No. My room is lilac at the moment. It's similar but not quite violet. I would say my room has a mix of a few colours with the furniture and bedding."

"My room is really colourful, too. But the rest… well, it's a bit bland if you ask me."

Hermione nodded in agreement. "My house has spots of colour around. Mainly flower designs and dentist decor."

"Dentist?"

"My parents are both dentists!" Hermione informed him proudly. "So they collect things to do with that. Makes it interesting."

"Do they have teeth on their wall?" he asked, putting all of the vegetables on a blue plastic plate and walking back out of the house to stand next to her.

Hermione laughed. "No, no. That would be weird. There's only one artwork hung up, and it's not of teeth. The rest of their collection is stored in their bedroom or the attic."

He nodded to accept that answer. "Did you want to feed them?"

"Yes, please! What do I do?"

Michael handed her the plate and slowly opened one of the hatches. "Put two-thirds of the food in this bowl. The rest will go to Fluffy in her bowl."

Hermione followed his instructions and handed him back the plate. "Thank you, Michael. I should probably go back now. I don't want to get in trouble with my parents."

"Why would you get in trouble?"

Hermione took a deep breath. "Well, firstly, my parents are unaware of where I am; therefore, if they needed me, they wouldn't be able to find me. Secondly, I'm not allowed to cross a road by myself, even though I am fully capable of such a task. Third, I am not allowed to go into a stranger's house, especially without my parent's permission, and while I didn't think the garden counted when I came in here, what if it did? Fourth, we never asked your mum if I was allowed in your garden. What if she gets mad?"

Michael's face relaxed as she rambled on. "I promise I would never let you get in trouble with my mum. As for your parents… how about I walk you back so you don't break another one of their rules?"

Hermione considered this for a moment. She wouldn't be crossing the road alone if somebody went with her. "That sounds nice. Thank you."

"It's the least I could do to repay you for returning my rabbit."

So, they both looked left and right and when it was clear, they crossed together and went to the big oak tree.

Three weeks later, when Hermione was out on a walk with her dad, she saw Michael outside his house painting the front door. Her face lit up—he was painting it violet!

"Dad! That's Michael! The boy I was telling you about!"

Her dad smiled brightly. "Go ahead and say hello. I'll wait here."

Hermione looked left and right, then left and right again, before crossing the road and over to Michael with a big grin on her face.