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akblake-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Timid, shuffling footsteps roused Armando from a deep sleep, and he muzzily tried to make sense of the tiny pale blob just in front of him. It took a few seconds, but he eventually resolved that it was a face lit by flickering candlelight, and that could only mean one thing- one of his badgers needed his help.
“’m up,” he mumbled as he shoved his inconveniently lanky frame upright and tried to shake off the heaviness of sleep which made his body feel like lead. A tangle of hair was irritably shoved behind his ear as it fell into his face. “What’s wrong, Eddie?” he asked as he finally identified the dimly-lit face. Edward Tanner, muggleborn, and one of only two Hufflepuff firsties who stayed behind during the Midwinter hols.
Edward, who vehemently preferred Eddie, bit his lower lip and shifted nervously from foot to foot, obviously trying to work up his courage. Armando budged up in bed and lifted the counterpane in invitation, which Eddie immediately took. A bit of scurry, with what he could feel would soon be colorful bruises from bony knees and elbows, and the chilled first year was tucked up warmly alongside, cozy as a badger in its sett.
“Now, what has you all up in a bother this Christmas? Someone gift you a bucket of ice on your feet, or summat?” Armando teased, which at least drew a grin from his charge.
“No, Prefect Dippett, but…” Eddie pulled the bedding up around his face as he prevaricated, and Armando felt an edge of worry creep in. Eddie hadn’t been one for homesickness, and had happily weathered all the spirited shenanigans his fellow badgers threw his way, so for him to be so reticent was vastly out of character.
Armando did what he always did to soothe a homesick badger- he lifted his arm and invited the firstie in for a cuddle; a cuddle which Eddie all but knocked them off the bed in claiming as he dove into Armando’s side. “Now, take a big breath,” he instructed, and felt small shoulders lift as Eddie fitted action to words. “Hold for a second, and now slowly out. There you go. Nothing is so bad that you can’t say it, and my job is to help if you need it, not judge. So, what has you up at…” Armando checked the tiny clock by his bedside and nearly groaned, “three in the morning?”
“I woke up to get a drink, and found… presents at the foot of my bed. I’ll be arrested and sent to gaol!” Eddie whispered, and shivered.
Quickly wracking his memory for any sort of idea why presents should be criminal left Armando feeling lost, until he remembered. “Oh, I forgot!” he chastised himself. “I’m so sorry, Eddie, I truly meant to explain two days ago, but then Marcus came down with dragonpox and we were all so scattered with decorating yesterday that I completely forgot.” Armando kicked himself for letting one of his charges down.
“Eddie, only the muggles have banned Christmas- for us it’s a day of celebration.” Eddie gave him a look of disbelief mingled with hope at that declaration. “We’ll all open presents this morning, at the proper time to have a morning,” he gently nudged Eddie, and caught a hint of a grin before the firstie ducked his head to hide it. “Then we’ll visit some of our friends from other houses, to thank them for our gifts. Lunch will be only nibbles, as our real treat will come later. But after lunch, we’ll have great fun- we all dance and carol in the Great Hall, play games, and maybe even have a pantomime if we’re lucky. House points aren’t awarded or taken today as it’s a day of unity, for us to all mingle with our friends and share the joy. Then… the feast!”
His little badger had cheered immensely, and Armando felt proud at turning the firstie’s fear into anticipation. “We’ll feast tonight, even better than the Great feast! There’ll be roasts by the platter, more mince pies than you can count, and we’re even given hot butterbeer for the night,” he enthused, and felt his stomach groan hungrily at the memory of previous Yule feasts.
“After the feast, we all waddle back to our dorms to gather around the fire and spend time with our own house. Before we’re to bed, we’ll remember those we’ve lost this year, and share their memory with our housemates; I’ve a great uncle who I’ll be sharing this year- he made it all the way to one hundred and fifty-two! Bald as an egg, he was, but still cheeky enough to have Auntie smack him one at our gatherings,” Armando laughed despite the sharp twinge in his chest. He truly missed his Uncle Worple, who had been a lively presence all through his life.
Eddie yawned and broke Armando’s reverie. “Alright you, ready to pop off back to your own bed now? Some of us need our beauty sleep,” he joked, and grinned as Eddie laughed. Armando was certain that his curly mop of hair had settled into quite the tangle from sleep, and that sight should send his young badger off with something to giggle about. Eddie untangled himself from the counterpane and scampered off back to bed, taking his candle with him to leave the room comfortably black.
Armando settled himself back into bed, tucked himself back under the covers properly, and simply lay in the dark for a few moments. This was his first year being a Prefect, and he adored it. He loved to work with his little badgers, even the ones who woke him up at inconvenient hours, as their joy after he helped fix their problems lifted his own spirit. Perhaps he should speak with his Head of House after Yule to discuss changing his career ideas? Armando drifted off to sleep thinking about how he could make a life helping others, and children in particular.
