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Scabbers the Rat
Scabbers the rat was being carried down to breakfast in the holey pocket of the boring boy he’d attached himself to several years ago, Percy Weasley. He fell back asleep halfway down the stairs as the boy droned on about something or other. Scabbers wasn’t sure what it was as he’d learned to tune the boy out a long time ago. But, the boy’s voice was just perfect for lulling a rat (or anyone, really) to sleep. He didn’t wake up again until he was snatched out of the pocket and plunked down on the table, the smell of a delicious breakfast wafting to his nostrils and rousing him from dreams of cheese. He sniffed about, hungrily. The Weasleys may seem like an impecunious family to most, but they certainly didn’t lack for good, hearty, food.
But, before he could so much as step over Percy’s knife to sneak a morsel off his plate, the Weasleys’ decrepit old owl, Errol, came swooping in the window carrying what looked like letters from Hogwarts. The normally sedentary rat jumped from the table before he could be eaten or, more likely, squashed by the owl. Scabbers was almost asleep again under one of the chairs when a loud whooping startled him. Two of the brothers started talking at once but, Scabbers was able to make out two things: Percy had been made a prefect and the youngest boy, Ron, had gotten his first Hogwarts letter.
Scabbers thought he’d better hurry out of the kitchen before he got stomped on in the scuffle that would surely ensue following this news. There would be a lot of hugging and screeching by Mrs. Weasley, he was certain. And sure enough, no sooner had he thought it, then there was a crash as the dumpy witch jumped up from her seat, her plate crashing to the ground, as she hurried around to the other side of the table in a rush of pride and joy. Scabbers scuttled around the broken plate and out of the kitchen as quick as he could.
The family left for Diagon Alley that day and Scabbers took the opportunity to snooze. He mentally groaned when they came back bearing an owl cage. A young owl was certain to spell trouble for the rodent. However, luckily for Scabbers, he was to be given to Ron. A muggle rat probably wouldn’t notice much of a change. Even a wizarding rat might not care much at all about being passed down from one Weasley to another. But, Scabbers was no ordinary rat at all and he paled at the news. Ronald Weasley, the youngest of the six Weasley sons, was the same age as the legendary Harry Potter and Scabbers was certain that he would be at Hogwarts, as well. Not only that, the chances that the two boys would both be in Gryffindor were very good, based on family histories. Scabbers was petrified that somehow Potter would know who he really was, even though he knew that was impossible. Scabbers settled down for an uneasy nap on the lap of his new owner, shaking slightly with nervousness.
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The Game - Round 1 - Creatures and Plants
Department_of_Mysteries The Game - Round 1 - Creatures and Plants Jun 4 2006, 04:03 AM
Jun 4 2006, 04:03 AM
