A/N: I'm not sure what this is, exactly. I just started writing about Ernie and his first time in the common room...I don't even know. Okay.

Words: 653.
Pairings: None.
Date Written On: October 15, 2011.

you might belong in hufflepuff,
where they are just and loyal,
those patient hufflepuffs are true and
unafraid of toil.

"First years, this way!" a tall, black haired boy announced, walking towards some stairs leading down. Ernie sped up and got in between two other first years, each of them looking around at the moving portraits. Ernie fiddled with his pockets and watched as older Hufflepuffs skirted around the first years, all of them talking animatedly.

The boy to his right side coughed nervously, and Ernie looked at him, a small smile darting across his features. "Hello, I'm Ernie. Ernie Macmillan," he said, holding his hand out to shake.

"Justin Finch-Fletchley," the boy said happily, shaking Ernie's hand with the one he didn't cough into. He had black hair that was curly and only slightly out of control, no where near as bad as that one girl's at the sorting, who was now in Gryffindor.

He was a little short, about an inch shorter than Ernie, and Ernie himself wasn't that tall. He was thin, with a gap between his teeth and brown eyes, making him look younger than eleven. But he seemed nice enough. He was in Hufflepuff after all.

"I'm Hannah," a girl said shyly from the other side of Ernie. He looked over with Justin, and he saw the girl was shorter than them both. She had blonde hair and a slightly pink face, clashing with her light green eyes. Her hair was in pigtails. "Abbott," she added.

"Ernie."

"Justin."

Smiling at them both, Hannah pointed towards one of the paintings. "These are wonderful, aren't they?"

Before either of the boys could reply, the tall boy that called the first years began to speak again. "Here we are," he said, "the Hufflepuff common room. To get in, you must tap the barrel two to the bottom, middle of the second row, in the rhythm of 'Helga Hufflepuff', and the lid will swing open, letting you lot in. If you do it wrongly, you're…well, doused in vinegar."

The boy tapped the barrel and demonstrated how to get in before stepping aside as everything opened up. The first years, including Hannah, Ernie, and Justin, all walked forward into the room in amazement. Ernie laughed gleefully as he took everything in.

The room had yellow hangings from the ceiling and fat armchairs surrounding various tables. There were flowers in some corners and it was relatively warm and cozy, reminding Ernie of his sitting room at home. He spotted some windows and he could see grass and dandelions, only visible through the moonlight. He saw tables and a fireplace, both of which were clean for the start of the new year.

"Alright," the tall boy said again, "these two barrel shaped doors are your entrance to your dorms. On the right is the girls." A girl nodded towards all the female first years and they followed her, entering the barrels. "The left is the boys. Follow me—"

Ernie, Justin, and the other boys followed him, crouching down. They walked through the short tunnel before entering a small hallway, seven separate doors leading to seven separate rooms.

"First years, here's your dorms. The other ones are for second to seventh years. All your items have been brought up and put by your respective beds."

With that being said, the tall boy walked off and entered what looked to be the fifth year dormitory rooms. Other Hufflepuffs walked to their own dorms, and the first year boys entered their rooms.

Looking in his new room, Ernie saw Justin and two other boys run to their beds, laughing and talking to one another. The beds were four-posters and each of them had a patchwork quilts, embroidered with the Hogwarts symbol and various Houses. There were copper lamps, each of them shining, and copper bed warmers hanging on the walls by each of the beds.

Ernie smiled contently.