inaudibly backpack
Age 8 / 761 words
Dennis woke with a start, surprised he'd managed to fall asleep. He looked around in alarm, but calmed down when he finally saw the clock. Quarter to two in the morning. He hadn't overslept -- and this was as good a time to get up as any, so he carefully unset his alarm and then pulled the covers off. He'd sneakily gone to bed in T-shirt and trousers, so all he had to do was pull his jumper on, his backpack out from under the bed and arrange his pillows under the covers to look like him, and he was set to go.
Moving as carefully and quietly as he could, Dennis sneaked across his room and cracked open the door, peering through the gap. There was no-one on the dark landing. He opened the door wider, sticking his head out and looking both ways. The coast was clear. Dennis stepped out and froze instantly when the floorboard under his foot creaked. He listened hard, holding his breath, but no-one stirred so, ever-so-carefully, he took another step, and another. There was no sound in the house. He kept on going, walking as softly as he could, hopefully inaudibly, backpack clutched tight in his arms where it couldn't accidentally hit anything with it. Still quiet. He was going to get away with it. Ninja Dennis wins again! He rounded the corner and--
--walked smack-dab into a yawning Colin who was coming out of the bathroom. They both crashed to the floor.
"What--?" managed Colin before Dennis's hands covered his mouth.
"Shhh!" Dennis hissed at him.
Colin blinked up at him. There was a long silence in which Dennis heard nothing but his own heart pounding in his ears. He slowly take his hands away.
"What are you doing?" Colin whispered at him. "Are you running away?"
"No!" said Dennis, indignantly, then clapped his hands over his own mouth.
"Then why--?"
"M kmmng nh Hugnrts!" Dennis whispered through his fingers.
Colin stared blankly, then reached up and tugged Dennis's hands down.
"I'm coming to Hogwarts," Dennis repeated.
"You can't," Colin said. "You don't go there. You go to school here."
"I can too," Dennis insisted. "I'm going to hide in the boot, right, and then when Dad puts the trunk in, I'm going to hide in that, and then they can take me to school with you and I can learn magic too!"
"In my trunk?"
"Yes!"
"He'd see you in the boot."
"I'd hide under the rug!"
"The rug he's putting the trunk on."
"I'd hide at the back!"
"You'd get squished!"
"I'm small! I could fit!"
"You'd get squished like a bug under a shoe. And what would you eat while you were living in my trunk and learning magic?"
"You could smuggle me food! Oh! Oh! You could tell people you had a living trunk monster thing that you had to keep feeding or it would eat all your books and things! Like the luggage in those books! And--"
Colin pushed Dennis's hands over his mouth again.
"Don't you think Dad would notice when you weren't in the car?" Colin asked.
"Pllws," Dennis said.
"That never works," Colin said. "Anyway, you can't come."
"Bt--!" Dennis tried.
"You have to stay here and look after Dad," Colin said, patiently. "You can come when you're old enough."
"W'if th dn--" Colin pulled Dennis's hands back down. "What if they don't let me in?!" Dennis asked in a frantic semi-whisper.
"I'll beat 'em up," said Colin.
Dennis blinked, then giggled. "No you won't!"
"They won't know that," said Colin reasonably, "so they'll just have to let you in."
"Really?"
"'course! You're my brother, aren't you?"
"Yes!"
"Then they gotta let you in. Creevey's stick together, right?" Colin asked. Dennis nodded, seriously. "I'll send you lots of letters and photos and magic stuff that I'm allowed to."
"Okay," said Dennis. "I wish I was going with you, though!"
"Me too, Den," said Colin, and hugged him. "Now back to bed before you wake Dad. Do you need to go the bathroom first?" Dennis shook his head. "Come on then. I'll let you look at my textbooks again."
Dennis beamed. "Thanks, Colin."
"Just remember they've got to be packed in the morning."
"I will," said Dennis, and did, although only because he hadn't gone back to sleep, instead reading his way through the books and the rest of the night so that he yawned and drifted through their goodbyes at the station.
(It didn't stop him having one last go at sneaking onboard the train though...)
Dennis woke with a start, surprised he'd managed to fall asleep. He looked around in alarm, but calmed down when he finally saw the clock. Quarter to two in the morning. He hadn't overslept -- and this was as good a time to get up as any, so he carefully unset his alarm and then pulled the covers off. He'd sneakily gone to bed in T-shirt and trousers, so all he had to do was pull his jumper on, his backpack out from under the bed and arrange his pillows under the covers to look like him, and he was set to go.
Moving as carefully and quietly as he could, Dennis sneaked across his room and cracked open the door, peering through the gap. There was no-one on the dark landing. He opened the door wider, sticking his head out and looking both ways. The coast was clear. Dennis stepped out and froze instantly when the floorboard under his foot creaked. He listened hard, holding his breath, but no-one stirred so, ever-so-carefully, he took another step, and another. There was no sound in the house. He kept on going, walking as softly as he could, hopefully inaudibly, backpack clutched tight in his arms where it couldn't accidentally hit anything with it. Still quiet. He was going to get away with it. Ninja Dennis wins again! He rounded the corner and--
--walked smack-dab into a yawning Colin who was coming out of the bathroom. They both crashed to the floor.
"What--?" managed Colin before Dennis's hands covered his mouth.
"Shhh!" Dennis hissed at him.
Colin blinked up at him. There was a long silence in which Dennis heard nothing but his own heart pounding in his ears. He slowly take his hands away.
"What are you doing?" Colin whispered at him. "Are you running away?"
"No!" said Dennis, indignantly, then clapped his hands over his own mouth.
"Then why--?"
"M kmmng nh Hugnrts!" Dennis whispered through his fingers.
Colin stared blankly, then reached up and tugged Dennis's hands down.
"I'm coming to Hogwarts," Dennis repeated.
"You can't," Colin said. "You don't go there. You go to school here."
"I can too," Dennis insisted. "I'm going to hide in the boot, right, and then when Dad puts the trunk in, I'm going to hide in that, and then they can take me to school with you and I can learn magic too!"
"In my trunk?"
"Yes!"
"He'd see you in the boot."
"I'd hide under the rug!"
"The rug he's putting the trunk on."
"I'd hide at the back!"
"You'd get squished!"
"I'm small! I could fit!"
"You'd get squished like a bug under a shoe. And what would you eat while you were living in my trunk and learning magic?"
"You could smuggle me food! Oh! Oh! You could tell people you had a living trunk monster thing that you had to keep feeding or it would eat all your books and things! Like the luggage in those books! And--"
Colin pushed Dennis's hands over his mouth again.
"Don't you think Dad would notice when you weren't in the car?" Colin asked.
"Pllws," Dennis said.
"That never works," Colin said. "Anyway, you can't come."
"Bt--!" Dennis tried.
"You have to stay here and look after Dad," Colin said, patiently. "You can come when you're old enough."
"W'if th dn--" Colin pulled Dennis's hands back down. "What if they don't let me in?!" Dennis asked in a frantic semi-whisper.
"I'll beat 'em up," said Colin.
Dennis blinked, then giggled. "No you won't!"
"They won't know that," said Colin reasonably, "so they'll just have to let you in."
"Really?"
"'course! You're my brother, aren't you?"
"Yes!"
"Then they gotta let you in. Creevey's stick together, right?" Colin asked. Dennis nodded, seriously. "I'll send you lots of letters and photos and magic stuff that I'm allowed to."
"Okay," said Dennis. "I wish I was going with you, though!"
"Me too, Den," said Colin, and hugged him. "Now back to bed before you wake Dad. Do you need to go the bathroom first?" Dennis shook his head. "Come on then. I'll let you look at my textbooks again."
Dennis beamed. "Thanks, Colin."
"Just remember they've got to be packed in the morning."
"I will," said Dennis, and did, although only because he hadn't gone back to sleep, instead reading his way through the books and the rest of the night so that he yawned and drifted through their goodbyes at the station.
(It didn't stop him having one last go at sneaking onboard the train though...)