Hazel Brightmoor

Backstory

My name is Hazel Brightmoor, and I’m a first-year Hufflepuff at Hogwarts. I come from a pure-blood family — not the sort that thinks they're better than everyone else — but the kind who believes magic is something you use to help, not to show off. My parents taught me that from the time I could walk: that magic is part of nature, just like sunlight or rain.

For as long as I can remember, I dreamed about the day my own magic would show. In my family, it's a big deal — they tell stories about it at every birthday party. Uncle Theon made a flooded field turn into a forest overnight when he was a boy. Great-Aunt Maribel once charmed a whole swarm of doxy pests to sing instead of bite. I wanted my story to be just as magical.

I was eight years old when it finally happened. It was one of those bright, warm afternoons, and I was in the garden with Mum, helping her gather Flutterby bushes for her potions. Our kneazle, Pip, was darting around as usual — until he decided to climb the tallest tree in the orchard. Before I knew it, he was stuck way up high, yowling like mad.

Mum ran inside to fetch her wand, but I just stood there, panicking. I didn’t even think — I just shouted Pip’s name and reached out. Suddenly, the tree's branches bent down like giant arms, weaving together to form a sort of ladder. Pip clambered down safely, right into my arms.

When Mum came back outside and saw what had happened, she dropped the wand in shock. Then she laughed and cried at the same time and hugged me so tightly I couldn’t breathe. That night, we had a little feast in the garden, with floating lanterns and stories about everyone’s first magic. Dad said mine was the most “Brightmoor” magic he’d seen in generations — magic that listens and cares.

When my Hogwarts letter came this summer, I nearly burst from excitement. And when the Sorting Hat shouted “Hufflepuff!” almost the moment it touched my head, I knew I was exactly where I was meant to be. Now I’m learning real spells, making friends, and spending lots of time in the greenhouses — my favourite place so far.

Magic has always been part of me. It just needed the right moment — and the right kneazle — to finally show itself.