Sorry for removing the chapters and republishing them again, but I noticed some errors and I want to correct them. I know I promised I'll publish them sooner, but I couldn't. Sorry. Thank your patience. If you're mad at me let me know and I'll hurry a bit. Otherwise, I'll consider it's alright for you, and I'll keep my own pace.

Two wild children running against the wind

October 1938

It was a splendid day of autumn. Two kids, a boy, and a girl, no more than eleven years old, went out to celebrate the beauty of the day.

The boy was about a head taller than the girl. His delicate features as well as the confidence of his posture boded a charming future teenager. His every feature was well composed under the cold mask of his pale skin while his eyes shone with an ambition beyond his age. A young demon prince, fallen in the realm of mortals.

The girl was a suitable match for him. She was the miniature version of a future marble goddess. Yet her features were innocent and warm, lacking the cold perfection of a goddess. She was as gracious as a tiny panthera while her peach-bloom dress vibrated under the excitement of her body. Her long auburn ringlets shone in the light of the sun. Even the mischievous wind couldn't help the temptation to mess up the perfect ringlets she kept pushing away from her face.

However, she was hardly bothered by the boldness of the wind. She laughed. A genuine, warm laugh only a child could perform so perfectly.

"Come," she addressed the boy who, compared to her, didn't seem to be moved neither by the beauty of the day nor by the joy of his companion. He walked along with her like a young lord, thoughtful and distant.

Her little hand caught his and she started to run, trying to drag him along with her. He resisted for a while, but as he felt her grip getting looser and looser, only for her to slip away far from him, he seemed to reconsider his decision.

"Come back, Rose. Do not be such a kid." The raven-haired cried after her only to hear her laughing louder as she turned her face towards him.

"Come, Tom. The weather is perfect. Let's run to the pumpkin patch." She begged him and her voice came like a song to his ear.

He didn't seem he enjoy her idea. Yet he didn't seem to want to let her escape his grip, either. It was like he felt she would never come back if he let her fly, but none could say for certain what fears crossed his brilliant mind or how much did the little nymph meant to him.

She had already put a lot of distance between them when the boy finally decided to follow her. He'd checked before only to be sure there was no one around who could see him playing around.

"No one is going to see you, Tom." The girl laughed. "Your perfect image is safe. There's no one as crazy as me to run among the pumpkins. Maybe you. Otherwise, you wouldn't have come, would you? You've known me already. Why have you come? Why would you risk staining your image with me? What if I make you laugh and turn you into an eleven-year boy?"

The girl had inspected every one of his moves and she seemed to have guessed the fight he was giving inside. Despite her cheerfulness, the girl looked like she knew more about life than she let others see. She wore her own mask, but hers appear to be more suitable for her age.

"Stop it, Rose! You said you wanted to find a spot to read." He cried as he finally managed to cover the distance and found himself surrounded by pumpkins. "I didn't know you're going to ask me to run on the field."

"I haven't forced you to…" The girl challenged him. The words came so naturally. "You never asked. Why don't you ask if you know there are things you won't do for me? You've agreed to my idea. Stop agreeing if you're going to disagree later." She cried moments later. Her change of mood puzzled him. He could easily recite the ingredients for a complex potion or the moves for every one of the first years' Transfiguration classes. He had even learned a bit over the goblins revolts. Amberrose's uncle had a huge home library and she'd spent most of her nights reading books about the history of the Magic World.

The way Amberrose spoke or read him about these events had made him interested of finding more, and these few months had been a real challenge for him to come with something new and impress her. However, dealing with real-life wasn't something he was good at especially when he had to come with a good replay at Amberrose's overemotional bursts. So, he did what he knew the best: avoid the topic.

"Now, let's go back!" the boy demanded and he took her by the arm, trying to drag her towards the castle. They weren't very far from the schoolyard, but they were far enough not to be seen by any of their schoolmates. The girl answered by trying to pull him on the opposite side. He was stronger than her, but she wasn't going to obey, either. From time to time, she was forced to take a step towards him, but yet he didn't achieve to make her go with him.

"We read. HERE." she cried. "Tom, I'm not a doll, you know. You must stop treating me like an object. Like those tiny objects you've stolen from the children at the orphanage just because you wanted them." The boy finally let go of her hand. It was red and swollen and he didn't look like he knew how to deal with it. "It will go" the girl spoke after a while as she seemed to understand his confusion, "but there are wounds which won't heal so quickly, Tom."

"Fine. We read here." He decided to let go of his stubbornness and play by her rules. It was the only way he knew to apologize.

"Should I consider myself special as everybody already knows the perfect Tom Marvolo Riddle will never let anyone win?" she teased him. "Maybe, I'll manage to teach you the secret words, too. They are "thank you" and "I'm sorry"."

"You haven't won. I just prefer to be lonely here rather than to have those dumbheads asking me stupid questions."

"If you say so." She laughed.

"When I was four years old, I used to spend time in the countryside with my parents. There was a very nice village, somewhere at the foot of the Alps. In the autumn, people started to pick up the harvest and I would go on the fields. I've always found pumpkins funny. There was a nice villager who would let me play with them. I used to put them around me, imagining that I was the teacher and they were my students and I kept mumbling stupid things to them. I was mostly ordering around than explaining. My father used to say that I looked more like a commander in front of his troops than a teacher. He thought I was a little warrior." She stopped for a while. "He...my father was an officer. He'd fought in the First World War. I was so proud of him at the time. He was great. Yes, he had his flaws and everything, but I miss him. I miss them both."

The boy didn't say a thing. He looked over the page of the book, but it was clear he wasn't paying attention to the text. The girl had abandoned the book long ago. She was sitting next to a huge pumpkin, leaning her head on its harsh peel. Her amber eyes were full of tears, but she was struggling not to let them fall.

"I know I'm being selfish." She started "I should not speak to you about my parents or how happy we were. I'm such a bad friend." The girl stopped for a while. "But...but you're my only friend and I… This…" she gestured towards the pumpkin patch "it reminds me of them. I'm not brave. I'm not as brave as them. I….He was wrong. I'm not a warrior and least of all a commander. I can't.. I can't save anyone."

Amberrose woke up in the three, disguised as a black cat She'd climbed at the top of a tree so she could notice Tommy when he would arrive. She'd inspected the area, asking questions and planning her next move. She met some of her friends and instructed them to check every inch of the village and gather as much info they could. She only needed to hear what Tommy had to say in order to decide how to deal with the attackers. Then she'd returned to a spot from where she could supervise the entire village.

It seemed she'd fallen asleep there. The sun was so lovely and her Animagus form made it even lazier and sleepy. After all, cats love to sleep. She loved it, too, and she would fall asleep every time she got the occasion. Just like a cat. Yet, even asleep the predator senses were still active. Amberrose could instantly turn from a sleepy cat to a vigilant Auror. She could register and understand everything that happened around her and even remember when she got up. It was an instinct she'd developed during the many years she'd spent fighting.

Sometimes she dreamt about things that happened in her past, but it was very rare to dream about her friendship with Tom. She hadn't thought of him for such a long time. At least not as the boy she'd met at Hogwarts. Voldemort was another business. Yet she was happy she hadn't dreamt of him either.

Despite everything, Amberrose still remembered that day. They were in their first year at Hogwarts and they were so young and full of dreams…. But a lot of things changed since then. So many..

Soon Tommy appeared, young and carefree.

"Meow" He looked up only for his hazel eyes to meet the yellow ones of the black feline.

"Is it you, Amber?" Tommy laughed. "You look quite…."

Ravishing would have been what the cat would have said if she could. Instead, she jumped down from the tree and gesture for him to follow her. As if reading her mind, Tommy gave up trying to find a suitable word.

Andreas was alone in his luxurious mansion when he heard the bells ring at the door.

He had lazily settled in his comfortable leather couch with a book in his hands, enjoying his free day when Amberrose and Tommy decided to pay him a visit. His house-elf was free as well. Andreas enjoyed his company, but the old buddy needed some time for himself. After all, Eiche - the old house-elf- had spent a long part of his life dealing with the chaos little Andreas used to cause and he'd never complained about it. Now, Andreas was a big man. He was 27 years old, and he was one of the best Aurors OZD had.

He'd never thought about his house-elves' needs and efforts before he applied to OZD for a post of Auror. He had even got some rude remarks from Ivy for being an arrogant spoilt brat. However, Andreas ended enjoying his time at OZD quarters and he'd started to learn more about Muggles and elves. After all, ignorance is the cause of all misunderstandings. If only all the pureblood families were to put a little effort to learn about those they considered lesser, they would be surprised to find how wrong they'd been.

Outside, the black cat and Tommy were waiting for their young colleague to appear at the door.

"I bet he will be delighted to see you," Tommy joked. He knew her people loved her, he loved her as well, but still having your boss at your door in your free day...there were some limits. "I hope he still has that delicious Schwartzwaldkuchen," he added and he looked at his furry companion. He didn't like sweets and so the remark caused Amberrose to cast a glance at him. Tommy guessed the surprise from the yellow eyes of the cat and answered, "It keeps you happy... and less prone to pick each of our errors."

The cat presented him with her fluffy tail and directed her attention towards the door.

"Very mature," Tommy remarked, muttering through his teeth.

"I've brought you this tiny demon," Tommy said as soon as Andreas opened the door. The cat meowed and passed by her very surprised blond colleague who was still staring at Tommy. "She's already inside." The young spy added, "Don't waste your energy to get her out. She's probably already on your cozy sofa."

"Hi, Tommy!" Andreas finally got over the surprise. "I wanted to say that's nice of you to visit me, but I doubt your visit has anything to do with you missing me. Come in, Tommy. Amberrose must be waiting for us."

You can read the story on Watpad, too, and it has some songs attached to it. This chapter including.