* Autumn leaves *
The first week of classes had flown by and they were now having breakfast in the Great Hall on their first Saturday at Hogwarts. Luckily, she had finished her homework the night before, having just an Astronomy quiz due for the following Thursday.
"So... how about we go exploring the castle today?" Teddy suggested, shoveling a piece of toast in his mouth. Belle looked up to the ceiling, which resembled the sky outside. It was a clear day.
"It's a lovely day outside. Maybe we can go to the lake or walk around the ground.," she said. The blonde boy sitting next to her nodded in agreement.
"Alright. But tomorrow we explore the castle." Teddy agreed. Belle and Adam nodded, and soon after they were finished eating, they grabbed their jackets from their dorms and went outside. It was a beautiful autumn day. The air was fresh and clear, the sky was blue and the sun was shining timidly above them all. Gold, yellow and brown leaves covered the ground. It was such a wonderful view to look at! The three 11-year-olds were walking around when suddenly Belle spotted it: a perfectly tall pile of autumn leaves right in front of Hagrid's pumpkin patch. It was so tempting! So good to be true. She stopped walking and looked at it. She could almost feel the leaves crunching beneath her, the sound they made as she stepped on them. She couldn't resist!
"... and uncle Harry gave us all that candy. Remember, Belle?" Teddy said. He and Adam stopped walking when they noticed she wasn't with them anymore. "Belle? Where the hell...?" he started before Adam nudged him.
With a big smile on her face and her hair out loose, Belle ran as fast as she could to the big pile of leaves, then jumped as high as she could, turning herself around and landing on her back on the pile of leaves. Adam and Teddy quickly rushed to her and found her laughing aloud.
"What do you think you're doing, Belle?" Teddy asked as a black dog ran to them and stopped right next to Belle. Seconds later, a big, hairy man walked to them.
"I thought I heard voices. Hey yeh, Teddy!" Hagrid said as Fang licked Belle's hands. Hagrid looked at his pet and the girl playing. "And here's Miss Granger-Weasley, I guess." he added as Belle looked at him, smiling. Adam reached out to her and helped her up.
"Hi Hagrid! Sorry about that. I just..." she started before the semi giant cut her in with a laugh.
"Yer just like yer mother! Ye can't resist a good ol' pile of leaves!" he said. Belle looked at him with her big, brown eyes, confused. "Yer mother used to do this every autumn. Her first year, she said it reminded her of her house. At that time, she wasn't friends with yer dad yet." he added. Belle smiled as Hagrid, Teddy and Adam talked about school and stuff.
The following years at Hogwarts, every first Saturday of September, Belle got outside right after breakfast and ran to the pile of leaves that Hagrid had gently racked and left for her to play with, letting her feel like a child again for a little while.
The first Saturday of their last year at school was pouring outside and they had more homework to do than any other year of their lives. So they all sat quietly in the common room. Teddy and Victoire were spreaded on the couch, talking about their next Hogsmeade trip. Not so far from them, 11-year-olds James Potter and Fred Weasley II were sat on the floor and very engaged in a game of Gobestone. Belle and Adam were sat at a table in the corner; she was working on an essay while he was staring at her. She looked up at him and smiled.
"What? Do I have ink on my face?" she asked. He just smiled, leaned forward and kissed her cheek.
"I need to go to the library. I need another book for that Ancient Studies essay. Care to join me?" he asked gallantly as he took her hand in his. She blushed, giggled, and nodded, standing up. As they walked down the halls, she realized that they weren't actually going to the library.
"Adam, this is not the way to the library." she pointed out as they turned around in a seventh floor's corner. Adam just looked at her and smiled mischievously. They stopped a few minutes later in front of a wooden door. When Adam opened it, the place looked like a forest taken from a fairy tale: there were long, brown trees, which leaves were falling to an already brown-ish floor. Right in front of them, there was a fresh pile of golden and brown leaves. Belle looked at Adam, mesmerized.
"I couldn't let you leave Hogwarts without jumping on the pile of leaves on the first Saturday of school." he said, smiling. She flung her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately on the lips. Then, she pulled away and ran fast to the pile of leaves, and just as on her first year there, she jumped as high as she could, turning herself around and landing on her back on the pile of leaves, laughing aloud.