Just Add Love

☆ chapter one ☆

        "Higher, Daddy, higher!" The young girl yells at the very top of the swing of a swingset. The adult behind her just chuckles and says, "Are you trying to go to outer space, Peach?", proceeding to push her slightly higher.

        "And beyond!" The little girl giggles out. She shoots her arms out in front of her, aiming for the sky. She slowly starts to realize that there is no longer any force behind her, pushing her. She turns her head and sees her father lying on the ground behind her, a cold, emotionless expression on his face. The little girl jumps off the swing from the top, terrified. She looks down to where she's about to land...

        "Soleil! Get up, we're going to miss the train!" Soleil bolts up, taking her in her surroundings. She sees her bedroom, decorated with navy blue trinkets and flags. She lets out a sigh of relief as she turns onto her side, laying in her bed. She sees, on her nightstand, a framed picture of her mother and herself twirling around in front of a summer day. The moving picture captures her mother's beauty, she thought. She sighs, again, this one feeling content. 

        She stands groggily out of her bed, slumping over to her dresser and standing mirror, where she changes into a pair of black ripped jeans and a white polo, tucked in with a black belt. She brushes out her long brown hair, letting some waves slip through her naturally straight hairstyle. She applies minimal makeup, finishing it all off with a silver necklace with a small raven on the charm. She slips on some shoes and drags her trunk down the stairs, where she sees her mother, standing in the doorway of the kitchen, tapping her foot.

        "...what? I'm sorry that it takes a while to look *this* good.." Soleil jokes, trying to ease the glare being thrown at her. Pomona just rolls her eyes, "There is some toast on the counter. Grab and go breakfast for your majesty," she remarks. Pomona picks up her own trunks and shuffles out the door, Soleil following closely behind, a piece of toast dangling from her mouth. They both set their trunks in the backseat and get in the car.

"Ready?" Pomona asks, an enthusiastic smile on her face.

"Ready," Soleil replies, "Hogwarts, here we come."

 ฅʕ•̫͡•ʔฅ

        They arrive at the platform at 10:50. Almost everyone had already boarded the train, except for a couple of first-years, clinging to their parents, not wanting to say goodbye. "I'll see you at the school, deary. Have you got everything?" Pomona says, gesturing to Soleil's trunk. She nods and gives her mother a quick hug as Pomona disappears into the teacher's car of the train. Soleil lets out a small sigh as she steps onto the train, scurrying through the narrow hallway outside the compartments, searching for a familiar set of faces. Two in particular, actually; Iris and Ezra.

        She stops in her tracks as she sees a tall figure standing in the middle of the corridor, seemingly buying some sweets off the cart. The boy had already changed into his school robes, Gryfinndor, she thought. Who was this, standing in front of her that she didn't know? Being her fourth year at Hogwarts, she thought she would know every student around her age. Interrupting her train of thought, the boy turns to her and clears his throat. She snaps her head up at him, leaving her imagination behind, as her eyes slightly grow wider at her discovery.

        "Oh, hello, Soleil!" Neville Longbottom says with a friendly smile. He's holding a chocolate frog box in his left hand, on top of some change. "How was your summer?" He asks genuinely. Soleil fixes her surprised face accordingly as she replies, "Oh, just great, and yours?" She could not believe the boy who used to hang from chandeliers and chase his pet toad around the castle, was standing in front of her, suddenly towering over her at a height taller than the last time she saw him. 

        "Oh, great, as well. My grandmother bought me some very exciting things for my birthday, including this interesting book on Herbology..." He chuckles, "Ironic, huh? The first book I think of is your mother's profession..." He notices a slight discomfort on her face as he changes the subject,  "Well, anyway, I think I saw Iris and Ezra in the second to last compartment, assuming you're looking for them?" He gestures to the trunk Soleil didn't realize she had been clinging onto the entire conversation. She nods and mumbles an awkward thank you as she slips past him, walking towards her friend's compartment, her face red and flushed.

       She attempts to change her expression as she slides open the door to her compartment, exchanging small hugs with her two best friends. "Who were you talking to, tomato face?" Iris teases after their greetings. "Yeah, you look like you just got out of a sauna.." Ezra remarks. Soleil rolls her eyes at their comments and sets her trunk on top of the top shelf of their compartment as she says, "Oh, just Neville, he helped me find you guys." Her face subtly becomes pinker at the mention of his name. "Merlin, Soleil! What happened out there, other than directions?" Iris asks, intrigued, never seeing her friend interact with a boy this much, a suddenly cute one, at that.

        "Oh, shove off, Iris... Nothing happened, we just chatted about our summers. He's really into Herbology apparently.." She says as she playfully nudges Iris in the arm for her comment. "Well, makes sense, get the HERBOLOGY teacher's daughter to like you, guarantee a passing grade," Ezra says, chuckling at his own remark. Both girls scoff at his comment, reminding them of how immature he could be.      

       "He was just being nice, but he definitely changed since our third year..." Soleil mumbles the last part, as she looks out the window at the everchanging scenery as they neared closer to their school. Iris and Ezra shared a knowing look as they both softly chuckled and continued their conversation.

Word Count: 1021