As the Second Wizarding War ended, many students decided to go back to Hogwarts to finish their studies. Anne-Leigh Conway was one of them.
While she attempts to come to terms with what's happened, she gets entangled in an effort set forth by Headmi...
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Chapter 35: Rosy Cheeks
Her curious steps led her towards the direction of Hagrid's Hut, where she saw forms moving in the dark. She had nothing better to do after all. Her feet, only clad in slippers, moved in the cold grass, and her eyes were set on the silhouettes, whose faces soon became clearer as she approached.
Previously three people, one moved back into the hut and closed the door before he saw her – clearly Hagrid, while two were left outside the hut. Once Leigh spotted their bright ginger hair she knew exactly who it was: Fred and George.
They spoke to each other as Leigh approached, not registering her presence until she was within a few metres radius.
"Hey, what are you two up to?" She spoke as she pulled the cardigan tighter across her body.
The two of them looked equally surprised to hear another voice. A "Huh?" was all that was heard before they figured out who she was.
"Leigh?" George started, to which Fred followed up with "Leigh!"
"It's been so long," Fred continued as he embraced her.
"It's been like two weeks," Leigh chuckled over his shoulder. She was initially a bit nervous about seeing him considering she still hadn't received any letter from him after her latest owl, but the nervosity quickly fizzed away once she was in his presence.
"Exactly. Two whole weeks," Fred said, and she let out another breathy laugh, looking over Fred's shoulder at George, who rolled his eyes with a smile. He changed his weight from one leg to the other, swaying slightly.
She chuckled, pulling away from Fred to also give George a brief hug before stepping back and looking at them expectantly. "So, what are you two up to? In the middle of the night?" George immediately set to explaining, the way he dragged out his words proving he had had a few drinks while in Hagrid's company.
Apparently the two of them had been down to talk to Hagrid about some particular ingredients they considered for a future product. And, as everyone who knew Hagrid knew, he couldn't stop talking. One quick chat quickly turned into hours of story-telling, including drinks, some of which Hagrid had acquired from exotic places.
"He gave us some drink from, uh, what was it? Some weird thing from...Bosnia, no, B– Ba, Bi, Be– Belarus? I have no clue. It was strong," George continued to explain, prompting Fred to nod in agreement. Leigh couldn't help but giggle at the view. George seemed more intoxicated than Fred, but it was clear both had some drinks in their system.
Fred seemed to look out into nothingness for a second before his eyes instantly widened, as if realising something, and he looked back at Leigh. It suddenly hit him that she was in fact also out, in nothing but pyjamas and a cardigan, in the middle of the cold night.
"What in the world are you doing out? You must be freezing," he stepped forward, planting his hands on her upper arms before abruptly removing them again and instead shrugging himself out of his jacket and planting it over her shoulders. He pulled the sides of it around her, making sure it was snug and warming her enough, before taking a step back and admiring his handiwork. His eyes were glimmering in the light which shone from outside Hagrid's door, and Leigh giggled slightly at his mildly intoxicated state.
