Summer yawned and turned over in its sleep, welcoming autumn with a half-smile. As it did so, a fog descended onto the streets, the lamplights flickering a gentle yellow in the distance. It engulfed all signs of life, reducing the movement on the streets to nothing but a whisper of human activity. 

The air breathed a sigh of relief and rustled the trees, who shivered, a hundred leaves littering the pavement in varying shades of burnt orange. They were swept up and entangled amongst the conkers in the dry under bellies of parked cars, sheltered from the rain that fell in never ending lashings. 

Autumn kissed the grass, freezing the morning dew that blanketed the grass, and the smell of burning wood stained the houses from the inside out. The people that autumn touched bundled themselves up in maroon jumpers three sizes too big, and wrapped their hands around endless cups of hot chocolate. They cursed the sun for dipping under grey clouds, but also rejoiced in the popping and fizzing of fireworks that lit up the sky. 

Laughter in the late August sun was replaced with shivers in the early September mornings, as footsteps echoed across the cobblestone in a hurry to avoid more of the lonely cold. Metal tables ached in the wind, no longer occupied. In one shop window, candles were burning, and the low light illuminated the shopkeeper in an ominous, yellow glow. 

Autumn smiled, satisfied. It had engulfed everything in its sight.