"Birthday bundles!"
Before Lily could register her surroundings and open her sleepy eyes, two large weights squished her, knocking the air from her lungs. Her eyes snapped opened instantly, all traces of weariness gone and at first, the world was a blur of shapes and colours. Taking gulps of air, the shapes focused to form James and Albus, mischievously smiling bright.
"What the hell!?" she screamed, pulling her arms out from under her covers and squatting her brothers persistently. Eventually they moved to the vacant part of the bed and Lily could sit up.
"Happy birthday!" they chorused. With a glance at each other, the two boys, who were significantly bigger than Lily, crushed her in a back-breaking hug. As a clump of limbs, the three of them fell back and one of the boys banged their head on the wall.
Releasing Lily, Albus rubbed the back of his head with a sour look while James simply smirked at him. "Breakfast is ready Lils," James said, kissing the top of Lily's head kindly. "And again, happy birthday!" As he climbed off the bed, Lily watched James give Albus a hard shove which caused him to fall off.
"HEY!" Albus cried, racing to his feet whilst rubbing his backside in an unpleasant manner. Like one of Uncle George's Famous Fire Busters, James shot out of Lily's bedroom, his footsteps sounding like rumbles of thunder. Albus was quick on his heels, pausing to say "Happy birthday Lils!" before he raced after her older brother.
Waiting for their footsteps to silence, Lily flung her head back on her pillow. Surely with it being her birthday, she should be able to get up at whatever time she wished. However James was a little kid at heart and enjoyed festivities, even if they weren't for him.
Her door was wide open and soon the scents of breakfast started wafting around her, tempting her to leave her warm bed. With a defeated sigh, Lily climbed out of bed, located her dressing gown in amidst the mess of her bedroom and headed to breakfast, her socks muffling her footsteps. Outside the kitchen door, voices rose and Lily paused to listen.
"I asked you to wake her up gently." Her mother's stern voice made Lily smile. She knew that her bark was worse than her bite and although she sympathised with her only daughter, Ginny thought it was a rite of passage to be at the tail end of every prank her brothers ever pulled. Just like her.
"It was James' idea to jump on her."
"But I'm in peak physical condition where as you Al, have been sneaking to the kitchens at Hogwarts too often and it's starting to show around your waistband. I noticed you stopped wearing belts." There was a scraping of wood against stone and Lily pushed the door open to find her two brothers wrestling playfully before their father, who had buried himself behind the Daily Prophet, shot them both silent glare and turned his attention to Lily.
"There's the birthday girl!" His smile stretched wide and his eyes twinkled. With a quick kiss to her mother, Lily seated herself opposite James, on her father's right hand side. She leaned over to kiss her dad as he folded his paper up.
The smells that had tempted Lily upstairs were simply mouth-watering. Across the table were all kinds of treats, Lily's favourites. Chocolate fudge brownies that she was only allowed to have for breakfast on her birthday. Chocolate chip pancakes stacked high. Cupcakes decorated with piped white icing that formed lilies. Jugs filled with pumpkin juice and Lily's favourite, chocolate milk.
"Tuck in," Ginny declared, placing a plate of sizzling bacon and eggs on the table and seating next to Lily.
Like normal, James and Albus fought over the last piece of bacon – which Harry quickly stole with a wink to Lily when his sons were preoccupied. Lily had managed to get a milk moustache with her first gulp of chocolate milk and soon enough, everyone was leaning back in their chairs, full to the brim. Lazily, Ginny flicked her wand and the empty plates floated other to the sinks where they began to clean themselves.
"Do you want to open your presents now?" Harry asked, his hands resting on his flat stomach. Like Albus, Harry also ate so much food. Her mum claimed he was making up for all the nights he had to go to bed starving when he lived with his aunt and uncle.
Lily shook her head, her hair falling out of it ponytail to hang lifelessly in front of her face. "I think I'll have a shower first." Finishing the last of her glass, Lily kissed both her mum and dad on the tops of their heads.
"Happy birthday Lils," they said in unison. Casting a quick glance behind her, Lily flashed a smile and darted upstairs.
###
She looked at herself in the mirror. There wasn't much different about her but should there be? Her golden brown eyes were wide with excitement but they didn't seem to be hiding any wisdom. Her smile still stretched across her cheeks, dimples appearing. Maybe being twelve wasn't all it was cracked up to be.
Running her brush through her red hair, Lily pulled it into a high ponytail and felt the ends of her hair tickle her back familiarly. As she made her way to her wardrobe, Lily sighed in despair. All she saw in front of her was a pile of clothes. After a quick rummage, Lily found a pair of black skinny jeans and a white t-shirt with a black cross in the middle. She dressed in a rush, mentally cursing herself for having little to fill her bikini top with before running downstairs.
Her dad was sitting in his favourite armchair, the Muggle TV switched on showing the news. Apparently the Muggle prime minster was in the hospital with a bladder infection. If that was all the Muggles could report, Lily was glad she was a witch.
"Oh," Harry said, realising his daughter was lingering at the door. "Come and sit with me darling." There was an essence of sadness in his voice.
Without thinking about it, Lily moved toward the armchair and squeezed next to her dad. Usually she could fit in beside him; they had always sat like that ever since she could remember. She was a daddy's girl at heart. But now she couldn't fit like she used to so she turned to the side and rested her legs across his at a right angle, dangling them off the arm.
"I guess you've grown a bit since we last did this," he remarked, laughing into his cup of coffee. A smile lingered on his face but his typically bright green eyes weren't ablaze with their usual spark. Darkness had replaced them.
"Dad, why are you so sad?"
Resting her head on his shoulder, Lily felt him sigh heavily, her head bobbing slightly in time with his chest. She nudged her dad in the ribs and he chuckled to himself, easing the tension. But still the sadness was evident in his body language. "Tell me," Lily murmured.
"I think I'm beginning to realise that my little girl won't be little for much longer." Instinctively, his arms curved around her small frame, pulling Lily as close to her father's chest as possible. "The boys were always going to be reckless and mischievous, 'growing up and breaking hearts' as your mother puts it. But I always hoped and prayed that you'd never leave. Never grow."
Lily pushed herself up, her palm resting on his dad's heartbeat. "Dad," she said sternly, looking him directly in the eye. "I think I'm just a genetically small person so I doubt you'll have to worry about me growing much."
"You know what I mean Lilykins," Harry joked, a genuine smile breaking across his face.
Leaning closer, Lily kissed her dad on the cheek, her mouth tickled with his slight stubble. As she moved her lips to his ear, she whispered, "I'll always be your little girl!" Small dimples appeared as she beamed at her dad before yelling to everyone that it was time for presents.
###
It was her birthday for Merlin's sake.
Much to Lily's annoyance, her mother had ordered her to tidy her room up a bit. At least to the point where the floor could be spotted. It turned out to be a bigger task then Lily anticipated. Wishing she could use just a little bit of magic for assistance, Lily located all her shoes, throwing them into the bottom of her wardrobe before folding her clothes untidily and dropping them in a pile next to her shoes.
In retrospect, Lily should have gotten drawers.
As she was adding the last jumper to her mountain of a pile, her bedroom swung on its hinges as if it had been kicked forcefully. In all her dirty blonde haired glory stood Dominique, her hands on her hips and a wide smile stretching across her face.
"Happy birthday!" she squealed before throwing her body onto Lily's in an embrace, knocking her legs out from under her. Subsequently the pair lost their balance and fell luckily on Lily's bed. "You're finally twelve!"
"Can't ... Breathe ... Again!" Lily gasped.
Standing straight, Dominique smoothed down her black tutu-styled dress and helped her cousin off the bed. There was a rumbling from downstairs. Mischievously, Lily and Dominique smiled at each other. The family were here.
And when the family comes, that means the whole family comes. Upon Lily's arrival downstairs, she was passed into hugs from Uncle Bill –who lifted her off her feet-, Aunt Fleur –who spoke words of French that meant nothing to Lily but sounded beautiful all the same-, Victoire and Louis;
Uncle George –who physically spun her around as if she was a feather- , Aunt Angelina –who was too busy keeping an eye on Fred and the food-, Fred and Roxy;
Uncle Percy –who hugged her partially while directing his wand at a floating quill as it scribbled in a piece of parchment, Aunt Audrey –who scolded her husband and told him to put his work away-, Molly and Lucy;
Uncle Charlie – who still managed to pick her up and spin her above his head, pretending she was a fearful dragon-;
Uncle Ron –who just messed Lily's ponytail up-, Aunt Hermione –who was keeping an eye on her husband and the food-, Rose and Hugo;
Grandpa –who offered Lily five mints in the space of one hug- and Grandma –who continuously offered her assistance to Ginny and Hermione who were preparing the food-;
It seemed to takes years to get around her entire family before Lily fell on the sofa, already exhausted and it was barely midday. Closing her eyes, Lily felt the sofa dip next to her and she knew Dom had caught up with her – Grandma had been fussing over her hair which was styling a messed up look.
Outside the room, Lily could hear the noise and was thankful for a little bit of peace. With a small yawn, she brought her knees up and curled up into a ball. She had hoped for a small nap.
But of course, that was out of the question as it was her birthday.
"Are you really going to spend your birthday asleep?" The whisper was soft and kind. With fluttering eyelashes, Lily looked up to see the familiar smirk of Scorpius Malfoy. His hair was messed up unconventionally and his stormy grey eyes were twinkling. "Happy birthday," he said sweetly.
Quickly, Lily got to her feet, sighing deeply when she noticed the extreme height difference between the pair. Nevertheless, she hugged him tightly, feeling his chin rest on the top of her head. His arms wrapped around her protectively and Lily could feel her heart beat faster. Thankfully, there was a knock at the door and Lily ran off to answer, shaking off the goose bumps Scorpius gave her.
"LILY!" It was Phoebe, holding a massive box in her arms with her head popping up over the top. Standing aside, Lily closed the door behind Phoebe and hugged her as soon as she had put the box with a bow down.
"I thought you couldn't come, Pheebs?"
"I wasn't about to let a little thing like a grounding keep me from your birthday Lils. So I snuck out and caught the Knight Bus here. I'll deal with my parents after I have some fun." Phoebe pulled away and picked the box up again, passing it to Lily.
"Is there a Lily behind that present?" Recognising the voice, Lily popped up from behind the box to smile brightly at her godfather.
"Uncle Neville!" she squealed, pausing for a moment to put the box before running to hug her Herbology professor as he dusted the soot from his cloak. Her legs dangled as he lifted her off the ground. But when her feet were back on the ground, he tapped his body repeatedly, feeling out the contents of his pockets.
With a frown, he looked down at Lily, still feeling his pockets. "I think Seb has your present. Or did I give it to Franklin?"
"Or did you leave it on the kitchen table?" The oldest of the Longbottom children, Alicia, was smiling cheekily behind her father, leaning against the door frame. Her light brown hair was cut to her shoulders and her black maxi dress tucked in at the waistband, giving her curves Lily could only envy. In her hand was a little box wrapped in ribbon. She passed it to her father along with a card before looking up the stairs.
"Alice?" James' head appeared, a smile stretching across his face.
"Oh Merlin!" As quick as a flash, Alicia had picked her skirt up and was running through the house away from Lily's older brother. Unfortunately, he couldn't take the hint and began chasing her, calling her name out.
Neville Longbottom just rolled his eyes and passed Lily his gift. She thanked him gratefully and kissed his cheek. Along with the box, Lily took them into the dining room where all her presents were, adding to the pile before heading to the kitchen for a drink.
At that moment, emerging from the fireplace coughing and spluttering, Ariana May stepped into the Potter's home. Lily ran across the room, ignoring her mother's shriek to slow down and hugged her best friend. They hadn't seen each other since they left Hogwarts – Ariana had been on holiday with her dad and arrived back yesterday.
Standing back, Lily realised Ariana was much tanner than usual, making the chocolate brown eyes to seem like liquid. Her long brown hair was pulled into a bun and she was wearing a brightly coloured, patterned dress.
From behind her back, Ariana revealed a glittery silver bag and held it out to Lily. It was much heavier than Lily expected. "Happy birthday!" she said excitedly and the pair of them, moved towards the living room, stopping briefly to drop Ariana's gift off with the others.
"Where have you been then?" Lily asked instantly.
"Oh you know, just the Caribbean Islands!" The way she said it so leisurely, like it was no big deal, which for shy Ariana was just how she liked things, made Lily's mouth literally drop. "It was really hot there though."
"It's always a shame that. I absolutely hate going to another country and the weather is too nice." The pair looked at each other and laughed as they entered the living room.
Dominique's eyes lit up with excitement as the pair walked in. "Ariana!" Pouncing off the sofa like a panther, she quickly took Ariana up in her arms, followed closely by Phoebe. As all four of them settled on the sofa, Ariana was bombarded with questions about the Caribbean. It seemed like primarily, Ariana sat on the beach reading books while her dad was in meetings.
After a while, Lily's mother poked her head into the living room, strands of coppery hair falling out of its headband. "Lily, everyone is waiting for you outside." Her mouth was open to say more but Lily could hear her grandmother calling for her mother from the kitchen. Apparently the potatoes were bubbling. With an exhausted smile, Ginny blew the hair from her face and left.
Clapping enthusiastically, Dominique jumped up. It seemed that someone had filled her with an Excitement Potion.
"Let's get this party started girls."
###
It was a whirlwind of conversations for Lily. Everyone was outside, her dad hovering over the BBQ and Uncle Ron hovering over her father. From the distance, Lily thought she saw her uncle drooling over the ribs. The females were drinking some disgusting Muggle wine -which Lily had tried once and spat it out instantly - around the table on the patio, most likely talking about gossip.
Her brothers and male cousins plus Scorpius, Kaleb and the boys from Gryffindor in Lily's year were up in the air on the edge of the forest, flying high in a brutal game of Quidditch. She had wanted to play too; it was her birthday and she thought she should be able to do whatever she wanted. But the boys sent her away.
Instead, Lily lay on the grass of the hillside, watching the Quidditch match through squinted eyes. The glare of the sun was warming on Lily's skin. Around her, Ariana, Dominique, Phoebe and Rainbow (Dominique was glad Violet couldn't come), were lounging in the sun too, admiring the forest's beauty or in Dominique and Phoebe's cases, the boys.
"Look at Longbottom fly!" Dominique remarked, propping herself on her elbows to get a better look.
"What one?" Phoebe said, her eyes wide with alertness as she scanned the sky for either Sebastian or Franklin. With a quick look at Ariana, Lily rolled her eyes, causing them both to silently giggle.
"Sebastian of course!"
It seemed to Lily that Phoebe seemed a bit sad by this news. Did she like Sebastian too? She opened her mouth to ask but thought better of it, sealing her lips and letting her head fall back onto the grass. But she couldn't rest for long before the sun dried her throat out and she started walking back to the house with an order of drinks for all the them.
In the kitchen, Lily's little cousin, the only one apart from Louis who was younger than her, Lucy was perched on the countertop. In her lap was Molly's Persian cat, Pookie that seemed to like Lucy a lot better than Molly. "Lily!" she squealed, kissing her cousin a sloppy kiss on the cheek. "Happy birthday!"
"Are you having a good time?" Lily asked, jumping up to sit opposite her cousin on the countertop. With a lean stretch, Pookie pawed his way into Lily's lap, purring gently as Lily ran her hands through his fur and behind his ears.
"I'm waiting for cake," Lucy beamed, pulling her long, bright red, plait across her shoulder to fiddle with.
Spotting a Butterbeer, Lily reached over and popped the cap, gulping half the bottle down in one. "I think we're having a BBQ first Lulu." She licked the foam that rose up from the bottle, winking at her cousin who sipped her pumpkin juice jealously. "Where are the rest of the girls?"
"By the swimming pool. They were talking about boys! Urgh!" A smirk crept up on Lily's lips as she watched her baby cousin pretend to throw up into her cup. One day, they would all have boyfriends, hopefully and Lily doubted her cousin would feel like throwing up every time she talked about them.
The door to the garden swung open and Lily nearly fell off the counter at the sight. Sunlight streamed into the room, illuminating the bright grey eyes that made Lily's childish heart melt. His hair was windswept and messy, the light making it seem white instead of blond. For a moment, as she watched his lips move, Lily forgot how to breathe. And then she realise Scorpius was talking to her.
"Excuse me?" she asked, embarrassedly. The blush spreading across her cheeks was burning brightly so Lily ducked her head. But with her hair in a ponytail, the usual curtains of hair didn't hide her.
"The napkins?" he said, stepping out of the beams of light but closer to Lily.
As Lily focussed her breathing, she ran her hand down the spine of Pookie, searching the kitchen for napkins. "Over there!" Lucy squealed pointing to a bowl of potatoes that was hiding the napkins from view. Taking a few strides to fetch them, Scorpius thanked them both and left the kitchen into the garden. Lily sighed deeply while Lucy pretended to throw up into her cup again.
"Oh yeah." Scorpius appeared once more, his body curving around the door. "The BBQ is ready!"
###
It had been one of the best birthdays ever. All her family and friends were here. Her dad had excelled himself with the BBQ; this time she was sure she caught Uncle Ron dribbling over the ribs. Everyone was laughing, happy smiles never leaving their faces. Blankets and cushions were laid out on the grass and even the adults grouped around in a big circle with all the food and drink in the middle.
Not a lot of time passed before the food was demolished and Lily's mother had whipped out her wand to clear the plates up as Uncle Ron moaned about someone taking the last rib. At this, Albus left the circle very quickly, licking his lips.
Afterwards, everyone gravitated to the pool. No one went in yet as they had just eaten but Lily and Ariana sat with their feet dipped in. Her older female cousins were grouped around Victoire who was talking about moving in with Teddy and her life now that she had finished Hogwarts. Hopefully, Teddy would be turning up later but the Wizengamot Court called a session today and he had to attend.
On the other side of the pool, James, Scorpius, Kaleb, Albus, Franklin and Fred were blowing up inflatables for the pool. There was a crocodile, a small boat, two rubber rings and a tube you sat inside and spun. Little Louis was there too, trying to blow up his armbands until he turned his cheeks bright red. This was when Scorpius stepped in and had them inflated within seconds.
Instantly Lily felt herself falling into thoughts of Scorpius and quickly snapped herself out of it with a splash of water.
The shrill laughter of Dominique drew her attention. There she was with Phoebe and Rainbow, turning on her Veela charm as all the Gryffindor boys were crowding around them. I raised an eyebrow to Ariana who just shrugged, going back to splashing gently with her feet.
Taking another scan of her surroundings, someone was missing. Lucy was running around somewhere with a training broom that at the most, floated one foot up in the air but that wasn't who was missing.
"Have you seen Hugo?" Lily asked her best friend
The two of them arched their backs to look behind, spotting a small redheaded boy. Rolling onto her front, Lily waved him over. He pulled himself to his feet, his gaze vague and distant, showing sadness and longing. Something was wrong.
"Are you alright?" she asked as he pulled his socks off and rolled his jeans up to dunk his feet in next to Lily's.
He shrugged. But by the way his shoulders dipped depressively and the energy seemed to leak out of his body until it was a weak, hollow shell, Lily knew something was up and she wasn't about to give up on Hugo. Nudging him playfully, she looked up at him reassuringly, worry flooding her eyes.
"I'm just tired," he mumbled, leaning back with his arms behind his head. Abruptly though, he sat up and Lily noticed that everyone seemed to be looking at her and then at the house.
Twisting in her place, Lily watched as her mother walked towards her with her aunts surrounding her. But they didn't stop Lily spotting Ginny's illuminated smile, beaming with pride at her. Everyone gathered around her and with a hand from Hugo and Ariana, Lily got to her feet, a smile tempting her lips.
Out of the corner of her eye, Lily saw her brothers and Scorpius and Kaleb crept to her side suspiciously. Also Hugo moved further away from her, moving to the other side of Ariana. But Lily was too focussed on her mother to be distracted.
The cake arrived and her aunts parted so Lily could step forward. It was a chocolate cake, her favourite, with white lilies decorating the edge of a moving picture. There Lily smiled in her Christmas Weasley jumper when she was two – the day she said her first word 'love'. Her jumper was too big for her and every time the Lily waved, the long sleeves would fall down. Candles burned in the spaces between the flowers, twelve of them.
Her family broke out in an extremely loud rendition of 'Happy Birthday'. Uncle George seemed to have drank too much because he was singing a beat behind everyone else. At the back of the group, Lily swore she saw a tear trickle down her father's cheek so she blew him a kiss which he caught and placed it to his cheek.
When Uncle George had stopped howling, Lily took a deep breath and extinguished the candles with one breath. All of her family and friends clapped enthusiastically and this time, Lily was sure she saw a tear fall down her father's cheek.
Suddenly, the ground fell out from under her and six sets of hands were fixed to her limbs. "What the-." Twisting around, she saw Scorpius holding her right shoulder, smirking mischievously. She began shaking her body, trying to get out of their grip. All Scorpius did was give her a wink. Hands were removed and Lily realised she was airborne.
Just as she was about to scream, she landed in the pool, falling under the water. Mistakenly, she took a gulp of air and choked on the water that filled her lungs. But she managed to get to the surface, coughing and spluttering her lungs empty, before facing Scorpius, Kaleb, Albus, Franklin, Fred and James who were lined up with wide grins stretching their faces as they laughed hysterically. It seemed that everyone but Lily was laughing.
Looking down into the water as she skulled for balance, she realised she was still in her clothes and they were weighing her down. She swam to the side, wanting to get out, and held her hand up. Albus stepped back, shaking his head so Scorpius took hold of her hand, his grip firm yet gentle. Lily braced her feet against the side and with every inch of strength; she pushed off of the wall, pulling Scorpius under water with her.
"I guess I deserved that," he gasped, brushing his white-blond hair up into little tufts. For a moment, Lily found herself lost in his eyes, his wet eyelashes framing them perfectly before feeling a pressure in her hand and realising she was still holding on to Scorpius. She quickly let go and dipped her head underwater to hide her blush.
It seemed that the pool was officially open as everyone decided to jump in. Faster than a wand movement, James swooped an unsuspecting Alicia into his cradling arms and even though she screamed in protest, shouting various hexes that were useless without her wand, James leaped off the edge, plunging them both into the water. Stripping off elegantly into her bikini, Dominique checked that all the Gryffindor boys were watching before diving gracefully into the water and swimming up to Lily who was laughing as all five boys stood shocked with mouths catching flies. Even Hugo jumped in, thanks to a friendly shove from Kaleb.
Only Ariana didn't jump, deciding to stay at the side and splash the water with her feet.
"Are you not coming in?" Lily asked, swimming up to the wall where Ariana was. With a hand on the wall supporting her, she stripped off into the bikini she had underneath, leaving her soaked clothes in a pile by her best friend.
Ariana shrugged, her feet paddling slowly. "I was in the pool for the majority of my holiday. It's nice to just sit here and watch everyone." Turning in her spot, Lily hoisted herself up onto the side, water dripping off her into a small puddle. From this point of the pool, she could see everyone and it was fun.
"I don't think James is going to catch up with Alice, do you?" Both of them laughed at the prospect. Elegantly, Alice was breast stroking her way through the water, making sure to cause enough splash so James couldn't follow. But he did – having to stop every few seconds to wipe his eyes that were quickly turning red.
From the other side of the pool, there was a loud squeal. "TEDDY!" Victoire was practically jumping out of the pool, looking like a mermaid with her blonde hair that was purer than Dom's dirty blonde hair colour.
Lily quickly flickered her gaze to the house and sure enough, Teddy was running out of the house, his bright blue hair sticking up in all directions. Within seconds, he approached the pool and with a quick wink to Lily, shouted, "CANNONBALL!" Bounding into the air, still in his suit and tie, he curled up into a ball in the air and splashed down into the water, causing a massive ripple effect.
Trying not to choke on the water as she laughed, Lily hopped off the side and swam to Teddy. They hugged and Lily felt even lighter in the water. Now her whole family was here. She was lifted onto his shoulders while he kissed Vic on the lips briefly. Then without warning, Teddy fell back, his hands on Lily's legs so she couldn't jump off and the pair were surrounded by water.
That was it. She didn't think she could handle being in the pool anymore. It was like someone had painted a target on her back and made it a point of dunking her underwater without taking a breath of air before. Making her excuses, Lily climbed out of the pool, picking up a towel to wrap around her.
"Had enough?"
It was Scorpius, just in board shorts with his abdominal muscles exposed. Lily felt her legs turn to jelly and casually leaned against the rail to brace herself. He picked up a towel and ran it through his hair, revealing white locks that stuck up in every direction. And still his abs were on show.
Lily felt herself nod and managed to bring herself back to the conversation. "I don't appreciate being forced under the water continuously," she said light-heartedly. Of course she didn't want Scorpius to take offense to that.
"Lils, you should get inside. You're starting to shiver." Although she wasn't 100% sure she was shivering from the cold water running across her body, she made her way into the house with Scorpius.
"Have you had fun?" he asked as they started up the stairs. Lily nodded happily and was glad Scorpius stored his clothes in Albus' room. Another staircase with him and she would have fainted into his arms. "I'm glad," he said distantly before leaving her in the hallway with his smirk blinding her eyes every time they blinked.
In her bedroom, Lily dropped her towel on the floor and dug around the tall pile of clothes for something comfy to wear. As she shivered in her bikini, she quickly chose an oversized navy jumper that stopped below her bottom, complimenting her hair nicely, pairing it with some black leggings and thick socks. Outside her window, the sun was falling behind the trees at the end of the garden, breaking through in small beams.
She moved to her bathroom, picking up her hairbrush and pulling it through her hair. Trying not to wince too much, she got past the knots before letting it fall over her shoulders. With a quick glance at her reflection, she dropped her hairbrush and left her bedroom.
Opening the door, distracted by the wet towel on the floor, she didn't notice someone was in front of her until she walked directly into them. She fell clumsily, stunned by the human wall.
"Oh my god! Lily, are you alright?" Crouching down beside her, Scorpius looked at her with grey eyes washed with concern and instantly her breathing hitched as she felt his hot breath against her skin. He held his hand out in a gentlemanly fashion and with a shake of her head; Lily took it as she was lifted to her feet.
"That was a surprise!" she murmured, running fingers through her hair.
"I'm sorry. I just came to give you a present."
She was a little taken back; it wasn't as if she had expected a present. From the back pocket of his jeans, he produced a box approximately the same size as her hand. It was wrapped in silver paper with an emerald ribbon around it that matched Albus' eyes.
"Thank you," she whispered, giving him a brief smile before staring at the box she held onto so delicately. Normally she would shake and rattle her presents, trying to guess what was inside before opening it. But with her gift from Scorpius, she was afraid to breathe around it.
Slowly, she moved across the hall into the Den. The footsteps behind her told Lily he was following her. The doors to the small terrace were wide open and immediately, Lily felt herself gravitate towards them, leading to her favourite place in the house – the roof garden.
A cool breeze blew through her hair, throwing strands into her face as she leant over the rails overlooking the garden below. Through the trees, the sun was setting, casting an orange glow across the pale blue sky. Lily could see everyone splashing and jumping in the pool, their laughter echoing loudly. Her smile widened.
Everyone was happy. That made Lily happy to see.
"Are you going to open it?"
Lily jumped at Scorpius' voice beside her, having been too engulfed in what was happening below her. Her fingers played with the ribbon, pulling gently to untie it. She tried to keep her breathing even, to unwrap the present slowly but she was nervous with anticipation. He didn't have to get her a present but he did and the little crush she had developed when she was nine made her heart thunder as a velvet box revealed itself under the silver paper.
Popping the lid, there, nestled on a velvet cushion, was a bracelet in the shape of a snake, made of silver with eyes made of brown gemstones that seemed familiar. "It's a Malfoy relic, collecting dust in the attic. When I found it, the eyes reminded me of yours. I checked with my father and he didn't want it so I'm giving it to you."
Lily's mouth dropped. "I can't accept this Scorpius."
"It would just be left in the attic, never seeing the light of day." Taking the box out of Lily's dumbstruck hands, he took the bracelet out and fastened it around Lily's wrist, the fangs of the bearing snake fitting into clips at the tail. And the whole time, as much as Lily wanted to focus on her breathing, all she could focus on was Scorpius' fingers on her skin, leaving tingling sensations where he had touched her.
"Thank you," she murmured, looking up at him and becoming lost in his beautiful grey eyes. Taking a wary step forward, Lily closed the gap between them. She wasn't sure why but she just wanted to be closer to those eyes. It was like she was melting under his gaze, getting weak in the knees.
"Lily! There's some cake waiting for you downstairs." Her little cousin Lucy had burst onto the roof garden, skipping happily with the remains of a chocolate cake around her lips. With a quick smile to Scorpius, who looked confused and distant, she let Lucy pull her into the house and down the stairs.
But her thoughts of him never left her. As she touched the snake wrapped around her wrist, the biggest smile of the day played upon her lips. It had definitely been the best birthday ever.
Author's Note: Apologies for the lateness but I was too busy enjoying Christmas. This is a very long chapter for you all and I hope it'll satisfy you because I have exams to prepare for now and the next won't be published until after the exams which should be the middle of January. Anyway, Merry Christmas and as a present, please review with your thoughts :D