Ch 17: In The Arms Of An Angel
Oh wow. I finished tearing open the packaging and there's a wicker picnic basket in front of me.
"What's this?" I ask. Well I know what it is, but like...what are we going to do with it?
"A picnic basket. You and I are going to have a Christmas Brunch together," he says. I smile and engulf him in a hug.
"Reeeeeeeally?" I ask. Oliver smiles and nods.
"Oh! I better get ready!" I screech as I sprint off into my room, Oliver's laughter piercing the air after me.
I emerge from my room a half hour later sporting white capris and a red and white checkered tube top, my hair in loose waves. Damn those girls and their negative girl affect on me! Anyways, Oliver has the book resting on his lap, and he looks like he's ready for a storm. He has a thick sweatshirt on, and long pants made of a heavy looking material. He looks up and me and raises an eyebrow.
"Aren't you going to be a bit cold?" he asks. I flutter my eyelashes at him and strut over, my white sandals clicking against the floor. I sit in his lap and put my arms around his neck.
"Not if I have you to warm me up," I say. Oliver laughs softly and I break my pouty lips into a smile.
"Nah, I was thinking of just casting a warming charm on myself," I say.
"Ready to go then?" he says, picking me up wedding-style and looping the picnic basket handles under his arm. I giggle and snuggle into his neck as he carries me to the door. But of course, these things never last long, and I'm dropped to the floor like a salad with worms in it. OK, ew. Where did that analogy come from?
Together, we apparate to the park, and he leads me towards the very center of it. Damn, never knew it went THIS far in. We've been walking for almost fifteen minutes straight on the path, and it's growing quieter and quieter. Just beyond the trees I can see the rim of something shiny and blue. Another lake?! This park must be HUGE!
"Here we are," Oliver says, setting the picnic basket down at the edge of the lake. Green grass shows through the sparse amount of snow on the ground and I'm VERY glad I cast that warming spell before I left. Hehehehe.
Awwww! Look! Ducks! I bend down and hold my hand out, but the pure white ducks just quack and swim away. Oh well. I turn around and see Oliver laying down on the blanket, which by the way, is COVERED in goodies, and is patting the ground next to him, beckoning me to sit down.
"Oh Oliver! This looks great! Did you make it?" I ask, surveying the layout in front of me.
"Thanks! But no, I had a little help," he admits, turning on his side and placing a hand on my bare hip. I smile and pick up a strawberry and slide it into my mouth, Oliver's eyes on my lips the whole time. He gulps and picks up a sandwich. I can't help but laugh. It just reminds me of this one romance novel where this couple is eating in the kitchen, and they both eat strawberries and well...we all know how that ends. But it's just funny because I ate the berry and he picks up a sandwich! OK it sounded funny to me, so you can just shut up!
So after an hour of slow munching and chit chatting, we packed it up and trudged back to our flat. It was really interesting, because on our way, it starts to snow! And since I cast the warming spell on me, I can't really feel it. But it was really awesome to see the snow flakes drop on my hand and disintegrate without feeling the piercing cold. Fascinating indeed!
"Oh yeah, Katie. The girls told me that you are supposed to go over to Alicia's flat right about now," Oliver reminds me, not meeting my eyes. What? Now? But...aww fine.
"Alright. But I'll see you later right?" I ask getting up on my tip toes and pecking him on the cheek. He turns and smiles at me, cupping my face with his free hand.
"Of course," he assures me. I smile back and concentrate and close my eyes. Alicia's flat. Alicia's flat. POP. And here I am.
"Katie! Happy Christmas!" Alicia greets me as she opens the door. I smile back and look around her shoulder to see Fred, George, and Ange sitting on the couch, steaming mugs of something that smells REALLY good in their hands.
"Happy Christmas everyone!" I say loudly as I drop my bag on the floor and kick it out of the way. I'm so delicate with my things. NOT.
I squish in between Ange and Fred, much to their dismay, and throw an arm around them.
"Gred! That gift package looks amazing!" I say to Fred. Hehe, I love playing along with their Gred and Forget thing occasionally. Other times it just gets tiring. But not today!
"Oh and Ange...I will get you for that," I say, narrowing my eyes at my friend who just smiles evilly.
"What are you talking about?" Alicia asks as she sets a cup in front of me. I snort and shake my head. She was probably in on it too, she just wants me to say it aloud in front of the twins.
"Nothing," I murmur as I hold my cup on my thigh.
"So what did the twins get you girls?" I ask, turning to Alicia (who just sat down on the arm of the couch next to Ange) and Ange. The girls immediately look down into their cups, like they're looking through the tea leaves. Ahh, good old Professor Trelawney. Such a character. But what gives the girls away is the fact that they're blushing uncontrollably.
"Just, you know. Stuff," Ange admits uneasily. I look over and the twins look at each other with smug grins. OK, maybe I don't want to know...
"Hey Katie! Are you going to drink or not?" Alicia chimes in suddenly. Oh right, I have some...tea or something to drink. I raise it to my lips and drink the warm liquid down. Mmm, I can feel it easing down my throat and warming my insides. Delicious, but yawn, I'm feeling kind of tired now.
"Good, no?" Alicia says, motioning for me to take another sip. Might as well since it tastes pretty good.
I set the mug down on the table and see everyone looking over at me.
"What? I'm just feeling a little tired," I say, stifling a yawn with the back of my hand.
"We know, Katie-" I don't really hear the rest of her sentence, because I have the strangest urge to lay my head down...and sleep...
"Oh! She's awake!" I hear a feminine voice call out. Wait! Where am I? Oh right...
"Dammit Alicia! Quit giving me sleeping drafts!" I screech, sitting up. My visions sharpens and I see the girls standing over me, the boys no where in sight. Alicia is smiling sheepishly, and Angelina is quaking slightly with silent laughter. What is so funny?
"What time is it?" I demand, looking around her modern apartment.
"7:30," Ange answers, glancing at her red wristwatch. What?! How long have I been asleep?! I jump to my feet and look around, seeing that darkness had already begun to settle over the city.
"Easy Katie," Angelina says, frowning slightly.
"Don't tell me to take it easy! I just slept through half a day! I still need to go see Oliver!" I really don't know why I added that last part. Well, yeah I do. I just feel like I should be at home spending time with Oliver on Christmas. But nooo. I'm over here, being drugged! Agh!
"There's a perfectly good reason we gave you that sleeping potion," Alicia says. I whip around and stare at her. She takes a step back in fright. Heh. No one messes with me when I'm angry.
"Oh really? Because it'd be GREAT to know!" I yell.
"We just didn't want you to leave before you should. Oliver told us to keep you busy until a certain time, so that's what we did," Angelina yelled back. Wait...Oliver is behind this? He joined their side too!? NO! This must be some plot of You-Know-Who! Oh wait...he's dead...I knew that. Thank Merlin for Harry Potter!
"Now, if you'll stay calm, Alicia and I will help you get ready," she says. I blink. Ready for what?
"Ready for what?" I ask. The other two share a knowing smile and each take an arm.
"Just for dinner, that's all," Alicia assured me, grinning with her eyes closed as I was led into Alicia's closet.
Damn. I forgot, Alicia is a shopaholic. I mean for Pete's Sake! She has at LEAST 50 pairs of shoes! Most are high heels, but there are some fashionable tennies. And on the left side of the closet were the various bottoms. She had skorts, skirts, pants, capris, shorts, jeans...Every bottom in every color imaginable. And of course, it was likewise on the right side: Tanks, spaghetti straps, long sleeve shirts, tees...in tons of styles and colors and designs. I can't help it. I'm jealous.
"So...did he say how I was supposed to dress?" I ask suddenly. Wow! She even has billions of handbags too! Now I'm MAJORLY jealous.
"Dressy!" The girls chorused, smiling at me. I laughed and shook my head. These two are as kooky as I am. Hehe, that's a funny word. Kooky.
"Andddddd I have just the dress for ya!" Alicia said. Angelina beamed at me and nodded. I'm beginning to wonder if their faces are stuck in a grin. I mean, they've been smiling at me nonstop since I woke up!
"Angelina, if you would," Alicia said regally, looking at Angelina. Ange just blinked and looked at Alicia. Alicia rolled her eyes.
"Blindfold her!" Alicia cried. Angelina laughed and put her hands over my eyes. The warm pressure on my eyes felt interesting, especially since I had my eyes open, but all I saw were slits of light.
Suddenly, I hear Alicia muttering a spell I have never heard before. I feel the constriction of the tube top melt away and replaced by cool air and a very light, airy material. I felt my capris disappear also, and something fan against my thighs.
"OK, Ange, let's let her see it," I hear Alicia say. The warm pressure is removed from my face, and I open my eyes. Wait, when did I close them? Weird. My eyelashes fluttered against the skin of my cheeks and eyelids and I see Alicia standing there, looking slightly awed. She smiles serenely at me and steps aside, revealing a full length mirror behind her. I gasp, and put hand to my mouth. I look stunning!
A dark blue gown caresses my body and runs down to the floor, covering my feet. I turn slightly and see that the back is longer, making the material fan out behind me. Ties hold it up behind my neck, while the actual neck of the dress plunges deep between my breasts. I laughed in spite of myself. I shouldn't be too shocked. After all, it's Alicia and Ange that are dressing me.
I lift up the hem of my dress to a little below my knee and see strappy navy heels on my feet, long ribbons criss-crossing and tying near the center of my calf.
"You like?" Alicia asks. I turn to her and engulf her in a hug. Of course I like it!
"Like it? I love it!" I say. Over her shoulder I see Angelina leaning on the door frame, nodding in approval. I hug her too and turn back to my reflection.
"Something's missing," Ange says from over my shoulder.
"A few things actually," Alicia adds. I shrug internally. I think I look fine.
"I got hair," Angelina says suddenly. She stalks over to me and picks up a handful of hair, running a brush through it. What the- Where did she get that brush?! Hmm...Probably transfigured something. That always was her best subject.
"Fine. Then I get makeup," Alicia says, sounding slightly huffy. I smile at my two friends. They really are my best friends; taking care of me in my best and worst times. I need to find a way to repay them...
Needless to say, 10 minutes later, I'm looking better than ever. My hair is done up in curls, with cute CZ pins holding up small chunks. My makeup is overall very subtle; the black eyeliner being the most noteable. And of course, as a finishing touch, Alicia adds a silver drop necklace; a deep sapphire dangling off the chain.
"So how do I look?" I ask, standing up and spinning before the girls. They applaud ceremoniously and smile and nod.
"Drop dead gorgeous," Alicia supplies.
"Stunning," Ange adds. I smile at the compliments. Even though I'm somewhat of a tomboy, I still love getting all dolled up. Haha, I'm so hypocritical...or would that just be schizophrenia? I'll have to look into that.
"Oh dear! You should be back by now!" Angelina cries suddenly, staring at her red watch.
"Quick! Apparate to your apartment! And be sure to tell us how your night goes!" Alicia yells as I dash out of the closet and into the living room, grabbing my handbag.
I close my eyes, and when I open them, I'm facing the door to my apartment. Heh, kind of nervous. Don't know why. Just am. I breathe in deeply and knock on the door. The door opens seconds later. I smile as I see Oliver standing in the doorway donning black slacks and a red button down long sleeve shirt, a gold and red tie covering the buttons.
"Don't you look handsome," I comment, stepping forward and toying with his collar.
"And don't you look beautiful," he says softly. I smile even wider and hug him, nestling my head in the crook of his neck.
"So what's the occasion?" I ask, breathing against his neck. I feel him shiver in response and I close my eyes. Gosh I love his cologne.
"I'll tell you later, but right now, I want to show you something," he says, pulling away and grabbing my hand, leading me to the balcony. Wonder what he's going to show me.
The glass door slides open and I see a small table, with candles set in silver, casting dim, romantic light on the silver and white ceramic settings.
I started to walk over to examine the table, but Oliver held tight onto my hand. I looked at him questioningly, and find that he's grinning...and holding a broom. I recognize it immediately as the Firebolt he got after he left Hogwarts. I think he was a little envious of the speed Harry displayed when he got a Firebolt.
"Not just yet. First I want to take you out for a night ride," he says, mounting the broom. Times like these I'm happy that warming spells last for 24 hours. He nods for me to join him, and I mount the broom so that I'm sitting in front of him. Oliver pulls me back so my back is pressed into chest, and he wraps his arms tightly around my stomach. Agh! Not the stomach. Suck it in Bell!
"Katie, you look great. You don't have to hold your breath," his breath tickles my ear as he whispers those words. I sigh and exhale, letting all my "flab" hang out. I know I'm not fat, but my skin bunches when I sit down.
"That's better," he whispers. I gasp softly as I feel his lips brush lightly over the skin of my neck. I close my eyes, and all of a sudden, I feel my feet leave the ground. I look down and see that we've left the ground and we're flying over the street.
"Ready?" he asks. I nod and I can feel him smile into my neck. The broom speeds up and my eyes begin to water a little as the wind whips around us. Most everything has become a blur and I feel his arms close around my waist even tighter.
We fly for what seems like forever. His arms around my waist, the wind whipping through my hair, my eyes screwed shut. It's funny, ever since I saw this one muggle movie...
I hear Oliver laugh as I extend my arms out to my sides.
"I'm the Queen of the World!" I yell at the top of my lungs. I think Oliver said something, but I couldn't tell. The wind is just so loud. I'm sure my hair is a mess, but I really don't care. It's like that one saying...You've got a keeper when you can go to him in sweatpants and baggy shirt, makeup smeared, and your hair a mess, and he says you're the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. That's how I feel around Oliver.
The wind stops whipping and I open my eyes to see we're hovering over a cliff, the reflection of the moon dancing across the waves of the ocean.
"It's beautiful," I whisper. Oliver rests his head on my shoulder, and I turn to see his face. His eyes are sparkling and he's smiling softly.
"Not nearly as beautiful as you," he whispers. Then he leans forward slowly and our lips meet in a slow, gentle kiss. He's full of surprises isn't he? This has been the most gentle to date. We separate and I look into his eyes. They're so dark. It's probably just the light.
"Ready to go back?" he asks in a whisper.
"We just got here!" I whisper back. It's weird, but it just feels like we should whisper. The waves crash below us, and the air tastes and smells salty. It's really nice.
"I know, but I have something at home waiting for you," he whispers. The broom turns, and we pick up speed, heading back to our flat.
On the way back, I lean back into his chest while his hands rest on the broomstick between my thighs. He's kind of close to...um, an area, but he's not doing anything. Part of me is thankful, but part of me wants him to do something. Don't know what, but...something.
I close my eyes and just breathe slowly, letting my mind wander to what it is he has at home.
"We're here," he whispers in my ear as I feel solid ground beneath my feet. I open my eyes, and see the same place setting. We hop off the broom, and he leans it against the wall, then bustles over and pulls a chair out for me. I smile and sit down and he pushes me in. I expect him to sit down, but he just stands there by my side.
"Oliver?" I say his name in question. He's staring at the ground, his hands in his pockets.
"Katie- I-," he starts. He opens his mouth, but closes it again. I smile to myself because once again, he looks like a guppy.
"Well come on Oliver. Spit it out," I prompt him. Oliver smiles nervously and...Oh my God...
Oliver bends down, kneeling on one knee. He reaches into his pocket and draws out a blue velvet box.
"Katie Bell, would you marry me?" he asks, revealing a stunning diamond set in silver. Oh God. Oh God. My heart just skipped a beat. My chest is constricting and my breathing is getting shallow.
"Katie?" Oliver asks, starting to get up. That's it. That's all it took.
Like a dam being broken, I burst into tears and launch myself at Oliver. We topple over and I sob into Oliver's neck as he adjusts himself on the ground.
"Katie?" he asks again. His tone is unsure, and I want to cry even harder. I don't want to make him feel bad. Ever.
"Of course I'll marry you!" I squeak out. Oliver exhales a huge breath and squeezes me to his chest.
"I love you," I whisper as I stop my crying. He squeezes me even tighter to him, and I hear a few bones in my back crack. Ooh, that felt good. I feel all loose now!
"I love you, too," he whispers back. My stomach squirms and my heart feels lighter than air. Right now, at this very moment, I know that I'm in the arms of my soul mate.
ok, so startin now, the chapters might start getting shorter, just so i can prolong it and build up more want. lol. i think that made sense...Okies, thanks guys for reviewing, and I hope this doesn't seem to sudden, whats happening, i mean. Feedback is greatly appreciated! Nowwww...Fame time!
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