A/N: This chapter turned out to be harder than I thought. But I finally finished this.
Thanks to Avanell and Kathy T who gave me some idea of what Scorpius should give her. The conversation between Albus, James and Scorpius is actually based on what they had told me and what I thought about the idea. So this is how it turned out. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Every character belong to JK Rowling.
CHAPTER 15
"I kissed her."
For a while, none of the Potter brothers said anything. They just stayed quiet as they expected him to continue the sentence. But realising that Scorpius just stared at them without a word, one of them opened his mouth to ask him a question.
"Where?" asked James, just as quietly.
"On the forehead," replied Scorpius.
James tried his hardest not to laugh at him. He took a deep breath, calming himself. "No, I mean where did you kiss her? Which part of the house?"
"Oh," he mumbled, looking down at his fingers as he was too embarrassed to look at his friends. "Upstairs. Near the bathroom."
"What were you doing up there?"
"Well come to think of it, you two suddenly disappeared when the rest of us were playing outside," said Albus. "Did you go upstairs with her?"
Scorpius looked up. "Yeah, I wanted to go to the toilet and she had to go to her Dad's old bedroom. She placed my present in there."
"So what happened?" asked James. "What made you kiss her?"
"Well, she asked me to wait near the bathroom door after I finished. While we were talking, she suddenly realised that there was some mistletoe just behind me." Scorpius paused. "And I just kissed her forehead. I told her that it was for the present."
"You're going to give her something else later, right?" asked Albus. "You can't possibly think that the kiss was her present, right?"
"Of course I'm going to give her something else," he answered. "This present is too nice to only be exchanged by a mere kiss on the forehead." Scorpius looked to the left where he had put the present from her. "Do you know what she gave me?" Without waiting for a reply, he looked up and answered his own question, "She gave me this book," he took the book from the ground and showed it to them, "I've been looking for this book for a year already. It's really hard to find this in any bookshops." He paused. "It's a wonder, really, how she found this."
"Maybe because she knows where to buy rare books."
Scorpius nodded. "This might be one of the nicest things people have ever given me."
"Hey, we are very insulted," said James as he placed his hand on his chest for dramatic effect. "Are you saying that the gifts we got you are not nice?"
Albus shook his head and sighed dramatically. "I didn't know you were like this, Scor."
"Oh, shut it. You know what I meant," he said. "You know that I liked your presents too. Now all I have to think about is what to give you both. I already know what to give her."
James smiled. "Okay, first of all: we're both glad that you liked the presents, even though I'm sure you liked her present more."
"More like 'loved'," mumbled Albus.
"Yes, that's true," James agreed. "Anyway, second of all: we told you to take some time. We don't need the presents now. And third of all – and this one is a question – what are you going to give her? You have an idea already?"
Scorpius nodded. "When I was waiting for her, I saw some pictures of your family. And one of those was Rose's where she was holding an orange cat named," he paused for a while to think about what the cat was called. "I forgot what it's called."
"Crookshanks," said Albus.
"Wait," James said suddenly. "Don't tell me that you're going to give her a cat?"
Scorpius blinked. "Well, that wasn't what I had in mind," he said slowly. "I was thinking of giving her a stuffed animal that looks similar to … Crookshanks?" He looked at Albus to make sure he got the name right. As he got a nod from his friend, he looked at James again. "But your idea is great too. But I wonder how much a cat is. Isn't it expensive?"
"You could also buy a kitten," Albus suggested. "Maybe it's a bit cheaper?"
"Really?"
Albus shrugged. "I'm not sure myself. We don't have a cat at home."
"What do you think?" asked Scorpius to the oldest Potter.
"I think it's cheaper to buy a kitten."
It was Scorpius' turn to resist the urge to laugh. "I mean, what do you think I should give her?"
James laughed as he realised his mistake. "It's up to you, really. I mean you're the one who's giving the present, not us."
"Oh which reminds me, what did you two get her?" asked Scorpius.
"The same thing that we gave you."
He blinked. "A book?"
Albus nodded. "The very same book." He smiled. "And some parchments and ink. She said she needed those. So we bought some for her."
"Well speaking of the same thing, can I buy the same things for you both?" asked Scorpius. "For example, if I buy James a book, can I buy Albus the same book?"
James sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you that it's up to you?" He shook his head. "Seriously, you can buy us anything. Even though I don't read books as much as you three, I will still read the book eventually since you bought it for me."
"You know that it was just an example?" Scorpius said.
"And I was just telling you that I would read the book if you gave me one." James paused. "You can even buy us one thing so that Al and I can share. Sharing is caring."
"But if it's like that, it'd be difficult. Don't you think, James?" asked Albus. "We don't live in the same room, so it'd be hard for me if I wanted to borrow the book. What if I wanted to borrow the book and you're still reading it?"
Scorpius was confused. "You both know that the book was just an example, don't you? And you know that I'll buy two things for you." He paused as he realised what they were doing. "And why are we talking about this?"
"You're the one who started it," said James, childishly. "So I just followed."
Albus shook his head. "And we're still talking about it," he mumbled as he looked down. He turned to look at Scorpius. "Mate, it's really up to you what to give us and Rose. We really don't mind. It's the thought that counts, yeah?"
Scorpius nodded. "I know," he said. "But what if I buy you lot something and you just chuck it because you don't like it?"
"Come on, we're not that mean."
He nodded again as if to remind himself that his friends would accept the gifts no matter what. He leaned against the tree and sighed. He looked away to enjoy the view of the Burrow. "I think I'm going to the Diagon Alley soon, to find out the price of a cat. And a kitten as well. And look for a stuffed cat that looks like Crookshanks." He paused. "And find what to give you lot." He turned his eyes to his friends. "There should be some shops that open during the break, right? I don't want to delay this any longer."
James shrugged. "Not so sure, mate. But there should be some."
Albus suddenly stood up from his seat. "Come on, Scor. I think you've been out here for a while. I'm sure everyone's looking for you." He ran his hands up and down his arms. "It's getting colder too."
"Oh, what time are you going home?" asked James to Scorpius. "I forgot to ask my Dad. He's going to take you home, right?"
Scorpius nodded. "Well, my Mum asked me to go back before dinner. So maybe around 6 or so."
James and Scorpius stood up and together the three of them raced to the door to get in and warm themselves.
A/N: Thanks for reading. Don't forget to review. Til next time..
P.S: Can some of you give me a suggestion of what should be the last gift for Rose? Thank you..