Dreams of Magic (Harry Potter)

Nineteen: Birthday Girl

Draco was a few minutes shy of panicking.

Before he'd come to a realization, it had been quite a good couple of days. Three days had passed since he and Addy talked for hours in Hogsmeade They had talked all the way back to school as well, and she'd accompanied him back to the Slytherin dorms, where they talked late into the night. Narys had just celebrated his 14th birthday yesterday, and a bunch of Slytherins got together in the common room for a party. However, the problem with this party was that, a whole 24 hours later, it made Draco realize he could have very well missed Addy's birthday. She had never mentioned it, and Jay and Mei-Lin hadn't let on any signs of an important event (and since Addy was friends with nearly all of the first-years, he was sure someone would have mentioned it). So he wasn't necessarily worried he had missed it.

He was worried that he hadn't.

See, Adaline Hemmingway did not strike Draco as the party type. Even though she was a girl (and in his mind, all of them were complicated), she wasn't very complex. He knew she wouldn't want a huge party. But then arose the question- what would she want? It wasn't exactly a simple task to figure out what to do in place of a party. He didn't even know what to get her, even after spending nearly the whole year with her. Draco wanted to prove himself a good friend (one that was worth dating, perhaps) but had no idea how to go about doing it.

"What are you worrying about, Draco?" Narys was leaning over the edge of the bed, the top bunk to Draco's (it wasn't Narys' bed since he lived with his third-year classmates, but that bed was empty for the weekend as Draco's roommate, Benjamin, had gone home for the weekend). His dark hair hung straight, pointing toward the floor as he regarded Draco's demeanor.

"What makes you think I'm worrying-" Draco began, but Narys' arm shot out and pointed at Draco's hands, which were tapping audibly on his mattress.

"You tend to do that when you worry," Narys pointed out. "So start talking." Draco sighed.

"Sometimes I hate how well you know me, Narys," Draco said, and the third-year just laughed.

"Do you want my advice or not?" Narys asked jokingly. "I haven't led you astray so far."

"True," Draco admitted. "Okay. It's kind of stupid, but I'm worried about Addy's birthday." Narys smiled, slightly raising his eyebrows.

"As you should be," He confirmed. "Continue." But Draco sat up, his fingers leaving the mattress and falling still at his side.

"What do you mean, 'as I should be'?" Draco asked, panic spiking a little higher. When Narys got all mysterious and cryptic, it usually meant he was purposefully withholding information.

"I mean exactly what I said," Narys repeated. "Her birthday's soon, and I know you were planning to make it grand." Draco was now on his feet, blanket sprawled across the floor.

"You know the date?" He asked, voice rising. "How did you find that out? Why didn't you tell me?" Narys raised an eyebrow. Rare were the times when Draco showed such intense emotion.

"I happened to overhear it in a conversation between Mei-Lin and Hermione," He revealed, pulling himself upright to sit straight on the top bunk. "And I assumed that you would know. Did you not think her closest friends would know when her birthday is? Did you even ask them?" Draco ran a hand through his hair, closing his eyes.

"I- I thought about it, okay? I don't know. When is it?" He asked.

"April third," Narys said, watching with an apologetic but amused smile as Draco's mouth dropped open.

"That's four days away," Draco pointed out, and Narys nodded and said,

"Yes, sir, it is. What are you going to do about it?" Draco sat back down on his bed, his fingers going wild on the mattress' surface. He had absolutely no idea what he was going to do about it.

"What do girls even want for their birthdays?" Draco wondered aloud. "Mother always got jewelry- pearl necklaces and rings and such, and she seemed to like them. Do you think Addy would be into that sort of thing?"

"Addy's not a 30- or 40-something grown woman with a kid, so I don't personally think she would," Narys pointed out, "And you are not a rich husband. Unless you have a lot of money I don't know about, good luck buying any real jewelry." Draco huffed.

"Right you are," Draco said, leaning back against the wall. "So what should I do?" Narys was quiet for a moment. Draco was about to repeat the question, but Narys answered simply,

"Why don't you just ask her?" Draco gave Narys a look, even though he couldn't see it.

"You think I should ask the birthday girl what to get her for her birthday? Where's the surprise in that?" Narys looked over the side of the bed again, shrugging as he did so.

"I didn't say it was going to be a surprise, and you didn't specify that you wanted it to be, either. But if you asked her straight out, it would eliminate all the worry of if she likes her gift or not. Or whether she wants a gift at all- maybe she just wants to spend the day doing something fun."

"Hm." Was all Draco said in response, and Narys pulled himself back up onto the top bunk. Draco sat on his bed and thought. He had grumbled at first, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that Narys was (as always) so right. It wouldn't be much of a surprise, but it would be so simple to ask her what she wanted. Addy was a reasonable girl, and she'd probably ask for something that wouldn't be too hard for him to achieve. Draco made up his mind- he'd ask her outright, save himself the trouble, and get her what she wanted.

***

"Can I be honest, Draco? Completely honest?" Addy asked. The two of them were together once again, this time in the Ravenclaw common room. By this time, both of Addy's prefects knew Draco and were long past threatening them with the rules. The two of them sat face to face in the far corner, speaking quietly.

"Of course," Draco said, leaning in closer to hear what she had to say.

"I don't really want any physical things for my birthday," Addy admitted, "I just want to hang out with you." Draco sat back and blinked.

"Me? You... Want me for your birthday?" He reiterated. Addy's cheeks warmed, and Draco laughed as she reached over and swatted his arm.

"Well, don't say it like that!" She cried, still trying to keep her voice low. Draco put his hands up in surrender. "But, yeah, kind of."

"I think that can be arranged," Draco said jokingly, pretending to check his schedule to make Addy laugh.

"I do hope you're not too busy for me," Addy continued, playing along.

"I think my schedule is clear! April 3rd is marked down as 'Addy's day'." Addy couldn't stop herself from blushing, and she averted her eyes.

"But seriously," Draco said, sobering up a bit, "Are you sure that all you want is to spend time with me? There's nothing else that you want?" Addy furrowed her eyebrows.

"I don't see myself asking for anything but that in the near future," She confirmed, completely honestly. "There's truly nothing I want more than to hang out with you." As she answered, Addy watched Draco's face. His expression didn't change.

"You're not convinced," Addy noted, and Draco sighed.

"You're right. I'm not," Draco admitted. "I'm used to people saying they don't want anything to be polite, and then I always find out later that they did want something and never said it." For some reason, as he spoke the truth, Draco found it hard to look at Addy.

"Just trust me," Addy said, gently resting one of her hands atop his. "The Hogsmeade trip was one of the most fun times I can remember. Being with you, even if we're doing just this four day from now, will be a wonderful birthday present." Finally, she got him to turn back to her. She smiled, and he smiled back.