By Chance to Intention

Chapter 9: Happy Birthday

"Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them."

― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

January 8th, 2011

Henry let me know when you see this!

I'm here, is everything okay?

Yeah, I was just wondering if your mum could take me shopping for a birthday present for dad, it's tomorrow. Could you ask her for me?

Sure! I'll talk to her now.

Dad's working on a new potion today so I'm sure he'll say yes to me going.

Okay, I'll go ask mum now.

He ran down the stairs two at a time and threw his head over the corner of his mum's study, didn't see her, so he skirted the corned quickly and went towards the sitting room. She was sitting on her chair, blanket wrapped around her, reading a new book she had received for Christmas.

"Mum?"

She made a sound of acknowledgment, the sound similar to the humming he heard come from her every now and then while she was cleaning. He gave her a moment to finish where she was. After she closed the book, he made his way further into the room as she shifted in her spot to give him her full attention.

"Mum, Katherine wrote to ask if we could take her shopping for a birthday gift for her dad. It's tomorrow, so she wanted to know if we could go today if we weren't busy. Can we please? I haven't been to Diagon Alley in a while, and she could see dad's shop."

His mum didn't shift any in her seat, but she did seem to be considering it. "What is Katherine going to tell her father?"

"I dunno, she said he's working on a potion today so she was sure he'd be okay with it. You could just say you were taking us out for ice cream and book shopping in Diagon Alley, she told me she's never been there before."

She stared at him for a minute then stood up from her chair letting the blanket fall back into it. "Write to Katherine and have her ask him if he'd be okay with her accompanying us to Diagon Alley for ice cream and a stop at Flourish and Blotts then. Let me know, I'll go and get ready."

"Thanks, mum!" He turned out of the room and ran back up the steps as quickly as he had come down, threw himself into his room and grabbed the notebook and pen off his desk, opening it where they had just been writing.

Mum said yes. She said to ask your dad if he'd be okay with you accompanying us for ice cream and a stop at Flourish and Blotts - that's a bookstore.

I'll go and ask now, thanks Henry!

Katherine knocked at the basement door and waited for her father's response. She knew he was sometimes in the middle of making complicated potions so it could take longer for him to respond. He must have been at a decent stopping point because he opened the door only a few moments later.

"Is everything okay, dear?" He didn't seem upset at her interrupting him, but he never really had become upset with her unless she put herself in danger, like the time she had taken his wand when she was six.

"Yeah! I was writing to Henry and his mum and he wanted to know if I could accompany them to Diagon Alley today. He said that they'd get ice cream, maybe stop at a few other shops like Flourish and Blotts... Henry said that's a bookstore. Can I go please, Dad?"

She could tell he was not at all keen on the idea, she knew he had kept her from the local wizarding world. But if he didn't go, no one would know she was his daughter. Hoping he would come to the same conclusion, she stood waiting, fingers crossed behind her back with wide eyes.