honeysuckle. (cedric diggory.)

nine. ( the birthday boy. )

THE SATURDAY before the First Task dawned bright and clear, crisp and cold; Helga Hufflepuff's portrait had donned a festive badger scarf to stave off the late November chill, and the little plants that rested upon the windowsills had all been dressed in the tiniest knitted hats of sunflower yellow and baby pink, with teeny gloves over their leaves to keep them warm. ( Courtesy of Elaine herself, as her knitting skills were getting quite good! ) The succulents seemed to really enjoy their new adornments, and they swayed with content happiness as they watched the loose autumn leaves tumble over the stiff, brown grass.

Beneath the backdrop of the milky blue sky, tiny puffs of steam curled upward from the incoming ruby train, and it was that that Elaine had been watching for carefully since she'd awoken near dawn, too excited to sleep. Because the most important person in her entire world ( sorry Cedric! ) was on that steam-engine.

Ben. Sure, it hadn't been too long since Elaine had last seen her older brother, but he had always been the most constant presence in her life, and she always missed him dearly. Plus, it was his birthday, and out of anything in the world he could've done ( because it was a Gallagher family tradition to do whatever or go wherever the birthday boy or girl wanted! ), he'd chosen to catch a train to see her. Yes, Ben could be prickly and prying and irritating and obstinate on occasion, but he was also so incredibly sweet. And though she didn't say it that often, Elaine loved her brother, and she really thought the world of him.

At the sight of that steam, Elaine was up and out of bed in a flurry of lean limbs and giddy smiles, already dressed in her coziest sweater and jeans, and she'd braided her golden hair back into two pigtails at five in the morning, while trying to tone down some of her excited energy. In a flash, she'd shrugged on her thick lavender coat and jammed a baby pink hat onto her head ( she had knitted herself one too, of course, to match the plants ). Her mittens were already in her pocket, which she patted to make sure because she was quite forgetful, and Elaine was foraging about in her trunk trying to find her scarf, which she had a habit of losing, when a soft knock rapped at the door.

She turned to see Cedric there, his grin endearingly lopsided as he leaned against the doorframe. His caramel curls were messy from sleep and a warm tiredness pulled at his eyes adorably, but he'd insisted on waking up early to accompany her to Hogsmeade. Because Ben was basically his brother too, he'd said. ( And, yes, her heart had done a cartwheel at that, because Cedric was the cutest human alive. )