#secretsanta2020

Perfect.

Lili sat in one of the armchairs in front of the fire and watched through the window the different water creatures that passed in front of her.

She looked down at her fingernails, thinking about the note she had received that morning and how she had reacted without thinking about the consequences.

She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out the scroll in question to read it again for the umpteenth time that day, as if every time she laid eyes on it she would find a way to calm the nerves that were eating her alive.

"What do you have there?"

Rowan's voice startled her, and she hurriedly crumpled up the letter and put it back in her pocket. However, Rowan had already seen it.

"What are you doing here? I thought you'd be in the Great Hall..."

"I've been reading for a while and I wanted to write a letter to my parents before Christmas... what's that?"

"What?" Lilith put her legs up on the couch and shrank to fit in it. She kept looking at the lake water through the window.

"Come on, I'm not stupid. You can tell me anything..."

With a slight roll of the eyes, she took out the crumpled ball of paper from her pocket and handed it to Rowan without making eye contact.

Her friend moved her eyes quickly across the paper and raised her eyebrows before smiling.

"Penny asked you out?"

"She says it doesn't have to be a date..."

"And what did you say?"

Lili looked at Rowan and then at the flames in the fireplace.

"I said yes."

Rowan stared at her. "You don't seem very happy...you've been wanting something like this to happen for months.”

"Rowan, I don't know... what are we going to do?"

"With what?"

"With Penny! If it's a date, then... what am I going to do with her?

"It says here that she's inviting you to some Butterbeers at Hogsmeade. Sounds like a good plan to me."

"Yeah, but it's not the same as having butterbeers as a friend as it is a date. It's different, there are expectations... I don't know, Rowan, I shouldn't have said yes."

"Lili, we're talking about Penny. You've been to Hogsmeade many times and you always have a good time. It's no different now..."

"Yes! Yes it is!"

She got up from her chair and marched towards the stairs leading to the bedrooms. Rowan ran after her and found her lying face down on her bed.

"You're exaggerating, which is counterproductive since you have to meet someone in an hour."

Lili grunted against the pillow and turned around to face the ceiling.

"What should I wear?" She murmured.

"Maybe you should ask Andre, I'm not the best person to..."

"No. Because if I ask Andre, I'll have to tell him I have a a date and he'll ask me with whom and I don't want him to know.”

Rowan sat down on her own bed in front of Lili and sighed. "This is not like you. You have to think more clearly..."

She tapped her fingers to her thigh and despite she knew that Rowan was still talking, she couldn't concentrate on her friend's words. Her gaze shifted to her trunk. She got up with a jump and started throwing Alfred's toys to the floor to be able to open the trunk.

"...so maybe should...what are you doing?"

"I know what to wear." she simply stated.

Rowan caught some pieces of clothing that Lili was throwing, and watched with resignation as she tidied up her room.

"The green scarf and... the black boots should do. Don't look at me like that, I'll tidy up later.

"Yeah...right... Rowan muttered as she watched her friend leave the room armed with a pile of clothes.

Twenty minutes later, Lili emerged from the bathroom enfolded in a black jacket, a green hat that matched her scarf and black boots to complete the look.

"Hoop or stars?” She extended her arms to show two pairs of earrings to Rowan, who lowered her book to look at them.

"Those." Rowan pointed at the hoop earrings and Lili walked to a mirror to put them on.

"Alright, I'm ready."

 The feelings of confidence were gradually dissipated as they passed through the corridors of the castle. The lights that decorated the walls and ceiling created an aura of tranquillity and familiarity that she tried to hold on to.

Right at the doors of the lGreat Hall, there was Penny, clad in a pale pink coat and a matching hat. She smiled at the sight of Lili and rose to greet her with a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm too late?”

"Just in time. Let's go! Madam Pudifoots is waiting for us."

"Have you booked a table?"

"Yes, I thought some hot tea would do us good. Then we can walk around Hogsmeade, it's all beautifully decorated.”

 The trip to the village was quiet: Penny and Lili walked side by side, casually brushing up against each other from time to time. By the time they arrived, a few snowflakes had begun to fall.

"So you're going home this Christmas?

"Yes, Beatrice decided that she wanted to spend Christmas with the family, so I'm not going to miss that opportunity. What are you going to do?"

"I still don't know." They passed a man selling chestnuts but politely declined his offer.

"I don't recommend them," said Lili, "unless you want sparks to fly off your tongue!" They laughed together to the door of the tearoom and entered, immediately feeling the warmth of the place.

"Hello, my dears! What can I do for you? Table for two?"

"Good afternoon, I've reserved a table."

"Oh! Sure, right this way! I've put you somewhere a bit more private, you know, people don't usually book here so I figured it would be something important.”

The woman took them to the end of the shop, leading them to a table behind the curtain that separated the main hall. They made themselves comfortable and asked each other for their tea, trying to avoid each other's gaze. As a courtesy, Madam Pudifoots brought them a small plate of biscuits.

"Since I'm leaving tomorrow morning, I thought I'd give you this," said Penny, rummaging through her coat.

"You bought me a present?"

"Yes! I hope you like it..." She took a small package from her coat and slid it across the table. She waited impatiently for Lili to unwrap it, but she just stared at it. After a few seconds she looked up and smiled.

"I brought you something too." Penny grinned and accepted the small wooden box.

Lili opened her package to find three different coloured scrunchies and some pairs of matching socks. Excited, she chose the green one and tied part of her hair back. "I love them!"

Penny's reaction was much more exaggerated. It seemed that she had got it right with the hair clips... She put several butterflies in her braids.

"They are beautiful, Lili, they match my jumper."

"And there's more..." Penny raised her eyebrows but before I could ask what she meant; several butterflies started flying around her head. Lili looked on with a smile as Penny tried to catch them, laughing all the time.

"They are bewitched, they take a while to become clips again."

"They are brilliant! Thank you, Lili."

 The tea was well received, and they spent an hour chatting about the classes, potions, and the new collection of Gladrags Wizardwear.

 For once, Lili felt comfortable and not guilty about not thinking about the vaults.

They paid on their way out and willingly accepted the Christmas treat that Madam Pudifoot gave them.

"Do you want to go to Gladrags?"

"Yes! Last week I saw a skirt that I liked."

They walked for a while but nature had other plans; the temperature dropped abruptly and a strong blizzard rose, making it difficult for visitors to walk through the village.

"We can make a strategic stop at Zonko's..." proposed Lili.

"Maybe we will meet Tonks."

The sound of the door bells warning of the arrival of a new buyer was not heard amidst the laughter and commotion of the children visiting the shop. Several lights exploded on the roof and Penny and Lili had to dodge several flying objects. They approached a special Christmas section.

"This is fun, there is a present inside and two people have to pull on both sides," said Penny holding a green package.

"Look! Zonko has put up a Christmas tree! Lili approached it, it was decorated with floating candles, lights and colourful ornaments.

"It will be one of the few things here that are harmless." Penny laughed.

She ate her words as one of the Christmas ornaments doubled in size when Lili touched it and a green liquid exploded in her face.

Both girls broke into laughter as Lili tried to get what appeared to be drool of some creature.

"Ah, I see you have discovered my surprise decorations..." said the owner offering Lili a napkin. She looked at him suspiciously and Zonko laughed. "It's only paper.”

 After several scares and jokes later, Lili grabbed Penny's hand and dragged her into the street.

"The blizzard has stopped, let's go before it closes! They walked together hand in hand, none of them wanted to let go. When they arrived at the clothing shop, they examined the shop window for anything that caught their attention.

"Is that the skirt you wanted?"

Penny nodded enthusiastically and pointed to a mannequin. "And that shirt would look great!" They laughed as several eyes fell on them. They noticed it and tried to turn off their laughter, but when they looked at each other, they couldn't resist and the giggles started again.

 Lili was sitting in front of the dressing room where Penny was changing her clothes. When she came out, the blonde turned around and waited for the verdict.

"It looks great on you but... better with the yellow top."

"Isn't it too flashy?"

"That's the idea..." Penny went back into the fitting room with a little smile.

"Well, I won't buy it today anyway. I'll wait for the sales. What do you want to do now?"

Lili got up from her seat and started walking around the shop. A red jacket caught her attention and she went straight to touch it.

"I don't know... some sweets? We can stop by Honeydukes to see how it is decorated."

"Sounds good!"

 The place was packed but they still managed to make their way through the crowd. They looked around in amazement. As many times as they had gone to that shop, each year they outdid themselves in creating the most fun and colourful atmosphere in all of Hogsmeade. Penny went straight to the cotton candy, while Lili kept her eye on some little heart-shaped candies.

She turned to see Penny paying and rushed to grab a handful of the candy. She waited impatiently for the change after paying, and hid the bag in her jacket.

"Here you are" announced Penny from behind a giant pink cotton candy. "If you behave yourself, maybe I'll give you some.” Lili rolled her eyes before giggling and stole some cotton candy from the cone.

They spent the next few hours wandering around the place, trying out some chocolate samples and listening to the Christmas music playing over the speakers.

As they left, the memory of the noisy shop made the street seem quieter than usual.

It was dark, but the lights on the facades were bright enough to walk around in peace.

"Do you want to go get a Butterbeer?" Penny asked.

 "Let's sit down for a while." Lili pointed to a stone bench in front of them and they cleared the snow so they could sit down. She took the bag out of her pocket and gave her date the candies she had saved. "I bought you this..."

Penny accepted the bag in surprise but finally a smile appeared in her mouth.

"I bought you something too..." Penny reached into her pockets and pulled out a small green package. "Shall we open it?"

They pulled the ends to break the package, which exploded in the air with lights of various colours. They laughed as several things fell on their heads.

"A beaded bracelet..."

"And some lemon drops!"

"Penny..."

The atmosphere suddenly became serious, the blonde waited with concern for Lili to say what she was thinking.

"It was a great date."

Penny smiled before nodding, agreeing with her friend's opinion. Leaning forward, she put her hand on Lili's.

"I agree.”

Lili approached as well and placed her lips on Penny's in a sweet, short peck. They both smiled before getting up.

"To the three broomsticks?”

"To the three broomsticks."