Paddy entered the private room with Marcello, and stared in amazement at the banner and Poppy had set up, along with the fireworks. "Whoa, you guys did a great job with setting all this up" she said with a beaming grin. "As if ice cream wasn't enough! And happy birthday Eros, Niall, and Rosie!"

Looking at the flavours, she was torn between chocolate and pistachio, so decided to add a scoop of each to her cone. "I was going to ask what flavour you would recommend," she said to Marcello, "but chocolate and pistachio has to be the best combination, unless anyone else convinces me otherwise.

Joining the others, she sat down and bit into the ice cream. "I can see why you saved this for last," she said to Gaia, "this is delicious."

( )

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/VCYVMhn.png[/img] Marcello sat with and joined the others at the table. He had no interest in hosting, but actually enjoying the party.

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/R53D23l.png[/img] Gaia walked into the kitchen for a moment and came back holding a giant waffle cone in a bowl. Her face completely hidden behind it. "Merlin () I figured this would be enough for you to enjoy. You can fill it up with any flavors and toppings you want. These are made for family style desserts but I figured you might enjoy the challenge. If you are up for it... I mean." Gaia laughed and handed Merlin the giant bowl.

She then walked towards the front door of the restaurant where a man was holding what seemed to be a large sized parcel. She grabbed the parcel and kissed the man on the cheek "Thanks uncle Mack!" She whispered with a grin "I hope he loves his present!" She said a quick goodbye and walked back inside to the private room.

"Eros, I... erm... this is for you." Gaia was blushing a deep red unusual for the outgoing girl. "My hope is that I made a good choice." She put the parcel item on a small side table. "It is not a real parcel. It is just a quick illusion." She tapped the parcel and the shape changed to a round top and some sort of blanket covering it. "Be gentle when opening it, please." ()

Niall was pleased that Paddy had liked the quill he selected for her. Then it looked like her boyfriend found her so Niall thought he should let them alone.

Merlin was way too excited and hyper at the ice cream, which Niall was looking at with doubt in his face. Finally he decided to try the stuff and put a scoop of raspberry and lemon together and headed for a chair. When he sampled it, a sharp pain hit his head. The stuff was good but he wasn’t sure the pain was worth it. Was everyone getting this headache? It ebbed soon but now he stared at it dubiously. Gaia had a big present for Eros and Niall smiled—waiting to see what the teen got.

Magnus was unsurprised to see the parcel and was pretty sure he knew what Gaia got Eros.

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/8c1Q3Re.png[/img] Eros was still eyeing the ice cream options when said she had something for him. He eyes were fixed on for long few seconds as he noticed how red and kind of coy she was being. He narrow his eyes in suspicion as he flashed her a smile. "You're red as a rose, Kavanagh, what did you get me?," he asked curiously as his eyes fell from her and to the covered object sitting on the table. He gave her another brief glance when she asked him to be gentle, making him more intrigued. His hand reached to slowly remove the cloth to reveal a cage.

His smile faded, but his eyes were even more focused on the cage now. He slowly lowered himself towards the ground so that he was eye level with whatever was inside. Was this another illusion? Or maybe Gaia had gotten this from Zonko's? He had a look of both awe and disbelief when he saw the owl. "It's an owl...you got me an owl?," he both stated and asked softly, although his eyes remained locked on the avian inside the cage. Eros was tempted to open the door and take the owl out, but was disciplined enough not to, remembering the no pet rule.

Merlin's eyes opened widely when Gaia brought him the giant waffle bowl. "MERLIN'S BEARD!" He exclaimed with excitement. "This is EXACTLY what I need to taste all the flavors! Thank you so much Gaia! You are the best!!!" He wanted to hug her but then the waffle would be ruined so he blows kisses at her. "Nothing romantic Eros, don't want you punching my face!" He giggles as he takes the waffle bowl and starts adding every flavor of gelato. "mmmmm"

He sits next to Niall, who didn't looked to pleased. "You have to eat it slow or it freezes your brain. But it's so delicious!" Merlin licked his lips and starts eating, tasting each flavor one at a time. "My favorite of the bunch..CHOCOLATE! Must say the raspberry one is super delicious too." It really didn't took him that long to finish, considering all the gelato he served himself but was very pleased when he was done. "Now this was the best shopping experience I've ever had! Not that I have had too many, but still it would be hard to top this. Books, pets, candy,plants, chocolate, butterbeer, gelato, pastries, fruits, veggies. Its perfection. Did you enjoyed it Niall? Mag?" He noticed none were eating gelato and wondered if maybe the cold was too strong for wolfie's tongue. "You don't like ice cream Mag? Is it too strong for your taste buds?"

Then he saw from his seat Eros gift and he ran to look at the owl. "Ohhh it's beautiful! I was gifted one just a few hours ago, another beauty. Mine was an Australian Masked owl, and I can't believe I now have one. Are you giving it a name Eros?" He looked at Gaia. "Is it a boy or girl?" Merlin wanted to pet it but he just couldn't open the cage and do it, besides the no pet rule was quite sad. "Take good care of it, they are precious and so smart." He looked at the owl and smiled. "Be good to my friend, he is kinda serious but he he ain't bad." He grins and gave him a little hit on the shoulder. "happy birthday, I'll give you your tart tomorrow."

Gaia smiled at Eros "I used to call him Snitch. Usually we don't name the owls but he is a special little guy. He is all yours. Even if you open the cage he won't come out. He is mid beauty sleep." Gaia giggled "I left you a card there but I can tell you more about him. Once I realized it was your birthday I knew what I needed to do. I wasn't sure if I needed to take you with me or get an owl myself. Luckily uncle Mack was doing his scheduled delivery. You see Snitch wasn't up for sale. The only way he would go to someone it would have been to the perfect person. There would be no other way." Gaia realized she was rambling and shut up. ()

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/R53D23l.png[/img]Gaia laughed as she saw Merlin () "Let Marcello know which ones were your favorite. I asked them to send some pints to Hogwarts for you." She winked at the boy "Eros has an Australian Greater Sooty owl. He is a bit of a loner so I figured it was a perfect match."

(and everyone in my wow of a post lmao )

“Er,” Magnus said looking at Merlin, “dunno…never ‘ad it. It looks weird and really cold.” He eyed it suspiciously. He watch the unveiling of the owl with interest. The owl Gaia selected was so cute.

“I had a great time, yes,” Niall said as he slowly tried another spoonful. “It’s really good.” Niall crossed over to the owl and looked at it with awe. “He’s beautiful.”

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/R53D23l.png[/img]"Niall!" She said excitedly "We have some stuff for you!" Gaia waved her wand toward a pile of different shape and sizes parcels. Quite a few of them landed softly in front of Niall "These are for you. Hogwarts is home to many of us. Hopefully you have enjoyed your time and feel comfortable with us!" She smiled and winked at the boy. ()

MORE THINGS? For him? Niall thought. His widened with the pile of wrapped things in front of him. “F-for me? B-ut… I-I… really? Wow… thank ya… I-I don’t… I mean…” the boy stuttered looking at everyone. “I had a great time. I can’t wait to come here…everyone is really nice.”

Merlin nods to Gaia excitedly. "I will tell him, chocolate and raspberry, mmm." Merlin stare at the owl a bit more. "Surely matches the description." he winks. "Its beautiful, those owls like moist places I believe...if I'm not mistaken it with another species. But your family breeds them, right? Or they just sell them?"

(( Before Merlin went to see the owl))

Merlin opened his eyes wide. "You have to try it! Yes it's cold but its so delicious! Just don't take a big bite at once and you'll be fine, eat it slowly."

Merlin smiled sweetly to Niall. "I'm glad you enjoyed your time, so did I."

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/8c1Q3Re.png[/img] Eros' gaze remained on the owl even as Merlin came by to take a look. He only quickly look over to his friend when Merlin () )mentioned the tart, just to make sure the prefect was talking to him and not the owl still. "I think I'll keep the name Snitch then. I like it." The glance diverted to Niall when the boy also stopped to look and comment on the owl. Eros stared at the bird a little longer before standing back up as Gaia announced excitedly that she had some things got Niall.

Eros waited for a minute as she talked to the boy, which also reminded him he also needed to talk to Niall () later. Although, what Eros had wanted to do seemed kind of basic in comparison now. The teenager stuck his hands into his pocket as he made his way closer to . "I can't believe you got me an owl, Kavanagh," he shook his head in disbelief but with a grin on his face. His eyes were fixed down at his feet. "We have a ranch and lots of animals, but I never really had a pet. And I love birds. Did you know that?," he asked, although it was mostly rhetorical. "And you also got an owl that matches my personality? How did you even think of getting me an owl? Was this one of the reasons you ran off earlier?," Eros kept asking questions and realized he was talking a lot. His hands dug deeper into his pocket. "I don't know what to say. Magnus says thank you is normally what a normal person says when they get a gift but...," Eros looked up at Gaia and shrugged. "Would it be weird to say I love you?" He realized how heavy that sounded when he said it out loud, and immediately wanted to go hit his head against a wall as he actually meant it in the appreciative way and not the romantic way. However, there was no taking it back now. Then suddenly, without warning, he leaned forward and touched his lips to hers, kissing her. After a few seconds, he pulled away, stepping back, hands still in his pocket. "Thank you, Gaia," he said softly, looking her right in the eye.

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/R53D23l.png[/img] Everything happened so fast Gaia thought she had to be in the hospital wing having a dream. "I..." She kept trying to talk but she just kept looking at Eros (). It wasn't awkward it was more of a realization of what was happening. "I think Snitch is a good name. We raise them. Dad takes owls all around Europe. I know a lot of the owls in the owlery. I did ran off earlier so I could catch my uncle. He usually travels with Snitch and two other owls in case he has an order for my dad. Snitch was starting his training. I heard you talking to Magnus about birds and Vega came from my farm too. I mean my obsession with owls is also a family business." Gaia laughed as she realized she was rambling. "I would love me too if I gave myself an owl." she giggled and winked at him. Then she stopped and really looked at Eros surprised "DID YOU JUST CALL ME GAIA?" She started laughing and pointed her wand to the ceiling as she muttered a spell fireworks erupted from her wand. "Sorry, I figured I should celebrate the occasion."

(and everyone)

Magnus conceded. “Alright,” he said looking over the menu and deciding to try the chocolate. It was cold, but good. “I like this.” He smiled as Eros kissed her and called her Gaia. They made a cute couple he thought.

Snitch was a good name, Niall thought. “You never had a pet either?” Niall said, “we both got pets today.” He caught their kiss. And Eros said he loved her. It was so sweet. Niall glanced back at the parcels, awe still in his eyes.

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/8c1Q3Re.png[/img] For a moment, Eros was as stiff as a statue, nervous about how would react. However, he relaxed when Gaia started answering his questions. He smiled, eyes still locked on her as she spoke. He wasn't even really listening, just watching her lips move. She had pretty lips. And eyes. And eyelashes. And nose. Pretty everything. It wasn't until she set off some fireworks that he tuned back into reality.The Aussie had a confused look on his face when she said it was to celebrate the occasion. A hand went up to run through his hair as he looked around him, embarrassed, almost ready to ask if she meant the kiss. However, it then hit him she was referring to him saying her name. "Oh," he laughed to himself upon the realization. "Well, I'm all out of breath. Gaia is a syllable shorter to say," he smirked. He bit his lower lip for a second then shyly looked away, his attention now on Niall.

"So are you gonna open your gifts, mate," Eros changed the subject ()

(and everyone)

“What?” he asked to Eros. Oh, right, the parcels. Nervously he picked up the first one and opened it. Soon he’d opened several new books which would help him with school and magical creatures. Then he opened a brand new uniform as well as robes. These were enough but the final gift, a brand new racing broom and a maintenance kit. He stared at them and blinked as tears welled in his eyes.

With all the rest of the amazing generosity for someone they didn’t know, the little boy was overwhelmed. “Amn’t no one ever done something like this for me…” he said in a trembling voice, “I normally get a cauldron cake and clothing from the second hand shop.” He wiped his eyes but a few more tears fell.

[img align=left]http://i.imgur.com/R53D23l.png[/img]Gaia rolled her eyes "I am sure Gaia is easier, but at least I will know when you are annoyed with me." She kissed his cheek and sat at the table "Yes, Niall! () Open your gifts. We all want to know what you got!" Gaia looked around " and Rosie () we have gifts for you as well!" Gaia once again waved her wand and send parcels hovering across the room to their respective owners. She then realized she didn't get her ice cream. "Want some ice cream, Eros? I think I need a drink too." ()

Gaia grinned at the boy. "You deserve all the goodness in the world! You are family now." She got up and quickly hugged the boy (Niall) before going to the ice cream bar.

Niall blushed when Gaia hugged him. "Can't think ya enough." He still couldn't believe the generosity and the spark of friendships--he hadn't had friends before. He really did feel very welcome.

Merlin was very happy for Niall and felt his heart broke when he cried tears of joy. "Niall, you deserve heaven and earth so you got a broom to go to the skies and clothes and books to walk and learn on the ground." Merlin gave him a quick hug and then smiled at him. "We don't want you to ever feel alone. Now that you have a broom we can practice together, maybe Eros can teach you because I suck. Ohh Gaia is also a pro."

"I need a new broom. I'll teach you how to prep your broom for Quidditch. You can come to the farm for the holiday, if you want Niall." () "we are going to be doing stuff during the break. I am sure we can arrange things so you can come too. After all pretty much everyone has a place in the Kavanagh farm." She giggled "Merlin () can help you with flying lessons. He is quite scale-ful at flying." She winked at Merlin.