Secret gifts

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor and Scorp had promised each other they would get something for the other for Christmas. Even with the secret Santa they had both kept there promise and now Taylor sat waiting in the Dungeons for Scorp to arrive so they could open their gifts. Taylor had tried to find a place where they wouldnt be found by the others and the Dungeons was the best option, at least if Toni saw she would be easier to explain things to than the others. Over all they wouldnt mind too much, but it was respect to do this secretly.

Taylor sat on the same bench she had sat with Scorpius the first time they had met, running her fingers over the box Knight had snuck to her on the secret santa gift exchange. She had wanted to open it, dying with curiosity, but she had stayed strong and resisted temptation. Now she would wait, in the dimly lit corridor, for Knight to arrive.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

After the gift exchange with his entire group of friends, Scorpius knew he had one more private gift exchange to attend. Taylor and Scorpius had successfully managed to exchange gifts without the rest of their friends noticing, but they had yet to open them. Which is why when Taylor had asked him to meet him in the dungeons, Scorpius wasted no time in rushing down there with his gift from Taylor in his hands. He had wanted to open it already but he didn't want to ruin their exchange.

Scorpius smiled at the sight of Taylor waiting on the bench that they had first met. He remembered when he had come down here to see Toni, back when he liked her. How things were so different. He also remembered flirting with Taylor, the thought made him chuckle. "Hey Ms. Fantastic," he greeted her with their inside joke since they had first began that on this very bench.

[Sorry for the delay!]

 

[Taylor Mercer]

[Thats okay ]

While she waited Taylor thought back to the first meeting here and how things could change in such little time, she had majorly crushed on Knight back then, she admited she probably still would if it werent for Luna, but she was with him and Taylor respected that.

She was torn from her thoughts by Knight, who arrived with the present she had given him in his hands. She began to feel self-conscience, what if he didnt like her gift? Ignoring that feeling she gave him a wide smile. "And hello to you to, Mr. Fantastic." She said with a mock formal bow of her head. She then placed the gift Scopius had given her on the bench, so she could get up and give him a friendly hug to add to the greeting. "How have you been?" She enquired with a smile as she pulled away.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius grinned in response to the nickname she had given him when they first met and eagerly wrapped his arms around her small frame in greeting. "I've been good," he replied with a shrug, they had only gotten back to school so there wasn't much to report on. "I ran into Beau again, but thankfully we were able to contain ourselves," he said with a smirk. He didn't know why he hadn't told anyone about his encounter with Beau, Taylor was the first to know. "And I'm bruised up from 'broom skating' with Hoshi and Prince," he added, pulling up his sleeves to reveal bruises on his elbows, but he chuckled to show that it was nothing bad, he had actually enjoyed it. "How about you Taylor?" he asked in return.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor chuckled lightly when she heard Scorp and Beau had met again. "I hope so." She raised an eyebrow. He then spoke of broom skating, that caused another chuckle to rise from Taylor's lips. She remembered meeting Hoshi for the first time and that was when the girl had first tested the sport. Then instisted she was going to drag her friends into it. She obviously had. Taylor shrugged. "Not much really, just spending some time around the castle and getting to know people better really. Nothing interesting happens to me." She said looking up at Scorpius with a smile.

"So how about these gifts hey?" She said with a sort of childhood cheekiness. She returned to the bench and took a seat, waiting for Knight to do the same. She was bursting with curiosity.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius chuckled when Taylor said nothing interesting ever happened to her. "Well that's no fun, we'll have to change then then eh?" he suggested with a mischievous look in his grey eyes. When she suggested finally opening their gifts Scorpius laughed and said, "Yes, you don't know how hard it was for me not to open it," he admitted with a laugh. He took a seat beside her on the bench and eagerly asked, "So who goes first?"

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor laughed also when Scorpius admitted it was hard not to open his gift. "I know! But we both managed okay." She said with a grin. "Open them together?" She tried, she was already feeling a bit nervous about Knight opening his gift, maybe if they opened it together it could wash away some of that feeling. Was he actually going to like the magical camera and album? She hadnt been this nervous about Toni's gift, she briefly wondered why that was.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius nodded his head when Taylor offered that they open them together. "Sounds like a plan," he said to her with a grin. He held the box in both his hands as he turned to face Taylor. He was extremely nervous about Taylor opening his gift. He had gotten her a Gryffindor necklace with a pair of matching Gryffindor earrings. For some reason, getting Taylor jewelry hadn't been as tough as getting Luna jewelry, but perhaps it was just the pressure of Luna being his girlfriend.

"Okay on three," he said looking up to her with a grin. "One, two, three!" he said, as he began unwrapping his present excitedly. After he had successfully unwrapped it, and the paper lay on the dungeon floor, he picked up his gift from the box. "Woah," he said with a smile on his face, picking up the camera. "This isn't one of those magical cameras that takes moving pictures is it?" he asked her in disbelief yet his grey eyes sparkled with excitement. He noticed she had also included a photo album, which was a smart thing for her to have done, seeing as he didn't own one.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor nodded also, with a grin apon her face. She placed her hands on the paper and waited nervously as Knight counted down. On three she tore into her package (the only way to open a present) and when her paper lay with Knight's on the ground, she picked up the Gryffindor jewelerry and gave Knight a wide grin. "I love them!" She said still smiling as she clasped the necklace around her neck. She picked it up and smiled down at the red charm, she loved her house and she loved jewelerry, Knight had made an awesome choice. She was torn from her admiring when Knight asked her if the camera was a moving one. "Sure is!" She said, from the look on his face he liked it, which Taylor was relieved at. "Do you like it?" She asked just in case.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius laughed lightheartedly when she said she loved them. He was relieved that she did and the relief probably showed on his face, though he quickly grinned. "Do I like it?" he repeated sarcastically, "Of course I do!" he said with a laugh. "Thanks Taylor, it's really great," he added sincerely. It was one of the most creative gifts he'd gotten that he knew he'd use a lot.

"Alright, since you were the one that gave it to me, I think it's only fair that we take a picture together," he said with a mischievous smile, holding up the camera. He wasn't going to take no for an answer. "You can be the first in my photo album," he added with a grin.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor grinned glad that he liked it. She had to admit she wasnt sure how they worked, she had never actually taken a picture with one, she knew her Mum and Dad had one, but it was always them taking the pictures. The only thing she really knew about them was that you could change the time that it captured, eg. 3 seconds, 5 seconds, etc.

Knight suggested they take a picture together and she blushed a little, "I take terrible pictures!" She said with a laugh. He held up the camera and he looked determined. Sighing with her grin still on her face she accepted that he was going to take it anyway. "Okay, okay." She admitted defeat. "How long are you going to set it for?" She said with a raise of her eyebrow and a smirk

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius shook his head as if to say 'Nonsense!' when Taylor said she took horrible pictures. "You'll look great, you do now," he said with a laugh as he thought of how girls always worried about how they looked in pictures. But even though she complained he was glad she agreed to it anyway. He looked at the camera and furrowed his brows in concentration as he studied it and figured out how to work it. "I think I'll put it for 5 seconds so it will give us time to prepare," he said with another laugh.

After a few more prods at the camera he finally knew what to do so he pushed the button and turned to Taylor. "Get ready," he said with a smirk as he ruffled his hair to make it look more messy. He placed his arm around Taylor as he saw the warning flashes of the camera and smiled for the picture* as he awaited the large flash. Finally it took the picture and Scorpius grinned excitedly. "Can't wait to see the film on these," he said excitedly. Then his face furrowed in thought momentarily before he laughed. "You know, for our first picture with a moving film camera, we were pretty stationary," he said as he shook his head in amusement. He knew they would have to take more of them actually moving.

[*Just imagine the picture less...formal and more us, in the dungeons. ]

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor blushed a little when Knight said she looked great, it was a natural reflex when she recieved a compliment. "Alright." She said with yet another grin, she really smiled too much for her own good. She laughed as his face screwed up as he tried to work the camera. "Dont think too hard." She chuckled playfully.

Once Scorpius figured out how to work the camera he told her to get ready. She quickly scratched the tip of her nose and out of the corner of her eye say Knight ruffle his hair. She smirked when she remembered back to their first meeting and how she badly she had melted at that. He placed an arm around her and she placed her own around him in return. The camera flashed and then finally there was a larger one. She looked over at Scorpius after the photo had been taken and she laughed when he noted it was rather stationary. "I wouldnt worry too much, it can be the 'fantastic learning how these camera's operate' photo." She nudged Knight playfully on the arm.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius chuckled when she said it could be the 'fantastic learning how these camera's operate' photo. "Thanks, I think I'll put that as the caption of the photo," he said jokingly, sticking his tongue out at her momentarily. "Shall we take another one?" he asked, with a shrug. He had a feeling he'd be using his new gift a little too much from now on. Though he didn't know what the two of them would be doing other than laughing and smiling in their photos, he kind of wanted to do something funny, just to see how the moving film worked.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor stuck her tongue out at Scorpius in return to his action. "Yeah okay." She grinned, trying to think of something she could do to make this photo a little more interesting. She was overly pleased Knight liked his new gift, while thinking that she uncounciously grabbed the necklace around her neck. She then decided to suddenly stand up and she waved her hand for Scorp to join her. "Lets take it standing." She grinned, she had an idea...

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius chuckled when Taylor suddenly got up and motioned for him to stand up as well. He eagerly got up off the bench, wondering what Taylor wanted when she said they'd take the next picture standing. "Okay," he agreed with another chuckle, not really sure how much of a difference sitting and smiling would be to standing and smiling, but he didn't protest as he stood beside her, looking down at her since he seemed to be a few inches taller than her.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

She grinned looking back up at Scorpius for a moment. Soon it dawned on her that it was probably a moment too long and she looked away with a tiny blush and nodded her head to the camera, hinting that she wanted him to take the picture. She had an idea, but didnt want him to see what it was, because he would have a better reaction if he was caught off guard. "Im not going to tell you what im doing, the picture will be more entertaining if I dont." She said voicing her thoughts with a cheeky smile.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius raised his eyebrows skeptically at her and said, "Oh really?" but the smile on his face couldn't hide his curiosity and excitement for what she was planning. He shook his head chuckling and began messing with the camera again, making sure the settings hadn't changed or anything and made sure it was still set for for 5 seconds. He glanced at her briefly before he said, "Okay ready?" and pushed the button so the camera could take the motion picture.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

She beamed when he began messing with the camera again, standing behind him and watching as he fiddled with the buttons. He then asked her if she was ready and she nodded her head with a grin. He pushed the button and before he could look back she stepped backwards for a few paces and then jumped forward, launching herself onto his back.* Lucky she didnt weigh much, she wondered what his face looked like and she laughed a little, before smiling up at the camera, flicking her hands out. Now she was sure that would make a more amusing picture.

*Once again in the dungeons etc

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius only had time to give the camera a weak smile before he turned to his side and notice Taylor wasn't there. The next second, he felt her leap onto his back and he dropped his mouth open in surprise before it turned into a grin. She was really light, possibly even lighter than Luna was, so he laughed as the 'impact' of the jump wore off. He knew that was going to be a very good picture. After the flash had gone off, indicating that it had captured the moment, Scorpius grinned mischievously, glad that Taylor couldn't see his face (as there was a slight blush on it as well).

He grabbed the camera again, and quickly pressed the button without letting Taylor know. He took her small hands in his larger ones, wrapping them around his neck. He then grabbed her legs that were on his sides, and as soon as he knew she was secure, he twirled around while she was still on his back, as the camera began taking the next picture.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor laughed again as the picture took, she couldnt wait to see how that one worked out. She realised she was really enjoying being here with Knight. It was like their first meeting, but better because it wasnt awkward. She was about to jump down, but before she could even react her hands were moved to his neck and she furrowed her brow in confusion. Suddenly she was spun around she grabbed on tighter, for fear that she would fall, she let out a small shout of surprise, before noticing Scorpius was taking a picture. She laughed when she realised how ridiculous her face was going to look, but she found she didnt care. They were memories and not every memory is perfect, its the meaning that counts.

She tapped his chest with her hand that was around his neck. "I guess we are even in the surprises department." She joked, with a grin probably bigger than before.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Their laughter rang through the empty dungeon halls and he was surprised no one had heard them yet. He was reminded of their first time meeting here and how he had enjoyed his time alone with her but some new people had arrived, and even though he enjoyed their company too, he felt their time had been ruined slightly. Now he hoped no one would come interrupt them again.

Scorpius chuckled at her comment and rather reluctantly let her down off of him. He turned around to face her, his face alight with a grin and smirked at her. "Well I couldn't let you one-up me," he said jokingly. He ruffled his hair even though it had been 'windswept' due to the spin and picked up his camera. "I suppose we've had enough for today?" he said, more questioningly than a statement, wondering if Taylor wanted to continue. "I mean, I have to save film for some other friends, even if you are fantastic," he added with a wink at her before laughing again.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor jumped down off Knight's back and let out another amused slice of laughter. She grinned up at Scorpius when he turned to face her and she poked her tounge out at him playfully. She looked up at his smiling face and for a moment her face showed something similar to guilt. She enjoyed Knights company maybe more than she should and she scolded herself for thinking that way. But through it all she couldnt contain the jelousy she had towards Luna. Knight chose that moment to ruffle his hair, she rolled her eyes, but did it with a smile, so Knight wouldnt pick up the actual reason behind her action.

Choosing to ignore everything for the moment she looked back up at him with her famous grin on her face again. She nodded when he said they had had enough. Then laughed when he said she was fantastic. She touched a hand to her collarbone and fluttered her eyelashes. "I understand darling." She said in an exaggerated voice, before letting out a snort of laughter.

 

[Scorpius Knight]

Scorpius found himself staring at Taylor for a little too long and when he caught himself, he coughed and brought his hand up to his hair as a means of hiding his blush. He was with Luna and he really liked her, the last time he had led someone on, Jenna, even though he was with Luna and it blew up in his face when the two girls found out. He didn't want a repeat of that with Taylor so he forced those thoughts out of his mind.

He rolled his grey eyes at Taylor playfully when she exaggerated her statement and couldn't help but laugh at her outburst of laughter. Out of all the gift exchanges he had, the one with all his friends, the one with Luna, this one had to be his favorite. "We should all take a group picture some day," he said randomly, though excited for the thought of that.

 

[Taylor Mercer]

Taylor heard Scorpius's comment and she sobered from her laughing. "That would be good." She said sincerly, after some time Taylor had finally began to feel part of the group. At first there was that awkward left out feeling that she had, but over time she had grown stronger bonds with Sam, Knight, Hoshi and Toni even. She still didnt get along with Jenn very well, but she didnt think that would change, the two times they had spoke, Jenn hadnt been all that nice to her.

Thinking about the group brought up a thought about Toni that Taylor had been meaning to talk to Knight about for some time. "Oh, that reminds me. I believe it is relevent to say I told you so." She said simply. "You said I couldnt get on Toni's good side. Well I did. You could practically call us friends now. Well actually you could." She said opening her mouth to say more, but stopped herself when she noticed she was rambling, she did that alot. Closing her mouth with an audible snap she looked up at Scorp with a smug look on her face.