Ellie Branstone (elliebee) wrote in afreshrpg, @ 2012-07-20 05:48:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, character: eleanor branstone, character: laura madley, time: 1998-07 |
WHO: Ellie and Laura
WHEN: Ellie's sixteenth birthday, the 19th of July
WHERE: Falmouth, Cornwall
WHAT: Laura's birthday surprise for Ellie
RATING: PG
STATUS: Closed, completed log
Laura loved birthdays, well other people’s birthdays at any rate. She fawned attention on Ellie, waking her up at midnight for a birthday snuggle (that didn’t last very long as the two quickly succumbed to sleep) and planning a whole day for her friend. Though she wasn’t an early riser at all, she woke before Ellie did, stealing away down to the kitchen. She begged William, their cook, to help her make Ellie’s favourite breakfast and a hamper for a picnic later on.
She didn’t even have to flirt with him at all, William was more than happy to help Laura and in hardly any time at all, she’d put together a tray for her best friend and was carrying it upstairs. Not wanting to spill anything, she carefully set the tray on the dresser and leapt into bed with Ellie. “Happy birthday!” she caroled, dropping a smooch onto her cheek.
Having fallen asleep after midnight curled up with Laura, Ellie was surprised to be woken by the girl climbing back into bed. She hadn’t even noticed her get up. “Mmmhey,” she said, rubbing her eyes. She didn’t see the tray, eyes barely focused. Reaching for Laura, she snuggled back down and buried her face in Laura’s neck. “It’s early,” she whined, but as each moment passed she woke up a little more, and soon was sitting up.
“You made me breakfast?” she grinned, and leaned in to kiss her sweetly. “Have I told you lately that you are the best?”
“Nope,” Laura smiled and pushed off the bed. “You should tell me more often.” She crossed to the dresser to retrieve the tray. “I’ve got a whole day set up,” she told her friend, passing the tray to her and waiting until she’d set it up before settling on the bed.
Lifting the cover, Ellie saw it was all her favorites. Eggs, bacon, toast, tomatoes... “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you loved me,” she teased. She snuggled into Laura’s side and held a piece of bacon up to the girl’s mouth before starting to feed herself. “Are you going to tell me what’s in store? Or are you going to make me suffer?”
After a forkful of bacon and tomato, Ellie hummed in appreciation. She swallowed, then turned and pressed a dramatic, smacking kiss to Laura’s mouth. “You, my dear, are the mostest bestest friend a girl could ever ask for, and if you like, I’ll set my watch to go off in half an hour so I can tell you again.”
“Nope,” Laura shook her head, stealing another slice of bacon when Ellie turned away. “It’s all a surprise. The only thing I’ll tell you is that your parents are taking us out to dinner tonight. The rest is a surprise!”
Ellie would have been happy to stay in bed all day, just hanging out and reading magazines and eating chocolate... but if Laura had a whole day planned, then she wanted to get up and go! She finished the rest of the breakfast then got up, shedding her pajamas and reaching for a towel. “Lemme just take a shower?” she said, looking over shoulder at Laura before heading for the bathroom.
Nodding, Laura settled back into the bed, into the nice warm spot Ellie had just vacated. She’d already showered and would happily take the opportunity for a little catnap. “Have fun!” she grinned at her friend, curling up around Ellie’s pillow. She loved sleeping in Ellie’s bed, it was always so much more comfortable than hers, perhaps because it usually had Ellie in it but it also smelled nicer, just like her friend, all sweet like raspberries. She smiled slightly as she nuzzled her head against the pillow and drifted off slightly.
When Ellie came back she saw Laura snoozing in her bed. She crept over, hair wrapped in a towel, and bent over. “Laaaura,” she crooned. “Wake up, pretty.” She reached out a hand and softly smoothed Laura’s hair back from her forehead. “It’s my birthday and someone not too far from here promised me a day of awesomeness. And I’m sure there’s some presents for me floating around someplace...?”
Blinking awake, Laura smiled up at her friend. “Present now or later?” she asked, feeling the weight of the little wrapped box in her pocket. “That’s the only decision you’re allowed to make today.”
Ellie frowned. “The only decision? I’m going to be making a lot more decisions than that. Like... the decision to... tickle you?” She finished her sentence on a giggle and reached out, tickling Laura’s sides. “Gimme my present, or it’ll be the worse for you!”
“No!” Laura giggled, wriggling underneath her friend. “I can’t!”
Ellie just tickled her harder, moving her fingers from Laura’s sides, further up, to under her arms. “You have to!” she insisted playfully. “It’s my birthday, you have to do everything I say!”
“You have to get off me, then!” Laura laughed, writhing up against Ellie and trying to ignore just how brilliant the other girl felt against her. “Your present isn’t in bed!”
After a long moment, she relented, looking down at her friend. “You’re pretty,” she said softly, before climbing off the girl and padding over to her dresser to find some clothes. “Do I need to wear anything in particular for this outing?
Shaking her head at both Ellie’s statement and question, Laura sat up and ran her hands through her hair. She leaned over to grab two hair ties from the bedside and quickly twisted her hair into two plaits. “Something comfortable,” she answered, tugging idly at the end of her braid. “Oh and bring a swim suit, or I guess you could wear one under,” she pointed out, tugging out the collar of her shirt to show Ellie the strap of her suit.
“Hmm, good point,” Ellie said. Quickly she stripped right down and pulled on her turquoise two piece, then added a white tank top and a denim mini. “Will this work?”
Studying her friend for a moment, Laura nodded. “That should work great,” she grinned then frowned deeply, only just managing to keep the mischievous glint from her eyes. “There’s just one problem.”
In alarm, Ellie looked down at herself. “What? Is it stained?”
“You look cuter than me,” Laura burst, grinning widely and letting out a laugh. “That just won’t do!”
Ellie let out a relieved breath, then launched herself across the short distance between them, straddling Laura’s lap and tickling her again. “Mean,” she said, pretending to be cross. “Meanies get tickled, so deal with it.”
“No, no!” Laura wriggled under her before twisting and managing to push Ellie to the bed, hopping up off her. “I said you were cute! How is that mean!”
“You made me worry!” Ellie exclaimed. She sat up, and pulled her friend into a tight hug. “But I’m glad you’re here anyway.”
“Where else would I be?” Lau glanced over at the clock before hugging Ellie again and grinning wide. “C’mon,” she urged, clasping her friend’s hands and tugging her. “If we don’t hurry, we’ll miss the reservation!”
“Reservation?” Ellie’s mind raced, think of what Laura might have planned for her this early in the morning that might require a reservation. “And what about my present?”
Laura looked at the clock for a moment, thinking. “Present once we get to the boat,” she decided before clapping her hands over her mouth as though she could take back ruining the surprise.
“We’re going in a boat?” Ellie didn’t need to hear any more. Waving to her parents as they dashed through the house, she pulled Laura along, hurrying to the beach.
“Yeah, I reserved one for the morning,” Laura laughed, following her friend through the house. “Wait!” she loosed her hand from Ellie’s grip, making a side trip to the kitchen to pick up the hamper that William had packed for them. He pressed a tube sunscreen into her hand as well and waved goodbye as they dashed from the house. “And lunch!” she yelped, happily, as they hit the sand.
Ellie had learned to sail the summer before fourth year, partly because she loved the water and partly to build up her upper body strength before trying out for the Quidditch team again, since her first attempt had been unsuccessful. Once the lunch hamper was stowed safely in the boat, she bustled around the tiny craft, tightening this rope and loosening the other, and making the myriad little checks that needed to be made. She stripped off her tank top, pulling a life jacket on over her bikini top and tossing the other to Laura. “Ready?” she asked. “Where are we headed?”
Fastening the life jacket, Laura settled herself on the boat, leaning over the edge slightly. “Our little island,” she answered, referring to the tiny crop of land they’d found a few years back. “I thought we could hang about there and eat lunch, just us, you know?”
Oh, that sounded nice. If she hadn’t been concentrating on keeping the boat afloat and headed in the right direction, she might have been tempted to lean over and kiss Laura for that. If she’d been asked what she wanted for her birthday, she would have said she just wanted to hang out with Laura, as she said, just the two of them. “You’re getting kissed when I have my hands free,” she warned playfully.
“And that’s different from normal days, how?” Laura countered, sticking her tongue out at her friend and sitting back as she watched the ocean. “I love it out here,” she said, after a long moment. It was so peaceful, so nice, there weren’t any pressures or anything. She could just be herself, with her best friend, and relax. If she had her way, she’d just stay here for the rest of her life.
“Because it’s my birthday?” Ellie suggested, tying off one last line and settling down next to Laura. After a moment of just sitting quietly, she turned, leaned in and brought their lips together. “You’re too good to me, you know that right?”
“No I’m not,” Laura took the kiss and shook her head. “You’re brilliant, El,” she assured her friend. “You’re amazing and gorgeous and you’re way too good for me.” She shrugged and reached up to tug at her braid. “I’m just taking you out for a picnic, that’s not all that brilliant.”
“You really think I’m gorgeous?” Ellie asked, smiling brightly. She took Laura’s hand and tangled their fingers together. “You always say that, and I wish you wouldn’t. If you could see yourself the way I see you...” She let her words trail off. This was a discussion they’d had many times before and Ellie never won. “What’s for lunch?”
“Your favourite, of course,” Laura grinned, happy that Ellie had dropped the subject. They sat for a few moments in a comfortable silence before Lau nudged her friend. “You want your present?” she asked.
Was the Pope a Catholic? Was Elvis the King? “Of course I want my present,” Ellie said, rolling her eyes playfully.
Reaching into her pocket, Laura tugged out the little box and handed it over, suddenly nervous. “I hope you like it,” she mumbled. “I just thought it was so pretty and delicate, I pictured you wearing it the moment I saw it.”
Eagerly, Ellie opened the little box and gasped softly as she saw what was inside. “Oh, Laura,” she exclaimed. “It’s...” She was lost for words, and instead took hold of Laura’s life jacket and pulled her in for a sweet kiss. “Put it on me?”
“I got myself a matching bracelet,” Laura told her, fastening the necklace on Ellie, her fingers brushing the soft skin of her neck. She was unable to stop herself from dipping her head forward and pressing her lips to the back of her friend’s neck. “Like a sort of best friend’s thing, you know?” she asked, tugging the bracelet out of her pocket to show Ellie.
Ellie let out a soft whimper as Laura’s lips brushed her skin, but recovered quickly. “I love it,” she said. “It’s perfect.”
They were coming up on the tiny island fast, and all her attention turned to not slamming them into the rocks. Ten minutes later they were pulling the little boat up onto the sand. “I can’t believe it’s been like a whole year since we were here last!”
“Mmm,” Laura shook her wrist, liking the way that the bracelet felt. “I wish we could live here,” she told her friend, grabbing the picnic hamper and blanket and clambering out of the boat, holding her hand up for Ellie if she needed help.
“Just you and me and the rabbits?” Ellie went on. “We could find a nice cave, and sleep on beds made of heather, like something out of one of those Enid Blyton books.” She took Laura’s hand more because she wanted to than because she needed to. “Let’s eat up on the top, where the grass is the greenest and the trees keep most of the wind from the open sea off us?”
Tugging Ellie close, Laura hugged her tightly before nodding and smiling. “Anywhere you want, birthday girl,” she grinned at her friend, tossing the blanket back at her as they struggled up the sand. “It’s your day!” >/lj-cut>