Blaise was in the kitchen eating a large piece of the cake Didly had made for his birthday. The poor house elf nearly had a heart attack when he heard his master wasn't having any sort of party for his birthday, but managed to sneak the cake into his dinner anyway, not that Blaise was complaining. Any food made by Didly was marvelous, and he was very glad Narcissa finally stopped pressing him about having a party for his birthday. He was happy to just sit in the kitchen and eat his cake.

Hannah had spoken to Didly and made sure Blaise had cake today. She had not been able to get off of work, but she was off now. She had his present shrunk and in her pocket. She found him in the kitchen eating cake. Hannah smiled and watched him for a moment. He really was one of the loveliest things she had ever seen.

"Happy birthday," she said softly. "I have something for you. I didn't actually know where it would go when I had it made, but I can think of no one else who should have it. I... I hope you like it."

He quickly swallowed the piece of cake he had in his mouth and turned to grin at her. "Ah, there she is. I was wondering when you'd pop around. I thought you had forgotten about me." Grabbing her waist, he pulled her against him and gave her lips a quick peck before offering her a bite of cake. "I know it's not as good as yours, but you have to admit, Didly makes a mean Devil Food Cake."

"N-not hungry," Hannah said nervously. She was terribly anxious about giving him his gift.

"Hannah?"

She pulled the package from her pocket and un-shrunk it. "Here. Open it."

Then she turned away, so she wouldn't have to look.

Blaise snickered and quickly tore off the wrapping. His jaw dropped when he saw the painting.



"Fucking... hell."

Hannah starting wringing her hands. "I know. What was I thinking? I'll... I'll just get you a real present. I couldn't think of anyone else or anywhere I would hang that, so... I'll just burn it."

Hannah moved towards the painting.

Blaise quickly jerked it back and narrowed his eyes at her.

"The hell you are. This is going in my bedroom and don't you even think about destroying it. It's my present, and you already gave it to me, so there." He finished by sticking his tongue at her quickly before admiring the painting once more. "Merlin, Han, this is gorgeous. Who did it? Some old perv didn't get to see you like this, did he? I'll hex him."

Hannah made a face. "You know, if I didn't know better, I'd swear you and Draco were twins. He pretty much said the same thing when I saw him on Monday... out running around by the way. You really must talk to him about being more careful, Blaise."

"Who?"

"Draco," Hannah offered, knowing all too well that was not what he was referring to.

Blaise gave her a look. "No, Hannah, who was it that painted you... half-naked?"

Hannah moved between him and the door in case he had the urge to hex as Draco had. "Dean Thomas did."

He looked at her strangely. "Why'd you move over to the door? Think I was going to go off hexing him? Although I don't like him for seeing you this unclothed, Thomas was a Gryff and was probably nothing but professional. Doesn't mean I won't hunt him down later, but not now. Right now I have to find a place to hang this."

Blaise got up and carried the painting to the stairs and headed up to his room, Hannah following.

Hannah trailed after him, talking. "Draco started storming off to hex people, but he also babbled something about Ginny wearing Dean's trousers. I don't know. He doesn't make sense when he talks sometimes, flitting form one subject to the next with little segue. I was so nervous when I did that sitting. I... I used Wayne's money. Dean was very professional and gentlemanly. He did say I was pretty and that you were lucky, but he didn't know you were you. He also suggested a sexy dance followed by kissing to get you to come to your senses."

He narrowed his eyes at her when he stopped in the hallway. "And that was a bit over the professional line. Perhaps I will storm off like Draco to hex him. But feel free to sexy dance and kiss all you like." He walked into his rooms and went straight into his bedroom. "Well what do you know, you match!" he said with a grin, before levitating the picture to an empty space on the wall opposite his bed and putting a sticking charm on it.

"Perfect."

Hannah looked at it and shifted nervously. She matched. Did she? She wondered sometimes.

"He was only trying to be helpful. Please don't hex Dean. I was thinking of having another portrait done."

Blaise gave her a look that made her hand go to her heart, and Hannah took a step back.

"Goodness, I said I was only considering it."

"Oh really," he said in a cold voice. "And what else will you be wearing? Nothing at all? No. I don't want him to see more of you. At all."

Hannah blinked. "My goodness, I didn't mean to upset you. Of course, I'd be wearing clothes. Blaise, what sort of girl do you think I am? I haven't planned on anyone seeing me without my clothes on... except maybe you, and..."

Her eyes went wide, and she blushed.

"That is... I mean..."

A smirk spread slowly across his face. "Oh, so you were planning on me seeing you sans clothing sometime in the future? Goodness, Miss Abbott! Whatever will we do with you?" he asked as he slowly stalked towards her.

"Well..." Hannah said, a slight waver in her voice. "The thought had occurred to me. A bit."

Blaise wrapped his arms around her, and Hannah snuggled into his chest.

"Good. Because I have to say, it's occurred to me more than a bit. Actually it's occurred to me a hell of a lot more than a bit. I still want to see you in those candied knickers. I'll dress to match."

Hannah looked up at him with what she was now calling her looking at Slytherins face.

"I don't think we're quite to my wearing things you can eat off of me or vice versa."

Blaise chuckled.

"I mean... I haven't even really been in my underwear around you and knew that you cared. I thought I just wasn't attractive there for a while. I mean, you sat in the dressing room with me while and I changed and... nothing."

"Now that's where you're wrong. I nearly swallowed my tongue a dozen times. Why do you think I stayed in that dressing room with you? To help you in and out of your dresses? If only it were that Gryffindor. I was a Slytherin through and through, catching glimpses of your knickers, candied or no. I couldn't keep my eyes off of you."

"Really," Hannah said smiling. "I didn't notice. My goodness."

Hannah raised up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek, knowing it would annoy him.

He sighed in irritation. "How many times do I have to tell you? The only people who kiss my cheek are my mother and my girlfriends when we're in public. None of this cheek stuff. You kiss me properly."

Hannah giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You're so silly about the oddest things."

She kissed the corner of his mouth. That got an exasperated sigh.

"Han-"

She cut him off by presenting him with the proper kiss he'd asked for. Hannah giggled when he lifted her off her feet and walked them to the sitting room and towards that ginormous couch of his.

When he sat down, he put her in his lap and wrapped his arms around her.

"This is a perfect birthday," he said with a sigh. "No parties, no people... just you and me."

Hannah swallowed nervously. He was in for a shock on Saturday.

"I like just you and I as well, but wouldn't you want to at least gather with your friends? Tracey... Pansy? Greg perhaps? Draco's taking me to meet him. I know Draco didn't tell you, but I am."

His grin diminished entirely. "Well then, have fun with Greg. Be sure to send my love," he said sarcastically. "Why the hell is he taking you there, anyway?"

"What's wrong with you?" Hannah asked. "Draco wants me to meet all your friends. I'm not going to do anything but talk to him and teach him to knit. Good grief. You're the one I like. I'm not so easily tempted, and besides, Goyle scares the heck out of me. I remember him in school. He was a brute. He and that Vincent Crabbe..." Hannah cut herself off with a shiver.

"Yeah, well," Blaise said with a scowl. "Last time I talked to Goyle he got pissed at me and decided to storm off like a twit. Forgive me if I'm worried that he'll only see you as Blaise's girlfriend and not treat you well. I know Draco will be there, but there's only so much the arse-wonder can do. "

She smiled at Blaise. "Have a little faith in Draco. He called me one of his things. I'll admit I do not know Draco as well as you do, but he seems right fussy about other people messing with what he calls his things. Maybe Goyle is sorry he acted that way to you. I can talk to him about it if you like. Besides, if he's mean to me, perhaps I'll take a page out of your book and just hex him."

He tried not to laugh. Really, he did. But the picture in his mind of little Hannah Abbott hexing a man as big as Greg Goyle made him nearly pee his pants. Blaise figured he kept a straight face for about five seconds before bursting into laughter, which he considering quite a while in this instance.

"Oh please hex him! Please! Then come back and let me see the memory, because I want to see both Draco and Greg's faces! Oh, it would be priceless!"

"You know, sometimes you are not very nice."

The look he gave her said it all.

"Was he mean to you before storming off? Because if he was mean to you, I might be motivated to hex him anyhow. Though I suspect the knitting will be punishment plenty. I hope Draco doesn't honestly think I'm foolish enough to believe Gregory Goyle actually wants to learn how to knit. But if he upset you, I'm prepared to show him how to knit and crochet. You have your more obvious ways of torture, being a Slytherin, and I have mine, and believe it or not, observing Draco has helped me loads. I know what you lot don't like... sugar and light."

Hannah looked at him. "Which makes me wonder about you and I."

Blaise's head hit the back of the couch. "Can we not get into this discussion right now? It's my birthday. I'd rather not have my girlfriend question why she's my girlfriend."

"I'm sorry... I just... I wonder. A lot. None of you are what I always thought you were, but I still wonder how I fit in here."

Hannah shook her head to clear it.

"None of that." Hannah kissed the corner of his mouth again teasingly. "Well, birthday boy, what would you like to do now?"

His eyebrow rose. "If you have to ask, I'm not being obvious enough."

Blaise grabbed Hannah around her waist and twisted her underneath him so he was looming over her with her back on the couch.

"I know I'm supposed to get the birthday spankings, but do you think we could switch roles?"

"I don't want you to hit me."

Something prickled along the back of her neck. Hannah made a face. There was something... familiar about saying that for her, but she could not figure it out. It frightened her.

"What's with the face? And it's not a bad hit... are you alright?"

Hannah blinked. "Have you ever said something that you know you haven't said but it feels like you've said it before?"

Hannah scoffed at herself.

"I'm being silly. It's nothing. No bad thoughts tonight. Just kissing and whatever else you'd like to do, yes?"

Blaise sat off of her immediately. "Something like this happened when Draco hexed you. You said you thought you remembered something, but there was a block of some sort. Hannah, this is a sign of a memory charm, mind curse, or controlling potion. I need to go brew an antidote," he said quickly, trying to get up off the couch.

Hannah grabbed onto him. "No."

He gave her an incredulous look.

"No brewing on your birthday. No work, Blaise. Later. There will be time to worry later. Just stay here. Just be here with me now. Whatever it is will keep, yeah?"

He glared at her. "This could be serious Hannah. Do you not get that?" He saw her resolve face and sighed. "Tomorrow. But I mean it, alright? This is serious!"

"I get that," Hannah said. "But no serious stuff on your birthday. Only fun things."

A grin overcame his face. "Fun things by my standards or fun things by your standards?"

"I'm terribly sorry. I like you quite a bit, but birthday or not, we will be kicking no puppies tonight. Sorry to disappoint, dear."


{SUMMARY} Hannah drops by to celebrate Blaise's birthday with him.