Have A Boo-tiful Birthday (Toby)

[Deleted]

Kinsey was excited! She finally figured out what to do for Toby's birthday! She'd talked to the Care of Magical Creatures professor and got everything figured out, now she just needed to find her best friend. Granted, she was pretty sure she knew where he was. It was early enough in the day that the sun was just barely peaking over the mountains and the sky was barely light. It was almost a sure thing that all the guys were asleep, which was what Kinsey planned on. 

She snuck into the boy's dorms, relieved beyond belief when she saw that they were all sound asleep. Creeping in on her toes, she made her way to Toby's bed, poking him to wake him up, but using a pointer finger to gesture that he needed to be quiet. "Get up!" she whispered. "Meet me in the common room. Ten minutes!" Kinsey kept her expression serious on purpose, so Toby wouldn't know she was planning something for his birthday. He would probably think she was upset about Riley or something else. The point was, he was more likely to hurry down if he didn't know she was happy, which might be a little mean, but it was for the greater good. 

Kinsey rushed out of his dorm, moving to the common room and sitting on a couch, hiding her present for him between her back and the couch so he wouldn't be able to see it, even if he was looking. She opened a book and pretended to be reading, but Kinsey was too excited for that. It was all a farce while she waited for Toby to be ready for the day.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

@kinsey

Note: <3

Toby’s face was smushed into his pillow, dreaming about Merlin knows what. His eyes slowly flickered open from his deep slumber when he felt someone trying to wake him, poking his arm gently. For a second he thought he was dreaming, because it wasn’t often that Kinsey would sneak her way up to the boys dormitories. ”Huuh?” he rolled over to grab his glasses of the nightstand. ”Is everything okay, Kins?” Toby whispered, unable to hide the concern from his voice, and face, as he tried to read her expression. She was hard to read in the dark and she was holding a finger to her mouth to remind him to keep quiet. He dreaded, and secretly hoped, she wasn’t thinking about Riley again. It hadn’t even gone through his mind that it was his birthday today yet.

Kinsey vaguely told him to come down to the common room in ten minutes and he was flooded with confusion. He wasn’t sure what time it even was. Toby quickly got himself together and made his way downstairs, more concerned over his best friend more than anything.

As Toby reached the bottom step, he slowly made his way over to the sofa where she was sitting and reading, still not suspecting a thing. ”What’s up?” he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes into another dimension.

＃ENY ADOXOGRAPHY

[Deleted]

Kinsey lost her composed expression at how sleepy Toby was. He was normally pretty cute, as much as best friends could be anyway, but this was different. He was sleepy cute, which was adorable. How could she not smile? She gave a small nod at his question. "I'm fine. Come on, common room. 10 minutes. Okay?" Without waiting for him to answer, she crept away from his bed, slipping out of his dormitory. Once she was out, she sighed in relief. At least no one else woke up to find her in there. That would have been so awkward.

She paced around the common room as she waited for Toby, until she finally made herself sit down and open a book. To her relief, it wasn't too much longer until Toby came into the room, rubbing his eyes. "I want to show you something," Kinsey said, jumping up from the couch. "Come on," she said, grabbing his hand and dragging him to the door. 

Kinsey pulled him through the castle, out onto the grounds and made her way over to the paddock not too far away from the caretaker's hut. She grinned when she saw the Hyppogriff inside. "Happy birthday Toby!" She exclaimed once they got close enough, spinning to look at the expression on his face. "The professor said you can go in and see if he'll let you touch him," she encouraged softly, watching her best friend.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

@kinsey

Note:

When Toby had made his way down the stairs to see Kinsey sitting on the couch, he was relieved that she didn't seem upset about anything, but she definitely had something up her sleeve. He knew his best friend. She wouldn't be waking him up unless if it were for something good. Kinsey grabbed his hand, "I'm sure this will be good then." he let out a sleepy laugh and she was pulling him through the castle, dragging him to the grounds like one of their true expeditions.

The last time they ran while holding hands she had sprained her ankle very badly which cost her a trip to the Hospital Wing and many questions from the school Nurse. Probably from the dirt scuffed all over her uniform, but they had gotten away, which was exhilarating. He would never live over the guilt he felt that day because he felt like it was his fault for yanking her so hard while sprinting through the forest. They stopped where the Care of Magical Creatures classes often took place, and Kinsey guided him to the paddock of where the Hippogriffs resided.

Toby looked around curiously, his eyes flickering open into a more awake expression, his mouth gaped open,  "Oh my god, you got me a hippogriff?!" he exclaimed jokingly, out of pure excitement, before covering his mouth for the outburst. Opps. The last thing he wanted to do was disrespect a hippogriff. He let out a chuckle. She explained that they had permission to interact with the creature and he instantly perked up. Toby never had the opportunity to approach a hippogriff one-on-one, other than in class with a bunch of other kids. During his class the hippogriff wasn't in the mood to interact, so he was glad that he had the opportunity to today. Toby was obviously touched by the act of kindness, and couldn't help but pulled Kinsey in for a squeeze, "Thank you, Kinsey, that is so thoughtful..." he released her from the hug, and told her with a dark chuckle, "Lets see if he bites my hand off.." 

＃ENY ADOXOGRAPHY

[Deleted]

Kinsey could tell that Toby was relieved when he came down and saw her sitting in the Common Room. She was fully aware that he probably worried when she woke him up, telling him to come down quickly, but that was kind of the point. She wanted him to hurry so she could get him to his surprise before anyone else woke up and could interfere. At least he relaxed when he saw her, commenting that it was going to be fun and Kinsey merely nodded in response. 

She laughed when he finally realized what was going on, staring at the creature in obvious delight. Kinsey laughed, "Well I didn't get it for you to keep ... but I did get permission for you to interact with it for as long as you want this morning." Kinsey smiled, glad that she'd chosen something that made Toby so excited. That was the whole goal of this present, to do something that he would love. She thought he would instantly move toward the gate, too excited to think of doing anything else, but to her surprise, Toby turned to her and wrapped her in a quick hug while he thanked her. She shrugged a little, "I knew it was something you wanted to do," she answered easily. She remembered him complaining to her the day they learned about hippogriffs because theirs was grumpy. 

Toby laughed, saying that now they would see if it would bite his hand off and Kinsey glared. "You are not allowed to let that happen, Toby. You know better and I think we should stay away from the hospital wing today. It is your birthday, you know." Kinsey wasn't trying to ruin his fun, but she also didn't want him to get hurt. His parents would hate her if she got him injured ... assuming they would learn about it. "Promise you'll be careful?" she asked in a sweet voice. 

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

I AM SO FREAKING MAD I LOST THIS POST 

[Deleted]

Toby smiled as she teased him and Kinsey couldn’t help but smile back at him. She loved to see him smile. That was why she planned this whole thing in the first place. She wanted to give her best friend a reason to smile for the rest of the day. Hopefully this would do the job, as long as he didn’t get himself injured like he was now suggesting he might do. Kinsey narrowed her eyes as she waited for him to say he wasn’t going to get himself hurt, trying to appear serious. When he smiled, saying he’d be careful, she allowed herself a smile as well. ”Good. I’ll hold you to that.” Kinsey nodded, gesturing that he should go forward and start already.

She expected Toby to leave straightaway and head to the Hippogriff, too excited to wait, but he didn’t. Her friend stopped and turned toward her, asking if she had any advice. Kinsey shrugged her shoulders, ”Uhhh, don’t offend him? Be very respectful and move slowly?” Honestly, Toby was the more educated of them when it came to animals. She inhaled before adding, ”Do you want me to come with you? We could try together ...” Kinsey didn’t plan this so she could touch a Hippogriff, but if Toby didn’t want to do it alone, she’d join him.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

@kinsey

Note:

Toby was fully aware that he knew more about magical creatures than his best friend, but it didn't hurt to get some input. It had been a while since he read about hippogriffs, but he remembered that being respectful was the number one rule. Typically, Tobias was a polite and respectful individual, so he wasn't worried about offending the creature. As Kinsey offered to go into the enclosure with him, he nodded his head happily. "Yes, of course I do." he encouraged her, pulling her along by the hand.

Toby slowly opened the gate and closed it behind them quietly. The hippogriff stood still, sniffing the air around him as soon as they entered the quarters. Toby honestly hadn't ever realized how big they were until standing face to face with the majestic creature. "Hi, I'm Toby." he bowed, trying not to intimidate or disrespect the hippogriff. Toby gestured slowly to Kinsey, "This is my best friend Kisney." he said in a soft voice, trying to gauge the animals face and body language. It didn't really seem to mind that they were there. It seemed more curious if they had any food. "Can I pet you?" Toby asked in a friendly tone, a sudden burst of courage coming over him. The hippogriff stepped toward him, as if it actually knew what he said, and it took everything in him to not get too excited. "Yuss." he breathed dorkily, raising a hand to stroke the back of its head and neck since that seemed like a proper invitation. Toby wordlessly looked at Kinsey, gesturing with his eyes, urging her to follow along too. This was eerily familiar to the encounter with the unicorn a few weeks ago in the forbidden forest, but this time they actually had permission to enter this time, so that was a great stress lifted already.

＃ENY ADOXOGRAPHY

[Deleted]

Kinsey didn't really expect Toby to want her to come in with him. It was a gift for him and she thought he'd be so excited that he'd go in without thinking and she was all right with that. However, when she saw his hesitation, she couldn't help but offer. She followed him easily when he pulled her into the pen with him. She smiled, though she was a little nervous. It'd been a while since she last stood so close to a Hippogriff. 

She stood a bit behind Toby, entirely content to let him lead the way. This was a present for him after all. She had no intention of taking over and not giving him a chance to really enjoy it. She smiled when he introduced himself and then her, taking her turn and bowing when he gestured to her. It was almost like being back with the Unicorn, except now he was the one talking to the creature first. The whole scene was so sweet and she watched her friend fondly as he continued, asking if he could pet the creature. The Hippogriff seemed to be in a pretty calm mood, which she was definitely grateful. She wanted this to be a good experience, and while she knew Toby probably wouldn't mind if he got injured because he was standing so close to the creature, it wasn't how she wanted his birthday to go. She forced herself to not laugh when the creature stepped closer and his excitement rose a bit as he reached to pet it. He glanced over at her and Kinsey stepped forward, raising her hand so the Hippogriff would know what she was doing. She didn't want to startle it. "Thank you," she told it, even though it was likely that the creature didn't understand her. She touched it gently, smiling. 

As they continued to pet the creature, Kinsey watched her friend's face. The Hippogriff didn't seem to mind their presence at all, which was definitely a nice thing in her opinion. "So ...?" she asked softy, watching as the Hippogriff bent down and started playing with something on the ground. She liked the feel of its feathers and continued to stroke it gently, hoping Toby was enjoying this as much as she thought he would be. 

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

@kinsey

Note:

Kinsey turned to Toby to get his impression of the situation. He shared a grin with his best friend, "That was awesome." he whispered, eyes widening with geek fueled excitement that he wouldn't be able to hide if he tried. He wasn't really sure why he was whispering...a little caught up in the moment. The hippogriff was distracted by something on the ground, so Toby didn’t want to bother it if he was already finished with their company. Toby stepped a couple of feet away, still watching the majestic animal with interest, "Thank you so much for doing this for me, Kinsey, you totally get me.” he pulled her in and squeezed her tightly, squealing comically to convey the excitement.

Toby’s released Kinsey from his arms and his eyes fell on the creature, who’s back was now faced toward them. ”Kind of looks like he’s done socializing...I don’t wanna overstay my welcome.” he stated cautiously with a snort. ”Wanna get some breakfast?” Toby asked happily, feeling lucky to have someone as wonderful as Kinsey in his life as his best friend.

＃ENY ADOXOGRAPHY

[Deleted]

The grin on Toby's face was all she wanted for the day. It was clear as day to Kinsey that he was delighted by her present and she couldn't be happier. She planned this entire morning activity just for him and all she wanted was for it to go well. At least neither of them were injured like what happened after meeting the Unicorn a few weeks ago. "I'm glad you liked it," she muttered back, watching the creature carefully. She knew hippogriffs were majestic, but they could also be brutal if they were in the mood and she was still a bit wary of this one. 

Then Toby was giving her a tight hug, thanking her and Kinsey laughed as she hugged him back. "Of course. I wanted to make sure it was a memorable one for you,"she told him honestly. Toby was her best friend and even though she knew he didn't want to make a big deal out of his birthday, she wanted him to know that she remembered and she also wanted to do something to make it special for him. 

She nodded, backing away when Toby mentioned that maybe they should go. At least she wasn't the only one a little bit nervous about staying too long. She made it to the gate first, slipping out and grinning at Toby. "Of course! Let's go get some good food for the birthday boy," she teased, nudging his shoulder with her own as the two started to walk back to the castle together. It was definitely going to be a good day.

--- the end ---

tobias charles watkins