THC
House: Ravenclaw
Class: Head of House
Category: Drabble
Prompt(s) chosen: [Action] Buying Sweets
Word Count: 608
A Sweet Gift
Usually, Honeydukes seemed like a happy place., its colorful displays and warm, sugary smells were like a wonderland, hidden in the otherwise cold village of Hogsmeade. However, recently, it had been filled with a sense of dread. No one knew when the next petrification would happen and so students bought hordes of sweets each time, they entered the store.
Unlike the rest of the students, Percy wasn't just buying sweets for himself. He didn't have much of a sweet tooth anyway. It felt ridiculous to buy the sweets for Penny when she was just laid up in the Hospital Wing, unable to move to eat them, but he didn't know what else to do. He couldn't wake her up himself. So, the best he could do was give her something to make her smile for when it happened.
He didn't know her favorite type of sweets (it had never occurred to him to ask, something he now felt incredibly guilty about) so he bought everything he could. Sherbet Lemons and Sugar Quills were a safe bet, everyone seemed to like those. Even if Sherbet Lemons were a muggle sweet that had somehow gotten popular in the wizarding world. No one seemed to be upset about it. He hoped they would last until she woke up. As long as it didn't get warm out—maybe he'd have to keep them in a temperature-controlled box. He wasn't exactly sure of the spell but surely a professor would tell him, or he could ask his mother.
The line for Honeydukes had been longer than Percy had ever seen it. He waited patiently with the sweets in a little basket. He made sure that he had enough money saved up to pay for them. Typically, he wouldn't be this careless with his money and splurge on something that wasn't necessary. But he knew how much Penny would appreciate this. He just hoped that it wouldn't be too long before she woke up.
"Thank you for shopping at Honeydukes," the cashier smiled at him, but he could tell the smile didn't quite reach her eyes. Even the people outside of Hogwarts were terrified. "I hope you satisfied your sweet tooth."
Percy knew she had to say it and didn't bother starting a conversation. He placed the sweets onto the counter and watched her type them into the register. The keys clacked as she pressed down on them.
"It'll be two galleons," Percy handed over the money and took the bag of his sweets.
Somewhere his mother was yelling silently at him for being rude and not speaking to the worker, but he felt like there were way more important things to do. He needed to head back to the castle clutching the bag of sweets protectively to his chest. It needed to be in pristine condition for Penelope. Since it was the only thing he could control, it couldn't go wrong.
He spent the rest of the evening making the cooling box, so the sweets didn't go bad. He asked Flitwick for help and the professor gladly agreed. It hadn't been a difficult spell, but Percy spent most of the time perfecting the quality of it. That and decorating the box. He wasn't the best at arts and crafts, but he knew that Penelope would appreciate it.
He would have asked Ginny for her help, but no one knew he and Penny were dating so that was out of the question. He just had to hope his gift didn't look too bad. Penelope would probably laugh at it, at least she'd be happy. That's all that mattered to Percy. That she enjoyed it.