A/N: I don't own Harry Potter or any related characters.
This is for the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Assignment #11
Voodoo Task # 9
Write about a community event.
Insane Prompt Challenge
361: Action – making the bed
Season Challenge Spring
Days of the Year
25th April: Take Your Daughter to Work Day - Write about a relationship between parent and daughter.
Seasonal Challenge – Flowers
Iris - (theme) Hope
Hufflepuff Challenge - Hufflepuff Prompts
Dedicated
Word count: 898
Hermione stared at the poster hanging on the wall in front of her.
"Community book sale," she read slowly. She had just turned seven and the idea of buying more books sent her tiny heart into somersaults. She thought about the small collection of coins she had in her pink piggy bank. She read the rest of the flier, noting the date. She realized she would forget it within minutes. A quick glance around told her she was alone in the hall. She reached up, stood on her tiptoes, and pulled the flier to her chest.
She ran all the way home.
"Hermione! No running in the house!" her mother called as Hermione entered.
"Mum, look! There's a book sale this weekend! Please, I have all my pocket money. Can we go, please?" Mrs. Granger looked at her daughter and smiled.
"Of course, sweetheart. Here, why don't I help you count your money?"
"I have it all counted," Hermione stated reciting the exact sum of the coins. "Are there any extra chores I can do?" she asked thinking if she had more money, she could get more books. Her mother smiled and nodded.
"You can start by watering the plants in the sun room. After that, you can make your bed...you forgot to do it this morning." Hermione smiled sheepishly.
"Sorry mum."
All the rest of the week, Hermione did any chores she could find. She even helped her neighbor weed her garden. It took nearly an hour. Hermione still didn't understand why some plants were weeds and others weren't. She collected all the coins she earned in her bank, shaking it before she went to bed every night. She dreamed of the books she hoped to buy. She really hoped she could find a new collection of fairy tales. She'd memorized the one she had.
Saturday finally arrived. Hermione put her money in a small purple beaded purse. She'd had it for as long as she could remember. That wasn't very long considering she was only seven.
"Ready to do?' her mother asked. Hermione nodded rattling the coins in her bag. They walked to the community center and Hermione stared in awe at the books. There were seven long tables set up, each filled with books. A sign at the end of each table told what genre of books that table contained.
"Children's books are over there," her mother said reading the signs. Hermione had already read the sign and started walking to the table. Her eyes scanned the long lines of books. She couldn't even count how many books there were. There were large signs hanging on the wall. Each sign had a row of different colored dots. The color of the dot told how much the book cost. Hermione's mother came over.
"Do you need help reading the titles, Hermione?"
"Maybe a little," she admitted. There were a lot of large words, and she didn't want to spend all day just reading titles of books. "I'm looking for some new fairy tales," she added. Her mother nodded and together they started searching through the three tables of children's books.
"What about this one?" Hermione looked over, her brown eyes scanning the cover. She nodded excitedly. Within minutes, the pair had a stack of about ten books.
"Do you have enough for all of these?" Hermione looked the stack and slowly started adding the stickers. She shook her head after seven books.
"I don't have enough for all of them," she said sadly. Her mother looked at the books.
"How about I buy these three for you, as an early birthday present?" Hermione's face lit up in a huge smile.
"Please? Thank you!" They walked to the counter, where a volunteer added up the price of Hermione's books. She told the girl the total and watched as Hermione dumped the contents of her purse onto the table. She counted out the right amount and handed the coins to the volunteer.
"Thank you, have a good day," she said putting the books in a bag for Hermione. Hermione waited while her mother paid for the other three books.
"Do you need a bag for these also?"
"No, she can put them in hers," Mrs. Granger answered handing the books to Hermione. She slid them into the bag. As they started walking home, Hermione realized ten books actually were fairly heavy. Her mother watched her struggle a little with the bag.
"Would you like me to help you?"
"No, thank you, they're my books and I'll get them home," she stated. Her mother smiled shaking her head at her daughter's stubborn streak. Soon they arrived home, Hermione disappeared into her room with one of her new books. She only emerged when she was summoned for dinner, even then she tried to read the book at the table.
"No books at the table, Hermione, you know the rules." She nodded setting the book aside knowing she would finish it later.
That night when the Grangers went to put Hermione to bed, she was already asleep in her bed. The book laying across her chest. They couldn't help but smile. Her mother picked up the book, put a bookmark in her spot, and set it on the night stand.
"Good night, Hermione," they whispered turning off the light. Hermione smiled in her sleep, dreaming about her new books.