This is being cross-posted from Ao3. It was originally posted on 13 February 2020.

Huge thank you to GaeilgeRua for beta. Any other mistakes are definitely my own... I'll fix them eventually.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling, Bloomsbury, and Warner Bros. No copyright infringement is intended.

Candy Prompt: Ring-Pop

Theo startled as the newspaper was slapped down in front of him. He nearly choked on his tea, in fact. Coughing to clear his throat, Theo glanced up at his long-time girlfriend. Ginny's brows were narrowed with annoyance.

"That's three more engagements this week," she fumed, tapping her finger on the paper. "Viktor Krum, Adrian Pucey, and Oliver bloody Wood. I am sick and tired of writing about this nonsense. Quidditch. That's what I'm meant to be writing!"

Theo smirked as he tentatively picked up the new issue of the Daily Prophet that was causing his girlfriend such annoyance. He quickly skimmed the articles in the sports section, noting that they were about the aforementioned Quidditch players and their upcoming nuptials. "Are they not members of Quidditch teams?"

If possible, Ginny's eyes narrowed even further. "I know what you're trying to insinuate and I don't like it one bit, Theodore Nott."

"Oh," teased Theo, his eyebrows raising. "Full name. We are serious, aren't we?" When Ginny bristled, he chuckled and reached out to take hold of her hand. With a comforting squeeze, he said, "Look, I know it seems tedious, but in a week or so, this will all die down, and you can go back to writing about who kicked whose arse at whatever match is popular that week."

Rolling her eyes, Ginny said, "I can't stand writing this mushy stuff, Theo." She plopped down in a chair next to Theo. They were sitting at the kitchen island where he liked to work on his blueprints. "Romilda Vane is the gossip columnist, not me."

"I'm sure she has her hands full with all of the non-Quidditch related engagements. Besides, Valentine's Day is Friday. After that, everything will go back to normal," Theo said, trying to calm her down as he picked up his quill once more. He had to get these blueprints done for the new hotel that was opening in Diagon Alley next summer.

Huffing, Ginny got up from the island and grabbed the paper. "It can't be over with soon enough," she grumbled, storming from the room. The last thing he heard as she disappeared down the hall was, "It's so stupid and predictable getting engaged just because it's Valentine's Day!"

Theo watched her go with a concerning ache in his chest. Hopefully, Ginny would calm down before the end of the week. It had to be difficult going from playing Quidditch to simply writing about it in less than a year. After her fall, she'd been unable to get back into proper shape for professional Quidditch. Theo dipped his quill into the inkwell and frowned. He couldn't imagine her heartache over having something you loved ripped from you in that manner.

Then again, he thought as he rubbed the pocket of his jeans and felt the bump of a ring there, maybe he would get to know it after all. Staring at the blueprints in front of him, Theo decided there were more important things to plan right now.

By Friday Ginny was in an even worse mood than she'd been earlier that week. With six more Quidditch related engagements, she'd been forced to write copious extensive articles that went against everything she loved. Theo was missing his girlfriend's normally affable nature. It didn't help that the one thing he'd been looking forward to, Ginny obviously would not want.

Between finishing up his blueprints and meeting with contractors, Theo barely had time to breathe, let alone come up with an alternative gift for his girlfriend. So when Ginny returned home on Friday evening looking worn and irritated, he was at a loss. At this point, he had no idea how the evening would go.

Entering their living room, Ginny all but flopped face-first onto the sofa. "I am so over Valentine's Day," she mumbled into the cushion.

Theo wandered over and sat down behind her. Placing a comforting hand on her back, he began to rub back and forth. "I know, but it's almost over. Plus, it's the weekend, and you're off, so if someone does get engaged, it won't be you who has to write about it."

Rolling over, Ginny gave Theo a huge grin. "Nope. Romilda is working overtime this weekend." She rubbed her hands together and looked around the room. "Where did we put our stack of take-out menus? I don't feel like going out tonight with the holiday and everything."

Theo grabbed the pile of menus from the coffee table and handed them over."You know," he started as she eagerly grabbed them and began looking for just the right one. "Originally, I had something really special planned for tonight."

Sitting up now, Ginny gave her boyfriend a curious glance. "You did?" She decided on a menu and set the rest aside. "What was it?" When Theo merely raised his eyebrows, realization dawned on her face. "Oh! Oh no, Theo. You weren't going to propose, were you?"

He nodded. "I was. I had the entire thing planned out." Sighing heavily he took the menu from her and placed it on the cushion next to them both. Then, taking both her hands, he explained, "It was going to be really magical, but when you showed such disinterest in the entire thing, I changed my plan. I didn't want ours to be just another engagement in the paper for you to loathe this Valentine's Day."

"I'm confused," Ginny said, steadily meeting his gaze. "Are you asking me to marry you or not?"

Theo chuckled and from his pocket withdrew a pink candy ring. "That's a difficult question to answer, but I'll try my best." He held the Ring Pop aloft for Ginny to see. "This here is a promise. I am promising you, Ginerva Molly Weasley, that I, Theodore Thomas Nott Jr, will ask you to marry me sometime in the near future when it is well past this holiday that you find so horrid. Do you accept this promise?"

Inside his chest, Theo's heart was pounding. His palms felt sweaty, but he loved this witch more than anything. He could only hope and pray that she would accept his promise. He watched as she glanced from the candy ring back to his face. Her expression remained neutral for a long moment before she broke out into laughter and fiercely nodded her head.

"Theo! Of course, I accept your promise," she squealed before throwing her arms around his neck. She peppered his face with kisses before sealing her lips overtop his own.

Relief rushed through Theo as he kissed her back with just as much fervor as she was putting into the embrace. They snogged for quite some time on the sofa, just content to be in one another's arms. Eventually, though, Theo pulled back and playfully slid the ring onto Ginny's finger where he someday would place the beautiful ring he had hidden in a vault at Gringotts.

Ginny sighed in contentment as she stared at the Ring-Pop. She seemed genuinely happy for the first time all week. Peering up at Theo with a smirk playing on her lips, she asked, "If you planned an entire engagement surprise, that means there's a real ring then?"

Theo laughed and kissed her once more. "Yes, there's a real ring, but we'll save it for when the moment is right." Before Ginny could protest, Theo kissed her quiet and enjoyed the fact that he knew no matter what, she was going to say yes when he got to ask her for real.