Chapter 210 - Christmas Shopping (2/2)
”I thought she was going to throw up,” Rowan breathlessly gasped as she wiped the moisture from her eyes with a gloved hand.
”It was worth it,” James said with satisfaction as he leaned back into his seat. ”But you do know the rumors will be all over Hogwarts by the end of the day.”
”Well according to Bertha Jorkins, I've had several romantic affairs,” Rowan snickered. ”You'll only be the latest of my paramour to be so cruelly dumped.”
James let out a huff and pouts. ”What makes her think, I wouldn't dump you first?”
”As I've said, I've had several romantic affairs already,” Rowan drily repeated again.
The rest of the ride they chatter about nonsensical things as the carriage rolled to a stop and they paused to stare at the village of Hogsmeade below. Hogsmeade looked like a Christmas card, the little thatched cottages and shops were all covered in a layer of crisp snow; there were holly wreaths on the doors and strings of enchanted candles hanging from the trees. And with the touch of light falling snow Hogsmeade looked straight out of a storybook.
James was first to break the enchanting spell as he says, ”C'mon now.” The two of them tromped across the newly fallen snow taking some delight in leaving the first footsteps in the pristine untouched snow. Much like before the streets were largely empty until exactly at the hour as they reached the first row of cottages, the shops opened, and the residents of the village burst out into the streets.
Like the time before they were the first to enter Honeydukes. Faintly recognizing from the time before, the starting to bald owner says, ”Welcome to Honeydukes!” Before hurrying into the back as the hordes must not be far away.
With quick precision unlike the time before, Rowan selected a variety of chocolate bars for herself, before selecting the favorites of others. Making a face, she gathered Fizzing Wizbees, Pepper Imp's, Toothfloosing Stringmints, Ice Mice, and other such magical treats. With regular sweets thrown into the mix. Satisfied she had something for Dirk, Letitia, and Bart, she returned with her purchases and neatly placed them on the counter.
Clearly remembering her for her neatness, the owner says, ”Thank you, child.” And with a beaming smile, he totals the items for her and adds a small box of vanilla sweets into her brown bag. Giving her a wink, he makes a shushing sound as Rowan nods her head in understanding and thanks.
”I'll see you later, James,” Rowan called out to James who was buying a third of the store by the looks of it. James merely motioned at her half-heartedly as he clearly wasn't listening. Much too occupied with choosing his sweets, James didn't even notice until later when he went to ask her a question to find that she was already long gone.