Chapter 62 A Date with Penelope
Mike reached out to take the gift box, and took this opportunity to pretend to accidentally touch Penelope's little hand, which earned him a pair of big white eyes.
Mike opened the gift box with a grin, and Penelope's little hand felt smooth and nice to the touch, but as soon as he opened the gift box, Mike's smile froze.
The gift Penelope gave him was actually a set of wand maintenance tools, and it was not as advanced as the one he just bought from Ollivanders, but just a set of intermediate maintenance tools, which would cost about 5 gold galleons.
Mike knew that Penelope's family situation was not very good, and Penelope could not use up the 100 gold galleons exchange limit that Gringotts gave to Muggle wizard students every year. This set of maintenance tools was probably bought by Penelope with the money she had saved for a long time, and he couldn't help but feel a little touched.
After adjusting his facial expression, he returned to his original bright smile and said, "Your gift is too timely, isn't it? Professor Flitwick just said that my wand was damaged in the battle in the Forbidden Forest last year and needs to be well maintained, so you gave me a set of maintenance tools. Thank you so much."
Penelope ate the cone in small bites and smiled at Mike, saying, "As long as you like it."
Florin's cones are very different from those in the Muggle world. The cream and milk used in them are all produced from a magical creature called English horned cattle. The milk produced by this magical creature is not only delicious but also rich in magic. It is said that it is very good for the growth of magic power of young wizards.
Therefore, this magical creature is raised in large numbers by wizards. As far as Mike knows, the largest scale of breeding is the Malfoy family.
In addition, Florin's cones are also attached with a magical spell. After eating, snowflakes will appear all over the body, which is very beautiful.
Although Penelope eats very politely, she eats very quickly. A cone the size of an adult's palm was wiped out by her in a short while.
Mike couldn't help laughing at her unsatisfied look, and handed her his portion.
Penelope's face turned red, as if she was afraid that Mike would laugh at her greed, so she hesitated to take it. In the end, Mike forced the cone into her hand, and she gave up.
Looking at the greedy girl in front of him, Mike smiled faintly and said, "Senior Penelope is in the fifth grade this year, and will graduate in two years. How about it, have you decided where to work after graduation?"
It was Penelope's turn to freeze her smile. She stopped eating the ice cream cone in her hand and said with some boredom, "It's not that easy. We are all Muggle-born wizards. You know what the wizarding world thinks of us.
You are so talented that you are loved by Professor Flitwick. You even have no place to live during the summer vacation, but Professor Flitwick invited you to live in his house. You don't need to worry about your future employment.
I am different. My magical talent is only average. So what if I have outstanding management talent? The Ministry of Magic will never let a Muggle-born witch like me join the job.
Employment? I guess it would be good if I can find a job in a restaurant like the clerk just now after graduation."
"Senior Penelope, you are being too modest. In my opinion, with your ability, you are more than qualified to join the Ministry of Magic. It's their loss if they don't want you."
Penelope didn't respond to Mike, but just shook her head gently.
"Actually, you still have a chance to work in the Ministry of Magic." Mike said meaningfully, "Of course, the way I'm talking about is not the stupid way of marrying a pure-blood wizard. I guess Percy has been pestering you these days, which makes you feel very distressed."
"What way?" Penelope was a little at a loss when Mike hit the nail on
the head, but she quickly calmed down. Mike saw all of Penelope's performance, and he couldn't help but nodded with satisfaction. Penelope not only has a very high emotional intelligence, but her magic talent is not as bad as she said. On the contrary, she is one of the best in the same grade. Mike decided to win over such a talent.
"Do you know Raven's Nest? It's the famous Ravenclaw fraternity. The conditions for joining are very strict. Not only do applicants need to have outstanding abilities, but they also need to be recommended by a member who has been a member for more than a year." Mike said with a smile. "Oh, by the way. Mr. Barty Crouch, the current head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and a member of the Wizengamot Council, is also a member of Raven's Nest. In fact, I just met him last month, at my initiation ceremony."
Penelope opened her mouth in surprise, and the ice cream cone in her hand fell on the table without noticing. She stammered, "You are... you mean you have joined Raven's Nest? So what do you mean by telling me this..."
"That's right." Mike snapped his fingers and said, "In my opinion, your potential is enough for you to join Raven's Claw. What you lack is just a recommender. After joining Raven's Nest, it's as easy as snapping your fingers for you to join the Ministry of Magic."
"What do you want?" As expected of a talented person that Mike is optimistic about, Penelope recovered from her initial shock in just a few words.
"You think too much of me. I'm not that kind of person. I will recommend you to join Raven's Nest before you graduate. You and I are both Muggle-borns, so I will help you if I can." Mike raised his eyebrows at Penelope and said, "Well, it's getting late. We really shouldn't waste our date time in this crappy cold drink shop. Let's go out for a walk, beautiful lady."
Facts have proved that shopping is as attractive to women as praising their beauty.
At first, Penelope was a little wary of Mike. After all, she couldn't believe that Mike helped her so selflessly. In her impression, Mike was not such a generous person.
However, after shopping for a while, Penelope gradually relaxed and a smile appeared on her beautiful face again.
Especially after visiting Mrs. Primpynell's beauty potion shop, Penelope was completely different from before, and shuttled among bottles and jars in an almost fanatical state.
When they parted in the evening, the small bag Penelope was carrying had disappeared. Instead, she had a bag with a woodpecker pattern embroidered on it and pinned it to her waist.
It was filled with the fruits of her shopping today, from Madam Malkin's custom-made robes to various beauty potions.
Of course, all of this was paid for by Mike.
At first, Penelope wanted to buy the things on the Hogwarts list and call it a day, after all, she only had so many gold galleons. But when Mike took out a bag full of gold galleons and waved it in front of her and signaled that she was welcome, and that he would cover all the expenses for today, he completely let go.
However, Penelope was just a little girl who was used to being poor, and she didn't even know how to spend money. She bought a lot of things and spent less than 200 gold galleons.
"Thank you so much today." Penelope said with a smile, "School is about to start, where are you planning to go these days?"
"Stay at Professor Flitwick's house for a few more days. It's getting late, you should go back early and be careful on the road." Mike answered absent-mindedly.
"I know, bye!" Penelope quickly lowered her head and kissed Mike on the cheek, then turned around and disappeared into the crowd.
Mike stroked his cheek, and the warm touch just now made him a little distracted.
"Damn, according to the normal routine, we should be lying in the hotel by now. What a pity..." Mike sighed in annoyance, and glanced at his little brother while speaking, "What a pity that you are not up to standard."