Closed Started With a Kiss

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope knew seventh year would be busy, but it was a little annoying now that she had a boyfriend. She hadn't seen Todd much since coming to Hogwarts, busy with Heta Omega, her prefect duties and keeping on top of homework. So she sent him a note to meet her at the abandoned classroom before lunch, hoping to get a little bit of alone time before she had to rush off to her classes again. She had a small gift to give him from her trip to the supermarket with muggle studies, and she just wanted to see him. She waited impatiently in the corridor, trying to look like she just happened to be hanging around the empty classroom for no real reason.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd had a girlfriend. Let that sink in for a moment because he could hardly believe it himself. Sometimes he wondered if he was going to wake up from a dream or realise that he had massively misunderstood Penny. But then he'd pull himself back, reminding himself that this wasn't a mistake and he wasn't dreaming. He really did have a girlfriend, and she was wonderful.

He received a note from his girlfriend to meet, and his Care of Magical Creatures class beforehand dragged on for what felt like forever. As soon as the lesson ended, he bolted back to the castle, stopping briefly at the Great Hall to grab a couple of sandwiches for them. He then made his way to the abandoned classroom.

Spotting Penny waiting in the corridor, he smiled and quickened his pace. "Hey, Penny. Sorry to keep you waiting," he greeted, slightly out of breath from all the running. "Professor Burleigh likes to go into a lot of detail."

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penny beamed as she saw Todd approach, smiling up at him as he came close. She reached up to brush his hair out of his face, a little shyly. "Hey, no worries... did you run?" She asked him, as she noticed he was out of breath. "C'mon, let's talk in here." She said, taking his hand and tugging him into the empty classroom. It had clearly been abandoned for a while, a few desks stacked in the corner and an old blackboard that some kid had drawn inappropriate things on half hidden behind it. Penny didn't mind the setting, she just wanted a moment alone. "I got you something." She told him, taking the muggle candy out of her bag and handing it to him. "I hope you like this kind- I wasn't sure. We went on a trip to a supermarket with muggle studies." She explained, wondering now if she should have gotten him something different.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd grinned as he approached Penny, her smile making everything okay. When she brushed his hair out of his face, he considered kissing her but decided to catch his breath first. "I might've run a bit. I wanted to see you," he admitted, still slightly out of breath.

Following her into the abandoned classroom, Todd barely noticed the room. All that mattered was being alone with Penny. When she handed him the muggle candy, his eyes lit up. "Wow, thanks, Penny! That's so thoughtful of you," he said, touched that she had thought of him. "I've not tried much muggle candy before, I'm sure I'll love it." Then he added, "We can share them after... sandwiches!" Todd revealed the sandwiches he had grabbed from the Great Hall on his way upstairs. "I thought you might be hungry."

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope smiled brightly when it became clear Todd liked her gift, she had hoped he would like this kind. It was even better to know he hadn't tried much of it, so she had given him something new to experience. Her smile grew into a grin when he revealed he had grabbed sandwiches on his way here. "Oh! That's so nice of you." She said. "We can have lunch here together." She said with a smile. An old dusty classroom might not be the most romantic place for a picnic, but she didn't care. It was perfect. She hesitated then, before deciding to be bold. He was her boyfriend, they were seventeen... she could kiss him. She leaned up on tiptoes and kissed him softly, ready to pull back at the first sign of him not wanting to do this here.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd easily matched Penny's smile, setting the sandwiches down just as his girlfriend leaned in and kissed him softly. Momentarily surprised, he quickly melted into the kiss, gently wrapping his arms around her. When he pulled back, he looked into her eyes, a warm smile spreading across his face. "You have the most beautiful blue eyes," he said, still holding her close. He leaned in for another kiss, savouring their special moment together before lunch.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope had kissed Emmanuel before, but that was nothing compared to this. She couldn't believe she had been so upset about that relationship ending for so long, it was so... childish in hindsight. And Emmanuel had said all the right things, but she had never felt like he truly meant it. With Todd, she did. She blushed when he told her she had beautiful eyes, not sure what to say. Thankfully, he leaned in for another kiss so she didn't have to say anything. She ran her hand up into his hair and relaxed into the kiss.

 

[Eric Holland]

Eric wondered why the headmaster didn't just lock all the doors to classrooms and closets that weren't used. It was like he was waiting for kids to use them for trouble. He had removed so many names written in sharpie off the old furniture stacked in those classrooms by now, as well as gum and other unpleasant things. He sighed when he passed the one on the second floor and saw shadows moving under the door. There was no real reason for kids to be in there. Eric roughly pushed the door open. "Alright, whatever you're doing-" He stopped, freezing at the sight of his little (half) sister with a boy. It was about the last thing he had expected. Eric knew Penelope was practically an adult, but- but still! "Penny!" He called, taking a shocked step back.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd felt warm as Penelope leaned into their kiss, her hand running through his hair. The world outside seemed to fade away, leaving just the two of them in their moment. He was about to deepen the kiss when the door opened, and the school caretaker stood in the doorway.

The look on Eric's face made Todd's pulse quicken but for very different reasons than a few moments earlier, but he quickly composed himself, not wanting to appear too rattled. They weren't doing anything wrong after all. He took a small step away from Penny but held onto her hand, wondering how she knew the school caretaker, "We were just, uh, having a moment." He Todd answered then glanced at Penny to check she was okay.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penny was really enjoying the kiss, it felt so nice. Todd was just... so nice, she really liked him. She couldn't wait to tell Marnie all about this later. She jumped when she heard the door open, breaking the kiss abruptly. Her face flushed when she saw who was standing there. "Eric!?" She said, taking in the sight of her brother. She had gotten used to the idea of him here at school, but this was awful and mortifying. She knew her cheeks had to be bright red. Penelope flapped her hands in his direction. "What are you- Ugh! Go away!" She yelled. She glanced at Todd, feeling more and more embarrassed. She quickly looked away again, this felt like it was her fault. He wasn't... checking on her or anything, was he? Was this a protective thing? She was still a bit unused to having older siblings, but she didn't care what his reason was. She just wanted him to leave.

 

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

Matt walked past the classroom humming to himself and not noticing a thing.

 

[Eric Holland]

Eric really didn't know what to do in this situation. It wasn't like they were doing anything wrong, but it was weird. He still saw Penelope as the little ten year old he met when he saw his father again, and now- now she was kissing boys in empty classrooms? He frowned at the kid as he spoke up, but turned his attention to his sister. "Go away?! Penny- I'm doing my job, this isn't- you're not supposed to be here." He snapped. These empty classrooms weren't exactly forbidden, but they also weren't meant as places to hang out. "You should go away!" He knew he sounded childish and petulant even as the words escaped his mouth. They were bickering like- well, like siblings. "Just- go hang in the student lounge or something. I'll lock this room." He said, gesturing for the door again.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd eyes flicked back and forth between the caretaker and Penny. Todd was confused at the over the top reaction for just hanging out in an empty classroom. They weren’t doing anything wrong. Or maybe they were? He honestly wasn’t sure if being in empty classrooms was allowed or just something everyone did and was never enforced. He glanced at Penny, “Do you two know each other?” Todd asked her, not entirely sure what was going on.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope was both infuriated and mortified, a combination she hadn't thought possible. Since she hadn't even known she had older brothers until a few years ago, she and Eric hadn't ever really fought like siblings, not the way she had with Holden at least. It seemed like today was the day that changed. It didn't help that Eric was the spitting image of their dad, something she knew he hated. Penelope was honestly a little angry with her dad too, so looking at this younger version of him wasn't helping with her emotions. She scowled at him. "We didn't do anything wrong, just leave us alone." She snapped angrily. She glanced at Todd when he asked her a question, her anger deflating slightly as she realized how confusing it had to be for him to watch her yell at the caretaker. "He's my brother." She sighed.

 

[Eric Holland]

Eric knew Penelope was right, they hadn't done anything wrong, but what was Eric supposed to do? Just let students make out in the classroom? When one of them was his sister? He was suddenly very certain that no caretaker of Hogwarts had been in this situation before. He glanced at the boy, who apparently had no idea about their connection. If he was dating Penny, wouldn't she have told him? He frowned, his frown deepening as he turned to his sister. Eric had never quite understood Penelope, she was always so patient and polite and seemed to have endless patience. This was the first time he saw this defiant look on her face, and he had to appreciate it in some strange way. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, here's the deal. I'm coming back here to lock this door in ten minutes, so you better be out of here by then." He said, gesturing to the room. "Understood?"

 

[Todd Cobbler]

"Oh, right," Todd's gaze flicking between the two. He didn't want to step on any toes, especially if he was going to be around for a while, maybe Eric would even be at their wedding someday. While Todd hadn't discussed any such wedding with Penny, the thought of a future together had crossed his mind. His thoughts were sitting at the back of his mind, brooding like a little girl thinking about her perfect princess wedding, but of course Todd was much more manly about it all than that. He gave Penny an apologetic look, trying to be supportive while simultaneously avoiding a scuffle with her brother.

He glanced at his watch and then back at Eric, trying to smooth things over. "Er, can you make it forty minutes? We'll be heading back to class by then." Todd suggested, hoping to buy them a little extra time without pushing too hard.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope didn't often get angry, and when she did she rarely let it show, but Eric was making her so mad. She took a deep breath. She didn't want to start yelling at the Hogwarts caretaker, even if he was her infuriatingly stupid and idiotic brother. She knew he was trying to be reasonable, but Penelope wasn't going to agree with any sort of compromise Eric gave them. She shook her head, shooting Todd a glance when he tried to negotiate for more time. She knew that wasn't going to happen. "No, we'll just go... outside, somewhere." She snapped, thinking of some random place on the spot. "Away from here, and you." She grabbed Todd's hand and started leading him in the direction of the door, still angry at her brother for this horrible interruption. If Todd broke up with her over this, she was never going to forgive him.

 

[Eric Holland]

Eric thought he was being reasonable, offering them ten minutes. He frowned when Penelope's boyfriend tried to get more time, immediately wanting to take back the offer entirely. But he didn't have to, Penny still seemed mad. He sighed as she started to leave. "I'm still checking here in ten minutes." He called after her.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd was so impressed by Penny's assertiveness. She was so cool and pretty, and honestly, Todd was more than happy to be led out of the classroom by her. On the way out, he grabbed the candy she had given him as if it were a precious artifact that couldn't possibly be left behind. He heard Eric call after them that he'd be back in 10 minutes, he really didn't have to bother though, they weren't going back. "Are you okay?" He asked Penny once they were away from her brother, concerned that she might be upset.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope stormed off angrily, but once she was away from Eric the anger dissapated fairly quickly. She sighed, closing her eyes as they stopped walking and Todd asked her if she was okay. She had lost her temper, which she never did, and she had done it in front of Todd. What would he think of her? Probably nothing good. She glanced at him nervously. "Yeah." She said. "Sorry for that- I know that wasn't pretty." She said softly.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd eyes were soft with understanding. He gave her a gentle smile, shaking his head. "I'm glad you're okay but Penny, you don't need to apologise, you didn't do anything wrong. I actually thought it was pretty cool how you stood up for us back there." He let a brief pause settle between them until he thought something to put her mind off what just happened, "Here, let's try the candy you got." He said, taking it out and pulling at the wrapper to try open it which turned out to be more difficult than he anticipated. "Merlin, those muggles really know how to seal their sweets." He said, trying to wrestle the sealed packet open.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Penelope still felt a little anxious when Todd started to speak, but he quickly started to reassure her. She blushed a little, unsure if he really thought it was cool. "You think?" She asked softly. "It's just- weird." She sighed, watching Todd struggle with the packaging or a moment. She reached over to take it from him to see if she could do it. "We didn't grow up together, he's my half brother. I didn't even know he existed until I was ten. So... I guess neither of us really knew what to do in this situation. Or really, any situation. We're siblings but we don't know each other that well, and I think he still thinks of me as the ten-year-old he first met." She said with a sigh. "Family is so messy sometimes."

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd listened, feeling sympathetic despite having no siblings to relate the situation to. He gently placed his hands over hers, stopping her from struggling with the sweets like he had been. "You're right, family stuff is complicated. But give it time. We'll be graduating in a few months, and I doubt he'll still see you as that ten year old once you're out in the real world. It'll be alright." He reassured her, thinking of a distraction, something to take her mind off what just happened and make her smile, he hoped.

"I know it's still a couple of weeks away, but now seems as good as time as any. Penny, I think you're wonderful and I am always happy when I spend time with you. Will you go to the Yule Ball with me?" He asked, even though they were dating, asking her still felt important rather than assuming that they would be going together at the end of the semester.

 

[Penelope Marshall]

Todd really listened to what Penelope said and actually gave her some good advice, which made her smile. He had a good point. After graduating, Eric couldn't possibly still treat her like a little kid. Graduating was still a scary prospect, but that was one part of it she could look forward to. "I know it's kind of a crazy family situation, but I do love him." She said with a small sigh. "It's just- it's hard." She waved it off, happy to move onto happier conversation topics.

She beamed when Todd asked her to the yule ball, though she had sort of assumed they would go together. It was still kind of nice to be officially asked. "Yes, of course!" She said happily, squeezing his hand. "I can't wait to dance with you."