Penny Haywood Imagines

Better Late than Never - Part 1

"Thanks (Y/N). I had a really great time with you tonight", Penny smiled at you sweetly and waved goodnight to you outside the Great Hall. It truly was a spectacular night, dancing with your first choice as a date at the Celestial Ball. You'd thought things would've been more awkward than they turned out to be, considering that you both were the only ones with dates among your friends. Not to mention that the school's most infamous cursed student showed up with the most popular girl in your year. As nervous as you felt before the ball, all those thoughts and anxious feelings disappeared the moment she dragged to the dance floor. Everything just felt right when you were with her.

"Maybe I do have a chance with her after all" you thought to yourself, smiling so much that it made your cheeks hurt.

That was 2 years ago. 2 years since you realised you were head over heels for the girl with hair as radiant as the sun and eyes as vibrantly blue as the truest sapphires, 2 years since it felt like you both could have been anything more than friends. Not that you were rejected or anything but, after the ball, everything went back to as it was before. What happened that night was never really brought up again except for your friends commenting on how great you all looked at the event. You just assumed Penny never felt anything towards you other than friendship and you were too afraid to confirm that assumption, especially since neither of you even mentioned the word "date" again, to each other or to any of your friends.

"What's up with all the pink frills, Rowan?" you asked your bespectacled friend as you both sat down at the (Y/H) table for breakfast. On the way to the Great Hall that morning, you couldn't help but feel as though there were a lot more couples strolling through the hallways, hand in hand and if it weren't impossible, you could've sworn some of that has heart shapes where their eyes were supposed to be.

"It's Valentine's Day, (F/N). Don't tell me you're that into Cursed Vaults and Quidditch that you can't even recognise all that young love in the air around us" Rowan joked as you remembered the nervous looks the faces of the boys and the excited giggles of the girls around Hogwarts that morning, everything finally making sense.

A messy chorus of shrieks and screeches were heard as the morning posts was being delivered overhead to the student body. Turning your head towards a certain blonde, you realised that a pile of letters were steadily building in the space in front of her. From the teasing looks and giggles her friends were giving her and the subtle blush and nervous look she wore on her face, you could already tell they were a collection of confessions from her long line of suitors.

"You know if it bothers you that much, you should try asking her out yourself. I mean you already did it once before so how hard can it be?" Rowan nudged your shoulder with theirs when they saw you gaze drop to your lap after seeing the small hill of paper in front of Penny.

"What are you talking about, Rowan? Why would I do that? I mean yeah we went as dates to the Celestial Ball but that was 2 years ago. And besides we're friends, that's it", you answered a tad more defensively than you intended, trying (and failing) to feign innocence.

"We can all see the way you stare at her, (F/N) (L/N). The only 2 people among our friends who don't know you guys are crushing on each other are the both of you," Tulip chuckled from behind you and Rowan. "It was pretty amusing for awhile, but now it's kinda getting old and honestly a little frustrating. It's been 2 years now. Why not make a move today? She held out for you this long, but with that amount of options to choose from, she might not wait much long," Tulip gave you her signature smirk of hers as Rowan nodded their head in agreement.

You sighed in defeat, knowing there was no way to win this conversation when they had both ganged up on you. You'd be lying if the thought of asking Penny out had never occurred to you. How could it not? She was amazing in every way. She was kind, compassionate and a fiercely loyal friend. But more than that, she was always there for anyone who needed her. Anytime, anywhere. You'd put her in danger more times than you could remember over the years in search for the Cursed Vaults, but she never once held it against you, telling you the only time she'd ever be mad at you was if you had put yourself in danger without at least asking for her help. Even after nearly 6 years, you couldn't believe she chose to stick by your side. Despite the rumors you had surrounding you and the despite the threat you posed to ruining her reputation, she remained by your side, seeing you for more than your last name, seeing you for who you were.

"Earth to (F/N)...?" You blinked a couple of times as you suddenly registered Rowan waving their hand in front of your face, shocking you out of your daydream of the beautiful Hufflepuff. "C'mon, we gotta get to Potions. I swear on Merlin's beard, Snape will probably take away House points from us just from being the last ones to enter the classroom, even if we aren't late and I'd rather that not happen. Besides, we're learning about Amortentia today!"

You scrambled to gather your things along with your best friend as you quickly made you way down to the dungeons. Even on the short trip to the potions classroom, you had already witnessed several confessions being made, each one dampening your mood even more than the previous one as you wondered to yourself if anyone had so confidently done the same to Penny just yet and what her response would be.

You shook your head, hoping that the physical action would somehow shake those thoughts out of your mind. You sighed as Snape started his lecture as you prepared for what felt to be like a long day ahead.