July 1st, 1889 — Fudge & Son Desserterie

As always, Fleur was a walking ray of sunshine, and that only seemed to increase as the summer days continued to pass by. The morning had been delightful. She'd accompanied her mother on errands in Diagon Alley, and she'd found every shop they entered to be more wonderful than the next. Then again, that was easy when you were a permanent optimist.

The shop she enjoyed the most, however, was saved for last. Fudge & Son Desserterie. She just adored peeking behind the little glass cases at the decadent desserts created there and brought in from other places. Every time she visited, she found something new to marvel at. Of course, she had to also taste test, but she knew it was going to be impossible to choose.

"It smells absolutely heavenly in here. Which do you think is best? The cheerful girl blurted out to the person stood next to her, also trying to determine which tasty treat they were going to select.

Open to just about anyone!

  

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Thanks, MJ!

Feeling for a fleeting moment like a child and not a gentleman, Bragi followed his whim into a little shop that looked, smelled and even sounded delicious. Fudge & Son Desserterie. But having not picked out a treat for himself in some time, he found himself lingering next to a stand of fancy chocolates — some of them sparkling, some of them moving — unsure whether he should opt for something dark or something milky.

He was slightly abashed when he discovered a little girl beside him was enraptured by a very similar dilemma, but the bashfulness didn’t last long — he decided to own his sweet tooth.

”Well”, began Bragi with a smile. ”I am undecided between the white chocolate mice and the dark chocolate delights. I must concede to your expertise, miss — what do you think is the best choice?”

  

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Fleur straightened up when it seemed the man sought her expertise. The word brought about an air of importance that she rather quickly succumbed to.

Straightening out her skirts, she beamed up at Bragi. "Well, they both are lovely choices. It depends which type of chocolate you like best. I don't generally enjoy white chocolate all that much, but here it is heavenly. I've never tried their mice, but they did have ones that looked like a teacup filled with milk that was probably one of my favorites." She paused to take a breath and added. "The dark chocolate is delicious, too. It's not even that bitter! Gosh, and it depends if you'd rather your food still, or if you don't mind it moving."

Perhaps, she wasn't being all that helpful for even she couldn't decide between the two. They both seemed like such wonderful options!

  

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Thanks, MJ!

Bragi was one of those young bachelors who didn't know "how" to speak to children, but he'd discovered in the past that one could just be oneself, speak well and speak true, and children would behave in kind. After all, every grown-up was once a child themselves — and Bragi not that long ago.

"Moving?" he raised his pale eyebrows. Then — sure enough, one of the white chocolate mice he was reaching for gave a little squeak and leaped up onto his arm. "Oh, erm...!" Half amused, half alarmed, Bragi unsuccessfully tried to get it off his arm as it sped for his shoulder. Eek, it had better not burrow down his collar!

  

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Fleur let out a joyful giggle as she watched the chocolate mouse race up the poor man's arm. "They are quick! They might even be faster than chocolate frogs." Which, she thought, was quite an achievement for those frogs were impossible to catch once they take a good leap.

While she was unsure if she should, Fleur reached out and tried to help Bragi, attempting to pluck the mouse from his arm, but she ended up missing and just prodding him with her fingers. "Oh!"

  

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Thanks, MJ!

Bragi was quick himself, but the charm on the chocolate mouse was pretty impressive, and it didn’t help that it had now reached the back of his shoulder. The little girl made a brave attempt at grabbing the mouse, but missed and prodded him in the arm, only for them to see the mouse scuttle off his shoulder, onto the adjacent display stand, and onto the floor. It seemed to “look” at the open door — though Bragi wasn’t sure how it could, given that it had white chocolate for eyes — and made a run for it.

Meanwhile, the other white chocolate mice were watching. And as they saw the first mouse flee Honeydukes, they began to swarm out of the display and onto the floor!

”Oh Merlin… I think we have a rebellion on our hands!” Bragi exclaimed, startled.

  

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"Oh no!" She shouted, staring in awe as all the chocolate mice seemed to swarm. She had never seen chocolates behave in such a way, and she wasn't quite sure what to do.

"Should we try to catch them?" Fleur questioned, though she was unsure if she could halt so many from exiting the door. She shuffled her body closer, attempting to get in the way, but some o the mice simply skittered over her shoes.

"Their charm might wear off soon. I hope," she paused. "I've never seen them act like this!"

  

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Thanks, MJ!

One of the shop assistants had taken notice, but couldn't immediately get around the bustling queue at the till. So Bragi, in a rare moment of quick action, whipped out his wand and performed a shield charm on the mice heading for the door. Most of them were thereafter trapped in the bubble, but a few were still scampering loose and would need rounding up!

He was quite sure the little girl was right — the charm would ware off soon. But he couldn't help but think it was an unnecessarily strong charm.

"Oh, quick — grab that little pipsqueak before she runs under the shelves!" he advised the girl, pointing to a mouse making a run for it, as another couple of customers stopped to help.

Between the lot of them, the Great Mouse Escape of 1889 was averted. Once the fuss had died down, Bragi chuckled about it with the little lass for a while longer, before, under her expert advisement, he finally selected a sweet.

He did not go for the chocolate mice.

-fade out!-

  

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