Sarah smiled at Percy to soften what she knew he might perceive as a blow to his ego. "Come back and see me if you continue to have symptoms."
She was caught short by his unexpected comment about the Ministry; she never would have expected him to say anything negative about his workplace. That worried her, as it was surely a mark of how very bad things must be if Percy were willing to admit it. "No, of course not," she murmured.
As he made to leave, a wild thought crossed her mind, spurred on by his uncharacteristic criticism of the Ministry. "Percy," she said hesitantly, "could you do me a favor?"