Re: Sometime later...
Greg nodded. He could see that taking a canary out shopping with you probably wouldn't be ideal. Shopping was bad enough already without making it more difficult. He managed a small, tight smile back when Percy confirmed that he would pay for the eaten treat. One less thing to worry about getting in trouble for.
"Guess you'll find out when she's 11." He'd never had any doubt as to what house he would be sorted into. For generations his family had been in Slytherin, and his mother's family was similar. It was the only proper house for Purebloods. Or at least, had been. So many things were changing since the war that Greg wasn't sure anymore. Maybe if he had children they might be in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw - though the latter seemed unlikely. He was still quite certain no child of his would be sorted into Gryffindor.
Greg's eyes shot warily to the cash register as Percy handed him the money, but quickly zeroed back in on Percy's face when he said he could keep the rest. Was he joking? He wasn't laughing, and it wasn't as if he had an audience. "Thank you." It would never occur to him to wonder if Percy were testing his loyalty to his employer, anymore than it would occur to him to turn down free money for any moral reason. "I won't tell." He closed his hand around the coins tightly.