Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of this work of fiction, and no profit is being made through the writing of this, monetary or otherwise.
A/N: Written for the forum, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Fanfiction Writing Month: September (word count, 588); for the Writing Club Trope of the Month, Sharing is Caring, Trope: Sharing a Bed, Prompt #3. Character: Percy or Sirius (I chose Percy); and the Insane House Challenge, Phrase: "Revenge is a dish best served cold."
I don't know how or why, but my disclaimer, etc. disappeared for this fic. Hopefully that will not happen again.
There was a soft knock on his door, and knowing who it was, Percy didn't even bother to open his eyes as he rolled over and held up a corner of the covers for Ron to slip in beneath. The knock was perfunctory, an action done more out of reflex than necessity. It had become a nightly routine for Ron to enter Percy's room late at night when the family clock indicated that all members were nestled snugly in bed.
The younger boy was shivering. Percy draped an arm across Ron's shoulder and allowed his little brother to curl into him for warmth and comfort. Ron tucked his head beneath Percy's chin. Thin arms snaking around Percy's middle in a tight grip, Ron sighed.
Ron's toes were cold where they bit into Percy's thighs, but Percy was used to the sensation. Ron's toes were always cold this time of night.
"Shh," Percy whispered, rubbing Ron's trembling back. The younger boy was crying, no doubt a result of the trick that the twins had played on him earlier that day twisting itself into Ron's dreams, giving him nightmares.
"It's okay," Percy murmured, plotting his own brand of revenge against the twins as he surveyed his youngest brother through eyes that were only partially opened. They'd never know what hit them. They never did, and the best thing was that no one ever suspected Percy when it came to pranks being pulled. Their mum would just assume it was the twins, and that one of their own would-be pranks had backfired on them.
Turning Ron's teddy bear into a spider had been a terrible trick to play on the younger boy. Now they were both paying the price while the twins slept on, blissfully unaware of the toll that their cruel joke had taken on their baby brother, and, inadvertently, on Percy.
"You're safe now," Percy assured Ron, soothing the little boy until Ron's quiet sobs died down.
"I hate spiders," Ron said, hiccoughing.
"I know," Percy said. "They've got too many legs."
"And they have beady eyes, too, an'...an' fangs," Ron mumbled around a yawn.
Chuckling, Percy nodded. "Yes, they do."
"But you'll keep them away from me, right?" Ron asked, tilting his head back to look at Percy, eyes wide and shining in the moonlight that slipped in through the blinds.
Percy nodded. "Of course I will," he said. "No spider will be able to slip past me."
"Even a big one?" Ron asked, doubtful.
"Not even one as big as the moon," Percy said, holding out his pinky for Ron to hook his around in a pinky promise.
Ron giggled, and tucked his head back beneath Percy's chin. "I love you," Ron said, voice muffled by Percy's pajamas.
"Love you, too, squirt," Percy said, pressing a kiss to the top of Ron's head.
Percy smiled when the little boy let out a shuddering breath and tightened his arms around his big brother, his chosen protector whenever nightmares came. It was moments like this, sharing a bed with his little brother, offering him comfort, plotting the downfall of the damnable twins, that Percy didn't mind being an older brother. Of course, in the cold light of day, Ron would return to being the annoying kid brother who followed him around, begging him to play chess, or Quidditch, but for now, he was just a little boy seeking comfort from his knight in shining armor, or in Percy's case, pajamas.