A/N When I reread the last book and read this part (the part in italic/cursive in the beginning)I just couldn't help myself. I just thought it fitted with the idea that Oliver would move in with Percy and his daughters. And I don't dislike Audrey, I just tried to consider her feelings. Thinking she probably wouldn't like Oliver very much. This does not mean she's a complete bitch like Umbridge, just a little bit bitchy.
Hope you like!
Detached from their owners, voices sounded unnaturally loud. Harry thought he heard Percy discoursing loudly on broomstick regulations, and was quite glad of the excuse not to stop and say hello…
"… and no hexing a broom, no flying charms, don't even think about sitting up on a broom without having it thoroughly examined first"
"Dad, I'll be fine! Are we going to have this discussion every year?" the fifteen year old girl rolled her brown eyes at her father and sighted "it's not like it's my first time flying"
"But it is yer first year playin' the best darn sport in the world for yer house!" an arm flung around the thin shoulders of the girl who by now reached the shoulders of the Scotsman.
Percy gave Oliver a stern look who now hugged his stepdaughter to him as they both laughed. Molly's pale skin stood out in contrast to Oliver's darker tone even though her skin wasn't even close to the paleness of Percy's.
She had so many freckles that they almost covered all of her face. The amount of freckles on her were really a lot like the ones on Charlie Weasley which Oliver liked, he took it as a sign that she was heading in the same direction and that she one day would be captain as well. He could see great things in her feature.
"I'm so exited! You think I'll do alright?" Molly quickly put her slightly darker than auburn hair up in a sloppy knot as she took her sweater from her father.
"Aye, remember who trainth ya!" Oliver gave her pointy nose a soft poke and let her go.
Percy cleared his throat and as soon as he got the rest of the family's attention he kept going on about safety rules.
"I want you to send me your broom for examination every other month at least, and always look for splinters…"
Oliver gave a small laugh.
"Oh Perce, the lassie's been ridin' brooms since she was eight at least. Don't worry"
"yeah, you're right I just- Wait, eight! That's not safe, she wouldn't have gone through the proper training for it before eleven! When did this happen and why wasn't I informed?" he looked mad and alarmed, Oliver only laughed again.
Percy clearly overreacted, which was the very reason for not telling him that Oliver usually took Molly and Lucy with him to his practises. Only when there wasn't a big game coming up and he didn't have to train the team too hard, he didn't play much himself nowadays but was now the coach of the Caerphilly Catapults. He thought that training the girls behind Percy's back was the only way even though it was hard to keep it from him.
He did it for the girls because they seemed to have a fondness for the sport even though their father wasn't such a big fan of it.
"Oh please! Do you think I would have let anythin' happen to her!"
"No, you're probably the best mother she could ever ask for" a weak voice came from behind. Soft and melancholic with a touch of spite and irony, they didn't need to turn around to know who it was.
She stood just a few feet away, hugging herself tightly and her dark hair was cut short.
She wore sandals and a beige long cardigan over black. She looked confident but her eyes had a glimmer of insecurity. She looked tidy and responsible, a woman that reminded one of Percy in a way. Definitely friendly if you where on terms with her.
She gave a warm smile as her youngest daughter handed the book she had been grasping to her father and went of to hug her mother.
"I didn't think you'd come!" Lucy smiled up at her, now thirteen years old she looked very much like her mother. Shoulder-length dark hair pushed behind her ears and small dimples on her cheeks.
The skin was pale and freckled, clearly inherited from Percy and so were her eyes, light blue and glimmering.
"Hello Audrey" Percy nodded and gave the woman a weak smile. Oliver cleared his throat from the thickness that had formed trying to say hello but he couldn't. Audrey stared at him, dislike shining through her eyes. He didn't blame her for blaming him for what happened. This didn't mean that he accepted the blame, even though he understood that one could be bitter at a person after ones life had fallen to pieces because of said person.
Not that he could have helped it. He did meet Percy before her and could never have predicted what consequences would form. If on anyone, the blame would fall on Percy but neither Oliver nor Audrey seemed to consider that.
But it was always a competition between them whenever they met no matter whose fault anything was.
"Of course I wanted to be here to see of my girls" she hugged Lucy tight and gestured for Molly to come over and she complied. But not before she had given Oliver's arm a firm squeeze. She smiled at him before she went up to her mother and hugged her.
"What is this I hear about you joining the quidditchteam?" her mother said gripping her daughter's face and meeting her eyes.
"Fred told me last year that they would like to have me on the team this year… I'm quite good you see" Molly shifted her eyes to Oliver who simply smiled proudly at her.
"I hope it won't get in the way of your studies" Audrey followed her daughter's eyes to the man she held responsible for all that went wrong in her life.
"It won't! I promise" she let go of her mother and went to look after her luggage. It would soon be time to go.
"Ah! Lucy, don't forget your book" Percy pulled himself out of the pressured state he had been in at seeing his ex-wife and took a look at the book he had held for his youngest.
"Hogwarts a history? You're reading Hogwarts a history now?" he handed her the book and they almost simultaneously pushed their glasses up their noses.
"Oliver gave it to me" she stated and started making some last minute packing.
Percy looked at Oliver quizzically, the other just shrugged.
"She had already read Quidditch through the ages five times this summer, thought she needit somethin' new"
Percy deadpanned before gripping his youngest daughter by the shoulders, kneeling down to her.
"Pease tell me you won't be trying out for the team" he pleaded with her and she smiled softly.
"I just like the statistic father, and it's fun to watch" he sighted in relief and stood up.
"But you never know… maybe I'd like to give it a try" he froze and stared at her but she only laughed.
"That is not funny young lady" he bent down slightly again and rubbed away a spot from her big glasses. She stifled a laugh and hugged Percy tight. She was really way too fragile for a rough sport like Quidditch. Not like her sister, Molly reminded one more of Ginny in that way, she was tough in spite of her thin build.
It was time to board the train. They bid a last farewell and stood there waving as the train left the platform.
The three adults stood there frozen in time for a while before Oliver turned towards Audrey.
"Mother? Wha's that all about?" he glared at her and she raised her chin high, refusing to meet his gaze.
"Isn't that what you want, to take my place?"
"Havers! Admit eet, yer just worrit they'll like me better! I am no one's mother Audrey! I adore those girls but I would never-"
"Oh please, you march in here and think you can raise my daughters-"
"Yer insecurity is pathetic! I don't know if ye missed this but in a way, I am sort'a their stepfather and if ye don't mind I-"
"Mind! Yes I do mind, mind you… "
"Noo ye listen here-"
"That's enough you two" Percy sighted and slipped his arm gently in Oliver's "Audrey, you look good… how are you?"
She frowned but gave a small shrug, and smiled wearily.
"Fine… I haven't been drinking if that's what you mean?"
"And Alfred and Mikey? Did you get the teddy I sent?" he smiled so sweetly like there was nothing wrong with this picture. It disgusted Oliver, Audrey didn't deserve Percy's sweet, caring smile. So many times had Percy begged Oliver to be nice to Audrey but she didn't deserve that either.
Well, it wasn't like he hadn't tried but it was Audrey who had decided to hate Oliver first and not the other way around. Surely Percy couldn't blame him for responding to her offensive.
"Yes, I did… Mikey loves it" she had remarried some poor sod named Alfred and had a son with him who had recently turned five.
Oliver shuffled his feet and pulled a little at Percy's sleeve.
"Did ye want to talk to any o' yer siblings because I think I saw them leavin'…" he ignored the look he got from Audrey for interrupting them.
He looked only at Percy, for all he cared she could have been on the other side of the platform. The other side of the world even.
"Oh, no… I'll owl them later. Well... we should probably be leaving" he gave Audrey a quick hug, Oliver's stomach flipped. Oh, how he disliked Audrey. He had felt sorry for her when he first moved in with Percy but she had managed to turn him around after meeting her a few times. She was a dolled- up dementor, with the power to suck the joy out of any occasion.
"Bye Audrey, we should meet for lunch some day" formalities, but it was still revolting. The thought of Percy eating lunch with this kracken of the sea was completely revolting.
She smiled at Percy and nodded.
"Let's do that. Goodbye Percy dear" she looked at Oliver and her smile faltered "Well, bye"
He pulled a face, maybe it was supposed to be a smile, and she left them.
"She is right though, I'm not sure I like the direction you're pulling my daughters" Percy said when she had disappeared in the steam that lingered from the train.
Oliver looked hurt until he saw the grin on the redheads face.
"Oh, sod of Perce" he shoved him lightly before snaking his arms around the taller man's waist, resting his head on Percy's shoulder.
"Seriously though, if anything happens to my darlings because of Quidditch I'm going to hurt you"
Oliver began his response by kissing the freckled cheek closest to him and smiled.
"Not if I beat ye to it" he then reluctantly let go of Percy as they left the platform.
"So… how many are you up to now?" Percy asked and glanced to the other man as he pulled out his umbrella from under his robes since it had started to rain.
"I keep losin' count at about 450" he smiled and took a place under the umbrella with Percy, tracing a hand over some freckles on Percy's wrist. There where so many, 450 had to be less than half of them.
"But I huv years to keep countin' so it's fine"
Considering his perspective of life with Percy at the time being, he was more than content with how things were going. Even with Audrey in the picture.
All was fine.
End
A/NWell... 19 years later, O/P style! xD And I still have one or two more to write but I'm gonna take a break of one-two weeks or so because I have work... unfortunately D:
