Written for:
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry: Prompt of the Day
Day 11 - (color) silver
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry: Northern Fun Fair
Balloon Wall 2: (color) grey
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry: Eastern Fun Fair
Ferris Wheel - (trope) time travel
HPFC: Hunger Games
Prompts: Word: Unexpected / Emotion: Jealousy / Dialogue: "I'm not so sure about this." / "Just trust me." / Character: Percy Weasley / Genre: Hurt/comfort
Unexpected Predicament
xXx
"I know you're looking for a way to get me back to my time," Percy began.
Dumbledore held up his hand. "Mr. Wess, you can't stay here."
"I think you can call me by my actual last name in private." Percy didn't know why he said it because Dumbledore would never take him up on his offer, but he felt like he had to try or he would forget his identity.
"Mr. Wess," Dumbledore said again, "You don't belong in this time. I know you're happy here, but you must miss your family."
Percy sighed. Ending up in the 1970s had been unexpected and maybe even just a tad frightening, but he had found a home here. Yes, he did miss his parents and his siblings, but he made great friends here, and they had become like a second family. When they found he had no family, they never excluded him. James even invited him to spend the summer at his home so he didn't have to be alone during the holidays. Of course, he did his best to ignore Pettigrew and never give away his distaste for the rat, but he couldn't imagine going back to a time where these great people had been dead for years.
"I like it here," Percy whispered.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Wess, but I'm not going to stop looking for a way to get you back to your rightful time."
With slumped shoulders, Percy stood up and left the office that looked so much like the Headmaster's office in his own time. The man really didn't change his decorating styles.
He walked along the halls. He waved at Lily and Marlene. Their matching silver friendship necklaces caught his eyes. "Are those new?" he asked, pointing to the necklaces.
Lily rolled her eyes. "Potter gave them to us."
Marlene snickered. "He's still trying to get into her knickers.
He knew they'd eventually get together; otherwise, Harry wouldn't exist, so Percy decided to nudge them along. "You know James isn't all bad, right? He's extremely loyal when you earn it, and you have his unending loyalty.
"I know," Lily admitted, "but before I even think about giving him a chance, he needs to mature a bit."
Percy understood that; he just hoped James matured soon.
He nodded with a smile and continued his trek to the Gryffindor Tower. When he entered the common room through the portrait hole, his breath caught at the sight that met him.
Remus and Sirius sat cuddled together on the couch. Sirius' joyful grey eyes were focused solely on Remus' warm brown gaze.
He couldn't help the feeling of jealousy that threatened to overwhelm him. He knew it was illogical. He had no romantic interest in either boy, but they had found their other half. Their soulmate. He knew their futures were going to twist with pain and heartbreak, but right now, they were happy. He craved that kind of happiness.
The closest thing to that kind of emotion he ever had was when he dated Penelope, and she dumped him for someone she thought was better.
He wondered if he would ever fall in love. He hoped so, but his experience made him feel as if it was bleak.
James and Pettigrew were on the floor near the fire. They were laying down, the plush carpet comfortable. James was the one that noticed him as he turned his head towards the portrait hole. "Hey, Percy. How did your meeting with the Headmaster go?"
Percy thought back to his inner turmoil before he got distracted. He walked over to them and slumped down next to the werewolf and dog animagus on the couch. "Bad. He's talking about sending me home."
James sat up in alarm. "Go home? Why? You haven't done anything wrong."
Sirius stood up, and Remus straightened his spine.
"He can't send you away," Remus whispered.
The only one that seemed uncaring about the redhead's predicament was Pettigrew.
Percy was touched by their concern. He had always been the oddball of his family, but these boys, the Marauders, all but one, had made him feel like he belonged. "There's a lot of things that you don't know."
Remus tilted his head. "You're not from around here."
"That's an understatement," Percy muttered.
"When we first met, you looked like you saw ghosts when you saw James, Sirius, and Evans."
Percy swallowed. Remus was the intuitive one, so it didn't surprise him he was beginning to put the puzzle pieces together based on all of the cryptic comments he had made since their meeting. "Please don't continue."
Remus kept staring at him. "You're from a different time, aren't you?"
James' eyes widened. "Time travel is impossible," he hissed.
"That's what I thought. Imagine my surprise."
To their credit, they didn't seem to be freaking out.
"Do you want to stay?" Sirius asked.
"I miss my family, but they'll be fine without me. There's a lot of them. I'm one of seven kids, and I was always the one they picked on, and I don't want to leave you all. So yes, I'd rather stay here, but Dumbledore won't change his mind, not when my being here can alter the future."
James rested a hand on Percy's bouncing knee. It's funny that he hadn't even realized it was bouncing until James touched it. "It will be okay. We'll find a way to get you to stay. The timeline be damned."
"I'm not so sure about this." Yes, it might be nice to change some things. Maybe he could out Peter before it was too late. Then James and Lily would live, and Harry wouldn't grow up as an orphan, never knowing what a loving family was like or the fact that magic was real before he turned eleven. And maybe Sirius and Remus could have a happy life together. But there was no way of knowing how those changes would affect the war. Voldemort could become even more powerful. Or maybe a different, but greater dark wizard or witch would take Voldemort's place. There was so much that couldn't be predicted.
"Just trust me," James pled, "We'll find a way to get you to stay."
Sirius nodded. "Prongs is right. Together, the Marauders can do anything. After all, we became animagus without any help. We also created the Marauder's map, which was a tricky bit of charms work. Nothing can stop us when we put our minds to it."
Remus smiled. "If you want to stay, we'll make sure it happens," he promised.
Percy liked to believe there was truth in their words, but how could they possibly go against Dumbledore? They wouldn't change his mind and no way would their magic and knowledge stand up against his.
He wanted to stay, but he just knew it just wasn't meant to be.
xXx
(word count: 1,140)
