Written for OCDdegrassi. I'm really glad she likes the fic, and that she's a kindred spirit in the loving Percy/Fleur movement. (Why aren't there more of us?)
Percy wandered the corridors of the Hogwarts Express, wondering where he should sit. He was sure Bill or Charlie wouldn't mind if he sat with one of them or their friends, but Percy really didn't feel like being that outsider no one wanted around, but no one could ask to leave. The only boy in his year that Percy was even friendly with was Oliver, and Percy didn't feel like testing that with asking him to hang out.
Barely paying attention to where he was going, Percy didn't even notice the candy trolley until it was nearly running him over. Jumping out of the way in just enough time, he found himself in a nearly empty compartment.
In it, there was a girl with plain black robes, marking her as a first year. She had long silvery-blonde hair and big blue eyes. She was very pretty, and looked like she was going to become a beautiful woman in only a few short years. Percy blushed as he took her in. She looked at him up and down, and though she didn't reveal what she thought of him except for a raise of her eyebrow, Percy didn't think she was very impressed.
"Hi," Percy said shyly. "I'm Percy. Percy Weasley. Who are you?"
"Fleur Delacour," she said in a heavy French accent. "It is a pleasure meeting you, Percy. What year are you in?"
"Oh," Percy said, chuckling nervously. "I'm a second year. A Gryffindor." He pointed at his tie.
"I figured," she said dryly. "I zink I want to be in Gryffindor too. My mother said Ravenclaw would be a good 'ouse, but I'm going to 'ogwarts, not Beauxbatons, so I figured I should make ze most of it."
"Why aren't you going to Beauxbatons?" Percy asked, sitting down.
"I was born at St. Mungo's, zough both my parents are French, but zerefore I got a 'ogwarts letter zis year. Zey were about to zrow it away, but I wanted to do something big and daring for once. Besides," Fleur shrugged, "I can always transfer if I don't like it."
Percy grinned. "I think you'll get into Gryffindor, Fleur."
"You zink?" Fleur asked, almost shyly.
Percy nodded, Fleur smiled, and then they started talking about Hogwarts and the classes the first years took and what the Gryffindor common room looked like.
(o)
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Fleur's Sorting was the fastest of the year.
(o)
"Percy!" a voice yelled in an unmistakable French accent. Percy turned around and smiled when he saw Fleur.
They had quickly grown to become close friends, Percy would even say best friends, and except for when they were in classes or sleeping, it was hard to find one without another. Bill had even informed Percy with a rather big smirk on his face that Mum was dying to meet his new friend, and that Fleur had to come to the Burrow at some point during the summer. He wouldn't have mentioned anything to her, not wanting her to know any more about his family's poverty than she already did, except Fleur had been within earshot and had agreed instantly.
Percy wasn't sure what that meant.
"What?" he asked as Fleur skidded to a stop right in front of him.
"Guess what?" she said, her blue eyes bright. Not bothering to wait for his answer, she went on. "My mother wants me to tell you zat after I spend two weeks at the Burrow, you are going to 'ave to visit us in Paris. No if, ands, or buts."
Percy looked at her, his mouth wide open. "I don't speak French," he finally said, dumbly.
Fleur rolled her eyes. "I've been meaning to teach you, and besides, you 'ave me! What else could you want?"
Percy smiled at her. "Nothing."
With a smug smile, Fleur responded, "Eexactly!"
(o)
"She's pretty," George said with wide eyes as he looked at Fleur, who was currently helping their mother in the kitchen. Molly was in love with her, mainly because she was the first friend Percy ever really had. That alone was enough to make Fleur well thought of in the Weasley household, but Fleur, determined to make herself loved, had been a paradigm of goodness.
It was a far cry from the girl that had once managed to convince him to sneak into the kitchens to have some chocolate cake for her twelfth birthday.
"Yeah," Percy replied. Fleur was pretty, beautiful really, but Percy hardly noticed that anymore. He noticed that she was kind and stubborn and incredibly intelligent and arrogant and funny and nothing people thought she would be.
She was constantly surprising Percy, and Percy knew her better than anyone.
She turned to look at him, and seeing him, she winked.
Percy winked back.
(o)
They returned to school. Eventually, Fred and George came to school and Charlie graduated. They studied and learned, and without Fleur, Percy didn't know where he'd be, what he'd be doing.
She was his best friend, as she had told him one day in the middle of her second and his third.
They had been studying in the common room, talking about Charms and Transfiguration and the similarities and differences between them. All of sudden, she had looked up at him, smiled that smile that made his heartbeat faster and told him, "You know you are my best friend, right?"
All Percy could do was return the smile and say, "You know you're mine, right?"
(o)
Nothing really happened over the years. They grew up, they changed, and yet PercyandFleur always remained the same. They were each other's bright spots, each other's safe place. Percy couldn't imagine his life without her.
It would certainly be something dark and cold.
(o)
Fleur hugged her best friend as he started to shake from tears he wouldn't let escape. She could feel his terror, the part of herself that was so in tuned to him was shaking with it. She cared for Ginny almost as she were her own little sister, and imagining Gabrielle in this situation sent a cold dagger through Fleur's heart. She couldn't give in to her feelings though.
Not when Percy was breaking down with his.
"Ginny. . ." he said, the only thing he could. "Sh-sh-sh-"
"Shh," Fleur said. Percy was tall, far taller than her. It should made holding him somewhat awkward, but it wasn't. Percy needed her like he had never needed her before, and Fleur was going to be there for him.
"My parents," he mumbled into her chest.
"I'll write to them," Fleur said. "You need to focus on yourself. On your grief."
There was no need for Percy to focus long, luckily. Ginny was soon found by Harry and Ron, and Fleur had never felt more grateful for anything in her life.
(o)
"Penelope is nice," Fleur said, trying hard not to display her misery.
"She is," Percy said absentmindedly, focused on drawing up the new Hogsmeade plans.
"And pretty too," she continued on.
"Yeah," Percy said, and Fleur knew that he was only barely paying attention to her.
"I'm really happy for you," she said.
"Thanks."
Fleur knew she was being ridiculous. Percy had a girlfriend! She should be happy. She wasn't though, and she was starting to figure out why.
(o)
"So you and Penelope broke up," Percy heard a voice say behind him, as he was packing up his things. He had just graduated, and wasn't going to be attending Hogwarts anymore. Odd, how seven years of your life can go by in a blink.
He turned around to see Fleur, her long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail and sitting cross-legged on his bed. He wondered how he had gotten there without him seeing her.
"Yeah," he said. "We did."
Fleur nodded. "I'm glad," she announced.
"Why?" he asked, surprised. As far as he was aware, Fleur and Penelope had always gotten along great.
"Because," she said, standing up, "that means I can do this."
She kissed him suddenly and shyly. Percy, who hadn't thought this would happen in his wildest dreams, who was so glad that he could be her best friend and would have been happy being that for as long as he could be, kissed her back.