The Price for Not Believing
Percy sat at the dining table and adjusted his collar. It was quite uncomfortable to wear, not that he would admit that out loud to anyone.
"Morning, Perce," his brother, one of the twins, said around a mouthful of eggs. Percy scowled at him. He greeted his father, who was sitting at the head of the table, and picked up his fork.
"Is that a new shirt you are wearing, Percy?" his mother asked.
"Yes, Mother. I work as the personal assistant of Lord Crouch. Unlike some people," his eyes drifted to his father, who was wearing something out of the 16th century, "I have to maintain my standards. Besides, today is an important day."
"I say, Fred, Father's job is definitely more interesting," one of the twins — most likely Fred — said.
"Yes, George," the other replied, "far better than kissing Crouch's ass."
Percy's face reddened and their mother glared at them; the twins winked at their father and laughed.
"Lord Crouch is a great man." He glared at them when they mimicked him. "At least I have a steady job," Percy said, putting his fork down. "You both just tinker around with scraps and do nothing productive."
"Did you hear him, George? He is insulting our work!"
"Yes, dear brother, I did." The twins turned towards him, and Percy bristled. "We will let you know that we earn far more than you do."
"This is the 18th Century. Our experiments matter."
"And your boss just placed an order for one of our inventions."
"Maybe we will add a few extra things for him to throw at you when he gets angry."
They pushed their plates back and hopped off the table. "See you at the party today, Percy!"
"Both of you are invited?" Percy asked, astonished.
"Of course, we are!"
"H-How?" They just stuck their tongues out at him and went out, laughing.
o§o
It was times like these when Percy wished he had dyed his hair black. His stupid, idiotic, childish twin brothers had not been here for fifteen minutes, and they were already making a spectacle. Judging by the looks some of Lord Crouch's allies were giving him, they had not missed the twins' trademark Weasley-red hair which matched his own. He gave the latest guest a polite smile and made his way to his brothers.
"It wasn't us!" one of them cried.
"What wasn't you?" asked Percy, dreading the answer.
"Whatever you're going to blame us for."
Percy pinched the bridge of his nose. "Tell me, what are you two even doing here?"
"Bill invited us, of course!"
"Of course." He glared in the direction of the room where his other brother was preparing for his performance. William, his eldest brother, was a singer — a very good and popular singer — and had been hired for performance at Lord Crouch's birthday party today. Why William had given his extra invitations to these two and not their parents, Percy couldn't understand.
"Look, I work here," he said. "Please don't make a scene."
"Fred, he doesn't trust us," one of the twins said, clutching his heart and putting on a hurt expression.
"True, George. And he is supposed to be our brother. What will we do now?"
Percy narrowed his eyes. "Please! I know what you two are like. Why don't you both go and dance instead of embarrassing me?"
The twins shrugged, put their arms around each other's waists, and hopped to the dance floor. Suppressing his urge to strangle them as they twirled each other around, he turned to welcome the next arrivals.
o§o
Fred was watching his twin's back while George spiked the punch when someone cleared their throat. George's head hit his nose as his twin jumped back. Both turned in the direction of the new arrival, only to find their brother smirking at them in amusement.
"Bill!" Fred glared at his brother.
"I saw nothing!" Bill said, his eyes glinting with mirth.
"Still," said George, "you shouldn't have given us a scare like that."
"Ah." Bill put a hand over his heart. "This is the thanks I receive for inviting my favourite brothers to the party." The twins continued to glare at him, and he raised his hands in surrender. "All right! I'm leaving."
Fred turned to George who was staring at a pretty blonde sitting alone at a table. He grinned and pushed his twin in the girl's direction, wishing him luck.
.
He cheered as Bill ended his song. His twin was still talking to the blonde, and Fred looked around for someone to talk to when a movement caught his eye. A man with straw blond hair was crouched beside a table in the corner. His position was such that only Fred could see him. The man stood up, and Fred's eyes widened in recognition. He was Lord Crouch's son!
Fred turned away as the man looked in his direction, trying to brush off the incidence. A few minutes passed, but he couldn't push what he had seen out of his head. He scanned the room, somehow not surprised to find Crouch's son and his date absent. He went to that table to check, jumping back in shock when he saw the explosive planted there.
Fred caught the sight of Percy and made his way towards his brother. "Percy, we need to get the ballroom evacuated. Now!"
"What?" Percy glared at him. "I don't have time for your jokes, Fred or George, whoever you are."
"Perce, I'm not joking. I swear!" He grabbed Percy's hand when the latter tried to walk away. "I swear, Percy. I saw Crouch Jr. planting a bomb."
Percy brushed his arm off, scoffing. "Okay, I laughed. Can I go now?"
"You don't believe me?" Fred asked, horrified. "All right. Come and see for yourself. It is right there." He pointed towards the table. At that very minute, the halter announced Lord Crouch's arrival.
"Look, I have to go." Before Fred could stop Percy, his brother rushed past him.
Fred rushed back to the table, ignoring the glares and protests of the people he bumped into. He scared out of his wits, but he stood his ground, scanning the crowd for his twin. George was standing at the opposite side of the room. Fred swore.
The explosive caught his attention as it started to smoke. His eyes sought each of his three brothers. And then, without another thought, Fred threw himself on the top of the bomb.
BOOM!
o§o
Percy saw as Fred looked at him with a strange look on his face, then turned away. He followed his eyes and found Fred staring at his twin with the same look. He then threw his body to the ground by the table he was standing.
A loud explosion shook the place.
"FRED!" he heard George scream. All thoughts left his mind. The time slowed.
Percy stared in horror as he saw Fred's body fly across the room, his blood splattering on the floor. A cry of anguish escaped his lips and he fell to the knees, Fred's pleas to evacuate the ballroom echoing in his ears.
"F-Fred," he cried as he broke into sobs, "I'm s-sorry!"
o§o
Word Count: 1201
Prompts used:
From Hogwarts Assignment: History of Magic
• First job after education
• (setting) 18th Century
From Chocolate Frog Card Club
• (Bronze) Tilly Toke — Write about someone committing a selfless act to protect someone.
From December Event: 12 Days of Christmas
• Calling Birds: Write about someone/something calling out for help/assistance.
• Ladies Dancing: Write about a ball/dance or incorporate dancing
• Lords a-Leaping: Incorporate a Lord
• Drummers Drumming: Write about a drummer/rock star or popular musician (e.g. pianist) AU
From Gringotts Wizarding Prompt Bank
• A-Z on AU Prompts: Non-Magic!AU
• Crack Dialogue Prompts: "It wasn't me"/"What wasn't you?"/"Whatever you are going to blame me for".
• Crack Dialogue Prompts: "I saw nothing"