The first pairing out of these that I actually swayed you on, even though we both know what a die-hard shipper of Percy/Oliver you are. This is because we both know that Oliver is what schoolboy!Percy needs and Audrey is what post war!Percy needs.

Percy/Audrey

.

"changing everything"

"Audrey," he says tentatively, which gets your attention rather quickly. You turn to him, and hum your response. "We need to talk," he finally whispers. He nervously twists the wedding band on his hand, and you have a feeling that you're not going to like the talk.

You meet his blue eyes with a fierce stare. "Yes?" you reply, prompting him.

Unable to maintain your stare, he glances down, watching himself twist the gold band. It takes a while before he talks. "I'm a wizard," he says.

You laugh. "That's a good one, Perce. But wizards don't exist. You should know that," you answer. But he doesn't laugh. You furrow your eyebrows at him.

He doesn't look up. "I'm being serious, Audrey," he assures you, and his voice holds no hint of a joke. "If you don't believe me, I'll prove to you," he adds on as an afterthought.

"Show me then," you demand, waving your arms toward him.

You watch as he carefully draws a stick out of his pocket. It's around ten inches in length and darkly colored. You study the stick for a moment before he moves it in a complex motion, muttering, "Accio book." A book comes flying from the shelf across the room. For a few moments, you're in awe.

Then you become angry. "Why didn't you tell me this before?" you demand, your eyes flashing. You thought you knew him. You thought, after being together for over a year, that you knew everything about him. But now, you wonder if you even knew him at all. "What? Did you not trust me?"

He hangs his head. "I wanted to, believe me, but I couldn't," he replies. He glances up, meeting your eyes for the first time. "There are… laws that prevent me from telling Mugg- non-magic folks about my magic."

That diffuses your anger quickly. "And now, I'm not allow to tell anyone either?" you ask.

He nods sadly. "I know it's a lot to take in, Audrey. But please believe me when I tell you that I've wanted to tell you about this since we started dating."

"I understand, Percy," you murmur. And you do understand. He was following the law. But it doesn't make it any easier to digest. "I just need some time."

"Whatever you need," he assures you.

You place a kiss on his cheek and leave him alone in the bedroom. You curl up in the armchair in the living room, and connect the dots. You remember the subtle things – saying weird terms or appearing out of nowhere. Him being a wizard – as weird as that sounds in your head – makes sense; it connects everything together.

What you don't like is the fact that you didn't know before you married him. It's going to change everything in your relationship, and you're not sure if you can handle it.

A/n – so many thanks to my darling wife, Paula, for beta-ing this for me.