"What's the matter with you?" Ginny cried out, jumping to her feet. Harry had no shortage of doubt that if this hadn't been her older brothers, of whom could easily outmatch her, she would have brandished her wand to hex them. Being that she didn't, she settled for glaring at them in a way that was horribly reminiscent of Mrs. Weasley. "Why would you say those things to Mum and Dad?"

Ron was sitting silently. He'd yet to voice his opinion on what their older brothers had just done. He kept his gaze on the floor, eyes hardening. Harry anticipated a blow up quite soon, by the looks of things.

Charlie and Bill seemed drained after that unexpected discussion which had taken a turn neither of them had wanted it to. Harry suspected the conversation turned argument had taken a lot out of them, considering it was with their parents of all people. Bill was massaging his temples and Charlie leaned his head back on the couch with his eyes shut. It wasn't helping that Ginny was bent on stirring things up again, demanding answers.

"Drop it, Ginny," Bill's voice was neither gentle nor stern. His command held a warning, but she all but brushed it off.

"No! I want to know why you did that!" Ginny's face was reddening from her anger. "I thought you guys were going to talk to them, not tell them it was their fault for him leaving!"

Charlie abruptly sat up, leveling her with a look. "Ginny," he said with mild firmness lacing his voice, "we didn't mean to upset them. We wanted to talk to them and we did. They just didn't like what was said."

"Right," She scoffed. "Talk. That's why Mum's probably crying again and Dad's going to stay in the shed until dark."

"We can't help it, that's how they reacted!" Charlie's temper was starting to flare. "It isn't our fault they can't handle the truth!"

"Hey," Bill grasped Charlie's shoulder, giving it a squeeze and a stern look, first to Charlie and then to Ginny, which seemed to only make her more defensive. "Calm down, both of you. The last thing Mum and Dad need is for you to be arguing."

"Well it wouldn't have happened if you didn't upset them," Ginny said in an accusatory tone.

"How many times do we have to tell you? We didn't mean to do it," Charlie's temper was no longer ignited, now he appeared tired.

"Whether you meant it or not, you did," Ginny snapped.

Harry wondered if Mrs. Weasley was going to pop in sometime soon to screech at them regarding the noise. She didn't usually tolerate the yelling. But with a quick gander into the kitchen, Harry realized he didn't see her in there. She must have gone out the backdoor, perhaps to the shed where her husband was. Perhaps to seek some comfort after the second row with one of their children.

"You just don't understand," Charlie went on to say, effectively infuriating Ginny more. Harry knew she despised it when she was treated like that, as if she was incapable of comprehending because she was the youngest. Bill sighed from beside him. "You two-" He pointed to Ron and Ginny, "just don't see it because you're so caught up in being angry."

"We have reason to be!" Ron finally got to his feet, hands curling into fists. "He left us! He doesn't even consider himself a Weasley anymore!"

"We know that, Ron," Bill said as calmly as he could. "Remember your letters? We know what he's done."

Ron was rendered speechless. Absolutely flabbergasted.

"Then why are you defending him?" Ginny burst out.

"Because he needs someone to defend him for once," Charlie crossed his arms.

"Why!" Ginny cried. "He doesn't deserve it!

"To you, I suppose he doesn't," Bill said.

"What's the matter with you two?" Ron couldn't believe what he was hearing. "He doesn't deserve anything. He didn't just leave Mum and Dad. He left all of us. He left you guys, too."

"And why do you think he left?" Charlie retorted.

"Because he's a bloody prat that only cares about himself and his precious ministry," Ginny snarled.

"Or maybe he was tired of being treated so poorly here," Bill said.

"He wasn't treated poorly," Ron bristled at the mere idea. "Mum and Dad were always so bloody proud of him. They wanted us to be more like him. You didn't see how disappointed they were when Fred and George opened up their shop. Probably hoped they would go into the ministry instead."

Charlie sighed. "We know they have some comparison problems. Trust me, I went through the same thing when I was your age."

"Makes you feel old now saying it, eh?" Bill nudged him.

Charlie snorted. "Not as old as you. I'm not the one that's about to be thirty."

"In four years, you git!"

Ginny was uninterested in their playful bickering. "It's not the same for you as it is for us," she said.

"Oh, yeah? Why?" Charlie challenged her.

"It's just...it's different, that's all!" Ginny was having difficulty coming up with an answer. "He's always so perfect. He couldn't do any wrong in their eyes, not until now."

"And you don't think I felt the same way about Bill?" Charlie raised his eyebrows. "Please. It's hard living in the shadows of your older brother when he's made prefect two years in a row and later on head-boy. That's a lot of pressure to deal with."

"Especially when you know you'll never be as perfect as him," Bill chimed in with a grin.

Charlie swiftly turned to his brother, chirping, "Who's the one that's single right now because you haven't got the guts to ask her out?"

"Ask who out?" Ron was confused.

"Not important," Bill told him.

"Look," Charlie returned to the conversation, refocused, "All I'm saying is, you're not the only ones to deal with that kind of thing. Mum bugged me all summer before fifth year, asking me if I thought I'd be made prefect. About drove me mad."

Bill took over now. "I realize it can be tough to deal with. No one wants to be compared and let's face it, Percy is a bit pompous sometimes. I tried to have a talk about it with him when you all came to visit."

"Bet that went over well," Ron rolled his eyes.

"Probably didn't even listen," Ginny said.

"Is that what you think?" Bill arched an eyebrow. "Percy's pretty calm and willing to listen when he isn't around you all."

Ron and Ginny couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"I remember that," Charlie nodded, looking like he was reliving the memory in his mind. We were up in Bill's room with some firewhiskey-"

"Percy drank firewhiskey?" Harry, who had been relatively quiet since they came downstairs, was surprised. He'd been of age back then so it wasn't as though he'd done anything illegal. However, a doubtful part of him found it difficult to believe Percy had done anything short of pursing his lips disapprovingly and making his opinion of the matter known.

"Why are you so surprised?" Charlie asked, amused.

"I just...I didn't think he'd do that."

"He's also wickedly funny when he shows it," Charlie said.

"Him, funny?" Ginny snorted.

"Yes," Charlie said pointedly. "He's not like Fred or George, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a sense of humor."

"Anyway," Bill interjected now that they'd gotten off topic, "I tried telling Percy he needed to lay off a bit. You know, relax and be a little less serious sometimes."

"And that worked out so well," Ginny snorted.

"If you'll recall," Bill said, "that wasn't exactly a normal year either."

Since when have our Hogwarts years ever been normal? Harry thought.

"Percy was stressed and worried about all of you-yes, including Harry."

Ron and Ginny gawked at Bill. Harry, yet again, felt a tinge of surprise.

"He was?" Harry asked.

"How do you know?" Ron frowned.

"He told me," Bill said smoothly. "He owled me a lot that year. He told me he wished Ron, Harry and your friend, Hermione, wouldn't sneak off into things you shouldn't."

"Oh, sure," Ginny said derisively. "Wouldn't want the Head-Boy to look bad, now would we?"

Bill sighed. "It had nothing to do with that. He was concerned for their safety."

Harry frowned. He hadn't realized Percy might have been worried for them. It never crossed his mind.

"Yeah right," Ron was skeptical. "What did he have to be worried for?"

Bill and Charlie leveled him with a look that suggested he was daft for asking.

"You're joking, right?" Charlie raised his eyebrows.

"Mum's told us about your...adventures the past few years," Bill said delicately.

Harry felt himself stiffen. "She did?"

Bill noticed, not that he verbalized it. "She did. At least what she knows. I assume there's more to it, of course."

It wasn't a question. They knew.

"Moving on," Bill said with a slight cough. "The point is, yes, Percy was going to make things different that year, had it not been for everything that went on. He felt horrible that he didn't notice what went on with Ginny." Now she was the one who was still. "He just wanted you lot to be safe, despite how you seemed to be doing everything you could not to be."

Ginny crossed her arms, tearing her gaze off her two brothers and putting all of her focus and energy into staring at a piece of the wall.

"You can't stay angry at him for this," Charlie said quietly, breaking the brief lapse of silence. "You shouldn't stay angry at him for this."

"Why not?" Ron asked bravely.

"What do you mean why not?" Bill didn't like that and his face went stony.

"Why should we forgive him for this?" Ron challenged. Harry had a feeling this wasn't going to go over well. "S'not like he deserves it."

"Because we love him," Charlie ground out in a voice that Ron should have known better than to disagree with.

Ron muttered under his breath that there was no we.

"I can't believe this," Ginny was shaking her head. "I can't believe you're trying to excuse what he did."

"We're not excusing it," Bill said before Charlie could say anything which would not help the already tense atmosphere. "What Percy did was wrong and you can bet we're going to set him straight. But you can't honestly say it's all his fault."

"Why not?" Ginny was in disbelief that he'd even had the audacity to say that.

"Because it's not true," Charlie shot out and Bill gave him a warning look. "You're avoiding the issue here. You two and Mum and Dad are."

"Mum and Dad refuse to admit that they've failed in some ways," Bill said and continued before Ron or Ginny could bristle at what was said, "and you can't deny that they have. There's problems with all of us."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, puzzled.

"Never mind for now," Bill said, sparing him a glance. It was calmer and kinder than the way he'd been looking at his younger siblings thus far. "We can get to that later, but right now I want to focus on Percy."

"Why do we have to focus on him at all?" Ginny grumbled.

Her two oldest brothers sighed.

"Gin, someday you're going to have to grow up," Bill said flatly.

That was not the right thing to say. Harry subtly grimaced. Ginny sputtered, her hand held a death grip on her wand. She was likely wishing this was anyone but Bill because she would have put a bat bogey hex on them in retaliation.

"Grow up?"

"Yes," Bill said simply. "You're acting like a child right now."

Harry's eyes darted from Bill and back to Ginny. Ron and Charlie were observing the two as well.

"Me? But he-"

"Left us," Bill finished. "Yes, we all know. But you and Ron seem to keep forgetting that he's still our brother."

"He's no brother of mine!" She said fiercely.

"Once a Weasley, always a Weasley," Bill said firmly. "Don't you remember when Dad told us we need to stick together?"

"Some of us don't," Ron muttered.

Charlie shot him a look.

"He's always drilled it into us how important family is. We're supposed to be there for each other no matter what. I know you're upset with Percy but we have to be there for him right now, even though you don't want to."

"Why?" Ginny burst out again. "Why should we be there for him when he abandoned us?"

"It's not right," Ron added.

"Why not?" Charlie questioned. "What's not right about it?"

Bill didn't give Ron a chance to answer. He addressed Charlie. "Forget about it for now. They're not going to listen."

Charlie sighed again, eventually nodding.

"Look, if Mum or Dad ask, we went out to the Alley for a bit," Bill said.

"Where are you really going?" Harry pressed.

Bill smiled wryly. "We have a little brother that needs us to knock some sense into him."

/

Bill and Charlie returned less than an hour later.

Unlike earlier that afternoon, the rest of the family didn't flock towards them again. This time around, the difference was palpable. The awkwardness hung around in the air from not only the disagreement with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, but from when they'd briefly gotten into it with Ron and Ginny.

Harry could tell something was off. He reckoned that going down to the Ministry to confront Percy hadn't gone at all the way they'd wanted it to. He yearned to ask about it, his curiosity overriding him, but it would have caused a further rift if Ron or Ginny knew. Both of them had gone to their respective rooms, staying put for the time being.

He'd been with Ron when he heard two faint cracks. He excused himself by saying he needed to use the loo, adding that his stomach wasn't feeling good just to deter Ron from coming to check on him should he think Harry was taking too long.

He crept down the stairs, glancing back to make sure no one was following him. Mrs. Weasley still hadn't come inside and neither did her husband so he didn't have to worry about either of them catching him and questioning why he was walking around like that. Across the room, standing beside the front door were Bill and Charlie.

Bill was leaning against the wall, rubbing his face and Charlie looked grave.

"How did it go?"

They both looked up to see Harry at the bottom of the stairs.

"Not that good," Charlie sighed.

"Oh," Harry said.

"We figured he'd be at work so we went there first," Bill said.

"And he was," Charlie said with a slight nod. "He was in his office."

They paused, a brief flicker of pain crossing their faces.

"He wasn't very happy to see us," Charlie admitted. "We figured he'd be a bit put off at us interrupting his work but this was worse."

"Something just wasn't right," Bill shook his head. "We'd always been able to talk to him, get him to take his head out of the clouds and see straight. He'd listen even if he didn't want to. But this time..."

"He wanted nothing to do with us," Charlie continued. "Wouldn't hear about anything. Kept trying to shoo us out and said there wasn't any reason for us to be in contact because he doesn't consider himself part of the family anymore."

"I didn't think he meant it," Bill frowned. "I thought he said it because he was angry. Now I'm not so sure."

"You think he really doesn't want to be in the family anymore?" Harry asked.

"Seems to be that way," Charlie looked away for a moment, shaking his head. "I don't get it. I just don't get it. He wouldn't let us say anything. He didn't want to hear it. He insisted he had things to do, that Fudge needed him right away and we needed to leave."

"He didn't look good," Bill recalled. "Like he hasn't slept well or eaten much. Mum would have a fit if she saw him.

"I noticed that too," Charlie agreed, his face turning solemn. "Merlin, I hope he isn't staying there all night to get ahead to impress that idiot."

"Wouldn't put it past him, unfortunately," Bill said. "He's always been like that."

"What do you mean?" Harry wondered. "Been like what?"

Bill and Charlie shared a look.

"Percy likes approval," Charlie said carefully. "He felt so invisible compared to the rest of us and wanted to stand out in his own way. He wanted people to think of him as one of the good Weasleys that didn't cause any havoc."

"He was that way with Mum and Dad," Bill continued. "He did everything they said to do. He helped out with the twins, Ron and Ginny. He did his chores. He didn't play any pranks because Mum would get so fed up and scream at whoever did."

"And eventually he was like that at Hogwarts too. He got perfect grades. He listened to the rules and never did anything that would make the professors disappointed in him."

"I think that's what it really comes down to," Bill's eyes lowered for a moment. "He never wanted to be a disappointment to anyone. He felt like he had to be perfect in every single way."

"Why did he think that?" Now that Bill said it, it made sense. Ever since they'd first talked in the Great Hall during the Welcoming Feast in Harry's first year, he saw the difference between Percy and his siblings. The striking differences. Percy aimed to please with his behavior and achievements. His younger siblings didn't share that thought. They did their own thing and actively tried to be as opposite of him as possible.

"He wanted to be noticed," Bill said with a sigh. "It's not easy being one of seven."

"I just thought he'd grow out of it," Charlie confessed. "I thought once he got out of Hogwarts he'd be more confident. I just...I should have been more there for him."

"We both should have," Bill said sadly. "We let him slip through the cracks. It's no wonder Percy defends Fudge from everyone. He's probably the first person in so long to make him feel seen and heard."

Charlie scowled at that. He started to pace back and forth. "Can't believe it has to be Fudge of all people. Percy's usually so perceptive, yet he really thinks the git has his best interest at heart. I just don't get it. This just doesn't seem like him."

"Well what else happened?" Harry asked.

"Not much after that," Bill said. "He didn't let us stay long."

"He did ask us if we supported you or Dumbledore," Charlie frowned apologetically at Harry. "He really seems to think the two of you have concocted this idea of You-Know-Who returning just so Dumbledore can beat Fudge for minister."

He blew out a puff of air, exhausted and full of defeat in his eyes.

"I don't know what we can do about Percy. He doesn't want to listen to anyone or anything that isn't from Fudge's mouth. There's no way we'd be able to get him here and sit everyone down. Not unless we knock him out..." He muttered.

Bill rolled his eyes. "We're not kidnapping him."

"Not kidnapping, Billy Boy-" Charlie received a glare for that nickname. "Just improvising."

"We're not improvising either."

"Then what are we doing?" All humor was gone from Charlie's face. He was looking earnestly at his older brother, looking for some sort of answer. The family that Harry knew as being close knit had become broken apart so quickly. Things had spiraled out of control and it seemed that there was no good remedy in sight.

Harry thought of Mr. Weasley hiding out in his shed, face darkened as he wondered where everything went wrong.

He thought of Mrs. Weasley weeping for the son she lost and the sons she believed who were also heading down a wrong path because of what they'd said.

Of Fred and George who were going to use their worst products to send to Percy to humiliate him.

Of Ron who was upstairs in his room, not saying much but feeling betrayed because his brothers had defended the very person he didn't think deserved it.

And of Ginny, who had aggressively stormed off to her room, with there being a crash soon after.

He wished there was something that could be done to change it; to bring back the way the Burrow had been and not what it was now.

But he didn't know how.

Bill didn't speak for several minutes. To Harry, he seemed to be lost within his own thoughts. Eventually, he met their eyes and shrugged helplessly.

"I don't know."