Disclaimer and Author's Note: Don't own them except for Bethy and Vanetta. This chapter is a bit short but, hey, such is life.

To Lala, yes he is living with his family. He's getting married in a month and is too busy working to go searching for an apartment. Besides, he and Penny will move out when they get married so that they can act like newlywed lovebirds etc.

So without further ado…

Chapter 7: A Lukewarm Welcome

Mrs. Weasly had shrieked and ranted and raved about destroyed family honor and how she NEVER raised her children to be so irresponsible.

While Percy would feel normally irritated that she was lecturing a grown adult he was too busy feeling sick as a dog. This was the last time he let Daedalus talk him into ANYTHING.

While his mother continued on her verbal rampage he felt that this was all the more reason he and Penelope really needed to get married soon and move out. As it was, it seemed that their winter wedding was too far away, even if the time span was a month.

When her scolding reached a crescendo Percy groaned inwardly, leaning on the banister. His mother had never been this overprotective of Bill or Charlie, or even Fred and George. He deeply suspected that his mother's ability to treat him like a respectable adult had gone down the drain after the Death Eater incident, not that be blamed her, but it was still irritating.

Finally, when Mrs. Weasly ran of words and breath she pointed to the stairs with a rigid forefinger and scowled darkly at him. He was greatly relieved about this since he didn't exactly feel completely up to par.

As he made his way up the stairs with great difficulty he heard his mother below him muttering mutinously. He shook her off when he lurched into his room and crashed on the bed. Taking off his glasses and groping for the nightstand he groaned and after a few peaceful moments he moaned and bolted off to the bathroom, hand over his mouth.

As Mrs. Weasly climbed into bed next to her husband, who grunted and turned over, she heard noise below her. It was, unsurprisingly, Percy being violently sick. She sniffed and sunk down under the blankets, it served him right if he chose to get drunk and come home at odd hours of the night.

Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and feeling thoroughly miserable by this point, Percy felt that he was REALLY not looking forward to work at all tomorrow.

And unfortunately he couldn't skive off it, as he was up to his shoulders in work.

He had set aside a conference with the school governors over Dumbledore's questionable staff…it seemed that the old man had hired a centaur for the new Astronomy teacher (Sinistra had retired) and the governors were having a fit over it. Also he had a bit of paperwork due to complaints from the Vampire Guild about a Vampire Slayer who had attended one of their balls and caused a massacre. And just to top it all of, there was a that acceptance letter to the Wood girl he had to owl.

Ducking his head as he succumbed to another wave of nausea he decided that he was going to be late tomorrow, despite the loads of work he had pinned to him.

He knew though, that he probably would have to owl in a note telling of his lateness. But he'd do that when he felt better, which, by the way things were going, wouldn't be for quite some time…