Authors Note: Please forgive the phrase 'Bloody Barley' I just like it and it's totally random, and corny and Percy-esque. This was a challenge from Toasty. Oh. And this hasn't been beta'ed, grammar-checked, or spell-checked, so, do forgive me.

Fleur/Percy.

Fun stuff.

Disclaimer: All belongs to JK Rowling.

Oh yes, this is for Davesmom who insisted I post this little piece of junk that I still, to this day (haha) do not like. We had a deal: She post her Draco/Pansy I post my Percy/Fleur (she's read it prior to it being put on ff.net) Anyway, whatever.

The deal must be done.

;-)

*

He'd always loved things of beauty. His brothers and sister had taken to things that were grisly and messy and homey. Things like old broomsticks and melted chocolate. Things that were...old, and not in the classy way. But he'd loved fancy feathered quills and the smell of new books.

And he'd always loved Fleur.

When she walked into the Great Hall on the day of the Yule Ball, all of the boys admired her. Gawking and gaping and winking at the young lady. So he admired her too, and it was odd, he had never liked anything that anyone else liked. She was stunning.

He was not silly or ridiculous like the other young men but rather composed. He looked down at his soup and 'sipped' it properly. Talking to Harry quietly---about nothing interesting--he tried hard not to look at her and Roger Davis. She looked happy as her bangles twisted around her wrist, her flaxen blond hair flowed down her back. And she was smiling, a big grin. Davis kept looking at her---but no one could blame him.

When the young man slipped away for 'punch' Fleur walked around looking at the decorations. She was muttering darkly under her breath about Beauxbaton and how much prettier it was. Before he left Davis said something vague to her (Percy had keen hearing) about "don't move. I'll be right back." Fleur, being the difficult child that she was moved. Moved far away and glanced at the tables and the Weird Sisters. Davis was gone. And the first slow dance had just begun.

Now a regular girl would've just run after her date and pulled him off to the colourful dance floor. Not Fleur. She sat at an empty table alone and moping. A pout on her pink frosted lips.

Percy observed. Normally this sort of 'self-pitying' would've annoyed him to no end, and it still did, really. But he felt some sort of compassion for her, and soup was awfully boring to look at.

Fleur was alone. Way alone. With Davis all the way across the hall speaking in a hushed voice to Krum. And not only was she alone, she'd probably be perfectly contented annoying the very rude Davis.

So the ginger-haired boy, having nothing better to do than eat his cold soup made his way over towards her. Nervous although oddly (or not so oddly) descive. Shuffling his brown-suede shoes on the tile.

"Erm...hi," he said, "I'm Percy Weasley my brother's Harry Potter, your competitor's best friend." His voice sounded nervous and hesitant.

"Ze tall boy with ze scar?" She asked, looking up from her butterbeer.

"Yes."

"Would you like to dance?" He says with a weak smile.

He could've sworn that she rolled her eyes, "I shall make time for ze commoners," the girl announces as she allowed herself to be escorted to the dance floor.

They stood slow dancing for a short moment, and they were quite alone. In a corner. She sighed. He tried not to step on her delicate feet and she tried to keep her 'delicate feet' out of the way. The dance ended quickly and he stepped away from her, gazing at her arms-length apart. Fleur was the only girl besides Penelope and his Mother that Percy had ever danced with. Third time's a charm.

"I work for the Ministry," he said, seemingly out of the blue. He'd always liked to toot his own horn a bit.

He should've known it wouldn't get him far with Fleur.

"Oh," she said in a condescending manner. "I must leave."

"Me too!" Percy said quickly as he blushed. "Yeah, yeah...that was nice."

"You waltz-" she paused "--well!"

"So do you," he said with a quick bow of his head.

"Farewell," she said and blew him a kiss.

He made his way back to the table that was occupied by Harry, Ron and a few girls. A red blush had crept up his cheeks and he was still shuffling his feet.

"Percy?" Harry questioned.

"Yes, Harry?"

"What was that?"

"What?" Percy asked, up in arms.

Harry scoot over on the bench, obviously alarmed. "You were talking to Fleur."

He tried to hide a smile. "Yeah, well, I--"

"-whatever, Percy," Harry said with a sigh. He took a sip of pumpkin juice and looked at the happy couples.

"Yeah," Percy agreed, "whatever."

"Was it nice?" Harry asked finally.

"Bloody Barley, Harry. Of course it was nice."

Harry chuckled.

'And for the rest of the evening and forevermore, Percy couldn't keep his eyes off of the girl. The girl with silver bangles and dazzling crystal earrings.'

He didn't dance anymore that night.

He didn't need to.

~*~

La Fin