This is my first Percy/Oliver fic. I just fell in love with the couple last
week and decided to write this... I know, I know, I have already a lot of
stories going and I should finish them, but I just couldn't resist... What
else? Ah yeah, French is still my first language (those kind of things
don't change in a day, you know?) and it isn't beta-read, forgive the
grammar and other technical mistakes...
The title comes from a song of Coldplay; Don't Panic.
To all my reviewers for 'Falling In Love'... They were all so sweet...
Review, please, I can even take flames, even if I prefer constructive criticism...
Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Oh, yeah, it will get slashy so beware...
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Everybody's Got Somebody to Lean On
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~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~
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'What am I doing here...'
A simple look around the room was enough to realize that he didn't fit in the cheerful atmosphere. It was all party and laugher and fun. Three words he banished from his vocabulary long ago. When he decided to be serious. When he was rather *forced* to become serious. War had been very hard for him. But wasn't war supposed to be rough on every five year olds? Wasn't war supposed to be tough for everyone?
With a sigh, he realized that once more, the proof of his abnormality was made.
He had a huge pile of paper waiting for him in his office, and he had to lose the major part of his Friday evening here. He absolutely didn't belong here. He knew as soon as he received the invitation card for this ten year reunion. He knew he'd end up alone, feeling totally out of place. Only, he'd never be able to disappoint Dumbledore by not showing up. As a former Head Boy, he still had responsibilities, didn't he? Moreover, he didn't particularly like the idea of adding another name on his 'People I disappointed' list.
"Percy? You're Percy Weasley aren't you?"
Percy regained a stern face and looked up to see the source of the cheery intrusion.
"Yes, it's me. And who may you be?" he said, carelessly straightening his clothes.
He hated clothes, really.
"Aw! C'mon Percy! You just *can't* not remember me." The blonde stranger exclaimed in an annoyingly whiny voice.
"Sorry."
The young woman pouted, feigning disappointment.
"I'm Megan! Megan McMillan! I was in Ravenclaw!" seeing that the look on the former Head Boy's face didn't change, she felt the urge the add: "I was Penny's best friend!"
Penny...
Penelope...
'You'll never love Percy Weasley!'
"Hmm... Percy?" Megan asked, but Percy didn't even hear her.
'You'll never be able to!'
"Percy!"
'Your heart is cold! *You* are cold! You'll never love Percy Weasley!'
"I guess she was right then, bye, Weasley..." Megan muttered quietly, slowly leaving Percy alone with his thoughts.
But these were thoughts Percy didn't like to deal with. And Percy had a perfect control on his mind. Didn't he? No. He didn't. As much as he liked to believe that he did, he did not. So he just pushed them in a dark corner, where they joined so many other unpleasant thoughts, ready to torment him whenever he would feel too alone, whenever it would be too silent.
Shaking his head to clear his mind, he watched with sad eyes the light- haired young woman walking away, joining a smiling man. A smiling man he remembered as a Ravenclaw troublemaker named Cyril Gagnon.
'Canadian.' Percy thought ' I took a total of 150 points from Ravenclaw because of him.'
Seeing how in love they obviously were, Percy thought that 'Cyril Gagnon' and 'Megan McMillan' were two names he could add to his ' Happy People' list.
Percy loved lists. Lists are organized, followed carefully, important. Lists are straight.
Lists always were everything Percy wished to be.
"Hey! Percy !Is that really you? Wow! You didn't change one bit!" The newcomer's eyes fell on Percy's slender waist. "Well maybe a bit..."
Percy looked up and found himself gazing at a former Hufflepuff, Joshua Thompson. He stood up and offered his right hand. The young man vigorously shook it, patting Percy's shoulder. Percy closed his eyes at the touch...
Human touch...
Warm human touch...
It's been so long...
A very faint smile crossed the red-haired boy's lips.
"Hello Joshua." He simply said, regaining a strict tone and a straight face.
"C'mon Percy! I always told you, you could call me Josh!"
Joshua always was the second best student of their year behind Percy. Far behind, but he was still second. They were often brought to work together. Josh always was a very social and enthusiastic boy.
'He broke only 5 rules in first year and never did it again. A wonder he wasn't chosen as a Prefect...' Percy thought.
Seeing that Percy wasn't about to answer, Josh went on.
"So, you work at the ministry?"
"Yes."
"Great... great, I always knew you'd make it to the ministry! I myself work as a reporter for the Daily Prophet."
"Interesting."
"Yeah... So, you're married?"
Percy winced.
"No."
"Really? You and that Clearwater girl were such a great couple! Too bad!"
Clearwater...
Penelope...
Cold...
Percy shook his head, pushing the dark memories aside for the second time in ten minutes.
"Yeah... too bad.."
"...Well, I have a lot of people to see... have a nice evening, Percy..."
Percy sighed and sat back. He really had no silk for conversations. He wasn't stupid, he saw how Joshua's uneasiness grew as the conversation went. All by his fault. Because of his direct one-word answer. It didn't matter that much, though. He never really liked the boy. In fact he couldn't recall someone he really liked during his schooling. Sure, there had been Penny, but it just wasn't the same thing.
Percy spotted Marcus Flint in the crowd and frowned. Flint surely was at the top of his 'People I disliked in school' list. He used to be such an unpleasant, brainless idiot. Rude and mocking. Now he almost seemed kind. But perhaps it was just because his teeth were straightened...
Who was he trying to fool. Everyone had changed. Everyone except him. He was still boring and rigid perfect Percy.
He suddenly stood up. Enough of this! This reunion was turning him into a pathetic idiot. He'd done more than the quick manifestation he first planned to do. A cold and dark office was waiting for him, he had a quite tick pile of papers and contracts to read, a couple of report to approve and half a dozen owls to send. He never bothered to lit the fireplace, it was too much trouble, a waste of time when there as so much to do. Another sleepless night would straighten his mind for sure, he'd be reminded that he had no time for pointless self-pitying.
"Oliver! You came!" the happy scream reached Percy's ear and he paled.
Wood... Oliver Wood...
'Wood, Oliver, he lost Gryffindor a total of 340 points, mostly because of this bad habit of his for sneaking out at night and for fighting in the corridors with Slytherins. However... However, I never took points from him..." Percy's mind was racing.
The only person he could never get himself to add to his 'People I disliked in school' list was standing few meters away from him.
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* ~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~
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To Be Continued In Chapter Two... Review??
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*
To all my reviewers for 'Falling In Love'... They were all so sweet...
Review, please, I can even take flames, even if I prefer constructive criticism...
Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Oh, yeah, it will get slashy so beware...
*
**
Everybody's Got Somebody to Lean On
**
*
~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~
*
**
*
'What am I doing here...'
A simple look around the room was enough to realize that he didn't fit in the cheerful atmosphere. It was all party and laugher and fun. Three words he banished from his vocabulary long ago. When he decided to be serious. When he was rather *forced* to become serious. War had been very hard for him. But wasn't war supposed to be rough on every five year olds? Wasn't war supposed to be tough for everyone?
With a sigh, he realized that once more, the proof of his abnormality was made.
He had a huge pile of paper waiting for him in his office, and he had to lose the major part of his Friday evening here. He absolutely didn't belong here. He knew as soon as he received the invitation card for this ten year reunion. He knew he'd end up alone, feeling totally out of place. Only, he'd never be able to disappoint Dumbledore by not showing up. As a former Head Boy, he still had responsibilities, didn't he? Moreover, he didn't particularly like the idea of adding another name on his 'People I disappointed' list.
"Percy? You're Percy Weasley aren't you?"
Percy regained a stern face and looked up to see the source of the cheery intrusion.
"Yes, it's me. And who may you be?" he said, carelessly straightening his clothes.
He hated clothes, really.
"Aw! C'mon Percy! You just *can't* not remember me." The blonde stranger exclaimed in an annoyingly whiny voice.
"Sorry."
The young woman pouted, feigning disappointment.
"I'm Megan! Megan McMillan! I was in Ravenclaw!" seeing that the look on the former Head Boy's face didn't change, she felt the urge the add: "I was Penny's best friend!"
Penny...
Penelope...
'You'll never love Percy Weasley!'
"Hmm... Percy?" Megan asked, but Percy didn't even hear her.
'You'll never be able to!'
"Percy!"
'Your heart is cold! *You* are cold! You'll never love Percy Weasley!'
"I guess she was right then, bye, Weasley..." Megan muttered quietly, slowly leaving Percy alone with his thoughts.
But these were thoughts Percy didn't like to deal with. And Percy had a perfect control on his mind. Didn't he? No. He didn't. As much as he liked to believe that he did, he did not. So he just pushed them in a dark corner, where they joined so many other unpleasant thoughts, ready to torment him whenever he would feel too alone, whenever it would be too silent.
Shaking his head to clear his mind, he watched with sad eyes the light- haired young woman walking away, joining a smiling man. A smiling man he remembered as a Ravenclaw troublemaker named Cyril Gagnon.
'Canadian.' Percy thought ' I took a total of 150 points from Ravenclaw because of him.'
Seeing how in love they obviously were, Percy thought that 'Cyril Gagnon' and 'Megan McMillan' were two names he could add to his ' Happy People' list.
Percy loved lists. Lists are organized, followed carefully, important. Lists are straight.
Lists always were everything Percy wished to be.
"Hey! Percy !Is that really you? Wow! You didn't change one bit!" The newcomer's eyes fell on Percy's slender waist. "Well maybe a bit..."
Percy looked up and found himself gazing at a former Hufflepuff, Joshua Thompson. He stood up and offered his right hand. The young man vigorously shook it, patting Percy's shoulder. Percy closed his eyes at the touch...
Human touch...
Warm human touch...
It's been so long...
A very faint smile crossed the red-haired boy's lips.
"Hello Joshua." He simply said, regaining a strict tone and a straight face.
"C'mon Percy! I always told you, you could call me Josh!"
Joshua always was the second best student of their year behind Percy. Far behind, but he was still second. They were often brought to work together. Josh always was a very social and enthusiastic boy.
'He broke only 5 rules in first year and never did it again. A wonder he wasn't chosen as a Prefect...' Percy thought.
Seeing that Percy wasn't about to answer, Josh went on.
"So, you work at the ministry?"
"Yes."
"Great... great, I always knew you'd make it to the ministry! I myself work as a reporter for the Daily Prophet."
"Interesting."
"Yeah... So, you're married?"
Percy winced.
"No."
"Really? You and that Clearwater girl were such a great couple! Too bad!"
Clearwater...
Penelope...
Cold...
Percy shook his head, pushing the dark memories aside for the second time in ten minutes.
"Yeah... too bad.."
"...Well, I have a lot of people to see... have a nice evening, Percy..."
Percy sighed and sat back. He really had no silk for conversations. He wasn't stupid, he saw how Joshua's uneasiness grew as the conversation went. All by his fault. Because of his direct one-word answer. It didn't matter that much, though. He never really liked the boy. In fact he couldn't recall someone he really liked during his schooling. Sure, there had been Penny, but it just wasn't the same thing.
Percy spotted Marcus Flint in the crowd and frowned. Flint surely was at the top of his 'People I disliked in school' list. He used to be such an unpleasant, brainless idiot. Rude and mocking. Now he almost seemed kind. But perhaps it was just because his teeth were straightened...
Who was he trying to fool. Everyone had changed. Everyone except him. He was still boring and rigid perfect Percy.
He suddenly stood up. Enough of this! This reunion was turning him into a pathetic idiot. He'd done more than the quick manifestation he first planned to do. A cold and dark office was waiting for him, he had a quite tick pile of papers and contracts to read, a couple of report to approve and half a dozen owls to send. He never bothered to lit the fireplace, it was too much trouble, a waste of time when there as so much to do. Another sleepless night would straighten his mind for sure, he'd be reminded that he had no time for pointless self-pitying.
"Oliver! You came!" the happy scream reached Percy's ear and he paled.
Wood... Oliver Wood...
'Wood, Oliver, he lost Gryffindor a total of 340 points, mostly because of this bad habit of his for sneaking out at night and for fighting in the corridors with Slytherins. However... However, I never took points from him..." Percy's mind was racing.
The only person he could never get himself to add to his 'People I disliked in school' list was standing few meters away from him.
*
**
* ~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~
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To Be Continued In Chapter Two... Review??
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