I am so sorry this has taken so long to update, my computer crashed and I have only just fixed it. Sorry! hands round sweety jar so each reader can take their favourite treat! This will probably be the pinultimate chapter. On to the story!
Whoever owned that voice was a demented psychopath. Oliver's eyes narrowed in pure hatred as the voice spoke again in such a carefree and friendly tone. The voice was obviously synthesised so it was not recognisable.
"How are you Oliver?"
"Where's Percy?" He ground out, clenching his hands into fists.
"Tut tut so rude. And after I looked after you so well. Anyway, onto business. Percy is alive and well but that mat all change depending on what you decide to do." The voice sneered.
Oliver gulped and leaned forward towards the fire which was still blazing.
"You have a choice." The voice started. Whoever it was, they were obviously smiling as they proceeded. "Do nothing, and we get to do to Percy whatever we want." Oliver gritted his teeth and his breathing quickened. "Or, pay us five million galleons and we will return Percy to you with minimal damage." They finished triumphantly.
"What do you mean, 'minimal damage'?" Oliver asked nervously, fearing the words that were to be uttered in return.
The masked voice chuckled.
"Well, Percy will be returned alive."
As the words slowly trickled through Oliver's ever spinning mind, they started to make sense. Within seconds, the meaning was all too clear.
"No, no you can't. Please!" Oliver begged.
The voice chuckled quite calmly yet again.
"You leave the money under the table closest the door in the Three Broomsticks at twelve fifteen tomorrow and you will have Percy back by one. However, your precious baby would have said 'bye bye' before it could even say 'dada'."
The flames roared and Oliver was left utterly alone.
Oliver did not cry.
Oliver did not whimper.
He screamed.
His aching fists flew down against the table beside him with an inhuman force, and with a resounding crash it splintered into thousands of shards which soared through the air, many scratching against Oliver's already injured skin. His hands bled freely and he collapsed onto the floor as the door was flung open and people piled in to surround Oliver.
"What happened Oliver? What did they say?" Ron asked as he fell down beside the almost hysterical brown eyed boy. Oliver clutched onto Ron's shirt and wept into his shoulder. Ron was quite surprised but held the broken man in a protective embrace.
"We heard the conversation. We should be able to track them. Don't worry Oliver, we won't let anything happen to your husband." One of the ministry wizards said calmly and reassuringly.
Oliver nodded weakly and let Ron lift him to his feet.
"Should I give them the money?" Oliver asked with a raspy, quiet voice.
"I think it would be advisable to follow their instructions but if we can get to Percy before the appointed time, you won't need to. We already have hundreds of people out searching. That floo was pretty easy to track so we are hoping that we can find Percy quickly."
Oliver nodded again. His shoulders were hunched and if Ron and Sarah weren't holding him up, he would very likely fall over.
Ron steered Oliver towards a chair and eased the older man down at the table. Most of the ministers left, muttering animatedly amongst themselves.
"Mum?" Oliver spoke up after a long, tense silence.
"Yes dear?" She answered softly, kneeling down to look up into her son's injured face.
"I'm really tired." He almost whined, leaning forward in pure exhaustion.
"Oh my darling come on, lets get you up to bed." She said softly, standing up to help her son.
"But what if something happens?" Oliver asked urgently, stumbling slightly as he tried to appear awake.
"If something happens we'll wake you up." Oliver's father reassured him. He took hold of Oliver's shoulder and helped him up the stairs. Sarah helped her son into bed and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead when he was finally settled.
"Don't worry, we'll get Percy back."
The door gently closed behind his parents and Oliver curled up under the duvet and fell into a dreamless sleep.
Downstairs, all of the ministry wizards were talking to the two families.
"Do you know where Percy is?" Molly asked. She had stopped crying a while ago and was now putting on a brave face for her children.
"We know the area. We traced the fireplace but there was no one there when officials got there but they must be around there."
"Thank you so much. I just hope he's okay."
Percy was sitting in a deep red arm chair in a small, clean, expensive flat somewhere in London. His hands were not bound, his mouth was not gagged. He was warm and he was comfortable. Of course he had just been kidnapped but he was being treated so well. He was beginning to get extremely nervous.
He knew who had done it and to be honest, he was not at all surprised.
Percy was on his own in a small living area, his kidnappers were in a neat little kitchen through a door to his left.
Percy had contemplated running but the doors and windows were all tightly secured. By the time he had retrieved his wand from a nearby table and figured out the correct spell to unlock them, he would have been heard.
He had no idea what they wanted to do to him but he knew that they wanted to hurt him, or Oliver, or both of them.
About half an hour ago, one of his kidnappers had left the flat, only to return ten minutes later. He had no idea where they had been but they looked pretty pleased with themselves when they strutted back in.
"Is our little hostage hungry?"
Percy looked up from his silent thoughts to see one figure leaning against the doorframe to the kitchen, arms folded. Percy could see their wand sticking out from their belt.
Percy shook his head and moved his gaze from the door to focus on an ornament of a cat on the sideboard, anywhere so that he didn't have to look at the truly evil person before him.
"Fair enough, if your dear husband complies you will be eating at home tomorrow." The person said loosely, turning back into the kitchen.
"What?" Percy asked as he snapped back to attention and became much more alert to what was just said. The figures in the kitchen chuckled.
"Well, we arranged a little exchange with our dear Oliver. He gives us something and he gets you back." Explained one of them, an evil smirk creeping across their lips.
"When? What?" Percy inquired, confusion piercing his words, along with concern for exactly what had been agreed with his husband.
There was another chuckle.
"Well my friend, you have to provide us with some satisfaction too, not just our dearest Oliver."
Percy's heart sank. What were they going to do to him, or worse, what were they going to do to Oliver?
"There is another little life in this equation isn't there?" One asked rhetorically.
Percy's breath caught in his throat.
They couldn't mean it. They couldn't.
"Well, we will take it and you can go right back to Oliver." One said quickly, not taking their time over any of the words. "We aren't having that child in our world. It just isn't right." A scathing tone coated the words and the figures began to advance on Percy.
The red head was powerless to do anything. His wand was on a table near him but if he tried to reach for it, he would surely be struck down in an instant. He sunk back into the chair and wrapped his arms around his stomach, trying desperately to protect his baby.
"Don't hold it against us Percy. We are just doing the world a favour."
Wands were raised and one of his kidnappers spoke up in a whisper.
"Let's find out exactly who we're disposing of, hmm?"
A quiet incantation was uttered and a jet of white sparked from a wand. It struck Percy's belly and he winced, waiting for the pain. It didn't come. He opened his eyes cautiously and saw a whirling sphere of blue mist hovering in front of him.
The figures chuckled in triumph and raised their wands in a final gesture of power.
"Congratulations Percy. It's a boy."
Sorry again! I know this is a slightly odd chapter, I really dont know why I wrote it this way, I just felt like it to be honest! It was my birthday on the 22nd so you may all have a slice of my lemon birthday cake! Enjoy and please review! xxxx
