Enough

Sometimes the "best" of times lead onto the "worst" of times. Unfortunately, she had to figure that issue out on her own. And nobody knew what to expect of him, because for so many years nobody knew that his sanity had been addled...

Today just was not the best of days.

It was already seven' o'clock on the nose, and he was late. He had set the alarm clock, and even woke up, showered, dressed, and ate breakfast according to his proper scheduled times. It was always just one tiny element that always delayed him from getting out of the flat to make it to work by seven'o'five.

Penelope.

"Perce?" she called faintly, rubbing her eyes as she heard her fiancé fumble around the small bedroom they shared. Sighing, she sat up in the goose feather bed, gathering the comforter about her chest as she watched her lover search in vein for… whatever he was looking for.

"I can't talk right now." Percy murmured back, now darting over to his closet. "I'm running late."

"Oh Perce." Penelope yawned, scratching her head merrily. "You're always running late. And oddly enough, you always get to work on time. Explain that."

"Can't!" returned the exasperated voice of the young man, still searching for his missing object. "Too late to explain anything!"

Penelope watched him for a few seconds, before eying the room her husband-to-be just tore apart. "Perce?"

"What!" Percy snarled back. "Bloody hell woman, I'm running late!"

She never quite knew why he had such a temper nowadays. "Perce, sweetheart." Penelope started again. "May I ask what you're looking for?"

Percy stopped in his tracks, and stared at her incredulously. "The Hungarian Ambassador's Pendant. He leant it to me the last time he came to visit England; and I haven't seen it since."

Penelope actually laughed at him, and he cocked an eyebrow at her.

"What?"

"You honestly graduated the top of our class, Perce?" she questioned softly, reaching over to the nightstand and fetching her wand. "Why didn't you think of summoning the pendant to you?"

Percy stopped, and his ears became suddenly enflamed in embarrassment. "Oh." He added softly, rubbing the back of his neck in shame. "I completely forgot."

"Of course you did." The young woman smiled gently, talking to her lover as if he had the temperament of an overemotional toddler. "Let me just summon the pendant for you…"

With a flick of her wand, the flashy talisman tranquilly landed in the palm of her hand. Smiling and flicking her wrist with a slight flourish, Penelope then succeeded in handing the small token to Percy.

"Thanks." The man blushed, now embarrassed. His face lit up, now making him the colour of a fresh turnip, however, as his girlfriend rose from the bed completely, and crossed the room to kiss him on the lips.

"You are welcome." Penelope teased, holding the thin comforter around the frame of her body. "Now get to work."

Percy eyed her figure eagerly. "Are you sure I can't just delay myself a tad?" he teased, biting his lip. "You're looking mighty pleasant this morning…"

"Percival Ignatius Weasley, no!" giggled Penelope, returning to the bed. "You have a job to report to, people to please and boss about, and a dream to peruse. You are going to work."

"Damn." Percy rolled his eyes. He was getting tired of her shameless flirting. Why be naked in his presence if he wasn't going to benefit from the availability of what he craved the most in a woman? "I guess I'm off then."

"Have a nice day, Perce." Penelope called as he turned his back on her. "Don't forget some money for lunch!"

"Sod it." Percy grumbled back in reply. "And clean up this mess, while I'm gone alright?" he yelled back into the bedroom from the foyer of the apartment. "It's not like you do anything else around here."

Penelope felt like she got hit in the face with a brick. "Excuse me?" she retorted, now feeling useless. "What'd you just say, Percival?"

"I said nothing. Just clean up the mess before I get home." Percy replied.

"Now wait a minute, Weasley. I am not your servant girl-"

By the time Penelope had made her way to the foyer, it was pointless to speak. She hadn't heard his departure, but Percy was long gone by the time his girlfriend had a moment to consider what he had just said.

-x-

Percy honestly wasn't have too great of a time at work, either.

Why were people so idiotic?

There was a crisis in Bath, in which a foreign wizard from Turkey accidentally let his King Cobra, the star in his snake charming routine, run freely through the streets. A few Muggles were bitten, and immediately taken to St. Mungo's Hospital to have their memories erased and their wounds healed. Obliterators had to be sent out to repair the scene.

The Ambassador of Hungary, though Half-Squib that he was, remained a hard man to please. Percy had much of a time trying to evoke the man in conversation while he waited for the Minister of Magic to accept his visitor.

And three of his owls, sent to the islands in the Atlantic, were blown off course due to a hurricane surfacing near the bottom of North America. So now, his invitation of the Annual International Ministry of Magic Charity Ball, no doubt being hosted in London, were three days late.

It was not hard picking up where Bartemius Crouch had left off. Percy now knew why the man was so stressed; being the head of the Department for International Magical Cooperation was tough work.

And worse of all, he had forgotten his sack of money. He guessed bitterly that he wasn't going to be eating lunch that day.

Percy was furious, with a throbbing headache pelting on his temples as he left for the Apparating area in the main hall. He adjusted his glasses quickly, and watched the gigantic clock near the Fountain of Magical Brethren tick the final seconds of his work hour away. And once the second hand made contact with the twelve, indicating the arrival of six-o-clock, Percy had already apparated. At least, by now, Penelope would have dinner ready.

On the contrary, the pompous young man had no idea how backwards things would be.

-x-

Percy easily unlocked his flat's door with his wand, and walked up to the third floor. He didn't know exactly what possessed him to move into a Muggle apartment complex; but he had to be extremely careful about the amount of magic he used. Grumbling slightly, he didn't even bother to touch the knob of his residence, apartment 23d, and easily allowed himself in with one flick of a wand.

He took one step into the apartment, and tripped over a small coffee table he had accidentally moved while looking for the pendant earlier that morning. Eyes narrowing quickly, he scanned the rest of the foyer, only to find that nothing else was cleaned either.

Hadn't he advised Penelope to clean? Wasn't he at work for nearly twelve hours? Didn't he deserve a clean household after so many hours of labor at the Ministry? It was the least Penelope could've done! She didn't have a job… so what else could she do for eleven hours straight?

Grumbling in disgust as he ironically cleaned up his own mess, Percy spent a lot of time carefully placing things in their correct places. With well-placed magic, he was done in a matter of a half-hour. It was just his infamous 'wall of achievements' that he had carefully arranged in the study that took up most of his attention. He had to make sure every trophy, medal, ribbon, and award-winning Hogwarts essay was in its correct and organized position. Each one he had strived rather ambitiously for, and they were just as important as his current position in the Ministry. Honestly, he loved each individual token as if they were all his paternal children.

Stomach rumbling, Percy haphazardly headed in the direction of the small kitchen. He rather disliked kitchens, really… but it wasn't his fault. Who knew his younger twin brothers would possess so much magic at an early age? He didn't know that when he had threatened to tell their mother about something they had did… that they both actually meant to kill him for snitching. He had been standing in the kitchen, one moment, watching his mother fix crumb pudding for an afternoon snack for her family… and the next… his four-year-old siblings had made a drawer of knives fall over his head. Most of the knives were harmless, and blunted… Percy's mother had never been stupid and she knew she had several young children running about the Burrow. But the one large steak knife…

Percy absentmindedly ran his hand over the scar that had been gouged out by the steak knife. It was on his neck, exactly on the main blood vessel that carried oxygen to his brain. He remembered his mother's reaction as the knife slashed him and he writhed on the floor in pain… the twin's shocked faces upon the damage they caused…

"Perce?"

The young man stumbled out of the small kitchen, and headed down the hall into the living room. A small smile appeared on his lips as he looked upon his fiancée.

"Hello." Percy greeted calmly, watching as Penelope entered the apartment, locking the door behind her. She had some kind of traveler's bag with her, and was smiling in a very apprehensive way. He didn't like the awkward silence between them at all.

"What've you… been up to?" the young man asked nervously, making his way over to the small loveseat.

"I… I…" Penelope smiled generously, took off her lightweight cloak and placed it in the closet, and then joined Percy on the couch. Percy always thought she looked radiant in the air of fall; it always made her cheeks rosy, and her dark sapphire eyes sparkle a bit more. Her intensively curly hair looked nearly impossible to brush, as it was windswept – the ringlets of brown blended in perfectly with the natural blonde highlights. Penelope looked highly delightful.

"You?" Percy edged her on, wanting an explanation. He was highly irked that the apartment wasn't cleaned like he had asked.

"I received an owl from a friend of mine." Penelope spoke eagerly. "Remember Olivia Wharton, from Study of Ancient Runes class?"

Percy didn't really think about. "I do recall…" he lied. "Continue."

"Well…" Penelope continued feverously. "She seemed really eager to see me, so I just had to get out of the house for a day. We took a visit to Milan, you know, in Italy… Italia!" the woman looked delighted. "Percy – the shopping there is absolutely to die for."

'It better had been worth it.' Percy thought to himself. 'To go skiving off your duties when there are other things to be done at home!'

"…so we went into a boutique called Urbana Dolce – I think it's called Sweet and Urban in English… but… I absolutely adored it. I brought myself a new outfit-"

Penelope Ambrosia Clearwater was an absolutely brilliant girl. What Percy disliked, however, was that no matter how many times he tried to discourage the behavior… she always resorted back to a bubbly sort-of nature.

"Penny." Percy tried to interrupt the babbling woman. He really could care less about her trials at some expensive store in a foreign country with a floozy he hardly even knew.

"Yes?" his girlfriend responded eagerly, looking deep into the troubled hazel eyes of her lover. Spotting his worried expression, her facial features shifted. "What's troubling you?"

Percy took a melodramatic sigh. "I just wanted the apartment cleaned before I came home. And dinner prepared."

Penelope looked thoroughly shocked. "Is that all?" she giggled calmly. "You know, Perce, it wouldn't harm the world if you actually attempted to cook or clean for once."

Percy got to his feet, rather angry now. He hadn't expected her to respond like that. "While I am out at the Ministry, making all the money you spent in some town in France-"

"Italy." Penelope snapped back.

"-Somewhere that isn't London – you are just supposed to stay at home. Cook, clean, do whatever comes to my mind." Percy told her, nodding wisely. "It is the woman's way."

Penelope's jaw dropped. She had suspected such a complex from Percy earlier on in their relationship, but it had never escalated this much before. Red splotched appeared on her already pink cheeks, and she looked up at her boyfriend, furious.

"The woman's way?" she snarled. "Are you resorting back to times of old? Percival – though your name is of the time… this surely is not the Middle Ages!"

Percy laughed bitterly, removing his glasses and messaging the bridge of his nose. He really wasn't in the mood for an argument.

"So basically, you want me to stay at home – cook, clean, look pretty, and bathe and care for your children… while you go off into the big and threatening world and supply my income. Is that what you want?" Penelope glared.

Percy actually laughed a little. "Ideally, yes. Ironically, things never happen the way I plan them. But speaking of children… aren't you supposed to be ovulating within the week?"

"What?"

Penelope's face was now violet; she felt like she was emitting flames. He knew her menstrual cycle? What else did he have in his head that she didn't know about?

"You – you're trying to get me pregnant?" Penelope asked weakly. "Percy, I thought we agreed that we could fool around… but no children until after we're married."

Percy rolled his eyes. All of a sudden, he looked like an over-spoiled child. "I know – but I'm tired of waiting, Penny. We're going to be twenty-five. It's scientifically proven – by both Wizard and Muggle standards – that the age of twenty-five is the prime time to start bearing children."

Penelope, once again, was taken off guard. "You're insane." She spoke softly. "I've been taking contraception, Percy. I'm not stupid. I don't want to get pregnant."

"Why?" the third-oldest Weasley roared, looking utterly confused. "I thought you loved me! It's what we both agreed on when we started the relationship!"

Taking her turn to rise from the loveseat, Penelope headed back towards the doorway to retrieve her bag, and began to walk away from Percy in the direction of the bedroom. "We said and promised a lot of things that we didn't stay truthful to over the years, Percy. We promised we'd be married two years out of school, and now look at us. How many years has it been, and we're still engaged! I haven't had a job in two years, due to your encouraging for me to stay home and 'work'!"

Percy took a deep, shuddering breath. "What are you hinting at?"

Penelope turned to look at him, suddenly looking anxious once more. "I've gotten a job offer."

Two seconds after the words slipped out of her mouth, Percy untimely made his hand come into contact with the wall. Penelope watched, taken aback. She had never saw Percy loose his temper to the point where he had actually hit something.

"Where?" the man roared. "Where is this offer?"

"In Milan." Penelope replied, rather boldly. "In case you haven't noticed, I have two totally unused N.E.W.T.'s in both Muggle Studies and in Arithmancy. With these assets, I've been offered a job with a Wizarding Company, which caters to Muggles. They need someone to manage the Public Relations department. They want me."

Percy's nostrils flared. He himself had about five N.E.W.T.'s – Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, History of Magic, Transfiguration, and Potions… that was why he was in such a high demand at the Ministry. Nobody, except for perhaps Albus Dumbledore or Minerva McGonagall… or Hermione Granger for that matter… had ever received such a high-ranking number of Wizarding degrees. He had completely forgotten that Penelope was Head Girl at Hogwarts, along side him, and was almost as equally brilliant as he was. Unfortunately, she had chosen a more practical path and majored in Muggle Studies and Arithmancy while he turned to Law Enforcement and Politics. He was so stunned upon recollecting the information he forgot, that he tuned in on Penelope's ramblings at the wrong time.

"… and I think I'm going to consider it."

He laughed flatly. "No you aren't."

Penelope didn't look surprised at his reaction. "Yes, Percival, I think I may."

His eyes glazed over beadily. He couldn't believe this was happening. He didn't know what to do! His mind was reeling… and then an idea hit him. He had to be the bigger person in this argument… he had to scare her. Make threats. That would make Penelope come back to her senses!

"If you take that job in Milan…" Percy ventured, breathing heavily through his nose. "… Then our relationship is over."

Penelope looked upon him, tears now streaming down her face. "You're willing to end our relationship because I want to be useful… I want to work, and I don't want to have children in accordance to your bloody schedule?"

"Yes." Percy lied, though he felt an enormous weight lifting off of his shoulders. "I want children, and soon. I want my wife to stay at home and raise my children for a living. This is all true."

"It's been nine years, Percy." Penelope blanched, her heart tearing into shreds. "NINE YEARS. I spent half of my life catering to you – and you're willing to end our relationship over something as trivial as children and jobs?"

"It wouldn't work between us. You know we've grown apart over the years." Percy admitted, his headache still pounding at his temples. He went over to Penelope, wrapped her in his arms, and tilted her soggy chin up to his own. "Tell me…" he breathed gently. "Tell me that you haven't felt us growing apart. Look me in the eye and speak those words to me. And if you feel that it is in your heart that we aren't… then I will revoke all the things I said, and let our relationship strive on."

As much as she wanted to agree to his terms, she just could not submit herself to them. Penelope sobbed, going limp in Percy's arms. He knew she had taken his lies literally, and the choice of her decision.

"What about your mum?" she asked softly, not looking Percy in the eye. "She was so delighted that we were planning the wedding near her birthday…"

Percy shrugged, shoulders heavy. "She'll get over it, Penny." He advised, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach. "She'll just have to accept we've moved on and have personal differences, is all…"

Since his birth, Percy had spent a great deal of time figuring out ways to impress his mother. Agreeing with the Ministry when they battered against the infamous Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter issues with the Dark Lord… almost ended the relationship between Percy and his family altogether. Fortunately, Percy was able to apologize quickly for his foolhardy decision. He sent owls to his mother on a weekly basis. She and him just had a bond that none of the others in the entire Weasley clan had shared; and Percy really appreciated his mother for going out of her way to make him feel appreciated in the family.

"When do you move out?" the miserable man questioned softly, not wanting to let Penelope out of his arms.

"They wish for me to start next week." Penelope sniffled, burrowing her face into Percy's arms. "Do you want me to leave?"

Percy shook his head feverishly. "No, I don't think so. You can stay until they find you residence in Milan. Stay as long as you'd like. You're always welcome here, Penny."

Penelope smiled, eyes closing as she felt Percy kiss her forehead. They seemed so distant now… almost as if they were brother and sister.

"I'm… going to lay down for a bit." Percy admitted. "Then I'll wake up, and try to get some work done."

Penelope nodded, knowingly. "I'll fix us some dinner… and prepare a bed in the foyer."

"You're not sleeping in the foyer, there's no need!" Percy repeated, eyes widening incredulously.

"I want to sleep in the living room, Perce." Penelope headed towards the couch. "It will be much too difficult to leave if we continued to be inseparable and intimate."

Percy could've smacked himself as he just turned his back on her, and stomped off to the direction of his lumpy, unmade bed.