Legal Disclaimer: I own my stuff, but not the original source material. That belongs to whoever. Also, the opinions and interpretations I use here may not reflect the same in said whoever that owns the source material. Look, I'm just a poor college librarian. Suing me isn't going to get you anything but tears.

Warning: This work may be offensive to some readers. Feel free to back out if that's you.

Author's Note: Here's a short & sweet Percy/Oliver fic for y'all. With an OC kiddo to boot.

Submitting Info:
Stacked with: Hogwarts (Term 11); MC4A
Individual Challenges: Gryffindor MC (x2); Times to Come; Tiny Terror; Old Shoes; In a Flash; Yellow Ribbon; Yellow Ribbon Redux
House: Hufflepuff
Assignment No.: Term 11 – Assignment 03
Subject (Task No.): Wandlore (Task#3: Write about a strong bond between two people.)
Other Hogwarts Challenges: Romance Awareness [D07] (Timer Counting Down)(practice); Insane House Challenge [133] (BBQ); 365 [199] (Obsession); Scavenger Hunt [71] (Write about a Next-Gen OC.); Galleon (quill)
Space Address (Prompt): Su Bingo [4E] (Cookout)
Representation(s): Percy Weasley/Oliver Wood
Bonus Challenges: Second Verse (Not a Lamp; Persistence Still; Found Family; Nontraditional; Middle Name; Unwanted Advice; Lovely Coconuts); Chorus (Bee Haven; Machismo; Mouth of Babes; Tomorrow's Shade; Larger than Life; Unicorn; Wind Beneath)
Tertiary Bonus Challenges: FR (Satisfaction; Gestation); HoSE (Schooner)
Word Count: 679

(^^)
Set the Bar
(^^)

Percy sighed and then placed his quill in the cup waiting for it with deliberate force before resealing the lid of his inkwell. Only then did he give into the urge to stretch the tension out of his shoulders and back. Despite how Sigune was now almost old enough for Hogwarts and thus no longer prone to knocking over inkwells on the regular, old habits created when she was a toddler just refused to die. Thankfully, he was done for the day and could leave the bookshop for home.

He couldn't help the smile that settled on his face at the very thought of the word. When his timer had reached zero just as he had been run down by a maniac with a Quidditch obsession on the Platform Nine and Three-Quarters in his first year, Percy had not expected to actually build a life with his soulmate. All throughout their time at Hogwarts, it had been a struggle to accept that Oliver was the one that Fate had chosen for him. They had been so different. Maybe Fate had made a mistake. It wasn't until they had reconnected after Hogwarts (and the war that had disrupted everything), that they had been able to move past those differences.

Sigune helped, even if she hadn't known it at the time. Oliver had had a fling with a teammate. It hadn't been serious, just a bit of good fun between friends. However, even the best of precautions could fail, and Tabitha had fallen pregnant. They had come to a bit of an arrangement between the two of them, which would have called for them to co-parent the child while not making the mistake of getting married just because of a pregnancy. It worked for two months after Sigune had been born. The first practice back from maternity leave, Tabitha was hit by a Bludger and knocked from her broom. She had died on impact.

Percy had run into Oliver as he was trying to make arrangements while juggling being a single parent to an infant. Having helped with his younger siblings (specifically Ginny), Percy had offered to help. Things had taken off from there, and by the time Sigune had been three, they had been officially dating rather than just living in each other's pockets for the child they both adored. By the time she was five, they had taken the increasingly insistent suggestion of Percy's mother and tied the knot.

The house was empty when Percy arrived home. It threw Percy for only a moment before he heard the sound of people in the garden. Stepping out the back door, Percy found that someone had decorated the entire space with twinkling fairy-lights in Sigune's current favorite colors (green and purple, a truly gaudy combination). Oliver had broken out their rather large grill and had it going. The smell of smoke and cooked meat made Percy's mouth water in anticipation. It had been an age and a half since they had cooked out together, just because they could.

"Papa," Sigune screeched as soon as she spotted him. Despite being nearly ten, she still ran to him for a hug as if she hadn't seen him in forever rather than that morning at breakfast. Not that he was complaining, he thought idly as he returned the embrace. All too soon, his baby girl would be a teenager and potentially learn that hugs from her parents were 'uncool'. "Dad got the good steak! And shrimp!"

Sigune had recently discovered the wonders of seafood, and now shrimp was her absolute favorite food. Strolling over to check on the food, Percy also tilted his head up to receive a kiss from his husband. In deference to the presence of their daughter, it only held the promise of more, though Percy still felt a bit breathless when he pulled back.

"Love you," Oliver whispered against his lips.

"Love you, too," Percy returned, even though the words did not fully capture the depth of what he felt. Oliver's eyes twinkled with happiness. Somehow, Percy knew Oliver understood.