Hey guys! This can be taken as a belated X-mas and New Years present... Sorry for the kinda lateness, even though I never said when my next update would be :) Enjoy!
Percy woke with a start. Lurching upright and breathing heavily, hands buried in his auburn curls as he calmed down and rested his elbows on his knees. Working to control his rapid breaths. After a few moments he found his composure, forcing the stilted, dust-filled memories of blood and screams away. Relaxing slightly only to tense again as another memory flashed briefly before his eyes, the rumble of falling stone and the almost death of his brother. His chest was heaving and his eyes were clenched shut as he leaned forwards, resting his forehead on shaking knees and desperately reminding himself that the war was over. Staying curled around himself quietly, he allowed- forced- his mind to wander. Flickering through random thoughts of work, passages from his favorite books and notes from his research all washed over him, pulling his mind away from the lingering screams from his dream. A small smile spread hesitantly across his face as he thought of the subject of his research, the reason behind it, the person behind it. The man that he had told to leave.
As he remembered that one fact- that Marcus was gone- Percy's smile faded, as he got out of bed he forcibly reminded himself that he had asked- begged- him to leave. After resolving the daily guilt-filled, regretful mental argument he had with himself consistently- since Marcus left- Percy striped, throwing his clothes in the laundry hamper, and made his way to his bathroom. More specifically- the shower.
He quietly waited for the water to warm up before slipping under the spray. A few days had past since he had asked Marcus to give him some time, to think, research and try to adjust to the sudden bond that had literally sprung up overnight. After taking that one day off- although it really hadn't been his decision- he had spent the rest of the week working minimal hours. Much to the shock of his coworkers. But researching the situation he had found himself in had- for obvious reasons- become a priority. A very distracting priority, mainly because all Percy could think about was the strong, handsome and sexy vampire that had claimed him, but also because of the increasingly more and more noticeable pull of the bond.
Percy knew that the pull was getting stronger because of the distance between them, newly formed bonds needed- or rather, wanted- closeness, physical touch seemed to be very important to Daywalkers. Which Marcus was, Percy was actually rather annoyed that he hadn't managed to put that together sooner, the fact that their first encounter in years had happened in broad daylight was a dead giveaway.
Although, I didn't actually know he was a vampire then… And after that I was a little bit overwhelmed by the whole 'you're my mate' reveal. Honestly, for a Slytherin he doesn't seem to be one for the subtle approach. Percy smiled as he rinsed his hair and shut off the shower head, reaching for his towel before drying off and exiting the bathroom.
The abruptness could have been a result of the pull, I've read that vampires aren't ones to hesitate or dance around the truth once they find their mates. Unlike other species…
Grinning like an idiot the lithe redhead allowed allowed that thought to run through his head again. Sometimes it still felt like a dream… or hallucination, he certainly had been tired enough for that to be an option. But the bond was a constant figure in him now, he could feel it at every moment in the day, he could feel Marcus. Distantly of course, that was another fact he had come across in his research. There were almost stages to a fully developed mate bond between a vampire and their chosen, first the mate had to accept the bond, which Percy had inadvertently done sometime between finding out about it and Marcus leaving. The other stages weren't as clearly defined, in fact they weren't defined at all. The books- all of the books- only had a small passing mention of them, a quick, little, glossed over, joke of a bloody paragraph that contained no actual information about anything.
Evidently the Vampire Council liked to keep the information that was available about their species to a minimum, much to Percy's annoyance.
He had been lucky to find anything that wasn't written by some thick, biased scholar that obviously had major prejudices about vampires, or just dark creatures in general.
And his 'luck' had run out after finding only one reliable source.
And that source was minimal to say the least. The author of the book was long dead, by about one hundred and six years, so while the information was unbiased and undoubtedly accurate for the time frame for which it was written, it was more than likely outdated now. In fact Percy knew it was outdated, because some of the passages contained information that had been proven false in the last century. Such as the ridiculous notion that garlic was able to ward off vampires, or be used to poison them. And it was only recently that the Ministry discovered the existence of Daywalkers- it had been affirmed nearly fifty years ago during a meeting between the undead council and the Minister at the time, they had been negotiating some bill that Percy hadn't been able to discover the name of when some idiot got it into his head that he should assassinate the vampire representatives by opening the drapes. None of them burst into flame because the council- as Percy had found out during an incredibly in-depth review of the Ministry's files- had expected an attempt on their lives, so they had sent Daywalkers instead. After the blatant disrespect of the truce that had been agreed upon and even formally signed, the Council had decided to permanently remove all clauses and possibility of the wizard population holding power over them.
All cases of discovered mates, unnecessary kills and crimes committed by any breed of vampire had become the Council's issue, an issue that neither the muggle government or the Ministry had any say or power in. During this separation all books and files that contained any relevant information had been promptly removed from the system and all copies had been hunted down and confiscated. But, somehow, the purge had missed one book.
The one that Percy was currently holding gently. So- because of the unfortunate timeline- the one useful book in the entire bloody world, that wasn't in a vampire's possession, held absolutely no information on the only breed of vampire that the redhead actually needed information on.
Percy grinned wryly, at least its informative on everything else. Not what I need, but its something better than a shitty rumor-based article written by some moronic professor with a serious problem with any species other than wizard. Then he sighed, leaning forward to place the priceless book on his desk before pushing his glasses out of his way and rubbing at his tired eyes. A straight week of purely research and work had taken its toll, it seemed impossible for him to get enough sleep, and his vision tended to blur after only a few minutes of reading. Percy sighed again, glancing around his flat at the countless books and rolls of parchment that were scattered over every available surface. I hate to admit it- even to myself- but I think I need a break.
Cringing at the thought because the concept of "too much research" was one that he was an adamant disbeliever in. But even he could admit that- while one could never know enough- breaks were necessary, and he was experiencing too many of the signs of overload to stay buried in all of his books. He glanced longingly at the book resting temptingly on his desk for a moment before forcing himself to get out of his chair and walk away.
Alright. I have put the books down. I have walked away from the books. Nodding distantly to himself as he continued on his path. And now I am… now I am going to… His purposeful strides were rapidly moving into a disgruntled shuffle as he desperately tried to think of something. Something other than the dangerously appealing word that had been haunting his thoughts for the past week. Something other than Marcus. Because he still didn't know enough yet, about their situation, about the bond and about the feelings he had that had literally sprung up overnight. It had happened so fast and even after a week of half-heartedly attempting to repress those emotions and thoughts he still couldn't stop thinking about the impossibly sexy man that had claimed him.
Because an entire lifetime of doubts and insecurities were making it impossible for him to understand how he could be significant, how he could actually be worth something to somebody.
How somebody could actually care about him? Nobody who wasn't practically obligated to ever had. His parents had to because he was their son and his siblings had to because their parents wanted them to and Oliver had because- because, well, Percy didn't actually know but it was probably because of pity. And Penny had because- because of pity too, probably.
But nothing else made sense. There was nothing- nothing!- special about him, nothing that could possibly draw anybody to him. He knew that. The twins had made sure of that, and everybody else had to think it too, they were most likely too polite to actually say anything to his face. And it was because of this that Percy was so reluctant to let Marcus lose himself to whatever delusion was making him think that he was his mate, it had to be a mistake. And Percy was determined to find out exactly what it was that was making the taller man want him, and he was determined to end it. He owed it to him. Because nobody deserved to be stuck with him, with Percy Weasley, the stuck-up, pompous prat; a waste of skin. And regardless of how wonderful it had felt to be wrapped in Marcus' arms and how right it felt to be with him, Percy was convinced that he didn't deserve it, and that Marcus deserved better.
Because it didn't make sense.
They didn't make sense.
And it had been stupid of him to believe- even for a moment- that the bond was real, because it couldn't be. In fact, it was probably another one of the twin's pranks. He had no proof of it but ever since he had been accepted back into the family they had been especially nasty. But he accepted it and said nothing about it to anybody else because he knew he deserved it. But involving another person was sick, and he had to fix it for Marcus' sake, but- unfortunately- he couldn't go to the twins and get them to release the other man from whatever enchantment they had placed on him.
He never went to the twins after they did something, it was part of his punishment. He had to laugh about it and pretend it was funny and that it didn't hurt him because he deserved it. All the pain and humiliation and the toying with his emotions, he deserved it for abandoning his family. But the twins were the only ones who seemed to understand that, even though they've never actually said anything about it or told him to pretend. But he knew he was supposed to, because they acted like nothing was wrong too.
They smiled and laughed with him, they acted normal, they treated him the same as his other siblings did by pretending to have forgiven him and- in exchange- he never let anyone know just how much they hurt him. And that made sense, Percy knew it did, but he couldn't understand why they had drug another person into it. They never had before.
Maybe it was because they knew how starved for any kind of human contact and affection he was, after all, he had always been the outsider in the family and leaving had only isolated him from pretty much everybody else too. Before Marcus had embraced him with his perfect, strong and shockingly warm arms, Percy hadn't been held in years. Maybe the twins knew that, and maybe they thought that playing with his need for affection was a perfect punishment. And it was, it was killing Percy. Feeling the constant bond inside him, the subtle brushes of it against his consciousness and the softness of Marcus' end of the bond reaching out to him. It was destroying him.
Because he knew it was fake, that the taller man didn't actually want or need him and that he was just confused. He had to be. And that hurt, it hurt so bloody much but Percy knew he deserved it, and he also knew that Marcus didn't. Which is why the absolute lack of a definite description of what a real Daywalker bond was like was making it next to impossible for Percy to find a way to release the vampire from their mock-bond. The lack of information was infuriating.
There was nothing he could possibly do to find the information he needed alone. Nothing but contact the one definite source of knowledge of a true vampire mate, and since the man was just as involved in the situation as he himself was, Percy had no problem with the idea of sending Marcus a request for information. He was just worried that the brunette wouldn't believe him, after all, vampires were said to never be wrong about identifying their mates. But Marcus had to be wrong, because Percy didn't deserve him. So, with a deceivingly sure stride, the redhead returned to his desk and withdrew a fresh piece of parchment from a drawer, sitting carefully and grabbing a quil. Then, with a steady hand, he began to write.
Marcus Flint,
I know this letter won't contain what you want it to, and I know that you will find it hard to believe me at first, but what I am about to write is the truth. I'm sure of it, because it is the only logical explanation for this bond we are experiencing.
I've spent the last week researching, as I said I would, but the information available to the general wizarding population is regrettably lacking. And almost none of it contains any viable truth. Which is why I am contacting you.
I need information. On this bond, on Daywalkers and their mates, on pretty much everything. Without it I am certain that finding a way to release you from this mockery of a bond will be impossible, and you don't deserve that. Your true mate is out there somewhere and I promise you that I will stop at nothing to fix this, I owe it to you. I don't know what enchantment has ensnared you but I'm positive that a more in-depth study of a true Daywalker matebond will allow me to accurately study the differences and therefore deduce exactly what it was that caused you to become so confused. I'm sure you will be relieved once this has been resolved and I apologize greatly for this misunderstanding, and for you unwittingly being drawn into this.
Please remember that none of this is your fault. I know that once you are free of the curse that has bridled you to me you will be able to find your true mate, all of this is probably my fault. Which is why I willingly take full responsibility for the resolution of it, all you need to do is send me the necessary information and I swear I shall take care of the rest.
I'm so, so sorry you got pulled down because of my problems. It was never my intent to allow someone else to suffer because of me.
Feel free to send whatever information you chose at whatever time is most convenient for you, I have inconvenienced you enough already. I will begin working on this immediately.
Sincerely,
Percy Weasley
Quietly reading the letter over once, then twice, Percy grimaced at the repetitive nature of his words before deciding that property was a necessary sacrifice for sincerity. So he sent a memo to the post office, requesting the use of an owl before sealing the letter in a envelope and offering to the bird upon it's arrival.
It- she- hooted softly twice before grasping the letter and flying off once again. And Percy watched her go, the knowledge that he was doing the right thing still heavily outweighed by the sinking feeling of regret and despair that lurked in his gut. There was nothing he could do to stop the tears that were running down his cheeks or the tremors that wracked his body as he watched the tiny owl vanish into the clouds.
I'm sorry... Not really, but kinda in an insincere "I'm just saying that to avoid a virtual angry mob" way... Hehe, well please review! Let me know what you thought!