Those last couple chapters were a bit heavy, content-wise, so these next two will be a little lighter :)
9. Percy: The Reason to be Jolly
Christmas would, without a doubt, be a difficult holiday to get through.
This would be the first Christmas without Fred, and Percy had already noticed two weeks ago that George was beginning to act less and less like himself. Merlin knows that even before that he was, more or less, pretending. That did little to ease Percy's worry, but it was especially discomforting when George no longer felt like even putting in the effort to just pretend that everything was fine.
Moreover, he had uncovered two hidden bottles of firewhiskey the week before in George's flat. At least only one of them was empty, and Percy had given George a stern talking to about it. He doubted that it made a difference, but at least one of them had to make an effort.
In the time span of four months, aside from keeping a watchful eye on George, Percy had found a flat in London close to the Ministry and moved away from home. When he broke the news to Molly, in October, she appeared very uneasy. Percy couldn't blame her. In her shoes, and with her past experiences, he would feel the same way. The last time he moved away from home, it didn't end particularly well. However, by December, she had begun to come to terms with it. Percy came home at least once a week for dinner with the family, and he wrote regularly. He didn't do it out of obligation as a son, but rather as a way to keep himself grounded to the changes he had made thus far.
Now, a week before Christmas, Percy found himself in snowy Diagon Alley, with Ginny and George by his side. Ron had opted to do his Christmas shopping with Harry and Hermione, so Percy unfortunately found himself with the two siblings that were most likely to cause trouble.
At least it was a reason to get George out of his pig sty of a flat and an opportunity to make him crack a few smiles.
"It's so beautiful when it's snowing," Ginny commented dreamily as the siblings walked through the streets of Diagon Alley.
"Someone's in a mighty good mood," George observed. "Do I want to know why?"
"What you want doesn't matter, because you won't know anyways," Ginny replied bitingly.
A wide grin plastered itself onto George's face. "Challenge accepted, dear sister!"
"Please, for the love of Merlin, don't attract any attention today," Percy groaned. "Let's just get our gifts and move on with it."
"A killjoy, this one," George muttered, nudging Ginny. "All right then, you gloomy bugger. Let's head to Broomstix first."
"Fine," Percy agreed. "I think it's just a little ways down the street."
The dreamy attitude had been Ginny's idea. She thought maybe George would forget he was so depressed for at least a few hours if she gave him a reason to tease her, and if Percy acted like his scolding self. Ginny had reasoned that it shouldn't have been too hard for him to pull off, and Percy wasn't sure if he should have felt insulted. In any case, her small plan seemed to be working so far.
Soon enough, the three of them arrived at the frosted store window of the broomstick store. As expected, it was already crowded beyond reason, causing a queasy feeling in Percy's stomach. He really hated being in overcrowded places. It was a wonder he could ever enjoy the Quidditch World Cup, although the bigger-on-the-inside tents might have helped. However, as soon as he stepped inside the store, the dim light and warmth of the place provided a cozy and welcoming atmosphere that instantly put him at ease.
Being the organized person that he was, Percy had a plan. "All right, so here's what – "
"George! Come here, you git!"
Unfortunately for him, Ginny clearly had other plans. Namely, to not listen to Percy.
"Ginny, stop shouting," Percy scolded.
"Look," she said pointedly, dragging George from a rack of broomstick gloves. "That's her. The Auror that captured the cloaked man in Diagon Alley in the summer. Isn't it, Perce?"
Percy looked in the direction Ginny was pointing and, sure enough, there stood Audrey, examining a wall of flying goggles.
"Um, yeah, I think that's her," Percy muttered in reply.
Percy mentally crossed his fingers that Ginny wouldn't grab her attention. His last encounter with Audrey had been anything but friendly. Percy made himself appear like a judgemental fool, and he was sure that by the end of it Audrey's eyes were glistening with tears. The last thing he needed was to explain to his siblings that he had been a complete tosser to the person that had probably saved his and Ginny's lives.
However, Percy was soon pulled out of his own world by George's strange reaction.
"No way in hell," George breathed out.
"Okay, so she doesn't look like the strongest person, but–"
"No, that's not it, Ginny," George said dismissively. "Audrey! Hey, Callaghan!"
Percy paled. How could George possibly know her? Seemingly not to his own accord, Percy found himself ducking into an aisle, hidden from Audrey's view as she turned to look for who was calling her name. He soon discovered, however, that he was not far enough away to have the conversation that would take place drowned out by the noises of children and frantic parents.
A smile spread across Audrey's face as she walked over to George and Ginny. "Well, well. Look at what the cat dragged in."
"Same to you," George replied. "Audrey, this is my sister, Ginny. She claims that you saved her life one fateful summer afternoon."
Audrey laughed. "All in a day's work that I don't even get paid for," she said, then clarified, "Auror training."
"So, how do you two know each other?" Ginny asked, clearly eager to dig up whatever secrets she stumbled upon.
"Audrey and I were in the same year at Hogwarts," George replied. "Probably the only Slytherin that didn't have a broom up her arse - at least not that far up. Actually, she helped us with our little escape in seventh year. It's bloody useful to have access to the Slytherin common room, trust me. Malfoy was not expecting that surprise."
"The git had it coming," Audrey agreed with a laugh. "Apparently, he's as annoying as always."
"You were a Slytherin?" Ginny asked in shock.
Percy furrowed his brow in surprise. That had been unexpected. He couldn't even remember Audrey from Hogwarts, now that he thought about it. However, now it made sense why she knew Daphne Greengrass.
This isn't right. As curious as Percy was to find out more about Audrey, he couldn't just eavesdrop on her conversation. He would have to either go introduce himself, or simply stay out of her way until she left George and Ginny.
That was a decision that was harder for Percy to make than he thought it would be. On one hand, he certainly wasn't one to hide from a simple and cordial introduction. On the other hand, he really had been rude the last time they met, and he wasn't quite sure that Audrey would be all that happy to see him. She was quite talented at stunning spells, from what Percy could recall.
In that moment, Percy could not muster the courage of a Gryffindor. He silently moved a few aisles away from his siblings and Audrey, until they were out of earshot. Perhaps it would be a decision he would regret, but in that moment, Percy had a feeling that if he couldn't walk up to Audrey with an apology, he shouldn't walk up to her at all.
After a few minutes, he saw Audrey approaching the cash register, and Percy moved to return to his siblings. As soon as he found them, Ginny punched him in the arm.
"Ow! What the bloody hell was that for?" Percy exclaimed.
"You should've introduced yourself!" Ginny replied. "Honestly, you have no social skills."
Percy wearily shook his head at his sister. "I was busy looking around. Anyways, I think I've seen her around the Ministry. Didn't know she was a Slytherin, though."
"Aha! Eavesdropping, are we?" George questioned, nudging his older brother. "That's the spirit, Perce! I knew I was rubbing off on you."
"And she's single. That's a shocker," Ginny said in a hushed tone, then added, "I mean, you know, assuming she's looking."
Percy honestly couldn't imagine what questions Ginny had asked to dig up that information.
"Quit being such a gossip, Ginny," George said.
"Please, like you weren't curious," Ginny argued.
George shrugged. "Fair enough. Even at Hogwarts, she was just about a mystery to everyone," he admitted. "I'm pretty sure most of the Slytherins didn't even like her."
"Well, from what I know of her, she seems quite nice," Ginny concluded. "Now, let's buy what we need and get out of here. I'd really like a warm slice of pie right about now."
Percy laughed. "That sounds like a plan. My stomach's been grumbling like crazy."
By the time the siblings stepped onto the streets of Diagon Alley again, Percy swore the snow cover doubled. He felt his nose going numb in response to the cold and buried his face into the scarf around his neck.
As he followed his bickering siblings to the pastry shop, he caught a glimpse of Audrey sitting in front of the tea shop with a blonde girl, who was smiling and talking animatedly. Audrey smiled, clinked her teacup with her friend, and buried her face into the green and silver scarf around her neck. A few years back, Percy would've grimaced in the direction of anyone wearing that scarf. Now, he felt a small smile grace his lips. Audrey just looked so at peace, and it had a similar effect on him.
"Percy! Move your buns, will you?"
It seemed reasonable to me that the twins would've known Audrey since they were in the same year and I think most Slytherins were recognizable by Fred and George. So anyways, yay for a cute chapter! :)