Chapter 3 - Audacious

24 August 1999

Percy had grown to sincerely appreciate noise over the last year. Children running around screaming and almost breaking things, small talk over small talk over small talk... a younger him would have called that a living hell. There was simply no productivity within chaos - especially chaotic noise. However, Percy had experienced no truer silence than the Burrow the morning after Fred's death. Since then, he expressed a unique appreciation for chaotic noise. He thought that George had, too, which was probably what prompted his younger brother to re-open Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

That was where Percy now found himself, taking in the commotion as something of a blessing. He had made it a habit to visit the joke shop during his work breaks as, over the last year, he had grown much closer to George. Percy had always gotten on quite well with Bill, and Charlie was always easy to talk to - but him and the twins had had had a habit of causing endless frustration for one another. While George hadn't exactly welcomed Percy with open arms right off the bat (more like open hexes, but that was a whole other story), they had found a way to move past it. Now, Percy wouldn't hesitate to say that him and George were the closest out of all of the Weasley siblings.

"Stare out into space any longer and you might just start growing a beard," George commented as he lightly punched Percy's arm.

Percy scoffed but a smile appeared on his lips. "Would still be more facial hair than you'll ever grow," he retorted jokingly.

"Ha ha," George laughed sarcastically. He then handed Percy a box of candies with a variety of unpleasant effects and added, "Why don't you make yourself useful, Big Foot."

Percy shook his head in amusement at that - it was something from a muggle story their dad had told them, although all they had ever gotten from that was that the creature was really hairy. He set off towards an empty shelf and set the cardboard box to levitate in front of him. He truly enjoyed helping George out with the shop when he could - it was usually something relaxing and repetitive like putting things on shelves or cleaning things up. For George, those were "bothersome nothings," so he appreciated the fact that Percy helped out, even if he couldn't understand how his older brother had the attention span for those menial tasks.

After he finished restocking the shelf, Percy folded down the cardboard box to the size of his palm with a wave of his wand and started to head back towards George. However, just as his eyes landed on his younger brother, Percy froze.

"Ora, I swear to Salazar, if you break something..."

With an exasperated sigh, Audrey placed her hands on her younger cousin's shoulders and knelt down to look the four year-old girl in the eyes. "Now, I know Aunt Astrid doesn't like you hanging around here, so let's make a deal: you be good and keep this between us, and there might just be some ice cream waiting for you at the end of the day."

"Promise!" Oralee said with a big smile on her face. She extended her arm upwards and grabbed hold of Audrey's hand as the two headed into the depths of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

Oralee staying at Audrey's flat for the day had gone well for about five minutes. After that, it was almost impossible to do her readings and take care of a bored and hyperactive toddler, so Audrey figured she would have to tire her out. While Oralee looked every bit like Kingsley, she had her mother's upbeat and endless energy. Aunt Astrid was truly a nice woman, but if Audrey spent too much time around her she felt as if she needed a whole day of sleep. Audrey always assumed it had something to do with whatever odd American curriculum was offered at Ilvermorny, the magical school which Astrid had attended.

"Merlin's beard, Audrey Shacklebolt in my very own store - I'm downright honoured."

It took only a split second for Audrey to recognize the voice. With a small sigh and a smirk on her face, Audrey turned to face George Weasley. "Hello, George. Good to see you, too," she greeted.

Her and the twins had been in the same year at Hogwarts, but saying they were friends would have been generous. Proud Gryffindors as they were and the isolated Slytherin she was, the three of them had had fairly stereotypical interactions. "Bloody snakes," "stubborn arses," and other equally lovely pleasantries were commonly exchanged. However, when taking into consideration that Audrey was Kingsley's niece and the fact that the twins worshiped Keegan as some Beater god, the result was something more of an alliance. Audrey would use her prefect perks and access to the Slytherin dungeons to help the twins out, they would have her back whenever she needed it. There was a level of mutual respect between the three of them.

"So who's the little lady?" George inquired.

"You don't recognize her?" Audrey replied. "Oralee, Kingsley's little girl."

"Well, call me bonkers! I wouldn't have guessed."

"You're bonkers," Audrey retorted smartly. "Ora, say hi to George."

"Hi to George," Ora said with a smirk. Audrey simply rolled her eyes as George laughed.

"This one might be a Ravenclaw like her old man," George concluded.

"Well, a lot could change in seven years, she could be the first Gryffindor Shacklebolt," Audrey suggested jokingly.

"Don't get my hopes up like that," George replied with a serious tone.

Audrey laughed once again. It felt good to have a relaxing chat with an old classmate. George was always someone that Audrey had regarded as wearing his heart on his sleeve, and while that seemed to be a downright silly thing to do, she definitely appreciated it in other people. Plus, after working with him in the Order, Audrey had gotten to the point where she felt that she could call George a friend.

"Oy, mate, you see Medusa or something?"

George's exclamation snapped Audrey out of her thoughtful daze and she looked around to see who George was shouting at. When her eyes landed on him, she didn't know if she should smirk or melt into the floor somehow.

Bloody George and his loud mouth...

With a gulp, Percy approached his younger brother and the woman from the gala. He still didn't know her name, which was bloody embarrassing - but he would have recognized her anywhere. Her slender build made her seem elegant and delicate and her dark wavy hair was up in a ponytail, but her piercing gaze was compelling and almost authoritative. She exuded a peculiar mix of dominance and kindness, and had a sense of mystery around her that pulled him in like a siren would pull in a sailor. Percy thought it was strange how he was still so inexplicably intrigued by the woman.

For about a week after the gala, she had been on Percy's mind almost constantly - but he hadn't seen neither hide nor tail of her so, gradually, she left his thoughts. It was strangely jarring to see her again out of nowhere, but when he looked at her, he could see an image of how she had looked that night in his mind's eye, clear as day.

"I assume you know Audrey Shacklebolt, she was one of your prefects when you had that whole Head Boy phase going on, after all," George introduced.

Percy's eyes widened as he suddenly made the connection and realized who she was. Merlin, how could he have forgotten?

The compartment door slammed open just as Percy was about to start talking. He caught a flash of green and silver and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Percy simply lifted his chin slightly, unrolled the parchment with all of the prefect names, and stiffly asked, "Name?"

"Shacklebolt, Audrey. Fifth year Slytherin."

Percy's eyes flickered upwards at the name. The girl held her chin just as high as he did, if that was even possible, and she was probably the most put-together person in the compartment. Her tie was perfectly straightened out, the pleats in her skirt were sharply ironed, and her sleek black hair was pulled back in a ponytail without a hair out of place. She held his gaze without a even appearing slightly intimidated. In fact, it was Percy that suddenly felt a bit self-conscious.

"I would make it a habit of showing up more promptly in the future," Percy commented, albeit with a bit of fear. She had a sense of authority around her that he both admired and hated.

"Noted. I was simply playing the messenger," she replied as she stepped towards him and extended her arm to hand him an envelope. "From the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol, relayed by Dumbledore. There's going to be some security changes this year due to, ah, grievous circumstances."

The first thing Percy noted on the envelope was the sender's name, clear as day in elegant gold ink: "Auror Kristopher Lamar Shacklebolt." Percy looked up at Audrey again as he took the envelope from her and gave her a single nod. "Thank you, Shacklebolt."

Suddenly, a slight smirk appeared on her face as she gave him a small salute and jokingly commented, "Aye aye, captain," before taking her seat next to her counterpart, Adrian Pucey.

The action took Percy off guard but he quickly found himself smiling. However, his stoic expression returned as soon as he heard Penny impatiently clear her throat.

Audrey had been possibly the only person that Percy felt he could never boss around. She did whatever she wanted, and he had quickly learned that the best way to get Audrey to do something was to either prove you were right or make a deal. She was ruthless but fair as a prefect, and somehow, even when she would get on his last nerve during a meeting, always knew exactly how to make someone smile. If Percy was being honest, the only reason he didn't remember her was probably because of how Penelope had always disliked the Slytherin and, under the influence of teenage love, Percy just kept Audrey at whatever distance Penelope had wanted.

"Yeah, I'm sure he remembers me," Audrey commented with a smirk on her face, "I'm pretty unforgettable."

"Unforgettable, frustrating, same thing, right?" George teased.

"Watch yourself, Weasley - you're barely scratching the surface," Audrey warned jokingly.

"Noted... hey, Perce, you haven't said something annoying in a while."

Percy blinked as he got pulled out of his daze and cleared his throat. "Uh, yeah, I do remember Audrey," he commented. "You were a good prefect."

Audrey raised an eyebrow. "Is that all?" she inquired. She was enjoying this encounter a lot more than she thought she would, especially when she saw the slight look of panic set in on his face. "I do believe I also kicked your arse that one time in Duelling Club," she finally added.

Percy visibly relaxed and chuckled lightly, "Probably why I was only in the Duelling Club for one school year."

Audrey laughed lightly - the same modest laugh he had heard the first night he met her. Or, well, met her again. The night he had kissed her.

"While I've got you here, a little birdie told me that Keegan declined a Witch Weekly interview," George segued. "Never knew him to shy away from attention, especially of feminine nature."

"Well, fame is a fickle food," Audrey replied with a shrug, quoting one of her favourite muggle poets. She noticed Percy smile slightly as he recognized the quote.

Audrey remembered the day that Keegan had received that stupid pink envelope. She was definitely the less social of the two of them, but whatever made him happy, she supposed. Even as an Obliviator, everyone always knew who Keegan was and all of his wonderful traits. Audrey would always jokingly say they would think otherwise if they had to live with him. Anyways, it had understandably hurt Keegan a bit to decline the offer, but their father's instructions were clear: lay low. With Aunt Kelsey still yet to be apprehended, they were being watched like hawks.

"Anyways, Ora and I are gonna get going. It was nice seeing the two of you," Audrey added. She turned her gaze to Percy. "Don't be a stranger, Weasley," she added before turning around to leave the shop, her little cousin in hand.

Percy watched as she left the shop, almost as if mesmerized. The ringing of the shop bell as the door closed behind Audrey snapped him out of his daze and his thoughts organized themselves in an instant. In the briefest moment of clarity, he had devised a plan.

"I'll be right back," Percy muttered as he ran out of the shop without even a glance at George.

Thankfully, as soon as he left the shop, his eyes landed on Audrey's elegant form almost instantly. She was sitting at a table just in front of Fortescue's. Without hesitation, Percy headed towards her. She gave him a peculiar look as soon as she took notice of him.

"Have you ever had Morrocan food?" he asked.

"Uh, no, can't say I have," Audrey replied slowly.

"Good. How does Friday sound?"

"Sounds like 'Friday.'"

Percy shook his head in amusement. "I'll send you an owl. See you Friday, Audrey," he replied.

Hey guys! I'm having fun getting back into this story so I hope you all enjoy it too :) To clarify on Audrey's father's title: he was an Auror and the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol up until 1995, when he was offered the position of the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation (to take over from Crouch).

Reviews are much appreciated, can't wait to get the next chapter up!