Oliver did not expect to find Bill and Charlie Weasley on his doorstep on the afternoon of Christmas Eve.

His parents were out. They got up early to brave one last round of shopping to spot any good, last minute deals. Oliver stayed home for obvious reasons, as they were still under the impression he was fearful of crowds. It was nothing he imagined it being when he was a young lad; it was quite boring, actually. Lounging around on the furniture in a way that would have gotten him chastised by his parents, flipping through the channels on the telly, letting out a heavy sigh.

Hearing a knock on the door, he made himself right again, standing up and went to see who it was. He expected a neighbor, perhaps to borrow some sugar or flour. Instead, he came face-to-face with a couple of red heads. Momentarily caught off guard, he could not form words right away. Lucky for him, Bill must have known that was the case, giving him a slight nod.

"Can we come in?" He asked kindly.

"Sure," Oliver managed to say. He stepped aside, gesturing loosely with his arm.

"Thank you," Bill said as he and Charlie entered. Bill's eyes did not wander, but Charlie's did. He looked around shamelessly, immediately taking notice of the telly, tilting his head at it.

Oliver was not really the host type, but he remembered what his parents taught him about guests coming over. "Err, would you like some tea?" He offered. "Or biscuits?"

Charlie nodded eagerly. "Love some. I'm starved-"

"We're good, thank you," Bill cut him off smoothly.

"We're not good," Charlie protested.

Bill gave him a glare. "We're good."

Charlie grumbled.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Oliver wasn't sure what to do next. "Err, right."

"You're probably wondering why we're here," Bill said.

"Of course he is," Charlie groaned. "Honestly..."

"Don't mind him," Bill rolled his eyes. "He isn't a very good travel companion."

"Me?" Charlie scoffed. "That's a tale if I ever heard one."

"Oh, shut up!" Bill said with exasperation. Focusing back on Oliver, who had awkwardly stood to the side whilst they bickered, he said, "We're here because we want to talk to you about Percy."

He was simultaneously intrigued, yet filled with dread.

"Oh," Oliver said just as his stomach dropped all the way to the floor. Another part of him, a tiny sliver, was filled with hope. If they were here, that means they must have noticed something, yeah? It was about time someone did. "Sure. What about?"

"Can we sit down first?" Bill said.

Oliver nodded dumbly. "Right. Go ahead."

As they all got settled, Oliver tried to calm himself down. His mind was going haywire, racking his brain for a response that wouldn't have Percy angry with him should his brothers inquire if he knew anything about Percy's behavior.

He felt a bit intimidated if he was being honest by the way Bill was peering at him, a look of pure scrutiny that made his head spin, wondering what he was going to say next.

"You and Percy are friends, aren't you?" He asked.

It was a complicated question. As far as Oliver knew, Percy was trying but it didn't give him absolute certainty. "Err, yeah," he went with, not wanting to get into that part.

"Since when?" Charlie was curious. At one point, Oliver would have been delirious with excitement that Charlie Weasley was speaking to him. Charlie was still wicked, but he'd outgrown some of that hero worship.

"This term."

"So you know-" Bill drifted off.

"I know...what?" Oliver asked carefully. He didn't want to accidentally reveal anything that Percy wouldn't want them to know.

"Something's wrong with Percy. He's been-" Charlie took over, "he's not like himself anymore."

"He's not been like himself for a while," Bill said with a heavy sigh. "We knew he wasn't."

"You did?" Oliver was surprised. If they noticed, why didn't they do anything?

Why did they let it get this far?

"We could tell something was up during our visits," Charlie nodded.

"But you didn't do anything about it?" The words came out of Oliver's mouth before he could stop them. A grimace came over him, but before he could apologize for his blunder, Bill spoke up again.

"No, we didn't. We didn't know how, honestly. And it wasn't like we visited all that much either."

"I suppose-" Charlie struggled to speak, to come up with words, "we-I hoped it all would be fine the next time we saw him."

"So did I," Bill admitted.

But it wasn't, Oliver thought.

"He used to write," Charlie added, "to us. But he stopped. Not that we've done well with that ourselves. I haven't written to anyone lately."

"Nor have I," said Bill.

There came a lull in the conversation. Bill and Charlie went silent, each one reflecting on Merlin knows what. Oliver simply sat there. He wondered if Percy knew they were here. It wasn't likely. Or maybe he did and they came anyway.

"Has-" Charlie took a small deep breath, "has he talked to you?"

"About-"

"Anything," Charlie's face was worn with worry

Oliver cleared his throat, doing what he could to stall.

Bill obviously knew that. "We know Percy's probably told you not to tell anyone and we want to respect that but you have to understand, he's our brother."

"I know," Oliver said quietly.

"If you know-" Charlie was visibly pained. "If you know, then you should tell us!"

"Charlie," Bill tried to hush him, glancing at Oliver.

But Charlie blatantly ignored him, focusing on Oliver. "Percy said you know. You know about all of it. But he wouldn't tell us how you know."

Oliver's insides clenched.

"Can't you tell us?" Charlie begged. "Come on. It's really important."

Bill did not beg. He did not try to shut Charlie up either. Oliver had a feeling that he wished to find out as well.

"I...I can't."

"But-"

"I promised Percy I wouldn't. It's not my place to tell anyone," Oliver said, apologetic yet firm. "If you want to know, he'll have to tell you."

Defeated. That was how Charlie looked. It hit harder than any game they'd lost against in Quidditch.

Bill, after a moment's hesitation, said, "Is there anything you can tell us? Anything at all?"

He thought it over for a moment. He thought about what he could bring up that wouldn't be going against Percy's wishes. "Fred and George," he said with some caution, not wanting to come off as attacking them. Regardless, they were still their brothers. "They've been complete menaces since term's started."

"Believe me, we know," Bill said, shutting his eyes. "I had to set those two straight after I found them messing with that gift you gave Percy."

Somehow, he wasn't surprised. A touch bit irritated but not surprised.

"We tried-" Charlie gestured to himself and Bill, "to tell Mum and Dad that they've gotten a bit lenient, you know, but they didn't take it well. Or should I say, Mum didn't take it well."

"She walked out on us," Bill told him with a bit of a sigh. "Didn't want to hear it. We could've approached it differently-"

"I told you it was fine!"

"Still," Bill interjected, "it accomplished nothing but making Mum angry for the rest of the night. She stayed in her and Dad's bedroom. We didn't hear a word from her until breakfast this morning."

"Really?" Oliver was dismayed to hear this. It seemed Mrs. Weasley was not as strict as he'd initially perceived her to be.

"We were shocked too," Charlie said, voice tinged with disappointment.

"But there isn't much we can do," Bill added glumly. "If Mum and Dad aren't going to adhere to any discipline..."

"Besides not letting them play in the game," Charlie said to which Oliver's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Bill was kind enough to elaborate. "We try to have a quidditch game whenever we come back home." Oliver nodded understandingly. "I didn't let Fred or George play this time. I know it's not much, but it was the one thing I could really do."

"It's something." It was better than doing nothing at all.

"You know what's going to happen after we leave," Charlie muttered. "They're going to take his things again. Godric, I love two but they take it too far sometimes."

"Have they always been like that?" Oliver couldn't help but ask. He and the twins, while friendly to each other, didn't get along on a personal basis. They tended to stick around with Lee Jordan and the girls.

"Not always-"

"Sort of, yeah."

The brothers contradicted each other and made eye contact.

"Oh, come on, Bill. They had their moments. They weren't innocent."

"I never said they were innocent. But they weren't like they are now."

"Maybe not all the time. But remember when they transfigured Ron's stuffed bear?"

Bill winced at the reminder. "You've made your point."

"The twins-they had their moments but it didn't get worse until they got older."

Oliver perked up, interested.

"Pranks have always been their thing. They were funny at first, harmless. Of course, the older they got, the more they started pushing boundaries."

"That's putting it lightly," Charlie's voice was dry.

"Mum and Dad still got onto them but I think having so many kids made it difficult," Bill said carefully. "It was hard enough to give us all the attention we needed, let alone get onto the twins for their behavior."

"I think they hoped Fred and George would grow out of it," Charlie said. "Or at least tone it down."

But they didn't, Oliver thought but did not say.

"I don't think they understand how far they take things sometimes," Bill continued. "It's all fun and games to them, even if no one else is laughing."

"Like Percy," Charlie shook his head. "I don't know what's happened between them three but it seems like they won't let up on him."

"Ron too," Bill said. "They all used to be close."

That, Oliver found difficult to believe. "Percy and the twins were close?"

"I know it's hard to believe, but yes," Bill confirmed. "Percy used to be really close to the twins, Ron and Ginny."

Oliver never would have guessed based on how he'd seen them all interacting at school.

So what happened?

What made them drift apart?

Bill didn't elaborate. "But never mind that, we're getting off track."

Oliver supposed they were.

"How've they been at school?" Bill asked. He sounded as though he didn't really want to know the answer. "Do they bother him there?"

Instantly, the memories of that night came.

All of them.

"You don't know, do you?"

The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. Bill was confused and alarmed all at once; Charlie's head snapped in his direction, staring sharply.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

It was too late to back out now or come up with a feeble yet fully convincing excuse. Oliver winced at his blunder. "Err, well-"

"What have they done now?" Bill said with dread.

In a way, he was surprised they didn't know already. He would have thought, if anything, it would have been mentioned at some point. But nonetheless, they weren't going to be happy when they found out.

"Fred and George...they played another prank," Oliver began. He didn't have to divulge everything and he wouldn't, just a few tidbits they needed to know. "It wasn't supposed to be on Percy but it was anyway."

"Oh, Merlin," Bill groaned. "What now?"

Oliver winced again. "Err, well-"

"It's nothing good, obviously," Charlie said flatly.

"Well, spit it out now," Bill gestured. "It can't be that bad, I hope-"

"They charmed his clothes away."
The life was sucked out of that room. The two brothers stared at him in something akin to horror, the color draining out of their faces, only to come back as a dark red in their cheeks seconds later.

"They what?" Charlie's voice, though a whisper, did not hide the anger coming through.

"Charmed away his clothes?" Bill said faintly. "What do you they charmed his clothes away?"

Oliver didn't like talking about it, even though he knew it was important to bring up. He didn't like recalling that night. He didn't like remembering how he used to be towards Percy. But, he had to remind himself that it was far worse for Percy than him and he could withstand a little discomfort.

"They charmed his clothes away," he repeated quietly, "you could see his knickers and that was it."

Charlie's eyes shut. He leaned back on the couch with a sharp sigh.

"Godric..."

"No one else saw, right?" Bill's eyes darted over to Oliver again. When he didn't answer, he stressed, "Right?"

"They did," Oliver was forced to respond. "It was during dinner."

"No," Charlie said immediately, an uneasy smile that conveyed to Oliver that he didn't want to believe it. "They wouldn't have done that. I mean, Fred and George take it kind of far sometimes but they wouldn't-"

He was devastated as the realization hit him fully.

"Then what happened?" The question came from Bill.

Then he almost tried to kill himself, Oliver felt like he couldn't breathe. Like his throat was being gripped.

"Why didn't you let me die?"

"Err, he was pretty upset about it."

Charlie got up, pacing around silently. All of the sudden, a vase that was nearby on a small table shattered.

Bill jumped. "Merlin, Charlie!"

"Sorry," Charlie muttered crossly, brandishing his wand to repair it. He let out a sharp exhale. "How could they do that? How could they think of doing that to anyone?"

"I don't know," Bill said tiredly, shaking his head.

"They know better than that!" Charlie whirled around back to them. His hair was every which way and he was deeply breathing. "They were raised better than that!"

"I know," Bill was at a loss as to what to say, what to do next. "I know, Charlie, but there's nothing we can do about it now."

Charlie's lips thinned out. "We can't let them get away with that."

"We're also not their parents," Bill reminded him.

"But-"

"I'm as upset as you are," Bill shook his head. "But if they aren't listening to Mum or Dad, I don't have much hope they'll listen to us."

Charlie said nothing, flopping down on the couch, looking as though he were about to have another burst of anger. "It's not fair. It's not fair to Percy."

"I know," Bill repeated tiredly. He glanced at Oliver. "What happened after that?"

What should he say now? It was difficult to speak on it when the gist of things couldn't be said. Oliver shifted, trying to stall some more. Unfortunately for him, Charlie spotted his hesitancy right away.

"You're not telling us everything," he said accusingly, causing Oliver to freeze.

"Err, well-"

"What else happened?" Charlie said sharply.

"Charlie, don't pester him," Bill ordered.

"Pester him-"

"He doesn't want to break Percy's trust."

"Are you forgetting why we came here?"

"Of course not. But we can't force him to answer."

"Well, maybe you won't."

"You aren't going to either."

Oliver was greatly torn; he wanted to help them as they were obviously desperate enough to come there searching for answers but he couldn't. He wouldn't do anything to hinder the progress he'd made with Percy.

"I'm sorry."

They stopped. Charlie was scowling while Bill was silent. Eventually he said, "It's alright, really. You're doing it for Percy. He needs someone on his side besides us. Truth be told, I didn't know Percy had any friends."

He didn't used to

He continued before Oliver could speak. "I really think Mum and Dad should've made sure he socialized a lot more than he did before Hogwarts, you know, to get him used to people. He's always been quiet compared to everyone else and can be quite bossy when he wants to be. I think that was his problem when he started first year; he was used to being in charge of the kids when we were gone so he didn't think twice before ordering someone else around. I had to take him aside a few times to tell him to tone it down."

It made sense. Oliver never considered he might have been used to dealing with his siblings, mainly because he had none of his own.

"I told him to lighten up," Charlie said, voice coming out as a whisper. "He was always so serious."

Oliver had thought the very same thing.

"You know," Bill started, "we took Percy out recently. Thought he'd open up if we weren't around everyone."

Did he?

"He thinks we'd all be better off without him," Charlie looked sickened. "He-he pretends he's alright when he's not-"

"He doesn't want anyone else to know," Bill told him. "He doesn't think the rest of the family would care if he was gone."

It killed Oliver that they didn't even know how close they'd been to finding out whether that was true or not.

"You've got to help us," Charlie pleaded. "Help us get Percy back please."