Where Am I ?
The whole place was filled with smoke. He looked around. He saw a boy smiling. The face was oddly similar to his. Fred– that was Fred.
He could see the wall falling. Move! Move! He wanted to say but he couldn't. Even though he moved his lips, no words came out.
Percy jolted awake from sleep. Sweat dripping down his face. He was panting heavily. He calmed himself down.
"1,2,3,4..." he repeated in his mind. His breath slowly became steady.
His eyes searched for any hints of familiarity where he was kept. He thought this looked like St. Mungo's. His suspicion was proved correct when a healer came to check him.
Percy didn't have the energy to speak. He laid their motionless. The healer checked his vitals. At one moment, he realised she was talking to her. But, he wasn't paying heed. He laid their motionless.
Soon, the healer left . He was left alone in that room. Laying motionless, he thought about all his mistakes. How wrong he was! He had went against his family. He had defied them and brought shame to them. He couldn't even save Fred!
This time he had decided to finally do something right. But, alas! He had failed again. He didn't know who found him. But, he was determined to stay in that house till his last breath.
He tried hard to figure out who could have saved him. The only name that rang in his mind was Eveline. His heart panged with guilt as he remembered her. He had done wrong to her too. He didn't even think it was necessary to apologise.
There was a slight creak of the door. Percy opened his eyes and saw a familiar shade of red. He squinted his eyes to make his blurry vision clear. Is-- is it Charlie? He thought. He must have been dreaming.
He realised who he thought as his brother, sitting next to his bed. His brother kept his hand on Percy's forehead in an affectionate manner.
He said in a low voice,"Hey, Perce! You had me a bit worried back there."
Percy was sure it was a dream. There was no way his brother would visit him. But, everything felt so real. He felt like that 7-year old boy who used to run to Charlie when the twins pranked him.
Percy swore he could cry. He would have cried if Charlie had done this moments ago. But, Percy was drained now. He didn't have the energy to cry.
He could hear Charlie sigh,"The healer said you are awake but too weak to respond. I wish I had found you earlier. When I saw you there, you-- you were--- you were so sick... I am ... I am so sorry.. I should have arrived earlier."
Percy realised his brother was crying. Great, I made my brother cry. Another mistake added to my list, he thought.
Charlie calmed himself down. He continued,"We.. I found a bird. An owl I mean.. in your house. Eveline, you know her, right? The owl is with her."
Now, Percy felt even more guilty. He had burdened his Hogwarts junior with more responsibility. He couldn't do one damn thing right!
Percy thought of Hermes . Hermes was his only true companion. Surely, Penny was his friend in Hogwarts. Maybe, his best friends. But, things got ugly as they started to date. He had shut her out. He built walls around him. Yes, he did hurt her in the process . But, it was for the greater good.
"Oh, Bill.." he heard Charlie say. He looked at Bill. His brother was standing with a scar on his face.
Bill said in an emotionless voice,"How's the prat doing?"
Charlie snapped back at him,"Don't talk like that!"
Bill sighed,"He was sick for over a week. The least he could do was contact us. We aren't heartless. We would have taken him back. He missed Fred's funeral too."
His brothers were fighting. All because of him. It was his fault. Why was he even here? He should have disappeared. Why was he alive when Fred wasn't? Why wasn't Fred here? This wasnt supposed to happen!
Percy couldn't figure out what happened afterwards. He heard muffled voices of Bill and Charlie.
"Hyperventilating.... bring...."
" Respond... respond..."
Percy figured out it was either a healer or one of his brothers. He tried his best to stay awake. But, it went to vain.
Percy was in deep slumber. Not because of hyperventilation but because the healer gave him a sleeping drought.
The healer had scold Charlie and Bill for a solid half an hour. She even threatened to throw them out of the hospital if this happened again.
The next time, Percy woke up he realised the calender beside his bed was changed. He was asleep for 3 days.
This time, he felt better. He had a small chat with the healer. Mostly, she wanted to know what exactly he had done. No one was able to figure out what's wrong with him. Naturally, he avoided answering.
The healer helped him sit up. He was leaning against the pillow when he heard muffled talks.
He figured one of them to be Bill,"Charlie, look he's clearly been cursed. I don't care what the healers said. There's something clearly wrong with him."
Percy's heart missed a beat hearing this.
The door opened revealing Bill and Charlie . A girl followed them. Was it Ginny?
Ginny stared at him. Her gaze locked on him. She inspected him thoroughly. Afterwhat seemed like hours she spoke in a soft and concerned voice,"What happened to you?"
Percy couldn't figure out what to say. With much difficulty he said,"You have grown up, Ginny." His throat was aching with pain. He still had troubles speaking.
Percy, Bill, Ginny and Charlie all turned their heads towards the corridor as they heard screams.
"What do YOU mean I Can't see him? Move away! You have no right."
Ginny hurriedly looked at him,"Listen, I know maybe you are not in the mood for this. But, we really couldn't stop her. She came her just after Bill and Charlie told her."
Molly Weasley pushed aside some people,"Let me see my precious baby!"
The moment she saw Percy she couldn't stop herself. Tears came streaming down her eyes.
She ran to Percy and almost crushed him while hugging. He had missed her. He had missed his mother so much. He returned the hug ever so slightly.
She took a step back,"What have you done? Why.. why are you so thin... what.. why... I can't understand."
Oh, mom! You wouldn't want to know, he thought.
The healer came by later on to check on him. Or so he had thought. In reality, his family had forced them to discharge him.
He looked behind to find none other than the Boy-Who- Lived, his little brother Ron and his dearest Dad. His Dad remained silent the whole time.
"What... home?" He asked in a weary tone.
Molly replied in a sweet voice,"Yes, my dear. We will take care of you."
"But, I live alone." He asked in a concerned voice.
"She meant the Burrow." Ginny hit him on the shoulder silently.
He wanted to protest. But, he didn't. He didn't want to cause more pain for his family. So, he reluctantly agreed.
Charlie asked,"Do you want me to bring your owl..."
Percy cut him off,"Hermes. His name is Hermes." He realised the more he talked, the more his throat pain was reduced.
His brother nodded,"OK, Hermes. Should I bring him back?"
He denied,"No, he's in good hands. I... I will bring him back later."
Suddenly, it hit him. He would have to face him. He would have to face George. Everytime he would see George, he would get remainded how he killed Fred. He wasn't ready yet.