Newt
Percy’s jaw drops. He blinks a few times, thinking that he’s having some kind of stress-induced hallucination or that maybe he’s had an aneurysm, but she quirks an eyebrow at him and crosses his arms.
“Well?” she demands.
“Pen-,” he tries to say her name, but it gets caught up in his throat with emotion. He wants to throw himself down at her feet and beg forgiveness. He was to repent for being such a terrible friend. He stands and they look at one another for a long, long moment.
She takes a step forward, closing the distance, and pulls Percy into an embrace.
Percy, despite everything, stiffens at first, but he melts into her embrace. He throws her arms around her and grips tight. He’s taller than her but somehow, he feels dwarfed by her presence. The hug feels like the warmest shelter during the coldest winter night. It feels like home. He feels tears start to leak from the corner of his eyes, and before he knows he’s crying. His shoulders shake as he holds her, the weight of everything that’s happened crashing down in a wave of grief.
He should have never listened to Audrey. Penelope, his dearest friend, whom he ignored more than half a year, was standing in front of him, embracing him. Even after all if it; she was still here.
“I missed you so much,” Penelope whispers, her voice thick with emotion. She sniffles and he realizes she’s crying too.
It reminds him of the moment she had been revived after Madam Pomphrey had received the mandrakes and was able to a brew a potion to revive those who had been petrified by the basilisk. He had been beside himself; and when he’d gotten word that she was awake he’s rushed to the Hospital Wing. Seeing her bright eyes and curly blonde hair, so alive and real after being frozen for so long; it was like he was a dying man in the desert, and she was an oasis. They had held handed and cried for nearly an hour.
He had been certain then that he’d end up marrying her. But then they’d gotten older and realized they didn’t quite fit into each other’s romantic needs. The break-up had been mutual, and they’d been good friends ever since. She was his girl’s godmother. She’d been at his wedding. She’d taken care of him when he was sick and alone, and even one memorable night bailed him out of muggle jail at three in the morning after Percy had been arrested for disorderly conduct (it had been during the Bad Days after the war when he’d go out every night to the pub and drink himself silly).
If there was such a thing as platonic soulmates, Penelope Clearwater was it for him.
And he’d let Audrey take her away. He’d let Audrey remove this wonderful, beautiful, fantastic woman from his life.
They’d lost so much time.
Percy pulls back slightly, looking at his best friend with tear-filled eyes. “I—I didn’t think you’d -I didn’t think I could-,”
Penelope shakes her head. “It’s okay, Percy. We’re okay. And I’m never leaving your side again. Never.”
Percy bursts into more sobs.
It takes nearly an hour and half for them to calm down. Half the time when they’d finally slow down, they’d make eye contact and just start bawling again. They end up on the floor of Percy’s childhood room, Percy resting his head on her lap while her long, slender fingers play with his curls.
His shoulder was killing him from the position, and Penelope’s eye were raw and red. But it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except the simple truth—they had found each other again, and nothing could tear them apart now, red eyes or bum shoulder or stupid fucking ex-wives.
Penelope was telling him a story of this muggle man she’d dated for about a month when Percy was avoiding her. It was sad in a sense; Percy should have been there to hear the developments the first time, but now here he was trying to play catch-up. He pushes down a wave of sadness that washes through him.
“- and then he asked me what I did for work, and I had to make something up. I told him I was an ethical botanist.”
“What is that?”
‘I don’t know! I read it in a book somewhere. I don’t think it’s a real thing. He never questioned it though. I think it was then I realized he was a dumb as a doornail and I broke things off.”
She laughs, the warm sounds reverbing in his ears as chest moves. He’s comforted by it. She twirls one of his curls through her fingers.
“The girls have gotten so big.”
Percy swallows. “Penny, I-,”
“Don’t apologize, Percy,” her voice is filled with warmth. “You did what you needed to do to keep yourself safe against her. I don’t blame you. I blame your ex-wife.”
Percy sighs, low and deep and scrunches his eyes shut.
“Maybe ex-wife.”
She stills her musing with his hair.
“Percy, surely you’re not thinking about going back-,”
“No!” Percy exclaims quickly. “No, goodness. It’s just the paperwork. We got married magically and the muggle way.”
He explains to her the notice he needs to serve to Audrey and how everything he’s tried so far hasn’t worked. Audrey hadn’t fought in the war, but if she did, she’d be damn hard to catch.
“So, George said he’d keep an eye out for her in Diagon Alley and he’d get Angelina to send a Patronus or something.”
(He tries not think about why George can no longer form a Patronus. It was only after his son was born that he was able to cast it again, and even now it was only ever non-corporal)
Penelope hums considerably, then she pats Percy on the head to get him to sit up. He does so with some effort, feeling his should twinge in protest. Penelope stands, brushes off her jumper and pulls her wand out of her pocket.
“Where are you going?” Percy asks curiously, following her out of his room. It’s the first time he’s stepped out of the room in past few days other than to use the bathroom. She wordlessly heads down the stairs where Mum and Dad are. Dad’s making a cup of tea and Mum’s got a newspaper in front of her at the kitchen table.
“Penny,” Percy starts to say.
“Hullo Penny.” Mums greets cheerfully. Penny reaches for something on the counter, but Percy’s too far behind her to see what it is.
“Hi Mrs. Weasley. Thanks for inviting me over. I’ll be right back.”
Percy stumbles over his feet, startled by this revelation.
“You invited Penny over, Mum?” Percy questions. His mother hums innocently and looks back down the paper.
“Well, you certainly weren’t going to. It’s about time you two reconciled. She’s good for you.”
“Mum!” Percy protests, feeling his cheeks get a bit red. He’s about to start complaining when there’s a loud CRACK from outside. Percy doesn’t need to glance into the garden to know that Penelope is no longer there. He sighs and turns his attention back to his Mum.
“Mum, you didn’t have to.”
“Nonsense!” his mother waves a lazy hand, not taking her eyes off the paper. “She’s a lovely girl and your oldest friend. You needed her.”
Percy huffs out a breath through his nose.
“I did not.”
Dad clears his throat as he takes the cup of tea he’s been making and places it in front of his wife.
“You have been looking peaky, Percy.”
“I’ve been stressed!” he points out.
“Exactly,” Dad says. “Penelope is just who you needed to get you out of your room. The girls have missed you.”
Percy winces. That was a low blow, even for his father. He knows it, because his father gets a little pink.
“You know what I mean, son. Tea?”
Percy sighs and accepts the offer, sitting down across from his mother at the kitchen table. He hasn’t a clue where Penny went off to- maybe to talk to George about finding Audrey?
“If that didn’t work, I’d have just called Oliver. In fact, he would have been first if he wasn’t in Spain.”
Percy chokes on his tea. Oliver. Merlin, he’d forgotten all about Oliver in the past weeks. He immediately felt awful, Oliver had done so much in helping him leave and he hadn’t even thanked him yet.
“Spain?” he manages to croak out after nearly coughing up a lung.
“It’s the first travel game of the season for Puddlemere.”
Percy places his head in his hands. Surely, Oliver would have told him that. He would have talked his ear about it non-stop. Why didn’t Percy recall? Maybe Audrey was right, maybe he really did have memory issues.
“Stop it, Percy. He specifically didn’t tell you when the season was starting.” His mother scolds. “He didn’t want to distract you and the girls. He’ll be back next week.”
Percy stares at his mother, things kind, plump women with greying hair and sharp eyes who somehow knew when Percy was doubting himself enough to scold him out of it.
“Why do you know all of this?”
“He told us,” Dad says sitting down next to hi wife. She passes him a section of the paper he’s seemingly done reading without looking up from her page. “He calls every two days to check in.”
Percy’s eyes just about bug out of his skull.
“He does?”
“Mhmm. Nice young man.” Mum comments idly.
“Why haven’t you told me? I could have talked to him.”
“You were stressed.” Dad points out, sipping his tea. “And he asked us not to. Not until you were feeling up to it.”
“I’ve been feeling up to it since I got here!” Percy protests. Mum and Dad both look up from their papers, eyeing him up down. He feels scrutinized like he’s a bloody teenager again. Percy looks down at himself. He’s been wearing the same clothes for the past few days, sure an he hasn’t changed his socks in about a week, and yes he hasn’t showered in a bit and he can’t seem to keep a full meal down-
“Oh.” He says quietly.
It’s silent for a moment when there’s another loud CRACK from the garden. Percy hears some birds squawk in surprise at the unexpected noise. There’s a rush of footsteps outside and the door is thrown open dramatically.
Standing in the doorway is Penelope. If she had been an angel appearing in the doorway of Percy’s bedroom just over an hour ago, she now looks like she’s just crawled out of the pits of hell. Her curly hair is tied back, a few strands sticking out in front of her face. Her jumper is ripped in the elbow, and so are both knees of her trousers, revealing skinned knees. What draws his eye through, is the nasty looking bruise blossoming across her nose. There’s blood congealed jut under her nostrils and it’s bright red, quickly cooling into a painful looking purple.
“What the- Penny!” Percy exclaims. “What happened?”
Mum and Dad jump to their feet, hands on their wands. Penelope waves them off gesturing with one hand. She’s grinning triumphally, waving her hand with her wand in the other.
“Papers served!” she declares proudly.’
Percy’s jaw drops so low it almost unhinges. Even Dad looks surprised.
“You- what?”
“I got the papers served,” Penelope says coolly. She limps over to the kitchen table. Mum pulls out a seat for her to sit down and mutters a spell, a diagnostic one if Percy can tell by the gentle blue light emanating from the tip of her wand.
“How did you do that!?”
Penelope shrugs. Mum tuts at her. “Broken nose, I’m afraid. Would you like me to fix you up, dear?”
“Yes please, Mrs. Weasley.” Penelope says politely, like Mum’s just asked if she wanted a biscuit to go with her tea. Mum gets to work, and Penelope looks back at Percy.
“I know where she works, yeah? In relation to Muggle London. I figured since you were separated, she’s rather take the long way to stop by her sister’s. So, I just apparated to the closest underground stop. It’s about that time, and low and behold I saw her. Lucky, really. Ouch!”
She winces, and there’s an audibly cracking noise. Mum must has just set Penelope’s nose.
“Sorry, love.”
“Thank okay Mrs. Weasley.” Penelope says kindly. “Anyway, when I saw her, she bolted. But we’re in the middle of rush hour and she can’t just take out her wand. So, I tackled her to the ground. We fought a little bit and I pulled out the papers yelling that she’d been served. You know, like you see on American telly? And then these muggle police officers broke us up, and once I explained I was trying to serve her papers, they made her take them. Took a report, too so it’s official.”
“It’s not even been ten minutes!” Percy exclaims in disbelief. It was kind of funny, thinking about Penelope slide-tackling Audrey in the middle of a crowded train platform in front of a bunch of muggles.
“Yeah, well they were going to take me back to the station with them to do some paperwork and give me ticket or something, but I just Obliviated them."
Percy can only stare. He’s been trying for nearly a week to get Audrey to receive the divorce papers and Penelope, whom he had ignored for the better part of a year, had just gotten it done in under fifteen minutes.
He watches in silence as Penelope’s nose goes back to its normal size and hue. She sighs in relief.
“Thank you, Mrs. Weasley.”
His mum smiles, a glint in her eye.
“Please, call me Molly.”
Charlie hasn’t spoken to Percy yet.
Well, that wasn’t true. They had exchanged a few words since Percy told him he was leaving Audrey and taking the kids, but they hadn’t sat down and have a real conversation.
Charlie had honestly thought that after Audrey had put Percy in the hospital, nearly blinding him, he’d pack up his stuff and leave with the girls. But he hadn’t. Percy had looked him in the eye and told him he was staying with his wife.
He couldn’t believe it. It had made him sick- hadn’t she hurt him? And from what Percy had accidently mentioned about muggle police reports, it hadn’t been the first time. And Percy had said that their neighbors called the police when things got loud. That means that there were other times it didn’t.
Charlie had left St. Mungo’s and didn’t go back. When he went to his tiny, rented flat he had blocked Percy’s number on his phone. Then he thought better of it and unblocked him. Just in case. But when he talked to Percy, briefly, after the hospital he told he flat out he’ never talk to him again. Not as long as he insisted on staying with Audrey.
He had been certain that Percy would have picked his brother over his abusive partner. Bit he hadn’t. And then then they didn’t speak for ages. Charlie should have figured. Percy had once needed to choose between family and duty, and he’d left his family in the dust. Why was this any different?
The first week weeks were the worst. Mum had been putting the pressure on heavy to try and get Charlie to speak to Percy, but he refused. When spoke to George, it seemed like the same. George told him that Percy and the girls were welcome any time, but not Audrey. So he hadn’t seen Percy, either. It was complete freeze-out. Charlie kept blocking and unblocking Percy’s number. He was half terrified that he’d miss a call for help like how Percy had called him that one time. Other than that, they did not speak.
Then he had gotten the call from his mother that Percy was leaving. For good. Charlie had spoken to him briefly over the phone, offering support, and then he went to his tiny flat to gather his notes to meet with his advisor, feeling a bit ill.
Newt Scamander was a living legend in the field of Magizoology. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was a best-seller. Charlie had borrowed a copy from the Hogwarts library his first year and fell in love with creatures. He had been ravenous; a starving man crawling in the desert for scraps. Professor Kettleburn had noticed his interest and his natural talent and took him under his wing as a type of mentor. When Charlie graduated, it was Kettleburn who had pulled the strings to get Charlie accepted to the program in Romania. He had even helped pay for a few expenses while Charlie got settled. F course, Carlie had tried to pay him back but Kettleburn declined, only asking if he could introduce Charlie to a friend.
That friend being the Newt Scamander. He had nearly fallen over when Kettleburn introduced them.
That was nearly a decade ago. When Charlie was given the opportunity to write his book about dragons, Newt had offered to be an advisor for it. Charlie had gratefully accepted. Once a month they would meet at Newt’s home in Dorset and tuck themselves away in his study and go over that month’s draft together.
Now, Charlie stands in front of a nice-looking cottage. It’s quaint- made of white painted brick with trails of ivy creeping up the walls. It seems small, but Charlie knows better.
He walks up to the door and knocks on it. It opens to reveal Tina, Newt’s partner. She seems somehow ancient and youthful at the same time, she’s clearly aged but she carries herself with a stillness that makes her seem dangerous. Charlie thinks it’s most clear in her eyes- he knew she had been a type of American Auror during the reign of Grindelwald. That kind of awareness never goes away.
“Hello Charlie,” she says amicably, relaxing her shoulders a little. He sees her wand twitch in her hand.
“Hello Tina.” He greets. She opens the door for him and lets him in. Their cottage, while seemingly innocuous, is so heavily warded it makes Charlie’s teeth hurt. Still, he walks in, ignoring the rolling in his stomach.
“Newt is in the study for you.” She says, tucking her wand away.
“Thank you,” Charlie says, taking off his jacket and hanging it on the coat rack. “How is Rolf?”
Tina smiled at the mention of her grandson. “Oh, fine, fine. He and Luna are in South America. Chasing nargals, I believe.”
Charlie nods. He had heard that Luna Lovegood and Rolf Scamander had been spending time together chasing creatures they he was sure didn’t exist. He wouldn’t be surprised if they were to announce an engagement the next time they were in England.
He leaves Tina to whatever she had been doing before he knocked on the door, a potion of some kind, and walks to Newt’s office door. He is about to knock when the door swings open as if on its own accord, btu Charlie knows it was Newt.
Newt is sitting at his desk, a second chair pulled up to it, some papers strewn over the desk. There are two teacups on the desk, gently steaming. Candles flicker lazily in the afternoon light coming in from the window. Newt looks up when he walks in.
“Hullo Charlie, I found some interesting I think you-, what’s wrong?”
Charlie frowns and walks over to the desk, setting his satchel down.
“Nothing’s wrong. Why should something be wrong?”
“You’ve got this look on your face. I have a friend who gets that look on his face whenever something’s wrong. Er, or when something isn’t I suppose. The man really hasn’t gotten a break since 1925.”
He sighs and starts to unpack his bag. It contains a current copy of his manuscript, the pages he has written since the last time they met, and some research books and articles he thinks may be a good reference for the book.
“Nothing’s wrong,” he repeats. “Let’s just get on with this chapter?”
Newt frown and shifts in his seat a little bit. There’s a small green creature resting on his shoulder that looks almost like a bundle of sticks.
“Hello Pickett, sorry I didn’t see you.” Charlie greets. The little stick-like figure blows a raspberry at Charlie and scuttles down Newt’s arm, disappearing under the desk.
Newt sits still, looking at Charlie expectantly. The younger man sighs and runs a hand through his hair.
“It’s just-, my brother. Percy.”
Something like recognition flashes in Newt’s eyes. “The one who was estranged?”
Charlie nods. “Yes. You know we reconnected, and he got married and had the twins. His wife—”
“Aubry?”
“Audrey.” Charlie corrects, not unkindly. “She’s... not nice to him. I thought it was just words but apparently, it wasn’t just that.” He slouches in his chair in a bit. “She was hurting him. Even put him in the hospital, but he didn’t want to leave her, and we didn’t talk because- well I sort of gave him an ultimatum. But all a sudden he calls and says he’s leaving her and staying with our parents.”
“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?” Newt inquires.
“I suppose. I just- It doesn’t make any sense. She almost blinded him, but still… I don’t know why he suddenly changed his mind ages later.”
Newt’s face softens, He leans back in his chair, his fingers absently tracing the edge of his teacup, clearly lost in thought. For a moment, it seems like he's reflecting on something far removed from the conversation at hand, getting the same look in his eye he had before.
"You know, Charlie, I think you and I are alike. We get along better with creatures. They make more sense, don’t they?”
Charlie nods.
“At the same time, people can be like creatures," Newt says quietly, almost to himself, before focusing back on Charlie. "Sometimes, they find themselves trapped in a kind of... cage. Not one made of bars, but of fear or dependency. It’s not always clear to outsiders. Even to the person inside, it might feel like there’s no way out."
Charlie furrows his brow, unsure whether Newt’s analogy is helping or frustrating him further. "I don’t get it, Newt. Percy’s a —he’s not weak. He’s stubborn, yeah, but… why would he let someone hurt him like that? And for so long?"
Newt’s eyes narrow thoughtfully. "You’ve heard of the Erumpent, yes?" he asks, his voice slow and measured. Charlie nods- it had been an entire chapter in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. They were African creatures, weighing up to a ton with a thick hide. Not exactly his wheelhouse, but he was familiar enough.
"Big, powerful creatures—dangerous when provoked. But you see, when an Erumpent is in captivity, it often learns to quiet its instincts. It’s fed regularly, it’s kept safe. The danger comes when that cage gets too small. If the Erumpent doesn’t have the room to roam, it starts to believe that the cage is all it has."
Charlie shifts uncomfortably in his chair, not quite sure where this is going.
"Percy might not have been in a literal cage," Newt continues, "but in a way, his relationship with Audrey became like one. Not physically, not at first, but emotionally. He was trapped by his own love for her or perhaps his sense of duty to make it work. As to not be the one to walk away, to stay loyal to the vows he made. Sometimes, we convince ourselves that leaving is more damaging than staying. Even when staying means enduring pain."
Charles’s heart skips a beat as his connects the puzzle pieces together. "So… you think Percy stayed because he felt responsible? Like he couldn’t abandon her, even though she was hurting him?"
"Exactly." Newt nods, his voice gentle, almost sorrowful. "People don’t always leave abusive situations right away. It’s not about being weak, it’s about not seeing a way out. And sometimes, it takes something drastic—a breaking point, a moment when they can no longer ignore the harm they’re enduring, or when they finally recognize that leaving is the only way to save themselves.”
Charlie’s thoughts race, thinking of the man he once knew so well—his younger brother, the one who was always so controlled, so steadfast.
"It must’ve taken a lot of courage for him to make that call," Charlie says finally.
Newt’s eyes twinkle with something like quiet pride. "It did. But you must also remember, the moment he called you—when he reached out, both the first time and this time—it’s a sign of him breaking free from that cage, however small it might have seemed. People need support to make those kinds of decisions. Sometimes, the person needs to feel that there’s an option for safety, that they won’t be alone."
Charlie nods slowly, trying to digest what Newt is saying. "I didn’t think about it like that. I guess I’ve always seen Percy as the strong one, the one who could handle everything. I didn’t understand that he could be... I don’t know, vulnerable, I guess."
Newt offers a small, understanding smile. "We all have our vulnerabilities, Charlie. Even the strongest of us. It’s not weakness to need help. It’s bravery to ask for it, to know when it’s time to step away from something toxic. Or destructive."
"Yeah, I just... I wish I’d been more understanding before. I thought if I pushed him hard enough, he’d get out sooner," Charlie admits, rubbing his face in frustration.
"None of us can truly understand someone else’s struggles until they’re ready to share them," Newt replies. "What matters now is that Percy is making a change, and he knows he has a place to go. That’s something."
Charlie sits back, letting out a heavy sigh. "I guess... I’m just glad he finally made the choice. I don’t know how long he could’ve kept going like that." His voice falters, “I’m proud of him. I just wish it hadn’t taken so long."
Newt gives him a knowing look. "Sometimes, people don’t realize how strong they are until they have to be." He pauses, watching Charlie with a gentle, reassuring gaze. "And maybe, Charlie... maybe it took him that long because it took him that long to truly believe that he was worth more than the pain."
Charlie’s chest tightens, but he finds something like comfort in Newt’s words. Maybe, just maybe, there’s some hope there. To heal. To move forward. Even if it had taken him half a year.
"Thanks, Newt," Charlie murmurs quietly.
Newt gives the younger man soft smile, his eyes warm. "Anytime, my boy. Anytime. Now, let’s look at the next chapter, hm?”
Charlie smiles and flips to the newest page in his manuscript, ready to get to work.