Mirror, Mirror

It had been almost a week since he went through the mirror and found himself in the past. Strange didn’t even begin to explain how it felt to be a teenager again living under his parents’ roof, getting ready to go back to Hogwarts after Christmas.

Also, he was almost completely sure he was still very much pregnant. He wondered if he would have to find the father again and sleep with him, to at least be able to explain it. The dates wouldn’t match but it would be their child.

With the war coming, he had made a list of things he needed to do. He was glad that his brother and brother-in-law were very chatty when they were drunk. He knew about the Horcruxes and Harry being one. He still didn’t know what to do about that. If he could keep Voldemort from coming back, then maybe it wouldn’t matter. The Horcruxes were keeping his spirit around, but if Percy got rid of them then he would be really gone. But that still went back to Harry being one, there was no way to get rid of the one in Harry without killing him. At least that’s what he told them years after the war was over.

He thought about telling Dumbledore but then the man would still depend on Harry to take Voldemort down. While he knew that Harry had to be the one that killed him, it didn’t mean that he had to spend seven years of his life preparing to be sacrificed.

What he really didn’t want to do was try and get one of the biggest creeps in the school to sleep with him. Maybe he didn’t have to tell anyone who the father was, maybe they wouldn’t care. And maybe he would grow wings and be a Quidditch champion. There was no way he was going to have sex with Marcus Flint, doing so once was already too much. If he hadn’t been so inebriated, he would have never done it. It didn’t matter who the other father was, his parents were going to kill him.

“Percy, would you get Scabbers, he’s trying to eat my fresh rolls,” his mother said.

It was the day before they were to go back to Hogwarts, and he still had the issue of Scabbers. He couldn’t just get rid of him because he was necessary to get Sirius free. After all the doubt and horrible things, he said about Harry, this was the least he could do. But how to get the rat into view of who needed to see it?

It came to him like a rush, Professor Snape. He knew more about Sirius and Pettigrew than anyone. He wondered if the twins already had the Marauders map. If they did, he would just have to get it from them. Another good point of his brothers being chatty after a few, he knew how to make it reveal itself. All he had to do was take it to Snape and show him while he had Pettigrew in the room with him. There couldn’t be any other way.

“Sorry, Mum, I’ll get him.” He grabbed Scabbers and none too gently, taking him back to his room. He wouldn’t make the mistake and give his stupid rat to his little brother this time. It was just a miracle Pettigrew hadn’t harmed Ron or Harry while they were sleeping.

The next morning was hectic, like always. Charlie had slept in, and his mum was shouting for them to hurry. Ginny and Ron were looking sadly at them. He remembered how sad he would get when Bill and Charlie would go, and he wasn’t allowed. As much has he wanted to feel bad for the two he couldn’t, after they started Hogwarts, they were always in trouble. Let him at least take care of the murderer in their midst before they came skipping off the Hogwarts.

“Are you sure you’re well, luv?” his mum asked.

He knew why she was asking, he looked like a stiff wind would blow him over. Last night he had been sicker than usual. According to his maths, he should be close to showing any day now. Probably even sooner with his new body frame, while he was naturally thin, when he was fourteen, he had been sickly thin. It wasn’t going to be easy to hide from Oliver. Oliver was usually around, just to make sure Percy was alright. How he became mates with one of the most popular boys at school, he didn’t know. He was teased and bullied on a daily basis. Just wait until he made Prefect next year, they would have to respect him. Percy almost laughed at the childish thought, no one respected him after he became Prefect, he just was able to take points from the ones who taunted him. But if they were like his brothers, they wouldn’t care.

Once he was on the train, he felt like he could breathe again. His mum had been watching him like a hawk, he didn’t want her figuring things out. While he thought she could handle the truth, he knew she could never handle finding out that Fred died so young. She wouldn’t ever let him out of her sight again and Fred would lose his mind.

He sat in a compartment alone, he liked it that way. Usually, he would be reading but now he was working on his plans for what he would do at Hogwarts. The compartment door slid open, and he gaped at the boy standing there. Marcus Flint was sneering at him. He hoped the baby didn’t have the same sneer.

“What do you want Flint?” he asked, annoyed.

“How does it feel knowing nobody likes you? Not even your own brothers like you. I just heard Charlie calling you pathetic, that’s got to hurt.”

“I don’t care what you say. Leave me alone.” He was lying, he cared very much but this had already happened before. When he confronted Charlie, he said he was just trying to make his mates laugh. That was Percy, always the target of everyone’s joke.

“Who do you think you are telling me what to do? Blood traitor.” Marcus walked further into the compartment and Percy remembered how the other boy used to hit him. It was always a gut shot; he couldn’t risk the baby.

Grabbing his wand, he sent a silent spell, knocking Flint back out of the compartment. He quickly charmed the door locked. It wouldn’t last, a Prefect would be around to make him open it but hopefully by then Flint would have gotten tired and left. A while later there was a tapping at the door.

Oliver put his smug face against the glass. Percy rolled his eyes and let the other boy in.

“You’re gonna get in trouble for that,” Oliver said, all but throwing himself on the seat opposite him.

“Don’t you have friends to be torturing with your presence?” he asked.

“Yes, but you don’t. Come on, Perce, do you want to look back on Hogwarts and only have fond memories of grades and essays?”

“Says the boy who usually can’t remember how to get to class. I swear Professor Snape’s head was going to explode when you walked into potions late.”

“Snape hates everyone who isn’t a Slytherin.”

Percy knew better now, while there was a favoritism to the snakes, he had a lot going on. He had heard from Harry that Sirius and Harry’s father had bullied and tormented Snape during their school days because Snape was a Slytherin.

“How was your Christmas?” he asked, changing subjects.

“Great, my parents got me a new Cleansweep. What about you?”

“A study buddy.”

Oliver rolled his eyes. “Only you would be happy about getting a present that only helps for studying.”

He liked his gift, this time around he was able to save it. It was a spelled journal that highlighted things that were most likely used in exams.

As they neared Hogsmeade, his stomach started to churn. He wasn’t sure it was because of the baby or his conversation with Snape he needed to have. Would he tell Snape about everything? He wanted someone else to know about the future. Was it cowardly to want someone else to know? While he was an adult over a week ago, he had started to have all his old insecurities. What if he wasn’t smart enough? Strong enough? Just not enough? His family was full of heroes, his parents down to his baby sister but that was never him. He was always by the book, the law. And when the government was telling him that his family, Harry, and Dumbledore were all wrong, he believed them.

Why wouldn’t he? He was the joke of the family, no one cared. At least not until he had the row with his father. He regretted it as soon as he left but somethings can’t be unsaid. His pride kept him away for too long and maybe if it hadn’t Fred would still be alive. If it was any of his other brothers there when Fred died, they would have been able to save him. No, he needed to tell Snape, he was a real war hero.