Mirror, Mirror

The next day he couldn’t even look over at the Slytherin table. He had prided himself on never losing control like that. Even when he was with Lucius, it was all planned and scheduled, when you’re the other person, you had to stay to a rigid schedule, or the wife would find out. That really wasn’t something he liked because Narcissa hadn’t deserved what they were doing to her. All she had been was a loyal wife and mother. Even when her world was imploding, worrying about her only child risking his life for his father’s greater good.

It wasn’t until he got back to his dorm when he realized what he forgot. A simple contraception spell. He did it retroactively but didn’t know how well that would work. The very last thing he needed was another baby to add to his messed-up life. He didn’t think the chances were great anyway because him and Lucius had forgotten it lots of times and only once had he ever gotten pregnant. He was lucky, he wasn’t as fertile as his parents.

A black-banded owl few down and dropped an envelope before flying off. He recognized that bird, it belonged to a person best forgotten in his past…or future.

“Hey, Perce, who’s the letter from?” Fred asked curiously from down the table. He, George, Lee, and Draco had been whispering furiously a moment before. Another Percy from another time would have been worried but pranks by his brothers and their disciples didn’t even register to him anymore.

“It’s no one,” he said before grabbing the envelope and quickly leaving the Great Hall.

“Was that Midas?”

Percy inwardly groaned, he thought he had gotten away without Terence seeing him. Shaking his head, he scolded himself. This wasn’t about him, and a stupid night ruled by teenage hormones that he thought he was done with a decade ago.

“It does seem so.”

“What does that mean?” Terence asked, his eyes wide with dread.

“It means we aren’t alone in this time travel endeavor. If Midas is here, he has to be here too and worse yet, he knows we’re not from this time.”

“He couldn’t have brought Midas through the mirror; I didn’t even get to keep the kit I was wearing. I’m actually shocked Lucy was able to come through. Midas doesn’t have a body here, he’s not to be hatched for another twelve years.”

“He is the Minister of Magic, are you going to tell him he can’t do something?”

“Shacklebolt could really put a damper on our plans,” Terence said with a little growl on his lips.

“I thought you agreed with most of his new laws.”

“I do, he’s a good Minister but you have to admit, you get a little pretentious around him.”

“I have no idea what you are talking about.” He turned around, secretly running his finger over the indentation from Kingsley’s writing.

“You were so in love with him after the battle. I thought you couldn’t sign your name to your contract fast enough.”

“He was my boss; nothing was ever between us.”

“Not for lack of trying on your part, right?”

“Thank you. For a moment, I thought you were a decent wizard, but you are what you’ve always been.”

“What’s that?”

“A Slytherin,” Percy snarled before turning and quickly leaving the doorway of the Great Hall. Just when he thought that there might be something between them, if only just both being stuck here. But he had to turn it in to something wrong. He never chased after Kingsley…never…almost never. Terence hadn’t been there to see him make a fool of himself, so he didn’t know where this attitude from the Slytherin came from. He was every bit Sirius and Snape’s son.

Once he got back to his dorm, he realized he wouldn’t have much time to read before he had double potions. If he skipped it, he would hear about it from Professor Snape himself.

Looking down at the envelope he remembered a life he left behind. Before his promotion, when he worked directly under Kingsley. What was he doing here? How did he get here?

Opening the letter, the first thing he noticed was Kingsley’s elegant penmanship. His y’s always had an extra curl to them. Maybe there was something wrong with him; Oliver always did say he had daddy issues. Stupid Oliver and his one-time girlfriend who was a muggle. He could have lived his whole life without knowing that was a thing.

Percy,

        Please meet me in the place where it happened. Noon on Boxing Day, we have much to discuss. It is imperative that you go back to the Burrow for Christmas Holiday. Do not tell anyone you are to meet me.

                                                                                   Royal

Where it happened. That could mean several different places. Godric’s Hollow, where Lily and James Potter were murdered, and Harry marked. It could mean so many places, but he knew the place Kingsley referred, he had hinted to it with using the name Royal.

Royal had been his nickname on Potterwatch. His family still didn’t know that he kept tabs on them by listening in. Their security wasn’t as good as they thought it was. He had to know how his family was doing during those dark days, he had already removed himself from them, but it didn’t mean he didn’t love them.

He didn’t want to go back to the Burrow, but he trusted Kingsley more than almost anyone else. There was just one problem with complying. It meant he would have to leave Lucy for the whole holiday, which was the only thing he was looking forward to doing.

It would be easier slipping away from Grimmauld Place to meet up with Kingsley too. There had to be a reason he didn’t want him to go to Grimmauld Place or a reason for him to go to the Burrow. A part of him felt guilty because the whole reason he was doing any of this was to save his family and friends. Give his little brother the life he should have had. But what he had done was unforgivable, he knew there was no way back for him if his friends and family knew the truth.

“What did he want?” Terence asked him later in the day, right before the last Quidditch match before Christmas break.

Kingsley had told him not to tell anyone. Until he knew why, he wouldn’t tell. But if he found out his reasoning was faulty, he would choose to ignore.

“I don’t know. It was very vague.” All true. “I want to stay at the Burrow over Christmas, but I don’t want to leave Lucy. Do you have any ideas?”

Terence looked thoughtful for a moment.

“You could tell them I’m your friend and she’s mine. Tell them that I need a place to stay over the holidays so I can spend time with her. Molly Weasley is all about keeping families together, right?”

“She used to be,” he said bitterly. He knew it would probably work, she was fine if the child was someone else’s and not her own granddaughter. “I’ll write to her tonight and see if it would be alright. Your family isn’t going to miss you?”

“No, not since I told them I wasn’t going to follow their footsteps. I don’t think I could face them right now anyway, not since I found out who my birth parents are. What if my mum really did take me in because I’m Sirius Black’s son?”

“We don’t know what Harry’s mum told her. It’s all speculation at this point. If you want the truth, your mum is the only one who was there for it.”

“She’ll lie.”

“Not if you confront her with the truth. She’ll be out of balance that you know more than she thinks and will probably let the truth slip out.”

Terence smiled broadly at him, before pulling him into a kiss. A moment later they broke apart. “That’s why I like you, that devious mind of yours.”

Rolling his eyes, he took a step forward. “First, it’s not a devious mine, it’s a logical one. Second, I didn’t say you could kiss me.”

“You didn’t say I couldn’t either,” he said with a smirk. “Tell me what your parents say.” With that he left, leaving him in front of some very nosy portraits.

“He’s not bad, playing hard to get will only make him look elsewhere,” the Blue-Robed Man portraits told him.

“Mind your own business,” he told the busybody standing in front of a guillotine. Why would they even put a portrait like that up in a school?

“I knew your great-great-grandfather, he would be disgusted at how you’re turning out?” this from Dorothea Vancleef’s portrait.

“Which one was this? I hope you don’t mean the one that almost married his sister. Or the one that broke the secrecy of magic by charming his horses so they could speak. Those poor muggles were institutionalized before the Ministry found out what was happening.” He had several more, none were winners. He loved his family, but they were a colorful bunch.

“Well, I never.”

Percy just shook his head as he walked away, he hoped he wouldn’t hear from it about the other portraits. There was nothing to worry about the portraits telling anyone because they had a code to follow. As long as it wasn’t a risk to the children and staff at Hogwarts, they had to keep whatever they heard quiet. Fred and George used to test that theory out all the time.

It was time for them to go home for Christmas. His mother had given permission for Terence and Lucy to stay over the holidays. She seemed excited that there was going to be a baby in the house over the holiday. He tried not to let it bother him, but it did. That didn’t matter though, what did was he would be able to spend Christmas with his daughter and the rest of his family. The only downside is they wouldn’t know she was his and it would mark an entire year in the past.

Bill said that he would be at the Burrow for Christmas too. The last time around, his parents went to visit Charlie in Romania, but Bill had convinced Charlie to ask for the time off. He would have to work every other holiday for a year, but he got off from Christmas Eve until the twenty-ninth.

Sometimes it felt bizarre that he was living his life again. Things that he remembered happening, now changing with every new decision he made. It wasn’t even just him and Terence changing things now. They shifted things and they just shift further and further apart than they were originally.

He needed to speak to Draco before they left on the train. If he could get Draco to invite him to Malfoy Manor for just one time, he would be able to get what he needed. Bill had said that he made sure he spoke to their father while Lucius was in hearing distance and the wizard looked worried. He was sure that Lucius had already moved whatever object it was back to the manor. Then there was the little and not so easy problem of destroying the things. He shook his arms out and stretched, that was tomorrow Percy’s problem.

He found Draco in the Gryffindor common room, looking suspicious.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Last time I checked you weren’t Prefect, and I don’t have to answer to you,” Draco said, his smug little face well in place.

“Whatever my brothers are asking you to do, it won’t end well.”

Draco smirked at him, never a good sign. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m simply sitting here doing my potions work.”

Likely story, Percy thought. Draco was right, he wasn’t Prefect and had no power over him. He also was supposed to be trying to get an invite to the Malfoys.

“I was wondering if I could speak with your father sometime over Christmas holiday,” he said, trying to sound casual.

“I’m not doing anything wrong, and you aren’t Prefect,” Draco said loudly. Percy could see he was working himself up into a right snit.

“It’s nothing to do with you. You see, I’m planning on working for the Ministry when I finish school. But I have higher aspirations than being stuck in a tiny office like my father. I thought maybe speaking to such a revered wizard as Lucius Malfoy, he may help me.”

“Why would my father waste his time with the likes of you? He’s not exactly blood-traitor friendly.” Neither had Draco been at the start of school but being around Fred and George only one thing mattered to him now…causing havoc.

“At least give me the chance. Please, Draco.” He had to swallow his pride to utter those words.

“Fine. Come to the mansion on the twenty-third.” It was the day after they got home from Hogwarts.

“Thank you, Draco, I owe you one.”

“And I’ll collect,” the younger boy said before heading up to his dorm. Minutes later a laughing Fred and George ran in the common room looking like something was chasing them. Percy had to bite his tongue; it wasn’t his problem anymore. If they wanted to break school rules it wasn’t on him to catch them. Easier said than done so he headed up to his dorm.

The train ride wasn’t anything special. He had seen Harry excitedly telling his friends that Sirius said they could come over and visit sometime during the holiday. It was good to see Harry actually happy and excited. The first time around, he remembered the sad little boy that stayed only because his “family” didn’t want him. Not that Harry wanted to go there anyway. And turns out he was trying to figure out the whole stone thing. He just hoped this time around they wouldn’t be looking for trouble. Who was he kidding they were definitely up to something dangerous. They were in Slytherin so he wouldn’t be able to find out what until he got Ron back to the Burrow.

He hated that he would have to wait for Terence to get to Grimmauld Place, get Lucy and then find some way to get to the Burrow. He just wanted his baby when he got back but it would be late in the day or maybe even the morning before he arrived. And tomorrow he was going to Malfoy Manor to look for the Horcruxes.

Once they were pulling into King’s Cross, he started to feel anxious. This would be the first time he saw his parents since they ripped his daughter from his arms. They didn’t remember that, but could he forgive them? He didn’t know, he guessed when he saw them, he would find out.

Laughing students rushed off the train, all smiles and running to hug their parents. He spied Harry as he all but threw himself at his godfather and Remus. They should start to get out more alone or some will start to talk.

“PERCY!”

He looked up to see his mum running at him. It was surprising she never greeted him like this with the exception of his first year. It wasn’t until he was wrapped up in her arms that he realized how much he missed her. After Fred’s death she didn’t smile as much, didn’t laugh as much. When he came through the mirror, he was still in such a daze. Then when Lucy was born, his mother hadn’t been there for him the way he needed.

“Hello, Mother,” he said awkwardly, pulling away.

“It’s good to see you. I’ve missed you so much. Letting you spend all of summer hols with Sirius Black, I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“I’m not a child, I can make my own decisions. I wanted to thank you for letting Terence and Lucy come to stay. His parents aren’t that accepting of his daughter.”

“That’s a real shame. I can’t believe parents would just kick their son and granddaughter out like that. It’s no trouble, luv. I can’t wait to have my own grandchildren.” She stopped and looked at Fred and George. “I take that back; I can wait and you better so too.”

The twins and Ginny, who had come with their mother, laughed. Percy didn’t and couldn’t help but notice Ron was looking everywhere except at him, he wasn’t laughing either. He would have to speak to his brother about what he had read and found out. Now that Ron was away from Harry and the others, he was sure he could break him. There wasn’t any reason to try when they had each other to back them up.

The drive back to the Burrow was a little nail biting, like anytime his mother drove. His dad made it his mission to learn how to drive, his mum he was sure just had a fifteen-minute lesson and told to go. He had learned to drive from Oliver, who learned from his muggleborn father. Percy wasn’t bad at it he thought but he didn’t do it much because he preferred travelling by apparition or floo better.

On the drive his brothers teased his sister about how they were sorted into houses, for the first time Ron playing along. His mother was eyeing him.

“I’m sorry you didn’t get Prefect, luv. I know how much you had your heart set on it,” she told him, looking over at him before she swerved around a man on the crosswalk.

“I think you were supposed to wait for them to cross.”

“Nonsense, he shouldn’t have been walking so slow.”

“Right.” He rolled his eyes but made sure she didn’t see. “I didn’t want to be prefect anymore. It’s just not important to me.”

She looked over at him for so long that he was worried she would hit something. “Mum, look out,” Fred yelled. Just in time his mother missed hitting a lorry head on.

“Sorry. Sorry.” Her face reddened some, he wasn’t sure if it was from stress or embarrassment. “It’s just you’ve wanted to be a prefect then Headboy since you were a little boy.”

“People grow out of things,” he said with a shrug.

“I guess. I do miss my little boy who used to tell me everything.” She wasn’t wrong. Because he always felt left out with his siblings, he depended on his mother to be his confidant. He told her everything and had the first time around until the day he had the fight with his father.

“I’m just growing up,” he told her, hoping she would drop it. He hated lying to her but there was no way he could tell her the truth after what happened with Lucy.

After he put his things away, he went in search of Ron. Best to get everything out in the open. He wanted to know what the four ex-Gryffindors were doing. Terence said they disappeared a lot. Luckily, he had never put the location of the Room of Requirement, just of its existence. Maybe that’s what they were doing with their evenings.

Ron was fixing his poster; it had fallen while they were at school.

“Ron, may I speak with you?”

“I was wondering when you would. Neville and Harry had a bet going on when you would ask. Go on.” Ron sat down on his bed, before stretching out on it leaving his shoes on.

Percy bit his tongue about the shoes and sat down on Ron’s desk chair.

“What are you and your friends doing?” No need to beat around the bush.

“Nothing.”

“Ron, tell me now. You read my diary; you know the truth about me. Please don’t take me for a fool.”

“We’re trying to find out what to do about Quirrell. We haven’t decided yet because Harry doesn’t want to hurt him. We’re looking into some things, that’s all.”

“Why did you choose to go to Slytherin?”

“In your diary you said that the Headmaster had too much control over him, and you thought him being in Gryffindor didn’t help. He thought if he went to Slytherin, then there was no way Dumbledore would so freely support him. We thought it was the best way to keep our distance from him. After he told us what was going on, we wanted to help. It was a little weird but amazing. We’re war heroes. I can’t believe it. Do I really marry Hermione? She’s such a know-it-all.”

“She is and you adore her. You two bicker like you’ve been married for fifty years even though it’s only been two. But things can change now that you know, me being here changes so much. You weren’t supposed to read any of that. The whole reason I want to do this for you is because your childhood wasn’t much of one. You, Harry, and Hermione had been through so much. Please, just don’t act reckless.”

“Like having a baby?” Ron said, lifting a red eyebrow.

“Yes, like having a baby. What are you going to do with that information?”

“I can’t believe you obliviated us. But I guess I understand it. I won’t say anything to mum and dad about the baby. Can I tell Ginny?”

“No, you can’t tell anyone. Bill knows but he’s the only one. Terence is bringing her but to everyone else we have to pretend Lucy is his daughter only.”

“Won’t that be hard for you?”

“As long as I get to see her, I don’t care if we pretend that she’s Hagrid’s.”

“I can’t wait to meet my niece. Lucius Malfoy?” he asked, his nose scrunching up.

“Love makes you do stupid things, like falling in love with someone completely wrong for you. Just be careful with whatever you are doing, even I don’t know everything, you can’t use my words like they were set in stone.”

Ron laughed. “Don’t worry, I know you’re a giant git who doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

“Good…I guess.”

Percy went back to his room to wait for Terence to arrive with Lucy.