Chapter 22
The first thing he noticed was he was in the hospital wing. There was something he couldn’t remember; it was like it was just out of reach of his mind. Why was he in there? And why did his whole-body ache.
A noise alerted him that he was not alone. Carefully, he looked over and was surprised at the huddled figure in the chair.
“Fin?”
The figure’s eyes snapped open, and he was looking into the blue eyes of his baby brother.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, his voice strained for some reason.
“What am I doing here? He asks. Let me think, you were almost killed. When I found out, I could have killed that Weasley blood traitor myself.”
Something sparked in his mind, Harry, and the forest. There was a curse and it hit him.
“Percy, is he alright?”
“Why do you care? He tried to kill you.” His brother’s usual pale face was red with anger. So, Percy had taken the blame, interesting. He probably would have done the same, they are too young to be labeled attempted murderers.
“He did no such thing. Where is he? Is he alright?” His throat hurt so much. Looking around he noticed a carafe of water. “Can I have some of that?” he asked, pointing at it.
His little brother jumped up out of the chair and quickly poured him some water. Finn’s hand shook as he handed it over, showing how shaken he had been. Finn was two years younger than him, their parents’ miracle baby. His little brother was too sensitive to stand up to anyone, which meant he usually let people walk all over him. That’s how the damn fool ended up dead. Their parents were behind Voldemort but not followers, until they heard the call for help during the Hogwarts battle. So, his innocent, idiot brother followed them after they forced him. They tried their hand with him, but he just told them they were on the wrong side of history.
Professor Flitwick was the one to contact him about his family’s death. His mother had been friends with most of the staff at Hogwarts, she had worked there for years. Then she went and attacked children during the battle. His father he could see but his mother, it was disheartening. Finn hadn’t even gotten near the school; he was killed by one of the werewolves who had gone feral in his human form. There had even been a trial, there were so many trials after the battle. The worst part is he couldn’t even really blame the werewolf that killed his baby brother. Greyback, the worst of the worst in the werewolf community had spiked his packs drinks with a potion he got from a Death Eater. It was to turn them feral in their human forms, usually even the bad ones wouldn’t attack children. After they were tricked into drinking the potion, they’re human minds went on holiday. Finn had only been nineteen, too scared of being left alone that he did something that cost him his life.
Finn would never have actually hurt anyone; he knew that without a doubt. He didn’t even really think he believed all the tripe they spew; he was just too scared. And in the end, it got him kill. Not just killed it got him torn apart where there wasn’t much to even bury.
“I just can’t lose you too.”
He smiled at his little brother sadly. Their grandfather was the only one that understood them. Nikifor Popova was an amazing man, the best seer in last two hundred years. His mother was a poor imitation of her father. She wasn’t as useless as Trelawney, but she didn’t hold a candle to her father’s talent. He remembered the last thing his grandfather told him. He said that he was leaving him an inheritance because he would need it.
“You won’t lose me.” I’ll lose you. “And don’t call Percy a blood traitor, that’s not you talking that’s them.”
Properly chastised his little brother muttered, “Sorry.”
Detention. He got detention for almost killing another student, at least that’s what everyone thinks. Since that night, the Slytherin Four had been unusually quiet. He just hoped that they had learned their lesson that they didn’t know everything.
“Mr. Weasley, I’m glad you’re here,” Madame Pince said shortly.
He had always liked the woman; she was very strict and that was the only way to have order. At least that’s how he thought about it. “Thank you, Madame Pince.”
“Yes, yes,” she said hastily. “You’ll be organizing the Restricted section. They have been…unsettled.”
Percy was shocked. “You trust me in the Restricted section?” he asked.
“Yes. I don’t believe for one minute you used a curse that you didn’t know what it did. I also don’t believe you would attack that boy, he’s too important to you. I’ve seen the two of you together,” she said.
There wasn’t much to say to that. The library was the one place that they could spend time together without teasing from either house. Even though they were too old and cynical to fall into the whole Gryffindor/Slytherin rivalry, it was best not to ruffle feathers.
As he entered the Restricted section, he breathed in the mix of vanilla and must. He always loved the smell of books; books were his friends when he was an outsider in his own family. It wasn’t just wizarding books he loved, his father would bring muggle books home and give them to him, knowing how much he loved to read. Stories about a captain and his obsession with a white whale, a plane crash and the boys who survived only to turn into distorted versions of themselves. Even stories that made him blush with the mentions of sex and orgies, something he hadn’t even known was a thing at the time. Ones that made him cry and wish he could save the characters in the pages, like Carton dying for Darnay for his love of Lucie. To love someone that much, to die for them just for them to be happy. That was something he never thought was possible until he met his daughter. Now he knew why Lily Potter could face the most feared wizard of their time and not save herself. She could have disapparated to save her own life, but she couldn’t do it with a baby. She had known staying was a death sentence, but it was one she was willing to take. Now seeing his own Lucy, he knew why.
Slowly, he started to look at the book spines, most would be easy to make sure they were in the right or wrong places. One caught his attention. Ancient Relics: The Great Magical Relics of Legend.
He had only been in the Restricted section a few times. When you get a pass to be able to go in, it only allows you to get the book you came for. There was a charm on the passes given out making sure that students don’t read things they shouldn’t. Because he was allowed to look at all the books, he just wanted to sit and read as many as possible.
Carefully, he opened the Ancient Relics book and stopped as he turned to a page with a familiar looking mirror. Aed’s Mirror.
The mirror was made by none other than Merlin himself. The reason for its creation wasn’t made to time travel, in fact the original purpose was very much the opposite. Its creation was to travel beyond the veil. A disturbing thought occurred to him…was he dead? Was this all some afterlife? But as he continued to read, he found out, no, the mirror was a failure. Because it hadn’t worked the way it was supposed to, Merlin hid it. It wasn’t found until centuries later when Merlin’s spell book was discovered.
In this book all that was said was because of what Merlin wrote in his spell book. There had been witches and wizards who tried to use the mirror, but it was never anything but a mirror. It was hinted that only someone in Merlin’s bloodline could make it work. Who was that? As far as he knew it wasn’t his family, his known lineage went back centuries and no mention of one of the best wizards of all time. Did that mean it was Terence? It worked for him when Percy wasn’t around, but it showed him Percy. What did it mean?
“Why aren’t you working?” a snide voice said from behind them.
Turning around, he saw Marcus Flint. Memories of a disgusting night with Flint bubbled up. It was one of the worst mistakes he had ever made, and he has made many.
“What are you doing in here, Flint?” he asked snobbishly.
“And here I thought you lost the stick up your arse. You tried to kill a Slytherin and only got detention. It’s because Dumbledore lets his little lions get away with everything.”
“It was an accident,” Percy told him.
“Accidents happen all the time,” Flint said, pointing his wand at Percy, who hadn’t even noticed he was holding it. Percy looked across the room to his robes that he took off while he worked in the stuffy room.
Expecting a simple jinx or hex he wasn’t that worried, it wasn’t until Crucio came out of the boy’s mouth that he knew he was in trouble. Pain. Unbearable pain. He heard his bones snapping. The worst thing about the Cruciatus curse was that no matter how much pain you’re in you never pass out. It’s why it’s an unforgivable but Snape’s is not. His eyes landed on Marcus he had dropped his wand and looked terrified, but the curse didn’t end. Soon there was no other thoughts in his mind except pain.
“I want to get out of here,” Terence told Madame Pomfrey.
“You were near death just days ago. I can’t let you go until you are completely healed. Mr. Wood has brought your work.”
“Wood?” He wasn’t friends with Wood and couldn’t remember ever saying more than two words to him that wasn’t on the Quidditch pitch.
“Yes, he’s close to Mr. Weasley, he asked him to bring you the work.
Since he woke up, he had noticed the lack of his boyfriend. That gave him pause. Were they boyfriends? It sounds so juvenile, but their bodies and hormones were juvenile, just not their brains and memories.
“That was nice of Percy. I wish he would come to visit me,” he said bitterly.
“He did the first night you were here. When Professor Snape returned, he told Mr. Weasley it would be best if he didn’t visit you.”
Anger, that’s what he felt. Why did Severus or even Sirius think they could play parent to him now. He was a grown wizard, twice over. He didn’t need or want them trying to parent him.
“He had no right.”
“He’s your head of house, he had every right. You need to get some more rest.”
Just as he was about to argue with her, the doors burst open, and several people came in carrying someone. It took a minute for him to see the person being carried had red hair. Soon he was able to see his face.
“Percy,” he whispered in shock.
“Get him on the bed,” Madame Pomfrey commanded.
Oliver Wood and Calvin Chambers, a 7th year Ravenclaw, set Percy’s shaking body on the bed, three over from him. Pomfrey closed the curtains and asked what happened to him.
“Marcus Flint used an Unforgivable on him. The Cruciartus,” Wood said.
He heard Pomfrey gasp; he couldn’t blame her. Fumbling, he got out of the bed and walked over to the curtained bed. As he moved through the curtain, he saw Percy paler than he ever saw him, that included when he gave birth. How could Flint do this? He was always a rotten one, but he wasn’t a Death Eater. Mostly because his family wasn’t rich, and the Death Eaters looked down on him and his working-class parents.
“Percy,” he said, going to the redhead’s side.
“Listen mate, I kept my mouth shut because Perce asked me to understand. But there is no way I’m going to let you near him after your mate did this.”
“Mate is a strong word.” The first time around they were mates but this time, he realized how he didn’t need friends that bad.
“I don’t care, leave.”
The Ravenclaw took that moment to leave himself. Terence didn’t want to go anywhere but soon Madame Pomfrey was pushing him back to his bed after she gave Percy a potion that made him fall asleep. That was good because all he had seen and heard from the younger man was guttural noises and twitching. Please let him be alright. “I can’t lose you too,” he said to the other bed as he settled back down. With the glare Wood was giving him lesser wizards would be cowed but not him. He would just wait until everyone left.
Raised voices woke him up. He stayed where he was, and he just listened.
“How could this happen? Twice in a week,” a voice he hadn’t heard in a long time said. What was Fudge doing there?
“This isn’t the first-time retaliation has happened in the school walls,” Dumbledore said.
“It’s the first time we’ve had a student use an Unforgivable here in over a century.”
“Where is he?” a loud female voice roared. He recognized it well.
Molly Weasley was frantically rushing towards Percy’s bed, her husband following with their youngest child. He noticed Lucy wasn’t with them.
“Calm down Molly,” McGonagall’s strained voice could be heard. She must be beside herself, a student from her house the victim of an Unforgivable.
“I will not calm down. Tell me what is going to be done with the boy who did this?” she screeched, hurting his ears.
“Mrs. Weasley, Percy is not blameless in this, he attacked another student. If we expel one, we will be forced to expel the other,” Dumbledore said, causing Terence to become angered.
“It wasn’t Terence who attacked him though, it was Marcus Flint,” Mr. Weasley protested.
“It’s the same result no matter who it was. I can’t punish one without punishing the other.”
“But Unforgivables are dealt with by Aurors, not you,” a new voice said. Terence was surprised to hear Charlie Weasley’s voice.
“They have decided not to investigate,” Fudge said.
“This is wrong. My son uses a spell he doesn’t know what happens and he’s tortured for it,” Mrs. Weasley sobbed.
“He didn’t hurt anyone; he was protecting me.”
Terence closed his eyes and looked over at the door. There stood Harry and his friends. Percy wouldn’t like this; he didn’t want Harry’s name to be tarnished. He felt he owed it to the boy for how he treated him the first time around.
“What are you saying?” McGonagall asked.
Terence thought it was time to join the conversation. He hadn’t found out Percy had taken the blame until a few hours after the first time he woke up. He knew why Percy took the blame, he also felt guilty for what he did to Augustus. It didn’t matter that the man was alive now, he had tortured a man to death and that breaks a part of a person. Soon, he would have to tell Percy his own killer confession. The only difference was he didn’t feel guilt about it.
Harry looked at him apologetically as he neared. Terence just shook his head; he didn’t blame him. There was no way he knew that would happen.
“I didn’t know what it was, I looked at Percy’s journal, but he didn’t know about it. He had the curse on there but not what it did. I didn’t mean to hurt you,” Harry said to him, tears filling his eyes.
“I know,” he said hoarsely, his throat hurting from his healing injury.
“Why did Mr. Weasley have a dark curse in his journal? Where did he learn it?” Dumbledore asked him.
“I taught it to him,” Charlie said, causing everyone to look at him. “I learned it when I spent the summer between my 6th and 7th year at the dragon reserve. I didn’t know what it was, I asked Percy because he usually knows everything, or at least says he does,” Charlie said, pain in his voice as he looked at his little brother. Terence knew it was a lie, but Charlie was trying to protect Dumbledore from finding out the truth about everything.
“Harry, why would you curse Mr. Higgs?” Dumbledore asked. Harry was Harry but Terence was Mr. Higgs. He knew where he stood with the headmaster.
“He was trying to stop us from going into the Forbidden Forest,” Harry said quietly.
“Why?” Mrs. Weasley asked, it was the first time she didn’t sound like she was close to crying.
“We just wanted to see what was in there,” Ron said, looking down at his hands.
“They wouldn’t be the first ones to hear forbidden and have to see,” McGonagall said but her eyes were narrowed on the four.
“This is a complete mess. What are we going to do?” Fudge asked.
“Nothing,” a voice croaked out.
All eyes turned towards Percy who looked like he was going to be sick.
“What do you mean nothing? We just found out you’re completely innocent, you need justice,” Charlie said.
“If I was stupid and put down a dangerous curse in my journal where my little brother and sister could get their hands on it, I deserve this. Harry didn’t know what the curse would do, I saw him that night, I couldn’t let him take the blame. They were traumatized. As for Flint, he couldn’t stop the curse, I saw it in his eyes. There is knowing about an Unforgivable and actually seeing it. To him before he cast it, it was just something that he had heard about. The fear and panic by him caused the curse to get stronger and last longer than he knew. He threw his wand down as soon as he saw what it really did. He’s not evil, just dumb.”
“You’re much more forgiving than I would be,” Madame Pomfrey said. “There’s something else but I need to speak with Percy alone.”
“Why don’t we go to my office and discuss our next steps. Come on children, you need to hear this too.”
They all left leaving him, Percy, and Madame Pomfrey.
“Please go back to your bed Mr. Higgs.”
“I would like for him to stay with me,” Percy said, reaching for Terence’s hand. Grabbing it he realized how weak and shaky his grip was.
“If you’re sure. When you came in, I did some tests on you. One was a pregnancy detector charm because of your history.” He guessed someone had told her about Lucy, probably Dumbledore. “It was positive but while you were sleeping the curse was just too much and you lost it. I’m very sorry.”
Terence froze, he hadn’t realized Percy had been with anyone since they got there. Then he remembered last month when he sought solace with him. That baby had really been his.
“Oh.” Percy said, looking confused. “Can you put the Intigo charm on me?”
“Maybe this isn’t the time to make such a big decision,” she said gently.
“I’m fifteen, the charm lasts for five years. There is no way I’m going to want a baby before it runs out.”
He didn’t know why but it hurt hearing him say it. He agreed while they were in school and before Voldemort was taken care of it was dangerous, but it still hurt.
“I can’t do the charm without parental permission,” she said.
“Ask my mum, don’t tell her about the loss just that I asked for it. She’ll give her permission.” Terence thought she would agree too, she knew that Percy’s mind wasn’t that of a fifteen-year-old, but she would need to protect him because his body was still growing, he was lucky nothing bad happened when Lucy was born.
She nodded and left the room.
“How do you feel about it?” he asked Percy. The redhead’s eyes were glazing over, scaring him.
“About what?”
“The baby.”
“Lucy?”
“No, the baby you just lost.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Percy then turned away looking for something. Was it denial or damage from the curse? He guessed he would find out eventually. One thing that he kept coming back to that also hurt was the absence of Severus and Sirius, he guessed they just didn’t care about him. He could really use someone who did right about now.