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Disclaimer: Don't own 'em. She does. Yep, by 'she' I mean J. K. Rowling. So, don't sue, please?
Author's Note: This is a sister story to "Watcher" by Laural, which is part of her "Descent into Madness" series. If you're interested in reading more on this, go here.
I sigh as I see Percy staring out the window. I glance at my lover, and see him watching the street below. I can tell what is happening by the intense look on Percy's face. "Why is she here?" Try as I might I fail to keep the frustration out of my voice.
I have my arms folded across my chest; my entire body is tense with outrage and betrayal. As Percy turns to face me, I see the sadness in his eyes and my heart aches for him. "It must be time again," Percy tells me, his voice soft. I know that he refuses to speak up for fear of breaking.
"Why do you go?" I plead with him, just as I do every time he allows them to do this to him. "Why do you help?" I want to understand but something in me refuses to listen to the reasons he gives me. "She should go insane, slowly and painfully. It's penance Percy, consequence for her decisions." There, I've said it. I see him flinch softly, turning from me to stare out the window again.
"Then what is mine Oliver?" I hear his soft rebuke and feel like I've been slapped. It's times like these that I just want to take him in my arms and never let go. Rush him away into the night and to never look back.
Before I can say anything else, he turns to regard me again. "She's here, love."
Shaking my head, knowing that, once again, I've lost I turn to walk from the room. "I'll be in the bedroom." I walk into the bedroom but don't close the door. There is some part of me that feels that closing the door is the same as Percy closing himself off from me and I refuse to do that. I won't abandon him, no matter how much it hurts me to watch him do this.
I love him too much. It's in this moment that I understand why he does it. Love. The same reason I stayed with him and eventually give in to his arguments. Love makes us do strange things, even when it means hurting those we are close to. I hear the door open and close softly.
I hear her come into the room, the sharp click of her heels echoing loudly in the small flat. I hear only silence for the moment and then she speaks. "Where's my brother-in-law?" Hearing the sarcasm in her voice I stiffen, my hands clenching into fists.
"Please, don't tease Ginny," Percy tells her. I wait for her response but am answered only by silence. Not wanting to hear anymore, I walk over and stare out the window into the courtyard below. Looking down I can see others out. The sun is shining and the birds are singing. The rest of the world goes on without a care in the world, completely oblivious to what has happened in the Wizarding world in England. The few witches and wizards that have ventured out today are going about their tasks briskly.
I watch a witch hasten along with two children in front of her as I hear the front door close. He's gone again, to see her. Feeling a foul taste rise in my mouth, I swallow convulsively to hold back the tears that come once again. Sinking onto the bed, I stare out the window and see the sky, where I long to fly, knowing that it too is forever lost to me.
*&*&*&*&*&*
I sit in the living room, a fire lit in the fireplace, chasing away the chill that has come with the night, reading a book. I hear the footsteps on the stairs as he returns home. His walk is slow and labored. Today was hard. Rising from the sofa, I wait for him to come inside, knowing that he will need me. It's on days like this that he usually comes in and begins to kiss me feverishly, tearing at my clothes in his haste. We always end up in the bedroom, sex coming at a feverish pace in his desire to feel something…anything in those moments, to show him he's still alive.
The door opens and I watch Percy stumble through the doorway. My throat tightens as I take in the swollen eyes and the blotched face. He's been crying on the way home. "Oliver…I…" I hold my arms out as his voice breaks, taking his slight weight as he collapses into my embrace.
I don't even have time to fold my arms around him as the wrenching sobs come forth. Feeling him sag in my arms, I allow both of us to sink to the floor and wonder once again, why he does it.
Love.
And hope.
And a promise made twice, meant to be kept.
END