Chapter 1

Percy woke to the strands of pale gray light that filtered through the blinds of Audrey's flat. He was alone in her soft bed, his body half covered by the duvet. He could still smell her scent on the pillows and he hugged one closer as he squinted and tried to make out the blurry numbers on the alarm clock. It was after 10:00. He never slept this late. Well, he hardly ever slept this late. He had a vague memory of her leaving early this morning. She had said she would be back by lunch and he supposed he should be up and showered by the time she returned, instead of lounging here in this cocoon they had created.

He slapped his hand around the bedside table and found his glasses and the room came into clearer focus. The minute he got up he would have to go in that God-awful loo. Audrey's loo was so tiny that he couldn't stand up straight in the shower, the water was never hot - except in the toilet for some bizarre and uncomfortable reason. In truth, her flat was smaller and more run-down than his. Still he loved it here. He loved the yellow of her walls and the shelves filled with brushes and paints. He loved her drafting table beside the window and he loved the feeling of resting his chin on the top of her head and watching her sketch as the cool breeze blew through the window. He loved sitting on her floor and eating take out – she never cooked – and talking as the sounds of Diagon Alley vibrated below them. Most of all, he loved how they made love here, free and unafraid with nothing from the past to haunt them.

It was a bit of a shame, he thought. His flat wasn't cheap, but as the weeks passed he was finding that it was almost just an extra closet or a place to drop his unwanted files from work. This wasn't the way he had thought things would be – not that he was ashamed – it just wasn't what he had always pictured. In his childhood, he had imagined something much more formal, a slow and elegant courtship. But somehow after the war, the world of slow and elegant seemed long gone. Moreover, he couldn't bear to be away from her one moment more than necessary.

There was a tapping noise at the window. He sat up and saw a small grey owl sitting on the windowsill. He scooted toward her still holding on to the sheets and cracked the window so she could hop inside. She flew across the room, landing on Audrey's drafting table and surveying him snootily. "Alright, alright. I'm getting up," He grumbled as he reached for his shorts. Stumbling over, he retrieved the letter from the little owl's pouch. It was from Audrey.

Percy,

The festival is great. Making lots of money off Muggles! Won't be home for a while, as things are busy. Love you terribly. We'll celebrate tonight and I promise to make it up to you.

Audrey

Percy sighed. One thing he loved about this girl was her work ethic. She was constantly working on some project and she treated money with the careful respect that his mother had taught him.

He was just shooing the little owl out the window when there was a knock on the door. Grabbing his clothes from the floor and his wand from the bedside table, he stumbled toward the door managing to get his pants up before doing a transparency charm on a small area at his eye level. He unlocked and opened the door when he saw George standing out in the hall.

"So have you just moved in with her?" George smirked.

Percy shrugged, "No not really."

"Right. So how many nights a week are you over here?"

"Don't know. Not keeping count."

George strode in and plopped down in the unmade bed. "I think you've moved in with her."

Percy sighed and headed for the loo, almost banging his head as he stepped inside. "And so what if I have?"

George groaned and then fell back into the pillows. "Where is she, by the way?"

"She's selling her art at a Muggle festival this weekend," Percy called from behind the door.

"She can't use magical painting on Muggle's can she?"

"No, she just sells plain old Muggle paintings, but if it's going well, she can make some good money."

George smirked. "So, she's out working and you're sleeping late this morning. That's a switch. Did you have a busy night, Percy?"

"I'm ignoring that."

George laughed and Percy ducked out from the bathroom still wiping his hands on a towel, and then pointed his wand at the coffee pot, which began to bounce on the stove as two mugs sailed down from the overhead cabinet. "So, George, to what do I owe the honor of you hunting me down at my girlfriend's flat?"

"Hey, who says I don't just want to visit with my older bro. You know, catch up on all the alluring details of his life?"

"Doubt it."

George paused and then stuck his hand down into the pocket of his orange cargo pants. "Lee Jordan had two extra tickets to see Puddlemere and Chudley play this afternoon. I wondered if you might want to go."

Percy smirked. "Me? Why didn't you invite Bill? Or Ron? Or Harry? Or…"

"They were all busy."

"So I'm your last resort."

"Pretty much," George nodded and took the cup of coffee that floated toward him. "It's okay. You're probably planning something with..um…' he snapped his fingers forgetfully.

"Audrey." Percy finished. "She'll be gone all day, so…"

"So?"

Percy looked over at his younger brother. He was getting better. It had been a long and painful year, but they were all getting better.

"So sure. Why not?"

**

The village of Puddlemere was a sleepy seaside town with a population of 72. There were four large wizard families who had multiple homes a short distance down the coast, each family having a separate little inlet where they docked their boats. The quidditch stands were unusual even for the wizarding world as they were built into the side of a cliff and Puddlemere home games always occurred out over the ocean with the waves pounding below. Few boats came near this dangerous stretch of water and those who did would not be able to see the crowds, though their ears might mistake the sounds of the crowds for a roar of waves on rocks.

The two brothers carefully navigated the wet wooden stairs that led them slowly down the side of the cliff. The day was hot and the spray of the ocean was cooling. The glare of the sun and the taste of the salt against their sticky skin seemed to call for extra bottles beer. They stood and cheered for Oliver who was put in as the reserve keeper after two hours and made the winning save for Puddlemere.

"I'm starving," George said as the crowd filed back up the steps or simply disappeared on the spot.

"Me too. There's got to be a pub around here somewhere," Percy said, as he did a quick drying charm on his soggy pants and shirt.

There was exactly one wizard pub in Puddlemere, The Sailing Sieve, and it was practically deserted, as crowds of fans seemed to be portkeying to friendlier drinking spots.

A surly fat wizard with a salt and pepper beard sat behind the bar and three old crones were playing cards at a table in the back. They all looked up and starred at Percy and George.

They nodded to the bartender and took a seat in a corner booth. The old man cleared his throat and an old woman with a dirty apron and tangled gray hair appeared at their table. She starred at them without saying a word.

"So," George smiled at her, "what's good to eat? My brother and I just came from the Puddlemere game. We could eat a hippogriff."

"Don't 'ave none 'ere, love," the woman replied. She was missing several teeth.

"You don't have food here?" Percy tried to clarify.

"Nyaah, don't 'ave 'ippogriff. Ministry 'o Magic said n'more to the 'ippogriff."

Percy and George looked at each other. "What do you have?" George asked slowly.

"Stew."

"We'll try that," said Percy quickly, "and why don't you bring us four beers."

The stew was edible. Percy was pretty sure it was something out of a can. He was beginning to feel slightly light-headed from the beer and when the three card-playing crones disappeared, he and George were the only two in the pub.

"Perce, can I ask you a personal question?" George looked down at the bottle in his hand and picked at the label. "Whatever happened between you and the other girl?"

"What other girl?" Percy looked at him quizzically.

"You know, your old girlfriend, Penelope Clearwater."

Percy looked shocked. "You mean you don't know?"

George shook his head, "Well not really. I mean we always assumed…"

"That she dumped me?" Percy's voice was unemotional.

"Well," George shifted in his seat, "Fred and I had a bit of an argument, he felt that she dumped you and I said that I figured you were so wrapped up in the Ministry and your career that you dumped her. We never knew…"

"Fred was right," Percy said flatly. "It started that summer right after Hogwarts. It's all sort of a long story."

George looked around the deserted pub and shrugged. "I've got time."