A/N: Hey, guys! Enjoy some Perciver.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. All rights go to J. K. Rowling.

Percy couldn't believe he was actually going to go through with this. Since when did he trust George enough to let him set him up on a blind date, of all things?

Hot water poured over Percy's hands as he thought, knots forming in the pit of his stomach. Maybe he should cancel. He hadn't been on a date in years, and perhaps going in blind wasn't the best idea. On the other hand, George had assured him that he knew Percy's date well enough to know that he wouldn't push Percy too far out of his comfort zone. But then again, what did George know about comfort zones?

Sighing, Percy scrubbed the plate he was holding harder. It was much too late to cancel. The date was tonight, after all. He knew that he would be miffed if someone cancelled on him without a valid excuse on such short notice. He'd just have to face his fears and go through with it.

Percy rinsed off one plate and reached for another. As he washed that one, he tried to convince himself that he had gone through much more terrifying ordeals than one blind date.

The fact that he couldn't seem to think of any was besides the point. Unlike the Battle of Hogwarts, he would be fighting this battle alone.

Percy added more elbow grease to get at a particularly tough spot of grease. It wasn't that Percy minded being alone. He liked it sometimes, in fact. But some people in his family—and if he absolutely had to point fingers, he'd choose either Bill or George—were insisting that he was lonely. And yeah, maybe he stared at the ceiling in the dark some nights. Maybe he wished from time to time that he had someone to laugh with or vent to about the day he had at work. But that didn't mean that he needed to look for a romantic partner. Everyone felt like that from time to time.

Bill's words when Percy told him that kept ringing through his head. You don't get like that sometimes, Perce. You feel that way constantly.

Finally satisfied, Percy grabbed the towel next to the sink and shut off the faucet. Beginning to dry the plates he'd washed, he thought about what could come from this date.

It could easily go terribly wrong. He could make a fool of himself in front of his date, they could decide that they hate each other, or he could be stood up. More likely than not, his brothers' suspicion that he was "lonely" wouldn't be worth the potential embarrassment.

But it could easily go really well, too. Maybe there would be an instant connection. Maybe they'd hit it off and Percy could finally shake his cycle of eat, sleep, work.

Percy dried the last plate and placed it in the appropriate cupboard. The chance was too good to miss. He'd definitely be going tonight.

Noise bombarded Percy from every side as he stepped into the Leaky Cauldron. Feeling a bit on edge, Percy made his way over to the far left side of the bar, where George had told him and his blind date they would be meeting.

Percy sucked in a breath when he saw the tall, fit figure sitting alone, casting a brown-eyed glance toward the door every now and then. Percy stopped dead in his tracks, hardly registering the people trying to make their way around him. By some absolute, horrific miracle, George had snagged Oliver Wood as Percy's blind date.

He was going to kill George.

Merlin, what was he supposed to do now? He couldn't just leave—standing Oliver up just because Percy didn't know how to handle his emotions would be cruel. Percy groaned internally. Why did George have to pick Oliver, of all people? Surely, there were other single, male wizards out there that Percy hadn't fancied in school.

Shaking his head, Percy walked over to Oliver before he could talk himself out of it, heart in his throat. He pulled out the barstool next to Oliver and took a seat.

Brown eyes met blue and Percy smiled, albeit somewhat awkwardly. "I don't suppose you're here on a blind date, are you?" he asked.

The expression on Oliver's face was one of pure joy. "As a matter of fact, I am. It's good to see you again, Percy."

"You, too. It's been a while, huh?"

Oliver chuckled. "How many years has it been since we graduated Hogwarts? About seven? Merlin, it feels like just yesterday we were all staying up late in the dorm, cramming for our NEWTs." Oliver shifted in his seat so he was facing Percy more directly. "How have you been, Percy? You have a job at the Ministry, right?"

"Yeah, I do. I was recently promoted to Head of the Department of Magical Transportation, actually," Percy said, unable to keep the hint of pride from his tone.

Oliver's eyes widened. "That's amazing, Percy! Congratulations!"

Percy felt his face heat up slightly at the unadulterated look of awe and pride on Oliver's face. "Thanks," he mumbled. Clearing his throat, he said, "You went into professional Quidditch, didn't you? George talks about you and your team a lot."

Percy really didn't need Oliver to confirm that. He knew nearly everything there was to know about Oliver's life as a Quidditch Keeper. Percy read the sports section of the Daily Prophet and bought Quidditch magazines solely to find out more about Oliver. Although he would never admit it, not even to himself, Percy had had a crush on his friend since fifth year.

George probably found out somehow. Percy's jaw clenched as he thought about the last time George had been to his flat. Percy had left him alone for all of five minutes, and when he returned, George was insisting that he be allowed to set Percy up on a blind date. Now that he thought about it, Percy realized that George must have gone snooping and found one of the magazines.

Percy was going to kill him.

"I play Keeper for Puddlemere United. And George talks about you a lot too, you know."

Percy looked at Oliver in confusion. "I didn't know you and George kept in touch."

The corners of Oliver's eyes wrinkled as he smiled. "How'd you think he managed to set me up on this date?"

Pushing his glasses up his nose, Percy replied, "I dunno, I thought he hunted you down or something. I always assumed he knew what he did about what you were up to through the grapevine or from articles, or something."

"Nah, we've been back in touch ever since the Battle of Hogwarts ended." Oliver gestured to the menu behind the bar. "I'm sorry I didn't offer sooner, but can I buy you a drink?"

"I can buy my own drink, Oliver," Percy answered, shaking his head but turning to squint at the menu.

"C'mon, Percy, we're on a date! Let me buy your drink."

Percy made the mistake of glancing at Oliver. The Keeper was pouting adorably, a playful twinkle in his eyes. Merlin, Percy could feel his heart melting at the sight. Sighing, he slumped in his stool and told Oliver to order him a Butterbeer. He then watched as Oliver happily flagged down Tom and placed the order.

Percy was feeling a little confused as he watched Oliver. He looked happy enough to be here, but...hadn't George pressured him to? Surely, he must have known who he'd be going on a date with. He hadn't looked very surprised when Percy approached him. So why didn't he look put out? Percy had known his sexuality during their school years, and Oliver knew his, but wasn't it weird to be forced on a date with someone you considered to be strictly a friend?

Ice settled in the pit of Percy's stomach as a thought suddenly occurred to him. Oliver was just being nice, wasn't he? This was just like him—hiding all feelings of discomfort and putting his friend above himself. Percy felt so stupid he wanted to cry.

The rest of the evening passed in a fairly uneventful manner. They talked, they laughed, and there were no long pauses or awkward silences. Had it been anyone else, Percy would have considered the date to be a major success. But because it was Oliver, he couldn't shake the feeling that Oliver wasn't having as good a time as he was.

The two men walked out of the Leaky Cauldron together. When they stepped outside into the brisk London night air, Oliver turned to Percy. He opened his mouth to say something, but Percy cut him off.

"You knew you were meeting me tonight, didn't you?"

Guilt crossed over Oliver's features, and he looked at the ground. "Yes," he admitted, "I did. I knew you'd probably figure it out, too." He laughed without humor.

"I'm sorry," Percy said. "I feel awful that George pressured you into coming tonight. I mean, I really appreciate that you did come, but I know that it probably wasn't something that you would have chosen to do yourself, and for that I'm really sorry—"

"Wait," Oliver interrupted, sounding confused, "what are you talking about?" His eyebrows were furrowed and his gaze was inquisitive.

"I mean I'm sorry that you felt obligated to come on this date tonight," Percy said slowly, now equally confused.

It was silent for a moment, and then Oliver started laughing—loudly. Tears were gathering in the corners of his eyes, and it took the harshest glare Percy could muster to sober him up.

"Percy, George didn't force me to come here. In fact, George didn't ask me to go on a date at all. I, um," Oliver trailed off, clearly embarrassed, before continuing, "I asked him a few weeks ago if he thought you'd be interested. He was pretty adamant that you would be, though I do admit to being a tad skeptical at first—it is George, after all. But when he said he could arrange a date...Well, I'd be mental to say no to an opportunity like that, now, wouldn't I?"

Percy's mouth felt very, very dry. How fast was his pulse supposed to be, again?

Oliver continued hurriedly. "I mean—I don't mean to sound arrogant or anything, just that I've been wanting to go on a date with you for a while now. But now that we're here, and having this conversation—"

Percy's eyes widened. His heart nearly stopped.

"—shit, that didn't come out like I wanted it to." Oliver took a deep breath and smiled sheepishly at Percy. "You make me nervous," he admitted.

"I do?" Percy asked in quiet disbelief.

"Well, yeah." Oliver was smiling that lazy, lopsided smile that had drawn Percy in so many years ago. "You're pretty intimidating, Percy. You landed a job at the Ministry almost as soon as you graduated Hogwarts, and now, at twenty-six, you're head of your department. You've got everything figured out."

Shoving his hands in his pockets, Percy looked down at the ground. "I've made lots of mistakes getting here," he whispered, ashamed.

Oliver's hand cupped his cheek and guided his face up until Percy met his eyes. "I know," he murmured, "but everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is that you decided to fix them. And, Percy?" Oliver waited until Percy nodded to continue. "I wouldn't ever hold something like that against you. I know that there's more to you than those mistakes. Listen, Percy, what I've been trying to tell you all night is that I've liked you since sixth year. I was really happy when George said that you might like me and that he could set this up. And I'm sorry if he pressured you into coming tonight. It wasn't my intention to make you uncomfortable."

It was easy to see that Oliver was really worried Percy was upset. And maybe, just maybe, Percy thought he looked cute with his eyebrows furrowed like that. "I was a bit pressured into coming tonight," Percy began. He plowed on before Oliver's face could fall. "—but I would have been much more willing than I was if I had known from the beginning that I was meeting you. I've fancied you since fifth year."

"You haven't."

Percy smirked. "I have. And I had a wonderful time tonight, Oliver."

"So did I. Would you...May I kiss you?"

"You may," Percy answered breathlessly, leaning forward to capture Oliver's lips with his own.

This—this was what the future tasted like. Not like success, not like prosperity, not even like satisfaction. As Oliver's calloused fingers caressed his face, Percy could feel acceptance and happiness for the first time in a long time.

Percy smiled against Oliver's lips. This was nice.

This felt like a promise.