Breaking Protocol {Percy Weasley}

Chapter Sixteen

Reluctantly, Percy made his way back to the Gryffindor tower. Climbing the steps, his face wet with frustrated tears, he couldn't help but hear Niki's threatening words bounce about in his mind. She had nearly attacked the boy, and she would have succeeded if Gabriella weren't there to stop her.

Niki looked so enraged that Percy thought for sure he had met his end.

His end with Clara.

Percy really screwed up, and he knew that. First, he let Penny kiss him at the Gryffindor tower and then he kissed her back. There was no going back and fixing what he had done tonight. No way Percy could find his way out of this mess.

Sighing, Percy climbed the stairs to his dorm room. Gabriella basically had to drag Niki away from him and she ordered Percy and Penny to get back to their dorm rooms. Percy was obviously in no place to tell Gabriella off, being Head Boy Percy didn't need Gabriella telling him what to do. But in this case, Percy knew he had to obey Gabriella if he wanted to see the light of day again.

But did Percy really want to see the light of day again? It didn't seem worth it to the boy if he wasn't able to share the beauty of living with Clara.

When Percy stripped down from his clothes, tugging on his pajamas, he nearly had a heart attack when Oliver sighed from his bed.

"Who knew sleep could be your enemy?" Oliver wondered out loud. Percy stared at him through the darkness, stunned by the fact that Oliver Wood was still awake in his bed. "I used to love sleep, looked forward to it even, but now it has betrayed me." Oliver continued in his a dreamy voice.

"Erm...Oliver? Are you alright?" Percy asked.

"Depends on how you mean by that." Oliver said, sighing. "Am I considering sacrificing myself to the Forbidden Forest? Maybe. Do I want win the World Cup? Of course. Am I going to win it? Not bloody likely."

"Oliver...You still have a chance." Percy began, yawning as he sat down on his bed. Percy had gone almost all day without running into Oliver, and now at possibly the worst time ever he found himself tangled up in Quidditch conversation with him once again.

"We've lost by a hundred points... We've got no head start. If Hufflepuff lose to Ravenclaw and we beat Ravenclaw and Slytherin, Hufflepuff'll have to lose by at least a hundred points. But if they beat Ravenclaw...highly unlikely since Ravenclaw are decent players...though if Slytherin lose against Hufflepuff." Oliver sighed again. "It all depends on he points and we have no guarantee of winning."

Percy just sat there listening to Oliver's ranting, and when it seemed like the boy was finished talking, Percy laid back on his bed and pulled the sheets over her face.

"Just go to sleep, Oliver. Overthinking the situation isn't going to change what happened." Percy said, and a sickening sob erupted from Oliver's bed. Percy sighed, rolling over and attempting to drown out Oliver's cries.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Percy tried to take his own advice but it wasn't that easy. He couldn't stop thinking about ways he could have stopped Penny. How he could have stopped his own hormones. He couldn't help but think how easy it would have been to say no to Penny and never meet up with her. If only Clara had held him up for a little while longer, and maybe Penny would have given up and left thinking Percy had stood her up.

Clara.

Percy joined Oliver in his helpless crying, though it was so soft even Percy himself couldn't hear it. He began to soak his pillow case with his tears, and he had no intention of stopping. He couldn't help it. He couldn't help but feet ridiculously awful about what he had done to Clara.

Sweet, little Clara.

That girl was going to be the death of him, Percy thought as he wiped his nose with his sheets, if Niki didn't kill him first. Percy told himself he wasn't going to get involved with anyone, and that he wouldn't get involved with Penny, but somehow all his plans have changed.

He not only got involved with Penny, but Clara as well, and he hated himself for it. The fact that Percy was focusing more on Clara and Penny now than his school work still didn't make sense to Percy, but he couldn't help but let his mind wonder to the small French girl.

This was dangerous.

Percy was a mess. His life was a mess and he wasn't in control anymore. He let his feelings get to his head, and that was dangerous for a guy like Percy.

But what made Percy's insides twist and his stomach churn, was the fact that by tomorrow morning, he was no longer going to have Clara.

Over time, that French girl had become Percy's safety net. Someone he could fall back on, but without her, Percy was falling and he didn't know how to stop his spinning world.

He was sad, nervous, and angry.

He didn't want to lose her, but like everyone in his life, she was drifting from his grasp.

He made a mistake, and Merlin knows Percy was getting no sleep because of that.