Nightingale

Haunted

Percy

-

"Percy..." I heard a muffled voice. "Percy." The voice rang clearly now—it was Edmund. I felt him shaking my shoulders, getting my attention. "Percy."

I blinked hard and pulled myself together. It was as if everything had calmed at once. I was back into reality. I took a deep breath. I looked at everyone and they looked worried. It wasn't the best thing to show how big of a deal this was.

"Jackson...I know you're here." Lucius's voice sent chills down my spine. I felt sick to my stomach. My hands were shaking so I clenched them into fists, which didn't help.

I took a deep breath and looked towards the direction of Lucius. I saw that he was still peeking around the wall. I stood next to him and watched Lucius. How did he know I was here? More importantly—how was he here?

I looked at the oldest and he was waiting for me to tell him my next move. I looked at him without looking him in the eye.

"Okay...um—" My voice was shaky. I took a breath. "You have to stay here and keep quiet." My words we're coming out quickly. "If he knows you're here, he'll kill you. Your weapons can't hurt him...not compared to what he has. If...If anything happens...go back to where we stayed last night."

He nodded.

I looked back at Lucius and he was still looking for me. I closed my eyes and took another breath. I couldn't look weak in front of him.

I stepped out of hiding.

"Lucius." I made my voice strong.

He turned to me and grinned.

"Percy Jackson. Finally."

"Why are you here?" I snapped.

"You know why!" He shouted. "You killed my son! You're the reason why Draco is dead!"

The sound of Draco's name made my heart ache. I could feel my eyes welling up with tears, I blinked them back.

"I didn't—" My voice cracked. "I didn't kill him." That was all I could say.

"If it weren't for you, Draco would still be alive!" He yelled. "He even believed that he was in love with you!"

Those words felt like they were tearing a hole into my chest. Carving deeper when he said his name...when he said that it was my fault. But I knew that Draco loved me. And what Lucius said angered me.

"No...No, he did love me." I argued back. "That's why he sacrificed himself—to protect me from Harry."

"You're lying!" He raised his wand.

I took mine out of my back pocket. Before I could cast anything, I heard, "Expelliarmus!"

My wand flew out of my hand and it landed on the ground close to where the Pevensie's were hiding.

"Potter." Lucius said. He smirked. "Now...that's someone I would love to talk about. He told me, you know. He told me what he did to you."

My feet took a step back unwillingly.

Lucius laughed. "He was quite proud of what he did."

I felt my legs start to tremble. I stared at the ground, not looking him in the eye. Why would Harry tell Lucius about that? He couldn't have told him recently, there was no reason to.

"It still haunts you in your dreams, doesn't it?" I heard Lucius. "That night?"

I could feel myself starting to unravel. What Harry did to me was something that I definitely hadn't gotten over. I still battled it every single day. My breathing was starting to become uneven. I closed my eyes and focused on calming myself down. I had to distract myself or else I would break down right where I stood.