Chapter Text
Harry POV
Flashback - Two Days Earlier
It was raining hard when Percy Jackson arrived.
Not just a drizzle—one of those dramatic British thunderstorms that looked like the sky was ready to fall apart. The kind that made you want to sit by a fire with tea and never move again.
I stood under the crooked roof of the Burrow, arms crossed, watching as a taxi fought its way down the muddy path leading to the house. When it finally stopped, a boy about my age stepped out, dragging a weather-beaten duffel bag behind him.
He had sea-green eyes, a calm-weathered look, and a tired expression that said I’ve seen some stuff. Definitely American. Definitely not used to magical England.
This was Percy Jackson—my cousin.
Kind of.
Our mums had been sisters, though I’d only learned about it a few weeks ago, after the war ended. Professor McGonagall had handed me a letter sent through very secure magical channels. It was from Sally Jackson—Percy’s mother. She explained everything: how Lily and she had once played together as children before Lily went to Hogwarts. How she knew what kind of world we lived in. And how her son… might have inherited more than just her stubbornness.
She asked if Percy could stay for the year. Said he was “between schools,” and needed a place to be normal—or at least safe.
Normal wasn’t exactly something we had here, but I said yes.
“Harry Potter?” Percy asked, standing under the pouring rain.
“That’s me,” I replied. “You must be Percy.”
“Yeah. My mom says we’re cousins, or something.”
I nodded. “Come on in. You’ll catch a cold.”
Mrs. Weasley swooped down the moment we stepped inside, fussing over Percy like a long-lost son.
“Oh, you poor boy! Soaked through! In this storm, too—come on, come on, into the living room, sit! Ginny, get him a towel! Fred—stop charming that teacup!—honestly…”
Percy blinked as a towel was tossed over his head and a cup of tea shoved into his hands. He glanced at me as if to ask Is this normal?
I just shrugged. “Welcome to the Burrow.”
“It’s… cozy,” he said after a pause, looking around the warm, chaotic room full of moving photographs, talking clocks, and magical smoke that smelled suspiciously like burnt sugar.
We sat on opposite couches while Mrs. Weasley vanished to “make a proper meal for a boy that thin.”
“So… your mom is Sally Jackson,” I said.
“Yeah. Works at a candy shop in New York. Makes the best blue cookies ever.”
“And your dad?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
He hesitated. “That’s… complicated.”
Fair enough. My own father was a murdered war hero I barely remembered, so I couldn’t judge.
“And apparently, our mums were half-sisters or something,” Percy added. “Which makes you my cousin, I guess?”
“Looks that way.”
He snorted softly. “Great. Another family secret. Just what I needed.”
I glanced at him. “Ever had… strange things happen around you? Things you couldn’t explain?”
Percy arched an eyebrow. “Define strange.”
Before I could respond, a loud crash came from outside.
Another explosion echoed through the Burrow.
Fred and George were testing something new out by the creek—something they claimed was a “shock-proof potion cauldron.” There was an explosion. Of course there was. Followed by a trail of green smoke.
George poked his head through the kitchen window.
“Good news!”
Mrs. Weasley narrowed her eyes.
“No one died?”
George smiled.
“Exactly!”
“GET BACK HERE!”
“Let’s go see what they broke this time,” I muttered.
Percy followed me outside. The rain had stopped, and the late afternoon sun was glinting off the wet grass. We walked toward the creek at the back of the property, the one that wound past the fields like a lazy silver ribbon.
“What’s in those cauldrons?” Percy asked.
“No one really knows,” I replied honestly.
That’s when it happened.
Pigwidgeon—Ron’s overactive owl—swooped down out of nowhere, shrieking excitedly as he circled Percy’s head.
“AH—what the—get away from me!” Percy shouted, flinching backward.
He slipped.
Straight toward the creek.
The creek seemed to hesitate.
Ripples spread across its surface despite the complete lack of wind.
The gentle current slowed… then, impossibly, began to flow backward.
Every fish vanished beneath the surface.
For one suspended heartbeat, the entire stream was perfectly still.
Then—
The creek exploded upward.
Only… he never hit the water.
Instead, the creek rose up to catch him.
A column of water surged upward, moving unnaturally fast, wrapping around Percy’s body and suspending him in midair. It was like watching someone land on a liquid trampoline—except the water wasn’t splashing. It was shifting, responding, protecting.
Percy hung there for a few seconds, suspended inside a glowing orb of water, completely dry.
Even Fred and George—mid-cauldron disaster—stopped to stare.
Then, just as smoothly, the water lowered him back to the ground and retreated into the stream.
Percy landed on his feet, blinking in shock.
“What… was that?” he asked.
“I was hoping you’d tell me,” I replied, wide-eyed.
“That’s never happened before. I mean—stuff happened. But not like that.”
I stared at the creek, my mind racing.
No wand.
No spell.
No magical object.
Just Percy.
I'd seen accidental magic before.
Neville bouncing harmlessly after falling from a window.
Aunt Marge floating away like an oversized balloon.
Magic had a habit of protecting frightened children before they even knew what they were.
This…
This looked exactly like that.
“You didn’t use a wand,” I said.
“Didn’t know I needed one.”
“That was accidental magic, Percy. A strong burst of it. Magic usually manifests that way in untrained witches or wizards.”
Percy ran a hand through his wet hair. “So… what, you think I’m a wizard now?”
“I think you might be,” I said, trying not to grin. “Or at least part-wizard. Maybe even something else.”
He groaned. “Please don’t tell me I have to go to wand school now.”
“Hey, Hogwarts is great,” I said. “Except for the curses. And ghosts. And moving staircases. But you get used to it.”
Percy laughed once, dryly. “Right. Sounds super normal.”
Present Time (Return to Scene)
“So yeah,” I said again, crossing my arms. “That accidental magic with the water an hour ago? Pretty clear sign. You should attend the school I go to. Uncontrolled magic is dangerous, especially for someone untrained.”
Percy stared at me, half-annoyed, half-curious.
“I’ve had plenty of weird things happen to me,” he muttered. “But none of this wand business. I usually just punch problems or splash them.”
I gave him a look. “Well, now you’re splashing magically. You’ll fit right in.”
“You know…” He paused. “Mom was worried I.d hate it here."
“Guess she was wrong.”
Harry smiles.
“You”ll probably regret saying that once school starts."
He sighed dramatically. “Fine. If I go, I want the coolest wand.”
“No promises,” I said. “The wand chooses the wizard, remember?”
“And if it picks me because I nearly drowned myself, I’m blaming you.”
End of the Chapter