clearascountryair: lytefoot: diva-gonzo: lytefoot: harrypotterconfessions: To this day I still belie
clearascountryair: lytefoot: diva-gonzo: lytefoot: harrypotterconfessions: To this day I still believe Percy Weasley has always tried to protect his family from what HE (/the ministry) THOUGHT was the greatest threat. Yes, this. Percy was doing what he thought was right. More than that, when he realized he was wrong, he switched sides. That drive to do what’s right, regardless of consequences, is why Percy belongs in Gryffindor. Caveat: I adore my Prodigal son, immensely. He’s all Gryffindor. But I also think that Percy, even when it was obvious that Moldyshorts was back, alive, and causing problems, was still blinded by his ambition. He could have easily made amends before the last possible second*** but let his pride and ambition stand in the way. It was all ego that he thought he was doing the right thing and only later on that he actually had an enormous chance to do the right thing, including right by his family. First, it was being played for a fool by Barty Crouch, Jr. Then he was being an absolute prat when his father was severely injured - especially trying to get Ron to abandon Harry, thinking him an attention seeker. *snort* Then he willingly let himself be used again, this time as a pawn for the new Minister, all so the Minister could try and use Harry as a positive mascot. (And I fully endorse that the twins, along with Ginny, all claimed to hit Percy in the face with mashed parsnips.) The thing is….. For the longest time, Percy was acting Lawful Neutral - doing what he thought was right - at the expense of looking behind the Ministry Propaganda and seeing what was actually happening - which was immoral incarcerations, impotent actions in crackdowns, etc. What you think is right might be utterly and completely wrong. *** My HC is that Percy ended up being in a perfect position during the Coup as a mole, somewhat like Oskar Schindler***. I write in fic that he documented every bit of atrocity and every illegal execution that the Toad enacted. I write that he was tormented with loyalty oaths to continue his position (since Umbridge wouldn’t trust the Weasley family much, especially one who was still working honorably for the Ministry.) His work and his courage - seeing how utterly wrong the perpetrators of the Coup acted and behaved - made him want to do what he thought was right - staying put and making tons of parchment. Only when the fighting made it to Hogwarts did he go ahead and leave his position to fight for the right side. I think afterward he and Ron would have something important to bond over - but unlike Ron, Percy would have extreme difficulty overcoming his reputation professionally at the Ministry - or his guilt over his myopic hubris towards his parents and family. So however you write Percival, he’s a decidedly complex character with plenty of flaws - and plenty of outstanding traits. Ohhhh I love this. ooooooh I love all of this! I was just thinking this morning about how Percy’s abandonment of his family just doesn’t fit. Like, yeah, he’s ambitious, but he’s still a Weasley. He still values his family. In Goblet of Fire, even when he’s all pompous and climbing the ranks, he still forgets to be Mr. Perfect when it’s about is family: “Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman stood beaming at Harry and Ron as they swam nearer, but Percy, who looked very white and somehow much younger than usual, came splashing out to meet them” GoF, pg 549 (UK paperback) Like, this kid (because, let’s be real, he’s still a kid) has spent the whole book trying to look like he’s The Most Professional Ever and is so sorry for his embarrassing younger brothers, goes splashing in after Ron, even though as a judge he almost certainly knew he was in no actual danger, and holds him so tightly for two pages that Madam Pomfrey has to “rescue Ron from Percy’s clutches” (551). Idk, every time I reread the books, that passage, more than anything else, makes me go “This is a pompous a**hole who pretends to love work more than family but is really, really bad at it.” I just can’t imagine him, barely 6 months later, completely walking out on his family and, even if he does, then not coming back once he realizes the danger is real. Even if he distrusted Harry, I just could never see him full on abandoning his family -- source link
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