Chapter 964: For Himself
Chapter 964: For Himself
On the day Percy became the Minister's assistant, he locked himself in his room, pondering his next steps. He knew he had to pick a side, especially if he wanted to secure his position. Choosing between Fudge and Dumbledore was crucial.
Had Albus Dumbledore truly lost his wits?
Percy wasn't foolish enough to believe that. Anyone with half a brain understood the current state of the Ministry of Magic.
The actions of the "Saint," Albus Dumbledore, had clearly infringed upon Fudge's interests, causing a rift between the once amicable pair.
This wasn't unusual. One only had to consider the ill-advised suggestions Dumbledore had given Fudge. Perhaps Dumbledore himself didn't have any ulterior motives, but it wouldn't be strange for Fudge, as a politician, to interpret them differently.
Presently, Dumbledore was likely to face a series of suppressions, and Percy had no interest in getting involved. Doing so would probably ruin his future prospects. Siding with Fudge was undoubtedly the best option, even if Fudge might step down later. Percy had already secured his benefits.
To cultivate an excellent Ministry official, one had to provide sufficient tempering experiences, and the position of Minister's assistant was perfect for that.
If one aspired to climb higher in the future, networking was essential, but so was personal capability. And to develop those capabilities, one needed opportunities to gain experience and learn from mistakes. The Ministry's resources were limited.
However, the idea of using him as a spy seemed laughable to Percy. He suspected this was another of Fudge's ill-conceived plans. While he was indeed ambitious and eager to climb the ladder, he had never considered betraying his family. If his father were to be dismissed from the Ministry, their source of income would be cut off. How would they support a large family? Percy had four siblings still studying at Hogwarts, each requiring a substantial tuition fee every year. Could they rely on the unreliable Bill and Charlie to shoulder the family's finances?
Don't be ridiculous. Those two could barely support themselves, let alone others.
Every time Percy thought of the empty Gringotts vault, he felt a pang of sadness.
How could his father be so stupid? Every witch and wizard in the Ministry was distancing themselves from Dumbledore. While most of them were probably putting on an act for Fudge's benefit, they should have at least maintained appearances and pretended to fool Fudge first.
If he were truly dismissed from the Ministry, could he expect the Order of the Phoenix to help him find another job?
Ironically, Fred and George, the twins who pestered him about joke product patents, had become the least of his worries. He knew those mischievous rascals were preparing to start their own shop with Albert.
Percy planned to move out of his family home. Once he did, Fudge's hopes of using him to gather intelligence on his family would be dashed. But how could he ensure that Fudge wouldn't suspect him?
Percy didn't want to lose his hard-earned position as an assistant for no good reason. It was crucial for his future prospects, and to succeed, he had to be flexible.
However, he couldn't underestimate Fudge's intelligence either. If he overdid the act, he would likely be found out. Moreover, he had to remind that idiot father of his to be careful, lest he gave Fudge an excuse to dismiss him one day, cutting off their family's income.
At this moment, Percy thought of Albert. He felt that guy might have anticipated this situation from the start. He recalled the last letter Albert had written to him some time ago.
That relationship would have to be cut off for now as well. After all, Albert was currently attracting a lot of negative attention, and he seemed to be well aware of it.
Rumor had it that he had disarmed Fudge, and Amelia Bones had been tricked into leaving the country. The Aurors had searched for her for a long time without success. In the end, she had returned on her own.
"You're all a bunch of troublemakers!" Percy muttered to himself, slapping his cheeks in front of the mirror. A proud smile appeared on his face as he knew it was time to put on an act.
During mealtime, Percy proudly announced his good news to everyone.
The Weasley family, who had been discussing joining the Order of the Phoenix, suddenly fell silent.
"You got promoted?" Fred's face was filled with shock. "They actually promoted you?"
"Why not?" Percy glared at his younger brother, annoyed.
"I thought you'd caused a ton of trouble with the Crouch thing," George said, equally puzzled. This was highly abnormal.
"That was just an excuse they made for themselves," Percy said contemptuously. "Anyone with a brain knows that no one would willingly suspect their boss of having issues. Do they want to keep working at the Ministry? The investigation into Mr. Crouch is over, and they think I have potential, so they promoted me."
The Weasley family exchanged glances, all feeling that something was amiss.
Mr. Weasley, sensing something was wrong, asked cautiously, "What position did they give you?"
"A position in the Minister's office," Percy said excitedly. "I've become Fudge's assistant."
For someone who had only graduated from Hogwarts a year ago, this was indeed a dream job. However, none of the Weasley family congratulated Percy on his promotion. Not long ago, Fudge had flown into a rage at the Ministry, forbidding anyone from having any contact with Dumbledore.
Now that Percy had become his assistant, the whole situation seemed peculiar.
"There's something fishy about this," Mr. Weasley said, setting down his knife and fork as he stared at his son. "I suspect Fudge put you in his office to use you to keep an eye on our family or... to spy on Dumbledore. Did you agree to it?"
The atmosphere in the kitchen turned strange, and everyone held their breath.
"Yes, I agreed," Percy admitted.
"How could you agree to spy on your own family?" Mrs. Weasley glared at her son, upset. She realized that things were taking a turn for the worse.
"Why wouldn't I agree?" Percy looked at his father and said, "Do you know how difficult your situation in the Ministry is right now? Do you know how hard it's been for me because of you? People give me strange looks when they hear my last name is Weasley. Ever since I joined the Ministry, I've been struggling to shake off the negative influence of your reputation. Otherwise, I wouldn't have any hope of getting promoted. I'd be stuck at the bottom forever. Do you know how hopeless that feels? Thankfully, I'm the only one from our family who joined the Ministry; otherwise, how many people would resent you for holding them back?"
Percy ignored Mr. Weasley's increasingly distorted expression and poured out all the grievances he had endured over the past year.
"You didn't even consider my situation, why I haven't been promoted for so many years, or why our family's finances are in such a dire state. Haven't you ever thought about the reasons?"
"Are you done?"
Mr. Weasley slammed the plate in front of him onto the floor and glared at his son. If Mrs. Weasley hadn't held him back, he might have lunged at Percy.
"Percy, you should apologize to Father," Bill frowned as he glared at his younger brother, suddenly feeling like Percy had become a stranger.
"Fudge is already suspicious of you," Percy warned coldly. "He's considering kicking you out of the Ministry. If you lose your job now, what will happen to the family? Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny are all still in school. Do you expect them to drop out?" Percy's voice turned harsh. "Are you aware of how difficult their lives are?"
"Shut up, Percy," Bill interrupted, feeling that his brother was going too far.
"Bill, you haven't experienced it yourself," Percy retorted. "You don't know what it's like to go to school with second-hand books and robes, bearing the brunt of strange looks from others, especially during the first year as a newcomer. I was ridiculed countless times." Percy glared at his father, his eyes flashing with anger. "Don't you realize how embarrassing this is for us?"
Everyone stared at Percy in shock. While what he said was true, they couldn't believe he had the audacity to voice it.
At some point, Mrs. Weasley started crying, and everyone glared at Percy, feeling that he had gone too far.
"I know you all want to join the Order of the Phoenix, but have you really considered Dumbledore's situation? He's already in a heap of trouble. By siding with him now, are you trying to court disaster along with him? It's sheer stupidity." Percy glared defiantly at his father, a cold smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Everyone thinks Dumbledore has lost his marbles. Releasing Azkaban from the control of the Dementors and sending peace emissaries to the giants—who in their right mind would come up with such idiotic ideas? Don't you realize what would happen if Azkaban was freed from the Dementors' influence? And do you truly believe sending peace emissaries to the giants will win them over?"
"Dumbledore has his reasons," Mrs. Weasley interjected, her eyes pleading with her son. "The Dark Lord has returned, Percy. Both Harry and Dumbledore have seen him."
"But there's no proof," Percy countered, his expression turning even more sinister. "The only evidence they have is their word, and that's hardly enough to convince anyone, especially after Dumbledore's foolish remarks. Many now believe he's lost his mind and is unreliable."
"Albert predicted the Dark Lord's return a long time ago, and he said that the wizarding world would be plunged into chaos in the coming years." Fred and George exchanged a glance, then added, "Remember, you were quite close to him, and you should know about his divination abilities."
"Have you seen Albert come forward and publicly declare that the Dark Lord has returned?" Percy challenged his brothers. "No, he hasn't, because he understands that without evidence, spreading such news would be sheer stupidity. Half the wizards in the Ministry are working overtime because of Dumbledore's wild accusations. They're all furious with him for stirring up trouble."
"If Dumbledore truly wanted to resolve all the problems, he should have suggested eradicating all the vicious prisoners in Azkaban and wiping out the giants from Britain, instead of proposing those foolish and impossible ideas that only create more trouble."
"Are you done?" Mr. Weasley slammed his plate onto the floor and glared at his son, his face contorted with rage. If not for Mrs. Weasley holding him back, he might have lunged at Percy.
"I know who I should be loyal to," Percy said, dodging the object his father threw at him. "If you insist on betraying the Ministry and joining that illegal organization, then I no longer belong in this family." With that, Percy stormed upstairs to pack his belongings and Disapparated from the Burrow.
It was only after hearing the telltale crack of Apparition that Mrs. Weasley realized something was amiss. Rushing upstairs, she found that Percy's things were gone.
Percy had left. He had left their home.
"He's gone," Mrs. Weasley whispered, her face crumpling as if she might break down at any moment.
"Let him go," Mr. Weasley said coldly, his voice devoid of emotion. An eerie silence filled the room. "As far as I'm concerned, I never had such a son."
"No, Arthur, you can't mean that," Mrs. Weasley protested, her eyes filling with tears.
Mrs. Weasley prepared to go after Percy, hoping to talk some sense into him. She had a good idea where he might have gone.
In truth, Percy didn't have many places he could go.
The rest of the family quickly finished their meal and gathered in Bill's room to discuss the situation. Before long, they heard more crashing sounds coming from downstairs.
"There's something fishy going on," George stated bluntly.
"What do you mean?" Bill asked, confused.
"Percy isn't an idiot," Fred said, his expression serious. "So why would he do something like this?"
"Why?" Ginny's mind was in a whirl, struggling to make sense of it all.
"Because Percy is a power-hungry idiot," Fred sneered.
"Being the Minister's assistant is undoubtedly his dream job," George added with a sigh. "He's probably been feeling stifled these past few months. You know how Percy longs to become the Minister himself, so… he chose to side with the Ministry because it benefits him. It's his chance to climb the ladder."
"So, he's willing to fall out with Father and turn his back on our family?" Ginny's expression was a mix of shock and disbelief.
"Don't be surprised," George said with a shrug. "He's just picking a side—the one that benefits him the most."
"Didn't Father consider these possibilities?" Bill asked, a strange look in his eyes as he regarded Fred and George.
"He's probably furious beyond belief," Fred replied with a casual shrug. "Don't look at me like that. Spending a lot of time with Albert tends to rub off on you."
"Is that true?" Ron stared at his twin brothers, wide-eyed.
"I suppose so," Fred shrugged again. "Percy has always been greedy for power, so I'm not surprised he'd do something like this."
"Many issues ultimately boil down to interests and benefits," George explained to the others. "The rift between Fudge and Dumbledore is a prime example. Dumbledore's actions threaten to topple Fudge from his position as Minister, and naturally, Fudge can't tolerate that. To protect his position and power, he has no choice but to smear Dumbledore and Harry, denying the Dark Lord's return."
"But…" Ginny began, her voice small.
"There are no buts," Fred interrupted. "Fudge will stop at nothing to retain his position because losing it would severely damage his interests. The return of the Dark Lord concerns all of Britain's wizarding community, but what does it have to do with him? For all we know, he might have stepped down already."
"That's why Albert despises politicians," George concluded with a dismissive wave of his hand. "He always says they have no scruples and will do anything for their own gain."
(End of Chapter)
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