Percy swallowed hard, the lump in his throat threatening to choke him. He was doing this for them, to protect them. He had to remind himself of that, but the pain of cutting himself off from his family—the family that had always been there for him, even when they didn't understand him—was unbearable.
"How— how will I avoid my dad?" Percy asked. "He works at the ministry too."
"He works in a different department, Percy. You won't see him much." Dumbledore offered him an encouraging smile. "Besides, even if you encounter him it wouldn't be too hard to simply ignore him."
"Have you told them yet?" Percy asked, barely holding back tears.
"Oh, no Percy." Dumbledore's smile faded. "They can't know. The only two people who will know is you and me. You'll need to orchestrate a fight or something and estrange yourself."
"What?!" His voice came out in a high-pitched squeak.
"It's the only way."
After nearly five minutes of silence, Percy finally came to a hard decision. "I… I understand, sir," he said, his voice thick. "I accept the condition."
Dumbledore nodded once, his expression serious but approving. "Then the path is clear. The work will be taxing, Percy. The loneliness profound. The decisions difficult. You will be faced with choices that will challenge your very morals, But your courage and vigilance will serve a cause far greater than any individual. There will be no glory, no recognition. Only duty."
Percy rose from the chair, his body trembling as he stood. He felt as if the weight of the world had just settled on his shoulders. Every step forward now carried risk—secrecy, lies, the constant fear of discovery—but beneath the fear, something else was burning. Determination. He had made a choice, and now there was no going back.
As Percy walked back through the Leaky Cauldron, the noise of the pub seemed distant, almost unreal. People were laughing, talking, going about their business—but Percy couldn't hear it. His mind was elsewhere, stuck in the dark corners of the choices he had just made. Nothing would ever be the same again. He was no longer just Percy Weasley, the ambitious Ministry employee. Now, he was a secret agent in the heart of the Ministry, a pawn in a game he didn't fully understand.
He wasn't sure how long he stood there, just staring at the ground, the weight of his decision pressing down on him, But eventually, he straightened up. He had a mission now. A secret mission, one that would take everything he had, but one that he couldn't back out of.
The road ahead was long, and the sacrifices would be many, but Percy wasn't afraid anymore.
He was terrified.