Percy tried Lumos on his first evening back at the orphanage. The cypress wand gave a weak light, then went dark.
He checked the book. The book offered no advice about feeling foolish in an empty room.
"Lumos."
This time, the light stayed.
Percy held the wand above his head. He had a light he could turn on without reaching for a switch.
After everything he had asked John for, that should not have pleased him so much.
It did.
He tried the Locking Charm next. The old chest opened with a click. He closed it and tried again, mostly because success was enjoyable.
The Levitation Charm was less agreeable. His book rose from the bed, turned in the air, and struck his forehead.
Percy caught it before it fell.
"Good. We have established the danger."
He kept practicing.
Water was easier, although using a wand changed how he controlled it. His own power could lift water from a cup. The wand helped him make a small stream with Aguamenti.
He directed it into the basin and stopped before the basin overflowed.
Ms. Hartford knocked at that moment.
Percy looked at the wet towel, then at the glowing wand.
"One moment."
He put the wand in its box. The towel went behind the basin, where she would certainly find it later.
She wanted to know whether he had packed.
"Mostly."
"That means no."
"It means I have made a useful start."
"Make a useful finish before tomorrow."
She left him a sandwich. Percy ate it while sorting his supplies into his trunk.
He put the books on top. He would need them before he needed the cauldron.
On September first, he reached King's Cross with a trunk, a backpack, and instructions that sounded like a practical joke.
Walk through the barrier between platforms nine and ten.
He had seen stranger entrances. Knowing that did not make him eager to test one against his face.
A woman nearby was speaking to a red-haired boy.
Percy knew them from the books before he had heard a name. He tried to put that knowledge aside.
They had not met him yet. He could manage an introduction.
"Excuse me. Is that the way to the Hogwarts train?"
The woman turned with a smile.
"First year, dear?"
"Yes."
"Ron is starting too. Go together, if you like. Keep moving and you will be fine."
Ron looked at the wall. Percy looked at Ron.
"We can blame each other if this hurts."
Ron gave a short laugh.
They moved their trunks into position, then ran.
Percy prepared for a blow that never came. The barrier was gone, and a red train stood beside a crowded platform.
He stopped to look. Ron nearly struck him with the trunk.
"Sorry."
"My fault. Apparently, I needed to keep moving after the wall too."
"Ron Weasley."
"Percy Jackson."
They found an empty compartment. Getting the trunks onto the rack took both of them, and Percy was already warm by the time he sat down.
Ron watched him put the wand box inside his bag.
"Muggle-born?"
"I grew up in a Muggle orphanage."
"Oh." Ron hesitated. "Sorry."
"You did not put me there."
That seemed to help. Ron began explaining his family, which took some time.
Percy asked which brothers were already at Hogwarts. Ron counted them on his fingers, then complained that people usually knew a brother before they knew him.
Percy understood more of that complaint than he expected.
The compartment door opened.
A boy with dark hair and glasses stood outside. He looked tired and uncertain. He looked like a child asking for a seat.
Percy made himself pay attention to that part.
"Can I sit here? The other compartments are full."
"Of course," Percy said. He moved his bag.
The boy sat. Ron stared for several seconds.
"Are you Harry Potter?"
Harry nodded.
Ron looked at his forehead, then stopped himself too late.
Percy leaned back. "I am Percy. That is Ron. We have already survived a wall together, so introductions are progressing well."
Harry smiled a little.
"Was it your first time too?"
"Yes. I had questions about the instructions."
"So did I."
Ron recovered enough to explain what he knew about Hogwarts. Percy listened, adding questions when Harry seemed ready to ask but reluctant to interrupt.
Harry knew almost nothing about wizarding life. Hearing him ask made the books Percy remembered feel less useful.
They had told him what Harry might become. They had not told him how to sit beside Harry without making everything strange.
A girl opened the door before he could think about that further.
"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville has lost one."
They had not.
She noticed Ron's wand.
"Are you trying a spell?"
Ron had been preparing to change his rat's color. He looked less pleased about an audience.
He recited the rhyme his brother had taught him and pointed at Scabbers.
The rat remained the same color. It also remained asleep, which Percy thought was an impressive response to Ron's performance.
"I think your brother owes you a better spell," Percy said.
The girl agreed more sharply. She took out her own wand, noticed Harry's damaged glasses, and asked whether she could repair them.
Harry took them off.
She cast the spell. When he put them back on, the broken bridge was whole.
Percy examined the result from his seat.
"That is useful."
"I learned some spells before term," she said.
"So did I. Mine involved a book striking my head."
She looked at him as if deciding whether he required help.
"I am Hermione Granger."
They gave their names. Harry's caused another pause.
Percy looked at him. "We should put a sign on the door."
Harry laughed this time. Hermione did not seem to understand why, but she had a missing toad to find.
She left after reminding them to change into their robes before arrival.
Ron watched the door close.
"She has opinions."
"So have you," Percy said.
"Mine are less organized."
The train carried them north. A witch brought a trolley of food, and Harry bought far more than any one person could eat.
Ron protested once. Harry offered him a Chocolate Frog.
The protest ended.
Percy removed his frog from its wrapper and immediately caught it before it jumped from his hand.
"Food should not require pursuit."
Ron was laughing too hard to warn him about the card.
Percy looked down at the picture of Dumbledore. The headmaster moved, then left the frame.
Percy knew magical pictures moved. Finding that one inside his food was still new.
He turned the card over while Harry asked Ron about wizard chess.
Ron explained with increasing energy. His pieces apparently fought their opponents, then complained about the decisions that put them there.
"People have invented a game that argues with them," Percy said.
"It is a good game."
"I believe you. I am questioning the need for more arguments."
Harry took another sweet. He looked more comfortable now, with one leg tucked beneath him and his glasses slipping down his nose.
Percy let the conversation continue without deciding where it was supposed to lead.
When the train neared Hogwarts, an announcement told them to leave their luggage. They changed into their robes while Ron complained about the length of his sleeves.
Percy checked his own cuffs. At least Ms. Hartford had seen that part finished properly.
Outside, a large man held a lantern and called for first-years.
"Hagrid," Harry said, already moving toward him.
Percy followed. He had known Hagrid would be large. That was inadequate preparation for standing beside him.
They took the path down toward the lake. Students ahead of them stopped, and Percy understood why when he saw the castle.
Lights filled the windows. Towers rose above the cliffs, and their reflections moved across the dark water.
He stayed still long enough for Ron to touch his shoulder.
"Come on. We will lose them."
They found a boat with room for four. Neville joined them, looking relieved to have recovered his toad and less relieved about the water.
The boats began to move without oars.
Percy put his fingers into the lake. The water answered with a small movement around his hand.
He withdrew it before the movement became visible to anyone else.
There would be time to learn what lived here. Tonight, he could cross a lake without turning it into a test.
The boats passed through ivy into a hidden dock. Percy climbed out, helped Ron steady the boat for Neville, and looked at the doors ahead.
Harry stood beside him.
"Nervous?" Harry asked.
"Yes."
"Good. I thought it was just me."
Percy adjusted the strap of his bag.
They went inside together.