"Miss Williams, you may go." The headmaster said as soon as the two of them entered the room.

"With all due respect, headmaster, Percy has requested that I stay with him. Something about his inability to speak." 

Livia was determined to stay, something that Percy greatly appreciated. She wasn't just talk, she followed through. 

"Very well Miss Williams you may stay." 

-- Time Skip--

"Well that was Headmaster Dumbledore. He's soft on Harry. What do you think of him?" Liv asked. Percy shrugged his shoulders. The man reminded him of Chiron. 

"I suppose that's one way to look at him. Personally I like him. He's pretty nice to us. Anyways, are you feeling better about being here now?" 

Percy nodded but he wasn't sure if that was the truth or something he agreed to because he didn't want to make the pretty girl in front of him worry.  He followed her silently to the Hufflepuff common room, marveling at how simple it was compared the Slytherin dungeon. Liv let him know that the right staircase led to the boys dormitories and that he'd find his stuff there. The left one led to the girls and was spelled so boys couldn't climb them. 

He slowly ascended the stairs and gasped at how extravagant the beds were. Four poster beds with curtains was a luxury he'd never known in Manhattan. He found his stuff, all that he cared for back in the states, on the end of the bed nearest the door. exhausted, he slipped into plaid pajama pants and a simple shirt, the way he always dressed to sleep, and crawled under the sheets, making sure to close the curtains. He skipped dinner, probably a bad idea, but he just didn't want to go, and tried to sleep. 

Unable to sleep, Percy thought about all the things that had happened since he died. He had new friends, a new home, a new life. He was excited to try magic and he'd heard kids talking about a lake, and water was somewhere Percy longed to be more than anything. He thought about taking Liv there and having a picnic and swimming. Hold up, Liv. He thought of Liv, not Annabeth. And he wasn't angry or sad about it. Percy sat up and rubbed his eyes. He silently slid one of the curtains aside and fumbled in the dark for something to tell the time with. When his eyes finally adjusted to the dark, he saw the outlines of everyone else in the dorm sleeping. It must have been some dream to have missed everyone shuffling about. He threw on a sweatshirt and a pair of socks before heading down into the common room. 

Standing by the fire, motionless, were Nico and Will. Percy stopped at the base of the stairs before continuing to the fire, taking a seat in front of it. The ghosts didn't say anything. They didn't even resemble the ones he had seen when Nico was eleven and trying to talk to Bianca, or the ones he'd seen in the dining hall after the sorting. The longer they lingered, the harder it was for him to breathe. Percy felt the tears well up in his eyes and he squeezed them shut, but a few slipped down his cheeks. He was adjusting to life here, he was, but there was something about losing someone he'd failed a long time ago and failing him again. 

Percy pulled his legs to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, his forehead resting on his knees. His shoulders started to shake, and no matter how hard he tried to stay silent, anyone could hear the faintest sound coming from him. He wanted to tell the two boys he was sorry. Especially to Nico whom he parted with on bitter terms. But them standing there coupled with his desire to amend when he couldn't speak only made him cry harder. 

He must have fallen asleep in front of the fire because when he woke, it wasn't in a bed. Liv was shaking him softly, telling him that he had only a few minutes left to get dressed before breakfast, which was earlier due to an announcement being made by Headmaster Dumbledore. Percy numbly walked up the stairs to change.