The Dursley's adopted son

Chapter 25

AN: I saw some comments on the last chapter about how excited people are for Percy to meet Harry. THAT IS NOT IN THIS CHAPTER. It will happen eventually, I promise, but Harry is away at Hogwarts right now. I also know absolutely nothing about wrestling, so the structure of the meet is based off of swim meets.

The morning of the wrestling meet, I was so nervous I almost didn't get out of bed. Despite Dudley's confidence in me, I sincerely doubted that I would do well. Never in my life had I been part of a schools official sports team, so not only was I anxious about my own performance, but also what the team would think if I was the reason our school didn't do well? And then, on top of all that, I was also meeting Dudley's parents today. His parents, who were supposedly obsessed with being 'normal,' and who would probably dislike me for things out of my control-- my hair, my skin, my American-ness, my lack of parents.

This was gonna be a nightmare.

Alex and Henry were still asleep, as were most of the orphanages inhabitants. It was the weekend, afterall. Taking one last deep breath to calm my nerves, I quietly climbed out of bed. I had packed my bag for the meet the night before, just cause I knew I would be way too tired and preoccupied to do it in the morning. My wrestling singlet--maroon and orange, horrid and ugly, not to mention uncomfortable,  just like day-to-day Smelting's uniform-- was washed and packed. Dudley said that I didn't have to show up wearing it, as there would be plenty of time to change between arriving and my first match. I also had packed my very own 'Smelting's Wrestling Team' sweatshirt and sweatpants (meant to wear over our singlets during downtime), deodorant, a sweat towel and the lunch Madame Wool had prepared for me the night before.

Smelting's wasn't the school hosting the meet, which meant that I couldn't walk. Madame Wool wasn't able to drive me, but she did give me some cash to pay for a taxi. Taking the taxi alone wasn't a new experience for me, but it was never something I enjoyed. Something about being trapped in a car with a stranger unsettled me. This was one of the times where I wished I had a tube pass, but I didn't really travel enough for one to be considered necessary, and the nearest station was still a pretty long walk away. Luckily the cab ride wasn't too long, and my driver was friendly enough. I thanked them for the ride, and clambered out in front of the hosting school, Stonewall High. It was a public school, and according to Dudley it was a bit of a dump. He seemed to think this gave our wrestling team a leg up in the competition, but I knew from firsthand experience that public school kids could be fierce. (Alexander and Henry, I'm looking at you.)

I arrived ten-ish minutes before the whole team was supposed to meet up, and I couldn't check in or go to Smelting's assigned area until Mr. Vilgar was here to supervise, so I just stood to the side and looked around, hoping to catch a glimpse of one of my teammates. The room was crowded with teams from a bunch of different schools, and parents, siblings, friends. Meet organizers milled about, wearing safety vests over dull gray shirts. Looking around the building, I guessed that gray must be Stonewall High's school color. Yikes. It felt like I was standing there forever, until eventually I saw Piers, which was a bit surprising, as he wasn't part of the wrestling team.

"Hey Piers!" He turned when he heard my shout, and smiled as he made his way over to me. He clapped me on the shoulder when he got close, and started steering me in the direction of the check-in table.

"Percy! Good morning! Where's the team at? I biked over to cheer you guys on, is Big D here yet?"

I was a bit taken aback by his energy and excitement, but he also wasn't the one competing, so he didn't have to deal with nervous energy dampening the mood. Seeing his familiar face and upbeat demeanor helped sooth my own tension, and I responded,

"Yeah, good morning to you too. I don't know where anyone is, I've just been waiting and looking for Coach Vilgar. I didn't know you lived in the area!"