"Peter" Weasley

by Bob Rozak

In the last year I've noticed a change taking place in the general view of Percy. People are becoming accustomed to hating him, even loving to hate him. I must ask you to do one thing- remember how you felt the first time you read Order of the Phoenix. Remember that you were as shocked as Percy's family that he would do the things he did. Remember that before you read this book, Percy, though a bit pompous, still seemed like an okay guy.

Remember that even though he was ambitious and wanted to feel important, he was always a part of his family. Remember how concerned he was for Ron after the second task in Goblet of Fire, remember how he selflessly dashed off with his brothers and father to battle the Death Eaters at the Quidditch World Cup. Before Order of the Phoenix, Percy was a good guy.

I'm glad to read that some people are still questioning the change in Percy's behavior. Don't allow the hate that this new Percy has given us to cloud your judgment. Do not fall into the trap!

There is something suspicious going on here! Percy's behavior has changed drastically. We must ask why!

What do we know for sure? Percy is not under the Imperius Curse. JKR has confirmed that he is "acting of his own accord." How do we know this is what she meant? The phrase "acting of his own accord" is taken from the text of Order of the Phoenix, after Harry questions whether Fudge may be under the Imperius curse. Mr. Weasley responds by saying, "Dumbledore thinks that Fudge is acting of his own accord at the moment..." (OotP, chapter 9)

Percy is, without a doubt, not under the Imperius Curse.

Then what is going on? I spent weeks trying to figure it out, and when someone suggested a very logical yet clever answer, all the clues seemed to jump out of the books at me. It seems so obvious that we've missed it completely. And that was the idea behind the plan that has been working very well for Voldemort and his servant. No, I don't mean Percy.

I feel I must point out some things about the writing style of JKR, for those who haven't studied it, and for those few who are unaware of JKR's love for a good mystery. She has left clues in the books, as she herself confirmed, because she wants her readers to be able to figure out what's going to happen next. As I said, she loves a good mystery:

" I had to put in some things because of what's coming in Book 6 and 7...I want you to be able to guess if you've got your wits about you. "
- JK Rowling, Royal Albert Hall

In her writing she repeats certain ideas like the Polyjuice Potion and the Animagus ability. Why? To train the reader what to look for. She always introduces an idea she's going to use later in a simple way, such as McGonagall transforming into a cat in the first book. Later she used the idea in a more complex way revealing the story behind the Marauders, teaching us even more about Animagi. Then she stepped it up a bit with Rita Skeeter, leaving all the "bugging" clues and the appearance of a beetle at every location where Rita mysteriously managed to get a story, giving us a chance to figure it out before Hermione revealed the answer at the end of GoF.

She has trained us in the same way with the Polyjuice Potion. The trio used the potion in a simple way, to infiltrate the Slytherin common room. This allowed us to learn what was needed to make the potion work, how long it lasted, and ways to detect if a person was using it, such as when Harry had to help Ron to walk more like Crabbe.

She used the Polyjuice Potion in a more complex way with Barty Jr, teaching us even more. We learned that the potion can be used over long periods of time if the user keeps drinking it every hour, and that it is necessary to keep the person you wish to impersonate close at hand as a resource for both information and hair for the potion.

This is where J. K. Rowling is stepping the Polyjuice Potion idea up a notch to see if we can figure it out from what we've learned. She left many clues behind for us to spot.

Examine the changes in Percy's behavior, such as his new tendency to never look anyone in the eye. Pay close attention to his mannerism's in OotP, especially chapter 27. Here we find him displaying excitement and hearty laughter, traits that we rarely- if ever- see in the normally dignified, above-everyone-else former Head Boy.

Perhaps one of the most telling clues is the way he is taking notes; he is writing so quickly that his nose is splattered with ink. The page must also be a mess of ink splatters, not nearly neat enough for perfect Percy.

Our first glimpse of Percy in this chapter may have more insight than any other clue. The text reads: "... the bespectacled form of Percy Weasley hovered excitedly beside the wall..."

Not Percy Weasley, but the form of Percy Weasley. Also, in a situation as important as the scene in Dumbledore's office, Percy would normally try to acquire a position at the center of the meeting, to draw importance to himself. Yet here we see him hanging back near the wall.

Other clues JKR left in the text:

In CoS, chapter 12, Malfoy mistakenly refers to Percy as "Peter Weasley." He also states he thinks Percy's trying to catch the Heir of Slytherin "single-handed." Wormtail became single-handed in GoF.

In OotP, chapter 23, the twins on Christmas morning were explaining how they tried to comfort Molly, because Percy hadn't come to see how Mr. Weasley was doing in the hospital. Fred says they told her "Percy's nothing more than a humongous pile of rat droppings."

Percy sent back his Christmas Sweater without a note. (Again, OotP chapter 23.) Wormtail couldn't have attached note or written to the family at all, because it wouldn't have been Percy's handwriting. He couldn't force Percy to write for him, because we know Percy's not under the Imperius Curse.

Percy did write a letter to Ron; Ron recognized the handwriting.(OotP, chapter 14) This is where we find Percy "acting of his own accord" in Order of the Phoenix. All other actions by "Percy" in OotP were not performed by Percy at all.
Percy coded his letter just as Harry coded his letter to Sirius earlier in the chapter. Allow me to point out that this is another instance where JKR teaches us an idea first before implementing it later in a more clever way. Harry's letter to Sirius acts as a tutorial for the letter we read later in chapter 14.

Two clues (though there are many more) in Percy's letter are relevant here: A confirmation by Percy that Wormtail did try to keep him under the Imperius Curse but failed, and a hint at the location he's being held.

Letter clues:

"(...Perhaps that will open their eyes to the kind of petty criminals with whom they are currently rubbing shoulders.) I count myself lucky to have escaped the stigma of association with such people..."

If you don't know what a stigma is, you've missed an important clue. A stigma is a mark or scar. Doesn't that make you think of Harry? How did he get his scar? A curse . Petty criminals/ rubbing shoulders are references to Pettigrew/Scabbers. Notice in the placement of Scabbers in the photo of the Weasley's in Egypt.( PoA chapter 1)

"...if you look at the Daily Prophet tomorrow you will get a good idea of the way the wind is blowing -- and see if you can spot yours truly!"

This contains references to direction and finding Percy . We can't "spot" him, the picture that accompanies the article depicts Umbridge. But we can browse through the article to find a location, and only one is mentioned- giving us the location of where the Daily Prophet interviews took place, the real Percy's location and how he managed to hear about the article. Remember when Draco told Polyjuice Crabbe and Polyjuice Goyle (Ron and Harry, CoS, chapter 12) about the Malfoy's secret chamber below the drawing room floor? We can assume Percy is being held there.

Combine that with Percy's mention of "I feel bound..." in the letter, and we can deduce he is either tied up, chained, or bound by an anti-apparation jinx.

Writing to Ron assured a few things: The letter would get into Hogwarts without ministry interference, urgent information would reach Dumbledore quickly, and someone who might realize the meaning of the letter would certainly read it- Hermione. Percy and Hermione share similar intellects, which is why Hermione's always gotten along with Percy better than his brothers. A letter as complex as Percy's couldn't be decoded by Ron; it was meant for Hermione. She may have even managed some of it on the first reading, before Ron threw it into the fire; her reaction to the letter is oddly different than Ron and Harry's.

Percy sends this letter at night, and makes the excuse that it is because this is a private matter. This is another oddity, if Percy has truly been acting like a power-hungry, pompous git. By sending it at night and telling Ron not to let anyone else read it, Percy misses out on an opportunity to show how loyal and important he is to the ministry .

In this situation, how could Percy have sent a letter, especially using his own owl? There is a simple explanation, and a blunder of Wormtail's. It is very difficult to picture Percy without a quill or parchment on him, so he may have had them when he was captured. During Harry's kidnapping in the graveyard, we saw that Wormtail didn't even bother to search him, he just took his wand. Even if Percy was searched, we know the secret chamber at the Malfoys is full of things that Lucius wanted to keep hidden, so Percy might've been able to find a quill and some parchment anyway.

How did Percy manage to use Hermes? Another blunder by Wormtail. In order to simulate Percy's actions, Wormtail would've been sending letters using his owl. If someone sent a return letter to the Percy imposter labeled "Percy Weasley," Hermes would've taken it to the real Percy. We know owls are smart enough to know their owners, and they can find anyone, even without an address.

How did Hermes get in? Truthfully, there's really no way to know the construction details of the Malfoy's secret chamber. Who knows how many obstructions and openings there are, but the two chambers have one definite thing in common- they're both below the buildings above them. Using only that fact, remember that those who visited the Chamber of Secrets would have been stuck down there without the ability to fly out- as in the case of Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Lockhart, who where pulled out by Fawkes. Percy could simply be in a similar situation, allowing Hermes passage in and out while Percy remains imprisoned.

Why didn't he ask Hermes to come back so he could send another letter? Because Wormtail would have noticed the absence and become suspicious. It wouldn't have been hard for him to figure out where Hermes had gone, and Percy would then risk having his imprisonment moved to another location, destroying any hope of a rescue after his letter made it into Hogwarts.

This theory allows Wormtail to stay hidden and be useful. Even when Fudge gets thrown out of office, "Percy" will still have a job at the Ministry, keeping an eye on everything that's happening there.

Why would Wormtail do this? Lots of reasons.

First, he needs to stay hidden, as he's supposed to be dead. If anyone spotted him, Sirius would be cleared of all charges, which would corroborate Dumbledore's story, and Voldemort was trying to keep his return quiet until he had a good hold on things.

Second, the Death Eater's needed someone to spy on the minister. Lucius was already influencing him, but once Voldemort's return got out Fudge would be kicked out of office and Lucius would have no influence over the new minister. Replacing the minister's assistant , however, would assure a spy even after the old minister was gone, and Lucius was key in getting "Percy" the assistant job. After Percy's horrible screw-up with the Crouch situation, how was it he was able to get such a high position? Lucius, close to Fudge, must've put in a good word for him. If Fudge had merely hired Percy as a spy, he would have encouraged Percy to stay at home.

Third, there is no one in the world who knows Percy better than Peter Pettigrew. He acted as Percy's pet for nearly a decade before Scabbers was handed down to Ron. Wormtail likely knows things about Percy that even his parents don't know.

So what better plan to keep Wormtail hidden could there be? By impersonating (im-Percy-nating) Percy, he stays hidden and makes himself useful.

Does Wormtail have the skill to pull this off? If you listen to the wizarding community's impression of him, no. A closer look, however, reveals that Wormtail has much more talent than anyone thought.

Sirius was thought to be an extremely powerful dark wizard because he blew up a street and killed thirteen people with one spell. It wasn't him, though, it was Wormtail- and he did it with his wand behind his back!

Wormtail's proven he's very adept at concealment and disguise. If this theory is correct, this will be another instance of Wormtail hiding in plain sight.

He also has a great gift for deception and lies. First he managed to fool all of his best friends when he was Voldemort's spy. Second, when he was spotted by Bertha Jorkins, he somehow convinced her to follow him on a walk. As a ministry employee, she should have immediately alerted the ministry that she found Pettigrew alive. Even Voldemort admits that Wormtail was "displaying a presence of mind I would never have expected from him."

Though Pettigrew is a bumbling fool, he has shown instances of great power, talent, and cunning. He has shown his ability to deceive even his closest friends. Wormtail has proven himself an expert at disguise, and it was he who helped Barty Jr. to make the Polyjuice Potion before kidnapping Moody.(GoF chapter 35)

Wormtail's certainly capable of pulling this feat off, but he's still a bumbling fool prone to accidents and mistakes. As Percy, he's made a few already. No doubt he's going to mess up soon enough.

continue with
A Complete Translation of Percy's Letter

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