AN: I do not own the Harry Potter universe. I am simply using it for a fic. Enjoy!

Comp: QL Final! Seeker for the Montrose Magpies.

Prompt: Write a story set directly before (1990–1991 school year). Please note, this story must be in the perspective of a student attending Hogwarts in one of those years.

Just Fine

Charlie wasn't sure what to do.

He knew something was wrong; it was obvious in the mousy brown of her hair and how tired she seemed at breakfast. Working out what was wrong was another matter entirely. Charlie had never been good at dealing with people. Animals were easier. They couldn't talk or tell you what was wrong, that was true, but they were less complicated. You knew when you were doing the right thing — but talking with Tonks felt like navigating a minefield.

Maybe it was the fact that her mum was a Slytherin, or that she could change her appearance at will, but she had the best poker face Charlie had ever seen. When she'd dated Sean Brentley and had sported bouncing blonde curls for seven weeks straight, he'd tried to talk to her about it. She'd given him a broad smile and blinked with baby blue eyes, but it hadn't made a difference.

He had tried again in sixth year when they started going to parties in the Common Rooms and Tonks would appear with long legs that made her an inch taller than him, her body curved like an hourglass. He had tried to repeat some of the things his mum said to his sister, about women being powerful and independent, about looks not being everything, but she'd just laughed and sashayed into the crowds of people staring at her with a mix of envy and desire.

It was a worrying pattern of behaviour, how self-sabotaging she could be, and Charlie was more concerned than ever. He knew he had his apprenticeship working with dragons and was excited about the future. Charlie had a feeling that everyone else — Professor Sprout, her Head of House, included — thought Tonks was excited too. She hadn't stopped talking about the Auror programme for weeks, and they'd even started running together in the mornings so she would be prepared.

Except he did know his best friend, underneath all the masks and undertones. He knew that if she didn't get into the programme, she'd be devastated, and Charlie had a sinking feeling that if she started to spiral, Tonks wouldn't come back.

"Hey, Nym, can we talk?" he asked.

Her head snapped up at the nickname she loathed and Charlie forced himself to grin.

He'd babysat Fred, George, Ron and Ginny before. He'd worked with magical creatures while helping Hagrid in the Forest and on a work placement with crups. He could handle giving some advice to his best friend.

Her hair bled red and he nearly bolted then and there.

"Don't call me that, Weasley!"

"Sorry!" Fred shouted from down the Gryffindor table, George laughing by his side. Both Tonks and Charlie rolled their eyes at the interruption.

"Eavesdropping gits. C'mon, it will only take a minute."

She followed him out of the Great Hall, still looking mildly pissed off. With each step, Charlie rehearsed in his head what he wanted to say.

Look, I can see that Evan is manipulating you. I know that…

What did he know? Could he admit to having heard the Ravenclaw Seventh Year bragging about some of the things he and Tonks had gotten up to, during the last Quidditch match? It had been enough to force Oliver to hold Charlie back once their feet had touched the ground.

I know that you're better than how he makes you feel.

No, that sounded patronising.

"Charlie? When you said 'it'll only take a minute', did you mean five? Is everything alright?"

There was colour in her face from the fresh air and abruptly Charlie realised that they were almost at the Quidditch Pitch.

"Sorry, I was lost in thought. Clearly, my feet have a mind of their own."

"Clearly," she said slowly, looking suspiciously at him. "What did you want to talk about? If you're going to have a breakdown about how scary the future is like the rest of our year, I should've brought a flask of tea or maybe some of that weird cocktail that was at the Slytherin party last week. You know, the one that turned your sick bright blue?"

Charlie winced at the memory.

"No, no, it's not that. It's about you and Evan, actually."

He braced himself. Humans tensed up when they were angry too; Charlie had always been good at reading body language. So when he saw Tonks wrap her arms around herself instead of crossing them defensively, tucking her elbows in and hunching her shoulders up to her ears, he knew that something was very wrong.

"How did you find out?"

"Find out… what? I mean, it's pretty obvious with... you know." He was babbling, so Charlie made himself stop and take a breath, trying to organise his thoughts. "It's pretty obvious that you're unhappy. I know you better than you think I do. I just want to help if I can. More than that, I want you to feel confident enough that you don't just have to go along with things if someone says that's what they want. It's not your job to please everyone, Tonks."

She blinked at him and Charlie was just as surprised. It was probably the most succinct he'd sounded in his entire life.

"I mean, my ability lets me —"

"Your ability is part of you. You decide what to do with it; no one else. It's no one else's… business. Okay, that sounded a bit weaker, but you know what I mean."

"Yeah, you almost got there with the inspirational speech," she joked, but it fell somewhat flat. She was still drawn so inward that he reached out to hug her.

"He just gets angry and he's a bit of a prick, basically," she mumbled.

Charlie forced himself not to react. The last thing she needed now when she was finally opening up was for him to scream blue murder. He kept his voice calm and low like he had when he and Hagrid had helped a unicorn foal last month.

"I don't know what to do," she said after long moments of hiding her face in her hands. "I don't know how to leave him."

Charlie bit his lip. He felt a wave of protectiveness as he held onto Tonks' shaking hand and he knew, he knew, that he would do anything to help her. She had been his best friend since the day they'd first rode the Hogwarts Express together.

"I'm going to help; we'll figure it out," he said. "And if he dares to do anything, I will not hesitate in punching him right in his smarmy face."

Tonks let out a soft snort and Charlie noticed that the ghost of a smile flickered across her face. He grinned triumphantly, throwing his hands into the air in celebration with a cheer.

"Success! I made you smile!"

She punched him lightly on the arm, mumbling a 'shut up', but the smile on her face grew and Charlie knew he'd helped. That hadn't been as hard as he'd thought this morning when he'd been practically pulling his hair out worrying at the breakfast table. But when it came to family, and Tonks was exactly that, he would do anything to protect them. Anything to make them smile when they felt down. One way or another, Tonks and Evan's relationship was going to end, and he'd be there every step of the way to support her.

Charlie nudged Tonks with his shoulder. "Let's go take him down a peg."

"Or ten?" Tonks suggested.

Her hair changed to her favourite, vibrant shade of pink and Charlie knew that everything was going to be just fine.