He still dreams about her. Some days it will be a memory in which he will give up anything to experience again, other days it will be a nightmare in which she is in danger. He will be yelling for her to run, only to wake up and find out that she isn't really here. He doesn't know which one is worse.
Her last words had been "I love you". He didn't have the time nor the energy to say anything back, or even to stop her. A blinding white light and Jacob's screams of her name were the last things he remembered before his eyes closed.
—
"What if it's a real dragon egg? How are we gonna raise it?" she asked. They were sitting together on the side of the Great Lake, occasionally throwing cereal to the lake to feed the Giant Squid.
Charlie grinned exuberantly, the thoughts of seeing an actual dragon making him giddy from excitement. "Well, it needs a lot of heat to be able to hatch," Charlie started. He turned to look at her and smiled playfully. "We have a fireplace in the common room."
She stopped throwing cereal, and gaped at him. "I mean, I know we aren't exactly the best rule followers, but raising a dragon in the common room? We're gonna get found out in no time!"
"Okay, how about we ask Hagrid for help? He has a fireplace in his hut."
Jade moved her hand to her chin. "Hm, yeah. I think he'd be more than happy to help us raise a dragon," she said, nodding. "What are you gonna name it?"
Charlie hadn't really thought about it, and stared at her. She waited for him to speak, and continued to watch him with those ever changing blue-green eyes of hers. Her silver hair glinted in the sunlight. An idea came to his mind. "How about this: I'll name it if it's a girl, and you'll name it if it's a boy. Deal?"
She laughed, a melodious sound that filled Charlie with warmth. "It kind of feels like we're having a kid together. Do you already have a name in mind?"
"Yeah," he paused, waiting for her to really focus on him. "It's Jade."
She smirked at him. "Cool, then it's Jade Jr. if it's a girl, and… What about Charlie Jr. if it's a boy?"
Charlie grinned. "Sounds great."
—
"I love you."
I love you too.
Charlie wakes up in St. Mungo's with no recollection of what happened. Bill is sitting next to his bed, reading a newspaper.
"…Bill?" he whispers.
Bill gasps and drops his newspaper. He stares at him with wide eyes before finally recovering. "You're finally awake. How are you feeling?" he asks.
"Thirsty."
Bill moves to pour water for him. Charlie follows him with his eyes, and that's when he notices a dragon scale on his bedside table.
Wait, a dragon scale…? Who…? Where…?
I love you.
He feels his stomach going cold. He moves to sit down, and faintly hears Bill saying something, but it isn't important.
He asks in the faintest voice, almost afraid of the answer. "Bill, where is Jade?"
Bill frowns. "Who?"
Charlie feels like his heart is going to explode. He tries to calm his breath. "Where is Jade?" he repeated, this time in a louder voice.
Bill looks genuinely confused. "Charlie, I don't know who you are talking about…"
"Stop it, Bill! It's not funny! WHERE IS SHE?"
Bill stands in stunned silence, shocked at his outburst. "Charlie, I honestly don't know who you're talking about," he exclaims carefully. "Let me just call the healer, okay?"
Bill walks briskly out of the room and returns not a minute later with a mediwitch. She casts a spell on him and he feels himself drifting into unconsciousness.
When he wakes up again, the whole gang is there. Except her.
"Hey, bud. Are you feeling better?" asks Andre.
Charlie feels his chest tighten and he just can't hold it in anymore. His eyes blurs, and he feels the tears start falling. How could she do that?
Andre moves to put his arms around him. "Shh, we are all here. We are okay. You are okay."
But she is not okay.
Jacob's room is located two doors down from his room. Rowan had told him earlier when he asked. She questioned why they were together with Jacob in the first place. She was sure that she was missing something, but no one had any answer for her. She kept saying that it was really important, and she looked really devastated.
Charlie said nothing.
When it is past midnight, he sneaks out of his room to go to Jacob's room. When Charlie opens the door, Jacob doesn't even bother to look. He is awake, sitting on his bed and staring down at his hands. Unlike Jade, Jacob had jet-black hair.
"Jacob, I still remember her." Charlie starts.
Jacob turns to look at Charlie, his eyes widening. Jacob has similar blue-green eyes as Jade, and it pains Charlie to look at them being so empty.
"You do?" he asks softly.
Charlie nods.
They begin to mourn for her together. The two people in the whole world who still remember her.
—
Charlie received his letter from the owl in the Great Hall. It was sealed with a dragon-shaped wax, and he knew exactly where it was from. Dread filled his stomach. This was his lifelong dream, what if he didn't get it? What's the point then?
"Charlie, are we still on for the library?" asked someone from behind him.
Charlie turned around to see Jade. She must have sensed his unease, because she moved to sit beside him. "What's wrong?" she asked, looking concerned.
Charlie just motioned to the letter in front of him.
"Is that… from Romania?" Jade took the letter and inspected it. She handed the letter back to him. "Open it!"
"I can't. What if they reject me?"
"There's no way that would happen, Charlie! You've worked harder than anyone else to achieve your dream!"
"Well, you don't know that. Maybe there's a better candidate." Charlie started looking downcast, what if…?
"Charlie, Charlie, look at me." He slowly looked up to her. Jade placed her hand on his cheek, and directed him to look at her. "You trust me, right?" Jade continued.
Charlie nodded.
"Then believe me when I say you'll be an amazing dragonologist, okay?" Jade touched his hand, and linked their hands together. "I'm here for you. Let's open it together." Jade looked at him with determination. In this lighting, her eyes looked greener than blue, and it reminded him of an Antipodean Opaleye and its multicoloured eyes.
Jade slowly released his hand. She nodded at him, and Charlie took the envelope. He broke the seal and slowly took the paper out.
Dear Mr. Weasley,
It is with great enthusiasm that we confirm your acceptance in the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary.
The rest of the letter was a blur.
"Well?"
Charlie was so ecstatic that he didn't even think when he hugged Jade.
"Charlie?" asked Jade uncertainly, although she did hug him back.
He released her and laughed. "They accept me, Jade! I'm a dragonologist!"
Jade smiled brightly. "See? I told you! Honestly, what were you scared for?"
They laughed together, and Charlie felt like there wasn't anyone else he wanted to be with right now to witness his lifelong dream becoming true.
She continued, "Don't forget about me, okay?"
"I won't! Of course I won't! I told you, you'll be the first person I invite to Romania!"
—
Jacob is the first person he invites to Romania.
"A dragonologist, huh?" Jacob says while observing the house. It's a very small cottage with only one room, consisting of a sofa in front of the fireplace, a kitchen at the far back with a small dining table, and a bed on the other side of the living room. Charlie doesn't need much. He lives alone anyway.
Jacob moves to sit on the sofa. He has silver hair now, in contrast to his black hair when Charlie saw him at the hospital. He remembered Jade telling him that Jacob liked to use Colovaria to have the same hair colour as her. She kept a picture of both of them together on her nighstand in her dorm.
"You know," Jacob starts, "She used to be obsessed with dragons." He smiles melancholically, and Charlie will eventually learn that it is a smile Jacob reserves only for her. "I used to read stories to her when she was a kid, and she always insisted on stories which involve dragons."
Charlie sits on the other end of the sofa. "We went on a dragon egg hunting once. We paid almost 500 galleons to a dodgy wizard, and it turned out to be an acromantula egg."
Jacob laughs, a rough sound that was unlike Jade's. "Tell me more!"
It becomes a routine. Jacob regularly visits Charlie after each curse breaking adventure. Charlie tells him about her school years, and Jacob tells him about her childhood.
They reminisce about her together, but he can't replace her. No one can replace her. Charlie wishes more than anything else that she is here.
—
Charlie has only ever gone on a date with three people in his whole life. His first date was on a dare from Billingsley. He set him up with Hufflepuff girl. She was nice, but Charlie wasn't really interested, so there wasn't a second date. Then he started hanging out with Jade, multiple times that he had lost count. They were never really an official couple, but he wouldn't be exaggerating when he says that she is the most important person in his life. The third time is with a girl from the sanctuary. She asks him out in front of all the others. Everyone is cheering, and he doesn't have the heart to say no. He agrees on one date.
They go to a muggle bar in the city. He lets her decide what to order. She goes on to talk about how she is a muggleborn, and that what she orders is her favorite drink, and Charlie doesn't really remember the rest. He tries to humour her, but it is clear that it is a one-sided conversation.
She must have sensed his disinterest, because she asks, "Do you like anyone?"
Charlie hesitates a bit, before he finally answers, "There was someone." He subconsciously reaches for his necklace.
She doesn't say anything, and continues to stare at him. He takes that as a prompt to continue.
"I liked her," he pauses. Her voice echoes in his head: I love you. "I think she liked me back."
"So you guys have never dated, like, officially?"
"…No."
"Have you ever considered that it's romantic because it never happened?"
Charlie considers himself to be a patient man, but he bristles at what she said. No one can mess with what they had. They loved each other, and that was real. Even if what she said is true, it doesn't change the fact that remembering her brings a lot of comfort to him. It doesn't change the fact that the memory of her laughs is what he uses to summon his patronus. It doesn't change the fact that if anyone ever asks where he would rather be, he would answer sitting at the side of the Great Lake with her. Maybe what never happened between the two of them is all the romanticism that he ever needs.
Charlie never goes on another date again. Those memories are real, what he felt and still feels is real, and she is definitely real. And that is enough for him.
—
Jacob doesn't really know why Charlie retains his memory. He thinks he retains his own memory because he had spent years trapped in the Vault, so he has developed some sort of immunity to its effects. Charlie, however, has no logical reason to remember.
Of course, Jade's last words still ring clear in his ears. She loved him. Maybe it's because her last thoughts was of him? What was their relationship anyway?
"Charlie, did you love her?" Jacob abruptly asks.
Charlie is cooking, and he has his back to him. Upon his question, Jacob can see that he stiffens. He stops stirring the pot. "I did," he says, without turning back. "I do," he continues in a softer voice.
"Maybe that's why," says Jacob absentmindedly.
Charlie turns off the stove and takes the pot to the dining table. He takes a seat facing Jacob, and asks, "You think I still have my memory because I love her?"
"I don't know, maybe." Jacob was gonna leave the conversation at that, but Charlie continues staring at him, the question clearly burning in his mind. Jacob sighs, and continues, "I don't know Charlie, I personally don't believe in love." His mind flashes back to the times at the mansion with his parents and all the yelling, and he genuinely doesn't believe that love exists. He looks at Charlie. "But maybe it is possible for some people."
"I see." he said with a bittersweet smile.
"Charlie, I don't want to decide how you need to live your life, but just tell me if you ever have an interest in another person, please?" The unspoken words hang over them. Jacob doesn't want to be alone. "Just give me a warning, okay?"
"You've got nothing to worry about. I've got no interest in other girls."
"Yeah, you say that now, but you never know."
"No, Jacob, I'm serious. I love her." he tousles his hair and looks down. He covers his face with his hands, and doesn't say anything for a while. When he finally shows his face, he looks at him directly in the eye. "Don't worry, I'll never stop loving her. I didn't think it was even possible anyway." His voice starts to break, and he takes a deep breath. "I wouldn't do anything to risk losing my memory. It's all I have left of her."
Jacob wishes more than anything else that he can trade places with Jade.
—
Jade often thought about what would happen when she met her brother again. She would yell at him, that's for sure. He would probably just stand there, listening to her ramble on about how could he leave her and what obstacles she needed to overcome, just like he used to listen to her whenever she rambled on about the newest magical creature she just read.
The real thing was nothing like her imagination.
Jacob did the yelling instead. "It's a trap! You shouldn't have set me free!"
"But I've been hearing your voice, asking me to come here…"
"That wasn't me! It was the vault, it's sentient!"
Almost as if on cue, the vault reacted. She heard a scream that was subsequently muffled. She turned around to see that all of her friends were now suspended in the air, held by an invisible hand.
"Jade, you need to escape," said Jacob, sounding desperate.
"I can't. What about my friends? What about you?" She wasn't about to leave him again after all these years.
Suddenly, she heard a voice in her head. "You can save your friends, but there will be consequences." It was similar to how she had always heard them all this time. Only now it's no longer using Jacob's voice. It sounds dark, sinister, and ancient.
"What is it?" Jade asked determinedly.
"Don't listen to it!" Jacob shouted, apparently able to hear the voices as well.
"I'll release your friends and your brother, but you will stay here instead."
"Like hell I would let that happen!" Jacob tried to stand, but he fell back down, seemingly out of energy, his legs unable to support his weight after years of unuse. "Goddammit, how many years has it been since I moved…"
"It's 7 years, Jacob," answers Jade. "Look at me, I'm the same age as you when you left."
Jacob looked at her with a pained look in his eyes.
"I can't lose you again, Jacob," she whispered. "I've made my choice."
"They will forget about you, and everything about the cursed vaults, to make sure no one ever tries to tamper with them again."
Jade merely nodded.
"Jade, don't do it, please…" Jacob pleaded. He tried to move again, but it was to no avail.
"I'm sorry, Jacob. I have to do this." She smiled at him sadly. "I'm glad I can see you again for one last time."
Jade looked up to her friends. All of them moved their mouths as if trying to say something, but no sound came out.
"Goodbye everyone, thank you for being the best group of friends anyone could ever ask for." She looked at their faces one by one. Most of them were crying by now. Barnaby struggled the most, his legs kicking the air, but it did nothing to change his situation. Rowan was crying, and Jade hoped that she wouldn't be lonely once she was gone.
She turned to look at Charlie. He was trying to struggle against the invisible force holding him, never taking his eyes from her. Tears were falling down his face, and his look was one of pure anguish. A pity, she had hoped to see his smile one last time. She promised him that she would come visit at Romania. She would never be able to fulfill that promise. At least she knew that he would be an amazing dragonologist, just like he had always dreamed.
"Your time is running out."
She noticed that her friends were now choking. Well, it's now or never. She had one last chance to tell him how much he really meant to her.
Jade smiled at him. "Charlie, I love you."
Jade touched the column, and everything went white.
—
Charlie wakes up with a start. He is panting, and tears are streaming down his face. He tries to calm his breath. He takes the dragon scale necklace from his nighstand and stares at it.
He misses her. He misses her so much, he doesn't know how to describe it. There is something about the emptiness of his house that makes him feel like he can't breathe. Jade often told him about how her family mansion was too big, and how she felt really alone there. He had designed his own house with that in mind. Despite the small space of his house, he still feels alone.
He never goes back to sleep that night.
—
"Hey, dragon boy! You wouldn't believe what souvenir I've got for you this time." Jacob immediately says when Charlie opens the door for him.
Charlie steps aside to let him enter his house.
Jacob walks past him and sits on the sofa. He places the rucksack he has been carrying on the floor. "Okay, so my latest job was in New Zealand. Guess what I found there."
"I haven't got a clue."
"You're a dragonologist. What type of dragons are from New Zealand?"
Charlie felt his heart pound. "No way."
"Oh yes." Jacob rummages in his bag, and he takes out what seems to be an egg that is the right size for a dragon egg.
"Is that really what I think it is?"
"I don't know, you're the dragonologist, you tell me." Jacob hands over the egg to Charlie. Unlike last time, he can identify a dragon egg without Hagrid's help now. It was pale grey and hard to touch. To the untrained eye, it may seem like a stone, but to Charlie, it is undoubtedly an Antipodean Opaleye egg.
He stared wide-eyed at Jacob. Jacob grinned. "I found it at a cave. I didn't think my client would need it. Breeding dragons are illegal, but considering all the adventures you got into with my sister, I know you aren't exactly a stickler for rules."
"Jacob, I… I don't know what to say. Thank you so much."
"Just send me an owl when it's about to hatch. I'm making a portkey for this place. I'll immediately come here no matter where I am."
—
Charlie opened the door to the Three Broomsticks. He scanned for the familiar silver hair, and found her sitting at the corner booth, their usual place. He walked there and sat next to her.
She was reading a book, but she closed it when he sat down. She smiled. "Hey, how was the quidditch practice?"
He grinned smugly, "Great, we'll definitely beat Slytherin in the next match."
"Oh, don't get too cocky now." She grinned, her blue-green eyes shining with amusement.
They ordered two glasses of butterbeer, and proceeded to enlarge them. Charlie started with a conversation, "Do you remember that dragon scale we got?"
She tilted her head. "Of course, how could I forget?"
"I showed it to Andre, and he said he can make it to be a necklace."
Jade's face shined with excitement. "Really? A necklace made of an actual dragon scale? That is so awesome!"
"Yes, I'll never take that thing off!" Charlie said enthusiastically. He looked at her affectionately. "Thank you for letting me have it."
"Of course Charlie, you deserve it." She smiled. Charlie stared at her, and his heart felt really full. He had always felt like he was at peace whenever he was with her. He couldn't imagine her not being there by his side. Jade had always answered vaguely about her future plans. She said she couldn't really think of anything until she found Jacob. Maybe once they found him, he would ask her to consider moving to Romania with him.
"Charlie?" She said, breaking his line of thoughts.
"I was just thinking how great it would be if it was an actual dragon egg," he lied.
"No worries, you'll be a dragonologist one day. You'll get to raise tons of dragons."
"There aren't actually that many dragons. They are endangered."
"Well, you get my point."
"I'm still gonna name one after you one day."
She laughed. "I'm waiting for it."
—
It turns out Charlie doesn't have to send an owl. Jacob is there, sleeping on a spare mattress Charlie finally bought for him after he sleeps on his sofa far too often. Charlie is absentmindedly watching the egg by the fireplace, unable to sleep after dreaming about her again.
He is disturbed out of his reverie when he hears the sound of a crack. When he looks at the egg, a crack line was starting to form. He stands up and rushes to Jacob.
"Jacob, wake up, it's hatching," he said while shaking him.
"What…?" Jacob says, still not fully awake.
"The egg is hatching!" Charlie repeats in a more urgent tone.
Jacob immediately sits up. Charlie leaves him and dashes back to the fireplace. He wears his dragonhide gloves, and moves to remove the egg from the fireplace. By the time he places the egg on the floor, Jacob is already standing across him.
The crack lines on the egg start getting wider, and more of them are forming. Charlie feels like he can't breathe in anticipation. The lines just kept forming and forming until the egg finally hatches. From the broken shells of the egg, a minuscule dragon appears. A real one. It has silver pearly scales which glitters. It opens its eyes and it's a mix of green and blue, changing every time it moves its head to take a look at its surroundings.
"Wow," Jacob exclaims. He tries to touch it, and it immediately tries to bite him. "Ouch, you're a feisty one, aren't you?" It tries to fly, but its feeble wings are still too weak to support its weight. It tries to breathe fire, but only smoke appears. Judging from its aggressiveness, Charlie is sure that it's a female.
Charlie scratches her chin, and she leans into his touch. "She's beautiful," he says fondly.
"Oh, it's a she? What are you gonna name her?" Jacob is staring at him expectantly, his blue-green eyes glinting in excitement. The same blue-green eyes Jade had.
Charlie stops scratching, and the dragon tilts her head to look curiously at him. He notices that her eyes are mostly green now. Charlie has no hesitation about what to name her.
"Jade. Her name is Jade."