Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot of this fanfic.
Written for WishHeWereMine08's Musical Challenge on the HPFFC Forum.
Song: The Very Thought Of You by Harry Connick Jr.
Pairing: Hermione/Charlie
Rating: T, for mild swearing
The Very Thought Of You
Charlie rolled over in his bed and saw someone had put the picture back on his bedside table. He glared at the picture, then reached over and slammed it face down on the table. He could hear her irritated squawking, complaining about his poor treatment of her picture. That was just like her. She was always on his case or on his brothers' cases. It drove them all insane, but he didn't mind it. He liked hearing her voice, even when she was yelling at him. "Oi, you can be quiet now! I don't need no damn picture to remember you by." He said, eyeing the frame darkly.
He didn't need the damn picture. He could simply close his eyes and see every curve of her body, every single frizzy curl, and her dark brown eyes, so full of life. He punched his pillow and sat up. 'Might as well get ready for work.' He thought, climbing out of his bed. He made his way to his bathroom, walking with a slight limp, and started the shower. He had shown up at Hogwarts just in time to knock Fred out of the way of the collapsing wall. His leg ended up caught under the stone, which resulted in his limp. His injury forced him to quit his job at the reserve and take a desk job with the Ministry. The Healers on scene did what they could, saying he was lucky to still have his leg. He sighed heavily, pushing thoughts of his leg away, as he undressed. He missed her (and his dragons, but he had been thinking of coming home to England, anyway), but hated her at the same time. She chose his younger brother over himself. Though he could see the logic behind her decision. He was nearly eight years older than her. She was his youngest brother's best friend; it made sense for her to want to be with him, though his brother had never picked up on her hints until after Charlie had gotten her. That was when Ron had finally noticed her as more than a friend. Charlie cursed Bill, Fred, George and Harry for helping him realize his feelings, though no one knew about her being with their other brother. As he washed, he thought of ways he could win her back, but quickly dismissed those thoughts. She didn't want him. She'd made that perfectly clear when she left that night. Her words had stung him, like an arrow had pierced his heart. Charlie was willing to admit he had fallen for the younger girl to himself, but he couldn't say those three little words out loud. There was a loud banging on the bathroom door, which forced him from his depressing thoughts. "OI! Charlie, get out of there! You're not the only one living here, you know." He heard George yell through the door.
Charlie quickly finished up and turned off the shower. He had almost forgotten Fred and George were staying with him while their shop and the flat over it was being rebuilt. Somehow, a few Death Eaters had gotten in and set off some of the more dangerous explosives the twins kept in their basement lab. The whole place and the building next door were completely gone. It was taking a long time for the Alley to be rebuilt, but the twins helped out as much as they could. Their shop wasn't slated for rebuilding for another month, at least. Their mother had wanted them to stay at the Burrow, but the twins declined, saying Charlie's London flat was much closer than the old family home. Charlie suspected they just wanted to spy on him and discover the reason behind his sudden nasty temperament. Those two enjoyed sniffing out the answers to mysteries, especially if they were lead to some type of blackmail against their brothers, Harry and Hermione. Charlie ventured back to his room and rummaged through his closet, searching for his clothes. "Fred! George! Where the hell are my clothes?" He yelled, running into the twins' room, clutching his red towel around his waist.
He found Fred cuddled up under his nest of blankets and pillows. Charlie's dark look softened, seeing his younger brother alive. Fred could still get away with things, especially around their mother, sister and Angelina Johnson. He sighed, knowing Fred wasn't behind the disappearance of his clothes. Fred had always been a heavy sleeper, while George woke up at every little noise. Charlie smirked and headed for his room. "Georgie, my most dearest younger brother, what did you do with my clothes?" He yelled through the bathroom door.
There was a loud thump and Charlie snickered. He knew his brother had slipped or dropped something. "Don't look at me. I didn't do anything. I'm still half asleep." George called back.
Charlie frowned, unsure of his brother's answer. He shrugged and went back to his room. He picked up his wand off the bedside table and summoned his clothes, which came from the direction of the twins' room. Charlie rolled his eyes and got dressed. He then went into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. Deciding to wait for George to make an appearance, he just eyed the food choices in the cupboard. Once George appeared, Charlie began to fix something slightly edible. "So, Charlie, what's your problem with Granger?" George asked, sitting at the bar, watching his brother carefully.
Charlie stiffened and said "I don't have a problem with her."
George scoffed and said "Ron might be stupid enough to believe that, but I'm not."
Charlie paused in his cooking. He started thinking of all the things they'd shared over the past two years. He had been her first everything. She had been the first to get his mind off of dragons, the only woman ever to accomplish such a feat. Sighing heavily, he thought of their last day together. They had gone picnicking in a park near his flat. Then they went paddle boating and fed the ducks. That evening, when he apparated her home, he had kissed her with more passion and love than he had ever kissed a woman with before. Their breathing ragged, she had told him she loved him, but loved Ron more. She had quickly fled into her flat; Charlie thought he had seen tears in her eyes, but that could have just been his eyes filled with tears. She didn't truly love him, like he loved her. He quickly left her flat and hid himself away in his old room at the Burrow. It had been the twins who'd found him. They had been using the older boys' room as a storage space for their new and improved joke products.
"OI! Charlie! You're burning the eggs!" George yelled, jerking Charlie from his thoughts.
"Oh, shit. Sorry, George." He said, as he took the pan from the hot stove top and sitting it on the counter.
"She must be one hell of a woman." George mused, having realized what was wrong with his older brother.
"She is." Charlie replied, his voice so full of love that Georg nearly vomited.
"Who is she, Charlie?" George asked, as Fred decided to make his appearance.
Charlie shot a glare at his younger brother. "I'm not telling you. You'll just run to Mum and then everyone will know." Charlie said, as Fred and George exchanged looks.
"You've been upset with all of us, including Harry but excluding Ginny, since Ron realized Hermione is, in fact, a girl." George said, watching his older brother's expression carefully.
Fred simply grinned and stole George's coffee. "Georgie, methinks our dear older brother is in love with a certain little know it all." Fred said, as he slowly woke up.
"Methinks you're correct in your observations, Freddie." George replied, grinning.
Charlie slammed the pan down in front of them and stalked out of the kitchen. The twins exchanged knowing looks. George went off to write their Mum of their discovery, while Fred headed for the shower. Charlie quickly got dressed in his Ministry robes and gathered his work things. He hated the job, but it was better than nothing. Fred and George had promised him a job at their shop once they were up and running again, but Charlie doubted he would take them up on their offer. She worked for them, helping them out with the books and placing orders for the ingredients they needed. At this point and time, she ran the entire mail order part of the business, while Fred and George invented new products and replenished their stock. He then yelled "I'm leaving for work. Lock the place up if you two leave." and aparated to the Ministry.
He worked in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, the beast division. His experience from studying dragons helped him gain respect from his coworkers, but he knew they pitied him. His coworkers didn't know the full story, though. They just knew he had gotten hurt during the final battle of the war. He knew if it weren't for his leg, he would be back in Romania with his dragons and never having intimate knowledge of Hermione Granger's body. But, he also knew if he hadn't gotten there when he did, he would have one less brother and one barely living. It had been two years since the final battle and he was glad he had kept his family intact. That made his injury less painful.
He made his way through the crowd and quickly entered his office. Kingsley had made sure he had his office and an assistant. Kingsley wanted to make sure he was comfortable and made it so no one outside the ministry would bother him. His family would often come visit him, Hermione came the most. His office is where they had started their relationship. He had kissed her first. He was quickly swept away in his memories of her half naked on his desk.
He was interrupted by Harry clearing his throat. "Do you need something, Harry?" Charlie asked, slightly concerned with the younger boy's sudden appearance.
Harry worked in the Auror Division of the Magical Law Enforcement Department. He usually came with Ginny to see him. "Fred and George sent me an interesting letter just now." Harry said, smirking at his future brother in law.
Charlie tensed, cursing his younger brothers. "'Mione hasn't been the same since she and Ron got together. She seems…sadder than she used to be." Harry said, looking thoughtful.
"Is there anything work related you need, Harry?" Charlie asked, shooting a dark look at him.
"I wanted to ask you something. Bill and Ron said you're Ginny's favorite brother and I wanted to talk to you first, before I went to everyone else." Harry said, quickly, his face turning red.
Charlie, knowing what the boy wanted to ask, said "You're a good guy, Harry. I'll be proud to call you my brother someday."
Harry grinned and said "Thanks, Charlie. I'm going to talk to your dad tonight after dinner. Can you and the twins distract Ginny for me?"
"Sure. Knowing the twins, they'll try to test some new prank thing on her, so she might get pissed at us all." Charlie said, grinning.
Harry grimaced and said "Make sure the twins don't do something stupid."
"I'll try to reign them in. Can't make any promises, been trying to do that since before they could walk." Charlie said, rolling his eyes.
Harry nodded and said "I know you don't want to hear anything about it, but Hermione was extremely happy with you. We should've noticed it sooner. She's not happy at all. She's working all the time and barely does anything else. I'm not the only one worried about her. I doubt she'll show up tonight."
Charlie simply stared down at the load of paperwork sitting on his desk. He didn't want to hear anything about the girl who had broken his heart. "Harry, mate, if you hurt Ginny, I will feed you to Josie. I'm sure she wants another go at you." He said, smirking at Harry, who simply looked confused and slightly frightened.
"Josie is the Hungarian Horntail you went up against during the Triwizard Tournament. Remember her?" Charlie explained, as Harry gulped and nodded.
"I'll be going now. See you tonight, Charlie." He said, as he quickly fled the office.
Charlie snickered and went back to doing his paperwork. After his chat with Harry, the day flew by and soon he was back at his flat getting ready for dinner at the Burrow. Dinner was its usual loud affair, with the twins pranking Percy and Ron. He didn't blame them for torturing Ron or Percy, since he didn't like either one of them right now. He ignored Hermione, though she kept trying to catch his eye. He left as soon as dessert was finished. He couldn't stand being in the same room as her, especially when she was snogging his younger brother. The twins arrived home shortly after he had showered and was sitting by the fireplace, drinking a Butterbeer. From the way the two were acting, he knew something had happened after he had left the Burrow. He didn't want to know what they had done (probably to Percy or Ron, knowing them), but he knew they knew something he didn't. He was curious, but decided it was safer for everyone if he didn't know about it, especially when it had to do with Hermione Granger.
He finally went to bed around midnight. The twins had broke out their stash of Fire Whiskey and were making a ruckus. He groaned, knowing he would never get any sleep with those two running around like drunken monkeys.
"Can you believe it?" George said, grinning at his twin.
"I always figured Ronniekins would never get the courage to ask her." Fred said, snickering.
Charlie had awoken the next morning to the twins' making breakfast. This sign of brotherly affection worried him. He seriously hoped they hadn't spiked the eggs or oatmeal with one of their products. Their conversation was cryptic, though he suspected it had something to do with Hermione. "What the hell are you two doing?" He asked, glaring at them.
Two identical smirks greeted him. He groaned, knowing his younger brother's were going to torment him. "We're cooking breakfast for our favorite brother." Fred said, his smirk widening.
Charlie stared at the two. "Fred, George, I know your favorite brother is Bill. Always has been, especially since he taught you two how to short sheet the beds when you were three." He deadpanned, knowing they were hiding something from him.
The twins' grins slowly widened, giving them appearance of the Cheshire Cat. "We have some news you might find interesting, Charlie." They said, their voices in perfect unison.
"And what would that be?" Charlie asked, hoping they had finally gotten their flat back together. He was tired of them being underfoot and preventing him from mourning the loss of the one girl who'd manage to get him away from his dragons.
The twins exchanged looks. Nodding to each other, they said "We'll wait till after breakfast to tell you. We don't want you to throw anything hot at us."
Charlie sighed, knowing there was no way to get the twins to tell him whatever it is they wanted to tell him. He sat down at the bar and allowed the twins to dish out their fry up. He waited until they tucked in before even thinking about touching the food on his plate. He cautiously took a bite of eggs and waited to see if anything would happen to him. It would be just like the twins' to mix a love potion into his breakfast or mix some sort of apparation potion they had created into his oatmeal. "We didn't do anything to your breakfast, so stop worrying, Charlie." George said, grinning.
"Why don't you trust us, Charlie?" Fred asked, pouting.
Charlie eyed his younger brothers carefully. He knew they were trying to suck up to him, but he didn't know why. Normally, when they sucked up to him, they were either about to prank him or they were going to tell him something upsetting. He rolled his eyes and said "Just tell me already."
"After breakfast." George said, as he inhaled the rest of his food.
Breakfast ended within minutes. Charlie couldn't stand the wait and handed the rest of his food over to Fred, who'd eagerly excepted the extra food. He watched the twins inhale their breakfast and wondered how they had managed to survive twenty two years without dying from choking on their food. He shook his head and went to stick his plate and fork in the sink. "We'll wash those up, Char." Fred said, causing Charlie to dread whatever this news of theirs was.
Once the twins kicked him out of the kitchen, claiming he didn't need to be around anything with a sharp point, they sat him down on the couch and said "Now, don't be mad at us. We're just the messengers." Fred said, watching Charlie's every move.
"Just tell me already." Charlie growled. He was tried of all their stupid games. He just wanted to know already.
Fred and George exchanged looks. George finally sighed and said "Ron proposed to Hermione last night."
Charlie froze. He felt as if his whole world was crumbling down around him. "W-what did she say?" He choked out, his voice hoarse.
"She said yes." Fred answered, still watching his older brother's every move.
Charlie abruptly stood up and fled to his room. He placed his wards around the room and threw himself on to his bed. He closed his eyes and knew he would never love another woman like he loved Hermione. She was his everything. She was the only one who was truly interested in his stories about his dragons. She was the only on who asked questions about the dragons and their welfare. She truly was an one of a kind girl. His heart had broke when she left him, but this time it was shattered. If she was marrying Ron, then there was no way she was ever going to come back to him. Never in a million years. Any effort put into winning her back would be futile. There was no such thing as divorce in the wizarding world.
He heard the twins enter his room, but ignored them. "You know, she did seem quite reluctant to answer him" George said.
"Almost like she was expecting her knight in shining armor to swoop in and save her." Fred said.
Charlie picked up his wand and sent the twins flying out of his room. They landed in a heap outside his door. He then shut the door and triple warded it. He had forgotten Bill had also taught them how to break their siblings' wards (except for Ginny's of course. Bill wouldn't do that to his baby sister). He wanted to be alone and that was what he was going to get.
He didn't know how long he had been locked away in his room. No one had managed to break his wards. He suspected Bill had refused to try or at least, pretended he couldn't get through them. He made a mental note to thank his older brother whenever he decided to come out of isolation. He stared at the picture of her beside his bed and whispered "Wish you were still here, 'Mione, love."
He sighed and forced himself to look away. "OI! Charlie, we're hungry!" Fred whined, barging into his room.
The twins had managed to break into his room a week later and had practically moved themselves into Charlie's room. "Aren't you two nearly twenty three? Can't you do something for yourself?" Charlie growled, glaring at the twins.
Both boys blanched and slowly backed away. Charlie was the only Weasley to have a long fuse and rarely blew up in someone's face. When he did snap, he made Josie the Hungarian Horntail look like a sweet little puppy in comparison. Hell, Charlie made Molly Weasley look clam and innocent. "We're sorry, Charlie. We'll go to mum's for lunch." George said, quickly.
-Please don't kill us-
-You're our favorite brother-
-Just don't tell Bill that-
-We'll be going now-
-Bye Charlie!- the twins shouted in unison.
And with two loud cracks, the twins had fled, leaving their older brother to stew in his anger. Charlie glared darkly at her picture and said "This is your fault, you know. Agreeing to marry that prat."
Her picture self shook her head and stared longingly at him. Charlie briefly wondered if she had ever loved him, but quickly pushed those thoughts away. He went into the kitchen and grabbed two bottles of Fire Whiskey (part of the twins' stash, he'd have to remember to pay them back later). He planned to get sloshed just enough to forget her.
When the twins arrived home hours later, they found their older brother passed out on the living room floor. "Fred, I think we need Hermione." George said, as he levitated his brother into his bed.
"I agree. I've never seen Charlie this bad. Not even when Marie left him." Fred said.
"Go get her. Maybe she'll see the trouble she's caused." George said, his expression somber.
Fred nodded and apparated away. George then woke Charlie up and said "You're an idiot."
Charlie groaned, covering his arm with his hand. "If you love her as much as you claim, you'd have fought for her, not wallow around in self pity." George said, handing Charlie a vial of hang over potion.
He gulped it down and said "I'm a horrible brother, George. I stole her from Ron, knowing how much he cared for her."
George rolled his eyes. "Ron had six years to do something about it before you came along. He's a stupid prat who doesn't deserve her." George countered.
"I'm too old for her. People would talk." Charlie said, as his headache vanished.
"Charlie, when you really love a girl, age doesn't matter. Isn't that what you told me when I was upset about Luna?" George asked.
Charlie nodded and sighed. "'Mione looked right miserable at lunch today. Asked about you, too." George said, smirking.
Charlie tensed, sensing his younger brother was going to rip him a new one. "Charlie, Hermione overheard mum and dad talking. Mum was going on and on about how perfect she and Ron would be together. Said she couldn't imagine the girl with anyone else. Hermione thought Mum would disown you both if you two went public. She was scared, Charlie." George said.
"He's right, Charlie. I panicked. I just didn't want to loose the only family I have left." A painfully familiar voice said, softly.
Charlie's entire body froze. She was here. Standing by his bedroom door. He stared at her, unsure if she was truly there. He wondered if he had finally lost it. "Is he alright? What happened?" She demanded of George, who was watching Charlie's reaction with interest.
"He should be fine now. He just tried to drink his weight in Fire Whiskey. Got into our stash, he did. Only two bottles in. Always been a lightweight, Charlie has." Fred said, grinning.
Hermione glared at both twins. She suddenly threw herself into Charlie's arms, sobbing. "When Fred told me there was an emergency with you, I was so worried. I thought something had happened to you." She said, with her arms wrapped around his neck.
"And that's our cue to leave-
-Make sure you put up your wards, Charlie-
-Cause we don't want to hear you two-
-Going at it like rabbits!" The twins said, as they fled the room.
Charlie wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. "It's alright, Hermione, love." He said, gently rubbing her back.
"I broke it off with Ron." She said, suddenly.
"Why?"
"It was horrible. I was absolutely miserable. I kept comparing him to you. Last night I realized I had made the biggest mistake I've ever made. I'm so sorry, Charlie. Will you ever forgive me?" She asked, her chocolate brown eyes full of hope.
He nodded and kissed her forehead. "Don't you ever do that again. It nearly killed me when mum announced you two were finally together." He said, burying his head in her curly hair.
"I'm so sorry, Charlie. It was stupid of me to let you go . Why are you even forgiving me?" She asked, resting her head against his chest.
He smiled, something he hadn't done in weeks. "Because, Hermione, you forgive the ones you love and I love you, Hermione, more than anything in the world." He replied.
"More than your dragons?" She asked.
He nodded.
"More than Quidditch?"
"Yes, even more than dragons and Quidditch, just don't tell my family that. They'll never let me live that down. They think my whole world revolves around dragons and Quidditch." He replied, causing her to giggle.
Two loud snickers could be heard outside his bed room door. Both Hermione and Charlie smirked and quickly scared the twins off by snogging as loud as they could.
Charlie gazed lovingly at the beautiful naked brunette sleeping beside him. Her curly hair was a tangled frizzy mess and a smile graced her swollen pink lips. He grinned and knew he would not need a picture to remember her by. She'd promised to be with him forever. Two loud cracks broke the peaceful silence of the room. Two very angry red heads stood at the foot of his bed. "Charlie, mate, get out of here while you still can. Ron and mum just found out and they're both on a warpath." George said.
"Ginny let it slip at breakfast. Need to have a word with her about keeping things to herself." Fred finished, just as Hermione woke up.
"Charlie, why are the twins in here?" She asked, wiping the sleep from her eyes with her hand.
"Mum and Ron are on a warpath. Got to get out of here." Fred announced, leering at her.
George smacked his twin in the back of the head. "Not the time to be perverted, Freddie. We'd better head for the shop. I don't want to be around when mum and Ron get here." He said.
Fred nodded and the two vanished into thin air with a loud crack. "Lovely wake up call, wouldn't you say, Mr. Weasley?" Hermione said, smirking.
"I wholeheartedly concur, soon to be Mrs. Weasley." Charlie said, his gaze moving to her left hand, where a simple diamond ring sat on her ring finger.
"I love the sound of that." She said, snuggling closer to him.
"As do I." He said, kissing her lips just as Molly Weasley and Ronald Weasley barged into the room.
Charlie sighed, knowing her was about to be mauled to death by his mother and youngest brother. At least she'll have plenty of pictures to remember me by, he thought, as both Weasleys started to yell at him.
A/N: I took a line from the song and made it the theme of the one shot. I was going to stop it at the "She promised to be with him forever", but I decided it needed a bit more. There might be a sequel. Not sure yet. Hope you enjoyed reading this! Please review.