Summary: Voldemort is gone, but the war is far from over. Charlie's daughter is having troubles when the man she loves is drafted into the war, leaving her on her own. This young girl must deal with the traumas of so many loved ones off at war, while other unexpected traumas engulf her life as well.
Chapter 1
Voldemort has been defeated, but the war is far from over
I looked out the window as the sun started to rise. A rooster crowed, and I opened the window, letting in the fresh, clean breeze. The air was moist with morning dew, but it was already warm, despite the early morning. I took in the smell of the barn, fields, and wildflowers. I sighed to myself before turning away from the window and walking over to my dresser where I pulled out some holey jeans and a white t-shirt. After slipping those on, I put some socks on and a pair of sneakers. Walking over to my mirror I brushed out my bleach blonde hair, pulling it up with a blue bow. Pushing a loose strand of hair behind my ear, I opened the door, bouncing down the stairs to the kitchen, where my mother stood, scrambling a bunch of eggs.
"Morning, Mum." I said as I sat down, starting to eat the food that was placed in front of me.
"Good morning, Freya." Mum greeted, going back to the eggs. As an after thought she glanced over at me and said, "The family is coming over today."
I almost gagged on my eggs and looked up at her with wide eyes. "All of them?!"
"Yes all of them. You hardly ever spend any time with them, sweetie, and they miss you. You're always out whenever any of them drop by."
"It isn't my fault they have horrible timing! Besides, I have work this afternoon." I lightened up at the thought of escaping my relatives.
"Hun, you have to see your relatives. Just tell your boss that you can't come in today. I'm sure he'll understand." She said, not even looking at me.
I gapped at her, my eyes wide. "Mum, you've obviously never met Mr. Gull. He'll skin me alive just for suggesting it!"
I could just see her rolling her eyes at me and crossed my arms, leaning back in my seat.
"We'll talk about this later, Freya. Right now you need to go do your chores." With that our conversation ended, and I walked out the door, the screen door slamming behind me. As I walked around the corner of the house something jumped out at me, grabbing me around my wait, causing me to shriek. Laughter filled my ears and I snapped around glaring.
"THEO!" I faced the man behind me who held up his hands in defense, helpless with laughter. "I am so going to kill you!" I yelled as I charged at him. He jumped out of my way and started to run away, with me right on his heals. I dove at him, grabbing his legs. He fell to the ground and I landed on top of him. I smiled down at him and flicked his temple, causing him to flinch. He reached up and gingerly pushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
"Morning, Sunshine." He said with a crooked smile.
I smiled back at him and leaned down, kissing him delicately. He leaned into the kiss, cupping my cheek. As I pulled away I looked down into his dark brown eyes and seemed to loose myself in them.
"Good morning, Love." I replied, cocking my head to the side, just the way I knew he loved.
A sly smirk slid across his face, "So was that kiss supposed to be my death? Because if it was I'll gladly let you kill me again."
I scowled at him and swatted his arm playfully before getting off of him and walked away, heading towards the barn to start my chores. I heard the sound of feet pounding on the dirt and felt a hand slip into mine. I smiled at Theo as he looked down at me, kissing the top of my head. I squeezed his hand and pulled him behind me as we made our way to the barn. As I entered I pulled him in behind me, and he pinned me against a horse stall, attacking my lips with his. My arms slithered around his neck, pulling him closer, deepening the kiss. He pushed himself into me, getting as close to me as possible as his hands went to my chest, massaging my breasts through the material of my t-shirt and bra.
"Theo…" I moaned into him, trying to get a hold of myself. I pulled away slightly, "Theo, not here."
Theo sighed and leaned his head against mine, his breathe tickling my face.
"We have to get to work, and my family is coming this afternoon." He didn't look very impressed and I laughed lightly, "Trust me, Theo; I want to continue just as much as you do, but I have to get my chores done, plus anyone could walk in on us here."
He nodded and kissed my forehead before backing away and entering the horse stall they had just been snogging against. Majestic Wind was one of our older horses, twenty-four years old. She was a buckskin mare with a light tan colored coat and a black mane and tail. Her eyes were a beautiful light brown, looking slightly clouded with wisdom. Theo rubbed her nose as I started brushing her down. Theo left the stall, and then came back with a bucket of oats. Majestic Wind shook her head and leaned forward, eager to eat her fill. I smiled, patting her neck before exiting the stall, heading towards the next one. Inside was one of my favorite horses. I walked over to Stardust, rubbing her nose before patting the two colts on their heads. Stardust had had her first two foals only three months ago, and the two were beautiful. They had just started to loose their baby coats, and Rain Dancer was turning out to be a pure white horse, while Shadow Dancer was becoming a black silver dapple with a white mane and tail. They were lovely. Stardust, their mother, was a black and white paint with a black mane and tail. I had nursed Stardust with a bottle right after she was born when her mother died, and we had a bond, so she trusted me better than most, and would allow me to enter with her foals, while nobody else could. It was my full responsibility over their stall because of this.
"Hey, Stardust." I said as I brought in some horse oats. She head butted me and I laughed, rubbing her nose as I knew she loved. I next kissed her velvety nose before leaving the stall, securely shutting it behind me with a lock. Stardust wasn't the only one that was protective of those two colts.
The day continued with the cleaning of stalls, feeding of animals, milking of cows, and egg collecting, until it was twelve thirty. I ran my hand over Theo's back as I walked back towards the house, swaying my hips, knowing that he would be squirming for awhile with lust. I ran up the steps and walked into the house, letting the screen door slam behind me as I hurried over to the phone where I dialed my friend Natalie.
"Hello?" her voice asked on the other end of the line.
"Hey Nat, I was wondering if you could cover for me today." I questioned. I was, of course, referring to work.
"Sure Freya, but why? You haven't missed a day of work all summer. Why start now?"
"I have no choice. My family is coming over, and my mom refuses to let me go to work today and miss them. I, however, don't believe that I will miss them, because usually when we have a huge family get together they don't leave until well after dinner." I was complaining, I knew it, but I couldn't help it. I hated having big family get-togethers.
"Okay Freya, I can handle it."
"Thanks, I owe you one."
"I'll remind you that." Natalie laughed before hanging up.
I suddenly felt arms go around my legs and waist and I looked down at two redheaded boys, "Hi, Auntie Freya!" the chimed.
"Michael! Arthur!" I exclaimed, pulling them both into bear hugs. They weren't really my nephews, but really my second cousins, but it was easier to call me Auntie. In that moment my cousin Joseph and his wife, Amanda, walked into the room. I walked over to my cousin and he smiled down at me.
"Give me a hug, Freya." He said, making me smile and wrap my arms around him. I then turned to Amanda and she gave me a smile and we gave each other light hugs.
"Well, as far as I know, you guys are the first to arrive. I think Mum's in the kitchen, probably cooking up a storm if I know her."
Jo laughed, "Just like Aunt Cassandra."
"I'll go help her. I'm sure a little magic might help some." Amanda says as she heads for the kitchen.
That's something about my family that I haven't mentioned. Most of my family are witches and wizards. My father, Charlie Wesley, is a pureblood wizard, but my mother is a muggle. From what my parents, aunts, and uncle has told me it caused quite a stir with my grandmother on my father's side. My granddaddy, however, was very happy, for he loves all muggle things, and having one as a daughter-in-law was like Christmas. My grandmother, however, wasn't very found of muggle things, so she wasn't too impressed with Dad. After Mum had my brother, Aidan, however, Grandma was perfectly content, because he too was a wizard, so most of her worries were gone. I also learned that before my father met Mum he worked with dragons, and after they got married he moved in with her and her sick grandfather and started to learn how to become a muggle farmer. He learned quickly, and in great-granddaddy's last will and testament he left the farm to my parents, and that was where we had been living ever since.
"Mum! Joseph, Amanda, and the boys are here!" I called as we all entered the kitchen, Arthur attacked to my leg. I looked down at him, and seeing his pouting lip I laughed, grabbing him and slinging him onto my hip.
"Blood hell, Arthur, when did you get so big?" I questioned.
The boy giggled, "I'm five now." He said proudly.
"Five?! That's halfway to the two digits right there!" he nodded and I smiled to myself as an idea come to my head. "Well that deserves a good gift."
I saw Amanda and Joseph exchange glances and look at Mum worriedly.
"What about me! I'm three years away from being ten! I should get something too!" Michael demanded, tugging at my shirt.
"Don't worry, Mikey, I didn't forget about you!" I placed Arthur back on the ground and beckoned for them to follow me. They looked excitedly at each other and scurried to follow, and I could hear Joseph and Amanda behind me as well. I walked to a shut door and opened it, revealing a fluffy brown tabby cat and two kittens who were identical to the mother, except one had a white belly, while another had four white paws.
"Kittens!" the boys yelled out together, diving towards them and genially petting them.
"Yeah, kittens, and if you parents agree, they'll be all yours." I smiled, glancing at the boys' parents as they smiled contently at their children.
"Can we, Mum? Dad?" Michael questioned, holding the kitten with the white paws next to his face while making a puppy dog face.
The parents nodded and the boys' faces broke with smiles.
"They're both boys, and their already eight weeks old, so you can bring them home today." I said as I sat down next to the boys. "Now down to the real business." The boys gave me a confused face. "What are you going to name them?"
"Mine is going to be Chip." Arthur said as he cuddled his new pet, who cuddled him back. They were already the best of friends.
"His name will be Socks." Michael decided after some time. He scratched the little fluff ball behind the ear and Socks rolled onto his back, batting at the boys hands playfully.
After some time of just watching the boys I finally left them to play. Joseph followed me out and gave me a warm smile.
"Thanks, Freya. That means a lot to us. The boys have really missed you, and giving them those kittens made them feel really special."
"No problem, Jo. They needed a home, and I could think of no place I'd rather them go." I said; patting him on the shoulder as I went back to the kitchen, which I suddenly found full of fully grown woman, waving wands and steering boiling pots. In seconds I was engulfed in arms of all those women except for Mum and Amanda.
"Freya! How's my grandbaby?" my grandma said, pulling me into a bone crushing hug.
"Grandma, I can't breath!" I choked out, causing her to quickly release me and dust me off.
"Hey, Frey." A brunette woman said, pulling me into a hug, which I returned.
"Hi, Aunt Hermione." I replied. "I just gave your grandbabies some new friends, so if you want to check them out their in the back room."
My aunt laughed, "What did you get them?"
"Tawny had a couple kittens eight or so weeks ago, and I thought I might make it up to Mike and Arthur for my lack of… attendance. So I gave the two hairballs to them."
Aunt Hermione laughed, squeezing me shoulder like she always does when she's happy with me. Before she could say anything else, however, I was pulled into a pair of soft, delicate arms.
"How is my niece?"
I looked up at the fair woman and smiled, giving her a light hug. "I'm fine, Aunt Fleur. How are you?"
"I'm fine." She said, waving my question off airily.
I smiled at her answer and finally turned to my youngest aunt. She smiled at me warmly. It was a motherly smile, one she uses on all of my cousins and me, and I wrapped my arms around her. She held me close. We had always been close. It was probably because we were the only Wesley born women for several centuries.
"Hi, Aunt Ginny." I said as I hugged her.
"Hello, Darling. Let me get a look at you." She held me at arms length and looked me over. "You've grown so much since I last saw you."
"Sorry 'bout that. I knew I should have waited until I next saw you, but alas, I grew up anyway." I laughed, and she joined me, kissing my forehead before going back to work.
I watched my family cooking up a storm and realized that I had missed them. I might not admit it to anyone else, but inside, I knew I had. They were, after all, my family. Sighing, I walked out of the room, exiting the house and looking around the yard. On the deck, sitting on a bunch of chairs, conversing about Quidditch was my brother and four of my cousins, Luke, Gavin, Tristan, and Levi. They were already arguing on which teams were the best and I couldn't help but watch them. Aidan, my brother, has a shorter, stockier build, like my father, with red hair and blue eyes. Luke, Gavin, and Tristan are my Aunt Fleur and Uncle Bill's children. Luke has red hair, blue eyes, and is tall with a muscular build. Gavin is also tall, but he is much more thin and graceful, and also has red hair and blue eyes. Tristan isn't like his brothers, however. He is short and thin with red hair and brown eyes. They all, however, are handsome, because they have Veela blood from Fleur. Levi is the only son of my Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry, with untamed flaming red hair and brilliant green eyes. Luke is twenty-two, Aidan and Levi are twenty, Gavin is nineteen, and Tristan is fifteen.
I skipped down the steps, waving at the boys and they blew kisses at me mockingly, making me giggle. I walked over to the wood fence that bordered the large pasture where the cows were grazing and stood on it, looking around. I noticed that Theo must have let the horses out, because I spotted Stardust and her foals running around, getting some exercise. A blonde mare trotted over to me and I rubbed her forehead, playing with her mane as she started chewing on some vines at were clutching to the fence.
"Hello Sunray." I mumbled absently.
I felt a hand land on my shoulder and turned to see a smiling man.
"Hi Daddy." I said, giving him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Hey princess." He said back as he patted Sunray's side.
"Where's are all those uncles of mine?" I questioned, looking around for them, but seeing none.
A smile spread across my father's face, "They're going around to find things to burn at the bonfire tonight."
A squeal escaped my lips and I threw my arms around him. I loved having bonfires, and my father knew it. We hadn't had one since the summer before, and I was anxious.
"How are those colts doing?" my father asked, changing the subject.
"They're perfect, Dad. The most beautiful foals I've ever seen. And Stardust loves them too." I smiled at them as they ran around. I spotted Shadow Dancer chasing after Rain Dancer. I was the only one who could tell them apart, even though they looked nothing alike. Nobody could grasp their different colorings yet.
I could see Dad studying me as I looked at them fondly. "My goodness, Freya, you're acting like their mother yourself." He pointed out.
I laughed, "No, I'm more like their grandmother, considering I practically raised Stardust myself."
Dad nodded, "That you did. You were very protective of her, if I remember correctly. You still are, actually."
"She almost died being born, and then again while giving birth to those too. She's fragile, and no matter what, I'm always going to be protective. She's only six years old, and she's had so many close deaths." I looked at her with soft, caring eyes as she chased after her two colts, her mane and tail flying behind her in the most beautiful way possible.
Dad ruffled my hair, messing up my ponytail, before turning and walking away to get working on the bonfire again. Sunray shook her head and turned away from me, running off towards the other horses. I turned away from the horses and looked at my house. The boys were running around, playing on the tree swing with their new kittens in their laps, and my cousins and brother were still conversing, although it looked as though their Quidditch discussion had ended and they had moved onto probably girls, considering they were moving their hands to show curves and other things like that. I rolled my eyes at them and hopped off of the fence. Just as I was about to walk into the house, however, an owl came swooping down. I held out my arm and it landed on it, holding its leg out for me to talk the mail. I did so and gave it a nice pat before it flew off. I looked at the mail, skimming through it before coming to a quick stop. Ministry of Magic Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I quickly ripped it open, scanning through it, and my heart stopped.
Young men of the Wizarding World,
The war is raging and we are running short of officers and soldiers to send out at battle. We are resorting to a Muggle military tactic. We will be drafting in soldiers. Drafting is when we order men to join the our military force. You will receive a letter telling you if you are to be drafted, and if you are you will report to the instructed area.
Department of Magical Law Enforcement
"Oh dear Merlin." I gasped, bringing my hands to my mouth. "Mum!" I yelled, running into the house. I could hear many people following me in, yelling at me to tell them what was wrong, but I ignored them.
"MUM!" I yelled again, entering the kitchen.
"Freya, what is it?!" my mother asked with worry. I thrust the letter into her hand and she read it. Her eyes grew wide, and when my brother entered the room she pulled him close to her, crying into him as if scared he would die then and there.
"Mum, what's wrong? What happened?" he asked. She pushed the letter into his hand, and he gapped at it when he was finished. The letter went around and everyone was growing panicky. Eventually my father and uncles came into the room, and although they had nothing to worry about, they were very much worried about their sons and nephews. Grandma was frantic as she tried to hug all of her grandbabies at once, and granddaddy was so shocked he couldn't even speak.
We never had the bonfire that night. We all sat together inside, frantic and scared, and for once in all of our family get-togethers, everyone left before dinner. My whole family was very quiet after the news, because we knew that because of our family reputation of helping with the defeat of Voldemort, our family would be some of the first sent out. My brother could easily be off fighting for his life within a week, and I could loose him forever. I sat outside on the porch steps, and a body sat down beside me. I looked over and saw Theo. Without thinking I threw my arms around him, crying into his chest. Theo too was a wizard. A Muggleborn wizard, however. That's how we met him. He didn't live far off, and when he started attending Hogwarts a year above Aidan he then started working for us during the summers, because he knew we were like him. After getting out of Hogwarts he started working for us full time. He was so very likely to be sent off too.
Theo rubbed circles on my back, soothing me as he shushed me and kissed my head reassuringly. I held onto him tightly, not wanting to loose him. I was acting just as mum had only a few hours ago with Aidan. I was frantic, and I just couldn't loose him. He was my world, my everything. Even though nobody knew about us being together, we still were. We had been together for two years now, since I was fourteen and he was nineteen. It was a large, freaky difference, but we couldn't help it. We felt so much for each other, and I sometimes even thought of it as love, even though we had never told each other we love one another. Dad would freak if he knew about us, and even though we were right in front of the screen door I didn't care. I didn't care if we were spotted, and I didn't care if Daddy hated me for being with him. I couldn't think of anyone else I would rather be with, and I wasn't going to give him up.
"Its okay Love, everything's going to be okay." He murmured to me.
I shook my head, "No, it isn't going to be okay! They'll take you away, I know they will. They'll sent you off to your death and I'll never see you again." My tears increased as I voiced my worries, and he held me closer.
"I am not going away, do you hear me? It doesn't matter where I am, my heart will always be here, with you. If I do go, I'll be coming back for it. For you."
He lifted my chin so I was looking up at him. Our eyes clicked together, and I searched his for any sort of lie or doubt, but found none. I nodded my head and hugged him again. We stayed like that for many hours, until the only sound was our breathing and chirping crickets, and the only like was those of the stars descending down on us.