This chapter contains HBP spoilers, so if you haven't made it to that one yet, you might not want to read this. See the first chapter for notes and disclaimers. Thanks for reading!
Chapter 7 – The Truth About Charlie
Alivia hadn't noticed how much time had passed in their travels, but it was nearly 5 pm when they arrived back at the Weasley residence. She was tired and wanted to put away her things and freshen up before everyone arrived for the party. Mrs. Weasley said that Charlie had arrived and was tired from his flight. Alivia promised to be quiet as she climbed the stairs. She pushed open the door to Percy's room and crossed to her trunks where she stowed her new robes. She flopped down on the mess of bedcovers, where she hit something hard. She jumped from the bed where she found a very sleepy, very dazed and very shirtless Charlie Weasley.
"Oh God, Charlie, what are you doing in Percy's room!"
"I thought Mom told me to go in this one. Alivia, I'm so sorry. Oh, Hell, I don't even have a shirt on. Just a second, I'll be out of your way. God, I'm sorry. I'll be right out."
Alivia felt that she should have turned around, but her eyes were glued to Charlie's chest and the large tattoo on the left side. It was, of course, a dragon. The detail was exquisite, and the design curled up his collarbone and onto his shoulder. As he turned, she saw that the image finished on his back. It was red, a Chinese Fireball. He looked up and saw Alivia staring at the tattoo.
"Pretty nice, eh? Hurt like hell, but it turned out really great."
"I thought the Hungarian Horntail was your favorite," Alivia managed.
"It's pretty wicked, but the Fireball's fast and ferocious. Plus, it matches my hair," Charlie grinned. "I'm pretty much awake now, so do you want to go downstairs. We could take a walk down the lane, if you want." He tugged the white t-shirt over his head. It fit tightly against his chest and arms. His hair was short and darker than she remembered. There were healing burns on the right side of his neck and the back of his right hand. She knew that it was simply an occupational hazard, but it made her cringe as she looked at them.
"Oh, Alivia, don't worry about those. They're small and didn't even hurt. We've got some pretty advanced healing methods for burns. It's just part of the job."
She tried to smile, but she couldn't make the corners of her mouth turn up. He grabbed her small smooth hand in one of his large rough ones and guided her down the steps. On the way out of the yard, he called back to Harry, who was gathering vegetables in the garden, that they would be back in a while. They continued down the lane until they arrived at a small stream. Charlie looked around for a moment until he found what he had been looking for. He directed Alivia to a stump along the water. He instructed her to sit, but she joined him on the grass instead. He lay back to look up at the moving cloud formations. She rested her head on a tuft of grass beside him. As they watched, he took her hand again.
"I'm so sorry, Alivia. I wish there was something I could have done. Mark was my best friend."
"I know. He loved you very much, Charlie. I miss him so much. All my memories of him are here and at Hogwarts. I thought it was a good idea, but now I'm not so sure. Everything I see here reminds me of him."
"I just keep asking myself why he put himself in danger like that. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be talking about this. I don't mean to upset you," Charlie backtracked when he noticed the tears beginning to leak out of her eyes. He sat up quickly and pulled her into his arms. She sobbed into his chest while he held her close to him. He calmly stroked her hair and rocked her slowly back and forth. She finally calmed herself and transfigured a nearby leaf into a handkerchief. He took it from her and wiped her eyes. He gave it back to her but collected her hands in his. She closed her eyes and let him hold her for a moment longer.
"I ask myself that, too, Charlie. Maybe it was me."
Charlie took her shoulders and turned her around to face him. "No, Alivia. That's not true at all. Ah, I could beat him for what he's done to you. First he leaves you like that and then he makes you doubt yourself. No, Alivia, no. You are breathtaking. You take my breath away, anyway." He let go of her shoulders and lay back on the grass again. She placed her head on his stomach. They both fell asleep under the shade of a large tree. Charlie woke first about an hour later. The sun had moved a bit lower in the sky but was still shining brightly. He tensed his abs but didn't move much. He didn't want to wake her. Her hair was splayed out across his chest. It was a beautiful chestnut color which matched perfectly with her green-hazel eyes. She had a darker complexion than most Welsh girls he'd known at school, or maybe she just tanned well rather than burning like him and his siblings. Damned red hair and freckles. She was stirring. Finally, she woke and sat up. Her beauty was quite evident with the sun providing illuminating back lighting of her features. It was almost as though she were glowing. She stood and reached for his hand to pull him up.
"Let's go back. I'm getting hungry, and we should be helping with the party."
"Don't worry about it. We're the guests of honor. Fleur, the Chasers, and the fiancées are helping Mom. Ginny told me to get you out of the house."
"Ha ha! That's great. By the way, who's the best flyer in the family?"
"Well, right now I'd say me, but when Harry marries in he'll probably take that title. I was good, but he's pretty amazing on a broom. Although, I just got a Nimbus 3000 and Harry's riding last year's Cleansweep model. He keeps Sirius' Firebolt safely in his Gringotts vault. He doesn't ride it anymore. I may be able to take a Snitch from him. Maybe. We'll probably have time to play tonight. Oliver and Ron will be Keepers, me and Harry Seekers and Ginny, Angelina, Alicia, Hermione, you and Fleur can play Chasers. Hermione and Fleur never played, so we pair one of them with either Angelina or Alicia. Fred and George refuse to play if they aren't Beaters together, so Tonks and Bill are on Harry's team. Wood's our Keeper, though. It's pretty even teams."
She wrapped her arm around his waist and he around her shoulder as they meandered down the road back to the Burrow. Oliver and Tonks had arrived. Alivia could see them swooping across the sky in the backyard. She ran toward them leaving Charlie in her wake. Tonks saw Alivia coming and landed. Her broom clattered to the ground as she ran toward her friend. The two women embraced and immediately began conversing in laughter, shouts and tears. By the time they had finished, the rest of the family had arrived. Fred, George, Ron, Harry and Bill had set up tables in the back yard, and Molly and the girls were filling it with steaming hot food. Oliver, Arthur, and Charlie were discussing Ron's first day of Keeper tryouts. Apparently he had done very well, and Arthur was beaming with pride.
Molly called them all to the tables, and they tucked in to the meal in front of them. They talked and laughed about old school memories while they ate. Tonks, Bill, and Charlie were reminiscing about their first years before Alivia and Oliver had started school. Of course, Fred and George had tons of stories as well as the younger ones. They forgot all about the bad things that had happened. The evening was about happiness and family. Following the meal, the clean up went quickly with so many people helping. Oliver and Charlie moved everyone along so that there would be time to play a full game of Quidditch. Alivia realized that she didn't have a broom, so Charlie offered her his old one. The teams squared off as soon as they asked Alivia to transfigure six trees into goalposts as Charlie was setting up the field. Ron found the crate containing the Quaffle, Bludgers and Snitch while Fred and George located two additional bats for Tonks and Bill. Harry raced around the pitch as a warm-up while Angelica and Alicia were giving last minute tips to Fleur, Hermione and Ginny. Charlie and Harry shook hands, Mr. Weasley blew his whistle and the game was underway. Angelina and Ginny worked well together, and Fleur occasionally caught or threw the Quaffle. Oliver didn't really have much trouble blocking most of their shots, but Angelina and Ginny each managed to get one past him. Tonks and Bill were diligent on the Bludgers as Harry kept his eyes open for the Snitch.
Ron had a little more trouble with Alicia, Alivia and Hermione. They scored four times, making the tally 40-20 when Charlie spotted the Snitch. Fred and George deflected both Bludgers, which had come right at him, but his vision was singular. Harry saw it, too, but allowed Charlie a bit of a head start. The Snitch wobbled high above them until it broke into a dive. Harry and Charlie both chose a unique line at it, and both were flying well when the Snitch turned back to the left and began to climb. Charlie's angle was slightly better for this turn, and he flew past Harry without having to change speed or direction. His left hand closed around the Snitch and Mr. Weasley blew his whistle. Charlie's team had won!
They all came back to the ground and the teams shook hands on a well-played match. Harry complimented Charlie on some excellent flying, and Charlie returned the pleasantries, stating that he had just been in a lucky position. Fred and George took their wives by the hand and said goodbye. They wished Harry, Hermione, Charlie and Alivia a good term as they all vanished into the night air. Oliver and Tonks announced that they needed to get to their homes as well. Tonks promised to meet with her soon. Alivia said that she would like that very much. They hugged and then the couple disappeared, too. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley offered Bill and Fleur a room if they wished to stay, but they declined and Disapparated after saying their farewells. Finally, only those who were bunking in the Burrow remained. Ginny, Ron, and Arthur headed up to their rooms. Molly decided to join them. Hermione, Harry, Charlie and Alivia sat under the stars and began discussing the upcoming school year.
Only Harry had taught before, so he was offering advice and answering their questions about what it was like to be on the other side of power at Hogwarts. Harry told them that his favorite part was getting to know his students and help them discover interests and develop skills that would stay with them for life. Of course he was teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts, but he had also been the head of Gryffindor House. All 250 students were important to him, and they were his responsibility. That, he had decided, was the most difficult part. It was a frightening though to be the one person that all of these kids came to for help, especially when you were only a few years older than some of them. He said that while it had been exciting, being Head of House was a difficult and time-consuming task. Ravenclaw had won the House Cup the year before, and Harry figured that they would be strong again this term.
Hermione noted that since they had all gone through school in Gryffindor House that it would be imperative to treat all the other students equally. She reminded them how horribly Snape had treated each of them. Harry argued with her that it was because of other reasons. They were all quiet for a while, and Alivia realized that their eyes had fallen on her. She decided she'd had enough school talk for one night and stood to go inside. Charlie jumped up to follow her but first glared back at Harry and Hermione. Harry just stared back, but Hermione gave a small apologetic smile.
"Alivia, wait!" She stopped just short of the back door and waited for him. "Come on, don't go in yet. It's so nice out here. Gonna be hard for me to get used to sleeping inside all the time. Why don't you stay out a while longer?"
"Not tonight."
"Come on, I'll make sure that they don't talk about that stuff anymore."
"It doesn't matter, Charlie. Snape attacked me, and whether it was right or wrong, I killed him. After he killed Dumbledore, we were sure he was Voldemort's favorite Death Eater. Later, there was evidence that he had been working for the Order all along. But without Dumbledore to vouch for him, because Snape had killed him, we only had the testimony of Death Eaters who assured the Council that Snape had been working for them. So there was no further inquiry into my actions. But what if I was wrong?"
"He killed Professor Dumbledore! That's all you needed to know. Then, he came after you. You didn't know what spell he was about to perform. He could have killed you. Everyone understands that, especially Harry. He hated Snape more that Voldemort, if that's possible. Snape told Voldemort about the Prophecy. That's why his parents died, and then Snape's comments were part of the reason Sirius showed up at the Ministry that night. That's Harry's belief anyway."
"On paper it looks very convincing, but it's quite different when you're the one staring down your wand at the body."
"What did you think being an Auror would mean? You went through the training and psychological screenings. They told you that you would kill wizards and witches."
"Dark Wizards and Witches, we were to kill Dark Wizards and Witches. I'm not sure if that's what I did or not."
"Alivia, you knew Snape. Yes, you knew he claimed to be part of the Order. But you also sat in his classes, and you heard the way he hated James Potter and Sirius. He sided with Voldemort in the First War. Isn't that enough? I'm telling you that it is."
"I didn't like the man, but that doesn't give me an excuse for killing him!"
"There was plenty of proof that Snape was working for Voldemort. That's why there was never a question in anyone's mind but yours. It's a terrible thing to take another person's life, and too many of us had to do it. But Alivia, we can't second guess ourselves now. We have to trust that we did what we had to do. It's the only way we can live with the past."
"I guess so."
"You still going to bed?"
"I think so. I'll see you in the morning." Charlie took her hand. Alivia smiled but turned to go inside.
Charlie returned to Harry and Hermione who really were a bit worried about upsetting Alivia. Hermione was especially concerned about it.
"Charlie, is she all right? We just didn't think. She's been away so long, and she's had a million other things to deal with since then. We completely forgot how she had felt following Snape's death. We didn't mean to upset her."
Charlie ran his hand through his hair and then placed it on Hermione's shoulder. "She'll be fine. You're right, though. She hasn't thought about this stuff for a long time, and now that she's back, there are a lot of memories. School's gonna be tough for her. That's where Mark lives for her, you know," he explained with emotion in his voice as he took a seat across from Hermione, beside Harry. "I hope she'll be ok."
Hermione looked up at him with very wide eyes. "You love her!" Harry gave Charlie a sideways glance. She noticed and addressed him, "And you knew it? Does Ron know, too?" She looked at their averted eyes. "I can't believe I didn't know this! I can't believe Ron didn't tell me! Charlie what are you going to do?"
Charlie still hadn't said anything, but his hanging head and aversion of her gaze was a dead giveaway. "I'm not going to do anything. She is my best friend's wife, and I'm not going to do anything about it at all."
Hermione frowned broadly. "Well, that's no good at all. Mark was your best friend, but he's gone."
"And she's not over it," he interrupted rather shortly. "He's not even been gone a year. How very inappropriate would that be? One day she may be ready to move on, but it won't be for a while. Hopefully, when she's ready she'll turn to me. I'm not doing anything until then, just being here for her. I'm going in now. Night."
Harry shook his head at Hermione. "Well, you'd better not tell anyone. If he wants people to know, it's his business, not yours."
"Won't you even tell Ginny?" she asked.
"She's the one who told me. Really, Hermione, I thought you'd be all over this one. Why else do you think he left the dragons? He's crazier about them than Hagrid."
"I guess I just didn't think about it. Well, so everyone in the house knows?"
"Bill, Fred and George know, too. I'm assuming that means their wives."
"Tonks and Wood?"
"I don't think that they've been told, but they may have suspicions."
"Unbelievable! And you acted like you knew nothing when Mrs. Weasley mentioned Charlie having a family."
"She doesn't want to get her hopes up too high, but she's known for ages. You heard Charlie. It could take a long time for Alivia to be ready, and even if she does come around, there's no guarantee that she's feeling the same way about him."
"Right. I'm going inside. I have to yell at Ginny for leaving me in the dark while the rest of the world knew what was going on here!"
"Ok, just don't keep her up too long. It's no good if she's too tired for training tomorrow." Hermione stuck out her tongue and ran toward the house. Harry picked up his broom and trailed behind her. Tomorrow was going to be an interesting day.
