Ginny didn't even bother to knock. She knew her second oldest brother, and she knew that when he was upset about something, unless he was directly confronted, he simply shut down. So she took a deep breath, took hold of her courage and the doorknob, and tried to push open the door. When it wouldn't budge, she knocked sharply.
She got no response, and after another knock that went unanswered, she called, "Charlie?"
And the door opened. She stared for a moment, surprised, but then she stepped slowly into the room. Charlie was sitting on his bed, and he wasn't looking at her, but she simply closed the door behind herself and crossed the room to sit across from him.
For a few minutes, Charlie didn't say a word. He stared out the window, and Ginny stared at him. Finally, reluctantly, he turned to look at her.
"They sent for you, didn't they?" he asked. His voice sounded a lot more miserable and a lot less angry than he'd expected it to, and he flushed and shifted his gaze to his feet. Ginny realized that what Hermione'd said was true.
"Charlie," she said gently, and she reached over and put her hand on his arm. "I know you didn't really mean what you said to Bill and Fleur. I know it."
He couldn't bring himself to look at her. He blinked fast and swallowed hard.
"I didn't." His voice was low, but Ginny heard him, and now she took his hand and squeezed it tightly.
"Will you apologize?" she asked, and he hesitated a moment before nodding slowly.
"I just –" He had to clear his throat, and his voice was hoarse when he said, "I don't know if Bill will accept it. I was pretty horrible to Fleur."
"Well, you have to try," Ginny said softly.
He let out an explosive breath, but he nodded. "I know."
Ginny stared at the top of his red head for a moment before she asked the question she knew everyone wanted the answer to.
"Why did you say it, Charlie? It just doesn't make sense that you could be that cruel to Bill and Fleur, especially with how often you stay at their place."
He couldn't look up at her now. She had no idea of the effect her words were having, but the guilt stabbed at him, and he finally managed to choke, "I just – I can't imagine that Dad has to know he's going to have grandchildren he'll never even get to see. It's not their fault. I know that. But – it's so bloody unfair, Ginny."
Ginny sighed. "Of course it is," she said, and her own voice grew tight. She cleared her throat. "But that's no reason to lash out at the two of them. Our lives have to go on somehow, Charlie. And I'm sure
Dad wouldn't want us to put everything on hold while we wait for him to…" The rest of her sentence stuck in her throat, and she almost felt as if she were choking. But Charlie was hardly in the condition to notice.
The word she didn't say hung between them, and it was the unspoken that finally broke Charlie.
Ginny had stopped looking at the top of his head, so she didn't notice it when his shoulders started to shake. But his gulping breaths made her look up again, and then she knew what she had to do. Slowly, she moved down the bed, and she put her arms around him. The moment she touched him, he started crying harder, and as much as he wished he could control himself, he found himself clinging to her.
Ginny smoothed his hair and rubbed his back. It took a long time for him to calm down, and when he finally did, he pulled away, his ears flushing the usual Weasley red.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled. But Ginny shook her head in exasperation.
"You all need to stop apologizing for being human," she exclaimed, and Charlie almost smiled. Almost. Then he turned serious.
"Ok, I won't apologize for that," he said, and he started fidgeting with his comforter when he said, "but I do need to apologize to Bill and Fleur. How on earth am I supposed to do that?"
Ginny shrugged. "Well, I'mnot sure how, but I do think you need to do it soon. The longer this sits, the worse it'll get. You know what Bill can be like when he has time to stew."
Charlie gave an involuntary shudder and nodded. "You're right," he said. For a moment, he sat, staring at the pattern of dragons on his old sheets, and then he looked up.
"I'll go now," he said, and Ginny smiled.
"I'm glad," she said, and she got to her feet, reaching out a hand to pull him to his. Once he was standing before her, though, he surprised her by drawing her into a tight hug.
"Thanks, Gin," he muttered. "I – I'm glad you came back. I was a git, but you came anyway. Thanks."
Ginny hugged him back. "You might be a git, but you're still my brother," she mumbled into his t-shirt. Then she pulled away and fixed him with the determined stare that had cowed her brothers more often than they liked to admit. "But Bill is my brother, too, and I need for the two of you to get along. I'm pretty sure that Dad needs it too. So go fix this."
"I'm going; I'm going," he grumbled, and she followed him down the stairs. Unfortunately, they were met by the same scene Ginny had left when she'd gone up the stairs. Ron and Hermione were entwined on the couch; Ron was no longer crying, but he was pale and miserable. Ginny turned to Charlie, mouthing "Go" when she saw the look of concern on his face. She really didn't want to go to Ron now, but she knew that Charlie would delay this apology if at all possible, and that was the worst decision he could make at this moment.
He sighed but turned and walked out the door. Ginny waited until she heard the pop of his disapparation, and then she joined her brother and Hermione on the couch. A moment later, Harry walked into the living room, and Ginny realized he must have watched Charlie leave and figured it was safe to come back in. One look at Ron's face made it clear he regretted this decision, but he walked over anyway and took the seat beside Ginny.
None of them spoke for a moment, and then Ginny said, quietly but firmly, "Ron, what's going on?"
He looked up at her quickly and then just as quickly looked back down. Hermione added, "Ron, you have to tell us what happened."
Still, he said nothing. This time, he didn't even look up.
It was the voice of the last person he expected that made him break his silence.
"Ron, please," Harry said, his voice low. "We need to know."
He looked up at last. Harry was staring at him, his eyes pleading, and he knew he would have to explain.
He let out a deep breath.
"I – I went to check on Mum and Dad when Hermione went over to the Burrow to see the two of you," he started, his voice shaky. He cleared his throat. He couldn't meet any of their eyes, but he continued to talk.
"They were – they were in their bedroom, and I knocked, but I guess neither of them heard me."
Now, suddenly, he looked at Ginny, and his eyes were suspiciously bright.
"Ginny, the last time I saw Dad cry was when Fred – when Fred – but he was in there with Mum, and he was crying, and Mum was hugging him and telling him it was all going to be all right. But it isn't, is it? It can't be. Because Bill and Fleur are going to have the first Weasley grandchild, and Dad will never even get to see the baby. How is that all right?"
It was too much. First Charlie, now Ron… Ginny's eyes were stinging, and she suddenly turned to hide her face in Harry's shirt. He wrapped his arms around her in surprise, but he held her close while she shook violently.
Ron, meanwhile, was staring at his tough younger sister in horror.
"Ginny?" he whispered. She didn't move, but he knew he had to continue. He'd started this, and now he had to finish it. "I'm sorry," he said plaintively. "But you wanted to know. And I – I want to be happy for Bill and Fleur, but how can I be when I know how sad Dad is?"
Ginny didn't have an answer for him. No one did. But when she finally managed to get her breathing under control, she detached herself from Harry's protective grasp and looked at her older brother.
"Can we – can we just concentrate on fixing Bill and Charlie now?" she asked, and she hated how her voice trembled. She cleared her throat violently, and her voice was rough when she asked, "Can we just put everything else on hold until they're ok?"
He looked at her for a moment, and then he nodded.
"Fine," he said, his voice very low. "But once they are, we need to figure out what to do about Dad. I can't ever see anything like that again."
None of them felt the need to mention that he probably wouldn't have much of a choice. Or that things were only going to get worse. It was clear from the look on his face that in spite of his words to the contrary, he was very much aware of the truth.
A/N: I definitely struggled with this one, but if I didn't post it today, I didn't know when I would. It does answer some questions and continue in the knot-untangling process. Please read and REVIEW!