Her keys jingled as she unlocked the door of her apartment. Athena walked in, almost stepping on her mail that had become a stack. She picked it up and quickly went through it as she hung her coat. Most of them were bills, but there were a couple of letters as well from her family and her friends who were not aware that she was working undercover. She dropped the mail on the table, deciding that she wanted to have a shower first before going through all of this.
In clean and more comfortable clothes than her work robes, she plopped on her couch with a towel wrapped around her head and grabbed the pack of envelopes from her tables. She ignored the bills and opened the first letter. It was from her mother, asking when she was coming over for dinner. Athena sighed. She hadn't visited her mother in a minute and she felt bad. With her husband gone and her son away, Lauren Wilson only had her daughter around. This undercover mission has made Athena neglect her mother who was more lonely than ever. Then, there was another letter from her brother, Ernest, who kept traveling East towards what used to be Persia. Athena read the letter with a frown, wondering when on earth he was going to return home. She was starting to get annoyed with him for various reasons.
Ernest was the youngest of the two by nine years. He never met his father as he was born in late 1981, after Stephen had passed away. Athena was barely nine at the time. Her widowed mother had to work two jobs in order to be able to provide for her two children, but she eventually fell ill and could no longer work so much. Athena then took matters into her own hands. She started working at age fifteen, getting a summer job at Flourish and Blotts. She continued working many summers until she graduated from Hogwarts. After that, she was accepted into the Auror Academy. Even then, she continued working here and there until she got a full time job at the Ministry. Mother and daughter struggled in order to fill in her father's gap and make sure Ernest wouldn't lack anything while growing up. He had had a perfectly normal childhood, all things considered.
After they returned from Romania, Lauren was unable to work again due to her illness. The chemotherapy had a giant toll on her body and her mental health. At that time, Ernest had to re-do his seventh year at Hogwarts before officially graduating. The thought of it gave Athena some comfort, because at least now there would be someone else who would be able to take care of their mother and the burden wouldn't fall solely on her shoulders. But it hadn't been the case. Ernest wanted to live the life of a young wizard. He was unable to keep a job. Instead, he preferred to travel around the world with his pals.
It had been six years since he had graduated from Hogwarts and in that time, Athena felt like he was more absent than ever before. She dare not talk about this with her mother because she didn't want to upset her. Lauren never admitted it, but Athena knew Ernest was her favorite because she reminded her of her deceased husband. It pained her that her son was constantly away, but she would never speak ill of him.
Athena read his letter, wondering if he was as worried about their mother as she was. She wanted to send him a letter to ask him to come back, because he couldn't just turn his back to his family like this. This wasn't about her. It was about their mother who withered away while her son was living his best life, away in foreign countries.
The difference between the two siblings was mainly that the one had grown prematurely and the other one profoundly refused to become mature. But she never wrote back to him. That would only result in another argument, and the last thing she wanted was to create conflict, with her mother being ill and everything. She knew that Lauren hated it when they fought, and they fought quite often.
Athena concluded that being the oldest sibling was hard. She dropped Ernest's letter on the table, right next to her mother's. She picked another one, this one from her best friend, Elinor Findlay, with whom they used to share a dorm back in the day, as well as Tulip Karasu. Elinor was an auror as well, but for the past couple of years she had been working as a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts.
Athena found it amusing how many of her friends and old classmates had ended up as teachers at Hogwarts after the second war. Penny Haywood from Hufflepuff also became the new Potions teacher, after Horace Slughorn had officially retired. Rowan Khanna, another roommate of hers, had taken Professor McGonagall's position as a Transfiguration teacher after the latter became Headmistress. Ismelda Murk from Slytherin surprisingly became the new History of Magic teacher, replacing Professor Bins. The administration had finally decided that it was for the best to have a teacher that was actually alive.
And honestly speaking, it was about time.
Elinor's letter was an invitation to meet all together in Hogsmeade that very Saturday. Athena wondered why Elinor would send such a letter at that moment, considering that lessons were still happening until Halloween and tried to guess what was the occasion. Reading further didn't give her the answer she was hoping for, but a slight comment by Elinor let her know that she had invited all of their old friends, including Charlie.
"This must be a joke," Athena groaned out loud. There was no way she could decline this without raising Elinor's suspicions. It was already bad enough how her friend constantly nagged her about the Charlie issue, despite her best efforts to persuade Elinor that there was nothing going on. It wasn't a lie, but not the entire truth either. Athena didn't know what was going on anymore, especially after they had randomly bumped into each other at St.Mungos. He had looked unfazed, but no matter how hard she wanted to pretend otherwise, herself had been mildly upset. And now, Elinor asked her to spend the entire evening around him.
This was going to be just great.
"Bloody hell," she cursed under her breath as she grabbed two pieces of paper to respond to her mother first and then to Elinor. She scribbled down quickly, filling the parchment with her not-so-elegant handwriting. Her mother would sometimes complain that she couldn't read her handwriting, but herself didn't see the issue. She considered her handwriting at the very least eligible, although she could always try to adjust the size a little bit.
Athena whistled and a dark owl flew over her head. Mercury gently landed on her shoulder and pinched her ear playfully. She ruffled his feathers affectionately.
"I've missed you too, Merc," she admitted. Mercury used to be her father's owl, named after the Roman counterpart of the Greek God Hermes. Due to his age, Athena avoided sending him for too many errands, but this time he would have to deliver both messages simply because she had no other way of contacting her family and her friends. She tied the two rolls of parchment around his legs and then she opened the window. Mercury flew right outside, soon disappearing in the horizon. She peaked over the window, making sure no one had seen the owl flying away. It was the only issue she had living in a Muggle area, right in the heart of London. But it was safer for her to live there on her own, considering how much harder it was for criminals to locate her in an area full of Muggles instead of a village full of wizards. It was also convenient because she could easily get to the Ministry on foot. Plus, some of her colleagues lived nearby as well. For example Talbott Winger, who had been taking care of Mercury per her request.
Nightfall came before Athena realized, although it was something normal, considering that it was late October. She got prepared quickly, choosing her favorite light blue robes. She let her dark, wavy hair fall down on her shoulders. She looked at herself in the mirror, wondering if this was a good idea. Her reflection looked back at her with the same grey eyes as her father's. With a sigh, she grabbed her wand and her keys before disapparating away.
She apparated in Hogsmeade. She made her way through the village towards the Three Broomsticks, looking around her. The village was all lit up and decorated for the upcoming Halloween. It was her least favorite holiday. The idea of dressing up never appealed to her, but she could appreciate how nicely the residents of Hogsmeade had decorated their houses. And right above the village, the castle of Hogwarts emerged, tall and imposing. Athena came to a halt to admire her old school, reminiscing the good old days, with their adventures and shenanigans. She couldn't believe that it had been over a decade since she had graduated. It felt like it was yesterday that she got accepted into the Auror Academy with Elinor, Tonks and the others. After a few moments of pondering, she continued on her way.
She entered the pub and the warm air hit her right on the face. On a Saturday night the Three Broomsticks came alive as more people gathered to have a drink. The pub was crowded and Athena had to squeeze her way through, looking around for her friends. She finally spotted Elinor and Penny occupying a corner table, with her the latter laughing at something Elinor had told her, and she made her way there. As soon as they noticed her coming their way, they jumped and Elinor rushed first to greet her best friend. Athena couldn't contain a smile as they hugged for the first time in forever.
"Oh, I'm so glad you could make it!" Elinor exclaimed, taking a step back to look at her best friend, her smile reaching her ears.
"I got lucky," she said, then she turned to Penny. "Hey Pens," she said as she went for a hug.
"Hi." Penny smiled sweetly as they hugged. "It's been a minute since we last saw you. We missed you."
"I've missed you too, guys," Athena admitted, taking a step back to have a better look at them. Elinor, with her shoulder length, brunette hair and glasses - she always complained how bad her eyesight was - and Penny with her golden braids. "Where are the others?"
"They'll be here soon," Elinor assured her.
Indeed, a little while later a dark skinned woman with glasses and the brightest smile approached them.
"Rowan, hey," Athena greeted her with a hug.
"It's so good to see you, Athena," Rowan grinned.
"I second this," said another man that appeared just behind Rowan.
Athena rolled her eyes. "As if we don't see each other almost every day, Diego."
"That's the point of the joke, love." Diego winked at her.
"Hi, I hope I'm not late," a blonde man said breathlessly as he sat next to Rowan.
"You're fine, Ben." Penny assured him. "Where are the others?"
"They should be here soon," Ben said, looking around a little nervously.
"I bet Andre is going to be fashionably late, as always," Elinor predicted.
A few moments passed and then two redheads walked into the pub that were unmistakably Bill and Charlie Weasley. Athena's heart missed a beat, but her expression remained the same. It was so hard to read her, a skill that has proven useful throughout her auror career.
"Hey guys," Charlie greeted cheerfully. "Look who managed to tag along!"
"Did your wife finally let you off your leash?" Elinor jokingly asked Bill.
"Mock me all you want. One day, you'll have your own children and then it won't be as funny," the oldest Weasley shot at her.
"Funny? Not without me around," Another redhead asked, although this time it wasn't a Weasley.
"So you admit you're a clown, Karasu?" Athena suggested.
"Bagger off, Wilson." Tulip nudged her friend's shoulder. "At least one of us has a sense of humor."
"Whatever helps you sleep at night, love."
"Are we sure this table will fit all of us?" Rowan suddenly asked. "I think we are too many."
"We can always ask Madam Rosmerta for some more chairs," Penny said. "Besides, I'm pretty sure not everyone is going to make it tonight. It's a petty."
"I cannot believe I'm going to say this, but I'm kind of sad Merula couldn't make it. Missed her stupid face," Elinor admitted silently.
"Who else is going to come?" Athena asked.
"Jae, Barnaby and Andre, I think," Rowan responded. "Liz is traveling abroad and Baddea has an art gallery to organize in Paris. Talbott claimed he's too busy with work, same as Merula. Jae said he wasn't sure if he would make it…" she trailed off.
Just as Athena was about to say something about Jae, Madam Rosmerta came to their table to take their orders. There was a certain familiarity with the bar woman, as they all knew her since their student years at Hogwarts. A little bit after Rosmerta disappeared behind the bar, Barnaby Lee appeared, giving them all hugs.
"I missed you all!" He said in excitement. "It's been so long!"
"It's so nice to see you too, Barnaby." Elinor smiled at him. "How have you been?"
"I've been traveling quite a bit. Remember my buddy, Rolf? We've been traveling together, discovering new creatures with his girlfriend and Philbert Chivers. It's been amazing!"
"How come Liz didn't join you guys?" Diego asked.
"Oh she's been busy with her own stuff." Barnaby weaved his arm. "But she promised she would next time she would be available."
"That's so nice!" Penny smiled.
"So, how have you been, guys?"
They chatted for a little longer, until Jae Kim finally made his appearance.
"What's up, guys?" he greeted them.
"So glad you made it, Jae." Penny smiled at him.
"I wouldn't miss this, no matter what," the man smiled as he took a seat next to Athena. "Who else are we waiting for?" He asked.
"Andre, although I doubt he will be here any time soon," Rowan observed.
"It wouldn't be Andre if he wasn't late," Charlie commented.
Madam Rosmerta served their drinks as they chatted with one another, like old friends. Although they were too many and sometimes spoke over each other, it was pleasant. And at last, Andre came, dressed in his fancy robes.
"Bloody finally, I thought you weren't going to show up!" Elinor exclaimed.
Andre grinned. "You keep acting like you don't know me well enough, dear Elinor."
"To be honest, I didn't expect you to show your face either, especially after that humiliating defeat from the Harpies," said Athena.
Andre's smile turned into a scowl. "I would rather not talk about this," he said. "Despite the fact that you and your boyfriend seemed to have fun."
Athena almost choked on her drink. "My what?"
"Oh, don't pretend you don't know. It was all over the news. "Harry Potter watches a quidditch match with his new girlfriend. What has happened to Hermione Granger?"." Andre recited the title of said article. "Rita Skeeter always has a good story to tell."
"Since when is Rita Skeeter a reliable journalist?" Ben asked.
"There are so many things wrong with this sentence," Elinor pointed out.
"She took a random moment out of context and decided that Harry and I are dating." Athena rolled her eyes. "He's not my boyfriend. We are just partners at work, that's it. We were on an undercover mission."
"That didn't seem very undercover to me." Andre wiggled his dark eyebrows.
Athena sighed in exasperation. She couldn't believe this had backfired on her.
"Leave her alone, Andre. She's about to hex you," Elinor interrupted, smirking.
"She wouldn't do that to me. She adores me!"
"Wanna test that theory?"
"No hexing in my pub," Madam Rosmerta warned as she brought a second round of drinks. "I should have known you lot are up to no good when you gather again here."
"Sorry, Madam Rosmerta. If I'm going to hex Andre, I promise to do it outside of your pub," Athena apologized and they laughed.
The night continued and laughter became easier minute by minute. It had been so long since they had been all together like this, although not all of them were there. Athena's mind went straight to Tonks and her heart ached. Tonks. She missed her and she bet everyone else did, especially Tulip with whom they used to be partners in crime. She hadn't realized that she had fallen quiet, staring intensely at her glass, until she raised her gaze and met Charlie's. Her heart skipped another beat and quickly took a sip, looking away.
"Hey, Athena." Jae suddenly nudged her. "Can I have a minute?"
"Hm? Oh yes, Jae. Tell me."
Jae looked around and then revealed his wand. "Muffliato!" He whispered under his breath. Athena gave him a confused look. Why did he feel the need to cast this spell?
"Wanna know why I was late?" Jae asked, looking her dead in the eye.
"Because you have no clue about what tardiness means?"
"Hilarious." He rolled his eyes. "No. Because I was stuck in Knockturn Alley, collecting information for your auror friends."
Jae worked as an informant for the Ministry. It was an extremely dangerous job, but also a very important one. Jae was good at retrieving information, people and objects that even the most experienced aurors were unable to locate. Athena sometimes worried about him, because he was valuable to the Ministry, until he would no longer be. She grimaced at the thought of what might happen to Jae if things went south. That didn't seem to be his main concern, however.
"And what did you learn, exactly, that demanded my immediate attention?" She inquired.
"Weird things have been happening in Knockturn Alley for a while now," Jae said. "New people have been rising to power there. There's some guy named Dark Owl who's been recruiting people. Do you know him?"
"No. Never heard of him before," Athena admitted.
"I'm not surprised. He's a new face there, although not quite. Most people have never seen him. He's like a shadow. He sends his puppets to do his bidding."
"And what does the Auror Department have to say about this?"
"They are onto him. That's why Talbott didn't come tonight, because he's after him. But this isn't why I'm telling you this." Jae shook his head. "There's a lot of talk around Harry Potter. I don't know why yet, but he seems to be a key person to their plans, whatever they are. You should let him know. I think he might be in danger."
Athena nodded, feeling her stomach empty. She had a gut feeling that all this was somehow connected with Ginny's case but she didn't know exactly how. This wasn't very good. If these guys were onto Harry, there was a chance that their cover as Muggles might be already blown. Harry was right to be worried. If only he knew the actual extent of the problem…
"Thank you, Jae. I'll let him know," Athena promised.
Jae nodded. "Good." Then he waved his wand again and pretended like nothing happened, but his words kept swirling in her mind.
"May I have your attention, please?" Elinor suddenly said. Athena snapped her head towards her, trying to push Dark Owl on the back of her mind. "We have an announcement to make."
"We hoped that everyone would be here tonight, but unfortunately life happens," Penny added, looking hopefully towards Elinor. "It's the reason why we suddenly asked to meet you all. I'm sure you thought it was a little out of the blue."
Elinor stood up and cleared her throat. She looked a little bit nervous, and Athena could only make one guess, judging from the way she looked at the blonde from the corner of her eyes. "Penny and I are getting married," she announced after a brief pause and everyone cheered loudly.
"Congratulations, guys!" Bill grinned.
"Thought you were too much of a coward to pull this off. It was about time," Athena commented.
"Shut up, Athena," Elinor snapped at her, although she was blushing under the light as Penny tagged on her arm, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.
"I'm so happy for you," Ben said with teary eyes. Rowan rubbed his arm to comfort him.
"You don't look surprised, Rowan," Diego commented.
"Oh, I've known for a while. It's hard to keep it a secret when you all live in the same castle," the woman said, smirking. Elinor gave her a glare.
"Well, this calls for a toast," Charlie said, raising his glass. "To Elinor and Penny!"
"To Elinor and Penny!" Everyone repeated after him, raising their own glasses.
The couple couldn't stop smiling at their friends who congratulated and teased them. Athena was so happy for her best friends. It felt like they had spent a lifetime together and she couldn't imagine one without the other.
Everyone was happy, but like all things, it had to come to an end. Elinor paid for the drinks, despite everyone's protesting, claiming that this was her special night and it was her turn to do so. The group exchanged their goodnights outside of the Three Broomsticks, filling the street with their laughter, and soon everyone headed their way, with Elinor, Penny and Rowan following the path back to Hogwarts while everyone else disapparated home.
Athena was the last one to take out her wand to apparate, or at least she thought so. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Charlie standing a few feet away.
"Aren't you going home?" She asked him.
"Mind if I walk you home before I head back to the Burrow?" He offered, catching her off guard.
Normally she would have declined, having a feeling that this wasn't going to end well, but she nodded nonetheless. Maybe it was the alcohol that ran in her veins, maybe it was something else. She couldn't really explain it. Charlie grabbed her arm and they apparited in a small alley a few blocks away from her apartment so as not to be seen by Muggles.
They walked together in silence. Athena wasn't sure what was louder, her boots clicking on the pavement or the beating of her heart? It was so loud, she almost believed Charlie could listen to her heartbeat. He looked so calm, it was infuriating. Although she had no room to complain since her expression remained emotionless throughout their little journey.
"Where does Talbott live?" Charlie suddenly asked.
Athena pointed at a building on their left. "Over there, on the fourth floor."
"I see."
Then they fell silent again until they finally arrived at their destination. They just stood awkwardly next to each other, not knowing what to do or say. Why had she let him come here? It wasn't like she needed a babysitter. She wasn't that drunk, she was more than just capable of bringing herself home safely. Charlie knew this. Why did he want to come? She wanted to ask him, but she didn't have the courage. Maybe she didn't want him to answer.
"You know, you didn't-"
"Have to do this? Yes, I know," he cut her off.
"Why did you come, Charles?" Athena asked somewhat tiredly. It was more of a general question rather than an inquiry on the particular event. Why had he come back so early before Christmas?
Charlie opened his mouth, then closed it. It took him a moment before he replied. "I… am not sure," he admitted. "I guess I wanted to see you one last time before I left…" he said, fidgeting.
Athena laughed a humorless laugh. "Of course," she said bitterly.
"I should probably get going," he mumbled, then he turned to leave. She should have just let him go, but she couldn't stop herself.
"Do you ever think about me?" Athena asked.
Charlie stopped on his tracks, then turned around to face her. He looked her dead in the eye and she almost got dizzy. "More than you actually think."
She shook her head. "That's good to know. Goodbye, Charlie. Have a safe trip," she said before retrieving her keys.
"Do you?" He suddenly asked.
She looked at him again. "Do what?"
"Think about me."
"It doesn't matter," Athena said, putting her keys back in her pocket. "It doesn't matter, because we agreed it was better that way."
"I didn't agree to anything!" Charlie greeted his teeth. "You just came over one day and announced it!" It was the first time Athena saw him being genuinely upset.
"And what the fuck was I supposed to do?" She hissed. "Both you and I knew this wouldn't work. I didn't want a long distance relationship and you didn't want to leave Romania. It's very simple."
"You assumed I wouldn't want to come back to England. You never asked me!" Charlie complained.
Athena barked a laugh. "Charles, if you were to choose between me and the dragons, we know what you would choose. And we both know it's not me," she said.
Charlie was speechless. He didn't argue, which made her heart ache even more.
"The thing is, Charles, I cannot make you happy. You would never be happy with me here in England. And because I… care about you, I had to make a choice. It was easier letting you go rather than force you to come back and see you become unhappy. I would never do that to you. You know that," she said sincerely and with a much softer voice.
Charlie looked at her confused. "That's not-"
"You know it's true," she cut him off.
He muttered something inaudible under his breath, but Athena didn't have the energy to play along anymore.
"Goodnight, Charlie," she said before she disappeared inside the building.
A/N: This turned out way bigger than I intended it to be, hence why it took me so long.
As some of you might have noticed, I've brought the whole Hogwarts Mystery gang back. I used to play the game back in the day, but it's been a while since I've abandoned it. Do I care what canonically happens to some of the characters? (No spoilers!) Absolutely not. I just want these kids to be happy- sort of, considering how dramatic that ending was, oops.
I hope you enjoyed this and hopefully I'll see you soon. Happy holidays and I'm wishing you a happy new year. May 2021 treat us with kindness.
~ACG