*****Harry Potter and all related Characters (with the exception of Charlotte, Joshua, and Mary-anne) places and things are the property of J.K. Rowling, her publishers and Warner Bros. ************

Requiem for a sinner

Chapter4: Family ties

Charlotte Wildsmith smiled as the setting sun warmed her face, her arms and bare feet. The sky was painted in dazzling shades of pink and yellow, the air was still and so was she. For a moment she was transported back to a perfect moment, it seemed so long ago, so very far away. But she could still see it, she could still feel it. The way it felt in his arms, the way his mouth felt on hers. She remembered how in those few moments she had been filled up with so much love, so much powerful emotion that it almost hurt her to feel it. Charlotte closed her eyes and basked in the memory. But with a sinking heart she remembered, Fred was gone, she would never feel that way again. Best to forget it..............

She suddenly became aware she was not alone on the porch railing. Charlotte looked over at her father and felt her face redden. Joshua Wildsmith smiled down at hid daughter.

"Thinking about him again?" He asked. She looked away sheepishly.

"Think about who? Why do you insist that there is a "him?""

He raised an eyebrow. " I don't think you dear old Dad is as senile as that. I can tell when something is bothering my daughter."

Charlotte shook her head. " Maybe I'm just sad that I'm going to be leaving my dear old dad tomorrow."

The two of them exchanged a look. Joshua shrugged.

"Alright, if you insist on being difficult-"

"I'm not being difficult," she protested. "Really I just wish that the holidays were longer........Ten more months before I can see you again. And I know I can send you owls and all that stuff......but it's not the same."

He reached out and ruffled charlottes hair. " I know. It was lonely in this great big house without you last year. ....." he trailed off. "It's amazing."

"What?"

"How much you look like your mother. Uncanny actually."

Charlotte smiled as her heart began to pound. She had never heard her father talk about her mother. "Really?"

Joshua took his child's chin and held it gently in the palm of his hand. " Same eyes, same hair, same mouth, freckles. well you did get my nose, that was unfortunate. But somebody has to pass on the horrible Wildsmith honker genes." He laughed. "You even have her smile. She was so beautiful when she smiled........." He turned away.

Charlotte took his hand. "Tell me about her.........please...."

A heavy sigh escaped him. " We met at a Quidditch match, even in a stadium of thousands, I still picked her out. She was sitting on the opposite side of the stadium, there was this radiance about her, it was magic..............I couldn't take my eyes off her for the entire game, I don't even know which team won. But I do remember my girlfriend becoming very angry at me and dumping her soda on my lap before she stormed away." Charlotte chuckled. " I caught a terrible cold, sitting outside in the freezing autumn air with wet pants all day. But it didn't matter.'

'I was walking to my broomstick after the game when I saw her again. I don't know where I got the nerve, but all of a sudden I was standing in front of her, asking her on a date. I was truly bizarre, especially for me, I was quite shy back then.'

' I didn't notice anything odd about her on our first few dates. Maybe I was just ignoring it, I didn't want to see anything wrong with my dream girl. But it got to a point where I was so close to her and we were so deeply in love, that we couldn't ignore it anymore. She had these night terrors, like yours, only stronger. Sometimes I couldn't wake her up for days, she would lie in bed screaming and calling out for help, and there was nothing I could do."

'We went see hundreds of doctors , muggle and magical, no could give us any answers. We turned to Riencour for a while, but your mother hated it. She was such a vibrant person, so full of life, she couldn't stand being suppressed like that. So we decided to just wait it out. It was hard on her, God knows it was hard on me. But we loved each other.'

'When we got married, Voldemort had already begun seizing power overseas. New news of the terrible things he was doing came to us everyday. Your Grandmother, Mary-anne, she was especially upset by it. She came from England. We thought it was because she had family there, we didn't know how close she was to what was happening."

Charlotte could feel her heart pounding inside her ribs. She could see the pain in her Fathers eyes, feelings of guilt mixed in with her intrigue and desire to know who her mother really was.

"You were born on the day the first dark mark was seen in north America. When your mother was pregnant her dreams go steadily worse and worse, we were afraid all her anxiety would hurt you, but you were perfect.'

'I remember, the doctor handed you to me and I looked into your eyes and I all I could think was, this is my perfect baby girl. But your Grandmother..............she looked at you and this look of horror just swept over her. She started raving about evil being passed down. That you looked just like Tom, that we had to get rid of you."

Charlottes stomach twisted " Get rid of me?" She a tear slip down Joshua's cheek.

"You have to understand, she had a very hard life, and at that time only she knew the truth......... but it was horrifying, I mean she even once suggested that we should drown you............... That was the same day that we learned the truth about Catherine's father. Mary-Anne's husband, the one she had told us was dead............"

"Please stop." Charlotte whispered. "I don't want- I don't want to hear anymore."

"I'm so sorry, I should have never told you.......Not after you've spent your whole life...........Are you still afraid Charlotte?" The tears were coming faster now. It was heartbreaking. She reached out and embraced her father.

"I'm still afraid, but I'm getting stronger everyday, I haven't had a nightmare in weeks. Dad I'm really happy for the first time in ages. I can't even remember the last time I felt so free. I don't want to live the rest of my life looking over my shoulder for a shadow. I'm really living now Daddy. "

Joshua turned toward her as she pulled away from him. "It's so amazing. Whoever he is, he's changed you for the better......"

She frowned a little. "In my defence, he only showed me the door, It was up to me the open it." Now it was Charlotte who sighed. "Besides, that's all over now."

"Why?"

"He walked away. not all men are as understanding as you Dad."

Joshua shrugged. "I wouldn't give up just yet-" He was interrupted by a large owl landing on the balcony.

Charlotte took the letter it was carrying while her father went inside to get some scraps to give the bird. When he returned he saw that Charlotte had gone pale, she was trembling and gaping at the letter in wide-eyed disbelief.

"What is it Charlotte? What's wrong?"

Her breathing was coming in short sporadic gasps. "I must leave now, I can't wait until morning, It may be too late by then."

"What? What's happened?"

"It's from Harry Potter."

His brow wrinkled "What on earth could he want?"

"They've found Serverus. He's in the hospital........They don't know what's wrong............."

"Serverus." he whispered. As he watched Charlotte run into the house to finish packing, Joshua whispered the name over and over. In the early twilight air, Joshua Wildsmith felt a hatred build up in him that he thought he had buried for ever."