Charlie's Angel Chapter 4: Dinner and a Deal, a harry potter fanfic

Author: Junius

Summary: Charlie leaves Romania to spend the holidays with his family and is reunited with his high school crush… eventual CW/NT.

Notes: Again, the plea goes out to anyone who thinks they have a suggestion on improving this story, as I'd be very grateful. Thank you heaps to everyone who is reviewing, particularly the wonderfully ubiquitous Eraserhead. Remember your basic math: Reading Reviews = Chapters!

More Notes: A few people have commented on the timeframe and ages. Well, whilst I like to BASE my stories on the canon, they may go a little haywire in the name of poetic license. When I say this fanfic is set sometime in OotP, I think I actually mean I'll use some of the circumstance and references in that book but it can't literally or logically have taken place in that timeframe. This is a little digression of time I have made up; if you're uncomfortable with the idea I apologise.

Disclaimer: My ongoing efforts are fruitless, as they still don't belong to me.

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"… I wish Mum'd let me join the Order though, I don't like hearing people ripping shreds out of Dumbledore and Harry and have to just sit there and listen to it and keep my mouth shut."

"You've never been good at that," Charlie commented. Ginny shot him a dirty look but was unable to maintain it for long. They had been chattering all afternoon, Ginny filling him in on exactly what he'd been missing in Romania, her words occasionally embellished with a comment from Ron or Fred or George as they filed in and out of the kitchen at various times.

"You've got nerve, Charlie," Ginny now retorted. "Mum said you've been talking with Tonks all morning. Clearly I'm not the only big mouth around here."

Charlie didn't reply, his thoughts drawn back to Tonks and what had happened between them earlier. He was sure Tonks had sensed the spark that had flashed between them as well. He wondered for a moment what she had been going to say when the others had interrupted them.

"Dinner!"

The cheerful tones of his mother brought Charlie back to reality. He glanced around to see that all of his younger siblings had gathered back at the dining table, washed and changed and sporting ravenous expressions. He stood up to help Mrs Weasley as she bustled about the stove. "Need any help Mum?" he queried.

Immediately there were loud fake coughs behind him that sounded strangely like, "Suck!" Mrs Weasley threw an admonishing glance at Fred and George.

"Yes, Charlie, dear, very kind of you to offer," she said pointedly. The "coughing" stopped. "Could you go let everyone know that dinner is ready?" she continued. "Your father and Kingsley will be home soon, but I think Tonks, Sirius and maybe a few others are upstairs somewhere."

"No worries," he assured her, making sure to accidentally bump the back of Fred and George's chairs on his way past. He leapt up the stairs two at a time, though this apparent act of eagerness was contradicted when he paused outside Tonks's bedroom door.

He swiftly ran a hand through his red hair, quashing the fluttering in his stomach that was certainly not nerves. Knocking on her door, he waited until he heard her acknowledgement before he entered the room.

"Hey Tonks," he greeted her. She was sprawled on her bed, a quill in one hand, the other toying with a strand of hair that was now long and brown. Parchment was spread over every inch of bedspace she herself didn't already take up. "Um, Mum said to tell you that dinner is ready," Charlie continued. "You know, if you're hungry."

"OK." She sat up and stretched, a movement that made Charlie inexplicably blush. "I'll just gather up this report for Dumbledore and make my way down."

"Yeah," Charlie said vaguely. "I'll go let the others know."

He left the room and shut the door behind him, pausing only to lean his forehead against the wall. Stupid, he told himself, acting like a nervous schoolboy. He should be well beyond acting like a nervous kid with a crush now. He was an adult and he had forgotten any stupid feelings he may have once harboured for Nymphadora Tonks.

As he turned and made his way up the stairs, though, an indignant whisper at the back of his mind said otherwise. All right, he thought grudgingly, he did still have feelings for her. His behaviour just now was testimony to that. OK then, he thought, I'll admit it, my feelings never changed. But, he bargained with himself, nothing would come of it so I'll forget it and stop acting like a prat. Deal.

Vaguely realising the ridiculousness of negotiating with himself, Charlie alerted Sirius and a distinctly hung over Mundungus Fletcher that dinner was ready, relief flooding through him when Mundungus only made a vague ill noise, turned over and went back to sleep. He wouldn't have liked to accompany an under the weather drunk to the dinner table while his mother was there.

Upon entering the dining room, his eyes immediately searched for Tonks, an impulse he was unable to refuse. She was sitting at the end of the table between Hermione and George, talking to Ron and Harry who sat opposite her. As if sensing his gaze, she looked up and offered him a cheeky grin before turning back to the trio. Charlie smiled and sat at the table next to Ginny; unaware of the shrewd look his sister was giving him and Tonks.

That night, after dinner and an enthusiastic reunion with his father, Charlie sat at the dining table, waiting as the various members of the Order filed into the room. Some faces he recognised, though most were new to him. He scowled as Severus Snape swept into the room, seating himself imperiously near the head of the table.

"My thoughts exactly," a voice whispered in his ear. Charlie turned and found himself face to face with Tonks. The familiar feeling stirred in the pit of his stomach but remembering the promise he had made himself, he simply accepted it and returned her grin.

"Never was that popular, was he?" he whispered back. Tonks shook her head, eyeing him with dislike.

"I can't say I'm really comfortable with him being in the Order," she confided. "But Dumbledore vouches for him and if you can't trust Dumbledore, who can you trust?"

Charlie nodded his agreement. "So who are the rest of this lot?" he asked. Tonks cast her eyes about the room.

"Well, that witch in the corner is Hestia Jones. I think she works in Hogsmeade somewhere. Next to her is Dedalus Diggle; real excitable chap. You know Dung, of course. Then there's Emmeline Vance and Elphias Doge, both with the Ministry. You know Sirius and Remus. That bald bloke talking to your mum and dad is Kingsley Shacklebolt. He's an Auror, like me, but higher up. Oh, and there's also Sturgis Podmore, but he doesn't often come to meetings."

"Same as that Charlie Weasley layabout," another voice chimed in. "Right scoundrel, he is."

Charlie recognised the voice instantly, turning with a grin. "Still," he replied. "I hear his not half as bad as his brother Bill."

Bill grinned and clapped his hand on Charlie's shoulder. "How are you mate?" he greeted his brother. "Finally managed to drag yourself away from the dragons?"

"Well, it was tough," Charlie said with feigned seriousness. "Spend the holidays with you or a bunch of bad tempered overgrown lizards?"

"I think I would have chosen the lizards," Tonks commented, grinning as Bill glared at her.

Charlie opened his mouth to ask Bill what he'd been up to, when he became aware of a sudden hush falling over the room. He realised Dumbledore had entered the room, McGonagall at his side, and sat back quietly, sensing Bill and Tonks also fall into an attentive silence on either side of him.

Dumbledore paused to exchange a few quiet words with Sirius and Remus before taking his place at the head of the table. He waited until they had taken seats before standing and letting his gaze sweep over the faces turned expectantly towards him. His own face was as lined and aged as ever, but his eyes still twinkled with a wisdom and alertness that was reflected in his voice.

"Welcome," he said in a voice that was soft, yet strong. "Members of the Order of the Phoenix."

In the next chapter (The Meeting) Charlie will be given his assignment by Dumbledore and the rest of the Order of the Phoenix. Though I'm toying with a few ideas, I'd appreciate any ideas readers would like to throw at me in a review. Should I use your idea in place of one of my own, you shall be duly acknowledged. I don't want to sound as though I can't come up with my own ideas; I'm just not 100% happy with my progress so far and would like to know what sort of stuff people want to read.

As always, many thanks to all who read and mucho apologies for the gap in posting!