Characters: Alana Jordan and Charlie Weasley

Genre: Friendship/Hurt/Comfort/a little but of romance

Alana kissed her mother and father goodbye as the last whistle for students to board sounded off. She hopped onto the train and found a cabin that's window faced the loading dock. She waved eagerly to her smiling parents as the train made its way out of the station.

It had been a nice, but also dreary Christmas holiday. Her little brother Lee had been ecstatic to see her, as well as eager to try out some new pranks he had learned from his muggle friends at his primary school. One she found very annoying was a prank that involved a rubbery pink bag that made flatulent noises when you sat on it. He had placed it in various chairs, as well as under the sheets on her bed.

Her parents seemed a bit more cheerier than they had been last she saw them. Or at least, her father was. At times it seemed her mother was closed off from the rest of the family, especially on Christmas Day.

It had been the 7th Christmas without Jacob being there. The 7th Christmas where Jacob and Alana wasn't playing Exploding Snap, and that Jacob wasnt showing Lee another trick on his broom. Once again, cookies and hot cocoa by the fire didn't taste as sweet as it had used to.

Her mother didn't even bother to come out of her room on Christmas this time. She had stayed in the room the entire day, and Alana swore she had heard gentle weeping when she would put her ear to the door in an attempt to check on her.

Her father tried his best to keep smiles on her and Lee's faces. It used to had been easy for him to do so with Lee, but since he was nine now, and knew a bit more about the situation with his brother, he wasn't in the mood to be overly cheerful.

As the days passed, Alana overheard her parents arguing with weather or not to send her back to Hogwarts. They had found out about her escapades since her first year, and was afraid that they would lose her too.

Thankfully, they decided to let her go back, but strongly urged her to stop whatever it was she was doing. They eve. tried to make her promise to stop her search for her brother, as well as the vaults. Alana didn't have the heart to lie to them, so she just walked off and shut the door to her room.

As she sat by herself in her cabin, head leaning against the window as she sat her the world pass by, her thoughts drifted to Jacob. She was trying her best to not let the rumors of him actually joining the Death Eaters get to her. Jacob may have been a troublemaker, but he didn't have a Death Eater bone in his body. The family had been deemed blood traitors since before Alana was born, and Jacob always spoke highly of his older Muggleborn friend that he had. A girl that was named after a flower. Lily, if she wasnt mistaken.

She longed for him to come back home safely. Maybe in the summer she would come home, and her brother would be bent over in the fridge, hunting for food, as he always claimed he was hungry. He would catch her as she would leap into his arms and squeeze her tight. Then block her hits as she screams about how she had been looking for him for the majority of her time at Hogwarts.

She sighed deep. Wishful thinking once again.

The door opened to her cabin. Charlie Weasley walked in after looking for her for the past 20 minutes. Alana gave him a weak smile as he sat down in the seat across from her.

"Well, we were beginning to think you hadn't gotten on the train," said Charlie. "Actually, Ben had thought that. He went into a bunch of frightening theories and got himself into a tizzy."

Alana chuckled. "Hope he isn't too far gone."

"Rowan and Penny set him right," said Charlie, eyeing Alana closely. "Is there a reason why you're here by yourself?"

Alana sighed and turned her attention back to the passing scenery. Charlie felt the air in the room change, and moved beside her, waiting for her to say something. Or nothing. Either way, he would be there for her.

"I miss him so much, Charlie," Alana said, sighing again. "I just wish I had real answers you know?"

"We are getting them, aren't we?"

"I dunno. It seems like with every clue we find, it just raises more questions. I was so sure I knew who my brother was before all this. Now, it's like he's a stranger. Did I ever really know who he truly was? Is what the Prophet, Skeeter, and Merula saying true? Did he really get involved with the Dark Arts? Is he really a Death Eater?"

Charlie looked at Alana's big brown eyes and spied tears waiting to be shed. Without knowing what he was doing, he grabbed and cupped Alana's hand into his, gently patting the top of her hand with his other one.

"Don't believe a word of it, Lonnie," said Charlie, using the nickname that Bill had given her. "Your brother seemed to have went through a lot to try to protect Hogwarts from the dangers of the vaults. My mum says the Prophet is full of bollocks. Especially Skeeter's rag. And Merula? Since when do you believe a word that harpy says?"

Alana chucked as she wiped her eyes with her other hand. She rested her head on Charlie's shoulder. Charlie tensed up, not really knowing what to do. Alana had never been so close to him. He decided to allow his instincts to kick in, which led him to intertwine his fingers with hers, giving her hand a gentle and comforting squeeze. Then, he leaned his head against hers.

"Do you think he's okay out there?" he heard Alana whisper.

"Dunno for sure, but I think so," reassured Charlie. He'll be back before you know it."

Alana smiled warmly as she snuggled against Charlie's side. She couldn't help but feel extremely comfortable around him at that moment. She took a deep breath and the smell of fresh linen, the sun, fudge, and honeysuckle filled her nostrils, relaxing her even more. She closed her eyes as her mind drifted to Hogwarts and the adventures that were surely awaiting her.

Charlie couldn't believe something like this was happening. Ever since confessing his feelings to Bill, he had thought about how he would be, how he would act, and what he would say to her when he saw her again. He had an inkling of her fancying Andre, but he thought that maybe, just maybe, Alana would at least consider him after he laid his cards on the table.

He had planned to do just that on the way back to school, thinking that the length of the train ride would be enough time for them to talk about it. However, seeing her in a venerable state, having her find him comforting in a time where she seemed to had wanted to cry, made him decide to reserve the conversation for another day.

Besides, Alana never rested against any other boy like this. Not that he had seen at least. And the smell of vanilla and whatever oils Alana used in her hair was delightfully intoxicating. He didn't want to say nor do anything to ruin the moment.

A minute later, Bill passed by Alana's cabin. He peeked in and spied the scene, smirking at how natural his brother and his Hogwarts sister looked together.

Charlie happened to look over and catch Bill's eye. Bill shot up two thumbs as he smiled from ear to ear.

"Sod off, you." mouthed Charlie, with a grin on his face.