Author's Note: Yes, Charlie is officially here to stay. The next few parts will obviously be Charlie trying to figure out what the heck is going on with Harry. The real romantic and physical aspect of their relationship is still far intothe future (sorry folks) and it is going to take a bit of time for true affections to grow. While Harry may soon be ready to throw himself at Charlie, Charlie is a respectable sort of guy and will want to treat Harry properly. Finally, a random bit of knowledge; I haven't smoked in years but I really miss it. As I was writing this chapter, I realized that I was living vicariously through Harry's smoking habits because I have him lighting up a cigarette at every point that I would have back in my younger days!
Chapter 5: A Talk With a Friend
"Really? I reckon you need something, but this is not a conversation for a busy sidewalk. Come on, I have a hotel room a few blocks over. I had planned to be out late and Mum would be furious if I came home close to dawn." Charlie started walking but turned to look behind him when he realized Harry wasn't following.
Harry was standing with his right arm down in front of him holding a cigarette, with his left hand crossed in front of him cradling his right elbow. His head was cocked slightly to the side, his was were slightly squinted, and his lips were parted, suggesting that he was halfway to either asking a question or issuing a protest. Taking in Harry's stance and facial expression, Charlie knew he was in obvious turmoil as to what to do and so stopped and patiently waited.
Harry's decision was apparent when he sighed deeply and began to walk forward. Upon reaching Charlie, he mumbled "Might as well, I don't have anything better to do now."
The walk to the hotel was made in silence. As soon as Harry finished his cigarette, he crossed both arms in front of himself and continued walking with his head down. Glancing over at Harry and picking up on his dark mood, Charlie mentally rolled his eyes and decided that he wished he was facing off with an angry dragon instead of a broody teenager.
Upon walking into the modest hotel room, Harry immediately slumped into a chair at the little dining table in the corner of the room, tossed his pack of cigarettes on the table, and lit another cigarette. Charlie took a seat across from him then reached out and snagged a cigarette from Harry's pack. "You mind, mate?" Harry gave him a negligent wave and Charlie lit his cigarette. "Since when do you smoke, Charlie?" "Meh, I have off and on for years. Just not something I would do at The Burrow" replied Charlie with a grin. "Why, are you afraid of your mother?" In a very serious tone of voice, Charlie answered, "Absolutely, you have met my mother, yeah?" Harry finally made eye contact and inclining his head to Charlie, "Point", which caused both Harry and Charlie to grin.
With the awkward silence broken, Charlie decided to trudge forward and attempt to find out what was going on with Harry. "First of all, how did you get into that club?" Bracing himself for an interrogation, Harry decided to be open on a few minor points. "Well," taking a drag on his cigarette, Harry continued, "the first night I walked in with someone who apparently knew the bouncer and so he never said anything. The next night I guess I got lucky because he only gave my Identification Card a quick look, then I walked in with someone the next few nights. After that, the bouncers all knew me and never said anything."
"Fair enough. What possessed you to go there in the first place?""It seemed like a good idea at the time" was Harry's obstinate reply. "Alright, what made you start smoking?" "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
Realizing he wasn't getting anywhere with his current line of questioning, Charlie took a hard look at Harry as he contemplated the best way to approach the conversation. What he saw in Harry's face worried him. Going by the dark circles under his eyes, Charlie could see that he hadn't slept very much recently and his face was much too thin. Harry was always quite thin, but now his face was starting to take on a very sharp look due to his protruding cheek bones.
Charlie's next words surprised Harry out of his silent brooding. "How about I run next door and get us something to drink and snack on. If you are good and stay put, I will even bring you another pack of cigarettes. Wash up if you want, make yourself at home" Confused, Harry simply nodded and watched Charlie walk out the door. He briefly considered leaving but then imagined what would happen if Charlie were to go knocking on the Dursley's door. 'Guess, I'll be staying then'.
Charlie wasn't surprised at all to find Harry deeply asleep when he returned. Harry was laying on the bed, fully clothed, on his back with his legs hanging off the end. 'He looks like he sat down on the edge of the bed, fell asleep, and then fell backwards.' Admitting to himself that Harry very likely did just that, Charlie set his purchases down on the table and debated waking Harry up to eat something real quick or at the very least get some water in him. 'I really hate to disturb him but he looks like he hasn't eaten a proper meal in a month. Mum would be having a fit.' Against his better judgment,though, Charlie decided to let him sleep. He assured himself that rest was just as important as food.
Stripping down to his boxers, Charlie pulled on a pair of pajama pants before collecting a spare blanket from the linen closet. He then pulled Harry closer to the head of the double bed so that Harry's head would at least be on a pillow and his legs would no longer be dangling over the side. He slipped Harry's shoes off, and tucking the blanket around him, Charlie took another long look at Harry's face, only closer this time. The dark circles under his eyes were even more apparent, but so too was the haggard look that was still visible in sleep. Charlie then brushed the tips of his fingers across Harry's forehead to brush the stray hair out of his face but pulled his fingers back when they encountered moisture. He speculatively pulled his fingers back to inspect them and found small smears of blood on his fingertips. Brushing the rest of Harry's hair away from his forehead, he saw that Harry's scar was inflamed and seemed to be seeping small droplets of blood. 'Is that normal for him? I'll ask him tomorrow. Well, provided our talk tomorrow goes better than today's.' Resigning himself to have to wait for more concrete answers, he crawled under the covers on the space next to Harry, and let himself fall asleep.
Not surprisingly, Charlie woke up to Harry tying his shoes, collecting his cigarettes, and then moving toward the door. "Where are you going, Harry? You know you really shouldn't be walking around by yourself." Harry let his head drop back in an obvious sign of irritation and turned around to face Charlie. "Look, why do you care? You can't say it is because you know me so well, because you don't. Even those that claim to know me well don't see the need to poke their nose into my business."
'Well, that was revealing.' "Harry, I care because you are a human being and you look like shit. Not to mention the fact that you are an underage human being that was following a man to an area where most people go to fuck against a wall. Wouldn't you care if you saw one of your classmates doing the same things you were and looking like something Hagrid rescued from a gutter in Knockturn Alley?"
"I do not look like Precious, thank you very much.""Wait, what? Precious?"
Harry smirked, "Yeah, you really need to go visit Hagrid, you'll see what I mean. He told me he found her when…""Stop Harry. Despite that I am very impressed with that amazing, not to mention informative, method of changing the focus of the conversation, we need to go back to the bit about underage humans."
"Honestly Charlie, I'm fine. I just like to get out of the house sometimes.""Yes well, while I can appreciate that, it still does not explain the fact that you have not been taking care of yourself. What did the Headmaster say the last time you spoke with him?"
Knitting his brow in confusion, Harry asked, "What do you mean, I haven't spoke to the Headmaster since we had a… discussion… in his office at the end of term.""Hasn't he been writing at least? I should think that he would drop by to visit you after.."Charlie hesitated, "Well, after everything that happened last year."
At this point, Charlie could see that Harry was getting increasingly agitated. "I don't think that he has set foot at number four Privet Drive since he dropped me on the doorstep.""Wouldn't he have at least had to check in on you at some point?" "Huh, you would think so wouldn't you?" muttered Harry.
At a loss for words and unable to decide whether or not they were getting off track again, Charlie went ahead and suggested breakfast. "Why don't you wait to make any decisions until after breakfast? I picked up some tea, rolls, and something called breakfast bars." "You bought breakfast bars and you don't even know what they are?" Adopting an innocent look, Charlie replied "Hey, they have chocolate in them and say high-energy. I am a growing boy that loves his chocolate."Laughing despite himself, Harry simply said "Right" and picked up a breakfast bar.
Charlie couldn't help but smile inwardly. He wasn't ignorant about the Muggle world, he enjoyed the night life and so was quite familiar with Muggle stores, clubs, and terminology. He had known exactly what he was buying; he had wanted to get something nutritious and high in calories that Harry was likely to eat.
'Well, breakfast can possibly be deemed a success, let's see how the rest of the day goes.'