Part 14 - Let It Snow

Having had no luck finding Izzy in Hogsmeade, Charlie and the twins are just about to give it up for the day when they see Cale Eyret come crashing out of the forest at the end of the lane. He's alone and extremely disheveled, not to mention distraught. The tall blonde hardly spares them a glance as he goes running by in the direction of the castle.

"Oy, Cale!!" Fred calls after him, "Where's Izzy? We found her scarf!!"

Cale stops and turns, out of breath. "Fairies," He pants urgently, doubled over and sweating despite the cold weather, "Cliff. Fall. Gone. Shit. Shitshitshit."

Charlie watches as the twins share confused glances. "O... K..." George drawls, "Let's try that once more, and this time, how about complete sentences?"

Glaring and still trying to catch his breath, Cale snaps, "I was showing... I was showing Izzy a fairy ring... she fell into it and they took her... I've got to go get Dumbledore... get her back..."

"You idiot," Leaves Charlie's mouth before he has a chance to stop himself, the brawny seeker's heart constricting painfully as he thinks about the possibility of Izzy being in real danger, "Where? We'll look for her while you go for help."

"Just down the ridge that way," Cale states, pointing in the direction he came from and already running again towards the castle, "Bottom of the cliff. I'll be back!"

"Idiot," Charlie mutters, jogging in the direction of the forest with only one thought on his mind: Find Izzy.

xxXxx

"Bloody fairies," Izzy grumbles, limping and cold and lost because those damnable creatures ditched her somewhere very deep in the Forbidden Forest with no hope of finding her way out. "Probably find this terribly funny," The girl complains, though no one is around to hear, though her ankle somehow got twisted and her teeth are chattering and her wand is still absent as she wades through knee-deep snow, "Can't believe I thought they were pretty. Vermin."

As the sun goes down, the snow does as well, softly blanketing the forest and sapping much-needed warmth from Izzy's thin body. She's terrified but doesn't want to admit it to herself. As soon as she admits it, the girl knows all she'll want to do is curl up in a ball and cry.

So she stays angry. She hugs herself for warmth and soldiers on in what she hopes is the direction of the castle as the world grows dark around her.

xxXxx

"Bloody fairies," Charlie grumbles shivering despite the five layers he has on as he rockets through the trees in search of Izzy.

Despite nearly an hour of negotiations, Dumbledore couldn't manage to force the nasty little creatures to return Hogwarts' star student. He did manage to find out that they no longer had her, that she'd been ditched somewhere in the forest and the fairies weren't giving up where, just that they thought it was very funny to have stranded the girl with a blizzard coming in.

Charlie Weasley has always been more of a man of action than words, so while everyone else continued to try to talk a location out of the fairies, he borrowed the nearest broom and set off to search the forest himself.

He is having absolutely no luck thus far and, if the weather keeps up like it is, he'll be a popsicle before long. The poor boy can hardly see through the heavy snow and thick darkness and has almost crashed at least a dozen times. Still, he's not going to give up until he finds her.

Because tonight reminds him of that night four years ago, because he thinks about it a lot, Charlie can't help dwelling on the biggest mistake of his life, when he almost killed Izzy over his own stupid stubborn pride...

The tree comes out of nowhere.

xxXxx

She's so cold that she thinks she might've started hallucinating when she sees and hears a person on broomstick crash right into the tree she's been huddled against. The massive oak shudders and she feels the impact all along her spine, the bundled-up body that caused it freefalling from rather high and flopping gracelessly into the soft, deep snow. The body lies still.

Izzy approaches cautiously, unable to tell who it is because of the hats and scarves wrapped around the person's head. She's concerned though, mostly sure that it's not a figment of her hypothermic imagination, and she's determined to see if the person is alright.

The body flinches and, even over the howling wind, Izzy can hear a deep, masculine groan.

"Charlie?" She calls excitedly, crawling on hands and knees over to the body's side and indeed seeing those piercing blue eyes blinking up at her from behind a cocoon of scarves and hats.

"Izzy!" The boy groans happily, forcing himself into a sitting position and (she thinks) smiling, "I found you! Are you alright?"

"Just cold and lost," Izzy replies, clinically examining Charlie's pupils for any sign of unevenness that might indicate head injury, "Are you hurt at all? That crash did not look pleasant."

She can see the blush even though his face his obscured by a heavy scarf. "I didn't crash," The boy insists, "I just... had trouble landing with all this snow..."

She laughs, shivering convulsively as she arches a thin eyebrow and challenges, "Really, Charlie, I don't care that you crashed. I'm just happy you found me. Can we hurry back to the castle, please? I'm very cold."

"I didn't crash," Charlie pouts, getting up and brushing the snow off his backside, "We can get out of here just as soon as I find my..."

Two feet away, half covered in snow, are the two halves of what was formerly a school broomstick. "Oh..." The young man deadpans, his shivers beginning to increase, "That's not good..."

Frowning as she stands, hugging herself desperately for warmth, Izzy complains, "Some rescue. Do you at least have your wand? Can you apparate?"

"I, uh..." The boy admits with a shy cough, "I failed the test... I splinched myself pretty bad and still haven't quite gotten the hang of it... if you can apparate, I'll let you use my wand."

Eyes narrowing, Izzy bitterly replies, "I don't know how. I'm not old enough so they wouldn't let me take the lessons."

"You're not old enough?" Charlie asks, taking Izzy's scarf out of the pocket of his outermost coat and taking off the coat as well as the blue hand-knitted sweater beneath it before offering all three to the shivering girl, "Here, put these on. You'll catch your death."

"Thank you," She answers, eagerly accepting the extra layers and snuggling contentedly into the boy's residual body heat. She sighs in relief and winds her Gryffindor scarf around her face; when the girl attempts to button Charlie's coat, she finds that her fingers are far too cold for such an operation, fumbling stupidly for a few moments before giving up.

"Is there anyone else out looking who you can signal or call?" She questions, hoping to keep Charlie from noticing her deteriorating health status, the fact that she can barely control her trembling limbs and it's becoming increasingly harder to maintain a clear thought process.

"Um... no," The young man replies, pulling out his wand and trying to think of what he should do with it, "Dumbledore was trying to negotiate with the fairies to tell where they took. He wasn't certain you were even outside and didn't want to send anyone out to search in this weather until he was. But it was taking way too long so I left on my own."

Izzy rolls her eyes, snapping, "That was ill-advised."

"Whatever happened to 'thank you, Charlie'?" He complains, a little disillusioned that Izzy isn't viewing his actions in the noble and heroic light he was hoping for.

"That was when you were actually rescuing me," Izzy primly replies, "Not running off by yourself and getting stranded as well. You found me through pure dumb luck and probably would've just frozen to death too if you hadn't crashed into that tree. It was very foolish to put yourself in danger like that... how far away are we from the castle?"

Still pouting, he states, "A few miles. Without the broom, I don't think we're going to be able to cover the distance right now. The storm's getting much worse. We should probably find somewhere to hole up until it's over."

"Agreed," Izzy says, holding out one small gloved hand that won't stay steady, "Give me your wand. I'll make a shelter. And maybe see what I can do about getting a signal or message to someone to come save us."

"Sure," He says, handing over the wand and watching in amazement as the petite girl begins swishing it about. Though her usual grace has been sacrificed to the cold, Izzy produces a small igloo-like structure in the center of the clearing; a bright red beacon hangs in the night sky far above the treetops, hardly visible even from where Charlie stands because of the snow and clouds.

Izzy frowns up at it, concentrating hard and muttering spells. The light shines brighter but, unfortunately, the girl can't seem to get it bright enough. Her muscles hurt from shivering so hard; her head feels light, numb; her brain is slow. "Let's hope for a break in the storm," She sighs, venturing clumsily towards the small opening of the shelter, "No one's going to see the signal until the sky clears up a bit."

Charlie follows the girl in through the tiny door, almost jumping when she seals it up behind him and the room plunges into darkness except for a few tiny air vents circling the ceiling.

However, the black out only lasts for a few moments. Izzy uses Charlie's wand to start a small fire in the center, filling the interior with warm light. She transfigures her scarf into a thick blanket, spreads it out as the fireside, and sits down up on it. Charlie unwinds his own scarf and joins her, sure to keep his distance but quite happy to not have to sit directly on the snow.

The pair lapse into a not entirely comfortable stretch of silence.

"Are you getting warmed up alright?" Charlie ventures quietly, nodding to Izzy's ungloved hands as she holds them as close as she can to the fire without getting burned, "You're looking a little blue."

"I'll be fine," The girl replies sensibly, even as she continues to shiver horribly, "Though too much longer out there and I might not have been..." She turns to give him a slow, sheepish smile, "I'm sorry. I was being very ungrateful before and I shouldn't have made fun of you. I really do appreciate you coming to find me. I was getting rather frightened."

"Don't worry about it," Charlie states, unable to stop himself from returning the smile, "Being abducted by fairies will make anybody a bit cranky, and the blizzard probably didn't help."

Laughing, Izzy agrees, "Yes, the weather really did just add insult to injury."

The boy's face falls. "You're hurt?" He questions.

"Not really," Izzy laughs, "Honestly, Charlie, you take things much too literal.""'Not really' doesn't mean the same thing as 'no,'" He replies, disregarding the rest of the comment, "If you're hurt, you should tell me."

"It's a sprained ankle," She answers, shrugging, "I must've landed wrong when the fairies dropped me and it's really not that bad since I've stopped walking as much. Being on ice was probably good as well. After that crash, you should be more worried about yourself. Two head injuries in as many days can't be healthy."

"Can I see?" Charlie requests tentatively, "I know a thing or two about sprains and I should be able to tell how serious it is."

"I'm fine," Izzy insists, defensive and wary. She looks so... so scared, quaking pitifully inside Charlie's thick coat and sweater.

"At least do a drying charm on your clothes," The boy pleads, eyeing her sodden blue jeans, "You'll never get warm otherwise."

Without a word, she flicks the wand and her clothes are dry. The girl hugs her shivering knees and stares into the fire, ignoring Charlie's presence.

He fidgets uncomfortably for a few long minutes, pins and needles spiking through his limbs as they thaw. "Um..." The boy states, searching awkwardly for something to say, "So... you're... not old enough to take the apparition lessons? What's that about?"

Sparing him an almost-amused sideways glance, Izzy replies through chattering teeth, "I started school early so I'm a year younger than the rest of our class."

"How come you started early?" Charlie presses, eager to get Izzy to relax so she'll stop looking at him like he's going to attack her at any moment.

Unfortunately, the question has the opposite effect. Izzy curls more tightly in on herself, her gaze growing far off and full of pain. "I just did," The girl whispers, small and shaking miserably.

Another tense silence stretches on as the wind howls and the fire crackles.

"Got any plans for after graduation?" Charlie ventures, still eager to make the moment less uncomfortable.

Izzy shakes her head. "I applied to university," She answers softly, "I haven't heard back. I've got a few apprenticeship offers from potions companies as well... I was also thinking about taking some time off. Travelling, maybe. Other than that, I have no idea." The girl cuts her gaze towards Charlie, shyly venturing, "What about you? I hear there's a professional quidditch career in your near future."

"I don't know about that," Charlie replies, honest and modest, "I got an offer but I don't know if I'll take it... I like quidditch but it's not something I see myself doing every day for the rest of my life... it'll take all the fun out of it."

Smiling gently, Izzy asks, "What do you see yourself doing?"

Fidgeting, the redhead admits, "Well, I haven't really told anyone yet, but there's this dragon reserve in Romania. It's called Puzderie... I'd sort of like to work there as a dragon tamer."

"That sounds dangerous," Izzy comments quietly, her warm brown eyes growing wide as the rest of her slim body continues to tremble from the cold.

"A little, I guess," Her companion agrees, "But just because dragons are dangerous, doesn't mean they're vicious. They've gotten a bad rep. If they're treated with respect, they don't post anymore danger than any other wild animals... besides, I think they're the most fascinating creatures in the whole world."

Aside from you, He adds silently to himself, gazing fondly at the shivering brunette.

"That sounds terribly exciting," Izzy comments, the blue tinge to her skin still not fading at all. She tries to ignore the obvious signs of hypothermia, continuing, "I hope you'll be careful."

"It's not a sure thing yet," The boy replies, tugging a wool cap off his head and offering it to Izzy, "You're not looking so good. Maybe you should put on a few more layers."

She shakes her head, smiling sweetly. "I'll be fine," She insists, though her teeth chatter and her plump little lips are blue, "Stop giving me your clothes or you're going to get cold."

"I wasn't wandering out in the snow for hours," Charlie insists, "You need them more than I do... you should button up the coat, try to keep in as much warmth as you can."

Izzy frowns down at the large black buttons that gave her so much trouble outside. "No, I'm fine," She says, not wanting such an obvious repeat of her previous failure.

And then, like a light switching off, Izzy suddenly can't remember where she is. Panicked and trying not to let it show, she gazes blankly around the interior of the igloo for some kind of clue.

Charlie catches on rather quickly that something is wrong. "Are you alright?" He asks carefully. When Izzy doesn't answer, the boy repeats his question more forcefully, "Izzy? Izzy? Are you alright? What's going on?"

"I-I don't know where I am," She stutters, eyes wide and wild as her trembling breaths come in short, terrified bursts, "I don't remember how I got here. Charlie... Charlie?"

"Izzy, relax," Her companion hurriedly states, scrambling up on his knees and getting closer to the girl, "You're in a worse stage of hypothermia than I thought and it's making you confused. You're in the Forbidden Forest, alright? You got here by falling into a fairy ring." He catches her frightened gaze and makes sure to hold it, getting her to calm slightly. "You've got to take off the coats," Charlie decides, "Your body isn't making enough heat for them to be doing any good. We've got to get your skin closer to a heat source."

Because Charlie is just about the only thing that makes any sense at the moment, Izzy does not hesitate to comply with his order. However, she's forgotten that her arms aren't working right and immediately gets tangled up trying to remove Charlie's thick jacket. She's frustrated and confused and scared; she really feels like crying.

"Relax," Charlie insists, his voice low and steady, "You're going to hurt yourself. Sit still and I'll pull it off you, ok?"

"Ok," Izzy replies with a nod, allowing Charlie to grasp the collar of his baggy coat and tug it carefully down her arms. Once the coat is off, he says, "Ok, now the sweater. I'm going to grab the bottom and pull up, so raise your arms... I'll, uh, try not to touch you."

Again, the girl nods and complies with the redhead's order. He's very slow and gentle, true to his word and never once so much as brushing up against Izzy in any way that might make her uncomfortable.

Down to her own coat once again, begins trying to undo the large black buttons down the front of it. She has no more luck than when she was trying to do up the ones on Charlie's coat. Her fingers feel fat and clumsy. It's becoming harder and harder to force back her welling tears.

"Izzy, stop," Charlie says, his face set in an expression of tender concern, "I'll help you with those, alright? Just calm down. Everything's going to be fine."

The girl lets her hands fall to her sides, biting back sobs and trying her best to believe him.

Charlie kneels in front of the petite brunette, watching her warily. "Alright," He says, "I'm going to undo the buttons. That's all, I promise."

Izzy nods and he reaches out to slide the smooth circle of smooth black wood out of its hole. His eyes locked with Izzy's, Charlie continues down the line, moving from her throat to her lean breastbone, down her concave stomach, slim hips, all the way to the last button just above her delicate knees. Izzy sits oddly still, still trembling violently, small and scared, those huge doe eyes desperately begging Charlie not to hurt her. He goes around behind her, takes the collar and carefully pulls the jacket down her arms.

Beneath the coat, he's wearing a long-sleeved white blouse. It's very pretty but the silky material it's made of is thin and insubstantial. "No wonder you're so cold," Charlie observes, trying hard not to let his eyes linger where the fabric drapes against the soft swell of Izzy's modest chest. He coughs and turns away, hopefully before she caught him blushing and staring. "Right," The young man states, "I'll get your shoes, too. And then you just sit as close to the fire as you can get without burning up. That should do the trick. You'll be feeling better in no time."

"I think I'm already feeling a little better," Izzy murmurs, placidly submitting to having one tennis shoe carefully unknotted and pried off. Though Charlie can see that's she's still shivering, her skin has begun to pink up and he's hopeful. He barely touches her left ankle and the girl immediately flinches away from him, hissing in pain.

"I take it that's the sprain I'm not supposed to worry about," Charlie half-jokes, gesturing for her to bring the limb back into his reach, "Come on, I'll be gentle."

"It hurts," Izzy pouts, still shivering, still scared, still miserable, still slow and confused.

"I know," Charlie reassures her, "But you still need your shoes off. And if you let me take a look, I might be able to splint it or wrap it for you. It'll hurt a lot less that way."

Izzy seems to be mulling over the young man's offer. She finally accepts it, gingerly holding her leg back out to him.

Charlie undoes the laces and then carefully rolls up the cuff of the girl's jeans. Her ankle is badly inflamed, straining the white fabric of the sock. The beginning of a deep bruise is creeping over the top of the elastic.

"Ok," Charlie says, "I want to get your shoe off without hurting you. But, since your ankle is so swollen, I need to put one hand on your leg to brace it. Is that alright?"

Izzy gives a particularly bad shiver as tears spring into her eyes. "No," She whimpers gloomily, "It's not alright... you just have to pull it off without touching me."

"But I'll hurt you," Charlie argues.

"No," Izzy says again, sad, dejected.

Huffing, the boy stalls, looking desperately around until he eyes his wand sitting on the blanket. He scoops it up, mutters a few carefully placed charms, and Izzy's shoe and sock fall off her foot in shreds.

"Hey," She pouts sullenly, "You ruined my shoe."

"I'll buy you a new one," Charlie mutters with a fond eyeroll, carefully inspecting the girl's bruised ankle. "Can you flex it?" He asks.

Nodding, Izzy does so, her pretty face growing tense with pain. "It hurts though," She declares matter-of-factly.

"As long as you can still move it, it shouldn't be broken," Charlie replies, producing a light, expert sports wrap from the end of his wand, "That should do for now... just get close to the fire and let me know right away if you start feeling any worse."

"Ok," Izzy agrees, laying on her side and curling up in a tiny ball, staring into the flickering flames. Slowly, her heavy eyelids begin to drift shut.

"Don't fall asleep," Charlie insists, barely catching himself before he reaches out to give her bony shoulder a shake.

Blinking up at him beside her through the dim firelight, Izzy complains, "But I'm tired. It must be very late by now."

"Sorry," The young man states sternly, "Hypothermia has the same rules as head injuries about not sleeping."

Izzy gives a small chuckle, smiling shyly and seeming to glow. "All we seem to be doing lately is making sure neither of us gets any sleep," She observes sweetly.

Cracking a smirk, Charlie argues, "Well, you could look at it that way, or you could say that we're saving each other from certain doom. Sounds a lot more heroic."

"Hmmm," Izzy murmurs, "I suppose so. I'll be sure to put our names in for Orders of Merlin when we get back to the castle." She waits a beat and then, seeming sensible and much more like herself, adds, "You don't really have to buy me a new shoe."

"If you say so," Charlie agrees quietly. They sit in silence for a long time before the young man blurts, "Did you know that people call you the Untouchable?"

Izzy smiles wanly to herself. "Yes," She says, "I've heard that."

"Does it bother you?" He goes on, open and curious.

Izzy shrugs, stating, "I guess just in the sense that people I don't know pay enough attention to notice. It seems rather silly of them. Whatever's wrong with me, I don't see how it's anyone's business but my own."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with you," Charlie murmurs.

Her smile turning patronizing, the brunette retorts, "Then you don't know me very well."

Charlie is rather incensed by the comment. "Just because you're not like everybody else doesn't mean there's anything wrong with you," He insists fiercely, "What you went through-"

"Please don't," Izzy cuts him off, eyes squeezed tightly shut.

Once more, a long silence stretches between the two teens. The fire flickers and fills the room with heat as the storm outside rages.

"Did you hear that Bill's coming for a visit in a few weeks?" Charlie says, trying to change the subject, to get his foot out of his mouth.

With a slow smile, Izzy answers, "Yes, I know. I'm the one who asked him to come. Professor McGonagall put me in charge of finding speakers for career day, and Bill agreed to give a talk about being a cursebreaker. Mac and Myron are also coming. Mac is going to talk about what the university is like, and Myron is going to talk about being a writer, his time at the Prophet and getting his book published and all that."

"Sounds wicked," Charlie states eagerly, "Who else is coming?"

"Um, Gwenog Jones is coming to talk about playing professional quidditch," Izzy yawns brightly, "The Department of Magical Law Enforcement promised they would send an auror or a hitwizard but I don't know who exactly... I'm afraid I didn't even think of asking any dragon tamers, but I'll look into it, if you're really interested."

His cheeks flushing, Charlie coughs, "Ya, uh, that would be great. If it's not any trouble. I mean, don't worry about it if it is. It's not that big of a deal."

"No trouble," Izzy murmurs, yawning enormously, "I've been trying to get a good mix of speakers and a dragon tamer would be absolutely fascinating." Her eyes begin drifting shut again.

"Don't fall asleep," Charlie orders, stretching out beside Izzy and offering her a tender smile, "You have to keep me awake, too."

"Mhmm," Izzy hums, already half dozing.

The pair lay in silence for a few moments, listening to the fire crackling and filling the space with warmth. "Izzy?" Charlie asks, gazing at the girl's pretty, peaceful face, "Izzy?"

She's fast asleep. Charlie sighs. He really did mean to keep her awake. It would probably be alright, but the young man would rather be safe than sorry about anything concerning Isabel Cooper.

He yawns, squirming to make himself comfortable on the blanket. Before long, he's joined Izzy in dreamland.

xxXxx

The following morning, the teachers who dig the pair out are slightly stunned and very touched to see the two teens curled so close together on a blanket beside the dying fire. Of course, they aren't curled together--poor Izzy's phobia prevents such a thing--but they do look awfully cozy. Their fingertips are just inches apart.

Charlie wakes first, blinking into the sunlight that falls in through the opening cut in the roof of their igloo. The young man takes a few moments to recognize that the faces peeking in are those of his Transfiguration and Herbology professors. Groggy, he sits up, stares, and states, "Um... hi?"

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Weasley," Professor MgGonagall sternly replies, "For rushing off into a blizzard after being specifically told not to. Your actions were reckless and could have very well gotten you killed."

The teen winced, head hanging like a whipped puppy's.

A soft smile twisted the corners of the old woman's thin lips and she adds, "However, one-hundred points for keeping Miss Cooper from freezing to death. Your selfless nobility makes this entire school very proud."

Charlie's shock is abundantly apparent. The young man opens and closes his mouth a few times, like he's trying to speak, but, before he can, Professor Sprout chimes, "Is Miss Cooper alright?"

All eyes fall to the slight body curled on its side next to the fire. Izzy's slim chest moves softly but steadily. "I think she was hypothermic when I found her," Charlie announces, "The fairies took her wand. But she was ok after getting warmed up... her ankle is sprained."

"Well, do wake the poor girl," Professor McGonagall instructs, drawing her thick cloak tighter around her own thin body, "There's no sense standing around in the snow when we could all be back inside our nice warm castle."

Nodding, Charlie leans close to Izzy and coos in her ear, "Rise and shine, Cooper. I got us rescued."

Both professors snort in amusement.

But Izzy continues to sleep, her pretty face serene. Charlie doesn't quite know what to do. There's no way he's going to shake the girl awake, but he's heard about her uncanny ability to sleep through noise.

"Come on, Izzy," The young man says louder, gently blowing the brunette's curls off her forehead, "It's time to go home."

Izzy stirs. Her eyes drift open and she rolls onto her back. She blinks up at a pair of light, lovely blue eyes. "Charlie?" She whispers, voice sleep hoarse and sultry.

Charlie can't tear his gaze away. "Ya," He murmurs, his tongue feeling unusually thick, "Ya... we're, um, we're rescued."

They stare. The moment is inexplicably tense and deeply charged.

"Oh," Izzy finally answers, "Alright. Wonderful."

Charlie nods, "Uh huh."

The two teens continue to stare at one another, utterly transfixed.

Professor McGonagall clears her throat loudly and manages to break the two apart. Trying to keep a smile off her own face as she watches those of her students' flush to an endearing pink, the old woman declares, "We will be porting back to Hogsmeade. Since Miss Cooper is injured, I will send for a carriage to take us from there."

"Oh. Ya. Good plan," Charlie heartily agrees, pushing himself to his feet. He lets his arms hover close to Izzy's thin body as the girl does the same, as she wobbles on her injured ankle and gives him a soft, reassuring smile.

xxXxx

"BEL!!"

The girl flinches, shrinking behind Charlie's broad shoulder when she sees Cale running towards them. Charlie clenches his jaw and does his best to look threatening.

But it's not because of Charlie that Cale stops several feet away from the pair. No, it's because Izzy is looking at him... well, like she used to look at Charlie, like she's completely and utterly terrified of him, like he's going to hurt her.

"Bel-" Cale gasps, at a loss for what to do, "Bel, I... are you ok?"

"I'm fine," She answers, voice quiet, polite, "I only sprained my ankle."

"Thank Merlin!" Cale says, "I was so worried! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you or make you fall."

Still standing between them, Charlie tenses and glares at Cale like he's going to crush him at the first available opportunity.

Her shy gaze on the floor, Izzy replies, "I know, Cale. It wasn't your fault. I was clumsy."

Cale knows that's not true. He totally blew it.

Peppermint. Merlin, he's an idiot.

"We need to go to the hospital wing," Charlie announces, his voice soft for Izzy's benefit, his stare fierce for Cale's, "Get your ankle sorted, Cooper."

"Oh," The brunette responds, wincing, "Yes." She looks up at the red knot on the redhead's forehead, adding, "And your head, Charlie. You promised you'd let Madame P. take a look at it."

The young man smirks, rolling his eyes. "Ya, ya," He grumbles, "I promised, so let's get a move on." He glares at Cale again, suggesting, "You might want to sit this one out, mate. The room does get a bit crowded."

Hardly finding the willpower to be angry with Charlie when he's so angry at himself, Cale nods. "See you later, Bel," He mumbles miserably, turning and leaving, "I hope you feel better."

xxXxx

The ankle isn't serious. Madame P. gives Izzy a potion for the pain and swelling, and the girl is right as rain.

But she stays, sits with Charlie while he gets his head looked at and while Madame P. is fixing him a potion of his own. She stays even though she's obviously tired and hungry and sore and sad and probably just wants to crawl into bed and be alone. She stays just for him and even tries her best to put on a brave face.

Charlie really wishes he wasn't so deliriously happy about all that.

"So," The young redhead muses, sparing his companion a charming smile, "Our adventure is over."

Laughing, Izzy pulls the thin hospital blanket around her thin shoulders. "That remains to be seen," She remarks dryly, drawing her knees up to her chin, "Who knows what kinds of perils are waiting on our journey back to the tower? Fred and George do roam these halls, after all."

She has a beautiful smile, sweet but mischievous, bright but so sad, so vulnerable.

Merlin help him, Charlie loves her.

The teenager blushes red hot with the weight of that realization, fidgeting stupidly in the cot.

Of course, Izzy notices, frowning as she asks, "Are you feeling alright? You're looking very flushed." Without hesitation, she reaches across the narrow aisle and presses the back of her slim hand firmly against his forehead. Her skin is cool, her bones delicate. "I hope you aren't ill," The brunette frets prettily, sternly, "You should have Madame P. give you some Pepper-Up."

The thought strikes Charlie and his mouth runs away with it. "You should be a healer," He observes, his voice deep and husky, his blue eyes locked with Izzy's brown, "You've got the touch for it."

He regrets the statement in an instant when the touch is withdrawn. Izzy looks like she may cry. "You shouldn't tease me," She murmurs, curling in on herself once again, small and helpless but pissed. Charlie can't tell whether at him or at herself.

"I wasn't," He insists.

The silence stretches on.

"I can't," Izzy almost-sobs, close to hysterical, "Don't you think I want to? I... I hate being this way! I'm a freak!"

He wants to fold her into his arms, keep her safe from the world and her own damaged mind. "You're not a freak," The young man states quietly, "And you can do anything you want."

"Oh, spare me the inspirational nonsense!" She bites back, eyes wet and curls wild, angry color in her cheeks, "I have a hard enough time being me without having false hope thrown into the mix!"

Charlie just stares for a few moments before calmly arguing, "But you can touch, if you want to. You touched me just now without even thinking about it. And you flicked my nose yesterday. And before that, I remember you touching my head when the bookshelf fell on me."

"You mean when you pulled the bookshelf down on top of yourself," She corrects under her breath, pouting. "I don't know why," She mutters, defensive, confused, purposely not even remotely hopeful about what it could mean for her, "It's just... you." She stares. "I should be afraid of you and I'm not so... it's just you. No one else."

"No," Charlie says, a possessive, primal thrill rushing through his whole body, "You braid the girls' hair all the time. They told me so."

More anger, more staunch denial of hope. "That doesn't mean anything!" Izzy fires back, "It's just braiding hair! It's not the same as actually touching people! Hair isn't even alive!"

"It's a start," Charlie tells her, allowing a soft smile to pull at the corners of his mouth, "Remember you told me being dyslexic isn't my fault? That it's not something I should be ashamed of or have to struggle with all on my own? You told me that all I needed was to learn how to not let it stop me, that it would always be a part of who I am but it doesn't have to define or limit me. The same rule applies to you, Coop."

Though obviously fighting the infectious power of the redhead's smirk, Izzy grumbles, "Not fair using my own words against me." She swipes at her eyes, looking away. "Anyways, it's still not the same thing. I can't exactly send away for a handbook on how to get over being an untouchable freak."

"Cooper," Charlie reprimands sharply, tossing a small pillow at the girl's head, "You're a Gryffindor. Can the self-pity."

In an impish and very uncharacteristically immature move, Izzy sticks her tongue out at him and continues sulking.

Charlie chews his bottom lip.

Charlie holds out his hand.

Izzy's eyes grow wide with uncertainty and fear.

"I'm not going to force you, Cooper," The redhead announces, smiling softly, "But I know you can beat this and I'd like to help."

She just stares at him for the longest time, blank and frightened, and he starts to think that maybe he screwed up. pushed too hard. Then, carefully, Izzy reaches out.

"Miss Cooper."

She jumps nearly out of her skin, hand never making within a foot of Charlie's. He glares at the intruder and finds the headmaster standing in the doorway.

Dumbledore spares them both with an unreadable glance before stating, "If you are feeling up to it, I would like to see you in my office. I have some news."

"Oh," Izzy says, standing, "Alright. If it's that important." She smiles at Charlie. "I'll see you later."

"Sure," The young man responds, watching her leave the room, smiling warmly when she glances over her shoulder at him.

Once the girl is gone, Charlie relaxes back into his cot, folding his thick freckles arms behind his head. He stares up at the ceiling, smirking softly to himself as he thinks, Well, it's a start.

xxXxx

She can't breathe.

Is vaguely aware of having fallen out of her chair, of being slumped bonelessly on the floor of the headmaster's office.

Won't stop pinching herself to make sure it's real.

Keeps hearing the words over and over and over and over and isn't sure whether to laugh or cry.

"Miss Cooper, we've located your brother."

xxxxxxxxxx

dundundun. Hopefully you liked it! I certainly procrastinated on enough school work in order to wrap up the last cliffhanger and deliver this new one, haha. Anyways, reviews increase the likelihood of me making it through another quarter. Contribute to the cause!