teacher123: Hello again! Um...I guess this update isn't really...soon. Better late than never I suppose. I do apologise for the lateness, but life calls.
Chapter Five: Herastrau Park
City streets had filled with kilometres of traffic by the time the group had made their way back into the car and begun the journey back to their mountain hideaway. Drivers in all directions were honking horns and slandering each other in foreign tongues from their windows; frustrated with the late morning roads. Fists shook wildly as trafficking policemen attempted to restore order and get everyone to their destinations without injury. Though the roar of city life was raging all around the outside of the minivan, the interior of the vehicle with Simeon at the wheel was a chamber of total silence.
With a blend of exhaustion from the long night's drive and the morning disappointments no one dared to make eye contact with the others around, fearing what they could see in their co-workers: a mirror to their own thoughts. As eyelids drooped, jackets and ties discarded to the floor, and heads tilted back into the headrests, there was no need for a conversation to begin amongst them, nor was anyone willing to start it off. Quietness dominated their space, and everyone seemed fine with it as traffic slowly dragged along bringing them closer to home only inch-by-inch and allowed them to drift into needed naps.
Charlie's eyes had only closed for three minutes before a complete stop jolted the entire car awake and alert with Mikhail and Matthew both drawing their wands in response. Everyone in the van looked straight ahead, peering past Simeon in the driver's seat and out the window to the hood, where tiny streams of smoke were rising from the cracks it could escape from.
Simeon quickly stopped the engine, unbuckled the seatbelt and got himself out of the car. He walked over to the hood, raising it up and allowing the rest of the smoke to escape, clouding the window from view so everyone else had to pile out into the heavily trafficked street to see what the matter was. Fanning the smoke away with open palms, the Order peered into the engine, wondering what was causing the problem.
"What's the matter with it?" Tamara broke the silence between everyone at last, bringing her voice above the rest of the street noise.
"Are ve out of gas?" suggested Mikhail, giving the fan belt a hard intense look.
"Check the brakes," Shane blurted out.
Suggestions from the few flowed with the rest of the loud street as Simeon stared at the metal before him, not daring to touch the smouldering pieces as the last of the smoke wisped into the air. Ahead of them, Charlie noted that the cars had begun to move forward on the road, the traffic light having changed colour, while those cars behind them only got louder in their Romanian cursing and horn blasting. For once he wished the reserve's auto expert and most insufferably bossy dragon keeper, Valerie Walters, were with them.
"Just give it a 'Reparo' spell and let's be on our way," Matthew sighed, moving for the wand hidden up his sleeve.
"No!" Abby grabbed Matthew's hand before he could reach the giveaway item of wizard-kind. "Muggles are looking."
The Order instantly snapped into attention, diverting their gaze from the engine to the masses of people looking and yelling at them, some driving around the side to give them even nastier looks. It was clear that magic was not an option on such a street, and that they would be headed nowhere fast unless they could figure out what had made the car stop.
It only took a moment before two traffic policemen came up to the group of seven, speaking in rapid Romanian with straight lips. As Mikhail explained in his own tongue, the two men stepped closer to the engine, giving it a glance over themselves as if to make sure they had really broken down in the middle of the street and were not just halting for a frustrating fiesta. Nodding towards one another, one got out a walkie-talkie and spoke while the other redirected traffic around the van.
"What's happening?" Charlie asked as his roommate nodded along with the conversation of the two policemen. "What are they saying?"
"They say they are calling a mechanic to come and take the car to his shop," Simeon explained plainly with a sigh. "He is only a few blocks avay, and it should not take long."
It took a half-hour for the auto mechanic to arrive with his truck, and more time to get to his repair shop and have the minivan looked over in full. From there, they learned from Mikhail's translation that it would be at least another few hours, giving the mechanic time to get the needed work done on the vehicle. It wasn't an expensive procedure, but a tedious one, and there would be a few hours to kill in Bucharest. Beneath their breaths, nearly everyone was muttering something about wishing Valerie had been there to fix the van.
"We'd all better get something to eat," Tamara suggested, ending all their mumbling. "It's about time for lunch and I saw a small restaurant around the corner from here."
Charlie hadn't heard what was being said about the van and lunch, peering out the window of the mechanic's dull little waiting room towards the large park across the street. Against the backdrop of the far off Transylvanian Alps and the blue sky, it looked like something off a postcard from a tourist stop. Though his stomach was interested in the conversation of lunch and his eyes were fixed upon the fascinating view, his mind was not thinking about either.
"Charlie," Abby's voice drew him away from the window, her hand touching his shoulder as the rest of the group stood a few metres away. "Are you all right?"
"Fine," he responded absently, giving his lady the smile he believed she sought.
"Well, come on then." Shane gestured for the couple to follow along with the other five as they made for the exit through the garage. "We'll 'ead over to that restaurant that Tamara was talkin' 'bout."
"Oh, go ahead," replied Charlie as he walked backward to the front door beside the window, "I'm not really hungry. I think I'll just go for a walk."
Without another beat Charlie had disappeared out the door, jingling the chimes that hung overhead as he made his quick escape. Jogging across the oddly quiet street, he went through a large iron arch that marked the green land he entered as Herastrau Park. The mid-July sun beat down with full force in the open park, making him instantly hot so the sleeves of his white collared shirt had to be rolled up to his elbows to maintain some comfort. There were tall trees and dewy grass to take cover in lining the paved pathway sporadically, but the things in his mind wouldn't go away with just lying about in shade. He would have to walk them off.
He began to take long strides as he walked the paved walkway, passing mothers out with young children, sweaty joggers with large dogs, and the elderly who took leisure in the natural beauty within boundaries of the city. With summer flowers in full bloom all around in their neat patches, the park was filled with a vibrant colour as he walked towards a large glistening lake. Sunbeams were reflecting off the surface of the water and illuminated the activity of picnics and cheerful families in the vicinity, all of who were unaware of the young man standing on the path in silence before the lake as if he were a stone statue set there for eternity.
It was a single hand that appeared on his shoulder that brought his still body to life again, making him jump and spin around. His eyes whizzed around with the rest of his body, blurring the view of the beautiful park until they made a half turn around to face what had touched him.
"I'm not really that hungry either," the figure facing him spoke softly, looking directly at Charlie with warm grassy-green eyes.
Abby began to walk ahead of him along the lake path past the people sitting in grass and enjoying the day out. Her hands tucked neatly into the pockets of her dark grey pressed pants with just her thumbs sticking out as she trotted slowly waiting for Charlie to catch up and take his place beside her, which only took a few seconds. The two walked alongside of each other, momentarily letting no words or glances exchange. Though seemingly awkward to the few people who took notice to the couple, not holding hands, speaking or even looking at each other, it was a necessary act for both parties.
"We shouldn't be discouraged by this," Abby finally broke the silence, though her eyes looked away and into the large lake they had begun to circle. "We spoke to the Minister, and he made his choice on behalf of his government. We tried our best in the limited time he gave us."
"I know," Charlie nodded, looking down to the pavement briefly.
"I guess telling ourselves that bit isn't going to make us any less disappointed by the results."
"Not really."
A swivel of her neck brought Abby's eyes to look in Charlie's direction, her hand removing itself from her pocket and carefully placing itself on his shoulder. The gentle touch of her Healer hands made him look back at her with his brown eyes as they walked, finally appearing as though they were a real couple to the people around them as Abby's hand moved down and weaved itself into his arm so they trotted in unison.
"I know that we tried and the only real failure would have been to not try in the first place," said Charlie, speaking the familiar encouraging lines as he turned and faced forward again, "but it's difficult to disregard those words given the situation is trying to gain support to fight a war."
"It's understandable," Abby replied gently through tight lips. "But we did try and that should count for something, Charlie."
Another silence came between the two walkers as a small group of cyclists bypassed them. Walking by a small restaurant where several people were enjoying a leisurely late lunch, there was an empty bench facing the lake just off of the gravel path and a fair distance away from the eatery's crowded patio. Though no words were exchanged, they simultaneously took a seat, gazing across the lake towards the thickly forested area of the park beyond the shimmering waters.
"I don't think I ever imagined I would live to see another wizard war," Charlie confessed keeping his eyes on the towering evergreen trees as Abby turned her head to look at his glazed expression. "I don't think the idea was even a remote possibility."
"You were young when the First War happened," pointed out Abby, resting her forehead on an open palm as her elbow leaned on the back of the wooden park bench.
"Just a child," the redhead responded, "but I remember it."
His eyes didn't meet with Abby's as he spoke, continuing to look straightforward as if the water's sun-streaked shine had put him into a deep dream-like trance. Keeping her wide eyes focused on him, she listened intently as he pressed on after a short pause.
"My mother lost her two older brothers in the war. The Death Eaters got to them before they could get to the Death Eaters."
"I'm sorry," Abby uttered automatically in response though Charlie barely heard her condolence.
"I was only five," he went on in a daze. "We were going to their home for Easter. We had to travel in a car because Mum was eight months pregnant with Fred and George. She refused to travel by any other means. Bill, Percy and I were in the backseat, and Dad drove all they way from Ottery St. Catchpole to Nottinghamshire. We came over a hill and were getting close. Once we were over the hill…we could see the Dark Mark."
The knuckles of Charlie's hands had gone white, both of them gripping the edge of the bench tightly as though he were hanging on for his life. Had they not already been sitting, Abby was sure that Charlie would have gone weak in the knees or been shaking, as she was sure she would be in his situation.
"Dad pulled over in the car a fair distance away, and said he was going to investigate. Mum protested, and started to cry, which started Percy. Nonetheless, Dad went toward the house and inside, and Mum only cried more. I don't know what came over me, but I opened the door to the car and ran after my dad. Mum was screaming for Bill to stop me, but Percy was between us so there was nothing he could do about it.
"I ran all the way to the house, and I saw everything once I stepped in. My uncles were dead, undoubtedly at the hand of the killing curse. Uncle Fabian was sitting against the farthest wall, next to the fireplace, and Uncle Gideon was slumped over the piano bench. There were other bodies around the room, all of them masked like skeletons. I could hear my dad speaking to a Ministry person through a fire in another room, and then he came in and saw me, just looking at him. I don't think I ever saw him look as worried as he did in that split second before taking me back out to mum."
With the story done, Charlie's hands relaxed, the whiteness leaving his knuckles and the glaze beginning to fade from his hazel eyes. He finally turned his head, bringing himself to look at his stunned girlfriend as her tongue sought words for him that did not exist.
"I'm so sorry," her automated sympathy response came out again for lack of anything better to say. "I can't even begin to imagine…"
"It's not something you or anyone should try to imagine," Charlie responded right away, not letting her finish the thought. "But I learned from seeing what I did in the First War. Death is inevitable. The point is to make your life count for something. My uncles did that by taking down as many Death Eaters as they could while knowing they would lose their own lives in the process. Today, what I attempted didn't succeed in making anything count."
"You can't think like that Charlie," Abby came back with a new height of volume in her voice as she took both of Charlie's hands into hers. "You're going to drive yourself mad if you do. You made life count by putting your passion out onto the table for the Minister to see, and taking that risk whether there was success or failure."
Abby's hands tightened as they gripped the ones not belonging to her, her own knuckles turning white before Charlie's eyes. The tight pressure of her touch made him shudder, the last of the mist in his eyes vanishing as he jolted as if awakening suddenly. Glancing up from her hands
to her eyes, there was a glint of something hiding beneath her fiery pupils and the lower eyelid. In a mere blink it had disappeared, but the intensity of her gaze had not faltered.
"Everything counts," she started again, her hold finally beginning to loosen. "You said so yourself that it may not be obvious, but everyone does their part."
Releasing one hand from his, she brought up her fingers to touch his cheek. The pads of her index, middle and ring fingers brushed against him lightly, the index tracing his lower lip.
"You should listen to your own words now and then," she said, giving him the glance of her smile. "They're good words."
In a single swift motion, she swooped her head towards him and planted her lips onto his. Charlie could instantly feel his spine weaken as if it were made of melted wax as his hands found their own way to her cheek. Through closed eyes, neither of them noticed the few people from the patio watching them kiss and remarking at how sweet they looked from afar even after they had come apart.
"We should probably head back to the garage," Charlie suggested, rising from the bench while holding out one hand to aid Abby to her feet. "Maybe the van will be fixed by now."
His companion only nodded as she pulled herself up by the help of his hand. Giving her pants a quick brush, Abby prepared to walk when Charlie stopped moving and turned to her.
"Actually, hold that thought," he said, looking about where they were standing. "Wait a moment for me."
With that said, he made a beeline towards a set of restrooms next to the eatery, leaving Abby standing at the bench as he went in through a large metal door. Taking her seat again, she looked back out over the shining lake and the large pine trees against the backdrop of the summer's day, sighing at the scene before something strange appeared, emerging from the trees and into open air.
It was a distance away across the lake, and obscure at first in the shadow of the forest, but there was little mistaking it for anything but a beastly creature once it had come into the sunlight for anyone to see plainly. The head resembled a young dragon, the sharp snout being a telling sign, but the body suggested the creature was a starving horse, skin sticking to its bones as though it had been deprived of food for many weeks. It took only a few steps in the daylight, unseen by the cyclists and joggers, before stretching out a pair of bat-like leathery wings, taking flight into the trees tops and disappearing from sight.
Abby's blood ran cold, her eyes fixed on the sight where the Thestral had vanished.
A/N: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for taking so very long to update this fanfiction. I really don't have any other excuse than I haven't been writing lately. My mind just hasn't been able to write of the late, so I haven't even really thought about it. So for that, anyone reading this note, I am sorry.
Okay, some thank yous to make. Two people from Phoenix Prophecy helped out with this chapter from long ago (yes, I wrote this some time ago, but my mind wasn't up to editing either), and I need to acknowledge them. Diana (sirius star at PP) lives in Bucharest and was kind enough to provide a bit of insight into Herastrau Park, an actual place in Romania. I have never been, so she nicely helped out with that. Secondly was Rachael (sweetpea) who BETA-ed a part of this chapter due to some concerns I had over it. She not only critiqued it, but she did it promptly. Thank you both.
The death of the Prewetts...J.K. Rowling never specified precisely how it happened, but I used some traits of Arthur and Molly to create it. Specifically there's Molly's deep fear of familial death, and Arthur's very sharp description of finding a Dark Mark. Yes, I know Arthur wasn't supposed to rush into a house like that...but that was his error of concern. Charlie's too.
I debated with myself over who got to follow Charlie and have this deep conversation: Simeon or Abby. Abby won in the end. Do you think I made the right choice? I won't change it, but I'd like to know what readers think of that idea.
Again. Sorry. Thank you for enduring if you have for this long. It's appreciated.