Chapter twenty-three - 'Now don't be like that, she's you're mother!'

Knock, Knock, Bang!

"FILTH, MUDBOOLDS, TRAITORS!"

"I'll go." Sirius sighed nearest to the door and yanking it open checked through the various spy holes Moody had constructed to see who it was knocking on the door so late on into the meeting. Opening it up in bustled a large cloak with shocking red hair poking out the top.

"Is my dad here Sirius?" He quickly asked looking both very tired and very worried.

"Yeah in the meeting. What's the matter with you?" Sirius asked concerned by the usually composed man stood opposite him as he re-bolted the door again quickly.

"Dad, you in here?" He called striding down the hall and opening in the half open door to the old dinning room where many of the key faces in the order turned to look at him.

"Bill what's the matter with you?" Arthur asked leaning forward surprised to see his oldest son looking so flustered.

"Nothing, its Charlie, someone poisoned him and they rushed him to the hospital bowt half an hour ago." He breathed quickly aware that he was barging in on something probably very important.

"Dumbledore I have to go he's my son." Arthur explained half determined to leave half determined to stay and do what was best.

"I understand Arthur. Come speak to me when you know he's ok and I'll continue your order's then." Dumbledore explained understandingly as Arthur looked back gratefully before pulling his cloak around him to leave

"What happened to him?" He asked the minuet he was out the room.

"I dunno, he just wondered in this afternoon in a right old mess, we just thought he was drunk and left him to sleep it off but when Fleur came back from work he was hardly breathing and she panicked and sent him to St Mungo's. I've been looking all over for you it thought you'd be at home."

"No not tonight. Have you bumped into your mother yet?" He asked wearily as they turned to apperate to the safe ally by the hospital.

"No, not yet." Bill replied somewhat glad he hadn't bumped into his mother yet, after the way she'd treated Fleur recently, Bill wasn't sure if his calm manners could take much more of her when he was worried.

"Well I suppose that might be a good thing, she'd only panic." Arthur sighed striding into the main waiting area.

"I didn't leave him on his own though, Percy's sat with him. He was on the third floor when I left."

"Oh well, I suppose. I didn't realise you two spent so much time with Percy until recently."

"Yeah well, he's having a hard time of it and well. We can't exactly kick him out the family for good. He can't help being an idiot, as much as the twins can't help causing trouble."

"Your brother isn't an idiot, he's just a bit misguided that's all." Mr Weasley corrected him firmly.

"I suppose but him and Charlie have been sticking together a lot recently. What with the way mum is and all?"

"Not now Bill, I need to go see he's ok.' Mr Weasley decided firmly, looking down the list to see which room Charlie's name appeared in.

'Percy what's the matter with him, what did they say?" He asked seeing Percy's face looking pale and confused sat on a few chairs across from a set of large double doors.

"We just thought he was drunk again and left him to sleep it off for a few hours back at Bill's. But when Fleur went to bed early he was choking on his own vomit and I didn't know what to do." Percy half whispered as he sat, very still.

"Where is he now?" Arthur asked softly sitting down next to his son and taking a hold of his shoulder while Bill looked up and down the corridor for something remotely useful.

"They took him in there a bit ago to clean his blood or something. The poison started to move into his blood stream and the only reason it didn't kill him straight away was because he kept throwing up so much but now he won't stop." Percy explained trying to force himself to be calm now his dad was here.

"Did Fleur stay at home?" Bill asked suddenly concerned by how worried she seemed when he left her, she was never good in a panic, particularly when she happened to come upon something upsetting.

"She was waiting at home in case you came back or something. They'd only let me come along because I was family." He breathed out quietly still staring firmly at the floor.

"Well I'll wait and see he's doing ok, then I guess I should really go and talk to her. She looked ever so upset when I left." Bill decided as Arthur looked up to his rather mature and sensible son even if he didn't look anything the sort. Recently he'd gained a second earring in the same ear this one was a tooth of some description as far as his father could tell and he was a little suspicious as to why Bill always had his left arm covered up, implying he may have had another tattoo recently that he knew his father didn't approve of.

"You can go now if you want, I'm going to stop with Charlie now so you don't need to if you'd rather see to Fleur."

"No I'd rather stop dad, she'd understand, I'd rather see he was ok." Bill sighed then sat down on the other side of his dad to wait patiently.

They sat there nearly half and hour waiting quietly, until a rather grim looking older man came out the doors looking for Percy.

"Are you part of Charlie Weasley's family?" He asked with a grim tone, turning to the three red headed faces looking up at him. Bill and Mr Weasley jumped quickly to their feet.

"Yes I'm his father how is he?" Mr Weasley asked cautiously, sure this man had bad news by the way he seemed so quiet and grave.

"He's doing shockingly well considering. If you'd like to come through here I'll explain. We're keeping him under high observation for the next 48hours just in case, but I think we managed to get nearly all the poison out."

"What was the poison?" Mr Weasley asked a little nervously.

"Well it's a new concoction I've never come across before, that's why we had so much trouble working out how to neutralise it. By which time it had moved into his blood. Fortunately, your son thought he was drunk and started to make himself sick in an attempt to get over a hangover tomorrow and well, it pretty much saved his life. He should be dead but he's actually quiet far from it now." The healer explained a bit too bluntly for Bill and Percy to cope with.

"Really?" Arthur asked some what calmer, now it sounded like his son wasn't going to die on him, he could never cope if one of them died.

"He's in here.' The older man led the way pulling back the thick curtain to an offshoot where Charlie was laid out, attached to a mouth apparatus apparently fast to sleep and seemed to be beeping every time his heart beat.

'It was a mixture of Opium, muggle ecstasy, banshee blood, arsenic and devils snare juice. Very nasty that one is. Anyway, hopefully with a few more hours linked up to that machine he'll be over the worse. Shockingly lucky though he is, shockingly lucky to be alive I must say. You can go in and see him now, but it's late, visiting hours are over and I'm only giving you five or ten minuets." He finished before turning to go, leaving the curtain half open on purpose.

"Charlie how are you feeling?" Arthur asked, sitting down on the chair by his son's bed and leaning over to look at him. He could barely talk but the grim half smile was enough for Mr Weasley to understand. He was in a lot of pain but at least he was alive and rather pleased to see his dad.

"Charlie you've had us all worried." Bill smiled leaning over from the other side with a smile as Percy watched on fearfully at the end of the bed.

At this Charlie merely gave half a chuckled but quickly stopped grabbing the side of his stomach.

"Try not to move around too much son. It'll only make things worse. Everything's going to be ok now. I'll bring you're mother to see you tomorrow in the morning.' At this though Charlie merely groaned as best he could under the mask and both Bill and Mr Weasley had the suspicion it wasn't from pain.

'Now don't be like that Charlie, she's your mother and she loves you, now try and get some rest. I know it looks awful now, but you will get better I promise. Do you know what happened?" He continued soothingly looking warmly down at his somewhat helpless son.

"Someone slipped something in his drink." Percy quickly piped up in the hopes of being remotely useful to his brother.

"Do you know who did it?" Arthur continued.

"No." Percy whispered back now frightened of making too much noise.

"Well, lets not worry about that now. You just get better Charlie. Try and go to sleep." The healer soon returned and unfortunately made them all leave. Percy decided he'd rather not face his mother yet and went back with Bill to sleep on the sofa again and after a lengthy conversation with the healer and an owl to his wife that only covered what was necessary Mr Weasley decided to sit with son until morning.

"Charlie you're awake?" Mrs Weasley half cried rushing back onto the ward after going to get a cup of tea with Bill, to find Charlie wide awake and steadily trying to sit up a bit. She swooped down quickly to give him a tight hug that only made Charlie groan.

"Arggh, watch the bloody stomach mother."

"Oh Charlie, I've been ever so worried about you. Three days and I couldn't catch you half awake once." She half sobbed sitting down on the spare seat right next to her son and ignoring the tea Bill was still holding for her.

"Mum I'll be fine. You don't have to fuss!"

"Oh don't be so daft Charlie, I always have to fuss, I'm your mother it's part of my job!" She half snapped back looking both tearful and tired.

"Have we heard anything else from the ministry?" Bill asked moving round to lean on the bed next to his father.

"They're coming to speak to him tomorrow. There's not much chance of catching them though, it was a crowded muggle pub." Mr Weasley sighed, then looked back to his wife who was still straightening the sheets around Charlie's painful and bandaged stomach to be useful.

"Do Ron and Ginny know?" Bill continued.

"Yes I've sent them a letter. Fred and George dropped in earlier to show their faces and said they'd come back again tomorrow to pester you but they don't want to take any time off work and poor old Percy's hiding again." He sighed as his wife was deliberately ignorant to there third son these days in a lame attempt to stop arguments.

"Did you really have to tell Ron, I don't want him worrying?" Here Bill noticed how his mother didn't want Ron being worried where as Bill and Arthur were more concerned by Ginny worrying rather than Ron, who had occasionally proved himself quiet capable of hearing difficult news.

"Yes well, I'd rather they had the facts than anything else slightly obscured that they could pick up." He sighed yet again even harder now. Sirius was bound to have said something to Harry by now, everyone knew he had far more access to speaking to Harry while he was in school than anybody else managed. Harry was a known loyal friend and highly likely to tell Ron anything he might hear concerning the Weasley family.

"Try not to worry too much dad, I was probably just an accident, it doesn't mean anything will happen to them." Charlie explained turning slowly to his father and putting a cold freckly hand on his shoulder.

"Yes, I suppose we were lucky with you. But for touch and go then son... Well you're ok now, it's best not to think what could have happened." He decided looking across to his wife who was hurriedly wiping her eyes again.

"Mum don't cry. I know you always said me been a party animal was a bad thing but actually, it worked out quiet well in the end didn't it. I'm going to be perfectly fine in a few weeks!" He tried to smile but it was no use, rather than comforting her like he wanted to she merely hugged him tightly again and cried a little bit harder.

"Percy will be glad to hear your feeling better now Charlie." Bill explained in an attempt to keep the conversation going a bit, at least he accepted that however annoying she was, his mother couldn't help but get emotional from time to time about things, it was just her way.

"I guess he's had to go back home." Charlie replied carefully, aware that his mother and possibly his father didn't know exactly why Percy might be spending more time at home than usual these days.

"Yeah well, he's not as lonely as you now is he? He seemed very worried though according to Fleur, when they brought you here. And he was in a bit of a state when we first came to see you in intensive care." Bill asked carefully continuing the conversation while Mrs Weasley started to fold Charlie's clothes and separate them into what she could wash this afternoon and what really he needed to keep with him when he went to the toilet.

"I know, well I guess he probably worked it out as quick as I did." Charlie sighed without thinking but his father caught the look and picked his son's quickly up on it.

"What? Tell me why!" Charlie merely sighed and looked to his brother who nodded with a look as a say, it's up to you little bro.

"It wasn't my drink I was drinking.' Charlie sighed then continued quietly in the hopes his mother wasn't listening properly as she shuffled things about.

'Percy spilt my drink down me front so gave me his. I drank it down and after that I started feeling ill and went back to Bill's. I thought it was the super-spice-me-curry I had for breakfast making me feel ill but it wasn't till, I started throwing up on his floor did I realise it was something else." Feeling annoyed all of a sudden, not because he'd been poisoned, but because it was going to be a very long time before his stomach could cope with his favourite super-spice-me-curry from Spicy Jim's.

"It was Percy's drink that poised you?" Mr Weasley repeated firmly, wanting to get everything quiet right before accepting it. Mrs Weasley however gave up on her folding and turned firmly back to the other three to listen silently but clearly quiet shocked and clutching her empty box of tissues.

"Yeah it was just an accident that I drank it. See mum, no-one's trying to kill me or anything." He finished turning to his mother now who had quiet promptly burst into tears again. Bill handed her the tissue box over and after half an hour of her trying to stop the tears from coming, Mr Weasley decided it would probably be best they went home. He needed to get a few things together anyway before heading up to Hogsmade at the weekend to see his youngest two children.

"Bill I shouldn't have told her." Charlie sighed pushing himself back down on the bed to be more comfortable now his mother had gone.

"You had to tell dad though and she'd have worked it out eventually."

"I'm guessing Penelope doesn't know then?"

"No and Percy doesn't want anybody else to either, he's having enough problems at the minuet trying to get enough money together before the new arrivals."

"Arrivals?"

"Yeah she's having twins. Percy's gotta go find a way to get enough stuff for both of them."

"Well does he seem happy about it yet?" Charlie wondered quiet sure his brother wasn't expected to be the first one settled down with twins and a wife.

"Yeah in his own odd way he is, it's just a bit of a shock for him that's all and well, he's worried he won't be able to make his plan work now and keep them all well supported. Penelope's not that good a budgeting and you know what Percy's like."

"Yeah has it worked out to the last knutt.' Charlie sighed with a roll of his eyes.

'I'm guessing mum hasn't got wind of this yet?"

"No not a whiff, dad knows now though, he found out when Percy told him while you were ill. Percy's a bit worried about his job and well, Dad's gonna sneak some baby stuff out for them the next time mum's away long enough for him to dig around in the attic and stuff. Percy thinks with a bit of effort he could make one of the cot's look almost brand new."

"You know if I wasn't feeling so crap every time I laughed, I'd really enjoy watching him trying to do that." Charlie explained smiling broadly now he'd finally given up on laughing.

"Banshee blood and devils snare juice. No wonder he's ill. How the hell did he survive that?" Podmore asked a little too bluntly before the next order meeting when Arthur had finally returned.

"DO you mind, that's my son your talking about?" He snapped angrily taking a strong sip of his tea and whisky provided for him by Sirius.

"I know and its good news he's going to be ok, honestly I'm glad, he's a nice lad, but still. That'd kill most people, how the hell did he manage it?" Podmore continued still showing his stunned disbelief like most the other aura order members listening to Arthur. They were all a little concerned by the recent developments in poisoning and how several aura's had already killed because of it recently, meaning for the first time in quiet a while many members of the order were quiet keen to hear Moody's advice on preventing a nasty concoction being slipped into your food.

"Well I suppose the healers were shocked by how well he was doing. Do you remember I said he's a bit of a party animal and had a habit of drinking a lot when he was out?"

"Yeah but he's young, he might as well get away with it while he still can. Your only young once and all that!" Podmore explained dryly.

"Well, when he ends up getting himself in a state, he makes himself throw up, to get the alcohol out his system and then just seems to carry on most the time from what I can tell. Well, because he managed to do that on his way back to Bill's, plus the fact that his stomach is so saturated with alcohol most the time, it diluted the poison enough to save him from taking it into his system long enough for Percy to get him to the hospital."

"Percy?" Podmore wondered cocking an eyebrow like many of the others listening in.

"Yes Percy. He waited with Charlie while Bill came to find me and it was him that decided they should take him in and sorted things out." Arthur sighed again and became slightly suspicious of what was in this tea Sirius had given him, to make him feel so relaxed. Sirius had just handed him the cup when he sat down and surprisingly Arthur hadn't thought to ask what was in it.

"Well I suppose we can't expect all your son's to be clones of you." Podmore decided lounging back in his chair and quite aware by how quiet Tonks seemed to be in the corner soaking things in.

"He's a bit annoyed at the minuet, keeps causing the odd problems on his ward." Arthur sighed whishing his son could be more like his older brother some times.

It worried Arthur sometimes just how out of control Charlie could possibly be, there had already been a fair few incidents his father had been forced to come and step in on and he was sure there were many more that he didn't know about. Bill may be good at keeping an eye on his little brothers but Arthur was sure Charlie should be starting to calm down now, at least a little bit.

"Well it's understandable he'd be annoyed at being poisoned like that so would anybody else!"

"That's not why he's annoyed. Doesn't seem to be troubling him too much because it wasn't him they were trying to poison. He's annoyed because the healers have signed him off alcohol for six months so his liver and stomach can have a proper amount of time to repair. And for the time being he's got to stick to very simple foods and is incapable of standing up for very long. Charlie's like the twins, fidgets constantly and hates been stuck in one place for very long."

Arthur finished shaking his head somewhat and extremely glad his wife wasn't here to see him looking so miserable. He'd spent most the week convincing her it was all going to be ok and the stress of his job wasn't doing anything for his overall health, every time he came home from work she'd be pacing by the kitchen door before bursting in to tears when she saw him.

"I can some-what relate. He'll get over it eventually." Sirius added picking at the remains of his dinner from a chair by the fireplace while taking the time to give Tonks curious looks, who merely ignored the other men. She was used to having to listen to a bunch of what she considered grumpy old men, chewing the fat about the day in the evening. It was usually best just to let them get on with it she decided, or at least that was what her mother assured her was the case.

"Yes well, I'll be happy to have him home again for a while when he gets out. Fleur's worried about him too much and would rather he wasn't left at there's all day so unfortunately, it's a bit of a last resort for him to come home. I'll be glad for the company though, it's still weird not having any of them home these days." Arthur finally decided as some consolation.

Although he had no favourites among his children he cared about them all, Charlie unlike the twins who merely caused a lot of problems for his wife, was mature enough (in theory) now to be another equal in the house and yet young enough not to be weighed down by the troubles of a father's world and offer some light relief in the evenings.

After the meeting was over, Tonks headed up to bed rather quickly despite the fact that Remus's wasn't there and made a point of sleeping in her own rarely used bed and not his like she often did when she missed him to mull things over. She'd been ever so worried when the reports came back that out of all the Weasley children, it was Charlie who was desperately ill in hospital and after forcing her to respect the Weasley family's privacy (even if the mother hen never thought to do this with other families). Tonks decided that now it was clear he was going to be ok and looking towards the day for him to come home, she thought it would be ok to go and see how he was for herself.

Charlie had been day dreaming again in his half sleep, pleasant thoughts about some lovely girl he'd spent the night with and was just passing the time after an early tea and before the hospital got quiet enough to go to sleep in. He hated being sat around in hospital, illness was never something that sat well with him, unless he was completely incapable of moving and that never really happened very often.

Over the past few days though now his visitor's didn't stop all day and he wasn't constantly asleep, he liked laying down in bed daydreaming about girls (even if it wasn't quiet enough for what he really liked to do when he daydreamed). That was actually the reason he was half looking forward to going home for a bit. He liked his old room and was looking forward to claiming it back from his other brothers when they stopped. At least then he might be more likely to get half an hour peace and quiet to day dream as he wished.

"Not interrupting you am I?" Tonks asked sweetly, puling her work robes off her plain clothes and sitting down on the spare chair.

"Err no, it's ok. Err, come sit down." He explained completely surprised to see her smiling back at him in his hospital pajarmers and home knitted jumper, (blue to match his eyes). Surprisingly he didn't feel half as uncomfortable as he thought he would on meeting her in such a state of undress.

"Thanks. I hear you have to be careful what you eat theses day so brought you a nice healthy piece of watermelon. Poison free of course." She added with another smile handing over a little box she'd picked up on the way.

"Oh thanks. I don't get to eat much these days. People seem to think I'm useless."

"You're not useless Charlie. But take care not to ruin that body of yours much more, I mean, it's not as if you can cover it up easily like me now is it." She replied looking around at the empty bed next to him and the slightly open window on the other side.

"He's gone home lucky sod, it's been ever so dull here." Charlie explained following her gaze around the room.

"Well you shant be in here to long will you?"

"No, I can go home next week. Still, I could do with something to do that doesn't involve standing up." He grinned showing his best cheeky boy grin.

"You were always such an odd ball. I gather you've been banned from alcohol?" Tonks continued trying to hide behind her smile.

"Yeah its bloody crap, I'll never stick to it as long as they say. Couldn't cope!"

"I would have thought you'd gone off pubs a bit now."

"Nah, well maybe that one, but I could still drink beer at home and stuff. Mum's trying to ban me from going out after dark and stuff now. Not sure how long I'm going to last at home but I think dad could do with the male company for a while, so Bill's making me at least try it for a bit."

"Well I think he might be looking forward to it. I know he loves your mother and all but still, one on one must be a bit too loving!"

"You can never have to much loving Tonks but I know what ya mean." Charlie grinned and then sighed and immediately regretted it.

"Need some pain draft." Tonks asked looking out on to the hallway to see if she could spot a healer.

"No I'm ok, just twinges a bit when I move. It's agony to eat anything though.' He explained sitting to one side more to be comfortable while he thought of something pleasant and suitable to say.

'How have you been, I hear the ministry has been rather busy lately?"

"Yeah I've been a bit busy. There's always lots to do, specially now. Haven't seen you in a while though, surprised you remember me?"

"Oh I'd never forget you Tonks. You're one of a kind." He replied a little too eagerly.

"I'll take that as a complement I think."

"You should. Your really are."

"Charlie I..?"

"How's Remus?" Charlie butted in firmly before she could really think of a suitable reply.

"He's very well. What about you? Still lonely?"

"No got a girl in every pub just cant remember her name." Charlie grinned forcing himself to be more like his idiotic appearance now the pain had started to subside a bit.

"Same old same old I see. Oh well, least you're still in one piece. Bill seems very happy with Fleur these days." Tonks wondered hoping to keep the subject far away from her and Remus if she could.

"He is. He adores her and she's determined not to loose him to anyone. Gets really quiet protective of him, its quiet sweet really the way she is. Seems to think the sun shine's out his arse when everyone knows it comes out mine!" Charlie sighed heavily then quickly grabbed his side to hold it in place better.

"How's your mother recently? I've not seen her in a while." Tonks wondered a little guilty when she hoped she had some small trouble to keep her mind busy.

"Lucky you! Well she's ok, bit upset but she'll get me to fuss over soon so she'll be in her element and far better I'm sure."

"I'm glad, I know she worries about you all in her own, err, odd little way."

"How's yours?"

"Happy, and looking forward to Christmas when I've managed to get a few days off this year."

"Don't you always?"

"No, last year I had to work Christmas day and then it ended up being right through the holidays. The money was good but still, she was ever so annoyed I didn't come home once."

Tonks carried on chatting politely for a little while longer but soon left to head back to her mum's for a good nights kip. She had said to Remus she wouldn't leave Sirius on his own while he was away, but it was another long order meeting tonight and he'd agreed to send her home so he could get another book off Andromeda easily. Charlie however had no where to go and after smiling and joking through his evening check up like always, he quickly laid down to rest in his favourite memory for most the night.