Ch Fourteen: An Old World Part V: Today's Truth

"Charlotte, hey Charlotte! Come on already, wake up!" A nagging but kind voice pleaded. Charlotte rolled over and opened her eyes. She sat up with a yawn, only to see a smiling blonde looking down at her. She gaped at the blonde figure for a good ten seconds before she figured out who it was. "Ryan Hartlen with blonde hair! That's quite a sight."

Ryan shrugged. "Well I am naturally, but I dyed it red ten or eleven years ago. I thought it was time to go back."

"Sure you're not doing it because Nina and her husband are coming tonight?"

Ryan shrugged again. "I don't know. Nina will be just as surprised though. And now, Miss Rove, I suggest you get up before you're late." Charlotte glanced over at the clock. "Oh for the love of Merlin, I am going to be late." She leaped out of bed, grabbed her clothes and bolted to the bathroom. "Merlin?" mumbled Ryan unsurely with a hint of frantic in her eyes.

Charlotte ran to the book store and showed up only ten minuets late. Luckily, Loren Alair was in the middle of a phone call and didn't notice.

"They were supposed to be here Thursday! TODAY is THURSDAY! Well? Where are they? Excuse me!? That is a pathetic excuse!" Loren yelled at someone on the other line. That's when it hit her, today was Thursday, it had been one week since she had last seen Evan. He would be back tonight and she had made up her mind. She was going to accept.

"Charlotte, good you're here." Loren interrupted Charlotte's thought process. "And early, if I'm not mistaken. Can you believe those idiots?! I ordered books that were supposed to arrive today and the sales representative said they ran out of shipping materials and didn't send it until yesterday! I need to sort a few things out so if you could please stay in the front, help the costumers, etc." Charlotte nodded and walked to the front. She saw a tiny girl, with red hair that looked so much like Ginny Weasely that she had to approach her. "Hi, can I help you with anything today?" Charlotte asked. The girl turned around and with a squeak, wrapped her arms around Charlotte. "Oh Hermione, it's so good to see you."

"Ginny?" Charlotte asked incredulously, instantly regretting everything she had told the girl in her letter. "What are you doing here? And…" She lowered her voice to a whisper. "I go by Charlotte here."

"Charlotte?" The red-head asked.

"I wouldn't have been able to stand people calling me Hermione all the time. It would have been too hard," She replied, her voice still in a whisper. Her eyes had become glued to the ground.

"Oh. Yeah. I guess. So how have you been?" Ginny asked.

"Fine, my roommate is really cool."

"Oh." There was about a minuet of awkward silence, before Charlotte said, "You never told me why you were here."

"Oh, well, my dad wanted to learn more about computers. So I volunteered to pick up a book in muggle London when I went to Diagon Alley. I was going to have lunch with Fred and George."

"Oh, well I'll go find a book for you." Charlotte walked away before Ginny could protest. Five minuets later she handed Ginny a book.

"Computers for Dummies? Now that's a bit insulting, Hermi- Charlotte, you know my father's not a dummy!" Ginny exclaimed.

"It's a series of books that make understanding the topic, which is computers in this case, very simple. It's easy enough for someone who is as unintelligent as a dummy to understand. I figured with your father's background knowledge, in other words none, he would need a very simple version to help him." Charlotte paused. "I'll explain all that to him tomorrow, I've planned on that being my day off for nearly two weeks now."

Ginny smiled. "So you'll come to the Burrow tomorrow?!" Ginny hugged her again. "I knew you'd come around. I knew you'd come back. Hey, I know. Come have lunch in Diagon Alley with Fred, George and me," Ginny suggested as she handed her a thick roll of muggle money. As Charlotte counted out the appropriate bills needed to pay for the book, she said to Ginny, "I can't, I've got to work. And tomorrow is only a visit. I'll see you around one?"

"Sounds great," Ginny replied as she took the book and her change from Charlotte. "See you then." Charlotte smiled but it quickly faded away. I I hope I don't regret this. /I

"So I was thinking tomorrow night, a bit of the night on the town type of thing…" Charlotte heard a voice rattle on just as she was about to leave.

"Not tomorrow." Charlotte answered, handing the drink she had just made to its owner.

"Oh so it wasn't enough time? I don't really understand you, Charlotte. I thought we were, I don't know, we…" Charlotte stopped what she was doing and leaned on the countertop in front of the familiar black haired boy. "Listen, Evan. Not tomorrow. I ran into an old friend earlier today and I promised I would visit tomorrow. Saturday?"

"Saturday?" He repeated.

"Yeah, Saturday. Is that ok with you?"

Evan smiled. "Saturday it is."

"Good, now I have to go. I took an earlier shift because my roommate is expecting visitors and she really wants me there. I have a bit of a long walk, so if I don't leave now she'll… "

"I'll walk you," Evan offered quickly, cutting her off. She gaped at his for a moment before replying, "Let me get my coat from the back."

About a minuet later Charlotte returned. "You're really going to walk me home?"

"Yes."

"Oh. I had a… it would be quicker if… err… let's go then."

"Lead the way Miss Rove."

The two walked in silence for over ten minuets before Evan dared to break the silence. "So I know this may be out of place, considering I don't know you very well, but since I usually have a pretty good read on people I was just wondering, and please don't take this the wrong way…" "Evan stop dancing around the subject and say it," cut in Charlotte in a very aggressive tone. "Why do you work at a bar? I mean I feel like I've known you for years and you just don't seem like the work-in-the-bar type of girl."

"Well, I'm not really. I mean I don't think I am. I'm also assistant manager at a bookstore."

"Assistant Manager at a bookstore? You sound so much like…"

"Like…?"

"A girl I used to know. I haven't seen her in over a year."

"Oh. Well then."

"Yeah."

"So what do you do? For a job, I mean."

"Well I'm…"

"Can't think up a quick enough excuse?"

"No, well since my parents… death–"

"Death? Oh Evan, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. You didn't know my parents, they weren't really good parents. Or people. But ever since they died back in April, I've taken a break from school and haven't really done much of anything. Speaking of school, aren't you a little young to be graduated from school?"

"Umm, well I skipped a grade, and then after I lost my two best friends, I kind of ran away."

"Ran away?"

"Yeah, my friend who I'm visiting is the first person I've seen since April. Funny coincidence don't you think, we both lost people we were close to in April. Stupid April."

"You don't seem like the type of girl to run away."

"I don't think you really know me Evan. But you can find out Saturday. Pick me up at 8:00. This is my apartment building. Bye Evan."

"Bye Charlotte," he staggered.

A/n: I'm so happy to be writing this again. Please review with comments on the story. Thanks.

xxo Sera Evlin Thinly