Quick A/N - all of the replies to our wonderful reviewers are from Jenni's
fertile brain. ;) Nancy claims no responsibility this time.
ZOE - Wow! I can't believe it! That would be incredible.exclusive invitations to the reception! Man the article we could write up on that!
Little Wolf - Yes Bill is quite the playful type isn't he? Glad you're enjoying the story so much! Ronsspawn - I'm so amazed that you think we write fast! LOL. Ok, well thanks for reading as always.
Blue Eyes - The tension is over? Are you sure? MUWAHHAAHAAA!! Guess you'll just have to wait and see!
Heather - Yes, we tried very hard to make this story different! That was the whole point. We decided, Nancy and I that is, that a story about the older Weasley brothers would be quite fun. Not to mention, we think they are extremely sexy!
Louisa - Our favorite Aussie! Thanks for reading as always! Hope you enjoy chapter 12 just as much!
Karen - AH! The famous article. Well, I have to give Nancy full credit on that! It was her brilliant mind that came up with that fantabulous piece of work!
Carrie - You can BUMP our story anytime!
Dead Sexy - Glad to see you enjoying the story! And don't worry, there will be a lot more Nancy/Charlie and Jenni/Bill interactions!
Angel Beech - Yes! Poor Harry would feel like he's stuck in one big argument wouldn't he!
Phantas Magoria - HAHAA!! A Bill and Charlie of your own! Nancy and I were just discussing that exact same thing only a few days ago! Unfortunately I think we're both still looking. Let us know if you have better luck!
Fracindy - Hmm, ok first and foremost. You can not marry Bill. He's mine. Or have you not been reading the story???? HMMMMMMM? And what are doing in the tree? Spying? Hmph. Must tell Percy about his dad's assistant. He'll really have something to say about that.
Psiana - OH you've made my day with your review! Bond! Jenni Bond! HAHAHAA!! I can see it now! Me chasing bad guys with my deadly wand and super fast broomstick! And then amidst all the explosions, standing calmly and slowly putting on sunglasses! Thanks for that wonderful image!
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Bill looked at Jenni sprawled out on the couch. He wanted to talk to make sure Nancy was with Charlie before getting her involved. "You want something to drink? All this reading is making me thirsty."
Jenni grinned. "No, I'm all right."
He leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. "Ok, then I'll only be a minute." As he reached the kitchen, Bill turned around to make sure Jenni hadn't changed her mind and followed him. As soon as he was satisfied, he headed out the back door to find his brother.
Bill's heart stopped as he saw only one figure in the darkness. His first thought was how devastated Jenni would be to learn that Charlie hadn't found Nancy. It wasn't until he got closer that he noticed the small bundle of a woman who was in Charlie's arms. He breathed a sigh of relief that was quickly replaced with a grimace. If Charlie was carrying her, then something must be wrong.
He was back to his first thought - Jenni would be crushed. His second thought was that he was jumping to conclusions, and he'd better go get the facts before alerting the tightly wound and very emotional woman in the other room. Peering around the corner at her, he saw Jenni's brown hair fanned out over the spot where he had been sitting. She seemed to be dozing quietly, so he crept over to the door and slipped outside.
"Charlie!" His hushed whisper seemed to startle his younger brother, who was in the middle of removing what looked like some kind of binding spell. Waiting for him to finish, Bill studied the girl's face for a moment, before looking up at his brother's.
Nancy was still pale and looked as though she had only just begun to recover from an illness, but her face was peaceful and didn't look like someone recently mauled by a whomping willow. Charlie, he noted on a sigh, looked totally and utterly besotted. He also seemed worried, and the way he was holding her was classic protective, but Bill decided wryly that the worrying came with Nancy and the protecting was something the Weasleys had in their blood.
Suddenly, the faint pink shimmering that had surrounded the two of them disappeared, and Bill pulled himself back to the question at hand. Charlie glanced over at him, whispering, "What is it? Something wrong?"
"I was going to ask you that. She all right?"
"Just tired, and... but nothing new. Why?" Charlie shot him an odd look.
"I want to be well prepared before I head back in to break the news to Jenni. She's a bit fragile right now."
Two red eyebrows shot to the top of Charlie's forehead. "SHE'S fragile? Is this the same..."
Bill cut him off before he could say anything derogatory about Jenni. "Listen... I'm not defending what she said or how she said it. But yes, she's fragile, and she's terrified that Nancy's been hurt or won't ever talk to her again."
Charlie sighed, knowing that the conversation couldn't continue, not here. Not with Nancy shifting sleepily in his arms and Jenni probably pacing the floor inside. "I don't suppose she cried on you and told you how wrong she was?" he asked softly. Catching Bill's irritated look he quickly added, "Because that's what Nancy did..."
The look that passed between them was palpable relief. Neither one wanted to be at odds with his brother, but both sensed that these women were special enough to split their Weasley loyalty if it came to that.
Bill smiled slightly, "I'd better go get her. She's not such a fan of being left in the dark about... anything, if you hadn't noticed..."
Charlie grinned back at him and followed as they walked back to the front door. Bill held it as Charlie maneuvered Nancy inside, and then dashed off to the living room to wake Jenni. He found her right where he had left her. Dropping a quick kiss on her forehead, he shook her shoulder gently. "Jenni... Jenni, wake up. Guess who just walked through the door?"
She shot up, groggy and confused, and the sleep in her eyes was so adorable that Bill couldn't help stealing a kiss. He kept it light, though, and repeated himself after pulling away. "Come and see who just came home." He held out his hand as her eyes lit up, and pulling her off the couch, led her to the front hallway, where Charlie was still holding Nancy.
Jenni blinked through the sleepiness that had come on so suddenly. He had to mean Nancy, didn't he? Why else would he wake her up? As they turned the corner to the hall, she saw Charlie standing there and then her eyes focused on her friend's small form lying curled up in his arms. She stifled her gasp with two hands over her mouth and ran to stand in front of the sturdy dragon tamer. "Is she... she's not..."
"Just sleeping." Bill had come up behind her.
"Thank god..." Jenni stared at Nancy's face for a moment and then blurted out, "Do you think she'll talk to me when she wakes up?"
Charlie smiled gently at her worried look. "Jenni, trust me, she'll be happy to see you." His brother shot him a grateful look as he wrapped an arm around the short brunette.
"Now, since Nancy's obviously worn herself out, you'll both stay the night, right?" At Jenni's nod, Bill grinned and said, "Well then, lead the way, milady! We'd better go collect some things that are more your sizes. And I wouldn't mind seeing YOUR bed..."
Charlie grinned as Jenni whacked his brother and the two walked off, flirting and laughing. He looked down at Nancy, who was still sleeping soundly. "She was happy to see you..." he whispered, kissing the top of her head and smiling into her hair. "I win."
As he walked up the stairs, Charlie found himself wishing that he could rescue Nancy from something or other every day, so that he'd have an excuse to tuck her under his covers at night. It was odd, he was very attracted to her, but this desire to have her close at night was different. It was all mixed in with feelings of wanting to protect her and also keep an eye on her -- she did have the adorable but worrying tendency to find trouble.
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Jenni's heart was considerably lighter than it had been the past few days. With a *pop* they arrived at Nancy's apartment first. As Jenni unlocked the door, she groaned. They had left Cheese Kanoodles on the small table in the kitchen, clothes were strewn about everywhere, and several pairs of shoes had been tossed about haphazardly. They had really left Nancy's apartment in a mess.
"Sorry about the mess." Jenni shot an apologetic glance at Bill.
He grinned back. "That's okay."
Jenni shook her head, "No, it's not. Nancy is gonna kill me when she finds out I let someone into her apartment with it looking like this." She blushed as she continued her sentence, "It's just, we left in a hurry and forgot to clean up."
"Right!" Bill watched as Jenni began to pick up pits and pieces of clothing and kicking a pair of shoes into a nearby closet. "It looks like you two left in search of some hot dates."
Jenni shrugged her shoulders as she peered innocently at Bill, "Maybe."
Bill answered back just as innocently, "So, did you find them? The hot dates I mean?"
Unable to stop herself from laughing Jenni responded. "Well, there were these two guys that we met. But, I'm not too sure. I mean really, long red hair and earrings? I don't know about that."
Bill shook his head as he followed Jenni to Nancy's bedroom. "What is this world coming too? People letting their children look like that."
Jenni had just finished gathering a few things for Nancy when she noticed Bill happily eating the left over Cheese Kanoodles. She made a face and took the bag from him. "Don't eat those. They've been left out for two days."
"They're not that bad."
Jenni rolled her eyes. "Honestly. If you're that hungry you can fix yourself something when we get to my apartment. I assure you nothing has been left open for two days over there."
Bill's face lit up with a rather mischievous grin, "And then you show me your bed?"
Instead of replying, Jenni shoved Bill out the door of Nancy's apartment. After locking the door, they headed to her own apartment. It was a little smaller, but Jenni had always been able to make her small rooms look much larger than what they really were. Nancy had accused her once of having spells set up throughout the apartment and had spent hours checking and recheck, refusing to believe her denials. Jenni on the other hand was fairly sure that it was because, unlike Nancy, she tended to be a neat freak and kept everything free of clutter.
Jenni threw her keys carelessly on the table and stared longingly at her soft worn in chair with her favorite blanket. With a sigh she headed off to her bedroom to gather her things. She was standing on a stool reaching for a bag on the top shelf of her closet when Bill walked in and let out a loud whistle. "THAT is one big bed!"
By the time Jenni had managed to grab the bag and turn around, Bill was stretched out on her queen-sized bed in the middle of her mounds of pillows. She held back a laugh as she stared at him looking so out of place with his dangling earring and his punk rock clothing in the middle of her ruffled comforter with pastel flowers and matching pillows.
Bill rolled over and leaned up on his elbow. "You wouldn't be laughing at ME, now would you?"
Jenni laughed loudly, "No. I would never do such a thing. And YOU wouldn't happen to have YOUR feet on MY bed would you?"
Bill quickly moved his feet off the side of the bed. "Of course not." He said with a sheepish grin.
Jenni rolled her eyes as she closed her closet door. "Ok, that's everything. Let's go now."
Bill groaned, "Now? I was hoping you would come - share - your bed with me!" He grinned wickedly at Jenni watching her turn a deep red. "Besides, you promised to feed me."
Fighting to regain her composure, Jenni averted her eyes from Bill's teasing blue gaze. "If you want something to eat, you're going to have to go to the kitchen," she managed to squeak out before heading down the narrow hallway herself.
Realizing he was being left alone, Bill jumped off the bed and followed Jenni to her small kitchen. He found her peering into her pantry. She turned around as she heard him walk into the kitchen. "I've got a bag of pretzels, some cheese kanoodles, or if you prefer," she said closing the door "I have some fruit in the." Jenni was cut of short by a rather large yawn. "in the refrigerator."
Bill walked over to Jenni and placed a light kiss on her forehead. He noticed she looked exhausted despite her rather uplifted mood. "I tell you what. Why don't we just go home so that you can get some sleep. I'm sure mum will have plenty of food at the house."
Jenni yawned again. "Are you sure? I've got plenty."
Bill cut her off with a gentle kiss. He pulled back a little. "I'm positive. Besides, I'm sure you're anxious to see Nancy."
Jenni nodded in agreement. She hadn't realized until now just how tired she really was. Once Jenni locked the door to her apartment, they headed back to the burrow.
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Charlie jerked awake suddenly, nearly knocking over the chair he'd settled himself into once Nancy was tucked securely under his covers. His first instinct was to glance at the bed, but Nancy was still there, sleeping soundly. So why had he woken up? Charlie scanned the room slowly, and was just going to open the door to the hall and look around when a sharp tapping came from his window. Just an owl, he thought with relief.
Striding across the room, he let the tawny owl in and held out his arm for it to land on. It held out its leg with a rather heavy looking letter addressed to him attached, and Charlie found himself marveling at the intelligence and grace of the winged messengers. He loved things that flew. Anything with wings was tops in his books. It wasn't as though he DIDN'T like four, six, or eight legged creatures, but there was something about the ability to fly that captivated him.
The letter was addressed to him, in neat, bold handwriting. Tucking it into his pocket, he set about feeding and watering the owl. When the beautiful bird had eaten its fill of the pellets he'd conjured for it, Charlie slipped the window open and let it fly back out into the dusky sky. He was heading for the chair by his bed when a soft knock sounded on the door. Shooting a careful glance at Nancy to make sure she was still asleep, he padded over and quietly eased it open.
"Mum? What is it?"
"Charlie, dear, I just..." Molly Weasley's face hovered between anxious and quite pleased, and after a moment she said, "Well I got a rather edited version of the day's events out of the twins, not that I'm trusting them to tell me the truth, but..."
Charlie could feel himself tensing. What if his mother thought that the girls were creating too much stress in the house? Was she working up to asking him to send Nancy home? He wasn't sure he could do that...
"But... I just needed to know that the poor dear is all right. She looked so ill yesterday, and so much better this morning." Charlie nearly let loose with a huge sigh of relief, but held it in as his mother continued. "Although, after the fight with Bill's young lady - do you know I caught them... well, I suppose that's none of your business, but... oh, yes, well, I just thought that she might have worn herself out and would she be wanting some supper tonight?"
Charlie blinked. THAT was what she'd been working up to? Finding out if Nancy was HUNGRY? He should have known, he admitted to himself with a slight grin. Molly Weasley had never mistreated any guest who had walked through her door unless they threatened her husband or children with bodily harm. And since two of her children seemed quite stuck on the small brunettes, she would, of course, make them feel at home for as long as they were there.
"Well, what did I say to provoke that silly grin? I DO have food cooking downstairs, young man, and..." her tirade was interrupted when Charlie was reminded of the original question.
"Well, Mum. She's all right, just sleeping and fighting off an infection," he rolled his eyes as he said this, still a bit miffed at Nancy for not keeping her wound from infecting. "But, she also hasn't eaten since breakfast, and if she doesn't wake up by supper, she'll be that much more hungry when she finally does."
His mother smiled, letting the pleased look take over for the anxious one. "Well, that's good to hear, poor dear looks like she hasn't eaten a square meal in weeks." She turned to go, but whirled back around as Charlie was easing the door shut. "What about your brother? And Jenni? I couldn't find them to ask... probably off finishing what I interrupted earlier," she said with a knowing smile.
Charlie glanced up at the clock. "They should be back any minute. Just went to get some things, since the girls are staying over again..." he flushed, realizing that his mother's eyebrows were somewhere near her hairline. "Er... because Nancy's still so weak, and... not like THAT, Mum!" he mumbled, red-faced and feeling as though he were about fifteen again in the face of his mother's assessing stare.
"Well, then I'll plan on everyone eating." She shot a last look through the slightly open door. "You're sure she's really asleep in that dark room?" Charlie felt his face heat up, and pushed the door open wider so that she could clearly see Nancy. "Oh go on, I trust you, dear." With a smile and a shake of her head, Mrs. Weasley headed back downstairs.
Charlie shut the door and went back to the chair, wondering if he and his brothers hadn't been a bad influence on his mum's sense of decency.
"'S'everything all right?" Nancy's sleepy voice surprised him as she raised her head slightly, looking about her in confusion. "Charlie?"
He reached over to the window and secured the curtain back to let the last of the daylight in before saying, "I'm right here, Nancy, go back to sleep."
There was silence for a few moments, and her head fell back onto the pillow. Charlie was just reaching into his pocket to fish out the letter when Nancy stirred and said, "I'm hungry."
His hand stilled for a second, and he choked back a laugh. "I don't suppose you can ignore that and sleep some more?"
"Nope. Hunger pretty much takes first priority with me." Nancy rolled over onto her side, slowly waking up, and her stomach rumbled to underline her statement.
Charlie watched her for a minute, oddly enthralled by her stretches and yawns, which continued for about a minute, before she collapsed back onto the bed with a sigh. "I don't suppose you have a secret stash of food up here, do you?"
He grinned at the desperate hope in her voice. "Used to, but since I've only been home on short visits lately, Mum's pretty much cleaned me out." Nancy scowled a bit, and sat up, rubbing at her eyes and looking around, squinting, for her glasses. He fished them out of his pocket, the letter falling onto the floor as he handed them over to her.
"Thanks," Nancy said quietly, suddenly a bit embarrassed at the amount of help she had allowed him to give her. Not only was she feeling dainty almost constantly, darn his strong arms, but he was getting to the point where he could tell what she was looking for without words! She shoved the glasses onto her face and tried hard not to blush, glaring at the floor. "Is that your letter?"
Now it was Charlie's turn to flush. "Er, yeah... nothing important," he mumbled as he grabbed for it. That was the last thing he wanted to overshadow the time he suddenly had with Nancy, news of a denied transfer. He'd read it later.
She glared at him suspiciously, but the slightly worried look on his face smoothed out when a loud yell echoed up the stairs. "Ah! That would be Mum assembling the troops for dinner." He laughed when Nancy's eyes lit up and she leaped up out of bed. The next moment, however, he reached out to steady her as she winced at the jarring sensation of leaping onto her still sore leg. "Are you sure you're up for this? I could just bring some food up here to you..." But Nancy had already shrugged off his help and was hobbling around looking for her shoes.
"Where DID you put them?" She swiveled and spotted them at the end of his bed. "Ah ha! OW. Darn it, I think I might have overdone it a bit today," she said a bit sheepishly as she sat down to slip them on. "My leg's all stiff."
Nancy glanced up into Charlie's suddenly unreadable face, and wondered why she had the feeling that he was trying not to laugh at her. "Just no telling Jenni... she'll only flip..." as she trailed off his face turned serious.
"Isn't that the logic that got you into the fight that CAUSED you to go off and overuse that leg?" he stepped closer to her, reaching down to pull her to her feet.
Nancy stiffened as he pulled her into his arms, unsure of herself and afraid of facing her best friend at dinner. Charlie sighed, sensing her tension, and started rubbing a hand up and down her back. "I mean, it's not that the logic isn't based on experience... but... maybe if these injuries weren't such surprises, Jenni could handle herself better."
Unable to resist the calming effects of that hand, Nancy leaned into him, burying her face in the folds of his shirt. Maybe he was right. After all, Jenni was actually pretty good at dealing with things calmly and carefully, at least when Bill wasn't around. "Fine, I'll tell her," she mumbled. "But not at dinner. Just in case she does."
"Does what?" Charlie turned her towards the door and started walking, hooking an arm around her waist to give her something to lean on. He smiled as she immediately did so, taking weight off of her tired legs.
"Flips out..." Nancy whispered and glanced around them as they emerged onto the landing, hoping that Jenni wasn't in hearing range.
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A/N - Sorry that this is a bit shorter than usual... although I must say we generally don't skimp on the length. We'll do our best to make that up to you ASAP! ;)
ZOE - Wow! I can't believe it! That would be incredible.exclusive invitations to the reception! Man the article we could write up on that!
Little Wolf - Yes Bill is quite the playful type isn't he? Glad you're enjoying the story so much! Ronsspawn - I'm so amazed that you think we write fast! LOL. Ok, well thanks for reading as always.
Blue Eyes - The tension is over? Are you sure? MUWAHHAAHAAA!! Guess you'll just have to wait and see!
Heather - Yes, we tried very hard to make this story different! That was the whole point. We decided, Nancy and I that is, that a story about the older Weasley brothers would be quite fun. Not to mention, we think they are extremely sexy!
Louisa - Our favorite Aussie! Thanks for reading as always! Hope you enjoy chapter 12 just as much!
Karen - AH! The famous article. Well, I have to give Nancy full credit on that! It was her brilliant mind that came up with that fantabulous piece of work!
Carrie - You can BUMP our story anytime!
Dead Sexy - Glad to see you enjoying the story! And don't worry, there will be a lot more Nancy/Charlie and Jenni/Bill interactions!
Angel Beech - Yes! Poor Harry would feel like he's stuck in one big argument wouldn't he!
Phantas Magoria - HAHAA!! A Bill and Charlie of your own! Nancy and I were just discussing that exact same thing only a few days ago! Unfortunately I think we're both still looking. Let us know if you have better luck!
Fracindy - Hmm, ok first and foremost. You can not marry Bill. He's mine. Or have you not been reading the story???? HMMMMMMM? And what are doing in the tree? Spying? Hmph. Must tell Percy about his dad's assistant. He'll really have something to say about that.
Psiana - OH you've made my day with your review! Bond! Jenni Bond! HAHAHAA!! I can see it now! Me chasing bad guys with my deadly wand and super fast broomstick! And then amidst all the explosions, standing calmly and slowly putting on sunglasses! Thanks for that wonderful image!
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Bill looked at Jenni sprawled out on the couch. He wanted to talk to make sure Nancy was with Charlie before getting her involved. "You want something to drink? All this reading is making me thirsty."
Jenni grinned. "No, I'm all right."
He leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. "Ok, then I'll only be a minute." As he reached the kitchen, Bill turned around to make sure Jenni hadn't changed her mind and followed him. As soon as he was satisfied, he headed out the back door to find his brother.
Bill's heart stopped as he saw only one figure in the darkness. His first thought was how devastated Jenni would be to learn that Charlie hadn't found Nancy. It wasn't until he got closer that he noticed the small bundle of a woman who was in Charlie's arms. He breathed a sigh of relief that was quickly replaced with a grimace. If Charlie was carrying her, then something must be wrong.
He was back to his first thought - Jenni would be crushed. His second thought was that he was jumping to conclusions, and he'd better go get the facts before alerting the tightly wound and very emotional woman in the other room. Peering around the corner at her, he saw Jenni's brown hair fanned out over the spot where he had been sitting. She seemed to be dozing quietly, so he crept over to the door and slipped outside.
"Charlie!" His hushed whisper seemed to startle his younger brother, who was in the middle of removing what looked like some kind of binding spell. Waiting for him to finish, Bill studied the girl's face for a moment, before looking up at his brother's.
Nancy was still pale and looked as though she had only just begun to recover from an illness, but her face was peaceful and didn't look like someone recently mauled by a whomping willow. Charlie, he noted on a sigh, looked totally and utterly besotted. He also seemed worried, and the way he was holding her was classic protective, but Bill decided wryly that the worrying came with Nancy and the protecting was something the Weasleys had in their blood.
Suddenly, the faint pink shimmering that had surrounded the two of them disappeared, and Bill pulled himself back to the question at hand. Charlie glanced over at him, whispering, "What is it? Something wrong?"
"I was going to ask you that. She all right?"
"Just tired, and... but nothing new. Why?" Charlie shot him an odd look.
"I want to be well prepared before I head back in to break the news to Jenni. She's a bit fragile right now."
Two red eyebrows shot to the top of Charlie's forehead. "SHE'S fragile? Is this the same..."
Bill cut him off before he could say anything derogatory about Jenni. "Listen... I'm not defending what she said or how she said it. But yes, she's fragile, and she's terrified that Nancy's been hurt or won't ever talk to her again."
Charlie sighed, knowing that the conversation couldn't continue, not here. Not with Nancy shifting sleepily in his arms and Jenni probably pacing the floor inside. "I don't suppose she cried on you and told you how wrong she was?" he asked softly. Catching Bill's irritated look he quickly added, "Because that's what Nancy did..."
The look that passed between them was palpable relief. Neither one wanted to be at odds with his brother, but both sensed that these women were special enough to split their Weasley loyalty if it came to that.
Bill smiled slightly, "I'd better go get her. She's not such a fan of being left in the dark about... anything, if you hadn't noticed..."
Charlie grinned back at him and followed as they walked back to the front door. Bill held it as Charlie maneuvered Nancy inside, and then dashed off to the living room to wake Jenni. He found her right where he had left her. Dropping a quick kiss on her forehead, he shook her shoulder gently. "Jenni... Jenni, wake up. Guess who just walked through the door?"
She shot up, groggy and confused, and the sleep in her eyes was so adorable that Bill couldn't help stealing a kiss. He kept it light, though, and repeated himself after pulling away. "Come and see who just came home." He held out his hand as her eyes lit up, and pulling her off the couch, led her to the front hallway, where Charlie was still holding Nancy.
Jenni blinked through the sleepiness that had come on so suddenly. He had to mean Nancy, didn't he? Why else would he wake her up? As they turned the corner to the hall, she saw Charlie standing there and then her eyes focused on her friend's small form lying curled up in his arms. She stifled her gasp with two hands over her mouth and ran to stand in front of the sturdy dragon tamer. "Is she... she's not..."
"Just sleeping." Bill had come up behind her.
"Thank god..." Jenni stared at Nancy's face for a moment and then blurted out, "Do you think she'll talk to me when she wakes up?"
Charlie smiled gently at her worried look. "Jenni, trust me, she'll be happy to see you." His brother shot him a grateful look as he wrapped an arm around the short brunette.
"Now, since Nancy's obviously worn herself out, you'll both stay the night, right?" At Jenni's nod, Bill grinned and said, "Well then, lead the way, milady! We'd better go collect some things that are more your sizes. And I wouldn't mind seeing YOUR bed..."
Charlie grinned as Jenni whacked his brother and the two walked off, flirting and laughing. He looked down at Nancy, who was still sleeping soundly. "She was happy to see you..." he whispered, kissing the top of her head and smiling into her hair. "I win."
As he walked up the stairs, Charlie found himself wishing that he could rescue Nancy from something or other every day, so that he'd have an excuse to tuck her under his covers at night. It was odd, he was very attracted to her, but this desire to have her close at night was different. It was all mixed in with feelings of wanting to protect her and also keep an eye on her -- she did have the adorable but worrying tendency to find trouble.
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Jenni's heart was considerably lighter than it had been the past few days. With a *pop* they arrived at Nancy's apartment first. As Jenni unlocked the door, she groaned. They had left Cheese Kanoodles on the small table in the kitchen, clothes were strewn about everywhere, and several pairs of shoes had been tossed about haphazardly. They had really left Nancy's apartment in a mess.
"Sorry about the mess." Jenni shot an apologetic glance at Bill.
He grinned back. "That's okay."
Jenni shook her head, "No, it's not. Nancy is gonna kill me when she finds out I let someone into her apartment with it looking like this." She blushed as she continued her sentence, "It's just, we left in a hurry and forgot to clean up."
"Right!" Bill watched as Jenni began to pick up pits and pieces of clothing and kicking a pair of shoes into a nearby closet. "It looks like you two left in search of some hot dates."
Jenni shrugged her shoulders as she peered innocently at Bill, "Maybe."
Bill answered back just as innocently, "So, did you find them? The hot dates I mean?"
Unable to stop herself from laughing Jenni responded. "Well, there were these two guys that we met. But, I'm not too sure. I mean really, long red hair and earrings? I don't know about that."
Bill shook his head as he followed Jenni to Nancy's bedroom. "What is this world coming too? People letting their children look like that."
Jenni had just finished gathering a few things for Nancy when she noticed Bill happily eating the left over Cheese Kanoodles. She made a face and took the bag from him. "Don't eat those. They've been left out for two days."
"They're not that bad."
Jenni rolled her eyes. "Honestly. If you're that hungry you can fix yourself something when we get to my apartment. I assure you nothing has been left open for two days over there."
Bill's face lit up with a rather mischievous grin, "And then you show me your bed?"
Instead of replying, Jenni shoved Bill out the door of Nancy's apartment. After locking the door, they headed to her own apartment. It was a little smaller, but Jenni had always been able to make her small rooms look much larger than what they really were. Nancy had accused her once of having spells set up throughout the apartment and had spent hours checking and recheck, refusing to believe her denials. Jenni on the other hand was fairly sure that it was because, unlike Nancy, she tended to be a neat freak and kept everything free of clutter.
Jenni threw her keys carelessly on the table and stared longingly at her soft worn in chair with her favorite blanket. With a sigh she headed off to her bedroom to gather her things. She was standing on a stool reaching for a bag on the top shelf of her closet when Bill walked in and let out a loud whistle. "THAT is one big bed!"
By the time Jenni had managed to grab the bag and turn around, Bill was stretched out on her queen-sized bed in the middle of her mounds of pillows. She held back a laugh as she stared at him looking so out of place with his dangling earring and his punk rock clothing in the middle of her ruffled comforter with pastel flowers and matching pillows.
Bill rolled over and leaned up on his elbow. "You wouldn't be laughing at ME, now would you?"
Jenni laughed loudly, "No. I would never do such a thing. And YOU wouldn't happen to have YOUR feet on MY bed would you?"
Bill quickly moved his feet off the side of the bed. "Of course not." He said with a sheepish grin.
Jenni rolled her eyes as she closed her closet door. "Ok, that's everything. Let's go now."
Bill groaned, "Now? I was hoping you would come - share - your bed with me!" He grinned wickedly at Jenni watching her turn a deep red. "Besides, you promised to feed me."
Fighting to regain her composure, Jenni averted her eyes from Bill's teasing blue gaze. "If you want something to eat, you're going to have to go to the kitchen," she managed to squeak out before heading down the narrow hallway herself.
Realizing he was being left alone, Bill jumped off the bed and followed Jenni to her small kitchen. He found her peering into her pantry. She turned around as she heard him walk into the kitchen. "I've got a bag of pretzels, some cheese kanoodles, or if you prefer," she said closing the door "I have some fruit in the." Jenni was cut of short by a rather large yawn. "in the refrigerator."
Bill walked over to Jenni and placed a light kiss on her forehead. He noticed she looked exhausted despite her rather uplifted mood. "I tell you what. Why don't we just go home so that you can get some sleep. I'm sure mum will have plenty of food at the house."
Jenni yawned again. "Are you sure? I've got plenty."
Bill cut her off with a gentle kiss. He pulled back a little. "I'm positive. Besides, I'm sure you're anxious to see Nancy."
Jenni nodded in agreement. She hadn't realized until now just how tired she really was. Once Jenni locked the door to her apartment, they headed back to the burrow.
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Charlie jerked awake suddenly, nearly knocking over the chair he'd settled himself into once Nancy was tucked securely under his covers. His first instinct was to glance at the bed, but Nancy was still there, sleeping soundly. So why had he woken up? Charlie scanned the room slowly, and was just going to open the door to the hall and look around when a sharp tapping came from his window. Just an owl, he thought with relief.
Striding across the room, he let the tawny owl in and held out his arm for it to land on. It held out its leg with a rather heavy looking letter addressed to him attached, and Charlie found himself marveling at the intelligence and grace of the winged messengers. He loved things that flew. Anything with wings was tops in his books. It wasn't as though he DIDN'T like four, six, or eight legged creatures, but there was something about the ability to fly that captivated him.
The letter was addressed to him, in neat, bold handwriting. Tucking it into his pocket, he set about feeding and watering the owl. When the beautiful bird had eaten its fill of the pellets he'd conjured for it, Charlie slipped the window open and let it fly back out into the dusky sky. He was heading for the chair by his bed when a soft knock sounded on the door. Shooting a careful glance at Nancy to make sure she was still asleep, he padded over and quietly eased it open.
"Mum? What is it?"
"Charlie, dear, I just..." Molly Weasley's face hovered between anxious and quite pleased, and after a moment she said, "Well I got a rather edited version of the day's events out of the twins, not that I'm trusting them to tell me the truth, but..."
Charlie could feel himself tensing. What if his mother thought that the girls were creating too much stress in the house? Was she working up to asking him to send Nancy home? He wasn't sure he could do that...
"But... I just needed to know that the poor dear is all right. She looked so ill yesterday, and so much better this morning." Charlie nearly let loose with a huge sigh of relief, but held it in as his mother continued. "Although, after the fight with Bill's young lady - do you know I caught them... well, I suppose that's none of your business, but... oh, yes, well, I just thought that she might have worn herself out and would she be wanting some supper tonight?"
Charlie blinked. THAT was what she'd been working up to? Finding out if Nancy was HUNGRY? He should have known, he admitted to himself with a slight grin. Molly Weasley had never mistreated any guest who had walked through her door unless they threatened her husband or children with bodily harm. And since two of her children seemed quite stuck on the small brunettes, she would, of course, make them feel at home for as long as they were there.
"Well, what did I say to provoke that silly grin? I DO have food cooking downstairs, young man, and..." her tirade was interrupted when Charlie was reminded of the original question.
"Well, Mum. She's all right, just sleeping and fighting off an infection," he rolled his eyes as he said this, still a bit miffed at Nancy for not keeping her wound from infecting. "But, she also hasn't eaten since breakfast, and if she doesn't wake up by supper, she'll be that much more hungry when she finally does."
His mother smiled, letting the pleased look take over for the anxious one. "Well, that's good to hear, poor dear looks like she hasn't eaten a square meal in weeks." She turned to go, but whirled back around as Charlie was easing the door shut. "What about your brother? And Jenni? I couldn't find them to ask... probably off finishing what I interrupted earlier," she said with a knowing smile.
Charlie glanced up at the clock. "They should be back any minute. Just went to get some things, since the girls are staying over again..." he flushed, realizing that his mother's eyebrows were somewhere near her hairline. "Er... because Nancy's still so weak, and... not like THAT, Mum!" he mumbled, red-faced and feeling as though he were about fifteen again in the face of his mother's assessing stare.
"Well, then I'll plan on everyone eating." She shot a last look through the slightly open door. "You're sure she's really asleep in that dark room?" Charlie felt his face heat up, and pushed the door open wider so that she could clearly see Nancy. "Oh go on, I trust you, dear." With a smile and a shake of her head, Mrs. Weasley headed back downstairs.
Charlie shut the door and went back to the chair, wondering if he and his brothers hadn't been a bad influence on his mum's sense of decency.
"'S'everything all right?" Nancy's sleepy voice surprised him as she raised her head slightly, looking about her in confusion. "Charlie?"
He reached over to the window and secured the curtain back to let the last of the daylight in before saying, "I'm right here, Nancy, go back to sleep."
There was silence for a few moments, and her head fell back onto the pillow. Charlie was just reaching into his pocket to fish out the letter when Nancy stirred and said, "I'm hungry."
His hand stilled for a second, and he choked back a laugh. "I don't suppose you can ignore that and sleep some more?"
"Nope. Hunger pretty much takes first priority with me." Nancy rolled over onto her side, slowly waking up, and her stomach rumbled to underline her statement.
Charlie watched her for a minute, oddly enthralled by her stretches and yawns, which continued for about a minute, before she collapsed back onto the bed with a sigh. "I don't suppose you have a secret stash of food up here, do you?"
He grinned at the desperate hope in her voice. "Used to, but since I've only been home on short visits lately, Mum's pretty much cleaned me out." Nancy scowled a bit, and sat up, rubbing at her eyes and looking around, squinting, for her glasses. He fished them out of his pocket, the letter falling onto the floor as he handed them over to her.
"Thanks," Nancy said quietly, suddenly a bit embarrassed at the amount of help she had allowed him to give her. Not only was she feeling dainty almost constantly, darn his strong arms, but he was getting to the point where he could tell what she was looking for without words! She shoved the glasses onto her face and tried hard not to blush, glaring at the floor. "Is that your letter?"
Now it was Charlie's turn to flush. "Er, yeah... nothing important," he mumbled as he grabbed for it. That was the last thing he wanted to overshadow the time he suddenly had with Nancy, news of a denied transfer. He'd read it later.
She glared at him suspiciously, but the slightly worried look on his face smoothed out when a loud yell echoed up the stairs. "Ah! That would be Mum assembling the troops for dinner." He laughed when Nancy's eyes lit up and she leaped up out of bed. The next moment, however, he reached out to steady her as she winced at the jarring sensation of leaping onto her still sore leg. "Are you sure you're up for this? I could just bring some food up here to you..." But Nancy had already shrugged off his help and was hobbling around looking for her shoes.
"Where DID you put them?" She swiveled and spotted them at the end of his bed. "Ah ha! OW. Darn it, I think I might have overdone it a bit today," she said a bit sheepishly as she sat down to slip them on. "My leg's all stiff."
Nancy glanced up into Charlie's suddenly unreadable face, and wondered why she had the feeling that he was trying not to laugh at her. "Just no telling Jenni... she'll only flip..." as she trailed off his face turned serious.
"Isn't that the logic that got you into the fight that CAUSED you to go off and overuse that leg?" he stepped closer to her, reaching down to pull her to her feet.
Nancy stiffened as he pulled her into his arms, unsure of herself and afraid of facing her best friend at dinner. Charlie sighed, sensing her tension, and started rubbing a hand up and down her back. "I mean, it's not that the logic isn't based on experience... but... maybe if these injuries weren't such surprises, Jenni could handle herself better."
Unable to resist the calming effects of that hand, Nancy leaned into him, burying her face in the folds of his shirt. Maybe he was right. After all, Jenni was actually pretty good at dealing with things calmly and carefully, at least when Bill wasn't around. "Fine, I'll tell her," she mumbled. "But not at dinner. Just in case she does."
"Does what?" Charlie turned her towards the door and started walking, hooking an arm around her waist to give her something to lean on. He smiled as she immediately did so, taking weight off of her tired legs.
"Flips out..." Nancy whispered and glanced around them as they emerged onto the landing, hoping that Jenni wasn't in hearing range.
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A/N - Sorry that this is a bit shorter than usual... although I must say we generally don't skimp on the length. We'll do our best to make that up to you ASAP! ;)