Back again. Sorry this one took a while, life got in the way!
Enjoy and please review.
Hermione turned to Charlie with a look of determination in her eyes. She needed to talk to him about Marco, and soon before all the hard work he and the rest of the team had done was made redundant.
"What the bloody hell was all that about?" Bill growled at Charlie before Hermione could talk.
"Nothing I can't handle," he spat back. Soon enough they would be in over their heads. He was a pureblood with connections that nothing good could come from. Bill calmed slightly and started walking away from their family to speak quietly with Charlie.
"Valdez was in Percy's year," Bill warned. "His family was all but killed off during the first war. He was quiet at school, but seems like the kind of person out on some fucked up revenge trip. He's related to the Blacks isn't he?"
"Who isn't?" Charlie asked dryly. Charlie kicked a bag of rubbish to vent some of his pent up anger. The bag split but Bill cleared it without word.
"Does he know what Mum did?" Bill was deadly serious now. Any emotion he had gone from his voice. Charlie couldn't find his own voice so nodded slightly. Charlie didn't care that the team knew, most of wizarding Britain knew but he didn't want them to find out like they had. He didn't blame Hermione for saying it a week ago; Marco was infuriating at times and needed to be brought down a peg or two.
"The team only found out last week," Charlie said quietly. He moved to lean against the wall and dug into his pocket for a cigarette. He didn't smoke often, but now was a good a time as any. He sparked the end with his wand and took a long, slow drag. He leaned back and raised his head to blow the smoke into the air above them. "Marco was put in his place by Hermione, I think he's taking it badly."
"You think? Older pureblood wizard getting spanked by a witch from a muggle family?" Bill asked sardonically. He took Charlie's offered cigarette and took a small drag before handing it back. "Do you think you should keep going with this work? The next step is going off in Europe somewhere and researching. If someone has a vendetta then they'll pick you up out there, especially if they have Valdez leaking your information."
Charlie took the time to ponder Bill's words. It was true that their next step was a risky one. Hermione didn't know the country like the men did, and she had an angry Valdez after her. Charlie was confident that his team would hold their ground against anything that could or would come up when they were out there. Hermione had fought in the war, on the front line, but it was five years ago and since she had been rebuilding Hogwarts and working in an office. Could she still hold her own? She seemed confident enough when they started planning their research trip, but was that just a façade in front of the others? Charlie wanted to believe that she could protect herself, but he was going to stay true to his promise of not letting harm come to her.
"She's a grown woman," Charlie said. "I'm not forcing her into this. If she wants to come then she has to pitch in with everyone else. She does her fair share of the work."
"I'm not saying you're going to give her an easy ride because she a woman," Bill said exasperatedly. He looked at Charlie take another drag of his cigarette. "She's high-profile, and a muggle born. Valdez won't stop and you need to work out if she's worth risking your entire operation for. He'll use her to get to you and try and bring you both down."
"Do you think I don't know that?" Charlie said hotly. "I know Valdez, I know he's a shit but he doesn't get his hands that dirty. If he were going to do something to Hermione or me, he'd use someone else's wand arm. He keeps himself clean."
"Isn't that more of a reason to call this whole thing off? It could be any fucker after you now considering his family."
"Bill, I appreciate your concern," Charlie said flatly while dropping his cigarette butt and grinding it into the pavement. "I can handle this."
As they walked back towards their family, Bill let a quite "I hope you can," slip. He may not be confident in Charlie and his team but Charlie put all his faith in them. It was true he would have to speak to Hermione. Hopefully it would be a conversation left until tomorrow.
Everyone spent another night at the Burrow, having a well-deserved rest after a none-stop fortnight of planning and protesting. The team were properly introduced to the Weasleys, and they stayed up until the early hours talking and sharing Butterbeers. Seb and Kurt were a lot like the twins and shared stories while Caleb and Andrei were in deep conversation with Harry and Ron. Charlie and Gus had excused themselves so Charlie could get a second opinion.
The conversation was nothing short of heated.
"Fucking hell Gus," Charlie almost spat at the shorter man. "Just give me your honest opinion."
"On what? Your personal opinion or your work?" Gus said back with equal passion.
"Work, you wanker. And the Valdez situation. I don't want to put everyone in danger just because he might do something rash, but we need to keep going with the plan or people will lose faith in us. All our work will go down the shitter then."
"I think we should stick to the plan, Boss. We can handle Valdez easy."
"But it's not Valdez who we need to handle. You know as well as I do he doesn't get his hands dirty if he can help it. He has connections to people we don't know exist and he'll get one of his lackeys to attack us if it comes to that. We know we can handle what he throws at us but I don't want to go in unprepared."
"We've planned for months, how can we be unprepared?"
"I didn't mean planning. I don't want to get into a fight without being prepared for it. Andrei and Caleb aren't as scrappy as you and me and Hermione has been in an office for two damn years, Gus! What if we're caught in an ambush? I'm not going to get one of you killed."
"Then we do what we've always done. We plan and practice. Kurt and Seb are smart enough to work out a route in, Caleb and Andrei work our the wards and I'll get supplies together."
"Seems like you have it all planned out," Charlie said in a deadpanned voice. "And me and Hermione?"
"You have this conversation with her and try and recover from whatever ball-lashing the girl gives you before we leave. From what I've seen, she's plenty tough enough. She stood up to Marco didn't she? None of us would have done that and you know it."
"I know that, but she didn't cast a curse at the man, she just told him how it was. How the hell would I know if she's quick enough with a wand?"
"You find out." Gus said firmly. This conversation was well and truly over.
Gus had given Charlie enough food for thought, and he was happily mulling it over as Ron and Harry came looking for more Butterbeers to take into the living room.
"He can't have taken on that many women at once!" Ron exclaimed to Harry over his shoulder as it routed through a cupboard. "Not even Seamus could have done that!"
"If you say so, Ron," Harry said with a smile. He was getting on well with Charlie's (and Hermione's, he reminded himself) team mates "Hey Charlie, you coming back in there?"
"Can I ask you guys something?" the older wizard asked. There was no way of being, or time to be subtle so he used the 'bite the bullet and ride out the consequences' way of thinking. "Can Hermione duel?"
Harry and Ron looked on dumfounded. He knew they could both duel, they were Aurors after all, but he didn't know if it was a talent that spread to Hermione.
"She'd kick your arse," Ron said with confidence. "Why?"
Charlie inwardly scowled. There was no way he could ask a question like that and now have to explain himself. Especially if he was explaining to two fully qualified Aurors who happened to be best friends with the person in question.
"We're going on our final research trip in a couple of weeks and I want to know she can hold her own if anything comes up." Was all Charlie offered the two younger men but it didn't appease them.
"Complications?" Harry asked seriously. "What's happened Charlie?"
"Fucking hell… Marco sodding Valdez has happened," he said shortly. The name was known to them both, but not as a threat. "He provoked Hermione, she put him in his place and how he's threatened that someone is after her. Some revenge mission or other."
"Revenge for what?" Harry asked over Ron's swearing and ranting.
"She let slip what Mum did to the Lestrange bitch," Charlie said while rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand. "She and Valdez are related by marriage about a century ago and he's taking it upon himself to avenge her death or something. I think he's going after Hermione to get to me."
"Hermione isn't going," Ron said flatly. "She isn't going anywhere that will get her killed."
"Like we can stop her, Ron," Harry pointed out. "You know she'd go because it's what she's worked for." Sadly, Ron wasn't listening.
"What were you fucking thinking, Charlie? You let her get involved with you and your dragon saving mission and she's got fucking Death Eaters after her! Do you not think she's had enough of that already?" he ranted. "I don't want her to go with you! You wouldn't want Ginny to go with you, and you definitely wouldn't let Fleur go!"
"Do you think I'd put her in danger on purpose?" Charlie countered hotly. "She's family to me too. She does her fair share of the work with us and I think she'll be able to handle herself. There is a chance that Valdez and his playthings will find us, but there is also the chance that they won't. We're changing the plans so if he does bother, he'll go to the wrong place. And no, I wouldn't let Gin go but she would anyway and Fleur isn't a fighter, you know that!"
Ron wasn't listening to reason while Harry thought it through. There was no way the Order or any Aurors could be spared and used as a security force on their mission, and there was still a chance that Valdez wouldn't find them.
"She'll need practice," Harry stated. "We can't do it, but practice between yourselves and get to know each other's style and just hope you don't get caught. I know we can't stop her, but you keep her safe Charlie."
"If anything happens to her, I'll come after you myself," Ron finished as he left the room without the Butterbeer he came in for.
Charlie looked helplessly at Harry. The older man looked shaken by Ron's loyalty to his friend but accepted it. They had been through a lot together so it was only in Ron's nature to try and keep her safe.
"Charlie, I agree with Ron," Harry said quietly. "Keep her safe. I know she's about as strong as a person can get, but you're responsible for her. And for your team."
"I promise," Charlie said and held out his hand for Harry to shake. Harry did with a glum look on his face.
It was the second time he had made that promise, but the more he did it, the less possible it seemed.
For now…
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