Now that the Order was settled in their new home with their new members, it was time to start planning their next strike. Tonks had been coming by daily now, bringing news and checking in.
The house was quiet today. She'd found the normally busy kitchen was deserted when she arrived. Hearing the door open she went to see who it was. Ron, she guessed by the voice.
She should have recognized his voice, but then she hadn't been expecting him. She didn't notice how exhausted and road weary Charlie looked. If she had she might not have started yelling at him right off. Then again, maybe she would have anyway.
He dropped his bag, letting it fall between his feet. Eyes closed, he let his head fall backward to thump against the door.
"Around."
The sun filtered red through his eyelids, and he imagined shadows in the rafters far above. He opened his eyes to check, and was faintly disappointed to find that there were no rafters, just a ceiling not three feet above his head. He sighed, and glanced at Tonks. He was in no mood to take her welcome with good humor. "Good to see you, too. Heard the news?"
"Around? Around!" That was it, she was going to kill him. Now that she knew he wasn't dead, she was going to kill him. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
The last time she'd heard from him had been months ago with a postcard pushed under her door saying he was back in England and that they'd hear from him in a few days. Then he'd disappeared again. Like everyone did. Like everyone did all the goddamn time. She took a deep breath, either to keep from screaming or to keep from crying. At this point she wasn't sure which.
"Yeah. Around." He smiled through gritted teeth. "Trying my very damnedest to survive, which is getting harder and harder by the moment." He stood straight cracking his back. His eyes were icy. "Doing a mite good more than you for the cause, too. I mean, giving head to ministry nobodies for third-hand rumors is great, but meanwhile I was out chasing leads and discovering what sort of threat we were really up against."
So what if he stretched the truth a little... here he was, come back after being gone for two months, and all she could do was get on him about where the fuck he'd been? His dark grin widened, eyes narrowing.
"If you want the news so badly, you'll have to give me a little kiss." He pointed to the corner of his mouth. "That's how you usually get this sort of thing started, right?"
Susan had just left the library with a book on herbology she'd managed to find in a very dirty and dusty corner. It would be easier to be more of a help with some of the newer hybrids that Neville was cultivating if she picked up a little more on the soil compositions.
Or at least the scientific names of the plants they were working with.
Not paying attention, but certainly on her way downstairs to the common room with Topper in her arms as well as the large book (he deserved a some time to explore and she'd been letting him out and about more often when she left her and Terry's rooms), Susan rounded the corner toward the stairs and crashed directly into a mass of person.
She'd not meant to yelp (rather loudly, actually... how embarrassing) in surprise when she saw his face, but she couldn't help herself.
She'd not been expecting to see this face again. Ever.
Charlie stepped back a pace, clearly startled. And not just at the surprise of having a woman run into him, but by the odd sound she made, and it's volume relative to the situation. He rubbed his ear gingerly, peering at her with consternation, and a little bit worry. "You alright? I haven't trod on your foot, have I?" He assumed he had. "Oh bullocks... can't help my big feet. Just get in the... oh hell."
It was the girl. Or more specifically, the lovely one from the... no. Couldn't be. The teacher lady, the one who'd been with the Botanist chap he'd meant to tell Neville about, but never got 'round to because he'd taken a bit of a holiday.
"Oh, here." He bent down, picking up the large book she'd dropped. It weighed more than he expected it to, but he didn't hand it over right away. "It's... Um. Name starts with an 'S', right?"
"Susan Bones." Susan carefully extracted the cat nails from her shoulder, as Topper had dug in quite deeply when she'd reacted to the person she'd bumped into. The cat yowled in protest. "I also wasn't watching where I was going."
She peered at him and tried to recall the name. "Paul? Patrick... no... No it was Peter, wasn't it?"
There was a brief pause as she realised, that he, like Michael. Like Hermione. Like herself now. All of them carried second names to keep themselves safe.
"But it's not Peter, is it? And I guess now it makes more sense..." Her eyes flicked to the red hair. "One of the Weasley brothers?"
He tucked her book under his arm, and offered his hand. "Charlie. The handsome one." He smiled, but it faltered when he realized that he probably wasn't much to look at in the state he was in. He gaze found his hand. It was filthy, his nails black with grime, the lines of his palm creased with dirt and dried blood. He hastily took his hand away, before she could touch it.
"Eh... cute cat you got there, Ms Bones. Doesn't seem to like me much though." He laughed a little, but it sounded stale, so he stopped, filling the space with a nervous silence. "Didn't know you were a witch." He offered lamely.
"Correction." Hermione joined the small group of people gathered on the landing. She was dressed, but had a towel half over her hair and was rubbing the water out of it, obviously just having come from the shower. "Michael is a hell of a lot scarier when it comes to the library. He breaks thumbs."
She held out the towel and flicked her wand; it vanished from sight. A half smile crossed her face when she saw Charlie, glad that he was back but there was an underlying thread of concern that he would take off again. They, all of the Weasley men, had to stop doing that. It was too much for their sister.
"Loo's free. When you're done, mind coming back downstairs? I have something to talk to you about," she said matter-of-factly then glanced to Susan. "I think Penelope is working on some potions in her room. Mind getting her for me? Terry too, actually."
Susan nodded and took the book from Charlie. "Not a problem."
Topper would have to wait for another day to wander about the rooms downstairs.
She smiled and excused herself, turning back toward her and Terry's rooms to first drop off the cat and then go and find both Ravenclaws. She didn't feel like she was being pushed away... not in the slightest. In fact, she felt more included than she'd ever felt.
Penelope had been putting the finishing touches to an antiseptic salve when Susan had come to fetch her. With freshly-scrubbed hands and her hair still pinned away from her face from working, she quickly turned down the corridor Susan had come from to meet Hermione.
She smiled politely but warmly as she approached them, wand in hand. "Susan said you needed me for something?" she asked, brushing a stray bit of dust off her skirt (the room she had adopted as a medical center really did need a good clean before she took in any patients - not that Penelope particularly wished to have many patients, but she had to think about the sanitation of the room just incase).
Charlie nodded a greeting to Hermione, smiling. "You're a peach, love." He tipped an invisible hat, "Be sure to warn the others - if you hear a commotion, you haven't got a poltergeist. Just my singing voice taking up residence
( ... )
Comments 47
The house was quiet today. She'd found the normally busy kitchen was deserted when she arrived. Hearing the door open she went to see who it was. Ron, she guessed by the voice.
She should have recognized his voice, but then she hadn't been expecting him. She didn't notice how exhausted and road weary Charlie looked. If she had she might not have started yelling at him right off. Then again, maybe she would have anyway.
"Where the fuck have you been?"
Reply
"Around."
The sun filtered red through his eyelids, and he imagined shadows in the rafters far above. He opened his eyes to check, and was faintly disappointed to find that there were no rafters, just a ceiling not three feet above his head. He sighed, and glanced at Tonks. He was in no mood to take her welcome with good humor.
"Good to see you, too. Heard the news?"
Reply
The last time she'd heard from him had been months ago with a postcard pushed under her door saying he was back in England and that they'd hear from him in a few days. Then he'd disappeared again. Like everyone did. Like everyone did all the goddamn time. She took a deep breath, either to keep from screaming or to keep from crying. At this point she wasn't sure which.
"What news?" she asked sharply.
Reply
So what if he stretched the truth a little... here he was, come back after being gone for two months, and all she could do was get on him about where the fuck he'd been? His dark grin widened, eyes narrowing.
"If you want the news so badly, you'll have to give me a little kiss." He pointed to the corner of his mouth. "That's how you usually get this sort of thing started, right?"
Reply
Or at least the scientific names of the plants they were working with.
Not paying attention, but certainly on her way downstairs to the common room with Topper in her arms as well as the large book (he deserved a some time to explore and she'd been letting him out and about more often when she left her and Terry's rooms), Susan rounded the corner toward the stairs and crashed directly into a mass of person.
She'd not meant to yelp (rather loudly, actually... how embarrassing) in surprise when she saw his face, but she couldn't help herself.
She'd not been expecting to see this face again. Ever.
Reply
It was the girl. Or more specifically, the lovely one from the... no. Couldn't be. The teacher lady, the one who'd been with the Botanist chap he'd meant to tell Neville about, but never got 'round to because he'd taken a bit of a holiday.
"Oh, here." He bent down, picking up the large book she'd dropped. It weighed more than he expected it to, but he didn't hand it over right away. "It's... Um. Name starts with an 'S', right?"
Reply
She peered at him and tried to recall the name. "Paul? Patrick... no... No it was Peter, wasn't it?"
There was a brief pause as she realised, that he, like Michael. Like Hermione. Like herself now. All of them carried second names to keep themselves safe.
"But it's not Peter, is it? And I guess now it makes more sense..." Her eyes flicked to the red hair. "One of the Weasley brothers?"
Reply
He hastily took his hand away, before she could touch it.
"Eh... cute cat you got there, Ms Bones. Doesn't seem to like me much though." He laughed a little, but it sounded stale, so he stopped, filling the space with a nervous silence.
"Didn't know you were a witch." He offered lamely.
Reply
She held out the towel and flicked her wand; it vanished from sight. A half smile crossed her face when she saw Charlie, glad that he was back but there was an underlying thread of concern that he would take off again. They, all of the Weasley men, had to stop doing that. It was too much for their sister.
"Loo's free. When you're done, mind coming back downstairs? I have something to talk to you about," she said matter-of-factly then glanced to Susan. "I think Penelope is working on some potions in her room. Mind getting her for me? Terry too, actually."
Reply
Topper would have to wait for another day to wander about the rooms downstairs.
She smiled and excused herself, turning back toward her and Terry's rooms to first drop off the cat and then go and find both Ravenclaws. She didn't feel like she was being pushed away... not in the slightest. In fact, she felt more included than she'd ever felt.
Reply
She smiled politely but warmly as she approached them, wand in hand. "Susan said you needed me for something?" she asked, brushing a stray bit of dust off her skirt (the room she had adopted as a medical center really did need a good clean before she took in any patients - not that Penelope particularly wished to have many patients, but she had to think about the sanitation of the room just incase).
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