#charlie x jacob's sibling

[pooks]

*at the first Quidditch team practice 1988* Charlie, the Quidditch Captain: Alright, let's welcome our new Keeper, Oliver Wood! Oliver, a wee second year: HAPPY TO BE HERE! :D Charlie: and...my little brother Percy, who's here for some reason. Percy, also a wee second year: I'm here as moral support and I got the first aid kit ready, just in case. :) Cassidy, the star chaser and second-in-command: Okay, that's really adorable. Are they inseperable or something? Charlie: *sighs* They are a package deal, I couldn't get one of them seperate.

[jacobscursebreakerlilsis]

He’s so crushing on MC😏

[akikocho]

Before going to sleep, Imma just share the colored sketch (more like a doodle) that I did rn.

I'm supposed to make a comic based on Charlie's lvl 10 friendship reward and I did this monstrosity

Look at Maya with Charlie's hairstyle. And yes, Charlie did the hairstyle himself.

He also likes the feeling of Maya's long, soft and silky silver hair yes....

[unabashednightmarepizza]

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑀𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝑈𝑠, 𝑈𝑠

A/N: I'll be completely honest, I don't know what I have written... But it's wholesome( i think) and cute. Curse me and my inability to write something short.

Prompts Used: I'll stay for as long as you need from this, do you think we'll be in love forever from this.

Summers in the Burrow was absolute trash.

Now it wasn't because Charlie didn't like to come back home and perhaps finally rest a bit. He actually liked being back home, especially with you now that you two were finally dating, he often took you out with him for hours after you stashed food in your back, knowing you two would be gone for a long time doing...

Snogging? Making-out? Flying?

It all depended on the mood.

All in all, he loved his family, he loved you, and he loved how well you fit with his family and love them as your own, they loved you in exchange just as much, and loved being back home even if it meant the teasings of his brother Bill who was the one witnessing his puppy love to you would increase with their other siblings' help.

But sometimes, the teasing was just... too much. And the fact that you also took after his family didn't help.

His own lover was against him, and they obviously loved making him go all red!

As if it was hard to begin with...

"It seems you are so smitten by me that you always talk about me to your family, Charlie~" you teased your boyfriend lightly as your hand wrapped around his, squeezing three times to silently say I love you, even though you were just making fun of him for talking about you a lot to his family, as he looked at you with burning cheeks and a soft smile.

"No? Where did you get it from?" He tried to hide his rants about you in a cool manner, to save himself from the teasing he would face even though he would melt as soon as you started planting kisses on his cheek, but ultimately failed when Bill and his dad, who adored you already, stumbled into the living room and beamed visibly at the sight of you sitting with his son.

"Y/N! It's lovely to see you, dear! How are you?" Arthur immediately pushed his two eldest sons aside and came to hug you, landing kisses on each of your cheeks as he proudly looked at you. Even to this day, after almost four years of being Charlie's friend and two years of dating him, you never quite got used to the way they always welcomed you warmly.

Molly hugging you, smelling like those cookies she always made. Arthur's warm hugs as he pulled you to his artefact room to show all the new cool muggle things he found, Fred and George telling you the newest pranks they thought about, playing wizard chess with Percy, making Ginny's hair in different styles and teaching them to her as she did your make-up, telling Ron about the latest school drama...

Sometimes, with all their flaws and all, you even thought that they actually loved you more than their own sons.

"Yeah, there goes our privilege as soon as they see their daughter..." Bill groaned as he rubbed his arm to soothe the pain of his greatest betrayal, done by none other than his father. Still, Bill was someone who always found a way to tease you or mostly Charlie and this time wasn't any different as he saw how you both smiled shyly, quite cute in his eyes, as you both stumbled over your words, blushing madly.

"I-I'm not their daughter Bill, I think you are-"

"Yet, my friend, yet."

"Bill, stop teasing..." Charlie gritted out, hoping it was enough to make him back off but instead Bill laughed and merely brushed it off.

"You look like a squirrel when you are angry, Charlie~ Besides, by the amount of adoring talk you had been doing since your second year at Hogwarts, I thought you would have already used a promise ring type of commitment!"

Charlie's face was a tomato at this point, even his neck and probably his chest was all red from the embrassment he felt. He always told you that it was a bad idea to spend the summer with his family, solely for the reason that he knew they wouldn't stop teasing him, and often suggested the idea of spending it in Hogwarts, alone, with you in a flirty way.

In which you always replied, I don't want to be on the receiving end of one of Molly's angry Howlers, Charlie... We have to go, besides, what's the worst that could happen? They love me!

But, that was the point.

They loved you so much, even more than possibly their own children!

And they wouldn't dare to tease you, no.

They took greater satisfication from doing that to him. Especially since he accidently let it slip that he wanted to marry you after graduation.

"What? Don't tell me... Holy shit, you never told them about your affinity with them since the day school started?!" Bill dramatically screeched with a hand over his chest at his brother's state, Percy rolling his eyes at the three of you as you tilted your head confused.

"Wait... Really? He had been talking about me?"

"Of course! I don't think he stopped doing it even after you two started dating! If not, it increased even more!" Percy yelled from the other room, making Charlie look there angrily, not aware of the soft and loving eyes you were sending to his way.

"Yes, I remember him talking about you at every breakfast, so much so that both me and Molly knew what flower you liked and memorized your schedule!" Arthur added with a happy nod from the kitchen as he helped Molly with the plates. Charlie turned his head so swiftly that you were worried he hurt his neck as he was left staring with a gaped mouth at his father.

"Dad!"

"Oh, yes, I remember now! I wasn't very pleased to hear that Y/N thought gnomes were cute... but she accepted they could be dreadful too!" Molly came from the kitchen as she gave you her famous pancakes with a smile and affectionate pat on your head as her eyes found Arthur's playfully.

"I still remember how your dad came bursting in, yelling that he finally found someone who shared his fascination with Muggle world and even gave him a record player."

"I'm gonna go and de-gnome the garden, maybe that will-" Charlie suddenly got up and turned towards the door to get out and probably cool his flaming face, while you giggled uncontrollably alongside Ginny who was having the best time of her life at her brother's misery.

"We can send your precious, curse-breaking lover if you want!" A yell came from the other room.

"Fred!" Charlie turned angrily to scold his brother when he saw the disappointed eyes of his brother.

"I'm not Fred, seriously first mum and now you, Charlie?" George, actually Fred, came from the other room, looking sad and half-angry.

Which was all a ploy, and even you knew it at this point.

But Charlie never was able to tell which twin was which one, and this was no different. He huffed out angrily as he muttered a whatever, and walked right towards the garden as you and twins looked after him with straight eyes and then slowly smirked.

"You are never gonna get tired of tricking him, right?" You threw your head back on the couch and looked at the twins with a cheeky smile as they laughed and shook their heads.

"Never~"

"So... You know we," Fred pointed to all the other Weasley siblings, except Bill and Charlie, to a pouting Ginny and Ron, who were doing their best to use their puppy eyes. " are here for a reason, and that is-"

"To hear more of my adventures in any kind so that you could find a humiliating moment to tease Charlie later?" You quirked an eyebrow curiously as they all stared at you in wonder.

"That's why she is the best older sister possible..." Ron and Ginny exclaimed with amazement with breathless sighs, making you laugh as Fred and George nodded their heads impressed.

"She is finally a true Weasley. Understanding what we exactly want is of high value."

" Suck it up, guys, you made it very obvious! Besides, Charlie won't be happy about this!"

"Then why are you bringing snacks?" Percy stopped while bending over the table in the living room under everyone's curious and amused stares, mumbling to himself as he flushed.

"Because... I want to hear them too."

"Hell yeah, that's my brother! Now, Y/N, you have no other choice than telling us!" Fred exclaimed as he threw a proud arm around Percy's shoulder and ushered everyone to sit down so that you could finally start. You looked at all the kids sitting down in front of you, waiting for you to start with excited eyes. Seeing them so eager, even though it wasn't unusual for them whenever you came to the Burrow, and they had other motives, made you crack a smile and nod.

You could actually give what they want to them with this story, and watch as Charlie suffers from their hands on your behalf.

"Now, where should I begin... Perhaps the accident with Squawk is a good one."

Squawk was on loose, the reputation of the Dragon Club was at stake and there was no way you could find that little rascal in time.

Without help.

"I want Squawk back in our care just as much as you do, Y/N! I'll help you find him, you don't have to worry when you have me!"

As soon as the last part left his lips, Charlie already slapped his forehead mentally when he met Liz's questioning and "are you serious?" look. He couldn't help how he felt or what he did, especially when his crush came to ask for his help. He had been watching you as discreetly as possible, throwing himself in to help you whenever you ask and he always sat with you at lunch and cracked jokes in hopes that you would smile.

You did, every time, because how could you not? He was being extremely cute and adorable!

But to Liz, and pretty much every single one of your friends, all these longing stares and shy smiles was becoming a lot harder to bear.

"Hate to break the cute moment, but we have a mission to finish and an Incendio to cast! Pump the love brakes and do it now Y/N~"

Actually remembering where you were and with who you were, you flushed but did it anyways and set the fake eggs on fire to lure Squawk to where you three were waiting.

And soon, he showed up and circled around the eggs protectively, making all three of you to cheer.

"Nice one, mate!" Liz's eyes were as wide as saucers when the word mate left Charlie and he was left freaked out with his hand still up in the air.

No... No, I didn't just call my crush "mate"...

Your eyes were also wide open at what he said, but you tried not to show how it made you disappointed as you smiled and let out a hey, which didn't really had the usual hype.

Mate... That's all he is ever going to see me as.

But amongst that chaos and freaking out, and Charlie's yell, Squawk was already gone, having flought away in fright.

Charlie, since he was kind of the reason Squawk got away, had a sheepish yet half-horrified look on his face as he looked at you, expecting anything except the kind and happy smile you had given him.

"W-what... Are you not angry at me?"

"No? Why would I be?" You tilted your head with a small smile as Charlie gulped nervously.

Oops, you were actually angry but... somehow, it felt like it wasn't about this accident?

"Because Squawk is... gone?"

You sighed, rubbing the back of your neck. It was no use for you to hold grudge against him just because he called you his mate and you had to fall for him. "It's like you said, Charlie. As long as I have you, I have nothing to worry about... Besides I'm confident in where he might have flied off..."

The rest of your sentence was a blur as Charlie widened his eyes and his heart literally stopped at what you said. Yes, he was the one who actually said it but to hear your crush also agree on it...

You just said the sweetest thing possible to him and he... called you his mate.

Tonk was his mate, not you! What the hell was wrong with him?!

"It's rather sweet what you said about Charlie, Y/N but one, stop being all lovey-dovey since some of us are single," she walked away while groaning, leaving you two behind blushing madly as she soon turned back and looked over at her shoulder with a cheeky smile.

"And two, please have a date already after we catch Squawk. I have a bet going on with Andre and I intend to win it, if possible." With that, she left you two to yourself and went inside as you looked at Charlie nervously for him to say something, anything.

And even if his heart threatened to get out of his chest at how close you two were, he smiled and looked into your eyes that reflected all of your emotions.

And it made him blush even more, when he found the clear adoration in there.

"Should we get started then?" He extended his hand out shakily and smiled when you grabbed it thightly and made him run after you with a happy laugh, thinking to yourself as you both ran.

Unaware of how he was watching your hair dance in the wind.

He is lucky he is cute, or else I wouldn't be running after him...

Everyone was left shocked at how stupidly oblivious their older brother, whom they all loved and even idolized, could be. A silence settled after you finished the story and you anxiously looked at them since... they were just looking at you with open mouths, even Percy wasn't saying anything except gulping down the chips he was eating.

But soon, Ginny's screech cut the silence perfectly.

"Wait... MY BROTHER REALLY CALLED YOU 'MATE'?! Ughhh, boys are so stupid..." she rested her back against the table with a hmph, crossing her arms in front of her chest angrily. If the situation wasn't comedic, you could have pinched her cheeks and agree with her, even if you were dating that oblivious and stupid boy that was her brother.

"How many boys have you ever seen, Ginny?" Ron pushed her shoulder, in a way quite offended as she sticked her tongue out.

"I live with 6 of them, I think it's enough!"

"Pretending that our sister didn't just roast all of us," George pointedly said as he slowly pushed the two youngests away with a sheepish look, and looked at you with a smirk.

"Our brother really called his crush 'mate' huh? Interesting..." he rubbed his chin as if he had a long beard which made you snort and nod at him.

They were so going to use this against him.

"Yeah, he did. And according to our friends, he banged his head at every possible surface whenever he remembered that but... it was kind of cute, how he lost track of what he says around me." You cutely said, a stupid smile over your face as the boys made a disgusted face while Ginny let out an awe. You slapped the back of their heads softly as you snickered. "Don't make that face now! I will see you when you fall in love~"

"Wait, wait! Was there a confession? Was it romantic or stupid as he first acted with you?" Ginny suddenly asked excitedly, bouncing up and down with a wide smile as she hugged her legs closer to herself, waiting for your answer.

"Ughh girls and their obsession over romance..." Ron groaned, making a face as if he was disgusted but you knew deep down that he was also into them, especially the one you had with his brother.

He would rather die than accept it though.

"Well, there definetly was some, Ginny. But... At first it was just us complaining about the other to our best friends."

Your chest felt heavy remembering Rowan, how you two used to stay up late while giggling to yourselves. It was mostly them, making fun of you as you blushed and hid yourself under your pillow after you confessed your crush to them.

But what are best friends for? Making fun of you when you need their help, and then offer their biggest one.

"I don't even know what's going anymore, Rowan! I just can't get Charlie out of my mind, every time I look at him, my stomach feels weird, I start to sweat and my heart feels like it's gonna burst out and scream... That bitch and him making me feel like that."

Rowan giggled as she patted your back while you vented, offering their comfort while you laid over their lap. You were trully sick, sick of feeling like this, because deep down, you knew the reason.

You knew why it all happened around Charlie but refused to acknowledge them.

There was a difference between knowing and accepting it, right?

"And... And as if it's not enough, I saw him half-naked!" Rowan choked on the air as they looked down at you in fright.

"You didn't start big, right?!"

"What the hell?! No, of course not! Look at me Rowan! Do you see me as that kind of person? If I was, I wouldn't be patheatically venting to my best friend!"

You got up from their lap as Rowan nodded, saying a fair point, and watched you plop down sadly before you crawled next to them and put your head on their shoulder. Rowan knew what was exactly coming and sighed as they pulled one of the napkin from their nightsand and offered it to you with an "are you serious?" look.

"He was... just so hot, Rowan."

" I know, it's normal for you to say that."

"I can't believe I fell for a dragon boy, whose only interest would be them."

Now that got their attention. Because, there was no way in hell you didn't realize the obvious favouritism he had for you... Right?

But by the patheatic pouting on your face, yes you didn't realize a thing.

"You really don't realize, do you?" They chuckled amused as they pat your head while they fixed their glasses. You lifted your head curiously and frowned at their question. "Realize what?"

"Charlie literally only talks to you about his favourite things, you included, and you listen to him talk for hours about dragons. He gives you the Snitch whenever he catches it when you come to his matches, which is usually always, and even gave you his sweater when you were cold... THE Weasley sweater, if I may add. Everyone knows he and Bill cares about it a lot, Charlie more than Bill."

As they talked, every single interaction passed through your eyes.

Even the ones no one really knew about.

The picnics near the Black Lake, hanging out after curfew, exploring the castle together...

Watching the stars together as you rambled about them, not realizing how close you two were suddenly. His wood and pine smell, a result of him always hanging out in the forest, suddenly filling your insides as your flowery yet quite light and neutral smell dazed Charlie and made him lean down closer to your lips... Them being apart by just mere inches as you both felt the other's breath, a craving, a lust and want so deep that it made you both almost tumble down and dive deep in the feelings...

You were down bad.

"And then he falls asleep on you, you fall asleep on him, you read to him, you always bring something for him from back home and he blushes every time you do that, he brings you his mother's cookies that she made for you, under his request and begs... Friends to lovers trope at its best really."

"Rowan..."

"Hmm?" They turned their head to you after they stopped listing everything, hearing your disturbed and anxious voice brought them back to the moment and- Holy shit, were you scared?

"Y/N? Are you oka-"

"I'm in love with Charlie." You said breathless but it seemed Rowan didn't quite catch the heavy meaning of your words.

"Oh well, congrats for realiz- Wait, not even like?! Like love love?

A shy nod of confirmation, and then a happy squeal.

"Oh My Merlin, I'm so happy for you! Now, you just need to say it to him-and no trust me, he feels the same, if not even more! There is no giving up for us now!"

"Then of course, he confessed to me... After making me cry because I had a crush on him-" you shrugged your shoulders noncholantly after you told them how you came to conclusion that you loved Charlie, and at that point, they were all so invested in your story that they didn't realize their brother standing at the corner and watching, listening to them with both a stupid and sorry look.

A/N: You may read my other work "First Date Shenanigans" for some referances.

Until that is, Fred understood the end of your sentence first and an angry scowl came to his face, making him look scarier.

"HE MADE YOU CRY?! THAT FRICKING TWAT, PERCY BRING THE BAT-"

"ON IT!"

"NO, FRED, DON'T-It was a misunderstanding!" You stopped them hurriedly as Percy immediately stood up and almost made a run for it, both young boys looking at you with wide eyes as they slowly blinked.

"What? How could there be a misunderstanding?"

"I wasn't very open with who my crush was," you shyly smiled and helped them sit back down, chuckling at their cuteness and how protective they were of you.

It made you feel... like a part of the family.

"Since everyone was suddenly so interested in my love life, which was a result of them knowing your brother's big crush on me, I never told anything about who he was."

"Yeah, we remember that Snape Accident... Douchebag."

"Ginevra Weasley, language!" Both you and her giggled as he came closer to you and laid her head on your thigh, your hand finding her ginger hair as you slowly started making a little braid.

"Soooo... What did he do when he learnt you had a crush on 'someone else'?" Ron emphasised pointedly with his fingers and waited for an answer, with a look he hoped that didn't give his big curiosity.

"Well, before that happened, he literally offered to duel me to take my mind off things... Now, I'm thinking that he did it for himself."

"Look, I know we will chat, but what will we chat about? What if we run out of things to say? What if we can't find something to talk about?" You anxiously looked at Charlie and Tonks, who was there to help you out with your date and couldn't help but get even more nervous after Tonks asked what you would do with him.

You never thought about that one.

What were you supposed to talk with Charlie, who was unaware that he was helping you with your crush who was actually him, so that you wouldn't ridicule yourself?

That is, if he accepted of course... Which was a low chance.

Seeing you spiralling into anxiety made Charlie sighed annoyed at his friend and turned to her with a pointed look. "See what you did, Tonks? Asking all those questions..."

" What? I was trying to help!" He shook his head at her innocent exclaim and gripped the bridge of his nose.

"Don't let your nerves get to you, love. Fight them off by... I don't know... Duelling one of us?" Charlie was already having a hard time looking at you, knowing that you liked someone else and was wondering what to do for a boy that definetly didn't deserve you, your love and attention at all.

Should he come after you to see the boy and later jinx him? Perhaps not... But he wanted to.

"That... would be good, Charlie. I'd like to duel you though, if you are not scared~" you teased him softly as your heart skipped a beat at his surprised wide eyes.

But unknown to you, Charlie was grateful that you didn't have any powers such as super hearing.

"Okay... But I won't make it easy..." he winked and looked at you through his lashes, possibly looking at you like that for the last time. He hoped he didn't look stupid, since Bill told him that flirting was definetly not his strongest feature, but by the snicker of Tonks...

Yes, he made himself a stupid.

"I think he went easy on me..." was what left your mouth after the session ended, rubbing your neck awkwardly but feeling refreshed. Charlie looked at you fondly for a second as he chuckled at your pouting face, shaking his head.

"No, I didn't..."

It wasn't that he would rather take Crucio than to see you get hurt...

"Yes, you did! I watched the whole time!" Tonk exclaimed cheekily with wiggling her brows as Charlie pushed her away from himself, already feeling himself blush again.

"%90 per cent of the time he was with you, it seems our brother only blushed..." Ron mumbled disappointedly, wondering how a boy like him could be rendered to a blushing, shy mess.

"MY BROTHER WAS SHY?! CHARLIE?! Are we talking about the same boy who reeks confidence in almost everything he does?"

"Well, Ginny darling, whether you believe it or not, he was really shy and couldn't look into my eyes after our first kiss. It even made me feel bad as if I pushed him but... Later I learnt why!"

"Then why was it?"

"You would know when you grow up..."

You couldn't just tell them that their brother thought about snogging you every chance he gets, from the moment he kissed you.

It would taint their precious innocence... Though you were starting to think that there was none.

"Just know that he turned it around very soon, and he was the confident boy he was in a few days."

Before you two dated, Charlie's hand always itched as if he wanted to touch you. And he did, he wanted that more than anything. Talking to you, praising you or even touching your hand simply seemed hard for him.

But as soon as you accepted him, all the things he wanted to do with you was easy. He kissed your cheek every day, called you his lover without a care, he touched you and hugged you freely as his longing finally was erased.

So, in short, a huge weight was lifted from his shoulders.

Even though you were the one who stopped them in the end.

He would always kiss you in front of people, not afraid of showing his love( definetly not because he knew some certain people liked you) and he would say, "What a good way to start my morning..." breathless as he stared at you with soft and loving eyes. He didn't care much about public attention or what others would say that much anyways.

To him, showing you his love was the least of the things he could do.

Especially when you never made him feel like an oddball, defended him even when he wasn't there, whenever he came to you to get help treating his injuries, you slept with him, cuddled with him, always beamed at him at the first sight of him walking to you, supported his dreams just as he always supported you and loved him unconditionally.

But he couldn't lie... All his affections were also to see your blushing face and embrassed face as you tried to look at anything but him, especially in the early days.

Remembering all the happy times you had with him, and all the times you had to get treat his wound after one of his "funny adventures" made you giddy all so suddenly. Because they were real, you weren't dreaming about them again, you actually went with it and was now currently sitting with his family, bonding together to prepare the biggest achievement of your life: Get back at Charlie for all the times he teased you restlessly.

But... Why not add Bill into this as well? He also took great happiness from watching it.

"But Charlie wasn't the only one I had power over. There were even days I made Bill do what I want him to do!"

"Really? Our brother? Like what?" Now all of their heads were turned to you, their eyes wide with excitement as the same cheeky smile before pulled up your lips.

"Yes, such as putting up decorations, preparing the Great Hall for the Celestial Ball and help me find a-"

"HE HELPED WITH THE CELESTIAL BALL?!"

"You are a natural leader, Bill, and I'm tiny compared to you. Inexperienced too. In many ways actually. So, as the good senior you are, I think you should help this cute friend of yours~"

"Okay, fine... Don't think you can rope me to hang the decorations though. I'll help you, and my job will be done."

Spoiler alert, it actually wasn't the end of his job.

"But even if he was the one who often helped us around with our problems, I would like to think that I too helped him on some ways.

Such as the time he stood up to Emily Tyler in the Ball.

"I realized I made a mistake...Would you like to give us another chance, Bill?"

Please say no, please say no, you are not that stupid Bill...

" Emily..." Bill said as he walked closer to her and stood before her, her batting lashes at him as he looked down at her. Meanwhile you were behind him, a mouth hang open in shock. Out of all the ways you wanted him to man up and face her, this wasn't what you planned.

"No way in the fucking hell..."

" Even if you were the last witch on the world, it wouldn't happen. You have been too rude to my friends, my best friend, and my brother and to me."

"Okay, that was impressive really..."

Ginny rolled her eyes at her brother and pushed them away, turning to you with her wide eyes as she wanted to hear the "love part" of your story with her brother.

"Was there a time Charlie saved you? From anyone?"

"Hmm... He often protected and defended me against Merula-"

"Oh, that bitch-"

"GEORGE WEASLEY!"

I swear Molly somehow always hear us... Maybe it's mum ears?

"Hello, Charlie! What are you doing here? It's not the class time yet?" He turned to look at you in surprise as his hands clasped behind his back and he greeted you back, perhaps a little bit more enthusiastic than he wanted.

"You know me, love, when I'm not playing Quidditch or bickering with Bill, I'm out exploring... And I can ask you the same, what are you doing here?" Your heart fluttered at the term of endearment he used, flushing a bit as you giggled at him. He leant over the boxes that held food for the creatures, trying to be all cool but he was anything but "cool".

Because, today would be the day, he was so sure of it! He would ask you out on a date, ace it with flying colors and finally have you to himself, all to love and kiss!

" If it isn't the two losers of Hogwarts..."

But not all plans went according to plan.

Charlie, hearing Merula's venomous voice, pulled you behind him as he stood before her, blocking you from her. He knew how you can kick asses, you did on him many times, and he also knew you always won against Merula and she was angry about that too. Merula, contrary to popular belief, wasn't that bad.

She was bad just... Not that much.

But still, he couldn't let her either do something to you or ruin his day by stopping him from asking you out.

" What do you want Merula?"

"Why do you even care, Charlie? I thought she hated me? She probably came here to insult me again."

"You're right. I don't care what you think most of the time, Y/L/N." At her usual snarky comment, you just rolled your eyes at her and turned to look at Charlie. Your eyes widened at how thight his jaw was and how his eyes could actually throw fire at her if that was possible, and a sudden burst of love and want threatened you to turn into a puddle at his protective side.

" I don't want to argue with you right now, Merula... Let's go somewhere else Charlie."

Suddenly, as if your words lightened a bulb in her mind, Merula gripped your wrist thightly, making you slightly wince as you turned around with angry eyes. "Where do you think you are going when you are talking to me?"

"The hell is your problem? Get the hell away from them!" Charlie pushed Merula away from you, making her stumble back in shock at seeing the Charlie Weasley who was ever the kind boy turn aggressive when someone threatened... you.

She chuckled at noticing what everyone has been talking about for the past few months.

Charlie Weasley was never like this, never raised a hand, never used his wand to fight another student....

Maybe, she could change that.

"Oh, Charlie Weasley, the shadow of his brother coming to rescue the day... It must be hard going to Hogwarts at the same time as your older brother... Watching him take over the stage, always be the talk,"

He scoffed at her obvious attempt of setting him off, but Charlie knew her and he wasn't about to get into her trap.

Her sharp eyes soon turned to you with a smirk. "Not that Y/L/N would know anything about that. Their brother is missing, probably dead."

But bringing you into this? That was her first mistake.

And also the biggest one.

Her words hurt, remembering all the suffering you had beared, all the while having to hear all the insults people threw at your dear brother...

But you couldn't show her that her words affected you, you just... couldn't.

But Charlie? Oh, hell no... He was going to make her pay for what she said, for hurting you.

"You never quit, do you, Merula? Why are you so angry at them after all these years anyways? Why are you still lashing out at someone who never did something?"

"If you are really the best witch at Hogwarts, why do you feel threatened by them? Why worry about what they are doing?"

Merula was shocked at the amount of anger Charlie had put in his words, backing her until she was far away from where you were. You were stuck on where you were for a second, your mind being unable to catch up to what was happening. But as soon as you did, you ran after Charlie and grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Charlie, it's not worth it. Let go-"

"Careful with the words, Weasley or else-"

"You, be careful with your words, Merula. I won't have you insulting my... friend. Don't get me started on your family issues if you want?"

Telling all of your story to them had been fun, it certainly made you appreciate your time with him and then his family. They were all eagerly listening while Molly and Arthur stayed behind and watched their kids silently listen to you, obediently, without making a voice or doing anything.

"We need to make them come over more often." said Molly with jolly yet slightly tearful eyes. Seeing her kids so happy and well made her emotional, just like it would do to many mothers.

Arthur hugged her closer and nodded, definetly not having any problems with you being around more. "I agree, dear. They fit in well... And I'll have a new artefact in my hands soon, I'm sure they will like it!"

In the end, after everyone was finally gathered around the living room, you seated yourself next to Charlie and hugged his arm closer to yourself, your chin on his shoulder as his warmth almost lulled you to sleep. He was dead tired, and also flustered from earlier. Apart from de-gnoming the whole garden with Bill, he came inside to look for you and how you were doing since you were so anxious before coming here.

But instead was met with you telling your story to his siblings with clear adoration and even he stayed to listen to you and your captivating voice as his heart swelled with love and pride.

"I loved listening to you talk about us... to my siblings. It was lovely." He muttered softly to you, not caring if his family heard him or not.

"Even if they use it against you?" You mumbled into his shoulder sleepily, lifting your head slowly to look at his shining eyes. He chuckled at seeing your usual teasing eyes even if you were tired after talking all day.

He knew his siblings after all, they must have asked a lot of questions.

"Yeah, even if they do that... It made me reminisce about the past years, and seeing you so cozy and happy with them... I just feel so happy, so lucky to have you." He brought a finger to your cheek as he slowly rubbed it, smiling when you nuzzled closer to him.

Normally, it wasn't like him to be so carefree with PDA but right now, he really didn't care. He might feel insecure from time to time, which happened seldomly, but as he sat with you next to him, thighs touching each other as your hand clutched his arm thightly, he knew he had nothing to worry about.

Even if he was blushing and his heart pounded at your sleepy face.

Because he never thought he would actually fall in love, he never thought his life would go to that part. He never imagined himself with a partner, going all the adventures with them. All his life, he thought he would stay single and had to tolerate his mother complain about his choice and beg him to find a partner.

But now?

He had his person, the one for him right between his arms.

"Do you think we will be in love forever?"

"I'll stay for as long as you need, Charlie... Being there and loving you."

And if that didn't prove his point, his previous talk with Bill in the garden and her mother bringing the famous "Weasley Sweater" did.

His mother didn't knit one for everyone after all.

"About my comment earlier... How did the ring shopping go?"

"Surprisingly well, brother... I think I found the ring." He pat his pocket two times to show his point and Bill smiled in a brotherly way and hugged him thightly, proudly.

In two years, there would be another addition to the huge Weasley family.

[amalthea-fictions]

*Light spoilers for Year 6*

So, when Fred and George first meet you, this is what Fred says (about having “heard a lot about MC”) :

He brushes it off like a joke, but what if it’s true because Charlie is always bragging about MC??? Like he’s just obsessed??

“She’s so cute! The other day she fell asleep on my arm in History of Magic and drools in her sleep but she’s somehow still adorable?”

“He’s got it bad,” Bill murmurs, rolling his eyes.

“William!” Molly scolds. “Do not roll your eyes at the dinner table.”

“And she sings and hums to herself when she thinks no one is looking, but her voice is actually so pretty!” Charlie keeps gushing.

“Ughlk.” Percy sticks out his tongue. “Can you PLEASE talk about something other than your precious curse-breaking girlfriend?”

Charlie’s face goes red. “Well uh. Uhm, she’s not really— er, not exactly— ahem…”

George and Fred share knowing looks.

[camilamortem]

Charlie: you have a nice face

MC: damn right I do

Charlie: a ... very nice face ...

MC: thanks?

Charlie: I mean, a very nice- dear lord please accept my miserable attempt of flirting, I have no idea what I'm doing

[rosapeachhogwartsmystery]

The Trickster and her secrets (fem!Slytherin reader x Charlie Weasley)

Masterlist (To view my Masterlist, visit my Tumblr page)

Words: 12.5k

Summary: Things are not what they seem around you. You know how to get what you want from others. A few people seem to look through you, but it only bothers you when one of them looks through you. That one person is Charlie Weasley... Pairing: fem!Slytherin reader x Charlie Weasley

Extra information: The reader is an Animagus, who can turn into a fox. _______________________________________________________ Some would call you smart; another person would just call you a psychopath. Honestly, you didn’t seem to care. You wanted to become someone. You didn’t want to be living in your brother’s shadow forever. Still, some may argue the way you were going was much better than the path your brother chose. You were basically the master of manipulating others. You would do anything to achieve success. No one would get in the way of that. What did you have to lose anyways? People already had low expectations of you because of your Jacob. Not to mention, your parents had been pretty much cold towards you ever since you were born. It was your grandfather who helped you out with becoming an Animagus, giving you a way to escape. You learned most of your tricks from him.

Now, your grandfather was gone and you had no family who you felt connected to. Summers usually involved running away from home. You would turn into a fox, occasionally stealing away food from unsuspecting Muggles or other ways to survive. Whenever you came home, your parents didn’t even miss you. It didn’t matter how much money the family had. Home was bearable when Jacob was still returning home from Hogwarts every holiday and summer. No one was there for you. No one knew how things were at your home. The things you told others were basically lies. Perhaps they knew something was up, but they never asked anything about it. What did it matter anyways? You were Y/N Y/L/N. It wasn’t like they actually wanted to be friends with you, right?

Perhaps you had friends, but you were scared to tear down that wall between you and them. This was the safest. Luckily you weren’t born with the Legilimency trait, that would only make things worse. You couldn’t imagine anyone thinking something positive about you. The only one you didn’t make friends with during your search was Charlie Weasley. Perhaps Bill was careful as well around you. The two of them didn’t seem to fall for your way of talking. 

It kind of irritated you when Charlie didn’t seem to like you. At first it was a little annoying, now it just made you give less of the fake smiles. It made you a lot more honest around him. At least, the irritation was apparent. You weren’t sure whether he liked it when you were more honest or made him act more irritated as well. You were aware Rowan knew you didn’t like Charlie, but you were certain some more people would know about it as well. Bill probably knew about it too from Charlie. It was certain the two of you were not getting along great. Still, he occasionally helped you. Probably Bill’s work.

As time went on, you honestly weren’t sure whether you actually hated Charlie or if something else was going on. The boy managed to make you feel so much more than most people did. You nearly lost your temper because of him. How could someone like him make you do that? She didn’t understand why he could see right through her. It made her feel vulnerable and weak. She was taught that smiles made people happy, even when you weren’t happy yourself. It would help people with loosening up and you could achieve more. Of course, those were the words of your grandfather, who was known for his charisma and charm. He wasn’t an honest man either. You didn’t know what his reasons were, but you felt like you and your grandfather had different motives to be the way you were. He gave you ways to escape and make things a little more pleasant. The only person that seemed to be proud of you and smiled at you during your childhood. Your parents would only smile and laugh if they could laugh at someone else’s misery, even yours. 

“Miss Y/L/N, while your grades are very good, I know you aren’t putting too much effort into things.” Professor Snape, giving you a stern look. “I believe we have talked about this last year as well.”

“I am trying my best, Professor. Besides, you just said my grades are very good, so there isn’t really a problem, right?” You said, tilting your head a bit with a small smile.

Professor Snape rubbed the bridge of his nose, as if he was about to get a headache from talking to you. “We all know you can do better than this. You are lucky you are cunning enough to fool most people, but not me.”

You sighed softly. Great, another one who saw through her. “Then what do you want me to do, Professor? I believe I have proven myself I am not as ‘incapable’ as my brother was during your classes.” You said honestly with another fake smile on your face. “I have worked really hard during your classes. I may not be on Penny’s level when it comes to brewing potions, but I am not bad either.”

“Yes… You have proven that. Still, try to put a bit more effort into other subjects as well. It wouldn’t hurt your grades for your O.W.L.s, miss Y/L/N.”

“Does that mean I am free to go again?”

“Yes.”

“Alright. Thank you, Professor. Have a pleasant day.” You said with a sweet fake smile before leaving. 

Ugh, of course Professor Snape didn’t fall for your tricks. You wouldn’t be surprised either if Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore didn’t fall for your tricks either. Most others seem to fall for your tricks and charms. It worked for Professor Flitwick, Sprout, Quirrell, Trelawney, Kettleburn and Sinistra for sure.

You needed to unwind. You felt like that would be the only way to feel better like yourself. It was hard to keep smiling when you were irritated by something. Perhaps you could get in the forest. Maybe you could just have some fun walking around as a fox. It made things less complicated, that’s for sure.

Instead of going to do something productive like Professor Snape probably wanted, you went to the Forest. Of course, you made certain you weren’t seen by Hagrid. It wouldn’t be the first time you went into the forest without permission and you felt like Hagrid would be too honest to not tell anyone about it. It would be best to not be seen by anyone at all. Being around your friends would even be hard now. You needed some alone time. You were mostly surrounded by other people and it sometimes made you feel exhausted. Even more secluded places were sometimes occupied and the Forest wasn’t really a spot most people wanted to go to.

Except for one person… 

“Look what we have here, another trespasser.” You said, seeing the redhead you did not want to see. “How come you always end up in places where I wanted to go, Charles?”

Charlie rolled his eyes at you. “First, I don’t know why you and I often end up in the same place and second, don’t call me, Charles.”

“You want me to call you Charlie like everyone else? You and I both know I don’t see you like everyone else. Besides, Charles sounds very proper.” You said with a small smirk. “I suppose I should go further in the Forest. That way there would be enough distance between us.” You said, dropping the smirk.

“It seems like you show your true colours around me, Y/N. At least you stopped lying right in my face.” Charlie said, looking a bit annoyed.

“I am glad we understand each other so well. Why would I even smile around you anyways? The only thing that could make you excited is a dragon.” You said with a huff. “Besides, it is not like I am hurting anyone you care about.”

Charlie narrowed his eyes. “That doesn’t make you a better person.”

“Who said I was a better person? I am certainly not here to compete against you or anything.” You said before walking off in a certain direction.

“You really shouldn’t go that way.”You turned around to face Charlie. “Why not?”

“There are many Acromantulas in that area.” He said honestly.“I didn’t know you cared about my safety.” You said slightly amused. “Don’t worry, Weasley. I can handle it. It’s not like I have never been here.” You gave him a wink before walking into that direction anyways. 

“Hey! You really shouldn’t go in there, not during this time!” Charlie said, following you.

You gritted your teeth a little. Why would he even bother? It didn’t make any sense to you. You continued walking, ignoring him. Eventually he just stepped in front of you, blocking your way.

“Merlin, can you be even more annoying than you are now? I can handle this just fine!” You said, feeling a little surprised you were about to lose your temper.

“I am just trying to prevent you from getting in unnecessary danger!” Charlie seemed to lose his cool as well. “Do you want your friends to worry about you? Because you clearly don’t care about heading into danger.”

“Oh, just leave me alone, will you! Don’t you dare to lecture me about this. You probably have headed into the Forbidden Forest more times than you have entered the fucking library!” You yelled. Wow, that sounded strange. You hadn’t yelled in years. The mask you made has fallen apart. He was the first one to witness raw emotions.

“Just go in another direction than that one and I will just let you go.” Charlie seemed to be determined to keep you away from that direction.

“What is that?” You said, pointing at something to distract Charlie. Once Charlie looked away, you began to shift into a fox and began running past Charlie.

“Y/N!” You heard him say in the distance, but you didn’t care. You needed to go away. 

After a little while, you shifted back into your regular form. You walked over to one of the trees and leaned your back against it. Eventually you slid down the tree, beginning to hug your knees. Not only had you lost your temper around him, you also showed him you were an Animagus. Could this day turn out to be even worse than it already was?

You noticed tears were rolling down your cheeks. You put your hands to your cheeks, seeing you were actually crying. You rubbed them away and tried to make it stop, but you just couldn’t. All those emotions you had tried to repress for so long, they all had come out at once. Always trying to be cool and charming, it was all fake. You weren’t perfect, you didn’t feel confident… It was all a big lie. Just to feel like you were more than Jacob’s sibling, more than just nothing in the eyes of your parents. 

“Jacob mastered his Legilimency.” Your mother said one day during dinner.

“Yes, Jacob seems to be very talented. His professors seem to say good things about him. He always was talented.” Your father replied.

“You are getting a bit behind, dear. Jacob managed to do more than you can do when he was your age.” Your mother said to you.

“Grandfather said I am doing pretty good.” You replied softly.

“Your grandfather is just sparing your feelings; you are probably doing just average.” Your mother laughed softly.

“Or he is just losing his touch…” Your father grumbled. 

You hated them so much. Oh, Jacob was so talented and they made it clear you were not. You were just there. It still pisses you off. When Jacob disappeared, they made it clear the name Jacob was forbidden. It always surprised you how easily they gave up on Jacob. Even with him gone, they didn’t care about you. 

You shook your head a bit, trying to get a grip on yourself. How could you lose your cool like this? This never happened at school before. Perhaps you just couldn’t handle two people looking right through you. Although, you could deal with Snape. Charlie was a different case for sure. You weren’t sure how he managed to make you feel all kinds of things. You weren’t even sure why you began dropping your mask around him. The person you just couldn’t get along with after trying your best to make them like you just didn’t buy your act.

Sure, you didn’t get along with everyone, like Merula. But you didn’t even bother with her after she began spreading more lies about your brother and your sanity. You knew you probably had said many hurtful things back to her. Of course, it seemed to lack malice, you knew they weren’t nice. You could say them with a smile, as if you were joking. That didn’t make it better.

Perhaps everyone knew you weren’t always one of the nicest people. You could charm people with nice words, but you were also using your words well enough to passively insult others. Only your friends were spared from any bad words. While you kept some distance from them and you felt like they may leave you at any time. You lied to them occasionally, especially when you were talking about family. You tried to distract them with other things and just charm your way through things. Your life was just a big lie created by yourself, to stop feeling hurt.

“Who cares what they are thinking of me? It doesn’t matter… I just need to prove myself and show them I am better than Jacob. I… I want grandpa to be proud of me…” You said softly to yourself, trying to make you stop crying.

You froze when you noticed a shadow was coming closer to you. No, not one shadow, multiple ones. Perhaps you should have listened to Charlie. You slowly got back on your feet, noticing about four Acromantulas making their way over to you. This wasn’t looking too good for you. You would have to run quickly! Once again you began to shift into a fox.

You felt like you would be harder to hit if you were smaller and most likely quicker. You tried to find your way back. However, the Acromantulas didn’t give up so easily on their prey. You could feel the adrenaline. It helped you with running away as fast and as long as you could, but they weren’t slow creatures either.

You nearly avoided them attacking you, but you tripped. You began rolling down a hill, eventually hitting a tree with your back. You felt you were shifting back into your regular self and slowly tried to get back up. You hissed, feeling pretty hurt. You felt like you weren’t safe yet. You tried to move as quickly as possible, but you were much slower.

Suddenly you felt like you were pulled aside by something…. 

You wanted to scream, but you felt a hand cover your mouth when you did. Your heart was racing and kind of wanted to just kick your way out of there. 

That was until she heard a familiar voice whisper something. “Stay low for a moment… They may not be able to see us here.”

You tried to turn around a little, seeing Charlie once more. Did he go looking for you? Why would he even do such a thing for you? You did what he told you to do, not making any sound. You still felt your heart racing, still feeling scared. You could probably handle one Acromantula, maybe two. Four was definitely too many to face at once. You would probably end up dead.

Charlie had removed his hand from your mouth and was definitely staying alert for the time being. He was listening for any sounds, holding his wand in one hand in case they sneaked up on you.

After a while, Charlie slightly began to move, checking the area once more before moving away from the spot you had been hiding. “Come on… Let’s get away from this area. It is invested with Acromantulas this time of the year.”

You were hesitant to move after what happened. You may have witnessed the horrors of the Cursed Vaults, but this was a horrifying moment too.

Charlie suddenly just grabbed your arm pulling you along with him after seeing you weren’t about to move.

You were about to say something about it, but nothing seemed to come out of your mouth at this moment. Honestly, you felt pretty pathetic. 

Once you were back in the clearing you had first seen each other, Charlie let go of your arm and just looked at you. “Do you understand why I said you shouldn’t go to that side of the forest now?”

“....” You looked away a little.

“If you had listened to me, you would have known it was their mating season. Acromantulas tend to get pretty aggressive if other people or creatures are around.” Charlie muttered, shaking his head. “Honestly, are you trying to get yourself killed out there? Four Acromantulas could have easily killed you!”

You felt yourself getting smaller when he talked about it some more. He was basically scolding  you for what happened.

“It’s a good thing you turned yourself into  a fox, because it probably made it harder for them to target y-....” He stopped talking and looked slightly confused. “Are you… are you crying?”

You blinked, once again feeling your cheeks were covered in tears. You quickly turned away from him in embarrassment.

“Did you get hurt?” He asked, slowly stepping towards you.

“I… I am fine… I just need a minute.” You said softly, trying to get once more a grip on yourself, trying to take deep breaths. “You… you can laugh if you want… I probably look pathetic now.”

“Laugh? Why would I laugh at you for this? What kind of person do you think I am?” Charlie sounded a little shocked.

“Someone who hates my guts?” You mumbled softly, rubbing your eyes some more. “Merula would probably have laughed or anyone else…”

“Y/N… I…” He shook his head a bit, not sure what to say right now. “I do not hate you. I just don’t like the fact you are constantly lying or being dishonest around other people. You put this major wall around yourself, like no one even knows who you are. Not to mention, the many fake smiles you put up. It’s a bit scary.” 

“I just don’t know who you are and whether you can be trusted because of that. You know how people work and how they could help you, but do you even care about others? It is really hard to tell…” Charlie admitted.

“... That makes sense.” You said softly. “I… I don’t know who I am either sometimes.”

“Does someone force you to just hide everything from everyone?” He asked.

“No… maybe… It’s complicated.” You mumbled softly, before slowly looking back at Charlie again. “I can’t talk about this… Not now. I don’t know if I ever can. So please… Stop asking.” You were basically pleading.

“...Fine. Let’s get you out of here though. I don’t think you should probably stay here much longer.” He said softly. 

___________________________  Charlie noticed some changes in you after that day in the Forbidden Forest. You seemed to put down that mask around your friends more often. It was like he was getting glimpses of the real Y/N. Although, he could also see you struggling occasionally.

Every time the two of you ended up at the same place, it just felt different. You seemed to get less and less irritated by him and he felt less irritated by your behaviour. You were probably still the most honest around him. While you would still make remarks, it felt more like banter than anything else.

“Dragons again? I would have thought you would be thinking about the last Quidditch match before Christmas. It wouldn’t be fun if you would just let my house win the Quidditch cup.” You told him at the Great Hall. “Or at least think about how you will survive Christmas this year.

Charlie rolled his eyes at you. “Don’t worry about the Quidditch cup, I won’t make it easy for the Slytherin team at all. Also, I doubt you will try to kill me during Christmas. I still don’t know why Bill thought it was a good idea to invite you over from Christmas this year.”

“Ah, luckily, I don’t give a damn about the Quidditch cup. I would rather root for Andre. Maybe even for you if I feel like it.” You said with a shrug. “Oh, I believe Bill overheard me when I said I haven’t celebrated Christmas in ages. I kind of celebrate it here at Hogwarts, but it is not really the same.” 

“I feel honoured you would maybe root for me as a Slytherin.” Charlie said amused, shaking his head a bit. “Ah, so he felt bad for you? Well, maybe if you are nice, you will get a nice little gift from me too.”

“Well, I’d rather root for friends than just some people I don’t know.” You said honestly. “I can’t promise you that. It is hard to not tease you from time to time. You can always give me some coal like Muggles do with bad children.”

“I suppose I should consider giving you that for Christmas.” He chuckled, before he suddenly looked a little off guard. “Wait... You see me as a friend?” 

You gulped softly. “Well… I  thought… If you don’t want to be…”

“No…!” Charlie looked mostly confused at the moment.

“Oh… I see.” You said softly, feeling a bit disappointed.

“No, no! I don’t mean I don’t want to be friends with you. It just surprised me.” He quickly said. “I am sorry, I didn’t mean to make you think I did not want to befriend you.”

“It’s okay, I mean, I haven’t been the nicest to you. I would have understood if you didn’t want to be friends. I just thought… We seemed to be getting along better, so I thought this could be the time to start a real friendship. Thanks to you, I feel much closer to our other friends. I want us to move on from that moment I just… Was plain mean to you.” You rubbed your arm a little.

“Well… I forgive you for your past behaviour. The time we have spent together is definitely more pleasant. Although, your way of teasing…”

“Oh shit… I am sorry, did I say something too mean?”

“Nah, I was just messing with you.” He winked.You let out a fake gasp. 

“How dare you!”

“Let’s say it is payback time.” He said amused.

“Well… That’s only fair.” You said with a nod, giving him a smile.

Charlie was certain that was the nicest smile you had ever given or at least… The nicest smile you had given him. ___________________________  Christmas at the Burrow was definitely great. Charlie could tell you were pretty nervous at first, putting on that mask first, but she slowly let her guard down. His mum made sure you felt welcomed. You seemed to get along with everyone quite nicely. You didn’t try to be this perfect and cool person you pretended to be at first. You didn’t need to charm your way through things all the time. You felt much more relaxed and at ease.

You went to bed early Christmas evening. You said you didn’t want to wake up Ginny, so went to bed around the same time as she did. Honestly, you just thought it was the right thing to do. Also, you felt pretty tired from all the socializing and new people. It took quite some energy to let your guard down. It worked, but you knew it was still hard to do.

“Such a nice girl. It was definitely the right decision to invite her over.” Molly said. “You said she didn’t really celebrate Christmas with her family for a while, right Bill?”

“Yeah, she said they stopped celebrating it after Jacob’s disappearance.” Bill said with a nod.

“Really? After Jacob’s disappearance?” Charlie asked, tilting his head a bit.

“That’s what she said. Apparently, the family didn’t feel like celebrating anything at that point anymore.” Bill said with a shrug.

“I have always wondered how things were at the Y/L/N family. From what I have heard, they were pretty prestigious. They were often praising their son. I barely heard anything about Y/N before she went to attend Hogwarts with you.” Molly said honestly.

Charlie frowned a little. “So Jacob was always praised and Y/N wasn’t?”

“I wouldn’t know that. I just thought it was strange they barely mentioned her name.” Molly said, not wanting to make any conclusions. 

Bill shook his head a bit. “Well, I am just glad she will have a nice holiday this year. Probably better than to be alone. I believe no one was staying at Hogwarts this year. At least none of our friends were.”

“Merula would probably have stayed, but she and Y/N are definitely not meant to stay Christmas alone at Hogwarts.” Charlie shook his head a bit with a grin.

“Well, you and Y/N weren’t really getting along either until early this year.” Bill said honestly with a grin. “She definitely changed a bit too after you two began getting along. In a positive way.”

“Really? You two didn’t get along at first?” Molly asked, looking surprised.

“We constantly got on each other’s nerves at first. We had talked a bit and that seemed to help.” Charlie said, leaving the part of the Forbidden Forest out of it. He wasn’t going to talk to his mum about it.

“Well, I am glad you two talked to each other. You seem to get along pretty well from what I have seen.” Molly said with a smile. “You wouldn’t happen to fan-”

“Mum!” Charlie looked embarrassed. At least you weren’t there to hear it.

“What? It could happen, even to you.” She said honestly.

“That doesn’t mean I just…” Charlie shook his head a bit. “Let’s not talk about this now. What if she came back downstairs and heard this?”

“Well… Alright. What about you Bill, have you met anyone yet?” ___________________________  “What are you doing outside? Aren’t you feeling cold?” 

You turned around, seeing Charlie standing there. "I just wanted some fresh air."

"Without your coat?" He held up your coat, shaking his head with a small grin. "Honestly, are you trying to freeze to death?"

You snatched your coat from him and put it on with a small grin. “Give me a break. I didn’t even notice the cold before you said something.” You put on your coat and just looked at him.

“Be glad I said something or you would have turned into an ice sculpture .”

“Sounds fun. You could probably enter some ice sculpture contest if I did turn into one.” 

Charlie shook his head once more. “Well, since you are outside, perhaps you would like to just walk around for a bit.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad.” You said honestly. “Gives me some more room to tease you.”

“Oh? You don’t feel like you can do that indoors?” He said with a grin.

“Well, not as much as I like to. Besides, some people may misinterpret our bantering for something else.” You shrugged.

“Still making sure you don’t look bad in front of others, do you?”

“Of course, it’s not like I can completely change that. I mean, I haven’t really been really ‘dishonest’, have I?”

“No, you have been pretty genuine these days.” Charlie said honestly.

“Good, I mean, that’s what you wanted, right? Making sure you would actually know the real me?” You said with a grin.

“I hope you haven’t only done this for me….”

You snorted. “You would wish I did.” You shook your head a bit. "You did help me with getting in the right direction." 

Charlie kept walking around with you. You both didn’t say much after what you said. It didn’t really feel awkward though. It somehow didn’t really matter. You felt pretty at peace and Charlie didn’t seem to mind it either.“

You must have had a really nice childhood at home.” You suddenly said, breaking the silence.

“Well, it can be hectic sometimes, but I love my family. Even when some of them can get on my nerves from time to time.” He said with a chuckle.

“Must be nice.” You said honestly. “Very different from my childhood.”

Charlie looked at you, seeing this look on your face he just couldn’t describe. It did give him some negative vibes though. It was almost like an empty expression, like you didn’t show anything, but your eyes basically said enough. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“I kind of want to, but at the same time I feel like I can’t.” You said, shaking your head a bit before giving him a sad smile. “Maybe another time I will be able to.”

“Alright, I won’t force you to talk about it. It is up to you when and who you want to talk to about this.” He said honestly.

“.... Sounds good.” You nodded a bit before you took a deep sigh. “I know I came up with this topic myself, but can you change the subject? Anything will be great.”

“Anything?”

“Yes, anything.”

“How about… Dragons?”

You snorted a bit. “Fine, talk about those dragons. Thanks to you, I probably know more about dragons than I probably should know at this point.”

“But they are pretty fascinating, aren’t they?”

“Very fascinating, Charlie.” ___________________________  The holidays were over. That meant you had to go back to Hogwarts. You definitely had a great time at the Weasley’s and thanked them multiple times for letting you stay over for the holidays. It was nice to be around a family like them. You were really surprised when you even received a jumper from Mrs. Weasley. You knew that was going to be a part of your lounging outfit during winter.

Back at Hogwarts, things slowly got back to normal. Well, as normal as life could be for you. Things were still a mess, but you were dealing with it. You occasionally put on this mask, especially around people you just didn’t trust. It was just hard to get rid of an old habit. Still, you also didn’t feel like fighting everyone who got in your way. Merula often got on your nerves, although not as much as she used to. Only Charlie had managed to break that mask. If he didn’t, you probably wouldn’t be friends with him now. You probably wouldn’t have gotten any closer to your friends either. It was sometimes scary, but your friends hadn’t disappointed you or betrayed your trust. 

Sometimes you were wondering how you and Charlie became such good friends. You just felt closer to him than anyone else. He made you feel things you didn’t think you would be capable of. You kept teasing him and he just began teasing you back. However, you found yourself around Charlie a lot these days. You couldn’t really figure out what it was about Charlie that made you keep going to him. You almost wondered whether you were put under some spell that made you keep thinking about him. 

“Sounds like you have fallen for him.”

If you had been drinking water, you would have spit it out. You looked at Rowan with almost a disgusted look. Fallen? For Charlie? That just sounded weird. “You must have understood me wrong, Rowan. Fallen for Charlie… Ha! What a joke!”

Rowan gave you an apologetic smile. “Well, what you describe to me just sounds like it… Not to mention, I am pretty sure I heard Penny and Andre talking about it.”

You huffed. “Honestly, it is almost like they want to make up silly rumours about me. Come on, there are already enough rumours about me, I don’t need more.”

“I am pretty sure that is not what they want…” Rowan said honestly. “Although, you do spend so much more time with Charlie these days… People just start to wonder.”

“Charlie and I are just friends. Things just seem less complicated around him.”

“So, you feel at ease around Charlie?”

“Yes, I feel at ease around him.” You rolled your eyes. “I am not in love with him!”

"Whatever you say, Y/N." Rowan said, shaking their head a bit.

You sighed softly, feeling like you were about to facepalm yourself. Rowan was wrong. You just felt at ease around Charlie, you felt free around him. You could just be yourself around him. While you could be much more open around your friends, it didn’t feel as comfortable as it did around Charlie. 

"I am just happy Charlie has had a good influence on you." Rowan suddenly said.

"What do you mean?" You tilted your head a bit.

“Well, you are much more open these days. I am happy you are trusting us." They said with a smile. "You used to be much harder to read and I wasn't always sure what to do. I felt like you were kind of trapped, but I didn't know how I could help you. Whatever Charlie did, it helped you out." 

You grinned a bit. “Well… I am glad about that too.” You admitted. “I thought it would be more... scary, you know? Being more open. It still is scary, but not as much as I expected.”

“I think you are doing really well. Our friends seem to be happy about it.” They said with a smile.

“I still think it would be hard to do around strangers or people I do not know well.”

“That’s okay, you just need to warm up to these people, at least the one you feel like you can trust.”

“I suppose so... “

“Just set up smaller goals. That way you feel like you have achieved more things than you thought. It helps you keep track of your progress.” 

“That may work.”

___________________________  “Jae probably thinks I am a robot.” You groaned softly when you sat down next to Charlie in the Great Hall again.

“Why do you think so?” Charlie asked, raising an eyebrow.

“That fake smile kept creeping up my face the entire time. I wasn’t sure whether Jae was creeped out or entertained by it.”

“Jae probably thought it was funny. I mean, you are trying your best. You don’t know Jae that well yet, right?”

“I know Jae mostly from detentions… I may have asked for some supplies too for ‘you know what I mean’.” You mumbled, not wanting to mention the Vaults.

“Look at it this way. You are trying much earlier than you tried with us all, that’s something.” 

“Is that supposed to make me feel better about my behaviour? Because it sounds like I have been a horrible friend to everyone.”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it, Y/N.” Charlie said with a small frown.

“Yes, yes, I know…. I am just frustrated.” You sighed. “Maybe I should let Jae follow me into the Forbidden Forest with some Acromantulas…”

“Y/N, I swear….” Charlie pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment. “If it was up to me, you would never get near the Acromantulas again. At least, not alone.” 

“Are you afraid I would freeze up again? I can handle one Acromantula, I have learnt the perfect spell for it.” You said with a grin. “I have to admit, I was really off guard at that moment.”

“As someone who goes to the Forbidden Forest occasionally, I think you should only go there if you need to be there. There is no need to get yourself in danger for no reason.”

“So it’s okay if you are putting yourself in danger, but not if it is me?” You raised an eyebrow.

"Well… I have more experience than you have when it comes to the Forbidden Forest."

You rolled your eyes, thinking the redhead’s ears were turning a little red. "Hypocrite." You mumbled amused.

"I don't like seeing you walk into danger for no reason." Charlie said, rubbing his arm a bit.

“Considering I have been looking for the Cursed Vaults, I think I have been walking into danger quite often.”

“Still, that’s no reason to put yourself in unnecessary danger.” Charlie just shook his head.

“Wow, you begin to sound so much like Bill now.”

Charlie’s eyes widened. “What? I do not!”

“Yes, you do. Very concerned about all of us and he tries to be strict with us when we do or are about to do something wrong.” You said with a small smirk on your face. “It could be worse, of course. You don’t keep telling me about the rules like Percy would do.” 

“I don’t see what you are talking about.” Charlie began to look annoyed. “Bill and I are not the same.”

“I am just saying, you are acting like him when we are talking about-”

“Bloody hell, Y/N…! I am just trying to look after you!” Charlie stood up, looking like he was about to get mad. “You know what? Do whatever you want. Clearly you don’t care what happens to you.” He grumbled before walking away.

You blinked in surprise by his reaction. You thought you were just joking around? Did you really offend him? You wanted to say you were sorry, but instead you stood up as well. “Maybe I will...!” 

He didn’t even turn around when you said that. You sat back down again, fuming you had made Charlie go away like this. Of course, it wasn’t the first time you two argued, but still… 

You felt angry with yourself. The longer you kept thinking about it, the angrier you became. So, you just grabbed your stuff and stormed out of the Great Hall to go back to the Slytherin Common room.

___________________________ “Wow, what is your problem, Y/L/N? Did you finally snap and go mad like your brother?” Merula said with a smirk when you had entered the dormitory. Of course she had to be here when she wanted to dump some stuff on your bed.

“Yes, should I infect you with my madness now?” You gave her a sarcastic look before roughly pulling out some books out of your bag. Rowan would probably have scolded you if she saw how you were throwing your books on the bed like that.

“Damn… Whoever made you act like this should probably be armed.” Merula muttered, definitely trying to anger you more.

“Maybe you should shut your damn mouth or it is you who should be armed.” You snapped at her, not wanting to deal with her.Merula rolled her eyes and ignored you after that.

You grabbed a notebook and put it in the bag. After that you quickly left the dormitory. You passed Liz and Barnaby, but you needed to calm down and couldn’t talk to them.  

You weren’t sure how many people you had seen, but you didn’t care. You needed to be away from people. Once again, Charlie had made you feel so many things at once. Honestly, everyone could say shit about you and you wouldn’t care. If Charlie said something, you reacted so strongly.

You kept walking until you reached the edge of the forest. You weren’t thinking clearly anymore and transformed into a fox, pulling the bag along with you. At least no one would bother you in the Forbidden Forest. The trees seemed to be passing by and you had not paid any attention to where you were going. The only thing on your mind was to keep moving. You didn’t care about anything else but going anyway.

This was what you were good at. Running away, like always. The way how you would simply spend the summers away from home. It was just like that. You were nothing special to your family. You would always remain in Jacob’s shadow to your parents. They would only be disappointed. They didn’t give you any attention nor did they care whether they saw you or not during the summers. 

“It doesn’t matter, child. They wouldn’t care if you performed advanced magic or anything. My son only wanted Jacob to have an heir.” Your grandfather told you. “Until they have found the perfect match for you to connect our family to a better one, you will basically be invisible.” 

“Is it because I am a girl?”

“I believe so… You won’t be able to carry our name when you marry. Therefore, they want to make connections with other rich and influential families. You are basically a tool to get them more connections.”

“So, I have no say in what happens to me?”

“I am afraid not. Unless you leave you won’t have a choice. Still, you wouldn’t leave this old man without someone to teach, would you?”

“... Where could I go anyways?”

“I have been in your situation. I was the youngest of the family. They told me I was an accident, so most care went into my older brothers. Still, that didn’t stop me from trying to become the best and eventually… I did become the best of all my brothers. I may not have acted like it, but I was quite bitter to my parents for how they raised me.”

“So, it would be possible to be better than Jacob?”

“In theory, yes. While Jacob has definitely talent, being able to become a Legilimens at an early age, I think you would be capable of great things as well.”

“Like what?”

“Tell me, Y/N. How familiar are you with the term Animagus?” 

Oh, you remembered studying for hours with your grandfather, trying to know everything about Animagi. You never talked about it with your parents though. You also studied other things with your grandfather you were allowed to talk about, but your parents didn’t think it was good enough. Jacob seemed to like it though, but was often silenced by your father who rather heard Jacob talking about his studies.

You loved Jacob, but you hated living in his shadow. He was your older brother and he was supposed to be there for you. Then he was gone… Only your grandfather was there for you, only to die soon after. You were on your own, trying to remember everything your grandfather had taught you. 

“It is better to keep things to yourself sometimes. Don’t share negative thoughts and be positive. Keep smiling and use the nicest words you can think of. That’s the key to gaining people’s trust.” Your grandfather told you when he was teaching you his way. “I didn’t become successful by speaking up my mind every time. Just think of it as twisting the words the right way. It will make you sound much more intelligent.”

“So I can’t be honest?”

“People don’t like listening to the negative aspects of life. In order to gain power, you need to be liked by everyone.”

“But my parents-”

“They are not the ones worth your time. Figure out what people you need in order to reach your goals. Do your parents help you with that?”

“No…”

“Exactly.” 

At the time, your grandfather’s lessons seemed to be helpful. You managed to set your plan in motion when you were old enough to go to Hogwarts. Now, you didn't know if this plan was actually helpful or just made you unable to form actual relations with your peers. You couldn’t be open with them in the beginning. Charlie was the first one not to buy the things you said to please him. He was the one who broke the mask and slowly got your true self out of you. 

You shifted back to your human form and stared at the ground. You kept walking slowly, not looking up.

Charlie….

The one who helped you out so much the past year. The one who reassured you when you were having doubts and the one who would hold up a mirror to your behaviour… He kept helping you, while you just did things that potentially hurt his feelings. You felt like an asshole. You probably were an asshole. You walked over to a tree and leaned your back against it. You slowly slid down and hugged your knees once you were on the ground.

You wanted to blame your upbringing for this all, but would that be fair? You felt like you could have done something yourself to change more…

___________________________

Charlie sighed when he was making his way to the Great Hall. He hadn't seen you after you two were basically yelling at each other. He knew he probably reacted a bit too harsh himself. Still, he hated being compared to Bill. Just like you hated being compared to Jacob. Perhaps he was just triggered when you said he acted like Bill. He just wanted to make sure you weren't doing anything dangerous.

You had made a good point about him going into the Forbidden Forest often. Still, he couldn’t help it but to be worried about you. He was quite fond of you and didn't want you to get hurt. He definitely had to talk to you. It wasn’t the first time you two argued, although it felt like a long time ago… Perhaps most arguments didn’t end up in basically yelling at each other either. He would have to admit, it felt different this time. 

Charlie stopped walking when he heard two familiar voices. He could swear he heard them say your name. 

"What do you mean Y/N didn't come back to the dormitory last night?" Penny asked Rowan, who looked concerned.

"She never entered the Slytherin dormitory. I don’t even know if she entered the common room. She wasn't there for dinner either." Rowan looked nervous.

"Have you talked to Barnaby and Liz? Maybe they have seen her…?"

"Liz did say Y/N was looking quite pissed yesterday… Merula also made some comments about it. No one has seen Y/N since yesterday."  

"Hold up, Y/N hasn't been seen since yesterday?" Charlie made his way over to Rowan and Penny. He definitely heard enough.

"Charlie, have you seen her?" Rowan asked, looking a bit more hopeful, thinking he knew more.

"No, not today at least." He answered, rubbing the back of his neck. "We may have had a little argument yesterday…"

Penny frowned. "A little argument…?"

"Okay, I think we're both pretty pissed afterwards…" He admitted.

"So, that would explain what Liz had seen and Merula's reaction… Still, that isn’t going to help us find Y/N. Where would she be?" Rowan continued to look worried. "She wouldn't have run away, would she?"

Charlie thought about the argument. He became a little pale when he thought about a place where you could be. "She wouldn't… would she?" 

"What? Charlie, what wouldn’t she do?" Rowan asked.

Without a word Charlie began running away from Rowan and Penny.

"Charlie!" Penny yelled after him, watching him disappear through the crowd. "Great… He may know where she is, but what if he needs help?"

"Let’s go to Bill…" Rowan suggested.The two went off to find Bill.

___________________________ 

Charlie had been running in the Forbidden Forest immediately once he made his way outdoors. He just knew you would probably go there. It was the place you two were discussing before he stormed off. 

“You know what? Do whatever you want. Clearly you don’t care what happens to you.”

“Maybe I will..!” 

Perhaps saying that to you was just one of the stupidest things he could have done. You were stubborn, especially when he was around. You weren’t afraid to go against him. You probably took his words to heart.

Charlie stopped running for a moment, trying to figure out where you could have gone to. He had to figure it out before whatever out there was going to hurt you or worse, kill you. There were many possibilities to die in the Forbidden Forest. Not all Magical Creatures would immediately kill someone, but if you did something unexpected… Well, he didn’t want to think about it. The last time you ran away from him, you ended up facing four Acromantulas.  

“That could have ended up worse than it already did, Y/N.” 

Charlie blinked when he heard your name once more. It sounded pretty familiar. 

“... Lucky me.”

“Honestly, what were you doing sleeping out here? You are quite aware of the dangers in the forest.”

“Avoiding the dangers of being completely shattered mentally in the castle.” 

Charlie made his way closer to the voices. He didn’t get too close, seeing you and Torvus. He grimaced when he looked at you. You didn’t look too good. You seemed to have some wounds and looked considerably pale. Your arms and hands seemed to be covered in scratches and you seemed to have a wound on your head. 

“Maybe people are right about me. I am mad ‘like Jacob’. I can’t even behave like a normal being. Wherever I go, I cause problems.” You sounded annoyed with yourself. “I have tried so hard to get liked by saying the right things, I barely know who I am. It was like it became my personality. The things my grandfather taught me were wrong, so wrong. I am getting more and more aware how fucked up I have become because of following his ways. It’s honestly pathetic. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you had not helped me out back there.”

“The stars definitely tell me it is not your time yet. Besides, you have helped me a couple of times. It was no trouble helping you out.” Torvus said. “The ways you were taught were twisted, but it seemed to have helped you a little. It’s up to you whether you want to continue his ways or find your own ways.”

“Well… The latter sounds preferable…”

“Then you will have to figure out a way to do so.” Torvus said honestly. “Now, you should probably head back to the castle and get help to help you with your injuries. Your blood will definitely attract the attention of some more creatures.”

“Both options sound terrible. Getting the attention of other creatures and going back to the castle where people will most definitely scold me for being a complete idiot.” 

“Scolding you will be something to worry about later.” Charlie said when he finally made his way over to you and Torvus.

“Charlie?” You looked surprised to see him.

“Hello Charlie.” Torvus greeted. “You definitely have the perfect timing to get her back to the castle.”

“I am glad I have the perfect timing for that.” Charlie said to Torvus before turning to you. “Y/N, you need to come with me.”

“Why?”

He looked baffled when you asked him that. “Why? Because you are hurt and you need someone to look at these injuries.”

“...Why are you trying to help me?” You seemed to be avoiding his eyes when you spoke, like you didn’t dare to look up. You also didn’t seem to move an inch.

Charlie swallowed, before he just gently took your hand. “Because I want to.”

“... Okay.”  

Charlie gave Torvus a nod before leading you away. He would get you out of here as soon as possible. You needed some help. The walk… It just felt like forever, especially because there was a silence between the two of you. Charlie wasn’t sure what he could say to you. To be honest, he felt like yelling in concern for you when he saw you, but that wouldn’t solve anything. He felt bad to see you like this even if it was you who made the decision to go here. He couldn’t really blame you either. You weren’t thinking clearly. Still, he felt responsible for you ending up here. 

“... I am sorry.”

He looked at you when he heard you speak.

“I shouldn’t have teased you like that…” You mumbled softly. “Scratch that, I shouldn’t have said those things to you. You were just concerned about me and I made some stupid comments about you being a hypocrite and being like Bill.”

“... Well, I guess it was a bit hypocritical of me. I know going into the Forbidden Forest is dangerous and I could end up hurt as well.”

“That doesn’t matter, I was just stupid.” You mumbled. “I have been a hypocrite too. I don’t want to be compared to Jacob and I compared you to Bill when I know you don’t want that either.”

“I think we both were stupid then. We both reacted too quickly. I am sorry too.”

….

Once again there was a silence between them. Charlie knew they were getting closer to the castle. He glanced at you for a moment. You looked exhausted. You definitely needed to get back to the castle as soon as possible. “We are almost there.”

You nodded a little in response. 

“... You don’t hate me, do you?”

Charlie blinked when you asked him that. “Of course not.”

“It would be okay if you did…" You mumbled softly.

"Well, I don’t hate you. You…. You are important to me." Charlie said, feelings his cheeks were slightly getting warmer.

"Important enough to run into the Forbidden Forest to look for me." You said with a slight grin. You were amazed you could even grin, especially with a headache that was getting even worse. Your body was growing heavy and you couldn't wait to just drop down on a bed. 

"Yes, you are that important, Y/N." Charlie rolled his eyes in amusement. He turned to look at you. Your eyes didn't seem to focus on anything and he could tell you were struggling to keep up the pace. He frowned for a moment and stopped walking.

You blinked, wondering why they stopped. Before you could ask, he seemed to stand in front of you with his back towards you. He bent his knees a little.

"Come on, get on my back."

"Wha…?"

"You look like you are about to collapse. Let me carry you." 

You could feel yourself getting flustered, but you were too tired to argue. You placed your arms over his shoulders and he reached his arms underneath your legs. He slowly raised you up by straightening his legs and made sure he was steady enough to start walking. Once that was done, Charlie walked back to the castle, giving you a piggyback ride.

___________________________ 

"Y/N!" 

You noticed Rowan running towards you and Charlie. Penny and Bill had followed Rowan.

Charlie made sure you could carefully get off his back. You got off him and Rowan was immediately fussing over you. 

"Look at you…! You need to go to the Hospital Wing...!" They said, trying to support you on your way to the Hospital wing. 

Penny also seemed to get closer to you, standing on your other side. You glanced at Charlie, but he only gave you a nod, basically telling you to go with them. 

You sighed softly and nodded. “Alright, alright… Let’s get this over with.” You said, not looking forward to seeing Madam Pomfrey. You had a feeling she would not be too happy to see you injured again. 

Once you, Penny and Rowan were out of sight, Bill looked at Charlie. “What happened?”

“Torvus saved her from something in the Forest. I have no idea what happened there though.” Charlie said.

“I meant like what happened between you two.” Bill said, crossing his arms. “I have heard from Rowan and Penny you two had a fight.”

“It was more like an argument…”

“An argument that made her go to the Forbidden Forest for an entire night without telling anyone...?”

Charlie looked frustrated. “Look, Y/N and I both said things that were… well, not the best things to say to each other. I have never meant for her to run away to the Forbidden Forest…!”

“What things did you say to each other?”

“I don’t need to tell you everything, Bill.” Charlie said, looking away a bit. “The most important thing is that Y/N have talked about it and things are alright.”

“I am just looking after you, Charlie.” Bill said honestly. “I was worried when Penny and Rowan said you seemed to know where Y/N was, but didn’t tell anyone where you were going. If Y/N was in trouble and you couldn’t help her alone, who was going to help you both?”

“Okay, okay...! That may not have been smart, but I know my way around the place a lot better than most of you.” Charlie said honestly. “I wasn’t thinking much either. I just wanted to make sure she was okay.” 

“She drives me insane sometimes, you know?” Charlie looked at Bill. “It’s like she has more influence on my emotions than most people I know and I keep thinking about her.”

“I think you have feelings for her.” 

“You think… What?”

Bill chuckled softly. “She manages to make you feel all kinds of things, she is on your mind a lot and you run after her without a thought.” He pointed out a few things. “You like her more than just a friend.”Charlie’s face seemed to become a bit red. 

“That’s… Well…” He seemed to stumble on his words, not sure what to say next. 

“It’s up to you what you do with that knowledge, Charlie. I am not going to tell you to talk to her. You would have to do so on your own and when you feel like it’s the right time.”

“... Maybe.”

“I wonder what Mum would say if she knew this.” Bill said with a grin.

“Bill!”

___________________________ 

After Madam Pomfrey allowed you to go the next day, you made your way to the Great Hall. You were glad you were allowed to leave. Although, you had to spend another 15 minutes listening to Madam Pomfrey scolding you again before she actually let you go. You had a feeling she may write to your parents if something like that happened again, but you had a feeling they wouldn’t care too much about it. You were already a disappointment to them. 

You just wanted to find Charlie. You hadn’t had the chance to speak to him after Rowan and Penny ushered you to the Hospital Wing yesterday. You had hoped you could speak to him that day, but you had fallen asleep rather quickly once Madam Pomfrey gave you some Potions. You assumed one of the Potions was a Potion for Dreamless Sleep. Perhaps that was for the best, knowing you would probably have dreamt horrible things about what happened in the Forbidden Forest. It was probably a wonder you had slept for a few hours in the Forest at all.

Once you entered the Great Hall, you noticed some people looking at you. You could feel a fake smile about to creep on your face, but you tried to prevent it. Was it worth giving everyone a fake smile just to make people look at you in a certain way?

You began looking around the Gryffindor table, trying to spot Charlie. You noticed Bill, Percy and Ben, but no Charlie. You sighed softly, hoping to spot him there.  

“Y/N, over here!”

You turned around and noticed Penny waving at you from the Hufflepuff table. You gave her a small smile and made your way over to her. You couldn’t help it but to be a little disappointed you hadn’t seen Charlie just yet.

“Good morning, Penny.”

“Good morning. You look a lot better than you did yesterday.” Penny said with a smile.

“Good to know, I also feel a lot better than I did yesterday.” You said with a small laugh.

“That’s great. I am glad you are feeling better. Rowan, Bill and I were very worried about you when we were talking about how Charlie ran away to find you. Of course, our other friends were worried too.”  She said honestly. “Still, I couldn’t help but notice you were looking at the Gryffindor table just now. Were you looking for Charlie?”

Penny definitely knew what was on your mind. You nodded a little in response. “I was, but I didn’t see him.”

“I think you just missed him. He seemed to be quite in a hurry this morning.” She said honestly. “I assumed he was making his way over to the Hospital wing to see you.”

You felt like face palming yourself, but only let out a soft sigh. Of course, you have missed him on your way here. “I guess I will have to find him somewhere in the halls then. Thanks Penny.” You said when you quickly walked away.

“Shouldn’t you at least eat something?” She asked, calling after you.

“Breakfast can wait!” 

You quickly made your way back towards the Hospital Wing. Or at least, you weren’t planning to show your face to Madam Pomfrey. You didn’t want to risk her thinking you had already managed to get yourself in trouble again even though you haven't done anything just yet.

Things were quite busy in the halls and you had to get past the many students who were there. You hoped you would actually find Charlie. Once you were near the Hospital Wing, you spotted him walking out with a sigh. You tried to quickly make your way over to him, trying to wave at him. “Charlie, wait!”

You noticed Charlie turning towards you and had managed to make your way over to him. “Thank Merlin, I was worried I might have been too slow to find you here.” You said with a soft sigh.

“Y/N, I was looking for you.” Charlie said honestly.

“And I was looking for you. Here I thought you would be in the Great Hall like most people we know, but of course I missed you on the way there.”

Charlie rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish grin. “I was, I think Bill would scold me if I skipped breakfast, so I quickly ate something before checking on you.”

“Penny said you seemed to be in a hurry.” You said honestly. “I quickly turned around to see if I could find you. Otherwise I would have probably made my way back to the Great Hall. Then I would have to eat breakfast without hearing you talk about dragons. That is not acceptable at all.” You seemed to be rambling a bit. You weren’t sure why; it was like you had to keep talking to him. 

Charlie shook his head a bit. “Well then, I suppose I should escort you back to the Great Hall.” He said with a grin. “As your friend I would have to make sure you reach the Great Hall and eat a proper breakfast after spending the night in the Hospital Wing. We don’t want to anger Madam Pomfrey after all.”

“Alright, alright. Lead the way.” You said with a grin. You were starting to feel more at ease again. It was like everything seemed to be alright between you two. There were some things you would still like to talk about, but things seemed to be okay between you two.

You seemed to be thinking a little too much, because she snapped out of it when someone bumped into you. You yelped softly when you felt like you were about to fall, but you were caught in Charlie’s arms.

“Are you okay?” He asked, tilting his head a bit.

Your face became slightly red and you nodded. “Uhm, yes. I am fine.” You said, getting out of his arms. “Thanks for the help.” You said with a smile.

You glanced away for a second before you looked at him again. He seemed to be glancing away as well, but you began noticing his ears were slightly red. 

“No wonder you are the Gryffindor Seeker. You have quick reflexes.” You said with a grin. Internally you began cursing yourself. Was that meant as a compliment or some kind of flirting? Why were you saying those kinds of things anyways? You knew you had opened up around Charlie, but it felt strange, like you had no filter around him anymore.

“Uhm, Thanks I guess?” You noticed him looking a little confused at you. He was still smiling though.

You could only feel your face heating up some. “Uhm, don’t mind me. I am probably acting a little weird because of the potions from last night.” You said, quickly coming up with some kind of lie to justify your behaviour.

“Uh-hu.” Charlie hummed, he didn’t seem to buy it. Of course he didn’t buy that. “We can talk about last night later if you want, Y/N. Just relax.” 

“Talk about last night?”

“That is what is on your mind, right?”

“Totally!” You could feel one of those happy fake smiles creeping on your face again.

“.... Now I feel like it is something else.”

The fake smile seems to be dropping from your face quickly. “Uhm… Let’s talk about it later. Please. I…”

“Of course, come on. Let’s get you some breakfast and we'll talk about it later, alright?” 

You took a deep breath and nodded. This wasn’t something to talk about in the halls. You wanted a bit more privacy

.___________________________ 

The talk you were supposed to have with Charlie seemed to have moved to another day. Once you have eaten breakfast, you were basically bombarded by questions from your other friends. You could only look at Charlie from a distance. Honestly, you wanted to talk about it. 

Now you couldn’t sleep. The rest of your dorm mates seemed to be sleeping. You were just feeling restless. You knew it could possibly get you into trouble, but you quietly sneaked out of bed. You put on your school robes and made it to the common room area. Perhaps you could arrange a meeting with Charlie. You began making your way towards the entrance and when the door was about to open, you transformed yourself into a fox.

You began navigating your way through the castle, trying to avoid most Professors. Once you had made your way to the seventh floor. If only you knew the password to the Gryffindor common room… Obviously, you hadn’t thought this through… 

Suddenly, you noticed the portrait opening. Perhaps this would be a chance to get through. You were ready to sneak past the person. However, you were surprised to see Charlie standing there with a look on his face like he was saying ‘I don’t know what I am doing.’

You noticed his eyes were suddenly on you. You two were staring at each other and then he quietly made his way over to you. “What are you doing here?” He whispered before he basically picked up. Then he walked back to the portrait and snuck you inside the Gryffindor common room. It was risky and clearly, Charlie was tired too. He basically entered the Gryffindor boy’s bathroom and closed the door behind him. He put you down on the floor and held his ear against the door, listening if someone was nearby.

You transformed yourself back and gave Charlie a nervous smile. “Before you ask… I couldn’t sleep and…”

“You decided to go to the seventh floor and go to the Gryffindor common room?” Charlie finished for you.

“Well… Something like that.”

“And how were you supposed to get in? You don’t have the password.” He whispered, frowning a bit.

“It wasn’t my best idea…” You admitted. “...Although, what were you doing? Why were you about to leave the common room at this time?”

Charlie rubbed the back of his neck. “Good question. I couldn’t sleep either. I thought about getting some fresh air.” 

“Funny how we both couldn’t sleep.” You mumbled, fidgeting with your fingers a bit.

“Yeah, very funny indeed.” Charlie mumbled, shaking his head a bit.

“Charlie… About what happened…” You began, rubbing the back of your neck.

“You wanted to talk about something else than what happened in the Forbidden Forest.” He said, remembering how that fake smile had crept on your face.“Well, yes. Partly yes. I wanted to speak about what happened in the forest and something else.” You admitted. “Please bear with me. I am not sure how this will go, because I haven’t talked about this a lot. The only one I confided in was my grandfather in the past and that hasn’t been working out either…”

Charlie blinked a little. “You want to talk about your upbringing...?”  

“Yes.” You said with a nod. “It will not be a pretty story to tell and will spare you some of the details, but I want you to know about it. It shouldn’t be an excuse for everything I have done, but it would be… well, some explanation to why I did certain things the way I did. Like… lying and manipulating.” 

“From a young age I knew my parents would never think as highly of me as they did of Jacob. Jacob was obviously their favourite. Jacob’s accomplishments would always be celebrated, mine would always be compared to his and seen as less.” You began. “At first, I wanted to do things better, trying to prove them wrong. However, it didn’t seem to matter. I was there… Just a tool to make more connections.” 

Charlie seemed to be frowning more and more when he listened to you. “So, they wanted to marry you off when you were old enough.”

“Yes, it was basically that.” You nodded. “Apparently I didn’t have the same talents as Jacob.” To be honest, talking about this kind of made you feel bitter towards Jacob, but mostly to your parents. “Still, there is a lot more to this all.”

“A lot more?”

“Yes, a lot more.” You sighed, wondering how you could tell this right. “I only had one person I could rely on. That was my grandfather. He became my teacher and mentor. He was the only one I could talk to without feeling like a complete waste of space.” You seemed to trail off a little, not sure how to continue. 

“But there is something more about him as well, isn’t there?” Charlie asked, having a feeling there was something about him.”

“Well, yes.” You admitted. “Still, I don’t want to think he is only at fault here… I think he didn’t know any better either.”

“Not only at fault here? What did he do, Y/N?” Charlie seemed to step a little closer to you.

“He was the one who taught me how to act around others. How I should not always speak up if it wouldn’t help me reach my goals. How I should try to be liked to gain more influence. How I should mostly smile and help those to reach my own goals, to become successful like him.” 

“He was the one who taught you all those things? Those things that made you lie or be dishonest around everyone, including the people who cared about you?” Charlie asked.

“Yes, but I don’t think he meant it as a bad thing…”

Charlie was baffled you seemed to defend someone who taught you those kinds of things. “He tried to turn you into a manipulative person, Y/N. That is not a good thing.”

“I know, I know...! But I didn’t have anyone else to be honest with.” You said, sounding a little frustrated. “Look, I am not saying he was a good man, I know he wasn’t. But he taught me ways to escape from feeling worthless and to actually escape from home. Besides, he was a lot like me during his childhood.” 

“Y/N…” Charlie could tell this was hard to talk about and that he couldn’t change your view of your grandfather immediately, but he couldn’t help it but to say something about it.

“Look, he was also the one who taught me to become an Animagus and I am grateful for that. These things he taught me made me feel better back then. I know it was wrong, but it was better than feeling like ‘that other child’ or just ‘Jacob’s little sister’.” You said honestly. “I have felt really lost when my grandfather passed away and when Jacob disappeared. Everything at home was just… unbearable. I have run away a lot as an Animagus to escape from home ever since.”

“You ran away a lot… Where did you go?” Charlie asked.

“Somewhere. I spent most of my summers as a fox, stealing food from unsuspecting Muggles to be honest.”

Charlie always had a feeling things were bad at your home, but he definitely wasn’t expecting this. “Damn, Y/N… Even your last few summers...?”

“Well, yes…”

“Why didn’t you…” Charlie stopped himself. Who would you ask to stay the summer with if you couldn’t even give them a reason.

“... Yeah, I could have asked for help, but I just couldn’t. I was just… scared, you know?” You admitted, looking at the floor.  

Things seemed to be a little quiet between you both. Honestly, what else could be said about this? You knew your upbringing was pretty bad and how it sounded even worse to anyone else. Charlie also wasn’t sure what to say next. He hesitated for a moment, but stepped even closer to pull you into a tight hug.

“Thanks for telling me about this. I can only imagine how hard that was to talk about.” He said honestly, thinking it was the only thing he could do now.You hugged him back and took a deep breath. It felt good to tell someone about this. 

“... Well, thanks for listening to me.”

“It’s the least I can do, Y/N.” He said honestly, looking at you. 

You looked up at him and gave him a small smile. You slowly let go of him and stepped a bit back. “I just had to tell you after what happened in the Forbidden Forest. I have been really mean to you and I was reflecting on why I was doing this. I felt awful for what I said and I didn’t want to blame everything on my upbringing. I want to change and I am trying to. I guess, I still have a lot to learn.” 

“You can’t change your behaviour in a day, Y/N. I know you are trying to change. Besides, I told you I forgave you.” Charlie said honestly.

“I know, I know, but you are important to me, Charlie. Merlin knows what happens if I lose you.” You said honestly. 

“You won’t lose me that easily.” He said with a small grin. “You are important to me as well, Y/N.

”You gave him a bright smile, feeling he was really honest with you. No matter what happened, you felt like you had each other to confide in. You wouldn’t want to lose that for anything in the world.

[bringinthefembots]

The full flower courting series!

Reminder you can find more content on my Instagram at jesspersephone

[domaslut]

Felix would be so proud of Mc. She’s spending all her books on dragons to make his dream come true… She is like “Wake up, little dragon, it’s time to surprise my soon to be husband!”.

So, Felix, babe, be ready for Mc and her army of dragons. Buy her a ring, she deserves it.

[sailorwritesstuff]

Poly curse breakers would be so cute idc HOW impractical it is.

In my head: MC, Charlie, Rowan, Penny, Chiara, and like maybe Talbott live in a little place in Romanian. Charlie goes to work at the Dragon reserve and Rowan works at the Romanian equivalent Gringotts. Talbott keeps a job to fill his Time and Chiara is a healer part time it's no st. Mungo's (yet) but she's getting there. And One day a letter comes for Charlie and MC picks it up while he's getting ready in the morning (he always liked the company in the morning and is hopeless in the kitchen so he simply wouldn't eat before work without you there) as he pulling on his heavy work boots he asks mc to read it. They read it over in their head first and a wicked smile plays on their lips. Charlie asks what it is and MC just grins even harder.

"oh you've got to go save your brother." They laugh covering their mouth "Hagrid and those friends of his are going to get him in trouble. Minnie 'll have a heart attack, my love."

"well what is it then?" Charlie frowns tying his hair back.

"a dragon. They've got a baby dragon. 'Names Norbert"

(McGonagall did not catch a break for 14 years straight.)

[livelaughlovewonderwoman]

HPHM YEAR 4 SPOILERS BELOW!!!

i literally just got fucking petrified and i was literally waiting for angsty hurt/comfort trope to happen where all of my friends find out and are like "omg are you okay bitch" but NOTHING.

maybe i'm just an attention whore ( I am )

[pooks]

If someone were to ask Percy what his mental picture of a big sister figure was, he would answer with one name.

Cassidy Mercury.

He didn't meet her officially until he was in his second year, when Bill and Charlie introduced him to their friend. She was a new prefect, like Charlie, and she was probably the prettiest girl he had ever seen.

Her hair was styled in a short haircut with parted bangs and golden like sunshine. The eyes were green as ripe pears and her skin was fair, decorated with a calm yet reassuring smile.

There was just something about her that kept his nerves calm, as if she was telling him "everything will be alright because I am here" in a non-verbal way. And the first thing she had said when he told his name and his life ambitions in one go was...

"Sounds like you have your whole life planned out."

No teasing or mocking, like his brothers tended to do. No laughing at his extremely high standards of a successful life. No, she listened and respected him. That was the first thing that won him over.

Secondly, she proved to be an excellent and talented student. Cassidy was really good at academics and as he later found out, one of the best Chasers on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

He had originally come to see Charlie, and his dorm mate Oliver Wood, play on the first Quidditch match of the year. He had already known that Charlie was a great Seeker and Oliver was a raw talent as a Keeper, but Cassidy...

She was magnificent in the air, flying on her Comet and stealing the Quaffle with ease, evading her opponents like how a fly avoids being hit by a slipper and making goals with a strong left arm. And how the stands filled with Gryffindors screamed in loud cheers for her.

Charlie may be the Quidditch Captain, but Cassidy Mercury was their star! Even when Oliver was down, getting hit in the head by a Bludger (and nearly gave him a heart attack!), Cassidy became their savior by making so many goals and with Charlie catching the Snitch, earning them 150 points more...they had saved the match.

It has been a long time since Percy believed in heroes. Yes, he knew there were war heroes from the War, but he didn't know them and in his simple opinion, heroes was something that belonged in fairy tales or fictional stories.

But when the school was in danger by the Cursed Vaults...when students and even school staff were being attack by these curses...when Rakepick proved to be a Dark witch and especially, when his life was at mortal danger...

Cassidy Mercury was there to save the day.

She was his hero.

[jacobscursebreakerlilsis]

Charlie’s an absolute riot and a smart ass

I love it🐉 🦁

[akikocho]

Saw and stole the template from my FB moot and I'm doing it as well

I hc Charlie as pansexual because why not?

Also me: *is having a crisis if I make Charlie bi or pan so spin the wheel makes a decision for me instead*

Here's the template if you want to try as well :DD

I removed the "*Name's* things" in my version because idk what to put huhu

[unabashednightmarepizza]

𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝐷𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑆ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑛𝑠

A/N: I couldn't stop my simping ass from writing for him, sorry not sorry!

Warnings: Spoilers for the "First Date" quest, some unintentional drama(?)

Prompts used: lips barely touching, smiling while kissing, slow kisses, first kisses from this/ "Is it okay if I kiss you?" " I would like that very much." from this.

People are very noisy.

That's even more obvious to you after the accident with Snape. You didn't blame him for what happened, especially after he said "no notes" and you were caught writing something down. It was a misunderstanding, one that put you on a rough spot.

Because all your friends were trying to learn who your crush was, everything felt like you were drowning in them and you had no other way out.

Apart from your saviour in white shirt and Gryffindor tie, the only one person you could confide in, someone who wouldn't care about all the rumors.

"Hi, Bill..." you sat in front of him as the red-head lifted his head and smiled kindly to you just like always.

"Hey, Y/N. How are you holding up?"

"Good I guess." You shrugged your shoulders. "By the way, I am sure Charlie knows you were out in the Courtyard, checking up on him earlier. He was irritated I guess?"

" Good. I want him to know his big brother is watching. Truth is, my mum likes me to keep an eye out for him. She is worried about him almost all the time."

You smiled at the woman's worry, though you knew better than to be fooled by her sweet nature, especially after that one Howler she sent to Charlie.

"His hobby is monstrous, fire-breathing creatures. I think any mum would be worried. How is she doing by the way?"

Bill smiled at your question, answering with a happy she is fine, she wants you to come to the Burrow this summer actually, as you and him ate your meal in silence.

You were gratefull for the Weasleys and how welcoming they had been to you, ever since the start of the second year. Spending time with them for the last 3 summers felt like a paradise to you, even if it was mostly chaos with their younger siblings. But they were a bunch of cute and good-natured kids, didn't mean extreme harm to anyone as long as they didn't annoy them and they adored listening to your rants about your adventures with their two eldest brother.

All the while trying to surpass their smirk at their second older brother having heart eyes as you talked to them, blushing behind you with a dazed look.

Apart from you, Charlie's raging crush on you was pretty obvious to everyone. Both in school and to his family. Never, even for once, did he shut up about you at home. Always talking, always telling how amazing and badass you were, how caring you were with the magical creatures as Hagrid watched you, how you always spent time with him and was comsiderate of your friends, how cute you looked while sleeping...

"Okay, okay, we get it. Your curse-breaking girlfriend is pretty awesome." Percy would often roll his eyes at his brother, already sick of the amount of talk about you even if he... tolerated you?

Molly and Arthur would also chime in from time to time, just to push Charlie a bit to know more about his dating life. It was from her good heart of course, Molly just wanted all of her children to be happy... Possibly with a lover that would hopefully turn into their spouse.

And besides, seeing his usually dragon-maniac son who wasn't interested in dating suddenly blushing at the mention of this girl made her curious.

Who were you and how did you manage to make her smitten ike that?

So, as the sweet yet slightly controlling mother she was, she convinced Bill to take you here with himself for one summer, to see and get to know you. Bill was happy to oblige, besides he knew his mother already knew a lot about you by the endless talk both him and Charlie did, the last thing left for her was to see you.

And when she did, she decided: You were now a part of the family.

Because one, you looked like such a cute and generous girl with a golden heart and two, her son was really, trully happy whenever he was with you.

But, as much as she witnessed the obvious love her boy had for you, she was left shocked, one would say even pitying her own son for his denseness, when she talked to him and Bill... and learnt that you two weren't dating as the boys looked at her sheepishly.

"Charles Septimus Weasley! What's this supposed to mean?! What do you mean by you aren't dating her?! Are you so dense to let a girl like her go?!"

But here was the part, which was the reason why he still didn't make any moves on you: Charlie sucked at romance.

Dragons? Show him one scale and he could tell what they eat. Lessons? Pfft, pretty easy, he aced them all! Quidditch? He was the best at new strategies! But romance?

With you?

That was straight out of his nightmares. Because what if you didn't feel the same? What if he lost you for good because of some silly, yet very warm, feelings? Was it worth taking the risk? He didn't know any pick-up lines, and didn't intend to ask his friends...

So, just like that, he refused to do anything and instead savoured the time he had with you even if his heart made backflips whenever you smiled at him.

And Bill was left to deal with his dumb brother and oblivious friend as they both had feelings for each other, unknown to both sides.

" At this point, everyone knows I have crush and suddenly... they are all so interested in who he is!" He was shaken from his thoughts as you exclaimed angrily, munching on your lunch like an angry rabbit, remembering the pleading looks your friends gave to you.

"Well, you have all the reason to keep it to yourself." He said pointedly. Just the same logical boy he always was...

"Well... Except, I'm thinking of not keeping it to myself." You shyly told him as he raised a brow at you, shocked and also sad for his brother and how heartbroken he would be. It was inevitable though, as he and their mother often told him.

"Oh really? Well, good for you. Good luck with getting a decent enough person to give you advices!" You looked at him curiously as he almost seemed... nervous to continue this talk.

Is he... pretending to not understand me? Or mocking me?

You stared at Bill who was eating his sandwiches with a happy grin, trying hard to not look at you and confront you to save himself from the stress, sternly until he lifted his eyes to look at you and his mouth fell open in shock.

"Wait... You want my advice?!"

"Yeah, who else's?" You sarcastically said, pointing between you and him and showing the other empty seats. But Bill's attention wasn't on any of them, since y'know, he was freaking out, choking on his food.

Nope... Nope, nope, that was bad! He couldn't betray his little brother like that!

"Don't you remember the Emily Tyler thing? Trust me, Y/N... I'm the worst person you could have come to!"

"Bill."

"Oh... Oh, you are very serious, and you aren't going to give up, are you?"

The only answer he got was a playful rise of your brow and a smirk.

After a very long lunch with Bill, and trying to convince him that it was a good idea to ask his opinion, you felt tired.

Why would you trust my advice?

You've never led me wrong, Bill.

Do you ask because I'm older?

Trick question. You are older... and wiser!

The list of questions continued. You couldn't help but get suspicious of him and his strange behaviour. Now, it was official that Bill was the mother hen of your large friend group, being the only one who had 2 brain cells, and he tended to get worried about almost everything... Possibly a treat of having 6 younger siblings.

But he, never even for once, hesitated to help you with something. It was almost like he was looking for an opportunity to run away from this conversation, or you in general whenever he saw you out with your friends.

You were starting to get worried you were being a nuisance to him.

But... who else were you supposed to go, when your crush was the little brother he was always looking out for? None other than, Charlie Weasley himself.

It was patheatic really, how you silently suffered because of this crush. It didn't help that he always hung out with you, or that you got to spend the summer with him and his family.

You saw him, the true him every day even more and this crush was getting our of control.

Now, you knew he was an outdoor-loving, adventurous spirit and probably, the best way to ask him... out, was in the forest. A picnic date? Maybe?

Oh Merlin, I can't believe I'm about to do this... Rejection is at the horizon, and I can always write to mum and ask her to transfer me to Beauxbatons.

Besides, Aurélie likes me. I'm sure she could-

Your train of thought were cut when Bill suddenly laughed awkwardly, looking at once again, anywhere but you..."I can't believe we are about to have this conversation... It's been a while since I gave any advices."

But ultimately failed at seeing your... saddened face.

Which made the mother alarms in his mind go off.

"Hey, hey, what's wrong? Did I do something? Did someone do something? They better pray for a higher power, because I will-" he stumbled over his words as he took a hold of your hand to comfort you, but frowned when you took it away from him.

"It's not that... Bill, you would be honest with me, right?"

"Of course, what kind of a question is that?" He frowned at you as he sat down on the bench outside Hogsmeade, a hand on your knee as he rubbed it comfortingly.

"Because... I'm starting to think that I am being a nuisance to you, by how you always try to run away from me."

Oh Merlin, this isn't going to places good...

Panic suddenly rose in Bill's chest, seeing how you trully believed in that by his actions. He failed to realize how his actions affected you, when he tried hard to not betray his brother like that.

But you didn't do anything to deserve this, and he was instead betraying you.

"Well... I'm sorry if I gave that idea but, it's not that. It's just... Everyone looks at me as if I know something they don't. I mean, I don't even have experience in that part! And now, my best friend is asking me for help, and I don't know what to do."

You looked at him softly, suddenly realizing that this was also hard for him and you were just making things up. "Bill, I really appreciate your concerns but I came to you for a reason: I trust you. I talked with Penny, Tulip, Barnaby, even Talbott! But in the end, you were the one who always helped me first..."

A cheeky grin took over your face soon, which already told enough to Bill that you were planning to tease him after a heartfelt conversation.

"Besides two years more experience is a lot when it comes to dating, isn't it old hag?" You elbowed his side and ruffled his hair playfully, which he secretly took great care of, and took of for a running while Bill scoffed at you and prepared to run after you.

"Oh, you little rascal... Come here!"

After letting out a squeal and running away from Bill while laughing freely, he finally caught up to you and offered to drink Butterbeer to cool down and finally help ypu put with your problem, your head between his arms in a headlock as you struggled to get away from him.

Even if he would be betraying his brother, he couldn't let you all alone by yourself.

"So... What's the best way of asking out my crush?" You asked to him, eyes hopefull, as Bill looked at you through the glass he was drinking and smirked at you teasingly.

"Well... Definetly, I wouldn't recommend a note. It could easily fall into wrong hands."

"Haha, Bill. So funny, I'm glad my misery is so funny to you." You giggled embrassed as he shook with laughter, his long hair falling onto his face.

"Well, all jokes aside, face to face would be the best think to do. It may be the most nerve-wracking but involving anyone or anything else complicate things."

You nodded thoughtfully as you drank your butterbeer, weighing your options and which place would be the best thing to do such thing... When Bill's silence made you look at him confused.

"Is that all? Surely the Bill Weasley has other advices to give to his cute and in dire-need-of-help underclassman who is also his best friend, right?" You cheekily exclaimed, batting your lashes at him while hoping that it would help, making him shook his head in disbelief at you.

" Yeah, my cute underclassman, I told you I'd come prepared. I promised I would help, remember? Even if I may feel silly giving them..." he cracked his back as he took his notebook and pencil out, writing his list down under your watching and curious eyes.

Sorry, Charlie... Forgive me.

"First, compliment them. Everyone likes compliments, and don't dive directly to the topic. That would scare them. Also, don't overthink, something hard in your condition." He pointedly said as you rolled your eyes at him, elbowing him to continue.

"Spending time with someone you like should be fun and relaxing. And remember: Your date might be just as nervous as you are. There is a high chance that it is both your first times dating, so relax knowing that it's also a first for him."

After minutes of talking and him advising you, you were feeling... enlightened? Your plans of taking Charlie to the forest would work, it seemed!

And he called himself bad at giving advices, what the hell? He had been even more useful than the others!

"So, any questions?" Bill clapped his hands expectingly as he stared at you, waiting for an answer. But the answer he got was one that made him blush.

Almost. You were still the girl his brother, who had been obsessed with dragons as long as he can remember, liked. He wasn't going to act like a schoolboy talking to a girl for the first time.

"And you call yourself bad at giving advices! Bill, you just saved my life and my potential date!"

"Now, I wouldn't get too excited. I didn't save anything, yet." He said, suddenly turning serious as he looked at you. "Until you ask your crush out, your date goes amazing and you leave as a girl who has a boyfriend, I don't consider anything over."

"There is... a high chance that he could reject me, you know that right?" You meekly said, your fingers clutching your clothes thightly. His confidence for your ability, or lack of, to ask someone out surprised you. Actually, everyone thought you to be very confident for some reasons.

Was it because you were dealing with the Vaults? Or Merula? Or maybe you just gave off that vibe even if you were an anxious ball of stress almost half of the time?

"And if that happens... Just think of it as an adventure. You've been on many of them."

"It's something I know of, dating though? I don't have any experience."

That girl and her pessimistic brain...

Bill sighed out irritated at your sudden lack of confidence and got a hold of your cheeks to make you look straight into his eyes as he used the ultimate weapon: The Mum Voice.

" Y/N Y/L/N, everything will be fine! I'm trying to lighten the mood here... Just because this is something new for you, something you have never done before and don't have control over, it doesn't mean it will end bad. To me, everything will turn out fine for you."

"I really hope so... This means a lot to me, y'know?" you blushed softly and Bill was stricken with a realization: You grew up from the little first year you were to a fine young woman, with steady steps.

"If you aren't gonna tell me who he is... At least tell me what he likes, maybe that could help finding a good spot for your first date?"

And also save me from finding that guy and breaking the news to Charlie?

"Hmm... That's an interesting idea, actually...." you hummed thoughtfully to yourself, confirmation from Charlie's own brother would be almost the same as his. But you were not aware of the wide eyes Bill was giving to someone behind you as you dived into your fantasies. "Uh huh, shit..."

"Hmm? What is it, who are you talking- C-Charlie? Tonks?"

There stood Charlie, shook to his core as he clutched his bag thightly in his arms, heart beating loudly at the sight before his eyes. Out of anything he expected to happen, seeing his brother with his crush wasn't on the list when he merrily woke up today with the greatest stretch of his life in the morning.

What were you two doing? Why were you alone? And what was that interesting idea anyways? Not that he was jealous, no no not at all...

Meanwhile Tonks looked between you and Charlie awkwardly as Bill signed her to help him out, to which she awkwardly cleaned her throat.

"Wotcher, Y/N! We weren't expecting to see you here, right mate?" She emphasised pointedly, elbowing Charlie so that he could stop sending daggers to his own brother before he knew what was going on.

"Yes, of course." He replied with icy cold voice, though it wasn't directed at you and he was looking rather softly and sadly at you, you wondered if something happened between the two.

Something Bill didn't mention, because they were both fine this morning, and he had been with you ever since the lunch time so he didn't spend any time with Charlie enought to set him off.

Before you could ask, he walked up to your table and stood between you and him, with a pointed look to his brother.

"I heard that my brother has an interesting idea. Please, do tell. It's very rare, after all..."

Ufff, something definetly happened. Because the Charlie Weasley you knew wasn't like that.

With a frown, you answered him, not knowing that you kind of made everything even worse. " He was helping me ask my crush out, and asked what he liked doing... But what's wrong with you? You are never... this sarcastic?"

Well, it was definetly a way to put it in Charlie's eyes. He knew he was being irrational, after all, you and him weren't a thing. You weren't dating or anything, so he didn't have a reason to stand against you hanging out with his brother.

Besides, he had been your friend almost since first year started, and maybe... If he had just gotten over his anxiety back then and talked to you, he would be the one standing next to you, supporting you through everything you went through, protecting you.

Which he was already doing, just... a little bit later than he wanted.

With a broken heart, he looked at you and sighed sadly, not saying anything as Bill landed a reassuring hand on your arm. "Don't worry, Y/N... I think my brother just picked today to show his development in humour. What luck, trully..."

Witnessing the silent battle the two brothers were having, Tonks tried to think of a way to stop this. But just as everyone here knew, she was bad at this.

"I heard uh, the accident with note, Y/N... I hope you are feeling better now."

"Note? What note?" asked Charlie curiously as he watched your expression change and you blushed.

If his heart wasn't squeezing painfully in his chest at knowing that you had a crush, he could awe at you and memorize this momet to think about it later before he slept.

"You don't know? I'm surprised actually, everyone seems to be very into knowing who I like... Thanks for your worry though, Tonks. I feel better."

"Yeah, I mean... Snape already scares people enough. Adding the fact that he, accidently or not, stumbled upon a personal thing..."

"Oh... So, that note never reached to your crush?" Charlie hoped that his hopeful voice wasn't also carried by his question, trying to seem cool to you as if your heart didn't already belong to someone else.

You, meanwhile, gulped down hard at seeing him very... interested in it. But it wasn't like your other friends', they wanted to know purely out of curiosity and wished you to be happy...

When Charlie wanted to know everything because... He was jealous? No way, your crush liking you back wasn't an option, right? Besides, why would he feel jealous? He wasn't interested in dating and you were already walking on eggshells.

But this exchange... And the talk she had with Charlie a few hours ago how he wished it was him you were into, that it was him who would take you to a date...

Tonks had a plan.

"No, not really... Why did you want to kno-"

"You know what, Y/N? We will help you plan your date!"

"What?!" You and Charlie both yelled at the same time, eyes wide in shock at what she said from two different reasons.

Charlie couldn't believe his own ears at what his best friend was telling. Helping you with your date? Was she out of her mind? Did she and him not talk about his feelings for you?

"What? I'm not into dating anyone and Charlie... well, he is your best friend! He would like to help, right?" Charlie agreed with what seemed to be sarcastic nod of his head as he started to pick at the skin near his finger out of anger, looking between his friend and brother as you laughed awkwardly and pulled Tonks to yourself.

"Tonks..." you whispered down to her silently with thight lips, looking up at her. "Why the hell are you so invested in planning my date so suddenly anyways?"

"I told you, it's because-"

"I heard it clearly but... Are you sure it's not to learn who my crush is-"

"We don't care about your crush, Y/N."

You looked at Charlie with shocked eyes as they were filled with tears slightly at the sharp tone he used and how... cold he sounded. At that moment, he wasn't the same warm-hearted boy you met, he wasn't the friendly boy who you talked about dragons all the time even though you didn't understand everything about them but did it anyways just to make him happy, and he definetly wasn't the same boy you fell asleep on as you basked in his soft touches...

But you wondered... what it was you did that made him so angry.

"Charlie, what the hell?!" Bill angrily let out as he got up to confront his brother who was also shocked and shaking at what left his mouth. That definetly wasn't the way he was raised, definetly not him at all.

I didn't mean it like that... Even if it was "I" instead of "we".

"No... Wait, Y/N! I didn't mean it like that! We care about you. Please, let me just-"

But he was already late as he watched you got out of the Three Broomstick hurriedly, Tonks following you right after as he was left with a fuming Bill.

"What the hell, Charles?! Don't you know the school talking about her and her brother, also adding the fact that her crush was revealed, that she had been stressfull? Why were you even acting like that?!" He dragged him outside to scold him, pushing him by his shoulders. His shoulders sag in sadness as he let his brother push him lightly, knowing that he deserved it after his unreasonable outburst at you.

"I... I know it's no excuse but I... I was jealous and couldn't bare it anymore. It hurts, Bill."

Bill looked at his brother's teary eyes and guilty face with a soft look, his anger having long been gone at the pitiful sight of him. He understood why he felt like that, having to hear the girl you like liking someone else and all, but still...

It wasn't enough of a reason to treat tou like this.

"I understand why, little brother but it was too much... You will go to her now and be completely honest to her, Charlie. You know she deserves it."

"I know..." he mumbled silently, his chest constracting painfully in his ribcage as his stomach was knitting itself anxiously.

"And she would never ditch you out for having feelings for her either. She didn't do it with anyone, and she will not do it with you. Now go!" He pushed Charlie towards the open area to where you ran, hoping that everything would turn out fine for both of you...

And that what Tonks said was true.

"She likes Charlie, had been for a year or so. But she is shit at showing it. All they need is a little push."

"But... I don't know where she is!" Charlie hastily yelled out as he looked at Bill over his shoulder to see him sighing irritatedly. Stupid teenagers...

"She is your bestfriend, you crush! You know her better than anyone!"

And yes, he did know where you were thanks to what Bill said, and ran to where he thought you were.

An apology and explaination already ready in his mind as he begged to Merlin that he wasn't too late to fix his mess.

If you were to ask Charlie when he started falling for you, he wouldn't be able to give you an exact time. For the most part of his friendship with you, he didn't even realize that his feelings went beyond admiration. His friends and brothers always teased him for it whenever he called you "his bestfriend that he never imagined to have", and as a result, would get a snarky comment from Bill like "What a good way to add in your confession, brother! So romantic~"

But perhaps what sealed the deal for him and opened his eyes was that one time when you were cold in the common room, reading together and he gave you his sweater with his initial on it. (He pretended not to realize how cute you looked in it and how his heart beated faster at the sight of you, suddenly feeling possessive because damn it, you were so cute and beautiful as you read your book.)

And then, as if the sight didn't already turn him into a puddle, you mumbled a sweet it smells like you and buried yourself deeper in the sweater whilst continuing to read your book, completely unaware to how red he was because woah, seeing you so cozy in his clothes and as a big part of his life really opened a new window!

In your defence, you thought it was because he was hot from sitting in front of the fireplace witg that sweater on. And besides, he always ran warm for some reasons.

And then, just like that, his "bestie" attitude would turn into hearts and stars, accompanied by the "love of my life, my shining star and the meaning of my life" type of attitude. He had started to see all the outings you two did together, or all the times you went to the Three Broomsticks together, as dates and imagined himself just sitting next to you, an arm around your shoulders as he looked at you with loving eyes.

Apart from the fact that he absolutely sucked when it came to romance and being flirty, rather loosing track of his thoughts and stutter in your presence( which made you often giggle and call him adorable before pecking his cheek and setting them aflame) even though Andre often called him "an utter catch" while listing all the reasons why.

You are friendly, quick-witted, hard working, kind, play Quidditch and "annoyingly handsome" as a good friend of him-you- said.

So, he said nothing about his new-found feelings in fear that his friends and brother would make it worse by teasing him, he didn't have to know the miserable heart eyes he was giving you whenever you were close already gave it away, and try to desperately just be your friend. He couldn't risk ruining the best thing happened to him with his feelings, so he tried to avoid you in hopes that his feelings could disappear.

Spoiler alert, it didn't...

But his behaviour only ended up with you liking someone else and then him feeling stupid because he didn't act on his feelings before and get angry at himself and everything.

Human nature, after all, tended to blame orher things rather than themselves.

But now, he had to suck it up and go up to you, possibly explain everything and even comfess so that he would be free of the restrictions they brought to him and maybe, by a tiny chance, you would return his feelings back.

"Hey..."

Hearing his timid voice behind you, you wiped your cheeks hastily and turned to him. You knew your eyes gave you away, with its redness and all, and you saw how Charlie winced at the sight, almost seeming like he was just as in pain as you were.

But why would he, you thought. He was the one who made me feel like shit, why would feel bad?

"I've come to... apologize, for my behaviour. I didn't mean to be such a prick. I'm sorry for shouting and hurting you... and made you cry." He mumbled in a sorry manner, playing with his fingers anxiously as he waited behind you to say something. Every second you were just sitting there silently, your back to him as the wind brushed through your hair and clothes, he got even more anxious.

Maybe he lost his chance? Did you really get hurt by his words that much? Of course, you did, you didn't deserve to hear any of them and-

"It's okay, I forgive you... Even though you were total jackass." He chuckled and nodded at you, not that you saw it as you pat the spot next to you and waited until he was fully seated next to you. The calm and silence was a good one, after all the hectic week you had, but even then...

You were restless, as your crush who just made you cry was sitting next to you.

And you wanted to know why he did what he did.

"Why did you say that? Back at the Three Broomsticks? Why did you act like that?" You asked softly, no hint of judgement in your voice, only confusion as you looked at Charlie with knitted brows, frowning when he stiffened at your question.

"You wouldn't understand..." he mumbled, shaking his head as if he was you and actually knew how you would react. That was one of the things that could anger you, just like it did in that moment, as your irritated eyes found his soft and pained ones, watching you with a thundering heart as his breath got faster at your angry shout.

"Then make me, Charlie! I'm your best friend! What did I do to deserve-"

It was your right to know it, you definetly didn't deserve to be left in the shadows but he was... scared. Scared of loosing you, scared of ruining everything. Scared of you hating him...

But he had to be brave, and accept whatever happens after what he was about to say.

"You made me fall for you, that's what you did!"

Out of all the answers you expected from the redhead, this definetly wasn't on the list.

Charlie? Weasley? The one who loves only dragons? He loved you?

You could actually dance around and scream in delight from how happy you were as a wide smile took over your face completely. You wanted to shout, jump on Charlie and kiss him breathless, later peppering his whole face on them as you stared at his freckles, then go and gush to Rowan, or Penny, scream in happiness with them too!

But before you could open your mouth after the shock of hearing your crush liking you back, Charlie continued to talk. He thought if he just kept talking and poured his heart out, you wouldn't slap him across the face and leave him there, heartbroken.

Maybe he could postpone the inevitable just a bit.

The inevitable in his eyes.

"What he have... our friendship is so perfect, I have everything I want in my life. My family, friends, you," his voice shook as he shuffled closer to you, and you wondered if your heart was loud enough for him to hear.

You looked at him sweetly, his worry of loosing you, how much he cared-no, loved- you made you melt at him. Tears of happiness strung up your eyes as you gingerly took his calloused hand and squeezed it.

"And how do you think I feel?" You whispered, making Charlie look at you confused and tilt his head.

"What do you mean by that?"

Welp, here goes nothing...

You sighed deeply, turning your whole body towards him and took both of his hands in yours. He looked at you shocked for a second, heart jumping up to his throat as his eyes first landed down on your hands holding his and then back to your own eyes.

"Charlie, the reason I was so secretive about my crush was because... Because it was you."

Now, it was Charlie's turn to be shocked. Because out of every kind of angry ways he expected this talk to go, you confessing to him wasn't one of them.

That crush being him, wasn't even close!

Taking his silence as a sign to continue, you sucked in a breath.

The word was already out anyways.

"I only tried to get more hints on what you like and dislike, so that I could ask you out properly. I mean, I know I'm your bestfriend but... I also know that you aren't into dating and have your focus on dragons-"

"I love you more than dragons." You smiled at how fast and eagerly he said that, clear genuine love pouring out of him, and nodded your head.

"I know that now..."

"I thought... You know, Barnaby was your crush and I felt so jealous. He had liked you for almost as long as I did and... I thought tou would see him more of a better match for you."

"But why would you think that?"

"I know you are kind of scared of dragons, and can't keep every information about them in your mind." You blushed at being caught. You thought tou made sure you didn't give away!

Charlie smiled at your blushing face and chuckled, raising his hand to touch your cheek but hesitating. You felt his hand get close to your face, shaking slightly. You giggled at his obvious nerves and nuzzled closer to his palm, pulling it towards your face as you gazed at him with eyes full of love.

And Charlie forgot what he had to say at the sight of your lovely self.

"A-And Barnaby and you... like the other creatures more, y-you even bonded with his Knarl and went on many, uh... alone hanging outs."

"Charlie... What I feel for Barnaby is completely platonic, he is only my friend. What I feel for you is much stronger." You smiled at him softly, lovingly with your eyes accidently drawn to his lips.

"I've been denying my feelings for you at first, I wasn't going to let my feelings get in our way, I was afraid I would loose my bestfriend but you were and are still my bestfriend. I just didn't think you would... actually feel the same."

He shuffled closer, your thighs touching each other as your faces came closer and closer."I have been dreaming about this... Longing for you to feel the same, wanting to be with you..." He whispered, close enough that you felt his hot breath as his lips hovered over yours, barely touching yours.

"We are both idiots in love, then?" You whispered to his lips and he laughed, the sound of it making your heart skip a bit and smile lovingly at him.

"I wouldn't have it the other way..."

Suddenly aware of thw situation you were in, you could have backed out and instead take it slow. But Charlie was intoxicating, he called you to him like a flame did to a moth and your lips met for the first time. The kiss was soft and slow at the beginning, a little bit clumsy as expected but it was just... perfect.

You ran your hand through his hair, pulling his hair tie back as his long hair fell down his shoulders. You had been craving to kiss him, and pull on his locks in a make-out and you exactly did that.

Your teeth might have clashed, from how wide you both were smiling as Charlie's hand travelled across the expanse of your back and settled on your waist, but you both knew that this was definetly not gonna be the first time your lips would meet.

Now that both sides had a taste of the other, both of you became each other's drug.

"But you still owe me a date. You made me cry, y'know?" You teased him while panting after breaking apart, still in each others vicinity as he looked down at your lips in a daze and nodded.

"I'll spent my life making up for it, love. And I already planned our next 50 dates."

"Is it okay if I kiss you again?" You couldn't help but ask, wanting to only drown in him and his kisses. Dates could wait, you and him had a life time for more dates anyways. He chuckled and leant down with a smirk as his lips caught yours.

"I would like that very much."

And indeed, he really made up for it.

[amalthea-fictions]

Can you make a Charlie Weasley x Jacob's sibling where the reader can actually speak to dragons? Like Hiccup in httyd books or Harry with the snake-like beings

Oooh interesting concept! For purposes of the piece I'm not gonna worry about why or how the MC can speak to dragons and we're just gonna not ask questions~

---------------------------

"[Y/N!] Have you seen Charlie?"

You look up from your sandwich and shake your head, mouth still half-full.

"I haven't. Is he okay?"

Bill runs his hand through his hair, and you realize he's sweating. "I'm worried he's not. I haven't seen him all day, and we were supposed to meet for lunch. It's unlike him to be this late."

You hear a scoff from behind you. Merula lilts her head.

"The second filthy Weasley?" She snorts. "He probably heard Barnaby going on about the dragon he saw in the forest today. Apparently Kettleburn let it loose or something."

Bill blanches. "Oh bloody hell."

You and Bill sprint to the forest with such speed and determination that you're both heaving by the time you get there. Bill is frantic.

"Where--where did Barnaby say he saw it again?" He pants.

You point in the general direction as you try and catch your breath.

Bill springs forward, and you follow closely. Greenery whips against your face as you push through branches. Leaves crack under your boots as you race through. Bowtruckles scatter above. Until finally, you emerge into a clearing--

--and see Charlie, alone, holding a steak out in front of him.

Bill sighs.

"Bill?" Charlie looks up. "Oh, crap. Did I lose track of time?"

"Yes!" He marches forward to his younger brother and inspects him. "You had me worried sick! I thought you were dragon bait."

Charlie shakes his head. "No, unfortunately not."

Bill spits. "Unfortunately?!"

"Well-- you know, Barnaby said that Kettleburn's dragon escaped, and so I was hoping to see it-- I didn't mean to worry anybody--"

Charlie continues, and Bill begins lecturing him, but you notice the Bowtruckles and the Fairies have suddenly begun to hide.

"Um, boys?"

They don't hear you.

"Why would you go looking for a dragon ALONE?"

"Well, Barnaby said it's green, so it's probably only a Welsh Green. They're mostly harmless--"

The leaves on the trees begin to shake.

"Boys," you say a bit louder. "I think--"

ROAARR!!

A huge dragon booms into the clearing, the force of its wings knocking everyone over as it lands.

Bill and Charlie scramble back.

"Oh crap," Charlie mutters.

"Charlies? You said Welsh Greens are harmless, right?"

Charlie shakes his head. "This isn't a Green. It's a Norwegian Ridgeback. And she seems hungry."

The dragon swishes its tail and cuts through a row of trees like they're made of butter. They groan as they fall to the forest floor.

You hurry and scramble to your feet.

"Charlie!" Bill cries. "Throw it the bloody steak at it so we can get away!"

Charlie tosses the steak forward, but the dragon screeches, uninterested. It takes a step forward.

Bill tries to draw his wand.

You leap forward, between the dragon and the boys. You hold both palms open towards the dragon.

"[Y/N]?!" Bill shouts. "Move! You'll get killed!"

You ignore him and keep your eyes solely on the dragon.

"We mean you no harm," you say in draconic.

The dragon swishes its tail, agitated. It snorts, and steam furls out of its nostrils.

"Why are you upset?" You try again.

"[Y/N]?" Charlie asks. You hear the two boys moving to their feet behind you. "What's going on?"

Finally, the dragon lowers its head to you. A low growl rumbles from its throat.

You swallow. "She--she's upset," you explain, "because some First Year let her out of Care for Creatures. She misses Kettleburn."

You briefly look behind you and see that Bill's jaw has dropped, dumbfounded, and Charlie's eyes are twinkling.

"Are you a dovahkiin-tongue, [Y/N]?! Why did you never tell me this before?!"

Bill punches him on the arm.

You turn your attention back to the dragon, and inch forward, your palms still open. "We can take you back to Kettleburn. He will probably feed you there, too. We just need you to stay calm."

The dragon narrows its eyes at you, its nostrils flaring again. But then, it nods.

You all sigh with relief.

~~~~

Under your guidance, the Weasley boys manage to heard the Norwegian Ridgeback back into Care for Magical Creatures. Kettleburn asked Bill, as the senior student, to help him feed the beast. Bill obeyed, but promised to give Charlie a stern talking-to later.

You and Charlie watch as they disappear behind the treeline.

Finally, Charlie turns to you and grabs your hands.

"[Y/N]!" He exclaims. "That was brilliant! Why didn't you tell me you could speak to dragons!?"

Your face turns hot. You blink, your mind going blank.

Charlie's hands are warm around yours. He's beaming.

"Um," you try, "I. I guess I always thought it's weird, so I don't talk about--"

"Weird?!" He interrupts. "Are you joking?! What I'd give to be a dovahkiin-tongue! That's incredible! You're incredible!"

His smile brightens, and you feel the blood rush into your ears.

"C'mon," he says, and begins pulling you off. "We've got to talk more about this. I have SO many questions!"

~~~

For the rest of the day, Charlie would not stop asking you questions about your unique skill. Not that you minded the extra time with him, of course.

You're both sitting in the courtyard together, the clear night sky twinkling overhead.

"Fus," you try explaining again.

"Fus," he says, but his pronunciation is... horribly off.

Your bite your cheek. "How can I explain it... less 'oo' like a cow mooing."

He laughs, then perks up. "Hey! Maybe it would help if I actually feel the shape of your facial muscles when you do it. Would you mind that?"

The sparkle in his eyes is so enthusiastic, so sincere, it makes your brain freeze.

"U-uhm, sure," you start, but before you even finish, he's reached his hand out to cup your cheek.

You hope the starlight above isn't enough to illuminate how intensely your face is burning.

"Now, let's try again," Charlie beams.

You gulp and feel your heart restart from where it was frozen.

"Fus," you manage to stutter.

Charlie blinks, then smiles his brilliant smile.

"Interesting," he muses. "I think that helped. I felt that you actually suck your cheek in, like in a whistle, for the vowel."

His hand is still on your cheek, soft and warm. All you can do is nod.

He holds your gaze and doesn't move. He doesn't say anything for the next moment-- only stares at you, his lips curled into a soft smile.

"You know," he finally says, gently. "You have really soft skin, [Y/N.]"

Your heart backflips.

And --for a second, under the moonlight-- you swear you see his freckled cheeks dusted pink, too.

After what feels like an eternity, he lowers his hand and clears his throat. "Well, ah," he says, "it's getting late, isn't it? We should probably head back to the dorms before the professors yell at us."

You nod hastily, your heart still pounding. "Yes, you're right."

"But! We'll definitely pick up where we left off tomorrow!"

He bids you goodnight, and later that night, in bed, you can't help but inch your hand up to the cheek he had held so intently.

Pick up where we left off...

You smile as you drift to sleep.