Memory
Arriving at St. Mungos was surreal. The last time Charlie had been there was when he father had ben attacked by Nagini, and then again to visit Bill when he had been attacked by Fenrir Greyback. Seeing familiar faces though was a great relief, Talbot and Chiara were in his room within minutes of his arrival, being briefed on what had happened at the Romanian hospital. There was a look across Talbott's face, and both Iris and Charlie knew he wasn't happy about something and pulled the Romanian doctor away to have a chat while Chiara worked on Charlie's pain management.
She and Iris chatted happily, and Charlie never fully realized just how close the two girls were until they began giggling like schoolgirls.
“Am I going to get something for my pain, or am I just going to hear giggling?” Charlie joked.
“I'm getting to it.” Chiara nodded, swirling a potion around in a vial for him. “I just have to wait on Talbott to verify it.” She assured him. “We don't want to cause any adverse reactions, like sprouting a second head.”
Talbott came in a short time later and briefed Chiara on what it was that Charlie had been receiving in the other hospital. Neither of them seemed to thrilled with the other's choice of medicine and pain management. They did settle on giving Charlie the skelegrow lite, a slower paced potion, so that if it looked like the leg wasn't set correctly they could fix it before there was any adverse reaction or crooked leg.
With that, they also administered a sleeping draught, and a potion for pain so that Charlie would sleep through the first, most painful part of setting his leg bones. Before they administered that, they changed bandages, and applied more burn serum. Charlie actually admitted that he felt a little hungry, most of the potions before had squelched his hunger, but with the change in medicine he felt a little perkier.
He was able to have some water and almost a whole sandwich before the sleeping draught caught up to him and he was snoring logs.
Iris sat on the little couch and settled in and opened a notebook to start looking over notes from the farm. She managed to keep her head on farm matters for a great deal until her foggy brain started to wonder. Charlie was sleeping soundly for the first time in days, and wasn't whimpering or moaning in pain, whatever Talbott and Chiara had given him for pain really seemed to help.
His head was lolled back, mouth open, snoring relatively loudly. She snickered to herself and it took her back to memories at Hogwarts, camping at the dragon sanctuary with Bill, late night study sessions, and... Two very distinct memories she had done her best to try and repress deep, deep down in the farthest corner of her brain.
~*~
Iris was getting ready to face Peregrine and the mind controlling crown. She had just had a meeting with the Circle of Khana and she and Barnaby were getting ready to meat with him, and hopefully steal the crown back.
Charlie bit his tongue, but wanted nothing more then to blow a gasket. How could Iris do this to herself? How could Dumbledore and Madeye actually think that letting her handle it essentially on her own was a great idea? He followed her up to the Gryffindor Tower and into her room, not caring that he was breaking all the rules of no boys.
“Iris,” Charlie opened the door to her room and saw her in front of the mirror, braiding her hair. Putting Iris in danger like that that, well she had more then likely agreed, but to ask her something like that... Charlie had never been so angry in his life. “I don't like this idea, Iris.”
“Well join the fucking club.” She told him, tiredly, turning around to look at him. “You think I do?”
“Then why-”
“Because weather or not I see him as my father, he still is, and I'm the reason everyone is involved and entangled with R.” Iris shouted. “I don't get choices in matters, I get told! I'm tired of it! I'm hoping that somehow this will be the end of it and I can actually try to figure out how to relax and actually just have some peace! Every single year I have had something to agonize, grieve, or stress over! Since I was eleven years old! I have never been able to do anything even halfway normal that a teenager could do! I've never been on a date! I can barely enjoy the dances we have had because some calamity happens and I am always the one to fix it!” Iris had finally reached her point, and Charlie had been the one to drop the match into the powder barrel. “Crap that has nothing to do with me I end up having to fix! Oh just give it to Iris, she'll fix it no matter, but she better make sure to save the school and get her homework in on time, not mention her duty to the Quidditch team, her extra hours at the Ministry and St. Mungos, and hippogriff club, and sphynx club, and dragon club! Not to mention the Frog Chior, and she's head girl in her dead best friends place!” She raged to Charlie. He stood there flabbergasted for minute, actually processing all that Iris did.
“And your flowers.”
“AND MY FUCKING FLOWERS!” Iris threw her arms up in the air exasperated and collapsed onto her bed, dropping her head into her hands. Charlie starred at her, slack jawed for a few seconds, his mouth clicking shut a few time as he tried to figure out what to tell her. He wanted to fix it. Wanted to help Iris, because she was right, she always was the defacto fixer and it was slowly but surely draining the life from her. But the only way he could tangibly see any change, any way to actually give Iris the peace she needed-
“Let's leave.” Charlie blurted. “Right now. We don't need to finish out seventh year.” He pulled his bag around him and dug inside for a moment before brandishing a letter. “I've already been accepted to work at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, and I've been approached to play seeker for the English National Team. Here,” he handed Iris the letter who tentatively took it and then watched as he tutted about, opening her trunk to throw things inside. “You can grow flowers anywhere while we figure out what to do.” He explained as he started to grab open her drawer and pull out her things.
“Charlie.” Iris called his name as she watched him collect her things. Perhaps it was just because someone was actually showing concern for her but she watched him, her heart broke just a little knowing that he was doing it all for not. He managed to quickly pack away all her things, empty her drawers, and close the trunk, shrinking it to carrying size. He hoisted it up under his arm and turned to look at Iris who looked at him through watery eyes. Charlie reached his hand out to her. Iris had never been so moved at someone's willingness to drop everything for her.
“We just need to go to the greenhouse and get your plants and-”
“Charlie... I can't.” She admitted. “There's to many people relying on me.”
“Iris, you could die.”
“I could have died plenty of times before, why is now so different?” Iris asked him, confused at his sudden concern for her life. It was true, she could have died during any of the cursed vaults, and in some cases even in the search for them.
Charlie found himself looking for the answer, besides the obvious which was that he cared about her. Iris had become part of his family, she had sat in the Burrow braiding Ginny's hair not more then a couple months ago at Christmas and she even had a hand on the family clock. She had helped his Mum cook dinner for the entire family, met other members of their family, and... He cared for her. He had never told her this, nor had he really realized it until now, because it had been something slow and natural in nature.
She saw him for all of who he was, the Dragon guy and the Quidditch player. The brave Gryffindor and the quiet accolade. The outdoorsman and the homebody. Iris never expected anything from him besides his friendship and his trust. He knew he had affection for her, but in her question he realized just how far and much the roots of that affection went. Just how much of him that she held in her hands.
“Because before you were the one who made the decision, you wanted to find the vaults, you wanted to bring the curses to a close, you wanted to avenge Rowan. This feels like the Aurors way of cheating in their job. They're professional Dark Wizard hunters and instead of actually doing the job they want to use a student to do it? Why not just use polyjuice or something to imitate you? Why do you actually have to do it?” Charlie asked her, and he could tell by the look that crossed her face she was beginning to wonder why they didn't do that instead.
“So what, just run away with you? Do you know what people will think?” Iris asked him. Charlie had always been so against dating, and now all of a sudden he was wanting her to run away with him, and she knew people would talk and think it was because they were having some torrid love affair. “People's tongues wag like puppy dog tails in this castle. They'll make it out like we've had some torrid love affair or-”
“I don't care.” Charlie told her. He put her trunk down, and bent down on his knees. “I've never cared what people think about me, I just don't want you killing yourself because you've been guilted into helping.” He reached out and grabbed her hands in his, “leave a hair, if it's that important they'll use the polyjuice potion, hell, leave ten! Just... Get out of here. I'll be with you every step, you won't be alone ever again, Iris.” He felt like he was begging, something he just never did. He could see the temptation to go with him in her face, and for a moment, he thought she was going to agree. Iris leaned forward and rested her forehead against his, not in a romantic way, but almost... Like she was telling Charlie goodbye.
“I'll see you when I get back.” Those seven words hurt Charlie more then he ever cared to admit.
~*~
Iris had wanted to go with Charlie. She knew with him that she would be safe, and he would have been her voice when she felt she had none. He would have told people no when she couldn't. Even when she got back to Hogwarts, she almost went and found him, and asked if the offer still stood. With that said, she couldn't ask him to leave when they were so close to graduating.
There was also... This odd unspoken tension that neither of them would address.
What exactly were they?
She recalled the Christmas where she thought he almost kissed her, and in truth, she wanted him too. Then there was the Room of Requirement party, where they had kissed and it had been electric. Iris would feel herself blush whenever she thought about it. Then there was the... Party incident at the Burrow.
She looked over where Charlie was deep asleep. Even now, she had no idea what exactly they were or where they stood. It was like they were entangled in this odd dance since they were fifteen, but she could finally see clearly how to untangle herself from it... Because she was the one still caught.
Charlie was still there. Still holding his hand out to take her from the pain, just like he had all those years ago.