The Heart's Content

Chapter 99

Alastor didn't go home that night. He had spent all hours that evening running around town, looking everywhere for Charlie. Just searching and calling her name until exhaustion caused him to drop in an alleyway somewhere. When he awoke in the morning he felt terrible. He felt like he had made a terrible mistake and had lost his only chance at happiness. What if he never found Charlie? What if she never came back? What if last ngith she chose to just say "The Hell with it" and go home? What would he do then?

"Alastor?"

Then by some miracle, there she stood before him, her dress and long blonde hair disheveled by the wind but still looking as lovely as ever.

"Charlie!" He stood up quickly. "For a minute I thought I'd never see you again. I thought what I had said upset you so much that you ran home and that you'd never come back."

"Oh I couldn't do that even if I wanted to."

She slowly approached him.

"Charlie I'm so sorry for going off on you like that. I shouldn't have gotten so angry. I was just afraid of losing you and I was frustrated that it could happen without even a reason. But I understand now, you have a lot on your mind and you're under a lot of pressure with your home life. I don't want to force you, I just want you to be happy."

"It's alright Alastor." She smiled at him lovingly. "I can't blame you for getting angry, anyone would react the same way given the circumstances and I did a lot of thinking last night. About you, about me, about us and how we feel about each other. I realize that I love you with every part of my being and I don't want to lose you either."

Charlie collected his hands, holding them so tenderly, and she looked in the eyes.

"Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes I want to marry you."

Alastor made the most giddy and excited smile that she had ever seen on his face, then reached into his pocket to pull out the ring.

"This was my mother's, she gave it to me to someday propose with because she wanted me and the woman I loved to be as happy together as she was with my father."

He took Charlie's hand and slowly slid the ring on to her finger. It was a perfect fit, as if the ring had been specially made to be worn by her.

"Oh Alastor, it's so beautiful." Charlie awed at it. "I'll wear it always. I'll never take it off for the rest of my life."

Overjoyed, she threw her arms around him and pressed her lips to his. He kissed her back and hugged her to his chest.

"Marrying you will make the happiest man in the world." He said.

"When should we be married?"

"I don't know. These things do take time and a lot of planning. And of course you'll want to go home to your family and tell them the big news. See if we can get their blessing."

For a moment her face turned sad.

"I'm not going back home."

"You're not? But I don't understand, I thought you wanted to make things right with your parents."

"I do. But there's just one problem, if I go home they'll never let me come back to you. Especially when I tell them that we're getting married. My father will be so angry, he'll probably keep me under lock and key for the rest of my life."

"Charlie is that why you said no last night? Because if you married me, your father would disown you? If it is then we don't have to do this. I told you before, I don't to make you choose between me and your father. If you want to be with your family and if that means not seeing me ever again, I can understand and accept it."