Twisted (Charlie Weasley)

Chapter Twenty Four

I woke with a start and frantically looked around the room. The soft snores of Charlie echoed around me and I was glad that he was here just for a few days at least. We expected the baby any day now and I was beyond ready to be free of pregnancy and to met the little human Charlie and I had created. The house and was fairly quiet apart from the rusting in the basement that I could only assume was Kreature. Some days he looked at me as if I was a ghost... It was on those days that I realized how much I really looked like my mother.

I starred up at the ceiling for a moment before crawling out of bed and making my way down the stairs completely unaware of what was happening at Hogwarts and what had happened to Arthur.

Sirius sat in the dining room with a fire whiskey sat in front of him. Just as I had entered the kitchen from upstairs I could hear yelling.

"Expect company! People are coming!"

It wasn't long after his message rang throughout the house that a group of children with red hair and Harry appeared in the hall. I rushed out there as fast as I could to see Ginny crying and the others looking very upset.

"What's happening?" I asked them, then I realized that it was Arthur's night on guard... "No..."

I felt my eyes began to well up and pulled Ginny in for a hug... "I have to go wake up Charlie..."

"I'll go with you." One of the twins said quietly, I nodded and didn't even realize the only way I was able to walk was the fact that he was holding me up.

After the first set of stairs, he turned to me, "What was he doing? Why was he in the department of mysteries so late...

I took a shaky breath, "You know your mother would kill me if I told you..." He went to stop but I shook my head, "I know you're of age, just wait until you're out of the house and then you can join... And I will vouch for the both of you as long as you will be babysitters when I need one..."

He nodded his head, "So will I have a niece or a nephew?" He asked I smiled and laughed.

"I am sure with the size of your family you will have plenty of both."

He only would ever live to see the one.

We reached my room and I pushed open the door and beckoned Fred to follow closely behind me. I gave Charlie a gentle nudge and didn't say anything else as I pulled him out of bed and lead him downstairs.

It was a long night. All of us tired and worried and all of us fearing the worst. People came and went and it wasn't until the morning that we knew what was happening. None of us got any sleep after that, and while I tried to be as helpful to the family as possible... I couldn't do much and kept crying as well.

***

Christmas came and went quickly. While the holiday was over the kids were still home for a bit longer and I was glad they were having a bad break from Umbridge especially after I saw the twins hands. With what I had on hand I quickly mixed them up a solution in hopes of taking some of the stinging and scaring away. They flinched as I applied it to their skin, but it seemed to work some as their hands were much less red.

"She's a horrid woman." Poppy said the evening before New Years. "She does what she wants whether it's legal or not and Fudge simply turns his head and pretends that all is well... Sometimes I hate Perc because he acts like she is this lovely woman..."

Percy and Poppy had become an item, not that any of us ever saw the two together as Percy was still not talking to his family. Part of me wished that he was as it wasn't long until he would be an uncle, and I wanted him to have a relationship with my child.

The two of us sat talking for quite some while until I felt a horrible pain in my stomach. I felt a horrible cramp in my stomach and right away knew what was happening. I gingerly placed a hand on my stomach and felt my face grimace. I looked over to Poppy and gave her a weak grin, "Hey Poppy... mind going and getting Tonks? Charlie!" I called out, he quickly dashed down the stairs and I ground my teeth. "It's time."

His eyes widened and he grabbed my hand to allow me to squeeze it. "You ready?" He asked me, and with a small nodd we apparated away.

***

Hours later, 23 to be exact, it was 12:01. The first day of 1996 and a small bundle cuddled close to my body. I had tears streaming down my face and knew that a crowd of people waited outside the doors of my hospital room waiting to meet the newest addition to the Weasley family. I placed a soft kiss on top of the babies head and looked over to Charlie who also had tears running down his face.

"I love you." He said softly, I smiled and let out a small laugh. The small baby let out a sneeze and I felt my eyes well with even more tears.

Already you could see small tuffs of hair... a dark red colour. A soft tap came from the other side of the door, "Come in." I called out softly, I looked up to see Molly and Arthur, who was still recovering back at least back at home, enter the room. "Do you wanna go see grandma and grandpa?" I asked the baby softly and then looked up to them.

Molly happily took the bundle, "So what's my grandbaby's name?" She asked me softly, I smiled and looked from Charlie to Arthur.

"Meet Arthur Alastor Weasley." I said softly, "Our little Artie."

Molly let out a happy sob, "Oh he's beautiful..." she said, "Hullo Artie..."

Slowly the family made their way in and out meeting the little one, and last to come in for the night were Poppy and Tonks. They cooed over him happily, and after a few moments, Charlie cleared his throat. The girl looked up with smiles on their faces.

"Well... we've already asked Bill to be godfather, but we were wondering if the two of you would be godmothers..."

"Yes!" Tonks said happily, "Oh... I am going to love you so much... oh I already do!"

Poppy nodded and had tears running down her face as she looked down at the baby, "I'd love to..."

I looked over at my son, his gray eyes wide open. The same gray as my mothers, the same gray as my own.

Tonks flashed her hair bright pink and he let out a loud coo, and before my very eyes, his red tuff shifted to pink as well. "He's just like his aunty!" Tonks squealed, Charlie laughed.

"How about just like his mother?" He suggested, Tonks shook her head.

"Don't ruin this for me, Charles."

In that moment I didn't think anything could ruin that moment... but I was proven to be very, very wrong.