Weasley Family Fallout

Chapter 4: Telling Charlie

Bill, Ron, and Harry had just sat back down when Charlie came in the front door.

"You're home early," Ron told Charlie.

"Only by a few minutes," Charlie responded while he took off his boots.

Bill looked over his younger brother. "Say, where do you go every day, Charlie?"

"Out," he replied quickly. "So, dinner almost done?"

"Probably in twenty minutes. Where do you go?" Bill repeated.

Charlie pretended he didn't hear his brother's question. "Are we waiting on Dad?" he tried taking the attention off of himself. That was a bad topic to change to, though. because Ron's anger spiked again.

"What? That sorry excuse for a father? Hopefully, we won't have to see him for a while," Ron spat.

"How'd you know he wasn't here?" asked Bill

"I saw him. What did I miss?"

"Where'd you see him at?"

"Hogsmeade," Charlie said, not specifying in order to avoid revealing his own daily activities.

Harry spoke up. "Why were you in Hogsmeade?" It was a friendly inquiry. All he knew about Charlie was that he loved and trained dragons. He was curious what the second oldest Weasley child did when he wasn't around dragons.

"It doesn't matter. We're not talking about me," he snapped. He looked to his older brother for information on the day's events. "Bill?"

Bill thought of a way to put it vaguely to keep Charlie from blowing up. He figured his brother wouldn't take the incident lightly. "He and Mum got into a fight. Then she kicked him out."

"They've been fighting. Why was her reaction so different this time?"

Before Bill could say anything, Ron burst out, "Cause the bastard almost hit her!" The mention of his father angered him, and he couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Hey! Calm down," Charlie commanded, then turned to Bill. "I thought he's been directing his blows at walls."

"Well, he aimed this one at her," Ron answered again, this time more calmly.

"Wait. What? He would never do that." Charlie didn't want to believe what he heard.

"Ron's exaggerating a bit," Bill explained.

"No, I'm not," Ron protested. "You were there. You saw it!"

Bill gave Harry a look that said, "Please get him out of here."

Understanding and thinking quickly, Harry said, "Ron, why don't we degnome the garden before dinner? You enjoy that." It was enjoyable, but it also helped Ron calm down, getting to take his anger out on the pesky creatures.

He looked at his best friend quizzically. "We just finished."

"I'm sure a few found their way back." Harry grabbed his upper arm and pulled him off the couch. "We are degnoming the garden again."

Reluctantly, Ron followed Harry.

Taking a seat on the vacated sofa, Charlie asked, "So?"

Bill gave him an accurate account of the afternoon's events, glancing at the kitchen door every so often to make sure their mum wasn't about walk in. The last thing he wanted to do was get her upset again.

After Bill finished, Charlie sat quietly with his elbows on his knees and his chin on his hands, processing what he had just learned.

Bill watched him closely, trying to determine his mood and what was going on inside his head. He hoped his little brother wouldn't explode with rage; he knew Charlie, Ron, Ginny, and their mum had the worst tempers of all the Weasleys.

Everything that had just been relayed to him was difficult to comprehend. His dad was always laid back and the least violent person he ever knew. Well, up until recently anyway. But he never imagined his father even threatening to lay a single finger on his mum. The thought of anyone daring to do such a thing angered him. This was his father, though, the man who was supposed to love and protect his mother...

This made Charlie furious.

Apparently he was doing a great job at controlling his emotions because Bill couldn't read him like he usually could.

"Charlie?" he asked cautiously.

"Hmm?" He raised his eyebrows, but continued staring at the coffee table.

"What are you thinking?" Bill prompted his brother.

Charlie leaned back. "I'm thinking he doesn't even care. I saw him at the Hog's Head getting wasted...Next time I see him..." he trailed off then took a deep breath.

George came down the stairs. Having heard Charlie's last statement, he said, "I think he does care, and that's why he went to the pub. You think maybe you should hear his side of the story before judging and making assumptions? He was really upset before he left."

Bill crossed his arms and looked at him with a disbelieving expression. He scoffed. "George, you're also making assumptions, and you didn't even see it."

"I am not. You told me what happened and I heard what occurred from both Dad and Mum after the fact because these walls are paper thin and neither of them cast silencing charms. I'm just not making any presumptions before I hear both sides."

"So, you're actually condoning his behavior?" Charlie said incredulously.

George sighed in frustration. "Neither of you listen...Is dinner almost ready?"

Bill checked his watch. "Should be."

George left his brothers. He didn't want to hear any more of what they had to say about their father and he wanted to check up on his mum.

"What does Ginny think? She's not as naïve as George, is she?" he asked Bill. "Well, she is 'Daddy's Little Girl', though. He can do no wrong in her eyes," he mused.

"Ginny is," Bill said slowly. "She's confused. Ginny believes what George said, but I think she knows it was highly possible Dad wouldn't have stopped...She'll come to her own conclusion soon enough.

"She better come to the sensible conclusion," Charlie muttered.

The kitchen door swung open, startling both young men. Molly stepped into the sitting room with a smile on her face.

"Oh. Good, Charlie, you're home," she said cheerfully. "Get cleaned up. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Bill, will you find Ron and Harry and let them know?"

Her two oldest sons stood to do as asked.

"Sure, Mum," Bill said before heading to the garden to gather his youngest brother and his best friend.

Charlie hesitated, though. Instead he went over to his Mum and wrapped her in a big hug. At the same time, he was surprised by her demeanor but he expected it.

He stepped back and held her at arm's length, looking her over and smiling a little when he didn't find any evidence of harm. He couldn't think why anyone would want to hurt this woman; all she ever did was love and care for her family, even now she put on a happy face when everyone knew how she really felt.

His smile broadened. "Love you, Mum," he said quietly, his love for his mother causing his anger toward his father to temporarily subside.

"I love you too, Char," she replied, beaming back at him. "Now go get cleaned up. You're always filthy when you get home," she repeated, patting his arm.

"Okay. Be down in a few," he called back as he took the steps two at a time.