The Ugly One *Charlie Weasley*

St Mungos

She hurt, her whole body felt sore and tired. 

She tried to groan but wasn't able to make a sound. 

Slowly she opened her eyes, but shut them immediately, blinded by the light. 
This time a groan escaped her lips. 

"Fron, Affron, Saffron!" her hearing staarted off muffled but soon she could hear a familiar voice. 
"Charlie?" she murmured. 
"Yes, it's me," he said breathlessly. "Can you open your eyes?"
Saffron tried again to open her eyes, ignoring the brightness of the light. She could hardly see anything, except a dark shadow in front of her. Slowly everything came into focus and she met Charlies clear blue eyes. 
"Charlie she breathed again, moving her arms, wincing but ignoring the pain as she reached up to wrap her arms around his neck. 
"Ooh careful," Charlie said. Saffron frowned. She missed the grin in his voice. Something was missing. 

Everything flooded back to her as she slowly let Charlie go. 

She understood now why she hurt, why her head throbbed. 

"Charlie where am I?" Saffron asked. 
"St Mungos," he replied, helping her to move her sore, stiff body to a sitting position. 

"What happened," she asked, feeling a thick plaster on her neck. 
"I'm so sorry. I let you out of my sight for a moment and you were gone. I lost you and I couldn't find you," Charlie frowned. Saffron saw sadness in his face, sadness hidden by an apologetic frown.
"It's fine Charlie," Saffron said. "I just..."
"Dad and I, well we found you after it was over. You were almost bitten my Greyback," he said as Saffron reached up to touch the plaster. 
"I should have been there to protect you but I wasn't,"Charlie said. 
"Don't beat yourself up about it. I'm fine, you're fi- what happened to your arm?" Saffron notcied a bandage wrapped around his arm.
"I broke it, but it's almost fully healed," he said. 
"How long have I been out for?" Saffron asked. 
"Only a few days. But you had a rather large concussion and they thought it would be easier to let you heal slowly," Charlie explained. "It's not easy when you might have were wolf blood in your system. But I'm just glad you're ok," Charlie breathed. 
"I'm glad you are too, despite your arm."

Suddenly nurses appeared in the room and time flew by as they checked Saffron and made sure she was alright. 

Charlie entered the room, after having been kicked so that the nurses could do their thing. 

"I only have to stay here one more night," Saffron smiled. 
"That's good," Charlie attempted a smile but sadly failed. 

"Charlie what's wrong," Saffron asked, taking his good hand in both of hers.
"What do you mean?"
"Charlie, please don't," Saffron said. "I can tell somethings bugging you. What happened whilst I was out?"

Saffron's heart pounded as she awaited his response. From the look on his face she knew it was bad. 

But it was when tears pierced his eyes that she knew something was wrong. 

"Charlie?" Saffron asked he leaned forward to wards her. Saffron put and arm around him, to comfort him as much as she could as he cried. 

"It's Fred. He's, he's," he couldn't say it but he didn't have to. Saffron's eyes had already filled with tears and her chest hurt. 
It couldn't be. No. 

She held Charlie closer. 
She knew the pain of losing a loved one, and she hated that Charlie know knew the feeling. His whole family did. And she had been out for so long, not able to support, or give any comfort. 

She felt guilty. She had been so worried about losing Charlie that she hadn't even thought about saying a proper goodbye to Fred, or anyone just in case. Or let any of them know how much she truly loved them as a family, just in case. No she was too selfish. 

"So many dead, Saffron. Not just Fred, Remus, Tonks," he blubbered. Saffron was blubbering too. Her heart almost stopped at Remus and Tonks. What would happen to their newborn child? Oh Remus, and Tonks. No why did these unfair events have to happen. Why to the people she loved. 

"We're all safe though, we are just trying to remind ourselves that.You know who is gone, his Death Eaters, ended. Everyone is safe again. I just wish it didn't have to happen the way it did."
"I wish it didn't have to happen at all," Saffron said as she stroked a hand through Charlie's hair. It had grown quite long, was in need of a cut. But he was still so perfect to her. Maybe she was just so grateful to have him. 

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave sit i this behavior is to continue," a nurse walked in and said. "You're traumatizing the patient."
"As if we aren't all traumatized enough," Saffron said before Charlie could say anything. "He is doing nothing wrong and if you make him leave then so will I."
The nurse's face softened and she looked as though to be thinking hard. She nodded and without another word, left the room.  

Maybe she lost someone too. 

"I'm so happy you're alright," Charlie said. 
"I'm happy you're all right too."

************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Fred's funeral was the one of the saddest occasions. 

It took so long to say goodbye to every single person who had passed on in the war and by the end of it they were all so exhausted from mourning. 
Saffron went to see George, the week after the funerals and goodbyes. 
Neither said a word, she just hugged him and he let her. Saffron stayed with George until he fell asleep. She liked to think that this was what being a big sister was like. She sure did love George as a younger brother. She loved all of them as family. 

Saffron stayed in Charlie's room that night. Neither wanted to be alone.

"I love you so much," Charlie said as Saffron snuggled into his left side, putting her head against his chest, so to hear his heartbeat. 
"I love you," Saffron said. "I don't know why it took me so long to tell you. All that time I wasted, when I could have been with you, telling you how I felt," Saffron said. "I'm just so grateful to have you."
"You weren't ready and I understand you weren't, You were living with so much pain Saffron."Lets not live in pain anymore. What's happened, has happened, we need to move on. They wouldn't want us to be like this."
"They wouldn't. How'd you get so smart?" Saffron asked, earning herself a kiss.