There was nothing but peaceful and velvety darkness, and Charlie Hawthorne drifted along contently, barely even aware of that darkness. He stirred under the sheets slightly, though, as a cool breeze across his face woke him from his deep sleep in the small bedroom he shared with Harry and Ron at the Burrow.
"Charlie," a voice called.
Ripples stirred in the soul-soothing blackness, and Charlie's happily floating mind desperately tried to ignore the intrusion.
"Charlie, come on! Wake up!"
With a not-so-gentle nudge, Charlie was suddenly jarred awake, and the beautiful emptiness was replaced by searing brightness and foggy disorientation as he opened his eyes. He quickly sat up, stretched a bit, and rubbed his face before settling his gaze upon the two silhouette-like figures standing in front of him.
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"Good morning, you lazy arse," came the playful voice of Ron Weasley through the curtain-drawn darkness, as he and Harry Potter laughed together at Charlie's bedside. "Nice of you to join us."
"W-What time is it?" asked Charlie groggily, ruffling his mess of dark brown hair. He squinted, letting his eyes adjust to the brightness, and focused upon Harry and Ron once again, stifling a yawn in the process.
"Quarter past eight," Harry reported. "Mrs. Weasley told us to come and wake you for breakfast."
"Cheers," nodded Charlie, as he climbed out of bed and threw on an old Chudley Cannons jumper over his bare torso. "It's meant to be our 'going away' breakfast, I suppose."
"I still can't believe Hermione has talked you into going back for seventh-year," groaned Ron, disgusted by the mere thought of more schoolwork. "I'd honestly rather get Splinched again than sit through any more exams."
"You'd do the same thing for Lavender, I'm sure," retaliated Charlie, laughing, as Ron's cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Besides, if sitting through another year's worth of classes means spending more time with my girlfriend, then so be it. Hermione's always wanted to finish her NEWT-level exams, you know, and I'm not going to get in the way of that."
"Fair enough," Harry shrugged, walking over towards the bedroom door. "It'll be different without you both here, though. We'll miss you, mate."
"It's not too late to sign-up for classes," Charlie wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Come on, it'll be like old times."
Harry laughed, shaking his head within the instant.
"I won't miss you that much," he said. "Sorry to say, Charlie, but I'm with Ron on this one. There's no way I'm sitting through another History of Magic lesson."
