Beauxbatons [Charlie Weasley]

Date

Charlie almost lets out a sob when he sees Isabelle walk through the door the next day. The other three members of her group are there too, of course, and all of them look extremely exhausted, their smiles weak, but Charlie doesn't care. She's alive. She's alive, and that's all he cares about.

He practically races towards her, picking her up and spinning her around, before pulling her into the tightest hug he can possibly give her without breaking a rib. Isabelle barely manages a smile in return, but hugs him back all the same, wrapping her weak arms around his torso, burying her face into his chest. Merlin, she missed him. And he smells so good. She chuckles to herself slightly — maybe she's going slightly crazy.

But she doesn't care, just holding onto him as tightly as she can — which isn't very tight at all, considering her muscles are completely gone from the day before — and staying like that, even when all the other Dragonologists in the massive room swarm around them, eager to hear what happened. Isabelle can't bring herself to talk, so just stays in Charlie's arms, letting Jack tell the story. He's got his usual grin back, much to Isabelle's relief, and eagerly tells all twenty-eight others what happened out there, and all the stuff they did.

Charlie listens intently, while not letting Isabelle go, his body tensing at Jack's description of Vienna, especially when Isabelle risks herself to save this little girl. He further tenses when they're battling the Horntail just outside Laa an der Thaya, even though he — along with everyone else — is incredibly impressed by such an effective use of Isabelle's spell.

"You'll have to teach us!" a dark brown-haired girl says eagerly. "That sounds incredible — I can't believe you invented it yourself!"

Isabelle manages another weak smile at that.

"I can teach all of you, if you like," she says softly, and Charlie swears his chest constricts — that's the first time he's heard her speak in the past two months.

Almost everyone around the room nods along excitedly and appreciatively, really wanting to learn that cloning spell.

"Not now, though," Isabelle adds with a little chuckle. "I think all four of us need a little rest today."

"Amen to that," Jack grins, thumping her on the back. Charlie frowns slightly at that, but his mind eases when Isabelle returns his grin. No doubt all four of them have become really close over the past couple of months, and now act extremely easily around one another.

"Indeed you do," a voice says from behind them all.

Isabelle turns around to come face to face with Gethsemane Prickle, who's smiling fondly at her group.

"I have heard of your incredible efforts over the past couple of months, and am more than happy to let you four have today off," she continues with a smile. "Go home, eat some food, get some sleep, and I'll see you all tomorrow. The rest of you, however — back to work."

Isabelle smiles gratefully at Prickle, as do the other three, who give Isabelle a massive hug each, before heading off, apart from Seb, who waits for her at the door. Isabelle turns to Charlie, giving him another massive hug, and leaning up on tiptoes to give him a quick kiss, which makes him jolt forwards, reaching up to grab her face and make the kiss last a lot longer than initially intended. He hasn't kissed her in months, after all.

Finally, Isabelle pulls away, smiling up at him with her beautiful smile.

"I will see you when you get off," she says softly, pecking him on the cheek before she turns around and heads back over to Seb, the black guy wrapping an arm around her to pull her into a side-hug, the two of them heading out of the Ministry together.