Love Burns (Charlie Weasley X Reader)

Chapter 25: Hope

Chapter 25: Hope

I frowned as I watched members of the Order swarm into the room, taking their places around the table in 12 Grimmauld Place. It was quiet in the room; hushed conversations died out as quickly as they started.

How could this happen?

Dumbledore had always seemed invincible. He had been through so many things and survived, and then he was killed by a member of the Order on an ordinary night?

It made no sense.

I sighed and massaged my temples, leaning my elbows on the table. It seemed that every time we took a step forward, we then took two steps back. Things had seemed to be looking up. And then the man leading us was killed.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," Shacklebolt said from the head of the table. The quiet chatter died down. "It is with heavy hearts that we announce the death of Albus Dumbledore. For those of you who have not yet heard, Albus was killed last night by Severus Snape."

A quiet murmur rippled through the room. Shacklebolt waited for it to die down before he spoke.

"People have been asking what is to come of the Order. Yes, it is true; Albus started and ran this organization. Without him, we would not have anything so strong and unified. But we cannot let it die along with him. Albus would not have wanted it to. It will be difficult. Already, some have left the Order after hearing the news of Albus' death. It is a frightening time, but we cannot give up. We are hope."

"Who will lead?" someone asked.

"Whoever can. Nobody will be able to replace Albus, but if we work together, we can make sure his death was not in vain," Shacklebolt said. "I am willing to take the responsibility of organizing meetings."

"As am I," Moody said from his seat, thrusting his hand in the air to catch Shacklebolt's attention.

"Very well. Thank you, Moody. Moving forward, we need to be conscious of those around us. Severus has proven that admittance to the Order means nothing. Everyone is a threat. We need to make decisions for the good of the Order, not the individual. Do not let your relationships threaten the security of this organization. Every day, the Dark Lord grows more powerful, and every day I fear that we may be the only hope in saving the world we know."

"It will only get worse from here," Moody said. "People always spout that Albus was the only one the Dark Lord was ever afraid of and I hate to agree. Now that Albus is gone, I believe we will see a new boldness from the Dark Lord. And with it will come no good. I fear that the end is nearing. I can only hope it will be in our favor."

"I ask that you all dedicate yourselves to the Order, now more than ever," Shacklebolt said, a crease forming between his eyebrows. "I fear that Moody is correct. I suspect we will see movement very soon."

The rest of the meeting dragged on. People argued. They cried. They argued again. The date for Dumbledore's funeral was set. People cried more.

"Y/N," Shacklebolt said as I lingered in the corner of the room, attempting to stay out of conversations.

"Shacklebolt," I greeted, "thank you for setting this up."

"Yes, of course," he dismissed quickly. "May I ask where Charlie is?"

"He couldn't make it. He had to work, and then he's going to see Bill after," I said. "Without disclosing where we're going, it's hard to get days off."

Shacklebolt nodded, pressing his lips together to form a thin line.

"When the time comes..."

"We'll be here regardless of a work schedule," I assured him.

"That's reassuring to hear," he said and nodded. "Thank you for coming today. If I sent you with a message for Charlie, would you pass it on?"

"Of course. Whatever you need," I said with a nod.

"I have a letter for him," Shacklebolt said and held out an envelope.

"Is your owl on strike?" I asked with a small grin.

"He was shot down with a spell just last week."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," I said, my smile dying.

"Don't be. I just figured you would be harder to intercept."

"Merlin, I'd hope so," I said and accepted the envelope with a sigh. "Thanks again, Shacklebolt. There's nobody I'd trust as much as you and Moody to lead."

***

Charlie absentmindedly stroked his beard as he read over Shacklebolt's letter, his eyebrows furrowed.

"What is it?" I asked, hovering in the doorway of our bedroom. Charlie didn't look up from the letter.

"Nothing," he said and stared at the parchment for a few more seconds before tucking it away in his nightstand. "Just some stuff about Dumbledore. His funeral is in a few days."

"How was Bill?"

"His face is pretty torn-up," Charlie said. "He's in a lot of pain, but he'll live. They don't think he'll turn since Bill was just scratched. But the scars probably won't ever go away."

I sighed and moved to sit beside Charlie. He stared ahead, lost in thought. I didn't speak, not wanting to disturb him.

"Mum was distraught," he said quietly, playing with his fingers.

"Are you okay?"

"I know we agreed that I'm supposed to be the calm and collected one. But I don't know how much longer I'll be able to be," Charlie said. "I'm trying to be composed when I just want to..."

I didn't say anything, sliding back on the bed to rest my back against the headboard. Charlie dropped his head into his hands. Without another word, he laid down on the bed, resting his head in my lap.

do you know about the united states army beef scandal?

well, allow me to brief you if you're unfamiliar.

during the spanish-american war, there was a huge number of deaths caused by dysentery and food poisoning. this was traced back to the canned beef that was distributed to u.s. soldiers at the time. you see, the u.s. government was trying to budget and chose the cheapest beef they could get, which was often spoiled or "preserved" with dangerous chemicals. in fact, more american soldiers died from sickness than in combat, in part because of the government's gross beef.