'I've just been attacked by dementors and I might be expelled from Hogwarts. I want to know what's going on and when I'm going to get out of here.'
Charlie had reread Harry's letter to him, Ron, and Hermione about a dozen times. Up and down he paced, consumed with worry and frustration, casting troubled looks out at the empty, star-strewn sky every time he passed the window. Hedwig hadn't left 12 Grimmauld Place, and something told him that she was informed not to unless she got answers.
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(A/N: RIP you beautiful bird 😪)
It had been two days since he and Hermione had arrived back at 12 Grimmauld Place, and the only instructions they were given were to remain calm as Dumbledore sent word to Harry regarding his rescue. Charlie had received two letters from his father in the meantime, each of them regarding Harry's use of underage magic.
The first one was more of a inquiry as to why Harry wasn't at The Burrow like Charlie claimed to be. The brown eyed boy simply replied with an answer of Harry's muggle aunt and uncle didn't approve of letting him visit.
The second letter, however, was more of a warning that stated that Harry would succumb to a trial for his behaviour. Charlie, pretending to be compliant, replied with a simple undertone of understanding, but behind the scenes, he had mentioned it to his grandfather who insisted that Harry would be okay.
Yet, that didn't stop the young boy from worrying. Charlie had no idea what would happen to Harry when he went to trial, but something told him that his friend was being testified against for something more than an unauthorized dementor attack...
Charlie's head was pounding, his brain was too busy for sleep even though his eyes stung and itched with tiredness. Hermione had tried to calm his nerves multiple times, but with the Weasleys hanging about, her platonic methods weren't the most effective — they hadn't shared an intimate moment alone since they got back.
The brown eyed boy was alternately filled with restless energy that made him unable to settle to anything, during which time he paced his and Ron's bedroom, furious at the whole lot of them for leaving Harry to stew in this mess, unaware. Charlie had a lethargy so complete that he could lie on his bed for an hour at a time, staring dazedly into space, aching with dread at the thought of his friend at the Ministry hearing.
How was Harry feeling?
What if the Ministry ruled against him?
What if his father did something drastic?
What would Harry do, where would he go?
Would Harry forever resent his friends for shutting him out at the time that he needed them most?
But the brown eyed boy was pulled from his thoughts at the sound of footsteps hurrying below him. Charlie quickly rushed downstairs. Molly and Arthur were in the kitchen; Ron, Fred and George were playing with gobstones on the kitchen table; Hermione and Ginny were talking in the parlour, but what caught the boy's attention the most was the arrival of nine wizards in particular:
