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Tweak says, "Let's dance in style..."

Fleur Weasley (fleur_weasley) wrote in bloodlines_rp,
@ 2017-10-15 10:30:00

Entry tags:

!retcon, angelina johnson, bill weasley, charlie weasley, dec 2002, fleur weasley, george weasley, ginny weasley, hermione granger, loc: shell cottage, molly weasley, ron weasley, type: rp

Weasley New Year's
Date & Time: Tuesday, 31 December 2002 | Evening
Post Type: RP
Status: Complete
Character(s): All Weasleys and other invited guests
Location: Shell Cottage
Summary: Bill and Fleur host family and friends for New Year's and give everyone a bit of news.

Despite having declared to Bill that she would do her fair share of the preparations for the party, Fleur was glad that he'd thrown himself into things so wholeheartedly, and that she'd truly had to do so little. She wasn't sure if it was the increased activity of the last few days, or if it was truly due to her current condition, but she'd been so exhausted by early afternoon that she'd barely been able to apologise to Bill for her inattentiveness and give a promise to help later before she'd stumbled off to bed for a much-needed nap. Now she felt relatively refreshed and able to think over the day so far with a pleasant tingle of satisfaction.

The adoption agency thought their situation was perfect for the process to go smoothly. It might only be a matter of months before they were parents.

It was with a rather giddy smile that she rejoined her husband downstairs, still stretching to remove the last vestiges of sleep from her body. She surveyed the food and decorations, then promptly kissed him on the cheek. "Everything looks perfect. You 'ave become quite the party planner, I think." She snagged a bite of fruit from one of the bowls and continued smiling at him as she chewed. One eyebrow raised in playful accusation. "You did not leave anything for me to do, did you?"

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bill__weasley
2017-10-17 11:26 pm UTC (link)

Looking at the spread and the decorations, Bill couldn't help but feel a bit pleased with himself. He still felt just a little on tenterhooks about, well, everything, but tonight would be a good thing. A great thing. The work had distracted him the from nagging thoughts and wholly misplaced doubts that tried to pop up throughout the day.

One of those was about Charlie.

The cryptic response he'd gotten from his brother had unsettled him to say the least, but further inquiries had been met with maddening silence. He'd half a mind to try to track him down in St Mungo's, but knew from personal experience what a fool's errand that would have been, since Charlie wasn't actually a patient. Finally, however, Bill had received a brief a note saying that he'd pop in for a few moments, at least to explain what had been going on.

So, that was something (else) to consider for the evening.

He was glad for Fleur's appearance after a nap he'd practically had to insist on, since he'd run out of pillows to fluff and dust to banish for at least half an hour now. He tried to keep the relief out of his face, but still offered her a somewhat contrite smile.

"Well, there's still the gracious hostess job," he said, though it sounded pretty silly even to himself. He drew her toward him, gathering her in his arms to kiss her once, lovingly. "I hope you don't mind terribly. Also, don't let it get out that I'm good at this sort of thing. My immense talents would be in such high demand that I'd never be heard from again. Ah, the tragic life of those cursed with artistic genius."

He was gearing up to say more when there was a knock on the door. "That'll be Charlie. Said he'd stop by for a few, tell us what the hell is going on."

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fleur_weasley
2017-10-17 11:51 pm UTC (link)

Fleur leaned very willingly into his embrace, glad that they still had a few minutes before anyone was supposed to start arriving. "I am an excellent hostess, so I cannot complain about this," she said with a pleased smile, rubbing her nose against hers before pulling back a fraction. "I think you only need to worry about your mother learning. Then you will be the one helping in the kitchen next Sunday."

At the knock at the door, her lips turned instantly into a slight frown. Bill had shared what little Charlie had told him, and it was enough to make her want to give him a piece of her mind about worrying them—but she'd save that until after she knew what was going on. She didn't have anything to say that would make her husband feel any better than she did, so she simply gave him a reassuring smile and crossed to the door to open it.

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bl_charlie
2017-10-18 05:03 pm UTC (link)

Charlie stared at the door to Shell Cottage, and heaved a sigh.

He wasn't even entirely sure how long he'd stood there, looking at, but even remotely seeing the weather-beaten wood. It had been an exhausting few days, and it didn't look like the situation would be getting any better any time soon. Nicky was still sick, Susan was still justifiably worried, and he still felt like he didn't know which way was up anymore.

He'd practiced what he was going to say once he'd made the decision to finally talk to his brother about what was happening; it had run through his head like a mantra all day. But now that he was there, well, it all sort of evaporated, leaving his mind a very unhelpful blank. It was probably better this way. If his conversation with his mum was any indication, trying to get through this with practiced dispassion was just not the way to do it.

There was nothing for it, so he mustered up the reserves of his courage and knocked. Charlie felt- somehow- like Fleur's answering the door was some kind of temporary stay of execution. He offered her a small, tired smile. "Happy New Year, Fleur."

He edged past her, into the cottage, but then just stood there, eyes glued to the floor. He could feel his brother's gaze, but couldn't bring himself to meet it yet. "I-I can't stay long, I really can't, but... I'm sorry I made you worry. It's Nicky, you see, Susan Bones' son- he's sick. With the illness. It's been pretty bad. He's-" he drew in a shaky breath, bringing up a hand to pull it down his scruffy cheeks and chin a bit roughly. "He's my son."

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fleur_weasley
2017-10-18 07:59 pm UTC (link)

It was obvious as soon as she saw him that Charlie wasn't just being...well, Charlie, and that something was truly wrong. Given what Bill had told her, it worried her a great deal more than she let show on her face. Who could be in St. Mungo's who was so important to Charlie that she or Bill didn't know? An old school friend, perhaps? For the moment, she pushed that aside to smile at him, kiss his cheek in greeting, and say, "Happy New Year, Charlie. I've missed you."

And she had, she realised. As much as the last couple of months had been wonderful, because they'd allowed her to reconnect with Bill in exactly the way they both needed, it was nice to be back in England to see the rest of their friends and family—and for her, Charlie was both.

He didn't need an invitation to make himself at home in Shell Cottage, but Fleur stepped back from the door prepared to do her hostess duties all the same when it become quickly apparent that Charlie wasn't even in any shape to keep to their old patterns. She almost grabbed him by the arm to pull him to the couch, but she thought better of it when he started talking. She frowned at his words, trying to put a face to the names he mentioned. Susan Bones sounded vaguely familiar, like maybe she'd met the witch in years past, but she didn't know her beyond that. She'd opened her mouth to ask for more information when Charlie spoke again.

Fleur's mouth dropped open, and she brought one hand up to cover it. Charlie had a son? She glanced sideways at Bill, then back to Charlie. "But you—your son?"

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bill__weasley
2017-10-18 09:29 pm UTC (link)

Whatever Bill had expected when his brother walked into his house, looking for all the world like he hadn't slept in days, it certainly wasn't what came out of his mouth. It had come out so haltingly, and then so quickly, that he had a hard time deciphering exactly what he'd heard Charlie say. He had some vague memory of Susan Bones, thought he recalled that she'd been a part of the D.A. and was in Ron's year, remembered her aunt's horrific death, but what did her son have to do with- oh.

Bill's gaze went from worry bordering on annoyance at Charlie's cryptic updates to slightly open mouthed shock. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Fleur's glance, saw her expression mirror his own.

Confusion caused his brows to crumple, and he shook his head slowly. "That makes no sen-" he cut himself off, his mind working furiously. "How old is Nicky?" He didn't bother to wait for an answer; it could only have been at one time, that he could think of. "It was when you were here last year. On your rotation." He felt a flash of irritation, and didn't bother to hide it. "Merlin, Charlie, you didn't even bother to tell me you were seeing anyone then."

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bl_charlie
2017-10-18 10:34 pm UTC (link)

"Bill's right," Charlie admitted quietly, and he still couldn't look at either of them. Instead, he began to pace. "He's ten months old- Nicky. And, yeah, we were going out, but I had no idea when we broke up that she was pregnant." He paused; it had been hard enough to relay this story to his mum, but Bill and Fleur? Together? It was almost more than he could bear. But they would ask question, so it was best to put it all out there, get ahead of it. "I'd actually been seeing a woman in Romania before this- I, uh, told Fleur about her- but things were never great between us. Healthy-like.

"I loved her, though. But I was never really sure, deep down, so I didn't tell anyone about her. That should've been clue one, right? It was kind of the same with Susan- except the complete opposite. She was- is- so good, that I just... well, I was a bit stupid about the whole thing. 'Course, when I got back to Romania, after, Marjoli- that was her name- wanted to have another go of things. So we did, and I came back to England just to break things off with Susan."

He let out a small, mirthless chuckle. "Any wonder she never told me about being pregnant? I don't blame her, not in the slightest. Never really presented myself as fatherhood material." Charlie chanced a glance at Fleur, feeling like she might be safer territory in this instance. "So, here's the current sad state of affairs in a succinct nutshell. Mum knows. I owled her the day after we took Nicky to St Mungo's. Didn't know what else to do. And then... well, I just wasn't sure how to start telling everyone. I-" he broke off, throat tightening uncomfortably- "I haven't even known a week that I was a dad, and now my son might be dying."

And now his worst fear was out there, in the huge, uncaring world, and he wished, how he wished, that he could take it back.

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fleur_weasley
2017-10-20 12:01 am UTC (link)

Fleur's stomach turned at the mention of Marjoli, though she wasn't entirely sure if that was because of the woman herself, the memory of that time of her own life, or a sudden new pregnancy symptom. She hadn't told Bill about Charlie's ex, partially because it was Charlie's story to tell, but mostly because her relationship with Bill had been rocky at best during that timeframe, and Marjoli hadn't been mentioned at all since things had improved, so what did it matter? She still felt a bit guilty now, knowing it, even if she hadn't known about Susan.

Part of her wanted to be angry. Angry that Charlie had left this supposedly wonderful witch, that he hadn't been more responsible in this of all things. It wasn't fair! She and Bill had been desperately trying for years, and Charlie hadn't had to try at all. Probably wouldn't have wanted to try, if she had to guess. And now her baby would not be the treasured first grandchild, as she'd expected.

But even before Charlie's last words on the subject, her heart started to take over where her head was trying to rule, and she knew she couldn't possibly be angry that she had a nephew, and especially a nephew that belonged to Charlie, to whom she was closer than any of Bill's other siblings. Without another thought, she stepped up and put her arms around him, only belatedly realizing there were tears on her cheeks.

"What can we do?" she asked softly, after a quiet moment of just squeezing him tightly. "This is too much to shoulder alone. Let us help."

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