"We're going to need all the help we can get."
Remus stood tall at the head of the dusty table stationed in the dimly-lit room of 12 Grimmauld Place. His fingers tightly latched onto the back of the chair he was standing behind.
"And where do you ex...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
◇─◇──◇─────◇──◇─◇
April 1998
Adelaide was barely getting by after the death of her parents. It took her one full week to make any big decision about the house but eventually she decided to stay in Shell Cottage. She didn't need convincing, not really. After all her parents were murdered in cold blood in the house and it was all she could think about anytime she stepped foot outside of her bedroom.
Gone were the good memories, both the old and the new. Her childhood bedroom was a safe space, though. The place where she realized her love for Charlie when they were kids. The same place, as adults, where she finally told him how she felt - how much she loved him. She felt protected once the door was shut, but she knew it was not healthy to stay in one room the way she did the past week.
She grabbed a few valuable possessions, protected them with charms in a lockbox Arthur had given to her, and brought it with her as she traveled back to Shell Cottage.
Charlie was waiting for her by the front door, which did not surprise her. She smiled as she watched him rush forward to greet her. His arms enveloped her body tightly, protectively holding onto her as his lips pressed against the top of her head.
"Can I be honest?" He questioned. His voice slightly muffled by her hair as he refused to pull away even by a quarter of an inch.
"Always, Charlie."
"I do not think I can ever let you out of my sight. Do you think I can shrink myself so that you can keep me in your pocket at work?" He teased, a laugh escaping his lips, shaking his chest as he finally pulled back to look down at her.
"You are so strange, Charlie. I don't think that will work." She giggled, shaking her head for a moment before she slipped her hands onto his face. She leaned up on the tips of her toes and pressed her lips against his. She was firm with her touch, wanting to show him just how much she cared for him. "I have good news, I guess." She whispered against his lips. Now she was the one refusing to part from him.
"Good news?" He pulled back to look down at her, his eyes wide with a puzzled look on his face.
"Well, only that Kingsley spoke with Tonks. He says I should just stop showing up to work." She sighed initially, chewing on her bottom lip while deep in thought. "And at first I was upset. But they've been doing some undercover raids and think I should be available at any given moment to assist for any healing needs."
Charlie let out a breath, one that he had been holding since she told him she had good news.
"I know you're upset. I know your work means a lot to you. Trust me I know exactly how you feel." Charlie smiled, cupping her face in his hands now before leaning down to pepper kisses along her face, starting with her forehead and ending with her lips. "But this has been a long time coming. It's the safest route until this is all over." He whispered, rubbing the sides of his thumbs against her cheekbones before pulling away completely.
