Burn Baby Burn | Charlie Weasley

Chapter 25 - The Babies

Charlie took me back to my tent where all my belongings had been delivered. I was sad when he left but I was so tired from my first day that I immediately fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. It was hard to believe I had completed my N.E.W.T.s, left Hogwarts and arrived at The Sanctuary all in one day. But this was my life now I guessed.

That night, I had the strangest dream: I was back in my childhood home, on what appeared to be the night after my parents' death. "He managed to kill him." A man in a robe so dark it shielded his entire face spoke. There was a man next to him with a mask just like that of the corpse which lay prostrate on the ground between them. Another death eater.

"I apologise master. He was supposed to take out the traitor. And the anomaly." The man in the mask bowed his head. Fear evident despite the fact his features weren't visible.

"Yes, well the anomaly got away didn't it. And we'll never find out where the traitor hid the locket." Even though the hooded stranger didn't raise his voice, I could tell he was dangerously angry. I was proved right when he lifted his wand at his companion. "Avada kedavra." And just like that, there were two death eaters lying dead on the floor.

My heart was racing in my chest and I thought I might've been screaming. The stranger looked at me suddenly. His red eyes pierced directly into my grey ones as if he could actually see me. "There you are." He said. I definitely screamed that time.

"Lizzie! Lizzie, wake up!" Someone was shaking my shoulders and I shot up from my bed, drenched in sweat and panting hard. "I heard you screaming when I came to get you for breakfast. Are you okay?" Charlie looked really rattled.

"I'm fine, I just had a bad dream." Who was that person and what did they mean about some 'anomaly'. I shook my head and decided to simply brush it off and not think about it any further. It was just a dream. It wasn't real.

- - -

After I'd washed off the remnants of last night's dream, I walked with Charlie over to the large mess tent where the whole sanctuary had their meals. I couldn't quite focus on anything while I had my breakfast. The bacon, eggs and sausages which would usually look so appealing just made me feel sick. Charlie obviously wasn't feeling the same way as he shovelled food in his mouth like someone was trying to take it away from him.

Charlie must've noticed my lack of appetite. "Are you okay?" He asked between a mouthful of bacon, looking genuinely worried. I just nodded, images of that dream flashing behind my eyes, making forming any words impossible. Charlie narrowed his eyes, apparently my mute nod wasn't all that convincing. But before he could say anything more on the matter, a young man sat down next to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

It was Liam, the blond man I'd met a few times before. "Thought I'd formally introduce myself." He said politely, hand out to shake my own. His smile was so dazzling it actually managed to bring one to my own face. "You made one hell of an impression when you ran straight up to that dragon with no regard for your own safety. Woman after my own heart." He placed his hand over the aforementioned organ and a blush rose to my cheeks at that devilish grin still on his lips.

"We have to see to Norberta." Charlie bit out from the other side of the table. There was a glare on his face pointed at Liam that I couldn't really understand. Liam just gave him a knowing grin and sauntered off in the other direction. Charlie didn't speak to me the whole walk over to Norberta's enclosure. I was about to confront him and ask why he was acting so strange when a strangled roar sounded in the distance. Charlie and I looked at each other with wide eyes and then sprinted in the direction of that pained noise.

When we finally reached Norberta, there were six eggs on the ground near the massive body lying on the floor. Her eyes snapped to mine and I could actually feel the pain in them. "Something's wrong," I breathed in a worried tone to Charlie.

"Keep her occupied," He instructed, voice steady and full of command. "I need to check what's going on." I nodded in agreement and made my way over to the dragon's large head. Shakily, I held my hands up in a sign of surrender and slowly moved them towards her scaly nose. Norberta didn't so much as flinch, clearly preoccupied with the pain she was feeling. I longed for knowledge of a spell that could help her, but nothing sprung to mind. A sleeping draught would stop her feeling pain but then she wouldn't be able to lay the rest of her eggs. It would put her at risk.

A tear rolled down my cheek as my palms finally made contact with the warm scaly skin of Norberta's nose. Her eyes slowly closed, from the pain or from my comfort, I didn't know. "The final egg is coming out sideways," Charlie finally said from the other side of Norberta. My heart clenched in fear for my winged friend.

"What can we do?" I asked helplessly, a few more tears spilling out.

"We can use a levitating charm to rotate it but it will cause a lot of pain and she might lash out. I don't think there's a way for us to do this without being burned to a crisp." Charlie was shaking his head and staring at his hands. I could tell that he'd run out of ideas. That he didn't know what to do.

"I'll do it." Charlie's gaze snapped to mine and he began shaking his head. I was already walking over to where he stood.

"You can't. She'll kill you." The fear was evident in Charlie's voice, making it shake and crack.

"She trusts me. This is the only way; I won't let Norberta and that innocent little new-born dragon die." She reached Charlie's side and nudged him towards safety. It didn't take much. It was like his whole body had turned to jelly, he simply staggered to the side and through the fireproofed gate of Norberta's enclosure.

"Be safe." Charlie whispered so softly I don't think I was meant to have heard it. I took the wand out of my back pocket and shared one last glance with Charlie, giving him a nod I hoped was reassuring. When I turned my gaze to Norberta, I found she was already looking at me. There was a sheen of understanding in her eyes, like she knew what I had to do and that it would hurt but that she and her baby would be fine.

"Wingardium leviosa." The spell latched onto the horizontal egg and started slowly rotating it. As Charlie had predicted, the dragon started thrashing and roaring that same agonised roar I swear broke my heart every time I heard it. I was doing a good job of avoiding most of the beast's outbursts until her tail came at me at a speed I couldn't avoid. Charlie yelled as the barbed tail collided with the back of my thigh, but I didn't fall. I gritted my teeth against the pain and finished orienting the egg. I used the spell to pull it to safety next to its brothers and sisters.

Norberta turned and pressed her nose against mine in gratitude. A small, exhausted huff came out before she limped over to her eggs and curled around them. I turned to Charlie only to find him running straight for me. I didn't understand the fearful look in his eyes until I felt my body list sideways. I was halfway to the ground by the time Charlie reached me and the last thing I saw before unconsciousness took me over was his panicked face and dishevelled auburn hair. Then everything went black...