The Potion Princess

Charlie (and more importantly, dragons)

Audra has a lot of places that she likes to hang out.

She likes to bother Professor Snape, sitting on top of one of the desks and swinging her legs as he mutters about the mistakes students make in their essays. She likes the deepest, darkest dungeon, the one the twins had cleaned up for her as a birthday present, sitting in the old, broken down arm chair as she waits for her potion to be done. She likes being out on the grounds, especially right in front of the lake, and she likes sitting on the window ledge up in the Astronomy tower. Audra likes the kitchens, too, being pampered by the house elves and eating cookies until she thinks she may explode.

Today, though, she was sitting in the back of the library with Hermione, right in front of the big picture window so the sun lights up her paper. They're both huddled behind towers of books, all leather spines and yellowing pages and fading ink. Audra's hunched over her paper, an inch away from the paper because the lines had started to blur, writing so fast she thinks ink has splattered onto her nose.

It's quiet, but that ends with the arrival of the twins, who hurtle around the end of the shelves and throw themselves towards her, out of breath but grinning. "Where the bloody hell have you been?" George says, forcing out of the words. "We've looked-,"

"Everywhere." Fred finishes. "But come on, you gotta come see Charlie, you'll never guess why he's here!"

"Charlie?" She splutters, wanting to ask more, but they are already packing up her books and rolling up her essay. Audra shoots Hermione an apologetic look, and Hermione shrugs back, but then George is grabbing her by the arm and pulling her out the door. It doesn't take long before they are running, sprinting down the corridors and sliding out the front doors.

"What are we doing?" She shrieks, but they only laugh, not answering. They're flying across the grounds, down the hill, and all her concentration is focused on running so she doesn't trip and fall down the hill. Scrapes and bruises are a occupational hazard of being friends with the Weasley twins, and even though she knows that it might be better for her to ask them to slow down, she doesn't, because she feels alive like this- hair flying out behind her, sun in her eyes, lungs screaming, legs moving so fast they're tricking gravity into thinking it's possible for her to stay standing.

They lead her around the edge of the forbidden forest, walking now, and just as she's about demand they either tell her where they're going or turn back, they round the corner into a clearing, and- Dragons.

"Merlin." She breathes, pushing ahead of them through the tangle of bushes and brambles to get closer. "This is why Charlie's here?"

"Got his letter this morning." Fred said proudly, looking like there's no other way he'd rather spend his evening than watch his brother potentially be burnt to a crisp. "Thought you'd like to see."

"Of course I'd like to see. How close can we get?"

They don't go any closer, choosing to wait for Charlie instead, because despite how reckless the three of them can sometimes be, they draw the line at walking up to a sleeping dragon. She's fine with being this close, watching the steam pour from their nostrils as they snore, and their spiky tails swish in their sleep. She thinks of Emmeline's dragon hide boots and wonders how anyone can justify killing one of these creatures just for a piece of clothing, how they could even get close enough to kill it. Finally, just as the sky starts to get dark, Charlie comes into view.

"There you are!" He said, grinning. He's got a few new burns on his arms, and his hair's grown since the last time his mum cut it, but he's still smiling, still the same Charlie as he was over the summer. He wraps the twins into a hug, and even though Audra tries to hang back, not wanting to intrude, he grabs her round the neck and drags her into a sideways hug. "God, did the three of you get taller?"

"Nah." Fred says, craning his neck to get a better look at the dragons. "Can we get closer?"

"Yeah, but if I tell you to get back, you run and don't stop until you get back here or further, alright?" Normally adults deliver lines like that with authority and intimidation, but Charlie doesn't quite pull it off, just shoved his hands deep in his pockets and turned away, whistling cheerfully. She's not sure that she's seen Charlie look anything less than cheerful.

Audra gets closer than the twins, who seem to want to hang back, but she can't get close enough. As a witch or wizard, there's always certain types of things you're magic can work best with, and she's always had a certain affinity for fire. So maybe that's why she's not afraid, even as she jumps back to avoid a vicious snort setting her skirt on fire. "You want to pet it?" Charlie calls after her, not even watching, rummaging in his pockets to find the pack of cigarettes that Audra had stolen from him when she hugged him. (They're forbidden at Hogwarts.) "Go ahead, just do yourself a favor and stay behind the front leg. That tails wicked even when it's sleeping."

"And it wakes up?" She asks, but she's already moving.

"It shouldn't."

Not very comforting, but she walks forward anyways, placing a hand flat on the scales. They're warm, like he'd been bathing in the sun all day instead of lurking in the shadows, and she thinks that maybe the fire fills up its veins. She also thinks that she might move to one of those countries where it's still legal to keep all kinds of beasts, including dragons.

Fred joins her a while later, leaving George and Charlie in a conversation that involves a lot of laughter and nods in their direction. Fred's standing behind her, close enough that his shoulder bumps against hers. He doesn't seem to mind the dragon, either. "Did Charlie say what these are for?"

"The first task."

"You're kidding." She knows he's not, can tell from the tone of his voice and the grimace on his face, and knows he would never joke about something this serious. "Poor Harry."

"Yeah. Poor Harry."

That revelation takes the fun out of things after that. They aren't so beautiful to her now that she knows that in a matter of days they'll be going after Harry, all teeth and claws and flame and fantastic fury. They say good-bye to Charlie, then pick their way back through the forest and back up to the castle.

Fred offers to walk her down to the Slytherin dungeon, and even though she normally tells him that she can manage a few flights of stairs without assistance, she doesn't protest. They talk about a lot of things, about the nonexistent quidditch league this year, and about the new relationship between Clary and Emmeline, and whether or not anyone was giving Audra trouble over Bellatrix. The two of them stand at the entrance to her common room, both of them not wanting to leave.

"Do you think Harry's going to be okay?" She's not normally someone who asks for reassurance like this, but Fred seems to know that she needs it, so he puts on a smile she knows he doesn't feel. She wonders how often he does that with people.

"Of course he is." He's full of false bravado. "He's Harry Potter. Besides, Hermione's still on his side, and there's nothing she can't figure out."

They're close now, and even with the poor lighting of the dungeon, she can make out every freckle on his face. She had wanted him to hold her hand again on the walk down here, wondered if he would. She had thought about taking the initiative on her own, but she didn't. That would take more courage than she had. There was a reason that she hadn't been put in Gryffindor. Strange, she thinks, staring at him, That I can pet a dragon but can't reach out and hold his hand.

He does reach out to her, but it's to let his hand hover against her cheek. "You've got ink on your face." His thumb brushes against her skin. "Just there."

He stays like that for a moment, his hand on her cheek, and then he pulls away, startled back into reality, as if he just realized what he had been doing. She tries not to feel disappointed when he tells her good night.