WARNING: If you haven't read the "before you read" chapter, I HIGHLY suggest you read it, especially the part about Charlie's backstory, before you begin the story!
CHAPTER ONE:
Third Person P.O.V.:
Charlie awoke with a start on July 30th of 1991. Today, was his eleventh birthday and he absolutely ecstatic! He had been waiting for this day for as long as he could remember. After today, he would be fully eligible to finally attend the school that he had grown up living in. Hogwarts was his home, but he could not wait to finally attend the classes and be taught by the teachers which he so greatly admired over the years.
Charlie practically fell out of his bed from his excitement and ran over to his closet to quickly get changed. He was notorious for his classy, yet casual style of clothing. Not to mention, due to his father's work, he could afford the best of the best. He threw on a pair of black trousers and paired it with a white button-up, which he would accent with a grey jumper over top:
(ignore the tie and jacket)
As soon as he was dressed, he walked out of his chambers, past his grandfather's bedroom, down the stairs and into Dumbledore's office (basically Dumbledore and Charlie's living quarters are above Albus' office, they are located up the stairs behind Dumbledore's desk). He was not surprised to see his grandfather already fixated on his work as early as 7:00 in the morning.
As Charlie descended the staircase behind Dumbledore he said, "Good morning grandfather," with a big smile as he reached the bottom.
For the first time, Albus looked up and met Charlie's dark brown eyes with his icy blue ones and reciprocated his smile, "Good morning Charles, happy birthday. It is a very special one this year!"
"Indeed it is granddad. I'm very excited. You know how much I have been waiting to attend my classes." Charlie said while walking over to Fawkes' cage and giving him a little wave.
"That I do," Dumbledore says with a happy tone, "But let us not get too far ahead of ourselves Charlie. Today is all about you, your schooling can be a thought for tomorrow." Albus then gets up from his chair and walks over to the closet to the right of him.
As he opened it, Charlie could have sworn he heard a bark of some kind. He watched his grandfather closely, as Albus bent down a little and picked up a medium sized box with holes on the top.
"As I said Charlie, today is all about you," Dumbledore said with a smile as he turned towards Charlie, who hadn't moved from admiring Fawkes, "And with that being said, I find it only fitting to spoil you with gifts."
Charlie looks at his grandfather with his mouth agape as Dumbledore places the box in Charlie's hands and says, "In my opinion, every young wizard needs a furry companion."
As Charlie opens the box, he was amazed to see a German Shepard puppy staring up at him with big eyes and tongue sticking out, "Oh my days."
"You mean, I get to keep him? As my pet companion as I attend school? I thought students were only allowed toads, cats, or owls." Charlie said, still taken aback by the adorable puppy who was currently trying to lick his face.
Dumbledore watched in awe as grandson interacted with the little canine creature and answered him back with a small laugh and a pat on the back, "I'm willing to make an exception. You are my grandson after all, but let's not make a habit of using that as an excuse of altering the rules, okay?"
Charlie gave a quick nod and said, "Of course. Thank you. This is already turning out to be the best birthday ever," He then turned his attention away from his grandfather and back to the small puppy who was still in his hands, "I'm going to name you Ludo, after the famous Beater from the England National Quidditch team. How does that sound boy?"
The dog quickly gave a small little bark as an indication of his approval and Charlie flashed his famous smile toward the puppy. He lifted the animal out of the box, placed him on the floor and watched as he ran around Dumbledore's office and got acquainted with his new home.
It was Dumbledore's voice that broke Charlie away from his thoughts, "Oh, I almost forgot," he said as he turned away from Charlie, moved toward his desk, and picked up a card, "This was found in the post today. It's from your father."
Charlie took the card into his hands and looked at it with a slight frown now plastered on his face. This would be the fifth year in a row that his father wouldn't be here for his birthday and just the mere thought of it made him sad. He knew that his father's job was important, but he always thought that his birthday would be the one day that his father would actually prioritize him above everything else. Apparently he was wrong — and he has been for five years.
He slowly opened the card and focused on it firmly, as he didn't dare look up as he could feel Dumbledore's eyes looking down on him with worry and concern.
The card read:
"Dear Charles,
I apologize for missing your birthday once again. Things are really tough at work as of late and the Ministry requires all of my focus during these rough times. I'm sure you understand, after all, you are my son. I've sent along some sweets for you to enjoy on your special day and Dolores has informed me that she managed to get all your favourites.
Furthermore, I think now would be fitting to tell you that I will also have to miss your first day at Hogwarts. Once again, I am sorry, but the Ministry really needs me. When I return from my Ministry duties, I look forward to hearing all about your first day. There is no doubt in my mind that you'll follow in your great father's footsteps and be appointed to Slytherin House. I know you'll make me proud son, because as I am sure you know, there will be consequences if you fail to do so.
Happy Birthday Charles. Make me proud.
Fenwick Hawthorne, Minister of Magic"
Charlie finished reading the letter in his head and his frown grew larger. He was fearful of those consequences that his father mentioned, but he would never admit to it. He had to put on a brave face, although on the inside, his relationship with his father scared the living daylights out of him. He didn't know what his father was capable of anymore. It has been so long since they had a genuine conversation. Dare to say, his father was practically a stranger to him now.
"Char—" Dumbledore began, as he reached out to place a shoulder on his grandson's shoulder as a way of comfort. Albus knew of the pressures that his son-in-law has put on the poor child and his heart ached for his grandson. He knew him better than anyone else, he knew when he was trying to put on a brace face.
As if she had knew of Charlie's newfound discomfort at the idea of talking about his feelings towards his father with Albus, Minerva McGonagall had entered the office with a bright smile, "Hello! Hello!"
The young brown eyed boy let out an small sigh of relief and walked away from his grandfather and towards his future teacher, "Good morning professor, how are you?"
"Very well Charles, thank you for asking," She said in a content tone as she walked even closer to Charlie and engulfed him in a hug, "Happy birthday Charlie. I'm so proud of the young boy that I have been so honoured to watch grow up."
The young boy reciprocated the hug of his grandmother-like figure, "Thank you. I appreciate it," Charlie released his grip on the professor, pulled away and gave her a small smile to hide the fact that he was upset from his father's letter that he had only just finished reading.
As she pulled away, McGonagall reached into her robes, pulled out a Hogwarts envelope, and handed it to Charlie, "I find it only fitting that I hand-deliver this to you on your special day."
Charlie took the envelope in his hands and smiled at the infamous Hogwarts acceptance letter.
The front of it read,
"Mr. C. Hawthorne
The Headmaster Living Quarters
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Northumberland, England
Scottish Highlands"
As Charlie turned the envelope over he was met with the infamous red seal. He flashed a small smile to both McGonagall and Dumbledore, who were watching him as he gaped at the letter in his hands.
He opened the envelope and pulled out its contents before reading aloud,
"Dear Mr. Hawthorne,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1st. We await your owl by later than July 31st.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall"
As he stopped reading he couldn't help but acknowledge the now growing smile that was plastered on his face, "Thank you professor! This is, without a doubt, the best letter that I have received today."
Without realizing what he before it was too late, he noticed his grandfather's face falter a bit and watched as McGonagall looks at him curiously.
"Uh— I will give you two the chance to talk, I wanted to go show Ludo around the grounds anyway," Charlie said quickly as he wanted to avoid any form of confrontation about his father and the letter he had received.
And with that Charlie had scooped up his puppy, gave a small wave to his successors, and left the room.
As the door shut, Minerva spoke with her back still facing Dumbledore as she watched the young boy leave, "Is he alright?"
Dumbledore let out a big sigh and sat back down in his chair, "That boy carries the weight of the entire world on his shoulders in hopes of sparing the people he loves. Just the mere thought of that is considered a lot for someone, let alone an eleven year old child."
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A couple of hours had went by since Charlie had left Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore in the Headmaster's office.
He had been occupying his thoughts by focusing on playing fetch with his new and energetic puppy in the Courtyard. But, he was still trying to grasp the reality of the situation he found himself in.
It was his birthday. His eleventh year old birthday. Today was supposed to be one of the biggest milestones on the path to the rest of his life, and yet he couldn't help but feel absolutely gutted.
His father's absence had really began to take a toll on him. Not to mention, his letter had created an immense amount of fear within Charlie of what it would mean had he not be placed in Slytherin house during the Sorting.
He was snapped out of his thoughts as his new furry companion had started barking at something beyond the wall that was blocking his view. Charlie quickly got up and ran over to where his puppy was located and turned the corner.
He was not at all surprised to see Peeves, the poltergeist reeking havoc for Caretaker Filch as per usual. Charlie saw an opportunity as Peeves had not yet noticed him or his barking companion as he was too occupied with writing something on Filch's office door. So, he quietly walked up behind him and waited for the perfect moment to yell, "BOO!"
With a loud yelp, Peeves had jumped, turned around and gave a look of disappointment to the boy who he was now faced with, "Ah, little Char has gone and scared Peeves! But why?! I thought we were as thick as thieves!"
Charlie let out a small laugh, "Sorry Peeves, I couldn't resist. If the roles were reversed, I reckon you'd have done the same to me, if not worse."
Peeves turns his fake look of disappointment into a sly smirk, "Oh but of course!" The poltergeist then turned his attention to the little dog that was wagging his tail contently beside Charlie, "Oh looky looky! What do we have here? Little Char has found himself a friend! I never thought one would appear!"
The young boy shook his head at the joker-looking poltergeist, "Very funny. Say, what we're you doing to Filch's door?"
"Peevesy thought it be best to give old Filchy a gift! One that'll be sure to leave him a bit miffed." The poltergeist replied, with a mischievous smile.
"What kind of-" Charlie began, but quickly cut off by the sound a loud bang on the other side of Filch's door.
"RUN LITTLE CHAR! RUN VERY FAR!" Peeves said before taking off down the hall.
Charlie wasted no time in running back through the courtyard and towards the Great Hall with Ludo following closely behind him. He could have sworn he had heard Filch yell, "PEEVES! Show yourself!"
That didn't stop him, however. He continued on his way, slowing down as he reached an area that he thought was safe. Then, as he turned the corner before the Great Hall corridor, he collided with someone unexpectedly.
Charlie lifted his gaze to see the scowl and big nose that belonged to Professor Snape looking down at him, "Hawthorne. Do you always take pride in being an insufferable nuisance? Or does that just come naturally to those of your...fame?"
Charlie had always disliked Professor Snape, mainly because Snape had always seemed to have it out for him. He looked at him with a slight frown as he held his hands behind his back as a form of respect, "I'm sorry Professor Snape. I failed to watch where I was going. I promise it won't happen again."
"Oh I'm sure it will. People like you are incapable of fulfilling promises." Snape said with a harsh tone, "Your grandfather is looking for you. You best not keep him waiting."
All Charlie could do was give the tall man a small nod before he heard him speak once again, this time looking at the perky little canine on the floor beside him, "And take this pathetic excuse for a pet with you. With you as his owner, I can only imagine the amount of chaos he is bound to cause."
And with that Snape walked passed him and down the hall towards his classroom. Charlie watched the man as he disappeared, he never did understand why Professor Snape had hated him so much, but he knew it was best not to question the Potions Professor.
With one last shake of his head, he looked at Ludo who was staring up at him with his tongue hanging out, "Come on boy," he said before walking down the hallway back to the office which he had stormed out of earlier this morning.
His thoughts wandered as he tried to figure out what was so important that would make Dumbledore request to see him.
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Author's Note:
*this chapter was not proof read*
Hope you enjoyed the first chapter! This one was all about familiarizing the audience with Charlie's relationships within the castle, so I hope you liked it! Next chapter will focus on Charlie getting to leave the castle on an important task... 👀
Please feel free to like, comment, vote, and share!
Also, I love Peeves, so he's gonna make a few appearances. Hope that's okay!
Much love to all of you!
xo, Selena