Essentially A Junk Drawer

In order to have some time alone for the call with Minerva, Molly and Arthur had concocted some time consuming and unnecessary outdoor chores for the kids. This would allow them to have the call without risk of being overheard. Because of the location of the fireplace in the middle of the living space, the only other alternative would be to make the kids stay in their respective rooms with silencing charms. Keeping them busy outside seemed like a better option. To ensure that they were interested and motivated, Molly had incentivized the tasks with sugary treats.

At around noon, they sent the older kids outside and set up Ron and Ginny with some activities to keep them busy. Minerva McGonagall's head showed up in the fire shortly after. Molly would have liked to have this conversation in person but this would have to do for now. After the obligatory niceties, they dove right into what was inevitably going to be a difficult conversation.

———————————

Over the course of the nearly an hour-long conversation, Molly and Arthur ended up learning some gut wrenching things from Minerva. In the owl she’d sent her requesting the meeting, Molly had outlined some of their concerns. Minerva had taken it upon herself to talk to some of the Gryffindor students that were staying at Hogwarts over the holiday, gathering as much information as she could about the situation. She’d ended those discussions with stern reminders that this type of behavior was unacceptable, and that even if they were not the ones doing it, they were responsible for telling an adult.

In addition to what Bill had told them, they learned that some of the kids thought it was funny to ask Charlie questions about dragons and then laugh at him when he tried to answer their questions. Charlie’s treasured dragon book had been snatched out of his hands and thrown around on occasion, with the other kids keeping it just out of his reach.

While these occurrences made their hearts hurt, the most abhorrent information they learned was how Charlie was treated in some of his classes.

A certain potions professor in particular was being cruel to Charlie. Reading was difficult for Charlie, and Snape had a habit of asking him to read the potions’ instructions aloud to the class, making no effort to stop the other students when they would mock him as he stumbled over the words. When Charlie made a mistake or botched a potion, Snape used him as an example for the rest of the class so they knew what not to do. He constantly called Charlie out when he would stim in class, and on really bad days, he made Charlie sit on his hands, taking house points whenever he moved.

The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had been behaving in similar ways, stopping the lesson to stare at Charlie until he was sitting still. Minerva had been shaking with rage when she shared this information with Molly and Arthur. She apologized profusely for having let this go on so long without knowing, and vowed to have words with the professors in question and the headmaster. Molly and Arthur knew she would do just that and thanked her.

Both Molly and Arthur cried after the call ended, sitting in silence for a while. Eventually that silence was broken by the older kids coming inside from the garden. The task of clearing snow off of the flowerbeds had bought just enough time for the call.

They wiped tears away and put on smiles by the time the kids tromped into the kitchen. The boys’ cheeks and noses were all bright red but they were laughing together.

“Thanks, boys, for your help with that! As promised, I’ll get some hot chocolate started for everyone. With extra marshmallows!” Molly said, helping the twins out of their boots and coats.

Both Molly and Arthur found themselves coddling Charlie that afternoon, giving him a few more sweets and a few less vegetables than usual. He was able to stay outside with his broom longer than they would have normally let him.

When they had a moment to themselves, they decided that they would talk to Charlie that night. They wanted to address it sooner rather than later. Neither were entirely sure what they would say, but they wanted Charlie to know that they knew what was happening, and that they were going to make absolutely sure it wouldn’t happen again.

————————————

They sent the kids to bed early that night, with the exception of Charlie. Charlie had watched with a concerned look as all of his siblings were sent up to bed but his parents allowed him to continue playing downstairs. He was visibly anxious when his parents asked him to sit down at the kitchen table.

“We spoke to Professor McGonagall today, Cha–,” Molly started.

“I’m sorry,” Charlie interrupted, starting to cry, legs bouncing nervously. “I’m really sorry.”

“Sweetheart, stop. I promise you are not in trouble. You have not done anything wrong, Charlie. I promise. You’re okay,” Molly said, hoping to stop Charlie before he spiraled. He furrowed his brow and looked at Molly, tears still welling up in his eyes.

Arthur spoke next. “We know that the kids and professors at school are being mean to you. Bill told us a little bit, and we called Professor McGonagall because she is your head of house and needs to know what kids in her house are doing.” As he was speaking, Charlie started slumping in his chair. He was chewing anxiously on his knuckles, leaving little indentations with his teeth.

“What the other kids are doing is wrong. They should not treat you the way they are, and I am so sorry they have been so mean. No one deserves to be teased, honey.”

Charlie started shaking his head, sitting up and putting his forehead on the table. His shoulders were shaking. Arthur put a comforting hand on Charlie’s back. Charlie sat back up and leaned into his father. He gripped Arthur’s jumper and pressed his face into his chest. Arthur wrapped his arms tightly around Charlie and held him.

“Kiddo, we are going to make sure that nobody is mean to you again,” Arthur said, realizing it was an unfortunately empty promise. Even if they could somehow follow him around school, they couldn’t control the behavior of every other student there. “Even your professors, Charlie. The way they are treating you is absolutely not okay.”

“But I’m bad sometimes. I am trying to be good,” Charlie said, his voice muffled in Arthur’s jumper.

“Charlie Weasley,” Molly said, louder than she meant. Charlie tensed, and she softened her tone immediately. “You are not bad. You have never been bad. They are bad. Your teachers are being bad, honey.”

Charlie turned his head away from Arthur to look at his mother. He looked skeptical.

“Why do you think you are bad?” she continued.

Charlie bit his lip. “Because I’m annoying. And I accidentally distract the other kids and lose house points and I can’t do it right because I’m stupid,” he said, the words tumbling out of his mouth. “I am trying really hard but I can’t do it.”

“Can’t do what, Charlie?”

“I can’t be normal. I’m a freak,” he replied, his voice rising to almost a shout. He began to pull on his hair and slid out of his chair, slumping to the floor.

Molly looked up at the ceiling, taking a steadying breath. Arthur reached down and pulled Charlie back up. He didn’t fight back and allowed his father to pull him into his arms. “You are not a freak, Charlie. You are not a freak,” Arthur said, pressing his face into Charlie’s hair.

There was silence in the kitchen for a while. Molly and Arthur were unsure what to say next, and Charlie was pretty much shut down. He was still standing and leaning into his father, picking idly at Arthur’s jumper sleeves. Arthur could feel tears start to seep into the fabric.

“I think that’s enough talking for tonight,” Molly said eventually. “We’ll talk more tomorrow when we’re fresh.”

Arthur nodded, giving Charlie a tight squeeze before taking his shoulders and holding him at arm’s length. “Charlie, please listen to what I’m about to say.”

Charlie glanced at his father’s face before looking back at the ground with a barely perceptible nod.

“You are not a freak. You are not bad. You are an amazing kid. You are incredibly special, and you amaze me every day. We love you so much. So much. And we are going to make this better. I promise.”

Charlie nodded again, pulling away from his father and walking upstairs to his bedroom.

“Absolutely. I just got the kettle on, so it should be ready soon. What kind of tea do you want?” She normally didn’t give the kids this choice, too many differing opinions often leading to bickering, but today was Christmas.

“Peppermint, please,” Charlie said, perking up at getting to make the tea selection.

“Peppermint it is, then!”

———————————

While breakfast was cooking, the kids were allowed to open their presents. This was as chaotic as it was every year, and Charlie put his earmuffs on pretty early on in the excitement. Arthur made a mental note to thank Minerva for lending them to Charlie. He wished he had thought of something like that earlier.

Arthur had gotten a modest Christmas bonus that year, and he and Molly were eager for the kids to see the gifts they’d gotten. In addition to their gifts wrapped under the tree, they all got their annual Weasley sweaters which Molly had not had time to wrap. She handed them out while Arthur began to pass out the other gifts.

Charlie was over the moon about the Cleansweep Six Arthur had bought for him. Arthur had gotten a great deal on it over the summer and had kept it under their bed since. It had been tempting to give it to Charlie the moment he got it, but he managed to refrain and save it for Christmas. Charlie immediately tried to run outside to try it out, but begrudgingly agreed to wait until after breakfast.

The twins had been given a children’s beater set, complete with tiny bats and a bludger enchanted not to hit anything but the bats. Molly had been hesitant about this, citing the damage the boys were capable of causing when they were not armed with sticks. The moment they opened the gifts Molly made them swear to be careful. They promised, and nobody believed that for a second.

Bill eagerly started reading a new book he’d gotten. It was all about treasures and adventures. He’d been the most difficult of their children to find a gift for. He was fully a teenager now, and was entering the phase where things now aren’t as cool as they once were. So they’d settled on the book, a leather journal, and some muggle pens and pencils.

Also reading a new book was Percy. He and Bill were both avid readers. Molly and Arthur had picked up an armful of books from Flourish and Blott’s on their last unaccompanied trip to Diagon Alley, as well as an enchanted bookmark that provided a summary of the last page you had read before closing the book.

Ron and Ginny both received some figurines and stuffed animals, as well as a few picture books. Some of these were hand-me-downs, though they didn’t seem to care. Some of the new items were a set of scented markers that Arthur had picked up at the same muggle shop he’d gotten Bill’s writing utensils from. Almost immediately, Ron’s nose had a number of very colorful smudges adorning it.

In addition, there were sweets and treats from Honeydukes for everyone to enjoy. The older kids tore into the chocolate frogs and began trading the cards immediately.

Once they sat down for breakfast, the excitement over the presents had faded, an unsettled quiet took over. There hadn’t been any real closure after the previous afternoon’s incident. Percy and Bill were shooting looks at Charlie, Bill’s was guilty and Percy’s was apprehensive.

Thankfully, Charlie didn’t seem to notice the looks he was getting. It was clear he was rushing through breakfast in order to get outside with the new brooms as soon as he could.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you yesterday, Charlie,” Percy blurted out eventually. Charlie furrowed his brow mid-bite. Molly paused where she was scooping some eggs up for Ron.

“Um,” Charlie said softly. “It’s okay.”

“Are you sorry, too?” Percy asked Charlie. The precocious eight year old always needed things to be even and fair, and it seemed to bother him that Charlie didn’t apologize back to him in kind.

Charlie glanced nervously at his parents. Molly started to interrupt this conversation but Charlie responded before she had a chance. “Yeah. I’m sorry,” he said. He started anxiously chewing on his fingers.

Molly clapped her hands together. “Well, today is a brand new day. It’s a fresh start for everyone, so let’s not dwell on yesterday,” she said happily. After a few moments, stilted conversation started up again around the table.

After the initial awkward moments, conversation around the table flowed comfortably and the kids were eagerly talking about the gifts they’d gotten. Fred, George, and Charlie were all eating as quickly as they could, looking forward to heading outside to play with their gifts.

Once Molly deemed that they had all eaten enough, she dismissed them. Charlie and the twins took off like rockets, racing to the tree to grab their gifts and bring them outside. Charlie had hardly stepped off the porch before he had taken off into the air.

Bill ran out after them, pulling his boots on while trying to walk at the same time.

“Would you like to join them, Percy, dear?” Molly asked.

“No, thank you. It’s too cold.”

“I agree. It’s much cozier in here,” Molly said, finishing stacking the dishes in the sink. “Can you show me your new books while everyone is outside?”

Percy nodded enthusiastically. He and Molly walked into the sitting room. Percy brought the books over to the sofa and showed them to his mother one by one.

They sat together for a while, until everyone else came back inside. The group that had been outside had bright red cheeks and noses.

Charlie seemed much lighter after flying around for that amount of time. He smiled listening to the twins go on and on about the beater’s bats and bludger and how they were going to be great beaters one day.

The peace of the day was broken somewhat when Molly received an owl back from Minerva that afternoon. Her reply had come far sooner than Molly had expected. Minerva had been upset to learn about the bullying and asked them to meet the following day. Molly gave the letter to Arthur who read it and tucked it into his pocket.

The rest of the day was relatively uneventful. The kids were able to keep themselves entertained with the new toys and books they’d received. There was some tension when Bill wanted to try Charlie’s new broom and Charlie wouldn’t let him. Bill had argued with him and Molly could see that Charlie was getting close to his threshold for frustration. She stepped in, and after some conversation they decided that no one had to share on Christmas. Being in a family as large as theirs, sharing was a regular part of life, but today there could be an exception.

After lunch, Arthur had read stories for a good hour and a half while the younger kids went down for their naps. He always did the voices when he would read and the kids enjoyed it immensely.

Charlie had spent a good portion of time outside enjoying the new broom. As the sun started to go down, Molly called for him to come inside. He continued to fly laps, ignoring her. After Molly threatened to lock the broom up the next day, he finally landed and went inside for dinner.

Bill went on to explain in detail the bullying that Charlie had been enduring. About the times he’d caught kids imitating Charlie’s stims; the hand flapping and finger flicking, the jumping, and the rocking. How they laughed at him and called him dragon boy.

“Is Charlie okay?” Bill asked, pausing in his work.

“He’s sleeping right now. He is pretty exhausted, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he slept through until morning. Just a couple of bruises and bumps, and those should heal up nicely.” Bill nodded, continuing to set the table.

Molly had wanted to call Minerva that night, but knew there was nothing she’d be able to do until after the holiday. Maybe they’d be able to get more information out of Charlie before then, anyways.. She did send an owl to the school letting her know what their concerns were and requesting a call once the holidays were over.

In the meantime she kept herself busy getting all of the food ready for Christmas Eve. The table was loaded down with turkey, ham, potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, and some mince pies. She called everyone to come sit down to eat.

The mood around the table was surprisingly light. Celestina Warbeck’s Christmas album played in the background, slow was softly falling outside, and the food smelled amazing. Bill seemed less anxious now that everything was out in the open about Charlie’s experiences at school. Now that there were adults willing and able to step in.

As predicted, Charlie slept for the rest of the evening. They thought about waking him so that he wouldn’t feel left out, but decided that he needed the sleep. They checked in on him every so often.

Molly did set a plateful of cookies and treats, as well as a mug of hot cocoa charmed to stay warm. She also set some toast and jam on the nightstand because he had missed dinner.

———————————

Once all of the kids were in bed and the gifts were placed under the tree, Molly and Arthur sat down on the sofa and had some tea. They were both exhausted and knew they should go to bed but they were feeling somewhat unsettled. There hadn’t been time to process the afternoon.

“I got some information out of Bill, Arthur. About how school is going for Charlie. It’s not good,” Molly started. Arthur closed his eyes and took a long sip, waiting for his wife to continue. “His classmates are being cruel. They have been mocking him and teasing him all term. I owled Minerva and requested a call with her after Christmas.”

“Well, that explains a lot. No wonder he’s locked up every time we try to talk about school. And it explains why he seemed so anxious around some of the kids when we were leaving the station.” Arthur went on to share with Molly how Charlie had grabbed Arthur’s hand and held tightly until they were away from the group.

“I just hope Minerva can help. It’ll feel awful putting him on the train back to all of that. I’m tempted to go with him, though that would most definitely make things worse for him.”

Arthur chuckled. “I’m not sure any kid wants their mum shadowing them in their classes.”

“That’s why I only said I was tempted, Arthur. I know better.”

“Fair enough, fair enough,” Arthur replied, putting a hand on her shoulder. “We should probably head to bed, Mollywobbles. You know the twins will be up at the crack of dawn.”

“Okay. I can tell you are all feeling nervous. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but everything is okay. Charlie is having a really hard time right now. I don’t know why, and as much as I want to, I can’t make him happy right now. Your dad is helping right now. There’s nothing any of you did wrong and there is nothing any of you can do to help right now.” She was directing this speech mostly to Bill and Percy, but she could tell that the twins were also working to process what she was saying. Ginny was content working on her coloring, and Ron was happily drinking his cocoa. She felt some relief that they still seemed to be enjoying their Christmas Eve.

A particularly loud thump upstairs echoed, and Percy started crying again in earnest. Molly pulled him into her lap, holding him tight. “It’s my fault,” he whimpered.

“Oh, Percy. It’s no one’s fault. You didn’t do anything wrong, honey.”

“But I yelled at him. And that made him mad.”

Molly took yet another deep breath. She didn’t know how to explain that Charlie was going to explode regardless of what anyone did. She’d seen the pressure building since the afternoon he’d returned home from the station. Percy just happened to be the one that tipped the scale. “Your brother is very sad right now. School was really, really hard for Charlie this term. I think all of the bad feelings he had kept getting bigger, and it got to be too much. Kind of like when the kettle boils over.”

“The kids are really mean to him, mum,” Bill said, so quietly she barely heard. He glanced at Molly. “At school. They make fun of him. I try to make them stop but they won’t.”

Molly had been so afraid of this. “Thank you for telling me, Bill.” She’d have to have a longer conversation with him at another time.

——————————

Arthur watched on edge as Charlie stood up suddenly. Arthur had moved to the edge of the bed, his knees starting to ache from sitting on the floor. Charlie moved over to the bed and threw himself into his father. It wasn’t clear whether he was seeking some comfort or was lashing out. Regardless, Arthur allowed Charlie to hold tightly to his sweater and press his head into his chest.

He took a chance and placed a hand on Charlie’s back. When Charlie allowed that, he took another chance. “I love you, Charlie. Can you tell me what’s going on? What’s wrong?”

Charlie lifted his head and looked up at his dad. There were tears falling from his eyes. Arthur could practically see the wheels turning in his son's head, thoughts swirling. He started chewing on his fingers and Arthur knew that he was still really struggling and not ready or able to talk about anything. He had a feeling Charlie was still deep into this meltdown.

Arthur’s instincts were right when just a few breaths later, Charlie curled into himself, dropping to the floor again and kicking his dad's legs with all his strength. Arthur winced and moved his legs out of Charlie’s reach. He stood and moved to sit back on the floor, again right out of Charlie’s reach.

Charlie threw himself back at Arthur, digging his fingers into Arthur’s arms, pinching as hard as he could. Arthur calmly pried his son's hands off of his arms, at which point Charlie threw himself backwards, arching his back and yelling. Arthur reacted reflexively, grabbing Charlie before he landed on the ground and pulling him back to his chest. Charlie pushed against him for a moment before gripping his sweater again and pushing his forehead against Arthur’s arm.

Arthur held Charlie, murmuring comforting words. He glanced at the muggle alarm clock on his bedside table and saw that it had been nearly an hour and a half of this cycle. Charlie started to slow down at this point, finally taking the deep breaths that Arthur had been modeling for him. He felt Charlie’s body start to relax, the deep breaths continuing. Arthur kissed the top of Charlie’s head, sighing tiredly.

He shifted slightly so he could hold Charlie with one arm, reaching for his wand with the other. Arthur sent his patronus downstairs to Molly, asking her to come upstairs when she had a free moment.

A few minutes later, Molly slowly opened the door. Charlie’s breathing had deepened and evened out, apparently having fallen asleep. Arthur had shifted again so that Charlie’s face was buried against his shoulder. He put a finger to his lips when Molly entered. She sat down next to Arthur. “Are you okay?” she whispered to her husband. Arthur nodded.

“Is he asleep?” Arthur mouthed, not being able to see Charlie’s face from the position they were in.

Molly nodded her head, stroking Charlie’s sweaty hair back from his face. Her fingers immediately felt a large lump that was developing on the side of his head, and Charlie winced in his sleep. She left quietly to grab some Bruisewort Balm and a few other things.

Arthur’s feet were starting to go numb, so he decided to try to move Charlie to the bed without waking him. He very slowly started to shift Charlie so he could get his feet under him. As careful as Arthur was, Charlie did stir awake when he was settled on the bed.

“Sweetheart, what is going on? You haven’t been acting like yourself all break. You’ve been really quiet, and whenever we talk about school you seem nervous.”

“Nothing. I’m fine.” was Charlie’s answer, and Molly didn’t buy it for a second.

Charlie started chewing on his jumper sleeve and Molly felt his body start to rock back and forth against her side. “Talk to me, Charlie. I can’t help you if I don’t know what’s wrong.”

“I don’t want to go back, please,” Charlie said, his voice so quiet that Molly had to lean in to hear. His voice shook, and Molly felt her heart start to break.

“Why not, Charlie? I know it’s really hard being away from home. Bill had a hard time his first year as well. Are the kids being nice? And the teachers? Professor McGonagall said that you’re doing really well in Transfiguration.” Charlie didn’t respond. Molly tended to feel the need to fill silences, whereas Arthur didn’t mind the silence. She knew she was asking too many questions, but she was desperate to understand what was bothering Charlie. “Do you like the other boys in your dorm? Or have you made friends with kids in other houses?”

At this point, the rest of the family came in from the garden. Charlie started rocking harder, and Molly felt tears drop onto her arm where he was leaning.

“How’s it going in here? You’re probably much warmer than we are! It’s cold out there!” Arthur said cheerfully. Upon seeing Charlie crying and Molly’s face, he changed pace. “Bill, will you please go feed the chickens with Fred and George? Percy, too?” Bill turned right back around and herded his younger brothers back into the yard. “I’m going to get these two out of their wet clothes and warmed up. We’ll just be upstairs.”

Molly mouthed ‘thanks’ to her husband before turning her attention back to Charlie. He was fully crying now. Molly put a hand on his back as he put his head on her lap. “Oh, Charlie,” she sighed. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”

She held him for a few more minutes before he sat up, sniffing and wiping his nose. Molly thought about asking him about school again, to figure out what was actually going on. She decided against it, thinking a change of subject was in order.

“Let’s get some lunch on the table. Could you help me?” Charlie nodded and ran to the kitchen. Molly stood up, taking a deep breath before joining him.

Charlie was quiet during lunch, but Molly was happy to see him laughing along with everyone when Bill finished telling a funny story.

——————————

Shortly after lunch, however, things took a turn. Molly had the little ones upstairs trying to convince them to lay down for a nap. Charlie and Percy were helping clear the table when Charlie accidentally dropped a plate. It shattered in the sink, the noise startled everyone in the kitchen, causing them to turn to look.

“Be careful, Charlie! That’s glass!” Percy scolded. Percy was a rule follower, and had a bad habit of bossing his brothers and sister around, even the older ones. Cheeks flushing deeply, Charlie grabbed another plate and threw it onto the ground. “Why did you do that?! You did that on purpose!” Percy shouted. “Mum! Charlie broke the plate on purpose!”

Charlie spun around and shoved Percy as hard as he could. He fell backwards, colliding with the table on his way to the ground. Charlie pressed his hands over his ears as Percy started crying, before trying to kick his crying brother.

Bill was closest to his brothers and immediately tried to get between them. He grabbed Charlie’s arm, but Charlie pulled away and started hitting Bill hard in the chest. On instinct, Bill pushed his brother away, causing him to fall onto the floor next to Percy, who quickly got up and left the kitchen.

Arthur ran into the kitchen from out back where he’d been helping the twins collect eggs from the coop.

“What happened?” he asked immediately. He didn’t get an answer right away, and was distracted when Charlie shouted, kicking the cabinet door hard enough to crack it. Charlie then picked his head up and smashed it back into the floor a few times, while continuing to kick the cabinet door.

Arthur ran forward and dropped to his knees, grabbing Charlie and heaving him up and away from where he continued to strike his head. Charlie reacted violently, screaming and flailing. Arthur held him tight, trying to decide what to do next.

Molly had rushed into the kitchen as well, moments after Arthur. She ushered the twins behind her. Arthur was struggling to hold Charlie, who was fighting with everything he had in him.

“You’re going to hurt yourself, Charlie. I can’t let go until I know you are safe, son. I’m sorry,” he said softly near Charlie’s ear.

Molly bit her lip. “Do you think you can carry him upstairs? Just up to our room? He’ll be safer in there, Arthur.”

Her husband nodded. He looked back down at his son. “Charlie, we’re going upstairs. Will you get up and walk with me?” Charlie didn’t answer and continued to push against his father, yelling. “Okay, that’s fine, Charlie. I’m going to pick you up. You’re okay,” he said soothingly.

Apart from Arthur’s physical advantage he had over Molly in dealing with Charlie's meltdowns, she also knew that Arthur’s calm demeanor was better aligned than hers was. She could manage in a pinch, but whenever possible, Arthur took over.

Arthur got to his feet and pulled Charlie up, wrapping his arms tightly around his chest. Charlie threw his head back into Arthur’s chin but Arthur took it in stride, continuing to move towards the stairs. He hated hauling Charlie around like this but there were too many things he could hurt himself on in the kitchen. Their bedroom offered softer surfaces so he could give Charlie some space without him hurting himself too badly.

Charlie kicked out at the wall and the handrail all the way up the stairs. Thankfully they only had to make it up one flight. Once they were in the bedroom, Arthur set Charlie down. Before he’d had a chance to cast the cushioning charms on the wall, Charlie had hit his head against it hard enough to knock the pictures down.

Arthur sat down on the floor, leaning back against the closed door. Charlie paced for a while before tucking himself between the wall and the edge of the bed, rocking violently and burying his head in his arms. Arthur moved his wand again to shut the curtains, bringing the room into a soft darkness.

They sat there for a while. Arthur watched Charlie but gave him space as he tried to work through whatever had bubbled up so intensely. He’d seen this building since the moment Charlie got off the train earlier in the week.

Charlie continued to yell, tears streaming down his face. He was hitting his head against the thankfully cushioned wall behind him, before stilling.

This went on for a good thirty minutes, with Arthur checking in with him every few minutes. He was not responding to Arthur and started to escalate again when Arthur approached him.

Arthur settled on the floor a little closer to his son. Charlie's cheeks were flushed and his eyes were red from crying.

——————————

Downstairs, there was a nervous energy hanging in the air. Bill was looking miserable, starting to pick up where Charlie and Percy left off with the dishes. Percy had run into the living room crying just as soon as Charlie moved away from him. This wasn’t the first time Charlie lashed out at Percy and it very likely wouldn’t be the last. Percy’s personality clashed quite a bit with Charlie, and the younger’s tendency to nag and correct had set off a number of similar altercations between the two.

As soon as Arthur had gotten Charlie up the stairs, Molly took a deep, calming breath before turning back to her other children. She knew that Arthur had things under control upstairs, and she had four other children looking to her for reassurance. She could hear her youngest crying in the nursery upstairs, and saw Ron climbing down the stairs. Realizing a nap was not going to happen, she went upstairs and brought Ginny down as well.

Percy had already moved himself as far away from the kitchen as he could, and was currently wedged into the one of the comfy armchairs in the sitting room.

Fred and George were camped out by the back door of the kitchen, sneaking treats and seeming relatively unphased, though Molly didn’t miss the anxious glances over their shoulders every so often.

She made her way over to the twins, tutting when she saw the state of their faces, covered in chocolate and powdered sugar.

“That is quite enough, you two,” she scolded lightly, not being able to hide the amusement in her face. “Go wash your faces, please.” They giggled and ran towards the washroom.

Turning back to the sitting room she saw that Bill was sitting next to Percy who was still visibly shaken up. Percy was unfortunately the one typically on the receiving end of Charlie’s outbursts. Things rarely got physical like they had tonight, thankfully, but their relationship was definitely wrought with strife. They are both so headstrong that they are bound to butt heads every now and then. When they did butt heads, though, Charlie always seemed to come out on top.

“Thank you for finishing clearing the table, Bill,” Molly said, sitting down on Percy’s other side. “Are you okay, love?”

Percy nodded quickly, sniffing. Molly wasn’t convinced. “Percy, dear. Did Charlie hurt you? I promise he didn’t mean to, but please tell me if you’re hurting.”

Percy finally relented and showed his mother a bruise that was quickly forming on his arm from where he’d collided with the table. Much to Molly’s relief, Percy had not been cut by any of the shards of glass. Molly smoothed a healing salve onto Percy’s arm, kissing him on the top of the head.

Upstairs, they could hear some thumping and yelling, as Charlie continued to spiral. Bill glanced at the stairs anxiously. Molly could tell he wanted to run upstairs to help his brother. He’d only be in the way, so Molly tried to distract him.

She turned up the wireless that was playing Christmas songs. “What do you guys think about having some hot chocolate? And maybe some cookies if Fred and George left any for the rest of us?”

Ron eagerly expressed his interest in this plan, but no one else matched his enthusiasm. Fred and George had wandered in, with a somewhat haunted look. Hearing their brother so upset upstairs was making them uneasy.

He wandered back down and put a few more logs on the fire. It was a cold morning. Molly wasn’t phased when Arthur came down alone. Charlie really was impossible to get out of bed if he had dug his heels in.

A little over twenty minutes later, Arthur returned to Charlie’s room and was pleasantly surprised to find his second eldest pulling on his sweatshirt and stumbling towards the door. The sweatshirt was stuck around his head, so Arthur helped tug it down before Charlie would run face first into the door frame.

“I’m up,” Charlie grumbled, heading down the stairs in front of his father.

As breakfast unfolded, it seemed that Charlie was in a much better mood than the night before. He was chiming into the conversation every once in a while, and laughing when Fred and George got up to their nonsense.

After breakfast, Arthur announced that they should get out and find a tree pretty soon, as the sky looked somewhat ominous like a storm was coming in. He pulled on his warmest jacket and boots while Bill, Charlie, and the twins did the same. Percy had opted to stay home despite goading from Bill. Arthur wasn’t surprised, however, that Percy wanted to capitalize on the slightly emptier house. Living with the twins could be a lot for a kid as reserved as Percy.

As soon as they were out the door, Charlie took off at full speed down the path towards the woods. There was already snow starting to fall. Fred and George took off after him as fast as they could.

Arthur clapped Bill on the shoulder. “I sure missed you, kiddo. It’s always so nice to have you back home. How are your classes going this year?”

“They’re alright. So much harder than last year!” Bill answered, throwing his head backwards dramatically. “Started divination. It’s the stupidest class, dad.”

Arthur laughed. “It was not my favorite subject, either. Who’s teaching this year? It surely can’t be the wizard that taught your mother and I.”

“Trelawney. She’s only been there a few years,” Bill replied. “I did also get to start Care of Magical Creatures, which has been great!”

He carried on telling Arthur all about the rest of his classes while Arthur watched the other three kids running ahead. He had to amplify his voice a few times to shout for them to slow down. Fred and George eventually started to slow down, each taking one of their dad’s hands once they caught up. Charlie was still out ahead of them, though he had also slowed. His head was tilted back while he walked, staring up at the sky.

Once they made it a little ways into the forest, they started getting serious about finding the perfect tree. There were a lot of varying opinions between them on which tree would be best which led to quite a bit of bickering.

Charlie had stayed out of most of the debate, wandering between the trees on his own. After a while, he found a tree that was perfect, and decided to bring it to the attention of the group. “What about this one? It’s a really good one!” he called over his shoulder. His brothers came running, with the twins expressing their awe. Charlie looked quite proud of himself. Arthur made his way over to the boys, smiling when he saw how happy Charlie looked.

“Great find, Charlie! What do you think, boys? Is this the tree we want?” Charlie looked expectantly at his brothers, grinning when they all agreed. Arthur used the axe he’d been carrying to chop the tree down, and they started dragging it back to the house. Arthur had been fascinated by the muggle method of chopping trees down with an axe, and had made it a tradition with his children. The trek back to the house took a lot longer than the walk out, and by the time they made it back, there was a good amount of snow accumulated on the ground.

——————————————

Once the tree was set up and decorated, it was lunch time. Fred and George had been looking excitedly out the window at the snow still falling heavily. They ate quickly before begging to go out to play in the snow. Molly made sure they were bundled up before letting them run out the door. Percy, Charlie, and Bill all finished their lunches quickly as well and ran after them once they were also sufficiently bundled. Arthur pulled on his coat and joined his sons outside while Molly cleared the table. Once the table was cleared, she got Ron and Ginny into their cold weather gear and ushered them out the door as well.

They spent a good part of the afternoon playing in the snow. Ron and Ginny got cold pretty quickly and Molly brought them back inside, followed shortly by Percy. Fred and George had been building an arsenal of snowballs and had them stacked up against the shed. Bill and Charlie had been building a snowman until they noticed what the twins were up to. At that point, they began forming snowballs as well, preparing for the inevitable battle.

Arthur was watching this unfold when Molly brought him out a steaming mug of hot chocolate. He wrapped an arm around Molly’s shoulders and they stood together as the battle unfolded in front of them. Fred had thrown the first snowball, which hit Bill’s chest with alarming accuracy. Things devolved into chaos shortly after.

They only battled for about ten minutes before Arthur had to call it off. The laughter had shifted to shouting after George pelted Charlie in the face with a snowball at close range. Charlie had tried to run away but was hit again by Fred in the back of the head. At that point Charlie ran towards their stack of snowballs and stomped on all of them, before throwing handfuls of snow at the twins when they tried to stop him.

Arthur sighed and jogged over. “Okay, okay. That’s enough. Let’s go warm up inside. Mum’s got hot cocoa ready.” Fred and George, unphased by the tension, bolted towards the door, shouting something about marshmallows.

Bill looked uneasily between his brother and the door, before Arthur nudged him towards the door. Arthur then knelt down to peek under Charlie’s hood. Charlie was chewing anxiously on his fingers, with his other hand tugging on his hair. “Let’s get inside, kiddo. You look half frozen,” he encouraged, brushing some of the snow off of Charlie’s hood. They started walking towards the house together.

Inside, Molly was helping them strip all of their wet and snowy clothes off. She tutted when she saw the state of her second eldest, brushing her fingers over a small cut on his cheek from where he’d taken the snowball to the face.

Molly poured each of them hot cocoa once they’d stripped off their snowy outer layers. She’d set out some of the cookies and treats she’d been baking, and everyone sat around the table for a while. Once they’d finished their cocoa, Fred and George asked Bill to play Exploding Snap with them again. He agreed, and then asked Charlie to play as well. Charlie agreed, going to fetch the cards from the other room.

They cleared some space on the table and laid out the cards. Bill ended up winning the first three rounds, causing everyone else to lose interest. After the twins wandered away, Bill and Charlie played a few more rounds, with Bill very evidently trying to make Charlie win. Charlie didn’t seem to notice this, and was excited when he finally won a round.

That evening was quiet. Fred and George had worn themselves out playing in the snow, which led to them both falling asleep on the sofa. Both Percy and Charlie seemed to appreciate the reprieve from the chaos that was the twins. They played a game of Wizards Chess while Bill commentated dramatically.

Molly read a story to Ron and Ginny, hoping to start winding them down to sleep for the night. Once they were nodding off, Arthur carried them both upstairs and put them to bed.

While Arthur was putting the little ones to bed, Molly started cleaning the already clean kitchen, listening amusedly to the conversation in the other room. Bill, Percy, and Charlie were arguing lightheartedly about one of the rules of the game. Eventually Percy became frustrated and forfeited to Charlie dramatically.

Arthur had come down the stairs and was watching the boys through the door, smiling. Molly came over just in time to see Charlie stick his tongue out at Percy when his back was turned.

“Think they’re alright? They’ve both been a little off since coming home,” Arthur wondered aloud.

“I hope so. I think it was a tough term for both of them. They’ll be alright. They have a few weeks to relax before going back.”

They’d managed to get a compartment all to themselves. Bill couldn’t stop thinking about how still Charlie was. He loved the train. He’d bounced and rocked in his seat the entire trip to Hogwarts back in September. They hadn’t been as lucky that time and were sharing the compartment with a few third year ravenclaws that Bill barely knew. He remembered feeling a weird mixture of embarrassment and guilt when he noticed the weird looks the ravenclaws were giving Charlie. He was so used to Charlie’s stimming that he hardly noticed it anymore. As soon as they were surrounded by kids their age, though, Charlie started to stand out, and Bill became more keenly aware of his quirks.

Bill had been trying to get Charlie to perk up the whole trip home, telling him all about what he was learning in Care of Magical Creatures. Normally bringing up magical creatures was a sure fire way to get Charlie talking. It was not working today. All Bill was getting were one word, terse responses. Eventually Charlie pulled out the noise-reducing earmuffs that Professor McGonagall had lent Charlie early on in the term. They were one of the ones from Professor Sprout’s collection that were used during the mandrake lessons, which she was happy to lend. Charlie didn’t use them very often, because other kids would start asking him about them and teasing him. As they slowed down approaching the station, Charlie quickly stashed them back inside his bag.

Arthur knew immediately upon watching Bill and Charlie get off the train that something was off. He pursed his lips, but was smiling by the time the boys got over to him.

“Alright, boys?” Charlie ran full speed over to Arthur, while Bill took his time. Arthur would probably call it sauntering. He pulled Bill into a hug before taking his and Charlie’s book bags and shouldering them.

Arthur was surprised to feel Charlie grab his hand and hold it tightly as they walked past a big group of kids his age that were socializing before going their separate ways for the holidays. He squeezed Charlie’s hand, glancing down at him. Charlie was chewing on his jumper sleeve, and judging by the state of it, he’d been doing this all term. This was a telltale sign that Charlie was feeling anxious. A pit started to form in Arthur’s stomach. There had been a good few owls home over the course of the term about Charlie. Minerva was consistent about updating them whenever something came up or if Charlie had a meltdown. And while there had clearly been some tough times, they’d hoped it would still be a good first term for Charlie.

As soon as they were outside Kings Cross, Charlie’s mood lightened and he ran ahead of them, skipping towards the car. Arthur had promised they would take the Ford, and if the conditions were right, fly it home.

——————————

They walked into the house and were immediately greeted by the rest of the family. Molly wiped her hands on her apron and pulled Charlie into a tight hug, which he tolerated for a few seconds before ducking out of her arms. She turned to Bill and hugged him just as tight.

Charlie had barely broken free from his mother’s hug before dashing out to the back garden. Arthur smiled as he watched Charlie grab his broom from the shed and take off into the air with ease. He had been a natural flyer from the moment he sat on a broom.

Bill greeted his siblings enthusiastically, picking Ginny up and carrying her around the house for a while. Percy followed close behind, asking Bill all about school. Percy was beyond excited about going to Hogwarts, and they knew that the next few years would be hard for him to wait through.

After bringing the boys’ bags up to their rooms, Molly began putting lunch out on the table. She piled the table with bread, meats, cheese, and some fresh fruit. She set the kettle to boiling before calling the family for lunch.

Everyone came to sit down, and Arthur hollered out to Charlie, who came in begrudgingly. The boy would live his whole life outside if he were allowed. He took his seat between Arthur and Bill and began filling his plate with food.

They chatted lightly for a while. The younger kids had lots of questions for their big brothers. Bill was telling a story about something funny that had happened in his potions class, and Charlie started getting fidgety. Arthur watched as he stopped eating and started picking at the edge of the table. Molly turned to Charlie after Bill finished his story.

“What potions have you learned this year, sweetie?” Charlie didn’t answer, digging his nails harder into the table. “How has your cauldron been behaving? I know it’s old but it’s still got a lot of life in it. I’m sure you’re learning lots. I was pretty good in potions during my years at Hogwarts, you know.”

“I’m all done. Can I go outside?” Charlie pushed his food away from him.

“You hardly ate, Charlie. Have a few more bites please. We’re having a special dessert later, but you’ve got to have a few more bites of dinner or you won’t be able to have it.”

“I'm not hungry. I’m all done please,” Charlie repeated, eyes welling up. Molly started to respond but Charlie pressed his hands over his ears and put his forehead down on the table before she said anything. Arthur put his hand on Charlie’s back. Charlie suddenly stood up from his chair quickly enough that it tipped over before running up the stairs.

Molly stood up to follow, but Arthur stopped her. “Let’s give him a minute, dear.” Molly sat back down, looking concerned.

Slowly, the conversation picked back up around the table. Arthur kept glancing towards the stairs. About twenty minutes later, Charlie came back downstairs. He had put a sweatshirt on and had the hood pulled up over his head. He glanced at the table but bypassed it, heading instead to his favorite chair in the sitting room, sitting and opening up the book he’d brought downstairs with him.

That afternoon passed without incident. Charlie had gotten his earmuffs back out at some point, and wore them most the afternoon. Bill was keeping his distance from Charlie, shooting guilty and uncomfortable glances at his brother. He kept himself busy helping Molly and his other siblings finish the decorating. It was a tradition to do the tree all together, and they’d wanted to wait until their two eldest were home before putting it up.

“Who wants to get up and go find a tree with me in the morning?” Arthur asked, sitting down on the sofa next to Percy who was doing some reading. Charlie was still nestled in his chair and Bill was trying to teach Fred and George to play Exploding Snap.

“I do! I do!” Fred exclaimed excitedly. George echoed this, while Percy and Bill agreed slightly less enthusiastically.

“Charlie? Want to come with us?” Arthur asked, not sure if Charlie had been listening. His face was hidden behind his book.