No Means to Use the Stove

Thou Shall Not Fear

You! What the fucking hell are you doing here?!!

She had known at once who it was at the door. There wasn't any other person at whom Sheila would yell like that. She hadn't wanted to move, but her legs had carried her to the hall and she had seen him right away. He had come. They had come. Hermione had told him. They knew. They would Obliviate her again. And she couldn't even fake it all, not when she shouldn't have remembered how he looked like and Sheila had just recognized him. In her alcohol-dazed mind, she vaguely thought how short-sighted Charlie had been when he had altered her memory of his appearance - others had seen him, too, for God's sake! How was she supposed to fake that the Obliviate had succeeded, now?

It was all his fault. That she couldn't lie. That she had to look at him and see a stranger, one that was familiar only from photographs. That she was too drunk to think straight and find some way out of it. It was all his fault and now he was going to mess with her mind again and Sheila was there, too, and they would do it to Sheila as well, and it would be her fault even though it was all his.

And then she heard Sheila yell something incomprehensible about threesomes in French and her new boyfriend and suddenly, she felt guilty as if it wasn't all his fault but hers. And then it became horrendously important to let him know that she wasn't to blame, that she didn't have any new boyfriend, that she hadn't betrayed him.

She was afraid. Afraid of the memory charm. Afraid for Sheila. Afraid of Charlie thinking ill of her. For some unexplainable reason, the words that she blurted out of her mouth had the most to do with the fear that should have been the least of them all:

"Sheila! He isn't married. And - and I co-couldn't have gotten myself a new boyfriend in only a couple of daysh." Sheila was just staring at her. So was Charlie. And Hermione. There had been something wrong with her statement. She hadn't slurred too much, had she? She had said all the words in the right order, hadn't she? Maybe she hadn't explained it properly. She tried to elaborate: "It's too short time, too short to find a new man."

Sheila and Hermione spoke at the same time. Either of them speaking would have been enough as both of their questions made it clear to her what she had said wrong.

"A couple of days!? You said you broke up three weeks ago?" That was Sheila.

"A couple of days? You remember then, don't you? Did you write it all down?" And that was Hermione.

Damn! Damn! Damn! Why had she drunk so much? Had she been sober, she wouldn't have blown her cover right away. Had she been sober, she would have now thought of some explanation, and not just stood there, looking stupid. Stupid, and probably scared, too, because she was. She was drunk and she was scared and Charlie still hadn't said a word and he didn't look like the Charlie she remembered and no matter how much she had studied the photographs, he still appeared unfamiliar and it hurt. It hurt. Why had she drunk so much?

"Anna? Have you been drinking?" Of course, now they could read her mind, too! Hermione had jumped right into the core of her problems. Somehow, Anna figured it was something the other woman did often enough.

"What's that to do with you?" Sheila hadn't abandoned her position as Anna's bodyguard, but Hermione didn't bother to answer her. Instead, she turned to Charlie.

"Charlie, she is drunk. You can't talk to her if she is drunk. It's not fair. Not to her and not to you."

Charlie nodded dumbly. His head was heavy. Only thing he could think about was Anna being scared of him. Scared of him and apparently going out with some Muggle already. Or that's what Sheila had said, anyhow. What Anna herself had said, he didn't really know. He had concentrated on the fact that she was there, not on her words. He understood what Hermione was telling him, though. Anna was drunk and upset and seemingly hysterical. She needed to be calmed down and sobered before they could talk. He drew his wand, ready to cast a simple calming charm and then a wit-sharpening spell, which would, if not totally undo her intoxicated state, at least let her use her brains and consideration as if she was sober. He wasn't prepared to Anna's reaction, though. When she saw his wand, she started to scream.

"No! No! Don't! Please! Let Sheila go! She doesn't know anything! NO!"

Startled, Charlie lowered his wand. She didn't think he would hurt her? Then he winced. Of course she did. He had hurt her before, hadn't he? Sheila obviously also saw him as someone capable of violence.

"What have you done to her? Why's she so terrified? What's that thing in your hand?" When he didn't answer, Sheila set her jaw and announced: "That's it! I'm calling the police!"

Both Hermione and Charlie lifted their wands instinctively, ready to stop her, but Anna's scream made them hold back.

"NO! Don't! Sheila, you too, don't! It's not like that. Y-you should go now. Please, Sheila."

"I'm not leaving you here with them!" Sheila stared at Charlie and Hermione with an expression of growing distrust and anger on her face. Looking at her and then at Anna, Charlie suddenly realized what Anna dreaded so.

"Anna," he tried to keep his voice calm and soothing and not to scare her more, "I wasn't going to Obliviate you. And Sheila can stay. We won't do it to her, either. She may hear it all, if you wish."

"What were you doing then? With...your...that?" Anna gestured wildly towards his wand. "And what about the Ministry?"

"I only tried to sober you up a bit, so that I could talk to you." His eyes begged her to believe him.

"Ron and Harry are taking care of the Ministry. We are fooling them." Despite the situation, there was a hint of pride and enjoyment in Hermione's voice. "Those spells Charlie wanted to use are really quite harmless. You would only feel better and your mind would be clearer."

"No! You are not messing with my head anymore!"

"Fine, we won't. I promise." Charlie slowly lowered his wand to the small table near the door. "See? I put it here. I won't use it. Hermione, put yours away, too." She complied, but then Sheila awoke from her momentary stupor.

"What are those sticks? Stunners? How have you messed with her head? Have you given her drugs?"

"No. Nothing like that." Anna felt dizzy, and it wasn't only because of the alcohol, anymore. This was all too much. This wrong-looking but right-sounding Charlie, Hermione relishing fooling the Ministry, Sheila screaming...and she had panicked and it wasn't something she was used to do. She hadn't even cried about it before tonight and suddenly, she had panicked. Now the panic had left her, as quickly as it had come, and she was no more scared, but tired and nervous and confused instead, and her head was weighing a ton. "Sheila, please. I'll explain it later. I just...oh...Charlie...if I have to talk to you, I'd better drink some coffee first. And take an aspirin. I don't feel so good."

"You don't have to talk to me...if you don't want to, that is." His voice was low and timid and Anna found herself feeling sorry for him. It was odd, she would have expected to be angry. Maybe she hadn't the energy for such a strenuous emotion.

"No, it's all right. I guess it's better to get it over and done with." She turned and left to the kitchen, gesturing Sheila to sit down and wait, when she tried to follow her.

Charlie and Hermione followed Sheila into the small living-room. Awkwardly, the trio sat down, Sheila on the heavy armchair near to the kitchen door, as if guarding it, and Charlie and Hermione on the couch. They watched each other in the silence, listening to Anna moving around in the kitchen. Charlie massaged his neck with his thick fingers. This really wasn't what he had had in mind when he had decided to come to talk with Anna. He had expected anger and fury and shouting, not fear and tired resignation. And he certainly hadn't expected her to be drunk.

The whole situation was so absurd it would have been funny, had it not been such a nightmare. He had come to talk to the woman he loved, to apologise, to maybe, hopefully, try to make up with her. Instead, he was here, waiting for her to sober herself up with some obscure Muggle methods, sitting on her living-room couch next to his meddling sister-in-law (who had been uncharacteristically passive in her actions after she had been thought to be a wanna-be party of a menage-à-trois), across from Anna's sister, who thought he was a cheater, a pervert, a drug-dealer, and violent on top of that. Fucking brilliant. Well done, Charlie, he told himself.

Anna poured the water into the coffee-maker, put the filter in its place and measured the coffee in. She watched as the first drops of the dark liquid started to fall into the pot. He had come. He had come and he wasn't going to Obliviate her. He wasn't going to Obliviate Sheila. He had promised and Anna believed him. He had never lied to her - apart the Great Big Lie of him being a Muggle, but paradoxically, she didn't feel it counted.

Why had he come, then? He had looked sad, or maybe guilty. Had he come to apologise? Did he want to make up? Inside of her, something jumped with joy when she thought about it, but she firmly told it to stay put. Nothing had changed. If he was ready to trust her with their secret, they could maybe be friends, but nothing more. They weren't meant to be together as anything more. Anna sighed. She wasn't sure if she could be friends with Charles Weasley. It would be pretty hard to be just friends with someone you wanted to touch and hold and kiss and make love to.

She shuddered, then turned abruptly and went to the sink. She splashed some cold water on her face and swallowed two aspirins. She wasn't so drunk. She had only had a half a bottle of wine and one strong shot of vodka. She could get herself together. Her behaviour earlier had been...embarrassing. Embarrassing and weak. She could handle this. She grabbed the coffee-pot and poured herself a mug, not bothering with the coffee dropping and angrily hissing on the hot-plate of the coffee-maker. She could at least explain. She owed him that much.

She gulped down the coffee, not really noticing when it burnt her mouth. Then she exhaled determinedly, wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans and strode towards the living-room. Her head up and gaze focused, she interrupted the three voices that started to talk simultaneously the moment she appeared in the doorway.

"Charlie," she snapped firmly, making him involuntarily straighten up on the sofa, "you said I could tell Sheila?"

"If you are sure she can be trusted," he answered, returning her stare levelly. She turned her head away, though, and walked to the table, picked up a glass, filled it with vodka and handed it to Sheila.

"Drink up. You are way too sober to believe a word of what I'm going to say." Sheila tried to object, but Anna wasn't going to take no for an answer. "Do it! And don't say a word, just listen." Sheila complied mutely and Anna took a deep breath and started to talk. Her voice was even and her articulation clear. She kept her eyes focused on Sheila, as if challenging her sister to interrupt. Sheila didn't, and Charlie couldn't help thinking he didn't know anyone that would have.

"I didn't break up with Charlie three weeks ago. It was two days ago. It had nothing to do with him being married, because he isn't. Hermione here, she is his sister-in-law. I left him because he is a wizard, his whole family are. Yes! Actual wizards and witches; they do exist and I have proof!" Without losing her eye-contact with her sister, Anna reached for her handbag, pulled out a small book and a torn photograph and shoved them to Sheila, who gasped and almost dropped the book when noticing its moving pictures.

"It's not his fault. I just couldn't carry on. I can't marry him and live with them, not when I'm totally useless there. I can't get the lights on, you know; I can't use the stove, I can't travel like they do. I'm not magical and in their world, there's no use for people without magic." Charlie had guessed she thought like this; Sean had explained it and he had understood, but listening to Anna say it herself made his chest ache. He wanted to say something, something he had come here to say, but he felt he couldn't interrupt her. She carried on, her voice strained but clear. "When I left Charlie, he had to modify my memory. It's their law. Only people that are part of their world are allowed to know about it. He wiped out my memory of him being a wizard and of everything magical I had seen. But I had known it beforehand and I didn't want to lose a part of my past. I wrote it all down. I saved the pictures and I hid things, like that book and that photograph. Now...I still don't remember. But I know what happened."

She went silent for a moment, but Sheila still didn't speak. She just stared at Charlie, then Anna, then Hermione and finally, the book on her lap again. Anna spoke softly now. "When they came here, I thought they had come to do it again. I was scared. I thought they would Obliviate you, too." Sheila started, but she didn't let her talk. "It's all right. They promised they wouldn't. In fact, I don't know why they are here." Now she looked at Charlie and he rose.

"I wanted to talk to you. We didn't, after you left. And I wanted to apologise." He stood still, hoping against hope that she would agree to listen.

"You did what you had to do. You have nothing to apologise for." He closed his eyes tight and tried to keep the pain from showing on his face, when he heard her sighing. " But...I guess we could talk. I should have talked to you before I left. I'm sorry."

She was sorry? And she had agreed to talk. Charlie swallowed and steeled himself to say everything he had been planning to, when a small giggle from behind him made him remember they weren't alone. He turned around and found Sheila sitting in the armchair, her eyes wide and her shoulders shaking, laughing hysterically.

"Wow....oh, wow....those stunners...they are wands, aren't they?! Oh, my....wow...wands! ....bloody...damn...wands...you just...wave...them..." She almost made herself fall from her chair as she enthusiastically waved her hand in the air and her giggles didn't cease. Tears were falling on her face and she was holding her stomach and trying to breath trough the fits of uncontrollable laughter. Charlie looked at Hermione in despair and she rose, going to Sheila.

"Sheila, come on, let's go to the kitchen. I'll make us some tea," she coaxed soothingly, like talking to a small child.

"Make tea? With your wand?" Sheila broke down with giggles once again.

"If you'd like me to." Hermione took hold of her arm and started to lead her towards the kitchen. " I can tell you some more about magic, too."

"Magic!" she shrieked giggling and would have collapsed had Hermione not kept hold of her arm.

Charlie watched them go and then forced himself to meet Anna's gaze. This was what he had come here for. He knew what he wanted to say and they were alone at last, so he should just say it. She didn't look drunk anymore, and she certainly hadn't acted like she was drunk when talking to Sheila. She didn't seem scared, either. She was the Anna he knew, the Anna he loved, the Anna he wanted to just hold and keep close to him. Why didn't he speak, already? What had Sheila said about her seeing some Muggle? Why was she looking at him like that?

Why didn't he speak, already? He was the one that had wanted to talk. She didn't. Anna felt her resolve weakening second by second as the silence stretched on. That wouldn't do. They would sit down and talk about it like two reasonable adults. It was healthy and mature to discuss things. A relationship as long as theirs should not be left to end without some kind of closure. She should start if he wouldn't. She would say something simple but expressive, something to put them at ease, to break the ice.

"S-so?" she stuttered.

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