Being a Weasley

Charlie

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There are rules in the magical world, simple straightforward rules that clearly state the proper conduct of wizards concerning relationships. The rules don't state any punishments, but I could list these unwritten penalties easily.

Degradation and humiliation. They will mock you; they will look down on you. And you will never be the same person in their eyes ever again.

Disgrace. To the eyes of others, you are a lower being. By breaking these simple rules, you have out rightly told them that you do not support the Wizarding community.

A Reputation Blow. Wherever you work, wherever you socialize, you will not have the same status. You'll probably hit bottom in no time at all, and there will be no way to climb back up.

Abandonment. This concerns family and friends; you will find yourself without them. You will be alone, and no one is going to support you.

The Rule is this: Wizards and Witches grow up, they marry, and they have children. No variations, or children can not come to be. Especially if you're a Pureblood wizard, where so few nowadays exist. They want us to keep procreating.

Maybe I shouldn't have ever gone to that Quidditch match a year ago. Maybe I shouldn't have gone to the party that followed. Because that's where all this started, that's where I met him. That's right, a wizard, full of male testosterone, and completely unequipped to have children with someone like me.

It all happened very fast, the day I met him. The Romanian team had won, and I had tickets to celebrate in the team's tent. There were only a few people there apart from the seven players and myself. It was the Quidditch Captain and Keeper that walked in last to the party. He hung at the back of the room, not venturing in, and when he caught my gaze, everything fell apart.

His name was Oliver Wood, once Quidditch Captain at Hogwarts a few years back, and now here he was, a big shot on the field. I went to him and introduced myself. We ended up talking all night in the back of the tent; no one seemed to notice he had disappeared.

I pushed my feelings away in the beginning. Told myself I was being silly, dumb in fact - I just couldn't be falling for this boy. He seemed to believe the same thing, though he was the one who admitted his feelings first.

When he told me how he felt, I went into a sort of denial state, and I fled him. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't tell my family, not easily anyway. Because they believed in this unspoken law as much as the next Pureblood family.

The only one I could trust with this secret was my brother, Bill. I called him up, and to my dismay, found him incapable of reaching me. I shut down that night, throwing Oliver out the door when he came. I couldn't do it, my family would abandon me, no one would understand.

It would have been easier to live and forget if Oliver wouldn't have been such a stubborn person. Every day and every night, I would find a reminder on my doorstep, at my work. I would run into him in public, I was seeing him everywhere.

The more I tried to forget, the harder it was to let go. I started to train the Dragon's to catch letters before they came to me. I got into a bit of trouble when it burned up my bosses' paycheck once, but that still didn't stop me.

Oliver wasn't allowed to visit me at work, so that was the safest place to be. I absorbed myself in it. That is, until one day when my twin brother's came to visit me. They came with a letter in hand and I nearly ripped it up before they could give it to me. I couldn't believe Oliver would go to them after everything I had told him.

But it turned out that the letter was not from him at all. But from Ginny, asking Bill and I to visit her that evening. I set out to Bill's work so that we could go together. That's where I ran into Oliver again.

He told me repeatedly that we needed to talk, that I would regret what I was doing now if I didn't sort this out. I ended up so frazzled by the end of Bill's workday that I purposefully tripped the emergency alarm to lock us away from Oliver.

I regret doing so now, I should have just faced my problems, then my sister never would have disappeared. But that night when we arrived at Ginny's house far to late for dinner or even dessert, we found the house empty. Ginny and her roommate Draco Malfoy had disappeared.

This is when I let my boundaries fall, this is when I fell into my love's arms and cried all night. He let me cry, asking no questions until I was ready, and when I told him, he vowed to never leave my side if I'd let him. He promised to help me find my sister, and to keep me safe forever.

He promised so many things that night that my mind still reels to think about it. He's my white knight, my white Angel. And he is my guilty conscious. He knows everything that I cherish, and everything that I distaste. And we shouldn't be together, even now as we head into battle.

Everyday I live with the rule I have broken, but right now it's an intricate lie to everyone I know. But once this lie is uncovered I will find myself facing the consequences. And I'm still not prepared to handle them, but because he's so strong I remain strong.

The battlefield where we stand is monstrous. There's no warmth, no happiness, just that odd feeling of death and punishment. Oliver is in his white robes from Quidditch, the ones that make me smile just thinking about him in the air. Oliver tells me that he's going to watch over me here. That he's not going to let a single thing happen to let it hurt me.

I tell him he can't know that for sure.

And he says he knows because he loves me.

I just wish I didn't love him too. And I feel awful for wishing this, because he's everything to me.

When the battle starts we fight together at first. Him by my side, staying strong and we watch each other's backs. But as we wear on it becomes apparent that I'm not the one who needs help in this battle. Around us are screams, whispers of last words, and tears of pain. We know that together we're no good in this battle.

He leaves silently before I know where he is gone, and I help a girl crying. Her eyes are shrink-wrapped in tears, and she's no older then twenty and very pregnant. I tell her to Apparate from here, and she continues to cry.

"Come on," I say. "You're not safe here. Think of your baby."

She cries harder, and I realize the baby must have something to do with why she's crying.

"You're going to be alright, you need to get home," I tell her. I need to get back to fighting.

She cry's and then whispers, "You tell him to stay away."

"Okay, I will," I say without a clue on what she speaks of.

"Tell, him! You have to tell him. Percy will not be the father of my baby!" She Apparate's and my jaw falls down in shock. Percy's baby? Percy's wife, if I'm not mistaking that ring on her hand.

I turn around and Percy drops out of my mind, he does only because I see my sister, and she's looking disoriented and destroyed. But I can't help but be overwhelmed with seeing her again.

"Ginny!" I say, and she sees me, her eyes flash with relief.

She starts into a smile as I move towards her, but before I can reach her I see someone smashing something upon her head. I start to run towards her, and find myself being stopped by a Death Eater. This Death Eater knocks me to the ground and starts to drag me as I kick wildly trying to free myself.

Another Death Eater joins us, male and long hair. He starts to help its fellow follower drag me away, and there's nothing I can do.

I cry out, and as I do so, I see the male Death Eater writhe up in pain and drop face first to reveal Oliver with his wand outstretched. The other Death Eater drops my arms and pulls out its wand to late. Oliver hits it with a spell and it drops down unconscious.

"Thanks," I say.

He smiles broadly and takes me to him. The battle is nearing the end, and everything is wrapping up. I'm kissing him like there's no tomorrow and I can feel the eyes of many others on me. And I know exactly what they're thinking, 'The Unspoken Rule' he's violating it...right in front of our eyes.

I don't wish to pull apart and face them yet. I don't wish to face the consequences of my actions, because right now I'm lost in oblivion, and who I am and what I am doesn't matter.

Maybe they'll understand, a small voice in my head says.

Who am I kidding? I just have to enjoy this moment before it ends.

But my inner voice speaks again, and the general silencing consensus seems to make it so; just as the whisper I hear from my father makes it so, because that whisper doesn't sound all that disappointed.

Yeah, maybe they will.