Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction ❯ The Green-Eyed Orphan ❯ Chapter 5

Chapter Five

 

Christiana cracked one eye open against the bright sunlight now streaming into the living room window. Her head still hurt a little, and she wanted to roll back over and go back to sleep. She knew she needed to get to work. She looked at the table and saw two small phials of a light yellow liquid. There was a note under them. She moved them carefully as she sat up. She pulled the note gently from the table and read it.

 

Christiana,

Take one of these to get rid of your headache and come down whenever you're ready.

-George

P.S. The other one is for Charlie.

 

She picked up one of the little containers and opened it. She drank the whole thing, and her headache immediately subsided. She felt one-hundred percent better. She would thank George immensely when she got downstairs. She also swore to herself to NEVER get that drunk again. She left the note and the other phial of medicine on the table, hopeful that Charlie would discover it on his own. If he was still sleeping, she didn't want to wake him. She would have to go in there and get clean clothes.

She slid the door to the room open and sidled in as silently as she could. She stopped dead in her tracks when her eyes landed on him. He lay sprawled spread-eagle on the bed with one foot hanging off the side. The sheet covered from his waist down with only that one foot sticking out, but she wasn't interested in his feet. He wasn't wearing a shirt, and she knew she was staring at his muscular chest and arms. She felt her heart pounding, heard it in her ears. She was certain that it was beating so loudly, it would undoubtedly awake him.

She finally found it within herself to tear herself away, and she quietly dug through a box and found some clothes suitable to wear to work. She took one last long look at him before letting herself out and heading down the hallway to the shower. When she walked into the bathroom, she was thinking about how ashamed she was to be feeling that way towards him. She had to admit it—she was inevitably attracted to him in a way she had never been attracted to anyone else in her whole life. She suddenly realized that she had forgotten her underwear. She sighed and turned on the water to let it be warming up. She walked back through the living room and into her room. She glanced at the bed only to discover that Charlie had covered himself up so completely, she couldn't even see his flaming red hair. His wand still lay on the bedside table, so she was sure he was still sleeping. She grabbed a pair of underwear and walked back toward the bathroom. She couldn't believe he had not awakened yet.

Charlie woke up to see the door to her bedroom sliding closed. She must have gotten her clothes to go to work, he thought. He sighed, and sat up. He heard a door close, and assumed that she had gone to work. He got up and headed to the kitchen for some coffee, grabbing the phial and the note off the table before he went. He knew that George always left him notes on the table when he wanted to communicate with him while at work. He read the note, addressed to Christiana, and drank down the yellow liquid. His head cleared and he started the coffee pot. He stepped back into the living room and heard the water running in the bathroom. He figured the faulty shower had cut on again. The magic was wearing off and the water would come on at random times. If someone was home they would turn it off. Fortunately, the apartment had not yet been flooded.

He went into the bathroom to turn it off and realized it was hot. He decided to go ahead and get in. He grabbed a towel out of the hallway closet and hopped into the shower. He pulled the shower curtain closed. He did not approve of this shower curtain, because it was deep red with pink flowers. It came with the apartment, but Charlie didn't like it because it didn't let any light into the shower. He was glad he knew where all of his body parts were. He began soaping up when he heard the bathroom door open.

Christiana opened the bathroom door. She had thought she left it open, but apparently not. She closed it again, and began disrobing. She grabbed her towel and walked toward the shower.

Charlie was a bit frightened. He was unsure of who was in the bathroom with him, but he didn't have time to investigate, because the curtain was pulled aside, and there stood Christiana in all her glory. She screamed and pulled the towel around herself as quickly as she could, but not before he got a full view of her front side. He put his hand over his groin, his mouth still hanging open. She was still screaming hysterically.

“OH MY GOD! CHARLIE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THIS SHOWER?!?!?!” Her face was redder than Ron's when he got angry and that was saying something.

“LAST TIME I CHECKED,” he yelled back, “I LIVE HERE, TOO! AND FOR YOUR INFORMATION, WE HAVE A SCREWED UP SHOWER THAT COMES ON AT RANDOM TIMES!”

“WHY ARE WE STILL YELLING?” she screeched back.

“I don't know,” he replied, still in a loud voice.

“So why are you in the shower?” she asked, still loudly, but beginning to calm down.

“I was in the kitchen, and I thought you had left. I heard the shower come on, and I thought it was because it's screwed up. It comes on at really random times, and if someone's here we just go cut it off. The magic's wearing off. Anyway, it was already hot, so I decided to go ahead and get in. I'm really sorry,” he replied. He was sorry about the mix-up but not at all sorry of the glorious view he had gotten of her. He smirked at the thought.

“You are NOT sorry!” she shrieked. “You're smiling! After that! I can't believe you have the audacity to smile at me!” He tried not to keep smiling, but it was impossible.

“Can I finish my shower now?” he asked nonchalantly, trying to keep his hand over his groin, which was currently betraying him. He was fidgeting and he knew it. Her eyes inadvertently dropped to his hand as he tried to sidle back behind the shower curtain.

“Oh my God, Charlie!” She turned her back, which the towel did not quite cover, not making Charlie's problem any easier, and stalked out of the bathroom, slamming the door on her way out.

Charlie sighed and pulled the shower curtain back closed. He finished his shower trying to keep his mind off of her beautiful slender body. She had the longest legs on a girl that he had ever seen, and Lord knew he had seen plenty of girls. It was that one particular girl that he wished would get out of his head. He hated her more than he hated Voldemort. He shook his head to clear those awful thoughts away, but at least that thought had taken his mind off Christiana. He sighed.

Christiana was thoroughly mortified. She sat on her bed, staring out the window unseeingly, still wrapped in her towel. She wasn't really mad at him—he couldn't help it that he didn't know that she was about to get in the shower. She just hoped that bit he gave her about having a faulty shower and the magic wearing off was true, and he hadn't just done it to get a good look at her naked. But he had seemed as embarrassed as she was! But then he had the audacity to stand there and smile like a fool at her embarrassment. And on top of everything, when she had looked down he was…She turned red just thinking about that. She needed to find a girl to talk to. Perhaps that bushy-haired girl from last night would talk to her…what was her name? It started with an H…Christiana couldn't remember. She did suppose she could talk to Ginny though. She was married after all, and would know about those sorts of things. She waited until she heard Charlie come out of the bathroom and then the door to the apartment open and close. She peeked out to ensure that he was really gone, and headed to the shower, this time locking the door.

*

Christiana walked through the front door of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and Percy, who was manning the counter, looked immensely grateful that she was there. He checked out the three remaining customers and then turned to give Christiana her orders for the day. After explaining to her that he and George, who was in the back, had to make a run for some goods and that she would be alone for the rest of the day, he told her what she would have to do since she was late.

“You see,” Percy explained, “we don't fire our employees for having too many drinks and being late. This is how we test whether or not you really want this job.”

“Okay,” Christiana replied apprehensively, still not knowing what they would ask her to do.

“Well, George and I have come out with a new joke product to use, and we're giving a release party that lasts all night. We need you to work.”

“Oh,” Christiana said, nodding and sighing with relief. “Yes, I can do that.”

“Wait, I'm not done yet,” Percy replied, smiling slyly.

“Did you ask her yet?” George asked coming in from the back.

“I just told her she had to work all night. I haven't gotten to the other part,” Percy replied, a little uncomfortably. Christiana got a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. He turned back to her. “We want you to demonstrate the product for the crowd.”

“Have you tested this said product?” she asked with that bad feeling building more and more by the second.

“Of course!” George replied. “We would never subject anyone to anything we haven't put ourselves through first. That's what we were doing this morning before we opened the shop. It was quite funny. I was thoroughly educated on the life of Percy!” George snickered, and Percy blushed.

“What does this product do?” Christiana decided to go ahead and find out what she was getting herself into. After all, she could back out and try to find another job. It wouldn't be easy, but she supposed she could do it.

“It's a phial of purple liquid that looks a bit like love potion,” Percy said.

“Yes, only it's not…it's a sort of truth liquid. Not as strong as Veritaserum, though. It makes you say one true thing that no one else knows but you and maybe the person it happened with.” George grinned again in Percy's direction. Percy turned scarlet again, and walked toward the back of the shop. Apparently what he had told George while using this product was embarrassing.

“Do you have to say whatever it is?” she asked.

“Yes. You say it, not even realizing you've said it until it's over and everyone is looking at you laughing or whatever. It's not so bad. For example, I told Percy a tidbit about my love life that he would never have needed to know, but it was quite funny later.” George walked toward the back of the shop. “By the way, the party is tonight.”

Christiana stepped behind the counter, her breathing hitching in her throat with every breath. What if the thing she said was about her being related to Harry? She couldn't have that getting around. She just would NOT have him find out unless it was straight from her and only her. A customer came into the store leaving her no further time to think about her fate that was inevitably coming that evening. After the customer left, George and Percy brought the big sign about the release party up from the bag and began to clean out the display window to put it up along with samples of the new product that would be released and demonstrated promptly at midnight.

“I take back that you'll be working all night,” Percy grunted at her as he helped George take down the old sign. “George, why in the world did you do such a strong Sticking Charm? I can't get it to come down! Anyway, Christiana, you can go home after the demonstration. I know you're going to say something really embarrassing, because I did when I took it. So I convinced George to let you go home afterwards and you don't have to work tomorrow.” Christiana groaned.

“What have I gotten myself into?” she muttered. Charlie walked into the shop, and she promptly turned scarlet and ran to the back room. She really couldn't face him right now. Thankfully, George and Percy were too busy still trying to unstuck the sign that they didn't notice her absence. Once she was in the back room, she pretended to be refilling some of the products, which worked out well, because they needed to be refilled before the party anyway. She busied herself with that and listened to the brothers' talk.

“Hey, guys, what are you doing?” she heard Charlie say.

“Well,” Percy replied, “George put the world's strongest Sticking Charm on this sign and we're trying to get it down.”

“It's not the world's strongest one! I used one, but it didn't work, so I used some of that magic putty,” George retorted.

“No wonder it won't come down,” Charlie chuckled. Christiana dared to glance at him when he wasn't looking and almost couldn't look away. He was wearing a nicely-fitting pair of jeans and a t-shirt that said on the front, “I know Harry Potter better than you do.” It was yet another product of the Weasley's shop. It had the three W's at the bottom to indicate this. She could see his muscles in his arms rippling. But she was mad at him! She looked away, her anger at him ebbing away against her will. She wanted to be mad at him, though. She decided she was mad at him, and it didn't matter how good he looked in those jeans.

Finally, they had the sign down, and Charlie thankfully left the shop, promising to be back at midnight to see the demonstration of their new potion. Christiana finished restocking the shelves and returned to her post at the counter. George and Percy said they would be back shortly, and left to get refreshments for the release party. Christiana sighed. She was glad to be alone again. She was not, however, looking forward to her demise.

The hours ticked slowly by. She helped George and Percy set up, and occasionally manned the register when a customer came in. Each one promised to be back for the party. Finally, midnight arrived, and George gave an introduction to the product. Christiana stood close by feeling sick. Charlie stood toward the back with the rest of the Weasley family. The woman and baby that had come in the door the night before and saved Charlie from a lecture were there, too. The baby was sleeping, his hair a neon purple.

“…so this potion is great at parties with friends. It's great to pass around the circle and everyone says something true about themselves or their life that no one else knows! Now, for our demonstration—our new employee, Christiana, will be showing you how it works. Step on up here.” She did so, looking rather green. She heard some people begin whispering excitedly. She saw Charlie lean over and whisper something to his mother. She nodded in agreement. It really didn't help things that he was here. She would rather not be in the same room as him. She gathered all her courage and tipped the phial up to her lips before she had the courage to back out. She was praying the whole time that whatever she said had absolutely nothing to do with Harry. The phial fell out of her hand and the words escaped her lips before she had time to even think about them, much less control them.

“I saw Charlie Weasley naked in the shower this morning, and he has the most perfect butt!”