The Inspection

by CrazyKitCat

Summary:

Hermione has exchanged letters with Charlie Weasley for years. What happens when she goes to the Romanian Reserve for the annual inspection? Dragons, and Poachers, and Romance, Oh my! Will they ever get home for Christmas?

Notes:

alphaed by NiightKiiten17 & Kirachan
betaed by LaBelladoneX & Zabethou
If you see errors, they're my fault alone.

This entire story was originally inspired by the Google images under "Chris Pratt as Charlie Weasley". Look it up. You'll be very happy you did ;)

Cover Image by KoraKwidditch

Thank you so much to everyone who has waited so long! I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 1: December 19th, 2004

Hermione Granger groaned as she rolled over in her bed in her tiny minimalist flat in the heart of London. The last thing she wanted to do was get up and face the day.

She was a twenty-five year old witch who loved her career just as much as she loved her books. She loved her family and having a purpose in life at work, dedicating her time to bettering the lives of magical creatures.

She hated mornings.

Between the sun in her eyes and her constant decisions to just ‘finish one last chapter’ when reading at night, she loathed mornings. It took a hot shower, fresh coffee, and a breakfast of a bagel with cream cheese loaded with lox to get her in a good mood for her day.

Groaning as she rolled out of bed, Hermione walked over to her bathroom and turned the shower on high heat while she took off her pajamas. Once the small bathroom was full of steam, she turned down the heat and stepped in, hissing as the hot water pounded down onto her aching shoulders. She really needed to learn to either carry less stress there or to prioritize getting a massage more often.

Rubbing the shampoo and conditioner into her long, curly brown hair, Hermione relaxed as the shower eased the tension in her body. When she finally felt more awake and clean, she stepped out of the shower and wrapped herself in a fluffy cream-colored towel. She loved the color cream. It not only made her skin appear more tanned, but it also had a certain warmness that stark white was lacking.

She liked to think she emulated a cream color.

Padding back into her room, she got dressed in a burgundy sweater and threw on a pair of skinny jeans she had gotten from the men’s department at the store. Sue her. She liked pockets and her boss didn’t mind more casual office wear as long as it was work-appropriate.

She loved working in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures in the British Ministry for Magic.

After the war, she had returned to Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry to complete her eighth and final year of schooling. When she graduated, it was obvious to everyone that Hermione Granger was destined to be the law-creating version of Newt Scamander for her generation. They didn’t call her the Brightest Witch of Her Age for nothing, and she was determined to prove it.

Hermione had immediately entered the governing workforce for the wizarding world of England after finishing her schooling at Hogwarts. The Ministry for Magic had welcomed her with open arms and she had marched straight into the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures (commonly known as the DRCMC) as if she owned the place and started working hard to make changes.

Her first order of business had been improving the lives of house-elves by, at least, making a sub-department where elves like Dobby could go if they were being mistreated by their masters and mistresses. If the elf wanted to be freed, they were able to request the Ministry step in and then help rehome the elf — if that was their wish. She had called it Dobby’s Law. It wasn’t the complete freedom that Hermione had always championed for as a child, but it worked for the elves and the wizarding community, so she left that alone for now.

Her next order of business had been the werewolf community. She had been outraged when she discovered all of the laws that had been passed for the werewolf community. Her first order of business had been to enlist her fellow former Order of the Phoenix friend, Remus Lupin, to assist as a representative for that community. She had spent hours with him and Sirius Black in the library of Grimmauld Place going over antiquated laws that restricted werewolves from doing anything, even from visiting St. Mungo’s if they were hurt. Once Remus had the fire lit beneath him, he took the reins of that campaign from her and started fighting for the old laws surrounding werewolves to be abolished.

When she no longer had the campaigns for werewolves or house-elves to fight for, Hermione turned to dragons. As much as Hermione hated mornings, she hated the way the goblins had treated the Ukrainian Ironbelly which had guarded the high-security vaults in Gringotts more. Now that there would be no more abused house-elves like Winky and Dobby, and since werewolves were being covered by Remus, she wanted to focus her energy on vouching for creatures like dragons, who had no voice of their own. 

Seeing the barbaric treatment of the Gringotts’ dragon, Hermione vowed she’d make and pass laws that defended the guarded freedom of dragons. She didn’t want them loose near Muggles, but they deserved better than being locked hundreds of feet below ground in a bank-made dungeon setting.

For the last five years, she’d been immersed in the dragon research community. She was often in touch with several dragon research communities to ensure her new laws were being put into practice. Whenever Charlie Weasley — self-proclaimed dragon expert extraordinaire and Hermione-proclaimed “shameless flirt” — returned home, the Weasley family would often find Hermione and Charlie off on their own discussing whatever new piece of legislature she was trying to push through. She and Charlie had started a habit of sending letters back and forth and she wasn’t ashamed to say that they’d grown quite close. Their letters initially had been only work related, but over time they had grown a lot more personal. Now she was quite glad to call him a close friend, who — if pressed — she could even admit she fancied a bit.

While things hadn’t worked out between her and Ron after the war, everyone could tell that Hermione still had a thing for redheads. Especially if those red-heads cared for the rights of magical creatures and their body came wrapped in 80% muscle and scars. 

Shaking herself from that line of thought, Hermione quickly poured herself a thermos of coffee with lots of cream and stepped into the fireplace of her flat to use the Floo network to get to work.

Stepping out of the Floo at the Ministry, she cast a quick wandless and wordless cleaning charm upon herself as she moved through the crowd towards her office. If for no other reason, Hermione loved magic because she never had to go outside to get to work. That in itself was a tremendous blessing on that cold late-December day.

She was barely six feet into her department when she was accosted by one of her coworkers. 

“Hermione!” Cormac McLaggon greeted enthusiastically. Hermione paused and took a deep breath as her former housemate and current coworker jogged to catch up with her. “How was your evening?”

“It was nice, thank you for asking,” Hermione replied politely without offering any more details. She hadn’t been doing anything particularly interesting other than hanging out with the Weasley family, but she didn’t want to come across as not having a large social life. She knew that Cormac’s interest from school hadn’t waned over the years — despite her best efforts to rebuff him kindly — and she didn’t want to encourage more affection.

“Did you want to get dinner this weekend?” He asked with all the enthusiasm of a two month old puppy. “I figured we could celebrate the holiday together. I’d love to take you out to dinner and then we could maybe have a coffee or a nightcap at my place.”

“That’s such a nice offer, but I was considering spending the holidays with my family,” she declined politely, despite the way her spine crawled at the request.

“I thought they were out of town for the holidays,” Cormac tried to call her on the lie but that only made her want to reject him more.

“My parents always like to host a Christmas Eve dinner and then they go visit their friends in the country,” she corrected as she deliberately stepped around him. “I typically like to stay with the Weasleys for the holiday itself. Maybe next time.”

She hated how she had to pretend to be cordial with him, but she had found that he exhaustively hounded her unless she was polite about it. Overall she hoped he’d lose interest eventually and move on. She’d just keep politely deflecting until then.

“Hermione!” she heard another voice call. As she made her way toward her office. Her spine stiffened.

Percy Weasley.

She decided to postpone the inevitable by talking with the person closest to her.

“Hello, Phyllis,” Hermione warmly greeted the receptionist in the DRCMC, using the power of caffeine to sound more happy and awake than she felt. “Do I have any messages?”

“You have two, Ms. Granger!” The receptionist replied chirpily. To Hermione’s chagrin, Phyllis was a morning person. “There is a personal memo for you from Mr. Potter on your desk and Mr. Edwards requested a meeting with you at ten.”

Hermione glanced at the clock and nodded. “Please let Mr. Edwards know I’d be happy to meet him in his office in thirty minutes when the workday officially starts and I’ll go respond to Harry now before I head over.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Phyllis replied, tapping a stack of blank memos next to her with her wand so her Quick-Quotes Quill would write up Hermione’s response to Edwards.

Taking a long draw from her hot drink, Hermione entered her office and took a seat at her desk. She was unsurprised when Percy followed her into her office and sat down in front of her desk.

“Give me one moment, please, Percy,” she requested as she opened the note from Harry. She scanned the letter and smiled. Pulling out her quill, she wrote a quick response and tapped it with her wand, sending it straight to Harry’s office.

As if I would miss Molly’s trifle on Christmas! Blast-Ended-Skrewts will fly before I miss spending the holiday at the Burrow. I still have Christmas Eve with my family, but I’ll be there Christmas morning as soon as my bed releases me from its comforting embrace. XOXO

To his credit, Percy was silent until she’d sent off the note. It wasn’t anything urgent, but both she and the third oldest Weasley son liked to be at work early. She appreciated that he didn’t try to rush her into work when she wasn’t on the clock in the early mornings, but when she was, he could be a slight nightmare.

Sensing his urgent distress, she pulled on her official Ministry robes from the coat tree over her comfortable outfit and turned to Percy to signal she was ready for his work-related inquiry.

“How may I help you, Mr. Undersecretary?” she asked politely. Percy had been promoted to be Kingsley’s personal assistant after he became the Minister for Magic and Percy thrived in his own importance.

“I was just checking in,” he replied. Reclined in her guest chair, he had adopted an air of importance as soon as she donned her work robes. She was an accomplished lawyer within the Wizarding community, but he was the Minister’s right hand man. “As I’m sure you’re aware, the Skrewt case—”

“—Has been sorted and I’m ready for the trial this afternoon,” she finished his sentence, already knowing which direction the conversation was going to go.

She knew Percy had nothing but good intentions in reference to mending burnt bridges after he had ostracized his family, but he had developed an awful habit of over-coddling. She was a grown witch who had been a part of the Ministry for years. She could change laws and win court cases on her own. The man in front of her still took it upon himself to check in on her every time he heard she was leading a case.

It was as if he couldn’t break his image of her from when she broke rules at Hogwarts to save the world costing House points. He tried to treat her as a professional, but nine times out of ten, it came across as condescending.

“I know you have the case sorted out, I just wanted to offer to give it another pair of eyes. You wouldn’t mind a second opinion, would you?” Percy waved off her comment, setting her blood to a boil — briefly. She simmered immediately and counted to five instead. She knew he only wanted to help.

She decided to throw him a bone and then make her escape.

She pulled out her file and cast a Gemino charm on it, instantly duplicating it. Tapping the copy with her wand, she cast a warding charm upon it. It wouldn’t leave her office, and any notes Percy decided to make on it would appear as a sticky note on her official copy for her to peruse at lunch before the actual hearing. She handed the copy over to Percy and told him so.

“I’d love to get your opinions, but Mr. Edwards summoned me for an important meeting. Feel free to use my chair if you want to look it over. I’ll review your notes at lunch?”

“Sounds excellent,” Percy beamed as he accepted the packet.

Hermione typically tried to apply the ‘if you give them an inch and they’ll take a mile’ philosophy at work, but she also knew the value of picking her battles. Percy — whilst annoying — was only trying to help and had no ill-intentions. She’d let him add sticky notes to a copy of her paperwork if it made him feel helpful, but she was still able to pick and choose how it got applied to her case.

She swept out of her office and walked briskly over to John Edwards’ office. On the door a plaque read, John Edwards — Head of the Department for the Regulation of Magical Creatures.

She knocked and he called her inside.

“Hello, sir,” Hermione greeted her boss warmly. As many assholes as she worked with, she enjoyed spending time with her mentor. He was a good man and treated her as an equal since the first day she joined his department.

“Miss Granger,” John nodded toward her with a smile. “I was just reviewing your most recent document and I believe you’re ready.”

“Yes, I do believe the case will go well today,” she agreed as she took a seat across from his desk.

“I wasn’t talking about the Skrewts,” he waved her off. “You’ve had that in the bag for weeks. I was actually referring to your last proposal for the dragons.”

“I don’t understand, sir?” Hermione was confused. “That proposal is still in the rough draft stages. It’s barely a coherent thought right now. What am I ‘ready for’?”

Her most recent contribution to the department for the dragon division was just an updated layout for the Romanian Reserve’s budget. It was just routine desk-work. She had no idea what her boss was referring to when he thought she was ‘ready’.

“You’ve been working with the Romanian Reserve a lot recently and I figured you’d be thrilled to have the opportunity to do their annual inspection for us.”

Hermione’s eyes narrowed.

“Why wouldn’t Andrews be available to do it?” she asked, referring to the typical staff member in charge of inspections. She knew her boss was aware it wasn’t a part of her job to actually go to the Reservations unless a specific case required it.

“As you well know, Andrews’ wife is expecting to deliver any day now. She was supposed to give birth last week, but she hasn’t yet. He doesn’t want to risk missing the birth of his son by being on-site. I was hoping you’d be okay with stepping in to help us out. You know the layout of the Reserve like the back of your hand and you know the laws and regulations by heart. You’d be doing us a huge favor.”

“But, sir,” Hermione hesitated. “With all due respect, it’s almost Christmas.”

“You wouldn’t be there longer than a few days. As I understand it, you’re acquainted with Mister Charles Weasley. He has a Portkey to London in a few days time so he’ll be back on the morning of Christmas Eve. If you are alright with returning with him, my contact in Romania is willing to offer you comfortable housing for the duration of your stay.”

“When would I have to leave?” Hermione asked, resigned. She knew that there was no way out of the assignment now, not that she’d really begrudge Andrews the opportunity to stay home with his wife and soon-to-be newborn while she had no one but her ex-boyfriend’s family to celebrate with.

“We have a Portkey set up for tomorrow morning. That should give you ample time to finish up the Skrewt case and get home early to pack a bag for a few days.”

“What about the rest of my work, sir?” Hermione wondered. “It’s not like I could take it with me.”

“I’ll personally take care of any important paperwork and sort out and postpone anything unnecessary until after the first of the year,” Edwards compromised. “Because you’re helping us out with this, you’ll be given paid-time-off for the rest of the year to spend with your family and friends. Before you argue, you never use your vacation days and the Ministry is asking me to force you to. We can survive two weeks without you. As for the inspection, the Romanian Reserve is always on top of protocol, but these inspections are a necessary function. All you need to do is confirm that nothing drastic has slacked on their end and help them sort out their paperwork for the end-of-year annual inspection.”

“Oh alright,” Hermione caved. She was good at paperwork and she had accompanied Andrews to the small Irish Reserve once, so she knew the general idea of how an inspection was run. She took great comfort that mostly this inspection wasn’t a big deal. She just had to confirm that they hadn’t relaxed any majorly important practices.

She accepted the paperwork from her boss and made her way back to her office. Percy had perused her documents and left a few notes for her. She looked at them and trashed most of the stickies, but kept a few just in case. By the time she was finished reviewing the document, Phyllis was knocking on the door to call her away for lunch. She was very grateful to the witch. Without her, Hermione knew she’d miss a lot more meals from overworking.

She chatted amicably with the chipper witch over lunch and tossed her waste in the bin on her way down to the courtrooms, papers tucked in her arms.

As John had predicted, she nailed the case in record time and stopped back by her office to file her documents and hang her work robes. Leaving her office by two in the afternoon, she checked in with John one last time before taking the lift to the Atrium. She had a few errands left to run if she was going to be ready for her Portkey in the morning. As she stepped into the Floo, she sighed heavily in relief that she hadn’t seen Percy or Cormac again.

Her evening was spent running errands. The first thing she had done was drop Crookshanks off with her parents and told them she’d be out of town. They lovingly accepted the half-kneazle and sent her on her way with well wishes for safe travels.

She went home and tidied up her flat as she ran laundry. If there was nothing else she loved more than her cat, it was coming home after a trip to a pristine home. By the time she finally finished her chores, she ordered Chinese from the takeaway place down the road and set her clothes to magically fold and pack themselves into her magically-expanded beaded bag.

That night, she fell asleep to dreams of sugarplums and scarred Dragon researchers. She couldn’t wait for her trip.

Chapter 2: December 20th - Morning

Notes:

Any edit notes are on me, not amy amazing alpha and beta!

For Charlie Weasley, the twentieth of December started out just like any other day at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary.

He woke up in his cabin in Dragon’s End, the village made up for the employees, staff, and researchers of the Sanctuary (also fondly referred to as just ‘The Reserve’) and their families. While many of the men and women stationed at the Reserve worked with the large dragons, not all of their family members did. The non-researchers had formed Dragon’s End so that spouses could have something to do. 

Taking a deep breath of fresh air into his lungs, he groaned and stretched his scarred arms over his head as he arched his back like a cat into a bowed stretch. Burns and scratches gained from working with dragons over the years marred his flesh, but Charlie viewed them as badges of honor for his service to dragon-kind.

It had been fifteen years since he had left Hogwarts and moved to his cozy cabin in Romania and he would never change a second of that time. He got to work with the dragons he loved and he got paid to collect information that would make it easier for his fellow wizards to understand them. 

The main downside was how cold his two-bedroom cabin could get in the early mornings. At this point in his life, he’d give almost anything to have a small witch beside him to help permanently warm his bed. He never had to look far to find a witch to fill the space for a time, but Charlie was looking for the witch to fill the space all of the time. He had one girl he fancied enough to consider but she would probably never think of him that way, so he let it be. He’d rather be “just friends” to the witch than be cast aside by her altogether. He lived to receive letters from her, though.

Noticing it was still dark outside, Charlie fumbled for his wand on the nearby side table. Quickly casting a Tempus charm, he realized it was only six in the morning. He groaned loudly.

“But I don’t want to get up,” he moaned to the empty room as he tried to re-burrow under the plush blankets. He chuckled in the darkness as he could practically hear his mother’s response. If he were back home at the Burrow, Molly Weasley would have stormed up the stairs, torn his blankets from his bed, and left him with no option but to get up and ready for the day.

Using that visual as inspiration, Charlie rolled over onto his back and kicked the blankets from his torso, forcing himself to sit up and rub the sleep from his eyes.

Sighing, he looked around his relatively empty cabin’s bedroom. Across from his bed, there was a dresser with one bedside table to his right — since the left wall of his bedroom was taken up with built-in bookshelves. Quickly making his way to his bathroom, Charlie showered and dressed warmly for the day.

He threw on his long sleeved shirt and leather protective vest, before tugging on a pair of brown leather pants and work boots. Rubbing his chin, Charlie decided he cared more about getting his planned work done than his three-day overdue shave. Choosing instead to splash water on his face, he grabbed a leather thong to tie his messy and slightly curly red hair back. 

Turning to pull the curtains behind his side table aside, Charlie took a quick glance through the window to see what the weather looked like outside. It was still mostly dark and dim since the sun typically rose around seven-thirty and it was only seven, but he was grateful to see the Reserve looked dry; he wanted to go out to repair a fence before work and it would have been hell to do in the thick mud if it had rained while he’d slept. Noticing there were a few darker clouds in the distance, he quickly made his way downstairs, hoping he could finish everything before they arrived.

Whistling for his pocket-sized Chinese Fireball, Swedish Short-Snout, and Welsh Green to join him, he pulled out their food and left them to terrorize his space as he gathered his things for the day.

He rolled his eyes as the trio tore into the meat steak he had put out and locked up his home. When his brother Bill’s wife, Fleur, found out that Charlie loved dragons, she had made it a point to make him take her miniaturized dragon from the Triwizard Tournament she had competed in. When she found out her fellow competitor, Victor Krum, would be attending her wedding, she had written to him and he had decided to hand off his dragon, too. When Harry had found Charlie in shock over his new companions, he had quickly Apparated home before returning. It turned out that, when Cedric died in the tournament, his father had given Harry all of the prize money along with Cedric’s dragon. Harry confided in Charlie that he had given all of the winnings to Charlie’s twin brothers, along with his Hungarian Horntail (for a roasted chestnut stand that he could visit anytime he felt sentimental) but had kept Cedric’s own dragon because it felt wrong to abandon the memory of him. Seeing as he had been planning to go on the run to fight Voldemort, Harry had asked Charlie to look after the Swedish dragon. Once the battle was over and the dust had cleared, Charlie had offered to give the little guy back, but Harry insisted that he keep it, saying that some memories were ones he should leave in the past.

So now Charlie not only had life-sized dragons to look after every day, but he also had three palm-top dragons that he could coo over all day long. He couldn’t consider himself a happier dragon dad.

Strolling down the dirt road, Charlie waved at the locals. Stopping by the bakery, he greeted Sara and paid for a day-old loaf of bread and a small jar of honey to eat for breakfast.

Munching on the sweet treat, Charlie made a bee-line for the broken fence. When he got there, he noticed his boss, Robert, already at work.

“Robert!” Charlie called out with a wave. The older gentleman looked up and grinned, waving back in greeting.

“Good morning, Charles,” Charlie winced when Robert called him by his formal name. “You’re up early.”

“We have a lot to do today! And you know I hate my formal name,” he reminded his boss for the trillionth time. “Charles is what my parents call me when I try to smuggle baby dragons in onesies to the Burrow for the holidays.”

Robert laughed loudly at that.

“I still can’t believe you were able to smuggle them off the Reserve. How did you do it?”

“I told you that I can’t tell you,” Charlie shrugged jokingly as he thought of the tattered old briefcase stored under his bed. The prized item had once belonged to his old friend, Newt Scamander, and had been used in the past by the magizoologist to smuggle creatures into New York City and all over the world. Charlie would never give up the prized gift. “Besides, no one qualified to watch after them was staying for the holidays and the little ones wouldn’t have made it on their own!”

“It’s called the ‘circle of life’ for a reason, son,” Robert sighed as both men got to work on the fence.

“But it doesn’t have to be when the creatures we watch are endangered and we can do something about it!” Charlie argued back as he helped Robert fix the enclosure for the sheep. While the Reserve tried to let as many of the dragons roam as freely as possible, there were certain cases where it wasn’t practical.

The Sanctuary housed a host of injured dragons who could no longer fly or hunt for themselves that they called the Unreleasables. The Reserve had built a massive enclosure for them. The small herd population they hosted had only fifty dragons, so they were often able to hunt based on what wandered through their area. However, there were times of drought and famine in the area, so the Reserve liked to be prepared to release certain livestock to different enclosures whenever numbers were difficult. The rest of the time, the livestock served to provide for and feed the staff.

“I agree with you, Charles,” Robert nodded as they finished up the fence and pulled out their wands to strengthen the wards around the enclosure. “You know that. However, there are certain cases where you cannot be as soft-hearted towards them.”

“I know,” Charlie sighed as he waved his wand to strengthen the fire-protection charm. “I just wish more people knew how kind and compassionate certain dragons can be so that we could protect them better.”

“That reminds me!” Robert spun around to face Charlie with wide eyes. “A Ministry of Magic official is going to be coming to the Reserve today.”

“What?!” Charlie exclaimed in shock and surprise. “First off, how does ‘kind and compassionate’ remind you of that? And secondly, Robert, you are supposed to give the staff notice for things like this! Who is it? Why are they coming? When are they coming?”

“Calm down, Charles.” Robert placed two steadying hands on the red-head’s shoulders in an effort to center him. “It’s nothing bad. It’s definitely nothing worth getting dramatic over.” Charlie had to swallow back his annoyance that it was Robert who had gotten him worked up to begin with. “We needed extra hands to help with some paperwork and the Ministry was kind enough to assign a helpful employee to our Reserve. Plus they said that the witch would take care of Andrews’ inspection while she was here.”

“Are you sure?” Charlie clarified, already aware of Andrews’ wife’s pregnancy. “We could always take care of the inspection later.”

“The Ministry insisted,” Robert replied. “I know what you’re worried about, but they promised she was only coming for paperwork and to make sure we were still following protocol. According to Edwards, she is quite the go-getter at the Ministry and is excited for the work.”

“If I didn’t know any better,” Charlie laughed. “I’d assume you were talking about Hermione Granger.”

“That’s the lass’s name!” Robert snapped his fingers as if he just remembered. “You’re acquainted with the witch then?”

Charlie gaped at his boss. The man knew of his family’s connection to Hermione. It was no secret to the staff that Hermione Granger had made a name for herself in the defense of magical creatures. If that wasn’t enough, she’d reached near-fame levels just from setting the Gringotts Ukrainian Ironbelly free and arranging for Norberta to get to the Reserve when she was only in her first year of Hogwarts. “You know that she’s close with my family and that she and I exchange letters about the laws and circumstances involving dragons, ” Charlie clarified, flabbergasted at his boss’s clueless expression. “Are you sure she’s the one coming? Her specialty is in magical laws surrounding magical creatures, not annual inspections.”

Beside her connection to dragons, the witch’s name was easily recognizable to anyone in the Wizarding Community since her contributions to the war against Voldemort started when she helped Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, get the Philosopher's Stone when she was only twelve years old. Charlie had originally met the girl when she was fifteen and he was twenty-two years old. His father had gotten the entire Weasley family, plus Harry, tickets to the Quidditch World Cup. Molly had given her ticket to Hermione and, even then, the vivacious, bushy-haired young girl had left quite an impression on him. Her attitude towards the mistreatment of house-elves had immediately endeared her to him since he felt just as passionately about the rights of dragons.

Nowadays, he knew she still had the long curly brown hair and a precocious attitude, which Charlie was certain had rubbed off on her from her close friendship with his youngest brother, Ronald, and their best friend, Harry Potter. She had also matured and gained a more womanly grace about herself that Charlie knew had little to do with the boys in her life. 

She had taken to scolding and caring for Harry the moment he had arrived at the Burrow. She took no shortcuts and tended to mother him more than Molly Weasley. She somehow balanced that with friendship and he couldn’t help but be curious what a closer relationship would be like with such a loving and caring witch.

Due to her lack of magical upbringing outside of school, Charlie had taken her under his wing and taught her everything he knew about the magical world that Hogwarts didn’t teach. Their communications had gotten to the point where he looked forward to little more than he looked forward to receiving her letters, and their discussions over holidays always left quite the impression on him. She was never one to brag though, so he sometimes had to rely on his brother’s letters to receive information on her day-to-day. Not that he was stalking her or anything. He definitely hadn’t formed a crush on his brother’s ex-girlfriend, or anything ludacris like that.

“Do you know when she’s supposed to arrive?” he asked his boss curiously. If possible, he wanted to be there to welcome her when she arrived.

“She’s due around noon,” Robert nodded, already having picked up on Charlie’s interest in the young witch. It was no secret that Charlie didn’t date because he put his dragons first on his list of priorities, but many people around the Reserve knew that he had a slight crush on the witch in question. All they had to do was look at his face anytime the mail arrived. Whenever he got a letter from Hermione, Charlie Weasley lit up like the decorated Christmas trees dotting the Reserve. It was part of the reason Robert had reached out to his friend John Edwards to get the infamous witch to be Andrews’ replacement during his leave. Robert and his wife hoped that the holiday season would encourage Charlie to make a move on the young witch and finally put an end to the red-head’s self-imposed pointless pining. What Robert decided to not tell Charlie now was that he was also planning on having her bunk with him for the duration of her stay. 

“Now run along to get your morning chores done with Sorin and meet me at the Mess Hall over lunch,” Robert instructed with studied casualness. “Seeing as you’re already acquainted with her, and closer to her age than most of the men here, I’d like you to be with me as my second when Miss Granger arrives. Can you do that?”

Charlie was nodding before Robert finished. He was in shock. Ever since Everet had retired earlier that year, he knew Robert had been vetting the Research staff for a new second-in-command. Charlie knew he was a hard worker, but the Reserve leader’s second was a position he never thought would be within his grasp. He made sure he did what he was supposed to and wrote his reports with a diligent eye to detail, but he was also known to break several rules when they conflicted with his morals. He was incredibly proud that his boss had taken notice enough to consider him as his second.

“I’d be honored, sir.” Charlie shook Robert’s hand. “I swear that I won’t let this opportunity go to waste.”

Robert blinked.

“Boy, I’m giving you a promotion, not a trial.” Charlie’s jaw dropped while Robert continued, “You’re dedicated to this Reservation. You make it a point to make new workers feel welcome, but never view yourself above them. You do what needs to be done even when the task gives no glory. At the end of the day there’s no one else that I’d like to run the Reserve alongside me.”

Charlie was gobsmacked. He never could have predicted this when he was crawling out of bed this morning.

“Move along now,” Robert ordered.

After receiving a proper dismissal from Robert, Charlie darted off to collect Sorin from the Mess Hall where he was most likely eating breakfast. Sorin was Charlie’s partner and subordinate on the Reserve. He was twenty-seven, the same age as Charlie’s twin brothers, Fred and George. Seeing as Charlie had left England when they were still thirteen and his youngest siblings, Ron and Ginny, weren’t even in school yet, he had bonded with the young man. Charlie had only been on the Reserve for five years when Sorin became a member of staff and was assigned to him. The two had been close ever since. Charlie had never cared that Sorin was Robert’s son and had always treated him like an equal.

Upon entering the large dining area, Charlie scanned the room for the familiar mop of blond hair. Not seeing him, Charlie wove his way towards the kitchens, where he found Sorin charming a second pat of butter and jam away from the female cooks.

“Are you ready to take notes on dragons, or are you going to flirt here all day?” Charlie deepened his voice to imitate Robert’s as he asked the question with a smirk.

Sorin spun around and started stuttering nervously, acting like a kid who had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. When he saw that it was only Charlie, he frowned and threw a biscuit at him. Catching the fluffy American-style breakfast roll, Charlie laughed heartily.

“Come on, you dope.” Charlie wrapped an arm around the other man’s neck. “We have a morning of dragon maintenance to do!”

Sorin threw an apologetic smile to the ladies as they left and headed towards the Dragon Hospital of the Reserve.

As they entered the ward, Charlie was grateful he had created a system that streamlined the different processes the researchers were required to do daily. The different dragons who were injured require different food based on the medicines they were receiving. One of the things he had done was develop a way for them to be fed their different foods and medicines without a researcher having to take the time to sort it individually. All they had to do was have the dragon-specialist veterinarian log their required medicines and nutrients into a master log which duplicated instructions to each individual dragon stall as well as an order log. The staff member who was in charge of delivering supplies to different sections of the Reserve would take a look at the master sheet and sort out different meals before delivering it. Then the researcher in charge of the hospitalized and orphaned infant dragons would deliver and serve the dragons. This way, the researcher could take notes on each dragon and they could keep a more accurate log of recovering dragons. Not to mention that their costs on supplies had been cut by at least a quarter and their waste was reduced significantly. He hadn’t finished, but he was also working on a way to organize the different medicines in the first aid situation.

Hermione had actually given him the idea when she had gotten hurt while on summer vacation with her parents in France. She had been taken to a Muggle hospital before she was able to get to St. Mungo’s and he had visited her since he was visiting Bill and Fleur’s family at the Delacour Manor. Muggles had developed a similar program using technology. Charlie decided to try to implement a similar program using magic, and it had worked out so far for them.

While Charlie was meticulous with his notes in an effort to help compile as much information as possible for the sake of research for the Reserve, Sorin was a hands-on-type person. Always wanting to do rather than write, Sorin was often annoyed at any paperwork and was notorious for always being behind with his submissions. Charlie couldn’t fault him much though. When he had first started, he was just like Sorin was now and would want to ignore protocols to go with his intuition over procedure.

Nowadays, Charlie had matured with experience and he trusted in the experience of his superiors to lead him straight with their advice. He also rationalized that, if he followed procedure and gave a lot of detailed research, he’d be able to help progress the knowledge about their subjects more effectively and efficiently for the community than if he shot out working on his own.

While the researchers had the option to cycle between assignments, Charlie liked working in the medical ward, despite the difficulty — both emotionally and mentally — of working there. He got to help care for baby dragons and to heal and bond with injured dragons before they were re-released into the “wild” of the Reserve. On the darker side of it, he also had to deal with death and loss in the Medical Ward. While they tried, they weren’t able to save every dragon who came through from attacks and wounds caused by other dragons or poachers. Charlie hated when they had to give the majestic dragons the shot that would give them peace when they were too injured to recover. Alternatively, he hated that he bonded with every baby dragon that came through. Every time the dragons grew up, he was forced to part with them as they rejoined the wild dragons and he always loathed saying goodbye, even though he was glad they were joining their kind in the Wilds area of the Reserve.

He felt incredibly proud that his research was coming to fruition on the world stage. A few years earlier, at least one member of the International Statute of Secrecy Task Force visited the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary to study dragons, where they ended up being grouped together with Charlie.

While there, Charlie had held a course in the study of dragon’s skin and scales which would allow them to spot weaknesses in a dragon's hide. This would later help them in the field, along with aiding them in their study of the creatures to increase the amount of damage they could heal.

Splitting up with Sorin, Charlie donned his white lab robes and started making his rounds through the hospital wing. He quickly fed and cleaned the wounds of the dragons assigned to him. Mucking the pens quickly, he made notes on the status of each dragon as he helped them. Making sure to take quality notes as he worked, he went to his office when he was done with the hard-labor side of things and wrote up the official log report for the five dragons assigned to him. Once submitted, he made a bee-line for the Dragonling and Dragonlet Ward.

When he was eighteen, his youngest brother, Ron, and his friends, Hermione and Harry, had smuggled a baby Norwegian Ridgeback to Charlie. Their friend, Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts, had received the baby dragon’s egg from a traveler later identified as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and had hatched it in his hearth. Once hatched, the Norwegian Ridgeback had gained the name Norbert from his devoted “hatcher”. When Charlie had taken over Norbert’s care, he had quickly renamed the female dragon “Norberta”.

Norberta had just laid her second batch of eggs and the entire Reserve was excited to see if the male dragon they had tried to breed her with had been successful in fertilizing her eggs to be viable dragonlets. Since Norberta trusted Charlie, he was typically the only one she allowed near her clutch, aside from the veterinarian on staff.

“Hey, pretty girl,” Charlie greeted Norberta when he entered her area, but not her pen.

The dragon snuffed a puff of smoke in his direction in greeting, but it spoke volumes that she didn’t blow flames or immediately try to attack him. He didn’t take her cautious indifference as permission to get closer, however. He took it for what it was — general tolerance that would quickly turn hostile if he took too many liberties with her.

He quickly and politely bowed to the dragoness and held up his shovel, indicating to her that he was only going to clean her pen and not get near her at all. She fortunately bowed her head in aquience, allowing him to enter her ‘lair’ to clean the mess she had shoved into a corner with her tail.

“Hey there, bonny lass,” Charlie cooed when he was finished. “Is there any chance you’ll let me check your babies? Or do I have to get someone else in here so that I can do my job?”

“Always have someone join you!” Sorin muttered as he entered the cavernous room. “You may have earned some of their patience, mate, but they’re still able to barbeque us.”

Charlie rolled his eyes. “I know that, but I also know they’re intelligent and I’d like to give them a chance to choose to work with us rather than using force against them.”

“That’s why you have so many burn marks!” Sorin laughed. “You never listen.”

“I listen just fine,” Charlie argued softly as Norberta eyed the pair. They still faced her, but her body language wasn’t hostile, so they continued the conversation. “I just know my ideas are going to come out as truth one day. You’ll see.”

“If anyone can do it, it is going to be you,” Sorin acquiesced. “Now, how about you help me keep Norberta calm and away from her eggs long enough for Doctor Haddock to take a look at them?”

“Fine, you win again,” Charlie sighed as he pulled out his wand and pulled his balaclava from his back pocket, pulling it swiftly over his mop of red hair to cover his face. Sorin did the same.

No female dragon would tolerate being separated from her eggs, but Charlie knew that they had to get her away from them so that the head veterinarian could check over the potential offspring. They could be the answer to the long-term survival of dragons.

As soon as she realized what was going on by them putting on the protective gear, Norberta roared and reared up, breathing deeply as she drew on the fire burning in the furnace of her belly. Breathing out a jet of metal-melting flame, Charlie was barely able to dodge the pillar of flames.

“Easy!” he called out, alarmed. “Sweetheart, we’re just trying to help. The good doctor needs to make sure your little ones are healthy and then you get to take over again. We aren’t going to hurt any of them!”

Norberta eyed him suspiciously before she noticed Sorin skirting around her other side. Turning quickly, she shot a small lick of flame at him, allowing Charlie to see she was peeved, but didn’t truly want to hurt them — a fact he was incredibly grateful about until he saw the red flame make contact with her intended target.

“Ahhhh!” Sorin hollered in pain and alarm as his arm caught fire immediately. Charlie quickly sent a Protego his way and then started throwing mild sparks at Norberta to get her attention. He’d never hurt her, but he needed her to focus on him as the main distraction. He saw the doctor enter the enclosure behind Norberta and start to make his way toward the eggs. Charlie started to panic before he realized that Sorin had put out the fire on his left arm and was raising his wand in Charlie’s direction as he tucked his injured one across his stomach. Even injured, they had a job to do. Seeing a shimmer of light, Charlie realized quickly that Sorin was doing his job well and there was a magical shield up between Norberta and her clutch.

Keeping Norberta’s attention was Charlie’s job now. 

“Hey, my favorite Bonny Lass,” Charlie called out. “Why don’t you come tell me about your day?” Norberta roared back. Pretending they were simply having a conversation with each other, Charlie dodged her attacks as he asked her questions and spoke her answers to him aloud based on her body language. 

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he called out in response to one of her indignant snorts, when he saw the doctor and Sorin waving from the other side of the gate, indicating they were done collecting data. “Now, as much as I’d love to hear more,” he continued, “My morning shift is over and your little ones would probably love for Mum to settle down with them.”

As if only just remembering she was nesting and not playing with Charlie, Norberta’s head swung around and eyed her eggs. Snorting one last lick of flames at Charlie, she quickly made her way back to her nest and settled over her brood protectively. Charlie was out of the pen before she was even settled back down.

“That was an idiotic move if I ever saw one,” Doctor Haddock was scolding Charlie before the gate was re-closed securely. “That dragon could have eaten you! Or tried to barbecue you worse than Sorin!”

“Where is my partner?” Charlie demanded. He was worried about the younger man after seeing him take a hit from the angry mother dragoness.

“I sent him to the hospital — the human one,” Doctor Haddock replied. “I doubt that Doctor Mabry will allow you to see him before she’s done her evaluation, though.”

Charlie sighed and nodded. Doctor Haddock sighed at the look on Charlie’s face.

“Look, you did nothing wrong except interact with a dragon without a partner and a proper shield up,” Doctor Haddock observed. “Sorin didn’t have his shield raised properly either. It wasn’t your fault. I saw the burn itself and it wasn’t even bad. He’ll need his arm wrapped for a day — maybe two — as the potion heals him, but you know our protocol is to get checked out just in case, even if you’re a fan of ignoring it.”

Charlie sighed, knowing Doctor Haddock was right.

“What should I do then?” Charlie asked, feeling helpless. He knew that the Healer was strict about uninjured wizards entering her ward and he felt guilty that Sorin was there because of him. The last thing he had wanted was to get his partner injured and he still wanted to see for himself that Sorin was okay.

“Go to lunch,” the doctor replied. “From what I understand, Robert has you set up as the lass’ tour-guide once she arrives. Sorin will probably join you by the time you’re done eating, if he can keep himself from flirting with the entire Reserve on his way back.”

Charlie laughed heartily at that. The Doctor wasn’t wrong about Sorin’s flirtatious tendencies. 

“I’ll take you up on that, then.” Charlie nodded as he took off the rest of his protective gear, leaving him in just his regular leathers and lab robes.

“Congratulations on the promotion, by the way,” the Doctor called as Charlie was on his way out. “Robert sent me a memo last night that he had picked you and I think he made the right choice.”

“Thanks, man,” Charlie replied genuinely.

As if on cue, a silvery blue patronus of a large brown bear ambled gracefully through the wall. It opened its mouth and the sound of Robert’s wife, Tala, spoke to Charlie.

“You’re expected to join me for lunch. I just got a memo that Sorin was burned. You aren’t allowed to mope alone.”

“I suspect that’s your summons,” Doctor Haddock smirked. Charlie waved him off as he left the ward.

He grabbed a broom and quickly flew over the lake towards Dragon’s End and the home of Robert and Tala.

Chapter 3: December 20th - Afternoon

Notes:

As usual, all errors are the fault of my own and not my amazing editing team.

When she arrived by Portkey after lunch, Charlie was faced with a twenty-five year old Hermione Granger and, suddenly, had no idea how to respond — except to be entranced.

He had already worked himself into a nervous wreck over lunch because of Sorin and had a welt on the back of his head from Tala’s wooden spoon to prove it.

He saw Robert shaking hands with the brown-haired witch he had known since she was fifteen and felt all of his concerns about Sorin fade into the background as he looked at her. Due to conflicting schedules and very short holiday visits on his part, it had been at least two years since they had last seen each other in person and she looked nothing less than gorgeous.

Her hair was woven into a long braid to keep her hair out of her face and she had filled out into a very womanly figure in adulthood. Charlie felt the stirrings of desire for her, but quickly tamped them down. This is Ron’s ex-girlfriend, he reminded himself. He had no right crushing on or lusting after the witch. Despite the Bro-Code, Charlie knew he had a hard time keeping his eyes off of her whenever he saw her at family functions. On top of her gorgeous body and full head of hair that begged to have his fingers tangled in it, she was smart as a whip and cared just as much about magical creatures as he did.

“Hermione,” he greeted warmly as he opened his arms for a hug.

“Charlie!” Hermione’s face lit up in delight as she rushed over to embrace him, subtly burying her face in his chest as she did. “It’s been far too long. You haven’t written to me in even longer!” she scolded him jokingly.

“It has,” he admitted shyly, scratching the back of his neck in admonishment. He and Hermione had become something like pen pals after the war, but their letters more recently had become more intimate. She had originally written to him often for feedback on the laws she was pushing through the Wizengamot to progress the rights for magical creatures, but now, they talked about almost everything . “How have you been?” he asked.

Hermione had already found Charlie quite attractive. However, she had never seen him at work. She quickly realized that combining Charlie’s natural good-looks with his lab robes made her a goner. She was embarrassed to say that her mouth dried up and a blush colored her cheeks.

“I’m well. And yourself?” she asked after too long of a break.

“I’m doing fantastic!” Charlie beamed. “Should we get inside and discuss the plans, Robert?”

Robert looked between the two younger mages and sighed. He knew this wouldn’t be easy, but he was hoping he’d have to put in a little less effort in terms of getting the pair together.

“Yes.” he nodded. “Let’s go have a cuppa and discuss what all we need Miss Granger’s help with.”

Charlie took that as permission to offer Hermione his elbow. He was surprised to see her blush when she took it. He made a mental note to check if she had a fever after the meeting. 

When they walked into Robert’s office, Charlie came to a halt and his eyebrows furrowed as he realized that Hermione had been carrying no bags he could have offered to carry. All she was carrying was a single shoulder bag that only looked large enough for a few books, and that looked pretty empty.

“Hermione,” he called for her attention politely. The witch in question turned around and raised an eyebrow in question. “Did you bring anything with you aside from that bag? How long are you planning on staying here?”

“Thank you for your concern, Charles, but I have everything I need on me.” She nodded at him. “Robert was kind enough to send my other bag ahead to the room I’ll be staying in.”

“Yes.” Robert nodded. “You should find Charlie’s spare room quite comfortable for the duration of your stay.”

“WHAT?” Both Charlie and Hermione spun around to face the older wizard.

“Robert,” Charlie cut in. “Don’t you think she’d be more comfortable with one of the girls?”

Robert looked between the pair with feigned surprise. “Miss Granger, I was under the impression you were quite familiar with Charles? We have a policy that guests must stay with an experienced researcher. I apologize if my assumption that you’d be more comfortable with a friend was incorrect.”

“No, you’re quite alright. He’s one of my best friend’s older brothers,” Hermione explained politely. “Charlie’s family has always been so generous in hosting me for the holidays and I view them as a second family. I don’t want to cause a bother unless Charlie’s uncomfortable with me staying with him.”

“N-no… I mean… It’s fine with me,” Charlie stuttered out. “As long as you don’t think it’d cause problems with Ron.”

“Why would it cause problems with Ronald?” Hermione questioned, quite confused.

“I thought you had dated him?” The question was out of Charlie’s mouth before he could consider it. Robert actually smacked his forehead. Hermione blinked and then burst into laughter.

“I referred to Ronald as my best friend, not boyfriend, for a reason, Charles,” she replied with a laugh. “We dated for barely a month after the war ended and we both decided we make much better friends than lovers. I’m more surprised that you haven’t received his wedding invite yet? He and Luna are planning to tie the knot in June. I hardly think he cares whom I spend time with in my personal life.”

“My apologies,” Charlie conceded, properly chastised. He felt bad for his assumptions, but he couldn’t help but wonder if Ron would mind if Charlie asked Hermione out — if Ron had definitely moved on and she remained unattached. Which reminded him… 

“It’s ‘Charlie’, not ‘Charles’, Princess,” he corrected her with a teasing set of furrowed eyebrows. “And I don’t mind you staying with me as long as there’s no wizards that are going to pop up threatening me for making moves on their girl.”

Hermione laughed again, immediately seeing through his inquiry.

“I can’t promise that there won’t.” She winked. “Your brothers and Harry are all very protective. And that doesn’t include the rest of the Order who all love to be overbearing in my life. But personally, I don’t think you have anything to worry about. There’s no one that holds a serious claim to be upset if I were to stay with you.”

“Excellent!” Robert cut in again, carrying a tray of tea along with the fixings and a large plate of assorted sandwiches. “Then it’s settled. Miss Granger will stay with Charles until his Portkey leaves on the twenty-fourth and the pair of you can go back to England for the holidays!”

“That sounds perfect to me.” Hermione smiled as she accepted the teacup.

“I have no complaints,” Charlie agreed, taking his own and adding a splash of firewhiskey from the flask on the table.

“Now Miss Granger,” Robert started as they all got settled. “I heard from Edwards that he has complete confidence in your abilities and assures me that you’ve reviewed the Irish Reserve before, but it’s quite a bit smaller than our own. Do you have any concerns that you’d like to address before we move on to the paperwork?”

Hermione blinked in surprise at Robert’s diplomacy and felt a warm rush of gratitude towards the man. Too often she found herself butting heads with colleagues as she felt her intelligence challenged and belittled. Instead of questioning her aptitude or abilities, Robert expressed confidence that she could handle herself, but still offered her a way to get help if she thought she needed it.

“I’m confident that I know all of the protocols and expectations that I’ll be evaluating,” she replied. “However, you’re right about the size difference of this reserve as opposed to the one I’ve had the opportunity to inspect with Andrews. If it’s possible for anyone to give me some of their time, I’d love a tour so that I know where everything is when I do my evaluation over the next couple days.”

“Days?” Robert blinked in surprise and turned to Charlie, who was equally confused. “Most often the evaluation takes Andrews a single day.”

“I’m well aware,” Hermione nodded in affirmation. “I’ve had the opportunity to be the one responsible for editing and filing his findings in the past. Despite how in-depth his recordings are, I often get the impression he often rushes through like a tornado, not caring if he impacts the different departments on his way. Seeing as I’ll be here a few days longer than he typically is, I’d like to give the different departments notice and take the time to inspect properly without disturbing their work. I understand the merits of Andrews’ surprise tours. If you were guilty of any malpractices, it’d be a great way to catch you in the act. However, seeing as The Romainan Reserve has never failed on those runs, I’d like to give you all the benefit of the doubt this time and just make sure to check the finer details around the Reserve. If it’s alright with you, I’d like to try to make my visit as minimally intrusive as possible, while hopefully getting you a larger budget for upgrades if you need them.”

“We really appreciate that mindset, Miss Granger.” Robert quickly hid his surprise and let his gratitude show through. “I’ll admit I was concerned about the timing, but I appreciate your consideration of my staff and our facilities. You can have free reign of wherever you’d like as long as you have a staff member with you at all times. I hear you’re a more capable witch than most, but I’d prefer to not have my guests accidentally barbecued on my watch.”

“It’s my pleasure and I’m happy to acquiesce to that condition.” Hermione smiled as she took a sip of her tea. She blinked in surprise and looked down into her cup for a moment. “Charlie, did you add milk and honey to my tea when I wasn’t looking?”

“Do you take it differently now?” Charlie asked, suddenly concerned. “When you made us tea over Easter, I noticed you preferred honey over sugar.”

“That’s… that’s very considerate of you to notice. Thank you.” Hermione hid her blushing cheeks behind the cup as she took another sip. Robert hid his laugh with a cough.

For the rest of the meeting, Robert and Hermione discussed the different issues the departments had been having in terms of paperwork whilst Charlie threw in helpful information based on his own observations.

When their meeting was over, and Hermione stood to gather her bag and paperwork, Charlie reached over to shake his boss’ hand when she excused herself from the room to meet Robert’s secretary. 

“I’m proud of you, Charles,” Robert praised. “I know I threw you on the spot, but you handled that meeting like a true professional. I’m glad I chose you to be my second.”

“I’m the one who’s grateful for this opportunity, sir. I swear I won’t let you down,” Charlie replied as he gave Robert’s hand a firm shake.

“Not to change the subject,” Robert began slyly, and Charlie narrowed his eyes unconvinced. “You know the position comes with more responsibilities. You’ll need to pick a secretary when we return from the holidays.”

“I’m sure Sorin would—” Charlie paused with a frown as he remembered his partner’s notoriously awful handling of paperwork.

“I’m sure Sorin would remain an excellent partner for you?” Robert suggested with a laugh, knowing where Charlie’s line of thought had taken him. “But might I suggest you select a secretary with a bit more experience in paperwork?”

“Too bad Hermione’s not available,” Charlie laughed. “Am I right?”

“Miss Granger would make an excellent addition to any staff she joined,” Robert said in reply to Charlie’s half-serious joke. 

Charlie cleared his throat and averted his eyes. He hated how it felt Robert could always see through him.

“I should go give Hermione a tour of the facilities before I take her to the spare med-staff office. That’s where you wanted to set her up, correct?”

“Of course.” Robert nodded with a grin. It was not a coincidence that the spare med-staff office was across the hall from Charlie’s current office but he’d be moving in January, along with his new position.

Leaving the office, Charlie found Hermione digging through her bag.

“Shall we head out?” he offered.

“Wait, you’re touring me around?” Hermione asked, surprised. “Are you sure that’s alright? I’d hate to be a bother if you’re busy!”

“I only have paperwork the rest of the day,” Charlie consoled her. “Unless you were hoping for some ruggedly good-looking dragon tamer to sweep you off your feet?”

“I think we both know you’re plenty handsome, Charles,” Hermione said, before blushing crimson, realizing she had spoken aloud. Charlie decided that was his new favorite shade of red and he vowed to make her turn that color as often as possible during her stay.

If his brother was no longer attached to the witch, Charlie saw no reason he shouldn’t try to win her over.

“As you can see—” Charlie explained as they walked “—this is just one valley in the Carpathian mountain range. There’s a ton of different dragons living in the mountains around us. The entire Reservation takes up several thousand square miles so they have plenty of room to grow and fly in. The local Muggles believe these parts of the mountains are uninhabitable.”

“That’s impressive,” Hermione complimented. “I’m assuming the Romainan government helped with that?”

“Of course.” Charlie nodded as he led her through Dragon’s End. Robert’s cabin sat at the lake edge between the housing cabin neighborhood and the main Village Square. As they entered the heart of Dragon’s End, Hermione realized the transition between neighborhood and village really was seamless. The only real difference between the two areas was that the buildings in Dragon’s End were built closer together and were larger than the cottages. “The Reserve was originally built like a military base that has just grown over time. There is only one main road that leads in and out of our main grounds and it wraps around the lake in the center of this valley, if it could even be called that because the oversized pond is mostly man-made. Since the main street runs in through that split in the mountains—” he pointed at the split in question off in the distance “—and then loops around the water, the main village square of Dragon’s End is built at the fork in the road. As you already know, if you were standing in the middle of the village while facing the lake, the cabins are off to your left and the Dragon Research facilities are off to your right.”

“Where is the hospital for the humans then?” Hermione questioned curiously. “Surely you don’t want the non-researchers to have to go through the research area to get medical help?”

“You’re absolutely right,” Charlie agreed. “The human hospital is on the other side of the cabins. That way families can access and use that building, but it’s still close enough for staff to access coming from the other direction.”

“That’s smart.” Hermione nodded in understanding. “The hospital is on the cabin side so that coworkers and loved ones can visit without getting too close to any dragons being treated, right? Are there any other shared facilities?”

“Just the Mess Hall.” Charlie pointed to the large building in question at the opposite end of the village closer to the research labs. “Since the road runs adjacent to the water, you’ll see that some cabins run closer to the mountains and some are closer to the lake. We use that as an intentional separation for departments. The external team lives closer to the mountain and the cabins between the lake and road house the internal team, because there are fewer researchers.”

There were two main types of researchers at every reserve. There was the type who worked within the hospital and wrote specific facts and intel about the dragons they healed. Those researchers were called the ‘internal team’ because they typically stayed within the camp-grounds. On the other side of the coin, you had the external research team. The researchers who worked externally were known for visiting the dragons where they naturally congregated. When doing research for new laws, Hermione preferred starting at the internal team’s side and then slowly introducing her practices to the generally-more-stubborn-than-not external team.

“That's where the military base is most obvious. A single road with a long strip of cabins on either side going back several rows in a grid pattern? I don’t think it could get more military than that,” Charlie chuckled. “We like it because the internal team members don’t get woken up in the dead of night when the external team gets in. If they’re closer to the mountains, they can come and go as they need. The same is true for the internal team members. Since the Dragon Research facilities are across the lake, then it’s just a quick flight during shift changes. You don’t have to worry about bothering anyone not on your team.”

“I love that!” Hermione complimented. “It makes a lot of sense for sorting out workers and coming up with a logical way to organize everyone since there are typically more researchers on an external team than internal. Was Robert the one who came up with that system?”

“Actually I did.” Charlie ducked his head and rubbed the back of his neck shyly. “Everyone kept fighting since they got woken up when they were off shift, so I pitched the idea to Robert. He worked out all of the kinks and fine details, though.”

“It’s a really good idea,” Hermione complimented him. “The cabins’ layout makes a lot more sense now. I was wondering why they were laid out like the tents at the Quidditch World Cup. You remember? It was like every tent had its own lot, but there were no trails or designated roads in between.”

“I had forgotten how crazy that was,” Charlie chuckled. “I’m so used to that concept from here, it’s normal for me now.”

“Speaking of forgetting! I meant to ask earlier,” Hermione replied. “Do you work in the hospital’s internal team or with the external research team?” Just because Charlie was wearing lab-robes, she didn’t want to assume his position.

“I was on the internal team but I actually just got promoted,” Charlie confessed. “I’m Robert’s new Second-in-Command.”

“Oh, my goodness, Charlie! I hadn’t heard!” Hermione beamed. “That’s so exciting! Congratulations! When did this happen?”

“This morning,” he confessed. Hermione’s eyes widened in surprise. “I know. I’m in shock too. Robert’s old second retired months ago and he’s been keeping an eye on us since to determine who he’d promote. I never thought he’d pick me.”

“Why?” Hermione asked, surprised.

“I’m a bit of a rule-breaker,” Charlie explained. “Do you not remember that Christmas one year where I—”

“—Smuggled baby dragons home, put them in onesies, and told your Mum you had brought ‘the kids’?” Hermione laughed at the memory. “Merlin, that was a chaotic holiday.”

“I’m assuming you’re going to prevent me from repeating that this year?” Charlie flirted.

“Oh, you know it.” Hermione hip bumped him. “If I don’t, Molly may just cancel Christmas dinner, and we can’t have that.”

“Why not?” Charlie decided to take a risk and go for it. They were both adults and she had already said she was single. He’d had a crush on her for years and he wanted to know if it’d lead anywhere. “It’d give me the opportunity to take you out to dinner on a date instead?”

Hermione stopped walking and turned to her companion. Seeing that he seemed more serious than joking, but still unsure of herself and how she really felt, she decided to go for a delayed response. “How about you ask me again in a few days and I’ll give you my answer then?”

“Back to the tour, for now, then,” Charlie nodded in acceptance of her answer as they continued. “As you know, Robert’s house doubles as our version of Headquarters at the edge between the cabins and Dragon’s End.”

“So tell me how Dragon’s End came to be.” Hermione smiled as she placed her hand back in Charlie’s elbow, gesturing for him to continue with his tour. “It’s not often there’s a full village attached to the research facility. Typically, they’re several miles out.”

“Well, that’s simple,” Charlie continued. “Most research facilities are mobile and have short-term staff to monitor a particular population. As you already know, Dragon’s End was built after the reserve was. In the beginning, it was just researchers and the dragons, but eventually they all started getting married and not all of their spouses were as obsessed with dragons as the rest of us.” Hermione giggled at the visual and Charlie cracked a dry grin. “The husbands and wives who are not a part of the reserve’s dragon faculty wanted to have something that they could contribute. So, it mostly started with Robert’s wife. Since their cabin was the first one that led into the neighborhood, she had Robert build her a market store next door, so that they’d have somewhere to receive and sell goods, rather than just the staple food served in the Mess Hall on the reserve. Eventually another woman decided she couldn’t keep having men come to her door for a cup of coffee, since she had rigged an espresso machine to work off of magic. Since the researchers couldn’t survive without a cup of coffee in the early hours, and most of us can’t cook to save our lives, she and another woman opened the coffee shop and bakery. Eventually a post office was created, and there’s now a pub in the Mess Hall basement, too. Everyone kept contributing something so Dragon’s End grew down the road, away from the cabins and reserve. Where Robert’s cabin was supposed to be at the entrance to Dragon’s End, it’s now at the furthest back point and you have to go through the entire town to get there.”

“That’s amazing!” Hermione smiled. “I love the organization and opportunities you’ve all made here for everyone.”

It was easily apparent after Charlie's explanation that Dragon’s End and the neighborhood of cabins were built in unison for a symbiotic relationship and Hermione couldn’t help but feel happy and cozy in the warm feeling. She briefly wondered if the research facilities would have a higher technology feeling or if they’d be equally as rustic as the rest of the reservation. 

“All of the men and women I work with are grateful to them. Without Dragon’s End, the staff would have to travel two hours by car to get to the nearest town and then we’d have huge tanks of gas around, which you know is combustible. As it is, the only car on the reserve is Robert’s. We place our order by owl and someone from the outside brings us new supplies every two weeks on average. They’ll rush it, of course, if there’s an emergency.”

As they passed the giant Mess Hall — which Charlie told her doubled as the main ‘hang-out’ area in town — and walked towards the Dragon Research Facility, Hermione noticed a shimmer in the air and recognized a magical barrier. Walking up to it, Charlie pulled out his wand and tapped a device that looked like a Muggle card scanner. The device blinked green and Charlie walked through the force shield. Hermione moved to follow him, but he put his hands up in warning.

“You loaned your wand to Tala briefly, right?”

Hermione nodded. Robert’s assistant and wife had told Hermione that she needed it to register her to the staff. Understanding dawned on her and she could have smacked herself in the forehead. Pulling her wand out, she tapped it against the device as Charlie had and it blinked green for her. As she moved to walk through the force field, Hermione felt the air around her turn electric. She could almost feel the current running through her. As suddenly as the feeling had started, Hermione noticed that she was completely alright and it hadn’t even hurt her. As soon as she was through the barrier, the air around her returned to normal.

“This is the recreation and rehabilitation center,” Charlie told her, gesturing at the closest building. “We go here whenever we get injured on the job, we need to recover, or sometimes just let off steam when we're wound up. Here we have some of the  best doctors, physical trainers, and rehabilitation therapists in the country.”

Walking around the right side of the building, Hermione was faced with a series of barns and a large fenced area for different livestock. The pen extended into the distance until it hit the foothills of the mountains.

“We keep the different livestock the reserve keeps inside the shield,” Charlie explained. “If we didn’t, then it would be considered a large buffet for the nearby dragons. We have horses and cows and chickens.” He led her around the back of the recreation center. “The next building on our tour is the storage facilities.” He gestured without stopping. “These are home to the best temperature regulated rooms the dragon reserve could buy. You can store anything from furniture to meat. We use it to store equipment and food for the reservation.”

“Why is it inside the force field?” Hermione asked.

“Mostly we store equipment for the dragons and our newest shipments of food. First in, first out, you know.”

“This next building contains the main offices for everyone on site,” Charlie explained as they passed by the building in question. “This is where I’ll be helping you with the paperwork.”

Hermione nodded as she kept a hold on his strong arm to keep balance on the rough terrain. She cursed the fact that she had worn heels to work that day.

“The next building is the dragon hospital, but there’s too much there to cover in one quick tour, so I was thinking of giving you a more in-depth tour tomorrow morning when I go through my rounds.” He indicated to the large building with his hand. Hermione nodded in agreement. “As you can see, we’re almost completely across the lake from where we started. The dragon hospital is located exactly opposite Robert’s cabin and is where most of the research happens for the internal teams. The researchers don’t want the dragons too close to their homes or families. When we want to research the dragons in the wild we have the external team escort us as we fly up the mountain and we are able to observe the dragons in their wild habitat where the reserve has strong protective wards designed to keep them within certain areas. The dragon hospital itself is full of state-of-the-art equipment. There are birthing stalls, operating rooms, and research laboratories all housed here.”

Hermione gasped as he led her behind the hospital to a large enclosure that had several types of dragons contained within another set of protective wards.

“These are the Unreleasables,” Charlie explained as Hermione caught up with him. “This is where we keep dragons who were taken from illicit dragon breeders and never learned how to fend for themselves so they’re dependent on humans. These are dragons who need the most help because they are still wild beasts but are too tame or weak to rejoin the wild population.”

“So you take them in?” Hermione asked in amazement. “Isn’t it really dangerous for them to live so close to humans?”

“It is honestly more dangerous if they don’t,” Charlie told her. “We have dragons missing wings or legs who can’t hunt. There’s an old dragon without teeth because a travelling circus broke too many out to keep him “safe” to show the public. If we don’t take care of them, they could die.”

“What’s involved in taking care of them?” Hermione asked, using Charlie’s arm to balance as she took off her heels. Casting a quick protective charm and heating charm on her feet, she slipped her heels into her bag and pulled out new sneakers, shooting Charlie a quick frown when he laughed. “Don’t judge me. You try wearing heels on a dirt road. It’s hard enough wearing heels as it is… I don’t know what I was thinking when I decided to put them on this morning.”

“I’m not judging,” Charlie promised even as he snickered a bit. “It’s important to give off a good first impression.”

“Exactly.” Hermione nodded. “But I’ve given everyone their first impression and I’m not really worried about the second impression when my feet are killing me.”

“Back to your question. Most of us are on the rotating chore list in terms of maintenance for the dragons who can’t be released into the wild. The chores are simple in theory. We have to bathe certain dragons, we feed them, and we tend to the wounded. We’ve tried dappling in the concept of taming and training some that were kept in captivity, but haven’t seen much success so far.” Charlie’s frown deepened at his last line before he shook himself off and continued. “We muck out enclosures, change bandages, and apply medicine to injuries. To feed the enclosed dragons, we can just release a sheep or cow for the few who can still hunt for themselves, but there are others who need more in-depth care. Old Bruce is the toothless one I told you about. We have to blend a meat smoothie of pâté for him. His appetite has been decreasing, but he still gets a large snack a few times a day with that.” 

“That all makes sense.” Hermione nodded. “However, it does bring up a question of how this works on paperwork. The other reservation I’ve been to didn’t have anything like this, so I have no idea how I’d report on this.”

“I heard that Andrews is coming back in the new year. He’ll do the hardcore ‘Condition of Living’ report then, but if you cover just their individual reports then you should be able to get by for the annual report section.”

“Are you sure that’d be enough?” Hermione asked, unsure. She took pride in the work she did and hated compromising on anything.

“I’ll confirm with Robert, and you can run it by your boss,” Charlie promised. “If you want, you could always return with him to make sure you know how to do it next time?”

“I’d appreciate that, thank you,” Hermione smiled.

Charlie blushed. It wasn’t often that a girl got to him, but this witch was testing his limits. The wispy tendrils of her braid that had gotten loose were blowing in the breeze and her cheeks were a faint pink from walking all over the reservation in heels. Her eyes sparkled in admiration as she looked around her.

He offered her his arm and said something about showing her to her office. She blushed and placed her hand in his elbow again. She wasn’t a petite little thing. In fact, she was taller than some of her peers. Charlie loved how small her hand looked in the crook of his arm though. He fantasized that she was more than capable of making her presence known and taking control of a situation, but he alone could make her feel petite and feminine.

He shook his head. He was screwed. Most of the time, he didn’t care much about girls since he spent so much time around his dragons. His job was irreplaceable to him. Nothing mattered more. It wasn’t that he couldn’t date. He just had never taken any interest in it before.

Not until his brother Bill’s wedding anyway.

---

Charlie sighed as he flopped into a chair at his brother's wedding reception. Despite the fact he had never been interested in relationships, his mother had spent the last few days throwing girls at him, hoping one of them might peak his interest and bring him home.

Despite being twenty-five (at the time) he had never had a real girlfriend — one night stands not withstanding — because he wanted to study dragons rather than forming a romantic relationship and settling down. There were too many dragons without a safe place to call home so what right did he have to settle down with a wife and children when so many of the majestic beasts were losing their lives and mates to poaching?

His coworkers had tried to convince him many times that he was self-imposing a martyrdom onto himself, but he couldn’t help it. He felt that the dragons needed to come first and he knew that no long term girlfriend or partner would be willing to be put in second place after ‘some big scaly beasts.’

When Charlie was six-years-old, he had written an incredibly outraged letter to the famous elderly Magizoologist, Newt Scamander, wanting to know why Gringotts kept a dragon locked up underground, and begging him to fix it. Newt had written back saying that he’d been sadly fighting that fight for years and no one ever wanted to listen to him. The powerful families, whose money was kept safe by the dragon, always shut him down in the Wizengamot. He had told Charlie that he was the first person he’d heard of who was as angry as he was about it.

Charlie decided that day to dedicate his life to finding out everything he could about dragons so that one day he could free the poor Gringotts dragon. When he graduated from Hogwarts, Newt had personally referred Charlie to the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary and Robert had been willing to take a chance on ‘the snot-nosed brat without a proper Dragonology specialty license’. Charlie had studied hard whilst working on the reserve and had passed the exam when he was nineteen years old.

He had rarely left the reservation since then, aside from a few family holidays. During that entire time, no girl had ever been able to capture his attention.

That was… until Hermione.

The young witch had shown up to Bill and Fleur’s wedding in a stunning red dress that drew Charlie’s eyes wherever she was in the room. Far from the shy and quiet girl she had been when he first met her at fourteen, she was radiant and laughed joyfully as each of his brothers — sans Percy, the prat — took her around the dance floor.

When he had finally gotten his turn, Hermione could scarcely meet his eyes. He loved how her cheeks had matched her dress for how red they were. Instead of some crazy polka like the twins had led her through, or the awkward waltz that Ron had tried to lead her in, Charlie wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. He allowed them to simple sway back and forth as they talked through the slow dance. The war was upon them and he knew it was weighing on her, so he distracted her with talk of other things. He described his favorite sunsets in Romania and she told him about her favorite tree to read under near her childhood home.

Charlie had been enjoying their conversation so much, he had nearly growled like one of his dragons when Viktor Krum had cut in.

As he watched her take the professional Quidditch player’s hand, Charlie felt an irrational bout of jealousy flare. Shortly afterwards, the warning from Kingsley had come and Death Eaters had arrived. When the dust cleared she, Harry, and Ron were gone but Charlie couldn’t get her out of his mind.

As the months passed, he clung to that conversation about brighter times to get him through the darker moments.

After the war and the Battle of Hogwarts, when Charlie and Newt heard that Harry, Ron, and Hermione had freed the Gringotts dragon, they had gotten so drunk, they couldn’t see straight the next day in celebration. Charlie remembered thinking that if there was ever a girl who would keep his attention, it’d be Hermione Granger. Now that he was thirty-two, his affections had only grown instead of dwindled.

Notes:

Please drop a comment and let me know what you think! Thanks!

Chapter 4: December 20th - Evening

Notes:

As always, any errors are my own and no fault of my beta team.

After their tour of the grounds, Charlie escorted Hermione back to his office to get settled and start on the paperwork.

Hermione’s eyes sparkled as they passed the library.

“There’s so many books on dragons,” she observed.

“And you’re welcome to look into any of them,” Charlie promised with a wink. “But after work, okay?”

Hermione rolled her eyes in good jest and followed him deeper into the office area of the hospital.

Charlie stopped at the Office of Records and motioned for Hermione to follow him in. She did so and her jaw dropped.

Every wall was decorated with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves stuffed with reams upon reams of paper and book reports. There was an office desktop set up to record everything, but Hermione was overwhelmed.

“Is there any organization to any of this?” she asked, baffled. “Who handles the recording of information?”

“Don’t worry, Hermione.” Charlie placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Most of this is outdated junk from more than five years ago. Nowadays, we keep all of our records digital. Robert and I spent a lot of time making sure it’d work despite the magic all over the reserve. We all have tablets or handheld devices that we make the reports on. They’re all backed up to the server with a timestamp to ensure they’re sorted in order of importance and time.”

Hermione looked at Charlie in awe. What she wouldn’t give to have that kind of technology available at the Ministry. She had to do all of their sorting by hand.

“Wait.” She paused as a thought occurred to her. “Digital files are fairly current for Muggles. Considering both you and Robert are pure-bloods, I’m surprised you know of it… I mean no offense, of course. I’m just surprised and impressed.”

“You have met my father, correct?” Charlie asked as a sly grin grew on his face. Butterflies unexpectedly erupted in Hermione’s gut. “He told me about some new stuff that came through his office a few years ago and I started tinkering with it to see if I could make it work for the reserve. If anything, I like to think it put us several steps ahead of other research communities.”

“It’s no wonder Robert promoted you.” Hermione beamed, almost proudly. “You think outside of the box in such an amazing way. I’m very impressed.”

Charlie blushed heavily under her praise. Ducking his head, he scratched his nose to help hide his embarrassment. She found it adorably endearing that the big burly dragon researcher would be rendered shy by a few compliments.

“I — I’m supposed to show you how it works,” he offered as he moved towards the central computer.

Hermione Transfigured a chair out of a yellowing stack of papers and joined him at the desk.

The rest of the afternoon was consumed with training Hermione in the technology and in what other dragons remained in the hospital. She couldn’t get over how state-of-the-art the system was. It was at the same level as her parents’ dental practice and they had the newest gadgets. As they went, she got a better grasp of how much paperwork she needed to get through to confirm the reserve was still operating to code.

There were several dragons there who needed extra help and assistance and that was where most of the paperwork was tangled up, so they decided to start there. Charlie figured out fairly quickly why Hermione was chosen to stand in for Andrews. He knew she was incredibly well versed in all of the laws for magical creatures, but the way she took notes and remarked on different points was next level. It made sense since she used her career to fight for their rights, but she was organized and made several suggestions as they went. As he walked Hermione through all of the ways the witches and wizards helped the dragons, she asked questions for clarification and made notes as he showed her the operating system. She would start her inspection by going through the records and, if everything was squared away, then she’d go through Charlie’s days with him to get a first-hand perspective and set of eyes on the facility itself. She’d get to help them from the physical therapy for the beasts to feeding another with a bad cold. Hermione meticulously documented his information for her report.

Once Charlie was confident she had a handle on the program he stood to go back to his office. They’d accidentally started leaning against each other as they shared the screen and he realized that he immediately missed her warmth as he walked around the desk.

“I’ll be in my office just down the hall,” he told her as he pointed in the direction he was heading. “If you need anything, please come ask.”

Hermione smiled and nodded. “I will be sure to do that,” she agreed.

Charlie cleared his throat and nodded, walking away towards his office. He couldn’t help the twinge of disappointment as he walked away, wishing she was still by his side. He quickly shook that. They were both adult professionals. She didn’t need him to hover and tell her how to do her job, especially when she was more than well equipped to do it on her own. It didn’t matter how much he wanted to spend more time with her, they’d have more time after work.

Back in the office, Hermione was shaking her head at herself as she tried to calm her heart rate. It was no secret to her heart that she harbored a crush on the charming dragon researcher since she was fourteen. Who could blame her? He was an attractive man and he had always treated her as a woman who was his equal rather than as a random kid-sister who was always around his house, like some of his brothers did.

She had never acted on her crush since she’d assume she’d get over it. As she had matured and entered the working class as an adult, however, she couldn’t help but admire Charlie’s love and devotion to the dragons he studied. There was nothing Hermione valued more than equal rights to all so, of course, she couldn’t help but admire the well-muscled and tattooed Weasley.

His physicality certainly hadn’t hurt her crush on him. He was handsome when she first met him at fourteen, but now he had only grown more attractive. His chin had an even layer of groomed five o’clock shadow that helped his rugged good looks. He was the shortest of all of his brothers but he still stood a good six feet tall. Unlike his siblings’ lean frames, Charlie was much stockier and Hermione had been helpless but to admire the time he undoubtedly put into his physique, if his arms were any indication. It had taken all of her will power to come across as indifferent.

This was her best friend’s brother. She was pretty sure that was forbidden territory. Not to mention, he was seven years older than her and she was certain he viewed her as too young for him.

Shaking herself off one last time, she rolled up her sleeves and got to work.

---

At the end of the work day, Charlie sat back in his chair and sighed in relief. He could finally stop dicking around at his desk, pretending his thoughts weren’t solely on the girl down the hall.

“You’ve really got it bad,” a dry voice replied from the doorway. Spinning around in his chair, Charlie saw Sorin standing there.

Sorin barely had a chance to respond before Charlie was across the room, examining his partner.

“Are you alright?” he asked worriedly, carefully inspecting the other man for injuries.

Sorin laughed as the big buff dragon tamer was reduced to a panicked mother hen at the sight of his bandaged burn. Seeing as their cabins were next door to each other, they had grown to be close friends since Sorin moved to the reserve. He knew his partner tended to be a very touch-affectionate guy and thought nothing of it as Charlie inspected him for any other burns. After a minute though, he put a stop to it.

“Alright, man,” he laughed. “You can see I’m fine.”

“I know,” Charlie sighed. “I just saw you get tagged by Norberta and then was tied up here. I’m really sorry you were hurt.”

“I promise you, I’m fine, Charlie.” Sorin grinned as he gave his partner a hug. “It’d take more than a nesting mother dragon to bring me down.”

Meanwhile, down the hall, Hermione was blown away by the amount of progress she had made through the paperwork in just a single afternoon. She had also never felt so worn out.

Gathering her belongings, she decided to see if Charlie would like to join her for dinner. Turning the corner into the main office area, she gasped in surprise at the sight of Charlie holding another man close while talking softly.

So maybe her age wouldn’t be an issue for Charlie, but her gender certainly would be if the scene she was witnessing was any indication.

Hermione lost her opportunity to hide herself as her gasp gained both men’s attention.

“Hermione.” Charlie smiled warmly as he pulled away from Sorin. “Did you reach a good stopping point for the day?”

“Yes.” She tried to smile, but knew it probably looked forced. “Is it always this exhausting?” She added a pathetic laugh that sounded a tad too strained to her own ears.

“It can be,” Charlie agreed. “But it’s rare that we’re ever this productive. I really appreciate your help today.”

Sorin cocked his head as he observed the witch. “Hermione… as in… Hermione Granger?”

“That’s me,” she smiled.

“What on earth is Hermione Granger doing here?” he asked baffled, turning towards his partner for clarification. He knew about Hermione’s war efforts, of course, but he knew her better from Charlie’s constant ramblings about her after every holiday and from anytime an owl came in with the mail.

“Hermione’s here to run our end of year inspection,” Charlie explained, shooting Sorin a look of warning. He loved the other man as a brother, but he’d also take him down a peg or two if Sorin revealed his barely-contained crush.

Sorin saw the look of warning, but decided to completely ignore it as he approached the witch.

“I’m Sorin.” He smiled as he shook the witch’s hand. “Sorin ‘Robert’s son’ Grady at your service.”

Hermione blinked at him before a giggle came out.

“Please tell me you’re not being serious?”

“As a grave, ma’am,” Sorin confirmed, still smiling. “Mum and Dad raised me here before I went to Hogwarts. Some of the older guys can never see me as anything but that now. I’m lucky Charlie doesn’t though. We’d make a really awkward set of partners if he didn’t.”

Hermione blinked. Partners in the field and in private, and comfortable about being so open about it? She couldn’t help but be impressed in this day and age.

“What are you staring at?” she asked when she caught Charlie staring at her after returning.

“Nothing,” he laughed, coming up with a quick excuse. He had a feeling she wouldn’t appreciate him saying that he just thought she looked cute. He instead complimented her work ethic. “I was just grateful you weren't just all talk.”

“Did you think I would be?” she replied indignantly as she adjusted her handbag on her shoulder.

“Not at all.” Charlie rearranged a final few documents into the pile on his desk that he had been working on. “I’m just too used to seeing girls fretting over a broken nail that it’s refreshing to see a lovely young lady such as yourself willing to get her hands dirty to get the job done.”

“I’m going to choose to not comment on that blatantly false flattery, aside from telling you to expand on your interest circles.” Hermione rolled her eyes. “It’s fine if you have a type and girls are welcome to be girly if they want, but not every woman is like that.”

“Would you like to have dinner with me?” Charlie asked suddenly. Hermione blinked in surprise and looked between Charlie and Sorin. Catching her look, Charlie extended the invitation. “I meant with the both of us?”

“I’d love to.” She smiled.

“Great!” Sorin beamed as he offered her his arm jokingly. “I’ll cook. Charlie’s shite at it and you need to get your belongings put away.”

“That’s right!” Hermione’s eyes widened. “I forgot to set up camp and it’s going to be dark soon.”

“Camp?” Sorin blinked, his arm dropping automatically in confusion.

“Hermione,” Charlie replied. “We’re not going to make you camp while you’re here.”

“Oh, but I don’t mind. I’d hate to impose on anyb—”

“Dragons.” Charlie deadpanned as he crossed his arms. The anger caused by his concern was simmering just below the surface. “You’re not sleeping outside while the nocturnal dragons are out and about.”

Charlie knew the magical barrier surrounding the Reserve and more specifically the Unreleasables, would prevent her from being harmed by the dragons. However, the weather conditions in Romania could be very harsh and he’d much rather her be safe and cozy in his home than outside in a tent — no matter how cozy and magical the tent was.

Hermione blushed as she realized how silly she sounded.

“You’re right. Sorry. I must sound foolish,” Hermione apologized. “I just hate to impose when there’s other options. Let’s head back. Robert said I’d be staying with you?”

“Yup,” he grunted and started leading the way, Sorin and Hermione on his heels.

---

The entire walk back to Charlie’s cabin was uncomfortable for Hermione at best. She had no idea what to expect. Would she be required to share an actual bedroom with the man?

No! No way would the Reserve require that of her. Charlie most likely had a guest room and, if he didn’t, Hermione never left home without her beaded bag and tent.

Working herself into a tizzy over nothing, she had just resolved to set up the tent to the side of his cabin as soon as they arrived, when a lovely cabin came into view. It was rustic but quaint. The owner had obviously put in a lot of work during their freetime to make it his (or her) own, including adding a porch with rocking chairs — which none of the other cabins had — and window shutters with flower boxes. The boxes were filled with poinsettias at the moment and strings of solar-powered fairy lights covered all of the pillars around the porch. Hermione fell in love in an instant. It was lovely.

“Which couple lives there?” she asked as she tugged on Sorin’s sleeve, distracting him from his conversation with Charlie, who continued walking down the path. “They put so much work into making it homey, it’s sweet!”

Following Hermione’s gaze, Sorin laughed. “I’m glad you like it, Miss Granger, because that’s Charlie’s house.”

“ Charlie lives there?” Hermione had no chance to hide her surprise. She had assumed one of the couples who lived there year-round owned that cabin. It was obviously larger than some of the other cabins, so she had assumed a family was forming there.

“Charlie loves to work with his hands,” Sorin explained. “Whenever he’s not at work, he’s working on home improvements or other carpentry projects.”

“That’s amazing.” Hermione smiled. “How long have you two lived together?”

“I’m sorry?” Sorin froze for a moment to give her a quizzical look. 

“Oh! Are you not living together yet? It was rude of me to presume.”

“Yet? Why would Charlie and I be living together?” Sorin asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“Well—” Hermione hesitated. “I — I thought the two of you were… partners.” The last word came out as a whisper. Sorin’s eyebrows furrowed as he thought about what she said before the light turned on upstairs and his cheeks turned a heated crimson.

“You thought… that we… Miss Granger, I’m not interested in Charlie! I’m straight!” Sorin stuttered out frantically and desperately.

“Who’s straight?” Charlie asked, having only caught the last word of Sorin’s comment as they had just caught up with him.

“Miss Granger was under the assumption that we… that I… was… was…” Sorin’s stuttering was so bad, Charlie raised an eyebrow before he put the pieces together. Far from imitation, Sorin’s reaction, Charlie released a deep hearty laugh.

“Little witch, did you really think that I’d go for a little punk like this guy?” He laughed as he threw an arm over the younger researcher’s shoulders.

“It wasn’t a completely ludicrous mistake,” Hermione defended, now the same color as Charlie’s partner.

“I promise the only dragon I’ve seen with Sorin is the kind that can fly and breathe fire.” Charlie laughed at his own euphemism. “However, if you were interested, I’m sure I could arrange to—”

“Be hexed by my wand, if you dare to finish that sentence.” Hermione cut Charlie off with a flick of her wand, wordlessly casting a Silencing Charm over him. “I’d hate for you to be hexed by me and then yelled at by your mother when we get to the Burrow for the holidays.”

Charlie’s laughter was silenced but no less boisterous as he knocked himself off balance from the force of his laughs. It was obvious that the witch wasn’t truly offended by his comments since she too had a quirk of a smile on her lips that turned into actual giggles when the red-head fell over into the snow.

“Must you always be so ridiculous?” Hermione asked as her facade fell. She flicked her wand at Charlie who was still trying to settle his laughter on the ground before turning towards Sorin.

“I’m so sorry I assumed anything that made you feel uncomfortable around me,” she told him. “I truly meant no offense, but I saw Charlie embracing you in the offices and then you were introduced as his partner. I just jumped to one conclusion and I apologize. I’m assuming he meant that you’re his—”

“Work husband,” Charlie laughed, cutting her off again from the ground. “We spend all of our time together without any of the fun little side benefits.”

“We’re both completely straight, though!” Sorin insisted.

“Completely,” Charlie agreed, finally done laughing as he pulled himself off the brown, crunchy dead grass. “I offered to take Sorin to bed with me ages ago but he rejected me without mercy. I decided to give up men altogether after that.”

Sorin’s jaw dropped in annoyance and disbelief. “You did not ! Please stop or Miss Granger will get the wrong idea!”

“I assure you that I take almost nothing of what Charles says to heart when we aren’t working,” Hermione promised. “I’ve known him entirely too long for that. But if both of you don’t mind, it’s freezing and we should get inside before we freeze in place and get eaten by dragons!”

Sorin and Charlie shared a look.

“You’ll fit in here just fine,” Sorin decided with a laugh as Charlie wrapped an arm around the witch to usher her towards his cozy cabin.

---

As they stepped inside Charlie’s cabin, Hermione fell more in love with his home than she had from the exterior. The entryway led straight into the Great Room. Couches surrounded the fireplace to her right and a dining table large enough to fit six was just to her left. The open kitchen with an island took up the far wall and she saw stairs to the second story tucked away around the other side of the fireplace. Poinsettias and holly were used to decorate the cabin for the holiday while an undecorated Christmas tree was set up right in front of the windows to her right. It was cozy, warm and clean, and Hermione was in love.

“This is so… lovely, Charlie!” She couldn’t help herself as she looked around in awe. The place looked just as festive as the Burrow currently did, and just exuded the feeling of ‘home’. “Are you sure I’m not an imposition staying here with you?”

She couldn’t help but ask the question. Her ‘tent plan’ was no longer a viable option after seeing his lovely home and feeling the nip of a cold front moving in. She’d happily sleep on one of the sofas if he didn’t have any spare bedrooms.

Charlie simply laughed again in amusement, drawing Hermione’s attention back to him from admiring the cabin.

“We already decided that you’re not staying outside, Mi.” He winked and Hermione felt her heart thud. She hated when Ron called her ‘Mione’, but she found that she didn’t mind as much when a nickname was coming from Charlie. “You’re staying here whether you like it or not. If you really hate it, you can ask for a transfer tomorrow.”

“Well then, thanks again for having me. I just hate to be an imposition.” 

“Having a beautiful woman stay in my cabin is never an imposition,” Charlie insisted as he took off his coat and boots with a smile and a wink.

Hermione rolled her eyes and removed her own outer clothes, missing as three small projectiles pegged Charlie’s chest. 

“Well, Charlie, tomorrow I think we should look over the files pertaining to—” In an effort to relax, Hermione returned to her default conversation topic — work. Turning around, her eyes grew wide in surprise as she saw little dragons circling his head.

“Oh, come now, it's dinner time. No shop talk!” Sorin interrupted as he stomped past the pair to head towards the kitchen. “I get enough of that all day. Let’s talk about something else.”

“Um… What’s with the miniature dragons?” She asked instead of finishing her previous train of thought.

“Don’t you remember the Triwizard Tournament?” Charlie teased. “These were the miniature dragons that were used to help the champions select their dragon.”

“I thought the champions kept those dragons?” Hermione cocked her head in thought. She remembered that Harry had kept his dragon as a pet in their dorm for a few years. If she remembered correctly, he had given the beast to Fred and George before he, Ron and Hermione went on their Horcrux hunt.

“They did,” Charlie chuckled as he stripped out of his jacket. “But according to Fleur, ‘ze teeny beast haz no plaze next to my baby!’ And, since Krum had given me his at Bill’s wedding, she gave me hers, too.”

“Then the third is—”

“Cedric’s.” Charlie finished with a nod. “His father wanted no reminders of the tournament, so Harry gave me the Swedish Short-Snout several years back.”

“I see.” Hermione nodded as one of the little dragons flew towards her to investigate. A peal of laughter bubbled out of her as it flew up to create a nest in her hair. Once settled, the small Chinese Fireball set a puff of smoke out of its nostrils and its two companions abandoned Charlie to join in making a mess of her hair. The tension broke and everyone was laughing seconds later.

“Careful, Charlie,” Sorin teased as he moved towards the kitchen. “You may be replaced as their favorite.”

“That’s enough out of you!” Charlie chuckled and lightly boxed his partner’s good shoulder. He then turned and whistled at Hermione, who immediately bristled before realizing he was summoning the dragons, not her, as they all returned to him. “Off to bed, the three of you!”

“What kind of charm was used to animate them?” Hermione asked, intrigued. “They act as if they’re real dragons or at least pet versions.”

“It was a combination of charms, actually.” Charlie explained the process of the layering of spells as he fixed the dragons a few snacks.

“I’m surprised they actually eat.” Hermione was fascinated. “Harry’s never did, as far as I remember.”

“Since they’re not actually living, they don’t need to,” Charlie explained. “But old habits die hard. I think it’d be a safe bet that the dragon Harry kept ate bugs in the boy’s dormitory. These little guys are a series of enchantments, but feel and act as if they’re alive. As long as the charms are kept up, they’ll live, age, and die as miniature beasts.”

“How long are their lifespans?” Hermione asked.

In the background, she barely noticed as Sorin was taking out pots and pans to cook in Charlie’s kitchen. She was very grateful that she had cleared up their relationship status earlier. She was still mortified by her error, but was glad it had not been kept up any longer than it had. She shuddered to think of her embarrassment if that misunderstanding hadn’t been set right for several days instead of a couple of minutes. The only downside of knowing that Charlie was unattached was that, the more he laughed around her, the more she grew fond of the little dimples in his cheeks when he smiled. She found she wanted to make him smile and laugh more.

As Hermione made herself comfortable on one of the couches, Charlie started the fire in the fireplace the old fashioned way.

“It burns better and warmer that way,” he explained as he set about his task. Once the fire was cracking happily and warming the room better than the heating spells could hope to, he joined her on her couch while Sorin took full control of making their supper. Hermione had offered to help at one point but Sorin acted affronted, as if allowing a guest to help him cook would be the greatest insult of his life. She had countered that he was cooking in a house that wasn’t his own, but he had brushed her off.

“This bloke would have starved a long time ago if it wasn’t for my cooking.” He gestured vaguely at Charlie with his knife. “The only thing he’s good at is making breakfast foods.”

“Hey! You love my pancakes!” Charlie argued.

“But how many dense and flat ones did I have to endure before you got the recipe right? There wasn’t enough syrup in this Reserve to make those taste good.”

Charlie pouted.

“I’m glad you’re here to make sure the bloke eats a healthy dinner from now on, Hermione,” Sorin laughed. 

Hermione joined in as she felt herself relax. Their banter reminded her of Harry and Ron’s arguments and she felt almost as if they were at home. When Charlie turned on the radio to the sounds of Celestina Warbeck, and tried to make her dance with him, she felt as at home as she would if they were back at the Burrow.

---

“Thank you so much again for dinner, Sorin,” Hermione told him gratefully a few hours later. “It was absolutely delicious.”

“It was my pleasure, Hermione!” Sorin beamed at the witch. “I had a lot of fun getting to know you better!” 

Hermione shared the sentiment. Sorin was sweet and had a refreshing innocence about him that she had not felt since before the war. Despite being older than her by two years, he reminded her of a younger brother, looking to please but also wanting to prove himself.

Sorin kissed her on the cheek as he left and the pair made plans to eat lunch together at the Mess Hall the next day.

Once Sorin left, Hermione returned inside to see Charlie cleaning up the kitchen.

“Today was a long day, wasn’t it?” she asked as the fullness of the day started to catch up to her. She refused to let Charlie do the dishes himself as she took a place next to him at the sink. In a move that showed how often they cleaned up together after family dinners at the Burrow, he handed her a cleaned plate to dry off without argument that she was a guest.

“It was long,” Charlie admitted with a sigh. Turning towards her, he gave her a heart-stopping grin complete with dimples. “I do think it was a lot more enjoyable than most days I’ve felt recently.”

Hermione blushed and avoided his gaze by drawing her wand from her thigh holster.

“Would you like a cuppa?” she offered as she summoned the tea kettle. Charlie nodded and moved the tap so that the kettle could get filled.

He finished the dishes while Hermione boiled the water and added the tea leaves. Coincidentally, they finished their chores at the same time and decided to retire to the couches together.

“I see you still take your tea with too much sugar,” Hermione said looking disdainfully at Charlie’s cup.

“Please, have you seen what Fred drinks?” Charlie laughed. “I swear, any more sugar and he would have to chew it.” 

“I know and it’s horrifying!” Hermione giggled. 

“One time Percy and I once swapped the salt and sugar, which was absolutely hilarious — until Mum got caught in the crossfire! The two of us got stuck de-gnoming the garden that entire season. I was the lucky one really, Percy isn't as fond of the outdoors.”

Hermione blushed as the image of Charlie bent over, trying to pry a gnome out of a bush, came unbidden to her mind. After spending the entire day in his company, she had difficulty keeping the image of Charlie’s assets — and her mind — out of the gutter. 

“I bet the view was great.”

“What?” 

“I mean, I bet it was a great workout!” Hermione hurriedly replied.

“So what is my family up to these days?” he asked, changing back to their original subject.

“Your family?” she asked, appreciating the kindness. “I really tend to focus on work far too much, so I think you’d be surprised that it’s unlikely I know more than you.”

“Humor me?” Charlie offered. “Tell me what you know and I’ll fill in the gaps if you miss something that I’m aware of?”

“Okay.” Hermione nodded as she took a sip of tea to give herself a moment to think. “Well, as you know, Ginny has been playing for the Holyhead Harpies since Hogwarts and she and Harry are as inseparable as ever. Ron is engaged to Luna Lovegood, who is Ginny’s age.”

“I remember her.” Charlie nodded. He had met the eccentric young woman at his brother, Bill's, wedding. “Odd duck, isn’t she? Then again, so is Rolf.”

“She can be,” Hermione agreed. “But not always wrong. A lot of her research is proving the existence of creatures I had thought she made up.”

Charlie nodded in interest. “What about my twin brothers? Are they settling down at all?”

“Not that they’d tell you, but Angelina Johnson and Katie Bell have them well under their thumbs.” Hermione laughed at the thought.

“Angie and Katie are dating my brothers?” Charlie asked intrigued. “I played Quidditch with them when I was in my seventh year at Hogwarts and they joined the team with Fred and George. I remember them both being talented girls with tongues as sharp as a whip. I definitely approve.”

“They are very skilled at keeping those two in line,” Hermione agreed. “George is such a sap over Angelina, it can be a little nauseating. Fred and Katie are still dancing around each other, but there’s a pool going over when they get together and who makes the first move.”

“What about Percy?” Charlie asked. “Does my stick-in-the-mud younger brother have anyone sweet in his life?”

“If his stories at dinner are to be believed, then he does,” Hermione whispered conspiratorially.

“You have got to be kidding me!” Charlie laughed. “I was completely joking around!”

“I know!” She laughed loudly and the sound reminded Charlie of tinkling bells ringing with a deep guffaw. “But he keeps skipping dinner to go out with a girl named Audrey. She hasn’t come around for dinner yet, but I don’t really see him inviting a girl to your family’s house unless she’s wearing a ring.”

“My family can be intense,” Charlie nodded.

“Oh, my goodness,” Hermione laughed. “You’d never believe what happened last week.”

They moved to the couches as she launched into a story about a prank one of the twins pulled on Ron, and Charlie felt a small seed of jealousy take root. Hermione was catching him up on the activities of his family. Typically, he would have just appreciated the updates on his loved ones. However, in this case, he felt as if he should be the one to update her, rather than the other way around. It was becoming clearer to him as she changed into another story that she spent far more time with his family in a week than Charlie had made time for in the last year.

As much as he wanted to take the blame and accept the fact it was his own fault, he couldn’t help the seeds of animosity that was growing within him as she prattled on. Instead of letting the negative feeling fester, he made a vow he’d prioritize his family more in the new year and moving forward.

“I wish you were home more often,” Hermione murmured sleepily as they sat beside each other. She was leaning heavily on her side against the back of the couch. “This has been fun so far.”

“These dragons have my heart, love. Good luck pulling me away.” Charlie winked.

Hermione wanted to teasingly argue with him but, as soon as she opened her mouth, a large yawn came out.

“That’s it,” Charlie decided. “Time for bed! There's going to be a lot to do tomorrow, I think, and you can barely keep your eyes open.”

Hermione wanted to protest that she was enjoying their conversation too much to sleep, but the warmth of the fire and the fullness of her belly were pulling her into the world of dreams far too quickly. She barely noticed when Charlie took her cup of tea from her hands.

She didn’t even have the energy to argue when he lifted her into his arms to carry upstairs. She was out.

Notes:

And they were roommates!!! LOL!!! I swear more fluff is coming!
Please review and let me know what you think!

Chapter 5: December 21st - Morning

Notes:

I need to dedicate this chapter to Curly Kay who helped me rewrite a scene last minute this evening. I apologize for the delay and hope you all enjoy the longer chapter!
As always, any errors are my own and not the fault of my amazing editing team!

The next morning, Hermione rolled over in bed with a groan and snuggled deeper into the warmth of her cream-colored sheets, tugging the crimson downy blanket tighter around herself. She hated mornings anywhere in the world, especially when she had to leave beds as comfortable as this one. Wasn’t it a rule somewhere that guest beds had to be uncomfortable so that the guests would leave quicker?

At that thought, the events of the evening before came back to her and she sat up in bed. Looking around, she confirmed that the room was clearly not the master bedroom. Still, that meant Charlie’s guest bed was better than her one back at her flat. She allowed herself to relax for just a minute, before she gave a long stretch and got out of bed. 

Summoning her bag, she retrieved a few items she’d need for her day. After choosing a stylish cream colored sweater and black jeans, she wandered into the ensuite bathroom. She had a bit of trouble figuring out the shower but once she turned it on, she was good to go. She was in and out in five minutes. Wrapping a towel around her hair and a second around her body, she wandered back into her room to change. She jumped a foot in the air when a throat cleared and Hermione found Charlie leaning against the doorway.

Catching her towel before she could drop it, she quickly regained her composure and faced him. Her mouth went dry as she took him in seriously. The man had shaved today and he was wearing a white shirt and jeans but the fabric was unbuttoned, revealing miles of freckled muscles on his torso and at least three colorful dragon tattoos peeking out from beneath the shirt. She swallowed quickly as her eyes traveled to his arms. The way the cloth hugged his muscles was borderline sinful. Hermione could say with confidence that any woman who attracted his eye was a lucky woman indeed. 

“Charlie!” she exclaimed as a blush colored her cheeks. “I wasn’t expecting you this early. I thought you said that we were going to head out around half past seven?” A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her that it was a quarter till seven so she had forty-five minutes before they were set to leave.

“Sorry to startle you, lass.” Charlie grinned as his hands moved from fiddling with his shirt sleeves to buttoning up his shirt. Hermione silently lamented as the freckled skin was slowly hidden. “I just thought I’d offer to cook you breakfast while you checked your mail. Hedwig just dropped off a few letters. Seems her owner didn’t know you were coming out here and needs you to sign a few documents.” 

Hermione instinctually moved to argue that he needn't bother, but her stomach grumbled before she had the chance. Swallowing, she decided to accept his offer. 

“What does a typical Romanian breakfast have to offer?” she asked, not wanting to request anything he didn’t have in stock.

“A traditional Romanian breakfast will always include a cheese omelet with telemea — which is a traditional Romanian cheese that’s similar to feta. There’s also typically some bread, cold cuts, yogurt, and fresh vegetables. I like my breakfast with some nice, strong Turkish-style coffee, but I also have tea. However, a lot of the guys come from the south in the United States so there’s options like bacon with grits or breakfast tacos if you’d like something to go?”

“Breakfast… tacos?” Hermione cocked her head curiously. How did dinner food become an acceptable breakfast course?

“I’ll take that as your request.” He laughed. “Two breakfast tacos coming up and we can have the traditional Romanian breakfast tomorrow.”

“And coffee?” she requested shyly.

“And coffee,” he agreed, closing the door for privacy as he left.

Hermione turned to get ready and realized that she was in her towel. Talking with Charlie was so comfortable, she had forgotten about her state of dress!

She quickly put on her clothes and used her wand to dry her hair. Applying just enough Sleekeazy’s to tame the frizz, she quickly plaited her hair.

After applying a quick coat of makeup, she dubbed herself ready to face her day. She summoned her purse from the bed as she headed downstairs and into the kitchen.

Charlie grinned as she joined him in the kitchen. He offered her a tray with a mug and all the fixings for her to make herself her perfect cup. Politely setting the mug aside, Hermione summoned her favorite travel mug from her bag. Seeing her intent, Charlie took the ceramic mug back and hung it on his mug tree.

This travel mug was her favorite daily ‘sidekick’. It had been a gift from Fred and George and it was charmed to change the outside appearance daily. Most of the time, it had a cute and witty quote, but the rest of the time it was charmed to say something borderline seductive. The twins had joked it’d help her get a boyfriend. Seeing as it had come from the owners of a joke shop, she hadn’t been remotely surprised that every quote that appeared on the side was mildly offensive, yet tastefully funny.

The quote from yesterday morning was: “In order to insult me, I must first value your opinion. Nice try though!”

Today she didn’t even check the phrase as she started fixing her tea. It wasn’t until she was taking a long draw from her Earl Grey that Charlie’s laughter indicated that the mug must be saying something questionable.

Pulling the white tumbler away, Hermione saw an image of a Firebolt above the phrase, “Yes. I can drive stick.”

“I like your mug.” Charlie laughed.

“Courtesy of Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes.” Hermione raised her mug in salute. She had learned to just roll with whatever the mug said since it had once asked her boss, “Is that a wand in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?” It took too much energy to explain it every time. It was easier to blame the joke shop. “It’s not always so suggestive,” she lied.

“I don’t mind.” Charlie eyed her. “Especially when it comes from a pretty witch like you.”

While the mug’s quote didn’t phase her, Charlie’s brazenness certainly did the trick. Hermione ducked her head to take another sip.

Charlie laughed at her reaction. It was so cute how bashful she was when he flirted with her. It was obvious that if men did flirt with her back home, it wasn’t often enough that she was comfortable with it. Actually, that didn’t make sense. Sorin had flirted with her plenty the night before and she hadn’t reacted at all. In fact, she had just joked right back as one would with close friends.

Charlie leaned back to consider her for a moment, hiding his face behind his own mug of coffee. Maybe she only got bashful and shy when someone she liked flirted with her?

“Why does my flirting make you feel so uncomfortable?” he asked. “If I didn’t know better, I’d guess that you liked me.”

Her head popped up in surprise and her mouth formed a perfect ‘O’. Before she had a chance to gather her wits enough to respond, the two mages heard a deep roar of an angry dragon far too close to the cabin for comfort.

Charlie and Hermione froze for a scant few seconds before flying into action. Charlie flicked the stovetop off and made sure nothing was on while Hermione gathered her stuff.

“Leave it,” he ordered as he went into full-on work-mode. 

He dashed outside and she followed closely. He grabbed two brooms from where they were stored in his personal locker. 

Hermione froze and stared at him wide-eyed.

“I… I don’t know how to fly well,” she admitted. Another loud roar echoed through the valley. They looked at each other with wide eyes.

“I’ll teach you later,” he told her as he pulled her onto his broom in front of him on instinct. To her credit, she didn’t freak out, but instead trusted him not to drop her as she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his chest. He held her tighter as he jumped off the ground and angled his broom towards the large enclosure next to the dragon hospital across the lake where the Unreleasables were held.

He could see a few other people flying in that direction and was quick to follow.

“Hermione, hold on tight,” he warned. “I’m gonna go fast because we needed to be there yesterday.”

“Do it,” she ordered. She did her best to hide the tremor in her voice, but Charlie heard it. He had to take care of whatever was going on first, but then he’d apologize to Hermione properly. Every Weasley alive knew how much she hated flying.

When you work on a dragon reservation, you quickly get used to responding first and thinking through the possible repercussions later. Charlie had to give Hermione credit towards her Gryffindor courage that she didn’t just run away or keep her distance but instead jumped into action alongside him, despite her well-known fear of brooms.

As he turned the bend to get a better look on the other side of the lake, he froze midair at the sight of a loose and angry, healthy Hungarian Horntail.

The research facility and, more specifically, the Unreleasables’ pen had a heavy ward surrounding them. It was put in place to protect both the people and the defenseless dragons from the stronger wild breeds in the greater part of the reserve. The only way a dragon could get in or out of the wards is if there was a crack or if a wizard or witch helped them through by opening the wards in an area, and they all knew to close the wards behind them.

It was obvious the dragon had gotten into the valley by accident, but no one knew how to address that or respond to the level the dragon’s wrath was currently sitting at while it was so close to the weakened dragons in the sanctuary.

Surveying the area quickly Charlie saw several wizards, but only Delia and Robert were handling the dragon. 

Careful to dive into action because he had Hermione on his broom, Charlie circled the area and surveyed the scene. Delia — one of his closer friends — was currently wrangling the Horntail alone while Robert tried to cast restrictive spells.

Looking over the dragon, Charlie noticed the peculiar markings. Where did he recognize that orange marking on the left flank from?

With a jolt, he recognized the Horntail. It was the exact same dragon Harry Potter had faced in the Triwizard Tournament.

Charlie had been assigned to that female dragon because he had a good rapport with her and her mate. Usually he could tell each of his dragons from some distance but the Horntail’s whole demeanor had changed along with her humour. Pure anger vibrated from her in waves, her scales practically shaking, and the air around her darkening from her smoking breath. 

As the dragon lashed out at Delia, Charlie decided he’d have to move into action. Delia had her wand trained on the dragon as she fought to keep it restrained with her spell. A single beam of light extended from her wand to rope around the dragon’s neck like a lasso.

“Delia,” he called out as he landed roughly, jostling Hermione’s grip from him. He barely paused to make sure he didn’t just drop her in the snow as he quickly whipped out his own wand and ran into the fray. He hoped that Robert would keep Hermione back as he saw him dashing toward her. “Fill me in. What’s going on? How did the Horntail get in?”

“I don’t know,” the witch hollered as she fought the dragon with dwindling strength. “I just got here first.”

“Charlie!” Robert called. “We already checked and there was a breach. There’s no way this dragon got in by itself and now it can’t get back out. You need to sedate it so we can release her outside the wards.”

“Oi! Ryan!” Charlie hollered as a wizard landed nearby, belatedly recognizing him as Delia’s partner in the field. “Are you going to help Del or not? Get that wand trained now!”

“Good morning to you too!” he called as he sent a ray of light to restrain the dragon from the other side. Charlie couldn’t help a quick wry grin at the remark.

With practiced ease, Charlie wound his wand around himself and lay a few fire-resistant spells around his body. He knew what he was going to do next was borderline insane, but it was the best idea he had. Walking towards the dragon, Charlie called out to everyone.

“I want to try something. Trust me and do what I say! I know this dragon.”

Before he could take three steps, Hermione was by his side, trying to pull him back.

“Charlie, are you crazy?” she asked incredulously. “That’s the same Horntail that Harry fought in the Triwizard Tournament, isn’t it?” 

Charlie’s eyes widened that she had recognized the markings as well. “You’re right,” he confirmed.

“Females are notoriously dangerous, you idiot,” she scolded. “And this one has a history of being vicious!”

“I know, but there’s something I’ve been trying to get the dragons to calm down better. Can you do me a favor and trust me right now? I can’t focus if I’m worried about you doing something rash.”

“That’s an angry female dragon and you want me to let you just waltz up to it based on trust? You have a family that cares about you! How could I tell them that I let you go up to a hostile dragon because you said ‘trust me’? Molly would have my hide!”

Charlie cursed himself quietly for not thinking. Any graduate from a wizarding school knew that the female dragon is generally larger and more aggressive than the male, though neither should be approached by any but highly skilled and trained wizards. Charlie and his team had spent so much time around dragons, he had forgotten that some of his experience was hands-on, not learned in a textbook — which was Hermione’s preferred method of learning. In hopes of calming the startled witch down, he realized he had sent her into a panic instead.

“Trust me,” he insisted as he edged into the Horntail’s eyesight. “I’ve been doing this for years. I know what I’m doing.”

Hermione hesitated as he looked between the witch and angry dragon. Eventually, she nodded and took a step backwards. Robert immediately jumped in between her and Charlie and erected a protective shield of magic in case. Charlie nodded at him in gratitude.

“Show me what you’ve got,” Robert ordered. “But if it looks like she’s going to barbecue you, I will stop her with a stunning spell.”

Charlie hesitated as he looked back and forth between man and dragon, but he eventually nodded. He knew logically that stunning the dragon wouldn’t help in the grand scheme of things, but he needed to show the others that dragons weren’t just mindless beasts. He had been working with this dragon — granted, it was when she wasn’t crazy in anger — but, he was certain he knew how she’d react if he were the one to jump in to calm her down.

As he pulled away from Hermione and Robert, Charlie made it a point to get straight in front of the Hungarian Horntail.

“Hey, sweet girl,” he called out. The dragon growled menacingly. “There’s no reason to be like that,” he continued calmly as he held his hands out in a defensive, but obviously open handed manner, since he had re-holstered his wand. “See? I’m not holding my wand. I don’t want to hurt you. I can see you’re upset though, so let’s take this slow. Okay, sweetheart?”

All of the witches and wizards in attendance stared open-mouthed as he started inching towards the upset dragon and wasn’t barbecued where he stood.

“That’s a good girl.” He continued to praise the fuming beast as he got closer. “You know that I don’t want to harm you.” Without breaking eye-contact with the dragon, he stopped about fifty feet from her and addressed Delia and Ryan who were still restraining her. “I want both of you to LOOSEN your holds on the count of three so she can approach me and I need NO ONE ELSE to move. Remember, this is the first time we’ve interacted with her this way and the last thing I want is to startle her. Are we clear?”

Charlie saw Delia and Ryan nod in affirmation. Accepting the group’s understanding, he went back to addressing the dragon.

“You see, girl?” he asked as if the dragon were an old friend. “No one here is going to attack. It’s just between you and me. We’re just going to have a polite conversation, okay?”

The dragon seemed to relax a fraction and Charlie’s eyes widened at that. Even though he had requested it, he hadn’t honestly expected the Horntail to do so. He never thought he’d see a dragon relax for someone based on trust alone like that, even if it was his own theory. Hermione obviously saw the same thing and started to whisper to Robert. Charlie ignored them and kept his focus on the Horntail.

“That’s a good girl. I knew you were smarter than these silly witches and wizards thought.” Charlie was trying to use praise to get the Hungarian Horntail to listen to and focus on him, but he could still see some of his coworkers bristling. Catching their eyes, his expression said it all. They wisely stayed quiet.

“Now, sweet girl, I’m going to count and then the others are going to loosen their hold on you, okay? I know you’re smart and don’t want to hurt me, so we’re going to prove it to them. You’re such a pretty girl who got scared and doesn’t know how to get out. All we have to do is get you to relax and I’ll get you out of here, okay? On one, two, three.”

On the third count, the other two deliberately lowered their wands to loosen their hold. Immediately, the dragon reared and Charlie bowed towards her as if she were a prideful hippogriff. 

“NO ONE MOVE,” he ordered his team. “Let her establish her dominance. She’s not used to being free to do as she wishes around wizards and witches.” He never broke eye contact with the dragon. “Easy girl,” Charlie muttered to her in a sure but calm manner, hoping to ease the dragon as much as himself. As steady as he was trying to keep his voice, he was still talking to a feral dragon. That was terrifying. “You can show them how powerful you are later, but show me now that you’re just a sweetheart who has been hurt, okay? Can you do that for me?”

The dragon eyed him for a moment, before releasing a puff of smoke towards Charlie. He didn’t respond, and made sure the other witches and wizards didn’t either. The dragon rumbled softly and lowered her head towards him curiously.

Sensing no malice from the dragon, he called out towards the other witches and wizards again. “I want you to lower your wands to give complete slack.”

“Are you sure?” Delia asked uncertainly. “I’m not sure that’s such a good ide—”

“Do it NOW,” Charlie ordered calmly, but seriously.

Exchanging glances between Charlie, Ryan, and Delia, the three nodded and relaxed their grip completely as Charlie extended his arm in front of him. His hand was outstretched with his palm down. He kept eye contact with the Horntail as it moved forwards slowly to crouch in front of him. Sniffing his hand, the dragon acted as if she were unsure what to do next.

Charlie released all of the tension in his body and could feel everyone’s jaws hit the floor, along with his own, as the Hungarian Horntail moved forward to nuzzle him that same way a fond puppy would. “That’s a good girl,” he praised in adoration. “You’re so sweet and beautiful. Thank you for trusting me.” In a single one-sided conversation, the wizard had completely calmed the most vicious and mean Hungarian Horntail on the Romanian Reservation. No one had ever seen anything like that.

Charlie chuckled as the dragon moved to rub its snout against his sweater. He was incredibly grateful that the dragon had chosen to trust him. He started to scratch at the softer scales at her nose and then moved around the side to scratch at the scales just below the Horntail’s chin at the juncture where her neck met her large head. Charlie could tell the moment she hit that magical spot because the dragon froze before collapsing in front of him.

“What the—?”

Charlie nervously chuckled at everyone’s amazement as the creature moved to roll to its side. Wrapping its tail around the wizard, the Hungarian Horntail moved to pull Charlie closer for belly scratches. Glancing over his shoulder at his boss, he believed Robert’s jaw was permanently detached at this point. Words could never convey how unnerving it was to see the most vicious dragon he had ever met pulling a reckless wizard closer for belly rubs and kind praise. Even Charlie was internally baffled.

Eventually he pulled away and patted the dragon’s belly fondly.

“Okay, sweet one,” Charlie sighed. “Let’s get you out of here. I’m going to have these two wizards come with me. The witches are going to— ” 

Before he could finish his statement, the dragon roared and spun around. Everyone stumbled back in surprise and the dragon jumped, flapped its wings a few times, and landed a few yards away. She nudged at a bush and Charlie’s eyes widened as he realized the bush wasn’t natural. It was a nest. She hadn’t just slipped in. She had laid eggs here. He moved to approach and she reared, looking at him reproachfully.

“Sweet girl.” Charlie adopted his softer tone of voice as an absolutely insane idea popped into his head. Dragons didn’t just nest near humans. She must have been forced into the Unreleasables area at night when she was mid-labor. When the morning rotation took over, she would have been startled and got defensive. “Did someone hurt you or your eggs? Is that why you’re upset?”

The dragon eyed her balefully before turning to look between Charlie and her nest a few times before she sent a ring of smoke in his direction. The Horntail lifted an egg from her nest and laid it on the ground, nudging it towards Charlie in the snow before settling over her clutch again.

Charlie’s heart broke at the display. It was obvious she knew one of her eggs was sick and was rejecting it. If the baby inside was still alive, there was a large chance the mother wouldn’t take it back once it hatched. At the same time, his heart faltered. This  action showed as dragons got older they got wiser, and this Horntail recognized him as a friend who wanted to help.

Obviously done with her display with Charlie, the dragon lowered her head and stared at the gathered witches and wizards, daring them to test her. Doctor Haddock had joined the group and tentatively retrieved the egg. The other mages who weren’t being signaled by Robert to stay were slowly making their way towards the exit of the Unreleasables pen, never turning away from the growling and huffing dragon.

Once the magical gate was closed behind them, Delia and Ryan carefully moved their wands in intricate patterns to surround the Horntail in a protective bubble. The dragon wouldn’t be able to escape or attack them. They would have used it earlier but a truly angry dragon had the magic to break through. The bubble charm only worked when the dragon was mostly calm.

Charlie turned to face Hermione and was surprised to see tears streaking the witch’s face. Before he could react, she was flinging herself at him.

He was so surprised, he caught her on instinct as she hugged him fiercely. Before he could savor in the moment, she pulled away to glare at him, wrapping her arms around herself for comfort.

“Are you an absolute moron or is there still a brain between your ears?” she snapped at him before he could move towards her. He froze.

“What?” he asked in surprise.

“That was a nesting, angry female dragon and you approached her without a wand to prove a point?”

“Hermione, she was stressed and overwhelmed and I didn’t want to stress her out further. I holstered my wand because I helped raise her when she was a hatchling. I wouldn’t have done it with any other dragon.”

“So you risked your life on a hunch?” Hermione bristled as she drew her wand to send mild sparks at his feet in her ire. 

Charlie tried to move towards her, his hands raised placatingly, but the witch stepped back and he was struck dumb at the way she looked in the light of the morning. The sun embraced her in a halo of light from behind as her tear-streaked cheeks glistened. The pain in her eyes was unbidden, but the wand in her hand was steady.

He was doomed.

“You were scared of the Hungarian Horntail?” Charlie asked, needing clarification.

“No!” she exclaimed as she spun around to glare at him. “I was scared for you ! You pulled an absolutely idiotic move on faith alone and it easily could have backfired! What would I have told Molly and Arthur? ‘Oh, sorry! Your son wanted to face the angry Horntail who once tried to barbeque Harry and I let him do it with no protection. Hope you don’t mind spending the holidays with his ashes !’ Do you even realize how reckless you were being or is jumping headfirst into danger without a thought just another Weasley trait that’s genetic?”

Charlie stared at her gobsmacked. He would have paid a thousand Galleons to anyone who could tell him the appropriate response to her outburst.

“I-I don’t know what I’m supposed to say,” he admitted. “Dragons are wildly misunderstood and are far kinder and more intelligent beasts than we give them credit for. It’s a shame that most people think they’re just giant lizards and don't understand that kindness is an important part of dragon handling. We do everything we can to avoid putting our dragons through extra stress. When I started here, I saw so many injuries on the staff that I just started accepting what the older researchers told me. It was only recently that I started considering and trying new techniques and they were so effective that it has changed a lot of our practices.”

“She had a lot of marks on her neck and chest. Were those from the older researchers? When you were trained, did you—”

“I would never hurt a dragon like that,” he cut her off vehemently as he wrapped her tightly in his arms. He could feel his shirt grow slightly damp where her face pressed against him and he hugged her tighter.

Charlie would have paid another thousand Galleons to anyone who could tell him how to fix this. He hated to admit that he had never considered how best to comfort crying witches. Pulling back, he cupped her cheek to wipe at the moisture under her eyes. Staring into them, he noticed they were a milk chocolate color with specks of gold. When Robert stepped around Charlie to offer the witch his handkerchief, he realized he’d been leaning in and cleared his throat awkwardly as he stepped back.

“Hermione, that dragon is very dangerous,” Robert told her firmly. “However, no one on my staff is permitted to use offensive spells against the dragons on this reserve unless there is no other choice and their lives are at risk.” 

“Listen, Mi,” Charlie offered helplessly. “I can tell you that dragons get really beat up in territory fights. That dragon was attacked by wizards, but it wasn’t anyone on this reserve. She was rescued from a hatch of eggs that poachers had stolen. When we healed her, she was healthy enough to release into the wild part of the reserve. We need to investigate how she got in here. Like Robert said, we try to use as minimally harmful spells as possible, unless forced. I’ve seen Robert demote or even dismiss men who used unnecessary force. However, you need to know that what happened today never happens. A dragon never just lets a wizard touch them. I was working off a hunch since I recognised her markings. I was a part of the team that rehabilitated her when she was rescued.”

“I can tell you’re a little stressed, so how about you join my wife and me for some tea?” Robert offered. “We’ll get you sorted and then I’d be happy to escort you to the offices once you’re set.”

“I hope that’s not an imposition,” Hermione hesitated. “I can head over if you give me five minutes.”

“It really isn’t,” Robert insisted. “Since the Horntail is obviously partial to Charlie, I need him to get her back outside the wards, otherwise I’d let him take care of you.”

Both Hermione and Charlie blushed at the comment and Hermione immediately started protesting.

“We’re not… I mean, he’s not! What I mean to say is that… I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I'm sure I’m acting like a right mess. Charlie and I don’t have a relationship like that. But if it’s not a problem, a nice cup of tea would be wonderful. I seem to have left my mug of Earl Grey back at Charlie’s cabin.”

“Give me just a minute then and we’ll head back. I’m sure my wife, Atalanta, would be thrilled to have a guest.”

As Robert moved to talk with Delia, Sorin, and Ryan, Charlie took the opportunity to speak with Hermione privately.

“Are you sure you’re alright, Mi?” he asked, using his favorite nickname from their letters. When he wrapped her in his embrace, she practically sagged into his arms.

“I lied,” she whimpered as she clung to him. “I was scared. You were acting so foolish and Molly would’ve had my hide if anything had happened to you.”

Charlie couldn’t help it as he laughed.

“That sounds disastrous to me,” he teased as his large hands rubbed her back comfortingly.

“I’m not alright at the moment, but I will be,” she promised. “I think I was just surprised. It’s not everyday that you get the chance to see a wild dragon react up close like that. And then you just… Charlie, all it would have taken was once lick of fire and you’d have been toast!”

“I know,” Charlie admitted. “Robert’s doing me a kindness by not chewing me out publicly, but what I did was really stupid. I’ll be sure to be smarter about it if he lets me research this further. This is the first bit of proof we have that dragons can recognize and respond to familiar humans. There’s so many ways we could record and develop this!”

Hermione smiled. Charlie’s obvious enthusiasm calmed her somewhat.

“You really do love your dragons, don’t you?”

“I do,” Charlie nodded happily. “But what I love most is learning more about them. There’s just so much we still don’t know.”

“And that’s our cue to get you out of here, Hermione,” Sorin laughed as he joined them with Robert. “This one will talk your ear off for hours if you let him.”

“I’ll come make sure you’re okay as soon as I get the dragon sorted,” Charlie promised, not breaking eye contact with her as he socked Sorin in the arm.

Hermione kept Charlie’s eye contact as she nodded back. For a brief moment, Charlie caught himself bending over to give her a quick kiss farewell, but caught himself. What was he thinking!?

She cautiously accepted an offered broom from Robert. Charlie watched as she carefully mounted it and slowly flew off.

---

Hermione hated flying and as she awkwardly followed Robert back to his cabin, she found herself wishing that she were back on Charlie’s broom with his arm securing her to his chest.

She hated flying more than anything. She’d hated it since her first lesson and she’d grown to loathe it as her friends got hurt playing a sport whilst flying. She’d once considered that it may have been a broomstick-based fear, but that thought had been overruled after a ride on a mostly wild hippogriff with her best friend and his newly exonerated godfather.

She was so relieved when her feet touched the snowy ground without hurting herself that she almost collapsed from relief.

“Whoa there, dear.” A sweet voice that reminded her of Molly Weasley called out, just before she was wrapped in comforting arms. “You don’t look very steady, so let me help you inside.”

The next thing Hermione knew, she was being dragged into Robert’s cozy cabin and was being pushed into one of the cushiest armchairs in existence.

“Hermione, this is my wife, Atalanta Grady,” Robert introduced the women as he followed them indoors. 

“Atalanta,” Hermione rolled the name over her tongue. “Is that spelled the same way as the Greek mythological character?”

“It is,” Atalanta explained as she busied herself in the kitchen. “But I am far more of a coddling mama bear here at the reserve than a bear-raised warrior.”

Robert coughed suddenly. He wasn’t talented in disguising his voice at all when he muttered, “That’s an understatement.”

Atalanta gasped in a false-offended nature and rat-tailed her husband with a tea towel. He laughed and kissed her cheek before joining Hermione at the couch.

“At the risk of oversharing, my parents actually conceived me on a cruise in the Atlantic. My dad wanted to name me after the location, but my mother wanted me to be named after a book character. You can call me Tala, if you’d like.”

“Thank you, Tala,” Hermione smiled. “I understand though. My parents named me after a Shakespearean character.”

“And what a lovely name it is,” Tala beamed. “Now is there anything I can get you with your tea? I assume you both are going to tell me what’s going on as soon as I sit down.”

“We will,” Robert nodded as he pulled out his pipe. “Do you mind if I smoke, Miss Granger?”

“I don’t,” Hermione told Robert before turning back to Tala. “I hate to ask, but Charlie and I left in such a rush that I wasn’t able to eat anything for breakfast. If you have any leftov—”

“I will not be feeding my guest leftovers!” Tala cut Hermione off. “I could also do something. Let’s see. How about a holiday pecan kringle? It’s festive, will fill you up, and will go nicely with our tea?”

“That sounds absolutely lovely,” Hermione smiled, assuming that Tala had some stashed away.

“Excellent. I’m feeling like some apple pecan,” Tala flicked her wand at the kitchen and focused as the raw ingredients molded together in midair. Flour became dough and dough formed a donut wrapped around an apple pecan filling. Apples sliced themselves thinly and wrapped themselves into beautiful roses. By the time the baked pastry — because, of course, it also baked itself during mid-flight assembly — settled on the table in front of Hermione and Robert, the bushy-haired witch’s eyes were as wide as Galleons.

“How did you do that?” Hermione asked in awe. She knew of many household charms courtesy of Molly, but nothing as intricate as what Tala had done with as minimal concentration.

“It’s one of the spells my mother taught me,” Tala explained as she poured the hot water into the teapot and brought it, along with three teacups, to the table. “You have to know the composition of the dish well and have it mastered before you can start attempting that spell.”

“I’ll have to ask if you have any books on similar subjects later,” Hermione observed as she gratefully accepted her tea. 

“I have plenty you could borrow,” Tala replied generously before instantly going from ‘mama bear’ into ‘work mode’. “What happened with the dragon?”

Hermione used a simple slicing charm and a silent Wingardium Leviosa to levitate a slice of the apple pecan kringle to her plate. Robert took a long draw of his pipe and considered his words.

“A dragon from the wilds was in the Unreleasables’ pen.”

“ What ?” Atalanta’s eyes widened comedically and she nearly dropped the teapot as well as she poured her cup. “But what about the wards? That should be impossible without—”

“A wizard or witch helping them through,” Robert nodded. “I’m having Charlie’s and Ryan’s teams check that out. Though, to be honest, I’m more concerned about what happened within the wards.”

“What could have happened that’s more concerning than an event that’s really not supposed to happen? If someone were hurt, you’d have dropped Miss Granger off before heading to the clinic.”

“Hermione, please,” Hermione injected. “And no one was hurt that I could tell, but I agree with Robert. What Charlie did was completely unprecedented.”

“What did Charlie do?”

“He calmed an angry Horntail down in less time than it takes to calm his own sister in a temper! And she’s some feisty redhead!”

“ What ?” Atalanta exclaimed for a second time. “Using what spell?”

“He didn’t use magic,” Robert replied as he took a long draw from his pipe, blowing the smoke away from the ladies. “His wand was holstered.”

“So what you’re telling me is that you let Charlie Weasley approach a raging dragon without his wand?” Atalanta replied slowly as if she were speaking to a toddler who was telling tall tales. “And not only is the dragon now calm enough to be left alone with four researchers, but Charlie is completely unharmed?”

“That is correct.”

“Galloping gargoyles.” Tala collapsed back into her seat as if the very thought weighed too heavily on her.

“My sentiments exactly.”

“Does this mean his theory and proposal are backed in fact?”

“What proposal?” Hermione asked.

“Charles recently submitted a research theory a while back that dragons are beings of higher intelligence than witches and wizards,” Robert explained. “I thought it was a complete load of poppycock at the time, but it seems there may be more to it than I originally thought. I can’t say it’ll work with every dragon, but he definitely has enough evidence to apply for a research grant for his theory now.”

“That’s phenomenal,” Hermione replied. “If he could build up enough evidence to back his theory, then that would completely change the class designation of the reserves.”

“I can see why you’re Charlie’s girl.” Atalanta beamed as Robert started vehemently choking on his smoke. “It’s obvious you care very deeply about these dragons.”

“Charlie and I aren’t seeing each other,” Hermione protested as her brows furrowed. Where would Tala get an idea like that?

“If the pair of you aren’t dating then why are you staying in Charlie’s cabin instead of one of the guest cabins?” Tala asked. Robert started banging on his chest while his coughs became louder and more exaggerated.

“I promise that Charlie and I are nothing other than friends,” Hermione denied, making a mental note to herself to ask Charlie later about why he never mentioned the guest cabins. Robert’s coughing got dramatically fake at her comment and the man actually let loose a guffaw of disbelief.

Tala clucked chastisingly at her husband.

“Do I want to know what you did?” she asked him with a piercing glare.

“Not really,” Robert looked anywhere but his wife’s eyes.

Atalanta sighed disappointedly.

“I apologize for making assumptions about your relationship with Charlie, Hermione. It’s just… I never see Charlie get more excited than when he gets one of his letters from you. He lights up whenever he talks about you or whenever he gets a letter at breakfast.”

“But… those aren't anything special,” Hermione protested. “We simply write to each other about work and his family. It’s not as if they’re love notes or something scandalous.”

“I have to agree with my wife, Hermione,” Robert protested. “I have worked closely with Charles for years. I see him get letters from work correspondents or from his family. He never lights up as much as he does when he receives one of your letters.” 

Seeing Hermione’s shock, Atalanta immediately started backtracking.

“That doesn’t have to mean anything more than what the two of you want it to mean. I think it’s lovely that two young people can be such good friends,” she said.

“But… does Charlie want something more?”

Before either Robert or Atalanta could reply, a Patronus in the form of a platypus flew into the room. Instantly, Robert drew his wand and froze it so it wouldn’t speak in front of the women.

“Tala.” He turned to his wife. “Do you mind taking Hermione to her office? It’s already ten in the morning and I’d love to listen to Ryan’s report. Besides, I don’t think we should hold up Miss Granger’s work any longer.”

“Of course.” Tala nodded as she and Hermione made their way to the front door. “Hermione, you’re welcome to borrow one of my snow coats, though it may fit you a bit loosely?”

Hermione had been able to grab her coat that morning, but the air had turned brisk while they had drunk their tea.

“If you don’t mind, I’d really appreciate it,” she replied. “I can make sure to return it later.”

“No rush.” Tala smiled as they bundled up. “I’m not going anywhere. I figure that if I’ve lived here for more than forty years, I’ll probably be here until I die.”

“Do you mind if we walk?” Tala asked as they left the warmth of the cabin. “I need to pick up a few things from the market on my way back.”

“I prefer walking to flying, actually.” Hermione smiled and followed Tala through the snow. She was grateful for the witch’s guidance as it had snowed the night before, obscuring most of the paths.

The air turned frigid as they walked, leaving both women unwilling to try and carry a conversation aside from a few comments back and forth.

“It looks like a cold front is coming through,” Tala observed. “I don’t see any clouds, but I doubt there will be more snow. It feels too wet.”

“You can tell what the temperature is going to be by that alone?”

“When you live here as long as I have, you get used to picking up some cues,” Tala explained as they entered the wards to the research area.

“Thank you for the delicious kringle and the stimulating conversation,” Hermione said graciously as they arrived at the lone office building.

“If I may say one last thing. Miss Granger… Hermione.” Atalanta stopped her from entering the building. “I wasn’t trying to force my opinion on you or risk spoiling your relationship with Charlie. I think that if the two of you only want to be friends, that’s lovely. I just don’t want you to reject the possibility of something happening on nothing more than a baseless fear. Just… consider talking about it with him?”

Hermione mulled over the woman’s words before nodding.

“I’ll think it over,” she promised before turning to enter the office building.

As she made her way to the archive room, Hermione chewed on Tala’s words. She had known for a while how she felt about the dragon researcher, but had decided to just resign herself to friendship with him. 

She’d never considered that he may feel the same way about their letters as she did. There was nothing she looked forward to more than her weekly update from Charlie.

Whenever they had started exchanging letters, it had been really formal. Over time, however, their correspondence had become much more casual and less business-related. It wasn’t unusual for both of them to send several pages each week.

In that moment, Hermione decided that she was tired of being ‘just friends’ with the dragon tamer. She wanted more. She wanted to know all of his inner thoughts and potentially foster a romantic relationship with him if he felt the same way. Every letter she received and sent him endeared him to her more. She had started looking forward to his bi-annual visits to the Burrow more than his mother. Everytime it was time for him to leave, she’d pray that he’d stay longer —  for even just one more conversation.

She didn’t know what kind of future they could have, considering his career was built here in Romania and her life was back in London. But, she rationalized, she really wanted to find out if there’s any chance he could feel the same way.

Notes:

I updated this chapter on 2/11/2022 when I saw the image from Jurassic World Dominion... It's like they took the taming scene from my brain (even down to the ropes and winter weather) and put it on screen... so I had to add it!!!

Chapter 6: December 21st - Afternoon

Notes:

*scurries in at 1 AM*
I wanted to gift the chapter early as an apology for the last few chapters being posted so late in the day and I hope you enjoy the late night/early morning update.
Fun fact: with this chapter, this story is officially the longest piece I've ever posted! YAY!!!

Back at the Unreleasables’ pen, Charlie swore under his breath as he watched Herrmione fly after Robert. He’d give almost anything to be the one taking care of her at that moment.

Sorin glanced at his partner out of the corner of his eye before grinning smugly. The wizard was looking after the bushy-haired witch like a lovesick puppy. Sorin took the opening and punched his arm.

“Less than twenty-four hours and you’re already this whipped?” he laughed at the redhead. “You don’t stand a chance of making it through this week unscathed.”

“What’s going on?” Delia asked as she joined the two men. Charlie glanced over at the Horntail, but she seemed content on her nest of bushes and snow within her bubble dome. Just realizing that there was a blanket of snow around him, he quickly cast a warming charm.

Sorin laughed. “Same thing that always happens whenever Charlie gets a letter.”

“Wait!” Delia’s eyes widened excitedly as if she had just been told Santa Claus was real and she latched onto Sorin’s arm. “Was that the Hermione Granger?”

“What’s this about Hermione Granger?” Ryan asked as he joined the trio and slung his arm around Delia. “Did she finally confess her love in a letter? Or are we back to telling Weasley that he should say it first?”

Charlie punched Ryan’s shoulder.

He and Delia were Charlie’s age and they had all joined the reserve around the same time.

A Beauxbatons graduate, Delia reminded Charlie a lot of his good friend, Tonks. Just like the Hufflepuff, Delia kept her spiky hair dyed a bright purple. She joked that it’d make her easier to identify if anything ever happened. Charlie knew she just liked the way it looked and wanted the style to emulate the badassness of her favorite Muggle pro-chef, Anne Burrell, if not in a little more tamed manner since Delia’s hair was shorter. Despite her appearance, Delia was obsessed with cooking and home renovation shows. The rest of the time she hung out as one of the guys with her partner in crime, Ryan.

Ryan was one of Charlie’s dorm mates from Hogwarts and the two had been fast friends since they were eleven years old. He was the only one of their quartet who had visited the Burrow over the holidays in the past. The thirty-two year old young man was sandy haired and wore glasses. He knew a nifty charm to always keep them in place on his nose, but that was the only part of him that was kept neat. His hair was a styled mess and his shirt always had a few buttons undone at the throat.

Ryan and Delia were actually part of the small team that had transported Norberta to Romania when she became too much for Hagrid to handle.

Charlie, Delia, and Ryan had been assigned together at their orientation and had been practically inseparable until Sorin joined the reserve and Charlie volunteered to get reassigned to be his partner. He knew Ryan and Delia had a thing for each other, but were both completely dense about the others’ feelings. He had voluntarily moved aside the second Sorin arrived to give the pair a chance to figure it out. They still hadn’t.

“Shut up, will ya?” Charlie rolled his eyes. “There will be no confessing long hidden crushes, alright?”

“That was her, though? Wasn’t it? Isn’t she the one you’re always exchanging those love letters to?” Ryan nudged his best friend. Charlie shoved him back and they fell into a snowdrift.

Delia sighed and examined her chewed up fingernails as her two friends wrestled like children. Sorin just bent over and laughed. Drawing attention to himself was his fatal flaw as Charlie’s foot caught him on accident and he wound up on the ground with the other two.

“Oh, honestly,” Delia sighed as the three men wrestled like children. Glancing to make sure the Hungarian Horntail was still alright, she smiled as the dragon’s snowy, yet insulated nest gave her an idea. Whipping out her wand, she noticed a tree not six feet from the boys which had a lovely amount of snow built up on its branches. With a quick wave of her wand, the drift of snow lifted off the branches.

Charlie laughed as he grabbed a fistfull of snow and shoved it down Sorin’s sweater. The other man yelped as the frozen snow made contact with his skin. Ryan’s encouraging laughter was cut off by a girly scream that he would later vehemently deny came from him. Charlie tried to whirl around to see what was happening, but suddenly the world became dark and cold as Delia released the drift of snow over their heads.

By the time they had broken loose of the drift, Delia was standing as if nothing had occurred. Charlie was grateful she had at least broken up the drift so it fell on them relatively softly.

“Really, Del?” Ryan complained as he popped out of the snow. Charlie let loose a bark of laughter. Ryan looked too much like a meerkat leaving its hole to not laugh.

“You boys wanted to play in the snow so I just thought I’d help.” She shrugged with a devious grin. The guys may start a lot of silly fights, but Delia was often the one to end them hilariously. “If you boys are finally cooled down though, we have a dragon to handle, a breach in the wards to find, and a Weasley to interrogate.”

“Yes. Yes,” Charlie sighed. “Let’s take care of work so we can pick on the poor defenseless Weasley.”

Pulling free of the snow, he quickly siphoned as much snow off of himself as he could and cast a quick drying charm. The others were wearing coats, but Charlie had barely grabbed a sweater before leaving the house. Sorin dashed off toward the nearby shed so he could grab the supplies.

Delia noticed his lack of proper snow attire and nodded at him. “Looks like you’re the one treating us to tea after we handle the dragon.”

“If I agree, can we put the interrogation on hold until after we finish work?” Charlie asked.

“Sure.” Delia shrugged. “But we aren't going to drop it. You know us better than that.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Charlie brushed her off as he turned to the task at hand. The others followed suit and they all entered work mode in an instant.

“How do you think she got in?” Sorin asked as he came back and handed gear sets to the others. Charlie pulled on the fireproof clothing and sighed in relief as the thick fabric insulated him a bit further.

The four mages turned to look at the content dragon in her bubble as they all switched to ‘work mode’.

“I don’t know.” Charlie stared at the large dragon. “Was anyone messing with the wards? Is there any way an opening could have been left?”

“No,” Ryan shook his head. “Delia and I were on border patrol around the perimeter yesterday. You know we’re under threat of poachers right now because of the decreased staff for the holidays. We can’t risk the Unreleasables.”

“We were very thorough. We wouldn’t have missed anything,” Delia agreed.

“Okay… then does anyone have a clue about how a released wild dragon got in?”

“I’m more concerned about how a formerly rehabilitated dragon was able to recognize you enough to not only not barbeque you, but let you get close enough to cuddle like a lost puppy,” Sorin added.

“I’m most curious about how both dragons are the same beast.” Delia shook her head. “If wild dragons are acting like lost puppies, the world must be coming to an end.”

“Or it’s proof my theory is valid,” Charlie considered. “I’ll look into it later and make a proposal. But for now, let’s focus on getting her sedated for travel and get her outside.”

“Agreed.” Ryan nodded as he waved his wand.

The other three joined him and they quickly were able to cast a sleeping charm over the Horntail. Moving through the practiced process, Ryan and Charlie took the lead in moving the sleeping dragon as Delia and Sorin focused on making sure the nest didn’t contain any other eggs that needed to be checked. They were exceedingly careful as they magically moved the remaining four eggs into a box. Delia levitated the box after Charlie, Ryan, and Sorin cleaned up the area so that it didn’t show any trace of what had happened. If they left lingering traces, the other Unreleasables would fight over the area and risk injury to each other looking for a potential mate that would no longer be in the area.

By the time all four mages were able to get the dragon outside of the wards, and to a secluded spot in the nearby mountains, Charlie felt frozen stiff. Anyone who had lived at the reserve as long as he had could recognize an incoming cold front before it showed signs. Looking up at the sky, he realized that the weather would most likely just be higher winds, but not a lot of snowfall.

Ryan sent a Patronus of his platypus off to Robert with a quick update, explaining that the dragon was out of the Unreleasables’ area and that they were looking for a good drop off point while Sorin flew off to scout ahead.

Not long after, Sorin came back and led the group to an outcropping of rock where they could leave the dragon and her eggs safely until she woke up and relocated them herself.

Summoning their brooms, the quartet flew back to the reserve and split up to double check the perimeter. When Charlie received a Patronus from Sorin, he followed it back to his partner and found a breach in the wards. Ryan and Delia joined them a moment later.

“How did this crack get here?” Ryan asked the question they all were thinking. They all knew to close the wards behind them when they entered or left.

“Poachers?” Delia suggested. “This area is well hidden by the trees and it’s just large enough for them to smuggle a dragon through.”

“I would have missed it if it hadn’t fissured higher above the treelines,” Sorin remarked. Charlie stepped back and looked up. When the larger Hungarian Horntail had pressed her way inside, the opening had cracked wider, and hairline fissures ran higher up the magical shield than the tops of the trees, but only just barely.

The four mages made sure to reinforce the wards with their magic. They could do a back up for now, but the main shield was linked to Robert as the Head of the Reserve. He’d need to seal the crack himself.

“We’re going to have to vet the reservation and search for any potential invaders,” Charlie decided. “We can’t risk losing the reserve to poachers.”

“I hate to play the Devil’s advocate, but you have to admit that the timing of the inspection is—” Delia started hesitantly, but Charlie silenced her with a glare.

“There is no way on earth that Hermione is involved in any other way than bad timing,” he said matter-of-factly. “If there’s a potential leak, then the poachers were planning on using the annual end-of-year inspection as a distraction while they did their dirty work. Hermione cares about magical creatures almost more than humans. You can ask her about her campaigns over lunch.”

“So we get to meet her?” Delia asked excitedly, already over her concerns. She hadn’t really doubted the witch and she trusted Charlie more than most. If he said she was innocent, she’d defend the witch until proven otherwise. She had only asked, because they all knew that the question had to be asked by someone at least once. It’d be irresponsible not to at least bring it up as a concern.

“I was hardly planning on hiding her away,” Charlie explained. “But I’m frozen solid. Let’s get back to my place and warm up. We’ve been out here for hours and I need to get cleaned up.”

“I’m surprised you’ve lasted this long,” Sorin observed. “It’s cold .”

“Yeah… working up a sweat moving a fully grown, sleeping dragon helped,” Charlie nodded.

All four of them mounted their brooms and followed Charlie back to his cabin.

---

By the time the four wizards were able to battle the rising wind speeds to reach Charlie’s cabin, the wizard was shaking with the cold.

“Make yourselves at home,” he offered as he made his way toward the stairs. “I need a shower to heat up.”

“Go,” Sorin ordered. “I already have a rough burn. The last thing we need is for you to be out of commission too because of something as ridiculous as frostbite.”

Charlie instantly felt awful.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t consider your—”

“My injury is already mostly healed up. I promise I wouldn’t have done half of what I did this morning if I wasn’t okay. I just need help rebandaging it and I’ll be fine. I just have paperwork for the rest of the day.”

Charlie nodded and climbed the stairs to his room while Ryan conjured a more detailed Patronus to send to Robert about the wards before he moved to the kitchen to make tea. Sorin moved towards the fireplace, intending to rebuild the fire while Delia got the first aid kit ready. Once the fire was roaring, Sorin allowed the witch to start cleaning and rebandaging his burn.

The quartet had been teamed up for many years and were a family. Seeing as Charlie had fixed his cabin up so nicely, they often found themselves hanging out at his place more than their own.

Making it into his room, Charlie entered the master suite and started shucking off his damp clothes before even checking to make sure the door was closed properly. He knew the others were occupied downstairs.

Walking past his king-sized bed, he moved through the room to his bathroom. This was his safe haven. The cabins came standard, but Charlie had made it a point to renovate his home in his freetime. Originally, he had been teased for his obsession with his home renovation, but by the time it was half done, others around the reserve had started to pick up on it and start on their own homes.

They all chose to lead a very dangerous research lifestyle; the least they could do was enjoy all of the comforts of a long-term luxurious home rather than a cut and dry ‘roughing it in the wilderness’ style of cabin.

Charlie’s ensuite was anyone’s dream. He had a jacuzzi tub that he could stretch out in — which he knew from experience could fit two — and a massive multi-showerhead rain shower. The toilet was closed off in a small closet for privacy. Ignoring the tub and his double sink vanity — a feature he had added because any man his age would long for a partner whether or not he had time to look — Charlie moved straight into his shower and blasted the heat on high.

He simply stood under the heat for a moment and let the pin pricks of pain ease into his skin and warm him up. He had been foolish when he forgot his thicker coat earlier. The sweater he had grabbed was good enough for most days, but not for ‘inclement cold front just after a snow storm’ weather.

Once he felt warm enough, he soaped himself up and washed his hair to get rid of his sweat. Leaving the shower stall, he grabbed a bath sheet and dried off quickly before wrapping it around his waist. He moved toward the dresser in his room and picked out a pair of fleece-lined blue jeans, thick fuzzy socks, and an ocean teal-blue colored sweater. It was one of his favorites since he thought it matched his eyes perfectly.

Using his wand to dry his hair, Charlie went back downstairs and rejoined his friends just as they settled on his massive sectional sofa. He accepted a cup of tea from Delia and took a long draw. Seeing that she had also made little finger sandwiches after tending to Sorin, he hungrily stuffed three in his mouth before pausing to breathe. He felt bad for Hermione that they hadn’t been able to have breakfast, but he felt half-starved and knew that there’s no way Tala wouldn’t feed Hermione. She could have had a full English breakfast and Tala still would have fed her.

“We’re really lucky it doesn’t seem like a big snow storm, just another cold front,” he observed after swallowing his food and trailing it with a long draw of tea. “That’d be too much of a double whammy after the snowstorm last night. We’re lucky it’s just the temperature dropping.”

“Don’t try to avoid the subject,” Delia warned him, menacingly in tone of voice but polite in the way she sipped her tea.

“But we haven’t even started a subject,” Charlie protested, knowing it was a lost cause.

Delia was like a Niffler after a coin when it came to interrogations. The ‘coin’ in this case was Hermione Granger.

“How long have you two been exchanging love letters again?” Ryan asked. 

Charlie sighed. “It’s been about five years? But they aren’t love letters,” he protested feebly.

“So you’ve been exchanging letters for five years, but they aren’t love letters. What would you call them?”

“They’re just letters where we talk about our lives and what our families are up to.”

“Don’t you mean what your family is up to?” Sorin asked. “You told me ages ago that she practically moved in after the war. And didn’t her family lose their memories back then?”

“That’s true,” Charlie sighed. “She was so relieved when she was able to restore the majority of their memories but they hit a rough patch for a while since her parents didn’t understand why. They’ve sort of worked through it. She sends them gifts on holidays and they travel to the UK for Christmas.”

“So they live in Australia the rest of the time?”

“Yup.” Charlie nodded.

“Stop changing the subject. How long have you had a crush on her?” Delia asked after taking a long sip of her tea.

“I already told you—”

“Charlie,” Ryan cut in. “I may be an idiot, but if you remember details that are intimate about her, you definitely like her. And don’t forget we’re your friends, so we know what a pile of mush you become when you receive a letter.”

Charlie gave up. “Fine! I’ve liked her longer than we’ve been exchanging the letters,” he sighed. “But it was so inappropriate. She’s my brother’s ex-girlfriend and she’s so much younger than me. I mean. She was fourteen when we met.”

“But she’s twenty-five now,” Ryan argued. “There are people who meet when they’re both five years old and they get married at eighteen. There are others who meet when there is a fifteen year difference, like my parents. And they are really happy with their marriage. Besides, your age gap is nothing like what Tonks married into. Remus is how many years older than her again?”

“Twelve,” Charlie sighed. “But it’s different with Hermione and me!”

“Okay,” Sorin said. “How?”

“I don’t know,” Charlie moaned. “It just is.”

“Right. And I’m Godric Gryffindor,” Ryan replied sarcastically. His comment got groans of annoyance.

“It really isn’t,” Delia said as she set down her cup. “If we were Muggles, then maybe . But the fact of the matter is that many wizards and witches live to be well over one hundred. What does it matter that you’re seven years apart from a witch you really care about?”

“She doesn’t feel the same way as I do,” Charlie protested. “Also, she used to date my brother. It’d be inappropriate.”

“That’s a stupid excuse,” Sorin sighed.

“Stupid excuse for a stupid wizard,” Ryan agreed.

Without thinking, Charlie punched Ryan in the arm.

“Why is everyone ganging up on me?!”

Delia ignored Ryan’s outburst. “You’re never happier than when you read her letters,” she told Charlie gently. “You really need to talk to her.”

“Protests against physical abuse aside — I’m fine by the way,” Ryan snarked. “I agree. It’s unfair to assume you’re the only one who feels this way.”

“What about her?” Charlie protested. “What if I tell her I’m in love with her and then put her in a hard place? She’s not moved here. She’s just doing our inspection. It’s stupid to force her into this before she’s ready.”

“Charlie—” Sorin tried to interrupt but Charlie wasn’t done.

“What kind of future could we have? She lives in London and enjoys working at the Ministry. I can’t leave this place either.”

“Isn’t it a little unfair to assume she enjoys it as much as you say?” Ryan considered. “Has she ever told you that’s how she feels?”

“Charlie!” Delia harshly set her teacup on the table and stood abruptly. She grabbed his arm, pulling him out of his chair and into the kitchen for some semblance of privacy. The other guys took the hint, let them go, and started discussing Quidditch.

“It’s unfair to continue to put this pressure on yourself,” Delia told him quietly. “You’ve loved her for years. She’s all you ever talk about when you get back from visiting your family. You owe her the truth.”

“But she’s not ready for that. She mentions in all of her letters—”

“Tell her today, Charlie. Or I will,” Delia threatened him, her voice low.

Charlie immediately bristled at the threat. “First off, why?” he hissed. “Why is it so important to you that I tell her? And why today ? Wouldn’t that feel a little rushed? And mostly, what in this universe makes it your place?”

“Because I know what it feels like!” she spat angrily. Charlie’s jaw dropped at Delia’s confession, but she continued. “You know how long I’ve been in love with Ryan? He’s oblivious! I can’t confess to him because it’ll ruin our partnership, but you can . You need to tell her.”

“What proof do you have that she feels the same?” Charlie asked, kindly leaving the Ryan issue for another time.

“You didn’t see her eyes when you holstered your wand because you were smartly focusing on the Horntail. I was fortunate enough to be across from her, so I did see. The only time I ever see witches that scared are when their wizards are about to do something crazy. She may not realize it yet, but she already views you as her wizard. Now tell me she wouldn’t feel that way if she didn’t at least have a crush on you?”

Delia patted his arm and walked back to the couch where she used the back as a jumping point to hop over the edge into the seat next to Ryan. The wizard offered her one of the tea cookies he was holding and she joined their discussion about Quidditch.

Charlie was left in the kitchen reeling. If Delia hadn’t left him with a world of things to think about, he didn’t know what would.

---

After he gathered his wits enough, Charlie rejoined the other three on the couch and they graciously didn’t change back to the topic of Hermione. After another thirty minutes of chatting, Delia and Ryan got a summons from Robert to report. That made sense to the four since the partners were the first and last ones on the scene.

Leaving the debriefing to Ryan and Delia, Sorin took his broom and headed off towards the dragon hospital. They had been excused from morning tasks to handle the dragon, but he still wanted to check in and get going on his afternoon paperwork.

Bundled up in his own coat this time, Charlie watched them all leave and then glanced up at the sky, noticing that the sun was at its highest point in its cycle. It was probably close to lunch time. He summoned his broom and propped it over his shoulder as he made his way towards the research building where he knew Hermione would be working. Getting there quickly, he let himself into the little library Hermione was stationed in.

“I promised to check on you,” he offered. 

“It took you long enough. What? Is it lunch time already?” Hermione replied with a small smile as she looked up from her work.

Charlie could feel his blush grow across his face. She really was beautiful; she had left her hair loose that morning but it was now in a braid so she could focus.

“I’m really sorry it took so long,” he apologized. “We had to get the Horntail out of the Unreleasables’ area, find the breach, seal it, and by the time that was done, I was frozen stiff from sweat and the cold.”

Hermione hurriedly stood and made her way to him. “Are you alright?” she asked as she felt his forehead. “Oh! Did you change before you came here? I don’t remember this sweater from earlier.”

“I did shower and change,” Charlie admitted. “Can’t risk frostbite in this weather. But I was wondering if I may take you to lunch in an effort to make sure you don’t pass out from hunger?”

“Charles Weasley.” Hermione stared at him as a slow, teasing grin spread across her face. “Are you asking me on a date?”

“Would it be a problem if I did?” he asked in a burst of Gryffindor courage. “I know there’s an age difference and the thing with Ron.”

“No, it wouldn’t be a problem at all. We’re only seven years apart, and that’s hardly a substantial difference nowadays,” she reminded him with a roll of her eyes. “Besides, the ‘thing with Ron’ isn’t even a thing. We dated for less than a month before we split eight years ago. I think the only reason we actually dated was because we felt we were meant to. I don’t regret anything, although I’m very happy we split when we did. We weren’t meant for each other and dragging it out would have only hurt us in the end.”

“So… lunch?” he asked quickly, anxious to steer her away from the topic of his youngest brother, despite the fact that he was the one who stupidly brought him up. “You’d be welcome to eat with my friends and me?”

“So… not a date then?” Hermione joked, albeit slightly disappointed after their hypothetical discussion.

“Not yet,” Charlie smiled. “Though, if you’d like, I’d be happy to take you on a date tomorrow evening. There’s a lovely little restaurant in the next village and I’d be able to borrow the car.”

“That would be nice,” Hermione smiled brightly. She quickly gathered her things and bundled herself up in Tala’s loaned coat. “I’d actually really enjoy that! Although, for now, I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.”

“We can’t have that,” Charlie laughed. “We need our horses… and I need you to stay nice and healthy for tomorrow.”

“What if I just eat a cow now instead?” Hermione laughed in response.

“Then I’d accuse you of being Ron in disguise.” Charlie guffawed as he guided her towards the Mess Hall on the edge of town closest to the research facilities. “How about getting some roasted chicken instead? It’s one of my favorites here.”

“That sounds delightful.” Hermione nodded as they walked toward the large converted barn. “And I’d love to meet your friends.”

They discussed work as they walked through the snow-covered reserve.

Noticing that they had reached the dining hall, he placed a hand on her waist to guide her inside.

Looking around, Hermione took in the restorations and smiled. What had once been built to house livestock had been renovated into a large dining hall rivaling the Great Hall at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. At the school, there were four extremely long tables for the different houses and a long table at the head of the hall for the teachers to watch over the students in an imitation of royalty in medieval times. In this dining hall, however, sixteen smaller tables with bench seating were spread out to make navigation of the room easier. A line went around the edge of the hall to the back of the room where a long buffet of food stretched across the space where the Head Table in the Great Hall would be if they were at Hogwarts.

“Reminds me of school,” Hermione told Charlie with a smile, happy to see something familiar looking, even if the room’s function was a bit different.

“It works the same way as school, too,” Charlie replied. “The kitchens are downstairs and the elves and kitchen staff send food up to the buffet the same way as the house-elves set up the tables for Hogwarts.

Before Hermione could even bristle at the insinuation of house-elves working on the reserve, they were swarmed.

Charlie couldn’t pretend to be surprised. Overall, it was a small community and word of his actions that morning would have spread quickly. What he had done was so out of the ordinary, he knew that everyone and their families would have questions. However, his first concern was Hermione getting trampled.

It was quickly apparent that Sorin and Hermione had the same idea as he appeared out of nowhere and quickly swept her away from the crowds and towards the front of the hall.

Sighing and deciding to let the house-elf issue go for now, Hermione got in line to head up to the buffet with Charlie’s partner.

Within moments, she felt someone join the line behind her and Sorin. She could tell it was a man by his size and close proximity without needing to turn around to confirm her hypothesis. Considering how close he was standing to her, she wondered when he would inflict his pickup line on her. It wasn’t the first time a guy had hit on her when she was working — the main culprit being Cormac — and she’d gotten good at picking up on the physical and psychological signs.

Sure enough, he tapped her on the shoulder after a few moments and gave her an obvious once over when she turned around. He gave her a sloppy grin and said, “Here I am. What are your last two wishes?”

Hermione’s hand trembled and she forced it to remain unmoving instead of reaching towards her wand. Hexing him with bat bogeys for being crass would be perceived as an immature overreaction and she didn’t need to sink to his level. She told herself that she was used to harassment like this and didn’t need to respond in kind. It was easier in the long run to politely brush him off and move forward with her day. She forcibly relaxed her trembling hand.

“Please,” she responded, politely. “I’m sure you’re very nice, but I’m just here for work and we’re both just trying to enjoy our lunch.”

“Oh, nice manners, babe,” he said loudly, trying to embarrass her, but what he didn’t know was that Hermione could make a large spectacle of herself a hell of a lot easier than he could. The chatter of the hall seemed to vanish as she focused on him. Just as she was ready to let him have it, Sorin stepped between them.

“Warren,” he said calmly. “That was the worst line I’ve ever heard. It’s not only insulting but it also shows a severe lack of forethought. You’re obviously bothering Miss Granger. You should leave before she does permanent damage to you.”

It was protective, yet implied, she could take care of herself — not an easy thing to accomplish in one paragraph, much less one sentence. Hermione was impressed and touched.

“Oh, back off, squirt,” the fucktool responded. “You may have a pretty face but I was here first. You can get in line for the next piece of ass that comes through.”

He didn’t get another word in before clutching his face as a black bat grew out of his nose and started flying out of his head, screeching loudly. Not reacting further, Hermione slipped her wand back into her thigh holster and she turned back to face the man who had been bothering her.

“The gentleman was trying to warn you that I am not to be trifled with. I don’t take kindly to being degraded as a piece of meat. I’m going to do you a favor by letting you go with just a simple Bat-Bogey Hex. But I hope that makes it clear that I’m here for work and not to be hit on by classless men.”

The man looked at her in horror before his face twisted into a scowl. “Whatever, bitch,” he growled. “You’re not even worth the effort anyway.”

Hermione couldn’t help it as the words slashed at her self confidence, even as she kept her posture and straight back.

Her reaction wasn’t noticed by anyone as Sorin’s wand found itself firmly pressed beneath the asshole’s jawline.

“Get out of here, Warren,” he warned slowly. “This witch is not only from the Ministry of Magic, but she’s also a very good friend of mine. If you want to keep your job, I’d apologize before I take this to Charlie and Da—Robert.”

“I’m very sorry to have troubled you, Miss, ” Warren Grady grunted out before Sorin lowered his wand.

“It’s quite alright,” Hermione nodded. “A simple misunderstanding.”

Sorin made sure to stand protectively between Hermione and the asshole named Warren through the line until they were able to pick up their food. Once their plates were loaded, he led her to his usual table.

“Thank you for standing up for me, Sorin,” Hermione said after a few minutes of them eating in silence.

“I didn’t think you’d approve of violence,” he admitted, caught off guard.

“I typically don’t,” she replied as she cut off another bite-sized piece of chicken from the large slice on her plate. “But I cursed him and I’ve just barely completed my first full day here. If nothing else, I appreciate you standing up for me. It was very gallant of you and I don’t see a lot of that in my life.”

“You are welcome.” He nodded and she returned the gesture briefly before turning back to her lunch. 

As if on cue, Charlie appeared in front of them with Delia and Ryan in tow.

“Hey, guys.” Sorin nodded towards them.

“I take it you are Charlie’s friends?” Hermione asked in good humor, gently nudging for Charlie to introduce them.

“I’m Delia,” she introduced herself as she gestured for Hermione to take one of the plates so she could shake the other woman’s hand. “And this is my partner, Ryan. We would love it if we could join you for lunch.”

“We can steal you away from Carrot Top here, if it increases the chances you’ll say yes,” Ryan offered as he nodded at Charlie.

Hermione’s laughter filled the hall. “I think I can manage to tolerate his company for a bit longer,” she replied indulgently. “But I’d love it if you joined us!”

Delia and Ryan sat across from the other three.

“You look familiar,” Hermione observed, staring at Ryan.

“I’m surprised you recognize me at all,” Ryan laughed. “I remember when you were just a buck-toothed sassy first year who would do anything to help her friends.”

“Merlin, Circe, and Nimue,” Hermione’s eyes widened comically as her hands subconsciously covered her mouth. She’d had her teeth shrunken her third year after a nasty prank before she’d met Charlie and she was shocked that anyone remembered her from before then. “You were one of the wizards who picked up Norbert from Harry and me in our first year?”

“Guilty as charged,” Ryan laughed. “Although, her name is now Norberta.”

“I did hear something about that,” Hermione laughed. “Last I heard from Charlie, she’s even a proud mama to be now!”

“And that is a fact Charlie lets no one forget,” Delia laughed. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he had pictures of the eggs in his wallet.”

“I do not,” Charlie protested. “I have pictures of the last group of hatchlings I cared for! They’re going in the album once Norberta’s hatch.”

The table burst into laughter at that revelation of Charlie’s baby dragon photo album and Charlie pouted in embarrassment. He couldn’t stay upset though as he saw Hermione relax and grow comfortable with his friends. In fact, the sight warmed his heart.

As the group started eating, the topic turned back to dragons. While Hermione was talking with Delia and Ryan about their work, Sorin leaned over and had a hushed conversation with Charlie. The wizard’s eyes darkened and he glared across the room. Without drawing attention to himself, he got up and left the table.

It took a good minute for Hermione to notice. “Where’d Charlie go?” she asked, curiously.

At that exact moment, Warren let loose a girly scream across the hall. Sorin and Ryan doubled over in laughter while Delia joined Hermione in concerned panic.

Hermione rushed to Charlie’s side where he had Warren pinned to a wall. It was easy to quickly piece together that Charlie had heard about Warren’s conversation with her. No-one else moved.

“Please, Charlie,” she begged. “Let him go. He didn’t mean any harm. I don’t want you getting into trouble just because one man was a jerk.”

Hermione appreciated that he’d held back from hitting Warren so far. His restraint was obvious in his clenched jaw and shaking shoulders. While she had never seen Charlie lose his cool, she had grown up with four of his younger brothers and his only sister. All of the Weasleys responded the same way when upset, they lashed out with a flare of red-headed justice. The fact he was only threatening the young man instead of throwing a punch spoke volumes to Hermione.

Charlie continued to hold Warren against the wall for a moment, but then he slowly turned to stare at her. There was a moment where Hermione wasn’t sure what he was thinking. She studied him as a brief array of emotions crossed his face. He looked equally angry, possessive, and protective as he stared into her eyes. Eventually, he seemed to come back to himself and let the man go, but she couldn’t help but wonder what his expressions meant. 

“Watch yourself, Warren,” Charlie warned. "I don't give a fuck who your father is or that you're head of the external team. I'll kick your ass nine ways to Sunday if you continue to disrespect women. This isn't your first offense, but this is your last warning." He glared menacingly before storming off, leaving the other wizard slumped in a heap.

Hermione watched him go and then her shoulders fell in defeat as she returned to the group’s table, muttering a soft apology to Warren before she did.

“I’m going to be regretting that,” she sighed.

“Are you going to be regretting it because you stopped Charlie from killing Warren, or because he’ll be pouting about it?” Delia asked curiously.

“Both,” Hermione replied as she dropped her head into her folded arms on the table.

“If it helps, you can help me with Charlie’s work until he joins us?” Sorin offered.

“Then we should get going,” Hermione agreed eagerly, re-entering her work-mode.

Notes:

Hope you enjoyed! Please leave your thoughts and I'll see you guys with an update on Thursday! Teaser: the story will FINALLY start earning its rating then ;)

Chapter 7: December 21st - Evening

Notes:

As always, all errors are my own and not the fault of my editing team!

After they bid their farewells to Ryan and Delia, Sorin escorted Hermione back to the dragon hospital to continue their work.

The afternoon was consumed with training Hermione in what dragons were staying in the dragon hospital. There were several there who needed a little extra help and assistance before they could begin their rehabilitation in the Unreleasables’ pen. The goal at the facility was to get as many dragons back into the wilds of the reserve as possible.

She took meticulous notes about their entire processing system and rehabilitation facilities for her report while she helped him with his tasks.

The time flew by quickly as Hermione worked with Sorin. Charlie finally rejoined them after an hour or so, and Hermione was worried when she saw how beat up his hands were.

“Did you get into it with Warren after I left?” she asked, concerned.

Charlie let her examine his hands and wrap one as he shook his head.

“After I left the Mess Hall, I went to the gym,” he explained. “It really pissed me off when Sorin told me what Warren had said. I needed to work off a little frustration.”

“As long as that’s all it was, that’s fine,” Sorin nodded. “I’d hate to see how Robert would string you up if you got into a full blown fist fight the day after he promoted you.”

“Sod off,” Charlie grunted.

“Charlie,” Hermione reprimanded, before hearing herself. Her eyes widened in horror. “Oh, good Godric… I sound like your mother.”

Charlie and Sorin laughed. “You really do, Hermione,” Charlie agreed.

“I’m going to go clean my ears and pray that never happens again,” she decided before turning to Sorin. “Maybe you can chew him out for me.”

She walked off and joined Doctor Haddock.

Sorin turned to Charlie. “I’m not going to chew you out because I wish you had punched the bastard. My brother has been getting away with too much and could afford to have a lesson pounded through his thick skull.”

“I agree. The guy should have harassment cases up his ass but he’s always been so smart about it and only targets witches when the right people aren’t around.”

Sorin nodded. “I’ve known for a while, but he fucked up today and did it right in front of me. I fully intend to take it to our father. We’ve had a few complaints from certain witches, but this was the first time he’s been so bold.”

“I wish you could tell Robert that I smelled scotch on his breath when I got my hands on him,” Charlie confessed. “I can’t do anything about that since I only found out by assaulting the fucker.”

Sorin cursed under his breath. "Fresh or stale?"

"Stale," Charlie sighed. "But still there. The fucker knows he has an alcohol problem. If he's going to indulge, it needs to be gone by his next shift."

“Like you've never showed up to work with a hangover?"

"I don't have a history of it impeding my work," Charlie retorted.

"I’ll talk to Dad this afternoon. If you can cover the rest of the afternoon for me, I’ll go now. He can’t be drinking on the job while running the external team. Dad will already know you confronted him since you did it in the Mess Hall, but I know he won't be mad. He deserved it and you didn't injure the fucker," Sorin sighed.

“Talk to the doc and then go. Give Tala my regards and thank her for taking care of Hermione this morning.”

“I will,” Sorin replied. “But watch your back, mate. My piece of shit brother’s a piece of work any day, but you’re officially on his bad side after calling him out earlier.”

“I will. There’s nothing more dangerous than a man with wounded pride.”

The two men joined Doctor Haddock and Charlie decided to split with the others to take Hermione out to the Unreleasables’ pen. He spent most of the afternoon walking her through all of the ways the witches and wizards would help the creatures, from physical therapy for one to feeding another with a bad cold.

For the dragon who had lost its leg to a poacher’s trap, Charlie showed Hermione the contraption they used in their efforts to retrain him to walk and she helped assist through one set of the cycles. As for the one who had lost its eye to a snare trap, Hermione had to stun it so they could apply medicine.

As Charlie carefully applied healing ointment to the blind eye of a small Speed Stinger, Hermione finally spoke about some of the emotions she’d been covering up all day.

“I’m really glad you weren’t hurt this morning.”

“Yeah?” he asked as he set the jar of ointment aside to pick up the wrappings.

“I know you can take care of yourself, but that was intense,” she admitted. “I was honestly scared for you. If I didn’t know how much experience you had, then I might have done something stupid.”

Charlie looked up and sent her a serious look. I want you to promise me now that you won’t,” he begged her. “A little scar doesn't mean anything to me, but I’d hate to see you marred by a dragon.”

“We all have scars, Charlie,” Hermione tried to argue. “I have more than most.”

“Not like this, Hermione,” he said as he released the dragon to cup her face in his hands. “Not all scars are that bad. I’m coated from head to foot from my work and I’d hate to see you faced with that. Not everyone likes it when you always look beat up. I can’t tell you how many girls left me because they felt my scars proved to be too much.”

“They’re idiots,” Hermione scowled. “Your scars are nothing less than handsome. Fleur was right; your scars show how brave you are and how much you were able to overcome.”

“That’s sweet of you to say, but you don’t know—”

“Don’t you dare finish that thought, Weasley,” Hermione seethed. “Bellatrix carved the heinous slur ‘Mudblood’ into my arm while she tortured me during the war. That will never fade. Do you think I’m more ugly because of that?”

To prove her point, Hermione yanked up the sleeve of her sweater to show off her scar. She thought he’d recoil or sneer at it, but he didn’t. Charlie gently took her wrist into his large, scarred hand. He pulled it close to his face so he could inspect it and then rendered her immobile when he pressed his lips against the raised letters. Butterflies erupted in her stomach.

“First of all,” Charlie whispered against her wrist. “You’re beautiful. You always have been, and no little scar is going to change that. Secondly, the war was a different time. I don’t want you getting hurt now that it’s over. I feel it would literally kill me. Allow me a little male pride on this?”

“Not as long as you don’t let me fight my own battles,” she argued. “I’m not some weak waif of a woman.”

“What are you talking about?” Charlie’s brows furrowed.

“At lunch? I try not to be vain, but it really looked like you attacked Warren because he was acting inappropriately towards me. I can fight my own battles, Charlie. You can’t just act like a Neanderthal who wants to bonk me over the head and carry me off to a cave.”

“I know you can take care of yourself,” he agreed. “And I’m sorry I made you feel otherwise. There were other problems at play and he has a history of harassing women. When Sorin told me that he had targeted you, that was the final straw for me. Mum always taught me to protect my family. The last thing I view you as is a little sister, but I figure the same concept applies to a friend.”

“The same concept would apply if you were defending the honor of any witch aside from myself,” Hermione replied. “As long as it wasn’t a situation that occurred just because of me and you realize I’m a fully capable witch, then that’s settled.”

Charlie nodded and they got back to work. Unfortunately, due to their many injuries, most of the dragons were unwilling to allow the humans to assist them so they had to be careful about what magic to use with each creature. Sorin rejoined them at some point — not that Hermione had noticed his absence — and helped with the more complicated work.

Her favorite time of the day was when she was able to keep the legless Antipodean Opaleye distracted with a nice flank steak as Charlie assisted in its afternoon exercises without using many spells. Too much magic could interfere with the potions the dragon was taking. It had rewarded Hermione by nuzzling up against her after the fact.

She was very surprised to learn from Charlie that a lot of the Unreleasables who worked with humans a lot could actually grow to be quite calm and patient with the humans on the reserve.

“I thought that all of the dragons were volatile, like the one this morning?” she asked.

“Only the nesting mothers get that angry,” Charlie explained. “What I did was amazing not because of her willingness to interact with me, but because she calmed down while angry when she saw I had no intent of hurting her. By all means, she should have seen me as no threat and focused on a wizard — or witch — with a wand, but instead she kept her eyes on me.”

“That makes sense, as crazy as it sounds. But I have to ask, is it always this exhausting?” Hermione asked with a laugh as she stretched her back later. “I don’t know why I thought it was just books and note taking, but this is tough work.”

“It can be,” Charlie agreed. “But it’s rare that we’re ever this productive. I really appreciate your help today.”

“I enjoyed myself,” Hermione replied. “It was an excellent learning opportunity and will definitely add a lot of perspective to my reports.”

“Do you want to get dinner at the Mess Hall?”

“I was actually hoping you’d let me cook.” Hermione offered. “You’ve done so much for me since I got here, I’d love to cook dinner for you.”

“I’d like that.” Charlie smiled. “Let’s head back to my place.”

---

On their way back to the cabin, they stopped by the grocer in Dragon’s End. Hermione picked up a few ingredients and they headed back to Charlie’s home. When they got back, Charlie made his way straight around the sofa to start the fire and Hermione was pelted by the three tiny dragons.

“Hey, guys!” She laughed joyfully. “I know, it’s been a long day!”

One hiccoughed fire and another nestled into her hair as she made her way toward the kitchen, the third leading the way. Quickly fixing their bowl of food based on how she’d seen Charlie do it, Hermione set it out for them. Immediately there was a tug of war between her hair and the little Chinese Fireball who had chosen it as a perch. Eventually the dragon won and her hair stayed intact, but her scalp definitely felt like it had lost the battle.

“They’re so cute,” she observed as she sensed Charlie join her. “But they’re such a mess.”

“I love them.” Charlie laughed. “My job can get difficult some days, but having these guys at home makes it worth it.”

“That’s a lot of praise,” Hermione observed. “Remind me again why everyone doesn’t have one?”

“The layering is too complex,” Charlie sighed. “Fleur, Viktor, and Cedric’s father were kind enough to give me theirs, but the twins have Harry’s. That’s why I didn’t recognize the Horntail earlier today. The twins have been working on replicating the spell for years and visit me at least once a year to get a check on the real thing, but nothing they’ve done actually works long term.”

“So why do these four still exist? I know that Fred and George have the Hungarian Horntail.”

“The best I can tell,” Charlie sighed and leaned against the marbled countertops. “Is that these four were made by a complex set of spell layering that just happened to work longer than intended. If I didn’t know the exact same dragons were elsewhere on the reserve, I’d accuse the tournament runners of shrinking down the actual thing.”

Hermione considered it for a moment.

“I have an idea. Have the twins consulted Bill? His specialty is curse breaking which includes knowing how spells are layered. He might be able to give better insight.”

Charlie lit up. “That’s a great idea! I’m going to owl him, Fred, and George now. Maybe they’ll get together to work it out.”

“I’ll leave you to that, then,” Hermione winked as she ushered him out of the kitchen area. “Especially if it gets you out of the kitchen so I can cook.”

Putting herself to work, she quickly put together her mother’s famous lasagna and put it in the oven. Sighing as she plopped down on the couch next to Charlie, she turned to face him.

“I’m so lucky that the butcher and the market had the things I needed. Typically, I like to make my own sauce but jarred sauce is good for quick assembly.”

“Did you really make a lasagna?” Charlie asked. “I mean… I know you said you would, but I’m surprised at how quickly you whipped that up.”

“You thought that was fast?” Hermione was flabbergasted. “It took me forty-five minutes to put it together and it’ll take another hour to cook up. You’ve seen Tala make an apple pecan kringle, right?”

Charlie burst out laughing at that. “Tala’s special,” he acquiesced. “You shouldn’t compare yourself to her abilities.”

“Shouldn’t I?” Hermione teased, before pausing in thought. “I hope that the turnaround time is alright with you. I should have asked how hungry you were.”

“I’m not worried.” Charlie smiled at her. “I had time to write my letters to my brothers and read a bit and now I have time to help you get unpacked.”

“Unpacked?” Hermione was confused. She never got unpacked when working.

“Don’t you ever make yourself at home anywhere?” Charlie asked.

“It’s hard to feel at home when I’m always on the move,” Hermione confessed. “I’m always travelling for work. It’s easier to keep moving if I don’t settle down.”

“Are you sure you don’t just stay packed up all the time because of the war? You, Harry, and Ron had to be ready to go at a moment’s notice for a year and you don’t think that left a lasting impact?”

Hermione averted her gaze. “I don’t like to think about that,” she muttered, her gaze focused on a spot on the carpet. 

Charlie felt bad and tried to lighten the mood. “I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I, of all people, shouldn’t be talking about refusing to make roots anywhere.”

“You’ve made roots here,” Hermione argued.

“But does that count?” Charlie pondered.

“Home could mean many things to any person,” Hermione countered.

“Don’t you want the traditional one, though?” Charlie cocked his head. “I know I do. I’d love to have a witch and kids to come home to one day. I’d love to teach some red-haired hellions about dragons. Don’t you want to settle down at some point with a family?”

“Not now.”

“Of course, I understand that. Work comes first, but don’t you dream of ‘one day’?”

Hermione felt uncomfortable. Charlie was beginning to sound like Molly used to. She decided to get away from the conversation for a moment, hating how both of them were right.

“I guess,” she admitted. “But there’s so many creatures who need my help that I just don’t feel okay about sitting down and doing so.”

“How about a trial run?” Charlie suggested. “Unpack while you’re here. You still have a few days, and what’s the harm of putting a few things into a dresser?”

“Oh, alright,” Hermione sighed. “I’ll unpack a few items into the dresser. Do you mind keeping an eye on our dinner?”

“I’d be happy to,” Charlie beamed.

Hermione climbed the stairs and walked into her room. She smiled at how cozy it was. It reminded her of her bunk back in Gryffindor tower. The burgundy comforter and cream sheets that bordered on a golden tone were an obvious homage to their house colors. The pecan wood furniture was a beautiful accent; she loved the rough live edge on all of the furniture. It gave the dresser, bookshelves, and bedside tables a matching theme, and she loved the coziness of it.

Pulling her signature beaded bag out of her pocket, Hermione pulled out a small stack of books to add to the book shelf before moving to the dresser. She considered leaving the drawers empty before deciding Charlie had a point. Pulling open the top two drawers, she chose to put a few undergarments and socks away in one and a few warm outfits into the other. Closing the drawers, she moved to the bedside table where she decided to unload a few nighties for her sleepwear.

Deciding that was more than enough for clothing, she moved into the bathroom and deliberately placed her toiletries bag onto the white marble vanity to the right of the sink and pulled out her toothbrush to rest on the counter. She gathered her shampoo and conditioner to place into the shower.

Taking a step back, Hermione surveyed her handiwork. She hadn’t put out a lot, but it’d be too much to snatch away at a moment’s notice. As much as she hated to admit it, Charlie had a point. She always refused to allow herself to feel comfortable. Even her apartment felt threadbare at times. There was a difference between minimalistic and barren and she definitely fell into the latter category.

Looking around, she took pride in what she’d done, but the creeping anxiety set in as she took in her handiwork. She hesitated and then stuffed her toothbrush back into her bag. It was small — and ultimately pointless — but keeping something ‘essential’ on her person made her feel a little better. Tucking her beaded bag back into her pocket she walked back down the stairs.

“Perfect timing,” Charlie called out at hearing her on the stairs. “The timer just went off!”

“Your peripherals are to be admired,” she noted.

“You definitely walk lightly,” Charlie agreed as he pulled the lasagna from the oven. “But I grew up in a house with six siblings and I work with dragons for a living.”

Hermione laughed. “Touché.”

“Shall we eat?” Charlie smiled at the witch. He loved her laughter and how she lit up a room. Hermione helped him serve up two plates of lasagna and garlic bread. The two decided to eat at the kitchen island and perched upon the stools.

“So how’s the paperwork coming?” he asked conversationally.

“I’m actually done with it,” Hermione replied. “I was putting the final touches on it this morning. I can start going through with the official inspections starting tomorrow.”

Charlie swallowed harshly and coughed. 

Hermione eyed him for a moment. “You forgot I was here to run the Ministry inspection and not just help with official tasks, didn’t you?”

“A bit,” Charlie admitted. “It just felt so fun and natural for you to be here. When Andrews comes, it gets so stuffy.”

“I can’t even fathom that,” Hermione laughed. “He’s such a teddy bear back at the Ministry. He must be trying really hard to be intimidating while he’s here. I’d love to see that. I thought he was quite cordial when he took me on his last inspection.”

“He’s a good guy,” Charlie agreed quickly. “We all love him, don’t get me wrong. But it’s hard to relax with him when everyone is worried about budget cuts whenever he comes.”

Hermione studied him as she took another bite of her lasagna. “Aren’t you going to ask me if I’m going to write you up for completely disregarded protocols when dealing with the Horntail in front of me this morning?” she asked. “I’m kind of here specifically to make sure the reserve is following the rules.”

“Who says I broke the rules?” he argued. “Do you really think there's a rule that says you must always stun a dragon when facing an angry one?”

“Of course there isn’t,” Hermione agreed.

“Robert gave me permission to try something,” Charlie continued. “What I did was unique, but I didn't use undue force or aggressive magic. In fact, I helped prevent those instances!”

“You can hardly say that what you tried was safe for you and those protocols are in place to protect the witches and wizards more than the dragons,” Hermione replied. “I totally agree what you did was right , but those rules are there for a reason, Charlie. I know bureaucracy can be overbearing, and established before there are set ways to deal with situations. Even if Robert gave you permission at the moment, it doesn't mean that the Ministry would look kindly on it.”

“Are you really going to write us up for this, Hermione?”

“I should, but I won’t,” she replied simply with a gleam of rebellion in her eyes. “At the end of the day, no one was hurt and you calmed the dragon without force. I am going to ask you to get working on that research paper soon. I hate how the protocols are set up and I believe you could change a lot of minds with what you’re doing.”

Charlie stared at her slack jawed as she continued to eat her dinner.

“I never believed him, but Ron was right,” Charlie decided. “You do have a rebellious streak in you.”

“I resemble that remark,” Hermione gasped dramatically as she set her fork down and tried to imitate a scandalized look. The twitch at the corner of her lips gave her away, and both of them laughed moments later. “I hate that you’re right, though,” she sighed. “Harry and Ron were not good for my inner rule-follower.”

“Is it true that you’re the one who masterminded Dumbledore’s Army?” Charlie asked. “And that Harry and Ron battled a mountain troll during your first year?”

“You make me sound like some kind of mob boss with them as my underlings!” Hermione laughed. “We all got into a bunch of trouble back then.”

The two exchanged stories about Hermione’s time at Hogwarts as they kept eating. By the time they were done with their lasagna, she was ready to retire to the couch and Charlie was happy to acquiesce.

“Can I get you another glass of wine?” he offered.

“That sounds heavenly,” she agreed.

Charlie flicked his wand at the kitchen and another bottle of wine joined them on the couch.

“I was beginning to think you had gone Muggle on me,” Hermione teased as they moved to the couch and got comfortable to continue their conversation.

It’s not that I can’t use magic,” Charlie laughed. “I just prefer to do some things the old fashioned way. Growing up in the Burrow, you learn a lot of magical fixes early on. I just like the feel of remembering that I’m human first and foremost.”

“I feel the same!” Hermione nodded enthusiastically as she tucked her legs underneath her. She leaned one arm against the back of the sofa so she could face Charlie better. “I hardly ever use magic in my flat. Ron thinks I’m insane for it. I prefer the feeling of knowing that I did something myself rather than relying on magic all of the time. Although for me, it’s because I grew up as a Muggle and it feels weird using magic to fix everything.”

“Speaking of Ron and breaking things, did he ever tell you the story of how he broke Mum’s favorite vase and then tried to make Billy and I fix it for him? We made him fess up and then glue it back together.”

“I bet he hated that!” Hermione laughed as Charlie topped off their wine glasses. She grinned at him and accepted her glass gratefully.

“Do you mind me asking you something?” Charlie asked.

“Sure!” Hermione replied, taking a sip as he filled his own glass.

“You never told me what actually happened between you and Ron.”

Hermione sighed. “We’re going to need a lot more wine for that conversation.” 

“I have a full wine cellar,” he offered with a shrug.

“Really?” Hermione smiled. “Color me intrigued. You’ll have to show me later.”

“I swear I will if you’ll tell me. I’ve been really patient over the years, but I have to know.”

“Are all you Weasleys this nosy?” Hermione rolled her eyes. “Is it in your gene pool or something?”

“If you really don’t want to talk about it, I’ll drop it,” Charlie promised. “I’m just genuinely curious how he let an amazing woman like you get away.”

Hermione bit her lip as she studied him. She knew from the contrite look on his face that he would drop it if pushed.

“Fine,” she sighed. “I’ll tell you, but only if you have another bottle of this wine and are willing to spill about your own dating history.”

“Deal!” Charlie beamed as he flicked his wand at the hidden cupboard in the floor of his kitchen. The trap door lifted and another bottle lazily flew towards them. His miniature Swedish Short-Snout got curious and flew over, snapping at it as if it were flying prey — despite the bottle being twice its size. Hermione and Charlie laughed as the dragon dove and attached itself to the bottle.

It looked like a cowboy riding a bronco as Charlie grabbed the bottle out of the air and tried to shake the little guy off. The entire image proved to be too much for the slightly tipsy Hermione and she bent over giggling uncontrollably. Charlie joined in their laughter as he set the bottle down. The Short-Snout lost interest as his ‘prey’ turned immobile and fluttered away.

Eventually the two calmed and sat in comfortable silence. Hermione finished her glass of wine and accepted a refill from Charlie as she stared into the fire, watching the flames dance. He didn’t press her to speak more, recognizing she probably needed to gather her thoughts.

“We were so young,” she mused. “We were so young and I was such a silly girl. Harry was like a brother to me, but I’ve always had a thing for red-heads. My crush on Ron formed before I even realized what was happening. He was always just there and he understood me. I figured he’d grow up eventually and recognize me back. But then we went on the run and the tension grew until eventually we kissed during the Battle at Hogwarts. We tried dating for a time after that and even gave each other our virginities. But then the fighting started and grew, and we made everyone around us miserable. After a time, we both started analysing why we were together and we couldn’t find any good reasons. I wanted a man who could understand me better and who would match me in the workforce. Ron thought he wanted to be a provider and have a little wife waiting for him at home. We sat down and realized that we just weren’t meant to be. We loved each other, but we weren’t in love with each other. Things had become so strained while we were dating, I just remember us both laughing in relief when we agreed to call it quits.”

“That’s intense,” Charlie replied.

“Ron and I fell back into friendship so easily, it’s easy to wonder how we ever dated at all, but I don’t regret a second of it. The fights weren’t the best but he taught me what I do and don’t like in a partner. In the end, I did the same for him. I’m so glad he matured and found Luna and that they’ve fallen in love. She’s no more the housewife than I am, but they do bring out the best in each other.”

“I always figured she’d wind up with Newt’s grandson,” Charlie pondered. “What’s the kid’s name? Rolf?”

“She and Rolf have only ever been just business partners,” Hermione explained. “Besides, last I heard, Rolf played for the other team.”

“We should introduce him to Sorin,” Charlie mused. He meant it as a joke, but Hermione lit up as if he had suggested the solution to world peace.

“Is Sorin really gay? He’d be so good for Rolf! They’re both so sweet and patient.”

“Sorin is bisexual, Hermione,” Charlie said gently. “He doesn’t like to make a big deal of it, but I don’t think he’d mind you knowing.”

“I thought I saw him flirting with the ladies at the Mess Hall,” she mused. “Is he generally really open about it?”

“He only started coming out recently,” Charlie explained. “I’d leave the matchmaking alone until you talk to him.”

“I can do that.” Hermione nodded. “But what about you?”

“I’m not bisexual.”

“So you’re gay then?” Hermione blinked innocently at him.

Charlie groaned and Hermione giggled. It was so easy to tease him. “You know I’m kidding, but I do want to know about your past,” she replied as she took another sip of her wine. “You promised to share if I did.”

“There really isn’t much to tell.” Charlie shrugged. “I’ve never had the best luck when dating. I never felt like I could settle down when so many dragons needed my help. I dated a few women here and there, but there were a few problems. So many of them hated feeling like ‘the other woman’ when I was so focused on the dragons. The women who could get past my work priorities blamed my scars as the reason we didn’t work out.”

“That must have been hard on them,” Hermione admitted. “I hate the ‘scar’ excuse, but I’ve had the same problem. Sometimes, it’s easier to just rely on one-night stands to scratch an itch rather than open yourself up to hurt when they eventually leave you because you were too focused on work.”

“But that’s not fair to us,” Charlie replied angrily as he set his glass down with a loud clink. “Don’t you feel like we deserve to have love too? Even if we’re obsessed with our jobs?”

“Of course!” Hermione agreed as she set her glass down as well, albeit more gently than Charlie had. “I’m just so tired of fighting for people who don’t want me .”

“I do,” Charlie said without thinking. Perhaps he was more drunk than he thought before. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud.

“What?” Hermione was genuinely confused.

“I want you,” Charlie admitted as his ears turned red. He scratched the back of his head bashfully. “I’ve liked you for a while, if I’m being honest. Your letters always talk about how fiercely protective you are of magical creatures and I really like that about you. Add in the fact that you’re absolutely gorgeous, and I’m surprised you aren’t taken.”

Hermione studied him for a moment before leaning in to kiss him. 

Charlie froze in shock as her soft lips hesitantly met his own. He felt numb as she moved her mouth against his. But, when he felt the tip of her tongue trace the seam of his lips, he snapped out of his stupor and moved his mouth tentatively against hers. Encouraged by the fact that she didn’t push him away — not that he thought she would — he pulled Hermione closer and opened his mouth to her exploration. He damn near whimpered as the taste of their wine spread across his tongue. He raised his hand to tangle in her hair as he kissed her fiercely, wrapping his other arm around her waist to pull her closer.

Hermione felt as if she were on cloud nine as she moved to straddle Charlie’s lap. As much as she had once thought she loved his brother, she had liked this Weasley for years and he was kissing her as if she were the water he needed to survive — and she was kissing him back with equal vigor.

If she were being honest, this had been a long time coming. She was willing to bet money that, at least, Robert and Tala knew. They had told her that they’d decided to bunk Hermione with Charlie rather than let her stay in a guest cabin. Why would they do that if they didn’t suspect Charlie had feelings for her?

Hermione ran a hand through his long hair as she slid her tongue against his own, whimpering as he pulled back just enough to nip her lip playfully before diving back in. 

She moaned as he devoured her. She had never felt so desired by a man before, so cherished. Charlie held her as if she were made of glass, but clung to her as if she were the strongest tree that would keep him from blowing away. He kissed her as if he’d been holding back for years.

Her first kiss with Viktor had been awkward and sloppy. All of her kisses with Ron had been passionate, but felt wrong. Looking back, she realized that she had probably been thinking too much in the moment. Charlie didn’t allow her to think at all. He drank her in and rolled his hips upwards, leaving her gasping at the feel of the bulge in his pants brushing against her core. Desiring more friction, she sat more firmly in his lap. 

They started grinding their hips against each other and Charlie moved them so he was hovering over her as they made out on his couch. Their lips nipped and explored each other enthusiastically. Both of their hands wandered as Charlie moved to kiss down her neck.

Hermione keened as his lips found a place at the base of her throat that made her see stars when he sucked there. When he kissed that spot behind her ear, and she could hear his haggard breath, she felt dizzy with desire. She moved her hands from where she had been exploring the muscles on his chest so that she could start undoing the buttons on his shirt, fumbling a few times, but finally getting the buttons undone.

Without thinking, she shoved the Oxford shirt off his shoulders and he quickly discarded it onto the floor. Pulling back for just a second, he ripped the tank top he wore underneath over his head as well.

Hermione moved her hands to explore the muscles revealed as Charlie went back to kissing her senseless. She was happy to see and feel how defined he was. She had been trying to hold back the last two days but she really did have a thing for muscles, and Charlie had a plethora of them. As her hands reached his belt, though, he moved back.

“We-we should stop,” he panted.

“What?” She heard the words but didn’t understand their meaning through her lust-clouded mind.

“We’re both a little tipsy,” Charlie explained as he pulled back. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to continue.”

“But you just said—”

“Don’t doubt my intentions, Mi.” Charlie stopped her with a hard look. “I want nothing more than to strip you naked and have my way with you right now. I’m trying to be a gentleman because I can recognize that we just finished two bottles of wine and I’d rather our first time be sober, in a bed, and after I’ve had the chance to take you on a date where neither of us cooked.”

“We ate at the Mess Hall for lunch, does that count?” Hermione replied, petulantly. He looked way too good shirtless in the firelight. She really wanted to trace the muscles of his six pack with her tongue.

Charlie sat back fully and laughed. “I’d rather our date didn’t include my friends interrogating you.”

“Oh, alright,” Hermione sighed as she pushed him off of her completely. As the lust faded slightly, she could recognize he had a few good points. Only a few though. “Our date is still on for tomorrow, though. Right?”

“Galloping gargoyles couldn’t stop it from happening,” Charlie promised as he fished his undershirt from off the floor.

Hermione straightened her own clothes as Charlie stood from the couch. 

“Let me take you to your room?” He offered her his hand. She took it and he pulled her from the couch.

Hermione made sure that the dishes all made it into the kitchen to soak and clean themselves while Charlie set up the fire to stay warm all night. When she made it to the stairs, he met her and they walked up together. Pausing outside Hermione’s room, Charlie fidgeted for a second before kissing her on the cheek. She smiled and pulled him into a chaste kiss in response.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow,” Charlie replied.

“Good night.” She whispered and entered her room. Hermione went to bed with a large smile on her face that night, excited for their date the next day.

Notes:

And the relationship begins! First confession out of the way! Please leave me your thoughts! I'm a glutton for comments!!!

Chapter 8: December 22nd - Early Morning

Notes:

All errors are my own!

The next morning, Hermione lazily stretched her arms over her head. She felt a little tired from their late night chat the night before, but mostly she felt happy.

That was until the reality of her situation hit her.

She had made out with Charlie Weasley and was planning on going on a date with him that night.

Glancing at her clock, she realized she had just enough time to get ready for the day and make a Floo call before she had to get downstairs for work. The fact it was Quidditch off-season for the holidays made things convenient, since that meant Ginny might still be in bed rather than at her ridiculously early Quidditch training.

Hermione quickly bolted towards the bathroom and washed up in a frenzy. When she got out of the shower, she dried and plaited her hair. After applying a light layer of makeup, she moved back into her room and locked the door before walking up to the dresser. She put on one of her Weasley sweaters, since it had the highest collar of any of her shirts and she wanted to hide Charlie’s hickeys from the night before — no matter how happy they made her, she wanted to keep a professional appearance. Pairing the blue sweater with a light washed pair of jeans, she deemed herself ready for the day.

She quickly tossed her beaded bag with her things for the day onto her bed and made a beeline for the fireplace with the intent to Floo Grimmauld Place, halting when she heard a knock on her door.

“Hermione, are you up?” She heard Charlie call out.

She looked longingly at the fireplace, desperate for some girl-to-girl advice, but realized it was probably too early for Ginny on her day off anyway.

“I’ll call them after work, before we go on our date,” she muttered as she moved to answer the door instead. Opening it to reveal Charlie drying his hair with a towel,  in nothing but his dark jeans was enough to make her gut twist, reminding her of how unsatisfied she currently felt after they stopped so abruptly the night before.

“Morning,” Charlie yawned. “Did you sleep well?”

“Good morning.” Hermione smiled. “I slept great. What about you?”

“I needed a cold shower before bed,” he admitted. “I didn’t get a lot of sleep after that.”

Hermione felt as if she were probably red all the way down to her shoes. Damn him for calling out the exact way she felt.

“I was thinking of making some coffee for breakfast,” she offered. “Would you like me to make some for you too?”

“Sounds good.” Charlie nodded as he sleepily bent over to kiss her cheek in gratitude. “Let me get dressed, then I wanna chat.”

Hermione felt like a puddle of warm goop. He was barely awake and he had still greeted her sweetly and with a kiss ! He couldn’t have made it more clear that the previous night wasn’t a mistake for him and that went a long way to settle her concerns. As she walked down the stairs, she rationalized that he wouldn’t want to talk about anything bad after he had kissed her on the cheek. She knew she had a tendency to jump to worst case scenarios since the war and she occasionally struggled to see things rationally when her heart was involved.

She quickly figured out the coffee pot and set it to make eight cups of coffee. Fifteen minutes later, she had washed out her tumbler from the day before and was just digging around in the cooling cabinet for creamer when Charlie walked into the kitchen.

Today her tumbler had three check-boxes that read ‘Naughty’, ‘Nice’, and ‘An Effort was Made’. Only the last box was checked. Hermione snorted at the relatability and filled it with half the pot of coffee as she greeted Charlie since he seemed more awake this time.

“Hey you,” she greeted him with a wide smile while she fixed her cup just the way she liked it.

“Hey,” Charlie grinned lazily as he took her tumbler and took a sip. He gagged at how sweet it was.

“That’s mine, silly,” she laughed.

“I know.” He grinned. “But it’s closer than the pot and I’m curious how you take your coffee.”

“If you give me mine back, I’d be happy to fix one for you.” She laughed.

“No thanks, love.” He chuckled as he slowly slid the cup across the counter as if it were full of dynamite, not caffeine. “I’d rather not die of a sugar overdose. You can have this back and I’ll fix my own cup.”

Hermione giggled and took a long sip before sighing to make a point.

“I like the quote of the day,” he told her, nodding at the drink in her hands. “Although, I do have to say you look much nicer than a minimal effort would imply.”

She blushed and thanked him while trying to hide her blush behind her mug.

Charlie smiled at her. He had been worried that she’d wake up and panic that the previous night had been a mistake, but she gave off no indication that she intended to do anything of the sort. Knowing he was possibly shooting himself in the foot, he decided to broach the subject anyway.

“So, about last night—”

“I’m not going to apologize for what happened,” Hermione said decidedly as she straightened her spine and lowered her drink. She was easily embarrassed by compliments, but she wasn’t ashamed by any of what had happened. Charlie survived daily by picking up on body language and he could tell she was bracing herself for battle. “If you want to blame your actions on the wine, I can accept that. But I’m not going to apologize for kissing you. If I’m being honest, I’ve really liked you for a while and the alcohol only gave me the courage to go through with it.”

“Hermione.” Charlie stopped her before she could continue by covering her hand with his. “I don’t regret what happened. I don’t regret asking you out. I do not regret kissing you. I just wanted to be sure you’re okay.”

“That I’m… okay?” Hermione blinked. It was obvious to Charlie that he had taken her off guard. He wanted to reassure her.

“I just wanted to make sure you understood that I hadn’t taken advantage of you last night. I really like you, Mi, but I was worried I may have taken it too far too fast.”

“Ta-taken advantage?” Hermione stuttered as her face turned a brilliant shade of red. Charlie instantly wanted to kiss her again. “Charlie, I’m the one who tried to-to… to undress you!”

Charlie honestly tried to hold back his laughter, but failed drastically. 

“It’s not like you assaulted me, Mi!”

“It was though! I hardly asked for consent and… and I just forced myself on you without asking and I—”

Charlie shut her up by pulling her into another kiss. He caged her against the countertop with his body and sealed her protests with his lips as his hand cupped her cheek. Her struggles immediately stopped as his free arm circled her waist and anchored her to his large frame. He lifted her slightly so that she was perched on the counter and her arms wrapped around his neck to pull him closer. He kissed her for a few moments longer before pulling back.

“Listen to me, Mi,” he whispered gruffy into the tiny space between them. The air crinkled with electricity around them. “I wanted a lot more than what happened last night so if you want to call that assault, know that I am giving you permission to ‘assault’ me any time.”

Hermione chuckled as she cupped his chin to pull him back into another kiss. He covered her shaking hand with his own as he kissed her back, reassuring her that he was a very willing participant.

Eventually she pulled back but he tightened his grip on her hand, turning his face to kiss the inside of her palm where her thumb met her wrist. Hermione blushed shyly as his rough facial hair tickled her hand, but smiled at the intimate action.

“I want you to hear me out on a different topic,” Charlie started subtly as he stepped away slightly to feed the trio of troublemakers. The dragons pounced on the kibble as if it was a fresh kill and both Charlie and Hermione chuckled at the sight before looking at each other.

Recognizing from the shift in his posture that they were going back to the topic of business, Hermione wandlessly levitated her coffee from the kitchen island behind Charlie toward herself. Plucking it out of the air, she took a long sip as she raised an eyebrow for him to continue. Charlie nervously scratched the back of his neck and looked back at her with a grin. Her eyebrows immediately furrowed at his expression. He had the same tell as his siblings. He was up to something.

“What?” she asked hesitantly.

“I want to take you flying this morning,” Charlie rushed out.

“No,” Hermione replied flatly, taking another sip from her tumbler. 

“What?”

“I said no ,” she replied primly, effectively trying to shut down the potential conversation.

“I’m planning on taking you up on a broom, not a dragon,” Charlie hedged.

“I’d cancel our date on account of you being mentally unsound if it were the latter.” Hermione furrowed her eyebrows as she studied him.

“To be more specific… I want to teach you to fly on a broom this morning.”

“Oh!” Hermione's eyes widened and she gasped in mock surprise as if she only just understood what he was implying. “In that case, absolutely not .”

“Are you serious?” Charlie released a nervous laugh.

“Absolutely.” Hermione nodded. “I thought you wanted to talk about us this morning. That’s why I came downstairs.”

“That’s a conversation we can finish tomorrow morning after our date tonight. So this morning, we get to discuss flying,” Charlie argued.

“I don’t like flying.” Hermione frowned.

“I know, but it’s a useful skill for you to have if you’re staying at the reserve,” he explained. “I saw you flying yesterday and I was half-scared you’d fall into the lake. Please let me help you get the basics down so you can fly if you need to? Sometimes snow storms come in unannounced and flying on a broom is the only way you can get to shelter in time.”

“I hate when you’re practical and make sense.” Hermione decided as she sighed, resigned. “Fine, I guess you can teach me to fly.”

Charlie jumped and whooped with joy at her acquiescence. He’d made more progress with her in one conversation than his family had made in fifteen years. He counted that as a win to brag about over the holidays. As an added bonus, it made his planned Christmas gift a lot better.

“Are dragons, Quidditch, and women the only three subjects you know?” she teased at how excited he was while she took another sip of her drink.

“I’m also very good at sex.”

She snorted her coffee and coughed as the hot liquid went up her nose. Charlie laughed. He knew that was a possibility as he had said it and regretted nothing. Hermione thumped her chest in an effort to help clear the airway.

“Why was I not expecting you’d say that?!” She gasped a moment later as she laughed with him. She had grown up with boys and Ginny Weasley as her best friends. The likelihood she had remained an ‘uptight prude’ into her twenties was near impossible.

“Because I’m charming,” Charlie replied with a cocky grin as he kissed her briefly. “Now back to flying.”

“I refuse to race around on some broom where I could get hurt. I only want to learn the basics,” she insisted.

“I promise you won’t fall… and I promise no racing.” Charlie crossed his heart. “But I’d like you to learn how to fly. It’s a great skill to have during emergencies like yesterday.”

Hermione sighed and nodded before downing her coffee, desperately wishing it was something a little more potent .

“Let’s do this,” she sighed as she followed him to the front door.

She put on her own coat today and Charlie put on his work leathers. Hermione swallowed and looked away. Charlie’s white shirt and jeans already seemed a little tight over his bulky frame. Add in the hint of leather and thick work robes and Hermione had to swallow nervously before turning away.

Charlie caught her blush coloring the tips of her ears and smiled to himself. If nothing else, at least she found him attractive.

As soon as the pair stepped outside, Hermione took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air. All traces of the previous snow storm had evaporated overnight leaving a fresh coat of white snow on the ground and a bright sun on the horizon illuminating a cloudless sky. She could see for miles it seemed. If she squinted, she thought she could see a glimmer of a dragon flying off in the distance.

“They’re out early,” Charlie observed, seeing what had caught her eye. “They must be excited since the storms would have kept them low to the ground.”

Hermione breathed in deeply and relished the feeling of the frosty air burning her lungs. There was nothing like it and, while she hated leaving the warmth of her bed, she loved moments like this. The cold wasn’t permeating her coat and there wasn’t frosty air blowing into her face to make her nose feel numb. The view of a winter wonderland was incomparable. Even her exposed skin didn’t feel frost-bitten, just slightly nippy.

Charlie’s footprints disturbed the perfect blanket on the ground as he stomped over to his outdoor storage shed. He pulled out his prized Nimbus 2001 — which Hermione knew he had only been able to buy last year — and his trusty old Cleansweep.

Hermione joined him at the shed and accepted the handle of the slower broom.

“She’ll treat you right,” Charlie pointed out. “Just trust in her and in yourself and she won’t let you down.”

“She?” Hermione looked at him quizzically.

“Sure!” Charlie nodded. “Boats, cars, etc. are always referred to as ladies.”

“Do you know why?” Hermione asked. “Referring to cars as ‘she’ promotes the ideology that women are objects — things to be seen as property owned by men. For many, this notion is subconscious. However—”

Hermione’s protests were cut off as Charlie tugged her toward him and kissed her silently.

“Sorry to cut you off,” he smirked as she blinked up at him. “But another theory is that the tradition carried over from men’s habit of naming ships after women, most often goddesses in ancient times. Usually because there was the concept that the mother will take care of them. Over time, they were an ornament of pride and cared for with great attention by their male owners, the same way a man would cherish his lady love. I prefer to cherish my rides as I would that special lady.”

Hermione glared but Charlie just laughed.

“I’m really sorry if I offended you, Hermione,” he said earnestly. “It doesn’t come from a place of male pride over women. I’m all for the woman being strong on her own, but I just believe in cherishing the nicer things in my life.”

Hermione couldn’t help but blush when his gaze quickly turned heated as he looked her over and licked his lips. Clearing her throat, she gestured up to the sky.

“Shall we?” she asked nervously, moving to straddle the broom and grasp the handle in a death-like grip.

Charlie glanced at her hands and shook his head. It was like she had never learned the basics.

“What did Madam Hooch teach you?” he asked, baffled as he put his broom aside to approach her.

“Not much,” Hermione blushed. “Our first lesson, Neville fell off a broom and she had to take him to the medical wing. Draco and Harry had an altercation and next thing we knew, we were being shuffled inside and Harry became the house Seeker. After that, we mostly discussed broom maintenance and did drills. My broom never wanted to do as I said, so as soon as winter hit and the class was pardoned, I never used a broom unless required.”

“That… makes so much sense,” Charlie blinked.

He shook his head. If she had never learned the basics, her entire posture and negative outlook on brooms was understandable. He knew her well enough to know she learned by books and instruction, but most of broom riding was instinct. If you didn’t have the instinct, you needed to be guided through it. Due to the circumstances she mentioned, she had never been given that guidance.

“Okay, first I need you to adjust your posture. You’re gripping it too tightly.”

“Madam Hooch said we’d fall off the end if we didn’t!”

Charlie blinked and smacked his forehead. Repeatedly.

“I’m going to write that witch a strongly worded letter — no matter how terrifying she can be, she needs to teach better than this,” he huffed under his breath before he turned back to Hermione, offering her a hand. “Do you trust me?”

She blinked. If Charlie’s hair wasn’t the color of fire and he wasn’t wearing dark blue jeans with leather, she could almost imagine him on a flying carpet in Agrabah.

Feeling very silly as if she were playing out a Disney movie, she nodded and took his offered hand.

“Yes,” she said confidently.

“Good,” Charlie smiled. Hermione recognized the mischievous glint in his eye a millisecond before he yanked her into his arms, causing her to trip over the end of her broom.

“Charlie!”

“Yes?” Charlie grinned. “I’m here, what are your other two wishes?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Hermione laughed incredulously as she caught her balance in the arms that automatically caught her. “What are you even talking about?”

“I’m relaxing you,” Charlie insisted as he took her broom and placed it on the ground. She moved to protest, but he quickly spun behind her and his hands found that magic spot on her neck that made her melt into him as he massaged the tenseness out of her.

“What does this have to do with flying?” she asked as she relaxed into the massage. She wasn’t against it — it felt too good to fight — but her confusion was real.

“Everything,” Charlie decided as he found her neck and shoulders to be a solid mass of tense muscle. “You can’t fly well when you’re tense. You need to be loose and confident to control a broom.”

“What do you mean?”

“The more tense you are, the more jerky the broom moves,” Charlie explained as he immediately turned into ‘instructor’ mode. “Let me demonstrate.”

He mounted his broom and imitated Hermione’s posture. Recognizing herself, she could easily see that it looked nothing like how she was supposed to. He kicked off the ground and stayed as stiff as she had been. She was surprised he didn’t crash as he flew in a circle.

“I see what you mean,” she called up. He nodded and she saw him relax from ‘her’ position into something a lot more aerodynamic. His circle this time was less octagonal and a lot smoother. She was able to observe how he leaned. When he made another lap, she focused on watching his hands grip his broom. She was very grateful that he flew low enough for her to track his movements.

“So how do you force yourself to relax?” she asked when he landed in front of her.

“Just think of it like you’re dancing,” he explained.

She blinked at him dubiously.

“You… don’t know how to dance?” Charlie guessed.

“I can dance,” Hermione grumbled, embarrassed. “I’ve just been told I’m not very good at that either.”

Charlie couldn’t help it — he laughed. In his defense, Hermione looked adorable as she pouted in her thick coat and cap.

He couldn’t help himself as he reached out to take her hand from her deliberately folded arms. Tugging gently, she willingly entered the circle of his arms and he couldn’t help the rush of happy warmth that her acceptance brought him.

Unable to stop himself, he ducked his head and kissed her. She blinked in surprise, but kissed him back, unfurling to mould herself against him. Her arms wound around his neck as the pair kissed in the early morning snow.

Slowly, Charlie started to sway lightly with her in his arms. Not realizing the movement, Hermione followed his lead. He grinned into her mouth and opened his lips to stroke her tongue with his own.

He pulled away and Hermione hazily blinked at him. He knew he was grinning like an idiot at her lost expression and the exposed vulnerability in her eyes. He kept her close by having his right arm around her waist, but he then moved his left hand — which still held her right — out and Hermione realized what he had planned.

Feeling her stiffen, he quickly dropped her hand and cupped her face to kiss her again until he felt her relax.

“I need you to stay relaxed with me,” Charlie instructed as he pulled back again. This time, Hermione understood his goal as she took a deep breath to force the tension out of her shoulders as she took his hand again. She tried to take a step back for distance, but the arm around her waist was like steel, keeping her against Charlie’s much larger frame.

She cursed that she caught herself swooning, but Charlie’s knowing grin eased the sting of embarrassment.

He started leading her through a basic waltz. As they moved, Hermione could feel how tense she still was by comparing her stance versus his. She slowly eased the tension from herself until she matched Charlie’s more natural grace.

With a prime example as her teacher, she got the hang of it after only a few minutes.

“You’re a quick study, aren’t you?” Charlie asked as their feet marked up the fresh snow.

“Only with a good teacher and partner,” she replied as he spun her out and she gracefully returned without tripping. “Maybe Professor McGonagall should have tried your amorous tactics when teaching us for the Yule Ball?”

He froze as his eyebrows disappeared into his hairline. Eventually, he felt the lack of oxygen and coughed. The sound relieved the pressure in his chest and he broke into loud and raucous laughter at her joke — one he hadn’t been expecting.

Bending down, he scooped her broom up again and handed it to her. She took it hesitantly.

“It’s okay,” he smiled. “Just get on and I’ll help you adjust your posture.” 

Hermione smiled at Charlie gratefully and relaxed as much as possible. She gripped her broom tightly as he stepped up beside her, placing his hand on her lower back and another on her shoulder. 

She breathed and let Charlie guide her posture into a new position. Her elbows unlocked to bend and that adjusted her grip. Her back arched instead of hunching over and he moved her hands to grip a different place on the handle.

She took a deep breath and relaxed into the new pose.

“How does that feel?” he asked as he summoned and mounted his own broom.

“Different,” she decided after considering.

“Good,” Charlie laughed. “It should feel different because it’s right, now.”

“Ha ha,” Hermione glared. “What’s next?”

“We kick off and I help you run through the basics,” he shrugged. 

Hermione paled, but summoned her Gryffindor courage to nod confidently. Charlie nodded at her and kicked off the ground. He hovered a few feet off the ground and waited for her. She followed him into the sky, but her kick had her wobbling a few feet above him before she found her balance.

“Relax,” he suggested as he moved beside her. “Remember, it’ll be a lot more jerky the more stiff you are. I know it’s almost reverse psychology, but the more you relax, the better the control is.”

“Right,” Hermione nodded as she released the tension from her shoulders.

“Do you want me to do maneuvers and you can follow?” he suggested.

“That sounds like a good idea,” she agreed as she steadied her broom by relaxing her grip on the wood beneath her fingers. “Then you can correct what I do wrong?”

“You’re learning more quickly than you give yourself credit for,” he told her. “We’ve only been out here for about fifteen minutes and you’re already easily balanced.”

“You and I have a very different definition of ‘easily’,” Hermione laughed.

“Let’s do this, then,” Charlie told her as he started going through basic movements.

Over the next half hour, he showed her how to hover, balance, turn, stop, and land.

“Make sure you don’t ever lock your elbows,” he called out at one point.

“Why is it so wobbly?” she questioned as her broom sluggishly moved forward. 

“You’re going too slow,” he advised. “The brooms weren’t made for a snail pace. Imagine the difference between crawling and sprinting. They’re made to sprint, so if you take them at a crawl, they’re uncertain. You don’t need to sprint though. If you move at a walking pace, you’ll find it’s more steady.”

He was right. As soon as she urged her broom to move forward a little, it balanced itself, and he started to walk her through more of the basics.

When he was sure she was comfortable with the basics of flying on her broom, he had her fly alongside him and they slowly increased speed at her comfort level.

No one was more surprised than Hermione when she let out a whoop of joy and shot ahead of him, bending herself over her broom to speed up. Charlie easily caught up. They raced each other for a few minutes when he realised they’d been at it for an hour.

“You want to call a break and head over for breakfast?” he offered.

“Sounds like a plan,” she agreed. At the end of their lessons, she was further along on her flying skills than she ever expected to be. She was steady on her broom and a lot more confident. In fact, she even enjoyed flying a bit. She was still no Quidditch pro — or even interested in playing the sport — but she no longer feared crashing and dying by being on one, and that was huge progress to her.

Notes:

Sorry for the shorter chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! Leave me your thoughts in a comment!

Chapter 9: December 22nd - Morning

Notes:

As always, any errors are my own!
Hopes this serves as a delightful distraction to the election stress!

When the pair landed at the Mess Hall, Delia, Ryan, and Sorin greeted them immediately.

Ryan wasted no time commenting on Hermione’s blue Weasley sweater. Being an honorary Weasley himself from his time in school with Charlie, he recognized Molly’s iconic handiwork immediately.

“Molly wants you to join the family, huh?” he joked to her as he slapped Charlie on the back in greeting. Seconds later, Charlie had him in a headlock as the two tousled together.

Hermione’s eyebrows raised in surprise at seeing the boys start to jokingly wrestle. She never expected to see the thirty-two year olds roughhousing like this.

Delia rolled her eyes and made her way to Hermione’s side.

“Boys, am I right?” she laughed. Hermione noted that Delia’s spiky white blonde and purple hair was down today and she was dressed up in some tight-fitting protective leathers. Hermione wished she could look that hot before shaking herself. They were attractive in different ways, she told herself.

She turned back to the boys.

“I-I’ve never seen Charlie wrestle anyone before. He messes around with Bill but he’s typically more reserved when he’s at home.”

“He’s more reserved with anyone aside from Ryan and Bill,” Delia explained. “I’m sure they just hid their roughhousing around you. It doesn’t matter how old they get, those three are as thick as thieves. Even more so since Bill got scratched by Greyback.”

“I had no idea.” Hermione turned back to watch the boys mess around. Slowly a small grin grew on her face. She didn’t condone violence, but neither man was getting hurt and it was mostly just shoving and teasing jabs as they argued. Both men had a huge grin that they were trying and failing to hide as they started trying to shovel snow down each other’s shirts.

Eventually she dissolved into giggles at their antics, redrawing their attention to the group. Both straightened. Charlie immediately ducked his head as his ears turned red in embarrassment, but Ryan just grinned roguishly.

In truth, Hermione knew Ryan wasn’t far off the mark with his comment. Hermione knew that Molly always thought she might become a Weasley in name through Ron. It took the Weasley matriarch months to admit that she realized they weren't going anywhere. Since then, the witch had tried throwing any Weasley cousin she could towards Hermione in the hopes one might get her to settle down. She’d been very unsuccessful thus far.

“In all honesty, I was joking,” Ryan admitted. “But I bet Charlie would be happy to help with making you a Weasley if—”

Ryan’s comment was cut off as Charlie shoved a handful of snow in Ryan’s mouth. He then took Hermione’s hand and led her into the dining hall. 

Ryan cleared his mouth to protest the rough treatment when he was smacked by Delia over the head.

“What?” Ryan swerved to stare at the witch. “What was that for? You know I’m right!”

“Whether or not I know you’re right isn’t the question. You’re pushing too hard, too fast. It’s still possible that she’d run if pressured.”

“They have nothing but pressure breathing down their necks, Del,” Ryan protested softly as he pulled her off to the side. “She’s only here a few days and then what? We go back to hearing Charlie mope about how much he misses her, or we make it so they fall in love and she never leaves.”

“In less than a week?” Delia snorted derisively. “That’s ridiculous. She’d never just pick up her things and move — and you know that Charlie is no less likely to pick up and move back to London for her because he’s way too obsessed with work. Besides that, I’m pretty darned certain they can handle their relationship themselves without you proposing they start discerning marriage before they even start dating.”

“Sorry,” Ryan apologized, bashful in the face of her logic. “I guess I did go too far with them.”

“And not far enough with me,” Delia muttered under her breath.

“What did you say?” Ryan asked, having missed her remark.

“Nothing,” she said breezily as she turned to follow Charlie and Hermione into the Mess Hall. Secretly, she was glad the wind was strong so Ryan didn’t catch what she said, but she couldn’t help but also be disappointed that he’d never expressed the same interest she felt.

Sorin was another story as he watched Ryan follow Delia like a sad puppy.

“I’m surrounded by lovesick idiots,” he decided with a roll of his hazel eyes as he followed his friends into the warm hall. “Merlin, help me survive all of them.”

By the time he joined the others, they were in deep conversation.

“So, Hermione,” Delia was asking. “What kind of work are you doing today?”

“I have the internal inspections to run,” Hermione replied kindly. “I was able to finish a lot of the paperwork yesterday, so today is just going to focus on making sure everything is still up to code.”

“Sounds boring,” Ryan sniffed. “Charlie should show you the baby dragons instead!”

“I’d love to see that,” Hermione smiled graciously as she took a bite of her eggs. “But I can’t just skip out on the reason I’m here.”

“The longer you procrastinate, the longer you can stay,” Ryan tried to barter.

“Are you sure you’re just a researcher and not a lawyer,” Hermione asked with a smirk. “You’d make an excellent compromiser.”

Charlie glanced sideways at her. He knew she’d prioritize her work, but he figured that they could probably stop around noon to visit the hatchery ward of the dragon hospital.

“If you finish early, I’d love to take you,” he offered and she blushed as she nodded in confirmation.

Before he could ask what her plan of attack would be, a new Reserve employee ran up to their table.

“I’m sorry to bother you, Mr. Weasley, but one of the external teams sent me to fetch you, sir. One pair saw some suspicious activity on their way to shift and they need you and Robert on the scene immediately,” the young boy told him. 

Charlie could tell this kid was probably fresh out of school at seventeen and had only just finished his training. He barely glanced at Sorin to see his partner was already standing.

“Ryan and Del, do you mind assisting Hermione until I get back?” he asked.

Both dragon researchers nodded.

Charlie leaned over to press a quick kiss to the top of Hermione’s head as he moved to chase the kid and Sorin out of the hall. If he had taken the time to glance back, he would have noticed Ryan and Delia leaning in to excitedly interrogate the blushing witch.

He didn’t look back, however, and focused instead on the task at hand.

Summoning their brooms, Charlie and Sorin flew after the new grunt until they hit the wards behind the cabin block. The grunt — whose name Charlie couldn’t remember, but swore to learn later — doubled back to grab breakfast before his shift.

Landing, they found Robert was already on the scene with his son, Warren Grady, the ponced prince extraordinaire.

“What’s going on?” Charlie asked gruffly as he landed hard. Before he could take a few steps forward, Sorin was in front of him. It didn’t take a psychic to realize that he wanted to be between his partner and his brother before anything happened.

Fortunately, Warren seemed more concerned about whatever was going on than he was with getting even with Charlie for lunch the previous day.

Live. Make mistakes. Learn. Move on.

That was the policy on the Reserve and it served them well. Warren had made the wrong move on the wrong girl, Charlie had corrected him, and Warren had learned.

Robert looked between the two, satisfied they both knew that it wasn’t the time to resurrect that issue. Oh, yes, he knew all about it. He also knew that there was a time and place.

“Do we really have another breach over here?” Sorin asked worriedly, bringing the topic back to the issue at hand. “We’re on the opposite end of the Reserve from yesterday.”

“And that’s the problem,” Warren’s partner, Ashley, replied. “We saw the break when we were headed out and reported it immediately.”

“It was like this when we got here,” Robert scowled. 

Moving around his boss, Charlie saw that the barrier looked as if it had been shattered, not just weakened. The shimmer in the air fractured and opened to a ragged hole. It looked just like the hole in the window Charlie had made with an experimental bludger at the Burrow when he was thirteen, except this hole was the size of a small car.

“What the fuck?” He was perplexed. The hole was too small for an adult dragon, but just barely. If pressured, a large dragon could easily bust through the breach and create a larger hole.

“Do we have any idea what caused this?” Sorin asked as he stepped forward to start casting diagnostics.

“No,” Robert huffed. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“Okay, you big grizzly bear,” Charlie side-eyed his boss. “Then let’s stop huffing about it and figure it out. Ash, when was the last time anyone went through this way before you and Warren?”

“About an hour ago for the change of shift,” Ashley replied with a crease in his brows. “Warren and I worked late last night so we had permission to sleep in.”

“Then we got lucky,” Charlie nodded. “Whoever did this is probably still nearby watching us. If you guys hadn’t been leaving later, then we wouldn’t have seen this until closer to noon.”

“That’s true,” Sorin nodded as he mounted his broom to kick off the ground. 

Seeing that he was going to scan the area, Charlie turned to Warren.

“Would you mind going with Sor? You know this area better than us, so you’ll be able to spot something he might miss.”

“Got it, boss,” he replied cheekily as he took off after Sorin. Ashley and Robert joined Charlie at the broken wards.

“It looks like broken glass,” Charlie observed.

“If I’m being honest, it looks more like broken holographic glass in some kind of sci-fi Muggle film,” Ashley nodded. “It looks like pixelated breaks. But what would do this?”

“Someone who wants us to fail our inspection,” Robert frowned as he ran a hand through his hair.

“Herm— Miss Granger —” Charlie caught himself before he sounded too familiar “—is professional to a fault. She may dock points for a broken barrier, but she’ll be the first to jump to our defense for the fact we’re on it and will have people posted here until the breach is resolved. We wouldn’t get that kind of support from any other inspector, so I consider us lucky on that point.”

“I agree.” Robert nodded as he started trying to mend the breach. 

All three men panicked when it did nothing.

“What’s going on?” Charlie demanded.

“I think… I think we have a serious problem on our hands,” Robert told him honestly. “The wards have been punctured and healed so many times over the years, I think that it’s time to take them down and start fresh.”

Charlie looked at Robert as if he had grown another head.

“We have to discover that now ? We’re in the middle of a professional inspection. We can’t just leave a breach in the barrier, or ourselves defenseless,” Warren said as he landed, Sorin touching down close behind him. “We’ll need to hire a curse-breaker to properly remove all of the wards and start new.”

“It’s better that we acknowledge it ourselves rather than have her tell us,” Robert replied to his older son.

“There’s definitely been poacher activity nearby,” Sorin chimed in. “They’re not here now, but that makes me think they’re already inside.”

“Fucking hell,” Charlie cursed. “Broken barriers that we can’t patch, poachers on the property, and an active inspection. Does anyone have anything else to add?”

“Hermione told me you have a date with her tonight?” Sorin asked.

Charlie just groaned. Today was going to be busy indeed.

---

“So where are we off to first?” Ryan asked Hermione they walked through the snow with Delia. Riffling through her handy beaded bag, Hermione pulled out her paperwork that her boss in England had provided before she’d left.

She had a few locations to check off her list today and, if she was lucky, she’d get through the bulk of it. Before she had left England, she had sat down with Edwards and he’d made it very clear that she was mostly in Romania for the experience. Her coworker, Phillip Andrews, would go through the detailed inspection after his baby was born, but the Ministry just needed to file a bit of paperwork to confirm everything in Romania was up to code, or was scheduled to be addressed and fixed.

She was under strict orders not to reveal that to anyone on the Reserve. For all they were supposed to know, this was the official inspection so they should show everything as they would any other day.

“I think I should end with Dragon’s End and cabins,” Hermione decided as she checked her notes and the inspection records from the previous year. “Based on Phillip’s notes, there shouldn’t be too much to go over. If we put that at the end of the inspection, then we can then start with the research facility and move on through the hospitals and I won’t miss anything important there.”

“Forget work for a second! Are we going to talk about that kiss?” Delia interrupted excitedly. When Ryan had teased the brown-haired witch earlier, she had no idea that things had already progressed between the pair.

“No, we are not,” Hermione decided, as she perused her paperwork. “Like I told you at the table, we have a date tonight, but that’s all.”

“You never mentioned that at the table!” Delia protested. 

“That’s right!” Hermione snapped her fingers as if she had only just realized. “That must have been because I didn’t want to talk about it! Silly me.”

“Hermione!” Delia whined. “Just a little bit! Throw a girl a bone!”

“We have a date tonight,” Hermione said shortly. “That’s all. Now can we please get to work?”

“Absolutely,” Ryan cut in. “Where to first?”

“Let’s go check out the dragon hospital.” Hermione decided, returning to her original plans. “It makes most sense to get the hard stuff out of the way first. We can go through there, check the Unreleasable enclosure, and then move on to the human hospital. We can cover human quality of living in the village at the end.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Ryan nodded.

“If there’s going to be no gossip, I’m going to check in with Sorin and Charlie,” Delia replied. “I’m worried about whatever pulled them away from breakfast this morning.”

“Please do,” Ryan agreed. “If you could tell us what’s going on, that’d be fantastic.”

Delia saluted, summoned her broom, and took off towards the cabin strip in the other direction. Unlike Hermione, Delia never looked back to see the forlorn look on Ryan’s face as the witch flew off. When she was out of sight, Ryan shook himself and offered Hermione his arm.

“Shall we?” he asked.

“Why don’t you tell her how you feel?” Hermione asked in response.

Ryan blinked in surprise. “You know… They told me you were straightforward, but you really don’t pull your punches, do you?” he said.

“I haven’t been known to, no,” Hermione replied. “Life is too short to waste wishing for something you never took a chance on.”

Ryan sighed as he stuffed his hands into his coat pocket. His huff of surrender came out in a cloud of mist due to the cold air.

“I know that… But Delia and I… we just work. I don’t want to ruin that. It’s the same as with you and Charlie.”

“What’s the same?”

“The tension? You and Charlie could cut your sexual tension with a knife.”

“We’re addressing it,” Hermione insisted. “We have a date tonight. Have you ever tried to explain your feelings to Delia?”

“Haven’t you ever worried about ruining a really good friendship by dating, and then having it blow up in your face?”

Hermione just stared at him for a moment before she slowly shook her head.

“These mountains are more refreshing than you know,” she sighed. “As sad as it is, I’m not used to everyone not knowing every detail of my personal life. The Prophet publishes every tidbit as if it’s a headline just because Harry, Ron, and I were ‘key players’ in the war. We haven’t been able to shake our celebrity status yet.”

“So who’d you date and how badly did it end?” he asked.

“I dated Ron right after the war,” Hermione told him as she disinterestedly picked at some invisible lint on her Weasley sweater. “We both crushed on each other for years and everyone thought we were meant to be. It turns out that I like my boyfriend to not constantly question my need to make the world a better place for magical creatures. He needs a woman who will take care of and spoil him rotten when they aren’t at work. We aren’t right for each other and never have been. He’s so sweet with Luna when she’s not travelling for work.”

“You’re not one for mommy-boys, huh?” Ryan chuckled.

“I’m all for men who love and respect their parents, but I’m not interested in being my partner’s mother. I need a bit of a more equal partnership. Besides, at the end of the day, the hurt feelings were mutual, but we pushed past it. Ron is still one of my closest friends, and I value his opinions and person in my life. I regret nothing in that relationship. Do you really think your bond with Delia isn’t built to last the test of time?”

“How about I concede that you’ve given me a lot to think about and we get back to those inspections?” Ryan offered.

Normally, Hermione would love to push the point, but she could tell that he probably just needed some time to process the information and arguments she gave him.

She nodded and pulled out her ballpoint pen. Clicking it, she turned to Ryan with a devious grin.

“Shall we?”

---

Despite promising her boss that she was only there to give a general once-over, Hermione took great pride in doing her job right . 

As they walked through the dragon research facility, she took notes on the cleanliness and safety protocols. She made sure to note how well staffed the facilities were and that everyone was utilizing the proper equipment.

When they moved on to inspect the pens within the dragon hospital, she took ample notes on the feeding schedules and cross referenced her notes to make sure that all of the enclosures were up to code and suitable for each species they contained.

She looked over the health records for every dragon they came across and was pleasantly surprised to see that all of the records were kept impeccably up-to-date.

When she asked, Doctor Haddock was happy to supply the transfer and release paperwork. All of it was properly documented and Hermione couldn’t help but squint at how easy it was.

“You seem disappointed,” Ryan chuckled as he offered his arm when they left the hospital. 

They only had to take a flight around the Unreleasable’s enclosure to ensure there were no breaks and that it was all still secure. He knew from the previous day and from when she landed at the Mess Hall that morning that she wasn’t the best on the broom, so he wanted to give her a minute to finish making her notes before he summoned their rides.

“I’m not disappointed,” she insisted. “I am just used to more things being wrong. It feels like the report is too perfect.”

“That’d be Charlie’s handiwork,” Ryan explained. “He is so married to his job that he has nothing but time to dedicate to the Reserve. He’s up before the rest of us and he typically doesn’t go home until everything is properly logged and repaired. The guy doesn’t know how to take a break. There’s a reason none of the older guys complained when he got the promotion over one of them. Everyone knows that Charlie’s top priority is the dragons and Reserve.”

“He never dates?” Hermione asked, surprised. She’d never have guessed that. He was so handsome, she figured that he’d have any number of women available to distract him from work. What Ryan said suggested that he didn’t dedicate any time to that.

“Not in any conventional way since we got here post-Hogwarts.” Ryan shrugged. “He went on ‘dates’ when we first got here, but those are more hookups than anything serious. His only long-term girlfriend was Tonks in school, but they were more ‘study partners’ than romantic. He told me once that he hates that he never has time to dedicate to his girl because he prioritizes his work so much. I don’t even remember the last time he took a long-term interest in dating anyone before he started receiving your letters.”

He froze as his brain caught up with his mouth. He hadn’t meant to throw his best friend under the bus with his new potential girlfriend or betray the trust Charlie put on him. In a valiant effort to change the subject back to the inspection, he summoned two brooms.

“Shall we get going?” he asked as he offered her one.

Hermione’s hands started flailing as she took a step back. “You know I’m not that steady on a broom.” She waved her hands in front of herself as if they’d protect her from the evil contraption. “Charlie taught me the basics this morning, but I’m still not all that certain about my skills.”

“If you want to spend the rest of the day walking around the Unreleasable pen, I won’t stop you,” Ryan offered as an alternative. 

Hermione scowled and snatched the broom from his hand. “I hate this,” she decided.

“It’s okay,” Ryan promised. “We’ll go slow. You need to inspect the checkpoints and make sure the barrier isn’t wavering between points, right?”

Hermione mounted the broom and took a moment. If she took a deep breath, she could almost feel Charlie’s comforting hand rubbing her back. She consciously eased up on her instinctual deathgrip like he had shown her. 

Closing her eyes to center herself, she focused on the feeling of the wood beneath her and opened her eyes as she kicked off the ground. The broom remained balanced as she hovered a few feet above the ground.

Blowing a few stray wisps of hair out of her face, she turned to look down at Ryan.

“You coming?”

Ryan broke down into laughter at the view of Hermione growing confident on a broom. He mounted his own and kicked off to hover beside her.

“If that’s the difference in one lesson with Charlie, I will never doubt his flying abilities again. You scared me with how wobbly you were yesterday, but now you’re steady.”

“Everyone keeps saying that,” Hermione laughed. “But I’m a very quick student.”

“Not to mention you’re well known as the Brightest Witch of Her Age?” 

“Just try to keep up,” she teased as she shot off. Ryan laughed and chased after her. Once he caught up, she pulled back lightly on her handle and slowed down.

The two kept pace and surveyed the barrier as they flew through the different checkpoints. Hermione dropped to the snow at the third to inspect the magical shield maintenance box, before remounting her broom and joining Ryan. She also inspected the seventh and fourteenth.

“I want to check randomly,” she explained. There’s a chance that you all maintain them well at equal spacing, so I wanted to be sure I checked randomly.”

“And what’s your diagnosis?” Ryan asked mock-seriously as they landed on the far side of the Unreleasables pen for the twentieth marker.

“Everything looks good here,” she told him. “I was worried because of what happened with the Horntail yesterday, but everything is secure. I’m confident in saying that the only way the dragon got in was because someone intended her to get in.”

“But why?” Ryan asked. “Why would anyone want to do that?”

“Why indeed?” Hermione nodded. “We’ll have to discuss that with Robert, but I’m not going to make it into anything major on the report. You all obviously fixed and strengthened the wards afterwards and that’s what’s important.”

“How do you mean?” he wondered as he adjusted his glasses. “I thought the point of the inspection was to guarantee that nothing ever goes wrong.”

“Things always go wrong,” she corrected. “What’s important is how you handle the problems. Today, I saw that you were able to resolve a major issue in less than twenty-four hours. That’s very impressive.”

“Charlie led our group yesterday and Delia and I double-checked it this morning,” he supplied. “We take any breaches of the wards seriously. It’s not only for our safety, but the Unreleasables’ safety also!”

“And that’s why I know the Reservation won’t have any problems,” she said confidently. “Let’s just finish this up so we can get lunch.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to finish this up so you can get ready for your date?” the sandy haired man teased.

“Shut up and follow me.” Hermione rolled her eyes as she got ready to kick off again. She was very quickly learning that Charlie’s best friend naturally liked to snark and she’d be better off letting it roll off her back than taking him seriously.

“Wait!” he called. “I actually prepared sandwiches for us. I didn’t want us to get too starved between meals.”

Hermione glanced at her watch and realized that it was well after mealtime. The initial portion of her inspection had taken longer than predicted.

“Oh, alright,” she sighed as she pulled a blanket out of her beaded bag, which was strapped to her thigh.

She laid it out on the snow and sat down.

Ryan chuckled at her level of preparation as he followed after her lead and joined her on the thick blanket in the snow.

They quickly ate up their quick lunch while exchanging small talk and remounted their brooms.

As they flew through the forest and gardens that separated the Unreleasables from the human hospital, Hermione made a point to practice weaving on her broom. Charlie had taught her a few tricks and she wanted to be sure she improved upon them more quickly than not.

Ryan was distracted as he noticed a few concerning tracks and indicators in the woods. He made a note to talk to staff as soon as they landed to see if they were trekking deep through the typically deserted forest for any reason.

As Hermione landed in front of the human hospital, she made a point to spiral downwards, but she still landed roughly. Shrugging, she stood and brushed herself off, thankful the blanket of snow had cushioned her fall.

“That was rough,” Ryan stated the obvious when he landed beside her. “But your flying scares me now. That was the difference in one lesson?”

“I had a very good teacher.” Hermione shrugged as she pulled her braid loose. It was so tight, she was starting to give herself a headache and she had no intention of flying back after visiting the hospital when she could walk through the neighborhood instead.

On top of checking all of the details that she covered in the inspection of the Dragon Hospital, Hermione had an extra long list for the human one.

She had to check for the fire safety and evacuation. She made sure the doors weren't propped open so they would help keep fires enclosed from one section to another. It helped slow the spread in case of emergencies. It also helped with temperature control and keeping the environment as sterile as possible.

Afterwards, she ensured all extinguishers were in place and in good condition, and that the sprinklers and smoke alarms were operational. She checked that appropriate doors were locked and that all fire exit signs were illuminating properly. She then finalized that part of her inspection by ensuring the emergency exit doors and corridors were clear and that all flammable material was stored appropriately.

She went on to check the electrical, hazardous material, and general safety guidelines were met in a similarly thorough manner. Once she was sure that the hospital met all safety guidelines, she went over the general security management.

She had to ensure employee belongings had a place to be secured and out of sight. She checked that confidential material was secured in the offices and warded for patient privacy and security. She took extra diligence in confirming that the medications were secured. The last thing she wanted to risk was faulty security on the substances.

Once everything was ticked off her list, she made a few notes of the final items needed before she scribbled her signature and considered that part of her inspection complete. 

“Hey guys! Are you all done here?” Delia asked as she waltzed up to the pair.

“Hi again,” Hermione smiled at the witch.

Delia blinked and burst out laughing. “You have ink on your cheek, Hermione,” she explained as she wiped at the blue spot.

Hermione blushed and turned away as she rubbed furiously at her cheek, smudging the spot into a streak across her pale cheek.

Delia laughed and conjured her a handkerchief.

“This should help,” she smiled. “If you’re done here, do you mind if I borrow Ryan for a minute?”

“Sure,” Hermione agreed. “I don’t exactly need a bodyguard. I’ll go wait outside!”

“Sounds like a plan, but stay close okay?” Delia grinned mischievously. “We don’t want you getting lost!”

“Whatever you say!” Hermione waved as she walked outside.

Notes:

And there you have it! There are POACHERS at the Reserve! *gasp*
I want to be clear, in case it wasn't... Warren is a douche, there's no arguing that, but no one at the Reserve is sabotaging anything on purpose. Poachers are the asshole enemies and the Reserve is like a giant family who love dragons. They have interpersonal relationship flaws, but they would never hurt each other or allow the dragons to be at risk. That's all!
Next Monday's chapter is full of drama, so get ready for it!!! ;)
I know this chapter was probably pretty stuffy, but tell me your thoughts! I look forward to every review!!!

Chapter 10: December 22nd - Afternoon

Notes:

All errors are my own! Major thanks to my editors!
Please be warned!!! This is the chapter with the darker tags. It's only mentioned, but please skip if they trigger you! If you comment that you didn't read, I will summarize the chapter for you in a response! It's all fluffy and smutty aside from the brief mentions here, I promise!

Delia waved with a grin until she was certain that Hermione was out of sight.

“Keep your eyes up,” she ordered Ryan. “I just left Charlie and Sorin. They’re canvassing the area because we have intruders.”

“I was wondering why you were here,” he noted, not particularly surprised at the news. He had seen evidence of tracks in the forest. Hermione wouldn’t have noted it, but he knew that no one ever just took a stroll through the woods. “It’s not like you to hang around the hospital for fun.”

“Glad you can take note of my hobbies,” she replied wryly. “I’m checking the hospital for any unexpected subjects.”

“Let me guess,” Ryan cocked his head in mock thought. “Hermione and I are scheduled to run through the cabin district. You’d hate to draw attention to the breach mid-inspection, so you want me to subtly check as we go to confirm they aren’t hiding out there?”

“It comes across better on paper that way. ‘Threat neutralized before they can be a threat’, you know?”

“And if we become bait?” he asked.

“Don’t worry,” Delia smirked as she planted a teasing kiss on his cheek. “I’ll save you.”

“Ugh!” The voice of Charlie Weasley materialized behind the pair. 

Ryan was the only one who reacted with a girlish scream as Delia had seen him coming. “How long were you there?” he demanded.

“Long enough to see the flirting.” Charlie stared them down with a mock glare, which was softened by his grin.

“Where’d you come in?” Ryan asked instead.

“The front door?” Charlie raised an eyebrow as he pointed behind him, where Sorin was leaning against the wall beside the door.

“Hermione’s not with you?” Ryan was confused. The fact that Delia seemed to be flirting with him aside — Charlie and Hermione seemed to unconsciously take every opportunity to latch onto each other's presence. If Charlie had passed her on the way in, it made the most sense that she’d come back in with him.

“Is she supposed to be?” Charlie asked. “Last I checked, she was assigned to you.”

“But she told me she was waiting right outside?”

“Her broom was there, but she wasn’t.”

The quartet looked at each other for a moment, before realization dawned on them all at the same time and they sprinted for the exit. 

Charlie slammed the doors open and looked around. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary until Delia called out.

“Over here! The other side of the building!”

Charlie felt his pulse spike as he ran after the sound of Delia’s voice. His stomach dropped as he saw what she had uncovered.

The snow was untouched aside from a set of footprints leading from the door to the side of the building — as if Hermione had decided to lean against the corner to make a few notes in her notebook.

Another set of footprints came around the side of the building. Only the barest traces of shuffled marks remained, but only one set led away from the location of the scuffle. They led straight to the broom stand. 

Charlie cussed profusely.

Ryan glared and appeared behind Charlie as he smacked his best friend. The light clap was quickly followed by a well-placed punch to the cheek as soon as Charlie faced him. The blow sent Charlie to the snow.

“You idiot !” Ryan yelled angrily. “You should have just had Delia tell me earlier! Hermione's gone and she didn’t have a backup because we’re too prideful! You claim to know her so well from her letters, but you have no clue! If we had just told her about the breach, she would have helped us!"

“What?”

“Ryan, she’s the inspector,” Sorin tried to calm the angry blond.

“We needed to keep this from her for that reason,” Delia tried to remind him.

Ryan spun around to stare at his friends incredulously. His nostrils flared as he tried to reign in his sudden temper.

“Who she is, you idiots, is Hermione fucking Granger. Or have you all forgotten how she’s made a name for herself in our circles? Do you really think Madam House-Elf Rights or Lady Werewolf Protector wouldn’t also do her best to protect our dragons?” Ryan snarled. “Are you also so daft that you focused on the inspection while we have fucking poachers on the property? Do you really think a few points off our score are worth risking our charges?”

The group stared at him in bewilderment. Ryan was always the light-hearted goof amongst them, the fact that he was so angry he was seething was a bit of a shock.

“Calm down, Ry,” Delia said softly as she carefully approached him, in a hopefully soothing manner.

None of them had missed it when he had gripped his wand mid-rant. No one wanted to be on the receiving end of a hex from him. Especially when the rest of his body was shaking, but his wand hand was still. They all knew that if Ryan hadn’t been accepted into the Reserve, he would have pursued a career as an Auror like his parents had.

When Delia reached him, she tentatively reached out and touched his chest. She felt him relax a bit at her touch, so she moved her fingers up to rub his shoulders. His gaze snapped from glaring at Charlie to focus on her. She immediately noticed that his eyes were dilated, meaning his adrenaline was pumping. She realized that he was focusing on everyone’s movements, but wasn’t focused on finer details like who it was touching him.

“Ry,” she called him again softly. He blinked a few times and she could tell as soon as he recognized her because his irises became more visible. She felt her heart break at the crumpled and crushed look his face took. Knowing that he wouldn’t want anyone else to see him like that, she wrapped her arms around him. He immediately returned the embrace and buried his face in her neck.

“I was supposed to protect and guard her,” he whispered.

“No,” Charlie argued with a hint of steel in his voice as he overheard what was only meant for Delia to hear. “I was. And I failed.”

“How about—” Sorin cut in with a glare at Ryan who had straightened and was opening his mouth to argue against Charlie “— we argue about who was at fault after we find her and guarantee she’s okay?”

“I like that idea,” Delia agreed with Sorin as she stepped back. She knew Ryan and Charlie would go back and forth for days if given the chance and now was not the time. “How do we find her though?”

“I saw tracks in the woods,” Ryan told them as an idea occurred to him suddenly. “But it could just be a decoy.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time a tracker tried to camouflage themselves by being obvious. Why would there be tracks if they had magic?” Sorin tried to reason.

“Even if it is a trap, there are four of us and they won’t be expecting a frontal attack.” Charlie added.

“They kidnap one of our own and they won’t expect a trap? Charlie, the entire thing is a trap!”

“We still can’t just leave her!”

“You’re right,” Ryan nodded. “Let’s go.”

The quartet took off towards the woods. Ryan quickly found the trace of what he was looking for and they landed in the snow. All four immediately drew their wands in preparation of a fight. 

Nothing happened.

“Homenum Revelio,” Ryan cast to see if there were people hiding behind illusionary magic.

Nothing happened, so the team relaxed a bit and started to search for clues.

Sorin waved his wand and conjured his hummingbird Patronus. It flitted about him as he whispered instructions before it flew off.

“We need to let the others know what happened,” he explained. The group couldn’t help but agree with him.

Warren landed beside them soon afterwards with Robert, Tala, and Ashley.

“What did you mean when you said ‘Miss Granger is missing’?” Robert demanded angrily.

“One, we were idiotic to keep her out of the loop when there was an imminent threat,” Ryan said, easily getting wound up again since he blamed himself for sending her outside instead of considering there may be intruders. “Two, we meant that the mentioned imminent threat took her. Either that or she kidnapped them , but somehow the former seems more likely.”

“I agree, Dad,” Sorin nodded. 

“We came here because Ryan said he’d seen tracks during the inspection with Hermione,” Delia continued.

“But there’s nothing here !” Charlie kicked the snow angrily. “It was a diversion. We need something, anything else!”

“I’m putting the Reserve on red alert,” Robert decided as he shot red sparks from his wand straight into the sky with a loud boom. He was powerful enough that even the External teams would have heard and seen them. “We don’t lose anyone from the team and do nothing. Everyone will start searching for any hint or trace immediately.”

Charlie’s shoulders slumped as he nodded. He was meant to protect her. No matter what Ryan said, she was his to watch over.

“She was last seen just under a hour ago,” Delia told Robert. 

Ryan checked his watch and corrected her.

“It’s officially been an hour,” he decided. “We talked a bit before we realized anything might have been wrong.”

Robert conjured multiple Patronuses to help send out information to the different teams and the group split up to search.

---

Hermione groaned as she stirred into consciousness. She felt as if she had been beaten with a bag of bricks. 

Her mouth tasted as if it was full of cotton balls, she felt woozy and disoriented, and she felt like she had just been trampled by a jealous herd of unicorns.

Chloroform.

Who’d drug her with something Muggle like chloroform? She squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to remember what had happened.

She’d been waiting against the wall of the hospital. The breeze had felt so nice and the landscape was so beautiful blanketed in snow that she had decided to just close her eyes and enjoy the brisk, cool air.

She had heard the crunching of feet in the snow when she had opened her eyes to see someone dressed in rough furs and dragon hide. The plated scales were a dead giveaway.

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. No one on the Reserve dressed like that. No one she knew would dress in skins like that aside from…

Poachers!

She straightened up immediately to call for help or even try to hex him, but he moved with lightning fast reflexes.

Before she realized what was happening, he had her pinned against the wall. His hand was at her throat, cutting off her attempt to call for help as he choked her before a smelly rag covered her mouth. 

She tried to kick and scream, but that foolishly caused her to inhale and her vision went black in moments.

Hermione winced at the memory and cursed her stupidity. She was Hermione Jean Granger, war heroine. She knew better than most that her best asset was her quick wand-work and she hadn’t even gotten the bloody thing out of its holster.

She tried to move through her grogginess to check her thigh holster, but wasn’t even surprised to find that she was tied up. 

Her shins were tied to her thighs and her wrists were bound to the knot at her ankles near her butt. Essentially, she was hog-tied.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” she grumbled. They actually were smart enough to tie me up properly! Whatever happened to old school villains just tying up the wrists and ankles?

She wriggled a bit as she looked around the room. She looked to be tied up on a pile of furs within a sewn tent made up of more furs. She immediately felt sick when she saw that they looked to be made of the skins of many different animals and magical beasts. 

She cursed at how tightly she was bound. Seeing her wand on a nearby table, she tried summoning it with wandless magic, growing more frustrated when it didn’t move an inch. She was a bit worried now as she usually was able to get her wand from much greater distances. The dizziness from the chloroform must still be affecting her.

Even if her magic seemed affected, her hearing was perfectly fine. She could hear the voices of at least three men arguing outside the tent. They were speaking in Romanian, but she could still understand a few words from previous study. From what she could gather, they were disagreeing about what to do with her because they hadn’t intended to pick up a girl for the comerțul cu sclavi.

She froze. They planned on selling her into the slave trade? Apparently, they couldn’t decide between the private sector or the Eastern European black market.

She wanted to be sick. Not on my watch assholes, she thought as she started planning her escape.

If she could survive six years of schooling alongside Harry, battle against Death Eaters, survive a year on the run, and the final Battle of Hogwarts before turning nineteen, she would not let herself be sold in slavery by a group of neanderthals! She was the Brightest Witch of Her Age, champion of magical creatures everywhere, and by Circe, she would get herself out of this mess.

She tried pushing her magic out as far as possible around herself. It barely brushed against her wand, but was just out of reach. In a strong effort, she forced her magic to lurch outwards. The most she was able to accomplish was accidentally shoving the wand farther away, causing it to roll across the surface.

“What’s going on in here?” A stout man with a thick Romanian accent burst into the tent.

“The bitch is awake,” one of his goons observed as he followed the older man in. A second later, a third man joined their number and Hermione recognized him as the one who had nabbed her at the hospital. She was seething inside, but tried her best to remain calm under duress. She had to make it out of there and get back to the others. They had no real chance against her, but she couldn’t risk letting them get away with their plans to hurt the dragons. Not to mention, if those cretins made her miss her chance to spend an evening with her favorite dragon tamer, there would be a reckoning.

“Wha—What’s going on? Where am I?” She knew from experience that if she came across as naive, they’d be more likely to underestimate her. She really wanted to show them retribution for the ‘bitch’ comment, but knew better than to lash out first and think second — especially when they had her wand.

“Boss, her wand moved,” the kidnapping goon said, ignoring her. “I know I placed it in a different spot.”

She cursed her luck. They were fucking smart for poachers and sex traffickers.

“Behave, wench,” the boss ordered as he moved the wand to the other side of the room. Hermione followed him with her eyes and couldn’t hold back her surprise when he placed her beloved vinewood amongst a pile of tools.

She recognized most of them as tools to harvest dragon heartstrings and hide. She felt bile rise up in her throat; they intended to kill and harvest a dragon for parts . Those fuckers were human trafficking and killing endangered magical species. Were there no limits to the depravities these men would commit?

“What are you going to do to me?” she hated that her voice wavered.

“I was thinking that you’d make a lovely trophy, young and perky,” the kidnapper drawled with a lecherous grin. “I know several men at the camp who’d love to spend some time with you before—”

His thought was cut off as his buddy walloped him on the head.

“Idiot! Don’t reveal too much.” His accent was thickly Romanian.

“What? With medical spells she won’t lose too much value, and it’s not like I told her we were gonna kill and take a dragon, did I?”

The boss was the one who turned on his goon then. “Petrificus Totalus.” He pointed his wand at his subordinate who stiffened and fell to the ground. “Put ‘im with the stuff,” he ordered the other one. “I’m going to have myself a chat with the bint.”

Hermione snarled and bared her teeth but her stomach dropped when he grinned eagerly.

“The bitch has claws!” The boss was practically giddy. “It’s been a while since I had a bint who could hold her own. I wonder if I can make you squeal before you break?”

Hermione felt herself seething in anger. She’d hack his cock off with a dull blade before she let it anywhere near her.

This pig thought he could just have her because he wanted to? What was it with some men being misogynistic asses, always patronizing about how women were less than men. Warren did the same on her first day there.

She was war heroine Hermione fucking Granger and she was no one’s fuck toy.

Hermione felt her magic tingling just under her skin. She felt the ropes on her wrists and ankle burst into flame in a spurt of accidental magic.

The boss stumbled back as she ripped the rope off of her hands and used her freed appendages to rip away the singed ropes from her legs. She could feel the magic sizzling through her hair.

“You messed with the wrong ‘bitch’, you imbecilic moron,” she snarled. “I’m not one to take things like poaching, kidnapping, or raping lying down.”

When his eyes widened in fear, she grinned and used her adrenaline-powered burst of magic to summon her wand to her hand.

“Incarcerous!” Hermione flicked her wand at the face-planted kidnapper, before quickly stunning the other goon.

“Now,” she said as she twirled her wand in her fingers and approached the only one left standing — the boss. “What shall we do with you?”

---

An hour later the groups congregated in the town square with no leads.

“Ryan, you’re the smart one when you’re not spitting fire.” Sorin nodded at the sandy haired blond. “What do you suggest for tracking the poachers?”

Charlie’s back went straight as he stiffened. “I may have an idea, but I have no clue if it’ll work,” he said cautiously.

“Well, don’t hold back now,” Warren ordered his new boss with a glare. “Share with the class.”

“We could try and use my miniatures as trackers?”

“Your experimental pet dragons?” Sorin asked flatly. He thought they were cool at home, but they weren’t exactly trained for tracking.

“I think the layered spell work is better than any of us could have predicted,” Charlie defended. “My twin brothers made their business based on layering spells and experiments and they haven’t been able to imitate them yet. I’ve been working with them a lot and I think they’re better at being dragons than we could have expected.”

“I get that you care about them as pets, Charlie, but they’re essentially animated toys,” Delia argued. 

“What harm could it be?” Charlie asked. “They’re familiar with Hermione’s scent and we have no other leads.”

“Let’s try this; we have a team and Charlie’s dragons. A team will canvas the area and search the woods for clues, and Charlie can use his dragons just as a secondary proof,” Ryan compromised as he took the lead.

“I’ll agree to that.” Sorin nodded as he grabbed his broom. “It’d be stupid to refute either idea before trying them both, especially since time is of the essence.”

“I’ll head home,” Charlie said as he mounted his broom and took off.

Delia summoned her broom and kicked off as well. “I’ll go with Charlie,” she called down to the other two. “He’ll need backup if the dragons track her elsewhere.”

Sorin nodded and he and Ryan headed towards Ryan’s lead.

Delia flew quickly after Charlie. She cursed as he took off full speed. Sometimes she really hated how he was fast enough to be a Seeker on his house’s team in school. With the rate he was going, he obviously hadn’t let himself get rusty since.

“Charlie, wait up,” she hollered as she bent herself over her broom to speed up. 

“We don’t have a lot of time!” His voice was mostly lost in the wind. 

Delia grimaced. He was right. By the time she landed in front of his cabin, his broom had been tossed aside out front and he was inside trying to wrangle three miniature dragons.

“Immobulus,” she said clearly, pointing her wand inside his home. Everything immediately froze, including Charlie and the flames in the fireplace. Flicking her wand, she quickly released him and doused the flames entirely, grabbing the nearest dragon in her free hand.

As soon as the three little creatures were on leashes, Delia cancelled the spell and let Charlie take over.

When asked later how Charlie had been able to explain his plan to the dragons, Delia was unable to answer. It was strange, yet effective. He just told them that Hermione needed their help and they didn’t know where she was. All three dragons perked up and started huffing smoke in anger at the news that Hermione was in danger and they left the cabin with no complaint.

Delia mounted her broom and Charlie followed as the little dragons sniffed the air. Suddenly, all three swerved around and started flying towards the village.

“If they’re after the Mess Hall, Charlie, I’m going to let Ryan flay you,” Delia called as she flew off. She didn't hear Charlie agree before taking off after her.

The dragons flew towards the direction of the breach before veering to the left. They almost looked as if they were headed towards the main road that left the Reserve.

“They wouldn’t camp near the entrance, would they?” Delia asked.

“It’d be risky, but innovative,” Charlie called back as the cold air nipped at their skin. “We never thought to look in those obvious areas, but there are natural formations in the rock where you could camp.”

“Risky is all it would be,” Delia agreed. “But let’s— Where did they go?”

Delia and Charlie immediately stopped their brooms. The dragons had been right in front of them, but they had just disappeared into thin air.

“Are they behind wards?” he asked.

The pair looked at each other and understood each other with a look. The poachers had probably warded themselves behind Disillusionment Charms. Since the dragons were released as they flew, they’d have probably gone through the wards.

“We need to land and send for help,” Delia decided. Charlie wanted to bust in and demand Hermione back, but understood Delia’s stance as being the wiser course of action.

He quickly summoned his Patronus and his silvery dragon flew off towards the base of the Reserve.

“Can we at least start taking down the wards?” he asked angrily.

“I’d be upset if you didn’t help me,” Delia challenged as she got to work.

Fifteen minutes later, they were joined by Sorin, Robert, Warren, and Ryan, who had still been hunting around the forested area across the reserve again.

“How long has she been gone now?” Robert asked gruffly as soon as his feet touched the snow.

“About three hours,” Ryan answered, glancing at his watch.

“And those toys led you here?” Robert asked.

“Yup,” Charlie gritted his teeth as he worked on a particularly nasty ward that burned his skin as he took it down.

“Then let’s just break through and get her,” Robert ordered.

“I was just thinking the same thing,” Charlie huffed as he got through the last of the difficult wards. “The only ward left is a shield. The only way through is force.”

“My favorite kind,” Delia grinned deviously as all five wizards aimed their wands at the barrier.

“Bombarda,” they all said very clearly.

What happened next was utter chaos. The barrier dissolved like a broken glass shell so they all quickly cast a protective shield, completely shocked at what they saw.

---

Charlie blinked as he stared in amazement.

Hermione was slinging hexes at the poacher in front of her, cursing the entire time. The miniature dragons were flying in a circle over them, clearly enjoying themselves as they spit small tongues of flames at the poachers.

“You vile, awful, horrendous piece of dragon shit!”

She was so animated in her anger, she didn’t seem to even notice when the others appeared to ‘help’ her.

Charlie was so enraptured by the way her magic voluminized her curls even more than usual — because, of course, they were now loose from her earlier braid — that he didn’t have time to react when one of her hexes went wide and hit him in the side. He felt as if the air had been knocked out of him as he crumpled to the ground.

“Charlie!” Hermione yelled in dismay.

As soon as they got over their shock, the wizards and witch who had broken through the shields jumped into action to help Hermione. The leader was quickly tied up with Hermione’s Incarcerous and Ryan and Sorin fetched the other two from within the tent.

“Are there any more?” Ryan asked.

“I only saw the three,” Hermione replied as she tied up the leader with an extra tight knot. “But that doesn’t mean there’s not more.”

“Speak,” Robert ordered as he turned over the one who had kidnapped Hermione with his foot. She had made sure to hog-tie him first .

At first, he said nothing, but when Hermione raised her wand, he quickly found he possessed a loose tongue.

“There’s more of us at camp,” the grunt finally admitted. “But we’re the only infiltration team.”

“There’s only enough tools and supplies to take down one dragon,” Delia observed as she came out of the tent.

Hermione couldn't help but notice that Charlie was deliberately avoiding eye contact with her.

“Hermione, how about we let the others take care of this while you give me your version of events?” Robert offered.

“Of course.” Hermione forcibly shifted from hurt not-girlfriend-but-whatever-they-were to work mode.

She followed Robert off to the side and explained all she could, while the small dragons curled up in her hair and around her legs. The poachers were intending to steal a single dragon and harvest it for parts. They also claimed to be in the slave-trade, if their comments about her were to be believed.

“That makes sense for the breach in the Unreleasables’ area,” Ryan noted as he joined them with Delia. “They were probably camped out in the forest yesterday and we only just discovered the setup today. We’re lucky the Horntail came to us for help and disrupted their plans.”

“It was more than lucky,” Delia agreed. “It’s a fucking miracle of coincidence.”

The pair left Robert to ‘persuade’ the poachers to give them more information, before Charlie finally lost his temper to the infamous Weasley-rage.

Sorin confirmed that the Aurors were already on their way.

“I need you to look over Charlie, Hermione,” he told her. “I don’t know what you hit him with, but you’d be the best one to fix him up if he’s hurt.”

Hermione went to Robert and he immediately gave the pair permission to leave.

Gathering their things, they walked back to his cabin. Charlie tried to whistle for the miniature dragons, but they were having too much fun tormenting the poachers. Sorin promised to make sure they got back to the cabin safely as Charlie’s focus turned to Hermione. He wanted to fly her back, but she refused. Instead, she folded herself into his side and encouraged him to lean against her if he needed support.

“I’m not an invalid, Hermione,” he scowled as he stormed off ahead.

“Charlie, I’m sorry I hit you! I didn’t expect you to be there!”

He spun around with eyes blazing and hurt written in plain language across his face.

“You were kidnapped and missing for three hours, love. Why wouldn’t I be there?”

Hermione felt as if she’d been slapped. “I didn’t mean it like that!” she insisted as he turned to storm off again. 

He ignored her and kept walking.

“Charlie, wait!” Hermione tried to jog to get closer, but the snow was too high for her and she almost tripped.

Before she could fall, he was by her side, steadying her. “That’s it ,” he growled as he pulled out his wand. “Accio broom.”

Moments later, his broom came to a halt beside them.

“Get on,” he ordered, indicating she should sit in front of him.

Hermione wanted to protest, but the look in Charlie’s eyes gave her pause and she sighed in resignation, sitting sideways and wrapping her arms around his neck. His arms circled her waist to hold her closer to him before he adjusted his grip on the broom.

Making sure her grip was tight, he kicked off the ground. They were back at his cabin less than five minutes later. Charlie shoved the broom into his storage shed and then stomped up the steps to get into the cabin.

“Charlie!” Hermione chased after him only to freeze in the doorway.

He was taking his shirt off. Hermione could see a constellation of freckles covering his back, which was far more muscular than the guys she’d dated in the past.

Her mouth felt bone dry before suddenly flooding. She swallowed quickly.

“You wanted to check my wound, yeah?” he asked as he turned to face her. 

She could only nod dumbly as she shut the cabin door behind her.

Approaching him, she tentatively reached out and lightly traced the skin on his chest with her fingertips. She felt nothing but hard muscle beneath, and swallowed an instinctual whimper.

Now was not the time to be getting turned on.

She quickly moved her gaze to his side, where he had been hit. She thanked heaven that he was only lightly injured. Her hex hadn’t even broken the skin, just left a nasty burn. 

“Am I going to live?” Charlie asked as he looked straight into her eyes. His gaze was dark and she felt awful.

She didn’t blame him for not liking her anymore. “Yes,” she breathed. “It was mine. All you need is some Dittany to speed up the healing process in the wound and you’ll be good to go.”

“Good to hear,” he said as he pulled away.

Hermione reached out and caught his arm, pulling him over to the couch. To his credit, he didn’t fight her. She sat him down and then sent a few of her bluebell flames towards the hearth, lighting the fire. The room instantly felt cozier and Charlie sighed as the air against his skin was no longer cold.

Hermione unstrapped her bag from her hip and pulled out a little jar of Essence of Dittany. Removing the stopper, she sucked up a few drops and motioned for Charlie to lay on his side so she could seal the wound. 

He obliged, but still refused to make eye contact.

Any butterflies she’d felt in her stomach now sank like a heavy weight.

She felt her heart crumple a little bit and bit her lip to keep from tearing up in frustration. She had hexed the guy when he’d come to save her. She didn’t blame him for no longer returning her affections.

Doing her job, she sealed the wound. His skin was barely finished knitting itself back together when he was standing and making his way toward the stairs.

“I’m going to shower,” he told her when he paused at the bottom step. Then he was gone.

Notes:

Sorry about the dark nature of the kidnapping. I tried to keep it as quick and light as possible.
Also! Uh oh! Trouble in paradise!!! I promise Charlie's reaction will make sense next chapter!
I would love to hear your thoughts! This is as dark as it gets, I promise!!!
As for next chapter... wonderful things come to those who wait!!! ;)

Chapter 11: December 22nd - Evening

Notes:

*sneaks in late at night on a Wednesday morning*
*slips extra chapter under your pillow*
*adds tags that helps the story gain its "E rating"*
*sneaks out*

Sighing, Hermione watched Charlie head upstairs to clean up. She bit her lip hard to keep from crying in frustration. The day had started off fantastic, but she doubted he wanted to keep their plans for their date anymore. She needed some good advice.

She took a pinch of Floo powder and tossed it into the fireplace before saying the name of a familiar address. Dropping to her knees, she stuck her head into the flames and took in the view of the Weasley family living room at the Burrow.

Sitting at a table, playing chess, were her three oldest friends. Ron’s face was scrunched in concentration as he stared at the board. Hermione was facing Harry’s back, but she knew that mop of jet black hair could only belong to him. That thought was confirmed as she saw Ginny sitting on the floor polishing her broomstick, leaning against the side of his chair.

The red-haired wife of The-Boy-Who-Lived was the first to notice her presence.

“Hermione!” Ginny beamed as she carefully put her broom aside to crawl towards the fireplace. “You’re late for Saturday dinner. Where are you? How long are you going to be? James misses you!”

“And where have you been the last few days?” Harry stood from the table to join Ginny on the floor. “You haven’t joined us for lunch at work! You aren’t mad at us for something we didn’t realize we did, are you?”

Hermione blinked in surprise, before realizing she had forgotten to tell everyone of her change of plans before she jetted off to the Romanian Reserve.

“I’m so sorry,” she apologized. “I was so busy I forgot to stop by the Aurors’ offices before I left.”

“Left?” Ron questioned as he joined the others on their knees in front of the fire. “Where are you, Mione?”

“I hate nicknames,” Hermione scolded on instinct before rolling her eyes at herself. He had been calling her that for years and she doubted he’d change that now. “For your information, I’m in Romania.”

“Romania?!” the trio yelled in surprise.

Ginny turned around and spelled the cot against the wall so they wouldn’t wake up the baby.

“Why are you in Romania?” Harry asked. “Does it have anything to do with C.W.D.?”

The Campaign for the Wellness of Dragons was Hermione’s current pet project. Her goal was to better the treatment of dragons in captivity. She’d started with general rights of dragons after being inspired by Gringott's Ukrainian Ironbelly, but now her proposals were narrowing down on details. She had only just started drafting a proposal for the Wizengamot concerning specific captivity restrictions and treatments to allow captive dragons — like the ones on reserves — to have better care and rights. Her drafts also included suggested budget increases to support that exact purpose. It was still so new, not even her boss knew about her interest, and the only reason Harry and Ron knew anything was because she had sought them out for advice when she’d had the idea. She’d be lying to herself if she tried to claim she hadn’t been making extra notes for the C.W.D. in her journal after seeing the Unreleasables. 

“No one but you know about C.W.D. I’m in Romania because Andrews’ wife is due to go into labor any minute,” she told them. “I was volun-told by John to fill his place for the annual inspection. Considering the Campaign for the Wellness of Dragons, I had no reason to refuse the free excuse for extra research!”

“Volun-told?” Ron asked, confused.

Harry laughed. “It’s when someone else acts like you’re volunteering for something, but it’s usually just them telling you to do it,” he explained. 

Hermione’s head made of flames bobbed in agreement within the cozy fire.

“That’s not what I meant,” Ron rolled his eyes. “I'm just curious, why you? There’s other inspectors and you’re not one of them. They check that the rules are being followed while you make the rules. I just don’t understand.”

“Everyone else was on different end-of-year runs and I really don’t mind,” she answered. “I’m learning so much just filling out the paperwork. It’s fascinating work.”

“Careful,” Ron laughed. “Stay around my brother too much and he’ll convert you into a full-blooded dragon researcher.”

Hermione felt herself blush and was grateful that the fire hid the color of her cheeks. Unfortunately, it didn’t hide the expression on her face. Ginny’s eyes lit up as if she were Dobby and Hermione had gifted her a sock.

“Spill,” she demanded.

“There’s nothing major to spill,” Hermione replied immediately, before hesitating. “It’s just… Well, I’m staying in Charlie’s cabin for the duration of my stay. We’re sharing a Portkey back for the holidays.”

“So long?” Ginny pouted. “I miss you too much with all of this testosterone around!”

“You’ll be just fine without me!” Hermione laughed. “It’s just a few days and you still have Luna, and the two of you are more than capable of putting all of your brothers and Harry into their place without me.”

“Just because I can, doesn’t mean it’s not more fun to watch you do it,” Ginny insisted. 

Hermione smiled at her friend through the flickering green flames. Reaching around behind her, she added another sprinkle of Floo powder to her fire as Ron did the same on the Burrow’s end to keep the connection going.

“So… Just call me the devil’s advocate, but why don’t you stay there permanently?” Harry asked, grinning like the cat who'd gotten the cream. Ginny protested loudly and Ron smacked him over the head.

“Harry!!!” Hermione gasped, partially scandalised. “I can’t do that. I work at the Ministry. I can’t just quit my job to move here.”

“Hermione, I was joking,” Harry replied. “But you’ve also obviously put thought into this, so it seems that you’re not.”

“Does this have anything to do with the crush you’ve had on Charlie since we were kids?” Ginny asked excitedly. “Did something happen? Oh! Tell me something happened!”

“Ginny Potter!” She growled in embarrassed rage. “Shut up! That was so long ago, I hardly remember it!”

“That’s a lie if I’ve ever heard one,” Harry argued, laughing. “You always get so… girly whenever you get one of his letters.”

“I’m serious, Mione,” Ginny laughed. “The last time you got so worked up was when you were spearheading the house-elf campaign or setting up Remus’ foundation for the pursuit of werewolf rights.”

“I still believe there may be a better solution for curing lycanthropy than just putting a band-aid on the Wolfsbane potion.” Hermione frowned. “I feel bad that I abandoned that train of thought… I hope Remus doesn’t think I have abandoned him.”

“Hermione, he’s fine and supports your Campaign for the Wellness of Dragons,” Harry insisted with a wave of his hand. “Besides, you got the Wolfsbane potion to be handed out for free to sanctuaries through public taxes and he has his hands full with the kids and Tonks. And don’t you dare try and change the subject. What’s going on? Did something happen?”

Hermione sighed. “We may have kissed last night. But then I got kidnapped by poachers today, so we weren’t able to go out on the date we had planned for tonight. Then Charlie tried to rescue me, but I was already handling it and he got caught in the crossfire and I hexed him. Now I don’t know if he even likes me anymore because of it.”

The trio at the Burrow blinked at her and were obviously blue-screening at her outburst. She didn’t blame them for not knowing how to react. She wasn’t sure how to react. It was Ron who eventually broke the tension. 

“Bloody hell, Mione… You can’t even go to a secure government dragon-proof facility without getting into trouble.”

That broke the tension in an instant and caused all four young adults to break down into laughter.

“I figure you would’ve told us if he wasn’t, but is Charlie okay?” Ginny asked once they caught their breath.

“He only got caught by a stray hex and I tried to apologize but I think he’s mad at me. At least I made sure to give him some Essence of Dittany and wrap it for him before he holed up upstairs.”

“Right… Did you consider — just hear me out — wrapping your legs around him to thank him for coming to your rescue?”

“Ginny!” Hermione exclaimed. “That’s your brother!”

“And as his brother,” Ron interrupted seriously, “I can tell you he’d be thrilled with that.”

“RONALD!”

“I’m serious, Hermione. We all know he fancies you just as much as you fancy him.”

“As wonderful as it is to find out how transparent I apparently am and to know you’re completely comfortable talking about your family’s sex life—” Hermione scowled “—Ryan says he's not interested in dating girls.”

“Right,” Harry rolled his eyes with a snort. “And I only like blokes.”

His sarcastic comment was rewarded with a nudge in the ribs from his wife.

“Where did Ryan get that idea anyway?” Ron shared a look with Ginny. They both knew Charlie’s sandy haired best friend from when Charlie brought him home over the summers.

“You like athletes, Harry,” Hermione argued in Ginny’s defense before turning to Ron. “According to Ryan, Charlie hasn’t dated at all since school.”

“You’re right, Hermione. I like athletes. Ron likes girls who are way more intelligent and quirky than he is, and Charlie likes you.”

“I agree with Harry.” Ginny nodded sagely. “The entire family knows it. Don’t listen to Ryan. He’s a wanker who can’t even admit that he’s in love with Delia. Emotional range of half a teaspoon, and all that. ”

“We had a bet last year if you’d hook up over his holiday break,” Ron chimed in, wisely ignoring Harry’s jab at him by sticking his foot in his mouth. “I lost fifteen galleons when you didn’t even kiss.”

“Why are you betting on my sex life?!” Hermione growled, only grasping the last comment.

“We were technically betting on Charlie’s too.” Ginny was unapologetic. “You said that he kissed you last night. Do you really think he doesn’t have feelings for you?”

Ginny’s comment made Hermione squirm, unwilling to admit that the red-haired witch was right. She was still stuck on his attitude from when they got back from the poacher’s camp.

“That’s besides the point!” Hermione insisted.

“I think it’s exactly the point,” Ginny argued “Our point is that you’re driving everyone nuts and you’d be doing us all a favor if you stopped this 'will they, won't they?' routine.”

At that moment, Hermione heard Molly call for the trio to join the rest of the family for dinner. At the same time, James woke up and started crying. Ginny gave Hermione a pointed look before blowing her a kiss in farewell, getting her child and breezily leaving the room to change him before joining her family to eat.

“Ginny has a point, Hermione,” Harry told her as he stood and dusted himself off. “We just want what’s best for you both.”

“Just think about it, okay?” Ron asked. “We’ll see you at Christmas if we don’t hear from you sooner.”

“Of course,” Hermione promised. “I’ll talk to you soon!”

She sighed as she ripped her head out of the flames, coughing vehemently when she inhaled a mouthful of ash. Sitting back onto her heels, she banged on her chest a couple times to try and relieve the ache. In an effort to ease the pressure on her knees, she crossed her legs and groaned in agony. Kneeling on the floor for a Floo call did nothing for the recovery of her old war injuries.

Hermione froze when she felt a pair of large, calloused hands on her upper arms move up to start massaging the new knot in her neck. She couldn’t help but relax into his touch and moan in delight as Charlie rubbed away the soreness. His hands froze at the sound and she cursed herself for potentially ruining the mood again .

She moved to turn around to apologize again for hexing him when she took in the sights of the room.

It looked like Christmas had come to throw up romance.

The three little dragons had been returned during her Floo call and were curled up in the basket near the Christmas tree. The tree was lit with candles and fairy lights and cast a warm ambience across the room, which was dark aside from the light of a few scattered candles. Garlands, ornaments, and tinsel had been added around the room.

It was beautiful.

Hermione couldn’t help it as her jaw dropped. She stood and spun in place for a few seconds, trying to take everything in. She couldn’t have imagined a more romantic holiday ambience.

But why if Charlie was upset with her?

She turned to question Charlie — who had been crouched on the ground — since she thought he was mad at her, but he stood quickly to cut off her forming question by sealing her mouth with his own in a very heated kiss as he wrapped her up in his arms.

She froze and then melted into his embrace as her feet even left the floor.

His hand wove through her hair to cup the nape of her neck as his other arm remained wrapped around her waist to anchor her to his larger frame. She whimpered as her hands were pinned between them. She eagerly traced the contours of the muscles through his shirt.

He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against hers.

“I thought… I thought you didn’t like me anymore,” she whispered into the small space between them.

That caused Charlie to set her down and eye her as if he thought she were crazy.

“Why in Merlin, Circe, and Nimue’s names would you think that?” he asked, bewildered.

“I — I let myself get captured and then when you came to save me, I hit you with a nasty stinging hex?” She hated how her response sounded like a question. “You seemed really upset at me as we flew back.”

Charlie’s gaze darkened before he practically growled and crushed her to him as his tongue invaded her mouth. Her knickers grew damp at the sound, despite her confusion. Unwilling to let him get away, Hermione moved to wrap her arms around his neck and hold him against her.

“You — silly witch — are — going to be — the death — of me,” he insisted as he rained kisses on every inch of skin around her face and neck he could reach until he found the words he wanted to say. “I’m sorry for being abrupt, earlier,” he apologized. “I wasn’t upset at you. I was just worried. I know that I have a tendency to shut my emotions down when I get overwhelmed so I can think clearly and face the issue with a logical brain. I didn’t even realize how cold I was acting until halfway through my shower when I snapped out of it. When I came down, you were on the call and I thought I’d surprise you with a little bit of improvisation to change up our date if you were okay after everything that happened. Are you okay?”

Hermione’s heart relaxed and she teared up. What he said made so much sense. If shutting down his emotions to think clearly was his coping mechanism towards too many stressors, his attitude toward her made sense. She, herself, had developed a few quirks after the war so she could understand.

She sighed as he transformed back into the Charlie she knew. He was checking over every square inch of her that he could see. He checked her wrists and kissed the rope burns. He made sure to massage the knots out of her shoulders from where she’d been tied up in an uncomfortable pose.

He was being so gentle and there was so much concern in his eyes, she could weep.

“Charlie,” she called for his attention. She removed her hand from his so she could cup his cheek when he didn’t look at her face. She smiled when his gaze finally met hers. “I’m okay. You came for me. I wasn’t hurt.”

“Do you have any idea how scared I was when I found out that you were missing?” he asked, his voice rough with emotions he’d suppressed up until that point.

“I’m so—”

“But thinking about how alone you were? How scared you could be? Imagining them hurting you—”

She cut him off with a kiss. He immediately responded and yanked her into his chest with his hands on her hips as he kissed her deeply, as if he couldn’t believe she really was okay. He moved his hands to cradle her head, like she was precious and fragile. He couldn’t comprehend that she was safe in his arms the same evening she’d been kidnapped and she wasn’t lost to him forever.

“So you still like me?” she asked as she leaned her head back to give him better access to her neck. Her bold action was slightly undermined as she bit her lip nervously.

“Like you? Hermione, I’m tempted to lay you out right here and undress you to show you just how much I love witches with curly hair who can take care of themselves and care about the rights of magical creatures. Well… how much I like just one witch in particular — you.”

Her knickers were wrecked.

That was why she was confused when his next move was to start pulling away again. She clung to him instinctually.

“I thought you wanted to—”

“I want nothing more than that, Hermione. I just — I told you last night that I want to treat you right.”

“Then do it,” she begged, uncaring of how wanton she sounded as her breath came out in a whimper. She’d had a long day and she’d been looking forward to this. “Show me that you mean what you say and stop teasing me!”

That made Charlie pull back to look at her clearly. “Are you sure?” he finally asked. “I never was able to take you on that date and you were just attacked. I don’t want you to feel pressured into anything.”

“We can eat a date-like dinner afterwards,” she insisted as she moved forward to nip at his neck. He groaned deeply and her panties were soaked completely through. “Besides, that was your rule, not mine. Our months of exchanging old-fashioned letters was plenty of ‘wooing’ for me. I want this. I want you . The poachers were idiots and never stood any real threat against me. They were were sneaky enough to abduct me and tie me up, sure, but I was able to take them out while still woozy on chloroform—”

“They drugged you?” Charlie pulled back. “I’m really not sure this is a good idea.”

Hermione growled, summoned her bag and ripped out a bezoar. Before he could react, she popped it in her mouth and swallowed it like a large pill.

“I’ve now taken an anti-poison, alright? So let’s go through your list: no psychological damage, no remaining foreign toxins in my system, and I’ve been properly wooed through months of letters, so dinner can wait. I promise I’m okay and I want this. Like you said, I’m a witch who can take care of herself. But if you’re not up to the challenge—”

In the next moment, she found her back pressed to the small area of wall beside the fireplace as a very handsome Charlie Weasley caged her in.

“Don’t tempt me,” he warned.

“Don’t hold back,” she challenged.

They clashed in the middle. Teeth nipped and tongues fought.

When he pulled back again, Hermione could see Charlie was finally serious. He leaned down so his lips were at her ear.

“Do you want me to take you, little witch?” he asked, his voice gruff with desire. “Do you want me to rip these clothes off of you and fuck you so deep and hard that your body can’t remember how it ever survived without my cock? Do you want me to make you come so hard that you’ll forget your own name because you’ll be too busy screaming mine?”

Hermione whimpered and clung to him. Her pussy spasmed in need. There was no way her knickers would be salvageable after this. They passed the point of no return long ago. She never knew she had a thing for dirty talk, but Charlie’s words had shot straight to her core.

Hermione found herself practically humping his leg for any trace of friction. He pulled her arms over her head and pinned them to the wall above her. He moved into her space so that he was the one rubbing his jean-covered cock against her core.

She whimpered needily.

Charlie’s cerulean eyes turned navy at the sound. “Tell me what you want, little witch, and I’ll give it to you.”

“I— I want—” She swallowed. “I want to thank you.”

He blinked and her words were enough to confuse him.

“You don’t have to—”

“Charlie,” she interrupted as her eyes took on a mischievous gleam. “I want to thank you for coming to save me today.”

He was dumbstruck by her. She wanted to lead? Fine.

“You wish is my command,” he said roughly as he leaned back.

“Can you… Can you sit on the couch?” she asked shyly. She knew what she wanted to do, but had no idea how he’d react.

He looked at her, got the hint, and his eyes widened.

“Mi… you don’t have to do anything that—”

“I want to,” she interrupted. “Can I?”

He was so caught off guard by disbelief, he did the only thing he could think of: he laughed.

“Hermione,” he kissed her. “You’ve had me by the balls since you got here, babe. I’m yours in any way you want me. If you already have my balls, I have no issue giving you my cock to complete the set.”

She grinned darkly as she kissed him fiercely and guided him backwards towards the couch. He willingly let her lead and collapsed into the comfortable leather as soon as the backs of his calves hit the material.

She smiled down at him and crossed her arms over her chest as she pulled her sweater off.

Charlie’s dick twitched in his pants. Her ruby red bra was covered in a sheer pearl-colored lace and it left little to the imagination. Her hips dipped in a way that begged for his hands to hold her there. She was gorgeous, but he froze nonetheless.

Her chest was bisected by a large purple scar.

“What… What happened to you?” he knew immediately after he asked that she probably wouldn’t want to talk about it because she swiftly covered her chest self-consciously. “Hey, come here.” He held out his hand for her. She was beautiful in his eyes and he wanted to make that clear to her. He was worried for a second that she’d ignore him and bolt, but was intensely relieved when she took his hand after a moment’s hesitation.

He pulled her into his lap and situated her so she’d be comfortable straddling him. Once she was settled, he cupped her cheek and pulled her into a deep kiss. He didn’t shy away from touching her. He wanted her to know that a few scars wouldn’t scare him off. He thought she was sexy as sin for who she was — not what her body looked like. Though, if he were being honest, her body was sexy as sin too.

His hands tangled in her hair and hers loosely looped around his neck. He kissed her as if she were the oxygen he needed to breathe and they didn’t separate until actual oxygen became necessary.

“I want to make one thing very clear before we go any further, alright?” he told her as he looked straight into her dark brown eyes. “I like you… a lot. Okay? I don’t like you for your body, I like you for who you are. As far as your body is concerned, I find you sexy as hell. A few battle scars aren’t going to change that. Hell, I’m covered in scars from head to toe. Do you think that makes me less attractive?”

“That’s a little arrogant, don’t you think? She asked with a roll of her eyes as she averted her gaze. Charlie still caught her dry swallow and smirked. 

“Answer the question, little witch,” he encouraged confidently. He knew he was attractive to most women, but he really wanted her to share her own thoughts.

“I … I think you’re very attractive,” she admitted softly.

“Yeah?” He looked her right in the eye as his hands reached between them to peel his shirt off. He knew scars mapped all of his skin. Whether it was from Quidditch injuries or keeping dragons, there was hardly a square inch of him that wasn’t covered in scars. He knew he still had a few scabbed wounds and the new skin Hermione had just healed was still pink and tender. “How about now?”

Hermione’s eyes widened at the damage across his body as her breath caught. When she helped him earlier she was focussed on the injury and tried not to think about the rest of his body. For a second he was worried until she dove in to kiss him deeply. Her hands clutched at him and she pressed her tongue against the seam of his lips.

He let her in immediately and he pulled her closer as his arms banded around her waist. He leaned back against the couch cushions and loved feeling her weight on top of him. When she pulled back, he let her go unwillingly, but sighed while she ran her hands over his pecs as she looked at his scars.

“You’re so brave,” she whispered in admiration.

“Now you understand how I see you,” he told her as his hands tightened on her hips.

She smiled with a little more confidence and kissed him deeply again before pulling back. He pouted until she smirked.

“I’m assuming there’s more than a wand in your pants?” she asked seductively as she rolled her hips in his lap. “Because if that’s your cock I still really want to taste it, if you’ll let me.” If he wanted to talk dirty, so would she. His eyes grew wide. Her gaze darkened further as she deliberately ground her hips into his further to feel the quickly hardening bar of his cock. She barely swallowed her whimper at the bulge he produced and she licked her lip to help mask the sound. “I wanted to see how far I could get it. I wonder if it’s long enough for me to really swallow .”

It was his turn to dry swallow at her words. Situated in his lap, her mouth descended on his, and she moaned when his hands slid from her hips to her back to try and hold her against him in an effort to deepen the kiss further. 

She refused to let him as she pulled back and maneuvered herself between his legs, kissing her way down his chest as she went. Hermione made sure to pay special attention to his scars and lathing his Chinese Fireball dragon tattoo on his stomach with her tongue — who preened at her attention — before moving further south. When she reached his treasure trail and saw that he really did have the Adonis hips, she licked her lips. She didn’t know what it was, but that ‘V’ did things to her — like cause butterflies to erupt in her lower stomach.

He was stunned in the best way. He never could have guessed what a vixen Hermione Let’s-Go-To-The-Library Granger could be and his dick hardened to a painful degree in excitement.

Sexy, smart, and dedicated to magical creatures? They might as well have handed Charlie a stick of dynamite when they asked him to house her. He had a feeling she’d be just as dangerous to his heart as well.

She tugged at his trousers and smiled when he raised his hips to help her slip them off. She was even more pleased to find he’d gone commando. She gave him a salacious smirk while she ran her hand over him. 

“For me?” she asked teasingly.

“I didn’t mean to— I always sleep—”

Licking the head of his cock, Hermione grinned when he groaned encouragingly and cut off his unneeded explanation. His eyes were squeezed shut and his fingers flexed at his side as if he was afraid she’d stop if he touched her. That won’t do, she thought. She knew that feeling all too well and hated it. She wasn’t made of glass and he wouldn’t break her. She kissed the underside of the head of his cock before pulling back, making sure to run her hand up and down his length. “You can touch me, you know? I’m thanking you for saving my life today, after all. This is for you.”

He met her eyes instantly. She grinned saucily and winked at him before she went back to her ‘task’. She grinned to herself when he tentatively wove his hand in her hair and rewarded him by tracing the vein up the back of his cock. She carefully lathed every inch of him with attention, moaning lightly in response to his own pleasured grunts and how he felt like velvet covered steel in her hand and mouth.

“Merlin, that feels good,” Charlie praised in a groan as her lips wrapped around the head of his cock and sucked lightly. “My god, Mi, you feel so good.” He subconsciously pulled her further on him with his grip on her hair before he realized what he was doing. He loosened his grip and stroked her hair in apology. She looked up at him and hummed with his cock still in her mouth. It created a very pleasurable vibration and he rolled his hips for a moment before her hands stilled him by settling on his waist.

At first, she focused on sucking at the mushroom head while her fist stroked the base, but as he grew more wet from her saliva, she started bobbing further. Charlie’s heavy pants reverberated in her ears as she tried taking more and more of him into her mouth. Pulling away for a moment, she pulled her wand from her thigh holster and whispered a lubrication spell before discarding the vinewood on the ground beside her. His cock was instantly more slippery in her hand and he groaned loudly at the difference in feeling. 

She grinned as she took him back into her mouth. This was a trick she had learned with a previous partner. When she couldn’t provide enough lubrication on her own — it happened sometimes — a lubrication spell slicked things up a lot better than lube. The spell was flavorless, unlike most lubes which left a funky taste in her mouth more often than not.

The extra lubrication made it easier to slip Charlie further in her mouth. When he nudged the back of her throat, she took a deep breath through her nose and then surged forward so he slipped down her throat until her nose brushed the curls at his hips.

He gasped and nearly lost it at that. If he thought her mouth was tight and wet, it was nothing in comparison to the narrow channel of her throat. When she swallowed around his dick, he felt the heavens open to take him as his eyes crossed. No witch had ever tried to take him this far.

“Oh, bloody hell, Mi,” Charlie panted as his hips involuntarily started thrusting lightly into her throat. When she tapped his thigh, he let her up for a breath before she took him back in her throat. Somehow it felt even wetter the second time and she started bobbing harder. It took every ounce of willpower to not thrust into her and let her lead her own pace.

A strangled gasp left his throat and his hand tangled in her hair as he started trying to name Quidditch players in an effort to hold off as long as possible. The feeling was exquisite and was borderline unhinging. No matter how many players he could name, he felt himself quickly nearing his end. He didn’t want to surprise her if she wasn’t into swallowing, so he tried to warn her.

“Mi… babe, stop. I’m gonna—”

She didn’t need him to say anymore as she felt the tell-tale pulsing in his shaft. Instead of stopping, like she knew he was trying to warn her to do, she started bobbing her head quicker. She wanted him to come. She didn’t typically like swallowing, but she really had no interest in stopping what she was doing either. Not when it put that look on Charlie Weasley’s face anyway.

“Merlin, fucking hell… Hermione!” he shouted as he lost his tentative grip on his control and came down her throat. She didn’t try to pull away as she swallowed quickly. His hands relaxed instinctively as she pulled back. He shuddered when her lips sucked his shaft to milk every last drop of his climax from him. 

Releasing him with a pop, she sat back and gave him a moment to recover as she slipped her pants down her legs, leaving her in just her underwear. She felt a drop dangling from her lip and wiped it away. She was in the process of sucking the milky droplet off her finger, when Charlie suddenly surged forward to tug her into his arms.

“When the fuck did you learn to do that ?” he demanded as he settled her back into his lap.

“I read so many books. Depending on which ones I pick up, they give some really good pointers, namely that it works only if you’re able to relax your throat,” she said slyly. In most cases, she would have been embarrassed to admit that she liked erotica. Being around Charlie made her feel more self-confident, as if nothing she said would make him turn away. The more she was around him, the more she saw herself through his eyes. She liked that version of herself more than she liked her own version. The way he eyed her caused those pesky butterflies to erupt in her stomach again, even as her underwear became uncomfortably damp. “Do you accept my apology?” she asked.

“I thought you were ‘thanking’ me for saving you,” he quipped with a grin as he rolled his hips up into hers. She whimpered at the friction against her lace underwear.

He was already hardening again.

“We… um… we both know I took care of the saving,” she replied as she tried to stay focused on their conversation as desire coursed through her veins.

“Are you saying that you just apologized for making me worried?” Charlie asked, taking over the game. He couldn’t wait to have her, but after that, he wanted to return the favor.

“Mm-hmm,” Hermione whimpered as she rolled her hips desperately. Her need was peskily clouding the rational part of her brain and she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to be saying. She hoped a whimper would suffice as Charlie’s hands started exploring her body.

He grinned as he pulled her mouth down to meet his own. He thrust his tongue into the wet cavern and tasted himself. Reminded again of what she had just done, he groaned and deepened the kiss, tangling his tongue with her own. She whimpered in response and clutched at him. He grinned and wrapped her legs around his waist. Standing, he wrapped her in his arms so they were practically moulded together.

“I typically don’t go off that quickly,” he apologized as he carried her towards the stairs. “You are truly a one-of-a-kind witch.”

She keened as each step jostled her against him. “You’ve been... you’ve been missing out,” she told him as she nibbled at his ear. He couldn’t help but stop to pin her to the wall at the first landing to grind against her as he kissed her deeply. She fit so perfectly against him, he felt like an idiot for holding off as long as he had. This one-of-a-kind witch would be the death of him if he didn’t get her into his bed soon.

He vowed to remedy that immediately.

Notes:

Sooo... Your lovely reviews had me adding a better explanation to Charlie's attitude in my edits. That made chapter 11 grow so long that I decided to split it into two parts making an extra chapter appear! I didn't want to mess up my posting schedule, so this week you lucky ducks get THREE chapters!!!
I hope Charlie's attitude makes sense and that you enjoyed the following smut!!! Fun fact: the next chapter will be the continuation of this!
Let me know what you think!

Chapter 12: December 22nd - Night

Notes:

First off, I have to say thank you to all of your lovely reviews thus far. The feedback is far better than I ever expected and I'm so grateful to everyone! You have made me cry more times than I can count and I feel so grateful. Thank you.
New note, Zabethou has joined my "editing team" as a secondary beta, so major thanks to her for her help!!!
In other news, sexy times are upon us!!! I'll let Charlie and Hermione get back to it now! lolol

Hermione startled in surprise when he set her down to stand on wobbly legs which immediately buckled. He quickly tugged her close to support her weight in his embrace. She immediately followed his lead and wrapped her arms around his neck as he showered her with kisses as they stood on the landing. She was in the process of melting at the affectionate action, when she felt the tell-tale suction of side-along Apparition.

The next thing she knew, she was standing in a bedroom which housed a wall of bookshelves, a couple of matching dressers, and a large bed.

Normally, she’d beeline for the books, but the only thing she wanted to study at the moment was how many times Charlie Weasley could make her come before he drove her crazy.

By her count, he was close to getting his first tally mark.

He seemed to be of the same mindset as he laid her down gently on the mattress, quickly climbing on top of her to claim her lips again in a rough and heated kiss.

His lips quickly found the column of her throat as he ghosted kisses along the sensitive skin. She felt a shiver run up her spine at the feeling.

Even though he had just come, Charlie was hard again and his heavy cock was rubbing deliciously against her dripping core. She tried to buck up and take him, but he moved back so they just slipped against each other instead.

She whimpered in need.

“Patience, love,” he chided. “I have plans for you.”

“Please stop teasing me,” she begged with a high pitched whine as she felt his member rub against her clit.

“I need to make sure you’re ready for me,” he winked as he kissed her one last time before moving lower. He missed the way she tensed at his words.

He intentionally kept his pace slow as he kissed his way down her neck, taking extra time to lave her pulse point with attention. As he moved lower, he made sure to give extra attention to the purple scar that bisected her chest. He didn’t want her to think that he thought any less of her for it. He was dating a lovely woman who had survived in a war when she was far too young to be fighting. He deliberately kissed over her heart before he moved to unclasp her bra and pull it away. Once she was divested of the garment, he kissed his way to the breast the scar covered, making sure to flatten his tongue against the nipple before flicking it and sucking it into his mouth as his other hand played with the other side.

They were the perfect size to fill his hands and he salivated at the feeling of her nipples hardening against his tongue at his ministrations. Once one nipple was nice and wet, he kissed across her chest and paid the same graces to the other one. She whimpered and bucked against him encouragingly. He grinned up at her deviously as he continued his path south.

He was fully enjoying the feel of her soft skin shuddering and her sighs of pleasure as he descended lower to settle between her legs, drawing her knickers down her legs as he did. When he spread her legs to reveal her pussy to his gaze, he groaned and moved her legs to rest over his broad shoulders. She looked delectable and he was drooling at the opportunity to return her earlier favor.

He didn’t know about Hermione’s insecurities.

She had no issue sucking her partner off and actually enjoyed it immensely with a considerate partner. Charlie had been the best by far, but that was beside the point. She didn’t mind going down on her partners, but when they went down on her, she got tense.

She knew she tended to be a very sensitive participant in the bedroom. It didn’t take much to get her going with a trusted partner. That’s why most of her paramours had been colleagues with benefits more than one night stands.

The one thing they all complained about the most was when they went to eat her out, she always moved too much and it made an unenjoyable activity for them unbearable.

Yeah, she’d slept with a lot of winners in the past.

Since most of her past partners had hated eating her out, she had half been expecting him to dive right in and get it over with when he mentioned it. Instead, he had gently slid down her legs and was tenderly nipping his way back up her leg. He completely skipped her pussy and repeated the process on the other side. His fingers started teasing her core, but instead of piercing her and fucking her vigorously, he was taking the time to spread her juices around her labia, never applying pressure where she needed it.

It was maddening.

She whimpered as she grasped the sheets in a deathgrip, determined not to move too much lest he decided it was too much work and moved on too fast. She knew what it felt like if they moved onto the main event before she was properly ready and she’d rather come first if he was offering the opportunity. Especially since she felt like she was seconds from catching on fire anyway.

Unbeknownst to her inner turmoil, Charlie had moved on to lick tentatively at her core. He groaned as her flavor spread across his tongue. She was delicious . He eagerly speared his tongue into her, desperate to collect more of her nectar. He curled his tongue inside of her and let his teeth tease her clit as he enthusiastically ate her out. 

Hermione arched her back and panted as he assaulted her with multiple sensations. Her fingers itched to bury themselves in his red curls as his fingers moved to finally pierce her core. Her body tensed as she refrained from grinding her cunt into Charlie’s face when he moved to suck at her clit. 

Glancing up at her to gauge her reaction, Charlie’s brow furrowed. She hadn’t pushed him away, but her knuckles were white from gripping the sheets and her body was taught in tension as she breathed shallowly. 

“Are you okay?” he asked. If she was uncomfortable, he wanted to fix whatever he was doing wrong. He had waited too long for this moment to screw everything by rushing into things.

“Please, don’t stop,” Hermione begged desperately as she panted. His fingers chose that moment to find the spot inside her that made her see stars and she bucked her hips involuntarily. “Sorry,” she whispered. 

Charlie stopped immediately and pulled back. Her voice was so small in her apology and she was obviously tense. He had no interest in continuing until he figured out what was wrong.

“What happened?” he asked. “Why are you apologizing to me? You already did that, remember?” He hoped making a joke would help ease her tension as he took the opportunity to kiss her, but it didn’t work as she avoided his gaze. His brow furrowed further. “Talk to me,” he begged. “Did I do something wrong?”

“Of course, you didn’t do anything wrong." She winced at her explanation before propping herself up on her elbows, deciding to just lay her cards on the table. “I moved.”

Charlie blinked repeatedly as he tried to make sense of her comment.

“Can you run that by me again?” he asked, as he sat back on his haunches, unashamed in his nakedness as his dick pointed eagerly towards her. He guessed it came from the Black side of the family tree, but he didn’t feel a lot of shame. “Why are you upset that you moved?”

“Guys don’t tend to like it when I—” Charlie didn’t let her finish before he was on top of her, pressing her back into the mattress with his weight. She made a muffled sound of surprise, but he ignored it as he pressed his tongue into her mouth.

“I like you. A lot,” he said, pressing his forehead against hers. “I want to make sure that this thing between us doesn’t ruin the friendship we already have, and that means we have to be honest with each other. If I do something you don’t like, tell me and I will stop. The same expectation goes for me; if you do something I don’t like, we’ll discuss it like adults. Your exes don’t have a say in what we are doing together. Can you tell me if I did anything that made you feel uncomfortable?”

Hermione was getting emotional, hearing Charlie explain things so simply made her feel stupid for her assumptions. However, experience told her that even if he seemed enthusiastic now, he would certainly change his mind after seeing what she was like when she received oral sex.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, looking down. “I didn’t mean to make a big deal out of this, please forget about it.”

“Mi, please. Talk to me. Don’t be embarrassed. Just try to focus on what you feel, and I promise I won’t mock you, however silly you think it is.” While trying to calm her down, he continued to rub circles on her arms and back in comforting motions. 

“It’s just...” she stopped herself, trying to order her thoughts. She sighed. “I know you said that my exes don’t have a right to impact what is happening here, but my experience tells me that me being vocal and bucking and thrashing makes them hate oral even more and I don’t want you to experience that and then regret it.”

“Hate oral?” Charlie was obviously confused — and slightly distracted as images of Hermione riding his face danced through his mind. “You gave the best head I've ever received! Were they dropped on their heads as children?”

“No!” she giggled. “I meant giving oral, not receiving. They were pleased enough about that part,” she finished with a frown.

“Okay, that’s it. I will need a list of names because I have some asses to kick while I’m in Britain.”

Hermione giggled again and it succeeded in relieving her of some of her tension, but he was at least partly serious. In his opinion, there was nothing more sexy than when a witch directed him exactly how she wanted him. He knew he was more of a rare case for his gender, but he loved eating a girl out. There was nothing more glorious than seeing a witch come apart from nothing more than his tongue and fingers. If she had the confidence to direct him in her pleasure, it only increased the experience.

“We’re starting over that mindset, okay?” he decided. “To be very clear, I love eating a woman out. I want to give you pleasure, and the head rush from making you peak with only my tongue and fingers? Incredible. I have always liked strong women, so a woman taking control when I’m eating her out? Sexy as sin. I’m not most guys, okay? You can relax with me. First and foremost, I want you to be happy and comfortable.” 

Hermione bit her lip, nodding after a few moments of consideration.

“Can we… can we ease into it?” she asked. “Old habits die hard, but I’d like to try again… That is, if I haven’t ruined the mood entirely.”

Charlie grinned like a fool and kissed her again as his hands grazed her skin and quickly returned her to her previous state of arousal.

“Just try and stop me,” he whispered with a wink, lowering his mouth to her jaw and lightly kissing the column of her throat as his middle finger returned to her entrance. “You just focus on relaxing and I promise that you’ll enjoy it.”

Hermione nodded and gasped when he added a second finger and started slowly fucking her with them. When she whimpered and rolled her hips, Charlie kissed her fiercely. Their tongues slid against one another as if they'd been together for years, not hours. He wrapped his free hand behind her neck and pulled her as close as he could get her as he kneeled over her, his other hand still pumping slowly into her core. 

She felt his fingers curl just slightly inside her to graze the spongy patch of her g-spot and gasped while her nails gripped his back, a wave of pleasure rushing her.

“Oh fuck! Charlie,” she moaned, angling her hips just slightly so his fingers would brush the same spot again. 

Charlie hummed softly with a grin. “That’s a good girl,” he praised as his fingers started moving faster. “You look so good when you fuck yourself on my fingers. I want to see what you look like when you come apart. Can you come for me? Can you come on my hand like a good girl?”

The combination of his praising dirty talk and the way his fingers repeatedly hit her g-spot proved to be too much as she crested the peak for the first time, coming with a shout.

When Hermione cried out, Charlie slowed his movements just enough for her to ride out her orgasm. She panted and ground her hips into his hand as her nails dug into his arms. He pressed open-mouthed kisses against her neck and whispered dirty promises into her ear while she came down from her high.

“No more teasing,” she begged. “I need you. Please Charlie. I need you so badly.”

“Are you sure?” Charlie asked with a sly grin. “You haven’t come on my mouth yet.”

“Later,” she compromised. “I need you too much. Please don’t make me wait.”

If Charlie didn’t think he was hard before, he swore he could hammer nails with his dick right then. He had Hermione fucking Granger panting and begging him to fuck her. He was a mere mortal helpless but to obey the goddess before him.

“How do you want me?” he asked.

“Don’t care,” she begged. “I just need you.”

“Did your ex-lovers at least take good care of you when they fucked you or were they assholes in the sack as well?” he asked as he nipped her ear. “Did my brother not treat you well enough? Ron really must have done you a disservice.”

“Not that I’d know because we never really made it that far, but if Luna is to be believed, he’s not bad. However , I’d prefer to not discuss your family while you’re naked on top of me. It’s a bit of a turnoff,” she told him honestly, with a hint of humor.

“Fair point,” Charlie conceded with a chuckle. “Well, I guess I’ll just need to make sure I take excellent care of you so you know how good we can be.”

If she noticed the potential deeper meaning of his words, she didn’t comment on it as her hands wove through his flame colored locks. 

“Please,” Hermione moaned needily instead.

“Charm or potion?” he asked. As charmed as he was by her, he had no interest in producing a baby before they were formally a well-established couple and ready to start a family. That meant waiting at least a few months, if not a few years.

“Potion, but cast the charm to be safe,” she replied, appreciating the consideration.

He nodded, waving his hand over her belly using wandless magic quickly before he aimed his cock at her center and slowly pushed himself into her dripping sex.

She gasped at the intrusion. Even loosened up, she had never been stretched this far before. He was much larger than she was used to. Her body struggled to accommodate him and he had to take a few slow thrusts to fill her. He could tell that she needed a moment from the pinched expression on her face, but her cunt was so hot and wet that he struggled to stay still.

“Bloody hell, Mi, you feel so good wrapped around my cock. You have no idea how beautiful you look right now,” he grunted as he looked down at her from above. Her curls were sprayed out around her head like a halo and her skin was glistening with a light layer of sweat.

If there was anything that was a guarantee to turn her on, it was praise. She lived for it, and yet so rarely received it. If she were being honest, that was one of the reasons she always strived to do well in school. She’d never admit it out loud though, but her body responded for her as her pussy fluttered around his shaft at his praise.

“Oh, fuck,” he groaned at the feeling as he moved to palm one of her breasts. “Do you like dirty talk, Mi? Do you like it when I tell you what a good girl you are for taking my cock so prettily.”

She pulled him down to kiss her as she rolled her hips once.

“Just praise and dirty talk,” she told him, turning red as she decided to be honest in the beginning. He told her she was safe with him and she decided to trust in those words. “No condescension or little girl and daddy grossness.”

Charlie grinned. “How about calling you ‘babe’?” he asked as he tweaked one nipple with his fingers and wrapped his lips around the other.

“Anything is fine within the right context,” she panted as her hips bucked into his, grinding up against him and encouraging him to move. “I’ll tell you if you say something that’s a turnoff. Now less talking and more fucking.”

He groaned in response as he started moving again. Rolling his hips into her, he dropped his head to Hermione's shoulder and bit at the juncture of her neck to leave a trail of hickeys. He slowed his pace to long and hard thrusts when he felt her pussy ripple around him, trying to keep him inside of her. 

“Fuck, Hermione,” he groaned in appreciation, feeling her tighten on him.

“That’s right,” Hermione instructed with a roll of her hips, “Fuck Hermione.”

Charlie laughed at his snarky witch while he slowly pumped into her. He had been with several witches over the years at the Reserve, but no one was like her. He moved to reposition her by wrapping her legs around his waist so he could drive deeper into her core. He didn’t want to go too hard right off the bat, so he kept his tempo steady as he slowly increased the pace. He was soon snapping his hips into hers and they both groaned in response to the feeling of him sliding in and out of her.

Hermione couldn’t help it as she whined and clawed at his arms and back as he pounded into her. While she’d had sex in the past, it had never been as intense as this. Her partners had always treated her delicately as if she’d break if they were rough with her, but Charlie wasn’t like them. He was treating her like his equal and trusted her to tell him if he was being too rough, but she had no complaints to report as she rode him back from beneath him. The feeling was intense as he repeatedly hit her g-spot. She struggled to keep her eyes from rolling into the back of her head as he fucked her core.

When Charlie adjusted his grip so that one of her legs was lifted over his shoulder, he slid further inside to hit a wonderful spot against her womb that she never knew existed. Instantaneously, her back arched off the mattress as if controlled by a puppeteer and she cried his name to the heavens while her nails dug into the skin of his upper arms.

“Oh, fuck, yes ! Charlie, fuck me harder, please! Oh, god, yes! Yes! Yes!” 

Barely realizing it, she clenched her core tightly around him and Charlie’s pace stuttered at the sudden extra pressure, but he was able to hold back his orgasm and keep going. She adjusted her position so the angle his cock slammed into her hit the same spot repeatedly as his hand took the opportunity to rub vigorously at her clit. She whimpered at the overstimulation and her pussy clutched and massaged his cock in response. 

A few thrusts later, her encouraging moans turned into screams of pure pleasure as she fell into her second orgasm. Charlie nearly came when she clamped down on him with a vice-like grip, but he slowed to a stop instead. He desperately tamped down his own release by reciting key figures from the Goblin Revolutionary War in his head, determined to feel her come one more time before he joined her.

A few moments later, Hermione relaxed and he bent down to kiss her deeply as he started moving again. Still sensitive, she whimpered and pulled him down to her to kiss and nip at any inch of skin she could reach. When he pulled out of her to roll onto his back, she quickly followed and straddled his lap. Instead of immediately riding him, she ground her pussy onto his cock to create some pleasurable friction for both of them. When she couldn’t take it anymore, she reached between them and guided his cock back into her cunt.

The new position meant that his dick hit nothing but her g-spot and she was helpless to do much but babble and whimper incoherently as the pleasure assaulted her core and overwhelmed her senses as she rode him. She clawed desperately at the dips and ridges of muscle on his chest, grinning as her nails left little crescent moons on his shoulders. When he reached up to fondle her breasts in tempo with his upwards thrusts, she moaned and rode him like a Knockturn Alley whore.

His cock made the feeling of shame evaporate as she babbled praise while chasing her orgasm. It was just out of reach and she ground her hips into his, desperately seeking it.

His hands were occupied by massaging her breasts, so reached down to tap and rub against her clit on her own. She teased and pulled at the sensitive nub as he flicked and pinched at her nipples. Neither was enough to throw her over the edge.

“Charlie,” she begged. “I need… I need…”

He was so close he could taste it, so he sat up and wrapped her legs behind him. The new position left her sitting in his lap as he ground up into her, applying pressure to her clit with his pelvis as her hands tangled in his hair.

“Come on, love,” he ordered as he ploughed up into her from below, using his grip on her hips to guide her up and down. “Come on, baby, I want to feel you come on my cock.” He growled roughly as he drove into her while his hands took a softer detour from his punishing thrusts. He traced her rib cage with the lightest of touches and the feather-like sensation left tingling goosebumps in the wake of his fingers.

She clenched her eyes shut while she desperately ground her hips to meet his upwards thrusts. Her breath was coming in shorter pants as her body tensed up completely. She felt another orgasm coming like the Hogwarts Express was about to crash into her. 

“Oh, Charlie! I’m so close. Please, please come with me!” she begged as clung to him desperately, kissing any bit of skin she could reach.

Charlie finally let himself go as he moved to his knees and used his grip on her hips to thrust up into her erratically. Her hands found the hair at the nape of his neck as she clung to him and met his passion head-on while trusting him not to drop her. Her hand cradled his face, pulling him into a desperate kiss as their hips never stopped moving against each other. This had been coming for years and they were desperate to reach their climaxes together. He didn’t hold back anything from her as he pistoned into her weeping and quivering core. 

When his lips sucked at her pulse point, Hermione shattered around him with an ear-piercing scream of his name and he joined her a few thrusts later. He stilled as he spilled inside of her while they both called each other’s names and scratched and clung to each other. He fell backwards and she collapsed on top of him in orgasmic bliss.

She moaned at the overstimulated feeling when he slipped out of her deliciously abused core. As soon as they could move, he rolled them to their sides so that she could snuggle into his open arms.

He waited for them to catch their breaths then pressed a kiss to her forehead. 

“Don’t move, I’ll be back in a second,” he said while getting up.

“I don’t think I could move even if I wanted to,” she mumbled as she laid on her side, slowly melting into the soft and plush mattress. She had not felt this relaxed in years, if not ever. The closest experience she could think of was when her mother had taken her on a shopping and spa day for her birthday the year before, but even then the masseuse didn’t hold a candle to Charlie’s ‘relaxation techniques’. He had quite literally fucked the tension out of her body.

That thought made her giggle right as Charlie re-entered the room.

“What’s on your mind, gorgeous?” he asked teasingly as he rejoined her on his bed with a glass of water and a damp warm towel. “I want to know what put that smile on your face.”

“Charlie!” She smiled while swatting at his arm as he sat on the bed and put down the glass on the bedside table. “If you must know, I was thinking how popular you could be in a Muggle spa, helping people relax… However, I’m not quite willing to share your talents with the world yet so you’ll have to make do with me as your only customer. That is, if you don’t mind,” she trailed as she realized what she had been saying and that she could be coming on a little bit strong.

“Princess, the things your mind comes up with amazes me. Of course you’ll be my only customer. I’ve been waiting for years to serve you." He winked before leaning in to kiss her tenderly. “Now, please don’t move for a minute. I want to clean you up a bit,” he said gently as he rolled her on her back and spread her legs a little bit.

“Why don’t you just use the spell?” she asked, confused. Most men — when they even thought about cleaning up instead of just passing out immediately — cast a quick Scourgify and then rolled over to snore away.

“Because this is less aggressive on the skin, and gives us time to cool down,” he said as he meticulously cleaned her labia and her thighs. “I’m not adverse to using the spell, but I want to take a moment to cherish you.” He smiled as she shivered, clearly still sensitive.

Hermione didn’t know what to do. He was so caring and different from what she had experienced before. She couldn’t believe she was the sole focus of his attention. Tearing up, she hiccuped before hiding her face in her hands. 

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s happening to me! You’re so kind, and caring, and here I am crying like a little girl after the best shag of my life and…” She stopped as he took her in his arms.

“It’s okay, Mi,” he shushed her. “Breathe in, and out. It’s just the stress of the day, and you’re not used to the contrast of how men have treated you before and how I act with you. You don’t know how to react to a man cherishing you. Don’t worry, I’m in no hurry. We’ll get there together. Now, let’s get some rest. I’ve got you.” And they would get there. He vowed to himself that Hermione Granger would learn to appreciate her worth, even if he had to worship her for years before she trusted him. If anything, he looked forward to the task and didn’t see it as a chore in any way. 

While Charlie was calming her, Hermione thought over what he had said. He was right. Even if she thought she had been alright, the day had been stressful and Charlie was turning the tables on all of her previous expectations in regards to sex. She decided that she would do her best to listen to him and change her views about herself. 

She mindlessly traced the green dragon tattoo which had peeked over his shoulder to curl up on his right pec. On closer inspection, she saw that he had a few more and she desperately wanted to inspect them further, but she could barely move.

“Remind me to look closer at your tattoos tomorrow,” she whispered sleepily as she felt him cast a wandless cleansing charm over both of them.

“Only if you agree to officially be my girlfriend,” he told her.

She forced herself to stir and face him, her concern written plainly on her face.

He stopped her with a kiss to her lips. 

“I know you’re going to say something about the distance, but I really want to try,” he told her. “I really have grown to care about you and I’d love it if we could at least try before deciding the idea is impossible.”

She studied him for a moment before she gave in and nodded. He hadn’t said that he loved her, and she definitely hadn’t admitted it herself, but they both could tell it was just under the surface. They had been dancing around it for months, if not years.

Their letters were basically literary foreplay and they knew so much about each other.

What had started as a business correspondence had quickly grown as kindred spirits found each other. He preferred to work with his hands outside and she preferred to read indoors, so they may not look like the ideal match to many. The truth of the matter was that they both cared about magical creatures more than themselves and many didn’t understand why. For Hermione and Charlie it was a bonding point.

They discussed their favorite books for research into their favorite subject and their conversations had grown to encompass more.

He knew her favorite color and she knew that he was seven when he fell off a broom for the first time.

He knew her first accidental display of magic came when she was five and that she had used it to recover a confiscated book ‘above her reading level’, and she knew his favorite food was his mother’s shepherds’ pie.

They knew each other’s biggest fears and dreams. This inspection may have been their first opportunity to spend a lot of private time around each other, but they’d been falling for a long time already.

Consequences be damned, she wanted to try with him. They both always prioritized work and, for the first time, Hermione wanted something else to come first. She looked up into Charlie’s cerulean eyes and nodded.

“Let’s try,” she agreed. His eyes sparkled and he pressed a searing kiss against her mouth.

After that, he rolled her over and showed her exactly how desirable he found his witch — a woman who cared about magical creatures and could also take care of herself  — for the rest of the night into the early dawn hours.

Notes:

And... We're officially back to Monday and Thursday updates!
Let me know what you think!

Chapter 13: December 23rd - Morning

Notes:

Thanks again to my entire team of editing help. I appreciate each of you!
Now that our favorite couple is finally together, I thought I'd add some art made by K for this fic! I'm absolutely in LOVE with it!!!

Hermione winced as the sun filtered through the curtains and forced her out of her wonderful dream.

“Mmm,” she mumbled, snuggling backwards to get closer to the warmth in her bed. She smiled at the light tingling on her shoulder blade while strong, calloused, and scarred fingers danced lazily across her skin, making mindless patterns up and down her side, sending shivers down her spine. “Morning,” she whispered with a soft smile, tensing her body while she stretched and rolled over from where he was spooning her to flop her arm lazily around his waist.

She hadn’t ‘exercised’ like that in a long time. She felt deliciously sore all over and the fact she was still wrapped up in the arms of a handsomely scarred dragon tamer — instead of finding herself abandoned the morning after he got what he wanted — made the cold air seem insignificant.

“How long have you been awake?” she asked.

“Probably for about an hour, judging by the light from the sun,” he told her as he pulled her closer so he could kiss her forehead. “I didn’t want to move to actually check. I was comfortable.”

“You’re an early morning bird, then?” she asked as she leaned up for a proper kiss. When she pulled back, he had a stupidly large grin on his face.

“Absolutely,” Charlie beamed happily as he turned to his side to kiss her lips back playfully. “But I know you’ve told me that you’re not and, since we did stay up late, I wanted to let you sleep.”

She absolutely melted into a puddle at his words. He was too sweet. She had included in a letter, probably over two years ago, that she had overslept since the blankets had claimed her as their own and she didn’t want to seem rude by leaving.

He had sent her a Patronus back laughing extensively before they had talked on the phone for a few hours in the evening.

“You’re amazing,” she told him as she snuggled into his warmth.

“Not as wonderful as you are,” his tone was dark and his teeth grazed her shoulder. He rolled her onto her back and domestic bliss instantly melted away to make place for erotic desire.

She wanted him again.

Hermione looked into his eyes and saw the normally cerulean blues were darker than the deepest waters of the ocean. Dampness flooded out of her pussy and made her legs wet with her slick. She wiggled at the sensation and felt his hard cock pressing against her lower stomach. 

Charlie chuckled lowly and rolled on top of her. He licked his lips as his gaze surveyed her naked body hungrily. 

“Considering how wonderful you are, you wouldn’t let your boyfriend go hungry without breakfast this morning, would you?” he asked with a playful spark in his eyes.

She hesitated for only a moment before nodding. He wanted to eat her out. He wouldn’t ask if it were a chore for him. He had done such a wonderful job of reassuring her the evening before, she wanted to do her part and take a leap of faith. She wanted to trust that he’d take care of her and be honest about his wishes as well.

At her nod, he grinned down at her wolfishly before leaning in to press a sweet kiss against her eagerly accepting lips. He brushed his tongue lightly over hers and she opened to him like a flower to a bee seeking nectar. Charlie devoured her mouth just as hungrily as she kissed him back. He dove in and entwined their tongues in an age old dance for power. 

As the couple made out, Charlie supported his weight on his knees so he could slip his hands between them to tease her flesh into arousal. He began to massage her breasts and pluck at her rosy nipples. When they hardened in his well-practiced fingers, he ripped his mouth away from hers and began to leave open-mouthed kisses down her neck. He listened to her sighs as he mapped the tender flesh with his lips. He quickly discovered that the spot behind her ear made her hold her breath and the juncture where her collarbone met her neck made her arch into him eagerly whilst panting.

The pants, whimpers, and whispers of his name were music to his ears, and soon Charlie found himself painfully hard. He wasn’t, however, interested in having her until she overcame her fears. He was determined to make good on his promises and let her own her desires.

“I want you to ride my face, babe,” he grunted as he slithered down her body in the same path he’d made the previous night. She’d coaxed him into fucking her too soon, but he wanted — needed — her to come apart on his tongue. He needed her to let go of her past insecurities so they could start anew together. “I want you to show me just how you like to be eaten out. I want you to come on my tongue and scream my name so that no one questions if I take good care of you or not.”

Charlie felt a swell of pride when Hermione whimpered and nodded her head frantically as she moved to cling to his hair. She had already grown more confident since the previous night and trusted him to take care of her. Being bestowed with her complete trust was like he’d been injected with the strongest aphrodisiac.

He moved down between her legs and made sure to worship her scars as he moved across her stomach. They looked even harsher in the morning light, so he made sure to shower them with even more affection than he had before.

As he sank lower and lower, her fingers tightened in his long, curly locks. At first she’d thought it was the same Weasley-red she’d grown accustomed to with Ron, but Charlie’s hair had hints of amber and brown to offset the red.

When he spread the lips of her labia and dipped his tongue to taste her core, she could feel how wet she was. She could feel the moisture dripping down her slit to dampen her asshole and she arched in surprise when Charlie chased the trail.

“Charlie! I—”

“Fuck, Hermione,” Charlie rasped as he pulled back to meet her eyes. “You taste so good, I’m gonna make a goddamn meal out of you.”

And make a meal, he did. He immediately dove in and started tracing her clit with his tongue as his fingers dug for the delicious nectar in her core. He eagerly drank her up. She tasted salty and a little sweet. He was instantly addicted to the flavor and moved south to drink directly from the source.

She was lost to the sensations and ground up into his mouth. One hand was tangled in his longer hair and held him in place as her other hand grasped helplessly at the sheets. Charlie’s eyes noticed her hand and he moved the hand he was holding to pin her hips in place to grasp at her wrist. His tongue never stopped drinking from her core as he moved it so both of her hands were tangled in his locks.

She whimpered as she pulled her knees up higher. Her new grip had her relaxing further. It was as if Charlie had directed her how he wanted her to direct him. Instead of leaving it entirely up to her, he’d helped coach her how best to get what she wanted from him. The light bit of instruction was all it took for her to let go of her last strings of restraint as she pulled him in further.

To his credit, Charlie never skipped a beat. He loved the feeling of her taking control of her pleasure. If all it took was detangling her hands from her sheets, he’d take it as a win for her confidence. He wanted her to be as wild with him as she felt comfortable being.

“Keep your hands on me,” he ordered, his breath teasing her clit. “Focus on me. Feel what I’m doing. Focus on the feeling of me eating you out as if you were an all-you-can-eat buffet.”

“Really sexy,” she said sarcastically with a breathless laugh. Her eyes rolled back as he pressed a sucking kiss to her clit. Her head practically vibrated as she nodded with a whimper.

She bucked violently as his tongue teased and lathed at her clit while his fingers teased her entrance without ever fully piercing her — staying just out of reach for her to grind up into him. He pulled his hands away to spread her labia wide as he licked a stripe from ass to clit and repeated the process two, three times more before briefly adjusting his position.

Her legs were split wide, but he wanted to feel her come around him. He draped her legs over his shoulders as he dove back in. She shuddered at the feeling. His back was as heavily muscled as his chest. Her legs were clean shaven and the feeling of the muscles moving below her calves was sexy, but feeling the strength of his shoulders below her thighs was enough to make her see spots and quake.

“Charlie,” she begged. “I think I’m close. I think I’m gonna—”

Charlie pulled back from where he was sucking at her clit to smirk at her.

She huffed as she moved to prop herself up on her elbows. She moved a few stray curls out of her face as she glared at him.

“You did not seriously just stop,” she hissed.

“Just wanted to make sure it was still good,” he said innocently. “If you only think you’re about to come…”

She grunted in frustration and moved her hands from his head to push him back and reach between the apex of her thighs.

“It was fucking fantastic, but if you can’t finish the job then I guess that means I’ll just have to—”

Charlie’s face took on a wolfish and devilish grin as he gripped her wrists and pinned them to the bed beside her.

“Oh no, little witch,” he grinned evilly. “There’s no way I’m allowing you to come before I’ve had my fill.”

She bucked involuntarily when his tongue flicked her clit before it plunged into her quaking sex. Her eyes widened and she eagerly rolled her hips as his tongue sought all of her sensitive spots. She thought he’d been mindlessly touring her cunt before, but now she realized that he’d been mapping her out as he now easily found and targeted all of her weak spots.

Hermione cried out, her back arched slightly as her grip on the sheets beneath his hands tightened. The sheets weren’t the feeling she was looking for so she rolled her wrists to have him let her go. He made eye contact and released his grip. Before he could move away, her fingers were lacing with his own.

He smiled up at her and decided that’s all he needed from her: equality and trust. She was linking them as equals and it was intoxicating. He’d never been more turned on in his life than in the moment when Hermione took control. He was one lucky son-of-a-Molly to be allowed to call her his.

Charlie rewarded her actions by moving one of her hands back to his head before replacing his tongue with his hand. Not to remain idle, his lips moved back to her clit while he scissored his fingers against the sensitive, spongy patch just inside of her, taping her clit lightly with his tongue. He moved his mouth to nip and leave marks across her hips, consciously stopping his hand, and grinning devilishly when Hermione still forced herself down onto him, using her hips to plunge his fingers into her soaking core.

“That’s my good girl,” he praised. “Come on, babe. Fuck my hand. Fuck my face. Fucking show me what you want. Take your orgasm from me and own it.” He dove back in and licked at every part of her pussy that he could reach, his fingers constantly moving. She cried out and bucked against him.

When he slowed his pace to get deeper, she looked down at her hand holding his and felt warmth in her chest. Hermione was so thankful that he’d made an effort to help her realize her fears were baseless. Not all guys were the same. Not all guys were like her useless exes and not all men were like Charlie. She was grateful as hell that he’d shown her that so patiently so early in their relationship. As it were, this was only their second time being intimate and he already had given her the best oral sex she’d ever received and she hadn’t even come yet! He was not only enthusiastic and seemed to really enjoy himself, but he was strong and assertive, making her feel more and more like she could lose herself in the moment and he’d catch her if she fell. As her fingers ran through his hair, she felt the last of her tension ease from her body as she ground her hips up into his mouth fantasizing of how she’d thank him later.

Maybe she could do it in the shower before they got ready for their day.

“That’s my girl,” Charlie praised, pressing a quick kiss just above her sodden curls before diving back in with renewed vigor. His breath hitched when her fingers tightened in his hair and his eyes locked with hers when she used her grip to direct his movements.

Hermione groaned as pleasure had her teetering at the edge, but her orgasm remained just out of reach. She needed something extra to get her off, but she had no idea what. She whimpered and he made eye contact with her. He quickly took in her panting, flushed face and pulled out his secret weapon. He sucked her clit into his mouth, pressured his tongue against it and started humming. 

He very quickly found that he couldn’t breathe with how she was suddenly grinding her hips against his face. It was as if a marionette was electrocuting her. He didn’t care about the lack of oxygen as he heard a scream rip from her lungs as the pressure and vibrations against her clit caused her to freefall into oblivion.

When Hermione finally came back to earth, she lightly squeezed the hand that was still holding hers with an orgasmically-sated grin. She pulled it to her mouth and felt as the motion pulled Charlie up the bed. She didn’t care as she pressed a flurry of lazy kisses against his palm.

“Thank you,” she smiled lazily as she blinked her eyes open to stare into his deep blues. He ducked his head and kissed her eagerly.

She’d never had a man eat her as enthusiastically as that. It made her wonder what else she’d been missing out on as he slowly kissed her. His hands stayed still and only held her close as if his own pleasure was meaningless in comparison to seeing her go off like a firework.

“How was that?” he asked when he stopped kissing all over her face. “Was it any better than before?”

“I don’t think I’ve ever came so hard I screamed,” she mused. “I guess you earned an ‘Outstanding’ for that.”

“I think I gave you the ‘O’, doll,” Charlie chuckled.

She giggled at his plethora of pet names as she let him shower her with kisses. She hated nicknames in general, but she was finding she didn’t mind Charlie’s sweet names for her.

“Is that alright?” He asked as he pulled back after a moment. “If I remember correctly, you hate nicknames and I’ve just been—”

She blushed and interrupted him as she covered his lips with her hand. “It’s okay,” she told him earnestly in a small voice. “I promise to tell you if it changes, but I find I don’t mind as much when it’s you.”

“I love giving you sweet, loving names.” His grin turned soft as he looked down at her. “I love it just as much as I want to praise the heavens that my girl is just as wild as I am.”

Hermione blushed and bit her lip to hide her embarrassment and hold back her incredulous giggle, while she tried to avoid his gaze. When she finally looked up into Charlie' eyes, she sounded unsure as she asked, “Really?”

Charlie nodded with a soft smile and kissed her. “I’m not most guys, Hermione. I want you to feel completely open with me. I want us to be complete equals.”

“Completely?” she asked uncertainly.

“Absolutely no walls between us. Complete honesty,” he agreed. “We’ll have plenty trying to get between us with the distance and I don’t want ‘emotional distance’ to be another problem on the list.”

She melted in his arms at those words. She knew she should be sad about the reference to their separation, but all she wanted to do was be open with this wizard who wanted the same with her.

Besides, he still hadn’t come.

“Well… If we’re being completely open… There is this one thing I do want to try…”

Charlie didn’t think he could be more hard at the look in her eyes. “Wh—What is it?”

“I—I’ve never been able to try it in the shower and I was wondering if you were up for round two?”

“Round two?” he asked against her lips. “I’m pretty sure we left that behind a few turns ago last night. But as for the bathroom? I can’t wait.” Before she could react, he was off the bed, scooping her into his arms and carrying her off towards the bathroom. Her laughter was instantaneous as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

“I don’t know,” she pretended to reconsider. “You are much older than me and we did have a lot of sex last night. Are you sure you can handle it?”

Charlie guffawed and carried her into his ensuite. She gasped in shock. It was stunning.

The tub and shower were both appliances from her dreams. She was desperate to try out the spacious bathtub, but realized quickly that the shower was better suited for their purposes.

She dragged him over to the spacious shower stall. He quickly pinned her to the wall beside it as his tongue invaded her mouth. She whimpered as her fingers tangled in his hair. He caged her in with his muscled arms and she was thrilled by the feeling of his hardened chest muscles pressing against her naked body.

He grinned against her mouth as the witch whimpered and rubbed against him. Her riotous curls were spread in a halo around her head. She felt so good against him, he groaned as his hips drove into her to pin her to the chilled wall behind her. She shivered at the contrast of sensations.

She pushed him back just enough so she could slip into the shower stall, dragging him in with her. He reached behind her as he pressed her soft skin against the cool tile. They had more than enough room, but he wanted to try something.

He turned on the water and adjusted the jet to spray at them.

Due to the built-in hot water heater, the shower was immediately filled with steam. He framed her against the wall with his arms, leaning in to kiss her passionately.

The humidity and steam built around them and as they pulled apart to get a breath of air, they still felt like they were drowning.

Before Charlie could move she sank to her knees and took his member in her hand. She stroked him a few times as the water eased her path.

She leaned forward and took him into her mouth, quickly swallowing him and the water dripping down his body.

His elbows hit the wall above her head as he braced himself. The spray hit his back and he panted at the heat surrounding him from all directions. His large frame blocked most of the shower spray from hitting Hermione, but she could still feel it soaking her locks as they plastered themselves to her back. The stall was filled with the scent of Charlie as she bobbed eagerly.

“Babe, if you keep up that pace, I’m gonna come soon,” Charlie warned as he wove one hand to tangle in her wet hair. “As good as it feels, I don’t want to come down your throat right now. Not when I could see your pussy take my cock again.”

Hermione accidentally gagged as the images his words provoked in her head interfered with her pace. She could feel more than just water dripping down her legs as she pulled her mouth off his cock with a brief kiss to the mushroom head.

He pulled her up and supported her against the wall as he notched his member against her lower lips. Making sure she was braced against his larger frame, he quickly placed his hands on her belly to cast the Charm. When he slipped inside, the sound of their moans echoed and reverberated off the tiles in the bathroom.

His eyes rolled back at the feeling of tightness around his cock. He could feel the difference of slickness between water and her essence leaking out between them. Charlie grabbed her hips and started pumping into her eagerly, pinning her against the wall. To her credit she didn’t let him take all of his pleasure on his own. Her hands braced on his shoulders and her leg hitched around his hip as she tried to give back as good as she got, ignoring how their position was working against her.

They had come for each other multiple times the previous night, but they were near animalistic in their desperation for each other now. They panted and writhed against each other as they each sought their peaks.

Both of their orgasms came quickly as they ground against each other in the hot steam and spray. When they came, it was with Charlie marking another hickey against her neck while she clawed at the nape of his neck.

As he shrunk and pulled out of her he made sure to keep a good grip on her for balance until she pulled away.

“I don’t think my legs have ever felt this much like jelly before,” she quipped. “I don’t even know if I would be standing right now if you weren’t holding me up.”

He chuckled as he pulled her in for a kiss before handing her the loofah to start washing up. They alternated between washing their hair and their bodies as they quickly cleaned up for work.

Once clean, they got out and dried off using Charlie’s heated towels. She took note that his bathroom floors were electrically heated as well and was obsessed. She wondered how she could entice him to help her get the same installation at her place. It felt heavenly and would make getting up in the mornings much easier. Plus, it would make waking up with Charlie much more interesting when he stayed at her place while visiting Britain. She resolved to ‘negotiate’ with him about it later — planning on different ways to entice him to her whims, but for now they had work to do.

---

Placing a quick kiss on his lips, she wrapped herself in a towel and went back to her room to get dressed. He hated watching her walk away, but shook himself off and dried himself with his own towel before he got dressed in his thick jeans. If he had his way, she’d be spending any future evenings staying in his own room while also calling it her own.

He was automatically reaching for his favorite sweater made by his mother when he paused and got a huge grin on his face.

Grabbing it, he didn’t bother to throw on a shirt as he walked down the hall and knocked on Hermione’s open door. Inside, the witch was dressed only in her fleece-lined leggings and bra as she wand-dried her hair.

Perfect. He grinned.

“I had an idea I wanted to run by you,” he said when she turned around. Her makeup was really light and he loved the way her figure was currently on display for his eyes to feast upon.

He felt himself growing hard again, but immediately tamped down that desire. There was one thing he wanted more — to tell his friends that he’d finally gotten the girl. They teased him enough about it and he wanted to brag a bit.

“I was wondering if you’d want to wear my sweater today?” He offered her the garment. “It’s a bit larger than yours and you can wear a turtleneck beneath it if you wanted to hide a few of those hickeys. I know I didn’t hold back last night. Sorry about that, by the way.” He knew that his comment was coming across as insincerely as he meant it since he could feel his smile spreading across his face.

“I didn’t mind,” she laughed. “But I’ll take you up on that sweater. After Ryan’s comment yesterday, I’m sure he’ll lose his mind a little bit when he sees me wearing your Weasley sweater instead of my own.”

Charlie agreed, placing the blue garment on her bed. She smirked slightly when he turned to head back to his room to get ready for their day. She put on her thinner white turtleneck shirt before putting the ocean blue-green sweater on. She loved how it felt warm and soft against her fingers. She immediately knew Charlie would most likely never get it back. She wasn’t swimming in it, but it was definitely a little loose on her and covered her down to her upper thighs like a sweater dress would.

Turning back to the mirror, she grabbed a dollop of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion to soothe and moisturize her hair into a more manageable mass, which she pulled up into a messy bun.

After pulling on her boots, she grabbed her wand and slipped it into her thigh-holster. She picked up her beaded bag from where she’d left it and deemed herself ready for the day. Hermione made her way downstairs and saw Charlie had started making their morning coffees. She grinned at the sight of his stretched white shirt and blue jacket.

“Do we match now?” she laughed.

Charlie looked down at himself and chuckled.

“I wasn’t thinking,” he apologized as he slipped off his jacket. Hermione watched as his muscles rippled while he moved. She swallowed and shook herself. They’d just had sex and she already wanted him again.

Charlie glanced at her and noticed she looked flustered. He smirked at her and she immediately made herself busy making her coffee while trying to hide her blush.

He laughed as he ran to get his work leathers from upstairs. Those would keep him plenty warm throughout the day. He could have summoned them, but he didn’t want to risk disturbing anything or have her going back upstairs to check.

He’d come up with an idea for that evening while she was getting ready and didn’t want to ruin the surprise. He knew that the next day was Christmas Eve and they’d have to return to their normal lives, but he wanted to extend their time together as long as possible.

Unfortunately, he also knew the only way he’d be able to pull it off would be if he asked for help. He’d have to ask some External team members if they’d be willing to help him out on the fly while Hermione finished the inspection today. After what happened yesterday, he wasn’t going to leave her side again until they were back in England.

He slipped into her room and picked up a few items before laying them out on his bed. Checking everything once more, he went back downstairs to see her shrugging off his sweater. 

His gut sank until she started pulling her turtleneck off as well. 

“Want to go again?” 

She yelped and spun around, automatically covering herself. “I was just taking off the turtleneck,” she explained as she slowly turned red in embarrassment as he approached her. “I checked the weather and I’d rather wear a sweater and coat than two shirts.”

“So you’re still going to wear my sweater?” he asked as he circled his arms around her waist and pulled her into his embrace again.

“That was my intent.” She blushed as her hands rested on his chest instead of covering her own. Charlie loved that she already trusted him in this manner and gave her a sweet kiss to show his appreciation. He had a feeling her past lovers hadn’t treated her appropriately because she melted anytime he was even slightly sweet to her.

In his eyes, Hermione was a goddess to be worshipped. She was strong, funny, smart as a whip, and loyal to an enviable degree. Anyone who she chose to bestow her graces on was lucky indeed. She was like a dragon. Fierce and beautiful to behold.

He had seen on her first day that she was used to being belittled by co-workers for being a woman, and that caused his blood to boil. She preened and nearly came anytime he showered her with attention and praise. He didn’t have any issue with her kink and looked forward to seeing all of the ways he could stroke it, but more importantly to him, he wanted her to see in herself the fierce and protective dragoness he saw every time he looked at her.

Kissing her one more time, he used one arm to keep her close as he picked up his sweater from the table. He handed it to her when he pulled away, but before she could cover herself, he quickly ducked his head to kiss the purple scar that crossed her chest.

“Don’t you hate it?” she asked curiously. She now knew better than to compare him to her past, but she was still surprised each time he kissed the scar Dolohov had given her.

“Hate what?” he asked as he pulled away completely.

“My scar,” she explained with a blush as she tugged his sweater back on. “I know you’re different from most guys, but I know it’s not exactly a beauty mark. The others said it turned them off. They said that it was ugly and asked me to cover it as much as possible.”

“We really need to teach you that most guys are asshats and I am not them,” he insisted as he grabbed their coats. “I think your scar is beautiful because it shows that you’re a survivor. I’ve heard that Dolohov was Silenced? He probably would have done much worse if he’d been able to speak. I’m proud of your scar and the trials you’ve overcome to get here.”

Hermione studied him for a moment. Charlie didn’t break eye-contact as he shrugged on his leather coat. He wanted no doubt in her mind that he meant what he said.

“What about my scars?” he asked instead. He thought they made him look more rugged and sexy, but she wasn’t him.

“They make you more attractive,” she told him shyly as she understood what he meant. “I like them, but I’d prefer if you didn’t try to gain more.”

“I dunno,” he teased. “I think you’d look really sexy in a little Healer’s outfit. Having you tend and fuss over my injuries? Instant wet dream come true.”

She gasped, partially scandalized and partially amused, before slapping his arm. He burst out laughing and she couldn’t help but follow suit after a few moments. 

Hermione had never had a more easy going and domestic morning and was already hooked on the feeling. She typically overslept and was constantly in a rush for her day before living off coffee as she slogged through office work until heading home. Waking up in Charlie’s arms, and having him dote on her for a bit, was doing wonders for her mental well being and she almost wished her life could be this pleasant all of the time — sans kidnappings and rampant wild dragons, of course.

Speaking of which…

“What time is it?” she asked worried. “Are we late?”

Charlie cast a Tempus Charm and both of their eyes widened at the time it indicated.

A quarter until ten o'clock. They were already forty-five minutes late for their typical start time and they had fifteen minutes left to get to the meeting place.

They stared at each other for a second before they made a mad dash to get their things and out the door.

“Thank Merlin I taught you to fly yesterday and breakfast is served until ten, am I right?” Charlie laughed, trying to use humor to ease the tension as Hermione recklessly shoved her coffee tumbler into her beaded bag.

“Less talking, more catching up,” she ordered as she took off. She was so mortified; she was never late and she didn’t even have a good excuse if they weren’t at the meeting spot by ten.

“Oh! Hi, Robert. Sorry to just be arriving. I was too busy shagging your second-in-command all night and this morning to bother setting our alarms or even consider that we were running late! Hope you don’t mind!”

She highly doubted that excuse would fly with any boss.

As they shot over rooftops, she saw Charlie’s — no, their — friends in the square of Dragon’s End.

She directed her broom toward them just as Charlie caught up with her. He saw where they were headed and nodded as he slowed his broom and began a quick descent. Hermione followed suit, slowing a bit more than him. She was more steady in the air than she was a few days ago, but she was still no expert flyer. The last thing she wanted to do was kiss the ground from landing too roughly.

Charlie touched down easily and Hermione beamed happily when she didn’t land as harshly as she would have expected.

“You’re getting better, babe,” Charlie complimented as he placed a hand at the small of her back in a sign of support. She smiled brightly as she dismounted.

“I can’t wait until I see Harry’s and Ron’s faces. They’ve teased me about this for years and I can’t believe that all it took was one lesson.”

“If I’d have thought about it, I would have made it a point to teach you years ago.” Charlie scratched the back of his neck. “Sorry about that.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” she told him earnestly as she stepped into his space to place a hand on his chest.

A throat cleared and they jumped apart. Despite their rush to get there, they’d completely forgotten that they had company the second they landed.

“So I see this is finally a thing?” Delia asked with a raised brow as she gestured between them with a take-away coffee cup in her hand.

Charlie and Hermione didn’t have a chance to respond before Ryan was guffawing, leaning against the wall. 

“That ship has officially sailed, Del,” Ryan laughed. He turned to Hermione and asked, “I see Charlie’s a biter?”

Charlie glared at Ryan while Hermione adopted a puzzled expression. Delia hid her smile behind her hand and Sorin snorted a laugh, even as he turned slightly red and glanced away.

“What are you talking about?” Hermione asked, curiously. 

“You might want to check your neck, babe,” Delia snorted as she handed over a wrapped bagel. “Charlie may have left a few marks.”

Hermione’s eyes widened before she turned to Charlie with a glare. He just laughed at the look on her face. He had suggested that she wear the turtleneck for this exact reason. It’s not his fault he’d been shirtless at the time and that had potentially been distracting to his girlfriend. If she decided she only wanted to wear his sweater, that was her prerogative. He had a mother and a sister. He knew that telling a girl how she should dress was as good as signing a death warrant for himself.

Besides, at most times Hermione Granger could be truly terrifying when she wanted, but right now wearing his too-large sweater, she just looked like a feisty kitten. He handled dragons for a living, no kitty was going to get the drop on him.

“Want me to cast the Disillusionment Charm?” Delia offered as Hermione took a huge bite out of her bagel.

Her mouth full, Hermione was only able to nod as she sent another glare at Charlie, which he shamelessly grinned back at. Ryan and Sorin finally busted their guts laughing and had to lean on each other to keep from falling.

Hermione bit her lip as she tried and failed to keep the smile from spreading across her face. This was such an amazing group of friends and she felt so lucky that they’d adopted her into their circle so quickly to the point where they felt comfortable teasing her like this.

It was at that moment that Robert and Tala came walking around the bend.

“Good morning!” Robert smiled at the group of five. “What are you all up to today? Miss Granger, I hope you’re doing well?”

“I’m doing fine, thank you,” Hermione replied.

“I love your new sweater, dear,” Tala said kindly with a twinkle in her eyes. “Although I do seem to remember it fit Mister Weasley a little bit more snugly.”

Hermione ducked her head in embarrassment as her ears turned red.

“She agreed to be my girl,” Charlie told the group as if they didn’t already know by the numerous red marks his team had seen on her neck before they were Disillusioned, and the fact her sweater was obviously his own.

“I’m glad to hear it.” Robert nodded as the group cheered annoyingly. “I want you to know, Miss Granger, that the poachers have been turned over to the local Aurors. One of them will be by in a few hours to interview you.”

“I’d be happy to speak with them,” Hermione assured him, grateful he was taking the news in stride and not letting it affect his work. She obviously missed him slipping a Galleon into a grinning Tala’s hand.

“Well, I assume you’re finishing your inspection today, Miss Granger?” Tala asked politely as she pocketed her prize. That would buy her a couple new skeins of yarn.

“That’s the plan,” Hermione answered. “I’d love to finish before meeting with the Aurors.”

“That works for me,” Charlie announced. “We could take the afternoon off for once.”

Robert cleared his throat.

“Orrr… We could show Hermione the babies?” Charlie asked as Robert rolled his eyes.

Delia hid her snort of amusement behind her hand as Tala linked her arm with her husband’s and she shook her head at her group of kids.

“Busted, bro,” Ryan chuckled as he elbowed his best friend in the side.

Sorin was offering to hold Hermione’s bagel as she dug through her bag for her coffee tumbler.

Charlie grinned at the scene. He had a big family, both here and back at the Burrow, and he loved every part of it.

Notes:

Let me know what you think! We're headed back towards plot again, I promise! The story's only halfway done!!!

Chapter 14: December 23rd - Afternoon

Notes:

Here's another chapter. As always, my main beta is in a difficult to reach place due to internet issues, so all errors are my own!

Charlie hated this. It was supposed to just be him and Hermione today, but after the events of the previous day, Robert had insisted they be accompanied by Sorin as they went through her inspections. 

Charlie tried to argue that he’d be more than capable of watching over her himself. 

No one on the team liked that line.

“Are you saying I can’t take care of myself?” Hermione defended, insulted. “I don’t need a babysitter.” 

“I wasn’t saying that, I just — You do realize that you were kidnapped while you were alone, right?”

“And you aren’t possibly trying to throw Ryan under the bus for that, are you? It’s not his fault Hermione was taken by surprise after you had me hold Ryan back to tell him the information secretly,” Delia snarled as she stepped in between the two men. She’d been with them for years and she had no fears or concerns in standing up for — or against — either of them.

Ryan looked away, obviously struggling with his self-imposed guilt, while Delia just glared in indignation that Charlie would even consider that.

Needless to say, everyone except Sorin was mad at Charlie for the moment so he was incredibly grateful his partner was there to help him out and be the secondary ‘honor guard’. Hermione had insisted that she didn’t need a babysitter until Robert put his foot down, citing the fact there still may be potential poachers around and the fact it was a dragon sanctuary. She could be as feminist forward as she wanted and the facility would support her wholeheartedly. However, safety and protocol were genderless concerns and he insisted everyone have a partner as a policy. As liked as she was, she was still an outsider who needed escorts for protection. Not even Hermione could argue those points.

When the group broke apart, Charlie made sure to catch Ryan before he went off with Delia.

“Hey man, I want you to know that I’m sorry about yesterday and what I just said. I know you were doing your job well. No one blames you for what happened with Hermione. I just… I was an ass.”

“I know,” Ryan sighed. “Delia told me the same thing after you guys left last night.” Charlie narrowed his eyes and Ryan chuckled before clarifying. “I meant the Hermione thing. You already know Delia thinks you’re an ass… But about Mione, I just… It’s so hard to believe it, you know? I was in charge of making sure she was safe as she did her work and she was captured.”

“I get that guilt can mess with you,” Charlie agreed. He was often plagued with thoughts like ‘what if I had done x, would y not have happened?’ “In our line of work, every decision matters. I shouldn’t have told Delia to tell you the news away from Hermione. Especially with news about an imminent threat. Yesterday was on me. I just wanted you to know that.”

Ryan nodded after a moment, but Charlie could still tell there was some guilt in his friend’s eyes. Nonetheless, Ryan clapped his hand on Charlie’s shoulder before walking off towards Delia. He threw his arm around the witch and they went off to do their work, Delia sending one last glare at Charlie before going willingly with Ryan.

Charlie sighed. The witch was right to be pissed at him. Especially since she was in love with Ryan and Charlie knew what it was like to see the person they cared about hurting. At least she would keep him company and not let him brood today.

He turned back to Sorin and Hermione and saw them laughing at something Sorin had said. That was good. Maybe it meant that she was less mad than he had thought. 

His hopes were quickly trampled when she snapped her mouth shut as soon as he approached them. Sorin sent him a sympathetic-but-amused grin and Charlie knew he’d have a lot of groveling in his future.

“So what’s the plan?” he asked her. She huffed and then turned to Sorin.

“I want to start off with Dragon’s End and then work out in the neighborhood. I was hoping we could catch the businesses before they open, but…”

“This is actually a better time,” Sorin volunteered. “Everyone is super busy until mid-morning as everyone heads off to shifts, but they’re going to have more freetime now before the lunch rush hits.”

“Oh, right,” Hermione blinked. “Well then, we’d better get going.”

As they walked through the town, Hermione pulled a clipboard out from her bag. Watching people going about their everyday lives, she made notes in her notebook.

Charlie saw her scribble more in certain areas.

When she saw Maggie from the bakery shoveling snow from the Apparition point, she scribbled furiously. When she inspected an awning, she made a few notes. Charlie just grinned as he watched her go through her checklist. She fascinated him.

Hermione obviously took great care in her work. Aside from the basics, like checking the construction site for expansions to the market shop for markers and safety, she also took the time to talk to each of the business owners. She asked if the Ministry provided them with enough Floo powder, and even asked if their connections needed help. She also confirmed that they had ample access to any supplies they needed. She asked about their supply and demand, and she even offered to sit down with the cafe owner to help adjust their menu, although that offer was waved off with a joyous laugh.

Charlie knew that she was also focused on the task at hand, because she always made a comment about a repair before talking to the business owner. When she noticed the barber’s light was flickering because of a bad wire connection, she made a comment to Sorin and deliberately turned away to ask the owner about where he learned to cut hair while Sorin took the time to fix it so that she wouldn’t have to dock points for safety.

She cared about the safety and her notes, but it was obvious that she cared about the people more.

As they moved through town and towards the Mess Hall, Hermione continued to check everything normal to an inspection. She made sure the emergency Portkeys were registered, charmed correctly, and placed in safe places where they wouldn't be accidentally activated but still accessible in case of emergency.

She made notes about the sanitation protocols. She confirmed that food workers were wearing hair nets and gloves as they cooked. They jokingly offered her a pair and she eagerly took them, helping the baker knead dough while they both laughed. 

He took a sigh in relief when he realized that, in most cases, she was going through the motions, but was barely glancing around as she signed off on her paperwork. He knew that as much as she was covering, there was a lot more that she was letting slide.

She checked the basics like making sure that the trash was disposed of appropriately, the bathrooms and floors in each establishment were clean, and that no expired food was stocked but she didn’t run checks on every piece of equipment to make sure it all worked properly and was up to policy standard. All she did was glance around to make sure that nothing major was off and then make a few notes.

The realization hit him like a lightning bolt.

He’d bet a pile of Galleons that she was only here because Robert and her boss had conspired together for some reason. Charlie knew that Robert was aware of his crush and correspondences with the witch and he wouldn’t be surprised if her boss was the same.

If Andrews didn't come in the new year to do a proper in-depth inspection, Charlie would buy Robert a new Firebolt.

His suspicions were further proven when they moved on towards the neighborhood of cottages.

Hermione kept it simple. She made sure the pathways were clear of debris, and the main ‘streets’ were wide enough that a crowd could pass through in case of emergency evacuations. She checked the outside of the buildings to confirm that there were no obvious structural issues, but she didn’t try to check each building’s running water and electrical box up close. Instead, she just checked the tank and power box at the far end of the neighborhood, which was also linked up to the Human Hospital. 

He was now certain that she was only there to check the basics so the Ministry could sign off that an inspection was run and that Andrews would be by in the new year, but he’d run his suspicions by Robert later to be safe.

In the meantime, he saw two witches that he needed to talk to.

Making sure that Hermione was busy and attended by Sorin, he whistled to get their attention and quickly jogged over. These ladies worked on the External team, but had joined at the same time he did. If he was incredibly lucky, they might be able to help him out.

---

Hermione turned around when she heard Charlie whistle and felt her blood boil. He was jogging over to two very attractive women. According to Sorin’s reaction, she guessed she actually growled out loud.

He turned to follow her gaze and shook his head.

“I can guess what you’re thinking, Hermione, but I promise you’re most likely wrong. He’s been wild about you for ages and — she’s not even listening to me. Got it.”

Hermione had heard Sorin talking, most likely trying to calm her down, but she was already pissed.

Charlie had only just been telling her that morning that he wanted to be with her and he was already flirting with bleached blonde and box-dye red?

“Are you sure you don’t mind?” Charlie was asking. “Tonight would be great.”

Hermione saw red and she didn’t know who her anger was directed at. Charlie, the girls, or herself. She knew she shouldn’t have trusted him. She was the only one to blame. Why would Charlie Weasley want to be with her when he genuinely could have any woman he wanted?

In a moment, all of her fight seeped out of her body. She sighed, giving up. All she knew was that she felt defeated. She never should have let herself get her hopes up for an amazing guy like Charlie. It had been too good to be true.

Handsome, outdoorsy, and smart? Why would he really want a girl like her except to get into her pants? She had way too many issues to bother dealing with her. He got in, whispered sweet nothings in her ear, and got out. Now, he was moving on.

She was pissed and defeated so she did what any sane witch would do — she walked away whilst imagining she was ripping the hair out of the other witches before dragging Charlie off to an alleyway to shag him rotten.

She let her imagination run wild for a moment. She’d hex one woman with such anger and determination that Charlie could only stand there and watch with a dumbstruck look on his face. As for the other woman, she’d be tied up and heavily embarrassed. Hermione would then grab Charlie and drag him to the nearest hidden alcove, swallowing his cock before shagging him senseless against the nearest flat surface — preferably a wall — so he wouldn’t be able to think about any woman aside from her.

She shook her head. That was her fantasy … In real life, she’d never be able to hex another woman because she felt insecure. Hermione just had to learn how to deal with it and move forward with life. Charlie obviously wasn’t as interested as he had claimed and she wasn’t enough to keep his interest.

“Hey, where are you going?” She felt a hand grab hers and spun around, wand at the ready, relaxing when she realised it was Charlie.

“I got worried when I turned around and you weren’t there,” he explained. “Are you alri— What’s wrong? I know you’re mad at me, so I was giving you space, but you’re sad now. What happened?”

“Who were those girls?” Hermione asked, as she refused to make eye-contact, internally defeated.

“Girls? What gi—” Charlie’s eyes widened and he grabbed her by her upper arms as he realized what she had seen. He was smart enough to realize how it could have looked. “No, Hermione. I swear to you, no. I’m not interested in them. I want you and only you. Please don’t shut me out.”

“What were you asking them to do tonight then?”

“A surprise for you,” he swore quickly. They had talked for years so he knew Hermione well enough to know that most of her self confidence was a facade to her deep insecurities. However long he’d known her, though, he was just learning how poorly she viewed herself based on her experiences. “I swear, I’m not leaving your side for one second until you have to go back. And, once you do, I promise you’re getting a letter a day and we’ll schedule as many Floo calls as you want.”

“Why me?” she asked, loathing herself for it, but needing to know all the same.

The sound that Charlie made was a mix between a growl and a groan as he pulled her into an alley between two shops. It was only now that Hermione realized that she had gotten all the way back to Dragon’s End and was currently against the wall between the coffee shop and minimart.

“What’s going through that head of yours?” he demanded. “Who fucked you up this much?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she insisted, insulted. “I’m not fucked up.”

He growled in anger and pushed himself against her. “Don’t bullshit me,” he spat. “Someone made you think that you’re something less than the glorious goddess I see you as, and I want to wring their necks. Was it my brother? Was it Krum?”

“Both of them were nothing but gentlemen,” she said, her own anger getting stroked in their defense. “If you must know, it might have had something to do with years of bullying or always being last to get picked up at a bar, but I’ve never had a fantastic opinion of myself, and I’m not sure why you’re insisting that I should. I’ve told you about this! Besides that, you’re so completely out of my league and I’m really not sure what you see in me.”

“Reason one.” Charlie’s eyes darkened. “You’re gorgeous. Your beautiful hair, your spattering of freckles across your nose, and even the whiteness of your teeth is cute. Reason two, you’re also sexy as hell. Last night, you were nothing less than breathtaking. Reasons three, four, five, and six: you’re smart as a Ravenclaw, the bravest Gryffindor I know, ambitious as any Slytherin, and loyal as a Hufflepuff. You are literally the complete package, Hermione. I wish I could show you the way I see you. The way I’ve wanted you for so long but held myself back because I never thought I’d be worthy. What can I do to show you?”

“Keep telling me that,” she begged as she clung to him, tearing up at the same time. No one had ever been that frank and honest with her before. Sure, some guys had tried the ‘you’re beautiful’ line, but she had never believed them. Charlie was the first person who honestly tried to break down her walls and have her see herself the way she was slowly beginning to believe he honestly saw her.

Hermione clung to that — to him — like a lifeline. She buried her face in his neck. When he softened his grip to just hold her close, she realized she was crying. She clung to him for a few more minutes as she pulled herself together, but Charlie did nothing more than cradle her in the safety of his arms. He didn’t push her away awkwardly. He didn’t tell her to stop crying. He didn’t even make a move to kiss her. He just gave her a safe space to compose herself and let her know she was cared for.

She was quickly becoming addicted to him. She pulled away slightly to look up into his eyes as he looked down at her. Hermione knew that he wasn’t going to make the first move, so she did. 

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down to her. As soon as he was close enough, she pressed her lips against his and allowed her tongue to trace his lips.

“I want you,” she begged as she ground her hips against his.

Her back was pushed roughly against the brick wall seconds later. At first, a quick shiver went through her spine, but that was quickly replaced with a fiery wave of desire. She wanted Charlie to take her. She wanted to mark him as hers.

She kissed him and he responded just as passionately.

“Are you sure?” he asked, panting, after pulling back. “You just had an emotional moment here and I don’t want to take advantage or…”

“Charlie,” she interrupted, “I need you inside me. Now.”

He capitulated quickly and kissed her again. Who was he, after all, to object to her commands?

“Leggings,” he murmured against her lips, and she got the hint.

“Fuck me from behind,” she insisted as she turned around to give him better access.

He mouthed kisses against her neck as he whispered words of devotion and loyalty in her ear. His hand snaked up under the front of her shirt and started kneading her breasts through her bra. He wished he had more time to visually appreciate them but knew they didn’t have long. He pinched her nipples through the fabric and she keened softly. The sound went straight to his cock.

“Your hands are cold,” she noted even as she moaned and ground back against him.

His other hand snaked to lower so that he could rub at the front of her leggings. She whimpered and jolted in his arms at the feeling of pressure against her clit. Shamelessly, she ground into his hand and he couldn’t imagine anything more erotic than the current vision of her coming undone at the barest of touches on his part.

Hermione got to work peeling her own leggings down just enough so that he could access her pussy. Shoving her underwear aside he started pushing one finger into her and bit back a groan at how wet she was.

“Is all of this for me? Do you want me to fuck you like the bad girl you are for doubting me?” he whispered hoarsely in her ear.

Hermione whimpered as she ground against his hand.

He quickly inserted a second finger and started slowly fucking her with his hand while his other hand never stopped massaging her breast.

As soon as he thought she was wet enough to take him, he unzipped his fly and released his cock. The cold winter air relaxed his hard-on for a few seconds, but he was thrusting into her cunt soon enough that the cold didn’t cause permanent shrinkage.

Both of them moaned as they joined together. Charlie set a quick pace as they rutted against each other, fast and deep. He made sure that every time he pushed into her, his fingers never stopped against her breast and clit.

Hermione’s hands scrambled for purchase against the brick wall before she decided to just slap her palms against the surface flat to give herself leverage to push back against him as he fucked her from behind. When she moaned, he quickly ripped his hand from under her sweater to turn her head and sealed her lips with his own.

Within minutes he had her at the edge of an orgasm and he could tell by the fluttering of her pussy around his cock.

The entire situation thrilled him and he found himself at the edge with her. The idea of claiming his witch in the open air where anyone could walk up on them was nothing but exciting in his eyes.

A few thrusts later and he made sure to grind his hand against her clit as hard as possible. He felt he was seconds from coming and he didn’t want to go over the edge without her.

“Come for me, baby. Come on my cock,” he begged in her ear. “I want us to come together. You’re such a good girl. Can you come with me?”

Hermione whimpered at his words and thrust back against him desperately. 

“What do you need?” he asked. “What will make you come?”

“You first,” she said, “I want you to come inside me first. I want you to coat my insides and I want to feel like you belong to me as much as you’ve already made me yours.”

“Fucking hell, babe,” he grunted in her ear. “That’s so hot. You’ve had me for fucking years. I’m all yours. I wanna belong to no one but you.”

“Come for me, Charlie,” she panted. “Come inside me.”

He cursed and quickly cast the Contraception Charm wandlessly. He knew that she was on the potion, but he didn’t want to take chances while they were both drunk on each other and not thinking clearly.

Charlie was lost after that and was only able to manage a few more short thrusts before emptying himself inside of her.

His orgasm provoked her own and her pussy milked him of his last few drops.

He collapsed against the brick wall squishing Hermione in front of him, but she didn’t mind as they both were out of breath. He pulled back moments later and fished his wand from his thigh holster to cast cleansing charms on them both, focusing on vanishing the cum dripping down her legs.

Hermione was still sensitive after her orgasm and whimpered at the tingling feeling of the spell. She melted into Charlie’s arms as he pulled up her leggings for her and hugged her to his chest. She kissed him back as he lowered his lips to hers.

“I know you don’t believe me right now,” he whispered against her mouth. “But I’m already falling for you, Hermione. You don’t have to doubt that. I only want you.”

She wasn’t able to respond as his lips covered hers again, but she was feeling the same way.

---

It took a few minutes for them to pull themselves together, but they quickly stepped apart and checked each other when they heard Sorin calling their names.

Once they finished deeming themselves respectable they emerged from the alley holding hands.

Sorin sighed as he saw and ran up to them.

“Where have you guys been? I’ve been looking all over for you,” he grumbled angrily. “You disappeared so suddenly, I was worried something had happened to you again.”

Hermione felt instantly bad and apologized. “I’m so sorry, Sorin. I guess I got a little insecure and jealous and had to take a walk. It was completely foolish of me and Charlie came after me. We were just on our way back.”

He stared at them for a few moments and started scowling further. “I know you two just got together but could you maybe try to keep it from interfering with work?” He eventually asked with a sigh. 

Hermione immediately turned red to the roots of her hair.

“You know you always were a little too smart for your own good,” Charlie chuckled, unashamed.

“It’s an unfortunate side effect of being the boss’ son,” Sorin lamented as if it were the greatest weight in the world. “I’m cursed to watch and observe and get to understand people more than they realize.”

“Anyway!” Hermione tried to change the subject. “I already finished my paperwork, so all I have to do is submit it and then we can head to a late lunch!”

“We have the afternoon off now?” Charlie asked excitedly. Guiding Hermione was the last ‘chore’ on their work schedule before almost everyone had a few days off for Christmas. If she was done, that meant that his team could relax until after the holidays.

Hermione checked through her documents one more time to be safe, but then nodded excitedly.

“I have everything they asked me to collect,” she confirmed. “As long as there’s not any extra paperwork you will need from me, I think we’re done!”

“Well, that’s the biggest damn relief I’ve heard all year,” Sorin chuckled. “Do you want to take that to the main office and get some lunch?”

“Oh, Merlin! Lunch,” Hermione moaned. “I don’t think we’ve eaten anything other than snacks since yesterday at lunch.”

“Why didn’t you say anything, babe?” Charlie was immediately worried. He was a Weasley and missing a meal was tantamount to suffering. Missing two was equivalent to murder. “I know we had a snack after last night but I should’ve taken better care of you.”

“Did you forget when Delia brought us a bagel?” Hermione laughed.

“She brought you a bagel, not me!” Charlie corrected, now more concerned for his own stomach since she’d eaten.

“I get it! You’re both hungry and put off proper nourishment in exchange for sex. Now, let’s go talk to Robert so we can get some grub!” Sorin laughed.

“Hey, don’t talk to my girl like that!” Charlie elbowed Sorin in jest and Hermione turned away as her blush overtook her face.

She started walking briskly off towards the main office — which doubled as Robert's home — in an effort to escape her embarrassment at how accurate Sorin had been.

Fortunately, it was only a few buildings away so she didn’t have far to jog. She could feel the temperature decreasing as she went and Charlie confirmed her suspicions when he caught up with her.

“Feels like another cold front is on its way,” he observed.

“I was just thinking the same thing.”

“It seems like you’re getting used to telling the weather here!” He grinned. “You'll practically be a local soon enough.” 

Hermione wished that was true but knew that the chances of her being able to stay were slim at best. She had a job back in London and that’s where all of her friends and family were. The likelihood that she would be able to visit enough to get to know the weather well was not looking hopeful.

When she got to the front porch she couldn’t help but stomp her feet a little bit to try to get her body temperature up. The air was definitely colder than it had been that morning.

“Let’s get you inside,” Tala said warmly as she appeared at the front door. “The Aurors are here too, so you can get that taken care of and then get some food.”

“Are you psychic?” Charlie couldn’t help but ask. They hadn't exactly been close to the cottage when they were talking about food and Tala was like a second mother to him. He wasn’t thrilled at the idea she had overheard their conversation.

She just glared at him knowingly and Hermione laughed when he shrunk under her stare.

“Let’s just get you inside,” Tala replied.

They walked into the parlor and Hermione braced herself as she heard an excited screech.

Seconds later, a blur of pink hair was tackling her to the ground. Charlie blinked in surprise, unable to catch her first.

“Wotcher, Hermione!”

“Tonks!” Hermione didn’t even mind being tackled since she was so excited to see her longtime friend. “I wasn’t expecting to see you until Christmas!”

Charlie bent over to help his girlfriend as Tonks bounced up on her own.

“How are you doing, T?” Charlie asked as he wrapped a deliberate arm around Hermione.

“T?” Hermione was confused at the nickname. 

“You remember that we were in the same year at Hogwarts right?” Tonks asked. “Charlie wanted to give me a different nickname whenever we started dating so we’d feel closer and that’s when he started calling me ‘T’.”

“Ryan mentioned you had dated,” Hermione turned to Charlie. He swallowed.

Tonks had been his only girlfriend before Hermione and he knew he was stuck between a rock and a hard place because Hermione and Tonks were good friends. Hermione was now arguably closer to Tonks than he was.

Tonks had since married Remus Lupin and they had a son named Teddy. Hermione was the child’s godmother, Harry his godfather, but that was beside the point. Two women who were close against a new boyfriend was hard enough. If one of those women was an ex-girlfriend, it was scary. If the ex-girlfriend was also the guy’s best friend since he was eleven years old? Might as well write up his death warrant now. She had way too much dirt on him.

“What are the chances you both will let me off easy?” He asked, good-humoredly hoping to ease himself out of the lion's den. Tonks may have been a Hufflepuff but badgers are one of the most vicious animals when provoked. He had already seen first-hand how loyal Tonks could be.

“Slim to none,” Tonks grinned deviously. “I can already tell that you two finally hooked up and I’m sure Hermione would love to hear stories about you from school.”

“Wait, ‘finally’? How many people thought we were going to get together?”

“There was a betting pool going around a while back,” Tonks said confidently. “I’m not sure if it’s still active but I do know that Robert was on it at one point.”

“My boss bet on the fact that we would get together?” Charlie was shocked.

“And Hermione’s,” Tonks agreed. “And don’t think that Kingsley wasn’t a part of the pool too.”

“I’m glad to know that our relationship has caught the interest of the Minister of Magic,” Hermione said dryly. “But I’m assuming that’s not why you’re here?”

“Not even a little bit,” Ron’s voice sounded as he turned a corner. Hermione actually yelled her friend’s name in surprise as she rushed to jump and wrap her arms around his neck. He caught her easily enough and wrapped his arms around her. Only Charlie noticed as his little brother narrowed his eyes at him warningly. His message was very clear: ‘Tonks may be one of your best friends, but Hermione is mine. Hurt her and I will hurt you.’

He hugged her back and Charlie had to viciously fight back the wave of jealousy which threatened to overwhelm him. It was the first time he had ever felt anything of the sort. And this was his brother.

“What are the pair of you doing here?” Hermione beamed at her friends.

“You think we’d hear that you were kidnapped by poachers and we wouldn’t come running?” Ron asked as he clapped his brother on the shoulder in forms of greeting, although he was speaking to Hermione.

“I mean I’m flattered but I’m surprised.”

“And I’m suspicious,” Charlie told them honestly. He had read Ron’s warning loud and clear.

“The fact that we heard something about there being a chance of you two getting together may have played a part,” Tonks cackled, mischievously. “We wanted to pester you guys for information before we got back to London in case you wanted to keep it quiet.”

“While I appreciate the offer and consideration, we haven’t discussed that far,” Charlie told his friend. He knew how lucky he was and was willing to scream it from the mountaintops, but he was not sure how soon Hermione wanted to make the announcement.

“Where’s Harry?” Hermione asked, trying to change the subject.

“He wanted to come,” Tonks sighed, “but he’s training to take over the Department and Kingsley wouldn’t let him.”

“To get back on track since we do have to catch a Portkey,” Ron took over the conversation. “We heard you were kidnapped and we need to get a report from you.”

“It sounds like you have most of it,” she replied honestly as they all moved to sit down in the living room. “I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and next thing I knew I was waking up in a tent. I was able to get my wand and we captured everyone I saw.”

“Shouldn’t you have had a guide while walking over your inspection?” Tonks asked. She had a Quick Quotes Quill taking notes as they talked. Hermione glared at it suspiciously, despite knowing that a certain reporter was the only one who twisted her articles, not the quill.

“I did…”

“I’m the one who made the call to separate them,” Charlie chimed in. “He was doing his job right and we saw evidence there may be poachers on the property. I was hoping we could solve the situation before the inspection. We got wind of it and I made the wrong call.”

“Off the record,” Tonks cut in and the quill paused. “Who was it?”

“That part doesn’t matter,” Charlie insisted. “I’m the one who made the call and he only stopped his job because I ordered him to.”

“Charlie,” Tonks sighed. “I know you, but we have to make an official report.”

“I was her guide,” Ryan said as he walked into the room with Delia. “Del pulled me aside and Hermione offered to wait outside. Typically, we don’t have threats other than the dragons and Hermione promised she wasn’t going to go far out the front door—”

“Nor did I,” she defended her new friend. “I was enjoying the weather maybe fifteen feet from the doors. I’m surprised they got me where they did. It’s my fault for relaxing my guard too much.”

“We were separated for maybe fifteen minutes as Delia filled me in, and when Charlie joined us we realized Hermione wasn’t where she was supposed to be so we sent out the red alert.”

“That’s great to hear, Ryan.” Tonks nodded as her quill wrote down the entire testimony. “Obviously, the Ministry won’t press charges unless Hermione sues, but it sounds like you definitely followed appropriate protocol. Isn’t the barrier for safety—”

“The barrier for policy is twenty feet from the building. I was well within the limits, it was just a rotten situation. Of course I won’t sue the reserve,” Hermione replied vehemently. “Ryan did nothing wrong and I was captured for less than a couple of hours. Everyone did everything they could to find and save me. I’m grateful for everything and all of my time here. As long as I’m invited, I’d be happy to return often.”

“As glowing a review as that may be for a travel guide,” Ron snorted, “we also need to know what happened once you were awake.”

“Well, the last thing I remembered was enjoying the weather and I saw one man who looked out of place. Before I could really respond, he surprised me by charging me and everything went black. When I woke up, I was hog-tied in a tent. I saw my wand on a nearby table and tried to get it with wandless magic. I was still groggy because of the drug they used on me and my reach wasn’t sufficient. My magic actually caused my wand to skitter farther away and alerted the poachers that I was awake. They came in and pulled a classic ‘villain move’ where they disclosed their plans for me and the dragons. It pissed me off enough that I had an accidental burst of magic and it severed my ties. I was able to summon my wand and… Well, they realized quickly I wasn’t some clueless waif of a witch. I enjoyed making the leader dance like the marionette he was until a hex went wide and I realized that help had come.”

“Who’d you hit?” Ron asked bemusedly. He already knew, but he loved the idea of his big badass older brother getting hit like a newbie.

“I did and then she was kind enough to patch me up.” Charlie glared at his brother. He knew this would come up at Christmas and he was already dreading it.

“So Charlie got hit and Hermione patched him up. Is there anything else that we should include in our report?” Tonks asked with a knowing grin.

Charlie and Hermione shared a look.

“Nope,” they said in unison.

“Excellent,” Ron grinned. “Now who wants lunch?”

Notes:

Let me know what you think!

Chapter 15: December 23rd - Afternoon

Notes:

As usual, all errors are my own!

Hermione and Charlie laced their fingers as the four of them left Robert’s cottage and walked over to the Mess Hall. Sorin decided to stay behind and eat with his parents, but Delia and Ryan joined them. As soon as he saw her, Ryan glomped onto Tonks, making the Metamorphmagus laugh at his antics. Only Hermione noticed as Delia frowned and she made sure to greet the witch with a warm hug.

“He’ll see soon enough,” Hermione promised her friend.

Ron was polite in his greetings, but really only had eyes for the large lunch portions. The only person he didn’t know from Charlie’s team was Sorin. Ryan had visited the Burrow multiple times over the years with Charlie when they went to school together and Delia had visited twice with the boys since she started working with them. The party stole one of the larger tables in the dining hall.

Sitting down, almost everyone started talking at once. Hermione laughed at everyone’s antics before turning to Ron.

“How’re you and Luna doing?” she asked as everyone tucked into their meal.

“Really great,” Ron told her as he got a sappy grin on his face at the thought of his beloved. 

“I still can’t believe she actually found and captured Nargles.” Charlie shook his head in amazement. The news had taken the Ministry by storm that October.

“Rolf is really helping her with her research,” Ron supplied, referencing the grandson of Newt Scamander, famed magizoologist. According to rumors, he had a trait in his DNA that made it so any of his descendants had a magic touch with magical creatures, but Hermione took no stock in baseless rumors like that. It was much more likely that Rolf had grown up hearing stories, tips and tricks from his grandfather. 

“I’m glad Rolf was willing to help her.”

“Having his expertise along with her dad’s research and their fantastical ideas is actually working.” Ron beamed happily, excited to share about his fiancee’s accomplishment.

“I can’t wait to read all about it and then attend the gala for them next spring.” Hermione smiled. “I’m sure they will have all sorts of information I can go over with them to guarantee the protection of the Nargles.”

“There you go again,” Ron chuckled. “Always thinking about work.”

“I can’t help it!” Hermione insisted. “My mind always goes straight there.”

“I know Luna and everyone appreciates that ‘Mione,” Ron told her seriously. “But when was the last time you focused on yourself?”

“I don’t have time, Ron,” Hermione sighed. “There’s too much to do.”

“Hermione,” he sighed. “I know better than anyone how you get when you're focused on a project. You let the tension build up until it chokes you and you can’t find you way out of the darkness. If you don’t make time to relax, I just get worried about you.” The pair of friends were close, but had fought for years and neither predicted they’d stop anytime soon. “You overwork yourself and I was hoping you could let the magical beasts and S.P.E.W. rest for the holidays when you get home. Mum wants to introduce you to a lot of people.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Charlie cut in, almost growling.

“I agree.” Hermione nodded. “If anything, I’m tired of your mother trying to set me up with different people. It didn’t work for us and it won’t work for anyone else.”

“She’s just worried about you.” Ron rolled his eyes. “I agree with you one hundred percent that it’s not a good idea on her part, but if you were a little bit more relaxed around the dinner table she might ease up.”

“I can guarantee that I won’t be stressed around the holidays this year,” Hermione vowed. She glanced at Charlie who nodded in confirmation. “Especially since Charlie and I have started dating.”

“Remus owes me 10 Galleons,” Tonks cheered.

“And Harry owes me five,” Ron smirked. “We had an idea after our conversation last night, but needed you to confirm.”

“Well, it wasn't official then.” Hermione rolled her eyes.

Ron immediately clapped his hands over his ears. “I beg you to please spare me the details.”

“I’m so glad to hear you stopped dancing around each other,” Delia teased.

“Good things come in threes, maybe you’ll be the next one with the good news.” Hermione turned to the other witch with a raise of her eyebrows. Her eyes flicked quickly over to Ryan, and Delia clenched her jaw at the teasing hint. Hermione smirked and turned back to Tonks. “How’s Teddy adjusting to his new little sister, Andi?”

“Edward and Andrea are both doing fine,” Tonks beamed. “Their dad just loves to dote on them.”

“I’m just glad he’s finally gotten past the concept that lycanthropy is not hereditary.” Hermione rolled her eyes.

“Me too!” Tonks grinned. “It makes the sex way more fun now that he’s not terrified of hurting me.”

“You’re just as bad as Ginny, it’s a wonder I’m not a deviant considering how much time I spend with the pair of you.” Hermione rolled her eyes. Charlie cleared his throat harshly and was about to interject his own thoughts on the matter, but Hermione elbowed him and he wisely stayed quiet aside from a cough and a chuckle. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her into his side instead. “It’s taken all of us a long time to get past our scars.”

“Speaking of which, you never told me how you got yours,” Charlie cut in as he remembered the purple mark bisecting Hermione’s chest.

“It was Dolohov in my fifth year during the fight at the Department of Mysteries,” Hermione explained, dismissively. She took a bite of her sandwich as the others gawked at her.

“I thought that healed,” Tonks frowned.

“It healed just as good as my scars from that brain tentacle thing,” Ron shrugged.

“You’ve seen it?” Charlie couldn’t help his brief flare of jealousy from coming out.

“Not in the way you’re worried about,” Ron defended himself with his hands up in surrender.

“We were on the run together for almost a year,” Hermione reminded Charlie. “Harry, Ron, and I know way too much about each other’s bodies from splinch scars, to torture, to having to huddle together to keep warm when it was too dangerous to light a fire in the dead of winter. We did what we could to survive. Sometimes that involved accidentally seeing a little too much of each other. It went all three ways.”

“Yeah. Never wanted to see that much of Harry, if I’m being honest,” Ron laughed. “However it did help Mione and I realize that all we’d ever be was close friends. She’s just like Ginny to me. She’s my sister now.”

Hermione smiled warmly at Ron and nodded.

“Depressing backstories of torture aside,” Ron remarked after a few moments, “I realize we have an excellent opportunity here.” Charlie’s eyes narrowed into a warning glare as Ron purposefully looked at Ryan and Tonks before smirking at his second oldest brother. “Wouldn’t Hermione want to know the funny backstories of one Charles Weasley?”

Her eyes widened as she nodded eagerly, her curls bobbing in excitement. She was sitting with his best friend, brother, and ex-girlfriend. Hermione was thrilled to hear more about his past.

He scowled at her reaction. The last thing any man wanted to do was be embarrassed by his friends and little brother.

Everyone laughed at the look of Charlie pouting. It was such a rare occurrence for the burly dragon researcher to react this way, it actually endeared Hermione to him more.

“What was Charlie like as a kid?” she asked Ron.

“You mean pre-Hogwarts?” he clarified. “Which he started when I was four years old? Wouldn’t you rather ask Ryan that?”

She winced at the obvious reminder that she was much younger than her boyfriend. He didn’t allow her to pull away as his arm snaked around her waist and tucked her into his side. Without giving her a chance to react, he tucked his face into her neck and placed a few kisses at the place where her neck met her shoulder.

“If you really want to know my embarrassing childhood stories, you can ask Mum or Bill at Christmas,” he offered. “I’d also be willing to tell you a few.”

Hermione took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. She’d seen larger age gaps and her friends were supportive thus far. She was an adult who could make her own decisions despite what societal norm dictated. Hell, the witch across her was thirteen years younger than her husband, yet all of their families and friends supported them. Molly was a stagnant traditionalist, and she told Remus to suck it up and be with Tonks.

Taking that knowledge to heart, Hermione tucked herself further into Charlie’s side. She could almost feel his giddy smile at her action, but chose not to check with her own eyes. Ryan’s amused reaction told her everything she needed to know.

“If you want, Ryan and I could tell you the childhood stories?” Tonks offered.

“That sounds amazing,” she grinned in reply.

“What do you want to hear first?” Ryan asked as he threw an arm around Delia’s shoulders. “We have a plethora of Quidditch anecdotes. Oh! Or what about his first tattoo? Wait! How about that prank Bill pulled with the unicorns?”

“How about how you both first met?” Hermione cut in, her eyes sparkling at the peek into Charlie’s past. 

Ryan laughed as the memory came back to him. “Good choice,” he complimented. “It’s a hilarious tale leading up to our voyage on the Hogwarts Express when we were eleven.”

“Wait! Is this the story with the ‘crup’?” Tonks’ eyes flashed in excitement as she remembered. Her hair changed to a bright yellow at the memory.

“There was— Charlie did you bring a crup to school as your first year pet?” Hermione asked incredulously. He suddenly found himself very interested in a spot on the ceiling, scrunching his nose up as if he were confused by it.

“Don’t pull that look on me!” she laughed. “That’s your ‘totally guilty but physically unwilling to admit it’ face! Ron averts his gaze in the same way! How in the world would you get a crup? You need a specific license!”

“Didn’t need to get the license,” he replied. “It wasn’t actually a crup. Sweet girl appeared in our yard when she was a puppy. I was just beginning my ‘research magical creatures’ phase. I was instantly addicted to her, but Mum’s allergic to dogs. I blackmailed Bill into helping me hide her and I started keeping a log over her growth — ‘why does the baby crup only have one tail?’ ‘Today Cerberus ran up to a Muggle to get attention, crups are supposed to despise Muggles’…”

“Why don’t I remember having a dog?” Ron asked.

“I took Cerberus to Hogwarts with me my first year,” Charlie explained. “And then she stayed there because Mum was allergic.”

“How did that work?” Hermione asked. “I can’t imagine Professor McGonagall making an exception to the ‘owl, cat, or toad’ rule just for you.”

“Hagrid took her in,” Charlie grinned. “Cerb was Fang’s mom.”

Ron and Hermione’s jaws dropped.

“Old Cerb was actually a normal dog,” Ryan laughed. “But when I first met this loon on the Hogwarts Express, he had smuggled the poor thing on board in his trunk. He kept claiming that he was worried the ‘crup’ would eat all of the garden gnomes if he left it at home.”

“He had crocodile tears and everything,” Tonks laughed. “I grew up near Ryan so we knew each other growing up. Ron probably has better ‘young Charlie’ stories.”

Ron laughed. “Remember I was really young when Charlie started school, but he adopted every abandoned animal and then blackmailed Bill to help him build habitats, care for them and — above everything — keep them hidden from Mum. By the time Charlie got to go to school, I think Mum was just relieved until Fred and George took up the mantle of at-home pranksters.”

Hermione laughed. “Poor Molly!”

“Wait! What about that time in our fifth year when you and Ginny were in the treehouse?” Ryan asked.

Ron laughed at the memory. “I nearly forgot that. Charlie once tried to get Ginny out of a tree house for dinner by tossing some innocent Zonko’s firecrackers into it. She threw them back before their fuze lit the base and had him dancing around the treehouse instead. He was fifteen and she was seven. But that’s nothing in comparison to when he tried to convince me that I was adopted.”

“He did what? ” Hermione’s eyes widened incredulously, even as she laughed at the mental image of Charlie dancing with firecrackers at his feet. Charlie glared at his brother, daring him to continue. Ron laughed at the expression and spoke anyway.

“Gosh… It probably happened right before he went off to school for his second year,” Ron speculated. “Looking back it’s actually pretty funny. He and Bill came back from school and convinced me that I was adopted from aliens.I tried to tell Mum, but they told me to ‘go for it since Mum wasn’t going to want to hurt my feelings’. They told me that I could tell it was true because Mum would lie and say it wasn’t. Obviously she said it wasn’t true and I just started sobbing and telling Mum she didn’t need to worry about hurting my feelings. I just wanted to know if I was really an alien or not. It was a long summer for Mum.”

“I still have the welts from the wooden spoon to prove it,” Charlie laughed.

“Oh really?” Hermione glanced at him, knowingly throwing him under the Knight Bus. “I didn’t see any, but maybe Tonks has a different story?”

“You know! Did I mention that the first time I flew I was recklessly pretending I was a dragon and I fell off my broom and broke my foot?” Charlie said hurriedly, hoping that the topic of Quidditch would be enough to distract Hermione. He realized the error in that logic as soon as the words left his mouth. She had no interest in Quidditch. Before they even responded to him, he buried his face in his arms on the table, lifting one hand to wave weakly, gesturing for Tonks to commence with the torture.

“You know we have been friends since we met on the Hogwarts Express. Aside from being in different houses, we were so inseparable that when "dating" became a thing, we just naturally went out for a few years. I had to make it clear to Remus that we never really fell in love, but it was just a natural progression and when it stopped, neither of us were really hurt. We were friends more than lovers and that's why we're still so close.” Raising his head from his arms, Charlie smiled gratefully up at her. His smile froze when he saw the devious smirk on the pink-haired witch. “That being said, what kind of friend would I be to Hermione if I didn’t dish on all of the dirty details?”

Charlie winced. “How much mauling am I about to endure?”

“It’s okay, there’s a hospital just across the way,” Hermione laughed, turning back to Tonks. “How’d you actually get together?”

“Charlie didn’t tell you the grand tale of The Black Box Dye Incident?” Hermione’s eyes widened and she leaned in eagerly. 

“Wait. You had black hair?” Hermione asked.

“He had a crush on a Ravenclaw,” Ryan explained between barks of laughter. I convinced him that she had a thing for guys with black hair and next thing I know he had Tonks dying his hair black.”

“You’re kidding!” Hermione laughed. “Doesn’t black dye take forever to grow out?”

“That’s what I tried to tell him when we helped him dye it in the prefects’ bathroom, but he wanted to commit rather than just use magic. Mama Molly almost had a stroke when she caught sight of him at King’s Cross.”

“She almost had a stroke because he had black hair?”

“No,” Charlie finally chimed in, despite the fact of how red his face was. “Tonks and I had started dating when the Ravenclaw rejected me and I shaved my head. I told Mum it was ‘to be more aerodynamic for Quidditch’ because she scares the shit outta me and I didn’t want Tonks to get into trouble again.”

“Again?” Hermione laughed. 

“Well, I was a prefect and fifteen at the time, so when we went home for the Easter holidays, Bill was able to sneak us a bottle of firewhisky. Tonks and I Apparated with him to a concert without permission. We got arrested by the Muggle police for drunk and disorderly conduct. We came back looking like complete shite but with smiles on our faces.” Tonks smiled at the memory.

“Don’t forget we had slipped away and gotten tattooed,” Charlie reminded her. “Mum went ballistic and made us — with the permission of Ted and Andromeda — de-gnome the garden and rebuild the fence surrounding the Burrow alone without the use of magic or the aid of a hangover potion.”

“That was a rough summer, but not nearly as bad as the time we…”

Hermione and Ron were doubled over crying in laughter as the stories continued.

At one point, Tonks got excited and started oversharing.

“Oh Merlin! Hermione, did he tell you the story of his first blowjob?”

“Tonks,” Charlie’s warning was ignored.

“He was so nervous that he accidentally jerked his knee and broke my nose. I’d love to say that’s why I’m such a klutz, but we all know that I’ve always been a mess.”

“And that’s the end of story-time!” Charlie announced as he stood quickly. “Hermione, would you like to go look at the baby dragons?” His face was a deep crimson that had Hermione only giggling for a moment as he offered her his hand to help her off the bench. She didn’t need the assistance, but she accepted it for the excuse to hold his hand.

She wasn’t surprised at his obvious want to escape and decided to take mercy on him. Besides, she had plenty of stories at this point that she could hold over his head if she so chose. “Let’s go,” she agreed before she had a thought and turned back.

“You’ll be glad to know that concern should no longer be applied to him. Charlie is more than adequate in the bedroom these days.”

Ron choked and Tonks cackled excitedly.

“We need a wine evening,” she decided. Hermione nodded and she tugged his hand as they moved to leave their friends when Ron’s voice stopped her.

“Hang on! I thought you would come back with us and our Portkey,” Ron’s voice called out.

“Sorry, Ronald,” she smirked as she wrapped her hand around Charlie’s bicep. “But my Portkey doesn’t leave until tomorrow. I wouldn’t want to miss another evening at this fine facility.”

Ron saw the action and heard the thinly veiled words and nearly gagged.

“Go on then.” He waved them off. “But I want to hear no details at Christmas dinner.”

“That reminds me!” Hermione turned to Ron. “No accidentally outing us to the family unless you want Molly to find out who really destroyed her pastries at Easter.”

Freckled hands instantly raised in surrender before pulling an invisible zipper across his lips.

“So...” Hermione grinned as she turned to Charlie. “Dragonlet time?”

---

“Are you okay?” Hermione asked as she bit her lip to keep from laughing. Feeling the chill in the air, she tugged her coat closer around her small frame.

They had been strolling from the Mess Hall through the Research facility when Charlie suddenly pulled her behind the administrative building. He hadn’t given her a chance to speak when he sealed her mouth with his own. The surprise hadn’t been unwelcome to Hermione and she had happily kissed him back until he pulled away to lean against the wall. Sliding down the surface, he hugged his knees and ducked his head into his arms.

He had stayed there for the last few minutes, while he composed himself, though Hermione didn’t know if he was reining in his libido or if he was embarrassed.

“I’m fine,” his voice was muffled. “But I definitely need new friends and to talk to Remus about his wife’s oversharing nature.”

Hermione couldn’t hold back a bubble of laughter at that.

“I think that’s a lost cause,” she told him. “You know better than anyone that there’s no controlling her or what she says. She had no issue telling Ginny and me all about her delayed honeymoon with Remus the second she got back. Ginny was barely seventeen.”

“What about you?” Charlie asked.

“Well, I was nineteen, but—”

“No, not that. I meant how are you now? Are you disillusioned by me yet?”

“Why on earth would I be disillusioned?” Hermione recoiled at the question.

“I—”

“Charlie. I loved hearing those stories. You’ve always seemed so perfect in our letters. I almost had convinced myself that you were too good to be true. I feel like I just got to see the real you behind the veil a bit.”

Charlie tensed and looked up at her. “Yeah? And what did you think?”

“I think you’re a good man who cares about all the creatures in the world. You’re a good brother, a slight prankster, and a loving friend. I’m honored and baffled that you chose to be mine.”

“As if you’re anything less than perfect yourself.”

“I’m far from perfect,” she insisted as she crouched in front of him. “I strive too hard at work and often stay up too late to make myself sick from pulling all-nighters. I don’t let myself settle into anything for too long in fear of letting myself grow stagnant or attached. I never can get my hair to work with me and always find that it picked up ink somehow. I’m no more perfect than you.”

“So you still want to be flawed together?” he asked tentatively, even as a cocky grin pulled at his lips.

“I’d like nothing more than to be flawed together,” Hermione agreed. “On one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“We do it inside ! I’m freezing, Charlie!”

He burst out laughing as he stood up, pulling her with him.

“Let’s go inside.”

---

Hermione had never considered herself to be very girly. While other girls in her dorm had focused on makeup and boys, she had focused on the war and her studies. She had never even considered having children, and human babies baffled her. When they cried, she never knew what they wanted.

But apparently she was hardwired to react the same way as any other girl was to baby animals — she turned into a puddle of mush.

“Oh my goodness, Charlie!” she cooed in an instinctive baby voice. “They’re so precious!!!”

The pair were staring through a glass barrier that was reinforced by several enchantments. When they got to the Dragon Research hospital, Charlie had been notified that Norberta’s eggs had hatched and were healthy. Instead of showing Hermione the six week olds, they bustled over to her pen.

The barrier separated them from the Norwegian Ridgeback and her hatchlings. Due to the prime example of what happened to Sorin a few days earlier, it was obviously not safe for even trained professionals to be in the same room as the dragons, especially when there was a protective mama around, so they were stuck observing the babies at a safe distance through the barrier while Doctor Haddock and one of Charlie’s associates checked Norberta, both wearing the best protective gear and enchantments the facility had to offer.

“What kind of dragonlets are they?” Hermione asked. She’d seen pictures of baby Norwegian Ridgebacks, even Norberta herself when she was born, but the babies looked different. Norwegian Ridgebacks were born scaled and breathing fire. These hatchlings were hours old and feathered with a furry head rather than little scales.

Hermione was fascinated at how much they looked like baby chicks aside from their bat-like wing structure.

“You saw Norberta hatch at Hagrid’s, right?” Charlie asked. Hermione nodded in response. “That’s actually her, and these are a new cross-breed that we were experimenting with. We were trying to cross a Norwegian Ridgeback with a Welsh Green since they’re from similar areas in the world. Most of the eggs perished before they even got to full gestation, but these three babies are fighters. The runt is actually the most at risk but I’m going to keep an eye on her personally and do what I can so she makes it.”

Hermione was fascinated by the extra research that the facility was doing to better the understanding of dragons. There weren’t many stories of successful cross-breeding. 

“How many instances have you had where they succeed rather than fail?”

“One. you’re looking at them. I don’t know how long they’ll live moving forward, but if we can make sure these survive, then we may be able to bring back species we’ve lost to poaching. Norberta will be retired to just baby Ridgebacks after this, obviously, but this is such an amazing leap in the right direction.”

“I’m so excited for you, Charlie,” Hermione replied encouragingly. She knew what a step in the right direction this was. If anything, it gave her a better motivation to finish drafting her new laws for dragon rights. If dragon species cross-breeding was now a possibility, the dragons and official researchers needed better protection than ever.

She pulled out a notebook and started drawing rough doodles of the dragonlets in front of her. She wasn’t skilled by any means, but it’d give her a starting place for her sketch artist back at the office. The rough doodles were quickly accompanied by notes as Charlie took a hint of what she was doing and started talking about the different important features he saw.

He explained that the feathers were from the Welsh Green. As the dragons get older, the feathers harden into the scales indicative of dragons. They should already have the spikes hidden within the fluffy feathers to protect them from predators, but they will grow with age and pierce out through the feathers which were hiding them now.

“They remind me a little of chickens,” Hermione observed.

“Oh, god,” Charlie laughed. “That reminds me of the time we took the chickens on a parade!”

“Now that is a story I have to hear,” Hermione turned to him curiously.

“It’s really stupid,” Charlie laughed. “Dad brought home Muggle pool noodles. Bill and I were babysitting Luna — you know we grew up close to the Lovegoods — and we had the grand idea to put them on their goat’s horns. It turns out that when someone puts pool noodles on a goat’s horns, the goat doesn’t really care. They’re very light, afterall, and she couldn’t see them. Do you know who cares? Who cares a lot? The horse. Hero took one look at Nutmeg wearing the pool noodles and ran away. You know who doesn’t want to be left alone ever? Nutmeg; who went trotting after Hero because he was leaving her.” Charlie paused briefly for Hermione to burst out laughing. He joined in as he continued, amping up his storytelling as he did. “Hero, seeing that the Eldritch abomination was after him, picked up speed. Nutmeg went into a full run. Bill, Luna, and I started chasing Nutmeg to get the pool noodles off her, but we couldn't catch her, because she’s surprisingly fast. The chickens started chasing us and if that didn’t make us run faster, I don’t know what would. Poor Hero was in a panic, leading a parade that he did not want.”

She was crying in laughter at this point, the story borderline crippling in hilarity.

“How — How did it end?” she gasped. Charlie threw an arm around her shoulders as he leaned back.

“One noodle fell off and we eventually cornered Nutmeg to remove the other one. I think we busted a lung chasing that damned goat to be honest.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Hermione laughed. “But if it doesn’t remind me of when I had to chase after Harry and Ron running headfirst into danger, I don’t know what would. I often felt like it was a sprint to just keep up with their recklessness to keep them alive.”

“Can I ask about how that worked?” Charlie asked. “I’ve heard stories over the years, but you don’t really come across as reckless as a couple of childish boys.”

“They were hardly the only children at the time,” Hermione corrected.

“You know I have to ask,” Charlie sat back against the wall. “How did you become friends with my brother and brother-in-law?”

“Did we never tell you the story of the mountain troll?” Hermione asked, innocently. Charlie’s eyes nearly popped out of his head as his eyebrows hit his hairline. He shook his head slowly as he eyed her with skepticism.

“You’re pulling my leg,” he decided.

“Halloween feast, our first year at Hogwarts. Fully grown and let into the dungeons by Professor Quirrell as a distraction so he could try to get the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“Holy shit, you’re serious.”

“And you have a serious cursing problem,” Hermione decided as she sat beside him on the ground.

“No deflecting,” Charlie deflected. “Tell me the damn story.”

“I forgot that we had downplayed our adventures to Molly and you only got to know me when our only out-of-norm school experience was the Triwizard tournament, forming a club to actually learn defense, and then hyperfocus on the intricacies of dating during the Second Rise of Voldemort.”

“Your younger years were more interesting than that?! What the hell kind of mischief did you three get into?”

Hermione went on to regale him with stories of three-headed dogs, Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers trying to kill Harry, and a series of challenges to get the Stone before Quirrell. The story of the Chamber of Secrets was one Charlie had heard on account of Ginny and she didn’t have much to say since she’d been Petrified at the time — he clenched his fists tightly at that. She noticed and quickly moved on to talk about her use of a Time-Turner to take more classes before using it to save a hippogriff and the newly-escaped-from-prison-before-we-knew-he-was-innocent Sirius Black on the same night while simultaneously facing a Wolfsbane-free werewolf.

“And that was all before the Triwizard Tournament and the return of Voldemort in our fourth year.” Hermione shrugged as if she hadn’t just blown Charlie’s mind.

“I just… Those boys would have died so many times if it wasn’t for you.” Charlie couldn’t think of what else to say. He thought he owed his life to Harry for saving his baby sister from a blasted diary, but maybe he had been grateful to the wrong part of the Golden Trio all along.

“I would have been dead our first year if they hadn’t saved me from the troll,” Hermione disagreed. “We protected and took care of each other. It wasn’t always perfect and Ron and I fought constantly. At the end of the day, they’re my friends and I would do anything for them to keep them safe.”

“Is that what motivated your mindset to be protective of magical creatures?” Charlie asked. She was shaking her head before he could finish his question. His butt was cold from the tiled floor, so he pushed to stand and offered her his hand to pull her up. He laced her fingers with his own as they started walking aimlessly through the halls.

“I started considering it when I discovered Remus’ situation, but I really started because of Winky at the Quidditch World Cup,” Hermione explained. “I hated the way Crouch treated her and wanted to improve their situations. At the time, I thought the best way was to free them, but I’ve since learned better.”

“Have you always been so empathetic?” Charlie asked.

“I wanted to take care of magical creatures because I saw myself in them. Growing up, I didn’t have any Muggle friends and I was always considered as valuable for how useful I was. By the time I got to Hogwarts, I was used to applying that mindset and applied it to my studies to overwrite the prejudice to my Muggle-born status.”

“That’s… really sad,” Charlie frowned. “Did Harry and Ron not help with that?”

“They were eleven-year-old boys,” Hermione laughed. “They didn’t want to. I’m happy to admit that I was an insufferable brat as good as my intentions were. They reacted how little boys react to snooty bookworms.”

“If they reacted in any other way than awe and begging to be your friend, they were doing it wrong,” Charlie insisted.

“Changing the subject back...” Hermione shook her head in disagreement. She held no grudge and loved her friends. “When I started learning more about house-elves, I decided that I wanted to be a champion for all magical creatures and formed S.P.E.W.”

“The Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, right?”

Hermione turned towards him and gripped the collar of his shirt to pull him into a searing kiss. He tried to let out some muffled sound of surprise, but she swallowed it as her tongue invaded his mouth. Moments later, her back was hitting the wall as he kissed her back.

It took a good minute for Charlie to remember their surroundings and pull away.

“What was that for?” he panted. “I want to know so I can repeat it as much as possible.”

Hermione laughed as she brushed a few stray strands of hair from her eyes. Charlie realized that his hands had gone for her hair and mussed up her braid. He couldn’t help it. He loved the texture of her curls.

She shook her head as she pulled the tie out of her hair. With practiced hands, her hair was back in a loose braid moments later, albeit a less perfect one than she’d been wearing before.

“You knew what S.P.E.W. stood for. I discussed it with you maybe five times over the years. I lived with Harry, Ron, and Ginny for three years after founding it and they still called it ‘spew’.”

“If that’s your reaction to me remembering an acronym, I’ll be sure to remember them all from now on,” Charlie said seriously.

“Careful,” Hermione teased with a wink. “You wouldn’t want to get me too excited.”

Charlie literally froze in the hallway.

“Please talk about work,” he begged. “You need to if you don’t want me to pull you into an abandoned office.”

She laughed, but acquiesced nonetheless. “When I first started at the Ministry for Magic, they assigned me to the centaurs. It was a dead end until that point because the centaurs didn’t trust anyone and I think they wanted to make an example of me. Fortunately, I was friends with Firenze and he was willing to become the Ministry liaison during negotiations on the centaurs’ behalf.”

“Good old Firenze,” Charlie smiled nostalgically. “I’m surprised Ryan didn’t bring up the ‘“Forbidden Forest incident’… Nobody can forget the time Mum and Dad received a letter from McGonagall because Bill had tricked me into spending the night in the Forbidden Forest. He had told me that because I was still a virgin, the unicorns would allow me into their herd. I was only twelve at the time, so I hadn’t started Care of Magical Creatures yet to know it was a gender, not a virginity thing. Luckily, Firenze found me sleeping in a hollowed out tree in an open meadow. He took pity on me and delivered me to Hagrid’s before anything too terrible happened! I’m grateful too. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was a little too close to the Acromantula nest for comfort. I’m lucky he found me before the midnight hunt spread out too far. Of course Fred and George intercepted the letter and never let Bill hear the end of it!”

“That’s horrible!” Hermione was appalled.

“That’s called ‘being a brother’,” Charlie corrected. “He was scared out of his wits too when he realized I had taken his tale seriously. There’s a reason he’s so overprotective today. He felt so bad he paid for my Honeydukes addiction for the rest of the year. But I interrupted. You were working with the centaurs?”

“It wasn’t for long,” Hermiomne sighed as she realized Charlie wouldn’t ever be upset at Bill. “My job was mostly to start the conversation. Firenze took it from there. Dobby’s law came next and the werewolves have always held a special place in my heart due to Remus, so I also had to help him. Next thing I know, it’s been eight years and I’m constantly surrounded by sexist assholes who constantly treat me as inferior due to my blood status and gender. Add in the jealousy for my successes at work and sometimes it feels like a miracle that I get any work done.”

“Surely Percy acts as a buffer though?” Charlie was perplexed. “Or at least Ron?”

“Ron’s in the wrong department and Percy is… Well, let’s just say that he means well, but I think he still sees me as the mischief-making friend of his little brother rather than a professional law negotiator.”

“He does not!” Charlie’s eyes hardened as he made a vow to talk to his younger brother. Charlie hated when women weren’t treated with respect and he wouldn’t accept the knowledge that his little brother played a part.

Hermione was unaware of Charlie’s reaction.

“He means well,” she told him. “But sometimes it just comes off as a little condescending.”

“Okay.” Charlie decided it was time to change the subject before he abducted his youngest brother’s Portkey to strangle his middle brother. “I have to ask. You are absolutely amazing. Why has no guy gotten you to settle down with him yet?”

Mistaking his serious tone as sarcasm, Hermione took it as flattery and laughed.

“I work too much and most guys apparently want more attention than I’m able to give them.”

“That seems like a stupid reason.”

“Well what about you? Why haven’t you settled down yet?”

At that point, Charlie started to talk about how he was obsessed with stories about magical creatures growing up and how he made it his focus at Hogwarts. He snuck out to the Forbidden Forest regularly. He was Professor Kettleburn’s favorite and least favorite student. Most of the animals loved him and he had a natural affinity for them, but he forgot more than once the basic tenet of unicorns and got chased out of the Forbidden Forest when trying to observe the young.

“I even tried to ride a thestral before I could see them. I missed the mounting point and fell off to twist my wrist. I once fell asleep in the meadow surrounded by them and woke up to realize they were all cuddled up around me to protect me. It was terrifying for the moment because I could feel and hear them, but they were completely invisible to me.”

All through that time, his only girlfriend — and most of his firsts — was Tonks because they dated more as a friendship than a romance. His life’s true love was dragons.

“When I graduated, I came straight here and it’s been dragons ever since. I’m going to be straight with you; I’ve had a few hookups over the years, but nothing felt permanent or lasting. None of them were like you.”

“Why didn’t you grow attached?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“I never felt like I had the right to date and fall in love when there are so many magical creatures who didn’t have any rights at all,” he admitted. “What right do I have to fall in love when they are losing everything?”

On that they could easily agree.

“But isn’t it possible that we could have both?”

He looked down at her and squeezed her hand in his own. “I’m beginning to think so.”

“Does my research facility look like a popular date spot to you?” Doctor Haddock’s annoyed voice sounded behind them.

“Always,” Charlie said immediately as the codgy doctor walked up to the pair.

Seeing that the veterinarian was no longer in the pen, Hermione excused herself from the conversation with Charlie to go ask him a bunch of questions — starting with the log system she’d seen on different dragon pens.

“Didn't you know that was Weasley’s contribution?” Doctor Haddock told her. “You’d be better off asking him. He’s somewhat ingenious at coming up with better ways to run the facilities than we’ve done it for centuries. You didn’t think he got the promotion from Robert for his good looks, did you?”

“You came up with that? It’s amazing.”

“It’s really nothing,” Charlie shrugged. “Didn’t you want to ask Doctor Haddock about the babies?”

Charlie stared at Hermione in amazement as she talked eagerly with Doctor Haddock about the different nuances he’d observed in the babies from their parent species.

If you had asked Charlie a few days earlier if there was any chance of him leaving the Reserve, he wouldn’t have even considered it. There would have been zero chance of moving him away from the work he loved. But now, he was faced with a witch who understood him and supported his passions unquestionably who even felt the same way as he did towards magical creatures. Despite never caring about women more than his dragons before, he still felt his priorities shift imperceptibly.

Notes:

Let me know what you think!!!

Special thanks to everyone who gave me ideas for Charlie's backstories:
MommaK2017; DrayPotter_TFLS; mackgirl; KatieDeCelis; MusicalC; Onefidget; Shannarosilee; MoonstoneElm23; Bookworm4life0812; CaliforniaCougar; TanzaniteWrites; Michsisk; princessmaude42; Ellieclang; Blond Handsome Stranger; LittleRedCupcake; K1P1; NeaKelty; Heathlea; FallingAsh3; PanduhBabyy; RuneMarauder189; Pray Perry; TheSweaterGirl; Sarkat2013; Dixie326; AccioScroll; Ymaxwell39; Accio-broom; NotSoSirius92; PorcelainandLeather; C1ndy3lla

Chapter 16: December 23rd - Evening

Notes:

I'm so sorry for the delay. I honestly forgot which day was which until it was too late and I had a completely unbetaed chapter.
Hopefully you'll forgive me!!!

“Does Doctor Haddock have a first name?” Hermione asked as they left the Dragon Hospital. “Or does everyone just call him ‘Doctor Haddock’?”

“Of course he does,” Charlie gave her a side eye. “His first name is ‘Doctor’.”

“Charlie! I’m being serious,” Hermione laughed.

Charlie rolled his eyes back. “So am I. I've never heard him refer to anything as silly as a first name when the title was available.”

“You’re ridiculous,” she laughed.

“What do we have planned for this afternoon?”

“We are going to walk back to my place to pack a bag or two, and then we’re going on our promised date,” Charlie told her.

“Where are we going?”

“We are going to… a surprise!” Charlie couldn’t help but double over at the way her face pinched. He hadn’t laughed so much in years as he had since she came to the reserve. “Let’s go get a few things and we can head out,” he promised.

Realizing she had no other choice she shrugged and followed him.

They laced their fingers together and walked through the reserve. She couldn’t help but smile as the light flurry of snowflakes rained down on them.

It was beginning to look a lot like Christmas and she began to feel more at home at the sanctuary.

When they got back to Charlie’s cottage, he didn't give her much direction except to ask her to pack warmly and not to bother with all of her things because they would be back the next morning.

She was excited to see what Charlie’s plans entailed so she did something she had never done before. She waved her wand and summoned most of her things into her bag and called herself ready without checking.

She hurried over to Charlie’s room to find it immaculate and empty. Her eyebrows furrowed and she turned to make her way downstairs.

“Charlie?” She called out, but froze when she saw him at the bottom of the stairs. In his hands were two brooms though one was wrapped poorly.

“What’s going on?” she asked skeptically.

“Now that you like flying,” Charlie grinned, “I wanted to give you your own first broom.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” she tried to argue even as she reached for the wrapped package. “How were you even able to order it here so fast? I only started liking flying yesterday!”

“I had a couple of coworkers pull one up from storage,” he admitted, “so you can actually consider this a gift from the Reserve, but I wanted you to have it and Robert agreed that you deserved it. He and I actually make brooms together in our free time and this is one of the more recent ones we made.” 

“You made me a broom?”

“I promise it’s safe and it’s passed all inspections,” he vowed. “There’s no way I would give you a broom if there isn’t a chance that it was one hundred percent safe.”

“I trust you,” Hermione promised him as she reached out for the package. “Can I open it now?”

“It’ll make getting to our destination difficult if you don’t,” he told her as he handed over the gift.

Hermione gasped as she felt the wood touch her skin. It was smooth and polished and recently waxed. Pulling the paper aside she couldn’t help but gasp at the beauty of the broom in her hands. It looked like it was made of mahogany with the grain creating beautiful patterns down the handle. Inspecting it closer she realized that someone had whittled designs into the wood. The hay end of the broom was tied back neatly in the same style as a Nimbus broom.

In a word, the broom was breathtaking.

“Charlie,” she didn’t know what to say. “I can’t accept this! This is a work of art! Did you say this would really fly?”

“It’s not the most aerodynamic broom in the world for Quidditch but it should treat you more than adequately for more practical uses, and the casual game of Quidditch if you chose to play.”

“This is so thoughtful. Are you sure I can have this?”

“I can think of no one else I would rather have take care of this for me.”

Hermione couldn’t help herself as she grabbed at his shirt and pulled him into a kiss, the broom held carefully to the side.

“It’s beautiful. I love it.”

“Memo to self: always give beautiful things and remember the things important to Hermione. If you do, she’ll kiss you.”

“You’re impossible,” she laughed while she pulled him outside. “Come on, I want to try out my new broom!”

Making sure her bag was secure over her shoulder she quickly mounted and kicked off the ground.

She couldn’t believe how comfortable she felt in the air now. She hadn’t noticed inside, but the handle of the broom was actually a little bit thicker than the broom she had practiced on. It made her feel more confident hovering and flying as if the thicker branch gave her better stability. Adjusting her grip, she realized that the decorative engraving at the end of the brown actually doubled as finger holds for a better grip.

She instantly loved her broom. Charlie couldn’t have made it more comfortable for her if he tried.

“Are you coming?” she called down to her boyfriend.

He was looking up at her as if he was looking at an angel. On the ground, his longer hair whipped around his face as the top few buttons of his white shirt were unbuttoned. Hermione couldn’t help but swallow because he looked just like the cover model on some of the romance novels she had hidden in the depths of her beaded bag.

“You take a few laps to get used to her. I’m gonna go inside and put some things together and I’ll be back in ten minutes,” he called up to her as he cupped his mouth to direct the sound to her.

She shrugged and let him go as she took her broom in a circle going higher and higher before diving back towards the ground and pulling her broom up in a dive that reminded her of something Ginny liked to do to test the limits of her new broomstick. She had watched her friends fly enough so she knew from visuals a few basic routines to make sure that she knew the upper and lower limits of control. Aside from the single dive, she waited to do the more expressive routines until Charlie would be able to join her.

“Ready?” he asked as he returned with his hair tied back. He kicked off the ground to fly alongside her.

“Charlie, if I knew a broom like this existed, I would’ve taken it off of your hands years ago!” Hermione told him as she pulled alongside him. “I love the thicker handle and the finger grips and the easy way it controls.”

“You know the basics of Muggle cars right?”

She blinked a few times with a change of subject but nodded nonetheless. She knew he had to have a point that he was making very quickly.

“The brooms my brothers and especially Harry and Ginny use are essentially race cars,” he explained. “They’re fast, alter at the lightest of touch and are focused on the sport. The brooms you were trained on at school were essentially the worst hand-me-downs that the school could get donated. They were the same as those old clunkers where you don’t know how they drive. They get the job done, but they aren’t a broom you stick with. What you have there is a medium end broom, like a modern sedan. It can do the normal day-to-day activities in reasonable comfort, but has the potential to kick it into high gear for sporting events if pressed.”

“I don’t speak car, but that makes perfect sense,” Hermione told him. “I never considered looking to see if it was a broom that was my problem.”

“Oh, it was definitely your lack of instruction,” he laughed. “The Cleansweep I used to teach you yesterday was a newer calibre of the school’s models.”

“Where are we going?” Hermione asked.

“You’ll have to follow me,” Charlie told her. “We’re heading towards the external area. I got permission for your clearance. I wanted to show you the rest and get your opinions before we camp out in my favorite cabin. There’s no force field so you can see so many more stars than in here.”

“We’re going on a picnic under the stars in the woods in winter?” Hermione bit her lip to hold back the slight humor at the situation. Charlie picked up on her tone of amusement anyway.

“This won’t be like when you were running for your lives,” I promise. “Just trust me. There’ll be food and a bonfire and s'mores and a cozy bed…”

Hermione shot past him as she took off. He stared after her.

“What?” she asked. “You mentioned food, warmth, and a comfy bed where no one will bother us. Let’s go!”

Charlie followed quickly and eagerly. 

He caught up in no time and looped around her, using his broom to flip upside down above her. She laughed and flew in a ring for him to fly through.

Charlie was thrilled at how quickly Hermione had taken to her broom. If he were being honest, he had actually carved it with her in mind. She had written him something about her frustration with his siblings always teasing her for not liking to fly. She was always happy to referee their chaotic Quidditch matches at the Burrow, but she loathed not excelling at everything. The fact she couldn’t fly had secretly weighed on her.

He had crafted the broom the way he had told her and he’d been planning on teaching her in the new year, but now that she was his girlfriend, he wanted to give her something more personal. While she had been testing her new broom, he had quickly drawn a sketch and had it sent off to a special shop in Diagon Alley through the Floo, along with a small bag of coins. He hoped he’d be able to pick it up the next day when they were back in England.

For a moment, the reminder soured his mood slightly. He enjoyed having Hermione here . He couldn’t help but feel selfish and wish she’d just move to the Reserve full time. He knew it was an irrational wish, but he didn’t like that she worked at an office that so clearly disrespected her and who didn’t appreciate everything she added to her team.

Robert and Charlie made sure that their staff and coworkers respected the women on the Reserve — aside from a few cases like with Warren, who they just tried to keep away from women entirely. If Hermione lived there, she could still do the work she loved and craved without the harassment for being a woman that she received at the Ministry.

He thought about all of this as they flew towards the forest, but he knew he’d never offer that to her. He didn’t want to pressure her into anything she wasn’t ready to discuss. Besides that, they were still so new. They’d only been hooking up for a day, afterall.

Shaking himself from that train of thought, he decided to go back to doing what he did best: live in the moment and appreciate what he had. He flew forward so that her lead was now alongside him.

“Can you follow me?” he asked her. He was fine with her flying, however she felt most comfortable within the Internal area of the Reserve, but for the external areas he wanted her close. Recognizing his intent, she nodded and took his flank.

He wove through the trees and burst through the foliage to face the sky. As soon as he saw the shimmer of the barrier, he pointed his wand and a hole opened up. He and Hermione shot through and he turned back to seal it with his signature.

“Let’s stay high,” he suggested. “It’ll give us better maneuverability in case something wants to hunt us.”

“That’s a reasonable — albeit gruesome — thought.”

The pair flew high and Charlie took the lead as they merged into the clouds.

---

Forty-five minutes later, Charlie began his descent and heard Hermione behind him. He led her through the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains.

At one point, he veered right and dove towards a flat bank along a stream that ran through the mountains. This was his favorite observation point in the summer, but he knew that the dragons who typically stayed in this area had already left for the African Reserve for their migration, so there wouldn’t be any people or dragons in these parts.

He landed and Hermione stopped beside him before huffing.

“That was a long trek. Where are we?” she asked.

“We’re at my favorite outpost on the Reserve. When it gets dark, the stars will come out and you’ll see how stunning this place is.”

“I don’t know. I’m appreciating the view I have now.”

He turned and saw her unabashedly looking him up and down as if she wanted to devour him.

“We’re alone right?”

“We will be alone until we head back towards the reserve,” Charlie told her. “No one’s going to come out to this outpost because the dragons from this area are on their annual migration.”

Hermione grinned and stalked up to him, dropping her broom on her way. His hands instantly found her waist as hers found his hair while she pulled him into a kiss. He went willingly and sealed her lips with his own. Within seconds, their tongues were seeking each other as he pulled her closer. Her fingers untied his hair as she massaged his lips with her own. She hated it tied back and loved to run her fingers through his tousled and sexy locks.

He groaned into her mouth and her hands moved to grasp his shoulders. He quickly moved his hands south to support her ass as she braced herself to hop and hitch her legs up around his waist. Despite the cold air and their thick clothes, he loved feeling her fused against him.

For a few minutes, they both just enjoyed being together and the feel of their lips moving in tandem before he regrettably pulled away and set her down.

“We really need to build a fire before it gets too dark,” he explained.

“I’ll collect firewood?” Hermione suggested. “I’d offer to take care of the food but let’s face it, I’m not the best chef.”

“Your food is delicious,” Charlie told her, “but I’m happy to take care of the food if you would rather get the wood.”

She nodded and made her way into the woods to pick up fallen branches that looked dry enough for a good bonfire. After spending so much time with Harry and Ron on the run she knew exactly what to look for. Thick branches burned longer and dry branches produced less smoke than green or wet wood.

By the time she got back to clearing, Charlie had laid out the fixings to make kebabs over the fire. He had onions, potatoes, and bell peppers stacked alternating between chunks of steak and chicken. She could feel her mouth watering already.

“That looks amazing!” she said enthusiastically. “Let’s get this fire stacked and going so we can cook!”

Hermione and Charlie sat down to build a fire and within minutes they had the flames lit. Their magic certainly helped them speed the process along, but she still enjoyed building the fire from scratch. It gave her a better sense of fulfillment.

They both grabbed a kebab and Charlie set up a grill over the flames. She moved around the fire so that he could wrap his arm around her as the meat grilled. They spent time talking about anything and just enjoying being together. When the meat was sizzling, they eagerly tucked in.

Their meal was nothing less than delicious and Hermione was full half an hour later.

“What did you use to spice that? It was amazing,” she complimented.

“Sorin loves to barbecue and he was willing to share his fancy secret rub with me before we left.”

“You need to remind me to thank him when we get back.”

“I’ll definitely do that,” he told her.

“So! What’s the plan for the rest of the evening?” she asked.

“I figured we could go for a walk and replenish the wood supply. When we get back, we can sit by the fire and roast marshmallows while we look at the stars,” he told her honestly. He knew it sounded dorky and romantic, but he wanted to take the chance to woo her in person while he had the opportunity. He knew that after Christmas at the Burrow, she’d be staying in London while he returned to the Reserve. He had every intention of keeping her in his life even if he couldn’t keep her in his home. He’d had her for just over thirty-six hours and he had no intention of letting her slip away. He wanted to woo her so that she wanted to stay as much as he wanted her to. He knew she’d remain in London, but he saw no harm in dreaming.

“I think that sounds lovely!” Hermione told him as she walked over to the cabin and dropped off her bag. Not wanting to leave everything behind or take it all with her, she left the main bag just inside the cabin and pulled her small beaded bag out from within. She quickly tied the string to the belt loop at her hip and she rejoined him by the fire where he was casting a Stasis charm.

He laced his fingers with her own and the pair went out for a walk around the area on well worn trails. He pointed out different alcoves that the dragons liked to nest in and she enjoyed looking at the nests up close. They both made sure not to touch anything to prevent leaving their scent as a trace. Both knew that if they did, the dragon might renest in an area more difficult to reach and observe.

As they walked, they talked about work and the projects that they were currently working on while they picked up branches of dry wood. When the sun disappeared behind the mountains and their arms were full, Charlie deemed that they had enough and they quickly went back to the comfort of the bonfire.

“Have you ever considered moving back to London?” she asked as she followed him down a memorized path.

“I almost moved back a few times, actually,” he admitted. “I miss being close to my family, but at the end of the day, I can’t give up the work I’m doing. There are times, though, that I’ve been really tempted.”

“Is now one of those times?” she asked as she bit her lip.

“You have no idea,” he told her as they entered the clearing. She paused at the edge of the forest and looked back and forth between the cabin and the bonfire.

“What are the chances you’d be willing to move the fire into the fireplace at the cabin and take this indoors?” she asked. As much time as she enjoyed spending talking with Charlie she’d rather get him inside to focus on other activities at that exact moment.

She’d seen a starry sky many times throughout her years at Hogwarts and growing up camping with her parents meant s’mores weren’t a new delicacy. The man in front of her still technically was.

Charlie picked up on the tonal shift in their conversation and turned to look back at his witch. He briefly considered arguing for more time spent on their date portion but decided to go along with it. He knew their time overall was limited and if she wanted to spend it inside with him he wasn’t going to argue.

“Get inside and start the fire while I put this one out?”

Safety first and all that.

Hermione nodded and bit her lip as she scurried towards the cabin.

Charlie levitated his pile of wood to the side porch where a pile of chopped wood was stored. It was set up to also supply the inside of the cabin in case of snowstorm.

He quickly walked over to the fire — almost slipping on an invisible patch of ice — before he extinguished the flames with magic and made his way towards the cabin.

He had a witch to ravish.

---

He had just gotten inside when he found himself being tackled into the door by his witch — his very naked witch. He had barely caught himself when her lips were covering his own. He quickly flipped her around so her back was pinned against the front door as he plundered her mouth. He loved the way she felt as she arched against him like an eager cat.

“Someone was eager for me,” he observed wryly as his hands traced up her ribs to hold her breasts.

“Complaining?” she asked between kisses.

“Not for a second,” he replied. Ironically, that’s the same amount of time she needed to start pushing him across the room. He let her guide him to the nearby bed as she quickly pushed him down and climbed on top of him. Gently, she kissed her way across his chin and sucked his earlobe into her mouth. Charlie groaned and held her tightly while she slowly started grinding her lower half against his, creating a delicious friction for the pair of them.

“You feel really good, baby,” Hermione moaned softly as she continued grinding against his thigh. Charlie moved to undress himself to match her, but she stopped him. “Can I… Can I explore you?” Hermione pulled back and Charlie paused when he saw the insecurity etched onto her face. He kept having to remind himself that she was experienced with assholes who didn’t treat her right.

“Merlin, please, Hermione,” he groaned. “I want you to always feel comfortable to do whatever you want with me. In bed and otherwise. If you want to try something, I want you to feel comfortable asking me.”

“Yeah?” she asked as she bit her lip. “Can I look at your tattoos and then… play with your cock?”

“Fuck, yes,” he groaned as he lay back on the comforter, exposing himself to her entirely.

Hermione grinned eagerly as she saw him laid out below her. There was something exhilarating about seeing Charlie so willing to trust her to do whatever she wanted to with him. 

She ran her hands up and down his chest, feeling the muscles rippling beneath. She made a point of trying to pull the wool sweater off of him and he sat up so she could get it over his head. She froze at the glorious sight he made.

She had Charlie Weasley in all of his muscled, tan, scarred, and handsome glory panting beneath her. Panting in desire for her. She had never felt so needed and wanted, that she choked down an instinctual sob. Sensing her brief moment of vulnerability, he leaned up and kissed her. She kissed him back briefly before pushing him back down and went back to exploring his chest.

The previous night, they’d been desperate to fulfill years of pining and this morning was about getting her over her insecurities — both times. She had never been able to take the time to explore him and she wanted to now. She wanted to take time to map out his tattoos and inspect their fine coloring up close. She’d ask about their meanings later.

As if it had known her wish, the little red Chinese Fireball tattoo walked across Charlie’s skin so that it was woven around his stomach muscles and the Welsh Green and Hungarian Horntail peeked over his shoulders.

“There’s an Ukrainian Ironbelly on my thigh,” he told her.

“No Norwegian Ridgeback?” she teased.

“She’s on my calf. I had to have the enchantments removed when she kept trying to crawl up my pants.”

For a moment, their sensual moment was broken as she blinked at him. He couldn’t hold back his cocky grin and she burst into laughter.

“I can’t believe you’re serious,” she told him as she wiped a tear from her eye.

“Always,” he laughed.

“No more talking,” she ordered. “You’re distracting me.”

He made a show of zipping his lips and giving the boy scout pledge.

She rolled her eyes, but traced the dragons anyway. She started at his shoulders and traced the dragons there with the barest grazes of her fingers. Feeling inspired by his treatment that morning, she bent down and kissed each one. As she moved down his chest, she kissed every nick, scar, and bruise as she encountered them. 

When she got to the eastern styled Chinese Fireball, she pet that one with her tongue, making sure to catch every millimeter of its long body. She loved the feel of the dips and ridges of Charlie’s abdominal muscles twitching beneath her tongue as she meticulously traced the red dragon.

She sighed happily when she glanced up at his face to gauge his reaction. He was obviously enjoying what she was doing and she enjoyed that he was transparent enough to let his emotions cross his face freely. His breathing was becoming ragged and his hands were clenching.

“Hermione,” he groaned. She locked eyes with him and understood his need as she unbuttoned his jeans and carefully slid down the zipper. Once the zipper was clear, Hermione grinned like a cat that stole the cream and started tugging the fabric down his legs. He raised his hips and the fabric slid down his thighs for him to kick off, balong with his footwear. His cock bounced free before settling on his stomach. Hermione licked her lips as she stared at it, before continuing her exploration.

Turns out he did have an Ironbelly on his thigh and a Ridgeback on his other calf. She made sure to kiss each before climbing back up his body, raking her nails on his thighs as she headed towards her prize. 

Charlie was in awe as he watched her explore his body. She had started a fire in the hearth whilst stripping and she looked gorgeous. In the flickering golden light, she looked like a goddess. She reminded him of Aphrodite seeking her lover’s pleasure. Her halo of curls certainly could look aphro-like in certain weather, but right now, she was nothing less than beautiful. 

His thoughts were interrupted as she reached for his cock. Instead of immediately swallowing him like she’d done last night, she took him in her hand and held him loosely as she stroked him, not giving him the pressure she knew he needed.

“Mi, please,” Charlie begged, panting hard as she stroked him slowly without giving him the pressure he craved. 

At his desperate tone, she used her loose grip to direct him towards her mouth. Rolling her tongue around the inside of her mouth, she determined how much saliva she had before diving in.

Before Charlie knew what was happening, Hermione had swallowed half of his cock before bobbing to get the rest. It only took a few pushes and pulls until she gagged as her nose brushed his pelvis.

“Fuck, babe.” He couldn’t help it as he closed his eyes at the pressure. She’d surprised him when she swallowed his cock the night before and she didn’t hold back now. Praises tumbled out of his mouth as she started bobbing her head.

Charlie was in heaven as he watched his engorged shaft slide in and out of the mouth of his perfect goddess. Her curly hair started to get in the way for both of them, so he pulled it back.

“Is this okay?” he asked. His grip not only allowed him to see better, but he also was able to better control the speed and force that Hermione used to pleasure his cock. She looked up and winked at him. “Tap my thigh if you need to be let up or I go too hard?” She hummed and nodded as she started moving again. He took control very slowly, not wanting to hurt her and also marvelling at the feel of her mouth. As his need grew, though, so did his pace as she swallowed his cock eagerly at his direction.

A few minutes later, Hermione could feel he was getting close, but her jaw needed a break and she tapped his thigh. He immediately let her up and she didn’t leave him wanting as she took over with her hand, refusing to let his imminent orgasm die down.

She started laying sucking kisses against his shaft while her hand moved across the base. She dipped her tongue into his slit as her other hand moved to play with his balls — which were delightfully heavy in her hand. She started massaging them as they tightened in her grasp, telling her that he was quickly reaching the point of no return.

“Oh, fuck... babe. I’m gonna come.” To his credit, Charlie tried to warn her and even pull her away, but she would not be moved as her lips surrounded the mushroom shaped head as if it were her favorite lollipop and she sucked harder. 

That tipped him over the edge as his balls seized and his tool swelled as he shot his load down her throat. She opened her mouth so he could watch as his cum splashed across her tongue while she stroked his cock for every last drop before she swallowed her treat. She had never liked the taste of cum in her other partners, but Charlie’s was a bit sweeter and not as salty. 

Charlie collapsed backwards when he was done. Hermione cleaned him up with a quick wandless Scourgify as she crawled up his body to kiss him fiercely.

The witch was typically the poster child for being immaculately poised, so seeing her turn into a seductress earlier was a delicious treat for Charlie. But she’d had her turn and he wanted her wild and sopping wet beneath him. He grinned as he quickly pulled her up his body and connected his lips to every part of her skin he could touch, worshiping her with his mouth like she deserved. In his eyes, her body was a temple for him to pray at.

How better to pray than on his knees?

He quickly rolled her under him and began worshipping one breast with his mouth while massaging the other. He made sure to switch off as she mewled encouragingly below him. When he pinched her nipple, she keened and tangled her fingers in his hair.

His fingers danced along her hips toward her core as his mouth sealed her whimpers. He moved his fingers to her core and found her positively dripping for him. “Fuck, baby, you're soaked,” he whispered as he felt her desire for him. He slid his fingers lightly up and down her slit, teasing her before immediately slipping his middle two fingers inside to start fucking her.

Slowly, his lips followed the path of his hands as he moved down from her breasts until he had travelled far enough that he could lap at her clit with his tongue. She whimpered and raised her hips to get better friction.

She was mostly shaved aside from a light dusting and a groomed bar of pubic curls. Straight and to the point — just like her. He pulled back and let himself rest there for just a moment as he appreciated the humor in her curls telling him where he needed to go as his fingers continued to pump into her. 

Hermione carded her fingers through his thick ginger hair as she gently guided him, desperate to have his mouth on her again. He groaned as her fingers massaged his scalp. He was thrilled at the growth and trust she showed in him since that morning. She had tensed, but still let him continue. He was so happy that he began to kiss down her curls, until his tongue met his fingers. 

Hermione moaned loudly as she rolled her hips at the feeling of his fingers and mouth. Charlie used his thumb to begin to rub her clit in slow, powerful circles while his mouth went below his fingers to lap up the liquid dripping from her before it hit the mattress. When his tongue accidentally grazed her puckered hole, she arched with a gasp, but didn’t stop him.

So she wasn’t against trying new things? He quickly stored that information away for later.

“Charlie,” she begged as she grabbed his wrist as if her words would cause him to pull away. “I’m close. Don’t stop.”

Stampeding erumpents wouldn’t be enough to pull him away now.

Charlie eagerly lapped up her juices as his thumb never stopped at her clit. He briefly replaced his fingers with his tongue, piercing her with the muscle and driving as far as he could. Her whine was muffled as her thighs clamped down on his head. He started moving his tongue within her, searching for what made her feel best as he watched her face twist in pleasure. 

Hermione's normally bushy hair was wild from her thrashing against his ministrations and her breasts heaved as she gasped for air. 

He could feel her channel tightening, so he knew she was close. He flattened his tongue against her entire womanhood and lapped a few times before he sucked the nub into his mouth and hummed. She yelled his name in desperation.

Charlie quickly pulled away and climbed her body. He could tell she was holding back from coming in his mouth, so he’d give her his cock instead. He was hard again and desperate to be inside her — properly this time.

He didn’t give her a chance to recover as he climbed up the mattress to nestle between her thighs. He rubbed his hard cock between her folds and she whimpered at the stimulation.

“Charlie, I… I need you!” she begged. “Don’t tease me, please!”

His hands couldn't move fast enough as he guided his cock along her twitching pussy. Then, his hips twitched and his head pushed past the first few folds of her. 

Her hands clawed his arms as he sank inside of her inch by tantalizing inch. He slipped inside easily since she was still dripping from her near-orgasm. Still sensitive, her pussy clamped down on his cock as it tried to swallow him further. They both groaned at the feeling and at the look of trust and — dare he say — love on her face, his dick tightened as he pushed into her deeply, her silky walls accepting him eagerly. When he bottomed out and his balls hit her ass while his pelvis ground against her clit, they both released a strangled groan as they kissed at each other’s faces eagerly.

He pulled out and pumped into her maybe three times before she shattered around him. He had to bite his lip and start naming every dragon in the sanctuary to hold back his own orgasm as her walls massaged his cock, urging him to join her. He’d already come once and he had plans to coax a second orgasm out of her before he came again.

Their lips found each other and they kissed for a few moments before Charlie started moving again. She let her mouth fall open in a loud cry as he moved deeply inside of her. It was a fast rhythm but he stayed deep inside of her and he made sure to angle his hips to hit her womb each time. The rough red fuzz above his cock tickled her mostly bare skin, creating a new tickling feeling which somehow only fueled her desire. When his hips deliberately ground against her clit, she moaned and eagerly began rolling in time with him.

“Merlin, yes, Charlie!” she moaned when he pulled out a bit further and changed his position so he was hitting the spongy spot at the front wall of her pussy. She subconsciously tightened around him and he leveraged himself to thrust faster, fully pumping in and out of her with each push. His movements were less controlled, but with his speed also came a harder thrust which caused his hips to bump her clit each time. “So… goood…”

“Hermione…” he hissed into the curve of her shoulder, where his teeth and lips were covering her in more marks. He was supporting his weight on his elbows on either side of her head and she was loving the intimacy. “I’m gonna come, babe… You feel so good and I need to come. Where do you want me?”

She had already been sensitive, so it hadn’t taken her much to get to the edge again.

“Come inside me, Charlie,” she told him with a roll of her hips, the inner walls of her channel contracting and swallowing his cock. “I’m so close too!”

Her consent was enough for Charlie to drive deep and bite her neck as he muffled his yell of obscenities as he came, his balls making one last resounding slap against her ass. Some of his cum slipped out around him as he filled her to the brim.

The pleasurable pain of his bite and the feeling of his cock throbbing within her as he released his desire was enough to trigger her own orgasm as she clung to his back.

He collapsed on top of her, sinking them both into the plush bed and blankets, his hardened chest pressing into her soft breasts as he struggled to move after such a powerful orgasm. He realized he was probably crushing her, however, and moved to detangle their pile of jello-like limbs. 

Charlie slowly pushed himself back up to roll off of Hermione and her arms fell away from his shoulders to lay across her face and above her head on her pillow as she caught her breath. He slipped his now-soft dick from its new favorite warm home, she was still sensitive and twitching, and a small trickle of their combined fluids left her body when he did. Before they could stain the sheets, he muttered a wandless Scourgify and cleaned them both, aside from a minimal sheen of sweat. He was decent at wandless magic but not perfect.

He gave himself a second to regain the use of his muscles before he pushed himself off the bed to grab his wand from his discarded pants at the foot of the bed so he could clean both of them properly and cast the contraception charm to be safe.

He smiled as he looked at her. Her curls surrounded her golden skin in a lovely frame. Her arm still covered her eyes and her chest heaved as she caught her breath. She looked nothing less than gorgeous even after their sweaty, euphoric encounter and he felt something shift in his chest.

Unwilling to put a name to the warm feeling spreading through his chest, he instead wrapped his arms around her and kissed her deeply before moving to kiss the crown of her head. Tomorrow was a new day that would give them new challenges, but for now they were safe and happy with each other as they fell asleep, naked in bed together in the cabin in the woods.

Notes:

Am I forgiven?
Leave your thoughts!!!

Chapter 17: December 24th - Morning

Notes:

Before we start, a quick announcement.... As I've been working at wrapping up the final chapters, I decided to combine two chapters into one. So for one week this month, one of my updates will be a complete new Fremione Yule story.

When Charlie woke up, he rolled to his side to find Hermione still lying against him as she slept.

He grinned like an idiot as he took in her appearance. Her hair was a tangled mess and her naked form was tucked up against him. As he moved, she rolled onto her back.

He grinned as he got an idea.

Moving slowly, but deliberately, he crawled over her and kissed his way from her collarbone to the apex of her thighs. He rubbed the heel of his hand against her cunt and felt his fingers grow damp. He spread his fingers to part her lips and his mouth watered at the veritable smorgasbord. His actions parted her legs and Hermione sighed in her sleep.

That won’t do, he thought with a smirk as he dove in. He groaned when he flattened his tongue over her core and dragged it slowly up towards her sensitive bud.

She was delicious no matter how many times he got his tongue in her.

Her eyes slowly opened to look down and see that Charlie was still planted between her legs as he licked every drop from her essence from her core. She mewled softly at the sensitivity, but pet his hair in gratitude towards his attentiveness.

“Morning,” she mumbled tiredly as his tongue flicked at her clit.

“Hello,” he murmured against her cunt. “Did you sleep well?”

“I did,” she hummed as her hands pushed the hair from his forehead so she could look into his eyes. “I had a cozy warm dragon tamer to cuddle against.”

“Mmm, that must have felt nice. Ironically enough, I had a lovely little witch that acted as a perfect teddy bear to curl up with too.”

“That must have felt so cozy,” she giggled. “Did you do this to her too?”

Charlie licked a long stripe from ass to clit and Hermione arched with him.

“I may have." He grinned. “She certainly had no complaints though. She really seemed to enjoy it when I fucked her afterwards.”

“I really did,” Hermione moaned as she started moving against his face.

There she is , he thought. Just as wild and sexy as I know she can be.

At that point, Hermione heard her wand buzzing across the room and groaned. This time in annoyance rather than pleasure.

“What’s that?” Charlie asked, momentarily distracted.

“My alarm,” she explained as she pulled away. “I set it while you were taking your time joining me last night. I need to say my goodbyes before our Portkey leaves and I wanted to get back in time to do so.”

Charlie frowned as the realization dawned on him. They’d be separated by continents moving forward. After the holidays, she wouldn’t be returning to the Reserve with him. He’d be alone and she’d be back in England with his family. They’d fight to make it work — he could tell that without thinking too hard — but it wouldn’t be the same.

That frustrated him. He knew it shouldn’t and he would do his best to not let it show, but he was a selfish bastard who wanted to keep her close. It wasn’t fair that she was planning on returning to England, even if it’s what they had known would happen all along. He was falling for her hard and fast and he wanted to keep her around.

Hermione could pick on Charlie’s souring mood as his thoughts carried him away from her. She knew it was her own fault and sighed. She pulled away and slipped towards the cabin bathroom. It was a fully functional bathroom built very similar to the quality of her own apartment, however she couldn’t help but lament them not staying at Charlie’s cottage where there was a heated floor and a large tub she’d love to ride him in.

Shaking herself of those thoughts, she heated the water and climbed into the small shower. 

She felt the air thicken as steam filled the space and tested the water with her hand before slipping under the jet, moaning as the feel of hot water soaked her curls. She grabbed the bar of soap — which she recognized as the same kind Charlie used — and made sure it was thoroughly rinsed (just in case it wasn’t his) before she scrubbed the sweat from her body. She was reaching for the shampoo bottle when she felt hands circle her waist.

She did what any witch would do in a strange land when suddenly touched while naked in a shower alone — she screamed and jumped a foot in the air. She was lucky Charlie was there to catch her.

“Sorry, love,” he apologized as he steadied her. “I didn’t mean to surprise you.”

“You’re fine,” she told him as she laid a hand on his chest to steady herself and her heart rate. “You just startled me.”

Charlie chuckled, “I thought that I’d join you in the shower. We’re pressed for time and I wanted to have you one last time if you were up to it.”

Hermione groaned as her hands slid up his chest to cup his neck and pull him down. As their lips melded against each other in a sweet and loving kiss, Charlie took the bottle from her. He stepped back to pour some into his hand before he circled the air with his finger for her to turn around. She bit her lip to hide her grin as she turned to let him wash her hair.

His hands carefully massaged her scalp as he washed her hair. As she rinsed out the soap, he quickly scrubbed his own head before reaching for the conditioner. She graciously allowed him to wash her hair again and he took great care in detangling the knots in her curls while his own shampoo ran down his back from the showerhead. They traded places one last time under the spray as she rinsed the cream out of her hair. As soon as her hair was rinsed, he slowly pulled her towards him and kissed her lovingly.

As their kiss turned heated, his hands cupped her ass and slid south to her thigh as he turned them so her back was against the wall. She followed his lead as her legs hitched over his hip.

“Are you alright?” Charlie asked softly, while pulling away to kiss down her neck. 

“I’m fine,” she hummed as he kissed that spot behind her neck that made her brain turn to mush. “Why?”

“You seemed distracted when you left the bed,” he rumbled against her ear. “I was worried. You went from letting me eat you out to pushing me away and running off to the shower. I was going to give you space, but I couldn’t help myself.”

Hermione blinked as she really looked at Charlie. She didn’t see the water running down his muscles or the way his long, wet hair got caught in his eyes before he plastered it back across his head. All she saw was him.

She saw his loyalty and how deeply he cared. She saw his profound loneliness and need for companionship. She saw how much he took care of those around him without ever asking for anything in return. She saw how he’d valiantly fight to protect anyone in his life if they needed it. She saw in the back of his eyes that he’d probably seriously consider leaving the Reserve to follow her back to England if she asked him to. He was like a loyal golden retriever and she loved him for that.

She loved him.

“I love you,” she whispered. “I don’t know when it happened, but I love you so much. I’m scared of what our futures hold because we’re meant to be in two different places and I don’t want us to be apart.”

He stared at the ceiling as if it could give him any answer if he searched hard enough while he tried to put his feelings into words. “We don’t have to be—”

She quickly sealed his lips with her own as she clung to him.

They were the words she wanted to hear but she also dreaded him saying them. If he said he loved her back, one of them would inevitably sacrifice everything for the other. They each had their own lives and they’d figure out how to combine them eventually, but there’s no way they could do so now without having regrets. But all that mattered was here... in this moment. What mattered was the way he felt in her arms, how he felt perfect in the cradle of her thighs, how she felt secure and supported against his sturdy frame even as the chilled tiles pressed against her back.

Her nipples tightened against his chest as he pressed her to the wall and kissed her back. Her stomach erupted with butterflies as he nipped and bit at her lips possessively as if he was afraid she’d disappear if he blinked.

She kissed him back the same way.

When she felt his arousal start hardening against her lower belly, she moaned and wiggled against him.

“Please take me, Charlie,” she begged as she ripped her lips away from his and wriggled against him. She trusted his hold on her as she moved her hands to his chest to rake her nails against his pecs. “Please claim me and make me yours again. Make me forget for a second.”

He chuckled as he slowly ground himself against her moistening center. “You’re asking too little if you only need a second, babe. I’m going to make sure you don’t forget how I feel all day.”

She whimpered as he rocked his hips slowly, letting his full length get drenched with her juices while he moved against her core. When he prodded her entrance, they made eye-contact which never broke while he slowly pushed himself into her.

Despite the way he’d been kissing her, Charlie slowed his pace down and captured her lips as he gently burrowed his way into her slippery folds. Hermione moaned as she felt every inch stretch her, and rolled her hips downward to help ease his path. They sighed when he was fully slotted inside her and her clit met the red curls between his hips. Her head hit his shoulder at the feeling of fullness as he pushed and pulled within her.

She moaned happily as his lips nipped at her exposed shoulder. No other man came close to what he was doing to her. Fast, slow, rough, gentle — it didn't matter what he did. A shiver went through her when one of his hands started gliding over every inch of her that he could reach, taking his sweet time to map out where she was most sensitive.

They both wanted to take their time with each other as they picked up a slow pace. They’d moved too quickly earlier and Charlie wanted to slow back down to the basics to discover everything she liked. He wanted to find where she was ticklish, what made her buck against him, and what noises she’d make when he found that spot inside her.

From her point of view, Hermione wanted to map out every one of Charlie’s scars. She wanted to know where each came from. She wanted to know where he’d learned that move with his tongue — if it were Tonks, she’d send a gift basket. If it were any other witch, she might let her live. Hermione wanted to know what Charlie loved in bed. How did he like his cock swallowed best?

At that thought, Hermione automatically clamped down onto him.

“Fucking hell. Merlin, you feel amazing,” Charlie groaned as she fluttered around his shaft.

“Name’s Hermione, actually,” she teased. “But I’ll accept the praise all the same.”

“Cheeky witch,” he growled as his hand slapped her ass.

“Oh!” she gasped at the brief flash of pleasure and pain.

“Too much?” he asked as he ducked his head to kiss at her pulse point while his hand massaged the flesh in apology.

“Good,” she moaned as she arched her back so that Charlie could reach her nipple. “ Really good.”

“I forgot your past paramours treated you too gently,” he commented as he bit her nipple lightly.

“One was a bit too rough, but I don’t mind this at all,” she told him earnestly.

Charlie nodded as he adjusted Hermione so that he had a good grip on her as he reached to his side and shut the water off. Unlike his place, this cabin did have a hot water limit and he had felt them reaching it. He wanted to take his time with her and make her see stars, and he had a feeling frigid ice water would impede that plan.

He held her carefully as he stepped out of the shower and carried her back to the main room of the cabin where he had a newly lit fire roaring to make the room cozy and warm. Every step he took jostled her against him and she purred like a cat at the feeling.

He laid her on her back at the edge of the bed and used the change in position to grip her hips as he pumped into her deliberately. He ducked back down so he could kiss and nip his way across her chest and she tugged at his red locks at the feeling.

They were both soaking wet so Hermione’s first reaction was to be concerned about the bedding, but the feeling quickly disintegrated at the feeling of what Charlie was doing to her. She could feel the sweltering heat filling the room from the fire and it staved off the automatic chill brought on from the weather outdoors teasing the water on her damp skin.

Her hands slid down to his shoulders while he licked his tongue slowly across her chest, sucking and tending to her nipples and breasts. His hands massaged down her side and made her giggle at the ticklish feeling before he found her leg to hitch over his hip. Just like the last few times they’d been together, Charlie was pouring everything he had into pleasing her and giving her exactly what she needed without asking. He already had her whole body tightening up around his swelling shaft inside of her, and Hermione felt as if she’d barely done anything. It was the exact reversal of the previous night and she was thrilled with the diversity.

As his pelvis started deliberately grinding against her sensitive pearl, she whimpered and arched up to moan loudly. Her lips found the thick muscle of his shoulder and she bit down on one sweeping tendril of his dragon tattoo to stifle her scream of pleasure.

“Fuck, that’s hot,” he praised as he pumped into her. His hands quickly moved to her hips and he used his grip to hold her in place as he rocked his hips. He could feel both of their orgasms fast approaching and he wanted to have them fall apart at the same time.

Again and again, he drove into her deep and hard and it had Hermione’s head swimming. Too soon in his own mind, his orgasm hit him and he roared loudly while he seated himself fully into her core and filled her with his seed.

The feeling of his sperm splashing against her womb was enough to tip her over the edge as she joined him, coming so hard her eyes rolled back into her head as she screamed.

She whimpered as Charlie collapsed on her and she automatically started threading her fingers through his damp hair as droplets fell on to her chest. When he pulled back, she let him go and relaxed into the bed, eyes still closed as she tried to linger in the moment as long as possible.

She only opened her eyes when she felt a tingle in her stomach that indicated he’d returned to cast the contraception spell.

“Sit up,” Charlie said gently as his hand slipped behind her back. He’d wrapped a towel around his waist and had another one for her.

Hermione obediently sat up and he started to dry her off carefully. He took great care and she let him until she recovered enough to take over. She kissed him on the cheek as she grabbed her beaded bag and slipped into the bathroom to get ready for the day. After their shag, styling her hair was a lost cause, so she charmed it dry and quickly plaited it.

She applied her makeup and got dressed quickly to help Charlie clean up.

The pair got ready quickly and cleaned up the cabin. Charlie charmed the bedding to clean and refold itself once dry. He then remade the bed by hand. Hermione raised her eyebrow at him.

“Timing,” he shrugged. “We don’t have time for it to air dry and I’d rather not leave the next people dirty sheets to have to clean.”

Once the cabin was put back together, they gathered their things and locked up. Before they mounted their brooms and left their getaway cabin, Charlie needed to clarify something with her.

“Hermione. I think… I think I’m falling in love with you,” he told her. The night before, he’d felt something shift. The way she'd moaned his name when they were having sex — how it was husky and pleading and needing of him all at the same time — as well as the way she’d looked at him as if she thought he hung the moon, and she could trust that he’d never hurt her, had shaken something deep inside of him in a way he'd never experienced before. He struggled to find words to explain it. It felt all-consuming and as if he’d changed — as if being with Hermione made him want to be a better man. The only name he could think of for it was love.

Her heart rate kicked into high gear and her breathing became erratic. She pulled her arm away from her face and used it to push her traitorous curls from her eyes as she stared up at him. “You think that you love me?” she asked quizzically, surprise clear in her eyes.

Charlie nodded as he pulled her into his arms. “I think so. Remember, I’ve never been in love with anyone before, so I’m not completely sure yet, but it makes sense. I care about you and have for years. I don’t want to do that with anyone else. I love talking with you for hours and hearing your thoughts on different matters, and the last few days have been amazing because I’ve been able to spend so much time with you. I’m no expert on love, but I imagine this feeling is pretty darn close. I never thought having feelings for someone was important for ‘feeling good’ together, but having sex with you — making love to you — is different and amazing. You’re unlike any other witch I’ve been with and I don’t think I’ll ever get enough.” He pulled back to face her with a grin that could melt the coldest ice in anyone’s heart. 

Hermione felt tears forming in her eyes as she considered everything he was saying. She felt safe with him. She never had to question herself to feel as if she was important to him. He never tried to control her and always encouraged her work without feeling threatened by her success. He took care of her and never treated her as less for coming from a non-magical background. He didn’t care that she was younger than him — all he cared about was that she was happy and healthy and a good fit for him. All she wanted to do at that moment was curl up in his arms forever and never leave their cabin in the woods.

In that moment, she knew there was no going back for her. She didn’t just love Charlie, she was in love with him.

“I’m in love with you too,” Hermione told him as she snuggled close and he wrapped his arms around her while they just held onto each other for a few minutes, allowing their words — and worries — to go unsaid.

When her wand buzzed in her holster again, she sighed and pulled away.

“We have to go,” Charlie observed sadly.

She nodded and their bubble popped.

The pair mounted their brooms and took off.

---

They landed outside of the Mess Hall thirty minutes later.

“That hurt, flying for so long,” Hermione grumbled. She still wasn’t used to flying, especially after their activities in the morning and the night before.

“Sorry,” he told her. “Next time I carve you a broom, I’ll add leg bars.”

“Next time you what?”

“Hey, guys!” Sorin greeted as he walked up to them.

“Charlie Weasley, did you carve me this broom and try to brush it off as a Reserve spare?”

“I’ll see you inside,” Sorin said as he quickly backed up and escaped indoors. No man wanted to be facing an angry witch, especially a witch of Hermione’s caliber. He figured that he’d be better off safe than sorry.

Charlie put his hands up placatingly.

“Can I explain BEFORE you maim me?”

“Please do.”

“I made that broom for your Christmas gift before I knew you were coming to the Reserve,” he told her. “You were complaining in your letters that you didn’t know how to fly. I had planned on gifting you your broom and then teaching you how to fly on another basic Cleansweep while everyone else played Quidditch after Christmas lunch. You came early and I was able to teach you, so that plan no longer applied. Now that we’re together, I wanted to give you something more meaningful than a broomstick.”

She marched up to him and kissed him.

“It was something you made me,” she told him seriously. “That means more to me than any store bought gift, no matter what the gift may be.”

“May I please ask the Wizengamot to hold judgement until tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow?” Hermione cocked her head in confusion.

“Tomorrow is Christmas, love,” Charlie explained.

Hermione’s eyes widened as her gloved fingers covered her mouth in surprise.

“I just — I knew our timing, but I forgot that it was tomorrow.”

“Let’s discuss that and where the pair of you disappeared off to last night once we get inside,” Delia said as she materialized next to them.

“I also want to know how Charlie keeps getting the girls around him to go from angry murders to loving angels so fast,” Ryan said as he slung an arm around Charlie’s neck. “First there was the Hungarian Horntail and now Hermione Granger. I need to use that trick on Delia.”

“It’s nothing complicated,” Hermione explained. “Charlie just inherently knows how to figure out exactly what the women in his life want. For Delia, I suggest you just stop teasing her and just tell her how you feel instead. I’ve been here three days and I’m already sick of it. Imagine how your coworkers feel.” Hermione rolled her eyes, tired of being secretive. “You guys have more issues to sort out than Charlie and me.”

She tugged on Charlie's hand and he willingly followed her after playfully saluting his best friend with a smirk. He loved the fact that Hermione’s ire had been so quickly distracted by Ryan’s snark.

“I hope they figure it out,” he told Hermione as they entered the Mess Hall.

“Me too,” she sighed as she let go of his hand to stand in line. Unwilling to let her go quite yet, Charlie wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and propped his chin on her shoulder. She leaned back into the embrace.

Charlie glanced around and saw Sorin was a few people in front of them. “Hey, Sor! Join us!”

The sandy haired man turned around and narrowed his eyes. He’d seen the argument brewing outside and had no interest in getting in the middle of it. Seeing their intimate posture, he decided to risk it and joined them.

“Hey,” he said cautiously as he walked towards the couple. “You guys okay?”

“Why wouldn’t we be?” Hermione blinked at him.

Sorin debated whether or not to comment on the argument he’d seen brewing outside before he decided to let it drop entirely for his own safety, if nothing else. “No reason,” he replied. “You guys excited to be going home today?”

Charlie automatically squeezed Hermione tighter. He knew he wasn’t ready to separate and he had a feeling that she felt the same. They’d only just begun to open up completely to each other and he knew he was dreading the fact they worked so far apart.

“It’ll be nice to see family,” Hermione replied to Sorin for the both of them, “but I think we’re both a little sad that we’ll be long distance right after finally getting together.”

Sorin nodded knowingly. “I’m sorry, guys. But at least you’ll have letters?”

“And Floo calls, and we’ll make sure to visit each other more frequently than we used to,” Charlie promised as he squeezed his girlfriend tightly in his arms. She could barely breathe with the way he was holding her, but she found it oddly comforting as she settled in his embrace.

The line moved quickly and the trio picked up their meals before moving to find an open table. It wasn’t difficult since many of the Reserve staff were eating at home with their families.

Ryan and Delia never joined them.

After breakfast, Hermione and Charlie flew back to his place to pack up her belongings and his bag for the weekend. Once they were sure they would have everything they needed for England, Charlie whistled for his three little dragons. He quickly cast Immobulus and put the dragons in a small pouch.

“It’s the same pouch they were charmed in for the Triwizard tournament,” he explained as he carefully packed the pouch in his bag. “I feel bad leaving them here alone so I typically bring them home with me since they don’t need much care.”

She nodded and took his hand as they locked up his cottage.

She felt oddly emotional as they walked down the porch steps toward Dragon’s End. She’d spent the last few days as a guest in his home, but now it felt more like home to her than her utilitarian apartment did. She knew she’d miss the warm and cozy space as soon as she was back in England.

As they walked down the path the pair ran into Warren and Ashley. Hermione automatically froze and instinctively tried to take a different path but they were seen before she could.

“Hey! I wanted to talk to you guys,” Warren called out as he jogged up to them. Hermione‘s hand clamped down onto Charlie’s in a vice-like grip. In her experience, it was never a good thing when a guy said that after she rejected them.

“Hello, Warren,” she greeted politely, even as she desperately wanted to run. “We were just getting ready to catch our Portkey.”

“I know you’re in a rush,” he said quickly, “but I really wanted to catch you so I could apologize before you left.”

Hermione’s mind went blank as she struggled to understand what he was saying.

“I know I was an asshole to you,” Warren continued. “I know it’s no excuse but I was often drunk and I wasn’t thinking clearly. Robert — Dad — talked to me and I feel like such an idiot. I’ve been trying to catch up with my father’s legacy for so long that I lost sight of what was really important: the dragons. I turned to unhealthy coping mechanisms like hitting on women and drinking too much and it put both my team and myself at risk. I just want to let you know that I feel really sorry for talking down to you the way I did and let you know that I’ve taken a leave of absence so I can seek help in France.”

Hermione blinked. Then she blinked again. She had no idea how to process what he had just unloaded on her.

“I… I appreciate your apology,” she eventually said. “I hope you find what you’re looking for in France and can return here to work with your family soon, if that’s what you want.”

Charlie couldn’t hold back anymore as he chimed in. He’d been Warren’s coworker for a long time so he’d seen his friend’s slow spiral out of control.

“I’m proud of you, man. The Reserve will be lucky when we get you back if you don’t decide to go French on us after you get out. Hermione, Warren was the one who found the breach through the barrier,” he told her. “If it wasn’t for him we wouldn’t have known about the poachers after you were kidnapped. It would’ve taken us much longer to know something was wrong.”

“You’re giving me too much credit,” Warren insisted. “I was just doing my job. I don’t wanna hold you up any longer so I hope you guys have safe travels and a happy Christmas.”

“Thank you, Warren.” Hermione clasped his hand tightly in appreciation. He nodded at her bashfully and turned back to Charlie.

“You’ve got an excellent witch here,” he told him. “Treat her well and I’ll see you soon enough.”

“Later, man.” Charlie nodded as he wrapped an arm around Hermione’s waist. He steered them down the path and she looked back to wave at the other man as they left. 

Hermione felt herself tearing up as they walked past now-familiar buildings. She’d never realized how attached she’d grown in the few days she’d spent in Romania. She’d miss the rustic buildings and warm people.

Next thing she knew, she was in front of Robert’s cottage and Charlie was leading her up the steps.

Tala greeted them at the door and ushered her inside quickly. Sooner than she expected, she was wrapped up in the mother bear's arms and she felt herself breaking down into tears.

“I’m not usually like this,” she promised. “I just find that I’m going to be missing the Reserve so much… and I haven’t even left yet.”

“You are welcome here anytime,” Tala promised. “Robert and I are happy to have you visit even if you and this buffoon don’t work out.”

“I take slight offense to that,” Charlie protested.

“No one cares what you take offense to,” Sorin laughed as he walked around hugging women. “Travel safe.” He clapped his partner on the shoulder.

“How long do we have until the Portkey activates?” Hermione asked from Tala’s arms.

“It's set to go off in ten minutes,” Robert said, glad to use his pocket watch.

“Where are Ryan and Delia?” Charlie asked. “I haven’t seen them for more than thirty seconds since we got back from the cabin.”

“They’re supposed to be here to say goodbye,” Tala glowered scarily. “I swear I’m going to give those two a strong talking to if they don’t get their shit together soon.”

“We’re here,” Delia hollered as she walked in the front door. Ryan walked in behind her and the group stared at the pair of them.

Typically Delia’s hair was styled in a cute pixie cut and Ryan's hair was always a mess but it was obvious he took care to make sure he looked presentable. They were always clothed in the leather standard of the staff and they took pride in their appearance.

None of that was currently the case. Ryan‘s glasses were askew, Delia’s hair was blatantly messed up, and the pair of them looked thoroughly debauched as buttons were mismatched and wrinkles were obvious throughout their clothes.

“Hallelujah!” Hermione cheered suddenly.

“It’s a Christmas miracle!” Charlie laughed.

“Thank Merlin, Circe, and Morgana,” Sorin sighed as he collapsed into a nearby rocking chair. “I won’t have to listen to you guys moping about how you all aren’t together. I can have a change of pace and hear you guys be absolutely disgusting saps instead!”

The group laughed and somehow migrated towards each other until the five young adults were in a group hug that lasted several minutes. 

“I’m going to miss you guys,” Hermione cried.

“No more tears, love,” Ryan wiped her eyes. “You’ll see us sooner than you realize.”

“It’s time,” Robert announced. Hermione reluctantly stepped away from her new friends as he placed an old war pin on the nearby dining table.

She looked between all the members of the group and committed their faces to memory.

“I’ll visit soon,” she promised. “I still want to talk to all of you more about dragons so that I can make the laws more fair and get you better funding!”

“We’ll always have a position open here for you if you ever want to leave the fancy office job.” Robert winked at her. “For now, have a good holiday and write soon.”

Hermione and Charlie nodded before shrinking their belongings into their pockets, including their favorite brooms. Turning to face the Portkey, it started to glow blue.

“Three,” Charlie counted.

“Two.” Hermione nodded.

“One,” they said together as they grabbed the pin at the same time.

Hermione felt a tug behind her belly button and felt the nauseating swirling as she was pulled between locations. She kept her eyes on Charlie, and when he squeezed her hand and she felt the pin grow unbearably hot, she let go and felt herself hit the ground — hard.

They were back in England.

Notes:

Ryan and Delia are finally together, Warren apologized, and our main couple is back in England! Please leave your thoughts!

Chapter 18: December 24th - Late Morning

Notes:

As always, all errors are my own

“I really hate Portkeys,” she gasped as the impact knocked out her breath.

She took a second to wheeze as the air slowly started to fill her lungs again.

“Charlie! Welcome home, lov — Hermione!” Molly Weasley’s voice sounded nearby. “I didn’t know you were in Romania with Charlie!”

“It was a work trip,” Hermione told the matronly witch with a raspy breath as she took the hand offered to help her to her feet. “Edwards asked me to run the annual inspection and I had no valid reason to say no. Charlie was kind enough to let me stay in his guest room during my visit.”

“You know how awful those guest cabins can be. I didn’t want Mi to be uncomfortable.”

Molly practically cooed at the consideration her son showed towards her adopted daughter.

“Well, I’m so glad you both are back!” Molly gushed. “And just in time for breakfast!”

Both Charlie and Hermione chuckled as the witch ushered them inside.

“I forgot Romania is two hours ahead,” Hermione muttered to her boyfriend. “If I’d remembered, I would have eaten a lighter breakfast.”

“I have a plan,” Charlie told her conspiratorially as they trailed a few feet behind his mother. “Follow my lead, okay?”

Before either could say anything, Molly was pulling Hermione from Charlie’s side to herd her towards the living room.

“Hermione dear, you know our cousin Edmund, don’t you? I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind talking with him as Charlie and Imelda help me set the table.”

“Imelda?” Hermione’s voice rose in pitch, despite her best attempts to keep her tone neutral. She knew Percy’s secretary quite well. She was a bombshell and a shameless flirt who had a type — muscled and handsome. Charlie would be Imelda’s ideal fodder and Molly was dragging her boyfriend towards the shameless siren.

Hermione had been planning on keeping their new relationship to themselves just a little longer, but Molly clearly had other matchmaking plans if she had cousins and attractive Ministry workers at the Burrow first thing in the morning. Hermione couldn’t help a fissure of insecurity go through her as she caught sight of Imelda’s skin-tight Christmas outfit. Hermione wasn’t unattractive by any means, but Imelda flaunted her ‘hourglass figure’ to perfection.

Fortunately for Hermione, Charlie caught on just as quickly as she had and immediately made it clear that he held no interest in the other witch.

“Mum, I’m so sorry, but Hermione and I actually already ate. I’ve also been so busy at work, I haven’t had time to go Christmas shopping. Hermione and I were discussing it this morning and she offered to help me navigate the newer shops in Diagon Alley for some last minute shopping. Besides, we’d hate to get in your way while you have guests,” Charlie said as he inched towards the fireplace, beckoning Hermione to join him. She practically dashed in her urgency to catch up with him and clung to his arm. “Maybe Edmund can entertain Imelda and I’ll catch up with you and my siblings after lunch, okay?”

“I’m so sorry, Molly, but I did promise Charlie I’d help him,” Hermione tacked onto the lie, clinging to it (and to Charlie’s arm) as she would clutch a lifeline.

“Are both of you sure?” Molly asked, uncertain. “Are the shops even open yet?”

“We’re planning on stopping by the twins’ shop first,” Hermione lied quickly. “Charlie wanted to discuss a new product with them.”

Molly looked back and forth between her guests and her children, not sure of how to cling to her plan to bring Hermione into the family officially while also matching Charlie up with a witch who would keep him in the country.

It was obvious she hadn’t put two and two together in that aspect.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Hermione promised as she felt the stone shift to soot beneath her feet. She reached to her side and found the flowerpot which held the Floo Powder. She took a large handful and tugged Charlie into the fireplace beside her. He instinctively pulled her close.

“Later, Mum,” Charlie waved cheerfully as Hermione threw the powder at their feet and called out “Diagon Alley” in chorus with Charlie.

---

The pair stumbled out of the fireplace at the Leaky Cauldron and heaved a sigh of relief.

“Thank you so much for getting me out of there,” Hermione gushed. “Molly’s had it in her head since Ron and I broke up to match me up with one of your cousins and they’re all nice, but—”

“She missed the obvious son who you actually have shared interests with?” Charlie laughed in understanding as he leaned in to kiss her. “I get it, she’s been trying to play matchmaker for me since I moved to Romania.”

“How do you deal with it?” Hermione asked. “She hounds me near constantly.”

“You just saw how I deal with it,” Charlie replied as he pulled her into his side. “I grab my girlfriend, tuck tail, and run .”

Their laughter choroused as they exited the bar to walk through the enchanted brick wall and down the decorated street. Christmas decorations hung inside every window and there were charmed twinkling lights everywhere. Garlands were strung between buildings and fairy lights were everywhere in sight.

“It’s so magical,” Hermione sighed in appreciation as she tucked herself closer to Charlie’s side. “I grew up as a Muggle so this kind of decor will never fail to make me nostalgic and amazed at the same time.”

“It really is beautiful,” Charlie agreed as he looked down at her, instead of the decor. Her cream colored sweater wasn’t one of his mother’s; he could tell because of how it hugged her curves up until her upper thighs. Her black fleece-lined leggings and brown boots completed her ensemble with her brown leather coat and Gryffindor colored knit cap. She looked so cozy and comfortable, he just wanted to prop her in front of a fireplace and curl up with her for a few hours as they talked.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t been completely lying to his mother. He did need to pick up a few extra gifts he’d Flooed ahead to have put aside for him. He hadn’t intended on bringing Hermione with him to pick them up, but he wasn’t eager to leave her behind with his cousin. She was his witch now and he’d keep her with him for as long as she’d allow.

Considering how she was clinging to his arm as they walked down the street, he doubted she had any complaints.

“Oh, look!” Hermione announced cheerfully. “Can we stop into Quality Quidditch Supplies? I want to pick up a few things.”

Next thing they both knew, there was a wand pointed at her face. Milliseconds later, she was facing Charlie’s back as he stood protectively in front of her.

“Billy?” Charlie paused after a second when he realized the threat to Hermione was his only older brother. “Wanna explain your problem before or after I hex you for that?”

“Good to see you, Charlie,” Bill Weasley nodded. “If that’s who you really are.”

“What the fuck are you on about?”

“Hermione Granger hates flying more than anything. I don’t know who you’re protecting, but she’s clearly an imposter.”

“Oh, this is completely — Bill, it’s me!” Hermione huffed as she forcibly tried to lower Charlie’s wand arm. It hardly budged, even as she applied all of her weight to it. “How strong are you?” she muttered with a huff before ducking under his arm instead in a move clearly unanticipated by the dragon researcher. “Ask me any damned security question you want. Hell, ask your brother a question too, if it helps. I know you already know it’s us because of that nose of yours, but whatever makes you feel better. Hi, Fleur,” she added at the end. She could see the wisps of long blonde hair blowing in the wind behind Bill. She knew he was acting defensively because of Fleur’s pregnancy.

Bill narrowed his eyes. “What did we last tell you we were planning on naming our unborn child?”

“Fleur is due mid-March. We last talked two weeks ago and you were considering Louis if it were a boy — I still love the name, by the way — but were tied between Estelle or Clara if it were a girl. However, when I mentioned the name Dominique, Fleur loved it. Can you tell me what has you acting this way, please?”

“Why are you two together?” Bill asked, dubiously. He was smacked over the back of his head by a manicured hand seconds later.

“You ‘ave better manners zan zat!” Fleur huffed as she stepped around her husband. “‘Ello, ‘Ermione,” she greeted the witch warmly as Hermione was nearly bowled over from a frontal attack created by two little blurs of teal and blonde.

“Aunt Miney!” Four-year-old Victoire Weasley chirped happily.

“I didn’t know we’d get to see you before tomorrow!” Six-year-old Teddy Lupin cheered happily.

“Hello, Victoire!” Hermione laughed as she dropped to her knees to give the girl a hug before turning to the teal-haired young boy. “And Teddy too! It’s the best surprise of my day to get to see you both!”

Charlie let the witches and children catch up as he pulled his brother a few feet away.

“First off, hi. Good to see you.” He glared even as he pulled the man into a hug. “Secondly, what the hell?”

“Why are you with Hermione?” Bill asked. “Why did she want to go into the Quidditch store?”

“Stop answering our questions with more questions,” Charlie spat. “You know I hate when you do that. Just answer my one damned question: why did you threaten her on sight?”

“Hermione Granger wanted to go into a Quidditch shop! What was I supposed to think?”

“Maybe you're supposed to think it’s the day before Christmas and she’s friends with a family of red-heads who are obsessed with the sport?” Charlie raised an eyebrow as he folded his arms and leaned back against the building closest to them.

“Okay, it makes sense when you say it like that.” Bill sighed as he rubbed a hand over his eyes. “I made a mistake and I’ll apologize. I’m just always on edge these days with Fleur’s pregnancy, and we’re watching Teddy today as a Christmas gift to Remus and Tonks since they haven’t had any alone time since Andrea was born. Harry and Ginny have her today with James. Back to my question, though. I really am curious what the pair of you are doing together.”

As if on cue, Fleur shrieked, “You’re dating Charlie?!”

“That.” Charlie waved a hand lazily toward the witches as if Fleur’s shriek explained everything while Bill’s hackles rose in automatic defense at the sound of his wife’s yell.

“Wanna try me again?” Bill asked as he forced himself to remain calm. Ever since he was scratched by Fenrir Greyback, he’d developed a few wolfish tendencies and the biggest one was an increased instinctual protectiveness of his wife and family.

“Hermione came to Romania to run our annual inspection. She got kidnapped by poachers, kicked their asses, and now we’re dating.”

“I feel like you’re missing a few steps,” Bill countered. Charlie shrugged, so Bill turned toward his family. “Do you mind going on ahead of us to Florean’s and we’ll follow?”

Charlie perked up as an idea crossed his mind.

“Are you sure?” Hermione asked.

“I need to catch up with my brother for a few minutes,” Charlie told her. “If you don’t mind.”

“Do you still like dark chocolate mocha?” Hermione asked.

Charlie couldn’t help it. He kissed her.

“I love how well you know me,” he said. “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

Bill was kissing his wife goodbye as she cheekily took his bag of gold for the sweet treats. When Bill turned around, he found his brother stomping his way up Diagon Alley. He ran to catch up. “Where’s the fire?” he asked when he caught up in a few strides.

“I gave Hermione her actual gift early due to circumstances. I placed an order for something else and I’d rather not let her see it before tomorrow.”

“Are you guys planning on telling the family?” Bill asked.

“I don’t want to hide it,” Charlie told his brother honestly as he turned onto Horizon Alley. “I would take an ad out in the Daily Prophet or the Quibbler if I thought she wouldn’t kill me for it.”

“You already know her well, then?”

“Bill, cut the crap. You’re the only one I told that I liked her ages ago. We’ve been writing to each other for years and it was a long time coming.”

“I see you’re serious about her.” Bill nodded in approval. “That girl is like a little sister to me. I just want to be sure she’s not going to be hurt in the end.”

“If I have my way, there won’t be an end to speak of,” Charlie said. “It’s not like we’re young teenagers experiencing our first loves. It may still be new, but I know she’s what I want in a partner. I never allowed myself to believe I deserved one, but… she’s it.” 

Charlie stopped outside a small shop and Bill glanced at the window, the air stalling in his lungs. His heart raced and he felt his hands grow sweaty.

It was a jewelry store.

Bill gasped and felt his lungs start working again as he dashed after his brother.

“Charlie! I really don’t think that this is the best idea!” he said under his breath in a rush as he joined his brother at the counter. The goblin jeweler looked ancient and was already hobbling toward the back.

“What are you talking about?” Charlie looked at his brother quizzically.

“I hardly think a diamond ring is an appropriate gift for the witch you just started dating,” Bill said urgently. “I know you’ve loved her for years, but—”

“First off, I’m not proposing, you idiot.” Charlie rolled his eyes. “I only just realized that I’m in love with her. I want this to last, but I don’t want her to hex my balls off.”

“So what did you order?”

“A locket,” Charlie explained as the goblin jeweler returned. “I just asked for a small white gold locket with two engravings.”

The goblin handed Charlie the pouch and he pulled out a thumbnail sized oval locket. On one side, there was an engraving with a dragon and the other side had the letter C engraved over the letter H. It was perfect.

“Do you have a chain that would match?” Charlie asked the jeweler. The old man pulled out a display of chains and Charlie picked out a wheat chain. He thought it looked both like the layering of dragon scales and like the knots they used in ropes for tethering. It was dainty, which matched the fine locket perfectly, but the goblin assured him that it was still strong.

Charlie handed over the appropriate stack of Galleons to the goblin and the magical creature boxed up the gift.

“I’m not worried anymore,” Bill decided as he watched his brother lovingly slip the box into his pocket. “I don’t know what the family will say, but I support you.”

“You always have.” Charlie laughed as he clapped his brother on the back. “And I have appreciated it so much over the years. You were the one who encouraged me to follow my dreams in Romania. Thank you.”

“That’s enough sap.” Bill rolled his eyes. “Let’s get back to our women.”

Charlie agreed wholeheartedly as they made their way back to Fortescue's.

---

Hermione helped Fleur usher the little kids into the ice cream shop where they picked up several hot drinks and ice cream bowls. Fleur tried to buy all of them, but Hermione insisted on splitting the check.

They were able to find a table inside and settled down as the kids dug into their frozen treats.

“How’re you doing?” Hermione asked as she took a bite of her lemon shortbread ice cream. “Is baby Dominique doing alright?”

“We are both doing well,” Fleur smiled as she took a sip of her hot apple cider. “I finally got Bill to accept the name too.”

“That’s wonderful,” Hermione grinned in victory as she sipped her mulled wine. Who cared that it was still technically morning? “I knew he’d love it given enough time.”

“‘E loves us .” Fleur smiled as she brushed the fringe from Victoire’s forehead. “I am so lucky to be ‘iz wife.”

“You both are perfect together,” Hermione told the French woman honestly as she wiped Teddy’s cheek with a napkin.

“You ‘ave your own Weasley now,” Fleur teased Hermione. “I’m sure you’ve discovered ze benefits of zat.”

The brunette witch glanced at the two young children, but Fleur waved off her concerns.

“Just keep it vague,” she suggested.

“Well... I went to the Reserve for work and then got caught up by poachers. Charlie came to the rescue after I had already put them on the defensive. He accidentally got caught by friendly fire and I took him back to his cottage to bandage him up…”

Fleur grinned as Hermione trailed off. “Can I azzume that you spent all night making sure he waz okay?” Hermione blushed with a nod and Fleur squealed. “We need to get togezer wiz Ginny and ze other girls for brunch,” she decided.

“How about we have mimosas and orange juice and we’ll force the boys to watch the kids the morning of the twenty-sixth?”

“Sounds perfect,” Fleur agreed at the same time the boys rejoined them.

The four adults sat down and caught up on work-related topics while the kids finished their large hot cocoas having already polished off their frozen sweet treats.

---

At the end of their ‘meal’, Hermione kissed Fleur’s cheeks and Charlie hugged his brother before the new couple walked off.

They snuggled close to each other as they walked down the street.

“You wanted to go into Quality Quidditch?” Charlie asked.

“I wanted to pick up a maintenance kit for my new broom,” Hermione explained. “I want to be sure I take good care of her.”

“Woman after my own heart,” he beamed as he bent down to kiss her sweetly.

“I thought I already had it?” She winked cheekily as they went into the shop.

It took approximately six-point-five seconds for Hermione to feel overwhelmed by the options provided to her. Fortunately, her boyfriend was a Quidditch fanatic who was able to usher her away from the sales clerk and help her pick out the best kit for the broom he had made her.

Thirty minutes later, Hermione had her very own broom polishing kit and Charlie had bought some beautiful leg bars to attach for her.

She was surprised to find she was actually excited about her broom.

They tucked their purchases into her beaded bag and continued down the street. As they walked, they stepped into a few stores. Hermione picked up a few new books in Flourish and Blotts and Charlie picked up a few items from Slug and Jiggers Apothecary. When it came down to gift shopping, they shared a look and stared up at the large face that advertised Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes.

“Want to go in?” Charlie asked.

“Did I Polyjuice into Bellatrix after she tortured me to sneak into Gringotts when we freed the Ironbelly?” Hermione asked daringly as she stepped up to the door. “Besides, where else are we going to get a perfect gift for Arthur?”

Charlie loved his witch’s attitude as he followed her eagerly into the shop.

“Do my own eyes deceive me brother of mine?” Fred’s voice called out cheerfully as he saw Charlie walk into the shop. “Or hath our older brother returned from slaying dragons and saving the fire princess?”

“Don’t you mean the fair princess?” George asked as he joined his twin wearing matching magenta robes.

“I would if the princess in question wasn’t the valiant Hermione Granger, who was captured and sent to Romania earlier this week!”

“A business trip is hardly a kidnapping,” Hermione corrected with a roll of her eyes as she turned away to start browsing.

“Besides when she was kidnapped by poachers, I had next to no part in her rescue,” Charlie added helpfully. “If anything, she was protecting me as I got hit.”

“I stand by my nickname then,” Fred said as he chuckled at Charlie’s expense. “Hermione is our new fire princess.”

“You Weasleys are ridiculous!” Hermione rolled her eyes. “You know I hate nicknames and yet you insist upon burdening me with them.”

“You know you love us,” George said as he threw an arm around her.

“You can’t even stand to live away from us,” Fred tacked on cheekily.

“Just because my loft is a few doors down doesn’t mean that I can’t easily pack up and leave if you don’t help Charlie and I find a good last minute gift for Arthur and a few of your other family members,” Hermione snarked.

She had grown up around Harry and Ron but had developed a very close relationship with the twins and Ginny as well. When she had broken up with Ron during her eighth year at Hogwarts, she decided she would find a flat to call her own when she left school, instead of moving into Sirius’ home in Grimmauld Place with Harry, Ron, and Ginny. Her home was technically in Muggle London, but that didn’t mean that it wasn’t directly across the street from Diagon Alley. The twins had let her know when the property was open to lease and she had jumped on it immediately. Since then, they took great joy in pretending that their proximity meant a closer relationship than the three actually shared in the beginning.

Over time though, she couldn’t deny that they had wormed their way into her life. There were many dinner and movie nights that had occurred because the twins invited themselves over after work. They flirted with her endlessly, but she knew it was all in good jest as they were sickeningly devoted to Katie Bell and Angelina Johnson. If the boys ever plucked up enough courage to propose, Hermione would bet on them having a Quidditch and Pranks themed double wedding where she’d somehow be the best woman alongside Lee Jordan.

Looking around the shop, she smiled at the Christmas decorations she’d helped them hang up in early November. Baubles floated around their heads and danced slowly through the air along with products flying between the back room and the shelves. The twins had wrapped garlands around the staircase that wound up through the middle of the shop to the second floor. The entire ceiling was a mass of fairy lights — both electric and actual fairies. She was careful to note that there was also prank mistletoe hung up in various locations.

“I don’t recall helping you set up the mistletoe,” she scolded. “Don’t you realize that’s practically a sexual harassment case on your hands?”

“You can’t get trapped if you’re under the age of seventeen,” George was quick to argue. “And a kiss on the hand is more than enough to get you out of ours! We made sure to jinx them against proper protocol. Kids and teens can pretend to get stuck, but it’s mostly ruses. You can’t really get mad at us for setting up pranks around a prank shop!”

“And to answer your other question, we recommend you fight the Muggle joke section upstairs for Dad’s gift,” Fred added helpfully. “I suggest the rest of the shop for everyone else in your life.”

“Fight? Don’t you mean ‘find’?” Charlie asked.

“You know us better than that, big brother,” the twins said in unison before scurrying off to help other customers.

Hermione rolled her eyes as she raised her wand before moving to climb the stairs. She knew where the Muggle section was tucked away on a back wall. While the twins enjoyed having it, it wasn’t their biggest seller, so it was kept out of the way.

She was passing between two bookshelves when she suddenly found she couldn’t move. Groaning, she looked up and saw a mistletoe hung in the perfect location to spite her.

“Need help with that?” Charlie asked slyly as he stepped up behind her and slipped his hands around her waist.

“Can you please just kiss me so we can get to the gifts?” Hermione huffed. “We don’t have time to flirt right now.”

“Of course,” Charlie grinned as he moved his hands up along his girlfriend’s ribcage. “I’m stuck here too, you know.”

“Perfect! Then—”

“But I’m not sure a real kiss would work here. You heard my brothers say that these are custom mistletoe. Maybe we should start with a kiss on the hand and see what happens?”

“What are you plan — Oh, my god,” Hermione whimpered as Charlie found her wrist and raised it to his lips. He kept her ass and back pressed up against his front as her arm raised behind her. He took great care to first kiss at her palm before moving to her wrist. He slowly placed open-mouthed kisses at her pulse point and trailed them up her arm to her elbow.

“Charlie,” she whimpered softly. She was putty in his arms by this point.

He spun her around and pressed her against the nearest shelf as their lips found each other. He kissed her fiercely as she wrapped herself around him like an octopus trying to latch onto a fish.

“Hey, I was wondering if you guys found the— oh, shit!” George exclaimed in shock as he turned the corner. The last thing he’d expected to see was what he was witnessing — his older brother with Hermione “always follows the rules” Granger wrapped around his waist.

Charlie and Hermione jumped away from each other.

“I think your mistletoe needs work,” Charlie said. George had already recovered from the shock and wasn’t impressed at his brother’s attempt at evasion.

“Fred and I had to apply a ‘no assaulting one’s girlfriend in the shop’ rule after one too many uncomfortable encounters,” he told them simply. “I’d trust Charlie to finish what is obviously his own Christmas shopping, but I actually need to ask him about a certain project. Hermione, do you mind?”

“Take him away.” She waved them off quickly as she tried to hide her embarrassment. “I’ll just pick up the last few things for you, Charlie.”

“I appreciate it,” he said gratefully as he bent down to kiss her on the cheek. George cleared his throat and received a glare for it.

Hermione shook her head as she watched both red-haired brothers leave. She had forgotten just how short Charlie was in comparison to his brothers, who were all string beans. As she caught herself staring at her boyfriend’s shapely ass, she decided she very much preferred his ‘still taller than her, but much more muscled’ physique than that of his brothers.

She shook herself and turned back to the shelf in mind. Looking around, she started bouncing on the balls of her feet as nothing looked right for Arthur. She picked up a “can of peanuts” and shook her head. She knew that Arthur would have already received anything that the twins had. She’d be better off picking something else in Muggle London when they went out to lunch.

“Can I help you find anything?” Fred asked as he materialized next to Hermione.

“Sure!” Hermione turned to the red-haired prankster. Without warning, she opened the can in her hand while pointing it at him. It had the effect she’d been hoping for when he shrieked and flailed backwards. It only sprayed the jumping snakes and confetti — which was new — at him, but his reaction made the result worth it as she doubled over in laughter.

“That’s not fair,” he pouted. “You always have the straightest face!”

“Life isn’t fair,” she teased. “But I’d appreciate it if you could help me pick out something for Percy from Charlie. What do you suggest?”

“Do you want something nasty or something… hilarious?”

“Show me what you’ve got,” Hermione grinned darkly.

“May I suggest the daydream charms?” Fred suggested with a laugh. He hadn’t been serious but the idea of his brother using the little adult line of daydream charms was hilarious if nothing else. “You could always suggest he uses them as a focusing tool during meetings?”

Hermione‘s eyes twinkled as she pulled him away from the wall immediately. “Those sound perfect coming from Charlie! And then I had an idea for Charlie’s gift but I was hoping you could help me customize it?”

“Please, do tell more!”

“Well do you remember that coffee mug you gave me?” she asked while her mouth took on a Cheshire grin. That’s all it took for Fred to catch her line of thought.

“I do like the way you think. Let’s go down to my office and we can adjust the charms.”

Hermione practically tripped as she rushed after him.

Meanwhile, George was going over the new enchantments they had used while trying to replicate Charlie’s dragons and all Charlie could think about was the way Hermione had molded herself against him.

“Is it impossible for you to focus?” George asked finally. “We can’t do this without you.”

“Sorry.” Charlie shook himself as he tried to focus. “Did you get my letter about the idea Hermione had?”

“I did. We haven’t had a chance to talk to Bill yet but we’re both intrigued. I’m sure Hermione will also be willing to help.”

“Does she help you often here?”

“Not really.” George shrugged as he tried layering another spell before the entire miniature dragon caught fire and he scrapped it. “We try, but she’s so busy trying to change laws that she rarely has any free time. It’s all we can do to get her to take a break.”

“Do either of you…”

“Relax,” George chuckled, guessing at Charlie’s concern. “We both love our girls — whether or not Fred is ready to admit it — and we’ve always thought of Hermione as a little sister. Something tells me that’s not how you view her though.”

“I’ve never seen her as a sister,” Charlie admitted honestly as he wandered to the back shelf where he saw a stuffed pygmy puff. “I tried to, but… I just couldn’t.”

“Those aren’t for sale yet,” George told his brother. “But I wouldn’t mind you taking one since they’re not charmed.”

“I was thinking about giving it to Harry for baby James,” Charlie explained, holding it up in the air. “Do you mind?”

George waved him off as he pulled out a new dragon. He and Fred had gotten in contact with a manufacturing company and had gotten molds made. They had several large boxes of each type of dragon to experiment with.

“How did you get these enchanted before?”

“I’m not sure,” Charlie shrugged. “I wasn’t a part of that team. All I had to do was get the dragons from Romania to Scotland and back safely. I will say Cedric was in huge trouble for smashing half the eggs. The Short-Snout didn’t recover well. I bet if you talked to Bill he’d be able to help you better than I would.”

“You just want to flirt with your girlfriend before we all have to gather at the Burrow,” the twin corrected. “But I understand, so go on and get out of here.”

Charlie ruffled his brother's hair and left the workroom to find Hermione and Fred giggling at the main counter beside Verity. He felt a ridiculous flair of jealousy which he quickly tamped down.

He was headed towards them when Hermione turned around and saw him. She quickly tried to make her way to his side, but was frozen in her tracks.

Groaning, the pair looked up and saw that a mistletoe was hanging over her and Fred’s heads.

As much as she wanted to kiss Charlie to get out from the mistletoe she knew that Fred would be stuck if she left him there. Deciding on the quickest way to get them all out she turned around and pecked him on the cheek. Fred looked between her and Charlie before taking her hand and kissing the back of it as chastely as he could.

They practically leapt away from each other as soon as they felt the enchantment lift. Charlie pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply before grabbing her wrist and tried to pull her out of the shop.

“I still have to pay for my purchases,” she said as she pulled away from him. Typically the possessive display would have pissed her off, but she didn’t mind in this case. After finding out Molly was planning on setting him up with Imelda, she knew she was viable to do much worse. “I’ll be back in five minutes,” she promised as she ran back inside.

Exactly five minutes later, they were walking out of Diagon Alley towards Muggle London as they ignored the laughter of Charlie’s twin brothers.

Since the hour was growing late enough to eat lunch they made a quick detour towards her favorite Chinese restaurant. They sat down and shared a plate of lo mein and orange chicken.

“I hope you’re okay with telling people,” Charlie said. “Because I think only my parents and Percy don’t know at this point.”

“I’m proud to be your girlfriend,” Hermione replied as she took a large bite of the noodles. “I know we may be judged by some people because of our age difference, but I care about you and that’s what matters. We want to be together and no one else’s judgment gets to play a part in that.”

I love her, he thought as he ordered a matcha ice cream with two spoons for dessert.

After lunch, Hermione took Charlie to her favorite secondhand store. She typically liked to go there for their large book selection but she knew that there were several knickknacks that were perfect for Charlie to give Arthur for Christmas. The pair spent an hour perusing the shop and left with the rest of their gifts sorted.

“I guess it’s time for me to go to my parents’ house,” she sighed sadly. “I really don’t want this day to end, if I’m being honest.”

“I don’t either,” Charlie pulled her close to kiss her forehead. “Can I see you tonight?”

“I don’t think so,” she pouted. “My family has a long-standing tradition that we spend all of Christmas Eve together and then I go to the Burrow in the morning.”

“Can I at least walk you to your parents’ house?”

“I would be inconsolable if you didn’t,” she told him while linking their fingers together.

Despite knowing that they had a tight time-frame, the pair couldn’t help but stop in a coffee shop for a hot beverage as they made their way towards the Apparition point.

When they got there, Charlie pulled her close so she could safely transport them to her parents’ street.

The neighborhood was quaint and filled with historic houses. Charlie heard children playing in the nearby park, making snowmen and throwing snowballs at each other. It was so cute and he couldn’t help but imagine Hermione as a young girl playing with the other local children in the same manner.

She followed his gaze and guessed at his line of thought. “I would have smoked you,” she told him confidently. “I had two forms of underage accidental magic. The first was when I was a little girl I would summon books from the bookshelf and then put them away with just a thought. I thought I was special like Matilda and I practiced the skill until I could make other small objects fly however I wanted them to. As I got older, and I learned that I was a witch, I stopped relying on the less reliable wandless magic and got more precise with my wand by honing my skills through research.”

“So I’m guessing you’re good at Charms and Transfiguration?”

“Charms specifically, but I am planning on trying to become an Animagus one day. I just never seem to have time to dedicate to the process because I am always taking on new law cases.”

“A working brain never sleeps,” he offered.

“I’ve never heard that phrase before.”

“That’s because I just made it up. But maybe you've heard this one: ‘My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep; the more I give to thee, the more I have, for both are infinite’.”

“Shakespeare,” Hermione complimented.

“I decided to read his sonnets when you told me about where your name was from,” he admitted. “That one was one of my favorite lines.”

“It’s one of the lesser known quotes from Romeo and Juliet… but do you know any from a Winter’s Tale?”

“A few but I got a feeling it will have to wait because isn’t this your house?” Charlie asked as he recognized the number on the building. Hermione was very sad to see that he was right. It was the first time since she returned her parents' memories that she dreaded returning to the house, because entering now meant ending her time with Charlie until the next day.

“You have no idea how much I want to kiss you,” he told her. “But I will wait until I see you tomorrow because I am pretty sure your parents are sneaking peeks from inside.”

Hermione wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her face into his chest as she hugged him tightly. He hugged her back and barely heard her whisper of “I’ll see you tomorrow,” before she spun around and ran inside the gate.

He waited to make sure that she was safe inside before he made his way back to the point and Apparated to his parents’ house.

Notes:

I want to apologize for the massive delay. My job had a few major issues on top of being our busy season and I had no opportunity to edit sooner. Because we're only getting busier, I'm going to only be able to post once a week moving forward. I plan to do it on Sunday evenings after editing on my day off. I hope you guys can forgive the change in posting schedule and continue to love this story until the end! I appreciate your support more than you guys know!!!

Chapter 19: December 24th - Evening

Notes:

Zabethou is my amazing beta who wants you all to know she’s been captured against her will and to send help.

Charlie Apparated to the Burrow and took a moment to appreciate his family’s home before he walked into the gate. The old building had been added onto so many times it resembled a tower of building blocks. Windows didn’t match and, in some places, the exterior paint was chipped and peeling. The family had lived there since Arthur had been given the house as a wedding present when he married Charlie’s mother, Molly. It was set on a hill with a field and a small grove of fruit trees. There was a pond which was currently covered in a layer of ice. The garden was well-kept and hosted many different vegetables and fruits in the spring as well as a family of garden gnomes. It was the only home Charlie had ever known and to him it was perfect.

He walked through the gate and took the slow path up the drive. As he passed the garage, he saw his father tinkering away inside and decided to surprise the older man.

Entering the garage as slowly and quietly as he could, he waited until he was just behind Arthur before slapping his hands down on his father’s shoulders and asking, “Hey Pops, how are you?”

His reaction was better than expected. Arthur jumped three feet in the air and hollered in surprise. He spun around to glare at whichever child had jumped him and froze when he saw it was Charlie.

“You’re home!” he said excitedly. “How was your Portkey? I thought we were expecting you earlier!”

“I’m sorry about that.” Charlie scratched at the back of his neck in an iconic nervous habit. “Hermione and I got back from the Reserve and—”

“Why was Hermione at the Reserve with you?” Arthur interrupted.

“It was time for our annual inspection,” Charlie explained. “Our typical inspector wanted to be home with his pregnant wife, who is due any day now, and they had Hermione fill in.”

“But Hermione is a Magical Law lawyer specializing in the rights of magical creatures. Why in the world would she do the inspection?”

“That’s what I asked when I got my head on straight. Turns out that our bosses were conspiring to get us to work together,” Charlie said in lieu of admitting their romantic relationship, “and had her run the basic inspection for the paperwork. We needed something to be filed before the end of the year so that the Reserve could keep its funding.”

“That’s very generous of her to do, Charlie.” Arthur nodded knowingly. “But are you sure this has nothing to do with anything else? Did anything happen while she was there?”

This was one of the moments where Charlie truly hated how transparent he could be about his feelings. He knew that several people — including his friends — had guessed over the years about how he felt where the curly haired witch was concerned. He knew he wasn’t as secretive as he wished he could be, but he was anxious to see how his father felt about the matter. Arthur had adopted Hermione as a surrogate daughter many years before and Charlie suspected that he would be as protective of the witch as he would be of Ginny. He knew he was Arthur‘s son, but he never wanted to put his father in a situation where he had to choose between two of his children, biological or adopted.

He decided transparency was the best attitude to adopt here. “I really care about her, Dad.” Charlie sat down across from his father and said sincerely. “I know we may be facing a lot of obstacles in our relationship,  including the distance, but I really want to try to make it work with her. We both talked about it and she feels the same.”

Charlie felt his palms grow sweaty and cleared his throat nervously. Most of his family and their friends had guessed at their relationship before he and Hermione had had the chance to reveal it. This was the first time he had sat down and announced it to anyone and he was nervous at the reaction he may be facing from someone so close to them both.

“Are you happy?” Arthur asked after examining his son for several long minutes.

“I am. I love her. And she loves me,” Charlie answered with a goofy grin on his face.

Arthur nodded as he leaned back in his chair knowingly.

“That’s all I ever wanted for any of my children,” he told his second oldest. “Health and happiness. As long as they have those two things I’m content. If she makes you happy and you make her happy, you have my approval.”

Charlie wasn’t a crier by any means. He had a tough skin despite being transparent with his emotions and rarely shed tears. His father hadn’t said much but it was enough to make Charlie’s eyes water before he coughed and blinked rapidly to chase the emotions away. Roughly swallowing the lump in his throat, he nodded as he gritted his teeth.

“What do you say we go inside and see all your siblings?” Arthur offered as he stood and wiped his grease-covered hands on a scrap towel. “I have a feeling they’ll love to see you.”

“I can’t wait,” Charlie laughed as he threw his arm around his father's shoulders.

---

Charlie hadn’t even been inside for fifteen minutes and he could already feel his patience and positive attitude nose diving.

His mother kept prattling on about the witch she had there earlier and Charlie’s cousin, Edmund, was still at the house as a visible reminder to Charlie that his mother was trying to set his witch up with another man.

The only thing that staved off his annoyance was that he hadn’t seen his mother in months and knew that she meant well, as well as the fact that almost everyone else in the room knew that Charlie was dating Hermione. He would be thrilled to clarify that fact to his mother if she could stop talking long enough for him to get a word in edgewise.

“And truly, Charlie, she's so pretty and educated. Percy has nothing but praise for her when he talks about her at work. I think if you give her a chance you will find you might have a lot in common. She was in Ravenclaw at school but she was also on their Quidditch team, and—”

“Mother, I told you she was a fan of Quidditch, not that she played,” Percy protested as he walked into the room with a full glass of eggnog.

And she made quite a point to collect as many players as she could when she was able to, Charlie tacked on as an afterthought. The witch in question was truly very pretty, even at a young age. He was three years older than her, but he knew from his teammates that she made it a point to sleep with as many Quidditch players as she could. Charlie suspected she hoped that she’d be able to reconnect with one if they became famous and was ultimately trying to be a Quidditch bunny.

He had no interest in a woman like that. His interests tended to run towards the highly educated with a never-ending hunger for more knowledge. A witch who could take on any man in an intellectual debate and win before turning around and making him bend over in laughter. A woman whose laughter sounded like deep chortles rather than tinkling bells, and whose hair was just as untamable as her personality. He didn’t want a simpering groupie. He wanted a partner.

The only witch who had ever captivated his attention was Hermione Granger and now that he had her in his bed — and shower, and cabin, and alley… and had designs to fully have her on his couch and floor — he had no intention of letting her go in exchange for a woman who was only interested in him for his past Quidditch ‘career’ from when he was in school.

In truth, Hermione was where his mind went as his mother continued trying to heap praise onto a witch she had no idea about. Charlie knew that his mother wanted him to move back home but continued going about it the wrong way. Add in the fact that she kept trying to set Hermione up with Charlie’s cousin, and it really rubbed him in the wrong direction.

“Mum, with all due respect, I remember her from school and she’s just not my type.” Charlie finally decided to cut his mother’s tangent off. “I know you mean well and want me to move home but, when I find a witch I want to be with, you can guarantee that I will make her mine without you needing to get involved.”

“I just get so worried about you, Charlie. I don’t want you to get hurt playing with those giant beasts,” Molly told him sadly. “I really wish you would move back home and be closer to family. You could even start one of your own and settle into a nicer and mostly safer job.”

“You know that you all are in my blood but the members of my team on the Reserve are like my family, too. You know Ryan, Delia, and Sorin are like siblings to me. You practically adopted them! Besides, I really enjoy the research I’m doing and I don’t want to leave my charges unattended or under researched. There is so much we don’t know yet about them and I want to be part of the discovery process. We’ve made great progress recently and I can’t wait to see what’s coming in the new year.”

“It’s so dangerous being around dragons every day, sweetheart. I mean, look at you! You’re covered in scars and you’ve only been there a few years.”

“Mom, it’s not just a few months of fancy. I’m not a little boy with a dragon plushie who tells everyone he’s gonna have a real dragon when he grows up. This is my dream, my life. I’ve been there since I was seventeen and now I’m thirty-two. I’m making a career out of my passion and getting recognized for it. I’ve been assigned more responsibilities; people are respecting my expertise.”

“And don’t you think that means it’s time for you to settle down?” Molly countered. “You’ve had your adrenaline-filled years and you’ve been promoted several times, don’t you think it’s time you quit risking your life doing field work and get a nice office job? Don’t you want to have a family someday?”

Charlie was growing more frustrated by the conversation as time wore on and he knew he needed to escape before he said something he regretted. As it was, his mother was getting dangerously close to the subject he worried about most.

“Can we change the subject please?” he begged. “You know I love you more than anything, but we just disagree on this. I don’t want to have a fight that will ruin the short time I’m home for the holiday.”

“An excellent idea,” Arthur agreed. “Percy, what are you up to at work now?”

“Well, Minister Shacklebolt and I are working towards more amicable relations with magical beings. We’ve been working closely with the goblins to update the treaties and to foster a better understanding between our races. They wanted the Ministry’s permission to import a new dragon to guard the lower vaults and to make sure everything on their side is on par with our laws, which is why I’m working very closely with Hermione to guarantee her bill gets passed and that’s truthfully taking up a lot of my time. I don’t mind though, I think it’s important to take time to mentor the younger generation.”

“Did Hermione ask for this help?” Charlie asked as his eyes narrowed a little bit. He knew Hermione said that she worked with Percy but he couldn’t think of any scenario where the Undersecretary to the Minister would need to help her. She was a professional lawyer with a degree and Percy — even with all his experience working with politicians — didn’t pursue his education after Hogwarts.

Charlie suddenly had a sinking feeling in his gut as he figured out where some of Hermione's complacency regarding Warren’s initial harassment came from.

“Of course she didn’t need to ask,” Percy replied ignorantly, “but you know how she is. She always gets distracted from different projects. It’s like she’s trying to fight every battle on her own. If I wasn’t around to make sure she stayed on task and then double-check her work, who knows what would get done? Considering how much trouble she got into at school with Harry and Ron, how proficient do you think she would be on her own now?”

For some reason, Charlie’s hand twitched as if he wanted to strangle his brother. It was the most bizarre feeling as if the one who had turned a corner after the war suddenly was a douche towards women, despite the fact that he was raised by such a loving mother and his older brother wanted to be the one to physically remind him of his place. The worst part was that he could tell there was absolutely no malicious intent. He could see Percy really thought he was helping Hermione by hovering over her shoulder and dissecting her every decision.

Again it’s so strange that I want to brutally murder Percy for that… It’s the most bizarre feeling, Charlie thought with narrowed eyes. Suddenly, he had an idea and he grinned as he imagined what it would be like to pull Percy out into the yard and let Ginny remind him that women were not to be underestimated.

As he was fantasizing about the different ways he could castrate his younger brother for the disrespect he was demonstrating, Charlie remembered how cordially Hermione had handled Warren. He knew that if she heard he’d beat Percy up, she wouldn’t be happy. Sighing, he reigned in his anger. As much as he wanted to defend his woman, he had to be smart about it to avoid future repercussions in his own relationship. 

When Hermione had talked about how assholes at work treated her as a professional, Percy had never come up in Charlie’s mind as a potential culprit. It frustrated him intensely that Molly had raised all of them so lovingly and Percy was blind to how he was biased against Hermione and how he discriminated against her. Instead, he focused on the fact that she was best friends with two people who helped them win the war and who were awful troublemakers in school. Far from being unable to juggle multiple projects, Hermione was able to do more than her fair share because she not only helped the boys pass their classes and do well in their studies, but also researched and got the information they needed to bring down You-Know-Who.

Charlie was itching to put Percy completely in his place when Ron, Harry, and Ginny joined the group in the living room.

“What are you all talking about?” Harry asked.

“Percy’s new work at the Ministry,” Molly replied. “He has so much on his plate and he’s still able to make time to help his coworkers! He’s even taken Hermione under his wing, isn’t that wonderful?”

“Did you guys know that Percy is helping with Hermione’s work?” Charlie asked. Those who knew about his relationship with the witch could easily tell how ticked he was growing by the multiple conversations he was being subjected to. 

The trio who had just entered were also intimately aware of the finer details of how Percy helped Hermione with her legislation.

They all exchanged a look, trying to silently communicate and figure out a way to get Charlie out of the room because they knew from Ron that he wanted to keep the status of their relationship to himself unless Hermione was with him to announce it to the family.

Fortunately Ginny was there to save the day with an ingenious idea.

“I was actually wondering if I could ask for Charlie’s help with something before we all have our typical Christmas tomorrow. Since he leaves for the Reserve the next day, I figured right now would be the best time if he’s available.”

“What’s up, Ginny?” Charlie asked his baby sister. He would take any excuse to get out of the current conversation.

“As you know, I had James earlier this year and Victoire and Teddy are both a little bit older. I was thinking about the games we played as children and was hoping you could work on the old treehouse and give them a place to play in the summertime. I’d ask Harry and Ron to do it but they’re both awful with their hands. If you have time, I figured it would be a really sweet gift from their Uncle Charlie to make sure it’s still safe for them.”

Charlie’s heart warmed as he looked at Ginny. She was the last of his siblings to be born and often considered to be his mother's favorite because she was the only girl. However, she had grown up quite shy and had never asked her siblings for much as a young child because she just wanted to be one of the boys. Charlie had spent a great amount of time playing with her when she was much younger and had always retained a sweet spot in his heart for her. Ginny was a grown woman now and had no issues standing up to her brothers to get all of them to do anything she wanted. Charlie loved that vivacious quality in her.

She was no longer a little girl, but was a strong and confident professional Quidditch player who had married her childhood sweetheart. She already had one son, though Charlie knew she wanted more eventually. Having her little family play in the same treehouse they all enjoyed when they were little would be a great tradition to start. 

Charlie stood up and walked over to the young woman, rumpled her hair, and nodded.

“I’d be happy to,” he told her. “Dad, can I borrow your tools? And is there an extra stock of wood?”

“You’re welcome to the tools,” Arthur replied. “As for the wood, Ron already picked up enough to redo the whole thing. It should be behind the garage if you head out.”

Arthur wanted to tell his wife to back off of Charlie and had worried about her match-making schemes for years, but there wasn’t much he could do to stop her. He was no fool, and was grateful that his children all loved and were supportive of each other. 

Charlie grabbed the tools from the shed and headed out to the treehouse. The dilapidated old building was perched high in a tree where Percy, Charlie, and Bill had built the hut with their father while Molly was pregnant with the twins. Percy had been a baby at the time but was still present so that he could be a part of the process. He used to drool all over the plan his father had drawn, pointing at things and ‘directing’ them. 

Huh. Things haven’t changed that much since then, Charlie thought.

Building the treehouse had been Charlie’s first experience working with his hands at a very formative young age. Despite his love of magical creatures, he’d been addicted to this process ever since.

He built his own home with his two hands (with a little bit of help of magic) and carved broomsticks for the Reserve whenever he had a few spare minutes.

However, as he approached the old treehouse just inside of the woods near his family home, Charlie couldn’t help but feel a sense of trepidation.

None of the kids had used the house in a good twenty years and he was willing to bet Galleons that Arthur hadn’t been concerned about maintaining it during the war.

Besides that, Charlie knew Arthur hadn’t been using very specific measurements when they built the shack high in the trees. He had been a slave to Charlie’s and Bill’s many design changes as he constructed the hut.

Turning the bend, Charlie took in the view of the shack for the first time in fifteen years himself.

It was worse than he had been expecting, instead of better like he had been secretly crossing his fingers for.

He realized the hut was one beam from collapsing and was terrified at the thought of the kids playing in it. He quickly sent a Patronus back to the main house to ask for assistance and specific supplies. He knew more about building now than he had as a child and he wanted to rebuild the structure properly with actual beams and tabs.

While he waited to see if any of his family would respond, he started to organize his tools and lay out the wood Ron had bought so that he would be able to better visualize what he had to work with.

Fifteen minutes later, Percy walked up. Charlie inwardly groaned at the idea of his brother joining him. He had been hoping for literally anyone else considering the fact he was doing the work to get a few minutes away from Percy.

For some bat-shit crazy reason, he didn’t think it was a good idea to be alone in the woods with the brother he wanted to throttle, surrounded by heavy tools and wood beams. Something about a warning in Cain and Abel’s relationship?

He quickly smacked himself in the forehead and shook off those thoughts. Getting mad and wanting to beat up every man who was disrespectful to Hermione would sadly take up way too much time. Instead of reacting violently like he wanted to, Charlie could instead educate his brother on what he had been doing wrong so that he could be better in the future. It was a much more mature approach, and wouldn’t land him in the doghouse with his girlfriend.

“Hey Percy! What’s up? Want to help me with the treehouse?”

“As long as you don’t mind your assistant having no idea what he’s doing, I’d be happy to help you,” Percy told him honestly. “I don’t think I’ve been in the treehouse since we were both kids. The last time I came up here was when I got my Hogwarts letter.”

“You too, huh?” Charlie chortled with Percy. “Do you also have an inability to say no to Ginny?”

“YES!” Percy laughed. “What is it about her that I can’t stand to say no to?”

“The fact that she’s biologically our baby sister no matter how old she gets?” Charlie suggested.

“That could be it.” Percy nodded sagely. “Now tell me what to do!”

“First, we need better beams and tabs,” Charlie explained. “I will be able to rebuild a lot of it with magic since I understand the carpentry but I needed an extra wand to make sure that it gets done safely.”

For the next hour, Percy helped Charlie lift the treehouse out of the trees. Charlie went through the support structure and made sure that all the beams were replaced when Bill arrived with the back up supplies. At first Charlie found it strange that none of their other siblings came to help, but then realized that they were leaving the project to the three boys who had built the treehouse in the first place. 

It proved to be an excellent bonding experience as they finished the base and rebuilt the structure with magic. It had never looked so sturdy or safe — even when it was brand new. They took time to weave safety charms into the structure to prevent the children from falling and protect the structure from the elements.

To celebrate, the three men summoned some cold beers to relax in the fort. They caught up on what was going on in their lives outside of the pressures to talk about work or put up front for the rest of the family. Charlie and Bill had always been as close as the twins but they had always tried to include Percy whenever they hung out. Charlie was glad they had maintained that relationship as he wanted to talk with them about some more sensitive topics now.

“I’m dating Hermione,” he said as he took a long pull from his beer.

Bill — of course — already knew this fact, but Percy must have experienced whiplash as he spun around to look at his brother. “When did that happen?” he asked.

“You guys obviously know that she came to visit and to run the inspection,” Charlie told his brothers. “We’ve been writing letters to each other for years and… I don’t know! We just clicked while she was there.”

“Why was she running the inspection if she’s not trained to do so?“ Percy asked as he stared at his older brother quizzically. “She should know better than to take on that responsibility if she’s not properly trained.“

Perfect timing and phrasing, Charlie thought as he composed his next words in his head. Bill booked between the two other boys and decided to let Charlie handle it for now. He also was able to tell earlier in the evening that Molly’s words had affected Charlie and he had every intention of fixing Hermione’s toxic environment in the workplace.

“I figured she was doing a rough check to fill in for a coworker. The Ministry needed a little bit of paperwork filed and I actually wanted to talk to you about that, Perce,” Charlie said as he took a sip from his beer. “I know you mean well but have you considered the fact that you’re really suppressing Hermione at work?”

Percy paused to stare at his brother with a raised brow. “I try to do nothing but help her at work,” he argued.

“I know that’s what you think you’re doing but not many people would want the kind of help that you’ve been giving. Most people can be trusted to do their jobs on their own. While some newbies need extra training, Hermione has been doing her job well for several years. I don’t think she needs you to be hovering over her projects when you have so many of your own to worry about.”

Percy pursed his lips as he considered what Charlie was saying. 

Bill had been happy to let Charlie cover the conversation, but had a thought that he figured might help give Percy perspective.

“Have you ever considered treating your female coworkers like how you would treat Ginny?” he asked curiously.

“I always respect them like I would—”

“He doesn’t mean as a little sister,” Charlie cut in. “Ginny is our baby sister, yes, but Bill’s talking about who she is as a woman and a professional.”

“What do you mean?” Percy asked. Once upon a time, he had been a genuine prat, but he had really tried to change after making reconciliations with his family. But he had a sinking feeling as both of his older brothers talked to him. He talked all the time about his experience and knowledge, but now he was worried he’d missed something important along the way.

“Ginny is an adult. She can take any of us on if she needs to. And think about her career. She’s a professional Quidditch player. Would you go into her locker room every game to lecture her on what she did wrong? Or would you trust she has a team of coaches who know her value to the team and will tell her that themselves — assuming she doesn’t already know all of her mistakes herself?”

The realization hit Percy like the ton of bricks that had fallen on Fred in the Battle of Hogwarts. He just hoped he could get out of this situation with as little serious consequences as Fred did.

“I’ve been a real jerk to Hermione, haven’t I?” His brothers nodded and clapped him on the back. He felt the need to explain himself as he stared into the bottle in his hands. “I really didn’t mean to. I just tried to treat her like I would Ginny and I really never realized how that was coming across as micromanaging until now. I just… Sometimes it’s hard to remember she’s a grown woman and not the little buck-toothed first year who chased after Harry and Ron into danger. I’ll have to apologize when I see her next and then I’ll focus on staying out of her department unless actually needed and summoned.”

“I think that’s a good idea.” Bill took a gulp of his beer. “But you’re not completely wrong. I still sometimes see her as that courageous fourteen-year-old who yelled about Crouch firing that elf at the Quidditch World Cup.”

“Don’t bring that up,” Charlie advised. “Despite getting Dobby’s Law passed, she’s still upset about that.”

“I really want to know about how you two got together to start writing lette—”

“I’m gay,” Percy said suddenly.

Bill and Charlie started in surprise and stared at each other for a moment.

“Yeah, let’s go with this as the new topic.” Charlie gestured for Percy to continue.

“I thought you were dating Penelope?” Bill asked. “You told me in your letter that the pair of you were—”

“I lied.” Percy ducked his head as his ears turned crimson. “We broke up months ago when I realized. I think she’s dating someone else now.”

“How did you not know sooner?” Charlie had to ask. From what he knew, Percy had been dating Penny since he was at Hogwarts. “I’m not judging you or questioning you at all, to be clear. I love you no matter who you love. I’m just curious what made you realize now?”

“I think I’ve always known,” Percy admitted. “I was just so stuck in my own head about what I should be that I never let myself be honest. I had this vague image of success: a prestigious post at the Ministry, a wife and two kids, the house with the white picket fence, etc. It was all abstract to me until Penny started talking about marriage and I realized I just couldn’t do that to myself or to her. I couldn’t keep faking it anymore.”

“I’m proud of you,” Charlie toasted Percy with a tip of his drink. “It’s not easy to admit that and I’m proud of you for doing the hard thing.”

“Thanks.” Percy hid his face with a blush. He wasn’t used to receiving genuine heartfelt praise. He knew most of the comments he got for his accomplishments were lip service, so he didn’t know how to react when faced with the genuine honesty of his two older brothers.

“We love you, Percy, and will support you one hundred percent whenever you decide to start dating or tell the rest of the family.

“I appreciate that,” Percy grinned as they all toasted and drank the last of their beers.

Their timing turned out to be perfect as Harry arrived to call them inside for dinner.

Despite the depth of conversation, Charlie grinned and followed his family inside for dinner, fantasizing about showing Hermione the treehouse the next day, and maybe test the sturdiness of the new floor and walls if they could get away with it.

---

Back at Hermione‘s house she wasn’t doing very much better than Charlie had earlier in the afternoon.

When she first arrived at her family’s home she had been passed around between all of the neighbours and her parent’s coworkers from when they had been working in England. Hermione’s parents had an ‘open table' policy and they often hosted a big party on Christmas Eve starting at noon and ending just before dinner so families with little children could have dinner together and go to bed early for Santa.

She couldn’t tell the Muggles that she was magical, so she had to come up with alternatives whenever talking about her work. At the same time she had to field questions about her dating life because she wanted to talk to her parents in private before revealing her very new relationship with another workaholic to her parents’ coworkers and friends. She was already receiving too many questions about dating plans and future babies. 

She also knew that revealing her relationship to her parents indelicately risked increasing their worries that she was planning on dying a spinster because they both knew she and Charlie were married to their jobs.

In a word, the party was emotionally exhausting. 

She never thought she would be looking forward to the traditional Dirty Santa gift exchange so much. She knew the direction of the conversation would inevitably transfer from her dating life to who would get what gift.

She excused herself from another conversation with an old neighbour named Roberta when her father approached her with one of her childhood friends from before she found out she was a witch.

Kirk had always been nice and she enjoyed having conversations with him. They had shared several interesting conversations over the years and had a similar taste in Muggle literature.

Nonetheless her spine stiffened as Michael Granger ushered Kirk towards his daughter before disappearing into the crowd. As much as she loved her father, she knew he had a very traditional view on the subject of marriage. He had been trying to get the pair to match up for years and she knew that tonight would be no different.

“Kirk, how are you doing?” Hermione greeted politely as she sipped her mulled wine. 

“Are you sure you should be drinking that much?” he asked.

Suddenly, Hermione had no interest in keeping her previously cordial relationship with Kirk.

“Excuse me?”

“Shouldn’t a young woman your age be looking into the idea of marriage? I don’t think many men would like it if their potential girlfriend was a drinker. From what your father told me, you’ve been single for a long time. Maybe you should reflect on why that might be. You need a husband and, if you want to attract the right kind of man, you’ll have to correct all those flaws before he’ll even consider starting a relationship with you.”

Hermione closed her eyes as she tried to absorb the fact that he actually was talking to her that way. She had a brief flashback to her first day at Hogwarts when Draco had made a very similar comment to Harry as they all waited to be sorted. She decided to take inspiration from the calm way her best friend had rebuffed the condescending ferret, while also wondering if she had some weird pheromone that only attracted assholes — Charlie being the obvious exception.

There were many cases over her life where she noted the differences between Muggle and wizarding culture. In most cases she found that her Muggle relatives had a more progressive view on the female’s role in the home as opposed to their wizarding counterparts.

This was obviously an exception, but she still decided to take the cordial route. As much as she tried to pretend that his words didn’t affect her, they cut her deeply. She couldn’t help but flinch as her own insecurities were thrown in her face. 

“I really don’t think that it’s—”

Before she could say ‘a big deal’, Kirk cut her off to wax the most sexist line yet:

“I mean, imagine what it would say about how you would treat the future children or keep the house? A proper wife needs to be a proper lady, and not drink away her husband’s wages. And we all know that drinking mothers are a danger to their children.”

Hermione’s patience had always been like a rubber band, and it had been stretched quite a few times in the last few days. Typically it was elastic and flexible and she could practice good manners on most occasions. But just like a rubber band, if you stretched her patience too much, she snapped.

“With all due respect to you, Kirk, that isn’t your concern. My boyfriend loves to have wine with me after a long day of work. We’ll talk about how productive both of our work days have been while we share a bottle of wine by the fire. We haven’t discussed children yet, but I can assure you that whenever the time comes I will not be drinking while pregnant or getting drunk around my kids. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go help my mother.”

Hermione quickly made her way into the backyard to escape the stupidly gobsmacked look on his face at her retort.

The cold fresh air was a welcome distraction as she took a deep breath and savored the icy burn in her lungs. 

She stayed out there for a few minutes until she felt her mother join her.

Hermione didn’t even have to look as Jean Granger stepped outside.

In her entire life, Jean had always been a constant companion. The woman had bandaged skinned knees and bought Hermione her first books when she decided that playing with the other kids wasn’t for her. Jean had been the first to be excited when Minerva McGonagall told Hermione that she was a witch.

“I overheard what you said to Kirk,” Jean informed her daughter. “I’m sorry he said those things but you’ll be happy to know that he’s gone home. I will talk to your father about boundaries later. Do you think you can get through the rest of the party for me and then we can talk about your new relationship once everyone leaves?”

If there was one thing Hermione loved about her mother it was how understanding she was. Jean didn’t pry, she just accepted the way things were for Hermione and offered her unending support.

Hermione nodded at her mother and the pair went inside for the rest of the Christmas party. She exchanged gifts with the neighbours and accepted their personal questions with grace.

She even surprised herself by enjoying the evening and laughing with the people she had known for most of her life. Even if a major part of her life was now hidden from them, it felt good to reconnect with her roots.

As she said goodbye to the last neighbour she was gifted a casserole for her home and a kiss on the cheek from the little old grandma who lived down the street.

“What did you get from the Dirty Santa exchange, Sugar?” Hermione’s father asked. Jean had already moved back towards the kitchen so that she could start getting dinner ready for the three of them.

Hermione pulled out the luxury bath set which she had been fortunate enough to snag under the rule of the third exchange. After a gift had been claimed three times, it couldn’t be picked up anymore. It was one of the nicer gifts available and Hermione was thrilled with her luck that she was able to collect it!

Michael Granger might not understand why his daughter was so excited about soaps and bath bombs but even he knew that the gift was worthy of bragging rights in comparison to the comedic mug set he had gotten with hot cocoa mix.

The father and daughter joined Jean in the kitchen and got caught up on everything that had been happening in their lives recently.

“So, my boss sent me to the Reserve and I’ve been there for the past week,” Hermione told her parents when they asked about her work.

“I thought that your boss didn’t send you on inspections because you worked mostly from the office?” Jean replied. “Why were you sent out?”

Hermione accepted her mother’s confusion since it made a lot of sense and Ron had asked the same question a few days earlier. Admittedly Hermione had never considered it until Ron had asked, but she had a  theory. If Hermione and Charlie were both as transparent as Charlie’s coworkers said they were, then it was highly likely that Hermione’s boss knew about her crush on the dragon researcher. She had worked for the man for years and knew that he had a tendency to meddle in other people’s lives. Knowing what she knew about Robert and Tala, she could see how a conspiracy might occur between these three.

She briefly considered not revealing the reason to her parents but decided against secrecy.

“To be honest, I’m pretty sure that he knew that I had a crush on Charlie Weasley,” Hermione explained to her mother, who was also aware of her crush. Jean accepted the explanation with a nod and a chuckle while Michael paused to look between the two women.

“You have a crush on someone?”

“Honestly, Michael!” Jean rolled her eyes at her husband. “She’s liked the boy for years! The least you could’ve done was notice!”

“I actually think I love him,” Hermione said shyly. “We kind of got together while I was there because he feels the same way and I think we’re pretty serious.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with the long distance relationship? He lives on the Reserve, doesn't he?” Michael asked.

“I’d rather be in a long-distance relationship with him than a close-distance relationship with anyone else,” Hermione answered. “I’ve cared about him for a long time and I want to at least see where it goes before I give up on him.”

“I’m proud of you, sweetheart,“ Jean remarked as she finished up their traditional spaghetti and homemade meat sauce. It wasn’t the most traditional Christmas Eve dinner but the family was simple and the dish was a delicious one made into a casserole.

Michael poured the spaghetti into the casserole tray as Hermione helped her mother set up the garlic bread. 

Once all the food was in the oven, the family gathered at the kitchen table to share some mulled wine.

Hermione asked her mother and father lots of questions about how Australia was treating them. They talked about the small dental practice they had started and about how business was taking off. Hermione enjoyed listening to the stories her parents told about their clients and the conversation continued when the timer went off and the family dug into their holiday casserole.

Hermione asked lots of questions about what it was like living in Sydney and the rest of their dinner was very enjoyable.

Her parents were talking about how they joined a tennis club in Australia in order to let off some steam after the stress of dealing with uncooperative patients and exercise a bit since they worked sitting in a chair all day. Hermione was enjoying the hilarious description of their learning curve. Jean had just made a joke about juggling balls and Hermione was hilariously surprised at the dirty joke until her mother asked her how she burned off her excess energy.

“Mum!” Hermione’s jaw slacked in amazement at the woman’s audacity.

“I only meant that if you insist on taking all of that stress on your shoulders while knowing that some of your coworkers only seem to make it worse, maybe you should try going for a run after dinner to clear your mind? It’s what I used to do before, and still do when I’ve been overworked and your father isn’t available to go to the tennis club with me.”

Hermione paused and considered her mother’s words. It wasn’t an unreasonable consideration, and she did enjoy going for a run at the end of a long day. It wasn’t her fault that her mother had made it sound overly suggestive. She was an innocent contributor to Hermione’s desire for Charlie. If she wanted her family to accept her relationship, she needed to tell them. First though, she had to talk to Charlie about how long-term he wanted to make their arrangement last.

However, one good suggestion came out of their conversation. She fully intended to go for a run after dinner.

Notes:

I’m horrible for making you wait, but suck is life... One chapter a week is hard!
Let me know what you think!!!

Chapter 20: December 24th - Night

Notes:

Sorry for the delay, but I over-estimated my mental capacity and only had the ability for one thing a week. Christmas week, I had my Christmas Fremione and a few days ago, I posted my first Perciver as a New Year's drabble!
More notes at the end, but for now, Read on!!!

“I’m going to head out for a run,” Hermione told her parents as they cleaned up the dishes. After the intensity of their interrogation, she could use a brief escape from her head. After she, Harry, and Ron had spent a year on the run, she had realized that jogging was a great way to stay fit. She’d decided to keep up the healthy habit and now enjoyed going on a light jog every once in a while. It helped her organize her thoughts and clear her head while keeping her stamina up. The war was over, but as she’d seen in the last week the world was not exclusively populated by Death Eaters and good guys. Plus, she thought, staying in shape would help her keep up with her favorite dragon tamer, something she was looking forward to in the future.

She went upstairs to quickly transfigure her evening cocktail dress into a sports bra and some running leggings. Completing the look with a lightweight, but fire-resistant sweatshirt from Fred and George Weasley (which just so happened to advertise their business, Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes) Hermione deemed herself ready to go.

She left her parents’ house and warmed up in her front garden. The air was brisk but she tried to ignore that as she went through her stretches. She’d get warmed up running soon enough. Quickly going through her stretches, Hermione bounced up and down on the balls of her feet as she got herself pumped up to run.

She made sure her wand was secure in her right thigh holster as she left the gated garden and started her route around the block.

Taking off down the path, Hermione relished in the feeling of wind streaming past her as she started with a light jog. Quickly picking up her pace, she decided to push herself to break her record, beginning to run in earnest. It felt freeing, running as fast as she could without the stress of something life-threatening chasing her. The cold couldn’t touch her, her problems at work felt insignificant, and her anxiety about being soon separated from Charlie was all but forgotten. At that moment, she was riding on a rush and simply enjoying life.

Buildings whipped past as she sprinted towards the nearby park in her parents’ neighborhood. She ran around the duck pond — which was now coated in a thin sheet of ice — and down the opposite path before looping back. Hermione leaned forward and pushed herself, sprinting at her top speed for the final stretch as she got to the opposite side of the large pond. 

When she reached the end of her first mile-long circuit, she glanced at her watch and decided to take the long way back. She left the far end of the park and started a light jog around the rest of the neighborhood without really focusing on her surroundings to cool down. She let her mind travel as she kept up her pace.

She thought about Charlie and how they were going to make their relationship work long-distance. She didn’t realize her feet had tracked her back through the neighborhoods toward Grimmauld Place until she realized she was getting near the Apparition point they all used to get into the former Order’s headquarters.

I didn’t mean to run this far, she thought as she adjusted her route towards Sirius’ childhood home. It wasn’t the first time she’d jogged here since the street was only a few miles from her parents’ home. Ron, Harry, and Ginny had moved in with Sirius when the war ended and she often decided to just jog over when they wanted to hang out. She decided she’d finish her stretches in their yard and then use their Floo to get back to her parents’ place. Even with warming charms she would look underdressed to the Muggles she might pass without a coat.

She had barely entered the yard when she collapsed to the ground in obvious exhaustion. She’d only been out for an hour and a half, but she’d been pushing herself for a lot of it and it obviously took its toll on her. 

She groaned as she rolled over in the thin layer of snow and pushed herself off of the ground to start leaning on one leg. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt herself by not stretching properly. Once all of her muscles were sufficiently stretched after her sprint and she felt her heart rate return to normal, Hermione started going through yoga positions as her favorite way to finish cooling down. The cold air around her pricked at her lungs, but made her breathe deeply in appreciation of the cooler temperature.

Just as she was bending into downward dog, she heard a muffled crunching of snow behind her.

Hermione dropped her knees so she was kneeling unarmed but she made sure her wand was close at hand.

Her heart stopped for a moment when she saw a familiar shadow emerge from the darkness.

As much as she trusted she knew who it was, she still had to draw her wand and ask, “Who’s there?”

Charlie’s wand lit, revealing his face and his posture of surrender. “I come in peace,” he promised, hands in the air. “If you’re going to ask me a security question, the first time we had sex was—”

Hermione quickly cut him off with a silent Muffliato.

“I believe it’s you,” she told him as she cancelled the spell. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m staying here,” he explained. “Mum wanted the little kids to have a huge sleepover at her place so there wasn’t space for me. Harry and Sirius have extra space to spare so they offered me one of their rooms.”

“I missed you today,” she blurted out. “I know it’s only been a few hours, but...”

“I agree,” he told her as he pulled her into his arms to kiss her. “It’s hard to believe that we were cocooned in the cabin just this morning.”

“It’s only been a few hours but it feels like ages,” she agreed.

“I wish I could take you inside,” he sighed, winking at her. “But I have a feeling you won’t be able to stay quiet enough to not bother Harry and Gin.”

“Har dee fricking harr,” she snarked. “And to think! I was just about to invite you back to my place.”

Charlie narrowed his eyes at her and pulled her into the shadows of the building, quickly pressing her up against the wall. Their lips found each other instantaneously as her arms wound their way around his neck and into his newly cut hair as she eagerly wrapped her legs around his waist.

“What happened here?” she asked as she pulled back after a long moment. His longer locks had been cut since she saw him last.

“Mum cut it short and I’m not sure how I feel about it. What do you think?” His eyes shone with insecurity, but Hermione had no idea why.

It was actually a very attractive cut. Molly had buzzed the side of his head but left the top a little bit longer. Instead of it being a longer messy mop where he could tie all of his hair up into a bun, he was still able to tie up the middle part but it looked a lot more professional.

Hermione felt her pussy spasm as she imagined how the longer buzz would feel on the inside of her thighs, while the longer portion would still be long enough to grip in her hand. It was so soft under her fingers from being healthy. Charlie was sporting a very attractive five-o-clock shadow and the whole look made her want to drag him back to her flat faster than she could Apparate.

“I really like it,” she told him honestly, her eyes wide and pupils blown. “You look really hot with an undercut.”

“Really?” he asked, meeting her eyes.

“Yeah,” she nodded. “I can’t help but imagine how it’d feel between my legs back at my place.”

Charlie’s eyes darkened immediately.

“There’s no way I’m letting you go home alone now,” he decided. “It’s late and the streets aren’t safe and I should definitely ‘escort’ you to make sure you get there safely.”

Hermione bit her lip and fluttered her eyelashes in an exaggerated coquettish manner.

“You wouldn’t mind?” she asked innocently.

“I can’t risk my girl getting jumped in an alley, could I?”

“I doubt she’d mind it much if it was you jumping her.” Hermione winked.

“Very true,” he smirked as he ground against her core, making her whimper. “But if you were attacked, the muggers might never recover from what you’d do to them!”

“But you know how hot it gets me when I put assholes in their place!” She groaned, arching her back against the wall to seek more friction between them. “I might just have to take you in front of them to show them they never had a chance.”

“HARRY!” Charlie hollered as he pulled away, pointing at her to stay still as he marched up the steps to call inside. “I’m going out and I’ll see you in the morning.”

“We’ll put your stuff through the Floo and tell Hermione we say ‘Happy Christmas’.” Hermione heard Ginny teasingly reply from inside. She had to cover her mouth to stifle her giggles. It was really nice to have her friends’ support. She decided to mimic Charlie’s example and drew her wand through the air to summon her Patronus. She sent it quickly to her parents and watched her silvery otter swim off.

Charlie was by her side and tugging her towards the street before the silvery apparition was even out of sight.

She followed him quite enthusiastically as the pair made their way to the Apparition point.

---

She tugged him into her apartment and they immediately started pawing at each other’s clothes as their lips kissed and bit at each other. It had only been a few hours, but it felt like a lifetime to the both of them since they had had each other. Neither knew how they’d survive living hundreds of miles apart.

She was desperate to get him naked when she caught a whiff of herself and her nose scrunched up enough to pull away.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I know we should be past it, but I really want to shower before. Do you mind?”

“I don’t mind either way, but I’m all for it if it makes you more comfortable.” He pulled away, masking his disappointment. Charlie personally really didn’t mind Hermione being a little sweaty but he understood her discomfort. He wasn’t just interested in her for the sex and didn’t want her to think he was.

“If you don’t mind feeding Crookshanks first, I’d love to have you join me as soon as I get the sweat off?” Hermione smiled while pulling away. “Otherwise you’re welcome to make yourself at home?”

“Give me a few minutes,” he ordered her as she slipped away towards her room.

He groaned as he heard the shower turn on and imagined her getting in. He quickly made his way towards the kitchen in her open flat, focussed on getting his task done so he could join her. Fortunately, Hermione seemed to favor a pretty open floor-plan, so he didn’t have to go hunting for the room, just for the cat’s food bowl.

Crookshanks appeared and decided to help him as the feline purred and rubbed against the red-head’s legs.

“Give me a second, pal,” Charlie requested as he looked through different cabinets for the half-kneazle’s food. He yelped as the tiny fangs of the orange cat sank into his calf.

Jumping in place, he spun around and glared at the orange ball of fur. The feline in question ignored his glare and stalked regally around the corner to a hidden closet before sitting and staring at Charlie expectantly.

Immediately understanding, Charlie groaned to himself. “Of course she has a hidden pantry. If I know her at all, it’s stocked high with non-perishables.”

It turns out that he knew her very well.

He quickly found Crookshanks’s food and filled a scoop for the cat before following him to the bowl. He filled it quickly, checked to make sure he still had clean water, and then made his way after Hermione.

As he made his way toward the bathroom, he reached down and fished his cock out of his pants. He began gently stroking his cock to bring it back to full attention, intending to surprise Hermione. After making his way down the hall and into the bedroom, he tiptoed quietly into the bathroom where he saw her through the slightly fogged glass.

Fuck, I’m one lucky bastard , Charlie thought to himself, unconsciously tugging harder on his long and hard prick. He lost himself for a minute, watching her body as she arched her back to rinse the soap from her hair. Her ass and breasts were pronounced in this position and it was enough to make any man want to weep. Both of her hands were leisurely running over her stomach, one guiding the loofa to leave a trail of white soap bubbles in its wake while her other hand rubbed the bubbles into her softened skin. When he felt his body make the switch from calm and casual masturbation to need for orgasm, he knew it was time.

Charlie swiftly undressed, opened the shower door, and pressed himself against Hermione’s back.

She screamed in surprise. “Charlie! You scared the crap out of me! I thought you were still feeding Crooks! I didn’t hear you!”

Charlie chuckled quietly, but didn't answer, instead choosing to wrap both of his arms tightly around his very wet and very naked girlfriend, using his hands and the lingering soap bubbles to massage her soft skin. He moved from her breasts to her stomach and even down to her clit before repeating the process. He heard her sigh in contentment and leaned forward, gently kissing and nipping at her neck.

Hermione quietly moaned, loving the feel of him. “Is shower sex just going to become a regular occurrence with you?”

“It’s the only thing you told me you wanted to try,” he defended. “And I always aim to please my lady.”

“Lucky girl,” she sighed as she surrendered into his embrace.

“I definitely do my best to treat her as such,” Charlie agreed as he turned her around so he could press a searing kiss against her lips.

Pushing her against the tiled wall, he pressed his hard body against hers. Holding her in place with the weight of his torso, he raked his fingers down her sides to her thighs, then back up to her breasts. Teasing, he circled her nipples with the pad of his thumbs while tasting her mouth. His tongue was mimicking in her mouth what his cock would hopefully be doing soon in her cunt by thrusting in and out of her. Her tongue reacted to play with his own as she grew frustrated by his pace. As hot and bothered as his kiss was making her, the rest of his pace was killing her.

His caresses were teasing and light and he seemed to avoid touching her clit on purpose. His hips were slowly grinding his cock against her stomach but left her core completely untouched. She tried to buck against him, hoping to get a little friction against his muscled thigh, but he chuckled and leaned back just out of her reach. He met her eyes as she huffed in annoyance.

“Something’s the matter, love?” he smirked.

“Charlie,” she groaned, panting. “I need you, baby.”

“I’m here, babe,” he answered, still smiling. “You can have me any way you want, darling.”

“Charlie,” she whined. His hands were inching down, closer to where she needed him but he was not moving fast enough. She tried to use her hands to push his own to where she wanted him, but he took both of her wrists in a firm hand and put them over her head, against the tiles.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” he reprimanded her. “Use your words, darling. You need to ask if you want something.”

So this is how he’s going to play this? she thought as heat flared in her eyes as they shared a look. 

“Anything I want?” asked Hermione, trying to keep her voice neutral and innocent as if this was a normal conversation.

“I can’t refuse you anything, Mi,” he promised darkly, lust flaring in his eyes. “I’d give you absolutely anything you want.” He was expecting her to ask for him to fuck her already, or finger her to completion, or do anything before they moved to the bed, so he wasn’t prepared for her answer. 

“I want to drop to my knees and suck your cock, then I want you to fuck me so hard I won’t be able to sit for a week.” The combination of such naughty words and the look in her wide, innocent eyes was enough to shock him and render him speechless. Hermione took the opportunity to push him back a bit and maneuvered them in her tiny shower so that she could kneel before him while the spray hit her back. 

“Can I?” she asked sweetly, still playing out her little ‘innocent’ act. If it wasn’t for the obvious spark of mischievousness he saw in her eyes, Charlie would have stayed frozen indefinitely. As it were, he was curious to what his little vixen was up to and was always perfectly happy to let her have free reign of his cock and balls.

Nodding, he jokingly raised his hands in surrender to let her know he was under her control, and leaned back to give her a better angle. Hermione leaned forward a little bit and gave the head of his prick a little lick. Moaning appreciatively at the feel and taste of him, she kissed along his shaft before taking him into her mouth. She swirled her tongue around him and savored the flavor. 

Groaning, Charlie took hold of her sodden curls and moved them to one side of her head as she took her time with her self-assigned task. Holding her like that, it wouldn’t take much to take control of her pace, but Charlie restrained himself, waiting to see what she planned on doing to him. 

That plan quickly evaporated when she moaned around his shaft taking him deep in her throat. Holding her in place a second longer, he let her retreat and suck on the upstroke. She teased his head, keeping just the tip in her mouth and swirling her tongue against the crown, maintaining eye contact the whole time. When he pulled her back by the hair, she moaned and clenched her fingers around his thighs, clearly loving the feeling. Nodding, she mouthed “please” before going down on him with renewed vigor. She bobbed her head, hollowing her cheeks while he increased her pace, pushing her head down and pulling lightly at her scalp. She gagged slightly when he held her against his pubic bone to feel her throat close around him. 

Just when he thought he might come, she tapped his thigh in their signal to be let up. He immediately relaxed his grip and she pulled off his weeping dick. Chasing a drop of cum, she kissed down the underside of his length to kiss and tongue at his balls while her hand wrapped lazily around his cock. She made sure to keep her grip light as she barely stroked his length.

Charlie felt his eyes roll back as she paid attention to his balls until she suddenly switched gears again as she eased back. If she didn’t watch herself and kept switching it up, she would be making him lose control any second.

Lose control.  

“Naughty little minx,” he chuckled, stroking her head affectionately. “You’re trying to use your perfect little mouth to make me lose control so I’ll stop teasing you and fuck your pretty little cunt, aren’t you?”

Hermione’s gaze was still on his cock, a sheepish look on her face. Looking up, she smiled warmly.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She blushed. “Is it working?” 

“You have no idea, my little vixen,” he replied as he helped her up and kissed her deeply.

He tasted himself in her mouth and groaned in pleasure as her hands slipped around his neck. Her nails raked through his short hair. Taking hold of her thighs, he hoisted her up against the tiled wall and dropped a hand to her cunt, checking if she was ready. 

She was drenched.

Meeting her gaze, he didn’t waste another second, filling her up in one movement. She gasped when he bottomed out and he took the opportunity to fill her mouth with his tongue.

He set a punishing pace as he pistoned in and out of her at a rapid pace. She could only hold on for dear life as he chased her orgasm with single minded determination. Her soft moans and groans were getting louder and she was starting to babble an incoherent mix of praise, his name, and curses.

“Charlie, babe, so good, fuck, please, please, Charlie…”

Grunting, he felt his balls tighten and tried to mentally go through his chore list at the Reserve to keep from coming too soon since Quidditch players weren’t going to cut it anymore. 

“Come on, Mi. Come on me, baby. I know you want to. Come on me and drench my cock in your juices and I’ll give you your favorite lollipop to suck on later.” He had no idea what he was saying anymore but judging by her reaction she clearly liked it as she whimpered and clawed at his back more needily as if she couldn’t get enough of him. Readjusting his position so she’d sink onto him more deeply, he simultaneously used his hand to press between them and pinched her clit. 

She wailed as she knocked her head back against the wall, her mop of hair cushioning the impact slightly as she thrashed in his arms. Feeling her cunt squeeze and milk his cock was too much for Charlie and he followed her over the edge with a grunt of her nickname. Giving a few more shallow thrusts to help them both ride the aftershocks, he felt his balls empty into her as he held her close in his arms. 

When they got their breathing back under control, Charlie backed them up under the spray. Thanking Merlin for magical water heaters that never run out, he let the spray massage his neck and back for a moment before he turned to offer Hermione’s back the same treatment. Releasing her legs slowly, he groaned as she slipped off his still-sensitive cock. He reached for soap to gently wash her torso and legs again as she still came down her high. Smiling at him, she let him take care of her before she took a flannel and started to massage the suds in his pecs. 

No matter how thorough they were, they both recognized this washing was more of a way to show affection and contentment than an invitation to start another round of sex. They both liked the domesticity and intimacy of it all and took their time to enjoy the moment while it lasted.

Eventually, they turned off the shower and hopped out to dry themselves with threadbare white towels while enjoying their lingering intimate  touches. Charlie pulled her hair back from her face and when Hermione wiped a droplet that escaped his temple he moved to kiss her wrist. Laughing, she pushed him back and told him to get dressed while she dealt with her hair and nighttime routine. 

He quickly wrapped a towel around his waist as she disappeared into her closet, leaving Charlie to his own devices with the condition that he start the kettle. Understandably, he did what any boyfriend would do the first time they were alone in their girlfriend’s place — he snooped as he moved towards her main living area to hunt down his promised belongings.

If there was one thing that surprised him about her home, it was how little it seemed lived in. There were hardly any photographs on the walls or propped up on the bookshelves. It felt like the only indication of who lived there were the massive walls of books that occupied the second bedroom and most of the living room. Aside from that it was just like any other minimalist flat that he could imagine. Nothing in the apartment made it hers.

He grinned when he saw his bags set carefully beside the fireplace. Harry must have stepped through long enough to put it down and then quickly make his escape.

Smart kid.

Logically, Charlie knew that Harry was an adult man who was the same age as Charlie’s girlfriend now, but he would always see him as the lanky fourteen-year-old Ron had brought home like a stray puppy the summer they got tickets to the World Cup.

Pulling a pair of sweatpants and old faded gold Gryffindor shirt from his bag, he dressed quickly before making his way back to the bookshelf that surrounded the flat fireplace as he towel-dried his hair further. The built-ins were covered with books and he could tell they were all well cared for.

Noticing one book was especially well-worn, he reached for it and discovered the book was titled A Christmas Carol . He couldn’t help himself as he flipped open the book and sat down on the armchair nearby.

Having read that same book years ago for his Muggle Studies class at Hogwarts and enjoyed the text then, Charlie was quickly engrossed in the plot.

He only snapped out of his interest when Hermione came into the room wearing a fluffy robe with her hair braided over her shoulder.

“What are you reading?” she asked as she perched on his lap. He knew he was grinning like an idiot as she met him and made herself comfortable in his arms. This is what he loved about being with her. She had all the graces and brains to be distracted by an intellectual conversation, but at the same time she could be sexy as sin when she wanted to be.

“I’m reading your copy of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens,” Charlie told her as he opened the book in front of them so she could read along. “I’m sorry I forgot to put the kettle on,” he apologized.

“I’ll take care of it,” she told him as she nestled into his arms and waved her wand at the kitchen, while her eyes never left the text. Charlie could hear the electric kettle filling itself as she settled further into his embrace. A few minutes later, the whistle went off and she reluctantly got up to retrieve their drinks. When she returned with two steaming mugs of hot chocolate decorated with sticks of peppermint, he grinned like a smitten fool. She quickly placed the drinks on the small coffee table and climbed back into his lap to resume their story.

For the next hour, Hermione and Charlie read the old book together, sipping their cocoa and just enjoying each other’s company on that snowy Christmas Eve. At one point, Hermione pulled her wand out of her robe pocket to start the fire but she never left Charlie’s lap and he was perfectly happy with that.

After a while, Charlie’s eyesight went from the manuscript to fall on his girlfriend. He couldn’t help but have his eye drawn to her chest where her robe had fallen partially open.

Instantly the book was forgotten as he zeroed in on the delectable flesh. The fire of his desire had abated since they had taken their shower and settled in this domestic little scene, but it didn’t take much to fan the flames of his desire back to their previous intensity.

He started tugging at her robe and her eyes flipped over to him. She immediately caught his train of thought and folded the book so that their current place was protected as she sat the book on the nearby end table. By the time her focus was fully back on Charlie he had her robe open and was kneading the flesh of her breast.

“Tit for tat!” she winked at him for her excellent use of pun. “More specifically, my tits for your tats. If I’m topless, you should be too,” she said, tugging at the hem of the material separating them.

Hermione laughed as he pulled back just enough to rip his shirt over his head. She salivated at the expense of flesh and muscle he revealed in the process. She didn’t think she would ever get over how well defined his chest muscles were. When he caught her staring and flexed she rolled her eyes and got off of his lap. 

His eyebrows immediately furrowed in concern until she reached her hand out for him.

“I figured we would be much more comfortable in the bedroom this time?” she suggested with a sly grin.

She barely had time to react as he scooped her up into his arms and carried her down the hall towards her room. He had heard Crookshanks following them so he made sure to kick the door close when he entered the bedroom. The last thing he wanted or needed was to be cock-blocked by a cat.

The entire walk to her bedroom, she kept kissing and rubbing against any part of him that she could reach. It was maddening and mind-blowing that she always wanted him as much as he wanted her. When she bit his neck and sucked at the abused skin just over his pulse point, his eyes crossed in pleasure.

“Circe, Mi. You’ve got to slow down or else I’m going to make a mess of my pants.” 

“We wouldn’t want that,” Hermione whispered in his ear as she started slithering down his body. “Especially when you could ‘make a mess’ down my throat or in my pussy.”

“Keep talking like that, babe, and I swear it’ll be both.” His groan was strangled as he fought to regain control.

Hermione nearly purred at the dark promise in his words. ‘Both’ sounded like an excellent idea to her.

It took everything Charlie had not to lose it at the sound of her desire, but he proved to still be victorious as he tamped down his body’s reaction with several calming breaths.

Either Hermione didn’t notice or didn’t care that he was on a razor’s edge already as she immediately started untying his pants. Sinking to her knees, she pulled the fabric down his legs revealing his proud member to the room. Already hard, his cock bobbed once before hitting his stomach. Hermione licked her lips as she stared in wonder at the endurance of his member.

Unwilling to let her just stare, Charlie reached down to cup her cheek with his hand. She looked up at him and grinned wickedly. Her tongue slipped out from between her lips to wet the parched flesh before she leaned forward to lick the tip of his cock.

He growled as she again took her time trying to taste every inch of his flesh that she could. He still couldn’t decide if it were a blessing or a curse that she loved giving head as much as he loved receiving it as she pressed kisses up and down both sides of his cock before she licked a stripe across the vein on the underside. He felt like he was about to go mad when she finally wrapped her lips around the mushroom shaped head.

Her pace started off slow as she gradually took more and more of him into her mouth and didn’t stop until he bottomed out in her throat. She set an agonizingly slow pace as if she were determined to memorize every ridge and vein in his cock. Her tongue never stopped moving and her suction made his eyes cross. Whenever she took him into the tight channel of her throat, he swore he saw stars.

Blessing, he decided. Her oral skills are definitely a blessing.

He tried to warn her but his orgasm came so suddenly it took him by surprise as he shot his warm seed into her eager mouth. If possible, her suction became stronger on his dick as she eagerly sucked every drop of cum out of him. She only let one drop escape from the corner of her mouth and as Charlie watched it slide down her chin, he didn’t think he’d ever seen anything quite so erotic. She smirked and caught the drop with her finger and cleaned it off with her tongue, her eyes never leaving his and daring him to respond.

The moment that thought crossed his mind, he realized he needed to taste her as well. He hadn’t done so all day and suddenly he felt parched. He pulled her up to him and covered her lips with his own. He could taste himself on her tongue and it only reminded him of what she had just done twice so he kissed her more deeply as his hands started wandering purposefully. Drinking her in, he traced the outside of her hips with reverence. She became putty in his hands and he stood corrected from his earlier opinion. The sexiest thing in the world was Hermione Granger completely at his mercy and willing to be there.

He quickly maneuvered them so that her back was on her small bed as he moved down her body. His hands traced and massaged every bit of flesh that he encountered. When he reached her breasts he broke their kiss so that he could move lower with his lips to meet his hands.

He grasped her other breast in one hand and massaged it as she pinched and twisted her nipple into a hard peak. As soon as it was hard to the touch, Charlie lowered his lips to suck it into his mouth. Hermione arched and bucked against him, pressing the tender flesh further into his mouth.

Charlie grinned at her reaction while his other hand kept massaging the tender flesh of her other breast. He plucked and pulled at the opposing nipple until it too was hard and ready for his tongue to massage and soothe the abuse. Hermione whimpered and groaned at the tender affection with which he showered her sensitive breasts.

“Charlie,” she begged, “please don’t tease me!”

“I would never, love,” Charlie grinned deviously. “I have every intention of finishing what I’m starting, you just have to be patient.”

If there was one thing Hermione Granger did not want to do, while her boyfriend was half naked on top of her, it was be patient. After all, she had been reasonable and had gotten him off in a fairly quick and direct manner. Simple politeness should require the same from him, didn’t it? She twisted and moaned and even tried pushing him further south so that he could reach the apex of her thighs, but he just chuckled and pinned her to the mattress.

“You know that I love it when you’re wild, babe, but this time I want to have fun with you, okay?” he requested teasingly as he worked at attacking every single one of her sensitive points. It didn’t take long for her to become a delicate mass of flesh beneath his experienced fingers and exploring tongue.

Speaking of experienced fingers, she finally felt them continue their path down her body towards where she wanted him most. More frustrating than she had been hoping for, he skipped over her throbbing area to reach for her legs. She shamelessly opened them wide for him to indicate exactly where she wanted him and he only chuckled as he ignored her deliberate request.

He moved between her legs and started massaging the ankle of her right leg. He made sure to rub the tension out of her leg starting at her ankle and moving up her thigh. His tongue would make contact at completely random locations as he went so she was left quivering, wondering where his lips would fall next. When he finally made it to the top of her leg, she was practically dripping ready for him but he skipped over her cunt entirely to repeat the process on her left leg. 

Hermione was tied between pleasure at what he was doing and desire for more as she was dripping wet from her cunt to her ass. Charlie hadn’t touched her there yet and she felt like she was moments from losing her mind at his ministrations.

“Charlie, please,” she whined desperately as she rolled her hips towards him, hoping to entice him to give her some satisfaction in any way. She didn’t care if he used his finger, his tongue, or his cock but if he didn’t put some part of his anatomy in her soon she would kick him out and finish herself.

Charlie’s eyes glazed over as he viewed the delectable display in front of him.

“What do you want, babe? What do you want me to do? What do you need?”

“Eat me,” she begged as she rolled her hips again. “I want you to eat me so much that I feel raw and then I want you to fuck me so hard I see stars.”

Charlie had created a monster. All of the deepest desires previously held locked in her heart no longer seemed as shameful as she had felt before. All she wanted was her boyfriend between her legs thrusting as hard as he could until she was moved up the mattress and the bed was banging against the wall. But before that, she wanted to make sure that he had eaten his fill just in case he didn’t eat enough at dinner.

He was so proud of her that he couldn’t help it as he pounced.

Carefully separating her labia with his fingers, he was presented with a veritable smorgasbord of flavors and he licked his lips in desire before diving in. He licked a stripe from ass to clit and fucking moaned at the flavor of her. She was clean from their shower, but all of his teasing had her worked up into a frenzy. She was fucking perfect.

“You’re so delicious, babe,” he praised as he rolled her flavor on his tongue. “You taste so good I’m not sure I can see straight. I’m gonna make you come so hard, baby. I’m gonna give you exactly what you want and eat you until you come so hard that you can’t breathe as I fill you with my hard cock. I want to have you, baby, so come for me like a good girl. Come so hard that you’re so wet I can fuck you real good.”

“Fingers,” she begged as her own fingers wove through his undercut. “Put your fingers in me, baby, please. Fuck me with your hand and eat me.”

Charlie didn’t know where this vixen had come from but he was here for it. He teased her with a single finger before he almost immediately pierced her with two. His tongue moved to flick at her clit before he sucked it into his mouth and started fucking her with his hand.

She was halfway to her orgasm before he realized that she had somehow still taken over even when he wanted to play with her. He found he couldn’t care less as he drove her towards the edge.

He licked and nibbled at her cunt until she was soaking wet and half delirious. He could tell she was right at the precipice, but something was holding her back from flying over the edge.

“Come for me, Hermione.” he pulled away to beg her. “Fuck, baby, you’re so hot. Come on my hand and let me drink you up.” Charlie raised his mouth from her clit for only a moment before returning to his task. He hoped a little dirty talk and praise would do the trick. He was right because she exploded seconds later. He lapped up everything he could as she gushed into his hand.

She had never been so wet for him and her essence was like his own personal brand of aphrodisiac. He was intoxicated as he removed his wet hand to pin her hips down and drank from the source.

He prolonged her orgasm for as long as he could until she collapsed onto the bed beneath her, twitching and sated for now.

“You’re absolutely gorgeous,” he praised as he crawled up her body, subtly wiping his face as he did so. He gave her a moment to recover as he stroked her body to help her calm down from her high. He massaged her sides and breasts as he admired the view of Hermione lost in pleasure.

As soon as she recovered enough to be able to focus on his face, he notched his cock at her entrance. As he sank into her still sopping wet cunt, they both froze as a weird noise sounded in the room. They both froze and stared at each other as she realized it was coming from her cunt. She turned as red as a beet and tried to hide her face in embarrassment.

Charlie just laughed as he stayed within her and moved his hand to tease at her clit, refusing to let her shy away from him now. Balancing his weight on his other arm, he moved to pull her hands away from her face.

“Hey, look at me,” he grinned. “It happens. Biology is hilarious, but it’s not going to stop me from fucking you until all you can think about is trying to remember your own name because your throat is raw from screaming mine.”

Raw heat simmered in his eyes and she tried experimentally rolling her hips again.

They both groaned at the feeling of her wet tightness around his cock. She felt so deliciously stretched when he started moving that she couldn’t help it when her eyes rolled back into her head as he got to work fulfilling his promise.

He set a slow but deliberate pace as he rolled his hips into hers. They both shuddered and clawed at each other as his cock slowly pumped in and out of her core.

They both loved the feeling of the intensity building as his pace slowly sped up over time but this wasn’t like their previous fucks.

It was still new since they had both recognized that they were in love and Charlie made it a point to show her that as he filled her. He made sure that her eyes were locked on his own as he rolled his hips into hers. He wanted to carve out her core so that she would only remember the memory of his cock inside of her. What he wanted was for her to only think of him when he left her to return to the Reserve. He wanted to imprint on her mind and body that he was hers, to show her that, despite the fact that they had only been together for a short time, he was already completely infatuated and in love with her.

As she laid beneath him, she felt his intense feelings pouring into her. If she focused hard enough, she could feel her magic surrounding her like a cloud to caress his skin alongside her fingers. She wanted him to only think of her and never leave her for another woman. She wanted him to only feel her and see her when he closed his eyes at night in his bedroom back at the Reserve; to only think of her when his nights got too lonely and cold.

But most importantly, they both realized they wanted to love each other. Charlie and Hermione had spent the better part of the day desperate to return to each other's arms. They channeled that energy now as they clung to each other in passion. His pace slowly sped up and she desperately pulled him to her.

Grunts and groans filled the room as both chased each other's orgasms.

Charlie rolled them over so that Hermione was on top and she never broke rhythm as she continued to ride him. Shame was the last thing on her mind as she drove down desperately onto him. They had started slowly but their tempo was quickly increasing and he made sure to knead her breasts as they continually joined together. His dick felt so hard inside of her and she angled her hips so that he hit the sweet spot that made her see constellations with every thrust. He could feel that she was close so he helped her long as he pumped up into her.

He lowered one hand towards her clit and pinched it until she threw her head back and screamed his name as she came on his cock. Unwilling to let her come alone, he gripped her hips and pumped up into her a few times more before he was spilling his seed into her.

She collapsed forward onto his chest and they both struggled to catch their breath. Charlie felt himself slip out of her core and felt their combined juices dribble onto his thigh.

He summoned his wand and cast a quick cleansing charm so that they both could feel a little bit more comfortable.

Hermione mumbled incoherently and snuggled into him further. He felt his heart clench as he held her tightly. This was what he wanted in his life and he didn’t know what he would do when it wasn’t there anymore.

Notes:

Let me know what you all think!!! You all know what a whore I am for reviews ;)
For this chapter, you guys can thank my lovely beta for the shower scene. She insisted the chapter needed it, so we gift you extra smut!!!
Also check out chapter 13 for new lovely art that K made me during NaNoWriMo! I adore it!!!

Chapter 21: December 25th - Morning

Notes:

A major hug to my beta/new cowriter, Zabethou. We've discovered the perfect harmony for cowriting, so expect to see many chapters dedicated to her help moving forward. Hope you enjoy!

The first thing she could feel upon waking up was the light stroking of gentle fingers on her upper arm. The light touches trailed up and down from her shoulder to her elbow, in swirling patterns. Smiling, she snuggled more deeply into the warm chest that had replaced her pillow sometime during the night. 

“Good morning, sleepy head,” his deep voice rumbled in his chest beneath her cheek. She mumbled something incoherently and snuggled closer to his warmth.

She could hear the smirk on his face as he moved to pet her hair. “Do you want to wake up for the day?”

“No,” she grumbled as she rolled over to burrow deeper into her threadbare, yet cozy blankets. Her boyfriend-shaped pillow had betrayed her by continually moving and making noise. “The blankets have accepted me as one of their own and I’d hate to insult them by leaving.”

Charlie’s deep laughter filled the small space of her room. She groaned petulantly as she wrapped the blankets more tightly around herself. Charlie didn’t seem to care as he slipped his arms around her to tug her into his chest and spooned her.

His actions were deemed acceptable by the half-asleep witch as she snuggled further into his warmth.

“Wake up love,” Charlie coaxed as he started kissing at her neck. His stubble tickled her and she squirmed to escape the sensation. He chuckled as he rolled her back over to face him. She groaned petulantly but allowed him to manipulate her so that she was tucked back into his chest. He pet her hair with one hand and kissed the top of her head as his other arm held her close.

“Good morn—awngh,” she mumbled sleepily as she let his gentle coaxing drag her into consciousness before yawning. “How long have you been up?” Creaking her eyelids open slightly she could determine that the sun was not up yet, so they shouldn’t be either. There was no way she was getting out of bed without either a strong cup of coffee or a very valid reason. 

“Not too long. Just enough to know that you can drool a little when you sleep, and that it’s adorable.” He ignored her snort and continued. “Plus, I wanted to enjoy you like this before we have to get to the Burrow.”

Darn it.

She had forgotten they were due for breakfast at the Burrow later that morning. Finally forcing her eyes open enough to focus, she rolled over again to reach for the clock on her bedside table. Glancing at the time, she protested. “6:30 a.m.? As much as I enjoy having you for myself, this time is inhuman and— oohhh.”

While she was talking, Charlie had taken the opportunity to press himself against her back and leave open-mouthed kisses anywhere he could reach her pale skin from her shoulder to behind her ear. He smirked as she shuddered, moaning. 

“Think about it this way: You won’t have to leave your blanket nest yet, love. I can easily fuck you right here,” he whispered in her ear, taking the lobe in his mouth. Hermione whimpered as the sensation and his dirty words flowed over her and reduced her to putty in his hands. “Just relax and let me take care of you. My first Christmas gift for you.”

“What was my broom then?”

“Foreplay.” 

“Merry Christmas to me,” she sighed and let him roll her to her back as he moved down to pay attention to her breasts. Kissing from her pulse point to the center of her chest, Charlie climbed on top of her as he took one nipple between his teeth. She had never been so grateful they hadn’t bothered to redress after their activities the night before. Lazily, Hermione brought her arms around his neck and pushed her fingers through the longer strands of his hair. She loved his new haircut, but a part of her missed having more of the longer locks to really grab hold of.

Switching sides, Charlie licked his way to the other nipple, sucking and nipping at the bud until it hardened in his sinful mouth. Climbing back up, he paused over her face and waited until she looked at him. 

“Then again, if you’re still tired from last night, we could go back to sleep for an hour,” he said, mischievously as if he hadn’t already completely woken her up and wasn’t grinding his erection against her thigh at the same moment. “You must be exhausted . After all, staying up so late after so much exercise? Not to mention how much sex we’ve been having… You must be so sore . I’d be a horrible boyfriend, if—”

“You don’t fucking finish what you started?” Hermione told him smartly.

Laughing, he dropped down on his elbows, framing her head as she pulled him in a heated kiss. He tasted the mint of her wandless breath-refreshing charm and smiled appreciatively as it settled within his mouth as well. This witch was perfect for him.

“Stop teasing me and make love to me already!” she gasped as he moved his already hard cock to slip against her clit. She tried to angle her hips to make him notch in her opening but he froze over her. Realization of what she had just said hit her just as he started to move again, a heated look in his eyes.

“As my lady commands,” he told her, his gaze never leaving hers as his large hand hitched her leg over his hip, opening her to him as he adjusted his hips and slowly filled her. Once he was all the way in, he paused and leaned down to kiss her while she hitched her other leg around him and locked her ankles.

He started off with a slow and sweet rhythm. He slowly made love to her as she requested, massaging her breasts and kissing any patch of skin he could reach. She wrapped herself around him as if she wanted to mould their bodies together. They both moved as if they were trying to become one as he slowly dragged his cock in and out of her pussy, deeply hitting the spot that made her see stars before pulling out so that he almost left her.

They pet and kissed each other’s skin, but soon their need caught up with them and they both desired a faster pace. She used her heels to urge him to move faster and Charlie — never one to deny her needs — acquiesced as he built up quickly, rolling his hips into hers in a more hurried pace. She slipped her legs lower around him from his waist to the back of his thighs. This new angle had her clit rubbing against his pubic bone each time he thrust into her. She tried to use her legs to urge him to go faster but he maddenly slowed their pace down instead.

“Charlie,” she whined. “Please, please go faster.”

He moved one hand to cup her cheek as he kissed her deeply. 

“Relax, Mi. Let it happen.” He nuzzled in her neck. He kept his slow pace but made his thrusts harder into her core. He maintained that slow and deep rhythm, allowing the tension to build between the pair of them. Panting, Hermione could do nothing else but let him sweep her up in his frenzy as he kept hitting her sweet spot and her clit again, and again, and again.

There was nothing else for it, she was on a direct course towards an epic orgasm and, at the same time, this was only partly sexual. Looking directly in Charlie’s eyes, she felt precious — cherished even — as he bottomed out inside her.

They’d had intense shags before but this, on Christmas morning, all snug under the covers with Charlie’s muscular weight pressing her in the mattress, Hermione felt more exposed than ever. Instead of feeling shy, though, she relished in it since it was Charlie who she was exposing herself to. He made her feel secure and loved . She had thought it before and she felt it now — there was no one else who had ever made her feel as valuable and precious as he did. She basked in his love and acceptance as she rolled her hips up to meet his.

More importantly than the way he accepted her, he partook in the exposure of his soul as well. He shared his vulnerability and emotionally opened himself to her for her perusal. In this relation, she felt like his equal partner and it boosted her confidence to unprecedented heights. 

“I love you, Charlie,” she whispered into the heated air between them as he braced himself on his elbows on either side of her head. He worked her body in deep thrusts as she clung to his back, the hair on his chest tickling her sensitive nipples with every thrust. It wasn’t the first time she had said it, but it felt right in that perfect moment to vocalize her feelings. Judging from the way his eyes snapped to meet hers and the way he looked at her like a parched man finding an oasis in the middle of the desert, it was the right call.

“You’re. So. Fucking. Perfect. For. Me,” he punctuated each word with a thrust, each stronger than the one before. “I love you, Hermione. I love you so fucking much that I don’t know what I’d do without you. It’s only been a few days but Merlin it feels so right being with you.”

He kissed her again, this time not letting up as his pace increased until the culmination of their emotions, the pressure of his hips grinding on her clit, the bullseye he seemed to hit deep inside her core and the passion of their kiss threw her over the edge, wailing his name as Charlie pushed his forehead against hers. One, two, three more thrusts and he shuddered, moaning her name as he jerked inside her, coming deep within her cunt as she rippled around him, crying out into the heated room. 

Nuzzling her neck, he let his weight press her fully into the mattress. Too content and satisfied to move as he laid on top of her, Hermione didn’t have the energy to pinch him when he snuggled into her tits and said, laughingly, “Now we can go back to sleep an hour.” 

“Did that feel good, baby?” Hermione smirked as she lazily stroked her fingers through his hair. Reaching over him, she picked up her wand and cast a Tempus charm before looking down at her boyfriend who had wrapped his arms around her waist, his eyes already closing again to go back to sleep on top of her.

“It certainly felt nice,” he mumbled sleepily. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” Hermione smiled genuinely as she lovingly stroked his longer red locks. “But you know what would feel even better?”

“Going again?” Charlie asked, cracking open an eye. “I need a minute but I can definitely do that.”

“Or … and hear me out... how about we make it to your parents’ house on time?” She teased as she pulled herself towards the headboard and pushed for him to get off of her. She ignored the disappointment as she felt him slip from her core. She hadn’t noticed he hadn’t slipped out when he’d grown soft within her, but now missed the connection once it was gone.

He pouted as she rolled out of bed anyway and sauntered towards the bathroom. She laughed at the childish expression as if she’d taken away his favorite toy and winked at him, gesturing for him to follow her. They had just enough time for one last round in the shower, after all.

---

The two of them dressed quickly after their quickie in the shower. Hermione pinned her hair up into a stylish braided high bun. She wanted to make sure she looked nice for any activities thrown at her today, whether it was just feeling nice for dinner or playing Quidditch with the family for the first time ever.

She pulled on a pale green shirt with a large Christmas tree on the front along with her typical dark-wash skinny jeans, completing the look with her everyday boots, and deemed herself ready for the day. She knew that if tradition continued, she would be receiving a brand new sweater as soon as she stepped through the Floo and didn’t want to be overdressed when she could wear that immediately. Deciding to be respectful in case she was wrong about her gift, she still grabbed a light jacket in case activities drew them outside. A little gold pair of hoop earrings finalised her outfit.

Charlie had moved his belongings into her room and was getting dressed in a pair of his favorite tattered jeans as well as a plain white t-shirt.

He didn’t even bother grabbing a jacket, knowing his mother too well for that. Wanting to give them both a little separation before arriving at the same time, he kissed Hermione on the lips — briefly interrupting her make-up routine — and then stepped through the Floo to his childhood home.

The first thing he saw when he arrived for Christmas was that his mother had decked the halls to the nines. She had obviously stayed up late after ushering all of her kids out of the house the night before so that she could amaze them with all of her decorations.

The Christmas tree in the den was covered in knickknacks and baubles that Charlie and his siblings had made while they were growing up, as well as a few new additions by Victoire and Teddy. He predicted that James, Andrea, and Victoire’s incoming baby sister would help make a few new additions for the next year. The fireplace mantle was covered in family photos from all the Christmases past. There was holly and mistletoe hung strategically at different locations, and Molly had gone a little crazy with the tinsel as it dripped from every single garland that re-decorated the living room area.

“Is anybody here?” Charlie hollered into the house. “Merry Christmas!”

In the past he would have just gone hunting for his family members, but he had learned that was not a safe idea anymore as his parents seem to only get more affectionate with each other as they get older. A few years ago, he had found them making out on the counter in the kitchen when he surprised them for a weekend and he vowed to never leave the living room when arriving unless he knew exactly where they were.

“Charlie, is that you?” Molly called cheerfully from the kitchen. “Your father escaped outside when I asked for help with breakfast. If you could come help me until everyone else gets here, I’ll make you my favorite son for the day.”

“That’s a lie and we both know it!” Charlie laughed as he entered the kitchen. “Harry’s been your favorite since he was eleven years old, but it’s okay. We love you anyway.”

“Oh, you—” Molly laughed at the obvious joke as Charlie kissed her on the cheek.

“We’re here!” Bill called out as he entered the home through the back door with his wife and daughter, “Merry Christmas everyone!”

The eldest Weasley son and his family had already dropped off the teal-haired Teddy Lupin at Andromeda’s home with his parents and Sirius. The Tonks-Black-Lupin extended family had plans to join the Weasley clan for dinner, but tradition dictated they celebrate their own family Christmas first.

Greetings were quickly exchanged until Victoire dragged Charlie out into the yard to have a snowball fight with her. Both his mother and brother tried to stop them since Charlie was in a t-shirt, but Charlie just stole Bill’s recently hung coat from the rack and left anyway. Looking around, he grinned in satisfaction at the thick layer of snow that had settled overnight.

He quickly took off running in the snow with his niece and they were joined by Harry and Ron soon enough, which told Charlie that Ginny and Luna were both inside like the sane people they claimed to be.

The big Snow War of 2004 only ended when Hermione stepped outside to call the four of them inside for breakfast. Charlie assumed that meant Percy and the twins had just arrived themselves.

His theory was quickly proven correct when he entered the kitchen to see Fred and George arguing about why they should be allowed outside while Katie Bell and Angelina Johnson argued against their “logic”. Both witches were wearing their boyfriend’s sweaters complete with the initial emblazoned on the front.

Charlie briefly cursed his short-sightedness for not considering that himself, but realized that Molly was more likely to have made a sweater for Hermione than she had for each of the twins’ girlfriends since the twins had only recently admitted the serious nature of their relationships. Molly wouldn’t have had the time with all of the other sweaters. As much as Charlie would love to act on his possessive side, he knew it was unlikely he could make Hermione wear his sweater… unless…

He grinned like the Grinch who got the idea to steal Christmas when an idea popped into his head. He allowed it to take root as he made his way to the loaded table. As he sat down, he felt his body become warm and his slightly damp shirt instantly dried. Looking to his left, he saw Hermione take the seat next to him as she tucked her wand away.

He grinned at her gratefully and took her hand in his own without thinking.

“Thanks, baby,” he said as he kissed the back of her hand.

Several things happened at once.

Molly dropped the tray she was holding as her eyes lit up with a gasp. Bill’s quick thinking made the falling biscuits freeze in midair and the back door swung open as three unexpected occupants let themselves in with a holler.

“Hey Mama W! Got space for three more?”

---

The table was already full to bursting with the Weasley clan and their spouses, plus Hermione, when the three guests waltzed in as if they owned the place. Everyone froze to stare.

Ryan couldn’t care less as he pulled out his wand and used it to levitate Molly’s dropped tray to the kitchen table, skillfully adding the frozen biscuits back to it as he went.

“Come on, guys,” Ryan scolded his companions. “Mama Weasley only feeds those who help out.”

Delia rolled her eyes as Sorin smacked his forehead in exasperation.

“You said we were invited, you dolt,” Delia hissed at Ryan. “Does their reaction look like they knew we were coming?”

“I thought the goal was to only surprise Charlie,” Sorin moaned, exhausted. “Not to give the entire family a heart attack!”

“Life’s more fun this way!” Ryan argued as he gave Molly a kiss on the cheek. “You don’t mind, do you, Mama?”

“You’re always welcome, Ryan, dear,” Molly told him, patting him on the cheek while recovering from her shock. “But why don’t you and Charlie introduce me to your two friends?”

Charlie and Hermione were frozen at the table. Hermione’s hand was still lifted close to Charlie’s face, but both of their mouths were open in surprise while their eyes were blown wide.

“I honestly don’t think they’re breathing Mum,” George observed as he waved a hand in front of Charlie’s face.

“It’s okay! I can introduce these two ruffians all on my own,” Ryan said cheerfully as he started acting like a car salesman. “This handsome young bloke is known as Sorin Grady! He’s young, single, and ready to mingle with whoever you’ve got. He’s Charlie’s partner at the Reserve and he’s not picky for mates. And this lovely pixie is my effervescent girlfriend, Delia Delacour! She’s not single anymore and I know you’re heartbroken by that, but she’s officially mine to treasure and adore!”

The family blinked as Ryan went from being a bubbly car-salesman idiot to being a hexed pulp on the ground. Both Delia and Sorin glared at his prone figure while they holstered their wands.

“My sweet cousin,” Fleur greeted warmly as she practically floated over to Delia, despite her large stomach. “How ‘ave you been?”

“Look at you!” Delia kissed Fleur on the cheeks affectionately. “I’m doing well, but you look ready to pop any day now! I thought you were only seven months along?”

“Si tu savais…” The two cousins dissolved into French as they talked about Fleur’s pregnancy while Sorin deliberately stepped over Ryan’s prone figure to address Molly and Arthur.

“I’m truly so sorry to impose,” he apologized. “I was stupid enough to think Ryan wasn’t pulling a joke on us. I’m so sorry to interrupt your holiday. As soon as Delia and her cousin are caught up, we’ll get out of your hair.”

“Nonsense!” Arthur waved him off. “We do have an open-table policy and you are more than welcome. We were just a little startled is all. Make yourself at home. I’m Arthur.”

“Sorin.” The young man shook the Patriarch’s hand firmly.

Pleasantries were exchanged around the room as Sorin greeted everyone equally. Charlie couldn’t help but notice that his hands seemed to linger in Percy’s when they shook but he didn’t want to look too far into it in case Percy wasn’t at the point where he was ready to start trying to date men.

Nonetheless Sorin seemed to pick up on Percy’s awkwardness as he sat next to the bespeckled redhead and started a conversation about what Percy did at the Ministry. It seemed all of Charlie’s fears were for naught as his brother immediately became animated in the conversation.

Charlie’s attention was pulled away from watching his co-workers meet his family when Hermione tugged on his sleeve.

“Did you know they were coming?'' she asked urgently with concern evident in her eyes. Never mind the fact that most of his family already knew that they were dating, Charlie could guess that she was nervous because it was the first time his family had all gathered together when she was dating someone and they were joined by three people who would love nothing more than to embarrass Charlie, and by extent, her.

Charlie shook his head at her to convey that he was just as surprised as she was. None of his friends had indicated any plans of joining him in the UK. He would have to find a way to get back at them eventually.

As far as he had been aware, they weren’t going home at all for the holidays and were planning on working with Robert and the new hatchlings.

That reminded him…

“Who’s watching the new hatchlings?“ he asked in a panic. “I thought you were staying so that they can have support with Dr. Haddock’s team. If you’re all here, who’s—”

“Stop panicking,” Ryan ordered immediately as he ‘miraculously’ recovered and hopped up from the floor. “You are home with your family for the holidays. The Reserve was able to run without you for years before you started working there. It’s not going to fall apart over one weekend if you enjoy the little time you actually have here.”

Logically, Charlie knew that Ryan was right but he couldn’t help but worry. His entire life was built on his research and this was the first litter of dragons that had survived from cross-breeding to hatching. If they perished because they didn’t have a sufficient support team, he would never forgive himself.

Before he realized what he was doing, he was already half out of his chair. He didn’t know if his destination was the Floo to call Robert or the Ministry of Magic to catch a Portkey, but there was a hand on his arm and a witch in his face before he could take three steps. Hermione held his bicep and Delia stopped him with an unimpressed glare before she held up a letter with a stern look.

“I know you’re a workaholic,” she told him as she waved the letter in his face, “but this is from your boss telling you to actually take a few days off before you come back. Read it if you want, but Ryan and I are under orders to not let you go home until tomorrow at the earliest. Sorin is here because he’s tired of spending time with his family twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and needed a break for the holiday but I am one hundred percent certain that he will back us up.”

Charlie plucked the letter out of her two manicured fingers and ripped it open. Pulling out a single piece of paper, he read through his boss’s familiar handwriting quickly. It contained everything Delia had said about scolding Charlie for even thinking about leaving his family holiday and ordering him to enjoy himself for the day since Tyler and Robert would be spending the forty-eight hours with Dr. Haddock and the hatchlings.

“I've run the Reserve without you for thirty years before now,” Robert’s letter stated. “If you don’t enjoy the holiday with your girlfriend and she breaks up with you for it, I will turn you loose to be fodder for the hatchlings and Norberta.”

Charlie knew that there was logic in everything his family said, along with the letter in his hand, but he couldn’t help but be worried. This was the seventeenth clutch of eggs since they tried to start cross-breeding and he didn’t want to see any more dragons die.

He didn’t feel the tension release from his shoulders until Hermione moved behind him to rub at the knot forming at the back of his neck.

“Have breakfast with us and you can call Robert through the Floo before we go and exchange gifts,” she tried to compromise. “Enjoy the meal with us and we will all understand if you have to go after that.”

“We’ll understand, but we definitely won’t agree with it,” Delia huffed.

Charlie couldn’t help the surge of affection he felt for his girlfriend and her understanding nature. He turned around and took her into his arms before pressing a loving kiss against her lips. She immediately opened up for him and melted into his embrace.

“That’s a perfect segue if I ever saw one into a new topic.” Fred laughed as he threw his arm around Charlie's shoulders, breaking the intimate moment between the two of them. Hermione awkwardly stumbled back as Fred grinned knowingly.

“How long has this been going on?” Molly demanded to know. She had never considered pairing the two of them up together but she couldn’t deny that the idea held merit as she saw how they were with one another. She almost wanted to smack her forehead as she thought about what she knew about the pair of them. They both were dedicated to magical creatures, both were attractive, and Hermione would probably be able to tempt Charlie to leave the reservation and move back to England better than any other witch would be able to. That is… as long as the witch didn’t leave to join the sanctuary herself.

“We’ve been exchanging letters for a few years but we finally decided to give our relationship a try while I was at the Reserve this week,” Hermione said by means of explanation. “I don’t really wanna talk about it further than that since it’s still so new.”

Respecting Hermione’s wish was going to be one of the hardest things Molly ever was asked to do. For years, her goal had been to tempt her son away from the dangerous dragon sanctuary and to move back to England. Now she was being faced with the perfect opportunity to encourage him to move back home and his new girlfriend didn’t want to work with her. However, Molly was smart and knew that patience was going to be the key.

She would give the pair space for now but that didn’t mean that she wouldn’t push them later.

“Can I at least ask how the pair of you decided to move forward with your relationship?” Molly asked as she gestured for everyone to sit down and tuck into their meal.

Ryan couldn’t help but snort as he plopped down across from the couple, despite the glares Charlie and Hermione threw at him. “What do you expect me to say?” he asked in good humor. “The story is kind of funny.”

“I really don’t see how,” Hermione asked in equal parts confusion and warning.

“Does no one else see the humor?” Ryan asked as he took a seat across from the couple. “Hermione was kidnapped and threatened by poachers and, instead of allowing herself to be saved like some sort of damsel in distress, she took care of the situation herself before injuring her rescuer. I don’t know about you guys but I find that hilarious.”

“In our defense we were planning on getting together before that,” Charlie argued. “We had plans for a date and everything. It’s not our fault that the poachers changed our plans around.”

“So how did you get together?” Percy asked as he took a bite of his scrambled eggs on toast. Molly had baked a full Christmas casserole with eggs and biscuits and bacon but Percy liked tradition as he had his typical breakfast with a slice of the blueberry coffee cake to “spice things up”.

“Yes!” Ginny grinned with a deviously-satisfied smirk — one that rivaled the cat who got the cream — as she bounced her baby on her lap. “Please don’t feel the need to hold back any of the fun details.”

“I already promised you and Tonks a girls’ brunch tomorrow,” Hermione told Ginny with a laugh. “As it is, I would love to hear about your week with James and Harry before we continue this topic of conversation.”

“You are not getting out of this conversation that easily, Miss Granger,” George warned as he pointed his spoon at her.

Hermione glanced to the head of the table where Arthur and Molly had been sitting, only to find Molly had silently left the room to pick up more dishes from the kitchen. Knowing the others wouldn’t let it drop until she gave them a bone to chew on, she leaned in and the others smiled evilly as they enthusiastically tried to get more information.

“Okay. I hit him with a hex, I patched him up, he took a shower, and then we had sex. Afterwards, we decided to be official. Are you happy now?”

“Depends,” Ginny said as if she were contemplating a deep thought. “Were you in the shower with him?”

“Ginny, that's your brother,” Hermione said, grimacing.

“But ‘e is not mine and I would also like ze answer to zat question,” Fleur said curiously, winking at Ginny.

“Me three,” Delia smirked.

Before Hermione could respond, Charlie cut in for the pair of them.

“Nah, we broke in my bed, the couch, and my walls first. We waited until the next morning to christen the shower.” Charlie laughed as he leaned back confidently.

“Charlie!” Hermione scolded as she looked at him incredulously.

“What did I say?” he asked innocently as his laugh betrayed him.

At that moment, Hermione noticed Molly was on her way back so she quickly wrapped up the conversation out of mortification. “And that’s the story of how we got together.” She looked around the table daring anyone to question her or bring the conversation back up again, but the table either respected or feared her enough to let the conversation move on to other topics. She’d have to punish Charlie later for his tongue — an activity she knew they’d both ultimately enjoy. 

Charlie laughed as he laid his hand on her thigh in a motion of comfort and a hint that his thoughts followed her own.

From that point forward, brunch dissolved into a warm affair where Delia caught up with her cousin Fleur, and Charlie discussed the dragons with the twins. Hermione discussed business with Bill, and Luna held Victoire’s attention closely as she regaled her with stories about new creatures. The rest of the table talked about the most recent Quidditch match and Christmas brunch became a boisterous and noisy affair, just as it should be at the Burrow.

At one point, Hermione looked over to the end of the table where Sorin was regaling Percy with a story from the Reserve. Hermione didn’t think anything of it for exactly four seconds until she noticed how closely Percy was leaning as he listened to Sorin’s tale.

She felt the hand on her thigh squeeze and she turned to Charlie. He caught her eye, quickly glanced at the pair and then nodded.

Hermione felt her eyes go as round as saucers while she struggled to stifle her reaction and keep the rest of her face neutral. She had thought she was imagining it, but if her boyfriend’s hint was to be interpreted correctly, it turned out that Percy wasn’t as straight-laced as she’d thought. 

As she subtly watched the two men interact, she noticed how differently Percy was acting. He had loosened up since his break-up with Penelope and she found that she actually preferred this new Percy. He seemed softer and more shy around Sorin than he did most other times in his life when he chose to act like a self-important arse. Hermione’s musings were disrupted when Ron stood up and slammed his hands down onto the table to get everyone’s attention.

“Is it time for presents yet?” he asked eagerly as he looked at everyone’s faces. The entire table blinked up at him and his childish outburst before they laughed.

“How about you let everyone finish their meal first, darling, and then we can see to the gifts?” Luna suggested with a hand on her fiance’s arm.

It was too late, though. His outburst had reminded the excitable four-year-old Victoire that there were presents to unwrap.

Hermione giggled as Molly scolded him but the entire group still took that as their queue to clear their dishes and get together in the living room since the little witch had started to get excited for her new toys.

While everyone helped clear up the table, Ron and Luna took Victoire to start sorting gifts and Charlie quickly made a bee-line to the fireplace to contact Robert about the hatchlings. Hermione looked fondly at him until Ginny nudged her. 

“Stop staring at my brother’s arse, and get yours in gear,” she teased her friend. “The faster everything is put away, the faster we get our presents! Don’t make the kids wait.” 

Blushing, Hermione grabbed the casserole dish and scurried to the kitchen.

Notes:

Leave a review with your thoughts! I'm as much a slut for your comments as Hermione is for Charlie's cock ;P

Chapter 22: December 25th - Late Morning

Notes:

Sorry for the delay, but I cannot tell you how bad the first draft of all of this was. Thank you SOOO much to my cowriter, Zabethou for her incredible help. You're finally allowed to get some sleep lovely!

Hermione giggled as everyone exited the kitchen. Delia and Ryan offered to stay back and do the breakfast dishes while everyone else convened in the living room and took a seat on different couches or chairs as they settled in to exchange gifts and drink eggnog. Presents were handed out and Hermione enjoyed the warm atmosphere.

She had always loved the Weasley family Christmases because they made it a point to make everyone feel special as they handed out gifts. Molly had made everyone their sweaters, but as the siblings and spouses exchanged gifts, Hermione felt a genuine sense of warmth from the family. 

This was her favorite part of Christmas, spending time with family and friends and sharing in the sweet moments with each other.

Victoire was the first to shred the wrapping paper from her presents and she kindly helped her cousin, James, with his. The shredded paper quickly revealed a mountain of toys and books. Victoire lost her mind over the little wooden dragons from Charlie, which he had whittled and enchanted himself. As soon as the little girl ran over to her parents to show off her new treasure, Charlie told Bill to tap it with his wand between the wings.

The room was immediately filled with child-like peals of delighted laughter as the wooden dragon started flying around Victoire. She took great joy in the fact it could play tag with her.

“So it’s actually a gift to Mummy Fleur and Daddy Bill, too,” Charlie explained. “I know like the great parents you are that you love playing with her yourself, but this is great for when she just has a little too much energy stored up. James’ has the same feature.”

“Merci, Charlie.” Fleur was extremely grateful since she was constantly tired these days. Having the option to take a break would be very appreciated as her delivery date drew closer.

The couple unwrapped their gifts next and revealed matching dragon tooth earrings from Charlie. 

“They’re from a baby dragon that bit me earlier this year. Those babies were pulled out of yours truly.”

“I don’t want to know from where!” Bill cut his brother’s story off. Charlie’s boisterous laughter filled the room. “Ever since you tried to help the garden gnomes out back and whatever magical creature Hagrid and Professor Kettleburn were trying to tame, I never want to hear of where you’ve been bit again. I have enough horror stories to last a lifetime.”

“Kettleburn got over his missing leg eventually!”

“That’s beside the point!”

“Boys!” Molly scolded as the childish conversation started to get out of hand. As soon as they paused, they could easily tell that the entire room was holding back their laughter.

Bill and Fleur continued to unwrap their gifts to reveal a runes etching kit for Bill and some perfume for Fleur. They both got a few other items as well as the traditional Weasley sweaters, which they put on immediately.

The next people to unwrap and don their Weasley sweaters were Ron and Luna. Aside from his typical pile of sweets, Ron had also received a new warm cloak, season Quidditch tickets to the Chudley Cannons from Ginny (who had pulled a few strings), a new Quidditch themed chess set, and dragon leather keeper’s gloves. Unsurprisingly, he focused on the gloves and everyone could tell he was itching to get outside and try them out.

Luna sweetly patted him on the arm and he seemed to remember where he was, sitting quickly down to pull her into his lap. She was already wearing her Ravenclaw blue and bronze Weasley sweater.

“Thank you, Molly!” The witch beamed at her soon-to-be mother-in-law. Ron handed her a few more trinkets from the family members who knew her well enough. Most people hadn’t put much thought into their gifts, aside from Hermione.

She had gifted Luna an advanced copy of the new ‘Registry of Magical Creatures’ with Nargles listed as a protected class on a bookmarked page. She’d had to pull strings and call in a few favors for that, but decided it was well worth it when Luna’s eyes grew wet. The next thing Hermione knew, the blonde witch was out of Ron’s lap and in her arms as Luna hugged her fiercely. 

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” Luna said quickly as she hugged Hermione tightly. “I don’t know how you did it, but it means so much to me and the Nargles!”

“It was my pleasure, Luna, but do you think you could get off of me?” she asked, laughing. Luna winked at her and got back to her fiance’s lap, hugging the registry to her chest as if it were her most valued possession now. Hermione supposed it was since Luna had been campaigning for the invisible creatures for years.

Somewhat similar to thestrals, a person had to be blessed by fairies and have the Sight to be able to see Nargles. Luna had been the only one to see them for years until she’d met Rolf who was similarly blessed and who helped bring the matter to the serious attention of Hermione’s department at the Ministry.

Molly and Arthur were next in the circle and they accepted their gifts with grace and gratitude. Molly was given a charm bracelet from all of her children. At this point, there were sixteen birthstone charms attached to the bracelet. Her eyes glistened as she looked around in question. Bill took on the role of spokesperson and explained.

“It’s a mother’s bracelet,” he explained. “We all pitched in since you’re a mother to everyone here — adopted, in-laws, and biological doesn’t matter.”

“Well, to be clear, Katie and I aren’t on it,” Angelina spoke up.

“Yet,” the twins chorused.

“It was Harry’s and my idea,” Hermione explained further. “In most cases, a mother will receive a little pendant or ring with all of her children’s birthstones. We brought the idea to the family and we all decided that a bracelet was a better idea because we can add charms for you as the family grows.”

“Exactly!” Ron took over. “Right now, you have all seven of us and our official spouses and spouses-to-be like Fleur, Harry, and Luna. On top of that, we all agreed that Hermione should be included because you took her in along with Harry when we were twelve.”

“And I’ve loved you both every minute,” Molly confirmed the assumption that Hermione should be included with tears in her eyes. Her reaction was enough to make Hermione tear up as well and she snuggled into Charlie’s chest when he put his arm around her. As much as she loved Charlie, and briefly fantasized about one-day being on the bracelet for a different reason, Hermione appreciated the fact that the older witch accepted her as a daughter without needing to be officially married into the family.

“Maybe one day you’ll be on that bracelet for more than one reason,” Charlie whispered into her ear, as if he was reading her mind. She smiled and nuzzled his shoulder, inhaling the calming scent of oranges, leather, and smoke she had learned to associate with him. 

They both knew that they weren’t officially anywhere close to making that possibility a reality, but it still sent butterflies through Hermione's stomach that Charlie would daydream about the same thing as her.

“What are the rest for?” Molly asked. 

“Your grandkids,” Ginny explained. “All five of them. James, Victoire, unnamed-baby-à-la-Fleur, as well as Teddy and Andrea.”

“Tonks and Remus pitched in as well,” Fleur explained. “You’ve always been a grandparent to their little ones and they wanted you to know how much they love you as well.”

“And, of course, the heart-shaped amethyst is for me, my dear,” Arthur told his wife lovingly. “I went with the same theme as the children, but I insisted that their stones be round while mine is in the same shape as my devotion to you.”

Molly rarely cried since the war, but today was apparently an exception as the elder witch burst into tears and pulled her husband into a loving kiss.

“You’re all so awful for making me cry on Christmas,” the witch said as Arthur tenderly wiped her tears away before helping her put it on. “But I cannot tell you how much I love you all. Thank you so much! I will treasure it always.”

As the presents continued to be exchanged, each of Molly’s children took a moment to slide over to their mother and give her a hug and kiss.

On Hermione’s turn, the maternal witch held her for a second longer.

“I meant what I said, dear,” Molly told Hermione seriously. “Whether or not you ever marry into the family — as much as I hope you will one day — you have been like a daughter to me since your first year when Ron wrote home saying he made another friend while fighting off a troll in the bathroom. The fact that you made enough of an impact on my son to make him dash into danger meant that you’d forever be a part of my life and heart, and I knew you were something special. When I met you at the train at the end of the year, my suspicions were confirmed.”

“I love you too, Molly,” Hermione cried. She didn’t have the words to convey how much she loved the witch for taking the young Muggle-born girl under her wing and loving her over the years, so all Hermione could do was cling to her tightly and hope her hug conveyed what words couldn’t.

Eventually, Charlie touched her back softly and she extricated herself from the older witch’s arms. Charlie took his turn to hug and kiss his mother on the cheek. He took a second longer to linger and whisper something in her ear which made her light up and titter to Arthur as Charlie pulled Hermione back to their seats.

“What did you say to her?” Hermione asked curiously.

“That, my dearest witch, is a story for another day in the future.” Charlie winked at her as he pulled her into his lap to cover her lips with his own. They quickly lost themselves in each other and kissed chastely until someone — Ron — cleared their throats loudly.

“It’s your turn to open presents,” he informed them.

Hermione looked around in surprise. Everyone else had opened their presents while she’d talked with Molly and kissed Charlie.

Arthur had received a few Muggle toys and “build your own” type of projects.

Harry had received a new leather coat like Sirius’ from Ginny as well as a few defense books, Quidditch things, and dragon leather boots.

Ginny received clothes and self-care things from all of the girls and a massive Quidditch gift pack from her brothers and father. She was currently trying to figure out which part of her haul she was more excited about as she chatted with Luna, a shawl covering her chest while feeding James.

Percy was looking through his new opera tickets, wine, stationary, and books with Sorin — who paid far more attention to the man than the gifts. Both men seemed even more animated than Hermione was used to. She really enjoyed how cute they were together and swore she’d curse the living daylights out of anyone who hinted at judging them. At the very least, she knew that this home would love and accept them whenever Percy decided to officially come out of the closet. If he decided to be with Sorin, that’d just be icing on the cake.

Fred and George received research material for pranks, clothes, sweets, and new exclusive ingredients for their specialized concoctions. Their favorite was a hand-written journal about dragons written by researchers who work at the Reserve. They vowed to use the knowledge bestowed on them to finalize the miniature dragons in the next year, if not sooner.

Everyone was wearing their Weasley sweaters in varying colors.

The only people left were Charlie and Hermione.

Opening his gifts quickly, Charlie received new tools for his carpentry as well as Quidditch supplies and accessories for his broom. In a belated celebration of his birthday, the ladies in his life had given him a few sets of fire-resistant clothes and some new dragon-hide survival gear. His parents made him a charm of protection which he lovingly put around his neck.

“Thank you so much,” he told everyone.

“Hang on!” Ron protested. “What did Hermione get you?”

“If you say ‘yourself tied up in a bow’, I may die of happiness,” Ginny teased.

“Ginevra!” Molly scolded sharply. To her credit, Ginny did flinch at her full name, but her grin gave away her lack of remorse toward her statement.

“Sorry, Mum,” she apologized half-heartedly. “But Hermione, did you get Charlie anything good?”

“I don’t know if you depraved lot will consider it ‘good’ since I got his gift before we started dating, but… well… Here you go,” she handed over a carefully wrapped gift with a blush.

“It’s a book.” Charlie grinned as he recognized the even weight despite it still being wrapped. The family around them just bursted into laughter at the predictability.

“You might want to open it before you tease me.” Hermione blushed as she ducked her head.

Charlie grinned and took a moment to brush a few stray curls from her face before leaning in to kiss her cheek before tearing at the paper.

“I assure you I’ll love it no matter what book—” Charlie’s sentence was cut off as he froze mid-way through the wrapping paper. He was so surprised and moved by the gift that he had to choke back instantaneous tears.

The book was a handwritten journal written by Geoffrey le Chaleureux. He was a fifteenth century researcher who was best known for creating the first ever dragon sanctuary in the French countryside before it was eventually relocated to Romania. He was considered to be one of the first official dragonologists. Essentially, Hermione had just gifted him the personal diary from both his Reserve’s and his career’s founder.

“I can’t… Hermione, how could… This is too much,” he protested weakly. He was so overcome by shock that he couldn’t even find words. He had once written to her that Le Chaleureux was his personal hero for what he had done for all dragons. He was in disbelief that she’d hunted down a book of this importance just for him.

Fortunately, he didn’t need to say anything for Hermione to understand.

“It’s exactly enough,” she promised him as she crawled into his lap. He carefully put down the precious journal before tugging her closer. He kissed her lovingly before she pulled back to explain her rationale. “It would have potentially been too much if we were still ‘just friends’, but I’ll admit I had hoped this would help me fix that nasty little technicality and evolve our relationship into something more.”

“Is ‘completely and totally in love with you and falling more each day’ enough of a fix?” he asked half-seriously and half-jokingly.

“It’s a start,” she replied before giving him another light kiss.

Sounds of gagging filled the room as Victoire squealed.

Chuckling, the couple pulled apart. Charlie was unwilling to let her leave his lap as he elected to only turn her around instead to perch between his legs as he summoned her other gifts for her to unwrap where she was.

It was fairly easy for her to vanish the wrapping paper and reveal a variety of books from all of her family and friends on varying topics. Everyone always gave her books and she loved it every year. Most of the ones this year were focused on her hobbies like creature rights, but she found one with knitting patterns as a joke from Harry and Ron.

Charlie then claimed her attention as he pulled out his gift for her from his pocket beneath her.

“I know I already gave you one gift at the Reserve,” he began, “but I decided to get you something more personal when you agreed to be my girl. I hope you like it.”

Hermione bit her lip as she accepted a small box the size of a quarter from him. He tapped it with his wand and the shrunken box grew to be the size of a small jewelry box in her hands.

Unbidden, a sharp inhale sounded throughout the room.

“No one panic,” Charlie scowled. “Before you get your knickers in a twist, it’s not a ring. You lot are way too eager to marry me off.”

Hermione blushed as she released her own tense breath. She’d been scared by the size of the box before, but now that she knew it wasn’t a ring, she tore into it eagerly.

This time, it was her turn to tear up emotionally.

“This damned family just wanted to watch me cry for Christmas,” she grumbled as she carefully pulled the silver colored locket from the box.

“It’s goblin-made,” Charlie explained. “I wanted you to have something to think of me while we are apart.”

“I love it!” She smiled warmly at him as she fingered the oval locket. It was the same size as the pad of her thumb and the fine details in the engraving showed off its lovely hand-crafted origins. Knowing the rest of the family wanted explanations, she described it to them. “On one side, there’s an engraving with a dragon and the other side has the letter C engraved over the letter H. Oh, Charlie! It’s absolutely stunning and I love the chain; it reminds me of dragon scales!”

Nothing could stop Charlie from pulling Hermione into another kiss after that. In euphoric joy at her gift, Hermione deepened the kiss instantly.

Everyone looked on amused as Charlie and Hermione were absorbed in each other. After a minute, it grew uncomfortable enough that Bill cleared his throat deliberately. Fleur slapped his chest and hissed. 

“Don’t!” she said. “Young love is magnifique. We were once ze same, chéri, don’t you remember?” She rested her head on her husband’s shoulder and he turned to kiss her temple.

“Of course I remember, precious. It’s just that there are children present here,” he spoke loudly at the still kissing couple. 

Charlie and Hermione broke off their kiss to stare sheepishly at him and he meaningfully nodded his head toward where Molly and Arthur were helping his daughter gather her new toys to play with in one of the guest bedrooms until her nap-time. James was fussing and Fleur offered to take him to another room to have a rest, needing a lie-down herself in the later stage of her pregnancy.

Remembering where she was — and especially who she was surrounded by — Hermione blushed a deep red while Charlie chuckled. She could hear Ryan and the twins cackling and, as much as she wanted to ignore them, she couldn’t help herself as she turned to hide in her boyfriend’s chest instead.

“Thank you, babe,” she whispered into the space between them. “It’s beautiful. I can’t wait to model it for you later on.” She winked, backing away and moving to climb off his lap.

“What do you mean, ‘model it’?” Charlie asked as he tugged her back. She was now sitting sideways across his legs and he had no interest in letting her return to her previous seat when she fit so perfectly where she was.

“Well, I have to make sure it fits me,” she whispered, looking into his eyes over her shoulder. He knew better than to believe her sweet innocent look and was proven right when she added, “We have to make sure it hangs right around my neck. I’ll be sure to not wear anything that might distract you from where it belongs. We have to make sure it looks good after all.”

Charlie’s eyes widened as he took in her meaning.

“You don’t mean…”

“Charlie...” She moved to whisper in his ear. “I’m going to be very honest when I say that your girlfriend gift was intentionally left at my flat and is made out of a very red lace which I think will look lovely when modeled with my new locket.”

Groaning under his breath, Charlie circled his arms around her waist and pulled her back to him in a bear hug. She felt her blush deepen slightly even as a smirk split her face when she felt his arousal stir beneath her. She delicately made sure to shield him while adjusting her position in his lap. 

“You’ll be the death of me, little witch.”

“Don’t deny it, babe,” she teased. “You wouldn’t have me any other way.” She smiled as she wound one arm behind his neck to give him a sweet kiss on the lips. Before it could progress into something more, they were interrupted by Fred.

“Oi! Lovebirds! Cut it off, Charlie. We need you to focus.”

“But it was all Hermione this time!” Charlie whined.

“I don’t want excuses!” Fred argued as Delia and Ryan rejoined the group. “Presents are done for now .” He arched an eyebrow at Hermione and she blushed crimson at the knowledge she’d been overheard by the prankster.

“And it’s time for the annual Weasley Christmas Quidditch match!” George completed his twin’s sentence. “Since we have five extra players this year, we can play a more official match up,” he explained, referencing Angelina, Katie, and Charlie’s coworkers.

“I’d actually rather not play,” Sorin excused himself. “The eggnog was just a little too tasty and I think I’d rather stay on the ground to help referee.”

“But Hermione is already the ground referee and Percy typically ignores us to read by the fire!”

“That doesn’t seem fair! If she never gets the chance, wouldn’t Hermione rather play if there’s another referee available?” Sorin asked cordially.

Before Hermione could respond, the entire group was laughing.

“I know you’re new here, but Hermione hates flying,” George condescendingly corrected Sorin. “Many have tried but no one can get that witch on a broom.”

“I don’t think she has any problem mounting Charlie’s broom,” Ginny giggled.

Harry immediately groaned and protested loudly. While he knew otherwise, he preferred to live in the fantasy that his best friend/sister would be a virgin forever. Ron was under no such illusions and instead averted his gaze uncomfortably. The witches in the room chuckled at the joke while the twins and Bill laughed boisterously.

Everyone who had been at the Reserve exchanged glances as they collectively came up with a fun ruse to pull over on the Weasley family. Obviously no one else knew that Hermione was actually now adept at flying, so they thought it would be fun to surprise the family.

“You know…. I think you’re right, Ginny,” Hermione said with a tone of consideration. “I did enjoy riding his broom so much that I’d love to learn more if Charlie doesn’t mind teaching me?” She smiled coquettishly, winking at the team from the Reserve to encourage them to play along. They all gave imperceptible nods to indicate their cooperation.

“I’ll have her on my team,'' Charlie agreed. “We can play Reserve versus all you Gryffindor players.”

“If you want to lose, go right ahead,” Fred laughed. “We’ll even play nice and have no Bludgers.”

“I would hope not,” Molly scolded her son as she re-entered the room. “Hermione has been terrified of brooms for so long, let’s not tempt fate by making her fall off.”

“I don’t think she’ll do that badly,” Charlie said in her defense. “I predict that after a bit of coaching, she’ll be completely at ease on her broom.”

“You’ve never seen her on a broom then,” Ron laughed. “She’s worse than anyone I’ve ever seen before.”

“I have tried for years to take her flying, and she won’t get on a broom with me,” Harry agreed. “As much as she joked about flying with you, don’t think she’ll agree to flying on her own!”

“Care to make a bet if you’re so confident?” Charlie taunted.

“She won’t actually get on a broom, you’re just trying to take the mickey.” Ron’s voice was loud over the others.

“If you don’t believe in her, that’s your problem,” Charlie said with a smirk. “You had years to get her on a broom and yet, in less than a week with me, I have her agreeing to play in a Quidditch match. It looks like you need to refine your persuasion techniques, little brother.”

“His techniques are perfectly persuasive to me,” Luna said dreamily. The rest of the family laughed at Ron’s blush, but he didn’t let it go.

“I bet one Galleon that she’s not getting in the air!” he stated.

Smelling a betting opportunity, Fred chimed in. “One Galleon she goes up on the broom but decides to pass on playing in the game.”

“Ten Galleons I can make her good enough to play, and shoot the Quaffle at the goal posts,” Charlie said proudly.

“You didn’t say that she’d score, dear brother,” remarked George.

“I bet five Galleons that she scores at least ten points for her team,” Ryan piped up in her defense.

“She’ll be playing for the first time against Ron as a Keeper, who has years of experience. I’m a good teacher and we all know she’s an amazing student, but let’s be realistic for a minute. If you give us a few months to practice, she’ll trounce you at Easter,” Charlie grinned.

“Does that mean you’re planning to still be together at Easter?” Ginny asked with a grin.

“Makes sense,” George shrugged as they ignored Ginny. “But you’ve still not convinced me. Five Galleons she tries playing and fails.”

“Are you guys really betting money on the Quidditch skills of a complete beginner?” Hermione asked with a roll of her eyes.

“Depends, love,” Charlie chuckled, circling his arms around her. “How confident are you in my teaching skills?”

“Contrary to some of you, I have faith in my learning capabilities and your coaching skills.” 

“I’m sure he’s a great coach alright!” snickered Fred. “But I’m not sure it’s Quidditch he’s teaching you.”

“Nah,” Charlie laughed, “Hermione’s the better lead at what you’re teasing about.”

The group laughed at that. Taking the jest in stride, Hermione smiled mischievously at the twin. “I’ll admit he taught me a lot of things, but that’s why I’m confident he’ll get me up to par. I’m used to his teaching methods by now soI bet fifteen Galleons that I’ll score at least three goals by the end of the game.”

Laughing loudly, Charlie hugged her from behind, his arms settling around her chest. “I love your confidence in me, babe,” he whispered with a kiss to the temple. “You’re definitely going to win me some Galleons today! Anyone else want to be a few Galleons lighter at the end of the day?”

Having known Hermione for most of her school years and every Weasley gathering since, Katie and Angelina joined in with a single Galleon each that Hermione would fly well after her lesson, but wouldn’t really be able to play with her team. 

Harry made a bet of five Galleons that Hermione would do no more than wobble a few feet above the ground, and that was if she took off at all. Ginny was still looking at Hermione suspiciously. Her eyes widened when Delia made a five Galleons bet that Hermione would fly good enough to play and score for her team.

“I bet twenty Galleons she can play,” she announced. When Harry looked at her in disbelief, she explained. “I’m feeling lucky today.”

George piped up, still scribbling in his little pad to keep up with the bets. “Fred, Ron, are you matching the five Galleons bets or are you staying at one Galleon?”

Confidently, both agreed to up their bets.

Bill and Sorin both sided with Charlie and Hermione, betting five Galleons each. 

“I want to bet on Hermione but have no money on me. Would you accept my butterbeer cork necklace for collateral?” Luna clapped happily in her hands.

“You know what, Luna?” Hermione interjected. “Just knowing you support me is great enough. Why don’t you bet a foot rub with Ron as a side bet? After all, if he’s so sure he’ll win…”

“What a great idea!” Luna exclaimed. “How nice of you, love, to give me a foot massage on Christmas.”

“Fine,” Ron agreed, put on the spot. “Now, what’s this about agreeing to fly with Charlie and never taking us up on our offers to teach you how to fly? We’re your best friends!” he exclaimed, indicating Harry, Ginny, and himself.

“Yeah,” seconded Harry, looking unimpressed. “I’ve offered a few times to take you on my broom to show you there’s nothing to fear and you couldn’t refuse fast enough.” 

“I never wanted to get on your broom because you have a flying death wish, you git!” Hermione grumbled. “Or do I need to remind you of a Voldemort-cursed broom trying to knock you off during your first Quidditch match, cursed keys attacking you midflight when we tried to get the Philosopher’s stone, Dementors knocking you out before the Whomping Willow destroyed your broom, and that damn hippogriff trying to knock me off while you also rode it, and an entire fleet of Harry-doubles being attacked by Death Eaters mid flight? And don’t get me started on the normal basic Quidditch injuries!”

“We get it!” Harry cut her off, laughing. “I’ve had a few close calls while flying!”

“You’ve had more than a few,” Hermione sniffed. “I’m only saying that I have a healthy dose of something called self-preservation .”

“Then what do you call the last thirteen years being our best friend?” Ron asked.

“A cruel case of cosmic karma following a temporary lapse of judgement,” Hermione grumbled.

“I thought you didn’t believe in Divination,” Luna asked Hermione.

“How else would you explain my relationship with these buffoons?” Hermione laughed.

Charlie chuckled as all of the friends exchanged loving banter and quick quips with each other. It was easy to tell the group was very close.

“As entertaining as this is,” he decided to chime in. “I thought we were going to play Quidditch?”

“We are,” she said with a determined glint in her eye. “And I’ve decided I’m going to prove these jerks wrong!” Turning to Fred, she added, “I wouldn't mind playing with Bludgers after a bit of practice, but you have to let me get a grasp of the basics first.”

“I’ll be on your team to protect you, then,” George offered. “I may be betting against your flying abilities, but you’ll need a Beater to prevent you from getting hurt. We can also use enchanted foam balls as the Bludgers, that way they’re safe even if you’re hit. We don’t want to cause serious injuries on Christmas!”

“But every other day of the year, it’s fine to risk life and limb for a game?” she asked dryly.

“It’s Quidditch!” all of the Weasleys said together — even Percy.

“That settles it then,” Hermione said decidedly as she stood. “Percy would you mind helping me get the supplies from the shed? I’d appreciate the assistance.”

“I’d be happy to help you out,” Percy said as he stood to follow her out of the room.

As soon as they were out earshot, Ginny turned to Charlie faster than all her siblings.

“What did you do?” she asked, eying him suspiciously. 

“What do you mean?” he tried to defend himself and not give up their little prank.

“Hermione Granger just accepted to get on a broom without being in a life or death situation, she is willingly playing Quidditch with us, and she accepted the use of Bludgers! What exactly is going on?”

Harry came up behind her and rubbed her shoulders and neck. “Even if this is some sort of prank, Gin, I don’t see the harm in it,” he reassured her. “Let them have their fun, and the worst case scenario is they have a laugh at our expense. At the end of the day, we’ll have the twins on our side and can get them back.” Smiling to the rest of the room, he finished his tea and urged them to head outside with him.

The family and friends quickly suited up in their winter clothes and grabbed the picnic basket Molly had stuffed with leftovers in case they wanted a snack outside. They trudged out to the clearing in the fields that they used as a pitch. Hermione and Percy were already there with their brooms, Quidditch balls, and Beaters’ bats.

Ginny immediately rushed to Hermione’s side and started tittering over her new broom.

“Calm down, Gin!” Hermione laughed as the family got to work clearing the pitch of snow. “Charlie made it for me for Christmas but I’m not sure I’ll fly very well. He still has to teach me, you know.”

“That’s fair.” Ginny nodded as she moved to help the others.

Charlie joined Hermione’s side with Delia and Ryan.

“Am I correct in assuming we’re playing up the ‘Hermione can’t fly’ card so we can score a few points before they catch on?” Ryan asked conspiratorially.

“Considering how much the others have flown together, I think it’s our best bet.” Delia nodded in agreement with her boyfriend’s strategy.

“I agree as well,” Hermione nodded. “Charlie, do you mind teaching me for a few minutes and I’ll act like I did during our first lesson. Then we can play up the three of you helping me along in the game. They won’t know what hit them when I play in earnest.”

“You’re definitely after my heart.” Charlie laughed. “That’s so devious it may work out perfectly. Let’s do it.”

Their team quickly split up so that Ryan and Delia could get used to their borrowed brooms while Charlie ‘taught’ Hermione. Charlie talked loudly about flying theories for a few minutes and got in the air to demonstrate turning, stopping, and accelerating motions. When she got on her broom, the couple made sure to play up her previous bad habits for show as the Gryffindor team planned their strategy on the other side of the pitch.

After watching Hermione practice, Ron’s team was feeling confident. Even if Harry usually played Seeker, they were all comfortable in their position and had been playing together for years. As the Chasers warmed up with light drills, they kept shooting glances at Hermione near the other team’s hoops. Even when she took off, they kept smiling seeing as Hermione barely rose more than five feet off the ground and kept a slow pace as she flew in a jerky circle.

Bill, Ron, and the twins would be the Keepers and Beaters, so they focused on their equipment and warm-ups.

Sorin transfigured a lopsided boulder into a cosy couch to sit on with Percy and Luna, who had offered herself to keep the score and run the commentary of the game while the boys refereed. Sorin cast a warming charm over the area and Luna carried out blankets for the three of them to stay warm despite the winter. Percy finished casting cushioning charms over the ground of the field for safety before he joined them.

“Okay,” Bill hollered when the pitch was cleared and everyone was ready to start. “Now that the bets have been set, what are the stakes for the game itself?” he asked, turning to the group.

“The usual, of course!” George replied as if it were the most dull question ever asked in history. “The losers are responsible for doing the dishes and cleaning up after dinner.” 

Christmas dinner was always a giant feast at the Weasley house. It was also the only day of the year that Molly brought out her fine china for the meal. While magic was used to clean the dishes every other meal of the year, Molly refused to let her china be cleaned with magic. Years ago, the Weasley children made an agreement that the losing team from the Quidditch match were the ones who had to clean the piles of plates after the feast by hand. It was a nightmare no one wanted to take on.

Clearing his throat, Percy took over his role of referee and got their attention. “Okay, everyone! Now, normal conduct rules apply. This is a friendly game, after all. Let’s just go over the specifications for the new players. We’re playing with four Chasers per team, a Keeper and a Beater. Hermione, you agreed to play with foam balls as Bludgers. They will be at the lowest setting and shouldn’t hit harder than a yarn ball thrown at you by an angry toddler. Are you okay with that?” At her nod, he concluded, “New rules for today: first team to 150 points wins, ten points gained per goal and five points lost to your team if you get hit by a Bludger because they won’t hurt. Is that fair? Does anyone have any questions?”

“Yeah, that sounds fine,” Ryan agreed. Delia nodded with him.

“I like the new rules with the Bludgers,” Katie agreed.

“It sounds like a lot of fun for a friendly scrimmage game,” Angelina praised.

“I love the fact that we finally get to help with the score other than taking out other players,” Fred smiled widely.

“Don’t get us wrong,” George agreed. “Knocking people out is always a blast but it’s fun to think there’s a different way to play.”

“That’s great and all, but why aren’t we playing with a Snitch?” Ron asked loudly.

“We’re not playing with a Snitch so that Hermione’s team has a chance to catch up once she goes through her learning curve,” Percy explained logically. “If we play with a Snitch, Charlie or Harry will end the game in ten minutes and no one will be able to collect their bets by default.”

When everyone nodded their heads in agreement, chuckling in amusement over his no-nonsense take over of the game, he turned to get to the crate and had Sorin help him sort balls while everyone mounted their brooms and kicked off the ground. 

“All right, everyone to the center of the pitch!” Percy’s magically amplified voice sounded across the field as he walked to the middle, Quaffle in hand. “Everyone ready to go? Okay you’ll have thirty seconds before the Bludgers come into play. Three, two, one, GO!”

The second Percy threw the Quaffle up into the air, Ginny immediately dove for it and took control of the game. She moved towards the goals but Charlie got in her way, leaving her no choice but to pass to Katie who was flying under her. As soon as Katie caught the Quaffle, Ryan was on her and almost made her drop it before she barreled to the side and took off in the opposite direction. Not letting her go far, Ryan tried to block her again so she passed to Angelina. Delia almost intercepted it but had to dodge a Bludger Fred sent careening toward her face.

While most of the players chased the Quaffle around the pitch, Harry flew close to Hermione, who was still hovering over the middle of the pitch.

“Are you alright, Hermione?” he asked, concerned. “You know that if you really don’t want to fly, no one's gonna think less of you for it, right?”

“Because that little bet wasn’t you guys making fun of me?” she asked, smirking. “Don’t worry about me, Harry, I’m sure I can make this work. Don’t you want to join your team? I can handle myself and I promise I won't fall off my broom.”

“They’ve been playing together for years, and I’ll only get in the way,” he teased. “Besides, it’s not fair if I play seriously when you are clearly side-lining the game.”

Just as he said that, Ginny flew over his head with Charlie on her tail. 

“GET YOUR ASS IN GEAR, POTTER!” she yelled at her husband, passing him the Quaffle. Seeing Ryan and Charlie converging towards him with a Bludger aimed by George, he dove to the ground in a Wronski feint. Even if this was a traditional Seeker manoeuvre, it got Ryan and the Bludger off his back. Charlie, however, stuck close to him.

“I was the Gryffindor Seeker for six years before you even discovered magic existed, Potter! It’s gonna take more than that to throw me off!” he yelled, laughing in the wind.

Quickly, Harry passed the Quaffle to Angelina, then to Katie, who threw it at the goals but Bill caught it easily. Putting the ball back into play, he tossed it to Delia. She flew high before dropping the Quaffle to Ryan, who passed it to Charlie. Weaving between the other team and the Bludgers Fred was sending at them, the Reserve Chasers passed the Quaffle between them until they were almost at the goal post. Suddenly, Charlie threw it completely off to the side towards where Hermione was hovering, having snuck up near the posts while Ron was focussing on the “real” Chasers. Catching the Quaffle, Hermione threw it dead in the center of the right hoop, scoring the first goal of the match. 

“And Hermione scores the first goal for the Reserve’s team! Ten to nothing,” Luna’s voice announced in the suddenly silent clearing. Whoops of joy from Charlie’s team cut through the silence as the four Chasers huddled up mid-air for a group hug.

“Charlie! I made it to the post!”

“I can see that, babe,” he said, trying to stifle his laughter at her over-the-top acting. Still, he was so proud of her, his smile was real. “I’m so proud of you. Just like I told you, slow and steady wins the race! You took your time and were perfectly positioned when we got to you!”

“It’s like Ron never saw me there!” She giggled, still talking loud enough for both teams to hear her, “Do you think next time I could try to move with the Quaffle?”

“I’m not sure if you’re ready yet, love,” Charlie called as he played along with her naivete. “How about we try passing and go from there? We’ll have Ryan and Delia near you so if there’s trouble they can steady you and you can pass it off to one of them.”

“Alright, let’s try!” 

Amused at her excited enthusiasm, both teams, minus Harry and Ron, smiled indulgently at her. Her two best friends were still surprised at the fact that she really seemed to be enjoying herself. More than anything, they were scared because Hermione Granger never giggled like a school girl… even when she was one!

Calling all players to the center, Percy put the Quaffle back into play and the game started anew. Hermione slowly made her way towards the goal posts and yelled at her team that she was ready. Chuckling, Ryan — who had just intercepted a pass between Katie and Harry — passed the Quaffle to Charlie and flew towards Hermione to get in place. Seeing this, Delia made the same move and they both flanked Hermione. 

The Gryffindor team let them have a bit of space, wanting Hermione to have fun and catch at least one pass before their ingrained competitive instinct took over. 

Approaching carefully, Charlie made eye-contact with both of his colleagues and indicated with a few hand signals they used for communication at the Reserve. When he received their nods of understanding, he turned to Hermione and called out. 

“Okay, baby, let’s try this. I’m going to throw it to you. Try catching it single-handed, if you can. Then move a little bit forward and pass it on to one of those two. Make sure to keep hold of the broom while you’re catching and tossing. Alright? Ready?”

When Hermione nodded confidently, several things happened quickly. Charlie threw the ball and Hermione barely caught it. Wobbling, she was immediately steadied by Delia. 

“I’m good, Delia,” Hermione told her after a few feet before feigning a pass to her. “Take it and go!”

Suddenly, Delia rocketed forward as fast as she could, weaving to the left side of the pitch. Ryan accelerated and flew to the right, calling for her to pass it to him. Charlie rounded out their triangle formation as he flew above them. The trio quickly began weaving around each other to confuse the other team about who had the Quaffle while Hermione made herself inconspicuous as she dipped low out of the way, close to the ground.

The whole Gryffindor team, startled into action by the weaving trio, took position rapidly to cover the three Chasers. By the time they realised they could not see the Quaffle anywhere between the trio, Hermione had suddenly popped up in front of an open goal hoop with the Quaffle in hand. Surprising everyone with her sudden appearance, she easily scored another goal with the ball she had never actually passed off to Delia.

“Twenty to nothing for the Reserve team,” Luna’s voice excitedly announced. “What a lovely bit of strategy and flying from Hermione. She really is getting quite good and the Reserve team’s strategies are nothing to scoff at. I hope you don’t get injured today Ron, darling. I’m looking forward to my massage later.”

Hermione joined her team and signaled for them to keep up the ruse for one more goal. They were all smiling and congratulating her loudly for the way she flew, encouraging her to try “passing while in movement” for the next leg of the game. 

Looking a bit frustrated that they fell for such a basic strategy, Gryffindor’s team huddled together for a moment while the other team celebrated Hermione’s strategic goal. 

“Oliver would skin us alive if he were here,” Angelina grimaced. 

“He’d have us run drills for hours in retaliation” Katie agreed.

“It’s time to even the score,” Ginny said.

They quickly settled on a plan of attack and got back into position as Percy walked into the center of the field again. As soon as he released the Quaffle, Harry surged forward and grabbed it. Quickly flying into a diamond formation, the other three Chasers kept switching the ball between them while Harry ran interference with Bill to distract him. A close encounter with a Bludger made him back off just in time for Ginny to soar to the side and score against her eldest brother. Celebrating, she hooked her ankles around her broomstick and flew upside down to high-five her teammates before righting herself and waiting for the game to start again. 

“That’s twenty to ten with the Reserve still winning,” Luna’s dream-like voice announced as Percy summoned the Quaffle. “Good job, Ginny.”

Ryan caught the pig-skinned Quaffle and passed it to Delia, who dropped it in her effort to avoid a Bludger Fred directed at her chest. Even if they were set to the lowest setting, she didn’t want to lose her team’s lead by getting hit. 

Katie caught the falling Quaffle and turned around, only to quickly swerve when she saw George had smacked the other Bludger right towards her. She just had enough time to throw the Quaffle approximately in Harry’s direction before diving out of the way, but the Quaffle never made it to his intended target.

Out of nowhere, Hermione swooped in and intercepted the ball to everyone’s amazement. Before they had a chance to respond, she rocketed towards the goals. 

Everyone on and around the pitch looked mesmerized as she dodged Harry and did a barrel roll to avoid Fred, who was hovering in place with a shocked look on his face. She took aim and threw the Quaffle in a perfect arc to get her team another ten points as it sailed through the hoop.

Looping back around, Hermione whooped triumphantly and flew towards the Reserve crew who were lined up on the right side of the pitch. Heading towards them, she spun in a tight barrel loop to show off her new trick as she let out a cry of joy. Flying by, she high-fived each team member. 

When she spun her broom around, she was faced with the dumbstruck look of her family and friends. The Reserve team were getting stitches from their cheers and laughter.

“Oh, yeah,” Hermione joked sarcastically as if only realizing what she’d done. “Did I forget to mention? I can fly now. Charlie taught me in Romania since walking to places isn’t a thing there.”

Everyone in Ron’s team looked at them dumbfounded.

“How did… But… What happened?” stuttered Ron.

“I think Hermione scored while flying like she knew what she was doing,” Harry confirmed, as shocked as Ron was.

“Yeah, she did!” Charlie cheered. “She scored against you, dear brother! Not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES!”

“But she can’t fly!” Ron protested. “We just watched her learn!”

“Apparently she can fly just fine, Ron,” George smirked as he started laughing himself. “I guess that settles the bet on whether or not she’d fall off her broom! Now, who else wants to get serious about finding out who’s cleaning up after dinner tonight?”

Horror painted the Gryffindor team’s faces. They were so sure they’d be off the hook for the cleaning duties because the other team had a handicap, but clearly they had been mistaken if they were twenty points down and the other team’s additional player was less of a weakness than they’d thought.

On the Reserve’s team, Bill was relieved. As much as he had trusted his little brother when Charlie confidently assured them he would get Hermione up to par, he still thought it a miracle. Ryan and Delia were just hovering close to each other, nudging each other and giggling while everyone was still busy processing what had happened. Fred had broken down with his brother when George started laughing and the twins had to take a moment to catch their breath because they were laughing so much. Even if he has lost a bet, Fred could recognize and appreciate a good prank when he came across one.

Hermione was observing the scene, smiling, when a light smack hit her shoulder and she turned on her broom to look at Ginny, who had gotten close to her in the middle of the chaos.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!” Ginny said in mock outrage. 

“And ruin the surprise?” Hermione asked, innocently. She couldn’t keep her face straight for long as she giggled then sighed. “Charlie taught me to fly at the Reserve. He said he wanted me to be able to get around in case of emergency and once he realized the problem was that I had never learned the basics, he taught me properly and I had fun.”

“What do you mean you never learned the basics? You had classes with Hooch, then we all offered to teach you over the years!” Ginny protested. 

“I had a few classes on brooms older than Professor Binns, without anyone explaining to me that a faster speed would stabilize the broom. Of course, I was also traumatized from watching you lot get injured over the years! How was I supposed to trust the most reckless flyers I know to take care of me when they offered to take me for a spin on the fastest brooms available? No, thank you.”

“Well, when you say it like that, I feel bad. We all grew up on brooms and Harry’s always been a natural. The man has the instincts of a hawk. I swear it’s uncanny.”

“It’s nothing against you, Gin. Don’t worry about it. I was plenty happy with my books at the time. It’s just that I now have a new skill that I can enjoy with my boyfriend,” she said, staring longingly at said boyfriend who was hovering near and still taunting Ron. “At least you didn’t lose your bet.

“I’ll always bet with my best friend. I know better than to doubt you, unlike my husband who I plan to lord this over for years to come.”

Laughing at Ginny’s relentless nature, Hermione glanced in the direction of the referees. Percy and Sorin were sitting close together on the couch, both sipping from a thermos and talking animatedly with their heads close. Luna, on the other end, had taken to drawing colorful creatures in the snow with her wand while waiting for the players to sort themselves out.

Hermione smiled happily at the boys.

“I wonder when Percy’s going to admit it,” Ginny muttered under her breath.

“Pardon?” Hermione turned to her friend with furrowed brows.

“It’s nothing.” Ginny brushed it off immediately. Drawing her wand and shooting sparks, she got everyone’s attention quickly while simultaneously shutting down Hermione’s question.

“Okay everyone, I don’t know about you but I would like to be done before dinner time tonight! Let’s get the game back on track.”

---

In the end, the game had been close. Not 140-150 close, but considering the Reserve was battling a team that had trained together for years, they played a good game. When the Gryffindor team lost their bets, they regrouped with the intention to win the game in retaliation.

While Hermione was better than they all believed her to be, she still wasn’t as coordinated when flying at top speeds while having to watch out for a pass or handling the Quaffle. They decided that she would be more useful running interference in the Gryffindor’s team, cutting paths and obstructing players. She was fully confident that no one would fly into her, but they had to divert their trajectories in order to avoid her and that led to multiple aborted attacks on their part.

Charlie, Ryan, and Delia were almost as coordinated as a unit. They were used to work together and using hand signals that nobody could understand, so they had an advantage over the other team and could strategize in the open silently. 

The game finished just after lunch time, 150 to 120 for the Gryffindor team’s win. Knackered, the players flew down to the sitting area where Luna had conjured other furniture so they could all sit and eat the sandwiches Mrs Weasley had packed them. After a bit of friendly banter over the good (or bad) moves everyone made, Luna suggested going back to the Burrow for a hot cocoa and a snooze in front of the fire. 

Lost in her thoughts, Hermione missed Luna’s comment and was staring deeply into space when Charlie nudged her with his shoulder. Looking around, she saw that everyone was helping gathering the brooms and summoning the Quidditch balls. Answering his worried glance, she just leaned into him more firmly.

“I was just thinking, love. Do you think we could stay outside a bit while everyone goes back in? Maybe you could show me the treehouse Percy told me you built yesterday?”

Smiling and taking her hand between his, Charlie answered. “Of course, Mi. Let me tell Bill and I’ll be right back. I’d love to spend a little bit of alone time with you.”

“Hermione, do you mind helping me put away the Quidditch equipment?” Percy asked her as Charlie moved a few steps away. “I sent the others ahead because I’d like a moment with you if you’ve got the time?”

“Of course, Percy.” Hermione smiled courteously as she waved to Charlie to indicate where she was going and that she’d be right back. “Let’s go.”

Notes:

*dances a two woman conga line*
Tell us what you think! Hey! We really want to know! Olay! Please drop a review! Hey! And if you've been reviewing since chapter one, treat yourself to a cookie!!! Yayyy!

Chapter 23: December 25th - Afternoon

Notes:

As always, a huge hug to the best helper, Zabethou!
Now on to the Christmas feast!!!

Hermione and Percy left the others as they levitated the heavy Quidditch trunk towards the storage shed. If she were being honest, she wasn’t surprised that he’d asked for a moment with her. Percy had been acting odd when they collected the equipment before the game and she could tell he was nervous about something. She supposed he’d finally gained the courage to say what he’d intended to then.

As she led the way into the shed, Hermione noticed that he held back and was fidgeting in place. Knowing that he was probably composing his thoughts, she left him to it and spent her energy putting things away. Aside from Delia and Ryan, every player had brought their own broom since the annual Christmas game was a tradition at this point. Hermione levitated the trunk of Quidditch balls and Beaters’ bats to its place on the shelf before she turned to grab the scoreboard from Percy. While she was double-checking the records and adding them to her logbook for the record keeping — a task she had taken upon herself more than a decade ago — Percy coughed to get her attention. 

“Hermione, before we go back... Could I talk to you for a minute?” he asked, hesitantly. 

“Sure, Percy,” she responded gently as she put the book aside to give him her undivided attention. “What can I do for you?”

“It’s not something you can do — not really, anyway. It has been pointed out to me that my behaviour in the last few years has been… inexcusable at best, and I wish to apologize for it.” He really looked uncomfortable as he shuffled awkwardly in place. Hermione couldn’t do anything but stare at him, surprised. This was not what she had been expecting. “At work, I have been treating you like a child who needed constant supervision when you are actually a trained professional. Instead of always trying to help you at work, I should’ve trusted in your judgement and competence. I truly only had the best of intentions and never meant to offend you and I am incredibly sorry for it. I promise to do better from now on.”

Hermione could understand how difficult this was for Percy to admit that he was wrong and apologise. He was a proud man, especially when it concerned his career, and this must have been hard for him to do. 

“Percy, I know you didn’t mean to patronize me. When we first met, I was a young eleven-year-old Muggleborn and you were my prefect. Your job was to help me out and make sure I adjusted well and safely. Then I made Harry Potter my best friend.” She chuckled at the depth of explanation in that line alone. Percy joined her. “I know we didn’t make it easy on you. Then you were the Head Boy and were in an even higher position of authority over me. I understand that habits were formed and those habits carried over into our work. I never knew how to say anything because I recognized you were only trying to help mend bridges after the war. I didn’t want you to think I was pushing you away as a friend if I tried to keep you at length professionally. In the end, I appreciate that you’ve apologized and that you recognize my competence now. I whole-heartedly accept your apology.”

“Being a prefect when I was fifteen doesn’t excuse…”

“No, it doesn’t,” Hermione agreed. “But like I said, I do understand where you were coming from. Now that you’re aware that your input wasn’t as helpful as you’d hoped and want to do better, there is nothing left to discuss. You are forgiven.” She turned back to her score-book, giving him time to compose himself. When she felt like a few minutes had passed, she turned around, smiled, and offered to walk back to the clearing together to finish their conversation before sending him back inside.

Smiling, Percy offered her his arm and she accepted it graciously. The snow could get deep and she appreciated the support as she slipped her glove into the crook of his elbow. Locking up Arthur’s shed, they started to walk back in the direction of the orchard when Percy suddenly spoke up. 

“I’m not sure if you realised but Penelope is not here this year.”

“Yes, I had, but I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable by asking about it. Do you want to talk about it?”

“We split up months ago and she’s seeing someone else now. It was amicable. We both understood we wanted different things in life and went our separate ways.”

“That must’ve been hard after all those years together. Was it sudden or did it creep up over the years?” She couldn’t imagine being with someone for so long and waking up after years and discovering irreconcilable differences all at once. 

He looked wistful. “I think I’ve always known it wouldn’t work out between us, ever since Oliver used to snog me silly in the dorms after a bad practice or worse, a defeat…” 

Hermione dropped the score book she was carrying.

“Wait,” she choked. “Oliver Wood used to snog you in the dorms?”

“I thought Charlie would have told you.” He frowned. “I told him yesterday that I’m gay.”

Hermione hugged Percy tightly, holding him while he stiffened. After a moment, he wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her back. 

“Thank you for telling me,” she said, slowly letting go of him. “I’m proud of you for doing the right thing for you and Penelope. Does this mean you’re on the market for a boyfriend now?” 

“Slow down, witch,” Percy said fondly while laughing. “I’ve only just come out to two brothers and a sister-in-law. Give me a little time before you try to find me a man.”

“From what I saw earlier, you don’t need my help,” she teased, bending over to pick up the book. “You seemed awfully close to Sorin at breakfast and during the match. Not to mention, I’m pretty sure Ginny figured it out and is helping you keep it a secret until you’re ready.”

“What makes you say that?” Percy’s eyes were wide in panic.

“She said something while we were flying. I didn’t understand it at the time and she made sure to change the subject, but it makes me think that she knows.”

“She’s a good little sister.” Percy smiled, a far away look in his eyes. After a few steps, he almost fell tripping against a root and came back to earth. “But there’s really nothing going on between me and Sorin,” he defended himself. “He’s an adventurous man, a dragon tamer. There’s no way he would settle for a Ministry bureaucrat like me. Plus, he’s way too young for me!” He frowned at that, as if just realising he didn’t know what their ages were. 

“Don’t put yourself down before you even talk to the guy,” Hermione chastised him. “I know he was a total stranger to me a week ago, but from what I’ve seen Sorin is really mature for his age. Plus, he’s the same age as the twins. I know he looks younger, but he’s not that different from you in age. Charlie and I are much worse and you don’t see anyone batting an eye at us. Yeah, Sorin likes to play up the youthful and playful side of his personality, but do you think they would let him handle dragons if he was that immature all the time? To be honest, I’m not sure why they’re letting Ryan around them, but Sorin is definitely the more mature between the two of them. He can be serious and have deep conversations when he wants to. He could keep up with you and make you live a little. I’m sure someone like him would do you a world of wonders, Percy. You need to light up sometimes and have a little fun.”

He smiled back at her. “I can’t promise anything will come out of it, but I promise to hear what he has to say with an open mind if he’s interested. And that’s a very large ‘if’.”

Hermione acquiesced at that and they continued to talk a bit. She told him about the improvements Charlie had made to his cottage, and he talked about the treehouse they had repaired the day before. Soon they were upon the clearing and heard the others’ voices before seeing them.

---

Jogging back towards the clearing after talking to Bill — who left for the warmth of the Burrow after their chat — Charlie couldn’t help but feel elated. He had had so much fun playing Quidditch with his family and friends, pranking everyone, and flying with Hermione. Her flying was coming along really nicely and he was so fucking proud of her, especially how terrified she had been not even a week ago. 

She really was a fast learner, in every way. He still couldn’t believe how she openly responded to him that morning. Not even a week ago, she’d been panicked at the thought of him going down on her. Now, she responded enthusiastically and gave as good as she got.

Just the memory was enough to send blood flowing down to his cock, and he had to adjust himself and think about darning patterns to calm down before she rejoined him.

As if on cue, Hermione and Percy entered the clearing. Percy immediately went to Sorin and they turned back towards the house, waving at Charlie. Hermione hugged them before they left, trotted up to Charlie and sat close on the newly transfigured Quidditch couch. He gladly snuggled her closer and kissed her temple. 

“I’m so proud of you, love,” he murmured, moving lower to lay a kiss behind her ear. 

“I’m proud too,” she sighed, melting against him. “But as comfy as this is, we’re too exposed here now that we’re not moving anymore. Although, if I’m being honest, I’m not quite ready to face the chaos of the Burrow quite yet.”

“How about I show you the treehouse?” Charlie suggested. “It’s less exposed to the elements, so the warming charms work better there. Plus, I’m pretty sure we left some butterbeers up there last night.”

“That sounds perfect,” Hermione grinned excitedly, springing to her feet and taking off. “I’d love to see what those hands achieved in my absence.” 

A few feet later, she froze and turned back to Charlie who was still lounging on the couch.

“I don’t know where the treehouse actually is,” she admitted with a blush. Charlie’s laugh rang out around the pitch and he stood. Waving his wand at the couch, he transfigured it back to the original boulder and then laced his fingers with hers.

“Cheeky witch,” he teased, “you know exactly what those hands are capable of.” He nipped at her ear and moved to tickle her to prove his point. She giggled and shrieked before running off. He easily gave her chase and caught her a few moments later. Grabbing her by her waist, he spun her around in a circle and held her close to his body. He leaned in to give her a kiss and it dissolved into a make-out session in the middle of the snow. 

He couldn’t care less as he held his witch close. As the day wore on, he couldn’t help but feel the seconds they had left slip away. Taking hold of her hand, he tugged her in the right direction after kissing her temple sweetly. She just tucked herself under his arm and rested her head against his shoulder as they walked happily in companionable silence until they came up to the treehouse.

As they turned the bend and the house filled their vision, she couldn’t help but gasp and express how impressed she was. 

“Charlie, this is amazing! I knew you were good, but this is practically perfect!”

“Most importantly, the structure is sound now. That could not be said yesterday. I made sure we set up proper tabs and knee-braces. The beams are still sound and there are security charms over every inch of this place. I couldn’t in good conscience let my nieces and nephews play up here the way it was. It was a horrible safety hazard. I’m glad Ginny brought it to my attention.” He shuddered thinking about a little Victoire or James stumbling upon the old treehouse and injuring themselves when playing.

“Lucky for them, Uncle Charlie saved the day!” 

“Want to go up?” 

“Can we?” Her voice was almost childlike with excitement.

Charlie led her to the spiral stairs and the duo quickly climbed into the fourteen foot high treehouse.

“I can’t believe how high we are!” Hermione exclaimed. “I thought you couldn’t build this high in England? Don’t you need a planning permission?”

“We got one when we first built it,” Charlie told her. “I was able to file the updates via owl after dinner yesterday, but I doubt we’ll get in trouble for increasing the safety of the structure on our family’s private land.”

“You make a fair point,” she replied as she took in the view. She could see miles of blanketed snow and was in awe of the beauty of everything. “It’s so peaceful up here,” she whispered as if afraid to break the magic of the scenery.

“It is,” Charlie agreed. Taking the nicked picnic basket out of his pocket, he unshrunk it and placed the thick blanket over the floor, along with some pillows and cushions he had packed. “I wanted to increase the coziness up here,” he explained as he also pulled out a plate of leftover muffins from breakfast. “Sorry it’s not biscuits,” he apologized as she sank down on the blanket and pulled him down with her. 

Charlie leaned back onto the mountain of cushions and pulled Hermione closer to him. He summoned the hidden butterbeer and handed her a bottle. She happily reclined against him while sipping her drink. After a while, she grabbed a chocolate muffin from the basket and cast a warming charm over it before taking a comically large bite. 

“I’m really grateful you brought me out here,” she began. “I just wanted us to have a moment together, just the two of us, during the day. I love your family, I truly do, but sometimes they can be a little…”

“Hectic? Chaotic? Downright nuisances?” He chuckled, agreeing with her. “I know exactly what you mean, love.”

“And now that they know about us, it’s only gonna get worse, you know.”

“I do. My mum is probably already making a master plan on how to use our relationship to drag me back here full-time.”

“I want you to know that I wouldn’t do that to you, Charlie,” Hermione said seriously. “I know how much you love your job, and I would never ask for you to leave the Reserve for me. From the very first moment we met, it’s been clear to me that you belong with the dragons.”

“You know,” he mused, sitting up, “if anyone had ever asked me to move for them, I don’t think I could have seriously thought about it. But over the last few days, I’ve realized that you’re the most tempting thing to ever pull me to this side of Europe. I don’t know what I’d do without you, Mi.”

“I love you,” she said confidently, looking into his eyes and leaning in for a kiss. “You are at no risk of losing me so you don’t need to think about that right now.”

“I love you too”, he breathed against her face before going back for another kiss. A much more passionate kiss. Giggling, she pushed him off.

“Control yourself for a second, I want to say something,” she admonished, swatting at his chest. Grinning like a loon, he motioned for her to continue. Taking a calming breath, she smiled at him. “I just wanted to let you know that despite a few poachers, this week has been the most happy I’ve been since I graduated. Spending time with you, being close to you has brought me so much joy, I feel like I’m bursting at the seams. I love you, Charlie, and I don’t care if it’s early in our relationship, I want to make this work. I’m dreading the separation that’s coming soon and before that happens I wanted you to know how committed I am to this, to us.” She tried to keep the distress about being separated out of her voice, but Charlie was nothing if not intuitive and saw right through her. He brought her down so her head would rest against his chest, his arms around her and he laid down on the cushions. 

“I want this to work too,” he told her, kissing the crown of her hair. “I’ve entertained the idea before, when we were pen pals, but now? Now that this is real, that we have a chance? I am never letting you go, Hermione Granger. You’re stuck with me for as long as you’ll have me.”

To himself, Charlie swore that whatever he did, he would make this long distance relationship work. She didn’t want to ask him to move to London — and he could easily understand why from her point of view — but he was sure that not even dragons could keep him away from her in the long run. He just had to figure out a way that he could have both without forcing her to uproot her entire life in England. Maybe they could obtain a special Portkey pass so one of them could commute between England and the Reserve? He would have to look into it in the next few months, but for now, he enjoyed the warm feeling of his witch in his arms. 

Despite being sad about their looming separation, Hermione was ecstatic that she had properly expressed herself. She had been anxious to relay her feelings to Charlie, since that had never worked out well for her in the past. Granted, she had never felt anything close to the feelings she held for Charlie, but typically talks about the future had her exes running for the hills. Charlie really was perfect for her, and the fact that he was giving his all to this relationship with her meant that her feelings were reciprocated and validated.

Turning in his arms, she smiled innocently at him. 

“You know, the others won’t expect us back before a while yet. I wonder if we should play into the theories they’re most likely making,” she remarked innocently. 

Charlie chuckled, his eyes darkening as he zeroed in on her mouth. 

“I don’t know,” he pretended to ponder. “After all, they’ve already proven to be pretty perverted.”

“Something tells me that you are more than up to the task of living up to their assumptions,” she observed.

“You have no idea, draga,” he growled as he rolled them over to push her into the cushions.

“Did you just call me a dragon?” she asked incredulously with a sharp laugh.

“Much worse! I called you my beloved. My sweetheart. You’re my everything,” he whispered darkly, his voice an octave lower than minutes before. 

Instantaneously, Hermione was a puddle at his words and inflection. Typically, Charlie had a rich British accent that matched her own, but whenever his voice deepened, he’d sometimes pick up a rough Romanian lilt that made her putty in his hands.

Giggling, she let him pounce on her and pin her to the ground, her head cushioned by one of the pillows. She loved the feeling of his body against hers, so strong and hard against her soft curves. He kissed her forehead, then temple. His lips grazed her cheek and even the tip of her nose as he mapped a path to her lips. Charlie made her feel so spoiled. When he finally met her mouth with his own, she was a veritable puddle of goo in his arms. As if his kiss were the breath of life she needed, she slid her hands up into his hair and felt the soft downy hair between her fingers as she raked her nails against his scalp. He moaned against her lips and she took the opportunity to slip her tongue in his mouth as her hands moved further north to tangle in the curls atop his head.

Gasping, she shivered at the feeling of his cold hands finding their way under her jumper, clutching at her waist and bringing her even closer to him. One of his thighs slipped between hers and he ground his leg against her core. She could feel him hardening against her and all thoughts of restraints flew out of her mind. She ground her hips faster against him, the seam of her jeans giving off much needed friction against her clit, but it wasn’t enough. She whimpered in Charlie’s ear, as he kissed her neck and his warming hands were pulling her rhythmically to rut against him. Understanding, he moved one hand to the seam of her jeans, applying pressure just south of the zipper. She couldn’t think straight and reached out to grip him through his trousers, squeezing and rubbing his cock as much as she could in her awkward position. 

Suddenly, Charlie backed away to sit up. Blinking, Hermione looked at him expectantly until he pulled her up to straddle his lap, using the new position to allow them to grind together with better friction. She gasped as his length made contact with her clit through the thick fabric of their clothes, then made sure to grind against him with more purpose. He swallowed her moans when he kissed her hard. 

Not letting him get away with it on his own, she gave as good as she got as he knocked off her hat and unwound her scarf. His pace shuddered as she deliberately raked her nails down to the collar of his sweater, but he regained control after a moment, moving against her stronger and faster than before. Not one to take anything lying down, she increased her pace just as much and it was as if they were on a race to please the other. Looking in each other's eyes, they just spiralled out of control until Charlie leaned forward and sucked on her neck while grinding against her clit.

At the same moment she glanced behind him and took in the miles and miles of snow and truly felt for a moment as if they were the only two people on Earth.

Her orgasm was instantaneous and Hermione wailed and crashed against his chest, jerking as her oversensitized flesh was still being stimulated by the hard ridge of Charlie’s cock through the denim of their clothes. They both clung and shuddered together as they both came. 

After a moment to regain his voice and calm down his heart, Charlie lifted up his head and said, smirking, “Do we call that a tie? Tiebreaker, two out of three, next round later tonight?”

She couldn’t help it as she bursted into laughter. 

“I don’t think any guy has ever gotten close to getting me off without touching me directly. Considering I just saw stars while fully dressed, I’ll give you the win,” she giggled.

---

Charlie and Hermione basked in each other for a few more minutes before they cast several cleaning charms over themselves. Once they both deemed each other respectable, they picked up the basket and headed back towards the Burrow.

When they got close to the mismatched building, they heard more peals of childlike laughter than they had earlier.

“Either James grew up in the past hour or—”

“Teddy!” Hermione cheered as the teal-haired boy ran around the corner of the house, Victoire hot on his heels.

“Time out!” Teddy told Victoire before dashing towards the couple. “Aunt Hermione!”

“Hello, my loves,” Hermione greeted happily as she stooped down to hug the young boy and the blonde girl chasing him. “Are you both having fun?”

“We are,” Teddy confirmed happily. “Look! I lost a tooth! Santa and the tooth fairy both visited me last night!”

“Oh, my goodness!” Hermione gasped dramatically for his entertainment. “You must be the luckiest kid ever!”

“I know!” He grinned.

“Teddy!” Victoire whined. “We were playing tag!”

“Sorry!” Teddy dashed off. “Happy Christmas!” he called back.

“He’s such a good kid.” Charlie grinned, proudly.

“That also must mean that the Lupin-Black extended family has arrived,” Hermione observed.

“Too right you are, kitten,” Sirius Black materialized behind them. “Dromeda, Tonks, and Remus are indoors, but I promised to watch and make sure the young ones get frostbite.”

“Don’t you mean ‘watch to make sure they don’t get frostbite’?”

“That may have been what my cousin said.” Sirius shrugged. “Too bad I’m far more interested in the little rumor a little birdie told me.”

“Depends on which rumor which birdie told you,” Hermione responded, leaning back on one leg as she crossed her arms. She had known Sirius Black for far too long to give anything away without receiving further context first.

“I heard several things,” Sirius told Hermione as the three walked towards the Burrow. “I heard that you’re dating a Mister Charles Weasley. I heard you stopped by last night to abduct him without even saying ‘hello’ or ‘thank you, Sirius, for not telling Molly’.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” Hermione spun on a dime to glare at the raven-haired wizard. Charlie grinned as her hair started sparking while Sirius did his best to mask his brief alarm. “If you dare even consider telling Molly that Charlie’s staying at my place instead of at yours, I will tell her that you gave Harry his first Playwitch when he was fifteen and that you always covered for him when Ginny came over before they got married, and that last week you were the one who helped Arthur tinker with his new car.”

Sirius’s eyes widened with each threat. He was in way over his head.

“Why so much?” he asked, swallowing harshly. “Surely you realize Molly isn’t naive enough to—”

“I would rather Molly yell at you than have her prematurely start planning our wedding,” Hermione said simply with narrowed eyes. “The family can tease us all they want, but I’d rather her not receive any verbal confirmation that Charlie and I are sleeping together. I love her to death, but she’s incredibly old fashioned and views sex as exclusive to married couples. Which is exactly why you’d be in trouble if she knew about you covering for Harry and her precious little girl. ”

Sirius narrowed his eyes at her, but Hermione glared right back. Charlie found that Hermione was very hot when angry and was watching the scene unfold with great amusement.

“Ease up, guys.” Tonks laughed as she and Remus joined them. Both were wearing their home-made sweaters and a small baby sat propped up on her mother’s hip. “I’ll give Andrea to whoever backs down first.”

“Andy!” Hermione immediately broke her staring contest with Sirius to swoop in, steal, and coo at the little girl. “How’s my favorite baby girl doing?”

Charlie quickly remembered that while angry Hermione was hot, mothering Hermione was nothing less than sexy. She didn’t spare the others another glance as she took the baby to follow after her older brother and Victoire.

“I’m so screwed,” Charlie muttered to himself as he watched her walk away.

“Now that’s the understatement of the year,” Tonks said. “That witch has you wrapped around her finger.”

“She didn’t even have to try.” Charlie sighed. “She’s just… absolutely serious about what she said, Sirius. If you so much as—”

“Calm down!” Sirius laughed as he held his hands up in surrender. “You lot were outside when we arrived, but Molly’s been rearranging her wedding planners to combine yours and Hermione’s albums all afternoon. She was muttering something about ‘should have realized earlier’. She needed no extra assistance from me.”

Charlie groaned as he covered his face with his hands.

“If you want my advice, Charlie,” Tonks added. “I suggest you guys elope. Anything less and she’ll never give up.”

Remus chuckled as he patted Charlie on the back. “You’ll be fine. Now, on a completely different topic, I was wondering if I could talk to you about the wards you use at the Reserve. The National Werewolf Council wants to set up a plot of land for registered werewolves to transform safely during the full moon. I figured you’d be the best person to talk to about wards.”

“That sounds amazing,” Charlie replied, gladly accepting the change in topic as the two walked off to talk shop, leaving the second-cousins behind. “We use a complicated layering system that works by…”

Tonks and Sirius looked at each other and laughed as their friends left them standing alone.

“I told you they were perfect for each other,” Tonks laughed. “All they care about is work and each other. Only Hermione could get distracted from one of her legislations by the concept of family life while Charlie gets distracted by a family-life conversation by picking up more work.”

“I see what you mean.” Sirius chuckled as he pulled out a few Galleons to drop in the pink-haired woman’s palm. “They complete each other.”

---

Later that evening, all of the Weasleys, Lupins, and Blacks were relaxing in the living room when Fred and George looked up from the paper they had been studying.

“Okay, you lot,” Fred announced, “We’ve got the payout results of the bet. Come collect your share.”

Before anyone could move, the paper flew out of Fred’s hands and into Hermione’s.

“I want to be sure you calculated correctly,” she announced. “This was about my flying abilities and you lost, so I want to be sure you didn’t rig it to stiff anyone.”

“Cocky witch,” George gasped, acting wounded. “Do you not trust us?”

“I never have,” she replied as she focused on the paper. “And look at how well that policy has treated me over the years.”

“Hold up!” Sirius sat up. “Are you saying that you all bet on Hermione flying?”

“She played Quidditch with us this afternoon,” Harry explained as he handed his lost bet over to the pool.

“You’re pulling my leg,” Sirius decided after a beat.

“Hermione hates flying.” Remus furrowed his eyebrows.

“Very astute,” Hermione replied, summoning a pen to make a few notes on the parchment. “That was true last week, but Charlie taught me when I was in Romania and I like it now.”

The Marauders shared a look before looking back to the twins. “And?”

“And she’s good enough to beat all of our bets against her.” They both sighed.

“Kitten!” Sirius exclaimed. “It’s like I don’t even know you anymore!”

“Speaking of flying...” Charlie pulled Hermione into his lap after she handed the sheet back with the corrected math. “I am so proud of you for what you did today. Yes, you practiced a little bit at the Reserve, but I didn’t teach you any of those fancy tricks. You’re a natural, at least you were once you overcame your fear. I must be an amazing teacher.”

Laughing, Hermione jokingly pushed him away and swatted at his arms. 

“And as such, I suppose you want me to thank you properly?” she offered.

Charlie’s eyes darkened as he focussed his gaze on her, ignoring their audience.

“It depends, love,” he growled, “on how you plan to thank me for all this hard work.”

“I don’t know,” she said, pensively. “I guess I could write a card, or send you muffins, or—”

“Bear his children?” Sirius asked faux-innocently. “I’m pretty sure that’s the price James demanded for teaching Lily how to fly.”

Both Charlie and Hermione paled and choked. The Animagus’ boisterous laughter filled the room as others joined in with the teasing. Hermione felt as red as her boyfriend’s hair. She tried to pull away but Charlie just tucked her into his chest. She felt his laughter through the shaking in his chest and relaxed a bit. He loved her, but neither of them were ready for that step.

Quite literally saved by the bell, Molly chose that exact moment to call everyone into the dining room for dinner.

The large family trouped into the dining room and took the same seats they had claimed as their own over the years. Charlie was the only odd one out from Sunday dinners, so Hermione made sure there was space next to her for him to slip into. On her other side, Tonks slipped Andrea into her high chair and Hermione lovingly played with the toes of her goddaughter.

“Looks like you’ve got competition for Mione’s affection,” Ron teased as he slung an arm over the back of Luna’s chair.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ronald,” Hermione sniffed. “Everyone should know that Victoire, Teddy, and Andrea are my favorites.”

“What about James?” Harry asked.

“Ginny had him because I refuse to share,” Hermione replied with a laugh.

“Hey!” Ginny protested. “I want a girl too!”

Harry paled and Hermione choked on how hard her laugh came out. 

“I meant as a favorite goddaughter!” Ginny rolled her eyes. “My uterus is closed for business for at least a year.”

“I’ll be your favorite, Aunt Ginny,” Victoire told her sweetly as she moved to sit next to her aunt.

“Ha!” Ginny stuck her tongue out childishly at Hermione. “I get Victoire!”

“Traitor,” Hermione fake sniffled.

“You can each have a boy and a girl to claim as your favorite,” Remus suggested. “You can trade later, if you need to. In the meantime, Molly, this looks incredible!”

“I take it this is normal?” Charlie asked, looking around.

“You have no idea,” Fred groaned. “They swap and play favorites at every meal. If Ginny’s had a rough day with James, she practically throws him at Hermione in exchange for Teddy.”

“Best be careful,” George warned with a wink. “With how obsessed Hermione is with collecting the little ones, she might want one of her own soon.”

Charlie rolled his eyes.

Both of the twins’ girlfriends had left earlier after the Quidditch match with Delia and Ryan. Ryan’s family had invited Delia and Sorin to join them for their Christmas dinner, but Sorin had declined after growing closer to Percy. Sorin was now the only non-Weasley guest remaining from brunch, and he had made himself at home in the seat between Percy and Charlie.

“Everyone dig in,” Molly instructed as they all piled food onto their plates.

She had spent all day on the dishes and the scent alone was enough to make Charlie’s mouth water. The turkey was his favorite part of his mother’s traditional Christmas feast. Arthur carved the bird and Charlie made sure his plate hovered to be first in line for the moist meat. Once he had several pieces of light and dark meat, he helped himself to the savory roasted potatoes and stuffing. The smell of thyme and spices wafted through the air and he felt himself getting excited for the medley of flavors.

When Charlie glanced at his girlfriend, he watched her helping Andrea eat her baby food. On Andrea’s other side, Teddy was digging into his pigs in blankets no matter how much Tonks tried to tempt him to eat his Brussels sprouts or green beans.

“Teddy, bud,” Remus warned his son, “you need to mind your mother and eat your greens, otherwise I’m giving the rest of the kilted sausages to Victoire and you won’t get any chocolate for dessert.”

Teddy immediately apologized and took a big bite of his green beans before tearing into his Yorkshire pudding.

Inspired by the teal-haired lad, Charlie reached into the basket to grab one for himself and took a large bite of the egg-based pastry.

Charlie didn’t decide his plate was full until he had topped it off with some of the Brussels sprouts and cranberry sauce as well.

“This all looks amazing, Mum,” he complimented his mother as he summoned the gravy boat. He took a tiny taste of his potatoes to test the flavor before he drowned them, the turkey, and his stuffing in the delicious liquid.

“I should have known you’d be a gravy man,” Hermione chuckled as she took a bite of her green beans.

“Heresy!” Charlie lamented jokingly. “If you’re not, that just may be grounds for our break up.”

Hermione predictably chuckled, but Molly gasped dramatically as if Arthur had just asked her for a divorce.

“Hush you,” Hermione scolded lovingly as she cut into her turkey. “You’ll give your mother a heart attack. Besides, we all know you love me too much to break up over turkey toppings.”

“How do you dress your turkey then?” Charlie questioned before taking another gravy-dunked bite of his Yorkshire pudding.

“I prefer my turkey and stuffing to be accompanied by my cranberry sauce,” she told him primly, with a smile. “It makes the different flavors pop. I enjoy the gravy with my potatoes and pudding though.”

“You’re joking,” Charlie accused.

“Try some,” Hermione offered him a bite. Both blushed when they realized how flirty the action of feeding each other would be, but it didn’t stop Charlie from leaning in and wrapping his lips around her fork.

She was right. The bright acidity of the cranberries contrasted the savory taste of the turkey and made the entire bite just a tad more well rounded.

“I’ll admit I was wrong,” Charlie admitted with a smile. When she matched his grin with her own, he quickly leaned in to kiss her on the cheek. “It tastes good, but I still prefer extra gravy.”

“So, Charlie,” Sirius spoke up from further down the table. “How’s your work with dragons coming along?”

“Well,” Charlie began as he took another bite of his own turkey. Quickly chewing and swallowing, he continued, “We actually just successfully crossbred a Norwegian Ridgeback and a Welsh Green. It’s the first hatch to be born successfully. I intend to write another paper tracking their growth if they survive the winter. If so, then I’ll be able to share the research in a year’s time.”

“Congratulations,” Sirius praised him. “You must be very proud.”

“We both are.” Charlie nodded as he gestured toward Sorin. “I wouldn’t have been half as successful without my partner here backing me up.”

“I just want to get them to six weeks,” Sorin joined in the conversation. “That alone would get us through the roughest stage and we’d be able to have a generally good idea of what they’d look like full-grown.”

“I got dragons for Christ-mans,” Victoire announced, wanting to be a part of the adult conversation.

“Yeah?” Charlie asked. “Who gave you dragons?”

“You did, silly,” the half-french girl giggled.

“And what did Uncle Sirius get you?” the dark haired man in question asked.

“A new bike!” Victoire announced gleefully. At once, every parent of a child under the age of ten, swung their heads around to stare at Sirius.

“The bike didn’t have pedals, did it, Victoire?” Bill asked his daughter.

“It goes voom voom!” she giggled.

“It goes home wiz your uncle,” Fleur corrected. “I will not ‘ave my daughter endangered by one of zose… zose… deaz machines!”

“Just a note for everyone about to hex me within an inch of my life.” Sirius put his hands up in surrender, “I just want to be clear that they’re bicycles styled after a motorbike. Sound effects and aesthetics only.”

“I actually helped him with them,” Arthur agreed. “They’re actually quite nifty.”

“In that case,” Bill said, obviously relieved, “I can’t wait to teach her how to ride!”

“I still bet I got my niece her favorite new toy,” Charlie defended.

“You definitely got ‘er my favorite toy.” Fleur chuckled as Bill loaded her plate with a second helping ‘for the baby’.

“Oh, really? Care to make a wager?” Sirius asked.

“Sure,” Charlie agreed. “I know that I know my niece best.”

“What are the stakes?” Sirius asked.

“Charlie’s and my share of the dishes!” Hermione cut in as Charlie felt her hand squeeze his thigh under the table. He made eye contact with her and grinned. Unbidden, he suddenly remembered her earlier promise of his other gift being unwrapped at home and felt his mouth go dry for a moment.

Swallowing the sudden dryness away, Charlie nodded his head in her direction as he reached for his wine glass. “What she said.”

“And if I win?” Sirius asked.

“I’ll send you a bottle of Dragon-Fire Whisky from my stash at the Reserve?” Charlie shrugged.

“Done!” Sirius eyes glinted gleefully at the prospect of gaining some of his favorite rare beverage. “Victoire, darling, which Christmas gift did you like more? Your boring wooden dragons from your uncle Charlie or my super cool motorcycle bike?”

“Dragons!” Victoire announced, without a hint of hesitation. “Dragons go ‘roar’, but the bike hurts my bottom.”

“Victory!” Charlie cheered. “You really are my lucky charm!”

---

After dinner, Molly summoned the Christmas pudding and her mince pies from the kitchen. When the dried fruit and brandy cake reached the table, Molly lit the alcohol on fire before serving. For anyone who didn’t want the brandy cake, the table passed around the other tray of sugar-dusted tiny pies filled with raisins, cranberries, sultanas, as well as chopped nuts and family-favorite spices such as cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg. Arthur disappeared into the kitchen for a few minutes before returning with a tray of coffee and fixings for the after-dinner drink.

When they were done eating their fills of the delicious treats, Hermione sighed happily and leaned back in her chair, cleaning the corners of her mouth with her napkin.

“Molly, everything was so delicious, thank you so much!” she said gratefully. “I can’t even imagine a Christmas without your excellent cooking anymore.”

“You’re so sweet, love,” Molly beamed under the praise, which was loudly echoed by everyone else around the table. “It’s my absolute pleasure to cook for everyone. Happy Christmas.”

Echoes of ‘Happy Christmas’ sounded around the table as Arthur stood and offered Molly his hand. He helped her up and kissed her cheek then turned to the table.

“I trust you all worked out between yourselves. Who's in charge of the clean up?” As most of them nodded and Sirius whined, he continued, “Then I suggest the lucky ones escape to the living room for a little nightcap and some music. I know Mollywobbles and I plan to waltz the night away.” He looked adoringly at his wife as they moved out of the kitchen. Soon they were followed by the Gryffindor Quidditch winning team, Fleur, the kids, Percy, Sorin, and Andromeda. 

Hermione stayed behind as she was nursing her coffee while comfortably tucked into Charlie’s side. She looked on amused as Sirius just banged his head on the table and mumbled incoherently into the wood. He only got up when Remus clapped his hands on his shoulders.

“Come on, you mutt. I’ll help you with your share.”

A tug on her elbow made her turn towards Charlie, who gave her a heated kiss. 

“Are you ready to go home, draga?” he whispered in her ear. “As much as I wanted to come here today, I’m ready to go when you are.” 

Hermione could feel her knees quaking at the promise behind his words. If they got out of here now, she had a feeling she wouldn’t be walking straight the next day and that seemed deliciously impossible to resist.

Turning to Tonks, who had also stayed with her own cup of coffee, Hermione quickly confirmed that the older witch would organize the details for the ladies brunch the following morning.

“I’ll owl you,” Tonks promised with a wave of her hand. “Go say your goodbyes and then get your man home.”

While Hermione popped into the kitchen to say her goodbyes to those family members, Charlie exchanged hugs and kisses with his family in the living room. The two switched places as they made their rounds to say their farewells to the whole extended family.

Moving around the room, she took a longer moment to say goodbye to Andromeda, who she sadly felt she had neglected that evening.

“Oh, love,” Andromeda hushed her with a laugh, “I am quite alright with just spending time with Molly.

“You need to join the ladies for brunch tomorrow,” Hermione offered.

“I appreciate the offer, dear. But I always get together with Cissy on Boxing Day. Perhaps we could have a rain check?”

“I’d love that,” Hermione agreed as she felt Charlie walk up behind her and press a kiss against her temple.

“Ready to go, draga?” he asked softly.

“I am.” She nodded. “Thank you again, Molly, for a wonderful Christmas day! I know I am repeating myself, but I truly enjoyed myself and the food was exquisite.”

“It’s no problem, my dear,” Molly answered while opening her arms for a hug. “You’ve always been part of the family, Hermione. With or without me trying to push every cousin in your direction. Hugging her tightly, she whispered, “And if one day you want to make Charlie’s promise official, just know that we’ll all be overjoyed to welcome you more formally. You two are great together. I haven’t seen him this happy in years. But most importantly, he seems to make you happy. I couldn’t ask for more for my children.”

Blinking rapidly to keep the tears forming in her eyes from escaping, Hermione squeezed Molly one last time and pulled back. “Thank you again for everything, Molly. I couldn’t have asked for a better wizarding parental figure.”

As she said that, Charlie moved behind her and circled her waist with his arms, hugging her to him as his chin rested on the top of her head. Smiling fondly, Molly made a shooing motion at them. 

“Shoo, go on! You two have better things to do than listen to a Celestina Warbeck’s live performance on the wireless. Be young and have a happy Christmas.”

Waving at the room, Charlie took hold of Hermione, then a pinch of Floo powder, and they were gone in a flash of green flames.

Notes:

Special thanks to Nelson Treehouses and Animal Planet's Treehouse Masters. I have an actual obsession and the treehouse bits would not be included without their wisdom lol
We need reviews to survive. I will literally die without the validation they give me. lol
Please drop your honest opinions! Love you all so much!!!

Chapter 24: December 25th - Night

Notes:

Hey lovelies! The first draft of this chapter came to you courtesy of my lovely cowriter/beta, Zabethou! Her first draft was just over 6k!
Obviously, I made a lot of edits and rewordings because it's now over 8k and has a lot less conversation and a *lot* more smut (if you can believe it!) ;)

Warning: this chapter has light themes of BDSM including restraints. Don't read if you're not comfortable with that. I *will* say that I'm not much of a fan myself, but I still wrote it... If that tells you anything about how light it actually is.

As they stepped through the Floo and entered Hermione’s living room, they both let out a sigh of relief.

“What a day,” Hermione whispered, snaking her arms around Charlie’s waist to rest her head on his chest. “I feel like we left this place weeks ago instead of this morning.”

“Time flies when you’re having fun,” Charlie chuckled. “And speaking of having fun…” Charlie pressed her against the shelves full of books on the side of the fireplace. He molded his frame to her body and angled his hips so she could feel exactly which part of him wanted to be having fun .

Before she could protest (or ask for more), he stole her breath by kissing her fiercely. She didn’t push him away. Instead, she gave as good as she got and raked her nails against his scalp. Caressing his back, she held him tightly against her. She was lost to the feelings he always ignited in her when his hands travelled under her sweater as the cold feeling of his hands burned each part of her skin that he touched. 

Pushing him away, she tried to focus on her plan. 

“Wait… Did I do something wrong?” asked Charlie, worried at her sudden withdrawal from what seemed a pretty good start to their evening. 

“Yes, actually,” she winked at him reassuringly before she kissed him tenderly, while still maintaining pressure on his chest to keep him at a distance. “There is the small matter of you exposing our sex life to the family… Obviously, I told them that we had sex so it wasn’t that much of an indiscretion, but I don’t think details like ‘going at it against the wall and on the couch’ should have been disclosed,” she said sternly, trying to keep from smirking. After all, she had a brunch planned with the ladies the following day and she was sure they would gang up on her for many more details. She tsk’ed with a smirk. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Charlie had thought it funny, shocking his family a bit by being blunt about their sex life. Obviously, being Weasleys, they were not shocked at all — or maybe Percy would have been shocked had he not been so concentrated on his conversation with Sorin. Charlie looked down at Hermione and could clearly see that she wasn’t truly mad, but more likely wanted to role-play a bit. He nodded. He was only too eager to play along.

“I am so sorry, Mi,” he started apologizing with innocently wide eyes. “I know I was showing off a bit, but I thought the shock value alone would get them off your back. I would do anything to earn your forgiveness,” he added, advancing on her again.

“Anything?” she asked, mischievously as she allowed him to lead her to the couch before he kneeled in front of her.

“Anything,” he confirmed, stroking his hands up and down her sides, still focussing his gaze on her eyes. The heat in those eyes was making her melt into a puddle and she could already feel her knickers dampen in anticipation.

“Although,” she reasoned, trying to stay calm and aloof. “If I’m being honest, it’s your tongue that got you into trouble. Maybe it’s your tongue that should make it up to me?”

Seeing the spark of mischief in her eyes, and the way she barely kept from smiling at that last sentence, Charlie grinned mischievously. 

“We can’t have you mad at my tongue, love,” he said, very seriously. “It’s my second-best feature!”

“I know,” she agreed, breaking and smiling at last. “It’d be a shame to stay mad at your tongue longer than necessary when we have such a long night ahead of us.”

“I’m sure I can help you with that,” he said, smirking as his hands travelled the length of her thighs to settle against her arse. 

Not wasting another second, Charlie was on her like a dragon hunting a sheep. Even then, she felt the sheep had better chances to get away than she did as she took in the desire in Charlie’s eyes. Her knees suddenly hit the back of the couch and she sat abruptly as Charlie loomed over her, kissing her neck. When he traced the edge of her sweater with his tongue, she pushed him away a little bit. 

“Nuh-uh,” she admonished him. “This is technically a punishment, so we play by my rules. You’ll have all the time in the world to play with me once I’ve had a chance to come.” 

“And how does my lady want to come?” Charlie asked with a wicked grin.

“Hard and fast, please,” Hermione settled back on her elbows.

Deeply aroused, Charlie moved his hands to undo her trousers. “As milady wishes,” he said reverently, peeling them and knickers down her legs in one smooth motion.

Humming, he started tracing his way back up her legs and let his tongue lead the path from her knee, up her thigh, to the apex of her legs. Taking hold of the pale flesh, he spread her thighs and stared obscenely at her core. She could feel herself getting wetter and wetter under his stare. 

When she finally lost her patience and reached out to touch him, he snapped out of his trance and pressed his lips to her cunt, greedily lapping at her to catch all of her slick with his tongue. Angling himself, he circled her clit a few times with the tip of his tongue before wrapping his lips around it. As he suckled at the sensitive bundle of nerves, his free hand traced lightly up her inner thigh before teasing at her entrance. Quickly determining she was more than wet enough, he breached her with two fingers, curling them within her so they pummeled against that spongy spot on her front wall.

As Hermione mewled and trashed, Charlie continued his assault on her sensitive areas. He loved how sensitive she was and he knew he could bring her to orgasm in a few seconds if he chose to.

She eagerly gripped his head with both hands, holding him tightly against her core while arching her back and tightening her thighs around his head. Long forgotten were the times when she wouldn’t let him go down on her. Charlie seemed to enjoy it, if only by the pleasured grunt he kept emitting whenever she tugged on his locks. A wickedly delicious thought popped into her mind and she quickly stowed it away. If he liked a little pleasure-pain, then maybe he’d be willing to try something a little different with her Christmas gift?

Charlie had taken her directions seriously as she already felt the coil tensing in the pit of her stomach. Each thrust of his fingers made it tighten further and each flick of his tongue brought her closer to the release she craved. She gasped and moaned while he maintained the same rhythm and intensity, focused on his task. Just as she felt she couldn’t hold on anymore, she looked down to see him looking right back at her, his eyes burning into hers, and he let her go for barely a moment to utter one word before sucking her clit back between his lips and lightly grazing it with his teeth.

“Come.”

How could one little word pack such a powerful punch? She didn’t just crest into her orgasm, Charlie had her take a running leap and front flip over the edge. As she was blinded by stars, she wasn’t aware of what she was saying — or shouting at this point — of how hard she was pulling at Charlie’s hair, or even when he had to pin her limbs down to avoid taking a knee to the head. He still managed to keep going and drank most of her essence as she gushed all over his face.

Calming down after a minute, she slowly regained focus as her body still shivered and spasmed a little. Charlie was looking up at her, his head pillowed on her thigh, fingers trailing and swirling around her hips as he helped her come back to earth. His face was a mess and she couldn’t help it but feel so much love for this man.

She smiled sweetly at him and moved to sit up on the couch. He moved to pick her up and situated her to straddle his lap as he took a seat on the old piece of furniture. Kissing him slowly to thank him, she then rested her head on his shoulder while he lovingly nibbled on her neck and jaw. 

She could feel the pressure of his cock against her thigh, and with that feeling came the realisation that he was still fully dressed, hard, and aching while she was floating in bliss. Kissing a trail up to his ear, she decided to put the second part of her plan into action.

“Thank you, babe,” she murmured in his ear. “That was… explosive to say the least,” she chuckled, still able to taste herself on his skin.

“Am I forgiven yet?” he chuckled with her, his hands tracing up and down her back from cupping her arse to drawing patterns against her pale skin. “From my point of view, you seemed to enjoy yourself quite thoroughly,” he punctuated with a thrust of his hips.

“You’re more than forgiven,” she winked at him while pulling back. “I was thinking that I could now give you your Christmas present.

“Truly?” he asked, eagerly. “I haven’t forgotten what you said earlier; something about ‘red lace’?”

Giggling, she nodded. “Yes, but I also wanted to try something new, if you were up for it? Is that alright with you?” she asked, suddenly a little more timid than before. She had never done what she had planned to do, and hoped he would be agreeable to her request. 

Intrigued, Charlie could see that she was hesitant to disclose the details. Trusting his girlfriend, he encouraged her to explain herself.

“Babe, I love you. If there’s something you want to try, I’m all for experimentation as long as it’s just us and I get to end the evening with my cock in your cunt.”

She giggled and nodded.

“Well, then, my sweet Draga,” he said as he gathered her close to his chest and stood up, one arm under her knees so he could carry her bridal style. “I think it’s time to move this to the bedroom.” Laughing, Hermione summoned her wand from her jeans as they left the room. 

Dropping her at the threshold of the room, Charlie looked expectantly at her, waiting for his instructions. Hermione smiled at him warmly and cupped his cheek to pull him down into a kiss. He pliantly melted into his witch’s arms as she pulled him close. He sought her tongue to meet his when she pulled back with a smile. Summoning a small nondescript bag from her closet, she waved him towards the bed. 

“You seemed to be a little overdressed, love,” she said. “You might be more comfortable if you resolve that before things progress any further,” she suavely suggested with a wink and a kiss on his jaw before pulling away with a sashay in her step.

Less than a heartbeat later, Charlie was shirtless as he ripped his sweater and shirt over his head. Hermione scanned his chest appreciatively as his multiple dragon tattoos came to life at her perusal. The colorful drawings preened at her attention and struck poses to draw her gaze. She licked her lips, feeling as if she might drool all over her shirt if she kept looking at him. Swallowing harshly, she retreated to the bathroom so she could get ready, while never breaking eye-contact with his six-pack. Following the ‘V’ of his hips, she saw him unbuckling his belt and had to turn around so he wouldn’t see her blush crimson. 

“Why don’t you go sit on the bed when you’re done?” she suggested over her shoulder. “I’ll be right back with your present. Oh, and darling?” Hermione’s sing-song voice came from the other side of the door. “Please make sure to stay ready until I come out. I would hate to have to delay our little celebration because someone was a little too excited,” she teasingly said.

She was so perfect for him , Charlie thought as he slipped his belt free of the buckle. Tugging his pants and jeans down together, he sat on the edge of the bed as he wrestled the fabric from his ankles after toeing off his shoes. 

---

While her boyfriend was making himself comfortable in the bedroom, Hermione quickly dashed to the sink in the small master bathroom. pulling the red lace from the bag, Hermione quickly stripped and changed into the lingerie set. She’d gone shopping for her birthday with Ginny a few months back and the red-haired witch had insisted Hermione treat herself. It was quite a bit more bold than what Hermione was used to, so she’d never had the occasion to wear them until now.

Neither woman could have dreamed at the time that the set would make the perfect Christmas gift for Ginny’s brother.

The thought was enough to send a giggle through Hermione as she slipped on her favorite sheer night robe before she cinched it shut with a silky red ribbon. She quickly brushed her teeth and washed the makeup off her face. She took an extra moment to unravel her hair and let it settle around her shoulders. She knew Charlie liked her curls wild and after her demands earlier, she wanted this evening to be all about him.

She made sure to pull her Christmas gift from him out and quickly locked the chain around her neck. Deciding to let it be slightly hidden, she tucked it into her robe and shivered as the cool metal settled deep in the valley between her breasts. She grinned as she realized the chain was just long enough so she could keep the trinket tucked away against her heart.

As a final touch, she used her wand to perform the contraceptive charm, just in case. She was on the potion, which was supposed to be very perfectly efficient but with the amount of sex she was planning on having tonight, she wasn’t taking any chances.

Exiting the bathroom, her eyes caught Charlie’s form reclined against her headboard while slowly stroking his cock to keep himself at attention. His gaze was fixed on her with such intensity that she started to melt a little. Around the room, he’d lit several candles and had dimmed the lights. She knew they both could see well enough, but it created a sensual ambiance that she appreciated him putting the effort into. Before she lost her nerve, she steeled her resolve, and crawled up onto the foot of the bed, slowly advancing toward him.

Charlie couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. She was beautiful in her white, sheer robe. When she first entered the room, she was back-lit from the bathroom, so he couldn’t see what she was wearing under it. Now that light was off and she was in front of him, he could easily see strong traces of red covering her beneath the sheer fabric. Her hair was cascading down her back, inviting his fingers to lose themselves in the curled locks. He knew she had most likely done it for him because she seemed to prefer her hair tied out of the way. It was details like this that made him so madly in love with this witch.

“Like what you see, babe?” Hermione purred as she crawled sensually toward him.

“Absolutely, love,” he answered truthfully as he reached for her. “Can I unwrap you now? I can’t wait to see my ‘gift’ under this beautiful wrapping,” he teased, slowly undoing the bow holding her robe closed. 

Gently taking hold of his wrist, Hermione stopped him with a sensual gleam in her eyes. 

“This is part of the gift, too,” she explained as she pushed his hands back against the headboard while sealing his lips with her own. He easily could have fought her, but instead let her move him as she pleased. Crawling into his lap, Hermione pressed his hands against the headboard and Charlie felt a tug of magic against his wrists. Furrowing his eyebrows, he pulled away from her and glanced to see a red ribbon matching her sash wrapped around each wrist. Both hands were tied separately against the strong headboard. Wriggling his wrists a bit, he tested the magic and felt it to be the weakest spell imaginable. If he wanted to try, he could easily flex his magic and be free.

Charlie was shocked. No, he was flabbergasted and so turned on to think about the fact it was Hermione suggesting bringing restraints into their bedroom activities. She wasn’t typically the assertive one, so this caught him off guard. When she leaned forward to kiss him again, he kissed her back fiercely. Just when she was starting to melt against him, she seemed to catch herself and pulled back.

“Is this okay?” she asked.  

In truth, he was so proud of how far she had come in her levels of self confidence in the last week. When they’d first gotten together, she was afraid to let him eat her out. Now, it’s like she had finally released the sexy and insatiable vixen that she had hidden away inside herself for years. Charlie knew it was male pride, but he felt so proud and lucky that he was the one who got to see her like this.

She was always keeping him up on his toes, intelligent, fierce, beautiful, and they had such great chemistry together. She was abso-fucking-lutely perfect.

Wanting to encourage and reassure her, he smiled at her as his eyes darkened at the idea of being tied up. “Draga,” he breathed. “The magic is a little loose. I need you to tighten it a bit more to keep it from unraveling when you work me up. Like this it’s too tempting to escape and ravage you,” he winked.

“Okay,” Hermione grinned as Charlie felt the magic tighten around him. “We’ll use code words though. Green means okay, yellow means slow down, and red means full stop, alright?”

Smiling up at her, he leaned up and kissed her again when she bent her head. “Perfect, love,” he praised. “I leave it up to you to find a safe word and you come up with a color-coded gradual scheme. I love you.”

“It will do for now,” she nodded as she tested the restraints again. “But you’ll need to teach me better techniques if we do this again later, oh great teacher,” she winked.

Charlie growled and arched up with his hips as images flitted through his mind of possible shenanigans they could get up to in the future. He felt soft fingers combing through his hair, massaging his scalp. 

“Alright there, love?” she asked softly.

“You’re killing me when you say things like that, Mi,” he grunted, looking up to catch her gaze.

“Well, if it’s naughty thoughts you want,” she said seductively, moving to whisper into his ear and pushing on his chest to make him lie back, “I suggest you relax and let me enjoy my favorite Christmas candy cane. You do know I love to suck it nice and hard, right?”

Charlie literally heard himself whimper despite the cheesiness of the line as she retreated down his torso. She gently leaned forward and kissed his chin, then his cheeks, his forehead and his nose. She avoided his mouth when he tried to kiss her and went to his jaw instead. Taking her time, she marked the side of his throat with a little nip and gentle suction. Slowly, her fingers made their way down his chest, caressing his pectorals, circling his nipples then thumbing the little bud hardening for her. She traced the shape of his muscles with her tongue, alternatively blowing cold air on him to make him shiver.

She paid extra attention to kiss along his chest and flick at his nipples with her tongue. She also made sure to give each of the dragons on his torso equal attention. The little buggers weren’t helping him by acting shy like they had earlier in the week. No, his damned tattoos practically guided her on her journey to hit all of his weak spots. Each pec, ab muscle, and even his Adonis belt got ample attention as the dragons guided her before she got to his eagerly bobbing cock who wept for her attention.

Instead of conceding and giving him what he so desperately desired, she skipped that part of his anatomy entirely before she went even lower to grace the dragons on his legs with her same delightful attention.

“How are you doing, love?” she asked with a twinkle in her eye and a giggle under her breath.

Fuck me.

Bend over for me.

Take me in your throat.

Everything he wanted to say stalled in his throat as he took in her disheveled appearance. The tie for her robe had loosened and he had an excellent view of her breasts swaying with each breath. She was just as turned on as he was.

“Please don’t stop, Draga,” he begged instead. “Death by internal combustion would be my favorite way to go.”

“I think that can be arranged,” she licked her lips eagerly. With a flick of her wand, Charlie felt himself recline further as his restraints moved a bit. He met her eyes with a question as she nibbled her lower lip insecurely. She seemed to be having an internal debate which she eventually seemed to overcome as she crawled back up his torso.

“Rest back and enjoy,” she murmured as she moved to straddle his face while facing his eagerly bobbing cock. His eyes widened as she arranged the robe to drape around her, tenting his face within.

She wanted them to go down on each other at the same time while he couldn’t even use his hands? He might as well try mining for diamonds for how hard his cock felt at that moment.

She was driving him crazy. 

Charlie tried to refrain from taking control, the urge to break the spell, seize her, and flip her underneath him so he could pound away and chase their pleasure was beating at his resolve, but he made the conscious decision to stay put. He now couldn’t see what she was doing or move and it was turning him on far more than he’d care to admit out loud.

Gripping the headboard as hard as he could, he focused on squeezing the carved wood in his hands as her hips lowered closer to his face. He could easily get out of the restraints but wanted to give Hermione what she had asked for, and that was her in control of the situation. For now . 

He could now feel her tonguing his belly-button, and licking the pleasure trail of fine hairs leading down to his aching cock. She purposefully avoided it, maneuvering herself to nuzzle his balls instead and took one in her mouth. He sucked in a short breath. 

“Draga, please,” he begged, breathlessly. “I don’t know how much longer I can take this. Please.”

Pulling away with an indecent pop, she chuckled. “I don’t know, love,” she wondered sensually. “You usually make me beg for longer than this.” Hearing his whimpers, she continued. “But you do beg so prettily, and I can’t refuse you anything when you call me ‘Draga’,” she added, a shiver visibly going through her.

Next thing Charlie knew, she took hold of his cock and sucked the tip in her mouth as if it were her favorite lolly.

Merlin’s saggy balls on a silver platter!

He’d been on edge the whole afternoon after their little tryst in the treehouse. Coming in his tight jeans was nothing like coming in her hot, wet mouth or pussy. At this point, he was at his limit and couldn’t wait any longer. He started moving his hips, trying to get as much of his cock in her mouth as possible. Luckily, she was prepared for this and switched gears the moment he started to move.

He opened his eyes and flung his head back as she picked up her pace to take him deeper. The first thing he saw was her gorgeous pussy glistening before his eyes. Her panties were crotch-less and the lace framed her lower lips so deliciously, he nearly lost his mind. He licked his lips and nearly choked as Hermione bobbed deeply on his member.

“Sit down love,” he begged. “Let me tend to you while you suck me so well.”

She raised off his cock, but thankfully replaced her mouth with her hand.

“But what about the safety—“

“I’ll knock three times on the wall if I need you to get off for a safe word,” he promised with a begging tone. They’d done practically everything but a sixty-nine in the last week and he was eager to rectify that — tied up or not.

Humming in agreement, she pushed her lips down his length as much as she could while lowering her hips to meet his lips.

He could smell how aroused she was; it was evident in the dampness of the fabric framing her pussy and the slickness coating her lower lips and inner thighs. Not wasting a moment longer, he lifted his neck to bury his face in her core, extracting louder moans from Hermione as he pressed his nose against her clit through the split fabric. Inhaling deeply, he growled and turned his head to nip at her inner thighs, alternating each side.

Hermione whimpered and wiggled her hips, trying to chase his movements so she could get him where she wanted him. He grinned wickedly and licked once at her clit in reward. He’d always be sure to please her, but on his own time, not hers.

In retaliation, Hermione took his cock out of her mouth. She licked a stripe up the side of his length and mirrored it on the other side. Trying to ignore how Charlie felt as he teased her, she moved to take the mushroom shaped head of his penis into her mouth.

She made sure to apply just the right amount of suction so that his hips twitched in need before she started bobbing her head to take more of his length into her mouth. Aided by her angle, she was very quickly able to relax her throat to accommodate her lover’s generous cock at a deeper level. She hummed and moaned, knowing the vibrations would add another dimension of pleasure as she bobbed her head with an increasing intensity. She could feel Charlie tense under her, his legs flexing against her elbows and his back arching. 

Doing his best to calm himself against his girlfriend’s assault, he maintained his control and kissed along the line where the red lace met the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. She was soaked . He knew his control was starting to strain at the feel of her around his cock, and he wanted to give her another orgasm before allowing her to take his pleasure again. Hermione was shuddering at this point and knew he had to give in soon and bring her to completion if they wanted to come together.

With that image in his head, he licked her from her ass to clit in one long stripe following the opening of her underwear. Pulling out all his little tricks, he nipped, sucked and licked to his heart’s content while his fingers clenched the headboard. Hermione trembled above him, his name like a prayer on his lips each time she pulled back to breathe. 

She knew she was in trouble from the moment he had growled, but feeling him go all out on her felt like she had just dropped out of a flying airplane while he was the one with the parachute. The rush and sensations she was feeling were driving her crazy, despite her trust that he’d take care of her. He targeted her core with a single-minded intensity and she found she had to withdraw from his cock as he pierced her with his tongue.

She made sure to grasp his penis in her hand as she started wiggling her hips into his tongue to match his in and out movements. She whimpered when he withdrew to lightly nibble at her in chastisement for stopping her own actions.

Even tied up, Charlie still had the upper hand over her and they both knew it. He knew exactly what he was doing, but this freefall was leaving her feeling totally out of control. Soon, she felt the tension mounting behind her navel, the coil tensing and she knew this one would be explosive.

“Charlie,” she moaned against his hip, where she dropped her head as she stroked his cock urgently. “Don’t stop, please, love, Charlie, I’m going to come, please, Charlie, harder love, please!”

When he mumbled something, she had to raise her lips for a moment.

“If you don’t want me to stop, you better get my dick back in your mouth, Draga,” he ordered and Hermione could feel herself gush at the order.

Moving back to take him into her mouth, she kept her eyes closed and focused on the plethora of sensations he was giving her while she tried to give him the blowjob of his life.

She knew she wasn’t the most experienced woman out there in the art of carnal pleasure, but she more than made up the difference in study and determination. She knew Charlie had yet to voice any complaints and didn’t want to give him a reason to now as she moved to swallow his cock and play with his balls.

Charlie hummed his pleasure as he licked and pierced her cunt with his tongue, the sound sending vibrations of pleasure up her core. She was so close as she reached behind his balls to press a finger to his perineum. Instantaneously, she felt him jerk in her mouth as his balls tightened in front of her eyes. She relaxed her jaw and sucked as hard as she could, pulling his orgasm from him and gulping it down while he shouted her name muffled against her core. 

The sensation of his teeth and tongue screaming her name against her center was the little bit extra she needed to fly off the edge with him. It was so intense, she had to yank herself off his cock and cough as she lost her pace in swallowing. She felt as if she could see stars as she collapsed sideways next to him.

After taking a brief moment to regain her senses, she summoned her wand to her hand and vanished the ribbon holding Charlie’s wrists to the head board before dropping it behind her somewhere off the side of the bed. 

Once freed, Charlie immediately flipped and manipulated her pliant body to lie against him. She snuggled into his side and rested her head on his shoulder, waiting for him to fully catch his breath. She didn’t have to wait long as a few seconds later a strong hand gripped hers while she was circling his nipple idly. Looking up, she met his warm gaze as he smiled at her. 

“That was… spectacular,” Charlie admitted, grinning widely. “You’ve raised the bar, Draga. I don’t know if I have it in me to beat that.”

“Well,” she smirked, “you’ll just have to try, because I’ll have to take out my favorite toy if you can’t keep up?”

“You wish, dear one,” he smiled, bringing her up on top of him, his hands wandering down her sides and anchoring her against his hard muscles. “I still have plenty of plans in store for you.”

She couldn’t get over how much fun she had with Charlie. Yes, the sex was mind blowing, but this banter, companionship, and trust between the two of them, was what made them strong. She knew deep inside that this wizard was the man of her life, and she would do anything to keep them together.

“I’m glad to hear you can go again,” she giggled. I’d hate to have to take you back to the toy store if you were broken.”

“Does that mean I’m your favorite toy?” he teased.

“Of course,” she nodded seriously. “I only stock the best in my closet.”

“Speaking of the best,” he chuckled as he fidgeted with her robe. “I still have a Christmas present of my own to unwrap.”

“I think you should thank your gift-giver first,” she grinned at him.

“Oh should I?” he grinned, leaning closer to whisper against her lips. Hermione nodded and he closed the distance to give her a slow and sensual kiss.

His hands went to the red ribbon holding her robe closed. Toying with the silken fabric, he looked up at her. “I have a request. Totally up to you,” he said, a serious look on his face. He tugged the ribbon free and tested its strength. “I loved it when you tied me up, love. Everything felt more... intense after that. I want to give you that, too. Is that something you would feel comfortable with?” he asked, searching in her eyes for any sign of discomfort. 

She smiled warmly at him. She’d never been one for play before, but after the way he’d reacted, she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t intrigued. She leaned in and kissed him sweetly. Rolling onto her back, she dragged him with her so that he was straddling her. Her robes caught under her and opened a bit more so that his eyes trailed south to stare at where the slightly opened robe was playing peek-a-boo with the red ruffles between her breasts.

“I trust you, Charlie,” she told him. “Just like I know I can talk to you, I want you to feel comfortable talking to me. I’m yours.”

“You never know how you’re gonna react to something new,” he continued, unsure. “With your past during the war, I don’t want to risk—”

“Shut up and tie me up,” she told him as her hand covered his mouth. “I trust you.”

Charlie grinned lovingly and ducked his head so that he could kiss her. She immediately melted into his embrace as his hands caught hers. She didn’t even realize he’d immobilized her until she tried to reach up to tangle her fingers into his hair.

“First lesson,” Charlie smirked above her as he moved back and she craned her head to see how he’d tied her wrists together. “Double the loops and tie it tight enough that your partner can’t get out of it by wiggling slightly. In case of emergency, you just pull here,” he demonstrated, “and the whole thing unravels.”

She was impressed as she gave the ribbon a slight tug. Spending his life wrangling dragons, she supposed he’d grown used to using ropes and knots occasionally during transports. She wasn’t ashamed to say that the mental image of a cowboy-style Charlie, sweaty and shirtless was both funny and incredibly sexy in her mind’s eye. 

Raising an eyebrow at her Cheshire-wide grin, Charlie looked at her. “Something funny?” he asked.

“Just imagining how cowboy and lasso techniques are applicable to dragon wrangling and how sexy it is,” she admitted. “It’s kind of hot to imagine how you learned these knots.”

“I promise you, you wouldn’t be able to move at all if I used those knots against you,” he said, passion darkening his eyes. Hovering an inch above her, his weight supported by his muscled arms, he kissed her chastely. “Comfortable, my beautiful draga?” he asked.

“Very,” she answered.

“Good girl,” he praised as he just melted against her.

When he invaded her mouth with his tongue, he could still taste the remnants of their earlier activities and growled as he dove deeper. He took great pleasure in extracting every moan and whimper from her that he could. 

Moving to her jaw, he kissed a line up to her ear, where he took the lobe between his lips and sucked a little bit before he nibbled at the sensitive flesh.

“You’re my favorite present ever,” he told her, punctuating each word with a kiss. “I’m never letting you go,” he promised as he alternated little bites and licks down her throat, making Hermione shiver under the assault of the sensitive skin.

Sucking a lovely hickey just above her collarbone, he chuckled as she moaned loudly his name in a plaintive voice, begging him to touch her where she needed him most.

He loved to take his time with her, pushing all of her buttons to the limits of patience — and then some — before finally giving in. This little game they played, where neither really ever lost, was one of his favorite things to do with her. 

He parted the sheer robe slowly, revealing to his gaze the lingerie she was wearing underneath. He stopped breathing for a second, in awe at the sight.

She was wearing a matching crimson bralette and panty set. He already knew that the lower portion was crotchless, but his eyes were riveted to her breasts. The red lace had a scalloped trim pattern over the curve of her breast. The darker areolas of her nipples were visible through the fabric as her nipples stood at attention through the lace. Both her bra and underwear had little red satin bows in strategic locations. 

“If you unwrap the bows, the lace comes apart,” she explained with a grin.

How practical! he grinned. He didn’t even need to untie her to—

“You planned this,” he accused with a glint in his eye.

“It might have crossed my mind,” she blushed.

“What a good girl you are for me,” he praised, knowing it would cause her to squirm. “You got all dressed up for me and made it so easy for me to get you undressed. Such a good girl.”

She whimpered at his praise and wiggled in an attempt to seek pressure against her clit, which was growing needy again as her pussy clamped down on air instead of the thick and long cock that she craved.

Watching her movement, his eyes caught sight of a silver chain looped around her neck. He recognized the wheat chain immediately as that of his Christmas gift to her. Sucking in a short breath, he gently adjusted the silver so that the locket hung perfectly between her breasts, pillowed against her creamy skin. He loved seeing the bright silver in contrast against her pale skin. 

“Perfect,” he breathed in admiration. Leaning back down, he kissed her tenderly, lovingly. “I love you so much,” he whispered against her lips, kissing her deeply.

Kissing him back, Hermione moaned and arched into him to encourage him to continue. Never being one to refuse such a lovely demand, he happily focused on his interrupted task.

He traced the contour of her bra with his tongue and took his time teasing her buds peaking through the lace. Blowing softly at the wet fabric, he slid one hand to the ribbon at the center to unfasten the fabric concealing her from his view. Sliding it away from her torso, the ribbons caught on her arms and he quickly tugged those bows free too before tossing the red fabric carelessly behind him. Diving in, he gave her heaving breasts his undivided attention as he kneaded and kissed at the peaks. She whimpered and wiggled underneath him, arching into his touch until her movement almost dislodging him. 

“What’s the matter, love?” he chuckled, knowing perfectly what had her so keyed up. 

“Charlie, please!” she desperately begged, needing to be touched, needing to come.

“Well, love,” he moved to whisper hotly in her ear. “If you’ve really got your knickers in such a twist, the best thing to do is to remove them,” he sinfully whispered, moving down her body quickly to face her crotch. Nipping at her thighs, he quickly used his hands to remove her panties and partake in his favorite feast.

He had barely licked her and she felt her control was threatening to break. She was still so sensitive from earlier, she could feel the edge approaching. And at the exact moment she could feel herself starting to clench, he retreated.

“CHARLIE!” she wailed.

“Do you really need any toys?” he demanded as he moved back to loom over her, stroking his hard cock. “Do you need anything other than me?”

“No,” she shook her head frantically. “Only you. Charlie plea —OH!” Before she could finish her sentence, he was on her, kissing her passionately and thrusting into her in one move.

He quickly set a deep and punishing pace that had her eyes rolling back in her head. He adjusted her legs so that they were braced over his shoulders. The new position had her thrashing in his grasp, so he used his hands to keep her where he wanted her.

He didn’t slow down and instead picked up his pace as he pumped into her, making her immediately snap and thrash around. Keeping his thrusts deep and fast.

She didn’t even see it coming as she fell into her next orgasm. She cried out and he dove in to seal her lips with his own as he kept pumping his hips into her. When she threw back her head in an effort to catch her breath, he ducked his own to bite and mark her shoulder. The pleasure-pain from the love bites squeezed another mewl out of her.

Feeling her flutter around him, he slowed down as she came down from her high. He needed to come once more and he was determined to pull one last orgasm from her if it was the last thing he did.

As soon as her breathing returned to normal, he pulled on the ribbon binding her hands to the headboard. They’d served their purpose and he wanted to love on his witch again.

In an impressive feat, he leaned back and pulled her up with him to sit in his lap without pulling out of her. Pulling her tightly into his arm, he blindly sought and found one of her wrists, bringing it up to his lips. Her other hand subconsciously followed and he grabbed it to grace it with the same affection. Holding both of her hands in his own, he examined them to see if she was alright. Rubbing the redness away with the pad of his thumb, he sought her gaze. 

“Are you alright?” he asked, seriously. “I noticed you didn’t call any safety words, but I know I got pretty intense.”

“I’m more than alright,” she answered, still a little dazed. “That was hot .” Wiggling in his lap, she gasped softly when the movement made his still hard cock graze that spot inside her. She was still sensitive after her earth shattering multiple orgasms, but it seemed Charlie had not come. Rolling her hips into his, he moaned. “And you? How are you feeling?”

“Great,” he smiled at her, “although I do plan on making you come for me one more time.”

“I can’t,” Hermione shook her head. “After so many, I—”

“ I assure you that you can,” his eyes held a wicked promise in them and she knew that he’d pull another orgasm from her if it took him all night.

 “I bet that I can make you come before me,” she grinned, rolling her hips against him. Immediately, his arms tightened around her so she couldn’t move anymore.

“Is that so, Draga?” Charlie smirked. “And if I make you come first?”

“I’ll spend a whole day naked in your cabin,” she promised, sure that he wouldn’t be able to pull another orgasm out of her before coming himself.

She was wrong to tease her dragon.

“And how do you plan to make me come first?” he asked, fixing his gaze upon hers.

Relaxing in his embrace, she answered simply. “I’m going to love you.”

He melted into her as his lips sought her own.

“That would work,” he answered softly, lovingly.

Laying her back down onto the mattress, he moved slowly but purposefully, setting a rhythm of slow, deep thrusts as he kissed her languidly. He made love to her so deeply, he actually pulled out between each thrust before pushing back in all the way to the point where her clit was rubbing against his pubic bone.

They continued to move together. If the urgency of their earlier coupling was hot and all encompassing like Fiendfyre, their passion now was like lava overflowing from a volcano — slow, steady, but completely consuming and destructive in its wake.

Now far less frantic, the couple was now free to take their time to enjoy their connection. They shared soft kisses, warm embraces, whispered words of devotion, and they felt as close to each other as two people could. Hermione couldn’t tell how much time had passed when she felt Charlie grip her tighter and start to thrust a little bit rougher. 

“Let it go, love,” she encouraged him. Looping her arms around his neck and hooking her legs around his back, her heels pressed into his butt as she drove him to move faster. “Go for it, I’ll catch you,” she whispered against his lips. 

“I’m. Not. Coming. Without. You,” he punctuated each word with a thrust, each harder than the one before. Panting, he tried to focus on making her crest one more time before him, despite the pressure of her cunt clamping onto him, holding him inside her, her quivering muscles trying to milk him dry. Balancing his weight on one arm, he slipped his other hand between their bodies and started to flick the hood of her clit. “You’re coming with me, Draga.”

She didn’t know if it was the sensory overload, the love she could feel in his gaze, the little pet name he used, or a combination of all three, but right then she didn’t care. She soared and shouted and tensed so hard, she thought she would shatter in a million pieces. Milliseconds later, Charlie roared her name and buried his head in her hair as his hips jerked in the vice-like grip her cunt had on his cock. Everything went white behind her closed eyelids and she couldn’t move anymore as she swore she flew.

When she came to, the first thing she was aware of was the weight of Charlie, pressing her into the mattress. When the buzzing stopped, she could make out the words he was whispering in her hair. 

“...so much, I love you Draga. So damn much, you’re so perfect Hermione…”

She then moved her head to the side, kissing his temple. “I love you too, Charlie. Happy Christmas.”

Chuckling, he pulled back enough so that his now-softened cock would slide out of her. She felt numb as he took care of her. He left briefly, but came back with a damp washcloth and a small jar of dittany for their rope-burns. He could have cleaned them with a charm, but he took his time to clean every inch of her by hand and she basked in the loving massage he graced her with.

Putting the damp towel back into the bathroom, he crawled back into bed with her and rolled to his side, moving her to nestle her head on the crook of his shoulder, both arms wrapped tightly around her back. She snuggled closer so that her cheek rested against his heart on his chest. Listening to the strong beat, she felt the pull of sleep pull her into its deep embrace.

Just before she dozed off for good, she heard him. 

“I’m gonna make this work, Draga. Nothing can stop me from being with you now.”

The next morning when she woke up, he was gone.

Notes:

DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN!!!! Bye bye Charlie!

Next week, Zabethou and I have to work out two chapters for both chapter 25 *and* a Valentine's fest piece. In order to do both well, we need the extra time to write, so you absolutely stunning readers won't get a chapter until after the 14th, but I promise we'll make it worth it! The Fremione Valentine's piece will have smut! I promise!!!

In other news, my birthday is on the 11th! I'd love a TON of reviews as my presents if this chapter was a good enough "gift" for you ;) (hey! I *did* include a lot of unwrapping, didn't i?

Chapter 25: December 26th - December 31st

Notes:

Kudos to Zabethou and La BelladoneX for their wonderful editing prowess.
I apologize for the unexpected delay. I'm Texan and that winter storm was no joke. I got this written and up as quickly as I could.

December 26th

The day after Christmas, Hermione woke up with a long stretch of her well-used muscles. Covering her mouth, she let out a yawn before rolling to her side, a smile on her lips. She was still half-dreaming of fantastical and mostly nude adventures with her favorite dragon tamer when a small twinge of discomfort ran through her.

She was a little sore from the previous day’s activities. She had not only played Quidditch for a few hours, but had also had intense sex with Charlie once they’d gotten back to her flat. After everything, she knew she’d be sore, but she was pleased to discover it wasn’t anything a long soak in the tub wouldn’t fix.

Speaking of a luxurious soak, she wondered if she could tempt her handsome, auburn haired man to join her in exchange for a small back rub before she needed to get to the Burrow.

Keeping her eyes closed, she reached for Charlie and felt her eyebrows crease when her hand found bare sheets instead of warm muscles. He never slept far enough from her that she had to reach for him. Cracking her slightly crusty eyes open, she found that his side of the bed was empty and cold.

Frowning in concentration as she worked to chase away the last remnants of sleep, Hermione sat up to look for clues as to his whereabouts. Seeing the room was empty, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and slipped on her slippers.

She was in the middle of tying her robe around her body when she froze. His bag and all of his clothes were gone. On the dresser was a folded piece of parchment bearing her name. She got out of bed and ended the transfiguration of her fluffy house robe with a Finite to return it back to its cozy and warm nature. 

She plucked up the note and sat on the bed and, with trembling hands, started to read. 

Draga,

I received an owl from Robert this morning. I need to go back to the Reserve now, they need me. I know this is shorter than what we planned, but I’m glad we got to celebrate the holiday yesterday before I had to leave. 

You look so peaceful right now, sleeping in your bed. I know you’ll be mad at me, but I just couldn’t bring myself to wake you to say goodbye. I probably wouldn’t be able to leave if I did. I want my last memories of you until we can see each other again to be of you sleeping, happy and sated. I love you so much and promise I’ll figure out how to connect our Floos so you can visit. I will owl you soon. 

I love you, 

Charlie

Ps: I left the mini Welsh Green near the fireplace. I hope he’ll keep you company, and maybe help you think of me. Xoxo

Hermione fell back against her rumpled comforter. She had known from the time Delia had given Charlie the letter the previous morning that it was likely he’d return today to the Reserve, but she thought he would at least let her say goodbye. She didn’t want to be the clingy archetype but felt hurt that she had been denied the chance to hold Charlie close one last time, maybe have a quickie before he hit the road. 

She didn’t like waking up alone but she knew Charlie; she knew the dragons were always going to be his priority and that she had no right to feel anger. She was just disappointed that she hadn’t had the chance to say goodbye first. 

Getting up to shower, she grimaced as the cold from the tiles seeped through her thin slippers to chill her feet. She missed Charlie’s cottage with the heated floors and the spacious bathroom. She missed how they could wake up and just take their time in the mornings. She didn’t just miss Charlie, she missed that being in his home felt more comfortable than being in her own.

Getting dressed took her less time than usual. She saw that Charlie had left her one of his oversized Weasley sweaters before he left. She sniffed it and smiled sadly. It smelled like oranges, leather, and smoke. It was one of his older ones, with a hole on the left elbow and the neckline was crooked, but she knew it would be the most comfy sweater to save for wearing on a cold afternoon reading in front of the fire. Putting it on her pillow, she tugged on her own sweater and finished getting ready for her day.

---

Hermione stepped through the Floo and into the Burrow’s den. Announcing her presence, she was greeted by a chorus of salutations from the kitchen. Entering, she smiled and waved at Ginny and Fleur. 

She had barely sat down when Tonks came in through the back door, taking off her coat and scarf before plopping herself down the bench across Hermione and reaching for a muffin. 

“Wotcher, Hermione,” she said before munching on the blueberry pastry. “Late evening?” 

“Yes,” Hermione answered, looking down at her lap. 

Her subdued response had everyone look at her worryingly. She could feel their stares but didn’t want to face it all at once. She tried to change the subject. 

“Where are the kids this morning? Did Remus and Bill conscript the rest of the boys to help babysit?”

“They are all at the treehouse. Harry and Bill talked about putting a cot and a rocking chair inside so an adult could stay near to supervise. Now, don’t try and change the subject,” Ginny gently chided. “Did you and Charlie have a fight?”

“What? No! Nothing of the sort. We didn’t even talk this morning…” she trailed off. 

“Normally you’re not supposed to be maudling like that. Do I need to kick some ginger butt?” Tonks asked, looking concerned.

Hermione took her hand and sighed. “We didn’t talk this morning because he was gone when I woke up. He left me a note, explaining that Robert had problems with the hatchlings and needed him back sooner than expected. I’m just sad our little holiday was cut short.”

“You seem more zan just sad,” Fleur chipped in. “You seem a bit angry. Are you upset wiz ‘im or towards ‘is boss?”

“I’m not mad,” Hermione assured them quickly. “I knew when I started dating Charlie how important these dragons are. They are his first love and he couldn’t remove that part of himself if he tried. I know that. Taking care of them is who he is. I can’t be mad at him for being exactly the man I fell in love with!”

“No,” Ginny said pensively, knowing her best friend better than the other girls. “You’re mad at him for leaving without waking you, without giving you a chance to say goodbye.”

“Exactly!” Hermione finally exploded. “Is it so wrong to want to say goodbye?”

“Harry used to do the same thing,” Ginny told her. “He thought if I didn’t know about him going on a mission for three days instead of just being at the office, then I wouldn’t worry as much. He never seemed to realize that the not knowing was worse.”

Molly came by Ginny’s chair and rested her hand on her daughter’s shoulder, squeezing reassuringly. “Men sometimes have the most ridiculous notions, dear. I tried my best, but it seems my sons are not exempt from this,” she remarked looking in Hermione’s direction. 

“They’re not,” Fleur and Tonks chimed in together. 

After a moment of silence, everyone burst out laughing.

“Thank you,” Hermione said, still giggling. “I needed that to pull me out of my funk.”

“You’re welcome,” Tonks laughed. 

“It’s just that we agreed to give this relationship a real go and make the effort. When I woke up alone in a cold bed this morning,” she continued, avoiding Molly’s knowing look, “I just felt his absence like a punch to the gut.”

“As much as I want him to come home,” Molly started.

“No, it’s not about that,” Hermione interrupted her. “I don’t want him to leave the Reserve, I couldn’t do that to him. And I get his love for that work now. It’s really lovely there, you know? And his cottage is magnificent, he works with a great team, and everyone there is like a big family. I just feel like I’ve been shown what a life with Charlie would be like for a few days, and it’s all been taken from me suddenly. We’ll have owls, and visits, and maybe I can cash in on vacation time I have accumulated, but it still doesn't feel like it’s enough.” She finished looking down, back to her previous state of depression. 

“It zeems like you’ve thought about zit a great deal despite Charlie being gone a few ‘ours,” Fleur remarked, exchanging knowing glances with Ginny and Tonks. 

“You know,” Tonks mused, “I’ve seen you in the Ministry, Hermione. You’re always running around with a ton of folders or hidden behind a mountain of paperwork at your desk. Whenever I come down to spring you for a lunch date, you’re so worked up, complaining about all the idiots working in your department and the Wizengamot who you have to deal with before you can properly draft new laws. You’re always so tense and stressed.”

“If they were simply idiots, it would be easier,” Hermione sighed. “Sometimes it’s like they all are conspiring against me because they got their jobs through familial connections. I think they like sabotaging me because I’m the only one not treating it like a cushy place to kill time and getting paid to do it.”

“When I went to see you after you got kidnapped,” Tonks continued, “you were the most relaxed and happy I’ve seen you since you received your record-breaking NEWT scores. Charlie is great, I know, but he can’t have been the only reason you were so relaxed in Romania.”

“No, you’re right. Charlie was wonderful, but I think that working for the first time with people I didn’t have to constantly prove myself to was a factor in me relaxing. When I’m at the Ministry there’s always a lot of tension, somehow.”

“So why don’t you leave?” asked Ginny. 

“Ginny!” Hermione exclaimed. “I can’t just abandon my research and all the projects I’m heading! The dragons need me to draft these new laws and—”

“Woah, hold your hippogriffs, Hermione! You misunderstand.” Ginny calmed her down. “I meant, why don’t you transfer to the Reserve? If your work is based around dragons, doesn’t it make sense to be surrounded by them? Plus they all love you there, so it should be easy, right? You could live with Charlie, work with competent people and still save the world. What do you think?”

Hermione froze for a minute and examined her options. She had tried not to entertain the thought in the last few days, thinking that she could maybe move ‘one day’ in the future, when all her projects were done she could ‘retire’, but to move so soon…

“I can’t,” she gasped. “My whole life is here. All of my friends, my flat, my godson. I can’t move away just because petty office politics make me a little upset.” 

“You mean your whole life is here except for the wizard you love and the job of your dreams?” Tonks nudged her foot under the table. 

“Besides,” Fleur added, “you would need to come back from time to time to defend your work in ze Wizengamot chambers. Zey will probably give you an international Portkey license. You could keep your flat in case you ‘ave to stay overnight, and we’d all be just a Portkey away.”

Hermione could almost see it. It would be doable. But she didn’t know if she should take the leap. After all, she’d only been with Charlie for a few days. Yes, they exchanged words of love, but it seemed awfully fast to move to another country. She promised the girls to think about it, and they had the good sense to back off and let her do just that. 

As they moved onto other topics of discussion, she volunteered to make another pot of tea and got up to put the kettle on. Molly approached her and patted her hand on her shoulder, reassuringly. Hermione couldn’t help but think about how she had acted almost in the same manner earlier to comfort Ginny, and it warmed her heart. 

“What has you so torn, dear? You know you can talk to me anytime. Just because Charlie is my biological son doesn’t mean you matter any less to me than the rest of my children.” 

“I just don’t know what to do, Molly,” Hermione hesitated. “What if it’s too soon?”

“It’s obvious you love him, dear. This kind of connection is rare and precious. Once you find it, seize it and don’t let go.”

“How do you know?” Hermione blinked. “We only got together a few days ago. What if this is just the butterflies of a new relationship? What if it’s not enough to last and I move my entire life for a failed relationship because I thought it was bigger than it was?”

“A mother always knows, sweetheart. I know my sons. I know Charlie loves you more than anything. I know you enough to know you feel the same. A mother knows everything, don’t you forget it.”

“Not everything,” Hermione giggled. “What about his ‘crup’?”

“You mean Cerberus?” Molly winked and Hermione’s jaw dropped. “Arthur brought her home for the boys and that’s how I learned I was allergic. Charlie and Bill discovered her early and had so much fun keeping her hidden from us that we let it be. They shared her with the other kids and that’s what mattered. It was actually a relief when he took her with him to Hogwarts and had Hagrid house her.”

Hermione blinked. “You… knew?”

“Everything, dear,” Molly replied. “How do you think I survived raising the twins? I’m only sorry that I pushed you towards different relatives for so long without considering how you’d be with Charlie.”

After that, Hermione tried to put the matter out of her head and enjoy the time she had with the girls. They drank a few mimosas (and a very sweet non-alcoholic punch for Fleur) and talked about the kids, their jobs, and caught up with the daily little details of their busy lives. 

---

Hours later, once the girls had left, Hermione sighed as she leaned back in her seat on the couch. 

They had all given her a lot to think about and she wasn’t sure what to do with the information. The truth of the matter was that she was overwhelmed and a bit scared. She had never lived outside of the United Kingdom and her family and friends had just essentially told her to pack up and move off the island to be with a man she’d been dating for less than a week.

In any other instance she’d freak out and call her loved ones insane, but she also knew they had a point. Hermione typically ran her mind off the intellectual; she made her decisions based on facts and logic. She never was the type to fall in love needlessly, always weighing up the pros and cons of each man. She debated if they had a potential future together and if they wanted the same things in life. If she discovered they didn’t, she broke it off.

With Charlie, she’d barely spared a thought before she leapt off the deep end with him. She’d fallen for him — with him — at an alarming rate and neither had looked back as their whirlwind romance had taken hold. They’d barely spent two days together when she’d fallen into his bed without a second thought.

She’d spent more weeks than that with men before agreeing to a fling.

Nothing with Charlie made sense with her typical logic, and that’s where she was stumped and overwhelmed.

What if their separation was a good thing? What if it inspired her to take a step back and analyze their relationship? What if this is what they needed to be able to survive long-term?

At the same time, she couldn’t imagine going through with a separation.

She missed him already. He provided her with security and caring, two things she’d never realized were major issues — or turn ons — to her until recently. He bantered with her and they had similar opinions on their work subjects — protection and reproduction. They both wanted to increase the rights and populations of magical creatures in the world.

And the girls had a point. It wasn’t as if her career couldn’t take her anywhere. She did most of her work alone in her office anyway, only venturing into other parts of the Ministry for hearings or to present her policies and laws to the Wizengamot. 

Any in-person research could be achieved easily with an international Portkey license. All she had to do was prove that she needed to be on the Reserve for her research and she was fairly certain her coworkers would pack her bags for her. She knew she wasn’t a favorite at the office and they could probably get more of their own projects done without her distracting them so much.

Besides that, if she moved to the Reserve she’d finally have coworkers who honestly enjoyed her company, rather than those who only liked her for her war-hero status but mostly despised her for her Type-A personality with goals for promotion.

But then again, if she moved, she’d be leaving her home. She didn’t care about her flat, of course. But her family and friends were all in the UK. She was only a quick Apparition away from tea in Hogsmeade or coffee in Diagon Alley. She only had to think about it and she could be conversing with Hagrid and the centaurs at Hogwarts over lunch and still be at the twins’ flat for movie-night by evening.

If she left the UK and moved to Romania, she’d be completely starting off fresh. And that was scary.

Around and around her thoughts spiralled until two bodies plopped down onto the sofa on either side of her, jolting her out of her thoughts.

“How was brunch?” Ron asked as he leaned forward, helping himself to a mince pie off the platter on the coffee table. “Do I even want to know?”

“Probably not.” Hermione smiled at him. “They gave me a few ideas and then mostly wanted to know what Charlie was like in bed.”

“You’re right.” Ron scrunched his nose. “Even you saying that is too much.”

Harry laughed. “And us hearing everything about Lavender Brown in sixth year wasn’t too much?”

“Oh, shut up,” Ron snapped. “That was ten years ago.”

“And my point stands,” Harry snarked back as he bit into his own mince pie. “Are you saying that we had to hear all about you and Lav-Lav back then but Hermione can’t talk about her relationship now?”

“Oh, sod off!” Ron rolled his eyes. “You know I support them, but I do not need to hear about my brother banging my best friend.”

“And I needed to hear about you having sex with my room-mate?” Hermione questioned.

Ron opened his mouth as if to protest, considered it for a moment, and then shut his mouth. “I see your point, and I apologize,” he conceded after a moment. “I was too immature to see it then and that was unfair to you both.”

“Thank you, but I promise I’m not going to tell you about my bedroom activities. You guys are like my brothers; it’s too weird. I’ll just use Ginny for those conversations.”

“A burden I gladly bear as I ignore the fact you’re talking about my brother too,” Ginny laughed as she passed with James in her arms. “Hate to interrupt, but this little guy and his mummy need a nap so we’re headed back home to Grimmauld to make Sirius take over his live-in uncle babysitting duties. I knew you’d kill me if I left before you had a chance to say goodbye.”

Hermione practically crawled over Harry’s lap, accidentally kneeing him in the groin in her desperation to get to James. She loved her godson to death and took every opportunity to love on and kiss his adorable chubby cheeks.

Both witches ignored Harry’s groaning as they cooed over the fussy baby. James was an hour late for his nap and was making his discomfort known.

Not wanting to keep Ginny for too long, Hermione took him into her arms and snuggled him for a moment, pressing kisses all over his face before handing him back to his mother, freezing as soon as she did. Ginny kissed Hermione’s cheek and disappeared into the green flames completely unaware of the brunette’s reaction. 

Hermione had frozen because she’d felt a unique sensation in her gut. She didn’t think she was particularly possessive but, when she handed James back to Ginny, she’d felt a gaping hole in her heart for the first time in her life. In the past she’d always been happy to love on the babies of her friends before willingly handing them back to their parents.

Now though, she’d felt a sense of loss when Ginny had taken back her son. Hermione didn’t want to let go, suddenly feeling a need to fill that gaping hole but totally confused as to what it all meant.

“Are you okay, Hermione?” Ron asked, concerned. Her arms were still held out in front of her as if she were still handing James back.

“I-I don’t know.” Hermione frowned. “I don’t feel right.”

“Is something wrong?” Harry asked.

“I want James back,” Hermione told them. “He’s not... He needs to come back.”

Both men looked at each other in concern.

“Hermione,” Ron said gently as he stood and circled the coffee table. “You just saw him. He went home with Ginny.”

“I know, but... I don’t like it. He needs to come back. I need him back.”

“Mi,” Harry gently called for her attention. “He needs his nap. You can see him afterwards.”

“But, I—”

“Hermione, please don’t kill me for being insensitive but are you sure you still don’t want kids?” Ron asked quietly. “You’re acting a bit like when Ginny got baby fever after Fleur first had Victoire.”

Hermione froze as a realization hit her.

She’d always been very vocal about her love of children but her lack of wanting one for her own. But now...

“I think you’re right,” Hermione replied quietly as she finally lowered her arms at the same time her thoughts settled. “I think I want a baby. Oh, Merlin! I want a baby! What is wrong with me?”

“Absolutely nothing,” Harry assured her quickly, as he guided her back to sit down on the couch before she started hyperventilating. “Just because you never wanted a baby before, doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to change your mind when you’ve found the right partner. I know that better than anyone.”

“Really?” Hermione asked with wide eyes as a whole new reason to panic about her relationship settled into the pit of her stomach.

“Really,” he assured her, confidently. “With the way the Dursleys raised me in that cupboard before I found out I was a wizard with a megalomaniac trying to kill me, do you really think I was gunning for kids when I was growing up? I had no idea if I’d be a good parent because of how the Durselys raised me.”

“When you put it that way—”

“I wasn’t,” he continued. “But then I started dating Ginny when I was sixteen and everything changed. I was no longer scared of a relationship. When we left to hunt horcruxes, leaving her behind was the hardest thing I’d ever done. I’d let myself start dreaming of potential futures I wanted with her. I wanted a life with her, and Sirius and both of you.” He indicated to her and Ron with a nod of his head.

“You thought we’d—”

“You did too,” Harry chuckled. “So don’t even pretend otherwise. My point is that, over time, the only thing that scared me about having kids was the thought of leaving them alone. When Ginny told me she was pregnant, I swear I almost quit my job as an Auror the same day. But Ginny stopped me. She recognized that I needed to stay there because it was my calling. She taught me that I could have my job — my career — and a family and I was allowed to want that. She’s the best thing that I needed, my other half.”

“I think Charlie’s that for me,” Hermione mused softly. “I’ve grown so used to men telling me how to do my job and how I’m supposed to want certain things that I think I’ve just dug my feet in for the exact opposite. Everyone told me that I shouldn’t pursue a career since I’d quit whenever I had kids. So I just told myself I didn’t want to have kids. But that’s not true. I’ve always wanted kids, even when I was a little girl, and I… I think I want that with Charlie.”

“You want to have kids now?” Ron asked bewildered. “I mean… You just started dating Charlie.”

“Not now, of course.” Hermione rolled her eyes and took a deep breath. “Just… I just realized that I might want kids at all and out of everyone I’ve dated, Charlie is…”

“Right?” Ron asked.

“He’s like the part of me that was missing,” Hermione told them, struggling to find the words for how she was feeling. “But we’ve only been seeing each other for a week. Isn’t this too fast?”

“Hermione, when you know, you know,” Harry said sagely.

“And you’ll know when they’re the right one,” Ron agreed. “The way you feel with them is different than with any other.”

“When did you two idiots become the sage advice givers?” Hermione asked with a snort.

“Same time you started acting weird and left the country to be with my brother,” Ron snarked.

“I didn’t leave the country to be with—”

“We know you didn’t,” Harry confirmed with a laugh. “But don’t you think you deserve to pursue something that makes you truly happy and that you see a future in? You’ve given your entire life to helping others. You helped Ron and I survive to adulthood and then spent your own adulthood so far advocating for the magical creatures who never had a voice before. Don’t you think it’s time for you to pursue your own happiness?”

“I-I do.” Hermione nodded, tearing up this time. She wasn’t one to randomly burst into tears, but now she was planning to move across the world to be with the man she loved. And that meant leaving the two men — two brothers — she grew up with. “I’m going to miss you both so much! How am I going to survive without you both?”

“Isn’t it crazy that we’ve been best friends more than half of our lives?” Ron acknowledged as Harry pulled Hermione into his arms. She immediately started blubbering as she clung to his shirt.

“We should do something to memorialize it,” Harry suggested. “Something that could tie us together no matter how far apart we may be!”

“Like what?” Ron asked with a laugh. “A magical tattoo?”

“Yes!” Hermione decided as she pulled away with a moment of clarity. “We need to get matching tattoos!”

“Who are you and what have you done with Hermione Granger?” Harry laughed. “First you’re playing Quidditch and now you want ink?”

“People change.” She shrugged as she pulled herself together, carefully wiping under her eyes to not smudge her makeup. “I used to be only obsessed with the academics of my career and now I’m allowed to want to get matching tattoos to remind me that I still have both of you as best friends no matter what happens to us. That actually reminds me! If I want to move to the dragon sanctuary, I need to message Robert to see if there’s an opening that I can fill or if there’s any way that he’d be alright with me moving there. Oh, God. What if I’m moving too fast? What if Charlie thinks I’m being too crazy for moving there after only a week? What if—”

“Hermione!” Both Harry and Ron yelled to claim her attention.

“You’re fine and you need to calm down,” Harry ordered. “You’re spiralling. I promise neither Ron or I would suggest you move if we didn’t think it was a good idea. Charlie’s smitten with you.”

“I agree,” Ron nodded. “I’m fairly certain the entire point of his letter this morning was that he wanted to take you home with him and actually would have if he’d had to say goodbye.”

Hermione’s lips quivered as more tears came to her eyes. Both boys panicked on instinct. They could face a mountain troll as eleven year olds, but their best friend crying? They never knew how to deal with that.

“No more of that!” Ron demanded. “I want to see impulsive Hermione in action again. You go use my owl to write to Robert and remind him to keep it a surprise. We’ll get ahold of Sirius to see the name of his favorite tattoo parlour!”

“I have an idea for our tattoos,” Harry admitted. “I’m going to swing by WWW to ask the twins about it and we’ll meet back here in twenty minutes.”

She nodded and sniffed her sappy emotions back happily as the trio split up to their tasks.

---

Several hours later, the Golden Trio stumbled back into the Burrow with their new ink.

After discussing it, they all had decided to go with Harry’s idea and get magical dragon tattoos that traced back to their shared childhood. They had wanted to get something matching to represent their bond as Hermione moved to a foreign land, but they also wanted to vary a little bit. At the end of the day, they chose to get the different dragons they interacted with as they grew up. Each of them got a different dragon for different reasons.

Ron got his tattoo of Norberta on his left shoulder blade to help hide his splinching scar. He chose the female dragon because he wanted to start a sleeve of magical creatures for Luna while slowly covering the deep scarring down his arm. Hermione awwwed at that. He chose Norberta because their interaction with the egg in Hagrid’s hut was the first time his magical upbringing made a difference in their friendship and the situation of smuggling her away with Ryan and Delia (and the subsequent detention) was what helped solidify the trio’s friendship.

While Ron got his Norwegian Ridgeback, Harry picked up his miniature Hungarian Horntail from the twins. He gave it to the tattoo artist so that they could replicate it for him on his right pec. He wanted the dragon next to his heart to represent all of the times his friends had been there to help him no matter how many crazy situations he’d dragged them into. Hermione was surprised and touched to see he’d already gotten a tattoo over his heart for his wife.

Finally, Hermione chose to get a scarred Ironbelly tattooed onto her right thigh in honor of the Gringotts dragon. The ink shimmered and shone beautifully, despite its scars — something she was starting to relate to herself. She also wanted to be the one who got the Ironbelly since it's what catapulted her career in magical law and it represented how many times she was the one who got all of them out of crazy situations. The Ironbelly would always hold a dear place in her heart too, since tracking it was one of the reasons she had initially become penpals with her boyfriend. The placement of the tattoo embraced the outside of her right thigh and she loved how sexy it made her feel.

“How was your day, dears?” Molly asked as the trio entered her kitchen, glad their new tattoos were hidden as they healed. “Hermione, dear, you’ve got a letter!”

Hermione gladly accepted the envelope while her two best friends helped themselves to muffins off the table.

The family was chatting amicably when Hermione shrieked. Alarmed, everyone’s gazes honed in on her.

“It’s a letter from Robert,” she explained, deciding to paraphrase the detailed contents. “He’s offered me a position at the Reserve to continue my own research and law drafting. He essentially wants me to become the Reserve’s official lawyer the few times a year that they need it and work on my own projects the rest of the time. He’s offering me full benefits and mentions he received a letter of recommendation from my boss for the position. I know the old codgers were probably plotting this all along, but I still can’t believe it. It’s time stamped from a few days ago, so I guess my earlier owl will answer that.”

“You’re gonna take it, right?” Ron asked, mouth full of muffin.

“Absolutely!” She grinned. “I’m moving to Romania!”

---

When she got back to her flat late that same evening, Hermione sat down heavily on her couch. She had a lot of things to ponder over, but first of all she needed to send a letter.

Summoning her stationary kit and her lapdesk, she started writing two letters. The first was a simple acceptance of Robert’s offer with a request to negotiate a contract after the New Year and a request to disregard her earlier letter.

As she wrote the second letter, the miniature dragon Charlie had left her came to perch on her shoulder, as if he wanted to read the message himself. Laughing softly, she scratched the underside of his chin while composing her letter.

Dear Charlie, 

My love, of course I understand how important your work is, and that you had to leave. I just wished I could’ve sent you off with a kiss, instead of waking up to your absence. 

The mini-Welsh (we should really name them, this feels a bit impersonal) is adorable. He is currently sitting on my shoulder, nuzzling my cheek as if to comfort me in your place. I can’t wait to see you again.

Before I originally left for Romania, I had asked the Ministry about the protocol for International Floo connections. To be honest, it’s a bit complicated but doable. I joined the instructions to this letter so we can talk soon face-to-face. As for visitations, since I am not working or living there, I have to apply for Portkeys at the Ministry. I know you can’t leave often but I will try to get to you as soon as possible.

(The fact that your bathroom has heated floors has no impact on that decision whatsoever.) ;)

I am working on something for us to communicate instantly, but it won’t be ready before tomorrow and I am sure you are anxious to receive this letter so I will send it separately. 

With all my love,

Hermione

Sealing the letter, she quickly buried her guilt for telling him the little white lies. Travel and communication would be unnecessary within a week, but she wanted her move to remain a surprise until she got there.

She went to her window just in time to see Harry and Ginny’s owls landing on the sill. She had asked to borrow them earlier in the day in order to send her letters without having to wait until she could get her hands on an owl at the office. Tying the envelopes to each of their legs, she stroked its feathers and gave them each a treat before sending them on their way out the window.

She got back to the couch and took out a notebook. She had some planning to do.

---

December 27th

On her way to the Ministry, Hermione stopped at the post office in Diagon Alley. She had finished charming a Galleon with an updated version of the Dumbledore’s Army communication spell that very morning and placed that, along with a small note of written instructions, into a pouch for Charlie. She couldn’t wait to be able to talk to him in real time. Letters were fine and dandy for penpals, but she missed the instant contact and reactions things like telephones could achieve in the Muggle world. Tapping her hand against her pocket to make sure she had the corresponding Galleon, she posted her package and moved to the Apparition point to get to work.

Exiting the lift, she moved to the open door marked ‘John Edwards — Head of the Department for the Regulation of Magical Creatures’. Knocking softly, she peered in the office and smiled as her boss looked up from his desk.

“Hello, John.”

“Hermione? What are you doing here?” he asked, looking at the calendar. “I thought you were off until next week?”

“I am technically not clocked in, right now,” she reassured him. “In fact, I wanted to talk to you about something and it couldn’t wait until next week.”

“Sit down, then,” John indicated, moving his pile of parchment out of the way. “What is this about?”

“I got an offer from the Romanian Reserve to continue my work here while living there as their on-staff lawyer. Their offer is very generous and I intend to accept. Most of my work here doesn’t require me to be physically in-office and my presence is only required when I need to argue a case in front of the Wizengamot. That only happens monthly so I intend to petition for an International Portkey licence to facilitate transport to and from any Wizengamot meeting.”

“I see you’ve thought this through.” John nodded, eyes twinkling. “Is there any chance I could convince my best member of staff to stay?”

“As you know all of my current and future projects center around dragons, and that would be the perfect environment for me. You will see in my report that the administrative space is perfectly equipped for my needs, and any research material I need can be included in their weekly deliveries from the Ministry.”

John sat back in his chair, looking at her pensively. “I see. Did a certain red-haired wizard not weigh into this decision at all? I ask because a charming fellow just finished requesting a secured Floo connection to your office for future ‘consultations’,” he replied with a smile.

“I didn’t know he asked for that,” Hermione said, blushing furiously. “I won’t lie to you and deny that Charlie and I decided to have a go to a relationship, but even without that, I think I would prefer working at the Reserve. The resources for my work are better, the people working there genuinely appreciate me and consider my expertise, and I felt like I could breathe in the fresh air. You know how tiring it is to work against most of my coworkers, John.”

“I understand,” he sighed. “I had hoped to keep around you as you are one of the few here that truly appreciate the work we do, but I understand. As long as you are still working for the department, I can approve the transfer.”

“Are you really acting as if you didn’t suggest it at all to Robert?” Hermione suggested knowingly.

John Robards only grinned and winked before pulling out a stack of paperwork. “We will need to work on a schedule for you to touch base and some review process at first, but once you’re settled things will be simpler. Now, let’s look over…”

---

Two hours and a cup of tea later, Hermione tucked the folders she had in hand tightly under her arm and smiled at the receptionist in front of her.

“Is Kingsley available?” she asked.

“Do you have an appointment with Minister Shacklebolt?” snapped the grumpy witch.

“I don’t, but if he is in this will only take a few minutes…”

“No appointment, no meeting,” the receptionist cut her off. “The Minister is a very busy and important wizard, Miss. He doesn’t have time to deal with every citizen that waltzes through the door.”

Hermione’s smile broadened. She nodded and turned around, sat on one of the chairs lining the wall.

“Didn’t you hear me, little girl? Get out of here before I call the Aurors on you!”

“Just a second, please.” She took out her wand and conjured her Patronus, blinking when instead of her usual otter, the image of a dragon looked at her before diving through the wall. A few seconds later, the door to Kingsley’s office opened and the wizard stepped out, looking around.

“Hermione! What a pleasure to see you. What is this I hear about a misunderstanding with my staff?” he asked, moving closer to hug her. 

“It’s nothing important.” She smiled, looking at the receptionist who had blanched when Kingsley had greeted her so familiarly. “I’m sure it won’t happen again.”

The grumpy witch nodded vigorously. Kingsley narrowed his eyes but let it go. 

“Now, come inside and sit. We have a lot to catch up on, if only to talk about this new Patronus of yours. Martha, please, a full tea service. And hold any messages or appointments for the next hour,” he instructed before shutting the door. As soon as they were alone, he sighed. “I’m sorry. She usually isn’t so bad, but I think this time she learned her lesson. Now, why have you come here during your vacation to talk to an old politician like me?” 

Hermione laughed and explained what had happened in the last two weeks. She detailed her decision to move to Romania and Kingsley was very supportive. When he asked how he could help, she pulled out her folder.

“These are my transfer order papers from the head of my department. Due to the nature of my work, I would need to come back every so often for research or to defend a case in front of the Wizengamot. It would simplify things if I could get a license for creating international Portkeys without needing to apply each time. I filled all the appropriate requests and documents, but I thought if you could review and approve them, things would get processed faster and…”

“Stop,” Kingsley said, holding out his hand. Tapping the folder with his wand, he placed it in the outbox on his desk and the folder flashed before disappearing. “Done.”

“Kingsley!” Hermione gasped. “You did not even read it! It could have been anything! I could have been lying to you!”

“I trust you, Hermione,” he assured her. “Anyone else I would have read every line but you are the most thorough witch I know. I am sure everything was filled perfectly. Now, let’s talk some more about this Quidditch game I’ve heard so much about from Sirius. I want to know all about the boys’ reaction to your flying…”

---

December 28th

Knocking on her parents’ door, Hermione smiled when her dad opened and hugged her, quickly pulling her inside to escape the cold wind.

“Honey, Hermione is here!”

“I’m in the kitchen, darling!”

Making her way through the house, Hermione put down the bottle of wine she had brought and kissed her mother’s cheek in greeting. 

“Wine, dear?” her mother remarked. “Something important to tell us?” 

“You know me so well,” Hermione smiled. Sitting at the kitchen table, she waited until her father had opened the bottle and poured their drinks before speaking.

“Remember that inspection I did at the Romanian Dragon Reserve just before Christmas? Well, a lot more happened than I earlier implied…”

An hour of explanations later, Hermione was surprised at how supportive her parents were. They told her that having her away ten months each year during her Hogwarts education was a good preparation for her working in another country. Also, with her official International Portkey license, she could come back whenever she wanted for a visit. Relieved that they only asked for a meal with her and her mysterious dragon tamer in the near future, she sat back and enjoyed dinner with her family.

---

December 29th

Looking around her flat, Hermione went through her checklist one more time. Everything she needed to move was already packed, shrunken, and put away in her trusted beaded bag. She had left the essentials so she could still sleep over a day or two if needed when she would come back to London, at least until her lease ended in June. Then, Harry and Sirius gracefully offered one of the spare rooms at Grimmauld if she wanted to visit or had extra work in town. 

Looking around her cupboards, she picked a mug and settled to make tea. Suddenly, the Galleon in her pocket warmed. 

“Is this working?”

She smiled. “I don’t know, love. What are you trying to accomplish?”

“Wow! This is brillant, babe.”

“Thanks. I’m glad we can talk this way. How are the hatchlings?”

“Great, everything is fine here. Well… aside from missing you, but still.”

“If I was there, what would you do?”

“What?”

“Charlie, I’m trying to be sexy here… Imagine having sex but not being able to touch each other, just talk. Go!”

“Oh, never thought about that, letters take way too long. Brilliant, did I tell you?”

“Good start, a compliment. How about this: are you home alone right now?”

“Yes, I am sitting at the counter, eating a sandwich.”

“Okay, now I want you to take off your shirt and unzip your pants, but you’re not allowed to touch your cock until I tell you to, understood?”

Smirking, Hermione tried to imagine Charlie’s surprise at a text like this. Instant messaging was new to most Muggles, let alone purebloods, and she was sure he didn’t think of those applications when she mentioned the charmed coins. 

“Draga, you are amazing. A few words and I’m already half-hard. I can’t wait to have you in my arms again.”

“And if I were in your arms, what would you do? I’m already rubbing my nipples through my shirt, imagining they were your fingers. I can’t wait for your warm lips on my chest.”

“Let me start at your lips first. A kiss to warm you up all over. I love to tease you with little nips and licks.”

Hermione smiled. Charlie always had been a quick study. Forgoing her tea entirely, she got back to her room and got one of the few things she had not packed yet out of her bedside table drawer.

“If that can help you visualize, I have here some ‘toys’ to play with while you’re away.”

“What kind of toys, naughty witch?”

“Well, let’s just say that one of them vibrates and the next time you’re in town we can go look for a couple’s pair that are linked like our Galleons. It would make things interesting, don’t you think?”

“Interesting indeed. Now, why don’t you activate that vibration and tell me more about those nipples of yours…”

---

December 30th

She was in the middle of the naughty knickers section in her favorite lingerie shop with Ginny when her Galleon warmed again. 

“Now I have to know what put that blush up on those cheeks,” the cheery red-haired witch teased. “It can’t be this two-for-one special on last year’s collection you’ve been standing in front of for five minutes now.”

“No, it’s not. Charlie, er...” Hermione hesitated, looking sideways at her best female friend. “Are you sure you want to know? This is about Charlie.”

“I have absolutely blocked the knowledge that I’m related to your latest flame,” Ginny announced. “This ‘Charlie’ bloke sounds amazing, you should bring him around to meet the family sometime.”

“Thanks, Gin,” Hermione giggled. She looked around to make sure they were alone, and cast a subtle Muffliato around them. “I sent Charlie a charmed Galleon, like we used to have with the DA.”

“Yeah, so?”

“Well, since both are able to send and receive messages, it’s like an instant messaging device. Like when we talked about telephones, but it’s written instead of spoken.”

“I’m with you.” Ginny nodded, still not sure what this was about. “So what kind of messages has my not-brother been sending you?” 

“The sexy kind. I taught him last night what ‘sexting’ is. I had to guide him into it, but let’s say he’s a very quick study.”

“Hermione Granger, I can’t believe you’re being a bad influence on that poor innocent man!” Ginny tried to say without laughing. “I need a set for Harry and me immediately.”

Moments later, their suppressed laughs burst out and the two witches continued their shopping while letting out a giggle from time to time.

Ginny even found Hermione some spelled lacy sets that were cold-resistant and would be practical and sexy in the frosted Romanian Reserve. It even came with a fire-like illusion and she was sure she could charm a little dragon somewhere on the few scraps of fabrics attached to the lace.

---

December 31st

Lunch at the Weasleys on New Year’s Eve was almost as sacred as the Christmas traditions, including the entire family and other additions like the Tonkses, the Lupins, Sirius, plus all of the kids. Hermione took the time to sit and talk with each of her friends and say her goodbyes. She stayed until two, still hugging Teddy and Victoire to her and promising numerous Floo calls and visits to treat them to ice cream. When Bill told her that the kids would take advantage of all those promises, she retorted that she didn’t mind and would buy them all the ice cream they wanted if they behaved while she was gone. Winking at Bill and Remus who were looking at the angelic little children, she got in a last round of hugs and promises to write before creating her Portkey.

With a short spell and a strand of yarn Molly had given her, she walked to the edge of the wards and waved at everyone assembled to wish her good luck.

And then she was off.

Notes:

Please let me know what you think!!! How will Charlie react?

Chapter 26: December 31st, 2004 & April, 2006

Notes:

I want to say before we enter the end, a major thank you to my entire support team since the beginning. This story would never have been completed without the dedicated help of NiightKiiten17, Kirachan, LaBelladoneX, & Zabethou. These ladies are my 4 rocks and pillars. The story would never have gotten out of my brain without them and they deserve all the love too.

Now, go forth and read the final chapter!!!

December 26th: Charlie hated himself as he left Hermione. He didn’t want to hurt her, but he had to leave to check on the baby dragons and didn’t want to face an emotional goodbye. All day at work was like hell as they cleaned up after the poachers. 

---

December 27th: He hated life. He'd received a letter from an owl in the evening. Hermione had included instructions on how they could Floo-call and get permission to visit. It’d be like they were never really apart. It was hard consolation to believe when he fell asleep without his witch in his arms. 

---

December 28th: How many fucks could a fuck-up fuck if a fuck-up named Charlie could fuck up more? 

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December 29th: Today was a bit more bearable since he got a Dumbledore’s Army Galleon in the mail. Now they could send instant messages. Turns out sexting was awesome.

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December 30th: Why did he do this? He could have been working at the small Scottish Reserve. Why did he have to pick Romania? Now he had to watch Delia and Ryan be cutesy with each other while he was alone and morose, along with Sorin who missed Percy already.

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By the time December 31st rolled around, Charlie was miserable at best and a nightmare at his worst. Walking across the Reserve, he shoved his hands deep in his leather coat pockets as the air crystalized in a puff of smoke in front of his face. He stormed across the grounds from his cottage towards Robert’s. He’d received an owl from his boss and he wanted to get whatever Robert wanted over with so he could get home.

He knew that most of the Reserve was going to ring in the New Year later that evening with a big party, but he wasn’t in the mood. Hermione had told him in their Floo-call the previous night that she’d be willing to try sexting again before she went out to a party with her friends, also known as his family.

Charlie stormed into Robert’s office, not caring what kind of mood he was displaying as he shrugged his warm coat off. It had been almost a week and he’d only heard from Hermione a few times because he’d been overworking so much to clean up the Reserve after the mess with the poachers. If he missed her time slot because of Robert’s meeting, he’d be seriously pissed.

“May I please ask what’s going on?” Charlie interjected himself into the conversation currently being led between Ryan, Delia, and Sorin. The young man scowled at his partner’s attitude. They all knew Charlie missed Hermione and was pissy because of it, but no one was impressed.

He cleared his throat and tried again. “I’m sorry to be rude, but I have no idea what’s going on and I’d love some reference for this conversation. I don’t want to miss my call with Hermione.”

“This actually has to do with Miss Granger,” Robert explained as he entered the room last, circled his desk, and sat down. “She has agreed to help survey, plan, and run a charity ball to increase funding to the Reserve. Apparently, we’ve let the ball drop recently in reference to fundraising. Pun intended.” 

“Why do we need a survey?” Charlie was confused. “And what will a ball do?”

“The fact of the matter is that our funds are running low,” Robert explained. “We need Miss Granger to sign off that all of our practices are sound so my application for a higher budget will go through. Her inspection report was very informative and thorough for the Ministry and they’re considering it. The ball is a good idea because we need new donors. If we don’t get private support, it could spell the end of the Romanian Dragon Research Facility and Reserve. Right now, we’re running on a very tight budget because the world leaders view us as a ‘backup facility’ focused on maintenance instead of actual research.”

“That is absolute bogus!” Charlie exploded as he started pacing back and forth. He was now pissed and stressed. “We make real contributions here. What about the crossbreeds we just hatched? They can’t just claim that—”

“But that’s my point , Charles. They can cut our budget off completely if they chose.” Robert sighed wearily and leaned back in his chair. Lifting both hands, he started rubbing his temples, which Charlie imagined were aching as Robert struggled to accept his own facts. “We need something new to set the Romanian Reserve apart from the rest of the world. Be as it may, many reserves have been trying to crossbreed and several have been successful. Miss Granger overheard about our financial plight and insisted she step in to assist us.”

“So what? She’s planning a party to fundraise?”

“Essentially.” Robert shrugged. Charlie felt the coin in his pocket grow hot.

He fished it out and saw a message from Hermione. Worried about his call later, he pardoned himself for a moment and stepped away as Sorin started sharing an idea he’d had about the feeding schedules.

I’m cold. It’s absolutely freezing.

He felt a muscle tick in his forehead. He was already stressed and didn't have the time to sext her quite yet. Not wanting to be rude, he sent her a response.

I’m in a meeting. What would you have me do?  

He sent the message back with a quick tap of his wand.

Come warm me up! ;)  

Her response was immediate. So was Charlie’s as he felt his pants grow tighter. Subtly adjusting himself while being grateful his back was to the others, he sent her a quick response.

I would in a heartbeat if I could, you tease. 

He sent the message then paused and sent another. 

What would you have me do if I did come?

I’d have you lay out naked for me by the fire so we’d be nice and cozy. 

He swallowed his tongue as his eyes bulged. Suddenly his white sweater felt too stifling. He tried to loosen it at the collar as he fumbled for a response. He choked and tried to cover it with a cough as her next message came through.  

You’d let me straddle your face while I swallow that lovely cock of yours down my throat.

A noise similar to a whimper sounded at the back of his throat. He was so screwed with this witch.

“Do we still have your attention, Char?” Ryan laughed at the dumbstruck look on Charlie’s face.

He shook his head at the message on his coin and pocketed it, now in a marginally better mood.

An idea struck him.

“What if we allow our dragons to be individually sponsored?” he suggested. “Hermione gave me an idea a while back before she ever came here. Her parents sponsored a local miniature pony until it was big enough to give rides at the local fair. They started because some Americans sponsor farm animals to keep them from being slaughtered. What if we offered that for the dragons? We host the ball and post photos of our dragons around the perimeter. People can choose which dragons or departments they want to support. It may encourage more people to contribute if they think their contribution will have a more direct impact. If they donate enough, they get to name one of the new babies.”

“That’s… not the worst idea ever,” Robert considered the idea carefully. “We might even be able to make it work.”

“Excellent!” Charlie nodded. “So can we put this on rest until Hermione gets here?” Everyone exchanged looks and he narrowed his eyes. “What? Didn’t you just say she’d come back to help us plan?”

“Of course,” Delia replied quickly.

“Do you know something that I don’t?” Charlie’s eyes narrowed menacingly. “I’m not interested in playing games.”

“You wouldn’t be,” Sorin laughed. “You’ve been such a delight this week anyway.”

“Shut up,” Charlie snarled. “I’m going home. You guys have a fun evening. Don’t drink too much. I have first dibs on taking tomorrow off.”

“Have a fun night planned for sexting Hermione?” Delia teased.

Charlie rolled his eyes and jokingly held two fingers up at her. She only laughed as he pulled back on his too-quickly-discarded coat.

“Back at you too, bud,” Ryan sang in a sing-song tone. “Have a wonderful time wallowing in self-imposed misery. Del, you should take notes for when you return Hermione’s letter.”

Charlie scowled and stomped out of the office. He only paused to give Tala a kiss on the cheek before venturing out into the light snow.

Muttering to himself, he stomped back through the cold, wishing he had just taken his broom. The temperature had dropped a few degrees while he was visiting with his boss and he was wishing for a quicker journey.

Stomping up the steps and taking a moment to scrape the snow off his boots, he paused when he heard light singing and music playing within.

Frowning deeply, he stormed up the snow-covered steps and threw the door to his home open.

He froze at the sight of her singing along to the Christmas carols on the radio as she played with three little dragons on the floor by the fire.

“Hermione?” His voice sounded strangled even to his own ears. He knew he’d missed her, but didn’t know how much until that moment. She apparently shared the sentiment as she quickly hopped to her feet, charged him, and wrapped her arms around his waist. He tucked her into his embrace and pressed a kiss to her forehead. 

“What are you doing here, Draga?” he asked roughly, holding her tight. He was worried she’d disappear if he relaxed his hold. “Did you forget something?”

“It was more like ‘you took something and I need it’,” she replied. Or at least, that’s what he thought she said. Her voice was a little muffled from the way she’d buried her face in his chest.

He pulled back slightly to look down at her.

“What’d I take?” he asked. “Love, I don’t know what you’re doing here.”

“My heart,” she told him seriously. “I know we said we’d try long-distance, but when you left on the 26th and only left me a locket and a miniature dragon, I knew it wasn’t going to be enough. You made me fall for you, Charlie Weasley, and now I’m just hopelessly in love with you and it’s all your fault.”

His reaction was instantaneous as his hand moved to the back of her head and his mouth slotted over hers. He walked her back to the couch as he peppered her mouth with kisses.

“I love you,” he told her between pecks as she shoved his coat off his shoulders. He dropped it onto the floor as he swept her up in a tighter embrace. “I love you so damn much. I have hated this last week. I miss sleeping next to you and fighting with you for the hot water in the mornings because we both try to hog the water spray and I hate that we live so far apart.”

She pulled back slightly after nipping his bottom lip. “What if I didn’t live so far away?”

Charlie pulled back and stared. “What do you mean?” he asked curiously.

“What if I lived on the Reserve and worked here and only went back to England for specific cases?”

“What are you talking about?” Charlie protested in concern for her. “What about your job? You love what you do.”

“But I hate working at the Ministry,” Hermione told him honestly. “The men are jerks and the women are bitchy. I’d rather work here where the only reputation I have is about how much I want to help magical creatures.”

“What would you do though?” Charlie didn’t want to let himself get his hopes up. The absolute last thing he wanted to do was take her freedom away from her or eliminate her future opportunities. “You aren’t trained to work directly with dragons and your specialty is magical law.”

“Robert offered me a job, Charlie. Full benefits and everything. He wants me to be the Reserve’s lawyer. In case someone gets hurt or you need someone to be your voice for better official funding, he wants me to be the spokesperson for the Romanian Reserve. I even have it in writing that, when I’m not doing that, I’m welcome and encouraged to keep working with my old department at the Ministry —  to keep drafting new laws and defending them to the Wizengamot as I have been.”

“Robert offered you a job?” Charlie asked, dumbfounded. Everything she was saying sounded like a dream come true. Could he really keep the career he’d always loved and have the girl of his dreams by his side?

“He did and I accepted it, Charlie. This was a better opportunity for me to love my job again. Also, I wanted to be here with you. We could take long weekends together and you can spend more time with your family like I know you want to, but we’d both live here in Romania.”

“You… You want to move in with me?” he asked dumbly, feeling as if it were Christmas all over again.

“Well, Robert did offer to build me my own cabin, but—”

Charlie cut her off by tugging her forward and sealing her protests away with his lips. “Fuck that,” he grunted. “Just move into my guest room if it’s too soon to move you straight into the master. But aside from that, is this real?”

“Both of our bosses are on board if you are,” she kissed him. “Besides, I think your mother may skin you if you send me back to England. She’s very fond of the idea that you’ll make me into an official Weasley one day since Ron wasn’t able to.”

“I’ll find a ring tomorrow if it means you don’t go back,” he told her as they collapsed onto the massive couch. She just laughed as he pulled her flush against him and kissed her.

Despite how close they were, they both knew it was a tad too soon to seriously discuss weddings. Now was a time to celebrate reunions and new starts as she hungrily kissed her handsome boyfriend.

It was a kiss like he had never experienced before. He had kissed plenty of witches in his time, but none of them made him feel the way she did. This kiss wasn’t just in the heat of the moment. It wasn’t even a vow of love. It was full of a promise for a future.

Charlie pulled Hermione closer, desperately drinking her in. He didn’t care that they’d only been separated for a week. To him it had been far too long, and felt like ages since he’d had her writhing beneath him, and he felt like he’d lose his mind if he didn’t have her soon.

He banded one arm tighter around her waist and tangled his fingers through her thick and curly hair. She responded just as desperately as her nails slid up under the hem of his shirt and scraped his back when he slipped his tongue into her mouth.

“God, I love you,” Charlie murmured against her mouth, just barely pulling back. “I love you so fucking much. I don’t deserve what you’ve gifted me, but I’m so happy you’re here.”

His large hands moved over her form, massaging and grasping at her. He felt lost in a haze, incapable of fully grasping that she was actually here in his arms. He clung to her and worshiped her form. When he kissed down her neck to the collar of her shirt, Hermione rolled her eyes and pulled away, crossing her arms over her stomach and gripping the hem of her sweater. Pulling it over her head she revealed her bra underneath. 

Her curls tumbled free when the cream sweater was pulled over her head and Charlie admired his witch. He didn’t want to rush this so he kissed down her chest, paying extra attention to her black lace lingerie. He kissed and licked along the edges, following her soft flesh. She sighed and held him close as he worshiped her.

Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore and snapped the front closure open to give him better access to her supple breasts, immediately massaging one as his lips sought the other nipple. Hermione let him pay her tits homage as she shrugged the straps off her shoulders and discarded the garment behind her.

Not wanting him to be the only one still dressed, she started tugging at his own clothes and he quickly pulled his shirt and sweater over his head in a single motion, allowing the heat from the fire to chase away the chill in the air as he tugged her back into a heated kiss.

He couldn’t believe she had uprooted her entire life to be with him. He’d obviously known she didn’t have the best time while working at the Ministry, but he never imagined she’d leave her family and friends to move to Romania to be with him.

He was humbled. He would never deserve this perfect witch, but was willing to spend every fucking day of the rest of his life working to make her happy. For now, worshipping her body and giving her several orgasms would be a reasonably nice start. 

Trailing kisses back down her neck, across her shoulders and clavicles, Charlie took his time covering every inch of his witch with his warm mouth. As he did, his fingers sought out her breasts and massaged them, plucking her nipples into hard peaks before he sucked one into his mouth again, flicking it with his tongue. He kissed across her chest, pressing a lingering kiss to the center of her sternum before seeking out her other tit to repeat the action to the other.

He could tell by her squirming and pressing her legs together that she wanted more pressure and more contact elsewhere, but he was determined to keep his pace. He wanted to savor this moment.

“Charlie, please!” moaned Hermione when he didn’t take the natural hint to pick up his pace. She held his head, unsure of whether she wanted him to go harder or further south. “We haven’t seen each other in a week,” she whined.

“Draga, my love,” Charlie panted, nipping her breast lightly with his teeth, causing her to mewl. It was getting harder to resist the urge to ravage his witch. “I’m trying to make this last and savor the moment. You know I’ll take care of you, so just let me—”

“You owe me a week of sex, Charles Weasley,” she demanded. “And I am collecting right now!” She unclasped her jeans and tried to lower them. “It’s not as if we don’t have all the time in the world to savor round two later…”

Charlie’s hands grasped her wrists as he stopped her.

“I fully intend to fulfill your every desire,” he promised her. “For now, though, my beautiful witch has just uprooted her entire life to move to my cabin in the mountains and I want the chance to worship her body like she deserves.”

Hermione swallowed harshly as she felt a flare of heat flood through her system triggered by the warmth in his eyes. She could barely bring herself to swallow around the lump in her throat.

She lowered her hands and let him move as he pleased. He kissed her sternum.

“That’s my good girl,” he praised. “So beautiful, so powerful, and so, so wonderful. Let me take care of you.”

She whimpered as her fingers tangled in his hair, desperate for however much he’d give her. She knew that he’d follow through with his promises, but that didn’t make her feel any less desperate for him than she felt during their entire separation.

Deciding to give her a bit of relief, Charlie travelled further south and pulled down her zipper as he kissed down her stomach. He made sure to kiss along her panty line as he cupped her ass, massaging the firm globes in his calloused hands.

Wanting more direct contact, he kneeled before her and began helping her wriggle out of her jeans. He became distracted and concerned when he saw a discoloration on her right thigh. Instantly worried, he yanked the jeans down so he could have a clear view of what had marred her skin over the last week. When he investigated closer, he froze at the elegant ink she had circling her entire thigh.

“Charlie?” Hermione reached out for him, now worried at how he’d frozen against her. Seeing his gaze fixed on her thigh, she smirked. “Do you like it?” she preened, turning her leg to give him the full effect. 

The Ironbelly dragon was curling around her thigh, his snout currently almost at the inside of her knee and the tail following the curve of her hip. Stroking the tail softly, she felt the dragon stretch and circle and crawl up her leg so its head was staring at Charlie from her hip, her underwear appearing like a lace collar at its neck.

Charlie extended his hand slowly to lightly trace the dragon’s spine. “You got… When did you… What?”

Hermione was proud and not only a little smug about the fact that Charlie was absolutely speechless, as if in a trance, at her newest ink. She wasn’t too proud to say she felt absolutely giddy that he liked it.

“It started as a joke with Ron and Harry,” she explained as she ran her fingers through his auburn hair in a petting fashion, running her nails against his scalp, “but the more we thought about it, the more it made sense for us to get matching tattoos. Dragons were an unusual part of our abnormally crazy Golden Trio key adventures, and we wanted something to keep us close while I moved away. Ron got Norberta on his shoulder to represent our first year, Harry got the Ridgeback he faced in the first task of the Triwizard tournament, and I got this beauty because I bloody well deserve it. Jumping on the back of one to escape and destroy half of Gringotts is the kind of adventure that stays with you for a while.”  

“And the placement?” Charlie grinned, recognizing she’d gotten her Ironbelly tattoo on the opposite thigh of his own. He could feel his own silvery dragon moving around on his left thigh under his clothes.

“I thought she could keep yours company when they meet face-to-face,” she smirked as he leaned over to inspect the image closely.

“Is that so?” he teased, then nuzzled the tattoo with his nose. 

A shiver went through Hermione. I’m in trouble , she thought. If that’s how a simple touch feels, how is—

Charlie chuckled as Hermione squeaked, surprised by the sensations assaulting her senses when he licked her tattoo from snout to tail at her knee. “Turnabout is fair play,” he said smugly. “As I remember, you had quite a nice time acquainting yourself with my tattoos the first time you saw them.”

“Over a week ago, dear,” she reminded him, trying to sound strong even as her legs turned to jelly beneath her. “Now, please fuck me with your tongue, your fingers, or your cock because if I have to wait another minute for you to get your act together, I will take matters in my own— hmphfff!”

Unexpectedly, Charlie bounced to his feet from his knees and picked her up in one fluid movement. She shrieked since her jeans were still tangled around her knees, but laughed once she caught her bearings.

“What are you doing?!” she laughed incredulously.

“Laying you out before the fire,” Charlie smirked as he did just that. “I didn’t want you to get chilly once I rid you of these completely unnecessary garments.”

“You mean my jeans and knickers?”

“Exactly,” Charlie grinned deviously as he yanked the jeans off and slowly, teasingly began rolling the lace away from her cunt.

Hermione whimpered as she was completely exposed to the air of the room. Wantonly and shamelessly, she let her knees fall wide, inviting Charlie to partake in her body in any way he pleased.

Just as he predicted, the roaring fire emitted enough heat to make her skin grow warm even as the chill in the room from the cold weather outside pebbled her nipples.

She was just about to beg him again when Charlie’s hungry kiss and questing fingers between her thighs short-circuited her brain cells. She responded eagerly to his kiss and raked her nails down his bare back, reveling in the thick muscles bunching and relaxing under her fingers.

Breaking his kiss, Charlie moved down her body to watch as his fingers moved slowly inside of her.

She could feel how wet she was by the ease of his movement and blushed even as she whimpered and tangled her fingers in his hair to anchor herself. When she felt her juices seep out beneath her and dampen the rug under her ass, she knew she should feel embarrassed, but she couldn’t be bothered when she looked down and saw the nearly feral way Charlie was eyeing her cunt.

“You look so delicious, Draga,” he praised, nipping her hip with his teeth. “You’re so beautiful and wet for me. You look good enough to eat. Would you like that, my love? Would you like for me to eat your pretty cunt and make you orgasm on my tongue?”

Hermione gasped and clung to him in response to his words. When his fingers curled within her to hit that spongy spot just inside her front wall, she mewled and moved her hips in an effort to get him to repeat the motion.

“Ah, ah, ah,” Charlie chided lightly. “You’re my good girl, aren’t you? Shouldn’t you use your words to tell me exactly what you want me to do?”

“Please, Charlie,” she begged eagerly. “Please make me come. Please use your mouth on me and make me come.”

“There’s my good girl,” he praised. Her pussy clamped down on his fingers and Charlie grinned. He’d forgotten how much she liked it when he talked dirty to her and he wanted to test just how much it affected her. She was so very good to him by choosing to move into his place and he made sure to tell her that, causing another clamp down to occur on his fingers.

His fingers found an easy rhythm, slowly pumping in and out of her core while his thumb stroked her clit. When she whimpered desperately, he replaced his thumb with his mouth and sped his fingers as they fucked her fluttering core.

Hermione let out a cacophony of whimpers, sighs, and squeals as he curled his fingers, suckled her clit, and focused all of his attention on the soaking pussy inches from his face.

At one point, his hand started to clamp up, so he removed his fingers and licked her from ass to clit before plunging his tongue into her core. Now it was his turn to groan deeply at the flavor exploding on his tongue. He knew some men hated going down on their women, but Charlie doubted he’d ever get over the delectable taste of Hermione’s musk. He knew at this point that he’d be lucky to be allowed to test that theory for the rest of his life.

Sucking her clit into his mouth, Charlie tapped it with his tongue as he resumed finger-fucking her.

As desperate as he was for his cock to be inside of his stunning girlfriend once more, he was more determined to bring her to orgasm first. He was pulling out all of his tricks as she coiled tighter and tighter on his fingers. She was so close, he could literally taste it. He knew she only needed one more thing and the coil tightening in her belly would give her an explosive release. 

Pulling away from her clit with a pop, he stared into her eyes as he curled his fingers lightly against her g-spot.

“I want you to come for me, baby. I want you to explode for me and then I promise I’ll fuck you nice and good with my cock. Can you come for me like the good girl I know you are?”

Hermione was nearly sobbing at this point from the many sensations assaulting her body. Charlie between her legs, her own hands on her breasts, the stifling heat from the fire glowing hot on her face. She knew she was a mere breath away from her most intense orgasm since their first time and she waited on a razor edge to tumble into deliria.

At that moment, he simultaneously pushed against her g-spot and shook his hand, sucking hard at her clit. She felt herself let go and the coil sprang inside her, making her tense all at once like a marionette on puppet strings before she collapsed in a boneless mass.

In stark contrast to the spasms in her limbs, Hermione suddenly felt a pressure around her body as if she were being squeezed in a tube. Before she could react to the very familiar feel of Apparition, it disappeared and she felt the soft fabric of cotton, fleece, and furs beneath her.

She knew what she’d see well before she opened her eyes, but she felt a resounding warmth as if she’d just truly arrived home when she opened her eyes to see Charlie’s — their — bedroom around her.

Sighing and relaxing into the luxurious feeling of his blankets, Hermione sighed in content as she murmured to him. “We’ll need to change the other room into a library-slash-office for me. I don’t think I ever want to leave this cottage.”

“Your wish is my command.” Charlie grinned as he moved about the room, lighting candles and turning off the automatic overhead light.

“Mmm,” she hummed as her eyes followed him, appreciating the way his muscles moved in the candlelight. She licked her lips when she saw the prominent tenting at the front of his jeans. “Does that apply to any wish?”

“As long as it’s within my power,” he promised.

“Come here,” she beckoned him as she rolled onto her stomach and moved so that she was propped up on her elbows at the edge of the bed.

Charlie moved immediately to obey. She beckoned him with a single finger and he willingly bent low to kiss her as her hands worked at his belt. 

Moving to her knees, Hermione kissed him more deeply and savored her moment with the upper hand since she knew she wouldn't have it for long with Charlie Weasley as her partner. She may be a powerful witch in her own right but sexually, he was in charge and she didn’t think she’d ever have a problem with that. 

She moved to trail kisses down to his shoulders, taking the time to lick and suck at the tendons of his neck on her way down his body. She pinched his nipples and raked her nails down his abs, rejoicing in the shivers she produced.

Before long, she had travelled down his entire torso to kiss at the skin just above his jeans while her hands pulled his belt free before she opened his fly. Her hand quickly slipped inside and liberated his cock from its confines.

Licking her lips, she let him figure out the rest of his own disrobing as she licked at the bead of precum glistening at the head.

“I missed this part of you the most,” she cooed, winking cheekily at him as she lay on her stomach, propped up by her elbows with her ankles crossed and lazily swinging in the air behind her. She was exuding the ultimate amount of comfort and confidence as she moved to engulf the mushroom head of his cock into her mouth.

Charlie’s eyes crossed as she flicked the slit with her tongue and started stroking his length with one hand, following the bobbing motion of her head.

Hermione dropped her hand as she moved to take him further, allowing herself to only use her drooling mouth to pleasure him as she bobbed eagerly on his cock. Charlie groaned as he tangled his fingers in her loose curls.

“Oh, draga,” he groaned as she let him take over the movement by slowly fucking her mouth. “Remember, two taps to my thigh for air, okay?”

Hermione hummed in response as she bobbed further, letting him hit the back of her throat before pulling back a bit. Charlie groaned as he easily deciphered her intent.

“Are you sure, my love?” he asked. “Tap my thigh once if you want me to fuck your pretty throat.”

Hermione hummed eagerly and tapped his thigh once with a single finger. He let out a strangled sound as he started pumping into her accepting mouth. Due to the way her back was arched back, but her head tilted slightly downward, her throat was at the ideal angle and it didn’t take much for Charlie to slip down the narrow channel.

At the same time, Hermione’s nose brushed against the auburn curls at the base and she naturally wiggled her nose against the tickling feeling. The motion was felt by Charlie’s cock and he groaned as he carefully pulled back before pumping back in. 

Knowing he was already dangerously close just from watching her orgasm earlier, he tried to warn her that he was on the verge of coming after less than a minute of her blowjob.

She pulled back and eased him from her mouth as she took over the stroking. She kept the head angled at her mouth and when the first stream of white cum exploded from his cock, it was straight onto her expectant tongue before she angled it so the rest would hit her chest.

Despite feeling as if his knees were quaking worse than a newborn faun’s, Charlie somehow made it onto the bed and collapsed against the pillows at the headboard on what would officially become his side of the bed — the right since it was closest to the door, leaving Hermione the side that was closer to the wall of bookshelves.

“As I recall,” Charlie chuckled breathlessly as Hermione scooped a finger full of cum from her chest to eat. “Wasn’t I supposed to be taking care of you?”

“You did,” Hermione smirked as she vanished the rest of his essence from her chest. Crawling over to him, she nestled up against his side as his arm automatically wrapped around her. She started tracing patterns on his chest with a smile as Charlie took a moment to recover.

“If I recall correctly,” he mused as he returned the gesture by reaching up to fondle her lovely breast, “I did promise to fuck you nice and senseless with my cock if you came for me. And you did so, very beautifully might I add, but I still haven’t fucked your pretty cunt.”

Hermione hummed. “You did promise me that,” she agreed. “I wonder what’s taking you so long.” 

“Maybe,” he growled, rolling them so he could loom over her, “I was being distracted by the most perfect, beautiful, and smart little minx I know and will now have to make up for it.” Nipping at her neck, he felt her arch her back in response to rub her chest against his. “So responsive, so sexy—”

“So frustrated that you’re taking too long?” she finished the sentence for him. “I love you, but you’re just so insufferable when you’re doing that and I just want to grab you by the balls and have you teeter on the edge for a while, just to see how you like it.”

“Oh, draga,” Charlie whispered. “You have no idea what you do to me. Everytime I’m with you, I’m teetering, my love. Being with you — being in you — is the closest thing to nirvana I can think of and I have to focus all of my energy on your pleasure because, if not, our evening’s activities would take a lot less time.”

Not knowing how to respond, Hermione closed the distance between them and kissed him softly. “Go on then.” She pulled him further onto her, cradling him between her thighs. “Get to it.” 

Grinning widely, Charlie moved to nip at her jaw before growling in her ear. “It would be my pleasure, draga.”

He sucked at her pulse point and soothed the skin under his lips with his tongue. Slowly, he made his way down her neck and shoulders, kissing every inch of flesh he could reach.

Hermione raked her fingers through his hair before lightly scratching down his neck and back. She kept rolling her hips trying to find friction but he held himself out of reach, leaning down to take a rosy peak in his mouth. Worrying it gently with his teeth, the other hand went to her other nipple to pinch and pull at it before switching sides. He softly blew on the damp skin and smiled as she shivered. Nipping the underside of one breast, he slid his fingers down to her slit to find her making a mess of the sheets underneath her.

Taking a moment to swallow his tongue, he bit back a whimper of how wet she was. When he inserted his first finger, he groaned as her wet heat fluttered around him, desperately seeking more of him to fill her. He quickly switched out his index finger for his two middle fingers. He explored and beckoned within her, knowing he was hitting the spongy g-spot on her front wall as she gasped and whimpered above him. She looked stunning spread across his pillows as he slowly drove her crazy, so he made sure to take his time with her. He leisurely pumped his fingers in and out of her and used his thumb to spread her moisture up to her clit. 

When she started whining through her moans, Charlie lined himself up and thrust inside her in one fluid movement. He felt her gasp underneath him as he bent over her and gathered her closer in his arms. She wrapped her legs around his hips and pressed her breasts up against his chest while her arm curled back around his bicep braced by her head. He ducked his head to kiss her deeply as he slowly started pumping into her.

When he started to move and roll his hips into hers, slowly grinding his pubic bone against her clit and nuzzling her neck at the same time, she swore she had never felt so complete. Charlie was surrounding her. She felt his wonderful weight above her and within her. His sheets were soft against her back — she’d need to learn what cleaning spells or potions he used for them — and the room had a gentle masculinity that soothed her. She already knew that she’d need to change nothing now that she was moving in full-time.

Sensing that she’d caught a train of thought, Charlie ducked his head to lathe and nibble at her nipple. She gasped as her eyes focused on him.

“Where’d you go, love?” he asked before kissing her briefly, slowing his thrusts to simply grind against her for a moment.

“No where,” she replied. “I’m right where I want to be. I’m surrounded by you and our room and I don’t think I’ve ever felt this happy.”

“I know exactly what you mean.” He grinned as he kissed her, quickly deepening the contact as her nails scraped at his back.

Moving to take her ear lobe between his teeth, Charlie started whispering about how happy he was that she was here, how much he already loved her, and how grateful he was that she loved him back.

Brought to tears by his heartfelt confessions, Hermione pulled him back by the hair and kissed him lovingly. As they broke apart she looked deep into his eyes, making sure she had his full attention. “I love you, Charlie Weasley. Deeply, unapologetically, and passionately. I will keep on loving you for as long as I can, and you know how stubborn a witch I can be.” When he chuckled, she kept on smiling. “Charlie, love?”

“Yes, draga?”

“Fuck me harder?” she asked sweetly.

Wasting no time to answer with words, Charlie swooped in and kissed her searingly . He pressed his chest closer to hers, pinning her to the mattress as his hips drove into hers as if hoping he could fuck them into one being. While he distracted her with his tongue and teeth, he maintained the same speed but augmented the strength and intensity of his thrusts.

When she had to rip herself away from the kiss in desperate need for air, it didn’t stop him from kissing her. He followed the slope of her neck with nips and kisses. He loved hearing her breath catch each time he surprised her with a small nip of his teeth or a particularly hard snap of his hips that caused her to move up the bed. Her pants and moans filled him with so much pride as he fucked his witch into the mattress they’d share from that point forward.

He was the one doing this to her. She chose to be here at the Reserve — with him — and be with him in the most intimate of ways. He knew she cared deeply about magical creatures — it was obvious he felt the same — but he wanted her to know that they could care for each other just as much.

Redoubling his efforts, he braced himself on one arm and slid his hand down her body to pinch her clit, flicking it in time with the roll of his hips. 

Just as he felt her tense, he let the bundle of nerves go and stroke her ribs instead. 

“Charlie,” she growled impatiently, warning him.

“You asked for harder, my draga,” he answered, still peppering kisses on her skin. “But you never told me I had to make you come fast.” 

Son of a bitch, I’m fucked, thought Hermione. In that case, might as well even the odds. 

As Charlie built the intensity again twice before stopping, Hermione did her best to distract him to get to the end. She caressed his tattoos, pinched his nipples, scratched his back, kissed and left hickeys on every inch of skin within her reach. She locked her ankles behind his arse to give herself leverage to grind against him and sucked on his tongue when he kissed her again. 

As she grew more and more desperate, Charlie moved back to sit on his heels and pulled her up with him. Surprised by the new and deeper angle as he bounced her on his lap, she braced herself on his shoulders and tightened the muscles of her core, knowing that it’d cause him to —

“Fuck, Hermione!”

— curse.

“I’d love if you would and stopped teasing me.” She hated how her voice took on a pleading tone as he eased back again. “Charlie, I’m so so close. I can’t take any more.”

“Draga, love,” he hissed, trying to focus through the delicious torture her pussy was inflicting on his cock. “Mi, look at me.”

“Charlie,” Hermione gasped, fixing her gaze on him even as her eyes were glazed over from all of the overwhelming feelings.

“I want you to look me in the eyes as you climax,” he ordered. “I never want to forget this moment for as long as I live.” He punctuated each word with a sharp thrust. “I want to remember the look on your face when you come on my cock for the first time in our home. Can you do that for me? Can you be a good girl for me?”

Hermione could only hang on as she nodded desperately, only half aware of his words. She was already near delirious from the sensory assault she was under. She could feel Charlie’s hand, cock, muscles, tongue, the smell of leather and smoke that was as much a part of him as his red hair was, but the most intense part of it was his gaze upon her. She could feel it burning her, stoking the embers in her soul and setting her aflame from inside. Just as she thought she could not handle it anymore, he mouthed “I love you” to her, having no breath of his own to say it out loud. 

She felt it, like a spark starting in her lower abdomen traveling up her spine and down her legs at the same time. Her whole body tensed and she fought to keep her eyes open as she screamed Charlie’s name at him, basking in the warmth of his love for her.

He kept moving through her climax, dragging on her pleasure until she couldn't take it anymore and sobbed under the intensity. He held her close and pushed his forehead against hers, still looking deep inside her eyes as he pumped two and three more times before jerking and letting go himself.

As he emptied himself deep inside her, Hermione thought that there was no place she’d rather be. Moving to Romania was the best decision she had ever made if she got to see Charlie like this every day — vulnerable and with her. She’d never felt as close to someone as she felt to Charlie and she knew what they had was precious and worthy of all sacrifices. 

Resting her forehead against his, she just basked in the warmth of his eyes as they slowly caught their breath.

After a few seconds, Charlie slipped out and moved them to lie down snuggled together, her leg hitched over his and their arms still around each other. She rested her head on his chest, listening to his heart slow down from his rapid pace, at peace now.

She was almost asleep when his voice brought her back to the moment.

“Draga?”

“Yes, love?”

Bringing his arms up from where it rested on her thigh, Charlie pulled her closer and hugged her tightly to his chest, nuzzling his head in the thick of her curls. Speaking against the soft skin of her throat, he clarified with a child-like wonder: “You’re really here? You’re staying?”

Hermione could feel her heart brimming with love as she answered. “I’m staying for as long as you’ll have me, love. I’m not going anywhere.”

“I’m going to hold you to it,” Charlie promised as he held her even closer. “You’re mine, I’m yours, and I don’t know about you but I don’t plan on changing my mind anytime soon.”

Resting her head back down on her favorite muscled pillow, she whispered “I love you, Charlie.”

Just before she fell asleep, she felt his arms squeeze her tighter and his “I love you too, Hermione,” lulled her to the sweetest dreams filled with dragons and her favorite dragon tamer.

The next day they’d sort out her belongings, and they’d get her settled into her new life over the next month, but at that moment, all Hermione could think was that it was worth it.

---

One Year Later — April 2006

A little over one year later, the entire family was excited to see Hermione and Charlie again. The couple had returned to England over the Christmas break in 2005 and had gotten married. They had been living together for five months before Charlie had asked her to be his wife and despite their fast-paced relationship, Hermione had enthusiastically agreed.

They had left all of the planning to Molly, Tala, and Jean. The only thing Hermione insisted on controlling was her wedding dress and Charlie’s robes. For the rest of the wedding, she was fine with sitting back and watching the three women go into a frenzy of planning. She laughed at the mental image it invoked. All three women were like sharks going after one measly fish. The last thing she wanted to do was go up against them on anything other than her gown and insistence on a hired hair and makeup artist. She loved all three women, but she knew her hair was difficult on the best of days and she wanted to be sure she felt her most beautiful through a hired artist on her wedding day.

The day of the wedding, Hermione had gotten dressed in her lace and beaded form-fitting mermaid dress along with her cape-like veil which was attached at her shoulders. She loved the dress for its nod to both her Muggle roots and her Wizarding robes. It proved to have the best of both worlds, just like her.

Her hair was tied up into an elaborately braided bun and her makeup was mostly natural with some added highlights and golden colors to bring out the brightness of her brown eyes. All three maternal women burst into tears when they finally got a look at her.

Charlie and Hermione had gotten married at the Burrow on New Years’ Eve 2005, in a grand affair where it felt like the entire wizarding world was in attendance. Their coworkers from the Ministry, Wizengamot, and the Reserve were all in attendance — even the eternally grumpy Doctor Haddock made an appearance. Only the members of the Reserve’s External team stayed in Romania to hold down the fort and they were rewarded with a custom-ordered cake in gratitude. Charlie’s expansive family and even their extended friends from Hogwarts all showed up and, after an intimate ceremony between the couple, the entire group partied the night away.

None of that mattered to Hermione and Charlie who were in their own little world and bubble. Neither took part in the abundance of alcohol, choosing to drink their own bottle of bubbly cider. Only Jean noticed and had pulled Hermione aside happily for a tight hug and whispered congratulations.

The couple had left the wedding very quickly after that to head to Italy for their honeymoon.

The Weasley family hadn’t seen the couple since.

Easter was finally rolling around and the happy couple had promised to utilize Hermione’s Portkey license to stop by the Burrow for the family holiday brunch.

Molly was in a tizzy getting everything ready. She was so happy that they had the international Portkey license, so the family didn’t have to worry about scheduling.

Everyone was chattering in the kitchen while waiting for the couple’s arrival.

Bill was bouncing his daughter Dominique on his hip while debating the merits of ‘just one more kid’ to his wife, who was currently adamantly against the idea.

Percy was waiting anxiously for his boyfriend to arrive with Charlie and Hermione. Despite months of flirting, he had kept Sorin waiting until he was ready to come out in the autumn. The couple now wrote letters and visited each other monthly, but were still taking their relationship slowly. It was Percy’s first gay relationship and he wanted to be sure it was right. Sorin was surprisingly smitten and willing to take the pace at whatever rate Percy needed.

The twins were sitting together at the dining table, going over some sort of elaborate plan. Ginny rolled her eyes as she paced the room while rocking her newest son. Albus was barely three weeks old. She knew the twins were planning on proposing to their girlfriends but neither man knew how to just suck it up and ask rather than making it into a huge production.

Harry, Ron, and Luna were discussing her recent tour of the world. She had just finished a series of conferences about the recent introduction of the Nargles to the Registry of Creatures.

“Are either of you planning on settling down with kids soon?” Harry asked innocently as he watched his wife pass by with their youngest son. He knew they both wanted kids relatively soon after they got married, but hadn’t heard much otherwise.

“It will happen when the time is right,” Luna shrugged. “As it is, I’ve had too much exposure to the Nargles’ perfume to be sure, but we have been trying since the wedding.”

“Do you want me to get you something different to drink?” Ron asked, noticing she’d barely touched the wine she’d been holding for the past hour.

“If you don’t mind,” Luna asked her husband politely. “I didn’t want to be rude, but I don’t think this wine is to my taste.”

Ron took a sip from her glass and then furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “But, Luna, this is your favorite bottle that you always have me stock at home. You typically love this wine.”

Recognizing the conversation from his own life, Harry’s eyes widened and he chose that moment to politely step away and give the couple a chance to work through what that meant in privacy. As it was, he was very interested in taking his turn rocking his son.

Ginny gratefully handed over their baby and sat down with the twins to help them.

Wanting to leave Molly to her own devices in the kitchen, Harry went to talk to Arthur about Harry’s newest promotion and to hopefully receive advice. After the War, Kingsley Shaklebolt had offered him a job as the Head of the Department of Misuse of Muggle Artifacts. Seeing as Arthur was now a department head and his own boss, Harry hoped he would have advice concerning his own promotion.

Ginny was still a Chaser on the Holyhead Harpies’ team, but had threatened to retire if Harry got her pregnant again. In Harry’s life, Kingsley had just decided to promote him to a team leader role in the Auror department. He knew he was on a fast track to become Head Auror and he wanted to know the secrets behind being a boss his team would respect.

Everyone’s conversations halted when they heard the front door bang open and the herd of children stampe inside, closely followed by Remus and Tonks. Teddy and Victoire immediately rushed towards Molly and excitedly started to talk over one another, trying to share some news as fast as they could and leaving the adults confused.

“Hey, mum!” Charlie’s boisterous voice echoed around the house. “I hope you don’t mind that I brought my kids!”

Everyone froze as horrible flashbacks came to them at once. Charlie had said the exact same thing when he’d smuggled baby dragons home in onesies one Christmas. They’d burned the exterior of the Burrow and everyone reacted with the same fear now.

“Charlie Weasley!” Molly was the first to recover. “If you honestly want to tell me that you brought live dragons into my home again, I swear I don’t care how old you are, you’ll be getting the wooden spoon! Yes, you— oh, my!”

Suddenly, five little dragons flew into the kitchen to the excitement of the children who were jumping and trying to catch them in the air. Sorin, Charlie, and Hermione turned the corner laughing as the family stared in awe.

Sorin and Charlie were still in their work leathers. Charlie had a long sleeved white shirt with a leather vest and pants combo, while his high boots had a trace of mud at the heel. Hermione was wearing a pair of grey jeans and high boots of her own, as she paired it with a blue sweater matching Charlie’s eyes and yellow stripes across the chest and sleeves.

They’d barely entered the room before Sorin was by Percy’s side as they greeted each other quietly. Percy blushed as Sorin sweetly showered him with attention and affection.

“I’d love to present the newest product of Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, fireproof miniature dragons,” Charlie announced with a grin. “Courtesy of Bill and myself, it’s finally a product with more than two Weasleys attached to their development!”

The twins stood with a flourish and bowed to the group.

“We’re pleased to announce that the dragons should have a lifespan of five years before their enchantments need to be renewed — for a price, of course. We hope that the newest products of our pet line will make our little nieces and nephews good starter pets. These five are for Teddy, Victoire, James, Andrea, and Dominique. We’ll give Albus his once he’s able to do things like sit up on his own.”

While the entire family got excited over the announcement of the four brothers finally figuring out the dragon pets, one of the brothers stood off to the side with his arms wrapped around his curly haired wife.

Hermione stood in front of Charlie, leaning back against him. His arms came around her to frame her stomach and she smiled as she rubbed her slightly rounded bump — still small enough that you had to be looking for it to notice.

Hermione and Charlie had made a bet on who in the family would notice first. Charlie was certain it’d be Ginny, Bill, or Molly, but Harry had proven to be Hermione’s win as he was the first to turn away from the deliberate distraction to focus his gaze on her stomach.

He was the youngest Seeker in a century for a reason.

He quickly made a beeline to her side and excitedly asked his best friend, “Are you guys pregnant?”

Hermione bit her lip in a failed attempt to hold back her smile as she nodded happily.

Harry whooped loudly.

“That means all of our kids are going to go to Hogwarts together, Mione!”

“All?” Hermione asked with a raised brow.

Harry blushed and ducked his head as Hermione whipped around to stare at Ron whose saucer-wide eyes were ping-ponging between the wine glass in his hand and Luna’s stomach.

Molly screeched and fluttered back and forth for a moment, unsure which of her children to go to first as the rest of the family exploded in excited chatter.

Considering Hermione was already showing and Ron and Luna seemed clueless, Molly decided to make her way towards her curly-haired surrogate daughter first.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Molly exclaimed, excited. “How far along are you?”

“Close to nineteen weeks,” Hermione grinned fondly.

Ginny finished the math first and squealed as she charged Hermione. “You were pregnant at the wedding?”

“We had just found out,” Hermione promised her. “We confirmed the test less than twenty-four hours before I walked down the aisle. We wanted our wedding day to be about us and knew that three weeks was too soon to announce anyway. I hope you’ll forgive us for keeping it to ourselves for a bit?”

Ginny glared briefly before cracking into a smile to pull Hermione into a hug. “I’m just so excited,” she told her. “I can’t wait to meet my godson.”

“I actually wanted to talk about that,” Hermione hesitated and looked to Charlie for confirmation. He nodded and wrapped his arm around her waist. “Ginny is obviously the godmother as my female best friend and Charlie’s sister. But we want Percy to be the godfather and caretaker in case anything happens to us.”

The man in question froze as the entire family went quiet.

“What are you… Are you sure?” Percy was in shock. He’d accidentally found out about the pregnancy the previous month when he’d surprised Sorin with a visit, but that didn’t mean he expected to be named godfather to his older brother’s child.

“We’re both certain.” Charlie nodded. “We talked about it at length and we decided that you were the best fit for multiple reasons. Ryan, Ron, and Harry can duke it out for the title of godfather for the next kid, but we want you to be godfather to our oldest and to raise them if anything were to happen to us — Merlin forbid.”

“But why me?” Percy asked in absolute shock. “I figured you’d pick Bill or Hermione’s friends or even Ryan… Why would you—”

“Because you have always been there for me,” Hermione told him gently as she stepped forward to take his hand. “Even when I didn’t want or need you to. You supported me as a student and at the Ministry, and I know how much you love children despite your denial of the fact. Everyone else has kids or godchildren of their own and I wanted you to know that you’re loved just as much as everyone else. I want you to be the one who looks after my children in case anything happens to us because of how you’ve looked after me all of these years.”

Percy wasn’t too proud to say he felt choked up as he pulled the witch into a tight embrace. She started crying and he felt his own tears welling up in his eyes. He felt so blessed to have such a wonderful family love and accept him and he couldn’t wait to be the best godfather ever.

“Okay! Emotion-filled moments aside,” Charlie hollered. “I thought we were here to party and celebrate a reunion!”

For the next few hours, the entire family celebrated another Easter together as well as potential new additions to the family tree.

Hermione Weasley looked around at her family with love and felt so blessed that she’d discovered she was a witch when she was eleven. This family had accepted her as one of their own since she was twelve and she had never felt as peaceful as she did in her husband’s arms.

After hours of partying, Charlie noticed how tired Hermione was looking and announced that they had to be heading back to the Reserve.

“So soon?” Molly pouted.

“We’ll be back for a few months when I get closer to my due-date,” Hermione promised. “As good as the hospital at the Reserve is, I’d rather be surrounded by family for a few months before and after this little one decides to make their appearance.”

“I am planning on taking a paternity leave as well,” Charlie added. “We’ll be based in England for at least a few months starting in late August so you’ll get to enjoy our company through the holidays.”

Molly was mollified at that and wrapped them both in a tight hug before sending them on their way.

The pair left Sorin behind for his long weekend with Percy and made their way to the Apparition point. Hermione enchanted a slow-reacting Portkey so that it wouldn’t jerk them about as much with her baby expected soon.

Several minutes later, the pair landed in Robert and Tala’s parlour.

Tala was immediately on her feet, greeting Hermione with a hug. “How was the visit? How did Molly take the news?”

“Mum was surprised, but of course everyone was excited,” Charlie answered. “I told them that we planned to be there for our parental leave before and after the baby arrives.”

“I know we won’t be able to do that everytime we get pregnant, but we appreciate you letting us do that for the first,” Hermione said sweetly. “It will mean a lot to our families since I know they’ll be missing out on a lot of the day-to-day milestones of the kids growing up.”

“Does that mean you’re planning on having more than one rascal running around the Reserve?” Robert asked with a sly grin.

“Don’t cash in your bets yet, old man,” Charlie laughed. “Let us get through the first kid first.”

“Speaking of that, we should let you kids get home,” Tala said affectionately as she kissed Hermione on the cheek. 

“I’ll see you for lunch tomorrow,” Hermione promised as she also kissed the older woman on the cheek in farewell.

Charlie and Robert clasped hands and patted each other on the shoulder before Charlie collected their brooms.

The couple walked down the front steps of Robert’s cabin and mounted their broomsticks as they took off. They hadn’t been off the ground for thirty seconds before Charlie’s miniature dragons were flying alongside them.

As the couple quite literally flew off into the sunset, they shared a smile knowing they finally had everything they had ever dreamed of.

Notes:

And now, it is finished! I wrote this ending barely a few weeks after I had started. This massive story was my first NaNoWriMo in 2019. I officially started plotting it on September 19, 2019 and never dreamed it'd become the mammoth it has. I have grown to love Charlie and Hermione so much over the past year and will miss them desperately now that their story is done. I hope you've enjoyed reading as much as I've enjoyed writing them! Please leave your thoughts and opinions as they mean the world to me! Thank you so much for your loyalty and reviews! Love you all!

I especially want to thank some of my longest supporters whom I would not have been able to continue without - 469vfr, Amebb42, desiree1986, Shawnjoell, KittyE, krankykitty, omnenomnom, xXmizzAlecVolturiXx, TheaKnightley, SorceressofMagic, realjane, MzKinzyK, Joey99, Hermione4Life23, msmerlin and the entire Cauldron Discord, and many more who have been commenting encouraging words for weeks.

And thank you so much to the multiple artists who made art for this story! I love you so much and thank you for accepting my commissions! Especially to the incredibly talented Dralamys who made the stunning art for this final chapter!!!

Chapter 27: SMUT IMAGE BY ADA LOVELACED

Summary:

Charmione Smut by Ada Lovelaced.
this chapter is just an image and a note by author and artist.

Notes:

ONLY WARNING!
This "chapter" is just a straight-up smutty image of several of Charmione's activities done by the ever-wonderful Ada Lovelaced! There is a message from her at the end too! The longer you look, the more details there are! I love it so much!

"Hello from the artist! This author commissioned works from myself and other artists, and I am thrilled to be part of this collaboration. All of us use different interpretations of Hermione and I choose to envision her as a woman of color. The experiences of people of color are not interchangeable. The intention of this artwork is not to present a color blind view of characters, but to welcome many different interpretations of our favorite characters and interrogate our assumptions around race. A huge thank you to everyone that had a hand in bringing you this story and its artwork!" - Ada Lovelaced

Notes:

The Inspection won third place for the "Cotton Candy Award" and I won third place for "Best New Writer" in Granger Enchanted Awards 2021! Thank you so much for your support! Words cannot express how much I appreciate all of your support! Thank you for loving my story!

Notes:

I will literally do anything for kudos and reviews... Even commission a lot of great art and begging... LOTS of begging!!!

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of The Inspection