Proof? What Proof?
There was a discreet house, hidden by the vegetation somewhere in the valley. It was far away from the neat beaten path; yet, Charlie could get to it easily. This was due to the force of habit and the laborious work of everyday life. One had to take side roads and walk amongst tall grass to get to the Draconian Eurasian Research Centre.
The Centre had become his home a long time ago, he couldn't imagine what it would be like to live somewhere else, or to live another way. Charlie collapsed onto one of the Common Room's armchairs and tried to get some well-deserved rest after his long day of work.
Joris sat across him. He took a sip of his butterbeer.
"I've got some news for you. A newbie came to the Centre this afternoon."
"Where does he come from?"
"Don't know. He asked if we were looking for someone, if there was work for him here. Well, there's always work to do! So, Amanda told him that, and you know how much he asked? A bed and some bread! What a strange guy…"
Charlie was not impressed by his speech, he knew his predisposition to overstatement.
"What's his name?" asked Charlie.
"That's the best part! You'll like it!" Joris took a dramatic pause. "Damian."
Charlie pondered the information for a while, thinking about getting a butterbeer for himself.
"What a coincidence, really…" he muttered.
Charlie did not hear about the new guy this day. He even almost forgot about him until he discovered a shadow following him on the beaten path.
"Are you Damian?" He called.
"I am."
He was a thin guy dressed in discreet cheap clothes. Hopefully, it was summer, otherwise the poor guy would have been frozen on the spot. It was strange to find a wizard with a British accent here in Romania, and he didn't seem fit for the work. Yet Charlie thought that everyone deserves a chance. He shook his hand.
"Happy to meet you, I'm Charlie. Where do you need to work today?"
"Amanda said I had to go to the saddlery, and see with the one in charge what I ought to do.
"Good, that's me. I'll show you what you need to do and teach you the basis today, then we'll see if you're fit for the job."
Someone had already shown him around the Centre on the day before. Charlie showed him the different places where he would need to work. He was about to show him how a worn-out saddle looked like and what needed to be done about it, when they heard a powerful growl.
Charlie had a huge grin and lead Damian outside. A dragon was flying low in the sky above their head.
"Please stay behind and close to me. He won't hurt you."
The proud creature slowly descended to the ground and landed a few dozen feet away from them. The dragon gave another growl and Charlie heard a surprised squeak coming from the newbie.
"You've never met a fully-grown dragon before, have you?"
"No…" Damian admitted, his voice quavering.
"This beautiful beast here is called Octav. He's an Antipodean Opaleye. He shouldn't be here, mind you. His kind lives in New Zealand, but he once travelled to Australia and had a life full of adventures. He was in a terribly bad shape when wizards there found him. He was sent here to recover but… well! He never wanted to leave…"
While talking, Charlie made a few steps towards the dragon and checked that Damian was not doing anything dangerous.
"You see, there are plenty of dragons here. We are a few miles away from the coast, and there is a little mountain west of here… and plenty of forests just for them. That would be like paradise for any dragon, but they sometimes become a bit… territorial, to say the least… and end up fighting each other. Sometimes, they simply grow lonely. Wizards see them as monsters, and they are, in a way; but they are mostly harmless: they come to us willingly when they are in a bad shape or need a bit of company. Our job is to take care of them. And sometimes, if they allow us, we may ride them."
Octav made a few steps towards them, sniffing the air.
"Don't move! He's checking if he can trust you. He knows me well and he's an old fellow. He won't harm you, but you'll have to do what I say."
The newbie was trembling a little, but he gave him a nod. He seemed quite determined and it was enough for Charlie.
He closed the distance between them and Octav and resumed his speech. He showed Damian what needed to be done: as it was, Octav had been burned on his chest.
"As I said, he must have been lonely, or particularly reckless. I think he met a female Romanian Longhorn. They are quite aggressive after the mating season…"
Charlie showed Damian how to bathe the dragon. It was Charlie's job, but the newbie would help him most of the time. He sent Damian looking for some disinfectant, a healing potion and some balm.
Once they were done with Octav, they took a few steps back and the old creature tilted its head before taking off.
"Octav is a nice dragon. Sometimes, he makes me think of a dog…"
Damian was still trembling a bit, but he was still eager to help and learn.
"Dragons won't ever harm you… as long as you remember a few things: stay away from them, mainly because female Romanian Longhorns are violent, but also because there are both a Norwegian Ridgeback and a Peruvian Vipertooth living here too. The latter is a human eater… technically… The one we have here has never tasted human flesh, so she doesn't know how good it is… yet… You might ride a dragon one day, but never ever go near the cliff: dragons know how to make your death painful and ugly if they resent you…"
.oOo.
Life at the Centre was a bit tough, but working with dragons was wonderful. Charlie was very happy to receive some help from Damian. He was still fearing dragons but he was hard-working. The saddlery had never been cleaner nor tidier. It was impeccable and well organized. Charlie was proud.
A few weeks passed, and on one evening, Charlie found Damian sitting down on a fence, grazing at the setting sun. He was not much of a talker. There were a few orangey clouds high in the sky, and dragons flying above the valley. Charlie knew almost nothing of Damian. He had been a Hufflepuff, graduated from Hogwarts, and was looking for an adventure in Europe. Charlie knew it was a lie: Damian had nothing of an adventurer. Yet, he could also say that he trusted him. There was something about Damian's behaviour that made Charlie sure he could be trusted. It was a really strange feeling, trusting a liar…
"Why did you leave the United Kingdom?"
Charlie sat down on the fence beside Damian. He waited for an answer in silence, grazing at the dragons too.
"There was a war", Damian finally said. "You know how it was, everyone knows. I… I have witnessed terrible things and there wasn't… I didn't know what to do. I was alone, and there was the Ministry, the newspapers and all that… I felt so helpless. I don't want to live that ever again… I'll do everything I can."
"You know… It's been a year… The world has changed."
"That's what they say." Damian rose up and stepped away, walking back towards the Centre.
The next morning, Octav paid them another visit. Charlie quickly saw that he was particularly playful. He kept nudging them and was in a brilliant shape.
He helped Damian fetch a double saddle. It was too heavy for him to carry alone. He showed him how to get close to the dragon, how to calm him and eventually how to install the saddle on the beast's back.
Charlie needed only a few moments to convince Damian to ride the dragon. As it was, the newbie was rather curious about it, and Charlie helped him climb to the saddle. He joined him just behind the dragon's neck and then next moment, Octav pushed from the ground with both his legs and wings, and they took off. They could feel the powerful movements of the creature, Charlie leaned forward, trying to find a better position as Octav accelerated. He could feel Damian behind him, tightening its grip on the saddle and, well, himself. The dragon was careful with his passengers, flying calmly above the forest. They could feel the air moving around them, hear it on the dragon's wings. He was taking them to the mountain.
.oOo.
Charlie was reading his mail with a butterbeer. He was enjoying a bit of rest in the Common room with Joris, Amanda, Damian and a few others. They had had to deal with the Peruvian Vipertooth and the day had been quite trying.
"Ah! Joris! I'm a lucky man! What a wonderful day!"
"What is it this time?"
"I won't see your silly face for a full week: I have to come back to England. My sister is getting married!" Charlie's voice was tainted with euphoria. "Damian, do you feel like you can take my place for a week? If it's too much, I can…"
"No, that's fine. It's not a problem, I can manage."
Charlie was beaming.
"My little Ginny is about to get married to the great Harry Potter!"
They organized a little party to celebrate the news. They all needed to relax a bit and Charlie was happy to play with his friends. Damian was the only one to remain quiet. He pretexted to fell exhausted to retire to his room and get some sleep. Charlie like him a lot, and he was a bit worried. It seems like he was happier now than when he had joined them and that made Charlie feel useful. He couldn't help but think he had somehow managed to help Damian. This was mainly due to the huge smile on his face after the ride with Octav.
Yet, there were still too many secrets about Damian, and a past too hard to bear alone. Charlie wanted to know more about him; he wanted to solve this mystery. When he found Damian's room slightly open and his room completely empty, he couldn't refrain his curiosity. He thought Damian must have been under the shower.
Charlie found almost no personal effects, apart from a few clothes in the wardrobe. There was nothing on the desk. Charlie opened the empty drawer and it looked strange in a certain way. Charlie had the same desk in his room, and the drawer seemed bigger. He used some spells Bill taught him one day and the delusion faded away. There was a bunch of miscellaneous papers. He could see some old newspapers, and an ID card. He could recognise Damian's face on it, but it was not Damian's name.
Keith Graham; born 27 April 1978.
What was that? Charlie took a glance at the newspapers: they were dating back from September 1998. There was a list of wanted former partisans of the Dark Side. Charlie had an awful feeling about that. He found Damian's name on it.
Charlie came back to the wardrobe. He remembered seeing a Hogwarts scarf there, with Hufflepuff colours.
"Revelio," he murmured.
Charlie watched as the thread slowly changed its colour, turning into something way greener. He sat on the bed, thinking about some of their late conversations. About what Damian had said of his past. About Damian.
Charlie spent a few hours in Amanda's office, which she shared with Janice.
.oOo.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Charlie woke up with a painful groan. He was in Amanda's office; why was he sleeping here?
Bang!
There was someone knocking on the window. Charlie stood up and opened it to a haughty man.
"Good morning, who are you sir?"
"Auror Clarke, Interpol. We think a fugitive has come here a few weeks ago, his name is Keith Graham, but he might have given you another one."
"What has he done?"
"He was a known Snatcher, a You-Know-Who follower. He is a dangerous rascal. Are you offering us your help?"
Charlie knew the Ministry's policies about Voldemort.
"Well, there is this strange new guy, Damian. He has come here five weeks ago and I talked to him once. I don't really like him. I will check if he is in his room, otherwise, he may already be at work. His planning is on the wall to your left."
The Auror nodded and Charlie calmly closed the window. A moment later, he was running to Damian's room. It was empty—well, the wardrobe was. He must have flown away.
Charlie cursed aloud and Apparated.
The common room was empty, the Auror would have a hard time finding their way to the saddlery. It was five in the morning and everyone was quietly asleep. Charlie Apparated in the saddlery and immediately noticed one saddle missing. Damian must have fled on a dragon, his magic could have been traced if he had Apparated.
There was a huge cage near the saddlery, usually empty. That day, however, there was a Peruvian Vipertooth in it. Dragons are intelligent creature. Well, this one might be really dangerous, but she knew Charlie had saved her baby once. She trusted him, that's why he had been the one who helped her relax, the day before, and not the one imprisoning her.
She let him climb on his back. Charlie lowered his head along the dragon's neck and opened the door with his wand.
Olga was a fast dragon. The fastest one here. It didn't take long for him to find Damian. Octav was a brave dragon, albeit a slow and old one. They were above the forest, far away from the mountain. Damian had seen him and was trying to fly away. Octav was afraid of the Peruvian Vipertooth, so Charlie had a hard time trying to outmanoeuvre them.
He pushed Olga a bit more when they got near the end of the forest. He could see the Black See's water. It took him a few more moments to repel Damian to the cliff.
Charlie drew out his wand and casted a sequence of powerful offensive spells. One of them hit Damian. Charlie barely had time to cast another spell before Damian fell off Octav's back to the void.
Charlie prayed and watched as Damian's body fell along the cliff to an inlet. He made Olga land on the cliff. The Aurors were just arriving there, alerted by the attack spells.
"Step away from the dragon," Charlie shouted. "She's hungry…"
He ran to the cliff and watched the sea.
"I'm sorry, Auror Clarke. I thought I might give you a hand when I saw he was gone. I didn't think the dragon would swerve."
Charlie looked panicked. The Auror reached the cliff, staying away from the dragon, and took a look down at the sea. He couldn't see the inlet from where he was. He cast a few spells with his wand.
"His body is down there, and he has not Apparated. That's proof enough he's dead. Well, we really appreciate your help. Azkaban is too full lately, so… Have a nice day."
.oOo.
Charlie quickly relieved Olga from the saddle and waited for the Aurors to leave the Centre. He fetched the most resistant rope he could think about at the Centre and came back to the cliff. He rappelled down to the inlet. Damian was here, conscious, almost healthy and alive. Charlie's petrificus totalus and arresto momentum had worked well. Charlie took his wand and freed him.
"Why did you run away?"
"You hate me. I was on the wrong side during the war. I didn't know you were a Weasley until you talked about your sisters' marriage. Are the Aurors waiting for me?"
"No, they aren't."
Damian sighed with relief.
"You're a lucky guy Damian, you know that? When you arrived at the Centre, you never saw Janice. Amanda and she simply hate each other, but they share the same office. They fight all day long and, trust me, it's a pain in the–annoying. Janice is pregnant, so she left the Centre a few days before you came. And Amanda would never do her job."
Charlie observed Damian's quizzical look.
"Before you came, there was another Damian here. He had a lot of good will, but he was not patient and had really bad manners. He rode a dragon on his own. Two days later, we discovered his corpse here." Charlie pointed out a reef a few feet away from them. "We buried him, but Janice had to do the paperwork about the incident. So… you see… The file is still empty on Janice's desk. And you're here."
"So… What you are saying… I'm dead?" A smile was slowly setting on his lips. "I'm free…" This looked to be surreal for him. "Why?" he asked.
"Because I believe people can change. I believe in forgiveness. You are a good person, today. I know you for a few weeks now, and that is the only proof I need. I know what the Ministry does, I know how afraid people are in England. But you have the right to win your forgiveness."
Damian must have been on the run since the end of the war. He was on the verge of crying there.
"Do you prefer being called Damian or Keith?"
"Damian. Definitively."
Charlie helped him get back to its feet.
"I think we need some well-deserved rest… but before that, we need to find Octav. He must have been scared to death."
They Apparated away.
Wordcount: 2994 (according to word without this note).
[The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition] This text is written for "(Season 6) Game Day - Round 2", I stand as a Beater 2 for Chudley Canons. I had to write a story that takes place in the sky or somewhere that houses broom equipment. He hope there is enough about it, I forgot about the specific broom thing, and thought the saddlery was good. Here are the prompts I used : (character) Charlie Weasley, (word) proof.
"Cap ou pas cap ?" from La gazette des bonbons aux citrons: Write an English text using at least twenty irregular verbs.
"English Writing Prompts - Les Défis en Anglais" from La gazette des bonbons aux citrons: Use the words rascal, haughty and quaver.
"[Challenge] Build the Burrow" from The Golden Snitch: Paintbrush: Write about a character covering up a big secret.
"[Challenge] Ollivander's Wand Shop" from The Golden Snitch: 8–9 inch: Write about a Gryffindor character.
"[Challenge] Through the Universe " from The Golden Snitch: 11 - Apparent Magnitude — (object) wand
I am a student of Tawartet, Uagadou for The Golden Snitch.