Based on characters created by J. K. Rowling

Chapter 1—The Mall

This was the first year in a long time that Charlie Weasley wasn't going home to England for Christmas. When he thought about it, this was the first year Charlie didn't want to go home for Christmas. He felt slightly guilty about that, but the family would probably bug him to insanity about when he was going to settle down, return to England permanently and marry a nice witch and have a bunch of cute red headed Weasley babies. He just wasn't in the mood to fight them off.

Mike Hendershot and his wife Lindsey invited him to share Christmas with them and their two children, Trudy and Mike Jr., this year. Mike was one of his best friends at the dragon preserve and was married to Lindsey who happened to be a muggle. Since Charlie had never spent a Christmas in America or around muggles, he was really looking forward to the holidays this year.

The witches in the front office of the dragon preserve threw a Christmas party for the wranglers and staff. The eggnog was heavily spiked with whiskey and the flirting was outrageous. Mistletoe adorned every corner of the room and seemed to appear above where ever Charlie and the rest of the wranglers were standing. They took it all in good fun and managed to sneak longer, more lingering kisses to the more eager witches. Charlie was sure some of the baked goods were spiked with low doses of love potions as well, not that any of the usually horny wranglers needed anything to enhance their already overcharged libidos. The party actually lasted longer than the two hours that had been set aside by the director, and the party moved to the wranglers' bunk house after everyone was pretty well lit.

Charlie hooked up with Dora, in scheduling who had been after him all year. While he normally didn't date women he worked with, this wasn't exactly a date, he rationalized. He was hoping she was just drunk enough to wake up the next morning filled with remorse so she wouldn't bother him any more. He didn't want to give her the idea that their one-time coupling would turn into anything permanent. It wasn't that he didn't like her; he did. He decided after the breakup with his last girl friend, he didn't need the bull shit or the drama that normally accompanied a relationship. He swore he was done with it all.

Unfortunately for Charlie, Dora passed out cold before he could wrangle her into his room. His roommate, Jack was already occupying their room and Charlie was forced to wait, but by the time Jack and his new friend finally came out, Dora was snoring loudly in a chair by the common room fireplace. Charlie was more amused than anything and wasn't too disappointed. He certainly wasn't about to take advantage of an unconscious woman, even he wouldn't sink that low. Next time he wouldn't ply her with so much alcohol.

It was getting too late to start up with another girl, so Charlie went to bed. He had to work the next day, and then he'd be off the next five days, through Christmas. Mike had invited him to stay the whole week with them and experience the fun of Christmas shopping in a muggle mall. Because he had no idea what to expect, Charlie was looking forward to last minute shopping with Lindsey and the two kids. Mike politely begged off from the trip; he'd already experienced that pleasure. He just grinned when Charlie asked what it was like in a shopping mall two days before Christmas. His only words of advice were, "Gird your loins."

After a fairly easy day patrolling the preserve north and eastern borders, he went back to this room. Skipping dinner, he packed a few clothes and apparated to Mike and Lindsey's house.

Their house was located in a quiet muggle neighborhood on a cul-de-sac. Charlie came up through the back way which was abutted by an open field. Trudy was outside waiting for him. She waved happily as he walked up to the back fence.

"How's my girl?" he asked, letting himself into the yard.

"I'm very well, thank you, Mr. Weeswee," she said politely. "And how are you?"

"Couldn't be better," he said, holding her hand as they headed for the back door. "Are you excited about Christmas?" he asked conversationally.

"Oh yes, sir. I can't wait. Mommy said you'd take us to see Santa Claus at the mall tomorrow," she exclaimed in her high pitched five-year-old voice.

"She did? Well, then I guess I'd better do that."

"Is Santa Claus a wizard?" she asked, opening the back door.

"I think he must be, don't you?"

"Oh yes," she said seriously.

"Well, we'll find out, won't we?"

"Find out what?" asked Lindsey as she greeted Charlie with a quick kiss on the cheek.

"If Santa's a wizard," Trudy said happily. "Mr. Weeswee says he must be. I think so, too. How else can he give presents to all the good little boys and girls?"

Lindsey smiled. "But you're not going to ask him, right? That would be impolite." Lindsey said quickly, giving Charlie a pointed look.

Charlie understood her meaning. Trudy was an exceptionally bright witch, and Mike and Lindsey weren't ready to unleash her on an unsuspecting muggle-mall Santa Claus. Her parents told her that she was very special and wasn't allowed to tell people about her powers because they wouldn't understand. Because her mother was a muggle, Trudy knew that not everyone was magical like her and her dad and brother.

Mike had fallen asleep in his favorite chair. Lindsey kissed him on his forehead and he woke up with a smile.

"Charlie's here," she said.

"That was quick," Mike said sitting up. "I just barely beat you here." He got up and stretched. "Want a beer?"

"Absolutely." He said, sitting down on the couch across from Mike's chair while Mike went into the kitchen. Lindsey sat down in the middle of the living room floor and played with the baby, Mike, Jr. Mikey, as his dad called him, was a little over a year old and was beginning to walk. Mike told Charlie that he was beginning to show his magical powers. He liked to make balls spin and would accio his pacifier or bottle if his mom was too slow. For a while, Mike couldn't tell if he was doing it himself or whether Trudy was just being helpful. He discovered that Mike Jr. was indeed a wizard. This caused some problems between him and Lindsey. It was rough enough for her having one spirited witch, now there were two magical children to take care of.

"Did Mike tell you what it would be like in the mall tomorrow?" Lindsey asked.

Charlie nodded his head.

"It's going to be crowded. Can you handle it?"

Charlie nodded. He was a dragon wrangler, for goodness sake. A building full of muggles would be a piece of cake. "Sure," he said. "I'm looking forward to it."

Lindsey smiled and nodded. "Okay, if you're sure. We'll leave right after breakfast tomorrow." She grimaced. "Uh, Charlie, would you mind if Jessica came along with us? I kinda sorta asked her without thinking."

Jessica was Charlie's ex-muggle girlfriend and Lindsey's cousin. They were about the same age and were best friends as well. Jessica had dumped Charlie after seeing their picture on the cover of a wizard magazine kissing passionately.

"Does she know I'm coming?" he asked, cautiously.

Lindsey nodded. "Yes, she does."

Charlie sat back and smiled. Maybe she had forgiven him, he thought. After all, they were both adults. "Good. Yeah, it's fine." He smiled bigger.

"Oh, and she said not to get any ideas." Lindsey grinned when she said that.

Over dinner they debated the pros and cons of bringing Mikey along on their shopping trip. He wasn't a bad baby as far as traveling was concerned, but he was a wizard and impatient at that. If he didn't experience instant gratification, there was a good chance he would use his magical powers at a most inconvenient time.

"Well, you're going to have to take him or get a sitter, honey, because I have to work." Mike said.

"We can handle him," said Charlie, helpfully. "Surely three adults can handle one baby. Besides, he'll enjoy seeing Father Christmas, er, Santa Claus."

Once they got to the mall, they had to wait over an hour to get close to Santa. Charlie waved Jessica and Lindsey away and told them to shop while he stood in line. Taking advantage of the situation, they turned and ran before Charlie could change his mind. Trudy was very good waiting to talk to Santa. She played with Mikey and kept him distracted while the line inched along. She waited her turn patiently and jumped into Santa's lap, recited what she wanted for Christmas and posed prettily for the picture.

Mikey, on the other hand, screamed at the top of his lungs the minute Charlie tried to hand him over to Santa. He held on to Charlie like an orangutan holding on to its mother. Charlie didn't believe that one little human could cry that loud or that long. His mother was no where in sight. Women were beginning to glare at Charlie as he bounced Mikey upside down trying to get him distracted enough to stop crying. He was in a muggle mall and couldn't use magic to quiet him. Finally, Trudy found his pacifier and stuck it in Mikey's mouth. He sniffled a couple of times, and then sucked happily on the pacifier. Charlie turned him right side up and patted him awkwardly on his back.

"Fuck!" Charlie swore loudly, turning away from the crowd of women who were staring at him, which made Trudy laugh.

"You said a very bad word, Mr. Weeswee. Nice kids don't say words like that." She told him haughtily.

"I'm sorry, Trudy," he apologized.

Mikey was once again happy. He bounced up and down in Charlie's arms and pulled his hair, which had come loose from the leather strap he used to tie it back, desperately trying to fit it into his tiny mouth.

Charlie had not noticed before just how many people were bustling around in the mall while they were in line to see Santa, but the longer he stood in one place waiting for Lindsey and Jessica, the more people seemed to be crowding around him. He was beginning to feel claustrophobic. He had never seen so many muggles in his life. He was desperately trying to hold on to Trudy while trying to get Mikey to let go of his hair. He was being bumped, poked, and jostled around.

Trudy, taking advantage of the moment, decided this was the time to pull Charlie to the food court.

Charlie shook his head. "We have to stay here, Trudy."

"But I'm hungry, Mr. Weeswee. If I don't eat I'm going to faint dead away. Please." She started to jump up and down.

"Come on, Trudy," he said frustrated. "Cut me some slack, please. Where's your mother? I'll get you something to eat."

She seemed to think about it for a moment. "Okay. I want a big pretzel, please. They're over there." She pointed in the direction of the food court. "See?"

"Okay, but don't say anything to your mother. Promise?"

She nodded happily.

Charlie discreetly pointed his wand from inside his pocket and whispered, "Accio, pretzel." Unbelievably, nobody seemed to notice a large pretzel floating across the room. It landed softly in Charlie's hand. He handed the pretzel to Trudy.

"Remember, you promised you won't say anything about this, right, Trudy?"

"Say what, Charlie?" A voice from behind him said. He turned around to find Lindsey standing there.

"Oh, thank God, there you are! I thought we'd lost you." He ignored her question.

Lindsey was distracted by Mikey who was bouncing and waving wildly on Charlie's hip. "Hey sweetie," she said, taking her son back into her arms. "Were you a good boy?" She cooed.

Trudy shook her head sharply. "No ma'am, he was not. He cried when he saw Santa. He wouldn't pose for a picture or anything." Trudy felt smug tattling on her little brother.

"Was Mr. Weasley good?" Jessica asked, smiling broadly.

"Oh yes, ma'am. He gave me this." She proudly held up the pretzel.

"Did he now?" Lindsey turned to Charlie. "I didn't know you had real money." She said, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Of course I have real money," Charlie snorted indignantly. "I am totally prepared to shop like a muggle. You didn't think I'd come to a muggle mall without money, did you?"

"Sorry, Charlie. I didn't mean to insult you." Lindsey said.

"No offense taken," he said cheerily. "You guys ready to eat?" he asked. "I'm starving."

"Are you going to give mommy and Jessica a pretzel the way you gave one to me?" Trudy said.

Charlie shook his head quickly. "We're going to go to a restaurant. I'm sure your mommy doesn't even want a pretzel." Laughing nervously, he quickly led them into the food court and walked until he found a nice sit down restaurant. "This looks good." He said.

"This is a Hooters™ Restaurant, Charlie," Lindsey said.

"What is that?" He held the door open for the women but they wouldn't go inside. "It's a sports bar. The waitresses wear really short shorts and tight shirts."

"Really?" He was thinking, so? Charlie opened the door again and looked inside. "Nice," he said, admiring the women. "Very nice. Oh, probably not, huh? I get it. Okay, what do you suggest?"

They settled for a quiet Mexican restaurant. Charlie started to order tequila, but changed his mind and ordered a beer instead. He bought a beer for Jessica and Lindsey and Trudy drank milk.

After the waitress had taken their order and placed the complimentary salsa and chips on the table, Charlie relaxed a little. He watched Jessica scooped the salsa onto a chip and put it into her mouth. Her mouth, thought Charlie. It was exquisite. He missed kissing those lips. He wondered if she'd ever forgive him enough to give him another chance. She seemed to be reading his mind because she took another big bite and smiled at him seductively.

He leaned over and wiped a bit of salsa that had dribbled on her chin. "I've missed you," he whispered, gazing at her perfect face.

"I've missed you, too." She said honestly. She softly put her hand on top of his. "A lot."

Lindsey looked at both of them and rolled her eyes. She cleared her throat. Charlie ignored her, but Jessica snapped out of whatever daze she was in and removed her hand quickly.

"So, Charlie," said Lindsey. "How do you like the mall?"

"It's fascinating, really. But where did all the people come from? I'm never seen so many people in my whole life; pushing and shoving. My God, it's a wonder we got out of there alive. I think I'd rather wrangle a nesting female naked than go to a mall two days before Christmas. It is positively scary."

Jessica and Lindsey laughed lightly.

During lunch, Jessica was telling Lindsey and Charlie about the Christmas show she was going to do at a local children's hospital. She and some artist friends were visiting sick children in the hospital and give out presents. She complained that her Santa had bailed on her at the last minute so they were going to have to do with just the elves.

"I'll be your Santa," Charlie volunteered quickly. He was looking for an excuse to see her again. "I'd love to do that." He said.

"No, Charlie, I couldn't ask you to do that," she said. "It's really a pain in the neck. I wouldn't ask you to do that. But that's very kind of you."

"Really, Jessica. I wouldn't mind a bit. It'll be fun."

"Charlie, these are very sick children. It's hard to watch them sometimes. Some of them are so sick that they're not going to live much longer. I couldn't ask you to do that." Jessica said. "But thank you."

"I would really love to do this for you," he said. As noble as he sounded, he was only trying to get on Jessica's good side. If he could play Santa to a bunch of sick kids, she might give him another chance. "Please," he said, taking her hand. "I won't take no for an answer."

Jessica looked at him for a long time. She was arguing with herself. Although the request itself was not difficult, there were a lot of other considerations. If Jessica spent any time alone with Charlie, she honestly didn't know if she would be able to resist him. He was a fascinating man; a wonderful lover and he made her laugh.

Finally Jessica sighed loudly. "Oh, all right," she said. "It's tomorrow morning. I'll pick you up at Lindsey's house if you're sure. I have a Santa Suit for you. I'll bring it with me."

Charlie grinned, nodding his head. "Wonderful," he said clapping his hands together.

Charlie spent the rest of the day with a smug look on his face. Jessica was willing to give him another chance, and he swore he wouldn't blow it this time. Jessica, however, refused to look at him. Charlie knew she was weakening.

Once they got back to Lindsey's house, Trudy bounced happily to the door; Lindsey fussed with taking a sleeping Mikey out of his car seat, while Charlie and Jessica helped with the mountain of packages in the trunk. Charlie lingered behind, waiting to get Jessica alone.

"Don't even try," she said holding her hands up.

"Try what?" he asked innocently.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Charlie. You don't play fair."

"I didn't know I was supposed to fair play. I miss you, baby," he turned on the charm. She couldn't resist him too much longer.

Jessica stayed for supper. She refused to be alone with Charlie, although she was not very obvious about it. When Charlie decided to help wash the dishes, Jessica was already in the kitchen loading the dishwasher. As soon as he came in she scurried out looking for dirty dishes.

Mike refused to get involved, but Lindsey made sure that Jessica was never alone for more than a few minutes at a time. She saw that her cousin was weakening, and she was a witness to what Jessica went through when she broke up with Charlie the first time. She did not want to see Jessica go through that nightmare again. If Jessica told her to back off, she would, but right now she was sticking to her like glue.

"Do you want me to go with you tomorrow and help out?" Lindsey asked suddenly as they were relaxing in the living room.

Jessica looked at Charlie, and then shook her head. "No, there's going to be about a bunch of us there. Thanks, though." She smiled, understanding what Lindsey was getting at.

Jessica stayed quite late, reluctant to leave, Charlie thought. Although she basically ignored him, she was still in the same room; she didn't have to stay as long as she did. When she got up to leave, Charlie jumped up, too, determined to walk her to her car. Lindsey started to follow, but Charlie stopped her.

"I'm not going to kidnap her or molest her or anything," he said quietly. "I'd just like to say good night. Do you mind?" This whole protecting her from bad Charlie was beginning to grate on his nerves. He wasn't some evil magician twirling his mustache standing over the helpless Belle as she's tied to the railroad tracks. What did they think he was going to do to her? Hypnotize her? Cast a spell over her, rendering her completely at his mercy? Actually, he thought, that doesn't sound so bad, toying with the idea briefly in his head.

The coolness in his voice surprised Lindsey. She backed off immediately. "Sorry," she said, looking at Jessica, who smiled at her and nodded slightly.

Charlie followed Jessica to her car that was parked in front on the house. Jessica looked a little nervous, but it was she who wrapped her arms around Charlie and kissed him.

"I miss what we had, Charlie," she said finally releasing him. He didn't want the kiss to end, but let go of her.

"Me, too." He said honestly.

"Let's take it slow, okay? The whole wizard thing scares the life out of me, and I'm not ready for the magical world just yet."

He nodded. He had to touch her. He reached out and took a strand of her hair and played with it.

"I won't let them get near you," he said, meaning the wizard press from his world who had printed that near-pornographic picture of the two of them kissing on her front stoop. "I promise. I'll protect you."

"I just never want to be humiliated like that again." She said, holding his hand.

"Believe me, I understand." The whole cover page photograph was an embarrassment to him, too. He had to explain the picture to his Quidditch team mates and apologize to his team. Not one of his finest moments. "It will never happen again." He promised her.

He kissed her again, then pulled away. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

She grinned. "Be ready to go at nine sharp. I'll give you the Santa suit and everything when I get here. Thank you for doing this, Charlie. You have no idea what this means to me."

He bowed politely. "My pleasure."

He kissed her again and helped her into her car, closing the door after her. He thumped the roof of the car and turned around and walked back toward the house. Lindsey, he noticed, was looking out of the window. She quickly pulled the drapes shut when she saw him look at her.

Fuck her, he thought, and went into the house. He grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and took it outside on the deck. He watched the stars and drank his beer in silence.

A/N: Okay, I know there're no Hooters™ in any mall in Las Cruces, NM, but there is a restaurant there, so give me a break.--Rita