I just want to thank everyone for their comments! please keep it up, it really is my inspiration. I just wanted to give a special shout out to punkyredhead for all of the great reviews: you've really been wonderfully supportive, I can't thank you enough for your thoughtful and inspiring comments!

After breakfast and packing up camp Charlie and Hermione set out hiking into the jungle, a shrunken map in her hands and small beaded handbag held comically in his large palm as he refused to wear it around his wrist. Charlie followed Hermione for a good hour neither of them saying much just marching on their way. Often Hermione had to blast their way through the dense jungle and animal noises could be heard all around them. They avoided populated areas for the most part once walking well out of their way to avoid walking through a field of odd spiky fruits Hermione identified as pineapples. After an admittedly rigorous stretch of loose lava rock Hermione halted hearing Charlie yell out in pain and crumple to the sharp rocky ground. She swirled around wand raised body tensed in search of their attacker, but when she found none she rushed down to him.

"Your leg?" he nodded eyes shut clearly in pain. Knowing nothing else to do but attempt to comfort him she pulled him into her and held him as the spasm subsided and he began to relax into her. She stroked his hair and murmured into his ear until he tried to push himself up again. Within seconds he was back on the ground grimacing in pain and frustration.

"This is why you shouldn't have brought me Hermione. I told you I can't do this." His tone was harsher than he had intended with his frustration as his fiery blue eyes stare her down, but she knew it wasn't aimed at her.

"Charlie, this is why we're here. I don't care if it take us a month to climb this hill alone, it's ok."

"No it's not, I'm useless, what if something happens? I can't protect you like this Hermione, I'm dead weight and it's so Fucking frustrating." He was shouting now his anger and frustration boiling over, and she could see it in his eyes when he became more dragon then man. Wanting to give him some space, but not come across as scared she took at step back, but kept within his reach.

His frustration poured over and he turned away from her and began pummeling the mounds of glass sharp volcanic rock known as AA into powder. She couldn't see him and she was too worried about angering him to move, but the splatters of blood that flew through the air told her that even if it was the strength of a dragon that was causing the entire mountain to vibrate he did not have the strength of hide and scales to protect him. As the shaking continued the loose AA began to fall causing an avalanche of loose stones. Hermione whipped out her want screaming "Wingardium Leviosa" and forcing the avalanche of stone to stop in mid air. The more that fell the more she held afraid that if it fell all at once she wouldn't be able to stop it. When he finally stopped pounding the earth and looked at her she could see that his eyes were yellow and slitted like a cat's. He roared his frustration, and she could see his shoulder muscles rippling under his tight black t-shirt, and knew that if he had wings he would have taken flight. He tried to push himself off the ground with both legs and roared again in pain.

Hermione was beginning to sweat. The effort of holding up a mountain of rock taking it's toll on her as she tried to split her attention between Charlie and the avalanche he caused. He was on all fours now, his forearms resting on the powdered remains of AA and his knees crumpled under him head hung low in defeat.

"Charlie?" she asked quietly. He didn't look up at her just drove his fist into the ground one more time as hard as he could. Her attention lapsing as she concentrated on him she had to immediate refocus on holding up more of the mountain as it began to fall. Suddenly she was glad that the dragon tattoo only covered his back and not his whole body like hers, and if she had had the brain cells to spare at that moment, she would have worried how animalistic she was capable of becoming.

"I'm sorry" he said not looking at her forehead in the powdered stone as he rested on hands and knees defeated. "I lost my temper, Hermione don't you see? This is why I shouldn't be here; I could hurt you. I'm not safe."

"Charlie, Honey, this is not the time, I need you to help me right now." Hermione said patiently as if she was talking to a child.

That made his head snap up and he reeled backwards at the sight of half the mountain's worth of AA levitating in mid air.

"What the hell?"

"There was a little bit of an avalanche. I need you to take your wand and lower the rocks a group at a time please. Like now." She said an edge of panic in her voice as her hands began to tremble the stones along with them.

Charlie whipped out his wand and from where he sat on the ground concentrated on sending the rocks back to the ground making sure that they didn't slide once he placed them and slowly Hermione felt some of the strain being lifted from her. As her load lightened she was able to start to set some stones down herself until they had the entire mountain resettled.

"We need to get out of here. Sorry, but you're not going to like this." She said before muttering, "Levecorpus" and watching as his good leg was jerked up in the air and he hung upside-down in front of him. She began guiding him as fast as she could go down the mountain and away from the unstable rocks at its upper level running in his wake.

She ran until they were far enough away that any rockslide wouldn't affect them before she stopped and let him down. The blood had rushed to his head and she had to help him sit up as his ears pounded. "I'm sorry" she said summoning her bag too her and pulling out the dittany.

Opening the bottle she dabbed its contents on his hands where he had split the skin to the bone. When she was finished treating him she finally sat back and gave herself a moment to rest. He hadn't said anything since the mountainside, and she was worried about him.

"Are you okay?" She asked looking up at him stroking her hand over his cheek.

"We need to get to a town." He said eyes closed muscles locked his breaths heavy and labored.

"Why? Where are you hurt?" She said franticly running her hands over him searching for injuries.

"I'm fine Hermione, I'm going home."
"What?" she said hurt.

Finally he looked up at her and his eyes were all flames and steel as he said, "I almost killed you, us, I'm worse than a hindrance, I'm a danger to you. I won't let anyone be a danger to you, myself included. I'm going home Hermione, now."

"Charlie, you can't go." She said no trepidation in her voice. She was not begging him; she was commanding him.

"And why the Hell not?" He demanded anger flaring again.

"Because you said you wouldn't leave me until I asked, and I'm not asking." She said softly running her and along the side of his face tracing under his eye, his cheekbone, his lips, his jaw.

His eyes softened until she could see the pain behind them, "Ask me Hermione. Beg me to leave, tell me to never come back. Tell me I scare you, that you can't handle the temper of a Dragon. Tell me I'm dangerous; tell me you would be better with a man not an animal."

"I won't lie to you." She said firmly holding him in place so he had no choice but to look at her. "I'm asking you to stay; I'm begging you to stay, and never leave. I'm telling you I'm not scared of you, I can handle your temper, and your dragon. I'm telling you you're not dangerous; I am better off with you than any man or animal."

"Why?" he asked half broken half hopeful.

"Because it's all true."

"Come here" he said holding out his hand to her. She took it and allowed him to guide her down until they were laying together on the moist mossy ground, her head and torso resting on his chest. They spent the next hour like that his hand running through her hair, which he stripped from its braid, his mind brooding and trying to figure out how to be the man she deserves. She lay in his arms listening to his heartbeat thinking of how to make him see himself for the worthy man she knows him to be.