April 28, 2002

Charlie stayed through the night and continued to look after me. At this point I was more than capable of taking care of myself, but he insisted. As of today I only need to use the burn salve in the morning and the evening so a nap was on the schedule for both of us.

The day was very low key. We read, ate, and talked. It was a lot like our time before Daniela stepped in and it felt good to fall back into our previous pattern. The difference now was we were definitely more physical. There was more kissing and affection. Charlie kept worrying over my injuries, but I knew I was fine. The only injury I was still looking after was the burn and really at this point there wasn't even a mark. I just had one more day of the salve as a precaution. Magic is truly a wonderful thing. In the muggle world, I'd probably be dead or at least had several weeks to months of recovery.

Charlie left at five to allow me to get ready for our date. He wouldn't tell me where we were going, only to dress for a night out. I took his advice and took time to make sure my hair fell just so and even applied a little make up. I hadn't packed much in the way of nice clothes, but I did bring the dress I had worn on New Year's Eve. Not wanting to wear a repeat, I performed a couple careful transfigurations. The end result was a beautiful navy dress with small straps on the shoulders. It was fitted on the top and the skirt relaxed a bit without too much of a flare before settling mid-calf. The back was open and it was the perfect combination of modest and flirty. A simple pair of black heels completed the ensemble.

He was prompt and when I answered the door, he was a perfect gentleman. I received a kiss on my hand before he offered his arm and we headed outside the reserve so we could apparate. We had been to the wizarding town nearby on a few occasions and I assumed we would be making another visit to the local pub. It was to my surprise when we passed the pub and entered a building I hadn't noticed before.

Charlie and I approached the counter. "Reservation for Weasley please."

I was a little confused as to when he would have had time to make a reservation, but I simply followed along as we were shown our seats in a secluded corner of the upscale restaurant. Charlie held out my chair as I sat and the waiter poured 2 glasses of elf wine.

The waiter took his leave and I turned to Charlie. "This place is beautiful. When did you have time to set this up?"

He had the nerve to smirk at me and it set my insides on fire. "A true gentleman never reveals his secrets. However, I'm glad you're enjoying it this far. Hopefully you continue to like it. I've asked the chef to prepare a selection of items and they will all be a surprise."

While I normally liked to be in control and have all the knowledge of any given situation, I found that in this case I enjoyed the surprise.

"Well, I appreciate the effort that you've gone through. If the food is as good as the wine, I'm sure it will be a wonderful meal." I took another sip and felt the tips of my ears grow warm. I would have to take it slow so I could keep my head.

"Honestly, I could care less about the food. The company is enough for me." The compliment caused my already flushed cheeks to deepen further. "So tell me Hermione, are you excited to go back to work next week, or are you nervous?"

I thought it over for a minute. "I'm more excited than anything. Not thrilled to be back on a broom since I have never cared for them too much to begin with, but I really do miss the dragons. The hatchlings especially. It hasn't been that long, but I imagine the little ones have grown quite a bit already." I grabbed his hand and squeezed. "I never really thanked you properly for the opportunity to come here. It has changed my life in so many positive ways and I feel a fulfillment and joy that was deeply missing from my life. Honestly I can't imagine doing anything else."

He squeezed back and beamed at me. "I have to admit that I was a bit selfish in asking you to come here, but I am beyond happy that you seem to love it here as much as I do. I never thought I would meet a girl who could see being at the reserve long term. That's part of why I was ok being alone. The dragons are my passion and I don't see how I could ever leave them. Knowing that you are invested in them as much as I am and knowing that you would never pressure me to give them up is a load off."

"I would never ask you to give them up! That would be horrible to ever suggest. I'm sure as our relationship grows we will make the reserve work just fine. Has anyone ever had children here?"

I don't know why the words tumbled out. This was our first date! Why would I bring up children? I was horribly embarrassed and yet Charlie seemed to take it in stride.

"Phil, he is with one of the other teams further down. I don't think you'd have any excuse to have had a long conversation with him, but his wife lives here with him. They have a 12 year old who is at Hogwarts. Phil joined the reserve when he was 5 so he has been here over half his life. There are ways to accommodate it. We have nothing to fear on that front."

I was relieved that Charlie took the comment in stride, but his assurance also caused my heart to beat faster. It seems he had already thought along those lines as well.

Before we could go any further, the food was served. There seemed to be a wide array of options and plates to serve ourselves. I helped myself to some mushroom risotto and garlic roasted Brussel sprouts to start. We took turns sampling the various items and I was impressed they had anything left to surprise us with when the dessert arrived. Charlie explained to me that the fried cookies drizzled with cream and berries was a traditional Romanian dessert and I was anxious to sample it.

To say the food was amazing was an understatement. Charlie and I spent hours just talking and eating. It was incredible to just be out with him and enjoy each other. We had spent so much time together in our homes, but something about being out in public was different. It was announcing to everyone that this was real and it seemed to shift something between us. The spark I had felt when Charlie first kissed me all those months ago was steadily growing and I could feel my need to be closer to him growing by the second.

The check had finally arrived and Charlie paid with a flourish. He escorted me home and we stood outside my front door awkwardly for a moment before he broke the silence. "I had a really great time tonight.

He brushed my hair behind my ear and my pulse began to quicken. I could feel my nerves rushing through my body as we stood there unsure what to do next. After a few beats of silence I realized how stupid this was.

"This is ridiculous." Grabbing the doorknob behind my back I twisted it open. As I pushed myself across the threshold I grabbed hold of Charlie's hand dragging him with me. The door was shut quickly and I took control of the situation. Pinning his back to the door, I placed my mouth on his.

I can't say I had planned on more than a good snog from Charlie tonight, it was after all out first official date, but after months of skirting around our affection, my skin was screaming for his touch.

Charlie seemed as urgent as I felt. We slowly made our way to my bedroom, stopping every few feet to devour one another. My mouth pressed on every inch of his skin that I could reach and my skin sizzled as his hand found my revealed back.

Upon reaching my bed, Charlie laid me down and hovered above me. "Are you sure about this?"

Now was not the time to question this. While I appreciated the sentiment, my body was screaming for his and time was not to be wasted. We had already burned through more than enough getting to know each other to realize this was exactly what I wanted.

"Charlie, please." My voice was breathy and hot and in that moment I didn't even care. It was enough for him as he placed his mouth on mine once again. His hand began to climb up my leg and I surrendered to his touch.

Few words could accurately describe making love to Charlie Weasley. Otherworldly may be most appropriate. When I was a little girl I had dreamed of magic and true love. When I found out I was a witch and that magic truly did exist, I was blown away.

Tonight, I was show just how real magic and love really are. From the moment Charlie entered me, the experience was life changing. Beyond the pleasure, which was greater than I ever thought possible, there was an added feeling that I could have never prepared for. The best I could do to describe it was that our magical cores found each other and as we connected with one another, our magic intertwined. The experience was intense and beautiful and solidified my love of the man I shared the experience with. Tonight, I realized there would never be anyone else for me.

Our magic had sensed it before we did. Perhaps that's why we had got on so well from the start. Maybe that's why the decision to come to the reserve was so easy. I'll never know and frankly I don't care. For now, I am content to soak up the heat and comfort of the man beside me as we both drifted off to sleep.