Hermione was feeling a little uncomfortable, she wasn't yet to drunk enough that she couldn't work out what this man's aim was, he didn't exactly plan to spend an evening with her in conversation.

He had refused to let her pay for her own drink and had not removed his hand from her arm. He talked to her quietly; he was obviously completely sloshed because he told her he though she was beautiful about 6 or 7 times within ten minutes. He refused to listen to Hermione's assurances that she was very flattered but she was in fact married. Evidently he was convinced that she was practically in love with him because he suddenly looked straight at her and whispered in her ear

"So…your place or mine?" caught off guard she was unable to suppress her laughter. She placed her hand on his and gently but firmly placed his hand on the bar

"Neither. Look, I'm sure you're very sweet" she said looking right at him "but I'm married and it's just not going to-"

She was unable to finish her sentence because Charlie suddenly appeared by her shoulder. He kissed her cheek and slung his arm casually around her shoulders

"Hermione, love" he grinned at her, completely ignoring the man next to her "I didn't realise you were in here"

She caught on quickly "Well I could see you were over there with your friends and I didn't want to disturb you sweetie. I was just having a lovely conversation with this gentleman here"

She nodded to the man who had suddenly withdrawn his hand from hers and was eyeing Charlie's muscular arms very carefully. Charlie looked at him, he kept his tone light and airy but his smile no longer reached his eyes

"yes" he said "I heard. Hermione, why don't you come over and sit with us?"

She looked surprised "Oh, but I was here with…" she trailed off midsentence as she realised that all of the other healers were gradually drifting away to other tables with various different men apart from Poppy who was sat by herself drinking a gillywater. She sighed "alright, is there room for Poppy too?"

Charlie nodded and smiled at Poppy who blushed furiously "yes of course"

"Now hang on" protested the man who was still stood at the bar

Charlie rested his hand on the man's shoulder and said very deliberately "I think it's time for you to leave now" no matter how much alcohol he had consumed he couldn't misread the look in Charlie's eyes and he flushed and backed away.

"Charlie listen-" she began apologetically, she needed him to know she hadn't encouraged the other man

"Hermione" he interrupted "don't worry about it. I know you were trying to get rid of him"

"I don't know why he couldn't just take a hint" she said miserably

"because he was drunk and you're very beautiful" he winked at her "I don't blame him for trying, he just needed to know that you're not single"

He didn't give her a chance to respond to the compliment, instead turning away to shake hands with Poppy and invite themboth over to the table in the corner.

Hermione followed Charlie over to the table in the corner, pulling Poppy behind her. As they reached the table they realised that there was only one free seat left. Both Poppy and Hermione noticed this fairly quickly and began looking around for spare chairs but there were none. Felix looked up and saw Poppy. His dark eyes twinkled as he smiled warmly at her and stood up and offered her his chair. She took it, mumbling her thanks and blushing even more deeply.

Hermione smiled as Felix crouched next to the chair he had just vacated and began talking quietly to Poppy who, after some time, relaxed and began to laugh at his jokes and even made some of her own, at which he laughed heartily.

Hermione eyed the lone free chair "you take the chair" she said "I'll kneel"

He looked genuinely shocked "I can't let you do that" he said "you can have the chair"

"Charlie I can't let you-"

He was laughing "we're doing it again" he grinned "how about a compromise?"

"What do you mean 'a compromise'? We can't both sit in the chair"

Charlie rolled his eyes and slid into the chair, pulling her onto his lap. She sighed "I'm too heavy"

"No you're not"

"I am"

"Not"

"Well, if you're legs fall off it'll be all your fault"

He just ignored her and then introduced to her to those at the table that she wasn't already familiar with. They seemed like a really nice crowd, a little boisterous and loud perhaps but that was nothing she wasn't already used to with the twins, Harry and Ron. Conversation flowed nicely and Hermione refused to be uncomfortable about being sat on Charlie's lap, she was so good that she almost convinced everyone.

Eventually, near midnight, the crowd began to disperse and Hermione announced that she was going to go home. She had been feeling sleepy for some time and had spent the last half hour with her head resting on Charlie's shoulder. She stood up to grab her jacket and Charlie did the same.

"You don't have to come too" she said

"I know" he shrugged "but I probably need an early night, besides, it's been so long since I last saw you that I was beginning to forget what you looked like"

She raised an eyebrow "well, I may have to leave before you do on a morning but I'm always back by 6. Is this where you go?"

He looked slightly sheepish and she pressed on quickly "I'm not annoyed or anything, I've probably been avoiding you as much as you've been avoiding me, I've never been asked to start work that early in the morning"

He sighed and looped his arm through hers "this isn't working is it?" he asked as they walked slowly away from the pub. She shook her head, he looked at the floor "and it's not going to go away if we pretend it's not happening"

She nodded again "time to grow up and face reality" she whispered. There was silence for a moment. Charlie broke it.

"Can I take you out for lunch tomorrow?" his tone was tentative, unsure of the reaction he would get.

She smiled brightly at him "I'd really like that" she said happily, the arm he currently had looped through hers slid round her waist instead and she rested her head on his shoulder. And it was like a truce had been formed. The short conversation had shifted the balance and she suddenly felt safe, as if it were Harry or Ron that she was walking with rather than her husband.

True to his word he took her out for lunch the next day…and the day after and every day after that for the next two weeks. It became a ritual of sorts and safe feeling Hermione had when she was around him stayed, it was like having lunch with any of her friends. Occasionally she went with him and his friends to the pub in the evenings as well and life in general was good, but by bit the summer weather slipped away and decided to give autumn a miss and run head long into winter.

It had always been Hermione's least favourite time of year and in the Romanian mountains it was colder and darker. She left before it got light in the mornings and it was dark again before she returned. It almost made her long for the dreary wet English winters. That was dangerous, though, because the more she thought about England, the more she missed it and the more she missed her friends. During the days when it was so cold that her lips turned blue and her hands ached she found herself missing them more and more, it weighed heavily on her and Charlie noticed.

One evening in mid-November he came back to find her led on the sofa chewing the end of her quill, brow furrowed in intense thought.

"Alright?" he said, reaching down to ruffle her hair by way of a greeting, he had always done it to Ginny because it annoyed her but, as Hermione pointed out, she didn't care because it made very little difference to her unruly hair.

"Hmm" she glanced up "you?" he nodded, she wasn't really paying attention though because the frown on her face deepened as she returned to the letter she was trying to write.

"I've been thinking" he began, nudging her legs so that he could sit on the sofa with her "Mum wants us to go to the Burrow for Christmas but your holiday starts a lot earlier than mine. You could go on back when you've finished and I'll follow in a couple of days"

She looked up at him "you'll be here all by yourself"

He shrugged "I've been here all by myself for the past few years and it's never really done me any harm. You've been dying to go back for ages"

She looked surprised that he'd noticed and then guilty "It's not that I don't like it here" she murmured, resting her hand on his arm "it's just that…"

"Everything you love most is at home" he finished, putting his hand on top of hers "it's alright; I would have been the same if things had been the other way round."

She nodded, her eyes shining slightly "you're so sweet, Charlie" she said earnestly as he pulled her into a bear hug "and you give the best hugs in the world" she mumbled into his shoulder.