Chapter 5- Going for the Turkey

Charlie was pushing around the eggs on his plate and sulking late in the morning. He hadn't wanted to face the day, or Tonks for that matter. She didn't seem to have any interest in his suggestion; either that or she didn't believe him to be serious.

"Girl troubles?" Ginny asked, sitting down with her own meager portions.

Charlie nodded.

"I thought you liked her," Ginny said with a satisfied grin.

"Doesn't matter, though," Charlie said. "I'm leaving in a week and she won't even agree to a date."

Ginny sat down across the table from him. "You have to fight for her!" she said enthusiastically.

"And Mum said I'm melodramatic," Charlie said.

"Come on, Charlie," Ginny said. "You can't give up that easy or she'll think you didn't mean the kiss."

"How did you know about that?" he asked, referring to the night prior.

"It happened almost a month ago," Ginny said.

Charlie's brows furrowed as he thought. "Oh, right that," he said, blushing.

Charlie could feel Ginny's eyes burrowing into him, examining his expression. "You kissed her again?" she asked with quiet intensity.

"Well, technically," Charlie said, trying to think of what it was that had happened. "Yeah."

"That was smart," Ginny said. "You're a grade A genius. Honestly, Charlie, what were you thinking?"

"I was thinking I wanted to kiss her," he said.

"You can't just kiss whoever you want," Ginny said.

Charlie leaned back and threw his hands into the air. "I can't believe I'm discussing this with you. Why am I getting advice from my little sister?"

"Because I'm a woman," Ginny said with a tone of 'I-know-better-than-you'.

"Look, there's nothing either of us can do about it, so I'll just have to get over her," Charlie said.

"At least you're admitting it now," Ginny declared with a smile.

"You're not helping."

"Fine, fine, I'll talk to her," she suggested.

"No, that's going to make it worse."

"Alright, have fun, then," Ginny said standing and exiting the kitchen.

Charlie sat there for a minute, wondering if Ginny could be some help. Girls knew what to say to manipulate anyone… could that come in handy for him? He was about to stand and go ask for his sister's help when someone else came into the room. "One date," Tonks said.

"When?"

"Tonight."

"Time?"

"Seven. Be ready," she said, then left the kitchen.

With a sigh and a smile, Charlie sat down and started to peel an orange.

At five minutes after seven, Charlie walked up to Tonks's room. He had been waiting in the living room for the past twenty minutes. The point that she wasn't ready finally got to him. "I thought you said seven," he said from behind the closed door.

"I'm coming," Tonks retorted. Charlie could almost see her rolling her eyes. He smiled at the thought.

The door opened and he found himself face to face with Tonks. She was wearing a Weird Sister's cut off shirt and jeans. He looked down at his own apparel—rather nice robes. "Come on," she said.

"Wait, where are we going?"

"Bowling," Tonks said.

"Bowling?" Charlie asked with confused look.

"Muggle sport," she said.

"Then I need to—"

"Don't worry about it."

"Tonks, I'm in—"

"I know, I'm not blind," she said, continuing to walk.

"I think people will notice."

Tonks turned around with a sly grin. "Exactly. Now you get it."

"What about Ginny?" he pointed out.

Tonks started walking towards the door. "She's not coming."

"What about guarding her?"

"Your family is visiting with Lupin tonight. Special security measures there," she said. Without starting another argument, Tonks opened the door and started to walk out.

Charlie took a deep breath, looking down at what he was wearing, but followed Tonks out. Waiting by the curb was a ministry car; black and chic with a man holding the door open for the two to enter. Charlie followed Tonks into the car and put his seatbelt on. "So how do you do this game," Charlie said, trying to remember what it was called.

"You throw a ball at a bunch of pins and try to knock them down," Tonks said with brisk politeness.

"What else?" Charlie asked. He didn't like making a fool of himself and wanted to know as much as he could before they got to the sports place.

"You get scored by how many you manage to knock down. If you get them all down on your first try—"

"First try?"

"Yes, first try of the frame—"

"Frame?"

"Yes, each frame has ten pins to knock over—"

"Time out!" Charlie said. "I don't get it. Start over."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "You know, you're not making a very good impression."

"Who said I was trying to?"

"You were the one who asked me out," Tonks replied.

"Then why is it you're making all the plans?"

"Because I feel safer that way."

"Safer?" Charlie asked, incredulous. "Safer? How am I not safe."

"Let's see," Tonks said and mocked having to think about it. "You've kissed me twice for no apparent reason—"

"The first time, yes, the second should be obvious since I asked you out."

Tonks ignored this and continued. "You've been rude to me for the last month, you tormented me when we were at Hogwarts, and you were the reason I never got a date."

"What?" Charlie asked.

"Reggie told me about the things you'd tell the other Gryffindor guys."

Traitor, Charlie found himself thinking again. "You were the reason Nora left," he retorted.

"Now that, I'll consider you partially right on," Tonks said, "but I'm not to blame for the majority of that mess."

"Then who is?"

"I'll tell you another time," she said, more calm than she had the rest of her accusations. "Now, can we just enjoy ourselves or should I go home now?"

"Fine," Charlie said, starting to wonder why he had ever asked Tonks out in the first place.

The rest of the time to the alley was spent in silence, Charlie allowing Tonks to exit the automobile first, following her to a booth where people were paying. "Two games," Tonks said, paying for the games, "and we'll need shoes."

"I have money," Charlie said in a quiet argument.

"Not the right kind," Tonks reminded him.

Charlie looked around at the smoky place. There were loud crashes and he turned around to see what was making the noise. He watched one man take a large ball and approach the lane, paying attention as the ball rolled down the wood floor towards a bunch of white things Charlie connected to being pins. "What size shoes?" Charlie heard the teenage kid working there say, but didn't turn around.

"Charlie," Tonks said, getting his attention. "What size shoes?"

Charlie was now looking at both of them. "Er—I've got shoes, thanks."

"You have to wear bowling shoes," Tonks explained. "What size?"

"How about a twelve," he said, questionable doubt in his voice. The teenager pulled out a pair of ridiculous looking shoes and handed them to Charlie. "Thanks," he said, looking at them.

"Come on," Tonks instructed, walking to the lane.

"Why do we have to wear their shoes?" Charlie said. "Is there some sort of protective gear?"

"Sort of," Tonks said, sitting. She started to take off her shoes. Once Charlie noticed this he did the same. "Regular shoes scuff up the floor," she informed him. "These have different soles."

Charlie screwed up his face in confusion. "Souls? What do you mean souls? Dementors can't—"

"Not that kind of soul," Tonks said with a little laugh. "Goodness, you would think…" she started, trailing off with a slow shaking of her head.

"You would think what?" Charlie said with a smile tugging at his lips.

"You would think with how into Muggle objects your dad is, you would have a bit more knowledge."

"Give me a break," Charlie said with a laugh. "Dad knows as much about his Muggle things as you do me."

"I know more than you think," Tonks said, raising her eyebrows.

Charlie gave a challenging glance. "Oh really?"

"Yes, really," Tonks said.

"Prove it," Charlie said, leaning forward.

Tonks continued to talk while pushing buttons on the keyboard in front of her. "I know you're the second of seven. Your favorite color is blue and you enjoy Quidditch almost as much as you do Dragons."

"That's all very predictable," he said.

"I wasn't finished." Tonks looked up at a screen, then back at the keys. "You never tell anyone your middle name, because you're embarrassed by it, though I think Elmer is a perfectly fine name, and you like hot chocolate with a lot of coffee creamer," Tonks said, then looked over.

Charlie looked at Tonks, dumbfounded. "How did you know my middle name?"

"I told you, I know more than you think."

Charlie finished tying up his laces and looked up to the board. In the first square was written 'Tonks' and under that 'Charred'. "Thanks for that," he said, nodding up to the screen.

"No problem," she said with a devious grin. "My turn then," she said. "Now watch," she added before grabbing a ten pound ball and taking a stance at the end of the lane. With a few descent steps, Tonks let the ball go and Charlie watched as it headed for the pins. "Split! No!" she exclaimed as the pins were picked up and something swept the floor of the crate area.

"What? What's a split," Charlie asked.

"It's where you've knocked down all but a few pins in the back that are spread apart," she said. "It's almost impossible to get. Professionals manage, but I don't play often enough to know how they do it."

"Oh," Charlie said, storing the information away.

Tonks took her second turn, throwing the ball and backing up while it made its way down the lane. It skimmed by the right pin still standing, but missed it by a small space. "Your turn," she said after a dejected growl.

Charlie stood with confidence, walked over to the machine holding the balls and picked up the largest he could find—a twenty pounder. Beginner's luck, he thought as he approached the lane. That's what he was planning on saying when all the pins fell over, at least. He released the large and heavy sphere and watched it move down the lane, landing in the left gutter and rolling without touching one white object. "What?" he said. "Hey, that's not fair! Why are there these side thing," he said, not noticing the stares people were giving him.

Tonks laughed. "Those are the gutters. You have to keep the ball between them," she added in explaination. "You get one more try.

Charlie picked up another ball and tried it again, this time pushing the ball towards the lane after placing it in the middle. As it started to roll too far to the right, Charlie waved his hands the opposite direction, though it didn't do any good as the ball landed in the other gutter. "Great," Charlie said.

"You'll get it," Tonks encouraged as she stood to take her own turn.

At the end of the first game Tonks had 140 points and Charlie only 20. He looked over and noticed a family a few lanes down with poles going along the gutters, keeping the ball from going in them. "How do you get those?" Charlie asked.

"They're for kids," Tonks explained. "You have to be a certain height before they'll put them up."

Charlie leaned back and took a deep breath. "Well, is that it then?"

"Nope, one more game."

"Let's get it over with, then," he said.

"Oh come on," Tonks said. "You're acting like it's a chore. You don't have to win, you know," she said. "It might help if you take a lighter ball, and the best way to get it going down the middle is to line your middle finger up with the middle pin."

Charlie listened and nodded his head. "Okay," he said, having plans of his own.

By the ninth frame of the second game, the score was 128—Tonks—to 124. Tonks took her time rolling the last frame. She knocked down three on the first ball and five on the second.

"Last chance, Charred," Tonks said with a wink and a smile.

Charlie stood up and grabbed a ball. He took a deep breath and took a couple steps down the floor. Releasing the ball, he stepped back and watched it lean to the right, hitting the back corner pin.

"You need a spare to win," Tonks noticed with a smile.

Charlie—who had finally caught onto all the lingo of the game—nodded his head and took another breath as he waited for his ball to return. "Loser pays for ice cream?" Charlie asked.

"Sure," Tonks said with a smile.

Charlie stepped again, releasing the ball and reaching into his robes for his wand. Concealing it (as he had for the majority of the second game) he directed the ball right to the middle, hitting the rest of the pins down. "Yes!" he exclaimed, turning around without putting his wand back.

"Ah!" Tonks exclaimed. "You little cheater. You've been using your wand this entire time. I can't believe—"

"Come now, Tonks," Charlie said, putting the wand away. "No need to be a poor sport now, is there?"

Tonks stuck out her tongue and Charlie laughed. "I'll pay for ice cream," he said.

"Good," Tonks added with a smile. She sat and started to remove the bowling shoes. Charlie watched her for a moment; her long brown hair with pink streaks concealing her face. He shook himself and started to get ready to leave.

"I heard you're an auror," Charlie said.

"Yes," Tonks said. "That's old news, though."

"Right," Charlie said, trying to think of something else to add. "What else have you been doing?"

"Nothing really," Tonks said, leaning back and waiting for Charlie to finish.

They walked back to the counter, returning the shoes, and out the door where the car was waiting. "Diagon Alley," Charlie said, glad they could go somewhere that people wouldn't be looking at his attire with odd glances.

"What about you?" Tonks finally said.

"What about me?" he asked.

"Anything other than Dragon keeping?"

Charlie shrugged. "I'm in the middle of nowhere, there's not much else to do. It's great coming home once in a while, but that's the extent of my leaving Romania," he said.

Tonks nodded and looked at the seat in front of her.

When they arrived at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor, Charlie paid for a large banana split and they found a seat in the corner. "To think, we might have been here long ago if you hadn't started a war," Charlie joked.

"Me?" Tonks said. "I think you're mistaken. You were the one who started the snowball."

"How is that?" Charlie asked.

"You made fun of my name," Tonks said.

"I did not. When?"

"My first day," she started. "I was waiting with the other first years and they were calling out the names for sorting. After I had put on the hat, I was walking back to sit at the table and you said 'what kind of name is Nymphadora'."

Charlie looked astounded for a moment. "So? You never liked your name."

"I liked it just fine until then. I never knew it was an odd name, actually. You pointed that out to me," she said. "I was crying to my dorm mates about it that night and that's when they started calling me by a different name. After a few weeks, they decided to help me get you back."

"And that's when it started," Charlie said.

"Yes," Tonks said. "That's when it started."

"I don't remember much of it, actually. Just that you were always out to prank me," Charlie said with a smile.

"That's what the whole point became. Quite interesting, though, you just reciprocated without a second thought."

"What was I supposed to do?"

Tonks shrugged. "I guess it's behind us anyway."

"I guess so," Charlie said with a smile, placing his hand on Tonks's. They both started eating away at the ice cream, talking about meaningless jokes that had been played and unimportant things that came up in the random conversation. They were smiling as they came back to the Burrow, the car driving off.

"Thanks for taking me out," Tonks said, turning to look at Charlie in front of the door.

Behind Tonk's shoulder, Charlie could see two heads peeking through the curtains. "I think Ginny and Hermione have caught us," Charlie said, with a nod towards the window.

Tonks turned back as the heads disappeared fast. She turned back to Charlie with a smile on her face. "Perhaps we should give them a show, then," Tonks said, leaning up and laying her lips on Charlie's.

Charlie walked Tonks up to her room and kissed her again. "Good night," he said.

"'Night" she said, one last kiss before opening the door and going in, looking at Charlie as she shut it slowly.

Charlie walked down one landing to his own bedroom, walked in and saw a letter on his bed. He opened it, looking around for the owl, but none was there.

Charlie,

We've had an epidemic among the dragons, and can't risk any outside viruses entering the colony at this time. We'll send you another owl two weeks before we need you to return.

Demtre

Charlie smiled as he reread the letter and laid on the bed.


A/N: I know I'm posting these fast, but oh well… Hope you like this chapter! REVIEW!

Thanks:

Hermione30- Thanks for looking this over and being my extra eyes.

Pedagogie- Thanks for the reviews! Glad you like the story.