"I'm sorry, just forget I heard anything," Charlie shot a spell at the plate which fixed itself quickly.
Dudley hadn't told anyone except Hestia and Daedalus what he'd done so it should have mortified him to have Charlie, his prospective boyfriend, hear about something so awful and personal. He didn't mind so much though.
"It's alright," Dudley said, "I don't mind you hearing, in fact, it might help for you to know if this is a regular thing."
"Me breaking plates and hearing private conversations?" Charlie asked and Dudley smiled in a way that just screamed 'look at this adorable idiot.'
"I was actually referring to the boyfriend prospect, that is what you had in mind right?" Dudley asked. Charlie stared with wide eyes, seemingly a little speechless.
"Charlie" Ron hissed then he snapped out of it.
"I just didn't expect you to ask so direct like that but yeah, sounds good. Great even" Charlie said, his face turning red.
"Your ears are turning different colors" Dudley smiled and Charlie seemed to about ready to steam with smoke out of his ears. "Now, babe, take a seat okay?" he said.
Ron smirked "well, you better finish your story or Charlie likely to get heat stroke," he said then his look sobered a little "so I assume you eat now so what happened after?" he asked.
Dudley nodded "yeah, I was a bit of a wreck for a while and Hestia knew something was going on but she couldn't pinpoint it because I would avoid everyone. She discovered what it was when I started throwing up just the stomach acid and water."
"I owe her my life because I'm pretty sure I probably would have starved myself until I was dead if she hadn't pushed me and brought me back to my senses. It wasn't easy and I had good days and bad days. It's not always amazing now but I'm a lot better" Dudley explained.
"I'm glad you came out of it, I'm glad I got to know such an amazing person," Charlie said.
Dudley smiled "me too" he said.
Ron coughed "well, glad to speak with you Dudley but I've got the rest of the dishes to do and personally I'm knackered so I think I'll go to bed after this. Go on" he shooed them and Dudley shrugged then pulled Charlie into the other room.
"You wanna go watch a movie?" Dudley asked.
"Um, I'd do almost anything with you," Charlie said, "but I have no idea what a movie is."
"Correct answer and you'll see, now, my apartment now," he said, he said goodbye to Harry and the rest then they stepped outside and Charlie apparated them to Dudley's apartment. Dudley inserted the key and opened it, walking in with Charlie.
"Hey" Hestia greeted them "oh, Charlie" she grinned.
"Hestia, how are you?" Charlie asked.
"Great, God you filled out lovely" Hestia added.
"Paws off, Miss Auror, the only one putting him in cuffs is me," Dudley said.
"Cuffs?" Charlie asked.
Hestia laughed "you'll learn eventually, just watch a few movies with Dudley" she added "well I'll see you later," she said.
"Late night mission?" Dudley asked.
"Yes, I should be back by late morning so have fun," she said walking out wearing her trench coat Auror uniform.
Dudley tugged on Charlie's arm, he followed to a sitting room with a large black rectangular object. "Okay, pay attention now, tele, player, and DVD" he held up a circular thing. Hm… I guess we'll watch Ferris Bueller, don't want to knock you out the special effects too early" he muttered placing the DVD in the player.
"So what exactly is a movie?" Charlie asked remembering the term.
"Well, it's like… a portrait except it can't hear you and there's a whole bunch of characters. Hm maybe it's not so much like a portrait, well it's like a book that muggles have hired people to play the characters in the books" he explained. Charlie looked lost and Dudley laughed.
"I'll play it and you'll see," Dudley said then turned on the tv and grabbed the remote. He then plopped himself sideways on Charlie's lap.
"I think I like movies" Charlie mentioned, stroking the outside of Dudley's thigh. Dudley huffed and kissed Charlie, long and slow.
"You are going to be a handful, aren't you?" Dudley asked, taking Charlie's chin.
"Well, have you ever met a redhead that wasn't one?" Charlie asked and Dudley gave him such a mischevious smirk, he swore he was channeling George and the late great Fred Weasley.
Xxx
"Babe, have you seen…" Oliver's words left him as if a dementor had sucked them out. Percy was in front of the mirror pulling his wavy shoulder length hair into a ponytail. He was wearing his work slacks and had a button-up on.
"Your new uniform right? It's folded in the laundry room" Percy said casually, grabbing his toothbrush.
"You know, how the hell did I end up with the most beautiful wizard ever?" Oliver said.
Percy flushed deeply and smiled.
"I take you like the new hair then," he said starting to the brush his teeth.
"I love it but you look good in anything, of course, you look better wearing my clothes and those tiny shorts you love but… really anything," Oliver added, putting his hands on Percy's waist pulling his shirt out from being tucked in.
"Ah-y" Percy protested while he still had a mouth full of toothpaste.
"Oh alright, but when I get back from practice…" Percy rinsed his mouth out and kissed him.
"Ok," he agreed, Oliver smiled then headed out the door, Percy dressed in his robes and headed off to work, sketchbook in his arm.
"Ah, good morning Percy" Olivander greeted once he entered through the door.
"Morning, Mr. Ollivander," he said.
"I have a proposition for you and I thought it may inspire you," Olivander said.
"You have my attention" Percy smiled "what is it?" he asked.
"Well, for centuries now we have used wands made of wood, however, it has come to my attention that it may be possible to experiment with more materials. Stones have been used as powerful conductors in the past as well certain symbols carved merely into the ground" Ollivander explained.
"So you think that it may work to combine wood and other materials?" Percy asked excitedly.
"Yes, I would like you to perhaps study the creation of these other conductors. Throw your entire work into it, I permit you to go and spend what you must. I think perhaps we can make more of a legacy for our shop" he said.
"You mean I'll get paid even if I'm not at work?" Percy asked.
"Yes, my boy, I do expect a report of finding every week of course" Olivander added.
"Of course," Percy said "can I get right on it, sir? I think I know of a few books I'll want to study closely" he said.
"Of course, have Madam Malkins begin a tab for me," he said, smiling and Percy nodded, rushing out the door with a whirlwind of books and theories and ideas in his head. A wand was brought a wand of thin twisted willow wood (usually too thin to use) encased in curved glass.
Xxx
"Charlie," George said, "what did you do?"
"What do ya mean?" Charlie asked, clad in his pajamas at the kitchen table, George opened the blinds to the upstairs loft above the shop and exposed the group of reporters waiting. The shot several pictures and George shut the blinds.
"Why do you immediately think it's me?" Charlie asked.
"Well because the reporters leave me alone because I can prank them into next week," George said.
"What's in the profit?" Charlie asked.
George shook his head "nothing in there" he said.
"Witch weekly?" Charlie asked and George paused then rushed downstairs and came back up with a brand new issue of Witch Weekly he kept for the shop.
"Oh this ought to be good… "Who's the handsome man with Charlie Weasley, one of the most eligible bachelors in Britain?" George read aloud and Charlie swiped it from him.
"How the fuck did they get that picture?" George asked it was when Charlie had caught Dudley when he'd tripped, basically having him in a dip.
"Honestly, I've stopped caring at this point, you better warn Dudley though" George pointed out.
"Fuck" Charlie groaned.
"Well that is one way of putting it yes, but did you?" George grinned and Charlie rolled his eyes.
"I'm fire calling Hestia," he said, picking up floo powder when Dudley suddenly appeared in the fireplace "I swear I had nothing to do with this," he said defensively.
"I know," Dudley said, "I just wanted to see if you were okay."
Charlie deflated like a popped balloon "oh… I'm- uh okay I guess" he said. Dudley looked adorable right now, his hair softly messy, wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and a black silk jacket. "Are you okay though? Did anyone ambush you?" he asked.
"No, Hestia showed me earlier this morning and suggested I go find you so" Dudley shrugged "but honestly, this isn't so bad."
"It's not?" George and Charlie asked.
"Well I am a musician without a band, any kind of fame is good for what I want to do" Dudley explained "maybe it could even help me find a band to jam with," he said.
"Yeah, but the press will bloody flip when they find out your Harry Potter's muggle cousin" Charlie said.
"I'll deal with it" Dudley shrugged "besides, if I didn't want to deal with fame I wouldn't want to be a musician, now would I?"
"I honestly think you guys would be the next Hermione and Ron, the press follows them around hoping for drama" George commented.
"Yeah but they don't get it, do they? Those two have got their big fighting and insecurities out of the way before they even started dating. They've been trying to start shit from two years ago, 'Trouble with a couple of the golden trio?" Charlie mocked.
"Ha! They bicker constantly but that's like their thing" George agreed.
"That could get annoying but it's not like I'd just drop you" Dudley patted Charlie's cheek. "It's weird but I feel like I don't need to ease you into what I'm like. You know all the dark and horrible bits of myself already."
Charlie shook his head "but that's not you anymore, Sorry but I'm not all roses either," he said.
"I know you won't run, that's the point, besides whatever issues you've got I can deal. Have to be a bloody saint to deal with mine" Dudley said.
George snorted and they both turned "welcome to Weasley family," he said "so back on topic, yeah? What are we doing about them?" he gestured out the window, Dudley went over to the window and pulled the blinds to peek before closing them.
"Um, I could always give them some bait to chew on," Dudley said.
"Like what?" Charlie asked.
"Just go out there and play a song on my guitar and then tell them I'm Harry Potter's cousin, they'll scatter to write their reports or whatever right?" Dudley said.
"Yeah, I suppose your right but do you want that much publicity so quickly?" George asked.
"Well, seems no matter what I'll get it" Dudley shrugged.
"Why not go out on the deck then, we'll back you up," Charlie said, Dudley smiled then got his guitar and went on the deck with his guitar and George carried the amp setting it down.
The crowd flashed their cameras, he began playing his guitar glancing at Charlie as he cast a "Sonorous" charm on his hand and held for Dudley "may your hearts to be full like our dreams tonight…"
Charlie's eyes went wide as he heard his boyfriends voice for the first time, he had a surprisingly high range. He got goosebumps that he brushed from his arm, he glanced at George who also looked a bit stupefied.
He found himself mesmerized as Dudley cradled his guitar like he would a woman or… he reddened thinking how he'd like Dudley to hold him like that. Play him like an instrument, his eyes softened as he sang lyrics. His hips swung just slightly and he wondered what he would look like without the guitar.
Merlin, he was freaking whipped. When the song was over and several reporters desperately captured as many photos as they could, Dudley smiled at Charlie and kissed his cheek for about five seconds. "As an answer to your questions, yes I am dating Charlie and I'm Dudley Dursley. Harry Potter's muggleborn cousin" he said.
He then turned around and pulled Charlie to the door, the reporters only stuck around for five minutes before apparating in different directions to write their papers. "You had them eating out of your hands," George said.
"Yeah well, it's an unfortunate talent of mine I learned how to make a good trait out of it," Dudley said then smiled at Charlie again. "You're so beautiful," he told him.
"Wha? Me? Your the one who had them enraptured like a veela," Charlie said.
"The reporters weren't the only ones" George muttered.
Xxx
"Nix!" the 23-year-old musician jumped as his agent yelled as she waltzed right in.
"What did I do now?" he asked ruffling his black hair, he slipped his black coffee, moving his papers so his manager, the always lovely Jenna.
"Have you even woke up since I left?" she asked then shook her head "forget it, I have news," she said. The guitarist poured a cup of tea with cream and set it in front her.
"You found another singer," he said.
"I found another… well yes, you still need one right?" Jenna asked.
"Yeah, but you found mostly women who had high, pitchy little voices or men with voices too deep with no range" Nix sighed, he was losing sleep over this, going to bars every night to listen to people sing hoping to find the one.
"No, you need to hear this guy Nix. He's got an unbelievable range. I was walking around Diagon Ally when I hear him singing from the deck of the Weasley joke shop. I dunno why he was singing but he was and then announced he was Harry Potter's cousin, he's dating Charlie Weasley so I think it must have been something to distract reporters" Jenna ranted.
"Quite the story," Nix said, blinking slowly. Jenna groaned then pulled out a recorder from her pocket and pushed play. Nix leaned in when he heard that voice, a voice that was strong and he clearly had range. Not your typical voice either, it had character. "That's it" Nix grinned.
"Thank you, Jenna," Jenna said rolling her eyes and he kissed her cheek.
"So what's this dreamboat of a voices name?" Nix asked.
"Dudley Dursley," Jenna said.
"Hm... needs a stage name but sure," Nix said "well just see if you contact him?" he asked.
"With pleasure" Jenna agreed.