disclaimer: JKR is a talented goddess... I wish I had half her imagination, but I don't and that makes me sad.

Chapter 5

After, I informed Charlie that I was "shopped out" we stopped at a small cafe to refresh ourselves. The weather was quite delightful, although Charlie said the the sky looked like rain. I was under the impression that the sky always "looked like rain" in Britain. We sat at a table for two under an awning. Charlie ordered two cold butterbeers for us. As we waited for our drinks, I took inventory of my purchases. I think I'd spent more money in Diagon Alley on that afternoon, that I had in a month back home. But, I realized that, in more ways than one, I was starting over.

I'd given up my apartment in Boston, and put my furniture and household goods in storage. The few mementos I had from my travels fit easily into the charmed rucksack that I travelled with. There was a box of books, and other equipment that I planned on using while teaching, it was being shipped directly to Hogwarts.

"How does your family feel about you moving to England?" Charlie asked me.

"I wouldn't know," I explained. "I haven't seen any of my family in a very long time. I never knew my mother, she died when I was just a baby. My father was a marine in VietNam. He was killed during the fall of Saigon. I barely remember him. I was raised by my father's sister and her husband.

My family disowned me when I came into my magic, they thought I was 'demonic'."

"Merlin, that's awful."

"It's a common story for muggleborns in the States. Fortunately, I found my way to Salem, and went to school."

"I'm so sorry," Charlie took my hand, I saw real sympathy in his eyes. "No matter where I went, my family has always been there. They drive me mental sometimes, but I love them, and they love me. Is there anyone back in Boston? I mean like a boyfriend?"

"I'm sure you've read the Bureau's file on me, Charlie. International Aurors are discouraged from getting involved in serious relationships, while in the field. When I worked in the training center I never really had time. Besides, I spent most of my time with trainees. Not exactly my dating pool, it's bad form for a teacher to get involved with a student."

Charlie looked a bit surprised. "Actually," he said, "I didn't see any thing that the ministry has on you. I'd read about your story when I was in Romania. There were some brilliant articles written about you. You're unique in the world. I remember being gobstruck that someone who'd been through what you'd been through was strong enough to survive the ordeal with out going insane. When Harry told me that you'd been hired for Hogwarts, he asked me to show you around, it made my week."

"Really? Well, I guess it would, you get to 'study' the 'dragon witch' up close and personal."

The waiter showed up with the butterbeers. I'd never tasted the stuff before, it was actually quite good.

"Not really," Charlie smiled and said. "I just wanted to meet you and to find out how you stayed sane."

"Really?" I was kind of surprised, "I expected a world class dragonologist to be more interested

to be more interested in my physiology than anything else."

"Wasn't interested in your physiology till after I saw you," Charlie muttered into his mug.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm sorry, did I say that out loud?" his cheeks turned bright crimson.

"That's all right." I'm lucky I don't really blush. "Your 'physiology' isn't so bad either."

He went from crimson to purple. And, he almost choked on his butterbeer.

"Actually," I explained. "I had some really good help after I got off Remeau's island. The Bureau sent me to China, for a year, I stayed in a village called Ye-Lao. There's group of wizards and witches there that practice, special forms of meditation, and martial arts. The training they gave me helped me put my life into perspective."

"Martial Arts? like that judo stuff I've seen on muggle television,."

"Very similar, they taught me some Tai-Chi, and Kung-Fu, as well as a special art all their own, that involved magic. They never told me what they called it. I practice every day. It's helps me stay sane, Mei-Fo, she was my guardian in the village, told me that it increases longevity, and improves physical condition."

"Wow, can you teach this as well?"

"No, I'm not qualified to teach anything other than Tai-Chi. The teachers in the village study for more than fifty years before they start."

"That's amazing," he took another sip of his butterbeer. He just smiled at me for a second, then he said, "would you be willing to go out for dinner with me tonight?"

"You mean like a date?" I asked with a bit of a smirk. I couldn't believe it, I was expecting to be treated like a laboratory mouse, not this.

"Exactly like a date," he answered, "I know a great place for Chinese food. You up for it?"

"You actually want to go out with me?"

He nodded and said, "why not? You're smart, beautiful, and delightful company." He grabbed my hand, and just held it. I noticed that his hands were a lot bigger than mine, a bit rougher, and very freckled, his arm had a dusting of red hair on it. I noticed a large scar on the inside of his forearm,

"Where did you get this?" I asked, tracing the jagged white mark.

"I was rounding up a batch of Horntail hatchlings, one of them took exception to my nurse- maiding and swiped me with his tail."

"I love hatchlings, right outside the village we had a family of fireballs, a female and her hatchlings. The villagers would leave pigs out for the mother, so it wouldn't go after the local children. I got to visit with the hatchlings once. They were so funny. I must've smelled like a dragon to them. The mother let me get up close to them."

He looked astonished. "That's amazing," he leaned over the table and sniffed. "Actually," he said with a grin, "you do smell like a dragon, wood smoke, copal, and heat."

"Heat has a smell?"

"Oh, yes. It's one of the nicest smells in the world." He leaned into my hair.

"Thank you, I think."

"You never answered my question, will you go out with me tonight?"

"What is your favorite type of dragon to work with?" I asked him. I wasn't ready to answer his question.

"Actually, I don't really have a favorite dragon type, but individual dragons have left their mark on me, well, other than scars. There was one, we called her Norberta."

"Norberta?" I asked skeptically, "odd name."

"The man who hatched her thought she was a male, named her Norbert. When she came to the reservation, we realized that he was a she, and we changed her name to Norberta. She was one of the oddest animals I've ever worked with, she loved rabbit meat. Norberta is a Norwegian Ridgeback, they usually prefer reindeer, or sheep, not rabbit." He ran a hand through his hair, I noticed that it was quite messy, pretty untamable, I imagine. I really did want to start something with him, I'll admit I was a bit gun shy about dating. I'd been asked out quite a bit since the island, unfortunately, most of my dates just wanted to be able to say that they went out with the '"Dragon Witch". I had a feeling that Charlie Wesley might be different, but I knew that it would sting, a lot, if he turned out like all the others.

"May I ask you a personal question?" I asked him.

"What do you want to know?"

"How old are you?"

"I'm 38, I'll be 39, in December?"

"I'm older than you."

"Ooh, I think older women are sexy." He grinned, "so do you have something against younger men?"

"Not at all. Well, you're not that much younger than I am, three years."

"Ok, we've established that I'm the right age for you," he grinned again, a very hard to resist grin. "So, please, will you go out with me tonight? Just one date."

I decided to go with my gut feeling and give the rather handsome, all right let's be honest here, the absolutely gorgeous dragonologist sitting across from me, and holding my hand, a chance. "All right," I said.

"Brilliant," he grinned again, and I melted a little more.