A/N: I've been trying to figure out if this chapter is needed. I don't think it is, but I also love it, so I'm keeping it in. I think it shows Poppy's flitting between her reality and what she really wants now, and all of her confusion that comes with it.

Poppy stood at the top of a hill nearby Charlie's house. She took a moment to close her eyes and tip her head back.

This was peace, she thought as she stood there, the gentle whistling wind her only companion, the roars of dragons distant.

She'd chosen this hill for its solitude, and for the fact that while she was in the best physical condition of her life thanks to Auror training, she didn't think that she currently had the energy to climb one of the mountains that surrounded the Dragon Sanctuary. This hill gave her the view she wanted without as much effort.

Poppy had decided her day's plan over her breakfast (which she had eaten alone as Charlie had left for his shift before she'd woken up), standing at the counter in his little kitchen, staring out at the landscape from his window. The thought of solitude had called to her.

On the hill, she conjured a few blankets and, settling down on top of them, she took a book on Counter-curses out of her backpack, intending on doing some research if she found herself bored.

But, due to the warm clothes she'd borrowed from Charlie's wardrobe, and the peace she felt, she fell asleep almost instantly and woke an hour later to a gentle buzz coming from her wand.

It was her usual 'you need to leave for work now' eight o'clock alarm which she'd forgotten to stop, and the gentlest wake she'd had in months.

From her sleep in bed with Charlie the night before and now this nap, she also felt more rested than she had in weeks.

Poppy sighed and smiled up at the sky, allowing herself to think about their night. She'd not thought she would be able to kiss someone without feeling awkward, but with Charlie that it felt like an extension of one of his hugs.

She decided that the closeness was what she loved the most about it, and being able to fall asleep next to him again after months (and without the worry of being caught by Fleur or Bill) made her even happier.

Poppy gave herself another hour up there before she made her way back down and headed for the Sanctuary proper.

She was passing through the main reception on her way to the Dragonologist's library which she was hoping to blag permission to use, when she heard her name and turned with a smile to see Dragan the Elder beckoning her over to the door which led to the archives.

Poppy hadn't seen the older wizard in a year, and found herself overjoyed that he seemed just as happy and healthy (albeit slightly more scarred) as he had done the year before. She still felt bad that she'd had to refuse his offer to take over as archivist at the Sanctuary, and her heart swelled when she noticed how happy he still was to see her.

"Dragan," Poppy chided when she reached him and saw that the room was a mess behind him. "What happened to the system?"

"I know, I know. But you cannot blame me. I am almost retired, and your replacement came and went," Dragan said, following her gaze.

"I never started the job so not my replacement," Poppy corrected, but still, she stepped around him and began to sort the small pile of papers closest the door out of habit. "How on earth is this here?" she asked, "it's from the sixties."

Dragan shrugged, and it was only half an hour later that she realised she'd been tricked into working through the piles for him. By that time it was too late, as she found herself thoroughly enjoying the often mindless sorting.

By five, Poppy had managed to organise most of the past year of correspondence. Within those, she found five hundred galleons in promised funds for the Sanctuary, and Dragan's wife's recipe for Goulash which he let her keep as payment for her services.

"I'd prefer the cash," Poppy said as they left the archives. Dragan's laugh echoed down the hall and Poppy rolled her eyes.

"Are you sure you want to be an Auror?" Dragan asked before he left her, the joke evident in his voice.

Poppy answered; "No," which elicited yet another laugh. She smiled and chuckled along with him.

She'd been thinking that all day - that if she'd simply taken the job here and not applied to be an Auror she would have skipped fake-Moody's torture, and joined the Order but been based in Romania. Her sliding doors moment had been a whole year previously and she hadn't realised it.

But then she did love being an Auror, and while it was busy, she also did enjoy the Order. It was Moody… and being apart from Charlie that she didn't enjoy as much.

Poppy sighed as she watched Dragan leave, and then headed to the library.

An hour later, she arrived back at Charlie's cottage with her backpack filled with four books that she'd not found in England. She was going to ask Charlie if he could translate a few sections for her, as only one was in English, when she smelt cinnamon.

"Please say you're making cinnamon buns?" Poppy called, halfway through taking off her bag and kicking off her boots.

There was a bang in the kitchen and then Charlie dodged his head out of the doorway. He stared at her with wide eyes. Poppy paused, her arms half out of her coat.

"Hi," she said, smiling awkwardly. "I am meant to be staying until-"

"I know. I just thought you'd left early or something," Charlie said happily, making his way over to her.

"Nah, I bumped into Dragan and you know I can't resist a good filing system," Poppy said, wrapping her arms around him when Charlie reached her. "You seem happy."

"Course," he said, swaying her.

A moment later, Poppy felt her feet leave the floor and squealed as Charlie swung her around and around until she dissolved into giggles and told him to put her down.

"What do you fancy doing tonight?" Charlie asked.

Poppy grinned and waved her wand, summoning one of the books from her bag so that she wouldn't have to break their embrace. "You know you love me and you speak Hungarian…" she said slowly.

Charlie threw his head back and let out a loud groan, but his smile betrayed him and he took the book from her. "Fine. You make dinner and I'll teach you about- ugh. Really? Why do you need to know about the plants round here?"

"You know I'm still technically in school, right?" Poppy said, shrugging and heading to the kitchen. "I still have essays and exams to try and become an Auror."

"Fine," Charlie said, walking after her, "but there's nothing in here that you can't get in England… Okay, actually, let's start with the Edelweiss flower. That's actually kind of cool. 'This particular plant may render the wearer invisible if made into a wreath with-'"

Later, as they were about to make their way up to bed after a rather good dinner and dessert (if Poppy did say so herself), there was a sharp knock at the door. Poppy looked to Charlie, gauging his expression. He seemed unsure, and the knocking became more insistent.

"I'm not expecting anyone. Stay here," Charlie said, standing, his wand already in his hand.

Poppy didn't need to be told twice. She thought about hiding, but realised that most people knew she was there, so she grabbed hold of her wand as well, and watched his reactions closely.

Charlie opened the door a crack and then a moment later he let out a loud groan, opened the door more, and said, "Bounce. Fancy the pub?"

"Yeah, Bounce, come to the pub!" Quentin cried. "We're celebrating!"

Poppy tried not to laugh at both Charlie, who tried to slap his friend for calling Poppy 'Bounce' (Charlie's personal nickname for Poppy), and Quentin, who was trying to goad Charlie by dancing on his front doorstep and repeating the nickname over and over again.

"Celebrating what?" Poppy asked, once the two men had reached a stalemate.

"Life!" Quentin declared, throwing his arms out.

"Please say no," Charlie asked, tipping his head to the side, pleading with her.

Poppy bit her lip and smiled, crossing her arms at her chest. "Okay, Quentin, why should I give up an evening in with Charlie for the pub?"

"Because Charlie hasn't been out in ages, Pop!" Quentin cried, dodging Charlie's hand. "It's been months!"

"It's been less than two weeks," Charlie said, rolling his eyes. "We went out for my birthday, remember?"

Quentin frowned. "Huh. Really? Why don't I remember that?"

"Probably because you gifted me a bottle of rum and drank most of it yourself."

"Oh yeah… well the point still stands," Quentin said with a shrug, "I don't remember going out with you so it's like it didn't happen. And you've been worrying too much recently. Pop! Make him come to the pub!"

Poppy couldn't stop her laugh. She eyed up Charlie, who didn't look like he would protest too much either way, and said, "You know what? I haven't gone out since last Christmas so I'd quite like to go…"

Charlie let out a loud groan and nodded. He turned to Quentin. "I'm on duty at six, so we're not staying late and I'm not drinking," he said, grabbing his coat from the rack by the door.

"We'll see," Quentin replied, winking at Poppy, who tried to hide her laugh.

Two hours later, Poppy found herself sitting at a table in the pub she had been taken to one year previously. The group was smaller, with Poppy only knowing Charlie and Quentin, but it was just as loud, just as fun, and Poppy found herself just as happy, and pleased that she'd taken the time to change into a dress and tights before they'd left - she felt much more herself.

While two of the group went off to dance, Charlie ran to the loo, and Quentin headed to the bar for another round, Poppy sipped her cocktail and people watched.

She was trying to work out what three people by the door were arguing about when Charlie returned, falling heavily into his seat next to her.

"Poppy, you're too good," Charlie said, his speech slightly slurred - despite his protestations that he would not be drinking anything alcoholic, Poppy had watched him drink at least half a bottle of wine and play three rounds of a particularly energetic game with shots of rum.

"Why?" Poppy asked, frowning at her favourite red-head. She smiled slowly, her movements feeling odd and slightly fuzzy thanks to the flowing drinks.

"You just do good things," Charlie replied with a deep breath, frowning at the table in front of him. "Like this. Coming here. It's good."

"Not really," Poppy replied. She pursed her lips and looked away, focussing on a random knot in the wooden table in front of her.

She thought her actions were selfish - she wanted to see Charlie. She couldn't handle the thought that he was alone in Romania, worrying about his dad. She decided she'd visit him unannounced. And by visiting him, it also meant that she wouldn't be alone for Christmas. She hadn't even stopped to think about if her coming would impact his holiday plans or his life in any way.

Poppy realised after a beat that she'd been silent for a while, and looked up at Charlie to see that he was watching her.

"Is that what you think about when you go to the toilet?" Poppy asked, trying to make him laugh, "how good people are?"

His head rolled back and his shoulders bounced slightly when he laughed. He let his head drop forwards and smiled sloppily at her.

"I don't think I've ever seen you this drunk," she said happily.

Charlie shrugged. "Can't handle my tuica. You'll learn that quick enough, Bounce."

"I think I'm the same," she whispered, her eyes moving to his lips and back up to his eyes as she tried to focus on her words.

She spent so much time with Fleur and Bill who spent most of their time snogging, but she didn't quite know if it was something she could just initiate, or if he'd think she was crossing a line - they hadn't talked about displays of affection yet.

Poppy groaned quietly and closed her eyes for a moment. Maybe, she thought, it might be best to talk to Ginny and explain the situation before she made Charlie and her relationship so public. She didn't want to be on the wrong side of the ferocious red-headed teen.

"You'd give me your wand if I asked for it wouldn't you?" Charlie asked, bumping his shoulder into hers.

Poppy opened her eyes and let out a breathless laugh. "Wouldn't anyone?" She shook her head and downed the rest of her drink.

"No," Charlie replied, shifting in his seat. "It's a big thing to give someone your wand. I'd give you mine."

Poppy let out a deep giggle but seeing his serious face, shook her head and tried to stop smiling. "I don't think that's a compliment coming from you."

"No?" Charlie asked, confused.

"Well didn't you give Ron your wand when you left Hogwarts?" Poppy asked, trying not to smile still.

Charlie screwed up his face and picked up his drink. "I bloody loved that wand."

"I know you did."

"You know it took me four months to save up to buy a proper new one, and the little shit broke the one I gave him in a year?" Charlie asked with a joking sob.

Poppy laughed. "You might have mentioned it," Poppy said happily.

Charlie looked at her for a moment, and then Poppy smiled when his arm snaked around her middle and she was roughly pulled closer to him. She wanted to close the distance even more, and found herself sitting on his lap before her thought had even finished.

"That's the thing with things you give away," Poppy said, resting her cheek on his shoulder, "they can get broken and there's nothing you can do about it."

Charlie's arms tightened around her and he said, "I want you to know that I've been thinking about it, and I'm going to try and come back after the war."

"Back?" Poppy asked.

"To England," Charlie said, frowning. "Well, maybe Wales. Or Scotland. But I think I can find something interesting to do for a bit, it's not like there are no dragons over there. Quent's right, I need to be closer so we can date properly and-"

"What?" Poppy asked, sitting up, her thoughts suddenly sharper. "I don't want you to come back. Why do you think I'd want that?"

Charlie's cheeks flushed and he stared at Poppy with wide eyes. The look on his face made her want to cuddle him and never let him go.

"I- but I thought -" Charlie tried.

"I want to come here," Poppy said quickly, realising that he could take her surprise as rejection. Alcohol fuelled her words and she decided to be honest and open. "Like I said last summer, you're living your dream. And when I've finished my Auror training I'll be able to live mine, but I can work anywhere so it just makes sense if I move. And as it turns out, I quite like mucking out enclosures during my downtime."

"You'd do that?" Charlie asked slowly.

"The instant I can," Poppy said, seriously.

Charlie looked at her with a twinkle in his eye that made her want to kiss him, so she did.

"Merlin. Get a room," Quentin called to them when he returned, and Poppy pulled away immediately, ducking her head. "Ridiculous," Quent continued, "the man finally gets a girlfriend and suddenly it's all of our problem."

While Charlie began to argue that he had to watch Quentin and his girlfriends all the time so he could put up with one kiss, Poppy snuggled her face into Charlie's shoulder and breathed in deeply.

Bliss.

Even hours later, when dawn had broken and Poppy stood at the side of an enclosure watching a surprisingly perky Charlie check on a dragon egg while she tried to decide if she would prefer to stab herself in the eyes, throw up, and/or never drink again, she still felt like this was where she needed to be, and this was bliss.