Fic: An Alternate Definition (Katie/Charlie)

Mar 10, 2010 22:36

Title: An Alternate Definition
Author: idea_of_sarcasm
Pairing(s): Charlie Weasley/Katie Bell
Rating: PG-13
Summary: There are different definitions of happily ever after
Warnings: None
Authors Notes: Something short and sweet originally written for the charlieficathon (originally posted here) right around the time my computer went kersplat, and I forgot about posting it to my own livejournal :) I admit I find it easier to write for somebody in a fest, rather than just the community.



It wasn't often Charlie got the chance to enjoy the peace of the dragon reserve. It seemed an incongruous term, considering he worked with violent fire breathing creatures, but at times it was moments like these that he lived for. Unable to sleep, he'd been up at the crack of dawn, slipping from his nice warm tent that held a warm woman who would have been very willing if he'd bothered to wake her up. Instead, he'd done nothing but pull on some trousers, making his way to sit on a large rock that overhung the edge of the plateau, enjoying the biting air of the morning against his bare skin.

The sun rose over the Carpathian mountains, sending streaks of gold and red across the sky. Below him lay the valley that housed the dragon reserve, the peaks obscuring the view of the dragons and their flames from muggles and wizards alike who might happen to be close enough for a glimpse; disillusionment charms took care of the rest. In the distance he could see the Hungarian Horntails roaming about with the keepers who'd drawn night duty; nocturnal creatures, they'd be nodding off soon enough. Charlie could only smile in satisfaction as he surveyed the beauty of the scene, both the mountain scenery and the beasts below. Most of the keepers opted for camp closer to the dragons, but he preferred the better vantage point, even if it was a longer apparition to use the bloody loo.

Every visit to England, he was pestered about when he was going to move home, when he was going to get a real job. What his mum and the rest never seemed to understand was that to him, this was home, and for as long as he was physically capable of the work, this would be the only career he could ever want.

"Merlin," he heard a tired voice yawn behind him, with the tent flap falling back into place.

Dragging his head away from the view Charlie turned to see Katie standing in front of the tent, yawning widely with her hair mussed and her skin still bearing the imprint of the pillow. It was another one of the most beautiful sights he'd ever seen, and not just because she was quite obviously starkers under the blanket from the bed that she'd wrapped around herself.

"Have a care Bell," he said, "some of the keepers have bloody good eyesight - and those that don't are perfectly capable of magnification spells."

She ignored him, though at least the blanket still covered all the important bits when she waddled over to sit down beside him. Sliding closer, she rested her head on his shoulder, mumbling under her breath. "People, normal people, were not meant to be up this early. This time is for sleep. How can a body be expected to function with. . . " She nattered on for a bit more, even as Charlie half tuned it out, knowing she would run out of steam soon enough. Katie was not a morning person, though she gamely at least tried to make an appearance before noon whenever they actually had a chance to be in each others presence. By this time he was used to her grumbles, and her generally cranky attitude, until he got her a proper cup of tea.

"You could go back to bed," he pointed out quite reasonably.

"You could have never got up," she countered. "Didn't I wear you out enough last night to make you capable of a proper lie in?"

Neither of them moved however, except in the fact that Charlie slid an arm around her, holding her closer to him - and she snuggled in to ward off the morning chill. They didn't say anything for the longest period of time, until Katie finally murmured, "Sometimes, just sometimes, I can actually see what you see in this place." She might be the rough and tumble sort, but she wasn't the outdoorsy sort. It took a lot to get her to understand, usually, why he loved it on the reserve so much. It would probably convert even Molly Weasley however if she had a chance to be confronted with the natural beauty; it wasn't just about the dragons. It was odd, the sense of satisfaction he could get, that he could share some of the joy in his job and home with her.

Her head turned to nuzzle at his neck. "I portkey out in a few hours," she said quietly against the skin, her lips rumbling in a half kiss.

There was more regret in him than he could even hear in her words. There was never enough time, there never had been. Not since the first moment they'd snogged at George and Angelina's engagement party. He lived in bloody Romania, she played professional Quidditch which took her all over the world for the majority of the year. Neither of them were willing to give those things up, but neither were they willing to give up each other. They. . . worked, oddly enough, in a way things never had with another woman. They'd never made any promises they couldn't keep, but yet neither of them had been with another soul since their affair started two years before.

"I," she was the one who continued on, this time sounding more hesitant, "have a month long break coming up at the end of the season before training starts for the World Cup team. I was thinking I could spend it here, if you don't have other plans."

The hesitancy happened on both sides every time either made a suggestion of something a bit more permanent than a weekend portkey in, or a shag. Neither sure of their welcome, neither sure what was allowed. They'd determined what they didn't want, the spouse and the 2.5 kids, but surrounded by domesticated bliss on all sides it was sometimes a little bit harder to define what they did want. Apparently 'labels' were all too important, and they were never able to come up with the right one.

"I want you here Katie," Charlie said bluntly, "for a month, for a year, forever if you have a mind to it."

Her face paled slightly, and he knew he'd phrased it wrong. "I'm not proposing domesticated bliss and asking you to give up Quiddith you daft bint, so stop looking like I was about to kill your cat."

Katie managed a smile, "I always feel like I'm taking a risk with one of you Weasleys. I swear marriage and procreation are even more of a biological imperative."

Normally he would have put it off for another time, a time when they had a chance to be together for longer, but Charlie knew waiting for that might mean a month, a year, who knew. Looking at her rather than the peaceful scene in front of him, feeling his contentment fade, he knew he wasn't willing to wait that long. He didn't fancy coming off the bird in this scenario, but he knew if they let things stand for any longer they were never going to change.

"I want you here whenever you're able," he said, "I want to come to England whenever I can. I want you to come meet my bloody family as mine rather than a friend of Angelina's or the twins. I want to hear about your Quidditch exploits in the wireless, and catch them in person whenever I can. I want to bore you with stories about dragons until your eyes glaze over. I want to shag you senseless whenever we have the time together, and fucking hurt any other man who tries. And, one day, I might want to share a house - when we're ready, when we're done all the rest that we want to do with our lives. I want you to know that I want you whenever I can get you, so you never have to question it."

Katie swallowed deeply. He could practically see her feeling overwhelmed. "And that's not asking me to marry you?"

"No," he said, "it's me saying I want you forever. Just you. The rest of it can all sod off."

The ring didn't matter, the ceremony didn't matter, the rest wasn't right for either of them. They'd discussed it both obliquely and directly, they knew they were in accord.

He was expecting them to have to work around to it a little bit more, so it was a surprise when she turned fully to face him, a smile playing at her lips. "I think," she said, "that's my cue to say I want you forever too."

"Only if you mean it," he remarked dryly.

Katie might have stuck out her tongue in childish fashion, but considering the subject matter only resigned herself to rolling her eyes. "Would I say it if I didn't? Honestly Charlie."

It was true she wouldn't. He, who was better at talking to dragons who couldn't talk back, was still better at expressing emotion than she was. If she expressed it, she meant it, and it cost her to say every word. It wasn't that she was a tough bird, though she was in her own way, she had just come from a more reserved background. He was used to hugs, and fussing, and declarations of caring - both verbally and otherwise.

"You're sucking the romance out of the moment," he said, holding her a little closer to show how much he didn't care.

Katie made a face, "Oh please, like it was all flower petals and swooning music to begin with."

"Oi, I'll have you know that was ten times more romantic than a bloke who shoves a ring in a girl's face because he feels like he has a wand to his head. If I let you, you'd continue to take advantage of me, spoiling my virtue without so much as a need to call me your boyfriend." He knew she was going to make a smart arse remark about the fact he hadn't been virtuous since sixth year in the astronomy tower with Nymphadora Tonks, but cut her off with a kiss before she got the chance.

A kiss turned a proper snog, then turned into roaming hands and a less than chaste embrace, and before Charlie knew it he had her pinned beneath him with the blanket unrolled and her brown hair spread out on the rock below.

"People," she admonished him as his mouth found her neck, "might see."

"People," he said, "can't see that well."

"Magnifying charms," she murmured as he bit lightly on her skin, "binoculars," she said breathlessly as his hand kneaded at her breast, "a million bloody spells. Remember those?" She finished speaking on a gasp as he hitched her leg up, rubbing between her thighs.

"What I meant to say Bell is, I just don't care."

She joined in the torture, her hand sliding down to his trousers, "Brilliant. I know Kevin at the very least will enjoy the sight of your bare arse. Merlin knows he's been lusting after you since. . . ."

It was an easy decision to cut off her speech with his mouth on hers again.



(also, in my apparent effort to bring to everybody's attention the increased interest on the internet in curling - here, ha)

fanfiction, katie/charlie, all ages

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