Fic: Your Boldness Stands Alone Among the Wreck (Charlie/Jamie - Part 1)

[titti]

Ginny winced as a door banged, and then another and finally footsteps moving toward the kitchen like a stampede. Three days since the end of school, and there had been arguments, fights, silent treatments and ever a few tears. Maybe the tears had been hers, but frustration was building up and quickly inside the house.

"What now?" Harry asked from the corner where he was sitting.

"Jamie is being a jerk," Al answered. "I want to stop by Diagon Alley for ten minutes, and then go see Scorpius, but can he take me? Noooo, he's too busy."

"Jamie, why don't you Apparate him there?" Ginny asked. "I'd offer, but it seems that being seen with your mother is the equivalent of social suicide."

"Because I don't bloody want to go there. He can get there by Floo," Jamie answered as he slumped down on the chair.

"I get all dirty," Al murmured.

"And I don't give a shit."

"Language," both Harry and Ginny said in unison. "Jamie, we're not asking you some great hardship, just drop him off and come back," Harry said.

"Bullshit, if you thought it wasn't a hardship, then you'd go, but then they show up out of no where, taking pictures. I swear they even try to get shots under my robes to see what I'm wearing," he answered. "Why is it always me? Never him. I'm not going and that's final." He stood up so fast that the chair fell backwards, but he walked out without picking it up.

Ginny sighed. "So good to have them home for the summer."

Albus sniggered. "He's done with school. He'll be here forever."

"I'm buying him a house," Harry said, chuckling, but then drop the newspaper he was reading and got up. "Come on, Al. I'll drop you off before going to the Ministry."

Albus smiled smugly. "The Head Auror is my personal slave." He ducked as his Dad cuffed him. "Oy, watch the hair," he said, trying to smooth it out with his fingers.

Harry snorted. "It's as bad as mine and nothing can fix it. Now get moving or you're using the Floo."

Ginny watched them go, before returning to her cup of coffee. Complete peace for about three minutes, before Jamie started to bang doors again, but she ignored it and kept drinking her coffee. Sooner or later, her son would calm down. Until then, silencing spells would do.

Jamie Potter, son of the Chosen One and current Head of the Auror division, was arrested in a bar brawl last night according to recent reports. Mr. Potter destroyed several chairs and bottles as he fought two wizards at the Leaky Cauldron. No one seems to know what started the fight. Mr. Potter was released early this morning.

When he entered the kitchen, he saw his father reading that morning's edition of the Prophet. He could easily read the headline and see his picture scowling at the world. He could also see his father was eyeing him over the top of the Prophet. He waited for something, but when nothing happened, James sat down. He should have known that his father would wait for the right moment to speak up.

"I really hope that whatever caused this was worth it." Harry said, as he folded the paper and tossed it onto the table, headline still visible. He pointed to the paper and finally looked at Jamie. "You won't be getting out so quickly, next time."

"Okay." Jamie didn't feel like explaining what had happened, it was apparent his father didn't want to know and his head was throbbing thanks to the drinking which led to the fight.

"That's all you have to say for yourself?"

"I guess so." Jamie wished for a potion or a charm for his head, or he'd settle for the silence of his room and a few hours of sleep. It was bad enough that every time he tried to leave the house, he had to deal with those reporters, with all their fucking questions and the pictures - he'd spent his entire life living in his father's shadow - he couldn't even have a proper fight without being reminded just who his father was.

"You've been home for three weeks all ready," Harry went on. "You haven't picked a team, you haven't accepted the Aurors offer, you've still not answered St. Mungo's. You've had people lined up, trying to get you to work for them, and you can't even be bothered to answer them. What's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?" Jamie had to keep himself from letting his eyes roll all the way back into his head. "Must there be something wrong with me just because I haven't known from the time I was eleven that I wanted to be an Auror?"

"That's not what I said, Jamie." Harry pinched the bridge of his nose, taking just a moment to breathe, and it was obvious he was trying to remain calm - Jamie hadn't made it easy on any of them recently. "You have plenty of opportunities, more than any of your friends, and you haven't decided on anything, so what's the problem?"

"Why does it have to be a problem that I don't know what I want to do right after school?" Jamie gritted his teeth. There had been plenty of offers even before he finished at Hogwarts, Quidditch teams wanted him, Uncle Ron had been practically giddy at the idea of Jamie playing for the Canons, he'd gotten offers to join the Aurors, even a few offers for jobs out of the country, but Jamie couldn't settle on any of them.

It wasn't that he didn't like some of them, but that all of them had been made because of who he was and not because of what he could do. He also knew that no matter what he did, someone in his family had done it better. It was impossible to be good at something when you came from a family of heroes, and not even a normal family, but one with so many people that had all the fields covered.

"I just don't know what I want to do," he said with a sigh.

"You're going to have to make a decision, unless your plan is to fight until you're sent to Azkaban," Harry said.

"For fuck--"

"Language," Harry snapped out. "I'm getting sick and tired of your attitude, do you understand me? You get up at lunch time, leave until dinner, come home and aren't hungry, shower, leave again, and if it weren't for your arrest, I wouldn't have seen you until breakfast when you'd be going to sleep. This has to stop. While you're under my roof-"

"Harry, love, would you like some tea before lunch," Ginny said as she entered the kitchen. "Jamie, darling, what about you? Would you like some food?"

"Sure," Jamie said, surly.

"Ginny, this is important and food doesn't solve everything, no matter what your mother thinks," Harry said.

Ginny laughed. "Is that what I was doing? I thought we were going to have lunch, but if that solves all our problem, then even better." She eyed her son, before moving around to prepare some lunch. "I've spoken to your Uncle Charlie this morning," she started casually. "One of their keepers just got married, and he's got two weeks off. They've got enough people to cover for him, of course, but they wouldn't say no to an extra hand, so I told him that you could help out, so I called Uncle Percy and he said that he'll have a Portkey made for you. We should have it sometimes this afternoon. It seems that there are people working even on Saturday when it comes to these things. You can be in Romania tonight, settle in, and give your uncle a hand."

Silence fell in the room, broken by her heels on the ceramic tiles and the clinking of plates and utensils. No one said a word for three, long, interminable minutes, and then hell broke loose. Jamie stood up so abruptly that the chair fell backwards, hitting the counter before sliding forward and landing to the floor with a bang. "Are you mad? You want me to go to bloody Romania, did you lose your mind?"

"Jamie, stopped talking to your mother that way," Harry warned, but Ginny remained calm. "No, I thought that you'd want to help out your uncle." she said.

"I barely know him," Jamie answered, half screaming. "He comes home once a year for a few days."

"He's still your uncle, and he lives far away from here, in a tightly controlled reserve, with no reporters," she said as she moved closer and cupped his face. "Jamie, darling, we know how hard it is to deal with the media. We've been doing it for a long time, and it's not fair that you have to go through that, but they won't leave you alone until you make a choice, and that's no way for you to decide what you want to do for the rest of your life. You'll have some peace there, and you can decide without interference, and when you come back, you'll announce it, you'll spend the rest of the summer having fun, and come September you start working. Trust me; this is for the best and it's only two weeks." She grinned. "Besides, Charlie is a lot of fun; you'll enjoy yourself."

She tried to kissed him, but Jamie pulled away. "Mum, I'm not a child."

Ginny laughed it off. "Of course not, baby. Now, pick up your chair and sit down. Let's have lunch, and then I'll help you pack."

"Thanks, Mum," Jamie said.

She nodded. "It's my job, darling, and now I hope you two are done arguing for the day."

Jamie used the Portkey Uncle Percy had given him, even though he could have Apparated, but then his entire family was made up of control freaks and they worried about him and security. They used the fact that his father was the Head Auror as the excuse, but it had started long before that. During the summers, Jamie had been hyper-aware of Aurors always been around when he was in public.

"Are you going to stand there all day long?"

James squinted as he looked over where the voice was. "Uncle Charlie, how are you?"

"What have I told you?"

"Right, Charlie," Jamie said, chuckling.

"Is there a reason why you're just standing there?" Charlie asked.

"No aurors, no photographers. It's--" Jamie grinned. "Weird, but good weird." He finally walked toward his uncle and gave him a one arm hug, while holding his trunk with one hand. "Where should I put this?"

"In our tent, I'd say. Come this way," Charlie answered, going up the hill. "We have a good fifteen minute walk. We have a one kilometre no Apparition and no Portkey area all around the perimeter of the camp. This was as close I could get you, so you'll just have to carry it. No house elves here, but you should stay fit if you're planning on joining the league."

"Don't start with me. I don't know what I'm going to do," Jamie answered as they walked.

Charlie raised an eyebrow. "I'm not starting anything. Your mother just said that you've had offers and you were taking your time deciding which team."

"And Dad will tell you that I've got a seat in the Auror training program, and that I'm going to follow in his footsteps," James said.

"Ah," Charlie said. "So everyone has an opinion on what you should be doing, but of course they are all wrong," he said seriously. "We all know that you should be a dragon keeper. It's the best job there is."

James looked at his uncle, barely containing his anger, and then rolled his eyes, when he saw his uncle grin. "Piss off," he said, chuckling.

"Right after I get you settled in our tent," Charlie answered as they made their trek to the camp and Jamie could really settle for his visit.

When his mother had told him that he would be working with Uncle Charlie at the dragon reserve in Romania, Jamie couldn't help but think for just a moment, no matter how foolishly it sounded, that he would be getting up close and personal with the dragons. He imagined all the stories he would have when he got back about riding dragons and dodging dragon fire, and all the near death experiences he would rack up during his time on the reserve. Of course, reality was not quite so thrilling.

It wasn't like he expected to be riding dragons the first day, he wasn't stupid after all, but this was not at all what he had in mind.

"It's not that bad, really." Jamie had to do everything in his power not to roll his eyes at Mikkel, because he was pretty sure that coming all the way to Romania just so that he could take inventory was actually that bad.

"You have to know what you have here before you can know what you need out there," Mikkel said, calmly.

"We're counting cans and bags of potatoes. No one will die for lack of them," Jamie pointed out.

"That's not the point," Mikkel answered. "You get used to being precise with everything: food, potions, ingredients, safety distances from the dragons. They make you do the work so you start thinking a certain way. Everyone goes through that, it's part of the process."

"I'm only going to be here two weeks." He wasn't going to change the way he thought in two week nor what he did. He was perfect anyway.

Mikkel frowned. "Two weeks only? What's the point then? I thought you were training to become a keeper."

Jamie shook his head. "No, Charlie asked if I could help out while that bloke is on his honeymoon and I said yes."

The other boy snorted. "Help? He's an experienced keeper, but maybe Charlie wanted you here for some other reason."

It was Jamie's turn to frown. What did that mean? Everyone had an agenda; he couldn't believe that for a moment, he'd believed that Charlie had none.

Slytherins would come up with a plan, trying to figure out what dark motive had prompted his uncle to ask him here. Jamie was not a Slytherin. So his brilliant plan was to march to his uncle and ask straight out why the big lie to get him there. It was a simple plan, and yet the delivery was less than impressive. First Charlie was flying, then there were potions to put away, then there was lunch, then Charlie had some other stuff to do with the dragons while Jamie had dishes to wash and potatoes to peel for dinner. By the end of the day, Jamie couldn't remember anything about lies, plans or dragons. He wanted to get to his bed and pass out.

The next morning, things started the same way. Jamie couldn't believe that there was so much bloody work. He thought this was simple and easy, very exciting too, except that he was a glorified house elf here. If it weren't for the fact that his uncle had said he needed help, he'd already Apparatated home. Suddenly the reporters didn't seem so bad. At least they came with fancy clubs and parties.

Jamie was set on getting an explanation, but it turned out that Charlie was the one to find Jamie first though. It wasn't early either. No. another day had passed and Jamie was ready for bed again, but instead he found himself face to face with his uncle, right outside their tent.

Charlie clapped a hand on his shoulder at the end of the work day and grinned. "So, how are you liking things so far?"

Jamie had never paid too much attention to Charlie over the years - oh he was kind of cool, he worked with dragons after all, what wasn't cool about that? But he'd never been around enough for Jamie to ever really get a feel for him. Holidays filled with people were never the best time to get to know anyone. But he seemed like a nice enough guy, if the impression Jamie had of him over the short time he'd been at the reserve was anything to go on. That didn't mean that he could trust him, either, especially after what Mikkel had implied. "It's all right I guess, bit boring actually."

Charlie laughed and nodded. "Everyone says that when they start working here - it's never what anyone pictures, but it's part of paying your dues."

"You do know I'm only here two weeks, right?" Jamie answered, still wondering if this was yet another attempt to prod him toward a specific career.

"Course, I do." Charlie winked at Jamie, leaving Jamie gobsmacked. "Doesn't mean we can't treat you like a keeper while we've got you, though."

Except he wasn't a keeper, just like he wasn't a Quidditch player, an Auror, a Healer or whatever else they had come up with this week. He hadn't been sure about this trip at first, and maybe he'd been a bit hopeful after talking to his mother, but now he was downright suspicious and angry. "But I'm not! I'm not planning to be. I came here to help you, because Mum said you needed help, but I get here, and I'm no better than a house elf. It's clear that it was a lie to get me here. So why am I here?"

"Take it easy, kid." Charlie was holding up a hand, "I thought Ginny told you why you were out here - she said you needed a break from everything at home, all the reporters and things. So maybe we didn't actually need your help with things, but I figure a chance to think about things without being followed around all the time might do you some good. Besides we can always use an extra hand with the inventory."

Yes, his Mum had said that, but she'd also said they needed his help - and that was clearly a lie. "Again, you didn't need me. And it's not better. They all look at me weird. Sure, they haven't asked for an autograph yet, but I can tell that they want to. It's like they can't wait to ask, but don't."

Charlie laughed then, he actually laughed, and Jamie scowled at him. "An autograph? Jamie - these people have no idea who you are. I know it's hard to understand, but outside of Britain, Harry Potter is not that famous, and no one is going to ask you for your autograph." Charlie was still chuckling as he went on. "I think any weird looks you're getting are because you're new and you're not staying long - we don't do that often around here." Charlie clapped a hand on his back again. "Trust me, Kid; you're imagining things."

He was not imagining anything. He had been under public scrutiny for so long that he knew when people were staring. Something was going on and if Charlie wouldn't tell him, then he'd discover it some other way. "Right, just too used to ulterior motives. I guess I'll just go to sleep. Night, Charlie." he didn't wait for a reply as he walked inside the tent and headed for his bed. He could figure this out when he wasn't so tired.

"Charlie, a moment." Serghei's voice called out from a few hundred metres away. The man was in his seventies and a native of Romania. He'd also been at the camp since Charlie had started. Back then Serghei had only been a keeper, but for the past decade, he'd been promoted to Head keeper. "How is your nephew settling down?" he asked as he got closer.

"Good. He's bitching and moaning, but no more than any new keeper in training." He grinned. "No one likes to peel potatoes. I don't know why."

Serghei chuckled. "I don't know, but I do remember a certain young redhead complaining about that, a few decades ago."

"But you didn't come to ask me about peeling potatoes," he answered. Charlie knew Serghei too well to believe that this was just a friendly chat. Everything Serghei said and did had a reason. "You might as well tell me. I'm not that young redhead anymore and I know you too well."

"No, you're more grey than red-"

"Lies," Charlie interrupted with a smirk.

"I will buy you a mirror for your birthday." Serghei started to walk, leaving Charlie to follow him away from where people were. "Do you not know what people are saying of you and your nephew?"

Charlie shrugged. "People are always saying something. This isn't any worse."

"But it is. They claim that he is your lover." He whispered the last word, even though no one was around. "How can you let them think that?"

"I'm not doing anything wrong, Serghei, and if they think that, well, that's their problem. I have no way to explain what a stranger is doing here, without telling them who he is, and Jamie needs a place where no one ogles him, where he's not a celebrity. He's eighteen, and he deserves a chance to be a kid." Maybe he wouldn't have to come all the way to Romania if people had acted normally in England, but they were trying to do what was best for the kid.

"It is wrong. It's wrong for the boy's reputation. You cannot let people think that," Serghei warned him.

"All right, I'll tell them, but not now. When he's ready to leave, when it won't matter who he is, because he'll be gone. I want to give him two weeks of peace. Please?" he begged.

"Okay, I will not say anything, but you will tell the others before your nephew leaves. Now, get back to work, or I might have to fire you."

Charlie chuckled. "You won't. I'm the best keeper you have."

"But getting old, my boy. You might want to steal my job," Serghei said, with a glimmer in his eyes.

Charlie laughed. "Go away, old man. I have work to do."

A week was almost over and Jamie had been pairing with Mikkel most of the times. He'd learnt that Mikkel was from Sweden, not that Jamie knew much about Sweden other than it was even colder than Scotland, or he thought so. He probably should have asked more about Mikkel's home country, but he was more interested in knowing Charlie's end game.

"So you've known Charlie for long?" Jamie asked as they catalogued brooms and flying gear. At least this was something that he was interested in. He knew broom. He owned better brooms than this, but at least flying was something that he enjoyed. And it was better than peeling potatoes.

"You look like your making love to that broom," Mikkel said, sniggering.

Jamie flipped two fingers at him. "I'm taking care of the broom. They are like babies; they need love and caring. If you treat them well, then you can rely on them when you are in the air and bludgers are coming your way."

"Quidditch, huh?"

Jamie nodded grinning. "Chaser, pretty damn good, too. I got a few offers, but I am still trying to make up my mind about what I want do to."

"Are you mad? You have offers from pro teams and still thinking about it? You must be crazier than Charlie," Mikkel said.

"You still haven't said how long you've known him," Jamie said, trying to look casual about it.

"Since I got here, three years ago," Mikkel answered, amused. "And you should really stop with the coy act. You can ask me, you know? And the answer is no, I'm not interested in him. I'm straight."

Jamie choked as the word registered. "What?"

"Oh, please, everyone knows that you two are together. Why else would you be here?" Mikkel laughed. "Don't worry about it. We all know that Charlie is gay and no one has a problem with it. Besides, it's not even the first time that he's brought his lovers to stay with him for a few days. Not often, mind you, but he'd been in this reserve for a long time. It's happened more than once."

"He- You- I-" James Sirius Potter, most popular Gryffindor in of the new century, most photographed eighteen year old in England, most eloquent teenager around, was speechless. He could only open and close his mouth, trying to make sense of what he was hearing. His uncle was gay. He was pretty sure that no one at home knew that. His gay uncle brought him here just like he had brought other lovers. His insane uncle hadn't told him any of this, asked him not to call him 'Uncle' and had been happy to make people think that they were lovers.

"I need to go," he finally said as he dropped the room, and ran out of the tent, in search for his uncle. Jamie sped through the camp, asking people if they had seen Charlie. Of course, with the way his luck was going, Charlie was in the air with the bloody dragons.

Jamie used the time to go over what he wanted to say, everything that was wrong with the situation. When he was satisfied with his speech, he watched as the keepers flew between the dragons, herding them so they wouldn't go too far, diving and swerving to avoid the fire.

It was the first time since coming to the reserve that he had taken the time to observe not just the dragons, but the keepers too. They were all fit, regardless of gender and age, muscles defined by exercise and training, talent in the air sharpened by years and danger, and a coordination built on trust and familiarity. In short, they were beautiful to watch. He was still smiling when he saw Charlie come his way.

"They said you were looking for me," Charlie said with his usual, infuriating grin. Did the man never get upset?

Jamie's expression changed and the smile turned into a frown. "Not here. Your tent," he hissed, before turning to go exactly there. He used the walk to work himself into a state, because Charlie was annoyingly good at making you forget your trouble. As soon as they were both inside, he stared Charlie down. "You lied to me."

Charlie stood there, looking amused, not the reaction Jamie wanted. "About what, this time?"

"About everything!"

"Everything, huh? That's...a lot of things. I don't think we've talked about everything," Charlie answered, chuckling. "Jamie, maybe you want to calm down and tell me what's going on, yeah? That would make this discussion a lot easier to follow."

"You're gay," Jamie blurted out.

"Oh." Charlie sat down on the little sofa that was there and sighed. "It's not a secret, Jamie."

"You never told anyone at home," Jamie answered.

"I never told them that I wasn't either," Charlie pointed out. "I've been living here since I was eighteen, Jamie. I love my family and I enjoy coming back to see all of you, but this is my life. The people out there are my real family. They know that I'm gay and they are fine with it. That's really what matters. I never thought of it as a secret, because if I had, I wouldn't have invited you here, since it was inevitable you would find out. The thing is that it's so normal for me is that I didn't think of telling you and I should have. You shouldn't have found out from someone else. I'm sorry about that."

"You really don't think that Grandma would like to know?" Jamie asked.

Charlie snorted. "I'm pretty sure that she'd love to know everything I do, but that's just another reason why I left home. She can be a little ... overbearing, but it's more than that. This is my life. It's no one's business who I shag or who I like. It's-"

"Private," Jamie finished with a sigh, before sitting down next to his uncle. "I can understand why you don't want to share it with them. I don't want to share most of my life, but that doesn't exactly work well. Still, you should have told me. I'm here and people talk. They talk about me and you, Charlie. They think... Mikkel thought-"

"That we're lovers." It was Charlie's turn to finish Jamie's sentence. "I know, Jamie, but it was the only way. Let me tell you the whole story, okay? I"m not going to keep anything from you. Your mum owled me, she often does, telling me all about Harry and all of you. She told me about the problems you were having back home, making a decision, having everyone nagging you. She didn't ask me if you could stay. I offered."

"Why?" Jamie asked, even more confused.

"Because I could relate to that. Your Uncle Bill was perfect. Top grades, record OWLs and NEWTs, Head Boy, good looks. He had it all. I was his not-so-good copy, but I was great on a broom," he said with a smile. "I loved flying. Everyone was sure that I was going to join the league. I could have had any team I wanted, or almost every team, but I felt like I couldn't breathe, with everyone on top of me trying to tell me where I should go. It's why I left. I didn't become a keeper because I planned it. I became a keeper because I was escaping England. Don't get me wrong; I love it, and I don't regret my choice at all, but no one should make the choice because people are pressing them." Charlie reached over and squeezed Jamie's shoulder. "You need to decide what you want without any pressure."

"I still don't understand why you wouldn't tell them."

"Because you're Jamie here. They don't know who you are. This is Romania; people aren't in love with your father and on the reserve we don't get the sort of magazines where your face is on the front cover constantly. People don't know who you are, so they assume that you are some kid I'm shagging," he said with a shrug. "It's really not that important if it stops them from asking who you really are. You are completely free to be yourself here."

All of his anger disappeared, glad that someone was thinking about him when he didn't have the energy to do so anymore. "Thank you."

"It's all right, Kid. You'll be fine; I'm sure. Now, let's get back out there. The work day isn't finished and you have some brooms to polish."

Jamie didn't seem to mind either. It would give him time to think.

Confusion seemed to be the theme of the next few days. While it was easier to explain the looks he kept getting now, Jamie wasn't sure how he felt about people thinking he was Charlie's lover. It was wrong, but it beat being asked for his autograph. His feelings for Charlie weren't any clearer. Charlie had lied to him, and yet Jamie couldn't help but feel grateful that someone understood what it had been like and was actually thinking about him, instead of pressuring him into some career he wasn't even sure he wanted.

Befuddlement seemed to increase when he saw the looks that he was getting from this one keeper, Luca. Luca was from Romania, but spoke a very good English, proper to the extreme, with no contractions and a thick inflection. He was in his mid twenties, with a deep voice, wavy brown hair and grey eyes. He stared at everyone with such an intensity that you wondered if he could really see your soul through your eyes. Those looks were normal and directed to everyone, but when he looked at Jamie, there was more. Luca didn't seem to wonder about Jamie's relationship with Charlie or what Jamie's soul was like, but he looked like he wanted to eat Jamie alive.

Those looks left Jamie disoriented. He wasn't gay; he'd never even thought about being gay. In fact, he didn't think he knew anyone that way gay, and of course, he'd been wrong about that, since he'd known Charlie. However, even he could tell that the looks he was getting from Luca had a sexual hint, a subtle invitation for things Jamie couldn't even imagine..

Jamie had been pretty good at avoiding the man, because what was he supposed to do? He wasn't gay. If he stared at man's bodies while in the air, it had more to do with flying and less to do with sexuality. And he was supposed to be Charlie's boyfriend, shouldn't that end Luca's attempts?

"He is not paying attention to you," Luca said, getting all too close to Jamie.

Guess not!

Jamie had been in the storage tent. It was where they kept all the ingredients they obtained from the dragons. Here people would sort out the ones meant for the reserve and the keepers and the ones that they would sell. The tent had all sorts of light filtering spells and cooling charms, keeping the ingredients protected. It was also a tent people avoided unless they had a specific job to do.

"You shouldn't be here," Jamie said, with a smile.

"You should not be here alone," Luca answered. "I have always known Charlie was a selfish bastard."

Anger flamed inside him. "He's not selfish."

"No, you are right. He is an amazing keeper, devoted to the dragons and the other keepers. He would do anything for anyone on this reserve, but he is a selfish lover." Luca moved closer, putting a hand on Jamie's hip. "I have been watching, yes? And I can tell that he is not taking care of you properly."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jamie asked, curiosity taming his anger on Charlie's behalf.

"He does not spend time with you. When you are together, he does not touch you or hold you like he should," Luca explained.

"He likes to be discreet." He wasn't sure why he was even defending Charlie. It wasn't like they were really involved. He was his uncle, for Merlin's sake; of course, Charlie wouldn't be touching him, but he couldn't stand by and let Luca badmouth him.

Luca laughed. "I would not let someone like you alone." He brushed Jamie's cheek, his fingers ghosting over Jamie's lips. "I would touch you and kiss you. I would make you know how much I want you." He leaned closer and kissed him softly. "I would make love to you under the stars and then you would not be so tense and angry all the time."

"I'm not," Jamie hissed.

"You are, and if he were an attentive lover, you would not let me kiss you," he said, triumphantly, before kissing Jamie again, lips pressing insistently, teeth nipping. His tongue pressed inside Jamie's mouth and mapped every ridge, explored it with confidence.

Jamie almost pushed him away, but Luca knew what he was doing, and soon Jamie was moving closer, fingers gripping Luca's shirt. He stepped closer until their bodies were pressed against each other. "I'm not sure we should do this," he whispered, even as he held onto the other man

"Do not worry. I will not tell Charlie."

Jamie almost snorted. Luca would not tell Charlie, because he'd be in deep shit, or that would be the reasonable presumption considering that everyone thought they were lovers. No, that wasn't Jamie's problem. The fact that he hadn't even considered having sex with a man before was, and he had no way how to tell Luca without blowing his cover, or looking like a complete tosser.

"Let me take care of you," Luca said, softly.

Jamie was too much of a Gryffindor to back down or to explain how this was his first time. He also couldn't stop Luca, not when Luca's hand was on his crotch rubbing him until he was hard. There was only one thing he could say. "Okay." After that, he followed Luca's lead, pretending to know what he was doing, but even his eventual orgasm didn't seem to help. In fact, he was more confused than every.

His time at the reserve was almost over. He hadn't done much work with the dragons. Peeling potatoes and polishing brooms was still boring, but it did give Jamie time to think, and he made good use of his time. Of course if from time to time he did the thinking while watching the dragons fly, no one could really blame him. The dragons were magnificent, and his eyes only strayed to the keepers once in a while. Oh, who was he kidding! He looked at the keepers most of the time.

They looked happy, completely at peace with themselves in a way he never experienced. Nothing seemed to touch them when they were in the air. Nothing could divide them. They were a sort of family and no one judged each other.

Did he want a life like that?

As much as he found it awesome, he didn't think he could live with this anonymity for the rest of his life. He liked people and clubs, he didn't even hate the reporters on occasion, especially when a great picture of him appeared on the paper. Most of all, this wasn't what he liked. His best time was spent taking care of the brooms, taking them up in the air and faking moves, anticipating imaginary bludgers.

He loved Quidditch!

Maybe, they'd always compare him to his mother, but then again, she'd only played for a few years, and he planned on playing for a long time. He'd make his mark and he'd make them forget who his mother was. He supposed he had found his answer after all. However, this trip had brought up a different numbers of questions.

For the past week, he had focused on his uncle - no, Charlie. It was much easier thinking of him that way. Charlie wasn't young anymore, almost fifty. For Jamie, that was almost ancient, but he didn't look ancient the way his parents did. He was fit, confident, and more than that, everything he did screamed of sex.

So maybe, he was exaggerating. He was a teenager after all and after that night with Luca, he couldn't seem to think about anything other than sex, but it seemed to him that every time Charlie got closer to someone or touched someone, you could feel his sexuality pouring off. How had he missed it before?

He was so immerse in his thoughts that he never saw Charlie coming. The darkness around them didn't help, but Jamie loved to sit under the stars. It was the one thing he rarely did at home.

"Knut for your thoughts?" Charlie asked as he joined Jamie who was sitting on the ground, in front of their tent. "Is this because you're going home in two days? You can stay longer if you like."

Jamie shook his head and then grinned. "I think I know what I want to do."

Charlie grinned back. "Do you, now? So what are you going to be?"

"I want to play Quidditch. That's what I really like. I watched you and the others in the air, and everyone else was looking at the dragons, but I was looking at the fliers, the way they moved, how they could have used a skill for a play, I was imagining games," he said.

"So the dragons are nice, but the Quidditch is better." Charlie clapped Jamie's back. "Good for you, Kid. The important thing is knowing what you want and doing it, no matter what anyone tells you, and if your father thinks that you should be an Auror, he can come and talk to me."

"Will you defend my honour?" Jamie asked, cheekily.

"I was thinking about getting him drunk and letting him walk toward the dragons. It's safer for me."

Jamie snorted. "Right, let's not duel the famous Harry Potter when you can get him drunk. Are you sure you aren't a Slytherin? You're pretty sneaky."

"Oy, why are you insulting me now?" Charlie leaned back and propped himself on his elbow. He looked at Jamie with a serious expression on his face. "If he gives you a hard time, I will defend your right to choose what you want to do. So have you picked a team as well, or did your revelation end with Quidditch?"

Jamie nodded. "I'll take the reserve position with the Montrose Magpies."

"Reserve? But I thought you got offered starting positions," Charlie said.

"I know, but the Magpies are the best team. They have a history of winning. They don't need James Potter to be famous. They already have their sponsors and fans. They wouldn't take me unless I was good enough to play with them," he said. "Unlike some of the other team, who would use my name to make money. I'd never be able to play without that cloud over my head. Instead with the Magpies, I can show them how good I am and earn that spot on the starting team."

"You have a good head on your shoulder. I know you don't need my blessings or anything, but for what it's worth, I think you're making the right decision."

Jamie didn't answer, but stared out into the dark. The stars were out and the moon was almost full in the sky. Jamie barely saw any of that now that Charlie was sitting next to him.

"Something is still bothering you, though. What is it?" Charlie asked.

"Not really bothering.... This trip made me think a lot."

"Something you aren't used to, is it?"

Jamie sniggered, but still elbowed Charlie. "I think plenty, just not this kind of thinking."

Charlie laughed. "Not fair. I can't hit you in this position."

"Who said I have to play fair?" Jamie answered with a grin.

"Now, who's acting like a Slytherin?" Charlie kept his eyes on Jamie, but without any pressure at all. "So what kind of thinking are you doing? Unless you don't want to talk about it, and that's fine too."

Jamie shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it's fine." He picked up a pebble and tossed it, watching it roll down the small incline. "I had sex with a man," he said without thinking.

"I see. Is this a normal occurrence or is this new?" Charlie asked, calmly.

"It's... it was the first time."

"Here on the reserve?"

Jamie nodded again. "I'm not going to tell you who," he rushed to say.

"I didn't ask you," Charlie replied. "What you do is your business as long as you're doing it for the right reasons."

"Are there wrong reason to have sex?" Jamie asked, sniggering.

"Yes, if you're doing because of expectations or because you want to be like someone else."

"You're lecturing."

"No, I"m answering your question, Jamie. You asked me and I told you. It's as simple as that." Charlie turned to his side, head propped on his hand. "Are you all right?"

"I think so. It was strange. Not the... you know? But thinking that it was a bloke. I always thought that I would get married, have children. The usual."

"Like every Weasley."

"Almost like every Weasley. You haven't done any of that."

"No, I haven't, but that doesn't mean that you have to do the same thing," Charlie pointed out.

Jamie leaned back, propping himself on his elbows and turned his head to look at Charlie Anyone watching them from afar would think that they were lovers sharing secrets; it still didn't bother Jamie one bit. "It was... I don't know... weird? I mean I've done meaningless sex before, but this was- He tried to make it sound like it meant something, like it was personal, but it wasn't."

"Luca is upset, because I turned him down, and I'm sorry that you got caught in the middle," Charlie said with a sigh.

"I never said-"

"You don't have to. I know the people here, I know who's gay and straight, and I know who'd go after someone they think is my lover," Charlie answered. "I know it was him, so you don't have to tell me anything, but that- it's not how things have to be, Jamie. I know some people think that being gay it's an opportunity to be promiscuous or not to care about your partner, but that's not true. Being gay or bi or even straight means whatever you want it to mean. You do what's right for you, and don't do what you think your parents, grandparents, me or the press would want. Do what feels right here," he said, pressing a hand on Jamie's chest.

Jamie listened to every word, watching Charlie as he spoke. He could see the concern in his face, the worry in his voice. A week of watching Charlie was catching up with Jamie, leaving him confused and scared, but Charlie's words were making it better, were making him feel loved and cared for. "Anything that feels right?" he asked.

Charlie smiled and nodded. "Yes, you'll know what's right."

Jamie truly hoped so as he rolled toward Charlie and kissed him. His hand rested on Charlie's cheek as he tried to get closer, his tongue trying to coax Charlie's lips apart, but the solid hand on his chest pushed him away.

"What are you doing, Jamie?"

"You said to do what feels right, and this-" he said, waving between them. "This feels right. You're the first person that has taken the time to listen to me, to help me, to care about what I want as opposed to what you want. This felt like the right thing."

"God, Jamie. This isn't- I'm your uncle."

"So? It's just biology. It has nothing to do with this," Jamie said.

Charlie sighed. "You're confused. You were unhappy at home, and here you've found your answers, maybe to questions you didn't know you had, but I am the wrong answer. You'll leave in two days and you'll think back and know how absurd this is."

"You're just scared, because I'm your nephew, or maybe Luca is right, maybe you really don't give a damn about others."

Charlie smiled sadly. "I hope you know me better that than, and this is you being angry. I care for you and that's why I'm not going to let you do something stupid, no matter how it feels good at the moment." He ruffled Jamie's hair. "Go get some sleep. I'll be inside in a bit."

Jamie got up, looking annoyed, it was the first time since he'd gotten here that he felt like Charlie was treating him like a kid - just the way his parents did. Maybe Charlie was right, maybe he was confused, maybe Luca had been right, maybe Charlie was a jerk after all. He scowled at Charlie before he disappeared into the tent.

"You got everything?" Charlie asked. The tension inside the tent was palpable. The past two days had been marked by grunts and avoidance. No matter how much Charlie had tried to act normally, Jamie wouldn't respond. Rumours were already flying around the reserve, but Charlie ignored them. He was more concerned with his nephew.

"Yes," Jamie mumbled, as he stuck the last shirt into his trunk.

"Okay, I'll walk you to the Portkey area," Charlie said.

"You don't have to," Jamie answered.

"I don't have to do a lot of things, but I want to. I'd like to do this for you."

"You've done enough."

Sweet Merlin, how did parents deal with children? Charlie was losing his patience, although admittedly he didn't have much. He grabbed Jamie's shoulders. "You listen to me. You're not going to pull this crap on me. You can't be upset because I didn't let you kiss me. That's not how it works. You've gotten anything you want in your life, but guess what? You can't just go around and tell people that they should be with you."

"That's not what I did," James answered, angrily.

"That's exactly what you're doing. You are angry with me because I wouldn't kiss you. Tell me one reason why I should have kissed my nephew," Charlie pressed. "We were pretending, you are my nephew, you didn't even know you liked men. Suddenly you want to make out and I should let you. Why?"

Jamie stared at Charlie for a few long moments and then lowered his eyes. "Because I wanted to."

Charlie sighed, and put his arms around Jamie. "You'll be fine, Jamie, but you need to slow down. You don't have to do everything now. You don't have to prove anything to anyone. Take your time with your new experiences and enjoy them." He pulled back and clapped Jamie's arm. "Write to me, tell me what you do-"

"Everything?" Jamie said, with a smirk.

"I don't need those details, but tell me what you're doing. No judgment from me, and then we'll talk at Christmas."

Jamie nodded. "All right, but I'll still want to kiss you."

Charlie chuckled. "We'll see, Jamie; we'll see."

Part 2 - Part 3 - Art