exardescere: (up; scoff)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-04 01:51 am (UTC)(link)
[ In answer to her question, he's just as freckled on his chest and shoulders as he is on his face; while he does wear protection when actively dealing with the dragons, most of what he does around the sanctuary is simply maintenance, and when it gets too hot to bother with clothing, off it comes. Which, when shoving dragon dung and repairing storage barns during the high summer, tends to happen quite often.

How Andrei would laugh at him teaching Luna the proper way to pronounce the name of Romanian alcohol, considering how poor his own accent is considered among natives. Still, the fact that she's making an effort endears her to some of his colleagues, who helpfully lean in to correct them both, and it certainly endears her to Charlie even more, leaving him smiling widely enough at her that the creases around his eyes become far more pronounced. ]


Those Slavs love their plum brandy, [ he agrees. ] It's your luck that there's no Slivovice here.

[ Much like any other man who makes a living doing manual labor and living more or less communally, Charlie isn't fussy at all about what he eats, and the tapas plates that are brought out are all approached with the same eager hunger, bits of fish and cheese and heavily pickled vegetables put away with the same enthusiasm. ]

Hm? Oh, er. Coming up to twelve years now, I think. Maybe thirteen. [ He accepts the small triangle of pita with some pinkish taramasalata scooped up on the edge and pops it fearlessly into his mouth without asking what it is he's eating, trusting. ] Oh that is nice. What do you think it is, fish? It's quite salty.
exardescere: (down; charmed)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-04 02:33 am (UTC)(link)
Maybe roe, [ he agrees, like he has any fucking clue what fish roe tastes like. Growing up, his mum wasn't exactly an adventurous cook, concerned more with quantity than with broadening her sons' gastronomical horizons, and food at Hogwarts was similarly filling and hearty stick-to-your-ribs British fare, not exactly anything that could be considered exotic or unusual.

Between bites, Charlie continues to sip at his liquor, refilling his glass when it empties and doing the same for Luna's, ensuring they both have a steady stream of cool, sharp spirits to cleanse the palate between each dish.

When she holds out a dolma to him, the grape leaf starkly green against the rice and herbs inside, he doesn't hesitate to lean forward, the hand not resting on the back of her chair lifting between them as if to cup any stray grains of rice that might tumble from the little parcel as she feeds it to him.

Is it weird, perhaps, that she's feeding him the second half of an appetizer she'd already bitten into? Yeah, maybe. Not weird enough for him to refuse the food, though, or to lean out of her personal space, or to stop looking at her with fondly amused blue-green eyes. ]
Yeah, s'nice.
exardescere: (up; interrupted)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-04 03:19 am (UTC)(link)
[ Twelve years ago, Luna was probably just starting Hogwarts, or thereabout. It's a thought that should make Charlie want to lean back, that should make him feel a sort of paternalistic sibling-like concern for her wellbeing and that's it, but it doesn't. In a profession like dragonology, how old you are has very little bearing on how well you can do your job. Sure, with experience comes wisdom and all that, but a large part of dealing with dragons is mindset, and the ability to feel empathy for a living creature whose mind is so different from your own. He works alongside wizards who're nearing sixty as well as those who are barely old enough to drink, and they're all considered his friends.

The fact that Luna is the same age as his baby brother doesn't mean anything to him, not at this stage of their lives.

This could mean anything, really, but he's choosing to believe she means the camaraderie of being removed from your home and thrown in with a bunch of like-minded people, all with a common goal. It's an invigorating feeling, as well Charlie knows. ]


New species are discovered every day, [ he agrees encouragingly, though he personally has doubts about Snorkacks and some of the other things he's seen mentioned in the Quibbler. ] Even Muggles are discovering new tropical frogs all the time. If they're out there, you'll find them eventually.

[ He tops up her glass again, and rubs his fingertips together to smooth out the condensation lingering there from the bottle. ]

I dunno, really. I've just always loved them. I'm lucky, that way. I've known since I was a kid what I've wanted to do and I'm able to do it. Not everyone has that. Lucky that my mum and dad were so supportive, too. Sure, there were quite a lot of tears when I first left home, and dire warnings about my inevitable demise — [ the infamous Weasley clock that kept tabs on what every single member of the family was doing came into being shortly after Charlie left for his dragonology training at nineteen ] — but they've been great about it, all told.
exardescere: (down; sincere)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-05 02:52 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Sometimes he wonders if his desire to chase dragons was a lingering childhood escape mechanism, if growing up under the threat of He Who Must Not Be Named left any scars on his psyche, if spending the first decade or so of his life constantly worried that someone might come and murder his family for being blood traitors meant all he wanted was to get away and hide out in the forest where nobody could find him.

One morning, when he was home for Christmas and had spent half the night awake with nightmares lingering, he'd been sitting in the kitchen near dawn and Hermione had appeared at his elbow; they'd sat together at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and not really chatting about much of consequence for so long that when she'd suggested he try seeing a therapist, he'd been floored.

A therapist? For what?

No. He's fine. He's got a good life and he's happy with it, and all that unpleasantness is in the past where it belongs.

Right now, he has other things to focus on, like the tickling of her hair against his arm as Luna leans back, the gentle lilt of her voice as she rambles on about her life post-Hogwarts. Post-war. Post-fear.

He has to resist the urge to turn his wrist and fiddle with her hair. ]


Yeah, my brother Percy is still with the Ministry. I could never do what he does. [ He shudders theatrically, wanting to make her smile again. ] I think you have the right of it, love. You're young yet, you've all the time in the world to decide.
exardescere: (up; adorable)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-05 09:44 pm (UTC)(link)
[ He laughs at her impression of him, loud and uninhibited, like she'd really done something special and not just mocked him for feeling his age.

One would think, maybe, that getting teased on and off his whole life would make him a little more sensitive to the subject, but the opposite has been true. Growing up with Fred and George dogging his every steps meant Charlie had to grow a thick skin in sheer self-defense, and Luna's gentle mimicry was hardly insulting. He's certainly had much worse. ]


Too right! [ he laughs, giving in to the urge and tweaking her braid where it lies right beside his hand. ] I am wise and old, and I feel it every time I have to stand up from a crouch.

[ He finishes his glass of tsipouro and pours himself another, tilting the glass gently this way and that to watch the clear liquor slide along the edges. ] I am happy where I am. And you seem fairly happy where you are, too. You really do look well, Luna.
exardescere: (up; cute)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-06 01:30 am (UTC)(link)
[ He grins at her. ] It's my joints more than anything else. My poor knees, the damage they've seen.

[ He shifts himself slightly to make more room for her as she adjusts herself on her seat, pulling up both legs to tuck them under her, her knee winding up pressed solidly into his thigh when she settles down. He doesn't move his chair away, or even remove his arm from the back of hers, leaving them sitting quite close, nearly tucked in against each other.

It's just that the bar is so crowded, see, and they'd have to shout to be heard over the music and general hubbub of conversation if they sat farther apart. That's all. ]


Goodness, your first time? Really? [ Sometimes he forgets that most people, even wizards, barely leave their city — going to Hogwarts doesn't count, obviously — for most of their lives. Weasleys have lived in Ottery St. Catchpole for coming up to hundreds of years now; theirs is a culture steeped in tradition and routine. Taking off and traveling the world in service to a career that offers absolutely no certainty and security is definitely not the norm. ] Then I'm doubly glad to have run into you.

[ Her pink cheeks are very fetching, making her eyes look that much bluer as she blinks at him, earnest and serious in the way he's started to understand is just her default. ] I don't mind it so much, [ he admits slowly, frowning a little. ] It does sometimes make me think I'm about to get a dressing-down, though. Charles Gideon Weasley, you stop that this minute! [ he warbles, mimicking his mother's higher tones. ]
exardescere: (down; incredulous)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-06 03:21 am (UTC)(link)
[ Charlie had been lucky with most of his international trips, in that they've almost entirely been funded by work and he's just been able to tack on some sight-seeing along the way. Case in point, tonight.

It also probably helps that Charlie's idea of sight-seeing tends to veer towards the 'tramping through the wilderness' end of things and not so much the 'visiting museums and tarted-up tourist attractions' one. ]


I appreciate it, though I don't think you're in too much danger of that.

[ Charlie does pull back a little when one of Luna's friends swoops in to half-shout in her ear, making room for the two of them and accidentally catching the eye of one of his own colleagues in the process. Jiří grins at him, lifting his eyebrows in a way that Charlie knows from experience means he's fighting back an inappropriate comment, and Charlie finds himself scowling at him from across the table, taking advantage of Luna's distraction to make a rude gesture at him with the hand he doesn't have draped behind her shoulders. A burst of laughter, the soft brush of air as Luna's friend leaves, and then it's just the two of them again, and Charlie firmly turns his attention back to the girl sat beside him and studiously ignores the men who came in with him.

Miraculously, no other comments are forthcoming. ]


You sure you don't want ice cream? [ Charlie is happy with his liquor and tapas, but that doesn't mean he needs to monopolize Luna for the whole night, no matter how pleasant it's been so far and how warm and lazy the alcohol is making him feel. Luna's off on her first international trip. She should be out enjoying it with friends. ]
exardescere: (up; hesitant)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-06 02:07 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Glancing over at the rest of the group, Charlie doesn't quite smile at the sight of his colleagues and Luna's sneaking their hands over to nab some of the food from the platters left out, but his expression does soften somewhat, and he hums in response to her comments.

Truthfully, Charlie could probably eat a lot more, and keep drinking. But he probably shouldn't. ]


I never had much of a sweet tooth... [ Not necessarily true, but true enough for now. He might change his mind if he got to see some baklava out on offer, the honey oozing from each slice, freshly-toasted pistachios poised on the cusp of tumbling off the glistening flakes of pastry.

...Maybe he does have more of a sweet tooth than he realized. ]
Wouldn't mind a bit of a walk, though.
exardescere: (down; red shirt)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-07 06:06 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Charlie's worked with some people who are happy to just unearth a fistful of coins and leave them on the table whenever something needs to be paid for, blissfully unconcerned with correct amounts or the current conversion rates, but he was raised by Molly Weasley in the midst of a war and is currently employed in a career that is emotionally fulfilling at best, but hardly exactly lucrative.

He and Luna sort through the coins in his palm until they've acquired the correct amount to be passed over, and then he adds in an extra lepta just to be polite, before pocketing the rest and squaring his shoulders to barge his way through the crowd to make for the exit.

At some point, he reaches behind him to reach for Luna's hand, clasping warm fingers around her to make sure she's being towed in his wake and they don't get separated. Once they make it outside, he lets her go, shoving his hands in his pockets and trying not to focus on the lingering warmth in his palm. ]


Oh, we've some tents set up outside the city. [ Hardly the most glamorous of accommodations, but Charlie's happy enough with them. They don't let in the rain or the wind, and they're surprisingly spacious inside; he's slept in worse places. ] What about you lot?
exardescere: (down; pleased)

[personal profile] exardescere 2022-04-10 08:05 pm (UTC)(link)
[ He's not the tallest of his siblings — the indignity of having his baby brother tower over him by nearly six inches having long ago ceased to sting — Charlie is nonetheless one of the quickest on foot, having perfected the skill of striding with purpose and determination with the air of a Bludger on a mission that makes people leap out of his way. When he's not paying attention, he tends to slip into that way of walking no matter where he is, cheerfully barreling his way through an empty forest and the crowds of Diagon Alley alike.

With Luna at his side, the way he's walking is all he can pay attention to, since the path they're taking isn't particularly wide, and the way Luna has her hands in the pockets of her jacket makes her elbows poke out enough that they brush against him every other step.

He has a bizarre urge to offer her his arm or something equally ridiculous. She's the one of the two of them that has any idea where they're going. ]


Most of them are just regular tents, [ he admits, shrugging with his hands still jammed in the pockets of his jeans. ] Hermione's fixed mine up for me, though, don't tell the others. She's a real gem, that girl. I've told Ron if he ever fucks it up and they split that I'd marry her just to keep her in the family.