Carpathian

Monday, 3:19 pm

"Doru's still not back yet?" Hermione asked as she grabbed a handful of magic-enhanced hay.

After collecting her belongings from the cabin and settling into a room at the Dennfyre, Hermione had returned to the visitors section of the sanctuary where Charlie currently oversaw the trainees inside the goat enclosure while they all fed the hungry animals.

Charlie yelled at one of the keepers to pay more attention to his hay stash where one goat was treating itself to more than its fair share.

"Not yet," he confirmed when he turned back to Hermione. "Either the Ministry's making him wait an insanely long time, or he really isn't leaving until they agree to investigate."

Hermione sighed. "Let's hope it's the latter."

A baby goat with a patch of gray fur on its forehead trotted towards Hermione, and she got down on her knees to feed it.

"Have you learned anything else in the meantime?" Hermione asked, keeping her tone casual as she pried for as much information as she could without being obvious.

"Llewellyn and I took our brooms and checked the perimeter for any breaks in the wards, but we found nothing. Though that doesn't necessarily mean much."

"How so?"

Charlie shrugged before walking to a part of the enclosure where several unfed goats were bleating. "Keepers go into town all the time. One drink too many, and who's to say what will slip out of someone's loose lips and fall upon interested ears." He let out a short snort and then knocked his head towards one of the nearby trainees. "Especially these young ones, looking for a drunken night out on the town or perhaps a bit of company."

Charlie raised his eyebrows in double succession, and Hermione felt her cheeks needlessly flush, much to Charlie's evident enjoyment.

He barked out a laugh. "What did you expect? Just because there are hardly any witch dragon keepers doesn't mean we live a life of celibacy out here."

"I never assumed that." The topic hadn't even crossed her mind.

"Yes, well, it can be quite the concern for some keepers when they first arrive." Charlie grabbed the final handful of hay from the satchel draped over his shoulder. "When you're bringing a partner back to the sanctuary while simultaneously drunk and horny, making sure you don't say the Ward-Opening Charm too loud isn't high on the priority list."

One of the goats rammed its head into Charlie's thigh, begging for more food. Hermione reached into her satchel to grab more, but she, too, was running low. She secured the final few handfuls of food and gave it to the hungry animals. When she finished, Charlie was watching her, eyebrow raised and grin wide.

She raised an eyebrow right back. "What's that look for?"

"Nothing," he said, but his grin only grew. "Just that our conversation reminded me of how much time you and Draco have been spending together lately."

He started walking towards the hay shed, and Hermione chased after him.

"And that's related how?"

He turned to give her a short glance, just long enough for Hermione to see his grin shift into a smirk. "You must admit, it's rather interesting that you only decided to stay after you returned to the sanctuary with him last night."

The flush that had coloured her cheeks spread down her neck. "That's only because he convinced me to stay for the hatching of Norberta's eggs," she rushed to justify alongside a silent thank you to Merlin for that pre-planned excuse. "And you were the one who wanted us to be civil!"