Cordilia found herself wishing she had listened to her mum. What am I doing here? She began to pace in the small office at the back of Gear and Gadgets. Here I am, an experienced Dragon Tamer, and I’m stuck running this place because of my looks.
As much as she hated to admit it, she had more than her looks to blame for her predicament. Despite her qualifying scores and impressive references, she lacked formal experience. It doesn’t matter that I’ve been chasing Dragons since before I could fly. I wasn’t working for a company though, so it doesn’t count. The Head DT had stuck her in the shop until he could find a partner for her to work with, preferably an experienced one. He had explained that she would gain the necessary experience working in the shop and selling the equipment that the Dragon Tamers would use.
His justifications might have sufficed for the Ministry, but Cordi didn’t buy his excuses for one second. She thought back on her interview with a grim smile.
“Miss Grahek,” he began.
“Cordi,” she interrupted. “Please call me Cordi.”
“Miss Grahek,” he repeated. “With your qualifications and intelligence, we could really use your help running the shop. The position requires a wealth of knowledge. You are the only applicant with sufficient knowledge of today’s instruments and accessories.”
“Sir,” she began, protesting her placement vehemently. “Sir, I applied for a position in the field, working with actual Dragons. I should be tending to live Dragons, not selling ceramic replicas.”
“Miss Grahek,” he sighed. “The decision has already been made. Either you can accept the position, or you can look for a position elsewhere. I can tell you, though, that your lack of field experience will be a problem no matter where you go.”
Cordi bit her lip to keep from crying at the injustice of it all. “Yes sir, I am prepared to accept the position. When do I start?”
“Tomorrow morning, Miss Grahek.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Don’t hesitate to owl me if I can do anything else for you.”
“I know what he meant,” Cordi fumed. A familiar battle was raging inside her head. She still didn’t trust herself to say the words out loud. He meant that my looks and stature are more suited to selling fancy equipment and pretty trinkets. He’s never going to give me a chance to prove that I am capable.
Every feeling of helplessness and injustice she had felt that day came flooding back. Oddly, Cordi had a small, twisted smile on her face. I showed him, didn’t I?
She stopped pacing and left her small office to check on the sales witches at the front of the shop. I turned this place into the epitome of girly. Frilly, pink and silly.
Her whole outlook changed that day. That was the day she first met Charlie Weasley. It was the day she got her first partner and the first time she was allowed out of the shop to work in the field.
After getting off to a rocky start, she and Charlie finally made it out of the shop. Their first order of business was to get Charlie settled in the DT quarters.
“You mean that you haven’t even seen where you’ll be staying?” she asked incredulously. “You weren’t even curious?” I’ve been busy humiliating myself in your shop.
“I figured it couldn’t be any better or worse than the Burrow,” he explained. I miss the Burrow. I wish I were there right now.
“The Burrow?” Cordi repeated. What is the Burrow?
“Home,” Charlie said simply. Wonderful, beautiful, perfect home.
Cordi took that as a sign that he wasn’t ready to discuss his home life with her. I wonder why he doesn’t like to talk about his home. Maybe he lost his parents at a young age. Maybe he had to leave his family behind. I wonder if he has a wife. I hope not.
Charlie turned to get a good look at Cordi when she had asked him about the Burrow. I don’t want her to know that we don’t have two Galleons to rub together. Maybe she’ll like me for who I am. Now that I am a Dragon Tamer, I will be making enough to support myself. Once I get some experience and I advance, I’ll be making enough to support a family too.
They continued to walk along the dusty path that led to the DT quarters. They made small talk, passing the time quickly. Charlie was floored when they finally made it to the end of the dirt path.
A ring of buildings surrounded a vast courtyard. None of the buildings had doors, merely open spaces to enter them. There was a large fountain in the center of the courtyard and several witches were sitting together, gossiping and lounging. In the distance, Charlie could see a wizard or two quickly scurrying between buildings.
What is this? Is this where I am supposed to stay? There are witches everywhere. Do we all live together? How can that be proper? I don’t know about this.
Cordi saw the look of confusion on Charlie’s face and hastened to explain how the quarters worked.
“These are the witches’ quarters,” she giggled. “You won’t be staying in these barracks. The wizard’s quarters are across the Courtyard. We have to walk past the witches’ barracks to get to the Courtyard.” Please don’t ask about the Courtyard.
“Couple of questions, Cordi. What is the difference between the quarters and the barracks? And, what is the Courtyard?” Charlie asked curiously.
“The quarters are the entire complex where the individual barracks are housed. It’s like at Hogwarts; you went there, didn’t you? The Houses, Gryffindor, Huffpuff, Raven-something, and that other one, they’re like the quarters. The individual dorm rooms are like the barracks. It’s pretty simple once you get used to all the slang everyone uses.” There was a pregnant pause before she continued her informational speech. “The Courtyard is the common area for all of the DTs. It’s where we go when we are taking a break from work, trying to relax, or looking for someone to have fun with.” Cordi tried not to blush as she explained the inner workings of the Courtyard. “I haven’t had much experience there since I’ve been caught up with the shop. In fact, I even had my own flat in the back of the shop. I’ve never really stayed here in the barracks.” She coughed as she finished talking, more out of embarassment than necessity. Damn. He’s going to think I’m some sort of scarlet woman.
“How do you know so much about the Courtyard if you’ve never been there?” Charlie asked with great intrigue. Definitely interesting.
“I’ve, uh, heard stories.” Her face turned bright red when she admitted her naivete. I’ve never been invited to meet anyone there. How would I know what goes on.
“What kind of stories?” Stories? Stories about witches and wizards meeting at a place for something she doesn’t feel comfortable discussing with me. I love a good mystery.
“You know, stories about what happens when witches and wizards meet in the Courtyard. Here we are,” she blurted, her voice high and tight with embarassment. “These are the wizard’s quarters. The barracks are along both sides of the building. You’ll need to check in with the BW to find out what barrack you’re in.” Don’t ask me what they do when they meet. I don’t know.
“What, or who is the BW?” Charlie asked, getting rather sick of asking questions and sounding utterly ignorant. I wonder how stupid she thinks I am.
“The BW is the Barrack’s Wizard. He, or she, is in charge of their particular set of barracks. They’ll have the sleeping assignments. You get yours, then we’ll head back over to the witches’ quarters to get mine.” Try as she might, she couldn’t hide the excitement in her voice. I’m out of that blasted shop, once and for all.
“You’ve been assigned to the barracks? Because of me…” Charlie sounded genuinely sorry. Crap. What have I gotten into?
“Yes, and no.” Cordi snorted in an effort to suppress her laughter. “I am thrilled to be in the barracks. I’ve been stuck in that ruddy shop for a year. I’m grateful that you came along and rescued me.” How could anyone not be happy to be out of that shop?
There was a feeling of relief as a haze lifted them from the strained politeness they had been offering each other. Charlie laughed. Cordi laughed. Suddenly is felt easy for them to talk to one another.
“I’d better go in and get my room assignment,” Charlie muttered, his ears turning slightly pink. Leave quickly. Before you say something stupid. We seem to be getting along so well right now. I’d like to keep it that way.
With that, he turned and entered the barracks. He quickly found the BW and got his room assignment. He followed the complicated, moving diagram that the BW had given him to his room. What kind of a stupid git makes a map like that? Who does he think he is? Just because he’s a BW, that doesn’t make him anyone important in my book. Ugh. He already reminds me of Percy.
He opened the door, threw his bag on the bed, and rushed back to the entrance hall where he had left Cordi.
“What was your room like?” Cordi asked interestedly. Maybe I’ll get to see it sometime.
“Truthfully,” Charlie sputtered, wondering whether or not to be completely honest. Honesty won, and he proceeded with his statement. “Truthfully, I have no idea. I wanted to get back out here as soon as I could. I want to get out into the field today before the sun goes down.”
“Let’s go then, if you’re in such a hurry,” she joked. Hmm. Maybe he is interested.
She was off in a flash, jogging towards the entrance to the witches’ quarters. Charlie, not prepared for the race, had to sprint to catch up with her. Merlin, she’s fast. She doesn’t look that fast.
She quickly got her room assignment and hurried through the halls of the barracks to find her room. Her BW had been much nicer than Charlie’s had been. Her map was neither complicated, nor moving. She found her room in about half the time it took Charlie to find his. Without realizing it, she too threw her bag onto the bed and left the room without looking at the surroundings. I can’t wait to get out into the field.
In a flash, she was back to the main entrance. She collided painfully with Charlie, who was rounding the corner. He was lost in his exploration, wandering absently along the closest corridors. He was knocked to the ground when Cordi hit him. Using his considerable Quidditch skills, he managed to grab her as she tripped over his feet and protect her from colliding with anything. He used the momentum from the crash to roll her over, using his elbows to protect her from any bumps or bruises. When they finally stopped rolling, Charlie ended up with Cordi on top of him, straddling him in a very provocative manner.
She shrieked when she realized that she was safe and unhurt, before slapping him playfully for landing her in that position. Charlie just grinned at her, wondering if she was truly upset at him. He didn’t have time to think about it any further. She jumped off him, offered him her hand, and yanked him off the floor for the second time that day.
She smiled a winning smile, jerked her head in the direction away from the Courtyard, and started skipping away. She didn’t wait for Charlie to catch up; hoping that he wouldn’t notice that she was blushing brighter that he ever had.
Wow! That was…amazing. Is that what it is supposed to feel like? His body is so…hard. No, I mean, stiff. NO. It’s built well. I wonder if he’s played Quidditch. I can still feel the heat from his body on my…Enough. Cordi, get a grip. He’s just a wizard. You’re just a witch. You’re working together, get over it.
Charlie struggled to catch up with Cordi, yet again. Thank goodness she took off. I don’t want her to see me like this. She’s spunky. She’s going to be difficult to keep up with. Am I ever going to be able to keep up with that witch? I’m not sure I should try to keep up. She doesn’t seem to be too interested. I, on the other hand, I am very interested. It was all I could do to keep her from feeling how interested I was. I’m glad she’s in such a hurry to get out into the field, I didn’t want her to notice my predicament.
“Ready to go to work?” Charlie asked, finally catching up with Cordi.
“Definitely, partner,” Cordi proclaimed loudly. “Let’s go!”
Taking Flight by Khrys
Chapter Notes: Author’s Note: J.K. Rowling created the world in which I work. Everything Harry is hers alone.
**Again, I would like to thank Beth, who has been an incredible Beta for this series!**