Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author.

This story had been written following prompt #11: Getting a magical tattoo is a very intimate experience, and when you choose a friend to ink you, it creates a life-long bond between the tattooist and the tattooed as the magic used is similar to sex magic. Hermione is about to find out that Dragon taming isn't Charlie Weasley's only talent.

A big thank you to my beta, for all of her help and support.

Atramentum (Latin) translation: black fluid, such as ink or shoemaker's black.

The sound of children running around outside in the yard playing and screaming at one another echoed through the empty house.

Hermione sat alone at the kitchen table at the Burrow, sipping at her tea and reading the thick Charms textbook she had bought for herself at Flourish and Blotts two days beforehand. While she personally had nothing against children, she simply didn't have the exuberance or energy to keep up with them. She looked up from her book and stared out the window, watching as Ron and Harry entertained Teddy Lupin, Victoire, Bill and Fleur's daughter, and Percy and Penelope's surprisingly energetic twins, Henry and Sophia.

Sighing, Hermione looked over at Molly's clock when it made a loud clunking noise as some of the hands on it began to move. Ginny's hand went from work, slowly making its way to rest on 'Home' which still referred to the Burrow despite having moved out of her parents' house two years beforehand. A moment later, she watched as the hand for Arthur and Charlie moved from 'Work' to 'Travelling' and knew that they were on their way to the Burrow.

Hermione stood up from her chair and went to get the kettle, filling it in the sink before putting it on the stove and turning on the gas. No matter what time of the day it was, Arthur would always be in the mood for a cup of tea when he arrived home. She put some fresh leaves in the teapot and sat it on the bench, pulling some china cups out of the cupboard. She turned when she heard the sound of the back door opening and smiled when she saw Ginny walk in.

'Hi, Hermione,' she greeted, putting her bag on the table and walking over to join her by the stove. 'What's been happening?'

Hermione shrugged. 'Not a whole lot,' she replied as the kettle began to whistle. 'I take it that it was busy at St. Mungo's today.'

Ginny sighed heavily and nodded. 'I hate working on Sundays, but while Harry and I are still preparing for the wedding, I am taking whatever shifts they give me.'

Hermione was particularly proud of Ginny. Of all the Weasley's, she hadn't expected the youngest one to be quite as driven as she was. Instead of marrying Harry the instant she had finished at Hogwarts, she had gone on to train at St. Mungo's and had become a qualified Mediwitch. Now, after working for a few years and enjoying her youth, she had finally said yes to Harry's marriage proposal, and the two were due to be married in six months.

'I am glad I didn't decide to become a Healer,' Hermione said. 'That place seems to suck the life out of everyone who works there.'

Ginny chuckled dryly. 'Tell me about it,' she said, walking over to the kitchen table with Hermione, carrying the teacups.

The two sat down, and Hermione refreshed the tea in her cup before pouring a cup for Ginny as well. They both drank and sighed in contentment. After a couple of minutes, they heard the clock start clunking again as the hands for Arthur and Charlie moved to 'Home'. The sound of two men talking sounded from outside in the yard, cutting over the noise that the children were making, followed by Arthur and Charlie walking into the kitchen.

'Hello, girls,' Arthur greeted, immediately sitting down at the table and pouring himself a cup of the Earl Grey Hermione had brewed.

'Hi, Dad,' Ginny said, standing up and moving to hug her older brother as Charlie walked around the table to greet them. 'Hey, Charlie, what brings you back home?'

'I'm just here for a visit,' he said with a smile, moving to sit right beside Hermione. 'Hello, Hermione.'

She smiled at him, accepting the one-armed hug he gave her. 'Hi, Charlie,' she replied. 'You look well. Work keeping you busy?'

'It's been crazy,' he replied. 'This is the first day I've had off in two months, so I decided to come visit while I had the chance. I'll be here for a week.'

'Brilliant,' Hermione replied, trying to prevent the blush from spreading across her cheeks as Charlie smiled at her. 'It's been busy at work for me too. Where will you be staying while you're here?'

'I've got a friend in London who is putting me up,' he answered. 'He has his own business – a magical tattoo and piercing shop. He's been teaching me his trade every time I'm in London, actually, and I've been doing some work on my mates at the Dragon Reserve.'

'Really?' she asked, surprised.

She'd never heard of magical tattoos or piercings before. It was a surprise to her that Charlie was learning the art as well. Despite not seeing the second-oldest Weasley son all that often, Hermione admired him and tried to keep up with the news on all of the members of the family who had unofficially adopted her. It didn't hurt that Charlie happened to be the best looking of all of the boys in her opinion. He was rugged and tanned with strong muscles all over and a gorgeous smile.

For years she had harboured something of a crush on Charlie, and she often found herself getting flustered and shy whenever he was around or being talked about by Molly or Arthur. Sitting beside him with his attention focussed on her was making her feel nervous. Charlie flashed a stunning smile at her, leaning a little closer before he launched into an explanation.

'Well it's fascinating magic, actually,' he replied enthusiastically. 'I've only done about a dozen tattoos without supervision now, but I think I am getting really good.'

She nodded, intrigued. The idea of magical tattooing was… interesting. 'This is the first time I've ever heard about it,' she said honestly. 'When did you first get into it?'

'I picked it up from my friend as I said, about a year ago when he opened up his own business,' he replied. 'My friend was studying with a wizard in China initially and then moved to Dubai and continued there as well. He's been doing it for years though, so he is much better than I am. I learn more every month or two when I come for a visit.'

'Sounds exciting, doesn't it?' Ginny said from Hermione's other side, nudging her in the ribs gently.

Hermione turned to the younger woman and nodded. 'It sounds really fascinating,' she agreed. 'So, what does the tattooing process involve?'

'Well it still involves ink and needles like regular Muggle tattoos, but there is the added element of spell casting during the entire process,' he explained. 'It is pretty exhausting, but worth it. You not only get a tattoo, but it is also animated just like in magical photography.'

'Show Hermione some of your tattoos,' Ginny encouraged.

'They're quite interesting,' Arthur piped from the other side of the table. 'Best do it quickly though, or Molly will have a fit – she hates the tattoos.'

'Mum's a little old-fashioned,' Charlie said, even as his hands went to the top button of his shirt.

Hermione watched with bated breath as Charlie unbuttoned the rest of his shirt, her eyes focussed intently on the muscles that were revealed as he did so. His abdominals were well-defined as well as his pectorals, and when he removed the shirt and turned around to show his back to her, she gasped when she saw the beautiful dragons tattooed on his strong back. She watched as the two large dragons moved, their eyes blinking and tails moving around. One of them was a fierce-looking Norwegian Ridgeback, while the other was a pretty Chinese Fireball.

She couldn't help but reach out a hand timidly, touching the tattoos. She was rewarded with a burn as one of the dragons snorted a small flame from its snout, and she quickly snatched her hand back in surprise. She looked down to examine her fingers and was surprised to find that they weren't burnt as she had expected. Ginny was chuckling at her from behind.

'They're incredible, aren't they?' she asked. 'I did the same thing when Charlie first showed it off and one of them breathed fire and my hand felt like it was being burned. It's a part of the charm work that makes the tattoo animated and seem more realistic.'

'If you're interested, I could take you to my friend's studio and show you how it works,' Charlie offered as he turned around and slipped his shirt back on.

Hermione eyes widened at the offer. 'You don't mean that you think I should get a tattoo, do you?' she stammered.

He chuckled at the look of horror on her face and shook his head. 'It'd be purely a demonstration on a replica skin model,' he replied. 'I think you'll find the magic and charm work behind it very interesting.'

Hermione considered his offer for a moment. Well, as long as she wasn't getting 'inked' herself, it didn't seem like an unappealing prospect. Needles had always made her feel queasy. And if she did say yes, she'd be afforded another opportunity to spend time with Charlie before he went back to Romania. Not one to turn down an opportunity like that, she made up her mind and looked up at him with a smile.

'I'd love to see how it's done,' she answered. 'When will you be free this week to give me a demonstration?'

'How does Wednesday evening sound?' he offered. 'He closes up shop for the day at five, so if you come by just before then, I'll be able to keep a station open for you and maybe convince my mate to help me demonstrate.'

Hermione nodded, unexpectedly thrilled at the prospect. A few minutes later, an exhausted Harry and Ron dragged themselves into the house with the children who looked equally worn out. They sat on the other side of the table with Arthur, each grabbing a teacup and pouring themselves some tea from the pot after casting a warming charm on the contents. She wrinkled her nose at that, unable to comprehend how they could drink tea like that.

'That's disgusting,' Ginny complained, looking intently at her fiancé as he continued to drink, totally unaffected.

Hermione stood then and set to the task of pouring juice and getting out some of Molly's homemade biscuits for the children, leaving them at the other end of the table so they didn't put biscuit crumbs all over the adults.

'Where's mum?' Ron asked around a mouthful of biscuit, having gotten his hands on one of them from the kids.

'She's at the shop with George, helping him give it a good spring clean,' Hermione answered, sitting back down at the table. 'He's needed help there for weeks, and because Sunday is the only day the shop is closed, they decided to do it now while the weather was nice.'

An hour later, Hermione left the Burrow, Apparating to her London flat after getting directions to the tattoo studio from Charlie. She had some paperwork that she couldn't put off that needed to be done, and she had procrastinated from it at the Weasley residence for long enough. Dropping off her Charms text on the coffee table in front of the fireplace, she went straight to the desk in her study and pulled the stack of paperwork towards her that she had left out so that she wouldn't forget it. Her boss was the Head Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries, and he rarely tolerated people submitting any of their work late.

After two hours, the sun had already set, and she was just finishing up the last of her work. Signing the bottom of the page with a flourish, she Summoned her briefcase and put the stack of signed parchment inside, snapping it shut and sitting back with a sigh of satisfaction. She closed her eyes and thought about what had transpired that afternoon, smiling as she remembered that she would be seeing Charlie again in just a few days' time.

Allowing a small smile to creep onto her face, she got up and set about the task of eating and getting ready for bed. There was no point in getting too excited – there were still three days between then and Wednesday.

Hermione wandered up Diagon Alley, clutching the piece of parchment on which Charlie had written the directions to the tattoo studio.

She knew that the place in question couldn't possibly have been on the ground floor of any buildings given that she regularly walked through Diagon Alley and had not once encountered it. It was most likely on the second floor of one of the buildings – she just needed to figure out which one it was. Hermione immediately wished that Charlie had been a little more specific than he had been when he had written the directions. She might have found the place more easily if he had simply jotted down a literal address rather than what he had written.

Hermione looked up at the top floors of each building as she slowly walked along the street, looking at each of the shop signs and hoping that she would find it before the sun set. She was almost at the end of the street when she spotted a sign that had 'Pure Ink Works, Ltd' written on the sign in cursive. It was a little out of the way, but Hermione knew this was the place she had been looking for. Opening the glass door on the far side of the building, she walked immediately up the stairs before coming to the first floor landing.

She was surprised to find, instead of an opaque wall, a giant wall of glass before her with a huge studio on the other side.

Peering through the window, she could see Charlie with his back to her, chatting to another wizard who had dark hair, a tan and wore a neatly trimmed goatee. She was surprised to see he was not wearing a shirt, and his tattoo was on display for all to see. She didn't blame him – he had an incredible musculature, and the tattoo was simply a work of art. Summoning up some courage, she pushed open another glass door, a bell at the top signalling her entry. Once inside, she realised that Charlie and his friend were the only two people there.

'Hermione!' Charlie exclaimed, immediately walking over to her and enveloping her in a tight hug. 'I'm so glad you could make it. You found the place okay?'

Hermione nodded. 'Piece of cake,' she lied, flashing him a smile.

'Excellent,' he replied, putting a hand on her back and leading her to the back of the room where his friend stood. 'This is my friend, Gerry Irish. Gerry, this is Hermione Granger – the girl I was telling you about.'

Gerry flashed her a friendly smile, holding out his hand for her to shake. 'It's good to meet you,' he said cheerfully. 'Charlie's told me all about you, of course. I hear you are an Unspeakable these days, Hermione. Of course, I knew about you before Charlie, what with you being famous and all.'

Hermione blushed, releasing his hand and clasping both of hers together behind her back. 'It's nice to meet you, too,' she replied in kind. 'I'm sorry to say that Charlie didn't tell me anything about you until a few days ago. I had no idea that magical tattoos even existed.'

Gerry punched Charlie's arm then. 'Well, Charlie is a little useless when it comes to passing on information,' he said jokingly.

'I'm right here,' Charlie complained, still smiling broadly.

Hermione laughed at their exchange, amused by their boyish antics. One would never have known they were adults if it weren't for their clearly adult forms. She waited for them to stop mock fighting one another, sitting down on the stool closest to her. Realising they were being watched intently, they ceased, and Gerry summoned a bag over to him from the bench over in one of the corners. Slinging it over his shoulder, he walked over to Hermione.

'It was great to meet you, but I'm afraid I have a wife and baby at home waiting for me, otherwise I might have been able to stay,' he said sincerely. 'Charlie knows how to lock up though, and he'll be just as capable of showing you our trade.'

Hermione stood and shook his hand once more, and she stood beside Charlie and watched him leave, waving back to him before he walked down the stairs. Once he was out of sight, she turned back to Charlie, who had a look of contemplation on his face as he tapped the fingers of one hand against his chin. She frowned; knowing that look on his face meant that he was up to something. Without another word, he led her over to the workstation they had left open and urged her to sit on the stool beside his.

He took a seat and lifted the cover off an imitation thigh model that he had set up just to demonstrate his hobby to her. She watched as he arranged brand new tools and needles, still in their sealed wrapping, out on the tray before him. He pulled a few bottles of ink out as well and opened one of them, the black ink, putting it on the bench beside the 'thigh'. He then removed one of the needles from the wrapper and discarded the plastic in a small bin beside his stool.

'Right, so basically before I go any further, I just want to explain that while this appears to be a lot like Muggle tattooing, it isn't. The charm involved is the main distinguishing point,' he said, breaking the silence. 'The spell does more than just animate the tattoo, unfortunately. It creates a bond between the person receiving the tattoo and the one performing the magic, and this bond, depending on how close the two people are, varies in its strength.'

'I don't suppose it really works that way on the fake skin, am I correct?' she asked.

'No, there is no bond formed when the magic is performed on the artificial stuff,' he replied. 'The magic of the bond requires a living being to exist within.'

'The bond is not something I expected,' she murmured.

Charlie nodded in understanding. 'It's not a strong bond in most cases, especially if there is no attraction between the two people,' he said, holding up a hand to forestall any questions while he explained. 'You see, Hermione, the charm that brings the tattoo to life and creates the bond is one specific to the tattoo; however, the word that binds it to the flesh is the same one used in a sexual enhancement spell.'

'So, what is the spell that you have to cast?' she asked.

'The incantation for the spell is Animo atramentum conglutino, which essentially means bind the animated ink to the flesh,' he explained. 'It's quite a taxing spell magically, but I've never had a problem casting it until the completion of the tattoo.'

Her eyes widened. 'That's amazing!'

Hermione couldn't believe just how interesting all of this new information was, or that Charlie actually genuinely seemed to be quite knowledgeable about it. He was quite confident, and this only helped to make her even more attracted to him. She inwardly grumbled. There was no hope of Charlie ever being attracted to her – she was too smart, her curls were riotous, and she didn't have the curvaceous figure of the kind of girls Ginny had described that he had dated in the past. Meanwhile he was a muscled, tattooed to perfection, god amongst men.

She shook herself inwardly. There would be time enough later for self-deprecating thoughts like that. If she kept zoning out, Charlie would probably notice and misunderstand.

Hermione focussed her attention back on what the man in front of her was doing, watching as he snapped on a pair of latex gloves before he handled the sterilised needle. Charlie connected it to the long hose-like fixture, which seemed to be attached to the power source for the needle. He dipped the end of the needle into the ink and switched the needle on, murmuring the enchantment once under his breath before making the first mark on the imitation skin. His hand was steady, and she could see that a great deal of focus was involved.

Twenty minutes later she saw that he had drawn an outline of a lion in black. It looked at her and opened its jaws to roar, but no sound was emitted. He grabbed a cleansing wipe and used it to disconnect that particular needle head. He promptly tossed it in the bin.

'We need to dispose of the needles once we have finished using them for health and safety practices,' he explained at her curious expression. 'Anyone carrying some sort of blood- or family-related disease could spread it to another witch or wizard if you reused needles.'

'I can see how that would happen,' she replied with a nod. 'Are you going to fill it in with colour now?'

He nodded. 'Yes, I will use a different sort of needle that will lend to filling the colour in more easily than using the single point needle,' he answered. 'The one we use to fill in the colour is multiple point, and rather than feeling like an ant bite like the other needle, it's slightly rougher – similar to fingernails scraping across a sensitive area of skin.'

She watched in fascination as he repeated the connection process and then set to work dipping into the ink and beginning to fill the lion in, first with a light caramel colour, followed by browns and deep reds to give life to the mane and fur. She watched as the entire tattoo came to life with colour and movement, entranced by the way Charlie confidently put it together. She saw him grab light grey ink and add some shadows to it, and after a few minutes, he sat back with a satisfied smile, disposing of the needle he used.

'It's amazing,' she said, unable to tear her eyes away from it.

'It's not the best, but I'm pretty happy with it,' he replied. 'Drawing these designs free-hand is quite difficult.'

'That's some talent you have there, Charlie,' she said teasingly. 'I'm surprised you're not beating admirers off with all of your… gifts.'

Charlie chuckled. 'There aren't a whole lot of women at the reserve, and most of them are married,' he admitted. 'And there aren't exactly a whole lot of women who want to live in Romania at the Reserve with me, or who want to enter into a long-distance relationship.'

Hermione chose not to comment. Sure, she was attracted to him, but that was no reason to let him in on that particular secret.

'You should let me give you a tattoo, Hermione,' he said simply, startling her from her thoughts.

'A – a tattoo?' she asked, gaping.

'Sure,' he said with a smile. 'Just a small one – a little owl might suit you. Or something else? Perhaps your Patronus familiar?'

'It's an otter,' she murmured shyly. 'I don't know that getting a tattoo on a whim like this would be a good idea. I doubt my boss would find a tattoo very… professional.'

'I could put it somewhere your boss wouldn't see it,' he offered with a sly grin.

Hermione considered this for a moment. If she did this and got a tattoo, it would be forever. Sure, it would be in a place where it would not be visible in her work clothes, but she wasn't sure it would be wise to do so without giving it some serious thought. She knew Charlie was looking at her expectantly, waiting for her to give him an answer. She scrabbled for an answer, trying to discover what the correct answer was. She looked back at the redhead who was smiling at her and knew in that moment that she might always find it hard to say no to him.

'Okay,' she said quickly.

'Are you sure?' he pressed. 'I don't want you to regret this, and I'd hate to pressure you into something you don't want to do.'

Hermione took a deep breath and nodded. 'I'm sure,' she said, knowing that it was actually true – they were beautiful after all, and she really did want one. 'But it will have to be smaller than your dragons.'

He chuckled and nodded. 'My dragons are large, even by normal standards,' he replied. 'What would you like, and where would you like it?'

'My Patronus would be nice,' she said with a smile. 'He's a really friendly little one, and small enough too. Perhaps somewhere unobtrusive, like one of my thighs or my backside.'

'Would you mind showing him to me?' he asked.

Hermione nodded and withdrew her wand. 'Expecto Patronum,' she said, swishing her wand in the correct movements.

A shiny otter shot from the end of her wand, immediately nuzzling Hermione's face playfully before darting around the room. He ended up right in front of Charlie, sniffing around him for a moment before making a noise of delight and nuzzling him. After a few more minutes, the little otter puttered out of existence, leaving the two of them on their own once more.

'He's a cute little thing, isn't he?' Charlie asked, smiling. 'You know, I think it might be best if we put that little guy on your left thigh, with his lower half beginning on the front of your thigh. We'll draw it so that his head ends up on your hip bone.'

Hermione flushed slightly at the implication. She would have to remove her skirt, stocking and underwear in order to get this tattoo. Despite the slightly embarrassing placement of the tattoo, she really wanted it, and she thought that it would probably end up looking really good there. Taking a deep breath, she nodded.

'Alright, that sounds good.'

Charlie smiled and opened a drawer at the workstation, pulling a gown out and passing it to her. 'If you go to the bathroom and undress, you can put on that gown, and we'll cut a slit in it so that your leg and hip are exposed,' he told her.

Hermione took the gown and walked to the bathroom, her hands trembling slightly in nervousness. She removed her skirt, blouse, stocking and underwear, leaving her bra on. She slipped the gown on over her head and collected her clothes before returning to where Charlie was preparing the station for the procedure. He had a recliner set up where the imitation thigh had been before. He patted the chair, indicating that she should sit.

She took a seat and arranged herself comfortably. A moment later, Charlie pulled his wand out, and with a murmured spell, split the gown in the exact spot that was required and pushed it aside, exposing her long leg and hip to his view. Hermione was amazed that she wasn't shaking with nerves, but then again, he hadn't even gotten the first needle ready. She watched as he selected the ink he would be using, and then he attached the first needle head.

He swiped a cold antiseptic wipe over her thigh and hip, cleaning the area that he was going to draw on. 'So, are you ready?' he asked.

Hermione bit her bottom lip and nodded. 'I'm ready,' she said, sounding more confident than she felt.

He turned on the machine and murmured the incantation, pressing the tip of his wand to her skin. A moment later, she watched as the needle made contact with her skin, and she was startled by the slight pain. It felt exactly like an ant bite, and the pain continued as he continued to draw on her. For the next hour, he slowly worked, drawing the outline for the otter in dark blue ink. Hermione smiled when the outline of the otter's mouth and nose twitched, coming to life. Once he was satisfied, he removed the needle head and tossed it into the bin.

Hermione was surprised that the pain faded away after a few minutes and was replaced with a slight feeling of discomfort. He didn't speak the entire time, concentrating on the task at hand. She could see that he was sweating slightly, the room having grown a little warm as he worked. She didn't blame him – she was feeling slightly warm herself, not to mention a little flustered. Being in such close proximity to Charlie and watching as he worked was actually beginning to make her feel aroused.

Charlie connected the next needle head and pulled a few shades of pale blue, grey and white towards him to complete the tattoo This new needle hurt a little more than the last one had, very similar to something sharp scraping repeatedly over already raw skin. She had to bite her lip and grasp the arms of the chair tightly to prevent herself from whimpering in pain. It took another hour to fill in the colour, but when he sat back and sighed heavily, she knew that he was finally finished.

She looked down and was surprised by how pretty it was. The otter was a silvery-blue colour with a darker outline, the shadows and sparkling magical train truly bringing it to life. The otter's tail curled and wagged from side to side as it blinked and peered at both of them curiously. She smiled widely, sitting up straighter, the split in the gown shifting apart a little more as she did so. She blushed, trying to tug it across to cover herself more.

She looked at the man beside her and was surprised to find that his eyes were not glued to his work of art, but rather, they were focussed on the skin exposed by her movement. Hermione sucked a breath in sharply, drawing his attention back up to her face. His ears turned red when he realised he'd been caught out, and he cleared his throat and stood up immediately, holding a hand out to help her off the chair. She stood in front of him and nervously tugged at the slit in the gown, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

'I'm sorry,' he said, looking at the floor.

Hermione smiled at the sudden shyness that overtook him. He was looking at her with dilated eyes, staring at her naked flesh. He had been staring at her in a way that was decidedly not sisterly. Heat pooled between her thighs at the thought. She reached a hand out and touched his shoulder, allowing herself to enjoy touching his slightly sweaty skin.

'I don't mind,' she whispered.

His head snapped up at that, and he looked at her with eyes that were widened in surprise. She smiled despite her nervousness, surprised at her own boldness. He closed his mouth and stepped closer to her, his hand moving to the top of the slit in her gown. He gently parted it, exposing the fresh tattoo. He murmured a charm under his breath, clearing the blood and excess ink away for her. His hand didn't remain still, however, and a moment later, it stroked up and underneath the fabric to rest on her naked waist.

'You're very pretty, Hermione,' he said huskily, his face looming increasingly closer to hers. 'I know I am suffering from the side effects of the binding spell, but I want you to know that I was attracted to you before tonight.'

Hermione trembled slightly at his admittance as his free arm looped around her, drawing her even closer to him, pressing her pliant body against his firm one. The hand beneath her gown travelled upwards, and soon it was cupping her breast over her bra. She couldn't prevent the whimper that escaped from her lips. His sly smile made her feel a little weak at the knees. Her arms went around his neck as she attempted to prevent herself from falling over or sliding to the floor.

'Do you want me to stop, Hermione?' he asked, his nose brushing against her cheek, travelling along her cheekbone before he nuzzled her neck.

'No,' she whispered, pressing her chest further into his touch.

'Then let's take this somewhere else,' he said, releasing her for a moment. 'I think it might be best if we take this to your house.'

Charlie whipped out his wand and waved it at the workstation, magically cleaning up the mess. He was on her a moment later, pulling her against him. She grabbed her clothes and pictured her flat, Apparating both of them there. Hermione grasped his hand on their arrival, and the two of them walked to her bedroom together, both aware of exactly what was about to transpire. She dropped her clothes on the floor, placing her wand on the bedside table, glad that she had made her bed up with fresh sheets that morning.

Hermione watched as Charlie unbuttoned his jeans, drawing the zipper down. He kicked off his boots and socks the before grasping the top of his jeans along with his underwear, and with one smooth motion, whipped them down and off his legs. When he stood up to his full height, she allowed her eyes to move over him, starting with his strong calves and thighs, lingering briefly on his jutting erection. It was thick and long, in perfect proportion to his height and breadth. There were sparse hairs scattered over his chest, and she could see a confident smile curving his mouth.

'I want to undress you,' he said, swooping in on her and grasping the bottom of the gown.

She lifted her arms up willingly and allowed him to draw the gown off her. He tossed it aside and unhooked her bra, tossing it onto the floor to join the rest of her clothing. When she was finally nude, he took a step back and allowed himself to look her over. The dilating of his eyes and the feral grin that broke out over his face was enough reassurance for her that he wanted her just as much as she wanted him. She reached out and took his hand, leading him over to the bed and pushing him onto it, urging him to lie down.

She joined him a moment later, squealing when he pulled her over him with her knees on either side of his torso. One of his hands went to the back of her head, and she was immediately drawn into a fiery kiss, his lips hot, hard and demanding on hers. His tongue pressed against her lips, and she opened her mouth, allowing him in entrance. As they snogged, his hands travelled all over her, rubbing her back and sliding down to grasp her bottom, squeezing and massaging it.

She moaned softly into his mouth, rubbing her hands down his chest to his abdominal muscles as she broke off the kiss. With a smile, she slid down his body, kissing her way down the rippling, defined muscles. She stopped when her chin bumped against his erect cock. Opening her mouth, she took the tip of his penis into her mouth, swiping her tongue over the tip, tasting the salty liquid offering. His hoarse moan filled her ears as she continued, sucking his cock deep into her mouth, moving up and down and simultaneously stroking the base.

After a while, he shoved at her shoulders and urged her off, flipping her over onto her back so that she was lying down. He pushed her thighs apart, pausing for a moment to press a kiss to the tender skin where her new tattoo was before kissing a trail to her sex. He parted her lower lips with his fingers and dipped his head down, dragging his tongue from her sopping hole up to her clit. She bit her lip and moaned loudly, her hips bucking up towards his ministrations.

He continued with his task until her hips bucked even harder, and soon she felt her muscles clench as her impending orgasm drew nearer.

'Come for me,' he murmured against her as he continued to lap at her slit. 'Come for me, Hermione.'

She shattered, moaning his name as she came apart while he continued to lick and suckle her. He pulled back as she came down from her high, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand as he moved back up her body. She immediately accepted his mouth as he leaned down to kiss her, his fingers moving down to her throbbing centre, quickly inserting two fingers into her. He pumped them in and out for a few minutes as they continued to exchange heated kisses.

'Please,' she whimpered, the pleasure almost too much for her. 'Please, fuck me, Charlie.'

He chuckled darkly, stealing another kiss as he removed his fingers. She watched as he grasped his cock in one strong hand, pumping it in his fist for a few moments before he lined it up against her. With excruciating slowness, he pressed himself into her, pulling back a little as he pumped his way in, stopping when he was fully inserted. She reached down and grasped his firm buttocks, bucking her hips up and urging him to move.

He complied, moving in and out, holding himself above her, his muscles rippling as he fucked her. The sounds of their heavy breathing, moans and the slapping of skin against skin echoed through the room. She felt pleasure begin to pool in her groin again, twisting in her belly. She was so close to coming again and was amazed at herself – it had been a long time since the last time she'd come more than once during sex. Charlie's expression was somewhere in between pleasure and pain as he pushed himself into her over and over.

'I'm so close,' he groaned, trying to slow his pace.

Hermione gripped his bum even tighter. 'Come for me,' she said, mimicking his earlier encouragement.

She felt herself shatter around him, her muscles clenching around his cock, egging on his own orgasm. A moment later, his movements became even jerkier, groaning as he came, hot liquid spilling into her womb. He remained that way until her muscles milked the last of his orgasm from him, and he leaned to one side before collapsing beside her.

Hermione cast a spell to clean the mess up and pulled the covers of her bed over both of them. Charlie moved up behind her, spooning his front against her back as they got comfortable. The two of them fell into a stated sleep.

Sunlight filtered in through a small gap in the curtains, causing Hermione to clench her eyes shut even tighter.

She groaned when she realised that she probably wasn't going to get any more sleep. She rolled over, surprised when her body came up against a larger, muscly form. She rolled over and saw that Charlie was in the bed beside her, his chest rising and falling steadily as he continued to sleep. She smiled as the memory of the night before replayed itself in her mind. She put her hand on his chest, tracing her fingers over his muscles as they rippled with his breathing.

She saw his eyelids begin to flicker, and he yawned, stretching his arms out above him before opening his eyes. When his deep blue eyes focussed on her, a broad smiled broke out over his face, and he reached over to pull her over him so that her knees were on either side of his chest. He pulled her down, pressing his lips to hers in a hungry kiss. After a few minutes of snogging, he released her, and she moved off him, clambering off the bed.

'I still have to go to work today,' she explained, looking back down at him as he was sprawled over the mattress longingly. 'I'd love to just crawl back into bed with you, but unfortunately life isn't just going to stop for us.'

'I want to see you again,' he said, not bothering to mince words.

Hermione felt her stomach to a flip at those words and blushed. 'I'd like that, too,' she said softly.

'I'll be here until next Monday morning,' he said with a smile.

'You could…' she said, trailing off when she realised she was going to suggest something extremely forward.

'What were you going to say?' he asked, rolling out of the bed and moving to stand close to her, wrapping his arms around her.

She sucked in a deep breath, stealing herself. 'You could stay here with me while you're staying in London,' she suggested. 'That is, if you want to, and it wont get in the way of your work with Gerry.'

Charlie chuckled and leaned down to kiss her forehead. 'I would love to stay here with you, Hermione,' he said, moving one of his hands into her curls.

She smiled. 'Okay,' she said enthusiastically. 'Well, I had better shower and get ready for work. I doubt my boss would be impressed if I get in late.'

He nodded. 'Let's go take a shower, and I'll Apparate back to Gerry's place and change. I'll bring my things over when you finish work tonight – I can meet you at the Ministry to pick you up.'

Hermione nodded, and the two of them went to the bathroom and shared a shower, trying their hardest to keep their hands off of one another. Hermione dressed as quickly as she could in a pair of black trousers and a green jewel-toned blouse, pulling on her Ministry robes over the top. Charlie pulled his jeans on from the day before, tucking his underwear into his pocket as he followed her out to the sitting room.

'What are we doing here?' Hermione asked him as they stood facing one another, her curiosity getting the better of her.

He smiled and leaned down, kissing her gently. 'I don't know exactly, but I like you, Hermione,' he told her honestly. 'Let's just take this one day at a time for now, and if you want to see me the next time I'm in London, well then maybe we could decide what we are then.'

Hermione nodded. His logic was sound. 'Okay,' she agreed.

He gave her one last kiss before Apparating away for the day. Hermione smiled to herself as she picked up her briefcase for work. Things were beginning to look up, she thought, as she Apparated with a 'pop'.

The end.