Fire Breather

part one

Charlie stared at the letter in his hands, face full of shock and excitement, for he couldn't believe what he was reading.

To a Mister Charles Weasley,

My name is Collin Ridgebit, and I am the owner of the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, which was founded by my father, Harvey Ridgebit, in 1954. I have recently received your application for an internship with us, and after looking over your application further, I believe that you would be the perfect fit for the position. If you are still interested in the position, please send a reply before June 10th, and be prepared to move in by June 15th at the latest. We look forward to having you.

Sincerely, Collin Ridgebit

He couldn't believe it. This had been his dream since he started Care of Magical Creatures in his third year at Hogwarts. Everyone else had slacked off in the class, stating how boring and uninformative it was, but he had looked forward to and loved every single class, even the 'boring' days.

Professor Kettleburn had recommended the internship to him, suggesting that it would be a great opportunity that could possibly lead to a job offer on the reservation. When he had applied, he had seriously doubted that he would be offered the position.

But here he was, staring at the letter in his hands, evidence that his dream was coming true. Merlin, he couldn't believe that in two short weeks, he could possibly be on the reservation and working with actual dragons.

But shit. He forgot about a large obstacle that stood in his way.

His mother.

Molly worried too much about her children, it seemed, to ever let Charlie leave and go work with dragons. As it was, Bill had to beg her for months in order for her to allow him to take the job as a curse breaker.

But maybe with Percy in his fifth year, Fred and George going into their third year, and Ron going into his first year, his mum would be a little less worried about what he and Bill were doing, and would be more focused on what his other siblings were doing.

He hoped.

Almost on cue, his mother's shrill voice rang throughout the house, calling them all downstairs to supper. Charlie carefully slid the letter back into it's envelope, and slipped it into his pillowcase.

Since Bill had moved out, he was now sharing a room with Percy, who had been eager to escape the room he had shared with Ron and the twins. But it also meant that he had a lot less privacy because, whether he realized it or not, Percy was quite nosy and was always in his business.

Hopping down from the top bunk with ease, Charlie made his way downstairs to the kitchen, where food was floating between everyone, taking it's place on the table.

"Smell delicious, dear," Arthur stated, entering the house, briefcase in hand. He hung his cloak on a coat rack, and made his way over to his wife, planting a small kiss on her cheek. Molly blushed, and gave his hand a playful slap as he reached over and attempted to grab a dinner roll out of the bowl that was hovering right behind her.

Charlie found mealtimes with his family to be very similar to mealtimes at Hogwarts, minus the never-ending platters of food. It was loud, everyone was seated on benches that were charmed to fit the number of people eating, the room smelled amazing, and there was always some mischief going on somewhere.

Tonight, there was no exception. Fred and George had managed to place one of their joke products that they had began working on in the mashed potatoes, and when an unsuspecting victim (who just so happened to be Percy) dug into the bowl, it exploded and mashed potatoes flew everywhere.