Of Dogs and Dragons

Chapter 11 - Healing

After a relatively quiet day at work, Emilia rushed over to Charlie's place, wanting to know more about him and his life as a wizard. She was pretty intrigued by the idea of what he was and she had to know more. She still had trouble accepting that magic was real, but hearing more would do well to confirm it. And if he confirmed it, then she would know it was real, and she would know to trust him with her dogs. Because it was only for the dogs that she wanted to know more.

When she walked into Charlie's room, she noticed a trunk, with clothes scattering all over. She had not noticed the mess before, since before she was just concerned with Taffy's welfare. Her gaze continued around the room, hoping to find some clues about Charlie's lifestyle.

"Wait, I thought that there was only one bed in here." Emilia suddenly realized that there was a difference in the room. She took a seat at the table in the kitchen and she waited for an answer, realizing again that she spoke unintentionally. She was supposed to keep quiet. She didn't want to reveal anymore of herself to Charlie.

"Well, I've decided to stay for a little while," Hermione declared. "And I needed a bed, so I conjured one."

"You...you just made one with your magic?" Emilia was intrigued. Magic was pretty awesome.

"Yeah," Hermione answered like it was no big deal.

Emilia was surprised by that, but she decided not to question it any further. She was there for work and work was all she cared about. Even if she had to repeat that to herself continuously in her head, she would. She had to focus on her end task and that only.

"Do you want anything to eat?" Charlie then asked. "Not like I have anything, but one of us can go get something."

"No, I'm okay," Emilia quietly answered, in a shy manner. When Charlie's focus was back on her, she became nervous. She had not been nervous around him for quite some time, but now it felt like her heart was fluttering continuously rapidly in pace and her palms started to grow sweaty. One look into his eyes and every part of her felt weak, and she didn't know why.

"Okay," Charlie said, as he and Hermione took a seat at the table next to Emilia, Charlie sitting across from Emilia and Hermione sitting to her left side.

Emilia turned her eyes away from Charlie, trying to focus more on Hermione. She knew that she was a perfectly capable person, yet she felt like she was going to have trouble communicating with Charlie, even about work. There was just something about him that made her weak. She was just beginning to realize it.

Yet, in another way, he made her strong and vocal. She believed that she would have a communication problem, but prior experiences held true. She began to blurt out questions, without realizing what she was saying. Even though she did not want to reveal much of her personal life, she did. And she did it in a comfortable, intense way that did not make her look weak at all. She was weak in the inside, yet she was able to hold her ground and communicate in ways that she had never done before.

But she was nervous that wasn't always going to hold true. She didn't have any control over those random things she said.

"So how are you going to get this dragon out of here?" Emilia asked, averting from Charlie's deathly stare.

"I'm working on that," Charlie answered. "That's what I was doing when I saw you."

"You mean when you saved me," Emilia interrupted, angry at herself as she said it.

"Yes, that's quite true," Charlie smiled. "Though I'm not one for boasting."

Emilia smiled. She respected that.

"Once I have it all figured out, I'm going to get a bunch of my colleagues and we'll all work together to get her back to the bank."

"The bank?"

"Yeah," Hermione jumped in. "That's why it's my fault. She was locked up in the Wizarding Bank, Gringotts, to keep the money safe. Harry, Ron, and I had to rob the bank and we set her free to help us escape, but you can't tell anyone about that."

"Uh... okay," Emilia answered. She couldn't quite follow anything that Hermione was talking about, but she was not planning on saying anything, mostly because she didn't understand.

"So she's really going right back to the bank?" Hermione turned around to ask Charlie. "That's sad."

"I know." Charlie looked miserable at that fact. Emilia could see that he truly cared about his dragons, just like she truly cared about her dogs. "That's what I've been told to do. I'm waiting for my boss's reply though. I told you he was the one who signed her over to the bank. I'll learn more from him."

"Okay," Hermione answered. "You know, I think I'm getting kind of hungry. I'm going to go pick up some food. Are you sure you don't want anything, Emilia?"

"No, I'll be fine," Emilia answered. "I can't stay for very long anyways." Emilia really had no reason to not stay for long, other than not wanting to. She had to commit herself to leaving after a certain time.

Hermione then left, leaving Emilia and Charlie together. When Emilia realized that she was alone with him, she felt the nervousness that she had been feeling earlier intensify. She stared into Charlie's eyes once again and she picked up on his nervousness. At least they both were sharing a similar feeling.

"If the dragon goes back to the bank, she'll be tied up again, right?" Emilia asked. She had to get rid of the awkward silence.

"Yeah," Charlie answered, again miserably. "She doesn't deserve that, and she's going to have a baby. I'm going to have to try to talk them out of it. She's not going to be happy if she's separated from her baby."

"There's a baby?" Emilia was confused. Charlie had never mentioned that part before.

"Oh yeah," Charlie said. "I forgot to tell you. That's why I think she's been attacking the dogs. Hungarian Horntails don't usually go after dogs. Dogs are small meals for them, especially here where there is not a huge selection of dogs. They typically eat sheep and goats. Horntails have some pretty weird hormonal cravings, and she's decided on dogs. Once the baby is born, she shouldn't crave them anymore."

"And when will the baby be born?" Emilia was somewhat fascinated. She was not sure that she liked the dragon since she was eating her patients. But if the dragon stopped her dog craving and moved onto something more natural, she realized that it might not be too bad, especially if there was a baby involved.

"I'm not sure. I don't know when the egg came out, so I'm not quite sure how long it will take. I'll know a lot more after my boss writes back to me."

"You don't agree on sending the dragon off to the bank, do you?" Emilia asked, reading Charlie's emotions.

"No." Charlie frowned as he answered. "I think she should go back to a reserve. She's half blind and terrified. If we send her to the bank, she's just going to get locked up again and she's going to go crazy in that place." Charlie took a breath, before he continued, Emilia anticipating his words.

"But I'm sure they'll like that. She'll be more dangerous and a better defense. They're not thinking of her though. They're just thinking about themselves. That's their only use for dragons."

Emilia saw Charlie's worry and it reminded her of something so familiar. It took about ten second before she realized that look reminded her of herself, and her passion for dogs. She would do anything for them. Charlie would do anything for dragons. "So don't take her back," Emilia suggested, knowing that's what she would do.

Charlie thought about her words for a moment before he responded saying, "It's not that easy. The Ministry wants the dragon back. There's nothing I can do."

"Does the Ministry know about the baby?" Emilia asked.

"No."

"Well maybe that would help. If you really love dragons like I think you do, you've got to fight for them."

"Maybe," Charlie mused, thinking over Emilia's thoughts. They were simple, but simple might be the key. An outsider's view was not so terrible.

---

Early the next morning, the weather was not particularly pleasant. There was a cold rain that tried to gloom the mood, but neither Emilia nor Charlie felt the gloom. Emilia even skipped into work that morning, knowing that it was going to be a successful day.

Emilia spent about an hour more at Charlie's and then she left. She actually enjoyed talking to him, especially when they went into the topic of how they were going to heal the dogs that had been attacked. He told her that in order to do so he needed to get approval for being able to use magic in front of her. There was apparently a law against that, but Charlie said it would be taken care of right away.

Emilia's boss, Kristen Baker looked upon her suspiciously, as she strolled into work. "Fun night?" she asked, with a twinkle in her eye.

"Actually, yeah," Emilia answered, before realizing Baker's true meaning in her question. "I mean..." Emilia started to explain, but never finished. She was sick of Baker's desires to learn more about her love life. Maybe if she provided some detail, she would finally let it go.

"Oh really?" Baker smiled with glee. "Who were you with? Charlie?"

"Yep," Emilia answered, giving brief answers that were, in fact true.

"Emilia." Baker changed her tone of voice. "I'm not sure if that's a good idea. You guys are working together. You don't want to that to get in the way of your relationship here at work, and Charlie's not the most responsible guy."

"I can't just have a friendly relationship with him outside of work?" Emilia asked. Now she knew Baker's true intentions in her question. She didn't want Emilia to date. Whether it was really specific to Charlie or not, Emilia was not sure, but she figured that Baker did not want her dating at all. Dating could interfere with work.

"Oh," Baker answered. "Yes, of course. I'm sorry."

Emilia smiled, quite pleased with herself. That would get Baker off her back for awhile.

"Speaking of the devil," Baker then announced. Emilia turned to see a red headed man, who had so many freckles on his face that it looked as if he was tanner than he actually was. He had a wide smile on his face. It was probably the first time that Emilia saw a genuine smile form on Charlie Weasley's face and that smile made her feel some type of tingling feeling inside of her stomach. That smile finally gave him a look of sincerity; a look that told her that he wanted to be there, and he was there to save the dogs, just like her. "Any updates?" Baker asked.

"It's being worked on," Charlie stated. "But I think I have something that might help the dogs that are sick. If I could steal Emilia, then I can try it out."

"That's wonderful." Baker smiled as well. Even if she was somewhat of an annoying boss, she did care about the dogs. Even Charlie could tell by her expression and tone. "I'd like to watch what you do too."

That came as a surprise to Emilia, and she waited for Charlie's reaction. They couldn't let Baker watch what Charlie was going to do. Emilia was not even sure what he was going to do, but she was sure that it would not be normal for the so-called Muggle to watch.

Emilia knew there was not much work to do that morning. She briefly had a chance to look over her chart, and she saw that there was not much piled on. Just two appointments and whatever emergencies that would come in for the day, and she did not want to have to hope for emergencies. "It's really nothing much," Charlie explained, clearly trying to get Baker to back away. "I just need Emilia to hold the dogs still, and I'm going to give them this antidote that I've been working on."

"What antidote?" Baker was interested. "What is it?"

Emilia knew that Charlie would be stumped, so she stepped in to answer. "He started telling me about it last night," Emilia explained. "It's a home remedy that he made up once he saw these injuries. It has lanolin in it. It should work."

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Baker was hesitant. "Have you used it before?"

"Yes, ma'am," Charlie quickly answered, with assurance. "It's helped several dogs, but none this severe. That's why I haven't tried it yet."

It didn't make Emilia comfortable to know that he was a good liar. In fact, it made her even more suspicious about his magic. She was not quite sure whether to still believe him. All of the evidence led to the fact that he was telling the truth, but he could also lie with assurance, and that made her skeptical of his abilities and his story. And he was going to treat her dogs.

"What's it called?" Baker asked.

But Charlie also saved Taffy. Somehow he did and somehow she knew that he was telling the truth. "It doesn't have a name yet," Emilia responded, trying to feel confident that helping Charlie was the right thing to do. "They've just submitted it for approval, so it's not officially out yet, but we have to try it. It may be the only thing that can help."

"Fine," Baker responded. Emilia looked to see Charlie breathe a sigh of relief. He also seemed to be sweating just a little bit, which was not something he did when he told her about magic. He had to be telling the truth. "But I still want to watch."

That didn't help out their case. If Charlie repeated that it was not a big deal, then she would know that something was up. Emilia wasn't quite sure what they could do to prevent her from watching. "Fine," Charlie said cheerfully. "Let's go."

Emilia eyed him suspiciously, wondering what he was doing. She hoped that he had a plan, and he seemed confident enough that he did have one. Otherwise, it would turn into a disaster.

They reached the HR, which was easily Emilia's least favorite place in the hospital. Most of the HR was filled up of dying dogs, in pain and struggling to survive. They all wanted to live. They had owners who loved them and wonderful lives to live, especially for three of them, who had not even reached three years of age.

They settled into the room, and both Emilia and Dr. Baker waited for Charlie to make his next move. Right away, Charlie searched through his pockets, seemingly trying to find something. When he looked lost in concentration he explained that he forgot the antidote in his car. Emilia was even impressed that Charlie knew what a car was. From hearing stories about the magical world, she realized that wizard's typically did not use many Muggle things, like the automobile.

Charlie rushed out of the room, and Emilia again wondered what he was doing. Her first thought was that he was going to run and never come back. That's what she would have thought he would do after the first couple of times that she saw him. Now that she knew him a little more, she had confidence that he wouldn't run. He was coming back.

And sure enough, a few minutes of silence later, he came back, with a medicine container in his hand. "Okay," Charlie announced almost breathlessly, rushing into action, as soon as he walked back into the room. "Who do you want to test this out on?"

"Missy," Emilia quickly responded. Missy was a six month old Shepherd mix, who was severely sick. She was in the worst condition, and the most likely one to die. She felt like trying it out on Missy would be the best thing.

The three walked to Missy's cage, and noticed her lifeless expression. She did not move when they came near, but as Emilia opened up her crate door, she noticed a tiny flicker of a movement at the end of Missy's tail. She still had some life in her. She was happy to see the humans that took care of her.

"Okay, you should hold her, Reynolds," Charlie proclaimed. Emilia bent down and took Missy out of the crate. She knew that Missy would not move, but she still kept her arms around her just incase.

Emilia now was not sure what Charlie's plans were. She knew that when he left, he had set up something, but nothing was distracting Baker. She shifted her glance between Baker and Charlie, and she tried to pick up on any sign that he gave her. She thought that he may want her to do something, though she was not sure what it was. She wasn't good at reading other people's secret desires.

Then, she heard him whisper something, as he bent down, holding the medicine. Within seconds, Baker's pager went off.

Baker jumped up, not quite sure at first what it was. "I'm sorry," she said. "I'm going to have to answer that."

"Can we do this without you?" Emilia then asked, realizing that was Charlie's doing. "I don't want to keep Missy out too long."

"Fine," Baker quickly responded. "I'll try to hurry back though." Baker ran out of the room and left Charlie and Emilia alone.

"Ennervate," Charlie quickly said, before Emilia could even ask him what he did. As he said it, he took out a stick-like object and twisted it in a certain motion.

A shot of light came from the stick, which Emilia reasoned to be a wand, however ridiculous that was. It hit Missy, and Missy instantly perked up. Charlie said two or three more spells and soon Missy stood up, wagging her tail, eyes bright, and mouth opened with a doggy smile.

"It worked!" Emilia was thrilled. "It really worked!"

"Yeah," Charlie said. "That was a close one. You're going to need to go to the lobby though. I'll keep an eye on Missy, while you go take care of the distraction."

"What did you do?" Emilia asked.

"Go!" Charlie demanded. "Now!"

Emilia obeyed and quickly abandoned Charlie and Missy. She soon made it to the front desk to see Baker facing an outraged Hermione.

"I want to see her!" Hermione yelled. "Now!"

"Ma'am, please settle down." Baker tried to speak in a calm, yet reassuring voice. Hermione seemed to have knocked several papers off of that front desk. She was creating a scene in the vet's office.

Emilia walked close enough for Hermione to see her. She figured that Hermione wanted to see her, but she was not sure why. She decided to stay quiet and wait for Hermione to act, so that she could act based on Hermione's direction. "Emilia, over here," Hermione finally called out to her.

Emilia walked towards Hermione. "What are you doing here, Hermione?" Emilia asked.

"Do you know her?" Baker asked, confused by the interaction.

"Yes," Emilia quickly responded. "She's," she hesitated, before continuing, "She's my cousin."

"Oh," Baker spoke. "I'm sorry then. I didn't know."

"I told you," Hermione said angrily. "Em, we need to talk."

"You had to come here now?" Emilia acted angrily. "Why?"

"It's urgent," Hermione declared.

"I'll be right back," Emilia told Baker as she left to walk outside with Hermione.

"That seemed to work," Emilia whispered, as soon as she was outside. "Thank you."

"Of course." Hermione smiled. "I hope we did okay."

"I think it was pretty believable, but what am I supposed to tell Baker if she asks what you wanted?" Emilia couldn't think clearly. They had accomplished the task of healing Missy, but Emilia had one final obstacle in the way.

"Just tell her that it's personal," Hermione suggested. "I guess you could tell her that I'm pregnant or something, but personal's probably okay. Hopefully she won't want to know more."

"Okay," Emilia answered with a smile. Their plan worked out.