Learning To Fly

Chapter 4: Falling

There was only one thing that stopped Charlie from returning home as frequently as he would have liked: Portkeys. It wasn't just that they were unpleasant — he could have coped with that alone — but international Portkeys were incredibly expensive. He simply couldn't afford to travel back to England more than once every few months, as much as he wanted to.

That being said, using a Portkey was a notoriously horrible experience. Charlie had just arrived in the same field his dragon-smuggling friends had departed from a little over two months previously, holding an empty plastic bottle. He screwed his eyes shut and took a few deep breaths in an attempt to alleviate the feeling of nausea that remained from the journey, to no avail. He placed his hand to his forehead and groaned. He couldn't stand there all evening. He had a Crup to pick up, after all.

It would have been quicker to apparate back to the sanctuary, of course, but if there was one mode of travel Charlie disliked almost as much as Portkeys, it was Apparition. Besides, he had his broomstick with him. It would be a shame not to use it, especially with the location being so remote, and the sky already dusky.

He mounted his broom and rose into the darkening sky, the cold air against his face making him forget the sickness he felt, not just from the Portkey, but the homesickness, too. The nine days he had spent seeing his family and friends had passed far too quickly, but the dull aching that seemed to weigh his heart down from the moment he'd left them was starting to ease now that he was airbound.

Of course, one of the first things Artemis had done when he saw her was ask how "her dragon" was doing. It was unfortunate, however, that she had decided to ask this question loudly, and in front of his entire family. Charlie had quickly responded with a quip about Dragon being his Crup, not hers, and changed the subject before she could make any more poorly-timed comments about their illegal dragon smuggling activities. The whole situation was a lot funnier looking back on it, and Charlie couldn't help but laugh to himself as he relived the moment in his head.

He decided that he'd pay "Artemis' dragon" a quick visit before he went to collect the Crup, and so he made a small detour to the holding pens. He had actually missed working with Norbert while he'd been away. Charlie had sourced Norbert some high quality nutrition, and had been building up a degree of trust with the help of steaks bought from the local Muggle butcher. In the space of two months, the young dragon had gone from being underdeveloped to small but well-proportioned, and his fearful aggression had given way into a guarded tolerance of Charlie's presence. That, as far dragons were concerned, was as close as you'd get to docility. Charlie was happy with his progress so far, and the look on Artemis' face when he'd told her so (once they were safely out of earshot of anyone else) had been an added bonus.

When he arrived at the holding pens, Charlie was pleased to see that Norbert had maintained his condition, and even seemed to recognise him; as he approached the enclosure, the dragon slowly moved towards him and lowered his head slightly in a non-confrontational posture.

"Hello, mate. Have you missed me?" Charlie asked Norbert, who lifted his head and raised it to the level of Charlie's own. The dragon's yellow eyes drifted to the floor, and Charlie chuckled and shook his head. "Sorry, Norbert. No steaks tonight. I'll get you some tomorrow. Might need to try a new butcher, though. I reckon the old one's getting a bit suspicious."

Realising that Charlie had no food, Norbert turned away and settled himself down in the corner. Charlie shrugged. That was as good a welcome as he could have expected to receive. Hopefully, Dragon the Crup would be more enthusiastic.

Charlie got back onto his broomstick and flew to the researcher's accommodation. There were only three lodges between his own and that of his workmate Felix, who had agreed to look after Dragon. Charlie dismounted outside Felix's lodge and summoned a small parcel from his duffel bag before knocking on the door. Clearly, Dragon had been making himself at home, judging by the barking Charlie could hear from the other side of the door.