Letters Meaning Love (Charlie Weasley)

Tooth

Rose's P.O.V.

"You've got everything in your trunk, dear?"

"Yes, Mum."

"I don't need to search it, do I?"

"Mum!"

I was sitting on the bottom step of the massive flight of stairs leading up to the bedrooms and bathrooms above the main floor of the Burrow, the home of me and the Weasley family. My 'mother', Molly, was glaring daggers into her four other children who would be attending Hogwarts. Ron and I were going for our first year. Fred and George were starting their third year, and Percy was starting his fifth year and was going to be a prefect.

"Rose, darling, take your trunk to the car. We'll be leaving soon." Molly told me.

"Yes, Mother."

I was silent as I pulled my trunk out the front door. I was putting it into the trunk of the car when I heard a loud screech behind me. A pure black owl was flying directly to me. I held my arm out, and I stroked the feathers on its face when it landed on my wrist. I took the envelope it held delicately in its mouth and watched as it flew away.

"What's that, deary?" Arthur asked as he checked the space left in the car trunk, peering over my shoulder at the envelope I held.

"It's a letter from Charlie!" I cheered.

He chuckled as I ran back inside. I was practically jumping in place as I held the envelope out to Molly. She smiled as she took it and grabbed one of the letter openers she kept on the counter.

"Read it!" I begged.

She laughed as she pulled the letter out of the envelope. I easily caught the small object that fell out of the envelope as she pulled the parchment out.

" 'Rosalie, I'm afraid I can't be there to see you off to your first year at Hogwarts. One of the handlers here got injured, so I'm getting to have some hands on training right now. I know you'll be upset that I can't come and see you, so I sent you a gift. Enclosed in the envelope is the tooth of a maturing Peruvian Vipertooth. Don't be alarmed. I made sure there wasn't any venom left in and on the tooth, so you can touch it as much as you please. It is quite sharp, so do be careful and aware of the end. Behave while you're at Hogwarts, and if you have any trouble or feel lonely, feel free to send an owl or two my way. You'll be fine. I hope you have a wonderful experience. Hogwarts is an amazing place. Check in on the Care of Magical Creatures Professor, Rubeus Hagrid, from time to time. He may be keeping some creatures that I'm sure would spark your interest. Yours truly, Charles.' " Molly said.

I examined the small fang I had in the palm of my hand. Charlie had graduated from Hogwarts last year, and he was now studying dragons in Romania.

"A Peruvian Vipertooth?" Molly looked concerned. "What's that?"

"It's a dragon, Mother. The Peruvian Vipertooth is one of the smallest species and is a very fast flier. Its scales are smooth and copper-colored with black ridge markings. It has short horns, and it's incredibly venomous. Their feeding on humans had gotten so out of control that they had to send in exterminators into a heavily populated area of the creatures." I explained, remembering the time Charlie had described them to me in one of his letters.

"Hand it over. I will not have my child keep such a dangerous object." Molly held her hand out.

"Mum, it's not dangerous. The tooth lost all its poison when it fell out. Even Charlie said he checked to make sure there wasn't any left." I closed my hand around the tooth.

Molly sighed. "Fine. Go put it away where your sister won't find it. I don't want her rummaging through your belongings while you're away and be poked by that thing."

I smiled and ran upstairs. I shared a room with Ginny, the left half being hers and the right half being mine. I got on my knees beside my bed and pulled out a small box. Inside the box was small jars and containers labeled with different dragon species. I grabbed the one sloppily labeled Peruvian Vipertooth in Charlie's scribbled handwriting and put the tooth inside. I placed the container back into the box and grabbed a small empty jar. I grabbed a handful of the small plastic bags I kept in the box and shoved them inside the empty jar. I headed back downstairs in time to see everyone filing out the door. I quickly made my way to my trunk in the back of the car and put the empty jar inside before piling in after Ron.

"What did Charlie send you this time, Rose?" Fred asked, turning in his seat to look at me.

Arthur had rented a small van so we all could fit. Ron, Ginny, and I were in the back row while Fred, George, and Percy occupied the middle row.

"The tooth of a Peruvian Vipertooth. He said that the dragon was maturing and had lost its tooth, and he knew I would be upset that he can't come and see us today, so he sent the tooth as a gift." I answered.

"You've only ever gotten scales and horn pieces of that species haven't you?" George questioned, turning in his seat like his brother had.

"Yeah. Charlie told me that the adult teeth keep the venom in them, and only the baby teeth lose the venom because the poison concentration isn't as high in the young ones." I replied.

"You sure do know a lot about dragons." Ron mumbled.

"I only know the things Charlie's told me. It's easier understanding the different species from an actual dragon handler than from a bunch of outdated scripts and books."