#charlie weasley x oc

Fanart by Natello on DeviantArt

Summary: Reader is a friend of Percy’s who spends Christmas at the Burrow and attracts the attention of one enamored Charlie Weasley.

Warnings: none

Word Count: 4,300

A/N: A fun Christmas-y one because ‘tis the season! I’ve been in love with Charlie since the ripe old age of ten years old so this was a fun one to write. Feel free to like and reblog, enjoy! :)

One of the few perks of working for the Ministry of Magic was getting the whole week before Christmas off. Most witches and wizards used this time to catch up on holiday shopping and spend time with their families, but you were absolutely dreading the upcoming break.

It was the Friday before Christmas week, and you were eating lunch in Percy Weasley’s office.

Both of you had been best friends at Hogwarts, and had started working at the Ministry together after graduating last spring. It was genuinely fantastic being able to see him every day, even if your job filing paperwork in the Office of Misinformation was far less thrilling than being Bartemius Crouch’s personal assistant.

“So, how’s the promotion been?” you asked between bites of your sandwich, gesturing to the room around you. “New office, better proximity to the coffee machine.” Percy chuckled.

“It’s definitely more than I expected,” he admitted, looking around the room with you. He’d just moved into the next space a week and a half ago, and this was the first time you’d had your daily lunch here.

“It’s also definitely better than your old cubicle,” you pointed out. His eyes widened and he nodded, giving you an exasperated look.

“I wasn’t going to complain about it, but that situation was not ideal,” he said. You laughed, remembering Percy’s many complaints about the constant flow of traffic throughout the Department of International Cooperation and how difficult it was to get work done.

“And how’s Crouch? He’s still treating you well?”

Percy nodded and gave you a small smile.

“He’s really great, actually. Obviously a bit busy with all the Triwizard Tournament stuff happening at Hogwarts, but he still makes an effort to show me how to do things and introduce me to people.”

You grinned, reaching across the desk to give him a high-five. “You’re making your way up there, Perce.”

“Thank you, m’lady,” he said, straightening up some of the paperwork he’d been working on. “And how about you, how’s your job been?”

“Oh, same old, same old,” you said dismissively. His brows furrowed.

“I thought you were going to talk to Buttons about a new position?” he asked seriously. You shrugged. Your boss, Lois Buttons, was a lovely old witch, but very scatter-brained and easily overwhelmed.

“I didn’t want to give her one more thing to worry about before Christmas, you know?”

Percy sighed. “(Y/n), you’re never going to get into a different division if you don’t ask. They’ll just promote you and you’ll be stuck there forever.”

You bit your lip. “I mean, that wouldn’t be terrible,” you lied. “The process of actually coming up with explanations for magical incidents seems interesting.”

“But you’ve wanted to work in the Beast Division since our third year,” Percy insisted. You looked down at your hands, slightly embarrassed, and Percy sighed. “Listen, I don’t mean to push, but if you want it I think you should go for it.”

You nodded slowly.

“I can talk to her, if you’d rather not,” Percy added. “Plant the idea in her head.”

“Oh, Percy, I don’t know if I could ask for that,” you said, brows knitting together.

“Well, the offer stands regardless,” he insisted. “After the holiday, we can discuss how we want to go about it.”

Your stomach dropped at the mention of the upcoming break. Percy seemed to pick up on your change in mood.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” he asked sincerely.

“Well, even if I wanted to go home, my parents won’t be back from vacation until Christmas Eve, which means I’ll be spending most of next week alone,” you admitted. “And you know I don’t really like ongoing periods of solitude.”

Percy nodded, then gave you a confused look. “You said…even if you wanted to?”

You sighed and nodded. “You know my parents aren’t the most agreeable people.” Percy snorted.

“That’s an understatement.”

Your parents were both muggles who disapproved of anything magical whatsoever. Thus, they harbored a not-so-small amount of disdain for your current life path. Any time you spent with them was miserable.

“So I’m not really looking forward to, you know, a week of being alone with nothing to do and then a few days of close contact with Mr. and Mrs. Ebenezer Scrooge.”

Percy chuckled at your joke, leaning back in his chair thoughtfully. Suddenly, his face lit up, and he slapped his desk triumphantly. “I have a solution!”

You jumped, and Percy gave you an apologetic look.

“Sorry,” he said meekly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“It’s ok, it’s ok,” you said, relaxing back in your seat and gesturing for him to continue.

“Why don’t you spend Christmas at the Burrow with all of us, like you did during school,” he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“Oh, Percy, I wouldn’t want to intrude, I’m sure your poor mother is already stressed enough-”

“(Y/n), stop,” he interrupted. “I genuinely won’t hear it. There’s no way me or anyone else will be able to enjoy Christmas knowing you’re miserable and lonely. You’re coming.”

You blinked, processing his proposition, and a small grin spread across your face.

“Okay,” you said slowly. “I like this idea.”

“Success!” Percy cheered.

“When do we leave?” you asked, still smiling.

“Later tonight,” Percy said, picking up a quill and looking back down at the paper in front of him.

“Tonight?” you asked incredulously. “Percy, I have to pack!”

“I’ll apparate to your place and then we can, y’know, apparate there together,” he said, waving his hands around as he spoke.

“Alright, well, see you tonight,” you said, standing up to leave and feeling ten times better about the week ahead of you.

“See you tonight! And close the door on your way out!”

— — —

Walking into the Burrow with Percy felt overwhelmingly like coming home. It took all of five seconds for Fred and George to wrap you in a bone-crushing hug, and you found yourself whirling between conversations with Harry, Ron, and Hermione as the twins helped you bring your bags upstairs.

“You’ll be staying with Ginny and I,” Hermione said excitedly, squeezing your hand.

“Oh, Mione, that sounds lovely,” you gushed, pulling her in for a hug. “It’s so good to see you.”

“You as well,” she replied, pulling you in closer.

“Roomies!” Ginny shrieked, bolting in the room and tackling you both. The three of you burst into laughter on the ground.

You ran into Percy on your way down the stairs.

“They whisked you away so fast, I had no idea where you went,” he chuckled. You grinned.

“I still haven’t said hi to your parents so I’m on my way to do that now.”

“Mum’s in the kitchen!” he called as you continued down the stairs.

You walked through the doorway that connected the living room and dining room and immediately encountered Mr. Weasley.

“(Y/n)!” he cried, setting down the stack of plates he was carrying to give you a proper hug. “Oh, it’s lovely to see you! You’ll have to pardon the mess. Molly, (Y/n)’s here!”

You grinned as Mrs. Weasley raced into the dining room, apron on and wooden spoon in hand. She pushed her husband out of the way to greet you.

“(Y/n), darling,” she smiled. “It’s absolutely lovely to see you, happy holidays!”

“Happy holidays, Mrs. Weasley,” you replied, hugging her back happily. “Thank you so much for letting me come visit.”

“Oh, dear, it’s not a visit when you’re practically part of the family!” she insisted as she pulled away. “Come keep me company in the kitchen while I cook.”

You happily obliged, following her into the kitchen where you found Bill and Charlie standing around the cluttered wooden table. Your pulse quickened almost immediately.

Bill was six years older than you and Charlie was four, and while you hadn’t spent too much time around them while you were at Hogwarts you’d always been intimidated by the eldest Weasley siblings.

“Hey (Y/n),” Bill said warmly, giving you a quick wave. Charlie looked up from the dough he was kneading and smiled brightly.

“Hi,” you said a little nervously, giving them a small smile before following Molly over to the stove. “Can I help you with anything, Mrs. Weasley?”

“Why don’t you help Bill and Charlie make the bread,” she suggested. “You can make your own batch of dough, Merlin knows we still won’t have enough loaves.” You grinned, grabbing a clean bowl from the countertop and heading over to Bill.

“All the ingredients are here,” he said, gesturing to the mess on the table in front of him.

You nodded, clearing a little spot for you to work and setting your bowl down.

“How’ve you been, (Y/n)?” Charlie asked.

“Oh, uh, pretty good, how about you?” you replied, scanning the table for the flour and salt. “How’s Romania?”

“Oh, it’s fantastic,” Charlie said genuinely, eyes lighting up a little. “We just took in a few rescues, and they’ve just started adjusting which is great-”

“Oh, the Hebridean Blacks, right?” you interrupted. Charlie gave you a surprised look and nodded.

“Yea, actually, how did you know about that?”

“I read it in the paper,” you replied sheepishly, adding some yeast to your bowl.

“(Y/n) works with Percy at the Ministry, you know,” Molly said from behind you.

“Really?” Bill asked, looking over at you.

“Well, not with him,” you clarified. “I work in the Office of Misinformation, so different departments.”

“You like that job?” Charlie asked, brows furrowed. You shrugged again.

“It’s not really what I want to do, but I’ll take it.”

“Well, what is it that you want-”

Charlie was cut off by the twins storming into the kitchen demanding when dinner would be ready. Somehow, they managed to whisk you away from your spot at the table on their way out, giving Molly some excuse about needing you for “academic purposes” (which was most certainly a lie). You gave Bill and Charlie an apologetic look as the twins dragged you behind them.

— — —

The Burrow had always been your favorite place to celebrate the holidays, with its charming, cozy atmosphere and the surplus of people. That being said, you weren’t completely free of work in the days leading up to Christmas. You and Percy had spent a few afternoons trying to get things done in the living room, but the hustle and bustle of everything had made it difficult.

That was what had led you to staying up until one in the morning, filling out paperwork on the couch by yourself with a nice cup of tea. You were sure you’d regret it in the morning, but at least you’d gotten the last of your work done. Unfortunately, you weren’t sleepy in the slightest.

Some time ago you’d traded accident reports for your Dragonology book, fantasizing about working for the Dragon Research and Restraint Bureau as you did. One day, when you worked up the courage to ask for a division transfer, you’d get that job. Hopefully.

Your head snapped up as the stairs creaked softly, eyes meeting those of Charlie Weasley as he made his way into the living room. He winced, giving you a sheepish smile.

“Sorry to scare you,” he murmured.

“No worries,” you replied softly, watching as he made his way over to the couch.

“This seat taken?” he asked, gesturing to the spot next to you. You shook your head, sliding over to give him more room.

You sat in silence for a bit, sneaking glances at the built redhead on the other side of the couch more often than reading the book on your lap. His eyes were closed, head tilted back slightly and a peaceful look on his face.

“You couldn’t sleep either?” he asked finally. You shook your head, then realized his eyes were still shut.

“No, I was staying up doing work and then I wasn’t tired when I finished,” you answered. “How about you?”

“Romanian time is two hours ahead of here,” he said. “Not a humongous difference but enough to ruin my sleep schedule.”

“Traveling always makes me need to nap,” you said. Charlie chuckled.

“Is that where you vanished to the other day when you fled the kitchen?” he asked.

“Oh, no, that was top secret Weasley Twins business,” you teased. “Absolutely confidential.” Charlie gave you a knowing look, and you blushed slightly. “There mayhave been some napping after the top secret business was done.”

“I knew it!” he grinned, lifting his fist up in an exhausted triumph.

A comfortable silence fell over the room, save for the clock ticking and the fireplace crackling.

“You said you finished your work, so what’s that?” Charlie asked, sitting up slightly as he gestured to the book in your hands.

“Oh, uh, personal reading,” you said, showing him the cover. “For fun.”

His eyes lit up as he read the title. “Dragons! I know those!”

Your heart skipped a beat at his lopsided grin.

“Yea, they’re quite fascinating, and really beautiful I think,” you said, eyes trailing over the illustrations on the page you were reading.

“Great minds think alike,” Charlie smiled, giving you a wink. You blushed, looking away from the smirking redhead in front of you.

“So, just a casual interest or something more?” he continued. You bit your lip, thinking about your answer.

“I’ve always wanted to do something with dragons,” you started finally, smiling faintly as Charlie physically perked up. “Care of Magical Creatures was like my thing in school, it was a natural progression of interest. I won’t say you weren’t an inspirational factor, but we don’t need to get into all that.” You could’ve sworn you saw a slight blush on Charlie’s cheeks.

“Well, you work in the Magical Creatures Department now,” he said. “It can’t be all that hard to transfer into the Beasts Division, and then try to do something more specialized.”

“It’s honestly probably not that difficult, but I’m terrified to talk to my boss about it,” you admitted.

“Why?”

“She really likes me, and if I transferred I’d be working with completely different people. I don’t want her to think that me asking to leave has anything to do with her at all, you know? What if she took it personally?”

“But do you like your job now?” he asked. You shook your head immediately.

“Not at all.”

“Then why not go for it?” he suggested. “What’s the harm? And if you decided you didn’t like it, you could always go back.”

You sighed. “I’m not nervous about that, I’m nervous once I get a taste of it, I’ll want to do what you do.” He opened his mouth and closed it, having no quick response. “Do you ever regret going into such a niche field?” you continued.

“Not at all,” he answered with a shake of his head.

“Even though it’s far away and kind of dangerous?”

He flashed you a devious grin. “That’s half of the appeal.” A beat. “Why are you nervous about wanting that kind of a career?”

“My parents wouldn’t like it,” you shrugged. His brows furrowed.

“They’re both muggles, right?”

You nodded. “And they really don’t like anything magic. Like at all.” Charlie gave you a confused look and you continued. “Don’t like my job, didn’t like me going to school or my friends. Definitely wouldn’t like me running off to a place like Romania to work with Dragons.”

Charlie nodded thoughtfully. “I can see why you have inhibitions. Though I must say, it takes an insanely compassionate person to account for thoughts of people who don’t have their best interests at heart.”

“Thanks, Charlie,” you murmured, blushing at his words. You pressed yourself back further into the couch.

“And obviously I don’t want to tell you to disregard your parents,” he said. “That would be shit advice. But at some point you do have to prioritize what you want.”

You nodded, eyes widening as you glanced at the clock on the wall.

“Sweet Merlin, it’s two o’clock!” you hissed, scrambling to your feet as you gathered all your papers from the coffee table. Charlie gave you a concerned look as he leaned forward to help you.

“Sorry to leave in the middle of the conversation, but I promised your sister I’d go Christmas shopping with her in the morning,” you explained, thanking him as he handed you a stack of filled out paperwork.

“Very kind of you,” he said with a smile. “Have to get your beauty sleep, though I’m sure you don’t need it.”

You blushed and murmured a goodnight as you walked past him, halting when he grabbed your hand. You looked down at him with wide eyes.

“I think you’d make an amazing Dragonologist, (Y/n),” he said lowly, looking up at you through his lashes as he pressed a slow kiss to the back of your hand. You could hear your heart pounding in your ears. “Sleep well.”

You squeaked out a response as he dropped your hand and rushed up the stairs. Your heart was still pounding as you closed the bedroom door behind you, relishing in the memory of his calloused hand on yours.

— — —

The first half of Christmas Eve was spent tidying up the house and helping Molly in the kitchen. Much to your chagrin, Ginny forced you and Hermione to take a break and join in on the annual Weasley Quidditch game.

You had absolutely no skill on a broom, and Hermione wasn’t that much better, so it was no surprise when you were both picked dead last.

Harry and Ginny were team captains (“To fuel the tension,” Fred had whispered to you with a smirk), and Ginny had picked Charlie to be her seeker. Fred and George were split so each team had a beater, and you wound up on Harry’s team with Ron, George, and Bill.

“(Y/n) can be the keeper,” Harry said as you discussed your team’s strategies. Ron gave him an offended look.

“Bloody hell, mate, you know that’s my best position!”

“But if (Y/n) is keeper she doesn’t have to fly around much,” Harry retorted with a tilt of his head. “And then we might actually have a chance at winning.” Harry gave you an apologetic look as you scoffed.

But he was right - Ron was still fantastic as a chaser, and you were terrible overall.

His strategy was primarily offensive, his reasoning being that if they kept the quaffle on the other side of the pitch, you wouldn’t have to do too much actual defense.

You tried your best, but Ginny was practically unstoppable when it came to scoring.

“Get your head in the game, (Y/n)!” Percy teased as he tossed the quaffle at you. You screeched and swatted it away with your hand. Your eyes widened as you watched the quaffle fall to the ground.

“Holy shit, I did it!” you shouted, laughing with Percy as you flew around the goalposts.

Your celebrations came to an end when Ginny snatched the quaffle and threw it straight into your chest, knocking you off your broom.

You yelped in surprise, closing your eyes and bracing for impact with the ground when you were caught by a rather sturdy pair of arms.

You opened an eye tentatively, blushing at the sight of Charlie with an attractive smirk on his face.

“That was a nice block,” he said. “And an even nicer fall. Very graceful.”

You struggled to find words as he reached out and caught your falling broom, quirking an eyebrow as he looked back down at you.

“Uh, thank you,” you stammered, relishing in the feel of his body against yours as he landed on the ground and set you back on your broom.

“No problem,” he said with a wink, taking off to scold Ginny and leaving you speechless on the ground.

“What in the name of Merlin was that?” Percy asked with a shocked smile as he flew down to check in on you. “I had no idea you’d been seduced by my older brother.”

“He hasn’t seduced me,” you groaned as you lifted off the ground. “Not too much, anyways.”

By the time dinner was done, you were completely exhausted from Quidditch, helping Molly, and your impending food coma. You collapsed on the couch dramatically, hugging your legs to your chest as you watched the twins try to rope people into a game of exploding snap.

You grinned as Charlie moved to sit next to you, ignoring Percy’s suggestive eyebrow wiggle from his seat across from you.

“How’re you feeling?” he asked, scooching closer to you as more people sat down on the couch.

“Like I might explode,” you groaned, pulse quickening as his thigh touched yours.

“Just like the cards!” Charlie said, pointing at the game in front of you. You laughed at the wide grin on his face.

“Very nice joke,” you said in a posh voice, clapping your hands together softly. “Ten points for execution.”

“Thank you, thank you, I came up with it myself,” he said, winking at you as he stretched his arms over the back of the couch.

You blushed, hyper aware of his arm behind you. “You have to stop doing that,” you said exasperatedly, a small grin on your face.

“Doing what, sweetheart?” he asked with a smirk. You rolled your eyes.

“The winking, it gets me all flustered,” you stated matter-of-factly.

“Oh, and why’s that?” he teased, leaning towards you slightly.

“Because it’s extremely attractive and I think Percy would probably spontaneously combust if I snogged his older brother at a family function,” you said innocently, leaning in and grinning as his cheeks turned bright red. “Trust me, Weasley, two can play at this game.”

“Noted,” he grinned, wrapping his arm around your shoulder and pulling you into his side. “Let me know if this is too much.”
You shook your head, giving him a small smile as you rested your head on his chest. “This is perfect.”

You hoped he couldn’t feel how fast your heart was beating, deciding instead to focus on the feeling of his muscular torso under his sweater. A couple years working with dragons had definitely changed his physique, though he’d always been on the more muscular side. You dragged your fingers down his chest, slowing to a stop in the middle of his stomach, and felt his breath hitch.

“Careful,” he murmured, bringing his spare hand up to engulf yours. You grinned up at him, biting your lip as his calloused thumb traced small circles on the back of your hand.

“I am being careful,” you retorted. “I’m just…admiring.”

“Admiring?” he said, giving you an amused look. You nodded.

“Oi lovebirds!” Fred called, “you two playing exploding snap or not?”

You rolled your eyes, glancing at Fred and shaking your head.

“Afraid not, Freddie.”

“Sorry, mate,” Charlie added. “Maybe tomorrow night.”
“It’s snowing!” Ginny exclaimed, jumping up from the floor and racing over to the window. “Look!”

You grinned, leaping off the couch to join her. Sure enough, snow was falling softly outside, a light dusting already covering the ground.

Charlie pushed himself off the couch, walked over to stand behind you and rested his hands on your hips. You glanced over your shoulder at him, giving him a warm smile, before returning your attention to the developing winter wonderland in front of you.

“I’m going outside,” you declared, wiggling out of Charlie’s grip to grab your coat off the hook by the door. “Want to see the snow up close and personal.”

Charlie raised an eyebrow then shrugged, reaching for his own coat and slipping on his boots.

“You like the snow, huh?” he asked with a smile as he followed you outside.

You nodded gleefully, meandering around the porch as you inspected the amount of snow.

“I’d say this is a good centimeter or so,” you said thoughtfully, bending down and grabbing a handful.

“Is it?” Charlie asked teasingly. You nodded, spinning around and hurling your newly formed snowball at him. He dodged it easily, laughing loudly as he stepped forward and pulled you closer to him.

You smiled, wrapping your arms around his torso and resting your forehead on his chest. The two of you stood there for a moment, swaying in the cold air.

“If I’m being too forward you can tell me,” Charlie said finally, “but I’d really like to take you out for dinner before we both go back to work.”

You looked up at him brightly. “I’d love that, Charlie, really.”

“And then, maybe if you’re not too busy, you could come visit me in Romania sometime and see some dragons?” he suggested, gazing down at you. You nodded and snuggled in closer to him.

“The snow is gorgeous,” you said softly, committing the soft “thump” of his heartbeat to memory.

“Like you,” Charlie replied quickly. You pulled back and swatted his chest playfully.

“Charlie Weasley, are you trying to flatter me?”

“Maybe,” the tall ginger murmured, bending down to rest his forehead against your own. You sucked in a breath, overwhelmed with the proximity of your face and his, and how easy it would be to just lean forward and…

“You said something about snogging earlier,” Charlie said cheekily.

“Want to take me up on that offer?” you suggested breathlessly. He grinned, reaching up to cup the back of your head as he pressed his lips to your firmly. Your eyes fluttered closed, relishing in the feel of his mouth on yours for a moment before parting your lips to deepen the kiss. You moved your hands up to his broad shoulders, pulling him in closer to you.

And as the two of you continued to kiss in the snow, you realized this Christmas wouldn’t be half as bad as you had thought.