First of all, I'm not JK Rowling. Second, this is all I have thus far, but if there's enough interest I'll continue as best I can.
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"You're sure you want to do this?" Teddy Lupin asked his girlfriend, Victoire Weasely, for the fifth or sixth time that day.
"If you keep asking me that I'm going say no and split up with you," Victoire snapped. "I'm tired of this, Teddy. There's no reason to hide the fact that we're dating."
"Sure there is," Teddy returned. "Paparazzi, Teen Witch Magazine...your cousins..."
"You know very well that all of them adore you," Victoire said dismissively. "And as for the rest...it can't be that bad, can it?"
"Hasn't Harry ever told you about all the horrible things the press used to say about him? And you saw what happened when I broke up with Eileen," Teddy replied grimly. "And I'm not even as well known as you are. You're one of the most famous models in Europe and your family is the most prominent--"
"Our family," Victoire corrected, then giggled. "I still think you should have ditched Eileen in the middle of the Forbidden Forest, like they said. She was an obnoxious cow."
"That's not the point," Teddy said. "The point is that we'll never have any privacy again."
"You're being melodramatic," Victoire insisted as they passed through the barrier to Platform 9 ¾. "It'll blow over in a couple of weeks. I don't want to hide anymore, Teddy."
"I know, Tori, I know," Teddy sighed, running a hand through his dark brown hair. Victoire noticed it was starting to exhibit streaks of dark blue and green, a sure sign that he was stressed. "It's just...I'm starting my Auror training next week. I mean, how can I hope to catch dark wizards with reporters and photographers running after me all the time?"
"You're going to be in training for two years," Victoire pointed out. "By the time you're actually an Auror we'll be old news. Anyway, you're a metamorphmagus. If it really gets that bad, you can always change your appearance."
"I guess..."
"Why are you arguing?" Victoire demanded. "This is it, Teddy. I can't do it anymore. Either we come out with it or split up. We have nothing to be ashamed of. At least, I don't," she added pointedly.
"Don't start," Teddy warned her. "You know that has nothing to do with it. Merlin, who could possibly be ashamed of you?"
Victoire smiled and squeezed his hand surreptitiously. For the last time, she added mentally. She and Teddy had been secretly dating for the last two years. At first, they had kept it a secret because, as Teddy mentioned, the press had had a field day when he broke up with his girlfriend, Eileen Finnigan. After that blew over, they agreed that it would be better to be discrete since (as Teddy also pointed out), the Weaselys were the most prominent and wealthy family in England.
Victoire mentally listed her family's assets in her head: there was Weasely's Wizard Wheezes, of course, which had shops open in London, Hogsmeade, Paris, Berlin, and Madrid; Weasley's Witchwear, the fashion boutique her mother and aunt Ginny ran, which carried, in addition to all the high fashion labels, La Cour, her mother's own fashion line; Honeydukes, which Uncle George had bought some years ago and which was now run by Aunt Audrey, who added her own delicious recipes.
Not to mention the fact that every single one of her aunts and uncles (and even Granny and Grandpa Weasely) were war heroes. And, of course, her aunt Ginny was married to none other than Harry Potter, the Chosen One and the head of the Auror Department. Uncle Ron was also an Auror and Aunt Hermione had some sort of high paying, high ranking job in Magical Law Enforcement and was famous for her campaign to liberate and empower house elves and other non-human, magical beings. Uncle Percy (married to Aunt Audrey) also had a cushy, high paying government job, just under the Minister of Magic (who, incidentally, was a very close friend of the family).
There was, Victoire had to admit, a basis for Teddy's fears. The media simply loved her family. It was a classic rags-to-riches tale and Harry Potter's marriage to Ginny had only added to the family's popularity. Victoire did do some modeling for her mother and some of her mother's friends, but Teddy was exaggerating her fame. If anyone among the cousins was going to be famous, it was her younger sister, Dominique. At sixteen, she was the most talented singer Victoire had ever heard. She just signed a record deal with the understanding that she would start recording the next summer. Even so, it had taken all the cousins' pleas and arguments and a solemn vow of continued good grades from Dominique to make Bill and Fleur agree. So perhaps Teddy wasn't being completely unreasonable, but still...
"Let's get your stuff onto the train, shall we?" Teddy said a little stiffly.
Victoire nodded in reply and helped him haul her admittedly overlarge trunk onto the train. Dominique stuck her head out of one of the compartments and waved.
"I thought I heard your trunk," she said, grinning. "Come on, we've been waiting for you."
Teddy and Victoire carried her trunk down the corridor to Dominique's compartment and stashed it with the others'. Dominique was talking excitedly with their cousin, Roxanne, about the demos her agent from the record company had sent her. Roxanne looked up from the lyrics she was reading when Victoire entered.
"Hey there, cousin," she said with a grin. "Ready for your last, your final, your ultimate year at Hogwarts?"
"Is it really my last year?" Victoire gasped. "I'd forgotten. You haven't reminded me in at least two hours."
Roxanne, whose parents lived in Hogsmeade, had been staying at Shell Cottage for the past few weeks. She and Dominique were both sixth years, and inseparable. And they had both developed an annoying habit of reminding her ten or twelve times a day that she had only one more year left at Hogwarts.
"It's not that bad," Teddy said judiciously.
"You just graduated two months ago," Roxanne said. "Give it another couple of weeks to sink in that you're not going back. Then you'll feel it."
"Thanks," Teddy said seriously. "I really feel a lot better about entering the real world now."
"Ugh," Dominique said, wrinkling her nose. "You're an adult, Teddy. Dumbledore's beard, when did that happen?"
"Never," Teddy informed her. "I'll let you know if it ever does."
"I won't hold my breath," Victoire said, rolling her eyes. "Come on, let's go say good-bye to whoever showed up. Nikki, you coming? Roxy?"
The two younger girls waved her away. "We already did. And it's Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Percy, by the way," Roxanne told her.
"What's Uncle Percy doing here?" Victoire wondered as she and Teddy got off the train.
"Probably just stopped in to say hello," Teddy said with a shrug.
Since Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey lived in Hogsmeade, their daughters, Molly and Lucy, didn't take the train (although they each had for their first year as part of the Hogwarts experience). They would be waiting for the rest of the students on the platform along with Fred, Roxanne's brother. Victoire spotted Percy talking loudly about broomstick regulations to anyone who would listen. Aunt Hermione was nodding distractedly as she bent to give her daughter, Rose, a kiss.
"Hi, Tori," Hermione said with a smile, looking relieved. "Hello, Teddy.."
"Hi, Aunt Hermione," Victoire said, giving her Aunt a peck on the cheek. Rose smiled up at her . Rose adored Victoire. The older girl smiled back. "Hey there, sprout. Ready for your first year?"
Rose replied that she was and showed Victoire all of her schoolbooks and supplies, which were stacked neatly in her trunk.
"I wish I were a first year again," she said wistfully. "I don't want to graduate!"
"Oh, you'll be fine," Hermione said, laughing.
"Still set on working for St. Mungo's?" Percy asked. "The Ministry can always use bright young minds like yours, Victoire. I have some very useful contacts in the Department of--"
"Tori! Teddy!" a voice shouted, and Victoire turned to see a small redheaded blur crash into Teddy's midsection.
"Hello, Miss Lily," Hermione said dryly as Harry and Ginny followed in a more decorous manner with their second son, Albus, in tow.
"Hi, Aunt 'Mione!" Lily chirped. "Hi Rose! Hi Uncle Percy!"
"Hi, Lily," Rose said, sniffing. Lily's high spirits often irritated the more serious Rose.
"Hey, 'Mione, Percy," Harry greeted his siblings-in-law. "Where's Ron?"
"He's around somewhere," Hermione said. "He went to show Hugo the train."
"Daddy, can I go on the train too?" Lily begged. "Please? Please?"
"Sure, sweetie, sure, just give me a minute to say hello to Tori and Teddy," Harry said, and suited action to words. After a manly handshake, he asked Teddy, "Has James found you yet? He went tearing off with Louis as soon as we got here and I haven't seen him since."
"Nope," Teddy said. "I'll find him before the train leaves, don't worry."
"I can't believe you're not getting on that train," Harry said disgustedly. "I feel so old. Tori, it's your job to keep everyone in line now that Teddy's graduated."
"Don't lose any sleep over it," Ginny advised. "Merlin knows it's an impossible task. I'd appreciate it if you keep anyone from getting expelled, though."
"I'll do my best," Victoire said with a smile.
They finished their good-byes and wandered off a little ways. The train was almost ready to leave. Victoire looked nervously around at all the people. There were quite a lot of them. Well, that was the idea, wasn't it, she told herself. She saw that Teddy, too, looked nervous. Life was about to get a lot crazier.
"Are you ready?" Teddy asked softly, taking her hand.
Victoire took a deep breath. "Absolutely."
She caught her breath as Teddy leaned down to kiss her softly on the lips. Feeling him start to pull away, she put a hand behind his head and kissed him more deeply. He stiffened for a moment and then relaxed, slipping his arms around her waist in a wonderfully familiar embrace. She wasn't going to see him for a few weeks, at least. She wanted it to be memorable—memorable for everyone watching, too.
"Teddy?"
"Victoire?"
"What are you doing?" James demanded.
The young couple broke apart and turned to see James, Harry's son, and Louis, Victoire's brother, gaping at them. Victoire laughed at the horror-struck expressions on their faces and then turned back to Teddy, who grinned sheepishly.
"I'm just seeing your cousin off," he said. "Nothing wrong with that, is there?"
James and Louis stared for a moment, mouths opening and closing like fishes, and then dashed off, no doubt to tell everyone what they had witnessed. Victoire hugged Teddy tightly, burying her face in his shoulder. She could already here the excited buzz of conversations and saw a few cameras flash out of the corner of her eye.
"I wish you were coming too," she murmured.
"I know, love," he replied, stroking her hair. "But I'll write and I'll come visit the first chance I get. I promise."
"Mmf," she said into his shoulder. Heaving a sigh, she stepped away. "Well, bye, then."
"Bye, sweet." Teddy kissed her cheek and walked off to find James, who would, no doubt, require an explanation.
With a slightly heavy heart, Victoire turned and saw her sister's and her cousins' faces pressed against the glass, making kissing faces at her and grinning widely. Victoire laughed and went to join them. They dragged her into the compartment and attacked her for the details. They, along with Victoire's friend, Maxine Carrington, knew about her and Teddy but Victoire hadn't told them of her decision to make their relationship public knowledge.
"Witch Weekly is going to be all over you," Roxanne said, looking flabbergasted.
"Well, not really," Victoire said a little guiltily. "Reporters aren't allowed at school. Teddy's going to get the worst of it."
Just then the compartment door slid open and Maxine burst in, looking panicked.
"Tori, there you are! Everyone's talking--"
"I know," Victoire said, smiling at Maxine's panic. Her friend had a tendency to be slightly over dramatic. "Sit down and I'll explain."
As soon as she had finished, the door slid open again. Thinking it was someone else come to demand explanations, Victoire groaned. But it was only Rose and Albus. They stood awkwardly in the doorway, looking nervously at Maxine, whom they had only met a handful of times.
"Tori, can we sit with you?" Rose asked.
"Sure," Victoire said. "But don't you guys want to sit with other first years?"
"Not really," Albus muttered, looking down. Albus was notoriously timid.
"All the other compartments are taken, anyway," Rose said. Though she was much more outgoing than Albus, she didn't look too disappointed by this, either.
"Why don't you take another look?" Victoire suggested. "It's important for you to meet other first years on the train. They could turn out to be your best friends."
"But--"
"Go on," she urged them, shooing them out of the compartment. "Just give it another try and if you still can't find a compartment you can come sit with us. We're going to have to head up to the front with the other Prefects soon, anyway."
Rose and Albus wandered off, looking slightly dubious, and Victoire returned to her seat.
"It's good that you made them look somewhere else," Maxine said.
"Why's that?" Roxanne asked, bristling slightly. "You're too cool for eleven year olds?"
"It's not that," Maxine replied. "I just think it'll be good for them to make some friends outside the family. You guys are kind of...clannish."
"So what if we're close?" Dominique sniffed. "Weaselys stick together."
"Of course we're close," Victoire said soothingly. "There's nothing wrong with that. And there's nothing wrong with learning how to make new friends, either."
They chatted for a few minutes until there was a knock on the compartment door. Wondering why Rose and Albus didn't just come in, Victoire went to open it and was surprised to see a small, mousy looking boy with pale hair looking at the floor. He looked like he was resisting the urge to run away.
"May I please sit in your compartment?" he asked humbly. "All the others are full."
"Er—alright," she said, taken aback.
She stepped aside to let him in and he sat in the first chair he came to, looking down at his hands. She looked at the others, unsure of what to do. Dominique shrugged, looking nonplussed. Victoire cleared her throat and opened her mouth to ask his name but was interrupted by the door sliding open once more.
"We told you Tori--they were all full," Albus complained as he and Rose entered the compartment. Then he noticed the other boy sitting in the compartment and gave Victoire an accusing look as if to say, You didn't make him go bothering everyone else again.
"You're Scorpius Malfoy," Rose said in her usual forthright manner.
Victoire looked him in surprise. This was the son of Uncle Harry's arch-nemesis? He was so...tiny. The boy mumbled something, looking extremely miserable.
"What's that?" Rose asked. "I can't hear you."
"I'm called Perry," he said, still looking down. "I can leave if you want. I didn't realize who you were."
Rose ignored his offer and said instead, "Why are you called Perry? That doesn't sound anything like Scorpius."
"It's for my middle name—Hyperion," Perry explained, blushing. "Scorpius is a stupid name."
"It is," Rose agreed. "So's Hyperion, come to that. Perry's a little better."
"Rose!" Victoire said warningly, but was holding back a laugh.
"I'm sorry, I'll go," Perry said, getting up.
"Nonsense," Victoire said firmly. "Where would you go? Rose didn't mean to be rude, did you Rose?"
Rose looked shocked. "Of course not! You have to admit, Scorpius is a pretty stupid---"
"Anyway," Victoire said loudly. "We're all very pleased to meet you and we'd be glad to have you in our compartment."
"But you're Harry Potter's son," Perry said, shooting a glance at Albus.
"Er—so?" Albus said, looking lost. He didn't get out much and was unaccustomed to the attention his father's name attracted.
"I'm—I'm a Malfoy," Perry mumbled.
"Oh." Albus said, realization dawning. "Oh—right. Well...I don't mind. I don't think my father would mind, either. Would yours?"
"I dunno," Perry admitted. "Maybe. But I don't."
"My father said I was to stay away from you and beat you in all our exams," Rose declared, then added, "He was joking, though. We're going to be friends."
"Okay," Perry said, looking a little dazed.
"I'm Albus, by the way," Albus said shyly. "You can call me Al, though—I don't like my name either."
Albus smiled timidly and the other boy smiled shyly back. Rose tapped her foot impatiently.
"I'm Rose Weasely," she said. "And that's our cousin Tori—her real name's Victoire—and that's her sister Dominique and that's our other cousin Roxanne and that's Maxine. She's not a Weasely."
"Rose," Victoire hissed, but Maxine just rolled her eyes.
"Come on," Maxine said, getting up. "We should probably head up to the front, anyway."
"And face Miserable Malorie," Roxanne groaned as they exited the compartment. "I can't believe she's Head Girl. Nosy bint."
"She's such a know-it-all," Dominique added.
"And a tattle-tale," Roxanne returned.
"And a control freak."
"And a martyr."
"And she's right there," Victoire broke in, pointing. Malorie was stalking down the corridor toward them, scowling.
"So what?" Dominique said rudely. "Let it not be said we talk about people behind their backs."
"Where have you four been?" Malorie demanded. "The meeting is starting in three minutes!"
"And the Prefect's compartment is about five feet away," Maxine said. "Relax, Malorie."
"As Head Girl, it's my duty to--"
"Right now it's your duty to get out of our way," Dominique said. "You wouldn't want us to be late, would you?"
Victoire smirked at the angry impotence written all over Malorie's face and led the girls past her.
"You all think you're so special," Malorie snapped at their backs. "Strutting around like you own the place, breaking rules left and right, favoring your house and your family—it's nepotism, I tell you!"
"Malorie, do ever actually listen to what comes out of your mouth?" Roxanne asked, wrinkling her nose in distaste.
"I'm going to catch you red handed this year," Malorie hissed, positively shaking with rage. "I'm going to have you and all of your miserable cousins expelled."
"Come on, ladies," Victoire said, turning away. "She's raving again."
"I don't understand," Maxine said as they walked away.
"Understand what?"
"Why she thinks you guys are behind everything that happens at school," Maxine clarified. "I mean, how could any of you have flooded the Slytherin common room? You're all Gryffindors—you can't even get into the Slytherin common room."
"She's just bitter that I was offered Head Girl and turned it down," Victoire said dismissively, but felt a pang of guilt at lying to her friend. She and her cousins had flooded the Slytherin common room.
The girls joined the other Prefects and took their seats, still chatting. This meeting was the same every year. Professor McGonnagal talked at them, Head Boy and Girl talked at them, then newbie fifth year Prefects asked stupid questions in an ill-fated attempt to make themselves look responsible and thorough, then they ate some biscuits and they left. This meeting was differed in only one respect: Malorie was Head Girl, therefore that particular stage of the meeting was twice as long as it usually was and was directed mostly at the Weaselys.
"Well that was refreshing," Roxanne remarked as they exited the compartment.
"Positively inspiring. I suddenly feel myself filled with the desire to—what was it? Uplift and uphold?" Dominique said, and snickered. "What a load of tripe. Why in the world did they pick her for Head Girl, anyway?"
Maxine smirked. "I heard her grandmother pulled some strings. She used to teach at Hogwarts—Arithmancy, or something."
"Figures," was Dominique's reply.
"I just can't stand her and her cleverer-than-thou airs," Roxanne spat vehemently. "I know of at least three girls in her year—not including Tori—that get better marks than she does."
"That is the infuriating part," Dominique agreed. "I mean, Aunt Hermione is a know-it-all, but--"
"But Aunt Hermione actually does know it all," Victoire finished for her. "Very true. But cool it for a while, okay? You don't want a teacher to hear you."
"Fine, but Tori, we have to--"
Victoire cut her sister off with a hard look. While she agreed with Dominique's aborted sentiment—that Malorie needed to taken down a notch—that wasn't the sort of conversation to have in front of Maxine. It would have to wait until after the feast, when all the Weaselys were together. Victoire felt a burst of excitement as she thought of Rose and Albus. They had no idea what it meant to be a Weasely at Hogwarts. But they would soon find out. Victoire thought of her first year at Hogwarts with a pang—it had just been her and Teddy, then. Just two children with more curiosity and talent than they knew what to do with. And now...Victoire grinned. Albus and Rose would be absolutely floored.