2009
"Hey Harry, I'm going to take Mickey for a walk." 12 year old Teddy told his godfather.
"Alright just be back before Ginny and the kids you know she doesn't want you out with that cold." Harry said as he sat on the couch watching the news on their muggle TV set.
"Yeah sure, and you're the one supposed to be keeping me in bed. Plus I could stay out till nine before she came home from Christmas shopping with those beggars."
"Hey you're talking about my kids there."
"I know, you spoil us too much Harry."
"I know, go for your walk and be back in an hour, Kay?"
"S'fine." Teddy grabbed the leash and Mickey came running. Mickey was a mix between a Rottwiler and a Malamute, but the best dog in the world. Teddy and Mickey made their way to the park about a block from the Potters large house in an almost entirely wizarding community. Being Head Arour had financial benefits so he and Ginny picked their favorite house in a secluded part of the neighborhood. When they got to the park Teddy let Mickey off the leash and let him run for a while. He started to roll around and barked at a mound of snow. Only when he heard a girlish scream did Teddy run to the dog. When Teddy got to the mound he saw Mickey licking a little girls face.
"Stop it doggy. I don't want your spit on me." Teddy pulled Mickey away and looked at the little girl. She looked to be around James' age with curly jet black hair, her skin had a blue tinge to it and her clothes were soaked through. Her eyes were so bright blue you could mistake them for the summer sky. When she saw Teddy she stood up and took several steps back.
"I'm sorry Mr. I didn't mean to." she looked down at her feet bashfully.
"Sorry for what?" Teddy asked incredulously
"For playing with your doggy." She shuffled her feet around still not looking at him.
"It's alright Mickey tends to get bored if he only has the same people around as always. I'm Teddy by the way." Teddy stuck his hand out and the little girl looked at it then up at him before putting her small cold blue hand in his gloved one.
"I'm Grace Ares."
"Do you have two older siblings?" Teddy asked thinking of the pompous Slytherin twins in his year who were always trying to ruin the Gryffindors lives.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"Well you only ask that when you think you know the person, and no one likes my brother and sister."
"Do you?"
"I love my family, it's just they don't love me."
"I'm sure your family loves you." Grace looked right into his eyes.
"If they loved me they would have taken me to Rome instead of leaving me alone with the house elf."
"How old are you?"
"five."
"Why didn't your parents take you?"
"They think that I'm too different that I'm not Slytherin material and the only way to prove myself is if I get in Slytherin when I go to Hogwarts. They said they're trying to toughen me up."
"Do you want to be in Slytherin."
"No, only mean people are in Slytherin, but if I'm not there then my mummy and daddy won't love me." Grace started to tear up and shiver. Teddy knelt down in front of her and opened his arms, she took two steps forward and he hugged her as she tried not to cry.
"You know, if I were you, I wouldn't care what they thought of me. I'd just be me and tell them to suck it up. You are who you are and there's no changing that."
"Thanks Teddy." she mumbled into his shirt.
"Now why are you out here? You could die of hypothermia."
"I'm fine."
"No kid you're coming back with me."
"Why?"
"Because I don't think a five year old should be home alone, Christmas or not."
"Why do you care?"
"I'm a caring person."
"Are you lying to me, I've read stories where little children get kidnapped."
"I'm not kidnapping you I'm taking you somewhere safe and warm. Come on." Teddy stood and held his hand out for the little girl to take. She deliberated for a moment, but grabbed his hand none the less. The two walked back hand in hand with the dog leading the way. When they got to the Potter house Teddy opened the door and lead Mickey and Grace into the house.
"Hey Harry can you come here. I need your help." Teddy took off his coat and started helping Grace pry her soaked one off of her. Harry walked into the entry way and looked at the two of them.
"Teddy, who's this?"
"This is Grace Ares, she was left home alone while her family went to Rome." Harry walked up to Grace and bent to her level.
"Hello Grace, I'm Harry Potter, and I would be glad to take care of you for the time being." Grace opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something important, but changed her mind, shut it and looked down ashamed.
"What is it?"
"Well my mummy daddy and the rest of my family don't like you very much, they wouldn't even let me keep your Chocolate Frog card, they said you were a bad man. But you weren't in Slytherin so you can't be all bad." Harry looked at the blue girl then up to Teddy who mouthed later.
"Well it doesn't matter what they think now does it. So lets just work on getting you warmed up." Harry and Teddy took Grace up to Teddy's room and gave her a pair of shorts and a T-shirt that severely dwarfed her. Then they brought her downstairs and wrapped her in a blanket. Mickey sensing her lack of body heat jumped up on the couch next to her and she leaned into him as Teddy turned on Spongebob and Harry made Hot Chocolate. Grace, being a pureblood, and never seen nor heard of a TV and was engrossed even during the commercials. At seven o'clock Hermione and Ginny walked in with their last minute Christmas purchases and five children two of which were sleeping in their mothers arms. James, Albus and Rose walked over to the couch where Teddy was sitting with Grace asleep on his lap.
"Teddy who's she?" James asked poking the blanket
"This is Grace. She's going to be staying with us for a little while." Teddy replied trying not to wake her up. Ginny walked over to him.
"And why exactly is she staying here?"
"Could you ask Harry that. He knows the whole story, and I don't want her to wake up." Ginny looked to Hermione and the two of them walked with their sleeping two year olds to the kitchen where Harry was reading the paper.
"It's a bit late to be reading that love." Ginny walked up and kissed her husband.
"Yes but this morning you interrupted the article I was reading for shopping plans then Teddy brings this little girl home. Found her in the park alone, her parents left her for Rome and they'll be gone all break, lucky Teddy found her when he did, she was practically blue when they got here."
"That poor baby." Hermione looked out into the living room where Teddy was still sitting with the girl.
"Wait, are you telling me Teddy didn't have a cold." Ginny asked accusingly.
"Well if you look at it this way if we hadn't of fibbed then that little innocent girl would have died of hypothermia." Ginny looked broken between livid and concerned.
"I'm going to go check on her." Hermione, was always the helpful healer.
Grace was thoroughly checked by Hermione, and had a cold for the rest of the week, Teddy was thankful it was nothing life threatening, he had grown quite attached to her. James on the other hand became jealous of the family's curly haired guest. He hardly ever got to see Teddy anymore, so he tended to pick on Grace, but she didn't mind she would always tease right back. On Christmas day the Potters along with Teddy and Grace went to the Burrow, where they introduced her to the entire family. Teddy's Grandmother Andromeda smiled at her and hugged her and her grandson just happy nothing bad happened to either of them. Molly and Arthur took an immediate liking to her, and began to dote upon her like another grandchild. Then Grace met Bill and Fleur and their daughters Victoire and Dominique. Dominique was excited about another friend she could add to her list. Then she met Charlie, then Percy and Audrey and the their daughter Molly. Charlie wanted to teach her how to ride a broomstick believing that in a few years they will have a brigade of Quidditch stars somehow related to the Weasley's Percy and Audrey found her remotely intelligent. After them George Angelina and their children Freddy and Roxanne were all humored by her and James' antics and George said he would be her surrogate uncle. Then came Ron the last member she had to meet he looked to his wife and best friend then back to the little girl before nodding and saying. "Welcome to the family squirt."
Grace had never been happier in all her life to be part of the Potter-Weasley family. On New Years Day the Potter's Teddy and Grace were outside playing in the snow. Little Lily looked like an overstuffed pink marshmallow in her big coat. Grace and Albus started making a stumpy snowman when James came up and threw a snowball at his head. He fell face first into the snow and Grace threw a snowball right at James and hit him square in the face. Albus stood and tried to catch James for throwing snowballs at him Grace soon joined the fun, and Teddy was helping Lily off the ground where she had fallen like a turtle on her back. James, Grace and Albus began a three way war and the two boys were aiming for her but dropped their snowballs turned and ran to their parents who stood up on the porch. Grace turned around to see her mother and father leering down at her, she started backing up until she ran into Teddy who put his hands on her shoulders.
"Grace, come we are leaving now." Mr. Ares commanded. Harry stepped up to him.
"I need to have a word with you before you take her anywhere." Harry and Ginny walked right up to the prejudice couple.
"I'm not going to listen to a Half blood like you. So get your half breed demon away from the child so I can leave."
"Daddy that was mean."
"Be quiet Grace and get over here."
"Why?" Her parents looked flabbergasted, she never talked back.
"What?"
"Why should I go with you?"
"We are you parents, and you will do as you are told. You weren't even supposed to leave the house in the first place. Now get over here."
"Fine. Bye Teddy, thank you so much." Grace jumped at Teddy and hugged him with all her might.
"Bye girlie, I'll see you soon." Teddy put her down and she walked to Harry and Ginny.
"Thank you for letting me stay with you Mr. and Mrs. Potter."
"Oh love you don't have to call us that, you can call us Harry and Ginny." Ginny said bending down and giving the little girl a hug goodbye. Harry did the same.
"I can honestly say we'll miss you kid. I bet James and Freddy are going to miss you a lot, you three have a lot in common."
"Tell everyone I'll miss them." the two parted and both of Grace's parents grabbed an arm and walked her away from the Potters house.
When the Ares found out they lived near the Potters they moved to the other side of the country. And a broken hearted six year old wrote to the Potter-Weasley family religiously. They replied back religiously as well even if the letter only said that she was bored and felt alone. After a few years Teddy was the only one she kept corresponding with. He may be a teenager but he still found time for the little girl, she also served as a distraction from the drama of school, girls, and life altogether. But in 2014 when James and Freddy would start Hogwarts the family was reunited with the bundle of joy known as Grace Ares.