August 2009, Teddy 11, Victoire 9

"Are you excited?"

"I guess."

"What do you mean 'I guess?' It's Hogwarts for crying out loud!"

"I'm a little nervous."

"Why?"

"Well ... you won't be there, for one thing."

Teddy and Victoire sat side by side against the wall separating the girls' room from the boys' at the Burrow. At present, it was 12:15 in the morning, but they'd been known to stay up later than this, and neither cared about the time.

Victoire glanced over at him, surprised that he didn't seem embarrassed by the confession. This made her happy - she liked when he acted like he needed her. She hoped he still would act like that if (when, she corrected herself) they got married. Victoire had always planned to marry Teddy.

"I'll write to you," she said, rather than voicing her true thoughts. She had decided to wait to spring her talk of love and wedding plans on him until later, when he wasn't so nervous. Besides, she feared that Teddy was still in his "girls are gross" phase, and she didn't want to freak him out.

"I know," he sighed, and patted her hand. She grinned, knowing that the hand pat had to be a sign of something.

When, later that month, she got her first letter from Teddy, she tore it open with a mixture of eager anticipation and trepidation. What if he didn't need her anymore now that he had Hogwarts?

Dear Vic,

Hogwarts is great. Well, not really the people though. I don't really have friends here. I miss you and everyone else like Harry especially. I can't wait until you come. There are some good things though. I love Professor Longbottom. There are some cute girls here too (to?) but I can't talk too (to?) them because your the only girl I know how too (to?) talk too (to?)

You heard I was in Hufflepuff I bet since Uncle Ron probably found out from Harry and told you as fast as he could. I'm happy because it's like my grandpa. I think you would be in Gryffindor. Write back.

-Teddy Lupin

Victoire gaped in horror at the letter, barely processing anything but the line about other girls. Oh no. She could never tell him that she fancied him now! Pulling a roll of parchment and quill pen and ink towards her, she wrote,

Dear Teddy,

Just be yourself like Aunt Ginny says and probably girls will like you. Congratulations on Hufflepuff.

-Victoire Weasley.

Then she put her head down on her arms and cried.

September 2011, Teddy 13, Victoire 11

"This is Tim. He came all the way from America because he heard about how Hogwarts is by far the best school. This is Eddie - people call us Tim, Teddy and Eddie and everyone gets a good laugh, but it gets old after awhile."

Victoire nodded in what she hoped was a cool, calm, collected type of way as he continued,

"Guys, this is Vicky, my best friend, but no one except me can call her that or she'll get mad. Her name to you is Victoire."

Tim and Eddie both shook her hand enthusiastically.

"M'lady!" Eddie exclaimed dramatically.

"Fair Maiden!" Tim cried with a funny accent, and kissed the back of her hand.

Victoire's eyes were wide – she had no idea how to respond.

"Ok, ok guys, beat it! You're freaking her out!" Teddy rolled his eyes and pushed until he and Victoire were alone in the compartment.

"Sorry about them. They grow on you."

"They're brilliant," Victoire beamed back. And male, she added as an afterthought, relieved that Teddy wasn't spending all of his free time cavorting with beautiful young witches.

"I'm glad you think so. We'll probably hang out with them a lot. They're pretty much my only real friends besides you."

She chuckled, knowing that he wasn't asking for pity.

"They seem like a good sort."

"They are. You're going to love Hogwarts, Vicky."

"I already do."

Teddy patted her knee and her stomach jumped. It was a sign. She just knew it.

December 2013, Teddy 15, Victoire 13

"Hogsmeade's dates are up, Vicky! And you're a third year! The first one is this weekend. You are going to love it."

Victoire glanced up from the essay on werewolf sleeping habits she'd been writing and flushed prettily. "Erm … right well, you see, I've already agreed to go with someone else."

Teddy frowned, puzzled. "Some bird from Gryffindor? I know you love your house, Vic, but we're you're best mates! And it's your first time …"

"It's a he. And he's not from Gryffindor."

Teddy's eyes widened, and he coughed violently, hitting his sternum.

"Come again?" he choked, regaining composure.

Victoire was turning a deeper pink.

"A boy asked me to Hogsmeade."

Teddy's face was coloring now too.

"Who?"

"Elton Jenkins?"

"From Ravenclaw?"

"Yes." Victoire was battling a feeling of simultaneous triumph, annoyance and confusion.

"He's such a prat!"

Annoyance was winning out.

"Why would you say that?" she countered hotly. "He is polite, smart, kind and handsome!"

"Oh really? I can look like whoever I want!"

"What do you have to do with it?"

"Well if it was only important to spend your Hogsmeade weekend with someone handsome then why not just ask me to morph into a … a Weird Sister for the occasion?"

"Ew, what? They're so old now! And Ted, you're not making any sense. Besides, you look fine the way you are normally."

"Or maybe you don't like the blue hair!" he pressed, disregarding her completely. His hair went rapidly brunette.

"Merlin Teddy! Put it back to normal – what are you off about?"

"This is a library!"

Both parties jumped as Madame Pince waved her bony finger at them.

"We had just finished," Victoire said coolly, retrieved her books and swept out of the library. Teddy watched her go, gaping like a fish, wordlessly opening and closing his mouth.

Today, Teddy had realized three things.

First, it was never a good idea to make a complete fool out of himself. He had absolutely no idea what had possessed him.

Second, libraries were a rotten place to have an argument.

Third, Victoire was pretty. Really, order of Merlin first class level pretty. How he had never noticed before was beyond him, but he knew that the image of her swinging hips and swaying, shining sheet of strawberry blond hair wasn't going to leave him alone.

May 2015, Teddy 17, Victoire 16

"Hey Victoire, can we talk for a minute?"

Suspicious, Teddy watched as Victoire smiled at the boy from her house, stood up from the Gryffindor table and made her way together with him out the doors.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Teddy followed them. All he knew about the boy was that Victoire had gone on a couple dates with him. Then again, who hadn't she gone on at least a couple dates with?

You, his thoughts sneered, but he brushed that off. He had to find Victoire and the prick – Roger, he was fairly certain.

There they were, moving to stand by a pillar in the entrance hall.

"I had a really good time last night," the git was telling her. She smiled back – Teddy was pleased to see that it didn't meet her eyes - and said that she had too.

"And I was wondering if you'd like to be my girlfriend."

Teddy's knuckles snapped into fists, but Victoire's reaction slightly cheered him up. Her face fell into a mask of sympathy that he knew she'd practiced well.

"Oh, you know Roger … I'm not sure."

Roger looked crushed. "Really? Well … yeah, you know, that's all right. Do you need some time?"

"Oh … no, that's all right."

Teddy watched the poor bloke with a mixture of extreme pity and glee.

"Well … that's fine then. It was fun."

"It's really not you –"

"It's you?" Roger interrupted, and his tone was slightly scathing.

"No … it's not even me."

Roger's face cleared as reality dawned on him – the exact moment that reality was dawning on Teddy.

"Oh … so there's another guy?"

Victoire nodded. Transfixed, Teddy leaned forward. He knew that rejections were common for her, but he'd never been present for one and had certainly never heard of this other boy. Who was Victoire in love with?

"Ah … well how long has that been going on? Were you … you know … when we were…?"

Teddy cursed the boy for trailing off. While they were what? Snogging? Worse?

"Well, it's sort of been since forever. I mean, I don't think he feels the same way, so I still go on dates. I always want to give things a shot, but it wouldn't be fair to you or me if … well you know, there was someone else."

Since forever? How had Teddy never known about this secret crush? And the blighter must be barking! How could he not feel the same about Victoire for Merlin's sake!

"Oh … well, who's the guy? How long have you known him?"

Teddy could see that Roger's curiosity was bothering her, but he was grateful that the boy kept pushing. He was asking all the questions Teddy was dying to know the answers of.

"Oh … well, I don't think you know him anyway, and I'd rather not say his name, but I've actually known him since I was born."

Teddy's jaw dropped. Was Victoire in love with one of her cousins? Who else had she known for her whole life? Was there anyone she wasn't actually related to –

Oh Merlin.

For the first time, hope like Teddy had never known sprung up in his chest.

"Hm … well are you guys good friends?" Roger was still prodding. Teddy leaned forward instinctively, determined not to miss a word.

"Best. He's my best friend."

And that was it. Something snapped in Teddy's brain. Moving out from the pillar he had been hiding behind, he strode over to Victoire who was opening her mouth, he knew, to question him, but here was no time for that.

Grabbing her face in a way he'd dreamed of so many times (it was as soft as he'd imagined), he kissed her on the spot.

The resulting squeal of protest died in her throat as her hands fisted in the folds of his shirt at his chest, yanking him closer. He was kissing her hard, demanding, and she was kissing back with no reservations, and Teddy had been wrong – his dreams could never compare to this.

When they drew back, panting, Teddy drunk in her just-snogged expression. Her cheeks were glowing, her perfect hair was mussed and, best of all, this time her smile reached her eyes – those paralyzing blue eyes – a smile that was, and had always been, just for Teddy.

"His name is Teddy Lupin," Victoire murmured breathlessly, and this time she addressed Roger.

Teddy felt a rush of guilt rapidly popping the bubble of glowing happiness that he'd been submerged in.

"Erm … right, sorry mate," he muttered weakly.

"She deserves the one she wants," Roger conceded graciously, and Teddy took back all of the ... hem, less than flattering things he'd thought about him.

"Take care of her. Thanks for the dates, Victoire."

Still completely in control of the situation as always, Victoire beamed at him. "Thank you Roger. You're a great guy. Most girls here would fall all over themselves for someone like you. Had circumstances been different –"

Roger held up a hand, shaking his head. "No, that's all right, you don't have to … erm, I'll just go."

Then Roger was gone, and they were alone.

"It's always been you too," Teddy whispered now, staring into her face. Her smile disappeared, but somehow she didn't look any less happy. Her eyes were shining as he gently tugged her closer, gripping her waist.

"Then how has it taken this bloody long to get here?" she asked huskily, and, groaning, he pulled her lips to his again.

September 2017, Teddy 19, Victoire 17

"I can't believe you get to come with me this year." Victoire was holding onto her boyfriend of just over a year, waiting for the moment when she would board the Hogwarts Express for her seventh and final year.

"That's definitely a perk to being the Assistant Gamekeeper."

"The best perk, I'm sure."

"Nah … the best perk is Hagrid's treacle fudge."

Victoire made a face. Teddy was the only one she knew who could stand that fudge – she suspected that it was a large part of why Hagrid was such an avid fan of Teddy's.

"You can take his treacle fudge to Hogsmeade, then," Victoire smirked, and Teddy rolled his eyes.

"Nooo … we'd never work out."

"Too sticky?"

"Not you."

Victoire laughed at his corny attempt at an apology. "Aww Ted … I hope you don't mind that I'm actually seeing someone else … the school's honey glazed pot roast."

"I knew there was something going on between you!"

"Yeah well …."

"Can we still be friends?"

"…. With benefits?"

"Some…"

"Like…?" They were grinning like Cheshire cats as Teddy leaned in close enough to touch her nose with his own.

"I'll let you pet the unicorns," he told her, and her resulting laugh blew his hair (currently a bright, flaming red) around.

"See you at Hogwarts," she smiled coyly, and began pulling away. However, Teddy grabbed her hand and tugged, spinning her back to his face, kissing her softly. Grinning against his lips, she let herself get lost in it, melting into his wonderful Teddy essence.

"Teddy? Victoire?"

Startled, they broke apart to find a horrified James Potter gaping at them in open revulsion.

"Were you just kissing?"

"No," Teddy replied jovially. "I was inspecting her nose. Looks good, Vic."

James shook his head, aghast, and ran away.

"Wow … over a year of no one – not Harry or my parents or sibling or your grandma or anyone finding out and the thirteen-year-old cousin gives us away," Victoire chuckled.

"Well, it was a good cover. When your dad kills me, mind appearing at the funeral?"

Victoire leaned in, just grazing his lips with hers. "I'll even deliver the eulogy if you'd like," she murmured, and with a low growl, he closed the gap between their mouths.