"Weasley. Get your head out of your arse and find the damn snitch" Gwenog Jones voice boomed from the pitch bellow as Victoire Weasley circled her for what may have actually been the millionth time. Her mind was everywhere other than the pitch. Looking for the snitch was not her main focus. Her main focus ironically was the game she had coming up in 20 short hours. The game against the Chudley Cannons.
Teddy Lupin started working for them after finishing his healer training at Saint Cawthons, the wizarding hospital in a town called Boston in the United States. He moved back to London and after the Cannons heard about his amazing healing skills, they offered him the head healer position on their team. Teddy had readily accepted being a huge Cannons fan thanks to uncle Ron, and an odd winning streak the team has had since the war. Victoire had not seen Teddy in months due to both of their grueling work schedules and living so far away from each other. Things between the two of them have been tense over the last few years.
The day Victoire was leaving:
"Vic come on its not going to be that bad" Teddy nudge her shoe with his and smiled at her.
"It will be. I promise it will. I hate being here without you. It's awful. I don't have any other friends at school. Just cousins." Vic whined
"What about all those boys who follow you around like lost ducklings." he asked
"Ha." she "They get a whiff of a me and fall apart. They want me for my charm not because they think I'm beautiful or smart."
Teddy scoffed.
"It's true" She said staring at him as her eyes filled up with tears. "I've never even been kissed because I can't trust those ignorant tossers. They think I'm just a slag with a big arse."
Teddy took her by the shoulder and pushed her gently into the wall. Before Vic knew what hit her, she was being snogged by Teddy. Her head was swimming, her knees were buckling, and she was about to be forced up for air when Teddy pulled away. Victoire couldn't think, all she saw was James Potter running away from them.
Teddy cleared his throat. "There. Now you've been properly kissed for the first time."
Victoire leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on Teddys cheek. He leaned his forehead on the top of her head and pulled her tightly to him. The trains whistle blew its last sharp blast signaling it was time to board. Without a word Victoire slipped from Teddys strong grasp and made her way to the train. After she boarded, she pulled down the window slat and blew one kiss to what most would presume was her entire family, but she knew it was just for Teddy Lupin.
After the train left, she sat in her cabin alone and cried. She was in love with Teddy and would be away for months. Things between them had heated up significantly in the past few years. They were best friends, and inseparable. They would lay together on the couch in the Hufflepuff common room and study together. Most people assumed they were a couple already but Vic knew the truth. They definingly were not a couple. No matter how much she tried she could not believe that Teddy actually cared for her in that way. On top of the fact she was in school, Teddy was leaving for the United to finish his healer training. When she had asked him why he wanted to go there he just shrugged and said "it's about a girl. I can't have her so I want to go somewhere I'm not contently reminded of her." That's when her heart broke. He was so in love with this girl two and a half years ago, now he's still so in love with her he continues to go over an actual ocean so he isn't reminded of her. Those fleeting moments of bliss she had just felt made her reality much, much worse.
For the next few weeks communications were very limited. Owl post was a bit more difficult when the letters had to travel over such a large stretch of the world. When Victoire did hear from Teddy, the letters were strained and not like him at all. When they saw each other over the first holiday home, they made eye contact and Teddy just turned red and walked away. That's when Victoire confirmed her friendship with Teddy was over. no more letters came after that. They would acknowledge each other at family get togethers but that was the extent of it. A lifelong friendship boiled down to nods and half smiles.
Present day:
Victoire put her head down closer to the broom and pushed herself faster against the wid. From the corner of her eye the spotted the snitch. She easily maneuvered her broom left and down sharply while she extended her arm and let her fingers wrap around the cold metal ball.
"Finally. For the love of Rowena Ravenclaw. What in the bloody hell was that?" Gwen shouted as Vic Landed on the grass.
"Save it Gwen. I'm just having a rough night." Vic spat and tossed the ball at her coach.
"This cannot happen tomorrow. Do you hear me?" Gwen said inching closer to Vic
"Obviously." Victoire said and walked off the pitch into the locker room. She tore off her robes in a vicious rage and stormed into the empty shower stall.
After a hot shower she apparated out of the locker room to the front door of her apartment. Taking out her wand she inserted her wand into the door, it clicked open and the smell of Chinese take-out hit her. Thank gods for having a good roommate.
Brooke had been a Slytherin in the same year as Victoire. They became friends when she found Victoire crying in the cabin of the train alone. That day they became instant best friends. They joined the Harpies together a month after graduation.
"Hey Brooke." Vic called into the kitchen.
"Hey Vic" her roommate called back.
"Why are you home so late? I know Gwen made you stay to finish but it couldn't have taken you that long."
"You would be wrong about that." Vic breathed out
"This isn't about Teddy is it?" Brooke asked.
"Of course, it is. I'm going to see him tomorrow" Vic whined.
"It's time to put on your big girl pants on and just go talk to him. He was in love with you. You're the girl he went over an ocean to stop being reminded of. You can't say that thought never crossed your mind." Brooke said
"The only reason it ever crossed my mind is because you put it there. I don't think he was in love with me. I think he just needed a way to shut me up and now he regrets using that tactic to do so. Maybe I was an awful kisser and he couldn't stand the idea of ever doing it again." Vic rambled out in one long breath as she collapsed onto the couch in the living room.
"You had a boyfriend last year. Didn't that help?" Brooke asked
"No, he was in idiot. Just wanted to shag a Weasley." Vic replied
"Oh yeah. Forgot about the last name fetish. Good thing you didn't shag him." Brooke laughed
"Nope instead I shagged the casher from your house that we graduated with after I saw him at a bar while I was pissed" Victoire laughed
"Teddy was always going to be my first" Vic said wistfully
Brooke just rolled her eyes and put of two plates of food on the table in front of them. Vic tucked into her food after not eating for hours she was famished, and exhausted both physically and mentally.
"Gwen about hexed me tonight I swear." Vic moaned out
"I doubt it was that bad"
Vic let out an unamused laugh. "It was worse. It hasn't taken me that long to catch a snitch since first year. No one would believe I'm a professional athlete if they would have seen that performance. Honestly it's like I was eleven years old never been on a pitch before."
Victoire shoved the last bite of food into her mouth and got up to put her dishes in the sink.
"I'm going to bed" She called out before retreating into her room.
Victoire fell onto her bed in her clothes. She slowly let the stress of the day carry her to sleep. Tomorrow was a new day.
"Vic wake up we are running late!" Brooke yelled from the door way as she hurled game day robes onto Vics sleeping body
"Shit" Vic said when she rolled over and looked at her enchanted alarm clock her grandpa Weasley had given everyone in the family last Christmas.
She stumbled out of bed while pulling on her robes, falling over broom cleaning kits and a pile of dirty clothes on the floor. She strapped on her shoes and brushed her teeth as she ran into the living room looking desperately for her broom. Brooke was standing near the fire place with both of their brooms and an annoyed look on her face. Vic ran back to the bathroom washed her face and sprinted back to the living room. Grabbing her broom and a handful of floo powder she stepped into the fire and yelled.
Vic stumbled from the floo into the stadium. Brooke followed closely behind. They walked into the dressing room together. Most of the other girls were in the locker room already. They were getting themselves hyped up and applying some water resistance charms to their robes.
Gwen stared at Victoire in a menacing way.
"I'm fine Gwen. I got myself together and got some sleep" Vic promised
"Better have" Gwen shot back at her with venom.
Vic gave Brooke an I told you it was that bad look.
"Alright ladies it's time to line up!" Gwens voice boomed moments later.
The seven starters and 3 backups lined up at the pitch entrance. One by one they mounted their brooms. The stadium shook with the cheers of the crowd. Each player shot out of the entrance like a missle at the sound of their name. Vics heart went to her throat for the first time since her first game at the sound of her name. No hiding the fact that she was here from Teddy.
The announcers voice boomed from above the pitch "Welcome Harpies and Cannons fans alike. We have a great match set for this evening. Let the games begin!"
Five minutes into the game and Teddy still hadn't taken his eyes off Victoire. She was amazing, and graceful. Perfect for a broom stick, perfect for him. She was obviously pushing herself harder today than usual. Her brow was furrowed in the adorable way it always was when she was concentrating too hard on something. He had started to notice how perfect it made her look in his sixth year. He had been admiring her doing charms homework when he noticed he was admiring her. It was like cold water being dumped over him head. He had never been a victim of her veela charm. Was this something else? OF course, it was he thought he didn't love her for her looks, he loved her for her mind and her pure affectionate and kind soul. Love? Did he just admit he loved Vic? He just realized he may have a crush and now all of a sudden, he loves her? How in merlin's beard did he miss this big revelation until now?
That look made him figure it out how he felt for her years ago and now it was ripping his heart apart in this very moment.
Without warning Vic sped up. Darting between other players on a track to what seemed to be an invisible target. Teddy watched as she scooted up farther and farther on her broom while she extended her hand out. The cannons chaser must have realized what was happening because her pulled him broom up next to her extending his reach also. Vic slammed into his side trying to push him away. Her fingers closed around the snitch at the same second the canons casher dropped down to the pitch to avoid a runaway bludger coming straight for them. Victoire was struck in the side of the head with the ball. She fell from her broom like a brick. The cheers at her catching the snitch and winning the game turned to cries of horror.
Brooke and two other team mates caught her mid fall. Teddy rushed onto the pitch where they were lowering her to the ground. He was the first one there with his medical bag, followed closely by the Harpies medical trainer.
"I'll handle this" the women said as she went for Vic
"You won't" Teddy replied
"I'm the harpies trainer and she is a harpies player." she looked taken aback.
Teddy was ignoring her as he packed plasters around her head while performing healing incantations. The heavy bleeding slowed as Bill and Fleur made their way onto the pitch.
"Teddy is my bebe going to be okay?" Fleur was crying heavily and being supported by an ashen faced Bill.
"She needs to go to St Mungos now. Ill apparate her to the correct wing and meet you there." Teddy said.
"Excuse me." Gwen interrupted
"What?" Teddy actually snarled letting his small amount of werewolf blood show vividly.
Gwen took a step back. She's my player and I will make that call.
"She's currently my patient so you can kindly fuck off." Teddy replied as he scooped up Victoire's body and apparated to the hospital wing.
"Healer Lupin what's wrong?" one of the nurses asked as Teddy started sprinting for the desk carrying Vics still unconscious body.
"High speed bludger to the head. I need swelling charms for her hear and two full bottles of antiseptic healing potion. stat" he yelled as he placed Vic on a cot in an empty room. He poured two bottles of the strong-smelling purple liquid onto her head wound. It smoked and began healing on its own.
Fleur and Bill came through the door while Teddy washed the last of the blood from his hands.
"She's going to be fine. May have a nasty headache when she wakes up but all in all she's going to be okay." Teddy said
Fleur ran and wrapped her arms around him "I knew you would save my petite fille." Fleur cried into him
"I would do anything to save Victoire" Teddy replied.