disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter — the pleasure is all J.K. Rowling's.
dedication: To winter. I love winter. And Christmas. Cheers!
note: I feel like a jerk for not being consistent. My sincere apologies — I could only hope that you would all forgive me. :)
…
It was time.
With one final glance at the mirror, Teddy stuck his hand in his pocket to secure the velvet box; he was definitely not backing out of this.
He snapped, and faintly he heard the sound reverberate around his plain apartment before he was whisked away by the familiar tug of nausea in his stomach.
He didn't think he would ever get used to Apparation.
He landed on shaky legs in the Burrow's backyard. One of his hands shot out, feeling blindly for something stable, while the other firmly gripped the small box.
"Shit," muttered Teddy, trying to regain his bearings. Apparation was never kind to him, but to be let off with nothing but a headache was something of a blessing — at least he didn't Splinch himself.
He dusted himself off and fixed his tie, his eyes focused on the Burrow. He inhaled deeply, slowly, and then exhaled —
And then his feet were moving.
He made it to the front door with easy, long strides, and with a quiet Alohomora the front door swung open.
It wasn't as crowded as he had thought.
He could hear bustling in the kitchen and loud guffaws from the dining room table, but his attention was drawn to the gorgeous blonde curled up on the loveseat.
His breath promptly hitched in his throat.
She'd been crying; her eyes were red-rimmed and bloodshot, and when she closed her eyes a moment longer than necessary, he could have sworn he saw a tear. Her long hair was coiled into a high bun atop her head, but she kept tugging on the strands that got loose. She was clad in plaid pajama pants and —
She was wearing his sweatshirt.
Oh, Victoire. She always had a way of charming him without even speaking.
It had been a week — one week exactly — but the memory of the tears rushing past her blotchy, red cheeks and the inexplicable hurt on her face was a nightmare that haunted him until he was grey and sallow and upset.
But he reminded himself that this was part of a plan — a plan that would hopefully, hopefully work out well in the end.
He could only hope for the best.
He cleared his throat quietly and said, "Victoire."
And all eyes were on him, including her shiny, cerulean ones.
He took purposeful strides before he was directly in front of the leather loveseat. Victoire refused to meet his eyes, but he stuck his hand out and whispered, "Take my hand."
It almost melted his insides, knowing that even after he basically broke her heart, she still trusted him. So she took his hand and he brought her to her feet.
He knelt down, staring directly into her eyes — the eyes he'd fallen in love with the moment he met her — and the words on the tip of his tongue died.
Speechless. He was speechless.
And that scared him.
"Teddy?" whispered Victoire, her eyebrows furrowing.
"I memorized what I was going to say to you," Teddy began shakily. "I had this whole speech mapped out. It was three pages long with many revisions and edits, but it was going to be amazing.
I was going to start out by telling the story of how we met. How our eyes met, how we smiled, and how we were so, so young.
And I was going to tell of our adventures at Hogwarts — pulling pranks on Filch, going to Hogsmeade — and perhaps draw a few chuckles.
And I was going to conclude with how we got together — it was going to be this perfect little story of romance and love and those clichés that amuse you so much.
But seeing you here now… Everything I had planned just sort of turned to mush in my brain, so I'll try to do this without losing my nerve."
Victoire pursed her lips slightly. Teddy could hear his Uncle Harry chuckling somewhere in the background.
"Victoire Weasley," said Teddy, "I love you. It's as simple as that. I love you, Vic, and I cannot imagine a life without you. We have been through everything together. You are my best friend and confidante, Victoire, and I'd like to ask you now — will you marry me?"
Victoire's eyes were watering.
Teddy pouted. "Shit. I am bollocks at proposals. Don't cry, Victoire —"
"Yes!" shrieked Victoire, pouncing on Teddy.
There was a flurry of applause, hoots, and cat-calls as Teddy slid the ring on Victoire's finger and kissed her softly, grinning against her lips.
"Hold on a moment," cut in Lily, her bright red eyebrows drawn. "If Teddy's real intention was to propose to Victoire, then why did he break up with her last week?"
"Easy," declared Rose, shutting her book. "Victoire wanted an unexpected, completely crazy, out-of-the-blue proposal. Teddy gave her one."
…
footnote: It feels so good to write again. This is kind of based after that one Gossip Girl episode. I regret nothing. :) R&R?
footnote1: Updates are going to be erratic again. In the midst of packing and moving boxes we're going to be quite busy. And our Internet won't be on until after Christmas, so let me just say HAPPY CHRISTMAS to all of you! Thank you for all of your reviews and support! I am so blessed to have you guys.