While the rest of Vic's family was inside the Burrow celebrating the last day of summer, Vic found herself outside on the porch. As much as she loved them all and spending time with them, they were ridiculously loud, and she'd needed a break.
Especially because the last time she'd seen most of them had been at the Quidditch World Cup, which hadn't ended well for her.
Still, she shook her head to stop herself from going down that train of thought. It was something that she'd thought about altogether way too much in the past month, and she was moving on.
Of course, just as she thought that, she was interrupted by a 'crack' filling the air, and then her blue-haired problem was standing right in front of her, with a sheepish look on his face and his new Auror In Training robes billowing out behind him.
"Wotcher Vic," he greeted her, trying to cover up his unease with his usual charming smile.
"Teddy," she replied coolly, biting her lip to keep herself from saying anything else and looking away, hoping that he'd just walk past her and into the house and leave it at that.
"It's… good to see you," he said instead, shifting from one foot to the other and looking as nervous as ever, which she was fine with.
"Right," she said, growing angrier by the second, and putting that emotion into her next words. "It's good to see you too."
After that he didn't say anything for a long moment, before he finally broke the heavy silence. "Look Vic… I didn't mean to-"
"To kiss me. I know," she interrupted him, a bitter smile gracing her face as she stood up and crossed her arms, ready to hash out the same argument they'd had the last time they saw each other. "I know I'm too young and too immature and whatever else you're telling yourself. It's fine, Teddy. I don't care anymore."
He cast his eyes down, and when he looked back up they were a stormy grey. "Actually, I was just going to say that I didn't mean to startle you."
She felt her cheeks grow pink at that, and this time she looked down. When she looked back up, he was staring at her with a wistful look on his face that was entirely unfair. "Whatever, Teddy," she muttered, suddenly feeling tired of fighting.
He seemed to accept that but, just before he looked ready to leave, he stopped himself. "And Vic; I never called you immature."
She couldn't help but laugh at that, though the sound was lacking humor entirely. "But my dad did, and you agreed with him, and now here we are…" she trailed off, punctuating the words with a shrug and a pair of raised eyebrows.
Teddy sighed at that, looking just as tired as she felt. "Vic, you know I-"
"Look," she interrupted him again, knowing what he was going to say and not having the patience to listen to it, "It really is fine. It was one kiss that the paper, and my father, blew out of proportion. It wasn't my first, and it won't be my last. It doesn't matter. I'm over it."
She was more than relieved when he accepted her lies and nodded his head, running a hand through his hair and sending her one last, meaningful look, before he headed inside.
/
Twenty minutes later, when Aunt Ginny wandered outside and found her with tears rolling down her face, she insisted that she was just tired. Of course, the older witch didn't believe her.
"I'm not saying that violence is the answer but you do remember the bat-boogey hex, correct?"
Vic laughed abruptly at that, before leaning on the shoulder that her aunt offered her. "Turns out, he's gotten quite good at dodging that one."
"Still love," Ginny said, "It gets easier. They don't get any smarter, but it does get easier. And if that one's anything like his father, he'll come to his senses eventually."
Vic didn't say anything to that, and she ignored the last part entirely. She was done waiting for Teddy Lupin to come to his senses, though she did believe that the first piece of advice had been correct. For instance, dealing with Teddy Lupin's rejection would be infinitely easier to deal with when she was finally at Hogwarts, and as far away from him as possible.
AN- SO this is my first Harry Potter fic of any kind, so I guess we'll see how it goes! Please, let me know what you think :)
