The next six weeks flew by for Victoire, packed with school, Quidditch, and her friends. Halloween culminated in a night spent on a walk with Jake after the banquet, then in the Head's common room with Teddy, Sam, Molly, Alexa, Monica, Liam, Nick, Chelsea, and Chelsea's best friend, a pretty and quiet girl named Annie. They all ended up falling asleep throughout the Head's dormitory, exhausted after a night of truth or dare and candy and butterbeer consumption. Victoire ended up in Teddy's bed that night, tucked safely in the arms of her best friend, who had refused to let her sleep anywhere but in a bed, while the others piled onto the floor and various couches, doing their best not to disturb Serenity, who was already in her bedroom. That night was a memory that kept Victoire going as the days started to grow shorter, colder, and darker. She'd never admit it to anyone for fear of being accused of being too sappy, but Teddy made her feel safe and secure.
The second-to-last Friday in November, however, Victoire traipsed into the Great Hall for lunch, hand-in-hand with Jake.
"So I was thinking that over the holidays, you could come by for dinner and meet my parents," he said, smiling at her, "What do you think?"
She grinned. "That sounds like a great idea. And you can come by and meet mine. But not on Christmas or New Year's, those are the annual Potter parties."
"What's that?" Jake asked as they sat down at the table. Victoire smiled.
"Well, Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry are the only ones with a house big enough to hold the entire Weasley clan as well as all of the family friends, it's ancient and it's been in Uncle Harry's family for years and years, they have this absolutely massive and beautiful ballroom," Victoire said, "So on Christmas and New Year's, we go there, and Grandmum cooks dinner with the help of Aunt Ginny, Auntie Angelina, and my mum, and we have a huge party with lots of dancing and everything. It's absolutely wonderful, and Teddy and Sam always come up with some fantastic way to end the year. Usually they reserve the important parts for me though."
"Just do me one favor," Jake said.
"Hmm?" Victoire asked, pouring herself some pumpkin juice.
"Don't kiss anyone at midnight on either day," he said, grinning.
Victoire laughed and filled her plate. "I'll try, but I can't make any promises. There's always some drunk cousin running around kissing everyone, I've learned it's almost completely unavoidable."
"Well, as long as you're not actively taking part," he said, squeezing her hand.
"Alright," Victoire said. She looked up and grinned as Alexa and Monica sat down across from them. "Hey girls."
"Hey Vic, Jake," Monica said, "So Vic, that Defense essay that's due next period…"
"Yeah, Uncle Harry is mental," Victoire said, "I had to owl Aunt Hermione and ask her for help, but I think your essay was fine. I'd say I'll talk to him, but I'd be lying if I said he didn't scare me a little bit."
"He's the nicest man ever," Alexa said.
"But he also killed the darkest wizard of all time," Victoire said, "There's a bit of an intimidation factor there, whether he bought me my first broom or not. The man can be downright scary when he wants to be."
Alexa shuddered. "It's easy to forget that when you're around him. He's so… Easygoing. Carefree."
"Well, his mission in life was fulfilled when he was seventeen," Victoire said, "He doesn't have to worry about much anymore, I can't blame him for enjoying himself. And Mon, you'll be fine."
"If you're sure," Monica said, "I just don't want to do badly on it, I need to do well on my O.W.L.s or my mum might never let me leave our house for fun ever again."
Victoire laughed. "Can't say I'm not worried about the same thing."
She felt someone tug on her ponytail and she looked up to see Teddy. She laughed as he sat down beside her. "Hey."
"Hey Tori," he said, stealing a chip off of her plate, "Hey, everyone else."
"Hi," Alexa said, grinning, "You're ridiculous, did you know that?"
"Knew it, proud of it," Teddy said, "So, Vic, ready for patrol tonight?"
"Definitely. I'm just glad it's a Friday," Victoire said, "This way I don't have to scramble to finish all of my work on time."
Jake's shoulders slumped. "Wait, you have to patrol tonight? What about our plans?"
Victoire winced. "Oops, sorry. I forgot about patrol schedule, and I can't really get out of it."
"Sorry mate, looks like I'm stealing your girlfriend for the night," Teddy said, grinning.
"You can steal me anytime," Victoire said, laughing, "We've been over this. Mates for life, remember?"
"I know," Teddy said, "I'm just having a bit of fun."
Victoire rolled her eyes. "You, sir, are completely and utterly mental."
"Well, considering who I spend the majority of my free time around, it had to rub off on me sometime," Teddy said, smiling cheekily at her.
She smacked him. "You are such an arse!"
He rubbed the spot where she'd hit him, grinning. "And yet you love me anyway."
She slung her arm around his shoulders. "That I do. Partners in crime, Mister Lupin."
"Always will be, Miss Weasley," Teddy said, putting his arm around her shoulders as well, "Terrors, we are."
Alexa snickered. "I'll say."
Monica laughed. "I don't think you two know the meaning of the word normal."
"We wouldn't be us if we did," Victoire said.
"Which means that we wouldn't be any fun," Teddy said, "You all know that you'd hate it if we were anything else. We make your miserable lives interesting."
"I wouldn't say our lives are miserable," Monica said, rolling her eyes, "Just… Normal, without you two around."
"Although, I don't know if you could call us normal," Alexa said, "I suppose it should be rephrased as: Our lives would be as normal as it gets for two teenage witches without you two around."
"That sounds a bit more accurate," Victoire said, laughing. At the feeling of Jake's hand on her arm, Victoire turned towards her boyfriend. "Yes, Jake?"
"Maybe, when you've finished eating, we could go for a walk, since we won't be able to spend time together tonight," Jake said.
Victoire winced. "Uh…"
"Vic!"
Victoire looked up to see Molly standing there, arms crossed.
"Yes, Molls?"
"Library?"
Victoire looked up at the clock on the wall. "We probably should start working, you're right." She turned to Jake. "Sorry, Molls and I have to finish a Transfiguration essay. Lexa, Mon, you two coming?"
"Five minutes," Monica said.
"I'll wait with Monica," Alexa said.
"Sounds good," Victoire said, standing. She ruffled Teddy's hair and kissed Jake's cheek. "See you tonight, you madman, and see you… Tomorrow, Jake."
She joined her cousin and they left the Great Hall together, walking slowly towards the library.
"Is everything alright?" Molly asked.
"What do you mean?" Victoire asked.
"Just… You and Jake seem strained," Molly said, "Well, you do, at least."
"Oh," Victoire said, "I… Well…"
Molly grabbed her arm and dragged her into the alcove of a window. "Vic, spill."
Victoire sighed. "I don't know… I just… It feels…"
"Wrong?" Molly asked.
Victoire shrugged. "I don't know. Jake's a perfectly nice boy, he's attentive, he's sweet, he's everything a girl would want in a boyfriend, but…"
"He's not right for you," Molly finished.
"I just feel like we're not going about this in the right way," Victoire said, "Relationships should be about giving and taking equally, compromising, communicating, and while we talk about our families and everything, I don't really feel like I know him all that well, and every time he asks me to do anything with him, something else comes up, be it Prefect duties or Quidditch practice or homework, and I can't abandon those things."
"So what are you going to do?" Molly asked, "It's not fair to him to lead him on like this."
"I don't know," Victoire said, sighing again, "I feel like if we really spent time together, it could really be a good relationship, something serious, but life always seems to get in the way of that. I want it to be something, I just…"
Molly nodded. "I know. And Vic, if I could offer some advice… You'll know it's the right person when you're willing to do whatever it takes to be with them, when everything else pales in comparison to the need to spend time with them. You'll know it's the right person when they touch you and you feel like you're on fire in the best way possible. Yes, you'll still be compromising and having to say no sometimes, but you'll want to make it work, you'll want to be with them, and you won't let something like Prefect duties or Quidditch practice stop you."
Victoire's eyes widened. "When did you get so wise?"
"You learn things in life," Molly said mysteriously.
"I guess," Victoire said, "Well, we'll see how things go, and if things start to fade over the holidays, as they're liable to do, I'll split up with him. If we don't, well…"
"And who's to say there might not be someone more suited to you in your future," Molly said, "You know, someone older, who you spend a lot of time with and know almost better than you know yourself…"
"I'm not dating Teddy!" Victoire said, "And you're one to talk!"
"What do you mean?" Molly asked, her eyes widening.
"Your massive crush on Aaron Atwood last year?" Victoire said.
"As if!" Molly said, "He was helping me with Charms."
"Sure he was," Victoire said, winking at her cousin, "But thanks for helping me with this, Molls. I appreciate it. It's good to know what I'm going to do."
Molly laughed. "At least, you have some better idea of what to do now." She linked arms with her cousin, grinning. "Now, Transfiguration."
They spent the rest of the lunch hour in the library, pouring over their Transfiguration textbooks with Alexa and Monica, before scrambling to Defense.
Harry was sitting on the edge of the desk, twirling his wand in his fingers. Half the class was already in the room, and he grinned when his nieces and their two best friends came rushing into the room.
"Easy, girls," Harry said, "You're not late."
"Yet," Victoire said, sitting down with Alexa.
He laughed. "I was late to class more times than I can count during my Hogwarts career. Don't worry about it too much."
"Yeah, but you're also Harry Potter," Molly said, sitting down with Monica at the table behind Victoire and Alexa's, "They couldn't have been too mean."
Harry rolled his eyes. "I got plenty of detentions during my time here. It's hardly abnormal. Even your Aunt Hermione had one or two, though I will say they were mostly my fault."
"Or Uncle Ron's," Molly said, snickering.
"Or Ron's, yes," Harry said, "But I was usually the magnet for trouble, and everyone knew it. That's why I had to learn so much for Defense."
"And because of you, every Weasley over the age of thirteen can produce a corporeal Patronus, as well as a Lupin and three Edwards'," Victoire said, "Not that there's that many of us at this point, but one day that will actually seem really impressive."
Harry chuckled. "Vic, I don't think there's every been a time when there weren't many Weasleys in any age group, but I get your point."
He started class soon after, and Victoire listened intently, noting down everything he said and carefully practicing the wrist movements under her desk. Harry caught her eye a few times and winked at her, well aware of the habits she'd picked up from days spent under the tutelage of Hermione. If there was one thing Victoire Weasley knew how to do, it was how to be an attentive and thoughtful student.
When dinner rolled around, Victoire nipped down to the kitchens and spent the hour in the common room, books and papers spread around her. Alexa joined her about halfway through the meal.
"You look happy," Victoire said, looking at her best friend.
Alexa grinned. "I just… Liam's great, that's all."
"What happened, Lexa?" Victoire asked, "Spill it."
"Nothing really," Alexa said, "We ate together and everything, and he walked me up here before he went off to meet his friends, and he may or may not have asked permission to kiss me before I came inside."
"And did you let him?" Victoire asked.
Alexa's smile widened. "Of course I did. I've been waiting for this moment for months."
"I'm really happy for you," Victoire said, smiling, "Liam's a really nice person, he's good for you, and it makes me happy to see you this happy. Although, I should probably warn him that if he hurts you, regardless of the fact that our families are friends, I will maim him. Fair warning to the both of you, actually."
"I don't think you'll need to worry about that," Alexa said, "After the last Hogsmeade visit, he gave me permission to slap him if he ever did anything stupid, so it's safe to say I'd be the one doing the maiming if he did anything wrong. I don't think he will though, he's so sweet. He always asks permission before he does anything, and we have such a good time together, I'm going to miss him over the summer."
"Invite him by for Quidditch then. Do you two actually talk, or do you just make eyes at each other all the time?" Victoire asked, chuckling.
Alexa chucked a pillow at her. "We spend most of our time together talking, for your information. I've learned so much about Quidditch techniques, and his family, and him. He wants to be an Auror, after he plays professionally for a while, and then he wants to retire and open his own Irish pub where people can come and listen to the matches after work."
"That's actually really cute," Victoire said, "I know his mum is a brilliant cook, I wonder if he picked up anything from her. I know I'd eat there if he did. Anyway, the Woods' always come to the Christmas and New Year's parties, so you'll see plenty of him over the holidays."
"I know, I can't wait," Alexa said, "It'll be wonderful to spend some time with him outside of school. What about you and Jake?"
"If all goes well, we'll be meeting each other's parents'," Victoire said, "I think."
"That's a big step," Alexa said, "Do you think you're ready?"
"Honestly?" Victoire asked, "I don't know."
Alexa nodded knowingly before pulling out a piece of parchment from her bag. "So, that Charms assignment…"
Victoire exhaled, grateful for the change in subject, before beginning to help her best friend.
She met up with Teddy just before nine o'clock, after being informed that their patrol should be one hour earlier than it had been at the start of the term. When she made it to the bottom of the stairs, it was to see him leaning up against the wall outside of the Great Hall, just as he had before their first patrol.
"Ready, best mate of mine?" Teddy asked, looking at her and smiling.
"Always am," Victoire said, grinning at him.
They started off through the corridors, peering into broom cupboards and classrooms.
"Sorry about stealing you away from Jake," Teddy said after a while.
Victoire shrugged. "It was my fault, really. I should have remembered that patrol isn't something that everyone does."
"What do you mean by that?" Teddy asked.
"Well," Victoire said, "I actually have fun on patrol most of the time, and it's time with you, so I don't tend to associate it with plans. It's just something that we do, you know? So it slips my mind a lot because I tend to think 'Oh, I'm spending time with Teddy,' not 'I have to patrol!' And we were never people to plan our time together, we've just always been… Joined at the hip, I guess, so it doesn't cross my mind that it might be considered plans."
Teddy grinned. "That makes me feel very special, Tori, that I'm such a big part of your life that you don't consider me plans."
Victoire laughed. "Good."
They walked in a companionable silence for a while, until Teddy spoke again.
"So how are things going with you and Jake then?" Teddy asked, "If you keep forgetting about things like patrol, and it's interrupting your time with him…"
She shrugged. "I don't know, honestly."
"Trouble in paradise?" Teddy asked.
"It's… Complicated," Victoire said, "We're… Well, I wouldn't expect you to care all that much."
"Tori, you're my best mate," Teddy said, "If you're involved, I care."
She smiled. "Thanks, Teddy."
"Anytime, kid," he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, "Now, what happened?"
"I don't know," she said, "I talked to Molly about it earlier, it's just… We don't really know anything about each other, anything real. Sure, he knows my favorite color-"
"Turquoise," Teddy interjected, grinning at her.
She rolled her eyes and continued talking. "He knows my favorite color, but he doesn't really know why I hate brussel sprouts or that I'm allergic to squirrels."
"I'm still sorry about that prank, and I still stand by my statement that you have the weirdest allergy of anyone I've ever met," Teddy said.
"The point is," Victoire said, after sticking her tongue out at him, "We don't really know each other. He's a silly teenage relationship, and I know that's all he's going to be, but I can't bring myself to split up with him either. I do like him, I enjoy the time that we spend together, he's just not…"
"Enough?" Teddy asked.
"I suppose that would be the right word, yes," Victoire said, "Maybe if we had been friends first, if we had gotten to really know each other before we started a relationship, maybe then it would be different, but… We weren't, and it's not, and I don't see that changing any time soon. I don't feel anything out of the ordinary when I'm with him. Everyone in the family has always described love as being, for lack of a better word, magical, and when I'm with him, it's anything but."
Teddy nodded. "He's practice for you, like Gwen Kellam was for me last year. You need it, so that you do it right when it really matters. He's the one for the pointless screw-ups and lack of judgment."
"Does Gwen Kellam know you think of her as practice?" Victoire asked, grinning.
"She's happily dating Ian Marone, and he's completely enamored of her, so I doubt she cares," Teddy said, shrugging, "The last time I talked to her, she said that she was really happy and glad that we could remain friends."
"Good," Victoire said, "It never seemed right, you dating her. You weren't… Yourself. You're much better like this."
"What, single and lonely?" Teddy asked, winking at her.
Victoire wrapped her arms around his waist. "You're single because you choose to be, and I doubt you're lonely. You have me, remember? And besides, I meant that you weren't around us like you used to be, and when you were, she was always there too, and it got to be really unnerving, because I know my best mate, and you weren't him."
He grinned. "I couldn't be alone with you around, and, well, it's true. I'm much too attractive to be single without choosing it."
"I would love to see what reactions girls would have to you if you couldn't change your body around," Victoire said, "They'd definitely be different."
Teddy laughed. "Tori, I don't know if it's humanly possible to find me unattractive."
"Well, I don't find you particularly appealing," Victoire said. He smirked and reached for her waist, tickling her swiftly. She squealed and ducked away from him. "Alright, alright, you're extraordinarily handsome! Happy?"
"Very," he said, his smile widening, "Yours is the only opinion I care about, lovely."
"And you're a total sap," Victoire said, elbowing him lightly, "And that is such a lie."
"Alright, I care about the opinions of you and Sam," Teddy said, chuckling, "Everyone else can go jump into the lake."
"You care about Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny's opinions of you, and the rest of the family," Victoire said.
"Well, alright," Teddy said, "You caught me, you're right."
"I knew it," Victoire said, smiling.
He rolled his eyes. "Sure you did."
They started up the steps to the Astronomy Tower, hands joined. A brief circuit around the tower revealed that there was no one up there, but at the sound of a giggle from the stairs, Victoire pulled Teddy into the space between a pillar and the wall, wincing.
"Why are we hiding?" Teddy asked, his voice a hushed whisper.
Victoire flushed. "They're… Well… That's Tina Allens and Peter Davies. They're… It would just be…"
Teddy smiled. "I understand, Tori. I happened upon them my first year as a prefect… I think I'm scarred for life."
"They're honestly the worst couple to ever come through the halls of Hogwarts, at least as far as PDA goes," Victoire said.
"Well, aside from the stories Ginny's told me about Ron and… Lavender Brown, was it, his sixth year?" Teddy said, "I'd say they're up there too."
Victoire nodded again, only to blush as she realized her close proximity to Teddy. The Metamorphmagus looked down at her, his grey eyes wide.
"What is it, Tori?" he asked, "You never blush like that."
"Your eyes look better when they're your normal color," Victoire said, her voice soft.
Teddy scrunched up his nose and his eyes changed from the grey that they had been since the summer to a brown speckled with gold and green. "Better?"
She smiled. "Much."
The sounds of snogging reached them and Teddy made a face.
"They making you uncomfortable?" Victoire asked.
"I don't like hearing other people snog," Teddy said, "It's unpleasant."
"But you don't mind snogging when you're the one doing it," Victoire said, tilting her head as she looked at him.
"Well, of course not," Teddy said, "Although I must say, while she definitely was not the best kisser in the world, the one thing that I will give Gwen is that she always had her hands in my hair, and Merlin, it felt nice, and no one I've snogged since then has done that. It's quite unfortunate really."
Victoire chuckled quietly before reaching up to run her fingers through the scarlet locks. "Like this?"
"You're much better at it than she ever was," Teddy murmured.
"Teddy?" she asked, her fingers knotted in his hair.
His hands went to her waist and his eyes met hers, hazel and blue locked on one another. "Yes, Tori?"
She bit her lip. "Why did you stop with the turquoise hair?"
He shrugged. "I don't know, just felt like a change this summer is all. Why, did you like my hair when it was turquoise?"
"I loved it, actually," she said, "My favorite color and all of that."
He scrunched up his nose, and a moment later, she looked up to see that his hair was her favorite shade of turquoise. She smiled appreciatively.
"Do you like it?" he asked.
"I love it, Mister Lupin," she said, blinking slowly, "It's very… You. And, seeing as it's my absolute favorite color, it makes me feel like there's a giant label on you that says 'Property of Victoire Weasley, do not touch on pain of death.'"
"So I belong to you?" he asked, his voice rough.
"I guess you could say that," Victoire said, her eyes locked on his. She could feel her cheeks burning as she looked at him, and it was all she could do to prevent herself from looking down as he leaned towards her.
"If that's true, then I should be able to do this, shouldn't I?"
Before she could say another word to ask him what he meant, his mouth was on hers, and it was like nothing she'd ever felt before.
Rather than pull away, she wrapped one arm securely around his neck, pulling herself closer to him, her other hand still knotted in his hair. He held her to him, one hand sliding up under her untucked shirt to rest on her waist, warm against her cool skin, the other running through her hair, over and over again. She leaned into him, enjoying the feeling of her body pressed against his. When he finally pulled away, leaving her breathless and very disheveled, she became aware of where she was and who she had just snogged. She froze, staring at him.
Teddy released her and ran his hand through his hair, suddenly looking very embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Tori, I didn't mean to- I just-"
She held up her hand to stop him, biting her lip. "That can't- We can't- That can't happen again, Teddy. You're my best mate, and I'm dating Jake, and- We can't."
"I know," he murmured, running one hand up and down the length of her spine. She nearly shivered at the contact as he continued to speak. "I just wanted to know what it would be like. I've been wondering for ages, actually."
"I'm not… This won't ruin our friendship, will it?" Victoire asked quietly.
Teddy smiled slightly. "Of course not, Tori, you're my best mate, and I'm not to let a kiss change that, since it was my fault anyway."
"Good," Victoire said, "Otherwise we'd have a bit of a problem, since I don't plan on letting you go anywhere any time soon."
He laughed softly. "I wasn't planning on going anywhere, so I don't think that you need to worry about it."
Victoire nodded, looking down at her feet. She straightened her shirt and put her hair into a neat ponytail before looking up at him, a broad grin on her face. He blinked warily. Her smile widened. "Well, Mister Lupin, though I must say that we can't do that again, at least, not while we're- well, while I'm- in the current situation that I am with other people, I will say that you are extraordinarily good at snogging and I think you just won the award for the best kiss that I've ever received."
He grinned at her, tugging on her ponytail. "Best mate, best kisser… What else am I the best at?"
She took the hand he offered her, chuckling quietly. "Best at being the world's biggest prat."
He rolled his eyes, lacing his fingers through hers. "Best at being brilliant, more like. And for the record, Tori, you win the award for best kisser at Hogwarts."
She smiled, stood on her toes, and kissed his cheek. "Shame you'll have to miss out on more kisses then, huh?"
"We'll see how long you last, Weasley," he teased, tugging her out from behind the pillar.
"Longer than you will, Lupin," she responded, smirking, "In all seriousness though, if you mention this to anybody, I will maim you."
"I'll just tease you when we're alone," Teddy said, grinning at her.
"That's what I figured," Victoire said dryly.
They left the Astronomy Tower hand-in-hand. Needless to say, Tina Allens and Peter Davies escaped detention that night.
