"I am so ready for a break from school."
Everyone nodded in agreement to Alexa's statement as they filed into the Head's compartment on the train. Victoire settled herself beside Monica.
"You and me both, kid," Monica said, "No boys. Well, no boys except Louis and Vic's dad, who really don't count. Actually, allow me to correct myself: no boys except those two until the twenty-third, and even then, very few boys."
"Are you okay, Mon?" Victoire asked.
"Totally fine," Monica said, grinning.
"You're taking the whole breakup thing very well," Jade said.
"I live for the single life," Monica said, "I can look at whoever I want, flirt with whoever I want… I'm loving this."
"Always look on the bright side," Molly said, "Besides, it's not like Vic and I are regularly surrounded by boys. Monica is hardly left alone all the time."
"Precisely," Monica said, "Besides, I've got friends who put me before their boyfriends every once in a while. I'm totally good."
"Every once in a while?" Alexa asked, "Merlin, Monica, I'm hurt. You already know that I'd marry you if I could."
"I know, it's such a shame that you're all wrapped up in that one over there," Monica said, shaking her head.
Liam gaped at her. "You two- what?"
"Oh, didn't we tell you?" Monica asked, "Lex and I are in love."
"Best friend love anyway," Alexa said, laughing, "I wouldn't leave you like that, Liam, don't worry. You're safe. I think."
"I mean, who wouldn't love me?" Monica asked.
Victoire rolled her eyes. "You are all completely and utterly mental."
"We're no worse than you are," Chelsea said, "It's the only reason that you're capable of spending time with us, you know."
"I'm fortunate to know people who share my level of insanity, yes," Victoire said, "Now, let's discuss holiday plans. Monica, you're coming back to my house with me."
"That I am," Monica said.
"Why?" Nick asked, "Don't you need to see your family?"
"I'm going home on the twenty-third," Monica said, "The crazy cousins from Miami got in yesterday and I cannot put up with them until after New Year's. My head will explode."
"I see," Nick said.
"Liam and I are spending a couple days with Nick and Chelsea," Jack said, "Then I'm off to my house."
"I'm going to Alexa's for a couple of days after I leave their house," Liam said, "Then home to the family."
"Jake and I are both going home," Jade said.
"And Molly, you're going home because your dad doesn't know about Sam," Victoire said, "Then we're all going to the Christmas party and the party for New Year's. Anyone doing anything else?"
There were murmurs of denial from everyone.
"So we're all going to be seeing a lot of each other then," Alexa said, "That's good."
"And remember, we're doing the gag gift exchange on Christmas Eve," Molly said, "Don't forget to bring a stupid present. You all know who you're meant to be shopping for."
"Yes ma'am," Monica said.
"Come prepped for massive snowball fights as well," Victoire said, "It's tradition."
"Heard and understood," Alexa said.
"Excellent," Victoire said.
The rest of the train ride was filled with their standard tradition of playing Exploding Snap, and when they arrived at the platform, there was a good deal of hugging. Eventually, Victoire and Monica got their trunks and exited the train to find Bill and Fleur.
They were standing near the barrier with Louis, who was talking animatedly about his first few months at Hogwarts. Victoire and Monica were greeted with hugs and wide smiles.
"You're looking good," Bill said, smiling, "The last few months have been good to both of you, then?"
"Great," Victoire said, "It's nice to be getting a break from everything though."
"I will never say no to a holiday," Monica said, "Ever. Especially halfway through the school year."
"Where's Dom, anyway?" Victoire asked.
Fleur shrugged. "We 'ave not seen her."
"I literally saw her with Mari and Alannah twenty minutes ago," Victoire said, "They were sitting in their compartment playing Exploding Snap like the rest of us. She can't have gone far. It never takes her this long to get over here though."
"Maybe she's saying goodbye to people," Monica said, "And she doesn't want you lot to know who they are."
Victoire shook her head. "Nah, Dom's not like that. She probably just got caught up talking to Oliver about Quidditch or something."
"It wouldn't surprise me," Bill said.
Dom came hurrying towards them a moment later, dragging her trunk behind her.
"Sorry I'm late," she said, "I was talking to Alannah and Oliver about Quidditch."
"See, I told you," Victoire said, "Can we go home now?"
Bill reached out with both of his hands. Victoire grabbed one, and Monica grabbed the other as Fleur did the same with Dom and Louis. With a loud crack, they Disapparated, reappearing outside of Shell Cottage.
"I will make 'ot chocolate," Fleur said.
"Thanks a million, Mum," Victoire said, kissing her mother on the cheek before leading Monica up the stairs. They dropped Monica's things off in the guest bedroom and then went into Victoire's room.
"You have such a nice view," Monica said, looking out the window at the ocean.
"Yeah, but it's also freezing," Victoire said, "Still, I missed it a lot. Hogwarts is lovely, but this is home."
"Not for much longer though, am I right?" Monica asked, lying down on Victoire's bed.
Victoire paused where she was folding a shirt and stared at Monica. "Sorry?"
"You're going to move in with Teddy once we finish school," Monica said, "Or am I completely wrong about that?"
"I mean, I will at some point, but I don't know if I will immediately following seventh year," Victoire said, "I'm not really in the mood to rush things, you know? We've still got a lot of time to sort everything out and do things like move in together, so I'm not going to push it right now."
"Understandable," Monica said, "Now please explain to me why someone always ends up breaking up with their boyfriend right before the winter holidays?"
Victoire shrugged. "I've got absolutely no idea. New year, new beginnings, maybe? And if you don't mind my asking, you said you weren't really feeling it with Ben anymore, but that can't have been your only reason for splitting up with him, so was there something else?"
"I don't know," Monica said, rolling over to stare at the ceiling, "Ben's really sweet, and I do like him, he just… Ours was a very typical relationship, and this is me. I don't really do typical, you know? I already stick out purely because I'm American at a British school, but my personality has never been something that let me hide and not express myself. He liked the idea of me more than he liked who I am, if you understand what I'm saying."
"He liked the you that everyone sees, not who you are," Victoire said, "I get it. Although, if it helps, I like the you that only we see, because she's pretty wonderful."
Monica smiled. "Thanks."
"No problem," Victoire said. She folded the last of her clothes and put her hands on her hips. "Well, I'll have to repack everything before we go back to school, but I think it's time I switched out some of my clothes for the second half of the year."
"I'm definitely looking forward to doing that once I get home," Monica said, "Thanks for letting me stay with you though, dealing with my cousins isn't something that I love."
"So you've said," Victoire said, grinning and lying down on the bed as well, "Remind me again why you don't like them?"
"Well, I do like them, but they're just hard to deal with," Monica said, "Carissa is nice, but she's obsessed with boys. As in, her entire identity is centered around them, and I am forced to listen to her recount tales about her newest boyfriend any time we are alone and in the same room. There's nothing wrong with that, but it can get a little bit annoying after you've heard the same story four times. Bobby is just completely hyperactive, and he's so young that he hasn't quite gotten control of his magic yet, so something always ends up exploding when he's around. Stacy is… Let's just say, she looks at you and you feel like the entire world has gone cold, she's so disapproving of things."
"Fortunately my family is mad, but in the good way," Victoire said, "I don't blame you for wanting to get away from them for a little while. I must say that I'm really looking forward to Christmas."
Monica grinned. "You'll get to see your boyfriend."
"He's not my boyfriend," Victoire said, flushing, "We're… Not labeled."
"It's better that way," Monica said, "Now, how much do you want to bet that Liam will ask Alexa to marry him before we leave next year?"
Victoire shook her head. "He won't. They've both got their plans and while I know that marriage is worked in there eventually, it's not even mentioned until somewhere around Alexa turning twenty-three."
"Like you and Teddy then," Monica said.
"Basically," Victoire said, "Shall we go see if the hot chocolate is ready?"
"Sounds good to me," Monica said, "I'm kind of cold right now."
"Me too," Victoire said.
They left Victoire's room and went downstairs to the kitchen. Fleur was pouring steaming cups of hot chocolate when they entered. Dom had already claimed one and was sitting at the table by the window, blowing on it. Louis darted in behind Victoire and took a cup for himself before disappearing into the living room.
Victoire got a cup and sat down across from Dom, Monica joining them a moment later. "So, how are things, Dom?"
Dom shrugged. "They're things."
"That's not very descriptive," Monica said, "Anything exciting happen? Any boys in your life? Is there any good gossip at all?"
"Not really," Dom said. She grinned at Monica. "Like I'd tell you anyway, you'd have a field day with it."
"Exactly, that's why I want you to tell me," Monica said. She pouted. "Can't you tell me anything?"
"Nope," Dom said, lifting her cup to her lips.
"You mean to say that absolutely nothing interesting has gone on since the last time you and I had a good talk?" Victoire asked.
Dom set her cup on the table. "Well, I wouldn't saying nothing interesting, but it's not important enough for me to tell you at the moment. You'll find out eventually."
"What is it with everyone and saying 'you'll find out eventually'?" Victoire asked, "I mean, I've done my fair share of it, but Merlin it's annoying to hear from other people."
"Now you know how we feel," Dom said, "Are you excited about Teddy coming back?"
Victoire nodded. "Obviously. It's been a while, I'm looking forward to seeing him again."
"You two are friends again?" Fleur asked. Victoire turned to see her mother raise her eyebrows.
"Yeah," Victoire said, "We talked about everything and decided that we were being stupid, so we're back to being best mates. We've mostly just been writing each other, although he did come back to visit with all of us during the first Hogsmeade weekend."
"We were all really happy to see him," Monica said, "He's a friend to all of us, and we've all missed him a lot. It'll be good to see him when he gets back from Australia."
"I didn't see him when I was here," Dom said, making a face, "The boy's practically my older brother and he didn't even bother to come and say hello."
"We were keeping him occupied," Monica said, "We didn't even think about it, to be honest. Sorry, Dom."
Dom rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, of course you are."
"'ow is Danny doing?" Fleur asked.
Victoire smacked her forehead with her hand. "I really should start writing home more often, shouldn't I? He and I split up. His childhood sweetheart moved back to England and they were so clearly in love with each other that I broke up with him and essentially told them to get together. They're really happy, and he's still my friend. He's a better friend than boyfriend, honestly. He was really sweet, but we're better this way."
"As long as you're both 'appy," Fleur said.
Victoire nodded. "We are."
"Dom, you really need to get a boyfriend," Monica said, "I need something to tease you about, and you're not giving me very much material to work with."
"That's been my plan this entire time," Dom said, "Why would I tell you anything if you're just going to make fun of me about it?"
"She has a point, Mon," Victoire said after taking a sip from her hot chocolate, "Why provide you with any information if it just means that we're going to be abused about it?"
"I don't abuse you guys that much," Monica said, "I don't appreciate this treatment, it's really quite unfair. You all judge me too much." She stuck her nose in the air.
Victoire laughed. "Yeah, you're so abused, Mon, it's terrible."
"I would just like to remind you that I have the power to ruin your life," Monica said, "Remember that."
"Point taken," Victoire said.
Dom looked at them, a confused expression on her face. "I don't think I will ever understand the two of you."
"Nobody does," Monica said, sighing, "It's quite sad, really."
"It really is," Victoire said. She grinned at the sight of Dom's expression. "Sorry, Dom, we can't help our insanity sometimes."
"More like all the time," Dom said. She stood up. "I have letters to write, I'll talk to you later."
"How do you have letters to write?" Victoire asked, "We literally got off the train less than two hours ago, you haven't been gone that long."
"I have people to talk to," Dom said, "That's all."
She left the room without another word. Victoire raised her eyebrows. "Alright, I'm confused, but that's okay."
"You and me both," Monica said, "Honestly."
They finished their hot chocolate and went into the living room.
Three hours later, they were in the middle of a heated game of wizard's chess. Louis leaned over Victoire's shoulder as she ordered the movement of one of her pawns.
"This is totally unfair," Monica said, "You guys play chess way more than we ever did when I was younger."
"Welcome to the Weasley family," Louis said, "Uncle Ron made sure we all learned how to play when we were three."
"And then forced us into regular matches until we went off to school," Victoire said, "He told us that no niece or nephew of his would be bad at wizard's chess if there was anything that he could do about it, seeing as he's really quite good."
"Rose and Hugo have it the worst though," Louis said, "Or maybe they have it the best. They beat him sometimes. I have no idea how, the man is brilliant when it comes to this game."
"He's brilliant when it comes to a lot of things," Victoire said.
"He wouldn't be the associate head of the Auror office if he wasn't brilliant," Monica said, "Maybe once, but not anymore."
"We've got some really intelligent family members," Victoire said, "Even if they do choose less than normal ways to show that intelligence."
"Life would be boring without Uncle George around," Louis said.
"It definitely would," Monica said.
Victoire grinned. "I'll say. Also, Mon… Check, and mate."
"Damn it," Monica said, "Weasleys…"
"Oh, don't say it like that, you know you love us," Victoire said, her smile widening, "I'm hungry, how about you?"
"I could eat something, yeah," Monica said.
"I vote we find food then," Victoire said.
Twenty minutes later, they sat at the kitchen table eating grilled cheese. Dom walked in and took a piece from Victoire's, popping it in her mouth and raising her eyebrows.
"Hey!" Victoire said, batting Dom's hands away as she reached for a second piece, "Don't you have letters to write or something?"
"Nope, took care of it," Dom said, "I want food."
"You're lucky I'm a nice sister," Victoire said, "There's one for you on the stove."
Dom's eyes lit up and she walked away to dump her grilled cheese onto a plate. When she came back, Victoire took a piece from it.
"I suppose that's fair," Dom said, pulling up a chair, "So, three more days then, huh Vic?"
"You mean until Teddy's back?" Victoire asked, "Yeah."
"I hope you're ready to spend a lot of time with me, Monica, because Vic's not going to be around much after he comes back," Dom said.
"Merlin," Monica said, "I might have to vacate the premises and go to Jade's or something if I'm going to be left alone with you. We'll kill each other."
"You probably have a bit of a point there," Dom said, "It's such a shame. I was looking forward to teasing you for a while. I'll just have to make fun of Vic when she comes home."
"He'll be staying at Nana Andromeda's until he goes to Uncle Harry's. I'm hardly going to end up living in a flat with him over the holidays," Victoire said, rolling her eyes, "You lot are getting ahead of yourselves. As in you're getting really, really far ahead of yourselves."
"Someone has to," Monica said, shrugging.
"I will hurt you both," Victoire said, fixing her eyes on Monica and Dom.
"How?" Monica said, "Need I mention that I'm the only one here who can legally do magic at the moment?"
"I hate you," Victoire said.
Monica grinned. "I know."
The rest of the day was fun and relaxing, a perfect way to start off a few weeks away from school. Victoire and Monica didn't end up going to bed until well past two in the morning, when Fleur came into Victoire's room and told them that they needed to be a little bit quieter.
The eighteenth and nineteenth went similarly, and on the twentieth, Victoire woke up just after eight in the morning. She pulled on a pair of skinny jeans and an oversized sweater before throwing her hair up into a ponytail. When she went downstairs, Bill and Fleur were in the kitchen.
"You're up early," Bill said.
Victoire shrugged. "I just felt like it today."
"Teddy's coming 'ome," Fleur said, smiling.
"You two are friends again?" Bill asked.
Victoire looked up from where she was buttering her toast. "We are, yeah. Since October."
"So I suppose that means he'll be around a lot until he leaves?" Bill asked.
"Probably," Victoire said, "Provided you're okay with that, of course."
"Why wouldn't I be?" Bill asked, "Teddy's a good kid."
"'e is 'ardly a child, Bill," Fleur said.
Bill rolled his eyes. "I've known the boy since he was in diapers. He'll always be a child to me, even if he is taller than I am now."
"I'm sure he'd love to hear that," Victoire said, sitting down at the table.
"He's heard it from everyone already," Bill said, "I'm sure he's used to it by now. Do you know what time he's getting back?"
Victoire shook her head. "He didn't say. Actually, I don't even know if he knows that Uncle Harry told me he was coming back today. He might be thinking that he can surprise me at some point, so I figured I might as well just get up and be ready for it."
"Knowing him, he probably would do something like that," Bill said, "Well, if you two end up leaving, just let one of us know."
"It's okay if Monica's here even if I'm not, right?" Victoire asked, "I'm not going to abandon her or anything, but if she wants to stay behind…"
"It's fine," Bill said, "We trust your friends. Well, we trust them most of the time."
"Not even I trust them all the time," Victoire said, "In fact, I probably trust them less than everyone else we know does. I love them all, but they're mental."
"What are you saying about me?"
Victoire looked at the doorway. Monica was standing there, her arms crossed. The wide smile on her face betrayed her, and she walked into the kitchen.
"I was saying that all of my friends are mental," Victoire said.
"I suppose that's true, yeah," Monica said, "After breakfast I suggest that we do something so that you're not sitting around waiting for Teddy to show up."
"We could go for a walk or something," Victoire said, "It'll be cold, but it's really pretty out here during the winter."
"It's pretty out here all the time, Vic," Monica said, "That sounds good to me though. I just need to eat first."
"I need to finish eating anyway, we're good," Victoire said.
After they finished breakfast, they pulled on boots and coats. Victoire pulled on a thick hat and gloves as well, and shut the door behind Monica once they were outside.
"It's gorgeous, seeing this place with the snow," Monica said, "I wish I lived somewhere like this. You're lucky to have the ocean right at your doorstep."
"Sometimes," Victoire said, "Other time it just makes things really uncomfortable. When it storms, it's the worst. Things are worse here because we're so close to the ocean, so we get hit before the weather has time to spread out and lose some of its intensity. I swear, the cottage would be in the ocean already if it weren't for magic."
"Magic is really useful, definitely," Monica said, "I can't really imagine life without it."
"That's because you don't have to," Victoire said, "Which is pretty lucky, if you ask me."
"I agree," Monica said.
They continued to walk, their path taking them up onto the bluff. Victoire paused in front of Dobby's grave for a moment, and then continued on. They wound their way around the cottage, talking aimlessly about anything that came to mind, and headed back inside shortly after noon.
"Anything yet?" Victoire called, stamping her boots on the rug just inside the front door.
"Not yet," Dom called from the living room, "Mum and Dad would've sent me running out to get you if there had been, so I don't think that you need to worry about it. Remember, Uncle Harry never specified when they'd be back, so it could very well be at seven o'clock tonight."
"I know," Victoire said, "I can still hope it'll be sooner though."
"What do we do now?" Monica asked, following Victoire into the living room, "We went for a walk, you and I have played chess about a million times since I got here, we spent almost the entire train ride back to London playing Exploding Snap, so there's really no point in doing that…"
Victoire shrugged. "I have no idea."
"No idea" turned out to be passing a piece of parchment in circles in an attempt to write the most ridiculous story that any of them had ever heard. Louis joined in halfway through, and they ended up with three and a half feet of parchment by the time they were done.
"I wish I could write essays this quickly," Monica said, eyeing the rolls of parchment that they had set on the table, "My life would be a million and one times easier."
Victoire nodded. "I'll say." She glanced out the window and Monica groaned.
"Vic, it's only seven, and he could be running a bit late. We still need to eat dinner anyway. Don't worry about it. He'll show up."
"I guess you're right," Victoire said.
They sat down to dinner fifteen minutes later.
Afterward, Victoire and Monica elected to work on some of the few assignments that they had for the holiday. At a quarter past eleven, Monica yawned and stood up. "I'm going to bed. Don't stay up too late, alright?"
"Yeah," Victoire said, not looking up from where she was copying down notes for potions.
The clock hit midnight, and then one, two, three in the morning.
At a quarter before four she gave up and went to her room.
It was with tears threatening to pour down her cheeks that she curled up under the blankets to try and sleep.
A/N:
Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm the worst.
Don't worry, I'm not planning on breaking them up any time soon, but this is necessary for story development. Just because they're not having relationship troubles doesn't mean that everything is great in the world. It just means that Teddy and Victoire are together.
But I think I deserve a medal for updating earlier than three minutes before midnight as I have been lately- this time it's two and a half hours before midnight ;)
I'm going to go continue my education in How I Met Your Mother, which I just started watching this afternoon.
Until next time!
Peace and love x
~AC
