10. Just a scratch

When Harry got to the Burrow straight from work that summer evening, he was expecting the worst.

And the worst is what awaited him.

"DADDY!" Teddy wailed.

"It's okay," Harry rushed as he quickly hurried to his godson who was laid out on the couch. "Hey, hey, you're okay." He pulled the boy into a comforting hug.

"I HATE IT!" Teddy sobbed into Harry's shoulder. "I HATE FLYING!"

"I know, I know." Harry looked up at Molly and Arthur, both of whom were smiling helplessly.

"YOU SAID!"

"I know." He tightened his arms around Teddy. "I know I said. Next time I will-"

"NO NEXT TIME! PLEASE!"

So Teddy's first flight wasn't all that fun. He came away with a broken ankle and scraped hands. He was very traumatized. He would never look at a broom again. He vowed to himself. He would never fly. Ever. No matter how much fun Harry and Ginny said it was. Brooms were evil. It had nearly tried to kill him! There won't ever be a next time!

It took several kisses from Harry to get him calm again.

"Uncle Neville broke his wrist when he first tried flying…"

"Th-that's why he won't fly anymore," Teddy sniffled. "He's so smart. You're so stupid. Aunty Ginny's so stupid. No one should fly. Not ever. Uncle Neville is the smartest person. He's sessible."

Harry took Teddy's hand in his, examining the newly mended skin on his soft palms. "What if I taught you instead of Ron and George? Would that be better?"

"No." Teddy was adamant. "No one is flying in my family. Everyone is safe just walkin' places."

"Our whole family plays Quidditch…"

"Stupid game. Stupid, stupid, stupid."

"Hmm. Yeah. It's a little stupid I guess."

Teddy wound his arms around Harry's neck. "It hurt so bad." His voice was hoarse and thick. "I don't ever wanna break anything again."

Harry brushed his thumb against one plump, pink cheek. "Who's going to teach James?" he whispered.

"No one." Teddy wiped his nose on his shirt. "He's going to stay on the ground with me. You are not allowed to teach him anything. No one's gonna teach him anything but me."

"I see."

"Good."

Victoire pressed her hand gently on Teddy's ankle. "Does it still hurt?"

It had been a week and Teddy had been milking his injury for all it's worth. "Not too badly," he said while putting on a brave face. "The doctor said I may never walk straight again."

While Victoire gasped, her father tsked and shook his head at the exaggerating boy. "Don't spread lies."

"I'm not spreading anything!" he exclaimed. "You weren't there. What do you know, Uncle Bill?"

"You're so brave," Victoire and her sister, Dominique, gushed.

He puffed his chest out. "I know."

Bill shook his head in defeat as he walked over to the adult conversation, which turned out to be quite similar to the children's.

"You should have seen the kid," George boasted proudly. "The broom bucks him off and he just goes flying. I thought he was done for."

Percy clicked his tongue and narrowed his eyes. "Yesterday you said he slid off. And he couldn't have been more than a two meters off the-"

"What do you know?" George interrupted his elder brother. "You weren't there, Percy."

Ginny harrumphed. "Moral of the story is that I am never trusting my children to either of you." She threw a scalding look at George and Ron, both of whom raised their hands in innocent confusion.

Bill sighed and rolled his eyes. His siblings never grew up. He collected all of the empty mugs from the coffee table and floated them to the kitchen where Molly and Fleur were speaking with Harry who was rocking his baby to sleep.

"And then he throws this gigantic fit. It was awful. Wouldn't stop crying for hours. He actually screamed at me, as if it was my fault he fell off his broom. He said he would never fly again."

"Oh, he von't mean it," Fleur waved Harry off.

"You weren't there," Molly interjected. "And you know Teddy well enough, Fleur."

"You too?" Bill arched a brow at his family. "Seems like all everyone talks about is Teddy."

"Well, he is quite the character," Harry chuckled.

"Teddy. Put away your books."

"But my ankle…"

"Hurry up. It's already ten minutes past your bedtime."

"But my ankle…"

"Eat your broccoli."

"But my ankle…"

"No, Teddy. James has to take a bath now."

"But my ankle…"

"Well, if your ankle is giving you so much trouble, I guess we should just go back to the hospital and get some more medicine."

"Er…"

"Alright. Ready?"

Teddy swallowed hard. "No." His voice had gotten squeaky.

"I'll catch you," Harry promised. "If you fall, I'll be right here. I'm much better than Uncle George." He pressed a quick kiss on Teddy's hand. "You believe me, don't you?"

"I'm scared…"

"Nonsense. You aren't scared of anything."

Teddy wasn't so sure. He clung to Harry's hand, trying to get as tight a grip as possible. "Don't let go. If you let go, I'll be so mad, Harry." He tried to glare at his godfather, but he only ended up looking desperate.

"No letting go." Harry nodded firmly. "You are safe and sound." He planted his feet on the grass. "I'll count us in. On three, alright?"

"No."

"One… Two… Three."

Teddy squeezed his eyes shut and pushed off with his unsteady heels. His stomach drove into his legs as he floated up above the ground. "Oh," he moaned in fright. "Harry…"

"You're doing great. Hold still. And keep your eyes open."

"I can't."

Harry took a slow step to the side and pulled Teddy along like a balloon. He was floating just five feet off the ground, but by his expression it would have seemed like he was about to fall off of a ten-meter cliff. He was as pale as a ghost. "You're flying," Harry murmured in quiet encouragement. "See? Open your eyes." Teddy shook his head stubbornly instead. Harry figured there was no point in pressing him. "Then maybe you could stop straining so much?" he suggested. "Your arms and legs are going to tire out if you strain like that."

"I don't want to fall," Teddy bit out. "I'll strain if I want."

"You're the boss."

"And you're mean."

Harry smiled privately. "Oh yeah. I'm the meanest," he mumbled.

"Harry?"

"Yes?"

"I don't wanna fly anymore…"

"Yeah. I figured." He tugged Teddy down and the broom followed until everyone was safely on the ground. Teddy wasted no time in dismounting and then hugging Harry's legs tight. "That's fine, Teddy." He struggled to untangle himself from his godson so he could kneel down next to him. "I know you feel disappointed, and that's fine." He ruffled his hair. "You just need some practice. You've got all the time in the world."

"But I wanted to be good. Like you." Teddy sniffed sadly.

"Oh, no one's as good as me."

He whined in irritation and bonked heads with his silly godfather. "You're always making fun of me," he complained.

Harry rubbed his head while laughing. "You're a very easy target, that's all." He grabbed the broom off the grass and stood up. "Come on. We'll tell Ginny that your precious ankle hurt too much." He took Teddy's hand in his.

"Yeah. We'll tell her that," Teddy sighed as he wiped his nose with the back of his hand.

"And you know something else?"

"What?"

"Your hair's green now."

"WHAT?"