A/N: Just a short interlude before some action next chapter :) I'd write more and shit but I'm fucking pissed off soo...make me happy and review?
Chapter 10
The night was unsettlingly quiet. Teddy stood on one of the ramparts the surrounded the courtyard, watching as witches and wizards- most younger than he- ran through the grounds, wands out and robes flapping. The sound of footsteps on the flagstone echoed hollowly.
In the distance, there was a rumble more sinister than thunder. With a bang, the sky was set alight and the protective enchantments glowed under the pressure of the attack. Teddy watched as each impact set colors running across the sky like the northern lights. It would've been a beautiful display if it wasn't a sign of imminent death and destruction. There was a sound like shattered glass and a war cry and Teddy ran.
He passed the blurred figures of allies around him, positioned to defend the castle from their places at the windows. He ran down the flights of stairs almost as though he was floating. There were so many- more than he ever remembered there being at Hogwarts- before he finally made it to the entrance hall. He threw the doors wide open and looked around.
Bursts of color soared across the lawn and disappeared into the night. One flew in Teddy's direction. It hit the wall beside him with a loud crunch upon impact. Teddy drew his wand. Teddy knew he had to find him. He plunged into the night and into the heat of the battle.
Death Eaters and Order members, students and teachers were scattered across the lawn, each locked in their own battles. They appeared faceless to Teddy as he searched for him. He ran; the constriction in his chest and the burning in his legs unheeded. He heard an icy cackle, and the hair on the back of his neck rose.
Bellatrix Lestrange was easily identified by her great piles of curly black hair and her heavily-lidded eyes. She looked so much like Andromeda, but a dark, twisted version. Looking past her, Teddy caught sight of his mother, her pink hair flashing. And beside her was his father facing the Death Eater Teddy knew as Dolohov.
He felt as though time had stopped for him, though everyone around him kept moving. He tried to get his muscles to move, but not matter how fast he ran, he could not make any ground. He tried to raise his wand, but found that his hands wouldn't obey him. His mouth refused to say anything.
They fell- first Tonks and then, with an anguished cry, Remus. And Teddy was suddenly off as though released finally from the shackles that held him. His yell echoed in his ears as he tried to reach their crumpled bodies.
His cry echoed in his ears, though only a memory, as he sat up. Sweat matted his hair to his forehead. It had all started again. He closed his eyes and passed a hand over his sticky face, willing the images to leave his mind.
Andromeda Tonks was used to dry spells in which she would hear very little from her grandson now that he was living in a flat with his girlfriend. On one hand, she was allowed plenty of time to relax in her old age. On the other hand, the house was empty and silent without the colorful boy that reminded her so much of her late daughter.
After a couple weeks of not seeing Teddy, though, Andromeda decided to invite him and Victoire to dinner. She was starting to become like Molly Weasley with all her worrying about his eating habits and the cleanliness of his living quarters. After penning a quick note to Teddy, she gave the letter to the family owl, Fez, and sent it on its way.
Deciding to do a bit of cleaning to distract herself, Andromeda set to work. She flicked her wand over the picture frames that occupied the mantle, gazing at them nostalgically. Some showed Teddy as a child with chubby cheeks and ever-changing hair. Others showed the boy grown-up with Victoire in his arms or laughing with Harry or his school friends. Andromeda paused with a sad smile and picked up a framed photo of her daughter with Teddy in her arms. Remus was beside her, looking at them both with such love in his eyes Andromeda could feel her heart nearly bust.
Life after the war had been difficult to say the least. Her husband and daughter had left her alone with a newborn grandchild who didn't even realize yet that he would grow up without his parents. The happiness marked by the end of the war was marred by the endless string of funerals. She attended each out of a profound respect for those who fought at Hogwarts and who had contributed to the cause- Fred Weasley, Colin Creevey, Remus and Nymphadora Lupin…She watched as each was lowered into the ground one by one in then brand-new Cemetery of Heroes at Hogwarts.
She couldn't lie. Raising Teddy was very hard for her. He reminded her of so many things. She also wouldn't give up that experience for the world. Her grandson was her world, her everything and she was still rather protective of him even though he had entered adulthood many years previously. He would always be her little boy.
It didn't take long for Fez to return through the open window, letter in his beak. He ruffled his feathers in what Andromeda assumed was annoyance. The little owl, which had been in the family since Teddy's fifth year at Hogwarts, always had a bit of a colorful personality, which had been what attracted the boy to the bird.
"That was awfully efficient, Fez," Andromeda mused to the old tawny owl. Fez dropped the letter and shuffled worriedly, his little owl claws poking holes in the upholstery of the couch. Andromeda picked up the letter and her brow furrowed.
"Fez, why didn't you deliver the letter to Teddy?" she demanded of the owl. Fez looked up at her with eyes that almost looked as if he shared her worry and confusion. She swallowed, trying to keep herself from jumping to the worst conclusions.
It's probably nothing, she thought. But it was a strange occurrence indeed. After all, Teddy was supposed to be off work.
"Well, it's time to find Harry, then," Andromeda muttered. She headed straight to the fireplace and grabbed a handful of floo powder.
"12 Grimmauld Place," she said after stepping into the fireplace. She threw the powder at her feet and disappeared in a flash of green flames.
The Order gathered together in the dining room, the same as they usually did. Molly was bustling around. Arthur was fiddling with some Muggle contraption that Dedalus Diggle had dropped by with, and Mundungus Fletcher was looking shady as ever, counting out a bit of money in a corner.
Teddy wished he could've joined them, but then he would have to explain his entire story to the other members. He had even tried to convince Moody to let him join in disguise, but the grizzled old Auror was adamant that he, like Victoire and the Potters, were to remain upstairs and out of the way.
So, naturally, he, Vic, James, Al, and Lily, sat in the boys' room together trying to come up with a way to listen to the meeting. They found a couple Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products in the back of the wardrobe in the room, but the left-over Extendable Ears looked like defunct models and hardly worked.
"If only we had the cloak," James said. He was, of course, talking about his father's personal invisibility cloak, which he didn't let them use.
"It'd be hardly big enough for two of us," Lily said. She leaned over to murmur in Al's ear, "Especially with his big head." Al laughed and Teddy joined him, hearing Lily's dig.
Eventually, they decided that the best and only course of action would be to sneak downstairs and try to listen through the door. Teddy cast a quick charm on the ground that would muffle their steps. It was one of his favorites, considering how much he had to use it on his Auror missions. After slowly making their way down the rickety steps, all in a line, they crowded around the closed door and strained to hear.
"…got to keep an eye on those," a man said. The slow, deep cadence betrayed that the speaker was Kingsley Shacklebolt. "It's a shame we can't spare more people for surveillance missions."
"I've been tailing Rodolphus for a couple months now and…" Albus shifted beside him and Teddy lost the last part of what was said about the notorious Death Eater.
"Shut up," James hissed to his brother, whacking him on the arm. Teddy rolled his eyes and tried to concentrate.
He felt a bit silly, really, sneaking around trying to listen in on a top secret meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. Still, he was far too interested in what the meetings were like to care much. He only worried about Moody, and hoped that he was distracted enough not to have 'constant vigilance' on the area just outside the door.
"We have marks on Avery and Mulciber," Moody was saying in his gruff voice. "But they haven't seemed to be up to anything recently. Things are too quiet for my tastes."
"How has the Hogsmeade shift been for you, Tonks?" Kingsley asked.
"I'd rather watch paint dry," Tonks said. "I've seen all the kids during Hogsmeade weekends, but that's the only highlight. No one's coming to Hogsmeade to make trouble. It's too close to Dumbledore."
"And should we hear about Remus and the werewolves?" There was a beat of silence broken only as someone, presumably Remus, cleared his throat.
"They are hostile," he said in his quiet, measured voice. It was so soft Teddy had to hold his breath to better hear. "They believe that the deal they receive under you-know-who is better than anything we have to offer. War means chaos and, on the side of the Death Eaters, that means they have free reign during the full moon. I think it best to stop trying to recruit and instead focus on surveillance."
"Good work, Remus," Kingsley said. "We all know this isn't an easy assignment."
"Any word on Dumbledore?" a female voice asked. Teddy knew it wasn't Tonks- possibly Hestia.
"He is continuing to impart wisdom to Harry that he will need in order to move forward. Don't ask what it is. That remains between the two of them and the two of them alone." There was a general murmur at that.
"Well, if that is all," Kingsley said.
Teddy turned to the others and mouthed 'Go back' to them. They all crept back up the stairs and down the hall as the door to the dining room opened. Teddy ushered everyone back into James and Albus's room as the first Order members began to depart.
"That was more boring than I thought it would be," James commented. Teddy shook his head.
"I think it's cool," he countered. "This is something real- more so than pricks selling expired potions at a street corner or, or Dark artifacts exporters taking up in Knockturn Alley. This is history in the making, James!"
"And we should all be glad that the Order is disbanded again," Victoire said pointedly, giving Teddy that look. He ignored her, feeling a spark of life inside of him. He felt like he had filled a piece that was missing during all his years as an Auror. He felt like the people in that room were actually making a difference, fighting true evil.
"Don't they have dinner together after the meetings usually?" Lily asked as she flopped down on Albus's bed.
"I think, yeah," Victoire answered.
"So how are we going to get dinner if they are all still there?" There was a general murmur of annoyance.
After waiting around for a half hour, there was a knock on the door. Teddy got up to open it only to find Kingsley Shacklebolt on the other side, looking curiously at him.
"Hello, M- Kingsley," Teddy said. He cursed at himself internally for almost calling him 'Minister'. That would've been a shock.
"Oh, so you know me," he said with a smile. "Well, most of the Order is gone now, so Mad-Eye's decided that it's safe for you all to come down for dinner and, since I haven't met you all yet, I wanted to be the one to get you." Teddy grinned at him and opened the door wider so that he could see the others.
"Well, we are glad to accept your invitation to dinner, right everyone?" Teddy said.
"Ugh, finally," James said. "I was starving."
They all trooped down the stairs together and took seats at the dining room table, right where the Order had met previously. Kingsley was asking Albus and Lily about themselves, looking absolutely enthralled with the existence of the Potter children. Teddy sat down next to Remus but kept his eye on the Potters, hoping they wouldn't let slip anything about Kingsley's prestigious job.
"We heard that Moody wouldn't let you sit in on the meeting," Remus said.
"It was a stupid thing to ask, but I was curious," Teddy replied.
"But I suppose you listened anyway?" Remus's eyes seemed to sparkle. He seemed to look younger with his eyes like that even though his hair was speckled prematurely with grey. Teddy winked at him but didn't elaborate. Their methods hadn't been elegant, but it turned out to be effective.
"Anything you have to add to our musings?"
"That would be telling," Teddy said. He sighed. "I want to help, but I know I can't."
"No," Remus agreed. "It's best that you stay here."
"And it's best that I keep my mouth shut, too," Teddy added. "Though I'd like to tell you all what to do."
"Wotcher, Ted," Tonks greeted him as she pulled up the chair on the other side of him. Teddy grinned back at her, loving how happy she seemed to see him.
"Hello," he said in return. "How was your day?" She rolled her eyes.
"Proudfoot and Savage are insufferable gits and I spent an hour in the Hog's Head discussing proper goat care with Aberforth. Did you know he's Dumbledore's brother? Anyway, he knows far too much about goats for his own good." Teddy chuckled.
"Aberforth is a nice guy, though," he admitted. "He's got an interesting past even though he isn't as well-known as Dumbledore." Tonks raised an eyebrow at him and he elaborated. "I used to clean glasses and things on Hogsmeade weekends for a bit of money. It wasn't ever for long, though. There are better things to do in the village."
Teddy was not surprised to find a gorgeous dinner in front of him, nor was he surprised to find himself holing away three helpings of the stuff, as if he was still a growing adolescent.
"Better watch your figure, Teddy Bear, or you'll have some extra stuffing," James teased from across the table. Teddy looked up at him and morphed his face so that his cheeks and eyes were hollowed gauntly. He would've looked like a walking skeleton.
"Good enough?" he asked, letting the morph fall away. "You're one to talk anyway." He watched as James piled another heap of mashed potatoes on his plate.
"So Teddy," Tonks said, "Remus and I were thinking about having a dinner together- just us three or Victoire as well if you would like- before you all have to go. What do you think?"
"That sounds nice." Teddy nodded and turned his attention to his plate.
He didn't want to think about his inevitable return home. He wanted to make this place home; this place where his parents were alive and they could be together. It was almost as if he had fallen through the Mirror of Erised. At night, he could picture himself here aiding the movement against the Ministry and Lord Voldemort alongside his parents. As a boy, he'd had recurring dreams of saving his parents during the battle and since he had arrived at Grimmauld Place, they had returned.
"Nymphadora, is that your mother's patronus?" Remus suddenly asked. Teddy looked up to see a glowing silver crane landed on the table and turned its head towards Teddy.
"Oh no," Teddy muttered.
"Ted," Andromeda Tonks's voice said. Teddy let out a sigh of relief. Not hearing his full name meant she was only a little upset. "Harry told me what happened. I just wanted to remind you that this is not a chance to redo things. You are needed back here and you will come back even if I have to drag you here myself. Stay safe, honey."
It was scary how she was always able to do that. It was like she could read his mind. He glanced over at his mum, whose mouth was hanging slightly open.
"She sounds so much older," she murmured.
A/N: Actually interesting stuff to come. Stay tuned! Thanks for the read.