The Eighth Year Universe

Love Wins

The World Won't Spin Without Them

The chapter title is from the song:

One Beer by HARDY, Lauren Alaina and Devin Dawson.


Neville's monologue is one from Grey's Anatomy. I'm not sure which episode, but I'm pretty sure it's Meredith who says it.


On Sunday, two days after she had died, and on the morning that the news had been made public thanks to the Daily Prophet, everybody lit a candle for Natasha Wolfe.

At Hogwarts, the staff had decided to light a lantern and send it into the sky for Natasha. Amongst them were Lacey, who had been the Arithmancy teacher for quite some time now, and her husband, Jackson. Natasha had been his cousin, and it was with his father's stoic calmness that he let go of the lantern.

As Headmaster, Neville had decided to say a few words as he would at any memorial service. It was just the staff, with it being the summer holidays, so there was no need for a sonorus charm.

"There's an end to every storm," Neville said, looking out at the moonlight reflecting off the black lake.

Lacey swallowed and placed her hand on her stomach as more lanterns began to fill the sky. A feeling of dread settled in the pit of her stomach as a thought she couldn't shake filled her head once more – what sort of world am I bringing my baby into?

"Once all of the trees have been uprooted."

Jennifer lit the candle in her and Rob's home.

"Once all the houses have been ripped apart."

Rob could barely look at it, keeping his eyes on the ground as the wax beginning to melt became the only sound in the silent room, bar the odd sob that escaped one of them.

John stood behind Rob, a hand gripping his shoulder firmly and anchoring him to reality at the same time. Rob swallowed and reached up, placing his hand over his best friends.

Elizabeth sat by Jennifer's side, barely holding back her own tears as she tried to remain strong for her sister.

"The wind will hush."

On the balcony in Blacknot Castle, Draco used his wand to light a lantern, then Sadie threw it gently into the sky.

Theo stepped forward and put an arm over her shoulder as she watched it fly away. Hermione wiped her eyes and reached down for Draco's hand. He took it and swallowed, his eyes on the sky.

Theo noticed and reached down with his spare hand, taking Draco's.

The other man squeezed it slightly in response, but not a word was spoken between them.

Behind them, the majority of the kids watched the lantern ascend. Ada and Dora held onto each other, and Cas let Ella lean her head on his shoulder as tears fell down her cheeks.

"The clouds will part."

Below on the grounds, Charlus lit a candle on a lily flower and pushed it out onto the lake.

As it floated away, he got to his feet and took Victoire's hand. She swallowed tearfully and let go of Charlus's hand to lean into his embrace. By their side, Almina pulled Addison into a hug as the younger girl let out a reluctant sob.

Almina sighed and looked at Charlus over Addison's head.

The twins had always been able to tell what the other was thinking. So Charlus nodded and let go of Victoire, kissing her on the forehead and murmuring, "I think you and Addison should both stay in the Garden Cottage tonight."

Victoire looked over at Addison and nodded.

Almina let go of her friend, and Victoire reached out to grab Addison's hand. The redhead let Victoire pull her towards her and Charlus.

"Stay with us tonight," She said softly.

Addison swallowed, her eyes still on the lily flower.

"You shouldn't be alone," Charlus said, putting an arm around her shoulder.

Addison just nodded, and Almina looked at them apologetically, "I need to go. Nick…"

"We get it," Charlus promised, "Go, be with them."

Almina nodded and took her leave, glancing from the candle in the lake to the lantern in the sky before slipping out of the castle gates.

"The rain will stop."

In Potter Manor, Harry used a match rather than his wand to light the simple white candle on the drawing-room table.

He took a step back and felt a hand slip into his. Harry swallowed and squeezed it, knowing that Daphne was by his side as she always had been.

Neville put an arm over his shoulder, and Harry looked over at them. Lilly was holding back tears, her hand in Neville's.

The kids had taken it badly. Andrea was sitting on the couch with her knees pulled up. Alastor was seated next to her, his arm around his sister's shoulder as tears fell down her cheeks. Natasha hadn't been that much older than Andie and Al; they had been close growing up.

Thea was sitting on the sofa opposite them, her eyes on the candle but her mind far away. The only person missing from the gathering was Teddy, but they understood why. He was where he needed to be.

"The sky will clear in an instant."

At Nick and Nina's small London flat, Nina was the one to light the lantern and then hold it up to the open roof light.

She looked over at Nick tearfully, and he nodded.

That was all the confirmation she needed to let go and watch it float up to the heavens.

"And only then, in those quiet moments after the storm, do we learn who was strong enough to survive it."

Nick swallowed but tried to hold in his true feelings. Nina saw right through that, she always had. Her true nature was incredibly gentle, even if she and Nick sometimes fought like cat and dog.

She wrapped an arm around his waist, and some of the tension in Nick's body eased at her touch.

Almina looked expectantly at Teddy, and he moved to Nick's other side. When he took Nick's hand, the other man intertwined their fingers seamlessly.

Almina sighed and watched the three of them from a distance, not because she was uncomfortable or because she felt that she didn't belong. But because she didn't handle grief the same way that normal people did. Maybe it came from what had happened to her Pops when she was young, but Almina distanced herself and acted like she was fine until she wasn't.

"Mina," Teddy said, reaching a hand out for her.

Almina looked at him, their eyes locking. He was pleading with her silently, so she sighed and walked over to him, taking his hand and letting him pull her close to his side.

They were silent. All of them had tears running down their cheeks – all of them but Almina.

When the lantern had disappeared from view, Nick shut the roof light and disappeared into the bedroom. At first, nobody made a move to follow him, then Nina nodded at Teddy, "I think he might lose control of his temper, Teddy. You know I can't handle that the way that you can."

Teddy nodded and followed Nick into the bedroom.

Nina sighed, relieving the tension in her shoulders, and Almina poured herself a firewhiskey.

Nina bit her lip, eyeing her friend warily, "That's not a healthy way to cope with your grief."

Almina shrugged, "Well, it's the way I've always coped."

Nina stepped forward and reached out to place her hand on top of Almina's, "That doesn't make it right."

"I don't care," Almina said coolly, "It's what I'm going to do."

Nina wiped her eyes and looked up at Almina, "You're going to repress everything in a deep, twisted place until one day you snap and kill someone?"

Almina drained her firewhiskey, "Yes."

"God," Nina muttered as she took a step back, "You really are your father's daughter."

Almina's eyes snapped over to Nina, "What the hell does that mean?"

"It means your dad does exactly that!" Nina snapped, "And look at how that went down. He and your mum almost split up because of it. Mina, it's not healthy to push it down, not when you have people who will hold you and tell you it's okay if you break down."

Almina swallowed, "She wasn't my sister."

"No, but she was your friend," Nina said quietly, "We all loved Nat, and every one of us has the right to grieve her."

Almina nodded and looked away.

Nina turned around to leave, then Almina let out a reluctant sob and let her head drop into her hands.

At that point, Nina turned back and pulled her friend into her arms as Almina finally let it all out.


That night in Blacknot Castle, Draco got a Patronus.

"Taskforce confirmed. We ship out at 7 am on Tuesday morning."

Charlus looked up, "They've picked the team?"

"Harry has, yes," Draco replied, without looking at his son.

"Almina isn't going, is she?" Theo asked.

Draco shook his head, "No, she isn't."

"What about Teddy?"

"He isn't going either," Draco confessed, "Harry called up the Reserve Aurors. It's a job for experienced hands, not reckless youth. The youngest people there will be the trauma healers assisting Lilly."

"What trauma healer?" Charlus asked quickly.

Draco glanced at his son, "Why do you ask?"

Charlus shrugged, "I know a Trauma Healer."

Sadie cocked her head at her son knowingly, "You know Victoire Delacour? That's all there is to it?"

Draco sighed, "I know you and Victoire are….involved, somehow, Charlus. I thought she might have told you by now, but she was chosen for the mission."

Charlus nodded and got to his feet, heading upstairs towards Almina's bedroom. He knew she was not long back from Teddy and Nick's place.

Draco frowned, "I didn't think it was serious."

"Of course it's serious," Sadie said with a knowing smile, "He's had feelings for Victoire for a while, I think."

Hermione nodded her agreement, "And there's nothing like a war to make you re-evaluate your feelings."

Draco raised an eyebrow, "You should not have been feeling anything good towards me during the war, Hermione."

Hermione smirked and leaned back in her armchair, the one she was currently sharing with Theo, "Who said I was talking about you and me?"

"Typical Draco," Theo teased, "Making it all about himself, again."

With a chuckle, Hermione said, "I was talking about Theo and Sadie."

"Hm," Sadie mused, flicking the page in her encrypted notebook, "The war, otherwise known as when Theo realised I was a girl."

"Hey," Theo cut in, "I always knew you were a girl. I just didn't think you were a girl I should have sex with."

Ada and Dora were in bed, thankfully, and Cas had barely left his bedroom all day. But Ella was still in the room, and she made a face, "Wow, that's insulting."

Theo rolled his eyes, "Because we were friends, Ella. And sometimes when you love someone so much, and you've been friends for so long, the most terrifying thing is taking that relationship to the next level, in case you screw it up and it blows up in your face."

Ella looked up at them and burst into tears, which was a complete shock.

Hermione was the one who walked over and enveloped her in a hug, while the other three shared confused looks.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Hermione asked gently.

"Noah broke up with me because I'm going to Egypt," Ella sobbed, "Then the same day, he tried to kiss Roxy, but she bat-bogeyed him for being an arse and using her as a rebound."

"Gryffindors," Theo scoffed, "Didn't I tell you that you could do better than that?"

Sadie gave him a look that said, 'not now, Theo'.

"I think what Pops is trying to say is that you are unique, Ella," Draco said softly, "You are beautiful and smart – smarter than most guys, which might intimidate them. Your mum found that sometimes when she was young and stupid and thought Ronald Weasley was the one for her."

Hermione gave Draco a long-suffering look.

Ella sniffed and looked up at her dad.

"Noah Wood is below you," Draco said, "He's an idiot, and you're wonderful."

Ella rubbed her eyes and asked them testily, "It's not like only dumb guys go for dumb girls, you know? I know plenty of smart guys who are dating dumb girls too. So what do the smart girls get?"

"Cats, mostly," Theo joked.

"Theo!" Sadie and Hermione echoed.

Draco rolled his eyes, "I'm smart, and I fell in love with your mum, who is smarter than me. Pops is smart, and he fell in love with your Mama, who is smarter than him."

Theo scoffed, "Excuse me. Who invented a map of London that has been called revolutionary?"

"You stole the idea from the Marauders, even if the charm work is exemplary," Hermione cut in.

"Your wife, on the other hand - " Draco added, " - invented a spell in seventh year, which disrupted time and stopped us from being detected by the Death Eaters running Hogwarts for an entire year."

Theo thought about this for a second, then nodded, "Okay, so she's smarter than me."

Ella smiled slightly, "So one day, I'll find someone smart?"

"Who appreciates you," Draco cut in, "That part is important. You need to make sure that you don't settle for anything less."

"That's very important," Hermione added.

Ella nodded and wiped her eyes again, "I guess I can wait then."

"You never know, you might meet someone in Egypt," Sadie said with a smile, "When I worked there, I met lots of wonderful, smart people from all over the world."

Encouraged by this, Ella nodded and cleared her throat, "Okay, thanks, guys. Sorry for the…you know, breakdown."

"You wouldn't be Hermione Granger's daughter if you didn't internalise everything then have a breakdown," Theo joked. At which point, a hex flew across the room in his direction.

"Ow!"

"You deserved it!"

"He usually does…."


"Hey, Mina."

Almina looked up to the doorway of her bedroom, where Charlus was hovering.

She smiled tiredly, "Hey, Charlie."

"How are you doing?" Charlus asked, stepping into the room.

Almina shrugged, but her eyes were red and bloodshot, "I'm okay," she lied.

"I'm not," Charlus admitted, "I don't suppose you knew that Victoire was one of the Trauma Healers who had been chosen for the Hungary mission?"

Almina shook her head, "No, I didn't even know that a team had been selected. Is Teddy going?"

Charlus shook his head, "No, he isn't."

Almina let out a relieved sigh, then remembered her brother's plight.

"I'm sorry about Victoire."

"Yeah, same," Charlus said with a frown, "Dad told me. Vic hasn't said a thing."

"Well, you are just friends with benefits," Almina pointed out, "It's not like she's obligated to tell you anything."

Charlus sighed and shook his head, "Do friends with benefits go to parties together? She came here, for mum's election party and…I don't know, Mina, I thought we were more."

Almina's eyes widened when she realised what her brother was actually saying.

"Holy shit, you like her!"

Charlus ran a hand through his hair, as he always did when distracted or trying to make a difficult decision.

"I don't just like her," He admitted, "I think…I think I'm in love with her."

Almina smiled slightly, "You, Charlus Nott, in love?"

Charlus gave her an amused look, "What like it's so hard to believe?"

Almina laughed, "You're the boy who once said that love was for fools and children."

"Technically I stole that from a movie character, but yeah," Charlus shrugged, "That was a couple of years ago now, though, I've matured. Your opinions do change as you get older, you know."

"Charlus, you're 21," Almina said dryly.

"Exactly," Charlus retorted, "Older, more mature."

"Hm," Almina mused, "I guess getting your heart broken by Blake has changed you. Angel thought it had, but I wasn't quite as convinced until now."

Charlus leant against the doorway, "Well then, seeing as you are my favourite sister-"

Almina snorted, "You say that to all of us, but I'll believe you because you are my favourite brother."

Charlus smiled at her, "Maybe it's all a façade. Maybe I'm just a hopeless romantic."

"Of course you are," Almina said softly, "Which means that there's only one thing left to do."

"Tell Victoire," Charlus agreed.

"In a hopelessly romantic way," Almina added.

Charlus just laughed in response.

"They ship out at 7 am on Tuesday, so I guess I'm gonna do it soon.,"

"Yes, you will need to," Almina agreed, "Oh, and Charlus?"

"Yeah?" Charlus asked as he pushed himself off of the door frame.

"Make it count."

"I will."


It had been a simple floo call with his fiancé. A standard call, she was checking in on him and Nick, that was all. Or at least it had been until she mentioned a mission to Hungary that Victoire had been selected for and that they left at 7 am on Tuesday.

It was 9 pm on Monday, and this was the first of him hearing about it.

When she told him who was heading up the mission, then it had become personal, and that was why Teddy was storming into the drawing-room of Potter Manor furiously.

He blasted the doors open with magic and glared at his father.

"You took over the task force? And you won't let me be a part of it? You fucking hypocrite!"

Harry sighed and motioned to an armchair, "Sit down, Teddy."

"No!" Teddy snapped, "I want you to look at me and tell me why you kicked me off that team. Cause I know damn well I was on that team until you took over! Ben all but told me so!"

"Your partner just lost his sister - " Harry began.

"Did Uncle Draco get kicked off the team to find Theo? No, I don't fucking think so, Dad!" Teddy snapped, "So stop bullshitting me and tell the truth!"

Harry looked him in the eye, "Fine. The truth is that you're not ready."

"What?" Teddy asked in disbelief.

"You are not ready," Harry said slowly, "You're a Metamorphmagus. That's the sole reason that Ben wanted you on that mission. And you're a damn good Auror, Teddy, but you are not ready for this."

"And you just thought you'd decide that for me, did you?" Teddy asked irritably.

"As someone who pretty much trained you and has a better idea than most of what this team is going to be walking into, yes," Harry replied calmly.

"Because this is what leaders have to do, Teddy. They have to make the difficult decisions, and they are difficult because they are not popular."

Teddy scoffed and turned away, shaking his head furiously.

"You go into work every day looking like our son because you don't want to take advantage of being a Metamorphmagus. And this is another time when the ministry would have taken advantage, of you, because of what you can do. I know how that feels, Teddy, because they did it to me for years, and I will not let any ministry, especially one run by your Aunt Hermione, do that to you."

Teddy turned to look at his father, but he didn't say anything.

"When the team was originally requested, it was going to be a slow-paced, intelligence gathering mission," Harry added.

"In that case, having a Metamorphmagus to infiltrate the group would have been perfect. But that's not the case anymore. Now that we know more, we need to move faster, which means we need an experienced strike team. The ministry is at risk, you saw what happened to Natasha there, and Hermione was almost assassinated. We cannot afford to leave it undefended."

"Is that really what this is about?" Teddy asked, his eyes scanning his father's, "Not just one last hurrah for you? I mean, you're what, getting the band back together for one big fight, just like the old days?"

Harry's eyes flashed, "It is nothing like that."

"Really?" Teddy asked coolly, "Who else is on this team then, huh?"

Harry kept his tone even, "Neville will be partnering me, and we will also be accompanied by Reserve Aurors Sheppard, Lorne, Mitchell and Wood."

"All people you spent years working with then," Teddy said, giving him an unconvinced nod, "Not like you're getting the band back together at all. Are you taking a Trauma team?"

"Yes," Harry replied, narrowing his eyes at his son.

"Don't suppose it's being run by Aunt Lil, is it?"

"Teddy-"

"Of course it is," Teddy scoffed, "So what you're saying is that Mum is the only person you've slept with whose not going?"

Harry's eyes flashed with worry for a moment, and Teddy took a step back.

"Fuck off!" Teddy snapped, "You're telling me you're leading a strike team with your best friend, your wife and the woman who shares your bed more often than you'll ever admit."

Harry took a step forward, "Teddy, that is none of your business-"

"Oh, come on, Dad!" Teddy yelled, "We all know it happens! We're not fucking stupid!"

"It's not your place to tell me how to live my life!" Harry snapped, "You are my son, and a little respect every once and a while would be nice."

"Do you know what, Dad?" Teddy asked furiously, "I've respected you every day of my life, until today. And even now, I could have had respect if you had just told me the truth because the truth is that I would be on that task force if mum wasn't so terrified of losing me. And I don't get why I'm so fucking important to her because I'm not even yours, and there are three more where I came from."

"You are ours in every way that matters, Teddy," Harry said quietly, "And one day in the coming years, you and Almina will have a family of your own. And I can tell you that if you were ever in my position and you had the chance to stop your son from being sent into a warzone, you would absolutely do it."

Teddy still looked angry, but Harry didn't let him get a word in edge-wise.

"You are not expendable," Harry said firmly, "So stop acting like you are."

Teddy laughed weakly, "Bold advice, coming from you. Where do you think I learned it, Dad?"

"Don't be like me, Teddy," Harry said, "I have had to try and walk the line my entire life, torn between doing the best thing for the wizarding world and the best thing for my family. And I have failed more times than I can count, I've failed your mother, I've failed you, but worst of all, when she was only a baby, I failed Thea."

"Yeah, I remember," Teddy said darkly.

"But you are better than me," Harry said, "You are a better person than I ever was because your mother and I just raised you. But the building blocks you are made of, they are incredible. Your biological parents were incredible, and you are too. The worst thing I can imagine is for you to end up like me, Teddy. You're better; you have always been better."

"You're an absolute idiot, Dad," Teddy said tearfully, "You talk about all the times you've failed. You castigate yourself for them, but you never focus on the good stuff. You never talk about the times you took us to Quidditch games when we were kids or played hide and seek with the four of us all over the manor. What about the Christmases you didn't miss, with the huge snowball fights and the skating on the lake?"

He shook his head, "You and Mum had your struggles, yeah. You're not perfect, and you never have been, but you've never pretended to be either. I learned one of the most important things I ever could have from watching you two, from being raised by two people who loved each other so much."

Teddy sighed and looked his father in the eye, "That life will always be a struggle, but the most bearable way to get through it is to pick the person you want to struggle with."

Harry nodded tearfully, "In all that I've done in my life, the thing that I am proudest of is you four."

Teddy nodded too.

"And your mum, she does struggle with the idea of you being hurt," Harry agreed, "There aren't three more where you came from because every single one of you is different. You were our first, Teddy, and we were so young when we adopted you. We had no idea what we were doing, but we got through the sleepless nights, and we dealt with the tantrums and with every day that we loved you, we fell in love with each other even more. We chose you. Alastor? He found us, and the girls were miracles, but we chose you, Teddy, and if anything happened to you….it would break her heart."

The tapestry by the fireplace swayed, and Daphne stepped out with tears in her eyes.

"If anything happened to any of you, I don't know what I would do," She promised.

"People on the outside look at me, and they see the snarky Ice Queen who has it all put together, but if you were hurt, Teddy, I think I would just shatter."

Teddy looked at her, "But I'm an Auror, Mum, it's my job."

Daphne nodded. She crossed the room to draw him into a hug, "And I would never stop you from doing it if I truly felt that it was right. But sending young promising Aurors into Hungary is not right. Your father has the right idea, to send the experienced strike team in to deal with this. Don't take it personally. This isn't some conspiracy against you."

Harry looked at his son, whose expression was softening.

"There were four people discarded when your father took control of the task force," Daphne said softly, "It was not just you, and a huge consideration was Nick. He cannot go to Hungary without compromising himself and possibly the mission. He needs to stay here, for his parent's sake, and you are the only thing holding him together right now."

"Sometimes the noble thing to do isn't save the world," Harry said softly, "But to save the people you love most in it."


When Teddy stepped into the Wolfe's residence in London, it was silent. Usually, he could hear Rob yelling about something or Jennifer prattling on about work. Natasha would be playing loud music, and Nick would be stomping around upstairs.

But from the silence in the hallway, the house might as well have been empty.

Still, Teddy knew that it wasn't, so he crept along the corridor, peering into doorways to find Nick. He saw Rob sitting in an armchair in front of the fire, fast asleep, with an empty bottle of Odgen's on the table beside him and a smashed glass on the floor.

With a sigh, he stepped inside and muttered, "Reparo."

The glass flew back together, and Teddy cleaned the carpet with a whispered, "Scourgify". He was just throwing a warm blanket over Rob when a voice from the doorway said.

"You don't have to do that."

Teddy turned around and saw Jennifer, who looked worse than he had ever seen her. She was always so put together, her glamour charms in place, her hair perfectly styled. But right now, her skin was pale, her eyes bloodshot. She looked like she hadn't slept in days.

"I…I was looking for Nick and I…." Teddy sighed, "I saw him, and it just seemed like the right thing to do."

Jennifer nodded tearfully, "We know that you and Nick live together, and it's okay, Teddy. I'm just glad he has people who love him right now. He…needs that."

Teddy nodded, unsure what to say.

"Are you…okay, Mrs Wolfe?"

Jennifer laughed without any real humour, "Okay? No. I… don't know how I am, Teddy. There's no word for what's happened to us."

Teddy frowned over at her.

"A wife who loses a husband is called a widow. A child who loses his parent is called an orphan. But there is no word for a parent who loses a child. That's how awful the loss is."

With a hard look in his eyes, Teddy stepped forward and hugged her. Jennifer made a small, strange noise from somewhere in the back of her throat.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Wolfe," Teddy murmured, pulling back, "But my…my father was an alcoholic, and he wasn't always there for my mother when things were hard. I learned quite young that sometimes all my mum needed was a hug, but that he was too drunk to see that."

Jennifer's eyes filled with tears as they fell unwittingly on Rob.

She nodded, "Thank you, Teddy. You're a good boy. Nick is lucky to have you."

Teddy smiled weakly, and Jennifer patted him on the shoulder, "Nick is upstairs."

Teddy nodded, recognising it as a dismissal. He slipped past her and disappeared upstairs to find Nick. He eventually found him on the top floor of the house, where there was a roof terrace leading off the main corridor.

"Hey," Teddy said softly. He leant against the railing next to Nick, who had a half-smoked cigarette in his mouth.

"Hey," Nick returned.

"You gonna share?"

Nick raised an eyebrow, "Thought your mum made you stop?"

"Fuck my mum," Teddy said, holding out his hand.

Nick snorted and held out a cigarette, "Yeah, a lot of people want to."

Teddy gave him an exasperated look, "Don't start. The only time I've ever punched someone was because they slagged her off."

He lit the cigarette with his wand and took a grateful drag, then moved closer to Nick so that their arms were just touching.

"Yeah, I remember that," Nick chuckled, "That bastard Selwyn, wasn't it?"

"Caius, yeah," Teddy returned, "Dickhead Slytherin who was in your year."

Nick nodded and blew out a ring of smoke.

"He had a go at you when the papers wrote that bullshit about your mum having an affair with Bill Weasley, and you told him to go and believe everything the papers said like his stupid mother."

"His mother is stupid, to be fair," Teddy argued, "She's a Brown."

Nick snorted, "He went nuts at you, didn't he? For bringing his mother into it, then he said, 'your mum's had more men than the Grand Old Duke of York' and fuck me, Ted, you walloped him."

"He deserved it," Teddy said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, he did," Nick agreed, "But how did you go from that to the guy who just said, 'fuck my mum?"

"She's going to Hungary," Teddy replied, "Cause Dad's taken over the task force, and it's now a mission for the Reserve Aurors. You and me, we're to man the home front."

Nick took another drag of his cigarette and looked over at Teddy, "You're expecting me to lose my shit, right?"

"Yeah," Teddy admitted, "Because, unlike me, you are pretty fond of punching people in the face."

Nick laughed weakly, "Yeah, I've never laid a finger on you though, have I?"

"No," Teddy admitted, "You haven't."

Nick looked at the city skyline in the distance, "I'm not ready to go to Hungary because if I saw the people who did this…I'd blast their heads clean off. You said it, I've got a temper, and it doesn't just come out once in a blue moon like yours."

Teddy chuckled, "That's because I'm Hufflepuff through and through, but you've got a ton of Gryffindor in you."

"Blame my Dad," Nick said, but he didn't smile.

"That's why you want to stay here, isn't it?" Teddy asked knowingly.

Nick nodded, "Yeah, I'm worried about him, Ted. I've gotta be here when he transforms, or…he might not make it."

Teddy took a drag from the cigarette. He held it for a second and reached over, placing his hand over Nick's, then he blew the smoke out.

"I'll be with you," He promised.

Nick nodded, and they both looked out towards London as a clap of thunder sounded above them.

"That sounded close," Teddy mused.

"A thunderstorm in July?" Nick asked, frowning at the sky.

"Summer storms," Teddy said with a shrug. He finished his cigarette and stubbed it out, "They happen more often than you'd think."

A flash of lightning lit up the sky, and seconds later, another came down from the horizon.

"Looks like someone angered the Gods," Nick said dryly.

"Or pleased them," Teddy said, cocking his head as the thunder rolled above them and light rain began to fall, "Because that's pretty beautiful."

Nick nodded and threw his cigarette over the railing.

Another flash of lightning shot down straight in front of them, and Teddy spoke softly.

"I guess that's the problem with Gods. Their pleasure and their wrath often look the same."

Nick glanced sideways at his best friend and saw the conflict shining in his eyes. He was angry, he wanted to go to Hungary, but he knew that he was needed here. But most of all, he was scared.

With a sigh, Nick squeezed his hand.

"It's gonna be okay."

Teddy looked over, "Yeah?"

"Yeah," Nick echoed, "But I need to stay here. I know Almina is keeping an eye on Nina, and she's burying herself in work anyway, so I'm going to stay here and help Jennifer plan the funeral."

Sometimes Teddy found it odd that Nick had never called Jennifer 'Mum'. He had never asked Nick why, and he probably never would. There were some things people liked to keep close to their chests, and anything about Nick's mother fell into that category.

"Do you want me to stay too?"

Teddy's words cut through Nick's idle thoughts. Nick's dark eyes found Teddy's, and he nodded.

"Yeah," He said, his voice rough, "Yeah, Ted, I'd like that."

Teddy put an arm around him and pulled him towards the house, "Come on then, it's late."

"Thanks," Nick said.

Teddy knew he meant for more than offering to stay and help plan the funeral. But there were some things that people just didn't talk about, and that was one of them.

- TBC –