Ted found himself almost looking forward to Valentine's day, which is something ne never found possible. He'd worried his upcoming date with Teresa would have made things awkward between them, but ever since their moment in the hallway they had gotten along quite splendidly. It was nice to have someone who laughed at his jokes again, since all his other friends just rolled their eyes. Teresa and Ted's interaction hadn't gone unnoticed by Olivia and Lorie either, based on the increased amount of stifled giggles he heard coming from their direction every time he and Teresa spoke to one another. Olivia especially seemed to give them special attention, and she looked positively gleeful. Ted didn't mind though, it was nice not to have to keep things from his friends anymore.
But no matter how comfortable things had gotten, none of it made the sight of the two of them any easier.
If he and Andromeda had broken up for a different reason it wouldn't have been so hard, or if she had left him for anyone else he could have handled it, he thought. But Rabastan was the one thing he couldn't handle.
He'd taken to running in the opposite direction whenever he saw them. It was safer, because the last few times he'd been around Rabastan he'd barely been able to keep himself from hexing the bastard into oblivion. And he hadn't forgotten the way Andromeda had freaked out the last time he'd stepped on Rabastan's toes. Regardless of what was going on between them he didn't want to hurt her, not anymore than he already had.
Which was why, when his bag chose to split open and spill all over the corridor right as they came around the corner, he was still tempted to book it and leave all his belongings there in a mess of the floor. Except, he still had some of the notes he and Andromeda had written to each other in his bag, and considering Andromeda and Rabastan were surrounded by a whole gang of Slytherin—including Rodolphus Lestrange—he couldn't risk those falling into the wrong hands.
He did his best to keep his head down so she wouldn't realize he was there, but he couldn't stop himself from glancing up at her every now and then. Even after everything she'd done, and after all this time away from her, his heart still skipped a beat at the sight of her. It was like before that fateful day when he'd run into her. Standing on the outside, looking in. Wanting so badly to be a part of her world, no matter what that part was.
He shouldn't have worried about her noticing him, she was too wrapped in in Rabastan to notice him. Her hand was inside his and she was laughing at something he said. He felt his chest stiffen in spite of himself. He'd thought that laugh was only reserved for him, he'd been wrong.
He shook his head, trying to clear away these thoughts. What she did or didn't do was not his concern anymore, and it wasn't like he wanted her to be miserable for the rest of her life.
It just still hurt to see her so happy without him.
"I must admit, I've been worried about your courtship," Rodolphus said as they got closer. Ted froze. This was the last thing he wanted to hear, but their didn't seem to be anyway out of it without drawing attention to himself.
"However, you seemed to have settled into your engagement nicely." At first, he didn't register what Rodolphus had said. He'd known that Andromeda and Rabastan's parents wanted them to be together, but Rodolphus had definitely used the word engagement, and based on the way Andromeda blushed, he was telling the truth.
He looked away again, before anyone could notice him. It was a strange, because even though he felt like a ton of bricks had been thrown on his chest, he also had an odd sense of calm. They must have gotten engaged over Christmas, that was why she'd been so attached to him after she got back. And with the way they'd left things before Christmas, he couldn't blame her for having doubts about their future. He had.
It just would have been nice if she waited until they were officially done first, but there was nothing he could do about that now.
"You're engaged?" Dolohov said, loud enough for the whole corridor to hear. A few people stopped to stare at them, mouths open. Ted didn't blame them. Engaged wasn't a word you heard often in school. He was surprised Dolohov didn't know already, but based on the way everyone looked, none of the Slytherins in that group had known.
He almost felt sorry for Andromeda, she looked like she wanted to disappear. It couldn't be easy having everyone knowing you were engaged at 16. What was weird was that Rabastan looked like he wanted to disappear as well. Ted would have thought he'd enjoy all the attention, but maybe he just didn't like everyone knowing he was officially off the market.
"Rodolphus, I thought we had agreed to keep that between us," Rabastan's voice was polite, and cool, but Ted's eyebrows still lifted in surprise, and he wasn't the only one. No one had ever heard Rabastan talk to his brother like that before. He always just followed along with whatever Rodolphus said.
Rodolphus himself looked taken back, but he recovered quickly. "Merlin's beard, brother, four months is far too long to keep a matter such as this a secret."
And just like that, all the calm and sense of acceptance Ted had felt was gone. He glanced up, just as Andromeda glanced over, and their eyes met.
Her face went from shocked to horrified so fast it was almost comical. He wasn't sure what she saw in his face, anger, maybe, or betrayal, or maybe disgust. He wasn't quite sure what he was feeling, but it was somewhere between all three.
Her next expression was pleading, like the one she'd given him all the other times they'd been caught in a moment like this. Pleading him to give her a chance to explain, when they weren't surrounded by so many witnesses.
Like always, the desperation and pain in her face broke him, and that made him just as angry as finding out she'd been lying to him all those months.
He shoved everything in his bag as quickly as he could, not caring if anyone noticed him now. He just needed to get as far away from here as possible. He didn't dare glance back to see if Andromeda was looking, but he felt like she was. Not that he would trust his own instincts anymore.
He didn't pay attention to where he was going, he just moved. Class would be starting soon, so the hallways were emptying out quick. That was good, because he really needed to be alone. Finally, he got his wish, on a side corridor on the fifth floor.
He stopped, trying to catch his breath, but no sooner had he stopped moving, everything he had been trying to push from his mind came rushing back, and he only knew one way to deal with it.
He wound up his fist and punched the wall as hard as he could. Instantly pain laced up his entire arm, but that was exactly the distraction he needed.
Unfortunately, he was going to get one more.
"Feeling a little frustrated today, aren't we?"
Ted froze. For the second time he found himself alone with Rodolphus Lestrange in the worst of moments.
"I was practicing," he spat, "For the next time I met you." It wasn't hard to infuse his voice with anger, there was plenty of that coursing through him. He just hoped it was enough to hide his fear.
Rodolphus didn't even flinch, but his eyes narrowed. "Are you sure it has nothing to do with the unveiling of Andromeda Black's engagement to my brother?"
Ted's blood froze in his veins, and for a half-a-second, he couldn't breathe. A second later his survival instincts kicked in and he laughed dersively. "I could care less what those prats do with their lives."
But his a half a second of weakness had been a half a second too long, based on the way Rodophus's eyes flashed.
"I wouldn't advise lying to me Tonks. I've seen the way you look at my future sister-in-law." He was far to close to comfort now. His calm miraged tossed aside as he seethed. "Did you really think you could keep it a secret?"
He didn't allow himself to blink or look away, but his heart was pounding so heard he was sure it would crack his ribcage. Rodolphus looked ready to kill. "I don't know what you are talking about."
But he might as well declared his undying love to Andromeda for all it did to change Rodolphus' behavior.
"Did you really think a Black would even think twice about the likes of you?" His eyes lost none of their murderous intensity, but he did laugh derisively.
Ted froze again, but for an entirely different reason. Rodolphus' confidence that no Black would ever consider meant he had no idea one already had. Multiple times. The chances of saving himself were slim, but there was a good chance he could still save her.
"No," he breathed, letting out all the tension that had been pent up inside him. It must have come across as dejection, because Rodolphus laughed.
"Perhaps you're not as stupid as you look, or perhaps you're lying." He didn't move away from Ted, but he no longer looked like he was comtemplated how to snuff Ted out and dispose of his body without leaving any evidence, so that was a place.
"Andromeda Black thinks I'm scum like the rest of you, nothing will ever change that." That wasn't exactly true, but he had plenty of other things to be bitter about for it to sound like it was.
"You're the definition of hopeless romantic, aren't you, Tonks?" Rodolphus snorted.
"At least I'm Romantic," Ted spat out before he could stop himself.
He must have touched a nerve, because the next thing he knew he was being lifted into the air by an invisible force around his neck. He hadn't even seen Rodolphus pull out his wand, but now it was pointed right at him. He called at his neck, even though it was pointless.
"Stay away from my sister-in-law," Rodolphus didn't raise his voice, or offer any sort of or else, but the threat was replied.
Not a problem, Ted wanted to say, but he couldn't, he could barely breathe. His vision was starting to go black. He fumbled around his wand, something he probably should have done before he was on the verge on losing consciousness, but before he could Rodolphus released him.
The sudden surge of oxygen really did cause his vison to black out, plus he was gagging and sputtering. By the time he came too, Rodolphus was gone.
He stood, shaking. Someone like Rodolphus finding out his secret had been his worst nightmare, but at least Andromeda was safe. But if he thought he had to stay away from before, it was nothing compared to what he had to do now. He couldn't risk Rodolphus realizing he only knew half a truth.
He was surprised by how much that realization hurt. He'd hadn't spoken to Andromeda for a month, and he barely allowed himself to look at her, so why did the idea of cutting her out of his life completely hurt nearly as much as losing her in the first place?