CH1 Kings Cross Station
"EWWWWWWW GROSS!" exclaimed James as he bolted out of the compartment and down the corridor of the carriage. "She is my cousin, Ted that is gross"
Teddy sighed, "I am going to kill him at Christmas, Vi I really am this time."
"Don't worry Teddy leave him to us," said Victoire with a sly grin in response to Teddy's raise eyebrow, "he has a massive crush on Hailey. We will get him. We should go so I can say good bye to Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny too."
"I guess, I have to get to training as well, I think Gawain only gave me the morning off as a favour to Harry." said Teddy taking Victoire by the hand.
As Teddy and Victoire appeared at the end of the carridge he could have sworn he heard James squeak in panic and he knew he had spilt the beans. Since Teddy had given over to Victoire's plan for revenge he decided to have a small bit of fun at James' expense, he turned back to Victoire kissing her on the cheek and whispered in her ear "I will try and get off for Hogsmeade."
"You better."
Hopping off the train Teddy turned and bowed to Victoire, as if she was a princess sending every girl around into fits of giggles or gasps of glee and every boy over fifteen scowling wondering how they could pip that. As he stood back up and turned to give James a little scare that he deserved. He walked head first in to Bill Weasley's chest. "Er, sorry Mr Weasley, I, I…"
"Bill, please, Mr Weasley is my father." Bill said with a broad grim
"Er, yes sir, er Bill" stammered Teddy as his hair went red to match his cheeks. Teddy mannerisms around Victoire's parents had changed two years ago in his final year at Hogwarts once he had finally got up the courage to ask Victoire out to Hogsmeade. Like his godfather Teddy had taken a long time, almost too long to realize that the girl for him had been right in front of him the whole time.
"Well Teddy, er Ted, which do you prefer Ted or Teddy? Quizzed Bill..
"Umm Ted, is good."
"OK, Ted I have noticed things seem to have changed between my little Viccy and yourself, and while I trust you to be honourable with my babygirl. I was a young once and I too remember what it was like as a young man interested in girls and having them interested in me. Though from that last display it appears not as many as you, however, back on track this is my daughter's heart we are talking about it is not a matter to be taken lightly."
"Er, y-y-y-es sir, er um, Bill," Teddy squeaked, hoping for a way to by swallowed up, before steeling himself and lifting his gaze to look in to Bill's eyes and for the first time truly see the scare across his face from his fight with Fenir Greyback all those years ago. "Sir, I promise you I have no intension of doing anything to hurt Vi, in anyway."
"Brilliant! Just what I like to hear." Bill exclaimed slapping Teddy on the shoulder while grinning widely.
"Bill Weasley – William!" shrieked both Fleur and Ginny at the same time scowling at Bill both in their finest rendition of Molly Weasley, "If I find you have been berating Teddy for both his and your daughter's affections for each other, well I will…" with that Bill had whipped his hand from Teddy's shoulder to cover his own face praying she sister would not do what he feared most. This reaction was met with howls of ruckus laughter from every Weasley and Potter still standing on the platform.
Teddy, however, had not noticed he was still considering the man's scar they shared a bond one he had not thought of before. That scar held a curse, well that is how most people looked upon it. While Bill Weasley did not suffer full effects of being scared by a werewolf, he did desire his meat bloody and his temper was known to flare with the lunar cycle. That scar had been given to Bill by the same werewolf that had bestowed the curse of being a werewolf upon Teddy's father Remus John Lupin, while Teddy in his nineteen years of life had never changed or felt really any different at the full moon. Even with this as the case this had not the stopped the bigotry that Teddy had faced through he life as the son of a werewolf, he sometimes wondered where he would be if it was not for his godfather and the Weasley's. He may never gone to Hogwarts, never joined the Aurors, never have known how to love and be loved.
"Hey Freakboy!" taunted Edgar Bletchley. "So the only way you can get a girlfriend is scrap the barrel and hang around with a Weasley."
Teddy stopped clenching his fists, he turned to face theSlytherin Keeper. "You What?"
"What you going to do freak boy, change your hair colour on me? Oooh scary."
"Teddy no he is not worth it." Victoire begged as she jump in front of Teddy, "Please ignore him."
"No Vi, nobody's allowed to talk about you like that."
"No Teddy I don't care, plus he is bigger than you, you could get hurt." Victoire was now pushing against Teddy's chest to try and stop him from fronting up to the much bigger teen. As Victiore was saying this Teddy started to change firstly his hair lost all its usual vivid colour and was now almost ash grey, and his eyes lost all their warmth.
"Oooh freaky you changed your hair I am so scared." What Bletchley hadn't noticed was that Teddy had also changed physically, he had grown at least 4 inches in hieght and he was getting stronger, Victoire was now having trouble holding him back. " Hey lucky your little girlfriend is protecting you otherwise…"
Just then the rest of the Gyrffindor Quiditch team rounded the corner and Victoire saw her chance calling to James Woods the Gryffindor Keeper and Captain" James HELP!" In a flash the entire team was now struggling to holding Teddy back.
"Hey Bletchley, sod off you prat, your Beaters aren't here to protect you now." Ordered Woods, at that Bletchley turned on his heel and strode of laughing to himself.
Thanking her fellow Gryffindors Victoire turned back to Teddy worried she pleaded with him. "Teddy, please look at me…" but there was no response," PLEASE TEDDY COME BACK TO ME!" she now screamed pounding his chest. Slowly Teddy's eyes warmed as he looked down at Victoire. It was only then that the group really took in Teddy's change of appearance.
"Merlin's Beard Lupin, when did you bulk up like this?" Flattered the team's two female chasers, their comments caused Teddy to blush all the was to the tip of his hair causing everyone to laugh except Victoire and Teddy. While she knew the two fith year girls were not interested in Teddy that way, she did not like touching the boy she felt was destined to be hers.
Victoire was brought back to the real world when she heard Teddy speak. " Sorry Vi, its just that you are…" Teddy struggled to finsh what he was saying," er, ah, and I promised your mum and dad I would make sure you were ok." He smiled sheepishly.
"And the rest Lupin", joked Woods.
"Drop it Woods," Scolded Jody Spinnet, one of the two fifth year chasers." And Victoire you are always welcome to hang out with us, just ignore Woods we do." With that she blew a kiss at James Woods, who was faining hurt and the girls guided Vitoire up to the Common Room "Don't worry," Jody whispered to Victoire, "James will look after Teddy, he won't let anything happen to his star Seeker."
"Ah Lupin," said Gawain in his usual stern guff voice, "just who I was looking for the boss wants a word, what have you done this time?" cracking a slight smile at the end. Snapping Teddy out of his daze it was late Thursday afternoon he had only seen Victoire off on the Express on the Monday and he missed her deeply, he missed everything about her. As Teddy lazily got up from his chair and started to drag his feet to Harry's office he was again snapped out of his daze as Gawain barked, "Now, don't keep the man waiting!"
A couple of minutes later Teddy was standing outside Harry's office door raising his hand to knock he took one last deep breathe, but even before his knuckles rapt on the door it swung open and Harry met Teddy face to face grinning. Though something was not right his eyes, Teddy knew that Harry's eyes where saying something else.
"Good you are here, lets go to the training hall. I have some things to discuss with you and I think I like my office the way it is."
"But, wha…" spluttered Teddy
"Ah, Gawain I am going to the Training Hall and I do not, I repeat do not want to be disturbed. Any problems you can not deal with yourself go to Ron or the Minister if you must, but until I come out I do not want to know, GOT IT?" barked Harry, with Teddy in tow.
"Man I don't know what Lupin has done but he is in for it" stated Dawlish with a quizzical look to Gawain over his own cubical.
On entering the training hall Teddy stopped dead in his tracks it was bare, just the duelling platform in the middle of the room and padding all around the walls. It was only ever like this for the real wet behind the ear rookies, and that was to protect their trainers more than themselves from the wild curses and jinxes they threw before they could really control themselves. Though it had never been like this for Teddy, Harry made sure of that. This had always puzzled Gawain, as much as Harry refusing to take on Teddy's training. Even though all Harry ever wanted was to see Teddy succeed, he wanted him to be seen as having done it himself not ride on the coat tails of his godfather.
"Come on Teddy, first up tea or butterbeer? Come and sit down we have something to discuss…" Harry said as he gestured to the middle of the duelling platform.
"Um Er Tea, Sir…" Teddy croaked weakly, he knew something was up firstly Harry had wanted to meet with him, but not in his office. What was with that he thought, and now a casual drink.
"Relax Teddy this is not a work related discussion, oh Merlin I wish your father was here, he was always so much better at this kind of thing…" Harry sighed as he poured to cups of piping hot tea, "however he is not and as your godfather, this task has fallen to me, and yes why I have brought you here will become apparent soon enough. So Teddy, I have been made aware that you and Bill have had a chat in regards to your intentions with Vi, is that correct?" Teddy just nodded "Good right, and did he seem happy with your response?" Teddy nodded again, "OK, now this is where I come in, Bill has further concerns…" Teddy looked up in shock, "don't worry he is now suffering the full wraith of all the Weasley women including Hermione, Fleur and your Grandmother. However, I still feel I should at least voice his concerns to you, while he is being a git about this his thoughts are only for the well being of his daughter."
"Is this abou…"
"Teddy let me finish…" Harry cut in.
"Harry, NO is this about my father?" Snapped Teddy getting up to leave.
"Teddy, you can not leave."
"Just watch me I will show him!" Teddy snarled back not noticing the change. Harry had expected this he had seen it before in Teddy but not since he left Hogwarts.
"You can't I have place locking charms on the room and until I release them we can not leave. Did you notice anything as you entered the room?" Teddy just dropped his head yes he had but he thought it was just that the room was empty. "Good you did that is the sign that you have passed through the barrier, by the time you feel it, it is too late you are trapped. Now please come and sit back down."
As Teddy drop back to the ground Harry passed him another cup of tea and began to sip at his own, after a couple of minutes in relative silence. Harry sighed and began again, "Right as I was saying, first lets get a few things out in the open. One your Grandmother and every female member of the family has taken Bill to task on the discussion in regards to Bills concerns about you, if you must know a little bird must have let it slip" Harry said with a wink. "Two, unfortunately Ron found out as well so be prepared for a ribbing tomorrow morning in the office and please take it light heartedly, I would rather not scrape my best mate and brother-in-law off the walls, Three with Gawain's consent, well I did not give him much choice you are training with me every second weekend and Four I am sorry but you will not be able to make Hogsmeade in October. Yes I know you wanted to go but Gawain had scheduled your exams for the same day and it is not my place to make him move them. Any questions so far?"
"No sir" Teddy said with a dejected tone, as his shoulders slumped even lower at the last statement.
"Well then on to the next phase of our little chat here and I hope you have not resigned yourself into full depression there. I need you to have that spark I just saw a couple of minutes ago," with that Teddy lifted his head and shoulders slightly. "Yes Teddy the reason I brought you in here was to allow to vent and with the only person I felt comfortable to allow you to vent at." Teddy looked around dumbfounded and then back to Harry, " Yes Teddy, me. Simple rules up to level three curses, jinxes and charms, no use of objects and tap out to end. Alright?" Teddy nodded "Good just remember use your anger and frustration, don't let it use you."
"Very Zen Harry." Smirked Teddy, knowing full well where Harry's last piece of advice had come from, the book on Harry's desk at home the latest birthday present from Hermione. Teddy loved Harry's library at home and only Hermione's was better.
"I know, I will lend you the book if you want." Harry said with a sly grin.
Almost four hours later Harry and Teddy staggered out of the training hall not too worse for wear just a couple a bruises. "Feeling better Teddy?
"Yeah." Returning Harry's earlier sly grin, as he collapsed into the chair across from Harry's desk. A second later with a rushed knock at the door.
"Come in Gawain." Harry called as he winked to Teddy.
"Thank Merlin you are here the Minister is not happy with you, his Office is currently over run and…" Gawain said in a paniced tone, that Teddy had never heard from his trainer
"Tell them to come down, Teddy is here and he is fine" Harry said as he cut across the senior auror. "Oh and Gawain, just think they will all be in your office next time if you fail Teddy on his exams, and neither Kingsley or I will be there to protect you." Harry chuckled, and Teddy joined in seeing the panic flood his trainer's eyes.
"Harry wha…"started Teddy as the office door burst open with Molly Weasley and Andromeda Tonks leading the way followed by Fleur, Ginny and Hermione.
"Harry James Potter, what in Merlin's name have you been doing with Teddy for the last four hours?" Molly and Andromeda both demanded in chorus.
"Oh, you know," Harry stated calmly winking to Teddy, "just my duty as his godfather."
"Yeah" chimed Teddy, causing all the women to do a double take as they had not noticed him in their fury to berate Harry.
"Teddy, the day is almost done go let them fuss over you, I will see you at diner, ok?"
"Sure Harry" called Teddy as he was dragged from the office. Leaving Harry and Ginny behind, as she leant again his desk Ginny cocked her head to the side.
"So what did you do?"
"Told him the truth, gave him the facts and let him vent," Harry calmly said, "by the way where is that brother-in-law of mine? I expected him to hold you all back not let you get to Kinsley"
"From what Gawain told me he did a bunk at the first sound of Mum's voice the wuss."
"Well you go fuss over Teddy with the rest of the family and I see you at diner"
Ginny nodded Kissed Harry on the cheek and turned to leave, "Teddy is lucky to have you Harry you know that."