Two days had passed since the encounter at the Dragon's Breath Pub and Victoire was happy to put it behind her. The emotional ride of a night was something she was hoping would one day be an amusing anecdote. Not today of course, but one day.

She had arrived back that night to her father and brother in the sitting room playing cards and listening to the Wireless. Her mother had thankfully gone to bed, something that had immediately relieved Victoire upon walking into the room. Her mother had an amazing knack—as most mothers probably did—to sniff out a lie or anything that was out of sorts. Her father however, happened to be far more good-natured and trusting when it came to her. Not that she made a habit of lying to him, but he never passed much blame onto her no matter the situation. She could be standing over a murder victim with her wand pointed directly at the body and somehow she could still manage to convince him it wasn't she who had done it. He trusted her explicitly.

She had smiled at her brother and father as she came through the front door, hoping that she wasn't giving anything away by her demeanor. She didn't feel at all drunk anymore, but she still couldn't help but wonder if her guilt was written all over her face. Her father smiled and asked if she had had a good night, to which she answered she had without getting too close. She immediately said she was tired and headed straight to sleep, but she couldn't help but let her gaze drift to Louis before exiting the room. He was eyeing her skeptically; she knew in that instant that he knew something was up.

The next morning, his subtle tiptoeing around the subject reaffirmed her suspicions, though it wasn't confirmed until she finally came out and asked him if she had been that obvious.

"Your smile was way too wide and fake," he told her. "And you had this urgency to get out of the room. I figured it was because you didn't want Dad to realize you'd been drinking."

She stared at him, her eyes heavy and bag ridden from the poor night's sleep she had received the night before.

"So, you had a drink," he said with a shrug before strolling out of her room. "You're of age."

She was already tuning him out before he had finished leaving the room. So she hadn't seemed drunk, she had just seemed suspicious. That's how Louis had figured her out. If only he'd known it had been more than one drink, she was sure he'd be saying something else entirely. That was something she chose not to reveal to him at the moment. She'd suffered enough last night. Taunts and lectures from her younger brother were the last thing she needed to hear.

The events that had occurred that night hadn't been the only thing nagging at her since that evening. In fact, after realizing that she had escaped a potential curse from her parents, she tried to give little thought to the night...with the exception of that particularly awkward moment.

Sure, the occasional flash of Colleen kissing Stuart would fly through her thoughts and she would become annoyed, but the hurt and the anger she had felt were now gone. They had been replaced by pity and irritation on Colleen's part; then nothing more than indifference on Stuart's...perhaps with a little bitterness thrown in for having wasted so much time on him.

No, it wasn't that part that was troubling her. The thought that she couldn't shake now was how things had been with Ted at his flat. Even the next day and after some thought, the way she had felt sitting there in his room with him wasn't something familiar to her. She was confused. She was beyond confused. Had she just been drunk and off her head after having her heart broken? Was looking for things in Ted that weren't really there? Or were they really there and she was just trying to deny them?

She thought she had felt something for him that night, but was she sure? Her conversation with Whit in their dorm room before the holidays and her random thoughts were enough to let her mind play tricks on her, especially after drinking.

But it had felt so real. Her desire to kiss him had seemed real.

"Wait, what!?" Whit had said the following day as Victoire relayed this information to her and told her about everything that had happened.

"I know," she said heavily as the pair sat on the cliff rocks by her house and stared out at the sea. "I'm blaming you for putting all this in my head."

"I knew it!" she said, laughing rather triumphantly. "I could sense something." She smiled. "Do you really think you feel something?"

"I don't know what I feel," she mumbled. "I could have easily been drunk and looking for something that isn't really there."

Whit's expression couldn't seem to argue that.

"But I just have this feeling that I wasn't," she continued. "I just feel like something changed for me last night. I see him differently. Even thinking about him now is different." She sighed. "Everything's different."

"Do you think he might…?" she began before Victoire shot her a look.

"I don't even want to think about that yet," she said. "I've got to work my own feelings out before I start worrying about his feelings or whether or not I plan on doing anything about mine."

Trying to work out her feelings and attempting to figure out if they were genuine or not was how she'd spent the following two days. Her homework was piling up and untouched because of how little she could focus on anything else. One minute she had convinced herself that she was confusing her platonic feelings as something more; the next, she was wondering what it would be like if they were together. If they kissed…If they...

"Oh, how wonderful it is to see you all!" said a voice that snapped Victoire back into her current thoughts and reminded her where she currently was.

"Good to see you too, Mum," Victoire's father said after he hugged his mother and stood aside so that the rest of the family could file inside the Burrow.

"I have brought a cake, Molly," said her mother as she presented a large rectangular serving dish to her mother-in-law.

"That will be lovely," Molly said, shutting the door after they had entered and pushing her graying hair out of her face. She looked Victoire and her siblings up and down and smiled at all of them. "So grown up! Louis, you look more and more like your father everyday! And you two girls, I don't know how you keep getting prettier, but you both manage."

They all smiled at her. No one handed out compliments and meant them quite like their grandmother.

"I'm so happy we could get everyone together," she said as she rushed about the kitchen pointing her wand at various pots. "It's been so long since we've had a big family dinner, what with everyone off and about and the kids being in school." She paused and sighed. "Soon all the little ones will be off to Hogwarts and it will be next to impossible to get everyone together."

"As is life," Bill said, glancing towards the back door as it opened.

"Boys will be boys, Hermione," Ron said with a laugh as he and his wife entered and noticed the new guests who had arrived. They both broke into large, welcoming smiles.

"Hello, everyone," Hermione said, reaching up and tying her long bushy hair back into a ponytail before stepping forward to hug everyone. "How good to see you."

"It's been ages," Ron said, turning towards his nieces and nephew. "You three look like completely different people."

"Louis you've had to have grown a foot since we last saw you," Hermione said as her and Ron's gazes matched up Victoire and Dominique.

"And you," Ron said pointing to Dominique, "are your mother's clone."

"I was just thinking that," Hermione said with a smile towards him before her eyes lit up as if remembering something. "Oh right, Molly, do you have any more of that ointment potion for cuts and bruises?"

"Who hurt themselves?" Molly asked in an alarmed manner as she swung around.

"The boys were playing rough," Ron said, avoiding Hermione's eyes. "Hugo, of course, thinks he can match up against James in a wrestling match because he's going through a stage where he apparently believes he's very tall and built like a boulder. He's forgetting that he's not either of those things."

Hermione sighed.

"Anyway," he continued, "James won and Hugo banged up his knees. Even though he's out there claiming he's fine, Hermione thinks he needs to be treated."

"I'd rather not have him bloodying up the dinner table," Hermione quipped as Molly handed her the potion. She smiled at her husband before turning and heading back outside.

Victoire took the opportunity to follow her outside, though it wasn't until she reached the back garden and was confronted by her entire family that she realized that nearly everyone else was standing back here.

Her father was the eldest of seven children. Her Uncle Fred had died before she was born, but the others were all here today and they had all brought their families. Being the children of the oldest son, Victoire, Dominique, and Louis also happened to be the oldest of the cousins. After that, according to the birth order of her father's siblings, was their Uncle Charlie, who always swore he was too busy with work to settle down—much to the dismay of his mother.

Next, Uncle Percy and his wife Audrey had two children—nine-year-old Lucy and thirteen-year-old Molly, the latter of whom was currently a third-year Ravenclaw at Hogwarts. Following Percy was their Uncle George and his wife Angelina with their two children, eight-year-old Fred and seven-year-old Roxanne. Next were Ron and Hermione and their kids Rose and Hugo, who were ten and eight respectively. Lastly was Ginny and Harry with their children, James, Albus, and Lily. For Victoire, that gave her five uncles, four aunts, and nine cousins just on the Weasley side alone.

She smiled as she observed the younger cousins all gathered in a group in the most open part of the garden. Molly was sitting off to the side observing, but James seemed to be giving the younger ones instructions to some sort of game. There were sounds of protests and groans mixed among the giggles and cheers of others. She could only imagine what Hogwarts would be like in a few years when all the younger cousins would be at school together. She enjoyed being the oldest, but at times she wondered what it would have felt like to have that many instant playmates and allies.

The adults were all sitting and standing around several tables that had been set up around the garden for dinner. Charlie sat talking with George and Angelina, while Percy and his wife sat nearby talking and observing the children with almost worrisome looks on their faces. Hermione was tending to an agitated Hugo, who seemed to want nothing more than to join the other children once more and to not be fretted upon by his mother. Ron stood by observing with Harry, Ginny, and Victoire's grandfather, Arthur, as they all suddenly laughed loudly at something. Whatever it was, it made Hugo blush scarlet.

"About time this lot showed up," George's voice rang out as Victoire's parents immediately made their way over to greet the group. Dominique and Victoire exchanged looks as they followed suit and greeted all of their uncles and aunts and then listened to the incessant compliments of how much they had grown and the inquiries about how school was going. Over the course of fifteen minutes, Victoire had managed to be asked by everyone about what classes she was taking and then prompted to explain how well she was doing.

"So, do you think you're on track to be Head Girl, then?" Percy had asked as Victoire found herself talking to him and Audrey. "Follow in your father and uncle's footsteps?"

"Uncle, singular. Not plural," George added from nearby as he pretended not to be listening.

Victoire smiled. "There are several very bright girls in my year. It really could go to anyone, but I think I might be a contender."

"Good to hear," Percy said, just as George added, "Here's hoping you don't." Percy didn't seem to find the comment nearly as funny as George did.

"Molly is already working on fifth year spells," Audrey added proudly. "And of course getting top marks. You wouldn't believe how proud we are."

"Oh, I do," Victoire said with a polite smile before taking a sip of the juice in her hand. It was very much the same every time she found herself talking to her Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey. They enjoyed constantly letting people know about their daughter's obvious ability to excel; if they weren't talking about that, they were telling everyone about what Percy was up to at the Ministry. Victoire was hoping to escape the conversation before he started up on his latest musing—new broomstick regulations.

"Hi Victoire!" said a small voice from beside her. She felt a tugging on her dress. It was Lily. She was smiling and accompanied by Roxanne, Lucy and Rose.

"Hi girls," Victoire said, taking the opportunity to escape any further inquiries about her career plans and Potions marks from Percy. "How are you?"

"I've been reading about Ancient Runes," Rosie said, her words pronounced very articulately. "Mum's got a fantastic book and Grams said that you like runes."

"I do like runes." She grinned. She hadn't liked runes when she was eleven though, but she found Rosie's inquisitive nature charming. If she had to bet money on anyone in her family being well on the road to Head Girl-ship, it was little Rose Weasley.

"What are runes?" Roxanne asked as she fidgeted with a button on her jumper.

"Oh, they're these fascinating—" Rose began before Albus ran over and stopped in between the two of them. He was out of breath.

"We're starting," he said. "Are you playing?"

"I am!" Lily said as she ran back over to where the other children were. Roxanne and Lucy followed quickly after her, and Rosie—realizing that Roxanne didn't care as much about runes as she did—shrugged and ran after them to join in on the game.

"Kids," Ginny called out to them. "Don't get too dirty before dinner."

"Which should be any minute now," Molly said as she appeared from the house with several plates and bowls. "I'm just waiting for everyone else to arrive before we start serving."

"Here, we'll help set the table, Mum," Ginny said as Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Arthur all made their way towards the house. Victoire's own mother stood to help as well and gestured to her children to lend a hand.

"But I'm playing," Louis said, pointing to the kids.

"Aren't you a little old and a little too big to be playing?" Dominique asked as she and Victoire approached him. "They're playing a game where the whole point is to try and knock each other down."

"I have an obvious advantage," he said. Victoire shook her head, but turned toward the house.

"Here Vicki," Hermione said, handing her a stack of napkins the moment she had entered the kitchen. "You can take these out."

"Who are we waiting for?" Victoire asked while Hermione continued to pile napkin after napkin onto her outstretched arms.

"Oh, just—" Molly began before there was a sudden knock at the kitchen door. "Oh, well here they are now!"

"Hello," said a familiar voice as a woman with graying hair and a friendly face took it upon herself to open the door. "I'm so sorry we're late."

"Oh, nonsense Andromeda," Molly said as she too went to greet her. "Dinner's only just ready. You have perfect timing."

"Did you cut your hair?" Ginny asked Andromeda.

Hermione finished piling on the last of the napkins onto Victoire's arms before she turned to greet the new guests herself. Whether or not Andromeda did get a haircut, Victoire didn't know. She was too busy now focusing on the other people entering the kitchen to the welcomes of everyone else.

She hadn't expected Ted to turn up tonight, but the second he walked through the door she felt her body get tense and her heart beat faster. She wasn't sure she was ready to see him yet;. not before she had worked out her feelings at least. But there was, standing there next to his grandmother and another older boy she didn't recognize. She couldn't help but stare at them stupidly over the pile of napkins that now reached up to her chin.

"Oh," Hermione said once she turned back around and noticed Victoire still standing there. "I thought you had taken those already."

"Right," she said quickly before Ted could catch her eye. She turned and made a beeline for the back garden, wondering if that had seemed as awkward for anyone else as it had been for her.

"I'll take these," said her mother as she took the stack of napkins from her daughter.

"I thought Ginny was coming right out with the utensils?" Harry asked Ron within earshot of Victoire.

Victoire busied herself with helping her mother, but said, "Andromeda and Ted have just arrived. She was talking to them."

"Have they?" Harry asked. He instantly began to make his way back toward the house with Ron in tow.

Victoire suddenly hoped that the new guests would be detained for at least twenty or so minutes with questions like she had been so that she could gather her thoughts. Feelings or no feelings, this was Ted and she knew she couldn't avoid him all night. She hadn't been prepared to be blindsided by him like this, but she wasn't sure why she was so surprised. Ted and his grandmother were always invited to Weasley family get-togethers like so many other close friends. It was how she and Ted had become such close friends to begin with. Why hadn't she even contemplated him showing up tonight?

"Is there more in the house?" Fleur asked once every napkin had a place.

"Um, I'm not sure," Victoire mumbled. Before she could say anything more, her mother was already bustling towards the house to see if she could help. She took a deep breath and turned toward where the children were now being forced to go and wash their hands by Percy and Audrey.

"But my hands aren't dirty, Uncle Percy," Hugo said as he brandished his hands in his uncle's face.

"Regardless..." he began to lecture.

Victoire turned and walked straight towards where Louis was adjusting his shoe. She hoped she could use him as a distraction from returning into the house.

"Are you sitting with the children or with the adults?" she asked.

"Does it matter?"

"Well," she grinned, "since you're on the cusp, it could go either way. I was just seeing what your preference was."

"Ha-ha," he said sarcastically as everyone began emerging from the house carrying bowls and trays full of food. The sheer number of people present must have cleared everything in the kitchen out in one quick trip; Victoire turned away from the crowd once she noticed Ted emerge while talking to Harry.

"Hey look," Louis said, taking a few steps around her and toward the group. "Ted's here."

"Oh, really?" she asked, trying to sound surprised.

Of course Louis headed straight over to the one person she was hoping he would have provided a distraction from. She thought about going to help with the food, but Louis just so happened to call out Ted's name right as she had planned to make a dash for the opposite end of the table. He looked up and—since she only happened to be several steps behind Louis—he looked right at her. There was no avoiding it now.

"What's up, mate?" Louis said as he greeted Ted. Victoire followed slowly behind and smiled as she approached the pair of them. At the same time, the unfamiliar man who had arrived with Ted joined the group.

"Not much," Ted said. "It's good to see you." He glanced at Victoire and gave a small smile. "Hey. Vic."

"Hey," she said lamely.

"It's been ages," Louis said with a smile as he crossed his arms in front of him and looked at the other stranger standing beside Ted. "Hi, I'm Louis."

"Nate," he said as he shook Louis's hand. He was a broad shouldered man with dark hair and eyes and a tired looking face that seemed to age him several years.

"We work together," Ted added.

"Ted here was kind enough to invite me over for dinner here seeing as I've been living off of cans of beans and toast for the last few weeks," Nate added with a toothy smile.

"Cool," Louis shrugged as if it didn't matter to him much. Dominique had also approached the group and smiled at Ted as he greeted her and introduced her to Nate.

"And this is Victoire," Ted said as Nate straightened up and smiled rather directly at her. It was the kind of smile that usually received reproachful looks from both Louis and Ted if they were nearby. Sure enough, as Nate leaned forward to shake her hand and tell her it was "an absolute pleasure" to meet her, she glanced at Louis and saw that he was giving him the exact annoyed look she had anticipated. She even chanced a glance at Ted, but he wasn't staring at Nate. Instead, he was watching her face. When their eyes met, he casually looked away.

"Nice to meet you," she said politely.

"Dinner's over here, you lot," Arthur called over to the group of them as everyone scattered around the table looking for seats. The adults were all trying to situate their children, but that wasn't easy with each kid wanting to sit by someone else. Victoire almost wanted to wait for everyone to settle before she decided to take a seat, but decided against it since she wasn't sure that she wanted to leave it up to chance that she should get one of the last available spots.

She suddenly wondered where Ted was planning to sit, but he was currently busy bear hugging Lily while she demanded that he sat with her. It was within moments that Albus and James made their way to sit near him too, and with Nate and Harry taking places on the various areas surrounding him—and with Hugo and Freddie making sure they got spaces near Albus and James—that side of the table began to fill up fast.

She glanced at where her sister, parents, and Andromeda were all making space and decided that was as good as any other spot. If she didn't hurry, she'd end up sandwiched in next to Hugo and Freddie—who were notoriously messy eaters—and Percy and Audrey.

Dinner was a pleasant experience as the sun disappeared behind the horizon and night suddenly filled the sky. Ron and Charlie took turns lighting lanterns around the table while everyone else was finishing up the last of their meals. Idle chatter hummed over the table as the younger children one by one finished and headed straight back to where they had been gathering before, waiting anxiously to pick up their game where they had left off.

"I actually have an extra couple of World Cup tickets," Victoire heard Ginny telling Louis from across the table as she tuned into their conversation. "It won't be hard to get one for your friend."

"Excellent," Louis said as he smiled at Dominique, just as their grandmother suddenly stood and started clearing the empty dishes away from the table with a flick of her wand. Everyone else stood as well and began helping her.

Louis stood and stretched, yawning for good measure. "I'm full and ready to go to sleep."

"I think you've got some more time yet," Victoire said as she pulled out her own wand and began helping to tidy up. "Now everyone is going to go inside and continue talking over tea and maybe firewhiskey."

"You think they'll let me have some?" he asked as he glanced toward the house.

"I'm sure they'll let you have alllll the tea you can drink," Dominique said before she turned and carried some things away. Louis rolled his eyes, though Victoire laughed as she followed her.

The dishes and other messes from dinner were cleaned and taken care of quickly while the children continued playing outside. Victoire watched as the adults gradually walked into the sitting room and the sudden sound of talking and laughing echoed into the kitchen. As she watched them go, she suddenly wondered whether or not she should join them.

She was an adult now—at least according to wizarding law—and yet, she didn't feel as if she belonged in that room. She was still used to being seen as a kid when around her family. It would be out of place if she entered and sat with her aunts and uncles and her parents while they talked about their families, work, and current events. Then again, it would be out of place for her to play in the garden with the little, too.

She suddenly remembered back when the Weasley family numbers were smaller and it was just she, Dominique, Louis, and Ted running around the back garden playing, just as the younger cousins were doing now. The adults would all go and enjoy adult conversation that bored the four of them to tears; they would escape to the garden to play games where they would blow out the lanterns and play hide and seek in the dark. As it was now, Ted had walked into the sitting room without a second thought; Louis and Dominique were idly chatting in the kitchen before they began to head outside.

"You joining them or coming outside?" Louis asked.

"Which are you doing?"

"I'm going to go and bother the kids," he said as he suddenly undid the top button of his shirt and started walking towards the back door. "Show them who's still the boss around here."

"That would be me," Dominique said, turning and throwing Victoire a quick, "Are you going to go be boring with the old people?"

"I hadn't decided yet."

"What's the point if they won't give you firewhiskey?" Louis mumbled before he and Dominique disappeared outside. Victoire watched them go before she cast one last glance towards the sitting room. It didn't feel right yet.

She sighed and followed her brother and sister. She could create her own middle ground between the two situations. After all, it was a spectacular night. Why spend it indoors?

"That's not fair!" screamed one of the girls once she was outside.

"How is it not fair?" James asked as he stood there staring Rose down.

"Because the teams should be equal," she said as she put her hands on her hips.

"What's equal, then?" he asked, growing more and more frustrated by her. "Let's hear what's equal, Rosie?"

"Why are you all arguing?" Louis asked as he and Dominique intervened. Victoire watched from several yards away.

"James thinks it's fair to have himself, Albus, Molly, and Freddie all on one team," Lily said as she pointed to the tallest and arguably biggest people standing amongst the group. "Leaving me, Hugo, Rosie, Roxie, and Lucy on the other team."

"That's one whole extra person," Jack argued.

"What game are you playing?" Dominique asked.

"The same game as before where we have to knock each other over," James said.

Both Louis and Dominique exchanged amused looks. It was Louis who said, "Alright, here. I'll break up the teams. Molly, you're here and James you're here…"

Victoire turned and walked over to the nearest picnic table and sat down on top of the table top, letting her feet rest on the bench. She watched as Dominique and Louis separated each team into far more fair numbers and then stood there monitoring them as referees and offering suggestions and tips to the various kids.

She turned her thoughts back to Ted. It was sort of telling that he was in there and she was out here. They were the best of friends, but they were also worlds apart at this stage of their lives.

She focused her eyes down on the ground at a gnome that was poking its head up through the earth. Ted was out of school, working, mingling with the adults as friends because he could. She was a school girl who still had an entire year left to go and felt out of place in a world of adult situations and real issues. She had gone and had her first drink and look what had ended up happening to her? What would happen when she started to experience so many other firsts similar to that in the real world? More trouble? More drama? More needing someone to come to the rescue and help her through it?

She sighed and started playing with the ends of her hair. How stupid she had been to even consider anything more between Ted and her. How different they were when she thought about it. He deserved someone who had a plan and who knew what they were getting themselves into like he did. Not someone whose biggest worries were exams and what other people were doing or saying at school.

The back door opening and closing made her look towards the house. Nate had just appeared with a pipe of sorts in his hands and was raising his wand up to light it. She watched as he stood back and watched the younger kids run back and forth for some time before his gaze found its way to her. He seemed surprised to see her sitting there and made his way across the grass.

"All by yourself, then?" he asked as the sudden smell of pipe tobacco became apparent.

"I'm a spectator," she said with a lazy grin as she watched him sit down on the bench that her feet were resting on.

"Would you like some?" he asked, offering her his pipe.

"No, thanks," she said politely, glancing back towards the kids. "I don't smoke."

"Terrible habit," he said absently. "Don't know why I started." He sighed. "Work's stressful though. The hours are long."

"I've heard," she said, watching him. He seemed to be taking in the atmosphere around them.

He laughed a little. "I bet you have. You and Ted are pretty close, I take it?"

"We've been friends all my life."

"You know," he said thoughtfully. "I don't think I've known someone besides my parents that long. Only child you see, so I don't even have any siblings. My parents were only children as well, so no cousins or anything either. Your family here…" He laughed. "It's so large, I can't even believe it."

Victoire smiled politely.

"And you're the oldest of this generation?"

She nodded.

"It really is mad for me to see all this," he continued as Victoire sat there and learned some more about him. He was twenty-three, had been in Slytherin at school, and had excelled in Potions and Charms. He had wanted to be a Healer, but hadn't managed the N.E.W.T scores in the end in Transfiguration, so he had gone into potion and antidote research instead. He enjoyed it enough, but it was exhausting.

He carried on talking about Ted and how hardworking he was and how this sort of career just came naturally to him, whereas so many others struggled or tired of it quickly after starting.

"It takes a certain kind of person…" he continued before the sound of the back door opening and closing once more caused both of them to look up at it. Ted appeared and noticed them at once. He shoved both of his hands into his pockets and made his way across the garden toward them.

"What's going on?" he asked, glancing first at Victoire and then at Nate.

"Just talking with your friend here," he said with a smile. "Telling her about work and what we do."

"You must be riveted, Vic," he said with a small smile.

She smiled back at him before turning away to where Dominique was lecturing Freddie about something. She wanted to make a point not to look at Ted right now. She was afraid if she did, she'd find herself conflicted again.

"Remember when we were little," Ted said to what she assumed was her. "We used to blow out the lanterns and run around playing hide and seek in the dark?"

She smiled, but still didn't look at him. "Yeah, that was fun."

"Those were the days," he said as Nate started dumping the tobacco remnants in his pipe out on the ground. The gnome Victoire had been watching before was now shaking his pudgy fist up at him.

"I should get home and pack," Nate said. "I still haven't even started."

"I still have more to do," Ted said.

Victoire turned back towards the pair of them. "Where are you going?"

"Russia," Nate said before Ted could answer. "For a week. We're meeting with the leading expert on dragon pox out there. We've been work arduously with them for several months now—"

"I've mentioned it to her," Ted said, abruptly cutting him off. She had a feeling that Ted was all too used to hearing Nate talk simply because he seemed like the type who enjoyed hearing himself. At least, that was what she had picked up about him over the last ten minutes.

Nate smiled. "We leave tomorrow."

"Wow," she said to Ted. "You didn't mention you were off to Russia so soon."

"It wasn't supposed to be for a couple of more weeks." He was now watching the disgruntled gnome. "It got bumped up."

"We just heard today," Nate added as he stood and started smoothing out his robes. "I'm going to go and thank everyone for the lovely evening."

"I'll walk you out," Ted said as he turned on his heels.

Nate faced Victoire. "It was wonderful meeting you," he said with his wide toothy smile. "I hope I'll get to run into you again in the future."

"Perhaps," she said, forcing a smile as she extended her hand to shake his. He held it for several seconds more than what was comfortable and it wasn't until she made a slight tug of her hand to retrieve it that he let go. He turned to walk away, glancing once over his shoulder to smile at her again before disappearing behind Ted in the house.

"Who was that man?" yelled Lily from several yards away. Victoire turned to see her sitting on the ground with Roxie.

"A friend of Ted's."

"I didn't like him," Louis said as he stood there holding Lucy upside down. "He thought a lot about himself, didn't he?"

"He was nice enough," she said, seeing no reason to really criticize him. "A little talkative."

"He was trying to chat you up, alright," Dominique teased as the door opened once again and Ted reappeared on his own. Dominique and Louis exchanged glances and stopped talking.

"Giving up, then?" Ted asked as he walked over to where the boys were all grouped together and rough housing.

"We were trying to think of another game," Albus said.

"What about hide and go seek," Ted suggested, glancing at Dominique. "You can play the way we used to play."

"Oh, I don't think they can handle that," Louis teased.

James instantly looked challenged. "I can. Maybe they can't, but I can. I'm not a baby."

"I can, too!" said Freddie as the other boys soon agreed. "How did you play the way you used to?"

Ted grinned. "See those lanterns right there." He pointed to them. "You blow them all out and you play in the pitch dark."

"But how can you find anyone?" Albus asked.

"That's what makes it hard," Dominique said obviously.

"I don't like the dark much," Hugo said a little nervously.

"I don't mind it," James said, puffing his chest out. "I want to play. Anyone else want to play?"

"I do!" said Freddie.

Albus glanced at Hugo and then at his older brother before he said he would like to too. They then explained the game to the girls, and Lily and Roxie expressed instant interest in playing. Rosie hesitated, but once Molly asked about the safety concerns—and Ted instructed that you couldn't leave the garden, and that they'd played a hundred times before and never had any problems—they both agreed as well.

"Are you going to play too?" Lily asked Ted.

"I don't think that would be very fair," he said. He pulled out his wand and suddenly a steady stream of light appeared at the end. "I can cheat."

"But you wouldn't!"

"I don't know…" he teased.

"I always knew all the best spots to hide," Louis added. "You lot would never be able to find me."

"I would!" Freddie said as Louis shook his head. "I bet I would!"

"Alright," he said, raising his hands in mock surrender. "I'll play one game, but when you haven't found me, make sure you let me know so I don't sit there hiding forever." He glanced at Dominique. "Are you playing too, Nic?"

She gave him a doubtful look. "Seriously?"

"You're playing."

"I'll find you," Freddie said confidently to Louis as Ted made his way over toward the lanterns and pointed his wand to extinguish each one. The garden suddenly went completely dark with the only light coming from the glow of the windows in the house. Victoire reached for her wand and in unison, she and Ted both said, "Lumos." Two streams of light were now their only other source.

"I'm keeping mine on," Victoire said. "As a point of reference so no one gets lost."

"I am too," Ted said before she pointed her wand in the direction of his voice to see where he was. "If anyone gets scared or can't make their way around, follow the light."

"Or just shout," Dominique added from somewhere in the darkness.

"And you cannot leave the garden," Ted repeated. "Is that clear?"

Several voices in mixed unison said, "Yes." Someone in the group said, "Poo," which prompted some giggles.

"Alright, I'm it first!" yelled James. "I'm going to start counting so go and hide. One…two…"

The sounds of laughing and footsteps could be heard in every direction as Victoire felt the presence of several people rushing past her. She couldn't help but think this was a bad idea. It was a moonless night and it really was quite dark. She realized she had played this game a hundred times without fail in these very conditions, but looking back it seemed fairly dangerous to be running around in the dark.

"I'm going to be in a lot of trouble if someone hurts themselves, aren't I?" Ted asked as she felt him sit down right next to her on top of the picnic table. He shined his light onto his face.

"I'd count on it," she said as she also shined her light on her face. "Especially if it's Molly or Lucy."

"We never hurt ourselves," He lowered the light down onto the ground. He was sitting just inches away from her and yet, she couldn't even see him in the dark.

"There were only four of us, though," she said. "We were more cautious than some of these kids."

The sound of a thud and a small yelp caused both Ted and Victoire to point their wands in the direction of the noise, but they saw nothing. Apparently whoever had fallen had got up and kept going. She lowered her wand to the ground and began watching the beam of light stretch across the garden towards the house and up the wall. She began bouncing her wand up and down to watch the beam dance.

"I hear you're going to France," he said from beside her as his wand light suddenly hit her square in the face. She squinted and shielded her eyes.

"For a bit over the summer, yeah," she said as she felt his leg brush against hers. She felt her body give a start as they touched and found herself looking down into the darkness where their legs would have been had she'd been able to actually see them.

"For how long?"

"Not sure, but probably for a month," she said before she flipped her wand around on him since he continued to shine his onto her face. He seemed to get the message and lowered his down.

"That's shit."

"I'm actually rather excited," she said.

"Oh, it's really cool for you," he said. "I just thought you'd be around this summer."

"I'll be back by the Quidditch World Cup," she said with a small laugh, though the thought of Ted wanting to spend time with her this summer made something inside of her leap involuntarily. "Dominique will be sure of that."

"Yeah, you better be."

She found herself smiling and suddenly very happy that Ted couldn't see her in the darkness. "Nate seemed nice."

"Yeah he took a bit of a liking to you, didn't he?" he said wearily as he lowered his wand down from his face and started bouncing along the ground in a manner similar to the way she had just been doing.

"Nic said the same thing, but I think he was just trying to be nice," she said as she suddenly heard James call out that he had found someone.

"No," Ted said, pointing his wand towards James' voice. "He was flirting with you. He does that. He kept asking me about you, too."

She started absently fidgeting with her wand. "What'd you say?"

"What did you want me to say?" he asked rather quickly.

She made a confused face that she was happy once more that Ted couldn't see. "It doesn't matter what I wanted, what did you say?"

"I'm just curious what you would have wanted me to say."

"Why does it matter?" she asked, wondering why he seemed so adamant on finding out how she felt about this random person.

"Because I'm curious."

"Honestly," she said as she looked towards the light coming from the house, "that I had a boyfriend or something. That I wasn't interested, but politely, of course."

He was quiet for a long moment. She had to shine her wand onto him to make sure he was still there and hadn't simply disappeared without her knowing. He was staring thoughtfully into the darkness as laughter rang through the garden somewhere.

"So, what did you tell him?"

"Something like that," he mumbled. He turned towards her and squinted once the light hit his eyes. "He's an alright bloke, but not for you."

She smiled and wanted to know who he thought was right for her, but she was almost afraid to hear the answer since she knew he wouldn't say him. It would only discourage her more, which was something she didn't want. Sitting here with him, getting tingles when their legs touched or wondering if there were hidden meanings in the things he said was giving her a thrill. A thrill that she wasn't keen on disappearing.

All of her previous thoughts about Ted being too different from her or that he was on a different level seemed pointless now. He wasn't with the adults or playing with the kids, but rather he had chosen to sit with her. He'd chosen to spend his time with her over everyone else, just as he always had.

She knew then and there that she had fallen for him. She laughed a little as she found the irony of sitting in the dark to finally see everything clearly rather poetic. She had fallen for him and figuring that out was the first step. Figuring out what to do now was the next, much harder step.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said, taking a deep breath and shining her light forward. At that moment, she noticed a flash of dark hair run by. Freddie suddenly yelled that he was 'it' and was beginning to count.

"So, Russia…?" she continued.

"So, Russia," he repeated, sounding tired. "That will be loads of work."

"At least you'll get the chance to see your Russian girl," she said, remembering the story he had told her around Christmas time after his last trip to Russia. She didn't even know if she'd remember, but she merely wanted to gauge his reaction.

"What Russian girl?" he asked before he suddenly seemed to realize. "You mean the assistant? How do you remember that?"

"I've got a good memory," she said as she shined her light onto her face and looked at him.

"Yeah, maybe," he said with a tired laugh. "But somehow I don't think anything will come of that."

"You're not even going to try?" she asked, still trying to test his limits. She wanted the piece of mind of knowing that he wasn't interested in this girl or any other girl that wasn't her for that matter. She wanted him to claim that work was keeping him too busy and that he didn't have time for girls or any sort of excuse that kept him preoccupied.

"Weren't you the one telling me I should try a little closer to home?" he asked as he flipped the light onto her before quickly flipping it back on himself.

She grinned. "I suppose I did. And I still mean that."

"Well, then that's the plan," he said with a furtive sort of look that she could see, though his face was only half exposed in the light.

"How close to home?" she asked quickly, blurting it out before she thought better of it. She heard him sigh and wondered how strange he probably found the question. She immediately regretted asking it since it didn't even make sense.

"I guess that's what I'm trying to figure out."

She lowered her wand down from her face and stared into the darkness. What did that mean? She had almost expected him to laugh off the question and throw one of his witty quips back at her, but he had actually answered it. He had answered it with an answer that fit the context of her question, but he couldn't have known what she had meant. Could he? She wanted to say something to him. She needed to say something. He was going to Russia tomorrow and she was going back to school and she wouldn't see him until this summer. A world of change could happen over those months and if she didn't, she would regret—

"Hey, Vic?"

"Yes?" she said in a tone that sounded more startled and apprehensive than she would have liked.

"I…" he said before pausing. "I…Here's the thing…" He paused again, but this time Victoire knew why. They both pointed their wands in the same direction as someone approached them in the dark.

"The little bugger actually found me," Louis mumbled as he plopped himself down on the bench next to his sister. He was clearly annoyed at having been out maneuvered by an eight year old, though Victoire didn't really care at the moment. In fact, she had never been less excited to see him in her entire life.