The Story of Teddy Lupin
Chapter 5: Summer Holiday
That summer was the same as all the ones before, except this summer he was 12 and had just finished his first year at Hogwarts. This meant he was also looking forward to his second year. A week into the holiday he got a letter from Neil about going to a quidditch game with his family. Not that he hadn't been to quidditch games before thanks to Ginny writing for the Quidditch section of The Daily Prophet, but this was different. Instead of sitting in the press box they would be on the sidelines with the coaches. They would have to use binoculars to see the players above, but it would still provide a different and exciting experience. So he eagerly showed the letter to Harry once he had read it.
"Harry! Look at this! It's a letter from Neil saying his dad would take me and Lee with them to a game. Can I go? Please."
"Can I look at the letter for a moment please?"
"Sure." Teddy handed it to Harry.
Harry looked it over, it was simple and straight forward. It said,
Teddy,
Lee doesn't leave until June so we can go to a game this month. My dad said this weekend would be a good game for us to go with him. He's even gonna let us sit on the sidelines with him and maybe meet the team. Send me an owl back with your answer.
Neil
Harry looked up at Teddy who was hopping from foot to foot in anticipation. "Sounds like it'll be fun. I don't see any reason you can't go. You're with us this weekend so I say tell Andromeda what you're doing, but I don't see her having a problem with it."
"Yes! Thank you thank you thank you!" Teddy turned to run upstairs to his room so he could write to Neil.
"Wait."
Teddy stopped in the doorway and turned to look at Harry.
"When you write to Neil ask him if me or Ginny need to bring you to the pitch or their house or anything. We can and we don't mind to do that. We don't want to inconvenience Oliver."
"Okay I'll ask. Thanks." With that he ran out of the kitchen and up to his room. He immediately wrote to Neil saying he could go and asking what Harry had told him to ask.
The rest of the week went by pretty slowly. When Saturday finally arrived Teddy was so excited he practically flew down to the kitchen for a quick breakfast before Harry took him to Neil's house.
When they got there Harry knocked on the door and Neil flung it open, "Teddy! Lee just got here a few minutes ago. Come on we'll leave soon."
Harry grabbed the back of Teddy's shirt to keep him from running off just yet. "Neil could I talk to your mum for a moment?"
"Oh yeah, of course. Come in."
Harry let go of Teddy then and they followed Neil into the house and into the kitchen.
"Mum? Teddy and Mr. Potter are here."
Mrs. Wood looked up from the table at them as they entered the kitchen and Harry faltered for a moment. He had never known who Oliver had married. He assumed he didn't know her. Until just this moment anyways. It was Alicia Spinnet. She was on the Gryffindor quidditch team his first year.
"Alicia?"
"Harry."
"I didn't realize you were Oliver's wife. It's good to see you."
"Its good to see you too Harry."
Neil and Teddy looked between the two adults confusedly. Finally Neil spoke up. "You guys know each other?"
Alicia looked over at the boys (Lee had just joined them in the kitchen too), "Yes. We played quidditch together in school. His first year was the first year I was brought up from the reserves. He was quite good if I recall. Surprised he didn't play professionally honestly."
Teddy looked at Harry expectantly.
Harry blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well you know I never liked being famous. I wasn't about to bring it on myself if I could help it. Anyways, thank you for taking Teddy to the game. He's very excited."
"Oh of course. Neil is pretty excited as well. We have a port key arranged to take us to the pitch since there are three of them and only one of me. Don't really want to try and side along three people at once. We'll be leaving here in about 30 minutes. And since we don't know when the game will be over I thought it might just be easier for the boys to stay the night. They can floo home in the morning. If that's alright with you of course."
"As long as its not any trouble for you and Oliver then it's fine with me."
"Oh no trouble at all."
"Alright then. Thank you." Harry turned to Teddy then and added, "now you be good for Mr. and Mrs. Wood okay. And have fun. I'll see you tomorrow." Harry went to kiss Teddy on the top of his head but remembered he didn't like for him to do that in front of other people any more so he checked the motion at the last second and just patted his shoulder.
Alicia stood and walked Harry to the door where Harry thanked her again before leaving.
When they got to the quidditch pitch and met up with Oliver he took the boys to his office in the locker room while Alicia went to the family box to watch the game from there. She found early on when Oliver started coaching that if she was on the sidelines with him she started trying to give him advice on what different players should do. This did not go over well with him. Not that he didn't value her opinion of course. They often talked strategy at home. But at the game was a different story, he would want to listen to her but also not deviate from his plans. It stressed him out. And in the end, winning the game came first for him in that moment. And ignoring her lead to a fight at home, which often escalated to exiling him to the couch where he was very lonely. So after some pretty awful rows she decided it was best to stay far away from the sidelines. They were both much happier this way.
Meanwhile the boys were loving the time in the locker room. Oliver had tried to get everything done before the boys could get there so he could actually spend some time with them. So he finished up his last little bit of work then looked up at them. "So boys, any last minute advice on this game?"
Neil picked up the stat sheets on his father's desk and looked through the details he had on the other team before looking up and saying, "well they're seeker seems to be pretty fast. Maybe even a bit faster than yours dad. So he's gonna need to keep a sharp eye out for the snitch, because if it comes down to an all out race to it he may not get there first."
Oliver nodded, "good, I was thinking the same thing." He smiled at his son then looked to the other boys, "anything else?"
Teddy looked over the stats too for a few minutes. Then finally he said, "well, Muller has wicked good aim. Nearly all his bludgers make contact with his mark."
"Yes, he has taken quite a few players out in the past."
Teddy looked at the stat sheet again, "maybe if one of your beaters always focused on hitting him. The other could send it towards the chasers, keeper, and seeker, but if you could take Muller out of the game it may save some of your chasers."
"Hmm. That's a good idea too. Glad you agree with me."
Lee, who had been reading the stats over Teddy's shoulder, looked up then. "What about the chasers?"
"What about them?"
"Well, O'Leery is new. Just came up from the reserves this season. He has a few trick shots up his sleeve. But he seems to always use them. He's become predictable almost. So as long as your keeper knows O'Leery's trick shots then he should be able to block them pretty easily."
"Yes that's what I'm hoping as well."
Oliver silently appraised the boys for a moment. "I do hope you three are all planning to try out for your house teams next year, even if it does mean you two will be playing against Neil. You all seem to have a good understanding of quidditch. It will come in handy when you're playing. Anyways, how would you like to help me give my pep talk?"
"That would be great! Awesome! Yeah, thank you!"
With that Oliver lead the boys out into the locker room a little earlier than he normally goes out so they could meet the team.
"Hey, you guys remember my son Neil right?"
They all murmured their agreement of remembering him saying hello.
"Well, these are two of his mates from school. Teddy and Lee. They've looked over the stats with me and have a few suggestions for tonight. I agree with each of them wholeheartedly. So if you would hear them out that would be great. Boys, go ahead."
One by one they each said what they had said to Oliver earlier in his office. The team seemed to like what they were hearing. When it was time for the team to take the field they high fived the boys on their way out of the locker room.
During the game the boys stood on the sidelines out of the way. They made sure to hand every player that came down a water and towel while they either took a turn on the bench or listened to Oliver telling them something to do/change/fix. In the end the team one. It was an average length as far as how long it lasted. And it was an intense game, the score going back and forth until finally the snitch was caught. It was amazing.
After the game the boys returned home with Mr. and Mrs. Wood for a late night snack before bed, during which they discussed the game at length. When the boys finally went up to bed they lay awake talking for a while.
"You guys are so lucky both parents understand and like quidditch. If my dad isn't there I have no one to talk quidditch with. Mum tries, but I end up explaining more to her about quidditch in general than I do talking about a specific game."
"Yeah its great having a coach for a dad. He's pretty busy, but he always makes time to talk quidditch with me. He reckons it'll help me next year when I make the house team. He is much more confident in my abilities to make the team than I am. I'll probably just be a reserve at first."
"Yeah I'm sure I'll just be a reserve too. If I even make that. Anyways, both your parents played Neil, so even though your mum isn't a coach she still understands the game really well because she used to play. And Teddy, Harry was recruited heavily and he was the youngest seeker on the Gryffindor team in over a century and Ginny played professionally for a while before she became a quidditch reporter. I bet you guys have some interesting quidditch conversations too."
"Well yeah we do. But pretty much every Sunday we have pick up quidditch games after lunch at the burrow. This is only the first year I've been allowed to play with the adults though. They play hard so you can't play until you start at Hogwarts. But they kids play their own games too. It's just more tame than the adult game. It's a lot of fun."
"Oh well then you'll definitely make the team next year," Lee mumbled.
"Really it depends on how many players they keep on from the previous year I guess. If they've already had real play time I imagine they would be better than a newbie. But I guess we'll find out come September. No sense in worrying about it now."
"Yeah."
Neil yawned, "alright let's get some sleep".
In a matter of minutes they were all asleep.
The next day it took Alicia three trips upstairs to finally wake the boys. Apparently they were all heavy sleepers who enjoyed having a nice lie in. when they finally made their way to the kitchen she fixed them some breakfast. While they were eating they chatted a bit.
"When you get back from Asia you guys should both come over to Harry and Ginny's one weekend and come to the Burrow with us for Sunday lunch. Molly won't mind and then we can all play a game of quidditch with the adults. Get in some good practice before school."
"That sounds great, I'm sure my dad will love the idea. All the Weasleys, besides Percy played. And Harry and George both played with dad at the same time. I bet it's a great game."
"Okay cool. Something to look forward too while we're traveling. I'm starting to worry this is going to be a boring trip. I hope I'm wrong. But the way mum talks about it it doesn't sound very exciting. I mean, I'm sure it'll be very educational. It'll help me really understand my culture and heritage, which is important. But I'm 12, I don't want to just look at a bunch of stuff and eat traditional foods. I need some kind of exciting, fun activity every once in a while to keep my attention. Hopefully she realizes that."
"I'm sure it'll be better than you think," Neil said around a bite of porridge.
"Yeah."
"Alright so I'll ask Harry when I get home about you guys coming over and I'll let you know what he says. I'm sure it'll be fine though."
After breakfast they lined up by the fireplace to floo home. Lee went first with a thank you to Neil's mum for breakfast and for having them. Then Teddy went thanking her as well. She told him to say high to Ginny for her.
When Teddy came spinning out of the fireplace Ginny caught him before he could land face down on the rug. "How was the game? Did you have fun?"
"Yeah it was great. Mr. Wood let us look at the stats and give him advice. He agreed with what we said so he let us tell the team ourselves. And the game was awesome."
"Good, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. Would you mind terribly keeping James and Al occupied while Lily takes her nap. They seem to enjoy bothering her right now and I really need her to nap. Since they love spending time with you I know it'll keep them away from her. I hate to ask."
"It's fine. We'll go out back and play with their toy brooms. That okay?"
"Of course. Do be careful on your broom though."
"I will."
Teddy walked into the kitchen, "hey James, Al, lets go outside and fly around a bit. I could use some practice since I'm gonna try out for the house team next year."
James shrugged, "okay", he was in a phase where he wanted Teddy and the other older cousins to think he was cool.
Al's face light up, "Okay! I'll help you."
"Thanks guys."
The boys followed Teddy outside to get their brooms (James' and Al's were toy brooms of course) out of the broom shed. They flew around together for almost an hour before Al said he was tired. Teddy could tell James was too but didn't want to say anything. When they dragged themselves back in Lily was up from her nap and having a snack. The boys wanted one too so they sat down at the table while Ginny got their food. Teddy went and sat down on the couch and closed his eyes for a moment. He didn't realize Ginny had followed him in until she sat next to him and put her arm around him. "You're such a good big brother. I'm not sure how you do it, but you're good with all three of them. Always have been. Even when you were 6 and James was a newborn. We're all lucky to have you."
"Thanks Ginny. Sometimes it's fun being a big brother. Especially a big brother who gets a break every other week. Sometimes I even miss them." He smiled to himself when he said that.
"Oh I'm sure you miss the noise and crazy when you're with Andromeda. Because what sane person wouldn't," she said laughingly.
"Well, sometimes when Aunt Narcissa comes to visit Gran she brings Scorpius with her. He's Al's age. But he's much more reserved than Al is. He seems to be okay with me though."
"Have you met Draco and Astoria?"
"A few times. After Scorpius was born Gran took me to see him. That was the first time I met them. Astoria has come by more than Draco. They always send me something for my birthday. Draco came more when Scorpius was a baby, but as he got older he started coming less. Now he doesn't come as much as Astoria. But he's okay when he does come. He seems to be trying to get to know us."
"That's good. I'm glad they're making an effort. I'm sure Andromeda and Narcissa love their time together too."
"Gran loves it when aunt Narcissa comes by. She smiles the whole day."
Ginny patted his back and gave him a quick kiss on the head before she got up to go back to the kitchen, "good. She deserves to be happy. Come get a snack if you're hungry." With that she left the living room.
A few weeks later found Teddy laying on his bed at his Gran's house when there was a knock on the front door. Teddy was trying to do his summer homework, but curiosity at who was knocking distracted him. To be fair it was pretty easy to distract him from his homework since he hated doing it. So he decided he would slip downstairs and try to see who was there. When he got down the stairs he heard voices in the kitchen. He tiptoed over and peeked through the small opening where the door was slightly ajar. To his surprise he saw Draco Malfoy sitting in the kitchen with Astoria and Aunt Narcissa. He was holding a slightly squirming Scorpius. It was not unusual for Aunt Narcissa to be there with Scorpius. The surprise was Draco. He had come a few times. But he hadn't been in quite a while. While Teddy was trying to remember the last time Draco had come when he heard, "Teddy quit spying on us from the living room and join us in here please".
Teddy shuffled in with his hair a slightly red color and mumbled, "sorry Gran".
Teddy sat down next to Draco and Scorpius at the table and started playing with Scorpius a little. The two faded to the background while the women talked. He didn't notice that Draco watched him play with Scorpius the whole time. When they Malfoy family left Draco hefted a sleeping Scorpius up higher onto his hip so he could carry him easier. But as they were leaving Draco hung back just a bit and said, without looking at Teddy, "you're really good with Scorpius. He talks about you all the time after he comes home from these visits. I see why now."
Teddy rubbed the back of his neck, a habit he had picked up from Harry, and said, "Al's the same age, so I get a lot of practice with him. Scorpius is a lot calmer than Al though. It's nice to see that side of a toddler every once in a while. And he is my cousin."
"Right. Well thank you. I'm glad he has you." With that Draco left to catch up with his mother and his wife so they could go home.
Later that night Teddy told his Gran about the conversation he had with Draco. She didn't seem very surprised. "He loves that little boy. He may seem very standoffish, but he wants Scorpius to have a better childhood than he did. He struggles with his past, and you being Harry's godson does not make him very comfortable with us. But he is trying and that is all we can ask of him."
"Why does Harry being my godfather bother him?"
"Their pasts are connected in some unfortunate ways. But it is not my story to tell. So you will have to ask Harry or Draco about it if you want to know more. But do keep in mind that he is trying."
"Okay Gran."
"Now then, best go and finish some homework before supper."
Teddy grumbled a bit but got up and went back to his room anyways.
Teddy thought a lot about what his Gran had said about Draco over the next few weeks. He tried to ignore it, but it was really bothering him. He knew he couldn't ask Draco though. And he didn't want to ask Harry. He thought maybe Ginny would be a safe person to ask. Or maybe Hermione. Ron would probably tell Harry he asked. So he decided he would try to ask Ginny the next time he was at their house.
So the next week he was back in Godric's Hollow with the Potters. He made sure to get up at a decent hour Monday Tuesday and Wednesday, he worked on his homework without prodding, and he helped with the kids without being asked. He was trying to get on Ginny's good side before asking her about Harry and Draco, and this did not go unnoticed by Ginny. So Wednesday afternoon when Lily was napping and Harry had taken the boys out to burn off some energy Ginny went up to Teddy's room and knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Ginny walked into the room, turned the desk chair around to face Teddy laying on his bed, and sat down. "How's your homework coming along? Do you need any help?"
"It's good. I may ask you to read over this essay I'm working on now when I finish if you don't mind though."
"Of course. Which class is it for?"
"Potions."
"Ah. I take it you like potions as much as Harry did then?"
"If you mean he hated it because he never really understood it and it was his worst subject then yes."
"I see. Well when you finish writing it let me know and I'll read it."
"Thanks."
"Is there anything else on your mind Teddy?"
Teddy didn't answer.
"What is it Teddy?"
"I had this weird conversation with Gran about how Harry and Draco had a past that was connected in unfortunate ways. But she wouldn't tell me how. Could you?"
"Oh Teddy. You really should ask Harry."
"I was afraid you'd say that. But couldn't you tell me just a little? Please?"
"All I'll say is this, both of them had hard lives, but from different perspectives. And a lot of it wasn't either of their faults. A lot of what happened to Harry and Draco was caused by other people's choices. But even with as hard as Harry's life was, it was better than Draco's. If you want more than that you'll have to ask one of them."
"Okay."
Ginny stood to leave but Teddy stopped her, "Gran says he's trying. That he wants Scorpius to have a better life than he did. I think she's right."
"That's good Teddy. I'm glad." She smiled and left him to finish his essay.
Lee and his family came back at the beginning of August. That weekend he and Neil came to visit Teddy at Harry and Ginny's house. They got there on Saturday around lunch time. Neil had to floo there, which Harry and Ginny were fine with, because his parents were both busy that day and couldn't take him. But since they both knew Harry they were fine with it. Lee on the other hand was brought over by his mum, dad, and sister. They were taking his sister shopping for school clothes so they dropped Lee off on the way. When they got there Cho knocked on the door and Teddy ran to answer it.
"Hi Teddy, is Harry busy? My husband would like to meet him."
"Okay. He's in the kitchen with Ginny. Come in."
So they all followed Teddy into the kitchen.
"Lee and his parents are here."
"I see that Teddy. Thank you." Harry stood up then to shake Cho's husband's hand.
"Hi, I'm Carl. It's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too. I'm Harry and this is my wife Ginny."
"Nice to meet you Carl. Cho, nice to see you again." Ginny took Harry's hand and gave it a possessive squeeze.
"Nice to meet you too Ginny."
"Good to see you again Ginny."
"Well dad you've met them so you guys can go now."
"Lee don't be so rude," Cho reprimanded.
Harry knelt down then so that he was eye level with Mae. "And who is this pretty little girl?"
She smiled and kind of ducked behind her mum a bit more.
"This is my sister Mae. Mae say hi to everyone."
"Hi," she whispered.
"Hi Mae."
"Well, I guess we should get going. Lee can just floo home tomorrow if that's alright with you all."
"Oh yea that's fine."
"Be good for Harry and Ginny okay."
"Yes mum."
Harry and Ginny walked Cho, Carl and Mae to the door leaving the boys in the kitchen.
The next day found the three boys dragging themselves out of bed still half asleep. They had stayed up pretty late the night before watching movies. Harry loved watching movies so when he and Ginny moved into the house he got a tv for them and bought any movie he thought looked interesting. He had Disney movies, horror movies, comedies, etc. Neil and Lee had never watched tv before so they were fascinated by it. Because of this they stayed up watching as many movies as they could. So when they got downstairs for breakfast they were all groggy and could barely keep their eyes open. But they made it through breakfast and then went upstairs to get ready for the day.
It was good that all they had planned was going to the Burrow for Sunday lunch later. They could have a bit of a lazy day since they were so tired. When it came time to leave for the Burrow they filed back down the stairs and took turns going threw the floo. Harry went first with Lily and Al, then Teddy, then Lee, then Neil, then Ginny with James. Lee and Neil had never seen so many red heads in one room before.
Lunch was amazing. Teddy hadn't been exaggerating when he said how great Molly's cooking was. And it was so fun being with everyone. They got to meet all of Ginny's brothers and their wives and kids. And they were especially excited to meet Victoire. Teddy talked about her all the time. He said he didn't like her as more than a friend, but he talked about her too much for her to just be his best friend. So when they finally got to see them interact they were fascinated. To a casual onlooker they probably really would look like they were just best friends. But to them, watching intently to try to see if there was anything going on, you noticed little things. The way they smiled at each other, the looks they gave each other that obviously conveyed messages only they could understand, and they pretty much never left each others side (until they played quidditch with the adults that is, though Victoire made sure to cheer for Teddy's team). It was clear to them that Teddy and Victoire liked each other, they just didn't know it yet.
Another thing Teddy wasn't lying about, the adults played to win. They didn't hurt the kids or anything, but George and Bill weren't shy about hitting bludgers directly at any of the other adults. George even broke Charlie's nose during the game. The teams were Bill (beater), Charlie (seeker), Angelina (chaser), Neil (keeper), and Teddy (chaser) then George (beater), Ron (keeper), Harry (seeker), Ginny (chaser), and Lee (chaser). Lee was glad he was on Ginny's team, he was sure he could learn a lot from her. And he did. Overall, it was a great game. Lee's team ended up winning. But even still, everyone had fun and the boys got in some good practice.
Once the game was over they went to play some muggle game called football. It had some similarities to quidditch, but Teddy kept having to remind Lee and Neil of the rules. But it was fun and it was something more of the younger cousins could play. By the time that game was over all the kids were exhausted. Lee and Neil flooed home from the Burrow. And after they left Andromeda side alonged Teddy home. She was glad she finally got to meet Neil and Lee, they seemed like good boys.
The end of the summer came pretty quickly after that. Before he knew it it was time for Teddy to get his things for school. This year Ginny took him. It was nice, they got everything he needed and then had ice cream before heading home. It was a lot more laid back this year since Teddy wasn't nervous now.
The next week Harry took Teddy to the train station just the two of them instead of taking the whole family. Which was fine with Teddy, he said bye to them that morning before he and Harry left. Then when they got to the station Harry helped him get his trunk onto the train and then told Teddy bye before he ran off to join his friends who had just gotten there. It was a bittersweet moment for Harry. He was glad that Teddy had made such good friends, but he was sad he was growing up so fast. It seemed like just yesterday he had been a baby and now he was running off with his friends more and spending less time with Harry. Teddy waved at Harry from the train and Harry waved back. He kept waving until the train had completely left the station.
A/N: I think this is my longest chapter so far. It took me a while to finish I know that. But I'm trying to show more of what is going on. I hope you guys like it. Thanks for continuing to read it.