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The field was busy and cramped. Teddy was still trying to get his breath back when hundreds of people came sprinting at them, holding out paper, shirts and even hats to be signed. They had to push many people out for a way to get to the VIP section, their well known name had got them seats there as well as most of the DA including Luna, Neville, Ron, Hermione and the weasleys. As they got closer Teddy could see the bright red hair that belonged to most of the weasleys. Their tents were on the other side of the field and after dragging themselves through all of the fans, they were now meters away from all the charms protecting the section. A bright, blonde head popped up from out of a tent then, crystal, blue eyes shining. As teddy walked through the charms, the head became clearer and more perfect. Adorable freckles, light shin but the thing that enchanted teddy the most was the goofy grin that was only for him. The young girl was only 14 yet so beautiful and so in love. Once through the barrier, Victoire threw her arms around her boyfriend though she tried to make it look like she was just hugging her best friend, she failed, James raised an eyebrow but shrugged and continued walking. They let go of each other and walked slowly towards the tents. Harry and Ginny had already started setting up their tent.
"Hey teddy, come help us with this!" Harry called from somewhere in the jumble of polls and sheets. Slowly, Teddy left Vic and went to help. It might have taken hours if the Weasleys had not come to help, Teddy and Victoire flirting subtly the whole time. By the time they had finished Luna and Rolf and their kids, Lorcan and Lysander (twins and the same age as lily) had arrived along with Neville and Hannah and their twins, Alice and Frank who were the same age as James. Dean and Seamus and their adopted daughter, Lola (who will soon be in the same year as James as well) followed after that, and soon the whole VIP section was crowded and almost impossible to move around. A circle in the middle of the area had been cleared and some big logs were lying around the edge. A small stack of sticks, twigs and logs lay in the middle clearly waiting to be lit. Darkness was leaking over the grounds and stars started to glisten. Moving away from the fire pit, Teddy wandered in between the tents, stopping every now and then to take in the beautiful forest beside them. It was hard to imagine that this time tomorrow they would be in a crowded group of strangers, screaming at the players and referee, high on excitement. A warm, welcoming feeling erupted inside of him when he next stopped, there, completely alone, was Vic wandering mindlessly in the woods, stocking the bark on the trees and listening to the bird tweet, completely unaware of what she was doing. Without thinking, Teddy tip-toed, unseen, behind her and slid his hands over her eyes.
“Guess who?” he said, his voice calm even though his heart was racing, a year of being together and he still loved being able to come so close to her. Their bodies were pressed together and if everyone where to walk pass they would immediately know what was going on between them, though teddy doubted that anyone other then the Weasleys or DA members would take any notice to two teenagers messing around, plus he knew that anyone who would care where back at the camp, getting ready to light the fire without muggles noticing
“I know it’s you, Teddy” her voice was sweet and gentle like always but there was something wrong, something that made teddy know that she had been crying.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, concern taking up the playfulness that had been in his voice just a couple of seconds ago. She turned around to face him. Her eyes were blotchy and red
“It’s nothing,” Victoire intently replied
“Vic, don't lie to me.” His lips barely moved and his hair started to turn a light lavender purple like it always did when he is worried. Victoire met his eyes, searching for something to say and hoping Teddy would drop it. But all he would do is hold her closer. One of his arms was wrapped around her waist, the other was bent by his side so that he could stoke her hair. Vic let her arms slide up from her side and fall on his chest. When he showed no sign of giving up, Vic sighed and, as calmly as she could, she started to talk.
“isn’t it annoying that we have to pretend that we’re not together when we are with other people” Vic said “I mean, we are just as entitled to be together as anyone else and it’s not like we aren’t allowed to date people.”
To her surprise, Teddy did not pull away from her or look confused because she had just questioned the secrecy of their relationship but instead, leaned in and kissed her, soft and sweet, his lips tasted like melted chocolate and both his hands were now either side of her face. She did not pull away either but instead gripped tighter to his shirt and nudged closer so that their bodies were squished together making the fuzzy feeling they got when kissing each other double. Steadily, they pulled away, desperate for air. Teddy’s hands were still cupping Vic’s face and Vic’s were still gripping his band t-shirt, but there was now an understanding that they shared that wasn’t there before they kissed, soft, tender and pure, they now understood why they had seen so little of each other this summer and why it had been so weird and wrong but also magical and perfect. A person can be controlled by fear, especially those who fear love. Teddy and Victoire love each other more than anything in the world but they are scared that the other will never love them back. They held each other close, eyes fixed on the others, not moving for several minutes. Their expressions were blank and they were breathing rapidly. Slowly, they both leaned in again, this time was more intense and longer, their arms draped around each other, their bodies pressed together. Many unspoken words were said in this one kiss. Their hearts pounding as they pulled away.
“I love you Vicky” These were the only words to describe what Teddy was feeling and even though he had never said it before it was true.
He did love her.
Her eyes were fixed on him, and her breathing was slowing down rapidly. Her soft lips broke into a smile, so pure and warm that it could melt ice.
“I love you too,” Teddy’s insides twisted and turned. It was the first time he had ever heard ‘I love you’ in that way and he now understood why characters got so love sick. There was a distant yell just as Teddy leaned in again and they both turned. The sound had come from the same place the camp should be. It came again, this time it was more clear what the voice was saying.
"Teddy!" The voice yelled, clearly a young boy
"Vic!" The voice had changed from the boy voice to a sweet, innocent girl's voice. They knew those voices. Instantly they broke apart, hoping that if they were found it wouldn’t look too bad. Running out of the forest, they came face to face with James and Dominique.
“There you are! We have been looking for you for ages! Come on or we’ll miss the sausages!” James said as Teddy and Vic straightened themselves up. He did not see the slight lipstick mark on Teddy’s mouths or their very untidy clothes. Dom however did, she stared intensely at them for a few minutes whilst Teddy wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his denim jacket and Vic straightened her blood red lever jacket and fixed her black jeans. But soon enough, after James gave another moan telling them to hurry up, she turned and started walking. They were almost back at the camp when someone finally spoke.
“So, what were you guys doing back there?” Dom asked with a smirk on her face. After a moment of hesitation, Teddy replied.
“Talking.” It was all he could think of.
“Sure.” She said in the most sarcastic tone Teddy had ever heard, which is saying a lot considering that he has lived with Harry since he was 5. They had found the clearing. Everyone was crowded around the fire. Bill, Charlie and Percy were deep in conversation, sharing what they have been doing at work. Harry and Hermione were talking to Arthur about some new muggle thing and explaining to him how it worked. Ron and George had their heads together discussing some new product that had sold out faster than expected. Fleur and Audrey were talking about their new achievements whilst Ginny and Angelina were talking about quidditch. All of the kids were playing and only the twins had realized that they had returned. "Your hair is purple." That was all Dom said as they sat down on the grass next to Molly and Lucy whilst she and James went to go play.
The night drew on, filled with laughter and fun. Teddy was watching the kids when he first saw it. Dom was staring at him intensely, her eyes flickered from a moment to Vic (who was on the other side of the circle, braiding Lily’s hair) then back to teddy. However, this time she saw him watching and quickly changed her attention to the leaf on the ground in front of her. Teddy continued to look at her for a couple of minutes then turned around and smiled to himself. If there was one word to describe Dominique then that word would be smart. He knew that she was trying to figure out what was going on between him and her sister and that she hadn't found out yet. Even though Teddy knew that it was better to have a secret relationship with Vic, he didn’t really mind if Dominique knew as it wouldn’t really matter as Dom had a soft spot for her big sister and would care little if she found out. Still smiling, Teddy let himself be drawn into a conversation with Lucy about her dance audition that was coming up next year and for some reason she had already started practicing.
Soon it was too dark to see and slowly they all trouped back to their tents. Teddy could see Victoire helping Louis into their tent as he walked to his own but when he caught her eye she gave a weak smile and started to walk towards him. Her beautiful, blonde hair ruffled as she withdrew her hands from her pocket. Each nail was painted scarlet and one small twisted ring was placed on her index finger on her right hand. A tiny piece of paper lay in that same hand and, once she got close enough, teddy could see her twirling handwriting on top of the paper in emerald green ink
Teddy
She placed the paper into Teddy’s hand then winked and walked away, back to her tent where Fleur stood waiting for her. Teddy watches her leave before he came aware that Harry was also waiting for him, he retreated back to the cosy tent waiting for him. There were three bedrooms, a small kitchen, a bathroom and lastly a small snug, it was like a flat. As you enter the tent, the snug is the first thing you see, completed with two arm chairs and a sofa. The kitchen poked out the side and a hall could hardly be seen as it was tucked away at the back of the room, three bedrooms could just been seen through the flaps of the tent, the closes had sweet lullabies coming from it and at the furthest a giggle could be heard followed by a quiet shushing noise that 100% came from Albus. The tent was fairly new, it's only been used once or twice by Ginny when she was watching a quidditch game for work. Teddy didn’t look where he was going as he walked into the furthest room. His mind was solely on Victoire and her letter, which was curled up in his pocket. He changed and climbed into bed. The room had three beds, one bunk bed and one single bed, James and Albus there sharing the bunk bed, James on top because Albus hates heights, and teddy had the single bed. Once he was sure everyone was asleep, teddy pulled out the letter and read it:
Teddy
Met me at the forest opening at 01:00 am.
Make sure everyone is asleep
Love Vic 💚
His heart skipped in his throat. Instantly, he checked his phone. 12:36 am. He didn't have much time. He slipped back into his clothes and pushed the letter into his pocket again. Albus was snoring slightly, Teddy didn't blame him, he's had a cold since James pushed him into a puddle, and speaking of James, he had his pillow over his head but was obviously asleep. Feeling that it was safe, Teddy slipped out of the room. He peeked into Harry and Ginny's room and Lily's room as he passed by but all was silent and ok. Once outside, he checked the time again. 12:50 am. He had only ten minutes to find the gap in the trees that made an opening into the woods where he and Vic had met before, and it was dark. Luckily, it was only a couple of days until the full moon and his senses were high. It was easy to see in the dark and he easily managed to find the freshest tracks that were clearly Victoire's. Soon enough, he found her, alone in the same spot she was in last time. She turned when she heard teddy come and smiled weakly. Teddy's hair was blue again however it was still slightly tinted lavender. Vic seemed to pick up on that and she was quick to reassure him.
"Hey, um, I was wondering if we could talk," she said, trying to keep her voice steady. Teddy frowned, he wasn't sure why she was so nervous. It must be important.
"Sure, what about?" He relied
"Well it's just that we didn't get much of a chance to talk earlier," she waited for Teddy to talk, however he never did. When she finally looked up he was smiling slightly. Not his normal crooked grin, but a softer, meaningful smile. Adventurely, he spoke.
"I did mean it," he said "I do love you." His heart pounded in his chest as he said it. His hair was turning a pastel pink. It was different from the normal vivid pink it turns when he is cheerful or the neon pink it turns when he is embarrassed (or even the bubblegum pink it turns when he is thinking/trying to look like his mum). Pastel pink was something new and he was pretty sure he liked the warm, fluffy feeling that came with it. Vic smiled.
"I know. And you know that I love you too. But I meant the secret relationship part."
"Right, which bits do you want to talk about?"
"Why do we hide it? We have nothing to be ashamed of." Vic said in a small voice. Teddy had never heard her speak like that. She does everything bright and cheerful and doesn't let anything get in the way. Hearing her talk like this is rare.
" Honestly, I don't know," Teddy started, "I guess at first we just wanted to keep it to ourselves, and then it turned into a secret."
"I figured it would be that." She wasn't crying exactly but you couldn't call it not crying. Tears slid down her face but her voice was steady and calm. She was still smiling slightly but Teddy could tell it was forced.
"Vic, are you ok?" Teddy asked. She didn't say anything but collapsed into his arms. They stayed that way for a long time, just the two of them. Until Vic pulled back.
"I'm sorry," she said in a wobbly voice, "I know we can't tell anyone but…" she paused for a minute, looking for the right words "it's just hard sometimes."
"I know, I hate it just as much as you do. But, hey, at least we've got each other."
She smiled at that.
"We should probably go back before someone realizes we're gone." So they do. Somewhere along the way Teddy's hand slips into Vic's. They walked in silence. Teddy and Vic tell each other everything but sometimes they keep quiet, walk in silence, just like they are doing now. When they get to the tents, they say goodbye. Teddy gets to his tent first so he waits and watches her go inside hers before he turns his back and enters. Creeping through the tent, so he is not heard, Teddy eventually gets to the right room and crawls back into his bed. His head is buzzing but it doesn't take long to fall asleep. Before he knew it he was soundlessly sleeping, head full of dreams.