Victoir
The day before Teddy was tortured to near insanity, Annalise invited the girls to a little party. Nothing fancy, she just didn’t want to have to celebrate her first birthday without Charles alone. We camped out on the Astronomy Tower for the night.
“Welcome to my humble abode.” Annalise said, welcoming us. She gave Cynthia a kiss.
“Damn, now I know how you felt, Cynthia.” Alice said, shaking her head.
“Shut up.” I whispered to her, “They’re too cute to interrupt.”
Cynthia handed Annalise a gift bag, “Happy birthday.”
“I told you not to get me anything.” Annalise protested, “It just makes me feel even worse for not getting you anything.”
“We weren’t together on my birthday.” Cynthia reminded her.
“Doesn’t matter, I still feel bad.” Annalise said, but took the gift anyway. She unwrapped it and pulled out…a kitten. She just stared down at it, tearing up.
“Her name is Auggie.” Cynthia told her. A tear rolled down Annalise’s cheek, “She’s a munchkin tabby. And don’t worry, she’s not an animagus.”
Annalise, still holding the kitten, embraced Cynthia, “Thank you.” she mumbled into her shoulder.
When they drew back, Annalise dried her eyes, “Damn, now I really feel bad.” she said with a chuckle. She glanced over at Alice and I and noticed us staring, “Sorry about that, guys. I mean, it’s been six months, there’s no reason for me to still be this sad about—”
“Excuse me?” I cried, “There is every reason in the world! Teddy’s parents died sixteen years ago, and he still has ‘I need my mum’ moments! Shut up and be sad!”
Annalise opened her mouth to speak. And closed it.
“Umm…so, I’ve got some party games.” Alice said, changing the subject.
When we finally started the party, we actually had a lot of fun. We played a few games, had a few drinks, played with Auggie, gave each other makeovers, and took pregnancy tests just for shits and giggles. But no one was laughing. Because mine was positive.
So you can understand why I wanted to meet up with Teddy the next day. I waited in the predetermined classroom for ten minutes, but when he didn’t show up, I stormed into the common room.
“That bastard.” I muttered, flopping onto the couch.
“You alright?” James asked without looking up.
“Where the fuck is Teddy?” I asked him angrily.
“Dunno. Haven’t seen him since Divination.”
“Well he completely stood me up.” I grumbled, “I need to find him and—”
“And what, Vicky?” James interrupted, “Wherever he is, I’m sure he’s got a perfectly reasonable explanation for it. Calm down.”
“But he should be with me, and—”
“You’ve had hundreds of dates before, and hundreds more to come.” James glanced up at me, “What makes this one so special?”
“Because I was gonna tell him—” I stopped myself and sighed, “Nevermind.”
“Tell him what?” James asked, leaning forward.
“I was gonna tell him what a great boyfriend he is.” I lied. And there it was. That look on James’s face. Pure motherly skepticism. We’d always joked about James and Cynthia being the “mom friends” but damn was it true. I could always confide in James about anything. I sighed, “And I was gonna tell him what a great dad he’ll be…”
James just looked at me, eyes wide, “Are you bullshitting me right now?” he asked.
I shook my head, smiling.
“Holy shit!” he exclaimed, standing up, “I’m an uncle!”
“Not exactly, but—”
“Shut up.” James told me, hugging me.
When he pulled away, I asked, “So you don’t know where he is?”
“I’ll get the map.” James said, and ran upstairs. He quickly returned, Marauder’s Map in hand. He sat down on the sofa next to me and unfolded the old parchment.
“That’s weird. Why would he be in some random room with Goyle?”
“I don’t know, but it can’t be good.” James said, standing up, “I’ll go get him.”
...
When James came back, he looked as if he had seen a dementor. “What’s wrong? Where’s Teddy?” I asked, standing up.
James mumbled something about Goyle and grabbed my hand. He brought me to the Hospital Wing. My breath caught in my throat as I saw Teddy laying on one of the beds, white-haired and unconscious.
I sat down next to him, “Wh-what happened?” I managed to ask.
“Cruciatus curse.”
My eyes snapped back to James, “What?”
James shifted uncomfortably, “It was Goyle. I’d be willing to bet he was behind everything that happened this year.”
“James, can you write a letter?” I asked, suddenly getting an idea.
James looked at me, confused, “Yes.”
“Okay, Teddy’s got letters in his trunk from a friend back home. Write to him. Explain what happened. I’ll go to the Headmistress and ask if he can visit Hogwarts. I mean, he already knows about magic, so what’s the harm, right?” I said, standing up. James nodded and we left the Hospital Wing.
...
I muttered the password to the Headmistress’s office (Robin had told me months ago) and stepped inside, “Professor, I assume you’ve heard about what happened to Teddy?” I asked.
“Yes, I have, Ms. Weasley. And we are already seeing to it that Mr. Goyle is punished justly for his actions.” she said, scribbling something down on a piece of parchment.
“That’s great, but that’s not why I’m here.” I told her.
“Oh?” she looked up at me, “What is it, dear?”
“James is writing to Teddy’s muggle friend, Quinn Chandler. And I was hoping you’d allow him to visit Hogwarts for a bit. Sort of mend the rules a bit. He already knows about magic, so—”
Professor McGonagall interrupted me with a sigh, “I suppose there might be a way to allow a short visit, perhaps a few hours…”
“Thank you so much, professor.” I said, already halfway out the door.
...
I spent that night in the Hospital Wing in a chair next to Teddy. A gentle shake on my shoulder woke me. Opening my eyes, I saw Madam Pomfrey standing over me. She hurried me out of the wing.
With nothing better to do, I went to the Great Hall for breakfast. I sat glumly between James and Cynthia and picked at my breakfast.
The owls soon arrived, and Dior, Teddy’s owl, landed right next to me, a letter tied to its foot. I opened it and saw that it was from Quinn.
James,
Respectfully, I don’t give a fuck if the “magic of hogwarts” keeps me out, I’m on my way to see him right now.
See you soon,
Quinn
As if on cue, the doors to the great hall burst open and a boy with blue hair and amber eyes walked in. But it wasn’t Teddy. No, this was Quinn Chandler, the first muggle to ever step foot in Hogwarts.