Harry Potter 1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: First of all, allow me to apologize beforehand for this lengthy Author's Note. I just wanted to get everything I needed to say out of the way right up front.

About the title I chose for the story... I know it's kinda lame and over-used (especially for this fandom), but I chose it for a very specific reason - which you will find out later on in the story.

This Prologue chapter takes place during the Epilogue chapter of Deathly Hallows (in case you couldn't figure that out from reading it). The rest of the story is split up into two parts. Part I is all flashbacks spanning the years of Teddy Lupin's education at Hogwarts. Part II returns to the "present," which follows immediately after the events of this Prologue chapter. Hopefully, it won't be too confusing to follow.

My model for Teddy is actor Luke Newberry, who was cast in the role for the second Deathly Hallows film. His part was cut from the ending, however, but you can still find his picture on Teddy Lupin's info page on the Harry Potter Wiki.

And while some people might choose to argue with me over Teddy's hair color, here's my take: When he was younger, sure... He probably preferred to go with the straight turquoise color. But now that he's older and more mature, I can see him just doing a subtle bit of color - hence the turquoise tips he has in this chapter.

Finally: Yeah... I know I need to start another story like I need another organ system to fail on me, but I couldn't help myself. Inspiration struck, and I decided to go for it.

I think that covers everything I wanted to say... If I think of anything else, I'll address it at the beginning of a later chapter.

Enjoy the story!

* * *

><p><strong><em>Prologue: Platform 9 ¾<em>**

It was extremely crowded on Platform 9 ¾, and Ted Lupin vaguely wondered if there was an unusually high number of new students departing for their first year at Hogwarts this term as he squeezed through the numerous groups of children pushing trolleys laden with suitcases toward the train. Sighing slightly, he looked out over the crowd, searching for his godfather's family as he waited for his girlfriend to return from checking her own luggage onto the train.

He had been dating Victoire Weasley, the eldest of Arthur and Molly's grandchildren, for nearly a year. Their relationship had started shortly after his own graduation from Hogwarts, much to the delight of all the Weasleys. There was already talk of marriage in their future, even though Ted and Victoire had never actually discussed the prospect with one another.

"Teddy!" Victoire called, waving as she made her way back through the crowd to him. He met her halfway, gently grasping her hand and leading her away from the others bustling about the platform.

"Well, this is it," she said with a smile once they were somewhere a bit more private. "I can't believe it's my last year, already."

"Believe it," Ted told her, brown eyes sparkling as he playfully tapped the end of her nose with his fingertip. "Before long, you'll be out in the world, doing great things."

"I highly doubt that," Victoire replied, blue eyes downcast as a blush graced her fair skin, accenting her high cheekbones.

Ted smiled and placed a hand under her chin, turning her face up to his, and leaned down to kiss her. She immediately kissed him back, one of her slender hands resting upon his chest while the other reached up to thread into his turquoise-tipped strawberry-blonde locks.

"Eww! What are you doing?"

Ted pulled away from Victoire, his arms still around her waist, and looked over at the source of the voice that had interrupted them as she turned her head and allowed her long blonde hair to hide her embarrassment at being interrupted.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Ted told James, his godfather's oldest son, who was currently staring at them with a disgusted look upon his face. "I'm seeing Victoire off to Hogwarts. Now bugger off!"

He shooed James away with one hand and chuckled a bit when the boy took off running – presumably in the direction of his parents and siblings – yelling, "Guess what I just saw?" at the top of his lungs. Ted turned back to Victoire and sighed, brushing her hair back away from her face, then smiled at her apologetically.

"Sorry about that," he told her, tracing the side of her face with one finger. "Now, where were we?"

Victoire grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, her lips finding his once more. They resumed kissing one another until Ted caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye and suddenly pulled away from her.

"Teddy? What is it?" Victoire asked, looking from him to the crowd of people on the platform, where his attention was now transfixed.

"I thought I saw..." he said quietly, then shook his head and turned back to her with a smile. "It's nothing."

"Okay," Victoire replied slowly, still confused about what had so suddenly caught his eye.

"Last call! All aboard the Hogwarts Express!" called the conductor. Ted gave Victoire one final, brief kiss before wishing her luck and sending her off.

As she made her way to the train, Ted made his own way through the crowd to where his godfather's family was standing. He and his wife and daughter were waving to two boys leaning out of one of the windows on the train – James and Albus – and Ted waved at them, as well, as he joined the rest of them.

"Teddy!" Lily cried when she saw him, holding her arms out to him, and he grinned as he picked her up and kissed her cheek.

"You're getting too big for this, you know," he reminded her with a wink.

"I know," she replied, pouting a bit when he set her back down.

"Hey, Ted," his godfather greeted him.

"Hello, Harry," Ted responded, and the two men hugged briefly in greeting. Harry's wife then stepped forward and enveloped him in one of her tight, motherly hugs.

"I heard you were here seeing Victoire off," Ginny remarked, smirking.

"James and his bloody big mouth," Ted grumbled as they parted, sheepishly scratching the back of his head.

"I think it's great!" Lily exclaimed. "You and Victoire can get married and have babies and we'll all be a big family together."

"Yeah..." Ted muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets as he turned to look at the train. It wasn't that he didn't care a great deal about her. He simply disliked that everyone had already made up their minds about his future for him. He was only nineteen years old, and he wasn't ready to think about things like marriage and settling down just yet.

He searched the windows for Victoire, finally spying her with some of her friends just as the train began to slowly pull out from the station. She smiled at him and waved, and he returned the gesture. The smile disappeared from his face, however, when his eyes fell upon the person seated three cars back from where Victoire and her friends were.

She was sitting alone, reading a book, her dark hair masking part of her face – but Ted knew it was her. He had thought he saw her before when he was kissing Victoire, moving through the crowd with black robes billowing softly behind her, but had brushed it off as merely his imagination playing tricks on him. After all, what reason would she have to be riding the Hogwarts Express when she had graduated with him two years ago?

His heart began hammering in his chest as the train continued pulling away from the platform, his eyes still glued to her form. He didn't even register what was being said to him by his godfather, and simply nodded his head when a question was asked of him. His mind was elsewhere, replaying past events from his years at Hogwarts as her name softly fell from his lips.

"Serena."


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Notes: And here is the first chapter of the flashbacks portion of the story. There will be a lot of new names and a few familiar faces. I have McGonagall still being the Headmistress for the time being, for a few important reasons, but she will be retired by the time the story shifts back to Victoire's last year at Hogwarts.

Keep in mind that these are Teddy's memories of his days at Hogwarts.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p><strong>Part I<strong>

**_Chapter One: The Sorting_**

Teddy Lupin stood nervously with the other First Years outside the Great Hall of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, anxiously awaiting the time when they would be called in to be sorted into their respective houses. His uneasiness had caused his ability to change his looks to temporarily falter, leaving him with his hair in its natural, reddish-blonde color. He wished that some of his friends were a bit older so that he wouldn't have to be alone, but by the looks of things he wasn't the only person feeling butterflies in their stomach at the prospect of starting their first year at the school.

"What house are you hoping to get into?" a boy standing next to him with blonde hair and freckles whispered to him even as the female professor waiting outside the Great Hall with them reminded the group to be quiet.

"I don't know," Teddy replied quietly. "Probably Gryffindor, like my dad."

"Who's your dad?" asked a girl with brown pigtails, turning around to address him.

"Remus Lupin," Teddy answered proudly, though his voice was slightly tinged with sadness. "He was a professor here, once."

"I know that name!" the boy remarked, his voice rising slightly. The professor at the head of the group shushed him and he bowed his head sheepishly for a moment before continuing on in a whisper. "He died in the Battle of Hogwarts, didn't he?"

"Yes," Teddy said, his voice even quieter than before, "along with my mother."

"Sorry," the boy apologized, realizing how insensitive his comments had been. "By the way, I'm Malcolm O'Leary. What say you and I start over fresh, eh?"

Teddy nodded and his brown eyes moved to the boy's outstretched hand for a moment before he took it in his and gave it a friendly shake.

"Ted Lupin."

"I'm Melissa Darby," the pigtailed girl introduced herself with a smile.

"Nice to meet you," Teddy replied, smiling back.

"Alright, children, listen up!" the professor at the front of the group called them all to attention. "I want you to walk into the Hall in two straight lines – girls on the left, boys on the right. You will be called up one at a time to sit beneath the Sorting Hat, and then you will go to join the other students at your new House Tables."

Teddy fell into line with the others, Malcolm turning around and giving him a thumbs-up as they began marching into the Great Hall. He looked around, taking in the scenery, and remembered all the stories he had heard from his Godfather Harry about the school. The ceiling really _did_ reflect the night sky, making the room seem as though it was outdoors.

"So pretty," Melissa breathed next to him, smiling in awe. Ted nodded his agreement and looked ahead as the line came to a stop and the current Headmistress – Minerva McGonagall, who he had also heard may stories about from his godfather – rose from her seat to address the new students.

He only half-listened to the speech that was being made. It was a generic speech about the values of the different houses and how no matter what one they were put into, they all had their merits. Next, the Sorting Hat sang a song which pretty much reiterated what the Headmistress had just told them. All the same, everyone clapped and cheered at the end of the song, and the woman who had been waiting with them outside the Great Hall stepped to the front of the group. She introduced herself as Delilah Coswich, Professor of Transfiguration and head of Ravenclaw House. She then instructed the students to step forward one at a time as their names were called, at which time them would sit down on the stool where the Sorting Hat was resting and have the hat placed upon their heads in order to be sorted into the proper houses. Then they would move to sit with their new housemates. She was repeating the instructions she had given them before entering the Great Hall, but Teddy supposed that between the nerves and the excitement of the new students she felt a need to go over the procedure a second time.

"Abingdon-Fitzsimmons, Roderick" Professor Coswich called, and a boy with dark, slicked-back hair stepped forward and made his way to the stool with an air of superiority.

"Ten galleons says Slytherin for that one," Malcolm mumbled over his shoulder to Teddy, causing him to smile.

"I'm not taking that bet," Melissa quietly said next to him, shaking her head as she kept her eyes glued to the front of the Hall.

"You're probably right," Teddy whispered back to Malcolm, watching as Roderick sat down on the stool and Professor Coswich placed the Sorting Hat on top of his head.

"Slytherin!" the hat announced loudly a few moments later, causing Teddy to share a laugh with his new friends as the students seated at the Slytherin table erupted into applause.

The next several minutes went by in a similar fashion: Each student was called forward, sat under the Sorting Hat, and a few seconds later the hat announced what house they were to be placed in. The first two after the haughty Slytherin boy were placed in Ravenclaw, the next one in Gryffindor, followed by two in Hufflepuff and another into Gryffindor. Teddy was getting antsy, waiting for his turn, and started to regret his decision to stand toward the back of the line where it was hard to see what was going on.

"Darby, Melissa."

"Here goes nothing," Melissa said under her breath as she stepped out of her place in line and made her way to the front of the Hall to be sorted. It took barely any time at all for the hat to declare her a new member of Gryffindor. Teddy smiled and clapped with the others as she made her way to her seat, then quietly watched as the next two students were sorted into Ravenclaw and Slytherin.

"Lupin, Ted."

Teddy swallowed nervously as he began making his way to the front of the Hall, and Malcolm gave him a reassuring pat on his back as he passed by. Several students whispered amongst themselves, watching him make his way to the Sorting Hat. He heard one say something about him being an orphan, another talking about how his parents had both been killed during the Battle of Hogwarts, and yet another remarking that he was basically raised by _the_ Harry Potter. Ted sighed and rolled his eyes slightly. His godfather had warned him that the other students were likely to know who he was. After all, some reporters had decided that he was a "symbol" of the war against Voldemort – both of all that was lost as well as the bright future everyone had to look forward to. He simply hoped they all got their ogling out of their systems right up front, because he just wanted a nice, normal life at Hogwarts.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he sat down upon the stool, facing the other students. Professor Coswich lowered the Sorting Hat onto his head, and he immediately heard a small chuckle somewhere inside his mind.

"Well, well... What have we here?" the Sorting Hat's voice whispered to him in his head. "The son of Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks. I see you have inherited your mother's ability to change your appearance. No doubt you'll use it to get into all sorts of mischief here, if you're anything like your father and the crowd he ran with in his Hogwarts days. But, oh... Not a lick of lycanthropy in your blood. Lucky boy. You're also lucky to have inherited your father's intelligence. For these reasons, I see fit to place you in...

"Gryffindor!" the Hat bellowed aloud, causing the students seated at the Gryffindor house table to cheer loudly. Teddy smiled and moved to take a seat at the table, sitting next to Melissa. The two of them watched as a girl named Annie Marschotz was sorted into Slytherin, then it was Malcolm's turn to sit beneath the hat.

Teddy watched as the Sorting Hat was placed on the other boy's head, wondering what was being said to him as the hat considered which house he belonged in. A few seconds after the hat was first put on top of his head, it called out its decision:

"Gryffindor!"

Teddy and Melissa clapped louder than the other students as Malcolm ran excitedly to join them at the Gryffindor house table.

"Looks like we're all gonna be together for the next seven years," Malcolm remarked, patting Teddy on the back and winking at Melissa. Teddy smiled and Melissa blushed, and all three of them watched as the remainder of the students were sorted.

"Toulson, Serena," Professor Coswich finally called the last name on her list several minutes later.

Teddy watched as the girl being called slowly moved forward. Her black hair was collected in a single, neat braid down her back. Perhaps it was just the distance, but somehow she seemed a bit smaller than the other students who had been sorted before her. When she finally turned around to sit on the stool, he immediately noticed the apprehension on her face. Professor Coswich placed the hat on top of the girl's head, and Teddy watched as her already pale skin blanched even more. Unlike most of the others, this sorting wasn't very quick, and several students began murmuring to one another about the amount of time it was taking the hat to come to a decision.

"Slytherin!" the hat called out after a lengthy deliberation.

The Slytherin house table broke out in cheers and applause as Serena got up from the stool at the front of the Hall and made her way over to join them. Unlike the other students, though, who had been eager to join their new housemates, Teddy noticed a certain trepidation in her steps as she made her way to the Slytherin table. Perhaps it was just nerves over starting her first year at Hogwarts, but Teddy had a feeling there was something else bothering her...


End file.

Harry Potter, Romance