Archive of Our Own

When Victoire danced, the rest of the world faded away.

Dancing had always been the  it  for her. She loved moving, making up and expressing an elaborate story -simply by twisting her figure in a graceful arc.

It was a bit like ballet. That, and it was a fact that Victoire adored and regarded ballerinas as the supreme of heroes. Perhaps, it was because her mother was a professional, and she’d taken to curving the red sores around Fleur’s feet, the scrapes and bruises, each rouge that declared another story. Or, perhaps it was childlike fascination that had her so enamoured with the sport.

Spinning, spinning,  spinning . She could never get enough of it. Sometimes, she would twirl in front of her mother and practice aerobic motions with her leg in an upraised position. Such movements would often lead to her tumbling on the floor but she still maintained a grin on her face even if Fleur - a ballet dancer, herself - sported a concerned frown.

As soon as she figured out she could weave a fairytale with shut eyelids and closed wounds, she knew without even a shred of uncertainty that it would be something she would pursue.

In a way, dancing became such a constant of hers that, when she dreamed about the stars, she imagined herself as a constellation, a leg poised up and an arm stretched.

The passion of it translated to ice dancing, eventually, and that would act as an incentive of the greatest moments of her life.

But all her fame and happiness was thanks to a simple spark named Teddy.

Where was she? It was already-

He squinted at his wristwatch, a brand new present from his aunt, and deciphered the time. Then his gaze rose to the peatonal avenue, which was full of people.

Teddy blew into his muffles in an attempt to heat the palms of his hands. What, with all the recent progresses in technology and what else, had the society been doing regarding winter clothes? They seemed to be at a still point: the more fancy you bought them, the less they’d keep you from freezing your bott-

“Teddy! Hurry up!”

Andie’s head appeared among the heavy coats and dark hats of the crowd like a sunray on a rainy day. Her nephew was glad to hop down the icy bench and join her behind a plump man.

“I’m so happy to be here, auntie!”

Andie smiled, and mentally took a picture of his happy face. It wouldn’t be long before he turned into an insufferable teen. The same kind of insufferable teens that she and Ted and Remus and Dora had been.

“I’m very glad you are, Teddy. Are you sure, though? You look a little upset.”

The boy shook his head vehemently, trapped in the belief so characteristic of children of his age: that he could hide his true emotions to adults.

But Andie knew, of course: at the height of his eight years of life,  there was not much Teddy could worry about, and presently, his only concern bore a pretty name, had blonde hair, and was a little late.

“How long till we can get in, auntie?”

“The man said no longer than fifteen minutes.”

She caressed his cheek, and he would have scolded at her, had her gloves not been so warm.

Plus, he was too occupied in analyzing the hands of his watch.

“It’s already three fifty! Do you think she will make it on time?”

“I am sure she w-”

“Teddy!”

The cheerful cry made them both turn around. A girl, not over than seven years old, was sprinting toward them, her two blond braids floating in the air behind her.

Just a glance at her nephew confirmed to Andie that her suspicions were right: this very graceful girl’s absence was the one casting a shadow on Teddy’s face, which was now lit up with pure joy.

Victoire did not stop running until she threw herself in the boy’s arms, almost making him topple over.

“Oh, Teddy!” she squealed, “I thought we were not going to make it on time! I picked the first dress I could find, after practice, but Dad was so slow, there were so many cars around us on the way, it was painful. I’m sure you would have hated me, if I had not made it on time! But here I am, you see. My feet are still hurting from the afternoon class- Oh, hi, Mrs. Andie! How are you? Mom told me to thank you so much for the invitation-”

One could think that Victoire didn’t need to breathe.

Her father arrived with hurried steps behind her, and greeted Teddy and Andie with a hug. He was carrying Victoire’s blue backpack, the one that she always brought when she slept over at the Tonks’.

“Loads of traffic,” he sighed, with a meaningful look to Andie, the sort that only adults can understand.  His daughter must have urged him all the way , she guessed. “I hope you two are okay.”

Teddy and Victoire were already lost in their conversation when Fleur joined the group, and not much later, they all stepped under the white and green majestic tent.

Too occupied by his apprehension of Victoire making it on time, and then by her endless chatter, Teddy had not really taken the time to ponder on his luck: he was to see The Circus.

The Circus.

The Circus’ performers were the most incredibles to be ever seen. He had heard that their sparkling costumes matched their glittering eyes and their breathtaking pirouettes could rival with the winds, as light and airy as they were.

The contortionists remodeled their bodies, the prestidigitators formed animals out of thin air. The music was priceless to hear.

The Circus was the most enormous troup, which collected the bestest of the bestest talents around the universe. When they belonged to the prestigious company, performers were not  humans anymore: they were gods of the air, gods of balance, gods of grace, gods of beauty.

They were so popular, so demanded around the world, that Teddy had never had the chance to see them perform live.

Auntie Andie had once, when she was about his age. She always said that this was what made her understand that she wanted to be a professional artist.

As soon as news had spread that The Circus was back in the city, the woman had jumped on the occasion. Securing tickets for the show had been the hardest thing she’d ever done, even harder than winning the skating figure Nationals in 1990, because masses of spectators arrived from all over the country to get a seat.

It was part of that surreal effect that the troup produced.

And this year, the already excellent program had received a bonus, which had made numbers of ice skating fans desperate to get an entry.

James Potter and Lily Evans, the most famous pair of ice skaters the world had ever known, were to execute their last public performance during the show.

After their victory during the last Olympics, Jily -- as they were widely known -- had declared the end of their career, firing a blow to the figure skating community. Their chemistry and movements on the rink were so flawless, so natural, as to make them seem ethereal. It was quite implied that they would last forever.

Still, they had disappeared from the front scene for the next years, and everybody had grown painfully used to not seeing their names on posters and television emissions anymore.

Until the release of The Circus’ program.

“Teddy?”

“Uh?”

Victoire’s elbow against his ribs made the boy wake up from his reverie. He shot a sideways glance at her, and saw her happy smile flashing his way.

He loved it, when his best friend looked happy.

“You were daydreaming, Teddy.” She linked her arm with his. “Are you excited?”

“Of course I am! More than Auntie.”

“But not more than me.”

“Not more than you,” he grinned too.

The crowd was settling down in a noisy and colorful agitation, and a weird thought made its way through Teddy’s mind.

The attention, the adrenaline of being on the scene, his love for sports and dance and acrobacies… The Circus’ tent seemed to be murmuring him something, all of a sudden.

But he shook that idea away. He was far more comfortable sitting with Vic. Plus, it was not like he was talented or anything. He just was quite good at gymnastic, like his parents wished him to be. It was fun, and a way to occupy his time after school and before homework.

Victoire was the real talented one. He loved to see her spin and flutter, fly like she did when she danced. She became a little bird, in her colorful tutus. In some way, he was more excited to go see her practice sessions than he was now to see The Circus perform.

“I’ve heard that Lily is even more beautiful in person than on TV, you know.”

From the tone of her voice, Teddy guessed that her stomach was knotted by emotion.

“Auntie said she is. They’ve met at the Nationals in 1992.”

“I wish I could talk to her, at the end of the show. I’m so sad it’s the last time we’ll see them perform.”

Teddy hugged her, felt her thin arms under his, breathed the flowery scent of her hair, as she let some tears roll down her cheeks.

Vicky and him had grown in houses where dance, gymnastic, and figure skating where the epicenter of attention, due to her parents’ and his aunt’s love for their careers.

Best friends since birth, because their mothers had grown up like sisters, they shared the same childhood idols. For them, no princesses, no superheros. They had posters of Nadia Comaneci, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Sonia Arova hanging on their bedroom walls.

And of course, of James and Lily.

Vicky sniffed. Her eyes were a bit puffy.

“She’s the star of the show, today,” she whispered.

Teddy tightened his embrace, and felt his best friend comfortably settle in his arms.

She was so charming and vivacious herself...

At that precise moment, Teddy had no doubt that, one day, Victoire would be the star of her own show.

He's lying sprawled on the grass, basking in the sunlight when it happens. Teddy Lupin was barely ten but the way he lazed about made Victoire wonder if he was perhaps, already past retirement age.

It was summer break - and quite a boring one, at that. At this time of the year, Teddy usually went out with the boys, and Victoire sat on her bed, a book perched upon her knee. But sadly, this time, Teddy’s friends had left the country for the break, and Victoire was all out of books.

“Teddy!” She called, his name fresh on her tongue. It was a bright morning, but spirits were quite low, a misfortune from boredom. Had summer breaks  always  been this terrible?

Her best friend gazed up at her, offering her a shallow smile. “What?”

“I want to dance.” She said shortly -- because she was a girl with a mission and didn’t go around the bush.

Teddy sighed and shot her an annoyed look, frowning as he shut his eyes. “So,  dance , Vicky.”

She scrunched her nose at those words. The nickname wasn't a fond one and yet, he still insisted on calling her that. His nickname had yet been decided upon, a fact that irked her. In fact,  Teddy  was a nickname, but since he had basically deemed it as a first name, the sentiment of teasing him just wasn’t there.

“I want to be an  ice  dancer. With you.”

His eyes flew open. They were startling blue, almost as if the sky dwelled in him. “With me?”

It was not like he hadn't danced before. Auntie had put him in dance class since he was two, in addition to the gym, and dancing had always been a passion when it was with, or about, Vic.

To be honest, ever since The Circus’ show, the will to become a professional performer had sparkled up in his chest, while it had been sleeping tightly before. He still had not decided in which discipline, though.

Until now…

Since Vic had always been a solo performer, her invitation was bizarre, to say the least.

Victoire confirmed, “With you.”

“But why?”

Huffing a little, she added, “Figure skating requires a partner. And, you're my best friend, silly. Who else would I dance with?”

Teddy shrugged and thought about telling her that there were plenty of skaters who lacked a partner. Though he wouldn't miss an opportunity that could rid him of a little fun, he’d hate to keep something from her.  “I dunno. You don’t need a partner to skate, Vic. There are loads of people who go solo. Look at Auntie.”

“Oh.” Victoire seemed vaguely disappointed by the answer. “You could still dance with me. We do everything together, don’t we?”

That was true. Maybe, too  true . “Yeah.”

“So, you’ll dance with me?”

Her stare did not leave room to hesitation. “Sure.”

Victoire’s smile looked like it could power up the City of Lights. She wrapped Teddy in a hug and murmured out her gratitude in his shoulder, before she ran back to the house, a satisfied feeling bubbling in her stomach.

“Mum!” She cried almost immediately. “Teddy and I are going to win the Olympics!”

“Ok, at the count of three you slide forward.”

“Why me?”

“Because- Because- Because you’re the gentleman, Teddy!”

“What if I fall?”

Vic shot him a narrow look. “You stand up.”

Teddy, his hands tightly gripping the border that rounded the rink, gulped down with uneasiness. He looked at the zooming people here and there, at kids who seemed two years younger than him and lazily drew curls on the ice with their skaters, and lastly at Auntie Andie, who was eyeing him and Vic carefully from the center of the public rink.

“And if you fall,” added Vic, “Do not put your hands-”

“On the floor, I know, thank you.”

The little girl seemed quite proud of herself for making him learn this basic rule. “Now, you can go.”

Not very much reassured, Teddy pushed himself forward.

It would seem weird that he had never learned to skate on ice before, but Auntie hand never wanted to push it on him. She said it was either inside you, or you better stick to chess.

He was scrappy at chess too, anyway.

The first step forward went well, and Vic squealed an encouragement, but she was too quick to rejoice: the momentum of the push lost, Teddy found himself bum on floor, barely one meter away from the safety of the border.

He scuttled his way back, escorted by Vic’s giggling.

“Why do you laugh!”

He was red in the face and almost fell again as his grip missed the rim.

“I am not laughing,” she defended herself, trying to use the hair of her ponytail to cover her too evident smile.

“Right,” Teddy muttered, prudently casting a look at his aunt. She was biting her lip, but made a gesture to encourage him forward again.

Pfff. As if he was going to give it a second go right now.

“Your turn.”

Vic’s pale skin lost its pinkish complexion. “Um- I’m- I’m okay here.”

“Vicky!”

She started at the indignation in his voice.

“Okay, then.”

She released some air with a pout, and opened one hand, then the other.

For some seconds, she did better than Teddy. Used to stand up on pointes, her balance was somehow better. But as soon as she tried to move-

Teddy pulled her up from the floor, while still gripping the rink’s border for his life.

They both looked in Andie’s direction, who had made some steps toward them -- but the boy shook his head, begging her with his eyes to let him prove himself. The woman sighed, but didn’t get any closer.

He thanked her wordlessly as Vic was looking away.

Once, twice, thrice, they tried again, not making it farther than a couple of steps away from their safe place. Luckily, there weren’t too many people around them to increase their anxiety.

After provoking himself a third bruise on the side of the leg, Teddy decided to change the approach, “What if we walk along the border? That way we can get used to sliding, but we don’t have to let go our grip.”

His proposition did not seem too bad, and Vic was glad to be prevented from facing another fall. He let her lead the way, and they proceed to wal-  penguin  forward -- in their case,  penguin  could be considered a verb -- until they circled the totality of the rink, and Andie finally joined them.

“I’m proud of you two,” she stated, as she disheveled Teddy. “You found an alternative solution.”

“Teddy did, Mrs. Andie!” Then, as the woman was waiting for them off the rink, Vic whispered to her friend, “You see, silly? That’s an example of why I couldn’t have done it without you.”

And then she was out too.

The feeling of sheepish pride did not leave his chest for the next week.

Teddy was very determined.

They were quite okay now. They managed to slide gracefully without hesitating, even to spin while locking hands. He could attempt backward runs and a spins without falling too hard. Vic could even raise one leg, if he hold her by the waist --  that  couldn’t be done in fast motion yet, but they were close to it.

There were doing very fine.

Andie did not quit saying how amazed she was by the progresses they had made in barely months, and how much they could still make, if they got a coach.

“You are the best coach, Andie!”

Vic was surprised that the woman could consider herself anything else.

But the injury that had ended her career, ten years ago, made it impossible for her to show them proper figures. She could still skate, but all the technicalities, if the kids persisted in their wishes of learning more, should be overtook by somebody else.

So Teddy had taken the matter in hand.

None of the coaches of the city were good enough for Vic. He hadn’t tried any, he just  knew  it. Vic, his Vic, deserved the best.

And he was determined to give it to her.

Dear Mr. Potter,

My name is Teddy Lupin. I am 11 years old.  It is a honor to  I am a great fan of yours, and of Lily, of course. Vicky would kill me if I didn’t include Lily in this letter. But don’t worry, I would not forget her anyway.

You see, Vicky is my best friend. She has sparkles in her eyes, a very pretty smile, and she is the most stubborn girl I know. It is for her because of her on her behalf for her that I write to you.

Some years ago, when we were only kids and not yet young people, we saw you performing on The Circus’ stage. It was much better than seeing you on  TV  television. You looked like two spirits of the sky, in your silver costumes.

You gave Vicky the passion for figure skating. She was a dancer, but you made her want to glide on ice. She is the greatest performer I know, even better than all my childhood idols. She will undoubtedly win the Olympics, one day.

But she can’t do this alone. She needs good coaches, and my aunt Andie says she isn’t good enough to help her.

The only people I could think of are you and Mrs. Lily.

I know you have retired, Mr. Potter, but I had to try this. I had to try to get the best for Vicky, because she deserves it.

Will you accept to become Vicky’s new coaches?

I hope you will consider my letter.

Thank you very much,

Teddy.

PS: Please do not tell Vicky that I called her Vicky… She would kill me.

PPS: I am your great fan. And Mrs. Lily’s.

When he closed the envelop, and dropped it in the mailbox, Teddy felt chills running down his spine. He wished the address to be correct, he wished his words to be convincing enough.

He hadn’t told anyone about his attempt: not Mom, not Dad, not even Auntie Andie, and he was conscious that it was a bit like writing to Santa.

Except Santa didn’t exist, while James and Lily did.

“Hello?”

“Hello. May I speak to Mr. Lupin, please?”

“I am Mr. Lupin.”

“Mr. Lupin Jr. then, please.”

Remus was puzzled, and he looked at Dora with a quizzical look. To her mouthed question, he covered the phone’s microphone and referred the interlocutor’s request.

Teddy was called right away.

“Hello?”

The boy picked up the phone completely unaware of who could be on the other end. It had been so long since he had sent the letter that it did not even cross his mind as a possibility of cause for this call.

“Are you Teddy Lupin, sir?”

This man already amused him: who had ever called him sir? “Yes, sir, this is me. Um- Who am I speaking to?”

“James. James Potter.”

Working with James and Lily changed their lives. The iconic duo were the best coaches someone could ask for. Not only were they talented but silly as well. Besides teaching them the art of skating, they remodeled their thoughts, renewed their sense of determination and festered the fire that desired to triumph

Which is why they were absolutely crushed when they didn’t make it to the Olympics.

“We were fucking awesome!”

Victoire taps Teddy’s nose with her finger. “Language.”

He murmurs out a quick apology but the joy doesn’t diminish from the boy’s face even in the slightest. “We did the jump! Without falling even once!”

A bubble of pride ignites in the girl’s chest. “Thanks, Ted. We could actually win this thing.”

This thing was the  Olympics  and they were indeed hoping to knock the world’s socks off by contesting. Perhaps, it was a bit too ambitious but the truth remained that they had been studying the art of dance since two and four.

And, they were  pretty  good.

“Go out for hot chocolate?” Teddy inquires, a glint in his eye. “Just this once?”

She considers it and tries to fight against the part that cares about her healthy diet. “We’ll split the cup?”

“For sure.”

Footsteps make their way towards the couple and Victoire looks at James who enters, a frown tugging at his lips. He’s scrolling his phone which in itself, is a big surprise since the man was terrible with technology.

“I have some news.”

Teddy and Vic share a glance. The only time they had seen James upset was when his scoop of ice cream fell on concrete. Now, however, he looked morose and depressed.

James shifts and they notice Lily beside him. Strangely, her face is a picturesque of various emotions. Lily was the type of person to always pushed against challenges and honestly, she was the toughest person they knew. To see her being worked up about something spelled bad luck.

Victoire covers her mouth, a gasp lodged in her throat.  “No.”

Lily glances at her with eyes that say it all. “I’m so sorry.”

Slumping to the floor, Victoire curls her arms around her chest and begins to cry. Startled, Teddy wraps his arms around hers which only makes her sadness louder. It's dramatic in a fitting, sort of sense. 

“Can someone tell me what’s going on?”

James swallows and runs a hand through his hair. “We didn’t qualify for the Olympics.”

Silence follows his words and Teddy only tightens his grip on his partner as she sinks into him. He wants to ask the world  how . They had done their best and if that wasn’t enough, what was?

It takes a long time for them to recover. Teddy couldn’t even sit and watch the Olympics - it was their tradition to watch the games but this time, it only brought him physical agony. A reminder that they weren’t there. And, Victoire refused to skate for the next week, instead binging a whole bucket of ice cream. It had been her who finally threw off the funk that clung to them and brought the light back to Teddy’s eyes.

They would have a new best.

A best that would - someday - win Olympic gold.

“I can’t believe it.” Vic said, spiraling -- which was pretty insane since they were supposed to be on the rink, any moment now.

“Hey, it’s okay. You’re Victoire Delacour slash Weasley. Britain’s finest. Awesomer than awesome.” Teddy smiles at her, a soft, confident one like they’re the only ones in the stadium. He wraps his arms around her torso and she sinks into him like he’s her lifeline.

It’s such a comforting feeling and so familiar that by the time, he’s let go, she dares to hope that they could win this.

“Ready?”

Her legs aren’t shaking anymore so she nods.

The pair of them smile at each other, lending each other the comfort the other desires and in one heartbeat, glide on the ice inviting a roaring applause. She still found it hard to believe that the man next to her was her partner, her best friend and it was a fact that she thanked the stars for every day .

Dirty tissues, trust issues

Glasses on the sink, they didn't fix you

Lonely pillows in a strangers bed

They’re back to back in the beginning and Teddy sneaks a glance filled with a love daze at her which is totally not rehearsed but she imagines he improvised. When the beats of music echo, their chests exhale like they’ve been sucked out of life.

Loving you was cool, and hot, and sweet

Loving you was sunshine, safe and sound

A steady place to let down my defenses

But loving you had consequences

Victoire sports an anguished look at him before she drops. He catches her easily and stares at her with an emotion akin to horror.

Teddy pushes her up and regaining her strength, she holds his hand as they begin to skate. Resting a leg on his waist, she allows herself to be spinned until they’re crouching.

Loving you was sunshine, safe and sound

A steady place to let down my defenses

But loving you had consequences

His fingers squeeze around hers and she wraps her legs around his chest and he pulls her to his neck and she sleeps on his shoulders as he turns into a circle.

And, then he’s setting her down easily but carefully and she tries to escape but Teddy’s fingers are always a breath away, his fingertips tracing her waist.

Finally securing a grip on her, he twists her form and kneels and asking -  begging  -  for her love.

Every siren that I was ignoring

I'm payin' for it

Pulling him up, she skates around him and he tries to pinpoint her. They are both each other’s anchor, after all and with reflecting bright grins, hand in hand, they lap around the stadium, performing an axel jump.

She knows that only minutes have passed but it felt like  hours  and there was not even a flash of surprise when she dreamed about feeling like she could do this forever. Teddy puts his arm around her and she on him, and raising a leg, they participate in a waltz of sorts.

Loving you was sunshine, safe and sound

A steady place to let down my defenses

His touch asks her to shut her eyes and she complies, fluttering them like flowers at his gaze. So much  hope ,  adoration ,  happiness .

Imagining the years to come, Victoire surrenders to him, cupping his neck and the duo make mere skating appear poetic. Someday, old and grey, Teddy would smile that dimpled sheepish smile at her and she’d feel all light and young again. And, she’d tug him to the ice and skate even if it was half past 2 am.

His smile convinces her. Even though she teased him, there wasn’t a life that couldn’t contain Teddy. Nothing would change, Vic knows. It’s  Teddy  and  her . They’re inseparable, far away from the clutches from time. She’d like to think their dynamic would be the same even after years, but no matter how much she tried, couldn’t assure herself that.  

If he got married…

That was a tendril of a thought she couldn’t even complete.

And, the revelation comes to her then, and strangely it doesn’t feel like she’s been struck with a bolt of lightning but rather, it felt like finding the piece that completed a puzzle. She’s in love -  truly  and  irreversibly  in love. And, with Teddy - her best friend, the man who’s seen her stark naked as a child, who mocked her as he ate by himself, a contradiction to her being spoon fed.

She’s not just in love with anyone but her other - better - half. What she has with Teddy is different, somehow..otherworldly, even.

It’s  obvious  when she thinks about it. In a way, loving Teddy has always been a constant. It’s simply a fundamental law of life. As one would go about breathing, or engaging in other life processes, adoring Teddy is another example of them.

But friends don’t share the same bed, did they? On some level, Teddy and her have always been different - not strictly following society’s laws but there were too many instances when she found her heart beating a little faster than normal, and she’d chalked it up to exertion and while, that may have definitely played a part in the observation, most of it confirmed affection.

All her happiest moments were of the two of them - simply talking over chocolate milk, a sacred treat ( and tradition ) for the two of them.

Loving you still takes shots at me

There’s a second of mishap in which Victoire calculates wrong and she nearly stumbles but Teddy’s grip on her waist secures her. It’s a ruddy time to think about it but Victoire is suddenly conscious of his hands around her waist. How his palms were warm even if the rest of her body was numb with cold.

Victoire mentally shakes her head and imagine barricading walls, installing a law that no thinking of Teddy would be done for the next ten minutes. After, they had performed, she allowed herself the luxury of thinking about him but for now...she had to dance…

Finally, she gets on his back and stretches, now much powerful than before indicating the power of love.

And I lost so much more than my senses

'Cause loving you had consequences

Loving you

The lyrics fade, then and she jumps on him and flawless catching her, Teddy lowers her as they raise an arm towards the stars. He looks down at her lips and tickles her nose with his. Victoire swallows but suddenly, he’s laughing and she shuts her eyes,  giddy and breathless.

“Oh  Britain ! What a performance!” The announcer’s voice yells. “Victoire Delacour and Teddy Lupin!”

Teddy shuts his eyes too and he can’t stop beaming. Her heart flip flops.  Uh Oh . “Thank you so much!”

Because even in these moments - in front of thousands of people and broadcasted in front of the world - Teddy still made her feel like they were the only ones in the room. She wants to ask  what fo r because it’s all him. She’s here standing on Olympic ice and it’s  all  thanks to him.

Once again, swept by the feeling on eternal gratitude and pride that the man holding her was her partner, she shakily gets up and smiles at him. The look he gives her can only be considered as adoration.

“You did great.” Teddy hugs her tightly and the force of it is enough to crush bones.

I love you. You’ve done it.   Both of their faces say. No words are necessary. Victoire chances a look at the crowd and her shocked elated laugh bursts through. It is flooded with the colors of navy, ruby and white.

They bow to the crowd and it roars all over  again. Teddy finds her hand and tucks her closer to his body, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

“You good?”

She smiles and nods. They glide off the rink and they hug their coaches who seem beyond proud at the duo. Their performance, in all honesty, was one of the best. It was a combination of eloquence, innocence, grace while being skilled at the same time.

A laugh ripples out of Teddy as James greets him with a pun. They’re so  happy  and so  proud . James and Lily reassure them that they’re going to win and though, Victoire wants it with all her heart and every fiber of her being, she knew that they tried their best and today could never be forgotten.

Teddy passes her a bottle of water and she accepts it, still panting but unable to stop smiling. They wait for a while, all shaky nerves and rouge tinted cheeks before the faint static noise shuts them all up.

In the midst of all the chaos, her mind strays to the boy beside her. A glance at him has her heart squeezing and she has a breeze of panic wondering if their partnership would be affected.

How had she not noticed the affection that run along with her blood was deeper than the platonic one she had foolishly assumed it to be?

All those times in interviews when he answered all the questions right and pretended it was common knowledge, complimented her to the point where she kept repeating his words like a mantra on bad days. Even if she hadn’t loved him to the point of infinty and beyond, gotten married to some another chap, they would - couldn’t even hope to - compare to someone like Teddy, someone who she had history with.

He knew her mind as if the structure of it was tattooed on his skin, traced the curves of her bodies with the gentleness of a spring breeze even if the song demanded it to be the brutal ferocity of winter. During her periods, he was extremely thoughtful, buying medication and yes, chocolate - her guilty pleasure in bulk amounts.

Teddy - there was no other word for it- was the best human she’d ever had the pleasure of meeting and to know that he desired her company as much as she did he was breathtaking.

For as long as their joint career ran, there could never be a Delacour Lupin in terms of a relationship that progressed to romantic partners as such. Her work ethic willed it so and even though it was killing herself to do, she took a deep breath and exhaled.

And frowned.

She tries it again, holding her breath for a few seconds later but the end result is still the same.

Thought of Teddy still swim in her head.

This posed a problem. When she was a child and obtained a crush, she always breathed in, thought deeply about them in a deep and exaggerated manner and promised herself that when she exhaled, all thoughts of the boy would vanish. And, it  did  work.

But now…. 

Now, she just kept replaying memories.

Especially, the time when someone had asked them for marriage advice.  Marriage !

Ironically enough, it was the fans that had guessed and clung to even the barest of hopes but now, it was her that followed the procedure. Could he possibly feel the same way? Did he ever? When they were children, she did have a crush on him - who didn’t? Teddy Lupin was not only supremely kind but also cool. Her friends kept demanding his number and always, giggled shrilly when they passed him.

And, they did date for a year but that was ages ago. It would be foolish to even think about that.

“Vicky?” Teddy flashes her a concerned smile and her heart jumps. “Alright?”

“Nervous.”

He laughs and surges forward to kiss her cheek. “Guess we’ll be able to know. They’re announcing-”

“In free dance, Victoire and Teddy have a hundred points managing to come out in first place - “

Besides her, Teddy freezes as if he heard wrong but then he jumps up, screaming, a fist upraised in jubilation and Victoire begins to laugh. She turns to James, seeking confirmation because had they really won the  Olympics?

The whole world is  screaming  and the stadium is chanting  UK UK UK  and Victoire hugs James, eyes shining like the stars above. Teddy wraps her in another hug soon after and rocks her. They’re both giggling and he kisses her forehead.

Something in her breaks.

“We did it! We won the  Olympics ! Thank  you,  Teddy.”  

She couldn’t tell him.

There was absolutely no way she could.

What would she even say? ‘Hi Teddy! Do you want to try the axel jump? Oh, and by the way, I’m in love with you.’ That was a conversation that was destined to not end well. And, yes it was a challenge hiding this secret from him but she wasn’t exactly subtle about the whole affair.

Even if he did like her, there was nothing they could do. Their friendship was too important for it to be contaminated by something more. If they got together and broke up, the chances of them working in sync as they did now was slim.

And, she didn’t want to jeopardize that - jeopardize him.

It got even worse during interviews because somehow, they expected her to sit there for a total hour without making heart eyes at Teddy.

She kept giggling every time he said the most mundane things and it was ridiculous. “Victoire and I saw a goose once - “ Giggle.

In her defense, Teddy Lupin was a  funny  person.

And, he had no right being exceptionally  sweet  to her.

“We are best friends.” Teddy winked at her now, inducing a faint coat of pink across her cheeks. “Our personalities balance off each other and I think that’s very important in a relationship. I wouldn’t want to skate with anyone else. She’s the reason why I love skating so much even though it’s been years. I love  my  Vic.”

Victoire smiles at him and it’s as warm and bright as a summer day. Her thought process is something along the lines of ASJFDJCSHDUNJCS

The reporter purses her lips in a rubbish attempt to hide her overwhelming smile. “I’m sure the fans would love to hear that. What about you Victoire? What do  you love about Teddy?”

She sighs but the sound is more like a laugh. “Can I say everything? Because, it’s true. I hardly remember my life without Teddy. The sad thing is that he still makes me laugh a decade plus later. He’s the anchor - my rock. I don’t know what I’d do without him.”

“You guys are goals.”

“I wouldn't say that.” Teddy interrupts, and sends her a sheepish smile. “Remember that time we didn’t talk for months?”

“Oh god.” She mumbles, covering her face with her hands. “Don’t remind me. Those were some terrible days.”

“Delacour Lupin not talking to each other?” The reporter gasps in horror. “What hope do regular couples have?”

Teddy grins. “Delacour Lupin is quite  legendary  but yeah, it was when Vic got surgery for her leg. And, I just - I didn’t know how to approach her? Teenage boy thing. While she was recovering, I was at the rink training. And, it felt wrong somehow to tell her that? Does that even make sense? It was terrible. We didn’t even text each other and it was exceptionally hard because she was my other half, you could say. At the end, I was worried we wouldn’t be partners anymore. God, I  should  have. She was in surgery and I still feel like a jerk. ”

That was new information. She had felt like that but she didn’t know the sentiments were returned on his end.“It wasn’t your fault, you know.” And, she meant it. Vic tucked a strand curl of hair behind her ear. “After we got past a couple of weeks - no matter how much I wanted to - I couldn’t just talk to him out of the blue. Where does someone even start? There was a part of me that was annoyed, if you call it that. I had just got out of surgery and I don’t know? I was expecting him to be there, so that hurt, but he did send me a basket of chocolates.”

“The key to her heart.” Teddy smirked at the cameras. “But yeah, we’re good now. Went for therapy which was funny because we’re not even married but it really helped and we learnt to trust each other.”

“Yeah!” Vic agreed. “We neglected our personal relationship and focused just on our job so now, we make it a point to always do something and just talk to each other, whenever work gets too hectic. And, I could talk to Teddy for hours about the simplicity about a coffee cup so I think that’s pretty great.”

“It must have been hard skating with your condition.” The reporter reads her next flashcard. “Tell us more about that.”

“Not much to tell.” Victoire shrugs. “I had chronic exertional compartment syndrome which made walking pretty hard so skating..that was hard.”

“Would you have known though?” Teddy pipes up and throws his arm around her shoulder. “She’s flawless.”

“That she is. Do we have time for one more question?” The cameraman yells out an affirmative. “Where do you want to tour next?”

“Hopefully, London?” Victoire groans when she sees Teddy’s smirk. It’s become a habit of sorts – him teasing her with her dream destination. London has many perks. The Big Ben, the tower of London, the palaces and everything in between were the main tourist sites but Victoire – as excited as she was to see all of these places had a certain gem in mind. It was a hot chocolate bar, hidden in the heart of London and they sold each cup with a thick layer of shaved chocolate.

While most people had a sweet tooth, she had  several .

“One more question. Will we expect to see you in the next Olympics?”

“Definitely.” Teddy chimes in. “We’ll be going for Gold.”

Vic’s back against his was warm, despite the freezing temperature of the stadium

The only sound in the huge rink was their deep breathing. The Olympics’ crowd had always been his favorite, because it is the most respectful before a performance.

The story they were about to perform, the one they had made up piece by piece, with Lily and James’ help, was of a style they had never tried in public yet. Their costumes were the perfect representation of it: black like coal, smooth, with silvery reflections. Elegant and yet provoking.

They were Hades and Persephone.

The music started, and his heart slowed down to match the beating of the rhythm. He knew that Vic’s had done the same.

She grabbed his arm, perfectly executing the first rotation, and the dance was open.

From this moment, Teddy forgot any technicalities, forgot the names of the figures, even forgot that they were performing a choreography that they had spent months rehearsing.

His body was one with the music, one with Vic’s moves.

The notes, one after the other, fell from the roof in a stream of strong harmony. They directed his arms, bent his legs, hung him in the air. Vic’s flowery scent kept him alive.

Once, twice, thrice, they locked eyes, spun, extended their bodies, separated then joined again. They fought a battling love, deep in the skin of their characters.

Vic released his grip, and arched her body in a perfect fan flip, setting her foot on the ground when the melody announced its most intense fraction.

Teddy loved that moment. He was supposed to look at her while she showed a triumphant expression to the crowd. It was a second during which he had to pour all of his acted adoration in a glance.

But he didn’t need to act it.

She grabbed his hand, and attracted him closer. Like every time, his heart -- unaware that it was not more than a show -- exploded in his chest.

He was breathless, could feel the blood rushing to his temples, every muscle in his body tense and relax when she exhaled.

She bent forward, and he bent toward her. Their elbows joined, they locked eyes. Spinned in synchrony…

And it happened.

It was probably too quick for anybody to notice, and could have easily passed as platonic to everyone. But Lily frowned from the edge of the rink, and James let out a whispered “bloody hell.”

There was surprise in Vic’s eyes as she stepped on her next figure. She seemed hesitant to grab his hands.

Teddy didn’t know what had happened, what had made him draw a fraction too close to her face. And now, he was afraid. Afraid of what he had just done.

Vic’s expression was puzzled for a second, but her smile came back hurriedly -- for the performance’s sake.

Everything was confusion, the harmony had shattered.

A feeling of suffocation invaded Teddy’s chest, but he had no other choice than moving forward. As planned, he laced his arms around Vic’s waist for the hardest part of the choreography.

Avoiding her stare, the connection of their trust, Teddy propulsed her up high, as high as his arms allowed, but not as high as she would have deserved.

The light made her silhouette look celestial, right from heaven, and he could guess the vibrations of the public’s admiration. He was one of them too.

With the eyes of a boy drown in love, and almost forgetting to spin himself, he saw her flip once, twice, thrice-

Thrice!

His arms responded to their own command, ready to catch her waist. But where the mind was not, nothing was. It would have been good, too good to be true, if in his state of spirits, if in her confusion, everything had gone smooth.

He miscalculated. He felt her body slip in his grip. He felt her slip away.

Teddy could not hear them, but he knew James and Lily had cursed.

Vic landed on her right ankle, shutting her eyes in a grimace that she covered to the world by attracting him closer -- for the performance’s sake.

And Teddy was lost.

The crowd was mad in its ovation, clapping and whistling at the performance of their favorites which, to them, must surely have appeared flawless. The judges were bent over their sheets, certainly discussing the minimal slip in the catch, that to them must have looked just like any other missed detail of a performance. The millions of television spectators were surely waiting for a replay of the best moments, sitting on the edge of their couch from excitation.

None of them had noticed. None of them understood.

For the fraction of a second, Vic and Teddy had kissed. Or rather, Teddy had kissed Victoire.

It was all that his mind could replay as he hugged her, now that the notes were over, now that Hades and Persephone had settled their battle for love.

The hug was not the same as it had always been. Their bodies were touching, yet their minds weren’t. He was very sure that she was relying on him only to support her weight.

Forgetful of the flowers thrown their way, of the salutations to be extended, he pulled her toward the exit of the rink, where had to meet James and Lily’s undecided expressions.

The coaches grabbed his partner each by an arm, and helped her to sit down on the bench, covering her bare back with -- ironically -- his sweater.

Then, James’ eyes fixed on him.

Too powerless to explain anything, Teddy turned toward the wide dark screen on the wall that faced him, and gulped down all the water in a bottle. He was waiting for the sentence.

Death or life?

Vic’s hurt moans behind him were tearing his heart apart.

“The judges have announced the results,” the monotone voice of the speaker shut every other sound down.

And the white numbers on the electric board destroyed Teddy’s world.

Teddy rubbed the stubble on his jaw with a careless hand. He hadn’t know what overcame them on the stage. Something about the whole incident felt dangerous if thought of so long so he tried not to think about it. Yet, that proved almost  impossible . His lips were still burning and hands still shaking.

Why had he kissed her like that? And, why did  she  kiss  him back ?

Because for a moment, he was  sure  she had been.  

Was there a chance that she reciprocated his feelings?

Victoire’s shoulder brushes by his as she rushes to the locker rooms. He wants to hold her and ask her  questions  but his brain seems to be on a permanent hiatus. Much as he wished not to, he couldn’t escape the image of her bluebell eyes fluttering closed right before they kissed. And, while it was true that they had kissed before – several times, in fact – during practice. The implication about those chaste little things were strictly based on  friendship .

He wouldn’t have kissed her if he was secretly  in love  with her even if his heart jumped to his throat every time her smile brightened up the world and  oh , it seemed like he never grew out of his childhood crush.

A crush that bloomed into something more beautiful. A garden of flowers.

He couldn’t stop thinking about her even though his dreams were beyond crushed.

Maybe, the dream that meant the most to him was not gold but a girl. A girl named after Victory herself.

The games were over, the closing ceremony was over.

Tomorrow, they would fly away.

And Teddy couldn’t say if it was a comfort or the worst of the things.

Andie was to come and pick him up at the airport.  She  was not blind.  She  must have noticed.  She  was going to  kill  him, probably.

And scrolling down his Instagram feed for the third time in ten minutes was not going to help him, so he dropped his phone next to him on the red bed sheets.

But inactivity only made him think about Vic, which was worse.

He had seen her shoulders drop at the score, felt her deception when the silver medal had been hung around her neck. He had wanted to tell her that it was okay, that everything was fine, but he didn’t want to be a liar to her.

The doctors had advised a month of rest. A month without doing anything. A month without living for what she lived for.

And that killed him inside.

He had tried to speak to her after-  that , but the answer he got from either Lily or James at his questions of whether he could see her were plain, “She’s resting.”

Followed by a meaningful look.

And he wasn’t even brave enough to text Vic, doubtful if she’d answer, anyway.

Definitely, he was eager for Andie to yell at him a bit.

“Vic!”

She turned around, and tilted her head sideways.

“Teddy.”

He ran to her, his steps muffled by the carpet on the floor of the hotel’s hallway.

“Are you- going down for breakfast?”

He was so tall compared to her.

She hummed a yes.

“Listen, I-”

She stopped him by holding a palm up. “You-” She struggled to find words. “It’s okay, Teddy.”

He looked down at her bandaged ankle. It clearly wasn’t okay.

“But-”

“Please, don’t apologize.”

Her eyes were pleading. He would have given anything to seem them full of ease, instead.

“I was the abs-”

“It’s not your fault, Teddy. A bad catch can happen to the best. It happened to Jily, in 1995.”

She shrugged, as if the fact that she had been on the verge of losing her career were a mere detail. “Will you have breakfast with me, Mr. Lupin?”

She smiled with that bravado so characteristic of her, and Teddy understood: the kiss… She did not take it seriously. To her, it certainly was no more than it had been to the crowd: some improvised, platonic twist to get them more points.

How- She had reacted differently on the rink. She had shown another emotion. He was still thinking that she had kissed back.

But he must have been fooled by the overall confusion.

The only gap that he’d have to close between them two was the failed catch. The rest was not to be thought of, ever again.

He couldn’t tell if he was relieved about it, though.

Taking his silence for an approval, she resumed her way to the elevator, and pressed the summoning button with more vivacity than she would have, had she not met him.

After all, they were best friends. He was her world, in a certain way. And he was still confused about the way in which she was his.

He followed her, and let his mind wonder to better thoughts only when the smell of croissants welcomed him in the breakfast hall.

“Now what?”

“What do you mean, now what?”

“Well… You can’t train for two more weeks.”

After the visit of the physio, he had driven her to her favorite spot in the world. From this hill, they could admire the whole city below.

Well-  she  admired.  He  was torn between stealing looks at her and sorting out the mess in his mind.

“What do you want me to say, Teddy. It’s the way it is.”

Vic thought to much. And who thinks too much ends up being philosophic. And who’s philosophic sees the good where it’s not.

“Okay, but- What are we going to do?”

She huffed a laugh. “Could you try to be a little more explicit in your questions? Because if you’re talking about now, I’m down for another hour of staying here, if you don’t mind.”

“Of course I don’t mind,” he emphasized his obvious answer with a frown. “I meant- What about the next competitions?”

“We aim to nail them, like we always do.”

“But- are you sure?”

“About what?”

“About doing it with me.”

For a couple of seconds, Teddy felt the weight of the sky on his shoulders. He was still carrying the heaviness of her bad fall on the ice, despite her constant reassurances.

He was sure that something had broken between them.

“Teddy-”

She was cut off by the ringing of her phone.

“It’s Lily,” she told him, her finger hovering over the green button. He nodded at her to answer. “Hi, Lily?”

Their coach’s voice reached him in incomprehensible sounds, but Vic’s frown was clear enough to make him understand that something was off.

“Um- okay. I think we can be there in-” She covered the microphone, “Can we be there in twenty minutes?”

“To the rink?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

“See you in twenty minutes, Lily.”

She hung up, and puffed.

“What’s happening?”

Vic smiled, “I think that will settle your doubts, Mr. Lupin. Jily has decided that it’s time for us to discuss this season’s strategy.”

Three months go by very fast, when you resume doing something that occupied the biggest part of your days.

After the physio gave Vic the green light, Delacour Lupin were getting back on the way to being the favorites of Britain.

The Nationals were one step away, they were regaining their confidence on the rink.

The golden dream was still there, brighter than ever.

“Part ways?” Teddy looked at James as if his coach had just announced the end of the world, planned for today.

“What do you mean, part ways?” He started ripping the laces off his skates as if they were the cause of the apocalypse. “Like getting a rest? Marking a pause? Having a break?”

“Those,” sighed James, arms crossed on his chest, “Are all synonyms among themselves, Teddy. But none means the same as  parting ways .”

Teddy fumbled a bit more with his footwear, with no better result than cutting the blood circulation of his fingers. He dived one hand in his blue mane. “Part wa-”

“Listen, Ted. If you just sit do-”

“No, I won’t!” His cry echoed in the rink, where all the lights had been on only for them two, this afternoon. “Not until you tell me what you mean by  part ways . Everything was fine until now! We’re working so hard, I don’t see-”

James swallowed slowly, looking away. “It’s not that bad, just in a professional w-”

“Oh, please.” The young man clapped his hands on his hips, exhaling a little cloud of frustration. “You know very well that-”

He choked with the rest of his words, but their meaning remained suspended in the air like a tangled, ugly puppet from broken strings: parting ways professionally meant…

Victoire was so stubborn. She had always been.

Since that time when she dragged him on the first ice rink they’ve ever stepped on, there hadn’t been a day when the biggest part of her time wasn’t dedicated to working on her technique, learning new effects, strengthening her muscles. If she could, she would sleep in the rink. She already ate there, thrice a week.

Stopping training with her would mean- being crossed off her agenda.

It would mean never feeling her fresh presence around him, it would mean not seeing her blue eyes laugh at his stupid jokes, it would mean not supporting her anymore, both in life and during figures.

“Teddy, this is not as it seems. You two have been best friends since birth, Victoire’s last wish is to- ditch you, believe m-”

“She may not want to, coach, but that’s what will happen. We both know how it works, if you want to be any good at this sport.”

“Body and soul to the task,” James voiced the motto his taught Lily and his students since the first day.

“Yeah,” reluctantly agreed Teddy, eyes lost on the stretch of ice where, today, he had done nothing but failing. “Body and soul to the task. Especially when you’re Victoire Delacour Weasley.”

The boy smiled with nostalgia.

All the times he had internally scoffed after hearing a judge, presentator, or commentator, mispronounce his partner’s name… He’d miss that too.

“Can I at least know why?” There was a badly hidden hint of guilt in his voice. “Is it because of that failed catch? It’s that, uh? She needs somebody more performant. Last season I was- But I can do it, I can train extra hours on the figures, even by myself. I can drop hockey practice and go to the gym mo-”

“You won’t,” James cut across him, “Stop hockey practice. It does a lot of good to your legs and coordination. It would be stupid to make you go back to the state of penguin. As to the why,” The coach paused, took his glasses off to wipe the mist off their surface, and put them back on. “It’s not much about the failed catch.”

Teddy felt a sharp stab in the ribs.  Not much  wasn’t  nothing . It still meant that, somehow, this episode had opened a gap between him and Vic.

And how could it not have?

Your partner, in ice skating, becomes the second part of your body. You need to be confident around them, sure that they will always catch you, no matter what. And he had failed her on that.

He still woke up, at night, bathed in cold sweat, when his mind decided to remind him of that terrible mistake.

He had gotten distracted. They both had, after what had happened.

It costed them their place on the podium, and could have costed her her career, her freedom.

“Then what?” he asked, mouth dry, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer.

“She-” James’s look pierced the walls of the rink, landed him where he would like to be at the moment. Anywhere but not here, announcing to his athlete something that he won’t like. At all. “She’s got- an opportunity.”

The young man’s mouth fell open. “An- opportunity?”

He knew that this was bound to happen. Vic was too good not to be observed by other, bigger, better clubs.

He knew that she had to receive an opportunity by someone else, someone who would take her higher.

He had known that all that would happen very fast, after their entrance in the Olympic world.

But he hadn’t thought it would happen  this  fast. At least, to him, it seemed very much too soon.

James, probably aware of the blow in the stomach that Teddy had just received, tried to use a more soothing voice as he told him about the rest of the information Lily has texted him, earlier, “By Durmstrang. They want her for the Nationals. She’d replace Hektor Krum’s partner, who broke her knee somet-”

But Teddy had stopped listening. Around him, the world was numb.

Before his eyes, he saw blurry images of Vic -- his Vic -- elevating herself in a perfect triple twist lift under the bright lights of the National Ice Rink, and landing softly in Krum’s arms. The arms of a thrice highest-ranked skater in the last five years.

And then, he saw a replay of the last time him and Vic have performed in front of an official crowd, five months ago. During the Olympic Games.

He saw her beautiful Lutz, their coordinated pair spin. Until that moment, he had managed to hold everything together. Her layback was graceful, his sat spin just rightfully executed.

Then had come the moment. James had warned him: he was not ready for that kind of figure. Not yet. Not in front of such a big public.

But those were the Olympic Games. Vic and him were in agreement. You either went big, or went home.

They aimed high. Too high.

He missed the right instant to grab her waist. Her frail body slipped off his hands.

Like the star that she is, Vic managed to hold the act together, more or less. His grip had lasted long enough to allow her to balance herself dangerously, at the risk of fracturing her ankle, arms spread open like a bird’s wings.

She had grimaced, but had carried the show on, hiding the explosion of pain that she then confessed to have felt. Teddy, him, had not managed to focus back on the choreography.

Her tears had come when the result was announced.

And all that because of his stupid mistake.

Now, alone in the rink with James, he compared that to the image of the perfect triple twist lift that his mind produced, and his lungs refused any air.

Durmstrang could give her everything. More knowledge, more means, more experience. A way to exploit her capacities at their fullest.

“Where is she?”

The cold temperature bit his eyes, but so would the tears that he knew would come.

“Home,” James breathed. “Thinking, probably.”

There’s nothing to think about,  Teddy realized bitterly.

“Do you think I should-”

“Yeah. And bring her a Starbucks.”

Chocolate Milk.

The young man nodded, looking at his tangled laces. “Can I- Can  I  shut the lights down, today?”

James opened his mouth to reply something, but he just pat him empathically on the back, and headed toward the dressrooms, zipping his jacket up to his chin.

Half an hour later, Teddy had finally reunited enough courage to move from his spot.

Putting his snickers back on is hard -- he didn’t feel like dealing with laces again -- but the most painful part of his departure was watching the rink go dark when the turning off of the neon leds echoed in the gigantic room.

It felt extremely empty.

The knock was very faint, but Vic’s voice was even more, “Come in.”

Like he had done maybe thousands of times in his life, Teddy pushed the door of her room open with one foot. He carried two paper cups inside.

“Hey, Victoire.” He dropped on the bottom corner of her mattress.

“Hey, Edward.” She was sitting cross-legged in front of him.

He handed her the caramel macchiato with double whipped cream topping - they had run out of chocolate milk, unfortunately - and saw with no surprise how her eyes widened at the sight of the treat.

“Lily would kill me, if she knew I drank that.”

“James said it’s okay, for once,” Teddy insisted. “He said- it’ll help you think.”

Their gazes dropped, and Vic took the cup.

Having a sip of it felt like heaven, but not a heaven for high-level athletes. This type of carbs and raffinated sugar would kill a horse in less than a month.

When she lowered the beverage, a bit of whipped cream decorated the border of her upper lip. “You know I like to think, so why don’t you bring these more often?”

Teddy wiped her mustache away, making her blush. “Because it would make your brain overheat, dummy.”

“Mmmm… You’re just penny-pinching.”

The room was quite dark, because the curtains were drawn. The young man stood up, dragged them aside, and thrusted the window open.

“Penny-pinching or not, light’s more important than sugar when it comes to thinking.”

“That’s your opinion.”

“That’s  the  opinion.”

“Shut up, penny-pincher.”

For a second, they smiled, as if this afternoon were just one regular afternoon, except that they had managed to sneak some Starbucks in without getting reprimanded.

But reality always catches up.

“So, um-” Teddy let the rest of his sentence out in a puff, unable to find the right words to match his thoughts.

Grown up practically together, they had gotten used to interpret the other’s mind. So Vic’s head dropped again, her stare suddenly captivated by the floor.

“Yeah.” Her macchiato seemed bitter, now. “I just- I don’t know.”

He understood. How was she supposed to choose between her present and her future? How was she supposed to pick between her memories and her dreams?

He looked at her, at her blonde hair loose on her sculpted shoulders, and smiled with affection.

During his walk to her house, he had made a decision.

When they were nothing but kids, Vic’s attitude had brought them to win their first competition, the first they’d ever took a try at.

During their growth as athletes, her stubbornness had kept them on the right track.

Three months ago, her strength had allowed them to avoid worse consequences.

Now, it had opened her a door.

He wouldn’t stand between her and her dream.

Delacour Krum.

Delacour Krum.

Delacour Krum.

Headline of every sports newspaper, featured in every television program.

Two stars getting together, a constellation by themselves, the delight of the journalists and judges.

The public has been bewildered for some time. On the net, there were endless questions: what had happened to Delacour Lupin? What had happened to their favorite pair? Surely, Delacour was another Delacour, not  the  Delacour. They must have set off together on a secret cruise for the last months, not telling anybody about it, and left another Delacour behind, to play a role.

Fans hung to that crazy theory.

But the images didn’t lie.

Victoire Delacour Weasley was skating with Hector Krum, during the 2015 Nationals, and Teddy Lupin was nowhere to be seen.

“Six, seven, eight and- flip. Perfect. Keep your hand down Teddy, two degrees lower.  Open the three turn. Prepare for the catch. One, two, three- Waist! Elbows up. Synchro, synchro! You got it- Nevermind. Focus on the jump and- Ok, don’t worry. Come back here and have some water.”

James kept clapping his hand as the young people slid toward the ice’s exit, half to encourage them, and half to keep his palms warm.

Teddy’s breath was heavy from practice, but his throat was so dry that he swallowed half a liter of water before even plopping on the bench. Lily had to stop him before he drowned himself.

“You guys did great, today,” she said, contrasting a bit with James’ frown. “Now get a nice shower, and stretching time. Then back home to enjoy a good movie.”

Alice sighed at the mention of a shower, wiping a curtain of pearly drops from her forehead. Even if the temperature was below zero inside the rink, the two hours today had managed to make them sweat buckets.

Training with the youngest of the Longbottoms is something Teddy would have never thought of, two years ago. Single performers always have difficulties to adapt to an act with a partner, and he thought it would be impossible for her to get used to rely on him. But after the scission with Vic, James and Lily hadn’t found any other girl whose style most matched Teddy’s, so there she was now.

And he couldn’t complain, honestly. She had great strength but not an excessive weight for his abilities, and she even agreed to take hockey classes too, to improve her team coordination.

The only thing he reproached her was not being Vic.

“Teddy!” James’ voice woke him up from his reverie. “Stop daydreaming, you’ll get cramps. Alice is already off to take a shower, and you should too.”

Nice way to say that he stunk.

Grabbing his skates underarm, Teddy exited the rink’s training center.

The hallway to the dress room was dark, and it reminded him of Vic’s bedroom, that day. The day when they… had  parted ways .

Heck. She had seemed so sad, it was painful.

She had argued that she couldn’t leave them like that.

And it was hurtful also because he was sad.

But Durmstrang was the best-synchronized ice skating team ever, and Vic was just the cherry on top of their already amazing cake.

He hadn’t seen her since- Since ever, to be honest.

It should have helped him to settle his doubts, but all it did was increasing them. The more days went by without talking to her, the more he felt like his life was becoming pointless.

To be honest, he was acting as he had when she had had that leg surgery. Except this time, he couldn’t use the “teenager boy” excuse.

“Pssst…”

Teddy turned around so hurriedly that his skates fell on the floor in a loud clatter. His eyes widened as they adjusted to the lack of light, and revealed a silhouette he knew too well.

But it was impossible.

“Vic?”

“Shhh! Come here, silly!”

Before he could even understand what was happening to him, he was sitting on an abandoned chair, inside the office room. After a click, he was hit in the face by the full strength of the ceiling’s neon lights.

“How- How on Earth-” he muttered, shielding his stare with his hands. “What are you doing here?”

When opening his eyes felt safe, he was greeted by a very cheerful Victoire, her palms on her hands, and her hair-

“Did you cut your hair?”

She brushed the question away. “I’m fine, thank you. What about you? How long since we hadn’t seen each other?”

I don’t know , he would have wanted to answer.  Your new friends seem to take most of your time.  “Um- Last championship?”

She nodded, shaking her shoulder-length mane up and down. “Three weeks ago, then. How have you been?”

“Uh- Fine but- hang on. What are you doing her-?”

“Wanted to see you.”

Something swelled in his chest, but-

If the only way she had found to talk to him was to kidnap him inside the building… It said a lot about the influence that her new club had on her.

He just coolly nodded. “How’s Krum?”

The question seemed to throw her off balance. “Um- good, I think.”

“Great.”

He would have gladly dropped the topic here, not even sure why he had introduced it at first, anyway, but she seemed to have taken his tone as a sarcastic one.

“What about Alice?” She emphasized her pronunciation of his new partner’s first name, as to highlight the fact that she had bothered to learn it, contrary to him. “Is her Lutz getting more precise?”

“Her Lutz is perfect, thank you for wondering… If you have nothing else to add, I think I better head to the showers.”

But her hand grabbed his wrist before he could turn the doorknob.

“Wait,” she implored. “Please.”

The sudden touch of her skin on his, feeling her warmth after so long of not getting any closer than a step of the podium away from her, made electricity run in his veins.

“Are you okay?”

Vic bit her lip.

She looked perfectly fine. Apart for her headstyle change and a touch of added maturity to her traits, she did not seem any different from two years ago. The last time he had seen her this close.

“Of course I am, but- I miss it, Teddy. I miss us.”

His heart skipped a bit, and climbed up his throat. He would have liked to stuff it back where it belonged, though, because he hated to get his hopes raised up like this.

“I miss the four of us, our choreographies, our best friend hang outs.”

“Really?”

That had sounded much more harsh than he intended, but she didn’t look offended. Rather sheepish.

“Of course, silly.”

There was a moment during which neither knew what to do. There seemed to be an invisible wall keeping them apart, made of every little wound that these two years of separation had caused.

It was hard to get to trust a friend again. But Andie used to say that friendship is like riding a bike: you never forget how to.

“Me too,” admitted Teddy.

Vic threw herself in his arms, the exact same way she had done years ago, before The Circus’ show. He felt her heartbeat against his body, and closed his eyes to breathe her flowery scent. He wanted to shield her from the harm of the world, and yet wanted to feel protected by her presence. They had done it again - refused to communicate. This was some soap opera, a sequel of the time when she had knee surgery but this was somehow worse. 

“I’m sorry I did not write, all these months,” she hiccuped, her face hidden in the crook of his neck. Teddy, despite the pain that he felt, was sorry to hear her cry. “I thought you would hate me, for going away.”

He shook his head. “How could I ever hate you, Vicky.”

She didn’t even flinch at the nickname. She had missed that too.

“Every time I tried to call I- I couldn’t do it. What would have I said? ‘Oh, Teddy, how are you? I’ve left you miles behind, but let’s talk as if nothing had happened!’ I’m so sorry.”

Teddy couldn’t do anything but hugged her tighter.

It had hurt. Two years of barely hearing from her. Whenever they saw each other, it was only from far away, surrounded by their respective teams, with no possibility of exchanging more than a wave of hand.

But now they were together, and all the bitterness seemed to evaporate. If only this moment could last forever.

When she drew back, her celestial stare scanned his face prudently. “I have an idea.”

Teddy discerned that look in her eyes. That special look that had always foreshadowed big changes in plan, whenever she used it.

“Teddy… Let’s go to the 2018s together.”

“What?”

“I want to skate with you again. You’re my best friend and-”

“Wait a second. Did you just- Did you just say that you want to go to the Olympic Games with- me?”

“Well, I think I made that pretty clear, yeah.”

After two years of being apart, of skating for different clubs? It was unreal. They would never had time to prepare, to settle things down.

And that was not even the biggest problem.

“But Vic! You can’t think that- What about Krum, and Alice, and James and Lily? Your responsibilities, mine? We can’t just-”

“All we need is to get our pair ranking up, Teddy, it’s not that hard. We still have this season-”

“Only three months left.”

“-and the whole 2017!”

“No, you know that qualifications-”

“Oh, come on, Teddy! I already talked to Durmstrang.”

“You did  what ?”

“I know it can seem very stupid but- I am not getting along very well with Hector. To be honest, I don’t want to. None of us does.”

She sounded as if she was eight years old again.

“I’m having a very hard time to follow you, here.”

She bit her lip, in all agitation. “I know. It seems too easy. I’m dropping everything on you like it’s a thought that occured to me last night but- I have been feeling very down for the past year. Karkaroff senses it, and my results have been sinking in the past competitions. You know it, you’ve seen me.”

To him, she was always perfect. But the critics had indeed mentioned something about her performance lacking that spark so characteristic to her.

This was getting more insane every second.

“Do you remember us as kids, Teddy? Do you remember that you were the first to push yourself forward?”

“Yeah, you forced me to,” he grinned.

But she shook her head. “You went forward because you were the bravest of us two. And because you are a gentleman-”

“And because you forced me to.”

“Okay, fine, maybe a little,” she chuckled. “But do you remember what I told you?”

“To never leave my hands on the floor?”

“After that, silly.”

He faked a concentrated expression, “Uh- can’t recall, sorry.”

Vic grabbed his hand, and exhaled deeply, “That I couldn’t do this without you.”

The world stopped spinning, but his heart took the changing.

“I can’t do this without you, Teddy.”

Vic smiled, and Teddy presaged many, many changes.

“An exchange?”

“I talked to Alice, and she’s okay.”

“Of course she is. Durmstrang’s the best thing that could happen to her- no offence. But do they agree?”

“Vic says that they do.”

James reflected on the whole for a good minute. “This is crazy.”

Teddy could not blame him. “I know.”

“You’re telling me that the best club in the whole country, perhaps in the whole world, is accepting to let go of their star like that? After-”

“They still have Krum.”

“After almost two years of working with her, while the Olympics’ qualifications are an inch away?”

“Somehow-”

“Did you fall on your head?”

The young man shrugged, still coping with the shock of the news himself. “Vic said that Karkaroff is defiant of her. You’ve told me yourself that she seemed to be less bright, in the championship. We have to take her back.”

“But Vic’s chance of winning the Olympics again-”

“Listen,” Teddy grabbed James’ shoulder, and looked at him right in the eyes. “Her chance, it’s my new priority.”

Victoire raised their interlocked fingers to the crowd and sent them a kiss with her other hand as they pushed onto the ice. Teddy raised their hands to his lips and kissed her bare skin. The crowd screamed and she shot him a pointed glance. Years of practice - not just the four since the last Olympics but the past  twenty  - had led to this movement.

Figure skating was a complicated hobby. While it mostly relied on hard work, luck still was considered as a factor. They were going to win, they  had  to. Yet, none of her doubts seem to dissipate. It would be horrific if their last Olympics would result in them stitching to their wounds. Call her a Taylor Swift fan but the word that kept running through her head was ‘endgame.’

Sensing her spiraling, Teddy squeezes and shields her face from the cameras.

“Alright?” He doesn’t wait for an answer. “You’ll be bloody awesome. Make me look like a ponce, really. The steps are practically muscle memory by now. You won’t forget the routine, yeah? You’re Victoire fucking Lu - Weasley! Okay? And, if anyone can pull this off, it’s you.”  

She smiles at that. Her best friend - her partner - always knows how to make her feel better, and who can switch her mood simply by his voice. And, if she did fall, Teddy would catch her and incorporate her clumsiness as another graceful step.

He was perfect like that.

She shuts her eyes and exhales, the knot in her stomach relaxing. The crowd is deafening and they provide the confidence that she desires.

They were  Delacour Lupin  and they were going to win the Olympics.

The tune for Hamilton ‘Burn’  begins to play and Victoire drops his hand and flies away and frames her face with her fingers before she kicks the air with her leg.

She was a tigress, powerful and waiting to pounce.

I saved every letter you wrote me

From the moment I read them

I knew you were mine

You said you were mine

I thought you were mine

The moment the lyrics strum, they circle each other and spin. Victoire wraps her legs around him waist but stares at the crowd with a pained look offering her the presumption that the color of her dress was stained in blood.

He spins her around and watches as she moves away with eyes having the warmth of fire - so very destructive. He comes up behind here and they dance, not quite touching but tiptoeing on the other’s space.

I'm re-reading the letters you wrote me

I'm searching and scanning for answers in every line

For some kind of sign

And when you were mine

The world seemed to burn

Burn…

Teddy snarls and his hair is messed up as if he’s shaken up. A lion ready to roar. They reach the end of the stadium and thrust their hands behind them and snarl. The crowd, awed are thunderous in their applause.

Victoire didn’t see any of them - not her fans, the judges but rather, felt she was at home. This was her element and even with the extreme level of concentration and dedication, she felt at peace.

Unlike their other dances which painted an innocent and graceful image, this one was sultry and sexy. This one was passionate and burned with the wildest of fires.

You and your words obsessed with your legacy

Your sentences border on senseless

And you are paranoid in every paragraph

How they perceive you

You, you, you!

With the dramatic syllables, she tucks her legs around his neck and gazes desperately at his face. The love that was painful and agonizing seemed to weigh her down.

The crowd yells at the stunt and Vic offers a quick but lingering smile to Teddy. The step was one of the hardest of their routine and to have excelled it consumed her with a sense of pride.

You'll sleep in your office instead

With only the memories of when you were mine

I hope that you burn.

Skating with a vengeance, they dance as if they’re screaming, urging the crowd - the world - to look at them and take notice. Their whole bodies are thrumming, screaming with an agonizing amount of excess energy.

Finally, she stands on Teddy’s legs as he crouches and arches her back, raising her hands and inviting shock and compliments. They are rulers, triumphant and powerful.

When he sets her down, she can’t hold in her elation any longer and it bursts through by an unprepared bout of laughter. How many people could say they adored their work? That it provided them with freedom and happiness? That they could work with the love of their life?

While he is desperate for more, she is happy simply by his touch and they engage in another spin before he tucks her form close to his chest and dips her. His nose is buried in her neck and hands coiled tightly around her body, assuring she doesn’t slip.

The audience stands up and claps. Teddy laughs into his shoulder and hugs her tightly before moving away and staring at her with an absolute look of pure shock. Victoire covers her face with her fingers but her joy is visible by the crinkles of her eyes. Clearly shocked, it doesn’t block any of their reactions.

Victoire continues to laugh, a picture of the powerful yet innocent woman she really is as she watches Teddy hit his thighs. She hadn't even watched their performance yet but it was her favorite so far.

Teddy, however, still seems like he forgot to drop the act as he appears almost angry as he scoops up his partner and throws her off her feet. She wraps her arms around him but it evolves into a much more softer affection, thanking the other without even a word. Seeing him so happy, her pride is only elevated.

Kissing her on the cheek, they bow to the crowd and Victoire actually cries out of laughter as Teddy strikes a pose. This was, without a doubt, the best day of her life. The visualization was aesthetic, enough for Victoire dares to dream of gold.

Getting off the ice, Teddy clutches his chest, overwhelmed by the UK support. It felt like they had just performed in London, instead of South Korea. Victoire clutches onto Lily and Teddy drops onto her back. James smirks at him, inducing Teddy to roll his eyes before joining the group hug.

Waiting has never been her strong suit. Victoire bites her nails and wrings her hands, together before squeezing her partner’s hand.

“Ouch!” He yelps. “You’re stronger than Hercules!”

Victoire smirks at him. “Dunno how you didn’t realize it before. I always kick your arse when we work out.”

Teddy frowns at her and taps her nose playfully. “Show off.”

Drawing out their banter, it’s soon enough that their names are called out. Teddy immediately snaps into attention and peers at the scoreboard.

“Victoire Delacour and Teddy Lupin have a total score of 206.07 points, and they are currently in..first place!”

Victoire’s heart thuds and she’s immediately enveloped in the scent of cinnamon as Teddy grabs her and carries her. Shuddering, she clutches him tightly, laughing into his neck. He taps her arse because it’s a thing he does and kisses her face.

And, fuck, she’s happy.

Still in his embrace, he thanks her and she wiggles her head and returns the sentiments.

And, then the words pour out of her. The words that have always been on the edge on her tongue. Dripping like poison - a liquid luck of sorts.

“I love you, Teddy.” Her voice is breathy and soft. It’s a line that’s been said thousands of times, perhaps more but the implication of it is a first. She doesn’t know if she wants him to hear it but he does, in fact, hear it. Freezing besides her, she shuts her eyes and pretends it’s nothing irregular. Maybe, like they were conversing about the weather rather than her declarations of unrequited love. How very  British  of her. She wants to tell him that she wanted to stop - stop loving him because it hurt her. That she even worked with Krum in the hopes that her feelings would vanish but she's been so stupid because that's practically impossible and now, she knows that loving him made life blissful. 

“Vic.” He murmurs and she feels like the warmth of his exhale on her eyelashes and her toes curl up, instinctively. It was  illegal  what he did to her. Worse than that, even. Didn’t he know that she was simply a mortal? More than a miracle, it was marvelous that she somehow functioned around him on the ice. “Look at me.”

And, because it is common knowledge that Victoire is a pitiful and weak creature when faced with her best friend’s husky voice, she obeys.

His face doesn’t show even a hue of surprise. It is a canvas of extreme  joy  like a child on Christmas eve. After all, an adult  likes , but  love  turns one into a child.

And, then, in one smooth motion, he dips her down and kisses her. Time, as cliche as it sounded, fell and eons might have passed but she wouldn’t have known - or cared. Even though the kiss is the most innocent she’s had so far, and the sweetest she’ll ever have, her body turns to fire.

Only he would kiss her like a devoted praiser.

Hands tangling in her hair, he exhales a shaky spoonful of oxygen and the following kiss is much more desperate as if it’s making up for lost years. Years, years of stolen glances, midnight dreams, all of it led to this moment.

She is kissing her best friend. If she ever thought winning the Olympics was the best feeling in the world, she was wrong. Kissing Teddy was on a whole other level. He cups her face and she tilts her head, leaning into him and he grasps onto her as if they’re simply one.

Not even chocolate can come close to this. Teddy takes over all the places on ‘The Top Favs’ list.

Victoire responds in kind, forgets that there’s a whole audience whooping and the whole world probably knows that her legs are being wound around Teddy’s waist because he’s kissing her with the fuel from the sun and she  loves  him,  loves  him,  loves  him.