The Escapades of Teddy Lupin

NOTE (7 September 2018): It means a lot to me that though it's been four years since Escapades was written, people are still discovering it + reading for the first time! However, it's only fair to let you know that this was intended as the first in a seven part series, which was discontinued. I highly recommend that you read The Lost Children instead - I believe the story is more engaging and it represents what I wanted to do with this, but didn't quite manage! xx Nymphie

A/N:Anything recognisable belongs to J.K. Rowling! Please be informed, I write Victoire as being born on the 2nd of May, 1999. This means that she's only a year younger than Teddy.

Awards: This story has won the 2014 Hallows Award in Best Multichapter, Best Next-Generation Era & Best OC for Alfie Hayes, and was also nominated in the Best OC category for Ella Anderson. It has also been nominated for the Best Fanon Multichapter and Best OC (Alfie Hayes) in the 2015 Fan-Picked Fanfiction Awards.

As of 11/6/2015, Chapter One has been updated.

Teddy Lupin was still half-asleep when he came downstairs to find his grandmother and godfather sitting and chatting on the sofa. It was early morning in Cornwall; the sun was still rising, casting its rays over the beautiful coast. The light streamed through the windows of Shell Cottage, painting the elegantly furnished living room in pastel tones. Teddy and Andromeda had arrived from their house in Godric's Hollow a few days earlier, and were to be staying with Bill and Fleur Weasley for the rest of the summer. Harry and Ginny would be staying for a few days as well—Harry had arrived the previous day and Ginny would be arriving soon with the children, after she finished writing up a few last-minute articles for the Daily Prophet.

He flopped down on a chair and muttered a sleepy "Good morning" to the two adults.

"Slept well, Teddy?" Harry asked, ruffling Teddy's hair—currently a violent shade of orange.

"Mm," Teddy groaned in response. He wasn't really much of a morning person and he didn't think he ever would be.

Andromeda and Harry exchanged a knowing look. The older woman leaned forward, placing her coffee mug on the table as she reached for an envelope. She handed it to Teddy. "This came for you earlier," she said, smiling widely. "Congratulations, Teddy."

Teddy held the envelope gingerly in his hand, all remnants of sleepiness suddenly gone. His name and address were written out neatly in green ink on the back- he was very impressed that whoever had addressed the envelope had managed not to smudge the ink at all. Every single time he wrote a letter, he often got black marks all over the paper, as well as the desk he was writing on. He had once stolen- well, he preferred to use the word borrowed- Andromeda's wand and tried to use an anti-smudge charm on one of his letters to Victoire Weasley, but the paper had caught on fire. He hadn't attempted it again- although that was probably due to the fact that Andromeda now kept her wand locked up when she wasn't using it. She had been incredibly angry to find out that Teddy had tried to use it, and had lectured him for hours on the dangers and illegality of underage magic.

He didn't like being lectured by his grandmother. He loved her to bits, but she was incredibly scary when she was mad.

Teddy flipped the envelope over and gently removed the Hogwarts seal, trying not to rip it. Naturally, there was a loud tearing sound. Andromeda sighed dramatically and took the envelope from him, taking out the letter inside and unfolding it carefully. She then gave it back to Teddy, who read the contents out loud:

Dear Mr. Lupin,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed, a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1. We shall await your owl no later than July 31.

Sincerely,

Professor Filius Flitwick

Deputy Headmaster

Teddy looked up at his godfather and grandmother, who were grinning happily. "Oh you are going to have such a good time at Hogwarts, Teddy!" Andromeda exclaimed. She removed the list of school materials and quickly scanned through it. "Yes…yes, we'll have to head down to London one of these days to pick some of these up. I do suppose you can use some of your mother's old schoolbooks— she should have some useful notes in there. Presuming she did take notes, of course."

Excitement coursed through Teddy's veins. He had been waiting for this day for as long as he could remember- to get his letter and go to Hogwarts to learn all he could about magic and the magical world that he had grown up in. Perhaps he would finally be able to perfect an anti-smudge charm- as well as a particularly fancy spell he'd found in one of his father's old books that involved enchanting words to change color every ten seconds. He thought that might interest Victoire, especially considering that her own knowledge of magic would be limited until she entered Hogwarts the following year.

Harry seemed to understand Teddy's mood exactly. "Bet you can't wait to go, right, Ted?" he said, grinning when Teddy's hair changed to a bright shade of yellow. "I wonder what House you'll be in."

"They say it runs in families, right?" Teddy asked, his brow furrowing and his hair darkening slightly.

"It often does." Andromeda nodded. "But you've got a good variety of Houses within your own family tree. Your mother and grandfather were in Hufflepuff, your father was in Gryffindor, and I was in Slytherin. My, the Sorting Hat is going to have a tough time with you," she laughed.

"But of course, personality does matter the most," Harry reminded him. "The Sorting Hat will take your traits into account and use those to place you accordingly. It's hardly ever wrong."

"Hm," Teddy said, thinking to himself. He'd grown up with Gryffindors- most of his godfather's friends belonged to the House of the brave, and Teddy had often found himself admiring them. But he didn't think he had the nerve or the daring to be a part of Gryffindor. He certainly wasn't cunning or ambitious enough to be a good Slytherin. Perhaps he'd be a Hufflepuff like his mother, but he didn't know enough about the House to say for sure.

He figured that he'd just have to wait and find out—after all, there wasn't really much point to dwelling on something that was well and truly out of his control. It wasn't as if he could bribe the Sorting Hat into putting him into one House or the other, and even if he could, he wasn't sure that he'd want to. He was, anyway, distracted from his thoughts of Hogwarts when a young, silvery-blonde girl came charging down the stairs in a pair of pink, plaid pajamas.

"Good morning, Mrs. Tonks, Harry," she said, smiling widely at them. "Hi Teddy."

"Hi Victoire," Teddy said, grinning. "Good sleep?"

"Yeah, brilliant. What's that then?" She gestured to the letter on his lap.

"Teddy got his Hogwarts letter," Andromeda said proudly.

Victoire's mouth fell open and Teddy laughed. "Don't look so shocked Vic—it's not like I'm a Squib or something."

"No, no, it's not that," Victoire babbled, jumping onto the couch next to Teddy. "Let's see, then! Wow, I can't believe it, Ted- you're finally going to Hogwarts. I mean, we've been talking about it for ages, about all the subjects and the magic and the Quidditch and…wow, Teddy! I wish I was going too!"

"You will be next year," he reminded her.

Victoire's face contorted into a frown. "That is, if Maman lets me. She's been at it with Dad again." Her voice changed into a very accurate imitation of Fleur. "But Victoire eez 'alf-French after all- she should go to mon école- my school. Our Beauxbatons eez far superior to your 'Ogwarts. I will only 'ave the finest education for ma chérie."

Teddy and Harry laughed and Andromeda suppressed a smile. Victoire only looked frustrated. "No one thinks to ask me what I want—I mean, all of my friends will be going to Hogwarts. I don't want to go to Beauxbatons with those stuck up French girls—"

"Are you saying zat I am a stuck-up French girl?" a voice echoed out from behind them. Victoire turned very pink and Teddy turned around to see Fleur Weasley standing behind them, hands on her hips and eyebrows raised. She was still in her pink, silk robe and although she'd just woken up, she looked as immaculate as always.

"No, no, of course not, Maman!" Victoire exclaimed, letting out a half-hearted laugh that quickly dissipated when she registered Fleur's angry expression. "I'm just saying that I would much prefer to go to Hogwarts, where I'm sure I would fit in much better. And all my friends will be going to Hogwarts. Look! Teddy's even gotten his letter already. Vous comprenez, non?"

"We will discuss zees later." Fleur said, walking towards her daughter. Her expression softened as she turned to Teddy. "Congratulations, Teddy. I am sure you will 'ave an excellent time at 'Ogwarts. After all, your entire family 'as been to 'Ogwarts, non? You would not be the first one to go to a different school," she said, looking pointedly at Victoire who pretended not to hear her mother.

"Thank you Mrs. Weasley," Teddy said, suppressing a laugh.

.oOo.

It was a week before Andromeda found enough time to take Teddy down to Diagon Alley to buy his things for school. Victoire had begged her parents to let her go along as well, and they had relented. Dominique had tried the same thing, but was told that it was unrealistic for Andromeda to take all three children via side-along Apparition without Splinching someone or the other, so Dominique had confined herself to her room, sulking heavily. Teddy had tried to go and see her, but the eight-year-old had stubbornly slammed the door in his face.

"Nikki will get over it—eventually," Victoire reassured Teddy as he came down the stairs looking awfully downcast. He was quite fond of the younger girl—he saw her as a sister and certainly didn't want her to stay angry at him over what she perceived as his 'preference for Victoire'.

Andromeda was waiting for them, and as soon as they were deemed ready to go (which, for Teddy, involved going back upstairs to change his shirt and morph his hair into a decent color because Andromeda was "not going to be seen out at Diagon Alley with her grandson in a sleeveless shirt and bright turquoise hair"), they Disapparated and reappeared in the bustling wizard street.

They went into Flourish and Blotts first to buy Teddy's textbooks. Victoire followed Teddy around, helping him search for the books on the lengthy list that Professor Flitwick had sent while babbling about the different subjects.

"Of course, Transfiguration seems so interesting but I hear it's incredibly difficult, so I'll probably be rubbish at it, but I'm sure you'll be fantastic, Teddy, I mean technically your morphing already counts as a form of Transfiguration so…"

A boy about Teddy's age interrupted her. "Hello," he said. "Sorry to interrupt- are you Hogwarts too?" He stared up at them with wide green eyes and brushed a few stray locks of pale brown hair out of his face.

Victoire looked startled. "No. I mean, I'm not. Yet. I'm Victoire. This is my friend, Teddy," she said, gesturing at Teddy, who raised a hand in greeting. "He's starting this year."

"Hi," Teddy said, smiling at the boy.

The boy smiled back. "I'm Alfie. It's nice to meet you, Teddy—and you, Victoire. Are your parents wizards?"

Victoire opened her mouth to respond, but Teddy beat her to it. "Yeah, they are. I'm here with my Gran though—but she's a witch too."

"Oh. I'm the first wizard in my family. Muggle-born, I think the right term is?" Alfie paused, as if waiting for approval, before continuing. "Anyway, this place is a little crazy and my mum's always been a bit fainthearted, so she's had to go and sit down at that place…what's it called, the Leaky Cauldron? I think that's it. So she's sent me off to grab my books, and I can't find anything." He looked rather confused. "I was wondering if you could help me?"

"Of course!" Teddy replied warmly. "We'd love to help! The Transfiguration book's here," he took out a copy of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration and handed it to Alfie, who looked at it curiously.

"What exactly is Transfiguration?"

"It's the—er, well—it's like the magical—what's the word— science of turning one object into another," Victoire said. "You know- teacups into mice, that kind of thing."

Alfie's eyes widened. "Is it difficult?"

"It's one of the hardest subjects there is, yeah."

"I hope I don't have any difficulty with it then," he said nervously. "I'm determined to become a fantastic wizard—my parents were ever so proud when I got my letter. There's never been a wizard in my family before—I think I mentioned that already? Well anyway, I know that I can be really great…maybe." He laughed shakily. "But I'll probably need loads of help. I mean, look at you guys…growing up in Wizard families means that you'll probably have had a head start."

"Not really," Teddy said, as they walked through shelves of books, looking for the next texts on their lists. "I mean, we're not really allowed to use magic. Not properly. Accidents do happen, though."

"But you've seen it happening," Alfie replied, taking the copy of The Standard Book of Spells: Grade One that Teddy was handing him. "I've never been exposed to that."

"True. But it's not like we have much of an idea about how to do it. And anyway, some of the best wizards of our time have been Muggleborns. I don't know if you've heard of her, but there's this Muggleborn witch named Hermione Granger—she's pretty high up in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and she played a key role in the Second Wizarding War…" Alfie's eyes widened. "Sorry, don't quite know if you know about that, but it was a war some time back, eleven years ago." He ignored the stabbing pain in his chest. Eleven years, two months and six days. He knew the exact ending date of the war- how could he forget it? It was the date when his parents died (and, of course, it was Victoire's birthday).

"Wow…she sounds great, but bloody hell…I never realized there were wars and stuff in the Wizarding world!"

"Yeah," Teddy said, absentmindedly. "Yeah, there are. I think they'll teach us about them in Hogwarts- there's a class called History of Magic. And you can always look them up in the Hogwarts library."

"Think I might do that then," Alfie said, almost to himself. "But I'm not too fond of books."

It took them about ten more minutes to collect the rest of their books. Andromeda joined them at the counter. She smiled warmly at Alfie when Teddy introduced him as a new friend who would also be starting at Hogwarts.

"Are you sure you don't need any more help Alfie?" Andromeda asked, as they exited Flourish and Blotts carrying heavy bags filled with books.

"No, thank you very much Mrs….um…"

"Tonks."

"Right, Mrs. Tonks. I'll be fine," he stuffed his change into his pocket. "I should be off now- my mum'll likely be feeling better. It was lovely meeting you. Bye Teddy! Bye Victoire!" He turned off in the direction of the Leaky Cauldron.

"I have a feeling Teddy's going to be very popular at Hogwarts," Victoire said. "He's already made a friend, and he hasn't even gotten on the train yet! Of course, the dark purple hair might help."

.oOo.

Lugging bags full of books and other school materials, Andromeda, Victoire and Teddy came to a stop outside a narrow alley entrance. A single, worn, wooden sign hung on the brick edifice. Knockturn Alley. Teddy had heard of it before—it was a shady place that his grandmother had warned him against.

Andromeda checked her list before looking up at the two children. "I have to get a bit of medicine for Victoire's father," she told them sternly. "You two must wait here—I won't be gone long."

"Can't we come with you, Mrs. Tonks?" Victoire asked, pouting slightly.

Andromeda shook her head. "I'm afraid Knockturn Alley is a little too dangerous for the both of you. Your parents wouldn't appreciate me taking you down here, Victoire. For your own safety, it's best that you both stay out here."

"If it's so dangerous, then shouldn't we come and protect you?"

Andromeda smiled. "I'm a grown witch with a wand, Victoire. I think I can handle myself. Don't move, okay? I'll be back soon."

"Yes Gran," Teddy said, diligently. As Andromeda hurried off, he glanced curiously at his surroundings. Diagon Alley was as busy and bustling as ever, but Knockturn Alley seemed dank and deserted—there were very few witches and wizards entering and exiting it, and they all seemed to look rather suspicious. Teddy couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

He snapped out of his thoughts when a group of boys jostled him, causing him to drop his shopping bag and fall to his left.

"Teddy!" Victoire called anxiously. She ran over to him and helped to pull him up. Disgruntled, Teddy got up, grabbed the bag and brushed himself off. He wasn't hurt, with the exception of a few scrapes. "How rude of them! They didn't even say sorry! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Vic," Teddy said, although he wasn't looking at her. Instead, he found himself peering at the boys who had tripped him. There were four of them in total, and just by looking at their retreating figures, he could tell that they were young; he wouldn't have been surprised if they were in their final years at Hogwarts. They looked nothing like the other people in the alley—they were all well-dressed and carried themselves with a great deal of poise. He couldn't help but wonder what they were doing in such a shady place.

"Come on," he said to Vic, impulsively. He grabbed her hand and dragged her down the alley, following the group of boys.

"What are you doing?" she hissed. "Your Gran told us to stay here!"

"We'll be back in no time!"

They followed the boys at a slight distance and hid behind a broken down cart carrying wooden panes when the boys stopped in front of a shop. Teddy could see that it had dusty, cracked window-panes and dark lighting. An engraved bronze sign hung in front of the large wooden door. Teddy could just about make out the words. "Selwyn and Shafiq," he whispered to Victoire. "I've never heard of it before, have you?"

She just shook her head.

One of the boys—a blond—leaned forward and knocked on the heavy wooden door using an old-fashioned knocker. It creaked open and a small, shriveled old man with dark, beady eyes poked out. Teddy couldn't quite tell at this distance, but it seemed as if he knew the boys because his face registered recognition.

"I've told you," the little man snapped. "Mr. Shafiq is very unwell! He can't get outta his bed to talk to the likes of you."

Teddy wondered what the man meant by that—the boys looked perfectly respectable to him, although he hadn't seen their faces. He tried to crane his head slightly to try and catch their reflections in a window, but the windowpanes were too dusty and he was too afraid of being seen.

"Well, then we'll come and see him ourselves!" one of the boys retorted.

"The doctor said no visitors," the man said. "Listen, if you don't get outta here, I'll call the Ministry, I will."

Another boy snorted. "Yeah, cause the Ministry approves of what you does here, doesn't they?"

The old man became very pale. "Leave. Now."

"Awright, we're going, we're going! We'll find a copy elsewhere."

Copy? Teddy thought to himself. Copy of what?

"Teddy!"

Teddy and Victoire both jumped and turned around to find a very angry Andromeda. One hand was on her hip and the other was holding a carefully packaged vial of a strange liquid. "What did I tell you about not wandering off?"

"Sorry?" Teddy tried. "It's all my fault—don't blame Vic, please!"

Andromeda seized his hand and began leading him through the alleyway and back into the main street. Victoire followed the two of them, hanging her head sheepishly. "Going down Knockturn Alley, whatever are people going to think…" she muttered.

"I'm sorry Gran!"

"Next time, you listen to instructions, alright? Anything could have happened to you! You endangered yourself, and Victoire! I thought you knew better." She turned to him and Teddy immediately noticed that the anger was gone, replaced by white-faced terror. He sobered instantly.

"I'm sorry."

.oOo.

The very last place they went to before heading back to Shell Cottage was a small, but well-known shop. It was here that they would find the most important object that Teddy would require in his studies of magic. The sign outside the shop had seen better days, but it was still possible to make out the worn letters. Ollivanders.

A bell rang as Andromeda, Teddy and Victoire stepped over the threshold of the doorway. A ladder carrying Ollivander himself swung into sight from behind the shelves filled with dusty boxes. The proprietor too, had seen better days. His skin was sallow and thin, wrinkles covering his ancient face. Yet he still managed to climb off the ladder and smile warmly at the customers entering his shop.

"Andromeda," he said, recognizing the older witch. "Tonks, now, isn't it?" Andromeda nodded. "Why, I still remember selling you your first wand when you were a child—thirteen inches, mahogany with a dragon heartstring core, am I correct?"

Andromeda smiled. "Yes, you are. I still use it. A most splendid wand, it is."

"Yes, of course. And of course, I remember selling your daughter her wand." He sobered slightly. "I was very sorry to hear of her passing. I remember when she stepped in here, she had such a vibrant personality. Kept changing her hair color all the time."

"What, like this?" Teddy interrupted, screwing up his nose. His hair changed from dark purple to a bright pink, to a jewel-toned turquoise and back to the dark purple.

Ollivander chuckled. "You must be Nymphadora's son."

"I'm Teddy," he said.

"And this is?" Ollivander asked, gesturing to Victoire who smiled shyly.

"This is Victoire Weasley," Andromeda said.

"Ah, the child of Bill and Fleur?" Ollivander looked kindly at Victoire. "I have the honour of knowing your parents, child. They helped me greatly once. I will forever be indebted to them."

Victoire looked rather taken aback by all of this and just nodded, eyes wide. Teddy wondered what Bill and Fleur had done for Ollivander and decided to ask his grandmother when they were alone.

"She won't be needing a wand today," Andromeda said. "She goes to Hogwarts next year. Teddy, on the other hand, is quite in need of your expertise."

"But of course," Ollivander graciously bowed and Teddy wondered if he should do the same. He almost did, but realized that if it had been expected of him, his grandmother would probably have given him a very sharp look- and since she hadn't, there really was no point in embarrassing himself.

Ollivander scanned the shelves of wands, muttering to himself before selecting one. "Here," he said, removing it from his wand and handing it to Teddy, who took it from him gingerly. "Grip it firmly and give it a wave."

Teddy did as he was told, only to witness a glass on Ollivander's desk shatter. Andromeda impulsively pulled her wand from her robes and muttered "Reparo", reforming the glass.

"Not that one then," Ollivander snatched the wand from Teddy. As he searched through the wand boxes, he said "Thank you for repairing the glass, Andromeda dear. You have no idea how many times I have had to perform that spell. It becomes terribly dull after a while."

"It's no problem," Andromeda replied. "When you live with Teddy, repairing spells become a reflex." Victoire giggled and Teddy flushed.

"Yes, I recall Nymphadora was very clumsy as well- she dropped several of my wands when selecting hers."

Teddy smiled to himself- he secretly loved it when people who had known his parents compared him to them- picking up on the similarities. It made him feel connected to them on a subconscious level.

Ollivander handed him another wand. Teddy gave it wave and this time, instead of breaking something, the wand began to glow. Ollivander smiled. "Well dear, I think you've found your wand. Very interesting- eleven and half inches, cedar with a unicorn hair core. The same core as your father had."

Teddy felt something in his stomach stir. He looked up at the proprietor and smiled back, his new wand clasped in his hands. It felt right.

.oOo.

It was late evening by the time they got back to Shell Cottage- Andromeda had had to Apparate and Disapparate between the two places several times in order to safely transport Teddy's newly bought school materials, as well as Teddy and Victoire themselves.

Teddy heaved the bags filled with magical wares up the staircase. As he entered his room, he looked at the calendar on the wall. There were just twenty days left until he would finally be going to Hogwarts. He wasn't sure how on Earth he was going to wait.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! I'll try to update sometime this week, although I do have an exam. Reviews are much appreciated- reviewers get a Teddy with the hair colour of their choice. Also, I'd appreciate some suggestions about you think the head of Slytherin might be, 11 years after the Battle of Hogwarts. Thanks!