Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the ice cream parlor.

Godric's Hollow was a small town, quaint but positively bursting with energy. It was home to many lively little children, the majority of whom liked to spend their summer running around the town, laughing and playing with their friends. The second Victoire Weasley stepped foot in it, she loved it. Everything about it, the brightly-colored flowers, the fruit trees, the warm breezes, and the summer sunlight made her feel completely at home.

She hadn't, of course, loved being crashed into by an exuberant flyer on a lightning-fast broomstick, but there wasn't much she could do except for falling onto the grass.

"Sorry!" the boy apologized, rolling over on his side to grin sheepishly at her. "Didn't see you there."

"Obviously," Victoire sighed, brushing her hair out of her eyes and glancing over at the boy. He was already on his knees and offering his hand to her. "Thanks," she said, clasping it and pulling herself up.

"No problem." He tilted his head, studying her. "Are you new to this town? I don't think I've seen you around here before."

"Yeah, I'm new," Victoire confirmed. "My aunt's cousin lives here, though. I heard she runs an ice cream parlor, and I was hoping I could find a job there."

"Well, there's only one ice cream parlor around here," he grinned. "And the owner is an old family friend of mine. I can take you there, if you like."

"That'd be great," Victoire said gratefully.

"I would like some payment, though," the boy added, a mischievous grin lighting his face. "Like your name, for instance."

Victoire relaxed—she had thought he would ask for money, or a date. "Victoire Weasley," she answered. "Can I have your name in return?"

"Teddy Lupin," he answered nonchalantly. His name echoed oddly in her head, and she tried to remember where she had heard it before. "I assume you're a witch, as you didn't react to my broomstick at all."

"Oh, yes, I'm a witch. This is the wizarding half of Godric's Hollow, right?" Victoire looked over at the broomstick still lying on the ground and realized it was the latest broom on the market, the Lightning Bolt. "Nice broom, though."

"Thanks," Teddy grinned, picking it up off the grass. "It was a birthday present. So, how about we head over to that ice cream parlor now?"

Victoire smiled. "Sounds like a plan."

"Hired yet?" Teddy asked Victoire when she exited the back room with a smile on her face.

"Yep!" Victoire said proudly. "You're looking at the newest employee of Roses and Cream!"

"Good," Teddy returned her smile. "So, can I have two scoops of cookie dough ice cream now?"

Victoire rolled her eyes, but couldn't banish her grin. "Coming right up!" she said cheerfully and headed over to the part of the display where the cookie dough ice cream was kept.

"You know, I was wondering," Teddy said casually as she scooped the ice cream into a bowl. "I've never seen a blond Weasley before."

Victoire raised an eyebrow. "How many Weasleys have you seen before?"

Teddy grinned, running a hand through his hair. "A few, in the newspaper and whatnot," he admitted. "Mostly Ron Weasley and his wife Hermione."

"That would be my aunt and uncle," Victoire told him. "My mother was part-Veela, though, which is why I've got this hair color." Absently, she lifted a strawberry blond strand to show him.

"That would explain it." Teddy reached out and brushed the lock of hair with his finger before she could react. Just as quickly, his hand was withdrawn, and he was calmly spooning a bite of cookie dough ice cream into his mouth.

Victoire stared for a moment, bewildered. Teddy Lupin was a strange boy, to be sure.

"So, what about your hair?" she asked, switching the subject. She had been curious since she had caught sight of it, since she'd never seen someone streak their hair bright blue. "That can't be natural."

"It is for me," Teddy grinned, and promptly turned the blue streaks yellow and his brown hair black. "I'm a Metamorphagus," he explained when she stared at him surprise.

"Yeah, I got that," Victoire agreed. "Should you be doing that in public, though?"

"Relax," Teddy laughed, spinning around on the stool. "The muggles tend to keep to their side of town. It makes things very easy for us when we want to use magic or fly brooms or turn our hair weird colors."

"You look like a bumblebee," Victoire observed, still staring at his hair.

Teddy grinned at her. "I'll take that as a compliment. So, do you go to Hogwarts?"

"Yeah. I just finished my sixth year," Victoire told him. "Do you? I don't remember seeing anyone with such colorful hair around."

Teddy shook his head. "I was homeschooled. And I would have graduated a year ago anyway."

Victoire calculated in her head. "You're eighteen, then?"

"I turned nineteen in April," Teddy corrected. "Why?"

"Just curious," Victoire said. "How did you take your OWLs and NEWTs, then, if you were homeschooled?"

"I sat them at home," Teddy explained, swallowing his spoonful of ice cream. "And while we're being curious, what House are you in?"

"Gryffindor," Victoire answered as the bell on the door chimed and a gaggle of children entered, laughing and chattering. "I better go serve them," she grinned at him and headed over to the group.

Behind her, Teddy stared down into the cookie dough depths of his ice cream, wondering if she had recognized his name and half-hoping she had.

Photographs cluttered every possible space on the desk that wasn't already filled with papers. On the chair behind the desk sat a dark-haired man in his thirties, using a quill to pen a letter to one of his best friends. His hair was messy and untamed, his eyes were a startling shade of apple green, and in the middle of his forehead, covered by his bangs, was a lightning bolt scar. His name was Harry Potter, and he was the Boy-Who-Lived.

"Uncle Harry?" His godson's voice came through the closed door. "Uncle Harry, are you in there?"

"Yes, Teddy, come on in," Harry called absently, signing his name to the letter and beckoning his eagle owl over before turning to regard his godson.

Teddy's eyes, usually a green to match his own, were brown and troubled. "Uncle Harry, I ran into a girl today," he said quietly.

Harry blinked. It was highly unusual for Teddy to come to him with girl troubles. "That's nice, Teddy," he replied, a bit bewildered. "What's the matter with that?"

"Nothing, it's just—" Teddy sighed, spreading his hands. "Her name is Victoire Weasley."

Harry's hands froze in the middle of tying his letter to Dalio's leg. "Weasley?"

"Weasley," Teddy confirmed, his red streaks turning green randomly. "She's blond, but she says her mother is part-Veela."

"Bill and Fleur's, then," Harry said, his mind miles away from the conversation. "Did she recognize your name?"

"I don't think so," Teddy said. "But she might decide to ask her parents or aunts or uncles about it."

Harry's hand brushed his quill for want of something to grasp. "What was she doing here?"

Green shifted to black. "Erm, she was looking for a job at the ice cream parlor."

Harry's head shot up. "The ice cream parlor?" he repeated disbelievingly. "Rose's ice cream parlor?"

"There's only one around here," Teddy told him. "And she got the job. I haven't talked to Aunt Rose yet, but I'm sure she can tell you more."

Harry nodded distractedly. "Did she say anything else important?"

Teddy racked his brains. "Um, she's a Gryffindor?" he offered.

Harry almost laughed. "Well, of course. She's a Weasley, after all." He ran his hand over the soft feather on his quill. "Thanks for telling me, Teddy."

"No problem," Teddy replied. "Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot," Harry said, watching Dalio fly off into the cloudless blue sky.

Teddy leaned forward, black streaks changing into turquoise. "What happened? Why did you lose contact with your friends?"

Harry ran a hand through his hair and glanced at one of the pictures sitting front and center on his desk. It depicted a laughing redhead girl, not a day over fifteen, flashing him a radiant smile as he watched. The background was a place he knew very well, a gnome-scattered garden belonging to his best friend's parents.

"A lot happened," he said slowly. "It started when Rodolphus Lestrange killed my girlfriend."

Author's Notes: I've been wanting to do a Teddy/Victoire AU for the longest time! I know this chapter raises many questions, but all will be answered later in the story. Please do review, I'd love to know what you think!