ain't nobody love you like I do (Royal)

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Victoire was better. Victoire was better. Teddy was all smiles as he walked through the halls of the Ministry on one of his last few days off before he would be returning to the Ministry to re-enter the training program. Teddy was thrilled, and the only thing that could make it better is if he had his friends by his side too. Royal and Odette. He knew the two of them had been through so much turmoil of their own lately, and Teddy had to mourn Jacob alone with Victoire but he hoped that they would all be able be together again like they used to be soon.

Victoire was back at Grimmauld Place. Harry had let them stay there while Vic was sick, and Vic had sent him to fetch Royal so they could both talk to him now and tell him where they had been hiding. It was he first time Teddy would be seeing Royal in quite some time. Probably since the attack on King's Cross. Teddy felt a little ashamed at how long it had been, but he knew they would quickly be able to make up for lost time.

Teddy entered the floor where Hermione's office was. He knew he would find Royal there. But it was the end of the work day and it seemed like not many people were left behind, so as the former Hufflepuff looked around for any sign of another person, he wondered if maybe he had missed his friend already.

@royal

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Royal was finding it harder than usual to concentrate on his work. He knew that it was important to devote all of his attention to the papers in front of him, but his mind kept floating to Victoire. She had been sick, really sick, and she hadn’t told him. The longer he sat on the information the more he knew that she had made the right choice, because he had been in no place emotionally to be able to support her through her sickness. A pang of jealousy ran through him, because when Royal hadn’t been there, Teddy had been. He knew that it was only right that Vic’s boyfriend stand by her side, but a voice inside his head kept whispering I should have been there, too. He had no desire to replace Teddy – the Metamorphmagus balanced Victoire out in a way Royal could never hope to do – but there were days when the Slytherin wished that he could be there, too, and hold Victoire’s hand, too, and kiss Teddy’s cheek too, and… He shook his head to try to clear some of the thoughts from it. His fantasy would never happen, and the sooner he accepted that the happier he would be. (And when had Teddy snuck in, anyways? Royal had always known Victoire belonged to him in some sense of the word, but Teddy had been occupying his thoughts lately, too, and not just because he was Vic’s boyfriend, and Royal was… confused.)

Royal was torn from his thoughts when he saw a flash of blue hair. He had holed himself up in one of the back rooms, but there was a small window to let light in, and it was through that window that he saw the blue. There wasn’t a question of who it was, and Royal gladly abandoned his work to come barreling out of the room. He had been doing a lot of hugging lately, but Royal was certain that Teddy needed a hug just as much as Odette and Vic had, so he wrapped his arms around the other man and pulled him close against his chest. “Hi, Ted.” It had been too long.

@teddy

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The sound of someone rustling and quickly getting up caught Teddy's attention and he stood still. He looked up at the nearest door and there stood Royal. It had been so long that Teddy had seen his friend, and the two had been through so much since they had last seen one another. The gut instinct that Teddy felt was to hold Royal close and never let go, and he was relieved when Royal made the move to him first instead because he was so overcome with emotion he couldn't move himself.

Teddy stayed still, wrapping hi arms around his friend and gently rubbing one hand up and down Royal's back in a comforting and affectionate matter. Teddy and Royal had hugged before, they were best friends after all, but this one was so different. It felt like a deeper need was rooted within the hug, like they had both needed this and one another for so long. "Hey, Roy," he said, his voice quiet at first before he pulled away after one more squeeze. "I can't tell you how long I've been waiting to hug you," he admitted as he pulled away and kept his hands on Royal's shoulders. He just couldn't bring himself to let go.

@royal

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There was a certain amount of relief that came with being able to hug another man without it being weird. It was strange how some guys got about hugging, as if it somehow challenged their masculinity, or made them gay. The second bit didn’t really bother Royal, since he was attracted to other guys, but that wasn’t something that he ought to think about when he was hugging his best friend, right? Teddy pulled away after one final firm squeeze, and Royal surveyed the Metamorphmagus with an appraising eye. He looked good – at least Vic’s illness hadn’t sapped any of Teddy’s life away. Royal had been expecting the other man to be tenser, given everything that had happened, but he looked… relaxed. “Probably not as long as I’ve waited to hug you.” Royal said with a small smile. Ever since Abby had died, he had wanted to hug everyone, all the time. He had thought he had gotten it out of his system when he had shown up at Jonah’s place, but after hugging Odette and Vic and now Teddy, it was obvious that he hadn’t had enough good hugs for quite a while. “You ready to get out of this joint?” Royal asked. Teddy’s hands were still on Royal’s shoulders, so he didn’t want to move until his friend was ready.

@teddy

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As Royal said that he, too, had waited a long time to hug Teddy, the former Hufflepuff let the widest smile spread across his face. It was so good to hear Royal's voice again, to be near him. Teddy had been excited to see him, of course, but he had not known how relieved he was going to feel until he finally did see him. It was a far different feeling than he could ever remember pairing with his best friend, but he welcomed it. Teddy gave Royal's shoulders one more affectionate squeeze before he dropped his arms. "You bet," he said with a firm nod. He took a brief moment to gather himself and then glanced at Royal, a thought crossing his mind. He didn't know what big a difference it would make, but Teddy felt as though giving Royal a heads up to where they had been staying would be good. After all, the building had once been the home to the Order. "Before we go," Teddy started, turning back to Royal and meeting his hands with a look of uncertainty. "Where we've been... staying. Uh, it's Grimmauld Place." He felt that was all he needd to say, since the two of them had grown up around stories of the old Order.

@royal

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If there was ever such a thing as a good kind of weird, this was definitely it. Royal wasn’t sure why his stomach was churning the way it was in the absence of Teddy’s touch, but without his friend’s arms on his, Royal felt empty. Even if that was a bad feeling, though, the whole feeling about being around Teddy? That was good. Royal wanted to say that it was because Teddy had been absent for so long, but even after the Metamorphmagus had left for Greece after school Royal hadn’t felt this way upon his return. It was like something had shifted, but Royal wasn’t sure what that something was yet. Maybe when they were at their destination it would make more sense. Royal paused when Teddy said that their destination was Grimmauld Place. The knowledge created a weird lurch in his stomach, and it took all of his self-control for Royal not to wrap Teddy up in another hug. “Ted… I miss our dads.” Royal hadn’t actually known Teddy’s dad, of course, but both of their fathers had been members of the old Order. They would have known each other, and they would have walked through the corridors of Grimmauld Place. Maybe being there, close to Kingsley and Remus, would make things simpler, Royal thought. He reached his hands out for Teddy so they could Apparate together nonetheless. Royal appreciated the warning, but he was going to go anyways – he needed to be with Vic. He needed to be someplace where things made sense.

@teddy

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Teddy knew Royal enough to know that where they were staying would probably tug at some nerves. Unlike himself, Royal had grown up with his father and he played a big part in his friend's life. Ted and Vic had been staying at the very place at which both of their fathers helped in the Second Wizarding War. That was enough for anyone to feel something if they had lost someone important to them. So when Royal said he missed their dads, Teddy's hand seemed to automatically find Royal's shoulder and he gave it a soft, affectionate squeeze. "Me too, Roy," he said quietly. He stood there for a moment, not moving his hand from Royal's shoulder until he reached for Teddy's hands. "Are you ready?" He asked softly, a small smile forming across his face at the very feeling of Royal's hands in his.

@royal
(we can wrap this up in one or two more!)

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Teddy’s hand on his shoulder grounded Royal for just a moment, and he managed a small smile when Teddy said that he missed their dads, too. There would be time to talk about all of their sadness when they weren’t about to go see Vic. Teddy asked if he was ready, and Royal took a deep breath and released it. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” He said honestly. There wasn’t anything that he could do to prepare himself for going to the old Order headquarters, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t desperately want to go. “Apparate us, Teddy.” Royal commanded quietly.

@teddy
(le end?)