The cool breeze swept in through the open window, waking Zacharias up lazily. He stretched his arms over his head, thinking that it was very late, and he was the last one to rise. He was pleased that when he shifted to look at the clock he found Megan still in the bed. He sat up, leaning against the headboard, rubbing the sleep from his face and looked over at his still-asleep wife. The blanket had slipped past her shoulder blades, and he traced the small scar on her back, leaning over to kiss it. He paused to savor in the scent of her. As he continued dotting her back with kisses, he slowly lowered the blanket to admire her. He had a hard time believing that they'd been together for nearly eighteen of his thirty-five years. He ran a hand down her side, and was about to properly wake her when there was a knock on their bedroom door.

He looked over his shoulder, looking back in anticipation, and carefully covered her, flicking his wand to open the door.

Seventeen year old Neville stood in the open doorway peering in. He was biting his lip and his hands were shoved into his trousers' pockets.

"Come in Nev. Something wrong?"

He shook his head, but didn't meet his father's eyes, looking everywhere in the room except at Zach.

"Nev –"

"Is Mum asleep?" he interrupted.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?" Now, Neville met his father's eyes, but other than that didn't change his stance.

"I'm sure," Zacharias said carefully. He inched closer to Megan, who had begun to stir. Zach put his hand firmly on Megan's back, keeping her still, adding in a loud whisper, "Your Mum's sleeping, Neville. Come on in and sit with me. What's bothering you?"

Neville spared a glance for his Mum and seeing that she was indeed asleep, came in, closing the door with a quick look into the corridor first. "It's…about…potions. I –"

"Potions?" Zach relaxed his hand on his wife's back as the rest of his body tensed up. "Potions," he repeated, motioning for his son to join him on the bed.

Neville walked over slowly, standing next to the bed until finally sitting on the edge. He looked at Zach, but looked away, avoiding his father's eyes.

Zach put a hand on his son's arm, and waited for him to start.

"There's this girl at school," he blurted out. Zach was even more confused.

"What…what girl? And what does this have to do with potions?"

"I don't want to say who. I…"

"Not Becky, the one you dated last year?"

"No, not Becky. A different girl. She's…I don't want to say who."

"Do we know her? Is she taking potions?"

He met his father's eye briefly, but didn't answer that question.

"Neville, you know that I'm an Auror. I see things, and potions are not something –"

"Not those kinds of potions, Dad. What kind of a prat do you think I am? Girl potions." He raised his eyebrows and Zach had no idea, wishing that he'd let Megan make her presence known.

"I don't know what girl potions are, Neville. What are you talking about?"

"Well, she doesn't even know I exist. I mean, she does know – we're friends at school and…we've, you know, when she's not with someone else and –"

"You've what, Neville?"

"You know. It's not a big deal – we're friends. But I want more, and I don't want, and she hangs around with Teddy Lupin. He thinks he's cool with his color changing hair and his…oh, never mind," he said, starting to get up.

"His what, Nev?" Zacharias' hand on his son kept him sitting on the bed. Usually, Neville was a confident boy. He did well in school, passed his OWLs easily and had been on the Quidditch team since fourth year. Zach wasn't used to this side of him. Neville Smith wasn't one to splutter about like this.

"He…he makes himself all big, you know, like you." Neville pointed to Zacharias' bicep.

"Like me? You mean he grows his muscles."

"And other things. Just snaps his fingers, and he's…well, all the girls love it and he knows it, and he does it all the time, and she…this girl I like, she's always with him and…how am I supposed to compete with that, Dad?"

"Neville, you don't –"

"I don't want to hear it! I know he's a fool, but I could never have that kind of body. Look at me."

"You have a –"

"I know. I work bloody damn hard to be in this shape. I'm the fastest Seeker in all four Houses, and it's still not enough."

"You can't make someone like you back, Neville," he said gently.

"She likes me; when he's not around. We get along, and we hang out and we see each other…places, well, we hang out places, and we've…well, we've, you know, but she thinks I'm only her friend who sometimes…, but I'm tired of being second, and when I try to –"

Megan went to roll over, but Zach was too quick for her, shifting his body to hide that she was really awake, and pushed his hand deeper into her back to keep her down, taking Neville by the elbow and drawing his attention back to himself.

"You've tried things with this girl? Done things?"

"Not much, but I think she likes Teddy more and I don't want –"

"'Not much' is how you got here."

"I know – that's why I want the potions –"

"You're going to give this girl a potion without her knowing it? Neville! You really shouldn't even be…I mean you're too young for –"

"Too young? Dad." Zach paused. He wasn't sure how he felt about the look in Neville's eyes as his son continued. "What's my best subject, Dad?"

Zach closed his eyes and opened them with a sigh. "Maths."

"Yes, Dad. Maths. I know when my birthday is. You were the same age I am now when I was born, which means –"

"That was different."

"It wasn't different. That's a cop-out, and you know it."

"It's not anything of the sort. We were at war. We were going to die – actually die. It was different than competing with Teddy Lupin for a girl. Is this girl of age, Neville?"

"Almost."

"Almost. Listen, Neville, there's no way –"

"No way what, Dad? I'm of age, and she will be as well. S-soon. She'll be of age soon. I'm an adult wizard and I can do –"

"Then why are you here asking my permission about potions? Listen to what you've already told me. This girl is not only shagging you, she's shagging Teddy, and you want to slip prevention potions into her pumpkin juice. Why don't you just give her a love potion and avoid the middle man?"

"Do you think I could do that?"

Zacharias stared at his oldest son. "No, Neville, I do not think that you could do that. Even if I wasn't an Auror, I'm your father and I have my own daughters."

"She's not shagging him. Or me. Not really."

"Neville." Zach rubbed his head, putting pressure on his forehead, his head aching suddenly, the pain coming from out of nowhere. He rubbed his hands across his face. "So your plan is to shag this girl when you get back to school and you'd like your parents to brew you a potion to make that easier on the two of you? Is that correct?"

Neville stared horrified at his father. "Well, I…I'm not planning on as we exit the train or in the carriages on the way to the Sorting Feast, but yeah. I was thinking that…I might. Yes. But I wasn't asking you to brew the potions – you and Mum are obviously rubbish at it. I thought someone else could help with that."

"What makes you think we're rubbish at it?"

"I'm the oldest of eight kids, Dad. Eight. Maths, remember."

Zach stared at his son, trying his best to control his temper. His voice was tight, teeth a bit clenched as he enunciated each of his son's names. "That, Neville Michael Smith is really over the line, but since you are a grown wizard, I'll tell you our little secret. Your mother and I are not rubbish at making the potion – we simply choose not to make the potion. We like our little family."

"Little family?"

The laugh in his voice was almost too much for Zach to take, but luckily an unexpected voice offered a new suggestion, effectively changing the subject. "Susan Finnigan is excellent at potions. I'm sure she'd be happy to help." Both men stared openmouthed at Megan.

"Oh," Zach said in a surprised tone. "You're awake."

"Oh, sweet Merlin, no, Mum. Mrs. Finnigan can't help with…I mean, just no."

"Why, sweetheart? I'm sure Auntie Susan would be happy to help you. You're like a son to her and Uncle Seamus."

"Oh, Mum," he stammered, adding, "I'll talk to you later, Dad. I think I'll go have some tea. Gran says that always helps."

He closed the door behind him and Zach turned back to Megan. He bent over her and kissed her. She raked her hand through his hair with a smile.

"I wonder," he said, pausing to kiss her neck. "I wonder who this girl is who's captured our son's heart. Or his –"

"Zach! Wasn't it obvious?"

"No."

"No? I think you're losing your touch. Who didn't he want to brew his special potion?"

"Susan."

"And who has a pretty teenage daughter?"

"Oh, you're not serious? Cecily? Oh fuck, Megan, Cecily's the girl he's almost shagging."

She nodded, exhaling deeply.

"I don't envy our son that."

"Cecily's a fine young lady."

"There's no doubt about that." He stopped speaking as he moved his mouth along her shoulder and down her arm, pausing to admire his wife's body. "I had a hard enough time with your Dad. What kind of time is Neville going to have asking Seamus Finnigan to date his step-daughter?"

"Isn't he still confined to the Loch?"

"Do you really think that will really hold him in if he finds Neville with Cecily…brewing a potion?"

"You don't think they would –"

"We did."

"Oh Zach. Merlin's pants, he's only the first."

"Mmm, hmm." He stopped what he was doing to lay back against the headboard, his hand still in Megan's hair, not sure if he should be worried for his son's safety when Seamus found out, or his own.