It was a deceptively cold summer's day, the sun glinting off the cars outside. An owl flew through an open window of a modest cottage located in small village near the coast, not an uncommon occurrence in this wizarding home. The pompous looking owl dropped the letter onto the tabletop and continued out of the open window. The man, who was carefully cooking poached eggs at the aga, abandoned his cooking and began peeling the letter from the envelope. A letter at this time in the morning did not bode well.

"Honey, honey, wake up, Immy." Imogen awakened from her slumber, her vision obscured by the kind face of her father. "Sorry honey, you're going to need to get up and dressed quite quickly, there's an emergency at work and I'll be away for a few days. Ginny's been kind enough to let you and Felix stay with the Potters, I'll be back as soon as possible OK sweetie?" Imogen's face fell as she processed the thought of being away from her father once again this summer.

"Can't we just stay here?" Imogen asked, pleading with her father.

"I really don't feel comfortable with you staying by yourselves, I thought you loved it at the Potters, you and Albus are best friends. You haven't fallen out have you?" She shook her head in response and he continued, "Plus, you'd be staying there for Ginny's birthday on Saturday anyway. " At this, Immy's expression brightened, unlike most, she loved parties, especially Potter parties.

Ginny was standing in front of the stove in the home she shared with her family of five. Her brood were still in bed, but they would be soon be awakened by the smell of food. As she started to cook the eggs she had gathered from the coop outside, she pondered the passing-by of the last twenty years. Her children, now teenagers, were growing up, and she finally understood how her own mother had felt when she and her six elder brothers left home. She dreaded the day when her home would be quiet once more, though of course, at points, she wished that it would be just a little quieter. She wished James, her eldest, would be a little kinder to her younger son, Albus. She wished said son Albus would stop trying to break into the Quidditch shed. She wished her youngest, Lily, wouldn't lie to her so often, though she knew exactly why, having had elder brothers herself, she knew that Weasley blood was stubborn and tenacious. The fact that she knew exactly when her daughter was lying to her was both a blessing and a curse, but revealed when she looked to the left and tucked her hair behind her ears, a trait she had herself until her brother, Ron, drunkenly told her her tell.

A bang and a shriek sounded from upstairs, and Ginny dreaded the prank James had played on a sleeping Albus this time. James appeared at the kitchen door with a cocky grin on his face feigning nonchalance.

"Whatever you've done, James, go set it right," Ginny said threateningly. James had the decency to look sheepish and turned towards the door. A few moments later James reappeared, grabbed a plate, and made for the aromas at the stove. Albus appeared at the door sporting a black eye and an expression of pure anger. Emitting a low growl, he pounced on James, tackling him to the floor. The plate James had been holding crashed on the worktop covering the two boys in eggs and bacon. The two rolled around for a few moments before Ginny cut in.

"Protego!" An invisible shield erupted between the two boys, forcing them backwards.

"Mum!" Albus whined, struggling to get through the shield to James, "Look what he did to me. Make him give me the bruise remover!"

Ginny turned on her eldest son, "James Sirius Potter, apologise, and give me the bruise remover" she ordered, holding her hand out. When James didn't back down from her glare, she pointed her wand at him and exclaimed "Accio Bruise Remover". Ginny performed a cleaning charm on them both before turning to dab the ointment around Albus' eye.

"Sorry Albus, you love me really though little brother." James grinned, ruffling Albus' hair. Though he often liked to play jokes on his little brother, they usually got on well. In response, Albus grabbed the marmite from James' hand and started slathering it over his toast.

They heard the front door slam and footsteps come towards the kitchen.

"Hey guys!" Teddy appeared at the door, and turned to kiss Ginny on the cheek and give the boys a slap on the back.

"How's everyone doing?" Teddy said, taking a bite out of a piece of toast. But before anyone had a chance to reply, the fire flamed green and a willowy, redheaded girl stepped out with a tan holdall strapped to her side.

"Imogen! It's great to have you" Ginny exclaimed, enveloping the girl in a hug. "I spoke to your father earlier, your room's already set up." Ginny smiled, feeling a little sorry for the poor girl. "Isn't Felix with you?"

"He should be on his way," Imogen replied, her voice smothered by Albus who'd just picked her up and twirled her around, pressing her face into his chest. The fire roared again and Felix dusted himself off onto their carpet.

"Hey mate," James mumbled whilst shovelling food down his throat. Felix gave him a disgusted frown whilst Ginny wrapped him in a firm embrace. Felix closed his eyes and breathed in the motherly smell he missed so much, but when Albus gave him a funny look, he let go.

"Come on Immy, dad found this great book on charms I think you'd like." Albus said, dragging his best friend upstairs so they could talk without the watchful eye of his brother. James had been acting very strange for the last couple of months; usually he was loud, jokey and completely tactless. But since June, when he was around Imogen, he would only speak when spoken to, and was often gazing at her as though she were a plimpy on dry land. Albus knew Imogen was beautiful; she had gorgeous Titian hair, a flawless, heart-shaped face and a slender figure. If he weren't already in love with someone else, he definitely would have fallen for her by now. But he shuddered to think what Felix would do if his best friend ever hit on his baby sister, perhaps that was the reason James hadn't made a move yet.

"So how have the past twenty-four hours been since I last saw you?" Albus grinned, pulling her into his bedroom.

"Uneventful," Imogen remarked, "Felix managed to get stuck in our Quidditch goal posts again," She grinned, laughing at the imprinted image of him making wild gestures with his hands for her to save him. "Oh and he had to perform so many warming charms to his feet that he set fire to his sleeping bag. He's been out in that muggle tent for the past six weeks, it's getting a little ridiculous!"

"Why does he think that sleeping in the garden will make him forget about your mum dying?" Albus said, not thinking about whom he was talking to.

Imogen's breath caught and she averted her eyes, "No idea, maybe he thinks he'll feel better if he freezes to death."

Feeling guilty for his insensitivity, Albus folded her hand into his and said "Maybe we should plan some prank for his tent, so that he has to sleep inside the house."

"Haha, that probably wouldn't be the best plan ever, don't you remember the last time I pranked him, he didn't speak to me for a whole two weeks, even when I apologised, and all I did was turn his eyebrows blue."

"Here" Albus presented her with the book, "It's got a whole chapter on the Patronus charm, though I'm not sure it'll be much help if your dad can't help you. It's nothing to be ashamed of you know, loads of of-age wizards can't conjure a corporeal one."

"Well, I don't care, I hate not being able to do something." Imogen said as she plonked herself onto the sofa which sat under the window. She had always been impressed with the Potter manor with its high ceilings, beautiful colour schemes and lavish furnishings, and it was modest given how rich the Potters were. Albus' room seemed especially elegant with its dark red and gold accents, he hadn't even covered it in Quidditch posters, as James' was. On every surface there were several photos, some of which contained Imogen herself, some his girlfriend, Francesca, and the rest were of his family. Imogen settled into Albus' shoulder and began to read.

James was sitting in his father's office. Lounging in the chair that he had seen his father sit in so many times, he pondered what it must be like to be his father. He hadn't found out until he got to school how famous his father was, though of course he and his cousins had been told of all the adventures long before. But his dad had always just been his dad. He worked a lot, loved to fly with him on Sunday afternoons, and always got a haunted look in his eyes whenever anyone mentioned the war.

James wasn't looking for anything in particular, though something belonging to his namesakes was always welcome. He sifted through the top drawer of the desk, not finding much other than a few random bits of parchment, part of a broken mirror, a heavy locket. He started on the drawer to his right and found a bundle of letters addressed to Lily. They looked fairly old, and the ink was smeared in such a way that it looked like tears had fallen upon them. Tying them back up with the ribbon, James put them in his pocket and disappeared off to his room to examine them properly.