A/N: This is the first fic I've ever submitted to ! Please enjoy! I've been planning my ideas for the NextGen Universe for a while, so please keep an eye out for more stories! I may even continue this one... ;-)
"If you're not in Gryffindor, we'll disinherit you," said Ron, "but no pressure."
That was one of the last things her father had said to her before Rose would say goodbye and head off to Hogwarts, not returning home again until Christmas. Rose, who had been standing next to Albus' reassuring presence, felt a sudden pit grow in her stomach as her expression became solemn. She wondered if her parents would be disappointed in her if she wasn't in Gryffindor. While she was thinking, she heard her mother admonish her father, turning to the two first years and assuring them that he didn't mean it. Rose exchanged a nervous glance with Albus; he reached over to give her hand a tight squeeze.
"Make sure you beat him in every test, Rosie. Thank God you inherited your mother's brains."
"Ron, for heaven's sake," said Hermione, half stern, half amused. "Don't try to turn them against each other before they've even started school!"
"You're right, sorry," said Ron. He added, "Don't get too friendly with him, though, Rosie. Granddad Weasley would never forgive you if you married a pureblood."
Rose paled, but felt the tips of her ears grow hot. Without having to look at Albus for confirmation, Rose knew they must be bright red—a trait she inherited from her father. She was lost in her own little world of embarrassment when James came over to announce that he had caught Teddy Lupin snogging their cousin Victoire, who would be starting her seventh and final year at Hogwarts. All Weasley-Potters accounted for; Rose and Albus would be joining seven of their other cousins this year: Victoire, Dominique, Molly, Louis, Fred, Roxanne, and James. Teddy Lupin, a close family friend and her Uncle Harry's godson, had already graduated two years prior and was now training to be an Auror.
James had done what he was good at—commanding everyone's attention—so Rose was left for a few moments to think to herself while most of Albus' family was caught up in discussing Teddy and Victoire's relationship. Rose noticed that many of the children who had been on the platform were now already boarded. She turned to see that her parents looked ready to get in their goodbyes. Hugo stared open-mouthed at the scarlet engine, taking everything in. He and Rose had never been brought to the platform before, since they had no other siblings who attended Hogwarts. The previous year, when James was to begin, Ron and Hermione had gone to see their godson off, dropping Rose and Hugo at the Burrow to be watched by Molly and Arthur.
Hermione stared at her daughter for a few moments as if she was trying to figure out what Rose was thinking. Rose felt her mother pull her in for an embrace. "You'll do fine, Rose," her mother added, "No matter what house you end up in."
"And you'll have Albus with you to keep you out of trouble," Ron added, moving to stoop down and hug Rose tightly. Her father towered over her short eleven-year-old body. She thought she heard a small sniffle escape from him, but concluded that she imagined it. Ron released her, but kept his hands on her shoulders. "Don't forget to write us. The house won't be the same without you, Rosie." He smiled and ruffled her bright red hair, sending the short curls in a small whirlwind. Rose's heart clenched—she had been trying not to think of how much she'd miss home.
"Yeah," Hugo nodded in agreement. "I won't have her there to nag me all the time." Her younger brother threw her a cocky smile, and Rose reached forward to tug on one of his unruly brown curls that matched their mother's. "Hey!" He cried out and smacked her hand away. Ron and Rose both let out a chuckle while Hermione rolled her eyes.
"You'll miss my nagging, Hue," Rose said as she forced her younger brother into a hug. Hugo made gagging sounds in response and tried to push her away, but Rose had the nine-year-old in a death grip. Despite being annoying and nag-worthy, Rose would miss her younger brother. Hugo sighed and quickly returned the hug, muttering a goodbye under his breath.
Soon Rose found herself on the train, waiting for Albus as he hurriedly hopped on. They glanced around and noticed all the students and even parents on the platform were turned toward Harry. "Why are they all staring?" demanded Albus.
"Don't let it worry you," said Ron. "It's me. I'm extremely famous."
Albus, Rose, and their siblings laughed. The train then began to move, and Rose saw her Uncle Harry walk along it, watching Albus' face. Rose turned to face her cousin and noticed the look of sheer excitement that was written all over his features. Whatever anxiety he had been showing earlier was gone, and Rose wondered if he had a talk with Uncle Harry. Once they were out of sight, she clasped Albus' hand in hers and led him down the train corridor, looking for a relatively empty compartment, as she had no idea where their other relatives were or if they'd even let the two first years sit with them. She could feel the eyes of other students on her, watching as she and Albus made their way past. Rose concentrated, begging silently that her ears didn't betray her embarrassment.
"Are we looking for an empty compartment?" Albus asked as they passed groups of fewer and fewer students.
Rose nodded, stopping in the corridor. "I just don't like being stared at like that." Albus noticed that the tips of her ears were pink, a sign that she had been very conscious of the stares their families had received.
He frowned—Rose was not adept at dealing with unwanted attention. He remembered the last time they'd all gone to the Quidditch World Cup, back when he and Rose were about eight, Rita Skeeter had made a short remark about Rose having "her father's unfortunate hair," and she had cried immediately upon James' reading of the article. Uncle Ron has thoroughly chewed out James for "exposing his younger cousins to the bloody gossip that was written about their family," while Albus' mother and father had worked to calm down Aunt Hermione, who was cursing and going off about killing a "vile, arrogant cockroach."
Albus walked ahead of Rose to the last compartment in the train car, glancing quickly through the window. "There's someone in this one, but otherwise it's empty." Upon seeing the look of apprehension on Rose's face, he chided lightly, "We have to make friends, Rosie. We can't be afraid of everyone now, can we?"
Rose frowned at him, but ultimately agreed. They had to attempt making friends—maybe people would see past their celebrity status and treat them as normal children. Having famous parents had led to an interesting childhood, but Rose didn't want to let that control her life. She preferred staying out of the spotlight, which was one of the reasons her and Albus got along so well—both liked to keep to themselves. Albus signaled her to follow him into the compartment, opening the sliding door and greeting the single occupant.
Her breath hitched as Rose realized who the other person in the compartment was. Blonde hair, sharp chin, grey eyes, and pale skin—this was the boy her father had pointed out to her on the platform: Scorpius Malfoy. Rose felt the blood rush to her ears as she remembered her dad's warning. Albus seemed oblivious to what his cousin was thinking as he introduced himself.
"Thanks for letting us join you. I'm Albus. Uh, Potter," Albus stuck his hand out, and Scorpius accepted it, giving him a polite handshake.
"Scorpius Malfoy," he returned the greeting politely. Rose felt his eyes flick over to her, and her ears burned as she desperately wished that she had never inherited this trait from her father. She mentally cursed.
Albus prodded her in the side and she started. "Rosie," he whispered.
"Oh," Rose now felt more embarrassed than ever. The boy across from her raised his eyebrows in expectation. "I'm Rosie—Rose," she corrected. "Rose Weasley." She didn't offer her hand to shake, and Albus sighed, sending Scorpius a look that said this was how she behaved in front of most new people. Scorpius merely sent back an apologetic smile, and Albus hoped it wasn't because he thought Rose was scared of him for his surname. Albus and Rose sat in the seats opposite of Scorpius, Rose choosing the side with the window.
There was an awkward silence as Rose determinedly stared out the window, trying to banish thoughts of her father's warning from her head and to get her ears to stop reddening. Sharing a compartment with Scorpius Malfoy was not getting friendly with him—it was merely being tolerant. So far she was not ignoring any of her father's advice. She heard Albus clear his throat.
"What house do you think you'll be in, Scorpius?" Albus had asked. Rose wanted to hex him right then. The boy was a Malfoy—it was obvious he'd probably be in Slytherin, although Rose's mother would hate to hear her judge someone outright like that.
"I don't have too much of a preference," Scorpius began. Rose glanced over at him, suddenly curious. She though he'd be a surefire Slytherin fan. "I think that, based on my personality, I'd end up in Slytherin or Ravenclaw." Rose saw Albus nod along, as if he had known Scorpius all along and that those houses would be the obvious choice for him.
"Why those houses?" Rose asked, turning around to face the boys again. Scorpius eyed her for a moment as if he was studying her. Rose suddenly felt like a specimen in a glass jar.
"Because I'm ambitious, and that's a trait Ravenclaws and Slytherins usually share," he explained simply.
"Rosie will probably end up in Ravenclaw, too," Albus commented offhandedly. Rose whipped her head around in shock. Why would he say that? Wasn't Albus hoping they'd be in the same house? They had this conversation before, and Albus admitted he didn't think he'd end up in Ravenclaw. Rose knew he really wanted to be in Gryffindor. Even if it meant he'd be dealing with James, Albus didn't want to break family tradition—though a few of their other relatives already had. Rose wouldn't mind joining any other house as long as Albus was there with her—even if they were the first Weasley-Potters in Hufflepuff and left to fend on their own.
"Really?" Scorpius looked at Rose, eyes brimming with interest. She tried to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. "I thought your family had a monopoly on Gryffindor."
"There are some of us in different houses," Albus clarified before Rose could ask him to explain why he said she'd land in Ravenclaw. "We have three in Gryffindor, one in Ravenclaw, and two in Slytherin."
Scorpius looked shocked for a moment. He had obviously thought, like many others, that the Weasley-Potter clan all resided in Gryffindor. The family tradition had first been broken with Dominique, Victoire's younger sister and Bill and Fleur's second child. She's very ambitious and intelligent, so it didn't surprise Rose too much that she ended up placed in Slytherin. Then Molly, her Uncle Percy's oldest daughter, had been placed in Ravenclaw. Molly was a hard-working and ambitious academic. She was currently in her fourth year, but the whole family knew she'd start her fifth year as a Prefect—the girl was incredibly similar to her father in terms of work ethic. Roxanne was their other Slytherin, and Uncle George had jokingly fainted last year when the family had found out. She was resourceful and cunning—the traits of a trouble-making prankster. She and Dominique were constantly defending Slytherin against their Gryffindor cousins during holidays, which usually ended up in a series of pranks between the factions.
Rose often wondered if the ambition Dominique and Roxanne shared stemmed from wanting to step away from their parents' reputations or from being overshadowed by their older siblings' achievements. After all, Victoire was beautiful, an amazing duelist, and budding herbologist. She was also a Prefect. And Freddie was Gryffindor's best Beater and incredibly talented at Charms, earning him a permanent place by his father's side at Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes each summer. Rose sighed. It could be a difficult thing to stand out amongst the Weasley-Potter crowd.
Of course, there was also Teddy, who was now in his second year of Auror training and an honorary Weasley-Potter. He had been placed in Hufflepuff, like his late mother before him. Rose vaguely remembered Teddy telling her once that he had been hesitant to let Harry know, thinking that everyone would expect him, as Harry's godson, to be put in Gryffindor. She thought it was silly to expect children to be placed in the same houses as their parents. Rose may have her mother's brains and her father's moodiness, but she was not them.
"So we could all end up in the same house then," Scorpius suggested. Rose nearly fell out of her seat—it almost seemed like he wanted to be in the same house as them. She felt it was impossible that the three could all be in one house. Based on what she knew about Albus and herself, the only chance they had was getting into Gryffindor together, and Rose did not think that Scorpius Malfoy would end up in the house of red and gold.
"Maybe," Albus said noncommittally. Rose wondered if he was thinking of ending up in Slytherin with Scorpius. She doubted that Albus could survive that situation—James would probably tease Albus to an early grave.
"Why do you think I'd be in Ravenclaw, Albus?" Rose suddenly felt the need to ask. Maybe it wasn't the best thing to talk about, with Scorpius—still somewhat of a stranger to Rose—right in front of them, but she needed to know.
Albus sighed and turned in his seat to look at Rose. "Everyone knows how smart you are, Rosie. I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up in Ravenclaw without me." He seemed resigned to the idea already, and they had barely begun the trip to Hogwarts.
"Mum's smart too, and she was in Gryffindor," Rose pointed out. "And Uncle Harry is smart, and Uncle Percy, and Uncle George—and they were Gryffindors, too! You can be smart and still end up in Gryffindor!" She refused to assign herself to any other house other than wherever Albus was put. They had been a match set since they were born, and if Rose wasn't born a month premature, they'd have birthdays within a few days of each other. Neither had been separated from the other in such a way before, and the mere suggestion of it was enough to send Rose into a panic.
Seeing the look of fear on Rose's face, Albus cringed. He hadn't meant to send her into a tizzy like that. The entire car ride to the station James had teased Albus, saying he'd be placed in Slytherin, and part of the reason it bothered him so much was the thought that he'd be away from his best friend. However, the more he thought about the sorting, the more he realized that Rose probably would end up in a different house, and Albus would be left without her. A lump rose in his throat and he tried to swallow it down.
"I'm sorry, Rosie. It's just that I've been anxious about the sorting all day. I don't want to be in a different house than you," Albus reached over for Rose's hand, squeezing it for his comfort as much for hers. "You could be the smartest Gryffindor in history."
Rose smiled, although there was now a seed of uncertainty planting itself in her stomach. She felt like it would grow roots and bury itself there until the sorting ceremony. Scorpius cleared his throat once more and Rose realized she had still been squeezing Albus' hand. Her fingers left brilliant white marks that soon faded away.
"Sorry," Albus addressed Scorpius, apologizing for the both of them. "We've just never been separated before, and it's making us a little anxious." He ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up everywhere.
"You two seem close," Scorpius observed. He noticed that Rose had returned to staring out the compartment window.
Albus glanced at Rose, who seemed to no longer be paying attention to the boys. "We are," he nodded to himself. "Rose is my best mate. Our parents are all close friends—they've been since they started Hogwarts—and we all grew up together: Me, Rose, Ja—"
The door to their compartment was thrown open suddenly, cutting Albus off. Rose jumped in her seat, twisting around to see who burst through the door. A slightly older boy with dark hair, skin specked with freckles, and brown eyes full of mirth grinned at them.
"So this is where you two have been hiding," James Potter said. "Didn't mean to make you jump like that, Rosie," he smiled at her. Rose frowned at him.
"What are you doing here, James?" Albus asked, already sounding exasperated.
"I just wanted to check up on my favorite ickle firsties and see how they were doing on their first Hogwarts Express ride. Not motion sick? Homesick? House sick?" James ticked each question off on a finger, pointedly looking at Albus at the last remark.
"I'm not doing this again, James," Albus warned.
Scorpius watched the exchange between the brothers before making eye contact with Rose. "His brother?" He gestured towards James, who finally seemed to notice the compartment's third member.
"And who's this? Made a friend already, Albie? Finally getting over the last eleven years of shyness?" James stared down at Scorpius, who eyed James uncertainly. Rose fidgeted near the window.
"Scorpius Malfoy," Scorpius sat tall, extending his hand towards James. "Pleasure to meet you."
"James Potter." James took Scorpius's hand and shook it with a tight grip. After his hand was finally released, Scorpius wiggled his fingers to get feeling back in them. James looked between Rose and Scorpius, his eyebrows knit together for a moment. "Don't get too friendly with Rosie here, Malfoy. Who am I kidding, though? It's not like you're going to end up in the same house, so enjoy the rest of the ride." He laughed and began to back out of the compartment.
"Don't tell me who to get friendly with," Rose mumbled under her breath. Her narrowed eyes stared out the window with renewed intensity.
James popped his head back into the compartment. "Oh, and before I forget—if you ickle firsties need something, Louis, Fred, Roxanne, and I are about ten compartments up from you. Victoire and Molly are off in the Prefect Carriage, but they're boring anyway. And Dominique is off with some other snakes."
"Don't call them snakes, James. Dom's friends are fine," Albus chided.
"Who else is with you?" Rose asked, her short curly hair falling over her face.
James smirked. "You can ask about him by name, you know." He chuckled as he watched Rose's ears begin to turn crimson and her cheeks flush pink. "But to answer your question, Emmett is sitting with us. So is Rowan. Would you like to come with me to say a quick 'hello' to Emmett, Rosie?" James gave her a bright grin.
"You can go ahead if you want, Rose," Albus gently encouraged her. "Scorpius and I will hold down the fort here." Scorpius, who wasn't sure what was going on, nodded along with Albus.
"Just to say 'hello' to everyone. Then I'll be right back," Rose assured her two fellow first years. "If I miss the snack trolley, Albus, could you...?"
"Chocolate Frogs. Got it, Rosie. Go on ahead with James." Albus shooed her towards his brother. James took Rose's hand in a firm grip so not to lose her in the train. If he was embarrassed to be seen holding his younger cousin's hand, he didn't show it.
"We'll be off. Promise I'll bring her back in one piece," James mock-saluted the two boys and shut the door behind him. Albus watched as he talked animatedly to Rose while pulling her along the hallway, stopping to glare at anyone he caught ogling the two of them.
"So who is Rose off to see?" Scorpius asked. He had heard Albus' brother list off a few names, but he hadn't paid much attention.
Albus sighed. "James and his friends. Well, some of them are our cousins: Louis, Fred, and Roxanne. They're all in Gryffindor, except Roxanne, but she always rides along with James and them. Emmett Wood and Rowan Thomas are James's best friends. They're always causing trouble, and Rose—"Albus cut himself off, realizing that he was about to say too much. He cleared his throat to try to make the pause seem natural. "Rose likes talking to Roxanne and Louis sometimes. Yeah." He ran his hand through his hair.
"And that Wood guy then?" Scorpius asked with a slight smirk on his face. "She seemed a bit keen to see him, according to some obvious hints your brother dropped."
Albus sighed. Scorpius was more observant than he seemed. "Well, Rose's dad and Emmett's dad were both Keepers on the Gryffindor Quidditch team—different years, though. And, uh, my dad was on the Quidditch team with Oliver—Emmett's dad—before he went to play for Puddlemere United. So we all grew up seeing each other every so often while our parents socialized…"
Scorpius chuckled. "That doesn't really explain why Rose fancies Wood."
Albus' cheeks tinged pink and his jaw dropped. Scorpius had seen right through him and Rose, and now Albus was wondering if they had been good at concealing Rose's feelings at all. Maybe before James opened his big mouth, but now it was too late to change anyone's mind. Scorpius Malfoy knew Rose Weasley fancied Emmett Wood, and Albus had pretty much told him so. He felt an immense wave of guilt—no amount of chocolate frogs could buy Rose's forgiveness if she found out.
"Don't worry, Albus—I won't tell anyone. I don't care about who fancies who and all that," Scorpius said easily with a wave of his hand.
"Thanks." Albus sighed. "It's just…James knows how Rose feels about Emmett, and he teases her about it all the time. I guess he feels the need act like he's Rosie's big brother, too. Anyway, Rose is…sensitive, you know?"
Scorpius nodded. "She seems like the shyer of the two of you, to be honest."
"Rose has always been shy around new people. The fame part just makes it harder—it's tough to find people who genuinely want to be our mates because of who we are, instead of whose children we are." Albus once again ran his fingers through his hair and coughed awkwardly. "Most of the other kids we know are either our cousins or children of our parents' close friends. We never got the chance to make friends normally."
"I know what you mean," Scorpius agreed solemnly.
Albus' eyebrow quirked up at Scorpius's reply. Usually other children his age had responded with comments about how they'd love to experience the 'perks' of being famous and having members of Dumbledore's Army as parents. "You do?" he asked, and his voice didn't bother trying to suppress his surprise.
Scorpius nodded. "I do. Although I wouldn't say I've grown up under the positive attention that seems to fall on your family. For my family, it's a little more…negative." His brow creased and he frowned. "My grandfather's attitude doesn't help improve matters much, either, but my mother and father say to ignore him."
"Why do your parents want you to ignore your grandfather?"
"He's a former Death Eater. He lives for pureblood supremacy. My parents don't follow that outdated set of beliefs anymore—neither do I—but my grandfather isn't so accepting and tolerant." Scorpius sighed before continuing. "It makes our formal Sunday dinners a real treat; they almost always end with a tense discussion between Dad and Grandfather. I'm glad I won't be to one of those for a while." He gave Albus a rueful smile.
Before Albus could respond, there was a knock on the compartment door, and an elderly woman poked her head in. "Anything from the trolley, dears?" Albus glanced at the cart she was pushing. All sorts of wizarding candies and treats were piled on: Cauldron Cakes, Chocolate Frogs, Acid Pops, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Fizzing Whizbees, and more. He hurriedly grabbed a handful of Frogs for Rose and Pumpkin Pasties and Jelly Slugs for himself. Scorpius bought himself a pack of Sugar Quills and a Cauldron Cake.
"How many Chocolate Frogs did you get for Rose?" Scorpius asked, eyeing the small pile that Albus placed in the empty seat beside him. Albus let out a small chuckle.
"Rose loves chocolate. I guarantee she'll scarf these down before we're anywhere close to Hogsmeade. That is, if she ever manages to come back from visiting Emmett." Albus rolled his eyes and made a gagging sound.
Scorpius gave Albus an inquisitive glance. "What's wrong with this Emmett fellow anyway? Isn't he your brother's mate?"
Albus nodded. "He is, and that's the problem. Emmett's fine by himself, I guess. Dad says he holds all of Gryffindor's positive traits, whatever that means. Mum likes him because she thinks he'll eventually be a good influence on James, but I doubt it." At Scorpius's confused look, Albus explained, "Emmett's so loyal—he always just goes along with whatever James wants, because he's his friend. They're always having a go at someone for a laugh." Albus frowned.
"And you don't like when Rose spends her time with them instead of you? Because Rose is supposed to be your friend, right?" Scorpius ventured. Albus looked like his eyes were going to pop out of his head.
"Best mates since birth," Albus mumbled. "I wish she still had a crush on Teddy—at least I liked mucking about with him."
"Who?"
"My Dad's godson—sort of my oldest brother," Albus explained. Soon Albus was describing the complicated Weasley-Potter dynamics to Scorpius, who nodded along, taking it all in. Albus had just finished telling him Neville Longbottom was his godfather when the compartment door opened again. The boys looked up to see Rose, who had turned back to face the other person she was with. Olive skin, dark hair, and light brown eyes that were focused entirely on Rose—Emmett Wood had walked Rose back to their compartment and was currently saying his goodbyes.
"Thank you for walking me back, Emmett," Rose almost whispered with shyness. Albus could see the red tips of her ears.
"No problem at all." Albus watched as Emmett pulled Rose in for a brief hug. "Good luck, Rosie. You'll be fine no matter what house you're in—although I wouldn't mind if you landed in Gryffindor. Could use you on the Quidditch team with that aim of yours." He gave her a dazzling smile before issuing a brief nod in the boys' direction and taking off to return to James.
When Rose entered the compartment her cheeks were flush with color. She spotted the pile of Chocolate Frogs and shot Albus a grateful grin before scooping them up and tearing the wrapper off one, quickly popping it into her mouth.
As he watched her pull out a card from the package, Albus felt a small smirk grace his face. "So James had Emmett escort you back here? Couldn't find your way back?" He poked her gently in the ribs. Scorpius watched the exchange, trying to stifle a chuckle.
Rose swatted Albus' hand away and held up her head indignantly. "Emmett volunteered to walk me back himself." She finished pulling out the Chocolate Frog card and grinned. "Look! I got Dad again!" She showed the card off to Albus, who rolled his eyes. Despite the fact that nearly all their family members were featured on Chocolate Frog cards at some point in time, Rose was one of the few kids who still got excited every time she received a card with either of her parents on it. She excitedly handed the card to Scorpius, who examined it closely. Albus wondered if he was truly interested in it or just acting like it for Rose's benefit. He was just thinking about how he hoped they'd all stay friends when a voice overhead announced their arrival at Hogsmeade Station would happen in fifteen minutes.
"I'll just step out so the two of you can change then," Rose said quickly as she exited the compartment. She had arrived at Kings Cross already wearing her school robes. Albus wondered if James and his mates teased her about it while she was with them. He somewhat doubted it—Roxanne wouldn't have let the boys get away with it, neither would Louis, he bet.
In a few moments, both boys were dressed in their school robes, and Albus opened the compartment door to let Rose back in. Rose quickly grabbed another Chocolate Frog and popped it into her mouth before sitting down. "Artemisia Lufkin," she read the card to Albus and Scorpius. "In 1798 she was the first witch to become the Minister for Magic." Rose slipped the card into her robes, where it rested next to the one of her father.
Scorpius turned to face Albus after he watched Rose open another Chocolate Frog, this time letting it bounce in her hand before eating it. "You said Neville Longbottom was your godfather?" he asked Albus, who nodded.
"Yeah. He's a professor at Hogwarts—teaches Herbology. He used to be an Auror with Dad and Uncle Ron after the war. And he's married to Aunt Hannah, who's the Matron in the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts," Albus explained. Although Hannah and Neville had been married since just before Albus was born, they didn't have any children of their own. Albus thought it was a bit of a shame, because he regarded Neville as a second father. It would be odd to have to call him Professor Longbottom at school.
"Albus likes them best because they spoil him at Christmastime," Rose said with a small smile, opening her fourth Chocolate Frog.
"You know my mum and dad spoil you just the same, so don't be acting like you're jealous." Albus stuck his tongue out at her.
"Harry and Ginny Potter are your godparents then, Rose?" Scorpius asked. "Why aren't your parents Albus' then?"
"Because James was born first," Rose explained breezily. "And when I was born, Dad insisted that Harry and Ginny be named as my godparents."
"This means that my parents give Rose twice as many gifts at Christmas and her birthday, because Dad thinks she needs one from Uncle Harry and one from Godfather Harry." Albus rolled his eyes. Rose poked him in the side.
"It must be a lot of fun to have such a large family," Scorpius said.
Rose smiled brightly. "It is, most of the time. Holidays and birthdays become huge affairs—always held at our grandparent's house, since it's the only place big enough. Although all of the cousins get crammed together."
"This summer Rose and I snuck out and slept in the treehouse. When we got in it, we found our Uncle Charlie passed out and cuddling a Quaffle," Albus laughed. Rose and Scorpius soon joined him, and then an announcement was made that they were pulling into Hogsmeade Station. The smile faded from Albus' face and was replaced by nervousness. Rose reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze.
"It's now or never, right Albus Potter?" she asked, her voice quavering but filled with warmth.
"Yeah. Now or never, Rose Weasley," Albus replied, giving her a small smile. They stood up from their seats and opened the compartment door.
Rose turned to face Scorpius, her face barely betraying her nerves, and extended her open palm towards him. "Coming, Scorpius?"
He laid his hand in hers. "Right behind you, Rose."
And the three students left the train.