Family Affairs

A/N: Hey guys! This is my first HP fanfic, so hurray! *throws confetti around*

My story involves the next Potter generation in a filial one-shot. Since it's my first go on such type of a fic, I want maximum reviews to allow me to know how it has turned out after all!

But now, I'm rambling!

Disclaimer: I solemnly swear that the HP series belongs to J.K. Rowling and Warner's Bros. All I know is the idea of my story! :D :D

Now, happy reading! :D :D

"I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" 11 year old Lily roared aloud before she stormed out of the living room of Potter Manor, and barricaded herself in her room, with a sharp slamming of the door.

James and Albus, who were both shocked by her sudden outrage, seemed to now cower before their mother's deathly glare, and their father's angry look.

"James Potter, WHAT did you do to you sister?" Ginny asked James in a dangerously low voice that made James wish he was anywhere else in this world, than be at this moment with his mother, who was clearly in one of her worst tempers.

"I swear Mum, I did not do anything!" James replied with a feeble protest that sounded the most unconvincing to anyone who heard it.

"And what do you have to say Albus?" Even though Ginny's temper was still evident in her tone, she was not so ferocious with Albus as she was with James.

Albus, who always believed in making a clear bill of things stated simply "We didn't allow Lily to play Quidditch with us."

"And, WHY was it so?" This time, it was Harry who put this question forth.

"Because she's not big enough! She's just a baby!" James interrupted.

If James had ever thought he had seen his mother angry, he could not have been more in error than at the moment. Ginny looked absolutely livid, and broke out like a storm the next moment.

"HOW DARE YOU GIVE ME THAT EXCUSE! I'M ABSOLUTELY ASHAMED OF YOU! YOU KNOW I'VE ALWAYS MADE IT CLEAR TO THE TWO OF YOU THAT THERE IS A LIMIT OF BEING PROTECTIVE! AND JAMES, WHAT EXACTLY DID YOU TELL HER THAT MADE HER STORM OFF LIKE THAT?"

James and Albus at that moment were practically frightened of their mother. But if there was the test of being a Gryffindor, James passed it with flying colours, for that moment, he narrated bravely, yet meekly the incident that had taken place.

James, Victoire, Teddy, Freddy, Dominique, Hugo and Albus had been taking their Quidditch equipment to the ground they had behind their house that was specifically designed for practicing Quidditch, as Quidditch was the Potter family tradition since a century. Like each month since the past two years, this month too, there was the Oldies V/S the Newbies competition between the Weasley brothers plus Harry in one team and the next generation consisting of all the older clans boys plus Victoire and Roxanne. Roxanne played Seeker for the Newbies team, but this time, her post was vacant, since she could not play the game due to being ill. Just then, Lily came tagging along behind them.

"James, Albus, can I please play today's match with you? There's the Seeker's post vacant." Lily pleaded, though slightly breathless.

Even though James knew that Lily's passion for Quidditch was not unlike her mother's, he wanted to take revenge with Lily for a prank that had got him in trouble with his mother earlier in the week. Telling the rest of them that they'll be with them in a few minutes, James excused himself as well as Albus from the group.

"Are you kidding me Lils? YOU, and Quidditch?" He purposely emphasised the 'you' with mock amusement.

"Look James, I'm sorry about the prank I played… I promise I'll tell Mummy about it, and never do such a thing again, but please let me play.." Lily pleaded further. But James was now enjoying making her plead.

"It's not the question of that Lils…. You are too young to play.. What if you fall down and hurt yourself? What if you get hit by the Bludger and break your arm? What will Mum say?" James now spoke with half amusement and half seriousness.

"Come on Jamesie... so afraid of getting beaten by a girl?" Lily now tried to turn the tables on him, by insulting him by the one thing he hated the most - being beaten by a girl.

"Lily, I think James is right... you're too young to play Quidditch still.." Albus spoke in for the first time.

"Al, are you serious! You're only two years older than me!" Lily now burst out angrily.

"Look Lily, first of all, you're the youngest among us... and... you're still not grown up enough to play Quidditch."

Now Lily was getting annoyed. Implying a false sweet tone that could have given Umbridge a run for her money, Lily retorted "And what about Hugo? Isn't HE underage?"

"Yes... that's true, that's why he's not playing with us... he's going to be commentator for our match... he's good at the stuff anyway!" Albus tried to get Lily to understand but in vain.

"I just simply don't believe you'll! No wonder you guys are such idiots! Shame shame shame! With this, Lily made a rude gesture with her hand towards James. But James had had enough of her childishness.

"You know what Lils, you're NOT gonna play with us! Now you can go and act all smart ass but you can never ever play with us Quidditch! And you know what? You're gonna be the worse Quidditch player ever! You're hopeless Lily, HOPELESS! Do you hear me? Everyone will only laugh at you! Mark my words! Now go get lost!" James ended his speech with an arrogant lifting of his head and with a satisfied expression of showing his sister her place.

By now Ginny and Harry had both come down hearing the commotion going on between the siblings. It was then that Lily had shouted "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" and had stormed off from the living room.

After James had finished his recital, Ginny had now somehow lost her anger. She knew, that this matter could not be solved by anger, but had to be solved by making them see sense and by making them understand. Sharing a look with Harry, who understood what was to be done, and left the hall without another word. He sent a quick Patronus to the Quidditch ground stating that James and Albus will take a while still, so they could carry on with the game, and now directed himself towards Lily's bedroom.

As soon as Harry had left, the tension in the air became more tense. Ginny gave a sigh before she asked her sons to sit on the couch. Albus gave a backward glance towards the main door, but before he could put forward his question, Ginny spoke:

"Don't worry, your father has sent a Patronus to the others."

James nodded. "Mum, I'm sorry. I should have not have spoken to Lily like that." James started, but was cut off by Ginny.

"Looks James, I don't want to hear apologies. You're 16 years old, and you're big enough to understand what is right and what is wrong. The only thing that I'm going to tell you is something that I've personally experienced, and which when done in excess, is a trouble for everyone."

James and Albus nodded solemnly in return. Ginny continued.

"Look, when I was a kid, you know that I was the youngest among us seven siblings. And being the only girl, your uncles were too overprotective about me. They always treated me like their princess and I was never allowed to do anything I wanted. It was only after the war that your uncles saw sense. But, being overprotective is not the solution to anything. You will only handicap Lily from learning anything. She is going to be 12 this year, and has full right to wish to play Quidditch. And even if anything does happen to her, the two of you'll are there to protect her. That's the proper way of showcasing your protectiveness. Encourage her. Make her feel like your equal. Boost her morale. And for god sake James, do grow up and know better than to retort to her remarks!"

"You're right Mum... I'm sorry that I did not take her side and got carried away by my brotherly feelings." Albus said slowly.

"James?" Ginny looked at him with a piercing gaze that Albus could swear he saw James practically flinch under it.

"Alright, alright! I'll apologize to her! Fine!" James grumbled.

"That's a good boy... now GO!" Ginny yelled in the end, which was the perfect stimulant to chase both the boys straight up to Lily's bedroom.

The moment the boys reached there, Lily happened to open the door at that precise moment and blindly headed out of the room, when the three siblings collided into each other.

"Ouch!"

"Watch it doofus!"

"What's the hurry guys!" Were the three remarks that could be heard simultaneously from the three siblings.

Albus, who managed to recover first from the colliding looked at Lily guiltily before muttering "Sorry".

Lily looked up at Albus and pulled him into a hug. "Oh I'm sorry Albus... I should not have spoken to you like that!"

Albus and Lily both smiled at each other clearly forgetting of the incident when a clearing of the throat was heard from nearby, which caught the two siblings attention towards a fumbling James, who was having difficulty with words at that moment. Finally seeing as he could not apologize without hurting his ego, he managed to change his sentence into a "You can play with us today Lils."

Even though Lily smiled, Albus noticed that she looked a little disappointed by the fact the James had not apologized to her, but the fact that she was permitted to play Quidditch was something that made up her mood completely.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Lily exclaimed happily before she went running towards the main door, crossing her first obstacle towards accomplishing her dreams.

It was now 3 in the afternoon. Both the teams were ready and Hugo had taken his seat in the miniature box, which made especially for him by Harry to make the match as realistic as possible. He was accompanied along with his mother, Hermione, who always sat by anyone commentating to keep language in control, for the excitement often made one get carried away a little. Ginny was never included in the game as she had had a career as an International Quidditch Player, and putting her on any team would definitely make the match biased. Instead, she was made the referee of the match, which suited her only too well. The remaining ladies and daughters remained in the small stand constructed for effect, and cheered for their team with effect, along with the friends and family of the Newbies as well as the Oldies Team like Neville, Luna, Hagrid and several more.

In the game, the Oldies Team had Ron for Keeper, Bill, Charlie and Angelina as Chaser, Percy and George as Beaters and Harry as Seeker. Even though Percy had never really played Quidditch, his Beating skills were admirable and he could not have suited the post more better. The captain of the team was Harry, as his captaincy skills were quite good, and he always managed to give unbiased judgement.

On the other hand, the Newbies Team had Albus as Keeper, James, Freddy and Dominique as Chaser, Teddy and Victoire as Beater and the new addition, Lily, as the Seeker. On normal occasions, the post was filled in by Roxanne, who was a very agile Seeker, and managed to level the match up intensely. Victoire, even though as slender looking as her mother, had extreme force in her hand and an excellent aim, which was highly helpful for playing Beater. It was more than once, that Ginny suggested Victoire to join the Holyhead Harpies after graduating from Hogwarts. In this team, the captain was Victoire, for the team often argued so much, that only Victoire managed to get them all working under one roof.

With a magically magnified voice, Hugo spoke from the gramophone. "WELCOME ONCE AGAIN TO THE OLDIES V/S NEWBIES MATCH OF 2019-2020. AS USUAL I'M ACCOMPANIED BY MY BEAUTIFUL MOTHER, MRS. HERMIONE WEASLEY, WHO HATES QUIDDITCH THOUGH..."

However, Hugo's voice was drowned, as another voice hit the microphone with a scolding, that was unmistakably Hermione's. Correcting his error, Hugo spoke once again.

"NOW INTRODUCING OUR TEAM OF THE OLDIES FOR THE YEAR : WEASLEY, WEASLEY, WEASLEY, WEASLEY, WEASLEY, WEASLEY, AND POTTER!

At once, all the seven of them appeared on the brooms and flew in the skies waiting for the game to begin.

"NOW INTRODUCING OUR TEAM OF THE AWESOME NEWBIES : POTTER, WEASLEY, WEASLEY, POTTER, LUPIN, WEASLEY AND POTTER!

The Newbies team appeared in their brooms with an equally detemined look on their faces.

"AND NOW, LET THE MATCH BEGIN!"

Ginny let go of the Quaffle and the Bludgers from the case. At once, James swooped down like a hawk, and grabbed the Quaffle mid air and flew towards the Oldies post. Before Ron knew, James had already thrown the Quaffle past the right hoop.

'NEWBIES 10-0! C'MON DAD, PULL UP YOUR SOCKS!"

The Quaffle now lay in the possession of Bill, who flew with determination towards Albus. Dominique tailed Bill and before he could grab the Quaffle from him in the well practised manuveur, Bill threw the Quaffle to Charlie who threw it towards Albus's left hoop. However, Albus was quick enough, and managed to save the Quaffle just in time before the Quaffle returned back in the hands of Freddy. Freddy now flew towards the opposite goal hoop, but was forced to leave the Quaffle because of a well aimed Bludger thrown in his direction by George. As was expected of Hugo, his commentary got away with him eventually after some time, which found him talking melodramatic stuff such like "LOOK AT UNCLE GEORGE, THROWING A BLUDGER AT HIS OWN SON!", "THIS IS WAR TIME PEOPLE! NO RELATIONS STAND BY YOU!", "BOTH TEAMS ARE WORSE THAN SLYTHERIN!" and "THAT'S A FOUL SHOT BY JAMES! PURPOSELY HELL BENT ON MAKING A FOOL OF MY FATHER!" Such remarks were accompanied by good amount of scolding from Hermione that was even more hilarious, and got a good amount of laughing from the audience.

But by now, the match had caught momentum. Both the teams were at loggerheads with each other when Dominique scored another goal, making it 170-160. Just then Lily had seen a sparkle of gold near the goal post of the opposing team, and at once sped off in that direction. But Harry was hot on her heels, as he too had spotted the Snitch. But it was in vain, for by the time the two of them reached there, the Snitch had disappeared once more. Now, both the father and daughter were fervently searching for the Snitch, at the same time, keeping their team score in mind. But things were now not going so well for the Newbies Team as they were getting tired, which had caused a mid-air argument between Teddy and Victoire as well as James and Freddy, as well as poor aims for throwing the Quaffle.

Taking advantage of this, the Oldies team managed to get at least 12 goals, making the score 180-280. Seeing the sudden advance of the Oldies in the score, the Newbies set aside their arguments and tried to focus on the game, but the damage was done. Ron was in his element, and managed to block atleast 3 most impossible shots. On the other hand, Albus was having a hard time blocking all the goals, and out of 9 he managed to give the opposing team a 4, making their score now a 180-320.

Once again, Lily spotted the Snitch. If only she could reach in time.. their team would win the match with a 330-320. She had spotted the snitch this time right beside her Uncle George's ear. It was risky, she knew, but she had to do it for her team. She sped off straight towards her Uncle George, dimly aware of the presence of her father flying at her equal. Seeing Lily speed towards her, George aimed a Bludger at her to give Harry sufficient time to go ahead, but Lily was determined enough, and the Bludger just missed her by inches. There were several 'oohs' from the audience. Just then, the Oldies had managed to score another goal making the score 180-330. Lily felt disappointment hit her with a force! But she knew that the game could still be won at a tie. Lily now focused all her concentration on the Snitch, which had taken a sudden dive towards the ground. Lily could feel the blood rush to her head, and the air whip around her, and it gave her a thrill of it's own. Just as she stretched her arm to catch the Snitch, it shot up suddenly going high in the air. But Lily was not high enough to take the upward swerve, and was on the verge of crashing, when she pulled off the Wronski Feint, getting several cheers and sighs of relief mixed from the audience. Now once again, she and her father were at a par... no, she was now a little ahead of him... the Snitch was so near... so near... she stretched her hand out... a little more... a little more... and...

"LILY POTTER CATCHES THE SNITCH... BUT HALO, WHAT'S HERE! UNCLE BILL SCORES A GOAL AS WELL! SO THE SCORE IS 330-340! THE OLDIES WIN!"

There was sufficient cheer for the winning team. When Lily landed down, the entire team reached her and hugged her, but she avoided meeting eyes with James. When James came near her, she avoided looking at him, and spoke to her feet instead "I'm sorry... you were right.. I really AM horrible... you lost because of me..." But she was surprised when James pulled her into a warm hug, something he rarely ever did, and told her softly "I'm proud of you Lils! And don't you take me seriously about you being horrible! I was just fooling about! You really are the best!" James gave a little halt and then said the next words quickly "I'm sorry Lils." Lily looked up at him from her hug, and saw James giving her a smile before enveloping him once again in her hug, only this time to be joined by Albus. Lily could hear even more cheering somewhere far behind, an at the same time, felt two more pairs of warm hands pull the three of the them into a family hug.

When the hug broke up, she could see both her parents wearing a proud look on their faces. No one could have been more happier at that moment in the world than Lily. Walking up to her father, she gave him a heart melting smile. "Thanks daddy! You were right!" Saying so much she allowed her parents to take her into a hug once more before she went back to her cousins and friends, clearly celebrating their loss with good spirit.

Harry and Ginny both lay in bed that night discussing random thing when Ginny gave a yawn.

"Tired, sweetheart?" Harry asked with concern.

"Yeah, it was an eventful day today... the preparations and the food... it's a good thing Kreacher's son is such a help! I might have gone mad otherwise.. " Ginny spoke in a tone that was not unlike Mrs. Weasley.

"Lily was really good today, wasn't she? I mean, that Wronski Feint she pulled off! She could have given Krum a run for his money in that."

"I was afraid that she might crash, really! But, she's got the Weasley/Potter genes alright, talking about Quidditch." Ginny spoke with pride. And then she remembered something. "Uh, Harry, don't you think you are forgetting to tell me something?"

"And what might that be honey?" Harry racked his mind to remember what he had forgotten.

"You know, how you got Lils to cool off so fast... she's got a temper even worse than mine!" Ginny said with a embarrassed tone.

"Oh..." Was all Harry could return back.

"Oh? That's all?"

"I'll tell mine, if you tell yours."

"There isn't really much to tell, but no problem." And with that, Ginny narrated her whole 'talking' with the boys. When she finished:

"There... now it's your turn."

"It's a long story, Gin... and besides... you might, uh, not quite like the mention of a few points I, uh, made known to Lily..." Harry said uncomfortably.

"Oh c'mon, it all right, as long as she uses the points for her betterment, I've no problem at all... but I hope it wasn't anything... serious, was it? Ginny asked with concern. Even though Harry was the best father there could have been, Ginny sometimes doubted his judgement about revealing past facts at the right time.

"Oh no, not at all!" Harry replied firmly, picking up her line of thoughts.

"Well then what are you waiting for? Go ahead and tell your story." And knowing that his wife would not let him sleep without knowing his full account, he plunged into his narrative...

As soon as Harry had sent forth the Patronus, he walked right up to Lily's bedroom. As he had expected, she had locked her bedroom door. He could hear her sobbing from within.

"Lily, please let me in darling." Harry requested while knocking on her door.

As soon as he knocked on her door, he heard the sudden ceasing of the sobs. A voice, full of emotion and hurt, answered in return:

"Please leave me alone, daddy!"

"Sweetheart, give me just five minutes, and I'll leave you all by your own." There was always something irresistable in Harry's voice that made one do things against their wishes. Lily was no exception.

"Alright! But only five!" Lily replied unwillingly.

Harry cast the simple 'Alohomora' on her door, which did the job. He entered Lily's room, finding her sitting on her bed, with some pillows thrown on the floor mercilessly, and the remaining surrounded around her like a wall. Lily's eyes were bloodshot red, and seeing her father, she only burst into another bout of sobs.

"Da..ddy... they did'nt.. allow me to.. pl...play with them.. they say.. I'm too young... James... he said.. horrible.. everyone laughing..." Lily hiccuped throughout her speech while Harry sat on her bed and pulled her into a hug.

"Shhh darling... it's all right... it's alright..." It took a lot of soothing before Lily's sobs came to an end. Throughout the time, Harry rubbed her back and kept her close to him which helped Lily to relieve her feelings completely

"Do you feel better now, sweety?" Harry asked her as she was now in control of herself.

"Daddy, do you also believe that I can never be able to play Quidditch?" Lily replied with a question of her own.

"Lils, you know that both me and your mum are proud of you, and we both know that you are going to be an excellent player... the best, if you ask me personally." Harry said with a reassuring smile.

"Then why don't James and Al support me? Why do they always keep me away from playing with them? Why do they always try to implement the fact that I'm a 'girl'?

"Lils, it's nothing like that. They are just too protective about you, that's all."

"Maybe Al, Daddy... but James... I don't think so... he always speaks such kind of things to me, but today.. it was different.. it was as if... he meant them... took pleasure in meaning them..."

"That must have been in the heat of the argument darling..." He tried to explain to her.

"How can you be so sure?"

"I'm speaking from experience... many times we say things that we never mean to... but it's only later that we realise the meaning of our words.. but by that time, it becomes too late... the damage is already done.." Lily caught the change of tone in Harry's voice. It was suggestive, but what exactly did he mean, she did not grasp yet.

"What do you exactly mean to say daddy?"

Harry gave a sigh. "Lils, you know your Uncle Fred right?" With a nod from Lily, Harry continued. "Well you see, your Uncle Fred was not unlike Al. He too was very protective of your Mum when it came to her safety. Your Uncle Bill and Uncle Charlie always saw your Mum as their baby princess, your Uncle Percy was the one who distinguished with her because she was a girl, and your Uncle George and Uncle Ron were similar to James, always teasing, always arguing.

There were many times when your Mum got into fierce arguments with her brothers and told them things in the heat of the argument that she regretted afterwards. Arguments would get resolved, and then a new topic and another similar argument. And then, the War broke out. Your Uncle Fred died in it, and left your Uncle George scarred forever. It was at that moment that your Mum realised the true value of the protectiveness.

There were several nights after your Uncle Fred's funeral where she would cry and beg in her sleep for her brother to be returned, for the other brother to be healed of the pain. It was at these times when your Mum missed the protectiveness so much. And in between us, I have no problem saying that till today, your Mum secretly cries for her brother every night.

But why am I telling your Mum's secrets to you? Because I want you to learn from them. Arguments happen between every siblings, but that does not mean that you have to take it to your heart and grow ill feelings for your brothers. I admit that over-protectiveness can do harm, but a certain amount is required by everyone to know that they have someone who loves them so much. You know what happened to your Grand-aunt Petunia, right? That's all I want to tell you. Don't take their words seriously. If someone is trying to deter you from your goal, you must work equally hard towards it. If you just do what people think, you're only going to prove them right."

Throughout Harry's speech, Lily remained silent. But as Harry's speech came to an end, Lily gave her father a smile, a smile which showed the fact that she had got the message what her father wanted to convey to her. She kissed her father on her cheek once more, before she opened the door and rushed out of the room once more, only to collide in with her siblings, who had understood the same point as well.

"Wow..." was all Ginny could manage. At that moment, Ginny pulled Harry into a kiss. As to why she did so, she herself did not know, but at that moment, she felt her love and respect for him increase to a limit, that she did not even know existed. One of the reasons why she loved Harry so dearly was the fact that he always appreciated love. He knew the value of it as well as the importance of it in one's life. Having lived without love for his foundation years in his life, Harry had learnt much more about love than any one of them.

Ginny had got to discover a new Harry altogether after the War. A Harry who was loved. And strangely enough, it transformed him into another personality all together. He was mature enough to decide what is right and what was wrong when it came to the mistakes done by the children, and yet, his love was so powerful that the children so easily got the message and the understanding of their mistake.

When the two of them broke apart, Harry asked dumbly "What was that for?"

"I... don't know... I just felt like you deserved one..." Ginny replied, while she gave him a sheepish smile.

"Maybe the kids should argue more often if that's the reward I get for making up." Harry added playfully. But before anything could happen, a good deal of snickering could be heard from outside the door.

"Oh perfect! Just perfect!" Harry grumbled under his breath while Ginny unlocked the door with a lazy flick of her wand lying near the bed stand.

"Come in, little devils!" Ginny exclaimed cheerfully as the three children came into view. And needless to say, their mother opening the door for them got the smiles wiped off their faces completely.

"We.. we.. just came to say goodnight." Albus said quickly, even though a guilty expression still persisted on his face.

"Really?" Ginny continued in a cheerful manner.

"Alright, alright! We had a bet, which Al won!" James said bitterly yet he had a smile on his face.

"Seeing the fact that you had to sneak up on us in the middle of the night, I'm not even curious to know the contents of your bet." Harry spoke in mock disgust.

"Now that your bet has been completed, do you need anything else?" Ginny asked, trying to stifle a yawn."

"Maybe a hug?" Lily began innocently.

"A pillow fight?" James added eagerly.

"The 10 Sickles that James owes me?" Albus asked with concern before James could escape without paying him.

"I think the family hug will do." Harry said. But before he could even complete, the three children rushed towards Harry and Ginny and enveloped themselves in the warm hug of their parents. But, it was not surprising, when out of nowhere, a pillow fight broke out and the whole family got involved involuntarily.

By the time the three siblings left the room, it was now 2:30 in the morning. James and Albus got into a fight over the money won by Albus on the bet, and ultimately Harry sorted out the matter well enough by making James chip out the 10 Sickles somehow or the other.

As Harry and Ginny basked in the warmth of their children's love and affection for them, the two held hands before falling asleep, content with their life, which in the past, seemed like a fantastic dream, that was far from every coming true.

There! I hope it did not turn out to become too cheesy! *sniffs the air to see if cheese is very prominent* But, how am I to know about it! Do please review and tell me how it has turned out! :D :D