Albus Potter walked into the Great Hall for lunch with his cousin, Rose, and older brother, James. The three of them joined the rest of their family at their usual spot at the Gryffindor table.
"So, little brother," James said. "You're turning fifteen in about a month and a half. What do you want to do for your birthday?"
Albus groaned mentally and put down the sandwich he was nibbling on. James would probably insist on having a huge party. Albus didn't want anything for his birthday. He didn't like being the center of attention. Albus always hoped that his birthday would pass by unnoticed, but his huge family remembered every year, and every year, James ended up throwing Albus a party, with or without Albus's knowledge.
"I don't want to do anything," Albus replied honestly, hoping that this would be the year James respected his wishes.
"You say that every year!" James protested.
"Please, James, I really don't want to have a party," Albus insisted.
"Al, can you help me with my History of Magic homework?" Hugo called out, distracting both James and Albus.
Albus walked over to the end of the table, where Hugo was sitting, and spent the next fifteen minutes tutoring Hugo in History of Magic before heading down to Double Potions. He sat down at his desk in the cold dungeon just in time for class to start. Professor Slughorn slowly made his way across the front of the classroom.
"Good afternoon, class," said Professor Slughorn. "This unit we'll be studying the Mopsus Potion, a potion that helps one see the future. You'll be divided up into pairs to work on it. We'll be on this project for the next month or so." Slughorn began reading off his list of partners. Albus zoned out until he heard his own name being called. "...and Mr. Potter will be paired with Mr. Malfoy."
God, no, Albus thought. He couldn't be working with Malfoy. Albus had never had much interaction with Scorpius, but Al's family had told him all about the Malfoys, how they were selfish, evil, prejudice, greedy Death Eaters. James and his cousins made sure that Albus stayed clear of Malfoy whenever possible, but Albus had obviously seen Malfoy around school. Malfoy seemed to spend a lot of time reading in the library, and he would ride his broom and toss around a quaffle with his mates, but, like Albus, wasn't on the Quidditch team.
Albus brought his attention back to the class. Slughorn finished reading off the list of names and ordered everyone to go sit next to their partner. Albus unwillingly scooped up his books and went to sit down next to Malfoy.
"Malfoy," Albus grumbled.
"Potter," Scorpius replied in the same tone, and gave Albus a look that told him that Malfoy's family had told Scorpius some not-so-great things about the Potters.
"So, um, you want to meet up in the library tonight to work on this?" Albus asked reluctantly.
"Yeah, I guess." Scorpius sighed.
Slughorn called the class to attention and began his lecture. Albus and Scorpius began rapidly taking notes for their project until class was over. Both of them sprung up from their seats and fled the room the moment the bell rang.
Albus found his family in the first place he looked, the common room. Everyone usually gathered there to get a bit of studying done before dinner.
"Hey guys. So I got paired up with Scorpius Malfoy for a potions assignment. I'm meeting with him in the library tonight to get started on it," Albus said, rolling his eyes irritably.
Albus heard a couple groans of sympathy and a few chuckles making fun of his bad luck. After the group had digested Albus's unfortunate news, they all went back to focusing on their schoolwork. Albus settled down on the large couch next to Lily.
"Hey, Lil. Watcha working on?"
"Astronomy," she answered. "I'm having trouble with this constellation."
"Let me see," Albus said, pulling the book into his lap. "You see, k Car belongs to the Carina constellation, not the Pictor constellation..."
Albus helped Lily with her Astronomy homework, and once he was confident Lily was on the right track, he pulled out his Potions work to get a start on the Mopsus Potion. The sooner he was done with this project and away from Scorpius Malfoy, the better.
A/N: Thanks for reading! Please review and give me constructive criticism. Don't be afraid to be harsh, I can take it! And let me know if you want me to continue this.