I jolted up in my bed in my empty dormitory, startled by a sudden slam against the window beside my bed. Rubbing my eyes quickly and looking over, I saw my father's owl perched on the window ledge outside in the heavy snow with a letter in its mouth. I stood up from my bed and opened the window quickly and the owl bustled into the warmth of the room, shaking his wings free of snow as he stood inside, in front of the window. Watching as the snow fluttered from his wings and onto the floor beside my bed, I took the envelope from his mouth then petted the top of his head with my free hand.

Outside it was foggy and completely grey. I couldn't see more than a few feet out of the window. Glancing at the clock that sat on a table on the opposite side of the room, I read it. 4am. It was 4am and this bloody bird had woken me up with a letter from my father. All I could think was how important this letter had to be to wake me up this early for it... little did I know what was coming.

Opening the envelope, I pulled the letter out and looked at it before I started reading:

My son,

Over the last few weeks, the rise in crimes in the magical world has increased greatly. It' has put the Ministry at risk, it has put muggles at risk and it has put families in risk; including ours. You know about our past and you know that as a family we don't have the best reputation. This has made our lives very difficult lately, which is the reason we kept you at Hogwarts this Christmas.

However, the main point of this letter is to inform you of some news. The ministry was badly attacked tonight (I'm sending this to you immediately). This resulted in the passing of a few ministry workers.

Unfortunately, your mother was at work there during this attack. I'm so sorry Scorpius, but she was one of the victims.

It breaks my heart to have to tell you this, especially over a letter. We're going to keep you at Hogwarts over the holidays and collect you for the funeral in a few weeks' time.

Your mother loved you, remember that.

I'm sorry.

Your father,

Draco

I didn't know what to say. I didn't know how to feel. I felt a tear drop roll down my cheek and watched as it fell onto the parchment I held in my hand. I sat down on my bed, confused and in shock before it hit me and I began crying hard, sobbing as I looked over the words that had been scraped into the page, no doubt by my father crying just as I was now. He was strict and rough around the edges, but the love he had for me and my mother was something you could never deny.

Wiping my eyes and inhaling deeply, I looked at the calendar that hung on the wall.

It was Christmas Day.