Albus Severus Potter was a proud Hufflepuff. Well, most of the time at least. The yellow and black house colours clashed terribly with his own hair, and not to mention his green eyes. And sometimes he yearned for the aloof and unassuming air that his cousins from other Houses had about them. At Hufflepuff, everyone knew everything that happened to one another. The House was, in fact, the main stem of the Hogwarts grapevine. Intuitive by nature, Hufflepuffs could read situations very well. If Albus wanted to be alone, of course they'd leave him be, but everyone still knew.

As such, it was no surprise when Frank Longbottom, another new addition to Hufflepuff, had hugged the scared, and not to mention sad, 11 year old in their Firstyear dorm the night of the Sorting. Albus had been both shocked and grateful, and the two boys had soon become inseparable. Along with Frank, and his twin sister Alice, Albus made it through those first few weeks. Not to mention Teddy, the proud Head Boy, who was something of an older brother to Albus. Of all his family, Teddy had been the only one to whistle and cheer him on ecstatically when the Hat had yelled "HUFFLEPUFF". Teddy had actually stood up. Following his example, the other 'Puffs stood as well. Albus had hardly noticed at the time, reading clearly the betrayal in his brother's brown eyes from across the room. But in hindsight, Albus was so very grateful for the older boy's support. Although Teddy had been a bit too old to play with Al as they had grown up, something about him was always so comforting. He had a presence about him that was calming– you couldn't help but smile when Teddy was in the room. And when Hugo had joined him the House of the Badgers, Albus tried to be there for him in a similar fashion.

A few weeks into his first term, Albus began to open up to his other dorm mates– Greg Nott, Heath Greenfeld, and Kit Parsley. Together with his new friends, Albus became happier and more independent. He wrote home every week, and to Lily twice. His parents were delighted to hear about how inter-house unity was commonplace now; and how old prejudices seemed to be buried deep.

Since Alice was in Slytherin, the three of them often spent time in the Recreation Room. It was incredibly large, with stonewalls like the rest of the castle, but colourful– mainly the House colours, but there were some classic purples, pinks and oranges thrown in as well. The furniture was mismatched, and old. Students had started this tradition after The War: every batch would leave something behind in the Rec Room, which had now left it in a state of comforting disarray. Friends often met in this room, where Houses didn't matter, to relax after a long day of school. Of course, this was also where they threw the occasional party, but for the most, it was the most laid-back part of the Castle. Sometimes Rose would join them, but she was usually lost in her world of Ravenclaws.

Rose was another reason that Al had felt so thrown during his first year at Hogwarts. His beloved cousin, the one who was his friend through childhood, had barely cast a glance at him throughout the Sorting. She fit right into Ravenclaw– the clever witch that she was. It seemed, sometimes, that she only spent time with Albus because she felt obligated to. It was all very confusing for him to constantly read into people's behaviours, but he had long since learnt that this was his best strategy. Albus did not deal well with confrontation, and so, his constant observance and dissection of people allowed him to successfully avoid confrontations on all fronts.

Albus was, true to his House, fiercely loyal. Part of his ferocity stemmed as a reaction to the harsh way James had dumped him when he was not sorted into Gryffindor. James, his older brother and role model, his best friend , had dropped him like a pile of steaming dragon dung. The memory of his shocked face was still etched deep into Albus' mind.

Nevertheless, he felt at home with his Housemates. The warm Common Room was next to the kitchens, and such, Albus had grown a bit of a paunch in his five years at the school. It was lit with happy yellow torches that blazed reassuringly along the marble walls of their dungeon suite. There were big, comfy armchairs scattered around a simple-yet-elegant fireplace. Multiple throw pillows were found – in the traditional yellow and black, of course– along with beanbags and plush rugs. Students often lazed around together in these corners, a constant supply of food appearing on the trays of the ornate wooden tables placed strategically around the room. His dorm was much the same as the others. He had described it to Dad in one of his very first letters, and had found that it was the same as those in Gryffindor Tower. It had five, four-poster beds; simple sheets bearing the House colours; and a pillow. Of course, being in the dungeons, they didn't have windows. But there were massive murals along the marble walls depicting a different scene everyday.

Albus was staring at one such mural, something of a habit of his, when Frank had run up behind him to give him a hug. Albus' head was swirling with these thoughts; his many recent encounters with James had brought back all these memories and confusing feelings. And even Hugo, more of a brother to him than James, was distant these days. He'd quickly end any conversations with Al– as politely as possible, of course. Albus wondered what was the matter with his younger cousin, and what was the matter with himself, and what was really the matter with his family.

Frank licked his cheek in a manner very much like a dog, bringing Albus out of his tornado of thoughts. Albus good-naturedly dug his elbow into the other boy's stomach, and the two chuckled. This had become something of a special greeting between the two of them since the time in third year where they had gotten into some Firewhiskey. Frank had been completely out of it, and had licked Albus in way of a greeting. The next morning, in order to restore their friendship to its proper balance, Al had licked Frank, proudly declaring that this was now their secret greeting. Of course, the two had faced a lot of flak for "being gay" but with the support of their friends, family, and House, they squashed all such rumours– though not after a few tears. The entire ordeal had greatly strengthened the friendship between the two boys.

"What's the matter with you then?" Frank asked, moving to sit upon his bed.

Albus looked wearily at him before replying.

"Just thinking…" He said, his eye glossing over.

"You stare at The Murals when something's bothering you, Al."

"Is it just me, or is Hogwarts a lot smaller this year?" Frank noticed the edge in Albus' voice when he spoke.

"Been bumping into some one a bit too often?" Frank ventured, throwing caution to the wind.

"Yeah. James." Albus' face went blank, but Frank's contorted into a frown. Albus may have given up antagonizing himself over his brother's rude dismissal of him back in their first year at Hogwarts, but Frank, the fiercely loyal Hufflepuff, could not forget so easily. He and James sported a rivalry that was an endless source of gossip for the Hogwarts student body. It even made its way into the holiday festivities, making things awkward for everyone.

"Want me to punch him out again?" Frank offered, the gleam of malice in his eyes belied the joking tone of his voice.

"Ha! Like last time?" Albus asked incredulously, raising an eyebrow. Frank's face contorted into a wince for a barely a second, before shifting back to his mask of angry indifference. This incidence in question was the Christmas party at Potter Manor last year. Frank had punched James square in the jaw when he had essentially accused Albus' lack of skill upon a broom for causing the rift between the two brothers. James had been shocked initially, but then responded with a sock to the gut. The two were soon rolling in the Quad, throwing fists at each other. If Alice hadn't stepped in when she did, both of them might have been expelled. "We had better keep Alice around, in that case." Albus chuckled drily, clearly remembering the same incident.

"Hmmmm…" Frank responded, eyeing his best mate. He shrugged nonchalantly, and lay back on the bed. The two remained in a comfortable silence; Frank laid out on the bed and Albus standing, until Frank suddenly broke the silence.

"Alice fancies you!" He exclaimed, glaring at the ceiling.

"What!" Albus whispered, shocked.

"You heard right…" Frank muttered darkly.

"Wha- But I- We- No." Albus stammered.

Frank sat up abruptly, turning his glare on Albus.

"No?" He asked sternly.

"No." Albus replied, his face as white as The Bloody Baron's.

Frank breathed out in relief. "Good."

"Good?"

"Good."

"Okay…?"

"Okay."

Silence.

"Dinner?"

"Oh, yes please!"