The ceiling was bright and blue, representing the summer sky outside, as Lily walked into the Great Hall. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits, talking excitedly about their plans for the next six weeks. However when Lily sat down next to Ariana, helping herself to some toast, the breakfast conversation quickly turned to the future.
"This is stressing me out you guys," Ariana cried, running her fingers through her chocolaty hair in despair. "There's just so much to choose from."
"You shouldn't have left it so late," Dominique mumbled with her mouth full of cornflakes.
In response, Ariana groaned, letting her head fall into her empty bowl with fingers knotted tightly in her hair. Swallowing her toast, Lily cleared her throat. "I'm with Ariana. I've been thinking about it for over a week and I still have no idea what subjects I'm taking next year."
"Apart from Care of Magical Creatures," Phoebe interjected. Straight away, all four of them had decided on Hagrid's class, mainly because he would be very offended if they didn't sign up but also because he rarely handed out homework and sometimes his brother Grawp was his teaching assistant which was apparently very amusing.
But Lily still had to choose another two subjects. After sending a letter to her parents, who were completely useless – "We love you no matter what you choose."–, she asked her teachers for advice. Only her Head of House, Uncle Neville had been of any help.
"Don't take the subjects you think you'll need for a career. Choose the ones you'll be good at and will enjoy because you'll be stuck with them for at least another three years," he told her over a pot of tea.
Yet after a week of deliberation, Lily hadn't come any closer to choosing her other one subject. And today was the final day for decisions.
"What's up Lils?" Her big brother came and sat next to her, beginning to shovel copious amounts of food onto his plate. James was oddly alone, without his constant companions, Fred and Eddie, meaning they were probably setting up for a prank. Whatever was going on, Lily was too stressed to care.
"Subject choices!"
"Ah the decisions of your future." James laughed to himself.
"Not helping," Lily snapped. Instantly she started to ramble, internally wondering why she hadn't asked her brothers before. It wasn't like they were good for anything else but being annoying. "I'm just stressed out about them. Everyone's making them out to be the most important decisions of our lives and that one wrong choice could affect us for the rest of our lives."
"Ignore them," James grunted.
Leaning against her brother's broad shoulder, she sighed deeply. "I don't know what to do James." She closed her eyes and tried to block out the Great Hall.
"Take Divination Lils, like me and Al. It's the easiest subject I ever took." James began to make a soothing motion of rubbing circles in her back comfortingly.
From across her, Dominique countered, "I heard it was just a load of guesswork. How will that help us in the future?"
James shrugged, jostling Lily slightly. "I don't know but if you're a Potter and you take Divination, it's like an automatic Outstanding. Apparently every Potter is destined to die an unexpected and painful death. If I don't get at least one warning of my impending doom, it's been a bad day for me."
Lily stifled the giggles and opened her eyes. She could always count on James to make her feel better. Squeezing him tight, she conveyed her gratitude to him.
"Don't listen to him," Alicia Longbottom said from further down the Gryffindor table. "Divination is utter crap. I'd pick Arithmacy if I was you."
At this, James nearly spat his pumpkin juice out. "Are you insane Alice? I love you but you sure picked some dull subjects. Even the thought of Arithmacy…" James yawned dramatically.
"Mock all you want Potter but at least when I leave Hogwarts, I won't be living on my father's name." With a flick of her hair, Alicia stood up from the table, making to leave.
Therefore it was only natural that James would follow. Standing from the bench, he ruffled Lily's hair annoyingly and quickened his pace to catch up with Alicia, shouting after her. "I'll have you know I've stayed up every night until midnight revising for the end of year exams!" And with that, James was out of sight.
"Fantastic," Lily muttered sarcastically. "I've got to make one of the biggest decisions of my life and instead of helping; my idiot brother has ran off chasing a girl.
"Families," Dominique shrugged.
"Why the long faces?"Albus asked, taking James' space next to Lily while Scorpius sat opposite her, next to Kaleb. Franklin was with them but had immersed himself in a conversation with Phoebe – although they hadn't made it official, the pair were practically going out.
When Lily and Ariana made no response to explain, Dominique took it upon herself to fill everyone in. "Ari and Lils haven't decided on their subjects for next year and the deadline is today."
All three boys nodded in unison.
"Take Divination," Albus immediately said, ripping into a slice of toast. "It's a piece of piss if you're in our family. Apparently every Potter is destined to die an unexpected and painful death."
"It's a load of bollocks though Lilykins," Kaleb said, smirking at the use of his nickname for her. "But it's a good chance to catch up on some sleep." He seemed to go off into his own little world after this. "Maybe that's why I'm failing." Poor Kaleb.
"I don't know why you two are having such trouble with your subjects," Rose complained, appearing very suddenly between Scorpius and Dominique, her focus on the handsome Slytherin as she rudely shoved Dominique to make some room for herself. "Just take them all like me."
"I'm not taking them all," Lily replied. "I'd rather push myself off the top of the Astronomy Tower, thank you very much."
Scorpius hadn't said a word since he sat down, choosing to pick apart a slice of toast. He had grown obviously uncomfortable since Rose sat down and Lily knew it was because of her cousin's clear obsession for him. And even though Scorpius had turned her down, Rose never seemed deterred by it, always coming back for more rejection.
As if he knew she was thinking about him, Scorpius looked up from his plate and smirked when he saw Lily staring. She tried to look away but couldn't; instead smiling subtly. With the others arguing over the best subjects she should take, Lily occupied herself with marvelling at Malfoy: the rise of the left corner of his mouth when he smirked; the crinkles by his eyes when they sparkled with happiness. In that moment, Lily believed she could never tire of staring at Scorpius Malfoy.
"What's your favourite subject Lily?" he asked quietly while goose bumps appeared on her arms at the sound of his voice addressing her.
Timidly she replied, "Defence Against the Dark Arts."
"Well Ancient Runes is a good subject because it compliments Defence really well but it's like learning another language and there's a lot of reading to stay on top of. Arithmacy is good and is essentially advanced maths. It helps with Potions but if you don't understand Potions, it may just confuse you further.
"Muggle Studies would be pretty easy for you because of the Muggle aspects you were raised in. And you have two best friends who live in the Muggle world. But I wouldn't go for Divination because if you're even the slightest bit skeptical, the lessons are just boring. However Care of Magical Creatures is fun with Hagrid and he doesn't give you much homework, but you do need to do some extra reading to pass.
"Does that help?" Scorpius asked, taking a swig of pumpkin juice.
"Lots," Lily said, deliberating her subjects carefully.
Potions is bad enough without the added confusion of Arithmacy so that was out. However she did want a challenge and studying Muggles seemed too easy so perhaps Ancient Runes should be her choice because it would help her with Defence Against the Dark Arts.
Clearing her throat, everyone turned to look at Lily. "I've decided to take Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes."
"Yay! That's the same as me," Dominique squealed.
When Lily turned back to Scorpius, he was smirking at her again, as if he had already predicted Lily's choices before her. She mouthed 'thank you' to which he responded with a shrug. But his smirk grew and Lily felt her heart flutter. She returned with a smile but it quickly fell when Rose scowled at her.
"Have you decided on your subject?" Lily asked quietly to Ariana alone.
"I think I'll take Divination and if I suck at it, I'll just predict that you and Albus will soon suffer." The pair laughed and felt a huge weight lift off their shoulders. No longer were they burdened by the future.
###
Holding tight to her mother's arm, Lily closed her eyes tight and felt the familiar and yet uncomfortable pull on her naval as she Apparated to outside the Burrow. She kissed her mother, who quickly Disapparated to get Albus and Scorpius, before walking through the gate and into the living room.
"Dad!" Lily squealed as she hugged her father tight and felt her legs leave the floor when Harry swung her around. "I missed you!" Burying her head in his shoulder, she breathed in the familiar scent of her father and squeezed him tighter until he put her down, returning her to her small height.
"I'm so glad you're back. The house always feels so quiet," Harry remarked, kissing her on the cheek swiftly.
Then Lily pulled him to the sofa, perching on his lap and ignoring the painful groan when her father realised she was heavier than last time. "How's work?" she asked, taking his glasses off his face and cleaning them on the bottom of her velvet skirt. Ever since the Christmas holidays, Lily had been asking about the Auror Office more and more in the hope that he would slip up and tell her what's causing all his stress.
No such luck. "It's good but unfortunately Seamus piled a load of paperwork on my desk just before I left so I'll probably be working later tomorrow." Lily just nodded and placed his glasses back on his nose.
"I did get around to reading your letter though," he said in a pure attempt to change the subject. Once Lily had decided on her options, she had sent a letter home with all the details. "Talk to your Aunt Hermione about Ancient Runes because she did it for her O.W.L's and loved it."
"DINNER'S READY!" Grandma Molly shouted.
Lily pulled her father to his feet and together they went into the garden. Not everyone could fit in the Burrow easily; even with the extensions it was a squeeze. Therefore on big occasions, like coming home, they all ate outside. It was still a squeeze but at least there was enough air to breathe.
In the end, Lily found herself wedged between Dominique and Scorpius stuck in the middle of a conversation about who should have won the Quidditch Cup.
"Slytherin have been playing consistently all year," Albus claimed. His voice raised an octave as he gave his defence. "We deserved to win."
James huffed, rolling his eyes at Lily who was sitting opposite. "But our Chasers scored loads more than yours throughout the season."
"Maybe but your Seeker is shocking. I'm surprised he can find his broom," Scorpius argued.
From the kitchen, plates of food drifted to the table, setting themselves in the middle. As soon as Grandma Weasley, with her wand rose, set the last plate down, the entire family began to tuck in, fighting each other for the food.
With her plate full, Lily enjoyed the peaceful silence that came with everyone having their mouths too full of food to speak. All that could be heard with the clatter of cutlery on the plates. Swallowing her mouthful, Lily cleared her throat.
"Scorp has a point James. You'd win much quicker if you got a new Seeker."
"That's not my decision Lils," James said with his mouth full. "If I make Captain next year, he's gone."
"Can we please get off the subject of Quidditch?" Dominique said agitatedly, slamming her cutlery on the table. "Anymore of it and I'm seriously considering hexing myself."
"How about Puddlemere United? They seem to be doing pretty well this season," Scorpius said, smirking across Lily at Dominique who seemed to be clutching her wand tightly under the table.
"Can I have everyone's attention please?" Teddy announced, standing up with Victoire on his arm. Today Teddy's hair with the brightest blue Lily had ever seen. Everyone pushed their plates away and looked up at the couple who were positively beaming.
"1 Galleon says she's pregnant," James whispered to Fred.
"You're on!"
"I'm proud to announce that with the permission of Uncle Bill and guidance of Dad, I asked Vic to marry me last night. And she said yes!"
"Oh my god!" Grandma Weasley cried, getting to her feet to congratulate them both. The table erupted into applause and everyone got up to personally congratulate them. Uncle Bill and Teddy shared a stern handshake, where Teddy looked scared out of his wits.
When it was James's turn to hug Victoire, he asked, "This isn't because you're pregnant is it?" Unfortunately, Ginny was standing very close and slapped her son gently around the head as a warning.
"No I'm not," Victoire replied.
"Hand over that Galleon James!" Fred shouted from across the garden.
Next it was Lily's turn and she walked up to the happy couple, surprisingly with Scorpius, "Congratulations Teddy!" she squealed, hugging him tightly. "I'm so happy for the pair of you. But just so you know, you've always been a part of the family. Now it's just official."
"Lily, we would like you to be a bridesmaid," Victoire asked, a coy smile playing on her lips.
"Of course!" Lily cried, giving her cousin an unexpected hug. "I'd love to be."
"We also want you to be a page boy Scorpius," Teddy said, his smile brighter than any other Lily had ever seen. In that moment Lily knew they were perfect for each other and was eternally happy for her adopted brother.
"You're a part of my family," he continued, placing an arm on Scorpius' shoulder. "And I know that our family has had its differences in the past but your grandmother has welcomed my grandmother back and with you being Albus' best friend, it seems like you were always meant to be a part of our family, just like I was destined to fall in love in Vic. I want you to be at my wedding. You and the rest of your family."
"I'm honoured," Scorpius said, his voice seeming tight and choked. Turning her attention to Malfoy, she noticed his eyes glistening slightly in the setting sun. Before she could say anything though, he had blinked hard and the tears that were, existed no more. "I'm sure we all would be."
Lily's heart melted and not for the first or last time, she longed for Scorpius Malfoy.
Author's Note: I apologise for the lateness of this story. I have the worst case of writer's block - like I know where my characters are going but I don't know how to articulate how they get there. But I have my Easter holidays soon and hopefully I will catch up on my college work and then I can write some more chapters! I hope you enjoy this chapter and remember to review!