Okay, I must say, I'm sorry this chapter took so long. There were complications with my beta, but it's here now! As always, J.K. Rowling is the creator of most of it. She's kind of my hero.

Scorpius was being mauled. In all honesty, that wasn't the best description of what was happening, Severus decided, but it seemed like it at first. The little iridescent things were all forming a thick cloud around Scorpius. Of course, Severus groaned inwardly, poor little Scorpius is such an emo kid he's immediately popular with these things. Scorpius looked a little frightened, though, so Severus felt a little better.

"Professor Hagrid? Why are they doing that?" asked the blond in a soft voice. He looked at the little creatures perched on his robes apprehensively. "Could you get them off? They're starting to look menacing."

"They are actin' a bit dodgy. Just wait it out, tho'. I 'spect they'll leave yeh fer other students in a bit." Severus tried to hide a smile as his sort-of-friend fidgeted. But soon enough, the grelkies fluttered off to the other students, leaving Scorpius looking a bit ruffled. Severus expected a couple to land on him, but not a single one did. He frowned.

Certainly he was unhappy, or had been some time in his life. He did have an overwhelming feeling of being oppressed whenever he thought of his home and parents. Or did that just start when he realized he'd be a disappointment? Or was that even real, or just his sad effort at trying to pretend he didn't care about his family? This realization made him fall onto his bum out of shock. He wasn't really so surprised that he had tried to trick himself into not caring, only that it had worked.

One little grelkie came over and poked its nose at his hand. "Haven't you noticed? I'm not unhappy. Just pretending to be. Well, actually, I am a little sad about my parents, but it's not so bad. They probably aren't even too upset. I'm just being melodramatic. Go find a real emo kid." The creature flew off, leaving Severus feeling a little uneasy. He really needed to write to his parents. And stop being such an arse to Scorpius. The other boy actually had problems, and he was treating him like he didn't matter. That was not how his parents raised him. He determined that he would be nicer, or at least more sympathetic. After all, the other boy couldn't be that bad. He had been through a lot.

After Care of Magical Creatures on their way to lunch, Severus stopped Scorpius in the hall. He gestured for Eva and Rose to go on, but they didn't move. He shrugged mentally. "I'm sorry." He through his arms around Scorpius, entering a very one-sided hug. "I'm sorry I was such a Won-Won. (That's what my aunt Mione calls my uncle Ron whenever he's not thinking about other people's emotions.) And I haven't been very considerate. But I think we could be good friends." Severus said all of this through a fairly tight hug. Scorpius coughed meaningfully when it became unbearable.

"Uh, sure, I guess. Thanks? Can we go to lunch now? I'm hungry," Scorpius grunted. Severus released him. Severus realized that his for-the-first-time-actual friend seemed to have some issues with being touched. Severus purposely ignored this little detail, deciding that human contact could only be a good thing for someone who's been disowned by the people he thought loved him.

"Me too."

Eva rolled her eyes. "What the heck was that? Are you two suddenly best buddies now? Can we go already? It seems I chose the weird kids to be my friends. Great. Can't wait to write home about this."

"Oh, shut it. If you have problems with manly outbursts of affection, then you can go sit with my brother at meals. I guarantee you there will be no man-hugs with him."

"Relax, I was joking. I'm glad you two aren't trying to hurt each other."

Over time, the Gryffindors had cleared a too-large area for the four first-years to sit at the Gryffindor table so they didn't have to interact with them. Other than that, everyone settled into the routine of school fairly easily. Scorpius had quidditch practice with the Gryffindor team a couple times a week, and was currently the second-string seeker. Severus, much to Rose's dismay, continued to outshine everyone in their classes, except for History of Magic, which he had taken to skiving for extra time in the library to read books that were much too large. Eva pretended to be upset that Scorpius had replaced her as Severus' best friend even though she liked Rose better anyway, and knew that she would never be able to relate to Severus in the ways he might need a best friend to be able to.

Rose acted like a proper misfiled-child and swotted like nobody's business, putting many Ravenclaws to shame with long hours in the library, a pile ten-books-high next to her bed, and the commandeering of one of the desks in the Gryffindor common room for her own personal use. The four had also taken to piling on Severus' bed after dinner to work on coursework and chat. Well, Eva and Scorpius would chat while Rose did coursework and Severus tried to see how many of the spells he could use from the books he had read.

Soon enough, September became October, October grew into November, which saw the passing of Severus' birthday, which was wholly uneventful besides a few sweet-oriented gifts. By the time December rolled along, Severus had all but forgotten about any other home. When they were reminded a week before about the winter holidays, Scorpius reacted with anything but enthusiasm. He was glum for almost two whole days before Severus finally told him his parents had allowed him to invite a friend over for the holidays. Rose would have invited Eva to the annual Weasley-Potter holiday gathering as well, but she had to go to Ireland to spend time with her father's family over the break.

The train ride back to Platform 9 and 3/4 was awkward, to say the least. Severus knew that his parents would have a lot to say about the fact that he'd only sent one letter, the one asking if he could bring a friend. And he hadn't even specified which friend – not that that was an accident in the least. He knew that his father and uncle Ron would not be happy at all that he was bringing a Malfoy home for the holidays.

Scorpius himself was of course nervous about the prospect of meeting the Potters. His father may have been on the straight and narrow, but that didn't mean he liked his old school rival. Not in the slightest. In fact, for as long as he could remember, his father always ground out the Potter name, scowling whenever there was an article in The Daily Prophet about this daring escapade or that clever rescue. Not to mention the constant berating his father received from his more-than-half-mad grandfather on the subject of the Potters and Weasleys and the war. His grandmother never spoke of the past or the war, except for on one occasion, where he remembered she spoke on behalf of the Potters, then didn't say another word for almost a month.

Rose was a little worried about the whole thing. She had strongly advised Severus to tell his parents about their soon-to-be guest, knowing the Weasley trait for hot-headedness. That coupled with the family tradition of hating Malfoys would not end well, she thought. If only they would give Scorpius the chance to prove that he wasn't his dad or grandfather. He was much more Gryffindor than how she imagined his father, although that wasn't really the best way to describe him. She thought of him as something of a lost puppy, a bit confused and betrayed, capable of either becoming tame or biting anything within reach, it all depended on the circumstances. But, for the moment, she thought Severus would be a good presence to have around. Her cousin was odd sometimes, a little moody, even, but, when he felt comfortable with his surroundings, he was one of the sweetest people she knew.

Harry squeezed Ginny's hand cheerfully. They had both missed their youngest son terribly, considering that he only wrote once after they found out about the Sorting. They wanted to make sure that he was getting on all right, but he never responded to any of their letters. Ginny was especially worried, considering that Albus was her unofficial favorite. Harry attributed this to the fact that his second child was the most like himself, which was probably why he spent more time with James and Lily; he and his son had an understanding of each other that he did not have with his other two children. They didn't need to spend as much time together. When his second son was first born, he liked to think that Albus would be the boy he might have been, if given a happier, more magical upbringing. Sadly, as he grew up, he seemed to scare easily and was the most timid of his children. And now he was in Slytherin, which he really didn't care about, seeing as he was almost sorted into the house. Fate had certainly dealt him a very interesting hand, though.

Getting off the train, Severus tried to ignore the apprehension churning in his gut. He, Rose, and Scorpius said their farewells to Eva, and then tried to find their family. He didn't see his parents or sister yet, but he nudged Rose in front of him so he could walk with Scorpius. He knew that Rose could really only be so comforting, and there were times when someone just wants their best mate by their side. Severus grabbed hold of Scorpius' hand and pulled him through the crowd of waiting parents to find his own waiting parents. When he spotted them standing next to Rose's parents, he gave Scorpius' hand a light squeeze and dragged him over.

To say his parents were shocked would be a total understatement, in the least. At first, they were appalled, horrified, even, before they regained their composure. Severus threw a protective arm around Scorpius' shoulders. His father's feeble attempt at a welcoming smile was painful. His mother, however, was a little bit less harsh.

"I see there was a reason you didn't write who your friend was," Ginny Potter commented, almost jokingly. "Never thought you'd try to bring home a Malfoy."

"You can't send him back. You said I could have a friend. You never said who it could or couldn't be. He's my best friend and I want him with me for the holidays. His parents already made all their arrangements and everything, so there's no place for him to go if you try to send him back. And I won't let you, anyways." Severus said all of this with such conviction, even he was stunned at first.

Harry felt like something had fallen apart inside him. He had never known his son to be so... strong-willed. Less than four months had passed, and Harry felt like he didn't know his child. Or that his son didn't know him. To think that his own boy thought that he would send his best friend away, even if he was a Malfoy, was absurd. He promised him a friend. His son must have thought he didn't care at all, or didn't like him. That would change, Harry decided. He would show him that he was accepted, no matter who he was or who his friends were.

"Al, we're not going to send him away. Never." Harry turned to the clearly uncomfortable, pale blond boy. "Scorpius, it's nice to meet you. Sorry, it just gives me the creep how much you and your father look alike." He extended a large, calloused hand, which was met with a small, pale one.

"It's nice to meet you, too, Mr. Potter. I must say, it is a little disconcerting how much you look like Severus."

"You can call me Harry," Harry said automatically, then realized something. "Severus?" Harry locked eyes with his son, finding the green gaze strangely fierce. He said nothing more, and Severus did not explain himself. When James found them, he hugged his parents enthusiastically, shooting glares at Severus and Scorpius. Lily stepped from behind her mother and cocked her head at Scorpius.

"Are you a Death Eater? Cos Mum and Dad and Uncle Ron say all the Malfoys-" she was cut short by her mother's hand covering her mouth.

"Lily, what have I told you about thinking before speaking?" Ginny whispered fiercely, beaming a very fake smile at Scorpius. "Sorry about that."

At that moment, Ron and Hermione Weasley chose to walk up with Rose and Hugo. Ron took one look at Scorpius and shot a harsh glare at him. "Why is there a ferret here?" Hermione gave him a good elbow to the ribs.

"Ron! Mind your manners! He's not Draco. Besides, Rose speaks very highly of him." She smiled at Scorpius. "I'm happy to finally meet you. I hope the next couple weeks won't be to stressful for you, what with my husband and all."

"Wait. You knew? And didn't tell me? Rosie didn't either? What-" Ron was turning a violent shade of purple.

Harry coughed loudly. "Ron. That's enough. You can talk about that later. Now, you need to welcome our house guest."

Ron turned a mottled purple, but managed a grimacing smile. "Hello. I'm so pleased you're going to be staying with us." Ginny snorted at his expression and tried to cover it up with a cough. Rose stepped between her parents, holding Hugo's hand.

"Now that we've all met, could we go? I can't wait to unpack and Scorpius needs to get settled." After a bit of grumbling, all the Potters, Weasleys, and Scorpius made it out of the station and to the two portkeys that were waiting for them. The holiday was just beginning…

Well, the next chapter shouldn't take too long. Oh, and please review. I'd like to know if people like it or not.