A/N: Aaaaaaah! What is this? Could it be...the next chapter??? It is! I am so sorry that I took so long to write it, but I had absolutely zero time to write over the past month or so.
Anyway, if you are reading this, then you have not yet given up on the story, so thanks for reading, and now please proceed to the story.

Disclaimer: This story is my own creation, but the characters, situations, and a whole lot of plot belong to J. K. Rowling. Anyone who says otherwise is selling something. :-p

Albus PoV:

I had the strangest dream last night. I was running along a dark hallway, frantically trying to escape from something…and something about a wizard duel—with Scorpius Malfoy.

Blimey, that was real wasn't it? Which would explain why I am waking up exhausted and fully dressed with a wand in my hand. Oh well, at least I wasn't caught, and didn't do anything stupid--well, except for dropping the flashlight and not knowing the first thing about dueling and...OK, the whole thing was pretty stupid. I admit it.

"Hey, Al!", I hear a girl's voice say. I grunt slightly and pull the bedcovers a bit higher over my head. Now a boy's voice joins in: "Albus, come on!"

"All right, all right, I'm coming!", I grumble. I force open my eyes and blink a few times in the bright morning light. My eyes finally focus on the people standing near the bed. Who are they? They look like...little blurs in the shape of people.

I reach out my left hand and feel around for my glasses. I locate them and put them on my face. Much better.

One of the people shaped blobs turns into Gracie Longbottom as I put on the glasses. Okay, that's good. I've known her for just about ever. Her dad., Professor Longbottom, is an old friend of dad and mum's--you know how it is. The other one, though--who is that? I sort through my brains and finally come up with Henry. Oh yeah, now I remember: Henry Eaton. We met last night, at the feast, before the...incident.

"Come on! We have Quiddich lessons in fifteen minutes, and then we have to try out! Come quickly, we might miss it", says Henry. I groan again. Quiddich Tryouts Tomorrow. The piece of parchment taped to the stone wall comes back vividly to my memory. No, I'm not going to think about that any more. As far as anyone is concerned, that was a dream and nothing more.

I put a smile on my face and try to look excited at the idea of embarrassing myself in front of an entire Quiddich pitch. "I guess", I say, "But what if I don't make the team?" Of course, I know what the answer will be. I've heard it too many times before: 'But your father was such a wonderful player, and your mother too, she played on the Holyhead Harpies, for Merlin's sake.' I don't want to hear it. I'll just be embarrassed in front of my new friends when I have to explain yet again that I don't contain any of the genes for greatness or bravery or talent. Honestly, I'm still surprised that I even got into Gryffindor.

"Just try", says Gracie, "No one cares if you don't get in—you have nothing to lose". This takes me so much by surprise that I forget to make an excuse as to why I can't try out today.

"Brilliant", says Henry, taking my lack of protest for a yes.

Not too long later, we rush down to the Great Hall, where all the early-rising students are eating breakfast. I have managed an at least halfway-decent attitude (maybe even a little excited) about tryouts. Plus, I'm a Gryffindor, I have two new friends, my older brother is nowhere in sight, and I have even managed to get my messy black hair somewhat under control. All seems to be well in the world of Al Severus Potter.

I finish my breakfast, and Gracie, Henry, and I hurry outside. We walk out to the Quiddich pitch, where other first year students are starting to gather. I marvel at the field and grounds. The Quiddich pitch seems gigantic from the ground, and weather is perfect—sunny and warm with a slight breeze. Yes, all is definitely well.

That is, until Scorpius Malfoy walks by. Merlin, that's the very last person I want to see, although I should have known he'd be here—Quiddich lessons that come before tryouts are for Gryffindor and Slytherin together. I avoid Scorpius' eyes, and he seems just as keen to ignore me, for the moment. He walks over to Henry, who is sitting to my right.

"You trying out for the team?", he sneers. "Yeah, why?", Henry replies, with no idea why a random Slytherin is singling him out.

"Me too. I just wanted to know what I'm up against…and if it's you three"—he gestures to Henry, Gracie and me--, "then Slytherin is sure thing for the house cup. That is, if you even make the team. Which you obviously won't".

Henry looks bewildered. I can almost see it written on his face: what have you got against me? I hope the answer in my mind is not so obvious: 'It's not you, Henry, it's your friend Albus'.

"Yeah, Henry and Al are trying out for the Gryffindor team. Now shove off, Scorpius", says Gracie. "It'll be a miracle if you even manage to stay on your broom!"

"What's that, coming from a Longbottom?", laughs Scorpius. "Last time I checked, you--"

"I said, SHOVE OFF!", yells Gracie. Scorpius just gives another derisive laugh and walks away, trailed by his stupid looking Slytherin friend.

"What's up with him?", asks Henry.

"Just forget it," says Gracie. "My dad told me that there would be people like that—he said that you just have to remember that you're worth 10 of them. Come on now, it looks like Madam Hooch is starting the lesson". After a few moments of thought, she looks back and repeats "10 of them", in Scorpius' direction.

The three of us walk over to join the crowd of Slytherin and Gryffindor first years near Madame Hooch. She begins the lesson as soon as we arrive.

"For those of you who do not know, I am Madame Hooch. I am here to teach you the basics of how to safely ride brooms—I will also be Quiddich referee and will assist with first year tryouts", she says. Then, she divides the group of students into two neat lines, one for Slytherin and one for Gryffindor. I was hoping to do the lessons with Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff instead, but things just never can be that easy.

Madame Hooch hands each student a broom—Comet 540's. They're a bit old, and not nearly as good as James' Nimbus 2020, but just having a broom in my hand is awesome in itself. "Now, put your hand over a broom, and shout 'up'. If you do it properly, you should be able to catch the broom as it rises to you", she instructs us.

A loud chorus of "up!"s breaks out, with few real successes. Mine jumps off the ground on the third try, though, and Henry's a moment after. I see Gracie trying, annoyed, to get her broom off the ground; I think that it can probably hear the slight note of fear in her voice. Of course, some people get it more quickly, and some not at all. I search the Slytherin line for Scorpius—unfortunately, he got it on the first try, but he missed catching the broom so it hit him on the nose. That serves him right! I stifle a laugh, knowing that it will only cause more trouble.

Once most of the students have either caught their brooms or surreptitiously bent down and picked them up off the ground, Madam Hooch intervenes. "Now, on the count of three, mount your brooms—one…two…three!" At this last command, each person puts a careful leg over the broom handle, and is promptly whisked a few feet into the air. I hear a few "oh!"s of surprise from some students; mostly the muggle-born students or the ones with overprotective parents. As for me, of course I've had toy broomsticks, and a few rides on James' when he lets me, but a few minutes in the air hanging on to the broom for dear life is very different from an actual lesson--this is great!

"Rise a few feet into the air, and control the broom. Just tilt the handle slightly to turn…" Madam Hooch tells us.

She steps onto her own broom—a shiny Comet 650—and hovers slightly above the mass of students, so as to keep an eye on us. The rest of the lesson passes fairly uneventfully, although almost everyone has tumbled off his or her broom at least one. A gust of wind suddenly blows from nowhere, whipping long hair into most girls' faces and sending a few students clear off of their brooms. Madame Hooch finally calls an end to the lesson, and shows the class how to land and demount safely.

Everyone is breathing heavily, and all around me I see pink-tinged faces, tangled hair, and in some, a certain thankfulness to be back safely on the ground. Madam Hooch tries to regain some order within the group of chatting students. "Before you go", she half-shouts over various student conversations, "I should just remind you of Quiddich Tryouts. They will be held in about 5 minutes for anyone who is interested, preceded by an explanation of the game by the team captain for anyone who wishes. Ravenclaw and Huffelpuff tryouts and lessons will be held directly afterwards, so don't linger around once you have tried out. That being said, now you may go".

Most of the students wander off, engrossed in various conversations, but a handful of people, Henry and me included, remain to try out. A few of those gymnastic butterflies in my stomach are returning, but I try to squash them down. I mean, what's the worst that can happen?

"Good luck!", Gracie says, and walks over to the stands where a few spectators are watching. Henry and I look around to see who's here. Mostly people I don't know, but a few stand out—Scorpius and his friend, of course, some Ravenclaws I know in passing (though not that strange girl from the train), and…Rose?

"Hold on a second", I tell Henry as I run across the pitch to Rose. "Hey, Rose! What are you doing here...are you trying out? How do you like Hogwarts?--", I begin. In a second, I stop mid-question.

"Rose--Rose! What's wrong?" This is not the Rose I have known for the past eleven years. Her eyes and nose are puffy and red. It looks like she cried all night instead of sleeping! This is not the Rose I know.

"Well, you see...", she begins hesitantly. Just at that moment, though, Madame Hooch yells out to all the students on the pitch, her voice magically magnifieed. "EVERYONE TRYING OUT FOR QUIDDICH, JOIN ME HERE IMMEDIATELY!"

I turn to look just for a second, but when I look back, Rose has begun to walk away. "Wait, Rose! What's wrong?", I ask, jogging to catch up to her. She shakes me away. "Nothing. I'm just worried about...classes. Jillian Thomas said Astronomy's real hard. That's it...its nothing". Before I can answer, Rose walks briskly away, and Madame Hooch yells again to start tryouts. I join up with Henry, while Gracie looks on from the stands. Eventually, tryouts begin, Gryffindor's with the team's head chaser; Terri Wood. Henry and I cross our fingers and mount our brooms to begin tryouts.

I'm nervous, like everyone else here, but another feeling is surfacing even above that. Again, I am worried--but this time it's for Rose.

A/N: Yay! Another chapter done! I'm not that happy with it and it took altogether too long to write even when I did sit down to work on it, but who knows? Maybe you all will like it! Do you readers like long chapters??? I won't know unless you review and tell me!