Squirrely Quirre: Seriously? Why does everyone ask me that? Did I miss an important memo that said Rose/Scorpius was everybody's OTP?

Loves to read books: Amethyst is actually a mineral found in ametrine! It's a combination of amethyst and citrine and the result is this beautiful purplish-orange amalgamation. Yup I'm a nerd.

Colette Amelia: Thank you so much! Yes, I've had Ben's storyline planned out in my head for a long time now, and I'm glad it's finally starting to make some headway – so far I've absolutely loved expanding upon his and Kyra's characters, and I'm looking forward to the next chapters just as much as you :) Haha thanks again!

Hanalei: Thank you! I hope you enjoy this next update just as much :)

Sunday

December 22nd

11:15 a.m. – Peridot Manor

"Kyra, is this seriously gonna take all morning?"

"Stop your whining, Ben – I'll only be a second."

"Yeah, you said that twenty minutes ago…"

The day was cold and blustery, but there was no snow, and the ground was fairly hard, making the conditions perfect for the kids to play a two-by-two game of Quidditch in the garden before lunch. However, Kyra took it upon herself to examine all the broomsticks before anyone had a chance to fly, delaying their game a substantial amount.

"There's a slight list to this one," Kyra said knowledgably after scrutinizing one of the brooms – a Shade 7 series, bought two years ago for Mr. Potter's birthday. "But otherwise in good condition…"

"Great," Albus yawned. He and Ben had been sitting on the back porch for a while now, feeling bored and impatient. Rose, also tired of waiting for Kyra, went off to play with Hugo over in one of the surrounding fields. Al watched his cousins in the distance: Lily was near them, crouching in the grass and apparently looking for something. Al also spotted his mother and Mallory Staglovich taking a walk together just outside the garden – they walked arm-in-arm, Ginny pointing out some of the magical herbs and shrubs she had planted, while Mallory examined them with delight and fascination.

"Looks like our mums are really getting along," Ben muttered to Al, also watching them.

Al agreed there was definitely a strong bond between the two women, despite having known each other for only a day. Ginny's sympathy and admiration for what Mallory had to go through with her husband Aengus and the hardships she had experienced bringing her son to England seemed to go beyond anything that Al had ever seen in his mother before.

"Maybe we could get a few extra Christmas presents out of this," Al suggested, and Ben laughed.

"Al!"

Lily was running toward her brother, her face alight with ecstasy. She skidded to a stop in front of him, looking painfully excited about something. "Al – guess what I just did!"

Al grinned – only one thing in the world could make his sister this giddy. "Magic again?"

"Yes!" she squealed, bouncing on her feet. "Do you wanna see?"

"Oh, I think Ben would much rather watch… he's never seen you do magic before, has he?" Al smirked at his friend, who gave him a sarcastic glare in return.

The idea of a brand-new audience made Lily, if possible, even more excited. She gasped, and then shrieked: "YES! C'mon Ben, over here…!"

She grabbed Ben by the jacket sleeve and dragged him toward a patch of dead grass a few feet away. She plopped herself down on the ground, and Ben shot his friend a small grin over his shoulder as he sat down next to her. Al watched them, stifling a snicker.

"Wait…" Lily leaned over so she was looking directly down at the cold, hard earth. "Okay, watch," she whispered, lightly cupping her hand over a spot of bare ground in front of her. She stayed like that for a moment before slowly bringing her hand back up – where frozen terrain had been before, now bloomed a beautiful white flower.

"Wow, Lily! That's awesome," Ben complimented, looking sincerely impressed. Lily grinned, pleased with herself on having achieved the same bit of magic twice in a row.

Ginny and Mallory had strolled over toward the children, watching as well. Ginny beamed when they saw the flower. "Excellent, sweetheart!" she exclaimed.

Mallory stepped forward and knelt down in front of the plant. She examined the flower, and Lily's smile faded somewhat.

"A white carnation," she finally said, looking up at Lily, who met her eyes. Mallory smiled. "That means good luck."

Lily's grin popped back onto her face.

"You'll make a fine witch someday, child," Mallory said kindly; Lily blushed and smiled even wider at such praise from an apparent stranger. Lily then did something unexpected – she plucked the flower out of the ground and handed it to Mallory.

The woman's eyes widened. "For me?"

The girl nodded, and Mallory looked touched at such a gesture – she slowly took the flower, and held it delicately up to her nose, smiling. "It's beautiful. Thank you."

Lily bit her lip, smiling back.

Ginny, who also looked affected by her daughter's sweet gesture, cleared her throat. "C'mon children, we should get really ready for lunch – Lily, go fetch your cousins out in the field. Now please."

Lily immediately hopped to her feet and ran off to find Rose and Hugo. Al stood up and brushed himself off; Ben, who was still sitting on the ground, watched his mother holding the flower with a smile on his face. When Mallory made a move to get up, he quickly did the same, helping her to her feet.

Kyra looked excessively disappointed, a broomstick still clutched in her hand. "But we didn't even get to play a match, yet!"

The others ignored her (though Al and Ben couldn't resist a small eyeroll), and the whole group moved their way back into the house.

~/~

Lunch was a noisy affair full of conversation, laughter, and delicious food. Hermione and Ron stopped by, bringing along a third person, Teddy Lupin. The Potters were all thrilled to see him, and Al wasted no time in introducing Ted to his friends.

"Oh yeah, that's right – Harry mentioned Al brought his friends home to stay for Christmas," Ted grinned at the two, pulling up a chair beside Al. "Nice to meet you both."

Ben nodded politely, but Kyra wasn't listening – she was fully engaged in a conversation with James about the latest Quidditch match between the Falmouth Falcons and Puddlemere United:

"Patrick Topsley blatched Gerard Stevenson, it was just a technical foul," James insisted, spooning a second helping of stew onto his plate.

"A 'technical foul', just like when he cobbed Ophelia Smitts? Topsley was totally in fault!" Kyra countered.

Ted turned away from her and faced Hugo, who immediately asked Ted if he was really dating Victoire Weasley, and if he 'like-liked' her.

"Be quiet, Hugo, that's not appropriate," Hermione scolded her son as Ted's face went red.

At the other end of the table, Harry was talking with Mallory about flying.

"Broomsticks are fairly easy to control, and I'm sure Ben would have no problem operating one," he assured her. "Brooms can be very useful too, to get around places without Floo Powder. The children have probably had a few flying lessons over at Hogwarts already, but I'd be more than happy to give Ben a few tips. I've taught James and Al all I know about flying, and they've turned out to be pretty good, I'd say… I can lend Ben an old Cleansweep 6 one of these days and see how he handles it…"

Ginny and Ron were sitting near the middle of the table, laughing about something that had happened when they were kids:

"I remember that! Mundungus brought like twelve stolen cauldrons into the house," Ron laughed as Ginny giggled, wiping her eyes with her napkin. "Mum went completely berserk!"

The dining room filled with excited talk and happy conversation, and for many minutes, Al decided not to join in any conversation, but merely listened to the others talk and mingle with a small, pleasant grin on his face.

A/N: Spoiler - next chapter is when some drama begins! Stay tuned!

Reviews would be simply lovely! :)