The next morning, I was woken up by an extremely excited Albus, who was about as hyper as a five year old on Christmas morning. I followed him downstairs, excited to see what his relatives had gotten him. I was about to sit next to him, when Mrs. Potter tapped me on the shoulder. I didn't flinch, and she visibly smiled at that.

"Sweetheart, your presents are over there." She pointed to a huge pile of wrapped boxes.

This has to be a joke. No one gives me presents, I don't deserve them. Maybe they're giving me some of their old stuff. I wouldn't mind that; at least I'm getting something.

I noticed what looked like a gift-wrapped broom and pick it up, assuming that it was in the wrong pile until I noticed that my name was on the tag. I unwrapped it slowly, and found myself holding a Firebolt 3.0, the newest and most expensive broom on the market. I turned it over in my hand gingerly and found my first name engraved in the handle. But not my last name. So I don't have to think about it?

"Y-you really didn't have t-to…" I choked as my eyes blurred with tears. I couldn't believe that anyone had gotten me a real present, especially not something so fancy. Maybe they really did care about me. My heart soared at that thought.

"We wanted to, Scorpius. Happy Christmas," Mr. Potter told me kindly as he pulled me into an embrace. I'd never felt safer than I did in his arms. I decided that I'd open the rest of my presents later. I was already overwhelmed by the first one. We continued talking in the Family Room for hours. I heard more family stories and played with the twins. Lily was right, they were adorable. Little Remus babbled as he tried to walk, and Jessica refused to leave Rose's arms. The moment was ruined by James, who grabbed my arm and literally pulled me to the stairs.

"Scorpius, your father's here," He told me in a complete panic. Father? What is he doing here? I'm supposed to be safe. "Let's go to my room. He won't find you there." I wondered why he cared, but decided not to question it.

He closed his door behind me and locked it with magic.

"He won't be able to get in. My dad set it up so that people can only get in if he, Mum, or I allow it. You're safe in here."

"Th-thanks J-James." He smiled sadly and motioned for me to sit on the bed, which I did. "Why… why'd you bring me in here?"

"I know what he did to you, Scorpius. He wants you to go back with him. I'm pretty sure that's just about the worst idea anyone's ever had."

"How'd you find out?" His cheeks redden a bit, and he breaks eye contact.

"Last night I… I went to Al's room to be obnoxious. I saw you with your shirt off. I was the biggest git on the planet, Scorpius. Do you want to talk about it? I mean, I'm sure you've told Al, but if you want to, I'd listen."

"He didn't used to be like this. When Mum was alive, he wasn't the nicest father, but he never did anything particularly bad. He didn't really show affection often, but I had Mum, so it was okay. She was… she is my favourite person in the world. I know it's childish, but I miss her so much."

"It's not childish, Scorpius, she's your mother. It's okay to miss her, healthy even. It sounds like she was a great person, and I'm so sorry she's gone."

"She was very sick when I started at Hogwarts, and she passed when I was at school. Father didn't even let me go to the funeral. He said that I had to keep up with my studies. When I came home for the summer, he was even more distant than usual. He'd begun drinking more, and started smacking me around a bit. By the time I left for Second Year, he'd beaten me a few times. Every time I saw him it got worse." I was surprised how coherent I was, and how distant it all felt, like it was another lifetime or something.

"He beat you when you were eleven," James muttered in disbelief, "What kind of monster beats his eleven-year-old son?" I smiled sympathetically. I'd sort of come to terms with it, but sitting in the Potter's house, I was rethinking that. It wasn't okay as I'd convinced myself it was.

"Yeah, he did. When I started taking Muggle Studies, it got much worse, but those beatings I understood. He'd wanted me to be like him, a blood purist. He was so disappointed with me when I was sorted, and Muggle Studies was an even stronger blow. For me it was a victory. I wasn't turning out like him, so maybe I'd end up differently. I wouldn't be a Death Eater, and I wouldn't abuse my future children. I could deal with the bullying at school. I mean, kids are cruel, and I was an easy target. I had some allies, like Lily, so it wasn't all bad. It was much worse at home. I mean, he's my father. He's supposed to love me and take care of me. I still don't understand why he didn't."

"It doesn't matter why, it just matters that he didn't treat you properly. Mum and Dad are going to the Ministry to get custody of you tomorrow. Maybe they'll even land your father in Azkaban. I hope they can, he deserves that and so much worse."

After a while, the door opened. I braced myself for the worst, but nothing happened.

"Scorpius, your father is gone. We're going to the Ministry tomorrow, and you're going to have to come with us. Is that okay?" Mr. Potter asked me gently. I nodded dumbly.

"We're going to make sure that he can't get you anymore. You're going to live here with us, and no one's ever going to hurt you again. I promise."

"Thank you, sir. I really appreciate all this."

"I know you do, Scorpius."