I'm super glad and happy and relieved that you all are liking this still! It's been quite a journey for Scorpius, and he's still got a ways to go. Hopefully this chapter helps him along! I hope you like it!

Scorpius added one final sentence to his Transfiguration essay before happily rolling up his parchment and sticking it in his bookbag. "Bloody heck, Scorpius, don't tell me you're already done with your homework for the weekened!" Albus said from across the commonroom. Scorpius blushed a bit. "N-No, that was the essay that's due next Tuesday. I was just getting ahead." he informed. Rose raised an eyebrow. "So…?" she egged on. The blonde boy blushed some more. "So that means I'm done with my homework for the weekend and all of next week too." he finished, earning a frustrated sigh from Albus. "How can you do that? How can you sit down and just decide that you're going to do all of your homework for the rest of your life in one night? Every time I try, I fall asleep, I get distracted, I doodle, I talk…and then I realize as I'm walking to class the next day that I didn't finish my essay that's due and I write it in ten seconds before the professor collects it!" he said. Rose shifted in her chair. "And that's also why Scorpius and I are the top two in our year, and you're lightyears away from reaching that." she calmly answered.

Albus plopped down on the sofa beside his new Gryffindor friend. "I meant to ask you—how was your aunt's wedding? I was going to say something sooner, but with the final Quidditch game of the year coming up and all the practices and stuff, it kept slipping my mind." he asked him. Scorpius smiled. "I really liked it. Everyone got together and we celebrated a wonderful bonding. It would've been perfect…if Nana hadn't thrown a champagne glass at Uncle Theo…" the boy said.

"Threw a champagne glass?! Whoa, what happened?!"

"Aunt Daphne announced that she was six months pregnant, and Nana didn't like that she was having a baby before getting formally married. So she threw the glass at him for doing that, even though it wasn't technically all his fault, and she was screaming stuff and getting mad."

"What did your parents do?"

"Mummy just put her head in her hands. Grandmother kept saying nice things to her, because Nana started shouting that Mummy knew and didn't tell, that she'd broken pureblood custom of anti-secrecy. Grandfather was attempting to keep himself from exploding—he doesn't like when Nana yells at his daughter-in-law. But Daddy took me for a walk in the gardens so I wouldn't have to get involved. It was very peaceful being with him, and he told me lots of stuff that sort of made me feel a little less burdened. When we went back in, Nana had gone from screaming at Aunt Daphne to screaming at Papa—apparently he'd told her to stop ruining the wedding. So Aunt Daphne cried and Uncle Theo yelled back, Nana and Papa were at war, Mummy was a thousand percent done with the fighting, and someone made Nana's cake explode on her plate."

"Your relatives like to break things, huh?"

"Apparently they do. I didn't know that, because I'd never actually met any of them outside my immediate circle. Personally, I think it was Grandfather. He wasn't so angry anymore, and he actually sat there with a smug little grin on his face as everyone tried to figure out why the slice had swelled and exploded everywhere. I bet he did it with his wand under the table."

"So how did it all end?"

"I'm not quite entirely sure that it did. Nana had to be escorted out, and Aunt Daphne went and cried in the bathroom. The dancing and stuff resumed but everyone sort of seemed on edge. Daddy wrote me today. He told me that Nana is still upset at Uncle Theo."

Rose's eyes were as wide as saucers, her jaw firmly set. "What a charming family," she said pointedly. Albus stuck his tongue out at her. "Every family's got 'em. The loonies, I mean. We have Aunt Fleur—she's not crazy, but you know how she constantly obsesses about Victoire even though she's practically a woman now, and I remember a certain little redheaded girl that used to cry over being fussed about so much because she wouldn't eat her vegetables…" he taunted. Rose reddened deeply. She stood up from her chair. "I'm going to bed now. Good luck tomorrow night, Albus, if I don't see you before then. Unlike you, I'll be doing my classwork diligently and earning a good grade." she bit, turning on heel and walking out of the commonroom towards the girls' dormitories. Albus laughed with a wave of his hand. "You going to be there tomorrow night, Scorpius? It's the last big Quidditch game of the year! We're playing Ravenclaw," he announced. Scorpius nodded eagerly. "I can't wait. I've never actually been to a Quidditch match, and rooting for a different team sort of encourages me to go. Will you still play Seeker?" he answered. Albus nodded. "Can't wait to see you there. I'll be sure to wave from my broom as I'm catching the Snitch. Watch for me! I'm going to head to bed now so I'm not tired. You coming too?" Scorpius followed him to their beds.

The next evening, Scorpius followed Rose, Lily, and Hugo to the Gryffindor seating section of the Quidditch pitch, where he was welcomed by a few whispers and pointing fingers. "Can you see from this seat, Scorpius?" Rose asked, pulling his attention away from a few sixth-years that were glancing uncomfortably at him. He craned his neck to see over the tall person in front of him. "I can see," he replied. Lily leaned back in her seat, beginning to unwrap a chocolate frog she'd brought from her room. "Hey! Where'd you get that?" Hugo asked her. "Dad sent it to me. I saved it specially for this match, as I'm quite an important spectator." she casually responded. Hugo reached towards her. "Share!" he demanded. Sighing, she split the chocolate in half to give to her cousin. The match began. As Regie Wallis started his commentary, the three redheads and the blonde cheered loudly when the names James Potter and Albus Potter were announced. Albus gave them all a thumbs-up. The moment the whistled was blown, both the Ravenclaws and the Gryffindors were up in the air, all fighting against Bludgers and wind and doing everything they could to protect the Quaffle from flying through the opposing goalpost.

Even though she would never admit it, Rose was on the edge of her seat throughout the entire match. Scorpius was eager for a win too—even though it had been his dream to play on a team, his parents promised him that they would not be upset if he just waited a few years to try out again. So winning now meant everything to him. He only wanted to play with the best. About halfway through the match, Scorpius heard his name being shouted. He looked around for the source. Two Hufflepuffs, three Ravenclaws, three Gryffindors, and four Slytherins were standing not too far from where he was sitting, in one of the stair walkways. One of them was Joseph Zabini. A Hufflepuff girl reached beneath her robes and pulled out a clear box. She lifted a long, slithering snake out. Zabini took the snake into his hands. He held it by the tail, nudging a Ravenclaw boy, who pulled a pair of scissors out of his sleeve. Scorpius paled. Why couldn't he look away? "Want some chocolate frog?" Lily asked him innocently—she didn't know what was going on. He shook his head, wanting her to just get that piece of food away from him before he got sick all over again. A Gryffindor boy took hold of the scissors while the Ravenclaw pulled the snake straight. "Get out of our House, you little snake!" the Gryffindor boy shouted. Zabini smirked. Scorpius gripped his seat when the red-and-gold boy positioned the scissors about the snake's head…

Wssssshhhhhhk!

Scorpius's eyes rolled back into his head and his entire body went limp. "Scorpius?!" Hugo shouted above the cheering Gryffindor section—apparently James had just scored a goal. A screaming, shrieking girl's voice pierced what little hearing the boy had left. He could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness quickly. Hands gripped his shoulders; he was pulled into a tight hug. Scorpius slightly opened his eyes in an attempt to stay awake—he couldn't look weak anymore. But the red hair he'd expected to see strung across his face was exactly the opposite. Instead, it was dark brown. "I'm sorry!" he heard the girl wailing. "I'm sorry, Scorpius!" This definitely wasn't Rose. He looked around through heavy-lidded eyes and saw the feisty redhead repeatedly punching and smacking a big tanned boy, who was laughing as he held the bloody snake body above his head and threatening to get her 'pretty little dress dirty'. Rose was relentless. She kicked, scratched, hit, screamed, everything. But who was this person that was hugging him so desperately? "I've failed you! I'm sorry I listened to them! I-I made a mistake! I'm sorry, Scorpius! I'm sorry!" she sobbed. Six teachers had to pull Rose away from Zabini—one confiscated the scissors, the body, the head. Another lead all twelve students away from the Quidditch pitch forcefully. "Scorpius, Scorpius talk to me. Tell me you can hear me. Please, Scorpius, just say something to let us know you're there!" the girl begged. Suddenly, he realized.

"C-C-C…Chri…ssy?"

The girl hugged him even tighter. "Yes! That's very good! Good, Scorpius, just stay with me, alright? The teachers are coming to get you. Just stay awake, ok? Keep talking to me! Keep saying my name!" she cried out. "C-Chrissy…" he whispered, more to himself than to her. She'd apologized. She'd come to his aid first. She admitted her faults. Professor Longbottom and Madam Pomfrey hurried up to Scorpius's seat, gently taking him in their arms. "Can you hear me, Mr. Malfoy?" the nurse asked. He nodded slightly. He was beginning to feel a little less lightheaded, which was good, but he knew if he sat up he'd have to face the Gryffindors behind him. Did they have the same sentiments regarding him as Zabini did that snake? Professor Longbottomr stroked his hair gently. "It's ok, Mr. Malfoy, you don't have to get up just yet. Just stay here on my lap, it's alright. Relax. You're very tense; take deep breaths, deep breaths…" he murmured softly. Madam Pomfrey waved her wand twice over the length of the boy's small body. "There you are, dear. I've cast a calming charm on you so you don't have to worry about any anxiety for the moment. Oh no, Scamander just got a bloody nose out on the field. Stay with him, Professor, I'll be back in a moment." she said as she bustled off to help the injured Quidditch player—one of the twins. Professor Longbottom kept Scorpius on his lap, encouraging him to only move if he felt ready. All the boy wanted to do was curl up in his arms and hide from the rest of the world.

It took several minutes to get Scorpius relieved enough to finally sit up. He was shaky and quite paled, but he pushed through—no more looking pitiful for him. Professor Longbottom gave him a proud smile. "There's my brave boy," he said comfortingly. Chrissy rubbed Scorpius's back as he eased onto his seat. The teacher patted his shoulder. "I'll be right back—I'm going to see if they took Rose into questioning. I reckon it would be best to tell her parents what happened before the school does. Save her from getting in too much trouble with her mum. Yell if you need anything, Scorpius." he said. The blonde boy nodded slowly. Chrissy stayed there, the only Slytherin in the Gryffindor section. A hand fell onto the back of Scorpius's head softly. "Here," a male's voice said. A seventh-year had conjured a cup of water and passed it to him from behind. "Take a few sips slowly until your stomach can hold it. You had quite a faint, there." he gently advised. Scorpius gratefully accepted the cup, but felt a little embarrassed. A second-year girl turned around in her seat. "Don't listen to those guys. It's not the end of the world if you're in with us." she told him. A fourth-year boy agreed aloud. Lily hugged him around the shoulders. Hugo would've too, but he couldn't pass up the opportunity to sneak the remaining piece of chocolate frog off her lap while she was preoccupied.

Suddenly, Scorpius felt a little proud. While he was still extremely embarrassed about fainting in front of the whole school, it felt a bit good to have so many people on his side. There were better kids out there than Joseph Zabini—ones that didn't care if Scorpius needed extra time to discover who he was. And they were making it known that they supported him. Two sixth-years, a boy and a girl, made their way down the stands to stop in front of Scorpius. "Don't you give those kids a second thought. The prefects will be all over this in a minute—each one from those kids' Houses won't waste any time in giving 'em what for. And you can bet Potter won't let it slide. He'll have the whole lot sent to Azkaban if they try to hurt his friend again! And we'll help!" they laughed. Scorpius felt himself smile. "What a fighter that Rose Weasley is turning into!" a fifth-year girl exclaimed. "She was on those fools in a heartbeat! It's like she didn't even care about detention! So unlike her!" Even though it was true, the girl did take on a tone of pure adoration. Hugo stood up and waved around. "That was my sister! She's a real pistol, that girl! That's my sis!" he proudly announced. Scorpius grinned. Maybe more Gryffindors were on his side than he thought. Chrysanthemum Creevey took Scorpius's hands in hers. "You're none of the things they say," she murmured sadly, tears brimming in her eyes. "And I'm going to do everything I can to show the school that. I am Head Journalist after all. I'll show everyone how great you are." she promised. Scorpius blushed. He wasn't looking for that—he just wished people understood him a little better. But as long as Chrissy was happy with him…did anything else matter?

The match ended up with a win for Gryffindor, and as Albus caught the Snitch, he gave Scorpius a wave as promised. The red-and-gold clad students whooped with excitement at their championship win, all shouting out their favorite players' names in congratulations. All of the Quidditch players landed and dismounted their brooms. The Gryffindors were enveloped in jubilant cries—everyone screamed out who was the most heroic throughout the match. "POTTER!" Hugo roared. "Both Potters!" Lily added in mild correction. "Yeah Cormack!" another girl shouted.

"Jones!"

"Finch-Fletchy is number one!"

"Shernicky—the best Beater!"

"Weasley," Scorpius whispered, the first word he was able to speak after his fainting scare. She hadn't come directly to his aid, she hadn't screamed and cried out for help. Instead, she went straight to the source of the problem, and took care of it while he couldn't do it himself—for that, she was his hero. He didn't want to be anything more than friends with her, and he knew she felt the same about him. But their friendship had strengthened in one instant; it went from friendly rivalry to backup. He was grateful to her. Scorpius glanced up at Chrissy, who was smiling tenderly at him. He wrapped his arms around her neck one more time, and held on a bit longer than he did before. This was new. He liked this. He liked Chrissy.