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Zeph tore through her closet, nervous for dinner with the Potters. Her music was on, in attempts to calm her, but it wasn't working. She continued to stress as Daughter played in the background of her stress. She was unsure of pants, skirt, or a dress. She threw on a nice turtle neck, and long skirt. She left her hair down as she went out to ask her mother how the 5th outfit looked. Opening her door to find her mother, she saw Scorpius.
"What are you wearing?" she demanded. He gave her a quick up and down, and laughed t himself.
"What are you?" he asked. He smiled at his sister's apparent frustration. He wasn't at all happy about going to the Potters, but his mother and convinced him to go. She reminded him that if he ever went into politics he'd have to learn how to be around people he didn't like without offending them.
"Just something appropriate for the occasion."
"You're right it is appropriate…" Zeph felt a little bit better for a moment "What time are you getting back from the Salem Witch trials again?" he teased, receiving a swift punch from his sister.
"Not funny." She whined.
"This time, I agree that you should change again" he said, his smirk growing with his sisters annoyance.
"Yea well you need to change to." She said, serious.
"Why?" Scorpius retorted. He looked down at his clothing. He was wearing black slacks, a white button down, and his tie.
"Can't you be dressy casual?" she sighed.
"There's no dress requirement, besides" he smiled proudly "I look good."
"Just because there is no dress requirement doesn't mean there isn't one!" Socrpius stared, a confused look on his face at his sister. "You are half dressy half casual, that way if everyone is dressed up you don't look casual, but if they are casual, you don't look to dressy."
He still stared. "That doesn't explain dressy casual at all." She stomped.
"Just do it!" she walked into her room slamming the door.
"I don't know what dress casual is." He paused. "Hell I don't know what casual is." He heard his sister release a loud groan of annoyance, and smiled to himself. At least the evening wasn't a complete waste of time.
Zeph sat in her room, letting the music play loudly as she changed yet again. She was stressed. She normally didn't get stressed for trifling things like dinners, but this it made her stomach flip. She liked Albus, she liked Albus a lot and she wanted to make a good impression on his family. She knew they had their differences, but everyone was being mature. Standing there bare, she searched her closet for something that would make a good impression. There was a knock at the door. Zeph quickly threw on a robe.
"Come in." she shouted so that she could be heard over the music. Her mother walked into the room and pointed her wand at Zeph's music, turning it down drastically.
"Still searching?" she said sympathetically sitting on the floor next to Zeph's closet. Zeph nodded.
"I don't want to look like a tart, but I also don't want to look like a Puritan…" she sighed, sitting next to her mother on the floor. She pushed back Zeph's bangs with her hand.
"I'm sure you have something in between in that black hole you call a closet" her mother smiled at her. "Now what are you really worried about?"
Zeph exhaled slowly as she looked down at the ground. "What if they don't like me?"
"Why wouldn't they like you?" her mother asked, softly rubbing her daughters shoulder.
"Because, I'm just…" she paused "I bet they loved Jillian. She had pretty curls in her hair, and was always pleasant to the people she liked, and was a Gryffindor, and she-"
"Who's Jillian?" her mother pried. Zeph felt uncomfortable going into that part of her feelings, but she told her mother anyway.
"Albus' long time ex-girlfriend." Zeph said grudgingly.
"Oh," her mother said, getting the Jillian comments now.
"I couldn't be the more the opposite of her." Zeph mumbled.
"Zeph," her mother said sternly "You are wonderful, and they will like you. You are smart, and funny, and interesting. You can't compare yourself to someone else, because you are you." She smiled "You aren't Jillian, you are Zeph, just be yourself." She let her words sink into Zeph. "Besides, I don't know anyone who doesn't like you."
"Jillian doesn't."
"Well Jillian's jealous." Her mother answered matter-of-factly. Zeph smiled at her mom.
"Thanks."
She hugged her daughter and got up. "Don't worry, it'll be fine, just get ready so we can go." Zeph, once alone, was again faced with her closet. She sighed.
Albus buttoned up his shirt, clumsily. He skipped a button. Releasing a groan he went to do it all over again. He was feeling uneasy, what with the Malfoys so close to arriving in his home.
The strange thing was, this wasn't his first time meeting Zeph's family, except for her mother. He had known Scorpius since first year, and the two, while they weren't constantly at each other's throats, they held no fondness for each other, in any way, what so ever. They kept to their own lives, Zeph, and quidditch being the only two links. Now Mr. Malfoy, he had only met once. He seemed reasonable enough, attempting to be somewhat talkative to his daughter's boyfriend, but Albus' mind skipped to a different memory Mr. Malfoy. He recalled the look in Mr. Malfoy's eyes when his father had insulted his children. There was something vicious and sharp there, that let Albus know, Mr. Malfoy was not at all docile. Mrs. Malfoy he knew very little about, only that she was very selfless and that she was close with the Bianchi's.
Thinking about the Malfoys, he wondered silently to himself, why he wanted to badly to impress them, but the answer only took a second. Zephyr Malfoy.
He found himself thinking about topics to bring up, questions to ask, ways to keep Lily from saying something rude. Of course that had been settled, her mother decided to also invite Lily's boyfriend. She'd be somewhat nicer with him around. Albus winced. He forgot about James. There was no knowing if James would pull a stunt, a joke, do something offensive or embarrassing. How would he stop it? Then, the answer came to Albus.
"Kreacher" he whispered. There was a loud crack, and a wrinkly old house else appeared in the room.
"Master Albus…" he croaked, diving into a low bow "called Kreacher?"
"I need your help Kreacher." The house elf looked up expectantly "I need you to go snoop through James' stuff."
"Master James…?"
"People are coming over for dinner tonight" he explained "and I'm worried James is going to pull a prank, I need you to look through his room for anything suspicious and bring it here."
"Master Albus, wishes for Kreacher, to steal from Master James?" Kreacher said uncomfortably.
"It's not stealing it's preventing." Albus tried to comfort Kreacher. Kreacher didn't seem entirely convinced, but gave a quick bow.
"Kreacher will return shortly" and with a loud crack, he apparated.
Albus waited, still anxious for the dinner, he went to go brush his teeth for the third time that night. He spat, releasing a bit of the tension, but not much. There was a crack in the other room. Albus sped into the room.
"What did you find?" he asked.
"Kreacher didn't find much, no he didn't." he sighed "Kreacher found a box of puking pastels, and Master James' cloak."
Albus took the puking pastels, having expected as much, but looked at the cloak curiously.
"Thank you Kreacher." Albus said, the elf smiling at a job well done.
"Is that all Master Albus needs of Kreacher? Kreacher needs to help Mistress Potter in the kitchen." he said in his dry voice.
"No that's it. Thanks Kreacher." Albus said dismissing the house elf who disappeared with a crack.
Albus sat on his bed, letting the silky, fluid fabric run through his fingers. It was strange to his touch, and almost airy. He draped it around his body, wondering why his brother had it, and even more so why Kreacher bought it. Albus looked down, down at the floor. His body was gone. He jumped back, dropping the cloak and he appeared. He lifted it up ginergly, testig it on and off his body.
No wonder James had it. Albus bet Kreacher saw him use it loads of times pulling pranks. Then it clicked, so many pranks the James had pulled on Albus… that Albus didn't understand why they happened. So maybe this one wasn't going back he thought as he stuffed it in his drawer.
Albus sighed, when he heard a ring at the door. They were here.