"Wait...Malfoy! Lil marries Scorpius Malfoy!" James exclaimed, even though he had suspected as much it still came as a shock to him. Keeping aside the rivalry between the two families he himself had seen the contempt with which his sister liked to treat the Malfoy heir with and that gave him pause.
And just as soon as the disbelief had set in he found himself amused at what was to happen. The three Malfoy children looked on warily as the eldest of the Potter brood broke down in hysterical laughter wiping tears from his eyes as he clutched at his stomach.
"You know this isn't as funny as you seem to be taking it..." Reggy commented drily at his Uncle.
"Oh but it is! You have no idea how amusing it really is..." James stuttered out in between bouts of laughter.
"And pray tell why you think so dear Uncle?"
Abigail's question brought him to the present and he pushed himself to sober up enough to reply, "I had once jokingly commented that they, as in Lily and Scorpius, bickered like an old married couple while at school...I paid dearly for that comment." And he trailed of remembering the consequences of irritating his baby sister.
"Bat bogey?" Terrence asked sympathetically.
James nodded, wide eyed not wanting to remember the horror of that, "Can you blame me? The moment the two met they just couldn't stop getting on each other's nerves! I remember thinking Scorpius was like one of those boys who pulled at girls' pig tails never realising that they only did it to get their attention because they liked them rather than the other way around. And well, Lily...Lils gave back just as good as she got. She never had learned to stand down. What with two older brothers who loved bossing her around...They have been fighting so long I can't believe they didn't just get married but had three kids..."
His body locked up as if caught in a spell, all his thoughts came to a standstill as he contemplated the last line he had just iterated. In his curiosity and excitement he had completely brushed aside the most important aspect of all this, eyes widening as the realisation finally settled in, a petrified James exclaimed, "Blimey! Lily is going to get married and have kids! Three kids!"
"Are you ok Uncle James?" Abby asked concern for the older man before her showing on her face.
James just turned to look at her with wonder in his eyes, as he gazed at the three teenagers another thought that he had seemed to have glossed over previously seemed to finally settle in, "I'm going to be an Uncle," he mumbled quietly, astonished at the turn of events life had suddenly taken. It was hard to imagine his sister with anyone, he had thought he would be hexing away any potential suitors to his baby sister but seeing the three children in front of him he found himself lost.
"Well yeah..." Regis replied awkwardly, shifting a bit to avoid his legs from going numb. The close quarters they all found themselves sitting in wasn't exactly the most comfortable of settings even if it was the most secure as it still remained unplotted by any and all inhabitants of the magical castle.
Their eyebrows furrowed in worry as they looked on while their Uncle processed all the information they had given him up until now. There was more to tell of course, since they hadn't even touched on how they landed here but they waited as James Potter mulled over all that had been revealed to him and digested it.
"Ok so how does it happen? How do they end up together when even three days ago they couldn't look at each other without throwing profanities around?" James asks snapping back to the moment at hand.
"Well..." The boys say together looking at their sister to continue that part of the conversation.
"A series of fortunate events," Abigail shrugs.
"Like what?"
"Like what happened at the pitch the other day of course..."
"Did you three have anything to do with that?"
All three looked at the other before turning back to the older man their eyes widening in a n expression of innocence he knew too well. James sighed, remembering the incident, honestly he had no idea how it would ever happen given that it took only a snitch for the two teenagers in question to hurl hexes at each other.
"We did do that but we really hadn't thought that that would set them off in the way it did," Abigail confessed. James looked at the three children at that wondering what exactly they meant by this. Seeing the questioning frown on her uncle's face Abigail continued, "We had planned a whole elaborate series of pranks; the snitch was just to get them annoyed at each other enough to not suspect anyone else but each other for the following events."
"What had you planned exactly?"
"It may have involved long lasting colouring charms, singing birds and flying paper snitches that may or may not have shouted the praises of their opponents every few seconds."
"It's almost a shame we didn't get to use any of that," Regis sighed pityingly, the other two siblings nodding along with disappointed frowns on their faces.
James stared wide eyed at the siblings; he could see the similarities between them and their parents now even more clearly than before. "You really are their kids..."
Returning her attention to her future uncle Abigail continued, "Mom always told us that dad and her never got on well together at school until his last year here...honestly though I hadn't thought it was this bad...but after seeing them this past month it's a wonder they ever got married...
What we do know clearly is that they start dating sometime before Christmas of Dad's seventh year and Mum's fifth, and it's just October now." A thoughtful frown took over her young features as she remembered something her mother had told her once, "She always did say that she had misjudged him all through his time at school."
"I agree...but Scorpius isn't blameless in this scenario, you know?" James pointed out.
"Yeah I know. Dad always said so too. He would say he hadn't really helped himself by doing stupid things just in an effort to impress mum."
"This story sounds like the love story of another couple I may have heard about..." James supplied.
"You mean Great Grandpa James and Great Grandma Lily don't you Uncle James?" Abigail asked. Out of all her family members she was a romantic at heart, more so than even her Great Grandma Molly. She had absorbed and held close to heart all the stories of love she heard in her family always dreaming and hoping that she would too get to experience the magic of love as so many of her family members had.
"Yeah, those very two...Looks like our Lily took after her namesake more than we had always believed."
"Yes well, right now though it's looking more and more impossible for us to be born," Regis griped.
"Oh dear future nephew, you need to learn the art of patience," James teased the younger boy ruffling his strawberry blond hair affectionately. "So tell me," James continued turning serious, "how did you three nuggets land here from..."
"2046."
"2046...?"
Lily Potter sat in the Great Hall on the morning of the second week of October. It had been four days since she had been given detention for her actions on the Quidditch pitch after the last game. She couldn't help but be grateful that she hadn't been expelled or worse cut from the team.
She didn't think she could have survived that, but then again it didn't seem like she would survive the punishment that had been meted out. Sighing quietly, the redhead chewed on her toast, her mouth moving mechanically as her eyes locked on the Slytherin table, staring straight at the reason for her morose mood. It didn't seem fair that the headmistress had stuck her with the arrogant pompous Head Boy indefinitely. Surely there were other ways to punish her egregious behaviour that did not involve her interacting with the handsome blonde.
"What about it Lilu? What's got your knickers in a twist this fine morning?" asked the bright eyed Head Girl as she slid in beside the fifth year. Everyone assumed that the red in her hair, and freckles were the only things that Rose Weasely had inherited from her father while everything else belonged to her mother.
The quiet Weasely cunning and mischievous glint in her eyes rarely showed itself and so went largely ignored by the general population, her family on the other hand knew better. She was a perfect mix of her loyal, adventurous father and her exacting, studious mother, which led to a deadly fearless mix.
The bushy haired girl looked at her younger cousin, sighing in irritation when she realised the red head hadn't heard a word she said as she followed her gaze to the Slytherin table. She wished the two would just get over it and finally snog. It would put her and the rest of the school out of their collective misery.
"Lilyyyyy," Rose called, leaning in close to the petite girl, irritated at being ignored for so long. She smiled as the red head startled from her thoughts frowning at her cousin in consternation.
"What?!"
"Looks like someone got up on the wrong side of the bed today..." Rose teased, heaping eggs, toast, bacon and pancakes on her plate Weasely style. Lily scrunched her nose at her older cousin, eyeing the girl warily, as she continued to smirk through her meal.
"What have you got up your sleeve Rose?"
"Nothing," the other girl replied widening her eyes and frowning innocently, Lily thought too innocently. "Merlin! I have the craziest family..." Lily muttered as she went back half heartedly to her breakfast.
"Oh Lily you know you're worse than the lot of us right?!" Rose asked laughing at the red heads sour expression. "So what is your schedule like today? I was wondering if we could get in some time to fly around before your Quidditch practice."
"You know I would love to Rose, I really would, but I'm stuck with Malfoy until then."
"Ooooh sounds exciting!"
"No it really isn't," Lily grumbled.
"What have you two been doing the past two days then?" Rose asked, her curiosity getting the better of her
"What McGonagall asked us to do..." Lily replied, stuffing her mouth with the remainder of her toast as she gulped down Pumpkin juice. Picking another piece of toast from the basket in front of her she proceeded to slowly butter it, careful to spread it evenly throughout.
"And that would be..."
Glaring at the older girl, Lily chomped down on her new piece of toast, "He helps me with Transfiguration and I'm helping him with his Head Boy duties," she said her mouth still full.
"Doesn't sound like much," her cousin answered her focus divided between the conversation and her plate as she cut through the mound of breakfast.
"No it isn't. But considering its Malfoy he makes everything a hundred times harder."
"Oh Lily he isn't that bad..." Rose sighed, looking up at her cousin, tired of this dance that the two teenagers had been a part of for as long as she could remember.
Her cousin's exasperated tone made Lily's insides flare with anger, "Why are you taking his side? I thought you were my cousin!"
Sighing Rose shook her head, dropping her knife and fork she turned to face the red head fully. She had had enough of this pointless rivalry, "Lily do you remember what was it that Malfoy did that you fight with him so much?" She asked matter-of-factly.
"Of course I do!"
Rose raised her eyebrows waiting patiently for her to continue, "He insulted Hugo and he called me...called me..." Lily frowned unable to remember verbatim what it was that Scorpius had said to her all that time ago on her first ride on the Hogwarts Express.
Shaking her head exasperatedly at her young cousin Rose continued, "See Lily. You don't even remember! It was a long time ago and it was so childish and inconsequential. The only reason you two still fight each other is because you're too stubborn to see he's changed."
"Yes but – "
"No Lily," Rose interrupts the redhead, glaring at her as she continues, "this has gone on for too long. This pointless hatred isn't helping you or him." Growling, Rose pulled a bit at her hair, unable to articulate how frustrating it was to see her cousin ignore the changes that the older boy had undergone for her. Taking a deep breath Rose exclaimed, "I'm going to ask you to do something and you're bloody well going to do it, understand?!" It was time to take matters into her hands.
Startled at the sudden attitude from her cousin Lily nodded silently, indicating for her to continue. Rose sighs quietly, closing her eyes she takes in a deep breath calming herself down; when she finally looks at Lily her eyes are filled with the familial love that the two have shared all their lives. Smiling sweetly with a pleading look in her eyes Rose says to her young cousin, "Please forget all that happened in the past, and try and get to know him as a new person. Believe me Lily you'll be surprised with what you see."
Surprised at the conviction in the older girls voice Lily quietly mulls over the odd request. It wasn't like her cousin to take sides; in fact just like her mother she prided herself in being a logical voice and providing arguments for two sides to consider when in a debate. Up until today, Rose had never commented on her dislike of the blond Slytherin, only rolling her eyes or sighing exasperatedly whenever she sought her cousin out to rant about the insolent, arrogant, pompous boy and comforting her when the stress got to be too much for the young girl to handle.
"Alright Rosie, if it's you asking I'll try," Lily replies. In reply her older cousin squeals in delight and hugs her briefly, earning a surprised laugh from the fifth year, before going back to her breakfast.