Saturday evening

the dungeons

Ginny and James entered Professor Fawley's classroom to find both the professor and Lily inside.

"Lily!" Ginny said in delight. "Hello, pixie."

"Hi, Mum."

Lily returned her hug, even leaned into it, and Ginny took solace in the reassurance that at least one of her children still liked her.

"What are you doing here?"

"Professor Longbottom gave us your notes, and I knew James had detention tonight, so I thought this would be a good place to meet. It's just around the corner from my common room, so if anyone sees me coming or going, they won't think anything about it."

Liked her, but didn't want to be seen with her. Ginny smothered a sigh and reminded herself she'd behaved the same way at thirteen.

Professor Fawley set James to scrubbing cauldrons at the back of the classroom, and the witches sat down to a nice mother-daughter gossip session. Ginny was just thinking the only thing missing was a tray of tea and biscuits when one appeared on the professor's desk, and he carried it over to them. Lily smiled at her teacher, who smiled back. Reassured by this demonstration of goodwill between her daughter and her Head of House, Ginny thanked the professor and began to pour as he returned to his office off the classroom. She learned that Lily's lessons were going well (with her current favorite being the unicorns in Care of Magical Creatures), admired the flower button pinned to her daughter's lapel (that had once been an oak leaf and now shimmered in shades of green, silver, and purple), and discovered that all the Slytherins wanted to know if she knew where the Chamber of Secrets was.

"What? How do they know about that?"

Lily rolled her eyes and popped another sugar biscuit into her mouth. "Everyone's been checking out Rita Skeeter's Harry: The Hogwarts Years. I keep telling them it's not nice to remind someone of almost being eaten by a great giant snake, but all the boys think it's really cool."

Ginny opened her mouth to say that Slytherins were not known for being nice, then remembered she and Harry had vowed not to rag on Slytherin House after Lily was Sorted there.

But damn, it was hard.

Not to mention hearing the Chamber of Secrets tossed out like that. Lily still knew only the censored version: Ginny had been tricked by a boy called Tom into entering the Chamber, and Harry and Ron had gone to save her from the basilisk.

"So, do you?"

Ginny returned her attention to her daughter. "Yes, I do. No, I cannot get in, and no, I would not show you if I could." She took a sip of tea and asked the next question as casually as possible. "Have you read Skeeter's book?"

Lily made a rude noise. "Please. I already know more than anybody else, and anyway, it's not just Dad. Even Aunt Hermione doesn't like Rita Skeeter's books. I mean, if Aunt Hermione can't be bothered, why should I?"

Ginny laughed. "Oh, Lils, I've really missed you."

Lily smiled and took a drink of her own tea. "How long are you staying?"

Ginny's face fell and she glanced to the back of the classroom, where James was now scrubbing the gargoyle faucets with a toothbrush. "That," she said rather grimly, "depends on your brother."

"Good, you'll be here for the first Quidditch match then."

"I don't think I can stay until November."

"But it's not November! We're having an inter-house scrimmage three weeks from now, and I'm Seeker for Slytherin and Gryffindor," she said proudly.

"That's gr—wait, for Slytherin and Gryffindor?"

"Uh-huh." Lily nodded eagerly. "Snakes and lions versus badgers and eagles. It's going to be epic!"

Ginny was so shocked that she fell back on her standby reporter question. "What are your thoughts on the upcoming match?"

"Everyone's super-excited, and nobody can say that James picked me because I'm his sister because the captains agreed on special tryouts—twice the players for the positions available, you know, because the teams are combined—"

Ginny nodded dumbly, still stuck on the idea of Gryffindor and Slytherin playing Quidditch together. It was like—like—like a wizard playing for the Harpies. It just wasn't done!

"—and I caught the Snitch before Holly did."

That would be Holly Jordan, Gryffindor's Seeker for the third year. Ginny's professional experience in sorting and processing players and teams was starting to kick in.

"So who else is Chaser besides James?"

"Burton and Derrick."

She nodded again. Bradley Derrick was in James's year and a versatile player, having once switched position to Keeper to cover injuries for the Slytherin team.

"Freddie and Miles as Beaters—you don't know him, he's new this year—"

Ginny filed this information for future reference.

"And Hugo is Keeper. Four Gryffindors and three Slytherins," Lily added. "That's why the captains agreed on special tryouts, because it's impossible to do equal numbers from each house. The 'Claws and 'Puffs aren't as evenly split, though."

Ginny's brain was finally catching on to the most important implication of this news. "This means I can cheer for you and James at the same time!"

"You always cheer for me and James at the same time. We play different positions."

"Thank Merlin. But this time a win for one of you will be a win for both of you."

Lily beamed. "I know. Cool, huh? It was James and Hugo's idea, and they got Louis behind it as Head Boy. None of the four teams really stand out this year, and they thought it would be a good way to generate interest in the matches and promote inter-house unity at the same time."

"If that's the case, why not mix the teams up completely? Have members from all four houses on each team?" Now that she had got over her initial shock, the strategy of the idea was quite intriguing.

"Because the strong players and the weak players are different positions in most of the houses, and we wouldn't be evenly matched," Lily explained. "James and Derrick weren't thrilled about co-captaining, but this split makes for the best teams. Please say you'll stay that long!"

"Well, even if I'm not still here, I'll come back for the scrimmage," Ginny promised. "It will be between the pro exhibitions and the first League matches."

"Now that," Lily said with a grin, "was my idea. Have an entertaining event during a lull in the season, keep the fans interested, and maximize press coverage."

Ginny gave her a high-five. "That's my girl."

()()()()

Sunday morning

the Great Hall

Ginny stood up and waved with both arms. "Jamie! Jamie, over here!"

James looked like he was considering making a run for it, so Ginny stepped up onto the bench and waved more vigorously.

She was starting to really like Cameron Davies. Any kid that would stick with a friend whose mother was acting this ridiculous deserved an award.

"You don't mind, do you, Cameron?" Ginny sidestepped him and pulled James down beside her. "Here you go. I have your plate all ready." She slid the plate with eggs, toast with a light layer of marmalade, and bacon in his direction. "Tea or juice?"

"I'll get it." His voice was barely audible.

"No, let me. Pumpkin juice?" She poured a glass without waiting for his nod. "Eat up. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." She countered James's glare with her brightest "mothers know best" smile and returned to her own breakfast. If James had found her behavior offensive so far, he was in for a surprise today. Ginny was tired of being ignored. He was a smart kid; he'd cotton on.

"What are we doing today?"

James shrugged.

"Quidditch?" she said hopefully.

He shook his head.

"Why not?" He hadn't played yesterday, either. "Neville said practice had started. Isn't there one this weekend?"

He shook his head again, swallowed, and said, "Homework."

Ginny raised one brow. "Didn't you finish your Potions last night?"

"But I still have Herbology, Charms, and DADA."

Ginny snuck a bite of bacon. "Well, why don't you get your books, and we can work outside?"

"Too cold."

She frowned. Did he want to spend another day shut up in Gryffindor Tower?

"Let's go." He had bolted down his breakfast and was already making his way down the table, Cameron following with a stack of bacon sandwiches.

Ginny took a last gulp of tea and trotted after them. Boys and their long legs—she could just see their cloaks whipping around the corner at the top of the marble staircase. She crossed the Entrance Hall to the location of a hidden staircase the DA had used in her sixth year. She climbed it, cut through a passageway, and caught up with the boys on the fourth floor. She looped her arm around James's and hung on tightly.

"Don't want to lose you again, do I?"

Ginny spent the rest of the day being as annoying and obnoxious as possible. She straightened James's collar, ruffled his hair, scolded him for the dirt on his schoolbag and the scuffs on his shoes, looked over his shoulder to correct his spelling, and generally treated him as if he were six years old again. When she tried to cut his meat at lunch, even Cameron gave up, shooting James an apologetic look and turning to chat with Nate instead. Every so often, Ginny smiled in Al's direction just for the pure pleasure of seeing him blanch and turn away. It was nearly tea time when James announced he had another detention.

Ginny followed him through the castle and waited as Padma Patil Goldstein set him up with a stack of first- and second-year papers.

"Knock on the door when you've finished marking those, Potter."

"Yes, Professor."

Ginny ruffled his hair again on her way past, felt the scorching glare between her shoulder blades, and entered Padma's private quarters.

Neville met her with a glass of wine. "How's it going?"

Ginny took it gratefully and sank down into a chintz chair with a sigh. "He hates me."

"He doesn't hate you," Neville and Padma said together.

"No, I think he does."

"You were pretty embarrassing at breakfast," Padma said.

"I was tired of being ignored. I'm perfectly willing to work out some arrangement to make this less awkward for both of us, but he won't even speak to me. I knew he wasn't going to like me coming up here, but it's like he was angry with me before I even showed up, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to have done."

"When did it start?" Padma said, sitting down across from Ginny.

She thought back. "When his O.W.L. results were posted in the Prophet. Harry and I both threw a fit, but the damage was already done."

"They were perfectly respectable O.W.L.s," Neville said.

"We couldn't have been more pleased. But the fact remains that of all the fifth- and seventh-years who sat their exams last year, only James's marks were printed, and Harry and I made enough noise that Al's and Lily's probably won't be. And James's marks may well be the best of the three, but no one will know because his were the only ones made public, so he gets shafted twice. I used to think Bill was exaggerating when he said he had it the hardest as the oldest child, but it is different." Ginny took another drink. "Harry and I do our best to treat them fairly, but we expect more of James. I know we do."

"Why do you think that set him off?" Padma said. "He's received special treatment before, and as Neville said, they were good marks."

Ginny flung her hands out. If she had not already drank most of her wine, it would have spilled. "I have no idea! I keep trying to get him alone so we can talk, but he won't go anywhere with me. He doesn't want to play Quidditch, he doesn't want to walk around the lake, he doesn't even want to revise in the library." She blinked at the remains of her glass.

"I can explain that," Neville said. "McGonagall confined him to Gryffindor Tower except for lessons and meals. And detentions, of course."

"What?"

"She cancelled Quidditch practice for a week and suspended his prefect duties until further notice, and she made James tell the team and the other prefects."

"But why didn't he tell me? I could have—"

"Maybe that's the point," Padma said. "Maybe he doesn't want you fighting his battles for him."

"I'm his mother!"

"I know, Ginny," Padma said soothingly. "But maybe he's upset by the—the attention you draw. Or that he draws as your son. Forgive me, but nobody cares about James's O.W.L. results. They care about Harry and Ginny Potter's son's results."

"But I can't help that." Ginny spoke through gritted teeth. "We are who we are and it just is."

"You know teenagers." Padma grinned. "Always thinking they can change the system. James comes by that honestly on both sides."

"I reckon so."

"I know so," Neville said firmly. "What have you told him about the war?"

"More than Lily," Ginny admitted. "But … not everything."

"Maybe you should," Neville said. "Share some of the things that happened during your sixth year."

Ginny twirled the stem of her goblet, staring at the sheen of claret in its center. "Ever since that first lunch, I can't sit on the near side of the Gryffindor table. I can't eat with my back to the Slytherins—it gives me the creeps. I kept glancing over my shoulder, and then I would see Lily, and—" She swallowed.

Padma squeezed her hand. "It was hard for all of us, coming back."

"I did it seventh year," Ginny said stubbornly.

"That was years ago. Being here probably brings up old memories you haven't thought of in a long time," Padma said.

"Talk to James, Ginny," Neville said. "I'll speak to McGonagall about letting him out of Gryffindor Tower if he's with you."

"No, don't," Ginny said. "Padma's right. That will make him more angry—he'll think I'm arranging special treatment. I'll—I don't know. I'll think of something."

"Talk to him now," Padma said. "I was planning on having him work on his DADA homework when he gets done with those papers. Neville and I will clear out and leave you two alone."

"Thanks, Padma."

"A well-behaved James is in all our best interests."

When Ginny returned to the classroom, James's voice was acid. "Tired of talking about me?"

She sat down at the table next to his. "I thought maybe we could talk, just the two of us, without any of your friends around."

He flipped a few pages in his textbook. "Unless you're telling me you're leaving, I'm not interested."

"Jamie, what—"

"And stop calling me that!" he shouted, shoving his quill into the ink pot so hard she heard the tip snap. "I'm not a baby!"

"You're doing a fine imitation of it!" Ginny glared back at him but relented first. "I don't want to fight with you. Please, will you tell me why you're so angry with me? I think it's about more than me being here."

He pressed his lips together and said nothing, digging in his bag for another quill.

"I can't apologize or fix it if you don't tell me what it is," she coaxed.

"I don't need you to fix everything." He cast an Impervius Charm on the broken quill so it wouldn't drip all over the desk, then banished it to the bin. "I'm not a little kid anymore, Mum."

Ginny looked at her son, really looked at him. He was taller than she (he had been for a few years) and broad-shouldered, a little stockier than Harry had been at that age. Sixteen. When Harry was sixteen, he'd been researching Horcruxes with Dumbledore. When she was sixteen, she'd been tortured for her participation in a resistance movement. James's dark hair was slightly mussed, as if he'd tried to finger-comb it, and the faintest shadow of stubble lined his jaw. No, not a baby, or even a boy—young man, she corrected herself. Her oldest child, the first baby she'd ever carried inside, was nearly grown. She swallowed hard.

"All right," she agreed, grateful she had vetoed Neville's idea to speak to McGonagall. "Then tell me what the problem is."

He scowled but accepted the challenge. "You're making it all worse. Al, Louis, Hugo—even Lily. The whole family is treating me like I have spattergroit, and everyone else wants to be my friend just to meet you. It's embarrassing. Why can't you just go home and let me do my detentions and—and everything? Nobody else's mum comes to Hogwarts when they get in trouble."

"Nobody else put six people in the hospital wing," Ginny retorted.

"That was an accident!"

"I certainly hope so!"

"You didn't give me a chance," James said. "Your said you would come up here if I did anything else, but I'd already played the prank on McGonagall when I got the Howler. It wasn't fair." He crossed his arms.

"Neville said he'd been cutting you as much slack as he could, and you admitted there were incidents I don't know about. You know good and well we don't tolerate anything that could hurt other people, and you had to know we would never approve of you pranking Professor McGonagall. For Godric's sake, James, your father wanted to come up here and yank you out of bed himself! Then he was going to send a Patronus, and when I convinced him not to do that, he wanted to send a Howler. I had to give the parchment to Hermione to hide! If he knew the way you have been treating me over the last three days, he would be here. Don't sit there and pretend you're unjustly accused. If we've received one letter since you started Hogwarts, we've received a hundred. This is just—just—misbehavior one hundred and one!"

"You won't let him do that, will you?" James said anxiously. "You'll make sure Dad doesn't come up here?"

"That's up to you. You have the power to keep your dad at home, and you have the power to send me back there. But running away and mouthing off is not going to do it."

He considered this. "Still, will you not tell him about this weekend?"

"Your dad and I don't keep secrets. You know that." James's face fell. "But I can downplay it, okay?"

He smiled at her for the first time since—since forever.

"Do me a favor?" Ginny said.

"What?"

"Stop taking the stairs two at a time. My legs are too short."

a/n: Surprise! I had a few really nice comments about my least favorite chapter (three), so I thought I'd post early. Also, any thoughts on update day? Is Wednesday still good or are weekends better? I know school's out (at least here) and people are involved in summer activities.

Unless I'm much mistaken, "pixie" as a nickname for Lily Luna comes from the wonderful My Dear Professor McGonagall, who is back from sabbatical abroad. Welcome home, Lucy!