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CHAPTER FOURTEEN:Missing Relatives

Albus made his way quietly along the landing to where he could see a faint glow underneath the door. He'd checked the other rooms as he'd passed them and was sure that everyone else in the house was asleep. The rest of the family were obviously content: His father was happy with Aunt Hermione, James was probably still gobsmacked by the kiss Emily had given him and Lily had been bouncing off the walls enough to tire herself out as usual. Which just left one person.

Albus knocked on the door, waited for a moment, then cautiously pushed it open. Hugo was lying on his side in bed, reading a Herbology textbook. Albus glanced around the bedroom, taking in the Quidditch posters, the old family photos of Hugo with his sister and his parents and a rather large picture of a popular witch band that he couldn't imagine Hermione being too happy about her son idolising.

"Can't sleep?"Albus asked lightly.

Hugo shrugged. "They say it's like that when you're not used to the bed."

"You were here at New Year,"Albus reminded him. Hugo just shrugged in reply. "At least you don't have to share a room with me this time."

Hugo managed a slight smile. "Yeah, that's true."

Albus sat down on Hugo's trunk and looked at his cousin with concern. "Guess it can't be easy being here without Rose."

Hugo gave up the pretense of reading. "It's all right for you, you've got all your family here."

"Your mum's here,"Albus reminded him.

"But Dad isn't! You don't understand…" Hugo suddenly stopped, realising who he was talking to. They lapsed into silence for a moment. "Do you miss your mum?"Hugo asked at last.

Albus nodded. "All the time. We all do. I guess it's different for us, we can't go back. So having a new family doesn't feel as bad."

Hugo thought about this. "Mum and Dad aren't getting back together, are they?"

"I don't think they are, no. I think…"

"You think she loves Uncle Harry." Hugo bit his lip slightly. "Me too."

"On the plus side, it means you get me as a big brother,"Albus pointed out. Hugo smiled at that. Albus got to his feet. "I'd get some sleep. You might need some energy for tomorrow."

Rose had woken up in quite possibly the biggest bed she'd ever seen. She still hadn't quite got over the shock of arriving at Malfoy Manor. She'd visited the Riddle family home the previous year, when she and her friends had been captured by Rodolphus Lestrange's Death Eaters, but this was even bigger. The shock was compounded further by the presence of half a dozen servants, one of whom had actually offered to help her get dressed. She'd politely declined the young woman, before putting one of the dresses she'd brought with her on and heading downstairs.

One of the manservants directed her into the dining room where she found Scorpius waiting. He seemed to be dressing much more smartly at home than he did at Hogwarts, which left her feeling slightly underdressed. He was standing next to one of three places set up at one end of the long table. "We're waiting for Mum,"he explained.

Rose nodded. "Is she making breakfast?"

Scorpius tried to cover up his surprise at the question but failed. "No, Martha does that. She's one of the servants,"he added, noticing Rose's curious look. "She's related to the Bulstrodes, about four generations back."

It seemed that everything Rose discovered about this world surprised her. "All the servants are witches and wizards?"

Scorpius nodded. "Most of the servants nowadays are from families who've been servants to purebloods for generations. They're all descended from purebloods if you go back far enough but their ancestors married half-bloods and so it was the only way the stricter houses would let them stay with the families. The stable manager's a distant cousin of mine, we've got the same great-great-great-great-grandparents or something."

Rose looked awkward. "They're not going to make me clean the floors, are they? I mean, they know my mum's muggle-born…"

Scorpius gave a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, no-one believes that anymore." He hesitated. "At least, most people don't."

They were interrupted by the appearance of Astoria, who greeted her house guest with a smile. "Good morning, Rose. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, thank you, Mrs. Malfoy." Rose had been slightly intimidated by Astoria when first meeting her but the older woman had been nothing but pleasant towards her and towards everyone else in the house, which had caused her to relax a bit. "You have a nice house."

"Well, it's not exactly mine, but it'll all be Scorpius' some day." Astoria gestured them to sit as two servants entered levitating their meals, which landed neatly on the mats in front of them. She glanced at Scorpius. "By the way, I've been talking to your grandfather again about dissolving the marriage bond between your father and I. He's spoken to the elders and they're confident that your father's use of an Unforgiveable Curse will mean there are no problems."

Scorpius gave the same awkward, downcast look that Rose gave every time someone mentioned her own parents' separation. "Yes, Mum,"he said quietly.

"So we'll soon be rid of that lot,"Astoria concluded. "And all the better for it."

Her tone was light but Rose was shocked all the same. Her parents had never spoken about each other like that in her hearing and, looking at the hurt expression on Scorpius' face that his mother seemed oblivious to, she was suddenly very grateful for that. Because like Scorpius, whatever had happened, she realised she still loved both of them.

Albus and Hugo were tucking into their bowls of cereal in the kitchen when Lily came bounding in. "Hugo, Hugo! Dad says we can have a go on the Quidditch pitch today! He even says he'll play with us. You didn't get a chance at Christmas so you need to have a go now." She suddenly seemed to notice her brother was there. "Um, you can play too, Albus."

"What about James?"Albus asked.

Lily pulled a face. "He's in the front room talking with Emily over the floo network."

Albus rolled his eyes. "He only saw her yesterday."

"So will you, Hugo?"Lily continued.

Hugo had never been as energetic as his cousin but he found her enthusiasm infectious. "When can we start?"

"As soon as you get changed."

Hugo hurried through the last of his breakfast and ran for the stairs. He was back down in five minutes, when he ran into Harry and Hermione in the hallway. "I hear you're joining us,"Harry noted.

Hugo nodded before turning to Hermione. "Are you playing, Mum?"

Hermione winced. "I'm still a walking bruise from the last time." Hugo's face fell slightly and Hermione smiled. "But maybe you can show me a few pointers."

Hugo grinned and took his mother's hand.

"We'll be buying you your own broom at this rate,"Harry told her.

Rose was used to a large garden. Her grandparents' place was fairly secluded, as was the house where she'd lived with her parents and where her father still lived. And from the little time she'd spent there at New Year, her mother and Uncle Harry seemed to have got somewhere equally remote. But none of them compared to the expansive grounds of the Malfoy residence.

She'd been walking for five minutes when she came across Scorpius sat on some steps. He was looking oddly miserable and for a moment she considered pretending she hadn't seen him and leaving him to his privacy. In the end, she smoothed down her dress and sat down next to him. "Is this about your parents getting a divorce?"she asked. He shrugged slightly. "I understand, I mean, it's hard hearing my parents talking like that…"

"You still see both your parents,"Scorpius pointed out.

"Yes,"she admitted.

Scorpius was silent for a moment. "I miss my dad,"he said at last. "I know he did some bad stuff but still…I miss him."

"You can visit him surely?"

Scorpius nodded back at the house. "Mum wouldn't agree."

"Have you ever asked her? I can back you up if you'd like." She took a deep breath. "I could even go with you if you're worried about going on your own."

Scorpius looked at her in surprise. "Would you?"

In truth, the thought of going to Azkaban, a prison whose name still inspired a great deal of fear despite the conditions having been improved in the last twenty years, struck a large amount of fear in Rose's heart. But she didn't tell Scorpius that. She just nodded.