"Please James! I really need it!" James cocked his head and pretended to think for a couple seconds.
"Not happening." He returned to his Transfiguration essay.
"Please!"
"Al, I'm not going to change my mind in two seconds, so I'd stop hoping."
"You know," Al snapped, "I could always tell dad you have it!" James slowly raised his head, one eyebrow raised in amusement.
"Al," James drew out the words slowly, savouring his enjoyment, "You think he doesn't already know?" Al blinked. James shook his head in mock disappointment.
"You think Harry Potter didn't notice when his cloak of invisibility disappeared?"
"Well…"
"He wanted me to find it. He and mum are hiding a lot of things, things even I can't find. He wasn't even trying to hide it."
"Wow. Even you can't find them." Al grumbled sarcastically.
"It was right on his desk in the study. He went back in an hour after I left. He's Head Auror Al. I don't think it took him more than half a second to realize where it went. If he wanted it back, he easily could have taken it back. He wanted me to have it."
"He wanted us to have it!"
"If you want, you can go tell him I'm not letting you use it to sneak out after hours."
"James, what do you need it so much for tonight anyway?"
"Fred and I are sneaking into the kitchens."
"What?" Al sputtered, "James, I need it for something really important, and you won't give it to me because you want to get a midnight snack?!"
"Well what do you need it for?" Al hesitated.
"Uh…I, well…can't you just give it?" James glanced upwards, meeting Al's desperate emerald eyes.
"Not until you tell me what you're using it for."
Al sighed. He quickly glanced in either direction before leaning forward.
"I need to sneak into the Headmistress's office." Al whispered. James stared at him. Then he burst out laughing.
"It's not funny!" Al smacked James's shoulder. "I'm serious James!"
"Al," James struggled between gasps, "I know first year can be hard, but I don't think suicide will solve your problems!" Al exhaled in frustration.
"Fine. Whatever. Sorry I thought you might actually care about your brother for once." Al pushed himself off the couch angrily. James quickly grabbed his hand and pulled him back down.
"Sorry Al. I didn't mean to hurt you." James grinned sheepishly, "But why on earth would you want to do that?"
"What do you care?"
"I'm your brother! Just tell me Al – I promise I won't laugh." James pouted and batted his eyelashes. Al rolled his eyes.
"The portraits of the old headmasters are there." Al mumbled, slightly embarrassed. "I just…both Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape would be there…I just wanted to…"
"You wanted to go talk to them." Realization dawned in James's eyes. "Alright. You're pretty scrawny, so the cloak will probably fit both of us." James ignored the fact that he was currently just as scrawny as Al.
"What?"
"I'm coming with you of course! You didn't think I was going to let you go meet your namesakes alone, did you? I know you, Rose, and Scorpius are like a package deal now, but I think this is a momentous occasion meant to be shared by only brothers."
"James," Al blushed, "You really don't have to do that."
"Well, think of it like this. If I ever get my hands on a time turner, I will probably want to go back in time to meet the original James Potter and Sirius Black. If that ever happens, I'm dragging you back with me. Then we can completely screw up the past together."
James beamed. He didn't ask why Albus couldn't go in the day with the Headmistress's permission. He didn't ask anything. It reminded Al of the day before September 1st. He teased Al about Slytherin, but at night he let Al roll in his bed and sleep in his arms. That's when he told Al about all the beautiful, magical things he loved about Hogwarts. He also told Al about how he didn't always enjoy being Harry Potter's son, being in the limelight, and being loaded with expectations of who he was supposed to be. But pretending to love it was sometimes the best way to convince himself he really did. And he knew he probably would have been a prankster regardless of his name. It reminded Al that his brother, at least some of the time, wasn't a complete prat, and did occasionally care about his family.
But he did tend to piss a lot of people off.
"JAMES POTTER!" Sara's face was on fire. She stormed into the common room, her ferocious stride leading people to jump out of the way before she reached them.
"What. Is. This." She yanked a piece of parchment from her bag and shoved it into James's jovial face.
"My good deed for the week." He replied cheekily.
"You got people to sign this? HOW IS THAT A GOOD DEED? Unless you were hoping I would murder you for it! Then maybe driving me to rid the world of you was a good deed!"
The paper said: Sign Here If You Think This Looks Like Sara Barjati. Below was an exaggerated doodle of a banshee screaming, waving a hand in the air from her desk. James had exaggerated it to give her an abnormally large nose and oily black hair that reached her feet (even though Sara's hair was brown and ended above her hip). Albus was astounded to see that there were a great many signatures on the paper. Sara was seething, but didn't look very hurt.
"Well, you're always on about changing the world for the better and taking a stand against bad things, so I thought I'd pitch in!"
"James...you are an atrocious, appalling, pathetic imbecile." James ignored her.
"I thought using public opinion to inform you that no one cares about the speeches you shove down our throats daily, in class and outside of it, would be taking a stand to save all of our ears. Just think! If I could get you to shut up, I'd be saving hundreds of innocent peoples' hearing!" He flashed her a sunny smile and a thumbs up. Albus face palmed beside him.
"Sara," Al interjected, "Don't listen to him, he doesn't mean it."
"Yes I do."
"James, what the heck is your problem?"
"I don't have a problem! I just feel pity that you think people actually care about what you have to say."
James was now crossing a line between rivalry, and being downright hurtful. Dominique began to rise a couple meters away, now angry at her younger cousin.
Sara whipped out her wand and pointed it at James, only millimeters from his neck. She leaned close so their noses where almost touching. Her eyes blazing.
"You keep trying to walk over me James, but it never works. If you want to conceited prat, be my guest, but you're only hurting yourself. I don't understand why you'll do anything to make me feel less about myself, especially when I refuse to let that happen!"
At this point, most people with a shred of sanity would be cowering with fear and begging for mercy. James just smirked cockily.
"Looking for a chance to get close to me, are you Sara? Can't say I blame you. I'm irresistible. But you should know – I've never really been into screaming banshees." Sara's face flushed.
"You're incorrigible!" She screeched. She whirled around, and with clenched fists she grabbed her bag and stormed away.
"That was kind of mean James." Al felt apologetic in his place. "What do you have against her?"
"What do I have against her?" James spoke loud enough so she could hear. "She's the one who keeps butting into my life, telling me what to do and what not to do! She insults me in front of everyone, for no reason except for the fact that I occasionally tease her! And she actually means what she says! She practically goes around and recruits people for her 'I Hate James Potter Club'. I just have a laugh, and she paints me as this terrible person to everyone!"
James seemed to be invigorated by his victory. He should have left it at that, but he didn't.
"I knew she'd never really hex me. She's all talk." James gloated. Sara froze in her tracks. Stiff with fury, she turned around very slowly. She truly did look murderous.
"Do you doubt I'll do it?" Each syllable was carefully and precisely uttered. James laughed. The people around him were terrified just watching. Al was entranced, as if he was watching a train crash in slow motion.
"I don't doubt your ability to hex me. But you won't do it. You say you will. But you won't."
"I will!"
"No you won't."
"Yes I will! Watch me!"
"Then why haven't you done it already?"
They stared each other down.
Finally, Sara turned away, shaking. She started to walk away. James was sure he'd won. It might have been his boastful snicker that caused her to change her mind mid-step.
She, only in second year, spun around and hit him with a bat-bogey hex that would have made Ginny Weasley proud.
And Ginny Weasley was pretty proud when she received at least eight letters about it that night. The Weasleys, who had all learned the hex, didn't stop laughing for ten minutes. Albus was about to, but then remembered he kind of needed James tonight.
"Ouch! Al that was my foot!"
"Sorry! I can't see!"
"Hang on, let me use my wand." James muttered 'lumos', and the tip of his wand lit up.
"There. So this is the Headmistress's office… pretty empty…"
"James, don't you think it's a little weird the door was open? I mean, shouldn't it be – "
"What do you think you're doing!" A man snapped behind them. They slowly turned around, and were shocked to see the origin of the voice was from a curtain of black hair that stuck to a pale face, inside the frame labeled Severus Snape.
Albus took a tentative step towards the portrait of the hook nosed, greasy haired man. The man's lips twisted into a ridiculing sneer.
"Another Potter." The words were succinctly breathed, "Who believes himself above the rules of the common crowd."
"Are you Severus Snape?" Al blurted out, not comprehending the man's obvious scorn and disgust.
The oily faced man's lip curled with loathing, "You are clearly as selfish and discourteous as your predecessors."
"Hey!" James watched as Albus's face crumbled. He was very protective of his family, and was furious at this man's complete disregard for his brother's feelings. "You don't even know my brother! He's compassionate and selfless and kind, just like all the other Potters before him!" Al put a hand on his brother's shoulder.
"I'm sorry sir; I just…really needed to see you." He managed.
"And what made you think I would have any inkling of a desire to meet another arrogant Potter brat such as yourself?" Al looked away, rapidly blinking back tears.
James was incensed. He put his arm protectively around his brother's shoulders. His voice rose higher. "What makes you think you can talk to my brother like that!" Several other portraits shushed him, mumbling in their sleep. James shushed them back.
"Severus?" Another voice sounded sleepily from the side. Another man was suddenly in the portrait. "What do we have here?" They had seen his long silver beard and half moon glasses on chocolate frog cards, in every aisle of the book store, and in almost every important building in Diagon Alley and the Ministry. This man was legend.
"You're Albus Dumbledore!" Albus gasped. "You… you're…my dad told me about you! Both of you. That's why…I'm sorry, we'll leave now." He hastily turned away, grabbing James's arm.
"Well there's no need for that! I must say, I've always enjoyed a late night chat with students. There is always a certain excitement to it- breaking the rules." The portrait of Dumbledore smiled kindly. The man beside him looked irritated.
Al glanced upwards shyly, a little hopeful. James was still miffed.
"Maybe we'll stay. If he," He stuck his nose in the air and pointed to Severus, "Agrees to stop being an arrogant prat to my brother!"
"You insolent, ill-mannered – "
"I'm sure that won't be too difficult for him." Dumbledore gently urged, effectively silencing Severus. He looked back to James and Albus. His eyes twinkled beneath his glasses. "Now tell me, what are your names?"
"James Sirius Potter." James uttered it proudly. Severus looked horrified. It was two of his worst nightmares, combined into one. Albus watched, nervous. He cleared his throat.
"I'm Albus… Severus Potter."
The reaction was instantaneous. Severus's eyes popped from his sockets in a very comical, cartoon manner. Dumbledore's eyes filled with tears and emotion.
"I am honored." Dumbledore murmured.
"Huh?" Severus looked lost.
"My dad said he named me after the two bravest men he ever knew." James glanced at Severus and scoffed.
"Really?" Severus paid no heed to James's doubt. He sounded light-headed. Albus met the portrait's gaze confidently.
"Yes. That's why I wanted to meet you. Alone. With no one else watching."
"Oh…" Severus still sounded muddled. "Well…I suppose we could talk…for a couple minutes – that wouldn't be too dreadful."
They all stood in silence.
"You have green eyes." Severus's voice cracked.
"I'm the only one of the three to inherit them."
"Three!" Severus echoed.
"Our younger sister." James explained. "Lily."
"Lily." Severus choked.
"Lily Luna." Al added, "She'll be here in two years. She's got red hair, but she has our mum's brown eyes. And our mum's temper."
"Miss Weasley, I presume?" Dumbledore's smile was playful.
"Well she's Ginny Potter now." James grinned goofily, "But Hermione kept her last name."
"I'm sure Mr. Ronald Weasley didn't mind too much."
"Not at all. He said he was in love with Hermione Granger and always would be."
"They reproduced?" Severus's expression soured slightly. Dumbledore chuckled, before slyly adding, "Say hello to your friends for me. Miss Rose Weasley and Mr. Malfoy I believe?"
"How'd you know that?" James and Al exchanged a wide eyed look.
"We are rarely sleeping Mr. Potter. Old dead codgers like us are irredeemable gossips. And I do exchange words with your father every so often. My portrait is in many places. Including a girl's bathroom. I only ever went to it once – quite by accident I assure you! The elderly lady's scream was enough to deter me for the rest of eternity."
"You already knew!" James was amazed. "About me and Al and Lily!"
"I didn't." Severus grumbled. "You know I don't appreciate surprises much Dumbledore."
"I thought you already knew!" Dumbledore teased, "With how much everyone's always talking about them around us. You lot can't seem to leave the professors alone! Learning of your daily exploits, Mr. James Potter, are always a highlight to my morning. Miss Barjati – Sara, I believe – does come in here every so often. She usually comes to give her opinion on things she thinks should be changed and added to the school. She has some interesting ideas - I feel bad I didn't think of them first."
"Insufferable know-it-all." Severus interjected, "Thinks she knows what's best for this school, and doesn't know when to keep her mouth shut! There's reason I try to tune most of it out."
"How dare you insult her? She's brilliant!" James retaliated fiercely. "She's already ten times better for this school than you ever were!"
"James!" Albus elbowed him, "Sorry professor. She is a great girl though. Maybe you would like her better once you got to know her?"
"I have no desire to." Snape's tone was clipped.
This silenced the rest of them.
"Well, we should be going." Al piped up. James nodded vigorously.
"Wait!" Severus was alert again. "Mr… Albus Potter…though I do not condone nightly escapades…I do not think I would mind speaking to you again."
Al stared into the painting's pained eyes. "I might." He replied quietly. "Mind I mean. I'll try not to." Severus nodded sharply. Al paused.
"I'll be back." He decided.
"I hope you don't mean at night. Because I can only turn a blind eye when someone breaks into my office so many times." Al and James whirled around. There stood the Headmistress, not in her nightgown, but her ordinary robes.
"How long have you been here?" James blurted out. Professor Stonebrooke raised an eyebrow.
"It didn't strike you as odd that my door was open Mr. Potter? Surely you don't think I'm that careless?"
"Are you expelling us?" Al sighed.
"Not today. I knew you were coming. And for some reason I can understand why you would want to. But sneak into my office again, and expulsion will be the least of your worries."
James didn't move.
"It was Sara, wasn't it?"
"Get lost Mr. Potter."
It wasn't Sara. But that didn't stop James from accusing her the next day.
It was Christmas. Soft white snow tumbled from the clouds. The cold cradled them in a blanket. They wore scarlet jumpers and mitts and thick, woolen socks. They had paper cuts along their fingers from wrapping presents. Al and Rose got plenty from random strangers, which they said they always donated to charities. Scorpius got some too, but he learned not to open them, after the first one was found to contain a baby blast-ended skrewt (Scorpius was sure someone had turned a blind eye when checking the packages entering the school).
They were on the train back to their homes for the break. They were sitting in the same compartment they had been on the first journey to Hogwarts. Al and Scorpius were playing Gobstones. They both had purple liquid dripping down their chin. Rose was reading a muggle book Sara had recommended her.
"So you're coming, right?" Al looked up hopefully.
"Of course he is! Why wouldn't he?"
"Rose," Scorpius sighed, "I'd like to. I really would. But it's not that easy." Rose snorted.
"Of course it is."
"No, it isn't. My grandfather is going to be there. I've only met him a couple times in my life."
"That'll be a fun reunion." Al giggled, "Hey Gramps! As much as I'd like to stick around and hear your tales about Azkaban and all the bonding sessions you had with the other Death Eaters, I kind of promised my best friends I'd go over for dinner! Who are my best friends? Well, only the children of Harry Potter and his friends, the exact same people who're the reason you went to Azkaban in the first place!"
"Al," Scorpius sighed, "Please shut up."
"You have to admit, that should be enough to get rid of him for good. We should do that to Aunt Muriel. Can't believe she isn't dead yet. Maybe telling her we're BFFs with a Malfoy will do the trick."
"Al!" Scorpius moaned, burying his head in his hands.
"When did you meet him before?" Rose asked.
"Well he did switch sides at the end of the battle, so he had a much less strict sentence. They let him leave some days in a year and come have dinner with us, without any supervision. So I did see him a bunch of times every year."
"What was it like when he came?" Rose put her book down. She leaned her head against the fogged up window. Her russet curls were tied back in a careless ponytail. She was lost in a wide maroon jumper that had belonged to her dad. It extended down to her knees. Below were loose fitting jeans and sneakers. Al was dressed in a gray sweater vest and black pants beneath it.
"Silence. Lots of tension. Grandfather – "
Al snorted. "Grandfather. So formal."
"The Malfoys never fail to adhere to decorum." Scorpius repeated what he had heard his grandfather say many times.
"Minus the whole sorted in Gryffindor thing?" Rose brought up sweetly. Scorpius cringed.
"Yeah. That." Al's head snapped up.
"Wait…does your grandfather know about…?" Al gestured with his hands.
"That I've been sorted in Gryffindor? He wasn't supposed to. But I'm pretty sure there were plenty of Death Eaters in Azkaban who were eager to inform him." Rose winced.
"Either way, no one's mentioned it in any letters. Grandfather… you'd think he'd have changed a lot, but he hasn't. Like, he knows the days of glory for the Malfoys are gone, but he still believes in it. Like he's not going to make a plan, and he really will never do anything, but he still feels the Malfoys were unfairly wronged. He still expects the family to feel the way they used to about muggles and purity. He still has a vision of the prestige and supremacy and crap like that. He wasn't too happy about my father marrying my mum. She wasn't the daughter-in-law he had hoped for. But he probably understood by then that beggars can't be choosers. Either way, he's eager to remind us of the sentiments he has, and which he thinks we should have."
"What does your dad do? When your grandfather comes over?" Al asked.
"Not much. Like he listens, or pretends to. Nods his head. Occasionally, if Grandfather says something about my mum, dad will silence him. He only really speaks up when Grandfather turns on me. Like if he criticizes my education or expresses disappointment at what he thinks I'm becoming. That's when dad gets angry, or refuses to listen. Once he even walked out of the room. But for anything else…he's just so used to putting up with it."
They sat in silence. Scorpius was suddenly scared. Scared again that they'd judge him, hate him, leave him. It might have been an irrational fear, but he couldn't escape it. Memories always became knives you felt could be used against you at any moment.
"Our grandfather usually gives us a speech about rubber ducks." Al waited for a response. Rose smirked.
"He'll hear it himself when he comes over." Scorpius groaned, but was relieved too.
They went their separate ways once they got off the train. Rose and Al gave him a quick hug before rushing into their sea of relatives. Scorpius watched as Rose left her trolley and burst into a sprint. She squealed as she leaped into her dad's arms and he spun her around, laughing. Al and James both rushed and simultaneously wrapped their arms tightly around their younger sister. Both of them were soon lost in the tide of red. He pulled his gaze away.
His father stood stiffly, a little awkwardly. His mother was standing there with her hands clasped firmly together.
He walked calmly towards them. His mother drifted forward, her face filled with longing. She was struggling to hold herself back. Suddenly he couldn't bear it. He raced toward her, and she broke away and ran to him. She pulled him into her embrace, grasping him fiercely and placing kisses upon his head. She began running her hands through his hair, rubbing circles around his back. She smelled like lavender. The rest of the roaring world around them fell away.
"Oh Scorpius." She sighed into his hair.
"I'm right here mum." He whispered into her ear. "You don't have to worry anymore."
She reluctantly pulled away. Tears were teetering on the edge of her lashes. She was struggling to form words. "Your hair's longer…" She pushed a fringe off his forehead, her fingertips lightly floating over his skin. Scorpius leaned forward and placed a kiss upon both of her cheeks. She inhaled deeply, and leaned her forehead against his. She smiled- the exact same one that Scorpius would receive when he looked in the mirror. He looked so much like his father, but the smile – it's warmth, it's honesty – that was hers.
"Go say hello to your father. He's been very impatient to see you. I'll get your stuff."
His father stood tall, and if not with pride, with dignity. His eyes look lost and tender. He clutched his cloak close to his chest. He didn't move a muscle, but waited for Scorpius to come to him. Scorpius didn't even bother with pretense. He wrapped his arms around his father's waist and buried his face in his chest. Draco momentarily stiffened, before abandoning decorum and hugging him back.
"I've missed you Scorpius." His father's voice, struggling to maintain an even tempered tone, shook with emotion.
"I missed you too." His father cleared his throat and pulled away, but his eyes told Scorpius he didn't want to. He patted Scorpius lightly on the head a couple times. Scorpius suddenly wanted to laugh. He had never noticed the formality before. But now, after spending months with the Weasleys, it felt like the most obvious thing in the world.
"I'm not a dog dad."
"Sorry." Draco coughed. "I'm just not… there are many people here." And many people were watching them.
"There's not really much they can do."
"No, but I don't want us to be a spectacle." Draco's voice lowered slightly.
"Not really much we can do either."
"No, but… we'll talk more at home." Scorpius nodded. His mother was soon at his side with his trolley. She put an arm on his shoulder and placed another kiss upon his head.
"Ready to go?"
"Um, well…" Scorpius glanced backwards.
That's when Rose skipped over. "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy!" She chirped. She slung her arm around Scorpius's shoulder.
"Hello Rose!" Astoria smiled warmly, "Scorpius has told us so much about you and Albus." Rose's eyes shined. Astoria elbowed Draco, who was too busy staring in shock. He nodded hastily.
"Hello Miss Weasley." Rose giggled at the formality. She turned back to Scorpius's mother.
"Your son has to meet my family. And he's also going to come over on Christmas for dinner."
"Wait, Rose –" Scorpius glanced a little desperately back at his dad.
"Does he have much of a choice?" Astoria asked curiously.
"No." Scorpius admitted sullenly. Rose grinned, shaking her head.
"Then I don't think there's much I can do to stop that from happening!" Astoria laughed.
Rose grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back to her very large, very loud, and very intimidating family.
Al pushed his way towards them. He grabbed Scorpius's other hand, and they both dragged him towards two women waiting for them.
"This is my mum." Rose introduced. "This is Aunt Ginny."
"My mum." Al cut in.
"Mum, Aunt Ginny, this is our best friend, Scorpius."
"Hello." Scorpius had very pale skin, making his blush very prominent on his face. He mentally cursed himself for his painful awkwardness (and Rose because it was always easier to blame Rose). "I'm Scorpius Malfoy. But you probably know that. Should I apologize? I feel as if I should apologize. I'm so sorry for – " Rose's mum, Hermione, stepped forward and enveloped him in her arms. Scorpius inhaled sharply. She pulled away, beaming.
"If anyone should apologize, it should be my daughter for putting you on the spot like this."
"Guilty." Rose didn't sound very apologetic.
"We've been very eager to meet you Scorpius. We've heard so much about what a kind, smart, brave young boy you are."
"Oh, I'm not – "
"And modest too."
"…Thank you Ms. Granger."
"Hermione."
"Hermione." Scorpius repeated, coloring slightly. The woman with flaming hair and a playful smile (that reminded Scorpius of James) stepped forward. She also gave him a quick hug. Her eyes were bright and lively.
"Call me Mrs. Potter and I won't talk to you. You'll call me Ginny, and nothing else. Apologies are very foreign to me, especially when they aren't needed. I can't get James to apologize when he should be anyway. So if you say sorry for any reason, I will probably ignore you. Welcome to the family Scorpius!" She gave his hand a squeeze before calling her husband and brother over.
Ron openly goggled. Harry blinked, but quickly recovered.
"Hello Scorpius. Al's told us a lot about you. And Rose. We're glad to meet you." Harry gave a good natured smile.
"Hi…" Scorpius put every ounce of energy he had into forcing himself not to stare at the scar. Hermione attempted to discreetly step on her husband's foot (they were wearing jeans, and had never really learned the art of being subtle).
"I, yeah… hey Scorpius, I… blimey, I never thought this would happen to me!" Ron exchanged a desperate look with Harry.
"Ron…" Hermione sighed under her breath, massaging her temple.
"Uh yeah… please tell me you feel as embarrassed as I do?"
"Completely." Scorpius chuckled uneasily. Ron looked relieved. "But," Scorpius added, "Your daughter will probably never forgive us if we don't try to pretend this is completely normal." Ron grinned widely.
"That's something we can bond over! My insane daughter!" Rose huffed disdainfully.
"You kind of asked for this Rose." Scorpius reminded her. He turned to her father. "Did you know she dragged Al into my compartment, grabbed my hand, shook it, and told me we were going to be best friends? I couldn't get rid of her after that, no matter how hard I tried!" Ron threw his head back and laughed.
"That might've been my fault. Sorry."
"It's fine." Scorpius looked him directly in the eye. "Al and Rose are two of the most important people in my life now. I don't know what I would do without them." Ron tilted his head, considering the blond boy.
"I'm glad." Ron said quietly. He extended his hand. Scorpius shook it.
And that was that.
Scorpius didn't meet the other relatives, but they did observe him with interest. He was now being forced to come to the Burrow for dinner on Christmas (when the Golden Trio tells you you're coming to dinner, you can't really refuse).
He returned to his parents. They began to make their way out. And there at the entrance, with shiny black gloves and not a hair out of place, looking as if he never went to Azkaban in the first place, was Lucius Malfoy.
I hope you liked that. I'm excited for the next chapter because you get to see more of the Malfoy family, and Scorpius also goes to the Burrow and meets the rest of the Weasleys. I know I'm spending a lot of time on first year, but I really want set the stage and help you understand all the characters before launching into the problems and conflicts.
Thanks again for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and following. I really love you guys!
I have a goal… I want to try to get to 35 reviews before I post the next chapter. It would be nice if you could help me achieve that! But either way, even the smallest thing any of you says brightens my day.
I remember someone asked about my updating schedule. Right now it's been summer so I've been able to update every week. But I'm starting grade 11 on Tuesday, and I'm also going into Full IB. I also have extracurriculars and I spend a lot of my time writing my own stuff (not fanfiction). But I won't stop writing this story, and I'll try to update every two weeks or so! Reviews also help with inspiration.
Also, while James and Sara are a subplot, they are really important characters in the story. Sara has a bit of a complicated history we'll have to unravel.
Lastly, I know JK Rowling told us a few days ago that James would start Hogwarts this year, which would make him in third year. I always assumed he was one year higher that Rose, Al, and Scorpius. So for the sake of this story, I'm going to keep going with the idea that he is in second year right now.
Quote: Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. ~ Mark Twain