Author's Note: I'd love to see some reviews on this chapter! Scorpius will definitely be making more of an appearance from now on.


March 2018

"Shrivelfig can be used in potions such as...?"

"Calming Draught?" Albus ventured.

"No! We've been over this," Rose shook her head. "Elixir to Induce Euphoria and Shrinking Solution."

"I knew that, I was just testing you," said Albus. "Merlin, Rosie, we've been studying for hours and final exams aren't for weeks. Can't we take a break?"

It was a beautiful spring day at Hogwarts, every single bird on the grounds seemed to be chirping and the grass was shining greener than ever before, looking as if it were not real. Several students lounged in the area by the Great Lake, studying, talking, or even playing a game of gobstones. Albus and Rose had taken shelter beneath the large beech tree, not too far away from Roxanne, who prodded passing insects with a stick.

"Albus is right. We've practically memorized the entire textbook," she said.

Rose pushed One Thousand and One Magical Herbs and Fungi off her lap, sighing at her cousins. "You can never be too prepared."

"Yes, you can," the other two said, together.

A laugh echoed from their left and they spotted a small group of Slytherins, Malfoy and the three boys from his boat, gathered together and talking. The tallest of the four, Christian Zabini, was looking directly at them, a look of disgust on his face.

"What d'ya think is wrong with him?" Albus asked, turning to the girls.

Roxanne waved her hand, "Don't worry about him, Albus. Zabini and his friends never mean any good. I dunno why Scorpius still hangs around them, though. He's nothing like them."

Another bout of laughter came from that direction, and this time Rose could see Scorpius had an upset expression on his face, though the rest of his friends sneered at them.

"Yeah, all right," said Albus, eyeing them warily.

"Back to the books," said Rose, unsettled. "What is a quick method of helping someone who has been poisoned?"

Roxanne and Albus groaned, berating her for asking another question. Ignoring them, she flipped through the text, searching for another question to ask, until she heard the crunch of the grass as someone approached them.

"Why, if it isn't the Weasleys!" said Zabini, as if he had not been watching them moments ago. The other two had tagged along behind him, but Scorpius stayed sitting where he was.

Roxanne fixed him a glare, still laying on her stomach. "What do you want?"

"Nothing," he shrugged. "Pucey and Bole said we should come by to say hello. Though, I can see you're a bit busy studying." His friends snickered as he kicked the top book off of Rose's pile and it hit her.

Albus picked up the book and got on his feet, frowning at Zabini. "Don't you have anything better to do than be an obnoxious git?"

"Frankly," said Zabini, stepping up to Albus until they were nearly touching. "No."

Albus put the book back on the pile. "I reckon you have loads of free time to do that since you've got nothing else going on for you."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, school's a bit pointless for you, isn't it?" Albus smiled. "With your rubbish spellwork, you can't possibly study enough to get better."

"Think you're better than me?" Zabini spoke, arms akimbo. "If your father's any good at his job, I won't need Defense Against the Dark Arts, will I?"

Albus narrowed his eyes.

"Surely if your spellwork is so good, then you wouldn't mind a duel?" Zabini suggested, taking out his wand.

Rose looked at her cousin, finally finding her voice. "Albus don't."

"I won't. Don't want to waste my time," he spat.

"Lacking confidence, are you?" said Zabini.

"Pathetic," Pucey growled.

Bole nodded. "Weak."

"If you want a duel so badly, then I suggest you take it up with the duelling club," said Albus. "I'm sure they've got some toy wands you can practice with." They stared at each other for a moment until Albus finally stepped back and made to sit by Rose again. Zabini shook his head and chuckled.

"What a coward," he muttered under his breath.

Albus shot up towards Zabini. "You can call me anything but I'm not a coward."

"'Course you are. You flaunt around because you think you're all high and mighty because of your father but you're just all talk," said Zabini. "You couldn't even get sorted into Gryffindor."

"You don't know anything about me," Albus clenched his teeth.

"Think you can get by because of your dad's name?"

Pucey and Bole laughed.

"I know you can't show your face 'cause of yours. How is your dad now? Heard he's been admitted to St. Mungo's."

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Zabini slammed Albus against the tree, his wand jabbed under Albus's chin.

"Stop!" Rose and Roxanne shouted simultaneously. Pucey and Bole blocked their path.

"You think you're better than me because you're Harry Potter's son?" he growled. "No one appreciates Sympathizers, you'd think your family of all people could understand why."

"Let him go, Zabini!" Rose pleaded. "I'll go to Professor McGonagall!"

"Don't ever talk about my father!" Zabini spat.

"Why? Are you embarrassed he was too much of a coward to pick a side?" Albus breathed. "Didn't he get caught running away by one of the Death—"

Zabini tossed his wand and his fist met Albus's nose, causing him to fall over. The Slytherin boy lunged again, throwing one blow after another as Albus squirmed beneath him, swinging his arms. Rose and Roxanne screamed, restrained by Pucey and Bole. Students rushed to watch, though they were too afraid and surprised to come to Albus's aid.

"You. Stupid. Piece. Of. Shit." Zabini punctuated his words with a punch.

Someone jumped on Zabini's back, knocking him off of Albus and onto the ground. The students gasped.

Albus groaned, his face covered in blood. Rose and Roxanne rushed to his side as Pucey and Bole ran to help Zabini.

"Malfoy! Get off!" Zabini wriggled against the blond boy's restraint.

Scorpius held him firmly, and soon they could hear Professor Vector's voice yelling at the students.

"Out of my way! Move! I suggest you all return into the castle or I'll assign more detentions than I need to!" she said, appearing between the students. "Malfoy, get off of him!"

Scorpius obliged and stepped away. Zabini was sporting a swollen lip and his eye was half shut, but he didn't look nearly as bad as Albus.

"Now will somebody explain what has happened here?" she asked. "Weasleys?"

Rose croaked, "Albus was attacked." Roxanne nodded, stroking Albus's hair out of his face.

"Not without reason!" Zabini shot.

Professor Vector scrutinized the seven of them and nodded curtly. "Pucey, Bole come with me. Weasleys I want you to escort Potter to the hospital wing immediately and come directly to my office afterward. Malfoy, I want you to take Zabini and do the same." She turned on her heel and took the two boys with her.

Twenty minutes later, Rose, Scorpius, and Roxanne sat across from Professor Vector nervously waiting for her to speak. Pucey and Bole stood in a corner of the office, looking as confused as ever.

"Now, I've notified Potter's parents of the incident, as well as Zabini's mother. I expect they will be on their way shortly, so I won't ask you three to explain the situation twice." Professor Vector dipped her quill in ink and scribbled furiously on a sheet of parchment.

Scorpius was tapping his feet on the ground, his face scrunched up in thought. Rose was curious as to why he had saved Albus. She had not said a single word to him since returning from break and he had not seemed to notice, so she did not think of him to care about what happened to any of the Weasleys. It was certainly a surprise to see that Malfoy was receiving detention for preventing her cousin from being beaten unconscious, without an argument. Maybe he was just trying to save his friend Zabini from getting in any more trouble than he was.

The door of Professor Vector's office swung open and Professor McGonagall came in followed by Harry, Ginny, and Cressida Zabini. Harry and Ginny immediately threw their arms around Roxanne and Rose, greeting them warmly. But Ginny immediately regained her composure and demanded that they needed to tell her the full story immediately.

Rose and Roxanne retold the story from their point of view and Scorpius turned pink at the mention of his heroic intervention, staying silent the entire time. Pucey and Bole shouted a completely different story, until Professor McGonagall escorted them back to their dormitories.

Mrs. Zabini stuck out her nose. She was a thin and tall woman with sunken dark eyes and full lips. "I am sorry about my son's behavior, I assure you we don't condone this in my household. Has he received proper punishment?" she asked.

Professor Vector nodded. "All seven students have received detention. For either participating in the incident or not reporting it."

"I assume the Potter boy has received the most? My son's actions were self-defense."

"Self-defense? Albus didn't lay a finger on him!" Ginny cried.

Mrs. Zabini looked at her with a similar look of disgust as her son. "He didn't need to. He provoked my son by bringing up a sensitive topic. If anything, your son had it coming."

Harry put a hand on Ginny's shoulder, holding her back. "I am truly sorry about what Albus said and we offer our condolences to your family," he told her, though his words didn't seem genuine.


"He was only a second from breaking his nose!"

"He did break his nose!"

"Just like his namesake. He's going to grow an excellent beard soon!"

"Shut it, James!"

When Albus woke up from his nap, he found his cousins and his parents sitting around his bed in the hospital wing. They all gave him a wide-eyed look as he sat up. When he opened his mouth to speak, he choked; the medicine Madam Patil had given him tasted like metal.

"Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" Fred laughed. James, who was next to him, shook his head, amused.

Ginny flung to the front of the group, throwing her arms around Albus. "Why would you do this?" she said sharply, pulling away from him. "You could have gotten seriously hurt!"

"I'm sorry, Mum. I wasn't thinking," he croaked.

"Obviously!" she exclaimed. "You've got to pick your battles, Albus, how many times have I told you this? You're getting just as bad as James."

"Oi!" said James. "Dad thinks I'm an angel." Harry feigned a look of annoyance at his son.

"It was worth it," said Albus.

Ginny cupped his face in her hands, "You're feeling better now, though, right? Your nose is healing?" She moved his head from side to side, checking for injuries.

"I'm fine, Mum, honestly." He looked at the others for help. James and Fred sat at the foot of his bed and Rose and Roxanne were on another, all four looking as if they found this far too funny to stop it. Dominique and Lucy were cross-legged on the floor as their sisters stood behind them, eager to leave now that they knew he was all right. His father walked up next to his mother.

"Gin, give the boy a break. If he says he's fine, then he's all right," said Harry.

After his parents had embraced Albus and given him a stern warning not to give them a reason to come back to Hogwarts, they went to have a word with Madam Patil. A quick conversation later and they were off to see Professor McGonagall before they left. Albus and the boys cracked jokes, claiming he should have transfigured Zabini into a ferret while he had the chance. Rose listened, only partially, as her mind was still running over something she had heard Albus say before the fight.

Harry and Ginny were almost down the flight of stairs when Rose burst out the hospital wing, shouting her uncle's name. They both stopped, and looked at her with concern.

"Is everything all right, Rosie?" Ginny asked.

"Yes, I just wanted to talk to Uncle Harry, if that's all right."

Ginny nodded and continued down the steps. Harry approached her and squatted in front of her, looking up at her with a smile. "Something you need to ask?"

"Uncle Harry," Rose started. "What exactly happened with Zabini's father?"

Harry's face darkened and he looked away. "Rose, I'm not sure you should be asking—"

"Please?" she said. "I want to know." She knew she couldn't ask anyone else. Her father would tell her a biased story, and probably make it out to be much worse than it was. Her mother would do the opposite. The rest of her family would tell her it was not for her ears; Harry was her only hope.

He sighed, and the worry lines made him look much older than he was. "Zabini's father was caught running away by Death Eaters during the Battle of Hogwarts. He was attacked, I don't know exactly what went on but I assume they were angry he wasn't helping them. Apparently, he hasn't been quite right in the head since. But his family didn't believe in getting him treated so they let him stay as he was."

"But the Daily Prophet said he was admitted to the Dai Llewellyn Ward a few weeks ago," said Rose. "Was it because of that?"

"No. The Ministry is trying to keep the whole thing quiet. But there was a pro-werewolf rally in Appleby that carried on for a few days until the full moon," Harry shook his head. "It was a misguided attempt to show werewolves were capable of staying in control of themselves, I think. Zabini and some of his friends came to cause trouble, unfortunately they picked the wrong night."

"I'm starting to think Zabini's parents aren't supporters of the movement?"

Harry nodded. "You've always been so smart." He rose and planted a kiss on her forehead. "I've really got to get going. If Albus gets in anymore trouble, you have permission from me to hex him." He winked.

They exchanged their goodbyes before she turned back in the direction of the hospital wing.

The movement in question was promoted by the Wizarding Creature Alliance. Founded out of the end of the Second Wizarding War, the group was meant to rehabilitate and enhance relationships between the Wizarding world and beasts and beings. Those beings who sided with Voldemort during the war were given the same treatment as witches and wizards who aligned themselves with the dark wizard's ideologies, with trials at the ministry and other forms of punishment that did not treat them differently. But this attempt under Minister Shacklebolt's leadership failed, and triggered a divided response.

Unfortunately, the W.C.A. had stirred the anger of many former Death Eaters and other wizarding families who had lost family members in the war, afraid these beasts and beings could turn on them any instant. Reformed Death Eaters were happy to shoulder the blame over to the creatures, claiming they were at the root of all the death and destruction that had ensued during Voldemort's reign. And those who were blinded by the pain of the Second Wizarding War felt they were justified in wanting the creatures that destroyed their families to be treated like the monsters they were.

Supporters of the W.C.A. were called Sympathizers by those who despised them. The Weasleys in particular, found themselves to be the poster family for the W.C.A. Especially because of Hermione's work as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. After Minister Shacklebolt retired early from his position, the new Minister of Magic had quietly enforced a policy of shutting down anything that could possibly be interpreted as an uprising, whether it was planned by the W.C.A. or those who were against it. He was rumored to be against the W.C.A., though he never spoke a word for or against it, and to be the reason that Gringotts had doubled the amount of wizard guards in the past few years and Firenze was not allowed to teach at Hogwarts, despite his qualifications to be the Divination professor.

Rose returned to her cousin's bed, and found most of his visitors had gone, except for Dominique and a new addition, Scorpius. The blond boy raised his eyebrows when she joined them. Dominique, however, looked as if she were about to burst with excitement.

"You'll never believe it. I was going to tell Albus and even though he pleaded for me to tell him—"

"— I didn't—"

"— I waited for you to come back." She beamed at her.

"Tell us what?" Rose asked, confused.

"Victoire and Teddy made up and they're going on holiday to Italy!" she squealed.

Albus looked surprised. "It took them four months to make up and he's already taking her on vacation?"

Dominique shook her head. "That's what they were arguing about! Teddy wanted to take her to Italy once she finished her seventh year, all expenses paid."

It made sense why they fought. Victoire was very sensitive about money after hearing how their parents had grown up. "So she wouldn't talk to him for months because he refused to let her pay?" Rose asked.

"Yes! She felt like he thought she couldn't afford it and she wanted to prove to him that she could handle it herself. But he finally agreed to let her pay her half!" Dominique exclaimed. Her smile disappeared when she glanced at the clock. "Merlin, I forgot I told Linda I'd meet with her in the library! I've got to go!" She scurried off into the hallway, shouting apologies to them.

Albus readjusted his sheets. "Where do you think Teddy's getting the money to pay for this trip?"

Rose shrugged. "Perhaps working at an ice cream shop really pays."

Scorpius, who had seemed out of place for the entirety of the conversation, finally spoke. "My gran gave her sister half the money my great Aunt Bellatrix had in her vault last Christmas. Maybe she gave her grandson some of that?"

"It took her almost twenty years to finally give the money?" Albus asked.

Scorpius shook his head. "The Ministry examined Bellatrix's will and searched thoroughly for dark items in her vault. My gran only got access to it about two years ago."

"What took them so long?" Rose asked.

"I think it had to do with Shacklebolt's work on all the other post-War issues. He had a lot to clean up," said Scorpius.

Albus nodded. "I reckon Death Eaters wills weren't the highest priority at the Ministry."

Scorpius cringed at the words "Death Eaters" and remained quiet.

"I wonder why Aunt Andromeda didn't tell us about it, or even Teddy." Rose sat on Albus's bed.

"It's probably why they tried to skive off Christmas dinner," said Albus, then turned to Malfoy. "Do you want to sit?" He moved his legs to make room.

Scorpius shook his head.

"What's your deal anyway?" Albus asked, and Rose smacked his arm for being so blunt.

"What do you mean?" Scorpius asked.

Albus narrowed his eyes. "You saved me. I would've been beaten to a pulp if it weren't for you."

Scorpius laughed nervously. "I suppose I just wanted to keep the grounds clean."

Rose tilted her head. "It was nice of you."

"Thanks."

They sat in silence and Scorpius stood awkwardly, playing with the button on his robes. Madam Patil came in, warning them visiting hours were nearly over, before she forced Albus to drink a vial of bluish medicine. He scrunched up his face, making gagging noises until he rested against his pillow. Once she made sure he was all right, Madam Patil bustled away to attend to other sick students.

Cicadas chirped in the distance and the sky bathed the room with indigo light.

"You shouldn't have said those things to him, you know," said Scorpius quietly.

"I know." Albus closed his eyes. "I had to teach him not to call me a coward."

"Think it backfired a bit." Scorpius managed a kind smile. "He deserved it, though. Zabini is kind of twisted. Pucey and Bole are too. But they're not going to try anything without his permission."

"Why do you hang around them anyway?" Rose asked Scorpius.

"I haven't got any other friends."

"I'll be your friend," Albus piped up.

"Really?"

"Yeah, anyone willing to save me from getting my arse kicked is a friend in my book," Albus laughed weakly.

And it was true. From then on, Scorpius Malfoy and Albus Potter became good friends.


Author's Note: Please review! Your comments will be immensely appreciated.