As Cold As The Snow
a story by lovedmund
December 15th, 2010.
That day was December 15th. The air blew very coldly. Everyone walking by was wearing their thickest jackets and coats. Snow slowly fell on the shoulders and heads of those who walked under it, then melted perfectly.
The Potters always invited their close relatives to celebrate Christmas together at their mansion. Their oldest child, James, who was six years old, was having fun playing in the snow to make a snowman. His younger brother Albus, who would turn four this year, watched his older brother happily.
"James, can you make one for me?" asked little Albus excitedly.
James is known for his creativity when it comes to building snowmen during winter. His cousins often ask him to build one for them.
Little James smiled mischievously. "No, you have to pay me first!"
"But I don't have any money, James."
"You don't have to pay me with money. I'll accept everything from you."
Little Albus walked slowly toward his brother. "Um ... can I pay you back with a hug?" he asked doubtfully, spreading his hands.
James joked, "What if I told you it's not enough?"
"Then I'll give you my cookies too, James!" Albus looked at James expectantly, afraid his brother wouldn't want to build him a snowman.
"Agree!" Albus smiled happily and hugged his brother. James hugged him back and stroked his sister's silky black hair.
"James!" call someone from a distance.
A little girl who looked about the same age as Albus ran towards them. "Jamesie, I want a snowman too!" she said excitedly. She handed James some Galleons.
"Wow! You must be really rich. Thank you so much. With this, I can make ten snowmen for you!"
"One is enough," the platinum-blonde haired girl said as she smiled at Albus and handed him a scarf. "And Albus, Auntie Ginny gave you this. She said you get sick easily, so don't forget to put it on."
Albus took the scarf from her hand. "Thank—"
"I have to go back because I don't want my chocolate milk to get cold. See you later, Jamesie and Al!"
"Uh, what's that girl's name, James?" he asked.
"Ask her yourself," James acted nonchalantly as he counted the Galleons in his hand.
"Hey, what's your name?" Albus shouted at the little girl whose body was starting to shrink from his sight.
"Emma! My name is Emma Malfoy!"
.oOo.
September 1st, 2017.
"Quick, Scorp! I don't want to sit in the messy compartment!" Emma shouted to her twin brother.
"Slow down, Little Em. There is always a special compartment for a Malfoy, sweetie," Draco whispered as he stroked her platinum blonde hair gently.
"Okay, Dad."
Emma held her father's hand as she scanned everyone on platform 9. Her smile widened when he saw one of her childhood friends, Diana Nott.
"Diana!" Emma let go of Draco's hand and ran to her. "I missed you so much!"
"Oh, Em!" they both exclaimed, hugging each other as they laughed. "I missed you too!" she said. "Where's Scorp? I haven't seen him in a while."
It's no longer a secret that Diana has a little bit of interest in Scorpius. "Oh come on. Your best friend is here and you're asking about Scorp? You're being mean, Di."
The shoulder-length haired girl giggled. "Just kidding, Em. Let's hurry up and find an empty compartment."
"Let's go then!"
Emma and Diana walked into the train talking about their holiday. Emma had even forgotten to invite her twin brother to join her in searching for the compartment together.
"So Uncle Theo really fell off his broomstick while you were chasing him?" she asked, laughing.
"Yes! And you know what? My mum jumped off the sofa in panic and knocked over Grandma Nott's favorite plant!"
"Ahahaha, your parents are so—"
Dug!
Emma's body was pushed quite hard against one of the compartment doors after she was bumped by someone.
"Oh my, Emma! Are you okay?"
Emma grimaced as she rubbed her elbow. "Egh, who did that?"
"Oops, sorry."
Emma glanced sidelong at the man who had just bumped into her. Her eyes widened as she realized who he was.
The same boy who once poured a sticky green liquid over her head and made her cry for three nights because it had ruined her beautiful hair.
Albus Severus Potter.
"Albus, you fool!" she cursed. "Why is it always you who ruin my day?"
"I didn't do it on purpose, okay? And besides, I already apologized to you," Albus said while stroking his head which also hit the train wall.
"Oh, really? I didn't hear you," Emma said sardonically.
"Blame yourself as well for getting in the way of this train!"
"It was your fault cause you were running on the train! It wasn't mine!"
"Typical girls, won't admit their own faults," Albus said, rolling his eyes in exasperation.
"I hope we won't be in the same house," said Emma.
"Oh, I really don't want it to happen either. I'm pretty sure I won't be living in the same house as a spoiled, self-righteous girl who refuses to admit her own mistakes."
"Okay, guys. I think we should part ways since I don't want something bad to happen on this train. Goodbye, Albus! See you later at Hogwarts!" Finally, Diana intervened in the argument between the two of them and pulled Emma's hand.
Albus watched the two friends walk away from him and then he pulled up a corner of his lip. "Tch, silly girl."
.oOo.
The feast and house selection were finished with great fanfare. Many unexpected things occurred during this time, including the most unexpected events enlivening the night. One such occurrence was when the Sorting Hat screamed "Slytherin!" as Albus's head touched the old hat.
Everyone there was shocked and whispered to each other, including Emma and Scorpius, who had recently sat at the Slytherin table.
How come? It was the first time in all the history of the Potter family that someone had been sorted into Slytherin House.
"Can you believe that, Em? He's really sorted into Slytherin!" exclaimed Diana.
Scorpius, Emma, and Diana were at the very back of the group of new students as they followed the prefect towards the Slytherin Dorm.
"Well, yeah. I still don't want him in our house. He's so annoying."
"Don't be like that, Emma. You're not that kind of person."
"Well, at least he's become a friend of our dormitory now. I will try to befriend him," said Scorpius.
"It's okay, Al. Going to Slytherin House won't make you bad," said a faintly familiar girl voice from the corridor to their left.
"No, it's different, Ash. You are sorted into Ravenclaw, your family's house. You won't be able to feel what I feel! Merlin, what should I do when I meet the rest of my family? My family will be ashamed and James will definitely bully me!"
The three of them silently parted ways with the group of prefects and Slytherins and peeked at the two new students. One boy with jet black hair and one girl with braided blonde hair.
"James isn't like that, Albus."
"He's my brother! Of course I know him better than you!"
They knew very well that the two students were none other than Albus Severus Potter and Ashley Lynn Scamander.
"Even if he bullies you, I promise that I'll always be your friend. And even though our houses are different, I will always be here for you, Al.
Albus smiled as he looked at Ashley. "Thank you for being my friend, Ashley," he said.
"You're very welcome. I guess I should hurry back to the group of first year Ravenclaws before anyone notices I'm missing. See you tomorrow, Al!"
Ashley hugged Albus then ran away leaving him waving her hand. "Yeah ... see you too, Ash."
"Your girlfriend, eh?"
Surprised, Albus immediately glared at his three new dorm mates. "No, of course not!" he said defensively. "He's just my childhood friend!" Emma rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"Okay, guys. Let's get back to the Slytherin first year group again before the prefects get—"
"Separating from the group, two points from Slytherin!" shouted someone from behind them.
Diana, Albus, Emma, and Scorpius turned around slowly and glanced nervously at the Gryffindor prefect standing behind them.
"Sorry, we're lost."
"Yeah, whatever you say. Now go back to the first year Slytherin group before I deduct points for Slytherins again!"
The four of them, who were scared, finally ran away and rejoined the group of the first year Slytherin.