"Rose, I need Flora to deliver a letter."

Rose looked up from where she was sitting in the Gryffindor common room reviewing her class schedule to see Albus marching up to her. He was clutching a sheet of parchment and an envelope in his hand.

She tilted her head. "Why not use Kasper?" she asked. Not that she minded, but the plan had been for James' owl to deliver Albus' letters as well.

Albus scowled. "I don't trust James not to sabotage my letter. Besides, I'm sure he's already sent Kasper out. Flora's already basically going to my house anyways, it won't even be a detour for her." Their families lived down the street from each other.

"Is he really that upset?" Rose frowned. Their fight must have been bad if Albus believed James would toss his letter or something along those lines.

"It was worse than that time I lent his broom to that muggle to sweep her porch," Albus stated grimly.

"Bloody hell," Rose breathed. "Really?" The fight that had resulted from that prank had been legendary. The broom had been fine, a quidditch broom didn't fall to pieces from brushing a few leaves. Minor maintenance on the bristles to get it back to tip top shape. It was more the indignity of using a quidditch broom like some- cleaning broom. The cousins had been split between the act being hilarious or being a step too far. Rose had been aghast herself and had made it crystal clear that if anyone ever did such a thing to her broom they only might live to regret it. James had been livid. A total meltdown.

"Well, it was pretty close," Albus shrugged. "And he wouldn't even listen to Uncle Bill."

Hm, not good for sure. Rose hadn't brought up Scorpius in her letter home out of fear of a similar reaction. She really thought Scorpius was fine though, especially now that he'd gotten Gryffindor. She understood the apprehension, him being a Malfoy and all, but for people to react so badly when Scorpius hadn't even done anything yet…

"Fine," she agreed, holding out her hand. "Give it here."

Albus handed the papers over. "You got any wax? Forgot mine at home."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Of course you did. Yes, I've got some." She dug the wax and stamp out of her bag but didn't immediately seal it. She was curious to see how Albus brought the topic of Scorpius up.

.

Dear Mum and Dad,

Set off the fireworks and throw the confetti, me and Rose both got sorted into Gryffindor. I was worried over nothing. We got our schedules this morning. Tuesdays will be the best, no history or transfiguration and flying class at the end. Wednesday will be the worst. Double transfiguration and history. But I am looking forward to classes, I'm sure that will fade as the homework piles up. Me and Rose are going to spend today exploring the castle and figuring out where the classrooms are.

.

Rose had never doubted Albus would get Gryffindor herself. She really didn't understand why Albus had been so worried about it. James did tease, he saw Albus not wanting to constantly be the center of attention and mistook that for timidness. Even then, James had never truly thought his little brother would be a Slytherin.

"You're not looking forward to transfiguration?" she asked. It was one of her most anticipated classes. "It's a fascinating subject."

"Me handing it to you wasn't permission to read it," Albus huffed, but he made no move to stop her.

.

I've settled into the dorm well. Tell Lily that Rascal seems to like it here, he's sleeping on the end of my bed as I write this. He's been eyeing one of my dormmate's pet but has yet to make any real moves. It's the strangest thing, he has this very small bird called a bludgie or something like that. It's cute and all but I'd never choose it over an owl. Far too small to carry anything and it has a horrible sense of direction. David seems very attached to it though. David's one of my dormmates. He's the muggleborn boy we helped at Diagon Alley, remember? Invited him to my dorm when he got Gryffindor. Uncle Neville's nephew ended up in Gryffindor too, he's another of my dormmates.

.

It seemed Albus was saving Scorpius for the end. "Your dormmate's the one with that tiny bird?" she asked. "I heard some kids talking about it but haven't seen it myself yet. It's an unusual choice."

"Yeah," Albus shrugged. "But it was the pet he already had I guess." That made sense. Rose hadn't been hearing people say the nicest things about the bird though…

.

You may be wondering why I've sent this letter with Rose's owl instead of Kasper. The reason I have done this is I don't trust James in the slightest at the moment, he's been an absolute prat since the sorting. I'm sure he stayed up all night throwing a fit and has already sent you some unhinged letter. I have no idea what tosh he's tried to feed you, but Scorpius is a normal kid. He isn't a mini Death Eater or whatever hysterics James is going on about. Me and Rose sat with him on the train, and we really got on. He's not a blood purist, he doesn't do dark magic, he doesn't hate muggles, or any of that sort of stuff. He isn't even snotty about being rich, he's very nice and more polite than most kids our age. He's done nothing wrong. James literally hasn't spoken a word to him and has no idea what he is talking about. It's honestly embarrassing. Scorpius is already going to have problems from being the first Malfoy to get Gryffindor in who knows how long, he doesn't need James goading all his friends and the rest of the house against him. So tell James to lay off. Scorpius is willing to turn the other cheek but I'm not. I'm not fond of bullies.

.

Would that be enough to convince them? It was hard to say. Whenever the topic of the Malfoys came up, no one ever had anything nice to say. Uncle Harry was always the gentlest, oddly enough, about the Malfoys. Her dad though? She did not see her dad reacting well to the news.

Rose hadn't been planning on becoming friends with the boy when she chose to sit with him on the train. She'd merely been curious. Why was he sitting alone? Would he be nasty to them at school? Would they have to watch out for him? What type of person was he? Was he maybe not so bad? She'd seen sitting with him as recon more than anything, she'd never imagined they'd hit it off. Scorpius was genuinely nice, and Rose did appreciate having someone she could have an intelligent conversation with. Not that Albus wasn't intelligent, it was just a different sort of intelligence. And everyone being so awful to Scorpius was pushing her more to his side.

.

I'll send another letter once classes start to tell you how they are.

But seriously, tell James to stop being an idiot.

With Love

Albus

.

She sealed Albus' letter and grabbed her own, then hesitated. Should she write a new letter that did mention Scorpius? It wasn't something she could hide; everyone would be talking about it. She wasn't sure what she'd say though, even after reading Albus's letter. Mentioning it made it seem like a bigger deal than it actually was, and it would likely end up becoming a defensive rant that probably wouldn't convince her parents anyways. Her current letter hadn't mentioned any friends besides her dormmates.

Deciding to leave her letter as it was and answer the inevitable questions later, she gave the letters to Flora. As the owl flew off, Scorpius came up the stairs. The blonde looked nervous, eyes darting around and movements stilted like he was in an actual lions' den. They'd agreed to begin their exploration early so only a few other Gryffindors were up and in the common room. They all gave Scorpius hostile looks. Albus clearly noticed as well, giving the Gryffindors a glare before dragging Rose and Scorpius out of the room.

Albus was practically skipping down the hallway when they exited the portrait hole. "Let's try to get to the Great Hall a different way," he declared.

Rose and Scorpius glanced at each other. "Different than last night?" she checked. Albus nodded. "I suppose we could… we might risk missing breakfast though."

Albus waved off the concern. "We won't go crazy off the path. Let's just get off on a different floor and then go from there. We can figure out how to get there by going outside instead of through the dungeons."

"Alright," Rose shrugged. They did need to learn their way around. And avoiding the Slytherin dungeons was for the best for now.

"Sure…" Scorpius agreed.

They began to make their way to the Grand Staircase. The castle looked quite different in the peeking daylight, but she still recognized everything, and she noticed new things too with the changed lighting.

"So, Scorpius," Rose chatted. "What class are you most excited for?"

After a few seconds of pondering the question, Scorpius answered, "I'm not sure. All of them really. Charms are very practical, of course. And I'm very interested in potions and transfiguration. I wish we could take arithmancy already, but I suppose that will have to wait."

Albus gagged in front of them, leading them to get off on the fifth floor. Rose rolled her eyes. She hadn't expected Albus to appreciate the intricacies and varied applications of arithmancy. She was glad Scorpius was more sophisticated in the matter.

"I know," Rose sighed. "Waiting two days for classes to start is already bad enough." It was nice to have time to settle in though. "Two years is like forever."

"I am surprised that the headmistress is taking the time to teach the first years transfiguration," Scorpius commented. "I expected her to only be teaching the older kids."

Albus poked his head to look up a staircase a couple Ravenclaws had just come down from. Their common room must be at the top, Rose was fairly certain that was Ravenclaw Tower.

Rose shrugged. "It gives her a chance to get to know the new students. She can also ensure everyone properly learns the fundamentals. Not that Professor Switch is a bad teacher or anything like that." Sylvia Switch's family had many famous witches and wizards who excelled in transfiguration. Emeric Switch was the author of their transfiguration textbook. "She's an animagus, you know, very talented."

"Really?" Albus asked, falling back some to be closer to them. "I hadn't heard that."

"Yes, you have," Rose reminded him. "James was the one to tell us about it."

"Oh, ohhhh," Albus nodded, eyes lighting up as the memory came back to him. "The fox. Yeah, I remember that, just forgot the name."

"Hogwarts wouldn't hire an untalented professor," Scorpius remarked. "Still, I was looking forward to having Professor Slughorn for potions. Father says he's an absolutely brilliant potions instructor."

"My dad says the same thing," Albus agreed. "We'll get him some other year though. James says Professor Sharp is a bit strict but a good bloke. I just hope he doesn't give too much homework."

The three of them continued to talk about professors and classes and spells they wanted to learn until they eventually found their way to the Great Hall. Food was already out on the tables. There were plenty of empty spots at Gryffindor table, so it was easy to get a space for themselves.

Their cousin Molly waved at them from the Ravenclaw table but didn't come over. Molly was currently the only Weasley cousin to have not gotten Gryffindor. Surprisingly, the family hadn't had a big reaction to her placement, maybe because Molly's mom had been a Ravenclaw. Rose's dad had said he'd disown Rose if she didn't get Gryffindor. He'd said it jokingly, but still. Rose was beginning to think this whole 'you have to be in this house' thing was ridiculous.

As they ate breakfast, the conversation turned to their goals for the year. Neither Scorpius nor Albus had any solid goals at the moment. Albus just wanted to explore and goof off. Scorpius seemed to just want to survive the school year. Not getting Slytherin had probably derailed any plans he did have.

"Top of class?" Scorpius repeated when Rose told him her own main goal.

"Of course," Rose nodded. "Mum was top of her class, everyone's expecting it. And I know I can do it. Don't you want good marks?" She was rather confused about why he seemed confused.

Scorpius' eyebrows furrowed slightly. "I mean, I guess? I wouldn't want to fail or anything. So long as I'm learning the material, which does lead to good marks I suppose."

The response was baffling. Even after knowing Scorpius for just a day, she knew he was a fellow academic. How could you be academic and not care about marks? Rose could live with not getting all O's, so long as the vast majority were O's, but she might literally die if she ever got a P. She certainly would die if she ever got a T, she wasn't even sure how one got a T unless they just didn't turn something in. She supposed Scorpius had other more immediately pressing things to worry about though.

They ate quickly and managed to leave before the larger crowds started streaming in. As they crossed the courtyards Rose's eyes met James', who was heading towards the Great Hall with Fred and some of his friends. Her older cousin looked bewildered to see the three of them together. What, had he expected them to have had a fight and fallen out overnight? Confused was better than angry, maybe he was already on the road to acceptance. No point talking to him in the meantime.

They spent hours exploring the castle, getting lost multiple times. It was fun. At one point, they passed a group of squealing Hufflepuff first years fleeing from a hoard of large spiders Peeves had released on them. The three of them had held back since they didn't believe they'd be able to help and some older Hufflepuffs were already dealing with the mess. Scorpius had watched the poltergeist with open curiosity. This was the first time Rose had seen a poltergeist as well. She hoped to not see too much of Peeves, the specter was a menace.

Once they'd found all of their classrooms, they began to make their way to the quidditch pitch. "Are either of you going to try for the team at some point?" Scorpius asked as they pushed through the belltower doors and out onto the grounds. The fresh breeze felt nice against her skin.

"Nah," Albus answered simply. Albus liked quidditch and he was alright at the sport, but he was pretty casual about it.

"Probably not," Rose shook her head. She loved quidditch and Aunt Ginny said she was a good chaser, but she just didn't see how she'd have time with all her schoolwork.

"What about you, Scorp?" Albus questioned. "You gonna try out?"

Scorpius' eyes widened. "I can't be on the Gryffindor quidditch team. I doubt they'd even let me try out."

"Oh, they'll be over it by next year," Albus brushed off. "You any good on a broom?"

"Oh, um, I'm okay, I guess," Scorpius stumbled. "I mean, I've flown a lot, but I've never really played quidditch."

"Never played quidditch?!" Albus and Rose gasped in unison. Scorpius came from an all-wizard family; he must have played at some point.

"Not even kiddie quidditch?" Albus prodded, disbelief making his voice higher. Even an overprotective parent was usually okay with the slow snitch and the boopers that barely nudged your broomstick.

"No," Scorpius admitted, uncomfortable. "I've chased snitches and tossed quaffles and such with my father, but I've never played an actual game. Not enough people." That was one of the most depressing things Rose had ever heard. Not even a single game of quidditch?

Albus was similarly disheartened. "Oh…"

"But do you like it?" Rose asked. "Do you have a favorite team?"

"Oh, um." Scorpius considered the question for a few seconds. "The Banchory Bangers, I guess."

"The Bangers?" Rose repeated, unable to hide her disgust. "But they're awful."

"I, um, like their mascot," Scorpius explained, face heating up. The Banger's mascot was a Hebridean black dragon, which was admittedly an impressive beast. But the team itself was so bad. So, so bad. They always ranked near the bottom. "I know that isn't the best reason to like a team…"

Albus moved to stand in front of Scorpius, halting their walk. Looking Scorpius dead in the eye, he placed one hand on the blonde's shoulder, causing the other boy to startle at the contact. "Scorpius," Albus declared very seriously. "I knew I liked you for a reason. I have enough quidditch fanatics in my life already. Merlin's beard, this is such a relief, you have no idea what I have to deal with."

Rose rolled her eyes. Albus was so overdramatic sometimes. She batted Albus to let go of Scorpius. "I'm a big Magpies fan myself," she informed him. Maybe she could convert him to a better team.

"Wait," Albus gasped, snapping to face her. "The Magpies? What about the Harpies?!" Albus' mum was a chaser for the Harpies.

"I can't count them when my aunt is on the team," Rose defended, "It wouldn't be fair." The Harpies were an excellent team though.

Albus' eyes narrowed and he looked ready to argue so Rose turned back to Scorpius. Scorpius was looking up at something above their heads. She followed his gaze and realized he was watching a pair of ghosts above them. The ghosts seemed to be chatting as they had an outdoor stroll.

"The ghosts here sure do float around a lot," Scorpius noted.

Albus paused, then raised an eyebrow. "Um, yeah, what else would they do?" Rose had to agree, it was an odd comment, even if you'd never seen a ghost before.

"Er, I don't know," Scorpius rambled, fidgeting. "I mean, do they start floating right after they- y'know, or do they walk for a while until they get used to being a ghost? Like, theoretically, what would it mean if you saw a walking ghost? Do all ghosts float all the time or-"

"Mate," Albus interrupted, laughing, "if I could float everywhere, I'd never walk again."

"Not everyone is as lazy as you, Al," Rose teased. To Scorpius she pointed out, "I'm fairly certain if you see a 'ghost' walking on the ground, it isn't a ghost at all. Not that I'm an expert on the subject."

Scorpius looked strangely thoughtful, almost calculating for a couple seconds, then he shrugged. "I guess."

The rest of the way to the pitch, Rose launched into a detailed description of the Magpies and the Harpies and who the best players were at the moment, the best quidditch strategies, the scores from last season, and the new advancements in brooms. Albus bore an exasperated expression the whole trek. By the time they reached the pitch proper he looked like he was considering climbing the stands and jumping off without a broom just to end his suffering. Instead, he changed the topic to golden snidgets then successfully moved the conversation to magical beasts in general. Albus was sneaky like that. Rose didn't really mind though. She could talk to Scorpius about quidditch later without Albus there to whine and interrupt.

After wandering around for a while, they headed back to the Great Hall for lunch. This morning had solidified in her mind that Scorpius wasn't some secret bad guy, which she was quite happy about as she did like the boy quite a lot. Now they just had to convince everyone else of the same thing.