Albus Potter and the Home of the Shadow

The Quiet Christmas

"How's school so far?" Uncle Ron inquired. "Easy? Hard?"

"Potions is a breeze," Albus told him. "I have straight Os in Potions."

"Nice, Al," Uncle Ron said. "How about you, Rosie?"

"It's been amazing, Daddy!" She said, clearly exuberant at the prospect of answering questions. "I'm doing really well in Charms and Transfiguration! I'm the top student! Even beating Malfoy!"

Despite Rose's choice of words, she and Scorpius had seemed to really hit it off with each other after they both had opened up. As of now, they had a friendly rivalry in just about every class, with both of them trying to outdo each other, with Rose winning just slightly. 

"Good to hear," his uncle said. Albus could hear a smile in his voice. 

"You two are being quiet," Uncle Ron remarked, clearly referring to Albus and his brother, who hadn't uttered a word to each other in a one-on-one conversation. The only time they'd spoken was when James answered a question that Uncle Ron started.

"Missing my friends," James lied. "Darion isn't coming over anymore. Neither is Caleb. Durand said he's tentative."

"We're here," Uncle Ron announced, turning off the car. 

"How's school been?" His mum asked. 

"Fine," Albus said. "Nothing too hard."

"Ginny, who's coming over again? George, Bill, Charlie, and  Percy. Luna and NevilleRolf and Angelica. Did I get everyone?" His dad asked. He was in charge of giving everyone somewhere to sleep.

"Yeah. All of my siblings are staying, as well as Neville and Luna." His mum replied. 

Albus stared in shock at the feast his mum had prepared. Of course, he was used to huge feasts, thanks to the meals at Hogwarts. It didn't feel like home at Hogwarts. Slytherin was unpopular, but at least he wasn't being used by his housemates, and a lot of them genuinely wanted to be his friends.

The feast tasted as good as it looked. The only thing missing was the festivity of the holiday. Rose had took to antagonizing Scorpius to Albus, saying he was a faker and he was already losing his personality. Albus could sense a faint tinge of sadness to Rose's voice as she said this. 

It was true: Scorpius had indeed changed, though his study habits sure didn't. Scorpius had completely lost his hunch-backed positioning, as if he'd found a new self-confidence. He was still generally reserved, but had started studying and doing his homework in a largely unnoticed part on the Common Room. 

"He'a becoming more like the snake I know he is," Rose told Albus. "Seductive."

"Rose, just give him a chance," Albus said. "Just... For me. For your cousin."

Albus expected Rose to laugh at that, but an expression of displeasure crossed her face. "Fine," Rose said. Meet me and Lara in the library first day back. Bring Malfoy."

"Should I bring Julian?" Albus asked.

"If you want," Rose replied. "He'll probably just copy off of Malfoy, anyway."

"Are you saying Scorpius is smart?" Albus teased.

Rose's cheeks reddened in anger. "No. I'm just saying he focuses on his studies."

"Al, Ron's family is staying over the night," his dad informed him. 

"Is that a surprise at point?" Albus said blandly as he turned back to Rose. 

"Can I room with Hugo?" Albus inquired. "He said he wants to play his quidditch board game with me. I rarely get to see him nowadays."

"Or you could room with Teddy," his dad suggested.

This was a welcome surprise. Teddy had been out searching for a job before finally finding one. He'd finally found a job it seemed, and was deep in conversation about it with Albus' Uncle Ron.