The Hogwarts Games: In Ruins

Chapter 32: Albus

"Lily, bed. Now," I demanded.

"You mean 'Lily, sleep on the ground. Now.' Right?" she replied moodily.

"Yeah."

"Wait a moment."

I knew she wanted to see Colin projected across the sky, as if confirmation he really was gone. I didn't think it was good for her but she was stubborn. I casted a worried glance at James which he returned.

A couple minutes later, the sky lit up. And there was Colin, his mousy hair sticking up as if he hadn't bothered to brush it and grinning sheepishly down at us. Lily's gaze stayed on the sky until Colin's face was gone.

"Albus and I will take night watch," James said.

Hermione raised her eyebrows, "I thought I was doing night watch with you."

"You've done enough," he replied, giving her a light kiss on the cheek, "Get some sleep."

"Alright, then."

Hermione crawled over to Lily and fell asleep the minute her head hit the forest floor. Scorpius settled against a tree trunk. Ginny lie stargazing next to each other on the ground.

"We need to talk," James whispered to me, "after they fall asleep."

I nodded to show him that I heard.

The sounds of muttering and rustling trailed away steadily, replaced by faint snores.

"How are you, Albus?" James asked.

I looked at him strangely, "Why?"

All he said was, "It'd be nice to know."

There was a pause. And he continued, "With all that's going on."

"I'm fine, I guess."

"No, you're not."

"Okay, I'm not," I admitted grudgingly, "So what?"

"Do you remember that one Christmas when Fred and I released Filibuster Fireworks in the house?" He mused strangely.

"Um, yes. What's that got to do with anything?"

He sighed, "Just thought it'd be nice to remember the good things. It helps. Remember something."

"Okay...." I didn't know why he was acting like this, but I did it anyway.

I saw myself when I was eight. Lily, James, Hugo, Rose, and I were running around in Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione's backyard. We were chasing animals made of a silvery mist. There were four of them. A stag, a horse, an otter, and a Jack Russell Terrier. It might not have seemed to be much, but it was a lot to me. It felt amazing to be surrounded by the people you love, hearing the pure sounds of laughter and joy in the air. We didn't need to worry too much about the Games back then. It was just as I remembered it. Rose pushed Hugo and James aside impatiently as she ran, sending them tumbling into the dirt on top of each other. Lily tripped over her feet and laughed as she sprawled into the soft grass, which was still wet from the morning dew. Aunt Hermione giggled and pecked Uncle Ron on the cheek, saying, "It's Expecto Patr-OH-num! Make the 'oh' nice and long."

He smiled at her, "You do it then, if you're so clever."

And Mum exchanged a smirk with Dad. The rolled their eyes and grinned at each other. My eight year old self chased after the stag, which kept galloping out of my reach.

My mind returned to the forest. My eyes focused upon James, who sat across me, smiling faintly. "Well?"

I smiled back, "Thanks."