I changed Albus's name to Will. I'm not sorry.
Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly this year. The morning of the first September was crisp and golden as an apple, and as the family bobbed across the rumbling road toward the great sooty station, the fumes of the car exhaust and the breath of pedestrians sparkled like cobwebs in cold air. Two large cages rattled on top of the laden trolleys the parents were pushing; the owls inside them hooted indignantly, and the brunette girl with grey eyes trained tearfully behind her brothers, clutching her mother's arm.
"You know, it's only a two-year wait before you can go, Rory," Estella said.
"Two years," sniffed Aurora. "I want to go now!"
The commuters stared curiously at the owls as the family wove its way toward the barrier between platforms nine and then. William's voice drifted back to Estella over the surrounding clamor; her sons had resumed the argument they had started in the car.
"I won't! I won't be in Slytherin!"
"Will, there's nothing wrong with Slytherin. That's uncle Ian's house," said Estella. "James, stop teasing your brother."
They'd compromised on the names; at least, that's what Estella let him think. He got to name their firstborn after his father, so it was only fair their last was named after her mother, though her middle name was Lily, James was Aspens, and Will's Sirius.
"I only said he might be," said James, grinning at his younger brother. "There's nothing wrong with that; we love Uncle Ian and Blaise. He might be in Slyth-"
But James caught her eye and fell silent. The five Potters approached the barrier. With a slightly cocky look over his shoulder at his younger brother, James took the trolley from Estella and broke into a run. A moment later, he vanished.
"You'll write to me, won't you?" Will asked his parents immediately, capitalizing on the momentary absence of his brother.
"Hmm, I don't know, Harry; what do you think?" Estella teased.
Harry nudged her and looked down at a frantic Will. "You're mother's joking, Will. Of course, we'll write you every day if you want us to."
More like Harry would, and Estella would add in little comments.
"Not every day," said Will quickly. "James says most people only get letters from home about once a month."
"He lied. We wrote to James three times a week last year," said Estella.
"And you don't want to believe everything he tells you about Hogwarts," Harry added. "He likes a laugh, your brother. He's like your mother."
Estella grinned. James was a mommy's boy, whether he admitted it or not.
Side by side, they pushed the second trolley forward, gathering speed. As they reached the barrier, Will winced, but no collision came. Instead, the family emerged onto platform nine and three-quarters, which was obscured by thick white steam that was pouting from the scarlet Hogwarts Express. Indistinct figures were swarming through the mist, into which James had already disappeared.
"Where are they?" asked Will anxiously, peering at the hazy forms they passed as they made their way down the platform.
"We'll find them. He knows I'd murder him if he left without saying goodbye," said Estella reassuringly.
But the vapor was dense, and it was difficult to make out anybody's faces. Detached from their owners, voices sounded unnaturally loud. Estella thought he heard Percy discoursing loudly on broomstick regulations, and she was positive she heard Fred laughing somewhere in the distance.
"Over there, Es," Harry said suddenly.
A group of four people emerged from the mist, standing alongside the very last carriage. Their faces only came into focus when Estella, Harry, Aurora, and Will had drawn right up to them.
"Hi," said Will, sounding immensely relieved.
Rose, who was already wearing her brand-new Hogwarts robes, beamed at him.
"Parked all right, then?" Ron asked. "I did. Hermione didn't believe I could pass a Muggle driving test, did you? She thought I'd have to Confund the examiner."
"No, I didn't," said Hermione, "I had complete faith in you."
"No, I didn't. You've seen him drive," Hermione whispered to Estella as Ron and Harry lifted Will's trunk and owl onto the train.
Estella laughed. Ron's driving truly was horrendous. Harry couldn't complain about Estella's speeding after driving with Ron.
Back on the platform, they found Aurora and Hugo, Rose's younger brother, having an animated discussion about which House they would be sorted into when they finally went to Hogwarts.
"If you're not in Gryffindor, we'll disinherit you," said Ron, "but no pressure."
"Ron!"
Aurora and Hugo laughed, but Will and Rose looked solemn.
"He doesn't mean it," said Hermione and Estella, but Ron was no longer paying attention.
"He could have very well been sorted into Slytherin, too," Estella whispered to the children.
Some fifty yards away, Draco Malfoy was standing with Astoria and their son, Scorpius, a dark coat buttoned up to his throat. Scorpius strongly resembled Draco, and Will strongly resembled Harry. Draco smiled at Estella and nodded curtly at Harry, Ron, and Hermione.
"So that's little Scorpius," said Ron under his breath. "Make sure you beat him in every test, Rosie. Thank God you inherited your mother's brains."
"Ron, for heaven's sake," said Hermione, half stern, half amused. "Don't try to turn them against each other before they've even started school!"
"Right, sorry, but unable to help himself, he added, "Don't get too friendly with him, though, Rosie. Granddad Weasley would never forgive you if you married a pureblood."
"Hey!"
James had appeared; he had divested himself of his trunk, owl, and trolley and was evidently bursting with news.
"Mum, Teddy's back thee," he said breathlessly, pointing back over his shoulder into the billowing clouds of steam. "Just seen him! And guess what he's doing? Snogging Victorie!"
He gazed up at the adults, evidently disappointed by the lack of reaction.
"Our Teddy! Teddy Lupin! Snogging our Victorie! She's basically our cousin. And I asked Teddy what he was doing-"
"You interrupted them?" said Estella, scrunching her face. "You're a lot like Ron-"
"-and he said he'd come to see her off! And then he told me to go away. He's snogging her!"
"He'd really be a part of the family then," whispered Aurora ecstatically.
They may not have been Weasley's by blood, but Molly and Arthur had taken them in as their own, especially after the war.
"He already comes around for dinner about four times a week," said Harry. "Why don't we just invite him to live with us and have done with it?"
"Yeah!" said James enthusiastically. "I don't mind sharing with Will-Teddy could have my room!"
"No," said Harry firmly, "you and Will will share a room only when I want the house demolished."
He checked his watch.
"It's nearly eleven; you'd better get on board."
"Don't forget to give Neville our love!" Estella said to James as she hugged him.
"Mum! I can't give a professor love!"
"You know what I mean. You know Neville-"
James rolled his eyes.
"Outside, yeah, but at school, he's Professor Longbottom, isn't he? I can't walk into Herbology and give him love..."
"You already do a lot of other things you shouldn't do at school; what's one more thing?"
James scowled but hugged his mother once more before stepping away.
"See you later, Will. Watch out for the thestrals," James called.
"I thought they were invisible? You said they were invisible!"
But James merely laughed, allowed Estella to wack his shoulder, gave his father a fleeting hug, then leapt onto the rapidly filling train. They watched him wave, then sprint away up the corridor to find his friends as he had done each year since first year.
"Thestrals are nothing to worry about," Harry said. "They're gentle things, far more gentle than your mother when you bother her while she's reading; there's nothing scary about them. Anyway, you won't be going up to school in carriages; you'll be going in the boats."
Estella hugged Will goodbye.
"See you at Christmas."
"Bye, Will," said Harry as his son hugged him. "Don't forget Hagrid's invited you to tea next Friday. Don't mess with Peeves. Don't duel anyone till you've learned how. And don't let James wind you up."
"And if he does, tell me," Estella said.
Sometimes James didn't understand Will was softer than he was, and he pushed too far. She wasn't saying teasing wasn't allowed, it was certainly encouraged, but she wouldn't let him tease Will for being sorted into Slytherin.
"What if I'm in Slytherin?" he asked, his voice full of fear.
Estella crouched beside Harry. Alone of their three children, Will had inherited Lily's eyes.
"The House of Slytherin has a bad reputation," said Estella, "but it is, in no way, an accurate representation. Your father was almost a Slytherin; I was almost a Slytherin. There's nothing wrong with being a Slytherin, just like there's nothing wrong with being a Hufflepuff or Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. Each House is stellar in its own way."
Harry nodded.
"But just say-"
"-then Slytherin House will have gained an excellent student, won't it? It doesn't matter to us, Will. Your mother had tons of friends within Slytherin, and you call some of them your Aunts and Uncles today. But if it matters to you, you'll be able to choose Gryffindor over Slytherin. The Sorting Hat takes your choice into account."
"Really?"
"It did for me," said Harry.
Will looked to Estella.
"I didn't have a house preference," she said. "I fit them all. I could've easily been a Slytherin, Ravenclaw, or Hufflepuff over Gryffindor."
She nudged him toward the train, and Will jumped into the carriage, and Estella closed the door behind him. Students were hanging from the windows nearest them. A great number of faces, both on the train and off, seemed to be turned toward the couple.
"Why are they all staring?" demanded Will as he and Rose craned around to look at the other students.
"Don't let it worry you," said Ron. "It's me. I'm extremely famous."
Will, Rose, Hugo, and Aurora laughed. The train began to move, and Estella waved and smiled at her son, watching him glide away from her.
The last trace of steam evaporated in the autumn air. The train rounded a corner. Harry's hand was still raised in farewell.
"He's going to be okay, you know," murmured Estella.
Harry looked at her and pulled her to his chest.
"I know he will."
There was a silent pause.
"It gets harder each year, doesn't it?" she asked.
It certainly did for her. The day Rory left, she knew she'd go home and cry.
Harry nodded.
"I'm not looking forward to the day Rory leaves," Harry said as he pulled Estella close and kissed the top of her head.
She glanced up at him before she asked, "What are your thoughts on adoption?"
And all was well.
AHH, we've reached the end. I'll probably go back and edit this epilogue one day but right now is not the time. Thank you for reading up until the end. Words will never describe how thankful I am that you decided to take a chance and read this story. I am truly grateful for every single one of you and for the support and patience you've shown me as I've written this story.
I am also currently writing another fanfic titled No Goodbyes. It is a Ron Weasley x oc fanfic, so I hope you check it out!
I hope I did this version justice and that you liked my twist on it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
As always, don't forget to like and comment. I love reading the comments.
It felt so weird to mark my story as completed.
November 2020-March 2021