Kindred Spirits

The first of September arrived with a blustery wind and sheets of rain. Students and frazzled parents scurried across Platform Nine and Three Quarters like mice, sharing frantic hugs and shoving trunks aboard the steam engine as the children all ducked into the relative cover of the train. 

Rose did her best to shield her smoothed hair from the rain, already grimacing at the thought of the frizz she would otherwise have to deal with later. She gave her father a quick hug, stood on her toes to accept a kiss from her mother, and shouted a hurried goodbye as she leapt aboard the train, her trunk already stowed somewhere within the carriage. 

“Urgh,” Rose groaned, shaking drops from her hair and running a self-conscious hand over her head. The strands didn’t feel bushy to the touch, but she could never be quite sure what her hair looked like until she saw a mirror. Her prefect badge lay against her chest, the silver rather dulled from the rain and the dim light of the train. 

“Rose! There you are!” 

She looked up to see Allie hanging out of a nearby compartment, waving towards her. 

“Come in, come in!” Allie cried, beckoning Rose forward. “It’s awful out there, isn’t it? Oh, and it looks like you even did your hair, too.” 

“I did,” Rose moaned as she walked down the corridor, her hand once again going to her hair. “My mum smoothed it before we left but I didn’t think to do the moisture-repelling charm and so it’s probably all ruined now.” 

“Not at all,” Allie waved a hand as Rose approached the compartment door. “I can smooth it again for you once you sit down. And I’ll do the moisture-repelling charm for you, too, if you’d like. Though I’m not sure how much you’ll need it now.” 

“Thanks.” Rose stood in front of the compartment and waited for Allie to return to her seat before stepping inside. 

Nearly everyone was there already. Lucy and Nathan sat next to each other, Nathan with an arm around Lucy as he leaned against the window. Scorpius sat across from Nathan, with Maren next to him. Allie slid into the seat beside Lucy and waved Rose to take the seat by Maren. 

“‘Lo, Rose,” Nathan waved. “Proper end of summer we’re getting today, isn’t it?” 

“Ugh,” Rose groaned as she slid into her seat. She brushed her hair from her face and glanced down at the curls cascading over her shoulder which seemed to be growing bushier by the minute. “I’ll say. It’s positively ruined my hair.” 

“Don’t even worry about that,” Allie admonished. “I’ll fix that just as soon as I can.” 

“Do you think you could do it before the prefect meeting?” Rose asked, sitting up a touch straighter. “I hate going to those things with my hair a mess.” 

“Is there time?” Nathan asked with a small laugh. “Weasley, we have to leave for that in less than five minutes.” 

 “It won’t take me but a minute,” Allie sniffed. She tugged her wand from the bag at her feet and scooted to the side, opening up a sliver of space beside her. “Rose, if you sit here I can do it right now.” 

Rose heaved a grateful sigh and squeezed into the space between Allie and the door. She felt Allie’s capable hands separate her hair into sections down her back, then take one and hold it taut. The familiar sensation of cold air ran down Rose’s scalp and she shivered slightly. 

“There,” Allie said triumphantly a few minutes later, setting the last section of hair gingerly against Rose’s shoulder and leaning back to observe her handiwork. “Good as new.” 

“You’re amazing,” Rose smiled over her shoulder, raising a hand to run over the freshly smoothed curls. “Seriously, Allie, I’d be lost without you.” 

“Any time,” Allie chirped. 

The compartment door flung open then, and Albus Potter stood before them, his wet hair plastered to his forehead and his cheeks a brilliant red. “There you are,” he panted. “I didn’t know what carriage you were in and I was running up and down the train—” 

“Al, how are you that wet?” Rose asked, staring at her cousin.

Albus glared at her. “Some third years were blocking the third carriage, so I got out to come over here. Mum thought I was going to be late and I—” 

“You ran through a storm to find us?” Maren asked, grinning. “That’s so sweet.” 

“Shut it,” Albus grit out, flinging himself onto the seat across from Rose with a fantastic squelch. “I thought you were all trying to ditch me.” 

“Nope,” Rose shook her head, sitting back and trying to avoid Albus’s dripping sleeve. “Just in the same carriage we always ride in.” 

“Ugh, I should have done a drying spell in the corridor,” Al muttered, struggling to get his wand out of his jeans pocket and leaning squarely against Maren, who yeped as his sopping jacket came into contact with her shoulder. 

“Lucky for you we have to get to the prefect's meeting,” Scorpius said, half-rising from his seat, a small smile on his face as he looked towards Maren and Albus. “So you need to get out anyways.” 

They all rose awkwardly, jostling for space and trying not to elbow each other anywhere too painful. When they were all safely in the corridor Rose turned to Allie with one last pat of her hair. 

“You’re sure it looks alright?” 

“It looks wonderful, Weasley, now please stop asking,” Maren replied, scowling as she shook out her damp sleeve. 

“Oh bugger, we should go,” Nathan said with a glance down at his watch. “We’re going to be late otherwise and I don’t fancy starting the year with a telling off from the head boy and girl.” 

“Why do they make this meeting so early?” Rose grumbled, waving to Allie and Maren as she turned towards Nathan. “It’s just asking for people to be late.” 

“It’s probably so nobody has to patrol during it,” Scorpius said beside her as they started off down the corridor. 

Rose frowned. “Oh. Well, that’s…sensible.” 

“How much did it pain you to say that?” Nathan grinned. 

Rose rolled her eyes. 

They made their way to the prefects compartment quickly. Nathan hadn’t been exaggerating when he said they may be late. They arrived at the compartment with a minute to spare, Scorpius holding the door open as Rose and Nathan hastily slid inside and into the first available seats. 

The compartment door closed with a gentle swish and Rose felt Scorpius take the seat beside her as the head boy and girl stood at the front of the magically enlarged compartment. 

“Hello, hello,” the girl, a Slytherin whom Rose had seen frequently in the Great Hall, said. “My name is Bellona Cudgel, your head girl.” 

“And I’m Mikael Barsamian,” the boy beside her said, inclining his dark head towards the seated prefects. “I’m your head boy. Thank you all for joining us today and for respecting everybody’s time.” 

“This should be a fairly short meeting,” Bellona said, cutting Mikael off. If she saw the dark look he threw her way she ignored it. “We really just wanted to introduce ourselves, go over some basic rules for the train ride, and then hand out patrol schedules. Before we begin, does anyone have any questions?” 

Rose sat in her seat as the silence descended upon the compartment. 

“Excellent,” Bellona said crisply. “Now, as you all know, there should be no magic or rowdiness in the corridors. Any objects banned at the castle, such as love potions and fanged frisbees, are likewise banned on the Hogwarts Express. As term hasn’t started yet you can’t take points from anyone, but Barsamian and I both have the authority to give out detentions should they be warranted. Please just be judicious in asking us for those.” She gave the prefects a sharp look, and Rose thought privately she would rather eat a flobberworm than ask Bellona Cudgel for anything. 

Bellona spoke for several more minutes, detailing further rules for the train that ought to be observed and giving a rather long-winded, mildly threatening, decree for good sportsmanship and positive inter-house relationships. “If we hear anybody has been unfairly punishing students of other houses, or failing to apprehend wrong-doers in their own house, there will be consequences,” she said in an ominous voice. 

“Why do I feel like I’m being told off by Lyncroft right now?” Nathan whispered to Rose. 

Rose bit back a laugh, and promptly choked on her tongue. She hacked a cough into her elbow, feeling Nathan thump her on the back while holding back his own chuckle. 

Bellona Cudgel’s eyes fell on Rose. “Everything okay back there, Weasley?” 

“Yes,” Rose croaked, fervently nodding. Several pairs of eyes turned to watch her and she felt her face heat up. “Just—you know—went down the wrong pipe.” 

“Of course.” Bellona turned back to the table in front of her and shuffled a stack of parchment. “Alright, if there are no questions then we have the schedules here for everyone. Take one and pass them back. Mind you note which carriage you’ve been assigned to.” 

Adele Ahlgren passed the stack of parchment to Nathan, who passed it to Rose, who passed the last remaining sheet on to Scorpius. 

“We have the first patrol,” Scorpius said, looking over at her. “Third carriage.” 

“Thank Merlin,” Rose muttered, her face still warm from her coughing episode. “That one’s always the easiest.” 

“You’re all dismissed,” Bellona called from the front of the compartment. The squeal of a dozen pairs of shoes hitting the floor drowned out her other closing remarks. 

Rose stood quickly and waited as Scorpius folded his sheet of parchment, pinching the crease as he did so. When the schedule was folded to his liking he rose to his feet, eyes landing on her as he nodded towards the door. 

“Lead the way.” 

Rose sighed and followed the stream of people out of the compartment, turning right when she reached the corridor to move towards the third compartment. 

“Do you reckon we’ll see anything interesting today?” Rose asked, thinking back to their first patrol last year. It had been almost painfully uneventful, and even more painfully awkward. 

Scorpius shrugged, his hands moving to his pockets as they entered their designated carriage. “Probably not. But who knows. Maybe somebody just got a new fanged frisbee they’ll want to try.” 

Rose shuddered. “Ugh, the train would be the worst place for one of those things.” 

“Yes, well, people don’t always think about things like that.” 

They fell quiet then, falling into the easy silence that Rose had come to expect at the end of the previous term. Rose’s feet found the right pace to keep stride with Scorpius without running out of breath as her fingers found a lock of hair and began twisting it. Her eyes wandered around the corridor as she cast about for a properly enthralling daydream. There were frustratingly few options, what with her vow of no boys for the year. 

“Did you get your exam results, then?” Scorpius asked from beside her. 

“Hm?” Rose turned to look at him, the finger twisting the lock of hair pausing beside her cheek. 

Scorpius arched an eyebrow. “O.W.L. results. I assume you got yours?” 

“Oh.” Rose nodded slowly. “Yeah, yeah they came with my school letter. They were…as expected.” 

Both eyebrows rose. “Define ‘expected.” 

“You know…” Rose shrugged and looked at the opposite wall, her face burning for some unknown reason. “The usual. Mostly Os, a few Es.” 

Scorpius let out a low laugh, and Rose turned to look at him then, unable to decide if she should be angry with this response or not. 

“What’s so—”

“So you didn’t fail Potions then?” 

“What? Oh—” Rose felt the color in her face rise as she realized why he was asking. “Er—no—I didn’t. I got an E, which—well—” she paused and bit her lip, unsure of what to say next. After a moment she settled on, “thanks for working with me on the practical.” 

Scorpius nodded. “I’m glad it helped.” 

“So—” Rose bit her lip and resumed twisting her hair. “How were yours? Your results, I mean?” 

Scorpius glanced sideways at her, lips curling upwards. “As expected.” 

Rose rolled her eyes. “Come on, that’s not a real answer and you’re just making fun of me. I told you what I got, now it’s your turn.” 

Scorpius shrugged, looking down at his shoes. “Pretty much the same. Mostly Os. An E in Ancient Runes, an E in Transfiguration and Astronomy.” 

Rose nodded. “Well done.” 

“Thanks.” 

Silence descended once more and Rose continued to search for a proper daydream to occupy herself. The carriage corridors remained largely lifeless, and Rose couldn’t decide whether or not she was grateful for the fact. On the one hand it meant not having to do too much; on the other, it just meant there was that much more time to fill while patrolling next to Scorpius. 

“I am happy you didn’t fail Potions, you know,” he said, startling her again. 

Rose blinked at him. “What?”

“I’m glad you didn’t fail Potions,” Scorpius repeated, his grey eyes landing on her and a hint of a smile visible at the corner of his mouth. 

“Oh.” The lock of hair fell from Rose’s finger and bounced against her cheekbone. She bit her lip and glanced at Scorpius. “Yeah, thanks. I think my mum would have actually murdered me if I’d failed.” 

Scorpius quirked an eyebrow. “I would have thought that the shock of failing something would have killed you before she had the chance.” 

“Hm,” Rose bit her lip to hold in a laugh and considered this. “That might actually be a better outcome, don’t you think? At least then it would be painless.” 

Scorpius shrugged, a smile finally cracking across his face. “I can’t argue that.” 

“It wouldn’t be all bad,” Rose mused further, tucking the piece of hair behind her ear and very determinedly not looking at Scorpius’s face. “If I were dead I wouldn’t have to worry about keeping Maren sane about quidditch this year.” 

Scorpius slanted another glance at her, his face unreadable. “Yes, but the problem there is that if you died then I would have to keep her sane about quidditch this year. And quite frankly I would rather try my chances against your mum.” 

Rose couldn’t help it. She snorted, then she let out a laugh. She brought a hand up to cover her mouth as stray giggles made their way past her lips.   

“You know, Malfoy,” she said as the laughter subsided, “you’re rather funny when you want to be.” 

“Glad you think so,” Scorpius replied dryly. He paused and then said, “You know, you’re the only person in the house who still calls me by my surname.” 

“Oh.” Rose frowned and chewed her lip, turning to look at Scorpius. “Is that—would you rather I didn’t?” 

He shrugged. “It’s just an observation.” His eyes slid towards her, peering at her through his eyelashes. He took his hands out of his pockets, gently pressing each knuckle on his right hand until it cracked. As he worked his way from his thumb to his pinky he tilted his chin down so he faced the floor. “I wouldn’t mind if you called me Scorpius, you know.” 

Rose chewed her lip, her fingers moving towards her hair again. “Alright.” 

Scorpius gave a small nod, still looking at the ground as he began to crack the knuckles on his left hand. 

Rose twisted her hair around her fingers, eyes bouncing off the walls of the corridor as she searched for something to focus on. 

“So are you going to continue with Potions?” 

Her head turned to the side. Scorpius was watching his feet, fingers still twisted together in front of him. 

Rose frowned, letting the lock of hair fall from her finger yet again and bounce against her cheek. 

“Did Al say something to you?” 

Scorpius turned and blinked at her, a crease appearing between his eyebrows. “No. Why would he?”

“Oh.” Rose’s frown deepened and she looked from the ground to Scorpius. “Sorry, I didn’t—he told me over the summer I should drop the class, that’s all.” 

Scorpius nodded, his brow smoothing. He returned his hands to his pockets. “I didn’t know that. No, he hasn’t said anything. I was just wondering.” 

Rose shrugged, her teeth digging into her lower lip as she regarded her sleeves with great interest.  In truth she had thought about Al’s suggestion frequently in the weeks since their ride through the orchard. She hated Potions, there was no doubt about it. But the thought of dropping any class at all, let alone a core branch of magic, made her chest clench painfully. 

“So are you going to drop it?” 

She looked up. Scorpius’s gaze was on her, the crease reappearing as he scanned her face. 

“I don’t know,” Rose finally said, running a hand through her hair.  “I haven’t decided.” 

“If you still want to do translation or work for the bookshop after school then you won’t need it,” Scorpius said. 

“Yeah.” Rose looked down at her feet. “That’s pretty much what Al said.” 

Scorpius shifted, his eyes still on her. “I would have thought you’d be eager to be done with it. You’ve been complaining about Potions since first year.” 

Rose shuffled her feet and twisted a piece of hair around her finger, watching as the taut ringlet fell against her shoulder. “It just—it feels silly to drop it just because I don’t like it.” 

“I don’t think it’s silly.” 

Rose glanced up at Scorpius and bit her lip. “No?” 

Scorpius shook his head. “You don’t like it and you don’t need it. It seems like you’d be better off using that time for something else.” 

Rose paused. “Like what?” 

“I don’t know,” Scorpius shrugged. “Other classes. Quidditch. Convincing Thomas not to schedule practice every single weekend.” 

Rose heard the joke but didn’t react to it. She hugged her arms to her chest, her lip still caught between her teeth as she considered Scorpius’s words. He had a point. She could admit that. But still… 

“People won’t think I’m soft? Or a fraud? Hermione Granger’s daughter who’s supposed to be so bright but can’t even handle N.E.W.T. Potions?” 

The words tumbled out unbidden. 

Rose could feel Scorpius straightening beside her, his gaze sharpening. “Even if anyone does think that,” he responded slowly, bringing a hand up to the back of his neck, “it’s not true.” 

“They’ll still think it,” Rose mumbled, her arms tightening around her chest. 

“Who cares?” Scorpius frowned at her. “Everyone who’s ever had a class with you knows you’re not a fraud.” 

Rose’s eyes snapped up to meet his. She opened her mouth, unsure of how to respond. “My mum would never have dropped it,” she said finally, her voice sounding small in her ears. “It’ll just prove to everyone that I’m not—I’m not as great as her. Everyone will know it.” 

Scorpius’s face softened, and the crease on his forehead disappeared. “People are going to realize you’re not your parents eventually. You might as well let yourself drop Potions in the process.” 

Rose swallowed, her gaze flicking between his face and her fingers. She could feel the heat return to her face. “Right. Well, I—I’ll think about it.” 

Scorpius straightened slightly beside her, his mouth curling into a small smile. “Anyways, if you drop Potions then the rest of us won’t have to listen to you complain about it anymore.”

Rose rolled her eyes, though she couldn’t help but let out a small snort. “I knew you were being too understanding about this.” 

Scorpius’s smile faded slightly and he slowed his pace, pausing beside her. Rose felt her feet stop, and they stood facing each other in the corridor. Scorpius’s hand returned to the back of his neck and his eyes again landed squarely on her face. 

“I was being serious, you know,” he said, eyes raking over her face. “About your parents. Don’t make yourself do something you hate just because—because you think people will be disappointed or—” 

“I won’t,” Rose said quickly, shaking her head. “Really. I just—I’ll think about it.” She paused, letting her eyes wander up and lock on his. “Thanks, Scorpius.”

He gave a short, furtive nod, turning slightly and resuming patrol. “No problem, Rose.”  

The rest of their patrol passed with relatively little fuss. When the prefects assigned the second patrol shift came to relieve them, Rose and Scorpius walked back to meet their friends in relative silence. 

“We’re back,” Rose trilled as she slid open the compartment door. “Where is everyone?” 

Albus and Maren sat alone in the compartment, a pile of chocolate frog wrappers between them. 

“Thank Merlin you’re back,” Maren groaned, leaning back in her seat. “We need help finishing these. Al over ordered.” 

“I didn’t know everyone was going to leave!” Albus cried. “And I wanted to make sure we have enough. Remember the last time we ran out of sweets?”

“Fred fixed that table easily enough,” Rose sniffed, stepping into the compartment and dropping into the seat beside Maren. Scorpius entered behind her and sat beside Albus. 

Rose snatched one of the chocolate frogs and opened it, turning to face Maren. “But where did the others go?” 

“Allie went to sit with Collingwood and the other Hufflepuffs,” Maren said with a toss of her head. “I told her to just bring him here but she said we’d just take the mickey out of them—” 

“Which you would,” Albus interjected. 

“Look, if Collingwood can’t handle a little teasing on the train—” 

“So what happened to Lucy and Nathan?” Rose asked quickly, looking between Maren and Albus. “Did they go with Allie?” 

“No,” Maren smirked. “They went to see if they could find an empty compartment so they could have some alone time. Which—” 

“Thomas, please,” Albus groaned, sinking into his seat and putting his hands over his ears. 

“Since they haven’t come back yet,” Maren continued, sending a wicked grin towards Albus, “I’m betting they are furiously snogging somewhere. Maybe even doing more than—”

“We get it, Thomas,” Scorpius broke in. “Please spare us the details.” 

Maren shrugged. “You lot are no fun. I’m just happy Lucy and Allie are getting some.” 

“For the love of Merlin, please never ever say anything about anyone related to me getting some again,” Albus shook his head. 

“Well,” Rose said slowly, looking around the compartment, “if it’s just the four of us should we play a game?” 

“If that means Thomas will stop talking about what everyone else might be doing right now then absolutely,” Scorpius replied, peeling apart the sweets wrapper in his hand. 

“I have James’s exploding snap deck” Albus said, nodding towards his bag. “But I don’t know if it will be as fun with just four of us.”

Scorpius raised an eyebrow. “I’m pretty sure exploding snap is meant to be played with four people.” 

“Is it really?” Rose looked towards Albus’s bag and frowned. “Odd. We always played with more.” 

“Because your family’s enormous,” Maren laughed.

Rose shrugged and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “Well, let’s play then. It will be fun to just play individually and not have to do teams.” 

Albus looked up at Rose. “You have to promise not to blow up the compartment,” he warned, pointing between the two girls. 

“Us?” Maren asked, giving Albus a look of exaggerated shock. “Albus Potter, you are talking to two of the most responsible students in school. One of us is a prefect! I can’t believe you would even suggest—” 

“We’ll be fine,” Rose said firmly, cutting Maren off and pinning her cousin with a lofty look. “Who knows, Al, maybe when we play individually you’ll finally accept the fact that I’m a better player than you. I bet that I will have a better record than you by the time we get to the castle.” 

Albus narrowed his eyes. “What are we betting?” 

Rose considered for a second, and then, “The tin of fudge Grandma Molly put in my trunk.” 

“Deal.” 

Rose did not have a better record than Albus. The sting of losing to her cousin was tempered slightly by the fact that they both lost to Scorpius, but it was still with a grudging hand that Rose gave Albus her tin of fudge. 

Albus, for his part, looked rather offensively pleased with himself considering he only came in second place. 

The Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade station, and Rose joined the throng of students exiting the train. Somewhere in the distance she could hear Hagrid corralling first years towards the boat, and she felt a tiny pinprick at her chest when she realized that she would only hear the booming call of ‘Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here!’ one more time before she graduated. 

Rose, Maren, Albus, and Scorpius shared a carriage to the castle. They found Nathan and Lucy in the Entrance Hall, and when they arrived in the Great Hall Allie was already seated at the Ravenclaw table. Nathan and Albus waved goodbye as they made their way to the Slytherin table, and Rose forced a smile on her face as she slid into the seat beside Allie. 

“We missed you in the compartment,” Rose said, arching an eyebrow as Allie’s cheeks turned the slightest bit pink. “Did you have a good time?” 

“Oh, lovely,” Allie said, her blonde curls bouncing against her shoulders as she turned her head to fully face Rose. “I’d hardly seen Quentin over the summer what with family travels and then his trip to see his brother. We had quite a bit of catching up to do.” 

“Mhm,” Maren hummed from Rose’s other side. “I’m sure you enjoyed catching up with him.” 

The pink on Allie’s cheeks darkened to fuschia, and she flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Maren, I just hope you know that whenever you start snogging someone we are all going to be absolutely terrible to you about it.” 

Maren snorted and reached out to nudge Allie’s shoulder. “I hope you are.” 

Professor McGonagall appeared at the front of the hall then, the sorting hat in her hand. The rip at the brim opened wide, and Rose drifted in and out as the sorting song filled the Great Hall. 

She gazed around the hall, her eyes flickering to the students seated along the house tables. The hall felt emptier somehow this year, though she knew that it held just as many students this year as it did every year. 

Rose’s eyes landed on the Gryffindor table, where Roxanne sat along with Lily. The table seemed much quieter, much less animated, without Fred and James and their friends. Rose sighed as she watched Roxanne bend down to examine something next to her plate. She hadn’t realized how much she associated her cousins with Hogwarts. Being here without them felt wrong. Incomplete. 

And next year even Roxanne would be gone, Rose realized with a start. There would be no older cousins at all. She would be the oldest cousin at school, along with Albus and Lucy. She shook her head slightly, trying to fling the absurd thought from her brain. 

A sharp jab in her side made Rose look up, and she found Maren frowning at her. 

“Are you alright?” Maren whispered, eyes scanning Rose’s face. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” 

“Yeah,” Rose swallowed and nodded slowly, giving a sheepish shrug. “Just zoned out a bit.” 

The sorting hat finished its song and Maren, to Rose’s relief, turned back to watch as Professor McGonagall opened the scroll in her hands and called “Andrews, Annabelle,” to the front. 

When all the students had been sorted Professor McGonagall took her place at the teacher’s table, her hands laid flat in front of her and her sharp gaze roving over the sea of students. 

“Now that our newest students have been sorted,” she said, “I must welcome you all to Hogwarts. To our returning students, welcome back. The faculty and the castle have missed you dearly. To our new students, we are delighted to have you join us.” 

Rose put her chin in her hand and listened as the headmistress delivered the usual opening remarks. She was thinking of the feast her first year, the anxiety of waiting to be sorted and the joy of joining her cousins at the Ravenclaw table, the sadness of watching Albus walk to a different table for the feast. She glanced down the table to where the new first years sat, fidgeting in their seats and pulling at the sleeves of their robes. She wondered if any of them had family members at school who would ease the transition. She hoped they did. 

Professor McGonagall finished her remarks and the food appeared before them. It was delicious as always, and Rose heaped as much as she could onto her plate. 

When the last of the dishes and dessert had disappeared, and Professor McGonagall dismissed them all to bed, Rose got to her feet. 

“First years!” she called in her most authoritative voice, waving a hand above her head as Scorpius moved to join her. “First years over here, please!” 

“First years here!” Scorpius echoed beside her. “Ravenclaw first years follow us!” 

When a suitable cluster of eleven year olds stood beside them Rose and Scorpius made their way to Ravenclaw Tower. 

“Now,” Rose said, looking over her shoulder at the first years behind her, “Ravenclaw Tower is a bit different from the other houses’ common rooms. See, we don’t have a password.” 

“How do we get in, then?” a small girl with glasses and brown curly hair asked, her eyes going wide. “Do we have to do magic?” 

Rose gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “No, you don’t have to do magic. You answer a question. But don’t worry, they’re not too difficult. And if you don’t know the answer you can just wait for someone else.” 

“Are our trunks already there?” a dark haired boy asked. 

“Yes, all your things will be in your dormitory,” Scorpius responded. “If anything is missing or damaged, please let one of the prefects know.” 

A hand caught Rose’s sleeve. Rose looked down to see the brown-haired girl peering up at her, eyes watering. “Will we like the dormitories?” she asked in a small voice. 

“Erm—yes,” Rose said hurriedly with a vigorous nod, glancing down to where the girl’s hand rested on her arm. “Yes, you will. They’re lovely. There’s blue carpet, and you’ll have your own bed with curtains if you want some privacy. And the girls' dormitories have one of the best views in the castle.” 

The girl worried her lip with her teeth, still gripping Rose’s sleeve. “I’ve never spent the night away from home.” 

Rose felt as though a balloon deflated in her chest. She caught Scorpius’s eye, glanced down at the girl, and then stepped to the side so the rest of the group could move past them. Scorpius gave a slight nod, beckoning the other first years down the corridor. 

“What’s your name?” Rose asked, coming to a stop next to a suit of armor. 

“Lilia,” the girl muttered, eyes dropping to the floor. Her lip began to tremble, and the tears collecting below her eyes began to leak onto her lower lashes. “I’m sorry to be a baby. I just—” 

“You’re not a baby,” Rose interrupted, cringing slightly as she did so. Vic never would have interrupted her when she was upset. “Sorry—I didn’t mean—go on, Lilia.” 

Lilia sniffed and finally let go of Rose’s sleeve in order to wipe her nose with the back of her hand. “I just don’t know what it will be like. My mum and dad aren’t—” she glanced up at Rose, eyes wide, “they’re not magic. Professor Longbottom told us about Hogwarts and gave me a book to read about it but I don’t—it’s not going to be like home, is it?” 

Rose ran a hand through her hair and took a breath in. “Er—no, it won’t be like home,” she said slowly, casting about for some sort of reassurance to offer the girl. “But it will be lovely in different ways. You’ll learn how to do all sorts of things in classes, and how to fly a broom, and—er—visit Hogsmeade in a few years.” 

The girl nodded slowly. She sniffed again, though to Rose’s relief her tears seemed to have slowed. 

“My mum’s family wasn’t magical, either,” Rose said. “She said she read everything she could find about Hogwarts before she got here and still almost couldn’t believe how incredible the castle was.” 

“Really?” Lilia looked up at this. “And she….she liked it? She’s a full witch now?” 

“Yup,” Rose nodded, straightening ever so slightly. “She’s a brilliant witch—one of the most brilliant witches in Britain— and she met my dad and my uncle right here at school.” 

“Wow,” Lilia breathed. Her tears had stopped, though evidence of them could still be seen on her face. 

Rose let out a slight exhale. She hadn’t completely failed at cheering the girl up. She cleared her throat and straightened her robes. “You’re going to have a lovely time at Hogwarts,” she said. “I know it.” She ran a hand through her hair and gaveLilia a small smile, “So…do you think you’re ready to see Ravenclaw Tower now?”

Lilia paused and sniffed one final time before nodding. “Yes, I think so,” she said in a small voice. 

“Brilliant.” 

The walk to Ravenclaw Tower went quickly. To Rose’s great relief Lilia seemed content to simply stare at her surroundings as they went, giving a small squeak whenever one of the portraits addressed them. 

When they approached the eagle knocker Rose glanced down. “Here comes the question.” 

The knocker eyed them. “What can you hold but never touch?” 

Rose paused for a moment. “Oh, your breath.” 

“Very well.” The door creaked open, and Rose led Lilia into the Ravenclaw common room. 

“Oh,” the younger girl sighed as they walked in, her head tilting back as she took in the splendor of the room. “Oh, this is—this is beautiful.” 

“I told you it’s lovely,” Rose grinned down at her. “Now, follow me. I’ll take you up to your dormitory.” 

Lilia followed her up the staircase, her head swiveling all the while. When Rose pushed open the door to the first year dormitory, a gaggle of young girls froze in front of her, their eyes going wide. 

“Don’t worry,” Rose said, putting a hand up. “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just escorting Lilia up here.” She nudged Lilia on the shoulder and nodded towards the trunk in the corner of the room with the initials LE emblazoned on the side. “I’m assuming that’s yours.” 

Lilia nodded, her eyes like quaffles as she looked around the room. “It—thank you.” 

Rose did her best impression of Vic. “You girls have a good night.” 

“Good night,” the first years chorused. Rose stepped back onto the staircase and closed the door. 

With a heavy, though not unhappy sigh, Rose returned to the common room. She found Scorpius standing at a table by the staircase, deep in conversation with the new fifth year prefects. He looked up as Rose reached the final step of the staircase, giving the fifth years a cursory wave and stepping towards the stairs. 

“You’re back.” 

“Yeah.” Rose chewed her lip and glanced over her shoulder at the staircase.

Scorpius followed her gaze, his brow furrowing. “Is—was everything alright?” 

“I think so,” Rose shrugged. “She’s muggleborn, and a little homesick. But I think she’ll be alright.” 

“Right.” Scorpius nodded. “Well, good.” He rocked back on his heels, his hands going to his pockets. 

Rose looked around the common room, unusually empty as so many students were eager to get to bed after the feast. “So—er—”

“I checked with Stymes, the seventh year, before you came down,” Scorpius murmured. “He said so long as all the first years are in their dormitories and there are no reported problems we can call it a night.” 

Rose nodded. “Right.” She glanced at him and gave a tight smile. “I suppose I’ll go to bed then. Er—” she paused, looking down at her sleeve, the one Lilia had clutched so desperately less than an hour ago. “Goodnight Malfoy. I mean—” she felt heat invade her face, and her eyes jumped up to find Scorpius watching her, face soft and warm in the candlelight. “Goodnight, Scorpius.” 

She turned and ascended the stairs without waiting for his response, though she could still hear his “Goodnight, Rose,” from halfway up the staircase. 

Her dormitory was blessedly unchanged from the past five years. Rose walked into the circular room to find Maren, Allie, and Lucy all lying on their respective beds in companionable silence. Rose waved as she walked past them to her bed, bending over to open her trunk. 

She changed quickly into pajamas, brushed her teeth and plaited her hair. When she was ready, she returned to her trunk, digging through the masses of clothes and shoes until she found the dozen shrunken books at the bottom. Rose pulled them out one by one, stacking them on the floor and considering them. After several minutes, she selected Anne of Green Gables from the pile and pulled it towards her. 

“Engorgio,” she muttered, tapping her wand to the book and watching as it grew to its normal size. 

Book in hand, she set her wand down and slid into bed, the blankets heavy against her legs. With a smile, Rose curled against her pillows and cracked the spine. She was back in her dormitory, getting ready to read about Anne and Gilbert and Avonlea. It was, she thought, a lovely first night of term.