Scorpius found the car ride back to Hogwarts passed all too quickly. James had sat up front with Teddy, while Scorpius sat in between Rosie and Albus in the back. They’d told him family stories and Teddy had asked Scorpius to tell them a few of his own family stories. Scorpius couldn’t help but think that this trip to Hogwarts could hardly be more different than the train ride he’d taken less than a month earlier. Teddy even suggested that they stop in Hogsmeade for lunch.
“Just wait ‘til I tell Fred I went to Hogsmeade!” bragged James. He looked up at Teddy. “Hey! You’re of age, so you could buy us...”
“Don’t even think about it,” interrupted Teddy. “Your mother and grandmother would both kill me.”
“Nah, they love you too much for that,” argued James. “Besides, what they don’t know...”
“I’ll buy you each a Butterbeer,” Teddy stated diplomatically.
“You don’t have to do that...” began Scorpius.
“Shh! I’m okay with that!” added Albus.
“Of course I do! You’re my long-lost-little-second-cousin; it’s the least I can do.”
“Thanks!” Scorpius couldn’t help but grin. He quite enjoyed that Teddy had a nickname for him, even if it was ridiculously long.
“Can we go to Honeydukes after?” asked Rosie. “I want to get something for Shannon; she sent me a really nice letter, telling me how happy she was that I was safe. She’s my favourite roommate and she collects the Chocolate Frog Cards, so I thought I’d buy her some of those and maybe a few Deluxe Sugar Quills...”
“Anything you like,” replied Teddy.
“Why does she get anything she wants and I can’t have just one little drink of Firewhiskey?” whined James.
“Because,” sighed Teddy, “she was the kidnapping victim while you’ve earned a record number of detentions. Besides, Rosie’s not about to ask me to do anything illegal for her.”
Before James had a chance to argue further, Teddy ushered them all into the Three Broomsticks. Once inside, James resigned himself to the fact that he would have to settle for a Butterbeer and corned beef sandwich.
“Dad can’t stand eating those,” Rosie said, while wrinkling her nose. “He says Gran Weasley always made him eat them on the train ride to Hogwarts but that Uncle Harry would share with him.”
“Yeah, well, Dad loves all of Gran Weasley’s cooking,” pointed out James, through a mouthful of sandwich.
“Because his aunt and uncle hardly fed him,” added Albus.
“Uncle Harry was an orphan and his aunt and uncle raised him,” Rosie explained to Scorpius. “Uncle Harry hardly ever talks about them though. They must have been pretty horrible to him.”
“Bet they were even stricter than Teddy’s gran,” chimed in James.
“Both my parents died in the Battle of Hogwarts,” Teddy explained. “My gran raised me, but I was always welcome at Harry and Ginny’s. My father and Harry’s father were friends at school. Dad asked Harry to be my godfather just after I was born.”
“I wish you’d been over to my house too,” sighed Scorpius. “You’re the only cousin I have.”
“Well, I was talking with your dad, and I’ll probably be dropping in from time to time,” answered Teddy, winking. “I won’t tell my gran, if you don’t tell yours.”
“I still don’t understand how you two are related,” blurted Albus.
“Dad’s mother is sisters with Teddy’s gran,” explained Scorpius. What his parents hadn’t taught him about the Battle of Hogwarts, they’d more than made up for in teaching him how to trace a family tree.
“And their cousin, Sirius Black, is who James got his middle name from,” added Teddy.
“And my room,” added James.
“So he would have been my... first cousin, twice removed?” asked Scorpius, wrinkling his brow.
Teddy shrugged. “I just know that we’re both related to him. He died before I was born, but was also a really good friend of my dad’s.”
Teddy cleared his throat. “My father, Sirius Black, the first James Potter, and another bloke named Peter were best of friends at Hogwarts. They called themselves the Marauders and created a rather ingenious map of Hogwarts. Uncle Harry gave me a copy when I was a student... but seeing as how I’m not there anymore... and you four are...”
Teddy withdrew a battered piece of parchment from within a pocket of his robes. Albus was about to say something, but James kicked him under the table.
“Uncle Harry told me it should be kept in the family, so Scorpius, I’ll trust you with this, but I know you’ll be sharing with these three hooligans.”
Rosie let out a small squawk of indignation at this comment.
“With this upstanding young lady, and her two hooligan cousins,” amended Teddy. “I’m sure they can show you how to work it, so all I’ll say is, make me proud.” Teddy gave them all a devilish grin.
“I... I can’t take something that was your father’s,” faltered Scorpius.
“I have lots of things that belonged to him and Mum. Besides, I know Dad would have wanted it to get used,” argued Teddy. “I already had seven years of fun with it. It’s your turn now.”
Scorpius felt a lump rising in his throat but managed to croak, “Thank you.”
“Wait a minute, I was at Hogwarts last year but you didn’t give me a map!” piped up James, clearly insulted.
Teddy chuckled. “I believe you have a map of your own, James Sirius Potter.”
Butterbeer sprayed out of James’s mouth. Rosie couldn’t help but giggle at her cousin being caught off-guard. Albus, on the other hand, wasn’t so amused. “Gross! James, you got it all over my sleeve!”
“How did you know about that?” James demanded, ignoring his brother’s comment.
Teddy leaned back in his chair and grinned. “I overheard a rather interesting conversation between your parents, with regards to how they had planted a fake Marauder’s Map and how it had gone missing.”
“They what?!” exclaimed Albus, forgetting his sticky sleeve.
“Yeah, so now I know why they made me promise not to give my copy away. Mine is an exact duplicate, but yours has a lot of things missing.”
“But if you promised not to give yours away...” began Scorpius.
“That’s the beauty of it,” declared Teddy. “See, I promised not to give it to a Potter or Weasley and to ‘keep it in the family’ and, as you can see, I have! So... who solemnly swears to get up to no good?”
“Won’t they be angry if they find out you gave it to me?” asked Scorpius, still worried.
“First of all, there’s no reason for them to find out. Secondly, I didn’t break my promise. Thirdly, what would Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs have to say about it?”
Teddy Lupin was greeted by four identical evil grins. He couldn’t help but feel that his parents would have been pleased. After all, it was his father who had allowed Harry to keep the map when he was a student.
Nearly two hours later, the little group arrived at the gates of Hogwarts to be greeted by Professor Longbottom. Scorpius was quite glad to see that it wasn’t Mr Seward, as all their pockets were bulging with contraband.
“So good to see you again, Mr Lupin!” exclaimed Neville, while extending his hand. “My! What a lovely bouquet of roses and Flitterbloom! Although, I do rather prefer potted plants...”
Teddy grinned good-naturedly. Professor Longbottom had always been one of his favourite teachers, even though he had little interest in Herbology. “Actually, Sir, I was planning on giving this to the Head Girl...”
“No need to call me ‘Sir’, even if the flowers aren’t for me,” replied Professor Longbottom, genially. “You’re not my student anymore, so plain old ‘Neville’ will do just fine. I’ll let you go find Miss Weasley, while I escort these four back to Gryffindor Tower.”
“Thanks, Si- er, Neville. Quick, Rosie. How do I look?”
Rosie studied him critically before replying. “I think you could use a bit more green in your eyes, to match your robes better, and maybe some highlights in your hair...”
“Is my nose straight?” asked Teddy, as he screwed up his face in concentration.
“Yes,” replied Rosie.
“And my hair and eyes are alright now too?”
Rosie chewed on her lip a moment before replying, “You look quite handsome.”
James, Albus, and Scorpius were snickering behind her. Teddy rolled his eyes, before heading towards Ravenclaw Tower. “You’ll understand one of these days.”
“Is my nose straight?” mimicked James.
“Looks kinda lumpy to me,” offered Albus.
James made a mock fist. “I can get yours to match...”
“I don’t think that will be necessary,” warned Professor Longbottom, “unless you want to join your brother and Mr Malfoy in detention tomorrow night.”
“WHAT?” blurted Albus.
Professor Longbottom smiled slightly. “Professor Macmillan pointed out that not only did you two desert your original detentions, you also created a sizeable mess and left the school grounds without permission.”
“But that’s not fair!” exclaimed Scorpius.
“Not to worry, Mr Malfoy,” replied Professor Longbottom. “I decided to save you from two further detentions with Professor Macmillan.”
Albus beamed. “Thanks!”
“Don’t thank me just yet,” replied Neville. “You still have to serve two detentions. However, since Professor Proudfoot cleaned up your mess downstairs, we’ve agreed that you will be serving detention in the Forbidden Forest.”
“But doesn’t that mean it all works out the same in the end?” asked Rosie.
Neville smiled. “Yes, well, Professor Macmillan wasn’t terribly keen on the idea of actually having to supervise two more Gryffindor detentions. Especially since Professor Proudfoot had a good deal to say about the, er, wisdom of leaving you two locked alone in a room... Well, let’s just say that Professor Macmillan didn’t mind handing the reins over to me.”
Scorpius couldn’t help but smile at this news. Whatever Professor Longbottom had in store for them, it couldn’t possibly be as bad as what Macmillan would have chosen. Curious as to what his Head of House would consider to be an appropriate detention, he couldn’t help but ask, “Sir? What will we be doing?”
“I really have no idea,” confessed Neville. “I’ve decided to turn you both over to my lovely wife, who needs a few assistants to help her with her Thestral research in the Forest. She should be arriving tomorrow afternoon and you can start your detentions with her in the evening.”
“But that’s excellent!” chirped Rosie. “Scorpius, weren’t you saying before that Mrs Longbottom is your favourite author? She’s really nice too! ”
“She makes really good cookies!” agreed Albus enthusiastically. He then muttered in Scorpius’s ear, “But don’t try her Plimpy soup.”
Rosie ignored her cousin. Instead she looked up at Neville in curiosity. “You already knew that Scorpius was one of her fans though, didn’t you?”
Neville seemed deep in concentration, carefully studying his fingernails, before turning to Scorpius. “Oh? Are you a fan? What a delightful coincidence! However, seeing as I have already assigned the detentions... But really, how would I know that you read her books?”
Rosie smiled knowingly. “I would expect Alice told you. Does Mrs Longbottom need any more volunteers? To be honest though, I’m not sure I’d like being around Thestrals since I can’t see them. Besides, I’ll probably have homework to do...”
Rosie suddenly stopped in her tracks. “I must be horribly behind by now!”
Neville smiled. “I think we can be reasonable about allowing you to catch up. Being kidnapped and ransomed seems a fairly good excuse for handing in a few assignments late.”
“Rosie!” called out Shannon, scrambling through the portrait-hole.
“Incidentally, in celebration of your return, classes have been cancelled this afternoon. There’s also to be a celebratory feast in the Great Hall. See you there!” added Professor Longbottom, before turning to go back to his office.
Scorpius wasn’t sure that Rosie had managed to hear all of this since Shannon Finnigan was half-choking her in a hug. What did shock him was the wave of cheers and applause when the five of them made their way into Gryffindor Tower.
All of Rosie’s Gryffindor cousins had been waiting for them in the common room, along with the rest of the Gryffindor students. Kids who’d been rude to Scorpius were now clapping him on the back. Most shocking, Adam Jones even came up and congratulated him. Meanwhile, Rosie was lost in a mass Weasley-Potter hug. Albus was busy telling Josh Thomas and Mike Creevey about the snake-filled tunnel. It was a few moments before Scorpius realized who was missing from the scene.
“Where’s Bernard?” he quietly asked Albus.
Albus shrugged. He didn’t much care if he ever saw Bernard Smith again.
“He’s in hiding, I expect,” offered Mike. “I would be too, if I were him. He spent all that time going on about how Scorpius was going to be the next Dark Lord and now his own scummy dad’s committed a couple of Unforgiveables.”
“Yeah, he’s skived off most of his classes since the article in the Prophet came out,” explained Josh.
“Enough about him,” interrupted Albus. “Now, tell me about this feast...”
Feeling a bit suffocated, Scorpius quickly excused himself and went to the only place in the castle where he’d found he could simply sit and think. On his way to the Astronomy Tower, he passed the door of the Hospital Wing and couldn’t help but glance inside. What he saw stopped him dead in his tracks.
“What happened to you?” he asked in a hushed voice.
The form lying in the bed could hardly be described as human. Scorpius wasn’t even certain if he was addressing a boy or a girl since it looked more like a slug sprouting small tentacles.
“Bullies,” answered a stern voice from behind. Scorpius turned to see Madam Pomfrey.
“Poor boy came in barely recognizable,” she added. Her expression then softened. “But it’s nice of you to visit. I think you must be the first one all day.”
“I still can’t believe anyone would do this,” replied Scorpius in disgust, not bothering to point out that he wasn’t actually there to visit. He didn’t see any reason to add insult to injury. “Why would anyone be so mean?”
The slug’s face seemed to wince. Madam Pomfrey sighed, “I suppose when word got around about what his father has been accused of, well there was bound to be some problems. Still, I don’t think any of the teachers expected this.”
Scorpius stared dumbfounded at the swollen figure of Bernard Smith, suddenly realizing that this was the true reason for Bernard’s absence from Gryffindor Tower. Madam Pomfrey was busy measuring out some potions and didn’t notice the change in Scorpius’s expression.
Without looking up from the bottles, Madam Pomfrey added. “Oh! Professor Macmillan forgot to bring me the Deflating Draught! I’ll be back shortly.” As the matron bustled out of the room, Scorpius felt a wave of anger rise within him. He had actually pitied this boy, before knowing his identity. Scorpius’s fingers twitched beneath his robes, itching to add what few curses he knew to Bernard’s injuries. After all, the only other time Scorpius had been to the Hospital Wing had been due to Bernard’s bullying. Without thinking, he withdrew his wand and aimed it at the slug-like face.
“Go ahead,” mumbled Bernard, glaring up from the bed.
Scorpius paused, torn between the desire to hurt Bernard and the small, yet insistent, part of him that still felt a small stab of pity for his enemy. At least his friends had stood by him. Rosie had been prepared to defend him against the world, Albus had stood up to James and Mr Smith, and even James had declared to all of Gryffindor that he was on Scorpius’s side. Bernard’s best friend, Adam Jones, hadn’t even come to visit him. Instead he was enjoying the Gryffindor party.
Despite still being filled with the desire to torture Bernard, Scorpius slowly turned and walked towards the door, his hand firmly grasping his wand. At the doorway, pride gave in and Scorpius turned. “It’s beneath me,” he drawled.
Bernard let out a mixture of a snort and a groan. Gasping between words, he taunted, “You’re just... afraid... of getting caught. Nothing’s... beneath a Malfoy.”
Scorpius couldn’t believe that after everything that had happened, Bernard was still trying to maintain the pretence that the Smith family was better than the Malfoys. Without meaning to do it, he caused a shower of red sparks to fly from the tip of his wand.
Taking a deep breath, Scorpius tried to calm himself. “I wouldn’t blame someone for something their father did.”
“I... suppose... this is the... part... where I say... I’m sorry.... and you say... all you ever... wanted was to... be friends,” mocked Bernard.
Cold gray eyes met Bernard’s. “No, this is the part where I walk away, because no matter what your father did, you’re still the bastard who made my first few weeks here miserable. You may still think my family’s worse than yours, but you are beneath me.”
With that, Scorpius walked out the door, not caring what Bernard may have to say in reply. It wasn’t long before he arrived at the Astronomy Tower, where Merlin was already waiting for him. Scorpius was surprised to see that Merlin wasn’t alone; Rosie and Albus were already there too.
“What are you doing here?” Scorpius asked.
“Looking for you, obviously,” replied Albus, rolling his eyes. “It’s not like we’re trying to get ahead on our Astronomy homework.”
“Well, I need to catch up on mine...” began Rosie.
“I’ll help you with that; it’s easy,” interrupted Scorpius. “But how did you know to look for me here?”
“It’s where you always go, isn’t it?” asked Albus.
“Oh. Yeah, I s’pose. So... how’d you get here first?”
Rosie smiled. “Alice showed me a short-cut a while back.”
Albus looked around a bit. “What do you do up here anyway?”
Scorpius felt his face redden slightly. “Well... I sometimes like to look at the different constellations.”
“Do you know many of them?” asked Rosie. “I mean, I can find most of the planets when I use a telescope, but I don’t really know many of the actual constellations. I can mostly just find the Big Dipper and Orion’s Belt.”
Relieved that Rosie didn’t think him odd, Scorpius quickly pointed out a few other constellations to her and Albus. “And that one is Scorpius,” he added, pointing.
“You were named after a bunch of stars?” asked Albus in surprise.
“Well, yeah... A lot of my family were,” explained Scorpius, a bit embarrassed.
“Which are your family members?” asked Rosie, clearly interested.
“Over that way is Draco, the dragon. My great-grandfather was named after Cygnus, the swan,” replied Scorpius quickly. Suddenly remembering their earlier conversation with Teddy, he added, “And over there is Sirius, the dog star. It’s really bright in the summer. And the brightest star in Leo, the lion, is Regulus.”
“The guy who my room used to belong to,” reminded Albus, now more interested in the extra Astronomy lesson.
“And very Gryffindor-ish,” added Rosie. “The lion constellation, I mean. But wasn’t Regulus in Slytherin?”
“I think so,” replied Albus. “I’m pretty sure it was Sirius who was in Gryffindor.”
“How come his name never came up when I wanted to know if there were any good Slytherins?” asked Scorpius, somewhat indignantly.
“Are you wishing you had been in Slytherin after all?” asked Rosie, grinning.
Scorpius smiled back. “No, I think I can live with Gryffindor. I mean it’s not that bad.”
“Sorting seems like it was forever ago,” added Rosie, gazing off in the distance.
“It’s only been a few weeks,” reminded Albus. “It just feels longer because of all the detentions Scorpius and I have to do. Oh, and maybe because you were kidnapped.”
“So... we’ve already escaped the school, battled Dark wizards, been in trouble with Macmillan a bunch of times, had to deal with the press, raided the kitchens, and now we have a better Marauder’s Map,” summarized Scorpius.
Rosie smiled at him, blue eyes sparkling with mischief. “And just think: this is only the beginning.”