dinner parties | scorbus

CH11: yin and yang

CH11: yin and yang (3,562 WORDS)

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Albus didn't have to try very hard to win the game. He pretended to struggle, though, to save James' ego and Lorelei's feelings. Whilst it earnt him angry scowls from Lily (his badminton partner) he merely bounced over to her and whispered an explanation. It took her a short period of time to accept that it would only allow her free reign to tease her eldest brother later.

Lorelei was rather terrible at the sport, and Albus believed she likely lacked talent in every sport. She often missed the shuttlecock and it hit the grass. The girl only released small giggles and tugged on her pink tennis skirt, twirling her brown hair around her fingertips. James' eyes flashed with annoyance after the fourth and fifth time, as well as every time after that. Lily and Albus exchanged teasing glances.

The youngest Potter son admitted that he really liked getting along with Lily. All three of the children had calmed themselves down in the past couple of days, Albus supposed that his siblings really wanted their electronics back. With that being said, he enjoyed their family dynamics returning to usual.

Albus hit the shuttle to James in a calculated manner, watching as his brother lurched and missed. He could have sworn his 'dignified' brother swore under his breath as he leant over to pick it up.

"Language, Jamesie," Lily teased, her voice full of a playful mocking.

"What did he say?" Lorelei asked, peeling her eyes away from the party occurring across the lawn. "I wasn't listening, sorry, honey."

James turned beet red. Albus' eyes flashed with mischief and he bit back a smile, allowing Lily to take the hit that their angry brother hit back at her. She managed to shoot it at Lorelei and it hit her in the face, and the girl gave a small winge and pressed her cheek with gentle fingers. James shot Lily a look of envy as he rushed forward and fussed over her.

At this point, they had been playing for roughly forty minutes in the shade of the trees from the forest. They had many guests over; it was nothing uncommon. Albus preferred his mother's garden parties more than the rest — he could typically sneak off and avoid prying eyes.  Though, the rest of the guests sat quite a distance away and shared glasses of wine, and the Potter children had been escorted away for their game.

To be honest, Albus simply wanted to go and gossip with his best friend. He supposed that Scorpius fit that bracket more accurately nowadays, but Rose had been on his mind since he'd first laid eyes on her that afternoon. It annoyed him most that he hadn't even been permitted to say hello to her before he'd been physically removed from her presence.

"I don't want to play anymore!" Lorelei muttered. "It's horrible, we're losing, and I'm not having fun. I forfeit!"

James placed a hand on her shoulder and checked her face. "We don't have long—"

"I don't want to, please. I'd rather go and sit down." She turned to Albus and Lily, who had been silently smirking at one another over the past few minutes. "You two are simply too talented. I'm so sorry for my dramatic behaviour. I love you both dearly."

"It's no problem!" Lily smiled, dropping her racquet on the ground because she knew someone else would pick it up later. "We'll join you on your walk over."

Albus' ears perked. He'd been expecting Lily to request that they continue playing to conclude a legitimate winner, as always. He appreciated that she didn't, and wondered if she'd noticed that he had been slightly distracted. He tried his hardest not to rush as they abandoned their sporting equipment and wandered along the tiled paths.