With You? Always.

Pumpkin Tarts and Heated Water Bottles

Author's note: Hello! Yes! I am alive! I'm sorry these chapters are coming out slower than I anticipated but I hope to be back on schedule soon. Happy reading :)

"Miss Andromeda?"

Andromeda looked up from her cauldron, her eyes landing on Albus standing at the entrance of the potions classroom. His chin was dropped to his chest with his arms hanging at his sides, unable to make any sort of eye contact with her as if he was trying to make himself small and finding a way to disappear.

Andromeda wiped her hands with a cloth and tossed it aside, setting her hand on her hip. "You may come in, Albus. I believe we have much to discuss."

Albus dragged his feet into the classroom, slowly making his way to the stool next to her cauldron. He dropped his bag to the floor and collapsed onto the stool with his head hanging low. Andromeda checked to make sure her cauldron was at the right temperature before sitting down, crossing her legs with her hands folded together and resting on top of her knee.

Where on earth was she going to start?

Andromeda's gut feeling about Albus being behind the cursed bludger was correct. She hoped it wasn't true, but Ominis confided to her that he overheard the headmaster and Professor Weasley discussing having a meeting with the first-year over the incident to discuss the appropriate punishment. It wasn't long until everyone in the castle was whispering about Albus and how his reputation as a troublemaker may get him expelled.

Professor Sharp then asked Andromeda to meet with Albus for an extra study session due to failing his last exam. It was revealed to her that if Albus continues to do poorly, he will fail the class altogether and will not be able to move on with his classmates the following year.

Andromeda wondered what could make Albus act out in such a way, especially since his latest antics caused physical harm to Ominis. What was the reasoning behind all of this?

"Professor Sharp told me that you failed your last exam."

"And?" Albus shrugged while twiddling with a loose piece of fabric at the end of his sweater. "Why does it even matter? I don't plan on becoming a potion's master, and if I need a potion, I can just purchase one from a shop or even have a friend make it for me."

"Albus, we discussed this at our first study session. It's important to understand the basics of potions in order to be successful in other classes. For example, if you get hit with a curse and need an antidote, you have to know the correct ingredients to make a proper brew."

"Like I said, I can just have someone else-"

"Albus!" Andromeda raised her voice and shook her head. "You can't always rely on others to do the work for you!"

"Oh, bloody hell. This is ridiculous." Albus threw his head back and let out a growl in frustration. "Haven't I suffered enough?!? The headmaster has already given me a month's worth of detention, Professor Weasley has deducted a hundred points from Gryffindor, and now I have you breathing down my neck all because of a simple prank-"

Andromeda slammed her fist against the table, causing Albus to jump from his seat. "Do you have any idea how much harm you could have done?!? Ominis may have only broken his nose, but he refused to go to the hospital wing, so I had to fix it! What if he got hit in the head? What if more students got hurt? You are more than fortunate that Ominis refuses to speak to any members of his family because if that were not the case, the headmaster wouldn't hesitate to have you expelled if his father demanded it!"

"I-I-It wasn't supposed to be like that!" Albus began to stammer with his voice almost trembling. "Wh-Wh-When I found out about the hex, i-i-it claimed to not cause physical harm! I swear I didn't want anyone to actually get hurt!"