Victoire had a penchant for any kind of romantic film she could get her hands on. So, naturally, after dinner she was spending her evening curled up in a loveseat with Teddy, watching some film where an American couple fall in love in New York. The adults--Harry, Ginny, and everyone else over the age of 17 (except for Teddy)--didn't like when the kids were running around and causing a scene after dinner, so they all were shoed up to the kids' living room until the next morning.
"Teddy, what is it they're doing down there that they won't let us do?" Lily asked.
"Just boring adult stuff like drink firewhiskey and gossip about Dumbledore," he rolled his eyes and slowly sipped on his bottle of pumpkin beer, which he had managed to sneak into the Weasley's successfully this year.
"Shh!" Victoire said and focused on the movie.
Albus, Scorp, and Rose were off in a corner, whispering to each other and gesturing wildly. They looked quite a bit like Harry, Ron, and Hermione had together when they were their age.
"Look, it's been months and we haven't done anything to get even an inch closer to the Hat," Al said.
"We can't!" Rose insisted. "There's absolutely no plausible way we'll get anywhere in there without all of the portraits blowing their heads off."
"What if we create a diversion?" Scorpius said. "We stick to our original plan to use Neville to get into the office, but then one of us distracts the portraits and the other gets some answers from the Hat?"
"What are you guys doing over there?" Lily called from the other side of the room. Victoire loudly shushed her again.
"Sounds like a deal?" Scorpius said before Lily could hear them.
"Deal," Albus and Rose quietly agreed.
*****
Lily ran into Albus and Scorpius's room and jumped on top of Albus.
"OW!" he shouted.
"Get up! Get up!" she bounced. "It's Christmas! It's really finally Christmas!!"
"Lily get OFF of me!" he pushed his sister off of him and onto the floor.
"Hey!" she shouted, mimicking a crying face.
"Lily, why don't you go downstairs and check out the presents?" Scorpius suggested, rolling over in his bed to look at them.
"You ready to face the day?" Albus asked.
"I don't really have a choice do I?" Scorpius threw off his blanket and sat up.
The boys met the rest of the family downstairs where everything was so busy and chaotic that they could get away with anything, especially planning in total detail how they would get into the Headmaster's office.
Scorpius's family had sent him a broom (a very fancy one that James was super envious of) and some new robes. Something functional and something extra, as was the Malfoy way.
Everyone else got sweaters and baked goods and hand-crafted gifts that were so dinky, but full of so much heart. Scorpius felt really left out of the family pastry-giving until Ginny came over to him and handed him a tin with pumpkin bread inside.
"I had some extra time to make sure you also got a gift from us," Ginny knelt down next to him.
"Thank you so much!" he took the warm tin, his eyes wide. "You really didn't have to--"
"Yes, I did," she said. "You're away from your family this holiday, it's our job to make you feel like one of us."
"Thank you," Sorp replied meekly. Ginny stood up and ruffled her fingers through his hair before walking off back to the adults.
But Rose decided all of this planning was making their holiday blow, so they put their plans on hold and spent the rest of Christmas day in the massive backyard of the Weasley property, playing quidditch, and when it finally got to cold to stay out, they went back inside for hot cider and laughter and games.
Scorpius went to bed with a smile on his face that night, thinking about how this was the best Christmas holiday he had ever had. Maybe one day he could be part of a family as big and happy as this one was.
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BINABASA MO ANG
Harry Potter and the Next Generation
FanfictionThe new generation of kids are here for another year at Hogwarts--but with the Sorting arrangements flustering everyone, could it really be for good or all part of the Sorting Hat's hair-brained scheme?