Starstruck

21. Family Feuds

Rose found her face lighting up on sight of Albus, as she squealed delightedly making her way through the smog to greet the Potters. Harry stood with his arm around Ginny, the latter attempting to hide the pleasure of seeing her gangly brother again. Instead, when the Weasleys reached them she punched Albus playfully. He yelped and backed away grinning, swearing he'd matched her level of expertise at the Bat Bogey charm at long last and was itching to try it out on her.

Rose had learnt the skill from her aunt, unsurprisingly. But some things never changed. 'Family, eh?' thought Rose as her own rushed off in the direction of Lily Potter.

James stood leaning casually against a post, hair ruffled in the unknowingly similar state as his namesake and late grandfather. Her Uncle Harry had once told herself and Albus about his father, and how James Jr seemed to have carried every one of his traits down with him to the tiniest details exept for the appearence.

This, of course, had been inherited by Albus Potter - the spitting image of his father however in nature he seemed like another side to a coin in relation to James. His jet black fringe was swept neatly to one side, no doubt fixed by his mother. His emerald green eyes were twinkling. She catched a glimpse of what looked like hair gel too and had to conceal a smile.

She found it facinating how the majority of her cousins seemed to have been named after a certain late family member, and the history of her courageous and famous relatives who had been through so much yet stayed so strong. They were the next generation now, all equally desperate to prove their worth. Identical in name, yet contrasting in personality.

In a way she was relieved to think that she had no expectations to live up to. No great ancestor as a namesake, just the blossoming flower which she had grown in love with. She often liked to think of herself like the rose, soft and kind on the outside but if anyone upset her she turned thorny. Like an alter-ego! A secret personality burried deep perhaps? Not exactly. Keep dreaming Rose. Easy on the metaphoric references.

Hugo and Lily were now jabbering away to one another in a seemigly different world, obvlivious of their surroundings and both filled with such relief to have found another of their kin. Young, fairly bored and majorly hyper at times seemed to cover it well. No wonder they clicked. 

“Hey” said Albus, running his figers over faded jean. But Ron cut out her reply as they paused to listen.

 “Parked all right then?” Rose heard her father ask Harry with a note of humour in his voice. Wizarding humour.

“I did. Hermione didn’t believe I could pass a muggle driving test, did you? She thought I’d have to confound the examiner.”

“No I didn’t,” said Hermione, an exhasperated tone creeping in “I had complete faith in you Ronald.”

Rose roled her eyes at Albus. He knew as well as she did the depth of their constant bickering, but they matched it well with their love for one another. Down each other's throats one minute; friends the next. 

Ron turned to Harry, ears a reddish pink. “As a matter of fact, I did Confund him,” he whispered just loud enough for Rose to catch. Typical... when would he learn?

 Lily and Hugo were now immersed in an animated discussion the four houses of Hogwarts. Ron caught on. “If you’re not in Gryffindor, we’ll disinherit you, he joked “but no pressure.”

“Ronald Weasley!” her mother gasped. Lily and Hugo giggled nervously but Rose and Albus had both turned ashen faced. She felt as if she may cry. After all it was only a joke, but this meant the world to her, and what if the joke had some meaning to it?

Everyone said she had inherited her mother’s brains, so Ravenclaw was a likely option and her preffered choice if not Gryffindor. Even Hufflepuff seemed an acceptable choice. 

The house had changed since her father had been at school, and it was no longer considered as the old insults suggested, neither wimpy nor weak. The wizarding world was finally changing, and beginning to recognise how important it was to have those characteristics: Honesty, loyalty, hard-working.

'Perhaps war would cease if we were all Hufflepuffs', her mother had always said. Before Ron butted in with his typical 'but it sure as heck takes the fun out of life.' He had not been expecting a day's worth of house chores to follow. But Gryffindor was her true desire, from the heart.

A voice behind her brought her back to earth. “He didn’t mean it” hissed Ginny, noticing the ghost like complexion of Albus and Rose. Ron and Harry weren't paying attention however.

There seemed to be glancing over at a point in the near distance where the smoke had cleared slightly, and Rose cast her gaze upon three hazy figures.

“Look who it is…” said Ron, raising his eyebrows. It was Scorpius Malfoy and his father!