Chapter Text
Albus Severus Potter was currently fighting the urge to slam his older brother with his trolley.
“Dad!” he groaned as James Sirius Potter erupted into obnoxious laughter, turning to his father with a pleading expression. “He keeps saying it!”
Harry Potter gave a light sigh, turning a firm gaze towards his oldest son as his daughter, Lily Luna Potter, squirmed on his shoulders. “James,” he said. “Give it a rest.”
In the midst of another huff of laughter, James raised his hands as though surrendering. “Hey, all I said was he might be in Slytherin. And he might be, so…” His teasing grin fell as his father’s stare hardened. “Right. Fine. Sorry.”
He went back to pushing his trolley, focusing on weaving through the crowd of bustling Muggles that filled King’s Cross. Albus let out a deep sigh that went unnoticed amongst the commotion, trying to push any thought of Slytherin House — any of thought of himself in Slytherin House — aside. Instead, he turned to look at his mother, who had slid up to his side after her husband’s scolding to their eldest and was now walking beside him. “You’ll write to me, won’t you?” he asked her, and Ginny Potter immediately smiled.
“Of course,” she assured him, resting her hand on one of his that pushed the trolley and squeezing. “Every day if you want us to.”
“No,” Albus said, quickly shaking his head. “Not every day. James says most people only get letters from home about once a month. I don’t want—”
“We wrote to your brother three times a week last year,” Harry interrupted from Albus’s other side.
“What?! James!”
Ahead of him, James merely snickered, eyes straight ahead as Albus glared at him. Ginny leaned down closer to him. “You might not want to believe everything he tells you about Hogwarts,” she said, the faintest hint of amusement in her breath. “He likes a laugh, your brother.”
Albus sighed again as his mother straightened. This, like last time, went unnoticed.
“Can we go now?” James called, practically bouncing on his toes. He stood between platforms nine and ten, directly in front of the brick wall that separated them. The Potter family came to a stop around him. Harry set Lily onto the ground and she immediately latched onto the side of Albus’s trolley, eyeing the wall with as much excitement as her oldest brother. Albus clutched the trolley handle tighter and looked between his parents worriedly.
“All you have to do,” Ginny started, pointing at the wall ahead, “is walk straight at the wall between platforms nine and ten.”
“Don’t stop and don’t be scared that you’ll crash into it,” Harry chimed in. “Best to do it at a run if you’re nervous.”
“I’m so excited,” Lily practically squealed. James seemed to mirror that excitement, grinning wider and shuffling his feet. Albus took a breath and readjusted his grip on the trolley, eyes locked onto the wall.
“I’m ready.”
He felt his dad join him at his side, Lily popping up between them as they all took hold. Ginny paired up with James, and together the Potters ran head-first through the barrier.
Platform 9 and 3/4 was, somehow, busier than King’s Cross.
Thick, white steam billowed from the parked train on the tracks, wisps floating along the platform. Trolleys piled high with trunks were scattered among the crowds. Animal cages rattled underneath the chatter of gathered witches and wizards, excitement twinged with slight nerves pulsing through the hugs and farewells and good luck wishes parents shouted to their children as they hopped aboard the Hogwarts Express.
Albus barely had time to take it all in before Lily was squirming again, tugging at her father’s sleeve as she whipped her head along the platform. As though she could see anything from her small height, Albus thought with faint amusement.
“Where are they?” she said, standing on her tiptoes to peer among the crowds. “Are they here? Maybe they didn’t come? They came, didn’t they? They should be here. Where are they?”
Chuckling, Harry placed a hand on his daughter’s shoulder and pointed to a familiar bright-haired family a few paces away. Lily’s face immediately lit up as she launched towards them, waving her arms frantically.
“Uncle Ron! Uncle Ron!”
And Ron Weasley immediately broke into a grin, reaching down to scoop Lily into his arms. “If it isn’t my favourite Potter!” he said as the two hugged.
“Ouch,” James said as the rest of the Potters caught up with their youngest. “Favouritism, much?”
“Favouritism? I know nothing of the sort!” Ron frowned at James. “Who are you again?”
James gasped in mock offence as Lily stuck her tongue out at him.
“Oi,” Ginny scolded, smacking her older brother’s arm. “Don’t stir the pot.”
“Please,” his daughter Rose Granger-Weasley agreed. “Leave the jokes to Uncle George. You’re not funny, Dad.”
“Talk about favouritism!” Ron exclaimed, turning to his wife for support. Hermione Granger only shrugged.
“Your jokes are… certainly something.” Ron gaped as Rose giggled, and he turned to his son in a desperate, last-ditch effort. Before he could even open his mouth, Hugo Granger-Weasley backed away.
“I’m not in this. I never disagree with Mum,” he said. Rose nearly doubled over laughing as Hermione smiled and pulled her son close to her.
“That’s my clever boy,” she said, running a hand through his hair. Hugo grinned sheepishly at his dad. Ron shook his head disapprovingly at Lily, who copied his action.
“Favouritism,” he said.
“Favouritism,” Lily repeated in the same defeated tone.
Albus sat on his trunk as his family formed a circle, watching them all converse.
“Parked alright, then?” Harry asked Ron as he set Lily down. He grinned proudly.
“I did. Hermione didn’t believe I could pass my Muggle driving test. She thought I’d have to Confund the examiner.”
“I thought nothing of the sort,” Hermione was quick to defend herself, smiling as she rested a hand on his shoulders. “I have complete faith in you."
“And I have complete faith he Confunded the examiner,” Rose said, giggling as her father swatted her away.
“I’ll have you know I drove a car the entire way to Hogwarts my second year,” Ron told her.
“Which you stole from Dad,” Ginny said.
“And crashed into the Whomping Willow,” Hermione added.
“Uncle Ron stole a car?!” Lily exclaimed.
“Harry was there too!” Ron said.
“Taking the car was your idea!” Harry cried.
“Where’s the car now?” Hugo asked.
“Somewhere in the Forbidden Forest, I think,” Ron said. Hugo immediately brightened and exchanged an excited look with Lily, who was grinning mischievously. Ron pointed a finger at them both. “And don’t even think about going out there to find it.”
“Awwww,” Hugo and Lily whined.
“You two can’t even go to Hogwarts yet,” Rose scoffed. Hugo glared at his sister.
“We’re just messing around, Rose. Stop being such a party pooper.”
“No name calling,” Hermione scolded. Rose gave a smug smile. Hugo stuck his tongue out at her.
“You did all that at my age, and yet I got grounded for a week just for staying out past curfew,” James huffed.
“It was the fourth time that month alone and you had gotten several warnings,” Harry said.
“Oooooo,” Lily taunted her oldest brother. James rolled his eyes at her.
“And who’s the one who keeps sneaking sweets before dinner?”
“Hey!”
“Stirring the pot,” Ginny told Ron.
“Shut up, Gin,” he said.
“You have to tell me all the stories of Dad doing stupid things like that,” Rose told her mother.
“I’d be telling you stories until the day I die,” Hermione sighed. “And even by then, I wouldn’t have told them all.”
“Didn’t you do those things with him?” Hugo asked her. Hermione just pulled him into her side again as Rose shushed him. Her little brother merely giggled.
“Be nice, you two,” Ginny spoke to her children. “Don’t want James to leave for Hogwarts on bad terms, do we?”
Right, Albus remembered. Hogwarts. The place where he’d be spending most of the next seven years. The school his father only spoke praise of, the castle his father was able to find a true home and family within. Hogwarts, where everything had changed for Harry Potter once he had been sorted into—
“Dad?” Albus said suddenly. Harry startled and whipped around. Albus tried not to think too hard about that reaction.
(He had forgotten he was there. That he had more than two children, more than one child being sent off to school. Albus had been silent for no more than five minutes and was completely erased from his family’s existence. Merlin’s beard, he was being dramatic. Forget it. It meant nothing.)
“What is it, Al?” Harry kneeled down and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. The warmth was calming. The weight was grounding. Albus fiddled with his fingers as he took in a breath.
“What if I am… put in Slytherin?”
And there it was. He said it. The worries he tried to forget, the implications behind James’s incessant teasing he tried to ignore, the gnawing anxiety he tried in vain to wish away.
Harry seemed stunned, for a moment only blinking at Albus behind his round frames. “And what would be wrong with that?”
What would be wrong? Albus nearly barked out a laugh at the absurdity of that question, as though Harry couldn’t possibly fathom why his son would be so scared of that potential outcome.
(As though his son didn’t hear the way he spoke about the Slytherins of his time at Hogwarts, of the children of those ex-Death Eaters at Hogwarts now, names soaked in venom shared with his wife behind the closed door of their bedroom with the assumption that their children were asleep. But Harry Potter went through a lot and he was his dad so Albus shouldn’t judge him for that.)
“It’s just…” Albus rushed to find a suitable explanation. “Slytherin is the house of the snake… Of Dark Magic… It’s not like — With all of you, it’s not… It’s not like Gryffindor, you know, house of brave wizards…”
His babbling was cut short by his father’s laughter. Albus frowned as Harry shifted to be right in front of him, amusement making way for a soft smile. “Albus Severus Potter,” he started. “You were named after two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin, and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew.”
Albus fidgeted under his father’s gaze. “But I just…”
“If it really matters to you, the Sorting Hat will take your feelings into account.” At that, Albus straightened and finally met his father’s eyes.
“Really?” Harry leaned in closer.
“It did for me.” His soothing words, gentle smile, and warm eyes along with the grounding weight of his hand on Albus’s shoulder finally quieted the chattering whispers in his head, and he smiled back at Harry. Wide. Genuine. Harry grasped Albus’s hand as he stood and hauled him up with him. “Hogwarts will be your home away from home. I promise you have nothing to be frightened of there.”
“Except the Thestrals,” James cut in with his ever-present, ever-wide, ever-annoying grin. “Watch out for the Thestrals.”
“I thought they were invisible!” Albus cried. James snickered as Harry turned Albus back to facing him.
“Listen to your professors, don’t listen to your brother, and remember to enjoy yourself.” Harry squeezed Albus’s shoulder as he smiled again. “The experience is what you make it, after all.” With that, he stood back and faced both his sons with a sharp clap. “Now! If you don’t want this train to leave without you, I suggest you hop on.”
He didn’t have to tell James twice. Shouting a quick farewell to his parents, he turned and rushed towards the train. Ginny sighed and shared an exasperated look with her husband, who only shrugged.
Rose hugged her parents and brother goodbye before gathering her trunk. “And Rose,” Hermione said. “Remember to give Neville our love.”
“Mum!” Rose cried, face contorting in disgust. “I can’t give a professor love!” With that, she turned and followed James.
“I’m gonna chase the train out!” Lily declared, immediately pouting when her mother placed a firm hand on her shoulder to keep her in place.
“Now you stay right here, young lady,” Ginny scolded before melting into a smile as Albus hugged her. He lingered for a moment, breathing in the familiar scent of her perfume. When they broke apart, Harry was waiting with his arms open, and Albus gave him a tight squeeze — one more moment to ground himself in his father’s comforting words — before stepping back and grabbing his belongings.
“Right,” he said, gaze flickering between his parents, sister, aunt and uncle and younger cousin. “Well… bye then.”
He pretended not to notice the concern pooling in his mother’s eyes, nor the way she immediately stepped close to Harry and began speaking quietly. In the reflection of the train windows, he could see Harry shaking his head even as Ginny’s frown deepened.
Albus boarded the Hogwarts Express.