Scorpius swallowed as he watched the car containing his father disappear down the end of the drive, almost afraid to look up at his mum.

"Trust him to do it Muggle style." He heard her mutter. "Always so bloody dramatic."

"What's got his knickers in a twist?" Jack scoffed as he puffed out his chest, "And it's not as though we've never heard him cuss. It's him who we learned it from!"

"Where's Daddy going?" Lyra wailed fretfully. "He said he was going to help me with my playlist for my party."

"I'll help you, Ly," Scorpius said, jumping at the chance to be useful. "Rose is really into this Muggle band called One D-"

She instantly screwed up her face and started wailing loudly as tears sprang from her eyes.

"Chill, Ly," their mum drawled, rolling her eyes, "believe it or not, dramatic outbursts were quite the norm for your father back in the day."

Jack swooped down and picked their little sister up with ease, swinging her onto his back. "Come on, Ly, he'll come back when he's hungry. In the meantime, let's go see if that Merry Go Round is still in business. Man, I've missed riding those sweet ponies."

He galloped away around the side of the Manor with Lyra giggling on his back, leaving Scorpius and his mother standing side by side, eyes still on the dust cloud left in his father's wake.

Scorpius felt a tight knot in his chest and he suddenly wished his dad would come back so that they could all be together just like he had been looking forward to. Jack hadn't been home in six months and very soon he'd be off again, only this time, so would Scorpius himself.

"It's just a very emotional time for him at the moment," his mum said, reaching out a slender arm to drape around his shoulders. "What with Jack coming home after six long months and you starting Hogwarts at the end of the summer. He's loved having you as his special apprentice in the workshop, you know."

"I don't have to go," he said at once, his heart racing at this new idea. "I could stay here and help Dad out, become his official assistant."

"Don't be daft, Scorp," his mother smiled kindly, moving a hand up to mess his hair, "Hogwarts is expecting you. Besides, think about all the wonderful things you'll learn. You'll soon forget about home. And don't worry about your father, he's just having a little tantrum. I'm sure he'll be back in time for Jack's welcome home tea. Now go and join your brother and sister, no doubt Jack's missed you very much."

He looked up and found that her warm smile greatly reassured him, filling him with a calmness and easing the tightness in his chest.

Scorpius beamed back and began to dart away, feeling lighter at the prospect of playing with Jack once again on the Merry Go Round which had been sitting abandoned in the grounds, somehow Jack's absence making it feel oddly babyish to play on.

Stealing a quick glance back over his shoulder, however, he was disconcerted to see his mum still staring up the empty drive, a frown creasing her brow as she chewed her lower lip.

*****

"Do you think you'll join the Quidditch team?"

"Dad says first years are not allowed their own broom, though."

"Well my dad says that's rubbish," Rose scoffed, sticking her nose up in the air. "He says his best friend got a broomstick, paid for by a teacher, and became the world's youngest ever Seeker at the age of eleven."

Scorpius gave a heavy sigh as he pushed himself a little higher on the swing. He didn't really see the point of trying out for Quidditch, whatever he would do, he would always be in the shadow of Jack and Lyra.

He loved his brother and sister to bits, he really did. But he hated how jealous he felt when he watched the way his mum would look at Jack. It was the same way their dad looked at Lyra. They were both favourites.

Scorpius was nothing. But he never said anything because he didn't want to upset anyone. So he just continued on quietly, promising himself he would be no bother to anyone.

It is why he cherished his friendship with Rose so much. She made him feel as though he were her favourite. Rose would zone in on him whenever their families met up, take his hand and lead him off somewhere quiet away from everyone else.

At least when they started Hogwarts, they could be together all the time.

"Do you think you'll be in Gryffindor like Jack?" Rose asked, her big round sparkling blue eyes surveying him hopefully.

Scorpius shrugged. He didn't feel like a Gryffindor. But then again, he didn't feel much like a Slytherin either, despite everyone telling him he was a mini version of his father.

He knew his biological mother was a Slytherin too, but that's all he really knew about her. That and her name had been Astoria.

Astoria. Such a pretty name, Scorpius thought. He would find himself saying it quietly as he looked at the photo his mum had given him.

Scorpius had given up trying to ask his dad about her. He didn't even like the fact that she had existed in the first place. He'd overheard his parents arguing about it one night when he was younger after an uncomfortable visit from Scorpius's 'other' grandparents ("You made them feel so unwelcome, Drac!" "Because they're not! They talk about her as though she were a fucking hero!"). They stopped visiting after that. As did his aunt with his cousin, Milo, whose face he barely remembered.

He did love his family, very much so, in fact. Especially his mum. Secretly, she was his favourite person. And so the last thing he wanted to do was upset her by asking about the woman his dad was once married to.

Laughter rose up from the Manor, Jack's welcome home party now in full swing, with everyone there except for his father.

"Should we go back in?" Rose asked, following his gaze.

"Nah," Scorpius muttered. He couldn't bear to see the anxious look on his mother's face or hear her make excuses up for his absence.

By the time Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione had arrived with Rose and Hugo, his dad still hadn't returned, despite it being three hours later.

"Workshop stuff," his mum had lied when Uncle Ron questioned where 'his lordship' was. "This time of year is always manic, what with the holiday makers flocking to the seaside."

The fact that she had not told the truth worried Scorpius. Because it meant that his mum was worried too, otherwise she would have laughed it off as she had tried to do earlier and say something like 'oh, you know Drac, just having a silly little sulk.'

As it was, Aunt Hermione hadn't looked in the least bit convinced. "On Jack's first night back?! Surely he could spare the time. I mean... it's not as though he needs the income."

It was at that point when Rose had grabbed Scorpius's hand and dragged him away into the grounds where they skipped and ran to the swings situated in the rose garden, Scorpius's favourite spot.

"But I'm starving," Rose complained, pouting, "and they might have gotten the food out by now. Dad said something about there being cheese and pineapple on little sticks. It sounds disgusting but I really want to try them."

Keen to keep Rose to himself a little longer, Scorpius scratched his head and thought. Suddenly an idea occurred to him.

"The treehouse." He suggested. "There's a kitchen. Maybe we can find something in the cupboards?"

Rose blinked at him, her mouth falling open a little. "But I thought we weren't allowed to go in there?"

It was true, his father was oddly protective over the place, keeping the key safely hidden away and was only to be used under special circumstances and with express permission.

It wasn't because his father was being mean, for he normally would not deny them a single thing, but Scorpius knew it held great sentimental value to him ("The place saved my life in more ways than one," his father had told the three of them one time, and Scorpius hadn't missed the wink he threw at their mum who smiled coyly back.).

"Come on," Scorpius beckoned, suddenly feeling rebellious upon hearing the distant sound of his dad's returning car picking up dust on the driveway. "I know a way we can sneak in."

And this time, he grabbed Rose's hand as they ran off laughing through the impressive grounds of Malfoy Manor.

*****