wayward children | lily

[Albus Severus Potter]

don't speak too soon.

Graduation, 2025

THE CEREMONY MIRRORED ALBUS'S OWN IN FAR too many ways. He felt awkward dressed in casual clothes, the students all jittering in their seats, the few guardians allowed to attend all further back and full of gruff mumbling. Albus didn't take his seat immediately, he stood at the doorway for a while, searching the sea of faces for a head of red.

There were a few flashes of scarlet and strawberry blonde, but he recognised his sister by posture alone. She was slumped low but shaking all over, like her leg was going a thousand miles a minute. She was not in a pointed hat or a fresh, shiny robe. In fact, she wasn't even sitting with the other students, she was in the seats at the very back, often assigned for lower level professors and select guardians.

Hands deep in to his pockets, Albus hopped over the back of the seat beside her and thudded down heavily, it was notably and purposefully vacant. Maybe they should just shackle her, he thought with an unusual spike of defensive annoyance. "Hey, Pixie-brain." Albus leaned in to mutter, reaching up to flick her ear and pulling back in his seat lest she swat him. "Are they saving these seats for the Azkaban patrolmen?" He teased, staring at the empty seat on her other side. "Or, have you stopped wearing deodorant again?" 

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Having concluded her admission to Adrian about not managing to graduate, Lily had anxiously planted herself at the very back of the row of seats, hidden away from the majority of the event. Just like she had been minutes earlier when she had been creeping around the hallways. It was embarrassing to watch all of her friends and classmates she had spent the last seven years with walking around with their graduation robes on, because then there she was, not like the rest of them and a dour look on her face. Lily didn’t normally care about the rumor mill churning, mostly because she kick-started a lot of the ones that were whispered around the castle corridors, but when it came from adults it hurt. She knew those looks and hushed voices judged her. A Potter that failed was quality ammunition for a lot of different things. James had succeeded in his own right, and Al, well, he was doing something. She admittedly hadn’t paid much attention to what he had been doing over the last year. Or paid attention to much at all, for that matter.

The sudden thump and appearance of a leg climbing over the seat next to her drew her eyes up to see Al just as he sat down. He flicked her ear and she retaliated with a half-hearted jab at his ribs with her elbow. It wasn’t worth causing a scene, today of all days. “At this rate, that’s the only job I’ll be able to get,” she admitted with an exhale that made her entire body shudder. “I know I messed up, Al. So if you have any criticisms, can you please hold off until tomorrow?” Lily asked. She didn’t want to play twenty questions, which she was sure was going to happen with some people after the ceremony anyways. It only took one person to spot her at the back of the seats for the word to spread that she hadn’t passed. Pushing that off for as long as possible and not having Albus start it would be great. All she wanted to do today was watch her friends graduate in peace.

“Why are you here anyway? Obligation for mum and dad?” Because he should have already known she wasn’t walking. And she was positive that he didn’t have any friends in her year. Because if that was the case, she would have used that as blackmail already. Not that any of that mattered right now.

Albus Severus Potter ● 414 ● Love Will Tear Us Apart by Odina

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[Albus Severus Potter]

don't speak too soon.

Graduation, 2025

GRUNTING AS A SHARP JAB LANDED BETWEEN the meaty part of his ribs and stomach, Albus hid a laugh in to a curled fist. His little sister's reflexes as sharp as ever. Not even crippling failure could make her weak. He shook his head, feeling a slither of guilt but refusing to pity her. He knew she'd hate that. "No shame in prison work," Al shrugged, trying to lean out of range as he stared up at the long row of graduates. Someone was making a speech. It was all very moving.

"I'm not." He leaned back in to his seat, hands clasped between parted knees as he frowned. "You just keep making me look good, eh." And then he knew he was probably going to be punched again. But, that beat sniffling and moaning. He preferred her when she was like this, too angry to be silent and sad. Lily had a way of growing inwards when she was upset. Albus had never liked it.

"Because I want to be, basalisk breath." Albus sniped, his nose wrinkling as he slouched down in his seat slightly. It was easy to revert back to their childish back and forth. In fact, it was sort of cathartic. "Large gatherings are high risk." Albus added, gnawing on the inside of his mouth. "I'm just doing my job." Better she think he had to be here rather than the truth. That their parent's were worried about her. That Albus vocally blamed their father's absence, and that he felt like he owed her.

"I'd have been here if you passed, too." He quirked his brows. "But, Potter's never go by the book, do we?" He grinned once, turning his face back to the crowd as names began to rattle off and bodies walked up and collected their passing scrolls. It was all perfunctory and boring. He knew Lily would get restless soon enough. 

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Even contemplating what sort of jobs would be available to her this time next year was a gut-wrenching punch of a reminder that she should have been more worried about this months ago. While hindsight was inevitably twenty-twenty and there was no way to go back and correct the mistakes she had made, not making the same mistake twice during the next year definitely felt like a daunting task. She didn’t have her closest friends anymore to rely on and the professors were definitely going to be harder on her. They didn’t want her there just as much as she didn’t want to be. If she was going to pass so that she could walk in a year, it was going to take a lot more work than she had ever been willing to put in before. And then what would happen after that? When (and if) she graduated next year as now planned, how were employers going to look at that? She didn’t want to work for the boring Ministry, and they surely wouldn’t throw an internship at her. There was going to be an entire year for that rumor mill to marinate, and then come back swinging at her in June 2026.

Albus seemed to say, in his own way, that he wasn’t going to bully her over what happened. Like she had just said, she could handle it almost any day except today. Yesterday would have been fine too, and she had gotten plenty of awkward hugs and pity for not making the cut. Unfortunately that was how it was going to be this year. “Figured I’d toss you a bone. The thing you’re doing with your hair isn’t really working, by the way,” Lily attempted to tease him. His hair wasn’t that horrid, and she assumed it was because his Auror training had him tied up with endless work.

He went on to explain that he was actually there for work, and it sort of made more sense at that point. She slouched down in her chair, suddenly feeling like she was getting in the way of him doing his job as well. “Should I move somewhere else then?” Lily asked, despite her brother pointing out that the entire family tended to rebel against the norm. It would be one thing to be bugging him relentlessly if it was a normal day, but she had already drawn a lot of attention out in the hallway while talking to Adrian, and even now she was still getting a few looks here and there from the parents. “If only I had an invisibility cloak right now,” she sighed, sliding deeper into her chair. “Then I could be here, but not be here…”

Albus Severus Potter ● 454 ● mad woman by Taylor Swift

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[Albus Severus Potter]

don't speak too soon.

Graduation, 2025

IN LILY'S STUBBORN SILENCE, AL TRIED NOT TO stare. Waiting for her to speak as if she were a ticking time bomb. Really, it was a genuine worry that she might lose her head and set fire to the place. It seemed like something she would do, in the wake of her failure. Again, Albus cursed their dad and his selfishness, forcing himself to look away from her working jaw as she stared at the ceremony with a hungry expression. This was supposed to be her get of jail card, and she'd missed the roll.

"Shut up-" Al snapped, reaching up to run a hand through his hair with a frown. She was deflecting, but it was working. "I mean, it could have been worse..." He muttered, pressing his lips together before he relented and finished his sentence. "I could have went and got myself bitten by a werewolf." He hissed, voice low as he shook his head petulantly. This was, of course, the reason why Albus shouldn't have been the sibling sent to mediate. "I mean, no offence, but it's not really working for you." Albus echoed in a cheap, high impression of Lily's voice.

"No, you're fine." Albus muttered, feeling bad as Lily tensed with concern. They hadn't anticipated an attack. In fact, he was pretty sure his presence there was about as helpful as a clock with no hands. It beat Lily thinking she had a chaperone, though. The mention of the invisibility cloak made Al flex hungrily. He'd always had an appetite for that artefact. The one Potter legacy he hadn't minded. He and Lily used to fight over its inheritance on the daily.

"Map would be better." He said, a childish part of him turning her off it once again. "Since you're back in Hogwarts after summer." He added reasonably. The ceremony was reaching a crescendo and Albus saw the tension in Lily's frame. "You wanna get outta here?" He asked, lifting his brows daringly. "I mean, unless you're waiting for them to call your name." He added meanly, poking at her wound like any good big brother would. 

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She wasn’t sure if that was Al’s best at trying to come back at her, or if he actually felt that way about her lycanthropy. Obviously everyone in the family had been mad about that. She liked to think that disappointed was a better word for it, because she had willingly allowed the bite to take place without thinking about the consequences. Looking back on it, she knew now that it was incredibly stupid and Adrian should have never allowed it to happen in the first place. But it had, and this is where she was now. “And how has me being a werewolf prevented me from doing anything? The professors let me take any tests that fall on the full moon a few days later so I’m not miserable during them. Just because I suck at studying, doesn’t mean you can blame it on the wolf.” That more had to do with her attention span and inability to pay attention in class. As far as she knew, that was virtually incurable. If she had it her way, professors should have always allowed her to take classes standing up. The second she was told to sit down it was basically a lost cause. There was a reason she did better in Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology. Lack of desks really helped in the long run.

Instead of the cloak, Al stated that he thought the map was a better thing to have. He had a point. While she had only seen it a few times, she knew all about it. “I mean, obviously that would be better. Doubt dad will cough that up. Or James. I don’t even know who has it anymore.” And if she did, it would have been stuffed into her suitcase at the start of last fall term. Acquiring the map was a tempting offer though, and she was sure that she could spin a reason for having it where it would be beneficial to her learning, or something. She had the feeling that simply having it in her possession would make her less likely to use it, and therefore focus on school more. Maybe. It was hard to tell without actually having it first.

At the mention of leaving, Lily jumped to her feet. “I don’t mind waiting twelve months, if you do.” She wanted to be out and gone before the rest of the adults got up to leave. The worst part was that she was still required to take the train ride back with everyone else. What was the point of that? Only to be humiliated more by both her graduated classmates and soon to be new ones? She liked to think she could roll with the punches like the best of them, but there had to be a limit at some point. And she was scared to see what that was.

Ducking out of the Great Hall, she looked back around the corner and motioned at her brother with her head, trying to get him to move faster. It would be a few more hours before the train left, and her stuff was already packed. There was little reason to go around the castle reminiscing like the rest of the graduates would be doing. She still had one more year left. “Come on Al! If you take any longer you’ll be stuck here until fall term,” Lily yelled over her shoulder as she headed towards the doors to the front entrance.

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[Albus Severus Potter]

don't speak too soon.

Graduation, 2025

IN A WAY, LILY WAS PROBABLY RIGHT. HER affliction likely had no real weight against her failing marks. But, Al wasn't entirely convinced. Ever since their dad had gone missing Albus had worried about Lily. She'd always been a little unpredictable, but after his disappearance she'd seemed to ramp it up a few octaves. "Mm-hm," He hummed unconvinced, unwilling to tear in to her on a graduation deck chair. He knew how quickly her temper could flare, same as his own. "Can't have helped, right enough." He mumbled, hands deep in his pockets as he lifted his brows and stared ahead.

"As if he didn't use it." Albus snorted, rolling his eyes at his dad's typical double standards. Though he surely had a point, the map was better out of Lily's hands. The last thing she needed was a second distraction. "If you're not in Hogwarts, why would they even need it." He snorted, agreeing with her in many senses. Though he didn't encourage her beyond that, a niggling feeling of dread knotting in his gut. It was one thing for James, or Al to have the map. But, Lily?

Al looked up at Lily as she leapt to her feet, unimpressed by her jumbled energy. "As if you could sit still for 12 minutes." He stressed, standing at a much slower, lazier rate. And just like that, Lily was off. Barrelling past parent's and faculty without a care in the world. It was Al who had to follow behind, trailing past apologises and thin, weightless smiles as he legged it behind her. "God, you'd think you were running from the bloody Order." He huffed, shoving her lightly when he caught up. "Wouldn't catch me stuck here again." He grumbled, pulling a pouch of coins from his pocket and tossing them to her. "C'mon, if you're quick we can grab a butterbeer before the train leaves." And that was that.
[END?]

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