Like Father, Like Son

A/N: This is just something I wrote while procrastinating from university one day! There are underlying Drarry hints, but it can also be seen as Draco-Harry friendship. It centres around the friendship between Albus and Scorpius however. I don't know how close to canon it is, or whether it is slightly OOC but I hope you enjoy it anyway!

The last week of August brought with it the traditional day out in Diagon Alley for the Potter family. With their second eldest child, Albus, starting Hogwarts this year it was likely to be an expensive trip, but it would be enjoyable all the same, even if Lily did constantly complain that she wanted to go to Hogwarts too.

The sun lit the alley and it was bustling with children and excitement, it always was before the start of a new school year.

'I'll take James to get his new books and potion supplies' Ginny said with a smile, keeping a tight grip on 10 year old Lily's hand, 'can you take Al to get his robes and cauldron?'

Harry nodded, smiling back at his wife, 'Of course, we'll meet up and buy his wand before meeting up with Ron and Hermione?'

Ginny glanced at a large clock on the side of Gringotts and nodded, 'they won't be here for a couple of hours yet.'

'Alright,' Harry said, 'don't look so sad Lily, you'll get a present, like you always do.'

Lily glared at her Father, looking very similar to her Mother, 'I don't want a present, I want to go to Hogwarts.'

Ginny rolled her eyes, 'Well we can't get you in a year early Lily,' she said, 'see you in a bit boys.'

'See you in a bit,' Harry agreed, kissing Ginny on the cheek and turning to his youngest son as she walked along the alley, 'Alright then Al, let's get your robes first.'

'You don't have to buy me robes Dad,' Albus said, 'I don't mind using James old ones.'

Harry scoffed, 'Don't be silly Albus, we can afford to get you new robes that fit you right, so we will.'

Albus smiled slightly and said, 'Uncle Ron and Mum never had anything new, did they?'

'Very rarely,' Harry said, 'but that's because your Grandma had seven children, we only have three.'

'How long does it take to get new robes?' Albus asked curiously as they walked into Madam Malkin's.

'Not too long,' Harry assured his son, then he smiled to the elderly woman at the desk, 'Hi Maude, how are you?'

Maude Malkin smiled broadly, 'Oh, lovely thank you Mr. Potter,' she said, 'is this another son of yours?'

'This is my younger son Albus,' Harry said proudly, 'he's starting Hogwarts this year.'

'Oh my,' Madam Malkin said, 'I remember him being so small when you brought young James in here 3 years ago.'

Harry chuckled, 'I can't quite believe how fast they grow Maude. Next year my youngest will start Hogwarts.'

Madam Malkin shook her head in disbelief, 'Merlin, I remember you as a young boy in my shop after all Mr. Potter. I am beginning to feel incredibly old.'

Harry chuckled at this and then Madam Malkin said, 'Just the standard set of robes and cloak?'

'Two sets of standard robes please, and the cloak,' Harry said politely.

'Wonderful,' Madam Malkin said happily, 'I'm fitting another boy in the back, so it will take about half an hour.'

'That's fine, isn't it Al?' Harry asked.

Albus nodded, and Harry then asked, 'Do you want me to stay with you while you get fitted?'

'No thanks Dad,' Albus said happily, 'just come back when I'm finished.'

'Alright,' Harry said, 'I'll see you soon then.'

Albus nodded and followed Madam Malkin into the back room. Harry left the shop with a smile, it was a bit of a tradition to buy his children a pet while they were being fitted for their robes. When James had started Hogwarts Harry had bought him a ferret because he had been hinting for months that he wanted one. The pet list had been extended since Harry's day, in addition to cats, owls and toads, ferrets, rats and mice were allowed too now.

However Harry knew exactly what Albus wanted as he entered Eeylops Emporium. James rarely wrote to his parents, he was independent and Harry and Ginny heard more from the Headmaster about their son than they heard from he himself. He lived up to his namesake, both his first name, and his middle name Sirius. Albus was a much more sensitive soul, and he wanted an owl so he could communicate with them better, he was particularly close to Harry and always had been since he was very young. In almost every single way Harry saw himself in Albus, even in the way he looked with his unruly jet black hair and vivid green eyes.

Albus wasn't as independent and openly out-there as his older brother was. But he didn't have problems communicating either, he was a happy child and would talk to anyone around him without feeling particularly nervous about it.

As Madam Malkin led him into the backroom and stood him on a chair next to the 'other boy' she had mentioned, Albus smiled at him.

'Hi,' he said, 'I'm Albus.'

'Scorpius,' the boy said with a smile.

'Guess we were both blessed with unfortunate names,' Albus said conversationally as Malkin began to fit his robes.

The blonde haired boy laughed and said, 'Yeah, my family are traditionally named after star constellations. I'm guessing you're named after Albus Dumbledore?'

Albus nodded, 'How many other Albus's do you know?' he asked sarcastically.

'Well you make two,' Scorpius said with a smirk, 'are you starting Hogwarts this year too?'

Albus merely nodded and Scorpius asked, 'What house do you think you'll be in?'

Albus shrugged, 'I don't know. My parents were both in Gryffindor, and so is my brother.'

'My parents were both Slytherins,' Scorpius said.

'With a name like yours I'm not surprised you're a pureblood,' Albus remarked.

'With a name like yours I'm not surprised you aren't,' Scorpius countered.

Albus chuckled, 'Fair play. Do you want to be in Slytherin?'

Scorpius shrugged, 'I don't really care where I go. I guess the hat will pick what's right for me.'

Albus raised an eyebrow, 'Don't all purebloods aspire to be in Slytherin?'

'Not necessarily, I guess they used too, before the war,' Scorpius said casually, 'what about you? Destined for Gryffindor?'

'I don't know,' Albus said honestly, 'everyone says I'm like my Dad and he was…but I think he was a hatstall.'

'My Mother was a hatstall, she nearly ended up in Hufflepuff before the hat put her in Slytherin,' Scorpius said in amusement, 'my Father always winds her up about it.'

Albus laughed, 'my Dad was nearly a Slytherin, but he asked the hat not to put him there, so it didn't.'

'I didn't know the hat considered your opinion,' Scorpius said.

'Neither did I,' Albus said, 'but I guess it must do.'

Scorpius nodded, 'Do you play Quidditch?'

Albus's eyes lit up as he nodded, 'I love Quidditch.'

'What do you play?' Scorpius asked.

'Seeker mostly, but I like playing Chaser too,' Albus said, 'do you play?'

Scorpius's eyes lit up in the same way, 'Merlin, yes. I play Chaser mostly, but I like playing Seeker too. We have a full sized Quidditch pitch in the back garden of the Manor.'

'You have a Manor?' Albus asked in disbelief, 'typical Pureblood. We just have a half-sized pitch in our garden.'

'Your family must be pretty well off to have any kind of Quidditch pitch,' Scorpius said, 'are you sure you're not a pureblood?'

'Pretty sure,' Albus replied in amusement, 'my Mums a pureblood, but she's mostly labelled a blood traitor and my Dad is a half-blood. I think my Grandfather on my Father's side came from a pretty pureblood lineage though…'

'Oh!' Scorpius realised, 'your Harry Potters son?'

Albus rolled his eyes, 'Yes, please don't start talking about how great you think my Father is.'

Scorpius grinned, 'Don't worry I won't. My Father is Draco Malfoy, I've heard a lot about your Father, mostly bad.'

Albus laughed, 'Yes, well they didn't exactly get on at Hogwarts.'

Madam Malkin smiled as she recalled the meeting of those two Fathers the boys spoke of, but neither boy noticed.

'That's one way of putting it,' Scorpius said in amusement, 'I didn't know the great Harry Potter was a hatstall between Slytherin and Gryffindor.'

'It's not exactly common knowledge,' Albus said simply.

'I can understand why,' Scorpius said, 'but the house prejudices don't really exist any- ouch!'

'Oh, my apologies Mr. Malfoy!' Madam Malkin said.

'No, it was probably my fault,' Scorpius said politely, 'I am terrible at standing still.'

Madam Malkin smiled, thinking of the irony. One of these boys was very similar to his Father, and the other was in all the ways that mattered very different from his Father.

Albus chuckled, 'House prejudices died with the war I think, thank Merlin for that. Although, I'm still scared of being sorted into Slytherin.'

'Why?' Scorpius asked, 'it doesn't automatically turn you into a blood-thirsty evil lord.'

'I know that,' Albus said sarcastically, 'but both my parents were Gryffindors and my brother is a Gryffindor, and all 4 of my Grandparents were Gryffindors. Even all my Uncles were Gryffindors. If I'm not, then I'm ruining everything.'

'No, you're just breaking free from the rest of your family,' Scorpius said, 'which isn't exactly a bad thing. It's not a status thing, it isn't about your blood or your family, it's about you as a person and who you are.'

'What do you mean?' Albus asked with a frown.

Scorpius said, 'I mean if you do become a Slytherin it's because you're ambitious and sly, if you become a Gryffindor you're brave, if you become a Ravenclaw you're intelligent and if you become a Hufflepuff you're hard-working and loyal. It's about you, not your family, in order to get the best education you can at Hogwarts you've gotta be in the right place.'

'Are you honestly saying your Father, the Head of Slytherin house, may I add, won't care what house you're sorted into?' Albus asked in amusement.

Scorpius grinned, 'I don't care if he does, and he won't. He might get a bit faint if the hat shouts out 'Hufflepuff' and he may actually pass out if I go into Gryffindor, but I'm still his son at the end of the day.'

'True,' Albus said as he pondered this, 'I don't think my Dad will care what house I'm in. But my Uncle Ron may possibly have a heart attack if I become a Slytherin.'

'You've got to stop worrying about what other people will think and let the hat sort you based on what potential it sees inside you,' Scorpius said with a smile as Madam Malkin said, 'alright Mr. Malfoy you are finished.'

'Thanks Madam Malkin,' Scorpius said kindly, 'do you mind if I wait in here until my Father arrives?'

'Not at all,' Madam Malkin said as she went about finishing off Albus's robes.

'Do you know anyone starting Hogwarts this year?' Scorpius asked.

Albus nodded, 'my cousin Rose is starting. Do you?'

Scorpius shook his head, 'I have two cousins, but they are both younger than me. Cassiopeia doesn't start till next year.'

'Does everyone in your family have such weird names?' Albus asked.

Scorpius laughed, 'Pretty much, yeah. The only person who doesn't is my Uncle because he's a Muggle-born.'

'Guess your Aunt got to name the kids then,' Albus joked, making Scorpius laugh again.

'Yeah, I don't think my Uncle got much choice in the matter. My younger cousin is called Cygnus…'

'Merlin, it gets worse!' Albus joked through light laughter.

'Do you mind if I sit with you on the train?' Scorpius asked out of the blue, 'if you're not sitting with someone else. I don't really have many friends.'

Albus smiled, 'Sure, if you're okay with sitting with Rose too, I promised I'd stick with her.'

'That's okay,' Scorpius said, 'I don't mind.'

'You're finished Mr. Potter,' Madam Malkin said, removing his robes and wrapping them up, taking them to the counter on the main shop floor.

Albus jumped down from the chair just as a man with blonde hair and grey eyes walked into the room, clearly this was Scorpius's Father.

'Are you sorted Scorp?' He asked, not noticing Albus.

Scorpius nodded eagerly, 'Father, this is my friend Albus.'

Draco turned to where Scorpius was pointing and smiled, 'Hello,' he said kindly.

'Hi Mr. Malfoy,' Albus said politely.

'He said I could sit with him and his cousin on the train since I don't know anyone,' Scorpius continued.

Draco then gave Albus a genuine smile and said, 'That's very kind of you. Thank you.'

'No problem,' Albus said, spotting his Father walk into the room out of the corner of his eye.

'Hey Dad!' Albus said eagerly, not even noticing the cage he was hiding behind his back, 'this is my new friend Scorpius.'

Harry looked a little startled for a moment as he looked to the boy, then he smiled, 'Hi Scorpius.'

'Hey Mr. Potter,' Scorpius said, in the same polite vane as Albus had.

'I said he can sit with Rose and me on the train because he doesn't know anyone,' Albus continued, 'I remember you said you wouldn't have had any friends if Uncle Ron hadn't sat with you on the train.'

'That's not entirely true,' Harry said, as he glanced momentarily at a perplexed Draco, 'I think I would have still made friends. Just not quite as early as I did.'

'Dad is that an owl behind your back?' Albus asked.

Harry laughed and handed his son the cage, 'Yes it is. Your brother got a ferret for his first year, so I bought you an owl.'

'Your other son has a pet ferret?' Draco asked in disbelief.

Harry smiled at this comment and replied, 'They are very loving, loyal animals Draco. How are you?'

'Good,' Draco replied, still perplexed, 'busy with the new term starting next week.'

'I can imagine,' Harry said with a nod.

'And how are things at the Ministry?' Draco asked.

'Quiet at the moment,' Harry said with a smile, 'there's a lot of paperwork. I'm starting to think I might take up the Headmasters offer of the Defence Against the Dark Arts post.'

'What's stopping you?' Draco asked curiously.

'Oh I know Al here doesn't mind,' Harry said, placing a hand on his sons shoulder, 'but my elder son James finds it incredibly uncool to have his Father at his school.'

Albus snorted, 'He just doesn't want you there because he knows he'd never get away with half the stuff he gets away with now.'

'Just so you don't run the risk of getting locked in a broom cupboard by him, I won't ask you what you mean by that comment,' Harry said with a raised eyebrow to his son who grinned at this.

'Chip off the old block then?' Draco asked.

'Slightly,' Harry replied, 'but not as much as this one. Everyone says your practically my carbon copy, don't they Al?'

Albus nodded glumly, 'Except I don't have to defeat a dark lord.'

'You weren't that sarcastic,' Draco pointed out with a slight smile.

Harry laughed at the comment, and Draco continued, 'Those close to us seem to think that Scorp is very similar to me. However I think he has a few more redeeming features than I did at his age.'

'We've already established he's polite, something you definitely weren't,' Harry remarked in amusement.

Draco smirked at that and said, 'Politeness was not something I was capable of, but I think there were worse things.'

Scorpius and Albus were no longer listening to the conversation as they looked at Albus's new owl through its cage. Draco added, 'Ironic, isn't it? That our sons met in the same room that we did?'

'Maybe it is ironic,' Harry agreed, 'or perhaps it's just fate playing out our story, the way it might have been in other circumstances.'

'You think we could have been friends?' Draco asked in surprise, 'at best now we are acquaintances.'

'I think we could have been friends, if your Father hadn't been so prejudice…and if my parents had lived,' Harry said as he looked at the two boys, 'don't you look at them and see us at that age?'

Draco nodded, 'They are scarily like us.'

'But not too much like us, Albus isn't quite as stubborn as I am,' Harry remarked.

'And Scorpius isn't a prejudiced git like I was,' Draco added.

Harry hummed thoughtfully, 'If this friendship keeps up, I think we might find ourselves as more than acquaintances Draco.'

Draco nodded thoughtfully, 'I think you might be right,' he said, his eyes lingering on the two 11 year olds.

Harry smiled once more, 'Come on Al, your Mum will get annoyed if we're late and we haven't even got your cauldron yet.'

Albus pulled himself away from Scorpius and said, 'I'll see you next week on the train! If you don't see me on the platform, just check the compartments.'

'Okay, I will,' Scorpius promised and with a brief wave to Draco, Harry led Albus to the counter where he paid and collected his new uniform.

'You should have left for work half an hour ago,' Ginny said to her husband, glancing from where he was sitting at the dining room table, to the clock on the wall with the locations of their family. James and Albus's hands now pointed to 'School', whereas Ginny, Harry and Lily's all pointed at 'Home'.

'I know,' Harry said, 'but I told work I'd be an hour late today.'

'You're waiting for Al's letter, aren't you?' Ginny asked, predicting her husband easily.

Harry smiled at his wife, 'Of course I am. I want to know what house he's in.'

'I think you already know,' Ginny said, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

'I don't know, but I suspect,' Harry said, 'he's very similar to me, but not quite the same…he's had a happy upbringing, not a hard one. I think that means he doesn't need to be as brave or stubborn as me.'

'I know you think he won't be in Gryffindor,' Ginny said as she sat down next to him at the table, 'but I think you know which house he is in.'

'I won't say it out loud until we get the letter,' Harry said.

Ginny rolled her eyes in amusement, 'You're so superstitious Harry.'

'Shh,' Harry said, listening carefully, 'I hear an owl.'

The soft fluttering of the wings of a distant owl got closer and less than a minute later Albus's newly named snowy owl, Puff, soared through the window and dropped a letter in front of Harry before going to the fountain in the garden and drinking from it.

Harry held the letter, addressed 'Mum and Dad', and felt more nervous now than he had before as he sat and waited for the letter.

'I'll read it out to you,' Ginny said gently as she took the envelope from Harry's hands and pulled out the piece of parchment. She smiled as she began to read.

'Mum and Dad,

The sorting ceremony took a really long times. Scorpius was sorted before me because his second name comes first, and he went into Slytherin. His Dad jumped up and cheered really loudly, I think he was quite embarrassed. I hope you're not mad, the hat took a while to decide where to put me. It thought that I had the brains for Ravenclaw, and the honour and courage for Gryffindor. In the end it said my ambition won out, and that I was cunning and sneaky, but I always thought James was the cunning, sneaky one. Scorpius said that I'm more cunning because I've led everyone on to believe that James is the cunning one, but I'm not sure I did that on purpose.

Rose was the last person to get sorted, and she's in Slytherin too! It's great because we all get on well, Scorpius and Rose met on the train and they seem to have become friends. I think Rose is scared that Uncle Ron will go mad when he finds out she's in Slytherin, but she says Aunt Hermione expected it. Scorpius's Dad nicknamed us the 'silver trio', he said you'd understand what that meant.

Anyway, I can't write for much longer tonight. I'm really tired and classes start tomorrow. Our first class is Potions with Professor. Malfoy, Scorpius thinks he's going to get away with everything in that class but Rose bets he'll have a detention before the end of the week!

Love,

Albus.'

Ginny finished the letter and placed it in front of her, she was still smiling.

'I did have a feeling he would be in Slytherin,' Harry said with a sheepish grin, 'but Rose on the other hand…'

'Oh you can't be that surprised,' Ginny said, 'you know how devious that girl is.'

'True,' Harry laughed, 'and she is always aspiring to be better than her many Uncles, and Aunt.'

'Exactly,' Ginny said, 'I think Al's right about Ron's reaction…'

'He'll come around,' Harry said in amusement, 'but I feel sorry for Hermione…'

'So do I,' Ginny said with a chuckle.

'What do you think?' Harry asked his wife.

'About Al being in Slytherin?' Ginny asked, 'I don't mind, as long as he's happy, I'm happy. He's in the same house as his two friends, that's all that matters.'

'I hope James isn't going to be too horrible to him,' Harry said with a sigh, 'In him I sometimes see the nastier aspects of myself, and my Father.'

'He might tease him while they are at school,' Ginny agreed, 'but Al is his brother at the end of the day, and as much as he denies it he loves him. You remember last year when Al fell off his broom and ended up in St. Mungo's, we caught James crying in the waiting room.'

'Yeah, I'm not sure where he gets that from,' Harry said with a grin.

Ginny shot him a glare, 'I know you think I'm emotional, but I rarely cry.'

'Except when you were pregnant, then you cried at everything…like that time you accidently stood on a spider and thought you were a murderer,' Harry sniggered.

'Oh shut up,' Ginny said as she playfully smacked him around the head, 'if it wasn't for the fact you were the hero of the wizarding world, I think you might have become a Slytherin.'

Harry smiled and said, 'I think you're probably right. Can you imagine that? Me becoming a Slytherin…Malfoy and I probably would have become best friends.'

'That's a dangerous thought,' Ginny remarked.

Harry smiled and said, 'the pressures of Malfoy's parents, and the Dursleys, and then the war, changed us. It's nice to see in Al and Scorpius the friendship we might have had in other circumstances.'

'I can understand that,' Ginny said with a smile as she took his hand, 'but it looks like all prejudices and barriers might be breaking down now anyway. You saw what Al wrote in his letter, the silver trio, a Malfoy, a Potter and a Weasley.'

'Who'd have thought,' Harry said with a smile.

Ginny smirked a little, 'Hermione and I have seen it coming for the past couple of years. I think it's a good thing, a fresh start.'

'Does this mean we're going to have to start inviting Malfoy to dinner parties?' Harry asked.

Ginny laughed, 'I don't know what it means yet, but I guess we'll find out. We've got it easy anyway, Rose is a girl…'

'So?' Harry said.

'So two members of the golden trio ended up married,' Ginny pointed out, 'what if two members of the silver trio do too?'

'Rose and Al are cousins,' Harry reminded his wife.

'Which leaves…' Ginny said, and Harry finally cottoned on, 'Rose and Scorpius?' he whistled in amusement, 'now that…that could possibly make Ron explode.'

Ginny laughed, somewhat wickedly and said, 'It's the start of a new era. What do reckon Ron will be grey by the end of it?'

'Or bald,' Harry countered.

Ginny laughed again and shoo-ed Harry to the door, 'you'll be late for work,' she said as she kissed him.

Harry smiled and kissed her back, 'When you write back to Al, make sure he knows how proud we are.'

'I will,' Ginny promised, 'Now get your arse to work Auror Potter,' she said, pushing him out of the front door into the garden.

Harry smiled as he waved goodbye to his wife and apparated to the Ministry entrance. She was right, it was the start of a new era, and it wasn't necessarily a bad one either.

The End

Hope you enjoyed it all!

Holly

xxx