Chapter 8

Alex Potter and into the the Minds of Children

Alex Potter was a boy of seven, he had his birthday today, but there was something wrong.

Every birthday Alex had there was always something missing but he had no idea what, he had his parents, his best friends Ron, Neville, Alpha and Vega, he had his siblings Julian and Nathaniel Potter born on December 7th - they were supposed to be four years younger but because apparently they were both born earlier by a couple of months they turned out only three years younger - his parents Lily and James Potter and presents for all those wishing luck to the boy-who-lived, but he didn't know what he was missing there was always something!

When Alex was six he had asked his parents for a baby sister because Julian and Nathaniel were annoying him but his mummy had told him that she had found out after trying for another child a year after the twins were born that she wasn't able to give birth to another child anymore after the miscarriage, it turned out they had wanted a daughter like he wanted a sister, for some reason after that he had heard her parents in their room crying about rightful punishment.

"Hey mate what's wrong" Ron asked pulling him out of his thoughts, today his parents had allowed the Weasley and the Longbottom children to come and play along with the Weasley adults Mr and Mrs Longbottom declined for some reason, he didn't know why, they were always so nice to him but for some reason they and his parents don't seem to get along. The three oldest Weasley children weren't here because they were round other friend's house but the twins were along with Ron and Ginny, Emilia Longbottom came but she played with Ginny.

"Nuthin' Ron, just thinking" he mumbled

"About what?" Neville questioned and Vega curiously tilted her head to the side

"Nothing" he replied

"You can't think about nothing!" Alpha said

"Bugger off. It's none of your business!" Alex glared

Putting both hands up in surrender he said "Sorry mate, you just seemed upset, you should talk about it, I heard that helps from my mum" Alpha suggested

"Sorry guys but I don't wanna talk about it" He told them "come on let's go exploring!" he said brightly and soon they all forgot their conversation

-0000-

Fred and George Weasley didn't want to be here at Potter Manor, they along with their eldest brothers disliked the Potters since the incident with the oldest Potter child in the summer, they wouldn't ever forget that day, they may have been young but they knew that that was wrong.

They stayed as far away from the Potters as possible, they disappeared as soon as they stepped into the house so that they wouldn't have to stay in the same room as them for long, when forced, they were sharp in their presence, they were curt and cold but polite nonetheless.

When they had heard the news of Artemisia's disappearance from their parents saying that she had run away, they were both, pleased and worried; pleased that she had escaped and worried for her survival, but there was nothing for them to do but keep an eye out to see if they could spot her, they were greatly impressed by the volcano that seemed to blow, courtesy of their mother and surprisingly their father, when they had heard about the situation of why Artemisia had ran away. They had literally exploded upon the Potters and they didn't talk for about half a year, but then Ron and Alex started missing each other so they made a compromise to get along and their parents started forgiving the Potters after a while. They sighed in disappointment, Molly and Arthur Weasley couldn't keep that angry at anyone, well maybe exempting the Malfoys and Death Eaters. Of course they had also used the reason that they would be able to watch how the youngest Potter children would be treated just so that they wouldn't have another Artemisia case.

Fred and George pinched the bridge of their nose in annoyance as they had to admit the Potters were treating their children more equally but they could still see the signs of favoritism there, it was subtle things like small praises, the look of pride whenever Alex was mentioned, Alex's favourite food- yes, it was the small things but they were still favoritism, it seemed that they had not grown out of the habit yet and that was why Fred and George Weasley despised the Potters, for their unending favoritism.

They watched silently as Alex Potter led their youngest brother, Neville, Alpha and the only girl in their group, Vega, away to do some exploring. They had always kept an eye out for the Boy-Who-Lived, he was alright but he was quite a bit arrogant though really that was a given considering he was spoilt, it was a wonder how he wasn't an arse even though, he was very close to it- they would have to drive that away.

The twins prided themselves thinking it was due to them that the Boy-Who- Lived wasn't an arrogant ass-hole, they would pull a couple of pranks on him every time it looked like he had a stick too far up his arse, but other than those moments he was pretty much normal.

Really, the twins didn't think Alex Potter was that amazing, he was normal despite his moments of arrogance, he wasn't trained by Dumbledore contrary to what others may believe and he certainly didn't have endless amounts of magic, he wasn't weak though the Potters had enrolled him in muggle martial arts along with Nathaniel and Julian, Alex was a normal kid he was smart-ish but preferred to put it to use in pranks and he hated reading, though he was pretty skilful on a broom but so was his father so that would be an inherited skill considering Nathaniel did fantastic on a broom too, Julian didn't really like playing on brooms, he was only so-so on them anyways. Though perhaps they were being a bit biased, the Boy-Who-Lived did seem to have a rather surprising talent in music, considering he knew how to play a couple of instruments

Speaking of the second pair of Potter Twins, the Weasley Twins watched as the two entertained their only sister, Ginevra Weasley and the youngest Longbottom, Emilia Longbottom. The Potter Twins were… different, Nathaniel Potter was the oldest twin with a darker red colour nearly bordering black, he had managed to skip the Potter male hair curse and got away with only small curls, he had green eyes that weren't as bright as Artemisia's but shone nonetheless, he was the more outgoing of the two and loved Quidditch and muggle sports, he was athletic and active but he wasn't dumb, he was smart-ish in a sense but quite average in book smarts- he didn't read unless he was bored or it was necessary apparently. Julian Potter had dark red hair a shade lighter than his twin and fortunately didn't get the Potter hair curse instead getting Lily Potter's straight-ish hair and a darker set of green eyes, he was the complete opposite of his brother, he was book smart scarily so, they had expected he'd read some first year texts by now, he was very smart, but he was also the silent twin he was quiet and indifferent to most even then he was still polite, he didn't like sports or Quidditch and preferred reading.

The Potter Twins were polite to strangers they weren't arrogant but people would mistake them as such from the way that they seemed to build a wall around others and the only people inside were them, like they did, like most twins really.

Yes, the Potter Twins were just like them. Translation: very observant. They must've noticed the favoritism of their parents, they were close to their parents yet distant like wearing a mask, they were suspicious, Fred and George agreed, of their parents, of something that they were hiding.

One of the other reasons that the Weasley Twins didn't like the Potter Parents was because after Artemisia had disappeared they tried to erase anything to do with her, they had locked up her room in the attic and made it out of bounds and didn't mention a single word of her and because Alex was so young he didn't remember her and as she wasn't there growing up he didn't even know he had a twin since the Potter Parents prevented any mention of her, after the search for the only Potter daughter turned out fruitless they had begged the people who knew about Artemisia to never ever mention her because 'it hurt too much' they had obliged but became far more distant, after that it seemed as if they had obliviated any memories of Artemisia from their minds, but they still remembered her even if they acted like Artemisia Potter never existed.

It worked though.

No-one remembered Artemisia Potter only those that knew her in the passing, the public didn't even know she existed after the Boy-Who-Lived was announced; they were humiliated at their race.

Eying the Potter twins with curiosity they agreed that if they were as smart as they seemed they would find out what was going on and the secret that everyone around them seemed to know, and then, when they come to ask about it from them, they would tell them, there would be no gentleness in the way they would say it, they would say the honest harsh truth of their parents and what they did no matter how hard it would be for them to accept it, they would. And they just knew that they would come to them to ask, they were just like them after all.

-0000-

Nathaniel and Julian were close twins. Their Twin bonds were as strong as the Weasley Twins' even if they were as different as night and day they only had each other to hold onto.

They loved their parents yes, but that didn't mean they had to like them explicitly. They saw everything about their parents, yes, they loved them and took care of them and gave them attention but there was always that distance that they never managed to clear. They would see the small gestures of favoritism to Alex even if they tried to hide it, even if they winced every time it happened it was never fixed, they couldn't help themselves no matter what they did.

But then, they would see the longing looks as their eyes became blank as if they were captured in a looping memory before they would themselves awake, it was confusing for the 4 year olds and irritating, they didn't understand it.

They would save their notes in a journal (no it is not a diary) so that they would be able to make sense of it in the future when they were older and would be able to understand it.

-0000-

Neville Longbottom didn't remember being a toddler much, he was told it was normal, but, there was just one thing he remembered during his toddler years, a soft giggle and the warmth of her smile as she held his hands, he remembered having so much fun. He didn't know where those memories came from nor who the girl was and sometimes it made him frustrated until he had asked his parents and they had frozen.

Looking worried, her mother hesitated giving him a photograph of him, his sister as a baby and the girl in his memories, he had asked who it was but his mum had just shook her head and asked him to keep it a secret, so he did. He kept the picture safely in his drawer and would look at it every night before going to bed; something about it gave him a smile every time.

He would use the picture when his confidence whenever it fell, he swore that he would find out who it was one day.

-0000-

Alpha and Vega traded looks as they watched Alex run ahead and the other two follow they knew about his feelings he had told them once when they had a sleep over on his birthday last year he'd say there was something missing in his life, something that made him feel as if he was half of himself but he couldn't for the life of him remember what

Alpha and Vega, though twins of opposite genders, were very close, their twin bonds were like the Potter Twins and the Weasley Twins, They completed each other like a two piece puzzle, one twin would be good at something that the other would be average or failed at it and vice versa, they would share talents in some other things and fail together at other things and even though they were different genders they looked alike both having their dad's black straight hair and sharp grey eyes, they both shared their mother's high cheekbones and pointed chin and big lashes, they both looked as alike as the Weasley Twins.

They had both inherited their father's mischief and pranking talents but thankfully they also had inherited their mother's brains so that unlike their father they would be able to get out of any trouble.

When Alex had told them about the problems he was having, Alpha and Vega felt it too the missing feeling that felt wrong, something had gone missing but they didn't know what, they had suspected Neville was hiding something from them, they didn't know that too, but they had kept their suspicions to themselves as it seemed more than a little important to their friend, they were satisfied in having the knowledge that he would mention it in the future because they were sure that friends tell each other secrets, right? But for now they would leave him alone, they wouldn't pry.

In the end they had settled for just finding out whatever they can and keep a track record of it, they would discuss this plan with Alex when they got him alone.

-0000-

Alex Potter watched as he saw his youngest siblings play together moving in accordance to the other, the way they seemed to know the way the other was thinking with just one look, the way they seemed so content just being with the other like they were whole each completing the other like the yin and yang. He was envious, he realized, as he saw them smile at each other like nothing in the world was wrong.

He turned to the Weasley Twins who seemed to flow with each other like it was the most natural thing in this world the way they moved in rhythm, the way they seemed to be so in tune with the other and the way they were never alone because the other was always there, he wanted someone like that. He coveted that wholeness.

Even his twin best friends Alpha and Vega were whole, together always and having that knowing look when one turned to the other, the way it seemed like they know each other so well that they could imitate the other with no effort, they were as whole as the Weasley Twins and his siblings. He was jealous of that.

Alex Potter had been feeling for a long time the incompleteness in his inner, as if he wasn't whole and that seemed to grow bigger every year the feeling of being half of who he was, it felt so wrong to him and he didn't know why.

For some reason, during some point of the day during his birthday he would cry because the loneliness was too strong, it hurt so badly and every day it was like he was lost and searching for his other because without his other he wouldn't be able to be whole, he was missing something important, so very important and the ache that appeared would grow and grow as days pass and he would suffer under the inability to know what he was missing, what was causing the pain in his heart

Alex Potter was lonely despite the parents that smothered him, the siblings that were always there and the bestest friends in his life.

Sometimes when presents were given he would rip them open just to see if one of them would be what he was missing just in case it was an object, he knew it wouldn't but it couldn't hurt to try.

He loved his life but something had been missing always.

He would trade everything he owned to get that something.

Author's Notes

Look guys I know I took absolutely FOREVER to get this updated and I am sorry. But before you blow your top let me just explain: My Internet was the first to stop me from updating because it kept disappearing if you know what I mean- I had no internet, yeah that lasted for about two weeks or so. Next came the english project-absolutely dreadful that one had to spend my precious weekends on that! Then our teachers deemed it fit to just up our workload with a flood full of homework, it continued- still continueing actually. Next I have tests after tests; Maths, science geography, languages EVERYTHING! I'm really getting a headache- I feel like I'm drowning in work :(

However the biggest reason was- I was stuck. I started writing a couple of chapters and after reviewing I nearly slapped myself- it was too unreal and I really am sorry but I'm going to have to rewrite it completely until then it may take a while- if it wasn't for school I would update quicker but you can't have everything my fountain of writing is getting dryer because of it too and I am dreadfully sorry don't worry I'll try to finish this I promise to try- I won't give up but I don't know how long or far apart the updates are going to be now, so I truly am sorry

I can't promise I can get the next updated earlier- sorry

On brighter news though- well depending on your view... THE WINNER IS: NO SCHOOL FOR SERAFINA! Thanks for reviewing and that's how it ended up- I promise not to make her seem immensely powerful mary-sue and more- well I very well can't say normal- but believable! Tata for now!

Lapsis Angelus Jullienne

Thanks for the reviews I smile every time I see them ;)