Chapter Text
Thomas's dad died when he was little, and for a long while it was just Thomas and his mum, and that had been okay. Difficult, especially to start with, but okay. His dad had been pureblooded, born into the Magical world, and his mother had been Muggle born, so for a while they'd had to adjust to navigating a Magical World without the support and guidance of his dad's knowledge.
Alexandria taught him how to ride his first broom, gifted him a Remembrall to combat his terrible memory, and read to him about anything and everything from Magical Creatures to the rarest Magical conditions, from Veelas to Werewolves. Together they had learned everything about the Magical World that she could legally lay her hands on, and she made sure he had all the chances to try anything he liked, Magic or Muggle. She took him to get his wand when he turned eight. They went on flying adventures, and went swimming in the Muggle pools. They rode the bus, and the tube, and went on holidays by plane instead of apparating. He went to Muggle Primary School, and made lots of friends. He played football. They cooked pancakes and made potions. They had picnics and went camping, had nature walks and lazy reading days. He'd had her all to himself until he was ten, when along came the day she met Myro, and Alexandria had fallen hopelessly in love with him.
And it wasn't that Thomas wasn't happy. Quite the opposite, in fact. Even at his young age Thomas had seen that Myro made Alexandria so happy that Thomas himself had done everything he possibly could to aid their transition from friends to lovers to spouses, everything he could do to ensure his mother always smiled. He respected Myro, and loved him too, and it was clear to anyone with eyes that Myro truly adored Alexandria.
Thomas was definitely happy about the whole situation, relieved that his mum could be happy and loved again. And Myro was a good guy, too. He spent a lot of time getting to know Thomas, and helping him out with homework, taking him on trips and introducing him to several children his age who would be going to Hogwarts with him. He was funny, down to earth and incredibly knowledgable on a lot of topics, and he was a fantastic cook. Myro was great.
It was Gally that Thomas couldn't stand.
Myro's wife had left them when Gally was six, and he'd never forgiven her. The man she'd fallen for was a Muggle, and she'd left the Magical World behind to be with him. Thomas found the story incredibly tragic, she'd left everything she'd ever known to be with the one she loved, and he wasn't stupid. Gally may not believe that his mother loved him, believing she'd run off because she didn't, but Thomas just knew that she did. Mothers love their children, they just do.
Gally didn't think it was tragic, or romantic or anything that Thomas thought. Gally was furious about it. And he'd let it poison him, to the point where he despised Muggles, and had a treacherously strong view on Muggles and Blood Status that most certainly didn't come from his dad. When Gally had learnt that Alexandria was Muggle born, he'd instantly leapt on the chance to needle Thomas, sniping snide Half-blood comments at him, tripping him up and goading him into fights by referring to Alexandria as the Mudblood. He barely held himself in check when his father scolded them, sneering at Thomas when Myro couldn't see. Gally was two years older than Thomas, and built a lot wider, so Thomas had learned fast how to duck and weave and used his slighter frame to his advantage. Gally and his friends made sure to make Thomas' life hell, and when Myro and Alexandria told the boys they were engaged, it only got worse.
Gally was a slinthead, if you wanted to put it politely. Try as he might, Thomas just couldn't like him. He was such a crank.
Gally's little brother Chuck, on the other hand, was so much more like his dad that Thomas almost believed Gally had to be adopted.
Chuck was a year younger than Thomas, and instantly latched on to the older boy. It seemed that Gally's hatred of everything did not fully extend to his little brother, but nor did he seem to love him either. If anything, Gally spent his days spitting insults at Thomas and pretty much ignoring Chuck.
Chuck didn't seem to mind. He took to following Thomas around all the time. If they were at home he'd follow him to the kitchen, chatting a hundred miles an hour and getting under Thomas' feet as he tried to make them sandwiches. He'd been eager to join Thomas at his Primary school when Alexandria suggested it, and although he was incredibly dorky and a little on the chubby side, he had charmed the muggle children just as easily as he had Thomas.
Life settled down, and Thomas settled into the new experience of having a busy household. Gally played incredibly loud music all the time, Alexandria and Myro held dinner parties, and Chuck pleaded continuously for Thomas to play video games with him. Despite the constant annoyance that was Gally's existence, Thomas loved his new household. On the rare days when Gally was civil, the three of them would compete at several of Chuck's video games, assuming Thomas and Chuck allowed Gally to win often enough that he'd stick around.
Of the children Myro had introduced Thomas to, he'd quickly taken a liking to Minho, a broad-shouldered dark-haired boy with a sarcastic sense of humour. He was sassy and daring, and unbelievably clever, and if it wasn't for his cool personality, he'd be a stereotypical Geek. He read, and he played football with Thomas and Chuck in their garden, and best of all he backed them up when Gally and his friends were being utter cranks.
Life was good, and with the excitement of Hogwarts on his horizons, Thomas felt uncountably lucky.