**SPOILER WARNING!: This story contains spoilers from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child**

Hey guys, so this is my first fanfic and it's something of a continuation of the character development we see between Scorpius and Albus in the Cursed Child. Please take a read and if you like it feel free to leave a comment and give me some feedback. I'd love to know how you think I can make it better 3

Chapter 1: Platform 9 3/4

1 September, 2021

Smoke was billowing out from under the Hogwart's Express as hundreds of students and parents gathered along the platform to wish each other farewell. Hugs were shared and promises to send frequent owls were made. Younger brothers and sisters stared in awe as their older siblings boarded the scarlet train, knowing that one day they, too, would get the chance to go to the magical school they had heard so much about.

At the far end of the platform the Potters and Granger-Weasleys were gathered, surrounded as always by a gang of enthusiastic onlookers.

"Now you know that your fifth year is very important," Hermione was telling her daughter Rose, "your OWLs are going to be much more difficult than your end of year exams were and you will need to organise your time if you want to get the best grades."

"Yes, mom, I know," Rose replied, rolling her eyes slightly, "I got all Outstanding grades in my OWL mocks, in case you'd forgotten-"

"And she captained the Gryffindor quidditch team," her dad Ron added proudly, "a real Granger-Weasley is our daughter."

"Yes, I am aware of that," Hermione smiled at her husband, "I just want her to be the best person she can be."

"I will mom, stop worrying!" Rose gave her mother a reassuring hug, which Ron soon joined in with.

Next to them Albus stifled a yawn. He'd already heard his own mother have the exact same conversation with James and Lily, and he knew it would be his turn next. He'd never really been one for tender family moments. His relationship with his father had been much better since the incident with the time turners, but even now he had little interest in hanging around on the platform doling out hugs and promising to be the best student he could possibly be.

Actually, there was only one place he wanted to be, and that was aboard the train, in the same compartment as the last five years, with the only person in the world who really understood him. With the only person in the world with whom he felt truly at ease.

"Ok, Al." Harry said, interrupting his thoughts, "now I know that last year was a little wild, and I know we've spoken about this already but-"

"Yeah dad, Ok," Albus interrupted,"you don't need to give me the lecture again. I won't jump off the roof of the train and I won't try and go back in time or save anybody, and all that - I get it."

"I wasn't going to say that," Harry observed his son fondly for a moment, he no longer needed to look down to make eye contact with him, they were already the same height. "I just wanted to remind you that your mother and I, well, we love you very much, and if you find yourself in the same dark place as you did last year then I want you to know that you can talk to us."

Albus cringed. Jesus. Why did his dad have to do this? Why did he need to be so cheesy in front of everyone?

"OK... thanks," he mumbled, hoping James and Rose hadn't heard his dad's little speech, "so, I'll be going now then..." He shuffled awkwardly on the spot.

"Ok, have a good time at Hogwarts, and we'll see you at Christmas," Harry embraced his son, "don't forget to say goodbye to your mum," he added.

"Bye mum," Albus muttered, and he gave her a hug before turning on his heel and heading towards his usual carriage. His enchanted trunk followed him obediently onto the train and towards the third compartment. He slid the door open and smiled when he saw the person he had already known would be there waiting for him,

"Albus!" Scorpius's face broke into a toothy smile as he jumped up from his seat to embrace his best friend.

"Hey Scorpius," Albus replied,wrapping his arms around his smaller counterpart, "so I take it we are now, officially, huggers then?"

"Well, you started it, and it's nice, so why stop?"

Albus's smile widened. This is why he loved Scorpius. This is why he was his best friend. There was never any pretence with him and he never felt the need to behave the way society expected him to. He liked hugs, and so he said it. Albus doubted any other Slytherin boy, past or present, would be as willing to admit to such a thing.

"Looking forward to fifth year?" Scorpius asked as he released Albus and re-took his seat in the compartment, "here, have a pumpkin pasty."

Albus gave the pumpkin pasty a suspicious look. They were made by the trolley lady who they'd discovered last year was actually a transmorphing, spikey-handed, bomb throwing, psycho train cop.

"I bought them before I came," Scorpius added, noticing his friend's reluctance to eat the sweet.

"Perfect, then." Albus shoved the pasty in his mouth and reached for another, "so to answer your question, no, I'm not looking forward to it. Are you?"

"Of course! Things are going to be totally better this year," Albus was pleased to see Scorpius was as optimistic as ever, "we're gonna be fifth years, and that means that the only people left who are older than us are the sixth and seventh years who are either already 17 or will be turning 17 this year. As soon as they turn of age the stupid ones drop out, and the ones that stay will be too busy with NEWTs to give us a second thought!"

Albus wasn't sure that Scorpius's logic was particularly watertight, but he did have a point, kind of.

In their first four years at Hogwarts neither Albus nor Scorpius had been able to make any friends, other than each other. They had been picked on relentlessly by the Gryffindors who felt they had been robbed of their glorious, son-of-Harry-Potter, prized student, and shunned by the Slytherins who hadn't trusted Scorpius because he'd befriended the enemy. And that's without mentioning the rumour that Scorpius was actually Voldemort's son. They'd had a tough few years.

They had both pretended to deal with the bullying in their own ways. Albus turned into a recluse and took it out on his family, convincing himself and others that being the anti-Potter is exactly what he wanted. Whilst Scorpius had used his unfaltering positivity as a shield against anything anybody had to say to, or about, him. The truth is that, to a point, their coping mechanisms had worked, but they'd both grown tired of their mistreatment and there was nothing that Albus wanted more than to have a good year at Hogwarts, for once.

"We did kind of save the world," Albus mused, optimistically, "that's got to count for something,right?"

"I guess so," Scorpius agreed, "but let's not forget that it was us who nearly destroyed it in the first place."

"Nearly? We did destroy it, but then we fixed it again, and we caught the real heir of Voldemort in the process."

"Thanks to your parents' intervention," Scorpius added, then his eyes lit up, "and my dad's, actually!"

"Yeah, your dad was pretty cool, too" Albus agreed.

Ever since the night that Delphini was caught by uncle Ron, aunt Hermione, Albus's dad and Mr Malfoy, Scorpius had seen his father in a new light. For a long time he'd convinced himself that he wasn't the strong leader and heir to the Malfoy name that his father had always wanted him to be. He'd even let himself believe that Draco was only kind to him as a dying wish to his late mother, Astoria.

That all changed, though, when his dad travelled back nearly half a century in time with his childhood enemies to save his only son's life.

Scorpius had come to realise that he wasn't a disappointment in his father's eyes after all. In fact, he loved him very much. What's more, he no longer thought of his dad as an ex-death eater, but instead he thought of him as a hero – and so did a great deal of the wizarding community.

"You know what?" Albus asked, finishing his eighth pumpkin pasty, "I think you might be right. I think this year could finally be our year."

"Exactly!" Scorpius was glad to see that, for once, Albus was as enthusiastic as him.

"We'll get good grades,"

"Yup!"

"We'll be more popular,"

"Hmm, hmm."

"We'll -"

"Be invited to the history of magic reading club!" Scorpius added excitedly,

"Um... Maybe, yeah..." Albus grinned. They both laughed. "And maybe, just maybe, we'll find ourselves some nice girls!"

There was a second of silence.

"Yeah." Scorpius agreed, a little too late.

He didn't let his smile fall from his face, but inside something heavy seemed to drop from his chest and down into his stomach.

He didn't much like the thought of finding a girlfriend.

He liked the thought of Albus finding one even less.

"Maybe Rose'll even let you go on that date you've been wanting with her for the last five years," Albus winked at his best friend, but the only response he got was a dry chuckle that didn't meet his eyes.

"Yeah, maybe." Scorpius finally said, "but now I think of it we'll probably just be as unpopular as before so..."

Scorpius broke eye contact and his expression changed. Albus could always read his best friend's expression, but not now. Now Scorpius was feeling a way that Albus had never seen him feel before, and he didn't understand it.

"Look," Scorpius muttered, looking only at his hands, which were in his lap, "this summer I've been thinking a lot... thinking a lot about me, and about - about you...about us, and - "

"Anything off the trolley, dears?" The trolley witch poked her head around the compartment door. Any sign of psychopathic, student murder-iness was gone, replaced with the same old loving smile as always.

"No thanks," they both said together, slightly terrified.

"Maybe later, though, thanks," Albus added quickly. It was always good to try and stay on the good side of someone you knew to be perfectly capable of killing you, he thought.

The trolley witch plodded innocently along to the next compartment.

"So, what were you saying mate?" Albus asked, turning back to Scorpius.

"Oh, nothing," He lied. He straightened, falling back into his happy-go-lucky persona, he shot Albus one of his massive smiles "this year'll be cool. You'll see. No worries."

And he shoved another pumpkin pasty in his mouth. Hoping, for the first time in his life, that the conversation would end there.

So there you go, my lovelies. The first chapter. Let me know what you think. I feel like I'm a little in love with Scorpius and Albus at the moment and i'm dying for them to fall in love. I'm writing this story as I go though, and I'm excited to see where it takes me! Thanks for reading, and feel free to leave a comment below. Ira 3