The Silence Helps Sometimes by xMissSalazar
Fandom: Harry Potter, of course.
Pairing: Albus Severus/Scorpius
Summary: There he was, ogling another boy again. That was just his problem, he decided. Albus had absolutely no self control whatsoever. He was sure that being straight was possible, as nearly every guy he'd ever uttered a word to seemed to liked girls more than nearly everything else in life. Albus had simply lost the will power to try anymore. A/SS. Uber Fluff.
Disclaimer: *scoff* If I owned Harry Potter, Dumbledore wouldn't be the only outed Gay in Hogwarts.
A/N:
Update: It took me forever to finally post this. Most of the summer.
I'd like to dedicate this to Diran and Ash for being my best friends and giggling in fluffy delight. Your positive feedback was so helpful. You're the reason I write, guys!
Here goes another backseat story! This time, I'm on my way home and horridly bitter at my family for their severe lack of sunscreen application skills. Though I'm sunburned irreparably and can't feel my face, I hope YOURS curls into a smile while reading this.
Enjoy!
Albus Potter grinned at his sister. She stumbled up the stairs toward the 4th year dormitory, mumbling a goodnight to her brother. The boy's smile left his face as she escaped his line of sight, and, once again, Albus found himself frightened to be alone with his own thoughts.
Albus glanced upward at the clock hung on the wall opposite him. It was late; past one in the morning. Lily was a trooper, staying up so late with him on a night before lessons. His eyes swept across the empty common room. Al sighed and stood from the comfortable escape of a worn lounge chair he'd sat in for the past four hours, closing the text books that lay on the wooden table next to him. Smoothing out their covers, he placed them in an even stack on the edge of the table to retrieve later.
The Potter strode out of the Gryffindor common room, passing a drowsy Fat Lady. She seemed flustered, despite her subconscious state.
"You'll get caught one of these days, Albus Potter. Don't think I'll cover for you, because I," She yawned. "I won't." Albus rolled his eyes at her scowling figure and dismissed her with an inquiry about the password going into effect the next day. She mumbled it to him under her breath.
"Thank you!" Albus called, taking down a set of stairs. The portrait was not impressed and called some sort of warning at his retreating back, but Albus couldn't pretend to care. The portrait had gone nearly senile after the second war anyway and often had manic breaks, refusing to let Gryffindors into their common room on the accusation that each of them was a reincarnation of Voldemort and that she had to "protect the children". Usually the only solution to this problem was for McGonagall to speak to the Fat Lady in hushed tones and spell the door open herself.
And, if caught, Al could always slip his father's name into the conversation. Albus wasn't proud of this, but being the son of the savior of the Wizarding World had its occasional perk.
The boy, on the look out for Prefects, made his way to the front doors of Hogwarts and slipped out into the November evening.
Albus's breath was visible in the cool night air. The thought that he probably should have brought a jacket had crossed his mind, but he had negated the thought soon after it rose. The cold of the water would snatch any amount of warmth the jacket would give him, anyway, so having it at all would be pretty irrelevant.
Albus's feet moved toward the edge of the black lake. His hands were shoved tightly into the pockets of his denim jeans, a dark blue button down covering his chiseled chest. The boy's obsession with the Black Lake had began with unhealthy amounts of Quidditch practice, what the piercing cold seemed to do to him, and Elliot Finnigan's body in the Quidditch showers. The effects of the first still remained on his sculpted figure.
Albus was foolish, he realized, thinking that he would be the only one to break the rules. By the time he'd risen his eyes to gaze at the Lake's dark waters, the soft waves were lapping at his toes. It was only then he noticed the lean figured standing waist deep in the murky depths.
Albus could tell on spot a few things about the figure. First, the person was a boy. The lack of protruding hips and breasts or a dip of a waist made that apparent. The boy's lanky stature made it improbable that the figure was female, as well.
Second, Albus couldn't tell who the figure was without wading out to see them, as their face was shadowed by the moonlight off the water. Only the person's profile could be seen and the person remained stalk still in a position that hid their face entirely. The famed Potter curiosity began to get the best of him.
And lastly, Albus had stumbled. The figure jerked backwards to discover what had made the noise.
Al arose, recognizing the figure when the moon illuminated their face briefly. "I'd remove yourself from that water there, Malfoy, you could catch a nasty cold." Al chuckled, ignoring the voice inside his head that continued to persistantly remind him that he was a hypocrite. At seeing Albus, Scorpius sighed and relaxed visibly. The Gryffindor expected a retort of some kind, but was left empty-handed.
Scorpius turned to gaze out at the black lake once more. After a few seconds of silence, Albus toed out of his shoes and stepped into the water to approach the Malfoy.
He hissed between his teeth. The cold was flooding up, settling somewhere that could rarely be reached by anything but the piercing flow of water and the lonely midnight. This was the best part of it all; his body hadn't adjusted to the cold of the water yet and Al could feel his insides begin to shiver.
Albus opened his eyes once again and took off towards Scorpius, standing a few yards away.
Scorpius's nimble fingers were fiddling with the hem of his soaked jumper. The Malfoy's hair was hanging loose at his ears. His eyes were scanning the lake's waters.
"Malfoy?" Albus whispered to the boy.
Actually, Scorpius didn't look like much of a boy anymore. His abdomen, once thin and childlike, had filled out quite nicely. Lean muscles were obvious beneath his jumper that looked to have once been tucked into his black belted trousers. Scorpius's profile was outlined by the nearly full moon hung low in the sky. His nose was pointed, and his chin was strongly curved. Scorpius's hair was like his father's and fell in whispy strands, curling around his ears. The Malfoy's long, regal neck was a pale sheet of white skin, and it begged to be kissed.
Albus faltered.
There he was ogling another boy again.
That was just his problem, he decided. Albus had absolutely no self control whatsoever. He was sure that being straight was possible, as every man he knew liked girls more than pretty much everything else in life. Albus had simply lost the will power to try anymore.
Al was snapped out of his revelry by Scorpius's turned face. He appeared to have just interpreted Al's presence. An incredulous expression was plastered onto his aristocratic face. The boy turned on his heel and took off quite swiftly towards the shore.
"Scorpius."
The boy didn't pause. Albus wasn't sure when "Malfoy" had become "Scorpius".
"Scorpius." Albus had approached the Slytherin quickly; Quidditch had its perks. The boy continued to wade toward the shore. Albus latched onto his wrist and pulled him to a stop.
Scorpius's face whipped back to look at Albus; the boy looked frightened. Albus wasn't sure why, exactly.
Albus hadn't ever done much to the Slytherin, really. That was just it, in fact. He could probably count on one hand how many times he'd spoken to Scorpius. Whereas Al usually couldn't be found alone (Which had started to become a bit of an annoyance), Scorpius tended to prefer isolation and was given it willingly: any class mate was either intimidated by Scorpius's last name or took his being shy as off-putting, haughty, and snobbish. Al was the best Seeker at Hogwarts, and had led the Gryffindor Quidditch team to the house cup since he'd partnered with his brother, the star Keeper. Scorpius led 6th year in test scores, easily surpassing Rose Weasley, much to her disdain. Al was usually surrounded by a troupe of rowdy Gryffindors whereas Scorpius could be found in the library, surrounded by stacks of literature.
"Scorpius." Al repeated, narrowing his eyebrows. Scorpius glanced at the shore, where Al spotted his wand, brown loafers, and a pair of folded glasses. "I'm not going to hurt you." Albus said with disbelief, shaking his head.
Scorpius jerked his hand back and brought it to his chest, where Albus saw he was breathing heavily. Scorpius circled the hand with his other, as if he'd been burned. Al was reminded of an instance in the hallway a few weeks ago and he swallowed hard, recalling three 7th year Gryffindors pinning Scorpius to the wall and hitting him, hard. He still remembered the word they spat at him as they walked away, and it was "faggot." When Al had approached the Malfoy, Scorpius had risen quietly, grabbed his books, and left without a word.
No wonder Scorpius didn't want to be touched.
Albus walked past his year mate and retrieved the Slytherin's things. He returned to Scorpius, who seemed glued to his spot knee deep in water, and stopped next to the boy. Albus elongated his hand, holding Scorpius's things out for him to take. He stared at Al's hand dumbly, transfixed and seemingly confused at Albus's actions.
Al scoffed. He moved closer to the boy and slipped his things into the hand at his thigh.
Scorpius clasped his hand around his belongings and cast his eye downward. Albus glanced at the boy's face. Was Scorpius... blushing?
Scorpius slipped his wand into his right-hand trouser pocket and unfolded his glasses. He placed them atop his nose and caught Al's gaze. Al had to admit that glasses definitely suited him.
"Pardon me." Scorpius's voice was raspy and hoarse. A chill ran up Al's spine. Al remembered bumping into the boy while fetching ingredients in potions class. When the two had exchanged apologies, it had sounded similar, so Albus figured that this was probably how it was regularly.
The Potter reminded himself it was polite to reply.
"Nothing to pardon. We're both breaking the rules, here." Al smirked at Scorpius again.
"Albus why are you out here?" the Slytherin asked with a raised eyebrow. Apparently when the boy had a question, he cut to the chase.
"I..." Albus shifted his stance on his feet. "I dunno." The Gryffindor carded his left hand through his mess of black hair. "I just needed some fresh air, I suppose."
Albus was a liar.
"You're a liar." Albus's eyebrows shot to his hairline.
Scorpius was better than he suspected at seeing through his shit.
Scorpius swallowed, and his Adam's apple shifted. "But I'm not going to press you on it."
Albus breathed in. "Why are you out here, Scorpius?"
Scorpius bit his tongue.
The Malfoy faltered, then altered his footing with obvious discomfort. The water sloshed around his thighs.
"Sometimes the water...the moon..." He murmured. Albus cut him off.
"I understand. Silence helps sometimes. With things." Scorpius nodded minutely.
The Slytherin turned and waded toward shore. Albus followed. Scorpius grabbed his loafers from where they sat neatly by the edge of the water.
The boys both spoke at once.
"Well, I didn't mean to bother you-"
"Would you like to sit with me?" Albus asked. It was Scorpius's eyebrows that raised this time.
"Would you?" Albus asked again. There was that damned blush again.
"I- Um, I... I suppose so. Yes." Albus smiled widely, probably awkwardly, and questioned why he had asked the boy to stay. He found as his eyes cast over Scorpius's throat again he didn't really care much. The Gryffindor sat, dipping his feet into the soft waves. His hand lay on the grass beneath him, keeping the Potter upright.
Scorpius wavered, then dropped his shoes to the ground and sat to the right of Albus, submerging his feet to his ankles next to Al. Scorpius brought his hands to clasp in his lap and looked rather uncomfortable.
Albus noticed Scorpius was taller than himself, if only by a few inches. Their bodies were slightly turned towards each other, yet appeared to be pointed towards the apposing shore.
"I've heard that Kelpies have taken students at night around the Black Lake." Albus announced ominously, trying to make conversation so that the flush he felt crawling up his neck could be wrestled into submission. Al gestured with his head toward a beachy shore a few hundred meters away.
"Highly improbable, as nearly all reported sightings have taken place on salt water beaches before dawn." Al shot a curious look at Scorpius, who blushed again. Oh god that blush. "I read a lot." Scorpius said with a small smile.
Albus lifted his hand to his mouth and began to gnaw on his thumb nail. He realized just how ironic it was that he wanted to jump a Malfoy just as his father had wanted to, but Al assumed that if Harry had jumped Scorpius's father, it would be with a wand in hand, not a raging libido.
Scorpius wrinkled his nose, batting Albus's hand away from his mouth. "Merlin, Albus." Scorpius rolled his eyes. "You simply CANNOT be a nail biter."
Albus dropped his hand to his lap, laughing quietly.
"And why's that, Mr. I'mPerfectat-"
"Albus, what are you hiding from?"
The smile almost fell from his mouth, but Albus caught it before he thought Scorpius noticed. "You're quite talented at deciding how people feel, Scorpius." Al joked, attempting to conceal the panic that had arisen within him.
"Albus, I won't hurt you." Scorpius spoke, and Albus thought that turning his own words against him wasn't very fair.
Albus remained silent.
"Albus." Scorpius repeated. Al didn't reply until he saw Scorpius open his mouth again.
"There is something wrong with me." Albus replied reluctantly.
Scorpius looked contemplative. "How is something wrong with you, Albus?"
Albus picked at a loose string on the edge of his sleeve. He breathed deeply. "I don't- I just, It's really not normal to- can you imagine the things they'd probably say, and it, and I've tried to stop but- everyone is going to be disgusted and-"
Scorpius sighed. "Albus. Please speak a sentence that I can understand."
Al looked terrified. He knew he had successfully backed himself into a confession that he couldn't talk his way out of.
"I think I..." Albus's breathing wavered. "I think I'm gay." Albus whispered the last word like he was only just coming to grips with it himself. The Gryffindor concentrated on the whirl of smoke he could see climbing over the hills from Hagrid's hut.
"I don't even know what I'm going to do. They're going to..." Al glanced at Scorpius, who was biting his lip and still holding Albus's eyes.
Albus trailed off. The Potter's tongue darted out to wet his pink lips. Scorpius's eyes followed the movement. Albus felt an unexpected blush spread across his freckled cheeks. Scorpius's expression; his eyes; they had changed in a way that Al was almost scared of.
"Sc...Scorpius?" Albus said, his heart beginning to beat faster. He tried to calm it.
Scorpius raised his hand reluctantly, then wavered, holding it in the air for a few moments. Albus looked at the hand-long, nimble fingers-and then back at Scorpius.
This seemed to give Scorpius confidence, because he moved his hand with more assurance now. It swept through the air and rested on Albus's cheek. Al felt his eyes flutter closed subconsciously, becoming increasingly aware of their close proximity. Scorpius moved his face towards Al's. He feebly lay his forehead against the other boy's, tilting his head downward. Their noses brushed and Albus felt the mixture of his and Scorpius's hot breath in the space between their mouths. Al heard a whimper and almost died at the realization that it had come from his own mouth.
Scorpius moved his head slightly and brushed his lips over Al's lightly. Albus could swear his breathing stopped entirely.
Scorpius pressed his lips against Al's more firmly, cupping the other boy's cheek softly. He moved his lips against Albus's and the Gryffindor decided that he was definitely gay because non-gay blokes don't enjoy kissing other ones.
Albus pulled back. "Yeah, I'm definitely ga-" Scorpius giggled-giggled!- and pulled Albus's lips against his again.
Al pulled Scorpius flush against him, which illicited the cutest yelp from the Slytherin that Al could feel in his groin. He rested his hand on Scorpius' shoulder lightly and applied more pressure to the other's lips. Al felt the Malfoy lightly bite his lower lip and fought a gasp. This felt very good, and The water felt good, and Scorpius felt good, and all that Al could think about was how unbelievably good everything felt. Albus felt Scorpius reach up and slip his glasses from his pointed nose and to the grass below but that was the most fleeting of thoughts, because Scorpius's thumb, which had been resting on Al's hip, brushed over a stripe of skin between his trousers and his soaking button down and Albus had to work to keep himself from falling headfirst into the Black Lake.
The boys' mouths moved across each other's passionately, memorizing and mapping the feel of the other's lips. Al's tongue danced lightly across the seam of Scorpius's mouth and the Slytherin opened his lips graciously. Al slipped his tongue into Scorpius's mouth, exploring every available surface that he could find. Scorpius tasted like tea and treacle tart and Al wondered how a person's mouth could taste like books. Al decided when Scorpius's tongue tangled with his own that he would read more.
Al moved his grip from the Malfoy's shoulder to his neck, entwining threads of his fine, soft hair between his fingers.
Albus withdrew and rested his head on Scorpius' shoulder, breathing heavily He nuzzled his face against the boy's hair sofuckingsoft and felt a soft nibble on his ear, and kisses down his collarbone and then Scorpius was sucking on his neck and Albus decided if liking blokes felt as good as this then maybe he could deal with it. His breath was coming fast and hard and he rose his head to speak to Scorpius.
"Scorpius, I..."
The blond moved forward and kissed Albus chastely, once and then twice, which succeeded in silencing the boy. Scorpius rested his hand on the other boy's face again, and Al felt a finger trace his lips, then sit on his cheekbone.
"Silence helps sometimes. With things." Scorpius teased, circling Albus's ear with his pointer finger. Albus scoffed, taking Scorpius's mouth in his again.
A/N: *Jazzhands* How was it? Did you like it?
I enjoyed writing this greatly. I also enjoy having uncountable personalities in each of my stories for the main characters, eh? :)
I'll take requests for nearly any pairing! :3
This took FOREVER to edit. Seriously, like three months. ;3 Hope it was good enough for you guys!
3/29/13: I edited again! I hope you guys enjoy the changes.
Review, please? Thanks!
Thanks for reading!
Chloe.