A/N: Here is the Albus Severus/Scorpius fanfiction, as promised!
Disclaimer: The characters and universe in this fanfiction all belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.
Wide green eyes bore into the back of Scorpius Malfoy's head as Albus Potter followed his best friend out of the Hogwart's library; his fingers clenched the books he had only just checked out tightly as the two Slytherins trailed down the fourth floor corridors, catching the stair case to the fifth.
"I can't believe she wouldn't allow me to check out the books I needed," The Malfoy complained, "Thank Merlin you were there to save my tail."
"I'm alwaysthe one who 'saves your tail'," The black haired boy reminded his friend with a slight roll of his eyes, "Maybe if you actually returned your books on time you wouldn't have been banned from checking any more out. You know, for someone who dislikes studying so much, you sure seem to like your books."
"I read for pleasure," Scorpius replied, "I don't need books for studying unless the Professor wants us to research something new, it's all up here." He explained to Albus, pointing towards his head.
"Not all of us can have such a good memory..." The Potter mumbled under his breath. He was very much used to watching Scorpius ace all his tests and O.W.L.s without even opening his notes or a book, whereas Albus struggled to remember the material, often spending his nights studying into the early hours of the morning and trying his best to remember material. He had come to realize his grades would never surpass Rose or Scorpius, who were always competing for the top grade in the classes he shared with them, and though he would never be willing to admit it to his smug friend; he was very envious of his ability.
"You're still worried about the test tomorrow, aren't you?" Scorpius asked, turning his head around to raise an eyebrow at the Potter.
"N-No..." Albus answered quickly, stepping past the Malfoy and onto the sixth floor stair case. From the look his friend gave him he was sure he knew Al was lying.
"If it would make you feel any better I'll sit with you while you study tonight." The blonde offered, "To be honest I fell asleep in class a few days back... It was a late night for me, so I need to borrow your notes anyways."
Albus rolled his eyes, "You were out with a girl again, weren't you?" He asked in annoyance. He always had gotten quite jealous when Scorpius sneaked off with what seemed to be a different girl every week, but he simply figured it was simply because... Well, the young Potter had never had a girlfriend before.
Scorpius flashed Al his well known grin and nodded, "Kayleigh Smith... She's really not the girl she comes off as in class, you know."
"Spare me the details of your sex life, Scorp," Albus groaned, running a hand through his untidy jet black hair, "Anyways, I promised Lily I'd meet her by the Gryffindor common Room... She wanted to show me something, apparently it's important."
"I was wondering why we were headed this way," Scorpius replied, stopping just before Al jumped onto the last staircase. "... I'm coming with you," he decided, striding up to stand next to his friend before the staircases begin to shift.
"I'm sure it's not as important as Lily claims it is," He told his peer, "But fine, as long as you don't mind the possibility of seeing Rose while we're there."
"I'm not the one who has a problem!" Scorpius assured Al, referring to Rose's distaste towards the blonde Slytherin.
"You're both always going at it though," the Potter pointed out, stepping off of the staircase as it arrived at its destination.
"I just do it because she's so easily worked up," his friend admitted, following him onto the seventh floor.
"Hello Albus!" A soft voice called, as Albus Potter's younger sister came rushing towards the two inseparable friends, her long red hair seemed to flow in a trail behind her as she ran. "You made it! And hello to Scorpius too!" She greeted, her honey eyes widening at the sight of Albus' best friend, "I should have known that you'd tag along!"
"Hope it's not too much of a bother!" Scorpius replied, his lips twitching into that cheeky smirk Al disliked so much. ... Or maybe he actually disliked the thought of him liking Scorpius' smirk and the way it seemed to cause his heart to jump.
Ah! No! He couldn't think that way; this was his best mate after all!
"He's like a lost dog, I swear. I couldn't shake him off my leg if I tried," Al simply said, flashing a smirk that challenged Scorpius', much to his own surprise. What was with him lately?
"Not that you mind, git!" The Slytherin teased straight back at Albus, nodding towards the Fat Lady, "We'd better hurry before a Professor spots us; I'm sure Rose will threaten to say something as it is!"
Lily simply nodded and leaned in close to the Fat Lady to whisper, "Lux et tenebra."
The portrait creaked open, but not before shouting at the red haired girl, "Slytherins in my common room AGAIN? You're a trouble maker, Lily Potter!"
The trio stumbled into the room which was draped in gold and red furniture. Albus almost tumbled over a foot stool, causing him to receive an odd look from Olivia Longbottom.
"What are you blokes doing in here?" Hayden Baddock asked, his lips twitching into a grin as he strode over to the three.
"Can't a man visit his best mate's sister?" Scorpius replied, fully knowing that Hayden didn't give a damn they were here at all.
"Well, it kind of ruins the moment I planned on having with Lily here," The brunette boy answered, dropping his arm around Lily's shoulders which caused her to flush a colour that could rival her hair's own. The sight of the pair caused Albus to gag a little; Hayden was bad-mannered and greasy, he had no idea what his sister would see in a boy like that. He would rather she dated someone like Lorcan Lovegood or his twin brother, Lysander. Al could never tell them apart anyways, but they were okay at least, besides the occasional comment about nargles, that is.
"Well you can save it for some other time, Baddock, I need my sister here..." He grabbed a hold of Lily's arm and pulled her away from Hayden, quickly directing her away from the brunet, leaving him with a confused look on his face.
"Aw c'mon Al, he doesn't know any better." Said Scorpius, attempting to maintain the chuckle Albus knew was rising in his throat. Sometimes Scorpius could be such a bastard.
"Why the hell do you date him, Lil?" The Potter asked his younger sister, ignoring his best friend's comments, "He's such a bloody brute."
"Albus!" Lily gasped slightly, lowering her voice so Hayden wouldn't hear, "Don't talk about him like that. Besides, I still have something to show you. Wait here for me, okay?"
Albus rolled his eyes in annoyance but nodded anyways, watching as Lily smiled in relief and rushed up the girl's dormitory's stairway.
It was only moments afterwards that Lily returned with a large tablet in her hands. It was written in ancient runes, a class that Albus had always done very well in. It was unlike any of those he had seen in his classes before; there was something different to it, but Al couldn't quite put his finger on just what that was.
"I want you to read this for me," said Lily.
"What in Merlin's name is that thing?" Scorpius had always been more vocal with his opinions; it was his questioning that actually seemed to break Albus' concentration on the ancient tablet.
"Lily... Where did you find this?" The Potter questioned his sister. It seemed rather odd that she, out of all people, would be the one who discovered something so rare. It wasn't that Albus thought his sister was incapable or anything, it just seemed... So random.
"When we went to Diagon Alley before school started! I thought I could surprise you because I've been studying more, but I couldn't for the life of me understand what it means. It's been bugging me ever since... I suppose I thought you might like to try and decode it!" His sister explained, attempting to hand Albus the tablet. He didn't bother to lift his hands to accept it, instead his eyebrows knitted together in confusion.
"There's not a shop in Diagon Alley that would sell something like this, Lily. Trust me; I would know."
"I know..." The redhead sighed and set the ancient rock onto the coffee table next to her, "I kind of... Bought it from a street peddler."
"A street peddler?" Albus repeated, his green eyes widening slightly at this news, "Don't you remember what mum had to say about them? She said they were all over the place during and after the Second Wizard War and that whatever they sell you is a load of rubbish! How much did you spend on this?"
"I didn't spend anything!" Lily replied, her lips twitching into a frown. "The man said that I could have it. He said that he could never sell it anyways..."
"I'm sorry if I sound strict, Lily, it's just rather odd... That's all."
"Well, there's no harm in finding what it means, mate!" Scorpius piped in, reminding Albus that the pair needed to head back to the Slytherin Dungeons soon before someone who did mind them being there discovered them.
"I suppose I could take it back with me and go through a few books in the library, if you're that curious, Lily."
"That would be fantastic!" Lily chimed, "Maybe you could even ask Professor Faolan about it? I'm sure he might know the proper book to find the information we need!"
"I'll ask him after class tomorrow." Albus promised, leaning over to pick up the tablet from the coffee table. "In the mean time you should get some sleep, Lily. Scorpius and I need to head out now if we want to be back in time for the curfew."
With that said, Albus was ready to head out the door. Before he left his sister pulled him into a tight hug and said, "Thank you Al! I really do appreciate it."
After they had said their goodbyes they climbed out of the portrait's exit. Albus couldn't help but notice the Fat Lady seemed to give him a stern look of disapproval just as he caught a staircase that was headed to the next level of the Hogwart's castle. He and Scorpius stayed silent for a moment or so. It was something the Potter had always hated; absolute silence. It was especially rare around his best friend, since Scorpius always seemed to have something to say, but lately it hadn't been that way. The Potter couldn't help but feel something was on Scorpius' mind that he didn't want to discuss. Though he would never admit it out loud, it angered the Slytherin slightly; couldn't they tell each other everything?
And then a small voice in the back of his head reminded him that he was being a hypocrite.
No! That wasn't true, because Albus wasn't hiding anything from Scorpius. It was just a coincidence that every time Albus spotted him flirting with a girl his heart would course with pure jealousy.
No no no! That wasn't jealousy; it was concern. Yes, concern. The blonde had far too many girlfriends and that couldn't be healthy for his future relationships, right?
Albus seemed to continue this argument with himself for a while since he didn't seem to notice they were already on the second floor until Scorpius stopped in his tracks, his grey eyes wondering over to the Potter's face, "Albus?" He asked in a soft tone that actually surprised his friend; he had never heard him speak like that before. What was that tremble in his voice? Was he nervous? Of what, though?
"Hm?" Albus mumbled in reply, "What is it?"
Suddenly, Scorpius drew himself closer to Albus; he could actually feel the warmth of his breath upon his cheek. Wide green eyes met questioning grey orbs; they seemed to speak the words the both of them didn't dare to say. The thin fingers of his friend brushed a few of the strands of his jet black hair from his face. For a moment, Albus swore he saw Scorpius ready to lean in, but instead he simply moved away, leaving the Slytherin feeling more confused than ever.
"You had... Something in your hair," Scorpius said after a moment of silence, though there was untruthfulness in his voice. Perhaps he had indeed intended on filling that space between the two friends. He had left Albus in a daze, his face still flushed from what had almost happened. The Malfoy seemed to ignore this as he continued his journey down the stairway to the main floor, and Al finally begun trailing slowly behind him once more.
They didn't speak a word other than the Slytherin password. Once they were back into the Slytherin common room the blonde placed his novels onto the coffee table and Albus carefully set the tablet next to him. Finally Scorpius turned to face his friend and broke the lingering silence, "Do you really think you can decode that thing?"
It was almost as though the Malfoy hadn't almost kissed the Potter; he seemed to have collected himself and was acting normal again, where as Albus was still flushed. It sort of annoyed Albus.
"It seems quite advanced, so it might take a while."
"Sorry, I can't help; I've never taken the course."
Ah, yes, that was correct. Perhaps that was why Albus took such pride in knowing so much about the topic; because it was something he actually knew more about than Scorpius did. Though he was certain if his friend decided to take the course he could have easily been able to help Albus.
"It's okay; I need a small side project to distract me anyways... I've got too much on my mind lately."
The blonde wrinkled his nose and the sight of him doing so actually made Albus chuckle. He knew that Scorpius wouldn't understand Albus' need to research school-like topics outside of the classroom; he would much rather read one of his novels or play Quidditch.
"Sometimes, I don't understand you."
"I guess it's kind of like what you said about your books; reading for pleasure... I'm studying for pleasure."
"That's not the same at all!" Scorpius shook his head and grinned widely, "Anyways, I'm going to head to bed. G'night Al."
"Good night, Scorp." Although the Potter enjoyed his friend's company, he didn't entirely mind him leaving. He seemed rather distracted whenever his friend was around these days anyways.
He waited until he saw Scorpius slide into the 6th year's dormitory before snatching the tablet back from where he had placed in on the coffee table. He pushed his glasses back into place before his eyes scanned over the ancient text again. He opened his text book to look for any sort of clue, but sadly was unable to find one. He reread it several times, hoping that something would click, but the answer was more advanced than his own knowledge. Of course, he had expected that. He would have to pay a visit to the library after all, it seemed. It was only a matter of looking for the right book after that, right? The answer had to be somewhere in the castle, if not the library.
Before he knew it, Albus had fallen into a slumber with his rune's textbook still in his lap and the tablet seated onto the side table next to him.