Author's Note: [06/28/2012] This chapter has been edited. Some parts of it might have been changed. Thank you all so much for sticking with this story! If you find mistakes, feel free to tell me in a PM or in a review. Thank you and happy reading!
Chapter 2
"One Cannot Excel in Everything"
August 20, 2031
The following two weeks had gone by in a blur for Albus. He spent much of the first few days trying to stay awake. The trip had taken a lot out of him, so it was some time before he was able to adjust his sleep schedule back into an acceptable rhythm. In the meantime, he had taken to wandering the halls of the school at night.
Hugging his robes around himself, he wandered the halls, lost in thought. Had he been in Hogwarts, he would have no doubt carried around a candle to light his way. At Peppertongue, however, the walls turned on dim lights for him automatically.
He had been at the school for almost two weeks, but he still did not feel like a professor. Albus accepted that much of that had to do with the fact that classes would not officially start for another week. Despite that fact, he could not help but see that a part of the problem, if there was one at all, had to do with the attitude of the school. At its core, it was nothing like Hogwarts.
Rutherford's laissez-faire attitude filled every inch of the school. Unlike the other two schools, he learned, Peppertongue did not seem to have a dress code. Zenbazi students wore traditional robes whileKingstonAcademy students wore very sharp uniforms, their blazers always prim, clean, and new. The students of Peppertongue, on the other hand, wore whatever they had. He had spotted some of the students wearing what seemed to be the same kind of sweater his first few days at the school. He had assumed these sweaters to be part of the uniform of the school, but he had later found out they had been gifts from Mrs. Newberry, for the birthdays of her favorite pupils.
Initially, he had assumed that every student at Peppertongue was just a poor orphan, but even that had not proven to be the case. While many of the students seemed to be like Lucas, having no real family outside of the school walls, there were others like Lucas' taller friend, Matthew. The boy dressed nicely and his hair was always brushed neatly out of habit. He obviously came from a well to do family. EvenLoganwore clothing that showed that his family could afford to send him to a richer school. The students seemed to be more laid back around each other than the students of Hogwarts had been. If he had to compare it anything he knew, he would have to say that the whole school felt like the inside of the Slytherin dorms. The students were relaxed and joked with one another. They were all united against a common enemy, so they had few reasons to really form deep seated hatreds against one of their own.
Albus also noticed that without feuding Houses, even the professors seemed to genuinely get along better. There was, of course, good-matured ribbing amongst them that seemed to be common amongst teachers regardless of country, but there were no heated rivalries. They all had their own individual subjects and they were all united in their common goal of teaching their students.
Teachers, Albus realized, could not have House-biases when there were no Houses. They were so laid-back when compared to his idea of the "proper professor" that it had almost caught him by surprise. Even the more traditional teachers, like Mr. Harwood who dressed in well-tailored suits at all times, were quick to laughter and did not bother to be moody or hide how they felt. These professors, too, had a common enemy. It seemed the school, as rag-tag as it might be, was united in its common hatred ofKingstonand Zenbazi.
Albus had feared that he would never be able to fit in with such an open-hearted group of educators. If they had gone to Hogwarts, the lot of them would be sorted into Hufflepuff or Gryffindor, he just knew it. But within a week, he found himself walking through the school grounds in Muggle clothes like the rest of the school population.
That seemed to have been some sort of unspoken initiation because as soon as he dropped suits and robes in favor of comfortable jeans and shirt, more and more students seemed to become curious about him. Albus always seemed to have a gaggle of students around him whenever he left his office. These children might have had a lot of faults, but love of learning was never one of them. Albus could hardly answer the questions as quickly as they were being thrown at him. What was Englandlike? Is Harry Potter the most powerful wizard in the whole world? Is it true that they would be learning about Boggarts? What was his Patronus? What was his favorite flavor of bean?
Albus always did his best to answer any questions the students threw at him, but he couldn't say that he wasn't thankful when Lucas would eventually find him. The other students would dart off in every direction whenever Lucas approached. It wasn't that they were scared of him; they just knew that when Lucas wanted to talk to someone, he wanted the utmost privacy. Most of the time, Lucas would just lead Albus through the school. He spoke at Albus more than to him, but the older man didn't seem to mind. He was trying to learn what sort of person Lucas was, really.
The young man would alternate between incredibly angry and guarded to childishly mischievous. Albus wasn't quite sure of what to make of him. He learned early on that whatRutherfordhad said about the young man had been practically an understatement: whenever Albus attempted to ply his minds for a hint at his true feelings, he met a brick wall long before he got close. The young man really did have a talent for Occlumency. It was only in the school's vast basement levels that he seemed to relax.
Young Albus was convinced that Peppertongue's basements were an answer to Hogwarts' dungeons. "This whole place is just a converted insane asylum," Lucas had said to him as he led him through a hall that had been left in disrepair. The light flickered and there was something wet on the walls and floors. Albus could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stick up. "There are ghosts here, too, but they aren't that great at conversation."
"I suppose that makes sense. This was an insane asylum."
Lucas looked over at him at that comment, his face unreadable for a moment before he looked back ahead. "Most of the people who were sent here weren't insane, you know. Most of the time, they just pissed off the wrong people. The doctors here saw them as free test subjects and rarely, if ever, recommended any of them for release. Many can't talk even if they want to because they slit their own throats," he explained, nonchalantly. Running over to an upturned office chair, he smirked. Turning it upright, he sat down on it. "Push me, Mr. Potter."
Smiling weakly, Albus approached Lucas and, grabbing the back of the chair, he pushed the young man through the dark hallway. "This... sounds like a terrible place," he said, hearing distant sobbing as it turned to screams of agony. "Aren't you afraid of ghosts, Lucas?"
"Why? They can't do anything to me. It's obvious, though, they want an audience. I think it puts their souls at ease, even if it's just a little bit," he said softly, reaching out to grab a door frame as they passed it, indicating they were to go into the room.
Albus looked out in horror. Inside, a young woman, probably no older than Lucas, was tied down to a chair, gagged and bound. She was sobbing and screaming as she thrashed violently. Several darkened figures approached her, the room soon filling with an ominous drilling sound. Albus just barely stifled the sound of a gasp as he heard drill meet flesh. The woman's screams suddenly amplified before becoming turning into strangled gargling as the figures pushed the drill deeper into the left side of her head. Almost as soon as it began, it was over, all of the figures suddenly disappearing into white mist; the woman's screaming faded into nothing.
"Lucas..." Albus gasped out, feeling faint. "Why do you... why do you watch this? That's horrible!" Albus' knees finally failed him as he sank to the dirty floor. He had known a ghost when he was back in Hogwarts, but he had been nothing like that young girl. Lucas said nothing for several long moments before he spun around to face Albus. Reaching out, he pet the top of Albus's head as if comforting a child.
"Did you know that that woman was a squib? She didn't even know. No one did. Back then, documentation of squibs just wasn't that good here," he said softly, almost soothingly as he continued to stroke Albus' dark hair. "The thing that she did that got her sent here, the thing that made her so dangerous to other people, was that she could see Thestrals. Her family thought she was crazy and got tired of taking care of her so they sent her here. The doctors here thought that she was seeing things because of pressure getting built up in her brain," he muttered, tapping the side of his head with his fingers, "and they wondered if they could relieve that pressure. They pushed the drill in too deep. Every day, at the same time, she dies again and again."
When Albus looked up at him, worry clear on his face, Lucas withdrew his hand, carefully resting it on his lap. He looked down at Albus kneeling at his feet, and for a moment Albus couldn't see a child anymore. "She screams less when she knows I'm here watching it, even if I can't do anything to save her."
With that, Lucas dragged himself out of the room, heading back down the hall. Albus took a minute to compose himself before returning to the youth's side, pushing him down the hall once more.
They must have spent three hours going from room to room, watching people die. Albus felt increasingly ill, but Lucas' somber expression never once changed. Albus was thankful when Lucas finally led him out of the basements, his face white as a sheet.
Once the basement doors closed behind him, Lucas spun around and looked up at Albus with a bright smile. "Well, you passed! You're the first teacher that's ever lasted the whole trip! The ghosts will definitely be nice to you now. Anyway, I better go. I promisedLoganthat I'd help him with something for Potions. See ya later, Mr. Potter!" With that, Lucas was gone down the hall.
Albus promptly went to the infirmary and vomited into the sink before he could even explain to Huerta what had happened. Huerta, on the other hand, didn't seem too shocked. A young female ghost had come by hours earlier, he explained, and sweetly informed him that Albus would probably be by at some point.
It had taken nearly an hour for Huerta's many remedies to finally settle Albus' stomach. "There's nothing physically wrong with you," Huerta had said, "it's all mental. Stop thinking so much." Albus swore to himself in that moment that he would never go down to the basements ever again.
Yet, the next day, he found himself wandering the basement halls, Lucas beside him.
Every time after, they only went to a few of the rooms and the ghosts who were done dying chatted with them if they could. Most were friendly, others completely insane (Albus couldn't tell if they were insane before becoming ghosts or if it was a later development, but he thought it too rude to ask).
Lucas walked this time, not feeling like being pushed around. He was amused that Albus had actually been willing to push him around for hours that first time and said so. It seemed the other teachers he brought down there either didn't understand his command or willfully ignored him.
Albus thanked him, but he wasn't sure how he felt about the fact that he had "obeyed commands remarkably well". Albus had no doubt James would have loved to meet Lucas.
September 5, 2031
"You want me to-to what?"
Rutherfordjust gave Albus a nervous smile as he wiped at his forehead. "Well, you see, school will be starting up after the weekend and the students still need to go get their supplies from Dragons Camp. I was hoping you wouldn't mind taking a group of students down there today?"
Albus smiled a bit as he nodded. "Oh, of course! I'm sorry, it's just it took me by surprise a little bit. Do you not have a place like Diagon Alley here?"
"Oh, there are many, many places like that,"Rutherfordassured, "But since many of the students stay here for the summer, they aren't able to make the trip to other shopping districts. Besides, things are just cheaper in Dragons Camp. I'll go get a group of students ready to go then. They'll meet you at the front gates after you're done with breakfast. Thank you again, Albus!"Rutherfordsaid with a bright smile, tucking his handkerchief away as he rushed off before Albus could change his mind.
Albus ate breakfast rather quickly that morning. He was nervous, though he wasn't quite sure why. He had met pretty much every student on campus and they were all very good children, if a little withdrawn. He figured he was just nervous since this would be his first trip into Dragons Camp and he wasn't sure want to expect.
Tossing back his cold mug of pumpkin juice, he left the confines of the building. He headed over to the main gates where a group of students were loitering about, waiting for him. He was secretly thankful that they were students he had had a chance to meet already. Upon a second look, he realized that his group was Peppertongue's entire first string Quidditch team.
Madison Nakamura was a tall girl, in her seventh year, her straight black hair pulled back away from her slender, almost bony face. She was the team's Keeper and captain. She had a scar that ran from just under her left eye, down past her delicate jaw line. She had proudly told Albus a week earlier that it was the scar from the first time a Bludger had smashed into her face and her Beaters at the time had been too slow to protect her. She could have had Dr. Huerta remove the scar easily, but she had requested he not touch it. It served a reminder to her team to always remain vigilant.
Percival Gram, a third year, was almost as short as Lucas. He had his shirt off and draped over one of his shoulders to combat the heat. Albus could see despite his short size, Percival's body was well toned, his skin darkly tanned from hours out in the sun. His hair was as black asMadison's, but his was shaggy and unkempt and kept falling into his face. The boy actually reminded him of pictures he had seen of his father's god father, Sirius Black. Percival, Albus noted, was also relatively light on his feet, as the young man hopped off brick wall and easily landed on his feet. Albus figured that came in handy considering he was one of the team's three chasers. The other two chasers were a pair of red headed twins, Angie and Mona Reinhardt, both fifth years. Albus had felt a small pang in his heart when he had first met the girls: they reminded him a little of his uncles George and Fred. He had never met his uncle Fred, who had died before he was even born, but he always felt like he had through stories that his family would tell him. The girls were very chatty and took being twins in stride. It was incredibly hard to tell the two apart as they easily exchanged personalities at will if it would get a laugh. It turned out that even their parents had had a sense of humor: their full names were Angela and Demona, and the girls would play up their namesakes.
Matthew and Logan, the team's Beaters, were standing on either side of Lucas, Peppertongue's star Seeker, as they normally did. Albus felt that their personalities fit their team positions rather well. During practice, Lucas trusted them completely to keep Bludgers at bay and outside of games; they flanked him like body guards. Albus thought the three of them made a great team, so he was very sad to hear that Matthew and Logan were both sixth years. It meant that there would come a time when Lucas, still a fourth year, would have to go through school without his two friends. If the idea bothered Lucas, he didn't let it show on his face.
Granted, at the moment, Albus couldn't read anything on the young man's face. While the other students wore Muggle summer clothing, most wearing sandals, Lucas looked like he was dressed for winter. He was wearing a thick jacket and long pants. He even wore mittens, scarf, a hat and black sunglasses. If it was not for the familiar tuft of white blond hair sticking out under his knitted cap, and his haughty stance, Albus would not have even recognized him.
Walking over to him, Albus reached out, gently taking off the sunglasses. "... Any particular reason you have decided to go to Dragons Camp incognito, Mr. Rutherford?"
Lucas just huffed at him. "Those assholes are going to be there." Even after knowing Lucas and his mannerisms for several weeks, Albus could not help but flinch whenever the young man swore. He could hear his grandmother's voice screeching in his ear to mind his language. He never bothered to try and tell Lucas anything though. Something about the determined look on the young man's face told him his words would have been lost anyway.
Matthew was quick to jump in and explain, adjusting his glasses a bit. He could tell that Lucas' brash nature threw people off sometimes. "He means the students of Zenbazi and Kingston, sir. Our schools really, really, do not get along." Albus just nodded, understanding.
"I see. Believe me; I understand a thing or two about rivalries. But really, Lucas, there is no need for all...this," he motioned at the young man's disguise. "For one, you will die of heat exhaustion. Now, go and change into something proper, please. We will be waiting right here."
Shoulders slumping, Lucas made his way back into the school to go get changed. He returned a few minutes later in his normal outfit of worn jeans and loose fitting shirt. This one had a faded image of a cat on the front. Albus could see his wand tucked into his back pocket. "Fine, let's get this freaking trip over with. But I swear, Mr. Potter, if those assholes say anything to me, I'm going to punch them right in their fucking faces," Lucas sneered, walking out through the front gates, the rest of the Quidditch team following after him. Albus just rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he followed after his charges.
He honestly hoped that it would be an uneventful day. Albus was well versed in breaking up wizard duels, but an old fashioned fist fight? He suddenly wished he had taken James up on his offer to learn how to brawl back when he was just a third year at Hogwarts.
Dragons Camp was an amazing place, Albus declared to himself. There were many restaurants and shops, but also residential villages scattered around. Everything was decorated in black and , in his normal sly manner, explained to Albus that those were the colors of Zenbazi. The school had won the games the year before and as a result, all of Dragons Camp had been charmed to proudly display their colors. Albus had never seen a whole town so uniformly decorated before and he thought it gave Dragons Camp a certain beauty.
His job of keeping an eye on his charges had turned out to be a relatively easy task. Being a close knit Quidditch team, he noticed that they moved as a unit for the most part. If anyone was likely to deviate from the group and wander about, it was Lucas. It was simply part of his persona.
The first shop that they had gone into was Tanja's Sporting Goods. The reason that Albus had been assigned the whole Quidditch team was that they had to get new equipment for the team anyway. While the students gathered new brooms, Bludgers and Quaffles, Maddison went to go speak with Madam Tanja herself. When Albus noticed that his students were walking out of the shop without paying, Maddison just laughed and explained to him how things worked with the students of Peppertongue.
Since the school was paid for and run mostly by the State, they had talked the shops of Dragons Camp into forming something of a deal. The students would be allowed to get whatever they needed in terms of school supplies and the shop keepers could charge the school instead of the students. If the students had parents or guardians who had been able to pay for tuition, then that tuition would go towards their supply expenses. Every Peppertongue student carried around an identification card upon with they had to cast a charm. If the wand matched the ID card, it would turn green, meaning that the student was indeed who they said they were. Otherwise it would turn red. It was also a convenient way for pubs and stores to make sure students were as old as they said they were and weren't using tricks. There were some things that older students were allowed to buy that younger students weren't, she explained. Albus thought that the cards was certainly a smart move, remembering how often students in Slytherin had tried to get firewhiskey back when he was in school. If they had had been carded, he doubted they could have bluffed their way into the pubs.
Once their Quidditch equipment was bought, the students went into the most popular bookshop in town, Barrow's Books. Albus' eyes widened at that the store before him. The three story building was bigger than even the ones he had been to in Diagon Alley. Maddison spoke to the kindly store owner as soon as they got inside, and they were allowed to leave their things behind the counter to make shopping for books easier. With that, the team broke off, going to get books for their specific years.
No longer having a single group to take care of, Albus wandered as well. He found himself apologizing constantly as he tried to make his way through the crowded shop. There were many witches and wizards around, most of them taken aback by his English accent, many asking where he was from. Despite his somewhat shy nature, Albus was happy to talk to these strangers.
Back inEurope, he could hardly go anywhere without people recognizing him and asking him about his famous mother and father. Here, though, people stopped him only because they saw him as someone new to town. He had cautiously told them that he was the new Defense professor at Peppertongue, not sure how others would react. Luckily, it seemed that, despite the sorts of homes his students had come from, their reputations were mostly respectable.
Most people Albus spoke with had a positive attitude towards his school. They called him noble for working with such students. That comment did not sit well with him, but he let it slide. They said they hoped he did not turn out like the last Defense teacher. He had wanted to question them about just what they meant by that, but they would leave before he had summoned the courage to do so.
When he was finally alone, he looked through the shelves, amazed as the wide variety of books that were available. Taking his glasses out of their case from his pocket, he slipped them on, reading through a book on Dueling theory.
Before Albus even realized it, he was soon maneuvering through the thin walkways in between the book shelves with a stack of books so high up he could hardly see what was in front of him. Not that he was looking in front of him anyway, his eyes zooming through the stacks of books. He had been lost in search and had not even realized how little he was paying attention to his surroundings until he ran into a group of people.
Suddenly, he found himself on the ground, the books that had been in his arms clattering around him. One rather heavy tome about the history of the Patronus charm had fallen on top of his head, knocking his glasses askew. Embarrassed, Albus adjusted his glasses and was in the middle of an apology when he suddenly felt large hands grab him by the collar of his shirt, lifting him clear off the ground and slamming him into the nearest book shelf.
"So, it's a Peppertongue reject," the man snarled out, his frightening face an inch or two away from Albus'. The boy (if Albus could honestly call him that), and his gargantuan friends all wore traditional robes, the Zenbazi emblem blazing on the front of their clothes. They were just students, but that was hardly any consolation to Albus as he looked up at the boy who was holding him easily several inches off the ground. When did students get so huge? Albus hardly claimed to be the largest man in the world, but it was unfair that a mere student could lift him up so easily. He was a professor! It really was rather embarrassing.
Before Albus could properly apologize, the boy continued. "I'm sick and tired of you freaks walking around like you own the place. I've never seen you around before, so allow us to teach you how things work around here," he spat out before promptly drawing his fist back. Albus had assumed that if a fight occurred, he would have been the one to break it up. He had never guessed he would have been in it. Seeing the boy draw his fist back, Albus closed his eyes and braced himself, trying to will himself to melt in with the books.
The punch, however, never came. Instead, a hand grabbed him by his upper arm and pulled him away from the book shelf. Realizing he had been rescued, Albus felt like someone had cast a jelly legs hex on him as the adrenaline disappeared. He was thankful that his savior was holding onto him tightly because he was sure he would crumble otherwise. Fisticuffs were simply not something that happened in polite society.
That feeling of thankfulness did not last long, however, as a familiar voice filled his ears, causing his eyes to widen with dread. It was a voice he never thought he would hear again. "Just what did I tell you about picking fights, Collins? Detentions for the lot of you. Now go," the voice bellow authoritatively. Albus lifted his head up enough to watch as the group of monstrous youths turned on their heels obediently to walk away.
"Yes, Professor Malfoy," they had muttered as they left.
There was silence between the two men as they both watched the boys shuffle off. Suddenly, Albus heard the other man speak, able to feel his whole face reddening, unable to look up at the man who had just saved him from getting punched. "Sorry about that. They are just antsy with school starting soon. Are you alright?"
Albus kept his head turned down for as long as he could before he looked up at his ex-housemate with a weak smile. "... Hello Scorpius. It's...it's nice to see you again. How are your parents?"
Now, it was Scorpius's turn to fall into stunned silence. The weakling Peppertongue student he had mercifully saved from the hands of his own pupils had turned out to be none other than the youngest son of the Wizarding World's Golden Boy. "You have got to be joking," was all he could say before he began to laugh.
If it were possible, Albus' face just grew even hotter as he tried to make himself as small as possible, hoping he would just disappear. He felt cornered and began to look over Scorpius's should so a convenient exit.
When Malfoy realized that the man in front of him really was none other than Albus Severus Potter, he had insisted on catching up with him. He acted as if the last few years never happened. Before Albus had a chance to protest, Scorpius had pulled out his wand and charmed the books off the group and into the air before he took them over to the counter, paying for them. All Albus could do was follow behind him mutely, suddenly feeling incredibly childish. Scorpius always had a way of making Albus feel like a naive child.
Scorpius slipped the bags of books into Albus' hands before he led him up the stairs to the cafe on the third floor. If Scorpius was saying anything while they walked, Albus was hardly paying attention. The whole situation felt like some sort of horrible joke. He had leftEuropein relative secrecy, only to bump into Scorpius of all people. It just didn't seem fair.
Scorpius bought tea for the two of them and Albus could not muster up the strength needed to tell him he was an adult with his own money and he could pay for himself. It was amazing how, after all the years that had passed, after all that had happened between the two of them, they fell so easily back into old habits.
Even back in Hogwarts, whenever they went out, Scorpius went out of his way to get things for Albus. James had said that he was just doing it to show off that, despite the war, Malfoys still had money to burn. James had told Albus he should be insulted and tell Malfoy to sod off. Instead, Albus would just accept everything Scorpius would get for him and thank him quietly. It was the sort of student Albus had been and it seemed it was the sort of professor he had become.
"Thank you, Scorpius," Albus muttered as he rotated his warm cup of tea in his hands. He still hadn't made eye contact with the blond who sat across from him, no doubt studying him intensely.
"What exactly are you doing here, Potter?" Scorpius finally asked. Albus felt himself physically tense. Potter. Scorpius had called him 'Potter'. He knew it was his name, but it hurt a little. There was a time when Scorpius used to call him from his first name. Now, he was 'Potter', just like his brother and sister.
Albus was not sure how to respond to his question. There was so much he wanted to tell him, but he knew if he said too much it would annoy Scorpius. He hated long winded stories and Albus, if nothing else, could get a little long winded. He was in serious danger of turning into his generation's Professor Binns. Even his own father had told him that much. No, he would have to be short, sweet, and to the point. He lifted his head up just enough to make fleeting eye-contact. "I'm a teacher."
Scorpius looked unamused, rolling his eyes. "Really? I had no idea." Damn it. That had been entirely the wrong thing to say, it seemed. "Don't be curt with me, Potter. I did save your sorry hide, remember," he said, slender fingers beginning to tap on the oak table.
Albus sighed in resignation, his eyes following Scorpius' tapping fingers. Reaching up, he took off his reading glasses and set them down on the table. "Well, I recently got a job offer to teach Defense against the Dark Arts at Peppertongue. It seemed more suitable to my skills than an office position. I...I...if I hadn't picked Peppertongue, I would be working for the Ministry of Magic right now." Scorpius nodded his head thoughtfully, sipping at his tea. At the very least, Albus seemed to have answered his question acceptably this time. Albus dared to take a drink of his own tea. "Do you come here often?" he asked suddenly. Ugh. Embarrassment hit him as soon as the words had rushed from between his traitorous lips.
Scorpius, on the other hand, just smiled, running long fingers through his white blond tendrils, tucking locks of hair behind his ear. "Despite the fact that I have only been here less than a week," Albus could feel his blush spread to his ears," I do come to this particular cafe almost every day. The only way I can enjoy a proper cup of tea in this country is if I do so away from students and teachers."
"I'm not surprised. You have always been like that, haven't you, Scorpius," Albus said softly, starting to feel a little braver. "You never did make much of an effort to hide the fact you found company to be contemptuous."
"You've changed, Potter," Scorpius said quickly, not missing a beat. He didn't look angry. His face was unreadable. He looked like Lucas. Potter wondered if Scorpius was well versed in Occlumency as well. He wanted to ask, but thought better of it.
Curiosity, after all, had killed the cat and Albus had already had his brush with death earlier. Then again, Albus wanted, needed, to know the truth. "Scorpius, why…," he muttered, struggling to find the words, "that letter…," he could feel his chest constricting uncomfortably, "why did you want to stop being my friend?"
"Yes, I figured you would bring that up," Scorpius said, waving dismissively.
What? Was Scorpius seriously going to treat him like that, now? "How can you be so...so blasé about it? You just dropped me via a note by owl. Who does that? I was so-I am so angry with you," Albus blurted out. He did not even bother to look embarrassed. Who cared if he sounded like a jilted lover? He certainly didn't. "Who on earth do you think you are? I don't care if you are a Malfoy. You are a right bastard and I am absolutely disgusted by the very sight of you."
Scorpius smiled. "You're right," he said easily and Albus could feel his rage deflate. "I was a bastard, a git, and a completely insufferable prat."
Albus clenched his jaw, looking down at his tea. "You are not...even going to defend yourself?"
"Why would I? Potter, I really am sorry for having hurt you. At the time I thought it would be better for us both if you and I were no longer friends," Scorpius explained, his voice softening so that only the two of them could hear. "I really was wrong."
"So why didn't you just tell me that? You should have just told me you had made a mistake." His words sounded desperate even to himself, but Albus didn't care. He had been dreaming of this moment for years.
Scorpius reached out to pour Albus a fresh cup of tea. "I wanted to, but my mother sent me a letter."
"What sort of letter?" Albus had spoken to Astoria Malfoy only a handful of times but she had seemed to like him. Had that been a lie?
Scorpius could tell what Albus was contemplating just from the scowl that was forming on Albus's face and he interjected before paranoia properly took hold. "Apparently, a little bird had told her about what became of us," Albus shifted uncomfortably. After Scorpius had broken their friendship, he might have owled his mother to find out if something terrible had happened to Scorpius to change him so. His mother had seemed as startled by the news as he had.
"She was annoyed with me for having broken up our friendship. She might have even said that there were precious few who would put up with all of my eccentricities as well as you had. Oh, how she loved to talk about all you had done and accomplished. I know she meant for me to see my foolishness and appreciate what I had had…but…when I read all you had done without me, well…it was obvious that you did not need my friendship."
Albus looked up at him now, eyes wide, disbelieving what he was hearing. "You're right. I didn't need our friendship," he snapped and Scorpius shrunk back, shoulders slumping. It seemed he was not as distant as he pretended. Albus's rage calmed as he sipped at his tea, "I did not need it… but I had wanted it. I thought you were supposed to be one of the brightest wizards of our generation. You really are a-a-" When Albus could not think of a proper word, he grabbed a handful of sugar cubes and threw them at Scorpius, annoyed. While Malfoy laughed, Albus grabbed several more cubes and put them into his tea, angrily mixing it all together.
Scorpius leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands as he smirked. "I take it that means you forgive me?"
Albus just huffed as he tossed back his cup of tea.
Despite the initial awkwardness, his reunion with Scorpius Malfoy had gone off much better than he had thought. Back in school, Scorpius would often corner him into conversations when he needed to get something off his chest, but Albus would be too flabbergasted to carry a proper conversation. Around Scorpius, Albus felt both awe and fear. Now that he was older, though, Albus was able to better appreciate Scorpius as a conversationalist.
He was actually quite a witty person, though his wit tended to be of the sharp and dark variety.
Since graduating, Albus had met both Scorpius' father and grandfather. Lucius Malfoy had softened a little after the war, Albus was told, but he still walked around with an air of dignity and nobility. Even those who hated him couldn't say that Lucius wasn't the very image of "proper" upbringing.
Draco Malfoy, on the other hand, was much kinder than his father. After the War, he had quickly realized that the ideals he had been raised with were not ones worth fighting for, dying for, or passing onto his son. He had gone out of his way to change the Malfoy image. He donated heavily to the restoration effort and with his position in the Ministry; he even sought to ease tensions between pure blood families and half-bloods. There were some who were still bitter towards Draco Malfoy for who he had been back at Hogwarts, but his efforts to change himself and pure-blood mentality had been so sincere that people were starting to slowly trust him. Even Albus' own father had slowly begun to get onto better terms with Draco, neither of them wanting to continue their school-yard rivalries.
Scorpius had been one of the reasons why people were beginning to soften their anger towards the Malfoys, and Albus knew it. Draco had been very careful about raising Scorpius to be a better man than he had been and it showed. Back at Hogwarts, Scorpius openly bucked against trends set forth by the older pure blood houses. He even heard that during one of the parties the Malfoys threw, Scorpius had openly called several of his grandfather's friends "toxic to our world" because of something they had said about half-bloods. They had demanded that Draco punish his son.
From what Albus was told, they had been completely surprised when Draco asked them to leave the premises before he threw them out. For a Malfoy to act like that against the heads of any pure blood clan, it was big news.
That fact had been one of the reasons why Albus had been so jealous of Scorpius while they went to Hogwarts, and even long after, right up to that very moment.
When Scorpius had been sorted into Slytherin, no one was surprised. When Albus had been placed into Slytherin, people mumbled that if Harry Potter's son could be sorted into that House, maybe it was not as evil as once thought. Albus would never admit it, but that was how he thought things would stay. He was Harry Potter's son. He was different from the other students. People expected him to start revolutions in the hearts of people wherever he went. Albus took for granted that he knew his role at school, so when people suddenly began singing Scorpius' praises instead of his own, he felt jealous.
Even though Scorpius had been placed into Slytherin just as he had, people saw him as a darling. Scorpius was actively trying to change people's minds, they said. He openly defended half-bloods and anyone who was being attacked, they praised. Scorpius didn't care about his own reputation; he would call out any injustice he saw. Surely, people would say, Scorpius had been sorted into the wrong House. He belonged in Gryffindor. Scorpius was the snake with a lion's heart. Even if Albus tried to do good, it always, always, paled in comparison to anything Scorpius did. Albus came from a family of good and just wizards. Doing good was expected from him. Scorpius came from a long line of dark wizards. For him to fight so openly on the side of the light, well, that was a miracle.
It had been around his second year that Albus had decided to simply stop trying to be a hero. How freeing it was, not needing to follow in his father's blessed footsteps. It was in that moment he decided to just live the life of a normal student that he realized that he belonged in Slytherin more than any other house. He was nothing like his brother James who would have rallied against Scorpius until he could prove that once a snake, always a snake. Albus had coolly weighed his options and realized that each time he went up against Scorpius Malfoy, it would be the Malfoy heir who would come out on top. For that reason, Albus had decided to just stop playing the game.
There was no need to be ashamed of not wanting to play a game without a guarantee of victory. It was not cowardice, it was risk assessment. He stopped competing against Scorpius, but the jealousy had not completely disappeared. It was weaker than it had been in school, but it was still there, starting to wake up even as he and Scorpius laughed and told stories over tea, picking their friendship up right where they had left it years ago.
When he was finally ready to leave, Albus thanked Scorpius for everything he had done for him, and for the books. Scorpius held a hand out for Albus. "I really am here every day, around noon for tea. If you have free time, why don't you join me. It would be nice to have someone to complain to." Albus chuckled, shaking his head. His old friend really was a prat sometimes.
With that, Albus descended down the stairs in order to gather his pupils. For years he had mused what he would say to Scorpius Malfoy if he ever met him face-to-face again. He thought of insults, of accusations, of snide remarks, but in the end, Albus had been the very picture of politeness. He had said all of his please-and-thank-yous. His grandmother would be proud of him, even though he himself felt ashamed. He was twenty-five years old already and still held onto school boy jealousies and admirations. Scorpius had gone off and become a renowned potions master while he had remained pathetically average. Despite all that, he could not even bring himself to hate the man he had been fixated on for years. In Scorpius's presence, Albus had deflated and had been so happy to speak with him again, he had forgotten why he should have kept him at a distance. Had he learned nothing? Perhaps he learned nothing from the last few years because his desire to have his friend back out weighed his desire to protect himself from pain. Perhaps he didn't care.
As Albus walked back to Peppertongue, trailing behind his group, Lucas slowed down so he could walk beside him. "So who was that blond? You guys looked like you were having fun talking, so I thought 'old friend', but now that I looked at you... if he's made you upset, I can beat him up if you want?" Albus smiled. How like Lucas to offer to bodily harm Albus's imagined bully. "We've perfected the super stink bomb, you know. Say the word and we'll booby trap his whole office. We have our ways of getting into Zenbazi."
Albus could not help but laugh at himself. He hadn't realized he had been showing his feelings on his face. "No, no, that will not be necessary, Lucas. He is an old friend. I was just reminiscing about our school days, I suppose. Regretting some things I said and did, some things I didn't say or do. You know?"
"No, can't say I do," Lucas said with a shrug. "I'm not old like you." Well then. "Besides, I never regret anything. I say and do whatever I want, whenever I want. If I make a mistake, then I apologize. If they don't accept my apologies, I say "fuck you then, asshole" and move on."
Lucas would say something like that, Albus mused to himself. He was not even surprised by Lucas' words any longer. After all, why should he? He had known the boy long enough by then to know how he felt about lingering in the past. Rather than give Lucas the pleasure of knowing he had just taught a teacher something, Albus smiled at him. "By the way, what did you mean you had ways of getting into Zenbazi?"
Lucas said nothing as he quickly ran up to his friends without looking back at Albus. It was his way of ending a conversation. Albus just smiled as he watched the students chat with one another. He realized that he really should heed Lucas' lesson, even if he never said it to the young man's face.
Scorpius had apologized. Albus had missed him terribly. There was no shame in wanting one's closest friend to be near. It was not weakness. It was simple human nature. It was simple Slytherin nature.
One cannot excel in everything, so it is important to surround oneself with people who complement one's own abilities, Albus told himself. He had read it in a book once. He spent the rest of the walk up the hill to the school trying to recall which book it had been.
Later that day, after dinner, Albus and the other teachers had been called into the principal's office. When they walked in, Albus could sense something was amiss. Rutherford looked more nervous than usual and beside his desk stood a woman in an expensive business suit. A woman Albus did not recognize and what struck him as unusual was that she looked just as worried as Rutherford did. That could not have been a good sign of things to come.
"Please, everyone sit down." The staff all moved to do so, the usually chatty group not uttering a single sound. "As most of you know, this is Ms. Clare Hopkins. Clare, this is our new Defense teacher, Mr. Albus Potter,"Rutherford said as the woman held a hand out for Albus, who took it politely though he was unable to hide his weary expression.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Potter. It's a shame that you must join us at such a terrible time," she said softly, the other teachers going deathly quiet, Mr. Harwood paling. "I'm afraid to have to tell you, despite my desperate pleading, the Education Council has gone forth with budget cuts." The teachers now began talking, all at once, but Clare attempted to talk over them all. "I must thank you all for agreeing to such a tremendous pay cut. Because of that, I have managed to convince the council to allow Peppertongue to stay open for the remainder of the term. Afterwards, the students who can afford it will be allowed to transfer to Kingston or Zenbazi. Wards of the state will be given alternative forms of education."
"A...alternative forms of education?" Albus had asked. The woman's words had his mind reeling. As his heart plummeting into his stomach.
"She means independent study," Mr. Foster said quietly, his normally jolly smile replaced with a hardened frown. "They will study at their homes and once a week, someone from the Council will administer a written test on what they learned."
"But this school is everything to these kids!" Albus cried out. The idea of these children trying to learn magic on their own, isolated from friends, it was unimaginable.
The woman just sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Mr. Potter, I agree with you. If there was something I could do to keep Peppertongue open, I would do it. We have all already taken massive cuts in pay, the classes are over-crowded, we haven't had new equipment in quite some time, and most of what we do have has been graciously donated to us by the shop owners in Dragons Camp. This school is almost entirely run by the Council." Albus removed his glasses, cleaning them out of habit as he mulled over her words. He was no longer disoriented. He was thinking, trying to find some sort of solution. He was trying to determine if a solution was even possible.
"Peppertongue is one of over fifty Council-run schools. There just isn't money to keep all these schools open or to pay for the tuition of all of the wards of the state. We can only do with what we have. The students will still learn magic, I promise. They will just have to do it with what we as a community can afford to give to them. I'm sorry, everyone," Ms. Hopkins said, bowing her head, "I did what I could."
A few minutes later, the teachers were dismissed, all of them returning to their quarters quietly. When he was alone in his room, Albus could feel tears of frustration stinging in his eyes as he laid down in his bed. He didn't care if he would be out of a job by the end of the term. He could always get another one. What hurt him was the idea of students like Lucas being torn away from the one place they considered home and the only people they considered family. They would be forced into isolation to simply study, be tested, and then pushed through the system.
Over the last two weeks, he had grown close to the students of the school. Classes had yet to begin, but they were his students. They were his to protect. Albus felt powerless as a teacher. He had failed before he had even begun.
September 15, 2031
Classes had started a week ago, but by then, news of the closure had already made its way through the school like wild fire. Albus found it impossible to conduct classes that way. The older students were disinterested and apathetic about lessons. Why bother studying when in a matter of months, they would be shuffled somewhere else and have to play academic catch-up?
The younger students, especially the first years, were nearly inconsolable. They would do their best to learn their lessons through tear-soaked faces only to burst into tears and cling to Albus, begging him to not let send them home. Anywhere but home, they pleaded. He tried to tell them that it wouldn't be so bad, but they couldn't hear him over their wailing.
Lucas never bothered to even show up for his classes. He had locked himself away in the basement of the school. None of the teachers could even figure out what room he was in, assuming they made a full-hearted attempt to find him. Almost as if protecting the young boy, the rooms closed and locked their doors and rearrange whenever a teacher went looking for him. Even the ghosts refused to help the teachers find him. Albus made sure to go down to the basements and leave Lucas food, making the ghosts promise to make sure Lucas ate. After a while, the teachers let him be. They all knew Lucas stood to lose the most when the school closed. There was nothing they could tell him in consolation that would be of any help.
When the first weekend since the start of school arrived, Albus stayed in bed longer than he knew he should. Care for magical creatures wouldn't start for another two weeks, so there was no reason for him to get up.
"It's foolish for you to stay in bed so long, son," came a familiar, gravelly voice. Opening his eyes, Albus looked over to the painting on the wall. It was of an old man, dressed as a doctor, sitting at his desk, jotting down notes.
"Leave me alone, Doctor, please. I just need to sleep. This week has been miserable. I can't face my students," he muttered, rolling onto his stomach as he burrowed his face into the pillow.
"Ah, yes. I have heard. Those poor little ones. I really wish someone would make this situation go away," the friendly old man said, rubbing his neatly trimmed beard. "That little tyke in the basements has been making quite the mess all week. He's been exploding things left and right. He's screaming louder than any of the patients. It's quite unsettling."
"You think I don't know that?" Albus sighed, lifting his head to more comfortably look at the Doctor. "I don't know much about what his home life is like, but he's in hiding. That's not the sign of a happy home, is it? And yet, there's nothing I can do. He will have to go back like every other child like him. They all have to go ust because there isn't enough money t-" Albus stopped suddenly.
"What is it, young professor? You haven't had a brain aneurysm have you?"
"No, I'm fine. It's just...I realized something," he muttered, moving to sit up, a slow smile crossing his face. "It's money that will fix things, right? I mean, I thought about asking my dad earlier, but...I don't know if my dad would go for it. I would be too ashamed to ask him anyway. I don't have much in the way of money myself, but I do know someone who does." Now, Albus was getting excited, jumping out of the bed, beginning to get dressed. "I just realized that if I could pitch giving money to this school to be like a business investment, he might go for it. Right? What do you think?"
The man in the painting seemed to weigh what Albus told him. Slowly he smiled as he nodded. "I think it wouldn't hurt to state your case. Though, do make sure you trust this man. If he agrees to help you, you would be in his debt."
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing," Albus said as he slipped into his suit. He hoped he knew what we was doing.
September 20, 2031
Albus shifted slightly in his seat as he looked at his pocket watch for maybe the tenth time in about as many minutes. It was a little after noon now, and if Scorpius had been honest about always going to the same cafe for afternoon tea at the same time, he would be there soon. Albus, however, had been sitting there since a little after ten that morning. He needed the time to think about what he wanted to say. He must have already had a half dozen cups of tea.
"Potter, is that you? Dressed like a professor, I see." Finally, Scorpius had arrived, going over to sit across from Albus. He ordered a cup of coffee. Albus sat up a little straight, trying his best to make himself seem serious. He was wearing one of his good suits and his hair was combed back. Wire-framed glasses sat perched on his nose. Albus was tense, Scorpius, in his traditional professor's robes and suit looked relaxed, leaning back against his chair. He wore all black and the way he sat was reminiscent of the painting he had seen of Headmaster Snape in the Slytherin dormitories.
"S-Scorpius, I have a favor to ask of you," he said, reaching out to pour Scorpius a cup of tea, disregarding the fact he had just ordered coffee. He was trying hard to not look at the man who sat up now, his eye brow arched curiously. Even without looking at him, he knew Scorpius was looking amused. He knew what he was thinking.
A Potter asking something of a Malfoy? The world must surely be on the verge of collapse.
"A favor?" Scorpius asked, voice rising slightly, interest piqued.
"Well, not so much as a favor as it is a, um, a business proposal. An investment!" Albus quickly assured him. He had hardly said anything and his courage was already failing him. Why, or why, couldn't he have inherited a little bit of his parents' Gryffindor spine! "The...the Education Council, it's, they're, well, they're closing down Peppertongue at the end of the term because there just isn't money to go around. I mean, I can appreciate how expensive a school is to run, so..."
Scorpius relaxed back against his chair, sipping at his tea. "So, basically, your school is going to close and you're going to be out a job?"
"That's not it!" Albus suddenly shouted, jumping to his feet as he slammed his fists down on the table. His voice had sounded incredibly loud in his own ears, but he just couldn't stop himself now, "I don't care if I get sacked, it has nothing to do with me. It's the students, Scorpius. Without the school, they're going to be sent home. They can't afford to go to another school. They're going to learn magic away from the wizarding community. They're going to be sent back to homes they just escaped from! I can't let them lose the only place that accepts them, Scorpius; I won't let them be taken away from the people they see as their families! If I had money, I would support the school myself, but unlike you, I never had a sense for business. And if I went to my father, it would be a clear sign that I failed again. He would treat me like an overly sensitive child forever."
"You are. You're crying," Scorpius pointed out easily, his expression not once changing as he moved to pour himself more tea.
Suddenly Albus realized he had been right. Reaching up, he felt tears falling down his cheeks. Wiping at them with the back of his sleeve, he shrank back into his seat, slumping.
"In any case, I'll do it. I'll play patron to your little school," he said, thanking the waitress for the coffee.
Albus looked at Scorpius now like he had grown an extra head that only communicated via German arias. "What? Why would you agree to it, Scorpius?" Albus asked, his voice trembling as he tried to figure out if Scorpius was just yanking his chain.
"Lots of reasons, really," he said simply, shrugging. "You should never underestimate a Malfoy's desire to see buildings named after him. Also..."
"Also?" Albus had repeated, almost fearfully.
Scorpius grinned almost predatorily now as he looked over at Albus, slightly cocking his head, "Also, a Malfoy has never had a Potter so securely tucked away in his pocket before. At least, until now. "
So that was the angle Scorpius wanted to play. Albus could not say that he was surprised. Scorpius might have been touted as having the heart of a Gryffindor, but he had been sorted into Slytherin for a reason. He was self-serving, even if he was fair. Anyone who said anything different was a fool for having been taken in by Scorpius's facade.
"What exactly would you want in return for your help?"
"Honestly? I have no idea. There is not anything you have that I want at the moment. For now, why don't you just meet up with me for tea every day? I'm sure I'll come with something eventually. Well, do we have a deal?" he asked, holding out a hand.
Albus examined the hand, his own remaining at his side.
His rational side was screaming out for him to run as quickly as he could out of the building and forget all about asking a Malfoy for help. The deal was obviously stacked in Scorpius' favor. If Albus agreed to Scorpius' terms, he would be in Malfoy's debt indefinitely, until Malfoy released him. Calculating his own odds, Albus would probably be dead before any Malfoy would willingly release a Potter from debt. Only a fool would accept such an unequal trade.
And Albus was just desperate enough to be that fool. "We do," he said, reaching out to take Scorpius' hand.
When Monday morning rolled around, Rutherford and a very excited looking Ms. Hopkins had called all of the students and teachers together for breakfast. Albus had even convinced Lucas that he would not want to miss the announcement.
"It's my pleasure to announce to you all a rather wonderful piece of news," Rutherford started as he stood up, looking out over the packed dining hall, holding his hands out, everyone hanging onto his every word with baited breath, "At the eleventh hour, a gracious donor has stepped forth and has agreed to become patron of this school. Everyone, please welcome Mr. Scorpius Malfoy!"
The whole room sat in stunned silence was a tall man, dressed in a tailor made expensive black suit, walked in and took a spot between Rutherford and Hopkins. The children looked up at Malfoy, shock written all over their faces, none of them daring to believe that Rutherford's words meant what it sounded like they did. In their experiences, miracles did not happen without a price.
The room was so quiet that Malfoy could be heard even without having to cast Sonorus on himself. "It means, " Scorpius began, his voice as smooth as velvet, a kind smile on his face, "none of you children will have to leave." With that simple sentence, the whole room burst into cheers, sobs and applause, hundreds of students suddenly out of their chairs, rushing forward to thank the man who had saved them. Albus stayed where he was in the back of the room, sitting near Lucas who was quietly shoveling eggs and bacon into his mouth, blinking at tears that threatened to fall down his red cheeks.
Albus went over to sit beside him, patting his back. "You've missed a lot of class so far, but I'm sure you can catch up. It's only been a week," he said, Lucas just nodding his head, beginning to openly cry from relief as he tried to eat his breakfast. Turning his head, looking over at the swarm of students, Albus noticed that Scorpius was looking at him over their heads. When their eyes met, Scorpius grinned.
Albus didn't regret the deal he had agreed to, even if it did feel like he had just signed a deal with the devil. Reaching out, he ruffled Lucas's hair.
TBC
