A/N: Hey everyone! I'm so happy everyone has all sorts of theories, questions and guesses about what's going to happen next; it means you're interested! I just want to take a minute to answer some questions a reviewer had that did not have an account, but left me the most beautiful, long, review. First, I'd like to say you're right about so many things so I don't want to mention them here, and give it away to others, sshh! Secondly the reason I put Albus in Hufflepuff is sort of a plot device, and it too comes out slowly in the story. I'm sorry so many things come out slowly! I'm also glad you're enjoying Lily's character; Lily is a mystery in and of herself and she will come to play more of a role as the story goes on: I wish I had had enough time to write a story just for her! Also guys everyone in this story is flawed, and no one is to be entirely trusted.

Chapter 10:

Everything was changing and Albus felt like he couldn't keep up.

For some reason Scorpius was friends-oh, and probably more with his own cousin, Louis. He couldn't understand it; how could Scorpius, who knew how Louis had made his life a living hell as a child, take up with him? How could they meet up? Or did they even? Albus didn't have any proof; only a note that he looked at Scorpius' bed, a note that he had no right to glance at, and he couldn't confront Scorpius with that, now could he? In fact, without anything to go on Scorpius might lie; it was what he had done on his date at Hogsmeade, and Albus didn't even know if he'd do it again.

Albus was still seeing Caroline Finnegan. It was easy to see Caro; to sit with her in Potions or revise with her in the library, holding hands or kissing each other gently in the stacks. There was nothing very hard about Caro, which was the exact opposite of Scorpius Malfoy; it was nearly impossible to be his friend at the moment, and Albus was feeling the stress and strain, especially since he couldn't tell Caroline the reason he felt so preoccupied.

Zims was busy chasing after Jenny Mortimer so whenever Caro went up to Gryffindor tower to revise Albus was usually alone or with Declan whenever he was about. And since Declan was becoming rather annoyed with Zims and Scor's mysterious disappearances, that left Albus to bear the brunt of that burden as well, so they had quarreled twice since Albus had discovered that stupid bit of parchment on Scorpius' bed.

Frankly, today Albus was just glad to be out of the dorms, and away from everyone for a little while. Even if his fellow prefect for the evening was Felicity Avery.

Avery was a Slytherin whose family had Death Eaters and that meant that she had a massive chip on her shoulder for Albus; firstly because he was a Potter, and secondly because he was best mates with Scorpius Malfoy. For someone like her, Scorpius was getting off easy being friends with him, while the rest of them had to suffer in the outside world. Frankly, Albus thought the political issues were too much for any fourth year to understand, but people like Avery disliked him and Scor.

"You should do the library," Avery sniffed, her black hair tossed away from her broad forehead. "I'll check the loos."

"We're supposed to stay together," Albus stated firmly. He didn't trust a Slytherin like Avery not to slink back down to her dungeons the moment his back was turned and leave him to do twice the work.

"Look Potter," Avery said, in what she thought was a charming manner. "If we split up we can do twice the work in half the time. And if I lie you can tell Howell, and you know I wouldn't be ratted out to my own Head Boy, would I?"

Albus could see the logic in that. "Alright, Avery."

Avery tossed out a hand. "Have fun."

At this hour of night, just past curfew, the library was supposed to be completely closed except for the library's assistants putting away books and the librarian herself, who was dozing rather steadily in her squishy chair. Albus tossed a grin to one of the assistants, who giggled, but a more stern girl gave her a firm look and she got back to work with double the pace.

The stacks were where Albus usually found a few staggering couples coming out of darkened corners, their mouths red and collars all untucked. A few times he had seen worse; but it hadn't been much worse, despite James' graphic descriptions of all the things he was going to see going on in the library. James had the Weasley imagination that was sure: Uncle Ron's definitely, since it had skipped right over Hugo.

Albus passed a Ravenclaw girl asleep on a desk. He tapped her arm. "You're late."

"Oh," she cried. "Please don't dock me any points-"

Albus sighed; he hated doing that to people who were just swotting up. "Two points from Ravenclaw. I'm sorry."

She smiled. "Thanks for that, Albus Potter-"

Just then there was a dull thud that sounded like that book sliding off a shelf and onto the floor in the distance. Albus looked at the Ravenclaw, she looked worried under her glasses as though Albus would find another of her housemates and fine him or her the points she hadn't lost them.

"You go on," he said. "I've got to go see who that was."

Albus walked through the stacks. It seemed as though no one was in this section at all, and Albus had simply heard the wind knock a book off the shelf. And then he heard two familiar voices-

"Do you suppose he's left?" It was Scorpius. Albus moved aside a few books on the shelf nearest him as quietly as possible to see who he was with, and peeked through the space that was left behind in the stack. It was Louis; he was sitting at one of the tables in between the stacks-not behind the desk, but leaning against the table itself.

"Yes," Louis said irritably. "What does it matter anyway-"

"He's my friend," Scorpius said, moving closer until he was in the circle of Louis' arms. That was so strange to see. Scorpius who had never been close to anyone but Albus, and always took care never to let anyone touch him in case of some sort of accident was now so close to Louis; they were practically breathing each other's air.

Scorpius wrapped his arms and legs around Louis' waist, until they were sitting like that; Louis cradling Scor closer than anything Albus had ever seen. One of Louis' hands slipped into Scorpius' hair and he started brushing back the strands idly, only to watch them fall back again, over and over.

"You're hungry," Louis said, with a tsk. "You haven't fed at all- you must be half-starved-"

"I don't want to go out," Scorpius said, his face muffled into Louis' chest. "I want to stay here and with you."

"I'd rather not stay on two pushed together desks for the rest of the night," Louis snorted. "Here," he lifted a wrist.

"I can't," Scorpius sighed. "It'll hurt you, like that-"

"You can-"

Scorpius shook his head. "We're both creatures-it will only make a mess of things if I try and glamour you, and if what you say is true-"

"You need to,"Louis said firmly. "Don't be stupid, Scor, it will be good for us if you do."

Scorpius nodded, a little stiffly. Then change was almost automatic. He seemed to transform from a teenage boy into something fey and predatory, something Dark, but lovely and horribly strange with it. Scorpius' body was lithe and lax, lacking any tension, but strong; Albus wasn't deceived for a moment- he was sure Scorpius could tear off any intruder's limbs if they came and disturbed him whilst he was feeding from Louis. But it was still entrancing. When Albus had seen him that first time in the forest, everything had seemed gruesome and despicable-but now-now Scorpius seemed to sway and dance and move to his own music; as he slid up and over Louis' body, and pushed him gently, gently down onto the desks.

"Louis," Scorpius said, his voice heavy and lisping because of his fangs, which glistened in the lamplight.

Louis reached for him, exposing his neck. "Please," he cried out, "Please-"

Scorpius bit him, deeply, so very deeply. Albus could see that; as his elongated teeth disappeared into his flesh, and fresh blood ran down Louis' collar and in between the two desks, to a steady dripping pat-pat on the floor. Albus wasn't sure if he should intervene or not when Louis cried out; but it was not in horror, but in a sound Albus knew was lust from his midnight rounds. Louis' desire-leadened arms wrapped around Scorpius, and his large hands held Scor's face to his neck with trembling force.

"Gods" Albus heard Louis moan. "Yes-"

Scorpius slid his teeth out and Louis moaned again, and they were kissing, little nips of red cuts that painted Louis' mouth as red as girls.

They laughed together for a moment and then Scorpius stilled.

"What is it?" Louis asked.

"Someone," Scorpius said firmly. "Is directly behind that bookshelf."

Scorpius looked positively cold and ruthless, his eyes devoid of all the warmth that Albus had seen there in all their years of friendship. Albus could feel his palms beginning to sweat, and his heart was racing, and he prayed that perhaps a couple was snogging nearby or another Ravenclaw had fallen asleep between the stacks.

"Oh," Louis smirked. "I don't think I like it. Not one bit."

Scorpius was there before he knew; it-re-materialized like he had that time in first year. Louis trailed after him, like a love-sick little crup.

"Y-you're out late," Albus stuttered. "I should dock points."

Scorpius sighed, shaking his head and putting his fangs away. "I'm always out late, lately, Albus. Why are you following me?"

"Because you never tell me anything anymore!" Albus cried. "You're always out, and I'm always the last to know-and this-this is why, isn't he? Why didn't you just tell me so that I could understand, Scorpius-instead of sneaking around like some actors in a farce."

"You've a lot of nerve!" Scorpius cried. "You're always out with Caroline, and I never say a word-none of us say anything! Why am I any different?"

"Because he hates me!" Albus cried.

Louis only laughed mockingly. Scorpius glared at Louis and he quickly shut up. Albus wondered how he did that; if they were truly a couple or if Scorpius had some sort of power of Louis as his-his vampire.

"You see!" Albus exclaimed, feeling like a little boy tattling to Mum.

Scorpius only sighed and squeezed his temples. "This is the exact reason why I didn't tell you a bloody thing Albus," Scorpius said sadly. "You see the fangs out and it's like you can smell a conspiracy, and please don't deny it, I know it's true. I want to be your friend and I can't if I can't even bloody well date who I like without it turning into an Auror's inquest. I don't even know what we've got in common anymore."

"Scorpius," Albus cried. "You don't really mean that, mate."

Scorpius lifted a shoulder. "I haven't the slightest idea what I mean anymore. I'm going to bed."

"Don't go back there," Louis said, wrapping an arm about Scorpius' shoulders. "Come down to Slytherin for a bit. I'll skive off Ancient Runes and we can listen to the wireless and be lazy sods."

"Alright," Scorpius smiled back, bumping his hip against Louis' hip.

Scorpius slid in between Zims and Declan at lunch. Declan raised an eyebrow but he didn't say anything, just passed Scorpius over his goblet and a fork and left things at that. Albus didn't know what to say, either; a lot of what Scorpius had said last night was right, and a lot of it was dead wrong. It was right that he still was terrified of the fangs and the blood and when he saw them he did expect the worst; Albus was prejudiced, and he supposed that was as bad as anything, being Scorpius' friend and being prejudiced against him for something he couldn't really control.

But he did also want to protect him. He knew Louis and he didn't trust him, not for a minute, and not with Scorpius. Scorpius had been hurt enough throughout his life, losing his mum, and being different, and all of that and Louis only knew how to make a bad situation and make it worse. Albus had seen him do it first hand.

There was so much grey ground still. He supposed that Scorpius was right, and he hadn't any right to get as upset as he did-he never would have gotten that upset if Louis had started dating Zims or Declan-so why did he now? Why was Scorpius so special-and so important, even beyond his creature blood? Albus didn't understand that anymore than the rest, and so he pushed it out of his mind, to deal with another day.

"Will you be going to the Yule Ball?" Zims asked Scorpius. "It doesn't matter that you're-you know you can still go. And I heard Josh Park is single."

"I'm seeing Louis Weasley," Scorpius said, at the moment that Declan drank his punch so that he'd purposely choke. "And I'm not going. I'm going to head upstairs, you lot, I'll see you later."

As Scorpius passed the Slytherin table Louis raised an eyebrow but Scorpius only kept walking while shaking his head, so Louis kept eating. Albus watched Louis curiously for a few more moments, but he didn't notice Albus any more than anyone else who passed him as they left early.

As soon as Albus came back from dinner he didn't join everyone in the common room as he usually did, he went right up to their dorms. Scorpius was seated on his bed, looking at his headboard, sniffling.

"Are you alright, mate?" Albus asked tentatively. They hadn't talked since the incident and Albus was a little wary.

"Oh," Scorpius said, wiping his eyes. "Can you shut the door-"

"Merlin," Albus jumped forward. "Your eyes, Scor! They're bleeding!"

Scorpius laughed, chucking his crabby pillow at Albus' head. "No, they're not," he sniffled. "I'm crying. It's tears, Albus."

"Oh," Albus said, handing him a tissue from dinner with a bit of crumbs on it. "Why are you're tears, so-so bloody?"

"I dunno, really," Scorpius said. "An old vampire told my father the reason he thought was is because we drink more blood than water. But I'm partially human, so that doesn't really explain much about me. No one knows why I have some vampire traits and not others, it was pretty hit or miss."

"Oh," Albus said. "Then why are you crying?"

"Because I hate having bloody tears," Scorpius sighed. "And I hate having to drink blood on a Thursday afternoon instead of taking Potions. And I'd like to play Quidditch, and on sunny days I'd like to not have to use a sun blocking charm. And I'd like to sleep at night, a whole night, just to know what it feels like-" Scorpius sniffled. "And I'd like to eat clotted cream because Grandmother likes it, and it tastes like shoe leather to me. And I'd like to go to the Yule Ball."

"You can't go?" Albus asked, horrified.

"No," Scorpius sighed. "It was suggested by the Board of Governors that I should avoid places where there would be a large congregation of children."

"Then they should have forced you to eat in a pen," Albus snorted sarcastically.

"They might have done," Scorpius said wryly. "If my father would have given them any legal room for that bird to fly with."

"Oh," Albus said sadly, throwing his arms around Scorpius in a bear hug. "Why did you never tell me any of this before, Scor?"

"You know," Scorpius said, muffled both by his stuffy nose and Albus' hug. "It's the Malfoy way: stiff upper lips and stuffed shirts. I couldn't bear to tell you, Al. I didn't want you to think of me as any different than I already am."

"I don't care anymore," Albus cried, and he found, suddenly, that it was entirely the truth. "You are different, and I'm Harry Potter's son. There's always something going to be wrong with the both of us, wouldn't you say."

Scorpius beamed. "More with you than me, I think."