As soon as they got home, Scorpius decided to barricade himself in his room. He didn't want to talk to his father and it seemed his father really didn't want to talk to him either, because he stormed off to the kitchen while Scorpius ran up the stairs. He hated his father right now, because he'd taken him away from Albus. Albus had been kind and he'd really cared about Scorpius throughout the entire stay. He'd included Albus in everything that his family had done. He'd been ready to include Scorpius that day too, and then his father had ruined it.

Scorpius found himself walking toward his bathroom. He couldn't think clearly; his father had taken any form of control away from him. He'd taken him away from Albus and from the Potters, who were so nice to him as well.

He was surprised to feel tears rolling down his cheeks. Whatever had happened with Albus would certainly be over now. Albus would be upset and think that Scorpius had asked his father to come. Everything was ruined. Of course, Scorpius wasn't sure why he'd expected anything else. Nothing would ever go right for him because he didn't deserve things to go right for him. He wasn't as good as Albus; he wasn't good at all. His chest hurt from sobs that he held inside, because a house elf would hear and then he'd come running. "I hate you," he whispered, unsure if he wanted his father to hear that or if it was supposed to be directed at himself. But he did hate himself. He hadn't even fought back when his father had come; he'd just stood there silently and let his father scream at the Potter family.

Scorpius took his blade and dug it into the pale flesh of his arm. He let out a small gasp of pain; he didn't tend to cut quite that hard. But it felt good at the same time. Going deeper meant that he had more control. He was in control of all of this; he was in control of what happened to him and no one could do anything to stop him. He made another gash in his arm, feeling his stomach clench tightly. This was what he needed to feel better. He was already feeling better; why wouldn't this help?

He did eventually stop the angry slashing and put bandages on his wrists. He wanted these ones to hurt, because he'd ruined everything. He deserved to hurt like he was afraid Albus was. It had taken so much courage for Albus to lean out and kiss him, and Scorpius had basically thrown it back in his face. He would feel them sting and hell, he might even let his father notice the blood on his wrist. Maybe then his father would know that he was feeling something. Maybe his father would feel something too?

Scorpius collapsed into bed. He ignored the fact that it was lunch time and just kept lying in bed, miserable. He couldn't even begin to imagine what Albus was thinking or how much he'd be hated.

His father never called him down for lunch. Nor did he get a call down for dinner or a house elf in his room to bring him food. It was as if Scorpius was just forgotten; he figured that was fitting. He wasn't good enough to keep someone like Albus. Albus deserved the world and Scorpius couldn't give it to him.

So he kept cutting himself. Every few minutes he'd pick up his blade and make some new mark on some new part of his body. When he eventually pulled himself out of bed and climbed into the shower, his body stung. He wouldn't heal them properly; he couldn't. He couldn't do it. "I'm alright," he reminded himself, glancing in the mirror after scrubbing his skin raw in the burning shower. "I'm just fine. I'll be just fine without Albus,"

Finally his father sent a house elf to get him. Scorpius refused at first, stating that he was busy and wouldn't be able to come down to dinner. That, of course, didn't go over well. Soon enough he was sitting at the long table in the dining room with his father, staring moodily at a bowl of soup that was placed in front of him. For a little while, they didn't speak. They ate with only the sound of their silverware clinking against their bowls. It was agonizing. Scorpius much preferred the liveliness at the Potter's residence.

"I hate when you're like this," his father finally said. "I did not raise you to act like a moody teenager,"

"Right. Sorry for not being perfect," Scorpius muttered angrily.

"Tone," his father warned. "This is exactly why you shouldn't associate with people like the Potters. They are a terrible influence on you,"

"The Potters? Right, because the savior of the wizarding world and his family are a much worse influence than a Death Eater," Scorpius snapped. He dropped his spoon to the table and pushed his chair away. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be upstairs,"

"Sit down," Scorpius just stared at his father, each with an icy glare. "I will not be disrespected by my own son. You left this house, where you were safe. You-"

"You left me alone! At Christmas! The first Christmas after-after my mother died," Scorpius shouted. He took a deep breath; he was losing control and that would only upset him. He'd go upstairs and cut into his skin and he knew-he knew-that wasn't a good solution. He'd done it too much in the past few days and he couldn't risk doing it again. He could go too deep and at the moment, he didn't particularly want to die. Death would take him further from Albus than he really wanted to be. Death would be so final and he couldn't handle it. Yes, death would mean an end to every painful thing in life, but it would also mean an end to Albus. And even though he was sure he'd already met his end with Albus, Scorpius needed closure. He needed to see Albus one more time and even if Albus wouldn't look at him, at least Scorpius could see his eyes and his smile and every other thing he was starting to really like.

"I had business to attend to," his father said coldly. "I don't know how you could ever blame me for that. Do you want a roof over your head? Food? Silly things to fill your greedy mind?"

"I want my father to be my father," Scorpius responded, his tone about the same as his father's. He hadn't really said that much in years; he and his father loved each other, he knew that much, but they didn't get along. They just simply didn't; they went through life acting like the other wasn't there, because that was easier than anything else. Scorpius had never let on to how much he wanted his father to actually be a father. He'd never told the man how he wished he would take notice, of how unhappy he'd become or the scars lining his body. But his father wasn't the kind of man who would notice that. His father was too focused on business and not feeling any pain himself. Scorpius could understand; he had found his own way of dealing with pain.

"Well I'm sorry you didn't get-"

"Do you even know?" Scorpius asked, his voice shaking.

"Know what? That Potter's son is a terrible influence on you? That he made you moody and unwilling to cooperate with me? Because yes, Scorpius, I am well aware of that little fact.

"He's a good influence. Do you know why? Because when he was my friend, Father, I ate more,"

"...You ate more. And that's what makes him such a good friend? You ate more?"

"I wasn't eating anything before him. Not anything. You see, because I could control what I ate and I couldn't control any other damn thing in this horrible life that I've been given. And it is horrible, did you know? I have a father who's never around and a dead mother. The only friends I had growing up were the damn house elves because you were a prejudiced arse when you were a kid and no one likes us! The kids at school hate me. Not even the Slytherins like to speak to me. But Albus did. Albus spoke to me. And he helped me. He helped me more than anyone ever had because he cared. He could have upset his entire family by bringing me along when I was alone, but he did it anyway because he cared. And when he kissed me, I swear, I...I almost wanted to stop,"

His father stared at him, as if processing his words were getting increasingly hard. "You didn't eat?"

"For Merlin's sake, Father, pay attention to the important parts, will you? That's not important,"

"I think it-What did you want to stop?"

Scorpius stayed quiet. He could admit to not eating, but he wasn't sure he could admit to this. He wasn't sure he could lift up his sleeve and reveal the bloody lines that marked his pale skin. If he couldn't do it for Albus, who cared, why should he do it for a father that didn't?

"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy if you do not tell me what it is you wanted to stop-" his father started to threaten.

Scorpius glared at his father. He didn't really care, but maybe this would shock him into it? Maybe this would hurt him the way Scorpius had been hurt all these years? "You want to know? Fine," And with that, he pulled his sleeves up to his elbows. He pulled off the red bandages he'd been using to stop the bleeding, because the bandages covered up most of what he'd done to himself.

His forearms were covered in intersecting lines. Some were old, and a pale white color that almost matched his skin. Some were raised and bumpy; others were delicate and hard to see. Others, the more recent ones, were pink and red. They looked raw and painful. And it did hurt, just ripping the bandage away, but Scorpius didn't care. Someone knew; his father knew and he, just like Arabella, couldn't do a damn thing to stop him. "Happy?" Scorpius asked spitefully. He knew it was silly, but he suddenly felt vulnerable. For years this had been his; no one else had known. Now, two others did. And they were judging him; he could see it in his father's eyes.

Albus Potter refused to leave his bed. It was, apparently, a rather worrying behavior for his family. They knew that Albus and Scorpius were close, but they didn't expect Albus to take the other boy's departure this hard. But that, of course, was not what Albus was upset about.

"Someone like you."

It repeated through his head more often than Albus would have appreciated. What did it mean? He couldn't be certain. There was a chance it was referring to being gay, but even that was a longshot. Mr. Malfoy didn't seem the type of person to care about that. He was more prejudiced against those who weren't purebloods. Albus quickly decided to count out the whole pureblood thing as well. Even those prejudices were old and almost gone in the man. So what was it? Was it simply that he was a Potter? That his father had saved their world and that they hadn't gotten along in Hogwarts? If that was the case, Albus didn't know what he'd do. Scorpius was at home right now with the man. What if Mr. Malfoy was telling Scorpius how bad Albus was...and Scorpius was believing him?

More than that, though, Albus was replaying the kiss they'd shared in his mind. Maybe it was good enough to convince Scorpius to stay with him? To start a relationship with him? Then again, it had also been Albus's first kiss. It had probably been awkward and unpracticed, and Scorpius would want better than that.

He spent most of his usual shopping day with Lily in his room with his pillow over his head so that he wouldn't have to hear his family talking to him through his door. They were all being kind and trying to convince him that it was okay that Scorpius had left, that it was actually a good thing because that meant Scorpius was spending the rest of the holiday with his father and maybe, just maybe, they'd become closer. The broken relationship they'd once had would heal and they could support each other.

But after a good four hours of moping, the lock on his door clicked and someone entered. "Albus," his father said gently. Albus just groaned and held his pillow tighter to his face. He didn't want to hear this. His father was going to repeat what he'd said an hour ago. And if he did, Albus was likely to scream in frustration. It wasn't as simple as they all seemed to think; it never would be. "Albus, I'm sorry. I didn't expect him to come and take Scorpius away either,"

"What does it matter?" Scorpius muttered, though his father couldn't understand the words that came out of the pillow.

"Come again?"

Albus groaned again, dramatically this time, as he moved the pillow off his head. "What does it matter? He probably wrote to his father to come and get him after we kissed because I wasn't good at it. But in my defense it was my first kiss and I...I don't know how to do it well!"

His dad chuckled slightly and came to sit by him on the bed. "I can assure you, Albus, that wasn't the case. Draco came in here demanding to know where his son had gone, because house elves had told him a Potter had come to get him. James went up to get Scorpius and when he saw his father in the family room, he seemed as shocked as the rest of us felt,"

"But-"

"No buts, Albus. Scorpius likes you. I could see on his face that he really didn't want to leave, and that he was worried. Probably for what you'd think if he was just gone,"

"But then why...why wouldn't he try to stay? Why didn't he say something to his father?" Albus asked, sounding small. He felt like a child for being so needy, but, well, he needed his dad.

"Because," his dad said simply. "Would you want to stand up to a man like Draco Malfoy?" Albus could only shake his head. "I doubt his son would either. It's...It's obvious to me, Albus, how much he cares for Scorpius. If he didn't, he wouldn't get so concerned about the threats and come storming into my office every time they received a new one. But he does because he loves his family and he wants them to be safe and happy. He doesn't want his past to affect them,"

"But-"

"Still no buts, Albus. Draco Malfoy loves his son; you'll never convince me otherwise,"

"But I don't understand. I...Why couldn't he just stay with us too? Why did he have to take Scorpius away? And why...why did he have to say such awful things about me?"

It took his dad a bit longer to come up with a good answer for that one. Albus was afraid to hear it; had he been wrong in bringing Scorpius here? Had he really caused that much worry for Mr. Malfoy when he came home? It didn't seem like it. He hadn't even been there for Christmas. "Well, Albus, I...I can't tell you why he said those things about you. I'll definitely be having words with him about it since it happened, but my only guess is that he was so worried about Scorpius that he wanted to attack whoever had taken him away. And as for staying with us, Albus, Draco Malfoy would never do that. He can handle us not fighting but accepting kindness from me? That's a different story entirely,"

Albus frowned deeply. He and Scorpius couldn't spend time with each other because their fathers had been enemies in school. That definitely didn't feel fair. "Okay. Thank you for coming to talk to me. But I'm... I'm going to stay in here today so you can go,"

"Albus…"

"Dad, please? I just...I want to be alone. I want to convince myself that...that I didn't do anything wrong,"

"You didn't," his dad says quickly. "But I'll leave you be for another hour or so. Then you're joining us and we're going to have a nice day together, as a family. Think you can agree to that?"

Albus groaned and rolled his eyes, which he figured was in the typical teenager fashion. Still, it felt appropriate. He really didn't want to go downstairs and join his family; he wanted to stay upstairs and mope and wonder how Scorpius was going at his house and if Scorpius was going to grow to hate him.

Still, after an hour he went downstairs and sat beside their fireplace. His family all made a big show of him, acting like he'd been gone for years rather than hours. Albus finally smiled, which made them all smile too. "Thanks," he said as he glanced at his father. His dad just nodded and smiled, glad that he was out.

They ended up playing various games, and only Albus' favorites in order to cheer him up. By the end of the day he was smiling and laughing like normal, and it made him feel a thousand times better. His family, Albus knew, was amazing. They were kind and they tried to make each other happy when a member was feeling down. His family was perfect; he didn't know what he'd do without them.

Dinner time came around and they sat down together as a family. It was different, noticing that the extra place setting for Scorpius had disappeared, and Albus was reminded that he was gone. They hadn't even discussed where they stood with each other, and he was gone. He got a bit quieter during dinner, remembering what had happened and the words that Mr. Malfoy had said. It was difficult to just get over the words permanently. Albus wouldn't help but feel self-conscious. What if he was a bad influence on Scorpius? After all, he had convinced Scorpius to leave his home during the holidays. He had forced Scorpius into situations he didn't want to be in, just because Albus had been selfish and wanted to spend more time with him.

"Hey," his dad said, bumping his elbow gently. Albus' mother and siblings were locked in a tight debate about the best quidditch teams, and Albus quite frankly didn't care enough about quidditch to participate. "Come with me, yeah? Let's get away from the chatter,"

Albus nodded in agreement and followed his dad away from the table. "Where do you want to-"

But his dad just grabbed his arm; a second later, they were standing in the middle of London. "Fancy a walk? I thought it seemed nice,"

"Give me a moment to throw up, please," Albus said, clutching his stomach. He figured he should be used to apparition by now, but the suddenness of the trip made him a bit queasy. "A little warning would be nice, just for next time,"

His dad just shrugged and pushed him out of the little alley they'd appeared in. "Want to talk about it?"

"Not really," Albus mumbled. "I just...I just want to not be upset about it. I want to forget that it even happened. Because...Because what if Scorpius hates me now? Because I brought him here and I could have caused a problem between him and his father,"

His dad sighed, and Albus nodded slightly. "Look, I know that it may be hard to understand, but something tells me Scorpius and his father already have problems. Maybe this will give them a chance to work out their issues,"

"But what if it doesn't? What if I made everything worse? I just...I didn't want him to spend the holidays alone. I didn't want him to think that no one cared because I do, Dad. I do care about him and I never want him to forget that,"

"I love you," his dad said in response. "I love you so much, did you know? You're incredibly kind, Albus, I think you're a really good person. I'm proud that you're the person you are,"

Albus blushed and rolled his eyes. "Don't be stupid, Dad,"

"I resent that. And I'm still proud of you. I'm sure that everything will be okay,"

Albus nodded, though he wasn't convinced. However, it wasn't too long until he'd see Scorpius again, and hopefully they could talk through what had happened-all of what had happened.