THANK YOU FOR 100 REVIEWS AH! I was smiling so much when I saw! Thank you loveislouder94 for being my hundredth reviewer!

Also, my PM system is being dumb right now, so I can't message anyone right now. Please don't think I'm not reading your reviews, because I am :)

I've had this typed up forever but I kept forgetting to post it, so sorry! I would have updated a few days ago if I had remembered.

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize, yo.

Scorpius dropped his quill onto the small table in the corner of the Slytherin common room, slouching into his chair. He'd been working on the same potions essay for the past two days and had gotten nowhere.

If he was to be honest with himself, it was because he couldn't get his mind off of Albus.

Every time Scorpius passed his friend – former friend, he reminded himself – in the hall, he'd take special care to move over to the other side. In Defense, the only class the two shared, he had taken to sitting with a few of the Slytherins. Scorpius knew this was mean, as Professor Sperling hadn't let up on her Potter-worship, but he couldn't stand the hurt look in Albus' eyes. It was better to avoid him altogether than have to see that.

He was startled out of his thoughts by Esmeralda Drier, who planted herself in front of his potion's essay and asked, "Scorpius, are you coming down to dinner?"

Scorpius shrugged. "I don't think so. This essay's due tomorrow and I'm not even half-way done."

"We've had at least a week to work on it," Christopher Sandell pointed out, joining Esmeralda.

"I know, I just haven't been able to pay attention long enough to finish it."

"Is this about Albus?" Esmeralda asked, folding her arms. Scorpius' friends had taken to calling Albus by his first name even though they never talked, something Scorpius appreciated greatly. He only wished everyone else in Slytherin could have the same mindset as them.

"No!" Scorpius exclaimed a little vehemently. "Of course not. I'm just tired."

Christopher raised his eyebrows. "Alright, whatever you say. Es and I are going down to eat; come down once you're finished with that essay."

Scorpius nodded, watching as his two friends made their way out of the common room. He sighed, staring at a spot of blank wall. The room was silent – everyone was downstairs – and Scorpius found his thoughts running away from him.

Not for the first time, he wondered why he'd allowed himself to be so pressured by Bole, Flint, and Goyle. His fear had taken over then, but he wished it hadn't. Scorpius had always been very conscious of what his teachers thought of him, and he had always tried to stay out of trouble. It had worked so far, but was it really worth losing a friend over?

Scorpius didn't know.

One thing he did know was that he wasn't going to get anymore of the essay finished, so he rolled it up and stuck it in his bag, putting it in his dorm before making his way out of the common room.

He decided to take the long way out of the dungeons, not wanting to appear in the great hall with his thoughts a mess. Rounding a corner, he seemed to bump into someone invisible, sending them both flying backwards.

Pulling himself to his feet, Scorpius looked over at the now visible boy. "Oh, I'm really sorry," he said, holding his hand out. His eyes widened as he took in the messy black hair, bright green eyes, and askew glasses. It was Albus.

"No, it's fine. It was my fault too –," Albus stopped, staring at Scorpius.

There was a moment of awkward silence, and then Scorpius cleared his throat. All he wanted was to get out of the situation. "So, uh, I'd better get to dinner." He hurried away.

"Wait!" Albus ran up to him, looking a little nervous. "Scorpius, I know you didn't mean any of the things you said."

Please, let's not talk about this, Scorpius thought. He continued walking.

"Scorpius!"

There was no way to avoid the conversation.

Scorpius swallowed hard, still facing away from Albus. "How do you know?"

"I heard three Slytherins talking about it."

"I – why are you down here?" he asked, turning around.

"To see you, idiot." Albus laughed. "What'd they threaten you with?"

"What…?" Scorpius' eyes darted around the dark corridor, refusing to meet Albus '.

Albus rolled his eyes. "Obviously you wouldn't just sever our friendship without someone threatening you."

Scorpius was surprised by how casually Albus was taking this affair. "Er… They told me that they would do bad things and tell the teachers it was me." Now that he said it out loud, the threat sounded almost idiotic.

Albus seemed to have the same thought, as he laughed. "That's it? Gosh, Scorp, that's lame."

Scorpius felt a rush of heat to his face. "Well, we can't all be brave little Gryffindors."

Albus' eyes widened. "It was a joke, mate. Calm down."

Still refusing to meet Albus' eyes, Scorpius stared fixedly at a point just above Albus' head. "Why are you taking this so well anyway?"

"Because you're my best friend, Scorpius. I know you."

Scorpius took a deep breath, finally looking into Albus' eyes. "I just… The teachers are more likely to take an upperclassmen's word than mine, and I really don't want to get in trouble, you know, because I don't have that added bonus you have of having a really amazing dad and a lot of people tend to think I'm just like my father, who a lot of the teachers didn't really like –,"

Albus laughed. "I know, Scorp. It's still an idiotic reason to end a friendship."

"Alright, we've established I'm an idiot." It was good to be talking to Albus again, Scorpius thought. He'd never realized how big a part of his life the Gryffindor boy had become.

"That you are. Anyway, you could always tell the teachers about the threat."

"I thought I was supposed to be the cunning one," Scorpius protested. "But you're right. I guess I was kind of stupid, wasn't I?"

"Kind of?" Albus laughed again. "You were completely stupid, but I forgive you. Anyway, house rivalries and parental rivalries and all that are dumb."

"Don't tell that to James," Scorpius mumbled.

Albus laughed. "James is an idiot. He only hates Slytherin because you lot annihilated us in Quidditch last year."

"Yes, well, we're out of the running for the cup this year."

"Yeah…"

Scorpius hesitated a moment before asking, "So, friends?"

Albus nodded. "Obviously. Though, I don't know if I can forgive you for abandoning me in Defense."

Scorpius winced. "Yeah, Sperling's something, isn't she?"

Albus nodded, groaning, and the two made their way out of the dungeons.

Scorpius was glad that the conflict was resolved, though a little scared at Flint, Goyle, and Boyle's reactions. As the two boys entered the great hall together, he couldn't help but think that if he hadn't been a Malfoy, this wouldn't have happened.

So, once again, sorry for the late update. I've started Rose's chapter, so that should be up soon, hopefully before Monday, which is when school starts again :/

Please review and all that jazz :)

~ThatSarcasticOne