A/N: Things get worse before they get better, so... you know... don't hold your breath with this chapter

Andromeda was one of the few people who kept her calm a handful of days after the scandalous report in the Quibbler. She let Harry into her home with a warm and somewhat sympathetic smile, noting his tired demeanor and distracted eyes. She rested a hand against his cheek. "Getting enough sleep?" she wanted to know.

"Enough," Harry murmured with a sheepish shrug. Not a day had gone by yet when he wasn't plagued by people he hardly knew wanting to get a look inside his life that had been so uneventful over the past decade. He was suddenly the most sought out celebrity once again. He was starting to remember why he hated that status, especially now that he had gained a certain level of notoriety. He was practically part of the Dark Army now, after all. It was disgusting how people thought it was their business to butt into his life.

But, right then, he put all that behind him because of one person. Teddy.

The boy had refused to see him for the past week. That was certainly the longest the two had gone without talking to each other. They had been glued at the hip since the end of the war.

He knocked on the door to Teddy's room that was perpetually locked now that the boy was old enough to learn how to cast a charm. "It's me," he called through the door.

Teddy firmly stared out the window and didn't answer.

"Teddy? Please?"

The thirteen year old knew that he had every right to be angry, so he didn't feel bad at all for sulking. Harry had been trying to speak with him every day since the incident at 12 Grimmauld Place. But, the way he saw it, Harry had kept a secret from him for nearly a year. That meant he was allowed to not talk to Harry for nearly a year too. He could do that. He wasn't feeling lonely at all. In fact, he was doing just fine without Harry around.

"I miss you," Harry mumbled, leaning his forehead against the door. He missed Teddy so much that it felt unbearable at the moment. He pursed his lips and exhaled shakily. "I'm sorry, Teddy."

"How much?"

Harry blinked at the door rapidly. "Huh?"

"How much do you miss me?"

"I… M-more than anything."

"Really?"

"Honestly. I miss you more than anything."

Teddy flicked his wand at the door with some hesitance, letting it click open. When Harry shuffled in, he gestured to the bed. Harry sat down silently, knowing that Teddy was about to give him an earful. Teddy strode forward and stopped in front of Harry. "Do you know why I'm angry with you?" he asked. Harry nodded. "Remember how we're never supposed to lie to each other?" Harry nodded again. "Remember how you broke your promise?" Harry didn't respond to that question, staring at his hands instead. "Why did you break your promise?" Teddy pressed on. "Why would you lie to me?"

"I don't know," Harry murmured. "I just… wasn't thinking. I guess I haven't been thinking for a while now."

Teddy sighed and reached forward to hug Harry. "Don't look so sad," he whispered. "Why are you looking so sad?"

Harry wrapped his arms around Teddy. "Because I thought you'd never forgive me," he said. He squeezed his godson tight. "I forgot that I've got you to think of. I've got to think of all you guys. I forgot for a while. I'm sorry."

Teddy bit back his words and simply let Harry hug him for a long while. "I love you very much, Harry. Don't be sad, okay? This is such a silly thing to be sad about."

"I know. I'm pretty silly."

Teddy patted Harry's back comfortingly. "Hey. Wanna see the new books I bought? I got that Quidditch one Aunty Ginny was talking about." He extracted himself out of Harry's arms and skipped over to his messy table, quickly finding the books he had been meaning to show Harry forever. He jumped back into bed and scooted up against the headboard, pulling Harry with him until they were sitting side-by-side against the pillows. "It's got pictures of all the brooms ever," he said excitedly. "It's marvelous."

They flipped through pages and pages of broomstick information and history, gawking at the drawings and laughing at the old photographs that showed posh women sitting atop a broom with sour expressions on their faces and wind whipping their cumbersome skirts to the right and left. They read the book until Harry nodded off onto Teddy's shoulder.

Teddy snickered when he felt Harry jerk. Harry grumbled in his sleep and settled deeper into the pillows, turning onto his side and shifting closer to Teddy. The boy stroked Harry's shoulder absently as he pushed the book to the side. "Harry? Wake up?"

Harry sighed instead.

"Well, if you were so tired, you shouldn't have come over." Teddy eased a thin sheet over his godfather, tucking him in.

Draco pushed through his muddled dream, beginning to wake up because of a strange stirring in his subconscious mind. It took him a little while, but he finally managed to break free and lift his heavy lids. It was still pitch-black outside. He was trying to figure out what had woken him up when he heard a soft rustle beside him. He rolled over onto his other side and jerked into awareness when his eyes slowly adjusted to the dark so he could make out the shape of his son curled in bed beside him, crying. He sat up in shock and pulled Scorpius into his arms. "It's okay," he whispered hurriedly. "It's just a bad dream, Scorp." He hadn't even heard Scorpius come into his room. "You're okay."

Scorpius didn't want to tell Draco that he didn't have a bad dream. He hid his face against his father's shirt and sobbed quietly.

"You should have woken me up," Draco groaned. He kissed Scorpius' forehead, feeling for a temperature as he did so. He was glad when it felt just a bit warm, not burning hot. "You should always wake me up, okay?"

"Mhm."

"Do you want to sleep here today?"

"Mhm," Scorpius whimpered again. "Please, Daddy?"

"Okay, alright."

Harry slammed the door shut and glared at it for a couple seconds, hoping the reporters waiting outside caught onto the aura he was sending. What part of 'no comment' did they not understand? He kicked the door for good measure before stomping into his living room.

"GAH!" he screamed when he all but ran into Ginny who seemed to have materialized out of nowhere. "Wh-what-how-what-wh-what are you doing here?" he stammered, quickly backpedalling and staggering into the wall in fright.

"What do you mean what am I doing here?" she muttered, holding up the bane of Harry's existence at that moment – the dratted Quibbler. "What are you doing here?"

He had already exhausted himself. He couldn't bring himself to stumble through excuses anymore. He looked away guiltily, waiting for more rants similar to the ones he had already heard from the rest of the Weasleys over the past few weeks. He crossed his arms against his chest to stop fidgeting and stared at the carpet.

Ginny clicked her tongue and walked up to Harry, cupping his cheeks in her hands and making him look up. "You're feeling really bad right now, aren't you?" she murmured. Harry faltered for a moment before nodding. She smiled at him and shook her head. "Okay. That's okay," she assured him. "It's okay to feel bad." She tugged him forward and made him sit on the couch, pretending not to notice when he wiped his tears away. "He's the one you were talking about, huh?" she asked. "He's the one you like more than he likes you?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

She opened the Quibbler. "Have you read it?"

"No."

"You look pretty happy in these pictures."

"Please?"

She sighed. "Tell me," she urged. "Don't keep it inside."

"I'm sorry," he said heavily. "I am. I wish I hadn't-And now I-" He broke off, swallowing hard to keep his composure.

She pulled her legs up onto the couch and flicked through the magazine. "Cry a bit, if you want."

He rested his head against her shoulder as more tears squeezed out of his eyes. She had cried on his shoulder a few times before and now it was her turn to return the favor. She held his hand tight, letting him know everything was going to be alright. "Everyone's mad at me," he sniffed. "I hate it."

"I bet you do," Ginny murmured. "I can't believe you took Malfoy to a Muggle fair. It was your idea, wasn't it?"

"It was a stupid idea."

"Says here you spent the whole day there. You must have built some tolerance. I can't stand to look at his face. I mean, you two together is just… gross."

"I know."

"Oh? You do?"

"Teddy's made it abundantly clear."

"Ah, yes. Good ol' Teddy."

They sat in silence for a little while after that. Harry caught his breath eventually. He was so glad for Ginny at that moment. He had thought that she would be the one who would scorn him the most. However, at the moment, she seemed to be one of the few who accepted him. He shifted so he could sink into her more comfortably. "You know I'm sorry, don't you?" he asked her, wanting to make sure she understood.

"I know," she told him. "How's Malfoy doing?"

Harry didn't say.

She looked down at him. "Harry?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

Harry shrugged.

"Why don't you know?" she asked slowly.

"I just… I haven't seen him since… And Scorpius doesn't… I'm sure he's fine now."

"You haven't seen him?"

"Hmm."

Ginny tsked. "After all this drama, you two break up? Just like that?"

"We shouldn't have done anything in the first place," Harry tried to reason it out. "I wasn't thinking straight. Obviously no one was comfortable with it."

"You two were comfortable with it, weren't you?"

"That's not enough."

"Why not?"

"Because I-we-we have responsibilities," he maintained. "He has Scorp and I have Teddy and you guys and… it wouldn't be fair."

"We're already angry with you, Harry," Ginny deadpanned. "And now you're saying you won't give us a reason to be angry with you?"

Harry chuckled tiredly. "Yeah, I know. I'm always putting a damper on things," he mumbled. "It'll blow over, in any case. I just feel awful right now."

"Man, you're so damned thick," Ginny muttered under her breath. She held the magazine up properly. "This isn't something you can get out of that easily, Harry. This is a proper relationship. If you end it after something like this, it hurts… a lot. It's not like stopping an illicit affair. It's like a proper break up because you two were in a proper relationship. Why don't you understand that? And if you two broke up because of us, then that's not fair to you."

"Draco says I'm too traditional. He's probably right, you know? We had always known from the beginning that nothing would come out of this. And we had already talked about it before. If either of us felt uncomfortable, then we would stop. No hard feelings. So it's not like we were in a proper relationship or anything. It was a bit of fun for both of us."

"You fell for him, didn't you?"

"Oh, come on, Ginny," Harry said shakily as he wiped his cheeks. "Don't be stupid."

"You're stupid," she retorted, pulling Harry into another fierce hug and letting him hide his teary face against her neck.

Draco had been having a strange month. Work was much the same except for the fact that none of his coworkers met his eye. And, once ignored on the streets, he now got many double takes and long stares from strangers. Patricia simply smirked knowingly at him whenever they met.

Scorpius was the strangest, though.

Draco could tell that the little boy was feeling unbearable guilt. After storming out of Harry's house, he had gotten a little further than a block when Draco caught up to him. Once they had arrived at the Malfoy manor, the two of them had screamed their voices away until they were red in the face. They hadn't spoken to each other for a couple days until Draco finally broke and apologized. Since then, Scorpius had been on his best behavior. He played quietly in his room and didn't complain about food. He hugged Draco tighter than ever before going to sleep and he woke up without fussing. Draco could tell exactly what was going through Scorpius' mind. He just didn't know how to make it right again.

He sat Scorpius down on the final night of the summer. "Can you tell me what's bothering you now?" he asked.

"Nothing."

"I know you feel bad, Scorp. But you don't have to. You didn't do anything wrong. I know it feels like you did, but you didn't. You were right when you said I was your father. So I won't do anything you aren't comfortable with, okay? You understand, right?"

"I know."

"And tomorrow, at school, you'll behave, won't you? When you see Mr. Potter, you'll behave, won't you?"

Scorpius looked away.

Draco held back his frustration. The last thing he wanted was another scene, this time in front of a school. "He's stopped coming over like you wanted," he rationalized. "We aren't… I-I'm sorry, Scorpius. But you have to promise me you won't be anything but polite to Mr. Potter, okay? I know you're angry and you have every right to be angry, but you can't be mean to him in front of others."

"I know."

"It's not just for me. Potter is… He's different. People aren't allowed to be mean to him. So you'll behave?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Thank you." Draco hoped his son would keep that promise.

"Father?"

"Yes?"

"What did Mother say?" Scorpius asked.

Draco would rather not repeat Astoria's reaction. "Um… Well, she'll… get over it," he hoped. "Everyone's a bit angry with me right now, but that's alright. If anyone's mean to you at school, you'll have to tell me right away."

"I know."

"Don't let them say anything to upset you, okay?"

"I know, Father."

"Okay… Good. Time for bed?"

Scorpius let Draco tuck him in and he didn't make a sound when he was kissed on the cheek. He simply stared up at Draco. Draco jerked his brows questioningly. "I love you," the boy murmured.

Draco smiled in defeat. "I know, buddy. I love you too," he whispered, bending down to kiss Scorpius one more time.

"More than you love Mr. Potter?"

Draco froze. "Pardon me?"

"Do you love me more than anything else?"

"I-of-of course," he stuttered. "Of course, I do." He couldn't believe Scorpius was asking him that. "I'll always love you, Scorpius. It's not the same as with Potter at all."

"So you don't love him anymore?"

Draco sighed. "You're being difficult," he grumbled. He was somewhat glad that Scorpius was being difficult, though. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Daddy."

Harry had been reprimanded at school, but the staff was above reading into tabloids and gossip, so he was slapped on the wrist for not keeping his private life private and then sent off to prepare for a new batch of five year olds. Most of the trouble he got was from family, both his and his students'. Everyone seemed to be wary of him except for the children. His class was much too young to figure out what all the fuss was about and why their parents weren't very happy about their teacher. To them Mr. Potter was still awesome.

Harry saw Scorpius around the school, but the boy never looked at him. Students in the older classes weren't as innocent as the young ones, so they talked amongst themselves and Harry caught some of those whispers. He was glad that none of them were really directed towards Scorpius. If they were, the boy was handling it well. Harry didn't want to fuel baseless rumors, so he let Scorpius be, although feeling a bit hurt whenever the boy ignored him.

Molly had stopped talking to him, along with a few of her Weasley kids. Inviting Scorpius Malfoy into their home was one thing. Learning about Draco Malfoy's relationship with Harry was another. They wouldn't listen to reason or excuses. Harry knew they would come around eventually, most likely closer to holiday season. The Weasleys would not be able to hold a grudge when there were presents and family cheer on the line. He would just have to ride it out until then.

But he wasn't so sure if he would last that long. Now with Ginny and Teddy gone, the house was so empty and he didn't have anything to keep his mind occupied. He could only do so much at school. When he got home, he was always antsy with pent up energy and a bundle of nerves that had settled in him since that day. He knew it had everything to do with not being able to see Draco, but he kept telling himself that he would get over that too. He just had to get over it.

Draco opened the door to find Theo standing at the stoop. "Right," he sighed, closing the door on his friend.

"Hey!" Theo called out in affront. "I've got a bone to pick with you."

"No bones here," Draco replied through the door.

"I'm cold!"

"So go home."

"Malfoy!"

"Just go home, Theo."

Theo harrumphed. "No. I'm staying right here and freezing to death."

"Fine."

"Fine."

An hour later, Theo was hopping in front of the fire, rubbing his numb hands together and shivering. "I can't believe you left me out there," he muttered angrily.

"I can't believe you stayed," Draco snorted.

"I don't know why I bother with you."

"Me neither."

Theo pressed his hands to his flushed cheeks. "I guess you've warmed up to Potter after all," he quipped.

"This is why I didn't want to let you in," Draco grumbled as he flopped onto the couch. "Can we not talk about this? It's all I've been hearing for the past few months. It's over and done with. We were being stupid and now we're back to being responsible adults. Chapter closed."

"Bet Stori blew her top, eh?"

"You know her. Makes a mountain out of molehills. She's fine now."

"So what's he like?"

Draco tilted his head with a frown.

"In bed," Theo clarified. "What's he like in bed?"

Draco turned bright red. "What?" he asked in a dangerously low voice.

"Nothing," Theo smiled. "I didn't say anything." He looked back at the fire and wiggled his toes that were nestled inside his warm socks. "Anyway, I would have been your number one fan if you stayed together."

"Just shut up."

"I would. Honest. I can't wait to read more about the most scandalous couple in London. Those photographs were magnificent. I really do need to congratulate the photographer."

"I should have him killed."

"How did Scorp take it?"

Draco glared at Theo sullenly.

"Things are that bad, huh?" Theo tsked.

"Of course."

"Because of Scorpius? Or the Quibbler?"

"Both."

"As in you'd have stayed together if it wasn't for Scorpius. Or the Quibbler."

Draco shrugged. "Who knows? But Scorp isn't comfortable having Potter around, so… it makes sense. Teddy's not happy either."

"Not happy with you two dating or not happy with you two dating in secret?" Theo asked while raising a brow.

"They're both the same, Theo," Draco spelled out. "Everything has to be a secret when it comes to Potter."