A/N: Enjoy folks! I appreciate feedback :)

Chapter 31: Albus

Tuesday, 3 March 2026

"So – how long you've been seeing her?"

Albus blinked at his phone, before slowly moving his gaze to his best friend.

They were at Malfoy Manor, lazing in Scorpius's room after a delicious dinner they had enjoyed with Scorpius's father. Scorpius was lounging on his bed, his head turned towards Albus who was sprawled on the sofa across the room. His friend was eyeing him with a curious expression.

Albus shrugged. "Dunno what you're on about. I'm not seeing – "

Scorpius huffed and rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "Bollocks you're not."

Albus hesitated. He hadn't told Scorpius about Scarlett. Had Scorpius heard about her from someone else? James? Hugo? …Unlikely, Albus thought quickly. Which meant that Scorpius didn't really know what had been going on, but was merely guessing.

"I'm not seeing anyone," Albus said simply, shrugging again at Scorpius, who had turned his head to give him a doubtful look.

It was the truth. Albus wasn't seeing, seeing Scarlett. They were simply shagging. There was a difference, somewhere, Albus was sure of it. Still, Scorpius kept staring at him, his blonde eyebrow arched high and his mouth pursed into a wry expression. And like always, Albus felt his resolve crumbling when Scorpius used his unyielding Malfoy stare at him.

Albus let out a huff of exasperation, his shoulders slumping down. "Fine. I'm shagging Rose's flatmate Scarlett," Albus said, clenching his jaw as he saw his friend's lips quirk into a smug smile. "Happy?"

Scorpius snorted. "Only about the fact that I was right." He then eyed Albus carefully, rising up to lean against his elbow, a frown between his brows. "Rose doesn't know, right?"

It was Albus's turn to give his friend a knowing look. "I mean – you'd be the first one to find out, I presume."

Scorpius stared at him with an unimpressed expression. "Sod off." He murmured.

Still, there was a hint of redness on the tops of his cheeks. Albus made a mental note to inspect that bit of information more thoroughly. "No, she doesn't know," Albus muttered after a short silence. "And I'd like to keep it that way, at least for now…"

Albus's friend shrugged and lowered down to lie on his bed. "Not my business…"

"…Not even though you see her nearly every day?" Albus asked slyly, smirking at his friend, who pulled up to sit on his bed, scowling at Albus.

Scorpius scoffed. "I'm not seeing her every day."

"You know she broke up with Nick?" Albus asked subtly, eyeing the fingernails of his left hand, knowing that Scorpius was watching him closely.

"I heard," Scorpius said mutedly. "What of it?"

Albus glanced at Scorpius. "She told you about it?"

Scorpius shrugged indifferently. "Yeah."

Albus hummed thoughtfully, not really surprised. What he had understood was that Scorpius had gone to see Rose several times during the past months. That they had shared several cups of teas and had long discussions, and even longer looks. This information was naturally provided to him by Scarlett, who had witnessed many of Scorpius's visits to the coffee shop.

Albus's mouth flitted into a knowing smirk. "So, I was thinking – "

"Merlin." Scorpius groaned, hanging his head. "Just AK me now…"

Albus laughed and threw a small pillow from the sofa towards Scorpius, who blocked it swiftly with his arm. Apparently, Scorpius knew all too well when Albus was planning something.

He watched his friend quietly for a moment, and wondered if his cousin and his best friend were going to get back together. Albus knew that Scorpius had been pining for Rose, for Merlin knew how long. Possibly since they broke up in the first place. He still remembered the day it had happened, and how crushed Scorpius had been, even though he had tried so hard not to show it.

Albus was revising for his next day's NEWTs – Transfiguration theory and practical exams – in the Slytherin common room. It was quiet and late: most of the students were already in their dormitories, and the only sounds that occasionally reached his ears were the glowing embers crackling in the fireplace and the quills scratching against parchment by a handful of students.

His gaze flickered from the book to his left wrist, to glance at the time. It was late, and Scorpius hadn't still returned from seeing Albus's cousin. Albus wondered if they were studying somewhere together, since he knew that Rose sure as hell wouldn't give up a good revision time for snogging.

Albus closed the book and looked around the room while he stretched his back in his armchair. Two girls and two boys from fifth year were gathered close to the fireplace, focused frowns plastered on their faces as they scribbled notes to their parchments, undoubtedly revising for their OWLs. Emma and Amanda were sitting at a small table in the corner, both oblivious to the world as they focused on their books. Flint sat close to Albus in an armchair, nibbling the fingernails of his left hand as he read. Rivers, Thomas and Hopkins – the other seventh year Slytherin boys were already in their dormitory.

Just as Albus was about to head to his dormitory, Scorpius walked through the entrance of the Slytherin dungeon.

He looked defeated.

Albus quickly stood up with his belongings and made his way to Scorpius, away from everyone else.

"Scor? Mate?" Albus asked quietly, lifting his brows at his friend. "You all right?"

Scorpius blinked at the floor, stopping in place. He shook his head slowly, frowning as if he was trying to clear his thoughts. He looked at Albus in surprise. "Yeah." He grunted. "Rose left me."

With that, he pushed past Albus and didn't look back as he walked into their dormitory.

Scorpius hadn't wanted to talk about it. He hadn't really talked about anything during the days that followed that night. He had attended their exams and mealtimes, expressionless and aloof. He had stopped spending time with Albus and the rest of the Slytherins. He had stopped laughing and smiling, becoming a mere shell of his old self. Still, through the impassive appearance, Albus could see that his friend was miserable, angry and exhausted.

Albus had been so bitter with Rose afterwards. He had wanted to yell at her for being so ignorant and hurtful. He had wanted to hurt her feelings, and make her as unhappy as Scorpius had been. Then, Scorpius had fooled around with one of Rose's best friends at one of the parties near the end of their seventh year. And the next thing he knew, Albus's friend had moved on. And even though Rose had looked shocked and devastated after learning about it, Albus had sided with his best friend instead of his cousin.

As weeks went by after their graduation, it became clear to Albus that his friend was not over Rose. That he was merely filling the void with someone else. And now, nearly two years after they had broken up, after Albus had sworn to himself to try to prevent that kind of thing happening again and to keep his cousin and his best friend as far away from each other as he was able to, he was considering it. Helping his friend to get the only girl that had meant something to him.

And it wasn't like they needed Albus's help. From the moment Rose and Scorpius had met on the Hogwarts Express before their first year, they were drawn to each other like opposite ends of a magnet. Albus had only been surprised that it had taken so long for them to get together. Everyone had predicted it to happen, sooner or later. No, it wasn't about them needing Albus. It was Albus knowing that he wanted to support Scorpius. He wanted to be better for Rose as well.

"Seriously, Al, quit it."

Albus huffed and trailed a hand through his hair, shrugging at his friend. "Quit what?" He asked innocently.

Scorpius groaned quietly and shook his head. "So how's work? How come you were able to leave early today? I thought you guys are all about working overtime now…?" Scorpius asked and moved to sit against the headboard of his bed, twirling his wand between his fingers.

"Well, I'll be working over the weekend, so I figured I might as well take some time off when I can," he said with a sigh. "It's been busy. Everything needs to be ready before the tournament – did I tell you I'll travel there in the beginning of June?"

"Only about a hundred times…" Scorpius murmured under his breath and gave Albus a smirk when he narrowed his eyes at his friend.

Albus shrugged and watched his friend shrewdly. "I mean, not all of us have the money and connections to buy seats to any game they wish to see in the World Cup. Some of us have to work on it."

Scorpius laughed. "As if your dad's not getting free passes to the whole family."

Albus grunted. "Yeah, he probably will," he admitted with a mild grimace. "Not that I can actually attend all the games I want to. Mitch will get some, and Alexandra – our trainee – will report some of them."

"I hope James'll not lose his shit before the tournament. It'd be brilliant to see him play…" Albus said thoughtfully, thinking about his brother and how well he had played during the past months, compared to what had been before the winter break. He still didn't know what exactly had caused it, but hoped it would last. And it wasn't just about the game. James himself had changed a lot. He seemed to be a lot more focused on his career, but also… Albus felt like James actually wanted to get closer to his family, like he had been many, many years ago.

"Yeah?" Scorpius asked, eyeing Albus curiously. "How's it been? Living with him, I mean?"

Albus made a noncommittal noise. "It's all right, I suppose. He can be a right arse when he wants to, but, I dunno," Albus muttered. "He's doing better."

Living with James was mostly fine. James seemed to have become very pedantic about his daily routine, and at times, Albus knew he was annoying the shit out of his brother with his own messy schedule. Occasionally, the feeling was very much mutual. Then there was Scarlett, who came by every week since they couldn't really get on with it under Rose's nose. It clearly pissed James off at times, even with carefully placed silencing charms. There were other things as well, causing cracks into their coexistence. Even mentioning the upcoming Quidditch World Cup seemed to get James's pants in a tight twist, and as the tournament drew nearer, Albus was considering moving back to his parents' home, at least until he would have enough time and energy to buy or rent his own place.

"And your mum and dad?" Scorpius asked, a small frown between his brows.

Albus had told his best friend most of what he knew about the quarrel between his parents. His mother had moved back home nearly two weeks ago, and the little he had been able to see them during that time – their schedules didn't exactly match a lot – made him think that they were at least polite to one another. Trying to get past whatever it was that drove them apart. Even so, the thought of them being as happy as they had been before the incident the previous year, seemed almost unimaginable. Still, Albus hoped.

He sighed wearily. "I dunno, mate. I hope they'll figure it out."

Later that evening, Albus was in the kitchen, munching on some Flapjacks Fred had brought over the other day, made by his mother Angelina. They were what James liked to call an artery clogging goodness, opposed to the healthier versions he occasionally enjoyed. Albus didn't mind at all, as it meant they were all for him.

"Hello, stranger," Scarlett said, entering the kitchen and stopping next to the doorway.

Albus eyed her, his gaze lingering on the narrow patch of visible skin between her loose white shirt and her tight black jeans. Skin, he could soon touch and taste again, his brain helpfully reminded him. As Albus moved his eyes up to meet hers, he saw a ghost of a smirk on her lips, which made him wonder if she knew exactly what had drawn his eyes, and the thoughts that were occupying his brain at the moment.

He cleared his throat and swept his hands against his thighs, to get rid of the crumbs and stickiness from his fingers. "You look pretty," he murmured.

Scarlett smiled at him and walked closer, stopping right in front of him. "Thank you." She said sweetly and surprised Albus by taking his hand and bringing it close to her lips. "I think you missed a spot," she continued and closed her lips around the tip of his middle finger.

When Albus felt her tongue brushing the pad of his finger, he visibly shivered. "Fuck," He whispered, instantly reminded how good it had felt when those same lips were wrapped around his cock. Albus took a hold of her waist and backed her towards the counter, pushing himself firmly against her.

Scarlett leaned back, grinning at him. "How cavemanly of you."

Albus rolled his eyes and gave her an indifferent shrug. "I mean, we can have some tea and a good chinwag if that's the sort of thing you're after?"

Scarlett shook her head, sliding her hands around his neck and tugging him down to meet her lips. "No, I like multitasking more," she whispered, before pressing a kiss to his lips.

Their kiss was slow and wet, filled with heat and desire. Albus moved his fingers up to graze lightly the skin of her stomach, and felt her arch against his hips in answer. He groaned at the surge of pleasure in his groin, and moved his hands to open her trousers.

Scarlett pulled slightly back, to meet his eyes with equally heated and doubtful look. She tugged his hair, sending a sharp tremor down his spine, forcing him to lift his chin up.

"If you think I'm letting you go any further without locking the door and silencing the bloody room, Potter, you're delusional." She said with a sly smile, that widened to a grin when she pulled his hair with a firmer grip and made him groan in pleasure.

Albus blinked at her, nodding once, suppressing the need to relish her. "Yeah, you're right," He said roughly and took his wand from his back pocket, pointing it at the door.

He knew James wouldn't be at home for some hours, as he had only left to spend the evening at Fred's place. Still, it was sensible, to lock the door and silence the room, especially when they were about to shag in the middle of James's kitchen, instead of Albus's room.

He threw the wand on the counter and lifted his brows up at her.

"Good boy," Scarlett said with a small smile, her eyes watching him hungrily.

They kissed again, now fervently, licking into each other's mouths, their moans the only sounds in the room. That is, until Albus moved down to suck the tender skin under Scarlett's jaw.

She groaned and turned her head to the side. "Oh, that feels so good, Al…" She whispered, her hands trailing down his stomach. She then continued with more clearer voice, "Did you see Scorpius today? Did you talk about Rose?"

Albus stilled, his hands dropping away from her breasts. "W-What?" He mumbled and pulled back to frown at her.

Apparently, they were about to have that chat after all.

"You should've seen them yesterday, giving each other those long looks and exchanging innocent smiles," Scarlett said and looked slightly contemplative. "Rose messed up his order twice before getting it right – and it was tea," She said and gave Albus an incredulous look. "I mean, when are they going to admit it to each other?"

Albus swallowed down the disappointment that was crawling up his throat. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about his friend and his cousin with Scarlett – in fact, it was something he had been planning on, as soon as he had come home from Malfoy Manor. No, he was disappointed because he had been so bloody turned on, so hard for her, and then, in the midst of it, Scarlett had started to talk about Albus's cousin and his friend. Something that instantly made all the pleasure and hunger disappear, leaving him achingly empty.

He knew he could use Scarlett's help, if she was willing to meddle in Rose's affairs. He took a step back and trailed a hand through his hair, clearing his throat. "Maybe they just need, I dunno, a gentle kick in the arse?"

Scarlett hummed thoughtfully. "Perhaps." She muttered and stared at Albus's chest before giving him a sly look. "Rose and I might be going out on Saturday next week," Scarlett said with a meaningful look. "And, you know, if you two just happen to run into us at the same place, well –" She shrugged innocently. "What are the odds?"

Albus gave her a wry look. "Smooth."

Scarlett arched her brows at him. "I admit it is a bit obvious, but they're both too considerate to point that out."

Albus laughed and took a step closer, bringing his hands to her waist and squeezing her lightly. "You might be right," he said quietly, fascinated by the way she was reacting into his touch: the small hitch of breath, the flutter of eyelids.

"So, it's settled then. I'll text you the time and place." She said with a business-like expression and voice, before her eyes darkened and her voice softened. "Now, put your cock inside me, Albus Potter."

Albus guffawed. "You finished chatting about my cousin and my friend?" He asked with a pointed look.

Scarlett smirked at him, her fingers trailing against the front of his trousers, making him tense and burn for her once more. "Only one way to shut me up, love."

After Scarlett had left, and after Albus had made sure to scour the kitchen just in case, he was lounging on the sofa, in the middle of a book when James finally came home.

It was late, and the only light in the room came from a lamp positioned next to the sofa, giving Albus the perfect reading light.

"Hey," James greeted with a nod as he appeared from the hallway. He walked up to Albus, kicking his legs away to give him room on the other end of the sofa. "What's up?"

Albus sighed and put the book on the small side table before leaning against the corner of the sofa and shrugging at his brother. "Nothing new. How's Fred?"

"All right," James said and lifted his feet on the coffee table, giving Albus a mirthless smile. "Chatted with Nick as well."

Albus's brows moved up. "Yeah?" He knew James hadn't seen Nick in a couple of weeks, not after he and Rose had broken up.

James sighed. "It's weird now. I bloody well knew it would be," he said and shook his head as he scowled at the opposite wall.

Albus frowned at James. "Give it time," he said, earning a mild glare from his brother.

It was something he had told Emma, after the fiasco with her parents and grandparents. It was something he had told himself a long time ago, whenever he had thought about Scorpius or James, and now, when he thought about his parents. However, the words weren't really helping, even though there was a truth within them somewhere. Time always helped, to some extent. Helped people to cool down, helped them to remember what was important.

Time had helped, in Emma's situation with her family. A month ago, things had been very different. Now, Emma was talking about taking Amanda to a dinner to her parents' place. Emma's father seemed to have calmed down quite a bit after the truth had come out. He had even gone to see Albus's father – much to Albus's father's displeasure – and had given him a loud and pompous apology for bothering Albus's father about Albus and Emma, which had only managed to infuriate both Albus and his father. Still, it was good to have him back off and bother Amanda's parents for a change.

"So, what're you up to tomorrow?" Albus asked, knowing that James had a day off. Albus too had the morning off, as the game he was reporting the next day – played between Tutshill Tornados and Crimson Warhawks – wouldn't start until four in the afternoon. Even though it was nice to start a bit later than he usually did, it still meant that he would be working at least until midnight. Albus really preferred morning matches to the late afternoon ones. "Fancy a visit to the Burrow?"

James stiffened for a moment before he gave Albus a relaxed shake of his head. "Can't. Seeing Oliver tomorrow."

Albus nodded slowly, watching his brother curiously. "You guys have been hanging a lot together lately, haven't you?" He asked, assuming the two of them had finally managed to clear things up between them, after their fall out at Albus's birthday party.

James glanced at Albus with a slight frown between his brows and cleared his throat. "Yeah." He murmured and stood up, seeming slightly tense. "I'll – uh – need a shower," he grunted and walked out of the room before Albus could point out how weirdly he was acting all of a sudden.

Albus stared at the hallway where his brother had disappeared to, and eventually shrugged the thought away, pulling his phone from his pocket instead. He hesitated a bit, before typing a message to his friend, informing him that the weekend after next, when Albus would finally have some time off, they were going to go out together.

Scorpius replied to him with a sarcastic 'I will write it down on my calendar at once.', to which Albus rolled his eyes at and told his friend to sod off.