Summary: Scorpius knew he shouldn't have returned to Hogwarts.

Rated: K

Genre: Family

Warnings: Character Death; Grief/Mourning

Competition/Challenge Block
Written for/Stacked with: The Houses Competition (Year 8); Monthly Challenges for All (Year 4)
THC: Slytherin - Astronomy; Standard ([Theme] Trying (or succeeding) to understand what somebody is going through.; [Emotion] Devastation)

MC4A:

Word Count: 1,114

Beta: Bailey; Hope; Dhrish

Author's Note: Albus uses they/them pronouns. Both Scorpius and Albus are in Ravenclaw.

Will We Be Okay?

It happened right after the new year.

Scorpius stupidly returned to school after winter holidays against his best judgement and the insistence from his father. Mother wished for him to return, too. He should have refused. What good would he be in school so far away from her? From the invitable?

The result was nothing but pain, regret, and heartache.

The letter came by owl from his father over breakfast three days into the New Year. Scorpius shakily opened the letter while idly stroking Screech's—the eagle owl—neck in a feeble attempt to keep him grounded and connected to reality, but his world crumbled around him into millions of tiny little pieces anyway. Each sloppy cursived word became blurrier than the last; Scorpius couldn't even finish reading it before he dashed out of the Great Hall like lightning. He already knew what the rest of it would say.

Scorpius found himself up in the Astronomy Tower when he finally stopped crying and was aware enough to take in where he wound up. The cool morning air bit against his tear-stained face, but all he did was pull his cloak tighter around him and sniffed. The letter was crumpled up tightly in his hand, but he couldn't bring himself to finish reading it. Instead, he watched the white flurries trying their best to form drifts in the otherwise sun-speckled morning that bled through the clouds.

Another hard sniff had Scorpius shivering. A gust of wind whistled through the partially enclosed space and snagged the letter from his now-lax and cold fingers in the process. He watched as the parchment danced out into the open air with the breeze. He couldn't figure out what he was supposed to feel; it all swirled chaotically in his gut. Despair, anger, sadness, rage… pure uncontrollable sorrow. It left him mixed up and stewing in his own devastation of this new reality, his new life.

"H-hey," a voice said from behind him.

Scorpius stiffened, but didn't respond to his best friend who now slowly approached. Albus sat down beside him, pulling their own blue-lined cloak tighter around them once settled on the cold, hard stone.

"Your uh…" Albus bit their lip, looking at Scorpius' disheveled condition. "Your dad's here. We got your things packed already."

"So?"

Scorpius wanted to swat Albus' hand off his shoulder, but instead, he curled further into himself and bowed his head, turning his face away. He didn't want to snap at his best friend, but it was almost impossible to keep a lid on his emotions.

"He's looking for you. I told him I'd find ya…" Albus trailed off, not sure what to say. "I know what you're going through is—"

Scorpius scoffed, silencing Albus when he glared at them with red-rimmed eyes. "Oh, yeah? How's that? Because last time I checked, you still have your mum."

"Yeah—"

"So don't you dare even think that you know what I am feeling or going through!" Scorpius snapped.

Albus withdrew their hand, startled by the hostility. "Okay. But what I was saying is…"

"I don't want your pity or soppy words of comfort, either," Scorpius hissed out. "You don't have a bloody clue how I am!"

Albus ruffled a hand through their already unruly hair. "You're right. I may not truly know what you are feeling or going through, but I am still here for you no matter what, in any way you need me to be."

Scorpius returned it with a roll of his eyes. "Don't start with that rubbish, either. It doesn't make a difference in the end, feeling sorry for me… Won't fix anything..."

"No, maybe not," Albus said, scooting closer to Scorpius' side and draping their arm around his shoulders despite the tension. "But it's better than being up here freezing your arse off alone with only your thoughts."

Scorpius let out an exasperated sigh, shaking his head at the terrible lighthearted statement.

"Look, I know you're upset. Be angry at me, that's fine. Get it out of your system, it will do you good. I'll still be here anyway."

All hostility and anger dissipated in a blink of an eye once Scorpius made the realization that he wasn't going to scare Albus away with harsh words. They were right, after all. He knew they meant well; he was only lashing out because Albus was the only person there to receive it. That is when it hit him, that hollowed, gaping emptiness ripping through his chest. The only thing that held him together, in that moment, was Albus. He wrapped an arm around his best friend then, dropping his head onto their shoulder. Another fresh wave of sorrow slammed into him again and he simply let it happen.

Fresh, hot tears clouded silver-gray eyes, and Scorpius buried his face into Albus' shoulder as his sobs racked his body. Albus held him, letting their best friend cry it out. It was how Scorpius' father and the Headmistress found them several minutes later, huddled together in nothing but their cloaks and Scorpius crying silently.

"Malfoy, Potter. Let's get you out of the cold," Headmistress McGonagall said.

Albus slowly got up, keeping Scopius in a loose hug as they helped him to his feet. Scorpius practically ignored his father while they followed the Headmistress to her office, that raw feeling of utter devastation reverting back to anger.

"I want Albus to come with me," Scorpius said through a thick, watery voice.

"Very well. I will notify your parents, Mr. Potter."

"Thank you, Headmistress," Albus muttered.

Scorpius flinched at the word 'parents', but a bubble of courage seemed to spill out of him in that moment. Releasing Albus, he rounded on his father.

"You shouldn't have made me come back here!" he yelled, voice cracking. "I should've stayed home! Stayed with her… But you! You..."

Scorpius' anger faltered for a minute, and his hands that were clamped into fists slacked. He was rooted to the spot in front of his father, but the second he draped his arms around him, Scorpius crumbled yet again. He leaned into his father, fresh tears dripping from his chin. The hard sniff rocked through his body, and the warm, heavy hands on his back only pressed further against him, holding him in place. It was only then did Scorpius realize that his father was kneeling and his face was buried in his chest.

"It hu-hurts… so… mu-much..."

"Shh… Let it out… it's okay," his father whispered, and Scorpius felt himself shaking even more. "We will be okay…"

"W-will we?" Scorpius sobbed out heavily. "It feels… s-so…"

"I know," his father continued. "Maybe not now. But in time… someday, we will be okay."