Friday December 16th 2022:

Scorpius fastened his candy cane-striped tie – which easily clashed with his presentable black suit – catching a good glimpse of himself in the mirror. Instead of taking in how he presented himself in his reflection, all he could focus on was all of the possible things Albus wanted to tell him. From his tone, it suggested that it was important. Scorpius had realised that his friend seemed to be acting rather odd for quite some time, but he had hoped nothing was wrong.

"Are you ready?"

Scorpius perceived who was bringing up the rear in the mirror's reflection and grinned; his partner wore a vivid-green, silky kimono. The lowermost area of the kimono was decorated with big and beautiful snowflakes. A thin black choker was enveloped around her neck, and as usual, her hair was sleek and unaltered.

"My my. Look at you, fair lady," Scorpius said adoringly. Erika went scarlet and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "And yes, I am ready."

The couple joined each other arm in arm and took their leave of their common room.

Meanwhile, Albus was in his dormitory preparing himself for the party. He did not fancy getting all dressed up, but he was not in the mood for being judged. Though most importantly, he wished to appear his best for Scorpius, especially if he was to confess that night. At the same time, he could not help but wonder what Scorpius wanted to tell him. Hopefully it was not anything bad. Was there a possibility he wanted to tell him what he was planning to tell him? Quickly, he convinced himself that the scenario was unlikely, but he really wished it was the case. Now he was tense from the various questions and conceptualizations hovering over his mind, but he had to be brave.

The brunet checked himself one final time in the mirror; inspecting his navy blue dress robes and black bowtie with his dark, thick hair combed. He heaved a much needed sigh and departed.

XXX

Although Horace Slughorn was retired, the current atmosphere of his former office made it feel like he had never left.

Radiant golden and crimson lights bathed the vicinity of the room, and all guests were chatting and having some of the refreshments carried by the house elves squeakily passing by people's towering legs. Instruments played from a distant corner among all of the commotion emitting from the crowds, and Albus would have much preferred if the melody of those instruments were more vocal over the clamorous laughter and voices. His goal was to find Scorpius, but he could not detect him yet. The only familiar faces he saw – while scooting as far away from each guest as possible – were Rose, Lily, Louis, and to his dismay, Dylan. His search came to a halt from the view of Scorpius and Erika speaking by the fireplace. He made his way over to join them before somebody obstructed his path.

"Merlin's beard, it's a pleasure to have you here, Mr. Potter," Slughorn greeted, eagerly shaking the teen's hand, with his free grasp holding his drink. "Your mother and father were some of my best members."

Albus was already uncomfortable, wanting nothing more than to escape. The last thing he wanted to discuss was his family and how popular they were.

"It's a shame that I didn't get to know your brother for very long before retiring. I could already tell he was a boy of great skill. No doubt talent runs in the family, eh?" Slughorn said genially, nudging Albus with his elbow.

"I guess."

"Well, no matter. Now I have the whole set here. Now I get the privilege to meet you and your sister." Slughorn's pupils seemed to dilate, making Albus even more rattled than he already was.

"Don't you fret, m'boy. I won't keep you here. Go ahead and mingle!" Slughorn patted Albus' back and cleared away from his path. That interaction was more short-lived than Albus expected, but he was not complaining.

"Hey!" Scorpius said when seeing Albus. Albus grinned when joining the two. "Hey."

"How are you holding up in this crowd, Albus?" Erika asked.

Albus lightly chuckled. "My second party this year, that's a record for me." Erika and Scorpius laughed. "But I'm fine. As long as I don't have to speak to anyone else, I should be alright."

"Parties can make you feel like you are in a restricted setting. Just make sure not to wear yourself out," Erika said sincerely.

Albus grinned. "Good call. Thanks."

Erika grinned as well and then glanced between the two friends. "I'll leave you two be for now."

"Why?" Albus asked, secretly happy to be alone with Scorpius. Erika just left. It was difficult for Albus to decipher if she even heard him or not before leaving.

"I'm really glad you made it," Scorpius said. "You look great … i-in those colors I mean."

"Thanks. You look dashing as well, even if the tie is a little out of place."

"Hey, it's Christmas-themed!"

Albus made every effort to be patient, but he was failing. "So, what was it you wanted to tell me? Is that why Erika left?"

"Yes, but you just got here. Let's enjoy the party a bit, huh?"

Part of that suggestion struck Albus as a Scorpius-ish answer, but it also struck him as his way of being hesitant. "Alright, I suppose. But I fail to see how we can enjoy a party like this without talking to other people. There's nothing else to really do."

"Relax. Have some treats, appetizers, enjoy the music, hang out with me," Scorpius said contentedly.

Albus agreed, but there was no way it was going to be unchallenging to strike up a conversation with Scorpius without bringing up the subject of what Scorpius was preparing to reveal to him, and vice versa. He was proven to be right the moment they started talking. Small talk or deep conversations came naturally for the two, but they were both too absorbed with the unknown of each other's unspoken words to focus on anything else. The conversations were not so much conversations, but rather chats with an abundance of silences and absence of eye contact. Even the chats themselves were nothing substantial. Generally calling attention to their surroundings, making little comments. Even then, their surroundings were reasonably ordinary.

The two Slytherins picked several treats and appetizers from the trays being served by the house-elves, and Albus helped one out when accidentally tripping over someone's foot. Fortunately, the tray fell with the treats still intact, so Albus passed the tray to the nervous, wide-eyed house-elf, and he was given a quiet but stridulate thank you in return. That was a rare moment when he was not with Scorpius during the party, which was when Professor Slughorn took the opportunity to verge upon the young Potter.

The warlock went on and on about the previous Potters in his club and their accomplishments. The only portion of his tellings that kept Albus momentarily invested was about his talented grandmother (who went by Lily Evans at the time) and her time at Hogwarts. The story of Lily gifting Slughorn with a transfigured fish into a lily petal, and the fish disappearing the day she was murdered filled Albus with mixed emotions. On one hand, he was in awe of his grandmother's skills. He had been told of her brilliance, but he was never told this story. On the other hand, he was lamenting her loss more than he had ever done.

Those feelings were punctuated by Slughorn's slurring grieving words over his beloved student's loss, and the stench of alcohol from his mouth as he spoke barely an inch away from Albus.

Scorpius rescued Albus and said his greetings and farewells to Slughorn, and Albus just said his farewells. Scorpius led Albus back over to the fireplace to chat, but Albus was not out of the park yet. More social interaction headed his way in the forms of Rose and Lily. Fortunately for Albus they were not particularly conversational at that moment because of just escaping Slughorn's clutches.

"Pardon my interruption, ladies," Scorpius eventually said, "but Albus and I need to talk."

"Oh, what about?" Rose asked with a perfect blend of curiosity and pestering.

"You two will find out at some point," Scorpius said, winking.

"Oooohh!" The Gryffindors said in unison.

Albus followed Scorpius, and when he briefly turned back in the girl's direction, Lily was whispering something to Rose while Rose winked at him.

The Slytherins walked off to a precise spot where nobody else was, amid two brocade curtains. By the setup, it felt like they were finding a hiding place to snog; Albus blushed from the thought

"So, enjoying yourself?" Scorpius asked, closing the drape next to him. "Yeah. Not bad," Albus said, his heartbeat racing from their current setting.

"I saw you help out one of the house-elves," Scorpius said. "Aren't you a sweetheart."

"Oh, yeah. Twiddles said he's going to make me something special in the kitchens tomorrow for helping him out."

"Twiddles?"

"That's the house-elf's name."

"Oh," Scorpius said nervously. "That makes sense."

Albus waited, his heart still racing.

"What did Slughorn tell you?"

"Things he usually does, but this time he told me a story I never knew about my grandmother, Lily."

"Really? What?"

Albus curled his lip. "You're stalling, aren't you?"

Proving Al's theory about Scorpius being hesitant earlier, Scorpius tittered and fumbled with his thumbs. "Well, I really do want to know more about the Lily Potter, and I do want to know how your night went, but besides that, I suppose I am a bit."

"I promise I'll tell you what he told me later."

"Brilliant!" Scorpius said. He plucked up his courage and drew in a breath. "Okay, so, we've been best friends for a while. As friends, we're not supposed to hide things from each other. And I admit that I've been keeping something from you--"

"Well, you're telling me now," Albus said. "But, it depends on how bad it is. I'll decide if I should kick your arse or not, based on what you say."

Both of them chuckled, and Scorpius continued, "Because of people tailing me around the castle, Erika wished to keep a low profile, and I agreed to it.."

Now Albus was confused. Low profile about what? What did Erika have to do with this?

"But we both agreed that we are now willing to go through with it, and you're the first person I should tell." Scorpius stumbled and peered into Albus' eyes. "Albus, Erika and I are dating."

Albus' body stiffened, feeling just as if somebody shot him with the Freezing Charm from behind, followed by that same person coming over to punch him in the gut. He was speechless.

Scorpius could already tell that Al was not taking the news well, but he craved for him to say something. Finally, Albus remembered how to properly speak and asked, "For how long?"

Relieved for the response, but not so much the dull tone, Scorpius cautiously answered, "Since the end of my birthday party."

"And, it's serious?" Albus almost did not want to hear the answer.

'Well, just between you and me, we were hinting at going to third base tonight," Scorpius bragged. He quickly caught on to his mistake when Albus was back to being quiet and scary. Scorpius remained silent and observed, like he was trying not to provoke a creature. Facing dangerous creatures was never really his strong suit, it was more Albus' thing, but this time Albus was the provoked creature.

Albus' anger heightened, ready for eruption. "You bloody idiot." He stormed off, leaving Scorpius alone amidst the drapes. Never has he seen Albus that upset with him, and it frightened him.

Emerging from the front of the drapes was Erika. "Scorpius, is everything alright? I saw Albus run off."

"I'm fine. I... just don't know what happened. I suppose he really was upset that I kept something like this from him." Scorpius' attention did not stray away from where Albus departed.

Erika grasped Scorpius' shoulder. "Obviously I don't know Albus as much as you do, but I think he needs time to cool off. He'll come around."

"I hope so," Scorpius said. "He didn't even tell me what he wanted to say."

XXX

Albus growled the password to the invisible barrier guarding the Slytherin common room, and when he entered his dimly-lit dormitory, he kicked whatever was nearest to him (which was his bedside drawer), and he sat on his bed with his face buried in his hands.

How could Scorpius be so foolish? Or, was he the foolish one for believing there was a chance? What about all of those flirty moments? Were they even flirty moments? Was he looking too deep into this? How could Scorpius not tell him? Albus understood not wanting to attract attention, but he hated gossip; shouldn't Scorpius have trusted him enough for that?

Abruptly, Albus picked up on the sound of footsteps. Dominic was the only dorm mate present in the room, but he was asleep with earplugs in. If the footsteps belonged to any of his other dorm mates – especially Scorpius – he was very opposed to talking, so he pulled out the Invisibility Cloak James loaned him and sheaved himself.

To Albus' confoundment, it was not any of his dorm mates, not even a Slytherin. "Lily?" He asked, exposing himself.

Lily gasped from the sudden reveal. "Wait, is that James' Cloak that dad gave him?" "Yes."

"No fair! I want to try it out sometime."

"What are you doing here, Lil?" Albus asked irritably.

"Come to check up on you," Lily said, approaching the bed.

"I mean how did you get in here?"

"Oh, I just walked in when the common room door was still open after a Slytherin said the password."

"But you're not supposed to be here."

"You weren't supposed to be in the Gryffindor common room either."

Albus paused until remembering that she was referring to her first year at Hogwarts when he comforted her during a storm. "Fine, fine, fine. What do you want?'

"I just told you."

"I'm not exactly in the mood for talking," Albus argued, not bothering to look at her.

"You already are. Just tell me what happened."

"No."

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me."

"Dominic over there is a prefect. I could wake him up and let him know you're here," Albus said, pointing to Dominic snoring under the covers.

"I've seen Dominic before. He's a nice bloke. I'm pretty sure I can convince him it's for a good cause."

"I don't know, he takes his responsibilities seriously. And Bert Macmillan won't be so easy on you."

Every aspect of Lily suddenly softened, from her expression, to her body language, and to her voice. "Please tell me what's wrong. You could tell me and I'll leave."

"I said no!"

Being yelled at, Lily's bright-brown eyes resembled a puppy's. Seeing how she reacted filled Albus with regret and he calmed down. "Sorry, it's not your fault..."

"It's Scorpius'?" Albus huffed.

Lily perched herself next to her sibling and asked as gently as possible, "What's wrong?"

Albus cursed to himself. Being asked that question in a gentle, concerned way always made him crack, and that was still the case this time because his eyes welled up with tears and his lips quivered. Not having the energy to contain his heartbreak any longer, a great tremor overtook him; his face strained, and his hands concealed his face as tears threatened to be released. He sobbed with sniffs and hitched breaths as Lily rubbed his back. She did not say a word, she simply awaited for her brother to speak first when ready.

When he was finally competent with talking properly without constant stutters and incomprehensible words, Albus sniffed and said, "Scorpius is dating Erika Yushamor. Without me knowing for months now."

"What? I didn't know about this, and I usually know all of the gossip," Lily said. "But I did notice them hanging out more than usual."

"Nobody else knew. They were keeping it a secret to avoid attention."

"It's like a forbidden love story. That's kind of romantic." Albus glared at Lily with intense, red, swollen eyes. "Never mind. Ahem, so you're upset because he kept this from you?"

"Y-Yeah," Albus said, wiping his tears.

Lily upheaved a brow. "Seriously? You're sobbing because he didn't tell you something as simple as dating someone?" She laughed. "Nice try."

"Huh?" Albus asked impatiently.

"I know what's really going on. You can't fool me." Lily shifted Albus' tear-stained face towards her with both brows raised this time.

More tears recruited and cascaded down Albus cheeks. "Fine! I'm in love with him, okay?" He held himself and his sniffs were more constant. "It hurts."

Lily could feel Albus' pain when saying those two words in such a hushed, fragile way. All of these years she had been enlightened by Albus' fierce discomfort of crying in front of others. With him openly telling her all of this and allowing himself to be so vulnerable, she knew that his love for Scorpius was serious. "I just can't believe it. Rose is right, he really is that dumb."

"I can't believe I actually thought there was a chance that he actually liked me more than a friend," Albus mumbled, more to himself than Lily. "I thought he did. I should have listened to Cora."

"Well, duh! Everyone saw that you two fancied each other!"

Being so distracted by their discussion and emotions, the pair of Potters did not heed Scorpius entering the room.

"Albus, are – what are you doing here, Lil?" Scorpius asked. Even though he just asked that, his central focus was Albus. The sight of Albus' deeply sorrowful expression caught on to Scorpius, feeling like he was close to crying himself.

"He doesn't want to talk with you right now," Lily snapped.

"I just wanted to see if he was okay—"

"Does he look okay to you?!"

Albus may have been bitter with Scorpius, but he stopped Lily from persisting.

Scorpius eyes profoundly gaped into Albus', both of them sharing the same pained expression. "I'm so sorry, Albus," Scorpius said quietly, walking away. Everything about that farewell made Albus cry even more. He hugged Lily and she returned the hug, firmly holding his back. She soothed his cries with circular rubbing motions, and the longer she did that, the more calm her brother became.

Albus dislocated from the hug but Lily embraced an arm around his shoulders. "Thanks. For checking up on me, I mean," Albus said weakly.

"Of course." Lily tightened her embrace around Albus' shoulders.

"Are you leaving now?"

"I can leave if you wan--"

"No! I mean, can you – stay with me a little longer?"

Lily grinned. "I can stay as long as you want me to. The party was kinda dull anyway."

XXX

Scorpius met up with Erika in the common room, disheartened.

"I'm guessing by the look on your face that it didn't go well?" Erika asked.

"I've never seen him this hurt before. And trust me, I've seen him in a down mood quite often." Scorpius looked back at the staircase leading to the boy's dormitories.

"Poor Albus," Erika sympathised. She held Scorpius' cheek and added, "He's probably got other stuff going on right now. Wait till tomorrow and I'm sure you two will make up in no time."

Scorpius nodded and accompanied Erika back to the party, but not before fixing his gaze on the staircase one last time. He hoped Albus would be okay.