Tuesday February 15th 2023:
Scorpius found it, after roaming the dark and sinister forest for so long, he found it. He clutched the item in his hand and raced over to the clock tower courtyard where Albus was conveniently waiting.
"I found it!" Scorpius held up the item he found (being a wand fashioned out of Hornbeam wood with a phoenix feather core.)
"You found it!" Albus exclaimed. "I knew you would!"
"Anything for you."
Albus devotedly ran his hand along Scorpius' cheek. "I love you."
"I love you, too."
They kissed passionately up till Scorpius heard somebody calling his name from a distance. That voice awakened him back to reality where he was lying in bed in his dormitory with Dominic hovering over him.
"Scorpius, Albus is in the hospital wing."
"What? What for?" Scorpius asked tiredly.
"I'm not sure. He woke up in a lot of pain so I sent him to Madam Pomfrey. I wanted to let you know you."
"Thanks, I'll go there now." Scorpius stretched and rubbed his drowsy eyes. But he did not waste any more time and threw the blanket off himself to follow Dominic.
As Dominic informed, there in one of the hospital beds laid Albus.
"Albus! What happened?" Scorpius asked, rushing by his side.
"Nothing, just stomach pain, but I'm getting better," Albus said indifferently.
"He suffered through an ulcer," Madam Pomfrey said. "He does not need to stay overnight, but he still needs some rest from the potion given. So I suggest you two keep your visit brief."
"That's fine, madam. I even brought him some chocolate," Scorpius said, showing proof with wrappers and packages.
"Responsible choice." Followed by her approval, the patron tended to the other patients.
"An ulcer, huh?" Dominic asked, crossing his arms. "Sounds like all that stress of over studying finally caught up to you."
"Told ya," Scorpius boasted.
"Whatever. I'm sure it will be worth it in the end."
"Here," Scorpius said, handing his friend a Chocolate Frog.
Albus gladly took it, and because of Pomfrey being very occupied, the three of the Slytherins were able to chat and discuss their chocolate card collections. When Pomfrey eventually returned to check on Albus, she advised his visitors to leave.
Dominic was the only one to obey. "Get well, mate." Albus said her thanks as he left.
"Mam, I—"
Pomfrey raised her hand to prevent Scorpius from continuing. "I know. I remember the difficulty of separating you two, and you did bring him some chocolate, so I will give you five more minutes."
"Thank you, madam."
Again, Pomfrey left to tend other patients.
In a millisecond, Scorpius was inexplicably jittery.
"What's wrong?" Albus asked.
"I just realised the date today."
"Which is?"
"My mum's birthday." Three years have passed, but it was still difficult for Scorpius to mention his beloved mother without choking up.
"I'm sorry," Albus said tenderly.
"It's fine. I just need to – I mean – I shouldn't have forgotten. If my father found out--"
"Scorpius, it's still morning," Albus said, "and I'm assuming you just woke up?"
"Yeah, but--"
Albus pursed Scorpius' lips shut. "Relax."
"You're telling me to relax? Scorpius said in barely coherent mumbles from his pursed lips, but Albus got the gist. When he released Scorpius' lips, the blond said, "As you obviously picked up on, we take honoring her quite seriously. I'm lucky to be in Hogwarts, but my dad spends most of the year alone. I wish he had somebody to keep him company."
Albus smiled. "You're an utter sweetheart. You know that, right?"
Scorpius smiled as well, his back slumped and his hands trembling.
Albus held the blond's trembling hands, giving them a firm grip. They made eye contact and Scorpius was comforted by Albus' encouraging visage and grip.
That comfort was not long-lived when a woman's voice was heard. The voice did not belong to Madam Pomfrey, but Rita Skeeter.
"What's this? Two of the stars of my upcoming piece together in one room. Lovely."
"What are you doing here?" Albus asked.
"Here for a story, of course," Rita said, her quick-quotes-quill already scribbling away next to her in mid-air. "I realise we were set for an interview back at the beginning of your school year, and I apologise for the delay. However, my readers at the time were particularly more interested in the story concerning our Minister of Magic and her failing marriage."
"Yeah, I remember that," Albus said crossly. He remembered Rose and Hugo stumbling upon the article back last September, horrified by what they saw. Rose was furious with Skeeter for spreading rumours about her parents, whereas Hugo was more concerned for their monogamy. Ron and Hermione sent their children an owl that very same day assuring them that the incident Skeeter was referring to was them getting into an argument from her stress at work, but they made up and their marriage was still going strong. That did not stop the Granger-Weasley children from being overwhelmed with student's questions.
"What is this all about?" Pomfrey demanded. "My patients are trying to rest!"
"I only have a few quick questions for these dear boys," Rita said, drawing attention to Albus and Scorpius.
"Mr. Potter needs his rest. I suggest you leave this instant."
"Quite right. Can't have one of my sources for a nice juicy scoop not be in tip-top shape, can we?" Rita eyed Scorpius up. "Best start with you. Come along."
Scorpius stood up and apprehensively glanced over at Albus.
"Good luck," Albus said, just as apprehensive.
Rita forcefully guided Scorpius out of the hospital wing, and her absence greatly eased Madam Pomfrey.
Albus laid there concerned for Scorpius; he was already going through a rough time, and being around somebody of the likes of Skeeter was most likely going to overwhelm him.
Rita brought the antsy Scorpius to an unoccupied quiet room. She sat Scorpius and herself down on a stool and adjusted her spectacles. "Now then."
The room being dimly-lit, she pulled out a handful of tea lights from her crocodile-skin handbag and set off a flicker of flames using her wand. They floated in the air and Scorpius' nostrils tingled from the potent aroma of her perfume. She leaned towards the interviewee and said, "Tell me … Scorpius, is it? What is your relationship with the middle and youngest son of the oh so famous Harry Potter? Acquaintances? Rivals? Friends? Lovers?"
Being asked three questions in a row made Scorpius' stomach turn. But the "lover" option stumped him further. "Err, I --" The sound of the enchanted quill sprinting across the parchment did not ease his tension. How could it possibly be writing so much already? We're friends. Best friends."
Somehow the quill's speed increased even quicker. He wished he could read what was being written, but from his view the words were just a bunch of scribbles.
"Interesting, and your fathers, they're close friends as well?"
"Er, I'm not sure about that. I mean, they're alright with being around each other, but I wouldn't call them --"
"And what made you two decide to be friends?" Rita asked, keeping an everlasting watchful eye on the sixteen-year-old. "Was it an act of rebellion? To rise up against your father's views of each other?"
"N-No, I mean, I knew who Albus was, but we bonded when we first met on the Hogwarts Express, and that's when we decided to be friends."
"Mmm hmm," Rita mumbled nonchalantly. "Does your strong bond concern your fathers?"
Already Scorpius could pick up that Rose's theory regarding Skeeter's main interest being him and Albus' fathers was accurate. "No, they're not against us being friends --"
Rita's interest seemed to falter more and more with each answer. "You remarked how you knew Harry Potter's son when first being acquainted with him, but does he know who you are? The son of a Death Eater who is responsible for countless deaths under Voldemort's evil biddings?"
"My father has done awful things, but he was never a murderer!" Scorpius lashed out. That outburst brought back the captivated disposition of the interrogator. Noticing that he forgot he was just asked a question, he added, "Albus likes me for who I am."
"Well, that's what matters most, right?" Scorpius picked up that her comment was not truly genuine.
"Lovely, I believe that about wraps everything up."
Rita extinguished the flickering flames of her candles and proofread the parchment taken from her magicked quill.
"Are we finished?" Scorpius asked with a mix of hope and disorientation.
"Yes, yes, yes. I told you it would not be a long interview, did I not?" Rita smiled a smile revealing a couple of golden teeth. "You may go. Go frolic outside in the sunshine and enjoy your young years in bliss."
Was it a sunny day? Being rushed out of bed, to his primary focus on Albus' well-being as well as stressing over the date, and then being shut in a windowless room, Scorpius did not notice.
He exited the room – still smelling the incense – but he was relieved to get it all over and done with. It was certainly not fun, but it could have been worse.