Title: The Summer Trials Part III
Author: phys_nut
Beta: the faboo dwarfandelf – cheers for the help!! :)
Summary: Albus tracks down the second clue
Word Count: 5,012
Pairings: AS/S
Warnings: some heavy swearing, girly shrieking, utter campness, and dirty ankle massages
Disclaimer: none of this is mine, it all belongs to the fabulous JK and her minions
A/N: howaya!! here's the next chapter of the summer trials, and we'll be following albus as he takes on his next task! a big giant thanks to XxThe Grey Lady xX and ive-already-seen-hell for your lovely reviews, i'm glad you're enjoying my fic! :D
Chapter 3: Nothing Like the Smell of France in the Morning!
Albus blinked in surprise at the now empty field and then down at the note in his hand. Was that some sort of glamour or charm? Had any of it been real? And what was that strange glow he'd spotted just as he had reached for the clover?
"Huh, the grasshopper was right," Albus murmured, as he turned back and walked over to Charlie.
He felt extremely tired all of a sudden, and wanted nothing but to lie down and sleep.
"You okay Al?" Charlie asked excitedly, "She was a bit of a bi-hatch eh? But you got her in the end! So what does the next clue say? Do you know where we've to go? Do I get to fly again?"
"I'm fine, yes she was, yes I did, I don't know, no and I don't know again, now shh," Albus murmured, pulling out his wand and setting his tent up.
He pulled off his jacket and boots, set up wards and got into the tent, crawling into bed.
"We're sleeping here?" Charlie asked in a half-nonchalant, half-terrified voice, "What if those nasty faeries come back?"
"I'm sure they won't and if they do I've set up wards so they won't get near us," Albus yawned.
"…Albus?"
"Mmhmm?"
"I can't sleep."
"Count sheep."
"…It's not working…Will-will you tell me a story?"
"…There once was a motorbike that liked to sing, but liked to sleep even better, and everyone was happy when he did, especially his owner who was very tired," Albus mumbled into his pillow, frowning slightly as he concentrated on falling asleep.
"Allbuuuusss! That wasn't a story at all!" Charlie whined, "Tell me a proper one, pleeeaaassseee?"
Albus huffed angrily, propping himself up on his pillow – he was entirely too grumpy when he was tired.
"What story do you want to hear?" he sighed.
"Um…oh, could you tell me about Scorpius?"
"What about him?" Albus asked in slight surprise.
"Anything! How did you become friends? What's he like?"
"Hmm, well, at first he was just this bloke who I shared a dorm with, kind of quiet and shy, but we got along alright," Albus shrugged, and then grinned as he continued, "We became best friends in third year; we bumped into each other on our way to pull pranks – me on James and him on my cousin Freddy. When we realised what was going on, we figured we'd help each other out, you know, Slytherins-in-arms and all that. Pulled the pranks off perfectly, but we were caught sneaking into the kitchen for a well-deserved midnight snack. We spent most of detention joking and flinging charms at each other, and it only got better from there. Scorp….he's brilliant really; wicked sense of humour, really smart, adorably snobby and ridiculously sneaky, I can never quite know what he's thinking at times. He's -*yawn*- my best friend. He's arrogant…and -*yawn*- gets offended at really little things, but he…he gets on great -*yawn*- with my -*yawn*- family…I'd do…anything…"
Albus' head dropped onto his pillow with a soft thud as he drifted off. Charlie yawned, starting to drift off.
"And you don't know why you were put in this category," he scoffed fondly, and fell asleep too.
Albus and Scorpius were somewhere, Albus couldn't tell, but they were lounging on bean bags, Albus' feet in Scorpius' lap, Scorpius lazily tracing patterns on the skin just above Albus' ankle.
"Where are we Scorp?" Albus asked, looking around at the bare room.
"If you can't figure that out I'm not telling you," Scorpius replied snippily, giving Albus A Look.
Out of nowhere, it suddenly dawned on Albus, as all answers seemed to in dreams.
"Oh yeah, the Room of Requirement," he grinned, "Good choice."
"Thank you," Scorpius smiled back, squeezing Albus' ankle, causing Albus to blush and melt a little.
He has SUCH a thing for having his ankles touched; all his previous boyfriends and girlfriends had indulged him, but none were as good as Scorpius, who seemed to instinctively know what to do to turn Albus into a pile of goo.
"Say Al, how about we play a game?"
"Okay, what do you want to play?"
"Hide and Seek," Scorpius said coyly, massaging Albus' ankle some more.
"Okay," Albus replied agreeably, though there was a voice in the back of his mind that screamed out this was a bad idea.
Albus couldn't help himself though; Scorpius was giving him THE look; the look where his eyes danced and hovered with a myriad of emotions, like he was trying to decide between two very tempting decisions. It made Albus itch to do something, to tell Scorpius to make the decision already, because he'd go along with it no matter what.
"Good," Scorpius smirked, "I'll hide first."
With that, he lay down on the floor, crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes.
And started to turn grey and faded around the edges.
"Scorp?" Albus asked, kneeling up and tentatively reaching out to him.
"You have to find me Al," Scorpius' voice spoke, from the air around him, "Can you do that? Will you?"
"Of course I will, you know that," Albus frowned, reaching out-
- And gasping in shock as his hand went through Scorpius, who had now turned transparent.
"You'll have to be brave and clever and cunning. You'll have to use all your strength and loyalty. Can you do that Albus; can you do that for me?"
"Yes, yes!" Albus cried desperately, as Scorpius faded away completely, a faint glow remaining, "Scorpius-"
"Scorpius!" Albus yelled, throwing himself out of bed in a flurry of movement.
He bolted upright, wand in hand and sat, panting harshly and trembling. Just a dream. Just a messed up fucking dream. The sound of Charlie's snoring drifting in from outside surprisingly helped Albus calm down, but he buried his face in his hands as a wave of loneliness hit him, eating at his gut. Well, there was no way he was getting back to sleep now. Shaking away the last vestiges of sleep, he reached for his jacket and pulled out the next clue.
Hop o' my thumb, and find the well, where upon you shall ask for a drink. The sausage-nosed woman shall lead the procession, and the jewel from the mouth of a pretty girl shall bring the fortune you seek. But hearken! Giants lie abroad!
"Ahh," Albus grinned, "Ahha, ahahaha! Ha!" he crowed in delight, hopping up and dancing out of the tent into the early morning light, "Too easy, tooooo easy!"
"Huh, wha?" Charlie yawned, waking up with a snort, "Whaass goin on?"
"I figured out the next clue," Albus grinned, totally and utterly pleased with himself.
"Ooo, what is it?" Charlie asked excitedly.
Albus read out the clue and went on to explain, "They're all French fairytales. My Aunt Fleur used to tell them to us when we were little…and once when we visited France, I remember she took us to see a little well where a witch used to play tricks on muggles, I bet that's the well from the fairytales!"
"So we're going to France?"
"Looks like it."
"Woo!"
After a quick breakfast, Albus packed up, and hopping up on Charlie, cast a concealment and warming charm and off they went. As they started flying up, Albus heard new music starting to play, and then a voice joined in.
"Nobody left in the airport lounge
They cleaned the ashtrays
TV's just wound down
I've got to wait till morning
I've got to last the night
I've only got one book
To see me through my flight
But when I get to Paris…"
"Ooo, new theme song, and it's Elton!" Charlie cooed happily, while Albus groaned – oh Merlin, he HATED Elton John!
There was no doubt about it; he would have to concentrate on something else, or he would kill himself after five minutes of this shit. He let his mind wander, and of course it lead to the inevitable: Scorpius, Scorpius, Scorpius. He recalled his earlier dream, two things sticking out vividly: the ankle massage, and The Look. They were quite possibly, two of Albus' favourite things for Scorpius to do, and he remembered the last time Scorpius had done both…Recalling the memory, Albus let himself sink into it, reliving the time…
Scorpius and Albus were lounging on Albus' bed; Albus stretched out along its length, and Scorpius sitting at the head of the bed, massaging his ankles in a most delicious manner. They had decided to spend the Easter holidays at Albus' and were reminded of that by the sounds of Harry and Ginny playfully arguing over their one-on-one quidditch game outside, and muggle music blaring from Lily's room next door. Currently she was playing some song about stars being blind; it was by a muggle, who, according to Lily, back in her hay-day had used a mixture of beauty and cunning to manipulate people into getting her way. As such, Lily idolised her and had spent most of the school year saying, "That's hot," about anything and everything.
"So, NEWTs soon," Scorpius murmured drowsily, his hand tightening and relaxing, fingers brushing up and down Albus' ankle.
"Mmm," Albus hummed, caught up in enjoying the massage too much for any serious conversation…or any conversation at all really.
"And then the Fairytale Trials."
"Mmm."
"And then we're off to St. Mungos."
"Yeah…oh yeah, right there."
"Your ankle fetish is completely ridiculous and laughable."
"As long as you don't stop, feel free to laugh away."
"Hahahahah," Scorpius deadpanned.
"Ooer, what an enthusiastic laugh," Albus chuckled, groaned as Scorpius found a particularly sensitive spot and then said, "So, what do you think you'll do when we qualify as proper medi-wizards?"
"Well to be honest I was thinking of opening my own practise…"
"Oh yeah?"
"Mmm…and er…I could really, sort of…well, having a business partner wouldn't be so bad."
"Why Scorpius, I thought you'd never ask," Albus gasped in mock surprise.
"You've known for ages I was going to ask," Scorpius stated, eyeing Albus narrowly.
"Well we have been talking about specialising in blood magic illnesses since fourth year," Albus grinned.
Scorpius pursed his lips and replied snippily, "You could have spared me the trouble."
"I wanted to hear you ask."
"Even though I never had to?" Scorpius threw back.
Albus couldn't help but smile THAT SMILE at him. It was his patented Scorpius smile; not because he had made it for Scorpius, but because it was a smile that only his best friend could bring out; coaxing it from him as naturally as Scorpius gave him massages. It was by far Albus' favourite smile, because it was for Scorpius and Scorpius alone, and because it always brought The Look into Scorpius' eyes. It was the same look that he got when faced with a difficult question; his eyes would fly from side to side, and various different emotions would flicker across his face as he sorted through his options. Normally, it would begin to slow down until it stopped as he reached a decision. However, with Albus, it seemed to speed up if anything, almost as if he were dancing around whatever decision he had to make. At times he seemed truly distressed, and Albus wished he knew what was going on in his friend's head so he could help him make a decision. Now though, The Look, combined with the massage, which now held a pleasant amount of light scratching, was totally and utterly alluring.
"You know you never have to," Albus said, still smiling, "Which is why I love that you do."
Scorpius licked his lips, eyes still dancing as he whispered, "You deserve it."
"And you are so wonderful for that," Albus breathed.
He had never wanted to kiss Scorpius as badly as he did then, but it was because Scorpius was truly wonderful; with his look and massages and wanting to open a practise together and only ever asking Albus questions he didn't need to, and all the things that made up his best friend.
Albus sighed and groaned, pushing his feet up against Scorpius' stomach, seeking more friction from the massage.
"And your massages are the most wonderful thing of all," he groaned.
Scorpius snorted and gave a hard, shiver-inducing scratch down his calf and murmured fondly, "Ankle freak."
Albus came back slowly from the memory; back to the smell of the sea they were flying over, the music, and Charlie's loud signing. It wasn't so bad really, when he had the memories of the strength of his and Scorpius' bond to fall back on.
"We'll drink in the amber, when I get to Paris, You were the best of Montmarte Street Life," he sang along quietly, smiling a bit more and more as they zipped across the Irish Sea and then the English Channel.
The sun beat down fiercely as Albus finally landed Charlie outside his aunt's summer chateau; it had been Aunt Fleur's parents', and was now shared between her and her sister. All extended family were welcome at any time (Fleur had a deep sense of welcoming hospitality, she could be on her deathbed and would still demand to be the first to greet a new guest at the door), and there was usually someone present, regardless of the time of year. Albus pulled off his helmet and gloves and wiped the sheen of sweat off his brow before hopping off Charlie.
"I'm heading inside, are you going to be okay here?" he asked the bike, who replied, "Mmm yeah, I'm wrecked, so I'll just take a nap."
Albus nodded, then headed to the front door and rang the bell. As the sound died down, Albus could hear skipping footsteps approaching and the door was thrown open with a cheery, "Bonjour!" to reveal his cousin Louis.
Out of the three Delacour-Weasley children, Louis was the most like his mother and the most passionate about his French heritage. He had long silvery hair, with the barest red sheen in it, piercing blue eyes and a willowy figure. While Victoire had embraced England with all her might in a vain attempt to pursue Teddy, and Dominique had taken after her father in the curse-breaker business, Louis had demanded that he be educated in Beaubaxtons (he was heading into his last year in September), spoke French as much as he could get away with, and had a strange affinity for berets. He was also extremely passionate and romantic, falling in love with every boyfriend (all four of them) he had ever had and even claiming to have fallen for a woman who was thirty years his senior, despite the fact that he was EXTREMELY gay. He was totally odd, and thus, one of Albus' favourite cousins.
"Mon dieu, Albus! Quelle surprise!" Louis shrieked happily, flinging himself into Albus' arms and kissing his cheeks, "What are you doing here? Is that a motorbike? Have you come to sweep me off my feet?" he winked playfully.
Albus grinned; he missed Louis' need to flirt with absolutely everyone (including Albus' parents and anyone unlucky enough to be in the same area as him). It was never serious, just some messing and a means for Louis to "keep my skills sharp," so Albus indulged him, safe in the knowledge that Louis never actually wanted anything.
He replied, "You wish mate. I'm actually carrying out a task for the Fairytale Trials."
"Ooo la la! How wonderful!" Louis cheered, then paused, frowned and looked around.
"But where is Scorpius? He is taking part in this with you, non?"
Albus' face fell at the mention of his best friend, and he replied glumly, "He's…under an enchanted sleep, it's why I'm here."
"Oh my!" Louis exclaimed, taking Albus' arm, "Come inside and rest yourself and I will get us wine from the cellar."
"But it's not even twelve yet."
"Wine knows no boundaries, not in France!" Louis called merrily, pushing Albus down on a large flowery couch and skipping out of the room.
Albus laughed and shook his head; Louis was always eager to hear everyone's story and gossip, and to make everyone as comfortable as possible, even if it meant getting them sloshed. A moment later, Louis appeared, wine bottle and two glasses in hand. A flick of the wand and the bottle was opened and their glasses full.
"So, tell me everything," Louis said, smoothing out his trousers and taking a sip of wine.
Albus took a sip of his, and then told his cousin the whole story. Louis listened intently, gasping and cheering at the different events that happened.
"My goodness Albus," he breathed when Albus had finished his story, "You are on quite an adventure, and Scorpius too! Oh," he sighed, eyes twinkling and going all soft and dreamy, "What a beautiful and romantic journey you and Scorpius are on! You both deserve it, I'm so happy for you!"
"You're cracked," Albus snorted, "How much wine have you had already?"
"Not nearly enough," Louis grinned, "But I am being serious here Albus, as I am with all matters of the heart. This is just what you and Scorpius need, I am sure of it."
"How about I stuff that beret of yours where the sun don't shine?" Albus muttered, rolling his eyes.
Louis laughed, playfully slapping Albus on the arm.
"I think you would enjoy that too much non?" he winked saucily, then laughed and added, "Really though, you should make the most of this, and be happy you have Scorpius to share it with. After all, you only find the right one once."
"That many times?" Albus sneered sarcastically.
Truly he had no idea what Louis was on about; his cousin always got a little funny around him and Scorpius, and this time was no exception.
"Anyway, I was hoping you would remember where the well is."
"Oui, I do; lovely spot for a picnic…and other activities."
"Oh yes, how is Pierre?"
"Oh, Pierre was last month chere, I'm dating a man by the name of Jaque, he is truly a fascinating character."
"I'm glad to hear it."
"Merci."
Louis knocked back the rest of his wine with a flourish, Albus following suit, and then stood, summoning his cloak.
"Come," he ordered, leading the way to the front door, "We will get lunch first, and then to the farmers' market and then the well, oui?"
"Sounds good," Albus acquiesced, knowing it was the best deal he was going to get; Louis never liked to rush into anything.
The cousins exited the chateau and walked ten minutes down the road to the little village nearby, where Louis promptly lead him to a tiny bistro which served the best ratatouille Albus had ever tasted in his life. When they were finished, Louis lit up a cigarette and leaned back in his chair with a satisfied sigh.
"So how are all at home?"
"They're doing well; dad's in the middle of some big international case, so mum took Lily to visit the Burrow, Lily's hoping to con more enchanted muggle objects from granddad, and James is having a great time with Uncle Charlie – nothing forges a bond like a love of dragons and understanding the ache of unrequited love," Albus replied, rolling his eyes.
"Ah of course," Louis chuckled, "How is Teddy doing by the way?"
"Fine. Oblivious to everything and completely wrapped up in his work with werewolves to notice anything," Albus snorted, "How's Victoire and Dominique?"
"Dominique is still giving mama heart attacks by disappearing on hunts for weeks on end – she's never gotten hurt before so she should be fine. And as usual, Victoire is stalk- I mean, travelling alongside Teddy, helping him with his work and trying to get closer to him. Of course he doesn't notice anything, and she gets more and more frustrated, but she knew exactly what she was getting into when she kissed him six years ago."
"Does he still think it was just her funny French way of saying goodbye?" Albus grinned, and Louis laughed in confirmation.
If there was one person Albus would never ever want to have a crush on, it was Teddy Lupin. Sure the guy was sound as a pound, and ultimately mischievous, logical and totally cool, but Merlin was he oblivious! As Victoire had demonstrated all those years ago, one could literally snog him and he still wouldn't get it – Albus figured it would take a couple of shags to get it in his thick skull that you were interested in him. Poor Victoire. More so, poor James. Still, they knew, as everyone in the family did, what Teddy was like. The only highlight of the whole thing was how catty James and Victoire got around each other whenever Teddy was nearby.
"And how is Beaubaxtons? Only one year to go."
"C'est ennui, mais je susuivrai," Louis shrugged, then stood, throwing some money on the table, "The farmers' market awaits, and there's an old woman who bakes the best baguettes in France, I guarantee."
They were pouring over which type of baguette to buy, when there was a commotion from the other side of the market place. Albus looked over and spotted a woman, with sausages hanging from her nose, being chased by a giant pack of poodles. Albus scoffed at the ridiculous scene, before he remembered the clue: the sausage-nosed woman…
"She knows the way!" Albus yelled, and took off after her.
Distantly he heard Louis curse and run after him, but his concentration was focused solely on the woman, as he followed her across a field and into a forest. After a few sharp twists and turns, he was slowly catching up with her and the yipping dogs behind her. The crazy procession burst into a clearing and Albus grinned as he saw that they were headed for a well. Just as she reached the well, the woman leapt forward –
- And disappeared into thin air, the dogs popping out of existence just after her. Albus slid to a halt, blinking furiously, as though doing so would bring the woman back. A moment later, Louis came to a stop beside him, huffing and puffing for breath as he leaned on Albus' shoulder.
"Merde, Albus! I think I shall have a heart attack," he joked, wheezing slightly, "Why did you take off so?"
"I saw the sausage-nosed woman," Albus replied, looking down at his cousin, "But now I can't…"
He trailed off as he turned back to the well, where a young, beautiful girl was drawing water.
"Hello," he called, taking a step towards her.
The girl looked up and smiled coyly, but said nothing.
"Maybe she doesn't speak English," Louis whispered, then said loudly, "Bonjour mademoiselle, je m'appelle Louis, et il s'appelle Albus. Ca va?"
The girl smiled and nodded, but remained silent.
Albus had a sudden brainwave, and stepped right up to the well, charming smile in place.
"May I have some water please?"
The girl nodded and dipped her drinking ladle into the bucket, then handed it to Albus. He drank deeply and handed it back with thanks.
"May I please have one of the jewels that falls from your mouth when you speak? I need it to help a dear friend of mine."
The girl's eyes crinkled up at the edges, and she opened her mouth to reveal a large ruby, which she deposited in her hand.
"I will give this to you, but you must first get me the Seven-League Boots from the giants in the North," she told him.
"Very well," Albus nodded, "I will bring them to you as soon as possible."
"Okay, what was that all about?" Louis finally managed to ask as they were walking back to the chateau.
"That was my task," Albus said in a determined voice, "Are there giants north of here?"
"I-uh, yes, there's a settlement near the Pyrenees," Louis replied, then shook his head and continued, "Surely you are not going near them Albus, they are crazy! You could get hurt!"
"Doesn't matter, I need the next clue so I can find Scorpius, I'll do whatever it takes."
"Ohh…that is so ROMANTIC!" Louis gasped dramatically, hand on his chest, "Albus you truly are a prince!"
"Not so, I just want my best friend back," Albus muttered.
They arrived back at the chateau, where Charlie was still snoring away, and he asked, "Do you have any spare petrol?"
"Yes, I'll get it for you," Louis nodded, and headed off to get it.
"Charlie, time to wake up," Albus called, walking up to the bike, who snorted, yawned and said, "Wuuhh?"
Albus chuckled, and patted his tank.
"We're getting you some petrol and then you and I are going giant hunting."
"Oh wow, that's wicked!" Charlie cheered, "We're like a proper prince and noble steed now!"
"Here's the petrol," Louis called, walking out from the garage, petrol can in hand.
"Brilliant, I'm starved!"
"Eep!" Louis shrieked, nearly dropping the can, "Your bike, it can talk!"
"I'm not just a bike, I'm his noble steed," Charlie declared proudly.
"…That is so cute!" Louis squealed, running forward and kneeling in front of Charlie, "You are truly an amazing creation."
"Thank you. You have nice eyes, and amazing silver hair."
Albus rolled his eyes, took up the can and started pouring the petrol in Charlie's tank. Louis' eyes turned soft and dreamy and he gazed at the bike fondly.
"Thank you," he smiled, petting Charlie's handlebar, causing the bike to purr.
Louis chuckled and stood up, moving beside Albus.
"Oh Albus…I think I may be in love!" he whispered to his cousin.
"Louis…Charlie's a bike. An enchanted bike."
"Love knows no bounds," Louis scoffed loftily.
"Truly, there are times when it does," Albus sighed, finishing pouring the last of the petrol in.
That done, he handed the can back to Louis, summoned his gear and put them on. A compass charm showed him north, and he was ready to go.
"Thanks for lunch Louis, it was great to see you again."
"You too Albus," Louis smiled, "When you and Scorpius finish your trial, come visit, okay?"
Albus nodded and hopped on Charlie, pulling the throttle a couple of times.
"Good luck, fair noble steed," Louis smiled and pecked Charlie on the handlebars, "You too Albus, remember, your Scorpius needs you intact."
Charlie giggled and replied, "Thanks, it was lovely to meet you. And don't worry, I'll protect Albus."
Albus snorted, and then called, "Bye Louis!" as he and Charlie rose up and flew off to the north.
They hadn't been flying very long when Albus spied many a broken tree lying around, a sure sign of giants nearby. Quickly he landed Charlie and hopped off, stashing his helmet and gloves and pulling his wand out.
"I'm going to have to go on alone, I need to be as quiet as possible," he whispered to Charlie, who whispered back, "But I want to help!"
"You can help me by getting me the hell out of here when I get those boots," Albus said soothingly, "I won't be gone long, stay absolutely silent okay?"
"Okay Al, you can count on me."
"I know," Albus smiled warmly, "I'll see you soon."
Albus crept off, and soon enough he came across the settlement, where there were six giants lounging around, babbling, laughing and occasionally tussling. Looking around the settlement, Albus spotted a pile of artefacts in the centre, with a pair of boots on the top. That must be them! Now he just needed to get them. He could accio them, but one of the giants would probably notice. He could cast a concealing charm on himself, but he would be fucked if one of the giants stood or fell on him. No, what he needed was to be sneaky about it…and he knew what to do. Quickly, he gathered some twigs and branches together, transfigured them into a harp, and then set to work on the charms. In the story Hop O' My Thumb, the hero waited until the giant was asleep to steal the boots, and Albus intended to do the same, only he had neither the patience nor time to wait for it to happen. Instead, he would make it happen. In seventh year, for his charms project, Albus had created a replica of the harp that his dad had come across in his first year that kept Fluffy the dog asleep. The spell work was tricky and complicated, but Albus knew it was his best chance. The only problem was that he needed a piece of what he wanted to fall asleep to make it person/animal specific, so Albus would have to cast a general sleeping charm on the music, which would make everything nearby fall asleep. No worries though, he'd just have to make sure he couldn't hear a thing.
Once he was done, he cast muffliato on himself, mumbled a quick prayer and set the harp playing. He waited and watched avidly, grinning when the giants finally fell asleep. When he was sure they were in a deep slumber, he sprinted out, grabbed the boots and sprinted away, casting a silent 'Finite Incantatum,' over his shoulder as he passed the harp.
Making it back to Charlie, he threw himself on the bike, panting, "Go! Back towards the chateau!"
"Sure thing!" Charlie yelled, rising up and speeding off.
Albus clutched the boots and his wand desperately, heart pounding. He didn't dare look back over his shoulder; there was being brave and then there was tempting fate. When the adrenaline had faded and his heartbeat was back to normal, Albus was able to take control of the flying and directed him to where the well was. As they landed in the clearing, Albus saw the girl by the well, again drawing water.
"Here," he said, walking over to her, boots held out.
She examined the boots, then smiled, took them, and held out the ruby to him.
As Albus reached out for it, he saw that glow out of the corner of his eye he had at the end of the last task. Turning his head, he swore he saw Scorpius lying at the edge of the clearing, all grey and faded, just like in his dream. At that moment, his fingers closed around the jewel, and the image of Scorpius, along with the girl, blinked out of existence.
***
A/N:oooo, so albus manages to get through the second task! in the next chapter we'll be catching up with Scorpius' adventures on his trials! please review and tune in next week! :D sláinte!