Albus wasn't as good at nonverbal magic as his father and Scorpius, but what he lacked in eloquence, he made up in elegance. Years of Quidditch had given him footwork worthy of compliments from even the great Harry Potter during their training sessions, and Albus found that it was a serious asset in in actual deadly duel.
Albus blocked another hex from Selwyn while Harry focused on Daphne, who was as aggressive as she sounded. Her blocks were sloppy but effective, and her curses were haphazard but strong. Albus watched her as best as he could, and could see that, while Harry was bent on taking her alive, she didn't have similar intentions.
Albus dodged another curse from Selwyn, letting it fly right past his side and tried again to body-bind him to no avail, and as he parried again, he hoped against hope that Draco had fought off Travers and Parkinson. He hated to think that Draco had fought them both by himself, but there was no way either Albus or Harry could hold off Selwyn and Daphne alone to offer aid.
Albus tried to focus on the fight, but he had to know if Scorpius was safe - had he sent Draco on a fool's errand? Had he been so desperate to believe Scorpius was there that he'd risked getting Draco - or worse, his own father - hurt or killed?
The distraction could have been deadly. In an opening Albus hadn't intended to allow, Selwyn cast the killing curse, and in the elongated second it took to travel across the room, Albus yelled and dodged, rolling to the ground to avoid it. He felt the heat from the magical energy against his face as it passed him in the dirt and he rolled back onto his feet before his voice stopped echoing through the manor with Harry's terrified bellow.
Draco staggered into the dark dungeon and lit his wand immediately. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust, but when he heard Scorpius' voice he swung around and saw his son crouched in the corner.
"Dad," Scorpius said and Draco ran to him, cracking bones beneath his feet.
Scorpius collided with Draco, his hands restrained behind his back, and Draco pulled Scorpius to him roughly, wrapping his arms around his son tight and holding him as close as possible and still finding it inadequate.
"Scorpius," Draco said, his voice thick with emotion. He felt Scorpius' shoulders shake as he held him, letting his son sob for a moment into his shoulder.
"Dad," Scorpius said. He pulled away just enough to look at his father's face. "It's so good to see you."
Draco looked at Scorpius brushing the dirt from his son's face, appalled at what he saw. Dirt and dust were caked in his hair, and his clothes - cycled now to the ones he'd worn to the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin Quidditch match - were torn and dirty. Worse still, there were lines of blood from his ears, nose and eyes. His cheeks were sallow and sunken, and his lips were horribly chapped.
"I heard you laugh," Scorpius said, shaky. "Down here. It echoed, and I knew it was you."
"What did they do to you?" Draco asked. He turned Scorpius around and used the key Pansy had handed him to unlock the heavy metal irons around his wrists, and cringed at the inflamed burns in rings around Scorpius' wrists as he let the contraption fall to the ground with a clatter.
"I'll tell you later," said Scorpius, stretching his shoulders forward. Even in the dim light he could see the outline of his spine and shoulder blades.
Draco drew him close, feeling the tears on his own face for the first time.
"Let's apparate you out of here -"
A bellow from upstairs echoed down to the dungeons and Scorpius pulled away from Draco, his eyes wild and frightened.
"Is that Albus?"
"I'll come right back for them -"
But it was too late. Scorpius took off, running to the door and up the stairs. Draco fell in quickly and ran behind him.
"Scorpius! Stop!"
But he didn't. Off-balance and exhausted as he was, Scorpius ran on only adrenaline and fear, nearly tripping over Travers' petrified body, his shoulders stiff from restraint and his legs tired from malnourishment.
He skidded and listened when he reached the atrium, and Scorpius chased the sound into the drawing room - the last place he wanted to see again - where Albus and Harry were dueling Daphne and Selwyn. As he reached the door, Daphne turned her wand on Albus as he blocked a curse from Selwyn, who ducked behind the great desk, which was now missing chunks from its corners.
Scorpius reached out his hand, but was too late to stop it. Harry cried out as Daphne sent Albus flying backward, and Scorpius watched as he twisted in the air and fell against the old, worn sofa with a pained groan.
Draco had his arm around Scorpius' waist to stop him from crossing the threshold into her sight, but Scropius was close enough. He held out his hand, and a wall of flame erupted between where Harry crouched over Albus and where Daphne and Selwyn stood behind the desk.
Scorpius' breath was shallow, but he knew he had just enough energy left with all terror and anger coursing through his veins. Daphne, disoriented, looked around until her eyes landed on Scorpius, who peeled Draco's slackened arm from around his midsection, stepping forward.
Draco, still clutching his wand, stared in awe.
"Scorp," Albus called desperately, pained.
Scorpius fought his instinct to look at him, his eyes glued to Daphne lest she cause any more harm. He felt along the wall to reach for the hearth, which he held onto with his free hand for stability.
For two weeks Scorpius had wanted nothing more than to see Albus and Draco - to hear their voices and be held by them - and there they were, in the same room. For just a moment more, that had to be enough.
"Al, are you okay?"
He could hear the smile and relief in Albus' voice.
"I am now."
He breathed a sigh of relief and lowered the height of the fire. He wanted to see Daphne's face.
"What are you doing, Scorpius?" she yelled over the crackling, her voice frantic and frightened.
"You taught me how to control it," Scorpius said. He heard Draco move behind him, and he hoped he was going to help Albus and Harry.
"That was a mistake."
Scorpius released the mantle and held out his other hand, summoning the water from the pond outside. It shattered the window was it came in, a single steady stream, to wrap around Daphne and Selwyn's legs. His eyes narrowed in pain and exertion, Scorpius willed the water to freeze around them - encasing their lower halves in ice - and he watched with satisfaction as the stream crept up Daphne's dress, immobilizing her.
"You ungrateful bastard!" Selwyn yelled.
Daphne tried again to hex him, but he focused on her wand and Selwyn's. He whispered "expelliarmus" under his breath and watched as the two wands flew towards him and clattered at his feet.
Without their wands and immobilized in ice, Daphne and Selwyn were largely helpless, though they were loud. It was a temporary fix, but it was good enough, and Scorpius felt his knees buckle and his strength give way and the flames began to die.
A familiar arm caught him as he fell.
Albus watched Scorpius in complete awe and indescribable relief, despite the spasms traveling up and down his left leg and side. Half his body cramped and he tried to sit still - to keep from writhing - as his father helped him sit upright.
He watched as Scorpius - beaten and broken - controlled fire and water - and reveled in the sound of his voice - more refreshing and comforting than he'd ever imagined it to be.
When Draco ran to them, Albus tried to push himself off the ground, but his leg, through his hip and into his side, wouldn't obey, and Draco had to take his other arm and pull him to his feet. Albus leaned heavily on Harry and watched as Scorpius froze Daphne in the water and earth from the family grounds she coveted.
"I have to take them in," Harry said, his wand in hand, and released Albus.
It was only a few meters, but it felt like kilometers as Albus stumbled his way towards Scorpius as he finally gave out, and reached out to catch him as his knees gave way, and together, they fell to the floor.
"Al," Scorpius breathed, his arms weakly wrapped around Albus' neck. Albus held him tight, finding his hands in Scorpius' hair and his face buried in his neck.
As Harry bound the criminals, and Draco called to him.
"I'll get Travers. I have to make sure Pansy is... alive."
Draco met Albus' eyes as he walked out of the drawing room, and Albus knew that the worst was over.
He twitched and cringed in pain. Scorpius shuffled closer to him, and Albus didn't know whose arms belonged to who, or which legs were his. All he knew was that Scorpius was there, alive and in front of him, and he would never take that for granted again.
"I'm so sorry," Albus said through tears. He didn't cry often and didn't like it when he did, but he couldn't fight it with the wave of relief and grief and pain.
"For what?" Scorpius asked. He moved just a few inches - enough to look at Albus' face, which was enough to bring a fresh wave of relief. Albus saw the tracks from his tears in the dirt and blood on his face, which was too much, and he sobbed.
"There's nothing to be sorry for," Scorpius said.
"I didn't kiss you goodbye before I left," Albus said. "I didn't tell you I loved you."
Scorpius stared at him, and gave him a sad smile. Albus gripped his ruined shirt, trying and failing to breathe through another spasm.
Scorpius wanted to find the right words to say - to tell him that he knew he was loved, and that a single missed kiss, while inopportune - was not what he'd been thinking about in captivity. He wanted to tell Albus that his face and the hope that he'd be there when Scorpius was finally released was all that had gotten him through the darkest nights in the dungeon, and he touched Albus' face wiping away the tears and creating only mud and truly meeting Albus' eyes for the first time.
Everything he thought to say was inadequate. Instead, he pressed his lips to Albus' and kissed him firmly but gently, pressing his hand into Albus' chest the way he had the first time he'd kissed him. He felt Albus calm in a long exhale, clutching Scorpius' shirt and holding him tighter.
When they broke apart, Scorpius pressed his forehead to Albus', breathing slow and exhausted, noticing for the first time that parts of the room were still smoldering. He didn't care.
"We need to get you home," Albus said. "You're hurt pretty badly."
"So are you," said Scorpius. He placed his hand on Albus' calf where he could feel another tremor.
Scorpius looked up as his father walked back into the drawing room, carrying an unconscious Pansy Parkinson with a still-petrified Travers bound in cords levitated before him.
"We need to get her to Saint Mungo's," Draco said. Harry stood from above Selwyn and Daphne, both bound and gagged.
"She needs to be taken to the Ministry."
"They'll put her in Azkaban until the trial," Draco argued.
"She kidnapped your son," Harry replied, levitating Travers' immobile body to where Daphne and Selwyn lay.
"And you can put security on her there, correct?"
Harry sighed. "Yes. I can."
"Then that's where I'm taking her, Scorpius, and Albus."
"I want to go home," Scorpius protested, looking up at his father from the floor. Draco lay Pansy on the ruined couch and turned to Scorpius, pulling him to his feet again and holding him upright as Harry, satisfied with the restraints on the criminals, walked over to Albus, 'accidentally' kicking Daphne as he stepped over her gagged form.
"Can you stand?" he asked, holding his hand down for Albus. His lip was bleeding and his coat was torn at the shoulder. Albus reached up and grabbed his hand, but couldn't find his balance. It took both Harry and Draco, leaving Scorpius to lean against the wall, to get him back on his feet.
Albus stumbled and grasped the hearth, glaring over his shoulder at Daphne, Selwyn, and Travers.
"Can't we just burn the house down with them in it?"
"Unfortunately, no," said Harry. He reached out, placing a hand on Scorpius' shoulder, smiling warmly.
"I'm so relieved you're alive," said Harry. "After we didn't find you in a couple days, I wasn't sure..."
"I almost wasn't," said Scorpius. He looked to Draco. "Please, just take me home."
"I second that," said Albus with a groan, his leg buckling. Some of the remaining flames started licking up the opposite wall, and the fire that had mostly died was beginning anew.
"Should we put out the fire?" Harry asked.
"No," replied Scorpius. "Let it burn to the ground."
Daphne protested loudly through her gag.
"I second that," Albus repeated. Scorpius wrapped his arms around himself, shivering violently.
"Take the boys home," Harry said to Draco.
"On the condition that we go straight to St. Mungo's in the morning," Draco said, looking at both of them. Scorpius nodded in reluctant agreement through his now-chattering teeth.
"I'll be there shortly," Harry assured Albus, then looked to Draco. "And I'll take Pansy to the hospital."
Draco nodded and held his arm out for Scorpius and Albus, who took it gratefully and they apparated away from the house, letting it burn.
