Disclaimer: Nope, Harry Potter's still not mine, what a surprise.

Chapter Twenty-One: Does That Make Me Stupid?

Albus and Scorpius refused Hermione's offer to stay for tea; the Weasley house looked far too hectic to support guests for tea time, and they really just wanted to get to Albus's house and rest.

Albus cast a sidelong glance at his new boyfriend. Scorpius looked exhausted. Albus couldn't blame him; it had been a long day.

"Aunt Hermione," he said, "would you mind if Scorpius and I used your Floo?"

"Oh, of course not," said Hermione. "Go right ahead.

"Thanks."

Albus and Scorpius carried their trunks to the fireplace. If Hermione thought there was anything odd about them having several extra trunks with them she didn't comment.

Albus took a handful of Floo Powder and threw it on the fire.

"Number twelve, Grimmauld Place!"

He and Scorpius stepped into the emerald green flames and they and Scorpius's trunks were whisked away to the Potter home.

The first thing the two boys heard once they had stopped spinning was an ear-splitting voice.

"MUM! Albus is home! And he's brought Scorpius with him!"

"Lily," admonished Ginny, poking her head around the living room door frame. "There's no need to shout. I'm right here. Hello dears, how are you?"

"Hi, Mum," said Albus, stepping out of the fireplace. "We're okay. I hope it's okay that I brought Scorpius home with me."

"I do wish you'd owled ahead," said Ginny, frowning slightly.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Potter," said Scorpius.

"It was kind of last minute," said Albus.

Ginny eyed the trunks still sitting in the fireplace behind the boys.

"Are you planning on staying long, Scorpius?"

"Erm—actually," said Albus. "We were hoping that Scorpius might be able to...stay for the rest of the summer."

Ginny raised her brows.

"Oh?"

"Yeah..."

"Has something happened?"

"Er—yes," said Albus. "Mum, can we talk about this later? Scor and I are really tired."

Ginny opened her mouth to insist that her son explain what was going on immediately, but something about the look on his and Scorpius's faces stopped her.

"Scorpius, do your parents know that you're here?"

The blonde nodded, gray eyes fixed on the carpet.

"Alright," said Ginny. "There's a pot roast in the kitchen. Help yourself and then you can take your things upstairs. Scorpius, you can stay in James's room, he doesn't get back from Quidditch training camp until Wednesday. We can talk in the morning."

Albus and Scorpius nodded gratefully and did just that. Realizing that they hadn't eaten since breakfast, they made quick work of the remaining pot roast and then lugged their things upstairs and got ready for bed. Albus felt asleep on his feet and he was sure that Scorpius must be feeling even worse. Ginny was kept busy downstairs keeping a very curious Lily out of their hair.

When they had both changed into their pajamas and brushed their teeth Albus followed Scorpius into James's bedroom.

"Are you going to be okay in here?" he asked, sitting next to the blond on the red and gold bedspread. "Do you want to sleep with me instead?"

"I'm pretty sure your mother would not approve of that, Albus Severus," said Scorpius. "And forgive me but I kind of want to stay on her good side right now. I'll be fine."

Albus smiled and brushed Scorpius's blond locks back from his forehead.

"Sleep well, love."

"What, no goodnight kiss?" said Scorpius teasingly.

Albus leaned forward and placed his lips gently against Scorpius's, pulling away before either of them could give into the hunger they were both far too tired for.

"Good night," said Albus. "Sleep well."

"I'll try."

*****TWAMM*****

Albus was awakened by a knocking on his door, followed by the creak of it opening and the voice of his sister coming through the crack.

"Albus? Albus, Scorpius is awake in James's room, and I think he's crying."

Albus threw the covers off, all traces of sleepiness disappearing.

"Crying?" he said. "Are you sure?" The only time he had ever seen Scorpius cry was when he was in the grips of a raging fever.

"Well I didn't go in and check, but it certainly sounds like it," said Lily, a touch of her usual impertinence creeping back into her voice.

Albus scrambled out of bed, banging his knee on the bedpost in the process, and pushed past his little sister into the hall and toward James's room, shoving his glasses onto his nose on the way.

"A 'thank you, Lily' would be nice!" Lily called after him.

"Thanks Lils," Albus called distractedly over his shoulder.

He stopped in front of Scorpius's closed door and hesitated, listening. Sometimes Lily had a habit of exaggerating. But after a moment Albus heard what sounded like muffled sobs coming from the other side of the door. He knocked softly.

"Scor? Scor, it's me. Can I come in?"

The sobbing stopped and Albus eased the door open. Scorpius was sitting in the middle of James's bed, knees drawn up to his chest, covers a tangled mess around him. He lifted his face to the door and Albus saw glistening tear tracks shining on his pale cheeks.

"Scor," he said, shutting the door behind him and crossing the room to put his arms around the other boy. "Scor, what's wrong?"

Scorpius rested his head on Albus's shoulder.

"I miss her," he choked. "Does that make me stupid?"

"Of course not," said Albus. "She's your mother." He couldn't even imagine what it would be like if his own mother turned her back on him like that.

"Not according to her she's not."

Scorpius's breath hitched and Albus rubbed soothing circles on his pajama-clad back.

"It isn't fair," said Scorpius. "Why should I have to lose her to be who I am? What did I do wrong?" he whispered.

"Nothing," said Albus vehemently "You did nothing wrong. This isn't about you, it's about her and her prejudices."

"Maybe if I had been able to break the news differently..."

"You know it wouldn't have made any difference, Scor."

"Maybe if I apologize..."

"You have nothing to apologize for," said Albus firmly. "It's her who should be doing the apologizing."

"Maybe I was just a bloody idiot to listen to her for all those years in the first place."

"Scor, stop it," said Albus. "Of course you listened to her, she's your mother, you loved her. Stop blaming yourself. You sound like me."

This brought the ghost of a smile to Scorpius's face. "I do, don't I?"

Albus wiped the tears away from Scorpius's cheeks with his fingertips, running the fingers of his other hand through Scorpius's silky, tangled hair. Scorpius closed his eyes and focused on the feeling of Albus's arms around him.

After a few minutes Albus broke the silence. "You should be sleeping, you had a long day."

Scorpius nodded. "Thank you. I think I can sleep now."

"Did you take your potions?" asked Albus.

"Yes, mother," said Scorpius, rolling his eyes. Then he bit his lip.

Albus ran a finger over his forehead, smoothing out the lines that had appeared there.

"You're perfect."

"I'm not."

"To me you are."

"You too."

Albus took a moment to marvel at how much value Scorpius placed on him. He didn't understand it, but he knew he wouldn't trade it for all the gold in Gringotts.

"Goodnight, love," he whispered.

He leaned down and pressed a lingering kiss to Scorpius's wet lips. Scorpius tangled a hand in his hair briefly, letting a small moan escape his lips before he pulled back and released him.

"Good night again, Albus Severus."

When Albus left the room he found Lily standing outside of the door, hands on her hips, a triumphant expression on her face.

"You called him 'love'," she said. "I heard you. And you kissed him. Don't you dare try to deny it."

Albus gaped at her. "You bloody cursed eavesdropper!"

"How long have you been together?"

"None of your bloody business!" said Albus in a furious whisper.

"Are you going to tell Mum and Dad?"

"Just butt out of it, alright?" said Albus in annoyance. "I told you, it's none of your damn business!"

"Ooooh, I can't wait to tell Hugo!" said Lily, grinning wickedly.

"You're not going to tell anyone!" said Albus. "Scorpius and I will tell people on our own!"

"So you are going to tell people? You two really are together?"

"Yes, we are." said Albus. "We're both bloody bloomin' gay and we're seeing each other, satisfied?"

"Very," said Lily, still grinning.

Albus glared at her and then turned his back on her and stalked off to his own room. When he reached the door he looked back over his shoulder, his hand hovering over the knob. Lily was still standing in the hallway, looking smug.

"Oh, and by the way," he said casually, "no need to tell Hugo. He already knows."

The look on his sister's face was priceless.

AN: Sorry for the lame shortness of the chapter. I had meant for the chapter to continue into the next morning & their talk w/ Ginny, but it wanted to end there, so the rest comes in the next chapter. I never intended this fic to be this long!

Thanks for reading. Think about taking that extra step and reviewing perhaps? ;)

-SQ