Hey everyone :) I am really glad that you're enjoying this story and I hate the fact that it takes me so long to write the chapters, but I'll be on my Christmas Break soon (and I'll be dropping out of my college course) so hopefully I will be able to get writing more :) Anyways, this chapter will be Albus and Scorpius' study date ;) So I hope you enjoy this particular chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters. I only own the idea for this fanfiction.
Scorpius' POV
After a very interesting Transfiguration class, Albus and I had to go to the courtyard for flying lessons with Madam Hooch. It was quiet between us and I was afraid that Albus was still upset with me for not sitting with him in Transfiguration. After five more minutes of silence, I finally broke it.
"Albus, are you mad at me?" I asked quietly, fearing the answer.
Albus sighed and looked at me, "No, I'm not mad per say. I'm just a bit…upset that you would allow other people's judgments get in the way of our friendship. I don't care what people think of how close we are! You're my best friend and I want to spend time with you without you worrying about what the other Slytherin's and your father will think. I don't want you to be ashamed of our friendship because I am not ashamed of it."
During this speech, little tears leaked from the corner of Albus's eyes. I could only stare at him with wide eyes. I watched him as he looked down and wiped his tears away before grabbing his wrist. "Albus, look at me," I said quietly.
Albus looked up at me, his green eyes shimmering with tears that he wouldn't allow to come out. "I am not ashamed of our friendship. It's just… my father is very strict. I don't know how he will react when he finds out that I'm friends with a Gryffindor. But think about it… if I was ashamed of you, do you think I would allow myself to be seen walking with you?" I waited until Albus shook his head to continue. "Of course I wouldn't. I don't care what our classmates think about our friendship. I only care about what my father might do if he finds out about us."
"He doesn't have to know… neither does my father. Though, I think James will have already told him seeing as he hates that we're friends," Albus added bitterly.
"Don't worry about James! He doesn't control you! He's just being an overprotective older brother. If he told your father, then whatever, what's done is done. And I've decided that tonight I will send my father an owl telling him about you and about how I'm friends with you. And you should tell your dad too. We'll send owls together before we go to the library, okay?" I smiled at him shyly and took his hand in mine. He smiled back at me and squeezed my hand before letting go. My heart pounded in my chest and I felt my face heat up. I turned away before Albus could see my blush. "Come on…we should get to class before we're late." I mumbled, walking quickly away.
~Dinner Time~
By the end of my first day, I was exhausted. I could tell that Albus was too. There was a comfortable silence between us as we walked to the Great Hall for dinner, both of us enjoying the other's company. When we got to the entrance of the Great Hall, we turned to each other and smiled.
"So after dinner we'll meet up in the Owlery. After that, we'll go to the library to study," I said. And so I can tell you my feelings for you, I added to myself.
"Okay sounds good. I'll try to get my letter written during dinner without James seeing it," replied Albus, smiling at me.
I suddenly got the urge to hug him and, without thinking about the fact that we're in the Great Hall, I followed through with those urges. I wrapped my arms around him, hugging him tightly. I felt Albus tense and look around before he relaxed and wrapped his own arms around me. We pulled away too soon and went over to our separate tables.
I sat in my usual spot beside Alec and almost instantly he was questioning me. "Why were you hugging that Gryffindor boy again? You're always so touchy feely with him. I even saw you guys holding hands this afternoon. Are you gay or something?" he asked.
I stiffened at that last question and poured myself a glass of pumpkin juice, trying to avoid answering it. Unfortunately, not even my silence would make him shut up. "You are gay, aren't you? Why else would you be with Potter like that." He couldn't stop a sneer from appearing on his face.
My lips were tight as I replied, "So what if I am gay? Are you homophobic?" I said coldly.
Alec's eyes widened in surprise, "Of course I'm not homophobic! I just don't approve of you being so close with a Gryffindor boy."
I slammed my goblet down on the table and turned my cold gray eyes onto him. "Well you listen to me, Alec…you are not the boss of me. You are not my father. You can't tell me what I can and can't do. And I am not asking for your approval of my friendship with Albus. We only met this morning and we aren't even really friends. So mind your own business and leave me the hell alone!" I pushed my plate away and stormed out of the Great Hall.
I kept walking until I got to the Transfiguration classroom. I heard desks scraping against the floor in the classroom and my curiosity got the best of me. I walked in and saw a ghost pushing all of desks into the center of the room and piling them on top of one another.
"Who are you?" I called out to the ghost.
The ghost stiffened and turned around slowly. A slow small grew onto his face. "Oh how cute. It's an ickle first year. What is he doing wandering around the castle while everyone else is at dinner?" he said. He had the type of voice that made me want to cover my ears…annoying.
"Who are you? I've never seen you before," I asked again.
Instead of answering me, he just blew a raspberry towards me. Yes…he is very annoying, I thought. He continued piling up the desks and that was when I heard running footsteps coming towards the classroom. I closed my eyes in annoyance and sighed. "Alec, I thought I told you to leave me the hell alone!" I exclaim angrily, whipping around to look at him. However, instead of seeing Alec standing there I saw Albus.
"Found you!" he said breathlessly. He walked over to me.
"Al…what are you doing here? Did you follow me?" I asked, surprised.
He nodded, "Yeah…I saw that you looked angry while you were talking to Alec and then you stormed out so I got worried," he explained, a light blush powdering his cheeks.
I chuckled, "You're so cute, Albus." As soon as I said that, my eyes widened. Did I really just call him…cute? I mean it's true that I think he's cute, but still…I can't believe I actually said it out loud, I thought. I glanced at him, scared of what his reaction might be. His green eyes were wide as he looked at me.
"D-did you just say that I'm cute?" he squeaked.
"I-I didn't mean it like that! I-I just meant that it was cute that you were so worried about me. But I'm fine, Al. Really, I am." My face felt hot and my heart was pounding in my chest.
"Hehehehehe! Malfoy just called the Potter boy cute. Malfoy lurves Potter!" cackled the ghost who was still behind us.
I whip around and glare at the ghost, "T-That's not true! I don't love him!" I exclaimed, my face going bright red.
"Scorpius calm down. He's just teasing us. That's Peeves the Poltergeist. My brother told me about him. He likes to play pranks on the professors and students. Just ignore him." Al grabbed my hand. "Peeves get out of this room now, or I'll get the Bloody Baron to come in here."
Peeves' eyes seemed to widen in fear at the mention of the Slytherin ghost, but he blew a raspberry at us again and disappeared through the wall. I looked at Albus curiously, "The Bloody Baron?" I asked.
He rubbed the back of his head and looked away as if he was embarrassed. "Yeah…the Bloody Baron is the only ghost here who can get Peeves to behave. My brother mentioned that to me," he replied quietly.
"It must be nice to have an older brother…I've always wanted an older brother."
Albus grimaced and dropped his arm back down to his side. "Believe me. It's not all it's cut out to be. James is so annoying sometimes. Especially when he thinks he's trying to protect me. Like how he told me to stop being friends with you. He thought he was protecting me from you. He never lets me make my own decisions. I hate it. I wish I was an only child…" He pursed his lips and hesitated before replying. "Well, that's not true. I like Lily, my little sister, but I wish it was only me and Lily. Is that bad?" he asked, looking nervously at me.
"No, not at all. It's understandable. Um…Al? I-Is there a reason why you're still holding my hand?" I asked, suddenly realizing that my hand was still in his.
He looked down at our interlocked hands and I watched as his face went bright pink. He quickly pulled his hand away and cleared his throat in obvious embarrassment. "Um…since we're both not in the mood to go back to the Great Hall, want to stay here and write our letters?"
I nodded, "But we don't have any quills or parchment with us," I frowned, suddenly realizing that.
"Right…I'll go up to my common room and get enough parchment and quills for both of us. I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere." He ran out before I could protest and I sighed.
As I waited for Al to come back, I sat in one of the desks and began to think about what I would put in my letter. I've never been scared of my father before, but the thought of telling him that I was best friends with a Gryffindor terrified me. And the thought of telling him that I think I'm in love with said Gryffindor terrified me even more. It would mean that I would have to tell him that I was gay. I let out a big sigh and looked out the window.
But I have to tell him! I argued with myself. What's the worst he could do when I'm not living at home until June?
He could disown you. Then you wouldn't have a home to go back to, said a small voice at the back of my head.
"No! Father would never disown me!" I replied to the voice out loud.
But what if he does? It's true that if he does disown me then I wouldn't have a home to go back to. I should probably expect the worst. I sighed again and then looked up as I heard running footsteps. Al ran in looking a bit flushed and out of breath.
"Did you run all the way here?" I asked him in amusement.
Al blushed, "No!" he retorted, but he looked away and I hid a laugh.
"Didn't want to keep me waiting long?" I teased him, loving the way that his ears went bright red.
He hesitated, "M-maybe…" He didn't look at me as he said that.
I chuckled, "You're so cute, Al."
Al's already flushed face went darker and he cleared his throat in embarrassment. "A-anyways…I have some quills and parchment." He sat in the desk me and handed me a couple of sheets of parchment and a quill.
As he started writing, I sat there thinking about what to write. I couldn't be very direct with him. I sighed inwardly, wishing that my dad wasn't so hard to talk to. I decided to just write what was in my heart.
Dear Father,
I'm settling in well at Hogwarts. I got sorted into Slytherin and I've
made a few friends. Well…one of my "friends" sort of forced himself
on me, but he's a cool guy. Actually, the reason why I'm writing this letter
is because I have to tell you something…
I paused there and glanced over at Al, who was still writing, and sighed before returning to my own letter.
There's another friend I've made. I met him on the train and we sat together
even though he had a brother he could have sat with. His name is…Albus Potter.
He's in Gryffindor, but he's my best friend. I know you won't approve of me being
friends with a Gryffindor, but it's too late…I've already become closer to him than
I ever have with anyone else. I also need to tell you something else and this is really
hard for me because I don't know if you'll accept me as your son after I tell you.
I'm…gay. I knew I've been gay since I was ten and I think…no…I know…that I'm
falling in love with Albus. That's all I wanted to say…I'll see you at Christmas, I
guess.
-Scorpius
I quickly folded up the letter before Al could read what I wrote and looked over at him. He put the quill back into the ink and also folded up his letter. He looked at me and smiled nervously. Then he handed me an envelope.
Once both of our letters were secured inside an envelope, we walked up to the Owlery together. We each picked an owl, seeing as we had none of our own, and gave them our letters. We stood by the window, watching them until they became small specks in the sky.
"I hope my father doesn't react badly…" I whispered.
"Me too…" Al nodded in agreement and takes my hand in his, squeezing it gently. "It'll be okay, I'm sure of it. Don't worry, Scorpius."
I sighed and turn to Albus. "Al…I have to tell you something," I said nervously.
"What is it?" he asked me, turning his emerald gaze to me.
How am I supposed to tell my best friend that I like boys? Let alone that I like him. I could feel his gaze on me and I sighed. "Never mind. Forget about it. Come on, let's go to the library now." I turned on my heel and walked away. I could hear Albus following me.
We got to the library and picked a table farthest away from the librarian. However, when we got there a girl with red hair was already sitting there reading.
"Rose? What are you doing here?" asked Al in surprise.
She looked up and smiled when she saw who it was. "Hey Albus. I decided to sit in here and read because James was being really loud in the common room. What about you? What are you doing here?"
Al shrugged, "My friend and I decided to study a little bit," he explained, gesturing to me. "Rose, this is my best friend Scorpius. Scorpius, this is my cousin Rose.
She looked over at me and I shuffled my feet nervously. "So, you're the Malfoy boy that James doesn't like." She said finally.
I sighed, "Yep…that's me. I don't know who he hates me so much though," I said bitterly, looking away from the red head.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Rose's face soften a bit. "Don't take it personally, Scorpius. James doesn't like anyone who tries to take his dear little brother away from him." She giggled before continuing. "I for one am happy that Albus made such a good friend in you. He's always been a shy boy. He got along with me better than he did with anyone else. I hope you continue to be a good friend to him." She smiled shyly at me.
"Rose, stop it," retorted Albus, blushing.
"I promise I will always be the best of friends with Albus," I laughed.
"Ugh…not you too, Scorpius!" Albus exclaimed, glaring at me. "Stop making fun of me!"
That made me laugh harder and Rose's giggle joined in with me. It didn't take long for a smile to spread onto his face and he started laughing along with us.
"Be quiet in the library!" snapped the irritable librarian.
That made us shut up, but we still smiled at each other. Then I looked at Rose, suddenly nervous. "So…um…you don't care that your cousin is friends with a Slytherin?"
She looked at me in confusion. "Why on earth would I care about something as silly as that? In my opinion, if you make a friend and you're close then it shouldn't matter which house you're in. All that matters is that you're friends," she smiled at me.
"I wish James had the same attitude as you, Rose…"replied Al bitterly.
"He'll get over it. He's just so caught up in the fact that your dad and Scorpius' dad were enemies when they were in school that he deliberately ignores the fact that they became acquaintances by the end of their seventh year." She assured him.
"Well, he's being a jerk…" grumbled Al, glaring at the ground.
Rose giggled again. "Well, I can try to talk to him for you if you want, but I doubt he would listen to me."
Albus looked up hopefully at her. "Oh could you? That would be awesome!" he exclaimed.
"I'll go now," she replied, closing her book. "You guys wanted this table right?"
"Thanks, Rose. I'll see you back in the common room later. Tell me how James reacts when you talk to him about Scorpius and I."
Rose looked back and waved at us before running out, leaving Albus and I alone. We went over to the Transfiguration section of the library and grabbed the textbook we were using in class. Once we turned to the right page, we each took out a hairpin from our pockets and began practicing turning it into a needle. After about ten minutes, Albus gasped. "Scorpius! Scorpius, look! I did it!" He exclaimed in a hushed voice.
"Good job, Al!" I replied clapping him on the back. He smiled at me and I watched as he picked up his needle.
Now's my chance. I thought to myself. I took a deep breath and looked down. "Um…Al? I need to tell you something." I said quietly.
"Yeah? What is it, Scorpius?" I felt his eyes on me, but couldn't look up at him.
I hesitated, inwardly panicking. What if he won't be my friend anymore after he finds out I'm gay? Or worse…what if he hates me!
I felt Al put his hand on my shoulder, "Scorpius, you know you can tell me anything," he said gently.
And when I looked up into his emerald eyes, I knew that I could tell him anything. Al would never judge me. He wasn't that kind of person. When I looked into his eyes, what I wanted to tell came out quickly and smoothly. "I'm gay, Al!" I closed my eyes in fear, expecting rejection. However, when I felt his arms wrap around me, my eyes widened in shock. "You…you don't care?"
"Silly boy…why would I care about something like that? I've always been closer to my dad than I have with my mom. When I started hitting puberty when I was 10, my dad had a talk with me about sexual preferences. He also told me that while he was in Hogwart's, before he started dating my mom, he was dating a boy. He never told me who the boy was though. So why would I care that you're gay when my dad was dating a boy?" His arms held me tighter and his voice became a whisper. "You're still my best friend no matter what your preference is."
I hugged him back just as tightly, tears beginning to fall from my eyes. For the first time in my life, I felt accepted. We stayed like that for a few more minutes before pulling away and Albus smirked at me. "So…is there anyone you like at the moment?" he asked playfully.
I blushed and nodded, "Yes, but I don't think it will ever happen," I said sadly.
"Why do you think that?" He asked, sounding confused.
I sighed, "Because I don't know if he has the same preference."
Albus frowned, "Well, who is it? Do I know him? Maybe I can talk to him for you." He added helpfully.
Instead of answering, I closed my eyes and leaned forward, pressing my lips softly against his. When I pulled away and opened my eyes again, his face was bright red and his eyes were wide. I was suddenly afraid that I had scared him off and I reached out to him. "Al…" I began.
However, he flinched away from me and stood up quickly, running from the library. Tears filled my eyes as I slowly shut the book and put it back onto the shelf. He hates me now…he won't want to be friends with me now that he knows my true feelings. The tears started falling as I slowly made my way back to the dungeons.
Whew! 8 pages and 4000 words later and I am finally done this chapter! I am so sorry that it took so long to update! I recently started a fulltime job and I work overnights. Also, I'm just getting over the stomach flu so I've been sleeping a lot recently! Anywho, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I quite enjoyed writing it! Hahahaha! And also, don't worry! Albus doesn't hate Scorpius! He's just confused because he's only 11 and has never considered that he might like boys! I won't say that the next update won't take as long as this one because I probably won't be able to keep that promise. So I'll just say that I will try my very best to post chapter 5 as soon as I can! Please R & R! Love ya's! Peace!