VI
The days merged into each other, filled with the same tasks. From morning to early afternoon, Scorpius would be in rather boring lessons. Next, he would scarf down dinner, did his homework without paying too much attention to it, and then came to the Room of Requirement. There, he spent the rest of the day practising new spells from his book. It was a hard and tiring task. Sometimes, Scorpius needed to repeat one move a hundred times before he managed to do it perfectly. Sometimes, when he came back to the dormitory, his hands shook so much that he couldn't even drink water from a glass. On top of that, he still had to pay attention to Filch, who liked to bring wandering students straight to the Headmaster, and Scorpius wanted to avoid that at all costs.
But all that effort and hard work gave him satisfaction. With each learned spell and overcome difficulty, Scorpius was more confident in his skills. He was certain there was nothing that could stop him. Only occasionally, he regretted that no one could observe his achievements.
During two months, Scorpius learned more spells than in the last year of school. It wasn't easy since he had to do it all alone. There was no one there for him to ask for advice or help. Some spells took him hours or days to comprehend and learn. There were things in the book that he just didn't understand, so he had to skip some subjects since there was no one Scorpius could easily ask without arousing suspicion. He couldn't risk his questions making the teachers aware of his actions. However, it didn't discourage him. It only convinced him that, like always, he was all alone with his problems and could only count on himself.
The visits to the greenhouse were the only thing that distinguished the days. Scorpius, with more determination than needed, helped Potter with his work. Twice a week, right after dinner, he would leave his things in the dormitory and walk to the greenhouse without a second thought. Each time, he waited for Professor Longbottom to leave, and then he walked inside.
After a few times, Potter stopped looking so shocked to see him in the doorway. He never asked about Scorpius' motivation. Perhaps he understood it was completely pointless since he wouldn't get any valid answer.
They didn't talk much to each other, mostly about the tasks they were doing. However, it was better that way because there weren't many safe topics for them. What should they talk about? Slytherins and Gryffindors didn't have too much in common. Maybe Quidditch or Potions, but those weren't Scorpius' favourite subjects to talk about; in truth, he would be fine if they didn't even exist. An even worse idea was to talk about family life. Scorpius didn't want to hear about how wonderful Potter's father, Harry Potter, was, and even more, he didn't want to talk about his own father. Especially not with the Gryffindor.
However, in some strange way, Scorpius started appreciating these additional Herbology lessons. Unlike learning spells, it was a strictly physical activity, so his tired mind could relax a bit through it. It helped that Potter was surprisingly pleasant company — meticulous in his tasks, quiet, and not overbearing. He didn't attempt to prove he was better than other students, as many Gryffindors did, but instead had self-esteem issues. Maybe it was because of his famous father or the comparisons with his older brother, but the younger Potter didn't speak about his origin. Besides, like many others, it was a subject that they had silently agreed not to touch at all.
The day they finished replanting poisonous climbers of Dragon's Ivy left Scorpius exhausted. The night before, he had gone to sleep long after midnight and woke up early to complete three exams. Later, he came to the greenhouse, where he had to fight with the strong and very stubborn plant.
Scorpius didn't try to cover his tiredness; he sat on the floor, rested his back on the cupboard, and wiped off his forehead with the back of his hand. He felt dryness in his mouth, so without any hesitation, he pulled out his wand, cast a fast spell, and materialised two glasses, which filled with water after a moment. With a wave of his hand, he invited Potter to sit as well.
The Gryffindor didn't look much better than him. He was covered with dirt, and one of his sleeves was ripped because of the aggressive climber. He sat heavily on the floor and took the glass.
"Thanks," he murmured, not looking at the Slytherin.
Scorpius gulped down his water, assuming Potter might have been weary to drink since Scorpius may have poisoned it. It wasn't something completely odd - Scorpius had added the Purge Potion to one Hufflepuff students' cocktail once, but that guy deserved it.
"You don't have to come here," Potter said without warning.
Scorpius put away his glass and looked at Gryffindor, who, as usual, wasn't looking at him.
"I know," he replied straight.
Suddenly, Potter found the courage and moved his eyes to the Slytherin.
"If you think James will leave you alone, you are certainly wrong. He is stubborn."
Scorpius rolled his eyes.
"I don't do it because of your brother. Not because of you, either. I owe you nothing."
"In that case, don't come here anymore."
It wasn't an order, more of a hidden request, but Scorpius didn't like Potter's attitude. Probably, despite his awareness, someone spotted Scorpius' actions, and gossip started spreading. Potter, although shielded by his origin, was weak and looked like perfect prey. For sure, many students wouldn't be happy about his acquaintance with Slytherin, even though the reason for it was shared work, not any kind of friendship.
However, it wasn't much of a problem for Scorpius, so he only smiled viciously.
"Even if I stop coming, others will still see you as a friend of a Slytherin, anyways." Potter gave him a strange look. Maybe Scorpius misunderstood his words because he put his glass down, stood up, and said earnestly.
"I shouldn't be the one to be worried about. You have many enemies, more and more every day."
Potter was a strange person, for sure. He really was worried that someone, more than James, would want to give Scorpius a sign that he wasn't welcome here.
"Are you one of them?"
The Gryffindor shrugged. "I should be. You have blown me up."
"You did that," Scorpius corrected him instinctively. "I'm not responsible for your lack of knowledge".
"But you are responsible for everything else."
"You say that."
Suddenly, Potter clenched his fists and looked at him with anger.
"You are so false," he barked. "I don't have a choice. I have to sit here because of my naivety and stupidity, but why are you here? If you really had nothing to do with it, there is no point in coming here. My fantastic company is hardly the reason. But if you're the one responsible for that incident, you should have balls and just say it."
Scorpius got used to placing all faults on him, so these malicious words didn't bother him at all. They didn't even offend him. In the end, Potter and his opinion didn't matter, anyway.
Slowly, he stood up and came face to face with Gryffindor. The vicious smile had not disappeared from his face.
"Or maybe I simply like to watch that a proud Gryffindor has to wallow in the dung because someone was smarter than him. You don't know how much satisfaction it brings to my wrecked Slytherin soul."
Potter stepped back but didn't have a chance to reply because Scorpius took his things and left the greenhouse. That would be all about mending wounds. As always, Scorpius' tongue had a different idea for that.
Scorpius sat cross-legged in the Room of Requirement, with the book in his hand still closed. He tried to begin his practice but was too distracted for the lesson to make any sense. Three days had passed since his quarrel with Potter, and that day, he would've had to go to the greenhouse. But that time, the Gryffindor would sit there alone because Scorpius wasn't going to go there at all. His father could say whatever he wanted; his threats didn't sound too real when so much time had passed. Scorpius wasn't going to fix or mend anything; it was completely against his nature. Despite how much he tried, that nasty part of his character, the part that despised everyone and everything always won. Perhaps he should simply accept it.
Full of anger, he hid the book and stood up. Sitting there had no purpose, so instead, he could go to supper early. Without a second thought, Scorpius packed his things and left the room, going straight to the Great Hall.
But before he got there, somewhere in the middle of the way, he felt that strange feeling on his back - as if someone had watched him. He had felt it before a few times, but currently, he was better prepared.
"Homenum Revelio," he murmured.
The effect of the charm was quick and predictable. On the other side of the corridor, James Potter appeared, previously hidden under the Cloak of Invisibility.
Some time ago, Scorpius had begun to wonder how Potter could so easily sneak into various places without notice. It was very frustrating, so Scorpius spent a little while in the library searching for answers. He didn't have to search for long. Deathly Hallows - three mighty artefacts which were in the hands of Harry Potter. The Elder Wand was in the grave of Albus Dumbledore, and the Resurrection Stone vanished after a war, but the Cloak of Invisibility still belonged to that great hero. It was easy to guess that he would give it to his firstborn.
After that conclusion, finding a useful counterspell was a piece of cake.
"Potter," Scorpius said in a vicious tone, looking straight at Gryffindor.
Potter was a little disoriented; he probably didn't expect to be discovered, but he quickly recovered from the shock, pulled off the cloak, and came closer.
"To what do I owe this puny honour?" Scorpius asked, not hiding the sarcasm.
"Where have you been? In the Room of Requirement?"
Scorpius frowned. How… How did he find out?
"Sorry, but my only requirement is you vanish from my sight."
"You disappear almost every day, for hours. Either you run out of the castle or hide in the Room of Requirement. What are you plotting, snake?"
Potter was half a head taller, and at the moment, Scorpius felt that difference. The Gryffindor overwhelmed him to the point of frustration.
"Do you have nothing better to do than follow me? Believe me, there are many other nasty people who would want to harm your precious Albus."
It was a great overstatement, but Scorpius was ready to say anything to turn that conversation away from the Room of Requirement.
"You're not any better."
Scorpius pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers as if he tried to fight a sudden headache.
"Let me explain something, Potter. If I wanted to harm your brother, I had at least a dozen opportunities to do it during the last two months. So sod off, and find a better hobby than pissing people off."
"It's rather your hobby," Potter barked. Then, he turned around and went towards the Great Hall.
Meanwhile, Scorpius lost every bit of appetite, and instead, he ran toward the greenhouse. He was furious and anxious at the same time, and in his case, it never was a good combination.
He was sick of Potter messing up with his plans. That bloody Gryffindor was doing it from the time of the South Tower incident, probably looking for some of Scorpius' evil schemas. It wasn't much of solace that this time, Scorpius was doing something only for himself - not against someone else. However, his actions were against the school regulations and, worse, against the Ministry regulations because he shouldn't learn that kind of spell at all.
Scorpius had to find out the truth about Potter before he would discover too much.
With a little too much force, Scorpius opened the greenhouse door, and without thinking, he ran at the younger Potter. The boy didn't have time to say anything because Scorpius pushed him against a table that was covered with seedlings.
Scorpius pulled out his wand and pointed it against the boy's throat.
"How did you know I was in the South Tower?"
The Gryffindor paled visibly, and his eyes fixed on the Scorpius' hand. For sure, Potter wasn't used to that kind of threat because he was completely stunned.
"What?" he asked, not very eloquently.
But Scorpius didn't have patience for games.
"From the beginning, you assumed that I was there," he hissed, coming even closer to Potter. "You said that you saw me going there with the Ravens, but it's a lie. I took a different staircase so that you couldn't have seen us together. But you still claim that I was with them. More, you are sure about it. Why?"
Potter shook his head slightly, and then his expression changed drastically.
"I simply know," he replied.
Scorpius felt the boiling of the blood in his veins. The Gryffindor was going to fight, a fatal mistake.
"Crescere cito," he cast the charm, pointing at the plants behind Potter.
Immediately, the little seedlings started growing fast, entwining in Gryffindor's arms, torso, and, in the end, his neck. He tried to rip them apart, but magically strengthened plants were hard to break.
"Don't test my patience, Potter. I didn't want to hurt you, but you and your brother began to irritate me. So, answer my question, or you won't go away from here in one piece. Longbottom won't come back for another hour. Can you guess in how many ways I could harm you during that time?"
Scorpius saw terror in Potter's eyes.
"You can't…," he said through the squeezed throat. "They would expel you."
The smile on Scorpius' face could cause goosebumps.
"Do you really think that I care about this bloody place? And being a mighty Gryffindor didn't help you, either. You have one last chance before I stop playing nice."
Unfortunately, he didn't get the expected result. Potter was scared, for sure, but not enough to talk. As if confirming it, he closed his eyes, ready to take a blow.
It was completely not what Scorpius wanted. He wasn't going to torture the Gryffindor; he didn't even think about it. He could be vile and mischievous, but cruelty wasn't in his style, especially against someone weaker than him. He expected that fear would be enough to make the boy more talkative, but he had to forget that Potter was a bloody Gryffindor after all.
Angry and frustrated, Scorpius tried to remember any charm that could be useful in that pitiful situation. He heard about Legilimency, which allowed to read minds, but it was far too high a form of magic for him to use.
"What are you waiting for?" The sudden words from Potter stopped his train of thought.
The Gryffindor watched him defiantly; however, he was more and more livid in the face.
Scorpius sighed with irritation, and then, with the one movement of his wand, he made all the plants turn into ashes.
The Gryffindor rapidly gasped for the air and succumbed to the flood. He coughed a few times, then raised his eyes and looked at the Slytherin in a very disturbing way. Immediately, Scorpius disliked it.
"I'll find out, one way or another," Scorpius said with anger.
"Why are you so bothered by it?" Potter asked with difficulty. He struggled with speaking, and those purple lines marking his neck showed why.
Scorpius frowned, then crouched next to him and watched him closely.
"Because I don't like when someone messes with my things. Not everything there is nice or always safe, and sometimes, some curious student can be harmed."
The allusion to the South Tower incident was clear.
"Episkey," Scorpius whispered, pointing at the marks on Potter's neck. When they completely vanished, he stood up and left the greenhouse.
