what our fathers never had ( ✓ )

chapter four

Later that night, Scorpius Malfoy found himself thrashing about on his mattress, terrified by a nightmare:

Things had gone to hell the minute he woke up that morning. Water was dripping onto his face from an unknown source, and when he moved to get out of bed, he found that the floor was also covered in water. It was ankle-deep and seemed to be coming from the Black Lake.

Water continued to pour in from the large crack Scorpius now noticed had formed along the right corner of the seemingly indestructible window. He frowned, shivering and fearing that the window would burst, and the Slytherin House, and dungeons, would be filled with water.

He splashed his way towards Albus' bed, and pulled back the hangings, frowning further when he saw the dark-haired man glaring at him, and the person he feared most - his blackmailer, sitting beside Albus.

"Albus?" He asked, and the green-eyed boy sneered at him, shoving him back so he tripped and fell into the icy water, which continued to fill his room.

"You complete and utter creep!" Albus screamed, jumping off of his bed and into the water, pushing the blond again. "You pervert! You- you bloody queer!"

Scorpius' head was pushed under the water again, and the blond felt his lungs filling with water. He cried out, only for bubbles to rise to the surface as the green-eyed younger Potter sat on his chest, holding him down.

"You absolute madman! How could you ever think I could like you like that? It's disgusting! You're a queer! Wait until your father hear's about it." Spite being underwater, Scorpius could hear the other boy perfectly, and his heart sank much like his body had.

His lungs were screaming for air, and with the last bit of energy he had, he screamed again, "Albus!"

Scorpius felt a weight hit his bed, and for a moment, he feared he was going to die some other way. He startled awake and found Albus sitting on the side of his bed, dry and smiling sadly, running his hands through his hair.

"It was just a dream, Scorp. Just a dream." The dark-haired boy hushed the fidgeting blond. His heart pounded heavily in his chest as he moved himself so his head rested in Albus' lap, willing the boy to join him on the bed.

He didn't say anything, but hugged the green-eyed boy's legs tightly and willed himself to breath slower. Albus continued carding a hand through his hair, and though the gesture was kind, gentle even, it only made Scorpius' heart move more erratically.

"S- Stop touching me." He stuttered out, and Albus' hand stilled. He withdrew it, and Scorpius whimpered at the loss of contact, hugging his friend even tighter. He figured Albus' back must hurt from the way he was positioned against the headboard so stiffly, and Scorpius pulled the boy down so they were lying side by side.

He stared at his best friend, eyeing the boy's tanner face up and down. His eyes were so green, just like the Slytherin emblem, and his hair was dark like his father's. Scorpius wondered what Albus would've looked like as a ginger, like Ginny.

"You alright?" He asked, drawing Scorpius from his thoughts. He looked over Albus' concerned face once again, and then nodded.

"I- yeah, it was just a dream. I'm sorry if I woke you. I'm sure it's late." He muttered, glancing at the clock and noticing it actually wasn't late, but just after eleven.

"No, I just came up from the Common Room. There was a rather interesting game of Truth or Dare down there. I uh, I wanted to check in on you." Albus admitted, running a hand through Scorpius' hair again, causing the blond to laugh nervously.

"I told you to stop touching me, weirdo." He teased, though he felt it to be the exact opposite of a joke. The way Albus was behaving towards him now was so much kinder than Dream Albus and he couldn't quite stand it.

"Yet you're the one squeezing the life out of me. You have such a superior logic, Scorpius Malfoy." It was then the blond noticed that, indeed he had been holding Albus by the waist rather tightly - awkwardly. He released the dark-haired boy quickly and blushed.

"Sorry." He muttered, but Albus only grinned.

"Eh, it's alright. I kinda miss nights like this." He gestured to the both of them lying in such a close proximity, and Scorpius' heart began beating quickly again.

"Why?" He asked awkwardly, shifting on his bed again so he was further distanced from the intimidating green-eyed boy.

"All our best times started with us lying side by side."

"You're so weird." Scorpius muttered, noticing the mischievous grin on his face. "Aren't you afraid someone will walk in and call us queer?" His thoughts fell back on his dream sadly.

"Let them try." Albus spoke daringly, and Scorpius found himself blushing again. He coughed awkwardly and then pushed his friend lightly, not wanting to cause him to fall from the bed.

"You're so intimidating, Albus Potter." He laughed, causing Albus to chuckle as well.

"I am. And you're a soft little kitten. Let someone try to harm my kitten." Scorpius' eyes grew wide and his breath fell short, but he felt he recovered quickly enough and laughed nervously again.

"I take it back, Albus. You're so weird." He was weird. This all was quite weird. His kitten? If Scorpius didn't know any better, he'd almost say Albus was flirting with him. But that wasn't possible though, because Scorpius had a girlfriend, and Albus would never sabotage a relationship, no matter how horrible it was.

~△⃒⃘~

Higher payment for more protection, Mr. Malfoy. You do want your secret safe, don't you?

It was another letter, and once again, Scorpius felt prodding eyes on him again, but he refused to look up. He refused to meet those horrible, deceiving eyes. Instead, he focused on the other set of eyes: Albus' eyes, so green and vibrant. So innocent.

He tucked the note away, and folded his hands under his chin, observing Albus' oblivious face as he chewed on a piece of bacon, turned around in his seat so he could speak to the twins at the Hufflepuff table behind them.

"Good luck at your practice today, Lysander!" Albus was saying, smiling widely at the twin on the right who was beaming with excitement as the Quiddtich season had started.

"Thanks, Albus! I think you should join your house's team. Aren't they looking for a new Beater?" Lysander asked, and Scorpius watched with interest as the boys conversed. He then glanced up at the teacher's table, where Professor Longbottom, Albus' godfather, was eyeing him carefully.

"I don't have the body type for a Beater." Albus said in response, which caused Scorpius to stare at Albus' frame. He was turned around, and his back muscles protruded slightly through his grey t-shirt, but the boy was right; he didn't have the body type for a Beater. "They're actually looking for a new Chaser anyways, and I'm not even that good on a broom."

That statement was also true. Albus was not good on a broomstick, like both of his parents had been. That talent was passed onto James, the Keeper and Team Captain for Gryffindor. No, Albus wasn't really very good at anything. Scorpius had taken Albus flying a few times, as he had acquired the talent from his own father, who'd played as Slytherin's Seeker, but once the boy was on a broom alone, it all went to chaos.

However, Scorpius hated the knowledge that Albus lacked any of the talents that qualified him as a son of Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley, and so he vowed to do anything to help the boy find talents of his own. He had proved to do well in Potions, so perhaps Scorpius could help him pursue his talents there. The world was full of possibilities, and he vowed to not let Albus believe he was incapable of doing anything worthwhile.