together.

one.

There was nothing more refreshing than the wind blowing on your face from the window cracked open on the bus to Hogwarts, in the opinion of Scorpius Malfoy. Any time he was headed anywhere but home, he was happy. He loved his father - and grandfather somewhat - but he would much rather be with his friends, well uhm, friend. Albus Potter had stuck to his side through everything they had been though these past 5 years. From being pointed at and laughed at to supporting each other through mindless crushes to turning time, they had been through it all together. That's why Scorpius' face lit up at the sight of his best friend taking a seat across from him.

"Where have you been? It's been at least 20 minutes," Scorpius pouted, silver eyes beaming at Albus. He sighed, looking right back at him with a shameful glance. 

"I had to deal with James, sorry. He was trying to point out all of the prettiest girls in our year, begging me to ask at least one of them out, trying to get me to ask out Lydia," Scorpius looked at Albus with a huge smile.

"Haven't you liked Lydia Fern since, well, forever?" Scorpius couldn't help but stand, reach out and put a hand on Albus' shoulder.

"Yeah, but...James was pressuring me, he's an asshole, I don't really want to date anyone at the start of the year like this...we haven't even gotten to school yet, Scorp!" Clearly flustered, he began to pace around the tight space. Scorpius knew that Albus was easily overwhelmed, no matter how much of a brave face he put on all the time. Sure, he was confident to the point of being cocky sometimes, but he always faltered once and a while. Even Scorpius was shocked that he couldn't even work himself up to ask out a girl he had liked. 

"Okay, you're right, we should focus on classes...I've already made notes in my books on some things we should focus on right away," he ran frantically to his bag, pulling out a Charms book, showing Albus the color-coded notes.

"You're such a nerd, but whatever gets us to pass," Albus said, a deep breath following. James working him up before they even stepped off the bus was not what he needed, he hadn't even fancied Lydia that much anyways. Of course, she was a sight for sore eyes, but he did not see them being together for much longer than a fleeting moment. He had a feeling that Scorpius knew that, and James too, but that he just needed someone to pick on and the little brother was the best option. 

There was silence in their compartment for a minute, but then Scorpius said, "It's good to see you again, Albus. I've missed you this summer." It shocked Albus; Scorpius was never the mushy type. But, he had been busy and they hadn't been writing to each other as much. He hoped Scorpius didn't feel like he was ignoring him.

"I've missed you too, sorry I didn't write as much, I hope you know that," he paused, taking a second to gather his thoughts, "I wasn't purposefully ignoring you." Scorpius smiled hopefully; he knew that for sure. Albus was a boy with a large family and a lot on his plate, he has just missed him quite a bit because his family is so small. With just a dad and a grandfather in the house, it becomes quite lonely at times. That was when he wished his mother was still around to fill the house with a little more joy than it had at the moment. Draco had probably taken the greatest toll from Astoria's death, and of course Scorpius too; it was his mother. They had an incredible bond even though he was young when she passed. Lucius hadn't taken much of a beating from it, he just mourned with his son and grandson.

"Of course I know that, I just wanted you to know that I missed you, because quite honestly, it was a slow summer for me. Dad still wasn't really up for much," Scorpius said, looking away from Albus' eyes, which were just drawing his attention. He didn't feel like talking about his mother, and he was luckily saved by the train, which had just arrived at Hogwarts. "Well, looks like we're here, finally." The boys were being pushed around in attempts to get of the train, as it was packed full of eager first years ready to be sorted.