Breaking the News - Part 3 of Family Secrets (H/D, PG)
Title: Breaking the News - part 3 of Family Secrets
Author: sesheta_66
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1200
Pairing/Characters: Harry/Draco (past), James Potter, Albus Severus Potter, Lily Potter, Scorpius Malfoy
Challenges: AWDT's prompts of "That's not even remotely funny” and my 10_themes prompt #04 - "Hospital".
Summary: Al decides that James deserves to know what they've learned. Predictably, James does not take it well.
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.
Need to catch up? To start at the beginning, click here.
To view all stories in this series, click here.
"James needs to be told," Al told Scorpius when they met in the library.
"He doesn't know?"
"No, Lily told me and I came right to you."
"Why?"
"You're my best friend, that's why."
"Oh." Scorpius looked down at the table for a few moments. "But he's your brother."
"So?"
"So, we're talking about your dad here. I would have thought you and Lily would want to talk to him first."
"Nah, James is ... well, he's sort-of the lone sheep of the family. We don't exactly talk much really. Besides, it involves your dad too."
"Point. So what are you going to say to him?"
"Dunno. I suppose the same thing I said to you."
"You're going to accuse him of knowing?" Scorpius asked.
"About that, Scorp, I'm sorry. It's just that you guessed, and --"
"And you already asked me what I knew before I guessed anything. Did you think I would keep something like that from you?"
"Well ... it is a bit of a crazy thing to hear."
"Why? Because they're both men?"
"Well, yeah. I mean they're both married. They like women, right? I've never heard anything about my dad dating anyone besides some girl in school and my mum. Never another bloke. How about you? Have you heard of your dad dating, or even liking men?"
"Now that you mention it, no. I know he dated a few girls before my mum, but that's it."
"So if you date girls, and you marry a girl, what does it mean if you dated a wizard in between? Does that make you gay?"
"Dunno. Maybe they just tried it out, experimented or something. Then they realized they weren't gay and they both went on with their lives and got married."
"That makes sense, I suppose." Al thought about it for a while, only to find that answer didn't sit right with him. "But both of them? Doesn't it seem strange that they would both feel the same way?"
"Maybe."
"Besides, it didn't sound like a one time thing. Otherwise, why would it be a big deal about my mum finding out? I think they were in a relationship. What does that say?"
"I don't know, Al! I have no idea about any of this. In case you hadn't noticed, I haven't done much dating, boys or girls. How the hell am I supposed to know anything about this? All my life I heard about how my dad and your dad hated each other. Now this? I think I need time to let it sink in."
"Yeah, me too."
"So when are you going to tell James?"
"Today I guess."
~*~*~
"That's not even remotely funny," James deadpanned.
"I wasn't trying to be funny," Al replied. "It's the truth."
"Says who?"
"I told you, Rose overheard her parents."
"Well, she overheard wrong. Dad's not gay."
"How do you know?"
James glared at Al incredulously. "How do I know? Hmm, let's see. Oh, how about the fact that he's married to our mum, in case you hadn't noticed! And before you say anything else, they had three children. Not one, not two, but three. I'd say that makes him not gay."
"Because he slept with his wife at least three times?"
"Exactly."
"Right, and no one has ever done that before!"
"Do you want this to be true? I can't imagine why, but really, Al, do you?"
"No. I mean ... well, would it be so bad?"
"What?!" James screamed. "Surely you're joking, right?"
"I don't mean I want it to be true, only that it wouldn't be so horrible if it were."
"Oh yes it would," snarled James.
Al wasn't sure why his older brother was so angry. Their parents had raised them to be accepting of all lifestyles. Al remembered his dad explaining that it was horrible the way some people were treated in the Muggle world, but Al hadn't seen anything like that in the magical world. Besides, there's nothing wrong with being gay, or bisexual for that matter, even if Al didn't understand it really. He expected James to be surprised or confused, but why was he so upset?
"But why?"
"How about because Mum was in love with Dad since forever? How about because they were together in their sixth year of school, and they never stopped loving each other? How about because it would mean Dad cheated on Mum? Don't tell me you think it's okay to cheat on your spouse."
"Well, no. But they weren't together then."
"Semantics, Al."
"It's not semantics, it's the truth. They weren't together for several years. Surely you can't expect that neither of them would see other people then?"
"You know what? I'm not talking about this with you now. I've got to get to Potions."
~*~*~
McGonagall approached Al and Lily with a distraught look on her face. "James is in the hospital wing. He had an accident in class, some mishap with a potion."
"Can we go see him?"
"Yes, Madame Pomfrey has said that you may drop by, but only for a few minutes. She will be giving him a sleeping draught, but is waiting until after you check in on him."
They walked in to find a pale and heavily bandaged James sitting up in his bed looking mutinous.
"You alright?" Al asked.
"Yes, I'm perfectly fine. I don't know why that woman insists on keeping me here overnight. I'm sure the burns will heal perfectly fine in my dormitory."
"What happened?" Lily asked.
"Distracted. Put the wrong ingredient in and the potion exploded. My face was right up to the edge, so it got all over me and stuck, burning holes into my skin."
Lily gasped. "That must have hurt!"
"Yeah, but I'm fine now. The worst of it has been taken care of, and I've had a potion for the pain. But to prevent scarring, I need to keep the bandages on overnight."
"Distracted?" Al asked. "Because of our discussion earlier?"
"What do you think?" he spit at his brother.
"What discussion?" questioned Lily. "What happened? Were you two fighting again?"
"No, I told James about what Rose overheard."
"Oh."
"Don't tell me you're okay with it too!" James barked at his sister.
"Well, it's a bit weird, especially since we've only ever heard they hated each other. Oh, and with Al and Scorpius being friends and all."
"That's it? You aren't mad about the possibility that Dad was cheating on Mum?"
"He wasn't cheating. They weren't together."
"I don't believe the two of you!"
"Time's up!" Madame Pomfrey called as she re-entered the room. "My patient needs his rest. You may come back to see your brother in the morning. He'll be just fine." When they didn't move, she sent them a pointed look and said, "Good night."
~*~*~
"I wonder why this is bothering him so much," Lily said on the way back to the Great Hall. "It's not as if they were dating then. They only got together again about six or seven years after the war, right?"
Just then a light went off in Al's head. No, it couldn't be.
Part 4 - In Need of a Plan
.
Author: sesheta_66
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1200
Pairing/Characters: Harry/Draco (past), James Potter, Albus Severus Potter, Lily Potter, Scorpius Malfoy
Challenges: AWDT's prompts of "That's not even remotely funny” and my 10_themes prompt #04 - "Hospital".
Summary: Al decides that James deserves to know what they've learned. Predictably, James does not take it well.
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.
Need to catch up? To start at the beginning, click here.
To view all stories in this series, click here.
"James needs to be told," Al told Scorpius when they met in the library.
"He doesn't know?"
"No, Lily told me and I came right to you."
"Why?"
"You're my best friend, that's why."
"Oh." Scorpius looked down at the table for a few moments. "But he's your brother."
"So?"
"So, we're talking about your dad here. I would have thought you and Lily would want to talk to him first."
"Nah, James is ... well, he's sort-of the lone sheep of the family. We don't exactly talk much really. Besides, it involves your dad too."
"Point. So what are you going to say to him?"
"Dunno. I suppose the same thing I said to you."
"You're going to accuse him of knowing?" Scorpius asked.
"About that, Scorp, I'm sorry. It's just that you guessed, and --"
"And you already asked me what I knew before I guessed anything. Did you think I would keep something like that from you?"
"Well ... it is a bit of a crazy thing to hear."
"Why? Because they're both men?"
"Well, yeah. I mean they're both married. They like women, right? I've never heard anything about my dad dating anyone besides some girl in school and my mum. Never another bloke. How about you? Have you heard of your dad dating, or even liking men?"
"Now that you mention it, no. I know he dated a few girls before my mum, but that's it."
"So if you date girls, and you marry a girl, what does it mean if you dated a wizard in between? Does that make you gay?"
"Dunno. Maybe they just tried it out, experimented or something. Then they realized they weren't gay and they both went on with their lives and got married."
"That makes sense, I suppose." Al thought about it for a while, only to find that answer didn't sit right with him. "But both of them? Doesn't it seem strange that they would both feel the same way?"
"Maybe."
"Besides, it didn't sound like a one time thing. Otherwise, why would it be a big deal about my mum finding out? I think they were in a relationship. What does that say?"
"I don't know, Al! I have no idea about any of this. In case you hadn't noticed, I haven't done much dating, boys or girls. How the hell am I supposed to know anything about this? All my life I heard about how my dad and your dad hated each other. Now this? I think I need time to let it sink in."
"Yeah, me too."
"So when are you going to tell James?"
"Today I guess."
~*~*~
"That's not even remotely funny," James deadpanned.
"I wasn't trying to be funny," Al replied. "It's the truth."
"Says who?"
"I told you, Rose overheard her parents."
"Well, she overheard wrong. Dad's not gay."
"How do you know?"
James glared at Al incredulously. "How do I know? Hmm, let's see. Oh, how about the fact that he's married to our mum, in case you hadn't noticed! And before you say anything else, they had three children. Not one, not two, but three. I'd say that makes him not gay."
"Because he slept with his wife at least three times?"
"Exactly."
"Right, and no one has ever done that before!"
"Do you want this to be true? I can't imagine why, but really, Al, do you?"
"No. I mean ... well, would it be so bad?"
"What?!" James screamed. "Surely you're joking, right?"
"I don't mean I want it to be true, only that it wouldn't be so horrible if it were."
"Oh yes it would," snarled James.
Al wasn't sure why his older brother was so angry. Their parents had raised them to be accepting of all lifestyles. Al remembered his dad explaining that it was horrible the way some people were treated in the Muggle world, but Al hadn't seen anything like that in the magical world. Besides, there's nothing wrong with being gay, or bisexual for that matter, even if Al didn't understand it really. He expected James to be surprised or confused, but why was he so upset?
"But why?"
"How about because Mum was in love with Dad since forever? How about because they were together in their sixth year of school, and they never stopped loving each other? How about because it would mean Dad cheated on Mum? Don't tell me you think it's okay to cheat on your spouse."
"Well, no. But they weren't together then."
"Semantics, Al."
"It's not semantics, it's the truth. They weren't together for several years. Surely you can't expect that neither of them would see other people then?"
"You know what? I'm not talking about this with you now. I've got to get to Potions."
~*~*~
McGonagall approached Al and Lily with a distraught look on her face. "James is in the hospital wing. He had an accident in class, some mishap with a potion."
"Can we go see him?"
"Yes, Madame Pomfrey has said that you may drop by, but only for a few minutes. She will be giving him a sleeping draught, but is waiting until after you check in on him."
They walked in to find a pale and heavily bandaged James sitting up in his bed looking mutinous.
"You alright?" Al asked.
"Yes, I'm perfectly fine. I don't know why that woman insists on keeping me here overnight. I'm sure the burns will heal perfectly fine in my dormitory."
"What happened?" Lily asked.
"Distracted. Put the wrong ingredient in and the potion exploded. My face was right up to the edge, so it got all over me and stuck, burning holes into my skin."
Lily gasped. "That must have hurt!"
"Yeah, but I'm fine now. The worst of it has been taken care of, and I've had a potion for the pain. But to prevent scarring, I need to keep the bandages on overnight."
"Distracted?" Al asked. "Because of our discussion earlier?"
"What do you think?" he spit at his brother.
"What discussion?" questioned Lily. "What happened? Were you two fighting again?"
"No, I told James about what Rose overheard."
"Oh."
"Don't tell me you're okay with it too!" James barked at his sister.
"Well, it's a bit weird, especially since we've only ever heard they hated each other. Oh, and with Al and Scorpius being friends and all."
"That's it? You aren't mad about the possibility that Dad was cheating on Mum?"
"He wasn't cheating. They weren't together."
"I don't believe the two of you!"
"Time's up!" Madame Pomfrey called as she re-entered the room. "My patient needs his rest. You may come back to see your brother in the morning. He'll be just fine." When they didn't move, she sent them a pointed look and said, "Good night."
~*~*~
"I wonder why this is bothering him so much," Lily said on the way back to the Great Hall. "It's not as if they were dating then. They only got together again about six or seven years after the war, right?"
Just then a light went off in Al's head. No, it couldn't be.
Part 4 - In Need of a Plan
.