Ghosts Lie Between Us (Albus Severus/Scorpius, PG)
Author: tryslora
Title: Ghosts Lie Between Us
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~6700
Pairing(s): Albus Severus/Scorpius
Warnings: past infidelity, angst, under-18 sex (referred to in the past)
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters herein are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: Albus comes home one day to find a solicitor and a little girl on his doorstep: a little girl who looks just like his boyfriend and flatmate. Discovering that Scorpius cheated on him the summer after their sixth year isn’t easy for Albus to get past, and the boys have to work to figure out their relationship.
Author's Notes: This is for prompt 132 from all_not_well.
It had been a long day at work, and all Albus wanted to do was get inside his flat, put his feet up, and wait for Scorpius to get home with takeaway. He felt the shift in the wards as he moved from Muggle space into the Wizarding section of the building. He could relax here, knowing that this was a safe space. He smiled when Maggie poked her head out of 6B, waving to him on his way by.
Then he stopped, looking at the door to 6C at the end of the hall.
His door. The flat he’d been sharing with Scorpius since they finished up at Hogwarts two years before.
Why was a bloke standing there in official looking robes with a kid on his hip?
Albus pushed his hands through his hair, mussing up the dark auburn waves. "Hey," he said as he drew closer. "Look, I’m not sure who you’re looking for, but we’ve had this flat for a year now-"
"Scorpius Malfoy?" The bloke consulted a paper in his hand, then glanced at the child on his hip. She seemed sleepy, her hair fair to the point of being almost silver, her eyes closed as she had a thumb stuck in her mouth.
"Um. No." Albus hesitated, but when the bloke didn’t seem like he was going to move, he added carefully, "He’s my flatmate." And boyfriend. Partner. Whatever folks were calling it when two blokes couldn’t get married legally but also couldn’t talk about their relationship properly publicly most times, either. "He ought to be home soon, if you’d-" He didn’t really want to let him inside, but carrying around a little girl couldn’t be easy. Albus never found helping with any of his younger cousins easy. So he pushed open the door and waved. "Go on in. She can nap on the couch if you’d like."
Albus shrugged out of his robes, hanging them on a hook by the door. Soon enough it would be the end of the week, and time to struggle with getting the stains out, but for a weeknight, the robes could hang just fine right there, so he could stain them a bit more the next day. "Look, maybe it’d help if you told me who you are? Why you’re here and why you’ve got a little girl with you?"
"I’m sorry, but I must speak with Mr. Malfoy. It’s official business."
The bloke’s voice was low and clipped. He settled the little girl on the sofa, where she curled, a small soft doll tucked in her arm and under her cheek. He sat on the edge of it near her, hands clasped, back straight.
It was creepy, Al thought, having this strange bloke in his flat, watching him as he moved around and took down plates for dinner. "Look, can I get you something? Or could you tell me a name? Anything might be helpful, like why you’ve brought a little girl along on official business."
The bloke coughed, and Albus frowned, turning. He watched them for a moment, how the girl slept and the bloke ignored her like she was nothing important to him. "Wait…" he said slowly. "She’s the business. Or some part of it. What is this, anyway?"
"Al?" The door opened and Scorpius breezed in, a grin lighting his features. He had a bag of takeaway in one hand, and a bottle of wine that he lifted with the other. "Guess who’ll be flying first string at the match on Saturday." He stopped abruptly, a frown knitting his forehead. "We have guests?"
"Mr. Scorpius Malfoy?" The man rose, one hand up, held out, palm up. Scorpius stepped forward, clasping it firmly.
"Yes, I am." His voice shifted, smoothing, becoming that refined sound that Albus knew he saved for public appearances. His eyes widened, hand gripping the bloke’s tightly before he pulled it away.
"I’m sorry." The bloke smiled. "But I had to be certain. I’m sure you understand." He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, withdrawing a scroll. "My name is Nathaniel Wiggleschwarm and I am here on the behalf of Liaura Dentremonte."
Scorpius’ mouth opened, then closed. "Liaura?"
"Oui."
The French was flawless, and Albus realized that it was the English that was imperfect. "Scor? Who’s Liaura Dentremonte?"
"This girl I was friends with in France when I spent the summer there." Scorpius shrugged. "I haven’t even thought of her for years. I can’t think why she’d be contacting me now."
"Something more than friends, I’d say."
At Wiggleschwarm’s cool tone, Scorpius’ cheeks pinked.
Albus looked at him. "Scor? What does he mean by that?"
"Nothing," Scorpius said hastily.
"I assure you, it is quite a bit more than nothing," Wiggleschwarm said. He opened the scroll and read, "I, Liaura AmeliaDentremonte, do declare Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy the legal father of our daughter, Emilia Caellin Dentremonte. As I have found myself unable to care for this child, who was conceived on the eighth of August, in the summer of 2023, all rights of parenthood shall revert to her father from this day forward."
"What?" Albus stepped forward, touching Scorpius’ arm, confused when Scorpius pulled away. "Scor, this is ridiculous. You couldn’t have-"
"I did." The two words were soft. "But that doesn’t explain this."
"My client chose to bear your child, but has since found herself unable to care for her," Wiggleschwarm explained. "By French law, she is unable to give the child up for adoption without the full agreement of the father. Thus, guardianship of your daughter falls to you, Mr. Malfoy. These papers bear Ms. Dentremonte’s signature, so should you decide that Emilia is best settled by adoption into another wizarding family, you may properly proceed."
"My daughter." Scorpius tone was soft and remote. Terrifying to Albus, who couldn’t see anything of his lover in this man who stared down at the child on the sofa.
"Yes. Now, if you’ll excuse me." Wiggleschwarm gathered his things. "I must be off. My card is attached to the scroll, and I expect you’ll be in touch once you’ve had a chance to settle things. I can assure you, placing a child as lovely as this will not be difficult."
Albus’ heart caught in his throat at the look Scorpius gave the solicitor. The tight smile, the darkness in his grey eyes.
"Get out," Scorpius said. "If I choose to put her up for adoption, that will be my choice, but you will not promise her to anyone. She is mine."
Wiggleschwarm left, the door closing with a soft thunk behind him. Scorpius went to put the wine and takeaway on the table, then returned to the sofa, sinking down to one knee to look at the little girl who slept there.
"If she’s-" Albus couldn’t finish the sentence. "Then you-" He rubbed at his eyes, feeling dampness there, pricking the corners. He and Scorpius had been together since the beginning of their sixth year. This child was conceived the summer after that. Which meant Scorpius had cheated with Liaura Dentremonte.
Suddenly a quiet night at home with takeaway, celebrating whatever it was Scorpius had been so happy about earlier, didn’t seem at all attractive. Without a word, Albus grabbed his stained robes and shrugged into them on the way out the door. He wanted to be anywhere else but there.
#
"Hey, Al, slow down." James lifted an empty pint glass from the table, moving it out of the way as he slid into the seat across from Albus. "How many of these did you have before I got here."
"Only the one," Albus admitted. "This is my second. But I’m planning on a few more before I go home."
If he was drunk enough, maybe he wouldn’t have to think about Scorpius betraying him like he had. Maybe he could numb the part of him that just didn’t want to deal with the idea that there was a little girl in their flat who belonged to Scorpius and some faceless woman. He took a long gulp of his drink, putting it down only when James nudged at his hand and he had to move, or spill it.
"Are you going to talk about whatever it is?" James asked. "Or did you just bring me here to help you stumble back to your flat when you’re done drinking yourself into oblivion."
"I’m not sure I want to talk about it." Albus drew his wand, tracing a rune on the table with the tip. Light flared, and Albus felt the ward set for privacy. "Just in case."
"What can be so bad that you want to drink to forget?" James took a sip of his own pint, watching Albus across the rim.
"Scorpius."
James’ glass hit the table with a solid thunk. "What’s the prat done? I never did think he was good enough for you, Al. I know you say he’s good to you, but I remember what he was like those first few years, and how he treated you and Lily. If he’s-"
"Stop." Albus shoved his hand in James’ face, awkwardly covering his mouth. "Just stop. I love him. That hasn’t changed, James. It’s just- He-" He faltered, unwilling to put it into words. "I just found out he did something and didn’t tell me. And it was big."
"Shagged another guy?" James guessed.
Albus smiled weakly. "Actually…. He apparently shagged a girl while he was in France."
James let out a low whistle. "Didn’t realize he likes to play both sides. Oi, that could be trouble for you. What if he gets it into his head he wants another bird? Where’ll you be then?"
Which was exactly what Albus had already thought, and tried not to think as well. He took a gulp, then leaned on the table, head down. "I’d be out on my own," he muttered. "I can’t even figure out why he’s with me now, if that’s what he wanted. I know his folks want him to get married properly. He’s tried telling them about us, but they don’t believe him. I think he said once flat out that we shared a bed and that he’d fucked me and his mother asked if I needed curtains for my room because it seemed terrible that Scorpius decorated so well, and my room was left plain. It’s a guest room. It’s not meant to have special curtains. But she just kept thinking it was mine, no matter what shocking thing Scorpius said."
"So you think Scorpius would dump you because he’s capable of shagging a bird and his parents don’t believe he’s shagging you?" James asked.
When put that way, it did sound a bit ridiculous, particularly after they’d been together for four years.
Well, four years minus the time Scorpius was off in France shagging some bird he’d met.
"Bloody hell." Albus pinched the bridge of his nose tightly. "It’s just complicated, James. Bloody complicated. He shagged this bird, and he never said a word of it. And that’s bad enough, but then today, there was this solicitor and a wee little bit of a girl and he’s gone and left her with us."
"The girl Scorpius shagged?"
Albus shuddered. "No, James. Keep up. His daughter. The bird he shagged got pregnant, and she’s gone and dumped the girl on Scor. He’s a dad."
James took a long drink, and Albus smiled. Now his brother seemed to be getting the idea of just how bad this all was.
"Sounds like you’re going to need curtains for that guest room after all," James mused. "Ones for a little girl."
Albus drained the last of his pint and looked at it. He could go get another, but that would mean breaking the ward he’d set. But if he didn’t, well, he couldn’t drink more. And oblivion wasn’t such a bad idea. "I don’t know what to do," he muttered.
"Need to ask yourself the question: are you arsed off at Scorpius because he got a girl pregnant and his daughter’s in your flat, or is it because he cheated on you, or is it because he actually shagged a woman well enough to get her pregnant?" James was thoughtful. "I’d have to guess they did it more than once."
"I don’t think I need to know those details." Albus let his head fall to the table, which was blessedly cool against his skin. "I just keep wondering if he’d do it again? If there was something about it that he needs, because he obviously didn’t need me right then."
"Were you two even shagging then?"
Albus shook his head. "Not until the start of seventh year. We got back to school and Scor was anxious to-" He trailed off, guessing what had happened. "He felt guilty. He fucked her that summer, then he came back and fucked me. Bloody hell, James."
"You sure you don’t want me to hurt him?"
Albus glared. "I don’t want you to hurt him. Besides. What would happen to the little girl then? The solicitor’s ready to hand her off to some other family already."
"Maybe that’s for the best." James’ words were slow, carefully considered. He held one hand up as Albus went to speak. "Think about it here. You’re twenty. Neither of you was really planning on being parents any time soon. How are you going to raise a little girl? What’ll happen when Scor’s team goes off on tour? What if you get stuck at the shop?"
James had a point. On the other hand, how would Albus and Scor ever have children any other way? Albus groaned softly. "I like things planned, James. I like to know what’s going to happen and when. This is messy."
"Life’s messy." James gave him a wry smile.
Albus realized that he wasn’t going to decide anything that night. He was angry and hurt and frustrated, and what he wanted most was another drink. He rubbed his hand over the place where he’d drawn the rune against the wood, and felt the ward dissolve. "I’m going to go get us another round."
James caught his wrist as he stood. "You’ll kip on my couch tonight, Al. I don’t want to see you trying to apparate home like this. And I think you ought to be sober when you talk to Scorpius next."
Albus nodded once. It wasn’t hard to agree with this plan, since he trusted his brother to make sure that he’d be fine, no matter how many pints he had. And Albus intended to have more than a few tonight. He wanted to forget about how this made him feel, just for a little while.
#
Albus had gone straight from James’ flat to work that morning, then spent much of the day up to his elbows in a particularly noxious set of ingredients to crush, boil, and stew. He could feel residue in his hair, and suspected that if anyone whispered just the wrong incantation around him, he might explode. He wanted a shower, and to toss his robes in the laundry finally, and to relax for the weekend.
He also wanted his own bed, rather than the couch in his brother’s flat.
Albus just wasn’t sure if he wanted Scorpius in that bed right now. He paused just outside the door, then pushed it open carefully, only to be greeted by the sight of his younger sister sitting cross-legged on the floor, playing with the elfish sprite of a toddler.
"Albus!" Lily jumped up to give her brother a hug and a kiss on the cheek, barely pausing a moment before she was back on the floor, leaning out to tickle Emilia. "Isn’t she darling? She only speaks French, but we’ve been getting along so far by gesturing at things. Well, and she screams when she isn’t getting her way, but Mum says she’s at that age and not to worry a bit about it. She’ll grow out of it eventually."
He shrugged out of his robes, watching his sister and the little girl warily. "Mum? Mum’s met Emilia already?"
"Of course she has! I was with Mum when Scorpius owled me to say he’d pay if I was able to mind her today, so both Mum and I came over. We were here when her things were delivered; Scor’s working on making sense of all that in her room now. At least, I’m assuming you’ll be giving Emilia the guest room, right?" Lily stopped speaking briefly, and Albus wondered if she actually expected an answer, or if he ought to just let her keep going.
As the silence stretched, he nodded, "I suppose that’s how it’ll work," he said carefully. "We haven’t actually discussed anything yet. Like what to do on most days when she needs minding. We can’t just keep calling you."
"I’m between jobs at the moment, so I wouldn’t mind helping out, at least for a while," Lily offered. "Mum’d be glad to see me out of the house."
"You’re not between jobs," Albus pointed out. "You’ve just finished Hogwarts. You’ll have a job soon enough, won’t you?"
"Have to decide what I want to do before I can get one." Lily shrugged.
"Aren’t Slytherins supposed to be driven?"
"Look at you." Lily’s gaze flicked from Albus to the stained robes, to his hair. She frowned. "There’s pink in your hair."
"Bloody hell, I need a shower. I’m probably not safe for anyone to be around."
Albus hurried off, trying not to think about the fact that in the guest room, Scorpius was putting away things that belonged to his daughter. A daughter he’d made with some random woman Albus had never heard of before now. He leaned against the wall in the shower, letting the water cascade over his head, rinsing away the strange mix of ingredients he’d been splattered with, and washing it down the drain.
He heard the footsteps, but refused to look, even when the curtain opened.
"I’m sorry."
"Good words to start with," Albus said quietly. "But probably not enough to fix this, Scor. How could you do that?"
"It was an experiment."
"Which part?" Albus finally turned, glaring at him. "Shagging her? Or lying to me about it afterwards?"
Scorpius winced. "Lying was a mistake."
"And shagging her wasn’t?!"
"Shagging her was a mistake, too!" Scorpius took a deep breath. "Al, come out of there. Listen to me just for five minutes. Please."
Albus reached out to swing the curtain closed, not wanting to see Scorpius or those pale grey-blue eyes that implored him to listen. "I’ll be out when I’m out," he said, and ducked back under the water to muffle any further things that might be said.
By the time he emerged, toweling his hair mostly dry and wrapping the towel around his waist after, he was alone in the bathroom. He didn’t bother to get changed, simply stepped out of the bathroom in the towel, and stopped dead as he saw the little girl looking at him.
She blinked, her lashes so pale that Albus swore they shimmered. Her eyes were blue, but her features reminded him so sharply of Scorpius that he couldn’t imagine how he’d missed noting that the day before. She didn’t move, simply staring at him, a baby doll clutched in her arms tightly. A moment passed, and another, then she smiled brightly as if all was well, and held the doll out, saying something Albus couldn’t understand.
"I don’t speak French," he said quietly. "You ought to go on back to Lily and let me go get dressed." As if she might understand all of that, when he was fairly certain it’d be over the head of a two year old who spoke the same language he did. Or maybe not. Albus didn’t know anything about children, and hadn’t intended to have to learn any time soon. He was only twenty years old, and gay. He hadn’t given a thought to having a family of his own. He’d always figured he’d borrow Lily’s children someday, or James’. Wasn’t that the point of having nieces and nephews?
"Emilia," he said quietly when she didn’t move, and held out his hand, pointing to the living room.
She seemed to take that as an invitation, wrapping small chubby fingers around his pointed finger and waiting.
"Um." Albus stared at her.
"Emilia!" The sound rolled off of Scorpius’ tongue, lilting in what Albus had to assume was a proper French pronunciation. Which meant he’d butchered it, but the little girl hadn’t seemed to mind.
"She’s right here," Albus called back, since Emilia didn’t seem to intend to stop holding his finger any time soon.
"There you are." Scorpius swept in and bent down to pick her up, kissing her cheek until she laughed. "She’s so easy-going, Al. I can’t understand it at all. I keep wondering why she’s not terrified of us, and wanting her Maman."
Albus shook his head, because he didn’t understand it either. But when he looked at the little girl in Scorpius’ arms, he could almost see the line between them, as if there were some intrinsic connection between father and daughter. His lips pressed together and he walked down the hallway, not wanting to see it anymore.
"Al…"
"Don’t, Scor." Albus paused in the doorway to their room. "I’m going to get changed, then you’re going to collect some things so you can sleep on the floor of the guest room."
A moment’s pause before Scorpius admitted, "The bed’s still in there. She’s got her own tiny bed with rails, almost like a crib but not quite. I haven’t taken the guest bed out yet, since I wasn’t sure where to put it."
Albus gave him a tight smile, because that was just perfect. "Good, then you won’t need to kip on the couch, which I can tell you is bloody well uncomfortable. But you’re not sleeping in here with me tonight, Scor. I don’t know what we need to do to fix this. I don’t even know if it can be fixed. But I know that I’m not sleeping in the same bed as you until we do."
"We could talk about it-"
Albus shook his head, looking away. "I’m not ready to do that. Look, I’m not throwing you out of the flat, and I’m not leaving myself. Count that as a victory and let it go for now."
When he closed the door, he latched it with a spell, knowing it wouldn’t keep Scorpius out if he really wanted to break in, but it would make him think twice about it at least. Then he sat down hard on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands, because he had no idea what to do next. All he knew was that every time he looked at Scorpius and Emilia, all he saw was this unknown woman, and that betrayal. And all he knew was that Scorpius would travel again with his Quidditch team, all the time, and Albus wasn’t sure he could trust him when he was gone.
#
Albus had never attended a Quidditch game with a wee child in tow. Not that he had Emilia on his own. In fact, he’d refused to take responsibility for her, but Lily and James also had tickets from Scorpius, so they were all together in the section set aside for the families and friends of the players.
Despite the resemblance to Scorpius, most folks seemed to somehow think Emilia belonged to Lily, and in the interest of keeping things simple, no one bothered to refute the assumption. Albus simply sat as far as he could from Lily and the little girl, and tried not to watch her excitement as people flew overhead. When he did glance over, he saw a light in Emilia’s eyes that he found all too familiar, a complete delight as she reached up.
The little girl was so well-behaved, so sunny in personality that Albus couldn’t quite understand it. Shouldn’t she be miserable and crying and missing her mum? How was it that she adapted so well? It didn’t make any sense to him, and as he watched her, he wondered just how long she’d known Scorpius. If maybe he’d lied, and actually knew about the little girl and had even seen her-and her mum-before Emilia showed up on their doorstep.
The idea made his gut hurt, and he stood, intending to leave, sitting only when James grabbed him and shoved him back into his seat.
"You’re not going to miss Scorpius’ big day," James said firmly. "So keep your arse in that seat and watch your boyfriend fly."
First string chaser. Scorpius had been after the position for two years, and now he had it, at least for the game. Albus had never asked him just how this came about, or if there was a chance he’d stay first string and be out of the substitute group. That would have meant talking to Scorpius, acting like they were more than two men sleeping in the same flat. And he wasn’t ready for that.
Especially after watching Scorpius care for Emilia last night and this morning. Somehow fatherhood suited him, despite his young age. The two seemed to have bonded almost instinctively (or perhaps they already knew each other, Albus’ suspicious mind reminded him).
"Al-"
He looked at James. "I’m going to go get a pint. Want something?" Albus didn’t wait for an answer, worming his way out of the row of seats, apologizing as he slipped by others and made his way to the aisle stairs.
He had already reached the bottom when he realized he had a shadow. As he stopped, Emilia stared up at him, smiling, and lifted both her hands, fingers wiggling in an obvious silent plea to be lifted.
"Go back," Albus directed.
Emilia simply smiled and wiggled her fingers again.
Albus lifted her with a sigh. He couldn’t just leave her there. It wasn’t her fault for existing, after all. It wasn’t her fault that he could see Scorpius in the line of her jaw, even with that baby softness that she had. It wasn’t her fault that her pale blue eyes were like her father’s, or her silk spun hair. Or that charmed smile. "What is it?"
She pointed up, speaking French in soft inarticulate toddler sounds. Albus couldn’t speak it at the best of times, but right then it sounded like a jumble. Until he heard papa in the midst of it all, and she reached to the brooms overhead, and he saw Scorpius zoom above them, swiftly twisting.
"That’s the Quaffle," Albus murmured. "See that, Scor’s one of the best out there, even though they’ve had him benched for ages. He’s got it now, and he’s got this thing he does where he gets behind…" Albus’ voice trailed off as he turned, watching, guiding Emilia to watch as well. "See, there." Albus jabbed his finger, and Emilia cheered when she spotted Scorpius, just as he lobbed the Quaffle through the hoop. Scorpius’ hands went in the air as the crowd roared.
Albus forgot himself entirely in that moment, cheering for the man he loved. Until Scorpius looked down, somehow spotting him standing there with Emilia. The grin that split his expression was spontaneous, and for a brief second, Albus smiled back.
Then Emilia cried out papa! once more, and the hurt returned. "Let’s get you back to Lily," Albus said quietly, and did just that before trying again to go get his pint.
He watched the rest of the game from the wings, just out of sight, so he could see what happened but there would be no chance of Scorpius spotting him again. He saw Scorpius score three more times, driving the score up until his team caught the Snitch. He saw them congratulate him, saw Scorpius searching the stands.
Saw his expression fall when Albus wasn’t there. And Albus’ gut twisted in guilt at that, because he’d taken away from Scorpius’ grand moment. But at the same time, it felt good to make him feel pain.
He was turning into a right arse, but wasn’t it deserved? Scorpius had cheated on him. Albus had to do something.
"Al?"
He turned slowly. Scorpius stood there, still in full gear as the crowd spilled out of the stands around him. "Hey."
Scorpius approached slowly, as if expecting him to run. "I thought I saw you earlier. With Emilia."
"She’s with Lily." Albus shrugged. "I said I’d come. So I came."
"I see." Scorpius offered a lopsided smile. "I’m glad. We should-"
"No." Albus cut him off with one short, sharp word. "I don’t think we should anything."
"Hear me out." When Albus went to move, Scorpius grabbed him, pushing him back against the wall, leaning in close. "Please," he said softly, giving them a sense of privacy even with the crowds swirling around them. "Just listen, Al. Please."
Albus blinked rapidly, embarrassed to feel tears prick the corners of his eyes. "Not here." He shook his head quickly. "We are not going to do this here. We-" No, there was no we. There couldn’t be a we, because Scorpius had cheated on him. "I’m leaving."
"I’m coming with you. Just give me a moment to get my kit off."
Scorpius let Albus go, and Albus wrenched himself away, putting space between them.
They stood there staring at each other until a soft cough got their attention. Lily, James, and Emilia waited for them. Emilia smiled brightly. "Papa?"
Scorpius’ eyes closed. "Lil, I need to get changed. Can you take Emilia home for me and watch her for a bit? I’m not-I’m not going out with the team after, so I shouldn’t be long."
Lily chewed on her lower lip, gaze shifting from Scorpius to Albus. "Take all the time you need. I’ll make sure she’s okay."
"I’m not waiting for you," Albus said once they were alone again. "If you want me, you’ll be able to figure out where to find me." Maybe it was childish, but he just wanted to know that Scorpius was willing to do a little work for this. Something. Anything. Even if it was remembering where Albus might go if he needed some time to think.
He didn’t wait for an answer, stuffing his hands in his pockets and stalking off. Only time would tell if Scorpius bothered to try.
#
Albus was in the middle of grinding Scuttlebugs to a fine paste when he heard the Floo flare up. He’d left it open, just in case, but hadn’t actually expected to hear it. Still, he wasn’t going to make this easy. He kept working the paste with the mortar and pestle, grinding it until it was smooth. He heard the soft breath of another person in the room, knew he was being watched, but Potions were a tricky business. He counted softly under his breath, waiting for the liquid to stop swirling in the cauldron, then he carefully measured in half the Scuttlebug paste. He stirred three times clockwise, then another half turn in the reverse, then he set a timer for three and a half minutes.
Once that was done, he wiped his hands on a rag and glanced over at the man leaning against the wall. "I didn’t expect you to come here."
"Well, I didn’t think you’d gone back to the Hogwarts classroom," Scorpius said, "so I figured you had to be here instead." He nodded towards the fireplace. "Thanks for leaving the Floo unlocked."
Albus shrugged one shoulder. The potion was hardly complete, so while the timer ticked, he meticulously picked grains from a strand of Bluegrass. While he worked, he had something to focus on, to keep his attention so his gaze didn’t stray to Scorpius. "If I hadn’t, you’d just have been waiting when I got home. Where’s your daughter?"
He wondered if Scorpius flinched, the same way Albus did every time he thought about Emilia. Scorpius had a daughter. And it wasn’t a little girl he’d somehow planned with Albus, but this random child that came out of an encounter Scorpius should never have had.
He missed hearing the soft footsteps as Scorpius approached him, startling when a hand settled on his shoulder. "Al-"
Albus shrugged out from under that touch. "Talk. Don’t touch, Scor. You aren’t going to be able to shag me happy with you." He laid down the bare stalk next to the little pile of grains before he looked at him. "This isn’t forgetting something small. This isn’t us going in different directions after school and trying to make our lives fit into work. This is you cheating on me when we were apart, after we’d been together almost a year. I trusted you. This is you sleeping with someone the very first time we were apart for more than a few days. And when you came back, I trusted you enough to have sex with you, and you never said a word. How am I supposed to trust you now when your team goes off for away matches? What have you been doing when you traveled before?"
"Nothing," Scorpius said.
The spell timer rang, and Albus held up one hand to hush Scorpius as he dropped three small grains into the cauldron. The grains swelled rapidly and popped with a deep, earthy, woodsy scent. Albus inhaled, rolling it on his tongue, tasting the air before nodding and reaching for a phial and dripping in two drops of scarlet liquid. A quick flash of warmth from his wand brought the cauldron to the proper heat, then he let it sit while he set another timer for thirty minutes.
Nothing. He rolled that around in his mind as well, trying to taste the truth of it. The problem was, he’d always trusted Scorpius before. But apparently he’d never asked the right questions before, either. Scorpius had never said he’d been faithful during that trip to France, but Albus had never even thought he wouldn’t be. He shook his head. "I can’t believe you, Scor. I’m sorry." And it hurt that he couldn’t, hurt more than he could say that he’d lost that instinctive feeling.
"My father introduced us," Scorpius said quietly. "I’d just told him about you the first time. The whole truth, left nothing out. I already knew then, Al. I knew that there wasn’t anyone else for me. But my father didn’t want to accept that and he made me promise to date Liaura that one summer. Eight weeks of taking her out, and he’d pay for everything we wanted to do. After the first week, I knew we’d become friends, but there wasn’t anything else there at all. So I tried to get out of the promise, because I didn’t think it was fair to her."
Albus pressed his lips together, arms crossed as he stared at the floor. He shrugged one shoulder in a silent gesture of go on.
Scorpius leaned against the table, his shoulder against Albus’, a hair’s breadth separating them. "He told me I couldn’t possibly know I was gay unless I’d been with a girl. What I didn’t know is that he told her that if she could change my mind, make me see things properly, he’d pay her. I’m guessing he did, because she got me roaring drunk and we had sex three times that night."
"Three?" The word slipped out, but knowing that it was more than once was a crushing pain.
"Three," Scorpius confirmed. "I wasn’t thinking clearly. I can’t even remember most of it, except that at the end of it, she looked at me and said she’d never had so much bloody work keeping a bloke hard." He laughed ruefully. "Not in those words, not exactly. Her French was actually much cruder. And she told me to go back to my boyfriend."
"But why’d you do it at all?" That was what Albus couldn’t understand. Why would Scorpius have sex with her in the first place?
"I don’t know," he admitted. "I think she said something about making sure, and it sounded so much more reasonable when she said it, and her hand was already down my pants. Then I think she made it a dare, and I’d drunk a bottle of wine on my own, and it just-it made sense then."
"And after?"
"After it felt miserable." Scorpius tilted his head back, staring at the wall. "I didn’t tell you because it felt that awful. I knew it was wrong, and it was never going to happen again, and my father backed down and just let me be. I just wanted to leave it in France and forget it ever happened."
"You made a baby."
Scorpius gave Albus a look, and Albus flushed. "I was drunk, Al," Scorpius said quietly. "I wasn’t thinking about protective charms. I guess I thought she did it. I was stupid, I’m trying to admit that. I was stupid in a hundred different ways, and now it’s making me lose you, and I just wish I could go back in time and tell myself not to be an idiot."
It felt like the truth. It tasted like the truth in his heart, and Albus ached to believe him. His head slowly tilted until he leaned against Scorpius, and Scorpius’ arm went around his shoulder cautiously, as if he might pull away again. "I want to believe you," Albus murmured, closing his eyes to shut the world out, just for a moment.
A soft silence, stretching and broken only by the soft popping bubbles in the cauldron behind them. Then Scorpius shifted, pulling something from his pocket to hand to Albus. "Take a look at this. It’s not ready yet; my father needs to approve it first. But I’ve been working on this for a month now."
Albus took the parchment, unrolling it carefully. The words at the top leapt out at him first: I, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, being of sound mind and health, do declare Albus Severus Potter to be my heir, my life, my heart, my everything.
"There are magical signatures," Scorpius said quietly, catching Albus’ fingers and moving them to touch the spots that then glowed with the dates when they were completed. "I’ve been in discussions with my father regarding names and inheritance, and I need to start that all over again when I tell him about Emilia. But I’ve been working on this Al, to join us. Bond us properly, and I couldn’t do that if I were going to cheat again. You know that, right?"
Albus read down the page, recognizing that this was no normal marriage bond. This wasn’t a simple declaration of intent, and a melding of property. It was something more than what politics denied them. This was a Bond. This would tie them together, heart to heart, until one was gone. Neither could stray, neither could lie. They would be as one. "And now?"
"I sent a letter to my parents explaining Emilia. We have dinner with them tomorrow night." Scorpius hesitated. "They’re going to accept you, Al. I’ll make sure of it."
"That sure I’ll still be with you?" Albus almost smiled as he glanced at Scorpius.
"It’s what we wanted. A life together. Family. She’s not just my daughter," Scorpius said firmly. "She’ll be ours. Just as if we’d found a witch to carry her for us."
"Yes." The word came out before Albus had a chance to think, and he turned in Scorpius’ arms, holding on tight, burying his face against his partner’s throat. "My heir, my life, my heart," he murmured. "You are my everything. And you always will be."
When lips brushed lips, Albus tasted the truth then. He tasted Scorpius and he knew that Scorpius wouldn’t stray again. As he sank into the kiss, he knew that even without the formality of magic, their Bond had already begun.
Title: Ghosts Lie Between Us
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~6700
Pairing(s): Albus Severus/Scorpius
Warnings: past infidelity, angst, under-18 sex (referred to in the past)
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters herein are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: Albus comes home one day to find a solicitor and a little girl on his doorstep: a little girl who looks just like his boyfriend and flatmate. Discovering that Scorpius cheated on him the summer after their sixth year isn’t easy for Albus to get past, and the boys have to work to figure out their relationship.
Author's Notes: This is for prompt 132 from all_not_well.
It had been a long day at work, and all Albus wanted to do was get inside his flat, put his feet up, and wait for Scorpius to get home with takeaway. He felt the shift in the wards as he moved from Muggle space into the Wizarding section of the building. He could relax here, knowing that this was a safe space. He smiled when Maggie poked her head out of 6B, waving to him on his way by.
Then he stopped, looking at the door to 6C at the end of the hall.
His door. The flat he’d been sharing with Scorpius since they finished up at Hogwarts two years before.
Why was a bloke standing there in official looking robes with a kid on his hip?
Albus pushed his hands through his hair, mussing up the dark auburn waves. "Hey," he said as he drew closer. "Look, I’m not sure who you’re looking for, but we’ve had this flat for a year now-"
"Scorpius Malfoy?" The bloke consulted a paper in his hand, then glanced at the child on his hip. She seemed sleepy, her hair fair to the point of being almost silver, her eyes closed as she had a thumb stuck in her mouth.
"Um. No." Albus hesitated, but when the bloke didn’t seem like he was going to move, he added carefully, "He’s my flatmate." And boyfriend. Partner. Whatever folks were calling it when two blokes couldn’t get married legally but also couldn’t talk about their relationship properly publicly most times, either. "He ought to be home soon, if you’d-" He didn’t really want to let him inside, but carrying around a little girl couldn’t be easy. Albus never found helping with any of his younger cousins easy. So he pushed open the door and waved. "Go on in. She can nap on the couch if you’d like."
Albus shrugged out of his robes, hanging them on a hook by the door. Soon enough it would be the end of the week, and time to struggle with getting the stains out, but for a weeknight, the robes could hang just fine right there, so he could stain them a bit more the next day. "Look, maybe it’d help if you told me who you are? Why you’re here and why you’ve got a little girl with you?"
"I’m sorry, but I must speak with Mr. Malfoy. It’s official business."
The bloke’s voice was low and clipped. He settled the little girl on the sofa, where she curled, a small soft doll tucked in her arm and under her cheek. He sat on the edge of it near her, hands clasped, back straight.
It was creepy, Al thought, having this strange bloke in his flat, watching him as he moved around and took down plates for dinner. "Look, can I get you something? Or could you tell me a name? Anything might be helpful, like why you’ve brought a little girl along on official business."
The bloke coughed, and Albus frowned, turning. He watched them for a moment, how the girl slept and the bloke ignored her like she was nothing important to him. "Wait…" he said slowly. "She’s the business. Or some part of it. What is this, anyway?"
"Al?" The door opened and Scorpius breezed in, a grin lighting his features. He had a bag of takeaway in one hand, and a bottle of wine that he lifted with the other. "Guess who’ll be flying first string at the match on Saturday." He stopped abruptly, a frown knitting his forehead. "We have guests?"
"Mr. Scorpius Malfoy?" The man rose, one hand up, held out, palm up. Scorpius stepped forward, clasping it firmly.
"Yes, I am." His voice shifted, smoothing, becoming that refined sound that Albus knew he saved for public appearances. His eyes widened, hand gripping the bloke’s tightly before he pulled it away.
"I’m sorry." The bloke smiled. "But I had to be certain. I’m sure you understand." He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, withdrawing a scroll. "My name is Nathaniel Wiggleschwarm and I am here on the behalf of Liaura Dentremonte."
Scorpius’ mouth opened, then closed. "Liaura?"
"Oui."
The French was flawless, and Albus realized that it was the English that was imperfect. "Scor? Who’s Liaura Dentremonte?"
"This girl I was friends with in France when I spent the summer there." Scorpius shrugged. "I haven’t even thought of her for years. I can’t think why she’d be contacting me now."
"Something more than friends, I’d say."
At Wiggleschwarm’s cool tone, Scorpius’ cheeks pinked.
Albus looked at him. "Scor? What does he mean by that?"
"Nothing," Scorpius said hastily.
"I assure you, it is quite a bit more than nothing," Wiggleschwarm said. He opened the scroll and read, "I, Liaura AmeliaDentremonte, do declare Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy the legal father of our daughter, Emilia Caellin Dentremonte. As I have found myself unable to care for this child, who was conceived on the eighth of August, in the summer of 2023, all rights of parenthood shall revert to her father from this day forward."
"What?" Albus stepped forward, touching Scorpius’ arm, confused when Scorpius pulled away. "Scor, this is ridiculous. You couldn’t have-"
"I did." The two words were soft. "But that doesn’t explain this."
"My client chose to bear your child, but has since found herself unable to care for her," Wiggleschwarm explained. "By French law, she is unable to give the child up for adoption without the full agreement of the father. Thus, guardianship of your daughter falls to you, Mr. Malfoy. These papers bear Ms. Dentremonte’s signature, so should you decide that Emilia is best settled by adoption into another wizarding family, you may properly proceed."
"My daughter." Scorpius tone was soft and remote. Terrifying to Albus, who couldn’t see anything of his lover in this man who stared down at the child on the sofa.
"Yes. Now, if you’ll excuse me." Wiggleschwarm gathered his things. "I must be off. My card is attached to the scroll, and I expect you’ll be in touch once you’ve had a chance to settle things. I can assure you, placing a child as lovely as this will not be difficult."
Albus’ heart caught in his throat at the look Scorpius gave the solicitor. The tight smile, the darkness in his grey eyes.
"Get out," Scorpius said. "If I choose to put her up for adoption, that will be my choice, but you will not promise her to anyone. She is mine."
Wiggleschwarm left, the door closing with a soft thunk behind him. Scorpius went to put the wine and takeaway on the table, then returned to the sofa, sinking down to one knee to look at the little girl who slept there.
"If she’s-" Albus couldn’t finish the sentence. "Then you-" He rubbed at his eyes, feeling dampness there, pricking the corners. He and Scorpius had been together since the beginning of their sixth year. This child was conceived the summer after that. Which meant Scorpius had cheated with Liaura Dentremonte.
Suddenly a quiet night at home with takeaway, celebrating whatever it was Scorpius had been so happy about earlier, didn’t seem at all attractive. Without a word, Albus grabbed his stained robes and shrugged into them on the way out the door. He wanted to be anywhere else but there.
#
"Hey, Al, slow down." James lifted an empty pint glass from the table, moving it out of the way as he slid into the seat across from Albus. "How many of these did you have before I got here."
"Only the one," Albus admitted. "This is my second. But I’m planning on a few more before I go home."
If he was drunk enough, maybe he wouldn’t have to think about Scorpius betraying him like he had. Maybe he could numb the part of him that just didn’t want to deal with the idea that there was a little girl in their flat who belonged to Scorpius and some faceless woman. He took a long gulp of his drink, putting it down only when James nudged at his hand and he had to move, or spill it.
"Are you going to talk about whatever it is?" James asked. "Or did you just bring me here to help you stumble back to your flat when you’re done drinking yourself into oblivion."
"I’m not sure I want to talk about it." Albus drew his wand, tracing a rune on the table with the tip. Light flared, and Albus felt the ward set for privacy. "Just in case."
"What can be so bad that you want to drink to forget?" James took a sip of his own pint, watching Albus across the rim.
"Scorpius."
James’ glass hit the table with a solid thunk. "What’s the prat done? I never did think he was good enough for you, Al. I know you say he’s good to you, but I remember what he was like those first few years, and how he treated you and Lily. If he’s-"
"Stop." Albus shoved his hand in James’ face, awkwardly covering his mouth. "Just stop. I love him. That hasn’t changed, James. It’s just- He-" He faltered, unwilling to put it into words. "I just found out he did something and didn’t tell me. And it was big."
"Shagged another guy?" James guessed.
Albus smiled weakly. "Actually…. He apparently shagged a girl while he was in France."
James let out a low whistle. "Didn’t realize he likes to play both sides. Oi, that could be trouble for you. What if he gets it into his head he wants another bird? Where’ll you be then?"
Which was exactly what Albus had already thought, and tried not to think as well. He took a gulp, then leaned on the table, head down. "I’d be out on my own," he muttered. "I can’t even figure out why he’s with me now, if that’s what he wanted. I know his folks want him to get married properly. He’s tried telling them about us, but they don’t believe him. I think he said once flat out that we shared a bed and that he’d fucked me and his mother asked if I needed curtains for my room because it seemed terrible that Scorpius decorated so well, and my room was left plain. It’s a guest room. It’s not meant to have special curtains. But she just kept thinking it was mine, no matter what shocking thing Scorpius said."
"So you think Scorpius would dump you because he’s capable of shagging a bird and his parents don’t believe he’s shagging you?" James asked.
When put that way, it did sound a bit ridiculous, particularly after they’d been together for four years.
Well, four years minus the time Scorpius was off in France shagging some bird he’d met.
"Bloody hell." Albus pinched the bridge of his nose tightly. "It’s just complicated, James. Bloody complicated. He shagged this bird, and he never said a word of it. And that’s bad enough, but then today, there was this solicitor and a wee little bit of a girl and he’s gone and left her with us."
"The girl Scorpius shagged?"
Albus shuddered. "No, James. Keep up. His daughter. The bird he shagged got pregnant, and she’s gone and dumped the girl on Scor. He’s a dad."
James took a long drink, and Albus smiled. Now his brother seemed to be getting the idea of just how bad this all was.
"Sounds like you’re going to need curtains for that guest room after all," James mused. "Ones for a little girl."
Albus drained the last of his pint and looked at it. He could go get another, but that would mean breaking the ward he’d set. But if he didn’t, well, he couldn’t drink more. And oblivion wasn’t such a bad idea. "I don’t know what to do," he muttered.
"Need to ask yourself the question: are you arsed off at Scorpius because he got a girl pregnant and his daughter’s in your flat, or is it because he cheated on you, or is it because he actually shagged a woman well enough to get her pregnant?" James was thoughtful. "I’d have to guess they did it more than once."
"I don’t think I need to know those details." Albus let his head fall to the table, which was blessedly cool against his skin. "I just keep wondering if he’d do it again? If there was something about it that he needs, because he obviously didn’t need me right then."
"Were you two even shagging then?"
Albus shook his head. "Not until the start of seventh year. We got back to school and Scor was anxious to-" He trailed off, guessing what had happened. "He felt guilty. He fucked her that summer, then he came back and fucked me. Bloody hell, James."
"You sure you don’t want me to hurt him?"
Albus glared. "I don’t want you to hurt him. Besides. What would happen to the little girl then? The solicitor’s ready to hand her off to some other family already."
"Maybe that’s for the best." James’ words were slow, carefully considered. He held one hand up as Albus went to speak. "Think about it here. You’re twenty. Neither of you was really planning on being parents any time soon. How are you going to raise a little girl? What’ll happen when Scor’s team goes off on tour? What if you get stuck at the shop?"
James had a point. On the other hand, how would Albus and Scor ever have children any other way? Albus groaned softly. "I like things planned, James. I like to know what’s going to happen and when. This is messy."
"Life’s messy." James gave him a wry smile.
Albus realized that he wasn’t going to decide anything that night. He was angry and hurt and frustrated, and what he wanted most was another drink. He rubbed his hand over the place where he’d drawn the rune against the wood, and felt the ward dissolve. "I’m going to go get us another round."
James caught his wrist as he stood. "You’ll kip on my couch tonight, Al. I don’t want to see you trying to apparate home like this. And I think you ought to be sober when you talk to Scorpius next."
Albus nodded once. It wasn’t hard to agree with this plan, since he trusted his brother to make sure that he’d be fine, no matter how many pints he had. And Albus intended to have more than a few tonight. He wanted to forget about how this made him feel, just for a little while.
#
Albus had gone straight from James’ flat to work that morning, then spent much of the day up to his elbows in a particularly noxious set of ingredients to crush, boil, and stew. He could feel residue in his hair, and suspected that if anyone whispered just the wrong incantation around him, he might explode. He wanted a shower, and to toss his robes in the laundry finally, and to relax for the weekend.
He also wanted his own bed, rather than the couch in his brother’s flat.
Albus just wasn’t sure if he wanted Scorpius in that bed right now. He paused just outside the door, then pushed it open carefully, only to be greeted by the sight of his younger sister sitting cross-legged on the floor, playing with the elfish sprite of a toddler.
"Albus!" Lily jumped up to give her brother a hug and a kiss on the cheek, barely pausing a moment before she was back on the floor, leaning out to tickle Emilia. "Isn’t she darling? She only speaks French, but we’ve been getting along so far by gesturing at things. Well, and she screams when she isn’t getting her way, but Mum says she’s at that age and not to worry a bit about it. She’ll grow out of it eventually."
He shrugged out of his robes, watching his sister and the little girl warily. "Mum? Mum’s met Emilia already?"
"Of course she has! I was with Mum when Scorpius owled me to say he’d pay if I was able to mind her today, so both Mum and I came over. We were here when her things were delivered; Scor’s working on making sense of all that in her room now. At least, I’m assuming you’ll be giving Emilia the guest room, right?" Lily stopped speaking briefly, and Albus wondered if she actually expected an answer, or if he ought to just let her keep going.
As the silence stretched, he nodded, "I suppose that’s how it’ll work," he said carefully. "We haven’t actually discussed anything yet. Like what to do on most days when she needs minding. We can’t just keep calling you."
"I’m between jobs at the moment, so I wouldn’t mind helping out, at least for a while," Lily offered. "Mum’d be glad to see me out of the house."
"You’re not between jobs," Albus pointed out. "You’ve just finished Hogwarts. You’ll have a job soon enough, won’t you?"
"Have to decide what I want to do before I can get one." Lily shrugged.
"Aren’t Slytherins supposed to be driven?"
"Look at you." Lily’s gaze flicked from Albus to the stained robes, to his hair. She frowned. "There’s pink in your hair."
"Bloody hell, I need a shower. I’m probably not safe for anyone to be around."
Albus hurried off, trying not to think about the fact that in the guest room, Scorpius was putting away things that belonged to his daughter. A daughter he’d made with some random woman Albus had never heard of before now. He leaned against the wall in the shower, letting the water cascade over his head, rinsing away the strange mix of ingredients he’d been splattered with, and washing it down the drain.
He heard the footsteps, but refused to look, even when the curtain opened.
"I’m sorry."
"Good words to start with," Albus said quietly. "But probably not enough to fix this, Scor. How could you do that?"
"It was an experiment."
"Which part?" Albus finally turned, glaring at him. "Shagging her? Or lying to me about it afterwards?"
Scorpius winced. "Lying was a mistake."
"And shagging her wasn’t?!"
"Shagging her was a mistake, too!" Scorpius took a deep breath. "Al, come out of there. Listen to me just for five minutes. Please."
Albus reached out to swing the curtain closed, not wanting to see Scorpius or those pale grey-blue eyes that implored him to listen. "I’ll be out when I’m out," he said, and ducked back under the water to muffle any further things that might be said.
By the time he emerged, toweling his hair mostly dry and wrapping the towel around his waist after, he was alone in the bathroom. He didn’t bother to get changed, simply stepped out of the bathroom in the towel, and stopped dead as he saw the little girl looking at him.
She blinked, her lashes so pale that Albus swore they shimmered. Her eyes were blue, but her features reminded him so sharply of Scorpius that he couldn’t imagine how he’d missed noting that the day before. She didn’t move, simply staring at him, a baby doll clutched in her arms tightly. A moment passed, and another, then she smiled brightly as if all was well, and held the doll out, saying something Albus couldn’t understand.
"I don’t speak French," he said quietly. "You ought to go on back to Lily and let me go get dressed." As if she might understand all of that, when he was fairly certain it’d be over the head of a two year old who spoke the same language he did. Or maybe not. Albus didn’t know anything about children, and hadn’t intended to have to learn any time soon. He was only twenty years old, and gay. He hadn’t given a thought to having a family of his own. He’d always figured he’d borrow Lily’s children someday, or James’. Wasn’t that the point of having nieces and nephews?
"Emilia," he said quietly when she didn’t move, and held out his hand, pointing to the living room.
She seemed to take that as an invitation, wrapping small chubby fingers around his pointed finger and waiting.
"Um." Albus stared at her.
"Emilia!" The sound rolled off of Scorpius’ tongue, lilting in what Albus had to assume was a proper French pronunciation. Which meant he’d butchered it, but the little girl hadn’t seemed to mind.
"She’s right here," Albus called back, since Emilia didn’t seem to intend to stop holding his finger any time soon.
"There you are." Scorpius swept in and bent down to pick her up, kissing her cheek until she laughed. "She’s so easy-going, Al. I can’t understand it at all. I keep wondering why she’s not terrified of us, and wanting her Maman."
Albus shook his head, because he didn’t understand it either. But when he looked at the little girl in Scorpius’ arms, he could almost see the line between them, as if there were some intrinsic connection between father and daughter. His lips pressed together and he walked down the hallway, not wanting to see it anymore.
"Al…"
"Don’t, Scor." Albus paused in the doorway to their room. "I’m going to get changed, then you’re going to collect some things so you can sleep on the floor of the guest room."
A moment’s pause before Scorpius admitted, "The bed’s still in there. She’s got her own tiny bed with rails, almost like a crib but not quite. I haven’t taken the guest bed out yet, since I wasn’t sure where to put it."
Albus gave him a tight smile, because that was just perfect. "Good, then you won’t need to kip on the couch, which I can tell you is bloody well uncomfortable. But you’re not sleeping in here with me tonight, Scor. I don’t know what we need to do to fix this. I don’t even know if it can be fixed. But I know that I’m not sleeping in the same bed as you until we do."
"We could talk about it-"
Albus shook his head, looking away. "I’m not ready to do that. Look, I’m not throwing you out of the flat, and I’m not leaving myself. Count that as a victory and let it go for now."
When he closed the door, he latched it with a spell, knowing it wouldn’t keep Scorpius out if he really wanted to break in, but it would make him think twice about it at least. Then he sat down hard on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands, because he had no idea what to do next. All he knew was that every time he looked at Scorpius and Emilia, all he saw was this unknown woman, and that betrayal. And all he knew was that Scorpius would travel again with his Quidditch team, all the time, and Albus wasn’t sure he could trust him when he was gone.
#
Albus had never attended a Quidditch game with a wee child in tow. Not that he had Emilia on his own. In fact, he’d refused to take responsibility for her, but Lily and James also had tickets from Scorpius, so they were all together in the section set aside for the families and friends of the players.
Despite the resemblance to Scorpius, most folks seemed to somehow think Emilia belonged to Lily, and in the interest of keeping things simple, no one bothered to refute the assumption. Albus simply sat as far as he could from Lily and the little girl, and tried not to watch her excitement as people flew overhead. When he did glance over, he saw a light in Emilia’s eyes that he found all too familiar, a complete delight as she reached up.
The little girl was so well-behaved, so sunny in personality that Albus couldn’t quite understand it. Shouldn’t she be miserable and crying and missing her mum? How was it that she adapted so well? It didn’t make any sense to him, and as he watched her, he wondered just how long she’d known Scorpius. If maybe he’d lied, and actually knew about the little girl and had even seen her-and her mum-before Emilia showed up on their doorstep.
The idea made his gut hurt, and he stood, intending to leave, sitting only when James grabbed him and shoved him back into his seat.
"You’re not going to miss Scorpius’ big day," James said firmly. "So keep your arse in that seat and watch your boyfriend fly."
First string chaser. Scorpius had been after the position for two years, and now he had it, at least for the game. Albus had never asked him just how this came about, or if there was a chance he’d stay first string and be out of the substitute group. That would have meant talking to Scorpius, acting like they were more than two men sleeping in the same flat. And he wasn’t ready for that.
Especially after watching Scorpius care for Emilia last night and this morning. Somehow fatherhood suited him, despite his young age. The two seemed to have bonded almost instinctively (or perhaps they already knew each other, Albus’ suspicious mind reminded him).
"Al-"
He looked at James. "I’m going to go get a pint. Want something?" Albus didn’t wait for an answer, worming his way out of the row of seats, apologizing as he slipped by others and made his way to the aisle stairs.
He had already reached the bottom when he realized he had a shadow. As he stopped, Emilia stared up at him, smiling, and lifted both her hands, fingers wiggling in an obvious silent plea to be lifted.
"Go back," Albus directed.
Emilia simply smiled and wiggled her fingers again.
Albus lifted her with a sigh. He couldn’t just leave her there. It wasn’t her fault for existing, after all. It wasn’t her fault that he could see Scorpius in the line of her jaw, even with that baby softness that she had. It wasn’t her fault that her pale blue eyes were like her father’s, or her silk spun hair. Or that charmed smile. "What is it?"
She pointed up, speaking French in soft inarticulate toddler sounds. Albus couldn’t speak it at the best of times, but right then it sounded like a jumble. Until he heard papa in the midst of it all, and she reached to the brooms overhead, and he saw Scorpius zoom above them, swiftly twisting.
"That’s the Quaffle," Albus murmured. "See that, Scor’s one of the best out there, even though they’ve had him benched for ages. He’s got it now, and he’s got this thing he does where he gets behind…" Albus’ voice trailed off as he turned, watching, guiding Emilia to watch as well. "See, there." Albus jabbed his finger, and Emilia cheered when she spotted Scorpius, just as he lobbed the Quaffle through the hoop. Scorpius’ hands went in the air as the crowd roared.
Albus forgot himself entirely in that moment, cheering for the man he loved. Until Scorpius looked down, somehow spotting him standing there with Emilia. The grin that split his expression was spontaneous, and for a brief second, Albus smiled back.
Then Emilia cried out papa! once more, and the hurt returned. "Let’s get you back to Lily," Albus said quietly, and did just that before trying again to go get his pint.
He watched the rest of the game from the wings, just out of sight, so he could see what happened but there would be no chance of Scorpius spotting him again. He saw Scorpius score three more times, driving the score up until his team caught the Snitch. He saw them congratulate him, saw Scorpius searching the stands.
Saw his expression fall when Albus wasn’t there. And Albus’ gut twisted in guilt at that, because he’d taken away from Scorpius’ grand moment. But at the same time, it felt good to make him feel pain.
He was turning into a right arse, but wasn’t it deserved? Scorpius had cheated on him. Albus had to do something.
"Al?"
He turned slowly. Scorpius stood there, still in full gear as the crowd spilled out of the stands around him. "Hey."
Scorpius approached slowly, as if expecting him to run. "I thought I saw you earlier. With Emilia."
"She’s with Lily." Albus shrugged. "I said I’d come. So I came."
"I see." Scorpius offered a lopsided smile. "I’m glad. We should-"
"No." Albus cut him off with one short, sharp word. "I don’t think we should anything."
"Hear me out." When Albus went to move, Scorpius grabbed him, pushing him back against the wall, leaning in close. "Please," he said softly, giving them a sense of privacy even with the crowds swirling around them. "Just listen, Al. Please."
Albus blinked rapidly, embarrassed to feel tears prick the corners of his eyes. "Not here." He shook his head quickly. "We are not going to do this here. We-" No, there was no we. There couldn’t be a we, because Scorpius had cheated on him. "I’m leaving."
"I’m coming with you. Just give me a moment to get my kit off."
Scorpius let Albus go, and Albus wrenched himself away, putting space between them.
They stood there staring at each other until a soft cough got their attention. Lily, James, and Emilia waited for them. Emilia smiled brightly. "Papa?"
Scorpius’ eyes closed. "Lil, I need to get changed. Can you take Emilia home for me and watch her for a bit? I’m not-I’m not going out with the team after, so I shouldn’t be long."
Lily chewed on her lower lip, gaze shifting from Scorpius to Albus. "Take all the time you need. I’ll make sure she’s okay."
"I’m not waiting for you," Albus said once they were alone again. "If you want me, you’ll be able to figure out where to find me." Maybe it was childish, but he just wanted to know that Scorpius was willing to do a little work for this. Something. Anything. Even if it was remembering where Albus might go if he needed some time to think.
He didn’t wait for an answer, stuffing his hands in his pockets and stalking off. Only time would tell if Scorpius bothered to try.
#
Albus was in the middle of grinding Scuttlebugs to a fine paste when he heard the Floo flare up. He’d left it open, just in case, but hadn’t actually expected to hear it. Still, he wasn’t going to make this easy. He kept working the paste with the mortar and pestle, grinding it until it was smooth. He heard the soft breath of another person in the room, knew he was being watched, but Potions were a tricky business. He counted softly under his breath, waiting for the liquid to stop swirling in the cauldron, then he carefully measured in half the Scuttlebug paste. He stirred three times clockwise, then another half turn in the reverse, then he set a timer for three and a half minutes.
Once that was done, he wiped his hands on a rag and glanced over at the man leaning against the wall. "I didn’t expect you to come here."
"Well, I didn’t think you’d gone back to the Hogwarts classroom," Scorpius said, "so I figured you had to be here instead." He nodded towards the fireplace. "Thanks for leaving the Floo unlocked."
Albus shrugged one shoulder. The potion was hardly complete, so while the timer ticked, he meticulously picked grains from a strand of Bluegrass. While he worked, he had something to focus on, to keep his attention so his gaze didn’t stray to Scorpius. "If I hadn’t, you’d just have been waiting when I got home. Where’s your daughter?"
He wondered if Scorpius flinched, the same way Albus did every time he thought about Emilia. Scorpius had a daughter. And it wasn’t a little girl he’d somehow planned with Albus, but this random child that came out of an encounter Scorpius should never have had.
He missed hearing the soft footsteps as Scorpius approached him, startling when a hand settled on his shoulder. "Al-"
Albus shrugged out from under that touch. "Talk. Don’t touch, Scor. You aren’t going to be able to shag me happy with you." He laid down the bare stalk next to the little pile of grains before he looked at him. "This isn’t forgetting something small. This isn’t us going in different directions after school and trying to make our lives fit into work. This is you cheating on me when we were apart, after we’d been together almost a year. I trusted you. This is you sleeping with someone the very first time we were apart for more than a few days. And when you came back, I trusted you enough to have sex with you, and you never said a word. How am I supposed to trust you now when your team goes off for away matches? What have you been doing when you traveled before?"
"Nothing," Scorpius said.
The spell timer rang, and Albus held up one hand to hush Scorpius as he dropped three small grains into the cauldron. The grains swelled rapidly and popped with a deep, earthy, woodsy scent. Albus inhaled, rolling it on his tongue, tasting the air before nodding and reaching for a phial and dripping in two drops of scarlet liquid. A quick flash of warmth from his wand brought the cauldron to the proper heat, then he let it sit while he set another timer for thirty minutes.
Nothing. He rolled that around in his mind as well, trying to taste the truth of it. The problem was, he’d always trusted Scorpius before. But apparently he’d never asked the right questions before, either. Scorpius had never said he’d been faithful during that trip to France, but Albus had never even thought he wouldn’t be. He shook his head. "I can’t believe you, Scor. I’m sorry." And it hurt that he couldn’t, hurt more than he could say that he’d lost that instinctive feeling.
"My father introduced us," Scorpius said quietly. "I’d just told him about you the first time. The whole truth, left nothing out. I already knew then, Al. I knew that there wasn’t anyone else for me. But my father didn’t want to accept that and he made me promise to date Liaura that one summer. Eight weeks of taking her out, and he’d pay for everything we wanted to do. After the first week, I knew we’d become friends, but there wasn’t anything else there at all. So I tried to get out of the promise, because I didn’t think it was fair to her."
Albus pressed his lips together, arms crossed as he stared at the floor. He shrugged one shoulder in a silent gesture of go on.
Scorpius leaned against the table, his shoulder against Albus’, a hair’s breadth separating them. "He told me I couldn’t possibly know I was gay unless I’d been with a girl. What I didn’t know is that he told her that if she could change my mind, make me see things properly, he’d pay her. I’m guessing he did, because she got me roaring drunk and we had sex three times that night."
"Three?" The word slipped out, but knowing that it was more than once was a crushing pain.
"Three," Scorpius confirmed. "I wasn’t thinking clearly. I can’t even remember most of it, except that at the end of it, she looked at me and said she’d never had so much bloody work keeping a bloke hard." He laughed ruefully. "Not in those words, not exactly. Her French was actually much cruder. And she told me to go back to my boyfriend."
"But why’d you do it at all?" That was what Albus couldn’t understand. Why would Scorpius have sex with her in the first place?
"I don’t know," he admitted. "I think she said something about making sure, and it sounded so much more reasonable when she said it, and her hand was already down my pants. Then I think she made it a dare, and I’d drunk a bottle of wine on my own, and it just-it made sense then."
"And after?"
"After it felt miserable." Scorpius tilted his head back, staring at the wall. "I didn’t tell you because it felt that awful. I knew it was wrong, and it was never going to happen again, and my father backed down and just let me be. I just wanted to leave it in France and forget it ever happened."
"You made a baby."
Scorpius gave Albus a look, and Albus flushed. "I was drunk, Al," Scorpius said quietly. "I wasn’t thinking about protective charms. I guess I thought she did it. I was stupid, I’m trying to admit that. I was stupid in a hundred different ways, and now it’s making me lose you, and I just wish I could go back in time and tell myself not to be an idiot."
It felt like the truth. It tasted like the truth in his heart, and Albus ached to believe him. His head slowly tilted until he leaned against Scorpius, and Scorpius’ arm went around his shoulder cautiously, as if he might pull away again. "I want to believe you," Albus murmured, closing his eyes to shut the world out, just for a moment.
A soft silence, stretching and broken only by the soft popping bubbles in the cauldron behind them. Then Scorpius shifted, pulling something from his pocket to hand to Albus. "Take a look at this. It’s not ready yet; my father needs to approve it first. But I’ve been working on this for a month now."
Albus took the parchment, unrolling it carefully. The words at the top leapt out at him first: I, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, being of sound mind and health, do declare Albus Severus Potter to be my heir, my life, my heart, my everything.
"There are magical signatures," Scorpius said quietly, catching Albus’ fingers and moving them to touch the spots that then glowed with the dates when they were completed. "I’ve been in discussions with my father regarding names and inheritance, and I need to start that all over again when I tell him about Emilia. But I’ve been working on this Al, to join us. Bond us properly, and I couldn’t do that if I were going to cheat again. You know that, right?"
Albus read down the page, recognizing that this was no normal marriage bond. This wasn’t a simple declaration of intent, and a melding of property. It was something more than what politics denied them. This was a Bond. This would tie them together, heart to heart, until one was gone. Neither could stray, neither could lie. They would be as one. "And now?"
"I sent a letter to my parents explaining Emilia. We have dinner with them tomorrow night." Scorpius hesitated. "They’re going to accept you, Al. I’ll make sure of it."
"That sure I’ll still be with you?" Albus almost smiled as he glanced at Scorpius.
"It’s what we wanted. A life together. Family. She’s not just my daughter," Scorpius said firmly. "She’ll be ours. Just as if we’d found a witch to carry her for us."
"Yes." The word came out before Albus had a chance to think, and he turned in Scorpius’ arms, holding on tight, burying his face against his partner’s throat. "My heir, my life, my heart," he murmured. "You are my everything. And you always will be."
When lips brushed lips, Albus tasted the truth then. He tasted Scorpius and he knew that Scorpius wouldn’t stray again. As he sank into the kiss, he knew that even without the formality of magic, their Bond had already begun.