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When Uncle Ron gave Albus his second love potion, "because your dad told me what happened with the last one", he had planned to just throw it away.
He didn't really like the idea of induced love and the only person he had feelings for– well, he wouldn't use it on that person. But Albus felt bad about dismissing a gift, so he'd just decided to throw it in one of his school bags and think about it another day. Maybe he could play a prank on James, or sell it to some first years. Harmless fun, right?
When the magic bottle reappeared in his life, he’d almost forgotten about it. By then, the label had peeled off, leaving it looking like an ordinary drink.
He'd been in the Great Hall that day, looking for a quill he hadn't been able to use during his morning class. In a desperate attempt to find it, he’d started throwing everything he had out of his bag. Next to him, Scorpius, who was enjoying a jacket potato, scoffed, "are you looking for something?", as if it wasn't obvious.
"My quill. I had it yesterday but when I wanted to take some notes in potion, it was just gone."
"Surely it’s in that mess you call a school bag," Albus wished he could answer smartly to that, but the growing pile of useless items in front of him would have made any attempt at a retort useless, "want some water?"
"I'm good, thanks," he said as he decided to give up and put everything back in his bag, "I think I'll just borrow–"
Albus didn't finish his sentence, his words catching in his throat as he saw a now open bottle of love potion on the table. He whipped around to see Scorpius finishing his glass of what was clearly not water. His heart dropped at the sight. "Uh, Scorpius?" He asked hesitantly, "did you drink this?"
"Yeah, why?" The boy said as he put his glass down and started forking his lunch again.
"Um," he hesitated, "it's not water."
Albus tried to proceed with care, but, to his surprise, Scorpius seemed to be acting as usual. He was just eating, not giving him a lovesick look. How long did it take anyway for the potion to take effect? Maybe Albus had time to find an antidote before then. But all the potions he knew always had an almost immediate effect.
"Yeah, I guessed that," Scorpius said, his mouth full.
"You did?" Albus didn't know if he felt relieved or not. He wasn't really eager for Scorpius to find out he'd have feelings forced on him any minute. Let alone feelings for Albus.
"Was it yours? It tasted a bit minty. What's in it?"
Albus grabbed the bottle and put it back in his bag, to hell with orderliness and honesty. He’d rather slip some magical solution in his drink during dinner than explain what had just happened. Of course, he was hoping nothing would go south before then.
"Nothing," he laughed awkwardly. Scorpius raised an eyebrow, Albus' odd behaviour clearly didn’t go unnoticed. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay, why? Albus, are you sure you are okay?"
"I'm great," Albus squeaked, cringing internally at how unconvincing he sounded.
Scorpius sent him another dubitative look before finally turning back to his food. Albus was tempted to do the same to avoid speaking but he didn't feel hungry and he was too focused on figuring out a way out of this.
Still, Lunch went on calmly enough as Albus tried to keep an eye on his friend. When they started heading to their next class, he was still on the lookout for hands trying to grab him or soft compliments that would make Albus go weak in the knees, love potion or not. But there was nothing.
Maybe the potion didn't work. Maybe Uncle Ron wasn't the genius potion maker he pretended to be. But surely he wasn’t throwing around faulty potions, otherwise his uncle would spend much more time dealing with unhappy clients. Or maybe the potion did work, but it would make Scorpius fall in love with someone else. That thought alone made Albus feel nauseous, a dull ache settling in his chest.
And so, over the next few days, he kept looking for any signs. He tried to see if Scorpius' eyes might linger a little too long on someone in the hallway or if he might mention someone's name a bit too often, with some kind of dreamy voice that would most likely make Albus puke immediately. But after a week, there was still nothing. Scorpius remained his cute, nerdy self.
That was, of course, until Albus realised he just hadn't been looking in the right place.
They'd decided to get out of the castle early in the morning to fly a bit. Albus hated it. But Scorpius was still focused on practising for Quidditch. If he hadn't been able to make it to the Slytherin team this year, he was still determined to get in the following year. And so, Albus, being the good friend that he was and never refusing some quiet time with Scorpius, had agreed to help him practise. It didn’t matter how useless he was on a broom.
They'd been out for a while now, fighting against the early morning chill as Scorpius darted around the Quidditch field while Albus attempted to send a few Quaffles near the hoops, failing miserably. Albus didn’t really care, it gave him an excuse to hover idly while Scorpius shouted encouragement. That was until Albus heard a lower shout and noticed Scorpius wildly waving his arms from the other side of the field. At first, Albus couldn’t make out what he was saying. But then, he felt a sudden, searing pain in his stomach as a rogue Bludger slammed into him. The air was knocked out of his lungs, and the next thing he knew, Albus was falling down and about to hit the ground violently. He was sure he’d die. If it were not for Scorpius soaring at a surprising speed towards him and grabbing him with ease, he probably would have.
"Albus, are you alright?" His voice was frantic as they settled on the ground, "do you want to sit down? I can bring you to the hospital wing."
"I'm okay, Scorpius," and after seeing the worry in his eyes he added, "really."
"Let's get you seated anyway, just in case."
Albus didn’t try to argue. He threw his broom to the ground and slumped onto the grass, relieved to no longer be in the air. But before he even had time to gather his thoughts, Albus felt Scorpius’ hands reach for his face. It was a gentle touch, something Albus had never felt before. Cool fingers brushed against his cheeks, checking for bruises. He tucked stray strands of hair out of his eyes with a tenderness that made Albus’ breath hitch. Albus knew he needed to cut his hair, they’d gotten too long, but the little touch made him reconsider immediately. Scorpius’ hands lingered, tracing faint patterns on his cheeks. Albus, still stunned into silence, attempted to meet his friend’s eyes, only to realise they were not focused on him. Not really. Or maybe they were way too much. Because Scorpius was intently looking at his lips, a quiet intensity flickering in his eyes.
"Scorpius?" Albus’ voice cracked but the sound seemed to pull the boy out of his trance. "Is that something we do?"
There was a brief, awkward silence. Scorpius blinked rapidly, his face flooding with colours. He suddenly looked uncertain, almost panicked.
"Sorry," he stammered, quickly pulling his hands away. Albus wanted to tell him it was okay, that he'd actually liked that kind of proximity with him, this soft touch. But he remained silent, too stunned by what had just happened. "We probably should head back. We can still stop at the hospital wing if you need."
From that moment, it all became too obvious. The way Scorpius' hand always seemed to linger a little bit longer when he handed Albus something, their knees touching whenever they were sitting next to each other in the Great Hall, the way Scorpius seemed to only get closer and closer every time he wanted to whisper something to him in the library, the stolen glances in class.
There also was the sudden jealousy.
Albus was in the library, looking over his notes with a growing frustration. Next to him, Leah Thornebrooke, a girl from Hufflepuff he had befriended, was inspecting his work.
She had approached him one day at the beginning of the year and told him she’d heard about what had happened and how she felt bad she’d never been more friendly when everyone else had been so mean. While Albus still struggled to trust people who were not Scorpius, he’d accepted her extended hand. After all, they’d agreed with Scorpius they needed to be better this year, and this seemed like a good first step. She’d been friendly with Scorpius too, although Albus was convinced she was still a bit skittish from the lingering rumours.
“I think I remember a book about that,” Leah said suddenly after noticing Albus’ puzzled expression when reading a question, “maybe it’ll help you understand. Wait here.”
Before Albus could respond, she disappeared behind a bookshelf, leaving Albus struggling alone. He was still pondering the question when Scorpius materialised next to him, seemingly out of nowhere.
“What was that?” He asked, his voice tight. He sounded on the verge of tears.
Albus looked up to him with surprise, “what was what? Scorpius, where were you?”
“I saw you,” he said, his gaze flicking to the bookcase Leah had disappeared behind, “being all friendly with Leah. I didn’t want to interrupt.”
“Interrupt what?” Albus chuckled, unsure. “You’re not making any sense, Scorpius.”
“You know what I mean,” the other retorted. His words became sharper, “I didn’t know you two were so close.” As those few words escaped his mouth, Leah reappeared lugging a giant book.
“Scorpius,” she exclaimed quietly, “hi.” If she heard anything Scorpius had just said, she did a great job at hiding it.
To Albus’ dismay, Scorpius didn’t answer. He only sent her a cold glare, it made Albus’ stomach twist. He’d never seen that look in his friend’s eyes, not to another student anyway.
“Would you like to join us?” she asked politely.
“Don’t worry about me,” he snapped, “keep doing whatever it is you were doing.” And with that, he turned on his heels and strode away, leaving Leah and Albus staring at him in stunned silence.
Leah sat back down and settled the book on the table with a faint thud. “That was interesting,” she whispered as she opened it.
Albus barely heard her, his gaze still lingering on the spot where Scorpius had disappeared. For some reason, his heart was racing. If Scorpius suddenly wanted to act like an arse, then fine. He could leave him alone for a while. Yet, Albus couldn’t help feeling worried. He’d never witnessed Scorpius be so rude. Something was wrong, and he needed to figure out what.
But this would have to wait. He forced himself to focus on the book Leah had brought, ignoring the tension rising in his chest.
When he found him later that day, Scorpius was sulking in the Slytherin common room. He was sitting in a corner with his legs drawn up to his chest, his face faintly illuminated by the moonlight streaming through the waters of the Great Lake. This was a lovely sight, Albus thought.
He decided to approach him, breaking the quiet scene, “will you explain what came over you?”
“What do you mean?” the boy answered defensively.
His lips formed a pout that Albus felt like kissing away. But he wanted explanations from his friend and this was not how a proper confrontation was supposed to go, so he added, “you were rude to Leah today. I thought you were getting along?”
“She’s alright,” he said, “but she shouldn’t be spending all that time with you.”
“What?”
“I’d been looking for you all around the castle only to find you with her being all soft and whispery.”
“Wh– That’s what you’re supposed to do in a library,” he exclaimed in disbelief, “you're the nerd here, you should know that!”
“Whatever,” the boy grumbled, “don’t worry about me.”
“Scorpius, are you–” it suddenly dawned on him as he remembered Scorpius acting similarly when Delphini was still around, minus the pouting of course. “Are you jealous?”
Albus saw his friend turn crimson red before he shoved his face in his folded arms, “am not!”
“You know you don’t have to be, right?” When Scorpius didn’t seem to get out of his hiding he added, “you’re my best friend.” It didn’t seem to help, and then Albus remembered the love potion as it all started to make sense.
“Oh, Merlin’s beard.”
“What?” Scorpius turned towards Albus, suddenly alert. “Is there a problem?”
“I’m sorry, Scorpius,” he explained, “this is all my fault you’re like that. I didn’t want to tell you but, remember that minty water from the other day?”
“Uh,” Scorpius seemed confused, “not really, I drink water everyday.”
“Anyway,” he continued, “this was not water, it was a love potion. I’ve been too embarrassed to tell you, and I thought it didn’t work, but now I see that it does, and it’s just wrong to not–”
“What love potion?” Scorpius interrupted his mumbling, “I didn’t drink any love potion.”
“That’s what I’m telling you, you did!” He exclaimed, “and that’s why you’ve been acting all touchy and jealous.”
“But I feel the same as I always–”, Scorpius stopped himself as his eyes widened and his face turned red once more, “oh, oh no.”
“See,” Albus pointed, “you’re saying nonsense because of that damn potion.”
“I don’t think you understand,” Scorpius said with panic in his voice.
“Don’t worry,” he put a reassuring hand on his friend’s shoulder, “we’ll find the antidote.”
“I–” Scorpius seemed to search for words. His lips parted as if he’d found them, but then, instead, he let out a short, frustrated scream. He stood up and stormed off, leaving Albus standing alone, dumbfounded in the middle of the Slytherin common room. The commotion had drawn the attention of a few other students, who were now staring at Albus with various degrees of annoyance and curiosity.
Albus supposed this had gone as well as he could have expected. And now Scorpius was probably mad at him which meant he had to figure out alone how to make the antidote. Maybe Rose could help, now that they were on speaking terms again, but Albus cringed at the thought alone.
No, there was only one solution. He needed to fix things. Properly.
With that resolve, he set off in search of Scorpius. Tracking him down had been a bit more complicated than expected, Albus had even considered borrowing the Marauders’ Map from his brother. But after wandering through half the castle, he finally found Scorpius, quietly cleaning a table in the potions classroom, his back turned to the door. A cauldron was sitting next to him, a faint trail of steam escaping from it.
“Scorpius,” Albus stepped hesitantly into the room, “did you just make a potion?”
Scorpius didn’t look at him when he answered, “I did.” He turned to Albus, holding a small vial in his hand, “that’s an antidote for love potions. Not that it’s necessary, aside maybe from the unwarranted jealousy.”
Albus blinked, taking a few steps toward him, “did you drink it? Are you feeling better? I’m so sorry. Scorpius, I–”
“I haven’t drunk it yet,” Scorpius interrupted, pulling the vial back as Albus tried reaching for it. He tipped it slightly to show the liquid still inside, “and I’m feeling perfectly fine. I made it so you wouldn’t worry about me.”
Before Albus could answer anything, he uncorked the vial and downed it in one swift motion. Once he was done, he set the small bottle on the table and looked up at Albus with a small, almost shy smile. He shrugged, “there. Happy now?”
“Are you okay?” Albus asked, his voice almost trembling.
“I am.”
“But I don’t understand, I thought the potion didn’t work at first,” Albus ran a hand through his hair. “Of course, that was until you became all… jealous, I thought–” he trailed off, looking at Scorpius in bewilderment.
Scorpius gave a long sigh, “Yeah, it probably didn’t do much because–” he hesitated, the words catching in his throat. Finally, he looked Albus in the eyes and said softly, “because I already liked you.”
Albus stared at him, his mouth opening and closing as he tried to process what his friend had just said.
“You– You what ?”
Scorpius’ face turned a soft shade of pink, this was happening way too often lately, but he said again, “I liked you before. So, no love potion was ever gonna do anything.”
Albus’ confusion kept growing, but he also felt a nice warmth spread through his chest as realisation dawned on him, “you… liked me?”
“Yes, Albus,” Scorpius said exasperatedly, “please, don’t make me repeat it.”
For a moment, Albus could only stare, his heart beating loudly in his chest. He had never expected to hear these words coming from his friend. Then, before he could overthink anymore, he blurted out, “oh.”
“Oh ?”
“No, I mean– oh,” Albus shook his head, trying to chase away the flush that was making its way to his cheeks. “I think I like you too,” he admitted.
“You what ?”
“Maybe, let’s not do that again,” Albus laughed.
Scorpius’ shoulders sagged as he started laughing too, his earlier frustration and worries melting away.
“But–” Albus stopped, suddenly worried, “I don’t want you to stop liking me. Is that something the antidote can do?”
Scorpius stepped closer, “I don’t think it can.” He hesitated before adding, “at least I still like you. I don’t think there’s any potion stopping that.”
There was no more denying the flush on his face now, Albus smiled widely as he grabbed Scorpius’ hands. He wanted to hug him, and kiss him, and never leave his side. “Okay. So... what now?”
Scorpius grinned, “can you help me clean up? And then... maybe we can figure it out.”
Albus chuckled. “Sounds good to me.”
And as they cleaned up the potion together, side by side, Albus felt a rare sense of calm, as if, for once in his messed up life, everything might just work out the way he wanted it to.
He also made a mental note to thank Uncle Ron for the love potion as soon as possible. And get Scorpius to apologise to Leah.