Chapter Text
Albus trudged along the corridors, head low as he tried to draw attention away.
"Albus! Albus, wait!"
He turned. It was Rose, slightly out of breath.
"There you are. I've been looking for you. Can we talk?"
Albus stiffened. "What about?"
Rose sighed. "so, we're now on our fourth year. New year, new us. I was thinking if we could be friends again."
Albus scoffed. "We never were friends.
Rose barely managed to hide her flinch.
"That's harsh!" She hissed. "We were best friends when we were six!"
Something inside Albus snapped, and he dragged his cousin to an empty compartment.
"Harsh?!" He snarled. "Harsh is when you let a House difference destroy a friendship that I thought mattered. Harsh is whenever you look at me, your own family, in disgust when you see him in the hallway. Harsh is when you deliberately avoided me for three years."
"I-" Rose began, then backpedaled as Albus slowly advanced.
"There are times when I wish I was in Gryffindor. Even now, that I'm friends with Scorpius, I sometimes think of that scenario. But guess what? I'm Slytherin. If you're fine by it, then let's give it a chance. If not," Albus had Rose pinned against the glass, his face inches away from hers, "Stay. Out. Of. My. Way."
Silence enveloped them, broken only by Albus's ragged breathing.
"Albus." Rose whispered. "Albus, you're hurting me."
Albus realized that he was still gripping his cousin's wrist none too gently, and he stumbled back.
"I'm sorry." He muttered. "Just, go. Please."