Before Hogwarts
Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy grows up lonely.
After the War, Lucius and Narcissa withdraw into Malfoy Manor with Draco. They're initially pleased when he falls in love with Astoria Greengrass - she comes from the Sacred Twenty-Eight, after all - and they cede the Manor to Draco early and move to a smaller, more private property of theirs in France. A few years pass and they begin to ask uncomfortable questions about heirs, when they learn that Astoria has inherited the blood malediction and may not be able to bear children. This is the first major break between Draco and his parents, when he calmly, then less calmly, then not calmly at all informs them that he doesn't give a damn about the Malfoy name and will gladly let it die with him.
Their icy relationship thaws a little when Astoria becomes pregnant, even though Draco is adamant that this is not for the name but for love and for the two of them. Lucius and Narcissa come to stay for extended periods after Scorpius is born, and if Draco and Astoria are frustrated with the way Lucius glares when the baby cries or how Narcissa dresses him in silk and satin and complains when he spits up on it they push it aside because in the end, family does matter.
Astoria's sister Daphne doesn't bear the Greengrass curse but she isn't able to conceive and Draco is never sure if she cuts them off because of the tarnish on his name, because his parents escaped Azkaban when others did not, because she's furious that they would risk Astoria's health to have Scorpius, or simply out of jealousy.
As Scorpius grows things get more and more tense. Draco and Astoria won't teach their son hate, won't raise him to believe Muggles are scum or that blood purity matters, and the elder Malfoys are furious. Scorpius is an open, passionate child who loves to sing and dance and cries easily and openly whether at a scraped knee or an injured butterfly in the garden. Lucius and Narcissa scold him, lecture him about his duty as the Malfoy Heir, and do their utmost to force him into the mold they desire. Little Scorpius learns to swallow his emotions and to put on a brave face just as Grandfather asks. He learns to stop asking for hugs from anyone other than his sweet, cheerful mother who avoids his grandparents more and more as years pass. It's the only thing Astoria and Draco disagree about - she wants their son to live openly and happily, and Draco can only see that they're giving the boy more freedom and love than he ever felt.
When Scorpius is six, already an avid reader and lover of history, Lucius and Narcissa present him with his very own copy of the Bloodlines of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, gilded and bound in leather. Astoria gives him a pile of Muggle storybooks to read together, and Lucius explodes, spewing epithets about Mud-bloods and worse, and Draco finally reaches his breaking point and turns his parents away. They won't see one another again this side of the grave. Scorpius doesn't understand it all, but he's old enough to know that it is His Fault, that he's somehow let down the Family Line.
The rumors about Voldemort's Son expand around this time. Draco is never sure if they were started by Lucius or Daphne or someone totally unrelated, but he privately thinks the expansion of the rumors is the kind of vicious thing his father would do. Either way, Scorpius learns young about hate, even though his parents don't teach it to him. He loves his mother and father, but when he reads with his mother he can't help wishing for friends his own age like in the books. Five years pass, with Scorpius and his mother in their own little world of blanket forts and sweets and songs and books, Draco a silent presence on the periphery of Scorpius' mind for the most part, who swoops in from time to time to take them off for shopping or lunch or to a museum, but who Scorpius always feels like he's failing somehow. When they have pictures taken, Scorpius can't help but see how sleek and beautiful his parents are, while he often has a rumpled shirt or a chocolate stain somewhere unnoticed until after the picture is made.
The only time Scorpius really relaxes with Draco is when Draco is playing the piano. Astoria plays too, and they often play duets while young Scorpius dances around the room. Both Astoria and Draco teach Scorpius to play, making up his own songs or reading the music.
Scorpius' birthday is August 31, and he will be the youngest in his class going to Hogwarts. Draco and Astoria consider holding him back another year to mature and grow a bit, but he's so excited to go to Hogwarts and make friends! Real friends! And they can't deny he's smart enough. Astoria's health is weakening, though they hide it from Scorpius as much as they can, and she desperately wants to be there for him as he starts school. She and Draco dream that this might give them more time to seek out cures. So Scorpius packs up his new trunk and gets on the train with a bag of sweets and a kiss from his mother, and a firm handshake and promise to work hard for his father.
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Albus Severus Potter also grows up lonely, in a different way.
It's hard to be alone in the crowd that is the Weasley clan, and Teddy Lupin is around quite often too, as Harry is his godfather and helps his grandmother Andromeda to raise the boy. There is always someone - grandparent, aunt or uncle, friend, or his own parents - to dust him off after a tumble or scourgify a scrape. There's always a cousin (most often Rose) or a sibling to play with or fight with. But it's also true that Albus hears "you lot" at least as often as his own name and that toys and games are mostly already used and mostly shared in common, and he sometimes feels that if he disappeared nothing would change and nobody would even notice.
Albus loves to draw and paint anything and everything. But what child doesn't? So he's often blended in with the gaggle of siblings and cousins with this too. The same goes for cooking with Harry or working in the garden.
He doesn't like the attention when the Potters go out, doesn't like the eyes on him that don't know him or care, doesn't like the people that think they have a right to Harry's time and attention at every moment. Albus tends toward a little moody and a little cynical and sarcastic, as Harry is, but they often don't quite see eye to eye or recognize themselves in the other's moods. And Harry is, in the end, used to being the center of attention whether for his scar or his role as the Head of Magical Law Enforcement. He doesn't really understand that Albus wants to be seen for himself, but not put on a stage.
Albus' birthday is February 14, and by 11 he's more than had his fill of his birthday being forgotten or celebrated early or late so that his parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents can have Valentine dates. He's had his fill of being called "lover-boy" by James, even if he doesn't quite know what it means. But he's also tired of looking "just like Harry" and of people wanting to take their picture, and he's a little bit glad that his birthday is far from his father's. The season can be just his own. When he turns 11, he's ready to go to Hogwarts where maybe he can find his own space, but he's also impossibly nervous about living up to his father's legacy, and the family expectations. But Harry doesn't seem to understand, and repeats the same old threadbare line about all houses being good, even Slytherin, and the same old story about the Great Men he named Albus for. Not the beloved men, Albus can't help but think - just the Great Men.