To Right What Went Wrong

James was supposed to be asleep. He knew he was supposed to be asleep. Albus fell asleep already, so James should have too. But he couldn’t. Not when the tree outside kept scraping against the house, and the clouds kept changing the light inside their tiny bedroom. 

James was the oldest. He was supposed to be the brave one. The brave and asleep one. But Hallow’s Eve was scary. Mama and Daddy said bad things happen on this day. But they said nothing bad would happen today. They promised him, then gave them all lots and lots of sweets. Well, except Lily, because she was too little to eat.

But he still couldn’t sleep. Quietly, he crept out of bed, eyeing his little brother when the floor squeaked. He didn’t even stir. James made his way to the door, slowly turning the handle until light flooded into the room. He slipped out of the room, shutting the door lightly behind him.

James could hear the chatter downstairs. Mama’s voice was soft and clear, and James almost cried right then, but he held it back. Creeping down the stairs, James felt that funny feeling in his chest again. The feeling that told him something bad was gonna happen.

“Mama?” James said, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He stood at the corner of the stairs, looking into the kitchen. Both of his parents were seated at the table.

“Jamie? Honey, why are you still up?” Mama asked, making her way over to him.

“I can’t sleep,” He said, lower lip quivering as tears filled his eyes.

“Why not?” She asked softly, crouching down in front of James. The only answer he could give was shrugging his shoulders and burying his face into his mum’s chest.

“Oh!” She said in surprise, but his mum quickly picked him up, letting his head rest on her shoulder. Behind them, his dad stood up too. He came up behind Mama, ruffling James’ hair.

“Let’s get you tucked back into bed, okay?” He said softly, and James could only nod as the weight in his chest felt heavier. The three of them climbed the stairs together, James still firmly in his mum’s hold.

“I feel like something bad is gonna happen,” He suddenly whispered into his mum’s ear.

“Why do you think something bad is gonna happen, Jamie?” His mum asked, shifting him around a little. James shrugged again.

“My chest feels like it,” Was the only response James could muster. 

When they reached James’ shared room, time went slow. Daddy reached for the door, letting light into the room where his little brother was sleeping. Or was supposed to be sleeping. Instead, Albus was crying in some stranger's arms. 

The window was open, a warm breeze passing through the room. As the wind lifted the stranger's cloak, enough for James to see her eyes before she quickly disappeared, vanishing into thin air.

He was on the ground now, James realized slowly. He didn’t know when Mama put him down. Everything felt slow, like he was living in the syrup he put on his pancakes. In his own little world, James walked over to his little brother's bed, the sheets messy and discarded by the cloaked lady. 

“Mama?” James asked, tears springing to his eyes. “Where’d Albus go?”

~~~

You’d think by his fourth year of Hogwarts that Al would be used to being alone, but it still stung. No one wanted to be friends with the Slytherin Squib, a poor muggle-born that somehow ended up in the most pure blooded house. 

Despite the morbidity of the thought, Hogwarts was still a better alternative to the life he left behind. Being a random kid found on the side of the road doesn’t make you too desirable either. His past foster parents were clear about that.

How Al managed to get to Hogwarts at all was beyond him. Guess he really was a good liar, seeing as the social worker bought his “invited to an elite boarding school” excuse. 

Nothing was worse than the beginning of the year. Everyone was just so happy to be back, parties were thrown, friendships were reunited. 

And in the middle of it all was Al. Literally.

Most of the other Slytherin’s around him were overly excited, definitely drinking some stolen firewhisky, and way too much to deal with.

All the fifth, sixth, and seventh years were celebrating the new school year, ignoring any anxiety for the upcoming year of exams.  Instead, all he wanted was to curl up on the couch and try to read his stupid comic book, but every other cheer made his heart twist.

Fed up with the noise, Al got up, quietly slipping through the crowds to get to the stairs. So many stairs in this stupid castle. He climbed all the way down to his dorm, shared with a few other fourth years. 

Honestly, he didn’t even know if he could name half of them. That probably made him a bad person, right? He’s sure they didn’t know who he was either. 

Book shoved hastily under his arm, Al made his way over to his bed. He pulled the canopy closed as he curled in on himself, unsure whether he wished the year would be over soon or not. 

It couldn’t have been much longer than an hour or two before someone came running in, though it felt like much longer. Whoever it was was loud, much to Al’s dismay.

They ruffled through what was presumably their own things, before making their way over to Al’s side of the room, of all places.

He pulled back the canopy, startling Al fully awake. 

“Albus!" The blonde yelled, staring directly at him. “Oh my Dumbledore, I found you.”

"Excuse me?" He replied, unsure if this boy was even talking to him. There was a name on the tip of his tongue but he couldn't quite make it out. Was he a Slytherin in the year above him maybe?

"Albus, she's trying to kill you," The boy had gotten closer now, so close his voice was barely a whisper.

"I'm sorry," Al said, mouth dry as he felt horror sinking into his stomach, "Do I know you?" The other boy pulled back, hesitating.

“Do you— Albus, do you know who I am?” The boy asked, still staring. A distant name felt heavy on his tongue. And why does he keep calling him that, “Albus”?

“Malfoy…? Scorpius Malfoy?” Al askes, praying he didn’t get it wrong.

“Okay, yeah that’s…yeah,” The other, Scorpius, let out a puff of air.

“You don’t know me, do you?” He asked, dead serious. Al couldn't help but feel like he was being pranked or something. Growing up in a mix of group homes and foster placements, Al was no stranger to cruel pranks.

“I mean… we share a dorm, but I’ll be honest I don’t think we’ve ever said more than five words to each other,” Al said honestly, not really sure what this guy was looking for. Scorpious took a step back, running a hand through his platinum blond hair.

“You don’t…” He trailed off, before cursing under his breath. “You don’t know this world’s Scorpius. I can’t tell if that’ll make this easier or harder.”

“I’m going to be honest with you, you’re really freaking me out,” Al said, trying to keep his tone light as his heart raced in his chest.

“Yeah, okay, you’re right. Sorry, Albus,” Scorpius chuckled meekly, before looking around, eyes settling on the closed door.

“Why do you keep calling me that?” Al blurted out before he could stop himself. He mentally cursed.

“Because… it’s your name?” Scorpius said, tilting his head in a way that could only be described as cute. Not the time, Al.

“My name isn’t Albus, it’s Al. Ay-El. No bus in sight,” He stated, enunciating with his hands.

“But your Albus Severus Potter, son of Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley? Brother of James Sirus and Lily Luna?” Scorpius said, dropping so many names it was making Al’s head spin.

Harry Potter? He remembers hearing that name a lot, especially during his first year. Was he famous or something? And why did this random kid think he was related to them? He knew James. Everyone knew James.

“James Potter? Seriously? Was he the one who sent you here? What kind of prank even is this?” Al questioned, crossing his arms defensively. 

“Fuck, I don’t… Al, Albus, whatever,” Scorpious sputtered, eyes darting wildly around the room. “She’s coming. I don’t know when, and I don’t know how but I know she’s coming, and she wants you dead.”

Al’s mouth went dry. He felt a little light headed. Scratch that, a lot light headed. The whole world was spinning frantically.

“–ay? Al, can you hear me?” Scorpious’s voice cut through his thoughts like a knife. “I need you to breathe. Come on, in and out.”

It took the other boy’s command for Al to realize he wasn’t taking in any air. He sucked in a breath, greedily letting his lungs expand and deflate quickly. He sputtered a little, his vision that he hadn’t noticed leaving, returning back with each breath. 

They were sitting now, perched on the end of Al’s bed. Scorpius was kneeled down in front of him, holding Al’s hands in his own. He looked up at him, gray eyes wide with concern. In a panic, Al pulled his hands away quickly, his face heating up.

“Sorry, I don’t…” Al muttered, words barely audible. “I don’t know what that was.”

“Hey, I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have just blurted all that out.” Scorpius sighed, coming to sit beside Al on the bed. “I think we need to get on the same page.”

“You think?” Al rolled his eyes, flopping onto his back. All the energy his panic generated quickly seeped out of his body, leaving him with the same bone deep exhaustion he always felt present in his chest. 

“You’re not going to believe me if I tell you the truth.” Scorpius said, biting his lip.

“I already don’t believe you,” Al grumbled, still a bit worried this might be some strange elaborate prank. “Try me.”

“I’m from the future. But not this world’s future. A different timeline.” Scorpius blurted out. Al sat back up, searching the other boy’s face for any sign of a joke.

“A different timeline?” Al asked, unsure where to start. “What… how– how does that even happen?”

“Loaded question,” Scropius sighed again. “One filled with dark magic, evil witches and a couple felonies.” Al opened his mouth to respond, but when no words came out, he just shut it again. 

“You don’t believe me, do you?” Scorpius asked after a moment of silence. Al thought about it.

“I don’t know,” He said, thinking. “This seems way too specific to be made up. Also too random. Why would Mr. Popular Malfoy want anything to do with the Slytherin Squib anyways y’know?” 

Scorpius furrowed his brow but said nothing. The two sat there, tension hanging loosely in the air. The silence was interrupted by heavy footsteps and loud chatter, growing louder as someone grew closer. Scorpius and Al made eye contact before scrambling up. 

“Just. Stay here. For now,” Al said, pulling his canopy closed right as the door swung open. A couple of other fourth years stumbled in, clearly having stolen some of the older students' drinks. They ignored him, as usual. This time Al was glad. 

The pair minded their own business, rifling through their trunks before finding something and being on their way. Al breathed a sigh of relief as the door shut, his heart hammering loudly in ears. 

Turning around, Al pulled open the canopy. Scorpius was still sitting there, unmoving. 

“Sorry, about all that,” Al muttered. Scorpius waved it off, regaining whatever composure he had lost. 

“You owe me an explanation,” Al said, sitting back down.

“It’s a long story,” Scorpius replied.

“It’s the first night of the term, and it’s only seven,” Al deadpanned. “Trust me, we have time.”

Scorpius only sighed.

~~~

Scorpius wasn’t sure what he expected to happen. He knew that going back in time from a changed future was going to send him to a different past. But he never realized what that entailed. 

Delphi was coming, that’s one thing he knew for sure. This was the right year, though he never saw when exactly it was supposed to happen. He only remembered hearing about the Potter’s, a family of four. Four and only four. One of their children stolen away, then later found dead. Albus gone. 

He had to stop it. Stop her. 

Even though he read the story, heard about how the youngest Potter boy was stolen away as a young child, somehow Scorpius never realized what that would mean. Albus didn’t know who he was. 

All Scorpius had done was throw questions and information at him ‘til he practically blue screened. Calming him down wasn’t hard, but when those sharp green eyes met his own, it was hard not to forget that this wasn’t the same Albus, it wasn’t his Albus. That was made abundantly clear when the younger pulled his hands away sharply. 

Scorpius’s mind was left reeling, trying to piece together the story, the timeline. He didn’t know when he was. Sometime before fifth year, he assumed. Albus was 14 when his death was reported last time. 

Scorpius waited until the other Slytherin’s left the dorm, leaving him and Al alone again. He could almost imagine it was just like it always was, always should’ve been. Then he spoke, that reserved hostility still present, keeping his tone and body guarded. 

“You owe me an explanation,” He said, still eyeing Scorpius warily. Regardless, he sat down, grabbing a pillow and pulling it into his lap. Scorpius reminded himself once again, this wasn’t his Albus, as much as he wished it were. That’s who they were trying to get back. 

“It’s a long story,” Scorpius replied, mentally arranging the details until he swore he could feel a headache blooming.

“It’s the first night of the term, and it’s only seven,” Al deadpanned. “Trust me, we have time.”

Scorpius only sighed. September first. That at least gave him something to work with.

“Fine. I explain my side, then you need to tell me what you know,” Scorpius bargained.

“Sure, I guess. But I don’t usually know much,” Albus shrugged. 

Scorpius launched into his rant, leaving out the grittier details. He told Albus who Delphi was, how they knew the witch, what she wanted from them. All about the stolen time turner, their adventures to the past, the different timelines they caused. 

He paused as he reached near the present, or as present as he could get to in the past. It was… hard, finding out that Albus was gone when he got back. It was even worse finding out what happened. Scorpius took a deep breath, reminding himself what he went back to do. 

“There,” Scorpius said with a lame flourish. “That’s most of it. The important stuff anyways.”

“There’s still more?” Albus whispered, eyes wide in shock as he squeezed the pillow in his lap. Scorpius laughed fondly, heart heavy.

“Not really no,” Scorpius chuckled. “But we had a deal. I have questions for you.”

Albus looked skeptical, but shrugged.

“Okay. First, what year is it? What year are you in? How old are you?” Scorpius rambled, firing off the questions in quick succession.

“Oh, uh. ‘Kay. I’m in my fourth year, just turned fourteen a few months ago.” Albus said, fiddling with the pillowcase. 

Scorpius blew out a breath. Fourteen. This Albus was nearly a year younger than him. It dawned on him that this would have been the day they jumped off the train, starting this whole mess. What a lovely messed up coincidence.

“Fourteen. Okay. That doesn’t leave a lot of time,” Scorpius said, to himself more than Albus.

“A lot of time before what? And why did you need to know how old I was? I thought you said you knew me or something,” Albus questioned, furrowing his brows. 

“Before Delphi,” Scorpius answered, a chill tracing down his spine. He shivered, shaking the feeling off. 

“Before she what…? Comes to kill me? That’s what you said earlier, right?” Albus asked way too calmly. 

“Yeah,” Scopius said slowly. Albus only looked more confused. 

“I don’t get it. Why me? I’m not important, I’m some foster kid that somehow got lucky and ended up here,” Albus said, shoulders closing in defensively.

“You’re not… Albus you’re so important,” Scorpius said, eyes trained directly on Albus. He felt his face heat up. “You are so important. To your family… and to me.” 

“Family?” He asked, a mix of pain and hope painted across his face. It made Scorpius want to reach over and grab him, hug him and protect him because nothing bad could happen when they were together. He wanted to rest his head atop the younger’s curls, breathing in his shampoo one more time. He wanted all the little things he had taken for granted to come back. 

“Yeah,” Scorpius answered instead, softly. “You have a family, a wonderful, loving family. The Potter’s.”

“You mentioned them before, right?” Albus asked. Albus wrinkled his nose in disgust. “James is one of them, isn’t he?”

“Yeah, he is. He’s your brother.” Scorpius couldn’t help but laugh despite himself. “And trust me, that expression never goes away when bringing up James.”

“But,” Albus started, unsure.

“Yeah?” Scorpius prompted, soft as he could. 

“He’s like, this big bully. I’m not like that, am I?”

“No, you're not.” Scorpius smiled. “You're nothing like James, at least not like that. You’re kind, and smart and the most thoughtful person I’ve ever met. You’re… incredible.”

Scorpius felt his face heat up again before he cleared his throat.

“Since he’s your brother, that means Harry is your dad. Y’know, like Harry Potter? The Harry Potter?”

Albus only looked at him blankly. Scorpius almost laughed at the irony. He probably would’ve if not for how absolutely fucked this whole timeline had become. 

“I don’t.. I dunno. I guess I don’t know much about the Wizarding World besides what we learn for class.” Albus mumbled, his cheeks going red. “Reading stuff like that is… hard for me. Doing it for school is already more than enough.”

Scorpius sat in a state of mental whiplash for a moment as puzzle pieces clicked into his head together.

“Foster kid,” Scorpius said to himself.

“What?” Al asked.

“You said you were a foster kid,” Scorpius said again, a little louder this time. “Did you grow up in the muggle world?”

“Yeah? I’ve been in and out of group homes for as long as I can remember before I got my letter. Said they picked me up when I was three or something.” Albus shrugged. “I don’t remember much, I mean I was only three. Sometimes I get bits and pieces, but nothing ever makes enough sense.”

“Al…” Scorpius muttered. “They don’t realize you’re him. Al not Albus. No one would have ever thought to check with muggles. No one knew who or what a Potter was, even if you did.”

“So no one has any clue you’re secretly the missing child of the most famous family in the Wizarding World?”

Albus shook his head. 

“No one,” Scorpius started, “Except for the witch who took you away in the first place. The same one that’s trying to kill you now. Wonderful.”