Winter Evenings
The Slytherin common room was, for once, very warm, and Scorpius Malfoy had decided that it was the perfect conditions to curl up in an armchair near the fire and read his new book; ‘The Struggles of Being Different’ by Lucy Sycamore, a muggle. It was a very interesting book all about Lucy’s life and how she went about her day with autism.
Scorpius had just gotten to an interesting part when he felt a weight on his legs. He looked down to see Albus Potter kneeling in front of him, arms folded, resting on Scorpius’s legs, chin resting in his arms, looking up at Scorpius and smiling. Scorpius’s mouth curved upwards in a small smile and he reached out to run his hand through Albus’s windswept hair.
“Hey,” Albus said, leaning into Scorpius’s touch.
“Hi. You been flying?”
“Yep. Went over the Forbidden Forest with James then he went back to study for his N.E.W.Ts so I went on over the lake. I nearly high-fived the squid! You would’ve loved it,” Albus said, and Scorpius just rolled his eyes.
“Mmmm, yeah, no. It’s cold out there. Warm in here. ‘M not going flying.”
Albus laughed and squeezed Scorpius’s thigh, “Alright then. But one day, you have to come flying with me. It will be so much fun!”
Scorpius raised an eyebrow, “Fun? Are you serious?”
Albus grinned, “No. But my brother is.”
Scorpius slapped him lightly on the cheek, “I hate you.”
“Sure you do.”
They were both laughing. Scorpius looked deep into Albus’s green eyes. They were sparkling, like they always did when Albus smiled or laughed. They were beautiful, like two shining emeralds. Scorpius could get lost in those eyes for hours on end. They truly were mesmerising. He lent forwards and pressed a light kiss on Albus’s nose, before resting his forehead against Albus’s.
“Hey,” Albus whispered, and Scorpius smiled, running his hand through Albus’s messy curls once more.
“Nooooo, stop!” Albus said, taking Scorpius’s hand in his, “You’re just messing up my hair.”
Scorpius chuckled, “It’s already in an appalling state love. My hands won’t do anything the wind hasn’t already done.”
“Ugh, Fiiiiiiine,” Albus rolled his eyes, but he was still smiling, hard.
“C’mere,” Scorpius pulled back and tugged on Albus’s hand, silently asking him to come up onto the armchair. It was big enough for two. Albus understood what Scorpius wanted, so he got up off the floor and squeezed himself in between Scorpius and the armchair, so Scorpius’s back was pressed against his chest.
Being the taller one in the relationship, Albus could properly curl around Scorpius and envelope him and a snuggly warm hug. He loved being taller than his boyfriend because not only could he tease Scorpius about his height, he was at the perfect place to give Scorpius forehead kisses and he could hold Scorpius if he was having a panic attack or was upset.
Now, Albus wrapped his arms around Scorpius and buried his nose in the blonde hair, breathing in Scorpius’s familiar smell of books and ink. He gave Scorpius a small kiss in the crown of his head and smiled against his head. He really did love this boy.
Scorpius shifted slightly then nestled back into Albus’s arms in a more comfortable position, sighing happily.
“Comfy there, Your Majesty?” Albus teased.
“Very. Thank you so much, my good fellow,” Scorpius said, trying to stifle a giggle.
“I am always happy to offer my services to you, Sire,” Albus said.
Scorpius tipped his head backwards onto Albus’s shoulder and once again looked up into Albus’s shockingly green eyes. Neither boy could help it and they both laughed again.
“You two are disgustingly cute,” A voice said, “You are Slytherins. Not bloody Hufflepuffs. You shouldn’t be allowed to be that cute.”
The two boys looked up to see their friend, Vanity Bunting, stood next to them, looking down at them and smiling fondly.
“Hush Vee,” Scorpius said, “We are allowed to show our soft sides every once in a while.”
Vanity snorted, dropped her bag and collapsed into a chair next to where Albus and Scorpius were sat, “Of course. Just try not to do it too much. You may end up turning Hufflepuff. Or even worse, Gryffindor!”
Albus chucked a pillow at Vanity, “Hey! My whole family is in Gryffindor!”
“Mmm, I know,” Vanity said, using the pillow to make herself more comfortable, “Thanks for the pillow. I was wondering when you were going to give me one.”
The three of them laughed and Scorpius pressed back into Albus, closing his eyes.
“You alright, baby?” Albus whispered in his ear.
“Yeah. ‘M a bit tired.”
“You’re tired? I’m the one that spent two hours flying around school this afternoon!”
“Yeah? Well I’ve been... I’ve been... Studying!”
Albus chuckled softly and kissed just under Scorpius’s ear in his sweet spot, making Scorpius shiver.
“Nope. No kissing while I’m here,” Vanity said, “It’s gross. There are asexuals around.”
“Aw, sorry Vee. But I can’t deny my boyfriend a kiss when he’s tired,” Albus said.
“Yeah,” Scorpius said, opening his eyes and looking towards Vanity, “And it’s not as if he kissed me on the lips.”
Vanity wrinkled her nose, “Don’t go there. Please, Merlin, no,” She settled back into the sofa and pulled out a parchment and quill.
“That our herbology essay?” Albus asked.
“Mmm. Could you proofread it Albus? You’re so much better at herbology than me.”
“Sure thing. Pass it over?” Albus reached out, careful not to disturb Scorpius from his position in Albus’s lap and took Vanity’s essay and quill off her to read it through.
“Cheers, Potter,” Vanity grinned, and Albus rolled his eyes.
Scorpius sighed again and closed his eyes. He was happy. And comfy. Very comfy. Maybe he could just stay here for a bit. He didn’t feel like moving anyway. He heard Vanity laugh.
“You happy there, Scorpius?”
“Yup. Very. Now shush.”
“Absolutely Your Highness.”
Albus chuckled so Scorpius reached out and tugged his hair.
“Hey!”
“Straw is cheaper,” He mumbled, and Albus laughed.
“My dad says that a lot. How do you know it? It’s a muggle saying.”
“My dad likes muggles and he heard them say it. Well, and he spends more time with Hermione now and I expect she says it sometimes, so I just got it off him.”
Albus laughed again and kissed Scorpius’s head again. Scorpius smiled. This was very homey. Warm, happy and comfy.
He could finish his book another day.