Heartbeat ~ Scorbus fanfic

Carriages and Dementors

    "Hey, Scorpius, when did the enchanted carriages start being pulled by thestrals instead of just being charmed?" Albus asked, as they set their chests in the seating area below their feet.

   "They've always been pulled by thestrals, but it's only once you've witnessed a death that you can actually see the horses. My father could never see a thestral as a child when he went here, I think he can see them now, but the topics related to thestrals aren't the happiest, so I usually avoid asking about it." Scorpius said, looking out of the window.

    "Scorpius, you're my only friend, and I trust you a lot, I need to tell you this, because I've been hiding this part of myself for a while," Albus said, then he thought 'Well here goes nothing.' "I'm gay." Albus finished, hoping that his best friend wouldn't be disgusted with him.

   "Albus, I'm glad you told me, and I'm happy you trust me this much." Scorpius said, smiling. A rare occasion, that only Albus saw.

  "So, you aren't disgusted by me? Not in the least? Or revolted even?" Albus asked, looking up at his friend, and fiddling with his thumbs.

   "No Al, I'm not disgusted, and I'm definitely not revolted, something like your sexuality isn't going to scare me away, you're my best friend, and we made a promise the day we became friends, and I'm sticking to it. I'm not going to leave you over something like that." Scorpius said, bringing his friend in for a hug.

"We hug a lot, but it's our thing now." Albus remarked, when the two boys let go of one another.

   "Yeah, I guess we do hug a lot, but like you said it's our thing now. Some friends have handshakes, some have odd dances, and we have hugs." Scorpius said, feeling a slight blush creep to his cheeks. Albus noticed the slight pink tinge in his friend's cheeks, and couldn't help it when his heart suddenly leapt up, and started beating more rapidly by the minute.

'Stop! He doesn't like me.' Albus thought, trying to calm his increased heart rate.

Scorpius had picked up his book, and he himself became lost in thought, slightly confused by the blush that had spread when he released his best friend from their hug.

'Hugging is just our thing, it's not like I'm in love with Albus, or anything, I was just cold and that's why I shivered, and my cheeks got warm.' Scorpius thought to himself, 'Besides, I have a crush on Rose. I like a girl, therefore I'm straight. Not Bi. Not Gay. Straight.' 

Meanwhile, Albus was looking out of the window, staring at the scenery around him. It was a vast amount of woods, that he knew as part of the Forbidden Forest. As Albus looked out, he could have sworn he saw a shadowy cloak floating. He shook his head, and decided it was just some old cloak that had gotten stuck on a tree, it couldn't have been dementors, they had been gone for as long as Albus could remember. 

Soon after, the carriages were coming to a halt, and the students were let out so they could all gather in the Great Hall. Albus and Scorpius made their way around the throng of first years, into the Great Hall, to sit down at the Slytherin table.

"Hey Scorpius? Did you see the frost on the windows in the carriage?" Albus asked, not paying attention to the sorting.  "Well, I did get a bit cold when we were going through the trails on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, why do you ask?" Scorpius said, looking at Albus in concern. "I think there were Dementors out there, more than just one. They were far enough away to not fully affect us, but why would they be here?" Albus asked, thinking hard on it. A loud "Silence!" echoed through the hall, as every table fell silent. Professor Mcgonagall had that effect on people, she scared you so much that you wouldn't dare argue with her no matter what.

   "Thank you." Professor Mcgonagall said, using the podium and her wand to magnify her voice. "I am Headmistress Mcgonagall, but all of you know me as Professor Mcgonagall. I would like to welcome you all back, and welcome the first year students as well, I hope you all have a wonderful time here this year at Hogwarts. I would like to introduce a young lady whom has moved here from the United States; Nyx Light, would you please come up here?"

A girl in Gryffindor robes stood up, and walked straight up to the podium where Professor Mcgonagall stood. The girl had just been sorted, Scorpius had noticed, and told Albus this in a hushed whisper. Everything was quiet, as the girl took Professor Mcgonagall's place at the podium.

"Hello everyone. I'm Nyx, if you hadn't guessed. I guess you're all wondering why I'm up here? Headmistress Mcgonagall has asked me to tell you a little bit about the American wizarding world, for educational purposes, and to inform you all on Ilvermorny school of Witchcraft and Wizardry and a little of its history." the girl said. As she was speaking, Albus was studying her, she looked familiar, but he had no idea why. As soon as she was done speaking, Nyx left the podium, and Professor Mcgonagall took the stand again.  "Thank you, Nyx. Now, let the celebration begin!" Professor Mcgonagall stated, and as soon as that was said food appeared on the tables.

After the welcoming feast, and the year had officially begun, Albus and Scorpius decided to walk down to their house common room. The two boys walked together until someone stepped in their way.

"And where do you two think you're going?" A voice asked them. "To our dormitory?" Albus answered, looking up a few inches at the person.
"Yes, but you forgot something dear Albus, you forgot to say hello to your dear cousin, that'd be me." Teddy Lupin stepped out of the darker area of the hallway and into the light so Albus and Scorpius could see him. Teddy had neon blue hair today, and a smile that was stretched from corner to corner. "How's my favorite Slytherins?" Ted asked, as Albus mumbled, "We're the only Slytherins you know." Scorpius decided to speak up, as he could tell Albus was slightly annoyed at his cousin, "We're great actually! Thanks for asking. How have you been?"
Teddy looked around, and then pulled the two boys to the side. "I've been doing great, but James and I found this old thing of your dad's Albus, that had also been my father's, so it's not wrong if I use it, because well it's James' now, but it's the original Marauder's Map! Do you know how much fun we could have with it? Loads, I tell you! Well, anyways, I need to cut to the chase, I have this group of friends, we call ourselves the Pirates, and well we go out and have adventures and stuff, but James told me to ask you two if you'd like to be included. We're looking for more members, so far it's just James, Rose, and myself." Teddy explained, as Scorpius seemed wary of the idea, Albus decided that a little fun couldn't hurt them, and they joined anyway, despite Scorpius' attempts to get Albus to say no.

"Alright! I'll see you both on Friday, November 25th, at 9 pm, bring the cloak!" Teddy yelled, as he ran off to find James and their other friends.

The two boys walked to their dorms, and claimed their beds. By the time the others were in the dorms, Scorpius was almost asleep, when Albus whispered, "Scorp, I think this is going to be our best year yet."
Albus fell asleep, as the two would be met with a frantic search for classes the next morning.