from friends to lovers ; scorbus

Epilogue

it has been about 2 years since I wrote this. i finished this story sometime in 2017 have returned only for a short time. so many of you have requested a reaction from the parents, and i guess i had to give at some point!

~ dedication: thank you to everyone who enjoyed this story. my writing as much improved and there is so much i wish i could change, but your comments and support, even to this day, still mean a lot to me. 

✧ ✧ ✧

Do you want love? Like really want it? Would you kill for it? Would you die for it? Love is a complicated thing, an opposition against the way of the world. Kings and Queens, they never married for it, save for the exceptions of those incredulous rule-breakers.

At the edge of the world stood their parents, tall, old, worn. They all wore the same look; they had stared down into the barrel of war. Seen tears on unbreakable students, watched those they knew and loved fall. It was heartbreaking as Scorpius and Albus headed toward them, hands clasped.

Scorpius let his fingers trace over Albus' in comfort. They knew. One hundred percent that this was real and the world was wide and they could have everything. All they needed to do was brave this one moment. Intense worry, intense fear, all of the above and more.

And as they approached, everything around felt full, yet silence found a wedge and slipped it. Has your heart ever beat so slow? Did you ever feel like you were seconds away from dying?

A soft smile found its way onto Draco's face. He had created the perfect son. A smart, brilliant boy who threw his heart into everything he did. When his wife died, his son was there, and that gave him hope. Someone there to love him back in such a generous way. A son.

"Look at them," Draco whispered to Harry, who surprisingly, was standing next to the taller, still blonder man. "I had a love like that. All bubbly, full of substance. Giddy."

"So that's where we've landed." Harry gave a curt laugh. He was smiling with his lips. In that moment, it was the best he could do. He felt tears coming up. "Giddy? Bubbly? Words I never thought I hear the Devil say."

"The Devil," Draco scoffed. They both held their breath.

Albus and Scorpius approached, each of their faint Adam's apple bobbing. Draco could see Scorpius trembling a bit. Though his hand still clamped itself with Albus's.

"My, my, I assume this is your replacement for hugging?" Draco asked. Scorpius almost sighed. The nerves flew out of his body at a lightening pace.

"No, we still hug. This is just an added bonus," Albus replied heartedly.

"I wonder when this did happen, Albus," Harry said. "I thought I told you to focus this year. The both of you had O.W.L.S. I hope you didn't take up too much of each others time."

It was most things in one. A family, that is what most hope for. If not, a nice home and warm company. However, there are little bonuses to having family. The crinkle in the corners of their warm eyes when you say something and they consume themselves with laughter. A toddlers first steps, how proud you would feel in that moment, to have brought a creature of such... admirable innocence into the world. Kisses on the cheek, on the hands, on the curve of your back. Kisses that puncture your heart, kiss that heal your cuts and bruises. The reminder that there is always someone who loves you hidden behind a door.

That is what Albus longed for at the ripe age of twenty-five. He'd become a gardener. A sturdy career choice for him and something that drove Ginny and Rose absolutely made. How are you to fail Herbology and then come her, and plant flowers and tomatoes and squash and carrots?

But it was soothing for Albus, it helped tame the nightmares. They were fading now. He loved the feel of the soil between his fingers and under his fingernails. He loved the disgusted look on Scorpius' face when he cupped Scorpius' face with those dirty hands. Scorpius secretly loved it and would never tell Albus and Albus would never find out.

Scorpius worked in the Ministry, something or the rather. It was quite a boring job, but he did it because he liked the routine. He also got to see Rose at the Ministry, who had followed in the footsteps of her mother and became the Minister of Magic. She slowly became one of his best friends, and it had been a long time since he'd gotten over his unsubtle crush, which he apologized for almost daily now.

Rose had married Tristian, but divorced him only two years later during a rather harsh argument about muggle politics. Tristan, in turn, married a muggle woman, and they'd moved away to somewhere in the Middle East. He still sent letters to Albus and Scorpius, sometimes to Rose if she got lucky.

Rose re-married to a very tall woman with a speckled face and really long hair. Albus could not remember for the life of himself, her name. So he just referred to her as 'Rose's really kind wife who's taller than me and it hurts'.

"You really want kids?" Scorpius asked as they laid in bed together. Albus was wearing glasses now. He was reading up on plant care-taking. "You do remember that my father lives with us."

"Exactly. He needs company desperately. If you're at the Ministry most of the time and I'm always outside, what better than to get some bodies to fill the almost empty house with," Albus replied.

"You're impossible, you know that."

"And you love me for it."

"You know I do," Scorpius said. "You're telling him, though."