Soldiers and Serpents //Scorbus

12 The Test

As students worked on their patronuses, Scorpius sat with his feet up on the desk in the back. Albus's shirt was a little tight on him, showing off the lean body underneath. Scorpius was expecting something that was bigger, considering a lot of Potter's clothes were from his older brother. He had already finished his Patronus exam, or in other words, produced his patronus for the Professor. He heard students snickering about how he had a patronus at all, and that deatheaters didn't have them. Which was probably a reason why he tucked himself to the back, waiting out the rest of the period as everyone else struggled to produce their spells. Scorpius wasn't usually bothered by the rumors, though since he learned of his lineage; they tended to plague his mind more often.

Even his patronus created a sinking feeling in his gut. A snake was no longer a symbol of wisdom or ambition like it use to be. Since Voldemort that's all the creature has been associated with. Therefore, having that kind of patronus is viewed with suspicion. Plus, it seemed a bit cliche. At least to the other students. Considering Scorpius was descended from Salazar Slytherin; he didn't find it all that strange. Magic spoke the truth, even when the wizard didn't want it to.

Still, the gossiping circle was focused on the events of this morning more than the animal. Olivia apparently had tweeted that she'd be finding the one who messed up her textbooks and getting even. Scorpius could already hear his twin's laugh.

"Hey." Albus plopped down in the seat beside him. "You're quiet." He observed. Scorpius shrugged. "More quiet then usual. Is it because of Christine?" Scorpius decided to just agree with a little nod. But it wasn't really Christine. "Just talk to her. She'll forgive you." He said like it was easy.

"Why were you sitting with Luke this morning?" Scorpius inquires. Albus suddenly withdrew.

"No reason." He lied, looking away from the boy.

"You only came over to me when I was drenched in tequila and tea." Scorpius was sincere and honest, actually curious about the reasoning. "Are you upset about ditching class?"

"No!" Albus immediately replies, shaking his head. "Not at all. But I got into an argument this morning with my dad on the phone." He admits. "And people started to call me Slytherin Squib again. Which I thought died out a couple years ago." Scorpius's eyebrows furrow together, recalling that term. It wasn't all that nice, but Scorpius even called him that a few times. Not to his face, of course.

That was before they were friends, though. Now it meant something different to him entirely. "Why were you arguing with your dad?" Scorpius wondered. The boy beside him shrugged, putting his notebook into his backpack and zipping it. Scorpius waited for the reply.

"He thinks you're a bad influence." Albus's voice gets a little smaller when he spits out the words. Scorpius remembered the look on Harry's face when he lectured the class, the rage at Scorpius's words about the ministry. "I said something rude. And then so did he."

"What?" Scorpius prompted him, looking at the boy with concerned narrowed eyes. He felt somewhat responsible for this, considering it was because of him.

"I said I wished he wasn't my dad. And then he said he wished I wasn't his son." Albus's words were soft that Scorpius strained to hear them. He pulled his feet off the desk and set a hand on Albus's shoulder as a comfort. There's a sniffle and then Albus rubbed his eyes and looked over at the blonde. "I shouldn't complain, considering what you've been through."

"Are you kidding? Don't downplay how you feel just because you think my situation is worse. Just always tell me how it is, and what's going on." Scorpius ordered, looking him in the eyes. "Whatever you feel is valid." Albus looked like he was about to cry again, and quickly wiped whatever tears fell.