Fic: 'Glitches and Snitches' AS/S PG13
Title: Glitches and Snitches
Author: softly_sweetly
Beta: alexis_sd
Characters/Pairing: Albus Severus/Scorpius, cameos from any and all
Length: ~2,200
Rating: PG13 for now
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are the property of J.K. Rowling. I make no money from this piece of fanfiction.
Warnings: A little swearing, UST
Summary: Al has a glittering Quidditch career - and halfway decent grades, hopefully - heading his way. If only Scorpius would stop crossing his path...
Author Notes: Counts to prompt #54 Listen from my 100quills Next Generation Table
Written for Week Seven of the ass_carnival, using all the prompts.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six.
"Potter, stop fidgeting with your bowtie."
"What kind of a deranged sadist makes young men wear bowties?" Al complained, fidgeting with the tie and managing to pull the entire thing loose. Tossing it onto the floor in a sulk, he stripped off the ridiculously formal robes and tossed them down too. Glowering at the sales witch who scuttled forwards to pick them up, he pulled on his own - substantially more comfortable - clothes. "I'll take them. I'm only going to wear them once in a blue moon, but I'll take them."
She nodded and scurried off, and Al was left to glower at the rows of ties and formal robes. Every year the club had a gala dinner, where players old and new got dressed up and pissed the night away. Three weeks ago, Al would have been jumping about with excitement, but now all he wanted to do was skive off and go home for the weekend. Just because he had managed to avoid being in the same place as Scorpius for any great length of time didn't mean he had forgotten that morning, and the dim prick coming out of Scorpius' room. Al couldn't work out what offended him most; that Scorpius was oblivious to his feelings and happy to fuck around, or that Scorpius had scraped the bottom of the butterbeer barrel with Cormac McLaggen, Junior. What kind of self-involved, wannabe-American scourge on the face of Wizarding Society named their son after themselves, and added a Junior at the end. It offended Al's British sensibilities. Why didn't Cormac Junior just fuck off to the States, and take Scorpius fucking Malfoy with him and shove one of those huge American cars right up his...
"Potter, unless you're sucking a lemon, you shouldn't have that face on."
Sighing, Al flipped a half-hearted v-sign at Mack. "Can we go?"
"Yeah, I'm done. Come on, we're going to be late for practice."
The thought of practice should have made Al's heart soar, but instead it just filled him with sorrow. At practice, he had to see Scorpius. Shaking his head to stop the thoughts before they started, Al renewed his resolve to just ignore Scorpius. As long as he stayed near Mack, or Adrien, or Christina, he'd be fine. There was safety in numbers.
~~~~~♥~~~~~
Scorpius was so angry he kept fumbling his catches, letting the Snitch out of his grip time and time again. He'd been trying to get Al on his own for weeks now, but Al was having none of it. No matter what Scorpius tried, Al was always with someone else, and it wasn't really a conversation Scorpius wanted to have in public.
When Coach Reynolds finally called a halt to practice, Scorpius swooped down to the ground, jumping off his broom in a huff and storming across the pitch. Sod worrying about an audience - he needed to smooth things out with Al. The look in Al's eyes when he'd seen Scorpius with Cormac had been haunting Scorpius' every waking moment, and most of his sleeping ones too. "Potter. Hey, Potter!"
The fact Al was with people actually worked in Scorpius' favour - it meant that Al had to respond to him. Scorpius sped up, jogging across the pitch to catch up to Al. "Have you got a minute?"
"No, I have plans this afternoon."
Not one to be deterred easily, Scorpius pushed. "Then what about tonight, at the party?"
Al shrugged, looking over Scorpius' shoulder at what was clearly a very interesting goal post, for the way it held Al's attention. "Whatever. Later, guys."
And that was it; Al was gone, jogging back to the changing rooms, and Scorpius was left looking like a fool. He could feel eyes on him, and drew his shoulders back, holding his head high as he walked back to the changing rooms. He wasn't going to let his teammates see how affected he was by Al's dismissal of him. And when exactly had Scorpius' mind changed regarding Al? When had Al ignoring him become anything other than a blessing?
Scorpius managed to pass the rest of the afternoon in a haze of annoyance and scoffing. If he had any sense, he'd have been planning what he was going to say to Al, but Scorpius found these things always went better when they were spontaneous. Of course, there was more room for messing up, but there was also more room for the kind of sheer brilliance that only ever came in the spur of the moment. It broke every rule his father had ever told him about preparing and planning, but Scorpius felt that Al was more of a breaking-the-rules kind of man.
Even so, the evening came surprisingly quickly, and before Scorpius was really ready for it, he was in his robes and enjoying idle chit-chat with players past and present, one eye always on the door, waiting for Al to arrive. He would never have pegged Cho Chang as a source of scintillating conversation, but Scorpius was actually enjoying talking to her. She'd finished out her career with the Bees, and clearly still loved the club.
"So, Scorpius, are you enjoying the fame and notoriety that comes with professional Quidditch?"
Laughing, Scorpius reached out and took a glass off the tray of a passing waiter. Fishing out the blueberries, he chewed and swallowed as he thought out his answer. Whoever would have thought blueberry martinis would be so conducive to conversation? "Well, I was no stranger to notoriety when I started, all things considered." Cho laughed, dipping her head in recognition. Scorpius appreciated that her face didn't immediately darken in recognition of the history he had inherited, and had to work against every day. "To be honest, I'm just thrilled to be playing; it's what I love. I'm not into being a celebrity. I'm not about to start demanding four blue candles, three black towels and two beers everywhere I go."
"That's good to hear - nothing will end your career faster than behaving like a diva."
"I've figured that much out. Besides, in a room with this much talent, so many of my heroes, how could I behave like a diva? I'm just an untalented brat in comparison."
"I've seen you play - untalented doesn't come into it. But the Bees have always been good for employing level-headed players; no one here thinks you shouldn't be here with us."
Scorpius smiled, accepting the compliment as graciously as he could. He wasn't very good at accepting compliments - too often; they were the sweetener before some barb about his father or grandfather. Wanting a change of subject, Scorpius gestured to the room. "Is blue always the colour scheme at these things?"
"No, it normally sticks to team colours, but the continual black parties were a little depressing." Cho giggled, making the blue lace flower in her hair tremble softly. It was very attractive, if Scorpius were that way inclined. "A couple of us just wanted a change, and we petitioned for a blue theme. Of course, that backfired when the caterers put robin eggs on the menu, but it all seems to have smoothed out."
Scorpius couldn't work out whether Cho was joking, being sarcastic, or being serious, so he went for the kind of polite little laugh that could convey disbelief or shared amusement, depending on what the listener wanted. It seemed to work, but before Cho could take the conversation further, Scorpius caught sight of Al heading out of the doors. Out of them... when the hell had he come in? "Excuse me for a moment, there's someone I need to see."
Crossing the open floor, Scorpius paused by Mack and took a break in the conversation as a cue to pull Mack aside for a moment. "Do you know where Al is going?"
"We're in Blackpool; where would you go if you were lonely, if you were blue?"
"I have no idea, and why is Al lonely?"
Mack shook his head, a look of irritation crossing his face. "Look, I know you two were never friends, but you've clearly fallen out about something, and it's affecting the team dynamics. Go and sort it out."
"I haven't done anything..."
"I don't care. Go and put it right. You're both playing like shit, so go kiss and make up, then come and enjoy the party."
Scorpius doubted Mack had any idea about what was really going on, and he was grateful for that. He'd never appreciated anyone chiming in on his love life, even if they were built like a brick shit house and could snap him in two with three fingers. Bloody Keepers and their bloody muscles.
Heading out through the doors, ducking to avoid getting his hair tangled in the flowers that trailed off the archway, Scorpius stepped out onto the pier and looked around. The town was to his left, all glitzy lights and trilling noises, and the ocean was to his left. He could see a figure walking across the sand, illuminated by the lights from the seaside attractions, and Scorpius bit back a laugh. Al couldn't have been more of a stereotype if he'd tried.
Crossing the sand, Scorpius waited until he was close enough to Al that he wouldn't have to shout before he spoke up. "Don't do it, Al."
Al jolted, clearly surprised, and turned around. The look on his face would have killed a lesser man, but Scorpius stood firm, waiting for Al to answer. "Do what, Malfoy?"
"Walk into the ocean, end it all. Let the waves take you down."
Al scoffed; folding his arms and making his robes crease up. Scorpius wanted to chastise him, but he knew not all wizards - in fact, very few - were as fastidious about keeping their clothes neat as he was.
"Just fuck off, Malfoy."
Al went to walk away, but Scorpius stepped sideways quickly, holding out his hand and gesturing for Al to stay put. He did, for now. "Look, Al, you've been ignoring me for weeks."
"I'm sure you can get attention from elsewhere. Besides, we're sharing a flat for convenience, not because we're friends."
Screwing up his courage, Scorpius nodded softly. "I know, and I have enough friends, thanks. Gaining another friend isn't why I'm talking to you now. I never said anything, because I thought you just viewed me as... as Malfoy. And then I saw in your eyes, that you don't, but every time I try and get close to you, you back off."
"You're surprised? You're surprised that you're fucking some bloke, and I backed off and tried to get over you?"
Scorpius hadn't expected an admission of feelings to come so easily - from Al or from himself - but more surprising was Al's comment about other blokes. "Al, I haven't been seeing anyone at all and..."
"Oh, shut up. Do you think I'm stupid? I was in the kitchen when McLaggen Junior strolled out in a towel and a smirk. Clearly you aren't that good a shag, if he could still ponce about afterwards."
Scorpius bristled at the insult, but at least now Al's ignoring him made sense. It would be laughable, if the entire situation wasn't already bloody surreal. "First off, I'm a brilliant shag. Second, Cormac wouldn't know. I was already doubting letting him invite himself back, and then when I saw you, it just cemented that I had the wrong bloke with me. A quick Confundus and Cormac was down for the night."
Al's angry expression slid off his face, and Scorpius could almost hear the cogs turning in Al's head. An entire range of emotions ran over Al's face, before his expression settled into one of quiet thoughtfulness. "That family has no luck with Confundus charms."
"You what?"
"My Aunt Hermione... never mind. You didn't sleep with him?"
"No. I'm not quite the whore my reputation claims I am. And for a while now, I haven't been able to sleep with anyone, because I've always wanted someone else." Again, that was slightly more than Scorpius had intended to give away, but as trying not to fancy Al hadn't worked, maybe embracing it was the way forwards.
"I always thought you hated me."
"You annoy me, but so do my parents and friends. We never moved in the same circles, Al, it wasn't until I was spending most of my time with you that I felt anything other than ambivalence or a mild crush."
Al scoffed. "Such a fucking romantic, Malfoy."
"What do you want? Flowers and a marriage proposal? I didn't realise I'd tumbled into one of the Prophet's romantic serials?"
Al laughed, raking a hand through his hair in a mildly adorable way. Scorpius didn't know whether to push the issue, or let Al take his time. Either way, he really wanted an answer.
"Look, let's just start again. My name is Al Potter."
Stepping forwards, Scorpius took Al's hand and shook it. He was all for new beginnings and forgetting the past; Merlin knew, holding onto the past only ever brought pain. "Scorpius Malfoy. They do a blinding blueberry martini in there, if you fancy a drink?"
"Yeah, sounds fun."
It wasn't quite the answer Scorpius had been hoping for, when he'd thought about this little showdown. But the smile on Al's face was a welcome change from the sulky glare of the past few weeks, and as they headed back into the party, Scorpius decided this was definitely a start.
Chapter 8
Author: softly_sweetly
Beta: alexis_sd
Characters/Pairing: Albus Severus/Scorpius, cameos from any and all
Length: ~2,200
Rating: PG13 for now
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are the property of J.K. Rowling. I make no money from this piece of fanfiction.
Warnings: A little swearing, UST
Summary: Al has a glittering Quidditch career - and halfway decent grades, hopefully - heading his way. If only Scorpius would stop crossing his path...
Author Notes: Counts to prompt #54 Listen from my 100quills Next Generation Table
Written for Week Seven of the ass_carnival, using all the prompts.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six.
"Potter, stop fidgeting with your bowtie."
"What kind of a deranged sadist makes young men wear bowties?" Al complained, fidgeting with the tie and managing to pull the entire thing loose. Tossing it onto the floor in a sulk, he stripped off the ridiculously formal robes and tossed them down too. Glowering at the sales witch who scuttled forwards to pick them up, he pulled on his own - substantially more comfortable - clothes. "I'll take them. I'm only going to wear them once in a blue moon, but I'll take them."
She nodded and scurried off, and Al was left to glower at the rows of ties and formal robes. Every year the club had a gala dinner, where players old and new got dressed up and pissed the night away. Three weeks ago, Al would have been jumping about with excitement, but now all he wanted to do was skive off and go home for the weekend. Just because he had managed to avoid being in the same place as Scorpius for any great length of time didn't mean he had forgotten that morning, and the dim prick coming out of Scorpius' room. Al couldn't work out what offended him most; that Scorpius was oblivious to his feelings and happy to fuck around, or that Scorpius had scraped the bottom of the butterbeer barrel with Cormac McLaggen, Junior. What kind of self-involved, wannabe-American scourge on the face of Wizarding Society named their son after themselves, and added a Junior at the end. It offended Al's British sensibilities. Why didn't Cormac Junior just fuck off to the States, and take Scorpius fucking Malfoy with him and shove one of those huge American cars right up his...
"Potter, unless you're sucking a lemon, you shouldn't have that face on."
Sighing, Al flipped a half-hearted v-sign at Mack. "Can we go?"
"Yeah, I'm done. Come on, we're going to be late for practice."
The thought of practice should have made Al's heart soar, but instead it just filled him with sorrow. At practice, he had to see Scorpius. Shaking his head to stop the thoughts before they started, Al renewed his resolve to just ignore Scorpius. As long as he stayed near Mack, or Adrien, or Christina, he'd be fine. There was safety in numbers.
~~~~~♥~~~~~
Scorpius was so angry he kept fumbling his catches, letting the Snitch out of his grip time and time again. He'd been trying to get Al on his own for weeks now, but Al was having none of it. No matter what Scorpius tried, Al was always with someone else, and it wasn't really a conversation Scorpius wanted to have in public.
When Coach Reynolds finally called a halt to practice, Scorpius swooped down to the ground, jumping off his broom in a huff and storming across the pitch. Sod worrying about an audience - he needed to smooth things out with Al. The look in Al's eyes when he'd seen Scorpius with Cormac had been haunting Scorpius' every waking moment, and most of his sleeping ones too. "Potter. Hey, Potter!"
The fact Al was with people actually worked in Scorpius' favour - it meant that Al had to respond to him. Scorpius sped up, jogging across the pitch to catch up to Al. "Have you got a minute?"
"No, I have plans this afternoon."
Not one to be deterred easily, Scorpius pushed. "Then what about tonight, at the party?"
Al shrugged, looking over Scorpius' shoulder at what was clearly a very interesting goal post, for the way it held Al's attention. "Whatever. Later, guys."
And that was it; Al was gone, jogging back to the changing rooms, and Scorpius was left looking like a fool. He could feel eyes on him, and drew his shoulders back, holding his head high as he walked back to the changing rooms. He wasn't going to let his teammates see how affected he was by Al's dismissal of him. And when exactly had Scorpius' mind changed regarding Al? When had Al ignoring him become anything other than a blessing?
Scorpius managed to pass the rest of the afternoon in a haze of annoyance and scoffing. If he had any sense, he'd have been planning what he was going to say to Al, but Scorpius found these things always went better when they were spontaneous. Of course, there was more room for messing up, but there was also more room for the kind of sheer brilliance that only ever came in the spur of the moment. It broke every rule his father had ever told him about preparing and planning, but Scorpius felt that Al was more of a breaking-the-rules kind of man.
Even so, the evening came surprisingly quickly, and before Scorpius was really ready for it, he was in his robes and enjoying idle chit-chat with players past and present, one eye always on the door, waiting for Al to arrive. He would never have pegged Cho Chang as a source of scintillating conversation, but Scorpius was actually enjoying talking to her. She'd finished out her career with the Bees, and clearly still loved the club.
"So, Scorpius, are you enjoying the fame and notoriety that comes with professional Quidditch?"
Laughing, Scorpius reached out and took a glass off the tray of a passing waiter. Fishing out the blueberries, he chewed and swallowed as he thought out his answer. Whoever would have thought blueberry martinis would be so conducive to conversation? "Well, I was no stranger to notoriety when I started, all things considered." Cho laughed, dipping her head in recognition. Scorpius appreciated that her face didn't immediately darken in recognition of the history he had inherited, and had to work against every day. "To be honest, I'm just thrilled to be playing; it's what I love. I'm not into being a celebrity. I'm not about to start demanding four blue candles, three black towels and two beers everywhere I go."
"That's good to hear - nothing will end your career faster than behaving like a diva."
"I've figured that much out. Besides, in a room with this much talent, so many of my heroes, how could I behave like a diva? I'm just an untalented brat in comparison."
"I've seen you play - untalented doesn't come into it. But the Bees have always been good for employing level-headed players; no one here thinks you shouldn't be here with us."
Scorpius smiled, accepting the compliment as graciously as he could. He wasn't very good at accepting compliments - too often; they were the sweetener before some barb about his father or grandfather. Wanting a change of subject, Scorpius gestured to the room. "Is blue always the colour scheme at these things?"
"No, it normally sticks to team colours, but the continual black parties were a little depressing." Cho giggled, making the blue lace flower in her hair tremble softly. It was very attractive, if Scorpius were that way inclined. "A couple of us just wanted a change, and we petitioned for a blue theme. Of course, that backfired when the caterers put robin eggs on the menu, but it all seems to have smoothed out."
Scorpius couldn't work out whether Cho was joking, being sarcastic, or being serious, so he went for the kind of polite little laugh that could convey disbelief or shared amusement, depending on what the listener wanted. It seemed to work, but before Cho could take the conversation further, Scorpius caught sight of Al heading out of the doors. Out of them... when the hell had he come in? "Excuse me for a moment, there's someone I need to see."
Crossing the open floor, Scorpius paused by Mack and took a break in the conversation as a cue to pull Mack aside for a moment. "Do you know where Al is going?"
"We're in Blackpool; where would you go if you were lonely, if you were blue?"
"I have no idea, and why is Al lonely?"
Mack shook his head, a look of irritation crossing his face. "Look, I know you two were never friends, but you've clearly fallen out about something, and it's affecting the team dynamics. Go and sort it out."
"I haven't done anything..."
"I don't care. Go and put it right. You're both playing like shit, so go kiss and make up, then come and enjoy the party."
Scorpius doubted Mack had any idea about what was really going on, and he was grateful for that. He'd never appreciated anyone chiming in on his love life, even if they were built like a brick shit house and could snap him in two with three fingers. Bloody Keepers and their bloody muscles.
Heading out through the doors, ducking to avoid getting his hair tangled in the flowers that trailed off the archway, Scorpius stepped out onto the pier and looked around. The town was to his left, all glitzy lights and trilling noises, and the ocean was to his left. He could see a figure walking across the sand, illuminated by the lights from the seaside attractions, and Scorpius bit back a laugh. Al couldn't have been more of a stereotype if he'd tried.
Crossing the sand, Scorpius waited until he was close enough to Al that he wouldn't have to shout before he spoke up. "Don't do it, Al."
Al jolted, clearly surprised, and turned around. The look on his face would have killed a lesser man, but Scorpius stood firm, waiting for Al to answer. "Do what, Malfoy?"
"Walk into the ocean, end it all. Let the waves take you down."
Al scoffed; folding his arms and making his robes crease up. Scorpius wanted to chastise him, but he knew not all wizards - in fact, very few - were as fastidious about keeping their clothes neat as he was.
"Just fuck off, Malfoy."
Al went to walk away, but Scorpius stepped sideways quickly, holding out his hand and gesturing for Al to stay put. He did, for now. "Look, Al, you've been ignoring me for weeks."
"I'm sure you can get attention from elsewhere. Besides, we're sharing a flat for convenience, not because we're friends."
Screwing up his courage, Scorpius nodded softly. "I know, and I have enough friends, thanks. Gaining another friend isn't why I'm talking to you now. I never said anything, because I thought you just viewed me as... as Malfoy. And then I saw in your eyes, that you don't, but every time I try and get close to you, you back off."
"You're surprised? You're surprised that you're fucking some bloke, and I backed off and tried to get over you?"
Scorpius hadn't expected an admission of feelings to come so easily - from Al or from himself - but more surprising was Al's comment about other blokes. "Al, I haven't been seeing anyone at all and..."
"Oh, shut up. Do you think I'm stupid? I was in the kitchen when McLaggen Junior strolled out in a towel and a smirk. Clearly you aren't that good a shag, if he could still ponce about afterwards."
Scorpius bristled at the insult, but at least now Al's ignoring him made sense. It would be laughable, if the entire situation wasn't already bloody surreal. "First off, I'm a brilliant shag. Second, Cormac wouldn't know. I was already doubting letting him invite himself back, and then when I saw you, it just cemented that I had the wrong bloke with me. A quick Confundus and Cormac was down for the night."
Al's angry expression slid off his face, and Scorpius could almost hear the cogs turning in Al's head. An entire range of emotions ran over Al's face, before his expression settled into one of quiet thoughtfulness. "That family has no luck with Confundus charms."
"You what?"
"My Aunt Hermione... never mind. You didn't sleep with him?"
"No. I'm not quite the whore my reputation claims I am. And for a while now, I haven't been able to sleep with anyone, because I've always wanted someone else." Again, that was slightly more than Scorpius had intended to give away, but as trying not to fancy Al hadn't worked, maybe embracing it was the way forwards.
"I always thought you hated me."
"You annoy me, but so do my parents and friends. We never moved in the same circles, Al, it wasn't until I was spending most of my time with you that I felt anything other than ambivalence or a mild crush."
Al scoffed. "Such a fucking romantic, Malfoy."
"What do you want? Flowers and a marriage proposal? I didn't realise I'd tumbled into one of the Prophet's romantic serials?"
Al laughed, raking a hand through his hair in a mildly adorable way. Scorpius didn't know whether to push the issue, or let Al take his time. Either way, he really wanted an answer.
"Look, let's just start again. My name is Al Potter."
Stepping forwards, Scorpius took Al's hand and shook it. He was all for new beginnings and forgetting the past; Merlin knew, holding onto the past only ever brought pain. "Scorpius Malfoy. They do a blinding blueberry martini in there, if you fancy a drink?"
"Yeah, sounds fun."
It wasn't quite the answer Scorpius had been hoping for, when he'd thought about this little showdown. But the smile on Al's face was a welcome change from the sulky glare of the past few weeks, and as they headed back into the party, Scorpius decided this was definitely a start.
Chapter 8