Wow, this chapter should not have taken me as long as it has. I guess I just didn't want it to end, but it needed to end. I'm very proud of this story; it's the first one that I've finished beginning to end! Woohoo! :D And I've started another Albus/Scorpius fic called Solace. It's a bit different from this one but it still has all the angst and romance everyone loves up. Anyway, thanks to everyone who has stuck with me and this story. I am very grateful to all of my readers and fans and reviews; you all kept me going! So thanks a bajillion!

Disclaimer: I own not the HP characters. JK Rowling does. That's why she's rich and I'm not. ;)

Chapter 14

After of couple hours of making out and chatting, the two sixth-years finally made their way back to the Potter home, having realized that it was getting dark. Hands intertwined, Albus opened the door and walked inside to find his parents, Lily, and James all waiting impatiently in the living room. "Um, hey," Albus hesitantly said, wondering if he were in trouble. "What are you guys doing?"

James was the first to speak. Angry, he stood up and scoffed. "I can't believe you went back to that prick!"

"Language, James," Ginny scolded him. James crossed his arms and glared at Scorpius. Scorpius was rather intimidated by Albus' family staring at him; the sight was unnerving.

But Albus wasn't deterred. He simply said, "Scorpius apologized and I forgave him." Glancing at his mother, he asked, "May Scorpius stay over for dinner?" Ginny nodded, smiling. He turned back to Scorpius and quietly asked, "Are you okay here?"

Scorpius nodded to Albus, giving his new boyfriend a smile. Boyfriend. That word sounded foreign to him but it was nice. He liked thinking of Albus as his boyfriend. "I'm great, thanks."

After a mildly awkward (thanks to the burning glares from James and Lily) dinner, Scorpius figured that he had dawdled enough from going back home. Outside, broom in hand, he kissed Albus on the mouth. "Thank you, Albus. For everything."

Albus smiled at Scorpius, feeling much happier than he had felt in a long time. He couldn't believe that he and Scorpius were kissing together and that they were actually an item. And yet, it all felt so natural to him. He just worried about how Scorpius would do at Hogwarts. "Are you sure you don't want to stay here?" Albus figured that Scorpius' mum would be pretty upset by now.

But Scorpius had to face her and his grandparents. He reluctantly nodded and said, "I'll see you tomorrow, Albus." With one final kiss, he mounted his broom and flew back home.

Once home, Scorpius hesitantly walked inside. His grandparents were nowhere to be found; they probably had a dinner party to attend. He walked upstairs and saw his mum's door left ajar. He walked inside and his mum was lying on her bed, tears staining her face. "Mum? You okay?" He softly asked.

She sat up and turned to her son. She gave him a heavyhearted look then turned away, not saying anything. Scorpius waited a minute then finally returned to his room. Maybe she would talk more in the morning. Her miserable mood wasn't going to ruin his happiness though. He felt more content now than he had, well, ever. The world was right again.

The next day, Scorpius came down for breakfast to find that his mum was not present at the table.

"Honestly, she needs to get over that man. No offense, Scorpius." Her grandmother remarked.

He glanced up at his grandmother and shrugged. He longed to speak with his mother but he didn't get that chance until two days later.

Scorpius had just gotten back from Albus' house. He was spending all his time there to keep him from dying of boredom at his grandparents' house. Lily was slowly warming up to him but James disappeared from the house whenever he was around. It bothered Albus that his brother still disapproved of Scorpius, but Scorpius could care less what James thought. He had Albus and that was all that mattered.

As he put his broom back in the shed and made his way to the porch in the backyard, he found his mum lying against a nearby willow tree. She looked up and motioned for him to sit with her. He obeyed.

When he sat down, she turned to him and bluntly asked, "So you're gay then?"

Scorpius, a little taken aback by how forward she was, nodded. "Please accept that, Mum."

She sighed and took his hand. "I don't love you any less, I'm just shocked still. It's hard knowing I won't get any grandchildren."

Scorpius looked his mother in her eyes and strongly stated, "I'm not going to change for anyone. I've hid who I am for too long. And I'm not even thinking about starting a family right now so let's cross that bridge when we get there, okay?"

She smiled in spite of herself and nodded. Then, a serious look appearing on her face, she said, "This was horrible timing."

"It was the only time I could tell you."

"Your father will have a fit when he finds out."

Scorpius nodded, leaning back on his elbows to look up at the sky. At least he'll have lots of time to be upset in Azkaban, he thought to himself. He was still bitter on the father subject. "Are you okay with this then?" He tentatively asked his mother, glancing at her.

She gave him a sideways glance and softly said, "I will be in time. I don't want to change who you are. I love you too much." That answer was good enough for him. Scorpius smiled and hugged his mother, murmuring a thanks.

When they broke apart, she curiously inquired, "So is there a boy you like?"

A smile crept upon Scorpius' lips, though he knew his mother would probably freak when she found out who the boy was. "Albus Potter. We're together now," he said.

His mother's eyes widened in disbelief and shock. "Wonderful," she mumbled, sighing. She certainly did not like the fact that her son was with a Potter. But she couldn't forbid Scorpius from seeing Albus; she didn't have the heart. Astoria did hope that she would be okay with all this soon; she was so worn out from being upset all the time.

The two Malfoys chatted aimlessly about other less controversial topics then finally went inside for dinner. Scorpius grew even happier, if that were even possible, when his mother said that she would try to be okay with his being gay. That was all he could ask of her.

(

Winter break went by a lot faster now that both boys were happy again. Soon, it was time to go back to school. As Scorpius arrived at Platform 9 ¾, he glanced around, searching for Albus. Finally, he saw Albus who was talking to a few Gryffindors. Grinning, he walked toward the Gryffindors and wrapped his arms around Albus' waist. "Hey," he said, breathing in Albus' sweet pine scent.

Albus, surprised by the sudden embrace, turned his head and saw Scorpius. He relaxed and smiled. Then he turned back to Tilly and Andrew who were dumb-founded, their mouths hanging open. "Oh, right, I forgot to tell you guys that we're back together. Everything is fine now."

Upset that Albus would go back to that Slytherin, Andrew narrowed his eyes at Scorpius and hissed, "You do one more thing to break his heart and I'll break your legs." He had been there when Albus was at his worst a couple of months ago so he wasn't too fond of Scorpius right now. Tilly, however, grinned. Those two made a cute couple and she couldn't wait to tell everyone.

Scorpius took Andrew's threat seriously and he nodded. "I'm sorry. I won't ever be such an arse again. At least not to Albus." He let his arms fall to his side and held hands with Albus as they made their way onto the Hogwarts Express.

Albus anxiously looked at Scorpius. "You ready for all this?"

Scorpius looked back and drew in a deep breath. "Yeah, I think I am."

"I'll be right here with you," Albus softly murmured, kissing Scorpius' cheek and gently squeezing his hand. Then those two, hands intertwined, walked on the train.

The first people to spot them were Brock Dolohov and Jay Goyle. "Scorpius? What the hell are you doing?" Brock asked in disbelief.

Scorpius turned around and walked up to his two friends. He hadn't exactly wanted to tell them he was gay this way; he had wanted to make sure they were in private. Then again, if those two hit him, at least there would be witnesses. Mustering up courage, he defiantly said, "Albus Potter is my boyfriend and if you don't like it, I'll be happy to curse both of you and anyone else who objects." He would make sure that he was still the ringleader over his friends; because he was openly gay didn't mean that he wouldn't have power anymore. However, Scorpius thought as he glanced at Brock and Jay's dumb-struck faces, I probably should have told them I was gay in a nicer, better way. To soften the blow of his bluntness, he softly said, "I hope this doesn't change anything between us." Those two were still rendered speechless so he quickly left, not wanting to make a scene, still holding Albus' hand. As the two boys looked for an empty compartment, they heard people murmur about them.

The news that Scorpius and Albus were strangely holding hands spread like wildfire and everyone had something to say about it.

"Are those two under the Imperius curse?"

"No, I think they are actually together."

"But Scorpius Malfoy sleeps with girls. He madeout with me! How is this possible?"

"What does Albus Potter see in Scorpius Malfoy?"

"I could say the same thing for Malfoy."

"Damn, why are all the cute boys gay?"

Scorpius and Albus ignored the gossip and finally found a compartment. They were soon joined by Andrew, Arabelle, Tilly, Blake, and Rose. Throughout the train ride, Andrew, Blake, and Rose slowly, but cautiously, warmed up to Scorpius once they saw how happy he made Albus. Halfway in the ride, Scorpius saw Brock and Jay stop by the compartment and stare at him. "Hold on a second," Scorpius said to everyone and made his way out. He opened the compartment door and shut it, then faced his Slytherin friends. "May I help you?" He asked them.

"You're not serious, right?" Jay was the first to speak.

"So you're a poof now? With Albus? I thought you hated him." Brock inquired, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"I don't expect either of you to understand," Scorpius said, his guard up. "And I never hated him."

"This is too weird, Scorpius. What about Olivia?" Brock asked as Jay was still slightly speechless.

Scorpius sighed and winced at the mention of her name. She would be furious, he knew that for sure. "I've never liked Olivia. She's vile."

Finally, Jay spoke up, "Olivia turned you gay?"

Scorpius slightly smirked and said, a hint of humor in his voice, "If you want to think that, sure."

Brock uncomfortably fidgeted as he mumbled, eyes on the floor, "I don't know how I feel about this."

He didn't expect his friends to be okay with him right off the bat. He knew that he would always be seen differently now that he was out, but Scorpius was okay with that. If his friends were as loyal to him as they seemed, they would eventually accept him this way. "Well, tell me when you do." Then he went back inside the compartment and sat next to Albus.

"You okay?" He asked. Everyone had listened to the exchange that had just taken place between the sixth-year Slytherins.

Scorpius turned to Al and sighed. "Was it this hard for you?"

Albus gave a small grin. "Yeah, it was. But it gets better over time." He wrapped his arm around Scorpius' waist, pulling the Slytherin closer to him.

Tilly watched those two, a silly grin upon her face, and finally asked, "Now that rumors are flying around, do I have permission to tell everyone about you two?"

Everyone laughed at how eager Tilly was to share her gossip with the whole school. Scorpius smiled and said, "Knock yourself out."

The train came to a stop about an hour later. Albus and Scorpius grabbed their trunks and walked out together. "Here we go," Scorpius said, gazing at the big castle.

"We'll be fine, I promise. As long as we have each other." Albus kissed Scorpius with the same passion he had first kissed him those many months ago; it felt like an eternity had passed between them now. They walked together toward Hogwarts, hand in hand, hearts open.

I'm sorry if this seemed rush but I'm satisfied with the ending, though it is a bit cheesy haha...but that's not always a bad thing. Anyway, thanks so much again! And final reviews would be greatly appreciated! :) Thanks for reading!