Here's part three. Sorry for the long wait.

The Summer after Fourth Year was an unforgettable time for Scorpius Malfoy. It was almost two years since his mother had died and it was also the Summer that he was finally able to visit the house of his best friend, Albus Severus Potter.

It was very strange at first, seeing his Dad being civil with Harry Potter and sharing a couple of jokes with him. Scorpius was initially worried that one of them was going to ruin things by saying something stupid. But that didn't come to pass.

In fact, as first visits go, Scorpius thought that his visit to the Potter's was going rather smoothly. He was slightly shocked by the haphazardness of the Potter's home. Their entire house was bursting with noise and spontaneity and there was always someone who was coming or going. When Scorpius had first arrived, he got a massive shock when he heard a loud bang coming from James's room, but Albus told him that it quite common.

But it wasn't the hectic, haphazard house that surprised Scorpius. Nor the banging coming from James's room or even the set of dishes that danced themselves dry after being washed. It was the fact that everybody here seemed to like him and treat him as if he were a member of their family.

Ginny Potter would constantly fuss over him, always asking him if he's okay and making sure that he gets second helpings of each meal. She reminded Scorpius a lot of his Mum and he noted that with a pang of sadness.

Scorpius liked James a lot and found him to be rather funny. James would always make Scorpius laugh with his jokes and he would spend time talking to Scorpius about Quidditch and would tell him stories about Albus when he was little. He was very easy going and would often banter a lot with Lily.

Lily would often talk Scorpius's ear off. He had never met a girl who was so chatty. She could talk about anything and she often talked to Scorpius about Care of Magical Creatures, a subject that she was excited to take. Scorpius was sure if she were left to her own devices, she could talk for hours. Harry and Ginny often had to get her away from Scorpius in order to give him some peace. Scorpius didn't mind, he quite enjoyed the attention and the company of someone who wasn't Albus for a change.

Then there was Harry Potter. When Scorpius first arrived, Harry seemed unsure of him and it was only after seeing Albus run up and hug him did Harry warm to him. Harry would often strike up a conversation with Scorpius, trying to get to know him and find out about his interests. Scorpius enjoyed his conversations with Harry. They were a lot like his conversations that he has with Albus and Scorpius was surprised at how easy it had become after the initial shock had worn away. He had spent dinner talking to Harry about Hogwarts and its secret passages. He was surprised at many shortcuts there were and he was itching to try and find them with Albus.

Yet at the back of his mind, Scorpius remembered when Harry had tried to separate Scorpius from Albus. Harry had never brought up their adventure in conversations and Scorpius was sure that he was trying to avoid it, but Scorpius half-wished that he was given an apology for the treatment that he had went through last year.

It was the evening before his last day at the Potters and the five of them were gathered in their cluttered living room drinking steaming mugs of Hot Chocolate which according to James, was a rare holiday treat before they returned to Hogwarts in a fortnight.

Scorpius carried his mug into the living room only to find that there was nowhere to sit. Lily was curled up in one of the armchairs and was reading a book about Unicorns and the other armchair was piled up with James's Quidditch gear and Ginny was sitting in the other one working on an article, her typewriter clattering away whilst Harry was sitting on the sofa between James and Albus, talking quietly to Albus.

Scorpius was pleased to see Albus finally getting along with his Dad and couldn't help but smile at the sight of Harry and Albus sitting next to each other contentedly. Albus caught Scorpius's eye and gave him a big grin, causing the rest of the Potters to notice his presence. Scorpius returned Albus's grin with a beam of his own.

James looked around at Scorpius standing in the doorway, drained his mug and leapt up.

"You can have my seat, Scorpy," He said cheerfully, beckoning Scorpius in. "Can I call you Scorpy? I've got to go and do something. Be back in a minute."

"Where are you off to?" Harry asked, looking around at James who darted to the doorway.

"My room," James said evasively sprinting out of the living room. "I'm writing to someone, friend of mine. I promised I'd write to her."

"He's writing to his girlfriend," Lily smirked, not looking up from her book.

"She's not my girlfriend," James called as he thundered up the stairs. Scorpius exchanged a look with Albus who looked away, trying not to laugh.

"She will be," Lily muttered, taking a sip of her Hot Chocolate.

Scorpius sat gingerly on the edge of the sofa next to Harry and sipped his Hot Chocolate.

"Is that hot enough, Scorpius?" Harry asked and Scorpius nodded.

"Yes, it is. Thank you," Scorpius said. "And it's very chocolaty, too. Reminds me of the ones my Mum used to make. She'd also add in marshmallows and whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles and all sorts of sweets."

"That sounds nice," Harry smiled. "I'll have to try making that one day. So, have you been enjoying your Summer?"

"Yes, it's been fun," Scorpius said. "Thank you for inviting me to stay here. I've really enjoyed it. I've always been lonely in the Summer and writing letters isn't the same as meeting someone in person."

"I know what you mean," Harry nodded. "I always used to hate the Summer holidays."

"We've been happy to have you with us, Scorpius," Ginny said, looking up from her typewriter.

"That's right," Harry nodded. "You'll be welcome to come around again. So, are looking forward to going back to Hogwarts?"

"I am." Scorpius nodded. "I've always enjoyed going to Hogwarts, despite the difficulties and I'm looking forward to Fifth Year. It's OWL year. I can't believe we're going to be Fifth years already. Time flies!"

Scorpius suddenly realised what he had just said and panic and embarrassment flooded him as Harry gave him a curious look.

"Well what I mean is that it goes by very quickly," Scorpius said hastily. "Time flies. It's a funny expression, isn't it? My Mum used to use that quite a lot and I tend to quote her without even realising it."

"It would be nice to return to Hogwarts," Albus said, hastily drawing Harry's attention to him.

"I thought you hated it there." Harry frowned and Albus shrugged.

"I dunno," He said slowly. "I think that in a way, it's kind of grown on me."

"That's good to hear, Albus," Harry said, patting Albus on the back. "You deserve to have a good year for once."

"Yes, Hogwarts is amazing," Scorpius said enthusiastically. "I love the Castle. It's steeped in so much history that my geekiness is always a quivering. I can't wait to find the secret passageways. It would be so great to explore them all. Did you know that I used to play Hogwarts when I was growing up? I used to run about the Manor dressed in my Dad's old school robes pretending to ward off Dementors. Well, I used to call them 'Demenders', but I was Six."

He stuck his chin out defiantly as Albus gave him a funny look. Lily caught Ginny's eye and started giggling behind her hand. Harry gave Scorpius a knowing smile and Scorpius felt a fresh wave of embarrassment wash over him.

"Well, what I mean is that I've read all about you," He stammered, putting his mug down on the coffee table.

"I know," Harry said with a smile. "You mentioned that when you had sent that letter to me,"

Thud. Lily's book slid onto the floor and she jerked her head up in interest, a big grin on her face.

"A letter?" Albus and Lily asked, Albus looking bemused, Lily ecstatic whilst Ginny looked up from her work and shot Scorpius a soft smile.

"What's that about a letter?" James asked, appearing in the doorway of the Living room.

"Scorpius had written a short letter to me when he was six," Harry said. "Thanking me for defeating Voldemort."

Lily let out a squeal of delight.

"Oooh, Scorpius! Did you really? That sounds sooo sweet!" She exclaimed. "Have you still got it, Dad? I would love to see it."

"I think I'd like to see it as well," Albus muttered, shooting Scorpius a questioning look.

"Yeah, come on, Dad," James grinned. "I'd like to see what young Scorpius sent you. Show us the evidence."

"I get quite a lot of letters," Harry continued, getting up and stretching. "Some good, some not so good and I can't keep them all. But I've always kept yours, Scorpius."

Harry made his way to the cluttered desk in the corner. Scorpius liked that desk as it had a couple of photos of Albus when he was little. Scorpius's favourite photo was of James, Albus and Lily sitting side by side, grinning and waving up at the camera. Albus looked so happy in that photo. Harry opened one of the drawers and dug around for a moment before taking out a yellowing piece of parchment.

"Let me see that," Albus said, placing his mug next to Scorpius's, jumping to his feet and taking the piece of parchment from Harry's hand and unfolded it. Harry sat down in his rickety desk chair as James quickly darted and took Albus's empty seat on the sofa.

Trepidation filled Scorpius as Albus opened the letter. He took one look at the piece of parchment and snorted.

"What does it say?" Lily asked eagerly.

"Dear Harry Potter," Albus read, a grin appearing across his face.

"Thank you for defeating Voldemort and saving my Daddy's life so he could meet my Mummy and they could get married and have me."

"I was six, Albus," Scorpius said quietly as Lily cooed with delight and James snickered behind his hand. Albus looked up at Scorpius with a wry grin, his brilliant green eyes alight with mischief.

"You are my favourite hero and I have read all about you and when I grow up, I want to be just like you. "Albus's grin got wider and Scorpius felt as if his whole face were on fire. He was certain that he was going to die of embarrassment at this very moment.

"I was Six," He moaned, briefly placing his head in his hands. When he looked up, Lily looked as if she were trying contain her excitement whilst James was still snickering behind his hand. Scorpius caught his eye and James grinned at him apologetically. James was obviously laughing at the dry tone that Albus was reading in.

"Yours Sincerely, Scorpius Malfoy, aged 6" Albus looked up from the note again with a cheeky grin on his face and his eyes saying it all. Scorpius felt as if his cheeks were on fire

"Ooohhh, Scorpius that was soooo adorable!" Lily exclaimed, unable to contain her excitement any longer and she jumped from her armchair in delight.

"Aww. Wasn't he the cutest?" James grinned as he ruffled Scorpius's hair. Scorpius ducked away shyly, his face bright red. "Oh look, he's gone all red now."

Lily burst into a fit of giggles at the sight of Scorpius's red face.

"You wanted to be just like my Dad?" Albus smirked, looking at him significantly and Scorpius knew what was on Albus's mind; Scorpius had drunk Polyjuice potion last year and had assumed Harry's appearance. Scorpius's insides squirmed at the very memory and he wished that the whole ground would swallow him. "That's weird."

"I was six!" Scorpius squeaked, surprised that he found his voice.

"You once sent a letter to Gonçalo Flores, Albus," Ginny said, looking at Albus significantly whose grin faded and was replaced with a scowl. "And if I remember correctly, you were quite excited to meet him as well."

"And James and Lily were both excited to meet Viktor Krum at the World Cup in Brazil," Harry added.

"Oh yeah!" James exclaimed. "I forgot about that. I didn't send a letter to him though telling him that he was my favourite Quidditch player." He shot Scorpius a cheeky grin and Scorpius groaned, praying that this torture would be over soon.

"No, you told him that yourself," Harry muttered and Lily giggled.

"Your letter put a smile on our faces that day, Scorpius," Ginny said, smiling warmly at Scorpius. "We're very glad that you send it."

"Thank you," Scorpius said shyly. "I wanted to send an even longer letter. But my Mum told me short and sweet would do the treat. It was my Mum's idea that I write a letter thanking you, by the way. She used to sing 'manners, they go a long way!' Or something like that. Bad idea, sorry."

Scorpius ducked his head shyly, his face as red as a tomato as James, Albus and Lily burst out laughing.

"That's very good, Scorpius," Ginny beamed.

"And that was a nice letter," Harry said. "It has to be my favourite. I've never apologised to you for what I put you through last year, did I?"

The atmosphere in the living room changed considerably. The grin from Lily's face vanished and she sank back down in her armchair. The clattering of Ginny's typewriter stopped and she looked up, watching Harry carefully. James became uncharacteristically quiet and he looked between Harry and Scorpius. Albus sat down next to Scorpius and put a protective arm around his shoulders.

"No, I don't think you did," Scorpius said quietly. "But I know you've been busy. With Delphi's trial and the other things, you've been doing. I'm just glad she's finally locked up in Azkaban."

"Well, let me say to you that I'm sorry, Scorpius," Harry said, running a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry for putting you through all that pain last year. I'm sorry to both of you for separating the pair of you." Harry continued, looking Scorpius right in the eye. "Your Dad was right; I see it now, how the pair of you shine together. Something that I should've seen from the start. You don't deserve the rumours. Voldemort could never have fathered someone so kind as you, so full of love. I was a fool to have listened to Bane. I was blinded by panic, blinded by love that I didn't stop and think. You're definitely not a black cloud, Scorpius."

"You're a ray of sunshine," Lily said simply.

"Thank you, Lily," Harry smiled at her before turning back to Scorpius. "You're not a black cloud, Scorpius. You are a brilliant wizard and I think that you will go far in whatever you decide to do, and I'm sorry for letting you down. I know how much you've looked up to me and I hope we can move past this."

Silence followed Harry's speech and Scorpius felt a mix of emotions swirling through him slightly overwhelming him. Tears picked the corner of his eyes and Albus gently squeezed his shoulder.

"I forgive you," Scorpius sniffled, wiping the back of his hand across his face. "We all make mistakes. I know I've made a fair few myself and I know that you would do anything to protect your family. I can't blame you for that. But thank you for apologising to me. That means a lot."

Scorpius stood up, causing Albus to unwrap his arm from Scorpius's shoulder and Scorpius moved forward to Harry, extending his hand out. Harry stood and shook Scorpius's hand, a warm smile on his face.

Scorpius felt a large amount of relief that he finally received an apology and an odd feeling swept over him; it was as if by shaking hands, he and Harry had signed some sort of magical pact that enabled them to move past from their previous troubles.

The very thought of that sent tingles up Scorpius's spine. At that moment, he felt giddy with relief and he suddenly realised that it was Harry Potter who he was shaking hands with.

"I always wanted to be like you," Scorpius said, letting go of Harry's hand. "Go on adventures like you did with Ron and Hermione. Last year I got that wish, but after I got stuck in that timeline were Voldemort won, I began to appreciate you in a new light. It was complete hell in that timeline. I wouldn't have reversed it if it weren't for the help of Snape. I couldn't have done what you've done every year and it was getting slightly annoying last year when everybody was asking us questions. They seemed to think what we did was rather cool."

"Doing stuff like that always sounds cooler than it actually is," Harry said wisely, sitting back down. "I've been telling people that for years."

"I thought that that story of you and Uncle Ron flying that car to Hogwarts was cool," James grinned cheekily, looking relieved now that there was no more tension in the air. "I wouldn't mind trying it myself."

"You'd be regretting it when you'll be in detention," Harry said darkly. "We were lucky to not be expelled."

"That Howler that your Gran sent to Ron was quite funny," Ginny said with a smile. "The look on his face was priceless."

James looked at his mother and Scorpius saw it dawn on him what Ginny was implying. The grin vanished from his face and Scorpius exchanged a grin with Albus whilst Lily was giggling at James's expression.

"We've always been thankful to you for being such a good friend to Albus," Ginny said firmly looking at Scorpius.

"We have," Harry nodded. "And I'm sorry for not showing it."

Harry caught Albus's eye and the two of them looked at each other for a moment and something unspoken seemed to pass between them. Albus smiled and nodded.

"Thanks, Dad," He said quietly and Harry beamed at him.

"Well look at the time," He said, as he glanced at his battered watch. "You boys should finish your Hot Chocolates otherwise it'll be midnight before you settle down."

Scorpius glanced down at his mug of Hot Chocolate on the coffee table and took a sip, his mind whirring around as he finished his Hot Chocolate.

When he was getting ready for bed, Scorpius kept replaying his conversation with Harry. The embarrassment of having his letter read out to him by Albus had worn off and looking back, Scorpius noted that none of the Potters were really laughing at him. They were laughing at the dry tone that Albus was reading the letter in. Scorpius allowed himself to smile, remembering the way Albus's green eyes lit up when he read the short letter and how wide his grin was.

Scorpius always loved making Albus laugh and Albus had laughed a lot during Scorpius's stay at the Potters. Scorpius was quite surprised that his letter had come up. He had forgotten about writing that letter years ago.

Scorpius had just finished brushing his teeth and he made his way into Albus's room and made a beeline for the camp bed that was set up next to Albus's bed. Albus was pulling on his pyjamas when Scorpius entered the room and he looked round at Scorpius who was in no mood to be teased again.

"Shut up, Albus," Scorpius groaned and he pulled back the covers of his camp bed. Albus raised an eyebrow at him.

"I didn't say anything," He said. "I was just looking at you."

"You had that dry, Albus-y look in your eye," Scorpius said. "I just know that you're going to say something about me writing to your Dad when I was little. I was Six, okay? I used to love reading about your Dad, dressing up as him and going on adventures. My own Dad had just told me that he was a Death Eater when he was our age and that Harry Potter had saved his life. I just wanted to thank your Dad."

"Scorpius, I'm not going to tease you," Albus said calmly. "I thought the letter was, well… Sweet."

"Sweet?" Scorpius squeaked, his face going red again. He stared at Albus who went red as well.

"Yeah," Albus said hesitantly, looking Scorpius in the eye, his cheeks flushing a dark red. "I thought it was very sweet, very you. It was open and honest and it reminded me bit of you when you were eleven. You were so innocent back then, and I can imagine that you were even more innocent when you were six."

Scorpius felt his cheeks turning even redder and he ducked his head shyly.

"That's a nice thing to say," Scorpius mumbled. "I thought you looked quite sweet in that photo on your Dad's desk. And you looked so happy as well. In fact, you've looked very happy over the past week. It's a nice change."

"I think having my best friend coming to stay with me for a week and having my Dad accept him is enough to make anyone happy," Albus smiled at Scorpius and Scorpius beamed back.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence before Scorpius spoke again.

"He wrote back to me, you know," He said.

"Did he?" Albus asked, frowning slightly and Scorpius nodded.

"You should've seen me when I received it. I couldn't stop jumping up and down." Scorpius said.

Albus snorted and grinned.

"I didn't expect to get a reply. He didn't have to write back to me," Scorpius continued. "My Dad told me that he didn't get on with your Dad and I thought that he would ignore me, but he didn't. I've still got his letter safe in my room. It was very nice of him. I'll have to show it to you one day."

"That's really nice of him," Albus said quietly. "My Mum told me the other week that the best bits of Harry Potter are heroic in really quiet ways. Something that I'm beginning to see more and more. I'm glad he wrote back to you. You deserved it."

Albus wrapped his arms around Scorpius in a hug, taking him by surprise.

"Oh, hello," Scorpius mumbled, clumsily wrapping his arms around Albus. "We do this now, the hugging. Don't we? It's the new version of us. I'm still getting used to it."

Albus laughed softly and they continued to hug for a moment before Albus pulled back and looked at Scorpius affectionately, a soft smile on his face.

"I wouldn't have sent a letter to your Dad if my Dad hadn't told me about his past as a Death Eater," Scorpius thoughtfully.

"I'm glad you wrote to him," Albus said softly. "And I'm glad he's apologised to you for what he put you through last year."

"That was rather nice of him, wasn't it?" Scorpius said. "I know he's different from what I've read about him, but I admire him more because he tries. I always used to think of him as this hero unafraid of everything."

"So, did I," Albus muttered. "But he's not. He gets scared like the rest of us. He showed me that last year."

"I saw that too," Scorpius said quietly. "When we saw Voldemort murder your Grandparents, he fell to pieces. It made me realise then, that despite all the books painting him as a hero, he's just a person, like the rest of us. Like my Dad. When I was Six, I used to think that my he could do no wrong and then I found out that he was a Death Eater. But he told me that he was forced into it. A bit like your Dad, really."

"He's been trying quite hard to fix things between us," Albus said. "And I'm glad he's apologised to you. We can finally move past this and get on with our lives."

Scorpius nodded and the two of them got into their beds. Scorpius's mind was still spinning and between that and Albus's snores, he wasn't sure if he would get to sleep. Yet the knowledge that Harry Potter had accepted him as Albus's friend, had written back to him when he was six relaxed him.

For the first time since his mother's death and the business with the Time-Turner, Scorpius felt content. This visit to the Potters went far better than expected and he dreamt of running around the Manor dressed in an oversized robe, holding a toy wand in one hand and some round glasses to his face in the other hand and his Mother's voice ringing in his ears.

"Thank you for saving us, Harry Potter!"

This story was originally meant to be three seperate one-shots with a connecting theme, but I decided to combine them into one story.

Thank you for reading.