Edmund opens his door, yawning a bit, and - stares at Scorpius for a long moment.

His mouth opens a couple of times, but he doesn't quite say anything.

"Hi! Wanna go on a breakfast date with me? Fine if not but fair warning I'm going to eat all of this by myself if you don't, I'm still a teenage boy in need of calories."

Edmund squints a little harder, then smiles, still nonzero confused but able at least to start flirting. "Um. I don't know, date to where? I'm not easily impressed, you know, and you took your other boyfriend on a supply run."

—Scorpius has to watch his trays to not drop them while he cackles. "I think you got it wrong, he was the one who dragged me on a supply run. Also if you call him my boyfriend in his presence he might come personally kill me for giving people ideas even though it is entirely his fault. As for your question, library reading room is fairly cozy at this time in the morning."

"I'll take it, give me a second to freshen up. Do you... need help... with the maleficer who you are apparently not dating and in fact might kill you."

Edmund heads back into his room and gets another potion off his bedside table (it's chock-a-block with bottles), and droppers a tiny amount on his tongue. Then he goes back out, ready for... a library date?

"He's not a maleficer," Scorpius says with a small shrug, "and that was a joke. If it looks like he killed me I give you 80/20 odds that it was actually someone else trying to get rid of me and incriminate him in one fell swoop."

Librarywards! Which is all the way to the top floor so he's gonna have to be careful with the trays.

Edmund takes his own tray, entertaining though it might be to watch Lake learn to juggle.

"...if he's not a maleficer why's he... like that? Always glaring at people, not even eating half the time - I know lack of appetite's a symptom of maleficing - and I've seen him do magic that made my skin crawl... never at people, but - who pulls a spell that flays something, even if they're only going to use it on a suckerworm?"

"...I am not sure I should say, he seems to prefer not to be looked at. I guess what I can say is that he is strict mana and has as far as I can tell always been."

Edmund looks so dubious.

"...I can't... dispute that... because I have never actually seen him draw mana. But - I don't know. Maybe I'm paranoid."

"Everyone is, around him. It's tragic, I'm pretty sure he has not had a real conversation with anyone ever in his life because of how everyone wants to stay away from his aura of doom." Headshake. "Let's not talk about other boys right now, how about. How are you doing?"

"Um. Surprisingly well considering, like, where we are. I slept better last night than the night previous for obvious reasons and that always wipes me out a bit. Peter gave me a celebratory cupcake yesterday and I very nearly hit him over it. ...I should call a family meeting sometime before graduation, I've been trying to avoid the thought but... it's coming, isn't it."

"Family meeting, is that a thing?" he wonders. "What was Peter celebrating?"

"The supposed loss of my bloody virginity, thanks ever so by the way."

Scorpius has to once again watch his balance lest he drop his tray due to the cackling. Here's the library, fewer stairs now. "I think you should only thank me once it's actually true. Wouldn't want to jinx it."

"But on that occasion I will not receive an incredibly embarrassing cupcake. Unless it's from Susan, who probably would work it out, damn her to hell."

He shudders a bit as he finds an empty sofa for them. The library isn't completely empty right now but it is in fact very nearly so. He places his own tray on the little centerpiece table in front of the sofa and leans back to grin at Edmund. "She absolutely would, I swear we have had a million conversations just by exchanging looks without either of us saying even a word."

"You never had to live with her. I stole an earring out of her jewelry box when I was six and she was seven and on a trip outside the enclave, and inside half an hour of getting back she'd identified the culprit and practically called a tribunal over it."

Edmund starts in on breakfast. "I cannot believe you found fried mushrooms," he says. "Apparently even this blessed place can't fuck up an English breakfast."

"I did have to convince a senior or two to grab me the stuff," he admits. "But I got some goodwill stored up." Scorpius, too, starts on breakfast, as even though this is a "date" they still do in fact have their classes to get to in an hourish so they shouldn't waste more time than necessary.

"I hope one of them wasn't my brother. He's confused enough without you suddenly accepting people's goodwill."

"It's fine if it's, you know, a little bit of the collective amalgamate of goodwill from all persons," he says, long-sufferingly.

...he should not ask what he wants to ask. He shouldn't, right? He should not. Getting attached is a stupid idea and he has always managed to be fine and not ask anyone any personal questions and they don't ask him any personal questions and their attachment is ephemeral and goes away after a fling or two.

He is, perhaps, staring a bit at Edmund right now, looking at him like he's somewhere between delicious cake and a very tricky but interesting puzzle.

"I don't actually read minds, you know. Despite the occasional hint my wall has dropped me."

He chews on his bottom lip for a couple more seconds and says, "Just ruminating on life, is all. Wouldn't want to dump all of my trauma on you on our first date."

"Because I, of course, have been perfectly stoic and revealed none of my trauma to you on our actual first date."

"Stop being so charming," he snaps with no heat. "You're making it really hard to resist you."

"I do like being irresistible. Seriously, Lake, come on. I'll tell you my secrets too, if you'd like. Reception year in primary school we had to talk about our life ambitions, and I said I was going to marry my big brother because he was the best nicest boy in the world, and the teacher gave me a note to take home to my parents."