Rose Weasley had never understood the concept of happy tears. Which said something, seeing as her mother and both her grandmothers were quite prone to the prospect. Why, her dad had told her, several times, in fact, as he rather liked to tease her mother, that when he had proposed to her, she'd started to cry. The he had a good laugh about it. But then, Hermione would chip in with the fact that Ron thought he'd done something wrong and had started frantically apologizing. Then her dad's ears would burn red, and Hermione would have her turn at laughter. Next, they'd both burst out laughing. Only, after a few minutes, the both of them would abruptly stop and gaze into each other's eyes until Rose, and Hugo, if he was in the room too, felt so awkward that they left. Rose dubbed this her parents' way of letting their children know that they needed couple time.
They both claimed that she was like her Aunt Ginny in this way, never crying, for Ginny was almost never seen in tears. Rose had always thought of Ginny as her favorite aunt – she and Uncle Harry were her godparents, after all. So that was all well and fine. But thinking about Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry and her parents only made angry, thrashing knots form in her stomach. Thinking about any sort of couple or coupley happiness right now did that to her. So instead she went outside, climbed onto the roof of her parents' house, away from all the love, but still close enough to it so that if she suddenly wanted it she could get it easily, bent her knees, pulled them up to her chest, and sat in the darkness of the falling night.
She let out a breath, her curly, fiery red bangs falling into her eyes. Her shoulders heaved with silent sobs, but her blue eyes remained curiously dry. Happy tears she knew nothing about, but disappointed tears she was all too familiar with. Her tears, as they nearly always were, were cause of her nearly year-long boyfriend, Scorpius Malfoy. For the tenth time since it had happened, totally unbidden, the scene flashed through her mind again.
He tucked a stray curl behind her ear. "You'll see, Rose." He told her, his very intimate-sounding voice sending pleasant shivers down her spine. "Grandmother and Grandfather will come around."
Rose nodded, though she was entirely unconvinced, but also entirely unwilling to burst her boyfriend's bubble. "If you say so, Scorpius." She said instead, linking their fingers.
That smile he reserved only for her met her eyes again, and she scooted closer to him on his queen bed. The Malfoys were rich; regardless of any part they had played in the war, the Greengrasses had their fair share of good fortune, and Scorpius and his parents were very well off. As such, Scorpius' room was rather large, with a rather large bed in it. So far, Rose had been doing her dammedest to refrain from snogging him on his big, queen bed. It wasn't like it hadn't been done before, but never with his grandparents in the house. Rose could only imagine what they thought about her. Even if every time she brought up the subject Scorpius quickly shushed her, it still, like some irritating, bothersome, pesky mosquito, bothered her.
He placed a kiss at the crown of her forehead, and she felt his smile. Looking up to meet his gray-blue eyes was her first mistake. Her second followed in quick succession when her other hand wandered up to play with the smart collar of his shirt. Her third was giving in to the impulsive to kiss his cheek. Somehow, on the way to his cheek, its course had been altered to the corner of his mouth. Scorpius, always quick on the uptake, had turned his head. So, what had been intended to be an innocent cheek kiss quickly turned into a snog session. Within minutes he had her underneath him, pinning her deliciously to the bed, and his tongue was in her mouth.
Neither of them had ever seen it coming.
Quite out of the blue, his bedroom door had slammed open, banging rather loudly against the wall, they'd knocked heads, and Scorpius had fallen off the bed and onto the floor. Despite herself, Rose giggled when he fell. She caught his gaze, annoyed, though it was only a mask for his amusement, before he grabbed her unsuspecting hand and pulled her down with him. Rose 'oofed', but was pleased to have landed on top of him, seeing as that guaranteed he would feel a bit more pain. That's what he got for not locking his door. Yet, her eyes met his again, and they were just on the verge of making out again – literally, their mouths had been inches apart, when Narcissa Malfoy cleared her throat loudly.
"Scorpius," she spoke in a drawling, unfeeling tone, rebuke hidden, yet very plain, in her carefully-selected words. "you should be ashamed of yourself. That girl is a half-blood! And not only that, you let her make you fall from grace and you let yourself act like such a child!" She spat the last word, and Rose was rather stunned to find that she the word 'child' now sounded like a cuss word.
She glanced at her boyfriend, and his gray-blue eyes were narrowed, his brow furrowed. "Grandmother…" He began with a deep sigh, but she cut him off again.
"Don't you talk back to me, young man. You are a Malfoy, and you will act as one – with pride in your pure blood heritage. We're one of the only few left, you know. The Blacks, the Lestranges, even the Weasleys… they're all gone." Her cold, icy blue eyes narrowed even further. "Now get up, dust yourself off, and try to remain what little of your dignity you haven't yet compromised." Then she stood there, glaring, as if waiting for them to do something. When the young couple did nothing, except stare, dumbfounded, Rose felt the room fill with her sudden anger. Just last month Rose had attended Lucius Malfoy's funeral, and she knew Narcissa had to be hurting from that, but she'd never treated her with any distaste before. In fact, she'd heard, both in person and from Scorpius, that Narcissa had defended her to Lucius, so why, now, did she appear to loathe her?
Narcissa sneered. "I said get up, boy!" And with a nasty flick of her wand, Scorpius flew to his feet, knocking Rose roughly to the ground in the process.
"Grandmother, what is the meaning of this?" Scorpius demanded suddenly, kneeling to help Rose to her feet.
But this only angered Narcissa further. "Scorpius, I will not tolerate such disrespect!" With another flick of her wand, a deep gash appeared in his back, and blood stained his striped shirt.
Rose's eyes widened. "Mrs. Malfoy, stop!"
That had been a very wrong thing to say. For the blonde woman's sneer only deepened. "How dare you speak to me, you filthy half-breed." Though her voice radiated quiet dignity, Rose had never felt more insulted in her life.
"Mrs. Malfoy…"
But Rose's quiet protest was drowned out by Narcissa's words, casting the same spell she'd just used on Scorpius on Rose. Rose shuddered as she felt the gash form across her back. She had no time to react further, as Mrs. Malfoy abruptly pulled her up by her collar, and literally dragged her across his room, out the door, through the hard wood hallway and living room, and quite literally threw her into the fire place. Rose's next thought was she had such strength for such a frail-looking witch. She saw Narcissa grab some floo powder, and throw it into the fir place. But her next words died on her lips.
Scorpius came pounding into the room, valiantly ignoring the wound in his back. "Rose! Grandmother!" He shouted, seemingly frozen in shock.
Narcissa turned her sneer back on Rose. "Filthy half-breed. My grandson is finally done associating with you. He's broken up with you. Never speak to him again – you are far below him. Good day." And in that cold, wintry, merciless tone she'd just used, she said her parents' house, and Rose spun out of sight. Her last vision was of Scorpius' wide eyes, his mouth open in shock.
Fortunately, her parents hadn't been home when she'd arrived, literally flying out of the fireplace and scattering ash everywhere. With difficulty, Rose had performed a healing charm on herself, having to estimate where the scar would form. While she couldn't get rid of the pain with that particular spell, it would make certain that not scarring would be left the sooner it was performed.
Despite herself, her heart went out to Scorpius. She didn't want his perfectly smooth, unmarred back tainted by his grandmother's old hate. Taking out her wand, she performed the wrist movements, flawlessly, in thin air. She planned on healing the scar the moment she saw him.
Logically, Rose knew Scorpius had never broken up with her. Logically, she also knew that he valued his family highly, and had had it instilled in him from an early age that one of his main goals in life was to impress his grandparents. In reality, there were still together. In reality, Narcissa had certainly changed things between them. For better or for worse, and just how much of an effect it would had, Rose didn't know. And while, at first, she had managed to keep the wondering and the negativity at bay, she was tired. She let it consume her.
In her mind's eye, she saw Scorpius breaking up with her and marrying pretty Amelia Nott – one of the only other pure blood families left. She saw his grandmother smiling merrily, his parents pleased, and she saw him content, running around looking after dark-haired children with his eyes. And so the careful barrier she'd constructed around her heart in the past three hours shook a little more.
Her shoulders quaked under the added pressure from her racing mind. It just wasn't fair! No one else had this to deal with! Not her parents, not Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny, not Teddy and Victoire – it just wasn't fair!
It suddenly occurred to Rose, as her clenched fists came down hard on the roof, that she was behaving like a child. However, as no one could see her, she found she didn't care.
Until she company.
"Rose?"
She groaned. "Go away, Hugo!"
The siblings, Hugo with his straight, brown hair and chocolate eyes, and Rose with her curly, orange hair and bright sky eyes, stared at one another for a moment.
And then Rose sniffled.
Hugo crawled across the roof toward her, just sitting with her for a long time until he spoke.
"What happened?"
She seriously debated not telling him. After all, he would tell Mum and Dad, and she had made up her mind about not telling them. But he was her little brother, and she was seeking some serious reassurance right now. Instead, she told him a part of the truth. "Scorpius' grandmother doesn't want us to be together."
Hugo snorted, and Rose glared at him. "Please, Rose. Dur."
She only stared at him, the tears leaving the corners of her eyes. "What are you on about?"
"I mean, it's only obvious." He told her, and she was struck by how much he sounded like their mother. "Of course she wouldn't want you two to be together. But fuck her."
Rose let out a bubbly laugh.
"But what are you crying for? Mum and Dad had an entire war testing their love; they didn't know if they'd even be alive to share the next day together! You're sitting here, sniveling like a child, crying, when I bet you Mum never cried once!" He scoffed, tossing his head. "And all you have in your way is one bigoted, grouchy old bird."
Rose felt the tips of her ears burn. He was right.
Hugo nodded at her, apparently feeling as if he'd made his point. "Now, then, you have a visitor."
"Albus!" Rose exclaimed as he plopped into place beside her, occupying Hugo's former spot.
"Rosie, what are you doing?" He questioned, frowning at his cousin.
"Being a child." She told him with a sham of a smile.
But he only frowned at her further. "You're allowed to cry, Rose. I'm sure it's hard for you. It can't be easy falling for a Slytherin."
Though Albus was perfectly serious, Rose snorted lightly. "Al, you know he's not like his grandparents."
Al sighed. "I know he's not, Rose. He's my best mate, remember? But when you gave him your heart, you should've anticipated you'd have to deal with this sooner or later. You, who are always so good at anticipating the future, you just mess up so badly with Scorp. It's like he blocks you inner eye."
Both the cousins burst into laughter at his joke about divination – they both loathed the subject, though they'd each shown some proficiency for it. "But Al, look." She lifted her shirt.
His green eyes widened, however, quite unlike his brother James would've done, he didn't yell. He merely nodded. "Good charm work, Rose."
She shrugged, wincing when it stung just a bit. "Scorpius's got one, too."
Al frowned. "That old witch is batty."
Rose nodded seriously. "I just so want this to work out, Al."
He touched her hand. "It will, Rosie, it will. You and Scorp… Merlin, the way he looks at you; it's like he's never seen the sun before."
Rose's cheeks warmed considerably. "He tastes like butterbeer." She told him quietly, her mind in a far off place, a distant memory.
Albus playfully wrinkled his nose. "Rose, he's my best mate; I don't want to know what he tastes like."
Rose laughed, hugging her cousin. "Thanks, Al."
"Anytime, Rosie."
They sat in silence for a few moments before, allowing time for Rose's eyes to dry completely, before she spoke again. "Do I have another visitor?"
"Oh, yeah, but it's just James. And you know how much of a git he can be – especially when it comes to Scorp. I just sent him back home." Al waved his hand dismissingly.
"Oh."
He raised a brow at her. "Were you expecting someone else?"
Rose blushed a little. "I don't know, yeah, I was. He usually has such a good sense about these things; I thought he'd be here."
Al nodded. "Oh, yeah, Scorp was here. But I sent him away, too." He reported, seemingly unconcerned.
Rose only stared at him, not a little put out. "Why did you send my boyfriend away, Albus Severus?"
"Because, Rose Hermione," he answered promptly, abruptly all business, "I needed to say this to you, and if he ever knew I had told you, he'd skin me alive."
Now Rose was really interested. However, when he didn't speak, she prompted him with his name that sounded more like a whine than a mere word.
"Rose, he can't be doing the fighting all the time! You've got to get off your arse once in a while, and go show off that famous Gryffindor courage!"
Rose could only stare, but Albus was perfectly serious. "You're right; I've been awful. I'm such a damsel in distress!" She buried her face in her hands.
Al spazzed and scooted over to her. "Rose, Rose, Rosie, come on now…" And he pulled her hands away from her face to find her grinning at him.
"You and Scorpius always fall for it."
"It's 'cause we love you too much." He stuck his tongue out at her.
Rose forced herself not to ask about the word. He hadn't even mentioned it yet; it was surely only a figure of speech. "Fine, I'll go. But you're telling everyone where I went. I'm not getting caught in that maelstrom."
He nodded. "Fair enough."
Rose climbed off the roof, waving off her parents' concern and mumbling something about Albus. Determinedly walking into the fireplace, she caught some floo powder in her hand, threw it into the fire place, stepped into the swirling green flames, and announced her destination. Her last view was of Albus giving her a reassuring nod.
She stepped out of the fire place shakily, suddenly very nervous. Sweeping the dust back into the fireplace with her wand, she padded quietly into the kitchen. Nobody was in there. She ducked her head around the corner, but nobody was in the living room either. Frowning, trying with all her might to be as quiet as a mouse, she finally heard voices coming from Scorpius' room. He and his parents seemed to be in there.
Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the mostly closed door. She felt the Malfoys freeze. Gathering her courage, hating her voice for not sounding more confident, she called, "Hello?"
Astoria opened the door in a flurry, pulling Rose into her arms. "Rose, sweetie! Are you alright?" She hugged the girl tightly, releasing her and scrutinizing her face. "Darling, you've been crying? What's the trouble?"
Rose, though she wondered if she was being rude, bit her lip when she could not find the words.
Draco, all business, rose off of his son's bed and snaked his arm around Astoria's shoulders. "Come, love, let's leave them alone."
Some part of Rose was struck by the affection Astoria had shown her, and by the endearment she'd never heard Draco use, but the much larger part of her had only eyes for Scorpius, whose eyes were fixed quite sternly on her face. But he didn't move.
Gathering her Gryffindor Courage, she took a step toward him. "Scorp?"
But he didn't speak; instead, he scooted over and made room for her under the covers. Instead, she sat on his bedspread. She didn't miss his answering frown.
"Scorpius?"
Still he said nothing.
Rose lost her considerably short temper. "Scorpius Malfoy!" She shouted, and, in her frenzy to elicit a response out of him, kissed him full on the mouth. His hands immediately weaved themselves into her hair, but, as if suddenly burned, he pulled away and faced away from her.
Rose now felt something was seriously wrong. "Scorpius!" She shouted again, taking his hand. While he didn't take it back, nor did he intertwine their fingers – and she had trouble remembering an instance when he didn't. So she dropped his hand, folding both of hers together in her lap stiffly. Her thoughts were really running wild now. Albus had been wrong… But still, she had to know.
"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy!" She called in the most intimidating tone she could manage, and finally he met her eyes.
"God, Rose, I'm right here."
She frowned, not caring that her brain didn't give the okay for her mouth to speak. "But for how much longer?" She asked quietly. Now she was the one not meeting his gaze.
His hand wrapped around her cheek, and he forced her face to his. They shared a passionate kiss, her tears leaking into it. Scorpius made a sound of frustration. Suddenly leaping out from the covers, he kissed her with still more passion and pressed her body flush against his. After proceeding to take her breath away, he broke up apart and rested his forehead on hers. "It probably isn't a healthy addiction for me – kissing you. But you just look so damn adorable in all your vulnerability. The kind only I ever see." He offered her a smirk.
"Scorp, I'm confused." She said finally, one hand playing with this collar.
He took a deep breath. "I see I'm going to have to save the day here."
"You usually do anyway." She quipped, but her smile did not reach her eyes.
"Rose, I was afraid you'd break up with me because of Grandmother. She wasn't always this bad, surely you remember. But after Grandfather's death, she's gotten worse. It's like she feels like she has to be extra horrible to make up for him. …" He sighed heavily. "I don't understand it either."
She looked down again, but now both his hands forced her face to turn toward his.
"Rose, that means bollocks! You're smarter than this, come now. You now that, certainly, no matter how much I prize my family's opinion, none of them can make me give you," he kissed her a third time, "give this up."
Rose bit her lip. "You're right. I should know that. But you know how I get."
He made that frustrated growling sound again. "Yes, I know. For some reason I find it irresistible."
She smiled at him. "No one in my family could make me give you up, either."
Their foreheads touched again. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Steeling himself, he murmured something about borrowing some Gryffindor courage, and then spoke. "I love you, Rose."
Her heart stopped. A wide grin blossomed on her lips and she impulsively kissed him. "I love you too, Scorpius."
To Rose's astonishment, she felt tears pool in her eyes. She blinked them away.
He gave her a questioning look.
"Happy tears." She told him, laughing quietly at her silliness.
"I thought you weren't the kind of bird to make happy tears." He said with a pleased smirk.
"And I thought you weren't the kind of guy to go for long-winded sentences about how you feel."
"Touché."
Suddenly, it didn't even matter that his grandmother didn't approve, or that James still rode her for dating a Slytherin. All that mattered was that they were in love, it was Christmas break of their seventh year, and they were going to make the most of it.
Impulsively, she lifted his shirt from over his head and commanded him to turn around.
He raised a brow at her, grinning.
"Shut up." She muttered, blushing faintly. "I'm healing you."
Tracing her way down his back, purposely teasing him, she finally settled just above the long gash. Frowning, she traced it once with her hand. It had been healed, but she was certain it would scar, and she couldn't have that. Concentrating, pouring her love into her spell work, she performed the charm on it. When she next opened her eyes, it was gone. Totally and completely gone.
Scorpius turned back around and caught the wide grin on her face. "I did it." She told him. He smiled back at her, and Rose watched as it turned into a smirk.
"My turn." Said Scorpius, lifting up the back of her shirt and placing his hands there.
Rose waited, valiantly trying to ignore the pleasant goose bumps his touch was giving her. "Aren't you supposed to be healing my scar?"
"Is that what I'm doing?" He murmured, leaning forward to suck her neck.
"No," she managed to get out, "but it's what you should be doing."
He smirked against her neck. "Is it now?"
Rose moaned softly. "No," she admitted breathlessly.
He flashed her a grin. "But I suppose I will, regardless." So he did.
Rose smiled as the warmth from his healing spell spread up her spine. "You should put your shirt back on." She told him.
He smirked. "Should I now?"
She traced the muscles of his abdomen, toned and outlined from quidditch. She smirked. "No."