Sighing as she fought her way on to the tube, Rose Weasley searched in vain for a seat. She normally enjoyed doing things the muggle way, but it was a Friday night and the train was filled to capacity. She gripped a pole and resigned her self to standing for her trip. The number of people was oppressive and the smell of her neighboring passengers was less than pleasant. Rose was seriously regretting her decision not to apparate.
Maybe it was the train or maybe it was her destination, but Rose was in a poor mood. She tightened her coat around her cocktail dress feeling out of place and out of sorts. 'With this train, it'll be a miracle if I arrive in one piece,' she thought darkly, once again cursing her decision to take the tube.
"Hot date?" a middle-aged woman next to her asked. "I hope the bloke is worth it! That's a nice dress."
Rose cuckled darkly "No, unfortunately. It's for a class reunion of sorts"
"Ohhh, yes. I've had a few of those myself. Everyone tried their hardest to one up each other. It's so tiresome, I've stopped going. Well, whoever it is you're trying to impress, you're sure to in that dress."
Rose laughed again, her mood a little lighter, "Thank you, but I'm not actually trying to impress anyone."
"Oh I'm sure," said the woman said winking. "Best of luck," the woman wished her as she got off at her stop, leaving Rose alone with her thoughts.
Rose sighed again. She hadn't wanted to admit it out loud or even to herself really, but the dress was meant for someone, in a way. Acknowledging it even to herself made her cheeks flush. The fact that she had dressed up for him was embarrassing.
Him.
Scorpius Malfoy.
Eleven year old Rose was infatuated with him before she even boarded the train. Even as her father whispered in her ear to beat Scorpius in every test, she found herself admiring his bright, proud features. She resolved to make him her friend before the end of the day. She forwent sitting by her cousins sought him out on the train, determined to make him like her. And for a grand total of about ten minutes her plan had worked.
Rose found him sitting alone in a compartment on the train. She let her self in and sat across from. He looked sad and vulnerable to her.
"Hi! I'm Rose Weasley," she said brightly. "We should be friends. You look like you need a friend!"
He just looked at her blankly, which she stupidly took as a sign of encouragement.
"I know how you are of course, you're Scorpius Malfoy. You're much cuter in person," she giggled. "I think you and I being friends would be so good, you know breaking down barriers and whatnot..."
Her rambling was mercifully interrupted then, before she could dig herself into a deeper hole, by the compartment door opening and Beau Zabini entering.
"Scorp, my man, we've been looking for you. What are you doing here with the spawn of Weasels?"
Rose turned horrified to look at Scorpius as a smirk crossed his face. She felt her face flushing and was petrified to know what Scorpius was about to say.
"Well, I thought we were meeting up here on the south end of the train, and found us a compartment. Which was fortuitous, because Weasley here found me and declared her undying love for me. Class hasn't even started and I'm already breaking hearts," he laughed cruelly and stood up to leave with Beau.
He turned back to look at the now red faced Rose and said, his voice full of vitriol, "As if I would even be friends with a stuck up frizzy haired, buck toothed, halfblood mongrel like you, Weasel face." And he turned and left the compartment.
It had taken all of Rose's courage not to fall apart and start blubbering. But she forced her tears back and went and found Albus, hoping that encounter was her last. She had not such luck. By the time the arrived at the school, everyone had heard and rumors were flying. Rose kept her head high throughout the sorting and opening feast, but once her roommates fell asleep she bawled her eyes out.
Even since that day Malfoy had been somewhat of a terror at Hogwarts. He was copy of his father in nearly every way. He was a true Slytherin, haughty and cruel and yet seemed to always a gaggle of girls following him around. Malfoy tormented those he thought less of himself, but especially Rose. He tried to make her life a living hell at Hogwarts.
Rose, for her part, tried not to let Malfoy get to her. In spite of his abuse, she was well liked and moderately popular. She was the top of her class and athletic when we wanted to be. And as the years at school passed, her once dorky features became rather pretty. She even had a few boyfriends, when her cousins didn't drive them off.
All too quickly, her time at Hogwarts came to an end. Even though Rose had enjoyed her time, she was glad to be leaving. Malfoy and his bullying had been a constant thorn in her side her entire time at Hogwarts. She glad to finally be rid of him. She was even more glad that she eventually had gotten over her school girl crush on him too. After having some decent boyfriends, who actually treated her like a human being, she had realized how stupid it was that she had liked Malfoy for so long. Sure, she still thought he was gorgeous, but her feelings for him soured when she remembered how he treated her. She was glad to be leaving Hogwarts all things resolved and ready to live her own life.
Graduation had been an exciting and emotional affair. As Head Girl, and top student of the class, she had spoken. Her parents had attended and cried during her speech. After the ceremony there was a celebration and more crying, and lots of hugging and kissing. Mostly between Alice Longbottom and Albus, her best friends, who finally got together at the last possible moment of school. Rose had slipped away for a moment from the party to say goodbye to her favorite place at Hogwarts.
She made her way across the grounds to the greenhouses. Herbology had been her favorite subject at school and one she excelled in. Plus, it was taught by one of her favorite people, Uncle Neville. In fact, Rose did so well, she had been offered a prestigious apprenticeship in Brazil, studying plants in the Amazon rainforest. She would leave in a week. While she was excited for the amazing opportunity, she was sad to be leaving her childhood behind.
As she wound her way through the greenhouses, saying farewell to each beloved plant, her solitude was interrupted when a hand grabbed her arm.
"What the fu-," she began, as she spun around to confront the intruder. The words died on her tongue. It was him. Malfoy.
"I knew you'd come here eventually," he said softly.
"What do you want Malfoy? Come to make my last hours at Hogwarts miserable?" She hissed at him. Looking up into his grey eyes, her heart hammered. She hadn't realized how close they were. She tried to take a step back, but found that she was unable to as he was still gripping her arm.
"Let go of me Malfoy, I need to go find my family." Rose tried hard not to look at him, being this close to him was making her equally excited and disgusted.
"No, I need to talk to you Weasley," he said, he voice still unusually soft.
"No?! Are you kidding me!? Are you so desperate to ruin everything for me, that you're going to force me to stay here till you've insured my last hours here are miserable?" She hissed at him, trying and failing to yank her arm out of his strong Quidditch player's grip.
"Damn it, Rose, that's not what I want, I'm just- ugh- what I'm trying to tell you something important!" His voice was returning to its normal level and a manic look took over his striking features.
But Rose hadn't noticed. She was dumbstruck.
Rose.
He had called her Rose.
In their seven years at Hogwarts, he had never once called her Rose.
She looked up at him, shocked. The look on his face made her breath hitch.
She heard him whisper, "sod it" and the next thing she knew, he had released her arm and was cupping her face in both hands.
And then...
And then he kissed her. He kissed her passionately in a way that light a fire in her bones and made her knees go weak. His lips were silky smooth yet firm against her mouth, and his hands soft on her face. It was a moment stolen right out of a romance novel.
And yet...
Rose just stood there, unmoving, shocked. A small part of her, that part of her that was still eleven years old and naive, told her to kiss him back and savor this moment, but the rest of her was livid. She pushed him away, rougher than she had intended, and he stumbled into a pot.
"What-" he sputtered as her fell to the ground, but Rose cut him off.
"No!" She said, her voice cold and much calmer than she felt. "No way Malfoy! You don't get to kiss me! Not after how you treated me! For seven years I was the butt of every one of your jokes. You made my life hell! So no, you do not get to kiss me!
"But, Rose, I like-" he interrupted, but Rose didn't let him continue.
"I don't care, I don't care if you have feelings for me. One kiss doesn't not make seven years of torment better! It won't solve all your problems and instantly win me over. I deserve better! I deserve to have an actual human being care for me, not some soulless monster that likes to prey on those he deems less than him."
The look on his face nearly broke Rose's resolve, but instead of falling in to his arms like how that small part of her wanted to, she left him there. He was still sitting there, shocked, next to the upturned pot. She didn't even help him up. She just turned and left. And didn't once look back.
That was the last time she saw him for ten years.
She had left for South American a week later, the incident nearly forgotten in her excitement. Soon she was deep in the Amazon. She had spent nearly the entire following ten years exploring. She helped discover thirteen new magical plant species. Much of her work focused on three particular plants that were strongly affected by lunar cycles, in hopes that they might offer new treatments for lycanthropy and similar conditions. Plants were her passion, her true love. Every moment she spent exploring and discovering and cataloging and just being around all the exotic plants made her feel alive.
She was obsessed. In fact, nearly her first year went by without a visit to her family, but after a strongly worded letter from her mother, she made it a habit to at least visit every few months. But even when she was home, she wished she was back in her beloved forests with her like-minded colleagues. For those first few years, when she was home, she never seemed completely present.
But eventually, as is the way with most jobs, Rose began to grow tired of her work. She still love the plants, but ached to study her discoveries where she had more resources and opportunities to experiment. Over the years, Rose had worked her way up in the program, until she could go no further. The inability for growth frustrated her. Rose began to feel like she would do better back in England.
Rose took a few weeks off, to visit for the holidays. And for the first time, really began to notice those around her. Alice and Albus were expecting their first child, Hugo was engaged, Lily was a full fledged Auror, and even James had settled down and had a boring ministry job. Her parents had more wrinkles than she remembered and her dear grandparents had more white hair than gray. She realized that she had allowed life to pass by her. Not that her plants and discoveries didn't matter, but her beloved family did too, and she was missing out on them.
So Rose made a resolution on New Years to have more balance in her life. She shortly returned to South America, where she trained her replacement, gathered up her plants, and put in her notice. A few short months later, she found herself back in England, renting a small two bedroom flat. She had charmed her second bedroom into a makeshift greenhouse for her plants and spent her days looking for work and studying the properties of her plants in a less mobile environment, which she was very grateful for.
Rose made good on her resolution, and spent more time around her family. She got to know Hugo's fiancée, Rebecca, better and helped out her aging grandparents once a week, though Grandma Molly insisted they were fine. Mostly though, Rose renewed her deep friendship with Alice and Albus. Most evenings she spent with them and their sweet new baby, Violet. Rose had worried she would feel like a third wheel, but their friendship picked up right where it had left off. Of course though, this meant Alice took to trying to set Rose up with every man she saw, to Rose's chagrin.
A week prior to the reunion, Rose was offered an incredible position at St. Mungo's as an Herbologist. She would be leading up part of their Research and Development department, specifically looking for new cures for currently incurable conditions, namely lycanthropy. Rose was incredibly excited about the position; she could actually use her discoveries for good and had lots of room for growth. Her new supervisor had hinted that she was already a contender for the Lead Herbologist position when the current lead retired in a few years. The prospect was thrilling. As she walked up to Alice and Albus's flat that night, she was so giddy, she was even whistling!
"What has you so excited?" asked Alice as she let Rose in.
"You remember that job I told you about a couple of weeks ago? The one at St. Mungo's? Well...they offered me the position!" Rose exclaimed "I start next week!"
"Rose! That's fantastic!" Alice jumped up and down and wrapped Rose in a tight hug. "Ugh, I just so happy for you!"
"Did I hear right," Albus asked walking into the room carrying baby Vi, "You got a job?"
"She did! The one at St. Mungo's! She's sure to thrill at the class reunion!" Alice was still so excited, that she was dancing around the room.
"Huh?" Rose was fairly certain Alice had gone temporarily insane.
"Alice is a little obsessed with the idea of 'winning' the class reunion. You know, how everyone tries to show off how successful and happy they are since school. It's an inane social concept in my opinion, but whatever." Albus sighed, he loved his wife, and she was an intelligent woman, but never quite understood her minor obsession with social standing and gossip.
"No, I'm not confused about that, I mean every girl who has seen a chick flick gets that idea, but what class reunion is she talking about? I haven't heard anything about it!"
"What?!" Alice had been shocked into stillness by Rose's comment. "You didn't know? There's a reunion next week! It's been ten years since Hogwarts! You have to come! We're actually paying for a babysitter so we can go!"
"I can't, I don't have anything to wear! I've been in the rainforest for the last ten years, I have no idea what's even in style!"
"Then tomorrow is a mandatory shopping day! You're going to be the most beautiful, interesting woman there if it kills me!" Alice was so insistent, Rose couldn't say no.
Albus just rolled his eyes.
True to her word, Alice, with baby Vi in tow, took Rose shopping the next day. Rose got a much needed update to her wardrobe (Alice had exclaimed after seeing Rose's closet the night before that "it's a miracle you even got a job!") and tried on well over a hundred dresses before they found the perfect number for the reunion. It was a simple, knee-length black dress with a sweet heart neckline and off the shoulder sleeves. The dress was tighter than Rose was used to, but it showed off her fit, athletic frame well.
"I love how well it shows off your tan too!" Alice exclaimed.
Rose laughed looking over herself in the mirror, "Yeah, it only took ten years to get one, I might as well show it off while it lasts!"
"You know who is going to love this dress?" Alice asked.
"Hmm?" Rose had start tuning out Alice whenever she mentioned men, but her next words caught Rose's full attention.
"Scorpius Malloy, of course!"
"What?" Rose's stomach twisted. She had more or less forgotten about him over the years.
"Yeah! I just heard from Richela Patil that he's going to be there. He didn't come to the last one."
"Why would he care about my dress? We were never friends at Hogwarts. Plus, I vaguely remember him being engaged." Rose felt like vomiting. She wasn't sure if she was ready to see him again.
"Oh you wouldn't of heard! So yes, he was engaged, like seven years ago, to Penny Parkinson. Apparently, he caught her shagging Beau Zambini two nights before the wedding. I guess it really tore him up, because no one really heard from for a year. Not that I really cared because he was such a wanker in school. But still, that must have been a hard pill to swallow. Anyway, after that year, he must've really thrown himself into work or something because I swear like a few times a year he was in the papers being recognized for some other medical award. Now as for yo-"
Rose cut her off, "What do you mean, medical awards?"
"Didn't I say? He's one of the top Healers at St. Mungo's! I even saw him when Vi was born. It was completely unexpected. And he was so nice! Totally different from when we were in school! He even apologized about his behavior at Hogwarts! It was so surreal! And the strangest thing was that he asked about you!"
"What did you tell him?" Rose felt herself break out into a cold sweat. The memory of their last encounter rushed to the front of her mind. What on earth did Malfoy want? Why was he asking about her?
"Just that you'd been traipsing around the Amazon for the last ten years, discovering new plants, gallivanting with natives, and who knows what else. Oh and that at Christmas you finally decided to move back to England and settle down. Aaaaannnnnd that you're still single."
"What?! Why!? Why would you tell him that?" Rose really was going to vomit now.
"Well he did seem genuinely sorry about school. And he's super sexy. I think he's gotten even better looking since school. But, honestly, he wasn't ever interested in you in school right? So I didn't think it was that big of a deal..."
Rose could feel the bile in throat now. She had thought that Malloy wasn't interested in her, until that last day and that kiss in the greenhouse. She had tried to forget it over the years and honestly it made so little sense to her that it was easier to pretend it never happened.
Alice's next words would've had Rose running for the door if she wasn't in a dress she hadn't purchased yet. "Really though, I bet he's just interested because you'll probably being seeing a lot more of each other."
"Wait, what?"
"Of course, he's a leading healer, obviously you'll cross paths a few times."
The rest of the afternoon was a blur as Alice's words reverberated in her head. He wanted to know about her. She'd be working with him. What was she going to do? She'd have to actually talk to him after ten years?
The train arrived at her stop, shaking her out of her reverie. She tightened her coat around her as she made her way off the train. It was mid-May, but she hadn't adjusted yet to the coolness of England. Thankfully the slightly lessened humidity was doing wonders for her hair. It seemed like after no time at all she was walking into the Leaky Cauldron.
She kept her coat wrapped around herself as she walked around, needing that extra layer of comfort and protection. Rose scanned the room looking for familiar faces. A few looked at her interested and a few people even waved at her. She finally spotted Alice and Albus across the room and made her way over to them.
"Rose! What are you doing? Take off your coat, show off your dress!" Alice demanded.
Albus gave her a quick hug, "Forgive, Alice, she just saw Richela Patil and Devon Corner making out and won her bet with Lilly."
"I knew they'd hook up again. And I won 20 galleons! Don't forget that! But seriously, Rose, lose the coat, show off the dress, that's why we bought it!" Alice marched Rose back to the front and pulled her coat off and hung it on the coat rack. Alice dragged her to the bar by Albus and order them a round of Firewhiskeys. Rose felt self-conscious without her coat. She was suddenly wishing she was back in the Amazon. Even the many creatures that lived in the rainforest were less intimidating than a room full of people she hadn't seen since she had face full of acne.
"Rose Weasley?!" It was Lysander Scamander, the better half of his twin Lorcan and had been one of her better friends at Hogwarts. "Godric, it's been an age! How are you?"
And so the night began. She re-met dozens of old classmates, some she didn't even remember. She was introduced to spouses, shown pictures of children, and hugged old friends. And learned far too much about some people's lives. Apparently, according to Alice's sources, Desmond McClaggen slept with four employees and contracted dragon pox on his man parts and Beau Zabini was on his third divorce, while Alice Clearwater had gone off the deep end and attempted to start an unsuccessful line of robes for cats.
The night passed quickly in a blur of faces. After a few drinks, Rose was a bit more comfortable and social. She even danced a bit and got asked out on three dates. She had turned down McClaggen though, after hearing about his sordid affairs. Taking a breather, she walked over to the bar, finding Alice talking with a tall, broad shouldered blonde.
Malfoy.
If it hadn't been for the two Firewhiskeys she had consumed, she probably would have turned right back to the dance floor, but she was emboldened by the alcohol. Plus, Alice spotted her and called her over, so it would've just been rude to turn back, right?
"Rose!" Alice squealed, definitely a little drunk, "look who just got here!"
"Rose," Scorpius said, extending his hand "It's good to see you again." His voice was deeper now than it had been in school. It make Rose's stomach flutter. She cursed herself inwardly. He should not still have an affect on her.
"Mal-uh, Scorpius," she said, the name felt foreign in her mouth, "it's good to see you too." She shook his hand, feeling his calloused palm in hers.
"I'm going to let you two catch up, I've got to go make sure Albus isn't trying to call the poor babysitter again." She winked as she left, less subtlety than Rose was sure she meant to. Rose and Scorpius fell into an awkward silence. After a few minutes, Rose couldn't stand it any longer.
"Sooooo...how have you been?" She asked.
"Pretty good..." he replied. "How was South America?"
"Amazing!" The topic of her adventures carried the conversation for a few minutes, but then they lapsed into uncomfortable silence again. This time he broke the quiet.
"Rose, look, I was a real arse in school. There's no ex-" Scorpius was cut off by a buzzing sound. "Shit," he said removing his now glowing wand from his pocket, "it looks like I'm getting called in. I guess we'll had to continue this again some other time. It was good to see you again" He gripped her arm, and turned to leave. "I'm really glad you're back Rose," he said, barely loud enough for her to hear, and left.
Shocked, Rose made her way through the thinning crowd to where Albus and Alice were cuddled in a corner booth. She plopped down next to Alice; she had been used to their groping each other since seventh year.
"Well you two look ready to head home," she teased, or attempted to at least.
Alice saw right through Rose. "What happened?" immediately giving Rose her full attention.
"I think Scorpius just tried to apologize," Rose said still in disbelief.
"I told you he changed!"
"I know, I just, I just don't know. It's so weird."
"Well, as much as I love talking about Malfoy as the next guy," Albus cut in, "I was actually thinking it might be time to head home Alice. It might be nice to spend some adult time together alone, if you know what I mean." He said winking.
"Oh you mean sitting on the sofa, talking about how cute our baby is, while she's in the next room? Cause that's what happened last time you said that?" Alice laughed.
"It happened ONCE, Alice! ONCE! I really mean it this time. But you've got to admit Vi is the cutest baby alive!" Albus was obviously completely taken in by his daughter.
Alice kissed Albus and laughed, "I think you'd change your mind if you were the one nursing her all the time!"
"I want you to nurse me," Albus said as seductively as he could while trying to keep a straight face. Alice shot him a disapproving glare but dissolved into a fit of giggles at the look on his face.
"Gross! You two are worse than before you had a baby," Rose laughed.
"We know!" Albus proudly exclaimed. "But in all seriousness, Alice, we should head back."
"Fine, but Rose, I need all the details tomorrow." Alice said as she and Albus stood to leave.
"There's really not much to tell!" she called after them, knowing that even so, Alice would be over hounding her all day tomorrow. The thought exhausted her. Actually the whole night exhausted her. She pulled herself out of the booth, deciding to call it a night.
The weekend passed in an Alice filled blur and Monday morning came slower than she wished. She awoke full of nervous energy and could barely eat anything. She spent a few more minutes on her hair and makeup than normal before pulling on her brown work robe, hoping her put together appearance would give a good first impression. As a result, she didn't have enough time to take the tube and apparated to work instead, getting there a little early. This gave her a few extra minutes before she needed to be in her new office, in the greenhouses on the roof of St. Mungo's.
Rose walked slowly through the building, trying to familiarize herself with each floor and it's needs. As Rose passed a room on the fourth floor, she heard a familiar deep voice and the quiet cry of young girl.
"I promise it'll go away. I've never met a transfiguration gone wrong that I couldn't fix. And if I can't, I'll turn my nose into a kettle spout too! We'll start a trend, it'll be all the fashion magazines can talk about."
Rose heard the child laugh, and peaked into the room. Scorpius was sitting next to the bed of a small girl of about eight years old who had somehow turned her face into a teakettle. The child was understandably distraught but Scorpius had put her at ease and even gotten her to laugh. It was a sweet moment. Rose hadn't even realized she was staring until, Scorpius caught her eye. He was momentarily stunned, but the child, was thankfully still giggling and didn't notice. Scorpius looked about to say something, when Rose was approached by another witch in brown robes.
"Miss Weasley! You're early!"
Rose tore her eyes away from the room to address the small woman in front of her. It was Madam Botts, the head Herbologist . "Yes, Madam Botts! I thought I would take a couple minutes to familiarize myself with the layout of the hospital."
"Oh, how wonderful, I love when an employee takes initiative!" The witch started down the hall to the nearest lift, obviously expecting Rose to follow. Rose glanced back at Scorpius, who was still looking at her and gave him a small smile, before hurrying to follow the petite witch. "Of course, I'll still be giving you a tour later, and I'll be introducing you to a few people you'll be working with. But hopefully it'll go quicker, and you can have more time to get settled. By the way, you may just call me Botty, everyone does! And I want my employees to be comfortable."
Rose followed Botty to the greenhouses, where she was shown her office and met her co-workers and employees. She was over the moon when she found out she would be given her own greenhouse, just for her rainforest plants. Her morning was full with learning names and faces, and moving into her office, so it was after lunch that she and Botty meant up for her tour.
They started down in the basement, where the potion labs were. Botty introduced Rose to the Head Potioneer, who showed her around the labs. "You'll be working closely with many of the Potioneers down here," Botty informed her as they followed the Head Potioneer. As Rose, scanned the room, she recognized a few faces from school, including her cousin Molly who ran over and gave her a quick hug before returning to her work.
After finishing up in the basement, they worked their way up the floors. On the ground floor, Rose was introduced to a handful of important healers. This included the Head Healer, Niall Llewelyn, of all of St. Mungo's and the Healer-in-Charge for the Artefacts Accidents ward. Rose was grateful she had put some extra effort into her appearance after being introduced to the rather intimidating Head Healer, who was very interested in her work. Thankfully, his twinkling eyes belied his intimidating stature and he was the kind of wizard whose smile could put you instantly at ease.
"Botty, dear, have you taken Miss Weasley up to the first floor yet? Our Healer-in-Charge for Creatures Induced Injuries would be very interested in discussing you work. I'm sure he would have some ideas you'd be interested in.
"Oh we haven't yet, Llewelyn, we were headed there next, " Botty replied. As she spoke, a blonde-haired Healer rounded the corner.
The Head Healer interrupted her, "Oh no need, it looks like Healer Malfoy is headed this way. He's one of our most promising Healers and our youngest Healer in Charge in a century. Very bright," he added and then called Scorpius, who looked about ready to turn back, to come meet Rose.
"Meet Miss Rose Weasley," said Llewelyn, once Scorpius was standing next to him, "one of our newest Herbologists. She will be leading our Research and Development division and she has some fascinating work I think you might be interested in Malfoy."
"Actually, sire," interjected Scorpius, who still hadn't met Rose's gaze yet, "Miss Weasley and I were classmates at Hogwarts"
"Splendid! Then I'm sure you'd love to catch up! We were just showing her around, you're welcome to join."
"I'd be happy to show her around myself, if it would be more convenient. I just finished my shift."
"Ahh, what a grand idea, there were some things I wanted to discuss with you Botty."
"Wonderful, we'll leave you in good hands Rose. And feel free to call it a day after you're done; you'll have a full day ahead of you tomorrow," added Botty with a friendly shake of her finger.
Rose and Scorpius stood there awkwardly together as Botty and Llewelyn made their way down the hall. It wasn't until they turned the corner that Scorpius spoke
"So..." he said, shuffling his feet, not meeting Rose's gaze. His shoulders, that had been straight and strong moments before seemed bowed down under a heavy weight.
"So..."
Scorpius took a deep breath and seemed to brace himself. He looked up and finally met Rose's gaze. Rose could read his nerves all over his face. "Look Rose, I owe you an apology. More than an apology, I owe you an explanation. I was a complete prat in school. I was cruel and a bully and a total arse. I know there's not anything I can say to you to make up for how I acted, but I need you to know that I am so very sorry Rose. Please, forgive me, I really am sorry."
Scorpius paused, lacking the courage to go on.
"Why?" asked Rose. "Why did you do it?"
The question wasn't unexpected, but Rose could tell Scorpius had hoped she wouldn't ask. A broken look took over his face and his gray eyes filled with remorse and fear.
"Could we walk to my office, Rose, it's just up a floor?" asked Scorpius, his voice sounding raw. Nodding her agreement, they began walking down the hall. Rose was surprised, when he began again, but his voice seemed more steady and strong.
"Honestly," he started, "I was insecure and jealous. Everything seemed so easy for you and you fit in with everyone. You were a golden child, blessed with parents who had been on the right side of the war. The sun always shone in Rose Weasley's world. Meanwhile, I felt like nothing ever went right for me. My mum passed away right before school started. She was the only person who really loved me. No one else seemed to want to be around me or really even care about me. I looked at you and saw everything I had been denied." Scorpius drew quiet as they stepped into a lift.
When the exited, Rose almost didn't want to ask, but couldn't help herself, "But that doesn't explain why you kissed me?"
He was quiet until they entered his office, which was decent sized. Books lined one wall behind a desk piled high with papers and various potion ingredients. A cauldron simmered in the corner behind the desk. Rose took the seat in front of the desk, expecting Scorpius to take the one across from her, but instead he dropped into the seat next to her.
Taking a deep breath, he continued, "At some point during school, I stopped feeling things, stopped caring. Looking back now, I'm fairly certain I was depressed. I was stone. Nothing phased me. Except you. Even on the worst days, you could always get me to feel something, usually anger, but occasionally more than that. I became obsessed with you Rose. I had my pick of girls at school, I was handsome and rich enough to, but I couldn't get you. And it killed me because I knew you must have liked me at one point, or else you never would've tried to talk to me on the train. I thought that if I could have you, I would finally be happy. I knew you well enough that I knew you wouldn't leave without one last trip to the greenhouses. So I kissed you. I genuinely thought that that would be all it took. With so many other girls that's all it took and I had no concept that a relationship was more than just snogging. I should've given you more credit. It was wrong, I know."
Rose glanced at him and her heart broke. The reality of who he had been was crushing him. His face was ashen and he appeared much older than what he was. She wanted to stop, to just call it good and be done, but she needed the closure and so did he.
"So what changed?"
"I wish I could say it was your rejection. It would be less devastating than the truth, but in reality, I just got worse for a time after that. I became convinced that I would be happy if I had the perfect life. Good job, pretty wife, and lots of money. And I was well on my way to it. I was engaged and we were going to have the wedding of the century. Everything was going according to my plan. Until just a few nights before the wedding. We were supposed to do an interview with Witch Weekly that night, and when I walked in with the journalists I expected to find my perfect fiancée waiting for me. Instead she was shagging my best mate."
"I was upset, but not because she was shagging Beau, but because she couldn't do it in private like a normal person. She embarrassed me and the whole wizarding world was going to know about it. It took me years to figure out how twisted it was that I didn't even care about her. I had no concept of love anymore, just my appearance. I was humiliated, so I did the logical thing...I ran away. I was offered a chance to do some charity work with the International Medi Wizard Alliance. I jumped at the opportunity, it was better than being stuck here with everyone and the pity in their eyes. I figured I would go, save a few lives, and return a hero."
"We started off in Africa and were there for a few months. I did my work, saved lives, but I wasn't there for the right reasons obviously. Once I felt like I did enough I wanted to go back, but they still needed me. Serious fighting broke out in the Middle East again and we were relocated. In areas like that, magic and non magic fighting are usually connected. In the Middle East, the people we fighting for their freedom from oppressive governments and rebellious groups. All around me I only saw devastation and horror, yet the other Healers seemed to think there was good amongst the bad. But I just couldn't see it."
As, Scorpius talked about his time abroad, it was like watching poison being drawn from a wound. Slowly his posture became straighter and his eyes clear. It was like he was becoming a new man.
"I didn't understand until one day I was treating a lycanthropy bite. I was completely horrified. Apparently, this young man's family had stood up to a local warlord. As punishment, they attempted to turn the family's daughter, but the brother stepped in and took the bite meant for her. To be a werewolf in that area was next a death sentence. There's no resources for Wolfsbane and no safe, regular place he can go to take it. And if he was seen when he transformed, he would be killed. He knew this, but he did it anyway. When I spoke to him about it, he told me he would do it again because he loved his sister more than his own life. He said she deserved a better life than that of a werewolf. For the first time since my mother's death I understood love, real love. It changed something in me. It opened the floodgates, I could feel again, care for others. I felt alive for the first time in years."
"At the end of my contracted year, I didn't want to come back. I didn't want to lose the ability to feel again. I wanted to keep helping and actually doing good for once in my life. But they wouldn't let me stay on another year because I needed to do training here. I promised myself though, before I left, that I would never be that person again, the cruel, cold hearted man I had been. When I returned, I jumped at the chance to work in Creature Induced Injuries. Even though it meant dealing with difficult, sometimes untreatable injuries, because even if a case is hard and it tears me apart inside, it means I can still feel...that I still care."
His voice was soft when he finished. Rose knew he was waiting for her to say something. But words seemed to fail her.
"I know it's a lot to take in," he said "and I want you to know that it's not something I tell a lot of people. But you needed to know, I owed you an explanation. I wanted you to know why I was the way I was and know that I had changed. I don't expect you to forgive me right away or even ever, but you deserved to understand. Honestly, I wish we could go back and start all over."
"Me too," said Rose, "but if it helps, I do forgive you. I saw this morning with that girl and again this afternoon that you really have changed. So yes, I forgive you."
It was like watching a load being lifted off his shoulders. He gave her the first genuine smile she had ever seen on his face.
"I do like your idea of starting over though," she added. "It's been ten years, we're completely different people now. Maybe we should try and let the past stay the past and be friends?"
He nodded, "I like that idea."
"In that case, there is something I think you ought to see."
A few minutes later they had aparated into Rose's flat. Rose flushed at the state of her sitting room.
"Don't mind the mess, it was my first day, I was a bit nervous."
Scorpius chuckled, "It's not that bad. My flat is probably not been cleaned since last month."
Rose smiled at him as she lead him into her quasi greenhouse. She was thankful he was in a joking mood. His confession earlier had worn them both out emotionally and she was afraid things would be awkward between them.
"Wow, this is amazing Rose. Does your landlady know you've done this?" Scorpius shot her a scandalized face but couldn't hold it very long, and it ended up as a smirk.
"No! And I'll thank you kindly not to tell her. She's a muggle and will probably die of a heart attack if she finds out!" Rose laughed again and brought him to a row of ugly, hairy brown plants, each with a single closed blossom.
"This is Lupus Florebit, or Wolf Blossom. I know it's hideous, but when it blooms, it's a the most beautiful silver flower. It take six years to grow a blossom, which it keeps for a year. The flower only opens during the night of each full moon for that year. After the year ends, the blossom dies and it's another six years before it grows back. After I discovered it, and studied it's lunar properties, I became interested in its use as an antidote for werewolf bites. So I tested various parts of the plant in various stages of life in various states on lycanthrope cells. It was incredibly difficult work because the plant has such a finicky life cycle. Anyway, I discovered that nectar extracted from the flower during the seventh lunar cycle of a blossom year can return the lycanthropic cells to a normal state."
Scorpius was dumbfounded and it took him a few moments to reply. "What? What does that mean?"
"It means, I may or may not have found a cure for lycanthropy. But don't get too excited, we're still decades away from a viable cure, especially since it takes so long to get any nectar extracted and I've only done testing on cells. There could be unintended side effects or the change could only be tempor-"
The rest of Rose's words we cut off as Scorpius pulled her into tight hug.
"It doesn't matter Rose, there is hope, which is more than there has been before." He released her and looked at her with a look that spoke volumes. "Thank you for showing me this. It's seriously amazing!"
Rose eyed her plant and gave an exasperated huff. It had been months since she had transplanted all her Lupus Florebit and other Amazonian plants to her greenhouses at . She had done everything perfectly and yet she was still struggling to get her plants to thrive. Obviously they had been moved too many times. The plants were driving her crazy. Since it took so long for them to be viable for her experiments, every plant lost was another delay in the progress towards a cure. Rose growled with frustration and threw off her work gloves. She needed a drink.
If Rose was really being honest with herself, though, she knew that it wasn't just the plants that were bugging her. He was bugging her too.
It had been six months since her first day at . Since then Rose and Scorpius had slowly built a strong friendship. She enjoyed being around him. He made her laugh and took a genuine interest in her work. And watching him work was one of her favorite things. She would make up excuses to see him or come to work early, just so she could catch him with a patient. It continued to amaze her how different he was from school and how good and kind he was.
Rose stood up and grabbed her gloves, shoving them in her pocket. She made her way over to the storage cabinet where she kept her tools and grabbed the bottle of Firewhiskey she hid there and poured herself two knuckles of the amber liquid.
She leaned against the cabinet and laughed at herself. She should have figured it out when she started showing up early just to see him. Sacrificing sleep was not something the daughter of Ron Weasley took lightly. But no, she had to be dating someone else when she figured it out. A few months ago she had started dating Lysander Scamander. He was nice enough and fun to be around, but Rose never really felt like the relationship was going anywhere. When her plants started dying though, she really knew. She had been going on about it one night at dinner only to look over at Lysander and realized he was barely even listening. Hearing her pause he had said "Rose, i just don't see why it's such a big deal, they're just plants." Rose had been absolutely flabbergasted. How could he not understand how important this was to her?
Scorpius got it though. He had come to see her after his shift and found her crying in her greenhouses. He had looked absolutely stricken when she told him. He took her in his arms and allowed her to grieve over the plant and all the lost possibilities. She knew right then that she had fallen in love with him.
Rose had broken up with Scamander the next day and hoped that Scorpius would do something about her newfound singlehood. But three months later and nearly four plants dead, he still hadn't made a move. It was driving Rose crazy.
She wouldn't have been so upset about it if she had thought he didn't feel the same way, but she was so sure he did. He didn't spend time with anyone outside of work besides her. In fact, as far as she knew she might have been his closest friend. Maybe it was all in her head. But she knew she was in love with him. It was more than the school girl crush she had on him when she was eleven. His smile made her heart skip a beat and seeing him gave her butterflies-
Rose shook herself out of her thoughts. She sounded like a bad romance novel. When she had talked to Alice about, even she thought Rose's descriptions were ridiculous. Rose decided to call it a night and moved to clean up. It was late and at the rate she was going she wasn't going to get anything else done that night. And she couldn't think Scorpius into making a move on her.
But...
A crazy thought entered her mind...she could make the first move. She looked down at the bottle. This Firewhiskey must have been strong.
But...it wasn't that crazy. Girls did it all the time. Rose had just never been that...outgoing. She was too unsure of herself. But she was fairly certain that if Scorpius hadn't made a move by now he either was too shy too or not interested. And if he wasn't interested, what would she do? Ruin a perfectly good friendship? What is she was mistaken in thinking he was interested in her? Was the gamble worth it?
Rose shook out her glass, stuck it back in her cabinet with the Firewhiskey, and made to leave. She was so consumed with her thoughts that she didn't notice Scorpius was standing in the doorway until she walked right into him.
"Umphhf," said Rose, peeling her face out of his chest. "Ow, you could've warned me!" Rose laughed and took a step back into the greenhouse, rubbing her head.
Scorpius laughed and looked down at her "I tried! You weren't listening. I'm used to it though, you're like that whenever you're working."
"I'm sorry," Rose sighed,"it's been a long day. It looks like I'm going to lose another plant. It's been one too many transplants I guess. See?" She showed him back to the sickly plant.
His face fell when he saw it. He understood the ramifications of losing another plant. "I'm sorry Rose." He wrapped Rose in a small hug. He smelled like musk and antiseptic, which might have been a strange combination on anyone else, but Rose loved it. "What can I do to help?"
Rose stepped back again and looked into his eyes. He was always so thoughtful. She smiled up at him, "Convince Botty to hire me another assistant?" She laughed.
"I could try if you really want."
"No, it's okay. I don't think it would help too much. But enough about my problems, how was your shift?"
Scorpius' face filled with emotion. It took him a minute to answer and Rose could already tell it had been a rough day. She couldn't believe that he had been so thoughtful and comforted her with her issues when he had obviously had a bad day.
"We had a werewolf bite today. She's just a girl, six years old. Her family went camping for the holidays and the parents let her wander alone at night and she got attacked. It's horrifying Rose. She's not even old enough to understand fully what's happening to her and all the ramifications. Even with Wolfsbane she's going to have a life of pain ahead of her. She's only six Rose." Scorpius had anguish all over his face. It was Rose's turn to wrap her arms around him.
Scorpius sank into her embrace. "It could've been prevented. If her parents had not been so negligent. She would've been fine. I love my job Rose, but sometimes it's too hard."
Rose looked up and met his gaze. She wasn't sure what made her do it, but she slipped her arms around his neck and looked into his eyes. "I'm so sorry," she whispered, "I wish my work had better news for you, but you have to have faith in me and trust that the cure will come."
"I do, Rose, I do. You give me so much hope." His voice was soft now too, their faces centimeters apart.
Rose want sure what made her do it, but she closed the distance and brushed her lips across his. It lasted less than a second but it set her heart racing. She pulled back and looked at him, trying to gage his reaction, but his expression was unreadable.
"Rose!" A voice called, "Are you still here?" It was Botty. Rose swore. She had been so sure she was the last one here. She stepped away from Scorpius, avoiding his gaze. She tried to calm herself and school her face into a calm, pleasant expression, but she was sure her blush was going to give away what had just happened.
"I'm back here Botty!" she called.
Botty appeared a moment later. "Hello Healer Malfoy! Come to see the progress?" She asked politely. Botty was used to seeing him around. "Rose, I've got some paperwork I need to go over with you. It's for the next stage of testing." She addressed Scorpius again. "It may take us awhile, perhaps you'd better come back tomorrow."
"Alright, I guess I will see you later Rose." Rose gave him an apologetic look as he turned to leave. Whatever was going on with them would have to wait until later.
When Rose got home, she hoped against hope Scorpius would be waiting for there or something. Instead she found a note that had been slid under her door
Rose,
I didn't get a chance to tell you, but I'm going to be gone for the next two weeks. I got asked to speak at a Medi Wizard conference in America. Can I see you when I get back?
Yours,
Scorpius
Rose inwardly kicked herself. Only you would be stupid enough to kiss a guy right before he left the country. She reread his note. He didn't mention anything about her kiss, but he did ask to see her, so that had to be good right?
"Ugh," she exclaimed and threw herself on her sofa. It was never a good idea to leave a relationship on uncertain terms for too long, according to Alice. Rose sighed, it was going to be a long two weeks.
The following Saturday, Rose found herself working in her greenhouse. She had awoken early and full of nervous energy, needing to do something with her hands. After cleaning her entire apartment and spending some time caring for her own plants, she found it was barely midday. Rose decided she might as well put this extra energy in trying to convince her sickly plant to live.
Classical music played on the wireless, which she had turned all the way up, hoping to drown out her thoughts. She was very diligently try not to think about why she was so nervous, but thoughts of Scorpius kept popping up. Ten days, she thought, just ten more days.
Partially due to the loud music, but mostly because of her absorption in her work and thoughts, Rose missed the telltale crack that signaled someone's arrival. She also missed the sound of their footsteps as they made their way over to Rose. And the sound of someone calling her name. In fact, Rose only became aware of the presence of company when a strong hand slipped around her waist and pulled her away from her work.
Throughly shocked and convinced she was under attack, Rose whirled around and without thinking struck the intruder across the face with her small spade. As he crumpled to the floor, Rose recognized the voice that called out.
"Ahhh!" Scorpius groaned from the floor. "Bloody hell, Rose, what was that for?"
Rose threw down her spade and dropped to the floor next to Scorpius, who was unsuccessfully trying to stem the flow of blood from his nose. "Oh Merlin's beard, Scorpius I am sorry! I didn't know it was you!"
"Obviously," he said, sitting up and putting his head between his knees. Rose knelt in front of him a placed her hands on either side of his face and lifted it so she could see. Blood was flowing freely from his obviously broken nose, which was swollen and turning bluer by the second.
"Godric, Scorpius, I really am so sorry! Do you want me to fix it?" She met his eyes and flushed at the intense look on his face. She flushed when she realized that their faces were very close together. She released his face and scooted back.
"It's alright Rose. And I can fix it, I am a Healer you know. But I'll need you to find me something I can clean up with, cleaning spells only get you so far."
Rose nodded and got to her feet, relieved to have an excuse not to be right next to him for a moment. Hopefully by the time she got back to him her blush will have subsided. She walked over to her supply closet and grabbed a fresh rag and a small bowl By the time she made her way back to Scorpius, he had fixed his nose and stopped the bleeding, but his face was still covered in blood. Rose filled the bowl with water with her wand and then knelt besides Scorpius, who was now laying on his elbows in a half reclined position. She took his chin in her other hand and began wiping the blood off his neck and face.
Purposely avoiding his gaze, she asked him, "What are you doing here? You've only been gone a few days."
"I had a break today and I found I couldn't stand to be there any longer. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you...and that kiss," Scorpius answered after a minute, his voice low and husky. Rose finished cleaning his face and sat the cloth down. When she looked back at him, he was gazing at her intently. She suddenly felt very warm and her breath sounded loud in her own ears. Scorpius sat up and slipped an arm around her waist. He was so close now she could count every one of his eyelashes. She felt his warm breath on her cheek.
"Rose, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. Not being near you was driving me insane," he whispered as he leaned in closing the gap between their mouths. Rose's heart was hammering in her chest and her mind was racing. "I'd very much like to kiss you again, if that's alright." Rose was so overwhelmed, she could only nod in reply. When his lips brushed against, she let out a soft gasp, which seemed to encourage him. His eyes closed as brought his other hand up to tangle it in her hair and pressed his warm mouth fully against hers. For a moment, Rose's mind continued to race, but then she closed her eyes and was lost in his kiss.
After a moment they broke apart. Scorpius pressed his forehead to hers and smiled.
"You know, Rose Weasley, we seem to have a penchant for kissing in greenhouses."
Rose laughed, "Yes, it seems we do." And then she leaned in and kissed him again.
