Title: Conspiracies of a Halloween
Author: Seer M. Anno (seerstella)
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Scorpius Malfoy/Lily Potter (because they deserves more love)
Genre: AU. No Albus Severus and James Sirius. Lily is in the same age as Scorpius.
Summary: Many people want to set them together. And a Halloween party is taken as a chance.
Disclaimer: HP (c) JKR. Jack Merridew (c) William Golding. Fic (c) Seer M. Anno.
Warning: OOCness, perhaps?
A/N: This is actually my second non-Drarry story and my first S/L complete story. I think I should've halted my liking towards Jack Merridew/Tom Chapin/Chris Furrh XD. Blame writer's block, school, National Examination, Lord of the Flies theme songs, the death of a modem, and decreasing of ideas.
My country actually has no Halloween (that's why I write this), so sorry for plot errors. This is not the best fic, since I made it only in 2 days near deadline. But hope you like this! :)
Conspiracies of a Halloween
Scorpius Malfoy x Lily Potter
Seer M. Anno
"Potter. Unusually on time."
"Just let me through, Malfoy."
Draco Malfoy snorted and stepped back from his fireplace. The Floo roared with green, inflammable flames, letting Harry Potter walked into his private room in Malfoy Manor.
"Alright then, do sit down," the blond man said, although it sounded more like an order, as he pointed at one of the couches. He himself sat down on his huge leather chair, leaning nonchalantly. "So I've heard, Potter."
Harry sat on the nearest chair and smiled forcefully at his old school rival. "They call it an 'UST'."
Draco merely tilted his head, not wanting to show the other wizard that the last word confused him.
"It's Unresolved Sexual Tension, Malfoy," Harry said, smiling triumphantly. "They reckon our children have it. You should see when they were arguing on Hogwarts' Quidditch field. Ginny had to hex their mouths shut for two days."
"You haven't seen the worst. Your kid almost blew up my son's room. You should see Astoria's face." Draco drawled. "Prankster, she is. And what should we do about this kind of situation?"
"I thought you're the smart one in here, Malfoy. But let me enlighten you." Harry pulled out a piece of parchment. "There will be a Halloween party."
Draco snorted. "No Malfoys attend such a Muggle party, Potter."
"And here I thought you weren't such a Muggle hater anymore."
"I didn't hate them, and I still don't. And neither does my son," the blond said stiffly. "I just don't want my family to get along with them nicely, and I think you know that."
Harry tsked and shook his head in exasperation. "Listen, Malfoy," he began. "They won't recognise each other, and maybe they will learn to like each other."
"Like you and me," Draco said. It wasn't a question. They had been friends since Lily, Harry's only daughter, and Scorpius, Draco's son, went to Hogwarts together. Despite that, they still couldn't call each other with their given name, and their surnames became their own special nicknames.
Harry grinned. "Like you and me."
"And what will I get from this?" Draco asked, still sneaky as ever.
Harry shrugged, still grinning. "Your son's happiness. My daughter's happiness. No more arguing and bickering which can burn your ears."
"Ah, that last part. You really know how to make me nod, do you not?" Draco smiled slightly at his friend. "Alright. Go on, then, resolve their 'sexual tension'."
"Hi, Lil."
"Hello, Dad!" Lily grinned at her father. She was in a short break from Hogwarts, which allowed her to stay at home for a week. There was an international conference called CTIWW (Conference for Teachers of Institutions of Witchcraft and Wizardry) in Berlin, and of course all the teachers had to come. That was why Ginny couldn't stay with them. "Where have you been?"
"Meeting with a friend." And before she could ask further, he pressed. "Not your business, young lady."
Lily pouted but didn't ask anything more. Sometimes Harry wondered if he and Ginny had spoilt her rotten. But it was no wonder. She was Harry and Ginny's only child after all. Ginny had had a miscarriage a year after Lily was born, so they didn't try for another child. She had her cousins to be close friends with, and Harry knew she didn't mind it at all.
"Hey, Dad, Magnus just came." Lily waved a parchment in front of his eyes. Magnus was Ron's family owl. "Aunt Hermione will make a Halloween party again this year!"
Harry grinned. This was better than he expected. She had gone there last year, and she loved it so much. It was more than possible that she would go there again.
"And you'll go?" Harry asked, although he had known the answer.
"Of course!" Lily cheered. "I even know what to wear!"
She rushed into her room and came back to the living room in a second. She was holding a silky black robe, so different than the wool robe from Hogwarts, and a cross was sewn on its left breast.
"This is from a character in Malfoy's classic novel," she said, pouting slightly at the word Malfoy. "I love that guy! Why isn't he real?"
Harry smiled at his energetic daughter as she dashed into her rooms once again. "All I need is face paints and everything will be just great!"
"What are you doing in here, Mother?"
Astoria Greengrass-Malfoy was smiling charmingly at her son, but Scorpius Malfoy knew better. That was a kind of smile someone with other intentions would use. He had seen it on his parents' faces since he was a little boy, after all. "Have you received your invitation already?" she asked, her light blue gown swishing slightly.
"What invitation?"
"The Halloween one from Mrs. Granger-Weasley."
Scorpius nodded.
"And...?"
The fifteen year old teen laughed shortly, interrupting his mother's words. He knew what she was hinting. Astoria frowned in disagreement of the interruption, but was silent, obviously waiting for an answer. He looked up at her slightly hopeful eyes. "No. I don't want to come."
Astoria sat in front of him, her hand pressing the book her son was reading, wanting his full attention. "And why is that, my son? I thought you like Muggle parties."
Despite of their families, Scorpius liked reading about Muggle parties, and Muggles in general. Muggle Studies was his best subject. In fact, he was best in almost every subjects but Potions, Charms, and Astronomy. Those were the best of Lily Potters'.
Ah, that girl. Never failed to get into his nerves. She would curl her lips, glaring her green, catlike eyes at him, and say something about better scores and whatnot. And they would fight on the corridors, in class, everywhere. Scorpius, much like his father, was cold but short-tempered. And Lily knew that for sure. She merely needed something to gloat about and they would argue in a matter of seconds.
"Scorpius, my son, your mind is drifting."
Scorpius was forced to snap himself back into his rooms, his mother's brown eyes watching him intently. "I apologise," he said politely. "I was thinking about... something."
Astoria swished her hand, dismissing his apology. "It's no need. But why don't want to go?"
He sighed frustratingly. "I don't know what to wear, and I don't really like meeting new people. Besides, why should I? I'm too old anyway."
His mother smiled—smirked—as she stood. "Nobody is too old for anything. And I think you can manage being with them," she said firmly. "For the costumes... I can find a Muggle one which could suit you."
With that she left, leaving no arguments from her son. Scorpius huffed, both in excitement and confusion. He really wanted to come, and his mother made it possible—because nothing was impossible for a Malfoy—but he didn't have any idea why she wanted to help him. She, like his father, didn't really like Muggles.
Scorpius remembered when he first learned Muggle Studies, he had to hide his Muggle classic novels from his parents. When his parents had found it, it was because of Lily Luna Potter. She had seen him reading it in the Slytherin common room (he wondered why that girl was put in Slytherin, she's so not Slytherin) and had gossiped about it with Rose Weasley in front of Draco and Astoria.
Draco's face when he had heard that was so ridiculous Scorpius almost couldn't hold his laughter. Astoria, however, had managed her 'cool mother' composure, and showed him that she didn't mind at all. And his father slowly came around as well.
His thoughts were broken, once again, by his mother. She entered his room, her steps swift and sure.
"Scorpius, my son, I've found the best costume for you."
When the Halloween night came, Harry Apparated with his daughter to across a house in Muggle London. It was a big house, and Lily had never seen such a house. The house was painted white and the 'lamps' glowed from inside it. It was obvious that the house contained so many people in it. In front of it there was a board with 'PETERSON'S GUESTHOUSE' written on it.
Lily wondered what 'guesthouse' means. Maybe Malfoy knows?
She shook her head. No Malfoy-thinking right now!
Her dad patted her back and smiled. "Have fun, Lil."
"Thanks, Dad!"
After Harry Disapparated, Lily walked towards the guesthouse. She was carrying a Jack-o-Lantern bag for candies. Before she knocked the door, she looked down at a puddle of water and saw her own face. As her charmed blue eyes stared back at her, she almost couldn't recognise the reflection.
Her face was heavily painted by something black and red. The red was the imitation of blood, and the black one was from the Giant Squid's ink, an imitation of soil. Or so she thought. Dad had painted her face messily, much to her happiness. But he had shaped it diamond shaped, from her forehead to her ear and to her chin. On her cheeks and nose there was a black line.
On her head there was a black cap with a small golden badge (which was actually Hugo's Hufflepuff badge!). Her hair was charmed to look much shorter than original. She was wearing a white shirt, a tie, and grey shorts. But all of it, including her black shoes, was covered by a black, silky robe. The silver cross stood proudly on her left breast. She looked up from the puddle and put her hands on her hips.
Alright then, she said to herself. Why should I be Jack? I'm Merridew.
Scorpius came with his father, who insisted they took a Floo instead, so his costume wouldn't be 'damaged'. He couldn't agree more. The place where they had Floo-ed in was quiet. But it was obvious that the voices were from the other room. Draco nodded at his son before leaving.
Scorpius looked down at himself. He was carrying a fake spear, which looked so sharp it could've been mistaken as a real one. He wore a dark blue jacket with symbols sewn on it. He was barefooted but his mother had charmed a pair of shoes to be invisible for him to wear so he wouldn't hurt his own feet.
He was going as a military school boy named Jack Merridew. He wasn't going as the boy described in the book, because redheads irked him and he loved his white-blond hair so much. His face wasn't as pointy like his father's, so his mother charmed his brown eyes (the only trait he inherited from the Greengrass family) blue and his face to be pointier.
His face was painted black and red, shaping lines down his eyes and onto his cheeks. He grinned when he saw his own face on the nearby mirror. His face was completely unrecognisable. A fake bone necklace circled his painted neck and Scorpius played it happily.
"Quite spooky, blondie."
Scorpius almost jumped, but he looked up and saw the face carved on the mirror. Its mouth opened as it said those words. He shrugged and was going to go, but the mirror stopped him.
"You'll get the best with that face, blondie."
This time, the confused Scorpius really shrugged it off and walked out the room.
Hermione Granger-Weasley was dressed as the female version of Severus Snape. She dyed her hair black and wore the dark robes and charmed her face so it looked sallow like her late professor. It wasn't because she wanted to disrespect him. She wanted to remember him, instead.
She looked at the children and teenagers in the room, all little witches and wizards and Squibs and some Muggleborns. She looked at her list and crossed names as the children came into the room.
A redhead girl with a heavily painted face came into the room and Hermione crossed Lily Potter's name. Harry had told her about The Halloween Plan between him and Malfoy (even with her bright mind, she could never understand those two's friendship) and she agreed immediately. She couldn't stand them fighting and bickering all the time, and either did Ron and Rose and Hugo.
She wondered if Malfoy could make Scorpius came into the party. If he couldn't, this plan wouldn't work.
"Aunt Mione," she heard Lily calling her. Her voice was different, slightly lower and more boyish. She obviously had charmed it. Hermione knew what her niece was going to ask, so she gestured her to sit on one of the empty chairs. She came and told her that Lily couldn't call her 'Aunt Mione' right now, because she wasn't one in this party.
"I'll call you Severita, then," the redhead tomboy said, grinned at her.
Hermione looked incredulous. "Severita?"
Lily was still grinned at her.
"Oh, Lil—I mean Jack—it fits!" The woman looked at the door and saw several kids came into the room. "I've got to go."
Lily shrugged dismissively and Hermione left. She crossed more names and asked what they were going as and wrote names. And there was a blond boy. His face was painted like Lily's and Hermione was surprised to see it. She hurriedly crossed Scorpius Malfoy's name and wrote 'Jack Merridew' next to it.
Finally the children were complete, plus Rose as Rapunzel and Hugo as The Sparkling Vampire from America (much to Hermione's disapproval). She clapped her hands together and the kids gathered around her, the little ones sat on the floor and the teens on the chairs provided.
"Hello, today I'm Severita. And we're going to have fun today," she said, saying the words she always said every year. "You're allowed to do some wandless magic for entertaining Muggles. However, your magic is limited and for that you'll have to wear this ring. It can't be released unless you come back here and tell me that you want to go home. You're not allowed to call your friends with their names, because just for this night, they're not people you know."
The heads bobbed up and down in agreement.
"And," Hermione continued, her black robes swishing as she paced in front of them. "I don't want the little kids to get lost, or making some chaotic mess. So I'll have two older kids to watch over three little ones." At the hopeful faces of the teens', especially Lily's, she smiled. "I'll choose your partner, teens."
Almost all the teens groaned. Lily didn't groan at all. Hermione always paired her with Rose, but now was different. She knew the plan needed to work. So she took the parchment and said their role-names, crossing it after the kids were called.
"Robin Hood and Sleeping Beauty," she called, and a teenage boy stepped forward along with a blonde girl. "You two go together with The Pumpkin, Humpty Dumpty, and Cinderella. Here's your map, and don't get lost. The teens can use Point Me spell but you'll need the map too."
She repeated the same thing again and again until she called a certain name.
"What a surprise," she said in concealed wonder. "We have two Jack Merridews here. Come here, you two."
Lily stepped forward and saw a blond boy did the same. He was around her age, and he was tall. She immediately recognised that Jack Merridew. It was from the last Muggle movie. That one was a coloured movie and Malfoy had used as his Muggle Studies essay. She had gotten the copy of the first movie—much to Malfoy's jealousy.
"You two will go with Snow White, Merlin, and—" Hermione wrinkled her nose. "—The Sparkling Vampire from America. Now, here's your map and off you go."
The first trip towards the first house was a quiet one. The little kids chatted together, The Sparkling Vampire obviously the oldest between the three and he led the small group, the map on his hand. As for the teens, they were dead silent.
Scorpius never thought someone would go as Jack Merridew like him. The girl reminded him of Potter, but she obviously wouldn't be here. She hated his bloody guts, as much as he hated her, and Mrs. Severita Granger-Weasley should've told her about his appearance on the party, and she wouldn't come at all.
This girl probably charmed her hair and face so she would resemble Jack. He saw her Jack-o-Lantern bag in her grip and an idea hit him. He looked at her.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey," she answered back.
"Can I see your bag?"
The girl gave him the bag. "See, Jack," he said. "We need this to be something resembled… us."
With that he wandlessly transfigured it into a bag with a shape of a pig's head.
The girl's eyes lit up in awe. "It's great!" she said. "Why haven't I thought about it before? Thank you!"
Scorpius nodded humbly. After some time walking, they finally reached their first house. In front of them, Snow White was knocking the door. There were hurried steps from the inside before a plump, old woman opened it.
"TRICK OR TREAT?" they asked together.
"Aw, kids, I'm sorry," she said apologetically. "I don't have candies for you."
"Tricks, then!" the Jack-girl said in excitement, and Scorpius stared at her bemusedly. She must've been in this kind of parties for at least three times. She clapped her hands and said, "Flower gleam and glow…"
From her hands there was a white flower made of wisps of white smoke, resembling a small Patronus. The Muggle woman stared as it glowed from the Jack-girl's hand. She smiled and opened her hands. The flower flew like a paper bird around the woman and back onto the redhead's hands.
"Happy Halloween, Ma'am," she said, and the kids echoed. Scorpius said it the last and Jack-girl (he would call her that now) blew the smoke-flower and it vanished. The old woman smiled, patted all their backs and closed the door.
"Next house!" Snow White said cheerfully.
They had gotten a small amount of candy from the second house. Lily knew that the other teen's brain was filled with ideas of what he could do if the next house's occupant asked for a Trick.
"Why do you become Jack?" she asked at the blond-Jack. He looked much like Malfoy, but his hair was golden blond and his face was pointier and his eyes weren't brown. What Lily liked—no, remembered—from the Malfoy heir was his brown eyes, so out of the box, so different than the usual Malfoys' grey. Besides, Malfoy wouldn't attend such a Muggle party, despite of his loving towards Muggle world.
The boy shrugged, breaking her train of thoughts. "Saw him once. Fits me."
"You haven't told me about yourself."
The boy didn't say anything for awhile. Finally he looked directly at her eyes, and Lily felt uneasy. She had a feeling that he didn't like what he was seeing. Lily frowned. She didn't want him to dislike her. But then he looked away. "Thought it's not allowed."
"Yeah," Lily mused, cursing Aunt Severita's rule. She would never understand why much her aunt liked anonymity so much in her party. She had told her that make-ups and costumes was the most important thing. She had put on a spell on their rings which prevented nosing around for more information. They were allowed, though, to ask names and exchange Floo address after the party was over.
"But it's okay to tell… vague things. If you know what I mean," she took a deep breath. "Not your name, or where you live, or do you go to Hogwarts or not, something like that."
"I see. Are you a Hufflepuff?"
Lily patted the badge on her head. She actually didn't want to answer the question but at the boy's curious looks, she did. "Nope. I reckon this is your first party, right?"
The boy smirked, but didn't say anything. Lily took it as a yes and they fell silent again. She saw Hugo—yes she knew it was him—showing the other kids the list of the houses they had to go. There were quite plenty of them, but not too many to make the kids exhausted.
"We're here," suddenly Jack-blond said.
Lily looked up and saw the one who played Merlin approached the next door quickly and knocked it, a huge grin on his face. They crowded in front of the door and grinned along with Merlin as a woman, maybe in a same age as Mum, opened the door.
"Trick or Treat?"
The woman was Mrs. Paulson, one of Aunt Severita's Muggle friends. Lily knew she wouldn't have any candy for them just because she wanted to see their Tricks.
"No treat!" she said. "Trick it is, then. But do come in first."
Lily and Hugo ushered the others to come in. Mrs. Paulson always invited them in first. She had said that tricking people should be done privately, and for that she insisted of no standing on the front door. She had small drinks on her table, and told the kids to take it. Then she sat on her chair, waiting.
Hugo jumped forward, his sparkling body looked like a Muggle disco ball under the light. He chanted something all of them couldn't interpret, and suddenly there was a small lizard—definitely his favourite, Lily mused—above his head.
The lizard wasn't real of course. It was half-green from its head to half of its body and the rest was coloured pink. Hugo made it spin around them, and occasionally flying it towards Mrs. Paulson's face, scaring her. Finally, with a swish of his hand, Hugo flew the lizard towards the Muggle woman's shirt and suddenly it merged with the clothing, making the formerly plain shirt had a new picture of the lizard.
Mrs. Paulson clapped, although it was obvious she was a bit ashen. She smiled at them and patted the lizard print on her shirt. "I'll keep this," she said cheerfully before they left the house.
"How come they never notice us?" Scorpius asked irritably.
Jack-girl's head snapped up. "What?"
"They're Muggles, and why they didn't run and tell the Muggle authorities?"
"What on earth are you talking about?" the teenage girl asked, the irritation creeping into her words as well.
"Us," Scorpius gestured at them. "We're wizards and now they know it!"
The girl was silent for a while, but finally she burst into peals of hoarse laughter, much to Scorpius' annoyance.
"I forget you're new here," she said between her laughs. "Listen, Peterson's Guesthouse is a wizarding guesthouse for those who need to go to Muggle London, and this neighbourhood knows wizards and witches more than any Muggles on Great Britain. When Voldemort struck, this was the only place where Muggles believed that it was a wizard and not a Muggle terrorist. Satisfied?"
Scorpius wrinkled his nose but nodded in understanding. Jack-girl still looked amused beyond belief.
"No need to worry, Jack," she said, patting his back. "Many of them have wizards and witches as their family member. They knew better than reporting us. That's why we're here."
"Alright, alright," Scorpius snapped. "I get it. Stop preaching me."
The girl was still grinning at him, and Scorpius finally forced a smile on his face. She grinned wider. "I'm Jack Merridew, The Preacher."
"'All you can do is talk, talk, talk!'" Scorpius said, quoting Jack Merridew's words from the book. "And here I thought Jack hates talkers."
Jack-girl shrugged, a small smile on her lips. "That's why they killed Piggy, I reckon." She opened her mouth, wanting to speak again when she was interrupted by a loud wail. They looked away from each other and saw Snow White sprawling on the ground. Apparently she was tripped by her own dress.
"What happened?" Jack-girl rushed towards her. Scorpius watched the scene in interest. The little girl continued to cry and Jack-girl hugged her while Hugo repaired her dress. Scorpius finally walked forwards and chanted a small spell to restore her spilled make up.
"Thank you," Snow White muttered.
"It's fine," Hugo said. "And look, we're here."
More houses they had approached; and most of them had candies so their bags were quite full of treats. There were still six houses to be gone to, and they were still chattering happily. Lily was grateful of Jack-blond's charm. The pig's head on a stick was much bigger than her usual Jack-o-Lantern bag that Mum had given her.
Speaking of Jack-blond, he had done the most amazing Trick for the Hammond couple. He had chanted "A dragon gleam and glow, what makes evil let it blow…" and a white dragon emerged from his chest and into the house. The Hammonds were shocked, despite of their experiences with magic (they had a witch as a niece) and was more shocked when the dragon, like Hugo's lizard, merged with a plain wall and shaped a huge dragon carving on it. Unlike Hugo's lizard, the dragon carving could move and it kept moving up the stairs and down of it. He had said that they could banish it if they hated it, but they merely laughed and said no.
Now, Merlin was the only one who hadn't done his magic. Lily didn't know that little boy, because like Jack-blond, he was new to this party. He seemed to be a quirky, funny little boy, and he obviously liked Snow White. They bickered as they walked, forcing Hugo to separate them sometimes. Jack-blond once interfered them, making Snow White walk with Hugo and Merlin with him. That made her smile, because they reminded her of her and Malfoy.
If Jack-blond didn't stop her, she would have her head hit against the front door of another Muggle house. She couldn't make a difference between this house and the others. What Lily hated from the Muggle houses was why they should look all the same. They should be more creative and put do their own designs like in her own neighbourhood!
Unlike her, Malfoy liked the similarity. That could send them into a random debate for hours.
Lily shook her head vigorously. She didn't want to think about him in good times like this!
"Are you okay?" she heard Jack-blond asked from next to her.
"Fine."
They came into another house, and the man in it asked for a Trick.
Jack-blond nudged Merlin. "You do the magic," he said, his tone commanding.
Merlin's face crumpled and tears came from his eyes. Lily squatted in front of him, and asked what was wrong. The little boy's answer startled her.
"I can't do magic," he whispered. Lily's eyes widened and she stood. She hurriedly did the Flower Gleaming magic and the man clapped approvingly at her. He stepped away from the doorway, gestured for them to go in.
"Come in," he said. "This boy needs to sit down."
So they obeyed, and Merlin sat down. His body was still trembling from the embarrassing revelation. Hugo and Snow White were busy to calm him down. Lily sighed. She could never stand seeing someone crying. So she took Jack-blond's hand and they wanted to walk away from the sight.
The man—Mr. Lewis—suddenly came towards them. "You two maybe liked to go around for a while? Come on, I'll show you around while my sister is with the kids."
Lily nodded and pulled Jack-blond's hand. Together, the three of them walked around the house. Mr. Lewis kept showing them this Muggle thing and that Muggle device. Lily could see how Jack-blond nodded knowingly, as if he had known all Muggle things. Lily suspected the teenage boy was a Muggeborn wizard. They were walking along a small corridor which had a small door—a closet, Lily reckoned—on it.
"My dad was a Squib," Mr. Lewis said, standing in front of the opened door. "So I know how much it pains your little friend to be one. My aunt is a quite bright witch and she has things inside this closet. Want to see?"
The man grinned when the two teens walked with him into the closet. They were looking at piles of boxes and containers when suddenly the closet door banged closed and Mr. Lewis disappeared.
Terrence Lewis smiled to himself after he Disapparated out the closet. Dear Lil and Scorpius could have fun in there, he mused. They seemed to get along pretty well, so he decided to let Mione's plan to work. He charmed the door so no wandless charm and Alohomora could open it. He could hear their panicked shouts from the inside but he knew better than opening the door.
He was still smiling to himself when he started to feel dizzy. Bloody hell, this excessive Glamour had drained his magic. He looked at the mirror as he brought down his Glamour for awhile. The brown hair started to melt and his brown eyes changed to dark blue ones. In a matter of minutes, Terrence Lewis the Muggle was gone and a grinning Ron Weasley stood there as a change. It was the first time he joined his wife's party, and that was because he couldn't stand Harry and Rose's stories about their bickering in Hogwarts.
Maybe joining this kind of party is okay after all, he thought, still smiling to himself like a madman. He restored the Glamour and walked back to the living room to see his son. He wanted to tell Hugo what happened.
Scorpius banged at the door, muttering curses, Muggles and wizardings, as he tried to find their way out. He used his spear (he almost forgot he brought it) to open the door but he failed. It was dark and so small if someone wanted to sit down, they had to sit on the other's lap. Scorpius' legs cramped, so he had to sit down. He sat on the floor near the door. The only source of light was the small one from the little gap between the door and the floor.
"No use," Jack-girl said scornfully. "Bloody hell."
Apparently she was going to kick a box but she stumbled and landed on Scorpius' lap.
"Hey! Get off!"
The girl was going to stand again when suddenly the boxes fell. Jack-girl casted a small Protego and pressed herself further into Scorpius' lap, protecting both of them from anything in case something fell upon them. Acting on instinct, Scorpius' hands cradled her head and pulled her closer. The boxes continued to fall, but both of them knew they would be alright.
After that, there was complete silence. Jack-girl didn't seem wanting to move, and Scorpius didn't want the warm girl to move either. He continued to cradle her face, tracing her features below the darkness. Her face paints was kind of sticky, and she had freckles, probably charmed to follow Jack Merridew physical description.
And before someone could say something, he pulled her face towards his and covered her lips with his. Surprisingly, she didn't move away either. She kissed him back just as fiercely. And as they continued to kiss like there was no tomorrow, both were oblivious of a small ball on a top of one of the boxes, and it blinked with a dim, blue light.
"Ew, Dad!"
Ron grinned at his son, a small ball on his hand. It showed them the images of the two teens kissing. "Jackpot, son! I should go and tell your mother."
Hugo's face was still crumpled with disgust as his dad walked away into the second floor to Floo his mom. He wouldn't see Lil and Scorp in the same way again!
The Hufflepuff boy crouched down on his seat and looked up when Snow White approached him. "Sparklings, are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine. Is Merlin okay?"
She nodded. "Mr. Lewis' sister is talking with him. Why d'you look so pale?"
Hugo patted the empty seat next to him and she sat down. "I've just seen something more terrifying than Halloween ghosts," he stated simply.
The walk home was silent and rather awkward. Both Scorpius and Jack-girl couldn't find something good to talk about. Mr. Lewis' house wasn't the last house they had to come into, so the walks towards the other five houses was so bloody quiet Scorpius couldn't stand it.
He examined the redhead girl. He wasn't a kiss-and-fuck type of guy. Much like his father, he didn't like dating what Draco called as 'bleak girls'. He wanted to see the bright girl he could depend on, as much as she depended on him, and they could share a bright future together.
He knew he could date her. She apparently wasn't one of the 'bleak girls'. But there was someone else in his mind, that kept reminding him that she was there all the time and not wanting to be forgotten.
The one and only Lily Luna Potter.
Jack-girl was caring, a good friend to talk to, deep, compassionate, and caring towards children. To make long story short, she was near perfect, although Scorpius only know her for several hours.
But another thought stopped him for doing so.
She wasn't Lily.
Lily was an image of a girl fighter in a Hogwarts' Slytherin robes. She was strong, snarky, quick-witted, and knew how to put down another person's arguments. She wasn't like 'a real Slytherin' Scorpius used to know. And that made her either maddening or endearing.
So he told Jack-girl before everything's too late.
"I like someone," he blurted out.
Jack-girl looked back. "Really?"
"Yeah… I'm sorry for… earlier, I mean. But I like someone else, and I think…"
Merlin, he sounded like a Gryffindor.
"Well, the feeling's mutual," Jack-girl replied. "I like someone else too. Pity, because you're okay."
"I don't know," Scorpius said. He didn't want to keep being cool now. Jack-girl was his first female friend, his mother excluded, and he had to ask for her advice about girls. Maybe she knew some good words? "I hate her but I can't stop thinking about her. We argue all the time but I keep looking forward for seeing her again so we can argue more."
Her eyes widened slightly before saying, "That means you like her."
"I don't know how to woo a fighter," he admitted embarrassedly.
She laughed, melting the tension between them. "A fighter, eh? Even fighters have their soft spots."
"Like what?"
"Well… all girls I know love Horgs." Jack-girl was blushing when she said this, as if she was telling him a secret.
Scorpius sniggered, a voice a Malfoy wouldn't admit to the end of their lives. But he wasn't a Malfoy now, and it didn't matter this time. "Horgs? Those rare mini dogs with horse heads?"
Jack-girl nodded. "I love them too. I think every girls love Horgs. It's the most adorable thing alive."
"I'll try it as soon as I meet her." Scorpius nodded at her. "Thanks."
They came into two houses, and got Treats. They weren't as close as before, the awkwardness was still there, but it's better than before.
After Jack-blond had told her about his crush, Lily was forced to think about Malfoy. As much as Lily wanted to kick that boy away from his mind, he couldn't seem to get away.
And every time Lily saw Jack-blond, she wondered why his golden hair wasn't white-blond, why his blue eyes weren't brown, why he almost didn't have the British accent (she knew it was charmed to follow Jack's American accent), and why his chin had to be that pointy. Jack-blond was actually slightly annoying, smart, a good friend to talk to, great in wandless charms, and a great kisser.
But he lacked something that Malfoy had; the only thing Lily liked the most.
His bickering ability.
Jack-blond was too nice to be Lily's type. But he could be a good friend. So Lily decided to ask Jack-blond about boys. "Well, I like someone too."
"Good for you," the other teen replied.
"But I don't know if he likes me too," Lily said, unsure about what she wanted to say. For once she blessed Aunt Severita's anonymity rules. Jack-blond couldn't know who she was after all. "All I do is annoying him and all he does is annoying me."
"But you like him."
"Yeah."
"Then stop arguing."
"I can't," Lily said desperately. "It's the only way so he can notice me."
"Then made your move in those arguments. Slip in some innuendo. Or you can kiss him in the middle of his bickering."
Lily laughed. "I'll think about it."
They came into the remaining houses, and still talking about other things like two old friends. When they came back to Peterson's Guesthouse, Jack-blond pulled her into a hug. "I have a good time," he said. "Thanks for that. I hope we can meet again."
Lily let him kiss her painted forehead. "Take this," she said, giving him the pig's head bag. "Thanks for today."
Jack-blond grinned and gave her his spear. "Take it, and maybe two Jacks will meet again next year."
And as they walked back, they continued to chatter cheerfully with all the little kids.
A week later.
"Hey, Potter!"
Lily looked back at Malfoy. "What?"
"Have you gotten your scores?" Malfoy gloated.
"Yeah." Lily didn't feel like arguing, especially when she had just seen the fellow Slytherin after the holiday.
Malfoy narrowed his eyes. "I got better ones than you."
"Good then."
"Hey, Potter the Arguer, Horg's gotten your tongue?"
"Bloody hell, you're not that adorable!" Lily snapped at him. The idiom 'Horg's gotten your tongue' meant someone couldn't speak because they saw something too adorable.
Malfoy stopped in front of her. "Is it? I don't think so. Speaking about Horgs, why don't you come with me?" And without waiting for her answer, he dragged her down to the dungeons, into the boys' dorm. The dorm was empty. Malfoy went towards his bed and pulled something from underneath it. It was a cage.
Lily's eyes widened when she saw the thing in the cage.
"A Horg?" she asked in disbelief. The magical creature stared back at her, its huge eyes melting her heart.
"A female Horg. Father sent me one. Like what you see?"
"You'll never hear it from me anymore, Malfoy, but I like it. A lot."
"Take it, then."
"What?"
"It's for you."
Lily gaped at him. But Malfoy shoved the cage towards her, forcing her to take it. She was exploded in happiness she hugged the cage tightly.
"Every girl loves Horgs. Can't understand why." Malfoy shrugged. "I wonder why those big eyes of a creature can be told as cute. I mean…"
Acting on instinct, she jumped up and kissed Malfoy's lips. She remembered how Jack-blond told her to kiss him in the middle of the bickering. That worked, though. Malfoy's face was priceless.
And as he pulled her towards him and kissing her lips passionately, both knew each other's advices had worked.
Christmas Day.
"Hey, Lil! You didn't feed Cleo again!"
"Of course not! She just didn't want to eat what comes from my hands! That Horg!"
"Bollocks to that! Just admit it, Lil, you've forgotten again!"
"Oh, shut up! I did feed her! She just loves you more!"
"Whatever. What are you doing?"
"Catching up with the essays! You're not making it again, are you?"
"I'm doing it now, so shut up!"
On the outside of the room, Harry Potter rolled his eyes at Draco Malfoy. "Are you sure they're together? I doubt it."
"Together for bickering forever," Draco said dryly.
"Not bickering. Bickering and kissing."
The fathers sighed, but then laughed slightly as they left their children's room, Scorpius' private room in Malfoy Manor to be precise. Inside the room, the redhead girl was still snarling at her boyfriend.
"You shut up! We only have some time before Mum fetches us!"
"You shut up too! I really need to concentrate! So we can go to your family's Christmas party!"
"What essay you need to concentrate on? Potions?"
"You know already, why'd you ask?"
"So I can haunt you and then you won't have it at all!"
"Shut up."
"You shut up!"
"You love me anyway."
"I love you too. Now move, let me help you."
"Alright then. Have I told you that I love you?"
"You just did."
"Oh, yeah. Sorry. Now shut up and kiss me."
And Lily did.
FIN.
A/N: Sorry for the rushing end, but I don't know better than to end it. "Flower Gleam and Glow…" actually belongs to KSBG. Fake Ass-Mar FTW, girl! XD