Disclaimer: Not mine, just borrowing from the Queen!
It was now common knowledge at Hogwarts that Rose Weasley fancied the pants off one Scorpius Malfoy.
Oh, no, she hadn't meant for it to be. But a night of alcohol induced stupor, along with an ill timed, rather placed conversation with her best friend, Hannah Lewis, had put her in this position.
This was mainly the reason she was hiding under her duvet, quite like the proud Gryffindor she was. Waking up to a hangover had been bad enough, and coupled with school-wide mortification, well it would suffice to say that she wasn't emerging from between her covers anytime soon.
She thought back to her reckless declarations in her firewhiskey induced daze and she cringed, sinking deeper into her bed if possible. What had she been thinking, announcing it in the Slytherin common room of all places?
Oh, right, she hadn't been thinking.
She wholly blamed the alcohol, as well as her equally inebriated, so called best friend who had encouraged her.
She smothered her face into her pillow, muffling her frustrated groan when she recollected the expression on the face of the boy in question. He had watched her swaying as she tried to gain footing on top of the table, professing her feelings for him, his face a mask, concealing all emotions. Then, the bastard has smirked at her!
Of all the nerve!
Now he knew she fancied him, and the only thing it had done was to boost his already inflated ego.
After 7 years of contempt and rivalry, she had gone and lost the game, and in such a fashion.
Merlin, she was in trouble. Knowing him, he wouldn't stop taking the mick, for the next 100 years or so.
She would not go down as the brightest witch of their age, or as a brilliant keeper, but as the girl who announced to the school that she fancied Scorpius Malfoy. The thought had her fuming, especially given all her attempts at hiding this interesting tidbit of information behind clever jibes and hexes.
She would never live this down, he would ensure it.
For years it had appeared that she was the only girl in school not affected by his charms. It had irked him, if not anything else and she had revelled in his annoyance. But now it was all ruined. He knew, and there was nothing worse according to her.
Lying on her bed, surrounded by charms to keep people away, she thought back to the time she had realized she had fallen for him.
He was Al's best friend, so she did see him a lot, within and outside Hogwarts.
It had been that summer, just before 5th year, when they had played quidditch non-stop till someone yelled for them to stop. He had shot up like crazy all of a sudden, and she had found herself shorter than the rest of the group.
One of those evenings, they had found themselves alone in each others company, with nothing but the trees around for miles and miles, the smell of honeysuckle heavy between them.
A sweet summer evening, giving way to a starry night, and in that ambience they had spoken for hours about how everything was changing, and what they wanted to achieve in life. It had been her most honest talk till date, and she was pleasantly surprised it had been with him. If he had any such qualms he didn't reveal them. Instead he told her about his life.
He talked about his childhood, about being an only child. He spoke about his responsibilities as a Malfoy heir. He painted a picture with his words about his hopes and dreams, about becoming a Healer, of saving lives. For the first time, in all the while she had known him; she opened her eyes to Scorpius Malfoy.
She shared equally, about the joys and burdens of such a large family, of carrying the name Weasley, about her plans to travel the world.
He was supportive, imaginative and surprisingly intuitive, and Rose had found herself falling fast.
He was a looker too, not to forget, with his aristocratic chin, gray eyes and blond hair. She had only held out so long from succumbing, given his arrogance. That evening however, there were no airs about him. He had been humble, down to earth and had completely knocked her socks off with his frankness.
It hadn't lasted, however. The moment summer was over and they resumed their stay at Hogwarts, he had returned to the egotistical prat she detested, bursting her bubble for good.
This time was different though, for she knew who he was underneath the bravado.
It was that which brought her downfall, she concluded, tossing in bed now, as she came to terms with what she had done. He was a player, a regular casanova, and he enjoyed it. That night was probably the farthest thing from his mind! She cursed herself yet again, for falling prey to the Malfoy charms.
After a nice afternoon of wallowing in self pity and embarrassment, Rose lifted the charms, allowing a harried Hannah to lecture her good. The next day, she was back on her feet, doing the rounds, now resistant to the petty gossip.
She didn't care what people thought, it was only one opinion that mattered, and the blond seemed indifferent to the whole thing. She wasn't sure whether to be thankful for his attitude of not rubbing it in her face, or angry with him for his lack or acknowledgement. But, there was nothing she could do about it. He didn't respond well to being confronted, she knew that.
Besides, she was done making a fool of herself on his account.
They continued like that, ignoring each other until conversation was absolutely necessary.
They nodded to each other in the halls, did prefect rounds together, and life went on as though nothing had happened.
It had occurred though, how much ever they liked to deny it.
She went about her daily business, accepting his silence for the rejection it actually was. Indeed it was hard to get over him, but she put her heart and soul into trying.
She tried to convince herself that it was just a crush, a school girl's fantasy of something she could never have.
She tried to ignore the shivers through her body when he inadvertently made eye contact.
She pretended not to be affected when he sat oh-so-close to her in class, that she could feel his radiating body heat.
It was a matter of simply closing her jealous heart from the different girls she saw on his arm each week.
When he bumped into her in hallways, she kept walking, not acknowledging the tingles she felt deep down.
And the fact that she whiffed honeysuckle in the amortentia they were boiling didn't mean anything at all.
All too soon, the year was over, and they had graduated. Rose, as expected, was top of the class, and he too came out with honours, accepted into the Healers program. Though their time at Hogwarts had come to an end, she knew it wasn't the last she would see of him. He was her cousin's best friend. He practically lived at the Potters!
But she could live with that, for she had finally come to terms with it.
He hung out more at the Potter household than at Malfoy Manor, which was common knowledge.
What he hadn't counted on, was that she would leave.
Barely a week after graduation, she had picked up her backpack and had walked out. She was out to chase her dreams of travelling and visiting far lands, just as he was working diligently to become a Healer. With no word as to her return, or her destination, she had left, and he had watched her.
Now, six years later, he wondered what would have happened had he taken her up that fateful day, when she had been proclaiming her love to him, for the world to see.
He had never noticed her before that, definitely not as a girl. She was one of Al's many relatives to him, same red hair, same freckles. Sure, they had talked that one summer evening, and he had opened up to her quite honestly, but it hadn't really meant anything. They were just sharing their dreams, bouncing ideas off one another, nothing to get excited about.
After that evening though, he saw her more clearly, as a person of her own, rather than a part of the Weasley clan. They competed in school, because that's how he had been brought up. He was after all a teenage boy, a good looking one at that. What good were his natural charms if he didn't utilize them to the maximum extent?
Sure he had been bit of a tool back in the days.
Alright, a big one.
He had been an absolute prat, ignoring Rose Weasley after her public , he hadn't felt the same way at the time. So he had chosen to ignore the problem till it went away.
Rose, to her credit had kept her chin up, through it all. Not once had she questioned him, and for that he had been grateful. He had pretended that he couldn't see the hurt in her eyes every time he pranced around with a new girl on his arm.
He purposely bumped into her in the halls, or sat a little too close to her in Herbology to watch her squirm.
He didn't say anything out loud, Merlin, her army of relatives would have had his head otherwise. Instead, he pulled her leg in his own cruel way, taking advantage of her feelings.
He realized now, the unkindness of his actions, and wasn't karma kicking him in the arse for it.
At the time, he had judged Rose as a type of girl you settled down with. One whom you brought home to your parents, had a family with. She wasn't the adventurous type; she was the girl next door.
His younger self hadn't been excited by the prospect of being tied down, however smart or pretty she was. So he had snubbed her, turned her away with his silence, not bothering to look in her direction again.
And now, it seemed, he had to atone for his sins.
This beautiful woman before him could not be her. But, indeed it was.
She had chopped off her locks, preferring a shoulder length bob instead. Her fringe fell into her beautiful blue eyes, which she brushed off, almost involuntarily. Her heart shaped face was contorted into a wicked expression that undoubtedly meant mischief as she looked up at him. She had filled out in all the right places, he noticed as he gave her a once over, eyes lingering on her curves showcased by her fitting clothes. "Eyes up here, Malfoy." she laughed, brushing past him, through the door, to her unsuspecting family.
The cries of surprise and shock behind him from James and Hermione were what he needed to snap him out of his trance and back into reality. He shut the door, a dumbstruck expression glued to his face as he made his way back into the kitchen.
He watched her all night, moving about the house, talking and laughing merrily, recounting tales of her adventures and where her travels had taken her, to different family members, young and old.
She played with her nieces and nephews, helped cook dinner and had a drink with her father and uncles as they played chess.
The family gathering had been impromptu, just like her visit.
Scorpius had openly stared, gaping like a fish at what he had given up. "Take a photo, it'll last longer." Al had advised, clapping him on his back, as he caught on to what was happening. Suddenly, it had gotten a bit much for him, and he had retired to his room, under the pretext of studying.
Just before he left the gathering, he had seen her doing the dishes with Al, splashing him every now and then, as he teased her. Karma was a bitch, he acknowledged as he fell asleep, knowing she was so close to him, yet so far from his reach.
As the days went by, Scorpius had gathered quite a bit of information about her journey by listening in on various conversations. Yes, listening, thank you very much; he didn't care much for the word eavesdropping.
She had travelled far and wide, to unknown lands, exploring, learning, living. She had brought back gifts for them, from various countries, some he hadn't even heard of.
She had been surprised to learn that he had moved out of the Manor and into Grimmauld Place. He had shrugged it off nonchalantly, not making a big deal of it.
His studies had taken a backseat for the week, his mind clearly on the red head and the opportunity he had passed up all those years ago. He had learnt of her many flings, coerced out of her by her wily cousins (read Lily and Dom) and he was secretly relieved that she wasn't tied down to a man somewhere in India!
She chatted with him politely, not snubbing him, but not indulging him either.
When asked how long she was staying, she had replied without batting an eyelid "Till I'm called away". He had taken it as a personal challenge to keep her in England long enough to charm his way back into her heart again.
That Saturday, they were headed clubbing, which Scorpius had politely declined in favour of studying. The last time he had been around an inebriated Rose hadn't ended very well, had it?
To say Scorpius Malfoy had changed would be a massive understatement. He had matured, from the partying casanova he had been in Hogwarts to a responsible Healer-in-training. He was in his final year of studies, after which he was set to be a full-fledged Healer, one he had dreamt of being since the tender age of 6. He had worked his arse off, studying day and night to be the best he could be. His dedication had paid off; he was top of his class and poised to be recruited right into Mungos.
At his declination, they had all made a fuss, badgering him to go with them. "You study too much" Rose had insisted, and that's all it had taken to change his mind.
Many a times, when she had been away, his thoughts had strayed in her direction, wondering what she had discovered, where she was. He had caught pieces of information when she wrote Al or Ginny, but nothing concrete.
He had had his fair share of girlfriends, but his training hardly gave him time for a social life. After what seemed like years, he had a shot of firewhiskey, feeling it burn its way down his throat. After that there was no holding him back. Al encouraged it, agreeing with Rose about how he hardly got out anymore. After a while he lost track of the amount he had consumed, living in the moment, forgetting everything else. She was right there with him, flirting openly, dancing the night away in his arms. He wasn't one to turn her away a second time, so he played her game. She had clearly let the booze get the better of her yet again.
This time, he let go too, revelling with her.
The next evening he watched her slip away from her throng of cousins for some peace. After waiting for an appropriate amount of time, he followed, driven by a sudden compelling need to speak to her.
He found himself in the same orchard they had been all those years ago, the late summer air laden with honeysuckle. He looked around, wondering where she had disappeared to amidst the trees.
"Up here." she called out, revealing herself from a branch about 10 feet above him. He grinned at her, admiring her daring, and elated that she chose to talk to him. "Join me." she invited, moving so he would have space. So he did just that.
Again the two spoke well into the night, beginning with Scorpius' apology on behalf of his younger bratty self. She forgave him with a laugh, attributing everything to childish immaturity and innocence. He didn't dare comment further on the topic.
She spoke about her experiences, sharing anecdotes that had him rolling with laughter. She told him about her brushes with dark and ancient magic. And most of all how much she had missed home.
He explained why he had left home, about how he was done with living up to their expectations. He filled her in on all that she had missed while she had been gone. Of anniversaries and birthdays gone bad. He spoke of the various cases he had come across in his line of work, and she had listened in rapture.
They had come to some sort of understanding that night, their bond growing stronger than ever.
She had judged Scorpius Malfoy pretty well, back when they had been teenagers.
Just like all teenage boys, he had been shy of commitment, and he had turned away from her for those reasons.
She had let him, attributing her own fascination with the boy, to hormones.
Their connection was unmistakable though, they just clicked.
Standing in Hogwarts ten years after Graduation was a surreal experience. She socialized, a smile on her face, greeting old classmates at their reunion. She admired how far they had all come from their school going selves, how much each one had achieved.
As the evening wore on, the liquor flowed more easily, as did conversation.
A commotion suddenly caught her attention, so she made her way to the scene. She watched Scorpius Malfoy in the midst of the crowd, looking absolutely dashing in his dress robes. His eyes were on her as he went down on one knee, drawing a velvet box out of thin air. "Rose Nymphadora Weasley, I love you." He cried, gray eyes shining like stars. "Marry me?" he announced, making her giddy.
She nodded and ran into the arms of her boyfriend of 4 years, laughing and crying simultaneously. As the catcalls went off behind them while they kissed, she vaguely noticed the green and silver banners around them, and marveled at how life, indeed, came a full circle.
Random one shot that popped into my mind!
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To all of you who are following 'The Trial', next chapter should be up next week :)