… for Shay …
i. Written for the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition || Round vii | Muggle me this | Team Appleby Arrows | Beater II | Write about a time where wizardkind has gotten so used to Muggle technology that they find themselves using magic lesser and lesser.
7. (word) confusion
15. (dialogue) "What do you mean, these pictures don't move?"
ii. Written for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry || Diagon Alley Event | Ollivander's Wand Shop | Organize wands for 15 coins (Write one fic, 2k word min.)
ii. Written for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry || Celtic Challenge | The Children of Lir | family | Lily Luna (bonus)
iii. Written for Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry || Writing Club | OTP Challenge | Prompt: Write about your OTP with a baby (doesn't have to be their own) | Optional Prompt (dialogue) "This is going better than I expected."
iv. Written for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and wizardry || Writing Club | Show time | Hamilton | Act one | 13. Wait For It: (object) a watch
words: 2,737
Thank you Sophie, Sophy, Jill for beta-ing! *hugs*
Forever Ivy (evergreen with hope)
Twenty-eight-year-old Scorpius Malfoy sighed in resignation, left his tie in its unfinished state and glanced nervously at the watch on his wrist. 'She'll be here any minute now,' he thought, swallowing hard.
"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy."
Upon hearing the amused voice of his girlfriend, the young blond man turned around. Involuntarily, his jaw dropped. The dark, floor length crimson dress, that so perfectly matched her flaming red hair, swished almost soundlessly over the ancient wooden floor of their little flat. It highlighted her figure perfectly and put special emphasis on her womanly curves. The long slit on the left side revealed her lovely legs, which were adorned with red high heels, making them look even longer.
His grey eyes widened ever-so-slightly when he noticed that she was showing a lot more cleavage than usual – not that Scorpius would complain about that, of course. They were, after all, expected at a wedding, and the more elegant, the better.
"Scorpius Malfoy," Lily Luna Potter repeated once more and, heels clicking, she crossed the small distance between them until she stood right in front of him. "Stop looking so worried. It's going to be fine."
The blond tried to fake a smile and focused instead on the equally low-cut back of her dress, that, in a V-like style, showed a lot of her slim but well-trained body.
"Judging by the way you're letting your eyes wander, I assume that you think of me as properly attired for tonight?" the redhead asked, smiling brightly.
The corners of his lips moved upwards into a small smirk. "You look stunning no matter what you wear, Lils."
Lily's green eyes sparkled and she stood on her toe tips to give him a soft kiss on the cheek. Then, she reached out to adjust his dark grey tie.
"There," she giggled, "now you are ready to go."
Scorpius turned slightly to check his own appearance in the mirror. He wore a dark grey suit with a – now knotted – tie and a black shirt underneath. Content, he smirked at her.
However, before he was able to thank her, the doorbell rang.
Immediately, Scorp's eyes widened. It seemed like every single muscle in his body had frozen.
Lily only shook her head in amusement and headed towards the door. Once open, the woman who had been waiting on the outside raised her eyebrows in a disapproving manner "It's about time you let me in, dear. Any longer and I would have started to take roots here," the elderly woman snapped and with a flick of her wand, the umbrella she had earlier conjured vanished.
Scorpius winced, but luckily Lily managed to smile politely – always the Gryffindor.
"I do apologize, Ms. Malfoy."
"How many times have I told you to call me by my first name, hmm?" Narcissa Malfoy mumbled and stepped into the room.
With a quickly muttered spell, her now grey hair tumbled down her back in soft curls. Scorpius had to admit that for a witch in her late-seventies, his grandmother looked as attractive as ever.
But not even the esteemed widow was able to stop time from passing by. Especially the years after her husband, Scorpius' grandfather, died had taken their toll on the witch, and the small wrinkles around her light blue eyes as well as the fragility were undeniable.
"Are you going to stand there all day?" his grandmother asked, looking at him expectantly. "Really, I didn't apparate all the way here into this place you call a home only to be left in the hallway like pair of unused shoes."
Scorpius tried hard to fight the laugh that was threatening to come out. Narcissa Malfoy was indeed a special kind of witch.
He quickly crossed the room to embrace her tightly. Their relationship had always been somewhat unique. Of course, Scorpius loved her – who didn't love their grandparents? – but because the two of them had been brought up during completely different times and circumstances, their opinions on certain topics often caused rather annoying disagreements.
Especially the fact that he had moved into a small flat in the middle of Muggle London. Apparently, it did not meet the standards of an appropriate home for the only heir of the esteemed and pure-blooded Malfoy Family. Sure enough, the aspect that neither of them wanted to live in an old-fashioned and ancient manor far off from their working areas had never been a good enough reason for her. In addition, Narcissa still wasn't really fond of the idea that her only grandson's fiancée worked as a surgeon in a Muggle hospital, of all places!
But Scorpius himself had never seen a problem in that. In fact, he admired his love even more for her decision to blend in a bit more with the non-magical folk. Apparently, they had techniques even the wizarding Healers would benefit from a lot, and Lily was eager to learn as much as possible from them.
"Now, I see that you have inherited your mother's sense of fashion," Narcissa noticed once she had released him and raised her eyebrow.
Scorpius gave his best not to narrow his eyes at her and dismissed the by now familiar pain in his heart that occurred whenever someone mentioned his deceased mother. He felt Lily's supporting hand on his shoulder – she knew how much he still missed his mother.
Astoria Greengrass, albeit being a descendant from an equally wealthy pureblood family, had also struggled to fit into the Malfoy Family; most of the time because the brunette beauty had always had a soft spot for Muggles – and their fashion.
"Well, it's a Muggle wedding, so any other kind of attire would be highly inappropriate, wouldn't you agree?" Lily stepped in.
Narcissa didn't seem convinced and tightened her own dark-blue robe around her thin body.
"I see," she mumbled and glanced around, head held high. "Now, Scorpius, are you waiting for me to give myself a tour of your so-called home? Or are you going to show me around anytime soon?"
Scorpius chuckled. "Follow me. I'm sure you'll like it, Gran."
His grandmother's forehead wrinkled. "I doubt that, darling. You have far too many Muggle artefacts for my liking…"
Lily suppressed a laugh and led the elderly woman into the kitchen, the lovely red dress swishing on the wooden floor.
Narcissa mumbled something incoherent and Scorpius followed the two women; still unsure if they had made the right choice when asking the witch to stay over.
.x.X.x.
"What do you mean, these pictures don't move?"
Scorpius almost doubled over with laughter. They had spent the last fifteen minutes showing his grandmother around their little home. The result was an amused Lily, a happily laughing Scorpius, and an utterly confused Narcissa Malfoy.
The elderly witch was standing in front of the chimney, one hand holing up a small wooden frame with a picture of Scorpius and Lily on her graduation ball.
"Well, some of my patients drop by every now and then," Lily explained as she let herself sink down on one of the chairs in dining room. "It would be very inconvenient if we had to exchange the magical frames with Muggle ones all the time, so we settled for the latter."
Narcissa opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Scorpius glanced at his watch again. Luckily, Lily had taken some precautions in advance and invited the elderly witch over early, so they still had enough time until the wedding started. And judging by her expression, Narcissa still needed some time to adjust to her grandson's living arrangements.
"Why would you invite Muggles into your home?"
The blond watched as his fiancée tried not to let her temper, which she had inherited from both her parents, get the better of her.
"I'm a doctor," she explained, "I want to offer my patients the best care I can offer."
Narcissa raised an eyebrow. "That leads to the question as to why you would pursue such a career in the first place, dear."
Scorpius placed a calming hand on the red-head's shoulder.
"Times change, Gran," he explained, trying to ease the situation between the two witches.
"So that is the reason that you are no longer connected to the Floo Network?" Her eyebrows rose to her hairline.
Lily shrugged. "We have a car to get from one place to another."
Narcissa looked positively appalled. Scorpius took a step closer towards her in case he had to catch her if she was to faint.
"For Salazar's sake, living among Muggles is one thing," she scolded and gestured around the room, "but actually living like them is – is – "
"Is actually very common in our generation, Gran," Scorpius finished with a smirk.
Light blue eyes widened in horror. "You don't really mean that, Scorpius. Please tell me you are joking."
This time, Lily spoke. "Living like Muggles is not as bad as one would think," she chuckled, green eyes dancing in amusement. "We just came to the conclusion that some of the technologies the Muggles invented are actually quite useful."
"The telephone, for example," Scorp added.
"Telly-what?"
He laughed at the utter confusion that was shown on her face. "Telephone, Gran. It's a communication device. It is much easier than sending a patronus or an owl."
The elderly witch shook her head. "Do you use any magic at all around here?"
"Of course, we do," Lily answered and despite her best efforts a soft giggle escaped her. "We've just gotten so used to Muggle things that we found ourselves using magic less and less, but occasionally, it still comes in handy."
Scorp smirked. "Yes, especially if a certain green-eyed witch is throwing a fuss."
.x.X.x.
"Anyway, this is the last room."
He watched as his grandmother let her light blue eyes wander over the room. They travelled over the white curtains in front of the windows to the small blue sofa that occupied most of the room and the TV that was hanging on the brick-lined wall. The way her nostrils flattered and her eyebrows rose in confusion were clear indicators that she didn't approve of their living-room decoration either. Scorpius already knew that it was due to the lack of magical artefacts – neither Lily nor himself felt necessary to put potions, kettles or spell-books in plain sight. They barely used them anyway, so everything had been stored in the basement of their apartment.
Scorpius was already expecting the 'you are a Malfoy, so live accordingly' speech, but to his surprise, a small smile played around the corners of Narcissa's lips, her features softening when her light blue eyes fell upon the little ivory coloured crib, emblazoned with evergreen ivy leaves on either side, at the back of the room.
Wordlessly, she walked over the floor until she reached her destination. "May I?" she asked politely, almost shyly, and glanced at both Lily and her grandson.
Lily smiled and Scorpius only nodded.
Carefully, as if not to break anything, Scorpius watched as his grandmother reached out and softly lifted the baby girl who was safely wrapped in several green blankets out of her crib.
The honest and happy smile on Narcissa's face when she stared at her great-granddaughter for the first time was something Scorpius would never forget. It proved that there was indeed something soft behind the icy walls the witch had built up over the years.
"This is going better than I expected," Scorpius whispered in Lily's ear, who gave him an 'I-told-you-so' look in return.
Narcissa cradled the sleeping baby in her arms, and turned to face the young parents. "I have to admit, I was a bit surprised when I heard about the arrival of the child," she mumbled and Scorpius mouthed a 'you're not the only one' to Lily, who giggled, "but I can see that she is very well taken care of."
'Despite being brought up like a Muggle child' was left unsaid.
Scorpius put an arm around Lily's waist. The news about her pregnancy had been a rather unexpected surprise for everyone. The fact that Lily was twenty-six didn't do much to stop the older generation from shooting her disapproving glances due to the lack of a marriage announcement.
But luckily, both Lily's parents and Scorpius' own father had given them their blessings and that was all that mattered. Looking at his little family now, Scorpius wouldn't have it any other way. His little girl, who had inherited his own blond hair and her mother's stunning emerald green eyes, had him wrapped around her tiny little fingers from the first time the nurse had placed her in his arms.
"We are glad you think that way," Lily spoke up, her green eyes sparkling. "We understand that it was a lot to ask, and we understand if you have changed your mind considering the many Muggle – "
A sharp glance from Narcissa silenced her. "Lower your voice, my dear, or this little one will wake up before you are out of the house."
Scorpius tried his best not to look too hopeful. "So does this mean that…?"
His grandmother nodded, un uncharacteristically soft smile on her lips again. "Yes, I will be looking after my great-granddaughter tonight, darling. I imagine it has been some time since you last had an evening to yourselves," she whispered, a longing look on her face. "I remember when your father was born… Lucius and I…"
At the mentioning of her late husband, Narcissa took a deep breath. "I would love to spend some time with this little lady," she repeated matter-of-factly, trying her best to keep her voice from shaking.
Scorpius quickly met his fiancée's eyes. Despite his earlier hesitation about inviting his grandmother to baby-sit, he had to agree that Lily had been right – she always was. His grandmother was lonely and this might distract her a bit.
"Thank you, Grandma," the young man whispered and crossed the room to give her a soft kiss on the cheek.
Narcissa smiled at the little girl. "How did you name her? I hope you chose something at least partially appropriate?"
Lily smirked. "You mean something not too Muggle-ish?"
The witch in question shrugged rather innocently. "Can you blame me for asking, my dear?"
"We decided to continue with the flower-tradition," Scorpius' grey eyes sparkled.
His grandmother, however, didn't look convinced at all. "By Merlin, please tell me it's not one of these awfully modern names like Marigold or the like…"
The redhead smiled lovingly at her daughter. "Heavens, we wouldn't dare."
"Her name is Ivy," the blond man explained and looked at his grandmother expectantly. "Ivy Astoria Malfoy."
His Grandmother nodded approvingly. Scorpius was sure that he even saw tears welling up in her eyes because as much as she tried to deny it, Narcissa had grown close to her daughter-in-law over the years.
"Your mother would love that, my darling," she said and kissed the little girl softly on the forehead before laying her great-granddaughter back into her ivy-ornamented crib.
Then she glanced at the old grandfather clock at the opposite of the room. "Aren't the two of you supposed to go to that Muggle wedding of yours? I assume showing me around the house already took longer than you expected."
The couple nodded.
"Well then, off you go," Narcissa whispered in order not to wake the little girl. "My great-granddaughter and I will be quite fine, won't we, Ivy?"
Scorpius smiled, straightened his suit and put an arm around his fiancée's waist before he shot his daughter one last look and headed out of the room.
The door was about to close behind them, when he heard his grandmother's voice once more.
"Now that we're alone, my little Ivy, I'll show you how much fun it is to be a witch. I don't want you to use as little magic as your parents... Now where shall we start, hmm? Ah, yes, what about a new pillow for you, darling? I think on in the form of an evergreen ivy leaf would suit you quite perfectly…"
.x.X.x.
The voice quietened down and Lily kissed her fiancé softly on the lips.
"Ivy will bring love back into her life; you just wait and see," Lily whispered as she sat down in the car.
Scorpius started the engine.
"Of course, she will," he mused happily. "Ivy leaves are evergreen. It's the colour of hope."