Rose and Scorpius: Their relationship is complicated.
They've always been rivals. Ever since Ronald Bilius Weasley had told his eldest daughter to make sure she beat Scorpius Malfoy on every single test, which was exactly what she does. Most of the time. It was true that Rose had inherited her mother's brains, but her intelligence didn't come without effort. She spent all of her free time either studying in the Gryffindor common room, or studying in the Hogwarts library. Every fiber of her being is focused on beating Scorpius Malfoy, and it isn't a task she takes lightly. She hates him—whatever the reason—and he hates her right back. They bicker whenever they see each other, and they see each other often. Despite being in Gryffindor and Slytherin respectively, they are in nearly all of the same classes, they receive nearly all the same marks, and they are both best friends with Albus, who was constantly trying to get them to reconcile. Needless to say, by the time they're in their fifth year (both on their quidditch teams, and both newly elected prefects) their rows have become so infamous that even the teachers know of their reputation. They, however, just laugh and speculate that they're the next James and Lily Potter.
Hisintelligence comes without effort (as do most things in his life; quidditch, picking up girls, making friends etc…) and he knows it bothers her. He uses nearly every opportunity to remind her of his "superiority in nearly all aspects of life" but he can't help but be jealous of Rose Weasley. In fact, if he's being honest with himself, he's jealous of all of the Weasley- Potters. They have the one thing he doesn't—a family—and for the same reason it makes him love Albus, it makes Scorpius hate Rose Weasley, because she was an easy target to begin with, and he never knew any different. He loves to row with her. He loves to yell and be yelled at, to bicker and to insult knowing that she can take whatever he throws at her. One thing Scorpius Malfoy does not do though, is make her cry. Because if there is one thing Malfoys hate it's feeling guilty, and he doesn't like to feel guilty. Not over Rose Weasley.
They've called each other every bad name there is, but it isn't until their sixth year that they realize their fighting affects their friends as well. One afternoon Albus, Rose, and Scorpius were sitting by the lake, when Rose and Scorpius got into an argument over who had received better marks on their last Arithmancy test( that had yet to be graded) that they realized how much their fighting actually bothered Albus. Somewhere between Rose calling Scorpius an "egotistical prat with his head shoved so far up his own arse that she was surprised he could even translate runes" and Scorpius calling Rose "a whiny, friendless, know-it-all ginger" that Albus finally had something to say. He stood up, and proceeded to yell at them, saying that if they couldn't stop fighting he wouldn't talk to either one of them before he stormed off in the direction of the castle. An awkward silence had ensued before Rose shot Scorpius a glare before flouncing off to the castle (in the direction of the library no doubt). Nevertheless, they had come to a mutual agreement that they would try to keep the bickering to a minimum for Albus' sake. That didn't last more than a week though, and secretly Albus was glad—it was too weird to have them acting civilized.
For the rest of their sixth year, Rose and Scorpius were more competitive than ever. Be it classes, quidditch, or even buying their friends the best birthday gift, nothing they did was without competition. That is, until Scorpius Malfoy found Rose Weasley crying in the library. He had been looking for a quiet place to read, because when you were friends with the Weasley-Potters, it was difficult to get any quiet time, when he heard sobbing in the Underwater Herbology aisle. He had peered tentatively around the corner, and when he saw it was Rose, his first reaction was to run away… until the guilt set in, and he found himself kneeling beside her.
"Rose, are you alright?" Scorpius asked rather awkwardly, patting her on the back to get her attention. Rose looked up—startled at first, because he had called her Rose, and not Weasley—before her gaze hardened and she turned her head away.
"Why do you care, Malfoy?" she asked pointedly. "Usually you delight in my pain. I'm a little shocked by the change of heart." Scorpius was suddenly shocked. He knew that they got at each other worse than cats and dogs, but she couldn't think that he actually hated her, could she?
"I don't like seeing you upset. That's just how we are around each other, isn't it? I don't really know any other way to be." Scorpius shrugged. "And to prove what a gentleman I truly am beneath my Malfoy exterior, I'm going to cheer you up." Scorpius helped pull Rose to her feet before dragging her out of the library, and out of the castle to the lake. They lay down beneath their usual beech tree, and looked up at the stars—Scorpius showing Rose the different constellations.
"That one right there is Orion—," he said pointing.
"I'm in Astronomy," Rose pointed out. "I know that."
"Yes, but each constellation has a story, and I know for a fact that they don't teach you that in Astronomy." Scorpius responded no trace of annoyance or pomp in his voice.
"Alright, I'll bite. What's the story behind your name? Scorpius, I mean."
"Well Orion—the hunter—was very proud, and he went off running his mouth to Artemis—also a hunter—that he could kill any animal on earth. I suppose he was trying to impress her so they could get together-," Scorpius raised his eyebrows suggestively.
"Scorpius," Rose laughed, encouraging him to get on with the story.
"Anyways, Artemis sent the scorpion to fight Orion, and Orion was killed. As a reminder for mortals not to be prideful, Zeus put Orion and Scorpius in the sky as constellations."
"I like that story." Rose said thoughtfully. After a few moments of silence, Rose shifts uncomfortably and says, "Jacob Alberight."
"Wait, what?" Scorpius asks, sitting up.
"He's why I was crying in the library. He was asking me to go to Hogsmeade with him, and I tried to tell him no…" Rose explained, her throat closing up a bit.
"That bloody sod! He didn't… touch you… did he?" Scorpius asked, angry someone would do that to Rose. Sure they didn't always see eye to eye, but that was the lowest most disgusting—!
"Yeah. I hexed him off of me fast enough, but it was still just so embarrassing! And I couldn't go back to the common room yet. Not with all my family around. They would have done something drastic and made it out to be a big deal." Rose explained. Scorpius knew Rose's family. And even though they all got along, it was terrifying to see James Potter mad. James had taken on the role of the protector ever since Teddy Lupin had graduated, and because he was the eldest of the Potters and Weasleys he had a reputation for being terribly overprotective.
"Rose it is a big deal. Look, I know I give you a hard time… but no one should treat you that way. You're gorgeous, and funny, bloody brilliant, and a great quidditch player and you should never let anyone—not even me—tell you any differently." Scorpius finished, making a mental note to punch Alberight the next chance he got. He could swear he saw Rose smile and blush in the dim light. From that moment on, their rivalry turned almost into a friendship and the rows became less harsh and more banter. No one noticed the difference, but they did, and that was enough for them.
It wasn't until seventh year that they truly understood each other. They were made Head Boy and Head Girl, much to the elation of their families, and they moved into their own dormitory. To everyone else, it was a disaster waiting to happen, but if truth be told, Rose and Scorpius didn't mind. Not that they would ever admit it to each other or anyone else. In fact, their newly found sometimes friendship was one that they both enjoyed quite a lot. They still rowed—sharing a common room and their class schedules they would be insane not to, but the fights were over quickly and they almost always apologized. Almost. They really didn't run into any terrible conflict until October—and then everything exploded. Rose had been making her rounds at night as Head Girl, when she overheard Francis Parkinson (a late fling of Scorpius's) talking with her friend in the corridor about how great her snogging session with Scorpius had been and how good- looking he was etc. Rose was suddenly so furious that she burst into their conversation, and sent them back to their common room, taking a good fifteen points from Slytherin just for good measure. When she got back to her common room, she flung her bag down, and flopped into a chair still fuming. That no good arrogant prick! She thought, crossing her arms sullenly. She couldn't believe he would go for someone like Francis! She was just such a slag! Not to mention she had probably hooked up with about every guy in school. But hasn't Scorpius been with every girl? The nagging little voice in the back of her head asked. She ignored it and stormed off to bed, resolving to give Scorpius the cold shoulder.
The next morning, Scorpius had been utterly displeased to find out Rose was completely ignoring him. She wasn't even fighting with him like they used to—in fact, it seemed as though she had just given up entirely, and it made Scorpius want to yell at her until he went hoarse; to shout at her until she had to pay attention to him, so after Charms, he finally caught up with her, and grabbed her by the arm.
"Hey, what's been going on with you? You've completely ignored me and I want to know what I've done, Rose."
"Oh that's rich! You know exactly what you've done, or rather who." Rose added as an afterthought. He hadn't ever seen her this mad at him.
"No I don't, actually. Because I haven't been with any girls since last March, and you should know I haven't been with anyone since the beginning of this year since we live together!" Scorpius replied, his voice raising in pitch, and attracting a crowd.
"Oh really!" Rose exclaimed, her voice raising too. "What about Francis Parkinson, hmm? I walked in on her and her friend talking about your latest snogging session."
"Parkinson? You've got to be kidding me, right? I haven't snogged her in a year and a half! Besides, why do you care, Rose?" Scorpius asked, his anger fading into frustration. Rose glared at his as the signature Malfoy smirk crossed his lips. She was struck speechless by the question. Why did she care?
"I- I uh… I don't, but you're supposed to be a little bit grown up by now! You're Head Boy! How would you feel if I went and snogged Jacob Alberight?" Scorpius stilled. That was a low blow, even for her. She knew how much he hated that prick after what he had tried to do to Rose last year.
"I'd be pissed." Scorpius shot back.
"Oh yeah, why do you care?" Rose shouted, turning his own words against him.
"Because I'm mad about you, and I don't want you kissing anyone who's not me." Scorpius shouted out. They just stood there, several inches apart, breathing heavily for a moment before he grabbed Rose and kissed her. She reacted in a way she would never have thought—kissing him back with enthusiasm. When they broke apart, they heard Albus shout out from the crowd,
"Well it's about bloody time, you two!" and they laughed before they kissed again.
They were not the same kids they were when they started Hogwarts. Scorpius Malfoy was not the angry little boy who worried he wouldn't find friends, and Rose Weasley wasn't the shy girl with frizzy red hair anymore. They had both done a lot of changing (for the better) and they loved each other because of it. Two of the most popular students at Hogwarts, two of the brightest witches and wizards of their age, had finally stopped fighting and fell in love. After all, they were the next James and Lily Potter, weren't they?
Their relationship was complicated, but they wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.