"Rosie, angel, Daddy wont let you get hurt again," Ron's face was a freckled pool of worry, Rose's face was pale, surrounded by curly waves of red hair. The five year old looked earnestly into her father's blue eyes and asked innocently,
"Promise?" Ron felt his heart break, his daughter had only slipped on a shard of ice but the pain in her eyes and the confidence she put into her father's word broke him like the war couldn't.
"I promise." He agreed, their identical blue eyes meeting and her lips, which before were slightly pouted, broke into a full, beaming grin. It was then that Ron promised himself he would see that smile as much as he could.
{~~*~~}
"So that's little Scorpius. Make sure you beat him in every test, Rosie. Thank God you inherited your mother's brains." Rose squinted through the fog at the Malfoy family.
"Ron, for heaven's sake. Don't try to turn them against each other before they've even started school!" Her mother's tone was scolding but even Rose could hear the slight amusement.
"You're right, sorry, don't get too friendly with him, though, Rosie. Granddad Weasley would never forgive you if you married a pure-blood." Rose looked more curiously at the Malfoy family, they looked somewhat more reserved than she had imagined the to be, the father looked dishevelled and as if he had been forced to age far too quickly.
"Daddy?" Rose asked as James came running wildly towards them, yelling about Teddy and Victoire – something Rose had know would happen for months.
"Yeah, Rosie?" Ron replied as he bent to her level.
"What if I don't do well in school?" she murmured the words into ears, preventing their escape with cupped hands.
"You, my angel, are the last person who would need to worry about that. But," he said quickly before Rose could protest. "Even if they expel you, your mum and I will love you to the end of the earth. No matter what." Ron stated and Rose, with a sudden childlike impulse, said,
"Promise?"
"I promise." Ron looked into her eyes, they were young, carefree and scared. He knew that it would soon be replaced with excitement.
{~~*~~}
"Oh, sorry," Rose muttered as she walked straight into someone. Looking up from the book that moments before had held her whole concentration, Rose first saw a Slytherin tie – trying to avoid pulling a face – she looked up into the face of her victim. He no longer wore his hair slicked back, it had grown to be a mess of platinum blonde. His eyes were grey - not the dark grey of storm clouds that they had been in first year - but the grey of clouds which were just about to break and show the sun shining brightly behind them.
"Rose Weasley, isn't it?" he questioned, his voice was free of the famous Malfoy drawl which her father had warned her about.
"Yes, Scorpius Malfoy, isn't it?" she replied, trying to keep the mocking tone from her voice. Then something completely unexpected happened, Scorpius Malfoy laughed. Rose's surprise must have shown on her face because he laughed again.
"Yes, Weasley, Malfoy's are not completely oblivious to the act of laughing," he grinned.
"Th-that's not what I was thinking," she stammered.
"Of course," he winked – Scorpius Malfoy winked at her! "You know what, you're all right Weasley," he said, looking curiously at her. Rose stopped the blush she knew was rising in her cheeks.
"You're not to bad yourself, Malfoy," she smiled.
{~~*~~}
"What is he doing here?" Albus Potter's face looked horrified, so much so that Rose laughed aloud.
"Albus, this is my friend, Scorpius Malfoy. Scorpius, this is my cousin, Albus Potter," Rose introduced. It had been a year since their first introduction and slowly they had found themselves beginning working together in the library and actually enjoying each other's company.
"What?" Albus looked so confused, Rose felt sorry for him. He was just like Uncle Harry, brilliant in lessons and real situations but when it came to people, absolutely clueless.
"We're friends, idiot," Rose laughed as Albus' jaw began to work so furiously he could probably unhinge it.
"Okay..." was all he finally managed, sitting in a seat far enough away to give them privacy but close enough to spy on them.
{~~*~~}
"Scorpius!" Rose complained, it was a year since Albus had found out that Rose and Scorpius were friends and he had decidedly warmed up to the idea.
"No! He's mine!" Albus shouted, clinging to the blonde boy.
"Albus, I know I am unmistakably, stunningly, irresistibly handsome but you need to control yourself. Rose, I'll help you in a minute, if I don't help Albus he will defiantly fail Potions."
"Will not!" Albus argued.
"Will too, you are spending too much time with Grace," Scorpius said sternly, reminding Ablus of his father.
"Am not!" Albus spluttered.
"Are too!" Scorpius contradicted.
"Well, you don't have a girlfriend," Albus said in a feeble attempt to defend himself.
"No, I don't and I will pass my OWLs, think about that, duck." Scorpius laughed.
"I'm not a duck," Albus scowled as he listened to Scorpius explain his potions essay for what felt like the fiftieth time. Rose was laughing aloud at the glum look on Albus' face and the slightly smug one on Scorpius'.
"Hi, I was just wondering if anyone could help me with my potions?" Grace – Albus' girlfriend – had wandered over to ask. This was too much for Rose, she had tears running down her face as she looked at Albus' horrified expression – obviously wondering whether she had hear Scorpius calling him a duck. Grace smiled, her face was slightly round with a constant healthy pink colour in her cheeks and soft brown curls surrounding her face.
"Here, Grace, I can help. I wouldn't trust Al if I were you. His teacher has told him he is doomed to fail," Rose waved Grace over to her as Scorpius protested that he hadn't said it like that.
{~~*~~}
"Hey Rose!" Scorpius shouted over the uproar on the Quidditch pitch.
"I believe I may just have beaten you there," Rose smirked at the windswept boy.
"No, I let you win," he said stubbornly, his lips slightly pouted.
"Oh yes, you could have easily saved the one when you were hanging upside down," Rose rolled her eyes.
"Easily." Scorpius agreed, running a hand through his hair, his eyes bright and smiling. Rose acted without thinking, she dropped her broom and pulled Scorpius into a kiss.
For a painstaking second Rose thought Scorpius would pull away in surprise, but he didn't. One hand found her hair and the other dropped to her back, Rose put hers around his neck, pulling him closer.
"Mr Malfoy and Miss Weasley! Stop that inappropriate behaviour immediately!" A scolding voice from the commentators microphone tore them apart. Professor Patil was looking down at them, trying to keep her expression angry but unable to hide her smile.
Scorpius pulled Rose close to him, his arm around her waist as he led her off the pitch.
"Rose?" Scorpius questioned, as the reached an empty classroom.
"Scorpius," she smiled, knowing that was all she needed to say.
They spent the rest off their evening on the top of the Astronomy tower, talking, kissing and cuddling. As night fell they lay together on a picnic blanket Scorpius had summoned, watching the stars.
"Rose?" Scorpius said as he had done in the abandoned classroom.
"Yeah?" Rose answered sleepily.
"Do you want to go out with me?" he whispered. Rose just laughed and nudged his arm playfully. "I'll take that as a yes," he grinned. "You know Rose?"
"Mmm.."
"Rose, I'm never ever going to dump you," Scorpius said it with such ease, Rose knew that he was telling the truth but she needed something to hold onto, to make sure- then she remembered,
"Promise?" she asked.
"I promise." He replied, just as her father had done her whole life.
That was what Rose needed to hold onto, a promise. Her father had yet to break one and to her that made it certain.
{~~*~~}
"Rose Ginevra Weasley, I love you more than anything in the world – including Albus-" Scorpius grinned, he looked into his girlfriends eyes from where he knelt on the floor, they were flooded with tears and Scorpius hoped to God they were tears of happiness. "Will you do me the honour of marrying me?" he held his breath.
"Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes!" Rose exclaimed, throwing her arms around him sending them both tumbling into the snow. Scorpius lay there, slightly out of breath as he looked into his fiancée's – God that was a good word – face, alight with joy, her red curls strewn around her.
"You will have the best wedding ever." He smiled, knowing what was coming next.
"Promise?"
"I promise." Was his simple reply.
{~~*~~}
"I, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, take thee, Rose Ginevra Weasley, to be your lawful wedded wife? To have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I plight thee my troth." The audience's eyes were shining with tears as Rose repeated.
"I, Rose Ginevra Weasley, take thee Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, to be my lawful wedded Husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love, cherish, and to obey, till death us do part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I give thee my troth."
"You may now kiss the bride." Rose leant forward, meeting Scorpius for the first time as a married couple. They, at last, were united against the world and nothing could tear them apart.
"Scorpius, did you mean all that?" Rose whispered as they broke apart.
"I did."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
{~~*~~}
"OH MY GOD MALFOY! WHEN I HAVE THIS CHILD I AM SO GOING TO KILL YOU!" Rose shouted, most of the people in the waiting area flinched, Rose could shout loud when she wanted, but it seemed nothing compared to now. "WE ARE HAVING NO MORE KIDS AFTER THIS! PROMISE ME THAT MALFOY!" Rose screamed.
"I don't think I can do that, dear."
{~~*~~}
"Hey, baby. This is your Daddy," Rose watched her child with adoration as she passed him to Scorpius.
"Hey kid, you're going to be trouble but no matter what, we will love you," Scorpius said, his eyes soft with love.
"We promise." Rose finished.
A/N – I hope everyone enjoyed it, please leave a review!
