And I Don't Hardly Know

by turnaroundeverynowandthen

A birthday celebration. A bottle of firewhiskey. A roof. Seven years. Could they be friends? Perhaps...something more?

I wrote this little piece as a palate cleanser to the multi-chaptered, (more angst-ridden) piece I've been working on for the past few months.

Totally got inspired after listening to the song Crimson & Clover by Tommy James & The Shondells.

I hope you like it and the way the two of them interact.

xoxo

—

It could be boiled down to some subliminal coercing by parents, or a subversive societal expectation, or a multitude of other emotional undercurrents. However, the true singularity of their natures was an inability to be defined by what others wanted them to do.

It wasn't fathers. It wasn't students. It wasn't even Houses. No, from the moment they laid eyes on one another, there was a distinct and tangible distrust. A clashing of character, if you will.

She distrusted his unrelenting charisma and boyish ardor. He distrusted her almost calculated serenity, and deep, knowing eyes. Perhaps they could not put words to it at the time, but there was an instinctual sense to keep one another at arms length, for fear they would see right through the others carefully calibrated exterior.

So they spent their seven years of education at a deliberate distance. The instinct to avoid had been validated by classroom gripes, and gossip from classmates. Even with the added flavor of a mutual connection, via Albus Potter, they still managed to know very little of the other.

When Scorpius took over a coveted Keeper position for the Slytherin quidditch team, and the entire male-attracted population of Hogwarts became suddenly aware of the sharpness of his jaw, and the blueness of his eyes, Rose was willfully indifferent. She had other things to concern herself with.

When the students returned from their summers spent at home, and the whisperings around the boys dormitories held musings of a certain curly red-head and her newly developed exterior, Scorpius allowed the image to filter through his mind rather unaffectedly. He had other things to concern himself with.

In all truth, there was only one affecting memory the two shared in the span of their time spent together. The evening before graduation. An All-House celebration. Too much whiskey for Albus. And *crack*. They both were now spending the evening cooped in the hospital wing, while their friend nursed a broken leg.

There was a tension, both feeling equally responsible for the dark-haired maniac who held large precedence in both their hearts. . Each of them subtly giving hints that the mutual presence wasn't exactly necessary. For some reason, however, they both felt compelled to stay right where they were. In the silent space of Al's stupor, their exteriors fell a bit.

He suggested cards. She agreed readily. Soon, a comfortable buzz fell around them. They didn't say much. They didn't need to. When Al was discharged, and they were tasked with getting him safely back to his dormitory, there was a surprising ache that neither of them wanted to give cause to.

For Rose, there was a dull clenching in her stomach as the doors to the Slytherin common room slid shut; knowing perhaps, they had not needed the expanse of animosity that fell between them for the better half of a decade.

For Scorpius, it was a deep questioning he had seen in her briefly. His curious nature defied his self-preservation and he found himself, if only for a moment, wanting to know more about the still, tranquil ocean that was Rose Weasley.

As they laid down that evening in their separate dormitories, unable to submit to pulling tide of slumber, they both felt the small, delicate tugging of an opportunity lost… of a friendship that might have been…of a deeper and almost terrifying connection nestled past supposed contrasting dispositions.

They chalked the feelings of unrest to last-day jitters, and put one another out of their minds for good, content to think of the alternate in vague remnants of nostalgia, solidified as a character from the past and nothing more

Life, however, has a funny way of working.

It could be amounted to the years spent away, each growing and rooting themselves in the lives they were creating and the people they were becoming. She had become less serious, less severe; realizing life was too short not to be delighted by the simpler things. He had become less aggressive in his need to be liked, realizing he didn't need the world lapping at his feet in order to be content with it.

It could be amounted to his immeasurable homesickness, having spent the last seven years working overseas. And despite their lack of connection, she still embodied remnants of the 'home' he had been missing so much over the years.

It could be the sweetness of the sun-bathed flowers in Grandma Mollys garden, having bloomed in the heat of summer; the tall grass, transformed to golden tendrils beckoning your arrival; the lake, glittering and laughing almost to itself.

It could be the way he entered the party, quiet and unassuming. He seemed almost embarrassed by the enthusiasm garnered from his arrival. Rose found her heart rate jump a bit when she saw him, in the same way it did when you found yourself running into someone you didn't expect to.

It could be the way she stood away from the crowd of friends and family, letting the wind dance in her curls. He had noticed her immediately, struck by how different she looked and yet…strangely very much the same.

It could have been all of those things. Or none of them. However, on the eve of Albus Potter's 25th birthday, they saw each other again for the first time in seven years; and both of them, despite their better judgement, found themselves unable to shy away from the enigmatic presences currently offered to them.

"Let's hope this doesn't end in another broken leg, hmm?", he began.

He had been teetering on beginning a conversation with her throughout the afternoon. They were never close at school, obviously. But oftentimes, when confronted with the deciding factors of your youth, you realize certain patterns have little reason for repeating. So, when she had slowly detached herself from the crowd of people to gaze at the softly rippling waters, he had found himself walking towards her.

She laughed, squinting at him in the sunlight.

"Sorry, do I know you?", she teased, putting a finger to her lips.

He rolled his eyes and stuck out his hand, "My apologies. Scorpius Malfoy. You may have heard of me?"

She transferred the drink she was holding to her other hand, and shook his, "Rose Weasley. You definitely haven't heard of me."

They smiled and softly clinked their bottles together. As the sound of crickets rose from the surroundings, they were silent for a moment, both unsure of what to say next.

"You reckon there's anything worse than Plimpy's living down there?", he asked suddenly, gesturing to the stretch of water in front of them.

Rose smiled, "I think Grandad wishes there were more than that. Maybe a school of grindylows… maybe a mid-sized squid."

Scorpius laughed, heartily. "I do recall a group of hopeful fourteen year olds spending a summer attempting to lure a rumored mer-lady out of this very lake."

"A fourteen year old would know Mer-people wouldn't live in waters this shallow." she chuckled, shaking her head.

He looked out onto the shimmering surface, as if fondly reminiscing years past, "Well, unfortunately, logic was not in favor of teenagers in desperate want of seeing a naked woman." Her turned back to her, "Regardless of her scaly exterior.."

"Or her unfortunate little habit of dragging men to a hapless and watery death", she countered. cheekily.

He faced her, a playful smile on his lips. "Well, to be fair…We weren't exactly men"

She laughed again, "Touché"

They were silent again.

"I didn't realize you'd spent time here during the summer…", she mused, taking another sip of her beverage.

Scorpius squinted back to the party, his eyes resting on his dark-haired friend. "Al invited me the summer after…fourth year? I think it was while you were at another relatives house…"

"He just swapped one babysitter for another." she sighed, following Scorpius's gaze towards the aforementioned troublemaker. "What a cad."

Scorpius snorted his drink, "The title is too fitting, Weasley. I feel personally attacked."

"If it makes you feel any better, Malfoy, you were definitely the fun babysitter. I was told that, in so many words, a multitude of times."

He sighed, looking back at her. He was momentarily distracted by a stray curl that flew in front of her face and the delicate way she placed it back behind her ear.

He shook his head slightly, and looked back out over the water. "I wonder why we never tag-teamed in the nannying duties. Perhaps Albus would have made it out of school with less physical and emotional deformities."

She looked up at him. She was momentarily distracted by the full view of his profile. The too-sharp features from his youth had filled out and strengthened. She heard a small voice in the back of her head whisper something along the lines of rather nice to look at…

She shook her head softly, looking back down at the golden grass below. "We didn't exactly…enjoy each other's company, if you recall."

He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Was it that obvious? I always thought my aversion was masked under a very cool disguise of charisma and charm."

She laughed, enjoying the warmth of his honesty, "Well- to be fair, it wasn't dislike. I just didn't…"

He raised his brows, leaning in slightly "…Like me."

"I just didn't like you in the way that everyone else did.", she countered, now feeling bold. "and you couldn't stand it,"

His face took on an affectedly pained expression. He placed his hand over his heart, the bottle he was holding hitting softly against his chest "Oh, merlin. You cut me to the core. See, this is why I never spent time around you. I think I knew you could see through my bullshit."

She looked up, wrinkling her nose, "Well…maybe I was just jealous."

He smiled, "Now you're just trying to be nice. I was a dick in school."

She shook her head, "No, see that's the thing, you weren't a dick. Everybody loved you. You had a million friends."

"And you didn't?", he countered, questioningly.

She smiled again, "I had a million relatives. It's the illusion of my family. But no, friends were always tough for me. I was much too serious."

"Are you saying you aren't now?", he smirked, taking another sip of his drink.

She smirked back, "Oh, I've had enough personal downfalls to be unable to see my life as anything but a complete joke."

That really made him laugh.

And his laughter, made her really laugh.

"Cards!" he said suddenly, once the laughing had died down.

"Come again?" she asked, furrowing her brows.

"We had cards. Remember?", he said, smiling lightly "Albus's broken leg resulted in a card game."

She closed her eyes and nodded her head in recognition, "Ahh, yes. I recall. The last day of school."

"And that went well, didn't it?", he mused, finishing the last of his drink.

She nodded again, "I don't recall an overwhelming amount of animosity during that time."

"Then maybe we would have fared alright as friends back at school…", he said thoughtfully.

"Or…", she teased, "We were totally shit-faced."

He laughed again, "Speaking of…I need another drink. Can I get you one?"

She was surprised by the slight feeling of unrest she felt at their conversation halting. "I'll just come with you" she said, simply. "I need to grab my jumper anyways."

He was surprised by the slight feeling of warmth he felt as they walked back to the lively interiors of the burrow, side-by-side.

The whole of the kitchen was packed with people. The cousins alone were enough to bust the seams of the tiny home, but when you added Al's colleagues from work, his old school friends and practically any person he had come in contact with in his lifetime, the inside of the house was comparable to a zoo. The two had to squeeze past crowds of party-goers just to make it to the beverage-stocked fridge, only to find the poor thing had been completely ransacked.

"James!" Rose called out wildly, seeing her older cousin through the throng of party-goers "Where'd all the booze go!?"

"Freddie's out on a beer run!" He called back, winking. "Don't you worry your pretty, alcoholic head."

Rose rolled her eyes, and turned back to face Scorpius. Due to the crowded nature of the evenings proceedings, they were now practically chest-to-chest.

They both laughed, "Sorry," she said, a little giggly. Was she that buzzed? "Do I know you?"

He wrinkled his nose, in an attempt to keep from snorting, "If your pretty, alcoholic head is so inclined, I think there's an unopened bottle of Ogden's on the gift table, I'd be delighted to steal on your behalf."

She narrowed her eyes, ignoring a fluttering in her chest at his appropriation of the phrase 'pretty'. "And how do you know that?"

He mocked her suspicious expression and leaned in, "Because I bought it for our dear birthday boy. And truly, I love the man, but I don't actually care if he drinks it."

She cackled, "Is this how you got everyone at school to be friends with you? By stealing alcohol for them like an inebriated Robin Hood?"

He smirked, "Is it working?"

She rolled her eyes and brushed past him, moving towards the gift table. "Only…a tiny bit."

They both moved together through the crowd of people, miraculously dodging a raucous game of exploding strip snap, and something involving a levitating charm and a box of fizzing whizzes.

"I want to see if I can guess which one is yours…" she said, coyly eyeing the massive pile of presents bestowed on her dear cousin.

He groaned dramatically, "Why do I feel like you're going to use this an excuse to point out some sort of glaring personality defect in myself?"

She hummed lightly, scanning the mounds of tissue and tinsel, "Because, Malfoy, I'm going to figure it out immediately. And if an absolute stranger can figure out your present based solely on exterior, that will be both a validation of your outward character, and a vindication of your lack of individuality."

"So now we're at the point where we're psychoanalyzing one another? Got it.", he smiled, leaning on a nearby table.

She hooked a finger lightly around two velvet, emerald green handles and pulled a glittering, black reticule with a shining snake moving slowly round the corners of the bag.

"Or…" she said, raising an eyebrow, "You've managed to find the gauchest of tributes to your old school cult- I mean, house. And you didn't want me, a noble and proud Gryffindor, having to lay my hands on such a egregious display of self-obsession."

He tried his damnedest not to laugh as he walked towards her and snatched the bag out of her hand. "It's a joke, Weasley."

"It's almost masturbatory", she whispered, wiggling her brows.

He bit his lip. Hearing Rose Weasley say anything related to masturbation, regardless of the clinical nature, had to be one of the funniest things he heard in awhile.

"Do you want the booze or not?", he said in a low-tone, attempting to mask his amusement.

She rolled her eyes. "I want the booze. I'm sorry I made fun of your serpent sack.", she bantered.

"You… really hurt my feelings, Weasley.", he said dryly, "Don't do it again, or I may begin to cry."

She snickered, "Promise?"

They moved slightly away from the gift table. Scorpius turned to face her again.

"Now." he said, moving the black bag inconspicuously behind his back, "We need to find somewhere to drink this where it won't get leeched on by these… party pariahs."

Rose thought for a moment. Then her eyes lit up. "The roof! Have you been on the roof before?"

His body tensed slightly, "Oh…you see. I- don't…love heights."

She stared at him blankly. "You're a quidditch player. How can you be afraid of heights?"

He was silent. He looked mildly uncomfortable for the first time since they had begun talking.

She shook her head. "You know what? No. We're going on the roof. You'll be fine, I promise. We'll get some liquor in you and you'll be calling it your second home before you know it."

He smiled at her boldness. There was a small, unfolding feeling currently happening in his chest.

"Okay fine. What's so special about the roof?", he asked, following her towards the back of the house.

"It's a roof!" she laughed, looking back at him. "Nothing ordinary ever happens on a roof. I can't believe you've gone your whole life not knowing the joys of a rooftop."

He just smirked and followed her.

—

"Okay, so I just need you to climb out over the ridge and that's it. You're on the roof. You've done it.", she cheered from where she was standing.

His palms were beginning to sweat.

The roof in question, could be accessed from a small guest bedroom situated on the third floor. They had managed to sneak through a set of back stairs without anyone noticing and find their way through the myriad of different rooms.

Now, it seemed the locating of the access point was the least of their troubles. For the aforementioned fear of said height, was now beginning to show itself a little aggressively.

"Shit." he said softly, "I'm sorry, Weasley, I can't. You can call me a pygmy, I don't care. It's too high."

She took a moment, then held out her hand. "Seriously." she said determinedly, "You can do this. Take my hand."

He paused, still unsure.

She smiled at him, obviously sensing some inevitable outcome that was going to work in her favor. "I'll put this in terms that will really motivate you. If you take my hand, and come on this roof with me, I'll like you so much and just think you're the coolest guy. I'll forget all about how much I hated you in school, and we can be the best of friends."

He blanched, "You hated me in school?"

She laughed, "I'm just trying to be motivating! Take. My. Hand."

He went against his better judgement, squeezed his eyes shut and grabbed her hand. He felt her tug him through the window and place him safely and sturdily on the shingled surface.

"You can open your eyes now…pygmy", she teased. She found the whole process very endearing, actually.

He slowly opened his eyes and found himself stunned by the view. He felt the fear slowly begin to melt away as he took in the setting sun turning the world pink and orange and gold. He heard the pop of a bottle, and turned to look at the girl seated next to him, pouring Albus's birthday gift into glasses she had swiped from the pantry.

Beautiful. The word was in his head before he could stop himself.

She handed him a glass. "Cheers, mate. You did it. Was it worth it?"

He hadn't fully shaken the 'beautiful' notion from his head when he replied, "Absolutely."

They clinked their glasses together, and sipped the fiery liquid.

"Ogden's finest.." Rose said, her face twisted in momentary distaste. "Another?"

"Gladly.", he smiled.

They repeated this a few times, till both parties were aware of a soft buzzing in their bodies, and a good deal of inhibition had flown out the door.

"I'm not a quidditch player, by the way." Scorpius said suddenly. He had maneuvered himself into a laying position, watching the stars slowly begin to poke through the night sky.

"Hmm?", she turned from where she was seated to look at him.

"Anymore at least. I was when we left school. But, I'm not…now.", his voice sounded vacant. Rose could sense almost a tiny bit of regret underneath the absence of emotion.

"Hmmm…", she said slowly, "Yeah, those don't exactly look like Quidditch player arms to me…"

He whipped his head towards her, an astonished smile on his face, "You are one of the most loathsome girls I have ever met. You know, you haven't said one nice thing about me this entire evening."

Through her laughter, she managed to say, "Not true! I called you a fun babysitter!"

He rolled his eyes, "The implication was one of an irresponsible babysitter." He sat up suddenly, "No, I won't accept it. Say a nice thing about me or I'm going to throw myself off this roof."

"Absolutely not!", she cried, "You'd never let me forget it."

"And what if we never see each other again after this evening?", he said, "The only memory I'll have of you is a distasteful one. My scrawny arms will forever be marred by your observation."

He had meant the statement in jest. However, once the words came out of his mouth, he was acutely aware of a deep dissension within him upon the thought of never seeing her again. He realized, with a drop of his stomach, that he might truly enjoy the possibility of seeing her again. Oh shit.

He turned his gaze back to the stars, not wanting to give cause to the tension currently brewing inside of himself.

After a moment, she sighed, "Your hair…"

He turned back to her, she was running a finger studiously around the rim of her glass. "My hair?"

"Yes, it's gotten darker. It used to be so blonde, it was almost blinding. And now…", she closed her eyes and braced herself, as if she was admitting something truly despicable, "It's a sandy color, and that somehow makes you much…warmer to look at. You're warm now." Oh merlin, how much Firewhiskey had she drank. What what she saying now?

He barked out a laugh at her obvious discomfort, "I'm warm now? High praise coming from someone holding ownership on 'thermal' genetics."

"Merlin, I'm never doing that again." she sighed, shaking her head and taking another sip of her drink.

He chuckled softly, ignoring the slight flush that had crept into his cheeks. "Thank you… I no longer feel the need to chuck myself off this ledge."

"Glad to be of service…", she sighed.

They were silent again. Rose moved herself to a lying position. The two of them parallel mimics, the bottle of fire whiskey situated distinctly between them.

"So…" she started, clasping her hands on top of her stomach, "What happened to Malfoy, the quidditch player? I remember it being quite a big thing when you first got scouted…"

"Ahh..okay", he said, blowing a deep breath past his lips. She could sense a trepidation in his voice. "What the hell- I hated it. I just absolutely hated it…"

She widened her eyes, and turned her head to look at him. "Go on…"

He scrunched his face lightly, "I just hated it. I hated my teammates, hated my coaches, hated the traveling, the practicing…I felt out of water the entire time. America…it's fun, but it was such a culture shock. The entire time, I just wanted to be back in England…"

"Why didn't you just come home?", she asked softly.

He sighed, "I was never good enough to be sought out by another team… And coming home… There was a pride- thing. Quidditch was something I had always excelled at, something people- well, people were counting on me not to fail."

"Hmm…" she mused, empathetically.

He sighed again, as if he was getting to the real grit of the story. "I started to drink. Like, really drink. All the time… It started affecting my performance. I…Well, lets just say- I cost us a match. And I managed to seriously injure the right half of my body.

"Oh shit..", she said with reverence

"By falling about 8 stories…", he sighed, painfully.

"Oh shit…Okay, the fear of heights is making a bit more sense.", she frowned, looking back up at the sky.

"They dropped me after that.-Rightfully so-", he chuckled with a small bit of mirth, "I was in the hospital for 6 months…"

"Albus never mentioned this…" she recalled, her brows furrowing.

He ran a hand guiltily through his hair, "Well…that would most likely be due to the fact that I never told him…"

Rose opened her mouth in shock, "Malfoy…Don't you and Al tell each other everything?"

"You would think so…", he said, softly. "It used to be really hard for me to fail, much less admit the failure to my best mate. Or my parents…"

"Please tell me they know now!", she cried. She turned to look at him.

The concerned expression on her face, caused him to laugh again, "Yes. I haven't played professionally for almost three years… They may not know the full extent of the reasoning, but they're fully aware of my current professional standing."

She shook her head, confusedly. "Wait- then what have you been doing this whole time. Didn't you just come back home..?"

He was silent. "You know…I think we've been talking about me a lot. I'd be very interested to hear what you've been up to…"

He caught a small groan coming from her. It made him smile.

"Fine. Let's get this over with…", she pushed herself back up into a seated position, "Studied too hard in school, got engaged to a boy from school, worked too hard at my thankless internships, got dangerously close to marrying said boy from school…continued to work too hard at thankless entry level positions at the ministry, broke off engagement with -can you guess?- boy from school…managed to wind up in a borderline operatic affair with a married supervisor…"

Scorpius almost dropped the drink in his hand.

"Don't laugh- got promoted -no thanks to the supervisor, just in case you were wondering-, and now I work too hard as the Assistant Senior Supervisor of Magical Business Development & Trading Standards…". She took a deep breath.

"And..?", his eyes were inquisitive.

"And I'm literally so miserable, you have no idea…", she admitted with a rueful grin. "My office has no windows. I never see the sun!"

He laughed, "Not a roof in sight?"

She shook her head, "Not a damn roof to be found! It's downright criminal."

"Why not quit?", he asked suddenly, the fire whiskey now causing his mouth to move faster than his brain could.

He could see the question catch her a bit off guard, but she gave him a knowing look.

"Remember that thing you said about it being hard for you to fail? Especially to your family? Well, I get that. I feel it deeply."

She sighed again, "I knew I was always going have to have to work ten times harder than everyone else because of my parents positions in the Ministry. But, I think I always assumed the payoff would be worth it."

"-Well isn't it?", he goaded.

"One hundred percent no!" she cried, throwing her hands in the air and laughing at the absurdity. "I'm just going to have to work for another 20 or so years until I can demand a window be built into my desk area. Then maybe I'll be happy."

He sat up, bringing his knees level with the surface, "Weasley, are you telling me you aren't happy?"

She stopped, and looked at him. A slightly pained, but amused expression came over her features. "I guess I am…but, its only because I've drank too much. In the morning, I'll love my life again, and my melancholy will have been abated."

He raised a brow, "Somehow, I don't think that's exactly true."

"I'm not unhappy. My family is amazing, my friends are lovely. Despite the dark, parchment-filled nightmare that is my desk job, I manage to do things in my spare time that bring me a modicum of joy…"

He leaned in, sensing her hesitation, "But..?"

She groaned again, dramatically, grabbing the bottle sat between them and drinking straight from it. "Break-ups are hard." she finally admitted.

"Ahhhh, I see.." he said smirking and grabbing the bottle from her.

"And dating is even harder.", she lamented. "Don't give me that look!"

He was looking at her dubiously…"Well, I wouldn't say dating older, married men would be your best course of action in finding your one, true love…"

She gasped, "And he finally retaliates…snaps to you, that was almost as cutting as my personal analysis on your birthday gift."

He grinned, "The more liquor you put in me, Weasley, the meaner I'm going to get. Beware."

She noticed a strange fluttering sensation in the pit of her stomach at his cheeky threat. All of a sudden, she found herself aware of how much information she had divulged to him in such a short amount of time. She felt herself wanting to retreat. However, the liquor now thoroughly marinating within her, made that notion much more difficult.

Ahh…

Now I don't hardly know her…

But I think I could love her…

The music playing downstairs had shifted suddenly in tone. A familiar progression of chords floated through the air and wrapped themselves around the duo…

"Oh…I love this song..", she sighed.

He looked at her with mock suspicion, "You can't love this song. I love this song."

"Malfoy, this is a muggle song.", she said with playful sincerity. "You can't love this song."

He leaned in, causing an unfortunate jump in her heart-rate, "I know this is a muggle song. And guess what. I still love this song."

Crimson and clover…

Over and over…

He was suddenly aware of how close they had gotten. He could now see the faint sprinkling of freckles dusted across her -now very rosy- cheeks. Beautiful was in his mind again before he could stop it. He cleared his throat and shook his head, thinking of all the ways in which beautiful should not be a feeling he need pay mind to in regards to the girl sitting next to him.

"So!", he looked out past the shingled precipice they were currently situated on, and down at the party below, "Why is dating so hard?"

She too looked down at the dancing mob, "It's just a nightmare…", she sighed. "You spend so much time and effort attempting to get to know someone, and they turn out to be…abysmal"

He laughed.

"Or worse!" she continued, "They're oppressively boring."

He laughed harder.

"Merlin's beard, when did you get so funny?". Against his better judgement, he looked at her with shining eyes.

She flushed, "It's definitely because you've been drinking. Or maybe it's just you. You bring out deep insecurities in my subconscious, and I'm just trying to deflect."

"I don't know…before, you wouldn't have joked. You would have just given me a look of scathing indifference.", He smiled at his own clever word play.

She smiled too, "Life is funny. Life is hilarious, actually. I'm sad I spent so much time being unable to understand that. But maybe, that's just a part of getting older…"

"They say our optimism only increases as we age. Steadily from our teens to our 30's, and then once we hit 40 -It sky-rockets.", Scorpius rattled off.

Rose laughed, "Please, can I just be an elderly witch already? Being young is exhausting. I'm ready to call it quits."

"I'm right there with you, Weasley.", he raised his glass, "I'm ready to be wheeled everywhere I choose and-"

"-And your food mashed into oblivion and fed to you through a straw?", she jested.

"Chewing is undignified, anyways.", he winked.

She chuckled, "I've always said that!"

He paused, musing on a particular thought. When he spoke, his voice was softer. "I think it probably has more to do with…having lived enough to know that things -for the most part- tend to always work out. By the time you're seventy or eighty…or whatever, you've seen some pretty brutal circumstances, but also -I imagine- a lot of beautiful ones as well…"

Rose felt a truly unfortunate clench in her heart at his words. His sincerity was palpable. She felt that similar, dull ache; the one she felt on the fateful night before graduation. That the possibility of knowing this person, was something she had missed out on because of her own silly machinations. She realized, they could have been friends. Great friends.

She couldn't remember a time where she had felt this comfortable or open in conversation with a relative stranger. It was bittersweet, she thought.

His voice broke through her reverie "I can see I've made you deeply uncomfortable with my…schmaltz."

"What the devil is schmalztz?!", she exclaimed, laughing.

"Ah, I guess that is more of an American term…I picked up an unfortunate wealth of yankee slang during my time there. Schmaltz is like…excessive sentimentality." he said, slowly.

She wrinkled her nose, "Then yes. Your schmaltz made me wholly unsettled. I doubt I'll fully recover."

He grinned, slyly. "Everyone needs a little schmaltz in their lives, Weasley. It's what makes the world go round."

She rolled her eyes, "Where's yours then, Malfoy? Is there a lady -or a lad- who has the misfortune of being subject to your obtuse sentiment?"

He sucked the air in through his teeth, "Ah. Well. You see, the-emotional reverence you speak of is a relatively new discovery for myself." He turned to look at her, a guilty expression painted across his features. "I wouldn't say intentionality or longevity were large priorities in my adult dating life."

"Scorpius Malfoy?" she feigned surprised, "Emotionally distant and inconsistent in relationships? Say it isn't so."

"You're a brat.", he quipped, "I'll have you know, I find the dating scene just as much of a nightmare as you do."

"Oh do tell.", she said, hugging her knees to her chest and resting her head atop them.

"I think I need another drink, if we're going to get into this." He admitted with a grimace.

She scoffed and prattled without thinking, "Get knackered if you need to, but I don't believe someone handsome, and sound-of-mind would have much trouble finding a wealth of lovely ditzes to go on dinner dates with."

Wait-handsome? She slowly put her hand over her mouth as she realized what she had let slip.

"So sorry, love…", said Scorpius, a devilish smile on his face, "What was that I just heard?"

She closed her eyes and pushed the half-empty bottle of Ogdens deliberately away from her. "Objectively.", she sighed.

"Does Rose Weasley think I'm handsome?", he was playing up his astonishment to get a rise out of her, but couldn't help but notice an electric sort of buzz swirling in his stomach.

"Objectively, you ass!", she was covering her face with her hand, but he could see a smile she was attempting to fight off through her fingers. "Don't let it get to your head."

He just smirked.

"I also happen to think James's owl, Nox, is handsome…and the gardens in the Ministry's Public Pavilion are very… handsome.", she was back-tracking. It was adorable.

"Rose Weasley thinks I'm as handsome as an owl…I could shout it from the rooftops.", he shook his head in dramatic disbelief.

She snapped, "I'll throw you off this rooftop, Malfoy. Don't think I won't."

"I believe you…" he chuckled. He opened his mouth to retort if it makes you feel any better, I happen to think you're very pretty- but he felt his tongue dry up, and the nervous palm sweat that had taken over during his original attempt to get onto their current location, suddenly returned.

He realized, in that moment, just how pretty he thought she was. While her declaration was one of simple observation, it would be glaringly obvious that his admittance was coming from a much more vulnerable place. He didn't just think she was pretty.

No, as he watched her softly push her hair out of her face and gaze back up at the stars above them, he realized that she was oh-so-many things he had been too blind to see before. Kind, funny, thoughtful…beautiful. He wanted to actually shake the seventeen-year-old version of himself.

Is this why he had been so adverse to getting to know her? So selfish and vain? Because he knew he'd be completely mesmerized and she'd want absolutely nothing to do with him…

There was a burst of applause and cheers from down below. A boy, on the smaller side, was levitating, what seemed like an entire liquor store into the realms if the celebration.

"It seems as if our dear Freddie is back from the booze run…" sighed Rose, looking down again.

"I guess that means we should probably get back down to the party…", He said, with as much levity as he could muster. He was horribly aware of how much he didn't want to go back down to the massive swarm of merry-makers. He wanted to stay up on this roof-top, suspended in the moment. He wanted to know her; to deeply understand her. To make-up for all the lost time…

She looked up at him with what he perceived to be a neutral expression, "You want me to go through the window first, or you? Need someone to make sure you don't fall?" She teased, lightly.

He smiled, "No, that won't be necessary. I'm a brave boy now."

Rose moved to exit towards the windowsill. However, an unsteady shingle slipped slightly at the added pressure, and she found herself dangerously off-balance on the precarious perch. Thankfully, a hand reached out and caught her.

"Careful there," Scorpius said, softly, "If you fall, people will think I lured you up here with murderous intent." He had still not let go of her hand.

She raised a brow, finding her footing, "Little do they know, it was me who forced you up here."

He led her to the window, taking pains to be unaffected by the softness of her palms, and the closeness of their stance. "I'm gad you forced me. Even though you insulted my scrawny arms."

"Your scrawny arms just saved my life!" she joked, stepping into the guest room and looking at him. She couldn't help but notice how his figure was anything but scrawny.

She so wished she hadn't slipped up at the handsome remark. He had immediately closed off to her. If she hadn't been so bewildered by the unexpected course of their evening, she would have felt enormously embarrassed.

Still, there was a small sadness inside of her as they trekked down the zig-zagging hallways and tiny staircases. She had grown to really enjoy his company. He was handsome. But he was also incredibly intelligent and felt life in a way she found…really admirable.

She realized, with a jab, this was a feeling familiar. The trepidation from school days was there in place of self-assuredness. She knew if she ever got close to him, she would realize she loved him in the same way everyone else did. His was a disposition meant to be shared with and sought out by the world, and if she let herself lean-in without caution, she'd be left in the dust.

All of a sudden, the two heard a small whimper coming from a nearby washroom. They gave each other a look, moved to the source of the upset and slowly opened the door. Slouched on the ground, in a truly undignified fashion, was the youngest of the Potter clan.

She looked up, her face pale and hair plastered to her forehead. "Oh Rosie…", she croaked. "Thank goodness it's you, I- I'm- Uh…", she wobbly looked down at the toilet bowl she was currently draped around. "I'm not doing the bes-agh"

Her eyes widened and she threw herself back over the bowl of the toilet, further emptying the contents of her stomach. She looked unreasonably pathetic.

"Oh geez, Lils", said Rose, kneeling beside the indisposed girl, and grabbing her hair "I'm sorry…"

"I always do this" cried Lily, resting her head of the edge of the seat and wailing, "I'm such a drunk."

Rose looked up at Scorpius and bit her lip, trying not to laugh. She rubbed Lily's back sympathetically, "Lily, you just love people. You get so excited, I think you forget how much you're really drinking until it's too late…"

"Everyone hates me, Rose.", she wailed again, "Everyone thinks I'm a drunk. And they're right!"

Rose looked up at Scorpius and mouthed, "She always does this" He shook his head with amused sympathy and leaned against the doorframe.

She turned back to her young cousin, "No one hates you, you know that. You're the shining star of the family and everyone thinks you're an absolute delight to be around."

Lily bawled something incoherent, and threw herself unceremoniously on the ground next to Rose.

"So what if you can't hold your liquor," Rose said, continuing to comfort the poor girl. "At least you're not like me, and it's honestly concerning the amount of alcohol I manage to consume on a night such as this-"

Lily sat up suddenly, almost knocking Rose over, "No!" she cried, grabbing Rose's face in her hands, "You are perfect. Rose Perfection Weasley-"

"-not my middle name-"

"You are everything I wish to be and more." she continued, "How did you get to be so beautiful and so smart-"

"-Lily, you're hurting me-", Rose sighed, through squeezed cheeks.

"-I want nothing but good things for you in life, Rose. I want you to fall in love and get married and have sex-"

-"Lily! Oh my god-", Rose flushed. Lily may not be aware of the male presence nearby, but she sure was.

"-And not mediocre sex, amazing sex. Mind-blowing stuff. You deserve it and you're worth it."

"-Your breath is awful, please let go of my face.", Rose was ready for her drunk cousin to be done with her intoxicated rant.

"-Promise me! Promise me you'll find someone soon. I can't stand the thought of you growing old and alone without someone to care for you. I'm afraid you'll die partnerless and your cats will eat your rotted corpse!", she cried, practically shaking Rose's skull.

Rose snorted, "I promise! I'll find a bloke! We'll have so much crazy, passionate sex you won't see me for months at a time. We'll die fucking and the cats can eat our entangled, rotted corpses together. Happy?"

Lily gasped, "That's so romantic…"

Rose rolled her eyes, "We need to get you back downstairs…"

"We?" Lily asked, her brow furrowing.

Scorpius tapped the bathroom door a nudge further to reveal himself fully.

"Hey, Bean…", he said looking down at her, sympathetically.

Lily widened her eyes, "Scorpius!…Wait-Scorpius?".

Rose turned to Scorpius, "Bean?", she inquired.

"Short-hand for Lily-Beans…", he said, simply. "She and I spent some time together, growing up. Summers, remember?"

"Ah, I see…" she said, quietly. "Hmm.. Bean… Cute."

Lily whipped her head between him and Rose, a moment of sincere disbelief painted across her features. Rose laughed at her expression thinking, for the first time, how strange the pair of them must look right now.

"We're planning on murdering one another," she joked, raising her brow. "Double homicide."

"Want to place on who gets to to whom first?", added Scorpius, "Weasley may not be as cunning as I, but she's got the brawniness to her advantage."

Rose looked up at him, her playful smile returning, "You're an ass- Also I'm about 90% sure I got higher marks in Defense Against The Dark Arts than you did so-"

Lily let out a massive sigh, and put her face in her hands. "Okay- I must be really shit-faced. When did you-? How did you-?"

"Don't worry about it, Bean." said Scorpius, with a wink towards Rose. "Lets get you some water. I'm sure James or Al are looking for you…"

"Oh…hmmm…I don't know if I can-" she was still absolutely plastered, her eyes blearily attempting to find the nearest surface to hoist herself up with.

Without a beat, Scorpius came up behind her and gently lifted the girl, putting her arm around his neck. "Come on- Al would kill me if he knew I let you weep in a bathroom all by yourself, covered in your own…spew."

Lily let out a grateful laugh, "Thanks Scorp…"

As Rose followed them down the stairs, she was overwhelmed with a sudden nasty, simmering uncomfortableness deep in the pit of her stomach. Watching them play catch-up while Lily had her arm slung around his shoulders, and Scorpius had his hands practically cradling her -very pretty- cousin, made her feel…unsettled to say the least.

If Rose was being truly honest with herself, she felt the sick, creeping sludge of jealousy crawl through her in a way she hadn't felt in a long time. What the hell was wrong with her? She had only properly known this boy for an evening, and now she had a glittering, intrusive image of her pushing her cousin gleefully down the stairs and taking her place.

She shook her head with vigor. Absolutely not. She was not going to go there.

"How's your mum doing?", she heard Lily softly ask. She watched as his face fell momentarily.

"She's alright…", he said evenly, but there was a slight uncertainty in his tone, "I'm seeing her Monday, actually. We've got a meeting with some specialists…"

Rose felt something catch in her throat. Obviously, she had no way of knowing something was going on with his family, he hadn't divulged any of that information to her. However, she felt like someone had kicked her in the gut.

She was awful. She was selfish. She was not worthy of being even his friend. She was-

"There you lot are!" cried a voice from the living room, "Everyone was looking for you!"

Rose was snapped out of her reverie, as they made their way into the living room. The party was in full-swing. The overwhelming merriment was a welcome distraction. As Scorpius led Lily to the kitchen table and procured a drink for her, she heard a voice call out through the crowd.

"Rosie! Rosie!", the voice cried. She'd know that voice anywhere.

"Albus! Albus!" she mocked, walking over to where he was seated. He was surrounded by people, commanding and engaging the entire room. He was completely in his element.

He yanked her hand and pulled her to sit next to him.

"I've been telling everyone about your trick!", he shouted over the music.

She quintet at him, "My what?"

"Your muggle trick.", he called, waving his hands in a mystical fashion. "No one believes me when I say you can do it."

Rose let out a sigh, "Oh that trick."

"Please do the trick, Rosie. Please, please, please", he pouted, looking at her with begging eyes.

"Al, no!" she huffed, "I've drank too much tonight, I can't do it."

"Rose, puh-lease. It's my birthday.", he clasped his hands together and rang them profusely, "Come on. Do the trick, Do the trick. Do the trick!"

Soon the entire party surrounding them was chanting at her Do The Trick. Do The Trick. Do The Trick.

"Fine!" She said clapping her hands together in defeat, "I'll do it, but I need a coin.". The crowd around her cheered.

Scorpius watched from across the room, as someone procured a coin and handed it to her.

"Okay…" she breathed, placing the coin on the coffee table in front of her, "Let's see if I can do this right…", she reached into her pocket, "Someone take my wand. So you lot don't think I'm using actual magic… So much pressure."

That elicited a chuckle from the crowd. He could see a pleased flush creep into her cheeks.

"Oh shit-" she cried, "I need a um-salt shaker, or something small like that…"

There was a rustling in the crowd and tiny shaker flew from across the room and landed on the wooden surface with a thump.

She giggled, "Excellent service, thank-you."

Another laugh from the room. Scorpius found himself unable to take his eyes off of her.

She took a deep breath in. "Okay so. With the help of this trusty…" she grabbed a stray napkin from an abandoned plate, "Napkin! With the help of this trusty napkin, I will make this coin disappear."

"Without magic." Al chimed in, excitedly.

"Yes, Al. Thank you.", she laughed and looked up at the crowd. "Without magic. And -just so you all know- Al is not sober enough to be in on this, so I promise this isn't a hoax."

She grabbed the salt shaker and placed it on the coin, with a flourish. She then took the napkin and showed both sides to the eager audience.

"As you can see…", she said theatrically, "Just an ordinary napkin…No charms, no gimmicks…"

She then placed the napkin over the items on the table and put both hands around the base.

"Now!" she shouted, and then giggled at her own enthusiasm, "We need to say the magic, muggle words…"

"Amanda-cadabra!" cried Albus, enthusiastically.

Rose cackled, "No! Abra-cadabra…say it with me"

As she and the room chanted abracadabra together, she moved the napkin pile in slow, deliberate circles. When they finally ceased their chanting, she looked up at her audience, a coy smile on her lips.

"Alright…Now. Where is the coin?", she asked.

A boy from the crowd piped up, "The salt-shaker!"

"You think it's under the salt-shaker?", she teased, looking at her spectators with anticipation.

"Yes!" cried Albus, along with everyone else.

Rose then took her hand and slammed it down onto the pile. The napkin crumpled flat onto the surface, as if she had pushed the saltshaker though the table itself, signifying the disappearance of both the coin and itself . "What salt-shaker?!" she cried, beaming.

There was a resounding gasp from the onlookers, then a bursting of applause.

"See? I told you! I told you she could do it", shouted Albus with glee.

Someone handed Rose her wand back and she got up and did a little curtsey. Her face was bright red, but she looked so joyful and free. Scorpius's chest was suddenly constricting in an unsettlingly unfamiliar way. He had a grin on his face that he couldn't seem to wipe off.

She looked up from where she was standing and their eyes locked from across the room. She wrinkled her nose, almost as if she were embarrassed he was specter to something so trivial. He felt his heart begin to beat a little faster.

He cleared his throat, mouthing "Impressive", and giving her an over-the-top thumbs up.

She shrugged her shoulders and mouthed back, "I know!"

He was about to walk over to her as it seemed he had been put in a momentary spell, but someone tapped Rose on the shoulder, and she was suddenly in a conversation with a gawking Healers Assistant who worked with Al at St. Mungos.

Scorpius could feel a territorial deadening in his chest. Attempting to put a swift end to whatever possessive overtakings were beginning to manifest in regards to the girl in front of him, he turned back and sat down next to his red-headed ward, currently hydrating herself.

"She's obsessed with muggle things. Did you know that?", Lily asked, turning to him.

"Who, Rose?", he asked nonchalantly, "No, Weasley and I haven't known much of one another since before today…"

Lily smiled, "She's literally the biggest nerd when it comes to Muggles. It's hilarious. She read an actual book of muggle magic tricks. That's how she knew how to do the salt-shaker thing."

Scorpius, looked at Lily, "Really? She doesn't seem like the type…Was it her mum's influence, or-?

"No, Aunt Hermione is about as wizard as they come. Rose has just always had a thing for them. You can ask her- Actually, don't ask her. Unless you want to have a five hour lecture on the 'Lost Art Of The Button' or 'Why Muggles Understand Magic Better Than We Wizards Do'."

Scorpius chuckled and nodded his head, taking in the information.

"She's read all the literature, seen all the cinema…all she really listens to is muggle music…", continued Lily, "She's such a hipster, actually. I think she even has an old…what are those things called? An ephuhne?

"You mean an iPhone?", asked Scorpius, amused.

"Yes! Isn't that the dorkiest thing?", laughed Lily, taking another swig of her water. "On weekends, she goes to homes of dead muggles and buys their stuff!"

"Bean, they're called estate sales and wizards have them too..", he chided.

"I know!", she sighed, "But if she went into less dead peoples homes -wizard or not- and on more dates with eligible men, she'd probably be married by now."

They both turned to look at the aforementioned 'muggle-lover', who was now in deep conversation with the boy from before. To Scorpius's immense delight, she looked like she rather be shoveling Hippogriff dung than participate in the current heart-to-heart she was subject to.

"I will say, she's got kind of a knack for transfiguring", Lily mused, softly. "For my birthday last year, she found this really beautiful music box and charmed the little ballerina to dance whenever you wind it up… She makes pieces like that all the time. She restored an old muggle stereo for my dad for his 50th and it'll play tunes on request. I'm always telling her she should sell her stuff…"

Scorpius nodded, attempting to keep his curiosity at a neutral level. "That's…really interesting. Not something I'd expect from her."

Lily sighed, "She's kind of incredible… Even if she is the biggest sop when it comes to muggles and their artifacts".

There was a slight commotion from where Rose was situated. The lad who had so ungraciously demanded chit-chat from her had accidentally spilled his drink over the bodice of her dress and was attempting to -disastrously- clean-up the mess himself.

"You should probably go and save her.", said Lily, giving Scorpius a knowing look.

He squinted at her, "What- Save her?", he sputtered.

Lily laughed, "You can't stop looking at her. It's adorable, honestly."

Scorpius flushed, "I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm looking at her just as I look at everyone else…"

Lily just looked at him, exasperatedly.

"And what do you mean save her? If there's anyone who doesn't need saving, it's your cousin."

She continued to look at him with the same amused countenance.

"Bean, no. Absolutely not. Remember how it was at school? She couldn't stand me.", he sighed, finally giving-in to her insinuation.

Lily leaned forward, "She's can't stop looking either."

Scorpius coughed, "What?"

"She keeps checking on you. At least once every few minutes, she looks over at the table to make sure you're still here."

"She's just making sure you're alright." he rationed, attempting to keep his speech even. His chest had begun to do that wonderful constricting motion once again.

Lily chuckled, "Rose loves me, but not that much. I actually think she may be worried something's going down between you and I…"

He blanched, "What?! How do you know?"

"It's a girl thing…", she said, wiggling her brows, "I can just feel it from her. It's like she's saying…mine."

"You're wrong, Bean." he sighed, looking back at Rose. She was now attempting to shoo the inebriated gentleman still making moves to 'clean' her 'bodice'.

"Even if I am wrong." countered Lily, folding her arms. "She still needs someone to save her. And I'm not going to do it. So if she ends up spending the evening having to fend off Doc Mc-Touchins over there, that's on you."

She smiled at him mischievously. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, groaning.

"Fine." he said, standing up and leaning his hands on the table. "If this goes to hell, I'm blaming you."

She gave him a small, wordless wave as he pushed himself from the table and marched deliberately to the currently -very- inconvenienced red-head.

The way that Rose's heart began to race at the sight of him marching towards her, was a feeling that would stay with her for longer than she ever cared to admit. She truly couldn't help the grin that broke onto her face as he gently placed his hand on the small of her back and dramatically recounted some preposterous excuse she knew he had made up on the spot.

"Rose!", he cried, his face a studied wealth of concern, "It's Mildred."

She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing, "Mildred?"

"Yes, Mildred. Your best friend.", he lamented, his blue eyes sparkling with amusement , "She needs you."

She widened her eyes in dramatic jest, "Mildred, my best friend, needs me?!"

She could see him fighting off a laugh as well. The poor boy standing next to them was bewildered beyond all hope.

Scorpius placed a hand on the shoulder of her confused conversationalist. "I'm so sorry to take this lovely woman away from a conversation I know she was just…loving, but I must take her to her companion. Mildred won't be alright again until she can gaze on the face of her one-true-friend, Rose Weasley."

Rose couldn't help the chortling noise that escaped her. She felt Scorpius's hand dig further into her back.

The boy seemed even more perplexed than before.

"Yes!", she said, when she had composed herself, "I'm so sorry, you were just…lovely to talk to. But Mildred-"

"-Mildred-", emphasized Scorpius

"-She needs me!"

They took one final look at one another -Rose thought to herself that sharing such a silly joke with Scorpius Malfoy was maybe one of the better things she'd experienced in her life- and they took off briskly towards the cool outdoors.

Once they had reached a safe distance away, eerily close to the birthplace of their initial conversation, Rose burst into a fit of uncontrollable giggles.

"Mildred!" she managed to gasp out through her hysterics, "Don't worry! I'm coming!"

Scorpius was keeled over in laughter, "Mildred, don't worry! Rose is here- You dont- You don't need-"

He couldn't even finish his sentence, he was too far gone.

Rose was wiping tears from her eyes before she could regain the power of speech. "Oh sweet Merlin, I think that's the hardest I've laughed in my whole life."

Scorpius was taking deep breaths, attempting to steady the heaving of his stomach. "Oh, same. I don't think I'll be able to walk properly tomorrow- I think I threw my back out."

That comment just sent them both into another round of hysterics. Anyone looking at the pair may have assumed the two had consumed some illicit, herbal substance.

When Rose finally calmed down, she was seated on the grass, fanning her face with her hand.

"Oh wow- what a night.", she sighed, looking up at the boy who had 'rescued' her.

Scorpius checked his watch, "How is it already almost midnight?"

"Are you joking?" she cried, "We must have been on that roof for an eternity…"

He sat down next to her. "Didn't feel like it to me…"

She didn't want to indulge the slight feeling of embarrassment that washed over her in the moment. She began to fidget with the edge of her dress.

"I liked your trick…", Scorpius admitted softly, after a time. "How'd you do it?"

She hummed, "Oh, don't you know? A magician never reveals her secrets…"

"Please, Weasley." he implored, "I'll just die if I don't know…"

She didn't want to admit the immense influence his pleading eyes had on her.

"Fine. The salt shaker falls into my lap.", she confessed, "If you move everything fast enough, you can slip the shaker off the table without anyone noticing. And the napkin holds the shape if you grab it right."

"So…you're just slamming down air at that point", he finished.

She smirked, "Exactly. The audience isn't focusing on the shaker. They're focusing on the coin. It's the element of surprise that really gets them…"

"Brilliant.." he nodded, "Lily tells me you got that out of a muggle book?"

Rose groaned, putting a hand to her forehead. "What did else she tell you?"

"Just that you have a pit of a penchant for things relating to the non-magical world…" He smiled at her, slyly.

"Oh, she is such a little witch!" cried Rose, shaking her head. "When she drunk she's all 'I love you Rose, I just want you to be loved and not get eaten by cats, Rose'-"

"-Don't forget the non-mediocre sex-", he teased, raising a brow.

Rose threw-up her hands, "How could I?" she laughed, "But then when she's sobering up, she's out here to sabotage me and divulge all my embarrassing secrets!"

"I'm really curious though!", he said, sincerely. "What is it about them that has you so fascinated?"

She sighed, leaning back onto the grass. "I just…I'm going to sound like an absolute ninny if I try to explain this to you-"

He leaned back into the grass as well, folding his arms behind his head, "If it helps- you already sound like an absolute ninny to me."

She slapped his arm playfully, "Stop it. We've already run the full gauntlet of friendship this evening, so I might as well come clean to you about my deep obsession."

"Aww, Weasley. That's really very sweet." He turned his head to the side, realizing just how close in physical proximity they currently were. He cleared his throat, "Now spill."

"They just- To them…Okay. Magic, is something we see every day, right? Magic is engrained in our world, in our conscience, in our understanding of life. We have magic, real magic…like, I flick my wand and concentrate, and I can make things move at my will.", she started, animatedly motioning with her hands.

"Yes, I'm aware.", he teased.

"Let me finish-", she glared at him, her eyes still holding their smile, "But muggles…their magic. It's so much more ephemeral. Their magic is like…roller coasters…and movie screens…and first kisses…and- so many other things, I think wizards just take for granted. When I watch a muggle film or listen to muggle music, I'm blown away by the emotion they manage to capture…their love and their sorrow and everything in between is the thing that makes them distinctly human and I think that's so beautiful."

Scorpius could only stare at her.

"Not to say wizards don't feel…I think we've just forgotten what it's like to have nothing but our…souls to see the magic in life…", she sighed and looked at him, a sheepish smile on her face, "How's that for schmaltz?"

His eyes had not moved from hers. They had not shared a moment this intimate in their entire span of knowing one another. Rose felt her heart, for what seemed like the thousandth time that evening, begin to race.

His expression was searching, almost pleading; like she was a book holding all the answers, and he was desperately trying to read her as quickly as he could.

When he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper. "Can I tell you something?"

"Anything.", she answered, dropping her voice down to match his.

"My mum-", he started softly. "My mum is really sick. She's been ill for awhile, but it's gotten pretty serious recently…"

"Oh, Malfoy…", she laid a hand lightly on his forearm. Her voice was filled with emotion.

"That's why I'm home. I transferred positions so I could be there when-", his voice caught suddenly. He cleared his throat, "So I could be there for everyone. My dad's not doing well…"

"No one would expect him to be…", she reassured, holding onto his arm tighter.

"Did- Did I ever say what job I got into once I was dropped from The Finches?", His tone had changed slightly.

She shook her head.

"I was in desperate need of a job- And there was an opening at the American Ministry…In Archival of Magical Reference & History…"

"I'm not sure I know what that is…" she admitted.

He sighed. "It means, I was part of a team that had the task of consuming and cataloging any muggle reference of 'magic' in films or books or…anything."

Rose widened her eyes.

"At first, I couldn't stand it. I didn't understand Muggles at all. I was so unwilling to see past my magical upbringing, that I felt like every thing I was doing was a complete waste of mine and the ministries time.", he sighed again, a soft smile playing on his lips, "but then…I saw this absurd and honestly amazing film -Ferris Bueller's Day Off-"

Rose gasped, a joyous smile of recognition played on her features.

He smiled too, "Okay, so you know. I watch this move- and- and- I got it. It made me laugh…it made me cry. I had never had that reaction to any piece of magical literature. I started spending every evening in the archive room, watching films, or pulling books to read…"

He was truly beaming now, as he recounted his past. Rose couldn't help but gaze at the beautiful smile painted across his features.

"My supervisor realized how voracious I was…", he continued, "So he asked me if I wanted to move-up from my position into field work… So, that's going into muggle facilities for extended periods of time, attempting to understand the internet, immersing yourself further in the culture… And- I just loved it. Still love it. The pay is shit and the hours are insane, but I love it."

Rose just smiled and shook her head in disbelief.

"And that thing you do, where you go to estate sales in your free time?", he interrogated.

She was startled, "How did you-?"

"Lily.", he dismissed, lightly. His voice took on a more sincere tone. "Weasley…I do the same thing…"

She pulled back slightly. "You're messing with me…"

He shook his head, emphatically. "I'm not. I swear I'm not."

"I don't understand… How- How did we not-", she stammered, frowning at him due to the absolute absurdity of the moment.

"I don't know… I have no idea.", he sighed, finishing her thought.

She smiled at him, she strangely felt a tiny bit like crying. "I wish-"

"I know-", he said, sitting up slowly. She followed suit.

He ran his face over his hands, slowly. "I told you dating is a nightmare for me…"

She nodded, "You've mentioned."

"It's a nightmare because my mum is sick…and I work a non-prestigious job in the least funded faction of the ministry…and I literally just moved home…and- again, my mum is not-well and I know you aren't supposed to get into anythin-"

He stopped himself, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath in, "-But… I've never heard anyone talk about life in the way that you do…"

She bit her lip. She felt her already quickened heartbeat begin to speed up.

"And- you've managed…" he continued, his eyes firmly placed on the ground below him. "In minutes, put into words the feelings I've been processing for years…And, I'm-"

He stopped himself again, and looked up at her. "-I just wish… I had known you…" He sighed and reached out to pick a small bit of grass that had gotten caught in her hair.

"You and I aren't the same people when we were seventeen…", she mused, softly running her fingers through the grass next to her. "I think- maybe… sometimes, it's just good timing-"

They looked at each other then, their eyes shining in the moonlight.

All at once, the same familiar tune from earlier in the evening came floating from the party and through the trees above them…

Now I don't hardly know her…

But I think I could love her…

Rose giggled, "Again?"

"I think the playlist has been looping for the past few hours…", he said, reaching for another bit of grass.

Crimson and clover…

Over and over…

He stood up, suddenly, and reached out his hand to her, "Do you want to dance?"

She accepted his invite, grabbing his palm, and standing up. He moved the pair into a dancing position; his hand on her waist, her head on his shoulder. They silently swayed to the soft and moody melody.

"So…", he said after a time, "If your muggle-knowledge is sound, I'm guessing that means you know this song has no actual meaning."

"Hmmm…" she said slowly, "You mean the fact that Tommy James woke up one day and decided to just write a song about his favorite color and his favorite plant? And it became almost an instant classic?"

He chuckled into her hair, "Should have known…"

She looked up at him, a sudden grin on her face. "Crimson and clover…"

He his forehead wrinkled, "Hmm?"

She took their clasped hands and pointed to her hair, "Crimson…", she then took their hands and placed them on his chest, "Clover…"

He laughed; a beautiful laugh, Rose thought.

"Over and over", He said, slyly.

Rose rolled her eyes, "Okay, I take it back. The song has no meaning"

"You can't take it back. I'll forever know this to be our song…", His voice was soft.

"Such schmaltz…", She teased.

His voice was low, and there was a darkening in his eyes, "Have I told you…" the hand that was placed on her waist slowly moved across her lower back, pulling her close to him. "That I think you're really, really beautiful?"

She felt her breath hitch as he move his mouth close to her. He leaned in, and delicately whispered, "Objectively…"

She cackled, and swatted him with her palm, "You are so incredibly loathsome, you know that? Of course I think you're handsome. Not just objectively! Like, really bloody handsome."

He flushed, incredibly pleased with himself, "Not handsome like an owl?"

She pursed her lips and stared at him, their arms still entwined around one another.

"Rose…" he said, his voice taking on a new tone, "You are so beautiful. Beautiful like the sun…beautiful like all the good things in this world- and I'm such a bloody idiot for not knowing it sooner…"

She was lost for words. The glittering, bubbling warmth that had been swirling inside of her came out in the only way that seemed fitting. She reached up and captured his mouth in a soft, yearning kiss.

The two of them felt the world melt away in that brief moment. Their world was soft lips and closed eyes, and sweet smells and warm mouths. Rose felt kissed in a way she hadn't been privy to in her entire life. Scorpius felt the honeyed ache of a life lived in dire need of the simple affection she was generously bestowing. They both felt like they were flying.

When they broke for air, Rose managed to shakily whisper, "Magic.."

"Magic..", he whispered back, nodding. He paused for a moment resting his forehead against hers.

"Can I see you tomorrow?", he asked eagerly, unable to wipe the stupid smile off his face.

"It is tomorrow…" she said with a grin, tracing the soft skin near his watch.

He softly pushed the hair away from her face and kissed her again. "Can I see you today, then?" He kissed her once more. "Maybe when we've had a little sleep?"

She nodded, smiling lightly, "Or not…sleep."

He leaned down and softly kissed the delicate skin below her ear, "Or not…" he whispered.

They gazed at each other again, each feeling so deliriously happy that they barely noticed the large, dark haired boy barreling past them and launching himself into the lake.

The splash he made rose up and cover the pair in enough water to bring them slightly back down to earth.

"Albus!", They both yelled together.

When he came up out of the water, he noticed the two of them, standing side by side.

He moved to look at Scorpius, then at Rose, then back to Scorpius, then finally on Rose.

"Wait-", he exclaimed, treading water, "Do you two know each other?"

They looked at one another, both concealing wicked grins.

"Hardly", Scorpius said, …

He then yanked her hand, pulling her into the lake along with him.

Now I don't hardly know her…

But I think I could love her…

—-

If anyone is interested, I may write a second chapter for this piece with the two of them going on a first date (Maybe we'll dip into the M-rated territory with that one *wink wink*)

Thanks to Tommy James. I listened to this song, literally, over and over.

I'm currently writing along fit entitled Moon River, if you like my writing and want to check that outttttttttt

Reviews make my heart happy. Please drop a review if you liked it, I kinda live for them :')

xoxo