Author's Note: This isn't my best story, by far, but it isn't my worst either. I'm pleased with it, at best, and I tried to do the prompt justice. How well I succeeded in doing so, however, is debatable. This was written for Caesar's Palace July Monthly Oneshot Challenge.
Prompt:"Why did you do all this for me?" Wilbur asked. "I don't deserve it. I've never done anything for you."
"You have been my friend," replied Charlotte. "That in itself is a tremendous thing." / Word Count: 2310
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything about it. Rights belong to J.K. Rowling.
When Scorpius thought of Rose Weasley, he thought of clever retorts, the edge to a steady voice, perfectly straight glasses, fingers braiding wild hair, narrowing brown eyes, ink stains on her books, tips scrawled in the margins of her notes. Scorpius thought of Rose Weasley and he thought friend.
He had friends besides Rose. Marcus and William Nott, Derek Flint, Alexandra Yaxley, Elias Zabini, Callista Davies, Al Potter. Rose, however, was the one truly terrifying friend.
Scorpius knew Slytherins. He knew how they operated - their power-plays, slights of hands, careful appearances. He was a Slytherin, he loved his House and, for the most part, the people in it. Because of this, Scorpius could figure out a person easily in the way they approached him, talked, gestured and expressed themselves. Itt was easy to figure out not to mess with Rose Weasley.
She was impressive. Sharp as a whip, all-business and opinionated, with nerves of fine steel. It was her, not Al, who had come into Scorpius's boat First Year and asked to sit. Al had told him their parents mentioned his surname but he didn't seem like a bad person, Rose had told that she thought her father's prejudices were ridiculous.
"I thought I made myself clear, Smith," Scorpius said, keeping his voice cold and smooth, face blank as he stared down the cowering Hufflepuff. Rue Goyle had fled the moment he'd inserted himself between them, Rue against the wall and Hayden Smith advancing with his wand drawn and jeers spilling from his mouth. Rue, wide-eyed and two years younger, usually immune to taunts, had looked fierce and vulnerable.
Scorpius made a mental note to teach her some of his protection spells.
The hall around them was empty as Smith struggled to rise to his feet, winded from the shield that had thrown him back. "Fuck off, Malfoy," he spat savagely, leaning against the stone wall. "This isn't your fight."
"I believe your exact words were 'filthy, Death Eater murderers as your parents, it's a miracle Hogwarts let you in as a snotty, bullying Pureblood.'" Scorpius didn't smile, didn't even let a bit of the savage feeling that was curling in his chest show. He just kept his face deadpan straight, his coldest wolf stare locked in place. "I also believe you used almost the exact same wording on me less than a fortnight ago. I commend your originality."
"That's because you are a snotty Pureblood! You can't be daft enough to not know what your family's done. They've killed -"
"My parents tried to stay alive, same as yours," Scorpius cut in. Smith always got on his nerves - the stupid, prejudiced boy. "It was a war, Smith, if they killed it was because there was someone trying to kill them. Your family killed to stay alive too." He didn't give him a chance to recover but took a step closer, leveling his wand to Smith's chest. "Remember that, Smith, if you can. We've been over this. Don't go near Rue again, don't say any of those things to her or hurt her. Don't do it to any of them."
"Or else what?" Smith sneered. His eyes, however, were firmly fixed on Scorpius's wand with fear that he was trying to cover up. Scorpius didn't want to scare and threaten him, but after asking, warning, and even bringing it up to some Prefects and professors, it was clear that if he wanted the bullying to stop he had to do it himself.
Now, finally, he let a bit of the savageness onto his face, curling his lip and icing his eyes. "Or else you'll find out what hex I have for you." Scorpius took a step back and cleared his face. "Twenty points from Hufflepuff for now. Run along, Smith, lunch is halfway over."
Smith sneered again, but went away. Only a couple steps, because he stopped to look back. "You're a fucking fraud, Malfoy, a fraud and a bully and a coward - just like your Death Eater daddy."
Even breaths, don't attack, play the game. Could he attack now? Certainly, if he wished. He was about to when he was suddenly made aware of someone's presence behind him.
"Fifty points from Hufflepuff," someone snapped and Scorpius tensed. He hadn't known someone was there, too preoccupied with Smith's words, and chided himself for a mistake he hadn't made in years. Someone could seriously hurt him if he did that more often. Scorpius recognized the voice, though. Rose Weasley, Ravenclaw Prefect, helping him.
"Weasley?" Smith said, startled, and Scorpius kept himself still as a quick Stinging Hex was fired, hitting Smith in the side. "Ouch! Rose, what was that for?"
"Your ignorant prejudice," Rose bit out. "I've been just around the corner the entire time and I heard everything." Smith's face went white. She looked like she wanted to go out into a full rant, which Scorpius wasn't quite sure how he felt about, but she took one look at Scorpius and settled for, "Go to lunch, Smith, before I decide you deserve worse for what you said to innocent Rue."
Smith looked like he wanted to say something. He opened and closed his mouth like a fish, but eventually just turned and fled down the corridor.
"Thank you," Scorpius told Rose once the area was clear. He could have added I could've handled myself but he didn't. Rose knew he could have handled himself, of course, but she had stepped in anyway. "My father is the bravest man I know."
"You're welcome," Rose replied and held out a hand in offering. "I've read papers where your surname goes from "scum" to something pretty respectful, I admire your dad working for it." He could read between the lines too - how Rose doesn't share Smith's opinions, how she say how her father was never at fault but doesn't pinpoint his faults. "Will you be accompanying me to lunch?" she asked archly.
Scorpius, face expressionless, lets himself relax a fraction. "It's the least I could do."
The thing is that Scorpius is used to people needing him, of being to some degree of use. He protected the bullied kids, kids who had parents who'd done wrong in the war and paid the price of prejudice, and especially the kids of his own House. He gave them offhand tips, occasionally tutored in Transfiguration and Potions and was one of the Slytherin Prefects. He always had something to offer in almost any relationship or activity.
Al was nice, friendly and charismatic. He brought smiles to everyone's faces and could relax at atmosphere within minutes but he was brutally honest. He was surrounded by friends in his easy, loping grace and natural charisma. Yet, he didn't quite know how to utilize his charm, had never really perfected the smooth, easy elegance of an ideal Slytherin. That's where Scorpius came in, playing the game for him, smoothing over rough terrain left from blunt words when needed.
His friendship with Rose was different. Not only in the fact that he had romantic feelings for Al and not her, but in how Rose's adjectives included opinionated, cut-throat and bright. As opposed to Al, she had a close-knit circle of very loyal friends. She was always challenging, pushing boundaries, saddling up for an adventure. She knew how to spin her words the right way, how to protect herself, how to persevere. There wasn't much he could do for her.
"How you feel about helping me with a House Unity project?" Rose asked one day, sliding into the seat across from Alex in the library. Neither Slytherin Prefect startled, just looked at her over their bound books and thick parchment scrolls.
"A House Unity Project," Alex repeated, tasting the words on her tongue. Her voice is flat, not quite a drawl, but something more elegant and befitting of her glossy red-gold curls and dainty features. "I've never quite heard of that before."
"It's going to be a thing," Rose informed them, eyes serious and burning. Scorpius stared back, nonplussed. Rose could be terrifying - he knew terrifying, he'd met plenty of supposedly terrifying people - but today she wasn't. "There'll be randomized groups of students and events to get them to work together. Winning group gets usage of the Room of Requirement for a four-day weekend within the limits of a midnight curfew, no drugs and no alcohol."
Scorpius raised an eyebrow, put on his dead drawl. "How do you want us to help?"
"Rally your Housemates. Convince them to participate."
Alex raised her eyebrows, tilted her head with easy grace. Scorpius knew better than to fall for her looks, even as a Fourth Year Hufflepuff tripped at the sight of her glittering eyes and nails. Scorpius knew the years of practice and work it had taken to look effortless, the hours of training, the speeches made about her parents history. He knew to be a Slytherin wasn't easy, to lift your chin to the people who jeered harder. He loved his parents - for providing for him, being genuinely good people at heart, loving him, telling him the truth - and he loved Alex like a sister.
"Only that?" Alex asked. "Might as well be doing nothing at all."
Rose stared hard at them. Scorpius made her catch his eye and challenged her. He trusted Rose, he did. With his life, some of his Housemates, his friends. Not with his entire House. Not with the people he'd been protecting from prejudice for years, teaching them to weave shield spells around themselves as they slipped through the halls. He taught them disarming jinxes, too, and hexes to hurt in case they fought.
"It's beneficial to you," she insisted, folding her hands and tossing her head back proudly. "It'll lower prejudice. Let people see how you're regular wizards and witches, let people see the good in you. I know you don't really have time for that, what with the attacks, and this is aimed to create bonding and unity. That's your goal, isn't it? To not have prejudice in the school? What's better than to let people see the actual Slytherins of this day, not their parents?"
Rose was good. Scorpius considered himself impressed by her spiel, impressed enough to nod. She was doing this for them, he realized, for everyone who faced prejudice. He knew she faced expectations as the daughter of two thirds of the infamous Golden Trio and felt a twinge of empathy, deep inside him.
"Okay," he agreed and Rose's shoulders loosened a fraction. He cast a look at Alex, who was scrawling her name, Alexandra Yaxley, all over an blank scroll.
She sighed, setting down her eagle-feather quill. "Okay," she said with a crisp, decisive nod.
Rose smiled. "Thank you for your cooperation. I'll give you more details at the next Prefects meeting." It sounded more like she was saying You're welcome. You're welcome for this opportunity to prove yourselves as you.
Scorpius raised an eyebrow in thanks.
Scorpius and Rose were good friends. They studied, wandered around the castle, hung out, sought each other out when wanting company and even flew about a bit. (Though the last was more of a Scorpius and Al thing.)
They'd shared many memories together, especially in the Room of Requirement where they liked to think up sketchpads, books and bay windows and sit together, chatting amiably about important matters and deep topics.
"Why do you keep me around?" Scorpius asked one day, writing his opinions about her art in delicate script along the margins of her sketchpad.
Rose looked up from her book, The Beginning of the Witch Trials, in blank surprise, squinting at him through her glasses. "What do you mean?" she asked. "You're my friend."
"Why do you keep me around?" Scorpius repeated steadily, running his eyes over her face, tracking her expression. "I can't do much for you. You know this. Perhaps in status, a bit of help in homework, but you're independent and persistent enough to do find in about everything." She wasn't with him for Al's sake, they'd both know if they were hanging out because of his and Al's relationship. No, they'd been friends for a long time and Rose had done a lot for him, for his House, and he'd done little in return.
A Slytherin kept track of his debts.
"No, that's my explanation," Rose corrected him, looking him in the eye. She was smiling, something soft and easy. "You're my friend. You've stayed my friend, right by my side this entire time. Your friends became my friends and I know I can genuinely trust them and you."
Scorpius thought of the Slytherin adjective cunning. Staying with Rose was always the best choice, she was bright, sharp and good company. Even if her cousins had prodded Marcus into eating a pint of ice cream in one go and not throwing up - Slytherin ambition was never always about power.
"You're my friend, Scorpius," Rose smirked, prodding him with her foot and he grabbed it and let himself smirk back.
"Thanks," he said dryly. "I never knew."
"Wait until Al hears you don't consider me your friend."
Scorpius raised an eyebrow. She was fishing for his words now, they both knew, and he indulged her. "You're my friend too, Rose," he drawled, re-positioning himself on the couch. "You're my friend too."