Chapter 3 - Hear You Me

November

Rose was running through the crowd with her arms scattered in the air. Jack was in sight and he beamed when saw her. It was a dream come true.

She flung out her arms and jumped into his. She was so glad to see him and he was glad to see her. The day had come at long last.

THUMP

Ow! Rose laid on the floor beside her bed. She looked up sleepily and stared at the ceiling. Darn it. It was only a dream and it was the third time I dreamt it. She thought. She tried to close her eyes again so she could dream it again, but then she realized something. Today was the day! Today was the day he was coming back!

She almost wanted rejoice or throw a big party. This was the best day of her life. She would go with him this time. She would spend the rest of her life with him. Wherever he went she would go too. She could teach somewhere close by. She was just so excited.

She jumped off the floor and rummaged through her clothes. Picking up one she liked, but then discard it on the floor. It took her six outfits to find the one she loved the most. It was perfect! She thought.

Time was not on her side, however. He was coming back in the afternoon and of course it was only ten in the morning. She probably walked back and forth for almost two hours. She had never been so impatient before.

Finally it was time to leave.

She jumped in her car and rode off to Kings Cross station as fast as she could.

Rose started to hum one of her favorite songs. A love song, actually. She was too excited she almost couldn't keep the wheel under control. She waited so long for this moment; almost three years in fact.

Those two years have been long and hard on her. Now, was the time she would make it right. She knew all she had to do was say, 'yes.' She had to say 'yes,' this time.

She wanted to bring along Lily for support, but she obviously wasn't available anymore. Nobody mentioned her anymore. Everybody was still suffering from the last time they had seen her. She was still suffering. She missed her. Even though she was taken away from her, she knew Lily didn't want her to be sad.

She could have really used her by now. She knew exactly the right way to calm her down. She would say soothing words. She would take her mind off her excitement and nervousness. She would…, but she couldn't because she wasn't around anymore.

Sometimes she knew it was pathetic, but she would pretend she was there. She would pretend she was laughing along with her about the most ridiculous things. Sometimes…

BEEEP BEEP

Rose swerved to the side to avoid a car she almost hit.

"Focus, Rose. Focus." She muttered. At long last, she made it to King's Cross.

She made her way past the Platform 9 ¾. So many memories laid past that barrier, but all seemed to go to waste.

She made her way to Platform 7 ¼, which was held in a more secluded place than the Platform 9 ¾. She took out her wand and made two soft swifts with it and the barrier became a door. She opened it and closed it quickly so no muggle would follow.

She went down the stairs and onto the platform. She sat down on a bench and waited for the train to arrive. There were about thirty other people there waiting.

At last it came.

Smoke was soaring out of its front. The familiar squeals and jerks of a train brought back more memories.

The doors swung open and people started filing out. Rose looked over people's heads to see if she could see him. He knew she was coming so it can't be that hard to see an anxious auburn head jumping up and down.

Then there he was and Rose pushed forward to see him. She saw him and he was looking ahead. Only five more people in her way of reaching him. She didn't see her yet.

She saw him look behind him. It seemed like they were moving in slow motion. Rose pushed by one more person and she saw him fully now.

Jack saw her and he had a big smile on his face. Rose wanted to jump into his arms so bad. She kept trying to get by people. She was now a foot from reaching him and that is where he offered a hand up into the train.

Rose stopped.

Rose stopped because someone grabbed his hand and made their way down the stairs.

It was a pretty girl. She had bright blue eyes and had dark brownish black locks of hair that flowed neatly behind her shoulders. She smiled as she saw Rose standing there.

"Rose!" Jack yelled and he came over and gave her a hug. He let go of Rose and pushed her over to the lady he helped off the train.

"Is this her?" The woman asked.

"Uh, yeah, I'm her." Rose said wondering who this woman could be. Jack left her side and placed his hand on the woman's shoulder.

"Rose, I want you to meet my girlfriend, Wendy Roza. She's a nurse at the hospital." Rose held a shocked face, but she knew well enough not to break down. She knew well enough not to do it here. She now knew she had lost her chance to be with him when he asked her to come with him.

"Rose?" Jack looked at her. "You ok?" It was the worst thing to say someone when you have broken their heart. Didn't Jack realize that she had fallen for him from the moment he cared for her after her break-up with Thor in the years at Hogwarts together?

"Oh, sorry. I'm pleased to meet you." So not! She cried in her head. She shook hands with her.

"Jack has been talking about you so much. This is your best friend, right Jack?" She asked leaning into him.

"Yes, the very best." Rose was sure to tear apart later that day when she was alone. Is that all you thought of me? She whimpered in her head.

"Wow Jack, you never told me your best friend was so pretty." The woman Wendy said. Jack just smiled.

"Um, thanks." I said politely. Well Jack never told me that he has some scarlet woman as a girlfriend. Rose thought in her head. Why must she always get her hopes up?

Her heart never felt it could ever heal again.

Alice Anna Longbottom was very angry that she didn't score tickets to the last concert the Weird Sisters would be performing. They were so old, but their songs still hit the top of the list of favorite wizard songs.

The concert was sold out and there was like no way anybody else could get a ticket. She was so disappointed. The radio had been her last shot. But once again luck was not on her side.

She would sometimes go with Hugo to Hogs Head when she was down, but that normally made her feel worse. Hugo wasn't always the jolliest person to be around when you're down in the dumps.

So she thought she'd go to the Three Broomsticks for old times' sake. Madam Rosmerta was such an old lady now, but her good looks always prevailed.

"Anything for you dear?" she asked when she sat down.

"Surprise me, my luck isn't great." Alice muttered.

"Very well."

Alice sighed. All of her friends were going and she was stuck behind as usual.

Nobody seemed to enjoy her company these days. She looked to her right and there was a man dressed in black with his hood pulled down.

She felt nervous all of a sudden. She came up with twenty ways that the man would somehow kill every person in the restaurant in her head. Could he be a Death Eater? She thought. The man caught her staring at him and she turned away immediately.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him look around and then pull up a seat next to her. She was done for.

"Alice, is that really you?" He whispered. She looked at him with shock that he knew her name. She didn't answer his question though. He lowered his hood just a bit for the light to shine on his face.

"Lysander?" Alice asked. He frowned at her words.

"No, I'm Lorcan." He said.

"Oh." She blushed that she got his name wrong. "Sorry."

"Don't matter. It happens all the time."

"Bet you're sick of it."

"You get used to it." He shrugged.

"So, what brings you here to the Three Broomsticks of all places? I thought the fame had some advantages?"

"I like the Three Broomsticks, plus I don't have much fame as my brother does now a days. I quit the band if you didn't know."

"Really?"

"Yeah, wasn't worth my time."

"So, what do you do now for a living?" She asked him.

"I keep to myself mostly, but I found a new way of entertaining my life." He said.

"And that would be?"

"Inventing new spells. Extremely dangerous that is worth the risk."

"Any luck?"

"I think one of them is progressing."

"That's good."

"Yeah, so what about you? What brings you here? Little Alice wouldn't be trying to party hard tonight, would she?"

"For your information I'm not little." He looked her up and down.

"You're pretty short to me." Alice eyes relaxed.

"Ok, so I might be a tad shorter than most girls, but I'm child if that's what you meant." She said.

"Not at all. But you didn't answer my question." He said. Alice sighed.

"If you must know, I didn't score the tickets I wanted to the Weird Sisters last show." She said and looked down sadly.

"Is that it?" Lorcan asked. Alice looked up. She was the angry type so she wouldn't get angry with him for something that meant a lot to her.

"Was there something I was missing?" Alice asked. Lorcan dug into his pockets. A small slip of paper was in his hands. He pushed to her.

"You can have it." Alice looked at him weirdly and took the slip of paper in her hands. It was a ticket to the Weird Sisters band.

"I can't accept this." She said trying to give it back.

"No, I want you to have it. I wasn't planning on attending for long anyway, possibly not even at all. It was one of the many things I got from being a part of the band, but not I'm free to do anything I please. Besides, it means something to you."

"I don't know how to thank you." She said. She looked at the ticket like it was a monument.

"Eh, it was nothing. I think I could have burned it if I had the chance. The Weird Sisters never suited me. They're ok, but not my usual standard."

"Thanks so much!" Alice squealed and hugged him tightly. She felt his hood fly off.

"Look over there!" Someone yelled.

"Merlin, it's him, the Scamander boy! Do you think he would accept autographs?" One asked. Lorcan jumped out of his seat.

"Well, really nice seeing you Alice, but I've got to dash!" He ran out of the restaurant before you could say Quidditch.

Lily eyes popped open. She woke up and put her hand to her forehead. She waited a few minutes for her brain to function properly.

She thought back to her last memory of last night, well this morning. She hadn't had a good night's rest ever since her graduation that was four years ago, which was a long time ago.

She got out of bed and went to open her wardrobe. She always wore something dull. She hadn't worn bright colors in a long time either. She had been miserable for the past four years.

She felt more alone than ever. She lost contact with everyone. But that wasn't my fault. She noted to herself.

She finally picked out the dullest clothing she could find and took it out. Today was the day. She thought sadly.

She put a black robe on and went to her dresser. A picture frame was faced down on her dresser. She knew it contained a picture of her and Scorpius at school when he was in his last year and her in her fifth. She failed to face it up the right way. It hurt to see his smile; his beautiful smile. It was her fault. She knew that. She was too late.

She wished the golden lily was there, but she wasn't allowed to go and fetch it from her room back home.

Then something caught her eye. It was her box filled with those dark memories. The ones that had her crying her eyes out for days. It was just last week she attained her newest item. Her hand shook as she opened it.

A newspaper clipping and two letters fell out as it dumped on the floor due to her shaking hands.

She bent over and picked them up. She picked up one of the letters first. She had read this letter for four years now. Over and over again. She scanned down to the bottom. His words stung her heart every time she read it. The words that were trapped in her head ever since the first day she achieved it. It read:

Everything I do is for you…

Lily folded the letter again and put it back in the box. She was shaking harder now. She felt tears spring up again. The tears she sworn to never let go. She hated to cry and she hardly did up until she and Scorpius got together.

She picked up the newspaper clipping next. It started to crumple under her strong hand now clenching it hard. If she was being careful she could have avoided this whole big mess. The newspaper clipping reminded her what she had done and what she needed to do. She needed to make it all better.

She looked down at the two pictures that were facing her. One showed a picture of herself staring emotionless back at her like she was confused.

The other was a picture of her father with tears running down his cheeks and her mother crying into her father's arm while he held her close.

She closed her eyes trying to forget that night, but it swam into her mind faster than any speeding light.

(Flashback - 2 years ago)

Lily was frustrated that Scorpius hasn't replied to any of her letters. What was going on? She thought. It has been three weeks now since she hasn't heard from him. But all of a sudden, an eagle owl flew in and made its own room on her messy desktop.

Lily jumped up immediately. She knew the owl immediately and was very eager to know what he had to say. She took the letter from the eagle owl and opened it and read.

Lily,

I wish I could see you. I know you're angry with me, but I have tried to come back to you for some time now. I believe someone is trying to keep me from you because every chance I thought I was coming back, they send me off somewhere. I have tried and tried to take at least one day off, even one hour so I could spend it with you, but they are watching me like a hawk. I think they think I'm going to betray them or something. It's really frustrating. Haven't I proved myself to them at all?

Well, anyway I don't want to complain to you because you don't need to hear it. It's killing me enough that we can't see each other. Also, I would use a different owl because I think someone has been blocking your letters. Your last one I found the owl's feathers had been ruffled with and it made me angry that someone might be nosing into our business.

I've been trying to do all I can to get the position I told you about because I feel it's the only way out of this rat hole. I'm not letting you go. Not ever. I'm sorry it seems I haven't written, but I only just realized someone is reading our mail.

I tried to quit plenty of times, but then someone gets hurt or someone makes a stupid move and I feel I have to stay in order to keep some people from getting hurt.

Everything I do is for you, you have to know that.

I miss you and I'll always love you. Keep strong and I'll always keep hoping to see you.

Love,

Scorpius

Lily re-read the letter a few times before putting it on the dresser. She had all the urge to write back, but she didn't want someone else to read her letters either. She will do anything to see him again.

She decided that she would not write another letter until tomorrow so she finally left her room. She walked down the stairs and made some toast. Nobody was around. It felt so lonely all of a sudden. She checked her watch and it was almost time to go to the Ministry.

Her father had already left and she knew today was grocery day so her mother was out shopping. Her clock chimed and she folded the rest of her toast in a napkin and with one step she apparated to the Ministry. She walked down the hall with toast in her mouth.

She never was too early or late, but almost directly on time. She opened the doors to the courtroom and proceeded in. Most of the jury were seated and waiting for the time to begin. She was always the last one and she didn't care.

She sat in the back where she always sat and munched on the rest of her toast. She actually hated attention and being in the back was the best way to not draw attention to herself.

She participated in every case, but said little. Many people seemed interested to hear what she had to say, but sometimes she felt she was wrong in some way. She thought she would be good at this because she was normally fair, but she always felt bad for the person who lost.

If she had her way a case would go on forever and there would be no decision made. Good thing, this job was only temporary for her because she could not see herself doing this every day for the rest of her life.

The defendant came in and the case started.

After about half an hour, the case ended and a decision was made. Lily hardly paid attention because she thought of Scorpius' letter. As people started to leave, she remained where she was. She liked to be the last one out.

She walked down the hall thinking she would go to the lounge and hang out until it was time for the next case. As she was walking, she saw her father talking to Kingsley.

What could they be talking about? She wondered. She snuck around the corner feeling like a little kid again and listened.

"…an uprising in Caen, you know in France. Lucius, we believe, is gathering more people there. I had Kepbler scope it out for us." Harry said.

"Oh yes, the last one was a bluff, wise choice." Kingsley said. "But is Kepbler right for the job? He seems a bit off these days."

"He'll be fine. I have total faith in their team. Young Malfoy is with them and he seems to keep the men in line. If Lucius Malfoy is there for sure, I'll have to go there myself with two more teams. I have no idea what he is after. He never seemed to want to take over for Voldemort. His target is so uncertain."

"We have people looking into it. Our best spies." Kingsley said.

"Good. I have one more thing to ask you." Kingsley nodded for him to continue. "Well, I hear that Dr. Mendot has come up with some weird theory about scars, you don't think mine has anything do with his odd theory?"

"He is a crazy fool, but I'll ask him myself."

"Ok, because he seemed to worry Scorpius Malfoy a bit about something." Harry started to walk in Lily's direction. Lily straightened up and pretended she was just walking down the hallway. She jumped when she didn't realize how close her father really was.

"Oh, Lily." He said surprised.

"Oh, hey Dad." She said sweetly.

"Where are you off to?"

"The lounge. The case dragged on and just got over with. So I thought I'd just hang out in the lounge." It wasn't a total lie. Lily thought.

"Oh alright, then I'll see you at home."

"Yeah, see you." Lily said and looked at Kingsley. "Good morning, Minister." She said politely.

"Morning, Ms. Potter." He said tightly. He seemed to stare straight through her. She avoided his eyes and smiled one last time and walked on.

All of a sudden her legs started to run. Scorpius was in Caen. Scorpius was in Caen! She screamed in her head.

She ran into the lounge.

Women from the jury looked up at her. She hadn't thought this through. She gave a few fake coughs.

"I'm not feeling too well, I think I'm going home for the day, is that alright?" She asked them. She didn't care if they said no. She was leaving no matter what. She had to see him.

To her relief they shrugged and she left.

She apparated to a place close by Caen that she had been to. It was only three miles to where her heart laid.

She took out her broom in miniature form and jumped on and flew out of sight. She made sure not to be seen by the muggles that were bustling around towns. She flew high above over Caen looking for him.

And she found him. It was easy for her because she had him in her dreams for as long as she could remember. To her surprise, she saw men in black robes and Lucius in front.

Ok, you saw him, you should head back. If you go down, he'll sure get angry. This is a battle for Merlin's sake. She heard her head tell her.

But I'm so close. She protested.

If you must. Her mind sighed. She knew the men would rat her out to her father, but she didn't care as long as she saw him and talked to him face to face, she'll take any penalty that would be thrown at her.

She jumped off her broom and started to run in the direction she had seen Scorpius, but something flew out of the bushes and hit her hard in the stomach.

She laid on the ground panting for breath as she looked to see what attacked her. On top of her was none other than Scorpius.

"Scorpius." She whispered till trying to catch her breath.

"Lily, what are you doing here?" He growled at her.

"How'd you know I was here?" She asked.

"I saw you in the air. Your father will not be happy with you."

"I don't care. I just wanted to see you."

"Now, isn't the best time."

"Ok, then how about this, we fight, they retreat, then I'll hang out with your team and then deal with Dad later."

"Tempting, but no." He said.

"Scorpius, come on. When was the last time we saw each other." Scorpius gritted his teeth.

"Fine, but stay out of the way." He said. I smiled. He helped me up. "I swear, you'll be the death of me." He said.

To be continued…