A/N: Well, here's part 3/3 for flashbacks. Then we'll speed things back up.

DISCLAIMER: I am still not JK Rowling and I most certainly do not own Harry Potter.. No matter how much I wish I did.

ONE YEAR AGO

Scorpius is a seventh year, Lily is a fifth year.

It was a rainy day. A dark, cold, rainy April day. Days like today didn't make my mood any better. I was already stressing out about NEWTS and the constant gloomy weather was making me irritable. I didn't want to study, I didn't want to go to Quidditch practice, and I definitely didn't want to hang out with Al and his girlfriend, Sophie. Al and Sophie, along with Rose and Lily, were his best friends, and they always hung out together during their time out of classes. Sometimes they would just sit around talking, others they'd sit around studying. Lately they've been studying since the four of them had NEWTS this year and Lily had her OWLS. The study sessions had finally gotten to Scorpius though, especially since Albus and Sophie seemed to think it was okay to start a snogging session when they got bored with their books.

He was tired of seeing it. He didn't mind being single, but the last thing any guy wanted to be reminded of was the fact that he didn't have some witch to snog whenever he wanted. So, he was hiding. Astronomy classes wouldn't be starting for another several hours and Scorpius had taken refuge in the tower, staring at the wet grounds.

It felt like hours that he sat there, just staring at the lake. Every now and then he'd see a tentacle pop up from under the water, grab something skimming the water, and then sink back under. He was just getting ready to leave the tower when he heard the door open, close, and then the faintest of footsteps coming near him.

"James gave you the map then, huh?" he asked, without turning. There was only one person who would have come looking for him. Albus and Sophie would have been too involved with each other to notice he was missing and Rose wouldn't have stopped studying even if a Hippogriff had flown into the room and started eating her notes. That left only one person; Lily.

"Of course he did! Al's had the cloak since he started at Hogwarts! It's about time I got something!" Lily responded, laughing. "How'd you know it was me?"

"Process of elimination. Al and Sophie are too wrapped up in each other and Rose is too wrapped up in her books. Besides, you always come looking for me when I'm gone too long."

"That's because you start going into your super moody, whiny self if left alone too long. Then you're more difficult to deal with when you do emerge. I seem to be the only one who has figured that out though."

I laughed in response, finally turning my head to look at her. She had her long red hair pulled back in a ponytail while wearing yoga pants and a Gryffindor sweatshirt. Her Quidditch gloves and rain-resistant goggles (which I had just bought for her 15th birthday) were laying beside her.

"You have practice soon?" I asked.

"Yup! Only two weeks until we face you guys for the House Cup! You know what that means, right?"

"That you're going to make Wood's life horrible for the next two weeks?" I responded, laughing. When James had graduated he had begged Professor Longbottom to make Lily the next captain. It made Lily the youngest captain in the school and she loved every minute of it.

"Of course!" she said, giggling.

We sat there still chuckling and just watching the rain. After we had gotten over our giggles, I finally steered the conversation to a more serious subject. It usually happened with us, so I'm sure she was expecting it.

"Hey Spitfire, can I ask you something?"

"You just did, but I'll grant you another question" she said in her typical Lily attitude.

"What do you want to do when you graduate?"

My question was met with silence. I looked over to see her staring at the grounds with her eyebrows scrunched together, as though she was thinking really hard. She sat like that for a few minutes before she answered.

"I'm not really sure. Part of me would like to follow in my mum's footsteps be a professional Quidditch player. The other part of me wants to do something cool. Maybe being a curse breaker like Uncle Bill or maybe even searching for new magical animals like Aunt Luna. And if none of those work out, I could always go work at Uncle George's shop. I did help him and Fred over the summer, you know."

"I remember, Lils. It's where I would always find you. Do you ever worry about disappointing your parents with what you decide to do?"

"No, of course not. They've always told me I could do whatever I wanted. Why? Are you worried about disappointing your parents? If you are, I think you're being ridiculous. You're parents are so proud of you, anyone can see it. Besides, I thought you were applying to be an Auror with Al."

"I am planning on that, but what if I can't get good enough grades? What if I need a fall back career?" I asked. I looked over when she didn't say anything right away and saw her holding back a laugh.

"Why do you look like you're about to laugh at me, Lily Potter?" I scolded.

"Because, Mr. Malfoy, you're being as insecure as a 12 year old girl who hasn't fully developed yet! You do realize that the only reason you aren't Head Boy right now is because of all the trouble you and Al have gotten yourselves into over the years, right?" she said, laughing.

"Lily, I'm serious! What if I show up the first day and your dad takes one look at me and tells me to get out? My family doesn't have the best reputation, he may be pressured to tell me I can't join."

"Oh Scorpius," she said softly. "You know my dad doesn't fall for stuff like that. You've been a part of our family for seven years now. He loves you just like one of his own. And trust me, once you've proven yourself to him, you don't need to prove yourself to anyone else."

I sat there for a few minutes, thinking about what she said. She did have a good point. Both of her parents were very nice to me. I was always invited over for all family functions, including Christmas.

"Look, Scorp, I've got to go. We've got practice in 15 minutes and I need to prep. We'll talk more later, okay? Don't dwell on it too much. You're going to do great, I promise. Don't stay up here too long. The little first years will be here soon."

She squeezed my shoulder as she got up as a goodbye. I smiled in response, watching her leave. I sat there a while longer and decided she was probably right. As I got up to leave, I started laughing. Really, when was Lily ever wrong?

Two Months Later

Just before graduation.

It was almost two months later exactly when Scorpius received his very official looking Ministry letter. It had come at breakfast and since then Scorpius had just sat at the table, not bothering to finish his food, staring at the unopened letter in his hands. Albus had been watching him for a while and finally had gotten frustrated.

"Mate, are you ever going to open that? I'm sure you made it into the program. I did, and we all know that I'm not as smart as you. Or are you waiting for some special sign to open it?"

Still no response. Scorpius just sat there, frozen. Albus sighed, showing he was giving up, and headed toward the Gryffindor table. He sat down next to Sophie while telling her, Lily and Rose that he had been accepted into the program.

Slowly, the Great Hall started emptying out. Scorpius still sat there staring at his letter. A few students who passed gave him funny looks, several out right laughed at him. He didn't notice any of them. All he could think about was the fact the rest of his life was going to be determined by what was in that sealed letter.

He had no idea how long he had been sitting there, but he was finally shaken out of his thoughts when Lily came over, sat down next to him and ripped the letter out of his hands.

"Al said you hadn't opened it yet, but I didn't realize he was being serious! I thought he just didn't want to tell me your good news!"

With that, she proceeded to open the letter for Scorpius before he could argue. All he could do was watch her and wait. And wait. He watched her read the letter twice, all while keep her face completely neutral.

"Well, do you want the good news or the bad news first?" she finally asked. Scorpius just looked at her with wide eyes, frozen with fear.

"The bad news, Scorpius, is that you are in trouble with me." she said laughing. "The good news, you're in the program, just like I said you would be!"

Next thing Lily knew, she was being picked up and spun in circles.

"Scorp!" she cried laughing, "Put me down before I get sick!"

Her feet finally hit the ground, but not before she was smothered in a big hug by Scorpius.

"I'm sorry for not believing you and thank you. Thank you for believing in me and thank you for being here for me through all of this. You are the best friend that anyone could ask for. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You're welcome Scorp. You're going to be great, you know." Lily replied smiling, as she returned her best friends' hug, wishing it'd last just a little bit longer.