A/N: Hello again, everyone! Thank you for all of the kind reviews so far! Really appreciate it.
Just a note…a few people pointed out a few minor mistakes in the first few chapters (thank you for pointing those out!) and I have gone back and fixed them to the best of my abilities. On one of the bigger mistakes, I was not aware that the Scamander twins were younger than Scorpius and Rose. If I had known I wouldn't have used them. It's too late to change it, so I'll just stick with them.
Anyway, here's the latest! Enjoy!
Scorpius flopped down onto the couch inside the Gryffindor common room, weary and exhausted from the day. He dropped his books onto the floor with a dull thud, then ran a hand through his messy hair. It was well past eleven on Friday, and Scorpius was more than ready for the weekend.
They were two weeks into the school year and he was already overwhelmed with an overload of schoolwork. How the professors expected him to have any type of life in the midst of all their assignments was something he would never understand. Scorpius sighed as he realized all of the work he would have to do over the weekend.
"That is not fair!" came an exclamation from across the room. Scorpius glanced up to see Rose and Albus Potter engaged in a rather heated game of Wizard's Chess.
"That's part of the game." Rose replied, grinning from ear to ear.
"You're too good at this." Albus grumbled.
"You can thank my father for that." Rose remarked, twirling a strand of her ginger hair with her finger while she contemplated her next move.
Scorpius watched from his perch on the couch as the game continued. He and Rose were settling well into their partnership during Potions, though they didn't spend much time together outside of class. Rose spent nearly all of her free time with her friend Allison and her cousin. Scorpius understood, but couldn't help wishing that he could talk to her about other things besides how to crush nettles properly.
The Scamander twins were as rambunctious as always, though Scorpius was becoming good friends with them. His free time was either spent with them, or with no one. Most Gryffindors were as wary of him as Allison was. Scorpius didn't mind much. He was an only child, and used to being alone.
Thoughts of his father drifted back into Scorpius' mind. He still hadn't replied to his letter from the night of his arrival. He was too afraid to, frankly. What his family would think of him when they found out was something Scorpius didn't wish to dwell on. He supposed they could already know. They could have sent a letter to the school itself, inquiring after his well-being.
"Scorpius, my lad." He jumped slightly, shaken from his thoughts. The twins had plopped down beside him on the couch, their blonde hair even scruffier than usual. Scorpius sensed they had been up to something.
"Would you care to join us on an adventure?" Lysander asked, raising his eyebrows up and down mysteriously.
"You look like you need some excitement." Lorcan remarked, noticing Scorpius' droll expression.
"I'm in." Scorpius replied, thrilled at the idea of some mischief. It was too good of a Friday night to stay cooped up in the Gryffindor common room. Besides, he needed a break from all of his worries. "Where are we going?" he whispered as they stood from the couch.
"The kitchen." Lorcan responded simply.
"Word is they keep some butterbeer down there for the Professors." Lysander added, grinning suggestively.
"How will we get there without Filch finding us?" Scorpius implored, referring to the Squib who served as caretaker of Hogwarts.
"We have it all taken care of." Lorcan assured him, patting his shoulder. "Now, let's get going."
The twins made sure no one was looking, then carefully began the ascent up the stairs towards the boy's dorms. Scorpius followed close behind, perplexed. When they were halfway up the stone steps, the twins suddenly stopped in front of a broom closet and opened the door.
"Quick, get inside." Lysander whispered, beckoning for Scorpius to get inside. He complied, climbing in behind Lorcan.
Lysander closed the door, entrapping them inside the closet. A small sliver of light shining through the crack in between the two doors illuminated the inside. Lysander gave Lorcan a nod and his twin reached behind a pile of mops and brooms, then pulled some sort of lever. The wall in the back of the closet creaked and groaned, then split in half to reveal a passageway. Scorpius stared in shock.
"How did you-"
"In, in." Lorcan interjected, practically dragging Scorpius into the tunnel after him. Lysander followed, then pulled another lever inside to close it. Scorpius let out a deep breath as the door closed with a soft bang.
"How in Merlin's name did you find this?" he breathed as they began the journey through the passageway. He brushed stray cobwebs out of his face as Lorcan led the way.
"Found it all by ourselves." Lysander answered, his voice tinged with pride.
"We were out exploring the other night and had to hide in that closet to get away from Mrs. Norris." Lorcan continued.
"Blasted cat." Lysander added.
"I bumped into the lever and voila!" Lorcan finished, throwing his hand up in the air for dramatic effect.
Scorpius shook his head ruefully, not surprised in the least bit. The twins were great friends, but one of these days they would get into serious trouble. As a moment's silence stretched between the three boys, Scorpius swore he could have heard the pitter-patter of feet behind them. Telling himself he was merely imagining it, he ignored the sounds and returned his attention to the twins.
"It is our goal for our time here at Hogwarts to honor the one and only…" Lysander said.
"The truly great…" Lorcan jumped in.
"The magnificent Weasely twins!" Lysander exclaimed from his position bringing up the rear.
"May Fred forever rest in peace." Lorcan added gravely. Scorpius tried not to laugh at their enthusiasm.
"We really need to get started on our map, Lorcan." Lysander remarked.
"What map?" Scorpius asked, his brow furrowing in confusion.
"The Marauder's Map, of course!" Lorcan answered as if Scorpius were missing a few lights on upstairs.
"The Marauder's Map?" Scorpius exclaimed, his voice laced with disbelief.
"Not the Marauder's Map." Lysander replied. "Just a replica."
"We should ask Rose if we could talk to her uncle George." Lorcan suggested, sneezing from the dust and mildew on the cobblestone walls and floors. "He could give us some pointers."
"No, that might be a bit rude, asking him about Fred." Lysander pointed out. "Besides, it wasn't them who made the map." The two of them continued bickering until they finally reached the end of the tunnel. Lorcan pulled a lever right next to the wall, then stepped back while the wall opened to reveal a wide hallway.
"Ta-da!" Lorcan exclaimed, throwing his hands out to gesture to the grandiose corridor. Scorpius glanced around at his surroundings to find that they were indeed in the basements, yet he failed to notice any kitchen in the immediate vicinity.
"I don't see the kitchens." Scorpius commented, searching for any doors.
"Come here." Lysander replied, closing the door by pressing a stone. He then walked to the end of the hall and stood before a large painting. It was a bowl of fruit, Scorpius noticed. To his even greater surprise, Lorcan reached up and began tickling the pear.
The brownish-green piece of fruit immediately started squirming and laughing uncontrollably. Then it swirled around in pool of murky colors, forming a bright green doorknob. Lorcan turned it and there was a click, followed shortly by the hidden door opening.
Scorpius gasped upon entering the kitchens. It was a ginormous room, nearly the size of the Great Hall. The colossal fireplace on the opposite side of the room was empty, and pots and pans were scattered throughout the vast kitchen.
"This way, Scorpius!" Lysander whispered, his voice amplifying as it bounced off of the stone walls.
Scorpius crept carefully after his friends as they walked across the room to a pantry kept cold by some sort of enchantment. Lorcan strode inside and reemerged a moment later carrying three bottles of butterbeer and a grin on his face.
"Cheers!" he said, handing a bottle to Scorpius. He inspected the bottle carefully, then popped off the lid.
"First butterbeer?" Lysander inquired, raising his eyebrows at Scorpius' skeptical expression. Scorpius gave a shy nod, wondering if it was their first too. Raising the bottle to his lips, he let a small sip of the amber liquid cascade down his throat.
He smacked his lips together, his brain registering the peculiar flavor. It tasted slightly of butterscotch, though a bit more sweet. Scorpius decided he liked it and raised his bottle for another swig.
"What on earth do you think you're doing?"
Scorpius jumped, then spun around to see Rose Weasely and Albus Potter standing in the entrance to the kitchen. Rose, the one who had spoken, stomped towards them, her hands planted firmly on her hips.
"We were enjoying the excitement of a Friday night and thought we'd come and refresh ourselves a bit." Lysander supplied, clearly not feeling the least bit guilty.
"I thought you two were smarter than this." Rose exclaimed irritably as she stopped in between Scorpius and Lysander. Lorcan grinned.
"Would you expect anything less?" he replied cheekily. Rose pursed her lips.
"We're just having fun, Rose." Lysander added.
"It won't be so much fun when you get caught by Filch and cost Gryffindor a boatload of points!" Rose shot back. "And you," she turned to Scorpius. "I thought you knew better than pulling a stunt like this."
"If you're so afraid of getting caught, why did you follow us down here?" Scorpius countered, a bit annoyed at her tone.
"I merely wanted to stop you from doing anything even more stupid." Rose retorted. Scorpius flinched, feeling slightly hurt at her words.
"We're not complete gits, you know." Scorpius spat in reply.
"Well then maybe you should stop acting like one!" Rose yelled. Scorpius felt his face flush in anger.
"Rose, calm down." Albus hissed from behind her. "Filch will hear you. Let's just get back to the dorms and forget this happened."
"That won't stop them from doing it again." Rose replied, her hazel eyes blazing.
"You're not going to tell on us, are you?" Lysander asked, his eyes wide. "I thought we were friends!"
"Can we just go already?" Albus pleaded, looking nervously behind him. "We-"
The black-haired boy was cut off by a yell from the hallway. Torchlight flooded the doorway.
"Where are ye?" A raspy voice carried inside. "I can hear ye pesky little students."
"Filch, hide!" Lorcan exclaimed, grabbing his twin by the arm and yanking him behind him into a closet. Albus scrambled in after them.
Without thinking, Scorpius grabbed Rose's hand and pulled her into the cold pantry after him. He shut the door softly behind them, holding his breath anxiously as he listened for Filch.
"Let go of-" Scorpius clamped his hand over her mouth. Rose squirmed and tried to free herself from his grip, eventually succeeding in pulling away from him. She gave him a furious glare, but thankfully didn't say anything.
Footsteps sounded from outside the door as Filch searched the kitchen. Scorpius' breathing felt as loud as a snoring elephant in the thickening silence. Rose stood next to him, back pressed against the cold stone wall. The footsteps neared their hiding place and Scorpius held his breath.
The doorknob suddenly turned and light flooded the pantry. Filch, a scrawny, thin man with a bulbous forehead and scraggly grey hair, bore a lantern in one hand and a stick in the other. Scorpius wasn't sure if the stick was for intruders or students. Frankly, he wasn't interested in finding out.
"Here we are." Filch snarled, his sallow face lighting up in a grin. "Thought you'd try and hide from ol' Filch now, did we?" Scorpius could sense the fear coming from Rose as Filch grabbed both of them by the scruff and practically hurled them back out into the kitchen.
"It was me, sir." Scorpius said suddenly. He wasn't sure where the words were coming from, nor why he was saying them, but they spilled out nonetheless. "It's my fault." Filch raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"Is that so?" he replied, tilting his head to the side.
"I made her come." Scorpius said, glancing for a fleeting moment at Rose to see shock written all over her face. "She didn't want to, but I made her anyway. It was stupid of me, I know."
"Stupid is not a strong enough word to describe what you did. " Filch responded. Scorpius hung his head slightly at that, knowing every word of it was true. Filch rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, since you're first years I'll let it slide with twenty points from…?"
"Gryffindor." They answered in unison.
"Twenty points from Gryffindor." Filch repeated. "And two nights of detention next week." Scorpius winced at the punishment, bur didn't say anything. He merely nodded in answer. "Now, let's get you back to Gryffindor Tower."
Scorpius trusted his other friends in hiding to find their own way back and followed Filch and Rose along the winding hallways and up the moving staircases back to his dorm. Filch left them at the Fat Lady's portrait (who was not at all pleased with being woken so late at night) and Scorpius followed Rose through the entrance back into the common room.
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow." Scorpius said gruffly, making for the stairway leading to the boys dorm.
"Scorpius?" Rose interjected as he was turning.
"Yes?" he answered, spinning back around to face her again. She had her hands clasped nervously in front of her.
"Thank you." She said quietly. "For what you said to Filch." Scorpius shrugged.
"You were right, it was stupid." Rose smiled.
"So you won't do it again?"
"Are you joking? Of course I will!" Scorpius replied, grinning mischievously. Rose glared at him in exasperation. "Not too often, though." He added quickly. She rolled her eyes.
"Whatever." Rose turned to leave, then paused. "I was angry earlier and wasn't thinking. I'm sorry I called you a git." She said. Scorpius smirked.
"I'm a Malfoy, that's what everyone thinks of me." He responded dryly.
"Well I don't think so." Rose replied, shuffling her feet nervously. Scorpius felt something lift in his chest at her words.
"I suppose I can rest in peace, then." He said teasingly. Rose tried to glare at him again, but failed, chuckling lightly instead.
"Good night, Malfoy." She responded, tossing her hair over her shoulder and striding towards the stairs leading to the girl's dorms.
"G'night Weasely." Scorpius shot back, watching her read hair wave goodbye to him as she hiked up the stairs.
The Gryffindor common room was silent as Scorpius left it, climbing up his own flight of stairs. He felt a grin creeping up his face. He felt happy. Happier than he had felt in a long time.
He was beginning to like this Rose Weasely…
A/N: Ok. Before everyone starts jumping all over me saying "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, THERE'S NO PASSAGEWAY FROM GRYFFINDOR TOWER TO THE KITCHEN!" just listen. I know. I made it up. It's Fanfiction. I'm allowed to do that.
Anyways, see ya next time and hope y'all liked this one! Please review and let me know what ya think!
