"This is the worst plan you've ever had, Persie,", Scorpius hissed, flying near Persie. He had never gotten the hang of brooms, not really. Persie stuck her tongue out, the looming Burrow coming into their view, only one window illuminated.
"This is the only plan I could come up after a week of thinking, Scorpius,", she hissed back, stopping near the window and knocking, Lily's worried face hurriedly opening the window and hurrying them inside, where Hugo and Molly were as well, Roxanne standing near the door with heavy pockets. Scorpius imagined it was something for Persie's mysterious plan she had been cooking.
He waved to them, and sat down, their brooms resting against the windowsill with a third one, Lily turning off the lights and illuminating the space with the faintest Lumos. His wand was in his pocket, and the bag on his back was expanded, thanks to a combination of charms he got from Rose and Albus. According to Persie, everything they'd need for the summer was inside.
"So, here's the plan,", Lily said in calm yellowish-orange, hands clasped together. "Scorpius, you stay here. Hugo, you got the drums, you make noise. When you hear doors opening, Roxy, throw the Peruvian Powder, and me and Persie rescue the two from their rooms, since Molly dear got the right unlocking spell. We bring them here, the three of you run away to aunt Luna's house, where Lorcan is waiting, and he has the rest of the instructions."
He looked at his sister, who shrugged. That overly complicated plan had taken her a week? What would have a month done to it? Scorpius was almost afraid to ask.
Still, it was the only suitable plan they had after they had learned - through a letter from Lily to Persie - that Molly Weasley still thought it an issue that Rose and Albus dated, so she took it into her own hands during summer to avoid contact between the two - by locking them in their rooms like some muggle fairy tale about princess in towers, but with less royalty and less towers. Persie and Lily cooked the plan, and today they'd be doing it justice.
"Alright, let's go,", Lily said, rising up and helping Hugo carry his drums, while Roxanne stayed close to the door, Persie leaving with Molly, the two discussing in low tones magic. Scorpius felt a bit useless, compared to the younger kids, but still.
Hugo started playing the drums, and when people started shifting inside their rooms, sounds popping off like small colorful explosions, Roxanne, casually, rolled two black balls into the floor, darkness seeping in thick and tight, a third of the Peruvian Powder balls in her hand just lying in wait for it to thin.
He heard Molly's blinding white voice at the same time Lily and Persie came in with Rose and Albus, both sleepy and dressed in pajamas, Roxanne lazily throwing another solid cloud of darkness in the hallway as Scorpius quickly kissed his partners, silently urging them outside in the brooms. Before they headed off, however, he tipped off an imaginary hat to the group inside as Persie hissed they should be going.
"Where, now?", Rose yawned in gold, lazily flying in the same direction was going. Albus seemed to catch up, at least.
"Aunt Luna's, maybe?", he said, brightly blue, passing a hand through his bed hair. Scorpius just nodded, going for the door that spilled light into the darkness, a dark shade in front of it. He arrived to find Lorcan wearing just pants, and did his best not to stare.
"Hello, cousin,", he waved, speaking in his normal forest green, smiling, and playing with a length of rope in his free hand as the trio unmounted their brooms, passing the rope to them, the trio carefully grabbing it. "Persie was a dear to contact me, and I've made arrangements with my brother, Lysander. He'll surely help you two. The password, by the way, is synesthesia."
Scorpius did his best to suppress a smile, and checked if Rose and Albus were alright before activating the Portkey, disappearing to Merlin knew where to try and escape Molly Weasley.
Sure, they hadn't left the parents behind clueless - their younger siblings would deliver letters explaining what had happened, but not where they'd be spending their summer as a precaution - in the past year, Minister Granger-Weasley had accepted their relationship very well, even if First Consort, mr. Weasley, hadn't, mostly grumbling about ferrets. Scorpius wasn't sure what that meant.
Mr and Mrs. Potter, meanwhile, had had sat down with Scorpius and stared at him until he had blurted all his intentions towards their son and niece. That had been a bit pathetic, but it had been better than his terrifying talk with the Minister.
The trio landed in a small grassy hill, the starry sky illuminating the space they had landed, sprawled into each other.
"Now that's what I call a landing,", said a familiar voice, dark green, and Scorpius rose his eyes to meet with Lorcan.
No, the colour was too dark to be Lorcan. As such, that must've been…
"Lysander?", Scorpius asked, and the boy smiled.
"The one and only. Didn't Lorcan warn you guys?", he replied, approaching as the trio rose up. Scorpius cleaned his clothes as best as he could, and Lysander smiled, cat-like. Albus nudged closer to Rose, and Rose stared at "Anyway, welcome to Hammeu de Millefeuille. Small wizarding village, really, but pretty popular with students. You guys won't even be noticed here."
Scorpius doubted, considering Beauxbatons' students all knew each other, probably, but nodded.
"That's nice to know, but were we will be staying?", Albus asked, one arm possessively around Scorpius shoulders. Lysander kept his cat-like smile.
"Oh, at grandpa's. He offered you the attic, but he did say there might be an infestation or another. Wrackspurts? Toads? I can't seem to remember.", Lysander seemed pretty satisfied with that turn of events, guiding the trio away from the grassy hill they had arrived on, bags on their backs.
Scorpius felt like Persie and Lily had sent him, Rose and Albus into enemy territory, but the enemy territory was better than Molly Weasley's house. Possibly, depending on what animal the infestation was about.
The village seemed pretty bubbly, and Scorpius, moving through the shadows, could see many people of either his age or close to it in the magical pubs, shops open and illuminated with the soft glow of candles even far in the night.
"I don't think I've ever seen so many Wrackspurts around someone,", Lysander hummed, as they turned left. Scorpius could see the fight brewing in Rose and Albus, and the boy chuckled. "Calm down, I have no interest in Scorpius"
"It's better you don't, pretty boy,", Rose hissed, taking a chuckle out of Lysander. They turn right, then left, and arrive into a small building, tall and painted in a dark colour. Lysander simply opened the door with a spell, revealing a dark hallway, and nodded to them to move inside. "Where are we?"
"Grandpa's house, of course.", Lysander replied, motioning they go upstairs.
"Isn't your grandpa…?", Scorpius started, and stopped himself when he heard a door open. A small animal, a cross between a fox and a cat, passed by, and Lysander purred to it.
"Great-grandpa, actually, and yes. Don't try to get an autograph, although; he's out traveling.", Lysander let the animal pass, and kept moving through the surprisingly labyrinthine house, rising up a set of stairs hidden behind the door the creature had come from. "Anyway, you're going to have to stay in the same room, since the attic has no walls, but Lorcan tells me you guys won't mind."
Scorpius blushed, and Albus and Rose grabbed his hands, both staring at Scorpius' cousin, who simply smiled.
Rose was the first to speak, golden and cautious.
"Sorry, it's the habit.", they turned right, arriving in a small landing that only had one door, and turned right, going upstairs once more. Scorpius was pretty sure the building didn't seem so tall when he first arrived.
"Yeah, your brother seems to be always flirting with Scorp here,", Albus continued, taking a green laugh out of Lysander, when he stopped walking. They had ended up in front of a door decorated with carved snakes and panthers, and Lysander opened it with a spell, revealing a room decorated sparsely, a four poster bed and a writing desk, and that was it. His cousin smiled as the three of them adentered it.
"Here you all are. A snake-infested attic, your room for this time. I'll pick you guys up tomorrow, and I can show you around the town, if you'd like. The bookstores are pretty well stocked, cousin."
Scorpius and Rose looked at each other, grinning, and Albus sighed.
"Looks like we won't be going elsewhere, mate.", Albus said, putting his arms around their shoulders, and the smirk Lysander offered was dangerous.
The next morning, Lysander guided them through the small village, the sunlight bright against the cobblestone path they were guided through, pointing out the small shops ("there's a nice corner for making out there, but I'm not sure all three of you would fit." "I know I don't know you, but have you ever thought about shutting up? Just once?"), and stopping in front of the library, that, to Scorpius, resembled Gringotts. Whoever, instead of angry goblins holding spears, there were windows showing the interior, a sea of books just in front of his eyes.
Scorpius grabbed his partners' hands and went inside, Lysander's "I'll be outside" barely heard as the trio braved through a sea of books. Albus seemed to be having fun watching Rose and Scorpius discuss what books would be best, although, butting in with books that were unrelated, but had funny titles. Scorpius and Rose soon forgot their original objective, engaging in Albus' made up competition of funniest title.
In the end, Rose won with Why didn't I die when the Augurey cried, but there was a sticker in the cover that covered everything after when to Augurey, resulting in Why didn't I die when I cried, and Albus wheezed for so long Scorpius wondered if maybe he shouldn't brush up his basic knowledge of healing spells.
After that, they'd left the bookstore - the trio was actually booted out for being a disturbance, but anyway - and got their hands in a few baked goods and a thermos of tea, and left to a river embankment, laying on the ground, the sunlight fading slowly as they ate. When the night came, it found the trio laying lazily under the starry sky, fireflies buzzing around them in the softest greenish white Scorpius had ever seen. Albus was nuzzled against him, Rose laying on top of his chest, and Scorpius couldn't help but wonder...
"Do we have to leave?", Rose asked, sitting up, worriedly gold, as if she had, somehow, read his mind. Scorpius and Albus looked at each other, sitting up, and Albus touched Rose's hand softly. "I mean, logically, yeah, sure. But do we?"
"We could live here,", Scorpius started, sighing. "And then your mom would declare war against France. And Al's dad would just… I don't know, Aurorify his way to us or something. "
Albus cracked a smile.
"Dark Lady Hermione does have a nice ring to it,", Albus hummed, getting a mock slap from Rose. "Hey, isn't it the truth?"
"The truth is forbidden from now on,", Rose declared in a proud gold, and smiled, rising up from her seat and cleaning her clothes with a quick spell. "Alright, enough of this depressing talk. I saw a nice pub on the way here, and I propose we all go get some butterbeers. What do you guys say?"
Albus and Scorpius looked to each other, and Scorpius rose up, helping Albus as the trio went in the direction Rose pointed.
Scorpius smiled to himself, letting his steps fall behind, and took a deep breath as he watched Rose and Albus animatedly enter a discussion or another. Things maybe weren't alright - they were running away from their problems, after all -, but this was, at least.
"Hey, Scorp, I don't think the pub has a delivery service yet!", Albus called out, and Scorpius grinned.
"Yeah, come on!", Rose grinned, and Scorpius went to catch up, smiling. Everything would end up well, even if he had to make it so.
