A/N: It's a long one, y'all.

Disclaimer: Sadly, I am not, and never will be, JKR. Aka the Harry Potter Universe does not belong to me. Sadly.


May 25th, 2029

Present Day.


Rose spent the rest of her week playing the dutiful fiancé. She had a particularly excruciating lunch date with Mrs. Archibald (sorry, Fiona) where they discussed only the safest of topics, such as the weather. She met with the caterers to oversee some last-minute seasonal changes in the menu, and she approved all of Fiona's very detailed blueprints for the reception meal seating charts.

Friday mid-morning found Rose in the middle of an incredibly warm, stuffy muggle bridal shop, nearly suffocating with all of the chintzy décor and various displays that said "MR & MRS" in shiny, sparkly letters, adorning pillows, throw rugs, champagne flutes, and anything else you could imagine. Rose and Fiona – well, mostly Fiona – had decided that Rose would have a muggle wedding dress rather than the traditional wizarding robes, as to not confuse their various muggle guests. This was her final dress fitting before the wedding, which she was shocked to learn was now only just a month away.

The shop assistant buttoned the white dress all up Rose's back, while she held her breath. The smooth material fitted itself to her curves, but after the week she'd had, it felt rather more like a straitjacket than a wedding dress. Rose wondered how much more time spent with her Mother-in-law would warrant a one-way ticket to the St. Mungo's ward for the criminally insane.

When the assistant had finished her task of buttoning and set off Rose's long, curly red mane with a short bridal veil, they both exited the tiny fitting room, stepping out to where they could see the dress in a three-fold mirror. Rose's small entourage gasped with delight when she did so.

"Oh, Rose!" her cousin Lily exclaimed, covering her mouth with her small, freckled hands as she did so. "You look absolutely stunning!"

Rose twisted towards the mirror so that she could get a glimpse of herself, and had to admit that the dress was beautiful, all fine, intricate lace phasing into a light gauze skirt that looked as if it were dripping with small, white flower petals.

It was perfect, Rose admitted to herself. It fit her like a glove, accentuating her long, lean body in a way that made her look as if she actually had soft, feminine curves. The soft shade of champagne rather than stark white set off her fiery red hair magnificently, and even the veil added a touch of elegance that Rose did not possess naturally. She had never seen herself look so stunning in her entire life. It was too bad she felt like absolute dungbombs.

Ever since their row at St. Mungo's the other day, Rose had been struggling to put Scorpius out of her mind. If she closed her eyes, even now she could feel the heat of his breath, or see that hard, blazing look he'd given her as he'd pressed her body between his own and the wall…

Rose had to remind herself of where she was, and that she was trying on a wedding dress to marry another man.

Simon loved her, and she loved him. She had spent the last two years of her life with him, for goodness sake; she wouldn't be marrying the man if she were not sure that this was what she wanted to do. And yet, she could not for the life of her forget those scorching grey eyes, or the feel of Scorpius' hands on her body. Blimey, it had been three years since he'd touched her in that way, and the memory of it still made her blush like a schoolgirl.

Simon didn't make her blush, and he would never do anything unexpected or untoward. Simon was sturdy, Simon was respectful, and Simon was safe.

Safe sounded pretty good to Rose, just about now.

She turned around to face her family and friends, with a smile that she was sure nobody would mistake to be forced. They beamed back up at her, her mother in tears, her various female cousins oohing and ahhing.

"You look incredible, Rosie," her very pregnant cousin Victoire said from the corner, a magnificent smile lighting up her beautiful face. "Simon isn't going to know what hit him, poor bloke."

Rose smiled, feeling for the first time in days like she was doing the right thing.


Though they shared a flat, Rose and Albus scarcely had spare time between their hectic careers and various relationships to spend together, which was why their Friday afternoon lunch dates were so sacred. Rose took great pains to make sure that she did not miss a Friday if she was in the country (when she was on location for work, her absence just couldn't be helped), ever since the time she had accidentally skipped a date and Al hadn't spoken to her for two weeks. He was incredibly laid back about most things, but Albus Potter took his friendships and loyalty very, very seriously. It was no wonder he'd been a Hufflepuff.

This particular Friday found the pair of them on the patio at a new café that had just recently opened in Diagon Alley, run by one of their old schoolmates, Jane. After spending a sufficient amount of time catching up with the former Ravenclaw prefect, Rose and Al tucked into their respective lunches with gusto.

"ughhhhnnnf" Rose groaned happily, taking a rather enthusiastic bite from her sandwich, as some of its fillings squeezed out the other end and splatted on her plate. Al laughed at his cousin, then paused thoughtfully, his fork capturing a soggy chip before guiding it towards his mouth.

"Do you think we'll still have time to have our lunch dates after you're married?" he asked, chewing the mushy chip slowly.

Rose looked at him with a slight frown. "Of course we will, Al," she said, placing a hand on his forearm reassuringly. "Friday afternoons are the best part of my week."

"Yeah… it'll be different though, won't it?" he replied with a sad smile.

"Nothing could change you and me." Rose said fiercely.

"Okay."

They ate in silence for a moment longer, enjoying the warmth of the sunshine on their faces and arms. Rose vaguely wondered if she would get a sunburn, out in the open air like this, and inwardly cursed her father for passing on to her his fair skin and freckles.

"I saw Malfoy the other day." Al stated, digging into his battered fish, not even glancing up at Rose.

"Oh?" she said, hoping her tone sounded sufficiently casual.

"Mmmmm," he hummed, his mouth full of fish and chips.

Rose felt that he was deliberately goading her, not giving her any more information in order to make her ask further questions about Scorpius. It was like he was hanging the bait in front of her face. Rose sighed, knowing that her cousin wouldn't willingly give away any more information.

"Okay, I'll bite," she said, setting down her half-eaten sandwich. "Why were you in St. Mungo's anyway, Al?"

He smiled happily, taking a long sip of his water before answering, "I wasn't in St. Mungo's, I was in Gringotts." When Rose frowned, confused, he continued. "Malfoy was released from the hospital on Wednesday, and he was getting money out of his vault to pay a deposit on a flat for himself."

Rose raised her eyebrows in surprise, but said nothing. Al was more than happy to continue.

"We got a butterbeer and caught up a bit – since I haven't seen him more than maybe twice since school and all – and we talked about possibly starting a recreational Gobstones league-" Al chattered on while Rose recalled that he and Scorpius had been the co-presidents of the Hogwarts Gobstones club in their school days. It was funny that while she, Rose, had known virtually nothing about the blond boy back at school, her best friend and cousin had been rather close with him. How curious.

"- and then I told him, James is having his big birthday party this weekend, and why doesn't he come along so he can see everybody again. I hope you don't mind, Rosie."

"Wh… what?!" Rose spluttered, choking on the pumpkin juice she had been attempting to swallow. "You invited him to the Burrow?"

"Yes…" Al said slowly, his head cocked to one side in confusion. "In fact, I was surprised he knew nothing about the event… I thought the two of you were friends?"

"I don't know what we are, Al," Rose said, exasperated. She sighed, then lowered her voice and leaned into her cousin, "We had a huge row last Saturday," she confided. "I'm honestly not sure if he wants to ever see me again."

"I don't know about that, Rosie." he said, chasing his peas around the plate as Rose watched on, "He seemed pretty excited about coming once I assured him you'd be there."

Rose tried to rearrange her facial features in a way that made her seem passive about this last comment, but failed miserably. Al, being ever observant, noticed right away.

"What I don't understand is," he said cautiously, looking at his cousin with intense, intelligent bottle-green eyes, "is why you're still pretending he means nothing to you, and that you can still go through with this marriage to what's-his-face."

Rose sat back in her chair, exhaling on an exasperated huff.

"I'm sorry, Rose," he tried again, spreading his hands face up, and Rose turned from him, so that she wouldn't have to see the imploring look in his eyes. "But I just don't see it. What do you and Simon even have in common, anyway? You're about to marry the bloke, and I don't see you wanting to spend all that much time with him."

"You're really not being fair, Albus." She turned to her cousin, frowning at the concerned etched across his face.

He started to speak but she cut him off before he could begin.

"Look," she started, grabbing one of his hands, "I know Simon isn't the most romantic guy, and he often times says the wrong things or forgets which foods I don't like, but he loves me, Al. He's always taken care of me, and protected me, and he shows up whenever I need him to. That counts for a lot."

Al sighed heavily, but stayed silent.

"So it may not be the fairytale romance I dreamed of as a little girl, but he's reliable and he's safe." Rose smiled sadly at her cousin. "And crazy, heated passion is just for the storybooks, anyway, isn't it?"

He looked up at her with his green eyes, and smiled halfheartedly. "I love you, Rose," he said slowly, squeezing her hand, "and I trust your judgment on most things, but I think you're making a mistake here." He pulled her in for a hug, and she allowed herself to become encased in his warm arms, feeling rather like a kid again.

"Just trust me, Al," she murmured, pressed against his neck. "I can take care of myself."

"Okay," he said simply. "I trust you."


Saturday evening and James' birthday party came quicker than Rose would have liked. All day, she had sat at her office, filing paperwork and dreaming up various ways to get out of going to the event. Unfortunately, she hadn't come up with anything that would not have triggered the annoyingly acute sensors of her gigantic family. If she'd claimed she had work, her father or Uncle Harry would have relieved her of her duties. If she didn't attend because she said she was sick, her Nana Molly would have shown up on her doorstep with warm, fresh soup. There was no viable way to avoid going to James' birthday bash.

Rose dressed in a simple but elegant dark green sundress, pairing it with the wedge heels her mother had given her for her twenty-second birthday that made her stand a good three inches taller than her already statuesque five feet and seven (and a half) inches. She tended not to wear them, because they made her just that very slight bit taller than Simon, but today they felt necessary, like battle armor. Plus, they made her legs look nice.

Rose flooed to the Burrow alone, as Simon was due to arrive late to the party, when he had gotten off his shift at the hospital. Al and James had been at the house all day, playing Quidditch and swimming while Rose had been at work, and she found the pair of them now out in the garden, de-gnoming. The brothers had clearly grown bored of merely chucking the tiny gnomes over the hedge, and were now testing new Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products on the creatures, which Rose was not entirely sure was legal or moral.

"Oi!" She called to the boys, and they turned quickly, James hiding a particularly purple gnome behind his back. Rose laughed, sure that they'd feared she was their mum.

"Oh good, it's just you, Rosie." Al said, as James recovered the gnome he was holding. The tiny creature had other plans however, and bit James on the nose before waddling off to hide underneath a thick shrub.

"Happy Birthday, you old codger," Rose said, giving her older cousin a hug when he'd recovered from the shock of his gnome bite.

"Is that any way to speak to your elders?" he countered, but grinned widely and ruffled her hair as he did so.

"Where is everybody?" Rose asked, looking around the garden. Somebody had already set up a great number of tables around the large yard, magically elongated to fit the vast amount of guests that would surely be in attendance. The sky was still light, but fairy lights twinkled from the trees where Rose knew her grandfather had enchanted them to glow, ensuring that the party could last well into the evening in comfortable lighting.

"Lil and Roxy are in the kitchen helping Mum with the cake," Al supplied, wiping his dirty hands on his shorts, "I know Teddy and Vic are going to be arriving any second now, because Grandma Molly wanted to show Vic some of the old baby clothes she's saved from like, the Stone Ages or something. Last I saw, Louis and Fred were out in the shed with Grandad looking at one of his bizarre new Muggle toys," he ticked off on his fingers, counting the various cousins. He stopped, looking back up at Rose. "Dunno where everyone else is, at the moment."

"Too many people to keep tabs on, anyway." James said, nodding his head at his younger brother.

"You're telling me." Al said.

Eventually, the entire Weasley clan and extended family arrived, bringing with them an array of colorful and oddly-shaped gifts for the birthday boy. James, though he was well into his twenties, delighted at the arrival of each new present, making Rose laugh at his sheer excitement. Several of their school friends came as well, to Rose's great pleasure. She spent at least half an hour catching up with two of her old dorm mates from Gryffindor, Elizabeth Corner and Charlotte Walker, both of whom she'd been very close to and had somewhat lost touch with over the years. After making a promise to meet the girls for drinks sometime soon, Rose wandered off to find Al.

She passed Lily in the kitchen, who was openly flirting with one of James' teammates from the Tutshill Tornadoes while James and Fred looked on, disapprovingly.

"Have you seen Al?" Rose asked them, earning nothing more than irritated grunts in return. She rolled her eyes. The men in this family were far too overprotective for their own goods.

She moved into the front sitting room, looking for a shock of messy dark hair above the crowd. For a second, she thought she spied him, but it turned out to just be her Uncle Harry.

Not looking where she was going, Rose ran smack into a hard body.

Pain blossomed in her forehead where it had made contact with the other person, and her vision swam. Strong arms reached out to steady her as she swayed, and suddenly Rose felt herself being helped to the couch. Her eyes remained closed, but there was no mistaking that citrusy, woodsy smell that permeated her brain, making it go fuzzy.

Oh no.

When Rose finally opened her eyes, she met the grey ones of Scorpius Malfoy.

"Hi," she said weakly, not knowing quite what else to say.

He smiled back, looking a little unsure of himself. Rose made to stand, but immediately felt dizzy again. Scorpius frowned when she sunk back into the sofa, and conjured up an ice pack for her head.

"Sit." He ordered, and Rose was happy to obey.

They sat in uncomfortable silence, Rose pressing the cool ice to her throbbing headache while she tried not to meet his gaze. She was pleased to note that he had performed some kind of charm on the ice to keep it from melting all over her face. Scorpius chewed on his bottom lip, clearly stifling the need to expel whatever it was he had to say. Rose was thankful for his silence, she didn't know if she could deal just now with whatever emotions his speech would have brought forth for her.

Eventually, the pain in her head diminished, and she spoke. "Thanks for the…" she waved her hand at the ice pack, still frozen solid. "…you know."

He smiled, "You wouldn't have needed it if I hadn't run into you in the first place."

She returned his grin with one of her own. "No, it was my fault. It's these damned heels, they make me too tall and clumsy." She moved to take them off, reaching down to unhook a buckle.

Rose missed the way that Scorpius' gaze painstakingly travelled the length of her long legs, but heard the ragged edge to his voice when he spoke. "Leave them. I think you look… you look amazing, Rose."

She colored all the way to the roots of her hair.

Rose suddenly realized that they were in a room full of her family members. Spying, prodding, prying family members who couldn't leave their noses out of everybody else's business…

Scorpius seemed to come to the same realization.

"D'you want to go somewhere?" he asked, coming to his feet swiftly.

Rose nodded, and somehow found herself in the company of the one person she'd vowed to avoid all night.

They weaved through the crowd, a sea of people with red hair and freckles to match Rose's own. It was slow going, as they were stopped several times by various family members of Rose's who wanted to wish Scorpius well and to remark on his miraculous recovery. Rose realized only now that he had been at least passingly friendly with most of her relatives in their school days, or in the workforce post-Hogwarts, which shocked her greatly. Had she been the only Weasley to not get to know Scorpius at school based on his own merits instead of his name alone? She didn't think of herself as a prejudiced person, but in this moment, she wondered if she were truly no better than Simon when it came to judging people before knowing them.

After rescuing Scorpius from her cousin Fred, who was rather distastefully recounting the events of Scorpius' own funeral to him, they looked to be in the clear.

"Malfoy!" came a deep voice to their right. Rose recognized its tones immediately.

"Mr. Weasley," Scorpius said, offering his hand to Rose's father.

"Ron," he insisted, giving the blond man a smile, much to Rose's shock. "It's great to see you up and about again. Healer Lawrence said you've made a miraculous recovery considering the severity of your injuries."

"Well, I had amazing help from the hospital staff," Scorpius said, flashing the grin Rose liked so much, "and visitors who kept my morale high." He glanced furtively at Rose, smiling shyly.

Ron looked at his daughter, his red brows raised, and then back at Scorpius. He too smiled, clapping one large hand on the younger man's shoulder. "Well, like I said, I'm glad to see you doing so well. If you have time this week, I'd like to meet to discuss your future in the Auror department."

"Yes, sir." Scorpius said, his face lighting up once more.

"I'll send you an owl." Ron said, before smiling at his daughter and disappearing back into the sea of Weasleys.

"Come on," Rose took his hand, seeing their opening, and led him into the back garden.

It took a few minutes, but they finally found a section of the yard that was not populated with party guests. Rose sat underneath a large willow tree, overlooking the pond she and her cousins had swum in every summer during their holidays from school, and invited Scorpius to join her. He sat on the dew-damp grass, leaning up against the ancient bark of the tree.

Nobody said sorry for their last encounter at the hospital, but it hung in the air between them, palpable but not unpleasantly so. Rose found that she did not necessarily want him to apologize, after all. She got the feeling that he wouldn't mean it, anyway.

Neither spoke for a few moments, watching the twinkling fairy lights light up the water, their reflections dancing in the ripples of the pond.

"I saw my father today," Scorpius said suddenly, his gaze never leaving the water.

Rose said nothing, but turned to look at him, surprised.

"He came to help me set up my new flat, he brought lunch." Scorpius sighed heavily, plucking a blade of grass from the ground in front of him. "He apologized for never coming to see me in St. Mungo's… said it was too hard. He said…" he angrily picked another blade, throwing it at the pond, "He said that my capture was his fault, for being involved with the Dark Arts when he was young. He thinks my captors were trying to teach him a lesson."

He laughed bitterly, pulling a wildflower from its roots and picking off each petal one by one. "And all I could think was… he's not wrong."

Rose placed a hand on Scorpius' knee, absentmindedly drawing circles on his kneecap to comfort him.

Scorpius looked at her hand, then at her face.

His eyes became two molten pools of grey, and Rose found herself captivated. His face took on a determined, blazing look.

"Rose," he said, his eyes roaming hungrily over her as if trying to memorize every plane of her face, "you have to know, you must know… everything I did, breaking out of that hell, was to be with you."

He continued, his hands coming to rest on her cheeks. Rose felt as though his eyes were burning through her, they were too intense, and yet she found she could not look away.

"The only thing that kept me alive all those years was the image of your face, and knowing that I wasn't ready to give up yet, on the chance that you might love me, too."

Rose couldn't breathe, her heart was beating such a frantic rhythm in her chest.

"Don't marry him, Rose. Please… please, Merlin, don't marry him."

For the first time in three long years, his mouth found hers in a scorching, numbing, mind-blowing kiss.


A/N: I usually try to let my readers develop their own feelings about my characters, without commentary from me, but I just wanted to clear up a point. A lot of you are saying that Simon seems like an ass, and so I think I may have been too harsh in the way I have written him in the last few chapters, because I actually have a bit of a soft spot for him. I think he is one of those guys who is the perfect picture of a gentleman, and has been heavily influenced by his upbringing as far as right and wrong, and truly believes that all Malfoys are evil, because that's what the history books say. He is definitely not a villain, and that's why this decision is so difficult for Rose. And after all, I think that our dear Rosie is smart enough not to agree to marry a total jerk, don't you? Remember, characters are more than 2-dimensional and everybody has redeeming qualities. It's my own fault if this has not been sufficiently clear in the story, and I will do my best to improve upon this in my writing from this point on :) All right, off my soap box now. Thanks for reading, guys! Next chapter should be up sooooooon, but reviews make it come faster! (hint hint, wink wink)