That Summer Chapter IX

Lily got home that night completely exhausted and smelling like chlorine to find her mother in the kitchen, making some cucumber sandwiches.

Ginny Weasley's hair was in a smart bob, the red locks perfectly straight unlike Lily's whose strands were darker and wavier. No thought was put into styling it, as usual, but it was still very pretty. Her mother's figure was lithe like hers — something she no doubt took from Grandpa Arthur — and the clothes she normally wore for office were modest but she still managed to be a sight in them. Lily admired her mother's looks for a while before the older red head turned and smiled at her.

"Hi, honey, you're just in time for some late snacks."

"Hey, mum," Lily stepped closer to kiss her on the cheek.

"You look pretty." Her mother complimented her and ushered her to sit in one of the chairs. "Where were you?"

"Thanks." Lily accepted one of the sandwiches and took a bite. "Xander's party."

"You didn't mention a party," Ginny scowled at her.

"Sorry, I found out about it today," Lily smiled apologetically at her mum and wished she wouldn't pry.

"Who is Xander?" Her mum looked at her with a mischievous grin that made Lily think of uncle George. "Your boyfriend?"

"No!" Lily laughed and scrunched her nose in disgust. "Definitely not. He's Charlie's older brother and the beater for our team."

"Hmm…" Her mum hummed in mocking suspicion before she dropped her facade and sniggered. This was one of those moments where Ginny Weasley showed that even though she was thirty-nine with three fully grown kids, she hadn't stopped being 'firecracker-Ginny' from her teenage years. "Who was there?"

And mum-Ginny was back, just like that.

"Not many people," Lily shrugged, "just his closest friends and family." Lily continued eating and prayed her mother wouldn't pry.

She did, of course.

"Well?" Ginny raised an eyebrow at her.

Lily breathed deeply and exhaled slowly.

"Mathew Flint and Jonathan Corner," she started, "they are both in Xander's year. Charlie was there, of course, and also Felix Nott, Alicia Zabini and Scorpius Malfoy." She held her breath, preparing for the her mother's reaction.

"Malfoy?" And there it was.

"Yes, mum," Lily said, trying to calm herself.

"Isn't he the one your brothers and cousins are always complaining about?" Ginny furrowed her brows.

"Yes, mum, him and every other friend I have." Lily couldn't keep the defensiveness out of her voice. "I don't know why you asked."

"Lily, dea—" Ginny tried to placate her, but it was too late.

"No, mum, really." She got up. "You knew you were going to hear about a bunch of people with surnames you hate and that you know nothing about, so why ask?"

"I'm sorry," her mum said emphatically, interrupting the rampant she was about to go into.

Lily felt herself deflate. She didn't want to fight with her mother, so like a good girl she forced a smile on her lips after she took a deep calming breath.

"It's okay." She could see the worry in her mother's eyes. "I'm tired, I'm going to bed now. Goodnight."

"Night, sweetheart," her mum muttered sadly but Lily didn't stay long enough to see the disappointed look in her face.

She almost sprinted up the stairs. A nice long bath would surely ease the tension in her shoulders and the guilt weighting her

Or so she thought.

Lily went to bed after spending close to an hour in the water without feeling sleepy at all and ended up tossing and turning well into the early hours.

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Her dad's birthday party was the usual hectic affair it always was every year. Nana Molly had made enough food to feed an army, but by the end of the night there was barely any leftovers.

Lily stayed mostly with Dominique and Louis — who had come back from managing his clothing boutique in France for the event — and avoided any type of confrontation with her brothers, cousins or, Merlin forbid, uncle Ron.

She made sure to say hello to all the teachers present, including Headmistress McGonagall. They all seemed happy to see her, but their gazes held something unknown, as if they had a secret they were just dying to say and that made Lily feel a bit anxious.

When the time came for Harry to open his presents Lily had to fight not to fidget in her seat. She had chosen to give her gift after everyone else so she had to do a lot of waiting.

They were all outside, the kitchen table enlarged and the cushions from the living room transfigured to more tables to accommodate everyone invited. Her dad was standing next to his snitch shaped cake; the gleam in his eyes unmistakable.

Even after all those years, he still got emotional when everyone was gathered and he got to see the people he loved. Once, when she was seven, he had confessed to Ginny as Lily drifted in and out of sleep on her mum's lap that he always thought those moments to be great even if it did remind him of all the people they had lost.

"Now the only one that's missing is Lily's," Nana Molly announced.

"Here you go, daddy," Lily quickly made her way to her dad's side and pecked him on the cheek, "happy birthday."

She watched as he slowly opened the wrappings. His face turned confused at first before realisation slowly set in. His features brightened as Lily started to explain how it worked. That's the only way she could describe it; her dad beamed at her as pride shinned in his eyes.

"I thought this way you wouldn't have to worry about us. You'll always know if we're safe." She barely got the whole sentence out before her dad was hugging her tightly.

"This is brilliant, flower," he squeezed her, "thank you."

"I told you we should have gone with the Foe-Glass," Lily heard Albus hissing to James.

She was so satisfied with herself it was hard not to puff her chest out in pride. She settled for a wink to her brothers and a smile.

The rest of the party dragged on in Lily's opinion.

The only thing that kept her amused was people watching. After a while, all the alcohol started to take effect in the adults and at one point Hagrid had begun dancing with uncle Ron and singing a love song about a giant and a mermaid — though it could be about anything else, really, she couldn't tell with how badly he was slurring the words — obnoxiously.

It was fun seeing them making such a fool out of themselves, but then uncle Neville had a small incident while dancing with aunt Hannah because he twirled them right into one of the tables and aunt Hermione had quickly put a stop to it all and everyone started to go home.

By the time she was showered and changed into her pyjamas she was completely spent. She was asleep before her head even hit her pillow.

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Two days later and it was the day of the bonfire. Lily left to Alicia's mansion just after lunch. It hadn't been easy to convince her dad to let her sleep in her friend's house, but after some help from her mother and a carefully crafter lie about sleeping at Lola's there she was.

"Lily!" Alicia smiled from her position on the sofa. "I thought you'd never come."

"Sorry, I couldn't decided on what to wear," Lily admitted sheepishly and motioned to the backpack she was carrying over her shoulders, "I feel like my whole closet's in here."

Alicia snickered and put her book in one of the many white marble coffee tables. She got up, excitement clear in her movements, and grabbed Lily by the hand.

"Come on," she pulled her through the double doors and down the hallway. "I'm just so excited for my birthday present." She giggled happily as they made their way to her room.

The blue velvet on the floor muffled the girls' footsteps as they stormed up the stairs in a rush of giggles and the sun shinned brightly through the gigantic was already in love with that house. It was the perfect mix of modern and old fashioned.

She got there earlier because they figured they could kill two birds with one stone and get ready for the party while taking pictures for the photoshoot Lily had promised Alicia as a gift.

The girls had spent the rest of the afternoon taking pictures and eating junk food. The house was filled with laughter but now, as the sun begins its descent, different sounds could be heard.

"What the fuck should I wear?" Lily exclaimed loudly as she rummaged around her backpack. She had her whole arm inside it due to the carefully thought out expanding charm and no matter how many outfits she took out, there were still more.

"Okay, hold your hippogriffs, Potter." Alicia finished the last touches on her deep red lipstick and grinned at Lily from the reflection on the floor length mirror hanging from one of the walls in her room.

Lily groaned in frustration and fell on Alicia's king sized bed, her head buried in the mountain of clothes that littered the white bed covers. She heard Alicia snicker and felt the shift in the bed as she sat down.

"Com on, get up." She pulled Lily by the wrist. "Go put on your makeup and I'll pick something for you."

"You're the best," Lily bounded to her feet and grinned at her before going to do as she was told.

"What time is Weasley coming?" Alicia asked as she sorted through Lily's mess.

"She should be here anytime," Lily mumbled as she focused on her wand movements.

Just then a house elf appeared with a pop next to the bed. Its bigger flopped around its head as it bowed deep.

" 'Scuse I, Miss Alicia," its bright blue eyes looked watery as it looked up at Alicia, "there is a Miss Weazy downstairs wanting to see you. Says she's expected but the Miss didn't say anything about another friend coming."

"I'm sorry, Lippy." Lippy the house elf looked about ready to start hitting her head over the wall as she wrung her tiny hands, "I completely forgot to let you know. Did you mean Miss Weasley?"

"Yes," Lippy bobbed her tiny head up and down, her ears following the movement, "Miss Wea-zy."

"Tell her to come up, please."

"Yes, Miss Alicia," Lippy bowed again, "Lippy is terrible sorry." She popped away before Alicia could say anything else.

"I thought you would jump three feet in the air when she popped here." Alicia cocked her head in Lily's direction. "You didn't even blink. I'm impressed."

"I do have a house elf, you know," Lily replied as she turned to look at her friend.

"Really?" Alicia looked surprised, "I thought your family was against it."

"Aunt Hermione is against it," Lily corrected as she shrugged her shoulders, "the only other person that agrees with her in the family is Rose."

"Of course," Alicia rolled her eyes just as Dominique barged in the room.

"You know, your house elf may be really close to pitching herself down the stairs," she fell on Alicia's bed unceremoniously and blew her bangs out of her face.

"Hello to you too, Dominique," Lily teased as she looked back in the mirror to fluff her hair.

"You guys aren't ready, yet?" Dominique ignored Lily, charming as ever. "We should get going soon."

"Yes, we should," Alicia murmured as she pulled some items out of the pile of clothes, "the guys should be here soon. Aha! There you go, Lils, put this on."

She handed Lily a cotton cropped spaghetti top and some cutoffs.

"Wear this with your white converse and," she elongated the syllables of the last word as she fished a dark blue and black stripped shirt, "put this over everything."

"You're a fashion genius and I love you," Lily grinned at her and hurried to put on the clothes.

She didn't bother feeling embarrassed by Alicia's presence as she stripped completely. She stood in only her green laced knickers for a while and looked at the other two girls.

"No bra, right?"

The door suddenly opened and Scorpius walked in. He quickly turned around and covered Felix's eyes when the boy followed him inside.

"Definitely," he smirked at Lily and closed the door behind them.

"Perv," Lily rolled her eyes but had to lower her head to hide her blush as she felt his eyes on her like a caress.

"Hello, ladies," Felix waved in their general direction, "I can't see you but I'm certain you look lovely as always."

Lily hurried to put on her clothes before anyone could notice her body's reaction to Scorpius' gaze. Her nipples had hardened at his attention and the fine hairs on her arms stood on end; she really hoped the conversation the group engaged in kept them from noticing. When she was finished, Scorpius released Felix who came bounding to her.

"Hello, Lils, love," he kissed her on the cheek and gave her what she was finding to be his characteristic smile. The one that made small crinkles on the corners of his mouth and eyes.

"Hey, Felix," she couldn't help but smile back at him.

He jumped on the bed between Alicia and Dominique but Lily barely noticed it because then Scorpius walked up to her and stood between her and the bed where their friends were.

"That was quite a welcoming sight, Potter," he said teasingly, a small smirk pulling at the corner of his lips.

"Shut up." She felt her cheeks burn again but quickly recomposed herself and stepped past him so she could look at everyone. "Let's go?"

They drove to the beach in Scorpius' car — a bloody Lamborghini Aventator that had been magically enlarged to fit them all. Honestly what a pretentious git he was to be flaunting that spaceship around — and stopped in a makeshift parking lot. A couple of dozen equally unnecessarily expensive cars were in a circle around a bonfire.

The group quickly joined the other partying teenagers and hurried to catch up on their drinking. Jack joined them in their dancing for a while before jumping to other groups. Anything could be said about Jack Barnes but no one could deny that the guy knew how to throw a party and how to be the perfect host.

Felix was the first to separate from their little group. A beautiful blonde had been giving him some pretty intense looks for a while until he finally decided to go for it. Not long after, Dominique left them to dance with a cute muggle boy across the fire and Alicia mumbled something about more drinks before disappearing and never coming back.

Now it was just Scorpius and her.

It felt natural when the hand that had been kept noticeably away from her finally came to rest on her waist and pulled her closer. It only felt natural too when her hands looped around his neck and it really was no surprise when their lips met.

Lily didn't know if it was because of the strange energy around the bonfire — the way it made her feel calm and happy — but this kiss was different from all the others they had before.

They kissed slowly, almost lazily, and even though the kiss grew in intensity they didn't go any faster. His teeth nibbled on her bottom lip teasingly and she groaned in his mouth while bringing him closer.

Scorpius had a cigaret in one hand and her ass in the other as they kept their relaxed making out. The hood of his coat was up, which kept Lily from doing what she really wanted to do, which was to run her hands through his silky locks and pull on them to bring him closer still.

Half of her body was hot from the fire and the other half was cold from the cool breeze coming from the ocean, but even with the difference in temperature Lily felt her whole body burning as their kiss progressed.

Good Merlin, how she wanted him.

She wanted his taste on her tongue, his body on hers and his scent all around her. She wanted him and she wanted him now.

She broke the kiss just enough so she could whisper against his lips, "Apparate us to your flat." Her insides were shaking in need and the jerk had the nerve to chuckle.

"Needy little witch," he murmured back at her teasingly but still let his cigaret drop to the ground and pulled away from her. "Wait for me here, I'll give the car keys to Felix."

He didn't take long and before she knew it, Lily was being pulled to the darkness beyond the circle of cars.

She should feel scared. Really, she should. A guy she was only getting to know was taking her to a dark and secluded place; any person would be making some excuses right about now. But somehow the fear didn't come as he guided her farther away. Her whole body was thrumming with energy and she could barely contain a pleasant shudder when he pulled her to him.

They were finally far away enough to disapparate and not be heard and Scorpius did so without so much as a warning. One second Lily's feet were on fluffy sand and the next she felt like she was being pulled through a tiny straw before her feet hit solid ground.

Side along apparating wasn't a pleasant experience but Lily was used to it by now. The nausea of being squeezed barely reached her now. As soon as she caught her breath, she raised on her tiptoes to let their tongues continue their dance.

Scorpius palmed her arse through her clothes lazily before breaking the heady kiss and dragging his mouth down her neck teasingly. His hot breath on her skin caused goosebumps to rise all over her and a slight shiver ran down her spine.

Lily pushed his coat away from his shoulders and let it fall to the floor as he worked on the buttons of her shorts. His hands were hot on her slightly cold belly and she almost moaned from that sensation alone. She did gasp when his teeth encased her collarbone sharply. His tongue immediately came to soothe the small ache as she began tugging his shirt up.

They didn't even step apart as he discarded the fabric before pulling Lily's from her as well. The second her top was on the floor his arms were encircling her. The hard planes of his chest drove her mad as they brushed her sensitive nipples when he pulled her in for another scorching kiss. She fingered its ridges as he slowly lowered her to the bed before scooting back towards the pillows.

Scorpius' lips were suddenly on one of her nipples, bitting and sucking teasingly as his hand rolled the other between his fingers. He swallowed the moan Lily couldn't contain with his mouth and groaned into the kiss as she trailed her nails lightly down his abs. Pleasure pooled low in her belly and her breath hitched in her throat as he moved his hand to fondle her through her knickers.

He broke the kiss to bite her earlobe teasingly, "So wet for me already." His voice was dark silk and made her inner walls clench in response.

She felt there were too many clothes between them so she quickly set to work on his jeans, opening the button and getting the fly down while 'accidently' brushing him with the back of her fingers before pushing the material down his hips. When her hands couldn't get any further he reluctantly got up from the bed to finish the work.

His darkened eyes roved over her figure, "You're so bloody beautiful," he murmured with a slight shake of his head, almost as if he couldn't believe it.

Lily felt hot all over not only from his words but also the intense look he was giving her. Their eyes met as he stepped out of his jeans and black boxers and she felt like she was falling on the abyss that were his grey irises. The dark swirls of blue in them were almost nonexistent by how much his pupils were dilated and how dark they'd become.

She reluctantly broke their staring match to let her gaze slide down his body. She traced each defined muscle in his chest with her eyes before they followed the trail of fair hair from beneath his navel down to the darker patch circling his erection. His thighs were powerful like a chaser's should be and made her insides quiver with what those muscles were able to accomplish.

He was breathtakingly handsome and the sight of him alone made her want to moan.

Scorpius looked at her through hooded eyes and slowly brought his hand to his length. Lily exhaled loudly as his brows furrowed slightly and his mouth slacked when he gave two slow pumps. She could only watch in fascination as his thumb slowly traced his slit.

"Please," she sighed.

His look of concentration morphed into a small smirk as his hand left his cock. Lily felt her cheeks burn as she realised what she'd said but it didn't matter much when Scorpius obliged and came back to cover her with his body.

She pushed her fingers through his hair and used the strands to bring his mouth to hers, greedily tasting him as he spread her legs to settle between them. Scorpius ground himself against her slowly, almost teasingly, extracting a low moan from her. The friction of him and her lace knickers on her core felt nothing short of amazing.

"Fuck," she mumbled when his mouth left hers to suck on her neck. He continued his rocking movements slowly until she felt she was about to break. "Sweet Salazar, please."

Scorpius groaned in her ear, the sound so guttural it almost sounded inhuman, "Merlin, I love when you beg."

He pushed himself to his knees and leaned back enough so he could take the only scrap of clothing remaining off her. His hands trailed from the inside of her legs until he reached the apex of her thighs. His fingers trailed her slit slowly before his middle finger slid inside her. Lily mewled high in her throat at the feeling of him stretching her when he added a second one.

Scorpius set a slow, torturous pace as he closed his mouth around her nipple once again and started laving her chest with attention. She brought her hands back to his hair and tugged lightly to get him closer as she opened her legs further. More wetness flooded between her legs as she ground her clit against the palm of his hand and Lily moaned loudly.

She made a pitiful sound of protest when he pulled out of her but was rewarded with the feeling of his cock sliding upwards between her lips. Lily gasped out loud when his head hit the small bundle of nerves and sent pleasure rocking through her body like an electric current. Scorpius groaned deep on his throat when Lily brought her hands down on his back and scratched her nails lightly against his muscles in response.

He entered her in a smooth motion that took the breath right out of her. Her walls stretched even further to accommodate his size and the pleasure the friction created was almost blinding. She was desperate for more but the asshole took things excruciatingly slow and it seemed like an eternity had passed before he sheathed himself completely inside her.

Scorpius kissed her deeply before resting his forehead against hers and setting a slow pace. His thrusts were powerful, his pelvic bone brushing her clit every time he went all the way in, and stole wanton moans from her lips but he didn't go any faster and it was driving her insane. She had been on the brink of coming when he had been playing with her with his fingers and now she felt it would only take a single touch more before she went spindling down to a ground shaking climax.

The catalyst came in the form of a rough moan from the man on top of her. It was ridiculous to say she came because of how he sounded but she had been on the edge for so long and teased with his slow but hard thrusts that it really didn't take much for her. The waves of pleasure washed through her languidly, her walls clenching and unclenching around him and yet he didn't falter on his strokes.

By the time Lily came to herself, sweat was covering both of them in a light sheen and they were both panting on each others mouths. Scorpius didn't even give her time to breathe before he eased himself to his knees and grabbed her hips. He used his hold on her to lift her from the bed slightly and angled her just so that when he moved inside her, he brushed the sweet spot that made her see stars.

Lily moaned loudly in time with his thrusts and used her feet to help her hips move in time with his.

"Oh, Merlin," Lily panted before whimpering in pleasure. She needed to grab something to ground herself but he wasn't in reach anymore so she settled for the sheets. She turned her head to the side and moaned loudly.

"Look at me," Scorpius panted.

With great effort, Lily turned to him. Her eyes widened as she saw the intense look reflected in his. It was a heady feeling, having him look at her like that, all his focus on her. He was a sight. All his muscles working to keep her hips up and sweat sliding down the planes of his delicious abs and the sides of his face. His hair was soaked in it and Lily eyed in fascination as a drop fell from the strands to his collarbone.

Scorpius' thrusts became faster and more powerful, the sound of his skin on hers echoing around the room alongside her moans and his groans. She choked on a sob when his thumb descended on her clit to trace tight circles around it. The pleasure was almost too much as she felt the tension building inside her snap with the last thrust he gave before spilling himself inside her.

Lily felt hyper aware of every part of her body that came in contact with his as he came to rest on top of her. She felt her muscles relax and hummed contently as he nuzzled her neck in post coital lethargy.

"Happy now?" Scorpius murmured teasingly before sucking on her neck slowly.

"Hmm," Lily hummed again, "extremely."

He chuckled and the vibrations of his chest awakened her passion once again when he unconsciously pressed her clit with his body. She didn't know where she found the energy to want more, but she did. The gasp that escaped her wasn't ignored.

"You want more?" He said in her ear before letting his tongue trace it. "Greedy little thing." He teased in that voice that never failed to send a rush of pleasure between her legs.

Lily felt him slip out of her only to have his fingers replace him. It wasn't as good as his cock so she complained even as she suppressed a moan, "Can't keep up, Malfoy?"

Scorpius growled and bit her shoulder hard before disentangling himself completely from her and rising to his knees. He moved to sit against the plush pillows and indicated for her with his chin.

"Let's see you put all those Quidditch skills to good use then."

Lily snorted and turned to position herself on his lap. She put her hands around his neck as she sat on his thighs, his half-hard cock between them.

"Are you seriously going with the 'wanna ride my broomstick' line?" Lily bit his lower lip before sucking it into her mouth. She felt his smirk on her lips.

"You know by now that I prefer a more direct approach, love." He grabbed her ass and moved her so she was grinding on his length slowly. A low groan escaped her as he grunted and she felt him twitch in response."Ride me, Potter."

Lily couldn't refuse him if she tried.

She kissed him heatedly and pulled on the hair on his nape, stealing a grunt from him. She let her hands trail from his chest to his chiseled abdomen after grazing his nipples with her nails. Scorpius groaned into her mouth as her hands descended further before finally grabbing him in a firm grip.

She glided one of her hands up and down his shaft while the other cupped his balls and rolled them lightly. Lily wanted to keep teasing him but when he broke the kiss to let a long groan out in the space between their mouths, she couldn't hold herself back anymore. She needed him inside her now.

She guided him to her with one hand and used the other to balance herself on the headboard. A moan escaped her lips as she sat fully on top of him, this position making him go impossibly deep inside her. She wanted to have the patience to tease him like he did her but she wanted to come so much that she didn't think she could.

She settled for a pace that wasn't fast but was definitely faster than his had been. The hand that wasn't being used to support her angled his jaw so she could kiss him passionately as his own altered between squeezing her hips and grabbing her arse.

Lily couldn't concentrate on the kiss anymore because of how fucking good he felt inside her so she broke it and settled for letting her nose brush his when she moved up and down. She moaned and gasped as her clit brushed against his pelvic bone and how he reached her sweet spot inside her when she put both hands on the headboard to help her move faster.

She had been so sensitive from her two previous orgasms that it didn't take long before she was coming yet again. This time the pleasure crashed into her fast and hard, her vision out of focus from how intense it was. She was pretty sure she cried out but she couldn't focus enough to be sure.

She only realised he had come too when she finally slipped back into reality and felt him softening inside her. Her forehead was resting on his shoulder while his mouth pressed hot wet kisses on her neck. They stayed like that for a while, panting together as they came down from their highs before Lily brought her face back to look at him.

"How was that for Quidditch skills?" She grinned at him.

He chuckled lowly before smirking at her and answering, "Outstanding," Then he was pulling her for a kiss.

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They apparated directly to Alicia's bedroom the next morning and Lily was immediately regretful of that decision. Alicia wasn't wearing anything. Thankfully she was on her belly and the white sheets covered half of her lower body. Her hair was spread around her like molten chocolate and a bump on the covers covered the other side of the bed.

And it was moving.

"Fuck off, Scorpius," Alicia grumbled against her pillow without even opening her eyes.

"How did you know it was us?" Lily finally recovered from the shock of seeing her friend like that.

"Lily?" Another voice called from beneath the bumps and—

Holy Merlin.

The bump was Dominique.

She slowly raised herself from beneath the covers and glared through sleep filled eyes at Lily and Scorpius. Her hair was a mess but she was still wearing the oversized shirt she wore last night.

"Dom?" Lily gaped at her for a while and flundered for something to say. "I, uh— you…" She trailed off.

Scorpius snickered and tapped her chin, "Close your mouth, love," he moved with his usual catlike grace towards the grand windows and leaned against it.

Lily cleared her throat and shook her head a little to clear it. She never caught any bisexual vibes from Dominique before so she was floored. There would be time to discuss things with her later, though. They were late for lunch at the Burrow.

"We need to hurry, Dom," she sounded apologetic but she wasn't sure why, "we're late for lunch."

She watched as her cousin widened her eyes and jumped out of bed as if she'd been scalded. Scorpius moved to the connected bathrom and Dominique skipped around the room looking for lost articles of clothes.

She hadn't really noticed before but the room was a mess. Her clothes that had been previously on the bed were now lying on the floor mixed with different articles that belonged to the other girls.

Scorpius came back with three identical purple vials on his hands and handed one to each of the girls.

"A curtesy from your uncle." Lily now realised that she was holding Wealsey's Wizard Wheezes' Hangover B'Gon. "Bottoms up, ladies."

The effect was immediate; her slight headache instantly disappeared, her vision cleared and her mood even got better. The faint queasiness she felt since waking up was completely gone.

Lily handed her now empty vial back to him and grabbed her wand from her waistband to move all her clothes to her bag. She then did a quick scorgify on her coat to get rid of any lingering smell of cigaret smoke.

"See you later, darling," Lily kissed Alicia's messy hair and moved over to Scorpius when she mumbled a response. His hands moved to her hips in a movement that was becoming disturbingly familiar.

"Bye," he murmured in the quickly diminishing space between their mouths as his hands closed more firmly around her.

"Bye," their lips brushed as she spoke. Flashes of the precious night and even this early morning suddenly flooded her minds eye, but before the kiss turned into a proper one a throat cleared behind them.

"We're late, shits, and I don't feel like dying by Nana's hands anytime soon." Dominique was holding Lily's bag in one hand and her wand in the other.

"Charming as ever, Weasley," Scorpius snorted while Lily stepped out of his hold and grabbed Dominique's arm.

"Blow me, Malfoy."

The last thing she saw was the smirk on Scorpius' face before she closed her eyes to ward off the impending queasiness.

The lawn on the Burrow's outskirts brushed against the skin above her converse where they landed just outside the mismatched fences. Lily moved away form Dominique and opened the latch in front of them.

There was no lock but Lily knew that countless wards were in place, leftover from the war. The Burrow was no longer hidden but still, not a single person with malicious intent could enter the Weasley's terrain.

"So… you and Alicia?" Lily probed, a slight teasing tone to her voice as they made the short track uphill to get to the front door. Dominique snorted.

"So, you and Malfoy?" she raised an eyebrow pointedly at her. Her tone was guarded. Lily could hear defensiveness in her voice so she decided to let it go for now.

"Touché, cousin," she raised her hands as if in surrender.

She didn't get to hear Dominique's response because they had finally reached the door. It was open to let the warm summer breeze in and Lily could see most of her family sitting around the living room.

"Hullo, family."

She was met with silence as conversation ceased completely.

Okay, this was weird. Everyone usually greeted each other with the Weasley's characteristic enthusiasm, but today all they got was odd looks.

Some of her uncles and aunts and a few of her cousins were giving them disapproving looks. Definitely weird. The others were looking at them with pity on their faces. Yep, something was seriously wrong.

Just as she realised that their grandparents and Dominique's and her parents were the only ones absent, Hugo bravely walked up to them.

"They're in the kitchen," he said then in a normal tone of voice before following with a low whisper, "You're so fucked."

Lily shot an apprehensive look at Dominique and saw her emotions reflected in her cousin's face. She was't stupid. Her parents and Dominique's were absent and waiting for them on the kitchen the day after they lied about going to Lola's house and went to a party instead and Hugo's comment just confirmed that they knew.

Now was a matter of figuring out just how much they knew and, of course, do some damage control. Lily could lie through her teeth if she had to. Now she just had to make sure Dominique wouldn't blab anything unnecessary in a fit of Gryffindor stupidity and quick temper.

"Let me handle this," she whispered so just Dominique would hear, just before they opened the door to the kitchen.

She didn't look back to see any sign of agreement from the blonde because suddenly she was face to face with the furious face of her dad. His hair was even messier than usual — probably from him running his hands through it — and his face a tone of red that nearly matched uncle Ron's when he was in full rant mode.

He was sitting in a chair right in the middle of the kitchen table with her mum on his left and uncle Bill on his right. Next to her uncle was Dominique's mother and Grandpa Arthur sat on the head of the table. Nana Molly was bustling around the burner while simultaneously using her wand to enchant a dirty pan to wash itself.

"Care to explain this?" Harry didn't waste any time in grilling them. He threw a magazine at her which Lily only managed to grab because of her seeker's reflexes.

The front page contained a moving photo of her and Scorpius.

For a second she stopped breathing. Her features were carefully schooled into a blank look but her brain seemed to be having troubles catching on to what was happening. How did they end up on the cover of Witch Weekly when the party was a muggle one?

She quickly read the first few lines of the article and got her answer. Apparently, some muggle blogger had posted a video of the party online because of the people that went — mostly muggle upper crust, rich kids who were famous for being just that — and a muggleborn editor of Witch Weekly had seen it.

While she read it she realised something else; the only name mentioned was hers. That meant they didn't know it was Scorpius.

She quickly checked the picture again and her suspicions were confirmed. Scorpius had his hood up and the angle of the camera, while catching them snogging and him holding a cigaret, failed to show any of his features.

Lily tried to contain a relieved sigh and fought hard to keep quiet and not babble apologies and explanations that would surely give them away. She sent a silent thank you to Merlin for Dominique actually keeping her mouth shut.

She didn't have to wait long for someone to speak because her grandmother suddenly rounded on them with fury in her eyes.

"This is absolutely no way a lady should behave, Lily Luna!" The screech was loud enough that both Lily and Dominique flinched. She caught her mother and uncle barely repressing the same reaction. "Just who is that boy with that disgusting stick and touching you so inappropriately?"

"He's just a muggle, Nana," Lily replied with a low, calm voice.

"A muggle, you say?" Grandpa Arthur interrupted what was sure to be a tirade from Nana Molly, a look of fascination on his face.

Lily suddenly hoped for the best because at least only grandma was talking and grandpa Arthur didn't really seem angry at all.

Those hopes were dashed, of course, when her dad spoke. "You said you would go to Lola's house," he said calmly but Lily could hear the fury in his words, "you lied to us."

"I'm guessing you didn't go to her house either," uncle Bill raised his eyebrows at his daughter. The only response he got was a curt head shake.

"I can't believe this," her dad continued, "that you would lie to my face so shamelessly. I knew they were bound to influence you, but this..." He gave a short mirthless laugh.

Where before he seemed to have been piercing her with his stare, now his eyes seemed to bounce everywhere as if he couldn't even look at her. Even as Lily felt cold from how disappointed he seemed at her, she couldn't help but feel her own temper rising.

"They?" She questioned dangerously, almost daring her father to say it.

Her mum interrupted him. "Your dad doesn't mean anything by it, dear, he's just disappointed with your behaviour," she seemed to add as an afterthought, "we both are."

"No, I do mean it!" Her dad exclaimed. "Slytherin has changed you and this is the proof."

It felt like a slap to the face. Lily tried to keep the hurt from her face and covered it up with a sneer. He wanted to judge and shame her? Well, she would give him Slytherin then.

"I can't believe you said that to me," she hissed.

"There, right there," he pointed his finger in her direction, "that look in your face is exactly what I mean. That bloody sneer is just like—"

"Harry!" Her mum placed a hand on his arm and gave him a warning look. "Let's all calm ourselves down. Mum, I don't appreciate you lecturing my daughter like that. I didn't teach my children to differentiate between a lady's behaviour and a gentleman's so you shouldn't either. Harry," she stared so intensively at him it was almost a glare, "don't say anything you'll regret later."

Lily was too angry to appreciate her mother standing up for her, though, and so was Harry, it would seem.

"You won't leave the house until school starts again," he muttered darkly.

"What?" Lily exclaimed. "That's a month away!"

"You should have thought of that before you lied to me!" Harry roared.

Lily dimly registered Dominique shooting her own parents pleading looks but she was too busy glaring daggers at her dad.

"Fine!"

"We'll discuss this when we get home," aunt Fleur said to her daughter in her barely there french accent.

"You may be seventeen but you still live under our roof, you know," uncle Bill said crossly and looked at the table unhappily.

"Later, Bill," her aunt admonished him gracefully.

"Lunch is served," Nana Molly said, cheeks flushed from her own daughter's reprimand.

Lunch was a tense affair. For a moment no one dared to speak as they ate. Uncle George quickly tried to do some damage control and engaged Hugo in some talk about school and soon enough they were all laughing and joking around. Still, everyone's shoulders remained tense, her dad didn't utter a single word to anyone and Nana Molly was more subdued than usual. She didn't even complain when uncle George shot a pair of fireworks at the table.

Usually when lunch was finished everyone would disperse. Some would stay and eat dessert at the table, others would move to the living room to listen to the radio and some would even go outside to play some Quidditch.

Lily found herself darting into her Grandpa Arthur's shed before she even finished chewing her last bite.

She took a look around, seeing his collections of cables and outlets and running her fingertips on top of an old television. She dropped on top of the tiny overstuffed orange sofa and fingered a loose thread before deciding to take out her phone.

She saw some unanswered messages from Lola asking about the party and that the group Alicia, Felix, Scorpius and her had held the icon to indicate three unread messages.

She quickly typed Lola a short version of what happened and opened the group chat. Felix had taken a photo with Scorpius's car and sent another message with a cheeky, 'I got your baby kidnapped, what are you willing to pay for ransom, handsome?'

Lily felt a ghost of a smile on her face as she saw the next line of kissy face, eggplant and water emojis. He was incorrigible.

Scorpius had replied with a simple, 'going 2 ur place rn' and that was that. What a killjoy, Lily rolled her eyes.

She decided to tell them what happened and to see if there was anyone there to keep her occupied until her parents wanted to leave. She saw the three dots icon pop up just as the door to the shed opened.

"Ah, I thought I saw you heading this way," uncle George said as he popped his head in.

"Came here to lecture me on how unladylike it was of me to snog someone?" She said sarcastically but still made room for him in the sofa.

He closed the door behind him and started rummaging in his father's mess. A short laugh escaped his lips.

"Fuck no."

Lily couldn't help but laugh with him. "What are you looking for?" She peered at him curiously. She watched as he pulled a bottle from behind a box full of lamps.

"This," he proudly presented her with a bottle of Quintin Black's Finest. Uncle George then sat down next to her and promptly took a swig of the bottle before offering to her.

"Are you gonna tattle?" She asked unceremoniously.

Uncle George barked a laugh. "No way, Flower, you know you're my favourite." Lily figured that was good enough so with a shrug she took the offered bottle from him and sipped expertly at it. "Figure this isn't your first time either, so..."

"Hmm," Lily hummed and passed the bottle back to him, "did you know one of my best friends owns that?" She pointed at the bottle.

"Yeah," he nodded his head then narrowed his eyes in thought, "the one from the graduation party, right?"

"Right on," she let her head fall on the back of the sofa and sighed.

"We all heard the fight," her uncle took another sip, "I thought you might need this."

"Thanks," Lily huffed.

"That was some bloody terrible luck, you know?" He said easily.

Lily raised an eyebrow at him. "Aren't you going to say that it was wrong of me to lie?"

"I don't think I can say that without being very hypocritical," he smiled at her, his bright blue eyes crinkling in a manner that reminded her of Felix, "it was a foolhardy plan, I would have done the same if I were you. You only got caught because the universe likes to take a shit at us sometimes."

Lily laughed outright at that. "Thanks, uncle George." She watched as he winked at her and got up to hide his booze. "Just so you know, you're my favourite too."

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Precisely 10 reviews later and here we are! The response to the last chapter was insane you guys, I love you all! I was so happy and so inspired by your reviews that the next day I wrote about 5,000 words, no kidding. Sorry this took so long, but I had a trip scheduled and couldn't find the time to proofread everything while away from my laptop...

Fortunately, I have the most amazing friend who took time off her schedule to check everything over for me and to post this chapter, so big shoutout to wolfqng, you're my soulmate, babe, thanks!

11 more reviews and I'll post a chapter as soon as I come back on the 28th! Tell me what you think so far!

See you soon,

~JulietteDeschemps