Lily
The camera that Lily had stolen from Roxie was a polaroid, and while she had never used this muggle device before, she was beyond overjoyed whenever she saw the pictures she took of the fairytale castles in Sintra roll out into her palm, now physical paper. It awed Eddie, who was by her side, as well, and their excitement made the muggle community of Lisbon cock their heads in annoyance and exasperation, as one would when you see two teenage tourists giggling and jumping over an outdated camera.
Both of them now stood in a busy and narrow market area, where there were close together buildings painted a faded yellow, with terraces displaying bikinis and pink shawls and denim dresses. Lily and Eddie shared a limited amount of money, but they couldn't resist buying beef empanadas from the food cart, seduced by the delicious and breath taking scent.
"See!" Eddie savored the beef empanada. "Aren't you glad I didn't spoil you and just stuck to my regular stuff!"
Lily nodded heartily. "Definitely. I don't think you could've made them better than Antonio, even if you moved here for nine years and only made and ate beef empanadas. That man has a gift!"
Eddie laughed. "You still love me for my other talents, though?" Jokingly, he said.
Stuffing her hand into Eddie's satchel and retrieving his famous red velvet fudge, she smiled gratefully and nodded. "If I didn't, you wouldn't give me this." She popped one fudge cube into her mouth and then pulled Eddie by the wrist into a shaded area, quickly exchanging a few Euros for a rather eccentric blue and white striped straw hat to protect her from the blazing sun, because it was somehow blazing even when it felt chilly.
Eddie had to restrain himself from laughing at that ridiculous hat.
Right at that moment, a very tall, slender, droopy nosed man tapped Lily on the shoulder. Despite his looming figure, Lily focused on his face and found him surprisingly young, with chocolatey hair that only had one stroke of silver, and brown eyes spared from wrinkles. His lips were not even chapped. He dressed himself in young, edgy clothing as well; high waisted black trousers, a gray, tight cotton blend sweater and another black long cardigan. He certainly stood out from the crowd.
And with his dark attire, strange appearance, and haunting touch to her shoulder, not only did Lily draw her wand, but Eddie did too, pulling a man into a dark corner as not to alert muggles.
"Ah-ah-ah. . ." The man protested being attacked. "My name is Paul. I recognized two famous wizard children and I thought I could lend you a hand of where to go. . . interesting. . ." He chuckled deeply and put a long finger on his chin.
"What!?" Lily croaked, scared as she was intrigued she gripped her wand tighter.
The man smirked. "Himildrud Wirner has been writing about the Romeo and Juliet of Hogwarts being Lily Potter. . ." They all knew what he was going to say before he had said it. "And Scorpius Malfoy. Ooh, should I give my dear friend a visit and tell her she was wrong? Her Romeo and Juliet story might have been more of a Scarlett and Rhett. . . the best couple who never got a happy ending.
That was, of course, the moment that Lily finally lost her grip. "Aguamenti!" She cried, a great burst of water spurting from her wand and soaking the man wet. The maddened look on his face spoke of nothing Lily was curious to find out about. Grabbing Eddie close, they both simultaneously shot one more spell each and then ran, despite the heat of the moment, smiling.
"Diminuendo!" Eddie shouted. The man gasped and began falling towards the ground. . . no not falling. Shrinking, his oversized clothes falling off him as he became the size of a rat.
"Romenie!" Fur grew all over the now miniature body of Paul, and well, now he was not only the size of a rat, but he looked like one as well.
Giggling, the two of them ran and nearly flew through the crowds of Sintra, their feet carrying them downhill and uphill on the cemented tracks and through people doing last minute Christmas shopping until they made it too a clementine colored roofed villa, partially covered by heavy vegetation of green and beautiful flowers. Vila Sasseti.
The two of them ran, out of breath and shocked at how quickly they had not only bolted from their spot, but dropped their food as they ran up stairs and turned sharp corners, unsure of what they were running from anymore, only that they were running together.
They found themselves turning in the somehow gigantic castle building, until they came across a door to the highest point of the place.
"Well," Eddie said, laughing quietly. "I think we outran him!"
Lily giggled, turning and locking eyes with him. "Yeah. . ." Her hand found his of its own accord making even Lily shocked.
Eddie looked at her, leaning only slightly forward, his eyes shining with the sunlight. They were so close now, that they could even feel each other's warm breath on their faces.
And then. . . the door busted open. Busted open so that smacked the two of them apart harshly.
A fruity, loud, obnoxious voice rang out above them. "Hey! Ricky! Did you invite a redhead and a boy in a tweed jacket?" They both looked up, their cheeks red, to find that it was a plump, tanned woman with luscious curls of dark hair looking down on them and talking to Ricky.
Another voice, husky this time, answered from inside the room, where fast paced jazz records could be heard. "No redheads," he responded. "But is the boy with the tweed jacket bald?" Apparently, Ricky, asked. Lily pouted, uncomfortable being surveyed and reviewed.
"Ah no. Hmm. . ." She stared for a very long moment before jumping three feet into the air with excitement. "It's Potter's girl, Ricky! Guys, it's Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom's kid!"
The room suddenly became filled with a loud flurry of people's voices. "Hey, Carla, I thought the Potter/Longbottom story was a long debunked rumor, ah!" Lily and Eddie blushed deeper at the lewd joke and their previous. . . endeavor.
Carla, as her name was, smiled broadly and open the black glass doors. Lily remembered reading about this place in Rose's old wizarding geography books. This used to belong to a Wizarding family, and when they died, it became a tourist, but certain closed off rooms are still hangouts for the wizard community. Like the one Eddie and I enter.
Oh, and the place is absolutely extraordinary.
Little paper horses of all colors dance in circles above, to the beat of the whippy swing jazz played by a red record player in the corner of the room. On the dance floor, everyone is in pairs, smiling and laughing. A table by the back is adorned with delicious foods and drinks, and Eddie's stomach rumbled to take advantage of this experience and devour all he could.
A young man, just as tall as Eddie, who was already six feet, with sparkling eyes that were so blue they almost looked violet. Silky hair the color of black diamonds, a curtain hanging to his jaw. His eyebrows arched high and his lips, pink and soft, danced upward at the sight of the two of them into a smile. His nose was broad and sharply upturned, but still, it was not a flaw in his assemblage of handsome features.
He bowed. The boy was wearing a black tie and a nice suit as he lifted Lily's hand to his lips for a prolonged kiss. "I am Jorge, mademoiselle. Jorge Delgado." He was efftorlessly suave, and he had not a Portuguese accent but a. . . "I was born and raised in France, my mademoiselle." He laughed charmingly at the look on Lily's face.
"Oh, that is very interesting. Paris or Lyon or somewhere else?"
"Annecy. Annecy, France but when I wasn't there I was here in Lisbon, you see, because my parents split when I was very young." Lily was intrigued by his story, leaving Eddie pink-faced to munch on garlic shrimp that someone had handed him and some deliciously bitter candy lemon soda.
The conversation between Lily and Jorge carried on. "I recently came here only four days ago, you know. As soon as I left Beauxbatons, I headed over to Lisbon," he said.
"Really?" Lily inquired. "Why not stay in France? I've been there and it is absolutely beautiful!" She remembered briefly the smell of French roast that floated from cafés and the delicious chocolate soufflés and macaroons she was treated to.
"Oh of course France is beautiful, but I spent five whole years of my life there. Ever since I was twelve, I had been at Beauxbatons nonstop. They didn't allow you to go home over break, you see, only allowing your family members to drop in at certain times and for you to leave for two days at Christmas time. That is only ten days off school for five years, mademoiselle." Aha, Lily thought. That's why Victorie, Dominique, and Louis absolutely despised the idea of going there for school!
"So I only got to see my parents a few times after I turned twelve. . . I must say it was a dreadful experience for the most part, but I'd be happy to tell you more over a dance?" The music turned slower, and Jorge extended his hand.
For a moment, Lily smiled honestly and genuinely, looking him straight in the eye. But instead of giving him her hand and stepping into him, she backed away and shook her head kindly.
Jorge as well as Eddie was stunned by her gesture. "No, no thank you. I do believe my friend and I are starving, and looking for gifts for our friends. We just need a bite to eat and then we'll be off." With a curt nod, she pulled Eddie away to the food and drink stand, where she silently gathered custard tarts, rice pudding, a pizza with extra cheese, roasted pork, oregano, and onions, which Lily peeled off and gave to Eddie, who piled them on his pizza with much liking.
While they were walking out of the Vila, Eddie finally couldn't contain himself and asked Lily his burning question.
"Hey," he began, his voice quavering. "Lil. . .?"
"Yep." Two strands of her firework colored hair fell in front of her face.
Eddie stuttered, clutching at his fingers as they walked back towards the shops. He already knew he would get his father. A nice bonsai tree kit and a flashlight because. . . why not. . . "Lily. . ." He was going to do it. He was going to do it. "What are you getting your parents?" He crashes and he burns.
Lily looked at him with a surprised frown on his face.
"Well, for my mom I actually got her a signed edition of Desdemona Crawford's autobiography," she referred to the greatest female quidditch player of all time, and perhaps the best overall. She beats out even Viktor Krum! "And I bought my dad a book on the Roosevelt family."
"Really? Why?"
"It looked fancy and he likes fancy things."
"I suppose you do too."
She smiled and didn't say a word.
. . . . . . .
Rose
For her father she had got the quidditch set of Viktor Krum when he trained as just a young lad in Durmstrang. It wasn't hard to get from him because well, he and her mother went way back. Like being fourteen years old and having a short-lived relationship back. Also, he didn't really want anything from his Durmstrang years, since that was a reminder of a frightening experience for him. She just had to pick the set up from him in his home in downtown La Paz, Bolivia, with his wife. Far, far away from the horrors of his past life. And unfortunately for Rose, so far, she had to ask her Grandpa A to get it for her because she, of course, couldn't get out of school.
She knew it was overboard, probably. It was worth tons of money, but so was her father. . . that is sweeter than it sounds. She loves him and she also wants him happy when she tells him about her situation with Scorpius.
Her mother already knew about the thing with Lily and her. Guessed it when she forcefully declined to sit with them on the plane to Lisbon. When they didn't talk and when Albus, James, and Scorpius avoided her. And she was 62% sure that she know Lily and Scorpius were over.
Of course, her father was friendly and jubilant and completely unobservant to anything but reuniting not just Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny, but all his brothers and sisters and Luna, Neville, and the rest of the former organization called "Dumbledore's Army." Yes, that group. Rose hadn't heard much of it from her parents, but Aunt Ginny and Aunt Luna never stopped talking about it.
When she was little—maybe just six years old—they had told a great tale of how they met in secret in a room so difficult to find, it took Harry five years to even notice, and then they ended with showing off their patronuses. Luna's was a joyous little hare. It was made of pulsing blue light, but when it hopped around her head, Rose could swear she felt little paws in her mess of curls.
Aunt Ginny's powerful horse, as amazing as Ginny herself.
That day inspired her to become the girl she is now. The one who reads constantly, declining nothing in her quest for knowledge.
She never told anyone, because she was afraid they would find her out. After all, Al is about as observant as a magnifying glass. Nothing gets past him, so she didn't make a peep, but after Scorpius came to her not long ago, she was able to produce a patronus.
And it was strong. . . it was an impala. Light red furred and all, with black horns stretching from its head in a delightfully artful way.
She had not only been practicing her magic very often, but she had perhaps her happiest memory of all. When Scorpius was with her in their special place. . . when they were together. When their hands intertwined. She used to blush at the memory.
That's why she reads muggle books. Well, partly because her mother was raised in that culture and they have all come to appreciate it just the same as the magical one, but also because for all that the wizards and witches know, muggles can be pretty genius, and those muggle fictional books and nonfiction biographies helped her discover her deep love for Scorpius.
She wished she had never read those books. Now, she would be hated by her closest friends forever. They'd never understand.
As she supposed they would never understand how she loved Scorpius. After all, Albus hadn't. James hadn't. And by God, there was absolutely no chance that Lily would get it.
Why should she though! After all the pain Rose caused, she shouldn't even be on this trip anyway. She hated being holed up in her room, alone and sad and regretful. She hated that she had ruined everything. She hated her own, selfish self.
At the moment, she had put down To the Lighthouse. Even though she blamed her books for causing the horrid situation she was stuck in, she knew she was really the cause, and therefore, her books, were innocent.
Instead of reading her all time favorite, Virginia Woolf, she read The Iliad. It was a cheat on muggle literature because it was well known in the wizarding world that Homer was a pureblood who mastered non-verbal magic, but rarely used his magical talents because then, there were very few magical schools, if any. Duh.
She was trying to decide who was her favorite character: Phoenix or Hector, when her mother arrived.
Her hair was poofy and curly from the humidity, smiling sympathetically at her eldest daughter as she sat across the bed. Her hazelnut eyes were pitiful, losing their brilliant spark. She reached for Rose's hand.
As soon as she did, Rose sighed, immediately knowing what she was doing.
"Rose," Hermione began. "I was going to let you come to me, but you have been distant. You have ignored me. You have ignored your friends and been alone in this room. In Lisbon, of all places!" Hermione edged forward while Rose let her hair cover her face. "Christmas is a few days away. We may not have to interact with Malfoy, but we will definitely have to be with the Potters, so just fess up and explain why you can't speak to them, darling. Please. For me."
They shared a look. A look of sadness. Of regret.
But oh, was it for different reasons.
. . . . . . .
"The day I ran away. . . I ran to a place only Scorpius would know I had gone." Rose began telling her story. "I explained that I was upset because I. . ." She tried to choke out the words, but remembering it all felt so stupid. So juvenile. So horrid. But she had to continue. "I loved him. Had and always will but he was with Lily. And I would just have to deal, you know? But we were stupid." Rose shook her head. "We kissed and. . ." Tears brimmed on her eyes. "Then we were together. In secret. Albus found us out one morning in the lavender beds. He forced Scorpius to tell Lily at the Yule Ball and then we came here, Mom. Scorpius and I are finish. Lily and Scorpius are finished. Everyone is finished with me. . . It's all my fault. . ." she wiped tears from her face, her mother frowning slightly in front of her.
Hermione was conflicted. On one side, she wanted her daughter to feel reassured at she wasn't a bad person. That she made a mistake, like everyone does. After all, Hermione made one mistake that still haunted her when she was in Hogwarts.
But she was also deeply upset by the fact that her own daughter had become the girl who cheats. Who lies. Who looks at what her best friend has and takes it. It was sickening, almost.
Yet this was her daughter.
Hermione embraced Rose. "You shouldn't have done that," she said quietly. "But if you isolate yourself from them, you lose them. Don't lose them. Apologize. Please. It's the Holidays."
They shared a look. Rose wiped the tears from her cheeks and choked trying to stop sniffling. "I don't know if I can do that. . ." Rose said.
Hermione looked at her daughter, stroking her cheek. "You must."
Silently, Rose's mother walked out of the room.
. . . . . . .
Yay! Ten Chapters! This is a milestone for me, but onto other things concerning the story: The timeline. This story is technically still taking place in the Holidays of 2016. I wasn't able to upload the last few chapters because the Holidays were really busy times for me. Travelling and birthdays and Christmas and New Years and running around like a mad person. Super fun, ps. So I hope no one minds that the last chapter (before the epilogue) will be most likely on New Year's Eve. I hope to have it by the end of January. It's not like Goblet of Fire came out in December, even though one of my favorite parts was the Christmas centered Yule Ball. And anyway, don't we all wish the magic of Christmas could last?
As always, favorite, follow, and review kindly for much loved feedback! Thanks!