Chapter 11

"You get your cute butt here right now and save me!" Scorpius mouthed at Lux Yaxley.

Although she usually came to his aid, she was too amused to help. She laughed, shook her head indicating he was on his own and dragged her cousin Allegra into the crowd. Scorpius scowled after them.

"You know what Malfoy – hic – You and I, we – hic – need to ditch this – hic – joint and go upstairs. What do you – hic – think?" Posie slurred as her hands pawed all over him.

Scorpius grimaced. "What I think, is that you have had too much to drink and what sort of gentleman would I be if I took advantage of you like that." Scorpius said as he struggled to keep Posie's hands on the outside of his clothes. Thomas and Warrington saw him struggle and thought it the most hilarious thing in the world. It did not occur to them that he might need their help. Some best friends they were!

"Take advantage – hic – that sounds nice – hic – you never take advantage." She complained with a pout.

"I wonder why?" Scorpius muttered as he tried to keep her slippery fingers away from him.

"What was that?" She asked and stepped away from him. She glared as she swayed unsteadily. Over her shoulder, he saw the entrance to the common room open. The Zabini sisters entered looking beautiful. Margarita wore an emerald green dress while Magdalana wore a blood red halter neck dress. Emanating their house colours, both were skintight which showed off their perfect figures. As they stepped into the room, the third girl became visible. Lily Potter was breathtaking in her Mediterranean blue tulip dress. Scorpius could not take his eyes off her.

Scorpius was not the only Slytherin who stared. At first, he had been amused, wondering how the Slytherin would react to Lily being there- how Posie would react. However, Posie was too drunk and unpredictable right then. He did not want her anywhere near the redhead. Knowing that Posie would make a scene at the appearance of Lily Potter, he grudgingly put his arm around Posie and made sure her arms were pinned to her sides. "I said let's get you some more wine!" he lied and led her to the other end of the common room; all the while he cursed the fact that Posie Montague had developed a crush on him and would not take no for an answer; because he had said no multiple times that evening. His current actions would do nothing to deter her from continuing to pursue him. He knew that, but keeping Lily Potter safe from her would be worth it – he hoped.

He dreaded to think what Posie and Morticia would do to Lily if they ever found out about his crush; Hell, he dreaded go think how his grandfather would react if he ever found out. He loved his grandfather but he could be cold and irrational when it came to protecting his ideals. Lily Potter was not someone Lucius would easily accept as part of Scorpius' life. His mind paused- was he seriously thinking of having Lily as part of his life? How stupid was he? Lily would never want that. Scorpius raked a hand through his hair and shrugged that thought to the back of his mind. He would dwell on those thoughts later. He had enough problems to contend with, such as getting rid of Posie

Posie was rattling off some nonsense as he pretended to listen; he hoped she would be too drunk to remember anything tomorrow. All he wanted to do was find someone who would take the burden off him. It grated against him to be stuck looking after Posie since it was his birthday bash after all; but then things did not often turn out his way. With her glued to his side, his gaze searched for someone to pawn off the responsibility to, so that he could start enjoying himself.

Through the crowd, he saw Duanne talking to Lily with the twins not far behind. Lily glanced around the room as if unsure whether to stay or not. Scorpius did not want her to leave and needed to do something to make her stay. As luck would have it, he passed Pandora Bletchley from the Slytherin Quidditch team. He hooked an arm around her and startled by the action, she walked with him. Posie was oblivious to the new addition to the group as she snuggled against him. He tried to ignore her to prevent the nightmares that would follow tonight if he truly allowed himself to think about what she was doing.

"What do you want?" Pandora asked as she tried to ignore that Posie was trying to get inhumanly close to her teammate. The sight was disgusting.

"I need a favour." Scorpius began and she appeared both intrigued and disturbed by being asked a favour by the Malfoy heir. "I need you to take Posie away. She's too drunk and has it in her head to jump me when we're alone. Can you take her back to the dorms and I don't know… lock her up there. I'll buy you new broom!" he pleaded, his tone desperate.

Pandora winced at the request, tempted because she needed a new broom. With another glance at Posie, she shook her head. "No broom is worth that." She tried to pull away but Scorpius grabbed her arm. He was desperate after all. There was no way he was going to try to leave the safety of the group with Posie; but he didn't want her anywhere near Lily either.

"Then I will do whatever you ask of me." Scorpius vowed and did not take back his words even when the evil gleam shone in her eyes.

Pandora's eyebrows shot upwards as she considered his proposal; her mind buzzing with the possibilities. She glanced at him. He looked nervous, good; he should look nervous for getting himself in such a situation where he was at the mercy of another Slytherin. He should know better. Luckily, she liked and respected him more than most of the members in her house; so she would not be too harsh in her demands. She thought for a moment and glanced around the room. She spotted something that had her smiling. "I'd accept a new broom but there is something else you can do for me aswell."

"What?" Scorpius asked both hesitantly and hopefully, ready to grasp at anything if it meant getting rid of Posie.

"Do you see Tony Wyatt over there?" She asked. Scorpius turned his head in search of the sixth year Slytherin. He spotted him standing not far from where Duanne stood talking to Lily. He nodded. "Well we broke up last week since he seems to be of the opinion that I couldn't get better than him – the arrogant sod. Pity I love the fool. Well I want him back but I need to show him that I could in fact do better if I wanted to. I could find someone else to help me prove him wrong but that would involve effort and a nasty break up and I cannot be bothered with that. Since you are offering to do me a favour, then you can help." She declared and smiled mischievously.

"Just what are you asking me to do?" Scorpius asked, not following what Pandora was getting at. The female mind was a confusing thing.

"I want us to walk over there and I want you to kiss me. It will not mean anything and I don't care if you need to kiss her to keep her happy and from wringing my neck." Pandora added and jerked her head in Posie's direction. "Besides, it will imply to Tony that I'm not as boring as he seems to think I am. It will also ensure that she is in a more compliant condition when I take her off your hands. In fact, I think I will make it an essential part to my conditions."

Scorpius winced. "How does that make sense?" Scorpius ask, his head hurting form trying to work out why Pandora would want him to do such a thing. He also did not like the idea of kissing Posie, although kissing Pandora was not on his list of top ten things to do while at Hogwarts. However, she was willing to help him with his immediate problem and surely, that was all that mattered.

"It doesn't need to make sense to you. All you need to know is that it is the price to pay if you want Posie off your hands and other parts of your anatomy."

Scorpius blanched and made a mental note never to make a deal with a Slytherin ever again. He should have known better. He had said he would do anything to get rid of Posie; even if it meant him losing what little ground he'd gained with Lily, because there was no way he could do this so that Tony saw, but Lily didn't. However, kissing Posie, no matter how repulsive, would most likely distract her from wanting to lay into Lily. Besides, Lily was looking rather cosy with Duanne and he did not want people to know how much he disliked that. "Fine." Scorpius agreed before his head hurt some more.

"Where's my wine?" Posie demanded as she suddenly realised she did not have Scorpius' attention.

Scorpius rolled his eyes. "We are going to get you some but first I need to speak to Duanne." Scorpius told her and shook his head. Was he really going to kiss both Pandora and Posie in front of Lily? What weird situation had he found himself in?

The trio headed straight for Duanne and Lily. Lily was looking anxiously into the faces of other Slytherins. Duanne was telling her about the truce everyone had agreed to but Lily was sceptical. "They don't look like they have. Maybe I should go" Lily suggested uncertainly.

Knowing that provoking her anger was a good way to provoke her stubbornness and courage, Scorpius called out to her. "Don't be a coward and have a drink. I thought you Gryffindor's were supposed to be brave?"

She span around and glared at him with full fury blazing in her eyes. He did not flinch. Instead, he wrapped an arm around both Posie and Pandora who stood at either side of him, glanced over at Tony Wyatt to confirm he was looking, kissed each girl full on the mouth in turn and walked away from them again. Leading the girls away from the group, Scorpius had to pry Posie off him since she did not realise the only reason he had kissed her was because she would have attacked Pandora or Lily if he had not. He felt so dirty for what he had just done; but a deal was a deal. At least Lily's presence had not been processed by Posie's intoxicated mind.

Pandora looked back and was happy to see her man sulk in the distance. With a smug smile, she took out her wand, discreetly cast a spell to make Posie pass out and levitated her out of the room without another word to Scorpius. Scorpius blinked after her wondering why he had not thought about doing that himself. It would have saved him a lot of trouble.

"What was that about?"

Scorpius turned to see Margarita and Magdalana looking at him in surprise. "You do not want to know." Was all he said before he decided he needed a drink to forget about Posie's wondering hands. He shuddered to think where they had been. The twins wished him happy birthday and decided they would get a drink with him. Scorpius felt a lot more comfortable walking towards the drinks table with a Zabini twin on each arm. He was surprised to see Lily and Duanne at the drinks table. Duanne was offering her a firewhiskey and she eyed it sceptically.

"Come on Potter, it's not a tough decision, unless you're chicken." Scorpius laughed. Lily stared at Magdalana wondering why she was with Scorpius. Maggie shrugged and mouthed something that had Lily looking at Duanne quizzically. Scorpius had no idea what Magdalana had said but Duanne did not seem bothered and that seemed to surprise Lily.

Lily suddenly turned her venomous gaze on Scorpius. "I hate you," she spat ungraciously which had Scorpius blinking in confusion. Lily took the drink Duanne held and took a sip. "Christ, it tastes of paint stripper" she complained and coughed. They laughed at her reaction but did not know what she meant by paint stripper. Magdalana was unable to explain either. In reaction to their laughter, Lily swirled the golden liquid in the glass and to everyone's surprise, she raised it up to her lips again and drained it dry. She did not cough that time.

Scorpius had to admit, he was impressed. Even he was not able to drink the stuff without wincing. Even the watered down version of the drink they had available.

"Want another?" Duanne asked and held the bottle of firewhiskey in front of Lily. Scorpius rolled his eyes, really hoping that Duanne was not trying to get Lily drunk. She was unpredictable enough when she was sober.

Lily shrugged, "Might as well," and she held her glass out for him to fill it. They stood talking until Lux attracted Scorpius' attention and he left Duanne, his sisters and Lily at the drinks table.

Later into the evening, the music was turned up; several people got up to dance. Scorpius was happy to sit and watch everyone make fools of themselves as he talked to his friends. Occasionally his eyes drifted towards Lily and Duanne and he had to look elsewhere before the jealousy overwhelmed him. When the Twisted Toadstool's latest song played, Magdalana grabbed hold of Lily shouting, "I love this song Lils, we have to dance." and dragged her to the dance floor; Lily did not appear to object.

As the girls began to dance, they attracted attention of several Slytherin students who had never seen people dance the way Lily and Magdalana were. Scorpius had to admit, it was difficult not to stare as Lily twisted and turned to the music. It was almost hypnotic. So enthralled in watching her, he did not realise at first that Margarita had been dragged onto the floor with them, her dance moves more hesitant than the other two. The three girls continued to move to the music and as they danced. "Is it wrong to be turned on by this?" Thomas Warrington asked loudly. Scorpius whacked him on the upside of his head. It was the least of what he deserved.

"Very and if you keep looking at them like that I'll have to use and unforgivable curse on you. And you know which one I mean," Duanne growled, sounding extremely intimidating.

"Understood." Thomas replied and rubbed the back of his head. The girls shrieked having overheard some of the conversation but the continued dancing until the end of the song.

Scorpius could see that Lily was near exhaustion when she stopped dancing. Her eyes searched the crowd for Duanne who sat on the other side of the couch as Scorpius. Scorpius downed his latest drink as he watched Lily walk towards them and sit between the two of them. She leant towards Duanne and he welcomed her presence and draped his arm around her shoulder. She snuggled closer to him, "That was fun" she told him breathlessly and he gazed down at her admiringly.

"You were awesome, where'd you learn to dance like that?" Duanne asked. Lily beamed at Duanne's appraising gaze. Scorpius could not keep the fact that he had enjoyed her dancing as much as Duanne had, from showing on his face. Lily looked smug at that, which surprised Scorpius. She was not supposed to care what he thought, but from the look in her eyes, she did. It appeared to surprise her as much as it surprised him.

"Some old Muggle dance films. I love to play them and imitate what I see" Lily informed him.

"Really?" Malfoy asked, surprised that she learnt to dance from watching a film. He knew what a film was after he and Duanne had gone to a Muggle cinema one day to see what all the fuss was about.

Lily frowned "Yes, the barbarians aren't completely useless." she snapped and turned her back on him so that she faced Duanne.

"I didn't mean it like that." Scorpius grumbled; trust Lily to be difficult.

"Whatever." Lily sighed nonchalantly. She turned her attention to Duanne and they laughed and joked. As Lily relaxed, she even made conversation with Scorpius. It was not only him asking her questions an she responding; Lily was actually asking him things as well.

Scorpius was surprised to see how relaxed they were around each other. "You know what Potter?" Scorpius sighed after an unknown amount of time.

Lily tipped her head backwards so Duanne's grip on her arms was all that stopped her from falling head first into Scorpius' lap. Scorpius resisted the urge to laugh at the sight of her. "What Malfoy?" she asked and an unmistakable giggle escaped her lips.

"I kind of find you bearable when you're relaxed like this." He grinned.

"Ha, that's funny." she attempted at sarcasm but a genuine laugh spoilt the effect, "I find you less horrific when I'm like this too." she chuckled.

There was a moment where the two just stared at each other until Duanne decided Scorpius had monopolised Lily's attention long enough. "Do you fancy dancing?" Duanne asked and Lily snapped her back upright so that she could see him. Her hands flew to her head in attempt to steady her spinning vision. "In a minute" she groaned and lowered her head to his shoulder and closed her eyes so that she could not see the room spin around her. Scorpius noted that she did not look well, like she had not looked well after the Tornado Twister earlier.

Scorpius went to get Lily a glass of water. When he came back, Lily was no longer there. Duanne was but he was talking to his sisters. "Have you seen Potter?" Scorpius asked.

Duanne looked confused. "What are you talking about? She's over there mate." Duanne said. He paused when he realised Lily was not where he left her. Scorpius and Duanne both went in search of Lily. It was Lux who came to them and mentioned Lily had left the party and was trying to find her way back to the Gryffindor common room alone; and it was Scorpius who went after her to make sure she got back ok.

Scorpius ran along the empty corridors listening for any sound that was not supposed to be there. It did not take him long to find her in an abandoned classroom looking for something. "Are you ok there Potter?"

Lily jumped and gasped in surprise. "And you said Potter's sneak." She complained and stumbled over toward him. She was unsteady on her feet; his arms shot forward to catch her before she fell.

"I'm sorry if I surprised you. I came to see if you were ok. I want to make sure you find your way back to your common room." Lily leant against his chest until she regained her balance. Scorpius tensed knowing that she was acting out of character, even with the so-called temporary truce they had going for the evening. He couldn't help but worry about her. "How much did you drink?"

"Not much." She replied honestly, he voice muffled against his chest. "I just had the one and I didn't really touch the second. And I have no idea where my robes are." She finished and huffed in frustration because she could not remember which classroom Maggie had put her robes

He frowned, wondering what was wrong with her, if she wasn't drunk then maybe the Tornado Twister had affected her more than either of them had thought. "Should I take you to the medical wing? This is not a normal reaction. The firewhiskey is watered down because there are always the underage students who try to drink it instead of the milder stuff. What is you are having a reaction to the sweet your uncle sent you. Maybe you should get a message to him. I'll help break into my aunt's office and you can use her fire." He suggested since by fire was one of the quickest ways to get in contact with another witch or wizard if they were home. His arms were gently around her waist; ready to provide support if needed but not trap her.

"No I just need to get some sleep." She decided and yawned. Scorpius was surprised that she still allowed him to hold her like this. She really must be confused if she was not cursing him and demanding he leave her alone. He wondered if she would remember this tomorrow. He wasn't sure whether he wanted her to remember or not. What if she was appalled by the memory?

He sighed. He wanted to get her help but he knew how stubborn she was. "Ok. But let me come with you."

Lily tilted her head back and gazed up at him confused. "Why are you being nice to me? You hate me."

Scorpius rolled his eyes- now she had to remember. "I'm not a bad guy really and I don't hate you." He assured her and smiled.

Lily stared up at him confused ant first and then intrigued. Scorpius felt his gut tighten in reaction to the look in her eyes. "You have a nice smile. You should smile more often."

"Now I know you are ill if you're dishing out compliments like that. Let's get you back to the Gryffindor to-"

Scorpius' words were cut short when Lily, in her high heels, crashed her lips against his. Scorpius froze as the kiss assaulted his senses. Scorpius' hands settled on her waist, but he could not force himself to push her away. As if reading his mind, Lily's hands knotted around his neck so he could not pull away even if he wanted to. His hands on her waist no longer moved to push her away but pulled her closer. All sensible thoughts disappeared from his mind; all the reasons why he should stop the kiss disappeared.

Lily gasped when he lifted her body against his, he was too tall and even in her high heels her feet barely touched the floor. Lips fought with lips as heat rose between the two. Her tongue was the first to steal a taste of him. Seconds later, he deepened the kiss. He urged her backwards, her toes grazing against the floor until he lifted her onto a desk. She groaned in approval of their new position and her hands delved into his silky blonde hair.

His hands, no longer needed at her waist, slid to her thighs. Her dress riding up as her thighs opened, allowing him to step between them; they tightened around him, not wanting him to move. Heat soared between their bodies until Scorpius had to end the kiss when it became almost too much to bear. It was then when Scorpius realised where he was, what he was doing and whom he was with. His senses returned and he stepped away from Lily despite her protest. He raked a hand through his platinum hair, horrified about what he was doing. It was not right. Lily may not be drunk but she was not in her right mind either. The kiss proved that. "Shit Lily I'm sorry."

Confused Lily slipped off the desk and stepped towards him. By the second step, she stumbled and Scorpius had to catch her again. This time she could not bear her weight, she was too exhausted. Scorpius cursed and scooped her into his arms as he ignored his continued need for her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her head rested against his shoulder. "You're going to be ok, I'll take you back to the Gryffindor tower" he assured her and she yawned as her eyes drooped. She was completely exhausted and Scorpius speculated that it was a result of the Tornado Twister she'd had earlier. She had better be okay after this of her uncle George and cousin Freddie would make it onto his shit list, just below Eoin MacLaggen.

Feeling guilty and utterly appalled by his actions, Scorpius carried her along the empty corridors stopping every now and then to check where he was going. It did not take him too long to find his way, although coming face to face with the portrait of the Fat Lady made him pause.

"What are you doing here boy. You're not a Gryffindor. Oh my word! Violet! Violet, come see what he has done to the Potter girl!" The portrait of the fat lady sang in alarm. Violet's portrait came to have a nosey.

"I haven't done anything to her, she's asleep." Scorpius gritted out as the two women in the portrait hurled profanities at him. The last thing he needed was for more rumors to spread about him attacking Lily Potter and bringing her unconscious body to the Gryffindor common room. If only he hadn't left his galleon he used to communicate with Rose back in his school robes, she may have been able to help.

"Lily you need to wake up." Scorpius asked urgently. She groaned sleepily in response. Not knowing what else to do, he shifted her weight in his arms so that he freed one hand. He then proceeded to slap her face gently. More groaning followed. "What's the password?" he urged.

Hazel eyes flicked momentarily open. "Dumbledore" she yawned. Scorpius was relieved when the portrait swung open without any more accusations from the Fat Lady. He lifted her through the portrait hole carefully and carried her into the common room. He hadn't been in the room before, not even when he and Albus Potter had been friends. It was a lot more comfortable that his own, soft looking furniture and a large fire with only embers left. He tried to lower her onto one of the couches but she wouldn't let go of his neck. He had to pry her fingers open and even then, she protested in her sleep. He laughed at her reluctance knowing it wouldn't be the case if she was awake.

After laying her down, he added another log to the fire so it would keep her warm. He didn't like the idea of her cold. He conjured a blanket, draped it over her and watched her snuggle into it. She became restless so he began stroking her hair until she settled.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Scorpius looked into the furious gaze of Albus Potter. "I was making sure your sister got back here safe. Nothing more and nothing less."

"What was she doing with you?" Albus demanded. Lily began to stir and they stepped away from her so not to disturb her again.

"She wasn't with me; I was just free to escort her back."

"If you have harmed her in any way -" Albus threatened.

"Give me some credit." Scorpius scoffed. "She's Magdalana's best friend. Do you really think I would do something to her when she's asleep?" He spat back. He struggled to keep his tone low, he was furious at his former best friend for implying that he could do such a thing.

"I don't want to see you near her again." Albus ordered, his emerald eyes narrowing menacingly.

"Don't worry. When we're not in detention together I'll keep my distance." Scorpius said bitterly. If Lily did remember the kiss in the morning then there was no was she would want anything to do with him. He had nothing else to say to his former best friend so he stormed out of the portrait hole.

He muttered darkly under his breath all the way back to the Slytherin Common room. On his way back he realized something was caught in his robe. He examined the piece and recognized it as a hooped earring Lily had been wearing. It must have fallen off either when they kissed or when he carried her. He slipped in his pocket.

Only when he reached his dormitory and found everyone asleep, did he take out the earring he'd acquired. He placed it in the box next to the handkerchief and lily and slid the box under his bed. Climbing into his four-poster her drew the curtain around him and lay in the darkness. He thought of the kiss he shared with Lily and wondered if she would remember it in the morning. Sighing he reached for a Fantasy Blast. Slipping it into his mouth he imagined a less noble scenario where he didn't stop Lily from snogging his brains out. When the effects of the chocolate ended, he reached for another and thought of things that would make Lily Potter blush the colour of her hair.

Sorry if this chapter is confusing I dont have much free time at the moment :( Nevertheless, i hope you enjoyed reading it