A/N I have been mulling over how to proceed with this year. Scorpious, Albus and Rose are now in their fourth year, which is a crucial point in their career as well as life. I'm still not entirely sure how this is going to end. If any of you good people have any suggestions, do share (PM me or simply leave a review; anything will do).
In the meantime, I must thank all those who added this humble tale to their following board. A shoutout to Nicknack2814, xXxPunkPrincess2894xXx, ilovepie123, Sroman and the unnamed guest who was eager to read the next chapter. This one's for you…
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter
The bright rays of the sun hit Rose squarely on the eyes, making her groan and bury her face in the pillow. She did not want to wake up. Not yet. She was having an amusing dream where she was a knight slashing away at a dragon that looked vaguely like her dad. And there was Scorpius, crouching behind a boulder and gasping at every blast of fire the dragon blew his way. She closed her eyes and tried to bring back the dream so that she could write to Scorpius about it later and share a laugh.
But the stupid alarm clock chose that precise moment to go off in a skull-numbing trill and drove away all images of knights and dragons from her mind. It was a magical gift from Grandma Weasley and could adjust itself to ring exactly when a person should be getting up. But she didn't want to get up yet. Yawning, she fumbled to get hold of the offending object. As was her luck, however, she only managed to topple it to the ground where it lay, trilling with all its might and driving her crazy into the bargain.
Drat it. Now she had to leave the cozy, snuggly bed and get up after all. Muttering some well-chosen obscenities under her breath, she pushed back the coverlet and picked up the clock. It was nine o'clock already. Mom would be busy making breakfast. Dad would be reading the Daily Prophet and grumbling about some 'insufferable' article written by 'that Skeeter woman'. And Hugo would probably still be in bed. She smirked.
Her little brother had been exceptionally quiet these past two days. He tiptoed around her like she was some vicious animal that might bite off his legs at the merest provocation. Come to think of it, almost everybody has been doing that since the 'incident' at the dinner table. Dad had a new respect in his eyes when he looked at her, even though he refused to come out of his sulk. Only her mother had been unaffected by her outburst (she seemed pleased, to be precise.)
She gave another jaw-locking yawn and stretched, before shuffling towards the chair to pull on her robe. It had been a tiring two nights in a row. The night before last, she had been up most of the night, crying her eyes out at the rawness of the betrayal she felt at her father's hands; and then spending the last couple of hours to decide how to tell Scorp about her state of mind without betraying the reason. It had been mentally exhausting, to say the least.
And last night, she and Mom had had a long serious talk about all that had happened. They had ended up discussing the Great War. Mom had revealed certain incidents that she had never got to read in the textbooks. She could recall the conversation word by word.
'I know how you are feeling,' her mother had said.
She had kept quiet, sulking in a corner, refusing to look. Her mother had sat beside her, stroking her hair and speaking all the while.
'You are feeling betrayed, wondering why of all persons did your Dad have to be so narrow-minded. You are wondering why is it that we, as your parents, have always encouraged you to look past prejudices and yet discriminated against the Malfoys; why we cannot practice what we preached. Tell me if I'm wrong, Rosie.'
She had just sniffed and turned her face to the wall. 'I don't want you to explain anything. I'm fine.'
'No, you're not fine,' her mother had insisted. 'But you will be, once you hear why your father behaved as he did last night.'
'I don't need any justification.'
'Yes you do.' And her mother had started talking of the Great War.
'The history you read is not the entire story that happened in the Great War. There are many incidents that were hushed up or omitted or simply never revealed by the victims. We all are victims of the war. I, Dad, Uncle Harry, Aunt Ginny, Scorpius, his father – we all have scars, visible or invisible. And each of us chooses to cope with it the best way we can.'
'Your dad is a brave man. He doesn't show his scars easily. He has every reason to be scared and angry with the Malfoys, whereas you don't. Lucius Malfoy was a dangerous man. He was responsible for the reopening of the chamber of secrets and putting Aunt Ginny's life in danger. Yes,' she had continued at Rose's gasp, 'it was hushed up by the Ministry as he was a powerful man and you'll never find it mentioned in any of your history books.'
'Again during our fifth year, he was indirectly responsible for almost taking Grandpa Weasley's life and that of your father's. Not only that, Bellatrix Lestrange, who you know as Voldemort's right hand and who was also related to the Malfoys, had killed Sirius Black. And she was responsible for giving me this,' her mother had pulled down the neck of her tee and revealed a thin scar at her throat. 'So you must not judge him if he turns protective when he hears the name 'Malfoy'.'
'But how come you are ok with my being friends with Scorpius?' she had asked.
'Because I don't think Scorpius is a bad person. Neither was his father. At least not as bad as his father. But sometimes situations can make a person take horrible decisions.'
'His father was forced to join the Deatheaters at the risk of losing his life,' her mother had nodded when Rose had turned her astonished eyes at her. 'Yes, even though he has been portrayed as an enthusiastic Deatheater by all the contemporary magazines and newspapers, he never wanted to be one. Unfortunately, he was never given a choice in the matter.'
'He is as scarred by the war as we all are. May be more so than us. Even his son has to bear the burden of a tainted past that many of us refuse to forget.'
'How did you get that scar?' Rose had asked.
'It's a long story.'
Her mother had answered her questions patiently, often talking of incidents that were never mentioned in the text books or other History books. She told Rose of how they had to steal food to survive in the wild; how Uncle Harry had to perform the Imperius curse (one of the unforgivable curses, according to the Ministry of Magic) to break into the Gringotts vault; she talked of the bravery of Dobby, the elf who had rescued them from the Malfoy Manor at the cost of his own life (her history books only mentioned him as an elf who died in the war).
'Don't believe everything you read, Rosie. I am proud that you let your heart be the judge of a person, irrespective of his past. These history books are nothing but glorifications of war. They who write them do not know the actual situation; how sometimes good people make terrible decisions and bad people become heroic in the face of danger. They only try and paint one side black to glorify the other. There is no such thing as black and white in war.'
Rose had watched her wide-eyed as she took a deep breath and smiled. 'I'm proud of you, Rosie. I'm proud of the fact that you and Al have taken pains to befriend a young terrified boy, who must have faced censor and abuse at the hands of others. And I'm proud that you had the courage to stand up to your own father to defend him.'
'But what if Scorpius is as bad as his grandfather?'
Her mother had smiled, 'Have you ever felt scared of him so far?'
'No.'
'There you have it. I trust your judgment, Rosie. You should do too.'
'But what about Dad? He doesn't approve. And now that I heard what you said, I feel so guilty.'
'Don't worry about Daddy. He and I had a talk. He'll come around soon. And who knows,' her mother had added, winking, 'perhaps someday we might even have your Scorpius join us at dinner.'
'He's not my Scorpius. He's just my best friend. Like Al.'
'Whatever you say dear,' her Mom had answered. 'Now go to sleep.'
She had tucked her in bed, and left after kissing her goodnight.
Rose tied the sash of her robe and picked up her hairbrush as snatches of last night's conversation floated in her mind. My Scorpius indeed, she snorted, brushing her hair into a semblance. How could Mom even have such an idea, she wondered. Scorpius was just – well, Scorpius.
She shook her head, laughing at the ridiculous notion. Wait till Scorp and Al hears of it, she told herself. She padded down to the kitchen, giving a customary knock on Hugo's door on her way.
ooooo
Scorpius was having breakfast with his parents when a familiar brown owl swooped into their midst and dropped a heavy envelope on his lap. It took a small drink from his glass of water and swooped out as quickly as it came. Scorpius took up the envelope. It was from Hogwarts. The results would be inside along with a long list of books and equipments. He gave a cursory glance at his report card before placing it in the outstretched hand of his mother. His father bent his head to take a closer look.
He pulled out the list and began going through it.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Set Books
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 4) by Miranda Goshawk
A Revised History of Magic by Rebelus Warwick
Magical Theory: New and Improved Spells by Adalbert Waffling and Gilbert Hexington
Intermediate Transfiguration (Book 2) by Emeric Switch
Magical Healing Plants and Diabolical Killing Herbs by Phyllida Spore
Magic in a Cauldron by Aura Cloryne
Of Threstrals and Thunderbirds: A Study of Magical Beasts Worldwide by Newt Scamander
The Darkest Incantations: A Guide to Self-Preservation by Fidelo Cantico
The list went on about all the extra subject text-books he would be needing in fourth year. Then there were specific potion ingredients that would need a visit to the apothecary. Scorpius kept reading and cataloguing the places he would have to visit in his mind, until he came to the last line.
'Dress robes?!'
His parents looked up from the report card.
He squinted at the cursive writing. 'Students must also acquire a set of dress robes along with the usual school robes,' he read out loud and looked at his parents. They smiled and went back to breaking their fast.
'Are there any special occasions this year?' he turned to his father.
'Not that I'm aware of. But then again, the Ministry and I are hardly on great terms.'
Scorpius looked down at the list and frowned. What would they need dress robes for?
He wolfed down his portion of scrambled eggs and toast before hurrying off to send an owl to Al. May be he would know something.
ooooo
'Are you guys set?' asked Dad from downstairs.
Rose tugged at her top and fiddled with her unruly tresses.
Hugo raised his eyebrows. 'Are you done?' he asked, 'Al and Lily would be meeting us at Florean's.'
Rose gave one last desperate tug to settle her hair and then nodded. 'Let's go.'
Dad was waiting near the fireplace, holding the tub of Floo Powder. 'Step in,' he said, as she checked to see if she had forgotten the list or the money pouch. Then she took a pinch of the powder, threw it into the flames and stepped in.
'Wait for me near Florean's,' Hugo reminded her.
She nodded and shouted 'Diagon Alley' before disappearing into the green flames.
When she emerged from the fireplace of Florian's, it was full. Students were teeming everywhere. Newly selected kids stood in a queue to get their own wands from Ollivander's. Others tagged along behind their harried parents, pointing to various articles displayed on the windows.
Rose took another peek at the corner. Al and Lily were nowhere in sight. She sighed and sat down at a chair outside the ice-cream parlour to wait for Dad and Hugo.
'Hey Carrots!'
She whipped around as Scorpius came into sight, Al and Lily in tow.
'Fancy seeing you here!' he teased her.
'Same goes for you, Snowy.'
They grinned at each other.
'Where's Uncle Ron?' asked Lily.
Right on cue, Dad and Hugo came out of the fireplace in a cloud of soot.
'Ah! There you are!' said Dad, brushing soot from his purple uniform, before his eyes fell upon Scorpius. His face darkened.
Rose looked at Al looked back helplessly. Finally Lily diffused the situation.
'Scorp, this is my uncle, Ron Weasley,' she said, before turning to Dad. 'Uncle Ron, this is Scorpius Malfoy. He's Al's best friend.'
'How d'you do, sir. It's a great honour to finally meet you,' Scorpius extended his hand. Dad continued scowling till Rose nudged him. Then he shook his hand briefly before turning away and stalking towards the Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes building.
'Don't mind Dad,' said Rose. 'He is a bit discomfited about the notion of a Malfoy being a Gryffindor.'
'Don't worry. I too feel the same,' mumbled Scorpius.
'Yeah, he had a great ro-ouch!' Hugo winced and scowled at Rose. 'Why did you stamp on my toes?'
Why would I stamp on your toes?!' asked Rose innocently.
'You did that on purpose!'
'I didn't.'
Scorpius and Al were looking at the exchange with considerable interest. Rose turned to Al, completely ignoring Hugo's glare. 'Where's Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny?'
'Oh. Mom is catching up with Uncle George and Dad has gone to Flourish and Blotts's to buy Lily's books.'
'We need to buy our books too,' said Hugo. 'I'm going to go find Dad.' He walked away. Lily bid them a quick goodbye and hurried after him.
'You shouldn't allow her to roam about alone in a place like this,' Scorpius frowned, watching Lily's bobbing curls disappear into the crowd. 'She might get lost!'
'Nah. She won't. You don't know her. She is smarter than us lot put together. Even James is scared of her tricks most of the time.'
Rose gave an amused snort. 'Let's go and pick our Potions supplies,' she said.
oooooo
Half an hour later, they walked into the sunlight laden with packages.
'Let's see,' said Al, pulling out his crumpled list, 'we are yet to visit Madame Malkin's and Flourish and Blotts.'
'Let's go to Florean's first. I'm parched,' said Rose, struggling to hold all the packages and looking exhausted.
They went inside, giving a sigh of relief at the cool interior and settled down on stuffed chairs. Florean had been kidnapped in the war and came out in public very rarely these days. It was one of his employees, a freckled, gap-toothed wizard who came forward to take their orders.
'Three chocolate and vanilla sundaes please,' ordered Rose. The wizard gave her a cheeky grin as he wrote down the order. Scorpius scowled.
'What?' she asked.
'That guy was flirting with you!'
'No he wasn't. He was being nice,' said Rose.
'No, he wasn't. I saw him looking at you even before we walked into the parlour.'
'Really?! I'm flattered,' sniggered Rose.
'Hmmmph!'
'Don't 'hmph' me, Malfoy!'
'Ah! Is that how it is, Weasley?'
Al raised one of his imperial eyebrows. 'Will you two lovebirds shut up? Lord! You two sound like old married couples.'
'That's riddiculous,' they both shouted at once. Rose blushed before breaking into giggles.
'Merlin. It feels so good to see you guys!' she said, taking a deep breath and sighing in contentment. 'I can't wait to go back to school.'
'Speaking of which,' said Scorpius, 'do you have any idea why they requested dress robes?'
'Nah, mate. No idea. But we'll find out soon enough. In a week, to be precise.'
Rose looked apprehensive. 'I've never worn dress robes before,' she said.
'I bet you'll look great in them.'
'We'll find out that too, once we visit Madam Malkin's,' said Al, earning a scuff from Rose.
They finished their icecreams in companionable silence, before collecting their numerous packages and walking towards the slightly less crowded Madam Malkin's.
Robes of various shapes and sizes were displayed on mannequins that posed and preened on the window displays. The air inside smelled of starch and new fabric. The girls' and boys' sections were separated by a heavy curtain and workers fleeted from side to side, fetching bolts of fabric or helping Madame Malkin herself in pinning the hems of a robe.
'Hogwarts, dears?' she asked as soon as they stepped into the shop. They nodded. She told them to wait just a little while, whilst she completed pinning the robes of a fussy boy. Then it was their turn.
'Ah! Dress robes! My favourite!' she exclaimed, before bustling around. 'Now before we proceed with the cut, I want you gentlemen to look at a few chosen fabrics.'
She led them to a corner where more than a hundred bolts of cloths lay gathered. Scorpius and Al looked at each other and gulped. This was going to be more difficult than they thought.
It took them more than three quarters of an hour to find their choice materials. Scorpius's fabric was royal blue velvet, while Al picked up a dark green to go with his eyes.
'What do you think?' they held up their choices to Rose, who nodded and gave them the thumbs up.
Once they have been stood up on a stool, they were poked and prodded to an inch of their life, putting on and pulling off robes to try the correct cut, until Madame pronounced herself satisfied and let them climb down.
'Next time they ask for dress robes,' said Al, licking on a red pin prick on his wrist, 'I'm dropping out of school.'
Rose rolled her eyes. 'Great idea! Now help me choose my fabric,' she said, ignoring their combined groans.
Twenty minutes later, they were still searching for that elusive colour. Most colours clashed with her unique hair, which displeased her to no end. And the boys were not helping much.
'What do you think of this?' she asked, picking up a peach fabric and holding it against her body.
'You'll look lovely,' said Scorpius. Al nodded vaguely. She gave a sigh and threw down the cloth.
'No I won't. I'll look horrible. And don't you deny it. You're just saying it to mollify me.'
'I was being a gentleman.'
'Well, I don't want you to be a gentleman now. I want you to be my best friend and tell me the truth.'
'Ok. Fine,' Scorpius huffed. 'You'd look washed out in it.'
Rose sat down dejected. 'What am I to do now?'
'Wait.'
Scorpius gave her a slow, appraising glance before shifting through the fabrics and pulling out an apple-green one. 'Here. Try this.'
She did. And it was perfect. It did not clash with her Titian hair; and it brought out the pink glow of her skin. She squealed (which she had never done before) and hurried to find Madame Malkin.
'Girls,' Al shook his head with much feeling.
ooooo
To be continued...
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