Though he'd been there so many times, Scorpius enjoyed arriving at the Potter home with Lily on his arm much more than when he arrived with Albus. He and Sarah had yet to arrive, and so Scorpius and Lily were the first to greet Ginny and Harry, both of whom noticed the incredible difference in each of them. The last time either had seen Scorpius or Lily had been the unfortunate visit with Lily's previous boyfriend during which nobody had displayed very much of their pleasant sides. It had also been Sarah's first visit to the Potter home, but that had not been quite as smooth as either Albus or Sarah had hoped it would've been. As such, Ginny and Harry were all smiles to see Lily's eyes lit up so brightly, and Scorpius at her side.

"You look so beautiful," Ginny said lovingly as she cupped Lily's face and looked upon her with adoration. Lily paused for a moment before she wrapped her arms around her mother's shoulders. Scorpius shook hands with Harry, neither saying anything, but it was unnecessary. Scorpius knew, for the most part, Harry's thoughts on him and they were all favorable. After Harry and Lily had hugged, Scorpius left the room to carry their bags to Lily's bedroom, leaving her to catch up with her parents.

As Scorpius had reentered the room, he found Albus and Sarah had arrived as well. Deciding to leave them be with Ginny and Harry, Scorpius made his way towards the kitchen, more than pleased to find a basket of Ginny's bread that he enjoyed perhaps too much. As he started to savor a piece, Lily came to his side and took a bite before catching his attention.

"Getting a head start on dinner?" She teased and Scorpius only smiled down at her.

"I can't help myself."

"You're going t be fat if you keep eating those." Lily warned but Scorpius shrugged.

"I suppose that's just the risk I'll have to take." He replied and Lily let a giggle pass her lips as she stepped closer to Scorpius, letting his arm fall around her shoulder, his lips landing on her temple. Lily had settled into the space beneath his arm and against his chest, just as Scorpius recognized the feeling of her pressed against him. They had been so attuned to one another that they had not noticed being watched by the others in the room.

It was Ginny who had pulled Lily's attention, but Scorpius had been reluctant to release her. With a smile on her lips, Lily eyed him before her small frame slipped from his arms and bounced away from his side to approach her mother and Sarah in the next room. As Lily left his presence, Albus soon entered it, a knowing smile over his lips.

"Tonight or tomorrow?" Albus asked as he leaned onto the counter with his elbows but Scorpius continued to eat his slice of bread and simply peered back at Albus until he'd finished the bread.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Scorpius responded and Albus nodded slowly as though in agreement. As he continued to stare, Scorpius could not stop the smile from forming across his lips. "Probably tomorrow night."

"With everybody here?" Albus asked and Scorpius shrugged.

"I don't think it matters." He answered as he thought of the ring sitting in his bag upstairs. He knew it did not matter how many people were present when he finally asked Lily to marry him. That moment would belong to him and to Lily and nothing could change that.

"James should be arriving soon." Albus changed the subject as Harry approached them, but his eyes had narrowed at Scorpius' smile that had yet to fade. Albus and Scorpius were aware of the attention, but none of the men were daring enough to comment on it.

"I heard what happened in Knockturn Alley." Harry said simply and Albus nodded but Scorpius looked away. It was all Harry needed to confirm his fears. "Are you considering a new post in the Ministry?"

"Yes." Scorpius answered, but Albus had been quick to disagree. Harry only rose an eyebrow as he peered between the old friends who turned to stare at each other.

"I thought we would talk about it." Albus said simply and Scorpius turned away as he sighed, counting all the ways his relationship with Albus nearly mirrored a relationship he would've had with a woman. Not Lily, of course, because the relationship between him and Lily was quite different than the relationship between Albus and Sarah, a far more traditional relationship.

"We would if you weren't so stubborn." Scorpius answered and Harry only continued to stare.

"You can't make this decision."

"It's not about me, Albus." Scorpius replied as he turned to Albus, each wanting to say far more than they should in the presence of others. Though the argument could have continued, it was cut short when a pop echoed through the room. Harry turned quickly, but Albus and Scorpius had done so slowly, only to be frozen in place as they stared at James and the woman on his arm.

"Natalie." Sarah jumped up and neared her, laughing and arms open for a hug. Natalie had quickly left James' side to embrace her friend, earning an odd stare from James.

"Who are you?" James asked as he stared down at Sarah.

"My girlfriend." Albus answered simply and Natalie turned to Albus smiling, but paused as she stared at Scorpius.

"What are you doing here?" She asked strongly as her eyes narrowed at him.

"It's always nice to see you too," Scorpius responded doing his best not to let somebody as insignificant as Natalie ruin the weekend he would cherish with Lily. Natalie kept her gaze of Scorpius for a moment until James spoke up.

"Why do you all know each other?" He asked confused.

"She's Sarah's friend." Scorpius answered quickly, hoping Natalie would not want to clarify the exact nature through which they had met one another. James seemed to nod at the answer as he turned to Natalie.

"Sarah set me up with him and he was a drag."

"Thank you." Scorpius replied simply with his sarcastic smile and gleam in his eyes taking over. Albus seemed to be rather entertained by the turn of events, but the same could not be said for Lily who had remained silent in the far corner of the room with her mother.

"You dated Natalie?" Lily repeated as she turned to Scorpius, whose sarcasm had quickly faded and been replaced with something made up of fear and realization.

"Who works at the Museum." Scorpius said as he slowly turned to Albus. Albus had moved away from Scorpius, however, and laughed as he moved to Sarah's side.

"Yes." Lily nodded. "And she's utterly incompetent."

"Excuse me?" Natalie stepped forward and James glared at Scorpius.

"What the hell, Scorpius?" James demanded.

"I didn't do anything." Scorpius announced as he stepped forward and took hold of Lily's waist to pull her away from Natalie. "I was perfectly happy to mope around after Lily basically left me but Albus insisted that I go out on a date with one of Sarah's friends. He promised that I would be left alone after so I went and it was Natalie and she hated me anyway." Scorpius explained as he looked from Natalie to James. "And we never saw each other again." He added as he turned back to Lily. "Is everyone ok with that?"

Lily remained quiet as did Natalie as they simply stared at one another. Scorpius broke their contact as he stepped between them, pulling Lily's eyes to his. For a moment, she simply held his stare, but she eventually lowered her eyes and let out a breath. Scorpius stepped towards her, basically forgetting about Natalie behind him, and let Lily fill the space in his arms.