The redheaded intruder stood in the doorway, eyes wide as they roamed across the shelves of books that surrounded the room. At one point in time, the manor had been very...cold in appearance and comfort. Scorpius barely remembered it that way, however, seeing as his parents had begun renovating the rooms once they had married and taken on management of the estate. The den had been saved for last as a surprise for him after he completed his third year at Hogwarts with flying colors. Everything in the room had been designed for him – down to the bookshelves that always managed to have enough space for more books and never gave him any trouble about finding the one he was looking for.

He realized there were eyes on him and he snapped out of his reverie. His eyes met hers, but she turned away quickly and began moving around the room, her back to him. When she did speak, it was almost reverent, "This room is fantastic..."

It was this sort of...friendliness that kept putting him off guard. Who was this girl in his home that had replaced the aloof one he had grown up avoiding and being avoided by?

Scorpius sighed, "Rose..."

She acknowledged that she'd heard by turning her head slightly, but she didn't respond right away. Her hair was starting to dry and the curls fell loosely down her back. He could just see the curve of her cheek and the dark length of her lowered lashes against it. He again wondered at this soft creature standing where he'd expected cold edges. Leaning forward, Scorpius pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to focus past his muddled confusion. Merlin, did he just want to go to bed and pretend this was all a trick of his imagination. This was so outside of his comfort zone that he was on the verge of just asking her to leave, even if it did go against the 'good host' instincts that were telling him to offer her food or something to drink. Instead, he settled for the in-between of allowing her to stay for the moment in return for limited amenities.

He heard the quiet shift of fabric and looked up to watch her settle into the chair across from him. She didn't return his gaze, focusing intently on toying with the hem of her shirt. His shirt. Another frown and he shifted in his chair, clearing his throat in the hopes of prompting her to get on with it.

She lifted her gaze and bit her lip as they regarded each other. Then, she took a steadying breath, "So...I know it's really random that I showed up out of nowhere..." She paused, as if expecting him to interject something. When the quiet stretched to almost uncomfortable, she went on, "But some things happened and I had to get out of the house. I mean," she lifted her hands to run them through her hair, "I had to get away for a little while. And I didn't want anyone to come find me. So," she dropped her hands and her gaze, "I thought of the one place no one would come looking for me."

Scorpius processed this, his eyebrows lifting as it sunk in, "So you came here. To my house."

Her eyebrows knitted, "Yeah." After a few more beats of silence, she peered up at him with a weak smile, "It had seemed like a good idea when I was leaving."

She had lost her mind. That was all he could think of to really explain any of this. A momentary lapse of sanity had her running to Malfoy Manor of all places. But...her reasoning made a very twisted sort of sense. He leaned forward, "I...I guess you could stay for the night..." She winced. Scorpius narrowed his eyes, "Just how long were you intending to stay?"

Rose shrunk down in her chair, eyes locked on some particular patch of carpet, "Uh...I was hoping a few days?" She trailed off into a mumble and he missed the rest.

"Excuse me?"

With a deep breath, she shot a miserable look at him, "I said, maybe even until school starts?"

A week and a half? She wanted to stay for a week and a half.

His expression must have worried her, so she hastily explained, "I know it seems like a lot, but I know your parents are gone and this house is big enough that you wouldn't even know I was here!"

"How do you know my parents are gone?"

She rolled her eyes, "My parents work for the ministry, too, remember? My mum is even sort of friends with your dad."

"Oh," was all he could get out. He should have remembered that.

"I mean," she pressed on, "you wouldn't just throw a girl back out into the rain, right?"

He scowled at her, "That's asking a bit."

Rose grinned at him, "Nah. I figured you're a decent person who wouldn't do that."

Which surprised him to hear from her. He frowned, "Is it that bad?"

The grin vanished and he saw the flash of something awful before she smoothed her expression out, "Maybe."

So she wasn't even going to tell him why she was trying to hide out for almost two weeks at his home. She had intentionally come to the manor and was relying on the fact that he was raised to be a nice person even when all her previous attitudes toward him had made him doubt she thought he was even capable of being one. A thought occurred to him and he looked at her in confusion, "How the hell did you even get out here? And how were you planning to stay here for more than a day without any sort of luggage?"

A pleased look lit her face, "I stole my grandpa's car and it died just down the road." She shrugged, "My bags are in the trunk."

"You know how to drive muggle cars?" He'd known that Arthur Weasley was still passionate about muggle contraptions, but it seemed odd that he'd own another vehicle after the fiasco that happened with Rose's father and uncle when they attended Hogwarts.

Laughter bubbled out of his visitor, "Oh yeah! Mum bought the car for Grandpa so she could teach Hugo and I to drive. She insists on us being in touch with our muggle heritage. Drives Dad bonkers..." She trailed off and the smile on her face dimmed for a moment, then she forced it back, "But she never taught us how to fix them and I was in a bit of a panic with the storm and...the whole situation. So here I am wearing your pajamas and asking for a lot from you without a backup plan."

With a sigh, he shook his head and stood, "Gryffindors..."

She laughed as he turned and started walking away. Then came a sharp, "Oi! Where are you going?"

He tossed his retort back over his shoulder, "I thought you promised I wouldn't even know you were here."

After a beat of silence, he heard pounding feet and turned just in time for her to run into his chest, arms wrapping firmly around his waist. He stumbled backward, but managed to keep his balance. And then he didn't know what to do with his arms. She was really hugging him and she was almost a complete stranger. Was it even proper to return the hug? He settled for awkwardly patting her back and then pulling away from the embrace.

She stepped back, having the grace to look a little embarrassed. Then she grinned at him and shrugged, "Gryffindors, huh?"

A sharp laugh escaped him before he turned away, "I'll ask Skilt to get the guest room ready for you."

Fifteen minutes later, a grumpy Skilt appeared in his room to report that their guest was settled in the extra room and that he had located some extra supplies for her to use until they could retrieve her bags. Skilt was about to leave when Scorpius added, "The foyer looked wonderful, by the way, Skilt."

The house-elf narrowed his eyes, "Skilt knows, sir."

Laughing at the empty space that remained, Scorpius reminded himself to start thinking of something nice he could do for Skilt. There was a deep rumble of thunder outside and he turned back to the window with a smile. He was back in the windowsill, sans book this time, to try and settle his thoughts before he attempted to sleep. The storm reflected the turmoil of his own head right now after everything that had happened in the past hour. All he could really decide on while watching the wild weather was that Rose Weasley was in his house, she was going to be staying, and he was totally out of his depth as to how he should deal with any of that.

Feeling he'd done what he could to organize his mind, he unfolded his legs and swung them over the side of the sill to stare into the dimness of his room. Pulling off his shirt, he tossed it on the floor before pushing himself up and crossing the few feet to his bed. Crawling in, he rolled toward the window so he could see the occasional soft illumination of the distant lightning. Suddenly, he heard the drumbeat of rain increase and there was a sharp crack of sound nearer than the others. A sleepy smile drifted onto his face as he let his eyes close. Even when he thought a storm was moving away, it could still surprise him – wild and unexpected.

Like Rose Weasley showing up at the manor.

He groaned at the unbidden thought, no matter how accurate it was. An unexpected visit. Wild...well...there were things better forgotten. He rolled away from the window now and sighed. Wild like red curls as they dried. Like a surprising softness where there had only been edges before. The flash of something awful in her eyes.

With a sigh, he pulled his covers over his shoulder and wondered at what could have put that look on her face. He had a possible idea of where he could check in case it was really something bad. It'd have to wait till the morning, though. With his mind settled on a tentative course of action, he drifted off into soft dreams of red curls and storms.

The next morning, he was up early for a run. The air was crisp and the sky was clear. Everything smelled alive after the storm. He took a deep breath of the refreshed world and pushed his speed. The isolation of the manor had at times seemed both a positive and a negative. It was mornings like these that he relished the idea that there was no one within miles of his route.

He reached the turning point and headed back, slowing to a walk as he reached the drive. The gates were open and the lawn and landscaped shrubbery seemed to glow a brighter green, as if the air had the same effect on them as it had on him. Pushing open the door, he stripped off his shirt and launched himself up the stairs toward a much-needed shower.

After showering and dressing himself in some good lounging clothes, he made his way to the kitchen. There was a small breakfast waiting for him and a rolled up Daily Prophet . He would be eternally grateful for Skilt. First order of business was to eat. He was always starved after a run and – if he was honest – breakfast was his favorite meal of the day. Biting into a bagel, Scorpius finally directed his attention to the Prophet , unrolling it and scanning the headlines. Nothing jumped out at him, so he began methodically skimming the paper for any signs of something that would have upset Rose so much. He didn't know what he was looking for, but if it was in the paper, he knew he'd recognize it if he saw it. There was an article on giggle water coming back to popularity in certain circles, a larger column detailing the unfortunate demise of a Ministry official from the Magical Creatures division after a mix-up with some dragons in Hungary, as well as a step-by-step tutorial on how to spell your hair to glitter at any high class event one might be attending.

He found the article at the bottom of the fourth page with a small picture of a smiling man, looking proud as he brandished a feather duster that sparked occasionally. Scorpius read the article three times over, each time the dark look on Rose's face last night becoming more and more clear.