I do not own Harry Potter.
This is not Cursed Child Compliant.
Just a little plot bunny that would not leave me alone.
Platform 9 ¾ - King's Cross, September 1, 2017
Scorpius Malfoy was nervously, no, confidently awaiting the Hogwarts Express with his mother and father. This was the day he had been anticipating since he was old enough to know what Hogwarts was, and why it was so important. As Scoprius stood waiting for the train to arrive, his mind began to wander.
Scorpius remembered his mother and father sitting him and his younger sister, Cassie, down one day to explain to them their family's history. Scorpius got the spiel about how every Malfoy, Black, and Greengrass had been a Slytherin, but that if he was in a different house it wouldn't matter to his parents… Scorpius had tuned out at that point. If every Malfoy, Black, and Greengrass had been in Slytherin, then he would be in Slytherin too!
Scorpius' daydreams about walking down the halls of Hogwarts in black robes and a signature green and silver tie were interrupted by his father, calling his name sharply.
"Scorpius, pay attention," Draco Malfoy reprimanded. "It's important that you pay attention to this last part regarding our family's history. As you know, our family was involved in both the First and Second Wizarding Wars."
Scorpius sat up in his chair, all thoughts of not paying attention flying out the window. His father was finally going to tell him about the war! Scorpius had always known that the Malfoys had been involved in the war, but his father, mother, and grandmother had made it a point to gloss over the finer details, until now. Apparently, he and his younger sister were finally old enough to hear the entire story.
"You see, Scorpius, there was this man called Voldemort, who believed in something called 'Pureblood Supremacy,'" Draco began.
Scorpius was nodding his head. He knew about Voldemort and how he was a bad man from his best friends Damien, Felix, Vincent, and Emory.
"Well, there was more to Voldemort than his outdated ideas regarding blood status, and more to the story of how the Malfoy family became entangled with this evil man. It's a shameful part of our family's history, but I would be remiss if I did not tell both of you our involvement," Draco said.
Scorpius did his best to sit up straight, like how grandmother was always telling him to sit. Scorpius wanted to show his father that he was mature enough to understand. Cassie, being two years younger than him, was squirming all over her seat. Maybe she was still too young to understand.
"Our family, up until your mother and I married and became head of the Malfoy household, had been believers in Pure Blood Supremacy," Draco said gravely. Scorpius couldn't hold in his gasp of horror.
"I know son," Draco said, holding up his palm to stop the barrage of questions that his statement was sure to have inspired in his inquisitive and ambitious son. "However, our family's involvement with Voldemort did not start until your great grandfather, Abraxus Malfoy-"
"You mean the one who died a horrible death from Dragon Pox?" Scorpius asked.
Draco gave his son a look that clearly said, "stop interrupting," before continuing.
Scorpius gripped the edge of his chair, doing his best to withhold all the questions he had until the end, when he knew his father would give him time to ask. Scorpius remembered feeling…
Scorpius was drawn out of his memories by a loud commotion on the platform. Glancing over he saw a large gaggle of black and redheads converging a bit away through the steam of the approaching train.
Upon noticing Scorpius' stare, Draco Malfoy put a hand on his shoulder and said, "They son, are the Potter and Weasley families, the ones I told you and your sister about a few years ago. We are indebted to them, far more than you can imagine. You will treat them with respect and kindness, which is more than what I can ever say I did as a child."
Scorpius glanced up at his father, before nodding. His father however, was nodding in the direction he had previously been looking. Scorpius turned towards that direction again, noticing that the man his father was nodding to had bright green eyes and a scar on his forehead.
"Dad! Isn't that -" Scorpius began, excitedly, before being shushed by his mother.
"Yes dear, it is, but let's not talk about it here. We'll probably be written up in the press for leaving your sister at home as it is. We don't want to cause a scene," Astoria said, pulling Scorpius in for a hug.
His younger sister Cassie had been left at home with his grandmother for exhibiting conduct unbefitting for a Malfoy. That translated to "throwing a tantrum because she wasn't old enough to go to Hogwarts yet." His mother and father decided to leave her home because they didn't want Cassie's crying, pleading, and screaming to distract from Scorpius' first time on the platform. As much as he loved his little sister, she could be overdramatic. It would most likely have embarrassed him if she were here.
Scorpius nodded as his father then gave him a quick squeeze of encouragement. Over his father's shoulder, he locked eyes with one of the children from the Potter and Weasley families.
Scorpius noticed two things about this girl: the first was that she had a startling shade of dark, sapphire blue eyes, and the second was that he didn't like the way she was staring at him.
Scorpius felt a flash of irritation go through his system as the girl continued to hold eye contact with him. From their distance, and due to her eyes being a darker blue instead of a lighter color, Scorpius couldn't tell what she was thinking. He could tell however, that he was being appraised. It was some of the same looks his family still received whenever they ventured into the wizarding public.
Sure his father told him to be nice to those kids, but if she was going to judge him or his family before getting to know him, then surely his father wouldn't mind if she wasn't nice to her.
"Scorpius, let's get your things on the train," Draco said, picking up the handle of Scorpius' trunk. His mother already had his owl cage in her hand. That left Scorpius to pick up his broomstick, which first years were now allowed to bring to Hogwarts.
Scorpius broke eye contact with the girl as he bent to pick up his broomstick. As Scorpius entered the train with his parents, he couldn't shake the intense feeling of a pair of eyes following him until he was out of sight on the train.
Hogwarts Express, Cabin C, 2:47 p.m.
Scorpius was sitting in a cabin with his best friends that he had known since he was in nappies: Damien and Felix Nott-Zabini, the twin sons of Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott via surrogacy, two of his father's closest friends, Emory Pucey, the daughter of Adrian Pucey and Pansy Parkinson, and Vincent Goyle, the only son to his single father, Greg.
The five of them were laughing together and enjoying a game of exploding snap when their compartment door opened with a bang. Their game was destroyed when a boy with messy dark hair and green eyes fell on the board. Scorpius hissed as he got blasted.
"James, James!" the boy called, as he tried to get up.
"Have fun with your future housemates, Al! Love you!" the boy, apparently named James sang, as he sauntered down the hall of the train.
Scorpius wiped his now sooty eyebrows as he appraised the scene in front of him. His friends all had expressions varying from shock to annoyance. The boy, realizing he had an audience, suddenly blushed a vibrant red.
"Erm, right, sorry," the boy said awkwardly, running his hands through his unruly hair.
"You alright, mate?" Felix eventually asked, his shock dissipating.
"Yeah, James is just being a jerk. He keeps telling me I'll be in Slytherin, even though all of my family have been Gryffindors," he muttered. Upon seeing the expressions of the people in his compartment, he immediately began to backtrack. "Not that being in Slytherin is a bad thing! My dad said he almost got put in Slytherin, and I'm named after one of the bravest Slytherins to exist!"
Scorpius heard Emory shuffle to her feet before going to stand in front of the boy. She got right up in his face, causing him to blush red again. "Wait… Are you Albus Potter?" Emory finally asked, her close inspection of his face over.
"Erm, yes?" Albus asked.
Damien and Felix glanced at each other, before gesturing to space beside them. "Well if you're named after a Slytherin, you must be alright," Damien joked. "Your brother sounds like a jerk. Maybe you should be in Slytherin just to spite him," Felix added, with a sly grin.
Scorpius watched Albus' eyes light up, as he considered that possibility. "You know what! You're right! Screw James, even if he is my brother," Albus said, in a much better mood.
As Albus sat down next to the twins he said, "Did you know you might be able to pick your house? My dad told me that before I got on the train. If the hat tries to put me in Gryffindor, I'll just ask to be in Slytherin! The look on James' face will be hilarious," Albus chuckled as he accepted a chocolate frog from Vincent.
Scorpius watched as his friends got on with Albus Potter. Although his friends seemed to be accepting him easily, especially the twins, Scorpius was a bit more reserved in his judgement. Perhaps a small test would be in order.
"Hi, I'm Scorpius, Scorpius Malfoy," Scopius said confidently, holding Albus' gaze and sticking his hand out in challenge.
Albus, for his part, did not seem to realize it was a challenge, for he took Scorpius' hand readily and without hesitation. "Nice to meet you, mate. You have some pretty cool friends."
Scorpius retracted his hand after shaking Albus'. The boy evidently had no issue with his name or his family, which made him a pretty good person in Scorpius' mind.
His mind made up on befriending and accepting the boy, Scorpius asked, "Albus, do you happen to like Quidditch?"
Scorpius smirked at Emory's groan. Albus' eyes lit up, and soon the compartment was filled with talk of teams and strategies.
Hogwarts Express, Cabin C, 3:59 p.m.
Scorpius had been having a pleasant time with his friends, including his new friend, Albus Potter. After talking about Quidditch, the six friends had begun to branch out into new topics. Favorite muggle sports, being one of them.
"I'm telling you, Manchester United has the best chance-" Scorpius was cut off with the door to the compartment opening with a bang.
"Albus! Oh, there you are! I've been looking all over for you," a girl said.
With a start, Scorpius realized it was that girl from the platform. The one who had been watching him. Now that she was closer, Scorpius could confirm that she did indeed have sapphire blue eyes, and that it wasn't the lighting on the platform. Scorpius could also confirm that she had been judging him because despite her dark eyes, Scorpius could tell that she was now concerned for Albus. That soft look had been missing from her eyes when she had been looking at him. Scorpius felt a twinge of annoyance again.
"Oh hi, Rose!" Albus said, waving cheerfully at her. "I'm with my friends!"
It seemed that Rose had been so focused on her cousin, that she had neglected to notice the other occupants of the compartment. Rose, like Albus when embarrassed, flushed red.
"Oh, I'm sorry to interrupt! My name is Rose Weasley. How do you do?" Rose asked.
Scorpius almost snorted out loud. Rose's introduction had sounded so formal, Scorpius wouldn't have been surprised if she had curtsied.
Scorpius listened as his friends introduced themselves, and watched as Rose nodded with a small smile on her face. Although Scorpius already had his mind mostly made up regarding Rose, he decided to give her the same test he gave Albus.
Sticking out his hand Scorpius said, "Hi. I'm Scorpius, Scorpius Malfoy." Scorpius could see in the quick flash of her eyes that Rose was much more naturally intuitive than Albus. It annoyed Scorpius to know that she knew what he was doing.
Scorpius figured her handshake would be dainty based on her introduction earlier, but he was annoyed to know that she could give a proper handshake - not too firm, but not weak willed either, just as his father had taught him.
"It's nice to meet you, Scorpius," Rose said seriously. Then, she did something Scorpius would never forgive. Still holding his hand, Rose threw back her head, let out a quick laugh, and then looked him in the eye, smirking. "I plan to beat you on every test," she said with a cheeky wink.
Scorpius pointedly ignored the twins' antics as they giggled and poked fun at him, and he especially ignored that the tips of his ears were flushed pink. It was through ignoring this predicament that Scorpius missed how he was still holding Rose's hand in his, even as she turned her attention to her cousin.
"Really, Al, are you alright? When James came into the cabin a bit ago laughing about what he did to you, we all got really angry. I'm sure Victoire and Dom are still giving him an earful," Rose said, staring at her cousin empathetically.
"Rose, I'm fine, really. But are you fine? Why are you talking about tests when we haven't even left the train!" Albus exclaimed.
Scorpius started as Rose attempted to yank her hand from his, only to pause. She glanced at him inquisitively, evidently having not realized they had effectively been holding hands.
Upon noticing this, Scorpius dropped her hand as though it burned, his ears burning a brighter shade of pink. He huffily turned to stare out the window, annoyance at the girl and himself coursing through his veins.
"It's never too early to be talking about school and tests, Albus," Rose said. Scorpius could see her hands were now on her hips in the reflection in the window.
"Rose, please, you're embarrassing me in front of my friends," Albus teased. "Besides, I'll be in Slytherin, so I don't need to be smart."
Scorpius turned back towards the conversation. He was about to interject about how Slytherins were indeed smart, but Rose beat him to it.
"Albus Severus Potter, it doesn't matter what house you're in! You can be smart in any house," Rose chided, her finger wagging in front of Albus' nose.
"Yes gran," Albus said, although Scorpius could tell he was smiling through his eyes.
Rose huffed and began swatting her cousin. "Alright, alright! I'll study even when I get sorted into Slytherin," Albus conceded, hands over his face protectively. That comment got Rose to stop, Scorpius noticed.
"Slytherin? I thought you didn't want to be in Slytherin?" Rose questioned, her brows furrowed.
"I changed my mind," Albus said with a shrug.
Scorpius watched as Rose appraised her cousin. She was looking at Albus the way she had looked at him at the station. After a few seconds, Rose seemed to reach a conclusion.
"Good for you!" she said, with a bright smile.
Scorpius looked away again, annoyed.
"Sorry I wouldn't be in Gryffindor with you," Albus said, suddenly serious.
Rose only grinned at Albus. "Who says I'll be in Gryffindor?" Rose asked, before stepping into the hall.
Scorpius watched Albus' processing speed in real time. By the time it caught up with him, Rose was probably far down the hall. That didn't stop Albus from opening the door and shouting after her, "What does that mean?"
Scorpius was not at all surprised that Albus never got an answer.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - The Great Hall - 6:56 p.m.
The next time Scorpius saw Rose Weasley was when she walked up to the stool to get sorted. Scorpius and all of his friends were already sorted, predictably in Slytherin, even Albus who had run over to the Slytherin table ecstatic that he'd gotten his wish. After watching Albus take his seat, Scorpius had immediately gone to look at the boy called James. Albus had been right, his face was hilarious. It looked as if he were constipated.
Rose Weasley was one of the last to be sorted, and Scorpius was annoyed to find that her sorting was taking an obnoxiously long time. Sure Scorpius had been a bit put out to know that the hat didn't immediately sort him into Slytherin, but Rose's sorting was making his sorting seem like it had taken seconds.
Scorpius glanced at the watch his father had bought him for starting Hogwarts. His watch read 6:56 p.m. As if confirming the time, his stomach gave a mighty grumble.
Couldn't Rose be sorted faster? What was so special about her that it was taking over five minutes for the hat to make a decision?
After another full minute of waiting, the hat finally made its decision. "RAVENCLAW!"
Scorpius was pleased to notice that the applause this time was rather subdued, most likely due to the fact that everyone was hungry and getting cranky like he was.
Scorpius was distracted by Albus' sigh from next to him. "When she said she wasn't planning on being in Gryffindor, I had sort of hope she'd be here with us. We're best friends as well as cousins, you know?" Scorpius nodded as if he did know, when in reality he didn't. He was secretly happy to not be around Rose Weasley. For some reason, that girl got under his skin and annoyed the crap out of him.
Scorpius glanced over to the Ravenclaw table where Rose seemed to be holding court. She was talking animatedly to an Asian girl with pretty black, straight hair, a brunette with shoulder length hair, and a blonde boy with curly hair that Scorpius was pretty sure was a Scamander. He didn't know enough about them to be able to tell which Scamander it was though.
Scorpius tensed as Rose's eyes flicked towards his. Her eyes held the same humor as they did when she had shaken his hand on the train. Knowing that he was watching her, Rose sent an exaggerated wink his way. Scorpius blushed and whipped back around to converse with his friends. He could just hear her laugh from across the hall.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - Transfiguration Classroom - 8:00 a.m.
Scorpius and Albus were panting as they finally made their way to Transfiguration. They had been up late talking and had missed the alarm as a result. Their prat of friends had thought it hilarious to watch them scramble instead of waking them up for breakfast.
Scorpius let out an internal groan as he realized that, not only was he in class with Rose Weasley, but that the only seats available to them were on either side of her. Albus had moved to sit next to Rose, who was berating him for nearly being late. With a long suffering sigh, Scorpius plopped into the seat on her left.
Rose looked at Scorpius and gave him a bright smile. "Good morning, Scorpius! I'm happy you made it to class."
Scorpius gave a non-commital grunt. Albus was pouting because Rose hadn't berated him.
"Mr. Potter, and Mr. Malfoy, do try to not wait until the bell rings to take your seats," Mrs. Morando, the Transfiguration Professor said.
After giving them a pointed stare, the Transfiguration Professor continued, "You might notice that your year is being run slightly differently from other years. Due to the smaller number of students in your year, we have decided to mix all four houses for lessons. We also want to introduce you to inter-house cooperation, and your professors all feel this is the class to start this initiative with."
Scorpius looked at Rose, who was nodding along like she knew exactly what the professor was talking about. Scorpius thought she looked a bit like a swot.
"Today we will be starting with a simple transfiguration spell. Can you transfigure your needle into a feather? My goal by the end of the lesson is for you all to have feathers. You will be needing them later in the week for Charms. Now, let us begin," Professor Morando said.
Scorpius realized with a start that Professor Morando had begun her lecture, and that he really should be taking notes. Rose, of course, was already half a page down in her notes, and Scorpius was annoyed to find that she had perfect penmanship.
"Psst, Rose! Can I borrow a quill and parchment? I forgot mine in the dorm," Albus pleaded.
"In the bag," Rose replied, wholly focused on the lesson.
As Albus dug around in Rose's bag, Scorpius got to work writing his notes. Sure he may already be behind Rose, who had challenged him on the train, but he could still catch up. Sure Scorpius' penmanship might not be as neat as Rose's, but at least his was legible. Albus' looked like mere chicken scratch.
Scorpius was relieved when the lesson was over. Apparently the lesson was to last three full days, and they would have three days to produce a feather. Rose had produced a perfect feather by the end of the first class, to the delight of the professor. Scorpius glared at his needle which had small feathers sprouting out of it. Albus' was still as straight and shiny as it had been to begin with. A flash of annoyance, anger, and shame wafted through Scorpius as he realized Rose was asking the professor for extra work, and if she could try to produce different types of feathers for the other two classes.
Scorpius began to shove his books and supplies back into his bag. He was determined to get to the next class before Rose so he wouldn't need to sit with her.
"You alright, mate?" Albus asked, quizzically.
"I just don't want to be nearly late again," Scorpius replied. It was partially the truth.
"Hey, maybe we can ask Rose if she'd be willing to practice with us in the library later?" Albus asked, looking towards Scorpius, hopefully.
"I don't know. I was planning on writing to my parents during the break," Scorpius said.
Albus nodded disappointedly, but didn't press the issue. Scorpius was glad for it.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - Charms Classroom - 2:00 p.m.
It turned out that Scorpius' next class wasn't until 2:00 p.m. After the two hour Transfiguration lesson, they had an hour break. Lunch ran between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Scorpius used that time to practice his transfiguration in an empty classroom, not writing to his parents. He was proud to say that by lunchtime, he was able to produce a standard feather. Being smart as he was, Scorpius practiced to make sure he could reproduce the same results multiple times.
Scorpius made sure to drag Albus from lunch on time to get to the charms classroom early. This time Scorpius was sure he wouldn't sit next to Rose Weasley. Damien, Felix, Vincent, and Emory happened to be in this class with them as well.
By the time they got there, a good five minutes early, Scorpius was annoyed to see Rose already sitting there with two Ravenclaw girls. It was the Asian and brunette from the Welcome Feast. Rose was talking animatedly with them, waiting for class to begin.
Scorpius sat down with Albus and Emory as Vincent, Felix, and Damien sat at a table a bit to their right. The table Scorpius sat at put him directly across from Rose. Just his luck.
Upon seeing him, Rose gave a friendly wave. Scorpius immediately turned his attention to his bag, missing the slight look of hurt she sent his way before she went back to talking to her friends.
"Ahh, good afternoon class!" the voice of Professor Flitwick said.
Scorpius could hear him, but could not yet see him. A few seconds later, a small man appeared on a stack of large tomes at the front of the class.
Scorpius and the rest of the class let out a few choruses of "hi" that sounded pathetic.
"Now class, that was just sad. Let's try again!" with a flick of his wand and a nonverbal charm, Professor Flitwick's voice was suddenly very loud. "Good afternoon class!"
"Good afternoon!" Rose bellowed back louder, startling everyone, including Professor Flitwick.
"Ah, Rose! Hermione and Ron's daughter! I'm surprised you know the Sonorus Charm!" Flitwick said, impressed.
Scorpius watched as Rose blushed. "I knew the theory behind it. My family always uses it for family Quidditch matches. I've had it done to me, but I've never actually performed it before. I'm sorry for making it too loud," she finished sheepishly.
"Nonsense my dear! I always encourage learning and practice. I'm impressed you were able to put theory to practice so effectively on your first go! Truly impressive," Professor Flitwick said with a smile. "Now, the Sonorus Charm is way above grade level. I want to begin the year by going over the standard charms we will be learning in Year 1. Please open your books to page 15."
Scorpius scowled. How was it that Rose was already beating him before the class started?
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - Owlery - 8:17 p.m.
Scorpius was up in the Owlery, writing a letter to his parents and Cassie. His first day of lessons had not gone as planned. He was already behind Rose Weasley! If he wanted to be first in the year, he would need to make up a lot of ground.
Scorpius crumpled up his first letter attempt. In his annoyance over Rose, he had accidentally pressed too hard with his quill, poking a hole through the center of the letter.
Scorpius paused.
Dear Father, Mother, and Cassie,
What should he say? His first letter was 90% about Rose Weasley, which wouldn't do at all.
Dear Father, Mother, and Cassie,
I am pleased to inform you that I am continuing the Malfoy family tradition. I have been sorted into Slytherin with Damien, Felix, Vincent, and Emory. Incidentally, I made a new friend on the train. His name is Albus (Al) Severus Potter, and he is also in Slytherin with us.
My first day of classes went fine. I wasn't able to transfigure my needle to a feather by the end of the first class, but I practiced on my own today and was able to do it before lunch. I will try to transfigure my needle into different types of feathers in the next couple of classes.
Professor Slughorn is still the head of Slytherin House and the Potions Professor. I am a bit worried that he will die on us one day. When he introduced himself last night he seemed very old and tired. Maybe he will join the teaching staff as a ghost like Professor Binn soon.
Cassie - The castle is as wonderful as Father and Mother have told us!
All my love,
Scorpius
Scorpius was proof-reading his letter when he was tapped on the back. He let out a yelp of shock. A familiar giggle had his spine begin to stiffen. Rose, freaking Weasley. Of all people.
Scorpius turned around slowly, a frown on his face. "What?" he snapped.
Rose blinked at him, surprised by the venom in his voice. "I need to get to my owl?" she asked, cautiously. Scorpius blushed, as he realized her owl was next to his. He hurried to move out of the way to give her space.
"Are you writing to your parents too?" Rose asked conversationally. She was stroking her beautiful white owl.
"Yes," Scorpius said, his tone still clipped.
Rose turned to him slowly, a puzzled frown on her features.
"Have I done anything to offend you?" Rose asked.
Scorpius blinked owlishly at her. Rose continued, "It's just that there are times where I think you don't like me," Rose said. "It's the way you look at me and speak to me…"
Scorpius scowled. "Not everyone needs to like you, Weasley. Not everyone believes your, 'I'm perfect!,' act," Scorpius sneered.
Scorpius watched as Rose tensed, and as her eyes became sad. "I'm not acting," she said quietly. Maybe he felt a bit bad, but only a bit.
"You don't have to like me, but can't you be civil? I know you're already an important friend to Al," Rose said.
Scorpius' guilt vanished, and he was once again angry. Who was she to presume he didn't care about his friends, or that she had any right to comment on his friendships?
Scorpius hated that Rose seemed to be able to sense what he was thinking and feeling before he did. "Well, I'll leave you to it," Rose said quietly, as she tied her letter to her owl's leg. Rose sent her owl off into the night, before moving to descend the staircase.
Scorpius waited until she had descended the stairs before he let out a deep breath he had apparently been holding. Scorpius looked to attach his letter, only to realize that he had crumpled it up. Scorpius groaned, as he got out another sheet to write on, again.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - The Library - 7:23 p.m.
Scorpius was frustrated. Rose had been back to being her nice and friendly self with him as if he hadn't explicitly told her he didn't like her that night in the Owlery. It was now the end of October, Halloween to be exact. Scorpius was sitting with Vincent and Emory working on his homework before they were all going to go back to the Slytherin Common Room to celebrate.
"I just can't stand that swot. I know she and Albus are 'best friends,' but she thinks she's perfect and the best at everything!" Scorpius vented at Vincent. "Not to mention I can't stand looking at her. Her hair isn't even the Weasley red. It's like this weird reddish brown color. Her hair is a mess. It's so poofy that I can't see when I sit behind her. Her freckles are all over. Her skin is already caramel-colored, so the dark freckles aren't helping her looks. Oh, and her nose is too small for her face while her ears make you think she could fly away they're so big! The only thing I can say that's good about her is her eyes. Otherwise she's a nightmare to look at," Scorpius mocked, his pent up feelings towards Rose that he most certainly could not say in front of Albus suddenly spilling out.
"Mate, I get you don't like her, but you don't have to comment on her looks," Vincent said.
"Why are you even spending so much time looking at her if you hate her? And I agree with Vince, talking about her looks is mean. Plus, she's actually pretty nice," Emory said.
"I'm not looking at her! I just can't get over how much of an ugly harpy she is. It's like her ugliness has a mind of its own," Scorpius said.
"Rose, what's taking so long?" Albus said, as he walked around a bend in the stacks.
Scorpius and the other three whipped around. Rose was there, looking like she was going to cry. Scorpius' already pale face paled even further. He had no idea how long Rose had been standing there listening to him vent, but evidently she had heard at least some of the mean things he had said about her.
"Oi! Are you crying?" Albus suddenly asked, blocking Rose from his view.
Scorpius couldn't hear what she told Albus, but suddenly she was racing past their table and out of the doors of the library, with Albus calling after her.
"Mr. Potter! This is a library! Why are you yelling?" Madam Pince screeched.
"I'm sorry Madam Pince, but I have to go!" Albus said, rushing towards the back of the library.
"Mr. Potter!" Madam Pince exclaimed, scandalized.
"Sorry, I'm leaving now!" Albus said, both his and Rose's overflowing bags in his arms.
"Well I never…" Madam Pince murmured, as she went to yell at more unsuspecting children.
Scorpius turned back around slowly to find Emory glaring at him, and Vincent looking both uncomfortable and disappointed.
"Really, Scorpius?" Emory asked, before getting up and leaving.
"Mate, that really wasn't cool," Vince said, before he got up to follow Emory.
Scorpius slammed his head on the library table. Nothing ever went his way.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - Potions Classroom - 10:00 a.m.
It had been a month and a half since Albus and Emory had talked to him. Scorpius sighed from where he sat. Albus was sitting with Rose and Emory in Potions, the two of them coming together in solidarity to support Rose against the mean Scorpius, much to Rose's embarrassment. Damien, Felix, and Vince still talked to him, but they split their time between him and Albus and Emory.
Scorpius' ears perked up at Rose berating Albus for something. "Albus, I am fine. Yes I was hurt by what Scorpius said, but he is your friend. This is getting ridiculous. Go sit with him and make up already! You too, Emory," Rose said, all but pushing the two Slytherins towards him.
Albus and Emory plopped down awkwardly next to him. When Damien and Felix entered, they stared confused at him before going to sit in the two seats next to Rose, who greeted them warmly, and as if she hadn't just disrupted everyone's normal seating habits.
Scorpius waited with bated breath for Albus to speak. Scorpius knew that if he wanted Albus back as a friend, he would need to listen to what he had to say.
"You hurt Rose."
It was said as a fact, with no room to negotiate.
"Rose told me what you said to her, and Emory confirmed. Why do you hate my cousin, Scorpius?" Albus asked seriously.
Scorpius grimaced. Why did he hate Rose? "She just… She annoys me and gets under my skin," Scorpius finished, lamely. Now that he verbalized it, his reasoning was lame.
"She annoys me too sometimes, but I'm never mean to her," Albus pointed out.
"It's different from what you have. She introduced herself with how she's going to beat me, and she has been beating me, in everything but potions!" Scorpius said.
"So? Rose was teasing you, Scorpius. If she didn't like you she wouldn't feel comfortable joking with you. As for her beating you in every subject? She has an eidetic memory, Scorpius. Her mind is a walking library. She was born that way. The reason she probably isn't as good at potions is because while she can recall the steps from memory, her application of the steps might be weaker since she never practiced potions growing up," Albus explained.
An eidetic memory? Rose only had to see something once, and she just remembered it? A conversation with Rose came to the front of his mind, along with the words, "I'm not acting." He hadn't even asked her what she had meant. He was too caught up in a self-imposed rivalry to care. He had judged Rose before meeting her, which is something that had happened to him countless times before. He was a hypocrite. Scorpius felt like shit.
"I can see on your face that you get it now and that you know how much of a jerk you were. I guess I can forgive you," Albus said with a small smile. Scorpius smiled back.
"Potter, where is the Slytherin in you? You forgive too easily," Emory snorted.
Scorpius turned to Emory. "You don't forgive me, Em?" he asked.
Emory turned to him. "It's not my place to forgive you. Rose already did because apparently she has traits of both Hufflepuff and Gryffindor in her, but you don't get to go around being mean to people, Scorpius. If you hurt my friend again, I'll tell your father," Emory threatened.
Scorpius paled. He wasn't afraid of his father, but Scorpius knew his father would be very disappointed in him if he were to find out he had been mean to a Potter or a Weasley.
"Don't worry, I won't be mean again. I think I understand a bit better now," Scorpius said.
Scorpius started to take notes, trying to see the board around Rose's poofy mane.
Hogwarts Express, 2:00 p.m., December 20, 2017
Scorpius had been trying to apologize to Rose before the Christmas Holidays, but he hadn't managed to pluck up the courage, no, get her alone where he could properly apologize. The Hogwarts Express was now approaching King's Cross Station, and soon Rose would be back with her family, meaning Scorpius' window of opportunity was extremely narrow.
Scorpius had been sitting with his friends, and Rose with hers as the train ambled across the English countryside. Scorpius had thought about going to find her during the trip home, but the thought of finding her with her friends was rather daunting. As a Slytherin, he shouldn't care about a group of Ravenclaws, but as a 12 year old boy, going into a compartment of girls alone to talk to a girl was a bit scary. For that reason, Scorpius had stayed put.
Scorpius already had all of his stuff packed. His plan was to grab Rose before she departed the train. After saying goodbye to his friends and making tentative plans to hang out over the holidays, Scorpius quickly made his way down the hall to where he knew Rose had sat.
By the time Scorpius got to the compartment, Rose was gone. Her Asian friend was still there getting the last of her stuff, so Scorpius gave her an awkward head nod that he saw his father give to people he didn't know very well all the time. Scorpius was loath to admit that he had begun to panic a bit, when he saw a flash of poofy red-brown hair outside the window.
Scorpius grabbed his stuff, which he had left on the cart outside the compartment, and raced down the nearly empty train hallway. Scorpius was so focused on his single-minded mission of apologizing to Rose, that he forgot the tenets of basic physics.
As Scorpius raced to catch up with Rose, he forgot that his momentum and the weight of his cart would continue to propel him forward, even as he tried to slow down. Scorpius realized with a horrible hiss, that if he kept going at the speed and in the direction he was currently, that he wouldn't be able to apologize to Rose because she'd be run over by his cart.
Scorpius, using his super smooth and nimble Quidditch reflexes, took his hands off his cart, and proceeded to tackle Rose, who was pushing her own cart, out of the way. A loud CRASH filled the platform as their carts collided with each other, spilling the contents all over the floor, and causing both of their owls to flap and hoot in their cages in alarm.
Scorpius however, was more concerned with the crack he heard when Rose's head hit the pavement. Scorpius sat up slowly, pulling the smaller witch carefully to a sitting position. Rose seemed lucid, but with a head injury, one couldn't be too careful.
"I'm sorry! Are you alright?" Scorpius asked.
Rose looked at him confused, before she slumped forward into his arms. "Nrrgh."
Scorpius began to panic. He had a nearly unconscious witch in his arms, odd bits of feathers and paper were floating everywhere, and everyone on the platform seemed to be watching him. Oh, and was that blood? On the back of Rose's head? Scorpius felt like vomiting.
"Excuse me, coming through," a voice said.
"Alright, keep it moving," another said.
All too soon, Scorpius was face-to-face with Aurors Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, who had come to the front of the queue. Scorpius watched as confusion morphed into anger and concern.
"Rose!" Ron bellowed upon seeing his bleeding daughter.
Ron physically yanked Rose out of Scorpius' arms. "What the bloody hell happened? Why is she bleeding? Who are you?" The questions from the furious red-headed Auror made Scorpius shrink back in fear.
"Scorpius? Are you alright?" Draco Malfoy asked. He and Astoria had just arrived, his little sister Cassie in tow.
"You- you!" Ron managed, looking between Draco and Scorpius.
"Ron, you should take her to Mungo's, and let Hermione know. She'll have to reschedule baking cookies for some other time," Harry said, looking at his niece's bleeding skull.
Ron sobered up immediately. "Right," he said, before disappearing with a pop.
"Scorpius," Draco said slowly. It was both a question and a warning.
"Draco, Astoria," Harry said, nodding towards Scorpius' parents. Then, his emerald green eyes were boring into Scorpius'. "You must be Scorpius. Albus has told me all about you."
Although Harry Potter had an amused glint in his eyes, as if he knew more than he was letting on, Scorpius could still feel his face flush with embarrassment. What Scorpiius had meant to do was shake the man's hand, but instead he leaned over and vomited on his shoes.
Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire, 6:35 pm.
After a few quick words with Mr. Potter, Scorpius' parents had been allowed to take him home. His father had been wearing a pinched and pained expression on his face, as if he had swallowed a poo flavored Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean, and his mother's had been alternating between concern for his welfare and extreme embarrassment.
Cassie hadn't even been pretending to feel bad for him. Ever since they had gotten back to the Manor, she had been busy telling every House Elf and portrait that would listen about how he had embarrassed the Malfoy family name by hurling on The Chosen One's shoes.
His mother had called him and his sister for dinner long ago, but Scorpius had been feeling too sick to eat. Shortly after returning to the Manor, his father had demanded an explanation from him as soon as it was determined he was fit to answer. Scorpius had dejectedly told him what he had been attempting to do before what Scorpius now liked to call, "The Incident" took place. His father had sighed at that point, shaking his head in disbelief at his son's antics.
His father had then left, letting them know he would need to explain what had happened to The Golden Trio, and to make sure that Rose wasn't too badly hurt. That had been hours ago.
With each tick of the clock, Scorpius could feel himself getting more anxious. No good news must be bad news in this case. His father wasn't back because he, Scorpius Malfoy, was going to be charged as the youngest murderer to grace the inside of Azkaban in, well ever.
Scorpius began to pace, as his thoughts began to run wild. I mean, what should he have expected? He had tackled Rose hard, and she hadn't been expecting to be tackled. Her head had hit the pavement, and she had been bleeding from her wound. Instead of apologizing to Rose, he had managed to kill her! He wasn't yet a teenager, but he was a murderer!
Scorpius whipped around quickly at the sound of the floo. His father stepped out, looking weary. "I don't want to go to Azkaban!" Scorpius yelled, as he flung himself into his father's arms.
Draco Malfoy buckled a bit under the weight of his son, having not expected the attack. "Merlin son, you need to stop throwing yourself at unsuspecting people!" Draco said, as he maneuvered both of them out of the fireplace. "Now what is this about Azkaban?"
"She's dead, isn't she? I killed her, and that's why you're so late," Scorpius all but whimpered.
"Merlin, Scorp! Ms. Weasley is fine. Concussed, but fine. You should maybe think about playing American Football, with how hard you tackled her," Draco chuckled.
"You mean… She's going to be alright?" Scorpius asked, relief, hope, and a bunch of other weird emotions he couldn't quite place suddenly singing through his veins.
"Yes, she'll need to take it carefully for the next month or so before being reevaluated, but it could have been a lot worse if she had been trampled by the cart," Draco explained.
Scorpius' next question was interrupted by his mother, her hands on her hips. "Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, I do believe you were called to dinner 20 minutes ago," Astoria said sternly. "Your sister, grandmother and I have been waiting, impatiently. Oh, hello dear," Astoria said, going on her tiptoes to give her husband a quick peck on the lips. Scorpius mimicked gagging.
"Let's go to dinner. I'll answer any more questions you have at the table," Draco suggested.
Scorpius dutifully followed his parents to the dining room, where his sister was sitting with her arms crossed. His grandmother looked as regal as ever, like a queen surveying her people.
"How nice of you to join us, Scorpius," Narcissa said, her eyes betraying her conflicted emotions. On one hand, she wanted to discipline her grandson for his lack of manners. On the other, her love for her only grandson was showing through, an emotion Scorpius had used for his own benefit in the past.
"Sorry I was later than expected. Potter caught me as I was leaving the hospital, and invited me for a drink. After the events of this afternoon, Merlin knows I need one," Draco said.
"Harry Potter?" Narcissa asked, her eyebrows practically disappearing into her hairline.
"Yes, mother," Draco said tiredly, as he cut into his meat.
"I didn't know you were so close to them," his mother prompted. She was digging.
"I haven't been close to them, any of them," Draco added. "However, given that our sons are friends and the incident with Ms. Weasley today, I can foresee that needing to change."
Draco then turned to Scorpius, who was listening to the conversation with rapt attention. "Son, Potter and I discussed what you did today. While you did prevent Ms. Weasley from coming to further harm by removing her from the path of the carts, your entire situation could have been avoided. I know that it can be intimidating talking to girls at your age, but really Scorpius, you don't need to be embarrassed over having a crush-" Draco rambled.
Scorpius cut him off with an indignant screech. "WHAT! I don't like Weasley!" he yelled, his face burning bright red, from anger, of course. "How could you- Liking Weasley…"
Scorpius flushed further upon realizing everyone at the table was staring at him. Cassie, the little brat, was giggling behind her hands, mirth in her eyes. His grandmother was staring at him with an intrigued expression, almost as if she were assessing him. His mother and father were giving him knowing looks, clearly indicating they thought he was lying to himself.
"I don't like Weasley," Scorpius said, as he pushed himself away from his plate. "And I think I will retire to my room now. I've found that I've rather quickly lost my appetite."
As Scorpius stomped, no, walked to his room, he replayed the events of the day over in his mind. He hadn't gone to see Rose in her train compartment because he had a crush on her. That was the most absurd conclusion he'd ever heard his father come to, and his father was a very smart man. How he could make that mistake was beyond Scorpius, who had actually neglected to go to the Ravenclaw girls' compartment on the train because girls were gross.
Sure some of them actually were pretty nice to look at (not poofy haired Weasley though), but mostly the girls in his year were just scary. Scorpius had heard from Albus who had heard from a third grade Gryffindor that most definitely was not James Sirius Potter, about how girls were actual birds that pooped out sparkly chicken nuggets. Forgive him for being skeptical about going alone to a compartment full of birds from Ravenclaw. Their house mascot was a bloody eagle for crying out loud! If anyone pooped sparkly chicken nuggets, it was them.
As soon as Scorpius got to his room, he flopped onto his bed in defeat. It wasn't even the first full day of his Christmas holidays, but Scorpius felt they had already been ruined by Rose bloody Weasley, even though it was her who was out of commission with a concussion.
Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire, Friday, December 24, 5:12 p.m.
Scorpius stared into his wardrobe with a frown on his face. He hadn't realized it until now, but most of his closet was black and green. Really, there was no variety.
Normally Scorpius could give a rat's ass about what he was wearing, although his mother did all his shopping and packed his trunk full of the nicest clothes, he cared today for he had been invited to spend Christmas Eve dinner party with the Potter-Weasley-Scamander-Longbottom families. Scorpius knew that most of them were Gryffindors, so surely red would be appropriate for this one occasion.
"Need help, son?" Draco asked, his head poking into his son's bedroom.
"All I have is green. And black," Scorpius added, still appraising his choices.
"Perfectly respectable colors for a Slytherin," Draco said coolly.
"Dad, I'm going over to Albus'. He said they all wear sweaters that are red. I don't have any red!" Scorpius whined.
"Just because Albus and his family wear red, doesn't mean you have to," Draco said.
"Yeah, but I want to fit in. I don't want to draw attention to myself," Scorpius said.
"Are you sure you're not fretting over what you're wearing because this will be the first time you'll be seeing Ms. Weasley since the incident?" Draco teased, a knowing smile on his face.
"No!" Scorpius answered, way too quickly.
"Really? Because was it not you, who just yesterday, told your mother you would not be caught dead wearing red because it reminded you of Ms. Weasley's hair?" Draco drawled.
"Dad, that was because of the mittens. They were a horrendous color unbefitting of a Malfoy. It's not because they reminded me of Rose," Scorpius said, attempting to sound aloof.
"Ah, so Ms. Weasley is Rose now? What happened to Weasley?" Draco asked.
"Dad!" Scorpius admonished. "Can you just leave if you aren't going to help?"
Scorpius glared at his father until he backed out of his room with his hands up in surrender. With a sigh, Scorpius turned back to his closet. That old geezer truly was no help.
The Scamander Residence, Leeds, Friday, December 24, 6:57 p.m.
By the time Scorpius had decided on nice black dress slacks with an emerald green button down, the Potter-Weasley-Scamander-Longbottom Christmas dinner party was in full swing.
When Scorpius stepped out of the floo, he was immediately assaulted by a variety of smells, loud music, talking, and laughter, and the physical feeling of being squeezed into a tight tube. Scorpius struggled through the crowd of people, trying to find a familiar face.
After winding in and out of many people, and stopping to briefly chat with some familiar faces from school, Scorpius found himself alone in the library with Rose Weasley, who was dressed in a comfy blue jumper and wrapped in a blanket like a burrito. She had a cup of hot tea beside her on an end table, and a book in her lap. Scorpius' heart was beating erratically, but he was sure it was from the exertion of pushing himself through a 10 ton crowd.
"Oh, hello," Rose said, looking up at him in surprise.
"Hi," Scorpius said, lamely.
"Would you like to sit down?" Rose asked, patting the space on the loveseat beside her.
"Um, sure," Scorpius said awkwardly. As he sat down, careful to make sure no parts of him were accidentally touching her, Scorpius wondered if it would be a good time to apologize.
"I wanted to apologize to you," Scorpius said, staring at the fire.
"My father begrudgingly told me what you did. If you hadn't knocked me out of the way of the cart, I could be sidelined with something much worse than a small concussion," Rose said.
Scorpius turned to glance at her, surprised to see her with an easy smile on her face. "Er, right. I am sorry about tackling you so hard and giving you a concussion, but that wasn't what I'm apologizing to you for now," Scorpius said, running his hand up through the hair on the back of his head like Albus did when he was nervous.
Rose tilted her head to the side, her eyes telling him to continue.
"It's about what I said about you, that one day, in the library," Scorpius said, his eyes searching Rose for any hidden feelings of anger, sadness, or hatred.
Upon seeing nothing in her eyes except silent appraisal, Scorpius took that as his cue to keep going. "I was a right prat saying those things about you. You see, I had somehow developed this image of you in my head that I didn't like before giving either of us a chance to get to know each other, and I judged you harshly against that image of you I created. I didn't realize you had an eidetic memory or anything until Albus told me," Scorpius said.
Rose blinked slowly before saying, "I thank you for your apology, but are you only apologizing to me because you were told about my eidetic memory? If you hadn't known about that, would you still believe me to be an ugly swot and harpy?" Rose asked casually.
Scorpius flushed guiltily. How was it that he was the one blushing while Rose looked as cool as a sea cucumber? "No, I mean yes? What I mean is that it was wrong of me to call you those mean things in the first place. I was being a prat, and I'm sorry," Scorpius said.
Rose stared at him for a few seconds, perhaps a bit longer than Scorpius found comfortable, before she surprised him by pulling him in for a quick and tight hug. Scorpius froze under the touch, but eventually relaxed and gave her a tentative hug back. I guess it meant Rose forgave him? Scorpius had heard from Emory that she had forgiven him, but Scorpius hadn't considered himself forgiven until he apologized, and until he heard it from Rose himself.
"Yes, I forgive you. I actually forgave you a long time ago, but it was lovely to hear your apology," Rose said. "Now, this doesn't mean we have to be friends if you don't want to be, but I would like us to be able to get along and be civil." Scorpius nodded into Rose's hair, more than aware that she had yet to pull away from him.
"Um," Scorpius said lamely, not used to being hugged for this long by anyone outside of his immediate family.
"I guess it's my turn to apologize," Rose said sheepishly.
"Why?" Scorpius asked, genuinely confused.
"Because I didn't realize there was magic mistletoe above our heads. We wouldn't be able to separate until we kiss," Rose said, her voice suddenly sounding a bit nervous.
Scorpius stiffened in Rose's arms, his arms slowly falling away. "What?" Scorpius asked again, panic now in his voice. Kiss? He'd never kiss anyone? Did his breath smell?
"I'm sure we could yell for help," Rose offered, inhaling to do just that.
"NO!" Scorpius yelled, pulling back slightly so he was looking at Rose's face. If Rose yelled for help, it would be his luck that someone like James Potter would find them, and he'd do something like take a picture he would then use to blackmail Scorpius for all eternity.
It was much better if they kissed. Really. That was the only reason Scorpius was even considering kissing Ro-, he meant Weasley. It's not like he actually wanted to kiss her.
Rose looked at him for a bit before closing her eyes and leaning towards him. With her face this close to him, Scorpius could see that the freckles on her face that he had made fun of were actually kind of pretty, and that she had nice full dusky reddish-pink lips.
Rose leaned in further, and Scorpius started to panic. His heart was beating too fast. Was he having a heart attack? Scorpius closed his eyes and leaned in, pleasantly surprised to find that Rose's lips were quite soft. They also tasted like hot chocolate, which is what Scorpius must have mistaken for tea earlier. All thoughts of Scorpius' were extinguished when Rose applied a bit more pressure to the kiss and tilted her head. Maybe he liked this kiss.
The sound of footsteps and the loud slamming of the library doors caused the two of them to jump apart, as they were no longer held together after the kiss. "Mate! Where have you been?" Albus Potter demanded, glaring at Scorpius as if he were purposely hiding from him.
Albus' eyes softened when he turned to Rose. "There you are, Rose! I was wondering where you got off to. Hey, are you ok? You look a bit flushed," Albus said, rushing over to place the back of his hand against his cousin's forehead. Scorpius noticed she did look a bit flushed, a lovely light rouge color decorating her cheekbones.
"I'm fine, Al," Rose said, swatting his hand away.
"You know the doctor said to take it easy," Albus said, worried.
"Yes, I know Al,'' Rose said, emphasizing the word ``know. "I'm reading in a silent library, for Merlin's sake! You know I'd rather be in here anyways then with all those people," Rose said.
"I know," Albus said, sending his cousin a grin.
Scorpius looked back and forth between the two of them, confused. He had thought Rose had taken refuge in the library because she had to, not because she wanted to. Wasn't Rose a social butterfly? At least that's what he had thought given her popularity.
"Anyways, dinner is ready. We're all supposed to go to the dining room," Albus said.
Rose nodded, untangled herself from her blanket burrito, and began to follow Albus. Scorpius fell in line behind Rose. As Scorpius made his way to the dining room, he couldn't help but marvel at the fact that his first kiss had been with Rose Weasley, who he didn't even like, or maybe even want to be friends with! The kiss on the other hand, Scorpius could admit, was rather nice. But that was all it was, a kiss.
Hogwarts Express, Cabin G, Last Friday of June, 2017
The rest of Scorpius' first year at Hogwarts was mercifully uneventful. Scorpius didn't think he or his family would be able to handle any embarrassment from him.
After the kiss with Rose, and after what Albus had mentioned about Rose in the Scamander library, Scorpius had begun to pay more attention to Rose and what she did in school.
It turns out that Rose Weasley was more nice than traditionally popular. Sure everyone enjoyed talking to her, but that was more because she was a pleasant person, and less because she was one of the "cool" kids in their year. To Scorpius' surprise, he and his friends had been given that label. It was both flattering and annoying how people seemed to want to be around him all the time when he just wanted to have a fun time with his friends.
Now that Scorpius was aware of Rose's eidetic memory, he could see now that it was the reason she sometimes seemed to know everything about anything randomly, and why she would sometimes pop up with random facts no one had been asking about. It was also why she would sometimes stare at something or someone for a bit longer than normal; Rose was using that time to commit the person or scene to memory to help her remember later.
Something else Scorpius noticed about Rose was that she seemed to have stopped growing taller by the end of the year, while most of the rest of their year slowly started to gain a couple of inches by the time the school year was ending. Rose seemed to be around 5'0-5'1, very skinny, and she had lanky, freckled legs. It was a strange combination, but not the strangest Scorpius had seen, thanks to the wonders of this new "life event" called puberty.
Puberty. Scorpius hated it. Over the Easter holidays, his father had given him "The Talk" and had explained to him about how his body would soon be changing. It was as if as soon as Scorpius' father told him, his body decided to betray him and do just that: change.
Puberty could suck eggs. For one, puberty bloody well hurts. Growing hurts. Apparently lengthening bones and muscles could cause one to be quite sore. Secondly, Scorpius found he was starting to grow hair in the places his father mentioned, which was a sign of him becoming a man or some shit. Scorpius found it itchy and uncomfortable and embarrassing. Thirdly, he was starting to smell worse when he would sweat, so he needed to either use a freshening charm every morning, or apply this muggle invention called deodorant. Personally, Scorpius was partial to the deodorant because it smelled good, while the freshening spell smelled like nothing. If Scorpius was going to smell, he might as well smell good, right?
The two worst parts however, were the parts people could see or hear. The voice cracking which the girls and boys all giggled at, so long as it wasn't their voices cracking, seemed to be happening to him a lot lately. One minute his voice would be normal, and the next it would crack in the middle of answering a question. The giggles would commence immediately after.
The other worst part was that after his first kiss, it seemed like kissing and girls was all he could bloody think of! Being twelve and a half and in the midst of puberty seemed to cause a switch to go off in his brain. No longer were girls scary. No, now they were intriguing, especially now that Scorpius knew they did not poop out sparkly chicken nuggets.
Sometimes that thing that his father said would happen when a boy or man noticed a pretty girl would happen to him. Luckily his father also taught him how to be discreet about it when it did happen, and that it was natural. Some other boys did not appear to have fathers to teach them those things, and would become awfully embarrassed when they weren't prepared.
Scorpius was saved from trying to literally curse puberty by one of his best friends, turning to ask him a question. "Hey mate, want to visit us at the Burrow this summer?" Albus asked.
Albus had already extended the invitation to everyone else, who had agreed to visit at some point, but apparently he had been cursing puberty too hard to realize. "I can't this summer. Mother, father, Cassie and I are going to France for the summer to visit my Aunt Daphne and her family. We will be gone the entire summer," Scorpius said, apologetically.
Albus looked disappointed, but nodded in understanding. "It's alright. It would have been nice to have you play on one of our Quidditch teams. You could have been on Rose and my team," Albus said.
"Ro-Weasley plays Quidditch?" Scorpius asked, surprised.
"Yeah, she's kind of our wildcard. She can switch between any position seamlessly," Albus bragged to Scorpius on Rose's behalf. Rose didn't particularly care for Quidditch or the family games, but she was a good player and continued to play because he asked her to.
"She never talks about it though? Whenever she sits with us and we talk about it, she kind of tunes out," Scorpius said. While he and Rose weren't exactly friends, they didn't hate each other. They also had a lot of the same friends and were often in the same place as each other.
"Just because she finds it boring doesn't mean she doesn't know how to play. Uncle Ron made sure of that. Even if Rose takes after Aunt Hermione in brain power, Uncle Ron made sure she knew how to ride a broom well and knows how to play Quidditch," Albus said.
"I wouldn't have known," Scorpius said, almost as if he didn't quite believe it.
"Well, there are a lot of things you don't know about Rose. Actually, I'm glad you two can be civil now, but I don't get this thing about 'not really being friends but still ending up in the same place together anyways' thing you two have going on," Albus said, frowning.
Scorpius internally grimaced. Hell if he knew how to describe their relationship, or nonrelationship. Scorpius had apologized, Rose had accepted, they had kissed, and Rose had given him the option of friendship or civility, and for reasons unknown even to himself, he was keeping Rose at a distance and choosing civility over friendship. While Rose maybe was a bit hurt, if observations were to go by, she was nice enough not to press the issue.
"Well, if you ever decide to actually be friends with my cousin, you would probably find you'd have a lot in common," Albus said, with a shrug. He wasn't pushing the issue either.
Scorpius wasn't so sure about that, but he wasn't going to tell Albus that.
Soon it was time to deboard the train. His mother, father, and Cassie were waiting for him. They were going to apparate to the Manor and then floo to France straight away. Scorpius said goodbye to his friends, and he even waved to Weasley before disappearing with a pop.
Sometimes it's nice to take a break from my super long stories to write cute ones like this. I love writing about Scorpius. It'll follow him through all seven years of Hogwarts.