Rose unlocked the wooden door to her office and threw her bag down with a sigh as she mentally made a list of the workload ahead of her. As soon as she had settled at her desk and started up her computer her secretary Lydia softly rapped on the frame of her open door. Rose glanced up and greeted her with a smile but quickly read the unsettled expression on Lydia's face.
"Have you heard the news?"
"What news?" asked Rose.
"Draco Malfoy was found dead last night," Lydia said as she slapped the Daily Prophet down in front of Rose.
Rose looked down at the paper intently, read the headline and let out a shallow breath. It was true. Draco Malfoy was dead. She skimmed the article, but it appeared tight lipped about the cause of death.
In shock, Rose just looked up at Lydia with a surprised expression.
"I know, right!" Lydia said.
This was huge news for the entire wizarding community. Malfoy Enterprise owned most of the remaining magical lands. Since the fall of Voldemort, the wizarding community had slowly been absorbed into the muggle community, and Malfoy Enterprise was there to profit off of it by selling as much magical property to muggles as possible.
Rose worked as a barrister for the Ministry, her current assignment was protecting the legal rights of Centaurs in the magical forests of England, almost all of which are owned by Malfoy Enterprise. The barristers at Malfoy Enterprise were conniving and vicious, it was no easy task to go up against the rich company with only the dwindling resources of the Ministry.
Rose hated Draco. He was pompous, self-assured, and cared nothing for the magical creatures his company had harmed. Much less, the witches and wizards he had put out of their homes by selling the land their homes were on to the muggle government. All in the name of profits.
"What does this mean for the leadership of Malfoy Enterprise?" Rose asked Lydia.
"Well…. I assume that Scorpius is to inherit the company."
Scorpius, a name she hadn't heard in a long time. This change of leadership could have an impact on their case.
Rose directed Lydia to finish the research report she was working on by the end of the day and leave it on her desk to review. With that, Rose launched herself into a day of grueling work, not even stopping to eat lunch—a frequent habit of hers. She was dedicated to the cause of her work, and she was determined to stop Malfoy Enterprise from selling the last of England's remaining magical forests at all costs.
Scorpius collapsed on to his couch and ran an exhausted hand down his face. He never intended to work at Malfoy Enterprises, and he certainly never intended on inheriting it at 28 years old, but here he was. He had just returned from a meeting with his father's solicitor regarding his inheritance. The last time he had spoken with his father it had ended in a screaming match over why he was so against working at the company.
Scorpius knew next to nothing about running a company, much less one the most valuable and controversial company in the wizarding world. He woke up yesterday morning to the news of his father passing, he had been numb since receiving it. Now, today, he was 30 million galleons richer, burdened with leadership of a company he never wanted, and now had two dead parents.
"Fuck you, dad," he whispered under his breath to no one but himself.
He decided to blow off steam in one of the only ways he knew how. He headed to the gym room in his penthouse apartment and lifted heavy weights until he thought he might collapse. His body was one of the only things he felt he had control over in this world, and he made sure to keep it in pristine shape.
Although Scorpius refused to work for his Dad's company, he was paid a monthly distribution from the trust his parents had created for his benefit. He lived in luxury apartment in a magical corridor of downtown London. However, he mostly made it a point to stay out of the spotlight and uninvolved in the magical community. There were too many responsibilities and expectations attached to his last name in wizarding society. Instead, he worked a muggle job from home as a web designer and made his appearance in magic social circles scarce.
As he undressed and prepared to spend some time in his steam room his cellphone rang. The name of his father's secretary of the past 15 years popped up on the screen. He rolled his eyes and hit ignore, but not three seconds later it rang again.
"Hello?" he said in a flat tone.
"Scorpius, hi, this is Marcus…err, umm, your dad's…"
"Yes, yes Marcus, I know who this is," he clipped.
"Oh well, yes," he sounded nervous. "I just thought maybe I could drop by and bring you up to speed on some matters going with the company, and uhh, well you know, the shareholders are eager to see what your next steps are going to be as the new leadership of Malfoy Enterprises-"
Scorpius squeezed his eyes shut tight. His stomach was in knots at the weight of his new responsibilities. He really didn't want to think about it, he wanted to ignore it, he wanted it to go away. Anger at his father bubbled in his chest.
"Marcus, my father isn't even buried yet, the shareholders can wait," he said bitterly, but as patiently as he could manage.
"Sir, it's just that…"
"Don't call me sir," he snapped. "I'm not my father."
"I apologize, Scorpius. I didn't mean…well, at least let me drop off some reports that will be useful for you to read, and then we can have a meeting together after the funeral."
"Fine," he replied curtly and hung up the phone with no goodbyes.
The truth was, Scorpius wasn't ready to think about what his next actions will be. Hell, he didn't even know if he would agree to become the new leadership of the company. He could appoint someone else in charge. The shareholders only cared about the return on their own investments. They wanted assurance that he would still maximize their profits. They wanted him to sit in his father's chair and take over where he left off.
He wasn't going to let anyone control him, and somehow the whole thing felt like his father had figured out that dying was the only way he could force Scorpius into being what he always wanted him to be. Scorpius knew that he sure as hell wasn't going to let shareholders, or anyone else for that matter, have any influence over how he chose to live his life.
Later, when the reports had been delivered to his apartment, he set them on his marble kitchen counter and left them there. He wasn't ready to read them. A part of him was afraid to find out what his dad had been up to at the company. Instead, he sent a text to his most recent hookup. She was a tall blond with a gorgeous figure and had no qualms about sleeping together no strings attached, exactly what he wanted. They drank and fucked until he finally found sleep.
The morning after the news of Draco's death Rose was awake early and returning to her apartment after going to a yoga class at the studio on the corner of her street. Her red hair was tied into a messy bun and her yoga clothes hugged her fit figure. Although her main attention was always work, she was sure to exercise daily.
She made herself a cup of tea and sat down at her desk. She frequently worked through the weekends, on occasion she would go out to the pubs at the insistence of her cousins, but mostly she enjoyed staying home and burying herself in her work. That morning though she struggled to stay focused. Her gaze drifted out the window and her thoughts drifted as well. She wondered briefly how Scorpius might be handling the news of his father's death and his subsequent inheritance of the company.
She had not heard much of Scorpius over the years, though her cousin Albus was a friend of his. All she really knew was that he and Albus would occasionally go to pubs together to meet women, and that Scorpius had some amount of disdain for the magical community since his graduation from Hogwarts. She had no notions of what his leadership of the company would be like, but she would surely find out once the lawsuit came to a head.
Suddenly, she remembered a moment from nearly five years ago, when she was at a pub with her cousins celebrating Albus' promotion as an Auror. Scorpius showed up and had a steely attitude the entire night. She caught his sharp gray eyes looking at her more than once. She was inexplicably drawn to looking at him. Few could deny his good looks, but something about his gaze that night had both magnetized and unsettled her.
Her train of thought was broken by the chirp of her phone. Her stomach sank as she read the text on the screen.
Matt: I miss you, Rose.
She scoffed, "Yeah, well, maybe you shouldn't have cheated on me, asshat," she said out loud to her empty room. Refraining from replying, she deleted the text.
She and Matt had broken up three months ago, after her cousin Molly had spotted him making out with some woman at a pub. Rose reacted to that news in her usual calm demeanor, she was not one to show a lot of emotion outwardly. Her family found her placidness to be unsettling at times. Internally though, Rose felt deep shame and foolishness over believing at one point that he was the one.
Now she was 28 and utterly alone. Nothing to fill her time but her job, and her cat, Socks. She didn't find discomfort in her solitude though, at least not that she admitted to herself. In fact, she resolved that she was happy not to have the distraction of a relationship so that she could focus on work.
Resolutely, she pushed all other thoughts from her mind and continued working on preparations for the upcoming hearing in front of the magistrates of the Wizengamot that was to be held a short month away.
The day of the hearing arrived, Rose anxiously bit at her thumb nail as they waited to be called into the court chamber, an old habit of hers that she could not control in moments of extreme tension.
Finally, they were called to attendance in front of the Wizengamot and Rose's stomach did flips. Her co-counsel, she, and the barristers representing Malfoy Enterprise filed in. They took their places at their respective tables in front of the magistrate bench.
The nature of their case was a civil one, claiming that acts by Malfoy Enterprise infringed upon the civil liberties of Centaurs. By selling the lands they reside on, the Centaurs had been stripped of the liberties they were guaranteed under the Magical Creatures Equality Act of 2011. The Centaurs were pushed from their homes and were caused undue suffering, in which the case sought relief.
Additionally, selling magical lands to the Muggle government was in direct violation of the International Statue of Secrecy, one of the very oldest governing statues of wizarding society. It was the very first lawsuit of its nature in London's wizarding society,
The clerk of the court announced the case name, Ministry of Magic v Malfoy Enterprise, and proceedings began. Each side would present their initial facts to the Wizengamot in this hearing. Then at a later date, a full trial would take place in which the Wizengamot would rule on whether or not Malfoy Enterprises were allowed any further sales of land occupied by the Centaurs.
Rose was called to attention and she stood up and smoothed out the front of her gray pencil skirt, tucking a loose tendril of red hair behind her ear. She cleared her throat, and as she was about to begin her opening speech, she was interrupted by the creaking of the chamber door opening.
All heads turned to the direction of the opening door, and in walked Scorpius Malfoy.
A quiet gasp escaped Rose's lips, but she quickly recovered, cleared her throat once again and turned back to the magistrate before he caught a glimpse of her face.
The head magistrate appeared annoyed and called for Scorpius to settle himself in the rows of observation pews. He then motioned for Rose to continue. She paused briefly, allowing herself to gather her thoughts and strengthen her resolve so that her voice did not come out shaky.
She took her work very seriously, and she would not let a surprise appearance of Scorpius distract her. Through the next 15 minutes she outlined the case against Malfoy Enterprise, all the while astutely aware of Scorpius' presence behind her. Her stomach roiled the entire time she took stand, but her countenance remained serious and steadfast. After her opening statements her co-counsel presented further facts and evidence.
The rest of the hearing went by in a blur. The barristers on behalf of Malfoy Enterprise played their usual dirty tactics. Claiming that counsel for the Ministry were overstating the impact that the selling of lands had on the Centaurs. Additionally, they tried to spin that the Ministry only wanted to use their claims as an excuse to take domain over the lands themselves. As to the count of the violation of Statute of Secrecy, they only had weak claims in opposition which gave Rose a smug sense of success.
The head magistrate spoke the final words of the hearing.
"We have heard the claims on both sides today. We will take into consideration each point. However, I warn you, that at the final hearing we expect both sides to find more substantial evidence in support. You are dismissed."
This statement shocked and angered Rose, they came prepared with a full arsenal of evidence and had worked tirelessly on preparation, what more could they want. They had some idea that the Wizengamot would not take the suit seriously, since the idea of rights and liberties for magical creatures were controversial.
She glanced over at the opposition's table and their lead barrister shot her a smug grin.
Rose maintained a still face, devoid of any reaction, but her green eyes stung with the threat of tears that she would never allow to fall.
She and her partner gathered their papers and prepared to go back to their offices to throw themselves into yet more work. The final hearing would be in two months and if the magistrates had not been satisfied with their presentation, they would have to start preparing now.
When she turned around, she saw Scorpius standing in the middle of the empty observation pews, looking in her direction with a stony expression. He wore a dark navy-blue suit; his blond hair was medium length and looked somewhat disheveled. His hands were in his pockets and he stood perfectly still. For a very brief moment their eyes met, Rose's heart pounded faster in her chest. She couldn't interpret the look on his face, but she was too afraid to maintain the eye contact long enough to glean any understanding. He was her adversary in this matter now.
She walked through the center aisle, past Scorpius, keeping her chin high and gaze forward. Without another glance in his direction, she left the chamber.
Over the past month Scorpius had learned as much as he possibly could about Malfoy Enterprise, and he was still delaying his meeting with the shareholders for as long as he could.
He remained clueless about how to run a company as large as this one, but Marcus faithfully stood by his side—imparting knowledge where he could and subtly attempting to encourage Scorpius to fulfill his inherited position.
The more Scorpius learned however, the more he realized that his father had largely abused his position of power and wealth.
He felt at a precipice. He could turn around and allow someone else to continue the mess and abuses that his father had created, or he could take a leap and try to fix it himself. The latter option felt nearly impossible.
The only thing that remained true, was that Scorpius would not be controlled by the shareholders or by his late father's wishes. If he were going to try to right his father's wrongs, it was going to take more than he had ever given, he would have to put every ounce of effort into it.
That morning, Marcus had bid him to attend and observe the hearing taking place in a lawsuit against the company. Scorpius felt unsettled by the behavior of the barristers hired to represent the company. Further, he was shocked to see Rose Weasley in the seat of the opposing counsel. She had spoken eloquently and with an air of confidence. Her physical presence was professional and commanded attention.
At the end, when their eyes met, he had a sudden moment of clarity. He quickly returned to his office and called Marcus to him.
"Ok," he said resolutely.
Marcus's face broke into a broad grin, "Ok, what?"
"I'll do this, but I need your help. There's going to be a lot of changes around here."
"Oh! I was hoping you would say that, sir!"
"Marcus," he barked. "I told you not to call me that."
"Yes, sir! I mean, yes, Scorpius!"
"Schedule the meeting with the shareholders," he said distractedly with a dismissive wave of his hand.