A/N: Here's part 2 of Valentine's! It gets a little silly, but I enjoyed writing it. I hope you enjoy reading it. Thanks to all my loyal readers and reviewers. I absolutely love seeing all the reviews and PMs about this story. I'm having lots of fun writing it, but it makes my heart so happy to know you're having fun reading it. ( Ashley - your reviews bring me such delight! Thank you so much for your enthusiastic enjoyment of my story!)
"Okay. Plan B," she said. "Come on."
"I thought we were going to fly?" He said.
"Nope, new plan," she said. "We're going to make a potion."
"Hmm, I'm not very good at potions," he said.
"I am though," she said. She glanced at him sideways as they walked. "Do you trust me?"
"Completely," he said. "I trust you with my life, my heart…all of me." He took her hand and held it tight, immediately bringing her hand up to his mouth and kissing the top of her hand.
She shook her head. "I told you…boundaries!" She tried to pull her hand away but he held it securely, grasping it with both hands now.
"Please, Lily, my beautiful Ruby," he said, sounding more than just a little desperate. "I need to be near you. I need to hold you, feel you…"
"Gross," she said. "But fine. You can hold my hand, but that's it! Understood?"
He nodded and kissed her hand again. "Last time, I promise," he said.
They made their way into the castle through the back entrance. Lily was relieved to see the crowds had thinned as most older students were clearly off to Hogsmead for the day. She hoped they would make it down to the dungeons without running into anyone, but just to be safe, she removed her hand from his and distracted him by removing Styx from her bag and holding him while they walked, keeping her hands occupied.
Just before they reached the main staircase, Lily spotted Roxie walking in their direction, a tall dark haired boy walking beside her. They were talking and laughing together and hadn't seemed to notice Lily and Scorpius. Lily had almost begun to think they could make it to the stairs before being spotted when Roxie glanced up and caught her eye.
"Lily!" Roxie called out and waved.
"Hey, Rox…" Lily waved back. She briefly considered whether or not Roxie would notice if she shoved Scorpius down the stairs and out of sight, but realized it was likely not the best choice. "Are you heading out to Hogsmead?"
Roxie nodded. "Gavin and I are on our way now," she said.
Lily nodded at the tall boy. "You must be Gavin," she said.
He held out his hand with a grin. Lily shook his hand, analyzing him silently. He was good looking, and had a friendly smile, but she had never even heard Roxie talk about dating or crushes before.
"Are you guys dating?" Lily asked bluntly.
Roxie shrugged. "Yeah, sort of."
Gavin seemed equally casual about it. He shrugged, laughed, then nodded and slung his arm around her shoulders. "Yeah, we're dating."
Roxie elbowed him in the ribs. "Casual, it's nothing official," she said. "I don't do official."
Lily wan't even sure what that meant, but she nodded and smiled like she understood.
"Umm. Lils, what are you two doing?" Roxie asked, glancing between Lily and Scorpius.
"Homework," Lily said quickly. She was beyond grateful that Scorpius hadn't yet tried to hold her hand or smell her hair or kiss her or anything alarming. Though he was standing very close to her; she could feel his arm grazing against hers frequently. "I'm helping him with a Potions assignment."
"On Valentine's Day?" Roxie asked, raising one thin dark eyebrow. She flicked her dark blue eyes between the two of them quickly, turning her sharp chin up slightly as she fixed her eyes on her cousin.
"Well neither of us had other plans so it's just like any other Saturday, right?" Lily said. "Anyway, enjoy your day!" Lily nudged Scorpius towards the steps. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed Roxie watching her as she headed away with Gavin. Lily smiled and waved, then continued down the stairs quickly after Scorpius.
At the bottom of the steps, Scorpius waited for direction. She pointed to the left, away from their common room, towards the Potion classroom. He walked close beside her and she soon felt his hand on her back, slipping around to her waist. She chose to ignore it for the moment. They were almost to the classroom, and right now she just wanted to focus on finding a potion she could concoct to reverse this stupid love potion once and for all so things could go back to normal.
The classroom was empty, as she had expected for a Saturday mid-morning. She set Styx down on the floor to wander while she went instantly to the bookshelf behind Professor Willoughby's desk. She knew these texts were his personal collection, and in general students weren't allowed to touch them. During their lessons, however, he sometimes let her browse them for new Potion challenges, and she hoped he wouldn't mind her using them now.
"What are you looking for?" Scorpius asked, standing directly behind her as she opened one of the large textbooks on Willoughby's desk and began flipping pages.
"A reversal potion," she said. "I remember seeing one a couple weeks ago when I was looking for an anti-dream potion…"
"Anti-dream?" He questioned.
She nodded, somewhat distractedly. "It's a potion that prohibits dreams while sleeping."
"Why would you want that?" He asked. "When I dream, I will dream only of you," he said. "I couldn't imagine not having dreams of you!" He slipped his arms around her from behind, holding them across her stomach, and rested his head against hers. "You are my dreams."
Lily sighed, but kept flipping pages, trying to ignore the heaviness of his body against hers. Find the potion, make the potion, fix him. She told herself repeatedly. After a few more pages, she spotted the one she had been looking for. "Here!" She called out victoriously.
He looked over her shoulder at the spell on the page. "A reversal potion?" He asked. "What are we reversing?"
"You," she said. "We're fixing you."
"What's wrong with me?" He asked. "Is something wrong with me? Are you unhappy with me?" He pulled away from her, looking instantly distressed.
With a sigh and a much calmer voice, Lily reached out her hand towards him. "Nothing is wrong with you, Scor…" she started slowly. "Someone gave you something to eat you shouldn't have eaten and we need to make it right before you…umm…get sick. Don't you remember?"
He took her hand and held it against his chest. He was smiling.
"Do you remember?" She asked again.
He shook his head.
"Why are you smiling like that?" She asked.
"You called me 'Scor,'" he said. "You've never called me that before. No one calls me that. I like it."
Lily hadn't even realized she had shortened his name. It had just happened, naturally. She realized she liked it too, but then also realized giving him a nickname was a level of friendship she wasn't sure they had, or should have.
"Oh, well, yeah…" she said. "Okay…let's get started." She pointed to the book. "Help me gather the ingredients." She pointed to three of them for him to gather and she gathered the other five.
Once everything was collected she set it all out on top one of the empty desks and began the process, following the directions perfectly. Usually with Willoughby she would take time to study each ingredient and discuss with him which ingredients could be used alternatively and what could be added for variations of effects and side effects. Today she had no interest in any of that. She just needed it to work exactly right.
She took out a mortar and pestle and placed one bezoar into it and started crushing.
"What can I do?" He asked. He twirled a piece of her hair around his finger then leaned in and kissed her ear.
"Ugh, not that," she said. She pulled her head away from him and glared.
"I can't help it…" he said, his face near hers again. "It hurts if I'm not near you." His face looked pained.
"It's getting stronger," Lily said, frowning. She had heard that could happen overtime with some love potions. "We need to finish this quickly." She pushed the mortar in front of him. "Crush this. Really well."
He started working dutifully, but stayed close enough to her that she could feel his arm against hers and often when he looked towards her, she felt his breath on her face. While he focused on his task she began to heat a small copper cauldron.
It took nearly thirty minutes to prepare all the ingredients, and then they had to heat for an hour, during which time Lily tried to busy herself with carefully cleaning all the instruments they had used and reorganizing a few of the potions on the shelves so she'd have an excuse to not be near Scorpius for a little while. He watched her closely while she worked, and occasionally she'd find him suddenly standing beside her.
"Scor, could you go and sit down please?" She asked, using his new nickname that she knew made him happy. "We only have to wait a little longer now."
"Will you come sit with me?" He asked. "I don't want to be alone."
"You're hardly alone," she said. "I'm only right here." She continued cleaning out the potions cupboard where the most common potions ingredients were stored.
"Please come sit with me," he said. She saw the desperation in his eyes. "I don't want to be apart from you. It doesn't feel right. I need you with me."
Lily sighed. She knew he was feeling the effects of the potion stronger by the moment. She hadn't done a lot of research on love potions specifically, but all poisons had similar elements. She knew that if he didn't get the reversal soon, the poison would continue to fester inside his bloodstream and his mind would only become more altered and his obsession more extreme. Peeking into the simmering cauldron, she knew it wasn't close to ready yet. She would have to distract Scorpius a while longer.
"Okay, let's sit," she said after a moment of consideration.
Scorpius pulled out two chairs from one of the nearby tables and she sat, then he pulled his chair closer and sat beside her.
"Umm, so let's talk I guess…" She said, straining to think of a conversation that could be maintained casually without anymore embarrassing professions of desire on his part. "What's your favorite class?" She asked.
He smiled. "Charms," he said without any hesitation. "And Transfiguration. I'm good with spell work." He glanced around briefly and spotted a bundle of sticks on the counter. He walked over, took one and brought it back to the table. Pulling out his wand, he whispered a spell, waving his wand over it slowly, and in a moment Lily watched as the stick transformed into a single red rose. She gasped and he handed it to her.
"Scor, that was brilliant!" She said, feeling envious of her own weak spell work.
"Do you like roses?" He asked, panic washing over his eyes. "Was that too obvious? You probably like something really rare…or a Lily…"
Lily shook her head. "I like all flowers."
"But what's your favorite?" He asked. "I need to know everything about you. Merlin, I hardly know anything about you! I'm terrible." He dropped his face in his hands momentarily and Lily sighed.
This is getting quite ridiculous, she thought to herself as she watched his worried countenance. "Lilies are not my favorite flower," she said after a moment, deciding it was the best way to help him at this moment. "Growing up I think everyone just assumed it would be, or should be. Everyone gives me lilies for birthdays and everything. And I like them well enough, especially white lilies at Christmastime. They're not my favorites though."
He was no longer hiding his face in his hands, but was staring at her intently as though absorbing all that she was saying.
"Meanwhile my cousin Rose, always received the roses growing up," Lily laughed. "She hates flowers."
"My favorite flower is actually a rose though," she said. "Yellow roses specifically. They're so cheerful and pretty." She shrugged. "No one's ever given me a rose before." She picked up the transfigured rose from the table and held it to her nose. Its fragrance was a real as any rose and she closed her eyes briefly as she took in the scent. "Thank you for this," she said.
"I love your smile," he said, watching her closely. "I want to make you smile every moment of every day."
Lily blushed and shook her head.
"So is yellow your favorite color?" Scorpius asked.
"Green actually," she said.
"A true Slytherin, he said.
"Apparently," she said. "What's your favorite color?"
He shrugged, then reached out and stroked her long hair. "This color," he said. "This stunning ruby blood red."
She couldn't help but smile.
Suddenly his eyes brightened and he left the table, moved over to the cupboard of supplies, and returned holding a small pair of silver scissors.
"Umm…" she frowned.
"Can I take a snip?" He asked, his voice eager and his eyes bright.
"Of my hair?" She asked, trying to keep her voice from sounding too horrified.
Clearly he could hear the tone though because his eyes dimmed a little. "Oh…is that…was that weird?" He hesitated. "When my dad first started dating my mum, she gave him a lock of her hair to keep with him at all times since he was often traveling for work and had to be away from her. He had it put into a ring that he still wears."
Lily actually thought that was the sweetest thing she had ever heard. Lily didn't know much of Scorpius' family apart from what she had heard from her parents and aunts and uncles growing up, but those stories were not usually kind and had created an image in her mind of Mr. Malfoy being somewhat of a monster. Hearing Scorpius tell this personal, romantic story of his parents made her smile.
"That's really sweet," she said.
"So can I?" He asked, again holding up the scissors.
"Oh…well…I don't know," Lily said. She didn't like the idea of anyone cutting her hair at all, but she also didn't think it was appropriate for her to give a lock of her hair to Scorpius. Despite the love potion, they were not dating. He had no right to her hair or any part of her.
"Oh please, Lily!" He said, desperation strong in his voice.
She nodded before she even realized what she was doing and he reached out. He took hold of a long piece of her hair, pulling it around from behind her shoulder. She caught her breath, fighting against the urge to stop him, as he fixed the scissors near her hair and cut a small lock off. It wasn't a lot, only maybe an inch or two in length, but after he had removed it, she inspected her remaining hair for evidence of the missing piece. He had done a careful job of it and the loss was not obvious.
He held the hair up to his lips, kissed it, and then folded it into a piece of parchment from the table and tucked it into his pocket.
"Thank you, Lily," he said.
She smiled at his sincerity. She had become so distracted by the moment, however, she had let her guard down and didn't notice that he was leaning in until his lips were almost on hers. She gasped and turned her head away swiftly; his lips brushed against her ear as she turned.
"Scorpius, no!" She said firmly. "I am not going to kiss you."
"I don't understand," He said. "Don't you like me? Am I not good enough for you?" His voice cracked slightly.
She had no idea how to explain her resistance to a love-potion induced Scorpius, but she knew no matter what else happened today, she was not going to give into his desire to kiss her. That was something that was still in her control and she felt very firmly about it.
"Scor," she began gently. "You are an amazing guy," she said. "Truly. I am lucky to have you as a friend in my life, but you're not yourself right now…the things you're feeling…they aren't real…" she hesitated, watching his expression carefully to see if anything was getting through to him. "You don't really want to kiss me. That's just the potion making you feel that way."
"I know what I feel," he said quickly.
"Of course," she said. "You feel it right now, but it's not real."
"You don't believe that I really care about you?" He asked, the shock and disappointment evident on his face. "Of course I really care about you. I love you, Lily. How could you think that's not real."
Lily shook her head. "I can't make you understand right now," she said, "but I promise I'm really only thinking of you when I say all this. You don't love me. You are obsessed with me because of the potion, that's all."
"I love you," He repeated. He grasped her hands and held them close to his chest. "I have never felt so sure of anything in my life. You are the only person in this world for me. You are the only person that matters. Ask me something, anything…tell me how I can prove it to you."
"I don't need you to prove anything to me," she said. "I know that you think you feel in love with me…"
"I don't think it, I know it," he said, his voice turning a little more harsh than it had been. "I thought you maybe loved me too."
"Oh, Scor, I…" Lily hesitated. "I care a lot about you," she said.
"But you don't love me?" He asked, his eyes darkening.
Lily tried to calm him down. She placed her hand on his cheek and looked directly into his eyes. "You are a good friend, and I know you think the same of me, but this is not love. Not really…"
He jumped suddenly from his chair, releasing her hand abruptly. "I'll just have to find a way to prove it to you. I will make you see that my love for you is true, one way or another." Before Lily even had a chance to realize what was happening, he turned and ran from the room.
"Scorpius, wait!" Lily called after him and stood to follow, but before she made it to the door, her professor stepped into the open doorway. "Professor Willoughby!"
"Miss Potter…" he said slowly, his eyes scanning the classroom in one smooth, swift take, settling on the desk where the cauldron simmered. "Are you making a potion?"
"Umm…" Lily faltered. "Yes…"
"Hmm, well given that I did not see you for lessons this week to assign you something special, and you have no outstanding assignments for my class, I can't think of what reason you may have to be brewing a potion on your own outside of class hours without permission," he said. He crossed his arms and waited for her to respond.
Lily's eyes darted past him, wondering where Scorpius had gone and what sort of trouble he was going to get into without her watching over him, but then she resettled her eyes on her professor and blushed. She knew she had been caught breaking a very important rule, and she felt instantly guilty about it. She didn't know how to explain this to Willoughby in any way that would prevent punishment, so she decided that in this moment honesty was the only option.
"I'm making a reversal potion," she said.
"A reversal potion?" He repeated. "That's advanced. Why are you making one?" He moved further into the classroom towards the cauldron.
She sighed, then took a breath and began. "I'm making the reversal potion to cure Scorpius Malfoy from the effects of a love potion."
"Miss Potter, I'm surprised. I never would have assumed you to give someone a love potion…" Professor Willoughby said.
She gasped, horrified at the suggestion. "I didn't give it to him!" She said. "I would never do that!"
He smiled slightly and she saw he was teasing her.
She scowled. "It was Delia Thorne," she said bluntly. "She put it into some caramels and he ate the entire package without noticing, like a bloody idiot."
"I see," Willoughby said. "And why is Miss Thorne not here helping with the reversal potion to correct her mistake?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Well, since the potion did not work the way she had intended, she refuses to have any part of it."
"It is certainly generous of you to help him in this way," he said. "Though I'm curious as to how you became entangled in this mess. Also…where is Mr. Malfoy?"
Lily hesitated and realized she would have to be more honest. "Delia used a pre-made potion so she didn't have it targeted towards herself like she should have. Instead it worked on the first person Scorpius saw after taking it…which was me. So I've been dealing with him all day, trying to keep him from causing too much embarrassment for either of us, but I hurt his feelings and he ran off."
"You hurt his feelings?" He asked with a bit of a chuckle.
She nodded.
He waited.
"Oh for Merlin's sake. I wouldn't let him kiss me and told him I didn't love him, and he got angry and said he'd find a way to prove his love for me or some rubbish like that," Lily said, shaking her head.
"Miss Potter, you are aware that a love potion alters one's reality so completely that whatever he thinks he is feeling right now is entirely true for him at this moment," Willoughby said.
"I know that," she said.
"So he truly thinks he loves you," he said.
"I know that," she said. "But I don't have to pretend that I have feelings for him, and I do not have to let him kiss me!"
"Certainly not," he said. "I understand." He frowned. "Though I do hope he doesn't do anything drastic in this love-poisoned state of mind. I have heard stories of people doing awful, dangerous, terrible things under the effects of love potion, depending on the amount consumed and the intensity of the feelings created."
"Like what?" Lily asked, feeling slightly more concerned.
"Oh, I won't get into that now. It'll just worry you," he said. "Though I'm curious…have the effects seemed particularly strong for Mr. Malfoy?"
Lily thought back through the day, considering the things he had said to her and how he had taken her hair with such passion. She nodded slowly. "Yes, very."
"Hmm."
"What?"
"Miss Potter, I'm going to stay here and check on this potion you have made, though I'm certain you did so flawlessly. I will stay with it until it has finished simmering, then I will let it cool and bottle it for you. It should be ready by dinner time, which works because he must take it with food for it to not irritate his stomach. In the meantime, I advise you to go and find Mr. Malfoy before he can do anything he may regret…"
Lily nodded, understanding quickly. She retrieved her bag and Styx, who had been circling the legs of a nearby table. She dropped him back into her bag and headed to the door. "Thank you Professor. I really appreciate the help."
"Remember, Miss Potter, he's not himself at this moment," Willoughby said. "Nothing is out of the realm of possibility when love is the only factor ruling one's thoughts, emotions, and actions."
"I understand," she said. "I'll find him."
Lily didn't even know where to begin to look for Scorpius. She didn't have a clue what sort of crazy action he may take in an effort to "woo" her into loving him. She headed first to their common room, hoping he may have returned there for a quiet place to plot. When she entered the common room, however, she was greeted by emptiness. Hesitating only briefly, Lily marched towards the boys' corridor, heading directly towards the room she knew belonged to the third year boys, though she had never visited before.
She knocked quickly, then pushed the door open without waiting.
The room was dark. It was clear he had not returned to his room, and if he did, he was no longer there. She sighed and returned to the common room. Lily had no clue where to look next. While she debated, she returned Styx to her room and told him to stay put. She used the toilet, brushed out her hair, more for something to do than from a real need, and applied a fresh layer of lipstick. Lily paused for a moment after coating her lips with the pale pink gloss. Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she frowned. Since returning from Christmas break, she had of course been using makeup more frequently, but rarely chose to coat her lips with anything. She considered why she chose to apply it now, but refused to allow herself to believe she had any true motive in it.
"Hey!" Kenny spoke up suddenly from behind where Lily stood in front of the mirror. "What've you been up to all morning?"
Lily jumped from the surprise of someone else speaking. She hadn't expected anyone else to come in the room at this time. "Oh, hey Kenny."
"Kale said you and Malfoy were practicing this morning, yeah?" Kenny said, speaking up loudly as she closed the door for the toilet.
"Hmm? Oh, umm, yeah," Lily said. "A bit."
"You should have said something, I could've come down to the pitch," Kenny said.
"Well, we just stayed for a short bit," Lily said. "Then worked on some potions stuff." She hesitated. "Actually, I needed to ask him something about that…have you seen him?"
Kenny finished with the toilet and came to wash her hands. "Yeah, I saw him heading towards the greenhouses when Goeff and I were running laps around the lake. Geoff called out but he seemed distracted."
Lily was already heading out of the bathroom. "Thanks!"
"Okay, see you later!" Kenny called after her as Lily started nearly running from the room. She ran all the way out of the common room, up the stairs to the main floor, and outside towards the greenhouses. Once she found herself amidst the greenhouses, she started calling out for him. She received no response and quickly grew frustrated.
"Scorpius Malfoy! Where the bloody hell are you!" Lily called out with frustration and anger.
After another fifteen fruitless minutes of searching, Lily gave up and headed towards the pitch, wondering if he had ended up there after all. They had discussed it enough that morning she thought it was a possibility. After the empty pitch, she tried the lake, and the gardens, and the library, and finally found herself in the courtyard by the old clock tower where she knew he sometimes went to study in quiet, but still she had no success.
By one o'clock she found herself irritated and ravenous. Despite her desire to find him, she chose to deal with her hunger first and retreated to the Great Hall for a late lunch. There were only a couple dozen students still spread throughout the hall for lunch time, and Lily slipped over to the Slytherin table quickly, barely noticing who was still there. She slipped an apple into her bag and prepared to head out again to continue her search for Scorpius. Just as she exited back into the main hall, she spotted Louis hurrying towards her from the Gryffindor table.
"Lily!" He called out, waving as he approached.
"Hey, Lou," she said, slowing momentarily for him to catch up.
"Julianne and Leona are in the library with Hugo, but we didn't know where you were hiding," he said.
"I'm not hiding," she said, realizing too late that she sounded a bit more defensive than necessary.
Louis frowned slightly. "Okay…what've you been up to?"
"Nothing in particular," she said.
Daniel and Zachary came running up suddenly, laughing while they ran.
"You guys have got to see this!" Daniel said, gasping through his laughter.
"What's up?" Louis asked.
"Come on!" Daniel said, beckoning for them to follow.
Lily hesitated, curious to know what they had found, but also knowing she needed to find Scorpius. Louis, however, took her arm and dragged her along after the other Gryffindor boys.
They half ran all the way to the main courtyard, but once she exited into the fresh air, she froze. The large fountain at the center of the courtyard was circled with other students, some laughing, some pointing. Above their heads, she could see the tips of what used to be the fountain's water spray, which had clearly been charmed to now spray water out in the shape of tiny misty hearts. Leading from the doorway where Lily stood up to the fountain was a pathway of rose petals, bold reds and stark whites. Students suddenly started pointing upwards to the sky, and Lily glanced up that direction.
She felt herself freeze in place.
Flying high above, darting around the slight haze of clouds hanging low in the February sky, someone on a broom was creating words in the sky with magical smoke from the tail of his broom. Though he was too far away to identify clearly, Lily somehow knew without a doubt that it was Scorpius.
As each letter of his smoke words formed in the sky, her heart pounded harder. She wished Louis wasn't standing next to her. She wished she wasn't even standing there!
"Who do you reckon that is up there?" Daniel asked nobody in particular.
"Has to be someone who's pretty good on a broom," Zachary said.
"What's he writing?" Louis asked.
"Whatever it is, it hardly concerns us," Lily said. "Let's go see what they're up to in the library!" She tried tugging her cousin's hand, but he refused to budge.
"You kidding? This is hilarious. Poor bloke," Louis said.
"Definitely," Daniel agreed. "I'd much rather watch him make an idiot of himself."
Lily sighed. She was glad to see at least a few of the onlookers had gone back inside the castle, either bored or distracted. Now there was only a half dozen or so students still milling about watching the airshow. The Gryffindor boys drifted out of the courtyard further into the yard to get a better look. Lily followed slowly.
The words were almost complete now. "I Love You" had been spelled out in large, careful, smoky pink letters. Lily silently hoped he wouldn't add her name to the end of the message.
The guys started laughing, louder than Lily thought was necessary, but their laughter must have carried high enough on the breeze because it drew Scorpius' attention down to the crowd gathered on the ground. He pointed his broom downwards instantly, aiming directly towards Lily and the boys. Lily caught her breath.
"Is that Malfoy?" Daniel asked as Scorpius came low enough for everyone else to recognize his face and blonde hair.
"You're early," Scorpius said.
The guys seemed shocked that he had approached them, but then realized he was speaking to Lily.
"Oh, umm, yeah…" She didn't know what to say, but she was quickly trying to think of how to remove them from this situation without anyone realizing Scorpius had done all these things for her.
"Did you see the fountain and the rose petals?" He asked.
"Yes, I did," she said. "They were…fun…"
"And the writing!" He said, pointing up. "Did you see the writing?"
"Yes, umm, everyone saw the writing…" she said slowly.
"Yeah, mate, we all saw it," Daniel said suddenly, still with a laugh in his tone. "Who's the lucky girl then?"
Lily knew Daniel was teasing. She was familiar enough with that tone from her brothers. She hated that Daniel and Zachary and Louis were here at the moment. She hated that Scorpius had done something so public, even if it wasn't entirely in his control. But strangely, more than anything, she hated that the Gryffindors were trying to make fun of him for it. It wasn't fair. He was just trying to be sweet.
"Did you like it?" Scorpius asked, speaking only to Lily, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was being mocked by the other boys.
"Oh, umm, yeah, it was nice," Lily said, feeling herself blushing as she tried to answer honestly without divulging anything unnecessary to the other boys.
"Just nice?" He seemed disappointed.
"It was very nice," Lily said, trying again, but still feeling her cousin's presence like a heavy blanket.
For some reason, Daniel chose that moment to sling his arm around Lily's shoulders as though it were something he did often, though she couldn't remember him ever doing so before. She didn't like the feel of his arm around her. She didn't want to be touched at all, but for the sake of her cousin, she tried not to react to his friend's overly friendly gesture.
"Who's it for, then?" Daniel asked Scorpius, nodding up to where the sky writing was still lingering in the clouds.
Scorpius didn't answer. His eyes had narrowed into angry silver crescents. Lily thought she heard him growl, but she couldn't be certain.
"Get your hands off of her," Scorpius said, his voice low and forcibly steady.
Daniel seemed momentarily confused. He didn't move. Lily tried to subtly shrug his arm off her shoulders, but he didn't seem to notice her attempt.
Scorpius, however, was not appeased. In one swift motion, he stepped towards Daniel, and shoved hard with both hands against his chest. "I said, don't touch her!"
In his surprise, Daniel stumbled, and tripped backwards, landing on the ground.
"Hey! Hold on!" Zachary and Louis both stepped forward towards Scorpius. "What was that for?"
Scorpius still looked angry and prepared to fight, but Lily quickly stepped between him and the Gryffindors. She held up a hand to both and offered what she hoped was a calming smile.
"Okay, wait…" she said. "Scorpius didn't mean anything…" She glanced at Daniel who was still sitting on the ground, glaring angrily at Scorpius. "You alright, Daniel?"
He nodded curtly. "Yeah, alright."
"He had his hands on you, Lily," Scorpius said.
"Quiet," Lily said, snapping a bit more than she intended.
"What's going on here, Lil?" Louis asked.
"Nothing," Lily said. "Just a misunderstanding."
Scorpius had moved forward again, still glaring towards Daniel on the ground, but Lily stood firm, her hand now pressed against his chest, physically holding him back.
"Scor," she said, lowering her voice slightly. "Please, let it go. For me."
He seemed prepared to argue again, but he glanced at her finally and nodded. His body relaxing slightly.
"Come on, let's go somewhere else," she said.
"Fine," he said.
"Louis, I'll catch up with you later," Lily said. "Scorpius and I need to meet with our team for a bit." Lily was surprising even herself by how quickly lies had been coming to her lips that day.
"Lily, what is going on?" Louis asked again, this time reaching out and taking hold of her wrist. "Talk to me."
"Not now," Lily said firmly, shaking her wrist free from his grasp.
Scorpius turned his eyes to Louis quickly, but Lily placed her hand on Scorpius' arm and without realizing it started rubbing her thumb across his skin, trying to soothe him.
"Come on," she said, speaking to Scorpius again. "Come with me."
He went with her, though he looked back over his shoulder and gave the Gryffindors a final scowl.
"What the hell were you thinking?" She asked him when they were alone. "You can't just go around shoving people to the ground like that! You looked ready to fight."
"I would have if you hadn't stopped me," he said.
She frowned.
"Why did he have his arm on you like that?" Scorpius asked. "Why were you even with those guys?"
"Louis is my cousin," Lily said. "You know that. And they're his mates."
"He looked a lot more comfortable with you than just a mate," Scorpius said.
Lily sighed in frustration.
"And you didn't look very comfortable with the way he was touching you," Scorpius said.
Lily realized that he was right. She hadn't been comfortable with Daniel's arm on her, and it likely showed on her face. She realized Scorpius had been trying to protect her when he shoved Daniel, even if his methods were a bit extreme.
"Thank you for looking out for me," she said after a moment.
His anger seemed to subside. "Always," he said.
"But please, don't go knocking down anyone else today, alright?" She said.
He didn't seem eager to agree.
"Scor, I mean it," she said. "Please don't get in any fights with anyone for me."
He nodded.
"You missed lunch," she said. "I was looking for you everywhere. Are you hungry?"
"I wasn't thinking of food," he said. "I just wanted to find a way to prove to you how much I love you. Did you like it?"
Lily forced herself to nod and smile. She thought she looked sincere, but clearly she was unsuccessful.
"You didn't," he said.
"No, I did…it was thoughtful and sweet," she said. "It was also just very public…"
"I thought girls liked big romantic gestures like that," he said.
"Maybe I'm not like other girls," Lily said.
His shoulders drooped and he looked crestfallen. "No, of course you're not," he said. "I know that. You're unique. That's one of the things I love about you. You don't buy into all that silly rubbish other girls do. I should have thought about that." He sighed. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking at all, was I?"
Lily could tell he was getting upset, and wanted to calm him down again.
"It was all great, Scor, truly. It was a sweet gesture." She said.
"But it wasn't enough," he said. "I'll think of something else. I promise."
"Please don't," she said. "I really don't want you to do anything for me!"
They were standing at the staircase now, and Lily was wondering if the potion had maybe finished early. She was eager to put Scorpius right again.
"Let's go down and see if Willoughby's ready for us," she said.
Scorpius looked confused.
"He was helping me finish up the potion," she said. "Remember? The reversal potion, to fix you."
"I'm not broken," he said. "You still think this is all just some big mess up, some fake thing I'm feeling that you can just make go away with a potion! You can't just make my feelings go away!"
"I didn't mean it like that," she said. "I just…" she hesitated, unsure of what to say.
"No matter how you feel about me, I know how I feel," he said. He grasped both her hands in his tightly. "I love you, Lily, and you can't just make that disappear."
"Umm…I'm sorry, what was that?"
Lily gasped. She hadn't realized they were no longer alone. Turning around now she saw Julianne and Leona standing behind her.
"Oh! Hi!" Lily said, trying to steady her shaky voice. Scorpius was still holding her hands, and she wished she had her invisibility cloak on at that moment. "This…umm…this isn't what it looks like."
"It looks like you holding hands with Scorpius Malfoy while he declares his love for you," Julianne said in a flat voice. Her eyes however were sparkling with curiosity and slight mirth.
"Oh…yes…well it's not quite like that…" Lily hesitated. "He doesn't know what he's saying, he's confused…"
"Bloody hell, Lily, what do I have to do for you to see how serious I am?" He said, his voice torn between anger and distress.
"Oh just stop it," Lily said, feeling tired and annoyed. This day had been exhausting. She pulled her hands away from him, suddenly not caring if she hurt his feelings.
"I'm never going to be good enough for you, am I?" He said, his voice now cracking slightly.
Lily had the brief thought that she should apologize and fix his hurt feelings, but she looked at Leona's big round eyes and Julianne's tight lips, and felt her frustration return.
"I can't do this right now, Scorpius," she said. "Can you just be quiet for two seconds and let me think?" She frowned. "We're going to go down to Willoughby, and if the potion isn't ready, we're going to sit there and wait for it. No more big romantic gestures, no more run-ins with friends. We're going to fix this once and for all."
He frowned. "There's nothing to fix," he said. "I'm not broken. I'm in love." He turned and ran up the steps away from Lily and the dungeons.
In her frustration, she didn't even think to follow him.
"Lily…explain," Julianne said once he had left.
Lily rolled her eyes. "Delia tried to give him a love potion this morning. It didn't work right. It affected how he feels about me instead, so I've been with him all day trying to deal with that while waiting for the reversal potion to be ready."
When she finished the explanation, she expected more questions, but instead both Leona and Julianne burst into laughter. They laughed so hard, tears leaked from their eyes.
"This is not funny," Lily said.
Julianne gasped through her laughter. "Yes it is," she said.
Leona just nodded.
"Girls, this day has been exhausting! He's obsessed with me! He even used his broom to write "I love you" in the clouds! Louis saw!" Lily said.
This only made them laugh harder.
"You two are no help," Lily said.
They continued laughing.
"Oh just go away," Lily said. "I have to go check on the potion and then find Scorpius before he does something else ridiculous."
"I'm going to want the whole story later!" Julianne said, still laughing.
"I'm not telling you a word," Lily said, already heading down the stairs to the dungeons.
She found Willoughby in the classroom, just transferring the potion into a vial.
"Just in time," he said with a smile. "It's ready." He glanced around her. "Have you not found Mr. Malfoy?"
"No, I found him, but then he ran off again," she said. "He's gotten worse, and I'm just so tired of dealing with him!"
"Which is the point of the potion, yes?" He said.
She nodded.
"Miss Potter, I thought I had been clear that leaving him alone at this time could be dangerous…until the potion has left his system, he cannot be trusted to make safe, sane choices," Professor Willoughby said.
"I know, but he's just so annoying!" Lily said.
"Miss Potter, this is more serious than him being a little annoying," Willoughby said. He sighed. "Perhaps I was too vague earlier to spare you any distress, but let me be very clear. When a love potion goes unchecked for too long, consequences can be deadly."
"Deadly?" Lily almost laughed. The skywriting had been embarrassing, but hardly dangerous.
"In one case when a love-poisoned man thought his love was futile, he decided to turn himself into a ghost so he could haunt his beloved for the rest of eternity," Willoughby said. "Another decided to kill his beloved so he could keep her close to himself for the rest of his life…"
Lily's eyes grew wide.
"I realize these are both extreme situations, but they are not the only drastic cases I have heard of. Love potions are some of the most dangerous of all the magic, because they alter one's already unstable emotions. Do you see that?"
She nodded.
"Do you believe Mr. Malfoy could be capable of hurting himself or others while under the influence of this potion?" He asked.
Again she nodded.
"Do you see now why I want you to find him and keep him close?" Willoughby asked.
"Yes," she said, feeling a little nervous. "I'm sorry Professor. I wasn't thinking of him. I was being selfish."
"As we all are at times," he said. "Miss Potter, you and Mr. Malfoy are good friends. I can see that. I think you have been since your first weeks here at Hogwarts, regardless of the emotional troubles that have arisen since then with your family. Even though you have not been forthright with me this week, I think Mr. Malfoy has been a truly good friend to you in a time of very serious need…" he hesitated, and she knew instantly what he was referring to. She didn't answer. "I'm not looking for you to confirm anything at this time, but I want you to consider the kind of friend he has been to you, and think of the kind of friend you want to be in return."
"Yes Sir," Lily said. "I understand."
He nodded. "Good."
"I'll take care of him," she said. "I promise."
Professor Willoughby handed her the vile of completed potion. "I trust you will. Again, be certain he takes this with food, and then he should sleep after for a few hours at least. It will make him quite drowsy."
Lily pocketed the bottle, nodded, and left the classroom.
Again she had to search for Scorpius. This time, however, proved even more difficult. She searched every space she could think of — the common room, his bedroom again, classrooms, the pitch. She searched for two hours without any success. She started asking everyone she saw if they had seen him, but no one could give her a helpful answer. It was nearly dinner time, and the older students had started returning from Hogsmead, but she still hadn't found him. Lily had started to panic. She thought of the stories Willoughby had told her and felt her stomach tightening in fear. She considered all the awful things that could happen to Scorpius and felt sick.
Julianne found her outside the Great Hall at dinnertime.
"Where've you been?" Julianne asked. "Is Scorpius all back to normal now?"
Lily felt hot. Her head was aching, her stomach was twisting, and she thought she might actually cry.
"Lily, what's wrong?" Julianne asked.
"I can't find him," she said. "I've looked everywhere. I can't find him."
"Oh, is that all? He's probably just hiding somewhere writing you love sonnets," Julianne said, clearly fighting the urge to laugh again.
"This is serious, Julianne," Lily said. "You don't understand the consequences of love potions. If I don't reverse it soon…" she shook her head. "I have to find him."
Julianne didn't understand entirely, but she seemed to realize how serious her friend was. "What can I do?"
"Have you seen him at all?" Lily asked.
"No, not since earlier today when he ran off," she said. "I can ask around though. See if anyone else has."
"Thanks," Lily said.
"Want to come eat first?" Julianne said.
"There's no time," Lily said. "I have to find him."
A group of fifth years walked by the girls at that moment, heading into the Great Hall, but they were conversing loudly.
"Does anyone know who it is?" One of them was saying.
"No, no one can tell," the other one said. "It's too dark outside. But apparently he's just standing there."
"Right on the edge?" Another student said.
"Yep! I can't imagine why! Why would anyone want to stand all the way up there like that. Makes my legs shake just thinking about it."
"What are you talking about?" Lily interrupted them suddenly.
The fifth year Hufflepuffs looked at her in surprise. One of them finally answered. "There's a student up on the top of the astronomy tower. Everyone can see him from out in the yard just standing on the edge, but no one knows who it is or what he's doing. He's just standing there!"
Lily gasped.
"Someone should probably tell a professor or the Headmistress," one of the other students said.
Lily didn't wait to hear anything else though. She took off at a run, jumping the steps two at a time. She didn't stop running the entire way up to the Astronomy tower staircase. Her side ached, her breaths were coming in long gasps, but she didn't slow down. She shoved at the door to the tower, but it was locked. Without hesitating, she withdrew her wand, muttered "alohamora" and the door opened.
She closed the door behind her and locked it again, though she wasn't entirely sure why she thought to. At the top of the tower, she looked around. At first she thought she was too late. She panicked he had done something terrible, and tears slipped from her eyes unchecked.
"Scor!" She called out, as she circled the top of the tower.
"Lily?" His voice responded, quiet, and a little stiff.
She spotted him then, standing on one of the low embrasures of the tower's parapet walls.
"Scorpius!" She let out a breath but couldn't make herself move. "You're okay."
"How did you find me?" He asked.
"I've been looking for you all afternoon, you idiot," she said. Then she checked herself, realizing that anger may not be the best approach at the moment.
He balanced carefully, his back leaning against the high stone behind him, but she knew with one wrong step his body could pitch and he would fall from the tower with no hope of saving himself.
She took one step towards him, and as she moved forwards she noticed the ground was littered with papers. She picked one up and saw a rough pencil sketch of her face. It wasn't finished, but it was clearly her. She picked up two others and saw her half-finished face staring back at her again. Despite being incomplete, and slightly crumpled, she was shocked by their perfection, right down to the smattering of freckles across her nose and cheekbones. She had no idea Scorpius had a talent for drawing, but the sketches were flawless.
She forced her voice to take on a calm and sweet tone as she approached him again. "Scor…could you come down from there please?"
He didn't move.
"Scor, please…I want to talk to you…" she tried again.
"No you don't," he said, shaking his slightly shaggy blonde hair with his head back and forth. "You made that pretty clear earlier. You don't want anything to do with me."
"That's not true," she said, hoping her voice sounded as sincere as she felt at that moment. She hated herself for making him feel so hopeless. "Please come down."
He shook his head again and held up his left hand, which had been hidden from her until this point by the way he had it hanging over the edge of the parapet, halfway behind his body. Now she saw that his fingers were coiled around the neck of a bottle of firewhiskey. He tipped the bottle towards her, winked, and took a long drink.
"Scor, are you drunk?" She asked, trying to sound curious and not judgmental.
"Maybe," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
She sighed and chose her words carefully. "Umm…could I maybe have some then?" She held out her hand, hoping he'd take the bait.
"Yeah, sure," he said. He held it out towards her without moving from the parapet, then he laughed. "Come join me."
"What? No!" She said quickly. "I'm not going up there."
"Why not? Do you not want to be near me?" He asked.
"I don't want to fall off the wall!" She said. "In case you haven't noticed, I have bloody awful balance most of the time."
"Not on a broom," he said. "You're brilliant on a broom. I could watch you for hours."
Lily blushed, then shook her head. "No, you're right, I have good balance on a broom," she said. Thinking again, she tried a new tactic. "Would you like to go fly with me now?"
"Now?" He asked.
She nodded. "Yeah, it'll be…romantic," she said, hoping to sound convincing. "With the stars and everything."
Scorpius seemed to consider the offer.
"Please?" She said, taking another couple steps towards him, but being careful not to alarm him.
"I don't know," he said. "I don't think you really want to."
"I do," she said. "I promise, Scor. I really want to." She held out her hands towards him. "Please come down here."
He stared at her for a moment, seemed to consider her request, took another drink from the bottle, and finally nodded. She let out a breath as he stepped down from the edge of the wall onto the safe stone ground of the tower.
"Oh, Scor," she said, feeling more relieved than she had anticipated. Without hesitation or consideration, she moved towards him and threw her arms around his neck, standing on her tiptoes to reach and held him tightly. "I was so worried about you."
His body tensed briefly in surprise, but then he relaxed and wrapped his arms around her waist, returning the tight embrace. "You were?" He said.
She nodded into his shoulder. "I looked everywhere for you."
"I'm sorry," he said, his voice sounding sincere and concerned. "I didn't mean to worry you."
She continued to hold him for another moment. "I thought something terrible had happened."
"I'm really sorry," he said again. "I never want to make you sad."
He kissed the top of her head, and she finally pulled away, realizing she had let herself become unintentionally wrapped up in the moment and wasn't thinking entirely clearly.
"Okay," she said. "Before we go fly, let's get you some food. You've barely eaten today, and Merlin knows how much you've had to drink."
He teetered slightly.
She quickly gathered up all the papers that had been discarded on the floor. "Did you do all these?" She asked.
He nodded. "None of them were right," he said.
"They're amazing," she said.
"No, they weren't right," he said. "I couldn't get it right for you."
She folded the papers and slipped them into her bag. "I think they're wonderful."
He seemed ready to argue, but she took his hand and led him towards the was unsteady as they walked, tripping twice. She focused carefully on the dark steps they were going down, knowing that he was barely paying attention, and it was up to her to keep him safe. She knew she needed to get him down to the kitchens without anyone seeing him in his intoxicated state. Once in the kitchens she would need to find a way to make him eat, take the potion, and get him to bed, so this whole day could finally just be over.
They managed to make it all the way down to the kitchen without running into anyone familiar. By the time they made it to the dungeon level, Scorpius had become more than just a little unsteady. Lily slipped her head beneath his arm, feeling his weight on her immediately as he balanced himself.
"Come on, just a little bit further," she coaxed him on through the dungeon corridors towards the kitchens.
At the kitchens, Lily tickled the pear, pushed open the door, and led Scorpius inside. Elves scurried as they entered, not entirely unused to students entering the kitchens, but always slightly curious and jumpy with intrusions. Lily, however, had made herself quite acquainted with the kitchen elves during her initiation week, and even a few times since then, and now a couple of them approached her with polite head bows.
"Good evening, Miss Potter," one elf greeted. "How can we help you tonight?"
"Hi, Massie," Lily greeted the familiar elf. "I'm sorry for the unusual time. I know you're likely busy with dinner cleanup. We won't stay long."
"It's not a bother," Massie the elf assured her. "Come, take a seat, what can I get you?"
Lily took Scorpius to a small table in the back corner of the kitchen and helped him lower into one of the four chairs there. Lily then glanced around the kitchen to see what food was still left out on the long tables set beneath the Great Hall, which she knew magically transferred food up to the dining hall and then back down again for cleanup. Much had already been cleaned up, but she noticed some dishes remained still.
"I can just make a plate from what's left," Lily said, moving towards the long tables. "You don't have to serve me at all."
Massie looked prepared to argue, but Lily waved her off and picked up two clean plates and started filling them both with a variety of foods. She glanced back at Scorpius, noticed him still cradling the bottle of firewhisky, and started plotting how to get him to take the potion without an argument or anymore hurt feelings. She took two clean glasses from the table, balancing them in the crook of her left arm while carrying the two full plates back to Scorpius.
He looked up at her as she sat and she watched his face melt from an expression of concern and dismay to one of delight and relief.
"Scor, you alright?" She asked, slightly wary of his current mood and stability.
"Now that you're here," he said. "Just don't leave me okay?"
She knew the love potion's intensity was reaching dangerous levels and felt an urgency to reverse it. She just needed to get him to take the potion.
"I won't," she said, hoping her voice sounded sincere. "I promise."
"Oh!" He said suddenly. "I almost forgot."
"What?" She asked.
"I have something for you," he said.
"Oh?" She asked. "What is it?"
"I wanted to make sure you understood…"
"Understood what?" She asked.
"How much I love you," he said. "How serious I am about it."
"I do, Scor," she said. "I understand."
He shook his head. "No, you don't, but it's okay. I don't need you to feel the same," he said. "I realize that now. I can't force you to love me like I love you, but maybe in time…" he sighed. "I still want you to know that I'm serious though." Setting the whisky bottle down on the table, he reached into his pant's pocket and withdrew a long golden chain; he held it out to her, his eyes serious and eager.
"What's this?" She asked, not taking it immediately.
"It's for you," he said.
"You don't need to give me anything," she said, hesitating to take it.
"It's Valentine's Day," he said, as though it explained everything.
"I know, but you've already given me so much…" she said. "The rose, the sky writing…"
"I would give you the world if it were mine to give," he said.
Lily felt a sudden desire to laugh at the absurdity of his passion, but she knew that would not help her current mission, so instead she held out her hand and accepted the necklace that he was offering her. Holding it delicately, Lily inspected the gift and saw it was a pale gold heart, slightly smaller than a Sickle, but heavy enough for her to know it was solid. In the center of the heart was a small but flawless ruby. She felt her breath catch in her throat. It was beautiful, and for a moment she was overcome by the emotion of receiving such a gift, but she knew she couldn't accept it.
"Scor, it's lovely, but…" she started to object.
"Turn it around," he said.
She flipped the heart over and studied the backside. She gasped when she saw the inscription in minuscule but perfect script: "S + L".
"I sent out for it this morning," he said. "There's this jeweler my mum uses in London…" He shrugged as though it meant nothing, but Lily knew he must have paid a fair fortune to commission something so special in such a speedy time frame.
"Oh Scorpius…" she said, a little breathlessly, feeling overwhelmed by a mix of emotions she couldn't entirely explain at that moment.
"Do you like it?" He asked, his voice full of apprehension.
She couldn't find words to express what she was feeling, so she simply nodded, still holding the heart in her hand.
"Can I help?" He reached out, standing abruptly from the table. He stumbled slightly as he moved around the table towards her, but he took the necklace from her and unclasped it with surprising ease. With only a little hesitancy now, Lily gathered her long hair up and allowed him to clasp the chain around her slender neck. It hung low on her chest, just above the neckline of her shirt, but as it dropped against her chest, cold metal meshing with her warm skin, she felt strangely content; it felt right.
"Thank you," she said, her voice soft. "Truly. Thank you."
"You like it?" He asked.
"I do," she confirmed. "It's beautiful." She touched it tenderly and gave him a smile.
"It's perfect," he said, staring at it. "Just like you." He reached out to her and brushed a finger against her cheek.
Lily's breath caught momentarily. It's time. She decided firmly.
"Scor, would you mind getting me a cup of tea?" She asked, pointing towards the long tables.
As expected, he nodded and turned to do her bidding without complaint. When he had moved away from her, she quickly slipped the potion bottle from her pocket and poured its entire contents into one of the empty glasses she had retrieved earlier. Then she opened the bottle of whiskey and filled both of the glasses halfway.
He returned with her tea, tripping slightly as he set it down so that it spilled a little over the edge. "How do you take it?" He asked. "I didn't know what to add to it."
Since she didn't particularly care about the tea, she just smiled and motioned for him to sit. "This is good," she said. "I thought we should do a cheers though." She indicated the glass of whisky in front of him. "For Valentine's."
He lifted an eyebrow at the glass. "Yeah?"
She picked up the glass she had filled for herself and tipped it towards him, encouraging him to do the same. He grinned, lifted his glass, touched it to hers briefly and then downed it in one long swallow. She took a small sip of hers, then set it down still mostly full, realizing that she had no interest in actually having a glass of firewhisky.
"Scor," she said slowly, wondering how long it would take for the potion to take effect. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry if I've been rude today. You have been so kind and good to me today, and I've been fairly rotten."
"Not at all," he said quickly. "You're always perfect."
She smiled despite herself. "You're too nice to me."
He reached across the table and took her hand. She let him hold it, knowing that there wouldn't be much more time now. He yawned once, then shook his head.
"Let's finish eating," she encouraged, seeing that he had only taken a couple bites of his dinner.
He ate with his free hand, while still holding hers. And when she was satisfied he had enough to make the potion work without negative side effects, she stood. He yawned again.
"Feeling tired?" She asked.
He shook his head. "No, let's go fly like we planned."
She shrugged. "Or we could go back to the room."
"No, we were going to fly under the stars," he said.
"I know, but it's been a long day," she said. "I'm a little tired too. How about we fly tomorrow night?"
He considered for a minute, then nodded. He yawned again.
"Come on, we can go sit in front of the fire for a bit," she said.
He nodded and held her hand as they headed out of the kitchen. He teetered again, and she once again slipped his arm around her shoulders to stabilize him. As they walked slowly down the stone halls towards the common room, she felt his body growing heavier on her, and she knew he was growing more tired. As they rounded the last corner before their rooms, however, they encountered a couple snogging in the shadows of the dark corridor, much like Lily had found Regina with that Gryffindor boy that one night a few weeks back.
"Oh Merlin," Lily gasped, surprised by the unexpected encounter.
At the sound, the tall boy glanced over his shoulder, and Lily gasped again when she realized it was Payne. She blushed instantly, both embarrassed for having interrupted, and being caught in this awkward situation with Scorpius, who was all but hanging around her now, his arm draped about her shoulders, his head resting on hers. The girl wasn't obvious in the shadows, but Lily guessed it might be Regina.
"Hiya, Potter," Payne said. He squinted slightly. "Malfoy? Alright there?"
"Yeah, he's good, just had a bit too much fun today…" she said carefully.
The girl glanced around Payne's shoulder, smiling and pushing her dark red hair out of her face. "Hey Lils," she said calmly.
"Lucy?" Lily gasped when she recognized her fifth year cousin.
Lucy Weasley stepped out from behind Payne, fixing the straps of her short red dress, and smoothing out her mussed hair. She smiled without a hint of embarrassment.
"I didn't know you and Payne…" Lily started, but wasn't entirely sure what to say. She was too surprised to see her cousin with her captain like this. "Knew each other…" she finished.
Lucy gave a slight laugh and shrugged. "Yeah, we know each other a bit."
Payne smirked and slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her close to himself.
"We didn't mean to interrupt," Lily said. "We'll go…"
"You need any help with him?" Payne asked, nodding towards Scorpius.
"No, I'm fine, I've got it," Lily said.
Lily started walking again, Scorpius walking along with her, nearly dragging his feet now. She was struggling under his weight, but she forced herself to keep going to get away from the awkwardness of seeing Payne and Lucy together. At the door to their common room, she glanced back and watched as Lucy looped her arm around Payne's neck and pulled his lips back down to hers. In a moment, he had he back up against the wall again. Lily shut her eyes, trying to block the image from her mind, and spoke the password to enter the room.
She was relieved to see the common room fairly empty. Only a couple older students remained, huddled in corners, enjoying the final moments of Valentine's together. She directed Scorpius to the couch in front of the fire and let his body drop there.
"Scor, you need to get to bed," she said.
"No, no, stay with me," he said. He tugged on her arm and she sat beside him.
"It's late," she said. "I'm tired, and I know you are too."
"I don't want to leave you," he said. He was leaning back against the side of the couch, unable to fully sit up, but he reached out and pulled on her arm; she fell against him and he held her against his chest.
"Scor…" she yelped slightly in surprise.
"Please stay with me for a little while," he said, readjusting himself slightly so she was more comfortably cradled against his body.
"It's late," she said again, hoping no one would walk by and see them there together. "I'm really quite tired."
"I just want to be with you," he said, mumbling into her hair.
"Let's get some sleep," she said, "and tomorrow we can spend the whole day together."
"Promise?" He asked.
"I promise," she said. "I'll meet you right here first thing in the morning." She pushed away from him and he released her slowly. "Come on, you've got to get to bed." She knew if he would just sleep, the reversal potion would do its job. She tugged on his arm, but he only made a meager effort to stand. "Please, go to bed."
"I'll just sleep here," he said.
"No, you need to go to bed and get real sleep," she said. "Come on." She tugged on his arm again.
The door opened and she spotted Finn entering the room.
"Finn!" Lily called out to him quickly.
He headed towards them.
"Hey, what's up?" He glanced down to the couch where Scorpius was already half asleep.
"Can you help, please?" She asked. "Scorpius got into some firewhisky and he's completely gone. Could you help him get to his bed?"
Finn smirked, but nodded. "Yeah, alright."
"Thank you!" She said. Then leaning down close to Scorpius' ear, she whispered: "I'll see you in the morning, Scor. Get some rest."
He mumbled a response that no one could hear, and Finn hoisted him to his feet, slinging his arm over his shoulders.
"Night, Lily," Finn said.
"Goodnight, Finn," she said, smiling. "Thanks again for helping."
He nodded and half carried Scorpius off towards the boys' corridor. Lily took a moment to stand alone by the fireplace, basking in the comfort of its warmth as she reflected over the trials of her day. She felt overwhelmed by all the emotions she had felt throughout the day and the stress of dealing with Scorpius' obsession.
It'll work, she assured herself. Tomorrow everything will be back to normal.
She headed to her room, relieved it was all over, and eager to sleep the day away and wake up to a normal Scorpius in the morning. As she walked, however, the necklace clinked against her skin, and she couldn't stop herself from smiling at the feel of it hanging there.
A/N: Next chapter will pick up directly in the morning, so you'll get to see all the aftermath. I was going to include it here, but I wanted to separate the scenes. Again, not trying to beg, but please review! Let me know what you think. XOXO