A/N: Please review!

I'm terrible at naming stories, so…sorry in advance!

I don't own anything.

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Scorpius was thankful for the distraction and the mess of the Scottish Highlands, that next day. He had thought he'd done rather well when he had seen Rose unexpectedly, but it was still disconcerting that she could affect him like that after so many years. He told himself it was only because he hadn't expected her to show up at his bar.

He hoped she didn't tell anyone about it. He rather liked having a place where he wouldn't run into someone he knew.

"It is rather pretty out here," Catriona said softly to him as they walked quietly through the old growth forest, "peaceful and calm."

Scorpius looked up at the canopy, "Don't let Wally hear you say that, he's a city boy through and through. Are you from the country, Cait?"

She sighed, "Born in Cork, but when mum and dad split up she moved us to York with her aunt. Only been back a few times. I miss it. You, sir?"

"Enough with the sir," he struggled to not roll his eyes, "you know I bloody hate it, I'm not your senior."

"Why'd ya think I do it, sir?"

He nearly growled, "I frequented the Potter's home quite a bit during school," Scorpius shrugged. "As a boy dad took us to Dorset a lot, to the beach."

"Oh, how lovely," Catriona maneuvered around a mossy boulder, "I forgot you knew Auror Potter before."

Scorpius watched her from the corner of his eye as an idea hit him, "Best mates with Albus. Have you met him?"

"Knew him in passing at school, I was a year ahead of Lily."

"That's right, of course," Scorpius filed this information away so he could chat with Lily later. Albus broke up with his last girlfriend over a year ago and Lily and Scorpius were determined to find him someone.

"Do you think we'll ever find this, whatever the bloody hell it is, sir?"

Scorpius sighed, "I bloody well hope so –" he looked up to see sparks, "well looks like Wally's found something."

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"A baby dragon?" Harry rubbed his eyes before putting his glasses back on his head. "Won it in a pub, did he?"

Scorpius was surprised, "And subsequently lost it, yessir. They assured us they'd be sending it to Romania immediately. How did –"

"Hagrid," he chuckled, "my first year. Have Millie write to him, will you? Might be a ring we'll need to bust, as they say."

Scorpius nodded, "Would be a bloody old ring," he coughed, "not calling you old, sir."

Harry laughed, "Call your team in once they clean up. Reports all written?"

"Yessir," he stuck his head out the door, "team!"

Harry let out a sigh but didn't reprimand him. Scorpius was one of his best Aurors and could command his fellow Aurors, regardless of their rank. He had high hopes for the young man.

"Well done," Harry smiled at the team, "I know that was not an ideal mission, but I have a feeling might lead to a larger illegal magical creatures ring. The Minister will be pleased that there is no longer a rogue dragon in the Highlands." He nodded at Scorpius and Walter, "You two put together a good team. I'd like to see you lot work together on these sort of things more."

Walter grinned, "I'll speak for everyone, sir, if we could survive the bloody mud in the country, we'll work well together anywhere."

Fiona shoved Walter and Harry bit back a laugh. "All right, go to the pub, you deserve it. See you tomorrow."

They were leaving Harry's office when Lily came bounding in, her long, dark red hair in a high ponytail whipping behind her. "Hiya, pops," she grinned at her dad and slugged Scorpius on the arm, "hiya, Score."

"Hullo, Lils," Harry smiled, "nice to see you."

"Lils," Scorpius met her eyes and slowly brought them to Catriona, "you remember Catriona Bishop?"

Lily smiled widely, her brown eyes darting to Scorpius quickly, "Yes, of course, how are you? Catriona was a year ahead of me in Gryffindor, pops."

"So nice to see you, Lily. I follow you in Quidditch. Bloody well done."

"Oh, I like her," Lily laughed.

"We're going for drinks, Lils, been a long couple of days, you know," Scorpius arched an eyebrow slightly, "you should come –"

"Oh, yes, invite Albus, James, and the lads," Harry said, winking at Scorpius, "they need a night away from Quidditch players."

Lily bit back a laugh at the look on Scorpius' face, "Will do. Ceol's, right?" She smiled at Catriona, "See you there. Bye pops, see you for lunch tomorrow," she called as she walked out.

"Oh, bollocks –"

"Why I cam to remind you!" She winked at Scorpius.

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Scorpius handed Lily a pint after they had introduced Catriona and Albus, "I can't believe your dad could see through me."

She laughed, "He is the Head Auror."

"I know, but bloody still –"

"He's seen us talk without talking before, Score," she pressed her lips together to keep from smiling.

"Are you wearing lipstick?" Scorpius said in a rushed voice before looking around, "Are you trying to impress someone?"

She punched his arm, "Am I not allowed to wear make-up now?" She put her head in her free hand, "You're making it into such a big deal," she whined quietly.

Roxanne slung her arm around her taller cousin and best friend, "Finally got her to wear lipstick," Roxanne grinned at Scorpius, her own lips a dark purple, her dark brown eyes outlined in black. "Doesn't she look beautiful, Scorpie?"

He groaned, "I bloody hate when you call me that."

"Not sure why," she flashed an evil smile as she handed him her pint so she could put her dark brown twists into a hair tie. "Now, that Fiona girl –"

He shook his head, "Not sure, hasn't said, haven't asked."

Roxanne nodded, "Need to find out, don't we?" She turned to Lily, "How do I look?"

"Perfect as always," Lily shook her head and laughed.

She winked at them, "Wish me luck."

"Luck," Scorpius called after her and turned back to Lily. "Who are you trying to impress?"

Lily laughed, "Bloody relentless," she patted his arm. "No one, pet, don't be jealous," she batted her eyelashes playfully. "Looks like Albus and Catriona are getting on."

"Don't know why I didn't think of it before, truthfully," he sipped his pint, "she's a good sort."

"I remember her being very kind at school," Lily smiled, "not hotheaded."

"No, very levelheaded, even at work," he agreed. "Albus better bloody ask her on a proper date."

"Malfoy! Where's my story?" Scorpius grimaced, causing Lily to laugh before turning around.

"Not my story to tell, Thomasin, you know that. You'll have to contact the office –"

Thomasin frowned, "You're a disappointment, Malfoy."

"That's what we're always telling him," James and Fred were suddenly on either side of him.

Fred put a hand on Scorpius' shoulder. "It's a shame, really, that he hasn't realized yet –"

"So glad you're here to remind him –"

"Thomasin Carter," she smirked at the pair, "Daily Prophet."

"You look familiar," Fred started.

"But you don't report on Quidditch, so –"

"That's all we care about –"

"She's mates with Rose," Lily interjected, "and she's written about dad before."

James and Fred both clapped Scorpius on the chest causing him to wince slightly, "Of course –"

"Thomasin, of bloody course –"

"Can I buy you a drink?" Fred bowed slightly and Thomasin arched an eyebrow and agreed before glaring at Scorpius.

Lily shook her head, "I can never tell who's wingmanning who."

James grinned and patted his sister on top of the head, "That's the point." He nodded at Albus, "You two?"

"And pops too, actually."

James let out a low whistle, "What about you, Lils? Who's the lipstick for?"

She huffed, "Godric you too? It's for myself!"

Scorpius laughed, "I always forget you're not as daft as you pretend to be, Potter."

James bowed deeply, "The highest of compliments."

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Scorpius was still chatting with Lily and James, watching Albus chat up Catriona nd watching Roxanne flirt with Fiona, "Well, that's brils," he had grinned at Lily when Rose walked in.

Thomasin saw her first, letting out a squeal that made Lily cringe, as Thomasin left Fred and flew towards her friend, "You bloody came, you little minx, you didn't say!"

Scorpius didn't hear Roses' response but he watched the taller girl lean down to pull Thomasin into a firm hug, a large smile on her golden-brown face.

He felt Lily's eyes on him and he pulled his own slate grey eyes away from Rose. He merely arched an eyebrow at Lily. "Oh, pet," she whispered slightly so James wouldn't hear.

He didn't want to know what she meant by that.

"Bloody hell, Rose is back?" James was bewildered.

Scorpius let out a genuine laugh, "Someone had to have told you, mate!"

Lily rolled her eyes and smacked the back of her brother's head, "I bloody told you!"

He rubbed the back of his head and glared at her, "Godric, didn't need to do that."

Scorpius turned to see Albus greeting Rose warmly and soon she was being passed around everyone until she was standing in front of him giving Lily a hug. Her stell blue eyes held his gaze for a moment until she released Lily and took her hands, "Odin, have you gotten taller, Lils?"

Lily smiled wickedly, "Or have you gotten shorter?"

Scorpius tried not to let his eyes graze over her body but he couldn't help it. Her dark brown hair was down in loose waves, streaks of mahogany and amber visible in the brighter lights of the pub. She was wearing Muggle clothes again, this time a canary-yellow blouse that made her skin look more golden and –

He pulled his eyes away as she turned to James, "Jamie, you seem rather surprised to see me," her voice was soft and teasing.

"Yea, well no one bloody told me, did they?"

Rose let out a deep, loud laugh that made Scorpius' lips twitch. It had been a long time since he had heard that laugh…

"I know someone told you Jamie. Mum said she told Aunt Ginny –"

"I told him," Lily shook her head, "clearly he didn't listen and understand."

Rose turned to Scorpius with a slight smirk, "Nice to see you, Malfoy."

His smirk matched hers, "It's been since, what, Christmas –"

"Three years passed?" She finished for him as her smile grew slightly. "Mum reckons your Uncle Harry's favorite Auror –"

James put his arm around him, "Course he is, Scorpie here is the best Auror around, and he's like another kid to good ol' da –"

"Oi, I taught Malfoy everything he knows," Walter interjected with a dramatic glare at James. "Walter MacDonald," he stuck out his hand for Rose to shake.

"Rose Weasley," she flashed him a genuine smile, "you don't seem old enough to have taught Malfoy everything he knows."

"That's because he's not," Scorpius interjected quickly. "He's my partner and apparently a wee bit jealous of –"

"Your hair –" Walter piped in.

"Your charm –" Lily added.

"Your family name!" James offered before Scorpius raised his hand to quiet them, missing a flash of jealousy in Rose's eye.

"He's just generally jealous of me," Scorpius laughed and clapped him on the shoulder, "aren't you, Wally?"

Walter smiled lovingly at Scorpius and batted his eyelashes, "That's because I just love you so bloody much." He turned back to Rose as Lily and James laughed at Scorpius' now slightly pink cheeks, "All right, Weasley, you're back in London, what for? Last I heard, you were a hot shot Healer or Muggle Doctor in Stockholm?"

Scorpius was pleased to see Roses' cheeks were now slightly flushed, "My mum going around bragging?"

"Your dad, actually," Scorpius laughed, "comes and visits Head Auror Potter and brags about you –"

"Minister Granger-Weasley is nothing but professional," Walter flashed Rose a winning smile.

"I've got a position at St. Mungo's," Rose started, "bloody hell I need a pint –"

Scorpius nodded, "Round for you all?" Lily, James, and Walter grinned.

"How lovely, thank you. Scorpius –"

"Bloody hell," he muttered as walked away. He couldn't hear what Rose was saying but he already knew why Rose had gone to Stockholm. Why she was back, however –

"Who's that bird?" The bartender asked, "Not a Quidditch player –"

"No, she's a Weasley –"

The bartender laughed, "Of course she is, should have guessed."

"When in doubt and all that," Scorpius smiled and took the beers.

Rose was laughing at something Walter had said when Scorpius returned with the pints. He arched an eyebrow at Lily but she merely hid her smile behind her pint. "Weasley here was just telling us about her new position at St. Mungo's," Walter said to Scorpius. "She'll be a Healer at nearly every level."

"Impressive," Scorpius nodded at her.

"I want to hear everything about Sweden," Lily gushed.

"Maybe I'll finally visit," her brown eyes widened, "oh! If you're less busy at St. Mungo's –"

"Rather rude," James muttered.

"A bit presumptuous," Scorpius agreed and he saw Rose's mouth twitch out of the corner of his eye.

"You know what I mean," Lily mumbled before continuing, "and you want to visit friends, maybe Roxanne and I could visit, during the off-season, you could show us the sights."

Rose smiled slightly, "That's a good idea, Lils –"

"Oi, I want to come too," James pouted, "I bet Fred will too. And Albie and you, Scorpie –"

"Oh, much too busy –"

"Oh! The whole family!" Lily stood on her toes excitedly.

"I'm not sure," Rose started but stopped when Scorpius turned towards her and met his eyes.

Now that was strange.

Lily noticed too and her face fell slightly as she put her hand on Scorpius arm and opened her mouth to speak. Scorpius wasn't sure what she was going to say, but he shook his head slightly and Lily's mouth closed.

The awkward moment passed and Albus had rejoined them, pulling Rose's attention away briefly. Lily whispered out of the corner of her mouth, "What was that?"

"Not sure," he whispered back, "but I don't think," he hesitated.

She put her hand on his arm and squeezed slightly, "You're a part of this family, Score, you know that."

Scorpius could feel Rose's eyes on him and when he looked up something flashed across her eyes before she turned back to Albus.

"Well I don't know if everyone likes that."

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Post-Hogwarts

"Is that a cigarette, Petal?"

Rose was too surprised to reprimand him for that nickname she despised with every fiber of her being. "Oh," she managed as she looked up at him from her seat on the bench, "isn't this what people do?"

"Hold and stare at a cigarette, no, I don't believe so," his voice was light but his slate grey eyes showed his real concern. "Are you going to smoke it? I mean, you're a Healer –"

"I hadn't really thought it through," she tried to appear nonchalant and carefree but there was a slight edge to her voice. "I bummed it off a Muggle –"

"Petal," he sat down on the bench next to her, "What's going on?"

"I hate that name," she muttered crossly but he ignored her and took the cigarette from her hand to light it with his wand. "What are you –"

He offered it to her but she just stared at him in disbelief.

He slowly took a drag off the cigarette, looking out in front of him to release the smoke. "I've had a few fags in my time," he explained, "James nicked a pack once, my Muggle neighbors," he smiled as he looked at her sideways. "Not that many, you don't need to judge me too harshly."

"I – I wasn't," she continued to watch him as he took a second drag, "I bummed it after all."

"Do you want to try it?" He asked hesitantly. "You still haven't said why you bummed it, Petal."

She gritted her teeth and looked up at the grey sky, pulling her arms closer to her body, "Just one of those days."

He frowned, "I'm going to put this out unless you want it. I'd like to keep my lungs pink."

"Don't want it," she shook her head slightly, some of her brown twists falling in front of her face.

"That one's quite red," Scorpius nodded at one of the fallen twists.

"Just the way the light's hitting it," she shrugged before meeting his eyes, the cigarette floating to a bin.

"Must have been a very bad day to require a cigarette," he pointed out.

"Week, more like," she saw him arched an eyebrow, "month, I suppose."

"Fancy a drink?"

"I really don't want to see anyone, why I chose this bench," she mumbled.

"I know a place," he smiled and stood, "come on. You won't run into anyone." She gave him a look. "It's quite safe, Petal," he laughed lightly, "but you can't tell a soul, clear? I don't want anyone to know."

She still looked hesitant but finally stood, "What's the harm? Could use a pint."

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A/N: Please review! More to come!