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Chapter Eight: Jailhouse Rock (Elvis Presley)

A strong hand gripped 'Manda's arm, pulling her backwards as she tried to make her way down the hall. For a moment, she tensed in anticipation of an attack but was even less excited to see Elle standing inches from her. The thin yet curvy girl had her fists planted on her hips and a weary scowl plastered to her pretty face. "What the hell are you doing? I swear you have lost your mind."

Even with her voice dropped to a whisper, Elle's comment caused 'Manda to flinch. She had been dreading the moment that her best friend would find her, not wanting to cause any more confrontation than she already had. So instead of answering, the taller of the two girls shrugged and looked away.

"That's not good enough. You swore that you wouldn't tell anyone. And then you go and out yourself to the entire school? Roland and Scorpius are Headmaster Weasley's office right now because you caused a stir in the way things are." Elle was watching the flow of student's surrounding them in the crowded hallway, looking for any sign of the two delinquent boys.

Jerking back at the mention of her secret promise to Elle, 'Manda made her way to lean against the cold window overlooking the snow covered courtyard in the center of the school. She understood that she was the reason Scorpius and Roland had started the fight, but how could Elle expect her to keep such a big part of her life secret.

Actually, the answer was completely clear. If someone had the desire to look farther into 'Manda's sudden realization that she was a lesbian, they would quickly see the strange connection that the two girls had always had. Just as she was opening her mouth to apologize for putting Elle's reputation in jeopardy, Lily and Hugo joined them in the slowly thinning hallway.

"What happened to Scorpius and Roland? I had to ask a second year what was going on with everyone, only to find out that they're in Percy's office because of a fight?" Lily spoke first, swiftly getting to the point without a frantic interruption from Hugo. "'Manda, what's wrong?"

Shrugging yet again, the dark haired girl peeked at Elle from under her bangs and wasn't surprised to see that the previous scowl was still present. Lead filled her chest, keeping her from breathing, as the horrible possibility of losing her best friend coursed through her like a poison. Should she have kept quiet about her true identity or was the repercussions just too much to take at the moment?

Elle shook her head in answer to Lily's question. "She's just upset, because she's the reason the fight happened." As if she could feel how much this hurt the dark haired girl, she quickly backtracked. "It's not true though. Scorpius and Roland had been walking down the hallway when someone shoved 'Manda and called her a- I'd rather not repeat it. Some cocky sixth year had decided to turn it into an all-over homophobic comment fest, which didn't sit well with either of them as you can well imagine.

"I just barely saw Scorpius move and then the entire section of the hall burst into a fight zone. Roland's nose was broken but I think they can fix it fairly easily." She spoke this quickly, so as to not concern Hugo more, then turned to speak directly to Lily again. "I didn't see anything wrong with Scorpius, but everything was moving so fast, I can't be sure."

Breaking into loud sobs, Hugo's knees gave out and he was quickly pulled against his cousin's side. "He promised that he wasn't going to do anything to get himself kicked out of school. How are we supposed to be together now?"

The words were broken by tear-filled cries, but Lily heard them perfectly. A sudden fear tore through her body, almost dropping her to her knees along with her cousin. It was then, in the hallway, that the redhead gave up on trying to maintain the strength to stay away from Scorpius. Making a secret pact to herself, she decided that the very next time they saw each other, she would express them to him.

Well, maybe not the very next time.


Loud chattering filled Percy's office, making his headache grow as the group of witches and wizards filed in. When Lily Potter closed the door with a final thud, the room went silent. Percy scanned the overcrowded room, connecting eyes with his own family in the silence. "I have called this- meeting in order to take present some of the recent events openly."

Ginny and Harry Potter stood with their three children, even James had been called to the meeting. Draco Malfoy was present on the other side of the room, one hand on Scorpius and Roland's shoulder. Astoria Malfoy, originally Astoria Greengrass, hid in the corner of the room. Sandwiched between the two families, Ronald and Hermione Weasley held to Hugo and Rose's shoulders.

Standing silently to the side of her unhappy, generic parents, Elle reached out to hold her best friend's hand. It surprised 'Manda that the smaller girl had the guts to do so given the circumstances, but she didn't pull away. Her father hadn't been able to get to the meeting, but she wasn't the only one standing without a parent.

Along with Roland and 'Manda, Cherry was left to face the accusations of the Headmaster alone. They had all rushed to make her sit in a chair, treating her as though she was too fragile to do anything. Forcing her face to stay blank, the blonde stared at the wall as she waited for the yelling to begin.

"I suppose I'll just get on with it. Many of you are family members, though a few are enemies, but I won't pretend as if there will be a differing in treatments between all of you. Throughout this year the children in this room have caused more problems than the rest of the school combined." Percy looked directly at the two Slytherin boys, their weight shifting from foot to foot as they tried to avoid his gaze. "It is most certainly not in my job description to do as such, but I feel as though I must bring some things out into the open.

"Let's begin with the most obvious, Mr. Malfoy and his- Cherry are going to be having a child in the near future." Scorpius flinched, waiting for the surprise to fill his parents that never came. It was as if they didn't care about what happened in his life. Percy, who had been waiting for the shock as well, continued. "Although it isn't the most professional way of putting this, it needs to be brought to attention that this young woman has no family to run to.

"Marnie, her younger sister, lives in a girl's home in London but is merely fifteen. So I suggest the young parents find an arrangement for the time when they will not be at school. Scorpius will be graduating, possibly, and will not be able to reside at Hogwarts anymore."

Turning to look at his father's stony face, Scorpius' stomach dropped. The man before him refused to acknowledge his own son's existence, much less aid him in the raising of a new life. After all, the seventeen year old himself had been raised by the Manor's staff. Tears stung at his eyes as he turned away from his parents, extremely aware of the quick opening and shutting of the door, leaving the area behind him empty.

Lily stared at the tall blonde in shock before crossing the room to stand next to him, slipping her small hand in his. Stepping forward to join his best friend, Roland clasped him on the shoulder. Both the brunette and redhead were thinking the same thing. How selfish could his parents be? To leave him alone at a time like this seemed to be the ultimate betrayal.

Continuing on in his lecture, Percy turned to speak directly at 'Manda. "Now we need to discuss the newest discrepancy. Miss Thompson made quite a spectacle of her recent sexuality realization. Due to the immaturity of a particular sixth year, an extremely large fight broke out in the corridor. Luckily, no one was hurt beyond magic's ability to repair, but it was still uncalled for."

"Now wait just a minute, do you mean to tell me that my daughter has been staying in the same room with a lesbian for the last five years?" The question boomed through the silent room, coming from Elle's father open mouth. "I simply do not find that safe or acceptable."

Pulling her chin into her chin, 'Manda let go of Elle's hand as she listened to the acidic words. Had she known that the choice would provide so much backlash, the announcement never would have been made. But it was too late for that now and she watched in horror as Elle was yanked away from her. As if to add to the tall girl's pain, her best friend stayed completely silent, not admitting to the huge part she had secretly played in the realization.

As the family of three exited the room, the meeting wound down to an unhappy end. Lily and Hugo immediately embraced a quietly sobbing 'Manda, neither asking questions for the sake of their best friend's sanity.

James stepped forward to grasp Scorpius' shoulder, pulling him away from the group to speak to the younger boy. "Don't fret over your situation. Even though you aren't my favorite person in the world, I'm willing to help you. Give me time."

But what could the young adult possibly do to fix the damage that kept growing as the days passed?


Wiping his arm across his sweaty forehead, Roland jumped down from the fourth rung of the tall ladder. After the intervention, Percy had released what his punishment for instigating the fight would be. Scorpius had luckily been allowed the same punishment, so they worked side by side as they cleaned the shelves of trophies. Filch had left them in the room alone, giving them the privacy to speak freely in order to pass the time.

Their conversation had gone silent an hour prior however, leaving the tall room in eerie silence. Roland listened as soft humming escaped his best friend's lips, happy for the distraction from the constant circular motion of his hands. Although it wasn't the hardest punishment to complete, the dullness made it the most boring.

A sudden rasp of knuckles on the doorjamb made both boys turn, leaving them both shocked as Lily stepped from the hallway into the well-lit room. Before either of them could say anything, a soft smile played across her lips and she leaned against the wall. "Well this looks exciting. Maybe they figured they could kill you with boredom rather than a curse. It seems to be less humane though."

Scorpius dropped to the floor beside Roland, his eyes grazing the redhead's body as she tried to admit cool indifference. Attempting to do the same, he crossed the room slowly and pinned her to the wall with one of his hands against the wall next to her head. Taking this as his cue to leave, Roland threw his polishing cloth behind his head as he escaped out into the dark hallway.

Letting a cocky smirk slide into place, Scorpius ran his free hand through his shaggy locks. "Does that mean that you've come to entertain me?" Her face falling at the blatant sexual taunt, Lily shifted her gaze to the floor. She still wasn't comfortable with the idea of being so close to Scorpius, but the fact that she hadn't pushed him away yet was a definite improvement. As if he could sense the words residing on the tip of her tongue, the tall blonde tipped her chin up to force his gaze to connect with hers. "You can tell me anything, Lily. I won't even say anything back if you don't want me to."

"I have a feeling that I'll regret it, but I can't force myself to hold things inside anymore. Nothing will change, I'm sure, but-" Inhaling deeply, Lily let herself relax as his hand slid down the wall to grasp hers. "This is so wrong, you know. Cherry's about to have your baby and you've burned me too many times for me to trust you completely. But I'd be lying if I told you that losing you doesn't kill me. I still love you, maybe even more now, though that doesn't make much sense. Anyone in their right mind would think that I'm crazy but-"

Pressing his lips against hers, Scorpius pulled the redhead against him as he poured as much passion into the kiss as he could muster. There was only a slight hesitation on Lily's part, but then the kiss was deepened considerably. When they finally pulled away, an ecstatic grin was plastered to the blonde's face. "You really shouldn't talk so much. Actions speak louder than words."

Suddenly, Lily couldn't find any words worthy of speaking. Feelings of safety surrounded her as she let her head fall against his chest, but the lingering guilt flowed through her like a virus. It wasn't right to put her happiness before a child's.

"Eventually, you need to make yourself happy. Even if that means putting yourself first once in a while." Scorpius whispered into her hair as they stood together, pressed up against the wall of the trophy room. And, as always, she knew he was right.


"Absolutely not." Harry crossed his arms across his chest, continuing his stare-down with his eldest son. James had proposed the idea that everyone, including Scorpius, Roland, and Cherry, should visit his winter cottage for Christmas break. The idea wasn't going over well with his father, who didn't trust the Slytherins any farther than he could throw them. "Not only have all the teenagers proved to be untrustworthy, but we already have one pregnant girl on our hands. We don't need another."

Scoffing as she flopped down next to her mother on the stone bench where the parents had been gathered, Lily leaned forward with her elbows rested on her knees. "After everything that's happened, no one wants to even have sex because of what might happen. Besides, who's going to get pregnant? 'Manda's a lesbian, Elle is with James so that would be rape, I'm definitely not dating anyone, and Cherry is already pregnant. Unless you're worried about Hugo-"

Flinging out to smack his cousin on the shoulder, the thin boy leaned against the wall to help argue the decision. "I think it's a good idea. None of them have parents and, like it or not, we're all tied to each other. By what James has been saying, there will be plenty of room for us all to visit. And the house will be crawling with mood-crushing parents, so no sex for any of us."

Ron physically twitched at the prospect, immediately reaching out to grab his wife's hand. Seeing this, Harry's need to argue intensified. "Was it not weeks ago that you wanted nothing to do with Scorpius? Why the sudden change of heart, Lily? And if you are even considering forgiving that boy, so help me god-"

"Oh hush, Harry." Ginny cried exasperatedly, turning to speak directly to her eldest son. "Although I find it very mature and sweet of you to want to help these people, James, it doesn't seem like the best idea. We're such a large, dramatic family anyway, we really shouldn't add to it."

Setting his jaw in determination, James stood his ground. "These are mere children. They may not be ready to have this child, but it would be wrong to leave them to struggle alone. Now you can either support me on this, or I will help them myself. As the due date grows closer, Cherry and their daughter will need things. I'm not asking for you to help with the financial aspect, I'm more than capable of that, but you're the best parents I know. Wouldn't you want someone to help if one of us were left alone?"

A shocked silence filled the group, but eventually a loud sigh left Harry's lips. "Fine, but there will be rules. A lot of rules."

Lily turned to see the three Slytherins enter the hallway, a smile spreading across her face as her eyes connected with Scorpius'. Things were turning up. Finally.


Cottage seemed to be a cruel joke when James had described the home he had bought with his first pay check. The home stood four stories high, spreading out across a field of white powder so far that one had to turn their head in order to see the length of it. Inside the warmth of the home was just as glorious, well-designed and large enough to house double the amount of people that stood in the front corridor.

"My goodness, James. What could you possibly need all this room for?" Ginny forced a scowl onto her face, even though she was secretly envious of the large kitchen that she now stood in.

As the group of teenagers and parents dispersed to claim the bedrooms in the upper floors, Elle reached out to drag 'Manda out the back door before her parents could separate them yet again. Pulling her chocolate brown pea-coat closer to her body, the blonde let her eyes rise to meet 'Manda's. "I'm sorry about my father. Actually, I'm sorry that I didn't stick up for you when I should have. But you know that I couldn't exactly tell the truth."

Here it was, the moment that 'Manda had been waiting for. The taboo conversation was about to take place and her stomach was doing back flips in anticipation. "I'm not mad, Elle. Just- Do you really think what we did was wrong? Because I don't regret it at all, even if you do."

"Of course not." Elle spoke quickly, reaching forward to grab her best friend's hands. "But I'm happy with James and I don't want to risk ruining anything with him."

Shaking her black hair in front of her face to hide her disappointment, 'Manda sighed. "That's all I needed to know. I'll leave you alone about it."

Just as the door was inches from closing behind her, 'Manda heard whispered words flowing from Elle's lips. "If things were different, we'd be together. But I love you too much to hurt you with lies." With a final thud, the girls were separated from each other yet again.

"You already have."


"Take a seat, brother." James said as he settled into a large armchair in his study, his father and Scorpius following his lead. "Not to ruin the holiday mood, but we have some unfinished business. I thought we were clear what would happen if you hurt Lily, though I'm starting to doubt your intelligence. See, if I had been in your position, I would have watched my step."

Bracing his legs to spring out of danger at any moment, Scorpius shook his head vigorously. "Obviously, it was a stupid decision. But I really don't think it justifies violence. My face is already in bad condition, no need to damage it any more."

Harry chuckled softly, relaxing in his seat. "Behave, James. Listen, son, I don't have any particular need to punish you more than you already have been. You have a good heart, whether you follow it enough or not, but it is possible to rise above your programming and prove us all wrong. Unfortunately, James has a growing urge to hit you that I don't plan on arguing with."

Smiling insanely at the blonde, James cracked his knuckles. "Let me get one good blow to that pretty face of yours and it'll all be over. Then everyone can enjoy the rest of the break like nothing happened. Sound like a plan?"

To both James and Harry's surprise, Scorpius nodded and rose to his feet. "Get it over with. But I will tell you that I haven't given up on Lily, and she's definitely not over me. Punch me as many times as you need in order to justify that."

"You bet I will." Rising to his feet, the brunette grabbed a hold of the Slytherin's T-shirt. But as the two men stood looking at each other, the sudden urge to punch something receded, leaving James trembling in frustration. Shoving Scorpius away, he glared down at the boy sprawled across the floor. "Congratulations, Malfoy. You're officially a man."


Leaning back in his seat at the table, Scorpius caught eyes with the gorgeous redhead sitting across from him and grinned. They hadn't had been able to speak in private since arriving in the cottage a week prior, only able to share secrete glances in passing. It was now Christmas Eve and, due to the amount of teenagers without parents in the house, it had been decided that gifts weren't necessary on the actual holiday.

Clearing his throat as the feast came to a close, James stood at the head of the table. "I'm really pleased that we were able to have such a good week so far. Thank you, everyone, for being so civil under these circumstances. Now, I have a special surprise that I've been waiting for all evening."

Elle, who had been refusing to look up from her plate of mush, didn't realize what was going on until James was pulling her to her feet. As she stood in front of her long distance boyfriend, the world seemed to slow to a stop as he sunk down to one knee. Silence filled the blonde's head as she watched his mouth moving, not registering what was happening right in front of her.

Suddenly, noise rushed into into her ears as James finished his speech. "-and that's why I've been dying to ask you. Will you marry me, Elle?"

The room falling silent in anticipation, Elle could hear her heart pounding at a million miles a second. And then, as if her body was taking control, the blonde's eyes fell on the tall girl sitting towards the end of the table. As if she was looking into a mirror, Elle's terror was visible in 'Manda's eyes.

"Babe? I asked you to marry me. Please- Answer me." James' voice cracked in the tension of the silence, but nothing escaped the girl's lips. Yes. The words were present in her mind yet refused to travel far enough for her to speak them.

Silence. Maybe that served as a decision in and of itself.


Thank you for reading this chapter! I had fun with the drama. :) Let me know what you thought or if I need to fix some things. Review!