Thanks to Fredasally, madhertz, Annabella Prinx, reader girl 622, bets2012, paulaa90, and Pale-eye or the amazing reviews.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the song "All About Us" by He is We.
Suddenly I'm feeling brave
Don't know what's got into me
Why I feel this way
Can we dance, real slow?
Can I hold you, real close?
The room's hush hush and now's our moment
Take it in, feel it all and hold it
Eyes on you, eyes on me we're doing this right
'Cause lovers dance when they're feeling in love
Spotlight's shining it's all about us it's all about us
It's oh, oh, all
About uh, uh, us
And every heart in the room will melt
This is a feeling I've never felt
But it's all about us
Lily and Scorpius had a wonderful summer together. The Malfoys were warm and welcoming to the youngest Potter. Lily's family welcomed Scorpius too, only a little more hesitantly. It wasn't his last name that was the problem; it was the age gap and the fact that he was dating the youngest member of the family. The Potter-Weasley clan had an annoying habit of being extremely protective of their littlest cousin.
Scorpius and Lily often spent their days together, at either Malfoy Manor or Godric's Hollow. Every Sunday, Lily dragged Scorpius to the family dinner at the Burrow, and Grandma Molly took an immediate liking to the Malfoy heir. Grandpa Arthur was slightly more undecided, but he seemed to fall victim to Scorpius' charm after talking about muggles with him for a good two hours. The Weasley-Potters had never seen their youngest so happy, so Scorpius escaped with only minor pranks and jokes made at his expense. They were Weasleys after all.
On one such summer day in mid July, Lily and Scorpius found themselves strolling down Diagon Alley in search of a flat for Scorpius. Lily was wearing one of her summer dresses and Scorpius swore he had never seen a more beautiful girl. He wrapped his arm across her shoulder and Lily snuggled in close, enjoying the warmth that he offered.
"Why didn't you bring Luca? He knows more about real-estate than I do," Lily laughed, silently loving the fact that he wanted to include her in such a big step in his life.
"You nicer to look at than Luca," Scorpius teased, kissing Lily's temple. Lily giggled again, hugging his waist.
"I can't offer much help. All I'll really be able to tell is which flat will go better with your eyes." Scorpius shook his head, knowing full well that Lily's opinion will matter more than he was currently willing to admit.
"Here's the first stop," Scorpius mumbled, looking at the building with extreme distaste. It was old and crumbling and housed an apothecary. The smell would be awful, and Scorpius didn't know if he was willing to stink of dead rats and newt eyes every day. Lily looked at it much differently. She saw the beauty in the older building and the potential it still held. She took Scorpius' hand and began to lead him into the building, and was pleasantly surprised that it smelled of jasmine and maple.
"Wow," Lily breathed. She poked around the old store, trying to get a feel for the place. "This place is amazing."
"It's a dump, Lil. Let's just go to the next one." Scorpius began walking toward the door but Lily didn't follow. She shot him an annoyed look.
"You haven't even seen the apartment yet. It could surprise you," Lily argued. She made her way up the stairs and let herself into the above the shop flat that was left open for them. Scorpius heard her moving around and became intrigued as he heard her exclaim another 'wow'. He trudged up the battered wooden stairs and found Lily standing in the center of what he assumed was the living room.
"Would you look at this room? Look at all the natural lighting; you'll only need lamps for the evening! It's so spacious too. Can't you see it? There would be a couch here - and maybe a coffee table. We could get you a muggle television and a flower vase for that window. It would look simply lovely. Can you imagine yourself here, living here, eating here?" Lily asked, turning to face him. Her eyes were full of an excitement that Scorpius only ever saw when she talked about her future or her niece.
Scorpius looked at the scene in front of him. As if by Lily's own special brand of magic, Scorpius saw exactly what she described. There was a fluffy couch in the center of the room with an afghan thrown over it, the coffee table, the flowers in the window, and Lily, there, with him. He could see it all. Scorpius began to look around with more enthusiasm, but half an hour later they made their way to the second flat.
It was nicer here, and Scorpius could see himself there right off the bat, but he noticed that Lily didn't like the place as much as the first. She looked around, but there wasn't a rant about what they could put where, and the color the walls would look best as. She was disinterested, and so Scorpius decided that this place wasn't for him. The same thing happened at the following two places, and again, Scorpius declined them. After that, his mind was made up.
"Well, I think there is still enough time to head back to the first place and put an offer in, maybe I can have the paperwork signed by the end of the week," Scorpius said nonchalantly. Lily stopped walking to look at him.
"You're going with the first place?" She asked.
"Yeah," Scorpius said as if it were obvious.
"Why? The second place was so much more…you," Lily supplied lamely, still looking at Scorpius like he was a total stranger who just ran down the alley naked.
"Yeah, it is, but I'd like a place with a little more personality. It may need a little work but I know a Hufflepuff who will be more than willing to help me fix it up a bit." He looked at Lily pointedly and she smiled. She hugged him tightly and Scorpius knew that he made the right decision. It was strange, Scorpius reflected, how quickly Lily being in his life changed things.
"Are you sure about this Scorpius? I don't want you to do anything you don't want to," Lily said, her tone serious. She studied Scorpius' eyes, wanting to be positive.
"Look, Lily. I never would have seen myself there, your right, but the way you described it, well, it seems amazing. It just doesn't seem right to pass it up," Scorpius explained, running a hand through his already messy hair.
"But, you're sure?" Lily asked again.
"Yes, I am," Scorpius said finally. He marched down the alley toward the old building that housed his future home, not waiting to see if Lily was following, she was. He signed the papers that very day and soon Scorpius Malfoy found himself the owner of his very own flat. His mother found herself suffering from an empty nest. At first, she refused to let him leave, saying that the place was not fit and that she would never allow her son to live in such a place. Scorpius rolled his eyes at his mother's antics. She could be the most easygoing woman in the world unless it involved her son. Lily laughed a little but took Astoria for a stroll. When they got back, Astoria was smiling brilliantly and started making plans to hire decorators. Scorpius never did find out what Lily said to her.
So they spent their free time painting and building and laughing while they fixed up Scorpius' flat. There wasn't a room that didn't have Lily's touch to it. There were daisies in the window, a green rug in the living room, and a wall that Lily painted a whole bunch of different colors. It looked spectacular.
Lazy days along the pier at Shell Cottage soon faded into the cooling weather of late August. Lily couldn't help but feel anxious of the oncoming school year. She knew that relationships didn't always work if one person was still in school and the other was out in the real world. Well, she knew of many examples where that wasn't true, Teddy and Vic made it last, as did her parents and various Aunts and Uncles. But what if she was different? This anxiety caused Lily to be distant one night when she and Scorpius were picking up items for next year.
Scorpius couldn't take it anymore. She had been silent all night. He didn't understand what could make Lily shut down like that. Usually he and Lily never ran out of things to talk about, but right now he was grasping at things that would make Lily utter a complete sentence.
"What's wrong with you tonight?" Scorpius finally snapped.
Lily looked up at him, slightly startled. "What do you mean?"
"Are you kidding? That's the longest sentence you've said all night. I can barely get you to say little things. Did I do something to upset you or is something else wrong?" Scorpius asked, leading Lily up to his flat to talk it out. He dropped her new things unceremoniously onto the floor by is fireplace. Lily looked at it all and raised her eyebrows.
"The only thing that's wrong is what you just did. That's nice stuff you just tossed to the floor like it was trash," Lily sniffed while she went to place the items and recent purchases onto the kitchenette table more nicely.
"This isn't about a couple of bags or some quills Lily. What's really bothering you?" Scorpius asked, flopping onto the couch but not taking his eyes off of his girlfriend. Lily looked over to him, anger still very evident in her eyes. The two of them didn't row often but when they did, they tended to be very passionate. The only two times they argued was over trivial things. Lily got jealous of Scorpius spending time with Maria, but she soon got over it, not until after a heated exchange though. The other time was over what to have for dinner, they don't really know how it got so out of control, but the fight ended with a laughing fit and a small food fight.
"What if it is about that? They may just be things to you but we all don't have enough money to fill Gringotts at our disposal," Lily snapped.
"Are you joking right now?" Scorpius argued back, his anger rising too.
"Well you've just showed me how careless you can be about things. How do I know that you won't just toss everything away like the rubbish on the streets? It's all easily replaceable anyway," Lily grumbled, her voice showing a hint of bitterness.
Scorpius was now more confused and concerned than angry. He sighed as he stood up from the couch and began to make his way towards Lily, placing his arms around her waist so she would look at him. "This isn't about that stuff is it Lily?"
Lily looked down. She shook her head 'no' and leaned her forehead against Scorpius' chest, breathing in deeply. Her eyes began to water and Lily burrowed her face in to the comfort of her boyfriend's shirt. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I just…I don't want to go back without you."
"And you think I want you to leave me here alone? If I had it my way, I'd lock you up and never let you go," Scorpius whispered in her ear, squeezing her tighter for emphasis.
Lily couldn't help but giggle through her tears. "That sounds rather nice actually."
"No, you would get sick of me so quickly," Scorpius replied. Lily pulled back from his embrace to look him in the eyes.
"I could never get sick of you Scorpius. Ever." Lily says it with such seriousness and finality that Scorpius can't doubt her. He knows that he's really falling for this girl and the thought both terrifies him and excites him.
Eventually the time came for Scorpius to see Lily off. She had been dreading that moment for so long, but after their talk in his apartment, they had not fought again. It was time for her to go back, work towards completing her education and St. Mungo's. She had gotten O's in just about every subject, and even managed an A in Astronomy so Lily was well on her way to getting all of her dreams.
They didn't make a big scene at the train station, but that had never been their style. Scorpius held Lily in his arms from the moment she said her goodbyes to her family until the final call was made. At that point he kissed her forehead and promised to write her all the time. She boarded the train without a single tear in her eye but watched until she couldn't see him anymore.
The weeks were long and hard to deal with, but the letters were constant. Never did they miss a week. Lily always got her letter on Wednesdays and Scorpius always got his by Saturday morning. He was there for every Hogsmeade weekend, never once having a problem getting the time off thanks to his familial ties with the boss, and stayed for the entire day. They made it work. It may have driven their friends mad with how moody they sometimes got, but it got easier for all of them.
Soon enough, it was Christmas holiday and Lily was on the train once more. Her excitement was so evident that her friends constantly teased her.
For most of the journey home, Lily couldn't help the grin that stayed permanently etched onto her face. She was ready to be in Scorpius' arms once more and know that she could stay there for longer than just a few short hours.
"My Lily, with that smile on your face you would think you were about to meet the Queen," laughed her friend Alyssa Jones, a fellow Hufflepuff. Lily pointedly ignored her. Lyssa was always joking and laughing, though Lily suspected it came from spending too much time with her cousin Roxanne, who abandoned them for this trip home.
"No, surely she's just won the lottery," Margret Davies argued, her smirk showing her colors just as vividly as her Slytherin tie. Lily met her through Scorpius and they instantly connected. Margret was definitely a character. She refused to shorten her name to Maggie or Marge or anything else.
"Leave her be you two. You're both just bitter and jealous that our Lily has a handsome bloke to go home to and you only have you're cats," Sophia Wood defended her best friend. They grew up together and not even being in different houses could separate the two of them.
"You are so wrong Sophia, I can't even begin to explain it," sniffed Margret, pausing for dramatic effect. "I'm allergic to cats, I have a dog." With that, the compartment burst into fits of giggles. They laughed all the rest of the way to King's Cross Station and departed the train together. Lily eagerly looked around the platform for the signature hair but was pulled into a bear hug before she could get a good look.
"Lily!" Her attacker yelled. She felt another pair of arms join the first and she was suddenly being tugged two different ways.
"Boys! Let her go, she can't breathe!" Someone scolded. Lily knew that voice in an instant.
She couldn't help but laugh as her brothers backed away. If there was one person you never argued with it was Ginevra Potter.
Lily spun around to see her brothers both looking apologetic. She grinned up at them both and hugged them each tightly. She was so busy missing Scorpius that she didn't realize just how much she missed her brothers, especially having Albus in school with her.
Lily was then passed into a long awaited hug from her father, who squeezed her extra tight, and then her mother. She held onto her mother, finding comfort there that only a mother can provide.
"I don't suppose you all missed me," Lily said as soon as she was freed. They laughed and chatted for a bit about Lily's first term. She tried very hard not to look disappointed that a certain someone was missing from her welcome.
"Looking for someone?"
Lily spun around just in time to be swept off her feet and twirled. She hugged Scorpius back tightly, her smile huge.
"Did you really think I wouldn't be here?" Scorpius asked as he set her back down on her feet.
"Of course not," Lily lied but the red of her cheeks gave her away. Scorpius flicked her nose as he laughed.
"Silly girl, I'll always be here," He said, slinging his arm over her shoulder and leading her out of the train station. Lily couldn't help but smile and snuggle into the warmth he provided. Her parents watched this exchange and looked at each other. Ginny looked happy for her daughter, knowing that she had made a good choice. Harry looked sick to his stomach.
Scorpius watched as the snow fell softly outside from a window in the Potter's home. Lily had invited him over for New Year's and he was avoiding the craziness that is her entire extended family. Lily had gone looking for him when he left and she saw him standing in her room. Her heard footsteps down the hall and knew without looking exactly who it was.
"Hey, what are you doing in here?" she asked softly, walking up behind him. Scorpius felt Lily's arm snake around his middle and her head rest against his back.
"Just needed to get away from the crazy for a little bit," he explained as he played with her hands. He swore he felt her smile against him.
Lily nodded her head. "Yeah, my family has that affect on me sometimes too. At least this wasn't your first time meeting them. I think I eased you into this rather nicely," Lily giggled, moving around so she stood right in front Scorpius. She reached up to give him a kiss, pulling away much sooner than Scorpius would have liked. "I have an idea," Lily exclaimed with a mischievous gleam in her eyes. Without further explanation she grabbed his hand and started leading him from the room. Scorpius followed silently, he had learned not to question Lily when she was in this type of mood seeing as it cost him a flat when he did.
Lily made her way down the stairs and the duo silently slipped outside without notice. Scorpius was hit with the bitter air and wanted to go back inside. Lily continued to pull him along through the snow before stopping suddenly in the middle of the backyard where she plopped down into a snow drift and smiled.
"Are you crazy? It's bloody freezing out here! You'll catch a cold!" Scorpius exclaimed as he rubbed his hands together for friction. He shrugged off his dinner jacket and handed it to Lily. She took it with a grateful smile and pulled it on. Scorpius fell beside her and pulled her into his lap. Lily smoothed out her now wet dress and laughed.
"I love the snow; it always makes me feel better." Scorpius shook his head behind her. Lily was unique, that's for sure.
"Lily there's something I've been meaning to tell you," Scorpius began. Music drifted across the frozen field toward them and he recognized it immediately. Apparently, Lily did too.
"This is the song we danced to at the ball," She exclaimed, smiling brilliantly and moving to kneel beside him.
Scorpius stood up and offered Lily his hand. "Can I have this dance Miss Potter?" Lily laughed at the formality of it but took his hand none-the-less.
"It would be my pleasure Mr. Malfoy," she smiled. Scorpius helped her stand and pulled her close. It had been a year since she taught him to dance but Scorpius hadn't forgotten a thing. He didn't step on her foot once. Lily couldn't help but feel a little giddy at the whole thing. Here she was, dancing in the middle of winter outside with only her party dress and Scorpius' coat on. She adored this feeling, the feeling one gets when in the arms of the one they lo─. Wait, she didn't love him did she? Lily's eyes widened at the thought.
It suddenly dawned on her that she did love him. A lot in fact. The thought was scary and amazing all at the same time, but a tiny voice inside her head told Lily that she was acting crazy and there was no way he loved her back.
Lily must have stiffened because Scorpius stopped dancing. "Everything okay?" he asked.
"Fine," Lily lied. Scorpius didn't believe her but he chose to push it aside, at least for now. He held Lily closer, hoping he'd finally be able to say what he'd been thinking about all day. Scorpius suddenly felt a surge of bravery course through his body; clearly he had been spending too much time with Gryffindors.
"Lily, there's something I've been meaning to tell you," Scorpius began for the second time. Lily looked up at him through her lashes, a little nervous. Scorpius smiled down at her and pushed a curl away from her face. "I've been waiting all day to say this to you. I love you Lily Potter."
Lily's heart sped up to the point she was sure it was no longer healthy, but she didn't care. She knew her eyes must have filled with tears because she felt them falling down her face. Lily laughed a little.
"Not exactly how a bloke wants his girlfriend to react when he tells her he loves her," Scorpius mumbled his cheeks the faintest of pinks. Lily laughed harder at that.
"I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't laugh. It's just, weird you know? A year ago, we never even talked, and look at us now, together and happy…and in love," Lily said with her signature soft smile. Scorpius paused for a moment, unsure if he heard correctly.
"Wait, did you just sort of, kind of, maybe a little bit say 'I love you too'?" he asked. Lily reached up to give him a lingering kiss. They pulled apart minutes later, both a little breathless.
"I think that I sort of, kind of, maybe a little bit just said that I love you too Scorpius Malfoy. I love you, and I've never been happier."
Scorpius picked Lily up and twirled her around and around. He loved her, more than anything. Scorpius world shifted suddenly, like Lily was his center. He knew that this was it for him. She was it for him. Their laughter could be heard over the party, though no one came out to check on them.
The couple survived the remainder of Lily's sixth year. They spent the next summer wrapped in each other's arms, and by the time seventh year came around, Lily and Scorpius were pros at a long distance relationship. Of course there were arguments and tears, but the happy memories created in the early years of their relationship was something the two of them cherished above all others.
When it was finally Lily's turn to graduate, Scorpius went with her family to support her. He looked on in pride when she walked across the raised stage, receiving many awards for various honors and being all around amazing (at least in Scorpius' opinion). There had never been such a thunderous applause in Hogwarts history when a student graduated then Lily Potter received. She was the sweetheart of Hogwarts. The girl everyone loved because she was genuine and kind. Yes, Lily could be downright scary, but there was a sort of irresistible charm to her that made you want to be close to her. Must be why she was a Hufflepuff.
Lily managed to get into the healing program at St. Mungo's. On the day she received her letter, her scream of happiness could be heard from a mile away. Scorpius wasn't even joking when he told people that. There were neighbors that could confirm it. Everything seemed to be falling into place for the couple. By the time Lily was nineteen, nearly four years after she and Scorpius began dating, they decided to move in together. Scorpius couldn't look at Mr. Potter for months without receiving a viscous glare. His apartment was just as always imagined it, with Lily there to make it perfect.
Things have this really annoying habit of changing though. When you least expect it, something comes along with the sole purpose of throwing your world off center.
X
He knew something wasn't right. It had been months and Lily still didn't feel good. Lily, full of sunshine and flowers, was never sick for more than a weekend. Even if she wasn't all better, she would always be up and ready to start on their next adventure. Since she hadn't bounced back from whatever had gotten her sick, Scorpius got a bad feeling in his gut. She had a terrible sore on her arm that couldn't be explained and was always tired. He knew it would be a struggle, but he needed her to get checked out by a healer, today.
"Lily, please be reasonable," Scorpius pleaded.
"I am being reasonable, Scorp, it's you who isn't. I feel fine, why would I waste a healer's time when I know from personal experience just how busy they are?" Lily argued back, not getting angry but still rather frightening with nonchalance. Sometimes that scared him more than her temper.
"Lily, you haven't been well for a while. I'm worried about you. Just do it for me, one appointment, and I promise I'll let it go," Scorpius suggested, silently adding as long as you get better in his head. Lily refused to respond. She met Scorpius eyes and knew when she saw the worry and desperation practically swirly in his grey eyes that she would cave in.
"Fine," Lily agreed. A relieved smile broke out across Scorpius' face. He had already scheduled an appointment at the healer's office in the hope that Lily would agree. They left immediately
After waiting for what seemed like forever, Lily and Scorpius were called back into the office. Lily sat through multiple test, exams, questions, and now she had her own nagging feeling telling her that things were not about to get better. As if sensing her discomfort, Scorpius held her small hand in his larger one and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She looked up at him and smiled, albeit weakly.
The young couple sat across from the healer, a tall man by the name of Sander Thompson. He was the best St. Mungo's had, and nothing but the best was good enough for Harry Potter's daughter.
"Well, we seem to have a problem. From a medical stand point, we know that there is something wrong, but for the life of us, we can't figure it out. All we know is that it isn't magical," Healer Thompson explained, taking a seat across from the pair and folding his hands atop the desk.
"What does that mean?' Scorpius asked, his tone concerned.
"Considering Lily's family and the fact that her grandmother was a muggleborn, it is very possible that her illness is a muggle one. I highly suggest you go see a muggle doctor, Lily, and soon," He said, looking Lily right in the eyes. Lily nodded in agreement and sighed. She was beginning to hate doctors.
"Thank you so much for seeing us on such short notice," Scorpius said sincerely, standing to shake Healer Thompson's hand.
"Certainly, anything for Astoria's boy," He smiled. He shook Lily's hand too. "You feel better now young miss. I hear that you're one of our best prospects in the training program."
Lily smiled at him. She absolutely loved healing. "Thank you sir: I'm sure I'll be fine."
X
Without giving her a chance to protest, Scorpius hurried Lily to the nearest respectable muggle hospital to get her checked out. There was no room for arguing with him, something Lily realized rather quickly.
"I only agreed to go see a Healer today. I agreed to nothing about muggle doctors," She had tried to tease. The dark look Scorpius sent her way only proved how he was in no joking mood. Lily sighed. "Alright then."
They couple got the muggle hospital quickly and Lily was seen right away. After suffering through even more tests, including the medieval practice of having one's blood removed from their body through a rather large needle, Scorpius and Lily found themselves sitting across from yet another Doctor. This one, however, had a very serious face.
"Well, I'm afraid it isn't good news," Doctor Rhodes began. She was a very serious looking woman with thick curly hair and Lily knew, no matter what came next, she would never forget this woman's face. "We did a biopsy of the sore on your arm and the results aren't something we like to see."
"What does that mean?" Lily asked, her voice no longer as calm as it once was.
"Unfortunately, the biopsy results were positive for Stage III Melanoma. Now, I don't want you to panic, there are treatments that have proven to be very effective," The doctor began to explain.
"Wait, what's Melanoma?" Scorpius asked. Growing up in a pureblood household had prevented him from knowing about many muggle diseases.
Doctor Rhodes looked at him curiously. "It's skin cancer. A rather serious form of skin cancer and Lily's stage is when the tumor caused by the cancer has spread slightly." Cancer. Scorpius had heard of that one.
He looked to his right to see Lily staring blank faced at the desk before her. She looked hopeless. She closed her eyes and sat forward, resting her elbows on her knees as she clutched her head. Scorpius too moved forward to pull Lily to his chest, softly stroking her hair to comfort her. He held her while she cried, whispering words into her ear to try and console her, though he doubted that she could hear him. He wasn't even sure of what he was saying. All he knew was that his Lily had cancer.
"We're going to fight this together," Scorpius promised. "We're going to fight this and beat it."
A/N: Let me begin by saying I am so very, truly sorry for taking a ridiculously long time to update this story. It is inexcusable and I apologize, and who ever continues to read this, I thank you for your patience.
I guess I don't know what else to say, other than I'm sorry, and please, review?
Okay, so I want to take a moment to tell whoever reads this just how important it is to check your body for marks and changes. Skin Cancer is the leading cause of cancer in young adults and if left untreated, can be deadly. The risk of developing a form of Skin Cancer during your lifetime is greater than any other cancer, especially if you have a family history of it. I strongly encourage you to look into this, especially if you spend a lot of time in the sun and are unprotected. One bad sunburn can have a lasting effect on your skin. Also, indoor tanning beds may make your skin look great, but the effects of damaging your skin cells may not be known until later in life. Many governments are working on laws to limit the use of indoor tanning beds amongst youths. I'm not telling you how to live your lives, just urging you to be informed and take care of your body. It's the only one you get.