Amortentia

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A Scorose Fanfiction by Goldensnitch18

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Rated M for Scenes of a Sexual Nature & Language

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Summary: In their sixth year, rivals Rose and Scorpius

have a moment of terrifying clarity when they

both inhale the sweet smell of Amortentia.

One year later, Rose is finally single and Scorpius is

determined to snog the crazy out of her.

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Disclaimer: I am not profiting from this story.

Anything you recognize belongs to the great and mighty JKR.

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Beta Magic: Many thanks to harpersbizarre and dragonjess

for their time and work on this story.

Chapter Eighteen

Ron Weasley prided himself on the personal growth he had made in nearly twenty-six years since he and his two best friends had played a very large role in the defeat of Lord Voldemort. He had worked very hard to control his temper, and, most of the time, he was pretty successful. This growth had been helped along by being married to a woman that hated to be wrong, raising two stubborn children, and working as an Auror and then a shop owner. Each of these roles had come with lessons, and he had learned many along the way. His life had not always been easy, but that was okay. The hard bits always made him better in some way.

He and Hermione were happy. Neither one of them was perfect, by any stretch, but even after all these years he still couldn't keep his hands off her. He loved his job working with George, and she was skyrocketing through the Ministry. They were a united front when it came to her political aspirations and views. Ron had long ago come to love and understand that his wife would be fighting for those less fortunate than her until the day she died, and he still loved watching her face as she spoke passionately about her work.

One of the few things that still managed to get him going without much effort was anything to do with his children or his wife being hurt. So, when Hermione had burst into his office in the back of the joke shop, tears falling down her red, blotchy face, he had jumped up, concerned. Hermione did not blubber. He had seen her like this on very few occasions in their life, and he knew something was very wrong. She had gone to Narcissa Malfoy's funeral, and he couldn't imagine what could have happened to her there. Lucius would have been there as well as a few others who hadn't really let go of the old ways, but that wasn't anything Hermione hadn't been dealing with her entire magical life. She was barely affected by that anymore. This had to be something else.

"Mione?" He jumped up out of his chair, crossing the room to pull her into his arms. She clung to him and buried her face into his sweater. She was sobbing so hard he couldn't understand the words she was trying to get out.

Behind her, George appeared in the doorway of Ron office, concern lining his face. "Should I bring her some tea?" he asked, and Ron nodded. Maybe it would help her calm down. George disappeared down the hall, and Ron took a step back, trying to smooth Hermione's hair back from her face.

"Love, what happened?"

"R-R-Rose."

"What is wrong with Rose?" He felt fear rising up in his chest as his anxiety levels skyrocketed. If something with Rose had Hermione like this, it must be bad. Hermione covered her face with her hands, shook her head, and tried to take deep breaths. She was trying to pull herself together to tell him something. He felt sick as he waited.

Minutes passed, and George returned with tea. Ron moved Hermione to the couch he kept in his office. George placed the cup in her hands, careful to make sure her shaking hands had a grip on it, and looked at Ron. "We'll be okay. I'll yell if we need anything. Thanks, George."

He waited for George to leave and turned back to his wife. She was holding the cup in her hands, which were shaking. Her tears were falling silently now, making tracks down her cheeks. "Is Rose okay?" he asked tensely as he took a seat next to her. His hand moved to rub her thigh softly, and she took one last deep breath before she turned to him.

"She's not hurt, but she hates me." She looked desperate, her eyes wide.

He felt his world right again. His chest unclenched, and his pulse calmed. Rose was safe. Whatever had happened could surely be fixed. "Hermione, Rose could never hate you."

Hermione let out a hard, cold laugh. "You weren't there."

"Where? The funeral?"

"Yes."

"What happened? Why was Rose there?"

"Rose was with Albus and Scorpius. She saw me, and I told her Harry hadn't want to come alone." She was staring at her cup now, avoiding his eyes.

"Ok, well clearly that wouldn't make her hate you."

"No. Al … he saw Draco and I alone in his office."

"What were you doing?" He was proud of himself for keeping the contempt he felt out of his voice. He loved his wife. He trusted her. He did not feel anything of the like for her friend. Mostly he felt a cool indifference, but occasionally in times like these where Draco Malfoy seemed to need his wife to be his support, Ron would fall back into his old ways of suspecting that the man was up to something, no matter how innocent Hermione may be.

"I was hugging my friend, Ron," Hermione snapped, well aware of his tendencies. "His mother just died."

"Sorry," he mumbled, and he leaned in to kiss her temple.

"Al told Rose and Scorpius what he had seen, and they … they were livid that we had lied to them and kept something like this from them."

"What?" That didn't make sense. Something was missing. Rose might be hurt that her mother hadn't shared this with her, but livid? Why would she hate her mother over something like this? At the end of the day, it didn't really impact Rose's life whether or not her mother was friends with Scorpius's father, even if they themselves were friends.

"I have to tell you something else," Hermione set her cup down on the small table in front of them. "But, you aren't going to like it, and I need you to try not to stay calm."

"What?" Ron asked, immediately starting to feel the opposite of calm.

"Rose is … She's with Scorpius. She told me she loves him." Hermione held Ron's hands, and he stared down at them his mind racing.

With Scorpius.

Scorpius Malfoy.

With him.

"Where is she?"

"She was worried about telling us, about telling you, and she's angry that I kept this from her because she's been terrified about how we will respond." Hermione was ignoring his question, trying to keep talking to him, trying to keep him there.

"Where is she, Hermione?" He demanded as he pulled his hands back, frustrated at her resistance to telling him.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" His voice was more controlled. His hands slid down his trousers, trying to keep them from shaking.

With Scorpius.

She'd gone to him.

Over three months ago.

That owl had come, and she was gone.

With Scorpius.

She had just …

It had been most of the night.

Her with him.

Alone.

"She and Scorpius just left, together. I don't know where they went."

"How long have they been?"

"I don't know. At the least, Christmas."

He was right.

She had been alone with him at Christmas.

They had let her…

Merlin's sagging tit.

That night last summer came rushing back to him. Rose screaming at Rowan. The pure rage and adrenaline, and then Rose had stayed in bed, crying, and he had been so helpless. Hermione had promised him that she would be okay, that their beautiful daughter was resilient, but now she was with a Malfoy. This kid couldn't possibly be better than Rowan. He was Malfoy's kid. Rose had hated him for six years. She had come home fuming about him over breaks, and they had received countless owls about the ridiculous way they behaved towards each other at Hogwarts. She had hated the times that Al had brought Scorpius to family events, and they had seen first hand the feelings their daughter had towards the boy. Hermione claimed that Rose just didn't like being bested, and while Ron was sure that this was true, he hadn't minded the contempt the pair had shared. As far as he was concerned, having Hermione as friends with Draco was enough, if not too much, association with the Malfoy family for Ron.

Rose, his Rose. What was she doing?

Ron closed his eyes and tried to focus on keeping his wits, on not jumping to conclusions. Maybe she hadn't been doing what he thought at Scorpius' flat that night. Who was he kidding? He was a hormone riddled boy alone with his beautiful daughter. Ron had certainly taken advantage of every moment of alone time he and Hermione had been gifted when they had been young and stupid.

He stood and began to pace across his office.

"Ron?" Hermione was up and next to him in a moment. She forced him to stop walking and took his face in her hands. "You can't," she insisted.

"Can't what?" he demanded.

"Can't work yourself up and go tear that boy a new one. He isn't Rowan. You can't make him pay for that idiot's mistakes."

"They were alone nearly all night, Hermione." She didn't understand. This was his daughter. His little girl who had told him when she was four that she was going to marry him so she could be as happy as her mummy.

"I know." Her eyes were sad behind the puffy redness. "I know, Ron. I wish … I wish she wasn't … I think we both know what that means, but I just … I don't want to make it worse."

Ron scoffed, and began to pace again. "Worse than this? I'm not sure how that's possible."

"You going out to demand she leave him alone is going to make it worse, Ronald. She told me …" Hermione took a soft breath, releasing it quickly. "She told me that she was terrified to tell us that she is in love with him because …" She stopped talking lost in whatever would come next.

"Because what?" Ron asked, prompting her to continue.

"Because, she would choose him over us." Hermione finished, staring him hard in the face.

Ron felt like he had been punched in the stomach. She would choose him, that boy who had made her cry, made her curse and hex him, over her father and her mother who loved her unconditionally.

Unconditionally.

That word bounced loudly in Ron's brain.

"I have to go," he told his wife.

"Ron!" Her eyes grew wide, and she reached out to grab his hand.

"I'm going to see Harry." He pulled away from her to grab his wand off of his desk. Hermione was standing in his way, and he pulled her in to hug her. "We're going to figure this out." He tried to sound reassuring as he spoke into her ear. Her hair tickled his face. She pulled back slightly to kiss him. He responded with fervor, letting his mind try to wash away thoughts of his daughter and Scorpius Malfoy by replacing them with thoughts of this beautiful witch of his.

"Don't do anything rash. Please," she murmured against his lips, and he actually laughed.

"When have I ever done anything rash?" he asked her, and she shook her head. "I'm just going to go see Harry."

XXX

Ron stood outside the door of the flat. Albus had told him where to go. His nephew hadn't even needed to be pressed that hard. He had left Harry after several hours and gone home to find Albus sitting in the kitchen eating cookies that Hermione was baking. Albus had asked if he was going to curse Scorpius and after a simple assurance that he would not, Al had given him the directions. Ron had left their home again and gone to the flat where his daughter was with her, what? Her boyfriend?

Ron's head fell forward against the door, and he rested his arm above it. What in the world was he going to do? Harry had spent the better part of the day commiserating with him about their children. Both of his boys were moody and detached, not telling him what was going on between them. Albus had broken up with Neville's daughter for some unknown reason, and James had suddenly decided to get his bloody act together and get a job, but he was refusing to tell anyone why. Lily was way too much like her mother for any of their liking, and had come home with a new boyfriend over break and had a row with Ginny already. Ron had told Harry what Hermione had told him, and while Harry had understood the difficult spot Ron was in, he also insisted that Scorpius was a good kid, that he would be good for Rose. He had told Ron in detail what he had witnessed at Malfoy Manor, and Ron had sat with his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands for a long time.

The door in front of him seemed like a wall, nearly insurmountable, but he couldn't shake the way Hermione had looked when she had come into his office.

She hates me. It wasn't possibly, surely, but what if it was. What if Rose was that upset? What if she was letting this eat at her, pull her away from them? He couldn't let that happen. It was his job to keep them all together, a family, strong.

Ron lifted his head away from the door and knocked.

He stared hard at the door, trying not to look as terrified as he felt.

He tried not to focus on the twisting sensation in his gut as he shoved one hand in his jeans pocket.

He took a few deep breaths and looked down the hall. There was only one other flat on this floor. It was a small building.

He cleared his throat and looked back at the door, the peephole stared back at him, daring him to knock again.

He did, louder this time. Maybe they didn't hear. He didn't want to think about what that would mean.

Albus had been fairly certain that this was where they would be.

They could have gone for dinner though.

Or, she could be in there ignoring him. She could know he was out here and be choosing not to open the door. He decided to appeal to her the only way he knew how. He cleared his throat again and knocked a third time. "Rose? Please just … just open the door." His voice was strained and not at all his normal tone, but he supposed nothing about this was normal.

Just as he was about to turn and walk down the hall, he heard the door begin to open. He watched the knob turn, and his heart raced.

XXX

Rose took him in. Her sweet, silly, a little scary father, and she felt bumps rise on her arms. He looked lost. His eyes were wide, and his arm on the door frame seemed to be holding him up.

"Rose."

"Dad." She tried not to choke up.

He stepped towards her and wrapped her in his arms. He knew it had only been hours, but it felt like he hadn't seen her in days. He'd been so worried that he wouldn't get her to open the door for whatever reason that when she was standing there in front of him, he couldn't do anything but pull her into him. She laughed and sobbed at the same time as her face was buried into his chest. Ron kissed the top of her head and felt his body relax. She was okay. Some part of him had never been able to relax after Hermione had come into his office crying hours ago. Some part of him had needed to hold his daughter, see her for himself, before he could completely trust that she was all right.

Ron rested his chin on her head and looked past her to the boy standing behind her. Scorpius had his hands awkwardly shoved into his pockets, and he was staring right back at Ron. He looked incredibly uncomfortable, but Ron had to give him points for standing there at all. He wasn't sure that he would have been able to do the same with Mr. Granger at his age. The man had terrified him.

Ron pulled back, releasing Rose, who wiped at her face to get rid of the tears that hadn't soaked into his shirt. "Your mum is a mess," Ron said, deciding to ignore the boy for now. Let him sweat a bit. It wouldn't hurt him.

"Yeah, well …" Rose averted her eyes, staring out the still open door as her voice trailed off.

"She and Harry told me what happened," Ron admitted.

"So, you're here to what? Take me home? Make me apologize." Rose's voice had gained some of the heat he knew was hiding. She was a Weasley after all.

"I don't expect you to apologize," Ron told her, and he saw the boy move out of the corner of his eyes, taking a step towards them and then back to his previous distance. Clearly, he hadn't been expecting this.

"What about what I said to Mum?" Rose asked. Her eyes had narrowed, and her arms were crossed over her chest.

"She lied to you. We all lied to you." Ron forced himself to look at the boy. "Both of you."

Rose's eyes followed his and took in the boy as well. "But …"

"You don't have to apologize," Ron cut her off. "But, you do have to forgive her. She's your mother, Rosie. Nothing can change that."

"This was a pretty big lie, Dad. It's not like I can just be like 'Oh, Mum, it's okay that I spent the last seven months absolutely freaking out about you and Dad finding out about Scorpius when it turns out you and Mr. Malfoy are like long lost best mates or something.'" She huffed out air, and Ron rubbed his forehead.

"Seven months?" he asked softly, and Rose bit her lip.

"Yeah."

Ron nodded and rubbed his hands together nervously. "And, you … Mum and Harry said you … said that you …"

"I love him," she told him firmly.

"Sir," Scorpius took a step forward.

Ron turned to him, held out a hand and shook his head. "No. You aren't talking yet." He knew he probably shouldn't be an arse, but he couldn't help it. A very large part of him was screaming that he needed to pull Rose away from this git and never let her see him again. A smaller, smarter part of him was insisting that he would be the loser in that situation. Hermione and Harry had both told him as much.

"Dad," Rose said, disappointment lacing her words.

"You don't get to Dad me about that." Ron looked at her, but he pointed at Scorpius. "Seven months you've been with this … boy, and you don't tell your own father? What am I supposed to think about that?"

"That I'm a grown…"

"Oh, no you don't," Ron said, his voice still calm, the lion inside him roaring. "You may be eighteen now, Rose, but you are still in school, you are still my daughter, and you are still living in my house. Even if we don't have a right to know, I thought you would at least afford us the decency of knowing you were seeing someone."

"I didn't," Rose started and then stopped. Tears were forming again at the edges of her eyes and her crossed arms curled in to hug her chest. "I thought you would …" She closed her eyes. "I thought you wouldn't look at me the same, that being with him would change how you and Mum saw me."

Ron looked at Scorpius while she talked. The pain on his face while he watched her and listened to her words was clear. That was a good sign at least.

"Rosie, when have we ever given you the impression that you could ever make us think less of you? When … last year when … I was angry at him, not at you. Yeah, sometimes you and Hugo are idiots, and I wish I could protect you from making some of the choices you've made, but I can't." Ron looked over at Scorpius again, and the boy was looking at him now. "If you really wanted to be with this boy, we would have trusted you like we always have, even if I thought you were being an idiot again. May not understand it …" Ron paused, shaking his head as he thought of the absurdity of him giving his daughter his blessing to date Draco Malfoy's son. "But, we would have given you the chance to show us. Now, I have no idea what is going on except that your mother is losing her mind, and you are claiming to be in love with someone I don't even know."

"Sir," Scorpius tried again, but Ron held up a hand.

"You still aren't talking," he said, and the boy fell silent again. Well, this one seemed smarter than the last one at least.

"What was your plan here, Rose? How was this supposed to work out?" he asked, needing some reassurance that she had thought that far, that there had been an intention to tell him.

"I was hoping to have Scor over during break. I wanted you to get to see him as my friend first, and then after graduation, tell you the truth."

"So, your plan was to keep lying to your mother and I for another three months."

Rose looked at his shoes guiltily and then glanced at Scorpius. "Yes."

"Great plan," Ron said sarcastically. "I would like you to give me a minute with him." Ron used his thumb to motion towards Scorpius, who had the good sense to stay quiet that time.

"I don't …" Rose slowly trailed off, looking between her father and her boyfriend.

"I won't hurt him," Ron told her, "but we need to have a chat." He turned his head to look at Scorpius as he spoke, his mouth in a tense, hard line.

"It's okay," Scorpius reassured her with a smile as Rose bit her lip.

"Be nice, Dad," she scolded softly before she left them. She walked down the hall toward the back of the flat, and Ron tried not to think about where she was going or how comfortable she was here.

Ron turned his body to face the boy. He looked substantially more nervous without Rose there. His eyes were on the floor at Ron's feet, and he was fidgeting, shuffling his feet uncomfortably. It was good to see him like this. "How long have been interested in my daughter?"

"Uh …" It wasn't a question Scorpius had been expecting. He thought back to the Amortentia and the look they had shared over that cauldron. He had known then that he was attracted to her, but he was sure that wasn't what Ron wanted to know and, if he was going to be honest with the man, which he thought to be the best course of action, that moment wasn't quite right. There had been something there before that day which had been awoken in an undeniable way, but when did it start? He tried to find a moment, to define a time, and the one his brain landed on surprised even him. That very first Potions assignment Slughorn had given them. That soft smile and that crazy red hair had made his stomach flop, and he'd wanted Rose to be impressed. He'd done his best to be at the top of the class, and then he'd been an idiot eleven year old boy about it. He'd bested her, and then teased her. He had been incapable at that young age of understanding the effect this might have on a girl who was raised hearing that she was brilliant, the smartest girl of her age, by everyone who knew her. For all Scorpius knew, that very well could have been the first time in her life she had been second fiddle to anyone. "For a very long time. Longer than I … than I would tell her," he admitted.

Ron would have laughed if he hadn't been trying to be intimidating. He had been in love with Hermione for ages, it had felt like forever, before he had finally stopped being a fool. There was something about this connection, about this boy's honesty that made him human. Ron looked him up and down, taking in the features that were so very Malfoy, but softened somehow, whether by the Greengrass in him or the world he grew up in. It was impossible to be married to Hermione and not know Draco's story. Ron didn't like him. He'd never liked him, and that was no secret, but part of him, a part he would never admit to, could understand now as a man and a father what those years must have been like for Draco.

This boy standing in front of him was the result of an entirely different world. He was raised without the bias of his grandparents, something Ron knew had caused friction between Malfoy's wife and his mother, but more importantly than that, he didn't seem weighed down. After their fifth year, there had always been a heaviness on Draco Malfoy that Ron wouldn't wish on any child. Even after all this time, the man still carried it around with him. This boy didn't have that. He had been loved and cared for and raised, like Rose, in a home where he was adored and safe. Ron was glad for that, but it didn't necessarily make him a good person. Rowan Wood had been loved and adored and safe in his home, and it hadn't kept him from breaking Rose's heart.

Ron watched Scorpius for several long minutes after he had answered before he asked his next question. "Why we're so willing to keep her a secret from your family? Were you ashamed of her?"

"No," Scorpius said quickly, almost before Ron had finished speaking. "I swear, I wanted to tell you all at Christmas, but Rose …" Scorpius looked down the hall towards his bedroom. But, Rose was still broken. "She wasn't ready. We stopped seeing each other for a while because I didn't want it to be a secret anymore."

"Then how did you get back to this?" Ron asked waving his finger between the boy and the hallway his daughter had vanished down.

"Valentine's Day. I asked her to have a date with me, and I couldn't … I can't not be with her. I love her." His voice grew stronger as he spoke even though he was fairly sure his palms were sweating.

"Another boy told me he loved her," Ron answered, his lips turning down into a scowl.

"Rowan Wood is a bloody arsehole, and I am nothing like him. I'm not blind. I know that there isn't anything better in this world than that girl in there. The only reason I didn't punch him in his face when he showed up at Hogsmeade is because Rose wouldn't let me."

"When he what?" Ron may have shouted it a bit. He couldn't be certain.

"He showed up at Hogsmeade," Scorpius shouted back, anger at that fucking prat boiling in his veins again. Rose always talked him down and made him act rational when the topic came up. Her father was turning red and clenching his fists a bit, and Scorpius rather thought that to be a more appropriate response to the bastard.

"Why did he 'how up at Hogsmeade.'" Ron was trying not to grind his teeth, but it was difficult.

"Said he was apologizing but really he just wanted her back. Can you believe that? After what he did to her?" Scorpius was getting worked up now. "So, I offered to punch him, but she wouldn't let me." He had been really upset by that. Rose had thought he was making it about him, but really Rowan just needed to be punched.

"That bloody … you should have punched him!"

"Are you serious?" They both turned and stared at Rose. She was standing in the doorway with her hands on her hips, glaring at them both. "You're talking about Rowan? I thought you were having a go at each other!"

"Well …" Ron said, not meeting her eye.

"Your dad, at least, thinks I should have punched him."

"You're not hitting him, Scorpius! Ever! He's out of my life. I'm fine. I have you. Stop!"

"That doesn't mean he doesn't deserve to be …"

Rose shouted in frustration, "Seriously?!"

Scorpius looked over at Ron for backup, but her father seemed to have realize this was a losing battle. He shook his head quickly. Scorpius frowned at the man and turned back to Rose. "Fine. Sorry I was talking about punching Rowan again."

"Can't you two just be normal. Dad you say 'If you do anything to her, I'll kill you.' and Scorpius you say, 'Yes, Mr. Weasley, sir,'and we all get on with our bloody lives. Merlin's bloody beard." She spun around, throwing her arms up as she talked, and headed back for the bedroom. With a loud slam the door shut behind her.

"If you do anything to hurt her after what that prat did, I'll bloody do worse than kill you," Ron told him seriously.

Scorpius nodded. "Yes, Mr. Weasley, sir."

Thank you for reading. I would love to hear what you think of this chapter!

XOXO

Meg