He knew, right away, that whatever his parents were about to tell him would change his life. He wasn't sure how he knew, just that it was a gut feeling. He saw them waiting on the train platform as the Hogwarts Express pulled into the station. Rose was at his side, Al was across from him, Hugo was sleeping in the corner. Lily and James had disappeared with their own friends.
"There's your mum." Rose spotted her first, before Scorpius even looked up from his Quidditch Magazine. She pointed across his chest, jamming her finger against the window. "Look, there."
Sure enough, there was his mother. She was beaming at the train, though she couldn't have had a clue what compartment he was in. She was wearing a crisp, white sundress and red sandals, and her hair had gotten longer and shinier. His father was standing next to her in a crisp black suit, his hair pushed back as usual. He wasn't beaming, like his wife, but held her hand steadily, and tapped his feet. Scorpius' heart swelled at the sight of them.
"You alright?" Albus put in, glancing at Scorpius and raising an eyebrow.
"Happy to be home, honestly. My mum looks more thrilled than I thought possible."
Rose reached out and mussed his hair. Scorpius dodged her hand.
"Hey!"
"You look like a mini me of your father," she said with a shrug, and the train came to a stop. Scorpius jumped from his seat and pulled down his trunk, and then Diao's cage. He went to get Roses' trunk too, but she slapped his arm away.
"I've got it." She extended her arms upwards and towards her own handsome, black leather trunk. Rose was tall for a fourteen-year-old girl at 5'6", and she pulled her trunk down with ease. Scorpius grinned.
"What?" Rose asked, as Al shook Hugo awake. Hugo's cat yowled and hissed at Al.
"Haven't hit my growth spurt yet," Scorpius said, shaking his head. He stood at the same height she did now, their eyes exactly level. "Just imagine this, I'm going to come back in the fall a whole head taller than you."
"Maybe that extra head will give you a better view of the goal posts in Quidditch." Zabini threw this in airily as he walked by the compartment. Rose turned red in the face.
"Still bitter about the cup?" Albus shouted back, at the same time Rose said:
"Scorpius set a record this year, didn't see you doing the same!"
As if on cue, James walked by their compartment, winked, and opened a self-propelling custard pie; the pie lodged itself at Zabini and Scarlett Erikson as they retrieved their luggage. There was a large splattering noise, and a shout, and James quickly stepped off the train.
"Forget them," Scorpius said to Rose, who was still blazing red. "Zabini couldn't hit a bludger if it stayed still…"
"Come on, Posie," Hugo murmured, still sleepy. His cat purred contentedly in his arms. "Mum and dad will be waiting."
Rose threw her arms tightly around Scorpius, as she always did at the end of the year. She held on so tightly that he lost his breath and blacked out for a moment. But still, he hugged her back, burying his face in her wild curls and breathing in the scent of her. Every summer, he always longed to get back to his friends. But things were different now. He could hardly stand the idea of being without her for even a day at a time. His heart began to race. What if she stopped writing? What if she began dating someone else? So many things—too many things—could happen over the break.
"Come on," Al said suddenly, slapping Scorpius on the back and shaking Rose loose. "We're going to see him in a matter of days, aren't we? You'll come to the store to see us work the first day?"
"Absolutely. How mad will you be if I file a complaint against you?"
"Bet George would find it funny," Albus said with a smile and a shrug. And then he put on his backpack and stepped outside the compartment. Rose smiled at Scorpius, mussed up his hair again, and began to follow Al. She stopped suddenly, just before getting off the train.
"Write me with your parent's news," she said. "If you want."
"I will," Scorpius promised. He couldn't even imagine who else he would tell.
"And Scorp…er…are you going to write to Lily while she's at camp?"
Scorpius felt himself flush. He hadn't thought about it. He hadn't talked much to Lily since that day on the lake.
"Dunno," he replied. "Maybe. Haven't decided. I never really write to Lily over the holidays…"
"Good," Rose said suddenly. And with that, she turned around and quickly slipped into the crowd. Scorpius felt himself recoil, a question dying on his tongue. Why is that good? He wanted to shout it after her, but the crowd was so large he couldn't even glimpse her tell-tale red hair.
"Scorpius!" Someone boomed. His mother and father were fighting their way towards him. Scorpius grinned and jumped down from the train just before his mother leapt at him. She hugged him tightly and smoothed his hair and kissed his cheek. She was shorter than him now, not by much, but it felt funny all the same. When she released him, Draco bent down to hug his son. He smelled fresh, like mint.
"Darling," Celia crowed, and Draco waved his wand at Scorpius' trunk and owl cage. The luggage drifted onto an abandoned trolley. "Oh, I'm so glad you're home."
"Me too, mum." His mother linked her arm with his. Something was different about her; she always smelled flowery, but this was a markedly different floral scent. Her hair was different too, it had grown thicker. And she was glowing; she was radiant. Her skin was still light, but as if the sun was shining out from within her.
"I thought we might go out to dinner tonight," Draco announced, falling into place besides them as they walked towards the wall, where students ran, head-first, with their belongings. "I made reservations at Figworth's."
"Alright!" Scorpius said enthusiastically, and his mother laughed.
"Do they feed you enough at school?" She fretted. "That seemed extremely enthusiastic."
"Yeah, but there's only so much Shepard's Pie I can eat."
"He likes the oysters there, Cee," Draco said, braking the trolley as a first year ran across their path.
"Ugh, no seafood." Celia held a hand to her stomach and winced.
"Um, so mum?"
"Yes?"
"You said you had news for me?"
"Oh." Celia and Draco looked at each other and smiled. "Yes, wonderful news. But we can wait until dinner? Let's just put these in the car, and then we can go check in. It's almost six-thirty anyhow."
After the Malfoy family had put the trunk in the back of their magically-enhanced car, they headed towards Figworth's. Scorpius held on to Diao's cage, knowing that he could leave his owl at the Leaky Cauldron. The owner there, a plump blonde woman his father's age, enjoyed looking after the pets of returning Hogwarts students when they allowed her to.
"Go on," Scorpius told his parents as they hovered outside. "I'll meet you there. I just have to check in with Ms. Abbott." Muggles on the sidewalks glanced at Diao who wailed within his cage. They walked into the leaky cauldron, and Celia and Draco glanced back at their son as they continued into the alley in back of the pub. Scorpius checked in Diao with Ms. Abbott, and then headed towards the alley, too.
Figworth's was a classical restaurant wedged in between Broomstix and a shopfront that had been under renovation for the past two years. It was Scorpius' favorite, typically the place where they celebrated family birthdays and events, if Scorpius wasn't away at school. The interior was chic; round tables were draped in white clothes, small sparkling lights hung above each table, and the ceiling was steep, much like a chapel, and made entirely of glass. The restaurant smelled of Italian herbs and spices, and somehow, the ocean.
"Excuse me sir," a small voice quipped as Scorpius ducked inside the restaurant. A house elf stood on a stool at the front of the restaurant, a tiny pair of glasses set upon his long nose. He was looking at a reservation list. "Are you here with someone?"
"My parents. The Malfoys?"
"Oh, yes sir! They is by the far window, sir!"
"Thank you."
As he walked over to his parents' table, it struck Scorpius that his parents had never looked more in love. They had always been embarrassingly, deeply in love; his grandmother had always remarked she was surprised they had gotten any work done around each other. His father reached out and tucked Celia's hair behind her ear, then took her hand in his, slowly running his thumb over her knuckles.
"Oh, sweetheart." Celia pulled out a chair for her son on her other side. "We got an appetizer of those seared scallops you like so much."
"I thought you didn't want seafood," Scorpius replied, taking a seat. "What about the mozzarella?"
"We know you like them," Draco said, at the same time Celia responded:
"I'll just have some of the bread."
"Sirs, Madame, would you care for some wine?" A waiter appeared at Scorpius' elbow. "Elf-mulled wine, perhaps?"
"No," Celia said suddenly. "Er…no, thank you. We'll be just a moment, we're still deciding."
"Mum?" Scorpius asked, furrowing his brow. The waiter nodded and walked away. Draco leaned back in his chair. "You're acting funny. You don't want any wine?"
"Well, that's the news, actually." Celia looked towards Draco and smiled. "I can't have any."
"You seem awfully cheery for announcing your alcoholism," Scorpius quipped.
"Scorpius!" Draco hissed.
"Joking," Scorpius replied hastily.
"No, sweetheart. Your father and I…well, I'm pregnant."
Scorpius stared at his mother. She couldn't be serious. And yet, it made complete sense. How blind had he been? The glowing skin, the difference in her scent and hair. Her refusal to eat seafood or drink wine…Perhaps he had disregarded the possibility because his parents had been growing older, but they were only in their thirties, so he supposed it made sense…
"Scorpius?" His father asked.
"Yeah. Yes. Pregnant." Scorpius looked at his mother. "Um. What kind?"
"What kind?" She responded with a gentle laugh. "As in…the sex?"
"Yeah."
"We don't know yet. We haven't asked the doctor. We want it to be a surprise."
"Okay." Scorpius felt like his head was spinning slightly. A sibling. A baby! A baby in his house. When he was about to turn…fifteen? He felt old. "When is…when are you supposed to have it?"
"Next January. I'm only about a month and a half along."
And for some reason, at that moment, Scorpius felt his windpipe constrict. A baby. Maybe one with eyes like his mother's and hair like his father's…one that would grow up roaming the old manor like he did…one that would go to Hogwarts one day and one that would get sorted into Slytherin…
He stood up abruptly.
"Scorpius?" His mother queried. "Are you alright?"
He forced a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a lot of news."
"Scorpius," his father said in a warning tone. "Sit down."
"Can I just…" Scorpius put his hands in his pockets. "I need some air. Just give me a minute? I'll be right back in."
And before his mother or father could reply, he turned around and began to walk out of the restaurant. He had just reached the door when it almost opened right into him. Albus walked inside the restaurant, Lily close on his heels, with their parents following.
"Scorpius?" Lily asked. "What are you doing here?"
"Dinner with my parents," he responded, as Lily hugged him. "Sorry I didn't see you leave the train."
James popped up behind his parents, nearly pushing aside both his mother and father with his enthusiasm. Behind James, Scorpius saw a glimpse of wild red curls. Rose. The rest of the Weasley clan began to pile in behind the Potters.
"Hi Scorpius," Albus' mum said. "Nice to see you again."
Behind her, Roses' father grumbled something indistinguishable.
"Would you like to join us?" Roses' mother asked.
"Oh, thanks, but I can't. I'm here with my parents."
"Where are they?" Al said curiously, looking around.
"Uh, by the window." Scorpius felt his throat close up again, thinking of his mother in her pretty white dress. "Sorry, I just need air. I'll stop by before I say goodbye." And he squeezed by the entire family clan and stepped outside. As soon as he did, he heard the pitter-patter of shoes on the cobblestones behind him. He knew, instantly, who had followed him.
"My mom is pregnant," he announced, turning around just as Rose reached him. Rose planted her hands on her hips and stared at him. "She's having a baby next year."
"That was the news," Rose murmured, crossing her arms. Scorpius looked up towards the rest of the street. A group of Hogwarts children were clustered outside of the ice cream shop. "Are you okay?" He knew she was asking just so he could talk more. He was red in the face and his jaw was set. And he could see it in her eyes that she knew.
"Don't get me wrong." Scorpius leaned back against a storefront. "I'm excited for my parents. And yeah, I'm psyched to have a sibling. I always wanted a little sister, you know? Like Lily and Al…but I just…there's something wrong with the way I'm thinking about it."
"How so?" Rose leaned up next to him.
Scorpius shook his head, ashamed. "My first thought, one of them, was what if that kid gets put in Slytherin? Like maybe he gets put in the house I wanted…maybe my parents will…"
"Scorp." Rose turned towards him and placed both her hands on his upper arms, sending tingles through his spine. "Don't feel bad for thinking about that. Not even for a second."
"It's selfish," Scorpius said.
"You just got a shock. That's all. You were going to have that thought at some point, I'm sure. You're going to be a big brother, and you're going to be a good one. Regardless of what house. Besides, you know you're not going to have to worry about it for eleven years." Rose smiled, and Scorpius smiled too.
"So…are you still mad you're not in Slytherin?" Rose broached.
"No, that's not it. I just…what if the kid gets it and my parents…"
"No," Rose said immediately. "Scorpius, my god. How could your parents ever…no. You know you're amazing, don't you? Your qualities may have landed you in Gryffindor, but it doesn't diminish them any less."
"Yeah. I suppose." Scorpius sighed. "I feel terrible."
"Maybe get your mum a onesie? For the baby?" Rose squeezed his arm. "I can try to knit one."
Scorpius was so thankful for her presence in that moment. He wouldn't have wanted to speak with anyone else in the world in that moment. He folded Rose into his arms, and she grasped him tightly back.
"Just tell your parents not to name their baby after any old Professors they might have had," she said in a muffled voice. "Not quite sure Al ever got over that."