Author's Note: Who knew suffering a loss would hurt so bad. Content taken from The Cursed Child.
Requiem
19th of August, 2019
Scorpius Malfoy had just returned to the manor after shopping for school and celebrating his thirteenth birthday with the Potters. Seeing the look on his father's face as he stepped out of the fireplace drained the cheerful mood of the weekend completely from his person.
No words were exchanged as the boy bolted from the drawing room, leaving nothing but soot in his wake.
Skidding to a halt in front of his parents' bedroom door, Scorpius burst through it without knocking and went straight to Astoria Malfoy's bedside, collapsing to his knees. He took no notice of the healers scattered about or when his father had entered the room.
"Mother," he whispered, tears already stinging his eyes and a sob burning in his throat.
He knew he shouldn't have left.
Astoria's eyes barely opened to the sound of her son's voice, and her bony fingers searched for his. Scorpius gently grabbed the freezing cold hand and placed it on his warm cheek.
"Scorpius… sweetheart…" He could barely hear her speak in the dead quiet room.
"I'm here."
"I… I love you."
Unable to hold back the tears as they pooled around their clasped hands cupping his face, the boy took in a shaky breath. "I love you too, Mother."
And just like a candle being snuffed out in the night, the light in Astoria's eyes faded away. Scorpius felt his heart drop to the floor; the uncontrollable waves of ragged, heaving crying started to shake his body.
Sense of time was completely lost. He wasn't sure how long he knelt beside her, face swelling and stained with tears. The hand that touched his shoulder had him recoil - he didn't want to leave. It grabbed him a little harder and Scorpius jerked his arm back to shake it off.
"No!" Scorpius shouted, struggling to pull away from Draco Malfoy's hold for a third time.
With great effort, his father got him to his feet and all but carried him from the room. Scorpius looked through blurry eyes as the healers drew the white sheet over Astoria's face, making her completely disappear from the world.
.oOo.
20th of August, 2019
A promising warm day was quickly swallowed by the gathering rain clouds and cool breeze, sucking the sunlight away as if Aphrodite demanded yet another sacrifice for her creed. The rain soon showered down upon the fresh dug earth and the small gathering of people around it. Black umbrellas protected them as the group huddled close to the preacher on either side, listening to his eulogy about the woman who laid hidden behind the coffin in the depths of the soil below.
Scorpius stood at the base of Astoria's grave, uncaring of how cold he felt or how soaked his clothes got; the rain helped cool the never-ending burst of hot tears that streamed freely from his eyes. He felt so empty and lost. Draco moved closer to blanket Scorpius under the umbrella, placing a hand on his shoulder to offer some form of comfort.
Minutes passed; the preacher finished his closing chant - signaling that it was time for the silent goodbyes. Scorpius knelt in the wet grass, pulling a single purple spotted white orchid - Astoria's favourite - from the large vase beside him. He gave the petals of the flower a light kiss before dropping it in. A waterfall of various other flowers followed shortly after, given from the small family and fewer friends who were allowed to attend.
Almost everyone soon shuffled back to the manor to get out of the rain, not needing to witness the full burial. The two who remained looked like statues placed at her feet as the mounds of dirt buried the white oak coffin and sea of flowers. Leaving a small bump of soil in front of the ornate headstone, the preacher excused himself with a bow of his head, eager to get out of the rain.
"Why… why did she have to die?" Scorpius asked between stifling intakes of breath.
"It was her time, son." Draco replied thickly.
He didn't say that Astoria had been on borrowed time for the past several days; that she fought against the Veil to be able to wish her little boy a happy birthday five days prior, and strived to see him one last time after the weekend out of sheer stubbornness.
"I don't. . . She seemed like she was. . . I never should have. . ." His throat constricted at every attempt to say something.
"You said she would get better!" Scorpius snapped out suddenly, getting to his feet.
His legs were numbed from the way he sat on them, and for being so cold, that he faltered from the sudden movement. Draco caught him and pulled his son into a tight embrace.
"It was just her time to go…" He said, softer this time.
Scorpius leaned into his father for a moment, welcoming the hug and the heat Draco's warming charm radiated. It wasn't long after that what he said seconds before clicked back to the front of his mind. Shoving his father away, red-ringed eyes sharpened with fresh anger.
"You said she'd get better and you lied!" Scorpius accused, stepping back when his father tried to approach. "I should have never gone to that stupid school you make me go to! I should have never gone…"
He choked on the wave of emotions, wishing that there was some way he could have given her his life essence so she would still be here and everything he felt now would have been avoided. Scorpius' chest burned and ached, and he could barely breathe because of it. His eyes and head hurt so much it was nauseating, and yet the realization that he was cheated out of precious time with Astoria sent him through the same overwhelming and uncontrollable bouts of anguish all over again.
"She was born sick, Scorpius. It was an ancient curse that only progressed as time went on. Trust me when I say that I did absolutely everything in my power to find a way to stop this from happening."
Draco spoke with reason, but inside he was just as devastated as the boy standing in front of him. He had been preparing for the inevitable for some time now in order to be able to face this day as mentally sound as possible - for his and his son's sake. Scorpius was denied that privilege, and it was entirely his fault. Somehow Draco had instilled a false hope in him, and now it was physically ripping him apart.
The glare Draco received from Scorpius stuck him like daggers. The boy slowly shook his head, spitting poison as he spoke. "Everything you have ever told me about her condition were lies! You had me believe in a shrine of deceit and lies! I hate you!"
Scorpius stormed past his father in a fit of outrage; Draco had to step out of his path to avoid contact with him. He knew Scorpius was lashing out, which was to be expected. But now Draco will have to suffer this sin for the rest of his life knowing he wronged his own flesh and blood.
Gathering the courage to look at his wife's headstone, Draco felt a sob rise from his chest.
He released it with a whisper: "I'm so sorry, Astoria."
Written for Round 10, Year 1 of The Houses Competitions
Written for the Crayola Color Challenge from the HPFFC Forum
House: Hufflepuff
Category: Themed (500-5000 words)
Theme: Goodbye
Additional Prompt(s): 5. Take Me To Church [Song Prompt]
Color Prompt: 14. Orchid
Word Count: (Per Google Docs) 1,212
Beta(s): Puffers Arent Duffers