Written for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (Challenges and Assignments)
Written for the Monthly Challenges for All 2018
Term 9 - Assignment #2 - Geography - Task 11: Write about someone who had been lost but isn't anymore.
Representation: Scorpius Malfoy; Runaway; Grief Stricken; Andromeda Tonks; Silent Protector/Guardian; Words of Wisdom
Bonus Challenges: Second Verse (Not a Lamp; Mouth of Babes; Rediscovery - Great Aunt; Tomorrow's Shade; Unwanted Advice; Some Beach)
Word Count: (Per Google Docs) 2,149
Unknown Guardian
"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They are messengers of overwhelming grief and unspeakable love."
Washington Irving
.oOo.
Scorpius walked through the early evening rain down the side of the old, paved road. He was soaked to the bone from the steady downpour, but the fresh memory of burying his mother earlier that day drove him to keep going without care. He couldn't feel anything but numbness and anger, causing him to ignore the cold that clung to his skin. The over-soaked robes weighed him down, but the boy kept walking, grateful the rain masked the tears and cooled his reddened cheeks.
Confident he was a safe distance from the manor now, Scorpius pulled his hood further over his face before drawing his wand and holding it out to the road. He kept walking, however, determined to put as much distance between his home and himself as possible – not wanting to be identified based on the nearby residence. Even after all these years, Scorpius knew people still talked, and he didn't care to deal with it. There wasn't much time left before his father would seek him out and offer him comfort, expecting him to be holed up in his room to expel his grief alone, but he wasn't planning on being found for the time being.
The purple bus came to a screeching halt beside him, revealing its triple decker size to the boy. Scorpius stopped walking once the door swung open and the conductor stuck his head out. The man had seen better days, but still held a crooked smile on his face.
"Ya alrigh', kid? You're wetter than a half drowned rat."
Scorpius didn't answer, keeping his head bowed as he climbed up into the bus. The conductor shrugged and started to print a ticket.
"Where to?"
"Leaky Cauldron," Scorpius said quickly, rummaging through his pockets for the handful of coins needed for the ride.
"Alrigh'." The conductor handed him the ticket in exchange for the silver coins. "Make it a galleon and I'll happily get ya dried off. Rather you not catch a cold during travel. Worst time to get sick, travelin'."
Scorpius shivered despite himself, not noticing how cold he actually was until it was pointed out. Without a word, he dropped a gold coin in exchange for the sickles and pulled his hood forward again to keep himself concealed. With a complex motion of the conductor's wand, his robes and cloak dried up in no time.
The warning charm he felt seconds later was a silent welcome. He may be dry, and physically feeling like a weight was dropped off him, but the cold had set in deep. Feeling so lost didn't help his mindset – being cold was the last thing on his mind. The bog of anger, sadness, regret, and loss weighed on him to the point of numbness. He just needed to get away and clear his head.
"Thanks." Scorpius pocketed the ticket and went to find a safe seat in the back.
"'Ey, you want a hot chocolate? The galleon covered it for ya. Jus' be careful wit' it." He offered the hot beverage to Scorpius, who took it despite himself.
Hot chocolate was a staple drink his mother made him when he was upset, and this felt like a muscle memory reaction to take the cocoa. He took a sip as he proceeded to the back of the bus where the only stationary seats were. It didn't taste the same, but the drink quickly warmed his insides, and he finished it with a few large gulps, thankful it was cool enough to do so.
Scorpius managed to find a secure seat before the bus shot at breakneck speeds down the road, causing him to drop the empty red mug to the floor. The conductor whistled a flighty tune while reading the paper, flicking his wand to vanish the mug as if it was a regular occurance. Scorpius looked away when he saw the front page article had Malfoy written on it in bold, black letters, knowing it had to be about his mother. Instead he watched the rain streak across the window, seeing the occasional red and white lights streak by from a motorcar they passed.
He was grateful to have the bus stop at his destination. The sugary beverage he had was making him feel queasy with all the jerking movements the vehicle made. The bus stopped in front the Leaky Cauldron, and Scorpius immediately got off and made for the mainroad, ignoring the woman who exited the inn and held the door for him only to watch him bypass it.
The streets of London were loud and bright for the late hour. Scorpius looked up and down the block, wondering if he should abandon his need to be alone and just wait at the inn to be found and get a tongue lashing from his father. A quick shake of his head dismissed the idea, and he broke back into a brisk walk, going left. At least the rain was a light mist in the big city.
Still feeling a chill from the damp air, Scorpius pulled his cloak around him more, careful to keep the hood up as he blended into the evening foot traffic. Despite his outward appearance, no one paid him any mind, which was fine with him, he wasn't sure what would come out of his mouth should anyone talk to him. He walked in silence, only glancing upward to take in his surroundings before dropping his eyes back to his feet. Scorpius had never been out in Muggle London before, but he remembered seeing an old postcard with a huge clock mounted in a tower. The location said it was in the city where the Leaky Cauldron was, and that it was by a large river. Had he known the clock in the tower wasn't easily spotted from his starting point, Scorpius would have asked to be dropped off at a place called Big Ben.
Hours ticked away and he couldn't see the clock anywhere. Asking someone wasn't an option, either. Scorpius realized he was a bit too scared to talk to the Muggles that passed by. After stumbling through a couple areas that he assumed were parks, he finally could see the waterfront he was looking for through the trees.
The large circular object across the water awed and scared Scorpius all at once. Finding a bench, he sat down at stared at the illuminated thing as it slowly turned in place. He wondered what it was, not recalling seeing anything like it in the postcards his mother used to show him.
It hit Scorpius then, the wave of emotions that refused to show during her funeral. He felt so empty during it, and appeared stoic during the eulogy and the burial. His father looked the same way, but he was prepared for it, Scorpius never was. Somewhere along the line he had a false hope instilled on him, an unsaid promise that his mother would recover and remain with them for a much longer time than what was given. But it wasn't true, and he felt betrayed by his own father.
Tears welled up again, but this time they weren't ones from anger at his father. They were for his mother, his loss, his world completely shattering. It felt like his heart was completely ripped from his chest and buried with her, he felt so alone knowing that her presence will never again grace their home.
"Pardon me, dear," a woman's voice startled Scorpius from his sorrowful thoughts. "Would you mind if an old lady joined you a moment to rest?"
He looked at her with widened eyes. She wore a cloak like himself, mostly concealing the robes underneath, and appeared as tired and winded as he was from walking so long. Something told him she was trustworthy and someone like him. His magic seemed to tingle in reassurance and familiarity, the same feeling he got when around family. A loud, deep echo of a bell tolling the hour boomed down the river, pulling Scorpius away for a moment to look downstream at the clock he sought all this time.
"O-Okay," he finally stammered out, and the woman promptly took a seat beside him. He shifted to the far side, hoping that this person wasn't sent to find him.
"What a lovely view," the woman said, observing the large, vertical circle across the water. "Are you waiting on someone?"
Scorpius almost said he was waiting on his mother, but the lump in his throat forced a sob from him. He quickly shook his head and buried his face in his hands. A gentle hand rested on his back, and the gesture only made him cry harder.
"Oh, sweetie, are you lost?" the woman spoke in a soothing voice as she scooted closer to him.
She pulled back Scorpius' hood, revealing his platinum hair and red-ringed eyes that she dabbed with the hem of her cloak. "What is wrong?"
He shook his head to decline, but he could feel his magic stir a strange calmness within. "It's alright, I'll listen if you need someone to."
Forgetting that he swore to not speak to anyone as soon as he stepped off the bus, the magic he felt through her hand solidified his trust in the woman. "I-I miss my mum. She's gone forever now and left me all alone."
"I'm so sorry to hear that, sweetie," she kept her voice calm while rubbing light circles on his back. "Life is a cruel gift we all bear, but it gives us others to help make it not so dreadful to endure. Sometimes it takes, but often it gives something back, it may not be so obvious at times, but it is there. I'm sure you won't be so lonely once you see that the rest of your family are still there for you."
"Are they?" Scorpius spat, turning to look at the stranger comforting him. "My father lied about how bad her condition really was. That's not being there for me, that's being deceitful."
The look on her face softened despite the bitterness in his tone. He wiped his face with a sleeve as he waited. What he didn't expect was being pulled into a warm embrace.
"I'm sure he didn't intend for it to be malicious, dear," the woman started, "Parents always strive to protect their children, even from sickness and death. It may not seem like the right thing to do at the time, but in the moment, sometimes it's better to not know the severity of something so time is not wasted away dwelling upon it and instead used to cherish the moments that remain."
She released him after a moment, and he felt the pit in his chest not feel as heavy. "Running away from your problems only makes them worse when you go back to them later, sweetie. "It's always easier to resolve conflicts face to face, after all."
"Yeah…" Scorpius let out a heavy breath. Taking in his surroundings, he felt very lost physically now as he did mentally and wasn't sure exactly how he was going to get himself out of this mess. "Co-could you…"
"Of course, dear." The woman got to her feet, the strange glow from the light above them illuminated her features as she looked around the perimeter.
She seemed strangely familiar to him, even in the red-orange light, like he had seen her in his grandmother's photos. It couldn't be Bella, unless he had lost his mind for good, it must be the other one Gran Cissa rarely spoke of. Scorpius dismissed the crazy idea that she was someone he'd seen in a family photo immediately, though. The only family he had didn't look anything like this dark-haired witch… unless it really was her.
"You're…"
She waved her hand dismissively at him. "Just call me Dia, sweetie."
Scorpius was temporarily stunned into silence.
"Let's get you back, then."
The woman took his hand and glanced around them briefly. "Close your eyes, it will help."
Before he could, the woman Apparated them to the Leaky Cauldron entrance. Taken by surprise, he nearly retched, but recovered enough to step foot into the inn. The place was crawling with aurors, and among them were his father in a heated conversation with the Innkeeper and one of his professors. The woman seemed to vanish from his side as soon as his father laid eyes on him, but he didn't have time to seek her back out. Instead, Scorpius ran up to him as he knelt and the two hugged.
Scorpius felt the tears well again. "I'm so sorry. I—"
"We'll talk later, son," Draco whispered, hushing Scorpius' apology. "I am just glad you're safe."
Book Club
Disney Challenge - 2. A Spoonful of Sugar - Write about someone finding the good in something bad.
Cookies's Crafty Corner - 3. Cast On: Write about characters meeting for the first time.
Showtime - 1. Hello!: (situation) an unexpected visitor
Amber's Attic - 3. Blackwork - Write about a member of the Black family. (5 bonus points)
Lyric Alley - 5. Run away, they say
Ami's Audio Admirations - 14. On Air — Use the prompt set: (colour) red, (setting) at night, (word) glow
Em's Emporium - 11. Emiliya (Emiliya Wolfe): (quote) "It's always easier to resolve conflicts face to face."
Lo's Lowdown - Quote - 4. "There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They are messengers of overwhelming grief and unspeakable love." - Washington Irving
Bex's Bazaar - 3. Manny: Write about someone fearing being left alone.
Film Festival - 46. (colour) Red, 60. (word) Betrayal
Summer Event
Summer Prompt - (word) Travel
Fire Element - [Word] Glow
Shay's Musical Challenge - 11. Bandstand: write about caring for someone who lost a loved one.
Gryffindor Themed Prompt - [Trait] Impulsive
Insane House Challenge: 172. [Location] London
365 Challenge: 119. [Era] Next-Gen