Rated: K+

Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Family

Summary: In the aftermath of losing someone you love, how can you move on?

Author's Note: I headcanon the Greengrass' are at least half Greek, so that is how I will portray them.

Selinofoto is Greek for "Moonlight." Daphne and Astoria's maternal grandfather's surname.

Warning(s): Mourning/Personal Loss. Strong implications and underlying tones of toxic masculinity:

Lost Heavenly Light

Scorpius sat on his bed with his shoulders slumped over. He didn't bother lighting the ornate oil lamps on the nightstands. Instead, he sulked in the dark while toeing the school trunk at his feet that he hadn't bothered packing for his return to school. Winter break had been awful, and Scorpius really didn't feel up to going back. School was one of the biggest obstacles; stole away so much precious time he could've spent with his mother instead, and he loathed every second of it.

Now there was no time left. Hades had taken her one day after his birthday—two days before Christmas—and he almost missed saying goodbye because she insisted he went home with the Potters to celebrate his birthday. Even though all of this had happened within the last two weeks, his father expected him to return to school.

'Not Father,' he thought bitterly, 'Grandfather does. He is just parroting commands.'

He hadn't been allowed to leave the manor since he ran off on Boxing Day—the day Astoria was buried. Scorpius' spur of the moment trip to London via Knight Bus in search of Big Ben wasn't well received by his family once the dust settled and emotions leveled out, but Lucius emitted the strongest animosity about it, and it lead to unexpected consequences. He was barred from returning to the Potters to get away from the manor—to get away from the memories, the lectures, the pain... That was what upset him most.

Now that his matira was gone, his father crumbled, leaving Lucius to take back authority in the manor.

Scorpius hated it.

So he locked himself in his room and refused to talk to anyone, even Dizzy the elf. He cried, yelled, and broke things in his anguished outbursts of uncontrolled magic. It was a blessing and a curse to have such a sensitive magic core that could repair glass and furniture as quickly as it destroyed them.

"You get that from me," his mother told him. "My family is gifted in being so intune with our cores. Emotions easily sway it, so you'll have to be extra careful while handling and understanding them."

The words echoed in his ears and he found himself covering them to drown it out.

Scorpius hadn't heard his door open or the footsteps coming his way, too focused on wanting to stop hearing his mother's voice ringing in his head. The hand that gently rested on his shoulder startled him enough to shock the offending hand before he looked up to meet hazel eyes. They were like his mothers, not quite as soft or gentle, but it was still enough to have him look away and sigh.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Daphne. I hope I didn't hurt you."

Daphne lightly shook her hand that was shocked and offered Scorpius a smile. "Don't worry about it. I should've approached you differently, so I am sorry."

From the corner of his eye, he watched her light the oil lamps, illuminating them both with their warm light. She took a seat beside him on his bed and placed her feet on top of the trunk like he was doing. Scorpius waited for a lecture that never came.

"I was able to convince the rest of your family to allow you to stay home for as long as you need," Daphne said, lightly tapping her foot on the trunk. "Well, I actually had Headmistress McGonagall talk them into it, she is far more convincing than I ever could be. She all but stated she would send you straight home if you set foot in her school when you weren't ready."

Scorpius looked back at her slowly at this piece of information. "S–So she knows?"

Daphne placed a hand on his arm. "Yes. I felt it was in your best interest for your headmistress to be informed of your situation. She understands completely, and will make sure that when you return you won't be overwhelmed with catching up. She'll send the assignments for you to work on here. I'll be more than happy to help, even."

He wasn't sure what to say or think. The echo in the back of his mind told him it would be wrong to accept such a generous offer, and that taking it would show he wasn't good enough somehow.

"I really appreciate your effort and concern about me, Theia, but I think going back is…" Scorpius stalled, unable to finish parroting Lucius' words.

The tears started to pool again, and he felt like he was a failure for wanting to so badly stay home with his family instead of going back to school. It was for the best to go and keep up with one's studies, wasn't it? That's what his grandfather had said when he overheard Scorpius talking to his father the other day about school.

"I–I don't know what to do…" Scorpius sobbed, "I feel so… so lost without her…"

Daphne quickly pulled him into a tight hug, gently rocking the lanky teenager in her arms while lightly combing his hair with her fingers. She felt her own tears form as her nephew cried into her shoulder despite her own preparations made knowing she'd one day lose her little sister. Once his sobs subsidded some, Daphne started quietly singing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star to him in Greek. Astoria sang it too him all the time when he was younger, and it was the same song their mother sang to her and Astoria when they were little, too.

Once Scorpius recollected himself and calmed his stuttered breathing, he felt strangely better than when he broke down and cried alone. It helped lift a heavy weight from his chest, and he found that he could breathe a little easier. He pulled out of Daphne's grasp, and she moved to draw light circles on his back while he dropped his head in shame.

"Sorry…"

"Oh, my sweet Starlight, there is no need to apologize."

Daphne felt angry and upset for her nephew. She did not like to see him so conflicted with his emotions. It was not only causing him such anguish and internal struggle, but she could feel the underlying threat his magic sent toward her with every touch. It was making him unstable…

"Crying is perfectly normal and healthy to do, especially when you're upset," Daphne assured, feeling the tension of his magic relax almost instantly with her words as she continued to draw light circles on his back. "Though it can hurt, and sometimes you may not feel like you can stop, but once it is all over, it does make things feel a little better afterwards."

"You may be named after the titan of heavenly light and the scorpion that slayed the prideful Orion" she continued after a beat of silence, "but with light, there is always some darkness, too. And don't you ever allow someone else's pride hold you down… Even if that someone is family."

Scorpius' hand twitched some, and her eyes fell to the spark that emitted from it.

"But my… the magic. It burns…like a fire under my skin..." He paused and clenched his fist in his lap. "I just want to stop hurting…"

She paused her gentle circles to think. Astoria never did have the strength or time to keep helping and teaching him how to properly handle the Selinofoto bloodline and its sensitive magical gifts—and learn of its curses as well. He had unfortunately found the latter out in the very difficult and most horrifying way. It seems like he would be a carrier of it as well based on what he said. Magic is not supposed to burn.

"I am terribly sorry for not being there for you sooner, Scorpius," Daphne said, taking his hand in his and gripping it tightly. This prompted Scorpius to lift his red-rimmed grey eyes to meet hers. "I am going to be here for you now."

"I don't understand."

She took her free hand and combed at his hair again to get the fringe out of his eyes. "Don't worry about it right now. Let us take this time to recover… to mourn… and to heal."