Near the end of his third year at Hogwarts, there was an incident.
A student by the name of Timony Wallstroth was cursed in the courtyard.
There were dozens of students present at the time, including Scorpius. He still remembered Timony's expression contorted in excruciating pain as he writhed on the ground ten yards away. The screams were haunting. Timony was rushed to the Hospital Wing and he was able to recover...though, it's hard to know if one ever truly recovers from one of the Unforgivables.
Before that happened, however, and while Timony was still on the ground in the courtyard, other students realized Scorpius was present and jumped to the immediate conclusion that it had been his fault. It was the obvious answer, after all. What followed was one of the physical fights he hadn't started, but rather had been forced to defend himself through until the professors could disperse the mob.
Soon after, students had stepped forward to say they had witnessed a different student cast the curse without hesitation after a reckless dare. The student in question was summarily expelled and referred to the Ministry after admitting to it when they realized there was no point in lying any longer.
Even after the true culprit had been caught, letters from other parents suspicious of his potential involvement were sent to the administration as well as Scorpius's parents. They ranged from mildly concerned to full-blown accusations that had his parents worried about sending him back the next year. Even when he did return for his fourth year, there were the occasional callbacks and barbs thrown his way.
Scorpius was painfully aware of how easy it was for people to lay blame and believe it.
"...you will be held within the accountable party."
It kept repeating through his head in time with his footfalls as he ran.
He hadn't known about Arthur Weasley's disappearance when he had accepted her as a guest to the Manor. As soon as he had read the Prophet article he should have registered the responsibility she had brought on him. If anything happened to her while she was under the Manor's roof...the name 'Malfoy' would be the first to be dragged right back down with blame. All their hard work would be dismissed and even if their involvement was disproven it would still be the launch of more rumors and beliefs to be fought.
Scorpius wondered if Rose's father would be one of the first to head the effort.
He shook his head free of the unkind thought. No. That wasn't fair.
But…
Arthur had disappeared. If it was kidnapping, what if they weren't just after one?
Rose was now away from her family with only another underage student and a house-elf to fend anything or anyone off.
If something were to happen, would the world be wrong in thinking he was somehow culpable?
His chest felt tight and he stumbled to a stop, hand gripping the front of his shirt as he tried to gulp in air. It was hard for him to tell how much of it was from exertion and how much was from the cresting wave of panic and guilt.
Would he have turned her away if he had known why she was there?
An image of her in the den that first night flashed through his mind. The pain that had lit on her face for a breath before it was gone. The crumbling he'd witnessed when she realized he knew the next morning.
No. He wouldn't have turned her away.
The wind pulled at his hair and he glanced up to finally notice he couldn't see stars or the moon in the sky. There was static on his skin.
There had always been something about storms that drew him in. The idea of that unbridled power and the world being at their mercy. He had built his life to protect himself from forces like that.
And now he'd let in someone who could tear apart those careful walls because she needed him.
Scorpius stood up and covered his face, breathing starting to even out even as the coming storm tasted wild on his tongue. He'd tried so hard to be good at what he could while avoiding turbulence. Getting too invested in things...in people...was dangerous.
He felt the first drops of rain and lowered his hands. He could see the glow of the front door of the manor a ways ahead of him, but he didn't move. Instead, he closed his eyes and tipped his head back as the sky above him opened up. In only a few moments, his clothes were weighed down with water - like a physical manifestation of his world. It was almost comforting to have the validation.
A strange sense of peace overtook him. As he stood there in the rain, it was a moment of privacy. Everything around him was interacting with him - not as a Malfoy - but as a stranger. Here in this limbo, he was just there. Just existing.
An obstacle to the hard ground.
Nothing expected and nothing needed.
He stood there for a while, letting all notions of time pass him by. His thoughts flitting through different images from the past few days. Years. Red curls and responsibilities.
The rain started to lessen to a controlled, steady fall. Scorpius felt the chill of being soaked for too long begin to settle along his skin and started the trek across the final stretch of ground to the Manor.
Rose may not have intended on the situation she had placed him in, but he was here all the same. He was responsible for her wellbeing for now. While she was at the Manor, he would make sure she was safe to the best of his abilities. Once they returned to school…
Merlin, he loathed being put into a position like this. Directly into a conflict between his dedication to flying safely under the radar and his values. Risks were the opposite of what he was aiming for and everything about a kidnapping scheme and a potential ensuing investigation screamed of risk.
"Young master?"
Scorpius came to a stop two metres from the front steps to look at Skilt standing there under a floating umbrella. After a moment, the house-elf shuffled forward and gently took his hand before leading him toward the door. It opened silently and they were welcomed into the warm glow of the foyer.
Rose was sitting on the stairs, her face pinched with concern as she looked up at their entrance. Quickly standing, she took a step toward him and then faltered to a stop. Her hands twisted in the green towel they held. He stared down at it for a moment before looking back up, eyebrows lifted.
She glanced down, "Oh. Right."
Moving forward once more, she held out the large towel as she finally stopped just within arms reach. He watched her try for a smile as she shrugged, "I...I figured I'd get you a towel. I've been told that the bathroom down here doesn't have any."
He felt a small bubble of amusement break through at the memory as he reached out to take the towel from her. Starting with his hair, he quickly realized just how sodden his clothes were. With only a little difficulty, he removed his sweatshirt and the t-shirt that was under it, barely having time to wonder where to put them when Skilt pulled them from his grasp. He looked over to say thank you, but was brought up short by the concerned look on Skilt's face before the house-elf apparated away with the wet clothes.
Continuing to dry himself off, Scorpius ignored how close the foyer now felt with just Rose as company. He noted that while she had been avoiding watching him at first, she was now following his movements as he did what he could to remove the damp that still clung to him.
Skilt popped back in, breaking the intimate feeling of the moment as he shoved an oversized sweater into Scorpius's arms while grumbling something about 'masters not taking care of themselves.' He then supervised Scorpius putting the sweater on before shooting a careful look at Rose and apparating away again.
With one last toweling of his hair, Scorpius dropped his hands to his sides and finally looked back at Rose.
She bit her lip and glanced away, "I'm sorry."
"Rose…"
"No," her gaze snapped to his with certainty, "I'm sorry. I...I didn't mean to put you in this position." She ran her right hand through her hair, "I didn't mean for any of this, really. But especially not for you to have to…" A frustrated huff escaped her, "I'm sorry for not thinking about the consequences for you when I showed up here. Forgot to consider the fact that you were...a person with the family history that you have and what all of this would do." She frowned, "If I could go back, I would-"
He held up a hand, "Rose. Please. It's alright."
"It's not, though."
"It is," he insisted.
A scowl crossed her face, "You just ran outside into a storm, Scorpius."
"And it gave me time to think everything over and it's alright."
She blinked at him.
"I promise," he said with a small smile.
There was a moment of quiet and then Rose stepped forward and wrapped her arms tightly around him. Scorpius stiffened in surprise at the sudden contact, but made himself relax as he returned the embrace, careful not to get the now-damp towel in his grasp near her. Her cheek rested against his shoulder and they stayed that way in silence for a few breaths.
"I'm sorry."
He rested his chin on top of her head, "I know."
Rose's grip tightened and he tried to commit the moment to memory. Something nice and quiet and warm. They were both so lost at the moment and he was grateful to not be alone in it.
"You're a good person, Scorpius," came Rose's quiet voice. Her fingers gripped the fabric of his sweater across his back, "You deserve to be happier than you let yourself be."
He closed his eyes against the sting of tears.
"You deserve that."
AN: This poor sweet child. Both of them. I'm terrible. I keep having them feel /all the things./
Scorpius is good at keeping things to himself and taking care of others, so I hope you all enjoy this little look into what is a pretty core conflict that has shaped him and his decisions and will continue to do so. He also should be protected at all costs. Just IMO.
Love you all and have a lovely week!