So Long and Goodnight

written by: albe-chan

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction and I do NOT own Harry Potter or any of the characters mentioned, I am making no money from this, and any similarities with real life are purely coincidental. This work will contain MATURE THEMES, such as coarse language, mature subject matter (scenes containing graphic sex, non-consensual sex and sexual acts, nudity, etc.), and mildly graphic violence. Please, if you are not over the age of 18, or of majority in your country, DO NOT READ THIS! You have been warned!

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Chapter Fifteen - October

Lily was daydreaming as she stood in front of the stove in Scorpius's flat, wondering, and not for the first time, just how her life had changed so drastically seemingly overnight no less. Of course, it had actually been several months now that she looked in hindsight, and more specifically about a month since she had finally felt truly free of her soon to be ex-husband. But yet it still felt as though, in the blink of any eye, she'd gone from her miserable existence before to something as close to perfect as she could have ever hoped for.

Instead of living her days waiting for an inevitable blow up from her husband, or feeling drained and exhausted from the sheer amount of work that was required each day, leaving her brainless and wanting to be numb, Lily found her days passing relatively peacefully. She would wake, usually after Scorpius had left for the day to work, and partake in a light breakfast, then go about tidying the little flat and making sure she had made herself the least possible nuisance. She would then go to her own job, despite her caseload being significantly decreased in light of her current personal situation, which her supervisor found thoroughly acceptable, and had hastened to assure her she could take time off whenever she might need it. And, after a mere half day of actual work, she'd be home in time to cook dinner and ready herself for Scorpius coming home.

It was, to say the least, a much different way of spending her weekdays, and being able to actually sleep in on weekends as an added bonus, made Lily feel as though this might actually be living in a highly realistic dream that she would undoubtedly wake from at some point. And yet, she couldn't deny that, despite her misgivings and doubts that it wouldn't and couldn't last, she was utterly content. Hell, dare she even think it, lest it somehow be ruined, the redhead found herself actually feeling happy, for the first time in ages.

Her musings were interrupted when she heard the distinct sound of the front door opening, but instead of Scorpius calling out to her, or the sounds of him striding into his flat with confident steps toward the kitchen, as had become their routine, she simply heard a dull thump, followed by a muffled groan. Instantly, panic seized her, making her freeze, but she pushed herself past it abruptly, knowing that something was obviously wrong with the blond pureblood who'd all but saved her life. She flicked off the cooker, moved the food aside, and even as her pulse thudded in her ears and adrenaline made her vision seem to sharpen, she broke into a frenzied run toward the living area, heart choking her.

There, lying face down in a crumpled heap, just inside the door, which was still held open by his legs, was Scorpius, obviously injured and steadily dripping blood onto the carpet. Part of her felt like she might be sick, seeing the wizard, man, she'd come to rely on for strength and his innate ability for kindness, bloody and, when his head lolled to one side, bruised and battered. It felt like, in an instant, she was back on the bathroom floor of the master suite at Nott Hall, trying to contain her shame and fury and abject abhorrence of her situation once again. She didn't feel her legs give out until she hit the floor hard on her knees, and sobbed as reality and the nightmares of her past mingled and left her scared and confused and on the verge of going into shock.

"Lily," the blond wheezed, grimacing even as he lifted his battered face to look at her. The sight had the redhead blanching. "Lily, listen to me," Scorpius said, voice much steadier this time, and when she met those steady, dark grey, and utterly reassuring eyes, she felt herself begin to relax, knowing Scorpius, despite looking like he'd gotten beat to hell and back, was in control of himself enough to be in control of the situation.

She sucked in a deep breath, shoving the emotions down, which she knew was unhealthy, but was something she had to do to be able to focus, and nodded solemnly, staring at Scorpius's eyes, all but tuning out the rest of his face. "Do you need me to Side-Along you to St. Mungo's?" she asked, trying hard to keep her focus and emotions in check. But the redheaded witch found that, after so much time not practicing, she was out of habit with the once-familiar act.

"No," the blond said firmly, shaking his head, which made him wince, even though the movement had been slight. "I need you to Floo your brother."

For a beat, Lily wondered what in the name of Merlin Scorpius would want Albus for at this juncture, considering he was both shite at healing spells, and not remotely related to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Then it hit her, that he actually meant her oldest brother, James, and most likely because he was at the Ministry and could get ahold of the proper authorities at the drop of a hat. She nodded again, once she had processed the information, the allowed her gaze to travel over Scorpius's bloodied and bruised face, the ginger way he held his left arm, and the fact his breathing was still ragged and pained, as if every breath were hurting him.

She hesitated for a beat, biting her lower lip, but when she looked back into Scorpius's eyes, he looked determined, so she stood and ran to the fireplace, throwing the Floo powder in and screaming for her brother's office.

His face, looking startled and terrifyingly white, answered almost immediately, and she let out a breath of relief at seeing his face, even though he looked frenzied and stressed at the way he'd been Floo called. "James, you have to get Dad, and whatever other Aurors are available," she said hurriedly, half tripping over the words as they came out of her lips. "Something's happened, and-"

"Are you alright? Are you hurt? Who tried to hurt you, Lily? Was it fucking Nott?" James demanded instantly, looking furious, making Lily's lower lip wobble as emotions threatened to overcome her in a tsunami of post traumatic flashbacks, yet again.

"I don't know who did it," she said, even as tears filled her eyes, and she glanced back toward the door, over her shoulder. "I'm fine, but Scorpius… Something's happened. Something bad, and he-" She felt her patience and composure snap. "James, just go get Dad!" Lily shouted, the last word coming out on a sob, and James nodded tersely.

"We'll be there in ten," he said, and then abruptly ended the call, and Lily all but dashed back to Scorpius, who'd managed to drag himself fully inside the door. Lily went to close the portal, morbid curiosity making her glance into the hall, and she felt nausea spike and churn in her belly at the trail of blood along the carpeting from the stairwell.

"We need to go to St. Mungo's," Lily said once the door was closed and locked properly.

Scorpius simply shook his head, wincing yet again and clutching his skull, but gulping back whatever pain he might be feeling. "No," he said firmly. "The Aurors are coming, and I'll be fine."

Lily felt her temper rear, and her mouth thin, because she knew if their roles were reversed, they'd already have Apparated to the wizarding hospital, and she'd be under the care of world renowned Healers before the blond would think of contacting the appropriate authorities. "You're obviously in no shape to-"

"No," Scorpius said again, and hauled himself halfway upright, making Lily wince along with him and hurry over to assist him. "I'll be fine. I need to give my statement before I get doped up on pain potions," he said, hissing and putting his good hand to his ribs.

"What happened?" Lily demanded, even as she Summoned a few necessary essentials from the blond's bathroom and bedroom. Dittany, for one, to heal the minor cuts and abrasions along his face, because they looked painful, as well as some antiseptic potions and a numbing balm. She knew, from her own experiences, that it would take a lot of concentrated attention and diligence with a number of potions to properly mend the cuts to his face to avoid any visible scarring, but she wasn't sure how to treat the obvious internal issues.

In the next breath, before she could administer any Healing, let alone demand Scorpius seek proper medical attention, the fireplace flared again and a team of witches and wizards, all with drawn wands, including her father, emerged into Scorpius's living room, and she anxiously waved them over. The redhead couldn't help the sigh of utter relief at seeing one of the witches wearing the band around her arm that denoted her a Healing Auror, trained to triage and treat to the best of their abilities any casualties to the front line of wizarding law enforcement.

"Lily," Harry Potter said as the Aurors relaxed their wands and he commanded everyone's attention in the way only he seemed to, at least in Lily's eyes. She gulped, even as the Healer moved in and began asking rapid fire questions to Scorpius while she waved her wand and began running diagnostic spells. "What's going on here? Your brother sent me a frantic memo saying you and/or Scorpius might be injured and he thought your ex-" He broke off before saying the word, and grimaced slightly, even as Lily felt herself blushing with him. Because she knew that, ever since she'd been granted by the Wizengamot her divorce and the dissolution of her marital bonds with Thaddeus, her father had yet to even mention her ex-husband in all but principle by name, nor even reference the wizard she'd been married to for half a decade.

"I don't know who was involved, I was just here, making dinner, when Scorpius…" Her words trailed off into nothing as she looked upon the blond pureblood who was still lying prone and wheezing on the floor of his own sitting room, bleeding and looking like he needed serious medical care. She looked, helplessly, back to her father, for both confirmation she'd done the right thing, but also that he wasn't disappointed in her, yet again, for possibly making the wrong choice. "I don't know," she said again, blankly.

Harry Potter merely nodded, grimacing slightly, but nodded, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You did the right thing, Lily," he murmured, and the redhead felt her eyes sting as the tears she'd been trying valiantly to hold back started to fall.

"Fuck!" Scorpius hissed loudly from the entryway, and Lily hazel eyes jumped to him immediately, growing wide with concern at the way he grimaced in obvious pain and scowled at the Healer, who looked stern.

"You need to see a bone-regrowth specialist ASAP for those ribs," the Healer said, standing and looking disgruntled still, then turned to speak to Lily's father as he moved toward the pair, leaving Lily, breathless with relief and on the verge of tears still, merely standing there uncomfortably, avoiding the eyes of the other Aurors and trying to eavesdrop on whatever discussion her father, who'd crouched to Scorpius's level and began speaking quietly with him.

"You're all dismissed," he said after a moment, glancing over his shoulder, and the team of Aurors all nodded, sharing suspicious and questioning glances that Lily just knew meant this call would be talked about almost incessantly within the Auror corps, then Flooed out in pairs.

Lily, still feeling in shock and on edge, went to make tea, even as Scorpius dragged himself up to a sitting position and finished his chat with Harry. Just as the kettle came to a whistling boil, Harry stepped into the kitchen and smiled grimly at the redheaded witch. "Is it bad?" she whispered, licking her lips nervously, unable to meet her father's eyes as she pulled the kettle off the stove and set it aside.

"It's not good," Harry confirmed with a sigh, and Lily's stomach twisted into knots as she forced a stoic nod.

"Is Scorpius going to St. Mungo's now?" she asked, but when her father didn't immediately reply, she glanced up from where she'd begun to fuss with the tea tray. "The Medic Auror said he needed-" she began, brow furrowing as she saw Her father's grimace.

"I'll let you two discuss it," Harry merely said evasively, and the redhead felt her temper beginning to rise, now that her shock was wearing off and the nerves and fear had been temporarily allayed. "I'm off to file the reports for this. I can't guarantee it'll stay out of the press after a week or two, but we'll do our best to keep the investigation brief." Lily nodded, gaze dropping back to the tea she no longer wanted, then across to the stove, where dinner was still half-cooked and halted under stasis charms, definitely not in the mood to finish cooking, let alone eat.

"Alright. See you later," Lily replied softly, hugging her father stiffly as he moved in to embrace her.

"I'll let Scorpius know when he has to come in for his official statement," Harry said, then smiled at her as he drew back from the hug. "I'm proud of you honey," he added impossibly softer. "You did the right thing today, just like you've been doing since...everything." Lily swallowed as her tears stung the back of her eyes again, nodding woodenly.

"Thanks, Dad," she managed to croak out through a raspy throat, thick with emotion, while Harry merely kissed her temple, with an affectionate pat on her hair, and headed back out to the living area to Floo back to the Ministry. She took a long, deep breath, trying to balance her frustration with Scorpius, because she was willing to bet the stubborn jerk was only refusing medical treatment because he didn't want to look weak in front of her, with her fear that he was going to seriously injure himself permanently from it. Which would just be another thing she would owe him, and certainly something that would make her shroud of guilt she tried to ignore until impossible in the dead of night even heavier.

After steeling herself, and making sure her tears were in check, because it wasn't like she hadn't already sobbed buckets into and onto and over Scorpius in the last few months, and headed back out, mug of tea in hand, to where Scorpius had dragged himself to the couch. He was panting, turned away from her, and clutching his side, laying his face on the sofa cushion.

"You need St. Mungo's," Lily said firmly, even as she set the tea on the side table and crouched down, slung his free arm over her shoulders, then helped him up onto the couch. Scorpius wheezing, rolled onto his back, already shaking his head no at her. "You do," she insisted, perching beside him.

"I'll be fine," Scorpius said through gritted teeth, looking pale and sweaty. "I've had worse," he said when Lily merely lifted a brow disbelievingly.

"That doesn't somehow refute or negate the fact you need actual, properly healing from a registered and licensed Healer, Scorpius," she replied, folding her arms sternly, trying to look intimidating. "Drink your tea, and we'll go," she said, and made to stand, as if the argument was closed.

She sat back abruptly as the warm weight of Scorpius's hand covered her thigh, hazel eyes jumping to steady dark grey. "No, Lily," he said, quite evenly and sounding more like his normal self than she believed could be possible after the scraps she'd heard about the blond's field diagnosis earlier. "I just need to be here," he said, looking quite serious, even as her anger softened.

"But the Auror Medic said-" she began, sounding weak in her defense of her point about his need for proper Healing from someone qualified even to her own ears.

"I'm going to be fine," he said, and smirked. "Trust me, I've had worse," he said with a surety that made Lily wonder just what he'd gotten up to while working abroad in both Egypt and Mexico for Gringotts. "I'm more worried that next time it's not going to be me who winds up being the intended target of that kind of attack," he added very quietly, so low Lily barely caught it, despite being right there. She couldn't help but notice his hand was still on the top of her thigh, barely above the knee, and through her jeans, but still there, resting almost casually, his palm warm and steadying. Lily fought the urge to blush as her brain began spinning countless theories as to what that gesture might mean, if anything at all, and opened her mouth to ask just what he meant by 'next time'. "I'd rather stay here and make sure no one tries to pay you a visit while thinking I might be confined to St. Mungo's," Scorpius said quite baldly.

The redhead didn't have to ask who it might possibly be, but she felt her throat clogging with dread that seeped down into her stomach, burning like acid and setting her already tense nerves into overdrive. There was only one wizard who would make it his business to know where she was living now that her address was no longer Nott Hall, and she knew that if her almost-ex husband showed up, it would be disastrous at best.

"You still need-" Lily pushed, determined to make sure he at least took proper care of himself, even if she had to research how to heal him herself and try to do it properly without killing or maiming him.

Scorpius interrupted her with a weak sigh and a small smile. "I'll hire a private Healer, if that will satisfy you enough that you leave off bothering me about it, but until whoever did this is caught, and whoever hired the attack is found, I'm not letting you out of my sight." Lily could stare at Scorpius for a long moment, unable to help the blush or smile that graced her face. She let out the breath she'd sucked in upon registering he'd pretty much just vowed to keep her safe, and judging by his intense stare, seemed determined to keep to it. It felt like she was, in some tiny way at least, worthy of something. Of being protected by a wizard who was almost singularly skilled at doing, and undoing, just those type of wards, just because she was a human, and alive, and not inherently inferior to him.

"Not to mention, I am a Curse Breaker, so I'm willing to bet so long as you stay in my wards, you could be standing two centimeters from a dragon and it wouldn't be able to hurt you," Scorpius said after Lily's eyes dropped, her heart buoyed up too much to speak past the lump it formed in her throat.

"I'll be here," she said at last, smiling, even as tears stung behind her eyes again. Only this time, they felt like a celebration.

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