Summary:
"Well, love. If you plan to marry Creevey, I suggest you actually divorce Malfoy."
Chudley, England - 19 Years Old
"You realize it's 6 in the morning?"
Rose held the door open, light pouring in through the opening. She held up her arm to block the onslaught of daylight intruding on her morning. It didn't seem to phase her boyfriend, who quickly gave his explanation,
"I was thinking about what you said last night. About Christmas with my father-"
"And these thoughts couldn't wait until 7...maybe even 8?"
Scorpius clearly had no concept of the time. Looking him over, Rose realized it was probably because he hadn't slept that night; he was still wearing the outfit he'd left in and his eyes looked worn.
"I was afraid I would lose my nerve if I did not come straight away."
He looked ragged, but he also had an energy about him that was making Rose nervous. Cautiously, she dropped her arm and nodded into the flat, heading towards the kitchen. Scorpius followed her in, stopping at the stove where Rose moved the kettle and switched on a burner.
"My father, he is not particularly proud of my choices." he started in his normal, soothing tone, "and he is really not fond of his name being in the press. Even worse when it is associated with yours-"
"It was just a thought." Rose interrupted his calm cadence with her own blunt fragments, still annoyed that he'd woken her up this early to apologize for an argument she'd already forgotten about. "You know you're welcome with mine. I thought you might want to spend it with your family-"
"That's what had me thinking."
He reached out and held her hands to stop them from continuing to fiddle with whatever was in front of her and focus on him.
"Draco, he's my father, but he is not what I think of when I think of family."
He said it like a finished statement, but Rose's expression made it clear there were still blanks to fill in. He let go of her hands and paced a couple of steps, his emotions spilling out in a way she'd seldom seen.
"You're brilliant, you know that?" He stopped again, "I mean you are erratic and sometimes irrational, but mostly you are ambitious and bold."
Rose crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked over at him, still puzzled. Was he apologizing or insulting her? She blamed half of her confusion on the early hour and the other half on Scorpius rambling like he'd rarely done before.
"Out with it, Scorp."
His tension seemed to ease into a mischievous grin that reminded Rose of their Hogwarts days.
"I want you to be my family, Rose. Marry me."
He said it with a confidence it had taken him all morning to muster and still Rose wasn't sure if he meant what he said. She tilted her head, hoping the new perspective would help bring sense to his statement. For a moment, they just looked at one another. Then, Rose slowly gained a mischievous grin of her own and she all but ran to the boy she loved, wrapping her arms around him.
He must have walked all the way over, he still smelled like the woods. Rose pushed herself onto her tiptoes so she could press her lips against his. She wrapped her hand in his hair and felt one of his on the small of her back.
Scorpius had pulled away just long enough to ask, ""So is that a yes?" and then they fell backwards onto the couch.
Of course it was a yes. Rose couldn't think of wanting anyone the way she wanted him. She couldn't imagine a future that he wasn't a part of. To think that he was standing there, offering her forever made her happier than words could express.
"I'll think about it..." She teased, undoing the buttons down his shirt.
But he persisted, whispering between their kisses, "Marry me, Rose."
Brazil - 28 Years Old
Suddenly she was torn from her thoughts and forced back into reality, where a man knelt in front of her on one knee.
"Do take your time, love. Too quick of an answer might seem rash."
Her stomach was going to come up her throat. Why was she just standing there? Why wasn't she jumping up and down with glee? Why hadn't she thrown her arms around him? Why wasn't she picturing their future together? Instead, her stomach was in her throat. Choking on the word yes.
"Anders. I...I'm sorry you've caught me so off guard...honestly I'm gobsmacked."
She knew his smirk was an attempt at hiding his concern, so it gave her little comfort.
"Rose Granger-Weasley is speechless? That doesn't often bode well...I mean you're right, we've only been together for a year or so - who could have seen this coming?"
He closed the tiny box and got up from his knee. Instead of meeting her glance, he leaned on the balcony railing and gazed out. Rose was silently grateful he'd done this in the privacy of their flat instead of a public venue; the last thing she needed was another press storm. She wiped her face with her hands before leaning beside him. Then she nudged his shoulder,
"I do love you, you know?"
He smiled and laughed softly, looking down at the box in his hands, "Care to double down on that?"
Rose returned his smile. He was always able to lighten a mood. Anders Creevey was many things - but serious had never been one of them. Maybe that's why she had been taken back by his proposal. He tucked the box into his pocket and wrapped an arm around her.
"I mean, marriage is the next logical step." Rose started to reason, but her thought process was quickly interrupted.
"And as romantic as a logical step is, I don't want you to marry me because it's rational."
Anders turned towards her, taking each of her hands in his. She could see him trying to find the right words and silently scolded herself for putting him in this position.
"I thought it'd be terribly romantic to do this grand, spontaneous proposal...but I forgot who I was proposing to."
He was being so understanding, Rose could barely contain how annoyed she was at herself.
"It's not a no! It's just...we've never talked like that before. And marriage is..."
She trailed off, not able to find the proper words to possibly describe her trepidation. Luckily, her former failures were well known in the wizarding world so she didn't have to.
"It's a big deal, I know. And truly, I understand your hesitation." Anders brushed a curl from her face with a soft smile. "Maybe I've put the cart before the horse a bit. In fact, I take back my offer - I don't want to marry you anymore."
"Anders, you don't have to-"
He straightened his stance and held up a hand to stop her. Then he continued in a mocking tone, "No, no. You can't convince me."
He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his wand, using the other hand to fetch the ring box. He tapped on it once and gave it a quick shake.
"Pretend I said this instead." He leaned toward her again and continued in an honest tone, "Rose Weasley, You are intelligent and kind and fierce. I love that you hate morning people and that you refuse to understand quidditch. I love your ambition and your laziness. I love that after three years we're still learning new things about one another - like your apparent fear of commitment. You're the most beautiful woman no matter what room we seem to be in. And it would make me the happiest man alive if you married me, but I want it to be when you're ready for the idea of forever."
Opening the box, he revealed the same diamond, but instead of sitting on a band it was set onto a silver chain.
"I'm in this Rose, all in. You've had rotten luck with forever in the past and I should have tested the waters a bit before I sprung this on you."
Rose pressed her lips to his in a gentle kiss she hoped reassured him, though it was doing little to reassure herself.
She didn't sleep that night.
Every time she closed her eyes she saw him. His blonde hair kept falling in front of his silver eyes to stare back at her, a stark contrast to Anders' short dark hair and hazel iris'. She could hear his even timbre whispering in her ear and it sent a shiver up her spine. So instead of dozing off she sat up in bed and stared down at the new diamond necklace around her neck until the sun finally peeked over the horizon.
She was so thankful Anders had to be on assignment that next morning, she could hardly look at him without her heart aching. Rose was at a loss for what to do, so she did the only thing she could - she called in expert advice.
Emelin Costa was one of Rose's closest friends these days. Traveling as much as she did meant there weren't many roots in her life, but Emelin had always held on too tight for even Rose to shake.
"Oh he must have been gutted, but of course he acted fine with it all."
"Of course he was fine with it! Probably just dodged a damn bullet."
Emelin was always so graceful with her words.
"I mean here he is, thinking you're tapping your toe waiting for a ring or you're gonna run off with Roger what's his name from last month's dig just to spite him - all the while he's actually free and clear to keep things mellow. Poor boy's probably relieved as hell."
Rose simply shook her head before taking a sip of tea.
"I don't think he was relieved Em...I think I really hurt him."
Rose looked around Emelin's office. It had always fascinated the young Weasley to learn about the different pasts each artifact contained; she was realizing now it was probably a way to ignore her own.
"Why didn't you say yes?"
Rose sipped her tea again, avoiding the question.
"You do love him don't you?"
Emelin was persistent. It was a great quality for barreling through the bureaucracy of Brazil's ministry, but not exactly welcoming in a personal conversation.
"Of course I do-"
"So what then? You don't see yourself with him when you're old and wrinkling and so ugly only a man who can remember what you once looked like would dare keep kissing ya?"
"Well when you put it like that!"
Rose threw a lump of sugar at her friend and they both laughed, but Rose's laugh turned melancholy as she thought of the true answer. She did love Anders, but she wasn't sure it was in that forever sort of way. She wasn't sure there was a forever sort of way anymore.
"A man I love asked to spend the rest of his life with me and yet all I can seem to think about is Scorpius bloody Malfoy."
Rose's frustration built up until she all but smashed her cup onto the desk. Understanding her predicament, Emelin reached across the table and put her hand on her friend's.
"So the true reason for your visit finally emerges," she teased, "Look querida, having a few walls up is to be expected. I mean, Merlin's beard, the whole wizarding world watched the two of you fall apart."
Rose forced a smile as Emelin returned to her own side of the desk. It was one thing to be guarded, it was another to stand gobsmacked when your boyfriend is down on one knee proposing.
"How long's it been since you've even seen him?"
Rose squinted into the distance pretending to do the math. "Three, four years ago now?" Meanwhile, the memory was playing back in technicolor. Scorpius smiling with Albus and Charlotte, though it never seemed to reach his eyes. The two of them used to have entire conversations with nothing but a glance, but that night he had barely even looked her way.
"There's more, isn't there?"
Rose shook her head back and forth to shake the memory, but instead just shook her bangs into her eyes. She brushed them back behind her ear, "Maybe there is...maybe I couldn't say yes because..." She had ignored this truth for so long it was surreal for her to say it out loud. "I'm not technically available..."
"Ay meu Deus, Rosa!?!" Emelin nearly spit tea from her nose. "You said you took care of that!"
"I tried!" she exclaimed, and it wasn't a total falsehood. She'd been made aware of the errors with the paperwork and tried to fix it herself, but when it was made clear that she'd have to get his signature as well she'd stalled the whole endeavor.
"It's bollocks really, my cousin could fix it, she just loves making my life miserable." Rose groaned, resting her head in her hands. "What am I going to do Em?"
Emelin added a little milk to her cup and gave it a gentle stir before answering matter-of-factly.
"Well, love. If you plan to marry Creevey, I suggest you actually divorce Malfoy.
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hi guys this is ginny and this is my scorose and lily/lysander story as you know i love lily and lysander bye guys thank you for reading <3