Preface:
This is a next gen romance (Scorily) fic with the story revolving around three main characters: Lily Potter II, Scorpius Malfoy and Rose Granger-Weasley. This story is written as a friendly write-off challenge with my pal, Charms ( Charmed_Sunshine_22).
Dedicated To:
Charms (Charmed_Sunshine_22) for being an amazing inspiration for me.
It was a nice sunny day. The cool wind which blew through the grounds relaxed the chilling students who had their backs to the numerous trees on the yard.
It was the second of May, the anniversary of The Battle of Hogwarts. To mark the twenty-fifth year of independence from the reign of one of the most darkest Wizards to walk the planet, the day was declared to be a holiday; the reason why the students were relaxing.
Among the groups was a certain redheaded Gryffindor.
Lily Luna Potter, fifth year and a cheeky girl, was the only daughter of the Potters. When the day was declared an holiday, no one rejoiced as much as her; reading for the OWLs tired her out significantly and she was in a desperate need for a holiday.
Her friends, cousins, Scorpius and her brother Albus were sitting together and playing a game of Wizard's World Building.
"W. . ." Scorpius stated, wondering. Albus's last word led him to tell a word starting with W. "Whomping Willow?"
"It's done already," Nina, her friend told. Scorpius scratched his cheek and Hugo laughed. Lily chuckled politely. Scorpius always scratched his cheek when he was unsure or was nervous. She knew as much.
"Shall I help you?" Rose, her cousin, asked. Scorpius looked at her with a smile.
"Go ahead, Rose." The way he pronounced her name made Lily's lips curl downwards.
"Waddiwasi. It's a spell," Rose explained. Scorpius hit his head.
"How could I forget that?! You are brilliant, I must agree," he said with a grin. She rolled her eyes with a chuckle. Lily suddenly found the grass so interesting that she did not notice it was her turn until her brother woke her from her reverie.
"Redflower!" It was his nickname for her.
"Sorry, what's the letter?"
"I."
"Ilvermony," Lily answered and zoned out again until a prefect came over to them and whispered something in Scorpius and Rose's ears. The two heads nodded before getting up.
"They are arranging a feast for the memorial. Please get to the Great Hall. Scorp, go and gather all the Prefects and give the message but before that, inform those on the grounds," Rose ordered. The others nodded and left but Lily stayed behind as she was a prefect too. Rose looked at her. "Yes?"
"I am a prefect too, Rosey!" Lily teased. Rose turned red.
"Lily! I told you not to call me that!" she said, waving her arms around. The book in her hand hit Lily's head, causing her vision to spin. When the book came in for another hit, she steadied herself and in a moment of the reflex she inherited from her mother, she pushed Rose away, leading the bewildered girl to fall into the simmering lake with a loud splash.
"ROSE!" Lily froze. She started to approach the rippling waters but Scorpius shouted again. "What do you think you are doing, Lily?!" He ran back to the place where they were standing. Pulling off the black Hogwarts robes, he dived into the water.
The minutes ticked off painfully as Lily stood, hands on her lips, waiting anxiously. Finally, Scorpius and Rose resurfaced, with the former helping the latter to the shore. Lily tried to help them up but the blonde boy refused her hand.
They were soaking wet, making Lily feel guilty but the words which came out of Scorpius's mouth hurt her deeply.
"Why on earth did you push her into the waters?! Don't you know that she doesn't know to swim?! What kind of a cousin pushes her sister into a boiling lake filled with Merlin knows what creatures?!"
"I – I did not push her –" the frightened Potter started.
"A-are y-you kidding m-me, Lily? D-do you think I f-fell into the l-lake on purpose?" Rose stuttered, clutching her clothes. Lily shook her head, trying to hold back the tears which were threatening to fall. Scorpius glared at her before wrapping an arm around Rose and leading her away from Lily. When they were gone, the redhead collapsed to the ground in a mess. . .
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The Great Hall was a room of sight. Students of every houses were united and sitting together for the meals. The busy chattering and the clinking of spoons and forks buzzed on in Lily's ears as she stared emotionlessly at her plate.
"Lily?" a voice asked and she looked up to meet the pale eyes of Scorpius. It held pain in them. "You. . . I can't believe that you did that to Rose. . . I thought we were really close. . ."
"I didn't do it on purpose, okay?" she snapped.
Scorpius's eyes narrowed. Rose appeared by his side and put an hand on her partner's shoulder and said, "And now you are snapping at him? Guess the Potter thing the media keeps talking about is here."
"Don't you dare!"
"What if I dare because I am a true Gryffindor?" Rose asked and Lily got up angrily.
"What do you mean by that?!"
Rose leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Al is not a Gryffindor. It shows how Slytherin-like traits your blood contains. A true Weasley is always a Gryffindor."
Lily turned red this time. Wasting no time, she withdrew her wand. "Rose!"
"Miss Potter!" It was Professor Longbottom this time. He was running over to her; several at the staff table had risen. "What's happening here, Miss Granger-Weasley?" he asked, panting slightly.
"We were just talking, Professor, about the various ways to charm ceilings. I have heard it is a new question added to the OWL syllabus and hence, wish to teach my godsister the same," Rose lied, looking at Scorpius who was looking as if he had been confunded.
Lily opened her mouth to tell the truth but found that she was unable to speak. Professor Longbottom looked at her and she slowly lowered her wand and nodded quietly. He nodded back.
"Next time. . . just try that in your dorms, eh?" With a smile, he left the group.
"Be a good girl like that, Lils," Rose said. Lily looked at Scorpius to support her but he just shook his head. Not able to take it anymore, she left the Great Hall, her plate of food long since abandoned.
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Scorpius felt a tad bit guilty for shouting at the youngest Potter although a part of him did NOT want him to regret it. It was, after all, Rose Granger-Weasley who got hurt because of her jealousy.
Rose was a great friend of his. Actually, he might even have a huge fancy for her. . . She was intelligent, athletic and beautiful. Although she might come across as bossy at many a times, he still liked her headstrong personality – she did not cry often.
Lily was a good pal as well. He doubted if she harboured feelings for him. Funny, passionate, smart and cute; he had always thought of her as a younger sister mostly because she was his best friend, Albus's sister but a big brother always wants his sister to be the best, right? Surely his anger wasn't silly?
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The moonlight gently streaked through the curtains, illuminating the dark corner of the four poster on which Lily lay, crying silently. The silencing charm around the bed made her sobs inaudible to everyone but her.
A parchment was tightly clutched in her hands; the lyrics of her favourite Muggle song which always made her feel more brave. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Stand a little taller. Doesn't means I'm lonely when I'm alone. Repeating the same lines over and over again in her mind, she fell asleep, hoping to implement the same the next day.
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The next day brought a significant change in Lily, Scorpius noticed. She seemed much more confident and took no nonsense, not even from an annoyed Rose who seemed to be trying to talk something to her.
It was only after lunch that Scorpius finally spotted Rose and Lily outside the Great Hall. The former was glaring looks that could kill at the Potter, who stood confidently, hands on her hips. Her jaws set and a blazing look on her face, she raised an eyebrow.
"What really is your problem now, Rose? I apologized already and you made a big fuss. I'm really grateful to you because now the only person who talks well to me is my big brother, Al," Lily said. Scorpius stealthily got a little more closer to eavesdrop.
"You are not cut out to be a Potter, you know that? You are tainting your family name! How can you be this confident when you were the one who pushed me into the lake?"
"You know what? I wouldn't have done it if you didn't start flailing around and tried hitting me with that very light book. I know what your intentions are, Rose. You just want to be on the good side of him for which you don't want me to be an obstacle," Lily stated matter-of-factly. Rose's eyes widened. "No worries, I don't need him if he gets so arrogant so as to ignore me. Enjoy your time. It's always been just me, myself and I!" Lily tried to leave but Rose grabbed her wrist.
"Lily? But how?" She seemed speechless.
"I know about the cousin I love. You tried to break me but see now. I've never been better." Lily forced her wrist out of her grip and left, her red hair bouncing down her shoulders, leaving an eavesdropping Scorpius dumbfounded. Rose spluttered an incoherent apology before falling down to the ground in a fit of sobs. Scorpius made the decision of whom to confront in a split second and left to execute it.
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"Lily!" He ran after her but she did not stop. He had to grab her bag to stop her, which caused her face to morph into annoyance. However, he could not find the right words to confront her. When she made to leave, his mouth worked on its own. "You have changed. . .a lot since that day. . ."
Before he could smack himself on the head for the nonsense he had just uttered, she spoke, in a deep voice. "Think you left me broken down? Then you don't know me at all, Malfoy. I wonder what you were thinking about whilst spending time with me. Probably about Rose, eh? No matter –"
"Lily, look. I'm sorry, I didn't –"
"Apology accepted but it doesn't mean I'm over it all," she retorted before harshly pulling her bag out of his grip and leaving him alone, wondering how on earth he would be able to mend the things back.
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After talking to a guilty Rose, Scorpius felt his own remorse escalate higher. He had seriously misunderstood Lily but what was the use of learning it this late? She was mad at him although she accepted his apology. On the other hand, Albus seemed to have become nasty with him, always shooting him looks. Scorpius sighed as the same question ran through his mind for the thousandth time that day: how would he mend the broken mess he had gotten himself into?
On top of that, Scorpius had taken to watching the youngest Potter in a not-so-brotherly way. The confidence in her posture, her blazing look and her nature whilst being with her brother and her friends had done some magic on his heart.
Sensing his misery, Rose had taken to helping him genuinely. So that day, they sat together at the Slytherin table, Scorpius following her advice. He was watching Lily intently, trying to find out a way to impress her. This only made him fall harder for her.
She was laughing at something John Thomas had told. The moment her laugh subsided, she whispered something into his ear which made grin, then pecked his cheek and left, his grin growing even brightly.
Scorpius groaned and hid his face in his pale hands. Rose gave him a sympathetic pat.
"I'm sorry, Scorp," she apologized. Scorpius shook his head before suddenly standing up in a jolt. He smiled gratefully at her for her support before leaving the hall with determined eyes destined to pursuit Lily Luna Potter.
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As he made up his mind, he found her in the grounds. She was sitting against a tree, a book on her lap. The wind caressed her hair; the sunlight made several shades of the scarlet of her hair glow. In all she looked gorgeous and Scorpius was going to tell her that.
He took a few cautious steps before it turned into a stride. After walking for what seemed like ten kilometers but which was actually ten feet, he made it to her. He lightly tapped her on the shoulder and she looked up with curious brown eyes.
Then he kissed her.
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"What even made you do that, Malfoy?"
"Don't be oblivious. You are gorgeous. Truth be told, you know I like you and I know you like me, Flowerpot."
"I like you. . . IN your dreams."
"You thought out loud and I quote, 'Oh my Merlin, he kissed me!'"
"Shut it."
After the special embrace on that particular sunlit day, Scorpius and Lily had practically spent the day in silence until that moment.
"Lily, I'm serious. I like you so much."
"I thought you liked Rose. . . " Her voice sounded insecure, a tone of hers which he had not heard since days.
"Maybe I did but y'know, I don't particularly believe her now that she hurt my not-so-tender flower," Scorpius replied and smiled at her but she did not return the gesture. She was looking yon, over the horizon.
"What's with the sudden change of heart?"
"I must ask you the same question."
Lily sighed. "You know I've never been so insecure until you and Rose's whatever-relationship came into picture. . ."
"I know. I remember you as the confident little Potter."
A small smile played with her lips. "Then I remembered mum's advice to be yourself and this Muggle song I like very much inspired me more to be stronger."
"Lils, can you sing a line for me then?"
Lily took a deep breath. He grabbed her right hand and placed a small kiss on the rosy palm. She smiled and tapping her shoe over the bank, sang in a lark-like voice. "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. . ."
Scorpius smiled before interrupting her. "And this strong Lily Luna Potter holds my heart in her brown eyes."
Leave your thoughts on this chapter and go read Charm's OS with the same prompt too!
Thank you for reading!
Miyoko x