It's not good enough for me
Since I've been with you, ooh
It's not gonna work for you
Nobody can equal me
~
SCORPIUS WAS LATE TO PRACTICE, which meant that his team captain and best friend would rip him a new one.
He ran into line with Lana Avery, hoping that the captain wouldn't notice his tardiness.
"SCORPIUS MALFOY, I SWEAR ON SALAZAR'S GRAVE IF YOU ARE LATE ONE MORE BLOODY TIME, YOU'LL BE OFF THIS TEAM."
He winced at Althea's chastising that echoed from above, her wand tip pressed on her throat with a spell to amplify her voice. As usual, she was pacing back and forth on her broomstick with ease. No one had ever seen such an acrobatic and flexible Seeker as Althea Nott.
"Thea, I'm sorry." he apologized.
Lana chuckled into her fist. "I don't think she cares anymore. She's too busy."
He followed Lana's pointed finger to the bleachers were a Gryffindor girl was observing practice. Upon further inspection, Scorpius realized it was a Weasley. Roxanne Weasley.
"Alright you filthy animals," Althea snapped. "One more grueling practice before break. Hell, I expect you to be practicing on your broomsticks even over break. Find some barn or something, don't give me any excuses about not being able to practice magic out of school. Hufflepuff lost against Ravenclaw this past week, which means we need to bring our A game when we go against them in February. How many of you are staying for Christmas holidays? Those of you who can, expect to be seeing me bright and early every Thursday for practice."
Three hands raised- his, Lana's, and the Keeper, Maryse Zabini. Althea gestured for all of them to mount their broomsticks.
She lifted a whistle to her lips, holding it with her teeth. A sharp blow caused the musical whistle to pierce the mid December air. "Let's go! Chasers, line up to practice your Chelmondiston Charge. Maryse, block their hits with a Double Eight Loop. Beaters, follow me to the other side of the field..."
Scorpius zoned out of the practice, lost in the thoughts of Rose. She had so much to learn from him. He knew her body like the back of his hand. He couldn't wait to wrap her in his arms, kiss her sweetly, remind her of all the reasons he was better than whatever Lysander had to offer.
She may want Lysander, but by the end of the Quidditch season he would ensure she needed him.
Althea's voice cut through the fog over his mind. "Scorpius, pay attention-"
He looked up just to see the quaffle spiralling at him. Maryse had kicked it back with the back of her broomstick after Lana had gone up. Shit, he was going to get hit if he didn't think fast. He dropped off his broomstick, catching the middle of it precariously. The quaffle spun back, target locked on him until he made contact with it; whether that was catching it or being hit by it.
He swung his legs back up, diving down to the bottom of the field. The quaffle followed in pursuit. At the last moment he yanked his broomstick up. The quaffle smashed into the field, but it slowed down it's speed significantly- enough for him to whack it with the end of the broom straight into the highest goal.
Althea shook her head, a reluctant grin on her face. "Star Chaser you are, Malfoy."
He said nothing, too shocked to appreciate her praise. He was getting too distracted. Rose couldn't interfere with quidditch, which meant that he needed to have his fill of her, and soon.
~
"How was practice?"
He reveled in her voice, soft and gentle as she lounged on their sofa. It felt so good to be civil with her.
"It was...unexpected. A few shockers thrown my way."
She turned to look at him over the back of the sofa. Her cheeks were hollowed out around a cotton candy blue lollipop. His trousers tightened.
"Really? Like almost getting hit by a quaffle? Nice save, by the way."
He shucked off his robes, rolling up his sleeves as he approached the back of the sofa. "And how exactly did you know that?"
When he locked hands on the edge of the sofa, he was surprise to see Rose get on her knees to face him at his bent height. "Roxanne told me. She was at your practice."
"Why would a Gryffindor girl be at a Slytherin quidditch practice?" he murmured, looking to see if the gears were working in his little Rose's head.
Instead, she pulled the lollipop out of her mouth with a loud smacking noise that made his brain short circuit.
"Don't know," she shrugged, turning back to curl up in her original spot with a book nestled in the crook of the thighs.
"Rose, lesson time." he demanded.
The confidence drained out of her. "Practice now? I'd rather not. I mean- I'm not exactly ready."
"Too bad. Do you want Lysander or not? The longer you wait, the more your chances go down."
She contemplated that for a moment before hesitantly nodding. Scorpius led them to his room where she sank into his bed, then proceeded to cover herself with blankets and pillows galore.
"Stop." he scowled. "We won't go any further than you want."
"Okay," her voice was small. "What's first?"
"Kissing." he tried to keep the want out of his voice.
This was purely platonic, the max it would go was lust. A deeper, darker part of him relished in the fact that while Lysander may have her heart, he'd always have her body.
"Come here, Rosie." he used his nickname for her, one he sparsely used since fourth year.
He could see the effect on her body immediately. She relaxed, unfurling from her shell of pillows and blankets to sit next to him at the foot of the bed.
"Close your eyes." he instructed. "Place your hand here. Part your lips."
Her eyes fluttered shut, like a butterfly's wings. Merlin, she was so magnificent. So sweet, so trusting. He lifted her hand to settle it at the nape of his neck. His own hand settled to cup her jaw so he could control the kiss.
"Breathe through your nose." Scorpius warned before sealing her mouth with a kiss.
He pulled back only for a second but Rose lurched forward to continue the kiss. He held a tight grip on her jaw. "No, that's too fast. Go slow. Appreciate the kiss. Then you can ramp it up."
She seemed to be blinking out of a haze. Just a simple kiss from him made her lose her senses. Oh, how he'd missed this.
He kissed her once more, sliding an arm around her waist. With a hefty lift, he swallowed her surprised gasp at him placing her in his lap.
"Ramp up now?" she asked between kisses.
"No." he hissed as she shifted in his lap.
Scorpius skimmed the seam of her lips with his tongue and she let out a soft moan that had him scrambling for the last shreds of his sanity.
"Now?" she pleaded.
Who was he to deny her?
The sharp knock on their front door had both of them split. Rose wriggled out of his lap, standing up and pressing down the wrinkles of her skirt and shirt.
Get it, she mouthed, jerking her head to the door.
He groaned. If it's Hux again...
But when Rose had run back to her room and he opened the door, he was surprised to see Maryse Zabini.
"Hey," she smiled. "I just wanted to apologize about that stuff with the quaffle earlier. I didn't mean to hit it that hard. I should've checked to see if you were paying attention."
Scorpius tensed when she reached forward to tuck a stray hair from his sight.
"Are you okay, Scorp? That Rose girl not giving you too much trouble? You seemed really distracted at practice."
He leaned against the door frame when he noticed her wandering eyes creeping over his shoulder. "She's fine. Anything else I can help you with?"
"Yes, actually. Have you found a date yet? For the Yule Ball?"
He almost forgot. The Trick-Wizard tournament was upon them, which meant Yule Ball was this Christmas. His duties as Head and making sure his grades stayed on par were the only things he focused on. Last time he checked, no one of importance was participating as Hogwarts representative. Just some Ravenclaw boy named Jay.
The Slytherin Chaser arched a brow. "Are you offering yourself up?"
She laughed nervously. "No, no. A few people have asked me but I have more...selective tastes. Let me know if you don't have a date, I don't mind accompanying you."
From the other side of the door, he squeezed the doorknob tightly. He forgot how much Maryse could get on his nerves with her arrogance.
Instead, he returned her earlier smile. "Of course. Thank you for your consideration as always, Maryse. Goodnight."
He shut the door before she got the chance to say anything. When Scorpius turned around, Rose was peeking out of her room, a mischievous grin on her face.
"Ooh, late night visits from Maryse Zabini? I knew you liked her!"
"I do not!" he huffed. "She's a thorn in my side. Much like you will be if you keep pestering me about her."
She skipped out of her room rather happily. "I have an idea."
"Oh Salazar," he muttered under his breath as he began making white chocolate peppermint tea. "What could that be?"
"Since you're teaching me the more physical sides of a relationship, I can teach you the more romantic sides so you can swoon Maryse."
He wanted to yell that it wasn't Maryse that he wanted to swoon. It was her. He shut his eyes tight, counting to three. This means nothing. Max is lust. Rose didn't want him falling for her. It was easier for her to believe that he wasn't capable of doing that if he admitted to having a crush on Maryse. She would assume Maryse was like Lysander in his situation.
"Fine." he turned around. "You've got me. I do like her. She's different from all the girls I've met."
Yeah as in there's no other girl as annoying arrogant and prejudiced as she is. No one can compare to you, Rosie.
"Aha! That explains why you were so angry about what I did yesterday! Saving your heart for Maryse, I see." she winked, retreating back into her room. "Great! We'll start tomorrow!"
~
For the first time, Rose and Scorpius actually attended breakfast at the Great Hall together. Usually, she left really earlier and he typically never showed up. But according to Rose, they needed to get dirt on what Maryse liked.
"I'm assuming you need dirt on Lysander as well?" he muttered.
She plucked a sweet bread roll, tearing into the fluffy sugary goodness. "Nope. I already know everything about him. His habits, his schedule, his likes and dislikes, what he's allergic to."
"Allergic, huh?" Scorpius hid his jealousy well. "You've really investing a lot into him. He's just a crush."
She took a sip of a mango drink. "It's more than that. I love him. I've had a small crush on him since third year, but it just really blossomed fifth year. He came over to Albus' a lot with Lorcan. The twins get along well with Lily and Hugo."
The beginnings of a puzzle started to form in his head. Why would Lorcan and Lysander come over to Albus' house? Back then, he believed the one of the twins liked Rose. If that was the case, why didn't they just go to Rose's? Especially if they got along with Hugo.
Something wasn't adding up.
"Rose, what do you think of Lorcan?" he suggested slowly.
The Gryffindor Chaser bit into a tart. "He's not the same as Lysander, if that's what you mean. Lysander is sweet and caring. Lorcan seems really distant whenever I meet him, especially if it was just us. Made for some really awkward moments."
Distant? To Rose? You'd have to be priest or gay not to have a reaction-
Holy shit.
Lorcan was gay.
Made sense. Thinking back to the hallway, Scorpius realized maybe it wasn't actually Lysander kissing a someone. It was Lorcan kissing a boy. Rose couldn't see it- she probably thought it was Lysander from the hair. Recalling the details, he could remember seeing Hufflepuff robes on the Lorcan, Hufflepuff on the short boy with shaggy auburn hair. From the back, the Hufflepuff could easily be mistaken for a girl with a bad hair day.
He zipped his lips shut on the matter. If Rose found out it wasn't Lysander, she definitely wouldn't agree to their arrangement and call it off. He wasn't ready to end this. Not when it was the closest he'd gotten to her since the summer before the fifth year.