Title: The Flower and the Scorpion (1/4)
Author: drcjsnider
Pairing: Rose/Scorpius
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Scorpius Malfoy is on a mission to bring Rose Weasley home.
Word Count: 5,840
Notes/Warning: Big thanks to kazfeist and Ellae for doing the beta work for this. They keep me from looking stupid.

Scorpius Malfoy was what his Mum referred to as a late bloomer. He had been the shortest boy in his year at Hogwarts until he had turned sixteen and he had never gone out on a date with a girl until after he had left school. Bookish and sickly growing up, he was too delicate to play Quidditch. Instead, he devoted his time to working as a research assistant to the Potions Professor and serving as the president and founding member of YEWTS - the Young English Wizard's Transfiguration Society. Although he had the grades to be Head Boy, he did not get the position because he did not have enough of an authoritarian personality to earn the respect of the younger students. His housemate and Head Girl, Rose Weasley, had clapped him on the back and told him it was "a damn shame" when he informed her of the news.

After graduation, his parents had sent him on a year-long world so that he could gain "an aura of sophistication." Scorpius, however, had returned to England after only five weeks, claiming to be lonely and more interested in starting his career, than in travelling. Deeply disappointed, his father had nevertheless arranged for him to get an internship in the Department of Mysteries and Scorpius quickly settled into a career in the Wizarding bureaucracy.

When he woke on the morning of his twenty-first birthday, Scorpius sat down at his desk to review his previous year's accomplishments and plot out his career and personal goals for the next twelve months. He was relatively satisfied with his work situation. He had gotten a permanent position in the Department of Mysteries, had the support of his superiors, and had recently received a promotion. His personal life was adequate. He was dating an amenable, if somewhat mousey, girl, who got along well with his Mum. Financially, he was stable. He was living comfortably off his Ministry salary and had recently purchased his own flat, just off of Diagon Alley, which his father claimed would be a great long-term investment. All in all, Scorpius was satisfied with his life. And if his life was a little less stimulating or exciting than he might have dreamed about as a boy, its very predictability was in many ways a comfort.

That comfort was irrevocably shattered later the same morning, when Ron Weasley grabbed Scorpius by the back of his robes and shoved him down a long dark corridor right outside the entrance to the Department of Mysteries. "Get her back here," the menacing red-head growled, right after he pushed the blond's back up against the cold, stone wall.

Scorpius, who had been pushed around a bit by bullies at Hogwarts, barely flinched before answering. "Get who back here, Sir?"

"My daughter," the hulking Auror hissed through clenched teeth.

"Rose?"

"Stop playing innocent, you fucking prick. Her mother and I have been going out of our minds with worry since she refused to come home from Germany after getting cut by the Harriers. None of it made sense, until we heard from her yesterday that she didn't want to return to England as long as she was still nursing a broken heart caused by you."

"Me?"

Suddenly he was nose to nose with the angry man. "Don't make me rip your lungs out through your nose, boy!"

Scorpius' mind was racing. He and Rose Weasley had NEVER had a romantic relationship. They had never even had a romantic moment. Sure, he had been a bit taken with her. But he had been even more intimidated by her. And Rose, for her part, had never given him a second glance, preferring to date popular, athletic, out-going boys. He had absolutely no clue what Mr. Weasley was talking about. Unfortunately, it did not appear that the Auror would accept Scorpius' genuine confusion as a response. "What would you like me to do, Sir?"

Ron poked him in the chest, hard. "You do whatever it takes to get her back here. You have 72 hours to fix this situation." He poked him in the chest again. "If Rose hasn't returned by Monday, I'm sending my wife down here to talk to you."

Scorpius shuddered. Hermione Weasley's wrath was legendary in the halls of the Ministry. "Yes, Sir. I'll do my best."

"I don't fucking care about your best, Malfoy. I care about results." Ron Weasley poked the blond in the chest one more time, before turning on his heel and stalking away.

Slowly sliding down the wall until he was sitting on the floor, Scorpius dropped his head into his hands. He had no clue how to deal with this situation.

70 Hours and Counting

Scorpius spent the first two of his seventy-two hours, speaking to every former Ravenclaw who had been at Hogwarts with Rose and himself. He started with Ministry employees, then Floo'ed the staff at St. Mungo's, and finally sent owls to all those who were working in Muggle London. While Scorpius hadn't been close to most of his former housemates, he knew that many had liked and respected Rose. He was therefore highly disappointed to discover that not one of them had heard directly from her since graduation. Several of them had only vague ideas about what she had been up to. 'I heard she was playing professional Quidditch.' 'I thought she became an Unspeakable for one of the Wizarding Ministries in Eastern Europe.' 'Didn't she get hired as a writer for some American Muggle television show?'

He contemplated contacting one of her cousins, but assumed that if any of them had a clue about what Rose was really doing, Ron Weasley wouldn't have cornered him this morning.

Releasing a deep sigh, he briefly considered contacting his father. He knew, however, that there was some kind of long standing grudge between his dad and Rose's parents. Scorpius had never looked too deeply into the feud, figuring that it probably didn't reflect well on his family. Given the poor relations between the Malfoys and the Weasleys, he expected that his father's advice would be to either go straight to the Minister or to hide in a dark corridor before hexing the red-headed Auror in the back. Neither of those options appealed to the young blond. It was cowardly to attack a man who was unprepared for it, and while Scorpius respected the Minister of Magic, if it was his word against Ron Weasley's, he had little doubt who the Minister would believe.

Eventually, he decided to send out three more owls. The first carried a letter to Rose. It inquired, as politely as possible given the situation, into exactly what she had told her father to bring his wrath down upon Scorpius. The second owl was sent to the manager of the Heidelberg Harriers requesting information about Rose Weasley's last known address. The final owl was sent to Hugo Weasley, Rose's younger brother. Unsure what Hugo knew about this situation, Scorpius had briefly laid out the encounter between himself and Ron Weasley, his astonishment at being accused of breaking Rose's heart, and a plea for any information about how to clear up this misunderstanding.

Recognizing that it might be hours before the owls returned with information, Scorpius hunkered down at his desk in the Ministry and tried to concentrate on work.

67 Hours and Counting

Hugo's owl returned first. His reply was brief.

Scorpius,

I never believed a word of Rose's letter. We both know you are hardly her type – she likes her blokes big and dumb. I tried to tell my parents that everything she wrote was pure rubbish, but they think the sun rises and sets over her arse. Wish I could help you sort this mess out, but Rose hasn't talked to me for over a year. I think she is still in Germany, but I have no idea where her flat might be located.

Hugo

P.S. If my mum comes after you, just tell her that you are a dues paying member of S.P.E.W.

Scorpius released a breath he did not realize he'd been holding and decided that as soon as work was over he would join S.P.E.W. so that he wouldn't have to lie to Rose's mother when she came to hex him back to the Stone Age.

63 Hours and Counting

Just as Scorpius was clearing off his desk for the weekend, his other two owls returned. The owl he sent to Rose came back with no reply attached to his leg. His left side, however, was covered with a dark, brown, stick substance that smelled faintly like Nutella. Luckily, the owl from the Harriers' manager brought more information.

Dear Mr. Malfoy,

Our organization was deeply disappointed when Rose Weasley resigned her spot as reserve chaser. We had hoped to move her to a starting position next season, but she did not feel it was the best option for her future career. We have had no contact with Ms. Weasley since she left, but her last check was sent to the address listed below.

Sincerely,

Zeisberger Anton

Rose Weasley

Obere Seegasse 13

69124 Heidelberg

Sitting back in his chair, Scorpius was confused by the Harriers' letter. Rose resigned? Why had Ron Weasley insisted she had been cut? This news just added to all the other questions this entire situation had raised. Why hadn't she talked to her brother for over a year? Why had she not communicated with their housemates since Hogwarts? None of it made sense. Rose Weasley had been among the best and brightest in their year. Voted most likely to succeed, most likely to make the world a better place, and most like to marry well, no wonder her dad was on edge. What the hell had happened to Rose Weasley?

49 Hours and Counting

At precisely 8 a.m. Saturday morning Scorpius grabbed a hold of an international Portkey and was transported to the alley behind Rose's flat in Germany. He'd spent most of the prior evening in his father's library pursuing old copies of the Daily Prophet, searching for any mention of what the eldest Granger-Weasley offspring had been doing for the last three years. He had never confronted anyone before and was determined to be as prepared as possible.

He now knew with a reasonable degree of certainty that after graduation she had tried out for several professional Quidditch teams before being picked up by the Wingtown Wanderers. She sat the bench her entire first season and was traded at the end of the year to the Harriers. While in Germany, Rose had not only been a reserve chaser, but had also spent the off-season interning in that nation's International Department of Magical Cooperation. She'd dated several Quidditch players, a rising German politician, and at least two British expatriates. None of those relationships, however, had been serious. The last story had been about her leaving the Harriers, although no mention had been made about whether the move had been voluntary or not.

Scorpius found it strange that Rose's life had made the newspaper so often. He supposed that it was a consequence of being the child of two war heroes – war heroes who were still politically active and influential. While he reasoned that it must be quite annoying and perhaps explained why she was loath to return to England, it did not give her leeway to use innocent, unsuspecting blokes to stave off questions by her rather scary parents.

As he climbed the stairs to Rose's flat, Scorpius mentally practiced the speech he was going to give the girl. He would make it plain that she must immediately write her Mum and Dad to let them know that he had NO role in her decision not to return home. He would sit her down and have her read the list of reasons he had compiled, all ninety-seven of them, about why using him as a ploy to avoid communicating truthfully with her parents was a horrible idea. If that didn't work, he was determined to stage some kind of Muggle sit-in until she agreed with him. Scorpius might not be known for his forceful personality, but he could be quietly stubborn, and by Merlin, he would be, if Rose would not be sensible.

Straightening his shoulders and his robes, he knocked on the door of her flat. He heard movement inside, but could not keep the shock off his face when the red-headed girl opened the door. She was bare-foot, wore a tattered dressing gown, and looked as if she'd been dragged for miles behind the back of the Knight Bus. Scorpius had never seen her look so dishevelled. Rose stared in surprise back at him before muttering loud enough for him to hear, "Oh fuck."

48 Hours and Counting

All of Scorpius' carefully made plans came to naught once Rose regained her composure – it took her about 5.7 seconds. "Scorpius Malfoy, it's been ages!" she chirped, as if they had just met walking down Diagon Alley, as opposed to him travelling half way across Europe to see her. She gave him a friendly hug, which made him feel uncomfortable because he could 'feel' her nakedness underneath her robe. Rose grinned at his blush, before she led him into her flat and motioned him to take a seat at her kitchenette table.

"Let me put some tea on, then we'll have a nice catch-up chat," she said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

As Rose bustled around the stove, Scorpius scanned her living area. It was a sty. Dirty clothes, books, papers of all types littered every surface. The kitchen was filthy and it looked like there hadn't been a dish washed in weeks. To say he was stunned was an understatement. Although Scorpius had never been in Rose's living quarters at Hogwarts, he assumed that she kept it in the same meticulous condition as she did her school notes and her appearance. Of course her current disorderly condition blended right in with the less-than-sanitary surroundings.

Just as Rose brought a tea service to the table, a tall man wearing only a pair of boxers and an unbuttoned oxford strolled into the living room. "Rose, wo sind meine Hosen?"

"Bugger off you selfish wanker!" Rose yelled in response, before hurling an empty tea cup at his head.

To Scorpius' surprise, the man caught the cup with his bare and hand and shook a finger at Rose. "Dummes Mädchen. Ich muss erhalten zu üben. Ich werde Floo spater."

"Don't bother!" she replied angrily, right before he blew her a kiss and Apparated away.

Scorpius was very glad not to be standing in the empty spot that the red-headed girl was currently glaring at. Something told him that she was mentally cataloguing appropriate hexes should the 'wanker' return. He cleared his voice uncomfortably.

Rose glanced down as if she had forgotten he was there. With a slight shrug she sat down at the table.

"Ah… who was that?"

"Seeker from my old team. He came over last night to discuss an upcoming Quidditch match," she replied before giving him a lopsided grin.

Scorpius didn't know whether or not to be flattered that she hadn't bothered to come up with a convincing lie. "And you had a disagreement about proper strategy?"

She laughed. For the first time since he arrived, she looked like the girl he had known at Hogwarts. "Exactly. I wanted him to focus on ah… winning for the team. He, however, was more interested in going as fast as possible to reach the snitch, even if that meant leaving the ah… rest of the team frustrated."

Scorpius felt the heat rising in his cheeks in repose to Rose's sexual analogy. She giggled at him. "Enough of that. Tell me what you are up to," she inquired, looking genuinely curious.

"Um… didn't you get my owl?"

This time Rose blushed. "Probably," she admitted. "I haven't been reading my mail lately."

Looking around her flat slowly, Scorpius nodded. "It is usually easier to read your mail when you can locate it."

Rose laughed again. "Merlin, it's nice talking to someone from home. I just don't get German humour… it's so solemn. There is never a hint of sarcasm."

Scorpius smiled at her. It would be so easy to just sit here and let her charm him into forgetting about why he'd come to Heidelberg in the first place. She was good at it. Back at Hogwarts, Rose's well placed word, smile, or look was usually enough to sway people into wanting to agree with her. It surely was a gift as much as her intelligence or athletic ability. He, however, could not afford to be manipulated into leaving without dealing with the issue at hand. Taking a deep breath, he came right out and stated, "Your dad came to talk to me."

Standing up abruptly, Rose frowned at him. For a second, Scorpius flashed back to being corned by Ron Weasley in the Ministry's hallway. He almost reached for his wand.

"I need to take a shower," the girl growled, before stalking out of the room.

47 Hours and Counting

Scorpius sat in Rose's now clean kitchen and waited for her to return. He couldn't believe that she had just walked away from him earlier. He had been completely unprepared for her to react like that. How was he supposed to convince her to clear up things with her parents, if she wouldn't even listen to him? He had decided to tidy up the kitchen as he waited on her, hoping that she would be so appreciative of his efforts that she'd contact her Mum and Dad immediately and tell them that Scorpius had played no role in her decision not to return to England.

His hopes were dashed, however, when Rose returned to the kitchen freshly showered and fully dressed. She immediately rounded on him.

"You cleaned my kitchen?! What in Merlin's name gives you the right to tidy up my flat as if I'm some pathetic sap who doesn't have the sense to clean up their mess? If I wanted my fucking dishes washed, I would have washed them myself. Bloody hell, what even gives you the right to be HERE at all?"

Scorpius' eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. He knew Rose Weasley had a temper. Her wandless row during second year with her older cousin, James Potter, was legendary in Ravenclaw for having landed the Gryffindor in the hospital ward for two weeks. And obviously, this morning's teacup incident proved that she hadn't outgrown her violent tendencies. However, Scorpius had never been the subject of her anger before. Merlin, he could not even remember the last time ANYONE had been mad at him. It was much more likely that his Mum was frustrated with his resistance to dating the daughters of her girlfriends or his father was disappointed that he still worked for the Ministry instead of Malfoy Industries, but Rose's anger something brand new and it shocked him. Scorpius wasn't even sure how to respond properly to her anger.

He recalled that back at Hogwarts her cousins tended to cower when Rose got angry. But Scorpius had no intention of cowering. In fact, the blond was positive that he had done nothing wrong. He was the aggrieved party in this situation. He was the one who had been visited by her irate father, as well as the one who had travelled hundreds of miles because she couldn't be bothered to answer her mail. If anyone should be sporting an air of righteous indignation, it was Scorpius Malfoy. It seemed abundantly clear to him, that Rose Weasley needed to be turned over someone's knee and given a good spanking. Perhaps then she would stop behaving like a spoiled toddler!

Scorpius, however, was not a screamer or a criticizer or a spanker. Instead, he just raised both of his eyebrows and plastered the Malfoy family sneer across his lips. "You are not going to intimidate me, Rose. We both know that you are the one who has put me in an awkward position and you are going to have to be the one to fix it."

For a second, he thought that she was going to start yelling at him again. But when she eventually responded, it was by biting her lip, dropping into a chair at the kitchen table, and fixing her big, blue watery eyes on him. "I'm sorry, Scorpius," she sniffed.

The blond watched in growing horror as two fat tears slowly trailed down her cheeks. "Rose, what has happened to you?" he asked, sitting down across from her at the table.

"I just don't know who I am, anymore. I can't even remember a time when I did know," she replied, as more tears slipped out of her eyes.

"What do you mean? You are Rose Weasley – the girl next door of the Wizarding world. You are living proof that the joining of Purebloods to Muggleborns can yield positive and extraordinary results. You are the most fêted graduate of Hogwarts since Albus Dumbledore."

Rose just shook her head. "None of that is me! It is just some image created by the media or my family or my friends. None of it is real, no matter how I've tried to live up to it or pretend that it is genuine. I have never been and will ever be the girl that everyone thinks I am."

Scorpius looked at her critically. He understood dealing with other's expectations. Hadn't almost everyone he'd ever met, including his parents, expected him to be a slightly nicer, more confident version of his father? Scorpius had never tried to meet those expectations, but he couldn't imagine having been able to carry off even the appearance of being a 'better Draco' for years at a time. Obviously, therefore, Rose WAS what she had appeared to be at Hogwarts. She may have changed in the years since then, but he did not believe that her entire persona at school had been faked. "Perhaps, you are just confused about who you are now."

"It is more than that. I've been trying to live up to some idealistic view my Mum and Dad and grandparents all shared about my life and my future. And because I'm personable and intelligent, I pulled it off – I created that façade, but it doesn't mean it was true! Since graduation, moreover, it has been harder and harder to even WANT to live that fantasy anymore. I am sick of acting like I want to make the world a better place or play Quidditch for a living or be some sort of international political figure. Merlin, Scorpius, I don't know what I want, except the thought of coming out to my parents about what I don't want has turned me into a horrible coward."

"I find it hard to believe that your parents would want you to live out their dream for your life knowing that it was making you unhappy."

Rose snorted inelegantly. "It must be easy to exceed your parent's expectations for you, when all it requires is that you don't become a Death Eater."

Despite being tactless, the redhead's comment made Scorpius laugh. "How much time do you have Rose? I'd love to regale you with the many ways I've failed to meet my families' hopes for me."

Rose perked up a bit at his words. "I've got all day. So get started."

41 Hours and Counting

Rose bought another stein of beer and pushed it in front of Scorpius. "Drink up, mate," she smiled.

Feeling a bit light-headed, Scorpius wasn't really sure he should continue to indulge, but it wasn't like he had any place to be in the near future. His return Portkey didn't activate until 8 p.m. Sunday evening, so there was really no harm in relaxing a little. "Thanks, Rose," he smiled at the girl.

They had arrived at the beer garden an hour ago, after spending a satisfying morning complaining about parents, job opportunities, and living under a societal spotlight where your life never seemed to belong solely to you. Although Scorpius had not gotten the vivacious red-head to sit down and compose a note of explanation to her parents, he was sure that her capitulation to his request would occur before the evening ended.

Right now, however, he didn't really want to push her. It would put her in a foul mood and he simply felt more comfortable when she was cheerful. Moreover, since their morning truce, Rose had been completely focused on him and it was enough to leave one feeling like the most fascinating person in the world – a sensation that was extremely rare for Scorpius Malfoy. Had the blond not been somewhere between tipsy and drunk, or had he been in Slytherin and not Ravenclaw, he might have recognized that he was not THAT interesting and that the girl undoubtedly had an ulterior motive in mind.

"So," Rose asked taking a quick drink of her beer, "if you could do anything you wanted, be whatever you wanted, what would you be?"

"I like working in the Department of Mysteries. I mean, sure someday, I'd like to work my way up the ladder, maybe become a department head, but I'm not eager to rush into that type of responsibility. Besides it is nice to know you've gotten somewhere because you've earned it, not because of family connections or because your grandfather threatened to hex someone."

"Maybe that's my problem."

"You've got an unstable grandfather, too?"

Rose rolled her eyes at him. "No. Maybe my problem is that I can't ever be sure whether my accomplishments are really mine or are because of my family. Did I make the Harriers because I'm a good chaser or because my Aunt Ginny pulled some strings? Did I get the internship in the German Ministry because I deserved it or because my Mum is Hermione Granger and my Dad is Ron Weasley and they are the best mates of the 'Boy-Who-Lived'? It can be so demoralizing never knowing what is really due to your own efforts and what is just a happenstance of birth."

"How long have you felt like this?"

Rose shrugged and took another drink. Her eyes scanning the crowd.

"Rose, you earned everything you got at Hogwarts."

"Maybe," she replied not sounding convinced.

"You did. You had the best grades in at least two-thirds of our classes, you were the top scorer on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, and you were liked and respected by all the Houses. There is no way you didn't deserve to be Head Girl," Scorpius reassured her.

"Well, I'm not even sure I would have done any of those things had my parents not urged me on. It was my Mum's dream to Head Girl, and my Dad's to be a great Quidditch player; none of that was really my idea."

"Is that why…" his voice trailed off.

"Is that why what?" she asked, her eyes bright.

"Well, why no one from our year has heard from you much since school?"

She shrugged again. "Yeah, I suspect so. I just didn't want to talk about my life and how great everyone thought it was when I thought was it was utter shite. I was actually glad to get traded out of England because it then became harder for people to contact me. I skived off family events by claiming to be training or doing volunteer work for local wizarding orphanages. I even managed to avoid Hugo and Al for over a year. The only people I've had contact with are Mum and Dad. I might have avoided that too, if my Mum hadn't put some sort of charm on her letters making it impossible to set down a quill until they have been answered."

"Why me?"

She blushed. "Would you believe I picked your name out of a hat?"

"I'm not quite drunk enough to fall for that. Give me another hour, though…"

She grinned. "Well, it really was a fairly calculated move on my part."

"Imagine that," Scorpius drawled. He was a bit surprised at his tone. Apparently, alcohol made him sarcastic. He'd have to get drunk next time his father wanted to meet for coffee.

"I figured that if I had claimed to be in some sort unrequited relationship with anyone besides you, they would want to know why they hadn't heard about it before. But with you… what with our parents' history and all, I figured they'd not question why I'd kept quiet. I had hoped that they'd just drop it and give me time to 'get over you'. But, I guess Dad felt the need to defend me. I'm really impressed that you didn't spill your guts in front of him. He can be intimidating when he chooses."

"I would have loved to 'spill my guts' as you so eloquently phrased it, but I was too shocked. Besides, I doubt he would have believed a word I had to say."

She grinned wider, obviously not embarrassed to have drawn him into her scheme. "That was my failsafe."

Scorpius shook his head. "I'm just glad you are going to clear it all up now."

"I'm not clearing it up," she informed him, a frown marring her face.

"Yes, you are. That is why I came here, to get you to tell you parents that I had nothing to do with your decision to stay in Germany."

"Why you came here is irrelevant, because I am not going to tell my parents that I lied to them."

Scorpius could not believe her gall. "But you DID lie to them!"

"So?!? They don't need to know that!" she responded heatedly.

"Yes they do! Preferably before your mother kills me and you father hides my body."

"Merlin, you sound like a Hufflepuff!"

"That is rich, coming from the girl who is scared to tell her parents she lied to them." This time Scorpius was quite proud of his sarcasm. He wondered how hard it would be stay half lit every time he had to deal with Rose.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Rose gave back as good as she got. "Don't worry, Scorpius. I won't leave you to deal with my big, bad Mum and Dad, all by yourself."

"So, you are going to write them?

"No," she had shaking her head. "I'm going to come home to England with you and tell them that we've made up."

Scorpius stared at the girl in silence for several seconds before he threw back the rest of his beer and pounded his empty stein on the table. "Barkeep," he yelled. "Get me another!"

37 Hours and Counting

His head was pounding. All he wanted to do was sleep, but Rose would not leave him alone. She'd plied him with alcohol, confessed her mad plan, and then began to try and wear him down by refusing to give him a minute's peace until he either went mad or caved in to her ridiculous scheme. Currently he was sitting on the sofa in her flat, his feet propped up on the coffee table, his head leaning back on the cushions, his eyes closed, trying desperately to block out her voice. It wasn't working.

"It won't be so bad. As soon as I find a job I can help with the rent payments and grocery tab. I'm not always such a slob, either. I can be as neat as a pin if I want to be. You'll hardly even know I'm there."

"Know you are where?" the blond asked, slightly confused. "Back in England?"

"Well, yes. But I meant, you'd hardly notice that I was in your flat."

He opened his eyes at that and turned his head toward her. "Why would you be in my flat?"

"I'm going to live there. You really don't expect me to move back in with my parents, do you?" she asked.

"You are nutters. You want your folks to think that not only are we dating, but that we are also living together? Do you want my dismembered body to turn up in Knockturn Alley?"

"Why do you think my parents will do you bodily harm? They really aren't all that scary."

Scorpius stared at her without answering for several seconds. He now knew why his father sneered. "Rose, your Dad cornered me in a dark hallway in the Ministry and threatened me just because he thought we had once been involved. I can only imagine the horrors I will have to face if he thinks we are shagging regularly."

The blue-eyed girl giggled. "They aren't going to do anything to you. If they yell at anyone, it will be at me."

"I am not reassured."

"Look. This is the perfect answer to my dilemma. I'm almost out of cash, so I need to return home soon, anyway. However, I don't want to live with my Mum and Dad. They'll drive me barmy by trying to push me into working at the Ministry or in some other 'morally significant' occupation. I just can't take the looks of disappointment I'll get every day that I'm not doing something they think is important. If I move in with you, not only do I not have to admit that I misled them a bit in my last letter, but I will gain the space I need to find a job that is about ME and not about them."

"And will this eventually end? Or will we have to pretend to get married and have kids too?"

"Oh, ha ha. You're so hilarious," Rose dead-panned while rolling her eyes. "As soon as I find a job and save up a few Galleons, we can 'break-up' and I'll move out."

Scorpius didn't know if it was the alcohol or the headache or the fact that Rose really wasn't the type to take 'no' for an answer, but he felt himself going against all reason and acquiescing to her wishes. "If I agree to this plan, will you let me go to sleep?"

Giving a squeal of delight, Rose threw her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his.

Scorpius' heart leapt into his throat where it immediately choked him. Placing his hands gently on her shoulders, he pushed the red-headed girl away gently. "Rose, you can't. I am seeing someone."

She blinked at him and her cheeks flushed. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't know. I am just so excited! Don't worry; I won't let it happen again." She smiled at him broadly and for a moment, he wished that there wasn't anyone else. "Go lay down in my room. I'm going to start packing in here. I want to be able to leave as soon as possible."

As Scorpius rose and made his way to her bed, he couldn't help but wonder just what the hell he had gotten himself into.