The Mistakes We Make (PG) (2/2)
Title: The Mistakes We Make
Author: xxx-angelin-xxx
Prompt: 101
Summary: Rose was found washed ashore on an island in the Caribbean. And although she didn't have amnesia, that was the story she presented to the man who found her, Scorpius Malfoy. It was either that or risk arrest for something that she’d run away from back in London. She could hardly argue, therefore, when Scorpius slipped a gold band on her finger and delivered his own bold-faced lie - that she was married to him!
Rating: PG
Warnings: WARNINGS GO HERE
Word Count: 19.962
We walk together down to the beach and it’s the first time I truly appreciate the silence between us. Scorpius is lost in thought and so am I; it’s time for me to put my big plan into action.
I thought about it over and over again. Should I stay or should I go? Am I truly better off alone? What if Malfoy can help me? What am I going to do if I leave? What’s going to happen if I stay?
Not too long ago, I had to answer similar questions in my mind. That day, when I returned home from work, unsure of what had happened yet terrified to no end, I realized that they had found out what I’d been up to. And for all my brightness, all I could come up with was ‘run’.
Building a Portkey isn’t easy, you know. It’s not something they teach you at Hogwarts; it’s not basic knowledge for every witch and wizard. When we were kids though, my cousins and I were inspired by Uncle Harry’s story about his father and his friends: they had a secret place to meet, and a secret that united them. We wanted that kind of mystery in our lives too.
Now that I’m older, I can see that what we did was no big deal; not nearly as big as the Marauder’s secret. Back then, though, it made our lives exciting.
We built Portkeys. They took us all from the safety of our homes to Stonehenge. It was our secret place to meet and the years we all spent trying to build Portkeys was the secret that united us.
It’s quite surprising that the Ministry didn’t catch us. We only stopped when Molly and Lucy accidentally got sent to the wrong place and we had to tell our parents, who insisted on monitoring us more closely after that. But I’d learned to build a Portkey and, like most things I’ve learned, I never forgot.
It’s not a simple or a quick procedure. It took me an hour to choose an item and a place, and the rest of the day to perfect and cast the spell. I finished right on time; at the exact moment my door opened, right before my wand was taken from me and broken to pieces.
That, along with Scorpius’ sudden appearance here, changed my plans completely. Malfoy’s presence confused and disorientated me and without my wand, I’m as good as dead. In a way Scorpius and hi façade are protecting me; if I was alone and Jonny found me, I wouldn’t stand a chance against him.
So I won’t run, not yet anyway. Not till I find a wand.
“Do you want to find somewhere to sit and have ice cream?” Scorpius’ voice interrupts my thoughts. I look in the direction he’s pointing, only to see a cute little café a few meters away. I nod and we head over and sit.
The view is amazing. As the sun sets, the sky displays a bevy of colours, reflected by the quiet sea. Once the waitress brings what we ordered, I turn my chair towards the sun; I’ll be content just sitting here, watching in silence.
Scorpius, however, has different plans. “What do you want to talk about?” he asks me, bothered by the silence.
I turn to him and try to read his expression, but it’s in useless. He’s still emotionless, looking at me in the way all Ministry Employees do when they’re trying to say they have more important things to do than deal with you. Not the best conversation starter, I must say.
It occurs to me that I haven’t asked him what he does for a living. That day he found me at the beach, he told me what I do, but not once did we mention his work. If I remember correctly, Albus told me it was actually in the Ministry, but I’m not sure what exactly it was. “Tell me about your job,” I say.
He frowns. “I work at the Ministry, but…”
“What Ministry?” I ask, ignoring the fact that he’s trying to change the subject.
“Of transportation,” he replies curtly. “That’s not important though, we need to talk about you. That’s what Dr. Higgery said.”
“Is it so wrong that I want to know a thing or two about my husband?”
“No, but the point is to talk about you; to help you remember even snippets of your life,” he reminds me in a tone that implies he won’t take “no” for an answer.
“Aren’t you a big part of my life?” I insist. I have absolutely no intention of sitting back and letting him feed me lies. I’m not even curious to find out what his version of my life is.
“Yes,” he says, still ready to disagree with me.
“Then, I want to learn something about you. You’re all I have these days; the only link to my past life. I want to know why you’re so important to me and for that to happen, you need to tell me something about yourself.”
He seems defeated by that. “What do you want to know?”
I shrug. All I want is to keep him from focusing on me; I don’t really care for what he has to say. “Tell me about your family,” I say and I watch as his expression momentarily changes from stern and certain to uncomfortable and uneasy. Soon, he composes himself and turns away from me, as he begins to talk:
“I come from one of those old, noble families.” The way he says “noble” catches my attention: his voice has taken its casual sarcastic tone, but it’s it sounds different than ever before. He’s using that sarcasm against himself and the word has so much pain in it that makes me feel a small twinge in my chest.
“The British aristocracy,” he continues in the same way, only that now a small smirk crosses his features. Then, the tone changes back to that warm voice I heard for the first time last night during dinner when he was talking about the day we met, and I can’t help but pay attention to what he says, less annoyed at him for interrupting the previous comfortable silence: “By the time I was born, all these meant nothing. The family’s reputation was ruined, the Manor lost, the money… non-existent.
”It always hurt my parents; they knew they couldn’t raise me with all the comforts they had as children, and they knew it was no one’s fault but their own. It never mattered to me though, I had a happy childhood. I grew up with two people who were willing to do everything for me, but at the same time, they wanted to teach me all the things they’d learned the hard way. They wanted me to become a better man, and I like to think they succeeded.”
“Isn’t that a bit obnoxious of you?” I don’t why I said it. I suppose after all the years I’ve spent trying to find smart retorts for Malfoy, it became an instinct. What he said was indeed a reminder of his obnoxious self, of the person I knew at Hogwarts, but the way it was worded and the context… it was just an unfair thing for me to say. I was about to apologize when I saw him smiling.
“This is…” He chuckles. “This is so like you! Classic Rose; you just don’t care. You don’t bother to get to know people; you judge people solely on appearance. Quite shallow of you,” he comments, mimicking the tone I used moments ago. “This is the reason I didn’t like you; it had nothing to do with school or grades and it most definitely had nothing to do with your family. But this side of you… it’s just maddening.” He stops to breath before adding: “I despised you for it.”
“You know…” I begin, unable to stop myself. “You can’t just blame me for it. The things you say and the things you do… you give everyone ample reason to call you arrogant.” He raises his eyebrow as I speak; I can see him judging me for what I say. “I know. I know it’s not good to judge a book by its cover. But I can’t help it- and no one else can: it’s the first thing we see in each other. And if you go around being hostile and sarcastic and overly confident, I can’t help but think that you’re arrogant. I can’t help but not like you. And if that happens, there’s no reason for me, or for anyone, to want to know you better.”
He snorts. “I can’t believe this. I was talking about my family, Rose! I was telling you why I love my parents so much; what they taught me. I don’t think that make me obnoxious!” He sighs. “Were you even listening?”
He’s right: all he did was tell me that he likes to think he’s made his parents proud and I found that arrogant. I guess it was out of habit, I’m not used to having heart-to-heart conversations with Malfoy and the moment I heard him saying something good about himself, I reacted the way I used to at school. I chose to call him off at the worst possible time. Now that I’m thinking about it, I have to admit that he hasn’t done anything that I can characterize as “classic Scorpius Malfoy” over the past few days. He was just trying to help me. I suppose the reason I’m so angry at him is because he’s lying to me and I can’t figure out why. The situation I’m dealing with and the mysterious way he seems to be involved in it frustrate me to no end. I guess I take it out on him, and I realize now that I really don’t want to.
“I’m sorry,” I say and I mean it. “I chose the worst possible moment to tell you that you annoy me sometimes.” I try to make my words sound as a joke and, at the same time, to make him understand what I meant before.
It appears I have succeeded, because he nods and he doesn’t seem so angry anymore. “I’m sorry too,” he says, and I’m about to ask, “what for?” when he continues: “All these things I’ve said about despising you…” He smiles and passes a hand through his hair, and I see how uncomfortable he is, “I didn’t mean them. It was before I got to know you.”
Surprisingly, his efforts to comfort me only upset me more. Scorpius Malfoy never got to know me- not in real life. And that means he’s lying: he still thinks I judge too quickly because I’m a shallow person. I don’t know why exactly, but this makes me want to explain myself. “I think I’m just shy, you know? That’s why I didn’t try to get to know you better. It’s hard for me…”
“I think I can understand that.” He nods again, and smiles in a way I think genuine. “You really find me arrogant and annoying?” he asks.
“I don’t know.” Anymore. I’m not sure if he’s the same person he was in Hogwarts. Chances are that he isn’t. I was just too caught up in my life and my problems to understand that.
He smiles again. “That’s good.”
“In what way?” I ask, but I can’t hide the laughter in my voice.
“It means you remember some things, but you can’t understand them completely yet.”
“So there was a time I found you arrogant and annoying?” I tease him.
“Yes.”
“What changed?”
“I did.” He stops, like he’s caught himself saying something he shouldn’t. “You too,” he adds quickly, “We grew up.”
I look away from him, trying to hide how uncomfortable I am. During all these days we’ve spent together here, I haven’t actually thought about him- not once. I was too busy trying to get over the shock from everything that has happened to me and to figure out what am I to do next that I’ve never thought about the person who was next to me. Certainly, I’ve spend a lot of time wondering about his intentions, but not once about his character, about him as person. And now with all the things he’s saying he makes me wonder if perhaps he’s changed, if he’s as nice as he looks- if we could get to know each other better and be friends.
I’m not certain about anything yet, of course. I’m still very confused, still very suspicious; not so long ago I was planning to run away and not let myself be concerned about him any longer, and now I’m contemplating whether he’s a good person or not. I think that what’s happening to me is that I begin to understand how we’ve changed and, with trepidation, I’m starting to appreciate the person he’s become.
“Tell me about my family,” I say, urging him to talk again. I can’t stand the silence between us- not now, not after all these realizations I’ve had.
“Well, you have this big, happy family. I always thought that meant you’d always have someone to talk to, but Albus told me that wasn’t the case. He said the thing with your family is that you all love each other, but you don’t all like each other. I suppose that makes sense it’s not easy to get along with eleven cousins. In the few interactions I’ve had with your whole family, I experienced it first-hand. Of course, some of you are adorable people whom everyone loves, but some of you seem ready to kill others.”
“And me?” I ask in a tone that makes me wonder if I’m really flirting with Malfoy. “Am I adorable?”
He throws his head back and laughs loudly. “Oh Rose! You’re as far away from adorable as possible! You’re not easy-going or simple-minded, and you’re not very funny either. You’re stubborn and snarky and you know exactly how smart you are. You don’t party, you stay in and read. You begin these intellectual conversations that most people don’t like participating in. You’re not the kind of girl who becomes popular. So no, you’re not the cousin everybody loves either.” It’s not like I didn’t know; I just didn’t expect him to say it. He must see how much his words hurt me at my expression, because he smiles sadly at me. “Few people can appreciate these traits.”
“They can be appreciated?” I ask him, unable to hold my sarcasm.
He nods. “Definitely,” he tells me softly and I’m surprised at how easily he can calm me down. Again he sounded so honest and certain of himself like he was implying… Wait a second… has Scorpius Malfoy just told me that he appreciates my personality? Could he possibly mean that?
Even if he didn’t, it meant a lot to me to hear it. He reminded me that there are people who like me, even though they are too many. “Thank you.”
His expression changes when I say that. There’s something in his eyes, something I’ve seen a lot today. Guilt, I realize. Before, I can think of something to say, he grows serious again: “Well, you’re a challenge. Not everyone can appreciate one.”
I laugh, deciding to let it go. The more I think about him, the more trouble I get myself into. Taking my eyes of him, I turn my head back towards the ocean, hoping the view of the setting sun will calm me down. Wrong again.
The moment I turn away from Scorpius, I see him. At the next table, in a brightly colored shirt, is Jonny, looking at me like he’s just won the lottery. There’s nothing I can do but sit here and wait for him to make a move. I’m frozen. My mind flashes back to the last time I saw him, that fateful night in my apartment.
I remember the last time I saw him, that fateful night at my apartment. I was terrified; he looked as threatening as he does now- perhaps a bit more, since he had just exploded my door and was pointing his wand at me. I see now how strange it was that I didn’t scream or run for my life at his very sight. Instead, I ordered myself to stay calm. I guess it’s true that people manage to find clarity of mind in the worst possible situations: not losing control was probably the only defense I had left.
“Good evening, Jonny.”
He most definitely didn’t expect me to act like this. I could tell as he raised his eyebrows and said: “This is how you want to do this?”
“Why not?” I continued in the same way.
He looked at me suspiciously. “You look a bit too certain for a woman in your situation.” He paused and I could see his expression change as he seemed to realize something: “Did you tell the Aurors about me? Did you send them your brilliant little article?”
I’d never seen Jonny lose his temper before. His reactions were always calculated, much like his movements, and he always tried to stay in control of the situation. At that moment, however, as he was asking that second question, he sounded and looked truly aggravated. As he took a step forward , tightening his hold at his wand, I thought he’d kill me just then.
He didn’t, though. Instead, he continued looking at me, studying my expression like he was waiting for an answer. Had I told the Aurors? If only…
That was the first time I’ve realized that I wasn’t as bright as I’ve always fancied myself to be. If I was, I would have gone to the Auror Department that morning, telling them everything. I hadn’t, though; I had allowed myself to panic and I’d started building portkeys like some lunatic. Mum would be so disappointed.
Eventually, Jonny got tired of waiting. “It doesn’t matter, anyway…” he muttered, talking more to himself than to me. I watched motionlessly as he walked towards me until his wand was touching my throat. To keep myself calm I thought about the portkey I’ve build: I wasn’t doomed just yet; I had a chance to escape. Perhaps, if I was fast enough I could run to the kitchen and touch the vase I had used… Stealing a glance at the wall clock, I realized the portkey wouldn’t leave for five more minutes; I had to buy myself time.
“You’ll be such a waste, you know…” Jonny told me as a horrible grimace formed on his face. I suppose he was laughing at me, tormenting me a bit before he finally killed me. I thought I could use this to my advantage. “You could have really helped us: your connections, your skills… in both journalism and plotting. You had Orson wrapped around your finger with a few words… It’s a pity that you’re so naïve.”
“Naïve?”
“Very naïve,” he confirmed. “You thought I trusted you so simply? Only because you were saying you wanted to help us?” He shook his head with disappointment. “That was your first mistake.”
“What was the second?” 4 minutes.
“Your impatience,” he said simply, and I knew he was right. “Immediately after you found evidence, you showed your true colors. You should have waited- checked your sources, as journalists say.” He smiled again, and I remember thinking that his smile was the most terrifying thing about him; it was vicious, if one can say that for a smile. “But you didn’t, and so you fell right into the trap.”
“What do you mean?” I wondered, fighting the urge to hit my head against the nearest wall. How could I ever be so stupid?
“Oh, Rose! You think you’re so smart, don’t you?” he voiced my own thoughts. “I was testing you last night- I wasn’t sharing my true plans for a robbery, nor was I meeting my connection at the Ministry - Smith’s just an old friend. I just wanted to see what you’d do. Thank you very much for acting immediately.”
I couldn’t think of anything else to say to delay the inevitable. “Please, don’t.” Tears run down my face, as I whispered these words. I wasn’t trying to buy time anymore, I was begging for my life. My portkey wouldn’t leave for other 2 minutes and I knew chances were against me.
“Give one good reason why not.”
“Because the Aurors would be here in any minute. And they’d know it was you,” I lied.
Instead of scaring him like I thought they would, my words only made him smirk. “I don’t believe you,” he told me. “I know for a fact that you didn’t send them that article last night and that you didn’t have time to go to them today. But let’s just say I’m wrong- let’s just say I didn’t monitor your movements as well as I’ve thought. In that case, you wouldn’t be here right now, Rose. You’d be with them.”
His smirk grew wider after he finished; he was obviously very pleased with himself. I knew form the expression of his face that he wouldn’t say more; the next time he’d open his mouth, a curse would come out and all would be over. I quickly glanced at the clock; less than a minute- perhaps I could make it…
I don’t know how I managed to move as quickly as I did. As he raised his wand, I took a step backwards and pushed my coffee table at him, while running away. I think he lost his balance, but only for a second because soon - too soon - I heard him utter those fearful words:
“Avada Kedavra.”
I was lucky; in his hurry he had missed, or maybe I had managed to get out of his target right on time. I don’t know; everything happened too fast for me to understand. I didn’t even have the time to be grateful for my life; I was running to the kitchen and grabbing the vase at the last moment, disappearing with it.
I don’t really remember much after that. Only the sea; the big, vast ocean; the waves. The realization that I’d done something wrong, putting the wrong coordinates at the spell. And then, Scorpius, calling my name at the beach.
And now - just when I thought I had escaped from him, Jonny found me again. Everything that could go wrong, did.
Scorpius must have noticed that something’s wrong with me, because he’s turning his head towards Jonny. That’s when the oddest thing happens: Jonny takes his eyes of me and stares at Scorpius, growing paler by the second. Before I can even register to what is happening, he’s getting up and leaving the café, more jogging than walking away, and I’m left to watch him, uncertain of what has just happened.
When Scorpius turns back at me, he’s wearing his cold, professional smile: “Shall we go back to the hotel? I’m a bit tired.”
*
A dark alley. I run, his words ringing in my ears, consummating all my thoughts into one: “I will find you.”
He’s in front of me now, laughing. His white teeth catch what little light there is. “You thought you could escape me? You thought you could hide from me?”
I fall to the ground and watch, unable to move any further, as he get closer and closer. His figure towers above me as he points his wand at my throat. I try to scream but I can’t.
“Avada Kedavra.”
I wake up to the sound of my own screams, covered in cold sweat. I look around me, trying to tell myself that this was just a dream; that it never happened, but it’s hard. The dream looked so real and it made me feel more helpless than ever before.
“Rose?” Within seconds, Scorpius is at the bed next to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. I turn to his direction and lean into his touch, telling myself that this, contrary to my dream, is real. “What happened?” he asks, trying to find my face into the darkness. His hand finds my cheek and he pulls me closer to him. I don’t resist; I couldn’t if I wanted to. “Did you… remember?” I try to answer him, ready to tell him everything about Jonny, everything about me and my “memory loss,” but I can’t: all that comes out are loud sobs.
“Just tell me what it was,” he insists. “Tell me what you saw. Even if it doesn’t make sense to you now, it might to me…” he whispers, wiping away some tears. “Was it that man from…?” As I sob louder, I hear him take a deep breath and curse quietly. Then, he does the most unexpected thing: he pulls me closer to him and lets me cry against his chest. I suppose that should surprise me, but I’m too terrified to feel anything else. “It’s alright,” he mutters into my hair. “It was just a bad dream. Let it go.”
There’s nothing I want more than that.
*
When I wake up, I can see the rising sun through the window’s laths. I try to stretch my limbs, only to find that I’m not alone in bed this time; Scorpius is still sleeping behind me, his breath hot against my neck and his hand falling on my waist. My mind flies back to last night and my horrific nightmare. I take a deep breath and try to push the thought of it away. It wasn’t real, Rose- it has never happened. I have more important issues to deal with, more important questions to answer. Careful not to wake Scorpius up, I roll away and leave the bed, sitting down at the armchair next to it.
He looks harmless when he sleeps. That’s the first thought that comes to my mind, followed by the insistent question: “what if he is?” It’s a strange thought for someone as cynical as I am but I wonder if I should just trust him with everything that has happened to me. Not carrying this alone would be a nice change and it could relieve much of my stress and anxiety.
On the other hand, I wonder if perhaps I’m a bit ahead of myself here. Yes, Scorpius has been nice to me and hasn’t tried to hurt me even though he had the chance, but I still don’t know why he told me we are married. I don’t know his agenda, only that he definitely has one and that it has something to do with my case- I wasn’t certain at first, but I am after last night. At the café, it was quite obvious to me that Jonny backed off only because of him and later, after my nightmare… only now I fully understand how pushy he’s been; how desperate for information. I gasp as I realize that I’ve almost told him everything just then- I would have told him everything, if he didn’t stop me, that is.
That man is still full of contradictions, but I can’t really blame him. We’ve found ourselves in a situation that doesn’t allow us to be straightforward or honest. And I’m sick of this. I feel the urge to wake up him up and confess everything - beg for his help if I need to. It goes away almost immediately, but I can’t forget that it was there- that it has crossed my mind. So I know: I’ve found myself in a dead-end and I can’t go through this alone - not anymore. Scorpius is the only one I’ve got; the person that connects me to my past.
If only I had a wand with me… Then, I could take that risk; I’d tell him everything and wait to see how he’d react. I’d be more certain about myself; I’d be safe. Now I feel like I’m falling into the ocean without a lifesaver.
“Scorpius?” I whisper. I’m not sure what I’m doing and what I’m going to say to him when he wakes up. Knowing myself I will most probably back off, giving him some lame excuse, but I can’t stop myself from trying. I move closer and lightly shake his shoulder. He moves, rolling over to his back, but doesn’t wake up. I’m about to shake him again when I notice something odd; he’s still dressed at the same clothes he was wearing last night. I’m not sure why as I can’t pinpoint the exact moment of my nightmare, but, being quite certain that it happened long after we’ve returned to the room, I guess something kept him up.
That’s not what concerns me though. Seeing him still dressed gave me an idea, an idea that can put my out of my dilemma. I didn’t manage to find out where Scorpius had hid his wand after the first day no matter how hard I tried, so I concluded he must keep it on him at all times. Perhaps, now it’s time to find out if I was right.
Careful not to wake him, I push his jacket open and look in the inside pocket; it’s not here. I’m not discouraged- I really didn’t expect it to be that easy. So I look a bit further in case there’s another pocket somewhere, knowing that it would be harder to search his shirt or pants without waking him up. There are no other pockets but as I look for them I can definitely feel the wood of the wand beneath the fabric. There must be some secret way to put it there, but I don’t waste my time looking for it: I simply tear the fabric apart and take it into my hands.
I take a step backwards, undecided for a moment. The temptation is too big; I could just flee, run away and be safe on my own for some time. I push that thought away almost immediately; I know I’ll get tired of running soon enough. Now that I have a wand I can find out his intentions. Then, I’ll decide what to do.
Occlumency was an elective class offered in Hogwarts during my seventh year. Being my mother’s daughter, I took it and mastered it. They never exactly taught it to us, but through occlumency, I managed to understand a few things about legilimency as well. It took me more time, but by the time I turned 20 I’d managed to perfect the spell.
I decide to use it now. It’s the easiest way out.
“Legilimens!”
The spell takes me away, and I don’t know where I’m standing and what I do anymore. His mind is blurry - more than mine, if possible - and I suddenly feel guilt and regrets that aren’t mine. Before I get lost in his thoughts and feelings I guide myself towards something stable in all these: his memories that have to do with me.
This changes things completely. I can now see a room like I’m standing in it; a very familiar room. Scorpius is there along with some other men who all seem very serious and concerned. Taking my eyes off them, I notice a stained carpet and a man lying on it. It takes me a while to realize that this is Orson Montgomery and he’s lying dead on the carpet of my. living room.
The shock clears out my mind and makes my spell more powerful; I can now listen to the conversation of these men.
“It looks like Miss Weasley killed the poor man when he threatened to expose her… Then she ran away- that’s the most possible scenario from what I see here. Especially, if we combine it with the information we got this morning on her latest whereabouts…”
These words, coming from the most senior member of the group cause some whispers and nods. That’s when my Dad, very red and very angry emerges from the front door. “Why wasn’t I notified?”
“Auror Weasley, I must ask you to leave: this is my crime scene,” the man replies calmly.
“Don’t talk to me like that, Brighton! Don’t you dare…”
“Please, Ron,” Brighton tries again a lot nicer. “You know you can’t get involved in the case since it interests you personally…”
Dad seems to back off, but only a bit. “Just tell me… is she alright?”
“She appears to have fled; we’ve found traces that only portkeys can leave behind. I’ll send Malfoy to the Ministry to check it out.” Scorpius turns and nods at my father’s direction. He doesn’t pay much attention to him, confused as he is from what he’s just heard.
“What happened?”
One of the younger men takes over the task of letting my father know: “Auror Weasley, Sir… your daughter seems to be involved in the Gringotts artworks disappearances. Someone sent us a couple of photos this morning….” The man obviously hesitates, before adding: “And this…” he points out to the body in front of us. “This kinda says it all, right?”
I don’t see what my father does - I’d suppose he’d slap the man or yell at him, because the memory starts to fade away. As I watch the setting constantly change from Scorpius at the Ministry to Scorpius and me in the sea and later at the beach, I can think of only one thing; there’s a dead body in my living room. Scorpius is an Auror. And he’s investigating a murder he thinks I’ve committed.
A sudden change of setting makes me turn my attention back to Scorpius’ mind. He’s not at the beach with me anymore, he’s back at the Ministry, most probably in the Auror Department since he rushes into Brighton’s office. How has that happened?
“What did you find?”
“I followed Miss Weasley’s portkey to the Caribbean, Sir,” he reports. “It appears that something went wrong with it and it landed into the sea. She was exhausted when I found her, but I’ve managed to carry her to the shore safely.”
“Good. Where is she now?”
Scorpius falters a bit as he says: “In Antigua, Sir. I casted a lot of protection spells…” He what? He left me all alone in the middle of nowhere and went back to London? After I’d spend hours in the middle of the ocean?
I have to take a deep breath and control my anger. I wouldn’t want my spell to break now that I’m finally finding out the truth.
“Why would you do that, Malfoy?” Brighton yells. “What’s wrong with you? You should have brought her in… to St. Mungno’s and then here for interrogation!”
“I understand, Sir, but there’s something you need to know.”
“Then, say it, before I report you!”
“She has amnesia, Sir.”
“What?”
He nods. “She doesn’t remember anything - not even who she is…”
“You’re afraid it’s a memory spell?”
Scorpius only shrugs. “I thought I should ask your opinion before I did anything.”
“Yes, yes, you did well.”Brighton is pacing up and down his office, his tone now completely changed; he’s not angry anymore, he’s very deep in thought. “Do you think she could have done it to herself?”
Scorpius frowns. “I’m not an expert, Sir, but I don’t think that’s possible…”
The older man simply nods. “So that means there’s more in this case than I’ve originally thought… Perhaps there’s another side to Miss Weasley’s story, after all…”
“Shall I bring her back? Take her to St. Mungno’s?”
“No.” Scorpius seems surprised by that response. “If she’s innocent, I’ll never hear the end of it… Bringing her to London would inevitably cause the case to leak into the press sooner or later. And I don’t like to think of the mess this could create.” Brighton shakes his head, before decidedly walking to the door. “Walk with me,” he orders.
Scorpius does as he’s told and together they head into an office which’s door writes: “Harry Potter - Head of the Deaprtment.” Brighton walks in without knocking, making my father and uncle who sit inside, engaged in a quiet conversation, jump when they see him.
“I was waiting for you,” Uncle Harry says. “Ron tells me you have an ongoing investigation on his daughter…”
“Here are the facts,” Brighton begins curtly, obviously annoyed by Harry’s straight words, “this morning we’ve received visual evidence that Miss Weasley is involved with a man who uses the code name ‘Jonny’ and appears to be a part of the Gringotts missing artworks case. From the evidence we have so far he could as well be in charge, but I highly doubt that. In any case, Orson Montgomery, the man we’ve found dead in her apartment is the one who’s sent as the pictures. It’s very logical to assume…”
“You can’t make assumptions without evidence!” Dad interrupts him.
“But I do have evidence, don’t I? According to everyone I’ve talked to this fits Miss Weasley’s profile…”
“What?”
“He co-workers describe her as ‘too ambitious’ for someone so young; as a young woman who appeared ‘bored with her life and job.’ We all know that boredom can lead you to extraordinary lengths.”
“Still, though…”
“All I need are witnesses, people to testify for and against her. And of course, her side of the story. That’s why I’ve send Mr. Malfoy find out where she is…”
“And? Is she alright?”
“Not really; your daughter is in Antigua and appears to have lost her memory… We’re concerned that perhaps they’ve casted the memory charm on her. Maybe she simply has information and they’ve tried to frame her.”
“That’s what it must be!” Dad exclaims, his relief obvious in his expression.
“It’s a possibility.”
Uncle Harry, who was listening carefully all this time, appearing to think every detail of the case through, finally looks up at Brighton: “What are you suggesting?”
“I think she shouldn’t come to London yet. If she has indeed been framed then this means that someone’s after her, and as long as she doesn’t remember who that is she can’t help us catch him. It would be dangerous for her to be here- we won’t be able to protect her.”
“This is where the hospital is,” Harry objects. “Shouldn’t she see an expert?”
“We’ll send her someone to make sure her brain is intact… For all we know, she could have simply hit her head somewhere, or be in shock. In any case, it’s safer for her to stay away - in a witness protection program fashion. I’ll send Scorpius back to her, and I’ll continue the investigation.”
Uncle Harry thinks about it a bit longer, before nodding his agreement. Dad looks like he wants to disagree, but doesn’t. I stare at his familiar face for as long as I can, only now realizing how much I’ve missed him. The image changes soon, but I seem unable to focus on one particular thought. It seems that Scorpius is slowly waking up and his mind is trying to fight me. I try hard, but all I get is emotions and single words. Even they are helpful; I can now see his conflict (I’m lying to someone helpless), I can understand his guilt (Screw it- she’s just had a nightmare. I can respect that) and I can sense his doubt (you’ve always been a wonderful liar).
Then, a memory pops out and I can’t see because he’s fighting me off, but I can listen: “What shall I tell her?”
“You need to stay close to her at all times- don’t let her off your sight. She can’t escape if she’s guilty and she can’t be killed if she’s innocent.” Brighton thinks for a moment. “We need a very good excuse… Say you’re her boyfriend- even better husband. Yes, find a ring and say you’re her husband.”
I don’t hear them talk anymore and I’m ready to give up - I’ve already found more than I’ve expected to - when I hear Brighton say: “You’ve heard, son? Too young and too ambitious… You should be careful… that’s a dangerous combination…”
“Not enough to make her a killer, though…”
“You don’t know that yet.” The words repeat like a mantra into his head and I see flashes of a lot of our moments together here - a lot of the moments I’ve considered the good ones, like yesterday afternoon when I’ve finally thought we might have found common ground. You don’t know that yet. She might be a killer. You don’t know that yet. She might be a killer. You don’t…
And then there’s something else, something that I reach despite his struggle because apparently he’s thought about it a lot. It’s just 5 small words and it’s my father’s voice that pronounces them: “Bring her back safe, okay?”
It’s the last thing I’m able to hear before he finally manages to push me away. For a moment, I find myself holding the armchair tight to support myself, only to realize that I have to get over myself before Scorpius attacks me. I tighten my hold on his wand and turn at his direction, but he’s standing still at the bed, obviously trying to recover from my mind attack as well. When he sees me point the wand at him he tries to move, but it’s too late:
“Incarcerous.”
The ropes I’ve just conjured tie him tightly and give me time to catch my breath as he struggles against his bonds in vain. I look at him and notice the calculated look he’s throwing at me.
“Are you wondering if I’m a killer?” I throw at him, unable to hold my sarcasm.
He smirks. “When I’m tied up in bed, trying to catch my breath?” he wonders in that typical snarky voice of his. “No, not really.”
These words - this tone - trigger my anger. “You’re impossible, Malfoy! Only yesterday you stood there and lectured me on how I judged you wrongly, and now you’re back to your typical obnoxious self!” He ignores my comment with a shake of his head and continues to watch like he’s waiting for my next move. Moments ago I wasn’t entirely certain of what that move would be; I only knew that I had to hold onto his wand and stop him from taking. I hadn’t planned what I was going to do next.
No, however, I know I’m very aggravated with him. After everything that has happened and everything I‘ve seen anger is the only emotion I’m certain about. I have nothing else to offer- nothing without knowing I’ll regret it. I realize suddenly that Dr. Higgery must have been the expert Brighton sent. And he would have told Scorpius that I’m not under some spell. So that means that while he played nice to me he was planning to arrest me. And that frustrates me even more.
“You remembered?” he asks all of a sudden, just when I’m ready to start yelling at him.
“You didn’t think that ought to happen eventually? Or you believed you can lie to the poor girl for as long as you like?”
“Rose…” he tries to explain himself, but I’ve already fueled up.
“I thought I was crazy for quite some time, Scorpius! I thought that perhaps I was hallucinating… that everything that’s happened with Jonny was just my imagination and your story was the truth!” I exclaim, relieved that I can finally explain my frustration to him; that I can finally yell and blame him for how I’ve felt.
“Wait a second…” he says, “You mean you remembered? All long?”
I gulp. Why do I have to talk so much? Anyway, it doesn’t matter now. It makes no difference. “That’s what you think is the important things in all these? You lied to me, Scorpius and that…”
“You lied to me as well,” he interrupts me calmly.
“I had to! I had to protect myself! You lied, knowing that it could be bad for me!”
“I was trying to protect you too,” he says softly.
I snort. “Good job!”
“You’re still alive, aren’t you?” he asks and it’s the first he raises the tone of his voice during our conversation. He takes a deep breath and continues: “Look, I’ve promise your father I’ll bring you back safe, and I’ve promised your uncle I wouldn’t let this turn into a scandal and I’m going to succeed! I’d do anything for that.”
“It’s good to know that the Ministry has Aurors like you in its service. The wizarding community should feel safe with men like you who put their job above other human beings!” As I speak my voice gets louder, until I find myself screaming the last words at him.
He looks at me in a way that says I should be careful of what I say to him. “I’ve done many unprofessional things for you the past few days, Rose.”
I only shake my head, trying to push away the thought of him letting go of his job - making me remember - in favor of my well-being last night. Given that I’ve read his mind, I know deep down that he’s right.
“If you just tell me what’s happened, your side of things…” he suggests, “then, perhaps I can help you.”
I’m not sure if he’s telling me the truth now. I try to think of my situation. As long as the Aurors considered possible that I was under a memory spell, they were willing to help me. Now, however, after Dr. Higgery’s visit, they must know it wasn’t this type of memory loss; they must believe it to be just another case of amnesia. And the way I see it, Scorpius and Brighton won’t believe me very easily.
Trusting Scorpius would be a mistake. I can’t handle this alone, but I don’t feel like he’s the right person to support me through this. I have to contact my Dad; I know now he would believe me. And with Scorpius wand in my hands, I feel I can do everything.
So I shake my head. “No.”
“Rose…” he tries again.
I take one last look at him. “I only have two words to say to you: game over.”
He looks back at me sadly. “You don’t look like you’ve won.”
I almost smile. “Well, neither do you.”
He does smile. “Then game’s not over.”
He’s right - of course he is. I’m just not willing to play with him anymore. To show this, I take his ring of my finger and throw it at the bed next to him, before turning around and exiting the room.
*
The plan was to run as soon as I got out. I can’t, though, because the moment I close the door behind me I fall onto someone’s hard chest. I’m about to apologize when I see the man’s face and the satisfied smirk he wears. Jonny. I take a step backwards and stand frozen with my back flush against the door.
“Expelliarmus.”
Scorpius’ wand flies away from my hand and I curse myself for being so terrified that I didn’t think about using it earlier. In the meantime, Jonny moves even closer to me - so close that I can practically feel his hot breath against my face, and says: “For someone who claims to be so smart, you seem to be losing your wand a lot.”
“How did you find me?” I only manage to say, ignoring his irony and turning my face to the side so I won’t have to look at him.
“Same way the Auror Department did: portkeys leaves traces. It took me some time, but I’ve figured it out in the end.” His smirk grows wider. “I’m not going to let you get away with it this time,” he says with his wand tracing the curve of my throat and I whimper.
“Please, don’t.”
“I’ve heard that before. You should have made smarter life choices,” he mocks me, before raising the wand. I close my eyes and let the tears stream down my face freely as I wait for the inevitable end.
It doesn’t come. Instead, I feel the door give in behind me as it opens. I open my eyes and look at Jonny questioningly. It’s in that moment that I begin to hope again.
“Oh, I didn’t tell you?” Jonny continues to speak with his usual sarcasm. “I’m not going to kill you this time... I’ve decided that you’ll be more useful to me alive.”
His words make me frown and terrify me more than the idea of death does. “What do you mean?”
“You see, despite me killing Orson in your apartment, the Aurors aren’t completely certain if you’re in the network or a victim of it. We’re going to convince them.”
“Hh- how?” I falter.
“You’re going to kill Mr. Malfoy as well,” he tells me like it’s the most reasonable thing in the world.
“No,” I object firmly.
He simply rolls his eyes and tries to open the door completely so we’ll get into the room, but I don’t let him. I struggle and push and try to run, because I’m not going to go down without a fight this time. And I will most definitely not going to let Scorpius Malfoy die- not because of me.
Jonny’s stronger than me though. “Get in,” he hisses, after opening the door and pushing me inside. He’s too strong and I’ve struggling against him desperately so I find myself losing my balance and collapsing down at the floor.
“Don’t worry,” he tells me. “It’s not going to hurt. And you won’t remember a thing after it. You’ll just spend the rest of your days trying to understand what was it that made you a murderer.”
When he says that I understand what his plan is. He’s going to kill Scorpius and then alter my memory to have me take the blame for it- and who knows for what else. Cursing my fate and my stupidity once again, I try to get up and fight this, even though I know it will be in vain. Perhaps, I can reach the bed, find time and untie Scorpius, and then…
With one curt silent spell, Jonny pushes me back at the floor. I know I can’t get up and ran fast enough; Jonny’s spell will come too soon, so I just wait for it, but in never comes. Instead, I see the open door close and, before I understand how that has happened, Scorpius appears from behind it and hits Jonny at the back with some sort of small object I can’t really see. What I can see is the unmistakable red of blood and Jonny collapsing towards me. Panicked, I try to roll away from his body, only to have two strong arms catch me and pull me at my feet, dragging me away.
I look up and find myself face to face with Scorpius who seems very pleased with himself. He kicks Jonny’s wand away and puts the small object with which he hit him in his pocket. Now that I’ve had a better look at it, I realized it was the ring I threw at him minutes ago, only it has somehow turned sharp at the edges. I guess there was some secret word or button that did this, and I feel grateful that I threw it at him; it helped him get out of his bondage and saved both our lives.
Scorpius catches me still looking at him and smirks. He has every reason to do that; he’s just solved the case (almost), took down the bad guy and got the unwilling witness - me. He knows as well as I do that I’m not going anywhere now.
“And that,” he tells, “is what I like to call game over.”
*
THREE WEEKS LATER
In the end, I learn the hard way. Somewhere in between interrogations and courtrooms, I find the time to think calmly about everything that has happened. I want to believe that these events have made me grown into a mature, better person. I know now that everything will come on its time; in both my work and my life. I learn to appreciate myself the way I am and with the things I have.
Dr. Higgery helps a lot. Dad insisted that I continue seeing him and he was right. I go to his office once a week and we talk about my life and my ambitions. He believes I projected my self-value t my work. I roll my eyes, but promise myself that I will never do that (again). In any case, he’s proud of me and my progress; he says he’s never seen anyone recover so quickly from post-traumatic stress. I guess it helps that I have all these people who love, my family, to look after me.
After Jonny’s arrest, the Aurors brought in more members of the criminal network, using mine and his deposition. I hear that he gave in his accomplishes in hope of receiving special treatment in Wizengamont. I don’t know much about the wizarding law, but I doubt his wish will be granted; after all, he’s being accused of murder, among of many other things.
The one person I’d really like to see these days, but haven’t is Scorpius Malfoy. The few times we’ve met in the Auror Department, we were both very busy and had no time to talk to each other. To be honest, I don’t really know if he wants to talk or what I should tell him… The only thing I’m certain about is that I want to make a fresh start. I’m not confused anymore; we’ve both done a lot of things wrong both in Hogwarts and Antigua, but I know he’s not the boy he’s used to be and that he’s only tried to help him. I have made my mind; I want to get to know him better.
He comes to my apartment one afternoon out of the blue. As I look at him, standing at my doorstep, I notice that he looks as professional and stern as ever. “Rose,” he says, and even though his voice is cold, I feel relieved. The fact that he doesn’t say “Miss Weasley” makes me believe that things haven’t exactly returned to how they used to be before Antigua.
“Yes?”
“I have something you have to sigh.” He hands me over a folder. “Simple paperwork,” he explains. “The necessary legal procedure.”
“Sure, come in.” I walk into the apartment and sit at the couch, hoping he’d do the same. He follows me, but doesn’t sit down; instead he stands still next to me, waiting for his work here to be over. Fine.
I let out a sigh of annoyance as I open the folder; nothing irritates me more than people hanging over my head when I’m trying to work. I don’t know if he understands or if he’s just uncomfortable, but he starts walking up and down the apartment like he’s investigating it. Likethat isn’t annoying.
“You’re still staying here?” he asks, taking me by surprise.
“What do you mean?”
He’s in front of me now and I can see him shrug as he says: “Well, you know… because of Montgomery…”
Oh, that. “Yeah… I’ve changed the carpet.” I can see in his frown how cynical that must have sounded to him, so I decide to lighten the mood with a joke: “Dr. Higgery says I’m so brilliant that I’ve managed to turn my post-traumatic stress to knowledge. Learning the hard way and stuff.” He smiles. “Of course,” I continue, more serious now, “he still insists on me paying him a visit once a week, so I suppose he’s worried I might act like some psycho any moment now.”
He throws his had back and laughs in a ‘Rose-you-are-unbelievable’ way. When he turns his attention back to me, I quickly take my eyes of him and look at the document am I to sign. It surprises me to see that it refers to the Ministry’s ‘Witness Security Program’. That’s strange; no one told me anything about it and to be honest I can’t see the reason why I should do it. With Jonny having given the names of all his associates, there isn’t anyone coming after me. Or is there?
I throw Scorpius a questioning look, but all he does is continue to look at me with an expression that makes me think he’s studying me. Still confused, I read on and I finally understand. They don’t want to put me in a witness protection program now; they want my approval for what happened in Antigua; they want me to say I’ve agreed to that.
“So that’s how we’re calling it? A witness protection program?” I exclaim.
Scorpius doesn’t even flinch. “Actually, the right term - the official one - is Witness Security Program.”
And here he is; Scorpius Malfoy, the know-it-all. I decide to ignore him, rolling my eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“Just sign it!” he tells me, giving me the feeling that he’s tired of this. “You’re gonna save yourself - and me -much trouble.”
“I’m not going to sue you, Scorpius- if that’s what you’re afraid of,” I assure him, calmer than before.
“I know, Rose- and neither am I.” He sighs. “In any case, your uncle needs a legal document that proves that. To protect the department.”
I have to admit that Uncle Harry is right; there’s no need to make a fuss out of it. So I nod and I lean down to sign the document, before getting up and handing it back to him in its folder. He takes it with a small smile, looks at me for a while longer, before saying: “Right, then. I’ll see you in trial.”
I nod again and watch him turn around and head for the door, and I desperately search for something that might stop him. “Scorpius,” is all I come with, but it works, because his hand leaves the doorknob and he turns back to face me again. “Yes?”
His reply is followed by a moment of silence during which I open and close my mouth like a fish since I don’t really know how to begin. He does it for me:
“Rose, I wanted to say… I’m…”sorry. I stop him before he manages to finish that sentence.
“Don’t say that.”
“Why?” he seems surprised and a bit… hurt?
“Cause you’re not sorry and neither am I. We both did what we had to.”
He chuckles. “I know that. I wasn’t going to say I’m sorry.”
“You weren’t?”
“No,” he confirms. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
It’s harsh and it hurts more than it confuses me. It makes me look away, and wish that he’ll just go and leave me alone. If we were in Hogwarts words like these would make me answer back or not even bother, but after everything he’s told me in Antigua, I thought that he and I might… try again.
“I’m just glad you’re okay,” he says softer this time, but I still don’t look at him.
I hear the door open when I realize something: I’ve never thanked him for saving my life. I was in shock when it happened, very busy afterwards and unforgivably oblivious now.
“Scorpius!” I yell this time and I have to hold the door, because he was ready to close it. He looks at me confused and surprised, but before he can say something, I speak: “Thank you.”
He doesn’t seem to understand. “For what?”
“Saving my life,” I explain. “You saved my life and I completely ignored it. I’m sorry, I’m… so sorry.”
“No, Rose that was…”
I stop him again; because now I feel more courageous, ready to tell him everything I wanted to: “And you were right: I was very ignorant at school and now as well, and I’m sorry about that too. I’m glad you told me the things you did - I’ve been a fool and I know it, but I’m going to prove you wrong; I’m going to show I’ve changed.
A ghost of a smile plays at his lips, as he asks: “How are you going to do that?”
“Well…” Deep breath. “I was under the impression that we both like each other.” Now I sound like an arrogant fool, but no one knows how much I have to try to say this as calmly as I do.
He tilts his head to the side. “We do?”
It feels like he’s asking me if I like him, so I nod a bit too enthusiastically. I don’t have time to worry about that, because I have more to tell him. “Yes. So I was thinking that maybe… you could take me on a date?” That didn’t come out with as much certainty as I’d like it too, but I force myself to stand still and look at Scorpius in any way.
He’s grown serious now and I’m looking forward to see what this means. “That would be totally unprofessional.”
I pout to fight the urge to laugh. “I know.”
He smirks.
Please take a quick minute to rate this entry. The top three entries will receive an award. Please do not vote for your own submission
Poll Please rate this submission from 1-5
Author: xxx-angelin-xxx
Prompt: 101
Summary: Rose was found washed ashore on an island in the Caribbean. And although she didn't have amnesia, that was the story she presented to the man who found her, Scorpius Malfoy. It was either that or risk arrest for something that she’d run away from back in London. She could hardly argue, therefore, when Scorpius slipped a gold band on her finger and delivered his own bold-faced lie - that she was married to him!
Rating: PG
Warnings: WARNINGS GO HERE
Word Count: 19.962
We walk together down to the beach and it’s the first time I truly appreciate the silence between us. Scorpius is lost in thought and so am I; it’s time for me to put my big plan into action.
I thought about it over and over again. Should I stay or should I go? Am I truly better off alone? What if Malfoy can help me? What am I going to do if I leave? What’s going to happen if I stay?
Not too long ago, I had to answer similar questions in my mind. That day, when I returned home from work, unsure of what had happened yet terrified to no end, I realized that they had found out what I’d been up to. And for all my brightness, all I could come up with was ‘run’.
Building a Portkey isn’t easy, you know. It’s not something they teach you at Hogwarts; it’s not basic knowledge for every witch and wizard. When we were kids though, my cousins and I were inspired by Uncle Harry’s story about his father and his friends: they had a secret place to meet, and a secret that united them. We wanted that kind of mystery in our lives too.
Now that I’m older, I can see that what we did was no big deal; not nearly as big as the Marauder’s secret. Back then, though, it made our lives exciting.
We built Portkeys. They took us all from the safety of our homes to Stonehenge. It was our secret place to meet and the years we all spent trying to build Portkeys was the secret that united us.
It’s quite surprising that the Ministry didn’t catch us. We only stopped when Molly and Lucy accidentally got sent to the wrong place and we had to tell our parents, who insisted on monitoring us more closely after that. But I’d learned to build a Portkey and, like most things I’ve learned, I never forgot.
It’s not a simple or a quick procedure. It took me an hour to choose an item and a place, and the rest of the day to perfect and cast the spell. I finished right on time; at the exact moment my door opened, right before my wand was taken from me and broken to pieces.
That, along with Scorpius’ sudden appearance here, changed my plans completely. Malfoy’s presence confused and disorientated me and without my wand, I’m as good as dead. In a way Scorpius and hi façade are protecting me; if I was alone and Jonny found me, I wouldn’t stand a chance against him.
So I won’t run, not yet anyway. Not till I find a wand.
“Do you want to find somewhere to sit and have ice cream?” Scorpius’ voice interrupts my thoughts. I look in the direction he’s pointing, only to see a cute little café a few meters away. I nod and we head over and sit.
The view is amazing. As the sun sets, the sky displays a bevy of colours, reflected by the quiet sea. Once the waitress brings what we ordered, I turn my chair towards the sun; I’ll be content just sitting here, watching in silence.
Scorpius, however, has different plans. “What do you want to talk about?” he asks me, bothered by the silence.
I turn to him and try to read his expression, but it’s in useless. He’s still emotionless, looking at me in the way all Ministry Employees do when they’re trying to say they have more important things to do than deal with you. Not the best conversation starter, I must say.
It occurs to me that I haven’t asked him what he does for a living. That day he found me at the beach, he told me what I do, but not once did we mention his work. If I remember correctly, Albus told me it was actually in the Ministry, but I’m not sure what exactly it was. “Tell me about your job,” I say.
He frowns. “I work at the Ministry, but…”
“What Ministry?” I ask, ignoring the fact that he’s trying to change the subject.
“Of transportation,” he replies curtly. “That’s not important though, we need to talk about you. That’s what Dr. Higgery said.”
“Is it so wrong that I want to know a thing or two about my husband?”
“No, but the point is to talk about you; to help you remember even snippets of your life,” he reminds me in a tone that implies he won’t take “no” for an answer.
“Aren’t you a big part of my life?” I insist. I have absolutely no intention of sitting back and letting him feed me lies. I’m not even curious to find out what his version of my life is.
“Yes,” he says, still ready to disagree with me.
“Then, I want to learn something about you. You’re all I have these days; the only link to my past life. I want to know why you’re so important to me and for that to happen, you need to tell me something about yourself.”
He seems defeated by that. “What do you want to know?”
I shrug. All I want is to keep him from focusing on me; I don’t really care for what he has to say. “Tell me about your family,” I say and I watch as his expression momentarily changes from stern and certain to uncomfortable and uneasy. Soon, he composes himself and turns away from me, as he begins to talk:
“I come from one of those old, noble families.” The way he says “noble” catches my attention: his voice has taken its casual sarcastic tone, but it’s it sounds different than ever before. He’s using that sarcasm against himself and the word has so much pain in it that makes me feel a small twinge in my chest.
“The British aristocracy,” he continues in the same way, only that now a small smirk crosses his features. Then, the tone changes back to that warm voice I heard for the first time last night during dinner when he was talking about the day we met, and I can’t help but pay attention to what he says, less annoyed at him for interrupting the previous comfortable silence: “By the time I was born, all these meant nothing. The family’s reputation was ruined, the Manor lost, the money… non-existent.
”It always hurt my parents; they knew they couldn’t raise me with all the comforts they had as children, and they knew it was no one’s fault but their own. It never mattered to me though, I had a happy childhood. I grew up with two people who were willing to do everything for me, but at the same time, they wanted to teach me all the things they’d learned the hard way. They wanted me to become a better man, and I like to think they succeeded.”
“Isn’t that a bit obnoxious of you?” I don’t why I said it. I suppose after all the years I’ve spent trying to find smart retorts for Malfoy, it became an instinct. What he said was indeed a reminder of his obnoxious self, of the person I knew at Hogwarts, but the way it was worded and the context… it was just an unfair thing for me to say. I was about to apologize when I saw him smiling.
“This is…” He chuckles. “This is so like you! Classic Rose; you just don’t care. You don’t bother to get to know people; you judge people solely on appearance. Quite shallow of you,” he comments, mimicking the tone I used moments ago. “This is the reason I didn’t like you; it had nothing to do with school or grades and it most definitely had nothing to do with your family. But this side of you… it’s just maddening.” He stops to breath before adding: “I despised you for it.”
“You know…” I begin, unable to stop myself. “You can’t just blame me for it. The things you say and the things you do… you give everyone ample reason to call you arrogant.” He raises his eyebrow as I speak; I can see him judging me for what I say. “I know. I know it’s not good to judge a book by its cover. But I can’t help it- and no one else can: it’s the first thing we see in each other. And if you go around being hostile and sarcastic and overly confident, I can’t help but think that you’re arrogant. I can’t help but not like you. And if that happens, there’s no reason for me, or for anyone, to want to know you better.”
He snorts. “I can’t believe this. I was talking about my family, Rose! I was telling you why I love my parents so much; what they taught me. I don’t think that make me obnoxious!” He sighs. “Were you even listening?”
He’s right: all he did was tell me that he likes to think he’s made his parents proud and I found that arrogant. I guess it was out of habit, I’m not used to having heart-to-heart conversations with Malfoy and the moment I heard him saying something good about himself, I reacted the way I used to at school. I chose to call him off at the worst possible time. Now that I’m thinking about it, I have to admit that he hasn’t done anything that I can characterize as “classic Scorpius Malfoy” over the past few days. He was just trying to help me. I suppose the reason I’m so angry at him is because he’s lying to me and I can’t figure out why. The situation I’m dealing with and the mysterious way he seems to be involved in it frustrate me to no end. I guess I take it out on him, and I realize now that I really don’t want to.
“I’m sorry,” I say and I mean it. “I chose the worst possible moment to tell you that you annoy me sometimes.” I try to make my words sound as a joke and, at the same time, to make him understand what I meant before.
It appears I have succeeded, because he nods and he doesn’t seem so angry anymore. “I’m sorry too,” he says, and I’m about to ask, “what for?” when he continues: “All these things I’ve said about despising you…” He smiles and passes a hand through his hair, and I see how uncomfortable he is, “I didn’t mean them. It was before I got to know you.”
Surprisingly, his efforts to comfort me only upset me more. Scorpius Malfoy never got to know me- not in real life. And that means he’s lying: he still thinks I judge too quickly because I’m a shallow person. I don’t know why exactly, but this makes me want to explain myself. “I think I’m just shy, you know? That’s why I didn’t try to get to know you better. It’s hard for me…”
“I think I can understand that.” He nods again, and smiles in a way I think genuine. “You really find me arrogant and annoying?” he asks.
“I don’t know.” Anymore. I’m not sure if he’s the same person he was in Hogwarts. Chances are that he isn’t. I was just too caught up in my life and my problems to understand that.
He smiles again. “That’s good.”
“In what way?” I ask, but I can’t hide the laughter in my voice.
“It means you remember some things, but you can’t understand them completely yet.”
“So there was a time I found you arrogant and annoying?” I tease him.
“Yes.”
“What changed?”
“I did.” He stops, like he’s caught himself saying something he shouldn’t. “You too,” he adds quickly, “We grew up.”
I look away from him, trying to hide how uncomfortable I am. During all these days we’ve spent together here, I haven’t actually thought about him- not once. I was too busy trying to get over the shock from everything that has happened to me and to figure out what am I to do next that I’ve never thought about the person who was next to me. Certainly, I’ve spend a lot of time wondering about his intentions, but not once about his character, about him as person. And now with all the things he’s saying he makes me wonder if perhaps he’s changed, if he’s as nice as he looks- if we could get to know each other better and be friends.
I’m not certain about anything yet, of course. I’m still very confused, still very suspicious; not so long ago I was planning to run away and not let myself be concerned about him any longer, and now I’m contemplating whether he’s a good person or not. I think that what’s happening to me is that I begin to understand how we’ve changed and, with trepidation, I’m starting to appreciate the person he’s become.
“Tell me about my family,” I say, urging him to talk again. I can’t stand the silence between us- not now, not after all these realizations I’ve had.
“Well, you have this big, happy family. I always thought that meant you’d always have someone to talk to, but Albus told me that wasn’t the case. He said the thing with your family is that you all love each other, but you don’t all like each other. I suppose that makes sense it’s not easy to get along with eleven cousins. In the few interactions I’ve had with your whole family, I experienced it first-hand. Of course, some of you are adorable people whom everyone loves, but some of you seem ready to kill others.”
“And me?” I ask in a tone that makes me wonder if I’m really flirting with Malfoy. “Am I adorable?”
He throws his head back and laughs loudly. “Oh Rose! You’re as far away from adorable as possible! You’re not easy-going or simple-minded, and you’re not very funny either. You’re stubborn and snarky and you know exactly how smart you are. You don’t party, you stay in and read. You begin these intellectual conversations that most people don’t like participating in. You’re not the kind of girl who becomes popular. So no, you’re not the cousin everybody loves either.” It’s not like I didn’t know; I just didn’t expect him to say it. He must see how much his words hurt me at my expression, because he smiles sadly at me. “Few people can appreciate these traits.”
“They can be appreciated?” I ask him, unable to hold my sarcasm.
He nods. “Definitely,” he tells me softly and I’m surprised at how easily he can calm me down. Again he sounded so honest and certain of himself like he was implying… Wait a second… has Scorpius Malfoy just told me that he appreciates my personality? Could he possibly mean that?
Even if he didn’t, it meant a lot to me to hear it. He reminded me that there are people who like me, even though they are too many. “Thank you.”
His expression changes when I say that. There’s something in his eyes, something I’ve seen a lot today. Guilt, I realize. Before, I can think of something to say, he grows serious again: “Well, you’re a challenge. Not everyone can appreciate one.”
I laugh, deciding to let it go. The more I think about him, the more trouble I get myself into. Taking my eyes of him, I turn my head back towards the ocean, hoping the view of the setting sun will calm me down. Wrong again.
The moment I turn away from Scorpius, I see him. At the next table, in a brightly colored shirt, is Jonny, looking at me like he’s just won the lottery. There’s nothing I can do but sit here and wait for him to make a move. I’m frozen. My mind flashes back to the last time I saw him, that fateful night in my apartment.
I remember the last time I saw him, that fateful night at my apartment. I was terrified; he looked as threatening as he does now- perhaps a bit more, since he had just exploded my door and was pointing his wand at me. I see now how strange it was that I didn’t scream or run for my life at his very sight. Instead, I ordered myself to stay calm. I guess it’s true that people manage to find clarity of mind in the worst possible situations: not losing control was probably the only defense I had left.
“Good evening, Jonny.”
He most definitely didn’t expect me to act like this. I could tell as he raised his eyebrows and said: “This is how you want to do this?”
“Why not?” I continued in the same way.
He looked at me suspiciously. “You look a bit too certain for a woman in your situation.” He paused and I could see his expression change as he seemed to realize something: “Did you tell the Aurors about me? Did you send them your brilliant little article?”
I’d never seen Jonny lose his temper before. His reactions were always calculated, much like his movements, and he always tried to stay in control of the situation. At that moment, however, as he was asking that second question, he sounded and looked truly aggravated. As he took a step forward , tightening his hold at his wand, I thought he’d kill me just then.
He didn’t, though. Instead, he continued looking at me, studying my expression like he was waiting for an answer. Had I told the Aurors? If only…
That was the first time I’ve realized that I wasn’t as bright as I’ve always fancied myself to be. If I was, I would have gone to the Auror Department that morning, telling them everything. I hadn’t, though; I had allowed myself to panic and I’d started building portkeys like some lunatic. Mum would be so disappointed.
Eventually, Jonny got tired of waiting. “It doesn’t matter, anyway…” he muttered, talking more to himself than to me. I watched motionlessly as he walked towards me until his wand was touching my throat. To keep myself calm I thought about the portkey I’ve build: I wasn’t doomed just yet; I had a chance to escape. Perhaps, if I was fast enough I could run to the kitchen and touch the vase I had used… Stealing a glance at the wall clock, I realized the portkey wouldn’t leave for five more minutes; I had to buy myself time.
“You’ll be such a waste, you know…” Jonny told me as a horrible grimace formed on his face. I suppose he was laughing at me, tormenting me a bit before he finally killed me. I thought I could use this to my advantage. “You could have really helped us: your connections, your skills… in both journalism and plotting. You had Orson wrapped around your finger with a few words… It’s a pity that you’re so naïve.”
“Naïve?”
“Very naïve,” he confirmed. “You thought I trusted you so simply? Only because you were saying you wanted to help us?” He shook his head with disappointment. “That was your first mistake.”
“What was the second?” 4 minutes.
“Your impatience,” he said simply, and I knew he was right. “Immediately after you found evidence, you showed your true colors. You should have waited- checked your sources, as journalists say.” He smiled again, and I remember thinking that his smile was the most terrifying thing about him; it was vicious, if one can say that for a smile. “But you didn’t, and so you fell right into the trap.”
“What do you mean?” I wondered, fighting the urge to hit my head against the nearest wall. How could I ever be so stupid?
“Oh, Rose! You think you’re so smart, don’t you?” he voiced my own thoughts. “I was testing you last night- I wasn’t sharing my true plans for a robbery, nor was I meeting my connection at the Ministry - Smith’s just an old friend. I just wanted to see what you’d do. Thank you very much for acting immediately.”
I couldn’t think of anything else to say to delay the inevitable. “Please, don’t.” Tears run down my face, as I whispered these words. I wasn’t trying to buy time anymore, I was begging for my life. My portkey wouldn’t leave for other 2 minutes and I knew chances were against me.
“Give one good reason why not.”
“Because the Aurors would be here in any minute. And they’d know it was you,” I lied.
Instead of scaring him like I thought they would, my words only made him smirk. “I don’t believe you,” he told me. “I know for a fact that you didn’t send them that article last night and that you didn’t have time to go to them today. But let’s just say I’m wrong- let’s just say I didn’t monitor your movements as well as I’ve thought. In that case, you wouldn’t be here right now, Rose. You’d be with them.”
His smirk grew wider after he finished; he was obviously very pleased with himself. I knew form the expression of his face that he wouldn’t say more; the next time he’d open his mouth, a curse would come out and all would be over. I quickly glanced at the clock; less than a minute- perhaps I could make it…
I don’t know how I managed to move as quickly as I did. As he raised his wand, I took a step backwards and pushed my coffee table at him, while running away. I think he lost his balance, but only for a second because soon - too soon - I heard him utter those fearful words:
“Avada Kedavra.”
I was lucky; in his hurry he had missed, or maybe I had managed to get out of his target right on time. I don’t know; everything happened too fast for me to understand. I didn’t even have the time to be grateful for my life; I was running to the kitchen and grabbing the vase at the last moment, disappearing with it.
I don’t really remember much after that. Only the sea; the big, vast ocean; the waves. The realization that I’d done something wrong, putting the wrong coordinates at the spell. And then, Scorpius, calling my name at the beach.
And now - just when I thought I had escaped from him, Jonny found me again. Everything that could go wrong, did.
Scorpius must have noticed that something’s wrong with me, because he’s turning his head towards Jonny. That’s when the oddest thing happens: Jonny takes his eyes of me and stares at Scorpius, growing paler by the second. Before I can even register to what is happening, he’s getting up and leaving the café, more jogging than walking away, and I’m left to watch him, uncertain of what has just happened.
When Scorpius turns back at me, he’s wearing his cold, professional smile: “Shall we go back to the hotel? I’m a bit tired.”
*
A dark alley. I run, his words ringing in my ears, consummating all my thoughts into one: “I will find you.”
He’s in front of me now, laughing. His white teeth catch what little light there is. “You thought you could escape me? You thought you could hide from me?”
I fall to the ground and watch, unable to move any further, as he get closer and closer. His figure towers above me as he points his wand at my throat. I try to scream but I can’t.
“Avada Kedavra.”
I wake up to the sound of my own screams, covered in cold sweat. I look around me, trying to tell myself that this was just a dream; that it never happened, but it’s hard. The dream looked so real and it made me feel more helpless than ever before.
“Rose?” Within seconds, Scorpius is at the bed next to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. I turn to his direction and lean into his touch, telling myself that this, contrary to my dream, is real. “What happened?” he asks, trying to find my face into the darkness. His hand finds my cheek and he pulls me closer to him. I don’t resist; I couldn’t if I wanted to. “Did you… remember?” I try to answer him, ready to tell him everything about Jonny, everything about me and my “memory loss,” but I can’t: all that comes out are loud sobs.
“Just tell me what it was,” he insists. “Tell me what you saw. Even if it doesn’t make sense to you now, it might to me…” he whispers, wiping away some tears. “Was it that man from…?” As I sob louder, I hear him take a deep breath and curse quietly. Then, he does the most unexpected thing: he pulls me closer to him and lets me cry against his chest. I suppose that should surprise me, but I’m too terrified to feel anything else. “It’s alright,” he mutters into my hair. “It was just a bad dream. Let it go.”
There’s nothing I want more than that.
*
When I wake up, I can see the rising sun through the window’s laths. I try to stretch my limbs, only to find that I’m not alone in bed this time; Scorpius is still sleeping behind me, his breath hot against my neck and his hand falling on my waist. My mind flies back to last night and my horrific nightmare. I take a deep breath and try to push the thought of it away. It wasn’t real, Rose- it has never happened. I have more important issues to deal with, more important questions to answer. Careful not to wake Scorpius up, I roll away and leave the bed, sitting down at the armchair next to it.
He looks harmless when he sleeps. That’s the first thought that comes to my mind, followed by the insistent question: “what if he is?” It’s a strange thought for someone as cynical as I am but I wonder if I should just trust him with everything that has happened to me. Not carrying this alone would be a nice change and it could relieve much of my stress and anxiety.
On the other hand, I wonder if perhaps I’m a bit ahead of myself here. Yes, Scorpius has been nice to me and hasn’t tried to hurt me even though he had the chance, but I still don’t know why he told me we are married. I don’t know his agenda, only that he definitely has one and that it has something to do with my case- I wasn’t certain at first, but I am after last night. At the café, it was quite obvious to me that Jonny backed off only because of him and later, after my nightmare… only now I fully understand how pushy he’s been; how desperate for information. I gasp as I realize that I’ve almost told him everything just then- I would have told him everything, if he didn’t stop me, that is.
That man is still full of contradictions, but I can’t really blame him. We’ve found ourselves in a situation that doesn’t allow us to be straightforward or honest. And I’m sick of this. I feel the urge to wake up him up and confess everything - beg for his help if I need to. It goes away almost immediately, but I can’t forget that it was there- that it has crossed my mind. So I know: I’ve found myself in a dead-end and I can’t go through this alone - not anymore. Scorpius is the only one I’ve got; the person that connects me to my past.
If only I had a wand with me… Then, I could take that risk; I’d tell him everything and wait to see how he’d react. I’d be more certain about myself; I’d be safe. Now I feel like I’m falling into the ocean without a lifesaver.
“Scorpius?” I whisper. I’m not sure what I’m doing and what I’m going to say to him when he wakes up. Knowing myself I will most probably back off, giving him some lame excuse, but I can’t stop myself from trying. I move closer and lightly shake his shoulder. He moves, rolling over to his back, but doesn’t wake up. I’m about to shake him again when I notice something odd; he’s still dressed at the same clothes he was wearing last night. I’m not sure why as I can’t pinpoint the exact moment of my nightmare, but, being quite certain that it happened long after we’ve returned to the room, I guess something kept him up.
That’s not what concerns me though. Seeing him still dressed gave me an idea, an idea that can put my out of my dilemma. I didn’t manage to find out where Scorpius had hid his wand after the first day no matter how hard I tried, so I concluded he must keep it on him at all times. Perhaps, now it’s time to find out if I was right.
Careful not to wake him, I push his jacket open and look in the inside pocket; it’s not here. I’m not discouraged- I really didn’t expect it to be that easy. So I look a bit further in case there’s another pocket somewhere, knowing that it would be harder to search his shirt or pants without waking him up. There are no other pockets but as I look for them I can definitely feel the wood of the wand beneath the fabric. There must be some secret way to put it there, but I don’t waste my time looking for it: I simply tear the fabric apart and take it into my hands.
I take a step backwards, undecided for a moment. The temptation is too big; I could just flee, run away and be safe on my own for some time. I push that thought away almost immediately; I know I’ll get tired of running soon enough. Now that I have a wand I can find out his intentions. Then, I’ll decide what to do.
Occlumency was an elective class offered in Hogwarts during my seventh year. Being my mother’s daughter, I took it and mastered it. They never exactly taught it to us, but through occlumency, I managed to understand a few things about legilimency as well. It took me more time, but by the time I turned 20 I’d managed to perfect the spell.
I decide to use it now. It’s the easiest way out.
“Legilimens!”
The spell takes me away, and I don’t know where I’m standing and what I do anymore. His mind is blurry - more than mine, if possible - and I suddenly feel guilt and regrets that aren’t mine. Before I get lost in his thoughts and feelings I guide myself towards something stable in all these: his memories that have to do with me.
This changes things completely. I can now see a room like I’m standing in it; a very familiar room. Scorpius is there along with some other men who all seem very serious and concerned. Taking my eyes off them, I notice a stained carpet and a man lying on it. It takes me a while to realize that this is Orson Montgomery and he’s lying dead on the carpet of my. living room.
The shock clears out my mind and makes my spell more powerful; I can now listen to the conversation of these men.
“It looks like Miss Weasley killed the poor man when he threatened to expose her… Then she ran away- that’s the most possible scenario from what I see here. Especially, if we combine it with the information we got this morning on her latest whereabouts…”
These words, coming from the most senior member of the group cause some whispers and nods. That’s when my Dad, very red and very angry emerges from the front door. “Why wasn’t I notified?”
“Auror Weasley, I must ask you to leave: this is my crime scene,” the man replies calmly.
“Don’t talk to me like that, Brighton! Don’t you dare…”
“Please, Ron,” Brighton tries again a lot nicer. “You know you can’t get involved in the case since it interests you personally…”
Dad seems to back off, but only a bit. “Just tell me… is she alright?”
“She appears to have fled; we’ve found traces that only portkeys can leave behind. I’ll send Malfoy to the Ministry to check it out.” Scorpius turns and nods at my father’s direction. He doesn’t pay much attention to him, confused as he is from what he’s just heard.
“What happened?”
One of the younger men takes over the task of letting my father know: “Auror Weasley, Sir… your daughter seems to be involved in the Gringotts artworks disappearances. Someone sent us a couple of photos this morning….” The man obviously hesitates, before adding: “And this…” he points out to the body in front of us. “This kinda says it all, right?”
I don’t see what my father does - I’d suppose he’d slap the man or yell at him, because the memory starts to fade away. As I watch the setting constantly change from Scorpius at the Ministry to Scorpius and me in the sea and later at the beach, I can think of only one thing; there’s a dead body in my living room. Scorpius is an Auror. And he’s investigating a murder he thinks I’ve committed.
A sudden change of setting makes me turn my attention back to Scorpius’ mind. He’s not at the beach with me anymore, he’s back at the Ministry, most probably in the Auror Department since he rushes into Brighton’s office. How has that happened?
“What did you find?”
“I followed Miss Weasley’s portkey to the Caribbean, Sir,” he reports. “It appears that something went wrong with it and it landed into the sea. She was exhausted when I found her, but I’ve managed to carry her to the shore safely.”
“Good. Where is she now?”
Scorpius falters a bit as he says: “In Antigua, Sir. I casted a lot of protection spells…” He what? He left me all alone in the middle of nowhere and went back to London? After I’d spend hours in the middle of the ocean?
I have to take a deep breath and control my anger. I wouldn’t want my spell to break now that I’m finally finding out the truth.
“Why would you do that, Malfoy?” Brighton yells. “What’s wrong with you? You should have brought her in… to St. Mungno’s and then here for interrogation!”
“I understand, Sir, but there’s something you need to know.”
“Then, say it, before I report you!”
“She has amnesia, Sir.”
“What?”
He nods. “She doesn’t remember anything - not even who she is…”
“You’re afraid it’s a memory spell?”
Scorpius only shrugs. “I thought I should ask your opinion before I did anything.”
“Yes, yes, you did well.”Brighton is pacing up and down his office, his tone now completely changed; he’s not angry anymore, he’s very deep in thought. “Do you think she could have done it to herself?”
Scorpius frowns. “I’m not an expert, Sir, but I don’t think that’s possible…”
The older man simply nods. “So that means there’s more in this case than I’ve originally thought… Perhaps there’s another side to Miss Weasley’s story, after all…”
“Shall I bring her back? Take her to St. Mungno’s?”
“No.” Scorpius seems surprised by that response. “If she’s innocent, I’ll never hear the end of it… Bringing her to London would inevitably cause the case to leak into the press sooner or later. And I don’t like to think of the mess this could create.” Brighton shakes his head, before decidedly walking to the door. “Walk with me,” he orders.
Scorpius does as he’s told and together they head into an office which’s door writes: “Harry Potter - Head of the Deaprtment.” Brighton walks in without knocking, making my father and uncle who sit inside, engaged in a quiet conversation, jump when they see him.
“I was waiting for you,” Uncle Harry says. “Ron tells me you have an ongoing investigation on his daughter…”
“Here are the facts,” Brighton begins curtly, obviously annoyed by Harry’s straight words, “this morning we’ve received visual evidence that Miss Weasley is involved with a man who uses the code name ‘Jonny’ and appears to be a part of the Gringotts missing artworks case. From the evidence we have so far he could as well be in charge, but I highly doubt that. In any case, Orson Montgomery, the man we’ve found dead in her apartment is the one who’s sent as the pictures. It’s very logical to assume…”
“You can’t make assumptions without evidence!” Dad interrupts him.
“But I do have evidence, don’t I? According to everyone I’ve talked to this fits Miss Weasley’s profile…”
“What?”
“He co-workers describe her as ‘too ambitious’ for someone so young; as a young woman who appeared ‘bored with her life and job.’ We all know that boredom can lead you to extraordinary lengths.”
“Still, though…”
“All I need are witnesses, people to testify for and against her. And of course, her side of the story. That’s why I’ve send Mr. Malfoy find out where she is…”
“And? Is she alright?”
“Not really; your daughter is in Antigua and appears to have lost her memory… We’re concerned that perhaps they’ve casted the memory charm on her. Maybe she simply has information and they’ve tried to frame her.”
“That’s what it must be!” Dad exclaims, his relief obvious in his expression.
“It’s a possibility.”
Uncle Harry, who was listening carefully all this time, appearing to think every detail of the case through, finally looks up at Brighton: “What are you suggesting?”
“I think she shouldn’t come to London yet. If she has indeed been framed then this means that someone’s after her, and as long as she doesn’t remember who that is she can’t help us catch him. It would be dangerous for her to be here- we won’t be able to protect her.”
“This is where the hospital is,” Harry objects. “Shouldn’t she see an expert?”
“We’ll send her someone to make sure her brain is intact… For all we know, she could have simply hit her head somewhere, or be in shock. In any case, it’s safer for her to stay away - in a witness protection program fashion. I’ll send Scorpius back to her, and I’ll continue the investigation.”
Uncle Harry thinks about it a bit longer, before nodding his agreement. Dad looks like he wants to disagree, but doesn’t. I stare at his familiar face for as long as I can, only now realizing how much I’ve missed him. The image changes soon, but I seem unable to focus on one particular thought. It seems that Scorpius is slowly waking up and his mind is trying to fight me. I try hard, but all I get is emotions and single words. Even they are helpful; I can now see his conflict (I’m lying to someone helpless), I can understand his guilt (Screw it- she’s just had a nightmare. I can respect that) and I can sense his doubt (you’ve always been a wonderful liar).
Then, a memory pops out and I can’t see because he’s fighting me off, but I can listen: “What shall I tell her?”
“You need to stay close to her at all times- don’t let her off your sight. She can’t escape if she’s guilty and she can’t be killed if she’s innocent.” Brighton thinks for a moment. “We need a very good excuse… Say you’re her boyfriend- even better husband. Yes, find a ring and say you’re her husband.”
I don’t hear them talk anymore and I’m ready to give up - I’ve already found more than I’ve expected to - when I hear Brighton say: “You’ve heard, son? Too young and too ambitious… You should be careful… that’s a dangerous combination…”
“Not enough to make her a killer, though…”
“You don’t know that yet.” The words repeat like a mantra into his head and I see flashes of a lot of our moments together here - a lot of the moments I’ve considered the good ones, like yesterday afternoon when I’ve finally thought we might have found common ground. You don’t know that yet. She might be a killer. You don’t know that yet. She might be a killer. You don’t…
And then there’s something else, something that I reach despite his struggle because apparently he’s thought about it a lot. It’s just 5 small words and it’s my father’s voice that pronounces them: “Bring her back safe, okay?”
It’s the last thing I’m able to hear before he finally manages to push me away. For a moment, I find myself holding the armchair tight to support myself, only to realize that I have to get over myself before Scorpius attacks me. I tighten my hold on his wand and turn at his direction, but he’s standing still at the bed, obviously trying to recover from my mind attack as well. When he sees me point the wand at him he tries to move, but it’s too late:
“Incarcerous.”
The ropes I’ve just conjured tie him tightly and give me time to catch my breath as he struggles against his bonds in vain. I look at him and notice the calculated look he’s throwing at me.
“Are you wondering if I’m a killer?” I throw at him, unable to hold my sarcasm.
He smirks. “When I’m tied up in bed, trying to catch my breath?” he wonders in that typical snarky voice of his. “No, not really.”
These words - this tone - trigger my anger. “You’re impossible, Malfoy! Only yesterday you stood there and lectured me on how I judged you wrongly, and now you’re back to your typical obnoxious self!” He ignores my comment with a shake of his head and continues to watch like he’s waiting for my next move. Moments ago I wasn’t entirely certain of what that move would be; I only knew that I had to hold onto his wand and stop him from taking. I hadn’t planned what I was going to do next.
No, however, I know I’m very aggravated with him. After everything that has happened and everything I‘ve seen anger is the only emotion I’m certain about. I have nothing else to offer- nothing without knowing I’ll regret it. I realize suddenly that Dr. Higgery must have been the expert Brighton sent. And he would have told Scorpius that I’m not under some spell. So that means that while he played nice to me he was planning to arrest me. And that frustrates me even more.
“You remembered?” he asks all of a sudden, just when I’m ready to start yelling at him.
“You didn’t think that ought to happen eventually? Or you believed you can lie to the poor girl for as long as you like?”
“Rose…” he tries to explain himself, but I’ve already fueled up.
“I thought I was crazy for quite some time, Scorpius! I thought that perhaps I was hallucinating… that everything that’s happened with Jonny was just my imagination and your story was the truth!” I exclaim, relieved that I can finally explain my frustration to him; that I can finally yell and blame him for how I’ve felt.
“Wait a second…” he says, “You mean you remembered? All long?”
I gulp. Why do I have to talk so much? Anyway, it doesn’t matter now. It makes no difference. “That’s what you think is the important things in all these? You lied to me, Scorpius and that…”
“You lied to me as well,” he interrupts me calmly.
“I had to! I had to protect myself! You lied, knowing that it could be bad for me!”
“I was trying to protect you too,” he says softly.
I snort. “Good job!”
“You’re still alive, aren’t you?” he asks and it’s the first he raises the tone of his voice during our conversation. He takes a deep breath and continues: “Look, I’ve promise your father I’ll bring you back safe, and I’ve promised your uncle I wouldn’t let this turn into a scandal and I’m going to succeed! I’d do anything for that.”
“It’s good to know that the Ministry has Aurors like you in its service. The wizarding community should feel safe with men like you who put their job above other human beings!” As I speak my voice gets louder, until I find myself screaming the last words at him.
He looks at me in a way that says I should be careful of what I say to him. “I’ve done many unprofessional things for you the past few days, Rose.”
I only shake my head, trying to push away the thought of him letting go of his job - making me remember - in favor of my well-being last night. Given that I’ve read his mind, I know deep down that he’s right.
“If you just tell me what’s happened, your side of things…” he suggests, “then, perhaps I can help you.”
I’m not sure if he’s telling me the truth now. I try to think of my situation. As long as the Aurors considered possible that I was under a memory spell, they were willing to help me. Now, however, after Dr. Higgery’s visit, they must know it wasn’t this type of memory loss; they must believe it to be just another case of amnesia. And the way I see it, Scorpius and Brighton won’t believe me very easily.
Trusting Scorpius would be a mistake. I can’t handle this alone, but I don’t feel like he’s the right person to support me through this. I have to contact my Dad; I know now he would believe me. And with Scorpius wand in my hands, I feel I can do everything.
So I shake my head. “No.”
“Rose…” he tries again.
I take one last look at him. “I only have two words to say to you: game over.”
He looks back at me sadly. “You don’t look like you’ve won.”
I almost smile. “Well, neither do you.”
He does smile. “Then game’s not over.”
He’s right - of course he is. I’m just not willing to play with him anymore. To show this, I take his ring of my finger and throw it at the bed next to him, before turning around and exiting the room.
*
The plan was to run as soon as I got out. I can’t, though, because the moment I close the door behind me I fall onto someone’s hard chest. I’m about to apologize when I see the man’s face and the satisfied smirk he wears. Jonny. I take a step backwards and stand frozen with my back flush against the door.
“Expelliarmus.”
Scorpius’ wand flies away from my hand and I curse myself for being so terrified that I didn’t think about using it earlier. In the meantime, Jonny moves even closer to me - so close that I can practically feel his hot breath against my face, and says: “For someone who claims to be so smart, you seem to be losing your wand a lot.”
“How did you find me?” I only manage to say, ignoring his irony and turning my face to the side so I won’t have to look at him.
“Same way the Auror Department did: portkeys leaves traces. It took me some time, but I’ve figured it out in the end.” His smirk grows wider. “I’m not going to let you get away with it this time,” he says with his wand tracing the curve of my throat and I whimper.
“Please, don’t.”
“I’ve heard that before. You should have made smarter life choices,” he mocks me, before raising the wand. I close my eyes and let the tears stream down my face freely as I wait for the inevitable end.
It doesn’t come. Instead, I feel the door give in behind me as it opens. I open my eyes and look at Jonny questioningly. It’s in that moment that I begin to hope again.
“Oh, I didn’t tell you?” Jonny continues to speak with his usual sarcasm. “I’m not going to kill you this time... I’ve decided that you’ll be more useful to me alive.”
His words make me frown and terrify me more than the idea of death does. “What do you mean?”
“You see, despite me killing Orson in your apartment, the Aurors aren’t completely certain if you’re in the network or a victim of it. We’re going to convince them.”
“Hh- how?” I falter.
“You’re going to kill Mr. Malfoy as well,” he tells me like it’s the most reasonable thing in the world.
“No,” I object firmly.
He simply rolls his eyes and tries to open the door completely so we’ll get into the room, but I don’t let him. I struggle and push and try to run, because I’m not going to go down without a fight this time. And I will most definitely not going to let Scorpius Malfoy die- not because of me.
Jonny’s stronger than me though. “Get in,” he hisses, after opening the door and pushing me inside. He’s too strong and I’ve struggling against him desperately so I find myself losing my balance and collapsing down at the floor.
“Don’t worry,” he tells me. “It’s not going to hurt. And you won’t remember a thing after it. You’ll just spend the rest of your days trying to understand what was it that made you a murderer.”
When he says that I understand what his plan is. He’s going to kill Scorpius and then alter my memory to have me take the blame for it- and who knows for what else. Cursing my fate and my stupidity once again, I try to get up and fight this, even though I know it will be in vain. Perhaps, I can reach the bed, find time and untie Scorpius, and then…
With one curt silent spell, Jonny pushes me back at the floor. I know I can’t get up and ran fast enough; Jonny’s spell will come too soon, so I just wait for it, but in never comes. Instead, I see the open door close and, before I understand how that has happened, Scorpius appears from behind it and hits Jonny at the back with some sort of small object I can’t really see. What I can see is the unmistakable red of blood and Jonny collapsing towards me. Panicked, I try to roll away from his body, only to have two strong arms catch me and pull me at my feet, dragging me away.
I look up and find myself face to face with Scorpius who seems very pleased with himself. He kicks Jonny’s wand away and puts the small object with which he hit him in his pocket. Now that I’ve had a better look at it, I realized it was the ring I threw at him minutes ago, only it has somehow turned sharp at the edges. I guess there was some secret word or button that did this, and I feel grateful that I threw it at him; it helped him get out of his bondage and saved both our lives.
Scorpius catches me still looking at him and smirks. He has every reason to do that; he’s just solved the case (almost), took down the bad guy and got the unwilling witness - me. He knows as well as I do that I’m not going anywhere now.
“And that,” he tells, “is what I like to call game over.”
*
THREE WEEKS LATER
In the end, I learn the hard way. Somewhere in between interrogations and courtrooms, I find the time to think calmly about everything that has happened. I want to believe that these events have made me grown into a mature, better person. I know now that everything will come on its time; in both my work and my life. I learn to appreciate myself the way I am and with the things I have.
Dr. Higgery helps a lot. Dad insisted that I continue seeing him and he was right. I go to his office once a week and we talk about my life and my ambitions. He believes I projected my self-value t my work. I roll my eyes, but promise myself that I will never do that (again). In any case, he’s proud of me and my progress; he says he’s never seen anyone recover so quickly from post-traumatic stress. I guess it helps that I have all these people who love, my family, to look after me.
After Jonny’s arrest, the Aurors brought in more members of the criminal network, using mine and his deposition. I hear that he gave in his accomplishes in hope of receiving special treatment in Wizengamont. I don’t know much about the wizarding law, but I doubt his wish will be granted; after all, he’s being accused of murder, among of many other things.
The one person I’d really like to see these days, but haven’t is Scorpius Malfoy. The few times we’ve met in the Auror Department, we were both very busy and had no time to talk to each other. To be honest, I don’t really know if he wants to talk or what I should tell him… The only thing I’m certain about is that I want to make a fresh start. I’m not confused anymore; we’ve both done a lot of things wrong both in Hogwarts and Antigua, but I know he’s not the boy he’s used to be and that he’s only tried to help him. I have made my mind; I want to get to know him better.
He comes to my apartment one afternoon out of the blue. As I look at him, standing at my doorstep, I notice that he looks as professional and stern as ever. “Rose,” he says, and even though his voice is cold, I feel relieved. The fact that he doesn’t say “Miss Weasley” makes me believe that things haven’t exactly returned to how they used to be before Antigua.
“Yes?”
“I have something you have to sigh.” He hands me over a folder. “Simple paperwork,” he explains. “The necessary legal procedure.”
“Sure, come in.” I walk into the apartment and sit at the couch, hoping he’d do the same. He follows me, but doesn’t sit down; instead he stands still next to me, waiting for his work here to be over. Fine.
I let out a sigh of annoyance as I open the folder; nothing irritates me more than people hanging over my head when I’m trying to work. I don’t know if he understands or if he’s just uncomfortable, but he starts walking up and down the apartment like he’s investigating it. Likethat isn’t annoying.
“You’re still staying here?” he asks, taking me by surprise.
“What do you mean?”
He’s in front of me now and I can see him shrug as he says: “Well, you know… because of Montgomery…”
Oh, that. “Yeah… I’ve changed the carpet.” I can see in his frown how cynical that must have sounded to him, so I decide to lighten the mood with a joke: “Dr. Higgery says I’m so brilliant that I’ve managed to turn my post-traumatic stress to knowledge. Learning the hard way and stuff.” He smiles. “Of course,” I continue, more serious now, “he still insists on me paying him a visit once a week, so I suppose he’s worried I might act like some psycho any moment now.”
He throws his had back and laughs in a ‘Rose-you-are-unbelievable’ way. When he turns his attention back to me, I quickly take my eyes of him and look at the document am I to sign. It surprises me to see that it refers to the Ministry’s ‘Witness Security Program’. That’s strange; no one told me anything about it and to be honest I can’t see the reason why I should do it. With Jonny having given the names of all his associates, there isn’t anyone coming after me. Or is there?
I throw Scorpius a questioning look, but all he does is continue to look at me with an expression that makes me think he’s studying me. Still confused, I read on and I finally understand. They don’t want to put me in a witness protection program now; they want my approval for what happened in Antigua; they want me to say I’ve agreed to that.
“So that’s how we’re calling it? A witness protection program?” I exclaim.
Scorpius doesn’t even flinch. “Actually, the right term - the official one - is Witness Security Program.”
And here he is; Scorpius Malfoy, the know-it-all. I decide to ignore him, rolling my eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“Just sign it!” he tells me, giving me the feeling that he’s tired of this. “You’re gonna save yourself - and me -much trouble.”
“I’m not going to sue you, Scorpius- if that’s what you’re afraid of,” I assure him, calmer than before.
“I know, Rose- and neither am I.” He sighs. “In any case, your uncle needs a legal document that proves that. To protect the department.”
I have to admit that Uncle Harry is right; there’s no need to make a fuss out of it. So I nod and I lean down to sign the document, before getting up and handing it back to him in its folder. He takes it with a small smile, looks at me for a while longer, before saying: “Right, then. I’ll see you in trial.”
I nod again and watch him turn around and head for the door, and I desperately search for something that might stop him. “Scorpius,” is all I come with, but it works, because his hand leaves the doorknob and he turns back to face me again. “Yes?”
His reply is followed by a moment of silence during which I open and close my mouth like a fish since I don’t really know how to begin. He does it for me:
“Rose, I wanted to say… I’m…”sorry. I stop him before he manages to finish that sentence.
“Don’t say that.”
“Why?” he seems surprised and a bit… hurt?
“Cause you’re not sorry and neither am I. We both did what we had to.”
He chuckles. “I know that. I wasn’t going to say I’m sorry.”
“You weren’t?”
“No,” he confirms. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
It’s harsh and it hurts more than it confuses me. It makes me look away, and wish that he’ll just go and leave me alone. If we were in Hogwarts words like these would make me answer back or not even bother, but after everything he’s told me in Antigua, I thought that he and I might… try again.
“I’m just glad you’re okay,” he says softer this time, but I still don’t look at him.
I hear the door open when I realize something: I’ve never thanked him for saving my life. I was in shock when it happened, very busy afterwards and unforgivably oblivious now.
“Scorpius!” I yell this time and I have to hold the door, because he was ready to close it. He looks at me confused and surprised, but before he can say something, I speak: “Thank you.”
He doesn’t seem to understand. “For what?”
“Saving my life,” I explain. “You saved my life and I completely ignored it. I’m sorry, I’m… so sorry.”
“No, Rose that was…”
I stop him again; because now I feel more courageous, ready to tell him everything I wanted to: “And you were right: I was very ignorant at school and now as well, and I’m sorry about that too. I’m glad you told me the things you did - I’ve been a fool and I know it, but I’m going to prove you wrong; I’m going to show I’ve changed.
A ghost of a smile plays at his lips, as he asks: “How are you going to do that?”
“Well…” Deep breath. “I was under the impression that we both like each other.” Now I sound like an arrogant fool, but no one knows how much I have to try to say this as calmly as I do.
He tilts his head to the side. “We do?”
It feels like he’s asking me if I like him, so I nod a bit too enthusiastically. I don’t have time to worry about that, because I have more to tell him. “Yes. So I was thinking that maybe… you could take me on a date?” That didn’t come out with as much certainty as I’d like it too, but I force myself to stand still and look at Scorpius in any way.
He’s grown serious now and I’m looking forward to see what this means. “That would be totally unprofessional.”
I pout to fight the urge to laugh. “I know.”
He smirks.
Please take a quick minute to rate this entry. The top three entries will receive an award. Please do not vote for your own submission
Poll Please rate this submission from 1-5