Dance Lessons - Scorose

Peas and Carrots

There was a knock at the door and Hermione opened it to find Scorpius Malfoy. She smiled. She had always known it would be him to win her daughter's heart. "Scorpius, what a lovely surprise! If you're looking for Rose, she's in the woods somewhere. And tell her dinner will be ready soon, her dad's cooking. You're welcome to stay, of course."

"Thanks Mrs Weasley" he replied and he ventured into the woods in search of Rose. He knew where to go. There was this big old tree a little way in which was perfect for climbing. They always used to climb it as kids. Sure enough, despite the setting sun, he could see the flaming red curls of Rose Weasley high up in the tree.

"Your mum said you'd be out here." he called up to her. She was so shocked to hear his voice that her book fell from the branch and almost her with it. Scorpius picked up and dusted off the book.

"What are you doing here? The ball is tomorrow, why aren't you at school?" she asked.

"How could I be when my dance partner is here? Besides, the Yule Ball is overrated," he paused briefly, "I wrote to you."

"I know." Rose replied. She had still not moved from the branch she was sitting on. "I'm sorry, Scorp. I was way out of line and I completely overreacted. I can't believe you don't hate me."

Scorpius smiled. "I could never hate you, Rosie. Here, I thought you might be cold." He put his hand into his pocket and pulled out the jumper she had thrown at him just a few days previously and threw it up to her. She caught it and laughed. "So, you coming down?"

Rose nodded and started her descent down the trunk. Due to the recent rainfall, it was slippery and Rose's foot slipped off of the branch and she fell to the ground with a loud thud. Scorpius rushed over to her, brushed the hair out of her face and helped her sit upright. Rose cursed under her breath and winced in pain, she was pretty sure her ankle was broken. She looked into Scorpius' eyes. They were full of concern.

"Right, come on. Inside." he said and pulled her up off of the ground and supported her as she hobbled back to the house.

"Mrs Weasley, help." he called out as he entered the back door to the living room.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake Rose! You've been climbing that tree again haven't you? I've told you a thousand times - you aren't seven anymore." she sighed as she filled a glass with a potion to mend broken bones. She remembered Madame Pomfrey once saying that bones could be mended in a heartbeat. She handed it to her daughter. Rose gulped it down in one and winced as she felt a severe burning sensation in her ankle. It soon subsided and felt as good as new.

"Dinner's ready!" Ron called from the kitchen.

"Take it easy, okay? I'll just lay the table and then we'll eat." Hermione told her daughter.

"Merlin, Rose. You scared me half to death... Sorry it's not a plaster cast." Scorpius said as he sat down on the sofa next to Rose and pulled her into a hug. She laughed and could hear his heart hammering in his chest and closed her eyes because she felt, well, safe.

They ate the meal that her dad had made and they all talked about preparations for Christmas until finally they cleared the table and Rose and Scorpius headed up into Rose's rather small bedroom. Scorpius sat himself down on her desk chair and his eyes were drawn to the only still photographs in the whole room. The ones of Charlie. He racked his brain but he didn't recognise the guy; they had obviously never met. He glanced down at the fourth and final picture and his heart sank. Whoever this guy was, Scorpius hated his guts.

"Who's this?" he asked, pointing to the photos and hoping he sounded nonchalant.

"Oh um, a friend. Charlie, I met him the other day." she replied.

"Cool," he lowered his voice to a whisper, "clearly a very good friend."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing, it's just I didn't take you as the type for locking lips with a stranger." he snapped.

Rose rolled her eyes. "It was for the sake of a photo, Scorp! It was one time. Why are you so jealous?"

"Because I love you, Rose!" he blurted out in the moment. He immediately turned slightly pink. Rose was a little shocked. She had no idea that Scorpius was in love with her. She looked over at him. He was fiddling with his jumper sleeve. He cleared his throat.

"Right, well, um I-I need to get home." he stammered and he got up and left without looking her in the eye.

He started off down the road. The day had now turned to night and lamp posts and extravagant Christmas lights from neighbours provided all of the light there was. All of a sudden, he felt something grab his wrist and pull him to face the other way. Rose took a deep breath and kissed him. One hand remained on his wrist, the other was rooted his dirty blonde hair. Scorpius reached up with his available hand and cupped her cheek. Her lips are soft, he thought, and they eagerly engaged his. When they eventually broke apart, they both laughed nervously but still held each other close.

"I had better get back inside." she whispered breathily. Scorpius didnt want to let her go. As Rose started to leave, he refused to let go of her hand and pulled her into another kiss. She moaned lightly as their lips met again and she felt she not only wanted him but needed him. Their kiss became more passionate. She pulled away, though their lips were centimetres apart.

"I have to go." she said and she gave him one last quick kiss before running back to her house.

* * *

The next morning, Rose sat in the living room fiddling with the tooth on her bracelet when there was a knock at the door. Both of her parents had gone out to Diagon Alley for last minute Christmas shopping and probably had forgotten their keys. Typical. She sighed, got up and opened the front door. To her surprise, Scorpius was standing there was a goofy, boyish grin on his face as though he had just been caught for causing mischief.

"Scorp! What are you doing here?" she asked as she ushered him in out of the cold.

"No, I can't come in. Get your coat - no time to waste!"

She slipped her shoes on and put on her coat, scarf and hat (it really was freezing). She put her camera and purse in her bag, slipped it over her shoulder and locked the front door behind her. Scorpius took her hand in his and entwined their fingers.

"Where are we going?" she questioned. Scorpius just smiled and told her it was a secret. They headed for the town's train station and got on a train to London.

"Give me your hand." Scorpius said once they had sat down across from each other. She held out her hand and Scorpius bandaged it. Rose looked confused.

"It's not a plaster cast and this journey might not be that long but that's two things off of your muggle list, right?"

Rose smiled affectionately. She pulled her camera out of her bag and took a picture of him. "And now a third. Taking still photos with an old camera, even though I've already done this one." she said apologetically.

Once they had reached London, Scorpius took Rose first to a sports shop and then Hyde Park where he insisted they had a kick about. "So I couldn't get any football tickets on such short notice, this'll have to do." he explained. Rose felt her heart warm, she couldn't believe he remembered all of this, she had said it in passing. They sat down on a bench for lunch and Scorpius pulled out a tupperware container with cold stir fry in.

"It has been cooked, unaided and from scratch." he assured her. She smiled. After wandering around for a while and buying various stocking fillers from the quickly emptying shop shelves, Scorpius took Rose to her favourite place in the city, Trafalgar Square. They sat on the edge of one of the fountains and Scorpius reached into a bag from a shop they had been into and gave her a box. She opened it to find a Rubik's Cube. "Let me guess, impossible DIY?" Scorpius nodded.

"Tick. I know for a fact that you can bewitch these to solve themselves. This way, you'll be doing it yourself and I don't know about you but I find these bloody impossible."

She kissed him lightly. "Thank you. This is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me."

"You're very welcome." he replied and he took her hand in his.

It was as though nothing had changed between the two. As Forest Gump might say, they were like peas and carrots again.