the weight of living ⁂ scorpius malfoy

eighteen ⁂ the tournament

January 17, 2022

The announcement of the Winter Ball had only been up for 16 hours; nerves, panic, and excitement had already spread throughout the student body like a disease. Scarlett was feeling these effects immensely. Gus had already asked her if she was actually going to go (Scarlett skipped out on last year's, claiming she was sick), and even Lilly Roiser asked her in Dark Arts.

"Are you excited for the winter ball?" Lilly turned to her. Scarlett was taken aback by her sudden interest of conversation and Lilly's small lisp, something she'd never noticed.

"Not particularly." She answered quickly, jotting down more notes.

Scarlett saw Lilly frown from the corner of her eyes. "Oh. Can I ask why?"

"It's not fun for me. In third year, four girls cried! Plus, I don't have 'formal attire'." Scarlett said the last two words in a British accent, making Lilly stifle a laugh.

"I know you don't know me that well, but I like you. You are welcome to my closet." Lilly smiled profoundly.

"Oh, um, thank you—" Scarlett started, but was cut off by Professor Potter.

"Miss Crane, Miss Roiser." He said their names as a warning, and the two girls immediately stopped talking.

⁂ ⁂ ⁂

January 26, 2022

Scarlett's quidditch team didn't have another match for at least a month, so James arranged a scrimmage for all of the quidditch players, of every house. She got into her attire and ran onto the field, where at least 20 kids stood. Each team had about 7-8 players, but not everyone could attend. The field was an assortment of blues, golds, reds, and greens. Scarlett instantly spotted Scorpius, who was talking to Lucas. She also noticed Aimee and Will had not shown up. Light chatter rose from the crowd as they talked among themselves. James stood in front of the crowd next to his brother, sister, and one of his cousins. Scarlett recognized her as Rose, the girl who recently Scarlett noticed to be with Scorpius regularly. Laughing, chatting.

"Thank you, everyone who came!" James spoke loudly, and everyone's chatter died down quickly. "I know, I know. You guys are concerned there's not enough people for your team, blah, blah. Well, I like to do things a little differently."

A uneasy murmur came through the crowd. James chuckled. "This is no ordinary scrimmage. We are mixing up the teams. For fun!"

More sounds of varying emotions came from the crowd before Rose jumped in. "We have a month until the next quidditch match! I know none of you want to keep up with your boring practices every week—" a few grumbles came from captains, "so let's actually play some fun quidditch; not drills or strict refs!"

The crowd cheered, and Scarlett couldn't help but smile in agreement. This sounded very appealing. James then explained the rules further. "The four of us will be captains, since we came up with the idea. Everyone will get into a group based on age and position. Then we will pick in turns, fairly, of course. Then your captain or team members will help everyone change the color of your uniform. I will be black, Albus will be orange, Rose will be purple, and Lily will be white. Not the house colors. Here, we will be Hogwarts. We will then have a small tournament, and the winners get solely bragging rights. if you have any questions, come to me. In the mean time, please sort yourselves quickly."

Scarlett clutched her broom as she got into a group of fifth year chasers, which consisted of her, Scorpius, and a girl from Ravenclaw. After the choosing, Scarlett of course had to end up with Scorpius on Lily's team. She stood next to him awkwardly, trying her hardest not to think of the memories they share.