Quid Pro Quo

Scor couldn’t decide whether to be thrilled or terrified. Lily Potter stood outside the gate to Malfoy manor, his home, still holding his father’s arm. Draco led Lily up to the wrought iron gates, held up his arm, and passed through with her. Scor followed close behind. He wished his father would take care of the trunk and let Lily hold his arm.

They made their way down the straight drive to the stately house in the distance. Scor wondered what she would think of it. The Potter’s house was sunshine compared to the dismal dwelling which was Malfoy manor. Every aspect of the place from the cellar to the dome was meant to exclude wealth. The result was more of a museum than a manor.

The front door opened of its own accord reveling Lucius Malfoy waiting in the hallway surrounded by portraits of blond-haired Malfoy ancestors.

“Father.” Draco came to a stop and Lily moved closer to him.

“So this is Ms. Potter, is it?”

“Lily, this is my father, Lucius Malfoy. Father, Lily Potter.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Lily spoke with more steadiness in her voice than Scor had expected.

“The pleasure is all mine, I’m sure.” Lucius’s smooth voice made Scor long to drop the trunk and draw Lily into his arms hiding her from view. “It will be lovely getting to know you better, Ms. Potter.”

Scor couldn’t take any more. He dropped his wand letting the trunk thump to the floor and took a step forward, but his father’s voice stopped him.

“Scorpius, why don’t you show Lily to her room. I’ll send Milly to fetch you for tea.” Scor put his arm around Lily’s waist and guided her down the hall and up the large staircase.

“What about my trunk?” Lily said after a moment.

“Milly will bring it.”

They moved down the wide hallway past closed doors on either side. Scor stopped in front of the next to last on the left.

“This is my room. Fancy a look?”

“Alright then.”

He opened the door and watched her face intently. Her eyes lit up at the Tornado’s posters covering the walls.

“I brought you one from this year’s game. It’s in my trunk.”

“Thanks.”

She walked across the expansive floor stopping briefly to touch a finger to his two-way mirror lying on the bedside table and to laugh at the photo of herself and her brothers fighting to get to the forefront of the picture. She moved to the large window and pushed aside the curtains looking down into the gardens below.

“Beautiful view,” she said still looking out the window.

“Yeah,” he said looking at her.

“It’s a great room, Scor.”

“It’s big anyway. Come on, I’ll show you yours.”

They walked back out the door and he led her to the last door on the left. Scor had pleaded with his father for three days to let Lily have the room next to his. After much hemming and hawing and several talks of “being a gentleman” he had finally agreed. He pushed the door open and held his breath.

Several vases were scattered around the room with different varieties of lilies in them. He had insisted that Milly remove the thick green curtains over the large windows and replaced them with sheer lavender ones that allowed the light to permeate the room. The comforter and chair covers matched the curtains, making this room the most cheerful in the whole place. Lily smiled widely and threw her arms around him causing his heart to race crazily before she ran over to the bed and flung herself on it sighing.

“So soft.” The tone in her voice caused heat to shoot through his veins.

“Glad you like it,” he croaked. He had to get out of here, and fast! “Um…why don’t I show you the grounds?”

“Alright.”

Scor gave her a tour of the rose gardens and the hot houses laughing when she had to smell every variety. He led her to the lake and was not surprised when she insisted on feeding the graceful black swans drifting along on the surface of the still water. At one point, he felt as though they were being watched. He looked back to the manor to see Lucius gazing at them from an upstairs window.

At tea Lily met Scor’s mother. Scor was just thankful that his mum didn’t make any remarks about Lily’s hair. She did keep her nose in the air the entire time she spoke to Lily which thankfully didn’t seem to notice. Lucius’s eyes remained fixed on Lily through the day and Scor resolved to sleep in the hall outside her bedroom if he had to.

Scor lay on his bed that night wishing the week would last forever. Lily’s happiness was contagious. It almost made Malfoy manor bearable. He waited until his watch told him it was past midnight before getting up and tiptoeing to her door. He pushed the door open a crack and saw her red hair splayed over the pillow. His throat constricted and it was several seconds before he took out his wand, pointed it at the sleeping girl, and muttered several protective spells.

“G’night love,” he whispered before tiptoeing back to his own room and climbing into bed.


Scor made sure to spend every waking moment with Lily for the next two days. He even went so far as waiting outside the bathroom for her. One can never be too careful after all. On Thursday, he decided to take her to the creek. He held two brooms and waited outside her door. Finally, the door opened and she stepped out. She wore jeans and a T-shirt and he noticed she hadn’t put her pendant on this morning. She smiled up at him and held out a hand for one of the brooms.

“Milly’s packing us a picnic lunch. I thought we could eat by the creek.”

“That sounds lovely.” They passed a door on the way to the kitchens and Lily shivered.

“Cold?” he asked though it felt perfectly comfortable to him.

“No…must have just been a chill.”

They gathered the picnic basket from the smiling elf and headed to the door to the gardens. On the way, they passed Draco’s study and Lily stuck her head in to find his father sitting at his desk.

“Where are the two of you off to today?”

“Picnic at the creek,” Lily smiled, “would you like to come, Mr. Malfoy?” Scor thought his father might choke.

“Uh…no, you two go ahead. I…uh…have some work to do here.”

“Okay. See you tonight, Mr. Malfoy.”

“Yes.” Draco shook his head and smiled when she turned around.

They flew over the tops of the trees enjoying the breeze. The creek was a short distance away from the manor house, but still within the grounds. Scor enjoyed watching the wind whip Lily’s hair around as she sped through the air. They touched down in a clearing near the creek. The water gurgled happily over the smooth stones. Braches of the tall Elm and Oak trees stretched over the creek shielding it from the sun. The breeze rustled the leaves of the trees and the smell of green things and fresh air crowded out the stuffy atmosphere in their lungs.

Scor spread a blanket underneath an elm and sat down on it to pull of his trainers and socks. Lily sat down next to him mimicking his movements. She rolled her jeans up to her knees and waded out into the water to join him.

“It’s so nice and cool,” she said smiling.

“This is my favorite place.”

“I can understand why.” She bent down and trailed her fingers through the water. Maybe I should tell her now. Can’t get much more romantic than this. Water hit his face and he watched her laugh hysterically.

“Of course you realize, this means war,” he said bending down to the water.

“Bring it on,” she smiled wickedly. At once, they both started splashing each other like five-year-olds. They laughed and spluttered as the water flew around the like a fountain until they both stood facing each other dripping wet and gasping for breath.

“Well…I don’t know about you, but that’s worked up my appetite,” Lily said after a few awkward moments had passed. Idiot! Why didn’t you say something? They both waded back to the shore and Scor cast drying spells on them for the sake of his sanity.

“Scor?” He looked over at her leaning back on her arms as he unpacked the sandwiches. A hunger rose up in him that had nothing to do with his stomach. “Is your father happy?” He tried to reign in his feelings enough to consider the question. Scor had never really considered whether his father was happy or not.

“I don’t know. He keeps to himself most of the time, but I guess he’s pretty happy.”

“Does he love your mum?” This question caught him off guard.

“I guess.”

“I’ve just never seen them even look at each other since I’ve been here.”

“Well, Mum’s pretty…she’s busy with…” What does she do? He thought about the times his parents had been together and he couldn’t remember them ever touching.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.” He smiled at her. She had opened the door to a new idea, and the nagging doubt wouldn’t leave him alone. That night as soon as he had cast the protective charms around Lily, he went in search of his father. He was sitting in his office staring out the window.

“Dad?” Draco turned and raised his eyebrow.

“You haven’t called me that since you were three.” Scor slipped into the room and shut the door, not wanting to be interrupted by Lucius again. “What’s on your mind, son?”

“Do you love Mum?” He blurted out before berating himself for being so direct. Draco looked down at the smooth finish on his desk.

“She’s a dutiful wife.”

“But do you love her?” He wanted to add, “like I love Lily,” but he stopped himself. Draco started playing with a quill on his desk.

“Love is a strange thing, Scorpius.” He seemed unable to continue, but Scor didn’t have any problem filling in the blanks.

“Is that why you never had any more kids?” Scor had always wished for a brother or sister.

“Pansy…your mother…she didn’t want more children. She claimed it would ruin her figure. She said she had given me an heir and that was all I needed.” For the first time, Scor noticed the hollowness behind his father’s eyes. Draco smiled a smile that did not reach his eyes.

“You will just have to make it up to me by having a troupe of children yourself,” Scor blushed thinking of who he wanted as the mother of said children. “and if my guess is correct, you won’t be facing the same problem as I.” This time Draco’s grin was genuine.

Scor tiptoed back to his room thinking of the jewelry box hidden under his bed. Being with Lily was his greatest desire, but now he wondered whether he should ask her or not. All the Malfoy notions of duty and tradition had kept his parents from finding love. Would the same thing happen if he married Lily? He didn’t want their relationship to become a duty to her. As he opened the door to his room, he thought he heard the swishing of fabric. He turned to check the hall, but did not see anything. He tiptoed to her door and peered in at Lily. He could barely make out the rise and fall of her chest as she slept. Yes, he would ask her. If she loves me even half as much as I love her, nothing can stand in our way. Yes, tomorrow he would ask Lily to be his.