Scorpius Malfoy and the Unbreakable Vow (Scorose)

Chapter 21

The last thing Scorpius had wanted to do was leave Rose. Leaving Rose meant he wasn't there to protect her. Leaving Rose meant the next female he would talk to was Delphi.

He felt heavy as he walked down through the depths of the castle towards the Slytherin common room. It felt as though he were  trudging toward imminent doom. He checked the time on his pocket watch his dad had given him. He always carried it with him. It was fifteen past eleven. Forty-five minutes until his date with Delphi. And Albus. He thought of Albus and was immediately filled with more dread. He trusted Albus to the ends of the Earth and beyond - but when it came to Delphi, he knew the effect she had on him. 

Albus had confided in Scorpius that he found her to be one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen. He told Scorpius the things that most people would only keep buried in their own heads. 

Albus had told him, months after Delphi had been thrown in Azkaban, that he missed her. That sometimes he dreamt of her. Sometimes he wished they could be together.

It was harmless at that time. A fantasy. Unattainable. But now, with Delphi escaped, and communicating with them, Albus was the weak link of the two. He shivered at the thought of having to do anything to Albus to protect Rose. 

Scorpius didn't trust Delphi one bit. She was cunning, witty, beautiful and seductive. She knew how to get what she wanted, and she usually got it. She knew how to bend the minds of men without even having to use magic. Of course, she knew how to wield powerful magic - but she also knew that she didn't always have to. 

Scorpius tried to think of Delphi in the way Albus did. He could see the appeal. Her sultry looks, silver and blue hair, piercing eyes, the charm and seduction that radiated from her was a demon to be reckoned with. He had been jealous of Delphi giving more attention to Albus in the past, but that had quickly dissipated. He was too enamored with Rose to give too much thought to other women. Rose. What did Rose have to do with anything, and why did Delphi have to go and bring her into any of this?

His pace quickened as he realized twenty more minutes had passed. The Slytherin common room was by the dungeons in the castle  -  a far cry from the seventh floor corridor. He hoped Rose had made it safe to her common room by now.

He breathed deep as he burst through the door of the common room. Albus was sitting crouched by the fireplace, and hadn't even looked up at his arrival. Delphi's face was staring at him through the flames.

"Hello Scorpius," she said. "You're five minutes late."