lace and leather (Scorpius)

[Deleted]

May 19th

Andy had a lot of things she could do on her break from work. She could swing by her and Vik's apartment and grab some lunch or see what he was up to. She could swing by the leaky cauldron and see if any of her family was there or perhaps Phil, her... boyfriend? She could stop by the apothecary and visit with Jamie. She could stay at the ministry and talk to her co-workers... she wasn't the best at small talk.

Usually she opted for leaving the ministry during her lunch breaks, maybe just to get some fresh air, and maybe just to remind herself that she wasn't all work. Today however, she decided to settle for a snack in the entrance hall, near the beautiful fountain, and the hustle and bustle of people coming to and from the ministry on all of their official business.

She knew a lot of people worked there, and she know a lot of the people who worked there. People from school, people from her past, and new friends. She wondered how Heleen was doing, how she had taken the news of her ex-boyfriend's death. Andy hoped she took the news with a little positivity, considering Andy had taken care of him on her behalf.

Really though, Andy kept her head down for the most part with her thoughts to herself. But, as she sat on a bench, she noticed a pair of shoes walking in the crowd. She tilted her head at them and then her eyes followed up the leg to the torso and finally onto the familiar, familiar face. Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy. She tried to remember the last time she had an actual conversation with Scorpius. Sure they had grown up in similar circles, but she had always thought him lucky in the sense that his family was well, not as obviously evil. Yes, now looking back she could very easily say that her parents were evil people. Her sister might find that harsh on some days, but on other days she would agree. Her brother would agree proudly, or possibly with disdain as well, Andy could never tell with him. But as far as the malfoys went, Andy had always had a little bit of respect for Draco and Astoria. If nothing else, they seemed like incredibly loving parents. Something that Andy could not begin to understand at the time.

Before she knew it, she was on her feet stuffing her snack into her bag and walking towards him. Her subconscious questioned why she was approaching someone she barely ever spoke to, let alone someone she didn't even know what to say to. "Scorpius," she finally called out when she was close enough to be within earshot without having to shout over the crowd. "Hi, hey," she greeted awkwardly. She knew he worked in the magical law enforcement office as well, she remembered seeing his name somewhere other around the office, but she couldn't for the life of her remember which department. Not that she was great at remembering stuff like that even if she tried and she really did, try that is. "Small world," she noted, offering a smile but friendship even if it was laced an uncomfortable thread.

scorpius hyperion malfoy

[scorpius hyperion malfoy]

May 19, 2026

Work had been stressful since Elaine Dupree had destroyed Hogwarts a few days prior, for understandable reasons. A lot of people who worked at the Ministry had relatives who were Hogwarts students, and there were plenty who had taken time off in the aftermath to address the tragedy. Between that and the number of memos he'd seen flying back and forth from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Scorpius had never been more thankful to have switched departments and to be working in the Magical Artefacts Development and Testing Office after he had originally started as a Law Enforcement intern. What the Muggles called "cyber attacks" were a long way off in the magical world, fortunately; most of what they had to approve and improve upon was groundbreaking for the magical world but relatively inconsequential compared to what the Muggles could do.

"Scorpius."

Scorpius turned at the sound of his voice as he was walking in the Ministry's Atrium after having gotten himself some lunch. He saw that it was Andromeda "Andy" Lestrange—or Longbottom, more recently. She was another child of the pure-blood crowd around which he'd grown up—and another who seemed to have done what she could to avoid being associated with her family's history. "Hi, hey," she said, coming closer to him. "Small world."

"Hey, Andy," Scorpius greeted her, smiling a little bit back at her. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

@lestrange