Scorpius -- Egypt is amazing and beautiful. I miss you a lot and I wish you were here with me. I think you'll love the gift I got you. Stop making that face you know you're expecting a gift. I'll see you in a few weeks. I love you. -- Lily. She sent off the text to him and watched the text bubble zip away and travel through the air over to Scorpius's cell phone. After everything that happened during the year between them, she knew that this break was for the best. They had to figure out how to be without each other, and most importantly, Lily had to figure out if her relationship with him was worth saving.

Her friends hated him. He walked away from her in the hospital when she needed him the most. He crawled into her bed at home and held her close. He promised her that he was sorry and that he would never hurt her again. He was civil with her friends, even laughing and joking with them. As much as she hated it, a part of her was sure that it took him seeing her nearly dead to realize that he couldn't maintain that hands off approach to their relationship. She just had to figure out if she was willing to give him that second chance.

Lily placed her phone into the side table, opening it again when she heard a buzz from it. It was too early for Scorpius to be texting her back. She unlocked the screen and saw it was from Hugo about some sort of festival down the road from their hotel. She tucked her phone back into her side table, got dressed in a white flowing dress to keep cool. She slid some sandals on her feet and left. Ella was already out by the pool, so she would get the text from Hugo whenever she checked her phone.

The young redhead walked down the streets of Cairo, bobbing and weaving through tourists to get to where all of the music was coming from. She could hear everything around her, it was beautiful and intoxicating. She could smell all of the amazing food and she could see all of the art work on display. More than that, she could see the familiar head of curls.

It was insane to think that this time the year before, Lily wasn't speaking with Bobby because he kissed her when they were high. More than that, he had fought Scorpius and used a cheap shot to win. Lily had been so angry with both of them, but she clearly had to help the one who was hurt. Bobby ran off after that, swearing that he had feelings for Lily that couldn't go away when he was around her.

Then Bobby and Hugo just fell together in a perfect way that made Lily and Ella cheer for joy. The two boys were perfect for each other and she was happy that they were able to see it. Lily wrapped her arm around her cousin's shoulder and smiled at him,
"This place is amazing!" Their blondes would catch up eventually.
"What do you want to explore first?"

This whole trip was a breath of fresh air. It was exactly what she needed if she was going to return to England with her head on straight. Everything that happened at the end of the year, it nearly destroyed her. Every time she took another drink that weekend, she would quiet the demons a little bit more. Whenever the bottle was empty, they would scream even louder. They would remind her that everyone was leaving. All of the people who claimed to love her, all of the people who managed to convince her that they would always be there for her, they were all pulling away.

At least now she had Bobby back, he was happy and no longer in love with her. She had Hugo, who had always been there but so quiet about his contribution to her sanity. She seemed to just take advantage of his presence and never realized how much she needed her cousin around. As horrible as it was, finding out that Caine and Ella broke up made her feel a little better. She had her best friend back from that brooding piece of shit and she couldn't be happier.

Ella deserved someone better than Caine. Someone who would love her forever, who would never take advantage of her love the way that butt did, who actually knew how to be more than a spoiled rich boy.
"Of course I did! This looks amazing." She lifted her arm from her cousin's shoulder and realized that she missed a spot with her sunscreen.
"Damn it." She carefully rubbed it in, hoping that she wouldn't get any sunburn from the time outside.

"I have no idea how Uncle Bill lived here for as long as he did." Sure it was beautiful, but she wasn't enjoying the sunshine and the heat. She was much more of a snow bunny than a beach bum.
"I think so, she was by the pool as I was leaving, I think she's enjoying the sunshine." She wished that she wasn't so fair skinned, but she secretly enjoyed it. She loved being fair skinned with the Weasley red hair because it showed that she belonged with them. She might not behave like her family members, but it was nice to have some sign that she was really part of them.

Lily looked around at the different stands and saw something that she couldn't name, but looked delicious.
"You feel like being adventurous?" She asked with a smirk on her face. Lily knew that she had gained a little bit of weight since leaving Hogwarts. She was filling out in her hips and chest more than anything and hoped that it was as appealing as Ella told her it was. She wasn't much of a twig anymore and secretly worried that Scorpius would have something to say about it when she got back together with him.

Shaking those thoughts from her head, Lily linked arms with her cousin and walked over to the stand.
"Two of that please."

This year had been insane. From her own problems to watching her best friend and her cousin find each other as more than good friends. To the insanity of Ella and Caine. How he claimed to love her until death. When he claimed to want her forever and always, but ran away like a bitch. Lily almost wanted to hunt down the long haired idiot and give him a piece of her mind and a swift kick in the ass. That was what best friends did. She might have only known Ella for about two years, but that was long enough to know that she would die for the girl if she had to, and kill for her. No wonder she was a hatstall between Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Time away from the real world seemed to be just what the group needed. Time for Bobby and Hugo to work on being open about their sexuality, because who really knew them in Egypt. Time for Lily to get used to not seeing Scorpius's face every day and figure out if they were strong enough apart to cope with him going to Aridorn. For Ella to heal her heart after Caine stomped on it. Lily wanted to get the boys together to plan out stomping on his face if the time came, but that was a conversation for another day. Now she just wanted to know what that amazing smell was.

"I'm really glad you decided to come with us, Huey." She grinned at her best friend and cousin. He had always been there and she felt a little silly for not turning to him sooner.
"Even if we are going to have to get tested for skin cancer after being here." She teased, knowing that there was a lining of truth to it. No Weasley should be this close to the sun. Ever.

She laughed a little harder than she should have when he mentioned the heat in Egypt, since she was sure that the rest of London would kill to be where they were. Instead of scampering for shelter during on of England's infamous flash flood rain storms, they were searching for some sort of shade. Gingers didn't do well in the sun and they both knew it.

"Of course we also decided to travel with two blondes who can soak in all of the sun that they wanted." Both Ella and Bobby looked wonderful with their blonde hair and tanned skin. Lily just looked like a giant patch of red. Not a cute look to return to London with. Even if the puberty faerie seemed to have found her in Egypt.

The mixture of the amazing food in Egypt, the medication she was on, and all of the weed she was ingesting with Ella made her gain a little bit of a figure. No longer was she the out and proud 'Flat Bottom Girl' or 'Baby Got No Back', which would have to change her favorite song list, but she was enjoying it. Sure she was anticipating some of the bunheads at the ballet to turn up their purchased noses at her newly formed hips and bust, but that would just be their loss.

She took a bite of the food with those bulimic bunheads in mind and made a similar sound to her cousin,
"I have no idea what this is, but damn it's good."

Lily laughed at her cousin when he insisted that he was shocked, he voiced her own amusement. Sometimes it was like they shared a brain with each other. It was probably why she liked hanging around Hugo so much. He made her laugh and he made her question why they were never made siblings. Sure she loved her brothers, but they seemed so much happier with their lives that didn't involve Lily.
"I'm sure the rest of the family has bets on how burned we're going to come back."

She looked down at her own growing body and worried about what it was going to be like when she went back to England. If Scorpius would take one look at her, glare at the curves and the bust that decided to show up and make almost all of her clothes fit awkwardly, and decide that she had too much for his preference and drop her for some flat chested Slytherin.

She knew that they would have to talk when she got back, before he left for New Zealand just to make sure that they had a relationship with each other that was worth saving. That they wouldn't be happier with someone else in the world and Lily hoped with everything in her body that it wasn't the latter. She wanted to be with him and she wanted to know that there was always a place for her in his arms.

Biting into the chared and soft pita bread with the random cuts of meat and the delicious white sauce whateveritwas, she loved it. Lily would have loved to be able to come here when she was a kid, like her cousins the Delacour-Weasleys. Her Uncle Bill used to work in Egypt so he would take her cousins all over to help them experience the world that he loved.

Lily walked along with Hugo, smiling at the hand carved figurines and knew that she wante to send something back to her family.

She smiled when he presented her with the red fox. It was brilliant.
"The best fox in the world." She wasn't sure if her parents figured out that she had learned how to be an animagi yet, or even how they would react when they did find out. It wasn't like they both had perfect records of behavior while at school so she really wasn't sure what they could say on the matter. She looked at the vendor and smiled,
"How much?" He told her the number, which seemed reasonable since it was the only fox on the table and seemed to be homemade. She handed over the money and slipped the figure into her purse, enjoying the delicate weight that it added.

"Thinking of bringing back anything to your parents?" Besides a boyfriend?

Lily knew that everyone in the world expected Hugo and Rose to be partners in crime, for Lily to be a doting little sister to the Potter boys, but it just wasn't the case. Sure they loved their older siblings, no one would question that, but they just never seemed to have much in common. Rose usually seemed to be in her own little world. One where she had a new interest lined up and one where the drama revolved around herself. The Potter boys were no different. Instead of having an interest lined up for them, it usually seemed like a new bedmate was fighting the old one for it. Lily would never understand why anyone would try so hard to be part of the Potter family.

"You going to try to find something for Rosie or any of the other cousins?" Sometimes it was easy to think of herself and Hugo as brother and sister, then Rose, Albus and James as their cousins. From how much time they spent together, Hugo and Lily could easily pass off as twins in most every case.
"You know you would just have to pick up something muggle made for your mom and she would probably cherish it forever."

Aunt Hermione and their Grandfather Arthur were both nuts when it came to muggle made things. Hermione because she was a muggle born and Lily was sure that she wanted to feel that connection back to her parents, and Arthur because of a pureblood upbringing where most muggle objects are seen as silly or unneeded.

"You meeting Bobby's parents as the official boyfriend has to go well, they already love you." She shifted between if she wanted to tell Hugo or not about how she met the Malfoys. Mostly because she had a feeling that her beloved cousin did not want to hear a story involving what it did, but hey. She could laugh about it now.
"As long as they don't catch you two having sex on their bed, you're golden." Lily smiled when he asked about Scorpius.

She knew that there were some problems in the beginning. She was dating someone older than her, with an ancient blood feud with her family, and a little bit of an asshole, but she didn't care. They made it through all of the troubles in the world that they had to and were in a stronger bond because of it.
"I think the fox will go to him. Something to put up in his Aridorn dorm."

She looked at some of the other items, hoping that something else would catch her eye in the same way. There was a set of two otters floating together down an invisable river, she remembered when she was a child and her Aunt Hermione would show her what a patronus was. A slick and beautiful otter would burst from the tip of her wand and dance around the giggling and squeeing little girl. From then on, whenever she saw an otter, she would think of Hermione.
"What about this, for your mom and dad?"

Lily laughed when he seemed a little uncomfortable by her question about the gifts. She honestly wasn't close with much of the extended family. She had Molly and Hugo. Molly had moved to America to be with Bobby's older brother, and Lily was happy for her. Upset that she would have to take the floo to see her favorite older cousin, but it was worth it. Lily wanted to see what a functional relationship looked like. She wanted to be sure that she knew without a doubt that true love could last over everything.
"Might pick up something for Molly. Help decorate her new place." She knew that she was possibly tossing a bucket full of napalm on the family dynamics, but she really couldn't care too much.

She could remember one of the first times that Astoria caught her in the house. She had been scampering around as a fox, hoping that she would be able to surprise Scorpius with the red and furry form. Instead she ran into his mother. The two enjoyed tea together and discussed the women who lunch. It was a wonderful afternoon and she could just hope that the amusement of her son dating an illegal animagi could overshadow the memory of Astoria catching them in bed the way that she did.

"Because someone has to have the faith in this group." Clearly Bobby and Hugo thought that they were both going to bring intense shame to the Weasley and Longbottom lines just because they were in love with each other. Isn't a true love what every parent wanted for their child? A love that could face down any dragon or any dementor? So what if it was with someone who shared their sex?
"And we know that it'll be okay."

She laughed when Hugo clearly got some mental images of himself and Bobby in all of the ways that she heard through the hotel's thin walls.
"Well that was how I met the Malfoys. Stay clear of that and you're golden."

Probably any story that started with 'We were smoking this bowl and...' but she was sure that it was understood. She knew that Frank knew about Bobby being a stoner, there were enough times when the oldest Longbottom male helped his brother and Lily into bed when they were too drunk or too stoned to do it themselves.

She smiled when he called her a genius and figured that she could pick something out for Astoria and Draco. Especially now that the little group was going to spend even more time in Egypt than they thought. When Lily suggested them going back to England, the others practically jumped down her throat. Lily brushed some of her bangs out of her eyes, happy that she thought to pull her hair up into a ponytail. There were so many more vendors and shops, she couldn't even believe it.

Lily took another bite of her mystery food and chewed it, waiting for Hugo to finish the transaction.

"They can suck my dick." She was going to get something for Molly if the rest of her family wanted to say something about it she would tell all of them that. Molly was one of the only cousins who cared about her. Who saw Lily as more than just a foul mouthed little brat. Hugo and Molly actually cared about her and rushed to her bedside when she was in the hospital. They stayed longer than her boyfriend, and actually showed up unlike her brother Albus and father. Lily knew that she was a disappointment to the Potter name, but that didn't mean she enjoyed being the black sheep of the family.

She smiled at her cousin and stuck out her tongue at him. Hugo was going to make a wonderful impression on Neville and Hannah because they already knew that they were wonderful people. They would embrace Hugo and Bobby's relationship because it made their son happy. That was all that would matter to them. She wished that she had Neville and Hannah as her parents when she finally admitted to being in a relationship with Scorpius. Not that she actually did much admitting to her parents. Her mother saw the tattoo on her side of the scorpius stars and demanded to know what had been happening.

Better than how the Malfoys found out. By far.

She laughed and shrugged a little bit,
"Hey now, I've seen you two enter the same room and become magnets to each other." They were the same way. Whenever Lily saw him, she just had to have him. She loved him so much and it sometimes pained her to be away. Probably what caused all of the pain when they were unable to see each other, and what sent her into her binge drinking fest. Funny how some things worked out.

"The minister has not seen my flat ass thank you very much!" She pretended to be indignant towards her cousin. "Just the wife of the minister. She ran out screaming and then got her husband." She turned her head to look at her recently filled out rear end and knew that all of her walking stick pride was out the window. No longer did she have songs like 'Flat Bottom Girls' and 'Baby Got No Back' to remind her to have pride in her lack of curves. Now she was getting more bust and hips than she knew what to do with and part of her was terrified that Scorpius wouldn't find her as sexy as he did before. Some men were into girls with curves, some were into ones with flat bodies. She had no idea where the young Malfoy fell.