SLOW RIDE

A HariPo oneshot

by mew-tsubaki

Note: The Harry Potter characters belong to J.K. Rowling, not me. A crazy next-gen idea that came to mind when gazing at next-gen fanart. Read, review, and enjoy!

- ^-^3

"You're not welcome in my house, pureblood!"

With those words, Ron Weasley stomped out of his own house, taking only his outer robes and wand with him. It was a minute before the others heard a car start up and drive off and away from the Burrow.

Well… Technically, it wasn't the Burrow, per se; it was more like the second Burrow, between the original one and her parents' place. "Her" was, of course, Hermione Weasley neé Granger. It was many years ago that she had married her one true love, Ronald Bilius Weasley. They had had two children—a daughter, Rose, and a son, Hugo. They led a near perfect life and were happy for it.

Then Rose had started Hogwarts. She'd made friends with other witches and wizards her age, but there was one wizard in particular that she liked most of all…

Two years after Rose starting school, Hugo had, as well. It had only been a matter of time before her secret would come out. Not that Rose considered Hugo to be a blabbermouth, though he was her younger sibling.

So Rose had decided to reveal her secret herself (two years later). And it had not gone over well—at all.

Hermione sighed. "Figures that he'd only be blinded by past vendettas…" She turned and faced Rose and her guest. "Scorpius, you're welcome to stay for dinner. I'm sure Ron will be back after he's cooled down. I'll smack him if he continues ranting as he did." She ushered Hugo out of the living room, and that left Rose with Scorpius.

He was Scorpius Malfoy, the son of Draco Malfoy and Astoria Malfoy neé Greengrass. Tall, blond, and the same cold gray eyes that belonged to his father—physically, Scorpius was every bit Draco. Personality-wise, he was entirely different. He didn't hate Muggle-born witches and wizards, though his father didn't anymore either—no, Draco had grown a tolerance of them. But Scorpius loved them and half-bloods. Okay, so there was this one half-blood in particular…

And that half-blood was Rose. A little on the tall side but still shorter than Scorpius, Rose was a smart girl with an even temper. She had reddish-brown hair that waved against her back and brown eyes as soft as her mother's. She was very slender, but her complexion was clear and a little tan. Her tanned arms were currently wrapped around Scorpius' pale one.

"At least your mother likes me," Scorpius remarked dryly as Rose led him to the couch nearby.

Rose shook her head, trying to calm her nerves after her father's explosion. "I still can't believe he dared to point his wand at you!"

Scorpius sighed. "I'm just glad we told him the truth. If we'd lied and said we were just friends, he would've caught on even faster." He ran one hand through his golden locks and squeezed her hand with his other. "Rose… I don't think I've ever been so scared in my life."

She laughed. "Confidant Scorpius Malfoy, scared? Well, I never!" She laughed harder when he frowned at her, but his frown faded when it was obvious her mood had brightened.

"By the way… Did he really drive away in a Muggle car?"

Rose nodded. "Yeah, Mum made him get a Muggle license when we were little. Probably because she likes having some semblance of her old life."

Scorpius nodded. He knew that Hermione was Muggle-born. He thought it was cool that Muggles had so many devices that magic folk lacked, and he liked most of them. An odd beat passed. "Um… What's it like to drive?"

She looked at him skeptically. "We're fifteen, Scor. …you're serious. Well, Mum started teaching me little things here and there last summer. I've been actually driving this summer. I'll be getting my license for my sixteenth birthday, I suppose." She eyed him carefully. "You want to try it?"

He jumped at the offer. "Yeah, sure, of course!" He followed Rose out of the kitchen as they left to find Hermione.

- ^-^3

On the inside, Hermione was laughing.

Never before in her life would Hermione have ever thought that a Malfoy would want to learn to drive a Muggle car. But there they were—her, Hugo, Rose, and Scorpius—outside in the front yard beside the family's second car.

"It's beautiful," Scorpius said of the vehicle. "What is it?"

"It's a Subaru Sedan," Hermione answered. "It's a very safe car. Our other car is a Subaru Outback. Shall I teach you the basics?"

Scorpius, still drooling over the car, nodded. He slid into the passenger's seat while Hermione got in the driver's seat. Hugo and a reluctant Rose sat in back. "Are you sure about this, Scor?" Rose asked.

Again, Scorpius could only nod.

Hermione grasped the steering wheel and looked at him. "This is what controls the car. It turns the wheels outside. This," she continued, pointing to the gearshift, "allows you to put the car in different positions. For example, this one lets you back up." Hermione switched gears and backed the car out of the driveway. She put it back into drive. "Now we can drive the car."

Scorpius ate up every bit of information Hermione gave him. When they'd been gone for forty-five minutes, Hermione felt it was time to hand over the wheel.

"Are you sure you're ready for it?" she asked the blond boy.

He eagerly nodded. "Definitely!"

"I don't think this is such a good idea…," Rose muttered to her brother. She received a look from her mother in the rearview mirror.

Hermione pulled over on a side street and swapped places with Scorpius. "Now, remember that I said you need to switch gears. No, no! That's not what I meant!"

Siss, boom, CRASH!

Yeah, so Scorpius had creamed a trash barrel and almost taken its little old lady with it, but practice made perfect, right?

Hermione clutched her hand over her heart. "Uh, I think that's enough for today."

- ^-^3

Back at the Burrow II, Scorpius was sulking.

"You didn't wreck the car."

"Hmph."

"It's just a little dent, Scor," Rose groaned, trying to nudge him out of his funk.

"Uhh."

"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy, would you please show me the respect of giving me a complete sentence for an answer?!" Rose snapped.

He frowned, a little rightly scared of her. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

She sighed. "Now get up. You didn't kill anyone. You were just excited to be learning something new."

He smirked, feeling better. "Doesn't that sound like a Granger thing of me to do?"

Rose reddened. "Oh, shut it!"

At the same time, the front door slammed shut. Rose and Scorpius exchanged looks. Ron was home.

"Malfoy!" Ron bellowed.

Scorpius winced as he and Rose left the living room and went out into the vestibule. Scorpius had entirely forgotten that he'd left his sweatshirt hung up inside the door after the unfortunate driving excursion. "Sir," he squeaked, embarrassed that his voice was betraying his fear.

"You. Me. Outside."

"Dad, don't start this again," Rose pleaded.

"Not now, Rosie." Ron's eyes bore into Scorpius'. "Outside, Malfoy. Now." He turned around and headed back outside, and Scorpius reluctantly grabbed his sweatshirt and followed him. He gave Rose a can't-be-helped look.

Rose swung around after the door was closed and glared at her mother. "Mum, Dad's going to kill him!"

Hermione smiled. "Shall we watch what happens, then?" she replied, much to her daughter's befuddlement. The two joined Hugo at the window.

- ^-^3

"How long have you known my daughter?"

"Uh, f-five years, sir."

"When did you meet her?"

"On the train going to Hogwarts, sir."

"What House are you in?"

"S-Slytherin, sir."

"Of course, go figure… You don't care that Rosie's in a different House?"

"No, of course not, sir. I like her for who she is."

"You don't buy that load of crap that purebloods are the best?"

"No, most definitely not! My father doesn't even say those things! Well, not anymore, at least… But my mother never said those things, and she discourages that mindset."

Ron gave a tiny jerk of his head as a nod. "Then Astoria's not too bad. Never knew too much about Draco's bride anyway…"

Scorpius fidgeted under his girlfriend's father's gaze. He really hoped Ron had left his wand in the car…

Ron looked at his yard. Then, he squinted. "Is that a dent on my car?"

The Malfoy son froze. If he hadn't died earlier, surely Ron Weasley was going to kill him now. "Um…yes. Yes, it is. I kindly asked your very nice wife how it works and if I could learn." Scorpius dropped his gaze to the ground. He would be leaving the Burrow II very soon—hopefully not in a body bag…

Ron motioned him to follow him again, and they went to the sedan. Scorpius gulped; Ron probably had left his wand in there… "Get in."

Scorpius gaped at him. Had he heard that right?

Ron glared. "Get. In. Or else I'll run you over."

He quickly did as asked.

Ron turned the car on and the two of them just sat awhile, the car blasting the AC. The Weasley father had cupped his cheek in his palm, and he was staring out the windshield. After another several minutes, he asked, "What is it you like about my daughter?"

Scorpius couldn't help but smile. This was a very easy question to answer. "She can always correct me, even when there are the few times when I'm right. And her eyes glow when she has an idea in mind. And she's just great when she's in her top form and correcting the teachers—except for McGonagall. No one corrects McGonagall."

It was another few minutes before anything else was said. Slowly, but surely, Ron's face eased into a tight but real smile. He knew his Rosie was so much like her mother—this boy would be daft not to fall for her. Then again…why did Rosie have to attract Malfoy's kid? He sighed.

"Sir…?"

"I'll show you why you crashed," Ron stated.

Scorpius' eyes widened. This was not what he had expected to hear! "Th-Thank you, sir!"

Ron smirked, liking that Scorpius was at least rightfully afraid of him. He pulled out and they drove along, Ron telling him what he needed to know about cars.

"Autos are really cool!" Scorpius gushed. "But I just wasn't any good…"

Ron dismissed it. "Nah. It wasn't you. Between you and me, 'Mione's problem is that she drives stick. Automatic is what you need. I wish 'Mione would listen when I tell her that." He was quiet for a moment. "Well, that, and that she needs to use her turn signal and take her foot off the brake pedal every now and then."

- ^-^3

*ROFL* Yes, I know, tacky since it's my own story, but I think this is one of the funniest fics I've ever written. Poor Scorpius! He must've been so cute, being scared of Ron like that! But Ron better hope that Scor doesn't let 'Mione's secret slip… XD

Thanks for reading, and please review!

-mew-tsubaki XD

And thanks to Morghen, for beta'ing!

2016 note: This fic still amuses me some, six years later, although it's clear to me that this was my first next-gen fic. Ah, fanfiction firsts… -w-