Dear Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Dear Scorpius,

I'm sorry I haven't been in contact for a while, though in fairness, neither have you. The summer season of dances and social engagements is just beginning, and whilst the débutante scene is nothing on what it was when I was a young girl, one must still attend.

Your father says you're in some distress.

How are you? How is Teddy? Do let me know if there's anything we can do to assist.

Yours,
Grandmother x

[Scorpius Malfoy]

Dear Grandmother,

How nice to hear from you. I hope you're enjoying your summer of dances and social engagements. Does my mother go to them with you?

I'm fine, and so is Teddy. Assist me? What sort of thing did you actually have in mind? Because my father told me last night that I wasn't welcome back at the Manor and not to contact him again, which I assumed meant he wasn't really up for 'assisting' me. You can see why I'm getting mixed signals here. But actually, I'm managing fine.

Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Dear Scorpius,

I haven't actually seen your mother recently. I presume she attends the majority of them, however. Would you like me to pass a message on to her?

I'm glad Teddy is well - do give him my warmest regards.

I have absolutely no idea. Well, dear, whatever you needed help with really. In case you hadn't noticed, your father does not own the manor, and I am not your father - I was not offering you assistance from your father, but from myself and presumably your grandfather.

I'm glad you're doing well.

Yours,
Grandmother x

[Scorpius Malfoy]

Grandmother,

It's funny, nobody seems to have seen her much recently. You'd almost think something had happened to her. No Yes, that would be great actually, thank you. Just tell her I'm fine please - and do let me know what she says.

I will do - he's not in at the moment, but I'm sure he'll send them back again.

Well, I don't particularly need help with anything right now, but thanks for offering. And no, your husband owns the manor, but I don't think he'd be very pleased to see me either. We didn't part on the best of terms, but I expect he told you all about that.

Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Scorpius,

Well, she's been ill recently, so I expect she's just taking a little time to recuperate.

'My husband' is your grandfather, young man. Lucius and Draco will come round, they need time is all. No, he didn't - please do elaborate.

Yours, x

[Scorpius Malfoy]

Grandmother,

Really? Nobody told me she'd been ill. Ella said she hadn't seen her all holidays, which seems a bit strange, but she didn't mention her being ill.

Oh well, of course, I'll just hang around and give them all the time they need, and when they decide to come round, I'll just conveniently forget about all the things they said. Great. Sounds good.

You really want me to elaborate? Well, okay, if you say so. I have a girlfriend - you might know about that. Last year, he instructed me to break up with her, and told me that if I didn't, he'd see to it that she got hurt. She was sixteen at the time. So I'm sorry if I don't care too much whether he 'comes round' or not.

Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Dear Scorpius,

Yes, according to your father at least, and out of everyone, he ought to know.

If you want to mend bridges and do what is best for this family, then yes, Scorpius, that is what you will do. This is not optional, it is necessary. Sarcasm does not become a gentleman, especially not in correspondence with his grandmother.

Roxanne Weasley is the girl in question, am I correct? I appreciate that you love her and are therefore accordingly concerned, but do not listen to your grandfather in such matters. Tensions tend to ride rather high when it comes to events and concepts of the past that you can never hope to truly grasp or understand, something for which you should be unerringly thankful for.

Grandmother.

[Scorpius Malfoy]

Dear Grandmother,

Okay, you don't like sarcasm. It's funny, in a family where we basically live off the stuff, everyone seems to get very upset when I use it. So I'll be straight with you.

I'm quite tired of being treated like I'm not a person with feelings, just the Malfoy Heir who is expected to act the way the Malfoy Heir should act, no matter what other people do. I'm also quite tired of people who sit there watching while their family destroys itself, and not bothering to do anything about it because that would require showing that they have feelings.

Yes, Roxanne is my girlfriend. Please tell me why I shouldn't listen to him. You see, when someone's threatening to hurt someone I love, I tend to take it quite seriously. I'm not going to live in the past with the rest of you. This is the present, and I care about the future. My future. Of course I'm glad I never had to live at the same time as Lord Voldemort. But this is nothing to do with Lord Voldemort, unless you're saying that my grandfather dislikes my girlfriend because her family had a big part in bringing him down, in which case, he should also dislike you. And he should be in Azkaban for his continued support of the Dark Lord's cause. Personally, I'm bloody grateful to Roxanne's family for bringing him down, and so is the rest of the world.

I'm sorry if this isn't what you wanted to hear, Grandmother. I'm sorry to talk about things that I'm sure offend you, and you'd rather brush them under the carpet. But we've been brushing things under the carpet for years, and it hasn't turned out too well. Feel free to shut me down and not talk about it any more, and we'll go back to being polite and meaningless and forget this conversation ever happened.

Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Scorpius,

If that was a veiled insult aimed in my direction, I'm sorry but it missed it's mark. You have no idea what I have done and sacrificed over the years to keep this family together. If you extended that same courtesy of treating others as if they have feelings - by which I mean to the members of your family, I'm sure you're compassion to others is admirable - then perhaps they would reciprocate it.

You're missing the point. The point is not the defeat of the Dark Lord, and no-one is saying that his demise was a negative occurrence. My point was that the politics at the time, the beliefs, and the attitudes have left a lasting imprint upon members of our generation that your generation will never comprehend. Wounds like that in a society take a long time to heal, you of all people should know that, given your present circumstances.

Please refrain from using crude language, it does not help your cause in any way.

[Scorpius Malfoy]

It wasn't an insult. I wasn't trying to insult you. I was trying to get you to listen, because you're the one person in the family who I thought might. For once, I wanted to have a conversation that was open and honest and didn't ignore important things.

Maybe I missed the point, but so did you. Maybe I missed it deliberately; I don't know whether you did that or not. I don't really care about my grandfather's political beliefs, or what he may have done thirty years ago. I asked why I shouldn't listen to him when he makes threats now against a girl who's done nothing to him, who he's met once. You didn't answer that.

I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings - and believe it or not, but I actually mean that. You've done a lot for this family, and believe this or not too, but I am aware of that. That's why I'm talking to you about this, and not either of my parents. That's why I hoped you'd listen to me. Because that's great, and you've been amazing, and you're right, I don't know what you've done over the years to hold us together. But the thing is, whatever you did, it's not working any more. I'm not playing some stupid blame game. I'm saying that I don't know what to do to hold it together, and I thought you might.

I never planned to walk out on the family. All I wanted was a bit of space and independence, and when I spoke to my father last year, I told him that, very politely and respectfully if you want to know. But if they want me out, then I'm out, because I can't do this any more. And if you think I'm doing all this and saying all this because I don't care about my family, then you don't know me at all.

Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Scorpius,

Thank-you. That means a lot, and although I realise that you do not always feel it, and that our family is complicated in its relationships to say the least, please know that you are very loved.

I am sorry, I did not realise I had not addressed the matter in enough detail to attempt to clarify it for you. You should not listen to him now because he, unlike your admirable efforts to do the contrary, cannot help from letting the past influence his feelings now. He has learnt enough to temper his actions according to what is right, but emotions in the heat of the moment cannot be controlled and thus he reverts to what he was taught was right. I am not saying that it is right, or that I agree with his actions - I find it reprehensible even though I understand him completely, if you must know - merely that despite his flaws, your grandfather is a good man who has a lot of relevant experience and it will be beneficial to you both to learn from this event and move on in harmony.

I can barely hold myself together at the minute, Scorpius, I cannot bear this family's woes as well as my own. I'm sorry to have failed you so in your hour of need. One person alone cannot keep a family together, Scorpius. But I will promise you I will try my utmost to improve relations where I can.

I did not mean that you did not love your family, I meant that perhaps the elder generations are not the only ones who have difficulty expressing that love.

Grandmother x

[Scorpius Malfoy]

Grandmother,

I understand why my grandfather said what he did - at least, I think I do. And I'll move on from this if and when I believe he's not actually going to do anything to hurt - or insult - my girlfriend if I carry on being with her. 'He can't help it' isn't enough of an excuse for that, I'm afraid. I've already learned quite a bit from the event, because it's the reason I'm not living in your house any more, but I haven't really seen any evidence that he's learnt anything at all from it. And 'harmony' is only going to be reached when he accepts Roxanne as my girlfriend without trying to do anything about it. I'm not asking him to like it, but I'm not going to sit there smiling while he tries to split us up. This isn't me being difficult - it's just how things are and I think most people would be on my side here.

No, you're right. And I don't see anyone else making much of an effort. I'm prepared to keep making it, if other people will meet me half way. I'm not coming back though.

Kids learn to express love when they're shown how. It's not some innate thing we're all born with.

Thanks. For listening. Well, reading, but you know.

Scorpius

PS - Please tell me where my mother is. She's supposed to live in the same house as you - you must know if she's there or not. And if not, where is she and what's wrong with her?

PPS - Is Ella okay?

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Scorpius

I will speak with your grandfather and ask him to refrain from trying to cause divisions within your relationships.

That is a perfectly reasonable request, and I do not expect you to return home - you are legally an adult, you may live where you like with whom you like, and I wish you the best and hold you in the same esteem wherever you are.

Your mother is not at Malfoy Manor. She is unwell, and at a private hospital in order to rest and recuperate. In this family, even you must know what that is a euphemism for.

No, she isn't. I am scared for your sister's mental well-being. Ella misses her brother. This is a statement of the facts, and not an attempt to play on your emotions in order to lure you home. I feel she would benefit greatly from seeing you, and I presume that so would you. The same applies for Damien, but perhaps to a lesser extent than to Ella.

Yours,
Grandmother x

[Scorpius Malfoy]

Grandmother,

Thank you.

And that's pretty much word for word what I've been trying to tell the rest of the family for the last six months or so. As I already said, this wasn't meant to be some big gesture of me reecting the family and walking away. I always meant to keep in touch and keep seeing Damien and Ella everyone. It's my father who's told me I'm not welcome at the manor, and Ella who's said she doesn't want to come over when I invited her. There's only so much hitting my head off brick walls I'm going to do. Hitting your head off brick walls hurts

Which private hospital?

Scorpius

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Scorpius,

Ella is hurt. However you meant it, she can only see it as a rejection of herself by you at a time in her life when she needs the support of her brother. I suspect your father is hurting in much the same way.

I'm afraid I do not know. I believe both she and your father wish to keep her frailty out of the public eye. If you address a letter to her, there is perhaps a possibility that a family owl may locate her?

Yours,
Grandmother x