Without This Grey’s Anatomy Character, Amelia May Have Never Had Scout

Amelia can’t imagine her life without Scout, but she could never have had him if it wasn’t for a connection she established in Grey’s Anatomy S14.

A big storyline in Grey’s Anatomy season 19 revolved around Scout being such an important part of Amelia’s life that she couldn’t have dated someone opposed to spending time with him, but Amelia didn’t always want to have kids before other characters changed her mind. Her aversion to having a baby was thoroughly explored in Grey’s Anatomy season 16 after Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) realized she was pregnant, and it was mainly due to the heartbreak of losing Christopher in Private Practice season 5. However, she quickly started to be excited about getting to know who eventually became Scout because she knew Link fully supported her whatever she chose and thanks to a past Grey’s Anatomy character.

While Amelia’s experience with maternity had been distressing before Scout’s appearance in Grey’s Anatomy due to the Private Practice storyline about having her dead fiancé’s child only to discover upon his birth that Christopher didn’t have a brain, she did have a positive experience as a maternal figure to someone else. Indeed, when Owen decided to adopt Leo and Amelia met Betty (Peyton Kennedy), she realized that not only Betty needed help, but also that she was equipped to provide that due to Amelia’s past experiences with drug addiction. Although Betty’s story eventually ended with her being happily reunited with her biological family, caring for Betty changed Amelia.

Betty Opened Up Amelia’s Heart To The Possibility Of Kids On Grey’s Anatomy

Despite being challenging, Amelia’s initial interactions with Betty seemed something that Amelia could withstand, no matter how much they brought out Betty’s worst tendencies. However, believing to have lost Betty in Grey’s Anatomy season 15 after she ran away made Amelia admit she truly wanted to foster Betty. The challenges Amelia faced while fostering Betty were incredibly stressful despite Owen and Teddy helping Amelia in Grey’s Anatomy season 15, but facing them and having a mostly positive relationship with Betty made Amelia realize that she could have held the role of a parental figure without backing down in the worst moments.

Without Betty showing Amelia that she could handle whatever parenting threw at her, Amelia would have found it more difficult to decide to keep the pregnancy and eventually have Scout. Indeed, while Link’s supportive and heartwarming words to Amelia in Grey’s Anatomy season 16, episode 2 made her realize that she wasn’t alone and could have raised a child with Link if she wanted to, it wouldn’t have been possible without the experience Amelia got with Betty. Having discussions with Owen to decide what path to take while caring for Betty gave Amelia a different experience of parenting, one that caused pain but didn’t end in heartbreak like Christopher’s death did.

Grey’s Anatomy’s Betty Helped Amelia Grieve The Loss Of Christopher

After Scout’s birth, Amelia’s sisters Maggie and Meredith all pitched in to help Link and Amelia. Despite Grey’s Anatomy season 17 showing all the practical and emotionally charged challenges Amelia faced as a parent, fostering Betty helped alleviate the pain of having Christopher’s death as her last parenting-related memory. Betty and Amelia’s connection proved fundamental in making Amelia realize that she could be a parent, and it wouldn’t have destroyed her like Christopher’s death almost did. Although she struggled a lot with Betty leaving, Amelia proved to be able to survive it in Grey’s Anatomy season 15, making her connection to Betty instrumental to Amelia eventually having Scout.