A/N: Greetings. I know there are probably hundreds and hundreds of fics like this but I just HAD to do it: I have decided to base a fic about Scorpius & Rose on Shakespeare's 'Romeo & Juliet'. I feel ultra cheesy and cliché but hey ho. I've subtly changed the character names from the original play and made them more...Potter-ish? Modernized? I don't know. And some characters such as Rose, Scorpius, James and Albus don't have name changes - try and work out which characters they play! (Rose and Score aren't necessary for that, obviously). Anyway, here's the first chapter, I hope you all like, I'm not sure how many changes it'll have from the original plotline but suggestions welcome so please R&R!
Chapter I
Through the dense spirals of glittering green smoke, and the bubble and hiss of concoctions being stirred in their cauldrons, I could barely make out the blackboard.
I blew a few annoying strands of curly, reddish-brown hair out of my eyes impatiently. One of the most annoying things about Potions – as much as I enjoyed it – was that the thick, strange steam from every potion we made reacted badly with my hair. And as my hair was tangled, long and curly already, more frizz could only be a bad thing.
'Rose?' said Albus uncertainly, from the cauldron next to me.
'Yes?' I replied, trying not to sound irritated.
'I don't get what I'm supposed to do now – I've added the ginger roots – but it's not going green like it's supposed to...'
I looked at my cousin, and I was torn between the desire to laugh and yell. His round, anxious green eyes were hidden behind glasses, which had steamed up in the heat of the Potions classroom.
'You've put too much lavender in there,' I said bossily, standing on my tiptoes to peer into his cauldron. 'You need some bay leaves to counteract it with.'
'Bay leaves?' Albus repeated confusedly.
'Yes, Al, bay leaves. Use about three. They're in the store cupboard, look.'
I shook my head as Albus trotted away. Somehow I was always taking care of him in Potions; it wasn't his best subject. But nonetheless, he was my favourite out of my many cousins – he never failed to look out for me and we were as close now as we were at eleven.
I stirred my own perfectly green potion and then peered at the blackboard again. The next step for the Dreamless Sleep Potion we were making instructed us to let the potion simmer for three minutes. I folded my arms, staring down at the contents of my potion. Even that annoyed me. Why was I in such a bad mood?
'Rose!'
I turned to the second person who had called my name in today's Potions class. It was my best friend, Celeste De Nursley, looking infuriatingly beautiful even in a stuffy classroom standing next to a frothing cauldron. Curse her shiny, non-frizzy blonde hair.
'Yes, Cece?'
Celeste's big, wide blue eyes got even wider. 'Alright, no need to jump down my throat!' she tutted.
'Sorry,' I said, trying to sound light-hearted; it was one of Celeste's constant remarks on my character that I was too serious all the time. 'What's the matter?'
'Just – come here.'
'Why? Are you having trouble with your potion or something?'
'No, I just need to tell you something!'
Thinking that my potion needed to simmer anyway, I sidled over to her desk. 'So?'
'You know that Sam Thomas in sixth-year?'
'No,' I said blankly.
'Yes you do!' Celeste told me. 'He's Chaser on the Quidditch team. Dark hair, dark eyes, possible contender for Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award?'
'Oh, yeah, I know him – well, I've only spoken to him a few times, but – '
'Yes, okay, we've established that you know him – well, he told me at breakfast this morning that Joe wants to meet with you!' Celeste said excitedly.
'Joe?' I repeated. 'Joe Parrus?'
Celeste rolled her eyes. 'Come on, Rose, who else?' she grinned.
Joe Parrus was a sixth-year and Sam Thomas's best friend. Joe played Seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team; he was exceptionally clever and a prefect, like me; he had many friends and admirers, including James, my older cousin. And he wanted to meet with me? I almost cringed at the thought. Well, he was really good-looking, of course, no-one could deny that...and he seemed like a nice person, especially on patrols...
'Rose?'
'Hm?'
'Are you going to meet him, then?'
'Meet him? What, like a date?'
'No, Sam said Joe just wants to talk to you. In the courtyard near Transfiguration. Ooh, this is so exciting! I wonder what he wants to talk to you about. He probably wants to go out with you. What are you going to say? Please say yes... you'd make the best couple...hey, can I come with you?'
'Cece, calm down! I don't even know if I want to go. Are you sure he said me?'
'Yes, I'm sure!' said Celeste, her grin a mile wide. 'He said to go at break. Please go. You don't want to stand him up.'
'I'm sure he'll have loads of girls fawning all over him wherever he is,' I snorted.
'He's not like that,' said Celeste earnestly. 'He's popular, but he's not like a player.'
'Come on, class, your potion should well have simmered by now!' the Potions teacher, Professor Cabbell, shouted amid the loud crackling of fires. 'Miss Weasley, Miss De Nursley – cut the chit-chat. Kindly return to your desk, please, or your potion just might explode, and then which grade will you receive for that, I wonder?'
I scuttled back to my own desk shamefacedly, untying a bundle of porcupine quills. Not only did I hate being told off by any teacher in particular, I also hated getting caught being inattentive in lessons, because it looked like I wasn't trying. And I hate myself for thinking it, but there's no denying that disappointing feeling in the pit of my stomach when I don't do as well as I should have done.
I could feel Celeste's eyes boring into the back of my head, but I didn't turn around. I was too deep in thought about what she'd just told me. I couldn't quite believe Joe wanted to meet me. What was he going to say? It'll be nothing, I told myself. It's probably just something to do with our Prefect duties, is all.
But in spite of myself I really, really hoped it wasn't that.
OoO
I remained slightly preoccupied all through the rest of Potions and Charms afterwards, so that my Bubble-Head Charm kept bursting spontaneously and leaving Celeste (whom I was practicing on) sopping wet with water. It was a good thing Professor Boot knew how to get us all dry instantly or else Celeste might not have been so happy to see me head for the courtyard as soon as the bell went for break.
'Tell me everything he says!' Celeste said obsessively, digging in her bag to find some lip gloss. She had decided to go and hunt Sam Thomas down and presumably try and get him to go out with her on the pretext of asking him about Quidditch. I had shook my head in disbelief and laughed at the same time when she'd told me this brilliant plan. She really was shameless.
I smoothed my hair self-consciously as I walked downstairs to the castle courtyard. My stomach felt a bit weird. I hoped I wouldn't do anything stupid.
At that moment, someone came up beside me so suddenly that I almost hurtled down the stairs.
'Off to meet your lover-boy, are we?'
'James! For the name of Merlin – '
'Come on, Rose, you'd think you'd be used to it by now.'
'That's true,' I said in annoyance. James so frequently popped up from nowhere that I was surprised I wasn't suffering from panic attacks. The number of times he made me jump in one day should be made illegal.
'So,' James said in an infuriatingly knowing voice.
'What?' I snapped, though I knew what.
James flashed me a sidelong grin. His brown eyes were sparkling madly and I noticed his hair looked extra mussed-up today.
'I heard the goss. It was all the rage in my Defence class. 'Course, Joe wouldn't say a word, though we tried to get it out of him enough times! Little son of a Bludger just stared at the ground and blushed. Sweet, isn't it?'
'What are you on about, James?' I said, unsure whether to believe him.
'Presumably you've been told what Sam told Celeste to tell you – '
'– I have – '
'–well then you'll know exactly what I'm on about.'
'But I don't,' I said, staring at James. 'All I know is he wants to meet me. I don't know what he wants to talk to me about.'
A sly grin slowly inched across his face at my words. My heart almost stopped. That look on James's face was never good.
'Ah,' said James as comprehension dawned, stretching the word into a multisyllabic sound. 'Well. I'd best not ruin the surprise for you, then.'
'No – wait, James, you know? Tell me!'
'I don't know anything,' James replied with his eyebrows raised. 'You'd best get to the courtyard, it wouldn't be – er – good to keep him waiting.'
'What do you mean? James – '
'Sorry, got to speak to Spinnet about practice tomorrow,' said James over his shoulder, disappearing amongst a tidal wave of students.
I glared after him. If he wasn't my cousin...
Staring towards the courtyard, a mingled feeling of excitement and dread grew in my heart. James had only made me more nervous. I checked my watch; five minutes of break had passed.
Oh, what the hell.
I walked toward the courtyard, trying to make out Joe among the crowds of students and the magnificent fountain in the centre. As I passed through one of the archways, a gaggle of fourth-year girls passed, giving me funny looks and talking in hushed tones. Three guesses what they were talking about.
Joe was sitting on one of my favourite reading benches; it was stone and had a dragon carved into each arm rest on either side. He was sitting alone, but several people were clustered near, watching me walk up to him.
'Hi, Joe,' I said like we'd met by coincidence.
'Hi,' he smiled, looking relieved. 'Er, d'you want to go on a walk?' he added pointedly.
'Um – OK,' I shrugged, silently thinking it was the last thing I wanted to do. Then it would be just Joe and I. Alone.
He stood up and we walked hastily back to the Transfiguration corridor, averting the eyes of everyone watching us go.
'I suppose you know why I asked you to meet me,' Joe said casually, chancing a glance at me.
'I don't, actually,' I said with a laugh. 'James has been dropping massive hints, though.'
'Why doesn't that surprise me?' Joe smiled.
I studied him as we walked, but in little glances so that he wasn't looking. His windswept hair was the colour of chocolate, but his eyes were gooseberry. Not the sort of bright green Albus's were, but kind of a mingled green and grey. These eyes were framed by long, dark eyelashes, the sort Celeste would envy. It was weird; I'd never noticed how good-looking he was...
'Anyway,' Joe continued, as we drifted further out of the main school towards the boathouse, 'I didn't mean for everyone to end up knowing like this, and you probably think I encouraged it or something – '
'No, I don't,' I said truthfully. 'Believe me, if there's one person I know who spreads gossip faster than a Firebolt, it's James. Or Celeste,' I added as an afterthought, giggling.
'Clearly, Sam told the wrong person, then?' Joe joked.
'Yes,' I said, half-seriously.
'Well,' began Joe uncomfortably, 'er, the reason why I wanted to talk to you is because I wanted to ask you to come to Hogsmeade with me this weekend.'
We'd stopped walking. We were now stood facing each other in a draughty corridor overlooking the mountains and the lake. I would have appreciated the view if I wasn't almost hyperventilating over what Joe had just said.
'Er – well,' I said, flustered.
'You don't want to,' Joe said quickly, faltering. 'Never mind – '
'No, no,' I interrupted, smiling, 'I'm just surprised! Yeah, I'll come.'
'With me? You want to?'
'Yes,' I said, grinning broadly.
'OK!' Joe said, suddenly alight with happiness. 'So I'll meet you on Saturday after breakfast then? In the Great Hall?'
'I'll be there.'
'Alright, good! Well – I'd best go, I've got Herbology next, and it's miles away. See you, Rose,' he said, and with a grin, he walked away with something of a swagger in his step.
There was a lump forming in my throat. I liked Joe, of course I did, but I didn't really know if I wanted to go out with him. I was unsure on whether I agreed to go to Hogsmeade with him purely to spare his feelings.
Then I told myself I was lucky to be going out with Joe; he was smart and kindly, good at sport and attractive – he should be perfect to go on a date with, shouldn't he? And we always got along well at prefect meetings, so it shouldn't be awkward between us. As long as we didn't go in Madam Puddifoot's and see all the disgusting couples with their hands all over each other, we'd be fine.
Yes, I was quite looking forward to it. And if I didn't want to go out with him again, I could just say. He wouldn't take it too hard, I was sure.
With a smile, I imagined Celeste's expression as I was telling her my news in our next lesson, Divination. She would probably get so excited, her crystal ball would explode.
