An: This was written for the Musical Prompt challenge at HPCF with the prompt of "Fear of Drowning"
Rose Weasley hardly feared anything. In fact, due to her sharp tongue and fiery personality, it was her that people usually feared. However, there was one thing that Rose Weasley was so paralysed with fear by that she would never tell anyone outside her family. There was a reason to why she didn't take baths, only showers, and to why whenever her friends wanted to go and spend a sunny weekend afternoon out by the black lake, she declined.
With avoidance, Rose found that her fear was easy enough to get around, but it was on this winter Sunday that it came slamming in her face.
"Ice skating. You me and Albus. What do you say?" Scorpius asked her that morning at breakfast. "We don't have muggle skates, but a sixth year taught me a charm that can make shoes work just the same."
"I don't know…" Rose started. The lake was frozen over, so it shouldn't really be a problem. It wasn't water. It was ice. There should be no problem at all. Rose still didn't know though. It was the thought of what was underneath that ice that scared her. "I'll see." She really wanted to go out there with the two of them. She knew how much fun it would be. Perhaps she could just go down there and see how she felt before actually skating.
That was exactly what she did. The three of them went down to the frozen lake and once she was down there she decided.
"I'll do it."
"That's the spirit!" Scorpius grinned. He moved to place the spell on the trio's shoes.
While he worked, Albus came to Rose's side. "Are you sure about this?" Albus, like the rest of her family, knew about her fear and the incident it stemmed from.
Rose nodded. When Scorpius was done, the three stepped cautiously onto the ice. Rose found that it was just like the ground, only a bit more slippery. Rose clutched tightly onto Albus' arm, but slowly a smile spread across her face. In time she was able to skate without the support of her cousin. This wasn't bad at all! In fact, it was immensely fun. The three were laughing and smiling, just as they always did when they were together.
Rose soon gained more confidence, and she skated out ahead of the other two, enjoying the sensation of the crisp cool air against her face. Suddenly she felt the ground give slightly beneath her. She looked down to see a crack right under her feet. Rose couldn't move. She could hardly even breathe. She looked up with pleading tearful eyes at her friends who were quite a distance from her. Her mind was racing yet empty at the same time. Images of that day flashed through her mind.
"Rose!" Albus called out. "It'll be okay! Just take small steps towards us."
At first she didn't, still paralysed in fright. However she was more afraid of what was below her so she did as he said. She slid her foot forward slightly, then she moved her other foot. The ground shook as the crack grew larger beneath her. Rose screamed and slipped forward, falling upon the ice. It cracked completely now and before she knew it she was immersed in the freezing water. The cold made her vision blurry, and suddenly as she fought to find her way to the surface, her lungs started screaming for the air they needed and everything went black.
A vision formed in her mind and she found herself back in the memory of that day seven years ago. Rose had been eight, and it had been a rainy October day. She and a muggle girl whom Rose liked to play with had wandered out to the river near their homes without asking permission. They were standing on an old metal bridge above the river, and due to the amount of rain, the water level was nearly touching the bridge.
The two girls had been playing one of their many games of pretend, and Rose had gotten too close to the edge. The next thing she knew she was falling and then water was rushing over her head, immersing her. Water filled her lungs and she was losing consciousness when her head once more reached the surface before she was pushed down again. The muggle girl, Sarah, had jumped in after her trying to save her. She had grabbed Rose around the waist and started swimming her to shore. Sarah had then hit her head on rock and the next thing Rose knew, she was gone. The only reason Rose had survived after that was a sudden spurt of magic kicking in with her survival instincts. She was able to calm the water long enough to climb out.
"Sarah!" She coughed out. "Sarah?"
Her vision began to fade and she felt herself in a warm embrace. She was coughing now, spluttering up the water that had been lodged in her airway.
"Sarah?"
"No- Rose, it's us. I'm so sorry." It was Albus. He was kneeling beside her on the shore of the frozen lake, holding her hand as Scorpius held her. "You're safe now."
He was scared, she could tell. There was fear in his eyes. She could tell it must have been close.
"Where's Sarah?" Rose cried out, trying to wriggle from Scorpius' grasp. "I need to save Sarah!"
"Sarah's gone Rose," Albus said, holding her down. "We need to get you to the hospital wing."
Rose calmed. She gained more of an awareness to where she was. She let her limbs ease, letting Scorpius lift her up to take her to the castle. As the walked, Rose looked back at the lake and her breath hitched in her throat. Tears stained her cheeks as she listened to Albus repeat "You're okay now Rose, you're safe."