i.
Rose was frantic. She balanced two rolls of parchment under one arm and roughly flipped page after page of Magical Drafts and Potions with her other hand.
"So as I was saying," she said very fast, eyes flying over the book, "I made a colour-coded list of ingredients for each of the thirteen potions that Professor Hilburn hinted might be on the exam, because my mum always said colours helped her remember what information was stored where, you know she used to make our dads these coloured homework schedules for Christmas – uuurgh, just where did I put my list for the Draught of Living Death? – but for this exam I came up with another idea – not only colours but also these alphabetical codes that I think will help me –"
"Weasley," Anthony Azaleas drawled as he passed by in the crowded Charms corridor. "I will pay you to shut up."
Rose inhaled sharply through her nose, snapped her book shut and closed her eyes for a fraction of a second. Ignore him, ignore him, ignore him.
She continued talking to Albus as though she hadn't just been interrupted so rudely. "I made you copies of the lists for the exam as well, let me show you how the codes work – they're very helpful …"
Balancing her book bag and the rolls of parchment, Rose simultaneously tried – and failed – to slip a rectangular piece of paper out from between the pages of Magical Drafts and Potions. Instead, everything went tumbling to the floor.
A hand shot out suddenly; in a fraction of a second, it skillfully snatched the parchment and the Potions out of the air, placed them neatly into Rose's outstretched arms, and continued moving on seamlessly with its owner. Rose turned to thank her helper, but the mass of silvery-blond hair dipped to the side only briefly, allowing Rose a glimpse of the upturned corner of the boy's mouth, before it blended into the crowd of students on either side.
ii.
"Rose, what are you doing? Rose, keep your eyes on the Quaffle!"
"Doumar keeps hitting that Bludger towards me!" she screamed back at her Captain, swerving dangerously to avoid a head-on collision with a Slytherin Chaser as they streaked towards the Quaffle in a tangled blur of green and blue.
Grey clouds rolled forebodingly over their heads as the Slytherin Beaters worked together to bludgeon Rose out of the match. That seemed to be the Slytherins' strategy so far this year: taking out the opposing team's players one by one. Thunder deafening her ears and rain lashing against her stinging eyes, Rose had to abandon pursuit of the Quaffle; she flew in wild circles and was even forced to do a stupid little somersault in midair to avoid the onslaught of Bludgers.
They gave up on her then; she was the youngest but fastest player on the team, having grown up in the Quidditch legacy of the Potter-Weasley clan. Out of the corner of her eye, Rose spotted a blur of scarlet rush past her. At the same time, a flash of green robes towards her right meant the Beaters had found a new target; they had angled their bats, pursuing the nearest Bludger and aiming it towards a blue-clad figure in the distance. Through the fog and rain, Rose recognized the familiar glint of blond hair and, without thinking, she leaned forward on her Firebolt and slammed hard into Doumar.
Scorpius Malfoy never showed up at the hospital wing to thank her.