A/N: Jeesh. This was the monster that ate my brain. One of three one-shot fics I have been working on since Fall of '08 that are all now over 7k words in length. I have edited and revised this one until I almost can't stand to read it again. When I started writing it in SEPTEMBER(!!!) and had not finished by December, I planned to post it for Valentine's Day, but I still had not finished. Nearly a month late, I say HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! =)
It is rated M to be on the safe side for some harsh language and sexual innuendo.
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Rose stared incredulously down at the sixth year in front of her. Geneva Ogden, Genny. Rose was a little on the small side, but Genny was still a good four inches shorter, and quite petite. Mostly, she was the complete opposite of Rose Weasley. She was charming, quiet, and very pretty with dark, straight hair and a flawless olive complexion. And she was Slytherin to boot.
Rose had been on her way back to Gryffindor tower after dinner when the staircases changed course and she wound up on the east wing of the third floor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
"Just the person I've been looking for," Genny said slyly as she'd hooked elbows with Rose and steered her away from the main corridor. Under normal circumstances, this might seem strange, but as of late, nothing was normal. Scorpius Malfoy, Rose's best friend outside of her family, had been dating Genny Ogden for nearly three weeks.
"What can I help you with?" Rose said, her voice sounding false to even her. She was certain that it was no secret that Genny gave Rose the creeps. It wasn't that she was a Slytherin, no her cousin Albus Potter and her best friend Scorpius had been in Slytherin for seven years now. Rose had come to grips with that. No, it wasn't that she was in Slytherin, it was her eyes. She always looked like a viper getting ready to strike.
Apparently, this was her moment.
"I've had a chat with our Head Boy," Genny said referring to Scorpius, "And he's agreed that it is better that you, uh, don't speak with him for a while. He's a bit too distracted when you're around."
After the initial shock, Rose snorted. "You can't be serious? Scorpius is my best friend."
"Well, not anymore. He's my boyfriend, and I don't want him around you." Genny hissed, narrowing her black eyes at Rose.
Rose fingered her wand debating whether or not to hex the girl. She couldn't be serious. And no way could Scorpius have gone along with this. Could he have?
"Stay away from him, Weasley," Genny said through tight lips.
"Bitch," Rose said as Genny sauntered away down the corridor. Surely this was a sick joke.
Rose met Scorpius nearly every evening in the library to study for NEWTs. She'd get ready as usual and he'd be there tonight. Just the same as always.
Only he wasn't. After half an hour of waiting, and trying to focus on the healing properties of the twenty most popular magical herbs, Rose gave up. She slammed her book shut and Madame Tinkerly glared from her position at the circulation desk. Rose gave the librarian a weak smile as she packed up her things.
"Where are you going?" Abus said from behind her.
She spun around so quick she almost lost her balance but was sorely disappointed to find her cousin alone. Rose sighed, "Back to the tower, I guess."
"Where's Scorpius?" Al asked.
Rose looked resolutely at the wall of books behind Al's head trying to keep a sneer off her face but failing miserably "Probably with Genny." How could she not sneer? This was the first night all term that they hadn't spent together. Sometimes they spent their nights together with friends in their common rooms, other times alone studying, or just walking around the grounds when it wasn't February and freezing. And of course, every Monday through Wednesday they had rounds together afterward.
"Yeah," Albus said raising his eyebrows. "Want to come back to the Common Room with me?"
"No thanks, I'll just head up to bed now."
"It's seven-thirty."
"To read… I'll just read," Rose sighed tucking a strand of her curly red hair behind her ear.
"Yeah, all right," Albus said frowning, "I'll walk you back to the tower then and see what Louis and Hugo are up to. " They walked in silence to the Gryffindor Common Room and Rose went straight up to bed.
Since Rose was Head Girl, she had her own quarters at the top of the stairs to the girl's dormitory. The lantern turned on as she entered the room casting a soft yellow glow across her desk where a little paper airplane zoomed back and forth. Her heart leapt with joy at the sight of it.
Sorry R, Gen needed help with Transfiguration. I'll make it up to you sometime, I promise. - Scorpius
It wasn't the letter she'd been hoping for and tears gathered in the corners of her eyes before she could stop them. She had been hoping that he'd apologize profusely and beg her forgiveness. It was silly. Honestly. She sat in her window seat and watched the snow fall outside the window for an hour before crawling into bed.
In the morning, she had new perspective. Who cared what Genny said? Just because they wanted something didn't mean she had to give it to them. She spent an extra ten minutes getting ready, putting on makeup and doing her hair. If Genny was jealous of her, Rose wanted to rub as much salt in the wound as she could after yesterday's little stunt. She felt vindictive.
In the great hall, she made her way to the Slytherin table like she did often while Genny glared at her. Rose sat down next to Albus, across from the pair.
"Morning Albus," she said with a cheerful smile.
"Hullo Rose," he replied passing her a platter of toast and jam.
Scorpius looked up and started to say something, but was cut off by a fierce glare from Rose. He resumed eating and did not look up until the end of the meal when they all left for their classes.
Al and Rose headed to the Care of Magical Creatures classroom while Scorpius walked Genny to Ancient Runes. "What was that about? Gen isn't that bad, I mean, he could be dating Rhonda Flint," Albus said in disgust.
Rose pursed her lips and glared at him, "She is that bad Al."
Albus shook his long black hair out of his face, "Really Rosie, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were jealous."
Rose blushed and looked away, "I am jealous, you great prat! But not in that way." She wasn't, was she? She was jealous because he was picking his girlfriend over his best friend. That was all it was, wasn't it? They gathered outside the classroom on the first floor and waited for Professor Hagrid to arrive. Scorpius showed up first and Rose pointedly ignored him.
"She's put out over your standing her up last night," Al informed him.
"I said I was sorry, Rosie," Scorpius said looking anywhere but at her face.
Rose snorted.
"What else do you want me to say? I think she needs time to adjust to us."
"Time to come to grips with reality? You shouldn't have to change because she thinks I am a threat," Rose huffed and turned her back on him missing the look of astonishment that crossed his face.
Throughout the day things grew more and more tense. The trio had planned most of their classes together and Rose sat between Albus and Scorpius in all but one. At lunch Al joined her at the Gryffindor table and at dinner he joined Scorpius at the Slytherin table giving Rose time to think. She wasn't sure exactly why she was reacting quite so strongly. Albus had ditched her quite frequently for one girl or another and she never reacted like this. Sure she had been a little hurt when Albus had ditched her
It was who he was with that was bothering her for sure. Genny was an insufferable twat. She actually had the audacity to tell Rose not to hang out with her best friend. To command it like Rose was below her. Then again, it seemed Scorpius had a hand in that as well. And now Genny was getting what she wanted if for no other reason than that Rose was so angry she couldn't speak to him. Not without saying something she would regret later anyway.
She finished her pudding and threw her fork down with a grunt causing her brother Hugo to raise his eyebrow at her. Rose stood abruptly and left The Great Hall. She heard someone call after her as the doors to the castle slammed behind her and she started to jog. She hadn't thought of the fact that it was snowing and cold when she'd chosen to head outside, only that she wanted some time alone. She conjured a fur cloak and wrapped it tightly around her while she moved. The snow was nearly up to her knees, but she ignored the biting cold as she trudged toward the frozen lake as fast as she could.
"Rose!" she heard him call again. It was Scorpius. The last person she wanted to see right now. He was panting when he reached her. "Wait up!"
Rose whipped around, her chin jutted out defiantly as she looked up at him. "What?"
"Whoa," he said taking a step back, "What is wrong with you today? I know I messed up last night, I should have let you know sooner that I wasn't going to be there, but I—"
"But you what? Figured you could just cast me aside for some trollop and I'd be totally okay with it?" she snarled.
"It isn't like that Rose. She's jealous of you, of us. You're beautiful and smart. She feels threatened by you. But you're one of the guys you know, my best mate, and she doesn't quite get that."
Rose felt like a hole had been ripped in her chest. One of the guys? She winced. "So you told her to what? Waylay me on the third floor and tell me that you didn't want to speak to me? You didn't have the bollocks to tell me yourself?"
"That's ridiculous," Scorpius said glaring at her.
"Is it? Then what was that about yesterday? Are you honestly telling me that you had no idea your girlfriend," she spat the word, "Tracked me down and warned me off?"
Scorpius' eyes were wide, "Of course I didn't! If I didn't want to talk to you, would I have chased you out of the castle into sub-zero?"
"Well then, maybe you'll just have to have a chat with her then, won't you?" Rose said, still glaring at him, "Because damn it Scorpius I am not backing off for that little tart."
"You needn't call her names," he sighed, "She's jealous, that's all. And yes, I will talk to Genny. I'll placate her and tell her there isn't a reason to be jealous."
Rose rubbed a spot in the center of her chest. Her throat was raw and she felt despondent. She was going to cry. "Yeah, no reason to be jealous of me. Sure," she agreed turning around, "Just go back up to the castle, I want to be alone for a while. "
Running his hands through his hair, Scorpius took a hesitant step toward her. "Rose, I didn't mean it like that. There is plenty of reason, I just—" He stopped, sighed, took off his cloak and added it to her conjured one."Look, don't stay out here too long, alright?"
And then he was gone and Rose was free to cry. She put her head in her hands and wept. Out of hurt, anger and confusion, she wept.
The next day was Saturday, February 12th and a Hogsmeade weekend. Albus was going with Jessica Duncan and Scorpius was going with Genny. If she didn't need a few supplies from the bookshop and hadn't been craving a warm Butterbeer and chocolate, Rose would have skipped the event entirely.
After breakfast, she returned to her dormitory to don her winter boots and cloak. She met her cousin Lily Potter, Albus' little sister, at the entry way. "This stinks," Lily said in greeting, "I mean Valentine's Day and I'm going to Hogsmeade with my cousin."
"Valentine's Day?" Rose moaned, "I'd completely forgotten about it."
"At least it isn't really Valentine's Day. I'd have to lock myself in a broom cupboard with a chocolate cake."
Rose snickered. "Right, you bring the cake and I'll bring the Firewhiskey."
"Boy troubles?"
"Something like that," Rose said solemnly as they followed a pair of fifth years holding hands down the path toward High Street.
Lily linked her arm through Rose's and tossed her long red hair over her shoulder, "At least your boyfriend wasn't snogging Michele Zabini behind a suit of armor three days before your one-year anniversary," Lily said pointed out consolingly, "Not that I minded getting rid of the fuckwit, but it kind of wounds one's self-confidence." And Rose could see how that might happen when Michele Zabini the teen model was involved.
Rose raised an eyebrow, "You didn't mind?"
"Of course I minded! I really liked him, but if he is going to go kissing other witches while we're dating, he's a fuckwit in my book," Lily said matter-of-factly.
"Mine too," Rose commiserated.
"Chocolate first?"
Rose nodded, "Definitely."
At noon, Lily went off with her friend April and Rose found a corner booth in the back at the Three Broomsticks. The place had fewer patrons than normal because Madam Puddinfoot's was undoubtedly the place to go for Valentine's Day. She shuddered in revulsion.
Her stomach flipped over when she noticed Scorpius come through the door alone. She almost called out to him before the door opened and Genny came slithering in behind him. They found a table cattycorner across the pub from her. Soon Albus made his way in with his date and they, too found a spot. Just as she thought none of them had noticed her, Genny caught her eye.
The Slytherin girl smirked and lifted one perfectly manicured eyebrow at her as she squirmed into Scorpius' lap and kissed him fully on the mouth. Rose sneered openly at the pair and gripped the bench until her knuckles where white. The bar maid stepped in front of them as she brought Rose's roast beef sandwich. Granted, she did not feel much like eating anymore, but it gave her a reason to look away and pretend not to care. But she did care. A bit too much for her peace of mind, actually.
When she was sure that Scorpius and his appendage had gone from the pub, Rose started to gather her parcels and was startled when Al sat down on the bench next to her. "Hullo Ms. Weasley," he said with a grin.
"Hey Al," Rose replied trying not to sound upset.
"Want to grab a drink with me and Malfoy over at the Hog's Head?"
"I don't think so—"
"We're ditching our birds for you, Rose. Come on, just one Firewhiskey," pleaded Albus.
"Oh, alright," she agreed while silently thinking that she could do with more than one.
Al took her bags, peeking in the one from Honeydukes Sweetshop. "Bloody Hell, woman! You've got enough chocolate in there to feed an orphanage for a week."
"If you're good, I might share," Rose said sliding out of the booth behind him.
As they walked down High Street, she linked arms with Al much the same way she had done with Lily on their way into town. He was her closest friend and confidant. "I love you, Al," she said putting her head on his shoulder.
"Oh don't go mushy on me now, Rose. I've had about all I can handle today." Rose snorted and Albus glared at her as he held the door to the Hog's Head open for her, "Being single has its perks, Rose. At least you didn't have someone dragging you into that horrid tea shop with those cupids." He shuddered dramatically.
Spotting Scorpius at the bar, she pulled Al toward him. Scorpius held out a stool for her and she climbed on it. "I would never, not in a thousand years, make some poor bloke go in that place," Rose said pursing her lips.
"That's because you aren't the romantic type, Rosie," Scorpius said holding his snifter up in salute, "And thank God for it."
Rose grimaced at him and ordered a round for herself. She downed the first in one go. The next followed shortly. "Happy Valentine's Day to me," she sang tossing back her third. He'd called her unromantic, and Rose took this to mean that she was incapable of inspiring romantic feelings in him. She glared at the unpolished surface of the bar in front of her still not sure why she should care. He was Scorpius, her best friend.
"At this rate, we're going to have to carry her back," Albus said to Scorpius with a laugh.
On her fifth Firewhiskey, the bartender cut her off. "You lot know I'm not supposed to let students drink, even if they are legal. Keep 'er outta trouble. She's right pissed, she is." the gruff old man said in warning.
"One more," Rose slurred reaching for Scorpius' drink and downing it completely before he could stop her.
He shook his head and frowned at Al over her head. "You have your cloak with you?"
She should have known better, and that was her last thought before she slumped onto the bar and passed out.
Nearly an hour later she woke up as Scorpius shifted her in his arms, "It's just me Rosie," he said next to her ear. She lifted her head from his shoulder and mumbled something.
"What?"
"Why do you always call me Rosie? Only you and Dad call me that."
"I dunno," he answered with a grunt. They'd gone in through the tunnel at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Rose recognized the passageway immediately. It had been connected to the tunnel from the cellar at Honeydukes' some twenty years ago when her uncle had purchased the building. And no one but family and Scorpius—who might as well have been family—knew of its existence.
"I love you Scrop…Sco-r-pius," she said sounding his name out. She felt him stiffen. With a small giggle and a deep breath, she settled back into his embrace. Then she heard Al's voice ahead of them.
"Don't worry, mate, she said the same thing to me earlier."
Scorpius cleared his throat, "Was she, uh, nibbling on your neck too then?"
"Bloody Hell," Albus swore. Rose giggled again. "Rose, knock it off, you're gonna give poor Malfoy a trouser tent."
"She will not," Scorpius denied quickly.
"See 'sno problem then," Rose said with some gusto and nipped at a particularly sensitive place just under his ear. Scorpius groaned.
Albus snickered, "Should I leave you two alone?"
"Yes."
"No!" they answered at the same time sending Albus into a fit of laughter. "Let's just get her back. Quickly," Scorpius said somewhat panicked. The last thing Rose was aware of was the silky feel of Al putting the invisibility cloak over her, and the feel of Scorpius' warm arms around her.
When she woke next, Rose felt awful. Her mouth tasted like something had died in it, and behind her eyes felt like a thousand Hippogriffs rampaging. It was mercifully dark… wherever she was. For she knew it wasn't her own room that she was sleeping in. The bed smelled wrong, and even at nighttime, her room was never quite this void of light.
Someone moved on the bed next to her and she sat up quickly.
"Rose?" Al said, "You okay?"
Rose shook her head, though she doubted he could see her, before she ripped open the bed hangings and vomited over the edge of the bed. She felt Al gathering her hair as she wretched. He lit his wand and searched out the glass of water on the bedside table.
"Sorry 'bout that," she said, her voice was sandpapery.
"S'ok. It's Malfoy's room, not mine."
"Where is Scorpius?" she asked, suddenly feeling stupid. She could vaguely remember kissing his neck, but wasn't sure if it was real lustful imaginings of a deranged mind. Ugh.
"He took my bed. He didn't want to leave you alone, but I insisted it wouldn't be proper if he slept here with you," Albus said.
Rose opened her eyes again, squinting in the wand light. "Thanks for protecting my honor, dear cousin. You wouldn't happen to know if he has any Pepperup Potion around here, would you? I feel like I've got a bull elephant tap dancing behind my eyes."
"I'll have a look, but then we've got to talk."
The sound of Albus rummaging through Scorpius' bathroom made her wince in pain. She rubbed her temples in a circular motion.
"Good news," Al said brightly passing her a small vial of potion. Rose uncorked the vial and poured it into her mouth, swishing. After a moment, her ears started steaming.
"What time is it?" Rose wanted to know.
"I'd say its sometime after midnight."
Rose sighed, "I should probably stay here rather than trying to pick my way back to the tower without getting caught."
Albus shifted and glanced down at his lap pensively. After a moment he spoke, "I don't know how to say this, so I might as well just come out with it," he took a deep breath, "Do you fancy Malfoy?"
Rose's eyebrows rose in shock. From experience she knew there was no point trying to lie to Albus, he was the only person who could see right through it. "I'm confused about it," she said truthfully. "I didn't think I did, but when that tramp cornered me and demanded I not talk to him, I was livid."
"She did what?" Albus said furrowing his brow.
"At first I thought I felt this way because he was my best friend (and how dare that girl try to keep me away from my best friend). The more I considered it, the more I realized that she had every right to be jealous of me," Rose said miserably twisting her robes in her hands. "We used to do everything together, Al. And I never realized he meant so much to me, but now that we aren't doing everything together, I miss him so much. It's only been a couple weeks, but I just can't bear it. And before they kissed today… She turned and smirked at me and I wanted to rip her perfect lips off her perfect face and shove them up her perfect little—"
"Rose, calm down." Taking her shoulders in his hands Al said, "I'm only asking because after your sixth Firewhiskey tonight you said and did some things that you might regret. And if there was any truth behind them, we've got to figure this out."
She put her head in her hands. "Oh God," she moaned, "How bad was it Al? I didn't puke on him, did I?"
Al laughed nervously, "You may have wished you had, Rose. You sort of told him you loved him."
Laughing Rose sighed in relief, "Is that all? I tell you guys I love you all the time."
"You were sort of, um, 'nibbling' on his neck while when you said it. Scorpius was walking with a limp the whole way back from Hogsmeade," Al said with a snort.
"I did not. He wasn't!"
"I'm afraid you did, dearest," Al said with concern, "And he most certainly was."
"Oh Hell, Al. What am I going to do?"
"The way I see it, you've really got two options. Either come clean, or pretend it didn't happen. I'd suggest telling him."
Rose glared, "You would."
Eventually, Al fell asleep with his head at the foot of the bed. After some tossing and turning, Rose too fell into a restless sleep.
"Eugh!" Rose said waking up with Albus' toes directly under her nose. She shoved his feet away from her face and groaned. She still felt like complete shite, though her ears had stopped steaming at some point during her hours of sleep. Apparently the Pepperup Potion only worked short term on a hangover. Her tongue still felt like leather and her eyes were throbbing again. Al snorted in his sleep and Rose pushed up to a sitting position. Surely no one would mind if she took a quick shower before heading back to her own quarters. She stripped out of her robes in the bathroom and did a quick cleaning charm on them. The steam would take the wrinkles out if she stayed in long enough.
Scorpius personal bathroom looked very much like her bath except that the tile was done in pale green instead of butter yellow. It was small and tidy, and smelled very much like her best friend. She adjusted the tap and stumbled under the spray. The feel of hot water was so lovely and rejuvenating, Rose thought as she let the warmth soak into her skin. She lathered some of Scorpius' expensive soap in her hands and inhaled the spicy scent.
When she had finished, Rose quickly got dressed and piled her wet hair on top of her head. Noting that it was eight o'clock, and Al was still sleeping, she decided to just leave. She'd catch up and thank him and Malfoy for getting her back to the castle later. She still hadn't decided on her course of action where Scorpius was concerned.
As Rose trudged down the hall toward the Slytherin Common Room, she looked up just in time to see an irate pair of black eyes and a red flash of light as Genny sent a curse toward her.
"Stupid bint!" Rose yelled angrily as she stood from her tuck and roll, pulling her wand. Her bum was going to be bruised tomorrow from that maneuver. "What's up your ass?"
"You couldn't just stay away from him?" the angry sixth year yelled at her eying the door Rose had just come from, "You have to sleep with him right under my nose, in my own house?" By now, Rose had cottoned on to the fact that Genny had caught her coming from Scorpius Malfoy's private quarters at eight in the morning looking freshly showered. "Is that where he snuck off to yesterday in Hogsmeade, to fuck his WHORE?" she yelled.
Rose dodged another curse and squealed as a painting fell off the wall in front of her. Heads were poking out of every doorway along the corridor. Rose thought it almost amusing as she glared at Genny that she, Rose Weasley of all people, was being called Scorpius' whore.
A shirtless Scorpius Malfoy came from a door behind Rose, the seventh year boy's dormitory and pushed Rose behind him. His wand was raised toward his girlfriend. Genny was too engrossed with her accusation to notice where he'd come from. Albus, on the other hand, was busy clutching the doorframe laughing heartily at the situation.
"Don't you dare call Rosie a whore, Geneva," Scorpius said in a very low, dangerous voice that gave Rose gooseflesh. "Everybody go back to your dormitories. Now!" he commanded. All the doors along the hall snapped shut save for the one where Albus was still keeled over sniggering. A gaggle of girls who'd heard the commotion scattered at the end of the hallway. Rose saw the flesh several flesh colored strings come out from underneath the doors, and one around the corner. She rolled her eyes skyward.
"Rose, explain," Scorpius said over his shoulder. She really tried not to gawk at his state of undress, but she could feel her face heating nonetheless as she glanced at his torso. She'd seen it a hundred times when they'd gone swimming at the lake, or in his family's pool, but never had she wanted to run her hands down his chest and trail her touch with kisses. Merlin.
Rose looked back to Albus who had his fist stuffed in his mouth. "Shut it, you prat!" she growled at him, only causing him to laugh harder. She huffed indignantly and turned back to face Genny. She narrowed her eyes. "I got pissed yesterday and couldn't walk home from Hogsmeade."
"And?" Scorpius prompted with a slight smirk.
"And they threw me in Scorpius' room to sleep it off. End of story."
"I don't believe you," the sixth year said, but lowered her wand anyway.
Rose took the opportunity and struck out casting a very angry, silent Bat Bogey hex. Albus couldn't hold it together any longer and fell to the ground shuddering with mirth while Genny screamed that Rose was trying to kill her. "Damn nutter," Rose said glaring at the girl who was currently being attacked by very large, very sticky bogeys.
"Rosie," Scorpius warned.
She glared at his naked chest, "This is your fault."
"My fault?" Scorpius said disbelievingly.
"Shut up, Al!" they turned and yelled at him in unison. Al closed the door, but they could still hear him guffawing on the other side. Rose rolled her eyes and cast a silencing charm at the shrieking Genny before rounding on Scorpius.
"If you didn't date such barmy girls, we wouldn't have this problem!"
"Girls are all barmy, if you ask me!" he retorted throwing his hands up in the air.
"Not all of us are," Rose said huffily.
"Is that right?"
"Yes," she yelled back at him.
"Then what was that all about yesterday, Rose? Huh? Because getting sloshed during a Hogsmeade visit and having to carry you back to the castle while you—well it was pretty damn crazy! You're head girl, for Merlin's sake!" he yelled.
Rose crossed her arms over her chest defiantly refusing to admit that she had been wrong. She was trying desperately not to cry. "I had a lot on my mind, and you know what, Malfoy? If you can't get over yourself and see…see…" she swiped angrily at her eyes with the back of her hand. "Oh never mind, you're as blind as a bat you could never see anything. You're a typical, pigheaded male. You and your psychotic bint can just piss off for all I care!" Rose pushed past him muttering angrily.
"I'm blind?" she heard him yell just before the common room door swung shut behind her.
She was crying freely by the time she got to the main floor. Breakfast was in full swing, but Rose opted for an abandoned classroom instead of facing anyone. She'd just settled on a dusty desk when the door creaked and her cousin Lily poked her head in.
"I saw you come through, are you okay?" Lily asked awkwardly as she squeezed through the crack and closed the door quietly behind her.
"Dandy," Rose said through tears.
Lily laughed, "I can see that."
"I just hexed Geneva Ogden."
"Good on you," Lily said with a grin, "She had it coming."
Rose shook her head, "You don't even know the half of it." When Rose was done with her tale, Lily stared at her wide-eyed in shock.
"You were sucking on Malfoy's neck?"
"Nibbling," Rose corrected miserably.
Lily laughed. "I mean I saw this coming eventually, but Merlin, Rose, what a way to go about letting him know you're interested!"
"What do you mean you saw this coming?" Rose said furrowing her eyebrows.
Lily blushed, "I'm not really supposed to say anything."
"Lils," Rose warned her, "I'm not in the mood for you and your secret keeping."
"I promised, Rose. And you know I don't break promises."
"And most of the time, I love that about you," Rose sighed.
"But not right now," Lily stated. Rose shook her head. "But you understand, don't you?"
Rose sighed, "Of course I do."
"Good. We'll go warm up in the kitchens with hot chocolate and some breakfast," Lilly said rubbing her hands together.
Several hours later, Rose was pacing the rug in her chamber. On one hand, she could tell Scorpius how she felt and face grave embarrassment. On the other, she could completely ignore what she'd done and go on pretending she didn't feel the way she did.
A movement caught the corner of her eye and she turned just in time to see a paper airplane zoom across to her desk. Her hear skipped a beat. Surely it was a reprimand for yesterday's behavior. Or today's, she grimaced.
At least it wasn't a howler. She could be grateful for that.
R, I know you are avoiding me. Meet me at the Gryffindor table for dinner. – Scorpius
She bit her lip. Dinner was only an hour away, and Rose had been avoiding him all day. Earlier Albus had brought her parcels up to the tower for her and rather than going down to lunch, Rose had gorged on chocolates. The resulting tummy ache had given her little pause. She had been fully prepared to do it again at dinnertime.
Rose dressed carefully while fruitlessly considering blowing him off. But no matter what he did, or had to say, Rose couldn't stand up her best friend. She'd chosen a black turtleneck and ankle-length graphite colored duster with her favorite pair of black corduroy jeans. She tried to scrub all traces of tears from her face and carefully applied a little makeup. Her eyes were still a bit puffy, but it would have to do.
Taking a deep breath, Rose stepped out of her dormitory and made her way to The Great Hall. Dinner wasn't to start for another fifteen minutes, but already the hall was buzzing with conversation. All faces at the Slytherin table turned toward her when she entered. Some were glaring and others smirking. Rose pursed her lips turning her attention to the Gryffindor table.
It was relatively empty save for a group of younger students at one end who were studying for an upcoming exam. She made her way to her normal spot and waited. The hall filled quickly, but without sign of Scorpius or Al—or Genny for that matter. Lily and Hugo sat across from her and chatted amicably about the weather and snowball fights. Soon conversation turned to school. They had OWLs coming up and Rose regaled them with a tale of her stress during the final weeks of fifth year. She'd had to go see the matron in the hospital wing four times before the tests had finished.
Distractedly, Rose piled another spoonful of potatoes on her plate and topped them with gravy from the baked ham. The dull roar of the hall buzzed along in her ears.
"Hey Lily, Hugh," Rose heard Scorpius say as he sat down next to her, bumping her shoulder in greeting. Albus sat down on his other side and glared straight ahead.
Lily raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Hugo, however tactless, kicked Al's leg, "What's got your knickers in a twist, mate?"
Albus mumbled and glared at Rose's brother as he slammed a pile of mashed potatoes on his plate. Scorpius said nothing. Being ever cheerful, he poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice and topped off Rose's, then filled his own plate. "Sorry we're late Rosie. Al and I were having a discussion," he said bumping his knee against Rose's for emphasis.
Instead of making her laugh, like it normally would have, Rose felt her pulse speed up. She swallowed with difficulty and nodded, "'S okay." Scorpius grinned at her and started eating while Al stabbed angrily at his own meal. Rose couldn't help but wonder what their discussion had been about. She soon forgot about it as pudding was served, the rich scent of spices and vanilla enticing her appetite.
Scorpius' voice broke her transfixion on dessert, "Do you want to study tonight Rosie? Or we could just fool around a bit." Al choked on his pumpkin juice and Scorpius turned to him frowning, "All right?"
"Yeah," Abus squeaked.
Rose cocked her head to the side in thought, "The library, I think. I haven't been in a couple days," she said with slight accusation.
"Thank God," Al mumbled under his breath.
Scorpius shoveled down his meal quickly and offered his arm to Rose when she'd finished her pudding, "We'll just run down and get my notes. We've got an essay due in potions later this week." She took his arm with a hesitant smile and left out of the hall with him. She often walked like this between Al and Scorpius, or just Al alone. Rarely, however had she linked her arm with just Scorpius, lest he get the wrong impression. Rose chided herself within. Perhaps, if she had realized her feelings sooner, they could have walked like this more often and he would have gotten the wrong impression—which was really the right one. She shook her head. How confusing.
When they had settled in their favorite corner of the library Rose gathered up the courage and asked with faux concern, "Is Genny okay? I think I cast that hex rather forcefully." And I almost feel bad about it, Rose added to herself.
"I suspect she is," Scorpius said with a scowl marring his features. Rose raised her eyebrows in question, "I, uh, haven't spoken with her since she called my best mate a rather unfortunate name."
Rose hesitated and then smiled tentatively. "I wouldn't want to get in the way… I'm sorry about the things I've said. I know it's been hard for you being in this situation."
"Don't worry about it. I wasn't too serious about her anyway—she was a distraction," Scorpius said shuffling through his notes.
She smothered a laugh behind her hand causing Scorpius to look up in question. "It's just funny, that's all. When she cornered me the other day she said that I was the distraction."
"Perhaps," he said, his lips twitching at the corners. Both were careful not to mention the incident from the day before, and Rose was grateful for his discretion. She'd probably die of embarrassment if he brought it up.
The chatter died down quickly as both became engrossed in their schoolwork. When passing the single set of notes back and forth across the table became tiring, Scorpius moved to the chair next to Rose so they could share more easily. She was eventually so distracted by the press of his leg against hers that she favored pretending to read an exceedingly dull potions reference over actually attempting to write. It was easier to feign interest by flipping a page every couple minutes.
"Done," Scorpius said with a grin. Rose sent a glare in his direction. It was entirely unfair that he should be able to concentrate while she could scarcely form a coherent thought about the weather, let alone NEWT level potions, with him so close. He looked at his watch and said, "It's about time for Madame Tinkerly to come 'round and tell us to get out. I'll walk you back to your common room."
She stretched as she stood up. "I am feeling rather tired," Rose admitted.
"It's been a rough day," Scorpius conceded, his mouth twisting ruefully. Rose elbowed him in good humor and he took the opportunity to link arms with her again. They walked back to Gryffindor Tower sharing jokes and laughing.
Upon arriving they paused outside the portrait hole. Scorpius turned to Rose and smiled sadly, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry Rosie. I never meant to push you away, honestly. But sometimes—" He trailed off reaching out and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. Rose could feel the blood rushing into her cheeks and swore mentally at her fair complexion. "Sometimes it is difficult to be around you."
Rose gasped. She had not been expecting that low-blow and she was feeling a suspicious sting behind her eyes that could only mean one thing. She turned to the portrait hole.
"Wait!" he reached for her hand almost frantically and pulled her back. "That isn't what I meant. I can't seem to say anything without making an ass of myself!" Letting out a breath slowly Scorpius said, "What I meant to say is that you are my best friend. And sometimes it is difficult being best friends with such a beautiful and intelligent witch. You make everyone else look bad."
Blushing, Rose averted her eyes and murmured a thank you. Scorpius gave her a quick hug and a kiss on the forehead, "I really mean that. I am sorry. It won't ever happen again," he said, his gray eyes burning with sincerity as he looked down at a bewildered Rose. She was not entirely sure how to respond to that, or to the intensity in which he looked at her. So she bid him goodnight meeting his gaze through her lashes.
"Goodnight, Rosie."
The next morning Rose got up before the sun (or clouds as was usually the case) and prepared for Transfiguration class. She revised last week's notes over a quick cup of tea before taking a shower and, with painstaking care, getting dressed for the day. She'd never really cared what she wore before this whole thing with Scorpius. The truth of the matter was that she'd never been overly interested in boys other than as friends.
Rose had gone to Hogsmeade with a couple boys throughout the years but only as friends. And she'd made that outstandingly clear from the start. Once she had gone with one of her cousin James' friends and then with Uncle Lee's son Phillip Jordan—who wasn't really related to her at all. Both times had been pleasant, but Rose had never felt that spark. She'd often wondered what her dorm mates were speaking of when they talked about a sizzle, or chemistry, but hadn't ever considered she had known all along.
He and Scorpius had met shortly after the first day of school when they were eleven. Scorpius was her cousin Al's roommate and Al had always been her best friend seeing as they were so close in age. It was only natural that she and Scorpius would become fast friends as well. Since he'd always been there, the building of that spark had been gradual up to the point where now she had noticed its presence it was more like one of her Uncle George's fireworks going off every time they touched.
And when he'd kissed her forehead last night… Rose physically swooned at the mere thought of it. Her skin had burned and an unfamiliar feeling had risen in her. She'd wanted to press against him and kiss him for all she was worth.
Rose chose her newest set of school robes. Unfortunately they weren't very flattering. In fact, they were quite drab. Looking at herself critically in the mirror she waved her wand and cinched the robes a little to give them a waist. Why didn't I care before? Rose thought angrily at herself. Surely the seamstress in the shop could have done more with these boring black robes than letting them hang flat from her shoulders. She harrumphed at her reflection feeling decidedly unhappy with it and left the room.
It took nearly half her trip to The Great Hall for Rose to notice something was amiss. The students she encountered in the hallway were chattering with enthusiasm and delight. Rose had the distinct impression that she was missing something. It was only Monday, after all. She furrowed her brow, but continued down the stairs. It wasn't until she reached the entry hall that it all became clear.
There were little cupids fluttering about waiting to deliver their messages. Rose groaned at the scene before her as she entered to breakfast. There were couples everywhere sitting closer than usual, their heads pressed together. Albus was sitting at his house table where his girlfriend, Jessica had joined him. She made her way to Gryffindor table where she found Scorpius sitting across from Lily, Hugo and Hugo's girlfriend who—thank Merlin—were not being overly affectionate.
The table was spread with all sorts of breakfast treats, cherry Danishes, current muffins and some sort of hot cereal that had been dyed red. "Here's one thing to say for Valentine's Day," Rose said taking a bite of Danish.
Lily laughed and agreed heartily, "Here's to gaining a couple kilos by nightfall!" Lily said raising a mug of hot tea in a salute. Rose followed suit and Scorpius laughed.
"It's not so bad," he said grinning, "Being single on Valentine's Day, I mean."
Rose shot him a glare, "Spoken like a true male."
"What?" he said feigning hurt, "Poor Albus is stuck over there with just one pretty witch, and I've got two." He sent Rose a rakish grin and she rolled her eyes, avoiding the pang of jealousy she felt in her chest.
Lily giggled and cast a meaningful look at them. "This pretty witch needs to cram for her Charms exam," Lily said tucking a second muffin in a napkin and standing.
"Later Lils," Rose said feeling annoyingly relieved that the second witch in the pretty duo had gone away. She felt downright possessive. What was wrong with her?
"Yeah, good luck and all that," Scorpius added. Lily waved back over her shoulder and left The Great Hall. Turning to Rose, he said, "Did you finish that Potions essay last night?"
Her cheeks reddened, "No, I haven't finished it yet."
"You can look over mine if you want."
"Maybe," she responded, distracted as the morning post came through. Three owls swooped down at her, two of which she recognized immediately as belonging to her parents. They each had two parcels attached to them. The third owl was a strange white owl she'd never seen before and had a long, white box attached. She quickly relieved them of their burdens and broke off pieces of her pastry for them.
Hugo sorted through the post for his two packages. Mum always sent books, usually the fun variety, and Dad always sent chocolate. It was tradition. When she'd shooed the owls, Scorpius was already tearing at the package from her dad. "Hey!" Rose said slapping at his hands and laughing. She couldn't help but notice that, as usual, his parents did not send him anything on Valentine's Day. From what she knew, he got on well with his family, but they just weren't the frivolous sort. His mum would send him baked goods once in a while, but never for a hopeless holiday like St. Valentine's Day.
"Come on, Rosie, you know you always share with me anyway," he pouted.
"Oh, fine," she relented, distracted by the long white package. She thought maybe it was from her Granddad. Scorpius' eyes lit up as he tore the rest of the way into the parcel, and Rose couldn't help her heart beating faster.
She ripped through the outer lining and then the seal holding the box closed. Inside were a dozen long stemmed red roses. Rose gasped and lifted them from the box. She lifted them to her face and breathed deeply. The petals felt like red velvet against her cheek and they were as sweet smelling as the roses in her grandmum's garden.
"Who are they from?" Hugo wanted to know.
"I can't find a card," she said frowning and rooting through the tissue. "Who on earth could be sending me a dozen roses?"
Scorpius knit his brow, "There isn't a full dozen."
"Huh?" Hugo and Rose said at the same time.
He looked at the roses and was apparently counting, "There are only eleven."
"Rubbish," Rose said grinning, "Who cares? Aren't they beautiful?"
"I bet dad sent them," Hugo said.
"Way to ruin my fantasy," she said sticking her tongue out at her brother.
"Fantasy?" Scorpius asked quirking his eyebrow.
Rose blushed deeply, "Secret admirer and all that nonsense."
He laughed sending tingles down her spine. "Rose Weasley goes to mush at the sight of flowers. Who'd have thought?"
"Should have thought of it sooner," Hugo piped up, "Might have made her a bit easier to live with." His girlfriend who'd been chatting to her friend on her other side pinched his arm hard and hissed, "Insensitive cad!"
"You want to run those back to your dorm before class?" Scorpius asked.
"We probably should," Rose said biting her lip. Something was nagging at her. While she was entirely thrilled to receive the attention of someone enough to send her roses, she felt a little letdown. Why couldn't they have been from Scorpius? And since they weren't from him, couldn't he have at least been a little offended that someone had sent her such an extravagant arrangement, albeit a little odd. Who'd ever heard of sending eleven roses?
Scorpius stood and took her book bag over his shoulder. She gathered her flowers, remaining chocolates and unopened books in her arms. Al caught her eye with a questioning glance across hall. She shrugged in bewilderment.
The day went by slowly. Rose did look at Scorpius' potions essay during lunch and finished hers quickly just before the class started. It was probably her worst essay ever. And it was certainly the most rushed, but she'd had other things on her mind.
Her changing relationship with Scorpius was odd, but entirely welcomed. He walked with her to class, their arms linked intimately while Albus straggled along next to them. Al's mood was another puzzling bit. He seemed entirely put out at Scorpius for something, but Rose couldn't drag it out of him. She assumed they'd had some sort of house altercation, or maybe an argument about Quidditch? But she didn't worry about it too much. Their tiffs always blew over like the wind.
After dinner, Rose ran back up to her dorm. She had rounds tonight, and the weather was becoming increasingly wild. It was cold, and the teachers had been discussing possibility of a blizzard for days now. The air crackled in the castle as the temperatures dropped. She thought with all the powerful witches and wizards around that they might have managed to heat the entire castle rather than just the dorms and classrooms.
Rose stuffed her legs into a second pair of pants and pulled on an old Weasley jumper that had belonged to her father. It was huge on her and the elbow was patched. She pulled a ridiculously colored knit hat on her hair and stuffed her wool-socked feet into her snow boots. Glancing at the vase of roses on her desk, she mused that Valentine's Day hadn't been so bad after all. Sure she was single, but she'd spent the day with Scorpius, and she had a secret admirer (or a really sweet father). Rose was betting on the latter of the two.
She carried her cloak and a pair of mittens down to the common room. She was meeting Scorpius to do rounds in ten minutes. They had the out of bounds places to patrol tonight, since it was Valentine's Day. They were bound to find lots of couples snogging and getting up to no good tonight.
He met her outside the portrait hole to Gryffindor Tower and she finished bundling up. He didn't look like he had on nearly enough clothes. His black robes and wool cloak were perfectly pressed. He wore a black scarf and hat that looked expensive and soft. His face broke into a grin when he saw her. They instinctively linked arms and made their way down to the first floor. "We'll start in the far corner of the dungeon and work our way up," he suggested needlessly. It was what they always did.
When they heard noises, they opened cupboards and peered inside. They were on the third floor before they actually found anything.
"Did you hear that?" Scorpius whispered.
Rose shook her head. She hadn't heard anything. Scorpius was looking intently down a dark hallway off the main corridor. She noticed that he was trying not to smile. He usually got a kick out of breaking up snogging fests. Though, she'd almost hoped they wouldn't find anyone tonight. Everyone—except maybe Genny Ogden—deserved Valentine's Day. Scorpius had been so wrong. Rose was a romantic. She may not drag some poor bloke to Madam Puddinfoot's Tea shop, but she was definitely a romantic.
When Scorpius took her mittened hand and led her down the cold, dark hallway, Rose's heart leapt into her throat. He hadn't held her hand since they were eleven. They'd often drug one another around by the hand until her older cousins had started teasing them about it.
He stopped just outside a door and held his finger to his lips. It was odd, Rose didn't remember there ever being a broom cupboard here, but Scorpius thought he'd heard something, so she squared her shoulders.
"One, two, three!" Scorpius mouthed and he wrenched the door open.
Rose stood, staring, mouth open in shock. It wasn't a broom cupboard, but a small storage room. It had been cleaned and decorated for Valentine's Day. The room was glowing with candles, and in the center was a small covered in white rose petals and a single long-stemmed red rose. The missing rose.
Rose had a minor "Aha!" moment, and then she felt Scorpius squeeze her hand. Her eyes slid to him and took in his uneasy smile.
"I sent the roses," he said quietly.
"I just figured that out," Rose replied. She moved tentatively closer to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him. Even through her layers of clothing she could feel the zing of energy that assaulted her and the warmth bubbling up inside her.
"I had Albus set this up… He thought I was trying to take advantage of you." Scorpius laughed nervously against her hair.
"That what the fight was about?"
"Yeah. He demanded I state my intentions… And he was angry because I hadn't confided in him. I thought everyone knew." Rose could almost hear him roll his eyes skyward. "I've liked you for a long time," Scorpius said hurriedly. "Since fourth year when I spent the Summer with you and Albus. Lily caught me writing your name in hearts that summer and I made her swear not to tell anyone."
"I'm sorry," she said miserably.
"Sorry?" he pulled back and looked at her worriedly, "I thought you—"
"I'm sorry it took me so long to figure it out," Rose amended quickly. "We could have had so much longer."
"Don't think about that. We have now." Scorpius pulled her close again and sidled them into the room closing the door behind. "If you hadn't figured it out, I probably would have asked you out after we graduated regardless."
"Why after we graduated?" Rose asked. The warmth of the room and Scorpius were seeping into her skin. She shifted so she could look up at him again.
"Because I wouldn't have had to see you every day. It wouldn't be as bloody awkward if you rejected me," he said looking at her seriously. "I know you would have been gracious about it, but I don't know that I could stand to see you every day knowing for sure that you didn't feel this."
Rose nodded biting her lip. "If this doesn't work out…"
He groaned, "Don't, Rosie…"
"If this doesn't work out," she continued, "promise me, Scorpius, we'll still be friends. I couldn't live without you. These last couple weeks have been completely wretched."
"Tell me about it…" Scorpius mumbled, catching her face between his gloved hands. His lips met hers tentatively at first, their gazes locked. Slowly, as she opened her mouth to taste him, her eyelids fluttered shut. He slipped an arm around her waist and pulled her flush against his body. Their tongues met and Rose felt her mind go blank. Scorpius fisted her hair and she made an encouraging noise in the back of her throat.
He pulled back too soon, breathing heavily. The intensity in his look shocked her. "We will always be friends," he said fiercely.
As Rose's eyes met his she knew it was true. "Always," she echoed faintly before her lips crashed against his once more.
Always.