A BEGINNING OF SORTS

The thunder rumbled through the grounds, passing a struggling tree, a vast lake with a tentacle sticking out, and a tall goal post stretching into the air. Lightning illuminated the dark sky, and the flash of light made the boy waiting on the field even more irritable. He had clearly stated that Quidditch practice would start at 7 PM on the dot, and it was now 7:05. He ran a hand through his auburn hair, and couldn't help the shout that escaped his mouth,

"WHERE IS ROSE!?"

A young girl with fire-red hair and brown eyes walked out of the locker room, and laughed. She walked toward her brother, shaking her head sarcastically on the way. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder. She tried to conceal her smile, but couldn't quite manage the sympathetic tone she was aiming for as she said,

"It's ok, James. She's probably just at the library or studying in the common room. Relax; she'll be here soon."

James whipped around to look at her. He practically growled, "Quidditch before everything. She should know that!"

Lily rolled her eyes, muttered something under her breath, and walked toward the castle. James shouted after her, the veins on his neck throbbing. Lily threw back loftily, "I'm going to look for Rose, start practice without me!" James grumpily turned his back on her just as the rest of the Quidditch team walked out of the locker room. Among the group was James and Lily's brother, Albus. He glanced at Lily's retreating form, and then at James' disgruntled face. James noticed, but he only shook his head and Albus shrugged. Whatever had happened, he didn't want to be in the middle of it. He'd had enough of Lily and James' arguments to last a lifetime.

Inside the castle, Lily made her way through winding halls and tall staircases in search of her cousin. As was her nature, she was distracted along the way by conversations. She chatted with whoever came her way, and only as a second thought did she ask about Rose. It didn't matter much, since Rose was exactly where Lily had suspected; the library. She found Rose with her nose in a book, notebooks and paper scattered around her. She was sitting at a table by the window, and across from her sat a blonde, bored girl. Her hair was in her hand and she twirled it absentmindedly. Her eyes fell upon Lily, and they immediately brightened.

"Lily! My savior! You have arrived!" She exclaimed, earning her a sharp look from Rose. She did not like to be interrupted. She then turned to greet Lily, but gasped suddenly when she saw Lily clad in her Quidditch uniform.

"Oh Mother of Merlin! I'm dead, aren't I?" Rose then proceeded to slam her head on the table.

"Completely and utterly deceased, I'm afraid. Hey, Dom!" Lily smiled in the blonde's direction, and plopped herself down onto an empty chair. "What's cooking good-looking?"

Dom rolled her eyes, but nonetheless began a long-winded explanation of her day. "Well, when I went to breakfast this morning I discovered that my shirt's button had popped, so I had to go back up to the dorms and fetch a new shirt, and that made me late for class. Longbottom wasn't pleased with my lateness, and told me that I needed to make sure truancy did no become a habit, especially since my grades weren't 'up to par'. Of course, I replied in a sweet manner that I was working on that, and to prove it, I told him Rose was tutoring me every Thursday afternoon. He was skeptical, and said that he'd just have to check in on us during our study session today, so here I am, bored out of my wits and Longbottom hasn't even poked his head around here once."

Lily couldn't bring herself to sympathize with Dom, knowing that the first part of her story was likely fictitious. A shirt button could have been fixed easily with a simple charm. Besides, it was common knowledge that Dom hated Herbology. This wasn't the first time she had missed that class. Still, Lily nodded empathetically once Dom had finished her tale.

"So, should we head out? I left James pretty pissed back on the field…" Lily directed this at Rose, who had begun to pack, but got distracted by one of the books.

"Oh, yeah. Sure. I'm going." Rose replied, and continued to hastily pack her bag. She stood quickly, and waved goodbye to Dom as she and Lily headed out the door. Dom waved back, but seemed a little miffed at being left alone.

"Alright guys, as a consequence for the late arrivers, everyone has to run 10 laps around the field." Everyone moaned at James' announcement, already wet from the rain and sweat.

"Hey, be glad I'm feeling merciful and that's all you have to run. Now move people, move, move, move!''

James began to sprint along with his team members, all at different exhaustion levels. They couldn't say they were surprised, though. James always added extra laps at the end of each practice for whatever reason popped into his head. Either the chasers weren't connected enough, the seeker was letting his mind roam too much, or everyone was flying with a slight tilt to the right. They grew used to all the running, but that didn't mean they particularly enjoyed it. The only one who appreciated the challenge was Lily, who was eager to beat James as the first one to finish.

Lily and James had what some people called an unhealthy addiction to winning. Whatever obstacle put in their way, their minds were set on destroying it. Lily was the top student in 4th year, and James the top in 7th. Lily was the best Chaser the Gryffindor team had seen in years, and James was the best Beater. They both enjoyed success, and worked ridiculously hard to achieve it. That is why there was an unspoken rivalry between the eldest and youngest Potter. And there on that field, for the 30th time that year, Lily and James were head to head on the last lap of the set.

Lily could feel her calves ache, and though she was moments from collapsing, she couldn't let James win again. His breath came in trembling puffs, but he wasn't quitting anytime soon, and neither was Lily. Lily picked up speed in a burst of motivation, and edged a bit ahead of James. James wasn't about to let his kid sister beat him, not a chance. He willed himself too run faster, make his strides longer, and then, it was over. They passed the locker room for the 10th time, and James was once again the first one done. Lily was just seconds behind him.

"I…hate…you!" Lily spluttered, her hands on her knees. James grinned down at her, though he was breathing hard himself.

"Better luck…next time…sis"

By then, the rest of the team had finished their laps as well. Rose tripped over her shoes and knocked over Jaime Wood, who was trying to catch her breath on the ground. They squeaked in pain, and Albus laughed at them until he tripped over Rose's head himself. The rest of the team laughed between sharp intakes of breath.

"Okay team that was a great practice! We will definitely beat Ravenclaw on the first match of the season!" Those who could gave a cheerful hoot at James' words. They hadn't lost a single Quidditch match since James became captain in 5th year. He might overwork them, but he always led them towards victory. "Now, get your rest, and I'll see all of you at 6 pm sharp Monday afternoon! Especially Rose." James sent a somewhat playful glare at Rose, and with that everyone retreated to change.

Rose walked out of the locker room freshly showered and feeling great. The rain had finally stopped, and her homework for the next week was complete. Today, in Rose's opinion, was a great day to be alive. She hummed to herself, and was practically skipping when she bumped into someone just outside the locker room door. It was none other than Scorpius Malfoy, her cousin's best friend, and her own "arch enemy" according to her father. Rose immediately blushed, slightly embarrassed.

"Err, hullo Rose…" Scorpius smiled at her not unkindly. "Have you seen Albus by any chance?"

Rose cleared her throat before replying. "Hey, Scorpius…uh yeah, yeah Al is, um, changing. Or shoering. I mean showering, sorry. He'll be out in a bit…" Rose continued to stand there awkwardly, her hands in the back pocket of her jeans.

"oh, cool,cool,cool…so," Scorpius looked at her equally as awkward, remembering the last time he had seen Rose, over the summer at Al's house. It had been a family get-together at the Potter residence, and Scorpius had been invited by Albus, as usual. Rose and her family had been there as well, and Scorpius' presence deeply perturbed Ron, Rose's dad. Rose didn't see the big deal; Harry himself seemed to like Scorpius, despite his family name. Ron, however, didn't. After a few drinks, Ron began to talk a bit more than necessary, mainly about Scorpius.

"You jus' can't trust him, Rosie. He's Malfoy scum. Once a Death Eater, always a Death Eater," Ron had his arm slung over Rose's shoulders, and was speaking fervently. "His dad, Draco? He nearly killed us! Isn't that right, Harry? He almost killed Dumbledore, too! An' he was uh, uh rat to your mum here, this glorious piece of woman. Can you believe that?" Rose looked completely uncomfortable. She hated when her dad made a scene in public. She felt even worse because Scorpius was sitting right across her, and kept his gaze down.

"Ron," Hermione warned, trying to stop Ron before he said something even worse.

"I WILL NOT BE SILENCED, WOMAN! I SHALL BE ALLOWED TO SPEAK THE BLOODY TRUTH! THE MALFOYS ARE COMPLETE SHIT, AND THIS BOY RIGHT HERE SHALL AMOUNT TO NOTHING! HE'LL SPEND HIS LIFE LOCKED UP IN AZKABAN, OR DEAD! MARK MY WORDS!" Ron was standing by then, his finger pointed viciously in Scorpius' direction. Rose had her head in her hands, and Hermione looked positively murderous.

"RON!" She yelled, and thus commenced one of the worst arguments the pair had ever had. Afterwards, Rose apologized to Scorpius, along with the entire Potter family, and even Ron looked slightly ashamed of himself after being sobered up by Hermione. Still, Rose and Scorpius' already strained relationship became virtually nonexistent. This was the first time they had spoken since the incident.

"Nice weather we're having…" Rose replied, gesturing to the muddy field and dripping trees.

Scorpius raised one eyebrow, "You think so? It's very…wet. Not necessarily my cup of tea."

"Oh." Rose replied, feeling quite stupid. She wished Albus would hurry up already. "Well, I guess I should be going…there are things to do, and such."

Scorpius nodded, and Rose began to walk away. She was just starting to relax once more, when she tripped over a tree root. She heard what suspiciously sounded like laughter behind her. As she got up, the only thought running through her mind was that maybe her dad wasn't as wrong about Scorpius as she thought.

XX

The first chapter, yay! It shall get better, I promise. All stories start out slow, anyway. Please review or favorite the story or both!