'They still haven't changed the carpets.'

I lugged my trunk onto the train after me, leaving dents in the ugly maroon carpet. I dragged it after me as I searched for a compartment, the wheels catching on big loops of wool. I slid open the door to the first compartment I came across. Trapping the door with my foot, and unable to turn around in the tight space, I struggled with my trunk, twisting round but to no avail, until I felt the other end rise up into the air.

'I could have done that,' I huffed, as my best friend helped me manoeuvre the unwieldy trunk into the compartment and next to me.

'On you go, ladies,' Scorpius said to two young Hufflepuffs, who scurried by and burst into giggles.

'Eugh, you're so…suave.'

'It's one of the many reasons you love me.'

I scoffed and watched him leap down from the train, hug his mother and father, grab his own trunk and start to haul it into the steam engine. I exited the compartment to smugly watch him struggle with it. He unsuccessfully tried to levitate it and tried to wiggle it round the bend, until I finally took pity on him and levitated it for him.

'I never understood how you could do that so easily.'

'You could do it easily too, you just choose to say it wrong.'

'Choose?'

'It's obvious.'

'Fine, I admit it. It's to give you an excuse to come along and attempt to seduce me.' He grinned.

'Seduce you? In your wildest dreams, Malfoy.'

The train whistle blew, cutting off his smart retort. I turned around in my seat to lean out the window, where my mother was standing on the platform.

'Your father's gone off to say goodbye to Hugo. Why you children have to choose compartments at opposite end of the train, I don't know…'

'It's because he's an arrogant prat. I can practically feel my head inflating whenever I'm within a mile of him.'

'Hm.' My mother smiled at Scorpius. 'Don't let her get into too much trouble this year, Scorpius.'

'I won't, Mrs Weasley.' Scorpius smiled back.

'Stop flirting with my mother, Scorp.'

His answer was again cut off, this time by the arrival of his parents.

'Goodbye, Scorpius. You be good, you hear?'

'Yeah, Dad.'

'And by the way – Grandfather Malfoy's going to send you a letter again, about pure-blood status etcetera. You know the drill…'

'Don't tell him about Rose being your friend, insult as many Weasleys as you can in one paragraph, tell him that he's amazing and let him know that your father's trying get in touch but the owl is ill,' Scorpius and I rattled off together.

'That's it.' Scorpius's dad rolled his eyes slightly.

His mother kissed his cheek.

'Bye, Mum. Tell dad Hugo's an idiot and he would have been much better off saying goodbye to me instead of him.'

Mum grinned wryly. 'Will do.'

Just before we slid back inside the compartment, we heard a small exchange:

'Malfoy.'

'Granger.'

We thumped back on our seats and burst out laughing, and the train rolled steadily away. I waved to my aunts and uncles – and one cousin who had been dragged along too (Fred Junior – he was ten, and still not quite old enough to come to Hogwarts) – and we were off.

'Anything from the trolley, dear?'

I leapt up before Scorpius could get a word in. 'Of course!'

I grabbed and handful of pumpkin pasties, a few bags of Fizzing Whizbees, a packet of Every Flavour Beans and a few Chocolate Frogs, and threw them at Scorpius. I took some more stuff, including a blood flavoured lollipop (new in this year), and paid for it.

'You hate them,' Scorpius commented, gesturing at the lolly.

'So does Hugo. I'll tell him it's strawberry and watch him suffer.'

'I'm glad you're not my sister.'

I broke open a Chocolate Frog. 'Who'd you get?'

I sighed. 'Dad, again. I've got twenty of him at home, plus the exclusive gold version. You want it?'

He shook his head no, and caught the frog as it leapt away from me, biting its head off.

I picked up a book from my trunk and grabbed the lollipop. 'I borrowed this from Roxanne. I'll give it back to her and give this to Hugo at the same time.'

'Don't hurry back.' Scorpius dug a book out from his trunk and started to read.

'Huh.' I took a pasty to sustain me on my long journey to the other end of the train. The compartment next door was making a lot of noise, so I stuck my head in next door.

My cousins James, Albus and Louis were making sparks fly out of the tips of their wands, for no apparent reason.

'Shut it, or else!' I threatened, and slammed the door shut behind me. As I did, a wall seemed to appear out of nowhere and knocked me down.

'Oh my God, are you ok?' That voice. The voice of my dreams. Ephrem Smith.

'Oh…I'm fine.' I took the hand he offered to me, praying that my hands weren't sweating.

'Sorry, Rose.'

I narrowed my eyes. 'That's not funny.'

Elphrem – Remy – swept a lock of honey coloured hair out of his eyes. 'What?'

'Come on, I know it's you.'

"Remy" sighed, his appearances morphing back into my cousin Teddy's.

'How did you know?'

'Remy doesn't even know my name – do your research.'

I pushed past him and returned the book to another cousin, Roxanne, who was sitting with another cousin, Dominique.

Finally I made it to the last compartment, where Hugo was sitting with his friends. His red-and-gold tie proudly displayed his seeker's badge.

'You think you're it-and-a-bit, don't you?' I asked from the door.

'Oh, it's you, sister dearest.'

'Ever since you got on that team of yours, you've been such a… there are no words.'

'For a Ravenclaw, you really are stupid. And it's nice to know you care.'

'Oh, trust me, I don't care.'

'What do you want?'

'Here,' I replied, tossing him the lollipop. 'It's from Mum. Something about blood sugars.'

I strolled away and out of earshot, but not before I heard distinct gagging and the sounds of a back being thumped.

Mission accomplished.

A/N: Hey!

So I'e read a lot of Scorpius/Rose fan fiction, but none where they're just friends - I'm sure it exists somewhere, but I'd like to write something from another point of view on their relationship as friends!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please favourite and review if you did!

GeminioLaura xx