Chapter 3
"Be reasonable Weasley," Scorpius said.
"I am reasonable! Oh how slow we have been!" Rose clenched her fists. "Can you think of a better explanation, huh, genius?"
Scorpius slumped back to lean on the wall, his eyes on his shoes. "Well, that does sound quite reasonable. But how?"
"How this happened?" she said. "I don't—"
"It was your spell!" he said, straightening up again. "I told you; you casted a spell of some sort!"
"You—"
"I casted Protego because you were firing a spell towards me! It was for defence!"
Rose fell silent. She tucked her blond hair behind her right ear and thought hard. When she was yelling at Scorpius before the explosion, she held her wand pointing to him. And she felt a creeping electric feeling from her arm going to her hand then to the tip of her wand. After that she saw a zap, something like blue in color. She forehead-slapped herself and groaned loudly.
"I did cast a spell!" she cried as she brought her cold hands to hold her dizzy head. "Oh no!"
Scorpius smirked at her smugly. "See, I'm right. As always."
Rose glared at him but guilt took over her and so she looked away. "But I guess it's not an ordinary spell," she said softly. "I've read books about witches and wizards making an enchantment spontaneously and obliviously."
"It's still your fault because it always is," he said. "Anyways, how come you made this enchantment spontaneously and obliviously? How did it happen?"
"I was telling how you don't know what my life is like, right?" said Rose after a second of thinking.
"Uh-huh, the ranting of a blabbering hysterical tormented sociopathic nerd with the right amount of angst that can bombard the living daylights in a grown-up..." he muttered then said in a louder voice. "Actually you were shouting it at me, not telling."
"Fine. Anyways, I think the last thing I said before the enchantment happened was...how if...you were me or something like that..."
"Yeah..." Scorpius thought loudly.
"That must've done it but it should have only hit you. Although, based on what I've read, those oblivious enchantments do not usually take effect on the caster as well, just the target."
"So?"
"So," Rose rolled her eyes. "It's partly your fault too, since you used a shield charm. It must've reacted with the enchantment. Instead of shielding you with it, your shield charm just collided with the enchantment and it exploded, thus affecting us both."
Scorpius stared at the blonde for a moment with an unfathomable expression. He wasn't feeling like what he thought he should feel. He expected himself to be angry but the bitter emotion isn't just dawning over him. "Okay, Miss Talking Encyclopedia, what do we do now?"
"That's it?" Rose said exasperatedly. "That's what you're saying?"
"Well then what do you want me to s—"
"Rose!" A high-pitched voice sounded a few feet away the statue they were hiding at. Behind her were three other girls.
"Oh no," Scorpius heard Rose moan.
A tall brunette flitted towards Rose. Scorpius recognized her at once. Sophie Bletchley was one of his Slytherin fan girls who constantly ogled at him every chance she got. He had caught her staring at his half-naked body after a Quidditch match. But right now, she was looking at him like he was some kind of repulsive infection whose sole purpose for existence was to disgust a pretty girl like her.
"Come on," Sophie said. "Let's go."
"Where are we going?" Rose said.
"Away from him," Sophie glared at Scorpius.
Scorpius always knew that most of the Slytherin girls hated Rose Weasley. It was self-explanatory. She was the daughter of the two famous best friends and fellow heroes of Harry Potter. But now that they had seemingly exchanged lives, Sophie must now hate Scorpius. And apparently, she's also a close friend of Rose, although Rose looks as if she's not enjoying the sudden friendship. Rose winced surreptitiously.
She stepped closer to Scorpius and muttered so low that he was the only one to hear, "Meet me at the library. 9 pm."
"Rose, come on," Sophie tugged on her impatiently. Rose sighed and went away with the group of Slytherin girls who were glaring at Scorpius.
"What were you doing with him?" Scorpius heard one of the girls ask Rose, not bothering to lower her voice. "Ugh!"
He stared at them until they reached the stairs going down the dungeons. He thought Rose looked a little horrified by going down. Then Scorpius remembered that he would be living in the Gryffindor tower if they stayed like that. He heard footsteps then someone called out.
"There you are Scorp!" Albus came. "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing, nothing." Scorpius came out of the statue's refuge and met his now cousin Albus.
"You looked freaked out back in the Great Hall then you ran away towards Malfoy and then the two of you walked out. What's up? Is it the dung bombs thing? Or you two just thought of making it the Let's-Have-A-Panic-Attack Night"
"Er, yeah,"
"The panic attack?"
Scorpius knitted his eyebrows as he tried to concentrate, "No, the dung bombs."
"Well really, you shouldn't take it that seriously. Why don't we come to the common room, if you don't want to eat dinner, that is. Your brother is scarfing down another helping of raspberry pie. I don't know about him. Raspberry pie is disgusting, don't you reckon?"
They started walking up the marble staircases. "Yeah, totally."
"Are you alright?" Albus asked.
"Yeah, absolutely." Said Scorpius without even listening.
This Albus seemed to notice, "Do you think Filch is attractive?"
"Yeah, extremely," Scorpius answered absent-mindedly. Then he was brought back to earth by his cousin's boisterous laughter.
"You're loony, mate," he said. "I mean, I'm alright with that. Just don't act like that in front of Veronica."
Scorpius snapped his eyes on Albus. "You mean Veronica Samuels?"
"Don't you remember we have a double date with her and her friend on the coming Hogsmeade weekend?"
Scorpius groaned. He totally forgot about their date. How would that date turn out now that he's a Weasley?
"Gongoozler," Albus said to the portrait before climbing on the portrait hole. "I thought you like her?"
Scorpius sat on a squashy arm chair by the fireplace. His head buzzed with thoughts as he stared at the fire. Veronica Samuels was a very pretty Ravenclaw in the same year. Actually, she was one of Scorpius' fan girls, just like Sophie. But he didn't like-like Veronica. Now that he remembered it, Veronica asked him out and the only reason he said yes was because she pitied the girl and that he was impressed by her courage to even dare to ask him. But that was when he was still a Malfoy stud.
"I thought you think she's hot," Albus added.
He most definitely does not think Veronica as hot. Pretty, yes. But hot? No.
"To tell you the truth," Albus continued nonchalantly. "Hugo was surprised she said yes to you."
"Said yes to me?" Now Scorpius sat up so quickly he almost hurt himself.
"Yeah," Albus said with a confused face. "Don't you remember? I helped you ask her out. And I asked her friend, what was her name...Jen, so that you wouldn't feel awkward on your date. You were so terrified before you talked to Veronica. 'What if she'd reject me? That's so humiliating!'" He laughed after exaggeratedly imitating Scorpius. "You look like you were going to up-chuck your intestines out."
So, turns out he asked his former fan girl Veronica Samuels. Being a Weasley must've done it. He was worried, "Am I that big of a loser?"
His black-haired cousin smirked, "What?"
"Could you—please—just describe...me?" Scorpius was desperate. It was for a little research about his life as a Weasley. Albus would be the perfect reference.
"Sure," said Albus with a funny look on his face. "Whatever. Erm, let's see..." He gazed up, as if the answers were hovering above his head, and prepared to count his cousin's traits with his fingers. "You're smart, incredibly smart as what Uncle Ron would be bragging; he says you got it from Aunt Hermione, which is true. You're—why are you making me describe you anyways?"
Scorpius sighed, "Am I popular?"
His cousin knitted his eyebrows, "Since when did you care about social-rankings? Of course you are."
"Am I cool? Do people adore me? Do I attract many girls?"
Albus smirked, "Do you seriously want me to answer those?"
"If you do, I won't bother you with those kinds of questions ever again." The redheaded Scorpius was apparently afraid to lose his 'coolness'. During his Malfoy days, almost every girl drooled over him. Teachers liked him. He didn't get in much trouble; well, because he was never caught. The only time he got in a bad situation in front of the teachers was in fourth year, when he and Rose got in a big ugly jinx-throwing fight that resulted with a beaver's tail, blue scaly skin, tall earwax-filled rabbit ears and spaghetti hair. Not to mention a couple of other kids (who got accidentally jinxed) ran around with disgusting pulsating warts the size of plums.
Scorpius Malfoy...I mean, Scorpius Weasley, was afraid he'd lose his brilliant, cool, appealing, chick-magnet, bad-ass image because he was a freckled redheaded Weasley now. He liked the Weasleys. Nothing's really wrong with them. His father made sure that he would grow up better than him, so he didn't bring up Scorpius the same way Lucius did with Draco. But Scorpius couldn't help worrying over how he would be now that he's supposed to be the male version of Rose, the only exception to the personal rule of no-hating-the-Weasleys.
"Scorp," Albus said. "You have never cared of what others think. This is strange of you..."
The redheaded Scorpius sighed.
"You're popular," Albus said after some moments. "But it's because others, er...see you as an attention-seeking know-it-all who doesn't get the normal count of dates. And they also think you're trying to live up greater than your parents did. Please don't make me continue..."
Scorpius gave up. He stared back at the flames and thought of how Rose was doing.
. . .
Once, during her fifth year, when it was her first time to be a prefect, the Head Girl asked her to round the dungeons. Rose immediately said no. Roaming around creepy dungeons isn't exactly what one of her hobbies, not alongside reading thick books and playing board games to the never-enthusiastic Hugo. It's dark and cold in there, that's what she thought. Plus, Bloody Baron is often there; he's sort of scary. So, she never really got to walk through the dungeons...that is, until some minutes ago. Sitting in a velvet green couch beside Sophie Bletchley and Amara Higgs, she kept silent. It was all wrong; she shouldn't be here in stinking Slytherin.
"So," said the strawberry blonde Amara. "Is you date with Shawn all set? Wow, Rose, I can't believe you've been going out for two months already! He's so yummy..."
"Yummy?" Sophie repeated with a snort. "You and your pre-school vocabulary, Mar."
"Shawn who?" Rose's eyes widened and she almost choked on her own spit.
"Why, Shawn Peakes, of course," Amara giggled. Rose froze.
"Rose," Amara called. Rose didn't notice that her face broke into somewhere between a blissful smile and a disbelieving frown.
"Huh?" she said weakly.
"You and Shawn?" her now-friend said. "Your date—?"
"When is it?" Rose asked, maybe a little too eagerly.
"You're asking me? It's your date and you don't know..." Amara laughed. "If you don't want to go, break up with him—"
"What?" Rose said in alarm. Why would she ever want to break up with Shawn Peakes? "No—no! I just—I was..."
"Rosie, you're kind of weird right now, you know that?" Sophie said as she eyed a handsome fellow Slytherin across the room. "'Kay, see you girls later." Then she stood up and went to the guy she was staring at.
Amara stared at her. "You are acting unusual tonight."
"Must be the dung bombs thing," Rose shrugged uncomfortably.
"Eeeww!" Amara squeaked as she tried to move away from Rose. "You touch those—those...things?"
"No," Rose scowled at the girly-girl. "It was our Prefect duties, to catch those behind the dung bomb outbreak in the second floor—"
"Eugh," Amara stood up, much to Rose's relief. "Alright, like, I need to talk to somebody else right now, Rose. No offense, but seriously...I just—bye."
"Thank heavens she left me alone," Rose muttered.
She looked at the wall clock and it read five minutes past eight. She still has to wait less than an hour until she can go to the library and meet Scorpius.
"Oh whatever!" she scoffed. She got up from her seat and headed out of the Slytherin common room.
"Where are you going, Rosie?" Amara called out.
"Er...duties," she answered then went out.
Maybe I could read something about accidental enchantments while waiting, she thought.
It was silent and creepy in the dungeons. She pulled her robe tightly around her as she walked slowly and carefully. She heard something behind her and she quickly turned around. Nothing.
"Anyone there?" her voice shook. She heard someone breathing in the dark. "Hello?" But still nothing.
She continued walking, faster this time. Rose kept looking back and felt someone moving close behind her. She walked faster, almost a run.
"Merlin," she whispered nervously. "If my life was an epic movie, horror music would be playing right now."
Rose tripped and when she stood up, she felt that the someone or something following her was very much close by. She reached for her wand slowly as she spoke, "Who's there?"
Then someone grabbed her by the waist and buried his face on her neck.
"Aaaargghh!" Rose elbowed the stranger and kicked him on his stomach.
"Ow! It's me, Rose!" a guy croaked. He knelt on the ground, clutching his abdomen. "Kick me farther below and, I swear, I won't be able to produce children."
Rose swallowed hard. She knew that voice too well. She couldn't see Shawn's face in the dark but she was sure it was him.
Apologies for wrong grammars and spellings.