Watching Sarah, in her ocean blue dress and matching accessories, twirl in front of the mirror, Rose smiled. It was the night of the fourth year's ball and they were getting ready in their dorms. They weren't the only ones of course. Mel and the twins were there as well but there seemed to be a silent peace pact between the five girls tonight. Each one of them knew this was a special evening and nobody wanted to mess it up. So, for now, there was peace. It was about time too. Ever since the incident of the train, Rose had been dealing with Hell on Earth every time she tried to get some pranks ranged from green hair in the morning, to being surrounded by a moat of honey around her bed, resulting in some very sticky feet. Mel had kept away from magical pranks so far, much to Rose's relief. Rose had often marveled at herself, wondering how she had survived so long with Mel as her roommate. She admired herself, even. Now glancing at Mel who was powdering her nose, she shook her head. They used to be friends... How had their relationship deteriorated to such a level? And what was the point of it all? It was all so childish. Jerked out of her daydreaming as she caught Sarah staring at her, Rose blinked and smiled at her best friend who had her hands on her hips.

"Rose..."

"What?"

"Aren't you going to get ready?" Sarah smirked, pointing at her watch.

Rose glanced down at her jeans and t-shirt. Her hair was done, the usually untamed auburn locks now in little ringlets, hanging softly down, bunching together a little around her neck. So was her makeup, Sarah had seen to that. But looking around, she realised she was the only one not in her dress. Darn. She had been so busy day-dreaming and watching other people get ready, that she had forgotten to put on her own outfit! Well at lest she wasn't completely unready. Her makeup looked pretty good, she thought as she examined herself and the golden flecks in her hair, she felt, was a nice touch. Since Madeline and Lily, the chief beauty experts, weren't in Slytherin and couldn't help her, they had given Sarah specific instructions on how to do Rose's makeup, supposedly to bring out her eyes or whatever. Sarah had listened intently to their words and she had even taken down notes! Notes, on how to do her makeup! As far as Rose could tell, Sarah had been paying attention. She had never worn this much blush or lipstick in her life, ever. Suddenly it occurred to her that she actually looked, feminine. She never imagined that she would think this but looking at herself now, she actually realised that she liked looking like a girl... a real girl with makeup and perfume and a fancy dress.

Tearing her eyes away from her reflection, she smiled at Sarah, "Haven't you heard, jeans is the new formal."

Sarah rolled her eyes in amusement.

Rose heard Mel snort in the background, "I wouldn't be surprised if Weasley was really wearing that tonight. She's got no taste to wear something actually classy..."

Sarah caught Rose's eye and mouthed, "Ignore her!"

Hissing through her teeth in frustration, Rose got up from the bed. Grabbing her dress which was still in it's brand new packaging, she stalked to the washroom.

Stroking the beautifully wrapped and sealed box in her hands, Rose recalled her trip to Hogsmeade with Madeline and Lily. They had met bright and early on Saturday morning. They had eaten their breakfast quickly, before setting off. Roaming the streets, the girls had dragged her from one store to another, making her try on dress after dress. The next store they took her to, just seemed more extravagant than the last one.

She remembered asking Lily, "How am I gonna pay for this? I'm on a budget!"

Lily had laughed at her, "Silly Rose, Maddie and I are gonna pay for it!"

Rose's eyes had widened, "No way! I'm not going to let you pay for all of this." By then, the girls had picked out various accessories and makeup options for her. The cost to Rose, had been unimaginable.

Madeline had snorted, "Why can't you accept the fact that we want to take the opportunity to make you beautiful for at least, one night! Take advantage of this... We're not asking you, you know!"

Rose hadn't been sure if that was a backhanded compliment but had decided to ignore it. So after much persuasion on the girls' part, Rose had let them pay for her though she had made them promise her that one day, they would let her return the favour. They had agreed, grudgingly. As for the dress... Rose caught her breath as she recalled how perfect she had felt in it. Like a princess. When they found the dress they had already been searching through the stores for hours. Eventually Rose had forced them to stop for lunch but they had barely rested when the girls had hauled Rose off again to continue looking.

Since their last break, Rose had liked some of them but none had really clicked with her. She hadn't felt that spark. The girls had insisted that they continue on their quest. It was like the never ending, treasure hunt. Finally they had entered a little boutique store right next to the Hogs Head. As soon as her eyes landed on that dress, Rose had known, that was the one. She hadn't been alone. The girls had fallen in love with it as well. There had been no debate amongst them. That dress had been destined for her! Carefully unwrapping the pink box of the silver box, Rose lifted the lid and breathed deeply as she stared at the soft material, carefully folded within. Perfection.

Sarah had been adding the last minute touches to her makeup when Rose returned. Mel and the twins had been getting ready to leave. They were all wearing identical emerald green dresses, although Mel's had slightly more beads and decorations on it. Sarah glanced at the twins, who were trailing after Mel a little pathetically. In the last few years, the twins had lost all sense of their own individuality. Their lives now revolved around Mel and her every whim and fancy. People didn't see them as Anne and Claire anymore. They saw them as Mel's personal handmaidens. Sarah jerked out of her thoughts as she heard someone clear their throat behind her. Spinning around, her eyes widened as she took in the sight before her.

"Oh Rose... you're beautiful." she murmured.

Rose spun in front of the mirror, giggling a bit like a little girl. "You really think so?"

Sarah nodded, "Absolutely."

Rose turned to her, "Well I couldn't have done it without you. You helped with all the makeup and the hair... I couldn't have done that!"

Sarah smiled. "I'm glad you appreciate my skills."

Just then they heard a faint cough. Looking round they saw Mel and the twins standing by the dorm entrance and gawking at Rose. Mel, especially was staring at her. She didn't seem jealous or angry. Just thoughtful. Her eyes softened for a moment.

"You don't look half bad... Rose" she muttered.

Rose blinked, surprised at her politeness. "Er... thanks Mel. You guys look great too." she nodded to the twins, who smiled slightly to thank her.

Mel nodded and her eyes hardened again. The moment was gone. Spinning on her heel, she left the room, the twins following her. As they were leaving though, Anne paused at the door.

"You really do look gorgeous Rose." she smiled at her.

Before Rose could reply, she swiftly hurried out of the room and closed the door behind her. Sarah stared at Rose for a moment as the room filled with silence.

"That was... weird" Rose voiced.

Sarah chuckled, "Yea go figure. I tell you, Mel was jealous!"

But Rose wasn't listening anymore. She was glancing at her reflection again. Wow...

Sarah glanced at the clock, "Ready to go?"

Rose shook her head. "You go first. Scorpius promised he'd walk me down."

Sarah nodded, "Well I guess I'll see you?"

Rose nodded, "Yea, have a good time with Greg!"

Sarah chuckled, "I will."

Grabbing her things, Sarah hurried out of their dorm.

Rose bit her lip. Suddenly there were butterflies in her stomach. But she couldn't stay here just gawking at herself forever! No, she was going to go downstairs and she was going to enjoy herself. Putting on the finishing touches to her outfit, Rose sighed. Showtime.

Scorpius was sitting in the common room, impatiently. Rose had promised she wouldn't be late. The two of them had made a deal, that even though Rose had Albus as a date, Scorpius could walk her to the Great Hall. This was because Rose didn't want to go on her own. Personally, Scorpius didn't mind. He would be the first guy to see what she looked like. But at the rate she was going, they were going to be late! Sarah had hurried down the stairs a good 5 minutes ago and had told him clearly, Rose was coming down. Aaah! He put his head in his hands. Why did girls have to take so long to get ready?

No sooner had the thought crossed his mind when he heard a soft voice call him.

"Scorpius?"

Scorpius lifted his head from his hands and looked up towards the stairs leading to the girls' dorms. The sight in front of him, took his breath away.

Rose was slowly descending from the stairs and was smiling at him. Standing up, Scorpius watched her in awe. Her usually bushy hair was now beautifully curled into hundreds of little ringlets that fell about her face softly. They bounced as she slowly descended the steps. Her chocolate brown eyes were sparkling and she was wearing silver and gold eye makeup. She wore blush on her cheeks and on her lips, she had on a light pink tone of lipstick. But it was her dress that caught his attention. It was a beautiful strapless white gown, that clung slightly to her hips and fanned out below, revealing her feminine figure. On the top half of the dress were delicate and intricate little floral designs in golden thread. He could tell the dress was enchanted because the designs shimmered slightly as she came towards him. The most gorgeous part of all though, had to be the bottom half of the dress. Starting from the waist band, one could see, enchanted golden flecks cascading down the skirts of the dress, like water. One could still see the delicate white lace underneath the flecks and it looked like a golden stream flowing downwards. As the flecks reached the ground, they made the floor shimmer for a moment, before vanishing. Looking at her again, Scorpius saw gold glitter on Rose's collarbone and arms. There were also tiny flecks in her auburn hair. It gave the illusion that this river of gold was flowing all the way from the top of Rose's head, to the ground. She was also wearing a stunning necklace with sparkling white diamonds that complimented the gown nicely. Rose, Scorpius thought, looked like a cross between a Grecian Goddess and storybook Princess.

As she reached him, Scorpius saw that as she walked, she left a slight shimmer on the ground behind her which hovered for awhile, before disappearing. Stretching out his hand, Scorpius breathed deeply as he inhaled her perfume. Rose, shyly took his hand and smiled.

"What do you think?" she asked him, looking down at herself. "Too much?"

Scorpius looked at her and then down at himself. He was wearing simple, smart dress robes, black and white. Compared to her, a shining work of art, he looked like a peasant.

"No, you're perfect." he replied.

Rose sighed in relief. "Good. Thanks by the way for waiting for me. I know I'm pretty late."

Scorpius shook his head. Who cared about the time? "Nah it's ok."

"I'm still mad that you decided to take Al as your date instead of gatecrashing with me though. I thought we agreed it would be fun... " he teased.

Rose chuckled. "Come on Scorp, I know you have a date, you just won't tell me."

Scorpius stayed silent. Yes he did have a date. But looking at Rose now, he wished with all his heart that he didn't.

Leading her, the two of them departed the Slytherin common room and made their way up the stairs from the dungeons to the Great Hall. On their way the passed several first and second years who stared at Rose with awe and surprise. After awhile Scorpius noticed, that they were following them, just to keep Rose in their sights. While he found this rather amusing, Rose, seemed oblivious, obviously thinking about something and she shook her head gently. Some of the golden flecks in her hair, fell away from her, creating a golden glow around them. It couldn't get much better than this, Scorpius imagined. Even some of the older years, the sixth and seventh years, watched in stunned silence as Rose and Scorpius passed them. The beauty of this redhead, seemed to marvel them all.

Finally the pair reached the Great Hall. Rose spotted her cousin and waved him over. As Scorpius saw him approach them, there was pleasant surprise but also affection in his eyes. He turned to Scorpius.

"Thanks for bringing her down for me."

Scorpius nodded and smiled at Rose, "My pleasure."

Rose smiled back and Scorpius reluctantly let go of her hand.

"I gotta find my own date." he told her.

She winked at him as if to say, "I knew it!"

Rose watched Scorpius turn to search for his date. She was curious to see who he had brought. She watched closely as he walked past a long stream of girls and stopped in front of an attractive brown haired girl in a striking red dress. Rose looked at her face. She knew her. She was a fourth year, Hufflepuff. Her name was Meredith and they had once shared a desk in History of Magic. Rose tried to recall what she had been like. Shy. That had been the most prominent trait displayed. But she had been nice, considerate and had gotten their pair project work done with Rose, effectively. Rose saw Scorpius turn towards her with Meredith on his arm. Meredith saw her and waved, excitedly. Scorpius was just gazing at her as if, asking for her approval? Rose hesitated but nodded and smiled to acknowledge and accept. Scorpius grinned at her and then muttering something to Meredith who giggled, they entered the Hall. Rose watched them go. Meredith, she felt would be a dull companion for the evening but she wouldn't be an annoying one either. She gritted her teeth but she didn't know why. Was she jealous? No way! This was only Scorpius she was thinking about for Merlin's sake! He was just her friend...

Albus, who had been chatting to some of his friends, tapped her on the shoulder.

"Ready?" he asked her.

Rose smiled and took his arm. "Yea"

"You look lovely Rose." he beamed proudly.

Rose grinned, "You don't look so bad yourself. I'd say your fashion sense isn't as bad as Lily makes it out to be." Rose glanced at her cousin. Albus had gone for neutral dress robes, black and white like Scorpius. It was probably the best. Looking around at some of the other fourth year boys, Rose shuddered. She thanked Merlin that Albus had not had the ill sense to wear anything blue, red, green or bright yellow.

Catching her gaze Albus nodded, "Of course. I dress only to compliment my partner." he gripped her tightly.

Together they entered the Hall. Rose looked around in awe. It had been completely transformed. The house tables had been put away and in their place were round tables that fit up to 10 people. They were littered all about the Hall. The theme for the ball was obviously blue and white. The white tables were adorned with lovely blue flowers and the comfortable looking chairs had blue bows tied on to them. Looking up, Rose could still see the enchantment of the night sky but hanging along the wooden beams of the hall, she could see white and blue streamers and ribbons, lining the archways. Giant blue and white stars, were hanging delicately from the ceiling posts, swinging gently. In the middle of the Hall, there was a giant dance floor where some eager couples, were already swinging in time to the music.

"Wow" she breathed.

Albus seemed to be just as awed as she was.

"Yea..." he seemed to say.

Following Albus' lead, Rose walked across the Hall to where she saw several Griffindor fourth years standing. Probably Albus' friends. She was acutely aware that people were staring at her but she didn't care. She felt beautiful and that was important.

Reaching Albus' friends, they turned to look at her and she smiled.

"Everyone this is my cousin, Rose Weasley" Albus said. There was pride in his voice.

Rose nodded and smiled, "Hello everyone."

She glanced round. There were three boys, all about Albus' height and two girls, who were slightly shorter. The boys seemed to be gawking at her and the girls were smiling politely.

"Hi Rose" one of the girls stretched out her hand.

Rose shook it.

"I'm Ellen" she smiled.

"Nice to meet you."

"Al you never told me your cousin was hot!"

Rose raised an eyebrow at one of the boys. Ellen rolled her eyes and jabbed him in the side, much to his displeasure.

Albus cleared his throat, "Well it's not something you usually talk about Tom..."

Rose laughed diplomatically, "Besides, I don't always dress up this much. Hardly wear makeup at all. It's just for tonight..." she added.

"Yea well your'e gorgeous tonight." Albus smiled.

"So Rose, you're in Slytherin right?" Ellen asked.

Rose nodded comfortably. She had gotten over her sensitivity regarding her house.

Ellen nodded, "I've seen you play Quidditch. Thought you were really good."

"Rosie's the best!" Albus chuckled.

Rose blushed, "Thanks but it takes a team effort to play well."

Ellen nodded, "Yea of course but you fly well. That's what I meant."

One of the boys seemed to have gotten over Rose's physical appearance and spoke.

"I haven't seen you play. What position?"

"Beater"

"Wow... that's a tough one. Gotta be fit to be a beater."

"Yea tell me about it. That's why Albus has to stick to being a seeker." Rose smiled.

Everyone laughed.

The night seemed to be passing by fairly quickly. Rose was getting on well with Albus' friends who were warm and welcoming. Even the boys after awhile, seemed to thaw towards her, after they realised she was pretty sporty. They all cracked jokes just like Albus' which dispelled Rose's theories that Albus' joke material was all his own original ideas. She seemed to have made quite a kindred spirit out of Ellen and throughout dinner, the pair had been chatting on and on about Quidditch games. She had found out that Ellen, like Sarah, played Chaser.

"My friend Sarah would like you." Rose had told her.

After dinner, Rose and Albus had taken to the floor for a little while, doing a couple of fast numbers and some slow ones as well. They had managed pretty well, even though Albus had fumbled through the dance moves, song after song. Rose had to admit though, he had improved since last year... After awhile though, both of them had tired and they had gone to sit down. Rose much to her surprise, had been getting numerous invitations by boys to dance with them. So far, none of them had appealed to her, so she had politely declined.

Albus had chuckled at this saying, "Playing hard to get Rosie?"

Rose had snorted, "I should be. I already have a partner." she said smiling at her cousin.

Albus had turned out to be pretty good fun all evening. Rose felt like she was a kid again when she used to spend hours and days hanging around with her cousin, playing with him and confiding in him. Spending this much time with him now, she realised, that Albus would always be one of the few people she could count on. They had now spent at least 4 hours downstairs. Rose was getting a bit tired. Albus though, was still on his toes, looking out for attractive girls, willing to dance. Typical, Rose had laughed to herself. Boys would be boys.

"How about that one Rosie?" he pointed to a sandy blonde.

Rose yawned slightly. "Al why don't you ask her to dance?"

Albus looked at her in concern. "I can't leave you!"

Rose rolled her eyes. "I'm not a kid. I'll be fine. You go ahead and enjoy yourself."

Albus hesitated but upon Rose's insistence, he got up and headed over to the blonde.

Rose chuckled to herself and studied, the scene in front of her. Couples were dancing to the music happily. It was lovely. Rose delicately fingered her dress skirt, admiring the golden flecks, still flowing down the sides. She hadn't seen Leo all evening so he hadn't spoiled her mood. Ever since she had declined his invitation to the ball, Leo had been perfectly awful to her, even refusing to sit a mere three seats away from her. Nobody knew what was wrong with him, except Rose of course. Even Scorpius had been pestering her about why Leo was being so horrible. Rose waved off her thoughts about Leo. She didn't need him to mess up the night for her. She had been enjoying herself too much. Suddenly she saw out of the corner of her eye, someone was approaching her. Looking up, she smiled as she saw Scorpius reach out his hand.

"How about a dance Rose?" he asked her.

Without hesitation, Rose got up from her chair and took his hand. She couldn't decline Scorpius a dance.

Taking his lead, Rose followed him onto the dance floor. Scorpius pulled her a little closer and she rested her head on his shoulder, sighing. He took her waist and they began to dance. Rose realised almost immediately that he was a much better dancer than Albus. His soft and smooth movements, made her relax in his arms.

"Enjoying yourself so far?" he asked her.

"Very much" she replied, closing her eyes.

She didn't mind if they did this all evening. Just being here, next to Scorpius and swaying to the music, Rose felt the moment was perfect. But it was shattered all too soon as she heard a familiar voice call her name. Opening her eyes and looking up, she saw Leo crossing over towards them. Scorpius looked confused and he stopped dancing but he kept Rose close to him. Leo was storming towards them now, a look of fury in his eyes. Rose stood there motionless. Had he gone mad? As he reached them, Rose could picture the steam coming out from his nose.

"Rose" he spat.

Scorpius stepped forward but Rose stopped him.

"Leo?" she asked.

"So is this it? Is this why you turned me down?"

Rose was confused.

"You can come to the ball with Scorpius Malfoy but you can't come with me?" he asked.

Scorpius let out an "Ohh" as if he finally understood.

Rose's eyes widened and she took a step away from Scorpius. "Leo I'm just having a dance with him. I came with Albus."

"Yea right" she heard him sneer.

Scorpius groaned, "Come on man. She's telling the truth."

Leo turned to face Scorpius, "You! You knew I liked her and you still took her to the ball."

Now Rose was in complete shock. People who had been dancing around them had stopped and were watching the dramatic scene unfold.

"You knew that Leo liked me?" she asked Scorpius.

He nodded with a weary look on his face.

She groaned in exasperation.

"Come on man, I didn't bring her to the ball. Go ask Albus, he'll tell you" Scorpius implored Leo.

He shook his head violently, his eyes on fire. "You guys think you've got this whole thing worked out. But don't doubt my intelligence. I know a lie when I see one!" he shouted.

By now the whole hall had turned to witness the imminent fight. Rose saw Albus, who was now standing next to the sandy blonde, watching in shock and she raised her arms helplessly. She saw Mel in the corner, speechless. But Rose couldn't care less about what she thought.

"Let's all just calm down..." Scorpius began.

Leo glared at Rose and then at Scorpius. "I don't think so! You pissed me off one too many times!" he shouted and lunged at Scorpius. There were screams and gasps as both the boys were on the ground, fighting. Leo was trying to throw blows left and right while Scorpius was desperately trying to deflect the punches. Rose gasped, unsure of what to do. Why did the fights always have to happen around her? she thought. Some of the boys were hooting and cheering, the girls covering their eyes. Suddenly a third figure was running towards the boys and he jumped on top of Leo, trying to pull him off Scorpius.

"Albus!" Rose cried as Leo swung round and punched Albus in the face.

Rose hurried up to Albus to help him up but he shook her off and launched himself back into the fight. People were cheering and shouting, "Fight Fight!" Rose tried to yank Leo off her cousin but Leo accidentally elbowed her, sending her flying.

Rose landed on her bum with a crash. "Stop it!" she wailed.

But nobody was paying attention to her anymore. It wasn't a fight about her now. It was a fight between Leo and Scorpius, a channel to release any unspoken emotions that had been bottled up for four years. By now, Scorpius was definitely not just deflecting. He was throwing some pretty mean punched of his own. The sound of flesh crashing against flesh made Rose cringe. And Albus... Rose didn't know why he was there. Maybe just to support Scorpius or something. She saw him swing his fist, trying to punch Leo. But Leo at the last minute ducked and he hit Scorpius instead.

"Hey, we're on the same team!" Scorpius shouted.

"Sorry mate, old feelings die hard?" Albus suggested.

The crowd though, seemed to love this extra piece of drama and roared. Now even the girls had gotten over the initial violence and were joining in. Some people had the audacity to be watching the fight as if it were some kind of wrestling match. They were sipping drinks and munching on snacks. Rose felt sick.

Suddenly, Sarah was running up to Rose, a look of panic on her face. Rose turned to her, looking like she was about to experience a nervous breakdown. By now the entire dance floor was a mess. Rubbish was everywhere. The boys were throwing chairs at one another, grabbing pieces of wood from the tables and using them as shields against one another. What would the Headmistress say?

"What do we do?" Sarah whispered.

"Get a Professor." Rose called.

Without another word, Sarah hurried over to Greg, grabbed his hand and dashed out of the Hall with him, in search of some authoritative figure.

In the meantime, Rose turned back to the boys, I can't stop them... she thought. Just then Scorpius and Albus had over powered Leo and flung him across the dance floor. Rose quickly stepped out of the way as she landed beside her with a crash. Scorpius and Albus were panting, their faces covered in bruises but both wore smug expressions on their faces. Leo, still on the ground seemed a little less ok and his cheek and lip was cut, blood was dripping on the floor. Suddenly catching sight of Rose, Leo seemed to be re-fueled and he got up, ready to face his opponents again. Albus and Scorpius leaned forward, ready to charge towards him. Suddenly Rose got a brilliant idea. It was perfect. Just then the boys began to charge towards each other. Rose took a breath. It was now or never.

Taking the plunge, Rose ran forwards and stood between the boys. "STOP!" she shouted. Her voice echoed throughout the Hall. The crowd suddenly stopped cheering. People stopped eating and drinking. They all held their breath as the three boys came to a sudden stop. Rose had been right. None of them were willing to put her in harms' way. They were all staring at her in shock, as if they weren't sure how to respond. They were all panting, heavily and Rose breathed a sigh of relief. Her arms were still outstretched, on either side, keeping the boys a safe distance from one another.

Just then the doors of the Great Hall burst open. Rose smiled, hoping it was Sarah with a professor. But instead everyone looked up to see James and Hugo standing in front of them with lit fireworks from the Weasley Joke shop. Rose sighed. They had obviously come to gatecrash. The crowd, watched the boys in confused silence. Staring at the scene before them, the boys looked in partial horror at the wrecked dance floor, at Rose, at the bruised boys and then back at Rose again. James grabbed the fireworks from Hugo and quickly extinguished the lit flames by stamping on them with his foot, preventing them from going off. Hugo glanced at his sister, the centre of all the drama, bewildered.

"I guess this is a bad time?"