Hello all! Sorry for the delayed posting, this week was low-key crazy for me. But never fear, I'm back again for another installment.
S/O to (the real one) Pilarofdoom and LumosLeah for the comments! Always appreciated.
Chapter Six:
Rose was sitting on Albus' bed, her head balanced precariously on the palm of her hand. She was swaying slightly to the music. It was comfortable here on Al's bed, and she was tempted to lie down on it, if only the large amount of people in the room around her would just leave.
Suddenly, as if reading her mind, the inhabitants of the room slowly began to disperse.
Rose squinted at the people leaving, unsure if what she was seeing could be correct.
Maybe her thoughts had some previously undiscovered power. Maybe she could will things into existence just by thinking them.
I really want some chips right now, Rose thought, squeezing her eyes shut.
She opened them again in hopes that a steaming plate of potato-ey goodness would be in front of her. Instead she found her cousin with a red cup in both hands.
"Here, drink this," James said, attempting to hand Rose the fuller of the two glasses.
Rose shook her head, closing her eyes again.
Not drinks, chips, she thought with more urgency.
Apparently her powers of mind control were short lived because James Potter did not turn into a piping bag of chips. He just raised an eyebrow as he pushed the drink into her hand. She grasped it loosely, glancing down at the light-colored liquid. It did not slosh happily around in the glass as her drinks earlier in the night had, but was stagnant in the container.
Not bothering to question what it was, Rose took a sip. The effects of the sobering potion were almost immediate.
"Tastes like sawdust," Rose made a sour face but continued to sip the liquid, not looking at her cousin.
She hadn't realized how much the room had been spinning until it no longer was.
"Yeah, I'm trying to help Uncle George add in flavoring," James said, coming to sit on the bed beside her. "But some of the tastes have… weird effects. Like, for example, the chocolate makes people's-"
"I don't think I want to know," Rose said with a wave of her hand, effectively cutting him off. "I'm just getting over my nausea."
James shot her a sly smile and took a sip of his own drink. From his reaction, it did not appear to be sobering solution.
"You really were smashed," James said, a smile playing on his face as she turned to face him. "Never thought I'd seen you like that after last New Year's."
"Oi don't remind me," Rose tried to sound harsh, her eyes narrowing at her older cousin. But there was no real malice there. She was too tired for that. Her head fell back until her palm again, as she pulled her knees up onto the bed.
At least she was less wobbly now.
"Remember? You were literally so drunk you kept going on about how you'd kiss nearly anyone at the new year," James laughed, ignoring his cousin's groan. "Even Mal-"
Rose head shot up and she shoved her cousin, not allowing him finish his sentence.
"I have tried desperately to forget that night," Rose groaned.
James merely laughed and straightened himself again on the bed's edge.
They sat in silence for a moment as Rose's attention was drawn back to the emptying room.
"Where's everyone off to?" Rose asked.
"You scared 'em all off didn't yea?" James joked.
Rose rolled her eyes and made to push him again but James held his hands up in surrender.
"Your best friend and my little brother have been pit against each other in a competition," James said. "A race."
Rose groaned.
"My thoughts exactly," James said at Rose's non-verbal response
"What idiots," Rose grumbled into her hands. "A race? What are we? Ickle firsties? For Merlin's sake."
That would end well.
Or as well as anything between Albus and Bari could end. Those two were always trying to outdo the other. Whether it was Quidditch or class or anything that was remotely competitive, Rose knew that neither could resist challenging the other.
Rose remembered just earlier this summer at the lakes, Bari had challenged Albus to a drinking contest. And not of alcohol.
It had not been a pleasant broomstick ride home for either of them.
Once, at the end of fourth year, Al and Bari had competed to see who could jinx Mrs. Norris the most without getting caught by Filch.
Albus had won and Bari had taken it to heart. She has sulked for days, and her detentions with Filch did not serve to put her in a better mood. Bari had taken the fall for all of the jinxes on the cat, Albus' included. Therefore Bari had to serve two weeks straight in Filch's dingy and dark office, doing work she did not speak of. Al had apologized, but Bari wouldn't hear it.
That was until Al was caught red handed with a bag of dung bombs on the staircase above the Entrance Hall. He landed in detention alongside Bari.
Al swore up and down that he obviously hadn't meant to be caught. But Rose knew her cousin wasn't so stupid as to openly showcase dung bombs with Filch patrolling around.
The two had made up pretty quickly after that. The silent apology enough to mend their relationship.
Competition was just part of who they were.
Rivalry was one of the things to bring Bari and Albus back together after the incident their fifth year. That and quidditch. Bari had not spoken to Albus for months until he'd casually challenged her on who would win in the upcoming Quidditch match, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw.
When Albus had sauntered up to their table on the Saturday of a match, Rose had a sneaking suspicion that Albus hadn't really needed to ask about Transfiguration homework. He just needed an excuse to be at the Gryffindor table so he could speak to Bari, who'd been actively avoiding him.
Al had brought up that he thought Ravenclaw would win so casually, Rose hadn't even put what was happening together until she heard Bari snort across the table.
This was another silent apology, seeing as his vocal one's hadn't worked. And they slowly got back to being friends again, which was a relief to Rose.
That is, until Bari started dating Allen, the human equivalent of History of Magic lesson. But that time was best left in the past, thank Merlin.
Rose had thought Bari and Al had been in a slightly better place since the end of last term, and hearing about their race meant they might be back to normal, whatever that meant. But at the same time, Rose always found that competition often turned ugly between Bari and Albus.
Someone usually got hurt.
And Rose always had to help them get over it.
Rose took another sip of the drink before setting it down on a bedside table. It made her nose twitch.
"I think that'll do for now," Rose said, standing up, her feet feeling much more solid on the ground than they had in hours. She motioned for James to follow her. "Now let's go make sure no one ends up dead. Or worse."
Rose led the way out of Al's nearly empty bedroom. The two cousins headed down the hallway, in the direction of the billiards room. There was a crowd still by the fireplace, but the room was significantly emptier as the majority of people had went outside to see the impromptu event.
The duo walked farther into the room, where the patio doors had all been opened onto the field outside. Rose could smell the freshly mowed grass from where she stood.
The backyard of the Potter's home was as beautiful as the front. A large manicured lawn sloped slowly down towards a small pond. The entire property was surrounded by a grove that rose up behind it. During the day Rose knew it to be a spectacular sight of lush greens that protected the inhabitants from unwanted eyes. At night it served to soften any harsh winds blowing down from the hills.
They were about to walk over the door's threshold when James stopped short.
"You'll be fine on your own?" James suddenly said, his eyes darting to someone over behind Rose.
Rose turned to see what her cousin was glancing at. Frankie Longbottom sat on the tables edge, her feet dangling lazily below her. The blonde girl smiled slyly at James, who was already running a hand through his hair.
Rose suppressed a laugh at her cousin.
"Yeah no worries," she mumbled to his already retreating back. "I'll just go… fuck off by myself then."
James waved a hand over his shoulder and made his way over to his former teammate.
Rose really was fine. She didn't need a chaperone, especially after finishing the remainder of her sobering solution. Glancing once more to see if her cousin would even turn around to address her, and seeing that he was already engrossed by Frankie, Rose went to join the crowd placed on one side of the lawn.
"Hey," Lav said by way of greeting when Rose joined her and Roxy. It was slightly chilly, and Rose was jealous of Roxy's leather jacket draped around Lav's shoulders. "You seem steadier. Less likely to pitch over and vomit."
Rose laughed hoarsely. "James saw to that. Thank Merlin or I would be on the floor of Al's room."
The other girls laughed.
"When do you reckon they'll start? it's bloody freezing out here," Rose murmured, rubbing the gooseflesh that had appeared on her arms.
"No idea and bugger it all if one of them doesn't crash," Roxy said with a sharp laugh.
"Oi, don't say that. You know I'll be the one to clean it up," Rose made a face though no one saw it in the dark night.
"Love, you're going to have to clean up whatever outcome happens," Lav attempted a sympathetic smile.
She was correct, of course. Seeing as Rose was both of these two idiots best friend, she would be responsible for damage control.
Maybe Malfoy would pick up the slack on Al's end, but somehow she doubted it.
Roxy slung her arm around her girlfriends shoulder and whispered something in her ear. Lav giggled and swatted Roxy's dangling hand.
A feeling of sadness welled up in Rose. She was happy that her cousin and friend were so happy together. But Rose's own loneliness was emphasized whenever she was around them. She always felt like a short, stumpy third wheel with the two of them. Both of the other women were tall and sleek, full of grace and power Rose did not feel like she possessed. Rose had power, but it came in the form of her brains and structured life, not her shiny hair or elegant way of speaking like Lav and Roxy. They both had a graceful presence Rose did not possess.
Roxy kissed Lav on the cheek and Rose felt like she'd seen enough.
"I'll catch up with you guys later," Rose said. "Still think I should be sitting down even after the sobering potion."
Roxy and Lav waved as Rose turned away from their PDA. Lavender was still wrapped up in Roxy's jacket, whose arm was still slung around her girlfriend. Rose picked her way through the crowd, trying to find an empty spot on the sloped grass.
Rose smiled and waved to those she passed and recognized. It appeared that a good cross section of cousins, Hogwarts students and alumni had come out to celebrate Albus' turn into adulthood. And now they sat by waiting to see if he would beat Bari Goldstein in a race.
For many of these people, especially those that had attended Hogwarts with the pair, this competition would come as no surprise. Rivalry was part of their relationship. They competed in who could eat the most Bertie's without gagging from a gross flavor. Albus usually won those. Bari had once challenged Albus to see who could become friends with the giant squid first. Bari had become acquainted sooner, seeing as she took to swimming in the Great Lake more than Al dared to.
That competitive nature was one of the reasons Rose had been surprised that Bari had asked Albus out to Hogsmeade. It almost felt like backing down from some challenge on who could go the longest without admitting feelings for the other. Or at least that was what it felt like to Rose, who had been watching the two of them dance around each other for years. Rose supposed Al was still playing that game when he turned her down. It really had been unfortunate. Rose actually thought they'd be quite good together.
Realizing that she had reached the edge of the large group gathered on the lawn, Rose sat down on the damp grass. She ran her hands through the lush green and looked around for her two rivaled friends. She saw them standing a ways away, out towards the center of the lawn. The lights from the house illuminated Al's face. The end of his broomstick was planted on the ground and he was tossing the bristles back and forth between his hands. He was saying something Rose couldn't hear, a smirk plastered on his face. Bari's back was to her, but she was a hard figure to miss even across the field. She was standing with three other figures and was a good head shorter than any of them. One of the other people was standing stoically, glancing at the watch on his wrist. The other was gesturing as if demonstrating the route of flight. He was taller than the other three and his hair almost seemed to be glowing in the reflecting light.
Like it was like a beacon in a storm.
Malfoy.
Rose eyed Malfoy as he headed towards the gathered group. He crossed the darkened lawn in long strides. Malfoy stepped into a patch of light shining from the windows.
"We are gathered here today," Malfoy said in a booming voice. He paused for a moment and looked at the crowd who quieted quickly to hear him. He repeated himself before continuing, an easy smile on his face. "To watch what will no doubt be an opportunity for spectacular bragging rights and the defeat of one of our fine Hogwarts quidditch captains."
There was a smattering of laughter as Malfoy gave a tilted smile. Rose rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around her knees. Malfoy loved an audience.
"We have Albus Potter, Slytherin Seeker, captain, birthday boy, and some would say: an okay guy," Malfoy continued. Albus yelled a disagreement from the field behind him. Malfoy ignored him. "Against Bari Goldstein, Gryffindor chaser and captain, and some would say: a hot girl."
Bari made a noise of discontent mixed with laughter.
"Objectively, that is," Malfoy said with a smirk over his shoulder. "Not really my type quite honestly."
"Hey!" Bari called again, her voice clear in the night air. There was a smile in her voice. "I'm everyone's type."
This caused another laugh from the crowd, who was eagerly awaiting the commencement of the race. Malfoy's eyes landed on Rose and he smirked at her. She narrowed her eyes, showing her annoyance with what he clearly thought were charming antics. He continued speaking but kept his eyes on her for a moment longer.
"Yes, anyways," Malfoy said, handwaving Bari's comment as he continued on. He finally turned his gaze back to the gathered group. "The course is three times around the field and lake, to be in view of the judges, myself and Vince, and all of you as spectators, the entire time. You can see, we have put markers up for the corners of the race." The crowd looked to where Malfoy was pointing. Sure enough, there was a floating bottle Rose recognized from the table inside floating a high above the crowd. The bottle had been filled with some sort of glowing liquid so it shown in the dark night. Rose could just make out two more on the far end of the property.
"Vince will clock them," Malfoy continued, drawing the crowd's attention back to him. "Best time wins! Simple as that."
Malfoy clapped his hands in front of him. The crowd seemed to nod in agreement.
"Whenever you're ready Bari," Malfoy called behind him.
Bari seemed to nod her head, but it was hard to tell in the swallowing blackness of the night. She mounted her broom and was off like a bullet. Rose had never been much of a flyer. She had learned at a young age because that was just the family she grew up in. But Rose hadn't taken to it like her cousins or her brother, who played beater on the Gryffindor team. Rose loved watching the others play, always opting to sit on the sidelines or float in the air and play referee. But what Bari was doing, how she flew so incredibly fast with not even a hint of fear, was something Rose had little interest in.
Rose's heart swooped as Bari sped past on the broom. Bari had a look of determination in her eyes and a smile of mirth on her face. Her confidence practically radiated off of her. The crowd cheered as she raced by. She had finished her first lap in under 30 seconds and was on her second one, quickly zooming around the space. It was all over before Rose had fully settled into the grass.
Bari landed with a soft thud beside Albus, he was scowling at her but grabbed the broom swiftly from her hands. He got a nod from Vince that he was ready to track his time and Albus was off. He was fast too, as would be expected given his parentage. He zoomed quickly around the pitch and Rose was not sure who would have the faster time.
She waited with bated breath as Al finished his last lap before landing with a slightly harder thud beside Vince. During the course of events, Scorpius had made his way back over to where the race began. The four people were conversing and glancing at the two times. Rose, along with the rest of the audience, tried hard to listen to what they were saying. Though the competition was a silly and childish one, and all would be said and done in the course of around five minutes, Rose still felt entitled to the results.
Malfoy returned to his former spot followed in tow by the three others. The already quiet crowd seemed to become even more so.
"The race was close. Both our captains times were within five seconds of the other. But one person was faster than the other and fair is fair. Bari Goldstein is the faster fly."
Rose let out a whoop of congratulations as her friend waved who bowed exaggeratedly. Rose could tell that Albus was annoyed as his hand was gripped so firmly on the broomstick handle she could see his white knuckles from where she sat.
The crowd applauded as Bari shook Albus' hand. She was smiling widely at the boy who looked like his birthday had not gone as planned.
A/N: Thank you all for reading. Sorry there was not a ton of Scor/Rose in this chapter. But trust me there will be coming up. So stay tuned. Hope everyone has a great week! And see you all again soon.