Welcome! Here is a multi-chapter fic I've been dabbling in for a few months. I'm anticipating 6 parts in all. More to come soon. Enjoy!

Rose Weasley had no friends.

Well, that wasn't entirely truthful. Rose had four friends. And four is—in fact—more than zero.

But if Rose had been asked on this particular evening who her friends were, she would point to her plate of mashed potatoes and give a dry look.

Friends sat together at dinner—it went without saying. However, thanks to another pesky unspoken rule, romantic entanglements trumped friendships. For Rose to be all alone at dinner for the first time either meant she had no friends or was outrageously single. Rose was presently convinced of both.

Sure, she still saw, talked to, and loved her group of four raucous Gryffindors during the school day. But come dinner time, Beck scurried off with some Hufflepuff, and Wesley and Jenny traded disgusting looks. All of this was fine until Risa decided that morning to try her hand at dating. While Rose was pleased for all of her friends, she couldn't help but resent Derrick Smee just a little for stealing Risa away.

Playing with her potatoes provided some relief. It comforted her to draw patterns with the utensils and smoosh the white pillows into a flat mush.

Rose didn't mind her singleness. In fact, she couldn't think of one person she'd willingly sacrifice time with her friends for. Beck, Wesley, Jenny, and Risa clearly didn't feel the same. They were her best, but she was not theirs.

Rose tipped her cheek into a palm, and her fork slipped onto her plate with a clatter. If that evening gave any indication, it was going to be a long year. The date was October 26th, so she had… just over 200 dinners spent alone before the end of the year. Eyes slipping closed, she breathed a long sigh of resignation.

At the sound of a clearing throat, Rose sat up quickly in her seat. Blinking against the sudden onslaught of light, she registered a tall figure standing opposite the table.

"Mind if I join you?"

Rose's confusion drowned out the noise of the Great Hall as she stared at the figure for a long moment. Why on earth was Scorpius Malfoy at the Gryffindor table?

"Sure." Rose gestured for him to sit when the silence had accrued a little too long. He set down his plate and lifted his legs over the bench.

His appearance was something to marvel at. She couldn't recall a time he had ever voluntarily approached her. As his eyes met hers, she also couldn't recall a time he had ever looked at her. Rose would remember those bright green eyes. And the perfectly imperfect hair. And literally everything else about him.

Scorpius tugged at his collar. "You looked like you could use some company."

Rose continued to stare, unsure whether her guest was purposefully impertinent. When he didn't break her gaze, her cheeks grew red and formed a scowl. This was turning out to be a horrible kind of evening. First, abandonment. Next, pity from a beautiful, insolent boy. Merlin, save her.

"I don't mean to—" He sighed, fingers drumming on the table. "It's just that I find myself dreadfully alone tonight, and I wondered if you felt the same way."

Scorpius Malfoy felt lonely? That seemed pretty damn near impossible. He always stayed around that Boynton girl and… Derrick Smee. Rose glanced over to the Ravenclaw table toward Risa. As expected, Derrick hadn't gone anywhere.

"You've been abandoned, too, huh?"

Scorpius shot her a look of amusement over a spoonful of potatoes. "I suppose you could say that."

"And now you're drowning your sorrows in mash? That won't help with Quiddich, you know."

He rewarded her with a smile. Godric, it really wasn't fair how his already handsome face gave way to dimples. He jabbed his spoon in the direction of her plate. "Neither will playing with your food." Beside her flattened potatoes, Rose had taken to arranging her peas in the shape of a tree.

Taking a full spoonful in hand, she dramatically shoveled it into her mouth. Before she had half a mind to be embarrassed by her dramatic display, Scorpius did the same with a smile.

Rose's cheeks burned. Who was this smiling boy, and why hadn't she ever talked to him? "First time sitting alone?"

"No, actually. Derrick dated someone last year for a few months."

"What about Boynton?"

"Amy?" He glanced around the Great Hall. Pointing toward the Slytherin table, he sighed, "I can't remember her boyfriend's name. She's with someone new so often I can't keep up."

Craning her neck, Rose could see Boynton beside a blonde. Anyone with eyes could see the lack of chemistry between the pair. They barely looked at one another. Not for the first time, Rose wondered why people bothered with relationships if it only meant sitting beside one another at dinner and staring off into space.

"Is it your first time sitting alone, then?" Rose snapped her head toward Scorpius, almost having forgotten him across from her.

"Yeah. Seems like dating is just the popular thing to do these days."

"Maybe. But I don't think that's true for everyone," Scorpius quickly added. "Take Derrick, for example. He's been smitten with Risa since Muggle Studies last spring. He's barely talked about anything else since. It's been bloody annoying, but he's happy."

Rose hesitantly peeked over to the Ravenclaw table. She felt a sudden rush of affection for Derrick, though nothing had changed since she looked toward him five minutes ago. Derrick reached down the table to grab a treacle tart for Risa, and Rose couldn't find it in herself to be upset anymore. Especially when she saw the size of Risa's smile.

Letting her head fall into her hands, Rose rubbed at her temples. "I suppose. I'm just angry at love today."

A melodic laugh sounded across her. "Does that happen to you often?"

Peeking through her fingers, Rose replied, "Only when it leaves me all alone and without friends." She swore the Great Hall had gotten quieter as he laughed at her. It was fortunate her hands covered her cheeks. Her body possessed an uncanny knack for letting everyone know how she felt.

"Well, you're not alone. As for the friend part, I think maybe I can help."

Rose stared in disbelief. This evening marked the literal first conversation between them. Was he suggesting what she thought he was?

Ears slightly pink, Scorpius cleared his throat. "I know we don't really know each other, but I think we could become friends. If you want."

The longer Rose stayed silent, the more she noticed his ears growing the color of the burgundy tablecloth beneath his fingers. Blinking, she replied, "You want to be friends with me?"

Scorpius shrugged and pulled at the collar of his blue jumper. "Yeah. You're funny."

Funny? Rose couldn't recall a time when that word had ever been used to describe her. Uptight? Yes. Organized? Always. Intelligent? Of course (and she carried that one with pride). But funny? No, she didn't think anyone had ever called her funny. It made something bloom in her chest, which was why she replied, "Okay," more quickly than she ought to have.

"Okay?" He looked skeptical for a moment before deciding she had been sincere. "Okay. In that case, I'm happy to meet you, Rose."

"Likewise, Scorpius."

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Blessings, CompletelyDone