After Rook left Zonko's with Spencer, the latter was largely silent as he led the way to Tomes and Scrolls. Once outside the bookshop, Spencer held the door open for Rook and she walked in, looking around curiously. The name of the shop was apt, for there were not only many large books lining the shelves, but also archives of several ancient-looking scrolls stored in a great glass case behind the clerk's desk. The old wizard manning the desk gave Rook a suspicious look as she entered, but returned to his reading once Spencer had joined her.

"There's a really interesting section on Herbology over here," Spencer spoke quietly before guiding her to a remote corner of the shop. He began perusing the shelves with interest, handing Rook books to look at as he did. "This is one of my favorites. The illustrations are phenomenal."

Rook opened the book Spencer had handed to her and immediately saw what he meant. The diagrams had been drawn so meticulously and beautifully, Rook stared in awe at the pages, completely disregarding the text.

A particular smell met Rook's nose as she flipped through the book, like the fresh, earthy smell of a forest after a heavy rainfall. At first she thought that the smell was coming from the book itself, but it became stronger as Stefan moved closer to Rook in the small space, and she found it intoxicating.

"What do you think?" he murmured. "It should be in an art gallery."

Their eyes met and the pleasant smell made Rook dizzy. She stumbled into the shelf behind her as she stepped backward, but managed not to knock anything over.

"Are you all right, Rosemary?" Spencer, asked, steadying her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."

"No, it's my fault. I-I guess I'm just… a bit nervous," she admitted.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one," said Spencer with a smile. "I got worried after I asked you here. I think I might have come on a bit strong. It's just, I've never met anyone like you before, and I was so nervous I feel like my brain wasn't keeping up with my mouth."

"Oh…" said Rook faintly, finding herself unable to think clearly. "It's all right, I guess, it's just…"

"What?"

"Well, you were kind of mean about my friends. I guess that was a little off-putting."

"You mean the Weasleys," he stated. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be mean. Truthfully, I've never quite gotten along with them, but I don't have anything against them, except… well, I am a bit envious of them, but you can hardly blame me for that."

Rook was starting to understand what Alicia saw in Spencer. He was certainly charming, if a bit intense. Of course, Rook had her own issues in the area of being too intense.

"Why did you ask me out?"

Spencer smiled again. "Because I like you. Why else?"

"But why me? I thought… I thought I must annoy you."

Spencer looked thoughtful. "I can see how you might have thought that, but no. I have gotten frustrated during our sessions because I find it hard to pinpoint your exact level of comprehension. Sometimes you pick things up in a heartbeat and other times I feel like I have to explain something very simple over and over. It's a bit disorienting when I'm trying to get you up to speed. Truthfully, you're very clever. I know I said it before, but it's a shame you're not in Ravenclaw. Personally, I think you're much better suited to my house."

Rook didn't know how she was supposed to feel about this. It was... sort of a compliment? And how could she fault him for being candid when she was the one who asked his opinion? Still, she couldn't help feeling a little wounded. Did Fred and George secretly get frustrated with her whenever they helped her? Perhaps they were just too nice to say as much…

Spencer continued selecting books to show to Rook. Everything he recommended was very interesting, but she was barely able to absorb anything before he was handing her something else. As they left, he insisted upon buying her a book, despite her many protests. She reluctantly accepted the book with the intricate illustrations. She did like the gift itself, but she didn't like feeling beholden to Spencer, especially when she hadn't even decided whether she wanted to go on a second date with him.

From the book shop, Spencer and Rook walked over to the Three Broomsticks. Once inside, Rook's eyes were drawn to a familiar shade of flaming red that stood out in the crowded pub. Fred sat at a small table with Angelina, and Rook waved at him. Fred waved back, and Rook felt somewhat fortified. When she turned back to Spencer, she saw that he had started talking to a friend of his.

"—I'm actually here with someone as well. Oh, hello—Rosemary, isn't it?"

Rook took a moment to recognize the person speaking to Spencer. Eventually she remembered that it was the boy, Hilliard, who had approached her and Malerna by the platform barrier before the start of term.

"You know each other?" asked Spencer.

"We met a while back. Madeline, did you see your friend is here?"

Madeline appeared at Hilliard's side and Rook wondered how she hadn't spotted her and her impossibly long, black hair immediately. Madeline looked as surprised as Rook felt, and hurriedly contorted her face into an expression of distaste.

"She's not my friend," Madeline insisted with such hostility that both Hilliard and Spencer looked taken aback.

"Um, that's right," Rook added to try and break the awkward silence. "We barely know each other, really."

"Well, why don't we sit together?" suggested Hilliard. Madeline glared daggers at him, but he ignored her.

"Rosemary?" Spencer consulted Rook.

"I don't mind, but…" Rook trailed off as Madeline shook her head at her warningly.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" Hilliard persisted avidly. The quartet gathered around a free table. Rook cast a concerned looked at Madeline, who gave her the slightest, almost indiscernible wink.

"So, Rook, how do you like Hogwarts thus far?" Hilliard asked.

"It's, uh… Well, it's definitely a school," said Rook, distracted by Madeline's odd behavior. "But… it's also a castle, which, you know, I like the versatility. Usually you have to choose one or the other, but not here, no… But then, if your heart's desire is funeral home in a bungalow, I guess you're poo out of luck at Hogwarts, aren't you?"

Hilliard laughed. "You're pretty funny, Rosemary!"

"For it to be a joke, there needs to be a punchline, Robert," commented Madeline acidly. "Unless you're laughing at the girl's outfit, which is a joke in and of itself."

Rook laughed loudly, but her laughter was quelled by a withering look from Madeline. Hilliard looked appalled.

"Madeline, that was just… unnecessary," he said. "What did Rook ever do to you?"

"Yeah, it can't be much worse than what you've done to yourself," said Rook, hoping she understood what Madeline was trying to do. "I hate to break it to you, but I think you're the real fashion tragedy at this table."

"That's fine by me. I can change my clothes, but your face will always look like that."

Rook was struggling to keep a straight face when Spencer suddenly stood. "I think you should apologize," he spoke angrily. Madeline looked up at him, and Rook could tell she was also trying not to laugh.

"Spen—Stefan," said Rook, getting to her feet as well. "It's all right, really. It doesn't bother me at all."

"No, I agree with Stefan," Hilliard interjected. "You should apologize to Rosemary."

"All right… Rosemary I'm sorry you look like a botched transfiguration of a squirrel into a marmoset."

"Is that really the best you could come up with? Squirrels and marmosets are adorable. You're more like a tragic amalgam of an angler fish and Argus Filch."

Madeline stood, staring Rook down, and Rook could no longer stop herself from laughing. Madeline then began to break, and Rook took a deep breath and turned to Spencer.

"Stefan, I think maybe we should sit somewhere else, if that's okay."

Before he could answer, Rook had crossed the pub. Spencer joined her with their drinks, looking thoroughly bemused.

"What on Earth was that all about?" he asked with some lingering indignation.

"It's hard to explain," said Rook, unsure how much she should say, for Madeline's sake. "She just… doesn't like me."

"Seems like a bit of an understatement. She just hates you for no reason?"

"It's kind of to do with the house rivalry thing. You know, Gryffindors and Slytherins and all that?"

Spencer scoffed. "Yet another reason you'd be better off in Ravenclaw. That house rivalry is ridiculous. I don't know why you play into it."

Rook shrugged. There was really no point trying to explain that she didn't actually dislike Madeline, so Rook changed the subject. The drink Spencer had given her, something called a butterbeer, was deliciously warm, and once she had a chance to relax a bit, she started enjoying her conversation with Spencer. They discovered that they both enjoyed riddles and puzzles and spent a good portion of their time exchanging different riddles.

"I don't know if I should tell you this," Spencer said after a while, piquing Rook's interest, "though I think it's all right as long as I don't tell you where it was…"

"What?"

"Well, my mate Robert, back when he first became a prefect, he was designated to bring the first years to the Ravenclaw common room. The thing is, to get in, you have to answer a riddle, right? And he couldn't, for the life of him, figure it out. Now, he didn't want to look bad in front of all the first years, so he was determined to get it himself. They ended up stuck outside for at least ten minutes until one of the first years finally shouted the answer. Now, I don't remember the riddle itself, but the answer ended up being 'humility'. Two years later and he still has yet to live it down."

Spencer and Rook were both laughing now, and Rook couldn't help noticing that, for once, she felt as at ease with him as she did with Fred and George. She thought that perhaps she had the wrong impression of Spencer, and that maybe he had the potential to be just as good a friend to her as the twins. After all, she hadn't gotten along very well with Fred initially either.

Before they left Hogsmeade, Spencer took Rook to Honeydukes, and they enjoyed free samples of fudge as they made their way back to Hogwarts castle together. Rook wished she had brought a scarf or mittens or something to keep her extremities warm in the biting wind. When Spencer caught sight of her shivering, he stopped her on the path to give her his own scarf. It carried with it that same strong scent Rook had first noticed in the book shop.

"It looks better on you anyway," said Spencer with a smile. "As for your hands, well… I'll carry that," he said, taking the book, "you can put that hand in your pocket and this one…"

Spencer took Rook's free hand into his own and they started walking again. Rook walked alongside Spencer in a daze, her heart racing painfully fast. What was happening? How did this happen? Was there a way for her to pull her hand away without being rude?

Not that she didn't like Spencer, but she certainly wasn't prepared to walk into the Great Hall with him like this!

Rook panicked inwardly for several moments before she finally pulled her hand away.

"I'm sorry," she said, stopping again. "I'm sorry, I just… I don't know if I'm ready for this."

"For holding hands?"

"For… for dating."

Spencer looked stunned by this. "But… you came here with me. I thought we had a good time?"

"I did have a good time, I really did, it's just—I've just never had a boyfriend or anything, and you're really nice, but I—I'm just not ready."

"'Not ready'?" Spencer repeated, clearly upset. "What kind of person do you think I am? It's not like I'm asking you to shag me, I just want a chance to get to know you! Is spending time with me really that unbearable?"

"No!" said Rook hurriedly. "No, it's not that at all!" She felt close to tears at this point, and she didn't know how to make this right. "I don't know how else to explain…" she admitted, her voice trembling.

Spencer's expression softened. "Oh, come on now, Rosemary," he said. "You don't need to cry about it. I'm the one getting rejected, aren't I?"

It was too late. Rook had started crying again. She cursed herself for being like this. Spencer walked up to her and hugged her.

"I-I do like you, and it w-was fun, I just—"

"It's okay, Rosemary," said Spencer soothingly. "I overreacted. I just had a really good time and I was looking forward to doing it again. But we'll still have our tutoring sessions, won't we? And we're friends now, right?"

Spencer pulled away and Rook nodded timidly. They walked to the castle together and said goodbye in the Entrance Hall. Rook felt terrible for rejecting Spencer, but it had to be better than leading him on when she knew she had feelings for George.

Right?