Wizard's Chess

Summary: Rose Weasley didn't want any part in Dominic Zabini and James' twisted human chess game. But when she's blackmailed into playing the black queen, it seems like she's rather enjoying her position opposite the black king, Scorpius Malfoy...

My cousin James is completely, irrevocably… an idiot.

Just because he's a year older than me and Albus, he thinks he knows just about everything. Which is definitely not true, according to his OWL scores from fifth year.

He's much too Gryffindor, and not in a good way either. Overconfident, cocky, arrogant, however you want to say it, that doesn't even start to describe all his faults. Of course, as the only one of his siblings to be sorted into Gryffindor, he obviously thinks that he is naturally better than everyone.

Sure, Gryffindors are brave and all that. But most of the time, they just seem stupid. Obviously they have no sense of self-preservation. They certainly can't get their priorities straight.

I mean, my parents were Gryffindors, and even my father says that my mother didn't get her priorities straight until later on in life.

(He says that when she's not in the room, of course. So I suppose that self-preservation is there, it just lays dormant in all of the students.)

But not only is James a Gryffindor – he's also a Potter, and he flaunts it, too. You can't really avoid all the attention when your dad saved the bloody world, but at least The Boy Who Lived is modest about it. I mean, James wasn't even alive then, but you'd think, with his popularity, that he was the one with the lightning scar.

But the stupidest thing he's done is to pick one too many fights with Dominic Zabini – and he's dragged fourteen other students along with him, including me.

Fuck. My. Life.

I'm awoken by sunlight.

Well, this day has already gotten off to a horrible start.

I squeeze my eyes shut, but reluctantly drag myself out of bed. I'm never a morning person, but today is a Monday, which makes it about ten times worse.

I head to the bathroom, nodding to Janet, my only roommate, as I pass her. Janet and I were the only two girls to be sorted into Ravenclaw our year – I swear, the world is just getting dumber and dumber – but we didn't become best friends. We were both better off by ourselves. After five years, I'd found her as a nice companion who was great for a good conversation, but other than that, we didn't spend too much time together. Sure, we sometimes sat together in class or once in a while got butterbeers in Hogsmeade, but that was about it.

By the time I get down to the Great Hall, it is already crowded with people. I zoom to Louis' side at the Ravenclaw table, reaching for the nearest muffin and getting a coffee instantly.

No, they don't usually have coffee at Hogwarts, but the house elves here love me.

I take a sip of the coffee – it already has cream in it, just the way I like it – but realize that it's already cold. Damn. I got up later than I thought.

I reach into my bag to grab my wand for a quick heating charm, before I realize I left it in the dorm. I really was out of it this morning.

I glance around quickly, making eye contact with Louis. He sees the look on my face, nods, then turns to Wesley Herrington across the table and strikes up a loud conversation.

Of all my relatives, he's the only one that knows I can perform wandless magic. It's not that it's a bad thing I can, but rather, I could get into a lot of trouble for the things I've done with it. You see, over the summers our parents have to regulate the use of magic in the house somehow, with it being unrecognizable from a minor or an adult. So they take our wands away. Not the safest thing, but the war is long past, and if they didn't there would be way too many "accidents" involving hexes and jinxes. With a crazy family like mine, it wouldn't be surprising.

I do enjoy pranking every once in a while, but sometimes Louis and I think of a really good one, and we can't resist.

It's a secret, and I will keep it that way. Just like the fact that I get special treatment from the house elves: no one needs to know.

I'm leaving the library that night when he approaches me. Dominic Zabini, seventh year Slytherin, in all his supposed glory. I know James has marked him as his archenemy from day one, seeing as he rants about him at more than half of the family dinners, but other than that I have no connection to him at all. Tall, dark, and mysterious – I wouldn't go so far to say that he's handsome, considering I'm related to part-veelas – there's something about him that slightly intimidates me, at least tonight. It's already late and the corridors are empty. I can't use my wand lest cause a commotion, and wandless magic… well, it's certainly be pointless to give my secret away like this.

He flashes that oh-so-Slytherin smirk of his when he stops right in front of me. Because of my accursed shortness, I have to tilt my head upward to meet his eyes. His face edges closer, his mouth right next to my ear. At this point, I'm frozen, but in my head a million different plans of how to get out of the situation are already racing through my mind. If he so much as touches me, it'll all be over. I could always obliviate him with my wand later…

His soft chuckling breaks my train of thought. "You can't obliviate me with wandless magic. Too messy."

My head jerks up sharply. Of all things, I wasn't suspecting that.

He pulls away, smirking once more. A wand – my wand – is twirling in his fingers. So there was a reason for his close proximity.

I stand my ground, remaining firm. "I have no idea what you're talking about. If you'll excuse me –"

"Oh, come on, Weasley, you think that coffee heats itself?" His smirk grows wider. I think I see why James hates him so much now. "You know, when liquids are heated, they produce steam. And it's rather visible, from, say, a table away."

I glare at him, snatching my wand back. "So? What now? Are you going to blab to the whole world now?"

He puts his hand over his heart in mock pain. "Oh, you wound me, Weasley. I'm not really that evil." But I can see in his eyes that the last sentence is a lie too. "Room of Requirement. Midnight. Don't be late."

I'm still wondering if I can obliviate him when I utter my next words. "And if not?"

He cocks his head to the side. "Well, I'm sure the professors would like to know who got into the Gryffindor common room last year and completely trashed the place. Didn't they test everyone's wands in fear of an actually criminal?"

I scowl at him. Next time James pranks him, I want in on it. I turn around and head to the kitchens. Obviously I'm in for a late night, and I'm going to need caffeine to get me through it.

By the time I arrive at 12:10 – I delay myself just to spite Zabini, the bloody git – Janet and Louis are already there. I raise my eyebrows at both of them, but they shrug. So they don't know what's going on either. I take a seat next to Janet – the room is furnished luxuriously, but I would expect no less from a Slytherin. The chairs are seated along a long table, and across is Louis, who resumes his conversation with Wesley Herrington. Down the table, Scorpius Malfoy and Nathan Parkinson, two sixth year Slytherins, are muttering to each other in low voices. At the head, Zabini stands up after I take a seat, almost having to shove off a very… eager Misty Goyle.

At least I have two friends in the room. Just in case the other five try to attack me.

Zabini makes the introductions, even though we all know each other – it's hard to be strangers if you've been living in the same castle, no matter how big, for five bloody years. Then he goes into a brief monologue about how James Potter is the biggest prat known to man. He adds on an apology to me and Louis, but we both wave it off, knowing what he speaks is the truth. And then he says:

"James Potter has challenged me to a game of wizard's chess."

At this point he pauses dramatically. However, everyone's faces are impassive, as if we're all thinking, who gives a flying fuck?

Except for Misty Goyle, of course, who can't even think because she doesn't have a brain big enough to function.

And then he adds, "And I've raised the stakes… with human players."

This is when we all perk up. Slytherins are ambitious, Ravenclaws are curious, and we all want to know what exactly he means by human players.

He continues, "We've agreed on a set amount of seven players, one of each type of piece, with two pawns."

I survey the others sitting at the table. Of course, excluding Zabini, there are seven of us. My eyes connect with Scorpius Malfoy's for a quick second before moving on to Parkinson. I know, at that moment, that he is doing the exact same thing I am.

"If you lose your necktie, you are immediately eliminated."

I look down at the blue and bronze necktie that now hangs loosely around my neck. I subconsciously reach up and tighten it a bit.

"The winning team gets to use the opposing team as servants for the rest of the school year."

At this, I see Malfoy and Parkinson grin devilishly. Janet, next to me, remains emotionless, as do I.

Wesley speaks up. "And if you're eliminated?"

Zabini grins slyly. "It's not about how many pieces you lose, is it?"

Stupid, stupid game. I can already see that it will take up a lot of precious time. Too much time. Right as I'm about to stand up and leave, I remind myself what Zabini knows. If the castle finds out about it, if my parents do… I will lose all chances of Head Girl. And my parents would be so disappointed in me…

My eyes flick to Louis'. We both stare at each other, and I imperceptibly nod.

I suppose a little game won't hurt.

No one leaves the room. I sit back as he moves down the table, naming our positions.

But when he calls me out as the black queen and names Scorpius Malfoy king, I can't help but have second thoughts.

So… recap! I didn't cover all of this in the chapter but I don't feel like introducing each chess piece, so…

Dominic - Black: Slytherin and Ravenclaw
James - White: Gryffindor and Hufflepuff

Black

King: Scorpius Malfoy

Queen: Rose Weasley

Bishop: Nathan Parkinson

Knight: Louis Weasley

Rook: Janet Tracy

Pawn: Misty Goyle

Pawn: Wesley Herrington

White: Unknown at this point

I hope this was original. I don't think I've read any like this, so we'll see.

I was originally inspired by a manga. I don't really read it but I stumbled across it and it was pretty interesting. Kimi Wa Boku No Toriko Nare. I'm not sure if anyone on ff reads stuff like that though… so…

I'm so excited for March 23rd! Are you? Hunger Games is definitely my favorite series after Harry Potter (: