A/N: Thanks for all the brilliant reviews! The response to the last chapter was amazing, I'm glad you guys liked the Scorpius-Rose interaction. I'm horrible for not replying to all of your reviews individually, but trust me when I say that I read, appreciated and loved each and every one of them- keep them coming guys :D - XXXmeggie-loves-to-readXXX, Love without expectation, scentasia, silvermist76, Missdagane, senga1, Nanita, SaruDM, x-rayLady, lilbuddie715, manzjonz, Mrs. Theodore Nott, dobbyfish, LJBC, Pinakamataas, pops and Lunapeacock.

And of course, all those who favourited/alerted: Nanita, shelly1224, manzjonz, Rebk famafiana, Lilybet Edyvean, , lynnnnyl, xiLynnx, letita28, luvskittles35 and jlang222. Wow, picked up a lot of new readers last time round. Do leave reviews, guys!

Now, Onwards! And beyond...

Chapter 8:

The clankers rattled, the loud noise echoing around the chamber. The cowed dragon reared back, a tendril of flame spurting from its nostrils as it shrunk against the wall.

Rose felt a pang of sympathy for the creature as it almost shook in fear, dreading the lashes it had been trained to expect.

Ragnook swung the lamp around, handing the clankers to Scorpius. Rose averted her eyes quickly, trying to tamp down the turmoil in her chest; she had work to do.

"Follow me…follow me…" murmured the goblin.

The richly dressed woman stepped forward, her long strides halting every few seconds to allow Ragnook to stay ahead of her. Rose had met her before, was familiar with the wards around her vault and yet had never seen the woman's face; always, it was covered with a low hood.

The goblin stroked the door of vault 937 with a stubby index finger, the locks whirling out of place and retreating into the wall. Ragnook half turned towards his audience. "Miss Weasley…"

Rose stepped forward, noticing Scorpius shift subtly behind her as if he'd made to follow then stopped himself. Focusing her mind on the portal of the vault, she sketched in the glowing runes with her wand, rearranging the combination of panels with a flick. The massive iron door split down the middle, each halve sliding into the wall alongside it.

The woman inclined her head in Rose's direction and stepped into the vault. The door immediately materialized, sealing her in. The first time Rose had witnessed this, she had nearly panicked. Horror stories of trapped souls had flooded her mind. How many people had died in the underground chambers?

But in the high security vaults, even goblins were not allowed in- only the proprietor. And 937 was one of the most secure vaults in the building.

Rose fidgeted nervously, glancing occasionally at the half blind dragon. It was lying docilely against the wall, its posture bearing an absurd similarity to that of a resting dog's. It wasn't the depth of the chambers or the creatures inhabiting it that scared her- she'd gotten used to that. But this dragon in particular, the Hebridean Black, had been a lot of trouble. It was acting suspiciously complacent for once though, as if it hadn't roasted and eaten the last visitor.

The sound of a gong echoed from within the vault and Ragnook and Rose repeated the procedure, unlocking the vault to allow the woman to exit.

They returned to the cart, silent and alert. This place was dangerous- and Rose couldn't get enough of it. She rarely went into the bottom most levels- only when the vault was an extremely secure one with cursed wards but each time she did, it reminded her again of exactly why she had taken up curse-breaking. It was the thrill, the adventure of it, which gave her goosebumps and made her feel alive. Admittedly, she would have been more content with the mummies in Egypt, but the lower levels of Gringott's weren't exactly the Kensington Gardens.

They piled into the carts and it jerked away, a cross between a rollercoaster and the knight bus, barreling through the twisted planes of each floor, rounding bends with such force, that everyone except Ragnook felt the need to hold on to some part of the death trap.

The trolley finally screeched to a halt and the shaky group clambered out, stepping through the wide arch into the brightly lit interior of Gringott's. The lady collected her key from Ragnook and waving farewell with a gloved hand, swanned out of the exit, emitting an aura of satisfaction.

Rose sighed in disappointment as she took her place behind the boring desk again. It wasn't just the thrill she got from being down there which made her want to jump back into the blasted cart, it was also the fact that it was really very good at occupying her mind, preventing it from lingering on the bloke next to her.

Chancing a half glance at him, she took a moment to admire the way the sunlight filtering through the arched windows illuminated the planes of his face, casting one half into shadows.

He caught her looking and she imagined for a moment that he'd smiled at her. Not smirked, sneered or leered, but smiled. The smile was gone the next second, replaced with a sardonic raising of his eyebrows and a smug look.

Rose looked away, heart racing. Every time she thought of the way he had tried to hurt her in the duel, she was filled with a choking rage. And then she'd remember how he had held her and whispered his apology so quietly and so sincerely she almost felt she'd imagined it. Her anger would die down, replaced with a bewildering confusion. Why had he done that? Why had he wanted to hurt her? Why had he apologized the way he had? And what did it all mean?

Rose shook her head to clear it of the relentless barrage of questions, none of which had answers she could provide. The way he had acted yesterday could mean that he hated her but loved her, if that made any sense. But the way he was acting today made it seem as if he didn't care about her either way. She kneaded her forehead, trying to rid it of the dull throb building up in her right temple. This was too confusing to think about.

"D'you need a headache potion?"

She jumped startled, at the sound of Scorpius' voice, not taking in a word he'd said. "Er-what?"

He gave her a blank look. "Headache potion- Do you need one?"

"N-no. I'm fine. Just fine. Great! Dandy! And you?" Rose looked around nervously, wishing she could hex herself into shutting up permanently. Why was she babbling?

"I'm just great, thank you. Even better since yesterday."

Rose's head snapped up, eyes widening in shock. Had he really just said that?

She licked her dry lips. "W-what?"

Scorpius gave her a look of confusion. "Well, you know, I had that slight cough yesterday…it's much better today," he said brightly.

Rose laughed hoarsely. "Yeah. Of course. The cough."

What cough?

He'd been acting like this the whole day; acting as if he had forgotten all about the day before, then casually slipping in a sentence which seemed to hint at yesterday's events. As soon as she'd become flustered though, he'd throw in some banal and probably fabricated event which had apparently occurred instead.

Rose felt like punching him for acting so obtuse and she would have too, if it hadn't reminded her of their fight and the subsequent episode in her room and his reaction today. It all just came full circle.

"Is it painful?"

Her gaze snapped to him, hostile. Oh, Great. He was doing it again. What was the punch line this time?

She opened her mouth to retort but he cut her off with a "The bruises, I mean. Are you in pain?"

He looked genuinely anxious as he added the last bit, as if he'd had enough of the joking. Rose considered not responding. It would serve him right, the stupid prat. But she wasn't as immature as him.

"No," Rose said in clipped tones. "It's much better today. It must have been the…cream."

She felt the warmth creeping up her neck and cleared her throat, shuffling random papers strewn across her desk.

"Yeah," Scorpius agreed, his tone serious. "It must have been the cream. Hey, I have a great idea!"

Rose eyed him warily. "….do I want to know?"

He nodded eagerly. "Of course! Why don't you get a massage? I know this really great place a few streets down, they do a wonderful-"

Rose blanched. ANOTHER joke. She was going to kill him.

"Shut up!" she hissed, looking around to see if Nigbit was hovering nearby.

Scorpius shut up obediently, still nodding brightly. "Okay," he said.

Rose stared at him disbelievingly. He really did love taking the mick didn't he? Fine. If he wanted to play, she would play.

"Why did you do it?" she asked bluntly.

"Do what?" A smirk flitted across his face briefly.

"You know what I'm talking about." She narrowed her eyes at him, trying to keep a straight face.

Scorpius shifted slightly in his seat, leaning forward a bit. "No, I don't know. Care to elaborate?"

"Don't act so dumb Scorpius. We both know what you did and now I want an explanation." This was fun!

"What are you saying, Weasley?" The look he gave her was severe. Was he warning her to not drag the subject up? Oh well, too bad.

"Why," Rose said quietly, leaning towards him, "did you tell the postman I used to be 'Robert' just three years ago?"

Scorpius' mouth opened slightly in surprise. Rose pushed her tongue into her cheek, trying her hardest to not laugh at the expression on his face. He gave her an approving look and she smirked impishly at him. The only thing was, he really had told the postman that...

Scorpius smirked back at her. "Very good, Rosie. And a postman, is that who he was? He was quite insistent on getting your autograph, I thought he was a fan boy or something…"

Rose couldn't help the laugh which crossed her lips. "My autograph? Scorp, you dolt, he wanted me to sign for a delivery. That's how the muggles do it."

Scorpius shook his head exasperatedly. "Muggles…."he muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing?"

"Good."

"But," Rose said, raising her eyebrows, "it's odd that you would tell a fanboy that I used to be a man."

Scorpius shrugged lazily, not offering an explanation.

Rose rolled her eyes. Enough of the joking. She really did need answers. "Scorp," she said seriously, her tone catching his attention. "What was that yesterday? And I'm not talking about the postman or your non-existent cough or massage parlours. I'm serious about this."

Rose gave him a level look. He regarded her thoughtfully for a full minute. He parted his lips to respond. "Rose, I-"

"Rosie!"

Both of them swiveled to face the newcomer. Rose cursed the interruption. Just when she'd been about to get her answers too…she glanced at him but he'd clammed up again, gazing hostilely in the direction of her visitor.

Rose turned to regard the man in front of her, almost having forgotten he was there. She recognized him with a jolt of surprise.

"Will! What brings you here?"

"Well, Rosie-" Rose cringed at his usage of her nickname. Somehow it sounded odd when Will said it. "I just wanted to see you again. I mean I realize our last date didn't go off too well, but- what is he doing here?"

He was staring at something to her right, eyes wide. Scorpius! Shit!

"Stalking," Rose blurted immediately, looking between the two. Will was staring at the blonde, face ashen and Scorpius was just smiling back genially, his expression tinged with sarcasm.

Crap, Crap, Crap!

"He-I-Rose, how can he follow you to work?"

Rose shrugged helplessly. "Fragile mental state, you know…." She mumbled incoherently.

This was not good. What if Will saw through her lame-ass cover story? How could he not see through her lame-ass cover story?

Will tossed Scorpius a nasty look and resolutely turned his back on him.
"Rosie,"-insert cringe-"I was thinking that maybe we could go out again-alone, this time. I mean, not alone of course. With each other. Obviously. Er-You get my point, I'm sure."

"Oh, Will. I thought you didn't want to see me again, until er-until, this one stops following me."

Will grimaced, shoving his hands into his pockets. "You make it sound so terrible. That's not what I meant Rose. I've had a think about it since our date and I really feel that I shouldn't be wasting our limited time together because you're being nice to some poor bloke and I can't handle it. Can you give me another chance, Rosie?"

Rose's stomach lurched unpleasantly. She didn't want to go out with Will again. The last time had been a disaster and this time wouldn't be any different- not with Scorpius there. And truth be told, her heart really wasn't in it. Dating men at this time was too much of a hassle.

But how was she to let him down gently?

"Will, I…I don't think it's possible. Not right now, anyway. I've really been run off my feet lately and I just don't think it's a good idea." Rose offered him an apologetic smile, wishing he would leave. She was acutely conscious of Scorpius' presence, even though she couldn't see him.

Will's face instead of crumpling with dejection as it had last time, clouded over and he took a step forward, invading her personal space.

"Why?" He said, his voice low. "You had enough time the other night. And honestly Rose, after the way you stood me up last time, I think you owe me this date."

"Will…"Rose's voice trailed off warningly. Her eyes darted around the bank, taking in the curious glances directed at her. "Don't make a scene."

"I won't take no for an answer." Will stepped in again, closing the distance between them and grabbing her wrist harshly. "Say yes, Rose," he urged, his grip so tight it was restricting her blood flow. She tried to pull her arm out of his grasp, but instead of letting go, he pulled her towards him so she was half out of her chair. Her elbow collided painfully with with the wooden tabletop.

Rose opened her mouth to protest but suddenly Will wasn't in front of her anymore; he was sprawled across the ground, moaning and nursing his jaw.

Rose gaped at him and whirled around to find Scorpius standing next to her, flexing his left hand.

"You-You punched him!" she screeched.

Scorpius ignored her and hauled Will to his feet. "Listen here," he snarled. "If you even think about forcing Rose to do anything or ever lay a hand on her again, I will kill you. I will crucio your sorry arse till you go insane and then I will fucking kill you. Got that?"

Will whimpered and tried to pry Scorpius' clenched fingers off his throat. "Let go, man" he choked out. "I was just messing around."

Scorpius' grip tightened.

"Scorp! Put him down!" Rose yelped, alarmed at the scene unfolding in front of her. Scorpius continued to ignore her, Will's face growing purple as he fought for air, his hands clawing at Scorpius'.

"SCORPIUS!" Rose gripped his wrist harshly and sent him the most urgent look she could. "Let him go."

He finally turned to look at her, his gaze blank with anger. He blinked once, seeming to come back to himself, and finally loosened his grip. Will crumpled to the floor in a gasping heap, each breath loud and shuddering. He dry heaved, his prone figure shaking.

Rose just stared at the both of them, horrified. How had the situation escalated to this? Scorpius stared down at the sad figure lying at his feet, his gaze pitiless and harsh. The depositors scattered around the hall pointed and whispered loudly, looking appalled but otherwise making no move to help Will.

Rose made to help Will up, but the guards stationed at the entrance beat her to it, lifting him to his feet and escorting him outside, probably hoping to dispel the gawking crowd.

Nigbit pushed his way through towards Scorpius, whispering harshly to him, his voice low enough that no one else, not even Rose, could hear. She watched Scorpius' features tighten with anger and then relax as he nodded once. Nigbit scowled angrily at him and turned to the onlookers. "Get on with your business or you lot won't be getting any gold today," he snarled.

The wizards shook themselves out of their stupor and turned their attention back to their own problems, already forgetting about the scene they'd just witnessed. Rose just stared at Scorpius, disbelievingly.

"What was that?" she said flatly.

He met her accusatory glare, his posture arranging itself into a defensive one. "That was me doing my job."

Rose scoffed. "Your job? Does your job entail you killing any bloke you happen to have a problem with?"

"Actually," Scorpius said, "it sort of does -hang on…."

He tugged at a chain hidden beneath his shirt, drawing it out. A galleon was suspended at the end of it, with the official seal of the ministry stamped across one side. It was the auror's way of communicating with each other- courtesy of her mum.

Scorpius' expression grew grim as the serial numbers around the edge of the coin rearranged to form a specific code.

"What is it?" Rose asked anxiously, thoughts of Will fleeing her mind.

Scorpius let go of the medallion and pulled out his wand instead.

"Something's wrong," he said. "Very wrong. Come with me and don't ask any questions."

"I-"

But before Rose could protest, he had grabbed her by the hand and they were turning on the spot, being sucked into the crushing blackness. All Rose could do was clutch on to the figure beside her and wonder what the hell was happening.

Well, I did tell y'all I didn't like that Will character too much. Uhm..yeah *sheepish grin*. Anyway, this chapter was necessary because of the last one and also because of the one that's coming after this. Whatever Scorp got called for, it ain't nothing good.

But enough with me and my spoilers, just review :D We're frighteningly close to 100! EEEE!

PS- I double dog dare you to repeat the chapter title aloud, 10 times and really quickly. Also, let it be known i spend approximately .05 seconds thinking up the title and therefore, they don't always make sense. Peace.