Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. It belongs to J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros.
Never ask a women if you may kiss her.
Instead, learn to read body language.
- Neil Strauss
The makeover was working well-perhaps a little too well.
The male population of Hogwarts (obviously excusing her family members) all started to take an added notice of her as she walked through hallways and sat during meal times. Doors were being held open for her, books being summoned from shelves and she also had various offers of her books being held. To be honest Rose found this quite strange, this odd behaviour from the boys, from some she even considered her friends was starting to become quite irritating.
It was as Rose and Mimi had just left their divination class with Rose feeling more irritated than usual (due to being told more than once by numerous students that she didn't possess an inner eye) that Rose finally had the last straw or as muggles called it 'the straw that broke the camel's back'
Sam Collins, a boy who played on their quidditch team since their second year had always treated her as he would his male peers. However now he seemed to have the sudden urge to hold her books in case they were too heavy which itself was a notion the redhead didn't take lightly to.
"Are you suggesting that I'm too weak to carry my own books?" Rose asked. Her eyes had narrowed, her brows slightly furrowed to form a scowl and her voice had taken a dangerous tone.
Sam shook his head and to Rose's surprise didn't seem to take any notice of her glare for his eyes were glazed over and he seemed to not even be paying attention to a word she was saying.
"Is that a trick question?" He asked with slight confusion.
Rose scoffed before abruptly grabbing her books back from Sam's grasp and hit him over the head with them. It was then that Sam seemed to be shaken from his previous daze as he stared at Rose with a look of confusion with his arms held over the sore spot on the back of his head.
"Bugger off!" She shouted and upon turning away she was met with the sight of Mimi struggling to stifle her own laughter as Sam speedily walked away.
"What are you smiling about?" Rose asked with the irritation clear in her voice. Mimi shrugged before carrying on walking and Rose quickly fell into step beside her friend. The smaller girl practically glided across the floor whilst Rose echoing footsteps fuelled mostly by her frustration were heard from almost a mile away.
"Its working…"Mimi responded in a sing song voice, a few students turned to face the pair in confusion however at the sight of a not-so-happy Rose they quickly turned their attention back to walking in the other direction.
Rose swung her bag over her shoulder, the action sent it whirling round and it hit a poor first year student, the added force sent them to the floor with a small yell. A group of third year girls missed the poor first year boy lying on the ground in pain and tripped over him and the four of them were reduced to a mess of tangled limbs and squeals of protest.
"What's working?" Rose asked and she happened to be seemingly unaware of the chain of events she had caused.
"The makeover" Mimi pointed out whilst fishing out a packet of fudge from her bag, "Fudge?" she asked before placing some into her own mouth.
Rose frowned somewhat, she wasn't opposed to fudge though with her grandparents being retired dentists she knew that too much was definitely a bad thing.
"I'll pass.." She muttered and she wasn't surprised when she heard the words 'more for me' being muttered from her friend's mouth through mouthfuls of fudge.
"Guys…mmm good fudge… they're treating you…mmh… differently now because you look like someone they could potentially date" Mimi stated through mouthfuls of fudge.
Rose frowned before taking a glance at the students as they walked passed, only a week ago they had avoided her by the plague due to her reputation alone and now suddenly they all wanted to date her because she used a few charms to curl her hair and endless bottles of smelly stuff to make her skin smell like strawberries. It all seemed a little surreal, they weren't giving her the time of day until she made a drastic transformation and yet the one person who she wanted to notice wasn't even looking.
She hated caring about what Scorpius thought, what he thought about her. He had always had such an effect on her and made her feel a mixed array of emotions from anger to frustration and even if she didn't want to admit it but those little weird butterflies she got in the pit of her stomach.
"I don't care what they think" She sighed, a hand running through her hair in frustration.
"Rose…don't do that" Mimi cooed as she pulled Rose's hand away from her auburn curls like an overbearing mother. "It took me ages to charm them this morning" She muttered as she started placing the strands of hair in their 'appropriate' place.
Rose frowned before gingerly removing Mimi's hands from her hair, her small friend had always been a bit borderline obsessive of her appearance. Even before the Hufflepuff quidditch matches it was rumoured that she made the team get ready exactly an hour earlier than they needed to, to ensure that they looked their 'best' for the match.
"Rose..this is life. We look good" Mimi stated sadly whilst gesturing to her own appearance "and the guys… they do things for us, because for as long as we look pretty they'll remain interested and once we stop looking pretty they'll just move on" Her friend spoke with such sadness that Rose realised that it was true what the magazines said. Pretty hurts.
Before she looked like this…like how they wanted her to look, no one dared ask her out to the Hogsmeade trips, or as dates to the Halloween parties or even asked her to dance. Yet know everyone was suddenly interested and she didn't like it.
"There are some good ones out there" Rose said with a small smile.
"Trust me…all the guys I've dated have been into one thing" Mimi sighed, however she glanced down to her chest and frowned somewhat "Well two things…and those never lasted long so what makes you think that Scorpius may be different?" Mimi asked.
Rose frowned, there was no way to confirm that Scorpius wasn't going to be like the guys that looked at her like a piece of meat, or the guys that Mimi had dated. However unlike the ones that only started looking Scorpius had stopped looking and that confused Rose. Of course she had been avoiding him but after the makeover he had stopped the snide remarks and with the teasing during potions gone, lessons had been much quieter. When they actually talked during the Halloween party that had been one of the highlights of her evening—she may have been drunk but still it was a conversation she valued and she missed that.
"I'm just going to have to find out" Rose stated with a shrug. Her friend nodded though she didn't seem convinced after all Rose could understand why, Mimi was part of the world ruled by gossipy magazines and beauty articles, a world where you looked your best. Her mother Parvati Finnegan née Patil was the owner of a fashion boutique in diagon alley and there were many times when Rose had seen her own roommates' gushing over the beautiful bridal wear in the issues of Witch Weekly.
Maybe one day she would get her friend to feel pretty…pretty in her own standards.
With the first of inter house matches rolling around the corner the captains for all the teams had been laying on the training sessions like the professors were with assignments. The Gryffindor team had already booked their session the last Friday, the Ravenclaws the following Sunday and the Hufflepuffs…well they just had their normal amount of practice. The first match of the season was Slytherin against Ravenclaw which meant that their captain Scorpius was trying to figure out each and every game plan possible to ensure that Ruaridh Vodden (Ravenclaw's captain) didn't manage to get another one up against them.
The chasers of the team were already tired out from the endless quaffle throwing, the beaters' arms had been reduced to mush and the keeper was starting to get dizzy. Al was certain that Scorpius was nervous yet his friend was adamant to not admit it most likely due to the team looking up to him like an angry surrogate older brother.
"Can we go in yet?" Kai asked with a stretch of his arms as if to further emphasise his tiredness.
Al almost laughed at the way Scorpius' brow twitched in irritation - well that was until Mathew Goyle's stomach rumbled loudly.
"I heard there's mash on tonight…you think we can go in early?" he asked seemingly unaware of the dangerous look on the platinum blonde's face. Matthew Goyle was a bit of a laugh to be around however tended to think mostly with his stomach. That didn't necessarily mean that he was overweight but the opposite the boy was mostly muscle and burned his food away during exercise that he constantly needed to refuel.
One of the team's beater's and also the only girl on the team, Saoirse Finnegan rolled her eyes and started muttering in a language Al failed to understand. Being the only girl on the team any outsider would have felt sorry for Saoirse however the Slytherin team weren't outsiders and knew to never be around whenever she rolled her eyes. Everyone knew that when it came to the Quidditch games, Saoirse wasn't going to take troll dung from from anyone.
All it took was a swift hit from her bat to Matthew's arm to get him back to reality and the whole team turned to see Scorpius' less than amused expression.
"Thank You Saoirse for being the only mature one on this team" Scorpius hissed which caused a few groans of protest from the fifth year members. Saoirse gave a small nod of appreciation, her bat held firmly in her grasp as if in warning to the other players.
"Show respect when the captain is talking!" Saoirse bellowed, her voice causing a few birds to flee from the forbidden forest and also to reduce the rowdy team to silence.
With the team now back on the ground most have of them had reduced to using their brooms as an aid to hold them up. Scorpius stood in the front of the team, his arms folded over his chest and his broom placed neatly beside him. Of course everyone on the team knew he was about to lecture them on their poor performance however the sun was setting and it was soon to be dinner and the mention of the mash potatoes everyone's stomachs yearned for food.
"You call that a practice?" Scorpius asked. The team knew it was rhetorical for this question had been asked many times—the trick was to stare blankly and make sure their faces remained impassive.
"Well it was pathetic" Scorpius continued as he now started to pace "Zabini, close to your target. Goyle stop thinking about upcoming dinners and Finnegan hit harder" Of course this was the same lecture he gave after every practice, the team knew what to do and how to better themselves yet they stood stoic and impassive waiting for the all clear to change and then head to dinner.
"Our first match is against Ravenclaw and we are not going to lose to them are we?" Scorpius asked, he had finally stopped pacing and his gaze was focusing on each and every player. They stood silent and with a clap of his hands they grasped a hold of their brooms and headed towards the lockers. Practice was finally over.
The boys headed towards their own changing rooms whilst the only girl headed to hers. Though on the way Al felt someone drape their arm over his shoulders and turning around he was met with the grinning face of his friend Kai. For some reason he was wearing the 'cocky smirk' and that scared him for it meant he knew something.
"So we're playing the ravens" Kai stated with a raised brow. Al stared somewhat confused, his friend Kai was always one to send mixed messages some even said that he had a split personality for one minute he was as goofy as they came and the next he was more suave than that muggle secret agent.
"What does that mean other than we're going to beat them?" Al asked before removing Kai's arm from around his shoulders.
Kai opened his mouth to speak, his grin was still present however his eyes widened and he abruptly pulled his school shirt over to cover his bare chest.
"You've got the wrong locker room!" He exclaimed in horror.
Turning around Al noticed Saoirse Finnegan already dressed back in her uniform standing in the doorway to the boys locker room with her arms folded. She glanced boredly across the room, seemingly unaffected by the amount of semi naked boys and her attention was solely on him. He felt somewhat uncomfortable underneath her gaze and slowly placed his shirt over his bare chest just had Kai had done, in an attempt to cover himself up.
"Vodden plans on asking my sister out after winning the game next week" She stated before turning to glare at Kai "Now hurry up and get dressed so we can eat!" She added before leaving.
Al quickly threw on the rest of his clothes before chasing after Saoirse, he had heard rumours of Vodden wanting to ask Meara out to the next Hogsmeade trip however he only thought it a rumour. He knew that he didn't have a claim over Meara as if she were an object but he had at least hoped that there was more time, he wanted to talk to her about Halloween and explain exactly why he pushed her away after the kiss though now it seemed that his time was running out. With Vodden interested he had little chance; Vodden was a seventh year, part of the school orchestra, quidditch captain oh and he was also the school's head boy. The only thing he was missing was a chocolate frog card.
He finally caught up to Saoirse, she was waiting for them by the large stack of barrels which he knew to be the entrance to Hufflepuff's common room where he had escorted Meara back to. He quickly shook his head away of thoughts of the girl of his fancies and turned his attentions back to a very irritated looking beater.
"How long have you known about Vodden?" He asked the fourth year girl.
She simply scowled and he knew that Saoirse was pissed, he almost forgot that she was Meara's younger sister and he suddenly remembered the strength she used to hit the bludgers during their earlier practice.
"You were to slow" She stated, her arms folded over her chest and lips pressed into a firm line.
Al sighed, he was surprised that this girl wasn't friends with his younger sister they were in the same year and both very stubborn after all. She seemed to notice his distress and rolled her eyes before placing her hands on her hips.
"Vodden has been planning this for a while. He plans on winning and asking my sister out" She paused and glanced around as if expecting someone to jump out from the corners of the hallway. "But I've watched him train…he's bigger and stockier than you are, it slows him down"
Al nodded in understanding, Vodden was his own team's Seeker and with his stocky frame performing quick dives and manoeuvres would be slightly difficult, whereas with Als lighter build such moves would come at ease. But what he didn't understand was why Saoirse was giving him advice.
"Are you saying that you're rooting for me to ask her out?" He asked with a somewhat goofy smile. Saoirse didn't seem impressed and her brows suddenly lowered to form a scowl.
"I just dislike you less…"She muttered before turning behind her. The rest of their team mates had arrived with Scorpius leading them and a very enthusiastic Mathew walking behind chanting the words 'mash' like a five year old.
"Just make sure you catch the snitch before Vodden" Saoirse stated before falling into step beside Scorpius. Al quickly followed after the team; of course they all wanted to win, Scorpius to be in a better position to win the quidditch cup, Kai because he made a bet with his younger brother and he needed to win or he would lose Meara to Mr Perfect head boy, quidditch captain, voice of an angel boy.
While they were sat at the team's secluded corner of the table he had a perfect view of where she was sat. He knew it was rude to stare, his mother had taught him that much and if his sister caught wind of him staring at a girl he would never hear the end of it. Meara always managed to be smiling even whilst on her prefect rounds she had her pearly whites on display. From the lighting of the candles her mocha coloured skin gained a golden glow and her chocolate brown curls gained a halo.
He was mesmerised by her movements; the graceful way she cut into her food, the way she chewed and the way she spluttered when losing her air supply…
Al quickly shook his head and was brought back to reality, her housemates were patting her back and asking if she was alright yet she was shaking her head and grasping at her own neck in an attempt to breath. He didn't even know that he had moved or that he was running the length of the great hall until he had reached her. Time seemed to have stopped – well while he was running anyway.
Her face was starting to gain a red hue and the student crowding her weren't seeming to be helping. A few of the teachers had taken to heading over to attend to the choking student however Al had the situation under control.
"I- I asked if she was okay but s-she can't speak" Augusta proclaimed once he had sat down behind Meara. He nodded at the blonde and quickly placed his arms around her waist and locked his hands into a fist just above her navel. Her body was starting to grow limp in his arms from lack of oxygen however Al remained calm and continued with the abdominal thrusts.
The students watched in anticipation and after a few attempts the sound of coughing filled the room and Meara's body jerked in his arms. After a few gasps her breathing had returned to normal and the entire Hufflepuff population had crowded her in hugs.
"Maybe she needs some space not the load of you hogging up her air" Ezekiel Smith commented rather icily. The Hufflepuffs didn't protest yet they slowly made their way back to their seats, most of them keeping an eye on Meara.
Al suddenly realised that he was still indeed sitting with the large group of hufflepuffs and quickly got up to leave.
"Hey Albus" A small musical like voice called out. He turned to find Meara shyly smiling at him and the sight sent warmth to his face. The entire group of Hufflepuffs were staring at him and a few of the other houses too, all eager to get a look in on the latest bit of gossip.
"Umm yeah" He quickly responded, though he mentally slapped himself at how dumb he sounded.
"Thankyou" She said with a smile still evident. He couldn't help but smile back as he walked back to his own table, own the way his brother James and cousin Fred gave him identical thumbs up signs whilst his younger sister grinned at him. However he didn't miss the not-so-subtle glare he got from the Ravenclaw table where Ruaridh Vodden was silently plotting t make sure his team won the upcoming quidditch match.
"Miss Finnegan I never knew that you were the choking type?" Rose teased once they made back into her dorm room. Luckily for her the rest of her roommates were studying for advanced Herbology together which left the room clear for the next two hours.
Mimi shrugged before placing herself on Kaylee's bed and dramatically spreading her arms out.
"What can I say miss Weasley, I'm full of surprises" She quipped before both girls burst into giggles.
Rose shook her head in disbelief before heading to the vanity to wipe of her makeup, after hours of mascara she was sure that her eyelashes were straining against the added weight. Along with the foundation and various skin creams on her face she felt amazing once they were wiped away.
"I miss one dinner and I miss my baby cousin saving a life…" She muttered with disbelief.
"Well you shouldn't study so much" Mimi suggested before a pause "Isn't Al like a month younger than you?" She asked with a frown.
Though Albus was only younger than her by three weeks, Rose loved to refer to him as the baby cousin despite having cousins even younger than he was.
"Let's not go over the details...I just want to get off this crap and get something to eat" Rose declared with a grin. During her library study session she had lost track of time and unfortunately missed out on the nights dinner however with knowledge of the castles kitchens at her disposal she was sure to get something nice as a late night snack.
"Sadly I have prefect duty with Ezekiel…" Mimi said with a groan, she sat up in her space on the large bed and gave a pout. "Just what I need after a near death experience" She added with a small frown.
"Well I'll eat enough for the both of us" Rose suggested as she stood up, and is if to give confirmation her stomach loudly growled. The kitchens happened to be one of her favourite areas in the entire school- behind the library where she was able to study in peace not only due to the abundance of food but for the house elves working there who were always easy to talk to. Rose had become a regular down in the Hogwarts kitchen, ever since Al had shown her its location she had taken regular trips down there. To be honest that was how her friendship with Mimi started, the two girls had happened across each other by chance eating the leftovers of dessert one evening during their third year and ever since then they had become friends.
Rose was currently sat cross legged in the center of the kitchen floor with various plates scattered around her, most of the house elves had already retired due to the late hour however her favourite elf Spindles remained by her side. The smallest elf had a thin frame, large amber coloured eyes and floppy ears decorated with an array of bows. From Rose's encounters she shared with Mimi down to the kitchens, the hufflepuff girl always made sure to supply Spindles with a new bow to add to her collection and Rose was sure that soon Spindles would become more ribbon than house elf.
"I see Mimi gave you another bow.." Rose pointed out with a smile. Spindles quickly nodded which caused her oversized ears to flop; a large number of hair accessories were attached to Spindles' large sweater there were bobby pins, hair slides and scrunchies attached and the small hous elf sported them all with such pride that Rose didn't have the heart to tell her the 'correct way to wear them.
"It matches my scrunchie" Spindles eagerly pointed out whilst gesturing to the bright orange hair scrunchie which was tied around her wrist like a bracelet. Being one of the younger house elves Spindles was always ever so curious about the visitors into the kitchen, a few of the older ones had taken a dislike to late night visitors due to it being out of their working hours.
The kitchen door slowly creaked open and Spindles mouth slowly formed a wide smile at the sight of the newcomer.
"Mr Scorpius. I haven't seen you round here in a while" Spindles declared grinning widely.
Rose quickly turned to find Scorpius walking in through the doorway, he sauntered over to where she was sat and he seemed to pay little attention to her.
"I know, I've just been eating at regular times" He commented which caused Rose to frown slightly. Was he making fun of her eating habits, surely he wasn't.
"That's a shame..but would you like something to eat?" Spindles asked hopefully.
"Just came with a message for Rose actually" He answered.
Rose shifted I'm her place on the ground to get a good look up at Scorpius. A small frown had crossed her features at him suddenly deciding that he would now talk to her like a normal human being.
She cocked a brow and waited for him to relay his message and he merely smirked in response.
"Meara says to tell you that Ezekiel is a prat" He said with a shrug.
Rose snorted on response; of course Ezekiel Smith was a prat. He was just too opinionated for his own good.
"You didn't come all the way here just to tell me something I already know?" She asked with a small grin.
She swiftly stood up before heading towards the kitchen door, she turned her head to give Spindles a soft smile "See you tomorrow, Spindles" She said, and the small house elf gave her an enthusiastic wave.
The hallway was quiet, students had now gone to bed and not even the prefects were out during such an hour. Though she liked to think that she knew the castle like the back of her hand, during the night was a different story entirely. Before even daring to take another step Rose reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out her wand and with a simple lumos her pathway was clear.
Satisfied she carried on walking, half of her wondering if Scorpius had already retreated back to his own common room. She wasn't exactly afraid of the darkness, just not exactly fond of it. Her pathways were unclear, it was harder to see and generally darkness just made her somewhat uncomfortable.
"Since you already sussed me out, I just wanted an excuse to talk to you" Scorpius stated. The sound of his voice startled her causing her to stagger backwards and her heart threatened to leap out of her chest.
Once she had calmed down her racing heartbeat she punched the blond in her arm for he seemed a bit too smug about being able to surprise her. Her cheeks flushed from embarrassment and from the light of her wand his own smirk was clear. He seemed to notice her flustered state which only caused his smirk to worsen and with a scowl Rose attempted to hit him once more. With the speed any quidditch player would have been proud of he had caught her fist in mid air and gestured a few fair metres away from them where brown coloured cat stalked the hallways.
She nodded in understanding and suddenly realised that Scorpius hands were still wrapped around her wrist as he pulled her down a different hallway. She wasn't going to protest about his hold, it wasn't unpleasant it was just that the butterflies that resided in the pit of her stomach whenever Scorpius was around decided to make themselves known.
Even once he had released her hand the butterflies still remained and Rose found herself placing her fingers over the space his own fingers had touched. She quickly fell into step beside him and willed her brain to stop acting like the schoolgirl she was and turned her focus back to Scorpius.
"Talk...we've could have talked during class" Rose pointed out with a frown. The fact was true, though they weren't potions partners they always managed their 'interactions' during the beginning of the year and they had stopped potions had become quite boring. She actually completed a potion without once having to shout an insult across the room and she didn't want to admit that she actually missed it.
"We could have done…" He muttered, his face remaining impassive while they walked.
They walked the rest of the way in relative silence, the conversations drifting from the general yet dull topics. She couldn't help but feel that he was acting strange around her, almost as if he were nervous yet his features remained an impassive and unreadable mask which only left her even more confused.
"Have you been avoiding me?" Rose abruptly asked. She was aware of how he double blinked- he hadn't been expecting that question and she had caught him off guard. Perhaps now she would be able to get some answers.
"Have you missed my company?" He countered, his lips quirked slightly at the sight of her confused and flustered state.
"Answering a question with a question...how Slytherin of you" She commented with dry laughter. She knew he was avoiding the subject but she just wanted a straight yes or no answer and she didn't think that too difficult a demand.
"You're scowling" He commented with a hint of amusement. Rose quirked a brow, her hands had retreated to her hips and she was the embodiment of irritation.
"You're infuriating" She quipped before walking ahead, she had barely taken two steps forward when she felt his fingers grab onto her elbow and pull her back towards him. She almost lost her grip on her wand by the way he was looking at her, his eyes had drifted to a molten silver hue and his brows were slightly furrowed.
"You're very easy to rouse…" He muttered, his eyes locked onto hers. She was very aware of the space or lack of between them, somewhere along the line he had pulled her closer to him and she found herself not wanting to pull away.
She felt herself blushing once more, the butterflies were rowdier than ever and she found herself waiting for something...anything to happen.
"Maybe you just have an affect on me" She answered, though she was somewhat surprised at how breathy her own voice sounded.
"I think I know what you mean…" He muttered and before she could retort or raise a brow the distance had been closed and his lips were pressed against butterflies were attempting to take off, her hands had curled into his robes and his own had drifted to her waist. She didn't know how a person could have this much of an affect on her but she found herself craving him. She had always thought that they were polar opposites, compatible yet at this moment they were moving so in sync, as one and she found it almost comical that she thought such a thing was impossible.
The need to breath came apparent and the pair slowly and regretfully pulled away from each other. In the dim light she was aware of how swollen his lips looked, his robes were out of sorts and his alabaster skin look flushed. She assumed she looked the same way due to the way he was smirking at her like a child at christmas and she once again felt those irritating butterflies return. The sound of loud coughing brought them from their trance and Rose was suddenly aware that they weren't exactly alone.
"No, no...carry on. Best show I've had in years" The fat lady commented rather dreamily. The inhabitants of the other painting murmured in agreement and Rose found herself blushing once more. Not only had she kissed Scorpius Malfoy but he was an exceptionally good kisser too.
She turned to him with a shy smile, she wasn't used to this sort of thing boys didn't exactly snog her down hallways and then escort her back to her common room. This was the sort of thing Mimi would do not Rose. She was all quidditch, books and studying the simple things of life.
"See you tomorrow" she said. She knew she was going to see him after all they did have one of their two shared classes.
He nodded before placing a chaste kiss against her cheek, she assumed it was something he was used to doing after all Scorpius
had been on dates before- not like she was watching she was just friends with people who kept up with the school gossip. She willed herself not to blush yet her body betrayed her and sent a wave of warmth to her face and left her feeling like a human tomato.
"Tomorrow" He confirmed before leaving.
Once she was certain she was alone she released a squeal and was quick to race up to her own dormitaires. If she had a diary she would have written inside it, however since she didn't she settles on replaying the events over and over again in her mind and falling asleep with a wide grin.
So what did you think of that?
I made them do the thing and I don't regret it.
Stay tuned for the next chapter where things get awkward for Rose and Scorpius, Al attempts to win the quidditch game and Mimi attempts to make Rose get some inter house spirit.
JustAnotherFairy :)