A/N: Thank you everyone who continues to read this story, and sorry for the long delay! Life got in the way ;) I will update again some time this week! Thanks everyone who reviews!

Chapter 9

Rose's jaw dropped open. "Bu…bu…" She flexed her arm. She felt it go from straight down at her side to in front of her, but the evidence did not fit; she saw her arm stretched awkwardly in front of her. But she couldn't feel it; all senses but her sight told her that the arm was hanging at her side. But how?

Rose looked up to meet the astonished faces of her parents and school martin. "I can feel it!" She said, surprised.

"No, I don't think so, Rose," Madame Promfry said gently. "I think you're just remembering what it felt like. I… I don't think there's any way you can possible feel or move that arm right now, Rose. If I am correct….Please take of the jumper, Miss Weasley..." once rose had done so, the older lady pointed at a deep Indigo mark tattooed into the young girl's shoulder. Rose stared at it in amazement. It couldn't be a tattoo, of course – she didn't have any tattoos. Even if she had wanted one (which she didn't), her mum and dad would never have allowed it. Hermione stared at her daughter's shoulder, shock and understanding written clearly on her face. Ron just looked confused.

"Oh my…" Hermione whispered, looking terrified for her daughter. "That's… but that's not a curse mark – is it? I was under the impression that Curse scars were all actually scars, like Harry's?"

Madame Promfry shrugged. "That is not my area of expertise," she said. "But I admit that I too believed curse marks were gashes or scars."

Hermione nodded, her mind obviously trying desperately to grasp a conclusion.

Madame Promfry turned back to her chart. "Now, I will of course have Rose under my observation for the next few weeks…"

"Naturally," Hermione agreed.

"What!" Rose said, speaking up for the first time. "No way!" Everyone, including Rose herself, was surprised at the sudden outburst.

"Rose, I -" Hermione said soothingly.

"No, mum. I will NOT stay in the hospital room in my first week of school! Just because some stupid person put ink on my arm? Why can't I have a normal life like all the other kids?"

"Rose Weasley!" Hermione said sternly. "I will not have you speaking to me like that! That mark is more than ink and you know it! And it's not just about that, you've lost use of your arm, for Merlin's sake!"

Rose crossed her arms, remembering that though she felt her arms squeezing tightly around her, only one of the arms was visible. "Unfair!" She said angrily. "And I have not lost use of it, I told you, I can feel it!"

Rose and her mum argued back and forth for many minutes, until Madame Promfry finally stepped in and suggested that Rose could go about like a normal student, as long as she was secretly paid extra attention by the teachers and had one of her friends with her at all times. Hermione half-heartedly agreed, and Rose just gave a stiff nod, and that was that. Really, her parents could be so unfair!

She felt almost regretful for yelling a few minutes later when she had calmed down. She had always had a reasonable temper, but now that she was 11 (which, in the wizarding world, was the age and maturity level expected of a muggle 13 year old), she was much more likely to explode. After all, her life was stressful – more so than her parents cared to believe. That was the thing though – they didn't believe her. Of course.

But she was incredibly glad she didn't have to stay in that stupid hospital wing! For now, she just wanted to go to her dorm with Louise and discus what had happened. Louise, she had found out, had suffered blood loss from a gash in her side, and she had a certain type of blood (possibly because of her muggle ancestry) that magic couldn't heal all at once, so you had to take blood-replenishing potions. But, she too was released, and the girls were assigned as each other's caretakers.

They hurried along to the Ravenclaw Common-room after saying goodbye to Albus, Cameron, the Weasleys, and the Potters. They immediately went up to their dorm, trying to ignore the stares their fellow students were giving them. Of course, news of the attack would be around the school. And she would be known as poor ickle Rosie, the weakling. Urgh!

Sitting on their beds after changing into their night clothes, Rose asked, "Well… that was an eventful first day, wasn't it?"

Louise gave out a small laugh. "That's one way to describe it. But… why? Who? How?"

Rose just gave her a blank expression. "I have no idea."

Just then, Leslie appeared, holding a try carrying three glasses of water and a plate of plain biscuits. (A/N: Biscuits as in cookies, not the bread) "Here," She offered, holding the tray out. Louise took one gratefully and thanked her, but Rose's thanks were a bit more suspicious. Did this girl think she could bribe her way to getting a story? If she did, it was time for her to think again!

"I just want to say, I'm not going to pester you to tell me what happened. I understand that it's your business, and not mine. But, if you ever need someone to talk to – other than each other, of course – then I'm a person you can count on." She smiled, and then went over to her own trunk, and left to go get changed. Rose and Louise looked at each other in surprise.

Rose glanced back at the door their dorm mate had just let through and then jumped of her bed and went to sit next to Louise on hers. "What do you think?" Rose asked.

Louise seemed to think for a moment. "I think we can trust her." She whispered finally. "She didn't bug us like the other kids, and she really did seem just to want to be friendly."

Rose nodded. "Yeah, I think you're right. And after all; she is a Ravenclaw; maybe she can help us figure this out."

She heard the quiet footsteps announcing that Leslie was just down the hallway. Rose quickly shot back to her own bed and watched Leslie carefully as the girl returned and walked over to her own bed.

"I don't know if it will help," Leslie announced unexpectedly. "But I expect you're wondering about whatever has happened. My Grandmother and Grandfather are muggles; I was raised in a muggle school. Much like you, Louise. Well, our teacher there taught us that when we had a problem, to look for the answers to 6 things. Who, what, when, where, why, how. Goodnight." With that, she closed the curtains and fell asleep. Rose and Louise exchanged startled glances, before they too drifted off.