Last chapter! :D
I don't own Harry Potter!
But I don't. Why would I be able to find some peace and quiet in the library? After all, this is the Day from Hell.
Instead, none other but Scorpius Malfoy is sitting in my very favorite chair by the windows which overlook the mountains. He grins cockily at me as I approach, fully ready to tell him off.
What's unfair is that by now he knows that that particular grin catches me off guard every time. I'm standing there in a daze, argument forgotten, and he takes the opportunity to say,
"I was hoping you'd come looking for me."
Oh, he's good.
"I wasn't looking for you," I replied shortly, taking the second-favorite chair with the slightly obstructed view. A random part of the castle juts right in front of one of the purpley-grey peaks.
He laughs. "A bloke can dream, can't he?"
I stop. Is Scorpius Malfoy flirting with me?
"I suppose…" I trail off, pretending not to have noticed. This conversation is leaving me on edge, and I'm being just as distracted as I was that June day.
The April sunlight is filtering through the glass and illuminating him, his perfection, for the whole world to see. His strong hands turning the pages of his History of Magic textbook, his grey eyes actively scanning the inky paragraphs, his broad shoulders stretching his white shirt…
I realize I'm staring milliseconds before he looks up from his book. Luckily, I'm that good an actress to pretend that I've been focused on Potions this entire time.
But now, I'm acutely aware of the fact that Scorpius Malfoy is staring at me. My heart is thumping like I've just run a marathon. My fingers are shaking as I trace the words on the page. My mind is racing and I can't bring myself to really care about the ninth use for dragon blood.
Why would he stare at me? What does he want? Should I ask him? Should I mention his staring? Should I casually look up so he'll stop? What if I accidentally meet his eye? What if he thinks I think he's a creep? What if he actually likes me? What will I do? Will someone kill him? Will Dad kill me? Why am I thinking this? Why is he still staring?
I rustle the page, and he seems to fall out of his staring stupor and return to his studies. I breathe an almost-audible sigh of relief as my heart starts to return to its natural pulse.
We spend an entire hour like this—or, at least, I spend an hour pretending to study while actually stealing glances at Scorpius whenever I can't help myself—when the dinner bell rings.
"Is that an interesting book?" he asks as we make our way down to the Great Hall.
"Er—yes," I reply, tucking it into my bag.
"You seemed bored," he notes.
"I couldn't concentrate," I say. It is the truth.
"Really? Neither could I," he replies.
He looks like he's about to say that important thing when Emma comes running over to drag me to the Gryffindor table. "Er, sorry," I say helplessly, waving as she nearly tackles me into my seat.
"What?" I ask brusquely, reluctantly turning my back on the Ravenclaws.
She is nodding at me and grinning her face off.
"Are you pregnant?" I ask, pouring myself some pumpkin juice.
"What? God, no! Where did you get that?"
She looks affronted as she butters her roll.
"What was I supposed to think? You were nodding and grinning like an idiot!"
"Scorpius," she whispers across the table, winking and nodding and grinning all over again.
"No," I whisper back, hoping that James and Wesley, who are congratulating themselves on not getting caught (or Professor Longbottom pretending not to have noticed) for their firework display at lunchtime. "Possibly thanks to you."
"Me?" she says, wrinkling her brow. "Why me?"
"You interrupted us," I say, trying to keep my voice low. It's a miracle that nobody's heard anything yet.
"Oh," she replies, her mouth actually forming an O. "Sorry."
I shrug. It's not like it's that important. Oh wait.
I can't seem to stomach any food, so I leave early to actually finish my Potions homework. This has been dragged out long enough.
I'm sitting in the corner of the common room, enjoying the quietude that one can only find during mealtimes (Gryffindors like to eat), and I'm just writing the last word of the last sentence when the portrait creaks open.
"Rose? Rose Weasley!" someone whisper-shouts into the common room.
I cautiously approach the entrance.
"Al? What are you doing here? Who gave you the password?"
"Emma," he admits sheepishly.
"Ahh, I see," I say knowingly. "Did you ask her for any—er—other favors?"
"No! Shut up!" he says, taking my response as an invitation.
"You're not a Gryffindor," I tell him as he takes a seat before the fire.
"I know," he says, rolling his eyes.
"Why are you here?"
"I thought you were chasing me down," he says wearily. "I thought I would make it easy for you."
"How considerate," I say sarcastically.
"Don't push it," he warns.
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"You're the Ravenclaw," I remind him.
"You want to know what Scorp said last night."
"Er, yes!" I reply, looking at my cousin and wondering why everyone thinks he's the smart one.
"I can't tell you."
This is not what I expected to hear.
"Albus," I say in a warning tone. I'm tempted to blackmail him with the Emma thing, except I know how tender of a situation this is.
Instead, I threaten him.
"Tell me now or I'll hex you into next week."
"You know, Rose, you're very smart, but you're not exactly the scariest Weasley."
I draw my wand and point it at his chest. "How about now?"
He swallows. "Er…right."
I smirk confidently. I knew it would do the trick.
"So…how about it," I prod.
But no, of course, just when I'm about to get some real information, the portrait hole swings open and James, Lily, and Molly come trooping in, their eyes fixed on me.
Uh oh.
"Rose Weasley," James says slowly, letting my surname roll off his tongue.
"Er—yes?"
"What is this I've so recently heard about you and a certain…Malfoy?"
"Er—nothing?"
I look to Al for support, but he's almost as pale as Scorpius's hair at the moment.
I mentally slap myself. Wrong time to think about him!
Lily looks like she's enjoying herself. Molly looks like she's not sure where this is going, but it's not what she'd planned on when she signed herself up.
James considers this for a moment.
"I think it's common courtesy to tell your older cousin when you're entering into a relationship."
The temper that both my parents so lovingly bestowed upon me is starting to flare up.
"For your information, James Potter, I'm not entering into anything. And anyway, it's none of your business."
He smiles.
"There's the Rosie I've been looking for. You didn't really think I'd actually care, did you?"
All of a sudden, it's like trumpets are being played from the mountaintops, basking the whole world below in golden notes of celebration. Lily's smile has faltered, and she pretends not to be interested anymore. Molly, meanwhile, giggles and gives me a bear hug.
"We've all seen it coming, Rosie, and I'm so happy for you."
"Er—thanks, Moll. Except nothing's happened. And nothing's going to happen."
She looks crestfallen. "Oh."
I pat her on the back. "It's okay. I think I need to go get something from the library. I'll see you later, okay?"
She nods. I'm halfway down the corridor when Al catches up to me.
"That was scary for a little while, huh?"
"I suppose," I say evenly.
"Oh, come on. It was! I was afraid for myself!"
"It wasn't really. It wasn't like it was real."
Al looks dubious. I notice that his face is still pale.
"Are you all right?" I ask, a touch concerned. I mean, my cousin needn't be more worried than I am about my love life.
"Er…got to go," he says quickly, dashing off in another direction.
It's Emma. What a wuss.
"Hey, Em," I say cheerily. "Hi, Harold."
"Er, hi, Rose," he says, looking uncomfortable. Harold always looks uncomfortable unless he's snogging Emma in a hidden place.
I ignore him and tell her, "I'm on my way to the library. I'll see you later."
She nods and leads Harold into an empty Charms classroom, shutting the door behind them with a giggle. Sometimes, they really do make me want to gag.
The after-dinner rush meets me as I'm walking the final leg to the library, and I follow a group of fourth-year Hufflepuffs past the Muggle literature section and towards the Charms texts.
"Ah, here it is," I say to myself, hugging my planner to my chest as I retrieve it from where I left it earlier. It was partially hiding under the chair, my Nougat wrapper sticking out of the side.
"Miss Weasley."
I turn, insides freezing like icicles, horrified that a teacher has found me with a Skiving Snackbox wrapper.
Instead, it's Scorpius Malfoy. My insides are suddenly burning with fire hotter than dragons'.
"You scared me!" I accused, snatching it back and tucking it back into my planner.
He's laughing like an idiot.
"Shut up, it wasn't that funny," I say, getting a little miffed.
"Miss Weasley, Mr. Malfoy, if you can't manage to respect library rules, you will have to leave."
My face turns bright red and my mouth snaps shut, but Scorpius rolls his eyes and pulls me by my arm. "I need to tell you something, anyway," he whispers as we stroll out.
His breath on my skin, together with his touch, is igniting little sparks throughout my being. What does 'I need to tell you something, anyway' mean?
He leads me down a deserted hallway and stops me by a window.
"Rose, I've been trying to tell you all day. I know what Lily said yesterday."
His voice is so sincere. I nod slowly, wishing I could tear my gaze away from his eyes. I wonder how red my face is. I can feel it blotching on my forehead, right where his fingers brushed my skin last June.
"Er…I don't know how to say this."
I'm not willing to help him out on this one. I've already suffered enough embarrassment.
"I know I've been acting weird all day. Actually, I have been for a while."
He pauses again. The silence is killing me.
"I wish she would have told me a year ago. Almost exactly a year ago. Because that's when I started…er…"
Remember that little sparrow I was talking about earlier? The one that was fluttering at the thought of Scorpius's ignorance? It has revived itself, except it is a phoenix, glorious and beautiful, soaring with the wind among the mountains. For once, I don't doubt the Sorting Hat's decision. Pure bravery is coursing through my veins as I finally decide to end his misery.
I kiss him, and I swear I see a few rogue fireworks exploding in the night air outside the window.
Lily Luna Potter.
Sometimes, I am bursting with love for my darling little cousin.