Rose didn't even turn to the door for a moment. Although Snape had left the door slightly open, Rose closed it with a flick of her hand, without looking back. Snape took a step forward and she still didn't move,
"You still have the chance to leave. I wouldn't think any less of you if you did. You know as well as I do this relationship would be frowned upon," he said.
Rose smiled at him,
"It seems to me you're the one with more doubts," she said.
Rose made to leave to give him more time. Snape grabbed her wrist and she turned straight into him and there was a slight pause before a kiss.
Unluckily there was a knock on the door. Rose ran into the bedroom and hid from view, but made sure that she could hear who it was. To her horror it was Umbridge,
"Dolores? Little late for a social call isn't it?" asked Snape.
"I have come with your instructions. You do not tend any hand wounds from now on. Leave it to the nurse on the rare chance it becomes too much. Perhaps in the case of Miss Hunter it may however, then again she does have rather a long detention. I noticed you seemed to have a problem with her punishment," replied Umbridge.
"After the summer we were all told to tred carefully around friends of Diggory, especially Miss Hunter as he had planned to ask for her hand. She took the news very badly and will only believe what she was first told," said Snape.
There was silence and Rose held her breath. She was waiting for Umbridge to say it was tough and what was done, was done. However she was not prepared for what happened next. Umbridge almost sounded supportive,
"I see. I shall have a word with her tomorrow, see if we can't come to a compramize," she said.
When the door closed, Rose reappeared and smiled at Snape as he turned around to her,
"Why do I have a feeling you lied to save me?" she asked.
"Because I'm a very convincing man...turn around and back were you were," said Snape.
As Snape had treated Rose's hand, she had an excuse to tell Jasmine why she didn't return that night to Hufflepuff tower. As Rose expected, her friend was practically bouncing off the walls when she finally saw her back in the girls' dorm to get her make-up,
"Where have you been?" she asked.
Rose put up her hand and sighed,
"Waiting to get this sorted wasn't I? Madame Pomphery has the right to sleep too you know. Poor woman, if she had a galleon for every one of these she treated..." began Rose.
"Alright point made. But you've got a month of this. She'll be sick of the sight of you," said Jasmine.
However, Jasmine wasn't quite right. The next evening, Rose made her way to Umbridge's office and prenteded that she expected to be given a quill until she was motioned to a seat,
"I've heard about you and Diggory Miss Hunter, I confess I had no idea it was that serious. Therefore I have decided to cancel your detention as an apology," she said.
Rose nodded and pretended to be upset as she left, only to remove her hands from her face and smile wildly. She planned to catch up on some work, only to run into Snape as he was on night duty. He didn't see who she was at first and pointed his lit wand towards her, only to lower it when she approached him,
"I've just come from Madame Umbridge's office. She's let me off for a month. Apparently someone told her about me and Cedric," she said.
Snape smirked at her until a voice behind them said,
"I trust all is well"
It was Professor Dumbledore. Rose changed her expression quickly to as serious as it would go, as did Snape,
"I was just about to escourt her back to Hufflepuff headmaster, she's no longer in detention," replied Snape.
"I'm glad. I was wondering if perhaps Rose, you could do me a favour? I need you to get as close to Harry as possible, join his little defence group. Speak to Hermione Granger first and they will never suspect you," said Dumbledore.
"Yes sir," said Rose.
"Thank you. Well I shall leave you too it," said Dumbledore.
They were well out of ear shot when Snape clearly disagreed with his boss and he let Rose know about it,
"I save you from one lot of trouble and he puts you head first into another. I know you can't and won't refuse him, but please be careful and make sure you don't get caught," he said.
"Severus, I've been in trouble for worse. As you well know. Just let me get on with my tasks and I'll let you with yours," said Rose.
They stopped infront of hufflepuff tower. Rose was relucant to go and Snape was relucant to leave her. However neither of them had a choice and for what seemed like the first time in a long time, Rose was forced to her bed in the girls' dorm. As she got ready she began to sing a song that reflected her feelings,
"Don't kiss me darling, I want you to hear the things I say, I loved you in my way, but am still gonna leave you, baby look at yourself, holding back the time, like you've got something else, up your sleeve, that's why I gotta leave, and I don't think you should stay here tonight...baby you know that my flesh is weak, you know I simply cannot sleep without you"
"I hate that song. It confuses me," said Jasmine.
Rose just smiled at her friend and wished her goodnight. It wasn't long before Rose found that she really did have trouble sleeping. Her conscience was pricking her as images of her and Snape together flashed before her, followed by a dark figure finding out he was sleeping with a muggle-born and a flash of green light. Rose couldn't loose another man to Voldemort. She knew Snape would hate what she had to say, after she had supposedly made up her mind to be with him. Be that as it may, Rose felt strongly about the idea, it all had to end.
The next day, Rose got up after not even being asleep for a moment and hoped to find that Snape was early for breakfast. He didn't show at all. At least not at breakfast. Rose went to potions expecting him not to be there, however she assumed as he was in the classroom and she was first there, he simply didn't feel like eating,
"Can I come in?" she asked.
Snape turned to her and smirked,
"Worried were you?" he asked.
"I wanted to speak to you..." began Rose.
"About the dark lord and if he finds out about us. I know. I can see it in your eyes, you want me away from harm," added Snape.
"Don't be angry with me. But I can't handle a repeat performance of last summer. Not with you..." she began.
"I'm not. But I thought you braver than you are being. I felt you handled Diggory's death well," he said.
"I threw coffee in someone's face because they disagreed with how he died. Hardly. Severus it would be my fault," said Rose.
"Do you love me?" he asked.
"Don't..." began Rose.
"Rose"
"Yes!" she cried.
"Then stay. If my time is limited, I'd rather die now. Then live the rest of my life without you," said Snape.
Rose shook her head,
"I can't do that to you..." she began.
"You can. Don't leave or he's already won the war. Do you really want to him to decide who you can or can't love?" asked Snape.
Rose's mind was turned. However she still hadn't found Hermione. Rose was allowed to leave potions to find her. Rose got herself accepted easily, until Harry noticed that during lessons, she and Cho really seemed to go for each other until he stepped in and Rose stopped but Cho didn't. Harry got blasted off his feet and Rose winced as Cho ran over apologizing. Rose simply calmly asked,
"Are you alright"
Cho looked at her like it was all her fault, even though the spell came from her wand. No matter how Cho tried to blame Rose, Harry wouldn't accept it because she had more control, which made Cho sick.
Rose became flat out with things to do. She had revision, Quiddich, the DA and Snape to sort out as well as trying to keep her nose clean with Umbridge, knowing there would big trouble if she was ever found out. As a thank you, Rose decided to do her consert at the Christmas DA meeting as a sort of party. To make things easier, she focused on the picture of Cedric on the wall as others swayed and joined in with her. When she finished, Rose returned her voice to normal level and smiled at the Gryffindors,
"Don't see why you should all be the rebels of the school," she said.
The Weasley twins grinned, jaws almost on the floor as she left the room they said together,
"She's hot!"