Disclaimer: The characters are the property of the amazingly talented J.K Rowling. I'm only borrowing the characters and world that she has so brilliantly created.

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Chapter 3: Encounters with Friends and Family

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"It's nice, not having to worry so much about whether or not one of your family members is going to walk around the next corner and hex me," Scorpius commented, as they strolled down a deserted corridor in a little used portion of the castle.

It was a Hogsmeade weekend and the pair were taking advantage of the fact that the vast majority of the students were currently in the village enjoying the unseasonably nice day. Rose had made sure that all of her family members would be leaving the castle so that she and Scorpius could interact a bit more freely, not to mention outside the confines of the library.

"No one in my family would hex you," Rose insisted. This was an all-to-frequent subject between them. "Even Hugo. He'd say something nasty, but he'd never hex you. What kind of nutter would someone have to be to act like that?"

"We'll get to test that theory sooner or later. Your family are Gryffindors."

"And so am I." Rose took great pride in being a Gryffindor. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, Gryffindors have a bit of a hex now, ask questions later mentality. They jump right into things. A Slytherin, on the other hand, would bide their time."

"You won't be hexed," Rose repeated emphatically, then said, "I mean, at least not with anything harmful or dangerous."

"How very reassuring," Scorpius replied sarcastically.

"James and Fred like a laugh, that's all. They'd never hurt anyone. They pulled quite a few pranks on Eva before James fancied her. He put hair dye in her shampoo once. Well, actually Roxanne helped with that part but only because Fred knew who she fancied and threatened to tell the bloke in question if she didn't. But don't tell Eva, she doesn't know!"

"I doubt that's a conversation I'd ever have with Eva Wood."

Fair enough; that secret was safe.

"Actually, speaking of Roxanne - I've been trying to think of a good way to bring it up to Lily and Roxanne that you're my boyfriend."

As the words slipped out of her mouth, Rose realized what she'd just said and she felt her face and ears flush a dark red.

"Why are you blushing?" Scorpius asked quizzically, amusement clear in her voice.

"Well, I…" Rose began, not knowing quite how to explain to him that it was because they had never used the terms 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend.' They'd just said 'us,' and that had been that. There had been no discussion of officially formalizing their relationship, it had just evolved naturally and comfortably.

The amusement in his voice only grew. "I mean, we are dating, aren't we?"

"It's a bit of a girl thing, I think," was the only way Rose could think to describe it. It probably wasn't strictly a girl thing, but it was the best explanation she could give him.

"That's a rotten excuse," he said, wrapping his arms around her while she responded in kind.

"It's the only one I've got," she teasingly replied, staring up into his soft grey eyes glittering in the torchlight. "Unless you want me to say it's because you look so handsome in your button down with the sleeves rolled up like that."

"I think you're lying. Your ears are all red," he whispered as he pushed back a strand of her red hair away from her face. He tucked the piece gently behind her ear and slowly leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers.

Rose sighed happily and leaned into Scorpius. So many of these moments were stolen in empty classrooms and behind bookshelves in the library, but not today. Today they could let their guard down just a little bit, just for a while.

"—Holy hippogriffs!"

In a flash, Rose ripped herself away from Scorpius and turned to stare at the owner of the voice. Eva Wood was standing just at the end of the corridor, her bright blue eyes impossibly wide. Her hands covered her mouth, as though she had realized that she had yelled out loud and immediately regretted her outburst.

"Oh, hell," she heard Scorpius mutter under his breath.

There was a long pause in which no one seemed to know what to say. A million things ran through Rose's head as she tried to rationally assess the situation. Eva was dating the Head Boy, but if Eva's best friend was to be believed, that relationship wasn't going to last much longer. It had been a while now since Eva and James had become friends, but even if Eva didn't see it (as usual) there were clear signs that she had begun to fancy James. Would Eva keep this kind of information from James, from their family?

"I… don't understand," Eva finally managed to utter.

If Rose hadn't been so worried about being caught with Scorpius, she might have laughed. It was such a classically awkward Eva-like thing to say.

"Please don't tell anyone," Rose pleaded. Taking a deep, calming breath, Rose took Scorpius's hand and the pair walked closer to Eva so that they could talk more quietly. Eva didn't move a muscle.

"We're not ready for our families to know that we're going out yet," Scorpius intoned in his very best cool manner. Behind his collected exterior, Rose knew that he was likely feeling panicked about this unexpected turn of events. Scorpius didn't know Eva like Rose did; he might well be expecting the entire Weasley and Potter families to be aware of their relationship by dinner time.

Comprehension washed over Eva's features as she mentally processed what she had seen and what she had just heard.

"You don't know my dad," Rose further explained. "He and Scorpius's dad were huge enemies when they were at school together. The war changed some of that - but even though they grudgingly tolerate each other now, my dad once told me not to get too friendly with Scorpius."

"I would say that you're way past friendly," Eva said, shock still apparent in her voice.

Rose couldn't help it this time and she laughed. Besides her, Scorpius offered Eva a slight smile. Hopefully he was feeling a bit more at ease.

"You're friends with so many people in my family," Rose told Eva. "Please don't tell them."

"Oh, Merlin, James," Eva breathed softly with dawning comprehension. She tugged anxiously at the ends of her light brown hair and bit her bottom lip.

Was it Quidditch or was it her friendship and the possibility of a relationship with James that was causing Eva such worry? Rose found that she didn't know, and the thought brought on an entirely fresh wave of anxiety. What if Eva told James?

"Eva, you can't tell him!" Rose insisted. She could hear the panic in her own voice.

A look Rose couldn't quite interpret crossed Eva's face, but the next moment it had been replaced with a look of resolute determination.

"I won't," Eva promised faithfully. "But you should. And soon. They're your family, Rose, and they love you."

Easier said than done. But then, Eva, the girl who loved Quidditch almost more than anything, had once had to tell her Quidditch obsessed family that she was dating a lad who didn't like the sport. Perhaps she knew just a tiny bit of what Rose was going through.

Eva turned a strict glare on Scorpius. "You had better not be messing her around, Malfoy."

"I'm not," Scorpius spoke up immediately. He looked sideways at Rose, his grey eyes tender. "I've fancied her for ages; I'm not letting her go now."

Rose couldn't help but beam in happiness up at her boyfriend. Scorpius often expressed that he wasn't much good at romantic statements, but as far as Rose was concerned he said incredibly romantic things to her. It might not have been flowery or poetic, but it was from the heart. She wished she could make him understand that.

"We're going to tell them," Rose said, turning back to Eva, who was currently staring determinedly at the wall. "We're just going to break it to them slowly."

"Well, in the meantime, don't get caught again," Eva suggested with a slight smile.

"We've been lucky so far," Scorpius said. "But we're careful. I don't especially want to be hexed by her brother and all of her cousins." He winced at the very thought.

"How long has this been going on?" Eva asked suddenly.

"Officially, only a few weeks," Rose answered, as she felt her face flush pink. "But we've been studying together for months."

Eva stared openly at them. "You mean to tell me that no one's noticed?"

"Oh, no, they did," Rose admitted. "I study with Al a lot so he noticed right away. But I convinced everyone that Scorpius and I were just studying together because we're top of our class. And Al's actually better at Potions than I am – but don't tell him I said so - so he started studying with us. He and Scorpius actually get on quite well."

"It's James and Fred I worry about," Scorpius replied flatly.

Eva brought her hands up to her head. "I…I think I need to go flying. What a day. First Jonathan, now this. Oi."

And with that, Eva turned around and walked back the way she had come. Rose cocked her head to the side, wondering what Eva had meant by, "First Jonathan, now this." Rose's desire to meddle was strong, but right now Eva's problems were currently the least of her problems.

"She looked a bit….dazed," Scorpius decided as he stood staring at the spot that Eva had just vacated. "But I don't think she's going to tell anyone."

"That was my first instinct," Rose said tentatively.

"But?"

"Eva takes Quidditch incredibly seriously, and James took losing to Slytherin so hard. They both did. You didn't see them after."

"What do you want me to do?" Scorpius asked, exasperation lacing his voice. "Break into the Ministry, steal a time turner, go back in time, and lose on purpose so I don't muck up the prospect of a relationship for them?"

"Don't be daft," Rose snapped at him. "Besides, that loss was a major turning point for them. It's critical to their time line. I just meant that what if Eva feels that she can't keep a secret like this from James? Or what if he finds out that she knew all along and then feels as though he can't trust her?"

Scorpius took a deep breath before answering "Rose, there's nothing we can do about it. Just have some faith in Eva. You were ready to before; trust that feeling."

"You're right," Rose nodded, taking calming breaths once more. "You're right. My first instinct was to trust Eva."

Scorpius grinned. "I'd kiss you, only I'm afraid that someone else is going to walk around that corner and find us."

"I'll work on a way to tell Lily and Roxanne," Rose promised. "Maybe Eva can help, although as you could probably tell, she completely lacks subtly, so that might be tricky."

Scorpius laughed at this statement. "You'll figure it out. You aren't the cleverest witch in our year for nothing."

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"Rose, I…that is - your hair looks very pretty today," Scorpius shyly told her as they sat studying at their usual table in the library.

"Keep your voice down," Rose admonished him.

"Sorry," he said, his voice a bit tight.

"I didn't mean to snap," she apologized, biting her lip, "It's just that after this weekend, I'm worried about James or Fred or Hugo finding out. Er, well, Hugo finding out more than he currently knows."

Godric, Saturday afternoon had to rank right up there as one of her most embarrassing moments, and that included the time she'd tried to use magic to style her hair when she was twelve.

Scorpius picked up his wand and gave it a small flick, muttering "Muffliato," as he did so.

"Good thinking."

"It's like I told you then," Scorpius said patiently, "I think Wood will keep her promise. And even though she was surprised, she wasn't angry. Just a bit dazed."

Rose nearly giggled, remembering the look on Eva's face. "She was dazed, wasn't she?"

"So that's one person down. Sort of."

"Yeah…" Rose trailed off. "Al suspects."

"We could just tell him," Scorpius pointed out logically. "Of all your family members, he's the one I'm least worried about."

Rose cocked her head to the side. "Who are you the most worried about?"

Nearly imperceptible pink spots formed in Scorpius's cheeks and he ducked his head.

"It's Hugo, isn't it?" Rose guessed. It didn't exactly take a genius to figure that out.

"Well, he's your brother," Scorpius reasoned. "You're close. He means a lot to you. And then there's the fact that he's already confronted you about studying with me."

Rose wanted to reach across the table and take his hand, but knew that she couldn't if she didn't want to announce their secret to anyone who happened to be walking by. She wanted to be the one to tell her family members. They would undoubtedly be upset if they found out from someone other than her.

"I love Hugo and he may be my brother, but he doesn't have any say in who I date."

Scorpius flexed his fingers. "He's not going to see it that way. He'll see it as his job to protect his sister from someone he thinks is going to hurt her."

"But you're not going to hurt me!" Rose protested, annoyance surging up inside of her.

"Hugo doesn't know that," Scorpius replied calmly. "And neither do your other relatives."

Rose was silent in thought for a moment. Then Scorpius spoke up again.

"We've certainly gotten ourselves into quite a mess, haven't we?" he asked her, his voice light and teasing.

Rose found herself smiling. He really was too wonderful. "You're worth it."

"You may not think that when I start involving you in my devious Slytherin schemes," Scorpius continued to tease.

"You're hardly devious."

Scorpius smirked. "Perhaps that's what I want you to think."

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"So, I heard a rumor that you told Rinaldi to shut up," Al said to Scorpius as they were all were studying Herbology one evening.

Rose looked up from her essay in surprise. "What?"

"That's not a rumor," Scorpius scoffed. "You heard that directly from Eva Wood."

Al grinned easily. "Fair enough. I was just curious to hear what it felt like to finally tell off Rinaldi."

"Won't you get in trouble?" Rose asked anxiously. Scorpius rowing with his Quidditch captain certainly wasn't going to win him any points with his team or the other members of his house. And once word got out that he was dating a Weasley, he was going to need the support of his friends and housemates. He needed to be on their good side.

Scorpius shrugged nonchalantly. "People think Rinaldi is a talented Quidditch player, but that doesn't mean everyone particularly likes her. She was especially hard on us at practice that afternoon. People were glad to hear someone finally be able to talk back to her."

Rose still felt skeptical.

"Look, I didn't say it within the bounds of Quidditch practice. It's different."

Al nodded. "Speaking of Eva…"

Rose suddenly knew where this was conversation going and fought back a small smile.

"I'm in on the same secret as Eva," Al told Scorpius nonchalantly.

Scorpius's face betrayed no emotion. "Oh?"

"Yeah," Al confirmed. "I had a chat with Rosie last night and I told her I knew about you two. That you're together."

"Told you he suspected," Rose grinned happily. It had been such a relief when Al had confronted her outside the owlrey and told her that he knew about her and Scorpius. He had had his suspicions based on their study habits, but then he'd consulted the map to verify his hunch.

"He's a good bloke, Rosie," Al had said to her. "I'm happy for you."

"I didn't exactly think we were fooling you," Scorpius admitted. "That first time you caught us studying…you suspected then, didn't you?"

"Yeah," Al confirmed, twirling his quill around through his fingers. "I did. And I'll keep your secret safe," he assured the pair of them.

"Thanks, Al," Rose told him gratefully.

"I'll just say this," Al added, "More people are going to start finding out the longer you keep it a secret. If you wait, everyone else is going to end up finding out in a way they won't be happy about."

Rose knew Al was right. The longer the deception went on, the more chances there were that someone would find out. Hadn't two people found out already? And Eva finding out the way she had definitely hadn't been planned. What if it hadn't been Eva, but Hugo? She certainly didn't want her brother finding out like that. He deserved to be told by her.

"Some of us girls are getting together to chat and eat chocolate and stuff," Rose said, more for Scorpius's benefit than Al's.

Al knew all about the planned girls' night, seeing as he and James had originated the idea as part of some slightly mad plan that involved wanting to know what Lily thought of one of Eva's younger brothers, and also wanting to know if James had any chance with Eva now that she was single. (Of course he did; the tension between them was practically palpable.) Eva and her best friend, Christine, would be there as well because Christine was involved in the family's meddling concerning her friend and James.

"It's a sort of a girls' night thing, so it'll be a good time to tell Lily and Roxanne about us."

"Lily will think it's brilliant," Al chimed in. "I'm not as close with Roxanne so I couldn't say for sure what she'll think, but I think it'll be fine."

"Well, good luck," Scorpius dryly intoned. "If I hear explosions from the other side of the castle, I'll know what's happening."

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The girls had been chatting for a bit now, and Rose was feeling more tense and anxious by the minute. Roxanne had announced that she was going to the next Hogsmeade trip with a Ravenclaw named Liam, which had been quite a surprise. Much more importantly, Lily had just confessed to fancying Richard Wood, which meant that all of their family's meddling in this particular area had finally paid off.

Currently, Lily wasn't meeting Eva's eyes. Why Lily was worried that Eva would care if she fancied her brother, Rose didn't know. Eva didn't have the same protective instincts concerning her siblings' love lives as her brothers.

"Oh, that's a huge relief," Eva said and tossed Lily a chocolate frog probably a bit harder than she had meant to. Chaser habits and all. Thankfully Lily was a fellow Chaser and easily caught the chocolate treat. "He fancies you too, just ask him to Hogsmeade."

Lily's face turned an even darker shade of pink. "How do you know?" she asked Eva, extreme curiosity lacing her voice.

It was a fair enough question, seeing as Eva Wood had to be one of the most oblivious people currently walking the Earth.

"Can't I know things about my own brother?"

There was dead silence in the room.

"Oh, fine," Eva admitted with an exasperated huff. "James and Al told me."

"Ah ha," Christine smiled. "Now it makes sense."

In response, Eva shoved Christine off of the pillow on which she had been leaning.

"I have something to say," Rose spoke up suddenly after keeping quiet for the last several minutes. Her voice was shaking ever so slightly, but she was determined to say her piece and tell her family the truth about her relationship with Scorpius. They were her family, she loved them, and they deserved to know.

"I'msortofdatingsomeone," she said, the words rushed together and nearly indistinguishable. However, that didn't stop anyone from understanding what had just been said.

"What?" Roxanne burst out in surprise. "And you didn't tell us?"

"Who?" Lily asked, clearly puzzled.

Rose paused, then said, "Promise you won't be angry?"

"Er…do you want us to leave for this?" Christine kindly asked, throwing Eva a concerned glance.

Rose shook her head. "Eva already knows. You might as well hear it too."

Roxanne's eyebrows shot up into her hairline. "Eva knows? I mean… how?" She looked with some wonder in Eva's direction.

"She, uh…caught us, erm, kissing in a corridor."

Rose could tell from the rising heat that her face was positively aflame with embarrassment.

"Classy." Roxanne took a long drink of her butterbeer.

"Promise you won't be angry?" Rose repeated. She twisted her fingers anxiously and bit her lower lip, which ending up hurting a bit.

"Why would we be angry?" Lily asked. Her voice was gentle and kind and reminded Rose that Lily wouldn't be upset with her, no matter who she named.

Roxanne, on the other hand, had begun to look a bit suspicious because of all of the talk about secrecy and entreaties not to be cross.

This was the moment and there was nothing else for it.

"Because it's Scorpius Malfoy."

Again, there was dead silence. Not one of the girls seemed to even breathe.

Looking around the circle, Rose met Eva's eye and the other girl gave her a small smile and nod of encouragement. Rose returned the smile as best she could. The words were out there now.

Rose sat up a bit taller and her voice became firmer. "He's not what you think. I fancy him and he fancies me and that's all that matters."

Lily was the first one to speak and break the ice. "I can't believe you get to snog him."

Suddenly everyone laughed and it was like the silencio spell had been lifted.

"Yeah…" Rose sighed happily, recalling the firm but gentle way Scorpius held her when they kissed. How cared for he made her feel.

"I think it's brilliant. Really," Christine told Rose, raising her butterbeer bottle in her direction.

"Malfoy?" Roxanne said, obviously shocked. "How did that happen?"

Things were going extraordinarily well so far, giving Rose the confidence to go on. She pushed a strand of her hair out of her face and shared the story of how she and Scorpius had first spoken and shared the library book and how it had continued from there.

"I can't believe I thought you were just studying with him because he was clever and you challenged each other in lessons," Lily muttered. Rose knew exactly what her meddlesome younger cousin was thinking: that she should have noticed.

"Al studied with us a lot," Rose said, "and he figured it out. Well, he suspected for a long time. He confronted me about it a couple of nights ago."

Christine selected another biscuit. "Was he upset?"

Rose shook her head. "Because he's been studying with us, he's got to know Scorpius. I wouldn't call them friends, exactly, but they're on good terms."

"So when did you realize that you fancied Malfoy?" Lily queried.

Once again, Rose's face flushed bright pink. "Ever since that first argument over the book."

"So how are you going to tell the rest of your family?" Christine asked.

Rose grimaced at the very thought. "No idea. It's just…I mean, we were all raised to believe in House equality and I wouldn't be worried if it were any other Slytherin, but Scorpius is a Malfoy. His dad and his grandfather were Death Eaters and his great aunt tortured my mum in their drawing room."

"His grandmum also saved my dad's life, you know," Lily reminded her gently.

"I know."

It helped, but it didn't remove the worry entirely.

"Thanks for telling us," Roxanne told her sincerely. "That was brave of you. I mean, I'm not exactly certain how I feel about it yet, but it's your life. We'll deal with the boys another day. Al's already taken care of, so it's really just James, Fred, and Hugo. Everyone else won't care. Or if they do, tell them to bugger off!"

Rose slowly rolled her eyes. "Ugh, I don't even want to think about it. Let's change the subject. So, Eva, any boys on the horizon for you?"

Eva looked like a mouse caught in the wandlight. The girls continued to grill her for information as she stubbornly resisted to share details. But in the end she slipped up and admitted to finding James attractive, so the evening had been a great success all around.

Rose went to sleep that night feeling as though one huge weight had been removed from her shoulders. Of course, there was still another one resting there, but for now, this would do. It was a start, and a very positive start at that.

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"Malfoy's got the Snitch!" the announcer cried excitedly, "Slytherin wins 450 - 140."

Rose breathed a small, hopefully unnoticed, sigh of relief. She had spent the entirety of the Hufflepuff-Slytherin match practically holding her breath and trying not to betray herself. She was always a bit nervous about Quidditch matches; she worried about her friends and family out there on broomsticks, high above the ground with Bludgers whizzing by attempting to unseat them. It was Scorpius she had been worried about this time, but considering none of her family members were playing it would have seemed strange to those around her if she acted too worried.

Hugo, James, and Fred were all still in the dark about Scorpius, but she had plans to tell them before the end of the term. She wanted to tell Hugo first, because he was her brother. If she could rationally explain the situation to him, that would be a good start for telling the others.

Looking around at her family and friends seated around her, Rose couldn't help but smile to herself. There was Lily, sharing her umbrella with Richard and the pair shooting each other not-so-subtle glances every now and then. And James, sitting with his arm slung around Eva's shoulder as she leaned into him. About time – on both accounts.

Back on the pitch, the Slytherins were landing their brooms and congratulating one another on their victory over Hufflepuff. Rose was trying to remain a passive observer, but then the Slytherin captain, Lyra Rinaldi, had stridden up to Scorpius, pressed herself against him, and kissed him full on the mouth.

"What is she doing?" Rose jumped to her feet, unable to contain herself. That cow Rinaldi was kissing her boyfriend! It didn't matter that the other girl didn't know that Scorpius was taken; he had told her that he didn't fancy her. Rinaldi knew he didn't care.

The kiss itself was incredibly short. Scorpius hastily pushed Rinaldi off of him, the force of his shove causing her to stumble backwards. Then it appeared that he was shouting at his captain.

Rose felt her heart soar with affection for her boyfriend.

Nearby, her cousin Fred let out a loud laugh and teasingly said, "Don't tell me you're one of those girls that thinks Malfoy's fit, are you?"

"Yes, I do," Rose retorted hotly, eyes most likely flashing. "Because…because Scorpius is my boyfriend. So excuse me while I go tell Lyra Rinald to shove off!"

Scorpius would have called it Gryffindor impulsiveness and he would have been right. Rose knew the moment the words were out of her mouth that there would be consequences, but in that moment she couldn't bring herself to care.

As she hurtled towards the stairs leading to the ground, Rose heard three male voices yell, "What?!"

She didn't stop to explain.

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Thanks for reading! And a special thanks to my beta, blue and gold, for the helpful suggestions and fabulous beta abilities.

Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Favorite quotes? I'd love to hear what you thought!

Next Chapter: Rinaldi doesn't appreciate Rose's interruption, Scorpius takes a trip to the Hospital Wing, and Rose's family has some thoughts on the new developments.