Chapter 6:
I was completely prepared to promptly end Malfoy's duties Monday morning. So prepared in fact, that I had planned exactly what I was going to say to him last night and perfected it in my sleep. Dominique and I headed out of the common room to get breakfast and I was in a particularly good mood until Colin showed up and gallantly walked Dom to breakfast down a more "secluded route." Bullshit. There's only one way downstairs from the seventh floor in case he hadn't noticed.
I walked to breakfast alone and took a seat between Albus and Lily once I got to the Great Hall. Colin and Dominique were nowhere to be found. Knowing Colin, he probably got lost on the way downstairs.
It was usual morning business as I poured myself some tea and Lily babbled on happily about lessons and Hogsmeade trips. The nearest one was the first weekend of October. Everyone was making plans but I planned to stay in. I didn't have anyone to go with now. Robin was most certainly not an option, Dominique would be going with Colin now and I didn't exactly desire his presence, Lily was going with her fourth year friends and I didn't feel like tagging along. I suppose I could go with James, Albus and Hugo; but they would most likely spend the whole time in Zonko's Joke Shop, which wasn't my favorite place in the world. The prospect of reading a book in front of the fire sounded much more pleasing than trudging around Hogsmeade in the cold alone.
I left for Potions five minutes before the bell rang. I was hoping to catch Malfoy so I could talk to him before class, but then again he wasn't at breakfast (did he ever eat?) and I didn't know where he hung out otherwise. If I was a mouthy, annoying, inconsiderate Slytherin, where would I be?
While I was standing outside the Great Hall thinking about whether I should just go to Potions and hope to find him there, Finley Thomas appeared in front of me.
"Hi, Rose." He said pleasantly with a smile. I smiled back.
"Morning, Finley."
"Seen Colin around?" He asked raking his fingers through his hair and scanning the Great Hall with his eyes. The movement reminded me of Malfoy. Why was I thinking about him?
"Last I saw him he was taking Dominique on an extended trip to breakfast." I said with an air of annoyance in my voice.
"Oh…" Finley's face fell. "I suppose I won't be seeing him until Charms then."
There was a slightly awkward silence. Finley flashed another smile. His teeth were rather white and straight. My grandparents would approve, seeing as they used to be dentists before they retired.
"Well, I'd best be going. Wanted to look over some notes before Potions." I said quickly. Finley looked disappointed. Or hungry. I couldn't tell which.
"Alright. See you around?" He asked. I nodded with a smile in response and made a left to go to the Potions corridor.
"Finley Thomas, eh Weasley?" A drawling voice cut through the silence.
"What are you talking about Malfoy?" I asked rather tiredly. I didn't even have to look to know that Scorpius was behind me and I sure wasn't surprised when he came up next to me.
"That's the second time you two have talked with a little too much smiling and awkward pauses." He continued.
"Awkward pauses? Have you been eavesdropping on all of my conversations Malfoy?" They weren't "awkward" pauses… Or at least I wouldn't admit that to him.
"Nope." He popped the p with his lips. "Just an innocent bystander forced to listen to your flirty drivel."
I rolled my eyes. Finley and I never flirted. "What do you even want Malfoy?"
"I came to carry your books. I thought we had a deal on that. Remember Saturday?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
"How could I forget? I'm still wringing the water out of my hair."
"Oh, come on! It was one splash!"
"I've been meaning to talk to you anyway, Malfoy." I ignored his last remark. "I really don't think we should continue with the 'carrying the books bit'."
He looked confused but only for a moment.
"You're the one who suggested it." He said in an arrogant voice.
"I'm aware of that! I just don't think it needs to happen anymore."
"Look, I'm sorry I splashed you. It won't happen again." He said in a somewhat sincere voice.
"You're right. It won't happen again because you don't need to hang around me anymore just because you feel guilty!" I was getting rather annoyed. Couldn't he just continue to class?
"That's not why I hang around you Weasley." He said.
"Then why? I'm 'no fun' remember?"
"I hang around you to get a laugh once in a while, and because I actually think you're a decent human being."
"Oh, lovely." I mumbled. Now Malfoy thought I was a "decent human being". How did I even get into these messes?
"Just give me one more shot Weasley. I'll try not to screw this one up somehow." He gave me a trademark Slytherin smirk. I sighed and contemplated Malfoy and I being friends. His behavior in the last few weeks should have pointed to a big fat no. However, I suppose I was a bit harsh on him.
I shoved my books into his hands and pressed on to the dungeon entrance. Malfoy's smirk grew. He readjusted the books and followed me.
Potions class was run by a middle aged wizard named Professor McGregor. Word was that he was a muggle born who clawed his way to the top by getting top marks in school and then becoming an auror straight after graduating from Hogwarts. I wasn't sure if I believed this story however. If he was an auror, why on earth would he quit to come and teach at Hogwarts? Especially to this lot. Still, I wasn't complaining because he was a good teacher who knew how to get a class's attention and keep it.
I set up my cauldron as Scorpius placed my books on my desk and gave me a mock salute. I rolled my eyes and gave him a half smile. He went over to him and Hayden's desk in the back row where they excelled at goofing off and trying to throw the most ingredients across the room without getting caught. Dominique was already at our desk, looking rather pleased.
"I didn't see you at breakfast." I commented, setting up my cauldron while Professor McGregor wrote instructions on the board. We would be making a complex shrinking solution today and I cringed. The last time I made a shrinking solution, my partner accidentally spilled some on my hand and my fingers shrunk down to the size of tooth picks. Needless to say, I transferred partners the very next day.
"Oh. Colin wasn't very hungry…" Dominique answered with a coy smile. I pretended to vomit and she punched me lightly in the arm.
"Please spare me the details!" I said dramatically.
"Oh shut up!" Dom giggled. "Anyway, you should talk! Everyone has been saying that you and Finley were hitting it off lately. Anything you want to tell me?"
Was the whole school suddenly spying on me lately? "Not you too!" I groaned.
"What do you mean?" Dominique asked in a genuinely surprised voice.
"You're the second person to mention that today!"
"Who was the first?"
I considered telling Dominique about Malfoy my newly reinstated "slave." Then again, if I told her, it would somehow get back to James who would have more than a few things to say about it.
"No one. Just a random Slytherin." There. Not a complete lie.
Professor McGregor called for silence in the room and went on about instructions and ingredients for about ten minutes. Dominique kept playing with her hair and doodling Colin's name on her notebook. I nudged her hard in the arm. I didn't need another shrinking solution disaster in my life.
"You'll be working in partners and remember to be careful! We don't want any accidents!" Professor McGregor said seriously. I silently agreed with him.
"You have an hour to come up with one and the best group in class gets a special prize. I want to see what you lot have picked up over the last few lessons." Time started. Dom lit a fire under the cauldron at the desired temperature and I went to the store cupboard to get the ingredients. The list called for some things that inconveniently were on the top shelf. Unfortunately for me, I somehow hadn't inherited Dad's height or lankiness (maybe that part was good.)
I accio'd the stool in the corner and it came zooming towards me, nearly missing my shins. Climbing up the steps, I picked out the correct ingredients and was considering getting extras of everything when I heard a voice behind me.
"Careful, Weasley. Wouldn't want someone to accidentally kick that out from under you."
Malfoy.
"You wouldn't dare now would you Malfoy?" I turned to face him and hopped off the stool. "You've already had my wand on you this month; are you asking for trouble?"
"Nah. Just getting a laugh out of you." He said with a smile. Not a smirk, a genuine smile that seemed to light up the room somehow. Perhaps it was because it was rare to see him really smile. Or perhaps it was because his teeth were also very white and straight. I would have to report back to my grandparents at Christmas about the lack of cavities at Hogwarts.
Whatever the reason, I noticed how much smaller the room seemed to have gotten and how much closer Malfoy was than usual. I cleared my throat and looked away uncomfortably. He ran a hand through his hair again.
"Right. Well, I'll just—
"Yes. I'll be leaving. Good luck." I said, starting to move past him.
"With Hayden as my partner? I'll need a lot of luck." He flashed another real smile and I laughed as I had to agree with him. At the moment, Hayden was flicking slugs off the table and trying to get them to go down Evelyn Brown's shirt.
I returned to the table and me and Dominique started on the potion. Potions wasn't my best subject (I had only barely gotten an O for it on my owls last year), but it was Dominique's specialty. Apparently her mother had had a knack for it at Beuxbatons back when she was in school.
While we mixed the potion and crushed ingredients, I felt warmth spreading over my face as I recalled the moment with Scorpius in the store cupboard. I wish I could say it was only from the fire.
Did I really just call him Scorpius?
At the end of the lesson, Dominique nearly raced out the door to meet Colin before her Transfiguration lesson. I had a free period next, seeing as I was a NEWT student now and I took my time to put my notes and potions supplies back into my bag. Professor McGregor was talking to Scorpius and Hayden at the front of the room who had barely scraped an Acceptable on their slightly less than horrendous potion. Hayden looked like he could care less. Scorpius looked bored. He looked around at me and rolled his eyes with a smirk like he got these lectures all the time. Knowing him, he probably did.
I picked up my books and started to slowly leave the room. I suppose I was sort of waiting for Malfoy at the moment but I wasn't sure if I really had to. I knew we had this "arrangement" made but I didn't know if that applied to every day, all the time. When I was almost out the door, Professor McGregor addressed me.
"Miss Weasley, if you could come here for a moment."
What did he want? Was it me and Dom's potion? It got an E so I couldn't see a reason for a bashing about it. I noticed Malfoy was still standing at his desk while Hayden was packing his things in the back not really listening.
"Miss Weasley, how much free time do you have after school?" Professor McGregor asked. I was taken aback only slightly.
"Well I usually do my homework in the library or in the common room. Then I read or study or spend time with my family. I can't stay up late, I'm not good at it. So I suppose an hour or two with homework." Malfoy looked amused. I knew this would result in teasing later. I could almost hear his voice now: 'Do you ever have time to yourself Weasley? Homework and books literally take up all of your time!"
"Excellent! Then you wouldn't mind spending an hour with Mister Malfoy here to help him with his own studies."
Malfoy looked as surprised as I felt.
"You want me to tutor him, sir?" I asked in slight disbelief. I had tutored second years before but never someone my own age. Not to mention someone who was slowly turning my world upside down, and not completely in a negative way.
"I don't need a tutor." Malfoy said in a hard voice. He looked slightly embarrassed must mostly angry.
"Don't think of it as tutoring as much as… academic assistance!" Professor McGregor said. "I just think you could use some help on your work Mister Malfoy. You barely have a P in this class."
"I suppose I could use some company in the library tonight." I spoke up, trying to settle the tension.
"Splendid! One hour, that is all I ask of. If your grades improve Mister Malfoy, the arrangement need not happen. Off you go, I have to prepare for my next lesson." With that, Professor McGregor disappeared into his office.
Malfoy and I left the room in a slightly tense silence. He still carried my books but something was different. There was no sarcastic banter.
"Am I really that bad to spend time with Malfoy?" I asked in a teasing voice.
He gave a short laugh. "It's nothing against you Weasley. Not really. I just don't need a fucking tutor! I'm not that thick."
"You're not thick. You and Hayden never pay any attention that's all. And you must have good grades in something."
"Defense against the Dark Arts. I have an O in it. I want to be an auror." He said casually as if he discussed his career plans with Hayden before breakfast every day.
"Well, to be an auror, you have to be good at potions. So think of this as getting you closer to that." I said helpfully. Malfoy laughed for real this time.
"What's funny?" I asked.
"You! The way you make everything so… academic!" He laughed again. "It hurts my brain listening to you sometimes Weasley!"
"Now you really sound thick." I replied. We were almost to the Gryffindor common room and I hadn't even realized it. "Not everything I say is academic!"
"Sure Weasley, whatever you say. Anyway, I'll see you later." He handed the books back over to me.
"Later?" I asked.
"You said you were going to the library tonight. I'm supposed to tag along, correct?" He said mockingly of my "academic tone".
"So you'll come?" I only said I was going for Professor McGregor's sake.
"Why shouldn't I? Don't want to end up at a boring desk job at the ministry someday. Might as well start getting serious now." I almost laughed. The thought of Malfoy acting serious was something I wasn't used to.
"See you later then." I said facing the Portrait hole.
"Later, Rose." Malfoy patted me on the arm and then turned down the corridor.
I was sitting with James, Roxanne, Lily and Fred when I realized Malfoy had actually called me Rose.