Chapter Seven

Rose has dinner with the Lupins

Rose couldn't help but look forward to the weekend the last two weeks had been rather hard with Lily's accident and the threat of NEWTS looming over her. Teddy and Victorie where two of Roses favorite people in the world but she hadn't seen them in months. The week dragged however for some reason Louis attached himself to her every mealtime talking about the project with Professor Cain at least half of which Rose, despite taking NEWT level potions, didn't understand but she nodded along anyway giving thanks for the pauses in Louis monologue.

On Friday Rose met Louis at the stairs of the Great Hall as Rose crossed the floor of the great hall bustling as it was with packed tables of students eating and talking. As she passed the Gryffindor table for a reason she didn't fully understand herself she looked over to the far side of the room and saw Scorpius Malfoy sat at the very end of his table. An empty bowl of soup if front of him and Charlie sat next to him talking animatedly. As Scorpius looked up Rose wanted to pull her eyes away, she really did, but for some reason she couldn't and her eyes meet Scorpius'. She had no idea what he was thinking she didn't recognize the emotion he displayed but for a nanosecond she thought he was happy to see her. But the moment passed and she looked ahead thinking of meeting Teddy and Victorie a blonde haired boy sat behind her all but forgotten.

As Rose had expected Louis spent most of the walk down to Hogwarts where Teddy and Victorie lived talking about his project with Professor Cain. Rose really did try to understand but he used so much technical information that she found herself not paying attention him. However as they passed the Three Broomsticks just moments from the Weasley-Lupin house Louis turned to Rose and asked.

"So how was your week Rose?" startled out of her daydream she began to answer.

"Fine a bit stressful with Lily but-"

"Sounds lovely," Louis cut in not really listening to her reply

"Rose I wanted to ask you a question."

"Yes," she replied distracted trying to remember if Teddy and Victorie's house was on this left or the next one.

"I am looking for a girlfriend," he began "and I feel that the qualities you display are what I am searching for," at this Rose's head swung round until this point she hadn't been paying attention to him.

"Louis I-" but he cut her off again.

"I believe that you are intelligent and the match would be acceptable to our family, that you are reasonably pretty and…"

"LOUIS," this time Rose shouted at him but he continued.

"I understand that women often need time to understand their own minds,"

"Louis please I am not being fickle I don't think of you like that,"

"Really cousin you have toyed with my emotions and..." but he seemed lost for words and instead grabbed Rose's head in both his palms and tried to kiss her. Rose at first tried to lightly push him away when that did not work and Louis pushed her more forcibly she tried to push back. Louis was slight in his frame but he was taller than Rose and thus towered over her.

"Louis stop," but his kiss kept on coming and when his lips brushed Rose's they were not soft or gentle but feverish and rough. For some reason at that moment Rose found some reservation in herself and she pushed Louis back forcibly he looked at her in shock for a moment. Rose ran taking the first left praying her natural instinct was wrong there was no way Louis would do anything else to her he wasn't a fool but for some reason she kept on running that kiss had her terrified and she had no rational reason why. She saw the door of number seven and as she expected it had the blue door in a street or almost entirely black ones. Rose could hear Louis footsteps behind her they were not quiet nor where they slow. He was running after her.

"Teddy, Vic," she shouted pounding her fists on the door. "Teddy," she shouted again this time she could hear Louis' breath just steps behind her.

"Rose?" a confused looking Teddy Lupin asked stood in the door. Rose pushed her way past him. Turning around on the top step her eyes narrowed as she looked at Louis.

"Don't come near me again," she said.

"Rose," he said his voice seemingly expressing an apologetic note.

"Please Louis," she said exasperated and short of breath "just leave." At this Louis seemed to concur that it was a sensible idea turning around in the middle of the street he headed back along the dark road back to the main Hogsmeade high street.

"Oh," Victorie appeared behind them "I thought my brother was joining us?"

"Yes what is going on?" Teddy asked Rose but he voice seemed amused more than stern and there was a twinkling in his eye.

"Louis asked me to be his girlfriend," Victorie clapped her hands.

"Oh my goodness that would be so amazing,"

"I refused him," Rose continued 'but he pushed himself onto me and kissed me against my will,"

"Are you ok?" Teddy asked this time much more sternly.

"Yes I am fine Louis is leaving Hogwarts in the morning so I'll leave it,"

"Is my brother not good enough for you?" Victorie asked.

"Vic it's just I don't fancy him and I won't date someone I don't love it would be a betrayal of everything I believe in and unfair to both of us."

To say Victorie took it well would be an understatement she spent most of the evening pouting and looking sternly at Rose. Teddy on the other hand continually asked her if everything was ok. So much so that Rose had to ask him to stop. Whilst she was sat eating her chocolate mousse that her Aunt Fleur had sent to them she wondered how Teddy and Victorie had ever got together they were both so different people Victorie flirty, bubbly and incapable of holding any sort of mood for long and Teddy whose own private library rivaled her mother's, a magical lawyer and serious. Yet somehow they fit ever since they had begun to date before Rose even began Hogwarts and she could not imagine them apart.

Teddy insisted on walking her back up to the castle Rose often wondered what he thought of the place both his parents had died in. The very hall that every day people sat eating dinner unknowing of the sacrifice played out in front of them years before. Teddy had every right to be an angry child, a break away teenager and an adult hell bent on revenge but he hadn't. Instead he was the quiet solace that the Weasley-Potter extended family needed and so one of Rose's best friends out of her family.

"Ro are you sure you're ok?"

"Yes," she sighed for the hundredth time.

"It just shook me up Teddy I'll be fine,"

"Send my love to Lily,"

"Thanks,"

"And tell Louis if he ever tries to lay a finger on you again I'll break his hand,"

"I will," she smiled.

"Brother-in-law or not," Teddy muttered.

"Thanks Teddy," she smiled at him "you know you're like a brother to me,"

"Thanks Ro," he hugged her for a moment Rose could have sworn she saw a tear play in Teddy's eye but it was gone just as quickly.

"See you at Christmas," he waved as she entered the dark Hogwarts grounds.