A/n: Sorry for the long wait, readers! I've been away from all things electronic for the past 10 days. Here's me making up for it.

Mariah

With one last look at Amelie and Garrett, I tear after Rhet. I'm not tall enough to see over the heads of most, but every now and then I catch a glance of his dark hair. I reach the edge of the crowd and spot him exiting the Entrance Hall.

'Rhet!' I call after him. 'Wait up!' He turns and I run to catch him. 'You were bidding on me?'

'Yeah,' He seems confused by the question. 'Why not? We hardly spend any time with each other outside of class, I thought that we could hit the sweets shop together this weekend.'

'Oh.' I say, a hollow feeling settling in my stomach.

'Is that all?' He asks, raising a brow. 'I've got an essay that I should finish.' He turns away.

'Wait,' I say, placing a hand on his arm and pulling on it so that he's looking at me again. 'I feel like I've been forgetting something. Ever since I was in the hospital. What happened?'

'Not much, Pomphrey gave you some potions and you passed out.' He shrugs. 'Perhaps you hallucinated or something.'

I purse my lips and look at my feet. What was I hoping he'd say? Was I hoping that he'd confirm what I'd dreamed?

'Well, I hope that you have a nice time tomorrow in Hogsmead, whatever you're doing. Thank-you for bidding on me, even though Garrett beat you out.' I play with the fringe of my dress and avoid looking at his face.

'You have a nice time as well.' He says.

On impulse I take his chin and press my lips to the base of his cheek. My face lights up when I realise what I've done and I step away, rushing into the Great Hall, not looking back.

I smile at Garrett as he leaves, and only a few hours later I see him again.

Amelie decided that I wasn't a priority because Garrett is my friend, and he doesn't play quidditch, so I'm wearing things that I pulled from my own closet. A tight pair of jeans tucked into my winter boots with a faded Puddlemere United shirt under a thick jacket that I think actually belongs to Mallory. My hair, though, receives a thorough curling by Rose's cousin when she spots my horrible bed-head, and my face is painted with lip-stick and blush and mascara. Before she manages to get the eye-liner on me I escape to the Entrance Hall.

'Mariah!' Garrett cries, greeting me with a bear-hug. 'Ready for the next twelve hours? My dormmates made a list of things that we should do – but I don't think that you'd much like cleaning our loo.' My face pinches at the thought and he laughs as we step into the line of students handing their permission slips to the caretaker. 'There are some fun ones though, like visiting the Shrieking Shack and Honeydukes. Oh, and you're carrying all of my purchases, and there's no way around it. I paid forty galleons for a day with you, and I'm getting my worth.'

I agree to his demand and search the Hall for my teammates. Scorpius Malfoy is standing a few people behind us, looking around for Rose. Last I saw her she was sitting on a bed in the seventh year dorm. Malfoy looks anxious to see her, I hope she hurries.

'When is your next match?' Garrett asks, distracting me for the moment.

The next time I see Malfoy is in our carriage, now sitting with Rose. The ride is mostly spent in silence, and I take this time to watch how our competition acts around my teammate. Amelie went on for ages after that accident with Nott about how Malfoy was well on his way to being in love with Rose, and I can see it. He's very aware of her movements, at the slightest twitch his eyes fly over to her, and he's quite different from the cold, quiet Slytherin I've seen patrolling the corridors. He actually laughs and smiles at the things she says, something that I hadn't even imagined possible.

When we reach the village they dash off, leaving me with Garrett. We stop at all of the usual shops: Honeydukes, Zonko's, Scrivenshaft's and the post office. And my buyer is sure to purchase a heavy load at each store. I spot Rose and take notice that she isn't carrying anything.

Five bags, two boxes and a metal cage later, we stop off at the Three Broomsticks for butterbeer. I drop Garrett's things on the floor and drink away my pained feet and sore back.

'So, since when are you and Rhet such good friends?' I ask, the question that has been burning in the back of my mind finally slipping out.

'I don't know – Gyffindor and Hufflepuff have a lot of classes together this year and Rhet and I've been talking.' Garrett replies with a shrug. 'He likes you a whole lot, you know.'

My tongue dries and I find myself at a loss as to what to say.

'Oh.'

'He's been beating around it for ages, but he really fancies you. He told me yesterday after the auction that he was hoping to buy you, that way he could be spared the humiliation of being shot down if he asked you to Hogsmead.' Garrett continues.

I wish that he would hold his tongue. He's telling me all that I want to hear, but, at the same time, I don't want to know. Hearing it spoken, that Rhet fancies me, only raises more questions in my mind. If I had never known, only had inklings and ideas and feelings, then I could have let the strangeness of our sudden relationship pass and never think on it, but with the proof hitting me in the face I can't avoid questioning it.

'Would you have shot him down, Mariah?' He asks. 'If Rhet asked you out?'

'Don't you think that it's a little odd?' I ask in return, a sinking feeling settling in my stomach. 'That only this year Rhet has given me any attention? It's not like I changed over the summer. I mean, he had never even spoken to me before that one time in History of Magic! He likes flashy girls, Garrett. Has he somehow been misled? Does he think that I am his usual sort of material? Am I a Carol? Am I just his new conquest?'

'Mariah-' Garrett begins to reassure me, but I've started thinking, started talking, and now I can't stop.

'What if this is all about quidditch?' We both stop and just look at each other. And then I realise it. 'I've been played. This is all about quidditch.'

'You don't know that.'

'Yes, Garrett, I do.' I say, putting my head in my hands. 'Just think about it for a second. Think about me. Am I really the kind of person Rhet wants? Think about Rhet. What kind of person is he? A liar? A conniving little backstabber? Think about the stakes on the quidditch cup and think about McLaggen. He would do this. He would do anything to assure that Hufflepuff takes the lead. They're trying to get in my head to play with me. Just like what we're doing with them. Just... think about it.'

'No, Mariah. You think about it.' Garrett says, placing a heavy hand on my arm. 'Do you think that Rhet would do that?'

'I don't know.'

Rose

Even though our day with the buyers actually begins at eight, Dom barges into our dorm at six, forcing us into the shower while she raids our dressers. After gathering up all of the 'suitable' clothing, we move to the seventh year's dorm because of our other roommates.

Dom sets about, laying out outfits for us to wear. By Amelie's request, Mariah and Ruth escape the torture of trying on multiple shirts and jackets to see what coordinates because they've been bought by people who aren't related to the other quidditch teams.

After half an hour of parading about like a model for my cousin, she decides. My captain hinted to Dom that Scorpius likes me in green and silver, so I'm wearing a dark green, knit sweater and a tight pair of jeans. I complain about the way the pants make my bum look as I play with the many, chunky silver necklaces that adorn me, but my cousin simply smiles and pushes me down on a bed and plays with my face and hair.

'Why are you all dressed up, Dom?' I ask as she moves about. 'Got yourself a date?'

'Hush, Rose,' She says, stilling my lips in order to paint them. 'It's Head's business. Eli and I are going into London for McGonagall.'

'Ah.' I reply before I'm shushed again, but observe her red face with satisfaction.

With five minutes to eight, Dom pushes me out of the dorm with a dark blue petticoat of hers. I'm fortunate enough to be wearing flat-bottom boots (no heels for me!) and dash to the Entrance Hall just in time. I smooth down my hair and catch a glimpse of Scorpius's platinum locks. He turns and smiles at me from the line of students waiting to leave.

'Hey.' I call out to him, pushing through the crowd.

'Hello, Rose.' He says, moving over so that I can stand next to him. 'I was afraid that you weren't going to show.'

'You paid sixty galleons for twelve hours with me. You're getting your worth.' I assure him with a smile. 'So, what do you have planned for today?'

He grins and removes a list from his pocket. 'Christmas shopping.'

'Already? Christmas is still more than a month away.'

'I need your womanly expertise on some of these gifts. Besides, if I get it all done now, then I won't have to worry about it later. It's brilliant.' He taps his temple smartly. 'I hate that rush before the holidays, when everyone is in a foul mood and the stores are out of stock.'

I nod, agreeing with him. It's absolutely horrid to shop for gifts for all of my relatives.

'Who do you need to shop for?' I ask, hoping that it isn't very many.

'My mother and father, grand-mother and father on both sides, aunt Daphne, uncle Blaise and a handful of cousins.' He says, reading the list. 'Shopping shouldn't take too long, so we can make some stops for ourselves: butterbeers at The Three Broomsticks, sweets at Honeydukes, visit the shrieking shack...' He trails off with a shrug. 'And tonight I figured that we could go to the library, for that potions essay.'

I nod and hand my permission slip to the caretaker. What Scorpius has planned sounds better than whatever Ruth is doing with those third-years. We catch a carriage with Mariah and her buyer, a Gryffindor boy that I believe is named Garrett, as well as a few stragglers without a companion for the weekend.

'At least you don't have quite so many relatives to shop for as I do.' I say, entering the small compartment. Mariah's eyes rest on me, calculating my every movement. I wonder if Amelie put her up to watching how Scorpius and I act around each other.

Scorpius laughs at what I said. 'I can only imagine how horrible that is!' His animation startles everyone else, but he takes no mind of it and settles on the soft cushioned bench rather close to me. The heat of his leg and arm pressed against mine causes a flush to rise around my neck and ears, and I thank the moderate darkness of the carriage for hiding it.

The rest of the ride is hot and quiet, and I'm glad when Scorpius helps me out onto the chilly, bustling main street of Hogsmead. We start at the quidditch store, something that I'm not against.

'I've two cousins to shop for here, Romeo and Sal Zabini, as well as my uncle Blaise.' Scorpius says, looking down at his list again. 'Can you see if there is anything around here with the Appleby Arrows logo? My uncle is obsessed.'

I search the racks for a few minutes before finding the team's newest jersey, pale blue in colour with a dark blue stripe across the chest and a silver arrow shot through a vibrant red apple. When I show it to Scorpius he's ecstatic.

'I'll owl aunt Daphne and ask her not to let him buy any of their new gear.' He carries it over to the counter with a broom care kit, also asking the shop keeper is they have any knee pads in stock.

While the man checks, I look through the racks near the shop windows. A flash of orange catches my eye and I peer outside, thinking that one of my cousins has run by, but the redhead is gone.

Our next stop is the bookstore, where Scorpius gets a healthy cookbook.

'Mum is always saying that we all need to eat better. Perhaps this will give her the incentive to cook better.' He says.

Scorpius is a perfect gentleman, and refuses to make me carry his bags, even when we spot Mariah and Garett outside of Honeydukes, my teammate's arms full of candy and joke bags. She scowls when I wave at her cheerfully. Her scowl transfers to my face when I find out where we're going next.

'Crystal?' I whine as he leads me down a less travelled street to the jewellery store, but I have no say in what we do today, so I follow him in. The pink walls and bright lights blind me as we enter. The woman behind the counter jumps up and immediately beings to badger Scorpius about what he's looking for, but he brushes her off easily. She then hovers, popping up every few minutes to ask if we need any help.

Scorpius makes me take off my jacket and necklaces, forcing me to try on different jewels for him to view.

He decides upon a diamond tiara for his aunt ('Where would she wear that?'), two similar, jewel incrusted, chain-link bracelets for his grand-mothers, one in emerald, one in amethyst, and a simple pearl necklace for his mum ('She'd avada me if I gave aunt Daphne jewellery and her a book.')

He goes to pay, complaining that he hasn't found anything for his cousin, Lacey Zabini, a fifth year Slytherin. I'm hardly paying attention because a beautiful pendant has caught my gaze. It's a delicate silver rose, hand crafted and sitting on a thin silver chain.

'What is it?' Scorpius turns, noticing my lack of input.

'Would your cousin like this?' I ask, pressing my finger against the glass of the case, wishing that I could run my fingers over the metal petals. 'It's gorgeous.'

'No,' He tells me. 'It is very nice, but Lacey likes things that 'pop', and that's rather simple.' I look up sadly to find him staring at me intently. 'Come on, I can ask my mum to order something from her dressmaker.'

As he thanks the woman for her help I think about the jewellery that I own: none. But I catch sight of the price of the rose, and it's a fair amount of galleons. Too many for me to pay for a simple necklace, no matter how pretty.

We go to the Hogsmead Post Office where Scorpius purchases a fine snowy owl for his father, and then to Honeydukes. While at the candy shop we buy the usual sweets: sugar quills, pixie puffs, liquorice wands and chocolate frogs, even though I've collected, with the help of my father, all of the cards. Scorpius also buys in bulk some Bertie Botts every flavour beans, revealing them to be his greatest weakness, and a ton of acid pops.

'My grandfather on my mum's side is addicted, but grandma never lets him buy them. He loves me for sending him them at Christmas.' He says, finally allowing me to carry some of his bags, the lighter ones though.

'Sounds like my grandfather as well, but he's a dentist so he hates all candy that causes harm to your mouth.' I tell him, popping a pixie puff into my mouth. 'I get him tooth-flossing string-mints. He loves them, but my grandmother thinks it's cheating and makes him floss double as much.'

Scorpius laughs. 'Are you cold yet?' I reply negatively. 'Good. I thought we might walk up to the Shrieking Shack.'

'Sounds like fun. It sucks though, that my family has ruined the experience of it.' I say as we begin our walk.

'How have they ruined it for you?'

'I know why it used to shriek.' He looks at me curiously. 'And I'm not telling you because it'll ruin the shack for you as well.'

'Please?' He whines, gripping my arm and pleading with his mesmerising grey eyes. 'If you don't tell me I'm just going to go ask Albus, you know.'

'Fine.' I give in, batting him away. 'But don't complain to me that I've ruined it for you. Decades ago, when our grandparents were at school, there was a group of four boys who called themselves the Marauders: James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. I think that we learned this much in History of Magic. Anyways–'

'Remus Lupin – would he be related Teddy Lupin?' Scorpius interrupts. 'That would make him to some degrees related to me.'

I never learned much about the Malfoy lineage, but I know that Narcissa Malfoy was a Black, as well as Andromeda, who is Teddy's grandmother, so I agree.

'Anyways, Remus Lupin was a werewolf, and he had to hide his affliction from his fellow classmates so the school built this Shack with a tunnel inside that lead to the school grounds. At the other end they planted the Whomping Willow to keep people from finding the tunnel.' I say quickly to keep him from interrupting again. When I pause to breath Scorpius holds out a candy to me and I accept it. 'The shrieking sounds were Lupin's transformations.'

I smile and pop the candy into my mouth and am overcome with the most disgusting taste that has ever invaded my taste buds. I choke and cough and finally spit the small, beige sweet into the shallow snow at my feet.

'Merlin!' I cry, tears stinging my eyes. 'That was the foulest thing I've ever tasted!' Scorpius is rolling about, laughing his head off. 'You prat! Did you even listen to anything that I said?'

He stops laughing, wiping tears from his eyes. 'Of course I did. Ask Albus, I'm almost as big a know-it-all as you are. I had no idea that the bean would be so bad though.'

He's still laughing a little, but I'm distracted by a sudden movement in the bushes. Our wands are out immediately – the forest here is part of the Forbidden Forest, and you never know what could be lurking, waiting to munch on your bones.

'It's probably some couple snogging in the bushes.' Scorpius says, taking my hand and pulling me along the path, but he sends a stinging curse over his shoulder to the spot for good measure.

A/n: Next is the continuation of Rose's day.