Chapter Fourteen

A/N: Sorry for the long wait to update! Thanks again, reviewers! Have you figured it out yet? ;) Anyway, please forgive Rose last chapter when she yelled at Thalia; in this chapter it will explain (please don't think of her as a terrible person; I'm sure everyone has felt the same type of insecurity at some point in their life). Also, in this chapter, you will see the bright, comforting mother Hermione is.

Rose's POV

"Good morning, Rose, Hugo." My mum smiled at each of us, her wand directing the frying pan to place the eggs onto our plates.

"Good morning, mum." Hugo and I chorused, him digging into his food noisily and me crinkling my nose in disgust. "Hey, mum, I'm going off to Milton Flynn-Fletchey's house today."

"Oh, yes, I almost forgot Hugo. Finish up your breakfast and get ready. They're going to be here in about half an hour."

"Where's dad, mum?" I asked, eating my food slowly.

"Off to the Ministry already, I suppose. I'm off today, at least until later this afternoon." My mum answered, Banishing the frying pan to the sink, as it washed tself.

I nodded, my eyes downcast. I knew my mother was going to suggest sooner or later that I invite my friends over. And, that means, sooner or later, she was going to find out about the Yule Ball.

I didn't want to explain it all to her because I would be bound to burst into tears. I just hated that night, I just did.

I'd never admit it aloud, but Scorpius had broken my heart severely. That night I felt like something was going to go right, that I was going to finally get a happy ending. Like I was going to accomplish something other than getting an "Outstanding" on an exam.

But when I saw him and Thalia kissing, everything seemed like it was crashing down, every hope and dream shattered, along with my heart. When I'd run away from the Yule Ball, anger had built up inside of me.

So, naturally, I ranted and raved at her, my best friend of 6 and a half years and I didn't even stop to think about what I was saying. I didn't mean to hurt her; I just wanted to show how betrayed I had felt, how broken, how...jealous I was. Yes, I know, why on earth would Rose Weasley, daughter of two of the most famous wizards Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger Weasley, brightest witch of her generation, be jealous of her best friend?

It was simple, really. She was really popular and pretty (her brown, wavy hair is almost as soft as silk); she was probably the best Chaser in our generation, she had about half of the male population drooling, she was brilliant at Potions without even trying (while I was pants at it), and she got the guy in the end. The same guy I had a crush on, which she knew. And what was I, compared to her?

I was just a red-haired know-it-all witch. I was barely popular; the only thing I was probably popular for was my parents and brains. I could barely fly a broom, I doubt I even half a tenth of the males at Hogwarts, even though I was great at almost every subject, what good did that do?

Yes, I was green with jealousy. And I hated every single moment of it.

I especially despised the rush of guilt that followed it, and in tow, my conscience saying, Shame on you! She was my friend after all, and I shouldn't have lost my temper like that. I wanted the four of us to be friends, but my love for Scorpius still burned underneath.

Oh, Merlin, help me.

After breakfast, I went upstairs to my room. The walls were a soft violet color, with matching sheets on my bed. There were two book shelves filled with both Muggle and wizard books. On my bedside table, there lay a lamp, some pictures of my family and friends, and a jewellery box. Sitting down on my bed, I pulled my copy of Defensive Spells, Grade 6 out of my pile of books. As I was reading about the different and more complex forms of Protego, someone knocked on my door.

"Come in," I said, marking my spot with my finger.

My mum entered. She was a beautiful witch, even though she was in her early forties. Her bushy and slightly curly hazel hair was up in a loose bun and her wise brown eyes sparkled with knowledge. She was wearing a light purple turtleneck and simple jeans, an apron tied around her waist.

"What's wrong, Rose? Don't say nothing is, because I know that you only read textbooks that you've already read at least fifteen times when you're upset."

"Actually, twenty give or take a few times." I answered, watching the corners of my mum's mouth twitching.

"What's wrong, Rose?" My mum repeated, looking straight into my eyes, a searching look in her own.

I sighed. She was the only person I could talk to about this. "There was a Yule Ball at Hogwarts on Friday, and Al and I found Scorpius and Thalia snogging."

"Aw, Rose." My mum pulled me close to her and embraced me. I buried my face in her shoulder and I let the tears I was holding in slip down my face.

"What should I do? I want things to be better, but I feel betrayed and raw inside. I thought I could trust her. I thought that there was even a slight chance for him to return my feelings." I muttered the last sentence quietly, but my mother heard me anyway.

"Well, I felt the same way when I was your age. I even invited your father as my date to Professor Slughorn's Party. And then, he was stolen away by Lavender Brown." She grimaced at the name, and I giggled.

"Was she your best friend, too?"

My mother shook her head. "No, but we were dorm mates. I was just starting to think that maybe, she was alright, until she snogged the living daylights out of him."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well, for a time, I was upset and jealous, just like you. I really felt like I should've told him how I felt earlier. There were all sorts of 'what ifs' going through my mind right then and there." I nodded, I was in the same state. "But, then your father was poisoned but your Uncle Harry saved his life. He was in the Hospital Wing for a week or two, but after that, we were friends again."

"What about Lavender Brown?"

"Well," My mum looked smug, "When he was still in a coma, she came by and told him that she was there. But, instead of saying 'Lavender', he said, 'Hermione'. When he woke up, she broke it off."

I raised an eyebrow. "How does that apply to my situation?"

"Well, there was one lesson I learned. I learned that sulking and fuming didn't do any good. I learned to never let a girl get in the way of my friendship with your father and uncle."

I nodded. It made sense. I should at least make peace with Scorpius and Thalia again, even if they're dating. "So, I should just patch things up? Try to focus on something we've built for over 6 years and keep it?"

"Yes. You should never let anything come in between something as strong as what you, Scorpius, Thalia, and Albus have. Now, get dressed." She pulled me off of my bed.

"Why?"

My mother grinned. "You said you wanted to go to that Muggle bookstore, didn't you?"

It was my turn to grin. "Thanks, mum!" I hugged her and quickly ran to my closet, searching for adequate articles of clothing.

As my mum shut the door, I found the perfect outfit. It was a grey jacket, a black blouse with sequins and light blue jeans and black furry boots.

Throwing them on, I ran downstairs. It looked like Hugo had already left with the Flynn-Fletcheys.

"Are you ready?" My mum asked, taking off the apron and putting on her jacket.

"Yes."

Stowing away our wands into our jacket pockets, mum held out her arm so we could Apparate. I've experienced Side-Along Apparation before, and let me tell you, I was glad my dad brought along a paper bag.

I took hold of it and the constricting but familiar feeling of Apparation engulfed us. When we landed, we were in an abandoned Muggle alley. Stepping out and when we made sure no one was watching we made our way to Books, Nooks, and Crannies, my favourite Muggle bookstore in all of England.

When we entered, the familiar tinkling of a bell, the smell of new books, and newly printed ink filled my nostrils. I stood in front of the entire store, taking in the scents that I absolutely loved. There were shelves and shelves of books, with three couches in the middle of the room. I glanced at my mum; she was smiling pleasantly as if the store had the same effect on her.

"Hello, there, Mr. Laurent." I greeted casually. He was an old man, somewhere in his late fifties, with grey receding hair and twinkling blue eyes.

"Why, hello there, Rose. How are you today, Hermione?" The Muggle bookstore owner asked my mum, as she had shopped here when she was younger, even before she discovered she was a witch.

"I'm fine, Mr. Laurent, and you?"

"Good as always." He said, smiling. "We have some new books here, would you like to see them, Rose?"

I smiled politely. "No thank you, Mr. Laurent. I'm more into the classics."

He chuckled. "You remind me of your mother. She always used to come here when she was younger. She didn't pay attention to the new books, just settled into a chair and started flipping through Shakespeare."

I smiled, everyone said that I was just like my mum in several ways.

I walked over to the classics section and browsed through Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. I picked up a book and flipped through it, enjoying the smell of it. Suddenly, the smell of my Amortentia entered my mind again. I remembered that I had smelled my father's home made chocolate chip cookies, new books, and mint. I had identified where two of them came from, but where the mint's source was still a mystery. That was, until I had inhaled Scorpius's scent. It was mint, and from then on, I understood why I had smelled it in the first place.

I was flipping through A Midsummer Night's Dream when I felt as if I was being watched. I ignored it; mum always said it was best to ignore someone who was staring at you. But when the minutes stretched on and on, I still felt the eyes on me.

I turned to the left, and saw a black hooded figure, watching me, and as it reached up, its sleeve slid down, revealing a faded mark, shaped like a snake coming out of a skull's mouth...

I looked at my mother, who was still talking to Mr. Laurent. I turned my head back, but the figure was gone. I sighed, shaking my head.

You are losing it, Rose. I thought.

When I picked out a pile of books, my mum paid for the items. "Bye, Mr. Laurent!" I called as we left the store.

"Anytime, Rose, Hermione. Come back soon!" He called merrily.

As we Apparated back home, my thoughts wandered back to the figure. Had it all been an illusion? Or was it real? I doubted that a Death Eater would go into a Muggle bookstore for books. I doubted that a Death Eater would go into a Muggle bookstore at all. Then a thought occurred to me.

Would it be possible the Death Eaters were following me and my mum? That sent a chill up my spine. No, the Aurors would take care of everything. Everything will be fine. Hopefully.

I picked up a copy of the Prophet and headed upstairs, my purchases in one hand and the newspaper in another.

Flipping through it, I searched for any article that told us the progress of tracking down the Death Eaters. There was an article mentioning a Death Eater attack on an American Auror in the United States. Skimming through it, I frowned. That was really weird. Why did they aim for the States when their supposed targets were in Britain? And apparently, there weren't any more attacks following the first. Strange.

Flopping onto my bed, I stared at the photo of the victim. With grey eyes and shaggy light gold hair, he looked strangely like someone I knew, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

Tossing the newspaper aside, I picked a picture up of me and my three friends. I looked at Thalia, who had her arm around Albus and me. I had my arm around my best girl friend and Scorpius, who was grinning widely. They beamed up at me, and I watched as picture Scorpius squeezed my hand and my picture self blushed. I couldn't help but smile back.

The more I thought about it, the guiltier I felt about yelling at Thalia. I had been irrational, jumping to conclusions. I had seemed...like a hot-head, and not my normal self.

I promised myself that I would patch this all up, no matter what.

A/N: Ooh, what about that creepy Death Eater in the bookstore? :O Haha, okay, from this chapter on, things are about to build up, action-wise. The next chapter and the one after that may not have so much action, but don't worry. Things are about to get interesting, especially in the 17th chapter! :D

PS: Shout out for James Albus Potter, because he's doing a next generation fic, and he chose to include Thalia Wilcox as a starring OC!

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