Author's Note: Thanks to those kind enough to favorite and review—I really appreciate them! So the plan as of now is to update weekly. Still unbeta'd. Cheers!
Disclaimer: Characters mentioned are used without permission and are trademarks of J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Studios, while Drive Me Crazy is property of 20th Century Fox. I do not own them and am simply borrowing for my purposes. Please don't sue!

How to Deal
by Bether

Chapter 2: Plan of Action

Standing outside of the Head common room, Rose felt oddly conspicuous. She did her best to ignore that feeling, though, and wait patiently for Scorpius to arrive. She'd been sure to catch his eye as she exited the Great Hall, so it shouldn't take him all that long.

Ten minutes later, the Head Boy finally made an appearance. Rose scowled. "What took you?" (She'd never had an overabundance of patience.)

"I wasn't done eating," was his simple reply, though there was something suspiciously like smugness in his expression. Turning to the suite of armor guarding the door, he said, "Ambrose Swott." The armor saluted and stepped aside, allowing the door to swing open.

Rose gaped at the splendid room that lay beyond. It was decorated primarily in the colors of the two houses from which the heads belonged, which weren't her favorites, but there were books and other items that were exclusively for those selected to dwell there. And, though she was loathe to admit it, she was a wee bit jealous that she hadn't been chosen to share in that legacy. For the briefest moment, she indulged in those feelings.

Then she got down to business. Rose sat on one side of the green lounge and smoothed her skirt. "Okay, so I was thinking… we can help each other."

Scorpius chose to sit in a similarly colored chair. "As you've said. What you failed to mention, however, is what that entails."

Fighting the urge to frown, she nodded. "Right. I was thinking…" here she bit the bullet, "we should start dating."

Whatever the Malfoy heir had been expecting, that was apparently not it. He choked out a laugh, shaking his head. "You must be joking," he replied simply. Catching her eye and slight blush, he blanched. "You're… not joking?" That sent him into an even more raucous round of laughter.

"Oh, shut it," Rose snapped, crossing her arms defensively. "Think about this for a moment. You can make Abigail jealous—because, believe me, that show she put on in the Hall was as much for you as her friends—"

Instantly, she had Scorpius's attention again. "How do you know that?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "I'm a girl, that's how. Anyway," she continued pointedly, "while you're making Abigail jealous, I'll be able to make the dregs of my year into something salvageable." And save face but that part did not require sharing. "It's flawless."

"Oh, I can think of several flaws," he responded with a doubtful expression. "Like: who the hell would believe we were dating?"

Boys. It was difficult to keep from rolling her eyes. They were so bloody predictable. "Well, of course no one would believe us if we tell them. What am I—thick?" She waved off whatever snarky reply he'd concocted. "We just start, you know, spending more time together. Studying in the library, waving in the hall, sitting closer in the classes we share. The school isn't that large. The student body will start whispering amongst themselves quickly enough."

The look on his face was still dubious but Scorpius also appeared intrigued. "And once the rumors start, it really doesn't matter what's true or not," he said slowly, nodding. "All right, let's say I go along with this. What's first?"

"Stop by the Gryffindor table tomorrow morning and to say good morning," Rose suggested with a thoughtful expression. "That ought to get the wheels turning."

Scorpius pursed his lips for a moment, mulling over the idea. From the look on his face, he didn't find it all that appealing. "And what happens if—when Abby wants me back?"

Shrugging, Rose brushed her hair behind her ear. "No muss, no fuss. Either one of us wants out, it's over. No questions asked." Then she reached forward, offering her hands. "Do we have a deal?"

There was a pause and then he took her hand in a firm shake. "Deal."

For the first time since returning to Hogwarts, Rose Weasley was outright grinning as she headed back to her dorm for the evening. Yep, things were definitely looking up.

The next day, it was about half seven when the world went tits up. True to the plan, Scorpius Malfoy came over to where Rose Weasley was about to tuck in and said good-morning. The conversation went something like this:

"'Morning, Rose."

"Hullo, Scorpius."

"So, uh, did you finish the Potions essay yet?"

"Almost. Just an inch left to go but I feel like I'm running out of things to say."

"I know what you mean."

"Maybe we could work on it together?"

"Sure. I was thinking about going to the library before dinner."

"I'll meet you there."

"Okay. See you later then."

"'Bye."

With the ruckus that followed at the table, however, they may as well have been declaring passionate love for each other. Rose was quickly bombarded by a variety of comments and questions.

"Oh my—what was Scorpius Malfoy doing at our table?" That was a fourth year Muggle born whose name momentarily escaped Rose.

Albus, who was seated beside her, looked concerned. "Rose, is there something you want to tell me?"

"Us!" Lily corrected eagerly, eyes bright and sharp—a sure sign she thought a really juicy piece of gossip was about to be exposed.

Vicky Boot was wide-eyed beside them at the Ravenclaw table. "Are you guys dating?"

Hugo mimed vomiting from across the table as Louis looked on disapprovingly.

"He is so hot!" a nearby second year crooned, while a group of first years looked about ready to pass out.

Rose took a slow breath and waved them all off. "What's the big deal?" she asked innocently. "We're just going to study together, not picking out a china pattern."

Roxanne voiced the thought running through everyone's minds: "But you're not even friends… are you?"

"I guess we are," Rose decided with a warm smile.

Only Albus remained obviously skeptical, but he chose not to comment. He knew better than to try and get the real story out of her when she had such a rapt audience. No, he'd bide his time until he put together more pieces to whatever she was scheming figured out.

It was a short walk from the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom to Ancient Runes. On the way, Rose ran into none other than the trio of Miles Bulstrode-Bole, Clinton Montague and Scorpius Malfoy. They, like many pureblood families before them, had bonded long before attending Hogwarts. (Apparently the friendships that were available after the second war were somewhat limited to Draco Malfoy, the sometimes-hero, sometimes-traitor, always-coward.)

Whispering a quick word of good-bye to the Hufflepuff she'd been walking with, Rose headed for the boys. "Hullo," she said cheerfully. She waved at them all but her gaze rested on Scorpius.

"Hi," Clinton said, quickly averting his eyes. Rose had never figured out if he was really shy or if it was part of a ruse to get others to drop their guards. All signs pointed to the former but Slytherins were known for their cunning…

Miles fixed Rose with what he clearly thought was a winning smile but was honestly more on the side of goofy. "My fair lady, hello," he greeted with a grand, sweeping bow. "'Tis quite the honor to see you on this fine day." Like his mother before him, he was somewhat oversized and awkward, though far less than he'd been the year before.

Rolling his eyes, Clinton started to drag him away. "I'll see you blokes later," Scorpius called with a wave. When he turned to face Rose, he was chuckling lightly. "I think you have an admirer."

"Who?" Rose glanced around before she realized what he meant. "Miles?"

Scorpius nodded. "Don't get your hopes up though, he says things like that to all the pretty birds." It was Rose's turn to laugh. "Fancies himself charming."

Waving that thought off, Rose slid her arm through his. "So, I've already been asked by no less than a dozen girls from all the houses what's up between us. And that was just for a short conversation! I thought an entrance to Ancient Ruins would really send the gossips into a frenzy."

Shrugging, Scorpius ran his free hand through his hair. "I'm going to assume that's a good thing."

"It is," Rose confirmed with an authoritative nod. Suddenly, a realization hit her. "Hey! You," she poked his chest to emphasize, "just called me pretty."

Scorpius blanched. "Well, er… it's simple fact. Like the sky is blue. Rose Weasley is pretty. Don't go getting a big head."

Mock-swooning, Rose couldn't stop herself from grinning ear to ear. "Awww! You think I'm pretty."

"Cow."

Now she laughed again. "Oh, Scorpius. You say the sweetest things."

Albus made his move and cornered Rose a few days later. "You're keeping secrets."

"Who? Me?" She was all wide-eyed innocence and surprise.

Unfortunately, her cousin knew her far too well to fall for that. "Rose."

Rolling her eyes, she tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Fine, I am. What of it?"

Albus frowned. "Look, I know you think you know everything about everything—" a claim that made her roll her eyes again—"but you don't know Scorpius."

At her dubious expression, Albus squeezed her arm insistently. "You don't, Rose—not like I do. He really cared for Abby; there's no way he's over her yet. And I know you well enough to know you're pushing some sort of 'more than friends' agenda with him." His expression softened. "I don't want to see you get hurt."

Suppressing a laugh (as if Scorpius Malfoy could hurt her), Rose patted his shoulder comfortingly. "Al, don't worry—guard's up." He did not appear convinced. "Honest." She smiled encouragingly. "I've got everything under control; scout's honor."

There was a long pause while Albus studied her shrewdly. "You were never a scout," he pointed out finally.

Now Rose did laugh as she began dragging him down the hall. "Come on, we're going to be late for Potions."