Hi! It's been almost a week again since an update, I know. School's picked up for me, and my mum's non-too-happy about me still being behind in math; as a result, she took my laptop. She doesn't know that I have our old iPad (with keyboard), so I can still write! It might just take me longer (and try to excuse typos, as I'm not use to these smaller and closely-spaced keys!).

I must also regret to inform you that chapter sizes will return to normal (4k) rather than my few recent large ones.

As mentioned at the end of last chapter, this one picks up at about mid-way through third year (more than a year and a half after the Blackwell event). After publishing last chapter, the lack of reviews and drop in follows made me think that people didn't like where the story was headed. Try to stick around a little longer, please! I apologize if the last update was disappointing. Hopefully I can make it up to you with this one.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 8

It was two weeks before the needed break of Christmas. First and second years chatted amiably among themselves, discussing the upcoming holiday in terms of gifts, trips, and expectations. Third years and up, however, had no such time to idle. End of the semester exams started Monday, and consequently the library was constantly packed with students cramming in their final opportunities to study.

Scorpius hated the commotion exams brought at this time of year. Everywhere he went, whispered tips and quiet quizzing buzzed in his ears; more than once he tripped on one of the many Gryffindor study groups in the common room; even in his dorm, Salux droned to himself a repetition of facts as he read them.

It was driving Scorpius crazy. He was only mildly worried about most his subjects, having kept up with them well during the year, but still wanted to get some amount of studying in before the tests. He was mostly anxious about Arithmacy. It had been his father's best subject, and his mother had done exceedingly well in it- two driving factors that had made him sign up for the elective at the beginning of the year. Yet from day one, he had been hopelessly lost in the class. Practically every theorem, postulate, and equation had gone right over his head. He had consistently done poorly on quizzes and essays. As the day of the exam loomed closer, the Malfoy grew increasingly more panicked about it; what little studying he had managed to fit in had been in a less than ideal, noisy location, and nothing had stuck. Hence his need for somewhere quiet.

So when Scorpius couldn't sleep once again on Sunday night, he swung his legs out of bed. Ignoring the muted snores of Vincent and mumbling dreamtalk of Albus, he quietly slipped out of the dorm and descended the stairwell to the common room.

As he had hoped, it was completely abandoned. A quick glance at the elaborate grandfather clock told him why: it was two o'clock in the morning. Scorpius was mildly surprised that there weren't still some stragglers intent on studying late into the night (the charms exam was tomorrow). He made his way over to an empty desk, glad that he could finally have some quiet time to study.

For the next hour he read in frustrated silence, the only noise to distract him being the crackle of the ever-burning Gryffindor fireplace. The quiet did help- the equations were beginning to stick and he was now able to recite them with ease. The frustration was caused by his lack of understanding the concepts. What good were equations if he didn't even know what numbers to plug in, or what the answer even meant? As the night wore on, his irritation only increased.

At about three-thirty, the blond was startled by a voice behind him. "What are you doing up so late?"

Scorpius turned, expecting some prefect leaving for their shift of the rounds, but his exasperation turned to surprise at the curly-red head. He gestured towards the several books spread on the desk. "Studying," he said curtly.

Rose approached the table, peering at the assembled materials. She had a night robe on despite the warmth of the common room. "Arithmacy?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Interesting. Most of our year is studying for tomorrow's Charms exam."

"I know. But I'm not a fraction as worried about Charms as I am about...this." The blond waved his hands at the Arithmacy books.

"Why study now?"

"Too loud any other time. Or place." Scorpius didn't meet her gaze, wondering if he should elaborate. This was Rose, after all; he'd been to hell with her (quite literally), and of everyone he knew, she was most likely to understand. "And I couldn't sleep. Had a nightmare."

The red-head's curious expression turned sympathetic. "Sorry to hear that."

"It's okay." He regretted having brought it up, the memory of waking up in a cold sweat unpleasant. "Why are you up?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Honestly? My room mate snores like a motorboat. What with the exam tomorrow morning, I decided I might try sleeping on one of the couches tonight to at least attempt getting some shut-eye."

For the first time Scorpius noticed the rolled quilt clutched in her hands. "Oh. Well, don't let me stop you."

Rose gave a nod to acknowledge him and moved off towards the fireplace. As he turned his attention back to the information in front of him, he could hear her shuffling around and hastily putting together a makeshift bed on one of the couches. Reading the explanation for the spell speed postulate still made no sense the fifth time he read it. Scorpius couldn't help heaving a heavy sigh, leaning back in the chair and drawing a hand over his face. Though wide-awake physically, his mind was beginning to melt with the incomprehensible subject at hand.

"Need help?"

Scorpius jumped for the second time that night, scowling that Rose had managed to sneak up on him twice. "I'm fine."

"Look, Malfoy," she sighed, half with annoyance, half in amusement, "I know you've got a delicate male ego and all, but it's clear that you're struggling. I could practically hear your frustration from the couch."

"'Delicate male ego'? Thanks."

"You know I'm joking. Mostly. Don't be stubborn."

"Stubborn? That's kind of rich, coming from a Weasely."

"Do you want help or not?"

Scorpius considered the offer for a moment before giving in. At this point in the night, he didn't care where the help came from. Besides, nobody was around to witness his shame of admitting his need for assistance. "Fine. It's this postulate here. All I know is that it's got something to do with spell speed."

Rose took one look at it before allowing a small smile to herself. "Oh, that's pretty easy once you know it. The book words it a little awkwardly. Just multiply the wand length by the trajectory squared and divide by the mongulative."

"The what?"

"The degree of angle the witch or wizard holds the wand."

"How the bloody hell am I suppose to know that?"

Rose frowned. "By the Gitrovive method."

"Excuse me?"

"You know, the demarative by Vorcaduro's number."

"Who?"

The red-head's brow furrowed further, and she leaned back from her position over the book. "Have you been paying any attention in Arithmacy?"

"Of course! I've been taking notes and everything."

"Malfoy, the first thing Professor Jov taught us was demaratives."

He hesitated for a minute, wracking his brains for the memory of his first class. "Um, was that that thing with the, uh...wand wood density?"

"No, that's the aborem method," she sighed in response, folding her arms across her chest. "The demarative is the known fluctuation in potency of different cores. Like how unicorn hair tends to be more powerful with jinxes than charms, or how dragon heartstring is 0.56% more effective at curses than phoenix feather." Rose looked hesitant at Scorpius's blank expression. "Are you...are you doing okay with arithmacy?"

"I'm f-" He began, then sighed heavily. He laid his forehead on the book. "Screw it. Yeah, I suck at it, to put it mildly."

"Have you talked to Professor Jov about it?"

"Yep. When I still didn't understand everything after her explanations- you know, I don't think she ever speaks anything than less than top speed- she suggested that I might drop the class."

Rose tilted her hear in question. "Why don't you?"

The blond snapped his head up. "No! I can't."

"Why not?"

Talk about nosy, he thought to himself. "I just can't."

Rose pursed her lips, staring at the wall above Scorpius's head and looking thoughtful. After a moment she spoke. "Alright. Meet me by that ancient oak tree at the lakeshore tomorrow at our free period after lunch. Bring your books."

Scorpius blinked owlishly, confused by the unexpected order. "Why?" he demanded stupidly.

"I'm going to help you study for Arithmacy," she announced, as if she had just agreed to feed an alligator by hand. "You're Nick's mate, and I'm not about to let his friend fail a subject if I could have helped him."

"But you don't even like me!" he protested, hastily standing from his chair. He hated the thought of being taught by the Weasley girl, especially if it was only due to their mutual friendship.

"Maybe so. Tell you what- I help you with your Arithmacy, and in return you help me with potions. I'm not terrible at the subject, but not nearly as good as I'd like," she admitted sheepishly.

"Who says I agree to this proposition?"

"Do you?" she prompted.

Scorpius considered the offer. True, there were other people he'd rather spend his free period with. And he still didn't like the idea of being taught by a Weasley. But the idea of students helping each other with class and studying was nothing new, and he could see the benefit that could be gained. Scorpius imagined his father's glowing praise when they received his Outstanding report card, unscarred by a Poor Arithmacy grace. "Okay," he finally agreed. "I guess I can meet you there after lunch."

Rose smiled in response. "Great. You better get some sleep, then. No point staying up all night if you can't understand the material yet, and whether or not you're prepared for the Charms exam tomorrow, you'll do better on sleep. As will I. Goodnight."

As Rose made her way to her makeshift couch-bed, Scorpius retreated from the common room. He slipped back into his dorm without waking his roommates; Vincent was still snoring softly, although Albus had ceased his sleep talking. The blond slipped between his sheets, returning his head to the dent he had left in his pillow earlier.

Despite the drain of mental energy from studying and the exhaustion Scorpius felt, he knew that he wasn't likely to get much rest.

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The afternoon was warm for early winter, the sunshine out for the first time in days. Scorpius sat, as promised, beneath the ancient oak tree by the lakeshore. It was a bit chilly outside, but he supposed it was an added factor in keeping away the bustle of students.

As he had predicted, the Charms exam was a breeze. It was one of his best subjects. And despite his growing apprehension of Arithmacy, he was fairly confident that his other subjects only needed a light skimming. So as he sat beneath the old tree awaiting the Weasley girl, he was content enough to use the brief period of peace to flip through his History of Magic textbook.

She was late. Their free period started five minutes ago, and he knew she had been at lunch for over an hour, having sat only a little further down the table with Nick. The Ravenclaw was brilliant and had offered many times to help his friend with Arithmacy, but they rarely found the time to meet up. It didn't help that they were in different houses. Meal times weren't exactly the most conductive atmosphere for studying, and although Scorpius knew Nick to be a genius, he wasn't so great at explaining things (of course, he didn't tell Nick this).

That didn't mean he wasn't grateful for his friend. Over the last year and a half, Scorpius and the Scot had only grown closer. Their friendship had strengthened greatly after...the mishap. Nick became the only person he had confided in about what had happened that night- and what had happened since then.

Before Scorpius could reminisce about such dark memories, Rose can bounding down the slope, curly hair bouncing behind her. Books were clutched in her arms. "Sorry I'm late!" she panted. "Syla wouldn't shut up about her newly-signed muggle book."

Scorpius barely knew who Syla was, only that she was a Gryffindor in the same year. He closed his history text. "Can we start, then? I'm starting to get restless just thinking about Arithmacy."

Rose was soon settled. They began with Arithmacy first, the red-head slowly dissecting each equation and theorem for him. Scorpius was totally embarrassed when he realized that he had practically understood none of the subject since he had first started taking it. To his credit, however, once Rose began explaining concepts in simpler terms, he caught on quickly. Soon he was able to grasp the basics, leading to a better understanding of the newer equations the class had been working on.

"You're good at explaining stuff," he realized aloud.

She only shrugged in response. "Thanks. If only I was half as good at the work itself..."

"What do you mean? You seem plenty smart to me," he said truthfully.

Rose shook her head. "Apparently not smart enough to be a Ravenclaw," she murmured.

Scorpius wasn't sure he was meant to hear her, but he was surprised by her words nonetheless. "Says who?" he asked, aware of awkwardness of the conversation. He doubted the red-head expected such a personally intrusive question.

But Rose didn't seem to mind. She hugged her knees to her. "Nobody in particular. It's just sort of a general consensus. Everyone expected me to inherit my mother's wit and smarts since I was little. Imagine people's shock to find out I wasn't, well, as clever as they thought."

Scorpius frowned at this. From what he'd seen, heard, and experienced of Rose, he wouldn't have pegged her as an insecure person. Yet here she was, opening up to a practical stranger. "So people think you less smart because you aren't in Ravenclaw?"

"Yep."

"That's stupid!" he exclaimed, the sudden raise of volume causing Rose to flinch. He lowered his voice a few notches. "So the only smart people are Ravenclaws?"

"I didn't say that!" she protested. "I just meant that I- I mean people- don't think me smart enough to be one."

"Wasn't your mum a Gryffindor, though?" the blonde pointed out. "She's called the brightest witch of her age, yet she wasn't a Ravenclaw."

"That's true..."

"And look at me. I've got great grades, and I'm a Gryffindor like you." Scorpius knew he was sounding like he was bragging, though that wasn't his intention. "Look," he sighed, mirroring Rose's knee-hugging posture, "Just because society expects you to be one thing doesn't mean that's what you are. You don't have to conform to their standards."

The red-head looked at him thoughtfully, as if seeing him from a new light. "Sometimes I forget that everyone expected you to be a Slytherin," she said.

"Yeah, well..." Scorpius hadn't meant for the conversation to turn towards him. The last thing he wanted to be doing was a therapy session with a Weasely on a subject he tried not to think about. "I'm not, according to the Sorting Hat. My main point is that certain traits aren't limited to one house. You can have hard-working Gryffindors, cunning Hufflepuffs, witty Slytherins, and brave Ravenclaws. So why should all the smart people belong to only one house? Besides, Ravenclaws can be stuck-up know-it-alls."

Rose smiled at that. "For your sake, I won't tell Nick that."

"Much appreciated."

They lapsed into silence once more, flipping through their respective textbooks. Thanks to his new understanding on the subject, Scorpius was able to successfully complete an example problem with little difficulty.

"Hey Malfoy?" Rose asked after a few quiet minutes of studying.

"Yeah Weasley?"

"Do you remember that...that night in first year?"

There was an audible snap as Scorpius's quill tip broke from increased pressure. He bit his lower lip, trying to get his pulsing heartbeat under control. "Why?"

Rose didn't seem to catch his change in demeanor. "Don't you ever, you know, think about it?"

Far too often. "Sometimes. What's brought this on?"

The red head shrugged, closing her potions books and choosing to look out over the still lake. "Don't know, really. Just reminded of it and I guess I was curious."

Your curiosity nearly gave me a heart attack, Scorpius thought to himself. How on earth does one connect a conversation about house placing with such a nightmare? He kept silent rather than respond.

Rose Weasley was a complete mystery to him. Even after the haunting and trying experience he'd spent with her, he was no closer to understanding how her mind worked. Of course, it probably didn't help that they rarely spoke. Although they had turned more cordial to each other afterwards, and despite sharing a mutual friend, they were almost never around one another. Scorpius wasn't sure if they'd continue to get along if they really knew each other; he didn't know for sure. In all honesty, he had had little interest in Rose Weasley. Yet their recent conversation began to make the blond wonder once more.

Nick had tried many times to merge his two sets of friends, hoping for them to form 'one big happy group'. The problem occurred that neither side tried very hard- Scorpius believed that Potter still held a grudge against him from a year and a half ago, and Macraith didn't seem very welcoming. Naturally, Scorpius didn't want to hang around those he felt didn't want him around.

The blond frowned down at his Arithmacy work. Even after more than two years at Hogwarts, he had failed to make any close friends besides Nick MacQuoid. While it was true that his presence in Gryffindor had come to be more accepted, and the hat's sorting choice had since faded to the background of gossip, he still didn't feel quite at home there. Scorpius largely suspected it was due to his lack of companions in his own house. While Nick was a stupendous mate, he was in Ravenclaw, and they could only meet up outside of class in the more public areas during curfew.

Scorpius glanced at the red-head a few feet away. Maybe he should be trying harder to integrate himself among his fellow third-years. He wouldn't call himself a social-bunny, but neither was he a hermit. There were few students he knew by acquaintance, including his room mates. Salux's fear of him had waned, but he continued to avoid Scorpius; he simply wanted nothing to do with air-headed Vincent; Gavin had his own group of friends and was largely out of the dorms; Albus, of course, was part of the company that could always be found with Rose. His fifth room mate, a boy named John, remained as much as a stranger to the Malfoy as he had in first-year, rarely speaking to anyone more than monosyllabic responses.

The blond scratched his head absently. Over time he had repeatedly wondered what it was that was so unappealing about him to other students. Was he a terrible class partner? Did he seem stupid? Was it bad breath? Or was it simply the fact that he was a Malfoy, part of such an unsavory family? He scowled at the thought. It was no more his fault what his father did in his youth than it was his fault for the hat sorting him into the wrong house.

"What's with the frown?"

Scorpius looked up from his position of bending over his book. "Nothing," he grunted.

Rose tilted her head, her blue eyes studying his pale face. "You look tired."

"Thanks?" Charming.

"I just meant you don't look like you got much sleep last night," she went on. "You didn't stay up late studying? I thought we agreed that you wouldn't get anywhere in Arithmacy on your own."

"I went to bed," he replied curtly.

"Then why didn't you sleep?" Rose pressed curiously.

Scorpius flinched involuntarily, remembering the reoccurring nightmare that kept waking him every hour the night before. "Stop nagging me, Mom!" he snapped. He wished she would stop pursuing the topic.

Rose pursed her lips and finally went quiet, much to the blond's relief. He turned his attention once more to his textbook, trying to focus on the words before his eyes rather than the images flashing in his mind.

He should have known the red-head would not remain silent long. "Do you-"

"Weasley!" he shouted, exasperated with her unwarranted interrogation. "Just drop it, okay?"

Rose looked shocked at his sudden outburst. How did she miss all the clues that she was touching on a sensitive subject? Scorpius sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He suddenly felt exhausted, as if the unexpected frustration had drained what little energy he had left. "Sorry," he mumbled.

Rose had recovered from her shock and gave the faintest of nods. "Maybe we should just study in silence," she suggested frostily.

Fine by me, Scorpius thought to himself. He flipped open the notebook he used to keep track of equations and concepts, doing his best to focus on the scrawled numbers rather than the terrible images of the night's terror.

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"She just doesn't know when to stop!" Scorpius ranted.

It was around six o'clock in the evening of the same day. Nick and he had decided to make a quick run to the library to return some checked-out books before dinner. Currently Scorpius was letting out steam about his frustrations about a certain Weasley girl, recounting the events from earlier.

"Rose means well," Nick replied calmly.

The blond shook his head vigorously. "More like she's just nosey. Couldn't mind her own damn business. Honestly, how do you put up with her on a daily basis?"

The Ravenclaw scrunched his nose, a habit of his whenever he disagreed with a topic of conversation. "Maybe she was just worried about you not getting enough sleep."

"Worried? About me?!"

Nick's hesitation proved to Scorpius that his doubt was real. "Look, mate, I don't know why she was pushing you so hard. Sometimes, yeah, her curiosity can get out of hand. But in her defense, she doesn't know you very well at all and probably didn't catch the vague warning signs. Honestly, I'm more surprise about her opening up about her insecurity."

Scorpius frowned in thought as they entered the library. "It felt awkward," he admitted. "I got the feeling she hadn't really meant to talk about it in the first place, but then she couldn't help but spill her guts."

"Sounds like Rose," his friend affirmed. "She tends to bottle up all her emotions and feelings, then let them spew out on the nearest person she feels comfortable around."

The two entered the library, so Scorpius dropped his voice to a whisper. "So what, she suddenly feels all friendly with me?"

"More likely she realized that if anyone would understand, it'd be you. Rose might not be necessarily 'comfortable' with you, per se, but rather that she believed you wouldn't judge her for her...predicament."

Scorpius only grunted in reply. He didn't want to talk over that subject a second time that day.

His friend, recognizing the signal, smartly changed course in the topic. "So how did Arithmacy study go?" Nick asked, picking his way through the crowded library aisles to the back desk.

"She's good at teaching," Scorpius admitted. "I'll give her that. And she wasn't half-bad to talk to until she veered toward my sleep schedule."

Setting the books down on the librarian's table, they turned back the way they had come. Nick sent him a sympathetic glance. "How's that going?" he asked softly. "Is it improving at all?"

The blond shrugged. "A lot better than it was two years ago. I only get the nightmares every few nights, and the bad sessions are becoming less frequent- once every few weeks now. Last night was the first in awhile."

As they left the library behind for the more sparsely-populated corridor, Nick drew closer to his friend, keeping his voice to a low murmur. "And you still haven't told your parents?"

"No. I don't think it's worth bothering them over. Besides, they might ask the origin of such nightmares, and I don't exactly like the idea of delving into that."

"And what about the other thing?"

Scorpius jerked away slightly from his friend. "No, Nick," he sighed, "I told you, I'm...waiting for the right time."

"What time's that?" the Ravenclaw argued, arms akimbo. "Tomorrow? Next year? After we graduate? Scorpius, the longer you wait, the worse it'll be! Just rip off the band-aid and get it over with."

His friend sighed in response, running his fingers through his pale hair in frustration. "I don't really want to talk about it."

"You never do, and never will- that's the problem!"

"I'll tell my parents," Scorpius promised. "Soon. Just not today, okay? Not with finals and on a lack of sleep. Maybe I'll tell them during the holidays."

The Malfoy could tell Nick wasn't satisfied with the conclusion, but respected it as the end of the topic. "Alright," he grumbled. "Just try not to wait too long."

Wonder what Malfoy could be hiding?

Finally got a glimpse and some idea of what's gone on since the events in chapter 7! I will, of course, elaborate as time goes on.

REVIEWING always makes my day (and motivtaes me to update sooner)!