Chapter Five
Rose exhaled a breath, her muscles rippling under the surface of her skin as the full moon rose higher in the velvet night sky. Amber gold covered most of her eyes, flecks of cerulean shining through. Her teeth felt much too large for her mouth, her eyes overly sensitive to the light of the torches that lit the corridors. Her nostrils flared, constantly assaulted by the artificial scents many of the students chose to wear. She was getting a head ache, one that was causing the school halls to spin at a dizzily space. Closing her eyes, Rose rested a shoulder against a wall nearest her, a silent whimper escaping her lips from the assault she couldn't fight.
"There you are Little Pup," her Uncle's rough voice drifted to her sensitive ears, a soothing baritone against the pounding in her head.
"I was just on my way to meet you Uncle Bill," Rose spoke, her voice a soft whimper. She forced her eyes open, pushing away from the wall she was leaning against to stand to her full height. She wasn't as tall as her Uncle, but she was up taller than most Weasley women.
"I know Little Pup. But you were late. I thought I'd find you in your common room but Hugo said you weren't there," Bill's voice held a note of suspicion, the wheels in his head turning quickly.
"I just, I don't seem to be completely myself today Uncle Bill," Rose forced the words past her lips, struggling to remain upright as she spoke. Bill's brilliant blue eyes widened as his niece swayed on her feet before falling against his chest. He breathed a sigh, watching as she struggled to regain her footing.
"What's wrong Rose?" his urgent tone forced Rose's eyes to widen fractionally as she attempted to think past the haze that clouded her mind.
"My senses seem sharper. Every scent seems stronger than it had the previous month. My body feels as if the usual fire is burning ten times hotter and no matter what I attempt, nothing seems to be able to cool it. I'm energized and tired at the same time. It's as if my body is at war and I don't know how to stop it," Rose spoke quickly, her voice low as students began to pass them in the halls, leaving dinner.
"I thought you would still have at least another month before the changes took effect," Bill murmured, during his niece to his side and quickly walking her towards the Headmistress's office.
"What changes Uncle Bill?" Rose questioned, swaying as she walked, even with his strong hand guiding her.
"That is actually what my visit was about today. I wanted to prepare you for what would be your first Heat. Many lycans go through it when they reach age of maturity. The first Heat is always the worst. It will last a week. Your body will feel as if it is on fire constantly. You will crave someone's touch, someone who isn't family. It isn't pleasant Rose, and it will hurt. The Headmistress is going to need to put you in a separate room," Bill stated, pausing as he reached the door to the Headmistress's office and offered the password.
The meeting with the Headmistress wasn't one Rose truly remembered, spending most of it in a daze before she was being led through different corridors to a room only the Headmistress herself seemed to know about. Rose inhaled a deep breath, not really looking around and just collapsed on the mattress that had been offered. She had thought sleep would fight her, that it would evade her that night as it did most nights. However some deity seemed to take mercy on Rose, allowing sleep to consume her as quickly as she touched the bed. Rose's mind was blissfully blank for a few hours, a black void surrounding her as she slept. Until she heard it. It was faint in the castle, further down the corridor and possibly further than that. Rose was certain if it hadn't been the night of the full moon, if her senses hadn't been this sharp, she wouldn't have heard it. It was the call many students had been warned against since they forced started Hogswart. It was something every teacher warned them against, knowing it had unforeseen consequences, even when the only student with the curse was half lycan.
"AWHOO!" it was a howl, a call of her kind. Rose bolted upright, the sheets of the bed pooling in her lap as she cocked her head, listening intently for the call again.
"AWHOO!" she knew she hadn't imagined it. Inhaling a breathing, Rose closed her eyes, trying to force the wolf back to her cage. The call however was strong, something she had never felt before. It was as if she was being summoned, called to someone she had only met in her dreams. Rose couldn't stop herself as she kicked the sheets from her body and forcing her body from the bed. The she wolf in her was on the prowl, and she wouldn't stop until she found her mate who was calling for her. Rose attempted to fight the wolf's influence, attempted to stay in the room she had been put into, yet it seemed as if the she wolf had possessed her body, eager to explore the castle until she found the one who had called to her.
"AWHOO!" The howl seemed to be louder this time, closer than she had anticipated. Chewing her bottom lip between her teeth, Rose followed the sound, knowing she wouldn't be able to fight her instincts for long, especially on the night of the full moon.
Her footsteps were silent as she padded down the dark corridors, her sight adjusted to the darkness that surrounded her. She stopped at an intersection, one that led to the Gryffindor tower and the great hall. She turned towards the tower, listening intently for another sound, another call.
"AWHOO!" it came only moments later. It was as if Rose was forced to watch through another's eyes as her body moved with liquid grace towards the tower, the wolf's amber gold taking over Rose's cerulean blue eyes. The she wolf was on the hunt, and she would not be deterred tonight. Inhaling a deep breath, Rose discovered quickly that was a mistake. Spice, earth, and something Rose couldn't place assaulted her nostrils, a scent she was all too familiar with. It was the scent of her closest friend, on the person she cared more about than anyone else.
"AWHOO!" and he was the one calling to her. Rose growled slightly, frustrated that he would be idiotic enough to play with fire.
"What the fuck are you doing?" her voice was a rough growl, her temper flaring as she reigned in the she wolf briefly. Scorpius jolted at the sound, turning to see who had come.
"So it is true?" Scorpius breathed, taking in the sight that greeted him. His eyes appraised Rose's appearance, slowly moving over her body.
"What the fuck do you mean?" Scorpius snorted at the words escaping Rose's lips, turning to face her completely before leaning his weight against the wall just before the portrait hole entrance.
"You've never had such a vulgar mouth before Rose, something wrong?" She didn't like where this was going, didn't feel comfortable standing in a dark corridor with Scorpius alone.
She trusted him, there was no denying that. He had been her friend for seven years, had saved her from falling off a broom in their first year, which is what cemented their friendship. However she didn't trust herself, not around him with no one to save him if the she wolf got out of hand. She was rubbing just beneath the surface, fighting for control once more. And Rose wasn't entirely sure she would be able to keep the beast away for much longer.
"The professors warned all students when they first started term never to make that call. Werewolves answer their own. It's their Pack mentality. It is how they tell friend from foe. If there was a werewolf in the castle Scorpius, you could have very well led him to you," Rose snapped, not necessarily angry with him. Scorpius narrowed his mercurial silver eyes towards Rose, shrugging away from the wall he had been leaning against until he was only a few inches away from her, their chests practically grazing each other with each exhale of breath.
"I was curious if their warnings were true. And if I was right," Scorpius spoke quietly, his voice a murmur as his intense eyes never left Rose's face. She swallowed, fear a heavy ball in the pit of her stomach.
"Right about what Scorpius?" Rose forced herself to ask the dreaded question. Even the She wolf was afraid of the answer he would give them.
"Werewolves answer their own, Rose. No other student in this bloody castle heard my call but you. You were the only one who answered it. Now, I've had this suspicion for a while, a few years. I never pushed you because Albus kept telling me you would inform me of this secret when you were ready. But I can't stay in the dark any more Rose. I can't… I'm tired of you constantly pushing me away from you. I needed to know if this secret was what I thought it was, and tonight just confirmed it," Scorpius spoke quietly, afraid if he raised his voice from the whisper it was, she would run from him.
"You're an idiot Scorpius. You have no idea what you've done," Rose was practically growling the words, breathing harshly as the she wolf fought with renewed energy for control once more. Her mate was standing before her and the human wouldn't stop resisting the pull. She was growing frustrated with her human's blindness.
"What? I called to you because I knew it was the only way to get the truth," Scorpius spoke, his voice becoming heated. A husky chuckle met his ears rather than Rose's cold voice.
"No, Mate. You called to us. You called to us as our mate," her voice was rougher, as if she had just woken from sleep. Scorpius furrowed his brows, sifting through the information in his head on werewolves.
"You're the wolf," He stated, forcing himself to remain calm. He knew under the surface was Rose. He knew she would never hurt him, she would never allow the wolf to hurt him.
"You truly are brilliant, aren't you Mate?" The wolf purred, stepping closer to Scorpius who in turn took a step back. A predatory smile stretched across Rose's lips, and even if he was mildly afraid, he had never seen something so exotic in his life.
"Mate?" Scorpius questioned as he took another step back, storm colored eyes never leaving the wolf's amber irises. She chuckled lightly, following his movement, closing the distance between them.
"Yes, our Mate, ours, mine," she growled, almost possessively as she took another step closer to the Malfoy heir, forcing him to take another step back at the gleam that lit her eyes.
"What do you mean exactly by that?" He watched as she inhaled a breath, obviously scenting him. She grinned another predatory grin, forcing him back once more until he finally hit the wall he had been leaning against.
"Surely you've felt the pull?" she spoke, stopping just inches away from him, amber eyes trained on his silver ones.
"Of course I've felt the pull. This constant need to always be around you, and for some reason I could never explain it. I thought it was just me, an obsession I couldn't quite break no matter how hard I tried," Scorpius confessed, watching as a pleased look came over Rose's face.
"The human tries to fight it, has been fighting it since she first saw you shopping for your school supplies in Diagon Alley. She didn't understand the need to be near you when you were both so young, but the Alpha knew. He wasn't exactly pleased with the knowledge, but no one picks their Mate," Rose explained, leaning closer and inhaling his scent once again.
"Is that why we became friends?" Scorpius truly needed to know if that was what motivated her friendship, needed to know if it was this basic instinct to remain close to him over the years. The she wolf snorted, shaking her head as she watched him for a moment, clearly thinking over her words.
"No, the human was genuinely interested in becoming your friend. She wished to prove old blood feuds could end. But it's the reason you were the only one beside her two male cousins and brother who could be close to her during the full moon. I needed you near us, no matter how hard she fought it," she explained, leaning forward on her tip toes and grazing her lips against Scorpius's. He inhaled a breath, his body tensing at the butterfly light touch.
"You are ours Mate. I'll claim you soon whether the human likes it or not. I've waited seven years to be near you, and minimum touches are no longer enough," the she wolf growled before pressing her lips more firmly against his. Scorpius didn't hesitate in responding, eager for her touch as she was eager for his. Her kiss was possessive, demanding. It was unlike anything Scorpius had experienced before. However he refused to be dominated. He kissed back just as fiercely, one hand wrapping in her silky auburn curls and the other sliding to grasp her hip tightly. Swiftly he switched their positions, pressing her against the stone wall before sliding both hands to her thighs, grasping them and helping her wrap her legs around his waist.
He pulled away for breath, however he couldn't stand not touching her, not tasting her. His lips quickly fastened themselves to the long column of her throat, marking it.
"Stop, Scorpius, stop," this wasn't the voice of the she wolf who had initiated the kiss between them. This was the distraught voice of Rose who clearly regretted their kiss. Exhaling a breath, Scorpius eased her to her feet, ensuring she could stand on her own before stepping away from her. He had expected a slap, a hex, not for her eyes to look so haunted before she left him alone in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady. Breathing a sigh, Scorpius knew he was in for the fight of his life if he wanted to convince Rose it wasn't just her wolf who wanted him.
A/N: Well, that was fun to write. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Feel free to let me know what you thought.