Chapter 3 - The Wingman

A few weeks passed in a blur of Quidditch practices and classes. Rose was quite enjoying her busy schedule but was happy that today she was escaped Arithmancy without a new assignment. As she neared the greenhouse for Herbology she was surprised to see Adrian Lacroix, Gryffindor beater, flag her down.

"Oi Weasley," He beckoned catch Scorpius's attention, as well as, Rose's.

"Yes," Rose questioned not use to talk to Lacroix.

"Did you see this?" He asked handing her the latest addition of Quidditch Quarterly. There was a spread of a very good looking beater on one side and on the other side an article was titled Beater of the Century, Zackary "Bludger-Hands" York, Reveals the Secret to his Swing. Eagerly taking the article her eyes devoured the text.

"Lacroix, this is golden," Rose exclaimed.

"Did you read the bit about how he angles his bat yet?" Lacroix inquired.

"No where is that?" Lacroix pointed lower down on the page as Rose took up reading again. She only got a few more sentences in before exclaiming, "Shite, did you know he hits the Bludgers roughly 750 times in a game? I don't think my average is half that."

"He's top notch," Lacroix agreed.

"And fit as hell," Rose added glancing at the photograph, "He must get serious tail."

"So if I was built like him?" Lacroix question in interest.

"Hell, I'd have a go if your batting average could measure up," Rose theorized. Scorpius felt his mouth go dry. He hadn't meant to be listening but he was only a meter behind them and they were going to the same class. He had never heard Rose talk about anything like this before. The combination of her colourful language and her choice in topic were rather dangerous to his self-resolve.

Lacroix laughed, "Your sure it has nothing to do with his looks?"

"Your telling me, if you met a bird who had a hitting average of over 750, you wouldn't be seriously turned on?" Rose questioned.

"Point taken."

"I've never thought about my elbow placement before," Rose said as she continued reading. Scorpius was still reeling from the fact that she had been talking about having a go. He couldn't understand how she got on the topic of elbows.

"He does a great job of explaining how to predict the trajectory of a Bludger too," Lacroix added, who was doing a much better job at keeping up.

A burst of humidity hit Rose and Lacroix as they entered the greenhouse. The two stopped at the doorway.

"Thank you for letting me have a look at the article," Rose said passing the magazine back to Lacroix. "I'm going to have to owl for a copy."

"No problem," Lacroix assured her, "The article was so brilliant I had to share it; even if you are the enemy. Gryffindor hasn't found a new beater yet and I'm literally going mad. No one seems to understand the beauty of this masterpiece."

Lacroix nearly threw his hands up in exasperation.

"Well it's their lose," Rose reassured him before cheekily adding, "I hope you do find someone soon or Vlad and I will leave your team black and blue in the next match."

"Oi, Charles may have left but you still have me to contend with," Lacroix rebuked.

They parted ways, Lacroix joining the Gryffindors in the back and Rose greeting Will in the front. Will, like Scorpius, was surveying Rose and Lacroix's interactions with interest since they had entered the greenhouse. Rose pulled out some parchment and a quill for taking notes in class ignoring the look on Will's face.

"What did he want," Will asked icily wrapping an arm around Rose waist.

"Oh the usual," Rose informed him good naturedly looping her arm around his back to calm him, "Just talking a bit of Quidditch,"

"Well he better keep his broom in the cupboard," Will told Rose.

"It's not like that," Rose reassured him with a role of her eyes.

"Maybe not for you, but I know how blokes think. You're a bit of a heartbreaker, love," Will reprimand her.

"I'll do my best to be repulsive," Rose declared to her teammate.

From across the greenhouse Scorpius was trying, in vain, to hide his reaction as he watch Rose and Will. He was to far off to hear what they were saying but clearly something was going on with the two. They were completely tangled in each other, deep in an animate discussion. He feared that at any moment they would start snogging but instead Will poked her on the nose pointedly and Rose retaliated by hitting him in the shoulder. Rose moved way from Will but he quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her back as he said something. The pair collapsed into hysterics at whatever Will said.

This was probably the worst part of not chasing after Rose, he was not support to show how much it hurt to watch her being friendly with other blokes, and she was never without a male companion. He didn't even think she had any female mates. Worst of all he couldn't even hate her for being familiar with lads because it was a well-known fact that she did not fool around. He guessed that if she was the least bit promiscuous it might have been easier for him to find her undesirable. Scorpius had always found monogamy rather appealing.

The steady tenor of Professor Longbottom commanding the class to be silent cause Will and Rose to straighten up and take their seats. Scorpius had never been happier to see his head of house.

Later that evening Rose and Lancelot were enjoying a rousing game of Wizards Chess in the common room.

Lancelot laughed in glee as one of his pawns smashed Rose's knight.

"Bugger," She cursed moving her last remaining castle to safety, "I don't know why you bother playing me. You always win."

"Well there was that one time in third year," Lancelot recalled.

"Oh that doesn't count. Will was coaching me," Rose reminded him.

The quick, heavy, footfall that usually announced Vlad could be heard but before either player had the chance to look up, Vlad came crashing over the back of the couch and onto their game.

"Mates," He greeted from the pair's laps, "I'm in love!"

He was covered in a layer of sweat and still wore his Quidditch robes, so he had clearly just come from the pitch.

With an affronted look at Vlad, Lancelot exclaimed, "That's disgusting."

Unperturbed by Lancelot's appalled face, Vlad continued, "She's a beaut."

"Well I hope it is not contagious," Lancelot worried aloud as he hurried to collect his chess set and left in search of a new chess partner.

Rose, who had experienced six or seven of Vlad's declarations of love, gave Vlad a look of sympathy.

"Well out with it. Who is it?" Rose encouraged him.

"Poppy Fronsac," He breathed. Rose could not place the girl. Though this was unsurprising as she wasn't very good at keeping up conversations that didn't have the word Bludger in it every few sentences.

"And what's she like," Rose asked.

"I haven't a clue. She's in Ravenclaw."

Had this been any other person Rose would have marched him to the hospital wing for fear that someone had slipped a strong dowse of love potion into his breakfast. Sadly, however, this was not her first time she has seen him enamored.

"How did you meet?"

"Ah Rose. I wish you were there. I was having a bit of a fly around the grounds, on account of the warm weather, when this foxy lass comes out of nowhere."

"Do tell more," Rose supplied in an attempt to be supportive but she was losing interest already.

"Well then she did a Double Sloth Grip Role without dropping the Quaffle. So I don't remember much else."

"Ohh," Rose gasped fanning herself with her robes in an effort to calm herself, "That is hot."

"I know," Vlad agreed. The two beaters sat in silence at the gravity of such a well-preformed move.

Three minutes later Quincy found Vlad draped over the back of the couch upside down where he had fallen and Rose next to him, both flabbergasted.

"What happened?" Quincy asked.

"Can't tell you," Rose said, "You'd wet yourself with excitement."

"I'm in love," Vlad proclaimed.

"Bugger," Quincy groaned, "Not a-bloody-gain."

"She's ace," Rose informed Quincy.

"Dumbledore's Beard! You too," Quincy exclaimed. Rose usually was more rational when dealing with Vlad in this state.

"Just make sure he takes a Vow of Quidditchhood before you two do anything stupid," Quincy advised.

"Vlad," Rose commanded.

He raised his right arm and placed it on his heart before continuing, "I solemn swear to uphold the Hufflepuff Vow of Quidditchhood. Be it during exam time or lovers quarrel, I pledge life and limb to the pursuit of Quidditch excellence. I will make it to practice on time and play brilliantly during games or so help me Merlin."

"Better Captain?" Rose questioned.

"I suppose," Quincy begrudged, "Rose, do keep an eye on him won't you?"

With that, the captain left to join Lancelot on the far side of the room, where his game of chess had attracted quite a crowd. The two beaters lapsed into silence for a bit before Vlad turned to Rose.

In a more sensible tone than he had used all afternoon he asked, "I know I just met her, and am being a bit of a nutter but she seems really nice. I'd like to get to know her better and I'm just rubbish with the ladies. Will you be my wingman?"

"For you, or course," Rose said ruffling his hair.

"Thank you."

"You do know I am a women though," Rose reminded Vlad.

"Yeah, but you don't count."

"Vlad, I am not sure whether I should be offended or not."

"I'd probably be offended, if I were you," Vlad told Rose wolfishly.

Three days had passes since Vlad's first sighting of the elusive Poppy Fronsac and he was beginning to get on the Hufflepuff team's nerves. Rose watch Vlad over her breakfast from across the table. Each time someone in blue and bronze entered the Great Hall he'd sit up a little taller in hopes that it would be Poppy Fransac. When it turned out not to be her, his whole body would crumble and he would go back to stirring his breakfast without actually eating it. During lunch, yesterday, he had actually spotted her and for the rest of the meal his eyes had followed her in fascination as he spooned mushroom soup into his lap.

The only conversation Rose had managed to get out of Vlad this morning was Vlad asking, "Did you know she likes raisins?"

To which Rose replied with a hint of annoyance, "Yes, this is the fifteenth time you told me. Does she have a stance on fish and chips too?"

"I don't know."

In this way no conversations would last very long as Vlad knew basically nothing about Poppy Fronsac. Either Vlad's seduction techniques were subtler than Rose could fathom or his entire game plan revolved around eyeing Fronsac longingly for across the hall. Rose was beginning to realize that she was going to have to be a hell of a wingman if she was hoping to have something besides a puddle of flesh as her fellow Beater. At least Fransac hadn't caught him staring yet, Rose noted.

Still, as intolerable as Vlad was being, Rose was just the tiniest bit jealous. Rose never knew what that felt like to be so completely enamored. Sure she'd had her fair share of schoolgirl crushes, the most notable being in 2nd year for the debonair 5th year Benjamin Branstone, but they had been just that, crushes. Rose had squashed them quick never letting them get beyond a little flutter of attraction. Vlad, however, experienced desire the way he experienced everything else, with a fervent intensity.

Rose was happy with her lot in life, actually, more than happy. She had a fabulous group of mates, her studies were going excellent, and for the most part, aside from the occasional first year, people seemed to forget that she was the daughter of two war heroes. However, Last night she had lain in her four-poster wondering what it would be like to have her heart race as rapidly as the beating of a Snitch's wings and know that she would do anything for one special person. She suspected it would be rather wonderful and she wished it would happen to her.

But it hadn't.

Nonetheless it had happened to Vlad and Rose wasn't about to be a stick in the mud. Vlad was one of her best mates after all and his feelings were rather important to her. So if she couldn't be in love she was just going to have to be the most brilliant wingman in existence. This was a good thing as for Vlad, as he was having trouble forming full sentences.

Rose looked over at him sympathetically as his face collapsed from yet another failed sighting of Poppy Fronsac.

"Listen I am just going to go have a chat with Hugo," Rose explained getting up from her seat. Vlad nodded his eyes not straying from the door. Rose supposed it was better that he was too far-gone to notice her leaving.

Making her way over to the Gryffindor table she spotted Hugo in the center of a throng of 5th years. Rose's brother, Hugo, to put it lightly was a huge gossip. So she usually kept her privet life pretty quite around him.

"How is my favorite little brother," Rose asked squeezing in-between Hugo and her cousin Lily on the bench.

"Rose, I'm your only brother," Hugo reminded her.

"But your still my favorite," Rose said pinching his cheek, "Listen I had a question. What did you know about Poppy Fronsac?"

Hugo eyes lit up at the idea of possible gossip.

"The fairly attractive blond Ravenclaw?" Lily asked.

"That's the one."

"What do you want to know? And more importantly why?" Hugo questioned eagerly.

"Well everything. I heard she can do a Double Sloth Grip Role but she is not on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team," Rose explained, editing out Vlad's obvious interest in the topic.

"She a real Ravenclaw," Hugo told her, "Apparently she loves Quidditch but she doesn't want it to interfering with her education. She's a 6th year and there is a good chance she may make head girl next year. My bet is on Frank Capeskin though. Last year she was dating Eli Midgen but they broke up over the summer. I think she was a bit torn up about the whole thing too, cause she hasn't dated anyone since, and apparently she only made an Exceeds Expectations on her last DADA exam."

"Does she have any hobbies or anything?"

"Well she spends a lot of time in the library," Huge surmised.

"Oi Weasley what brings you to Gryffindor," came a voice from the right of the two siblings. They turned to see Adrian Lacroix halfway down the table sitting with the three Gryffindor chasers. He excused himself from his companions and trotted up to Rose and Hugo.

"I am a Gryffindor," Hugo reminded Lacroix in a confused tone.

"Oh sorry Hugo. I guess I should have said Rose," Lacroix amended.

"I'm visiting my brother," Rose answered the beater's earlier question.

"Well, while you're here, I'd like to invite you to a Quidditch scrimmage. The team has been talking about it and we think it is just crazy that we only get to play three or four games a season with all the practicing that we do. So this weekend were inviting whoever interested to have a scrimmage. We'd like to get all the houses involved," Lacroix explained.

"Sounds like fun I'll see if any of the lads are free," Rose agreed happily. She got up to head back to Hufflepuff but then stopped when she thought of something.

"Listen Lacroix, Do you know Poppy Fronsac?" Rose inquired.

"Sure thing, She is a good mate of my sister."

"Well I hear she has some pretty solid moves and I've been hoping to see them in action. Would you mind inviting her?"

"For you I'd gladly make sure she comes to the scrimmage," Lacroix assured, "In fact I'll ask her right now."

"You're the best," Rose grinned.

She watched Lacroix make his way over to Ravenclaw as she bid her brother and cousin goodbye. As she walked back to Hufflepuff table Lacroix gave her a thumbs up. Rose felt immensely satisfied with her well-lain plot and ideally wondered if she was better suited for Slytherin house.