Thank you sooo much to those that have favorited and followed my story! It's good to know that people are reading it(: Thanks again to Jofrench22 and aviditas for their reviews! I've been sick all week so I haven't been able to write much, but thankfully I wrote this chapter last weekend so I could publish on time. By the way, I'm going to be updating every Thursday and Sunday unless something comes up and gets in the way of that! The end of my last semester in undergrad is quickly approaching and I have a feeling things are going to start getting a little hectic. I'll try to let you know in advance if I won't be able to post at the usual time, but I'm going to do my best to make sure this doesn't happen.

A Diffident Duelist

January 28, 1944

"The last announcement tonight is regarding the Hogwarts Annual Sweethearts Ball, which is quickly approaching," Headmaster Dippet began. "As prefects, some of you will be required to serve as chaperones."

The prefects looked around at each other nervously; it was the biggest social event at Hogwarts of the year and none of the prefects wanted to get stuck with chaperone duty. Rose looked over at Tom, who was sitting on the other side of the room with the other Slytherin prefects. She hoped more than anything that neither of them would have to supervise. It had been over a month since the holidays, and little progress had been made between them besides friendship. Even through their numerous correspondences over the holidays, and all the time they had spent together since, he remained indecipherable. Perhaps, she hoped, the ball would change everything between them and she would know how he felt once and for all. She still couldn't quite shake the nagging thought that this wish was too good to be true.

"We've randomly drawn the names of the four prefects…They are Mary-Ann Scout, Josephine Duprie, Vincent Bryan, and Paul Liths."

Rosemary breathed a sigh of relief as the chosen prefects looked sullenly at the Headmaster. Josephine and Vincent exchanged knowing looks; since they were Head Boy and Head Girl, their selection hadn't been random at all. Rose took another glance toward Tom, hoping his expression might somehow give away his opinion or intentions of attending the dance. Unfortunately, his face was as frustratingly blank and unreadable as usual.

After the meeting, she waited for him in the corridor. They had plans to study together, which had become their weekend ritual since Faye and Adam had begun officially dating and were rarely seen with their lips apart. It had become quite annoying to be around either of them, even when they weren't snogging, as they were constantly gushing about the other. Faye had also begun to employ a baby voice when talking to him, which pushed Rose to the brink of insanity. She found it odd that Adam didn't seem to mind her sentiments; she had never seen him act this way with anyone before in all the years she had known him through Markus. It was all rather nauseating; she couldn't imagine acting this way with anyone, not even Tom. Often, Rose wondered how it would possibly last. Wouldn't they grow sick of each other?

And so, to escape their lovesick friends, Tom and Rose started to spend nearly all of their free time together, most frequently in their favorite study room of the library. Faye was so obsessed with her new relationship that she hadn't even teased Rosemary about her blossoming friendship with Riddle, which came as a bit of a relief since they were spending much more time in each other's company. She would sit on the long couch by the fireplace, stretching out her legs over the seats while Tom sat on the other end, near her feet. Sometimes, she would straighten her legs even more so that her stocking-covered toes would just barely brush the side of his leg. Of course, she always played this off as absentmindedness, as though she didn't realize she had done it. When he didn't shift and move away, she always got a happy fluttery feeling that told her he didn't mind being close to her.

However, the ultimate question still hung in her mind like an ever-present fog: how did he see her? As a mere friend, or more?

Surely, though, she had become his closest friend just as he had become hers. She knew that he spent more time with her than any of his other friends or acquaintances. The other girls had even begun to take note; whenever they walked the halls together, she could feel their jealous glares shooting into her back. This group now included Olive Hornby, Rebecca Orion's best friend, as Adam Lestrange was now off the market. It was an admittedly satisfying feeling for Rose, knowing that she was the closest to Tom and that so many were envious of her position. She realized that it was similar when she was with Avery, though perhaps she didn't care enough for him to actually enjoy the satisfaction. But Tom had an air of complete unattainability; he really was quite a catch and he seemed so disinterested in the other Hogwarts girls' interest. It made being around him feel even more prestigious.

After the prefect meeting that afternoon, Rosemary was more even nervous to be around him than usual. Would he ask her to the ball and confirm his feelings for her, or would they continue this agonizing game?

They sat on the couch as the fireplace warmed them. She discreetly let her skirt move up her legs slightly like she always did around him, hoping that he would take notice. Rose thought that maybe one day, with enough innocent teasing, he would finally break down and make an advance, pushing her back against the arm of the couch and tracing his fingers up her inner thigh.

She tried to concentrate on her classwork, but her eyes felt magnetized toward him and she looked up at his face every minute or two. Surely, she had looked at him in the past few months more than she had looked at any other person in her entire life. Watching him read was her favorite, because his lips would part just slightly as his eyes were locked on the page in concentration. It made her want to take the book from his hands, throw it on the floor, climb on top of his lap, and kiss him hard. Distracting him just seemed like it would be so much fun.

Finally, after about twenty minutes, Rose put down her book and said, "I'm not sure I feel like doing schoolwork right now."

He calmly set down his book as well and turned his head to look at her. "Alright," he said. "What would you like to do instead?"

Well, we could try snogging… she thought silently, but knew that she would never have the courage to be that direct. "I'm not sure. I just feel rather…distracted."

By you, she added mentally.

"I see." He smirked slightly and she couldn't tell if he had picked up on her hint or not. "Well it's two o'clock now. The dueling club will meet in a couple of hours…It might be interesting to throw a little friendly fire back and forth beforehand. Come to think of it, I don't believe I've ever seen you duel."

She felt a bit panicky for a moment. This was not at all what she had in mind. There was a reason she had made a point to avoid the dueling club meetings at all cost: she was awful at it. That and Defense Against the Dark Arts were her biggest weaknesses while they were Tom's greatest strengths. He was the youngest student in the history of Hogwarts to serve as Captain of the Dueling Club, a title he had attained at the beginning of their third year. She had seen him duel before and it was both impressive and extremely intimidating. The last thing she wanted was to show him her lack of talent; she was much too arrogant to do so. Also, what if it made him respect her less?

"I really should just head back to the common room…" she mumbled.

"You'd like to spend the evening with Lestrange and Donohue instead?" He gave her an amused look and said in a playful voice, "Oh come now…you aren't afraid you'll lose are you? You might even be able to teach me a thing or two."

She didn't know what to do; she couldn't simply back out of his challenge now. It wasn't as though she had an excuse or anywhere else to be. "Alright," she said hesitantly. Perhaps while they walked downstairs, she could figure a way out of it. If she couldn't, it was better that they dueled before the meeting so at least no one else would have to witness her defeat.

They reached the Great Hall; Tom waved his wand and began rearranging the room to prepare for their informal duel and the subsequent meeting. She frantically searched for an excuse to get out of dueling him. While he was turned away, she slipped her wand up the sleeve of her robe and said, "Oh no! I must have left my wand in my dormitory upstairs…"

He finished rearranging the tables and turned back around to give her an amused look. "Accio wand," he said, pointing his wand directly at her sleeve. It flew into his hand and he smirked at her. "Nice try, Miss Horton."

She turned bright red; clearly she was running out of options.

"Why do I keep getting the impression that you aren't very enthusiastic about this duel?" he asked her, walking toward her and giving her wand back. His voice was still teasing, and she would have enjoyed it a lot more if she wasn't panicking. "It's not like you to back down from a challenge."

Her pride was getting the best of her again when she answered, "It's fine, I was just joking around. I'm ready."

"Okay," he gave her a skeptical look for a moment and then led her to the long table. He stepped on top of it and offered his hand to help her up as she followed after him. Rose took his hand, feeling his pleasantly cool skin beneath her fingers.

"The first to disarm will win," he said.

At least her humiliation would be short-lived. There was no way she could come close to matching his dueling capabilities. She reached the end of the platform and turned to face him.

His wand was raised. "Ready?" he asked her. "Three…two…Horton, what are you doing?"

She realized that hadn't even raised her wand; instead, she stood there like a mute, unable to come up with a response of any kind.

He lowered his wand and walked over to her. "You know, I'm getting that feeling again that you don't want to do this…"

Rose realized that her hands were shaking slightly. As she looked down at them, he also took notice. "What's wrong?" he asked; the teasing tone left his voice completely and his eyes filled with concern. His worry for her made her swoon. He was the most gentle, considerate person she had ever met.

She couldn't bring herself to admit to him the truth, that she was truly awful at dueling. So she just stood there, looking up at him and feeling stupid.

"Let's sit down," he said, sitting on the edge of the table and looking up at her expectantly. She finally moved to sit next to him and she could feel his eyes on her face as she looked down in her lap. "We really don't have to duel; I was just trying to come up with something to do," he started.

Once again, she had rendered him clueless and scrambling for the right words. She looked so immensely sad, and he was terrified that he had upset her in some way. "I'm sorry," he offered.

"You didn't do anything wrong," she said, looking up at him with those sad blue eyes.

"Well, what is it then?" He knit his eyebrows together in confusion.

She sighed and a bright pink blush spread across her cheeks as she looked away from him once more. "It's just…you are so good at dueling..."

So she was afraid of losing face? That was something he could understand; he knew her well enough now to know that her arrogance paralleled even his own. Strangely, it was one of the many reasons his feelings for her had grown. "You can't be the best in everything," he gave her a smile. "You've bested me in many games of wizard's chess and have gotten higher marks on plenty of our exams, especially in Potions." It rather pained him to admit it, even though it was Rosemary and it was true.

She gave him a small smile. "You don't understand. I'm truly dreadful at dueling."

"But you also have plenty of strengths," he said. "You're one of the cleverest people I've ever met." He paused for a moment before adding, "You know, I could give you a few dueling tips sometime."

"Thanks Tom, I might take you up on that sometime." she smiled again, but she still seemed upset and this worried him. He searched his brain for something else to say that would cheer her up.

In the rather uncomfortable silence that settled between them like a thick fog, he thought back to the prefect meeting earlier that day. He wasn't sure quite what to think about the Sweethearts Ball that was coming up in the next month. He wasn't forced to attend, as he hadn't been assigned as a chaperone. It was his tradition to skip such gatherings, as the amount of socialization required was often much too exhausting to bear.

But, as he thought back to Slughorn's words regarding the Head Boy position, he felt as though he was obligated to attend the dance. After all, the selection committee was looking for someone who was involved in various school-wide events and this was the biggest event of the year.

Then there was the entirely separate issue of Rosemary. He assumed that she was planning to go, but he really had no idea. Tom worried that if he asked her, it would be the equivalent of telling her his feelings and he wasn't sure if he was ready for that. Then again, if he didn't ask her, surely she would be asked by someone else. A girl like Rosemary Horton would likely receive several invitations.

In fact, during the prefect meeting, a jealous spark had flared inside him as he saw Warren Cramer, another Ravenclaw sixth-year, turn his head toward her when they found out they wouldn't have to supervise the event. He saw them together frequently; every Monday as he sat by the window in Ancient Runes, he watched as they exited the Herbology greenhouses and walked toward the castle. They were often smiling and laughing, and he quite detested the way that he often caught Cramer looking at her. He recognized the sexual hunger in his eyes, surely craving her delicious, petite body. Tom knew, because he had seen his male peers look at girls this way for years. At least Tom had the decency to hide his attraction for Rose, though she seemed rather oblivious to even Cramer's obnoxious staring.

Tom might go mad if Cramer, or anyone else for that matter, had the opportunity to take her to the dance. He would have to ask her soon, before someone else got to her first. As she sat next to him and he watched as she forced a smile after her confession, he had a wild thought that now was a good a time as any to ask her.

He hesitated again; what if he had drastically miscalculated and she wasn't interested in him at all? Perhaps she wanted to go with Cramer or someone else entirely. This fear felt so tangible, like something was holding onto his vocal chords and preventing him from speaking. His heart beat faster, but he steadied his voice as he asked, "I was wondering, since neither of us has to chaperone, if you'd like to attend the ball with me?"

Tom looked at her nervously, watching for any sort of reaction to spread across her lovely features. He nearly let out an audible sigh of relief when her eyes immediately brightened and she beamed at him. "I'd love to," she said. He couldn't stop himself from smiling back at her; it was one of the happiest moments he'd ever had.

But as happy as he was, he realized that it didn't exactly answer all of his questions. She had answered without hesitation, which he hoped meant that there wasn't anyone else she would rather go with. He still wondered if he had made it clear enough that this was a date and not just another expression of friendship. Unfortunately, everything he came up with to correct this potential misunderstanding seemed painfully awkward. He resolved that he would make his feelings clear at the upcoming dance once and for all, though the cliché of confessing them during the Sweethearts Ball was cringe-worthy enough.

"Well, I'll leave so you can get ready for your meeting," Rose said. "Want to meet in the library again around ten tomorrow morning?"

"Sure. Have a good evening." He smiled at her as she left and stood up. He still had an hour and a half until dueling club would begin, so he wasn't sure why she had left so quickly. He hoped that inviting her to the ball hadn't made things uncomfortable between them somehow. Tom supposed that he would find out the following morning, when they met in the library.

To kill some time while he waited, he returned to his dormitory. Thanks to the upcoming Quidditch game, his roommates were gone for practice. He flicked his wand to undo the complex charm that locked one of his desk drawers, the one that held many of his most prized possessions. He pulled out the light blue scarf and brought it to his nose, breathing in until her scent filled his lungs. Rose had left it in Potions one morning and he had taken it after class, thinking he would return it to her at some point. But she hadn't asked him about it and didn't seem to miss it, so he had kept it for the time being. Sometimes, if he was feeling particularly daring, he would sleep with it close to his face and he imagined what sleeping next to her was like. Waking up earlier than his roommates and returning the scarf to its hiding place before they saw it was a small price to pay.

He was so excited to take her to the ball, but knew that he would get increasingly nervous as it approached. It would be the moment where he would open himself to her and it would be irrevocable. Either she would reciprocate his emotions or they would be outright rejected. He then wondered what would happen if she rejected him. Would their friendship remain, or would it dissolve as quickly as it began? He knew that it would be extremely difficult for him to accept defeat and move on, if he even could.

Even so, she was his only genuine friend and he cared about her in so many ways that weren't purely romantic or physical. Perhaps, he thought, he could force himself to move on if it didn't work out so they could maintain their friendship. As optimistic as this thought was, he knew deep within him that this could never be true. And so he would wait, trying again and again until she was his. He just hoped for his own sanity that it all worked out sooner rather than later.

"You're not my friend. Friends don't look at each other like we do." – Allison Mosher

They are officially going on a date! The next two chapters will be all about the night of the Hogwarts Annual Sweethearts Ball...Big things will be happening so I hope you're excited!(:(:

Enjoy your weeks! I'll be back on Thursday!