I have some news! First of all, I changed my username.(: At this point I'm pretty enamored with this growing story between Rose and Tom so it seemed suitable. Also, surprise, I'm updating a day early! I had a lot of free time to write yesterday and worked on a few chapters. Let's get to it, then:

Swimming and Secrets

February 25, 1944

He watched Rose grimace from across the table as she scanned the page. "Please include an essay of no fewer than 2000 words describing your academic path and activities as a Hogwarts student." She looked at him and added, "Why would they ask us to do that if we have to list out everything we've done earlier in the application?"

Tom gave her an understanding look. Head Boy and Head Girl applications had been passed out to the sixth-years earlier in the day and were due in a week's time. Even Tom, who rarely complained about anything he had to work on for school, had to admit that it was quite a lengthy packet of papers.

"At least we can suffer through it together," she sighed.

"Yes, that's true." He gave her a half smile and tucked a piece of her long, red hair behind her ear.

"Don't you two ever get sick of each other?" It was Cramer, who walked over and sat next to Rose. Granted, it was actually Tom that was out of place at the Ravenclaw table in the Great Hall, but his growing agitation at Warren's presence could not be helped. There was no telling how long he would stay and intrude on what had been a perfectly pleasant evening.

Rose didn't seem to mind, smiling pleasantly and looked to her left at Warren. "Not in the slightest!" she said.

Tom watched as he reached over and picked up the first page of Rosemary's application, which she had filled in with her careful, neat scribbles. "Ah! Your Head Girl application…I'm guessing you're applying too, Riddle?"

Tom loathed the way Cramer talked, as though everything was amusing to him. He nodded, utilizing his vast will-power to maintain his polite composure and prevent any hint of his dislike from showing through.

"Well I should wish you both the best of luck, but this may not be entirely genuine in your case," he told Tom with a smirk. "I'm applying for Head Boy, too."

Hearing this news didn't unnerve Tom in any sense, at least at first. What reason would possibly explain Cramer getting chosen over him? Well, there was Dumbledore, he supposed. He couldn't help but ponder the minuscule possibility that Warren and Rose would be chosen. Aside from the fact that this would mean Tom had lost to someone completely inferior, Rose would have to spend a significant amount of her free time with him. Not to mention the fact that only one door separated the Head Boy and Girl's quarters. It would be impossible to trust Cramer being that close to her on a daily basis and it would surely drive him mad.

"Well, either of you will be a great choice," Rose said. Tom knew she was just saying it to be kind, but he wished she hadn't. It certainly didn't do a thing to calm his nerves. "We should be off," Rose glanced across the table at Tom and then smiled warmly at Warren.

They left the table and started toward the dungeons. Her kind words to Cramer rung in his ears and they seemed to bother him more and more with each second that passed; he could feel himself begin to grow irritable with her. Finally, she said, "I hope you know that I won't be happy unless you're chosen. I was just saying that to be polite."

"Of course," he told her. He tried to hide his residual agitation, but she gave him a look that indicated he hadn't hid it quite well enough.

They reached the entrance to the Slytherin common room and she lingered in the hall. "You don't honestly think he would get chosen over you, Tom." It was a statement, not a question.

He was ashamed with himself for allowing her see his confidence falter for a moment. He hadn't meant to take it out on her, but the words spilled from his mouth too quickly to stop them: "No, I don't, and it's quite insulting that you would even suggest it."

She didn't look fazed as he snapped at her, with the exception of a barely perceptible glimmer of anger that flashed through her eyes. "I apologize," she told him quietly, averting her eyes from his.

Tom immediately regretted his words after seeing her look and realizing that she had clearly taken offense at his tone. He knew that she hadn't meant to agitate him and that he shouldn't have spoken to her that way. The exchange was also a rather painful reminder that he would never be like her, or any of the other purebloods, with their limitless grace and cordiality. Tom could act as polite as he wanted, but beneath the surface he would forever be an outsider, unable to attain such a level of refinement because of his temper. Of course, their temper and inner darkness was something he and Rose actually had in common and he loved her for it. But thanks to her upbringing, Rose was gifted with the natural ability to hide these negative emotions and that is where the difference between them lay. He would have completely missed the anger in her eyes if he wasn't well above average in terms of reading people.

He wanted to say something to fix his damage, but couldn't think of the right words. He muttered the password to the common room and stepped inside, hoping that she would follow behind him. Inside, there were a few younger students scattered throughout the room, but the other Slytherins they knew were nowhere to be found. This was not unusual since the row between Rose and Faye had taken place. It was rather like a custody battle and Rose had won the Slytherin common room, primarily because she had simply refused to begin avoiding it. Ironic, perhaps, considering the fact that Faye had more students from the Slytherin house on her side. However, it was becoming increasingly clear to Tom that Rose was much too willful to cede to the wishes of others. He rather admired her stubbornness and her refusal to make amends on any terms other than her own. She was in complete control of the situation and it was a bit of a thrill to see her in such a position. It was rather nice, anyway; the longer she took to make up with Faye, the more time he could spend with her and the less time he would have to see Avery, Lestrange, and Orion in the common room. He knew it was rather selfish to find a benefit in her situation, but he couldn't help being somewhat thankful.

"Shall we begin our applications?" Rose asked. She seemed to be speaking normally again, so Tom couldn't see the point in bringing up his rudeness toward her.

He nodded and they sat near each other on the couch. He took out his ink and quill, flipping through the pages and deciding to begin with the essay section. The encounter with Warren was an infusion of motivation to his veins; now he was more hell-bent to secure the Head Boy position than ever. He began scribbling furiously.

They worked for another hour or so until Rosemary stood and stretched her arms out long, shaking the writing cramps out of her hands. She smiled at him and leaned over to give him a quick kiss. Even now, when he could steal a kiss from her whenever he pleased, each one still gave him a pleasant, stirring feeling in his stomach. So did her smile, and her lovely laugh. Months ago, when his infatuation of her was at its beginning, he wondered if these simple things would lose their magic. Now this thought was ridiculous; how could that ever be the case?

"Do you know what might make this more enjoyable?" she asked him.

He shook his head, but hoped she was referring to snogging or something along those lines.

"Alcohol," she said plainly, with a grin.

For Merlin's sake, not the gin.

He absolutely loathed it. This must have shown on his face because Rose said, "You don't like drinking, do you?" She shook her head as though she had said something ridiculous. "Nonsense; we just have to find you something you like."

"I don't know…" he said hesitantly. "Shouldn't we continue working on the application? It's due in a week's time, you know."

"We have all weekend! Come on, it'll be fun."

He might have refused, but still felt guilty for the way he had treated her earlier and felt the need to make up for it somehow. "Fine," he sighed.

She gave him a look of satisfaction and excitement, clapping her hands together once. "Let's head to Ravenclaw Tower!"

When they arrived at the empty common room, ten minutes or so later, she sat him down in a chair. "Why don't you start by telling me what you've tried?"

"Your gin," he admitted, though he was a bit embarrassed to voice his inexperience.

"That's it?" Her eyes widened and he wished he hadn't told her anything. "I probably should have guessed; it's not like you ever came down for our parties." He tossed her a playful glare and she added, "Sorry. Well we have a lot to choose from then! This will be fun."

She stood and picked up her wand, walking over to a large bookshelf in the corner of the room. She looked around the room as if to ensure that the common room was indeed empty, placed her wand on the wood of the third shelf, and began muttering quietly to herself. As Tom watched her curiously, the books began to melt away as though they were ice on a hot summer day. When they disappeared completely, he saw rows and rows of glass bottles. Some were completely full; others had only a few drops in the bottom.

Rose turned around and smirked at his look of surprise. "Even though we Ravenclaw are studious, we do know how to have a good time. Unfortunately, with Vince as Head Boy this year, we haven't really had the chance to use any of this. Besides, the Slytherin parties were always so much better." She turned back to the shelf and placed her hands on her hips. "Now, what to begin with…there are so many options." He watched her choose four bottles from the shelf and bring them back to where he was seated. She sat them on the coffee table and picked up the one closest to her. "This is firewhiskey. It's probably the most popular beverage of choice at Hogwarts…this brand, Ogden's Old, is by far the best. It used to be one of my favorites, but I can't stomach it anymore."

She unscrewed the cap and passed it to him. The amber-colored liquid smelled hot and spicy, like cinnamon. He took a tiny sip and it burned his tongue; he made a face and Rose laughed. "You're supposed to drink more than that," she said. "Try not to hold it in your mouth for long. Just swallow it right away; it's better like that."

He obliged, though her suggestion didn't improve things by much. His insides felt like they were on fire.

"Alright, you don't like it," she said. "Let's try this one next: Knotgrass Mead."

He tried it and it was disgustingly cloying; he shook his head and passed it back to her.

"Okay…This next one isn't something you can really take a swig of," she said, holding up the third bottle. This time it held a clear liquid. "It's called purvocatus and it's extremely strong," she warned. "In fact, it's banned in many parts of the world." Attached to the bottom of the cap was a dropper. "Just take one drop. You'll feel it almost instantly."

Tom was already feeling something from the first two drinks, but at least he was beginning to enjoy himself. He placed one drop on his tongue and winced; the burn from the firewhisky was a faint tickle compared to what he felt. She was right about its strength; he felt his head whir and it was hard to focus on her face for a moment. It was perhaps the most relaxed he had ever felt.

He leaned forward and touched her pretty face as she smiled back at him. "I can tell you're feeling it now," she said.

"And what about you?" he asked her, grasping her hand and pulling her close to him. She didn't respond, but tilted her head slightly and kissed him on the mouth. He pulled away and reached for the purvocatus bottle, using the dropper to place one drop of it on his fingertip. He brought it to her lips and she laughed before wrapping her lips around his finger and licking the droplet off with her tongue. It was probably one of the most sexually suggestive things he had ever witnessed and couldn't help but wonder what it might be like to have her soft lips wrapped around, well, a different part of him.

She closed her eyes for a moment and then looked at him again, still smiling. "One more," she said, reaching for the fourth bottle. "This is scotch; single-malt scotch actually."

He drank again and was pleasantly surprised at the taste. It was reminiscent of firewhisky, but was smooth and smoky. Tom could taste vanilla, cardamom and a bit of ginger; it reminded him of the way Rose smelled. He nodded at her. "This one," he said.

Tom took another swig of scotch and Rosemary tried to take it from his hands. "You should slow down." She laughed as he wrestled it back out of her grasp. This was the most playful she had ever seen him and she loved it. Clearly he was well on his way to completely sauced. "You'll be sick and then scotch will be ruined forever, you know," she told him. He was hesitant, but gave it to her, after taking yet another drink. "Tom," she scolded him.

He merely laughed and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her onto his lap.

"I should put everything away before Vince gets back," she said. Rose tried to stand, but his strong arms held her down. "I'll come back, I promise."

Tom looked satisfied and leaned back on the couch. "Not that one," he told her as she lifted the scotch off the table. Rose smirked and set it down again, bringing the other three bottles to their bookshelf hiding place. As she walked, she felt a bit wobblier than usual and knew the purvocatus was beginning to take effect. She felt his eyes on her as she put everything away and brought her wand to the shelf to reverse her incantation. Books covered up the bottles once more and she moved back over to Tom, feeling increasingly buzzed from the tiny droplet she had sucked from his finger.

He smiled as she sat down on his lap again and kissed him on the cheek. Tom kissed her back with enthusiasm. Suddenly, he looked at her and said, "We should go somewhere else."

"Okay…where to?" she asked, rather surprised at his spontaneity.

"Follow me," he told her. She got off his lap so he could stand and he grabbed the bottle of scotch on the way out, hiding it in his robes.

"I'm not closing my eyes this time," she said, remembering their fantastical trip to the Chamber of Secrets.

"Fine, ruin the fun."

As they walked, she noticed that he was having trouble walking in a straight line. She giggled at him when his back was turned and kept close to him so she could try to steady him if he tripped. They walked to the fifth floor of the school and Tom stopped at a door near the statue of Boris the Bewildered.

"Oh my, Tom, what a romantic spot…the prefects' bathroom…" she said sarcastically.

He ignored her and muttered the password. When she followed him inside, she realized they were alone. Tom stepped over to the huge, pool-like tub on the right side of the room and turned the water on. It began to fill quickly and he returned to her. "Care for a swim?" he asked.

"What if someone comes in?" she asked him.

"I'll tell them to leave," he said simply. There was a daring, dangerous look in his eyes that was immeasurably sexy. He had shed his formal persona, revealing a rather bizarre, carefree one. He took the glass bottle from his robe, helping himself to yet another drink before handing it to her. "Now you have to catch up," he said.

She took the bottle and drank the equivalent of one…two…three…four shots. It made her queasy for a moment; this certainly wasn't the gin she had grown so accustomed to. When she finished and set the bottle down, he smirked and said, "That's it."

The pool had finished filling and he walked over to turn it off. Then, without hesitation, he stripped off his clothes leaving only his boxers, and dove into the deep pool. Tom swam to the shallow side so he could stand and asked, "What are you waiting for?"

Rose took off her robe, slid her sweater over her head, and pulled down her skirt, adding it to his heap of clothes, leaving only her knickers on as well. She stepped over to the water and stuck her big toe in, nearly shrieking when she felt how cold it was. "You couldn't have run some hot water with it?!"

"I thought you liked the cold."

"Not that cold…"

He swam over to her. "It's not so bad once you get in." Tom reached up and tried to grab her ankle, but she evaded him.

Tom had that dangerous, mischievous look in his eyes again. He splashed water up at her.

"Tom!" It hit her feet and she hurried away from the pool so he couldn't try it again.

He laughed and said, "I'll warm you up if you come in."

It was tempting, but Rose crossed her arms over her chest and said stubbornly, "No!"

He grasped the edge of the pool and hoisted himself out of the water. It dripped off of him and for a moment, they stood there looking at each other.

Oh, bollocks.

She ran for the pile of clothes and he chased her. Rose started giggling uncontrollably from the excitement and the booze. "You're completely mad!"

His long strides caught up to her easily, even though he was laughing too. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind her and pressed his wet, frigid body against hers. "No, I'm drunk," he said. "Thanks to you."

As soon as he finished speaking, he picked her up and tossed her into the pool as she let out a tiny scream. The water was cold, but she had to admit that it felt rather nice. She hadn't realized how warm the scotch had made her. He jumped into the water behind her and pulled her close again, spinning her around to face him and planting his mouth on hers. She could taste the scotch on him and it suddenly reminded her of the scotch she had smelled in their Amortentia earlier that month.

"See? Not so bad is it?"

She certainly didn't want to admit to him that he was right. "Well that was rude, Mr. Riddle." She splashed him in his face and he gave her an appalled look.

"No, that was rude, Miss Horton!" He splashed her back and suddenly they were waging a full-on water war.

In the commotion, she accidentally swallowed some the wrong way and began coughing. The splashing stopped immediately and he swam over to her. "Are you alright?" he asked her, his eyes filled with concern. She should have let it go then. It could have been because she was now completely hammered, but she felt like being difficult.

She coughed once more and she splashed him again. He looked shocked, then intimidating. Instead of splashing her back, he grabbed her arms and forced her against the wall of the pool. "I dislike being tricked very much. You shouldn't take advantage of the fact I care about you." If he didn't say it in such a teasing voice, she might have been genuinely frightened, or at least felt guilty.

Tom's body was so close to hers. One of his hands reached around to the back of her head and pulled slightly on her hair so she bared her neck for him. His lips glided over her wet skin and she couldn't help but let out a small moan. She loved experiencing his masculine dominance in the way he touched and spoke to her.

Suddenly, he stopped and looked up at her. "I think I'd like to lie down for a moment."

It was her turn to look concerned. "Of course," she said. "Are things spinning?" He nodded and got out of the pool as she followed him. "Try to stare at a point on the ceiling," she instructed.

He laid on the tile floor and did as she said while she walked to the corner of the room and got a couple of towels along with a glass of water. Rose returned to him and put one of the towels under his head. Her instincts to care for him had clearly kicked in.

"Thank you," he told her. He watched as Rose dried her hair on a towel and wiped the dripping water from her body. "Come here," he commanded. She knelt down and he pulled her so she was lying on top of him and her head rested on his chest.

"Do you feel sick?" she asked, running her fingers gently through his wet hair.

He shook his head. "I feel dizzy; it's quite nice to lie down."

"You should drink some water." She raised her head from his chest to reach for the glass and realized her own dizziness had kicked in. Rose sipped a bit of it before handing it over to him and telling him that he needed to finish the glass.

He obeyed her once more and returned his head to the towel behind it. "Everything felt very pleasant for a while," he said.

She smiled and drew circles on his chest with her fingers. "That's how it always goes. The trick is consuming the perfect amount so this doesn't happen."

"I truly detest Professor Dumbledore," Tom said suddenly.

Rose was caught completely off-guard and hadn't a clue what to say. The statement had come entirely from nowhere and she wasn't sure what to make of it, seeing as she personally didn't have a problem with Dumbledore. "Why is that?" she couldn't help but ask.

Tom carried on as though he hadn't heard her question: "If I am not made Head Boy because of him, I swear that I will-"

"Tom, you will be made Head Boy," Rose interjected. After her comment earlier had upset him, she thought it best not to let his mind dwell on the possibility of failure. She raised her head from his chest and moved so she was lying beside him. Then she brought a hand to his cheek and slowly turned his head toward her, looking into his eyes. His usual confidence faltered momentarily and in that moment, he looked startlingly vulnerable. An odd feeling of happiness and hope washed over her. Not because he was upset, of course, but because she felt that he was finally beginning to trust her with his most hidden thoughts. She felt closer to him than ever before and it was all rather strange when she realized how she desperately wanted him to rely on her. Rose truly yearned to comfort him if he was upset; she would take care of him if he would only let her. She was filled with hope in this moment because she had finally been given the chance. Her only hope was that her words would be enough. "You will be chosen," she repeated firmly.

"You can use my skin to bury your secrets in and I will settle you down. And at my own suggestion I will ask no questions." – Fiona Apple

I know, I know...I wrote another sappy chapter. I think it was an important one to write, though, to show the trust growing between them. One of my biggest pet peeves with fanfiction is when writers spend all this time bringing two characters together and then everything is happy and perfect as soon as they are. The beginning of a relationship is almost always a bit of a struggle; there is still so much to figure out, given the entirely new dynamic. All I can say is that you had better enjoy these moments because after their sixth year is over, things won't be nearly as chipper!(;

A very special shout-out to NoneOfYourBusiness101 this time! Your continued support is soooo appreciated!

I try not to ask for reviews often because I know it can get annoying, but seriously guys, please leave them. It's actually really difficult to know if I'm taking the story in the right direction without them. Plus, if I get lots of them, I promise I'll put out updates even more frequently! Follows and favorites are also quite appreciated.(:

Thank you for reading!