It was not first time for Rose to feel bored to tears. She had no work to do except staring the four walls of her room. Locked in her own room by Professor McGonagall for her 'safety', she was dying a slow death due to loneliness.
"If only I can get out of here." she murmurs to herself, gazing at the moon from her window.
She turns around at an empty place on wall where there used to be a door out. After Dumbledore's death, McGonagall put a concealing charm on her room to prevent her to roam in the castle. "It's not safe when Death Eaters are around." she recalls her saying.
Rose knew quite well that the other Professors and Death Eaters couldn't see her. It was pretty much creating problems for all of them until they got used to it. She wasn't much bothered about the Death Eaters but new Head Master. He seems to have found a way to see her, Dumbledore's gold monocle.
Oh, I hate that human, she mumbled angrily, getting off her study table where she was rooted since afternoon.
She settled down on bed. Looking out of only window, she could never expect night to be warmer and more welcoming. It was months ago she saw one and had lost hope of seeing another ever since.
Sighing, she got up and changed into her night gown. She tied up her hair in tight bun when she noticed a reflection of herself in the mirror. A rather weak, pale woman stared back at her. Stepping closer to it, she realized what damage had been done to her in last eleven months.
Rose yawned loudly, making a mental note of catching some more sleep. Pulling sheets over herself, she turned her back to the window and settled for an uneasy sleep.
There was smashing of glass. Taken by surprise, Rose opened her eyes and sat up in her bed. She looked at her room's window, which was perfectly intact.
Wondering if it was something out of her imagination or something that actually happened, she stood on the cold floor beside her bed. She checked everything around her. It looked just fine.
Unable to sleep, she sat on study table's chair. Folding her legs at knee, she rested her heavy head in her palm.
It was quite strange for Rose to hear sounds which were not around her. Maybe she would have got into someone else's mind and heard the glass breaking. She herself wasn't sure of the amount of powers she inherited. It could have happened in other corner of Hogwarts castle or somewhere further.
She wasn't sure when she fell asleep thinking about it.
It was too dark around. So much that she couldn't make out if it was her own self or her life drifted into eternal space.
"Why did I ever betray her?" came a sob out of nowhere.
She turns toward the voice. Standing in front of a tall window, she saw a dark figure of a man. He had his back towards her, probably lost in thoughts. "Who did you betray?" her voice trembled strangely.
"Her. Just her."
The man turned. His face was barely visible in the dull light coming from the window. She thought of walking near the man, when she heard soft knocking behind. She turned back in the darkness and in front in an instant. The man vanished.
She got more confused when a loud knocking reverberated in her head. So loud that clasping hands over ears didn't help either.
Rose woke with a start. The door of her room appeared and someone was rapping it really very hard. She sat still, hearing the door being knocked. She wanted to really thank that person for coming to meet her. A wide smile spread across her face. She raised her right hand and moved it through air. The door unlocked and swung wide open.
McGonagall stumbled into the room. She was breathing hard, her hands on her waist. Her face was flushed and her hair tousled, giving Rose a notion that there must be something seriously wrong in the castle. Thinking that, the smile of face faded.
"Rose…" she said, looking around for the younger witch in a seeming empty room.
Rose got up and walked near her senior Professor. "What is the matter? Everything fine?"
McGonagall turn to the voice, missing her colleague's eyes by good 18 inches. But she was not concerned of eye contact as long as she gave the message. "Voldemort and his Death Eater force has attacked on Hogwarts. Our Patronus shield is taken down and enemy is flooding into castle. We need to buy Potter enough time for him to finish his work."
"What!? So much happened and you didn't call me for help." There were thousands of questions in Rose's mind but she realized soon enough that she is not getting answer to any of them.
"I had to bend the order and now that I have. Help us and protect the students and castle with your powers and skills."
Rose realized her hands were glowing. For a long time, she couldn't explain why it happened until she realized her magical powers reacted according to her thoughts.
"OK" she said, finally. "Give me five minutes. I shall be there."
McGonagall nodded and hurried out of the room. Rose stood rooted to her place and slowly turned to the full size mirror in one of the corners. Her expression turned grim as she thought about the deadliest battle taking right at her home, Hogwarts.
Nevertheless, she couldn't wait to defeat a few Death Eaters who had made her life miserable for a whole year.